Brotherhood
Brotherhood is a wonderful thought, and especially so in the times we now face. The thought that nation shall arise against nation and rain death and destruction upon one another is awful to contemplate!
The "civilized" 20th Century man carries his H-Bomb, poison gas, and even can use germs in warfare. And he has learned how to deliver these against his fellowman at speeds that travel faster than sound. It is imperative that man believe there can be a brotherhood of men, and do all within his power to cause this to become a reality.
Some Basic Facts We Must Accept For Brotherhood
1. Brotherhood indicates a common Fatherhood. If two men are brothers they have the same father. It is in God that we all "live, and move, and have our being....For as much then as we are the offspring of God, we ought not to think that the Godhead is like unto gold, or silver, or stone, graven by art and man's device." (Acts 17:28-29)
2. Brotherhood implies a common blood. All men upon the earth do have a common blood, regardless of the pigmentation of his skin. God "hath made of one blood all nations of men for to dwell on all the face of the earth, and hath determined the....bounds of their habitation." (Acts 17:26)
3. Brotherhood implies equality. In God's sight one man's soul is as valuable as any other, regardless of race, education, or economic standing. God "is not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance." (2 Peter 3:9)
"Whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have eternal life." (John 3:16) "He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved." (Mark 16:16) Our Father in heaven has no "favorites" on earth but wants "every creature" in "all nations" to hear the gospel. (Matt. 28:19)
4. Brotherhood indicates a common law or rule. All workers in a given brotherhood are regulated by the same rules. That is fair to all. Under God in Heaven the brotherhood of man must accept God's common rule for each one. Paul said, "Let us walk by the same rule." (Phil. 3:16) The New Testament is given us by our common (universal) Father and is to be the common (universal) rule in matters of faith. Any departure from the rule (the New Testament) will bring division in the brotherhood of man.
Can There Be A World-Wide Brotherhood Except On Christ?
Is there any other Person than Christ under which man will unite? Is there any other "God" but the True and Living God that mankind will universally accept as Father? Is there any other creed or rule than the New Testament of Christ that men will universally accept as a religious standard?
Will The World Accept Christ?
The world will probably never fully accept Christ as their ideal Man, their Elder Brother. To do so would make brothers of the rich and poor, the educated and uneducated, the Jew and Gentile, Pagan and Christian, Protestant and Catholic. Tremendous difficulties are involved in making a true genuine brotherhood of these. Thus far we have not even learned tolerance. On television we heard and saw a man who had been expelled from Russia for his religious beliefs and activities. The very day before we heard and saw on the same program Cline Paden, evangelist for the church of Christ in Rome, Italy, being interviewed by an N. B. C. reporter as to his arrest.
Checking The Basic Foundations
1. One God and Father: Millions will accept the one God, but other millions will not. The Hindu's, Buddists, Mohammedans, Confucianists, Taoists, etc., do not believe in one God. The Communists do not believe in any God. Even some protestants are giving up the idea of one God. S. Parkes Cadman said: "I reassert my belief that the souls of men are not doomed to destruction hereafter because they accept some religion other than that of the Christian.... As I see it a Buddist or Moslem is not condemned to eternal darkness for the sole reason that he was loyal to his ancestral faith." This is the attitude of many of the modernists.
2. One Blood: Much racial prejudice remains to be overcome. The Christian believes God made all from one blood. (Acts 17:26) This denotes quality before God.
3. One rule or law: The New Testament is a revelation of God's will to man. It was given as our law, our standard in true religion. (Matt. 28:18-20) If accepted, men will have to discard the Talmud, the Koran, man-made creeds, traditions, ancestral faiths, latter "revelations," etc. There can never be a true brotherhood based on varying beliefs. (John 1:7)
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