To all the burdened, Jesus says, "Come unto me, and I will give you rest."
To all the joyless he says, "I will see you again, and your heart shall
rejoice, and your joy no man taketh from you." To all the lonely and
mourning he comes with the message, "Let not your heart be troubled: ye
believe in God, believe also in me." The world may have difficulty in
securing that belief; but the world knows well that this belief alone is
the defeat of sorrow. In their best and most desperate and most hopeful
hours men flee to the Bible as to the only tent in which their anguish can
be soothed. Within that tabernacle walks the form of the Fourth. When
they turn from him, they must return with the question, "Lord, to whom
shall we go? Thou hast the words of eternal life." The eternal life that
he gives is the only consolation for our passing sorrows.
CHAPTER VIII
THE BIBLE AND PRACTICE
When men separate the Bible from devotion and practice they are guilty of
the final heresy in relation to the Book of Life. The previous pages have
shown that the Bible has a real message for actual living. While the
larger departments have been treated, it is still true that the message of
the Scriptures for other sections of life is vital and fundamental.
Whatever we may say about the message of the Bible in regard to chemistry,
or biology, or geology; whatever we may say about its inspiration for the
literature of the world; and whatever we may say about its accuracy in
matters of ancient history and geography--the Book holds a lonely primacy
as the Book of Duty. The scientist may not get from it a full revelation;
the littérateur may be tempted to omit certain portions from his "choice
selections"; the historian may not find in it a full or chronological list
of events; but the man with a moral and spiritual passion, the man bent on
finding his duty that he may do it faithfully, will discover ample
material in its pages. Indeed, he will have a sense of surplus. The ideals
of the Book will be so far beyond his performance as to give him the
feeling of a gentle rebuke. As a Book of moral science, moral literature,
moral history, the Bible has no competitors. As a revelation of the heart
of God, of the heart of man, and of the way in which the heart of God and
the heart of man are brought into loving harmony, the Bible is supreme.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Elsewhere in the archive
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account