Faith's Answer to God's Word
"Jehovah is the true God; He is the living God, and an everlasting King. . . . He hath made the earth by His power, He hath established the world by His wisdom, and by His understanding hath He stretched out the heavens." Jer. 10: 10-12. "Without faith it is impossible to be well-pleasing unto Him; for he that cometh to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of them that seek after Him." Heb. 11: 6. I believe, O God, that Thou art, and that there is no God beside Thee; that Thou art a personal, living God, the Creator of the heaven and the earth, and upholdest all things by the word of Thy power. Thy greatness is incomprehensible, and Thy glory insufferable; but as Thou art God, infinite in every attribute, Thy love and wisdom are also equal to Thy majesty and glory. I believe all that Thy Word reveals to me of Thy Godhead. "Fear God, and keep His commandments; for this is the whole duty of man. For God will bring every work into judgment, with every hidden thing, whether it be good, or whether it be evil." Eccl. 12: 13, 14. As Thou art the Creator of all, I recognize, O God, the right to my service, the highest, holiest, and best. And as Thou hast a right to my service, Thou hast the right to direct my conduct, to command me in all things, and at last bring me to judgment, final and everlasting. All this is inherent in Thy right as Creator. "All have sinned, and come short of the glory of God." Rom. 3: 23. And this, O God, is true, demonstrated by all the history of the world and in each rational soul's individual consciousness. I am one of the "all," and therefore I am a sinner. And Thy Spirit through Thy Word has revealed unto almost despair specific sins in my life. My heart has run after sin and into sin, and I have strayed far and selfishly from the path of Thy precepts. Being a sinner therefore by birth, and by choice in divers and grievous ways, I am5a dying creature, a rebel against Thy government, and worthy only to die. "God is love." 1 John 4: 8. "For God so loved the world, that He gave His only-begotten Son, that whosoever believeth on Him should not perish, but have eternal life." John 3: 16. "Yea, I have loved thee with an everlasting love: therefore with loving-kindness have I drawn thee." Jer. 31: 3. I believe, O Jehovah, in Thy love, Thine infinite, unfathomable love. "Never yet, in darkest mood,
Doubted I that Thou wert good,
Nor mistook my will for fate,
Pain of sin for heavenly hate." My doubt, my wonder, is, Canst Thou love me—one so unworthy of Thy love? "But God commandeth His own love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us." Rom. 5: 8. "Faithful is the saying, and worthy of all acceptation, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners; of whom I am chief." 1 Tim. 1: 15. "For the Son of Man came to seek and to save that which was lost." Luke 19: 10. My gracious Lord, I believe this,—that Thy wondrous, immeasurable love embraces me, not because I am worthy, but because Thou art love, and love delights in loving. But Thou dost not love sin, that which never blesses, but ever curses, and which has brought upon the world all its ills and woes, and there is sin in me. How may I be rid of that which separates from Thee, which clouds in my heart the sunshine of Thy love? "Let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts; and let him return unto Jehovah, and He will have mercy upon him; and to our God, for He will abundantly pardon." Isa. 55: 7. "If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness." 1 John 1: 9. My Father, I believe. I am the sinner; Thou art the Saviour. I tell Thee all my sins, in all their crooked, perverse wickedness. I hate them all in their consummation; help me to hate them more in their inception, in their seed-sowing, in the beautiful, deceptive flowering, as well as in their deadly fruitage. And I believe, I now believe, my Father, my Saviour, that my sins are all forgiven, that Thy mighty word has cleansed me from all unrighteousness, and that the good work Thou hast begun in me Thou art able to finish to the day of Christ Jesus. Even so, amen.