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The Acts of the Apostles
the Source of all blessing. “For the grace of God that bringeth salva-
tion hath appeared to all men, teaching us that, denying ungodliness
and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly, in
this present world; looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious
appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ; who gave
Himself for us, that He might redeem us from all iniquity, and purify
unto Himself a peculiar people, zealous of good works.”
Titus 2:11-14
.
Before pressing forward into new territory, Paul and his compan-
ions visited the churches that had been established in Pisidia and the
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regions round about. “As they went through the cities, they delivered
them the decrees for to keep, that were ordained of the apostles and
elders which were at Jerusalem. And so were the churches established
in the faith, and increased in number daily.”
The apostle Paul felt a deep responsibility for those converted under
his labors. Above all things, he longed that they should be faithful,
“that I may rejoice in the day of Christ,” he said, “that I have not run
in vain, neither labored in vain.”
Philippians 2:16
. He trembled for
the result of his ministry. He felt that even his own salvation might be
imperiled if he should fail of fulfilling his duty and the church should
fail of co-operating with him in the work of saving souls. He knew that
preaching alone would not suffice to educate the believers to hold forth
the word of life. He knew that line upon line, precept upon precept,
here a little and there a little, they must be taught to advance in the
work of Christ.
It is a universal principle that whenever one refuses to use his
God-given powers, these powers decay and perish. Truth that is not
lived, that is not imparted, loses its life-giving power, its healing
virtue. Hence the apostle’s fear that he might fail of presenting every
man perfect in Christ. Paul’s hope of heaven grew dim when he
contemplated any failure on his part that would result in giving the
church the mold of the human instead of the divine. His knowledge,
his eloquence, his miracles, his view of eternal scenes when caught up
to the third heaven—all would be unavailing if through unfaithfulness
in his work those for whom he labored should fail of the grace of God.
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And so, by word of mouth and by letter, he pleaded with those who
had accepted Christ, to pursue a course that would enable them to be
“blameless and harmless, the sons of God, without rebuke, in the midst