· Recife, Brazil Declared Disaster ~rea-p. ~ A Throne Unmoved in a Shaking World-p. 5 Annual CCEPC Convention-po 9 Turbulence and Truth-p: 11

Vol~ 54, No. 14 130 Gerrard Street East, Oct. 2,1975 Whole Number 2419 --~------~------~------~- ~, CENTENNIAL PICTURE

JARVIS STREET BAPTIST CHURCH AND SUNDAY SCHOOL, SUNDAY MORNING SEPTEMBER 21, 1975. \ ,

TORONTO BAPTIST -SEMINARY -FAll-,CONVOCATION

Presiding: - FRIDAY, OCTOBER 17 Speaker: DR. ERIC T. GURR, DR. PARKE~ DAILEY 8 p.m. , President Kansas City, Miss.

DR. ERIC T., GURR BEGINS MINISTRY "Toronto, Jarvis Street. I / IN JARVIS STREET "The many friends' of this churoh and of Dr. Eric Gurr will wish h~lI). well as he moves from Me1bourne The Jarvis Street family has been much in 'prayer for Hall,Leicester, to Toronto to succeed the late Dr. Slade. the coming of Dr. and Mrs. Eric T. Gurr, that !heymay Dr. Gu~r's crossing of the Atlantic will be a great loss come to us in the [ulness of the Gospel bless!ng. Dr. to us in this country. We believe, however, that he will and Mrs. Gurr are scheduled to arrive from Leicester, prove a worthy successor to the eminent men who have England, on October 1, 1975. ,We anticipate a wel.come pastored Jarvis Street for a century and a halif, and we meeting Friday evening, October 3rd. Dr. Gurr wIll ,be pray that, by God's grace, he may be ,much used in occupying his pulpifSunday,~October 5th. ' / Canada. This magazine, with the Strict Baptis~ churches, , We rejoiced in hearin-g~of special blessing at the con­ enjoys warm ties with Jarvis Street, in 'the faith of eluding-services in Melbourne Hall. Some nineteen were God's elect.' We 'also pray ,for Melbourne Hall ,at this baptized on the last three Sundays, recorct offerings time, and trust that a suitable successor to their past9r were received and at the elosing' service five professed may soon be given them." -faith in Christ. We continue to pray for, Melbourne Hall that God will undertake for them in the days to come. May the friends in England be conscious

, We' are grateful to Editor J. C. Doggett forhis kind I . notice which appeared in the September issue of Grace 'DR. T. T. SHiElDS - FOUNDER AND F1RST -EDITOR (1922.1955) magazine, whioh we are ha.ppy to share with our readers. OR. H.C. SLADE - (1955-1974) "

Published bi-w:ee1dy on' Thunday for the propegation of thv Evangelical principle. of the Prote.tant Reformation end I" dofence of the faith once delivered to the Soinh. ' $4.00 Per Yeer. Postpaid to eny edd;e~ •. 20' Per Single Copy Sterling Countriel £1.7 (2 y,ean £3) payable to Cenadian Imperial _' Ba~k of 'Commerce, 2 L~berd Stroot; LOndon, Englend -"1 am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ"-Romans 1:16

EDITORS: Rev. Eric T. Gurr, D.O.; Oli;'e Clark, Ph.D: MANAGING EDITOR: Rev. 'W. P. Bauman, B.A., B.D. CONTRIBUTING EDITORs: 'Rev.,George B. Fletch"r, D.O. " , Rev. J. F. Holliday, D.O. ' RegistM"d Cable Addr".. : Jarwitsem, Cen.de -'130 Gerrard Street East, Toronto • Canada . M5A-3T4 . ,- Second de" mail registration numbotr 1465

2 (218) The Gospel Witness, Oct,ober 2, 1975 Recife, Brazil- Declared Disaste-r Area'

The sun was shining on July 17, 1975 and the people of her husband's appointment she reported the catas­ found it hard to believe that within a half a day the trophe which had struck Recife. She quoted Psalm 32:6, Capvbaribe River would overflow its banks and take " ... Surely in the floods of great waters they shall not one hundred and thirty to a watery_grave and bring the . come nigh unto. him." One 'hundred and thirty had lost worst flood in Recife's history. The Governor declared their lives but not one Christian. God was faithful in Recife a disaster area. It was the worst tragedy of caring for His own. Recilfe in the last century. On exactly the same date seven years ago they had already su£fered a disastrous. In Dr. 'Gueiros' congregation some sixty families lost flood. ' everything. A· young couple married only two months . /' found tn-eir whole house under water. A poor member· Within hours of the warning 80 percent of Recife, or the flock, having 14 children, lost everything, includ­ Brazil's 5th largest city with a population of 1,200,000 ' ing his house built of wood and ·mud. A pastor~ brother was cover'ed by the raging waters of its two rivers which of Dr. Gueiros, spent 14 hours on the roof oif his house flow through the city in their course to the Atlantic. with a son and a nephew, signalling rescue helicopters Hundreds of houses were knocked down by the force but were not helped. A coconut tree in their garden df the waters and completely destroyed. Everything was supplied them with food and good water to drink during submerged for two and a half days before the waters their compelled fasting. . subsided. Torrential rains 70 _miles away in the back lands Another family with 12 children were n~ sleeping swelled the Capibaribe and Beberibe Rivers to flood on mattresses on the floor because they had lost all their proportions. The villages and towns in their wake were furniture. They had no clothes to wear to go to church. destroyed, bridges were washed out leaving many com- Businesses ,and factories were destroyed. One nei,ghbour " munities stranded till emergency bridges were built after of Dr. Gueiroslost 34 cows. When the waters subsided the waters subsided. In the city of Recife two of its one of the cows had to be rescued from the top of one" bridges were covered over' with water. In one street next of, his fruit trees. In Dr. Gueiros' backyard a mother to the river ten solid brick homes were completely de­ and .three children perished because an improvised little stroyed. Walls circling properties were washed away boat was turned over. . I'- a'ld some had as much as ten feet of water in their When Mrs. Gueiros was warned of the flood she with homes. "Houses situated on ,high ground had their base­ 14 grandchildren took refuge in her daughter's home ments inundated. In some areas of the city the river which. had ·never been affected by the big floods. The rose some five meters over its banks. car haa been put in the garage. At three o'clock ill' the When the flood came Dr. Israel Gueiros of' Recife morning they were warned -that water was in the house. had -just been elected as First Vice-President of the Mrs. GueirQs got mit of bed to find she was walking , International Council of Christian Churches in Nairobi, . in water. She and several men carried the sleeping chil­ Kenya. When other members of the famIly. attending dren, in their an11S to find n~fuge on the second floor the Congress telephoned Mrs. Gueiros to inform her of another house. The car was under water for oyer two

Hundreds of homes were destroyed, others 'severely damaged by the Recife floo~, 10,000 pounds of relief goods were sent from Toronto (I.C.R.·Canada).

The G,ospel Witness, October, 2, 1975 -'(219) 3 . days completely covered in mud and almost fini<;hed. a month with a labourer earning alb out $100 per month. Dr. Gueiros himself suffered personal 'loss of some Flood losses will probably never be recovered. $5,000.00. When they returned to his home they found . Alfter the Sunday ~oming service in Jarvis Street a 12 inches of silt in the house. The water had risen 10 rretiring offering was received to help Dr. Gueiros- and ifeet from the road bed outside the house and another his people in this time of dire need. We believe many 10 feet inside the house. of our readers will want to help. You ma.y send your The church of which Dr. Gueiros is pastor is doing gifts to The Gospel Witness and 'we will be happy to all it can to help rebuild the homes of the flood. victims. forward all the' help available to Dr. Gueiros. Inter­ .Many are suffering and looking to God for help in this national Christian Relief 'is making arrangements to send time of trouble and severe trial. some more relief, clothirig and medicines. By making Years ago Dr. Gueiros gave up a lucrative surgical your gift/out to The Gospel Witness acknowledgement practice to devote his time in the Gospel ministry but can be made with official receipts for income tax pur­ his home has become a clinic for the poor OIf the church poses. and district. In this general practice he treats some 30-40 Dr. ,Gueiros said, "We need your prayers; we need patients a week free -Of charge. The medicines shipped your material :help in a hurry." Let us indeed pray and by ICR-Canada are a great help in this ministry. . do all we can to relieve the suffering of ~ur fellow be­ Many of the Brazilian people to whom· Dr. Gueiros lievers in Recife .. ministers are poor. The miilimum salary is about $40 (See ICR - Canada Report)

The tops of three cars can be seen in front of this 'church on . Caxallga Avenue - main road leading t~ back lands - in Recife, during disastrouS flood in late July.

IGLESIA EVANGELICA BAUTISTA quest to sell Bibles in the~ market places, we are doing Valencia, Spain it in our visitation programme. News from a. Church which is growing and which is . By faith we are preparing three Calmps, that as other thankful to you! . _ ' years will' be used by tJ:1e Lord to teach arid to direct The Sunday meetings are very well attended. We have to the Lord His chosen people. In this activity, the Lord an average OIf 70 to 80 in the morning and evening has given us this year the help of brother Eugenio Ciria services. The building is becoming small! I , (from Barcelona), these camps will be a help for other Several new families are sincerely interested in spirit- two churches in our small· and poor Association. ual matters. . . And why is the Lord blessing us? . . . Because we The family Jose and Aguada Perez has' beel). in the know that from Essex to Bowmanville many brethren hands of "Jehovah's Witness,", but now is in the hands pray for us. - of the Lord Jesus. (Praise the Lord!) . JEHOVAH-JIREH Some are awaiting baptism,young and adult people. "Just in 'the last distressing hour In the Saturday Bible School for children, with the help - Th~ Lord displays delivering power; of our old van, we reach more than 30 children. This The mount of danger is the place activity has given us the opportunity for Home Bible Where we shall see surprising Grace." Studies. , -Genesis 22: 14 Although we received the negative answer to the re- -Pastor Roberto Velert I , 4.(220) The Gospel Witn'ess, October 2, 1975

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, , A Throne. UnJDoved· in a Shaking 'World

(Stenographically Reported) "Whose voice then shook the earth: but now he hafupromised, saying, Yet once m<;>re I shake not the earth only, but also heaven. "And this word, Yet once more, signifieth the removing of those things that are shaken, as of things that are Plade, that those things which cannot be shaken- may remain. . "Wherefore we receiving. a kingdom which cannot be moved, let us have grace,. whereby we may serve God acceptably with reverence and godly fear: "For our God is a consuming ~re."-Hebrews 12:26-29.

IT MAY STILL be possible, even in this day, for one to its lessons. "Now there arose up ,a new king over Egypt, live in a very restricted sphere, having but few ·cor­ which knew not Joseph." He was a man without his­ . respondences, isolating oneself largely from others. There torical perspective, who knew nothing of the past; and .are people who do not touch the world in any large way. because of that, brought himself and his people to dis- . aster. ' , I remember some years ago being in a Pennsylvania city, not very far from Philadelphia. I was introduced Equally, one ;may have no, eye and no ear for the to one of the city editors. I had bought. the local. paper future, and live as though there. were no future of sig­ and the Philadelphia papers, to get the news of the day. ,ni:ficance:They live for the present only. If we do, we I remarked to this editor that I found little but local may persuade ourselves Ithat we live in rather strange news, and'not very much foreign intelligence; and with days; we are disposed to pity ourselves because of our quite a superior air he replied, "The United States is difficult circumstances. Yet the wise man, who was a not interested in the rest of the world." That was rather keen observer, was right when he said, "The thing that t<;>o bad, was it not? I am sure he was not a typical hath beeQ., it is that which shall be; and that.which is American, but, there are people in this country and done is that which shall be done: and there is no new everywhere, who are not interested in the. rest of the thing under the sun." We learn, if thus we are alert world. . . to the lessons of the past and the predictions of the future, that ours "is not such a singular day, but that I recall a story of a Canadian, a French-Canadian who we are passing through experiences which are ins~par­ had been somewhere away in the woods when Queen !JIble from human life. It is well' therefore that we should Victoria died. Sir Wilfred Laurier was then the Premier learn to distinguish between the transient and the per­ df Canada. When this man came out of the woods he manent, between that which is moveable and that which learned the news. that the great queen was dead, and abides, between the temporal and the eternal. with much sympathy he enquired, "And· who has her job now?" To which he received the reply, "Her son, In the verses I have read to you, these dements of . - Edward the Seventh." "My," said the, French-Canadian, me, these differing qualities, are brought together in "what a pull he must have had with Laurier!" He too, juxtaposition and contrast, set side by side, that they lived rather a restricted life, and knew little of the wider may be, measured and weighed, and their values ap­ world. praised-the things which may be shaken and the things There are but few of that sort, but there are not a which cannot be ,moved. It is of the very genim of the few who do live much to themselves. They have experi­ Christian religion, of the very essence of saving faith, erices which sometimes they think are quite unusual, that .it enables us so to differentiate between the things quite singular, but discover later that others have had that are valueless and the things which are cif ever­ just the same sorrows, and the same troubles as they. lasting worth. Have you noticed,' when sickness conies into the home, r .' or some other kind of trouble, how quickly you discover Here, then, IS A WORLD WHICH CONS1STS OF a host of people who have had the same experience? THINGS WHICH "MAY BE SHAKEN." I am not They seem literally to swarm aloout one, to tell their tale speaking of the earthquake in Turkey, though it is true of similar troubles. . that the old earth itself can be shaken. But it is true of It is possible to live in a . segment of time. There are all earthly things,. that they may be moved; they are not - people who have little interest in historical matters. They sfa:ble; they do not abide. . care nothing for yesterday. They have no ear for its It is true of all our earthly-possessions. What effort!! voice, no heart for its e~periences, no understanding of men make to seourepennanent posses~on of wealth!

The Gospel Witness,October 2, 1'975 (221) 5 . "Their inward thoUight is, that their houses shall con­ still mo!e personally. How splendid it is to see a strong tinue for ever, ·and their dwelling places to all genera­ man, full of vigor,. albie to· fulfil the obligations of life, . tions; they call their lands after their own names. Nevcr­ . bearing life's burdens easily, meeting all the exigencies. . t;heless man being in honour abideth not: he is like of the hour as being quite equal to them all. Then some­ t,he beasts that perish. This their way is· their folly: thing lays hold upon h~m, and you see the strong m~ yet their posterity approve their sayings." We are slow ibow himself, as something saps his stren~. You do to learn, bUJt how utterly unreliable these e~rthly things not see him tfor a year or two, 'and then you' come upon are! There 'are men who descr~be their wealth-bonds, him, a mere wreck, shrivelled, worn, feeble, leaning upon' and debentures, and mortgages, and deeds-as "securi­ his staff, dependent upon others, all the strength of life ties."·It is almost laughable. "Security!" They are not gone; and the syste,m rapidly declining. Ah yes, the day secure. We had some "securities". given to us for the comes when this tabernacle is dissolved:; the pegs are Seminary. They were supposed to be worth some thou- . drawn, and the tent is taken down. I knew a man who sands. Of dollars, but we discovered later' that the com­ had preached in this· pulpit, S'lIddenly caught away; and pany in whose naimes these debentures had been issued another wrote, of him: _\ had become banikrupt, and had passed J out of existence.­ The debentures were not worth even the paper they were "Fold up this half-worn tent, written on. . Put it away , Under the daisies there, It is very dilfficult to secure anything in this life. A Against that day." man buys a piece of property, and he searches'the title, \ employs some keen-minded lawyer to, "secure",. him There is not much of us, dear friends. If we would against possible loss. Yet he is only buying, at the best, ie~rn the lessons of yesterday, and listen to the voices something that can be "shaken." , of generations that have gone" it would warn us that On one occasion wpen c{)!ming home from :N ew York, at best, . ' I got into conversation with a wealthy man on the train. "Brief life is here our portion; - I found out later that. he was a very rich man,. had Brief sorrow, short-lived care; given some millions to a university, had erected a great The life that knows no ending, building which bore his name. He learned I was a The tearless life is there." Can~dian, 'and chuckling to himself as only one who knows can, he said, "I had some property in Canada II). our day we have seEm what, for a generation pr so, once." "You had?" "Yes, but the deed would not hold W:lS not observed on earth: we have seen great empires it." "What was wrong? Was it not· properly drawn?" fall and thrones totter as though they had been shaken "Fo~ anything I know,· but· the wiiid blew 'it away." by a mighty .earthquake. But a generation ago, Ger­ "What do you mean?" "I 'mean just that. I had bought Plany was universally respected-and feared-as one of just so much. sand; it was not worth anything." , the world's great empires. Her ruler was· one of the chiefest of .the rulers of earth. Her glory is all gone now. You cannot buy anything that the wjnd will not blow It has become,apparently, a nation of mad men, morally - away. You cannot secure anything in this life; all things bankrupv, and .materially bankrupt too - everything are shaken. Riches, as the Wise Man obseJ;Ved, "cer-' gone. Look at Russia, proud Russia, .with her almost tainly make themselves wings; they flyaway as ar' eagle, illimitable domains, the land of the Czars, with all their toward heaven." How many people have we all seen splendour, now brought to nothing, and to a condition of recent years wgo have been stripped df everything!, of ,chaos. Russia to-day is great only in numbers. I used to know people who were quite wealthy, who Thrones, I say, and kingdoms, and great empires, have to-day have nothing at all; everything· gone. And yet come falling down like Babel's tower. for these tremibling things men' will sometimes sell their soul. "What shall it profit a man, if he shall gain the These things have· their testiPlony. You rememiber whole world, and lose his own soul?" - if his life, his how the Bible says "The grass withereth, the flower fad:. soul, if you like, but his life in' its largest significance, eth: but the word of our God shall stand for ever." The: misses the: purpose and plan of it all? . withering grass imd the fallil1g flower, as' well as trem­ bling thrones and shaking kingdoms, should all speak , There are some things more valuable than property .. to tis oIf the transitoriness, the instability, of all earthly I do not kII0W anything that is quite so like heaven as a Ithings. . ~Hippy family, father and mother'and.children around the My text says that there is 'a day cOming when these table, the children their parents' greatest assets. You things shall be shaken even more than they are now. could not buy them, they are their parents' most valued These conditions which we now observe are only symp- , treaS'llres. And what a happy thing it is to see a family tomatic of the. quality that inheres in this earth itself. circle complete! Fathers and mothers, do you not wish you· could always keep your children with you? Do you. Why the earthquake in Turkey? We were horrified at not wish you could put thelm in a safe somewhere, and­ it. Those who profess to know say that the disturbances Jl1ake them secure? But' thieves break through and steal occurred sixteen, miles below the surface of the .earth. even these jew.els. Death comes, and the family, circle In the very earth itself, there was, if I may so say; a .. is broken. What is left of them are scattered abroad, constitutional weakness, and at last- it broke and towns and at last some lonely man or worman lives only with and cities crumbled, and th,ousands of lives were snuffed' memories elf the past. Ask him, ask her, about it; and out. . they will tell you, "This is a world made uP. of things Yet men think this earth is a very solid thing, and that can be shaken, and taken away." behave as though it were going to endure for ever. But, Sometimes it, seems as though there were nothing· left it will not. These treIl10rs and quakes have a voice if in such drcumstances. Sometimes it comes home to us we had ears to hear. I believe God speaks to us in I ·6 (222) The Gospel Witness, October 2, 1975 /

ciroumstances. He speaks to us through these' natural to receive, a, kingdom, how wonderful that is! That is phenomena, through His governance 'of the world. "The what \he Holy Ghost ·speaksof here in contrast with alI heavens declare the glory of God; and the firmament-_ these shaking, temporalities-"But we receiving a king­ showeth his handiwork. "The' stars in their, courses dom which cannot be shaken." fought against ~isera." They did not need to go ouLof their' courses. The very nature of things fights against What does th~t mean? The kingdoni of God is within the man who fights against God.," us. We receive" the, principles and the power of the kingdom even now. We read of the possrbility of tasting My text says that a day is to come when He Who the pOwers of the world to come, ,of ·the age to come. spake from Sinai, and thereby shook the earth, will some The believer receives the eaniest of his inheritance. day so speak that He will shake the heaven and the "Fear not, .little flock; for it is your Father's good plt.::as­ earth. 1 wonder is there any young man here who says, ure to give you the kingdom." We are made a kingdom "I do not believe that"? Your objection has been antici­ of priests unto God, a royal priesthood. We receive a pated in the chapter I read this evening: "There shall kingdom even now. I fear that there area great many come in the last days sco~fers, walking after their own people w~o think of a kingdom that is to be set up on lusts" - after their own desires, after their own covet­ this old earth-rather' a carnal conception-a temporal ings, of the earth earthly. They want the earth to re,main,. rebuilding of Jerusalem, and I know not what else. What so they scoff at the promise of Christ's coming and say, ' a strange delusion that is! We receive a kingdom even "Wher~ is the promi'se of his coming? for since the fath­ now. Jesus, in His parable olf the sower, spoke of the ers fell asleep alL things continue ,as they were from the "word of the kingdom," receiving the word was receiv:, 'beginning of the creation." It is true they have continued ing the word of the kingdom. This is the last will and as they were. But we measure things by our little three testament of the King, by which we are made heirs of score years and ten: God measures them by an 'indefinite 1ihe k;ingdom, and' we receive the word, and the word of scale. A oay with Him i{> as ,a thousand years, and a the kingdom, and are brought under the !ule of our thousand' years as a day. He moves in the amplitude of exalted Lord. "Our ,citizepship is in heaven; from whence eternity, He accomplishes His purpose in the leisure of also we look for the Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ." unnu,m!Qered yeats. He is not shut up to the rise and set of sun. A day will come when "the heavens will be What is this kingdom? It is a kingdom "that cannot on fire, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat, 'be snaken." The reason it cannot be shaken is that it is ' 'the earth also and the works that are therein shall be established in righteousness.' It is founded upon eternal burned up." , - . truth. Righteousness? What is righteousness? The will , . 01£ the majority? The ideal -of the majority? No! Right-, You do not bel~eve that? "No! That is quite un­ eousnes~ is a part of God: He is the only Standard of scientific." They used to say that the.story of the De1uge righteousness, and His kingdom is established in right­ was unscientilfic. They mocked at it. But they dug into eousness. I have said to you before that, I am far more the past, and discovered it to be true. And if our eyes afraid of the Ipe~ce that may be, concluded with Ger':' and ears were open, we should learn, from the past some­ many, or Russia-or whoever may be fighting us at the thing of the future. He will no more destr

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That is the/kingdom-we receive, one that cannot be becoming. I like to hear little boys that have ~en traIned shaken. Some day it will be manifested b,t glory. "The' in a school that is almost unknown in this country, who, kingdom of God cometh not with observation." speaking to their elders, will politely and reverently say, But the kingdom of God is coming. Not in vain have ~'Yesi sir," and "No sir." That is not common in our tbe children of God been taught to pray by our Lord day, is it? I fear there is ;;t very cheap sort of religious Himselif, "Thy kingdo,in come." It must come. He has familiarity that finds no warrant in the Word of God. so ordained. A, kingdom that cannot be shaken some Love Hi.in?-Yes; He is the Lover of our souls. But let day will be manifested in glory. It is lal'lgely now an us reverence HJm. "When ye pray, say, Our Father invisvble kingdom. I recall a remark of a young girl which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name." Let us who is a ,nember of this church. She had just professed ,serve Him with reverence and godly fear, for "our God conversion a little while before, and she was a rather is a consUlIllling fire." Therefore let us never forget that happy sort of girl, likely t9 be misunderstood by the it is the Sacrifice of the cross; the meditorial work of other folk. One day when someone asked her how she our great High Priest, that stands between us and the was getting along; she said, "People wonder at me~ I judgment that must fall upon ungodly men. You ang may not show much Gutside, but there is a great work I had been heirs of perdition too if God had not had going on inside." mercy upon US, for we have "all 'sinned, and come short That is what God does, "a great work going on in- of the glory of God." It ism His sovereign mercy that side." "We receiving a kingdom which'cannot be moved" He has chosen us to be His own. - and some day that kingdom will be manifested in r would fain send you away this evening feeling, -"I power and glory. We are citizens of that great kingdom, am rich. I am the heir of a 'kingdom which cannot be when He shall have changed the bodies of our humilia- moved." May God lead us into the -assurance of it, and tion, and made them like unto His own glorious body; _ the comfort of it, and the power' of it, so that we may we shall be kings and priests unto God and our Father, say, "Thou shalt guide me with Thy' counsel, and after': and shall be manifested with Hiri1 in' glory. ward receive me to glory." Let. us pray: HI. 0 Lord, we thank Thee for the gospel of IThy grace. - What is the argument? HOW SHOULD WE BE- for sa/vation through the blood, for the eternal security HAVB OURSELVES IN THIS STRICKEN WORLD? of all who believe, for an inheritance incorruptible, un­ '''Wherefore we receiving a kingdom which cannot be defiled, 'and that -fadeth not away, reserved in heaven moved, let us have grace." That word really means gratJ- for us who are kept by the power of 'God, through faith tude: Let us be thankful. Let us be appreciative. Let our unto salvdtion,ready to be revealed in the last time. hearts go out in grateful adoration to the Orie Who gives Include us -all in Thine evening benediction by 'making us the kingdOjIIl established through the blood of our us all partakers of ,"he sa/vation that is in C}lrist. For Lord Jesus Christ. "Let us have grace." Things crum- Thy name's sake. ' - January 7, 1940 bling about us, foundations destroyed, men's hearts fail- ing them . for fear-what of it? Though the very earth PREACHERS shake beneath our feet, "thOUgh the mountains pe <;:ar-: . - ried into the midst of the sea; though the, waters thereof MANY PREACHERS - I speak it with sorrow - have roar and be troubled, though the mountaip.s shake~with built a tower of theological speculations, upon which the swelling theroof," we have "a kingdom which can- they sit like Nero, fiddling the tune of their own philoso­ not be moved." We are heirs to a fortune the "securi- phy while the world is burning in sin and misery; they ties" Of which are not in any ea.fthly vault., They are in are playing with the toys of speculation while men's heaven "where thieves do not break through nor steaJ.?,souls are ,beinglost. Much of human wisdom is a mere That is our security. coverlet for the absence of vital, godliness. I went into railway carriages of the first class in Italy which were Having received it, -our text says, "Let us have grace" lined with very pretty crochet-work, and I thought the (thankfulness). Christian people ought to be filled with, 'voyagers -highly honoured, since no doubt' some delicate a holy gratitude that we have ,something !hat no one can fingers had sumptuously furnished ,the cars for them. take away; a wealth that caD never be forfeited; and in The crochet-work was simply put on to cover the grease that grateful attitude, -let us serve God with reverence, and-dirt oJf the cloth. A great deal that is now preached revering and magnifying His name, glorying in Him. of very pretty sentimentalism and religiousness is a mere , Not in order that we may receive the kingdom, but be- crochet-work covering for detestable .heresies long since cause we have it. Not in order, that we may be saved, disproved, whidh dared not appear' again wit,hout a dis­ but because we are already saved. That is the wonder guise for their hideousness. With words of human wis­ of it. "With gratitude" let our lives be dedicatoo to the dom and speculations of their own invention men dis­ service of God, that we may serve Him with reverence guise falsehood. and deceive many. Be .it ours to give and with godly fear. . to the people what God gives to us. Be ve each of you . There is' a place even in human government fo'r rev- as Micaiah, who declared: "As the Lord liveth, whdt­ erence of the King's Majesty. It is right that oI?-e should soever t!he Lord saith unto me that will I speak." not be unduly familiar. There' is a r~verence. that is --C. H. Spurgeon

Pray fof Evangelistic Meetings ~ , '. . ..,

8 (224) The Gospel Witness, October 2, 1975 ANNUAL CONVENTION OF THE CANADIAN COUNCIL OF

EVAN~ELlCAL PROTESTANT CHURCHES By Rev. Horace F. MacEwen

'The anriual convention of the Canadian Council of the departure from the faith so common in our day and Evangelical Protestant Churches was' held, September of his delight in being a participant of .such an effort ,0 19, at Jarvis St. Baptist Church, Toronto. The featured defend it as the ICCC. He was originally a medical doc­ speaker was Dr. Carl McIntire, president of the Inter- tor, but turned to full time ministry of the gospel in the national Council df Christian Churches. Dr. McIntire separated Presbyterian church of Recife, Brazil: He gave two addresses, the first at the luncheon at 12.00 devotes part time each week to ministering to the physj.,. noon, and the second- at' the evening session at 7.45 cal needs of the poor in that area and has a very large -p.m. Because of a delay in Dr. McIntire's plane schedule C'hurch where true revival has been experienced. some of the speakers who were to speak at the afternoon At the evening session business matters were atteJ;lded . session occupied the time while waiting for his arrival. to, resolutions read, and a worship service preceded Mrs. H. C. SIflde reported on her attendance at the ICCC Dr. McIntire's address on "I Was Kidnapped by the plenary congress at Nairobi, Kenya, in July, and Rev. Kenya Government." He stated that this experience R R. Oatley-Willis, spoke on compromising missionary burned in his soul the fellowship of Christ's sulfferings agencies, some of which cooperate with the World Coun;. and made it all the more real what so many of the people cil of Churches, and others which take a negative posi- of God have endured for their Lord's sake during the tion with regard to compromise with the organized apos- - centuries since Christ first suffered. He has been per­ tasy such as the WCC represents. He named the Divi- 'manently expelled from Kenya,- and yet though /he has sion of Overseas Ministries as identified with the ecu- reported all sessions of the World Council of Churches menical movement and as in full cooperation with the since its inception he will not 'be permitted to go there WCC. Then he named the Evangelical Foreign Missions in Novemiber. whe~ it will sit in its full display of power. Association as commonly connected with,middle-of-the- Dr. Billy Graham has been invited to attend and has road de!1ominations which refuse to m~~e a co?l~lete every intention of going. Dr. McIntire warned Christians break WIth the WCC, and also the UnaffIlIated MISSIons that the time is short, the apostasy much developed and which take a soft approach but not a complete, sepa- therefore they should occupy .till Christ comes whose ratist position. !he A~s.ociated Missions take a. 'Yho1e- is the right to judge every man according as his w<':-k hearted separatJ~t poSItIon and reflect the polICIes of shall be. Are we laying up for ourselves treasures m their parent c'hurches repudiati!1g all connection with heaven by, being faithful and loval to our Lord? By His the apostate moveI1!ents and allIances of the d~y". R~v. grace this is the position of the CCEPC. S. A. Tulloch. preSIded and woul!d ,!p the penod WIth At the morning business meeting at 10.00 Dr. John rem~rks on hIS attendanc~ ,at N~lrobl and the. b.Iessm~s F. Holliday was elected president for the year 1975-76. receIVed, when ~r. ~cIntJre amved and held h1s audl-, .. Dr. Holliday presided at the evening session and lovally ence enthralled WIth h1s rehearsal of ;Ho~ the. ~CCC con- backed up all the expres'siohs of the stand of the CCEPC gress opposed the WCC, Commumsm, PolItIcal Inter- as given by the speakers and the reports presented. ference and Compromising Evangelicals. Dr. Israel f . Gueiros accompanied him from Philadelphia and added a br~ef report of his pleasure olf occupying the president's RESOLUTIONS chair when Dr. McIntire was deported by the Kenya COMMUNISM government before the congress was ended. Doubtlessly Whereas .Communism is blatantly atheistic and ma­ it 'was the work of Communist sympathy with Russia terialistic and is actively causing the imprisonment, per­ that precip,itated this, for when once the congress invited secution and deaths of many believers around the world, Alexander Solzhenitsyn to come to address it, the pot was on the fire. To add fuel to the flames McIntire was Be it resolved that the Canadian Council of Evangeli­ accused of being a racist on the basis of some unauthor­ cal Protestant Churches declare again its utter repudia­ ized report given to the press which was never intended tion of this imperialistic system which is seeking to for publication by some unauthorized person. This re­ enslave the world. port hailed Ian Smith as the defender of Christian civili­ zation in Rhodesia. The conlrress never once mentioned . THE CHARISMATIC MOVEMENT Ian Smith in any of its official public releases. Due Whereas the Charismatic Movement with its stress on apology was made for this unwarranted release, but the GLOSSALALIA, exorcism, and religious excitement, government was adamant Olice it determined to expel· is often associated with non-evangelical religions, and McIntire. is being used to promote ecumenicity, During the afternoon session Dr. Gueiros gave a glow­ Be it resolved that we completely dissociate ourselves ing testimony .of- this modern standard raised up agaimt .from it as an un scriptural movement. rithDr. BobJones,Nov. 2-9,1975

The Gospel Witness, October 2, 1975 (2·25) 9 I THE ROMAN CATHOLIC CHURCH. And Whereas Dr. McIntire 'pointed out that Mozam­ Whereas the Roman Catholic Church' and the World. bique is a Communist siate, and quoted the New York ' Cbuncii of Churches have an. official joint Working· . Times to that effect, and he discussed Frelimo, pointing Group to study ways of fostering contacts and co-opera­ out that it held a Communist guerriIIa operation there, tion, and the Roman Catholic Church has' two special And Whereas' Dr. McIntire upholds the claims of secretariats, one for Non-Christian Religions, and the­ Jesus ·Christ as the only Saviour of men w~o may/come other for Non-Believers, and it has allowed the Charis­ 'to Him by faith irrespective of radal bac;kgrouild or matic Movement to involve its members, ana, its so­ colour, . called,.changes are outward,but inwardly i~ is the-same Therefore be it resolved that the CCEPC stands be­ with.its false doctrine of a works salvation. hind his conduct in Nairobi and repudiates all' charges Be it' resolved that we continue our firm' stand on df racis~ against him. These we know to be false, and the basic principles of· the Protestant Reformation-\ in , we express confidence in his leadership and as President obedience to the Word of God and that we loyally con­ of ,the ICCC. ( . _. . tinue this Protestant position with might and main. MISSIONS FAITHFUL WARRIO:R CALLED .HOME Whereas' many 0:£ the Faith Missions, unknown to most -C}uistians, are cooperati'1g with the Division of , Overseas Missions, the missionary arm of the Wo:rld Council . of Churches and the Canadian Council of Churches, And whereas some of these mission agencies are mem- ' bers . of the Interdenominational Foreign Missiops As­ sociation and-the Evangelical For~ign Missions Associa­ tion where there is a growing compromise and involve­ ment with the Charismatic Movement, the World Council alf Churches, and New Evangelical~, : Be it resolved that we go on record as recommend­ ing the increased support ,o( The Associated. Missions, the missionary al1m of the International Council ofChris-. tian Churches. NEW EVANGELICALISM Dr. G •. W}:lereas New Evangelicalism (sci-called) does not Beauchamp subscribe to total inerrancy of the Holy Scriptures as Vick originally given, and it has abandoned the Biblical prin­ ciple o'r separation from apostasy and error, declaring its 1901.1975 . policy to be one of "infiltration" into the apostasy rathef than withdrawal from it, and it "advocates concession to the evolutionary theory, tlms abandoning the literal ac­ count of the creation in the Bible and denying the 'in- We ~ave iust learned, as we go to press, that tegrity of the ;Biblical claims, , Dr. G. Beaucham!l Vick, esteemed imd b~loved pastor Be it resolved that we repudiate this betrayal 0If Bibli­ of Temple Baptist Church, 'Detroit, Michigan, Presi· cal principles and urge Bible-believing Christians to ex­ dent of Baptist Bible College, Spflngfhld Missouri, one of' the fou'nders of the Baptist Bible Fellow- amine and observe all Sunday School pulblic~tions, church notices, and puolications in view of. this subtle' . ship, Chairman of the Fundamental Baptist Con·· conipromise and to withdraw from complicity with it. gresses. of North America, ,was suddenly called home 'from' his office' in Springfhld on September' 29, DR. McINTIRE CHARGED WITH RACISM 1975. He had attended services iit Temple Baptist' Whereas .the International CoilIlciI, of Christian Church. on Sunday and arrived in Springfield Mon­ Churches is a multiracial conlITess that emphasizes the day morning' and collapsad in his office just after oneness of all believers in Christ, but opposes idol wor- two o'clock. He had planned to be with us for the ship, atheism, and Marxist-Stalinist Communism, . - reception of Dr. Gurr on Friday. , And Whereas the International Council of Christian The fun~ral is to be held in Te~ple Baptist Churches congress did not make any mention of Ian Church, Detroit, Friday" October 3, 1975 at 1 p.m. Smith in Rhodesia, and was composed of roughly 3,500 . Jarvis Street Baotist Church, THE GOSPEL Blacks, and 1,500 other racial groups, White,. Asiatic, WITNESS arid Toro~to Baptist Seminary 'families etc., ' join the hosts of fundamental Baptists throughout And Whereas a background paper, prepared by some the. world in expressing ,sincere Christian sympathy unknown person in Ulster in preparation for Ian Paisley's to memb~rs of Dr. Vick's family, Temple' Baptist visit had been released by the ICCC press officer, and Church, Baptist' Bible College, Baptist Bible Fellow­ this had been, taken' as an "Official pronouncement of the ship in., the loss of' a beloved father, pastor, admin-' congress and so-called by the press, and it named the istrator and friend. Smith regime as the upholder of Christian civilization In our experience there was no more gracious there, so that the: press secretary felt it necessary to host on earth than Dr. Vick. Now he is in the apologize;for· its release, . presence of the Lord which is far bett~r. Thank' And Whereas the delegates had made it clear that the . God for the Christian hope to be absent from the congress leaders believe .that all nations have a right to bod:y is ~o be present with the Lord. be free and independent,

10 (22S) The Gosp~1 Witness, October 2, 1975 A BIBLICAL LOOK AT TODAY'S WORLD· by Rev. John F. Holliday, B.A., O. O.

"COUNTERFEIT-OR GENUINE" tered the lists to challenge the textual critics of ~is day, The inerrancy o:f the Bvble is foundational to Chris­ whose views reflected upon Biblical inerrancy. COUN­ tianity. Assaults upon its authority,. whether they orig­ TERFEIT OR GENUINE is a valuable addition to the inate Jrom foes without or enemies within, are serious. arsenal of Christian fundamentalism. The critics will not and cannot destroy "the impregnable rock' of holy Scrip~ure," but tliey. can misinform and DEVOTION, DETERMINATION AND mislead many who desperately need the illumination and DEPORTATION comfort of God's Word. We have just partiCipated in the Annual Meeting of Among the contemporary strategies of Satan to .under­ the Canadian Council of Evangelical Protestant Churches mine confidence in the Scriptures is a widespread effort in. Jarvis Street Baptist Church, Toronto. by translators and publishers to distort or dilute The Book itself. Prolfessing' to venerate and circulate the Highlig1)ts of the gatherillig were the reports by Mrs. sacred writings, they add to, subtract from or alter the H. C. Slade, Rev. B. R. ,Oatley-Willis and Rev. S. A. sense of the inspired text. We recognize with thankful- TuUoe'h, ()If the International Council of Christian . ness the sacrifice and devotion of a host of translators Churches in Nairobi, Kenya. The story 0'£ a great Chris­ who have earnestly sought to convey accurately the tian gathering of 5,000 Bible~believing followers of words of the original autographs; but we cannot but be Christ from many national and racial groups, including- concerned about the flood of new translations, that, in 3,500 Africans, was thrilling. . many cases, sacrifice accuracy for "modernity" and The climax of the day was a simple God-honouring popularity. ' testimony of Dr. Carl McIntire. His record of the events It is heartening to note that God is raising up able· which led to' his deportation from Kenya indiCated very scholars to defend the Bible from the minds and pens . clearly the pressures of Communists and Ecumenists of men who tamper with the sacred text. Some very that triggered and pr~ipitated the lmjU'st action of the effective work in this area has been done by Dr. David Kenya. government. J'Pe Canadian Council of Evangeli­ Otis-Fuller of Grand Rapids, Michigan. He has pro­ cal Protestant Churches exprej>sed by resolution' its con­ duced three books that are invaluable to preachers, fidence in Dr. McIntire's leadership and complete re­ teachers, . and indeed to anyone who is troubled about pudiation of charges that the IeCC president was in any Bible translations based upon faulty sources or distorted sense of the word a neist. The immense racial outreach /by unreliable methods. of the Congress .itself was proof olf this, particularly the Dr. Fuller's book, WIDeH BIBLE, is now in its fifth support of thousands df African nationals. edition. It is an excellent general treatment of this whole' subject. His second book, TRUE OR FALSE, contains six hundred pages of invaluable iIllform:ation. It isa TORONTO BAPTIST SEMINARY ALUMNI supply of ammunition for the believers who is detennined to resist current assaults upon' God's Word. A third book, from the pen of this champion of Truth, has just 'There is to be a meeting of all TORONTO BAPTIST . come off the press. Titled' COUNTERIFEIT OR GENU-. SEM!NARY .ALlrMm in.' the.Seminary BuUding between INE, it is an outstanding defence of Mark chapter ·16 the Banquet hour and .the Convocation op. October 17, 1975. and John chapter 8, .passages which have been "under attack" for centuries. A considerable part 0If the material - Rev" R. Sidebottom, is a q:mdensation of a book by Dean BiJ.rgon, an out- , . 'President of Alumni • standing nineteenth cenwry scholar who repeatedly en- - ______...... ______

The Gospel Witness, October 2, 1975 (227) 11 THE GOSPEL WITNESS RIDES A BUS­ ,large congresses ,were usually on the, Blessed Person IN SOUTH AMERICA of the Lord Jesus Christ. Last year, at Cape, May, he iFro,lIl time, to time we share excerpts of letters from spoke on 'THE TRIUMPH OF THE LAMB.' 'There our readers, ,but we do not Often quote a letter in full. is a prince and a great man fallen today' (2 Sam. 3:38). The following letter was such a blessing to us tfhat we Outstanding leaders from several countries attended his were constrained to share it with our readers. Such let­ funeral: and the serinon was given by Dr. Carl McIntire, ters are for us a source of encouragement. We know not (on II ,Kings 2:12) .. ~' I then refer to the passing the full outreaoh' of such a printed messenger as The away of that godly woman: Mrs. Maris, from Holland." Gospel Witness. God does indeed work in mysterious ways His wonders to perform. We are humbled by such letters and led to, earnest prayer that H;e will continue THE ASSOCIATION OF REGULAR BAPTIST to use The Gospel, Witness to His glory and praise. CHURCHES (CANADA) <> EIGHTEENTH ANNUAL CONVENTION "Dear Rev. Bauman: TENTATIVE PROGRAMME ~'Surely this letter is long overdue! Trust you will not' h~l~ it again~t us. ~ay tlhe Lord richly bless the Gospel's ocrOBER 15th: ,lIllillstry dunng this Centennial Year, of Jarvis Street 10.00 a.m.-Board Meeting Baptist Church. Also the church, of course! , OCTOBER 16th: , ,"It was during the IeCC Congress at Cape May that 10.00 a.m.-Business Meeting the ~ate' beloved Dr. Sl;tde requested you to consider ~ sendmg us your paper on a complimentary basis, mainly -Reports as I am (still am) editing a monthly sheet 'BIBLE 2.00 p.m.-Summer Fiel!=! Reimrtsby SWORDTHRUSTS: It takes long in reaahing us but it Toronto Baptist Seminary students gets ,here, and some of its sermons are inspiring in a great -Pastor Claude Jacques way. Lately two on Prayer were splendid: also GARBC's President's message all four principles or requirements' Speaker: REV. LORNE MATHESON for all believers and churohes was excellent! Dr. Shields' 7.30 p.m.-Preliminary presentation of, message aifter the fire wassupeI1b! , Association Churches with slides "Usually I pass these on to others: and it is not m­ -Word of greeting by Mr. Itty frequent that 1 use much of its material in my oral min­ Speaker: DR. PARKER DAILEY, istry. My publication has sometimes, used material from Turbulence and Truth." Kansas City, Missouri,U.S.A. "Only a few days ago, riding a bus, I was under severe OCTOBER 17th: pressures of many natures. It was early in the morning 9.00 a.m.-Meeting of the new Board and I set myself to pray, rather tlhan read. The journey 2.00 p.m.-overseas Missions was long: so after a refreshing - though strange - time ,-Mr. Hubert Hall-Jamaica of ,prayer, I asked the Lord or suggested: 'Lord: I'm -Mr. Eugene Ciria~Spain gomg to read some now (there was still time): shou14 You wish to permit this, let me, come to something 5.30 .p.m.-Convoeation Banquet, clearly assisting ,lIle . . ." I pulled out two or three 7.30 p.m.-Toronto Baptist Seminary Witnesses, chose the one with the oldest date, _and O;mvocation started from tlhe b~ginning. I hadn't paid niuch attention Speaker: DR. PARKER DAILEY to the cover with the painting of your church bUilding. "But then the first thing I read was your account of' the New Year's Day meeting: and when I came to your motto-text for the year, I felt moved: JEHOV AH­ JIREH! I re-read: stopped: prayed in thanksgi'ling and CENTENNIAL ECHOES went on, about my business, with my burden lifted! I told this at home:'aild soon afterwards to my small audi:­ ON CBl ence at a B1ble Reading or Ministry meeting. "This letter is meant to refer to your 'Editor's Annual Letter' for 1975: I am unaJble to enclose money: but' Rev. W. P. Bauman, Chairman of' i:h~' Centennial this carries, love, thankfulness' and the hope that you Committee, will. be interviewed on, the 'Mike Filey 'will find it possible to allow me to continue receiving ~progtamme, "Our Town" over CBL at 9:10 a.m.,' ~atur- your excellent paper. day, October 18 1975. ' __ "Am enclosing a copy of the June 1974 issue of lPY We will be featuring the Centennial Parade from . paper, where (on back page) I wrote: 'On 16th May old Bond Street to Jarvis Street., the Lord called to His presence - unexpectedly' and suddenly - Dr. H. C. Slade, distinguished fundamen-' talist leader from Canada. We had occasion to know TRIN-IT ARIAN BIBLE SOCIETY him; and the honour of being his interpreter on more Thursday, ,October 30th, 1975 tlhan one occasion: besides having shared with him sev­ Victoria Park Free Presbyterian Church. eral Congresses in France, Holland, Switzerland, Brazil, , '2712 Victoria Park Ave. USA and Buenos Aires. H. C. Slade was a successor to T. T. Shields - considered the contemporary Spurgeon Speaker: Rev. Brian Robinson - and it was a treat to hear him. His subjects at the

12 (228) The Gospel Witness; October 2, 1975 priviiege of building, the house of God. He had gathered all the materials such as gold and iron, etc., but now the - essential ingredient was necessary - consecrated people. God uses . people! God used people to write the B~ble. He chose a Jewish maiden for the miracle of the DR. TOM MALONE virgin birth of Christ. ADDRESSES TEACHERS You will never have a work for God without conse­ crated people. At the pool of Bethesda the impotent AND WORKERS man replied to Jesus' question, "Wilt thou be made whole?" "Sir, I have no' man . . . to' put me into the OF JARVIS STREET pool" (John 5:6-7). M"ter Philip asked the Ethiopian, "Understandeth what thou readest?" the eunuch an­ swered, "How can I, except some man should guide me?" God uses men. We must be men and women of God filled with the ~e Centennial mble Scbool Banquet of Jarvis Street Holy Spirit, full of enthusiasm and zeal. By God's en:­ BaptIst Church was held on September ,23, 1975, witb abling grace He can use anybody that is consecrated to 'lA:. ~om Malone of Emmanuel Baptist Church, Pontiac, Him. We must surrender ourselves to God for the in­ MIchigan, ~s the guest speaker., There was a good time terest of others. We are to love souls for whom Christ of fellowshIp around the dinner table downstairs which died. continued during the programme in Greenway Chapel. "Who then is willing to consecrate bis service this Mr. Bruce Scott brought appropriate messages in song. day unto the Lord?" This Day! Here is a note of ur­ Dr. ~a1one introduced his message by reading from 'gency. We must work the works of God while it is day 1 Chromc1es, chapters 28 and 29, with special emphasis for the' night cometh, when no man can work. Let' us on verse 20, "And David said to Solomon his son, Be n()t be guilty of being too late. st.rong and of good courage, and do it: fear not, nor be To get the job done, of winning people to Jesus Christ dIsmayed: for the Lord God, even my God, will be with we must love what we do. We must enjoy serving God. thee; he will not, fail thee, nor forsake thee, until thou "Who then is willing to consecrate his service this hast finished all the work for the service of the house day unto the Lord?" of the Lord." Then Dr. Malone spoke of one of the We thank God for this challen'ge from His word ~ p:lost challenging questions in the Word of God, "And through His servant. Mr. J. Polach, Sunday School Su.- . who t)1en is willing to consecrate bis service this day perintendent said to Dr. Malone in closing, "Hurry unto the Lord?" David was in his declining years. He back." It was indeed a precious time of fellowship and bad known many victories but be was not given the inspiration to go out and do a good job for God.

Special Centennial EVANGELISTIC MEETINGS November 2 ~ 9. 1975 One of America's foremost Christian educators, I I Dr. Bob Jones, will hold a series of spt

The Gospel Witness, October 2, 1975 (229) 13 I

ICR - CANADA SENDS RELmF to RECIFE ~'On behalf of all ICR-Canada ,personnel who as­ FLOOD VICTIMS sisted in the su~ssful operation of this entire shipment, ,,may I say that it has been our pleasure 10 serve the Lord Upon retum from the, ICCC Congress in, Nairobi, in this missionary enterprise. With this shipment having Kenya ICR-Canada under the direction of· Mr. Tom , reached its destination, our total shipped weight to date' l,inton jmmediately went to work, to send relief to the stands at 444,430 pounds of relief goods~" Recife flood victims. Mr. Linton relates' what ~as done. Warehouse Address: "We made an immediate call' to the Brazilian' Con­ lCR-CANADA sulate in Toronto and otfi~red approximately 10,000 pounds of relief goods - 5,000 pounds of clothing, 122 Manville Road " boots, shoes, soap, and the like, and 5;000 pounds of Unit 5, South,Scarborough. mediciIie\ and vitamins. The Consul thanked us for our ,Phone: 757-5862. offer to assist in the emergency and contacted the Bra­ ?ilian Embassy in Ottawa for clearance of the shipment. ( "Word was received that Varig Airlines (Brazilian BOUND VOLUME 53 Airlines) would take the entire shIpment free of charge The ..twenty-six issues of Vo1UJlIle 53 of THE GOSPEL !from New York to Rio de Janeiro and then on to RecIie WITNESS, (with complete indiceS are' available in a by domestic airlines but they had no means of transport­ bard cover Bound Volume to match the existing Bound ing the goods from Tor6nto to New York. Air-Canada' Volumes. Reserve your copy now. Special Price $~.OO was then immediately contacted . . . and asked if they would assist in taking the shipment from Toronto to New York on a free, basis. After a few more phone calls and checking, the airlines sent back the good news that \ free 'cargo space was reserved for the shipment to New Bible School Lesson' Outline York. OLIVE L. cLARK, Ph.D. (Tor.) "Then our volunteer personnel went into action to prepare the shipment, working every spare hour over a Volume 39 First Quarter Lesson 4 October 26, 1975 period of three evenings and all day Saturday. This 'en­ tailed a tremendous amciunt of work. Mrs. Linton and THE LAST DAYS OF DAVID I were aided by Mr: Jim Parrish, Mr. Jack Stiver, Mr. Lesson Text: 2 Samuel 22:11-25; 23:1-7; 24:18-25. Dean Ravenhill,'Miss Linda Ravenhill, Mr. Peter Slade, Mr. Roy Curran, Mr. R. Evans, and Mr. Jeff White­ Golden Text: "H'e that ruleth over men must- be just, ruling head. To indicate the immensity of the task, a total of in the'fear of God.'~-2 Samuel 23:3. 193 cases were prepared, loaded; and delivered to the I. The'King's Deliverance: 2 Sam. 22:1-25. airport. ' , This Psalm (Compare Psa. ,18:1-24), was written by David, ,"We take this opportunity to publicly thank' the 'as he praised the Lord for deliverance from his enemies, Brazilian authorities, Varlg Airlines 'and Air Canada for especially froI? King S.aul, who had acted as an enemy. their kindness, co-:operatipn, and willingness to provide These historical victories are compared by David to his the free transportation of this shipment to those in dire spiritual deliverances, and 'he voices our thanksgiving also distress in Recife. , for victory over our spiritual foes. ' The ·Lord alone is our Protector from t)1e spiritu!I!l foes which surround us, ailld David ,uses various metaphors to

describe Him. A rock suggests stability; aj fortress, strength; a shield, protection; a horn, dignity and honour; a tower; watchfu~ness and a refuge, safety . . Who are the enemies of our souls, suggested here by the Psalmist? They are death, ungodly men and hell (Sheol or .l:lades, the abode of the dead). Christ by His death gained . for us the viCtory over death, and that viotory will some day become a reillity for every believer, (1 . Cor. 15:26, 54- 58). Ungodly men persecute us, but God proteots us from real harm to our souls. The risen Christ has the, keys of Hades (Rev. 1: 18); the soul that trusts Christ need not fear that awful grave that lies beneath the shadow of His eros:" hut on the brther side: . What is the nature of our deliverance,assuggestect by David? It is a mighty deliverance. God is Sovereign in His working, and at times He Uses the, powers of nature as His instruments (Exod. 15:6-12; Judg. 5:4, 5, 20). They " are all lJ[lder His control. It may' be, however, that the Psalmist is using metaphorical language' here. The earth­ quake, thunder, disturbances' on 'land, sea and in the air Preparing shipment ·for Recife, Brazil - Mrs. James, Mr. speak of the Lord's great power (Psa. 77: 16-18); the smoke Tom Linton, Mrs. Norman Linton and Mr. Ja~k Stiver. is a token C?f His righteous wrath (Exod. 19:18; Rey. 15:8); I

14 (230) The Gospel Witness, .October 2, 1975 lightning and fire of His holiness (Isa. 64:1, 2; Rev. 4:5); approval (Compare 1 Chron. 21:1; Satan is referred to as wind of His mysterious Deity, omnipresence and the' Holy "he" in 2 Sam. 24:1). Spirit (Psa. 104: 1-3; John 3:8; Acts 2:2). . To commemorate God's mercy in stopping the plague, David's deliverance was complete. He was safe from David was commanded -to build an altar on the threshing­ further attacks' of his enemies and could say that he had floor of Araunah, also called Omari. This site was later become established ina larg~ place, indicating freedom chosen for' Solomon's temple (1 Chron. 21:28-22:5). The from his bondage and also an abundant life (Psa. 4:1; Mosque 9f Omar now stands there, an Arab holy ptace. 31:8; John 10:10). The Lor(} makes us more than con­ Believers are to offer to the Lord the sacrifice of praise quer,?rs (Rom. 8:37). ' for His redeeming grace (Heb:,13:15). Who will experience similar deliverances? Those who are Araunah ,the Jebusite was indeyd generous, but there are righteous, whose hands and hearts are pure because, they times when a proxy offering is not acceptable. The perfect have become one with the Lord Jesus Christ. They are also gift is that which represents our own love, strength, talents obedient to His commands. Disobedience and rebellion and personalgy (Luke 21:1-4; 2 Cor. 8:5). sever our communion with the Saviour and will mean .de­ feat(Isa. 59: 1-3; Matt. 15:8, 9). Daily Bible Readings Qct. 20-God's Overcoming Power ': ... 2, Sam. 22:26-37 II .. The King's Desire: 2 Sam. 23:1-7. Oct. 21-David's Complete Victory 2 Sam. 22:38-51 The precise reference in the first senten{:e of this chapter Oct. 22-David's Three Mighty Men .... 2 Sam. 23:8-12 is not altogether clear. Various suggestions have been put Oct. 23-David's Heroes ...... 2. Sam: 23:13-23, forth: (1) These words may infer that what follows is not Oct. 24-The People Numbered part of the preceding Psalm. (2)' The preceding Psalm may 2 Sam. 24:1-9; 1 Chron. 21:1-4 ~ 'be the last of his poetical utteranci!s, his last Psalm. (3) Oct. 25-David's Punishment ...... 2 Sam. 24:10-17 This may be his last public message while his strength Oct. 26-David's Deliverance ...... , Psa. 57 remained firm, his charge to Solomon being of a private character. Volume 39 First, Quarter Lesson 5 November 2, 1975 " By inspiration the author describes the honoured position which David held in Israel. He had been born of an obscure SOLOMON THE WISE KING family, but was chosen by God and exalted to the throne. Lesson Text: IlGngs 1:32-40: 3:5-15; 4:29-34. He had been· anointed to his high office, to rule for the Lord. As "the sweet Psalmist of Israel" he has left us a Golden Text: "For wisdom is better than rubies; and all record of his' experiences with God: hi~ prayers and praises, the things that may be desired are not worthy to be his sorrows and joys, his defeats and yictories. He tells 'us compared to it."-Proverbs 8:11. ' "- ,that these Psalms were written under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit. . ' I. The King Anointed: 1 Kings 1:32-40. David's success was due to his obedience to the will of The reign of Solomon is also recorded in 2 Chronicles God. Obedience on the part of the people is "the bond of . 1-9 .. 1' Chronicles, in addition to its genealogy tables, con­ rule" and submission to God. on the part 6f the ruler is tains historical material which s largely parallel to .that,in the fou,ndation of his success. 2 Samuel, and tells of the reign of David. II Chronicles recounts material parallel to I and II Kings, emphasizing The 'Lord revealed to David the two principles which the history of Judah, but these events are reviewed from should characterize good rule: Nstice and godliness. An­ the priestly point of view: . other readIng of verse· 3 suggests that God haq spoken to David prophetically concernmg the Messiah: "There shall King David reigned about 8. years after the death of the be one that ruleth over men, a righteous one, that ruleth rebellious. Absalom. It was his desire and promise, and in ,the fear of God.'" , . also .the ~ill of the Lord that Solomon' should sucCeed his father o'n the throne (2 Sam. 7: 12;' 1 Kings 1: 17). But an­ David's family had not flourished as he had hoped, but other son of David, Adonijah (2 Sam. 3:4), usurped the the Lord' had been merciful and had made with him an throne, taking advantage of his father's grea"t age. Respect . evePiasting covenant that his, king'dom would be established for one's elders is not much in evidence in our time. for ever (2 Sam. 7:5-16; Psa. ~9:19-37;Luke 1:32, 33). This refers to ,the Lord Jesus Christ, who was born of the Adonijah's treachery was an incentive to David's friends family of David, according to the flesh. The'Messiah was ,to rally .to his support, including Zadok the priest, Nathan the object of David's desire and the author Of his salvation. the prophet and David's mighty men. In spite of his in­ firmity, David gave orders for Solomon's procession to III. The King's Dedication: 2 Sam. 24: 18-25. Gihon that he might be crowned and anointed. The Lord is The incidents recorded in this chapter suggest two car­ Sovereign and wiH carry out His will in spite of opposition. dinal principle~ of the Gospel. First, sin brings condemna­ The King Endowed: 1 Kings 3:5"15. tion. and judgment (Psa. 130:3; Rom. 6:23). The second p. is that sacrifice is necessary in order that atonement may' At Gibeon Solomon offered burnt-offerin~ to the Lord be effected (Lev. '17:11; Heb. 10:5-14). The Lord was in­ as an indication that he and his people 'desired to yield treated for Israel when the' sentence had oeen passed upon wholly to the Lord (2 Chron. 1:2-6). To give~the Lon;1 His sin' and the sacrifice hlld been offered for the guilty. Slmi- rightfut place in the heilTt and life is the preiude to spiritual 1arIy, our God can now' justly forgive the believing sinner, success (Josh. 1:7, 8; Provo 3:5, 6; Matt. 10:32). In answer, since our Saviour has offered Himself as a sacrifice for us to Solomon's dedication, the Lor<:\ appeared unto Him, as . (Isa. 53:4-6; 1 Pet 2:24). David's sin consisteq in nuinber­ He will reveal Himself to those who obey Him (John 7: 17; ing the people at the suggestion of 'Satan, without the Lord's 14:21) .

. 'The Gospel Witness, October 2, 1975 (231) 15

-/ I, The Lord spoke to Solomon in a dream (Compare Numb. ,wisdom from above, and the Lord will give it to 'those who. 12:6; Job. 33:14-17; Matt. 1:20). In Old Testament times 'truly seek Him (Matt, 7;7, 8; Jas. 1:5, 6), The pursuit of the Lord spoke to men directly or indirectly through the wisdom is a worthy ambition, and Solomon's choice pleased prophets or in dreams, but in ,these latter days He has. the Lord (Prov. 4:7; 8:11). spoken to us through His Son (Reb. 1:1, 2) and believers r The Lord will not be debtor to any man, and He gav!? now have the directions from Him through the Holy Spirit Solomon much more than he asked (Eph. 3:20). Riches and and the Word of God. honour, as' weIl as wisdom, wefe granted to him (Matt. King Solomon was faced with a momentouS decision. 6:33). Length of days wal' gr~nted, if he would walk in His choice would be an index of his character. What gift obedience to the Lord (psa. 91:14-16). would he most desire? Many of our scholars may be facing 111. The King Acclaimed: 1 Kings 4:29-34. important decisions concerning a life partner, career, friends, The fame of Solomon reached to the ends of ,the known amusements, etc. Urge them to'make these ,deCIsions in the. world. His'riches (verses 21-24; 10:23-29) and wisdom fear of the Lord. made him known as the greatest monarch of the time. Solom,on made his decision in the atmosphere of prayer AIl the kings of the earth; including the Queen of Sheba, and thanksgiving. He commenced by thanksgiving for the sought his presence and advice (2 Chron. 9:23): ~ , . Lord's mercy to David. Thanksgiving is a form of prayer . Solomon' was given also inteIlectual ability. He composed and prayer is a form of ,thanksgiving (phil. 4:6; 1 Tlffi. many proverbs (Prov. 1:1-4; Ecc1.12:9, 10) and many _2:1). , songs (Song of Sol. 1:1). As the king had a vision of the Lord he realized his own Daily Bible Readings weakness; he was but a child, and the responsibilities were 'Oct. 27-Adonijah Usurps the Throne .... 1 Kings 1:1-10 so great (Exod. 4:10; Isa. 6:5; Jer. 1:6}. We, too, must Oct. 28"':"'David's Plan . ',' ... , .. , , , , ., 1 Kings 1:11-31 come before the Lord in humility, if: we would receive . Oct. 29-David's Charge to Solomon .... 1 Kings 2:1-17 blessing from His hand (1 Pet. 5:5,6). Oct. 30--S010mon'sWisdom Tested .. ,' 1 Kings 3:16-28 Solomon asked the Lord to give him an understanding Oct. 31-Solomon's Wealth .... ,",.. 1 Kings 4:20-28 heart (margin, "a hearing hearf') that pe might rule for, Nov. I-In Praise, of Wisdom ...... ,' .. Prov: 8 God. Those who have the responsibilities :of leadership need Nov. 2-The Queen of Sheba ., ...... 1 Kings 10:1-10