Fulton County tribune. (Wauseon, Ohio) 1883-1925, 1918-07-26

tween PaufS doc
trine of faith and
| .sz James doctrine
- of works. The
kind of faith Paul insisted upon pre-
duces the kind of works James re-
quired. However, we believe Paul re-
fers in the text to the very beginning
of faith, as when Jesus says: This
is the work of God, that We believe on
him whom he hath sent (John 9 ~
How Is a Soldier or Sailor Saved?
There is great need of insisting on
the necessity of faith in Christ to the
beginning of the Christian life. Men
have always been prone to put their
own efforts in the place of Christ ana
faith in him. This temptation arises
today in a new form In the case OF our
brave soldiers and sailors. It is easy
to believe the lie of Satan. that if they
die for their country it assures them
a safe entrance into heaven. We
would not say one word which would
suggest lack of appreciation for the
heroic deeds of our fighting men, But
it is no kindness to delude them with
a false hope, especially when solid
hope in Christ is offered so freely by
God. 1t requires more than physical
death to atone for sin. Even in the
case of our Lord, his physical suffer
ings on the cross, dreadful as they
were, were not the chief element in
his atoning work. His cry, MY God,
my God, why hast thou forsaken meY'
suggests an anguish of soul which we
cannot fathom. Indeed he seems to
have experienced something of that
sense of desertion by God which en-
ters into the final doom of the lost
But now, having spoken of that
faith in Christ which begins the Chris
tian life, Paul goes on to speak of the
''labor of love-" Love tolls on when
faith might pause.
The New Testament Hope.
Finally, he refers to the patience OF
hope;" that is, its endurance under
trial. Even love ceases to labor if its
task seems endless, and here is where
the value of hope is seen. Especially
does the hope of Christ's personal
! coming inspire patience, and doubtless
it is this hope which is here referred
to- Indeed, Bishop Moule maintains
that wherever t'hope" is used in the
Greek Testament with the article (as
it is here) it refers to that blessed
hope" of Christ's appearing.
The apostle speaks of the same ele-
ments of the Christian life in the re
naming verses of the text. For eU.
ample, he says: "Ye turned to God
from idols;" to turn to an unseen God
from idols, which they could see, was
a "work of faith" Then the Thessa-
lonians began ''to serve the living and
true God" which corresponds to the
s'labor of love" Finally, they learned
"to wait for his Son from heaven
corresponding to "the patience o.
hope"
A Lack in Christians of Today.
Converts in the present day exhibit
the first two elements, ''the work o.
faith" and "the labor of love-" bu
seem deficient usually in the last eIe
ment, "the patience of hope We d
not deny they have a hope of a futur'
life, but they do not usually learn 't'
wait for his Son from heaven" whicl
was the distinctive hope of the earl.
church.
Our conviction in this matter 1
borne out by the testimony of grea
New Testament scholar. Prof Jane
! Denney of Scotland. He says: 81
(the second coming) was the great OBJ
ject of Christian hope. Christians no
only believed Christ would com
again; they not only expected him t
come: they were eager for his coming
How long, o Lord?' they cried in thei
distress. Come, Lord Jesus, com
quickly was their prayer" He adds
"It is matter of notoriety that hop
In this sense does not hold its ancien
place in the heart of the church.
Discovery of Some Chinese Christians
But it does not require the learning
of the scholar to see the place occu
pied by Christ's coming in the hope 0
the early Christians. The simples
reader of the New Testament mus
perceive this A missionary fron
China reported that all the nativ
Christians in her district were wait
ing for Gods Son from heaven. Som
one inquired who had taught them thi
doctrine. "No one" she replied, s'the
have the New Testament in their hand
and have seen it for themselves
Why has this hope been so largel
lost in the church? Several answer
might be given, but one is that ther
has been a misapprehension in th
whole matter. The coming of Chris
is associated in most minds with jude
ment and wrath, and we naturally
not dwell upon it as so conceived. Bu
there is certainly something wron
with this conception, for the New Tes
lament speaks of the appearing of tn
Savior as "that blessed hope" Tru,
Christ's coming will bring judgmen
and wrath to his foes, but our tex
tells us that Gods Son will deliver hi
people from 'the wrath to come.
Hence, as Philippians 8 20 puts it, W
'1ook for the Savior" rather than tn
Judge, and certainly we should b
among those who 'love his appearing
Kindness of Christmas.
The kindness of Christmas is I'll
kindness of Christ. To know tn,
God so loved us as to give us his Sc