Do Your Own Digging
By W.A. Spicer
We cannot preach one another's sermons. A living sermon grows out of living experience. Each has to get it for himself. Just so, in a measure, the materials that go into a sermon need to be a part of experience.
The writings of the Spirit of prophecy are a veritable mine of materials for evangelists and Bible teachers. We may be helpfully directed by another to this or that statement in these writings. But having heard the reference, let us make it our own by searching it out and getting a view of its setting in the context. We scarcely know its weight and bearing and value until we have lifted it out of its original bed of ore. Dig it out for yourself.
Do we not find that we can use to best advantage the things that have come to us in our own reading of these volumes? Aside from Holy Scripture, there are no writings on earth like these volumes, which are as veins of precious ore waiting to be worked. In most unexpected ways this phrase or that statement, that we may have read before, on a further reading shines out like a nugget of virgin gold.
One reader's experience makes one statement of special use and force; another is impressed by some other portion—and that is the material that he can use to best advantage. We shall never exhaust the supply. Just like the Bible, the more familiar portions of the Spirit of prophecy are the portions that more often yield those turns of word and phrase sparkling with new flashes of light. In this respect these writings are different from any others.
Yes, do your own digging. And let us keep on digging all our lives for the nuggets of truth.
"In Him"
By J.L. McElhany
Drumm a recent camp meeting I was giving a series of Bible studies, and one text which I used was 1 John 3:3, which reads: "Every man that hath this hope in Him purifieth himself, even as He is pure." In commenting on this text, I referred to the fact that a wrong meaning is often given to this text, by reading it as if were stated thus: "Every man that hath this hope in him[self] purifieth himself, even as He is pure." But I explained that the true meaning of the text is more clearly conveyed by reading it as follows: "Every man that hath this hope in Him [Christ] purifieth himself, even as He [Christ] is pure."
At the close of the service a brother came to me and questioned my exposition, taking the position that "hope in him[self]" gave the real meaning of the text. I trust that I was successful in convincing this brother that he was looking at this text from the wrong viewpoint. How futile would be our hope if it were centered in ourselves! No, thank God, our hope is "in Him,"—"Jesus Christ the righteous."
It is interesting to note that "in Him" is the most characteristic expression in this brief epistle of First John. The pronoun "Him," referring to the title "Jesus," or "Christ," or "the Son," is used thirty-seven times, in such phrases as, "with Him," "like Him," "through Him," "from Him," "of Him," et cetera; but the one phrase "in Him" is found fourteen times.
Our hope of forgiveness and victory over sin in this present world is "in Him."
Our hope of eternal life in His kingdom hereafter is "in Him."
All that the Christian hopes to be or can be is "in Him."
All that the believer hopes to do or can do in His service is "in Him."
"We know that the Son of God is come, and hath given us an understanding, that we may know Him that is true, and we are in Him that is true, even in His Son Jesus Christ. This is the true God, and eternal life." 1 John 5:20.
Takoma Park, D. C.
