Paul, The Apostle to the Gentiles
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gravity, sincerity, sound speech, that cannot be condemned; that he
that is of the contrary part may be ashamed, having no evil thing to
say of you.” [
Titus 2:6-8
.]
Of his own work he has left us a picture in his letter to the
Corinthian believers: “In all things approving ourselves as the minis-
ters of God, in much patience, in afflictions, in necessities, in distresses,
in stripes, in imprisonments, in tumults, in labors, in watchings, in
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fastings; by pureness, by knowledge, by long-suffering, by kindness,
by the Holy Ghost, by love unfeigned, by the word of truth, by the
power of God, by the armor of righteousness on the right hand and on
the left, by honor and dishonor, by evil report and good report: as de-
ceivers, and yet true; as unknown, and yet well known; as dying, and,
behold, we live; as chastened, and not killed; as sorrowful, yet alway
rejoicing; as poor, yet making many rich.” [
2 Corinthians 6:4-10
.]
Paul’s heart was filled with a deep, abiding sense of his responsibil-
ity; and he labored in close communion with Him who is the fountain
of justice, mercy, and truth. He clung to the cross of Christ as his
only guaranty of success. The love of the Saviour was the undying
motive that upheld him in his conflicts with self and in his struggle
against evil, as in the service of Christ he pressed forward against the
unfriendliness of the world and the opposition of his enemies.
What the church needs in these days of peril, is an army of workers
who, like Paul, have educated themselves for usefulness, who have a
deep experience in the things of God, and who are filled with earnest-
ness and zeal. Sanctified, self-sacrificing men are needed; men who
are brave and true; men in whose hearts Christ is formed, “the hope
of glory,” [
Colossians 1:27
.] and who with lips touched with holy fire
will “preach the word.” [
2 Timothy 4:2
.] For the want of such workers
the cause of God languishes, and fatal errors, like a deadly poison,
taint the morals and blight the hopes of a large part of the human race.
As the faithful, toil-worn standard-bearers are offering up their
lives for the truth’s sake, who will come forward to take their place?
Will our young men accept the holy trust at the hand of their fathers?
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Are they preparing to fill the vacancies made by the death of the
faithful? Will the apostle’s charge be heeded, the call to duty be heard,
amid the incitements to selfishness and ambition that allure the youth?