Evening Republican, Volume 21, Number 211, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 14 September 1918 — Who Is On the Lord’s Side? [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

Who Is On the Lord’s Side?

By REV. J. H. RALSTON, D. D.

of Cormpoodcttc* beportaxat. Moody Bible Inatitate. Chicago

TEXT—Whoso is on Jehovah's side lot him come unto me.—R. V. It is related that at a certain point In Lincoln’s presidential experience, when

the affairs of the Union were in a precarious condition, a friend remarked to him that it was a good thing to have the Lord on our side. Mr. Lincoln very seriously replied that he was more concerned about whether he were on the Lord’s side. There are Indications that the German kaiser is more con-

cerned on having the Lord on his side than about being on the Lord’s side. The natural tendency of man Is to seek his own or the things of humanity, rather than tie things of the Lord, and man Is simply asking what some particular course will bring to him, or what It will bring to his time. The chief end of man In these days Is not _ to glorify God. In this, grievous wrong' is done. When a course of action is before one, the chief question should not be, “How will It affect me?” nor, Indeed, “How will it affect my neighbor?” but “How will it affect God?” The great need of the day is a new sensing of God —God at the beginning, God in the middle, God at the ending. The right thing for man Is to ask where God is, and to go where he is. If man would do that many of his great theological questions would be settled. God manifests himself through his Word, and if men would go to the Word of God with these questions they would soon be substantially correct on all of them. The text'suggests the question, “Who Is on the Lord’s side?” or rather, “What man or woman has a right to say that he Is on the Lord’s side?” In the particular case before us, the people had made a golden calf and were worshiping it. To do that was to break the first two commandments of the Decalogue, and it became open Idolatry. It Is Inevitable that a man worship. If he does not worship God he will worship some thing, or some one else. Nor can a man be on the Lord’s side if he does those things that the Lord hates. If a man would know his duty to the Lord he should seek to know what the Lord thinks of certain things, and here again he must take the Lord’s judgment through his Word, for he cannot know what the Lord thinks unless he knows his Word. As to particular actions, a man may be left to his own judgment, but as to the great principles that lie at the root of things, the Lord makes clear declaration In his Word. Does the Lord love a Uar, brutality, deception? The remnant of God’s Image In man says at once, "No! No!” Does the Lord favor truth, liberty, kindness? That same remnant of God’s image says, “Yes! Yes!" And consequently, the duty is clear, and he should stand for these things. We might sum up everything by saying, “Ye cannot serve God and mammon.” The scene connected with our text was probably- this: There was a golden calf and people were dancing about it. Moses stood aloof and made the cry, “Whoso is on the Lord’s side, let him come to me.” According to the constitution and nature of man we make appeals to him as to his conscience, to his sense of duty or privilege, and he must make choice. What Is it to be on the Lord’s side? It is a natural Inheritance from our sinning first parents that we will either be indifferent to God’s commands or we will positively refuse to obey them. Fundamentally, the issue is the same. In the case before us, the worshiper of the golden calf either continued his dancing and worship, or just endeavored to be neutral. A man must “come across;” he must take a positive stand. The position of a neutral to, the position of the enemy of God. There are no neutrals In our country now as to Germany. Politically we were neutral until the president said that a state of war existed, but now the neutral Is a pro-German. We must be out and out for the Unifed States of America. A man’s religious obligations could be Illustrated by taking the two sides of an Imaginary line, and to an imaginary line there can be only two sides. It is one thing or It to the other. We-must be positively, clearly, professionally on God’s side, or we are against him. In the day to which we are living the ideals and motive? are to be more sharply defined than in former days. An eloquent man said very recently that heretofore men were living to make money, and now they are dying to preserve righteousness, a tremendous reversal of form. Precisely so of a man’s actions; If their character is to be determined by whether they are right in the sight of God rather than whether they have been personally or socially beneficial, man will arrive at the realisation of the purpose of God and at the realization of hto own greatest happiness.