The Pleasantville press. (Pleasantville, N.J.) 1912-1929, 1922-12-13

thoughts and intents of the hearts OF
men are the apprehended prisoners on
trial. AS for the prisoners, they are
very significant ones. The name of one
Is Thought, and his given name Heart,
and the name of the second is Otter
ally) Outboilings; his given name is
Heart, too. There they stand, Heart
Thoughts and Heart Outboilings on
trial. And there Is the Judge, the
Word of God.
To say that these two live behind
closed doors or to pronounce them her.
mits is to speak too mildly. Doors?
They certainly live within the within.
Looks, gestures, gaits, words, these are
all further out than they. These are
exposed to view. But Heart Thoughts
and Heart Outboilings, who can see
them? We know what results from
them when it all appears In the life
n lives, but to see back and In we
cannot.
1t Is there that God sees, hence His
Word searches like a sharp sword
there. What folly to try to persuade
ourselves that because men smile on
us we must therefore be happy. And
what elaborate folly for us to think
that because men cannot see our secret
sins therefore we may cover them with
our thousands of devisingst
The Bible Truth not only declares
that all is seen and known by Him
who gave 1t, but the Bible will ask us
concerning our doings-"whyT' 1t will
say, "What was In your thought and
hearth If we say, LET the deed pass
at face value" the Bible answers that
there is no face value established I'M
til the deed has been measured by h
motive. The Bible stands us in the
courtroom and judges that motive.
Mems accIaims melt away In the air
and mems slaps IN the back fall into
palsy while this Continues In full
strength and vtUr. "WpyT Why did
you do it? Open 70 tho Doors, exposed
is the secrecy and stripped is the form
when the fingers Of that word "why"
proceed to work.
And we may rightly ask, "Why
should I have to answer why concern
ing my doings" The answer is re-
peatedly given in Gods Word. Sum-
ming up the repeated answers you get
this: Mans business Is to live to the
glory of God for this he was created
and redeemed. We annot look about
and gather to ourselves some justifica-
ton of our doings from nature. Neither
her songs nor her signs can justify
us. We cannot surpass the efforts of
those about us and then, because of
that, be justified. How do WI know
how hard they strivef We cannot
make money and give 1t and thereby
be justified. The very making of 1t
and the result of the giving is too OBJ
scure for us to trace it. We cannot as
semble our records for cheer and
buoyancy and thereby be justified. We
know that there is a mirth of madness.
"Why?' says the Word. What did you
intend? Had you 'set the Lord al
ways before your face?" Had He, so
often crowded out, been accorded the
place of Judge through His Word?
Men may paint the old car and
make it look newer; they may groom
Tue OIu uOISc anu hiuhO ann ACVh
younger; but the Bible Is "yea yea"
and may nay" Even the reason for
ones acts must be up to face value
there. This can be while men condemn
you or this can be If men praise you,
but If this is wanting God cannot ap-
prove of you. 1t was heart-hardness
that made it impossible for those men
who had seen the multitude fed to es-
cape confusion when they saw Jesus
master the stormy waves The "single
eye," the %clean-cut determination not
to try to 'serve two masters" h wit
ness straight from the shoulder that
there is none other name given among
men whereby we can be saved" and
the 'pure heart"-such, and such
only, consist with right thinking. And
these thrive when the outboilings of
the heart accord with Gods Word.
Jesus Christ came not only to make
the fountain clean with His cleansing
blood, but to deal e~ffectually with the
very springing Of Its waters.