St. Tammany farmer., 1903-05-02

reached up by way of the covenant
promises of God and obtained the
needed protection and help. To be
able to claim the God of Jacob as our
refuge is to put confidence in a God
Who has met every human need and
given protection in times of greatest
darkness and danger. This is the
kind of God we need! This is the
kind of God we have!
~ UT 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-
tices, in their worldly-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 in
the flesh that which has begun in the
spirit, and are walking with the
world and not with God. 1t means
much to say, "the Lord of Hosts is
with u.s." 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 is linked with
human weakness in invincible union?
He who by threefold act of will and
heart has turned towards God. Las &C.
cepted Him and is walking with Him.
It 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 God
moves, and right conduct will keep
the soul in step with the Divine will,
SO that it can confidently claim, ''the
Lord of Hosts is with me; the God OF
Jacob is my refuge" This three
runged ladder must be used by saint
and sinner alike in gaining the realm
in which God moves.
l So Sv,S Svh nh hn
| 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 az last saved, $50 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
knocks, and the sinner is told to call
upon the Lord while He is near. But
neither saint nor sinner can make the
boast Of the text unless his attitude,
his choice and his conduct are right.
ing of it's broken relationship with God
With the sinner it is the beginning OF
new experience, in which the atti'
tude of the hehrt is toward God, the
choice for the first time is made fol
God and the conduct is with God.
GHE sinner cannot share in the tri-
" umphant strain of our text until
his heart has turned towards God, un'
til 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, il
taken. places the soul at the side OF
God, and conduct is the music of the
life which enables it to keep its steT
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 is
with u.s." unless he quits his worldii
ness and turns towards God; unless
he "seeks first the Kingdom of Goo
and His righteousness" and unless he
lives in his life the religion which hi
processes with his lps. The church
cannot claim its right to these words
if it's attitude is not steadfastly to-
wards God and away from the allure
ments and enticements of the world;
if it chooses fairs, and suppers, and
entertainments, and catch-penny at
fairs of every kind to raise money
and interest the people it seeks tc
reach. instead of preaching the Gospe
of repentance and salvation, and keep
ing itself unspotted from the world
The words may be beautifully in
scribed upon the walls of church
the congregation which resorts thithe1
NAV read them over confidently sc
as to arouse false sense of Divine
nearness and cooperation, but me-
thinks in some churches at least there
are social and festival occasions wher
God is very far away, and the Devi
himself makes bold to come IN ane
read over the words and laugh at the
falsehood they express.
TOW may we know that 1.-THE Lore
n of Hostsis with us?" By testing
before God our true attitude towards
Him, by searching out underlying mo
tives when exercising the po0er OF
choice, by turning the searchlight OF
Gods Word upon our lives and discov
ering the sins Of the inner life ane
the outward conduct, and by the evil
) dences of experience. Having reas
sured the heart by the threefold test
ing that "the Lord of Hosts is witt
u.s." then with Hezekiah you can con
fidently wait until experience proves
that God was indeed with you. 1t may