SIMPLICITY OF GOD'S WORD.
By G.
The Bible is remarkable as a book of short, comprehensive sermons. The natural condition of man is tersely expressed in one sentence: “By one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned.” Rom. 5:12. The remedy for this condition, that is, the Gospel of salvation, is expressed in like brevity and simplicity: “God so loved the world, that He gave His only-begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life.” John 3:16. But if still further brevity be required, we have both of the foregoing statements condensed into one: “As by the offense of one judgment came upon all men to condemnation; even so by the righteousness of One the free gift came upon all men unto justification of life.” Rom. 5:18. What an amount of worry and discouragement, of study and research and extraordinary labor, might be saved if men would only believe the simple statement of God’s Word. Years and years are often spent in poring over the speculations and traditions of men, and halting betwixt opinions, that might be spent to good advantage in living and working for the Master, if men would only believe God, and accept His faithful promises. This is the point to which all who are ever saved will have to come, and the sooner they realize it the better. The Gospel of Christ “is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth” (ch. 1:16), and the Holy Scriptures are “able to make thee wise unto salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus.” 2 Tim. 3:15. The Lord’s injunction to all is to “search the Scriptures;” they contain the words of inspiration, words that are spirit and life. And His command to His ministers is to “preach the Word.” God has made the way very plain, but the adversary continually tries to make people believe that it is very complicated. One of his favorite schemes is to make void the law through the traditions of men. But the psalmist truly says, “Thy righteousness is an everlasting righteousness, and Thy law is the truth.” G.