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Chapter 40—Help in Daily Living
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There is an eloquence far more powerful than the eloquence of
words in the quiet, consistent life of a pure, true Christian. What a
person is has more influence than what he or she says.
The officers who were sent to Jesus came back with the report
that no man had ever spoken as He spoke. But the reason for this
was that no man had ever lived as He lived. If His life had been other
than it was, He could not have spoken as He did. His words had
convincing power because they came from a heart pure and holy,
full of love and sympathy, benevolence and truth.
Our own character and experience determine our influence upon
others. In order to convince others of the power of Christ’s grace,
we must know its power in our own hearts and lives. The gospel we
present for the saving of souls must be the gospel by which our own
souls are saved. Only through a living faith in Christ as a personal
Savior is it possible to make our influence felt in a skeptical world.
If we would draw sinners out of the swift-running current, our own
feet must be firmly set upon the Rock, Christ Jesus.
The badge of Christianity is not an outward sign, not the wearing
of a cross or a crown; it is that which reveals the union of the soul
with God. By the power of His grace manifested in the transforma-
tion of character, the world is to be convinced that God has sent His
Son as its Redeemer. No other influence that can surround a person
has such power as the influence of an unselfish life. The strongest
argument in favor of the gospel is a loving and lovable Christian.
The Discipline of Trial
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To live such a life, to exert such an influence, costs at every
step effort, self-sacrifice, discipline. Because they do not under-
stand this, many are easily discouraged in the Christian life. Many
who sincerely consecrate their lives to God’s service are surprised
and disappointed to find themselves, as never before, confronted by
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