The Lutheran Pioneer St. Louis — 1901, Page 5

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A MISSIONARY

PusuisHep BY THE EvANGELICAL LUTHERAN SyNopICcAL CoNFERENCE OF NorTH AMERICA.

R. A. BISCHOFF, Editor.

Entered at the Post Office at St. Louis, Mo., as second-class matter.

St. Louis, Mo., February, 1901.

Vol. XXIII.

utheran Pioneer.

MONTHLY.

upon all that do not render this obedience.
“The soul that sinneth, it shall die.’’ Against
all sinners the law thunders forth its curse
and condemns them all to eternal damnation.

How can sinners be redeemed from this
curse of the law? Some one who owes no
obedience for himself must take their place
under the law, and do for them what they
cannot do, and besr for them the curse which
they deserve for their transgressions. Is there
such a Redeemer? Yes. St. Paul says, ‘‘God
sent forth His Son, made of a woman, made
under the law, to redeem them that were un-
der the law, that we might receive the adop-
tion of sons.’’ God’s own Son became man
and took our place under the law. He was
without sin and not subject to the law, since
He is the Lawgiver Himself. What He did
and suffered under the law He did and suf-
fered for us. He perfectly fulfilled the whole
law in our place and in His sufferings and
death bore its curse in our stead. Thus men
were redeemed from the curse of the law by
Him who took their place under the law.
“Christ has redeemed us from the curse of
the law, being made a curse for us,’’ says
the apostle.

This redemption is for all men, but not all
accept it. Most men reject it, and therefore
remain under the curse of the law and under
the wrath of God. They, however, who by faith
accept this redemption enjoy all its blessings.
What Christ did and suffered for them under
the law has become their own. God looks
upon them as if they themselves had done and
suffered all that Christ did and suffered for
them. By faith they are in Christ and there-
fore no longer under the curse of the law.
For the apostle says, ‘“There is now no con-
demnation to them which are in Christ Jesus.””
Therefore, dear reader, if you would enjoy the
redemption from the curse of the law and es-
cape the wrath of God, you must put your
whole trust in Jesus who took your place un-
der the law, and by whom ‘tall that believe
are justified from all things.”

——. oa

There are people who seem to lose all

their religion the minute they can’t have their

own way-

Nothing to Pay.

“Nothing to pay?—no, not a whit;
Nothing to do?—no, not a bit;
All that was needed to do or to pay,
Jesus has done in His own blessed way.

“Nothing to pay?—no, thanks be to God,
The matter is settled, the price was the blood.
The blood of the victim, a ransom divine — ;
Believe it, poor sinner, and peace shall be thine.”

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Redemption from the Curse of the Law.

_Men are God’s creatures. He is their Lord.
They owe obedience to His law, which is the
revelation of His holy, eternal, and unchange-
able will. The sum of this law Christ gives in
these words: ‘Thou shalt love the Lord thy
God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul,
and with all thy mind. ‘hou shalt love thy
neighbor as thyself.’’ To this law man owes,
not a mere outward obedience, not a half obe-
dience or a quarter obedience, but a full and
perfect obedience. God says to all men, ‘'Ye
shall be holy; for I the Lord your God am
holy.”? According to God’s law, man is to be
holy in his very nature, holy in all his desires
and 'thougths and words and deeds.

Man does not, and can not render this per-
fect obedience to God’s law; for he is a sin-
ner by nature. His very nature is sinful and
corrupt; and as a rotten tree brings forth rot-
ten fruit, so all that comes from that sinful na-
ture is rotten, sinful, corrupt. Men are not
what the law demands them to be; men think
not what the law demands them to think; men
speak not what the law demands them to speak ;
men do not what the law demands them to do.
That which is forbidden is done, that which is
commanded is left undone. ‘‘There is none
righteous, no, not one,’’ says the Bible.

Since all men are transgressors of God’s
law, they are all under the curse of that law.
It is written, ‘‘Cursed is every one that con-
tinueth not in all things which are written in
the book of the law to do them.”” God is not
like a weak father who overlooks the disobe-
dience of his children. No. God is a holy
God. He demands a perfect obedience to all
His commandments, and His wrath must come

The Blind Man.

“What wilt thou that I shall do unto thee?" — Luke 7S, 41.

Only a blind beggar by the wayside? But

Jesus of Nazareth stood still when he cried to
Him. He could not grope his way among the
crowd, but Jesus commanded him to be brought
near Him.
cried out, but He would have him tell it to
Himself. So He said, ‘‘What wilt thou that I
shall do unto thee?’
with a wonderful promise wrapped up in it!
For it meant that the mighty Son of God was
ready to do whatever this poor blind beggar
asked. What did heask? First, just what he
most wanted! Not what/he supposed he ought
to ask, nor what anyone had taught him to

He knew why the poor man had

Wonderful question,

ask, nor what other people asked, but simply

what we wanted. Secondly, he asked straight
off for a miracle. He never stayed to question
whether it was likely or not, nor how Jesus of
Nazareth would do it, nor whether it was too
much to ask all at once, nor whether the people
would think him too bold.
wanted, and he believed that Jesus of Naza-
reth could doit, and so he asked and that was
enough.

He knew what he

“And Jesus said unto him, Receive thy

sight, thy faith hath saved thee.” And that

was enough, his prayer of faith and Christ's

answer of power, for “‘immediately he received
his sight.” Was that all? Did he go back to

beg by the wayside? No; he “followed Him,

glorifying God.” What a change from the cry

of only a few minutes before!

Just one thing more is told us in this lovely
little story. ‘‘And all the people when they
saw it gave praise unto God.’’ See what that
first cry of ‘‘Have mercy on me,” so quickly
led to! Who would have expected a few min-
utes before to have seen him with his eyes open,
following Jesus, glorifying God and causing 8
whole crowd to give praise toGod. I think the
Lord Jesus says to you to-day, ‘What wilt
thou that I shall do unto thee?” What will
you answer Him?

“Pass me not, O tender Saviour!
Let me love and cling to Thee:
Tam longing for Thy favor,
When Thou comest, call for me. Even me.”

ed E. R.