(3) The Ennobling of Existing Institutions.—Certainly the apostolic method has been extraordinarily successful; it has accomplished far more than could have been accomplished by a violent reform movement. A good example is afforded by the institution of slavery. Here, if anywhere, we might seem to have an institution which was contrary to the gospel. Yet Paul sent back a runaway slave to his master, and evidently without the slightest hesitation or compunction. That action was a consistent carrying out of the principle that a Christian man, instead of seeking an immediate change in his social position, was first of all to learn to make the best of whatever position was his already. "Let each man abide in that calling wherein he was called. Wast thou called being a bondservant? care not for it: nay, even if thou canst become free, use it rather. For he that was called in the Lord being a bondservant, is the Lord's freedman: likewise he that was called being free, is Christ's bondservant. Ye were bought with a price; become not bondservants of men. Brethren, let each man, wherein he was called, therein abide with God." I Cor. 7:20-24. The freedom of the Christian, in other words, is entirely independent of freedom in this world; a slave can be just as free in the higher, spiritual sense as his earthly master. In this way the position of the slave was ennobled; evidently the relation of Onesimus to Philemon was expected to afford both slave and master genuine opportunity for the development of Christian character and for the performance of Christian service.
(4) The Substitution of Good Institutions for Bad.—In the long run, however, such conceptions were bound to exert a pervasive influence even upon earthly institutions. If Philemon really adopted the Christian attitude toward one who was now "more than a servant, a brother beloved" in Christ, then in the course of time he would naturally desire to make even the outward relationship conform more perfectly to the inward spiritual fact. The final result would naturally be emancipation; and such was the actual process in the history of the Church. Slavery, moreover, is only an example; a host of other imperfect social institutions have similarly been modified or removed. What a world of progress, for example, is contained in Gal. 3:28: "There can be neither Jew nor Greek, there can be neither bond nor free, there can be no male and female; for ye are all one man in Christ Jesus." Not battles and revolutions, the taking of cities and the pulling down of empires, are the really great events of history, but rather the enunciation of great principles such as this. "Ye are all one man in Christ Jesus"—these words with others like them have moved armies like puppets, and will finally transform the face of the world.
In the Library.—R. E. Thompson, "De Civitate Dei. The Divine Order of Human Society." Clow, "Christ in the Social Order." Cunningham, "Christianity and Social Questions." Schmidt, "The Social Results of Early Christianity."
LESSON L
THE CHRISTIAN USE OF THE INTELLECT
1. THE PROBLEM OF CHRISTIANITY AND CULTURE
The last two lessons have emphasized the duty of consecration. The enjoyment of simple, physical blessings, the opportunities afforded by earthly relationships, are all to be devoted to the service of God. Exactly the same principle must be applied in the lesson for to-day. If physical health and strength and the companionship of human friends may be made useful in the Christian life, surely the same thing is true of intellectual gifts. The most powerful thing that a man possesses is the power of his mind. Brute force is comparatively useless; the really great achievements of modern times have been accomplished by the intellect. If the principle of consecration is true at all—if it be true that God desires, not the destruction of human powers, but the proper use of them—then surely the principle must be applied in the intellectual sphere.