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Cross in Accepting the Truth
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vary. Those who obey the truth will never be loved and honored by
the world. From the lips of the divine Teacher, as He walked in hu-
mility among the children of men, were heard the words: Whosoever
will be My disciple, let him take up his
cross
, and follow Me. Yes,
follow our Exemplar. Was He seeking for praise and honor of men?
Oh, no! Shall we then seek for honor or praise from worldlings?
Those who have no love for God will not love the children of
God. Listen to the words of heavenly instruction: “Woe unto you,
when all men shall speak well of you.” “Blessed are ye, when men
shall hate you, and when they shall separate you from their company,
and shall reproach you, and cast out your name as evil, for the Son
of man’s sake. Rejoice ye in that day, and leap for joy: for, behold,
your reward is great in heaven.” “But woe unto you that are rich! for
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ye have received your consolation.” In the Gospel of John we again
find the words of Christ: “These things I command you, that ye love
one another. If the world hate you, ye know that it hated Me before
it hated you. If ye were of the world, the world would love his own:
but because ye are not of the world, but I have chosen you out of the
world, therefore the world hateth you. Remember the word that I
said unto you, The servant is not greater than his Lord. If they have
persecuted Me, they will also persecute you; if they have kept My
saying, they will keep yours also.” “I have given them Thy word;
and the world hath hated them, because they are not of the world,
even as I am not of the world. I pray not that Thou shouldest take
them out of the world, but that Thou shouldest keep them from the
evil. They are not of the world, even as I am not of the world.”
In First John we read: “Love not the world, neither the things that
are in the world.” In Paul’s Epistle to the Romans he beseeches them,
by the mercies of God, that they present their bodies a living sacri-
fice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is their reasonable service.
“And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the
renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and ac-
ceptable, and perfect, will of God.” And James declares: “Know ye
not that the friendship of the world is enmity with God? whosoever
therefore will be a friend of the world is the enemy of God.”
I entreat you to carefully consider the instructions in Paul’s
Epistle to the Galatians: “For do I now persuade men, or God? or
do I seek to please men? for if I yet pleased men, I should not be