The work of the Holy Spirit - pagina 98

S8

HOLY SCRIPTURE OF THE OLD TESTAMENT

ment between the thoughts which the

The Holy

life reflected

Word

in the divine

thought and the

begets in our minds.

Scripture is like a diamond: in the dark

it is

like

a

piece of glass, but as soon as the light strikes it the water begins So the Word to sparkle, and the scintillation of life greets us.

God apart from the divine name of Sacred Scripture.

life is valueless,

of

divine

life,

It is like

from which

it

It exists

unworthy even

of the

only in connection with this

imparts life-giving thoughts to our minds.

the fragrance of a flower-bed that refreshes us only

when

Hence the

illus-

the flowers and our organs of smell correspond. tration of the child

and

his father's picture is exact.

While the Bible always

flashes thoughts born of the divine

yet the effects are not the same in

Him who

As a whole,

all.

it is

life,

the portrait

is

the brightness of God's glory and the express image

of His Person,

aiming either to show us His likeness or to serve as

of

its

background.

when a child of God and an alien face that Not as tho it has nothing to say to the unregenerate this It addresses is a mistake of Methodism which should be corrected.* itself to all men as the King's Word, and every one must receive But while the alien sees only a strange its impress in his own way. face, which annoys him, contradicts his world, and so repels him, the He is in holiest symchild of God understands and recognizes it. pathy with the life of the world from which that image greets him. Thus reading what the stranger could not read, he feels that God Notice the difference

—

image.

is

speaking to him, whispering peace to his soul. Not as tho the Scripture were only a system of signals to flash

thought into the soul

and increase

;

rather

it is

spiritual life, not as

the instrument of

God

by magic, giving a

to

awaken

sort of attes-

— a fanatical view al—but by the Holy Spirit

tation of the genuineness of our experience

ways opposed and rejected by the Church through the use of the Word of God. He regenerates us by the Word. will be discussed later

on

;

The mode

let it suffice

of this operation

here to say that the opera-

Word and the Holy Spirit never oppose each other, Paul declares emphatically, that the Holy Scripture is prepared by the Spirit of God and given to the Church as an instruThat the ment to perfect God's work in man; as he expresses it; tions of the but, as St.

**

* For the author's sense of Methodism, see section

s in

the Preface.

Deze tekst is geautomatiseerd gemaakt en kan nog fouten bevatten. Digibron werkt voortdurend aan correctie. Klik voor het origineel door naar de pdf. Voor opmerkingen, vragen, informatie: contact.

Op Digibron -en alle daarin opgenomen content- is het databankrecht van toepassing. Gebruiksvoorwaarden. Data protection law applies to Digibron and the content of this database. Terms of use.

Printen