Below is the OCR text representation for this newspapers page.

12 THE PRESBYTERIAN Young People's Societies SAVING OTHERS. Topic for Sunday, January 9: Bringing Others to Christ: Who should do it? How is it to be done? John 1:35-51. DAILY READINGS. Monday: The preacher. 1 Corinthians 9:18-27. Tuesday: The Christian. Acts 8:1-8. ' Wednesday: The friend. Mark 2:1-12. Thursday: By word. Luke 4:16-30. Friday: By example. 1 Timothy 4:6-16. Saturday: By the Spirit. John 16:5-11; Acts 2:37. Soul-winning is to be the great duty of every one who is Christ's. "Let him that heareth say, Come." This is God's appointed way of gathering the church. He might have adopted some other way. But he chose this. Until one believes, every call of Christ and the Spirit is, Come! After one believes and has come, the word is, ever Go! "Go ye out into the highways and hedges and compel them to come in." "Go ye into all the world and preach the gospel to everj* creature." * To whom shall we go? Of course first to those who are nearest at hand, in our own families, at our doors, our neighbors, among our companions and friends. A man was once dispossessed of a df vil. He at once besought Christ to let him stay with him, that he might look up Into his face always. The Master said, "Return to thine own house!" Closest around a light that light shines its brightest. Near-' est to oneself the work can be most effective. There, too, the greatest mischief was done. There the quickest reparation and healing should be offered. Just around oneself is perhaps the hardest place to work for souls. They all know us too well there! Conscious guilt makes us hesitate. The more need to do the right, that we may correct the wrong and compel others to hink well enough of us to heed our words. At the first ingathering of disciples to Christ there were five, some interpreters say six, who followed him and enrolled under his banner. Of these all but one came to Christ through the call and urging of their friends. Only one, and that was Philip, came at the Lord's own call. Moses, about to depart from Sinai, in the lower part of Midian, invited his brother-in-law, Hobab, to go with him to the Promised Land. "Come thou with us, and we will do thee good, for the Lord hath spoken good concerning Israel." And Hobab went, the progenitor of the Kenites whose history was so closely interwoven with that of the Jews. One has well written, "You can not introduce some one whom you do not know to some one you do not know. You must be acquainted with both Christ and the man whom you would bring to Christ." The first step in saving others is to have personal knowledge of the Saviour in all the fullness of his grace. Then you can make him known to all your friends. They will see that you have been with Christ and that he knows you and you know him. When God bids you do a thing he will give you the grace to do it. A father would not order his child to undertake an impossibility. Ready obedience on the part of the believer binds God to help. His strength will be made perfect in your weakness. And do not forget his promise. "They that turn many to righteousness shall shine as the stars, forever and iorever. mere win De stars in your crown lor an wnom you have led to Christ. GROWN-UP SCHOLARS. Pay attention to grown-up folk in your school. Have a class, a teacher and a course of Bible instruction that will appeal to strong men and women. Use the home department to enlist all who do not attend the main session of the school on the Lord's day. Some can not attend, and others Just will not, because they are not interested. It is your business to interest them.?Standard. OF THE SOUTH December 29, igog. nana?mi;!i!!!iiiii!i!iiiiiiiiiiim??mnmwiiiiii!iiiiiiiittmtfflmt Prayer Meeting TOPIC?THE THINGS WHICH ARE BEFORE. Week Beginning Jan. 2, 1910. Phil. 3:13-14. There are many forms in which the scriptures would impress upon us that the Christmas life is active and progressive. We are compared to laborers and are to work out our sunanon. we are compared to servants who are to give account of our faithfulness to our Master. We are compared to soldiers engaged in a deadly conflict with numerous and powerful enemies. We are compared to wrestlers and other contestants in games, especially to those who ran on the race course. The truth to be taught by these several illustrations is the necessity of exertion and effort in order to the fulfillment of life's mission. The laborer must not sot laiooii rri _ ? ? ? ?? v MW ?M?V Ull vu<c ua ? . X 11C soldier must do guard duty and fight when the battle is on, or he will fall into the hands of the enemy. The runner must summon every energy and put forth every power or he will fail to secure the prize. The special figure before us in this passage is that of the runner in a race. The Grecian runner made thorough preparation for the contest?by careful training; and when ready for the race divested himself of everything that could encumber his progress. He practiced self-denial and self-control; he cultivated firmness of purpose and persevered in his course 10 me eua. But with all the discipline and earnest efforts he had a constant and to him a powerful incentive. It was the prospect of winning a crown, which was soon to fade indeed, but the symbol and token of distinguished honor. Every step brought him nearer to the things that were before. He strove "to obain a corruptible crown but we an incorruptible." if he was vigilant and faithful that he might obtain honors that were soon to vanish, shall not we by patient continuance in well doing, seek for glory and honor and immortality? To us the prize to be obtained is of Infinite value. The possession to be secured is Christ and all the benefits of redemption. The crown to be worn is eternal life. Failure would involve infinite loss for it would mean banishment from the favor of God and consignment to the blackness of darkness forever. As we contemplate the new year it should be with more ouoyant anticipations than we have ever cherished in the past. Why not? Have we not had one more year of God's guardian care and faithfulness to his promise? Through the uncertainties of the past he has not forsaken us, not one word of all that he has spoken ha3 failed. His grace has been sufficient. This added testimonial that he is faithful 'who has promised should Inspire ub to ever enlarging expectations as we contemplate the years that are to come. There is another reason for our "reaching forth," or as in the revision, ' stretching forward," with increased confidence and keener anticipation than ever before. It is found in the development of character ahd confirmation of faith that experience supplies. Growth is a law of the spiritual kingdom. We steadily progress toward perfect manhood in Christ Jesus. The fruits of the Spirit in the healthy Christian are ever advancing toward maturity. A more robust faith and a more whole hearted consecration are the fruits of loving service. An lntenser longing for and a higher estimate of the treasures of the spiritual kingdom are effects of belonging to that kingdom. To the true believer then, the things that are before include a larger appreciation, and therefore a larger appropriation and enjoyment of the riches of God's grace. Whatever of comfort or delight we may Bave found In the favor of our God and In communion with our Redeemer in the years that have passed, should be Intensified and magnified in the years to come. Whatever visions we may have had of the glories of our Lord's person and work should be an earnest and a prophecy of yet brighter visions of the excellent glory in which he is enthroned and the communications of his love that he ever bestows on waiting, expectant souls.