The Gospel--The Power of God Unto Salvation

The Gospel--The Power of God Unto Salvation

"THE GOSPEL, THE POWER OF GOD,
UNTO SALVATION"
By W. D. CAMPBELL
Introductory Remarks—Listen to the inspired words of the apostle to the Gentiles. I quote the last verse of the scripture lesson read in your hearing: "I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God unto salvation, to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek", or Gentile. These words are familiar to you, they are frequently quoted by preach­ers, because as a "text", it is one of the great texts of the Bible. The whole remedial system is locked up in this inspired statement: At the time of the writing of this epistle, Paul had never been at Rome, but he was willing and ready to go there; ready to preach the message of life even in Rome, the very center of heathen pride and power. If there was a place on earth, where one would he ashamed to stand up for a crucified Saviour, that place was Rome in the reign of Nero, that monster to his race. But Paul was not ashamed. It was the one thing which he preached, the all-absorbing theme of his ministry. It filled to overflowing his great soul, and covered the whole range of his being. He said: "Woe is unto me if I preach not the gospel." The gospel of Christ, you will notice is here called God's power unto salvation, because it con­tains the provisions, which he has ordained for this end, and which if accepted by us, will effect it. Salvation is viewed by the apostle, as a great and grand end, which to be attained has more or less difficulties. So much so, as to require God's power to accomplish it. The gospel is that power—it is God's only power for salvation; Heaven's only remedy for sin; the only message of life to the children of men. Therefore, he who is not saved by the gospel, has no promise of being saved at all. My friends, this message will prove to you either the savor of life unto life, or of death unto death, according as you receive it or reject it. It is a most serious matter to listen to the preaching of the gospel of the Son of God.

Let me quote again the language of the apostle: "I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God unto salvation, to every one that believeth to the Jew first, and also to the Greek". There are cer­tain passages of scripture, which seem to yield of them­selves a sermon almost ready made—this is one of them. This verse does not depend upon its context for its mean­ing; hut expresses a clear, definite truth of itself. Lan­guage could not be plainer. We have three important, and comprehensive subjects set forth in the verse just quoted: First, the gospel of Christ; second, the power of God, and third, salvation, such a salvation as poor sinning, sorrowing, dying men and women need—a salva­tion from sin, its guilt, its power and practice. I have outlined subject matter enough for three sermons, but it is all in the text. I shall briefly place before you the Holy Spirit's teaching on these great subjects.

Let us first learn what the apostle meant by the Gospel of Christ. "Gospel", as you know, means "good news" or "glad tidings". But Paul did not mean any good news revealed or proclaimed in any former age or dispensation. That there had been gospels preached before, and preached by divine authority should be known by every student of the sacred text. As an example Paul said in the Galatian letter, that the gospel was preached unto Abraham, saying: "In thee shall all nations be blessed." This was certainly good news, especially to the patriarch to know that he was to be the instrument of bless­ing the nations. But this was not the gospel of Christ, but only the promise of it. We must distinguish between a promise, and the thing promised. Again Paul said as recorded in Hebrews , 4 th chapter: "For unto us was the gos­pel preached as well as unto them"; referring to the rest, that God provided for Israel, and made known unto them by Moses. This promised rest was called a gospel, or good news to God's ancient people. These examples of the use of the term gospel show clearly that the word is not always applied to the same thing. Hence the word Christ is added in the verse we are considering in order to identify the gospel which is God's power to save the un­saved. Mark you, it is the gospel of Christ, not the gospel preached unto Abraham, or the Jewish nation; not even the gospel preached by the Harbinger, the bold, brave preacher, who prepared the way of the Lord. John the Baptist preached a gospel—some good people think that he was the first gospel preacher. He did not however preach the gospel of Christ which is God's power unto sal­vation in this dispensation. Lie preached "the gospel of the Kingdom," the good news of a coming kingdom, and a new order of things. The reign of Christ on earth among men—Jesus preached this gospel—It is so recorded, so did "the twelve" and the seventy under the first commission. But this "gospel of the kingdom" had no crucified Saviour in it; no revelation of a victorious Christ, who triumphed over death, and broke the sceptre of the grave. You want to make a clear distinction be tween "the gospel of the Kingdom", and "the gospel of Christ". What then is the gospel of Christ? We are not left in doubt on the question, we are plainly told. Paul defined the gospel in these words: "Moreover, brethren, I declare unto you the gospel, which I preached unto you, which also ye have received, and wherein ye stand; by which also ye are saved, if ye keep in memory what I preached unto you, unless ye have believed in vain: For I delivered unto you first of all, that which I also re­ceived, how that Christ died for our sins, according to the Scriptures: And that he was buried, and that he arose again the third day according to the Scriptures." The gos­pel of Christ, then in a broad sense, has in it the good news concerning Christ, what he did for us; what he re­quires us to do for ourselves; and what he has promised yet to do for us. It reveals facts to be believed, com­mands to be obeyed, promises to be enjoyed now, and realized in the coming crowning day. In the light of what we have learned, the gospel of Christ, as a fact could not be preached until the apostles did so by divine author­ity. The gospel could not be preached until Jesus accom­plished the facts, which constitute the gospel of Christ; namely, until he died for our sins, was buried, and rose again. This is so true, and plain that it does not need to be argued. To state it, should be enough with any fair-minded person. Simon Peter then was the first gos­pel preacher. He preached the gospel of Christ for the first time, by the Holy Spirit sent down from heaven. The first Pentecost after Jesus died was the time, when the gospel as a fact was first announced, and Jerusalem was the beginning place. This was a fulfillment of Isaiah's prophecy. "For out of Zion shall go forth the law, and the word of the Lord from Jerusalem," and Peter by the Holy Spirit said: "And this is the word, which by the gospel is preached unto you." In harmony with Isaiah's prophecy, Jesus commanded that this message of life "should be preached in his name among all nations begin­ning at Jerusalem." On the day of Pentecost three thou­sand men heard it for the first time, and by hearing it once. understood it, believed it, and obeyed it, and it proved God's power unto their salvation that day. It was a simple, plain message, no mystery about it. Three great facts about Jesus to be believed, three commands to be obeyed, and three promises to be enjoyed or realized in the day of the Lord. There was power in this gospel to convict men of sin. and of their need of a Saviour, and to make Jesus the chief among the ten thousand, and the one all together lovely to three thousand Jerusalem sinners that day, and to so move them, as to lead them to cry for mercy, and yield themselves whole-heartedly to the authority of King Jesus, and by his grave, become the first fruits of Christianity. And there is power in the gospel of Christ to enthrone Jesus in your heart's affec­tion, and to make you sons and daughters of the Lord God Almighty: if you will believe and do, what the Pente- costians believed and did; if you will take the same steps, which they took in reference to Christ. In the second place let us briefly consider "the power of God". Much is said to-day from the pulpit con­cerning the power of God; especially in revival meetings. Earnest and sincere people pray much for "converting power", "for the power of God to come down". If you were to ask these good people what they mean by "converting power''; they might reply that it was something better felt than told. There exists, I am persuaded, in the minds of many people, a mystified conception of the whole subject. I want to rescue it from mysticism and con­fusion, and place it on reasonable ground. There are only two kinds of power known to man—first, physical power, or that which operates upon matter; secondly, spiritual or moral power, that which operates upon mind. Here are two distinct powers. Let us never confound them, they are as distinct, and separate as heaven and earth, day and night. We should make a marked discrimination between God's method in creating man, and his method in saving man, or between treating matter and mind. It cannot be denied, or rather it will not be denied, that God's spirit is the agent in both departments of work. I Jut I ask you, do you think, that God exerts his power upon matter, inanimate matter, and thinking man in the same way? What holds the earth and worlds about us and above us in space, and causes them to move in regular order? We answer the power of God. What saves men from sin and condemnation? The power of God. The same power think you that holds the world in space? It would he well for us to do some honest thinking along this line. God says to man, made in his own image but fallen and ruined by sin, "Come, let us reason together." He places arguments and reasons before his mind, he puts a motive in his heart, he persuades and loves men, sinful men, in order to move them to do right, do his will. But God will not crush or destroy the sovereignity of man's will, or the freedom of his mind. Do you think that God reasons with the stars— Does he say to that bright star, that shines, and twinkles— i like a blue forget-me-not in the night: "Come, let us reason together, I want you to continue to let your light shine in the darkness for mankind.'' The very thought is absurd. He holds the stars in the heavens, and causes them to shine on by force, physical power, the same power, by which he created them, and the world. But while we have physical power or force in creation, we have no force in salvation. It is all motive power. God uses persuasion to save, but force to punish. It must be clear to you and reasonable as well, when I say that we require physical power, for physical purposes, or if you please, we need physical power to produce physical changes; intellectual power for intellectual purposes; mechanical power for mechanical purposes, and moral power for moral purposes, or moral power to produce moral changes. What kind of a change is contemplated in man's salvation? Physical or moral? Does conversion change the physical man, the mat­ter of which our bodies is composed? No, my friends, with the same bodies, with which we served the old life of sin, we make them by the power of God serve a new Leader in the new Life; salvation from sin is a moral change, and is produced by moral power. The power of God unto salvation, then is moral or motive power—the re­sult of reasons, arguments, motives, persuasion and love, presented to the mind of man. The gospel contains all of these to the highest, and sublimest degree. That is why Jesus commanded it to be preached to every creature. The gospel of Christ is the power of God. God has put all his power to save men in the gospel. Do not wait, and look for some mysterious power outside of the gospel to come to you. Paid affirms that "Christ is the power of God and the wisdom of God"; Christ died for our sins ac­cording to the Scriptures, was buried, and rose again ac­cording to the Scriptures. Simple facts, sublime realities; a death, a burial, a resurrection. Is there power in a death—a burial? You know that there is. Some years ago an Englishman and his family, came to this country, strangers in a strange land. In a short time he was taken down with typhoid fever, and his faithful wife nursed him day and night. She was left pretty much alone with the care of the household and her very ill husband. In a few weeks he died, and on the following day, his true and sorely tried companion from sheer exhaustion, and heart failure gave up her gentle spirit, and followed him into the spirit world. The neighbors then gathered to render the last kind ministry, which the living do for the dead, and lay away all that was mortal of a father and mother in the quiet resting place for the dead. They dug one large grave, and put the caskets down side by side. By that open grave stood two little fatherless and motherless children, a little hoy and girl, and as they looked down into the grave, they sobbed as if their hearts would break. The people were deeply moved; strong men and gentle women wept; when a plain looking, but kind hearted man lifted the little boy in his arms, and said ''My son, I will be a father to you," and a motherly looking woman put her arms about the little girl, and kissed her saying: "I will take your mother's place and care for you." The death of strangers strangely moved that entire community. Yes, my friends, there is power in a death. But what of the death of the son of God, as a sin offering and sacrifice for the world. The love of Christ constrains us. His love was manifested in his death for us.

"See, from his head, his hands, his feet,
Sorrow and love flow mingled down.
Did e'er such love, or sorrow meet Or thorns compose so rich a crown:
Were the whole realm of nature mine,
That were a present far too small,
Love so amazing, so divine
Demands my soul, my life, my all." And my friends there is power in the resurrection. It gives to life a new meaning, and to mankind a new and blessed hope. That one day the graves will be opened, and we will meet our loved and precious dead again. The resur­rection assures us that Jesus is divine, and is able to make good his promise, that he will come again, and speak to the sleeping dead, and the dead will hear his voice, and come forth clothed in the robes of immortality; that the living saints will be changed, and the redeemed of earth caught up together in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and then as an unbroken family dwell forever in that sinless summer land, the place where God and angels live.

There are two distinct ideas in the term Salva­tion; namely, danger, and deliverance; unless we are ex­posed to danger Salvation is a meaningless term. In the light of this fact, what do you think of Universalism? Boastingly called a world's salvation, and yet there is no salvation in the system as I shall prove—ask the Univer- salist, if we are in danger of future punishment? And he replies that there is no future punishment. Are we not ex­posed to the "wiles of the devil?" And, he answers, there is no devil, it is a heathenish notion, and further he affirms that there is no future danger to which the sons and daughters of men are exposed. We may safely con- elude that as we are not in any danger, Universalism has no salvation to offer, for no deliverance is needed. There is no salvation in the system, and neither is there any in Calvinism so-called: Ask the honest Calvanist if he has any salvation to offer to the non-elect of earth, and he replies: No, God passed them by and made no provision for them. We ask if the elect ever were lost? Were they not elected in Christ from the beginning, and once elected —they can never fall. According to this theory, there is no salvation for the non-elect, and the elect do not need it. I would rather preach Universalism, pure and simple and say that God in his great mercy will save everybody than teach that he will damn some for his own glory, brum what does the gospel of Christ propose to save us? from poverty? No my friends, some times a good man is compelled to beg his bread; from sorrow and sickness, no, such is the lot of the saved as well as the unsaved; from death, no my friends, "It is appointed unto men once to die." Does it save us from the judgment? Cer­tainly not, for "we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ". From what then, does it save us? From sin—it is a salvation from sin. But how does the power of God reach us to cleanse us from sin? Power is useless unless it is applied. Physical power, or mechanical power must be applied, or placed in proper contact to accomplish the end proposed—as an illustration—you build a boat, and decide to run it by steam. An engine is built to give you power. You place it in your boat, but it does not move the boat, because the power is not applied. The engine is not brought in contact with the propeller. So with the power of God. It must be applied. The gospel must be brought in contact with the sinner. This is done by hearing or reading the divine testimonies. If the man is honest it produces just what God intended: faith in the sinner's heart. Paul said, "faith comes by hearing and hearing- by the word of God." John by the spirit testified: ''These (things) are written, that we might believe, that Jesus is the Christ, the son of God, and that believing ye might have life in his name." Peter said God "put no difference between us, and them, (that is Jew and Gentile) purifying their hearts by faith." Put the sinner is not saved yet; he is made a believer—But the phrase "to every one that believeth" does not teach, that salvation is offered on the condition of believing only. "Believeth" here, implies all that faith does; for faith is a principle of action. Do you mean to say that a man is saved by faith, without repentance'? Oh no, you reply, repentance is necessary because it is implied—and is commanded and mentioned elsewhere. Just so, why not be fair, and insist on men doing everything commanded and mentioned else­where. We have the sinful man now a believer by the power of God. Faith fills his heart with love for Jesus on the one hand, and distress and sorrow of mind on the other, as he realizes how he has treated the Saviour in his past life. His godly sorrow leads to repentance. The gospel reveals God's goodness, which is God's power to lead men to repent; to surrender the will to Christ, change their course of life, cease to do evil, learn to do well. But there is another step to be taken which brings the gospel the power of God and the believing penitent sinner in perfect, complete contact. The believing penitent one is required to obey the gospel of Christ. Paul said of the Romans, "they have not all obeyed the Gospel". There is something then, in the gospel to be obeyed, as well as be- lieved—We believe facts, we obey commands—The only positive command in the Gospel, that a believing penitent sinner can obey—is baptism. By obeying from the heart this form of doctrine the believer Paul said is made free from sin. Yes, being then made free from sin; language could not be plainer. His salvation from his past sins is complete. For "if the son therefore shall make you free, ye shall be free indeed." But salvation describes a two-fold work, a present completed salvation enjoyed now, and a progressive salvation to be revealed in the last time—A salvation which grows nearer day by day—To enjoy the eternal salvation we need the power of God, without it we can do nothing, Let me refer once more to the illustra­tion of the boat: Suppose the steam engine is removed from the boat—will the boat run? No, it is powerless. The power which made it useful is gone—So with the man saved from his past sins. The Christian if he allows the gospel, the word of God, which is God's power to save—and mark you to keep: "Who are kept by the power of God". I say if the Christian allows the gospel to slip out of his mind, he will grow careless—unfaithful, and become worldly minded, and is in danger of being lost: "Therefore we ought to give the more earnest heed to the things which we have heard, lest at any time, we should let them slip. Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly." Again "By which also ye are saved if ye keep in memory, what I have preached unto you." Our only safety, my brethren is to fill ourselves with the word of God, the power of God. Feed daily on the sincere milk of the word and grow—and keep growing into the likeness and life of Christ Jesus and work out our own salvation with fear and trembling. Beloved, while Christ is our Saviour, and the author of our salvation, we have no assurance of a final salvation, unless we work with him. It is a true saying that God helps those, who help themselves. Jesus will save those, who put forth an earnest effort to save themselves; unless we do our part, Christ will not save us. There is a human as well as a divine side to God's plan of salvation, and if we are finally lost my brethren, it will be because we have failed to work out our own salva­tion with fear and trembling, that is—with an anxious de­sire, not to fail. But there is another important side to this teaching: "Forit is God which worketh in you both to will and do of his good pleasure"—God works in his children, by his word, and spirit, by motives, by holy examples, by his promises, by the life of his peerless Son. and thus strengthens, and inspires his children to do his will, and grow into the divine likeness. We are to work out, what God works in; in a consecrated life and service. The vine gives to the branches, the sap, its own vitality and the branches work out this life in leaves and fruit. What if the branches fail to work out what the vine works in? Withered leaves, bitter and mildewed fruit. Christ is the vine, we are the branches; when we fail to work out what the Lord works into our souls; we will exhibit soured spirits, and unfaithful, and unfruitful lives, until we may grieve the Holy Spirit, and possibly make shipwreck of our faith. Beloved, let us work out in truly consecrated service, what the great God in his goodness and mercy works in us; and in the end of life's great conflict, we will enjoy the everlasting salvation of body as well as soul and spirit in the home prepared for the redeemed of God. A wealthy, but sceptical man of Putnam, Connecticut, had his tomb, and a marble bust erected in the local cemetery and beneath the bust the inscription "Going, but can't tell where." Mr. 1. II. Wright composed these lines, based on that inscription. They set forth the hopeless, and helpless despair of unbelief, in bold contrast with the triumphant faith and hope of the Christian—Let me, in closing, quote them—

Going to the grace with .steady tread;
Going swift as day, and night are sped;
Going out from toil and care,
"Going, but I can't tell where."

Leaving lite, its mingled joy and woe;
Leaving earth, and all I love and know;
Leaving wealth, that goes not there;
Leaving for—"I can't tell where."

Sinking sun, for me to rise no more?
Sinking sands, and tread no farther shore?
Sinking hope, no Christ o'er there?
Sinking soul, "I can't tell where."

Silent tomb! Dread thought in marble told!
Silent bust, with sealed lips and cold!
Silent guardian, watching there,
Silent to the soul's "somewhere."

Sad there's nothing better thou can'st say;
Sad there shines no light upon thy way;
Sad, when one thy load would share;
Sad to go, not knowing where!
Christian faith beholds a home on high; Christian hope grows bright as years go by; Christian love breathes trusting prayer; Going Home, and Christ tells where."