Montgomery County sentinel., 1944-05-25

LEsSSON IEAI-1A OOEuAbtAAahi1 Ne~f
18; ST., SO, 1919.
GOLDEN TEXT-Ye know the grace
of our Lord Jesus Christ, that, though
he was rich, yet for your sakes ne ne-
came poor, that ye through his poverty
might become rich.-u Corinthians o'S.
Nothing is certain but uncertain
ty," so says the modern philosopher.
But man cannot be satisfied with
constant change and confusion. That
is why, in our day Of unheard-of dis
ruption of ordinary life patterns,
men and women especially need the
message of the gospel, for in Christ
we find the answer to our quest for
certainty and stability.
Paul writing to encourage the
church at Corinth assured them that
life may be steady, useful and true
because they are Christians. He pre-
sents:
The Christian Servant Of Men
for Christ's Sake (II Cor. 4:5). Hav-
ing
1. A Vision Which Lightens Attic
ton CII Cor. 4:16-18).
Any honest person knows that In
the temporal world round about him
everything speaks Of death. All
things tend to run down, to wear
out, to decay, including the body OF
man. He sees his mental as wei
as his physical powers coming to a
certain maturity only to 60 into de-
cline.
At the same time he Is conscious
Of the deep burden of afiiction and
sorrow which seems to press down on
all the world like an almost un-
bearable and crushing weight. what
can he do about it? Shall he try to
dissipate the clouds by artificial
cheerfulness? It will not work.
Our text gives us the answer. For
this cause we faint not" says Paul.
The things which press US down are
only temporal-they are Of this
world. Gods world is eternal. The
weakness Of the physical body only
makes the strength Of the spiritual
life more evident. The affiiction
which seems so heavy Ii only q
Eight affiiction" when one remem-
bers the eternal weight Of glory"
Is this just bit Of ''escapism"7
Is 1t only some wishful thinking?
No, indeed. Have not men learned
anew In the war that the only pos
sessions you can keep are these
which cannot be bombed to pieces
or stolen?
Obviously, that IL true in the high
est degree Of the one who knows
Christ, and whose riches are those Of
eternity. How triumphantly he can
meet decay and sorrowl He is Of the
other world, and nothing here can bcv
more than a light affiiction. which
seems negligible in the light Of the
glory of eternal things. Ah, but it's
great to be Christian in such days
as thesel
ii. An Assurance which Removes
Fear (II Cor. 5:1, $50.
OF all the fears which afiiict NOR
tai man the greatest and the ulti-
mate one is the fear Of death. He
knows that 1t is so absolute and final
that it terminates everything and
separates him from all that he has
known and held dear in this world.
That is just the point, death does
end everything (except the awful
fear of judgment for wasted wicked
lifeD for those who live only for this
world. Man, however, was never in
tended for just this present life. He
is a being who has eternity written
in his very personality.
What If this earthly tabernacle"
my body-does give up. says Paul.
have a building Of God," some
thing which man did not make with
his hands, an eternal home In glory.
That gives man confidence.
While he is here in the body, he
lives and walks by faith, but when
absent from this body. he is pres
ent with the Lord" How altogether
delightful and marvellous Is the fu-
ture, even beyond the grave, for the
believer. Hence, we sorrow not as
others which have no hope" (read I
Thess, 4:13-18.
III. A Hope Which Makes Him .
Living Testimony QI Cor. 5:14-19).
Worldly people sometimes wonder
.x,h - kraxvo ondo,,o anI ftro1oco - o<iua
power keeps Christians working for
the Lord In the face Of impossible
difficulties. We have that motive
named in verse 1.-The love Of
Christ constraineth u.s."
There Is no compulsion about real
Christian testimony and service.
There is no feeling that one must do
this or that in order to please God.
No, the compelling force here is the
love of a dying Saviour. It is the
supremely powerful and all persua-
sive influence Of love.
Christ died for all, and those who
realize that, know that they cannot
''henceforth live unto themselves
". 15). The social standing, or fam
lily connections of our fellow men,
no longer control. Christ died for
them and we must bring them the
word Of life.
Notice In verse II that II 3 the
born-again-one who has this hope.
Many church members whose lives
ara v,oxryarlaaa and sinful ara ~ ~.