Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1916-05-13
Turns to the Gentiles.

During the week following his first
sermon the city was stirred by the dis
cussions concerning the message of
the missionaries. delivered the preced-
ing Sabbath in the synagogue. for the
Jews had left the place of divine wor-
ship filled with anger. while many of
the gentiles had been moved by the
spiritual message to accept the word
of God as preached by Paul 1t re-
suited in such multitudes fiocking to
the synagogue the following Sabbath
that the Jews were filled with envy,
and in anger one of the rulers tried
TO stem the rising tide of Christianity
by preaching sermon against Paul
and his heretical doctrine. They were
angry. not only because Paul made the
gentle an equal with the Jew in the
matter of the gospel. but also because
they saw in this new doctrine the de-
struction of their exclusive and dis
ttnguiShed claim to be the peculiar
favor of God.
The opposition stirred up the apos-
ties. who preached with great boldness
of spirit the word of God. The gospel
having been preached to the Jews and
rejected by them, the apostles saw the
will of Jehovah directing them by the
attitude Of the gentiles to turn to the
latter with the message of hope that
carried judgment upon the Jewish peo-
pie. who had refused to accept the
Christ, who came to save them from
their sins. From the days of Moses
God had told the Jews His purpose
and program of extending grace, I'M
merited favor, toward the gentle
world; Jehovah had placed Israel ito
be a light to the gentiIes, that thou
shouldst be for salvation to the ends
of the earth" In turning to the gem
tiles with the gospel of the Messiah
the apostles were literally obeying the
commandments Of God.
The gladness OF the gentiIes over
the gospel message convinced the apos-
ties of their duty to preach to the gem
tiles the good news that as many as
set themselves in order would be saved.
The closing part of the forty-eighth
verse has been stumbling block to
many student of the gospel who has
thought that IL taught that only a linn
tied number would be saved because
they have misunderstood the word or
dained, which means set themselves
in order God has ordained that who
soever believeth in Christ Jesus shall
be saved The Jews OF Antioch refused
TO believe and the apostles turned to
the gentiles.
The results of their decision to carry
the word OF God to the gentiles can
easily be traced in the advancements
made by Christianity in the develop
ment Of the churches, colleges and
ormations and revolutions that have
advanced the cause of civil and re-
ligious liberty. The hope of the world
that IL now in the midst of the great
est possible transformation in its his
tory is in the same gospel that Paul
preached that day. 1t has made Ameri-
ca great. II will save our land in the
crisis that now confronts us as ma
ton if we Will see to it that our light
shall shine forth the glories of the
Christ. proclaiming to al men and ma
tons in their struggle that Jesus is
the light of the world
! If America will respond to tho oppor-
tunity, given to her as great Chris
tian country in this hour, they will
save the world and bring permanent
peace by their decision to carry out
the commandment of Christ, contained
in His great commission, to preach the
gospel to every creature. 1t we fail, as
| Israel did. then we, too, shall he re-
| iected because of our failure to do the
! will of God. who has called US to be
"a light for the gentiles. that thou
| shouldest be for salvation unto the
! ptteEmost part af tha-eaxth.