The Omaha guide., 1946-07-27

Gus AE 30 nAaAAltEM JsOB~Jl. Aldlh fsJ1Of
MEMORY sELECTION-But seek ye
first the kingdom Of God. and his right
-eouzness; ard all these things shall be
added unto you.-Matthew 6.33.
Reverence is not an Incidental
thing which we may or may not
choose to have in our lives. 1t is
vital. Reverence toward God and
the things Of God viii result in re-
spect for all values in life. 1t will
balance thinking. speaking, and
our acting toward u fellow men
as well as toward our God. Our
lesson calls for
1. Reverence in Worship (Exod.
20-7. Lev. 1912.
The Lord rishtfully expects from
US g. proper attitude toward him.
If we worship him as we should, we
shall find that other matters fall
into their proper relationships.
Essential in true worship is rev.
erence for the lame of the Lord, for
that name stands for all the qualities
and characteristics Of God. This
means that there must be no taking
of the name Of the Lord "in vain"
Our use of the word vain car
ries the meaning of useless, with
out purpose or meaning" This is
pert Of what is in mind III this COM
mandment. for the name of Je-
hovah Is sacred and is to be e v
erenced as standing for the eternal
God.
II is never to be used carelessly.
or for a frivolous purpose. All too
often We tell Jokes or stories which
have no real purpose or meaning ex-
& cept to elicit a laugh, and in them
we use the name of God. We all
need to exercise care at that point.
The Hebrew word translated
. vain has the additional meaning
of evil" and falsehood." Men are
so bold that they may even use the
name Of God TO support themselves
in a lie. God hears and will in no
wise hold them guiltless.
III. Reverence in Words Matt. S:
$3.50.
The Sermon on the Mount ESQ.,
called. from which this portion OF
Scripture is taken. is difficult to in
.2rpret % he satisfaction Of all.
Some disregard It5 evident applica-
nun - ire kicgdom and, citing
Z apply It in the midst or an u,
cody generation, fall into such -
consistency that they abandon tine
effort and regard the teaching Of the
passage as impossible idealism.
Others. who rightly interpre. the
passage as presenting the laws and
principles Of life in the kingdom G
God. when it shall be fully set w
on earth with Jesus as King. fail to
make n application Of those prin-
ciples to life. This is also an I'm
fortunate error.
We who follow the Lord Jesus are
not 20 wear by either things sa-
cred or things that might be called
secular. Perhaps he has in mind
that our lives should be so true that
men viii not need to have any kind
az oath TO be assured Of our sin
cerity and honesty.
Swearing should be entirely be-
yond the pale with Christian men
and women. 1t is all too common
with both men and One
fears that this is true not only in
the world, but among p~rofessed be-
levers in Christ. Let us stop it,
Ill. Reverence in Works MARK
1853.
Words which do not issue in worL..
are worse than meaningless. They
lead 10 acceptance Of a formal re-
hgious system which is dangerous.
1T gives a sense Of religious sat
isfaction which is very superficial.
hut Of some apparent value. It car
ries with it no high ethical demands.
II helps a mar to feel religious with
out being either ethical or moral.
Il does not probe or arouse. It
saothes and Gains" W. R. White).
Who viii deny that much of the
church life Of our day has reached
thai same sad state Of much ado
about nothing"-talk, talk, talk, and
no honest disposition to deal with
sin. o. to seek holiness of life. The
Lord hates i. and it is a vain exer-
else as far as spiritual results are
concerned.
". Reverence in win MARK g.:
34-36.
Here true reverence shows itself
IL recognizing that Gods will is
good and acceptable and perfect
rom. l2:D.
Following the Christ of Calvary
calls for a willingness to say no
10 self literally, to deny n con-
nection with Self-life) and to follow
Through with him on the path Of
shame and crucifxion. No self
-ll and no compromise are per
Missile to Christ's disciples.
Fo0lishly to attempt to hold ones
life for self is to lose it. That pain
tm loss has left brokenhearted,
wrecked lives all along the path of
mans history. But why should
anyone do it?
Equally foolish is the one who
sapposes that this world has any,
thing TO satisfy the human soul. AS
Stunning the possibility Of the impos-
slole-hat is. attaining the whole
world as ones own poSsession-to
90 50 at the cost Of ones soul would
Pc an lndescribably poor bargain.