Devoted to the Propagation and Defense of New Testament Christianity
VOLUME 5
January 21, 1954
NUMBER 36, PAGE 11b

Consistency - "Not Good If Detached"

Win. E. Wallace, Akron, Ohio

"A man's Sunday self and his weekday self are like two halves of a round-trip ticket: not good if detached." The quote comes from an "active lay apostolate" of a denomination. Even though the source of the quotation may not be exactly the most discreet place from which to draw inspiration for the writing of an article, the thoughts contained therein find their origination in such Biblical passages as Acts 2:46-47: "And they continuing daily with one accord in the temple, and breaking bread from house to house, did eat their meat with gladness and singleness of heart, praising God, and having favour with all the people."

Each Lord's day the efficient Christian arises early enough to take care of the essential things for his physical well being, for that particular day, in order that he can be at the church services at the appointed hours. Saturday evening he studied his Bible school lesson, and in a few moments of meditation he prepared himself for the worship of the following day. Perhaps he visits or calls individuals, invites them to services, and then provides transportation for them. After services Sunday he visits the sick, talks with the spiritually weak. He returns for services Sunday evening a little tired maybe at the beginning of the service, but refreshed at the end having spent an hour in pleasant worship. The day was well spent, much good was accomplished. But what becomes of the next six days so far as Christian service is concerned? Individuals must of course provide for their families, make their own way in the world and spend time in matters secular. But is there not time for the Lord during the week? Are his off-work hours so filled with recreation and idleness that he completely forgets he is supposedly, a Christian servant? Perhaps so in the case of some, yet there are countless others, faithful Christians, who plan to use available time during the week to serve God. On the job they find opportunity to so conduct themselves as to display Christianity in all of its purity — the activity of people possessed with Christ. These Christians are not interested in doing "big things," they are just interested in doing all they can for the Lord. They do not serve with a feeling of obligation, but rather their deeds are the natural phenomena of a spiritually fed individual. This is the power in Christianity. The power lies in the fact that Christ works in the lives of individual Christians. One capable writer expressed it this way: "Things like that don't look big enough to some people. Names that never go into statistics, that never go into the reports in the paper, work that's done that nobody knows about but the individual himself, make up most of the power of Christianity and its influence over the lives of men." The power of Christianity does not lie in the big projects of churches, nor in the great institutions of human origin, neither in great brotherhood promotions — the power is in the daily conduct and activity of the Christian individual. When the Christian lives every day by the same principles that motivate him on the first day, the world has received that much of a contribution toward a spiritual renovation. "For so is the will of God, that with well doing ye may put to silence the ignorance of foolish men." (1 Peter 2:15)