The Farmville herald. (Farmville, Va.) 1957-current, 1959-07-03

is A N U T
COEPTIS. This
being translated ~
means HE has
approved the DR.. Foreman
things which have been begun"
But who is He? It can be none
other than God. For without his
approval it does no good to brag
about anybody efse's.
The Gods Of the Nations
So from the very beginning, our
nation on its official seal has ac-
knowledged that is was begun and
must continue under the v Of
God. His approval is vital. We put
In God we trust" on our coins. We
open Congress with prayer every
day It meets. We administer sol
emn oaths to public officials. Even
in the army, where you would per
haps not expect it, the Department
OF Defense sees to it that every
MAJ has the opportunity to o
ship God. At Fort Knox, for IN
stance, there are not less than 20
chapels provided by the army and
used every day by Roman Cath
olics, Professionals and Jews.
It is not q novelty, or a peculiar
thing, for a nation to recognize
God officially, and to keep Cod
a god of some kind-before the
eyes Of the people. Armies have
had chaplains since back IN the
times of the Romans-not in the
modern sense Of course, but pro
fessional religious men who &C
companied the troops. The Chinese
emperorS used to sacrifice annually
to the God Of Heaven. We all know
about the japanese Shinto, a relig-
ion all tied up with intense patriot
ism. In Abraham's time and long
before that, the pr~iest-kings of Ur
used to sacrifice to the city's spe-
cial deity, Nannar the moon-god-
Every nation has some God. Even
the Wild Scythians, who bowed to
no other god. would thrust a bare
sword into the ground and offer
sacrifice to the sword.
Where We Hang Our Hearts
Whatever a man hangs his heart
on and depends on, said Martin
Luther, that is his God. What d
man hangs his heart on, in reality,
may not be the God he officially
acknowledges. TN God we trust"
says every nickel of money.
But do we trust God or u money?
What do we depend on? ICBM's.
those intercontinental ballistic
missiles that can destroy whole
cities at one shot? IBM machines,
those immense robots that can
solve problems faster than any
human being can? What is it that
can render us secure Space sateE
htes? More education ? Democratic
government? A favorable trade
misunderstanding other nations al
ways in debt to us? Capitalism
These are all gods-somebody
hangs his heart on these. some or
all of these, and depends on them.
But they are not God.
The God Of Jesus Christ
The Christian belief about God
is summed up in Pauls title for
him in Romans 1876: THE God
and Father of our Lord Jesus
Christ" Any sort of alleged god
who does not measure up to that,
is no true God. Any god who
bears no family resemblance to
Christ, any "god" Christ would
have disowned, is no God. This
proposition should set US thinking.
One of the thoughts is this: A fav-
orite book Of Jesus in the Old Test
amount, one he quotes often, was
Deuteronomy. Now the book of
Deuteronomy makes a great deal
of the idea of a nation under God.
But close to the very beginning Of
that book you will find the Ten
Commandments. The true God is
the n who gives to man the law
by which he lives. No man and no
nation has any right to suppose
that either a nation or a man can
claim the favor and protection of
God, and at the same time defy him
by breaking his laws. The God and
Father of our Lord Jesus Christ,
because he is indeed the High God,
says to every nation that processes
to be under" him: DO you mean
IT?
Bsesd IN oatlinas copyrighted BY
the Division Of Christian Education.
National Council 81 the Churches 81
Christ IN the o. s. A. Released By
Cammanity Press Servine)