King's Business - 1934-02

King's Business - 1934-02

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FEBRUARY

She Tible Tamili#machine PUBLISHED BY THE BIBLE INSTITUTE OF LOS ANGELES

—Courtesy Chicago, Bock Island & Pacific By.

“ Blessings . . . unto the utmost bound of the everlasting hills."

Personal Evangelism.. . the Corner Stone of the B ib le In st itu te of Los An ge le s j T T n d o u b t e d l y , the most important course in the whole m, | curriculum o f the Bible Institute o f Los Angeles is that which is devoted to the study and practice o f Personal Evangelism, for it brings into play all the truths acquired in other courses. This weekly class is taught by President Louis T . Talbot. The peculiar and indefinable quality known as “ a love for souls,” which operates irrespective o f the sins and shortcomings o f the individual, is not prominent in every student at the time of his enrollment at the Institute; but there is rarely one who has studied Personal Evangelism conscientiously for more than a few weeks who does not find himself possessed of this holy affection and desirous o f its fullest expression. In addition to the classroom instruction, every student is required to accept an assignment in practical Christian work. This may be in a local Sunday-school, mission, jail, hospital, shop or railroad camp, or it may be on a gospel team. This was the kind o f practical training that E. W . Stuch- bery received while a student at the Institute. And this, coupled with his joy in the quest, his persistence in effort, and his personal acquaintance with Tod Sloan, enabled him, by the grace o f God, to win his way into the confidence o f the dying sportsman, to succeed where others had been rebuffed, and finally to lead his penitent to the foot o f the cross. The story is told on pages 60 and 61 of this issue. Do you not feel, as you read o f this brand snatched from the burning, that any school whose graduates are used o f God in the accomplishment o f such results is a school worthy o f your prayers and of your support ? Because you do, you will be glad to know that you yourself may help to train other young people at the Bible Institute of Los Angeles, as Mr. Stuchbery was trained, enabling them to do for waiting thousands what God permitted Mr. Stuch­ bery to do for Tod Sloan. This ministry will count for eternity. Believing that you and others would desire a part in this ministry, the Bible Institute o f Los Angeles, at the opening o f its fall semester in 1933, accepted approxi­ mately 200 more young people than it had funds in hand to educate, for the directors o f the Institute realized that the world stands sorely in need o f the message o f salva­ tion which these 200, and other hundreds, may give. This was a step o f faith. The Institute is still looking to the

B ible I nstitute B lock , L os A ngeles

Lord for the supply o f this need. It offers to all accepted students, absolutely free, classroom instruction which costs the Institute approximately $75.00 per student per semester (exclusive o f board and room, which are furnished at cost). If God speaks to your heart and leads you to do so, will you not volunteer to meet the cost o f training one or more students ? For a semester................. $75.00 For a week.......................$ 6.25 For a month.................... 25.00 For a day............................ 1.00 Your gift may mean a soul’s salvation.

B I B L E I N S T I T U T E O F L O S A N G E L E S 558 SOUTH HOPE STREET •LOS ANGELES, CALIF.

M r . S tuchbery C onducting a N oon H our M eeting in O ne of L os A ngeles ' G reat I ndustrial P lan ts , A ssisted by B ible I n s t it u t e S t u d e n t s .

Published Monthly by and Represent­ ing the Bible Institute of Los Angeles

c.Setter

(precious Ointment “ Your Mission has helped me to solve my problems many times in the last 20 years or more. It has stood as a lighthouse not only to the Jew, but to many Gentiles, be­ cause it is founded on the Eternal Rock o f Ages. I have preserved a number o f letters received from your good father explaining, advis­ ing and encouraging, some o f them dating back to 1907-08. May the Lord continue His gracious bless­ ing upon you and your work, ever providing all the needs o f the work.” It was hard to keep back the tears when we read this paragraph in a letter from one o f our dear friends. And we could not but help sending up a word of thanks to our faithful Lord who has kept us here these 40 years. And we thought of that verse in Eccl. 7 :1, “A good name is better than precious oint­ ment.” W e thank God that there is a bond o f love and trust between ourselves and the faithful friends the Lord has given us to make pos­ sible this Jewish Christian testi­ mony. And so, our work still merits your every confidence. It is a pro­ gram o f world wide Gospel testi­ mony to the Jews. Your fellowship in prayer and gift is always wel­ comed and appreciated. THE CHOSEN PEOPLE is o f course sent to all contributors. American Board of Missions to the Jews Inc. 31 Throop Ave. Brooklyn, N.Y. Ask for our free booklet “ Jewish Mission Annuity Bonds.”

© f i e S i b i e S f i a t i n e Motto: "Unto him that loved us, and washed us from our sins in his own blood .”— R ev . 1 :S.

Volume XXV

February, 1934

Number 2

TABLE OF CONTENTS

^Around the King’s Table— Louis T. Talbot..........................................42 God’s Way to Victorious Living—Robert C. McQuilkin................ 43 “ Hide Thyself . . . . Show Thyself”— H. C. Thiessen.........................45 What Must W e Believe About Christ ?4j$Stanley H. Bailes................ 48 'Z The Great Red Dragon and the Woman’s Child— in 1934! y t —L ouis S. Bauman........................................................................50 Girls’ Query Corner—Myrtle E. Scott.................................................. 53 Bible Institute Family Circle.................... .................................................54 Our Literature Table............ :....................................... .............................55 Helps for Preachers and Teachers— Paul Prichard........................'.....56 Junior King’s Business— Martha S. Hooker............. ,........................... 57 International Lesson Commentary................................................... ;......59 The Conversion o f Tod Sloan-lfE. W . Stuchbery............................. 60 Notes on Christian Endeavor—Mary G. Goodner............................... 69 Daily Devotional Readings............................................................... -.......74

I N F O R M A T I O N

F O R S U B S C R I B E R S

A D V ER T ISIN G : For information with reference to advertising in THE KING'S BUSINESS address the Religious Press Association, 325 North 13th Street, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, or North American Build­ ing, Chicago, Illinois. Entered as Second Class Matter November 17, 1910, at the Post Office at Los Angeles, California, under the Act of March 3, 1879. Acceptance for mailing at special rate of postage pro­ vided for in Section 1103, Act of October 3, 1917, authorized October 1, 1918. M A N U SCRIPTS: THE KING'S BUSINESS cannot accept responsibility for loss or damage to manuscripts sent to it for consideration.

TERM S: Single Copies................................. Annual Subscription ......................... $1.50 Two-year subscription or two annual subscriptions. 2.50 Five annual subscriptions.......................................... 5.00 Eleven annual subscriptions...........................................10.00 Subscriptions in countries outside of U. S. require 25c extra. REM ITTA NCE: Should be made by-Bank Draft, Ex­ press or P. O. Money Order, payable to "Bible Institute of Los Angeles." Beceipts will not be sent for regular subscriptions, but date of expiration will show plainly each month, on outside wrapper or cover of magazine. CHANGE OF A D D RESS: Please send both old and new address at least one month previous to date of de­ sired change. 15c

POLICY AS D EF IN E O BY THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS OF THE B IB L E INSTITU TE OF LOS A N G ELES (a) To stand for the infallible Word of God and its great fundamental truths, (b) To strengthen the faith of all believers, (c) To stir young men and women to fit themselves for and engage in definite Christian work, (d) To make the Bible Institute of Los Angeles known, (e) To magnify God our Father and the person, work and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ; and to teach the transforming power of the Holy Spirit in our present practical life. •(f) To emphasize in strong, constructive messages the great»foundations of Christian faith.

558 So. Hope St., BIBLE INSTITUTE OF LOS ANGELES, Los Angeles, California

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o Around

theKing’s Tables

B y LOUIS T. TALBOT

pose as Christian leaders substitute religious veneer for a genuine gospel. He sees the Word o f God ridiculed, muti­ lated, denied— in the church as well as in the world. The whole terrible travesty sickens him. It is because this loneliness is the experience not merely o f one, but o f hundreds o f loyal preachers o f the Woi;d, that an urgent call is going forth for the uniting of all evangelical Christians— those who accept the whole Word o f God and proclaim it— for the purpose o f mutual encour­ agement and fellowship in the gospel. Ifhe need for such unity is voiced by W . E. Pietsch, an evangelist whom God has used in campaigns in this country and abroad. Mr. Pietsch writes as follow s: I feel that it is o f vital importance that we get all the fundamental forces together, cooperating in a more united, militant testimony. . . . The Lord willing, I expect to be leaving [about June 1] for an extended trip to New Zealand and Australia. The Macedonian call has come to us to stand by our fundamental brethren in Australia. It was my privilege to organize the Australasian Christian Fundamentals Association, and we have some 500 mem­ bers who have taken a militant stand for fundamentalism. . , W e would appreciate the prayers of our brethrefl7/-yV/3/J»,i)l Believers everywhere, especially those who “ feed the flock,” will praise God for these five hundred, and for other hundreds elsewhere who are steadfastly “ speaking the truth in love.”— L. T . T. The Gospel I t is possible to preach a theology without God, a Bible without inspiration, a cross without atonement, a Jesus without deity, a Christ without Messiahship; but this is not the gospel. The gospel centers in Jesus Christ our Lord, who is very God o f very God, as well as very Man—the only Saviour from the guilt, power, and presence o f sin— the Lord of lords and the King o f kings. — R o y T a l m a g e B r u m b a u g h . One’s Duty to This Generation T h e church has a twofold battle. There are enemies with­ in as well as foes without. Professors, preachers, and teachers who strike at the integrity and authority o f the Bible are enemies to the Christian faith. Whether these detractors be definitely arrayed against Jesus Christ and His church or whether they use the vocabulary o f faith, and at the same time quietly deny the absolute authority o f the Word o f God, they are foes. The worst thing any man can do is to undermine a young man’s faith in his Bible. Thank God, the Bible will live on when the corruptors o f that sacred volume are dead. But the harm done to their generation can never be undone. Some Christians attempt to justify their indifference to the present situation by re­ minding us that God and His Book will triumph ultimately. But such an attitude reveals a callousness toward lost souls in this generation o f unbelief. |In my work as an evangelist, I have met many moral and spiritual wrecks—men and women with lives ruined as the direct result o f modernistic preaching and teaching. A loosening o f the morals o f the nation is the inevitable result o f unbelief. It is supremely important that evangelical Christians recognize the serious­ ness o f the attack and the imminence o f the moral disaster in lives o f this generation!!— J a m e s W o r b o y s . / W f **

Why We Preach a Gospel that Is 2 ,000 Years Old R e c e n t l y , I attended two very interesting conventions in Los Angeles— one a gathering o f medical men, and the other a company o f high school teachers and college professors. Both of these bodies were discussing this “ new day” and the new message and methods for this enlightened period. As I sat there, I thought :]Lf school teachers and medical men, as well as bankers, manufacturers, and others in public activity, find themselves living in a new world and must discard the methods of yesterday, should not the professing church recognize this fact also and bring forth a new message for the day in which we liv e jjl - * * Paul lived in a different day from ours and met with people o f a very different economic and cultural back­ ground. The messages o f John Knox and Jonathan Ed­ wards were very severe; should they not be set aside as having served their purpose and having become out o f date ? This attitude o f rejection o f the old is taken by many within the professing church. Recent theological works bear wit­ ness to this fact. The New Theology, The Shorter Bible, The Need o f a N ew Bible and a Creedless Church, and other volumes are illustrations. Our answer to those who advance this position is that the spiritual realm is entirely different from the material. There is a line o f demarcation between the spiritual and the material— a boundary beyond which flesh and blood dares not pass. A preacher deals with truth that never changes. The ills that called for the preaching of the gospel 2,000 years ago are in the world today, and the gospel is the only remedy for them. In some realms, con­ ditions may change and call for new methods, but the needs that the gospel meets, and the evils it corrects in individual lives, are still here. The difficulties that Paul saw and met 2,000 years ago are the same that confront me every­ where I go—broken hearts, broken homes, lives alienated from God by sin. fThere is no message that can correct these conditions except the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ. This is the all-sufficient message for every age. Throughout the centuries, the good news o f God’s redemption has been proved to be the only cure for the world’s illsjHn view o f .. the facts that God’s righteous requirements are unalrerea and the human heart is unchanged, the church dares not bring forth any new message to supplant God’s eternal truth. In this day when sin is coming in like a flood, in­ stead o f modifying our message, we need to preach, with deeper earnestness than ever before, the gospel which is the power o f God unto salvation.— L. T. T. was a time when the children o f Israel forsook the covenant o f the Lord, threw down His altars, and slew His prophets with the sword. No wonder the prophet Elijah, surrounded by such apostasy, was prone to think that he only remained as Jehovah’s true witness! From the depths o f a cave his sad complaint issued: “ I, even I only, am left; and they seek my life, to take it away.” Many a preacher today feels as Elijah must have felt. He sees on every hand a departure from “ the faith which was once for all delivered unto the saints,” while those who Not Left Alone T h e r e

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C H e i s r u u ) K t r s . " G O D ’S WAY to Victorious Jjving B y ROBERT C. M cQ U IL K IN ,* Columbia, South Carolina .

T h e g r e a t e s t miracle that is taking place in the world today is the miracle o f everyday living— living as God wants the Christian to live. For to do that requires the miracle power o f God— the power o f the Holy Spirit to impart new life, and to make the living o f the new life possible. One o f the most frequent figures used to describe Christian living is the figure o f “ walking,” the most natural and the easiest o f all physical exercises. The Christian is to walk in love, to walk after the Spirit, to walk in the truth, to walk in newness of life. When Paul prayed for Christians, he prayed that they might “ walk worthy of the Lord unto all pleasing” (Col. 1 :10 ). When Paul preached to Christians, he preached to the end that they “ would walk worthy o f God” (1 Thess. 2 :12 ). Paul prayed and preached in the Spirit, and so we have clearly set before us the great desire of God for His children, that they might walk in victory. R e s u r r e c t io n P o w e r It will be seen at once that this most natural o f activi­ ties requires supernatural power. The victorious walk is

V ic t o r y C o m m a n d e d “ Be filled with the Spirit” (Eph. 5 :18) is a command as definite as the one, “ Thou shalt not kill.” If is addressed to Christians, but it is God’s will for every man. The human life at its fullest can only be lived in a power not its own, the power o f the Holy Spirit. T o many, this command is a burdensome one. “ I am having trouble enough trying to live the ordinary Chris­ tian life without striving after some higher life.” This expresses the view o f many. They feel that the Spirit-filled life is some high, special attainment for a few favored Christians, who perhaps do not have to battle with the stern realities o f life. I talked to a dear man once who believed the Bible and seemed open to the message o f salva­ tion, and yet he would not make the decision to take Christ as his Saviour. He finally told me the reason: “ I have a wife and nine children, and I am having a hard enough time get­ ting on now without taking on added responsibilities.” He did not mean paying money to the church— that aspect does not bother many people who attend church; but he be­ lieved he must somehow live up to new high standards if he “ tried” to be a Christian. V ic t o r y M a d e P o s s ib l e But this command, “ Be filled

the miracle o f resurrection life. Practically every time the resurrec­ tion o f our Lord is mentioned in the Epistles it is connected directly or indirectly with present Christian living. As He was raised, so we are to walk in newness o f life (Rom . 6 :4 ). The exceeding great­ ness o f His power toward us is ac­ cording to the working o f His mighty power when He raised Christ from the dead (Eph. 1 :19, 20 ). Thus we see that as the great­ est miracle recorded in the Bible is the resurrection o f our Lord, which became the measure o f God’s mighty power, so the greatest mir­ acle today is the miracle o f the new birth and living in newness o f life, resurrection life through the power o f the Holy Spirit. Christians, to­ day, as never before, are seeking the Bible teaching concerning a life o f victory, asking what it is and how it may be lived. A true testimony should pre­ sent the whole counsel of God. It is especially needful today that the Bible message o f victory in Christ should be presented in simple, clear, winning ways. Men and women are hungry for reality, and they need to test the various spirit­ ual movements by the Word of God. What is the Spirit-filled life? What must we do to enter into it ?

with the Spirit,” is not a disagree­ able one, but a glorious one. Let us suppose a case to illustrate two different kinds o f commands: I am working for a man whose orders must be carried out, and he tells me one day to take my car and carry six passengers to a city sev­ eral hundred miles distant across hills and through valleys and over bad roads. I rise early the next morning, and find that a heavy rainstorm has begun. My car is a five-passenger coach a b ou t five years old, running on three cylin­ ders, with windows broken and the top full o f holes. The command to take that trip is a disagreeable com­ mand. As I stand looking at my car and my passengers, my employer appears, and I tell him I hope the trip can be postponed. “ No, the trip must be made,” he says. But he gives me another command. “ You are to make the trip in my car.” And outside is a seven-passen­ ger limousine with all the equip­ ment for a long, hard trip. You see the application. Life must be lived. The mountains and the valleys, the muddy and stony roads, must be covered. W e have no choice. But we do have the choice between two ways to make

“Jesus .. . cried, saying , . . . H e that believeth on me, from within him shall flow rivers of living water. But this spake he o f the Spirit."

*President, Columbia Bible College.

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life’s journey— in God’s way or in our own way, in human power or in divine power. “ Be filled with the Spirit,” is God’s gracious offer to live in His power. V ic t o r y Now The command is in the present tense: “ Be ye being filled with the Spirit,” and the meaning may be fairly stated thus: “ Live your life in the fullness o f the Holy Spirit.” That is, Paul is not referring primarily to some great emotional experience or to some special power that fits a man to preach a great sermon or to go forth to win many to Christ. This whole passage emphasizes the fact that Paul is speaking of ordinary Christians meeting every­ day temptations. He has just said, “ Be not drunk with wine” ; the command, “ Be filled with the Spirit,” is just as definite and plain. This command has a real reference, therefore, to every Christian. But it suggests also that some may not be living that way, and there is a definite crisis in the life when a Christian learns what this means, and does his part in re­ sponding to the command. The expression, “ Be filled with the Spirit,” is parallel with the expression, “ Walk after the Spirit,” and the practical effect in the life will be the manifestation o f the ninefold “ fruit of the Spirit.” “ The fruit o f the Spirit is love” ; then follow what we may think o f as four pairs o f twins, indicating what will be the result in a life that bears the fruit o f love— the love o f God that is shed abroad in the heart through the Holy Spirit (Rom . 5 : 5 ) : joy and peace, long-suffering and kindness, faithfulness and good­ ness, meekness and self-control. God’s commentary on Galatians 5 :22, 23, is the thirteenth chapter o f First Corinthians. That chapter tells how love behaves, and how a Christian behaves when he is walking in the Spirit. A Christian bearing the fruit o f the Spirit is not look­ ing within to decide whether he is meek or faithful. But he can know when the joy o f the Lord and the peace that passes understanding are not there; he can know when he does not suffer long, with kindness undimmed; he knows when he is not faithful to God and to man and at the same time merciful and generous (as the word “ goodness” sig­ nifies) ; he can know when he is proud and giving way to his human desires. This is God’s standard. It is like­ ness to Christ. How is it possible for the Christian man, and how far is it possible ? T h e B a s is o f V ic t o r y First of all, the man must be born of the Spirit of God. And to be born o f the Spirit he must be convicted as a lost sinner and know that Christ died in his place on the cross. The Son of man was lifted up in order that whosoever believes might have eternal life (John 3 :15 ). There would be no eternal life had not Christ paid the death penalty for our sin. I f men preach a life of victory or a spiritual experience which is not rooted and grounded in the blood o f Christ and in justification, that life is on a false foundation. Salvation by works has ever been Satan’s plan o f salvation. And every teaching that does not show men that they are lost sinners, condemned and under the penalty o f sin, is not the gospel. To tell a man to do something instead o f telling him to believe some­ thing, and to receive something that God has done, is to

preach salvation by works, and to bring the man into bondage or into a false hope. When a man sees himself as a lost sinner and takes Christ as his personal Saviour, his sins are forgiven; he is justified (that is, he stands before God as though he had never sinned) ; he is born o f the Spirit; he has the witness o f the Spirit, bringing assurance o f sonship (Rom. 8 :16 ; Gal. 4 :6 ) ; he is bap­ tized by the Spirit into one body, the body o f Christ (1 Cor. 12:13) ; and the Holy Spirit dwells within him (Rom. 8 :9; 1 Cor. 3 :16; 6 :19) . He is now to walk in the Spirit, being filled with the Spirit, bearing the fruit o f the Spirit. The relation between the new birth— that great crisis when a man passes from death to life, from darkness to light, from the power of Satan to God— and the daily living in the power o f the Holy Spirit is set forth in a striking way in Colossians 2 :6 and Galatians 5 :25 (R .V .). In one verse, the truth is given in terms o f the work of the Lord Jesus: “ As therefore ye received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in him.”- In the other, the same truth is stated in terms o f the work o f the Holy Spirit: “ If we live by the Spirit [that is, if we have been born o f the Spirit and have eternal life], by the Spirit let us also walk,” that is, live our daily lives. W a l k i n g i n V ic t o r y But suppose a Christian is not living that way. Some say he needs to have a second work o f grace, or that he needs to be baptized by the Spirit. There are many earnest Christians who are accomplishing great things in the name o f the Lord who teach that every Christian needs this “ baptism,” as an experience necessarily subsequent to the new birth. But if this were true, we might expect the Epistles to be full o f exhortations to Christians to be bap­ tized by the Spirit, or to enter into the second work of grace. W,e find no exhortation o f that kind: yet many of those early Christians were in great spiritual need, just as Christians are today. On the other hand, the one passage that directly mentions the baptism o f the Spirit distinctly says that all Christians' have been baptized by or in the Spirit (1 Cor. 12:13, R .V .); But these Christians are emphasizing a much-needed truth when they insist that many Christians do need something they do not have— something different from growing in grace and in the knowledge o f the Lord. They need a crisis. I f we believe that all Christians are baptized in the Spirit, and need no new crisis, and yet our lives are dead and ineffective, are we not in greater error than those who make a mistake on the scriptural doctrine, and yet show the fruit of love and zeal in their life and service ? If a Christian is convicted that he is not walking in the Spirit, he needs to make a decision. Christians are plainly commanded to yield (surrender) their lives to Christ (Rom , 6 :13 ), to present (surrender) their bodies a living sacrifice (Rom . 12:1). These injunctions suggest that a Christian may not be yielded to Christ, although each o f these commands, like the command, “ Be filled with the Spirit,” has an application to all Christians, meaning “ live your life in yieldedness to Christ.” No man can take Christ as Saviour without taking Him as Lord. No one can believe for salvation, and decide to hold something back from Christ. When a Christian remembers the occa- [Continued on page 47]

It is the Jj)ok that Saves; It is the Qaze that Sanctifies. — A . J. G ordon .

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C_H &/ST/79/0 ^SfiViCfr “HIDE THYSELF— SHOW THYSELF” B y H. C. THIESSEN , Dallas, Texas A p p a r e n t l y unknown and unan­ nounced, Elijah the Tishbite ap­

wise, the prospect o f famine would be alarming to Ahab. When the drought came upon the land, it was so severe that even he, the king, had to send ser­ vants to seek for grass, to save some o f the beasts. Tbis situation incited Ahab to search for Elijah in every na­ tion and kingdom, to slay him. Later, when Ahab met Elijah, he called him “ thou troubler of Israel.” What would he and Jezebel have done to Elijah, had they succeeded in locating him dur­ ing the famine? Elijah had to hide himself for protection. We, too, have an enemy to fea r; we, too, must hide ourselves for pro­ tection. According to the Ninety-first Psalm, only he that dwells in the secret place o f the Most High has Jehovah for his refuge and is safe against the

peared before Ahab, the wicked king o f Israel, and declared, “ A s Jehovah, the God o f Israel, liveth, before whom I stand, there shall not be dew nor rain these years, but according to my word” (1 Ki. 17:1). Immediately after this hold pronouncement, the word o f Jeho­ vah came to him, saying, “ Get thee hence, and turn thee eastward, and hide thyself by the brook Cherith, that is be­ fore the Jordan” (vs. 2, 3 ). A fter a period of three and a half years, the word o f Jehovah came to him the sec­ ond time, saying, “ Go, show thyself unto Ahab; and I will send rain upon the earth” (1 Ki. 18:1 ). Some very precious lessons are associated with these two commands o f God. The order in which they are given is significant: “ Hide thyself show thyself.” “ G e t T h e e H e n c e . . . a n d H id e T h y s e l f ’ God trains His servants in private before He uses them in public. Joseph had to experience all the pain o f separa­ tion from loved ones and the privations in an Egyptian prison before he could be elevated to the premiership of Egypt. Moses had to complete his education in the uni­ versity o f Arabia before he could lead God’s people out o f Egypt. Israel itself was required to pass through the “ waste howling wilderness” before it could enter the land “ flowing with milk and honey.” David, the anointed, must long be a fugitive before he could ascend the throne of Israel. Paul must spend considerable time in Arabia be­ fore he could become the apostle to the Gentiles. So also Elijah was commanded to hide himself before he could show himself for the fulfillment o f God’s purpose. In each case, God had a definite purpose in thus dealing with His servants, the outworking o f which brought much blessing. P r o t e c t io n o f L if e A threefold purpose of

terror by night and the arrow that flieth by day. All the blessings o f this psalm are conditioned upon the believer’s hiding himself in God. Elsewhere, David says, “ Oh how great is thy goodness, which thou hast laid up for them that fear thee, which thou hast wrought for them that take refuge in thee, before the sons o f men! In the covert o f thy presence wilt thou hide them from the plottings o f man: thou wilt keep them secretly in a pavilion from the strife o f tongues” (Psa. 31:19, 20 ). First, we must enter once and for all into that life which is “ hid with Christ in God” (Col. 3 :3 ). N o one is safe against the attacks o f Satan who has not taken refuge in God. And then we must hide ourselves afresh every morning, if we are to stay beyond the reach o f the evil one during the day. In view o f the strength and persistence o f the enemy, we ought to pray with David, “ Deliver me, O Jehovah, from mine enemies: I flee unto thee to hide me” (Psa. 143:9). P r o v is io n o f N e e d s Deliverance from the enemy was not the only purpose o f Elijah’s hiding; there was another aim o f equal im­

portance— the provision of the prophet’s needs. God’s children share the common experiences of mankind. So it was in the incident before us. The true prophets of Israel suffered in the famine along with the godless in­ habitants o f the land. Oba- diah, who was o v e r the household o f Ahab, was a godly man, and he hid a hundred prophets in caves and fed them with bread and water; otherwise they would have perished. Elijah him­ self had to be miraculously su p p lie d with food and drink. First, the raven s

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