Opening address of the Victorious Life Conference, June 23, 1920.
“Wherefore he is able to save them to the uttermost that come unto God by him, seeing he ever liveth to make intercession for them.” —Hebrews 7:25
Whenever people visit the city of Jerusalem they are shown a number of sights and wonderful places, and, if you believe everything you are told, you would believe a great deal. But, of course, whether the places are accurately stated or not every visitor goes to see what there is to be seen, and the most important place in Jerusalem in the opinion …
When Israel was leaving the wilderness with its sad defeats to enter upon the winning battles of the Promised Land, Joshua was ordered to make two monuments to signalize the crossing of the borderline at the Jordan.
The one monument was to be buried in the river, and the other conspicuously put up on the other side, so that, in days to come, when the children asked the fathers, “What mean ye by these stones?” (Joshua 4:6–7), they could say in reply, “The waters of Jordan were cut off before the ark of the covenant of the Lord.”
“By faith Enoch was translated that he should not see death; and was not found, because God had translated him: for before his translation he had this testimony, that he pleased God. But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.” —Hebrews 11:5–6
Let me say, before I attempt to speak to you on this subject, that I believe the man who lives so as to please God makes the very best possible out of his life, …
“Blessed are the undefiled in the way.”—Psalm 119:1
This 119th Psalm starts out with the word “blessed.” This word in the Word of God is worthy of our study. In a worldly sense, we associate it with the thought of a man whom we describe as “A lucky fellow,” “A fortunate man.” Some men seem to succeed in whatever they undertake, they have the ability to do things better than other men and the world calls them lucky. The Scripture, however, never speaks of a lucky man or a fortunate one, but it says much about a blessed man.
“Be ye therefore followers of God, as dear children; and walk in love, as Christ also hath loved us, and hath given himself for us an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweetsmelling savour. But fornication, and all uncleanness, or covetousness, let it not be once named among you, as becometh saints; neither filthiness, nor foolish talking, nor jesting, which are not convenient: but rather giving of thanks. For this ye know, that no whoremonger, nor unclean person, nor covetous man, who is an idolater, hath any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and of God. Let no …
Where the ordinary man speaks of “the end of the world,” the Bible knows no such phrase. There never will be an end of the world as far as the Scriptures are concerned. God divides time up into ages, periods where He is testing men out under a certain kind of revealed truth. We are not tested today by what Moses said to the Jews, but we are tested by what Christ Jesus has spoken. The Holy Ghost in our age is convincing the world of sin “Because they believe not on Him.” We are judged, in this our day, …
Holy living in an Unholy World: How can we be holy in a sin-saturated world?
“I looked for the church and found it in the world, and I looked for the world and found it in the church.” So said hymn writer Horatius Bonar.
Those words resonate with me. We are living at a time when the distinction between the world and the church is blurred; we want to love God, but we are pulled into the orbit of worldly values and an array of temptations. And, quite frankly, we often don’t know where the lines should be drawn. When …
I am thinking especially of two or three things in connection with this topic. First, is baptism essential to salvation? A great many people think it is, but I want to let the Word of God answer that question. And then if we find that it is not essential to salvation, another question arises: Why then baptize at all? In the next place, I am thinking of a slightly different question: Has water baptism any place at all in this present dispensation of the grace of God or has it been done away with altogether? If not, just what place …
