rowing, with its triumph for the dying, has emphasized with ever-deepening emphasis the words of him who said, "I will not leave you desolate; I will come to you." It follows, from what has preceded, that attitude of will is more important than knowledge of truth. Men may be situated so that it is impossible for them to study even their Bibles. I once talked with a man about his soul, and he spoke to me something as follows: "I was born in a coal-mine, in England. I was never taught to read. I have had to work so hard that I have never had time to learn. I don't know anything but how to dig in a mine. How can you expect anything of me?" More than half the world is in the same condition, and they cannot get out of it if they try. The most of the Bible, even if they read it, they cannot understand. But God is near them, and the important thing for them, as for us, is to keep all the faculties open, so that when he comes he can get in. If Christianity were a philosophy, it might depend on education and environment. It is a life-God's life in man-and he who says to God, "I do not know much about you, I do not know much about anything; but I know that I am a sinner, and I want to be better, and whatever you tell me I will do, even if it is to die"-that man is open to God, and in his heart the life will grow; and, from obeying God as He is revealed to him, he will learn more of God than from a thousand preachers and a million books. When one comes to me and talks about the constitution of the church, and says It is this, while another says It is that; and when one says that I have not obeyed Christ if I have not gone under water all over, while another says it makes no difference how baptism is applied; and when one says, " You should accept this confession of faith," while another says, "You should accept that," I may be pardoned if I become confused and wonder if anything is really known. The confusion of the denominations, the battles of the theologies, are enough to disturb even the elect. If any one here is thus troubled, I say to him, "My brother, Christ said to his disciples that his Spirit would lead into all truth. Trust that Spirit. Ministers are fallible; churches are fallible; human powers are fallible. Those who have most confidence in themselves are usually most distrusted by their neighbors. Do not look toward men; look toward God. He cannot go wrong, however weak, however ignorant, who trusts in God to lead him. Trusting in God to lead is trusting in the Holy Spirit. We may be excused for ignorance which we cannot help, for natural dullness, for little time, for inherited bias; but nothing can excuse us for not keeping our hearts open to God. Persistent refusal to do that is the unpardonable sin. This, then, is the conclusion of all. Our eyes may misread the Bible; those who are set to interpret it may give us their own theories instead of Christ's truth; our circumstances may keep us in darkness which we cannot break: but nothing except our own will can prevent us from knowing what we ought to know, and from doing what we ought to do. If a single human being turns sincerely to God for guidance and help, and receives no answer of light and power, I am ready to say that I cannot see how such a Holy Spirit as Jesus Christ promised can have any existence, or Christianity itself be anything but a dream. |