Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1904-01-30
CHRISTIAN ENDEAVOR HOUR

CHRISTIAN ENDEAVOR HOUR
Conducted by
GRACE LIVINGSTON HILL.
For January 81.
Topic: EVERY CHRISTIAN CALLED TO BE A
M1SSIONARY.-Luke 24:4449
a.. And He said unto them, These are the words
which spake unto you, while was yet with you,
that all things must be fulfilled, which was written
In the law of Moses, and in the prophets, and in
the psalms. concerning me.
4o. Then opened He their understanding. that
they might understand the Scriptures.
48. And said unto them, Thus 1t is written, and
thus 1t beloved Christ to suffer- and to rise from
the dead the third day.
A; And that repentance and remission of sins
should be preached in His name among all nations,
beginning at Jerusalem.
AZ. And We are witnesses Of these things.
49, And, behold, send the promise of my Father
upon you; but tarry .ye in the city of Jerusalem,
until We be endued with power from on high
The Christians are pretty we'll divided
into three classes on this question-those
who are trying with all their might to
be missionaries for Christ, those who are
unwisely overzealous and are doing more
harm than good and those who are not
even trying to witness at all.
OF the large body of true Christian mis-
sionaries, at home and abroad, in public
activity or quietly witnessing in private
life, we need not to sEeak here. Our for
mer studies of missions and our knowl-
edge of the saints of God tell US about
them. Perhaps we may even dare to
humbly number some of ourselves among
that class.
OF the overZealous we shall speak later
But by far the larger class, if one can
judge at all from appearances, are those
who are not trying to be missionaries at
all and do feel Thorn calv col To
that work. Indeed they open their eyes
wide when you suggest such a thing and
say it is impossible, that they never could
do anything in that line.
And yet would they like to admit the
alternative? Has Christ touched them in
no way? Have they never witnessed or
experienced His love. His power, His COM
fort His companionship? Is Christ moth
touched their hearts in any way? If not,
why do they call themselves Christians? If
He has, why do they not. by the very
words of this scripture. feel themselves
called to be witnesses of what they have
seen and heard? How can they get away
from the duty? They must, if they will
but stop to think find themselves subpoe-
naed as witnesses in the worlds great trial
of Christ today
"And we are witnesses of these thingsw
Is there not a silent command in that SEN
tence to every true follower Of the Christ?
Let us see what the message that is to be
Christian, has 1t never helped you in some
time of suffering to know that Christ suf-
fered, too, and for you, and that He knows
what you have to bear? Then witness of
that You have no right to let the world
scott at your Savior, who suffered for you
and you not take His part in SO much. The
resurrection! Has it never thrilled you
with joy when you stood by the open grave
of dead friend to remember the resurrec-
ton? Do you believe it fully? Has your
heart any proofs of this glorious doctrine?
| Then witness of it. There are aching hearts
| who do not believe and who would give the
world to know what you feel about it. Re-
| pentance and remission of sins! Surely
| some of you who think you can do no mis-
| sionary work have experienced this, the
| great weight of sin committed, and the
sweet relief when you at last confessed to
Christ, and felt His blessed forgiveness.
| You went on SHINING more, perhaps, but
| you have not forgotten the time when He
forgave, and you have been forgiven since
again and again. Couldn't you just tell
| that to some companion of yours who is on
| the downward road and going on in 1t far
| Their every day, not SO much because he
| wants to now, as because he thinks there is
! no use going back? Muster up the courage
| to let him know that Christ forgives. You
have to. You are witness that He can
| forgive. You are in honor bound not to
| let Christ go without witness before this
| friend of yours.
| Suppcse YOU feel yourself such a poor,
| weak Christian that in looking over your
| experience nothing stands out decidedly
enough for you to feel you have anything
| of yourself to witness about. You hardly
know. why you call yourself a Christian. 1t
| just seems to have happened to you like
| good many other things in your life with
| which you had little to do. But think!
| Perhaps you are Christian because YOU
have been brought up that way, your
| father and grandfather and good old grand
| mother believed that way and SO you fol-
| lowed. All! Then you can witness of
| T., ct ano Tow
| be, you stood by your grandfather, as he
| looked for the last time on this earth be-
| fore going home to heaven. Maybe you
| saw the illumination of glory on his face
and heard his trusting words, and you can
| tell some one how Jesus was able to carry
| one man through life, and did not desert
| him even in the valley of the shadow of
death.
Yes, there are good people who are held
back from such witnessing because of
those who do it unwsely, and often do
| much more harm than good. But there is
| a verse in our lesson which perhaps gives
| the secret of their poor success, and leaves
| no room for excuse for any one. There is
| a qualification for this missionary work
which is often forgotten and without which
| it is useless to start out: The royal COM
| mission and equipment come only in one
/ way: "But tarry, ye, in the city of Je-
| rusalem, until we be endued with power
| from on high Alas, that so many have
/ started blithely out to do the Lords work
| without so much as turning aside to Je-
| rusalem, of If they have been there is has
been merely hurried kneeling and asking
| for the promise and then going quickly out
| to preach in their own way to all they
! chose to speak with. The tarrying for the
| penecostal power means much. 1t means
| a daily, hourly praying, until the power
| from on high has been received. Then. and
| then only, can servant of the Lord Jesus
Christ safely trust himself to speak. and
witness of Christ; for how else will he
know what should be said. and how else
] will he know to whom the Lord wants his