JUNE 8TH, 1900
JUNE 8TH, 1900
DEAR —, — ... Since the finer weather came in we have been getting out all day into the villages around here with gospel books, etc.
Your question is a very interesting one — How can the young people in fellowship with us be helped?
I think I can say that this subject has often been forced upon my attention in much the same way as you remark. That is, one comes across young people, and old ones too, breaking bread with us whose hearts do not appear to have any real desire after Christ. The secret of this grave defect is that they have never had any real soul-exercise, and what they suppose to be faith is, in many cases, merely a kind of intellectual assent to what they have so constantly heard. They take the place of being believers and have been received into fellowship on that ground, but they are evidently not lovers of the Lord Jesus Christ.
I fear that in not a few instances the unwise dealing of would-be evangelists, in ministering comfort to souls scarcely conscious of any need and urging them to take the place of professed believers, has resulted in souls taking a religious position far beyond the true measure of God’s work in them. Then young people in the households of the saints as children or servants sometimes come into fellowship much on the same ground as they would be confirmed and begin to take the sacrament if their associations had been with the Establishment. They think it the right thing to do, but Christ is not really the life of their hearts — their interests are practically in the things of the world and of this present life.
[p. 37] For such a state of things what is the remedy? I should say, in the first place, continued and fervent prayer to God on the part of all those who are cognisant of it. These precious souls need to know the gospel of the grace of God — they need Christ presenting to their hearts in Holy Ghost power — they need deliverance, salvation, conversion. There may be the feeble beginning of a divine work in them, but to the positive grace, power, and joy of Christianity they are entire strangers, they need to be convicted, converted, and saved, and for this no power but that of God is sufficient. Hence the imperative necessity for much prayer if we would see this blessed miracle wrought.
As to any help that can be rendered to such souls, it must be remembered that the one thing they need is to become conscious that Christian blessings are realities — that Christ is a real, living Person, and that His love has power to displace every earth-born motive in the heart. They need, in most cases, to come in contact with vital Christianity. So that the best — the only true — way to help them is to be what we desire they should be, so that in contact with us, and by knowledge of us, they may see us possessed of that in Christ which they know nothing of. Thus would God produce in their hearts the desire for “wisdom”, and the world would be thrown into the shade in the light of a glorified Christ. I apprehend that hundreds of souls were thus awakened and brought into exercise by beloved Mr. Stoney’s testimony — not so much by his ministry as by the fact that they could see he was in a light to which they were strangers.
As to the many who profess to want help for their souls, and who complain that “brethren” do not look after them and care for them, I am inclined to suspect that this is only a poor excuse for spiritual slothfulness. I admit with sorrow that the number of these who lay themselves out to help the young is not very large, but I am perfectly sure that any soul really desirous of spiritual help can get it more easily and in very much fuller measure amongst “brethren” than anywhere else. The fact is, these complaining souls do not desire to get on at all. They want people to make a fuss of them, and undertake to wheel them to heaven in a perambulator. If they were really exercised and prayerful they would speedily find themselves furnished with as much spiritual help as they [p. 38] could avail themselves of. But exercise and prayer are not much in the line of those you refer to. They would not mind being edified if somebody else would take all the trouble of doing it for them! Young ducks may be fattened by the use of the cramming machine, but young saints will only grow by that for which they have spiritual appetite. And if this appetite exists it will find abundance of “royal dainties” to feed upon as it feasts on the fatness of God’s house and drinks of the river of His pleasure. The man or woman does not breathe who could honestly say, My heart thirsted for spiritual blessing, and I prayed to God for it, but He has disappointed me and sent me empty away ...
With much love in the Lord,
Yours affectionately in Him,
June 8th, 1900.