The Message in This Generation
By W. W. P.
THE apostles gave the message of the Messiah's advent in one generation. They went forth under a commission from their Lord, and in the experience of His promise, “Ye shall receive power, when the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be my witnesses both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth.” They were simply to be witnesses to the things which they had seen and heard, and the Lord would use their testimony as the means of telling the world of the great salvation in Jesus the Messiah. But their experience began with Pentecost, and their testimony was given with pentecostal power, and the results were such as can only come through the abiding Spirit. Their work was done in the power of the Spirit, as “they were all filled with the Holy Ghost.” Men were convicted of sin, and cried out, “What shall we do?” “And with great power gave the apostles witness of the resurrection of the Lord Jesus: and great grace was upon them all.” But this experience cost those men something. They had no settled homes; they were not assured of any fixed income; everything was sacrificed to the one purpose of being witnesses for Jesus. They were arrested and imprisoned; they were driven from city to city; they were made “as the filth of the world,” and as “the offscouring of all things.” But in the fellowship of their Lord they were sustained, and by the greatness of their commission they were urged on to give their message to the world. And so they prayed, and so they labored, going from country to country as the heralds of the truth that “the promise which was made unto the fathers” had been fulfilled in the coming of Jesus. And God honored the faithfulness of these men. The gospel was preached “with the Holy Ghost sent down from heaven;” and before that generation passed away, the good news “was preached to every creature which is under heaven,” and those very men were witnesses “unto the uttermost part of the earth.” We must think of our own work in the light of these experiences. The Lord is calling upon us to give “the advent message to the world in this generation.” It can be done. It must be done. It will be done. “There shall be delay no longer.” There will be those who will accept the great commission again. There will be those in this generation who will be witnesses “unto the uttermost part of the earth.” The light of this message will shine in all lands, and penetrate even the dark parts of the earth. But it will not be done by committees on plans and resolutions. It means personal consecration. It means personal sacrifice. It means personal work. It means a cutting loose from the world. It means a mighty faith in this message as the truth which the world must have. It means153that burden of soul which inspired the prayer, His “Give me Scotland, or I die.” Away with all controversy as to when “this generation” began, or how long it may last. Its length is to be measured by zeal, and not by years. A consecrated Church can shorten the time. Every report of progress in planting the truth in new fields marks a hastening of the time. Every unentered field is a reminder that “the end is not yet.” Fifty thousand men and women who really believe the message which they profess, and are filled with the Spirit, could stir the world in a few short years. There would be no lack of workers, for all would be workers. There would be no lack of means, for no one would say “that aught of the things which he possessed was his own.” And God would not fail to co-operate with the human instrumentalities, and the work would be cut short in righteousness. May the Lord lay a burden for His work upon the hearts of His people. May there be a consecrated, working ministry, burning with the purpose to carry the advent message to every unsaved soul. May the pentecostal power energize every effort. And while the Lord says, “Behold, I come quickly,” may the Church by its sacrificing devotion to duty answer, “Even so, come, Lord Jesus.” W. W. P.