The method of finding God's Word in the Scriptures illustrated.
1. The Psalms
For richness of spiritual content, for loftiness of expression, and for intimacy of communion with God, no other book in the world equals the Psalms. All devout souls have found the fullest expression of their inmost being in these inspired hymns. Like all true poetry the Psalms deal with the timeless. Eternal truths and deathless passions flow through these beautiful, rhythmic lines like a majestic river. The world is infinitely richer for the Psalms. And though they often reveal mistaken ideas in astronomy, yet religiously and poetically the Psalms contain the finest possible conceptions of the material universe. Even the imprecatory utterances are not wholly immoral, nor altogether contrary to the teachings of Jesus; for when they were deserved, He said things dreadfully severe. But when a Psalmist goes so far as to say of his enemy, "Neither let there be any to have pity on his fatherless children," or "Happy shall he be, that taketh and dasheth thy little ones against the rock," he clearly manifests an evil spirit; a spirit that is at once contrary to his own religion, and utterly condemned by Jesus. However, when we consider the ruthless exploitation to which Israel was so long exposed, it is most remarkable that the Psalms contain so little of this evil note. Whoever approaches the Psalms in the spirit of the Master will find them fat with spiritual meat.
Notwithstanding all, it is an indisputable fact that the best Christian hymns are superior to the poorest Hebrew Psalms. Take for example Dr. Gladden's hymn:
"O Master, let me walk with Thee
In lowly paths of service free;
Tell me Thy secret, help me bear
The strain of toil, the fret of care.
"Help me the slow of heart to move
By some clear, winning word of love;
Teach me the wayward feet to stay,
And guide them in the homeward way.
"Teach me Thy patience; still with Thee
In closer, dearer company,
In work that keeps faith sweet and strong,
In trust that triumphs over wrong,
"In hope that sends a shining ray
Far down the future's broadening way,
In peace that only Thou canst give,
With Thee, O Master, let me live."
Now, if any one should say that this hymn is inferior to the poorest Psalm, he would simply reveal a biased mind. And yet, a hundred Dr. Gladdens could not have produced the book of Psalms. The Psalms were not made to order but, like his hymn, grew out of peculiar experiences. The Hebrew Psalms were lived out, and suffered out, through the life of a people that had looked with straining eyes from many a Mount Pisgah, and had lifted a pitiful cry from many a valley of Hinnom. Such experiences get to the heart of things; they offer the great prophetic opportunity for the noble souls through whom God determines the destiny of a people.
What oratorical genius could invent a Gettysburg speech? The necessary conditions for such a pronouncement were four years of national anguish, a soil watered by the blood of her noblest sons, and a president bowed down with grief. Then, and only then, could a Mr. Lincoln rise in the midst of our hallowed dead and, all unconsciously, speak words immortal.
In the long ago, our western prairies lifted by mighty volcanic forces were shattered, and twisted, and left with great frowning peaks and deep yawning chasms. As a result, great pockets of gold were deposited in their bosom for the enrichment of the world. In like manner, Israel passed through great national upheavals that resulted in many a precious deposit. And among these deposits were the Psalms that have never ceased to enrich human experience.
What the earth's crust is to the student of nature's forces, that the Scriptures are to the student of spiritual forces.