What Do We More Than Others?
What Do We More Than Others?
“WHAT DO YE MORE THAN OTHERS?”
By J. D. HARVEY
I express to the committee on arrangements my feelings of gratitude for the confidence intrusted in me allowing me thereby the opportunity and possibilities of this occasion. I have always felt indebted to the environment of A. C. C. for both the decision and preparation that led me into the field of service in which I am now engaged,
There are two pieces of advice that I received early in life from which I have never been able to get away. One of this was given me up in the office of the old administration building by Robert Whitesides who was then president of this school. It had dawned on me that I must make a lawyer and about the time I had made preparation to begin the study thereof Brother White-sides called me into his confidence and among other things said, “Any man that can plead law can preach the gospel.” The other was given me by my grand-father, G. W. Harvey, being over anxious that I make a preacher he made an engagement for me to hold a meeting and then came to tell me of the engagement. Of course, I, like Moses, began to make excuses; after listening to my alibi for not wanting to fill the engagement he turned as if to walk away and said, “If you can keep from it you are not fit.” These statements together with the encouragement of a mother and wife, I have surrendered my talent, my strength and my all to the preaching of the gospel of Christ. In that incomparable Sermon on the Mount, Jesus made a comparison between the Law that He came to fulfill and that which he came to inaugurate. He vividly set forth the merits of the Old and that of the New, placing them side by side. He showed beyond doubt the superiority of the former over the latter. After showing the virtues of both those who kept the Law and the Gentiles around about them he turned to his disciples and made this pertinent query, “For if ye love them which love you, what reward have ye? Do not even the publicans the same? And if ye salute your brethren only, what do ye more than others? Do not even the publicans so?” (Matthew 5:46-47.) In this reading is suggested the subject for the morning, namely: “What Do Ye More Than Others?” I would like to emphasize every word that goes to make this pregnant inquiry. WHAT—You cannot say that word without implying that there is something . DO— Take the do out of religion and you cut the heart out of it, “Pure religion and undefiled before God the Father is this; To visit the fatherless and the widows in their afflictions and to keep himself unspotted from the world” (James 1:26). The hinge that opens the door to heaven is DO; “Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven” (Matthew 7:21). YE—A personal term, meaning every dis-ciple. Jesus said, “Go YE into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature,” meaning every one must go. MORE THAN—A term of comparison, a parallel usage (Matthew 10:37). “He that loveth father and mother MORE THAN me is not worthy of me; and he that loveth son or daughter MORE THAN me is not worthy of me.” And why OTHERS refers to the other religions of the day. The fact that the Lord asked this question shows to my mind that he expected more of those who followed his teachings than others. There is suggested here the lesson of opportunity and responsibility. Why expect more than those who were followers of Moses? Because of your opportunity, ‘ ‘ but blessed are your eyes, for they see; and your ears, for they hear. For, verily I say unto you, that many prophets and righteous men have desired to see those things which you see, and have not seen them; and to. hear those tilings which you hear and have not heard them” (Matthew 13:16-17). Because of your enlightenment expect more. Perhaps there is no Lesson more forcefully impressed by Christ than that of equality of opportunity and responsibility. Hear Him again, “Then began he to upbraid the cities wherein most of his mighty works were done, because they repented not. Woe unto thee, Chorazin. Woe unto thee, Bethsaida!. for if the mighty works had been done in Tyre and Sidon which were done in you, they would have repented long ago in sack-clotli and ashes, but I say unto you, it shall be more tolerable for Tyre and Sidon in the day'of judgment than for you” (Matthew 11:20-22). There is a lesson here that ought to sink deep in the hearts of every one of us, that we are responsible for not only everything we know, but what we might "be able to find out. And that responsibility and opportunity are parallel terms. We who are living in the golden sun-light age of the gospel, surrounded with the benedic-tions and opportunities of the twentieth century; if Christ expected more of the disciples of the first century, how much more does he expect of us today? With the modern methods of communication, when a hundred miles is no distance to travel, and wHSn the gospel can be flashed from center to circumference as the speaker speaks—surely Christ expects more of this age than any ever before. I had rather live twenty-five years now than five hundred years of any time past. The doing of more than others is indeed the stamp of discipleship. It goes without debate, that Christianity, if it offers no more to the world and does not enable the individual to do more than any philosophy or religion of man, there is no reason for its existence. The vital essence of the Christian religion is doing; without this ability to do more no man has a reason for being a Christian. In this very connection Christ said, “For I sav unto von, except your righteousness shall exceed the righteousness of the scribes and_ Pharisees, ye shall in no wise enter into the kingdom of heaven” (Matthew 5:20 j. Well, what was their standard of righteousness? “For they say and do not.” “This people drawetli nigh unto me with their mouth, and honoreth with their lips; but their heart is far from me. But in vain do they worship, me teaching for doctrine the commandments of men” (Matthew 15:8-9). Note also the “woe” he pronounces on such religion” (Matthew 23:23-28). Christ demanded more of his followers than the religious sects of his day, living as we do in the age of religious chaos, sur-rounded with denom ination alism on every hand. With all due respect to the intelligence and zeal of our religious neighbors, I believe that Christ’s language is indeed applicable now. Except the righteousness of the church of Christ exceed that of the denominations around us we have no right to exist and no claim, on the kingdom of heaven. Our claim within itself calls for something more than offered by the denominational religion. The restoration motto, “Speak where the Bible speaks, be silent where the Bible is silent,” demands within itself the doing of more than others. When we hold up the New Testament and say, “This Book is the exclusive authority for everything we do and say,” there comes back to the church of Christ a direct challenge from the world. “Do what you say you do or loose; stand for that which you claim or fail.” Brethren let us arise and meet this challenge with renewed zeal and energy, let us present to the world a church such as is revealed in the New Testament Scriptures, in organization, government, wor-ship and activities. Aind when it comes to a Bible school, there are plenty of religious schools that offer a standard literary training and to teach denominational ethics, unless a school owned, operated and supported by Christians offers more than all such schools it has no right to exist or claim support from the church of* Christ. Of course it must be true to the Book, but more than that, there must be there a special touch in the way of ethics. I rejoice over some reports I hear from without about Abilene Christian College. A lady who was not a member of the church of Christ remarked to me this summer, “While I am a ... I am going to send my daughter to Abilene Christian College for they really care there.” That personal care is a thing that is lacking in school life, but vital. I think sometimes we have the wrong conception of our relationship to the religious world; that is, “Stay Up”; Christ did not say, ‘‘Do as much as,” but ‘‘more than,” and that should be our goal.
Christianity vindicates its divinity by its ability to stir men’s souls to better living and greater service than they would otherwise attempt It is indeed a sad comment on Christianity, yea a tragedy! when we may point out without difficulty scores of professed Christians who' in reality are no better than those about them who make no profession to religion. There are those who have their names on the church "Book in capitals that have a nmch lower rating than many who make no such profession; and what makes this hurt is it is so.
He who claims to be a follower of the Christ and is not a better father, a better mother, a better husband, a better wife, a better farmer, a better preacher, has learned the gospel lesson in vain Even the man of the world realizes truth of this. That is evident from the way he sneers at the hypocritical Christian who fails to live no better life than his own. Christ expects us. to do. morn, and the world demands it of us. “But When I saw that they walked not uprightly according to the truth of the gospel, I said unto Cephas, before them all, “If thou being a Jew livest as do the Gentiles, and not as the Jews, how compellest thou the Gentiles to do as do the Jews” (Galatians 2:14). Let us_supply ‘‘Christian” for the..word “Jew,” and “world” for the word “Gentile,” and see, how that reads. Indeed true religion proves its divinity by doing more than others. When Moses stood in Pharoah’s palace with his signs and plagues the true was put to a test. As long as the magicians could do as much as Moses with their enchantments there was no alarm, but the moment they failed to do as much, they said to Pharaoh, “This is the finger of God” (Exodus 8:18-19). The heathen who said to the missionary, ‘ Why do you come across the wide ocean to bring your religion to me? I would not go to that trouble to bring my religion to you; there must be something in what you teach,” clearly perceived this marked difference, this important distinguishing feature of the’ religion of Jesus. A Christian can and should do more, because nf -his Siew relationship to Christ and the word of God. “If then ye were raised together with Christ, .seek the filings that are above, where Christ is seated on the right hand of God. Set your affections on things that are above, not on the tilings that are upon the earth. For ye died, and your life is hid with Christ in God” He should be a better worker in his vocation, because he has another one to work for. Just as a newly married man is more careful and more diligent in his business, so a Christian ought to realize that more is demanded of him. He should know he has a great field of service and an additional work to support. This fact should be an incentive. He ought to be a better neighbor, hecause he has learned more deeply than ever before the Golden Rule, and knows how to turn men’s passions by doing good rather than evil. If he is a gospel preacher, his pulpit must be different, hecause of his relationship to Christ’s work, “I charge thee in the sight of God and of Christ Jesus, who shall judge the living and the dead, and by his appearing and his kingdom; Preach the word; "(2 Timothy 4:1-2).
He ought to have moral strength to declare the whole counsel of God. The pulpit is no place for a coward. The sociological power of the Christian religion is tremendous. The future of our offsprings is no longer a chance, but now we must bring them up in the nurture and admonition of the Lord. I am responsible to the Creator for my procreation. The marital bond should mean more. The fact that I am a follower of Christ should make a better teacher and a more devoted stu-dent. This relationship should govern our dress, just how low and how short.
If you were to ask me the greatest need of the hour,, I hardly think I would answer, More people, for there are more people in the world now than any time ever before ; I do not think I would answer, More money, for there is more money in circulation than ever before, neither would my answer be, More institutions of learn-ing, but I thing the greatest need of the day is, more men and. women, boys and girls of the right sort; and, of course, the next would be institutions that would mold such characters to fill the demand. And let me say here there is no substitution for the old fashion Bible home. But what is that power in Christianity that enables a convert to assume these newer responsibilities and obligations? “But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the exceeding greatness of the power may be of God and not from ourselves’’ (2 Corinthians 4:7). That ability to do, that ability to accomplish has been delegated unto men, but we are only a fragile vessel, the power is of God. Therefore, we are “strengthened with all power according to His might and glory” (Colossians 1:11). “That we should not trust in ourselves but in God who raised the dead” (2 Corinthians 1:9). “Trust in the Lord with all thine heart and lean not on thine own understanding” (Proverbs 3:5). I like to think of the lighting system in Stamford, where I once lived. We once had a small, undersized, poorly equipped plant. The lights were dim and poor and unreliable, but later we connected with the million dollar high-power plant of Abilene; there-upon, the city was lighted with brilliance it never knew before. What was the secret of the change? The town no longer depended on its own small plant for its electricity, but the current now comes from the high-power line. This illustrates the way in which a Christian’s life is made more capable for doing good; he is tied on the High-Power Line of heaven; no longer depending on his own resources, but on the God of his being. That is why Paul could say, and in common with us all, “I can do all things in Him that strengthens me” (Php_4:13). And indeed, “our sufficiency is of God.”
Jesus said, “I am the vine, ye are the branches; he that abideth in me and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit; for without me ye can do nothing” (John 15:5). I challenge the fountain of figures to produce a closer relationship than that of a vine and branch. Just as the branch forces its roots in the bowels of mother earth and draws therefrom her vitality and strength and freely feeds it to its branches and they in turn transmit it into fruit, even so Christ has gone into the secrets of the wisdom and strength of his Father and made it possible that we through him might bear much fruit in the kingdom of the Lord. Then, “it is God that works in us, both to will and do his good pleasure,” but we must work out what God has wor ked in. We are thus saved by the power of the gospel and kept by the power of his word.
“For this cause I bow down my knees unto the Father of the Lord Jesus Christ, from whom every family in heaven and on earth is named, that he would grant you, according to the fiches of his glory, that ye be strengthened with the power through his Spirit in the inward man; that Christ may dwell in your hearts by faith, to the end that ye may be rooted and grounded in love, may be able to apprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and height and depth, and to know the love of Christ which passeth knowledge; that ye may be filled unto all the fullness of God. Now, unto him that is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we may ask or think, according to the power that worketh in us, unfo him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus unto all generations forever and ever. Amen.”