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DOES THIS TRUTH PARALYZE OR

ENERGIZE?

PASTOR HERBERT MACKENZIE

Pastor of the Gospel Church, Cleveland, Ohio, and Secretary of the Erieside Bible Conference

About a century ago, Christendom was being bathed in blood by the sword of Napoleon. The world was then passing through its greatest horrors that have been known for ages, and at that time, while Napoleon was creating havoc and hell among the civilized peoples of Europe, God was planning the invasion of heathendom by the undertaking of modern missions. During those days of terrible trial, a number of the modern missionary movements were inaugurated. The London Missionary Society, the Scottish Missionary Society, the Church Missionary Society, the Baptist Missionary Society, the American Board of Foreign Missions were organized about that time. All these missionary organizations were founded and their first missionaries sent forth under the inspiration of the Spirit, during those dark days of the world's history. During the Napoleonic era the work of the British and Foreign Bible Society also was started, and the

work of the Sunday schools was inaugurated by Robert Raikes. Carey was then sent by God to India, Morrison was called for China, and Moffatt was led by God to Africa, and one wonders, looking upon such a congregation as this, interested in the truth of our Lord's return, whether in these days-when the Kaiser has heated the fires perhaps seven times hotter-God has a purpose through such a gathering as this of again sending forth His hosts into the darkest corners of the earth, entrusting to them the light that it may radiate far and wide until it reaches the remotest bounds of earth. For He has said even unto us, "Go ye into all the world and preach the Gospel to every creature." We all recognize our duty as citizens to do our best for our country and for the world in a crisis so grave as this through which we are passing. We recognize too that we have a Leader who is leading us on in a spiritual conflict; that we have a commission which must be obeyed and completed in order that he may come again and receive us unto Himself.

Doctrine always decides duty. It matters much what a man believes, and as we study the doctrine of God's Word as we have studied it during the past three days, we are led to inquire from the Word of God just what he expects of us after receiving the added light and blessing. Doctrine in the plan of teaching always precedes the plan of duty. Doctrine is like a locomotive to which a number of coaches are attached. The doctrine is intended to be the inspiration and gives to us im

pulse and impetus to obey all the behests of our Lord. The doctrine of God is the foundation designed by God, well and truly laid; and duty is a building which God expects us to rear upon the foundation which He has provided.

In the 6th chapter of the Epistle to the Romans, Paul uses the simile of a mold to express the purpose of doctrine. He wrote to those Romans, "God be thanked that ye have obeyed from the heart that form of doctrine which was delivered you. " And the word he used was that which we could correctly translate as a die, a mold or a cast capable of reproducing a likeness, a figure, or an image, just as the die produces an image and the superscription on a coin, or as the engraving or the type prints its likeness upon the sheet of paper, so the doctrine of God is intended to imprint a spiritual superscription upon the service of the servant of Christ which authenticates his message, which puts a divine seal upon his ministry as well as a Christlikeness into his life. "Take heed unto thyself and unto the doctrine, for in so doing thou shalt both save thyself and them that hear thee." And when we speak of doctrine, we do not speak of doctrines, for God's doctrine is always referred to in the singular in the New Testament. God's doctrine is intended to carry us on, while the doctrines of men, doctrines devised by men in contrast to the doctrine declared by God, only "carry us away" like wind carries away chaff.

It is our business this evening for a few minutes

to look at a few of the scriptures which link up both the doctrine and the duty of the church. For the glory of the doctrine of the glorious appearing of the Lord Jesus Christ has a large place in the New Testament and our service is only accurate and acceptable to God as it is given shapeliness and soundness by our obedience to the doctrinal die which has been delivered unto us. With your permission I would like to read two or three brief verses of Scripture which indicate what God has in mind for us, and I want to take three brief messages from the last chapters of Scripture written by the apostle Paul, the apostle Peter and by the apostle John. In 2 Tim. 4:1 we read, “I charge thee therefore before God and the Lord Jesus Christ, who shall judge the living and the dead at his appearing and his kingdom." Here we have a statement of the doctrine. There we are charged before God in the light of the doctrine and the duty is stated in the next verse and perhaps is summed up almost completely in three words: "Preach the Word." No man can know the doctrine of the appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ, without having a burning desire and a deep yearning to "preach the Word" which not only will save but build up His saints upon the most holy faith.

The Second Epistle of Peter, the third Chapter the 13th and 14th verses, have a similar sequence. "Nevertheless we, according to His promise, look for new heavens and a new earth, wherein dwelleth righteousness." A statement of

the doctrine to which we have been listening during this conference and then once more our outlined duty. "Wherefore, beloved, seeing that ye look for such things, be diligent that ye may be found of Him in peace, without spot and blameless." The busiest people today in the Kingdom of God, or rather among the nations who are preaching the gospel of His grace, are those who believe in the imminent return of the Lord Jesus and the wonderful program which follows His coming.

The 22d chapter of the Book of Revelation contains a three-fold record of words falling from the lips of our Lord which confirm the promise of His coming. In verse 7 He says, "Behold, I come quickly!" The statement of the doctrine once more, and then, "Blessed is He that keepeth the sayings of the prophecy of this book," a statement concerning our duty. I remember a number of years ago a very saintly and a very gifted servant of Christ telling me that with a dimming of the hope, with the fading of the desire for His appearing, there was always failure in his ministry and that he always needed the reviving of the hope in order that he might tighten the bands between himself and his Christ in order that he might be more firmly bound with the cords of loving sacrifice to the horns of the altar of the divine purpose. "Behold, I come quickly." "Blessed is he that keepeth." "Hold fast that thou hast, that no man take thy crown."

The twelfth verse repeats the prophecy of His

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