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(continued from page 4)
 God
does not need anything. Paul told the Athenians God was
not "worshipped with men's hands, as though he needed
anything, seeing he giveth to all life, and breath, and all
things" (Acts 17:24-25). God is not supplied, His
stature is not enlarged, His glory is not enhanced,
by things (per se) we do for Him. This is as true of baptism and
Lord's Day worship as it was of animal sacrifice in a past
dispensation. Disobedience is expressed by what we do, or do not
do, but the basic fault is in the heart from whence all sin
comes (Mk. 7:21-). Likewise, service that is not a genuine
expression of the heart can not be true God-service.
The
more one delves into this matter the more one recognizes the
profound simplicity of God's dealings with man. God made man in
His own image, giving him something of himself. He gave man a
soul peculiarly his, a spiritual entity. Man was made the apex
of creation, with the capacity to return love, to declare the
glory of God. He was given the capacity and opportunity to
exercise free moral agency, the power of choice. But free will
also gave man the capacity to say "No" to God; hence
man's free existence was given a time limitation, and a day of
judgment was set. God's sovereignty will be vindicated then.
For
now, God asks (the magnitude of the matter fills us with awe)
ONE thing of man. He asks that we, of our own free will,
cognizant of choice, give ourselves to Him. Here is the essence
o God-service -- that I take the one thing that is peculiarly
"me" and freely return it to my Maker.
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Social
maladjustment, or the self-destructiveness of sin, pale in
importance when its true significance is considered. Sin is
"against God"-a rejection of our Creator. The
beautiful harmony of God is apparent in His remedy for our sin.
He gave His Son, and the Son gave Himself, in our behalf. And
Jesus said, "If any man will come after me, let him deny
himself, and take up his cross, and follow me" (Matt.
16:24).
The
Lord made it clear that anything less than complete dedication
was unacceptable. Service to God must come before service to
father, mother, wife, children, etc. (Lu. 14:26-f). But this
does not excuse the neglect of domestic obligations. God sees
through the hypocrisy of those who use such excuses (Matt.
15:3-9), for He knows if our heart is nigh, or far from Him. As
our Col. 3: text shows, we can meet all valid obligations in
this life "as unto the Lord."
The
best thing parents can do for their children is to develop in
them a God-consciousness. It is the finest legacy; a gift that
will sustain them through life after gold and silver have
perished. It is the unmatched character builder, for it aims
life at something higher than self. It beckons us to
"higher ground" as nothing in this life can ever do.
Little wonder then that the wisest man who ever lived, having
examined all facets of material life, drew this conclusion:
"Fear God, and keep his commandments; for this is the whole
duty of man. For God will bring every work into judgment...
whether it be good, or whether it be evil" (Eccl. 12:13).
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