“IF YE BE CHRIST’S, THEN ARE YE ABRAHAM’S SEED AND HEIRS.”

Another matter, really the key to the whole question which we are discussing, is revealed in God’s Word, viz., that in the divine purpose the promised “Seed of Abraham” that should perform the great work of blessing all the families of the earth, is to be one, in the sense of one kind, but not in the sense of one person–that is to say, that the seed of Abraham consists of Jesus Christ the Head, and of the Church which is the body.

NOT the nominal or professing church, but the true Church, “whose names are written in heaven,” and who walk in the footsteps of their Lord (the fully consecrated), and are found faithful unto death, and shall be granted with their Lord the crown of life.

This Gospel age intervening between the time of the great sin offering and the time when the blessing of earth’s billions will commence, God has set apart for the work of selecting or electing the body of Christ, the Church, the Bride, the “little flock,” the “royal priesthood,” the joint heirs with Christ in his kingdom.

These, like their Head, are called with a “high calling,” a “heavenly calling,” and the salvation provided for them is higher than that which God purposes for the world in general. He is selecting this “little flock” and trying them and proving them, fitting them and polishing them for the heavenly Kingdom, and it is to these, as the Apostle Peter declares, God has given “exceeding great and precious promises [far beyond any promises given to any other of his creatures] that by these [promises] we might become partakers of the “Divine nature”, and joint-heirs with his Son. This is called a “heavenly calling” in contrast with the earthly salvation intended for whosoever will (Rev 22:17) “in due time.”

This true view of the calling and election of the Church is another feature of the Gospel. If it is splendid, good news to know that ultimately all families of the earth are to be blessed with opportunities for salvation through the Christ, it is still an additional feature to the good news to know that God has invited us to become members of the Christ company, “members in particular of the body of Christ.” No wonder the Apostle calls this our “high calling,” our “heavenly calling“: it is to the attainment of this great prize that the Apostle exhorts all the faithful to lay aside every weight and every besetment and to run with patience the race set before us in the Gospel, looking unto Jesus, the author, until he shall have become the finisher of our faith.

This is the true Gospel, dear friends, the one we find set forth in the Scriptures, set forth by Paul himself, and of which he was not ashamed. This Gospel shows the character of our Creator in a most wonderful light, –his Wisdom, able to discern the end from the beginning; his Power, able to accomplish that which he pleases; his Justice, squaring every feature of the plan from first to last, according to the most absolute features of righteousness; his Love, whose lengths and breadths and heights and depths we have not yet been able to explore; a love which sympathizes with his creatures in their fallen estate; a love which provided a Savior, and a great one; a love which prompted that Savior to give his life as our ransom price; a love which met all the requirements of divine justice for us; a love which still pursues mankind, and in this Gospel age calls us to joint heir-ship with his Son in a nature and kingdom far above angels, principalities and powers, of which the Apostle says:

“Behold what manner of love the Father hath bestowed upon us that we should be called the sons of God.”

This divine love, still pursuing its original plan for man’s salvation, will use the “elect” glorified house of sons, of which Christ Jesus is the Head (Eph. 1:22), in blessing all families of the earth with full opportunity of knowledge and full assistance up the highway of holiness (Isa. 35:8) that so many as will may attain to restitution to all that was lost in Adam by coming back into harmony with God through the great Mediator. (Acts 3:19-23)

NONE NEED BE ASHAMED OF THE TRUE GOSPEL.

Of THIS Gospel we are not ashamed, “for it is the power of God unto salvation to everyone that believeth.” It has in our hearts a transforming and renewing power, a sanctifying power which no error could possibly have, and which all the theories of eternal torment have never equaled and never will.

Let us more and more “show forth the praises of our God, who hath called us out of darkness into his marvelous light,” by renouncing all God-dishonoring creeds and theories, foregoing the “vain babblings” of men and instead hold forth the Word of life, and witness the good confession–the “good tidings of great joy which shall be to all people.”

All who will declare the true Gospel will need to be well shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace (gentleness, patience, meekness) for, strange to say, they will find bitter opposition from professed servants of the Lord who have been blinded and prejudiced by Satan’s misrepresentations of the Gospel, — by which he seeks to drive from the Lord all who have a remnant of REASON in their religious thinking.

All who have ears to hear, and who hear the true Gospel, will quickly distinguish it from the miserable counterfeits, which for so long have passed current among God’s people. Let all such remember that ability to hear is an evidence of divine favor, and let them not be ashamed, but glorify God on this behalf. Let such remember, also, that their acceptance of truth as due, in the face of unpopularity, is a part of their testing.

The Lord puts his plan, his Word, as his representative, saying–He that is ashamed of me and my words (MY PLAN, MY GOSPEL), of him will the Son of Man be ashamed, when he cometh in the glory of his Father with his holy angels. (Mark 8:38)