In His Image | Page 8

with all his soul, and with all his
mind, and with all his strength,--and to love he must believe. Belief in
God must be a conviction that controls every nerve and fibre of his
being and dominates every impulse and energy of his life.
Belief in God is necessary to prayer. It is not sufficient to believe that
there is an Intelligence permeating the universe; nothing less than a
personal God--a God interested in each one of His children and ready
to give at any moment the aid that is needed--nothing less than this can
lead one to communion with the Heavenly Father through prayer.
Evolutionists have attempted to retain the form of prayer while denying
that God answers prayer. They argue that prayer has a reflex action
upon the petitioner and reconciles him to his lot. This argument might
justify one in thinking prayer good enough for others who believe, but
it is impossible for one to be fervent in prayer himself if he is
convinced that his pleas do not reach a prayer-hearing and a
prayer-answering God. Prayer becomes a mockery when faith is gone,
just as Christianity becomes a mere form when prayer is gone. If the
words of the Bible have any meaning at all one must believe that God
"is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him."
Belief in God is necessary to that confidence in His providence which
is the source of the Christian's calmness in hours of trial. We soon
reach the limitations of our strength and would despair but for our
confidence in the infinite wisdom of God. David expresses this when
he says, "Unto the upright there ariseth light in the darkness. He ... shall

not be afraid of evil tidings: his heart is fixed, trusting in the Lord" (Ps.
112).
In my youth, my father often had me read to him Bryant's "Ode to a
Waterfowl" and it became my favourite poem. I know of no more
comforting words outside of Holy Writ than those in the last stanza:
"He who from zone to zone, Guides through the boundless sky thy
certain flight; In the long way that I must tread alone, Will lead my
steps aright."
Belief in God gives courage. The Christian believes that every word
spoken in behalf of truth will have its influence and that every deed
done for the right will weigh in the final account. What matters it to the
believer whether his eyes behold the victory and his voice mingles in
the shouts of triumph, or whether he dies in the midst of the conflict!
"Yea, tho' thou lie upon the dust, When they who helped thee flee in
fear, Die full of hope and manly trust, Like those who fell in battle
here.
Another hand thy sword shall wield, Another hand the standard wave,
Till from the trumpet's mouth is pealed, The blast of triumph o'er thy
grave."
Only those who believe attempt the seemingly impossible, and, by
attempting, prove that one, with God, can chase a thousand and two put
ten thousand to flight. I can imagine that the early Christians, who were
carried into the Coliseum to make a spectacle for spectators more cruel
than the beasts, were entreated by their doubting companions not to
endanger their lives. But, kneeling in the center of the arena, they
prayed and sang until they were devoured. How helpless they seemed,
and measured by every human rule, how hopeless was their cause! And
yet within a few decades the power which they invoked proved
mightier than the legions of the emperor and the faith in which they
died was triumphant o'er all the land. It is said that those who went to
mock at their sufferings returned asking themselves: "What is it that
can enter into the heart of man and make him die as these die?" They
were greater conquerors in their death than they could have been had
they purchased life by a surrender of their faith.
What would have been the fate of the Church if the early Christians had
had as little faith as many of our Christians of to-day? And, if the
Christians of to-day had the faith of the martyrs, how long would it be

before the prophecy were fulfilled--"every knee shall bow and every
tongue confess"?
Belief in God is the basis of every moral code. Morality cannot be put
on as a garment and taken off at will. It is a power within; it works out
from the heart as a spring pours forth its flood. It is not safe for a weak
Christian to associate intimately with the world because he may be
influenced by others instead of influencing others. But one need not
fear when his morality derives its energy