Ceredo advance. [volume] (Ceredo, W. Va.) 1885-1939, 1903-04-01

children when they are In distress
and trouble. To speak of God as tho
God of Jacob. to claim Him as our
refuge. instantly inspires confidence,
for despite all of Jacobs meanness.
and sin and wrong-doing, his faith
reached up by way of the covenant
promises of God and obtained the
needed protection and lelp. To be
able to claim the God Of Jacob as our
refuge is to put confidence i'm God
Who has met every human need and
given protection in times of greatest
darkness and danger. This Is the
kind of a God we needl This is the
kind of a God we have!
0UT not every one can claim that
y "the Lord OF Hosts is with us;
the God of Jacob is our refuge" Even
Christians oftentimes cannot make
this proud boast, because sin has
drawn them from Gods side, and be-
cause, when in difficulty and distress,
they have turned to human aid in
stead of looking To God. Not all
churches that are founded in the
name of the Lord of Hosts can claim
in truth that He is with them. Many
churches in their methods and prac-
tees, in their world minded activi-
ties, are not in the blessed company
of the One Whose name they bear.
They may feel that they are further
ing the cause of Christ's kingdom,
but they are seeking to perfect i'm
the flesh that which has begun in the
spirit, and are walking with the
world and not with God. IL means
| much to say, 1.-The Lord of Hosts is
with us" Who may make that claim?
How may one know that the Lord OF
Hosts is with him? Let us consider
these all-important questions.
First, who may claim that the Lord
OF Hosts Is standing with them. that
the omnipotent power i linked with
human weakness i'm invincible union 4?
He who by threefold act of will and
heart has turned towards God. rs ac-
cepted Him and is walking with Him
/ 1t is a matter of attitude towards
! God, of choice between self or God,
and OF conduct following the choice
Right attitude towards God will al
ways discover His dwelling place;
! right choice Will always place human
feet on the pathway along which G Cd
moves, and right conduct will keen
the soul in step with the Divine Will.
so that il can confidently claim. "the
Lord Of Host is with me: the God Of
Jacob is my refuge" This three
runged ladder must be used by saint
and sinner alike in gaining Tie rea I'm
in which God moves
There is n sense in which the Lord
is always with the soul which has been
born again, whether that soul is liv-
ing in obedience to His will or not
| for He knows them that are His-and
none shall be lost, even though they
are at last saved, 80 as by fire" There
Is sense in which the Lord is always
with the unregenerate soul of man,
! for Scripture declares that God stands
at the door of the human heart and
I knocks, and the sinner is told to call
upon the Lord while He is near. But
J neither saint nor sinner can make the
boast of the text unless his attitude,
his choice and his conduct are right.
In the case of the saint il is the renew.
ing of its broken relationship with God.
With the sinner il is the hegirning of
n new experience, in which the atti.
tude OF the heart is toward God, the
choice for the first time is made for
God and the conduct is with God.
/ nHE sinner cannot share in the TIT
/ " umphart strain OF our text until
| his heart has turned toward God. un.
| ill his will has been surrendered and
"a new motive rules in his life. Atti-
tude is the light which shows where
God is; choice is the step which. if
taken, places the soul at the side of
God, and conduct is the music Of the
! life which enables IL to keep its step
with the Divine will. The Christian
cannot stand in the temple of God
and sing with the Hezekiahs and
Isaiahs that "the Lord OF Hosts IL
with US" unless he quits his worldIi
ness and turns towards God; unless
he 'seeks first the Kingdom of COD
and His righteousness" and unless he
lives in his life the religion which he
| processes with his bps. The church
cannot claim its right TO these words
| IL its attitude is not steaGfastly to.
wards God and away from the allure.
| ments and enticements Of the world;
| IL it chooses fairs. and suppera and
| entertainments and catch-penny af
fairs Of every kind 10 raise money
and interest the people ii seeks to
reach, instead Of preaching the Gospel
of repentance and salvation, and keep.
| ing itself unspotted from the world
| The words may be beautifully in.
! Scribed upon the walls Of n church
the congregation which resorts thither
may read them over confidently SC
as 90 arouse a false sense Of Divine
nearness and cooperation, but me.
thinks in some churches at least there
are social and festival occa sions when
God Is very far away, and the Devil
| himself makes bold TO come in and