It is time for us to return to the apostolic example. Mere bustling philanthropy will never conquer the world. The real springs of the Church's power lie in an inward, spiritual realm; they can be reached only by genuine meditation. The eighth chapter of Romans has been neglected long enough; neglect of it is bringing deadly weakness. Instead of adapting her message to the changing fashions of the time, the Church should seek to understand the message itself. The effort will not be easy; in a "practical" age, honest thinking is hard. But the results will be plain. Power lies in the deep things of God.
(3) The Duty of Every Man.—The great intellectual duty of the modern Church is not confined to a few men of scholarly tastes. On the contrary, the simplest Christian may have his part; what is needed first of all is common sense. By an unhealthy sentimentalism, old-fashioned study has been discredited. If God is speaking in the Bible, surely the logical thing for us to do is to hear. Yet modern Christians are strangely neglectful of this simple duty. Bible study is regarded as of less importance than social service; improvement of earthly conditions is preferred to acquaintance with God's Word. The evil may easily be corrected, and it may be corrected first of all by the old-fashioned reading of the Bible. That requires intellectual effort—there is no use in turning the pages if the mind is elsewhere—but the effort can be made by the plain man as well as by the scholar. Simple acquaintance with the Bible facts by the rank and file of the Church will accomplish as much as anything else toward meeting the arguments of opponents. By learning what Christianity is, we shall be able, almost unconsciously, to refute what can be said against it.
3. THE PRACTICE OF THE TRUTH
This intellectual effort, however, should never be separated from practice. The best way to fix truth in the mind is to practice it in life. If our study teaches us that God is holy, let us hate sin as God hates it. If we learn that God is loving, let us love our fellow men as God loves them. If the Bible tells us of the salvation offered by Christ, let us accept it with a holy joy, and live in the power of it day by day. That is the true "practical Christianity", a Christianity that is based solidly upon facts. Conduct goes hand in hand with doctrine; love is the sister of truth.
4. GOD THE SOURCE OF TRUTH
The ultimate Source of all truth, as of all love, is God. The knowledge for which we are pleading can never result in pride, for it is a knowledge that God gives, and a knowledge consecrated at every point to God's service. Presumptuous reliance upon human wisdom comes from knowledge that ignores part of the facts; true science leads to humility. If we accept all other facts, but ignore the supreme fact of God's love in Jesus Christ, then of course our knowledge will be one-sided. It may succeed in producing creature comforts; it may improve the external conditions of life upon this earth; it may afford purely intellectual pleasure; but it will never reveal the really important things. This one-sided knowledge is what Paul was speaking of in I Cor. 1:21 when he said that "the world through its wisdom knew not God." The true wisdom takes account of the "foolishness" of God's message, and finds that that foolishness is wiser than men. The true wisdom of the gospel is revealed only through the Holy Spirit; only the Spirit of God can reveal the things of God. Without the Spirit, the human mind becomes hopeless in dismal error; it is the Spirit of truth who sheds the true light over our path.
"O grant us light, that we may know
The wisdom Thou alone canst give;
That truth may guide where'er we go,
And virtue bless where'er we live."
In the Library.—Patton, "A Summary of Christian Doctrine." Greene, "Christian Doctrine." A. A. Hodge, "Outlines of Theology" and "Popular Lectures on Theological Themes."