Atlanta tri-weekly journal. [volume] (Atlanta, Ga.) 1920-19??, 1924-04-29

neolled people? He was forced by
them to remove them out of His
sight-that is, away from the place
He had prepared for and given to
them. To forsake Him, to displace
Him, to 6isobey Him, to engage in
all the denominations OF the heather
that appealed to the lower senses
and stifled the spiritual life, 10
fail to trust 1iim-this was Israel.
What else could God do? Right
eousness eXalteth a nation, but sin
is a reproach unto any people" Is
rael was unCrateful, forgetful, will
ful-and Israel fell.
Again we call attention to the I'M
changeahleness of human nature.
Folks have not changed since Isra-
els time. There are folks today
who have never been the recipients
of Gods marvellous kindness, and
who are just as ungrateful as Israel
was. There are people today who
have forgotten Gods statutes and
have not remembered Gods word to
them and have turned side to other
gods and to the doing of their own
way, just as Israel did. There are
folks today who have had Gods
servants warn them and do every
thing possible to WOO them and win
them back to God who have been
just as rasistent and just as rebel
lious and just as willful as Israel
was. And with that they have gone
into captivity. God has had to let
them be taken captive because they
would not hear Him speaking
through His servants. They live in
the same town, maybe; haven't been
deported as Israel was among stran-
gers; but they are captives at home;
they are strangers among their own
people. They are bound hand and
foot by some habit, tied hopelessly
with cords of sin-oh, no! not hope.
lessly, for God is gracious and mer.
ciful, loves them yet and longs to
deliver them, to break the bands Of
Satan as soon as they will let Him.
But He alone can do it--they are
hopelessly bound, apart from Christ.
Two Kinds of Folks
There are two kinds of folks to
whom we are speaking today. There
are those who have already gone
Israel's way of ingratitude, forget.
fulness and willfulness. To these we
give the most solemn warning and
the most loving word to WOO them.
Turn now and let God break the
bonds of sin.
But there are others, many more
of them, who have not yet gone the
way of Israel. Let the words of the
Psalmist be the determining prin-
ciple Of our lives. II will delight
myself in thy statutes, and 1 will
not forget thy word"
All there is the real crux of the
situation. We have never seen a
backslider yet of whom it was not
true that the beginning of his back
sliding was neglect Of his Bible. The
man or woman, the boy or girl, who
delights in Gods statutes, who does
not forget His Word, doesn't go
wrong. And there is a reason-the
daily study of Gods word is food for
the soul, and food taken regularly
and digested makes for strength. It
is the starving soul that is getting so
weak that one day the strain is too
great and the strength IS insufficient
10 meet it. The athlete keeps in the
PIN kof condition all the time. by
the proper amount and quality Of
FOOD, taken at regular intervals. and
by using the strength he has regu-
larly. That is the way fol you to
Keep strong and to grow stronger
eat Gods word regularly and in the
proper quantity; and exercise what
strength you now have, regularly.
Make DaVid's word your purpose
and practice-"I will delight in Thv
statutes; [ will not forget Thv
word"