The Prince George's enquirer and southern Maryland advertiser. (Upper Marlborough, Md.) 1882-1925, 1919-04-25


stress the expectation of the triumph
of the gospel, which they believe will
usher in millennial blessedness.
Neither of these, we venture to sug.
gest was the distinctive hope of the
early church. A competent scholar,
Bishop Handley Moule, believes that
wherever hope" is used in the Greek
Testament as in this text, it refers to
that blessed hope" of Christ's re-
turn. It was for that return the
early church was looking, above all
things. AS the tenth verse of 1 Thes-
salonians 1 asserts, the Thessalonians
turned to God from idols to serve
the living and true God land to wait
for his Son from heaven"
Prof. James Denney, a wel1-known
scholar, says the second coming twas
the great object of Christian hope.
Christians not only believed Christ
would come again; they not only ex-
pected him to come; they were eager
for his coming. How long, o LordT
they cried in their distress. Come
prayer" He adds pertinently: ut
is matter of notoriety that hope in
this sense does not hold its ancient
place in the heart of the church"
Great loss has accrued because Of
the eclipse of the expectation Of
Christian service, for at the coming
Of Christ believers expected to receive
their reward. I Thessalonians 2:19-20
reads: For what is our hope or
JOY, or crown Of rejoicing? Are not
even We in the presence of our Lord
Jesus Christ at his coming? For We
are our glory and JOY"
"The crown of rejoicing" is the soul
winners chaplet of laurel, to be be-
slowed by the King when he appears.
Other crowns are spoken Of in scrip
ture and will be awarded on that day !;
among them the 'incorruptible crown"
the "crown of life" the "crown Of
Righteousness" and the "crown Of
glory" Christians do not Ego to
their reward" at death, but it comes
with the coming of the Lord. He says:
Behold, / come quickly, and my re-
ward is with me, to give every man
according as his work shall be-" (Rev.
% :12.)
Christ's coming was an incentive to
holiness in the early church. l Thes-
salonians 3:12-13 reads: "And the
Lord make you to increase and
abound in love one toward another,
and toward all men, even as we do
toward you: to the end he may
establish your hearts unblemished in
holiness before God, even our Father,
at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ
with all his saints"
He is praying for love that will
be expressed in holiness, and that they
may be confirmed unblamable in holt
ness, not only now, but at the coming
of the Lord. What a day of mani
festation that will be-before God
our Father, in the presence of the
Lord Jesus, before all the saints! Is
it not clear that a man in whose heart
the hope of Christ's coming is living
power, will purify himself even as
Christ is pure q John 3:2-3)?
The following words of DR.. Robert
E. Speer suggest the practical value
Of this hope: II want to speak this
word to the man who would be free
from unclean personal sin: The next
time the temptation comes, fix your
mind on the hope of his coming. No
man can easily do an unclean and
unholy thing expecting at that mo-
ment that Jesus Christ might come.
Can I cross the threshold of the ques-
tionable place? Can 1 read the ques-
tionable book? Can l be found with
that questionable story on my lips?
Can 1 be caught on the verge Of that
sin if am expecting that at that very
moment Jesus Christ may Gomez?
The Lords coming brought comfort
to the early Christians when their
loved ones fell asleep. Our space
permits us only to quote I Thessalo-
mans 5:13-18. but no comment is
needed: "But I would not have you
to be ignorant, brethren, concerning
them which are asleep, that We sorrow
not, even as others which have no
hope. For If we believe that Jesus
died and rose again, even so them also
which sleep in Jesus will God bring
with him. For this we say unto you
by the word of the Lord, that we which
are alive and remain unto the com.
Ing of the Lord shall not prevent (pre-
cede) them which are asleep. For
the Lord himself shall descend from
heaven with a shout, with the voice OF
the archangel, and with the trump OF
God; and the dead in Christ shall rise
first"