Religious Professors
The Christian profession is the highest calling on earth. We are admonished to "hold fast" our profession. Timothy is said to have "professed a good profession before many witnesses." The Bible is God's perfect revealed and inspired Word. Thus, it becomes us to mold our lives thereby. We have a perfect guide. The Bible is not a treatise on philosophy. The Sacred Text is not a textbook on any science, though often it predated discoveries of science. The Inspired Record deals with God as the Creator, Lawgiver, Preserver of earth, the heavens and man. Depicted in this perfect revelation is the "fall of man" and the consequences of sin that followed. Man's blighted hopes and perilous plight is described on page after page. The eternal purpose of God to save man from his doom, through the Savior, is unfolded by the Holy Spirit. The humility of the Lord, leaving the throne to receive the thorns, is an expression of Divine love working in our behalf. The sacrifice of the cross, the coldness of the tomb, and the guard of the ignorant are real soul-stirring facts. The glorious resurrection of the Lord was witnessed by more than five-hundred, it was not a thing done in the dark. Every item of the gospel is an undisputed fact. The Bible is not a book of opinions, notions or ideas, but a correlation of eternal truths. Part to part, and plan to plan, purpose to purpose, as thread to thread and stitch to stitch completes a garment. God's Word is related and entwined. Accept it all or completely reject it!
Foolish Professors
There was a time when the Gentiles knew God, but "they glorified him not as God." In antiquity's dim past, the idols of the "Eastern Land" were numerous. "Professing themselves to be wise, they became fools, land changed the glory of the uncorruptible God into an image made like unto corruptible man, and to birds, and four footed beasts and creeping things." Among their sinful deeds they "changed the truth of God into a lie," From the account of Romans 1, out of a professed wisdom grew a multitude of sins, the people became fools. If such beset them, the same is at least possible to befall us. The Pharisees were professors of religion, but by their traditions they made "void" the word of God. Christian is the highest name one can wear or position one can occupy. There were apostles, prophets, teachers, pastors, evangelists in the New Testament church, but nowhere do we read where they had a peculiar title, a prefix to their name. There are some today who covet such titles, but Christ shunned them, refused to wear such. It would be enlightening indeed if we had a record where Paul was introduced as Dr. Paul, or where Peter was spoken of as Dr. Peter. This is the difference between human and divine wisdom. Divine wisdom is free of pomp and pride, while human wisdom vaults upon pride's pedestal.
Modernism At Its Best
Modernism refuses the ancient literature and attempts to explain everything and make everything conform to present thinking or acting. If modernistic teachers can get the student thinking in terms as "that is your theory" or "this is your idea" or "that is his notion" it does not take long to implant the thought that maybe God has "opinions, ideas, notions, and theories" thus discrediting the Bible. Another teaching so inseparable from the modernist is the good sounding statement of "free-thinking." A synonym of "free-thinker" is "skeptic, unbeliever, infidel," The Bible nowhere describes this teaching as being helpful. God's ways are higher than man's ways, God's thoughts are higher than man's thoughts. God has given every man the freedom of choice, to accept or reject, but has not given him the freedom of thought in matters of religion. Another idea of the "modernist" is that "truth is a growing thing." This teaching is as far as the East from the West, being true. Truth is perfect. It is the truth which makes men free, that is, gives release from sin (John 8:32). We no longer "know in part", but the whole law and plan has been completed. It is quite true that we cannot reach into the fathomless depths of the boundless beyond and comprehend the infinite. But the truth that saves, cleanses, frees, is perfectly revealed and can be perfectly understood. There can be no clouds of doubt and uncertainty to mar and smear the horizon of the mind. Simple, trusting, child-like faith accepts the word of God. As the apostle said, "We believe and are sure that thou art that Christ, the Son of the living God" (John 6:69). It is impossible to be "pure in heart" and not be "true in heart," To be pure is to be "free from moral defilement or guilt; innocent, guileless, chaste." A "good conscience" is not sufficient to save. One's "feelings" in matters religious is not a standard of acceptance. Anyone can follow his "vision of truth in loving obedience," but that is not God's directions. One must follow the "Lord's voice" of the truth, "If the blind lead the blind they both fall into the ditch." Perhaps some have forgotten that "grace and truth" was made known by Jesus Christ. It is still true that "revealed things belong to us and our children for ever, that we may do all the words of this law." There are things hidden that man cannot find out, these things "belong to the Lord our God." There is coming an occasion when God "will bring to light the hidden things." But it is an insult to Jehovah and man to say that we cannot know and understand the "revealed truth of God."
Dark Ages
The Book which contains the history of man, and the story of salvation extended by the Christ is, forsooth, "the light of the world." Take the pure truth of Jehovah from man and the world will be plunged into an abyss of darkness. In the wake of "new learning and higher criticism" must follow clouds of doubt and swirls of sorrow. The gaunt specter of spiritual famine stalked the land when the Bible was chained to the priestly (?) few. But, when it was released and passed to the common man, light began to break across the horizon; the shadows of night fled away and the beams of truth and sunlight illumined the mind. The shadows of infidelity have persistently darkened the religious world, and will continue until 'everyone throws aside the creeds of men and accepts the truth of God. A country that adopts a constitution of laws and then breaks nearly every law in that constitution is untrue to its pledge, encourages bands of lawbreakers. In comparison, a religion that accepts the Bible as being true, adopts its laws and regulations in voice, then in turn forms a creed that permits its adherents to violate and break the statutes of God, simply is nothing short of counterfeit, fraudulent, and spurious religion designed in favor of the devil. Anyone that allegedly upholds the Bible with one hand, and with the other elevates error to the same height is at least a hypocrite, and by thus doing is a professor of infidelity, rather than truth.
Know You Are Right
There is absolutely no need for a person to be wrong when the right is within his grasp. There is no sensible reason one can offer for being wrong religiously. God has abundantly sacrificed and made known the eternal truths of righteousness. If it is impossible to select the right way, then the Bible is not the product of God. If the Bible had erred as often as man, then we would have a right to doubt and hesitate. But the evidence supporting the Bible is so weighty there is no excuse for doubting its correctness and uprightness. With every dig of the pick and spade the Bible story is being by the science of archeology confirmed. The earth is crying out God's truths, even as the "heavens declare the glory of God." Science has come to acknowledge the proof of Bible statements spoken centuries before science discovered the facts. This is internal evidence that the Bible is true. The Bible is our oldest history book, we cannot afford to discard it. Many of the historical accounts in the Bible are supported by ancient history. We cannot afford to doubt God's word, but we can by it know we are right and then go ahead! If we cannot by the Bible "know we are right", is 'there any other medium by which we can find it out?
Conclusion
Let us refuse to be swayed by the wisdom of man, let us refrain from teaching anything or believing anything that contradicts the word of God. Be it resolved that we will never accept the modern ideas of evolution of either creation or truth, but let our faith rest upon the bulwarks of testimony that God "created the heavens and the earth" and that He "revealed" the truth to us. Let us relegate ideas to the background and stand upon a "thus saith the Lord." Let us not in religion express our "opinions", but let us cry for "the old paths where is the good way and walk therein." Let us not be double-minded, tossed to and fro with every wind of doctrine, but let our "eye be single" that the whole body may be full of light. And when anyone expresses his "theory" and advances it rather than the word of God, may we realize that such reasoning is sheer folly. Never minimize the teachings of the Bible. They are heaven-revealed and God-inspired. I stand in reverential awe before the revealed statutes and humbly submit to their wonderful teaching. The way is plain, so plain that a "'wayfaring man though a fool cannot err therein." While some would crush truth and let it lie fallen in the street, let us lift high its glorious banner and proclaim its virtues!