The Greatest Fight in the World

IN

THE WORLD

Fight the Good Fight of faith.’ — 1 Tim. vi. 12.

CONFERENCE ADDRESS

BY

Che Greatest Fight in the World.

up be answered abundantly and speedily! May

more of such pleading follow that in which we have united! The most memorable part of past Conferences has been the holy concert of believing prayer; and I trust we are not falling off in that respect, but growing yet more fervent and prevalent in intercession. On his knees the believer is invincible.

I am greatly concerned about this Address for many months before it comes on: assuredly it is to me the child of many prayers. I should like to be able to speak well on so worthy an occasion, wherein the best of speech may well be enlisted; but I desire to be, as our brother’s prayer has put it, absolutely in the Lord’s hands, in this matter as well as in every other. I would be willing to speak with stammering tongue if God’s purpose could so be answered more fully; and I would even gladly lose all power of speech if, by being famished as to human words, you might feed the better on that spiritual meat which is to be found alone in Him, who is the incarnate Word of God.

M* all the prayers which have already been offered =

I may say to you, as speakers, that I am persuaded we should prepare ourselves with diligence, and try to do our very best in our great Master’s service. I think I have read that when a handful of lion-like Greeks held the pass against the Persians, a spy, who came to see what they were doing, went back and told the great king that they were poor creatures, for they were busied in combing their hair. The despot saw things in a true light when he learned that a people who could adjust their hair before battle had set a great value on their heads, and would not bow them to a coward’s death. If we are very careful to use our best language when proclaiming eternal truths, we may leave our opponents to infer that we are still more careful of the doctrines themselves. We must not be untidy soldiers when a great fight is before us, for that would look like despondency. Into the battle against false doctrine, and worldliness, and sin, we advance without a fear as to the ultimate issue; and therefore our talk should not be that of ragged passion, but of well-considered principle. It is not ours to be slovenly, since we look to be triumphant. Do your work well at this time, that all men may see that you are not going to be driven from it. The Persian said, when on another occasion he saw a handful of warriors advancing, “That little handful of men! Surely, they cannot mean fighting!’? But one who stood by said, ‘‘ Yes, they do, for they have burnished their shields, and brightened their armour.” Men mean business, depend upon it, when they are not to be hurried into disorder. It was a way amongst the Greeks, when they had a bloody day before them, to show the stern joy of warriors by being well adorned. [I think, brethren, that when we have great work to do for Christ, and mean doing it, we shall not go to the pulpit or the platform to say the first thing that comes to the lip,

ut the Wordd. 7

If we speak for Jesus we ought to speak at our best, though, even then, men are not killed by the glitter of shields, nor by the smoothness of a warrior’s hair; but a higher power is needed to cut through coats of mail. To the God of armies I look up. May He defend the right! But with no careless step do I advance to the front; neither does any doubt possess me. We are feeble, but the Lord our God is mighty, and the battle is the Lord’s, rather than ours.

Only one fear is upon me to a certain degree. I am anxious that my deep sense of responsibility may not lessen my efficiency. A man may feel that he ought to do so well that, for that very reason, he may not do as well ashe might. An overpowering feeling of responsibility may breed paralysis. I once recommended a young clerk to a bank, and his friends very properly gave him strict charge to be very careful tn his figures. This advice he heard times out of mind. He became so extremely careful as to grow nervous, and whereas he had been accurate before, his anxiety caused him to make blunder after blunder, till he left his situation. It 1s possible to be so anxious as to how and what you shall speak, that your manner grows constrained, and you forget those very points which you meant to make most prominent.

Brethren, I am telling some of my private thoughts to you, because we are alike in our calling; and having the same experiences, it does us good to know that it is so. We who lead have the same weaknesses and troubles as you who follow. We must prepare, but we must also trust in Him without whom nothing begins, continues, or ends aright.

I have this comfort, that even if I should not speak adequately upon my theme, the topic itself will speak to you. There is something even in starting an appropriate subject. Ifa man speaks well upon a subject which has no ce GS

practical importance, it is not well that he should have spoken. As one of the ancients said, “It is idle to speak much to the point upon a matter which itself is not to the point.” Carve a cherry-stone with the utmost skill, and at best it is but a cherry-stone; while a diamond if badly cut is still a precious stone. If the matter be of great weight, even if the man cannot speak up to his theme, yet to call attention to it is no vain thing. The subjects which we shall consider at this time ought to be considered, and to be considered just now. I have chosen present and pressing truths, and if you will think them out for yourselves, you will not lose the time occupied by this address. With what inward fervour do I pray that we may all be profited by this hour of meditation!

Happily the themes are such that I can exemplify them even in this address. As a smith can teach his apprentice while making a horseshoe; yes, and Jy making a horse-shoe; so can we make our own sermons examples of the doctrine they contain. In this case we can practise while we preach, if the Lord be with us, A lecturer in cookery instructs his pupils by following his own recipes. He prepares a dish before his audience, and while he describes the viands and their preparation, he tastes the food himself, and his friends are refreshed also. He will succeed by his dainty dishes, even if he is not a man of eloquent speech. The man who feeds Is surer of success than he who only plays well upon an instrument, and leaves with his audience no memory but that of pleasant sound. If the subjects which we bring before our people are in themselves good, they will make up for our want of skill in setting them forth. So long as the guests get the spiritual meat, the servitor at the table may be happy to be forgotten.

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