Evening star., 1923-11-24

MlSSloHS Hdu tneiF Des innings IN
the heart of Jehovah. His love for
the world found expression in mis-
sionary efforts to save men. His
snirit inspired the prophets, psalm
lists and the outstanding personal
tiles of the Old Testament dispensa-
tion whose lives, labor and lessons
revealed to Israel Gods missionary
Jesus appeared among men as a
missionary commissioned to save the
world. lie proclaimed the gospel of
Gods love for men and His longing
to save by His evangelistic, medical
and educational missionary work
those who were lost.
Christ Jesus saved men so that He
could fill them with His passion for
the lost. A young girl about twelve
years of age recently applied for
membership in my church. She was
asked If she knew what God wanted
her to make out Of her life. Her an
swer was, mo, but l am going to be
a missionary" In reply to the query
why she wished to me missionary
she answered, Because / am sorry
that they do not know about Jesus"
No officer or member questioned her
she had demonstrated conclusively
by her answer her love of her Lord,
who made missions the fundamental
idea OF the Christian faith. In His
passion for the lost the Son OF GOD
Insisted that His disciples should
possess His spirit and His word, so
that they would carry on world
wide missionary work.
Our Lord did not summon His fol-
lowers to undertake missionary serv-
ice until He had revealed unto them
the fatherhood of God. The mission
airy idea is inseparable from the true
idea OF Cod The Masters mission
airy commands were In harmony with
His teachings and life. While Ills
ministry was confined, except in
few cases to His own nation. he
sought to make Jerusalem a base
from which His gospel could be sent
to the ends OF the earth. While He
came to save the world, Jesus de-
voted all His efforts to prepare a
group whom He could charge with
His spirit so that the whole world
might be won through the efforts or
those who had been filed with His
vision. He sought to impress upon
the disciples the fact that 'the field
is the world" He taught them that
this gospel of the kingdom shall be
preached in the whole inhabited
earth for testimony unto all the
nations"
"The imperialism of Jesus" had a
religious aim. While the results or
missionary work can be traced IN
changed social order. the Lord sum
moned His followers to attempt a
distinctively spiritual work. Back
of His industrial, itinerate, evangel-
istic. medical and educational work
was a religious purpose that men
might know God, understand the way
of salvation, become in their daily
life true sons of the Heavenly Father,
seeking first the kingdom OF God and
His Righteousness, that men might
have life and have it more abun-
dantly, that they might be helped
through the aid of the Holy Spirit
and be transformed through the
power of love into the likeness OF
the eternal and everything God. This
can be seen in the Lords interces-
sorry prayer that John has given TO
US in the seventeenth chapter OF his
gospel. This most precious frag-
mcnt of the past presents an unan-
swerahle argument concerning the
deity OF Christ and reveals the spirit
ual character that He desired His
impress the world with His spirit
and life.
In the greatest prayer that ever
was handed down TO man we find
Jesus pleading fer His disciples that
they should be protected. be filled
with the spirit of unity. and conse-
created for a worldwide missionary
service. These words made n lasting
impression upon the Masters follow
ers, who previously had evidently
heard the Lord plead for the world.
and who. in His final public prayer,
prayed not for the world, but for
themselves. They were spiritually
separated from the world, even as
Christ was not of the world. II was
this spiritual fitness that qualified
e. no.. h aflyE-- -T.F1 ear-TG. n
His faith. Christ's 'imperlalism"
was a spiritual one. The foundation
of His plan for the conquest OF all
nations was based upon His commits
sion. He placed the responsibility to
win the. world upon His followers.
missionary like His Lord, who, in
His high priestly prayer said. las
thou didst send Me into the world,
even so l sent them into the world"
work. Their mission was to be iden-
teal with the mission of the Son Of
God, who, in order to remove any
possible mistake about the purpose
possible mistake about the purpose
tion of His earthly ministry, stated
His program to His disciples again in
His great commission.
Matthew records the conference
held by the Lord and his disciples in
Galilee. While the account is frag-
mentary it takes for granted tIat
many other events and occurrences
took place which were omitted be.
cause he did not consider them of
sufficient importance to make men
tton in his gospel. He only records
this one appearance to the apostles
out of the number we know did oc-
cur. Probably this was the gather
ing at which there were more than
500 brethren" present. There must
have been something majestic about
His appearance that thrilled the null
titude who had assembled in accord
anCe with His appointment. They
were filled with a spirit of reverence
and worship. The sensation for some
of them was so great that they
doubted. These could not have been
the eleven, for they had been con-
vinced of His resurrection fully a
month previous. Doubt is not an i'm
peachment of our faith. It is an as
sault upon it that must be repelled.
There was something about His
personality, power and presence that
supported His claim of the right to
impose His Will upon us. The
Scriptures give two reasons why all
authority lin heaven and earth be-
longs to Christ. He is tie eternal
Word that created all things. He IS
the only revealer of God. The only
satisfactory explanation of His char
acter is that He Himself is God. HE
was the Light that lighteth every
man, even though the Light has
shined In darkness, and the darkness
has comprehendcd 1t not" The other
reason is that He undertook, as a
missionary. to dissipate the darkness
of this world by a revelation of Gods
personal love and Righteousness sa az
to re-establish His authority over an
apostate humanity. His resurrection
prOyed that the cross WAS a Stan fr,