No other study will so ennoble every thought,
feeling, and aspiration as the study of the Scriptures. This
Sacred Word is the will of God revealed to men. Here we may learn
what God expects of the beings formed in His image. Here we learn
how to improve the present life and how to secure the future
life. No other book can satisfy the questionings of the mind
and the craving of the heart. By obtaining a knowledge of God's
word, and giving heed thereto, men may rise from the lowest depths
of ignorance and degradation to become the sons of God, the associates
of sinless angels.
A clear conception of what God is, and
what He requires us to be, will give us humble views of self.
He who studies aright the Sacred Word will learn that human intellect
is not omnipotent; that, without the help which none but God
can give, human strength and wisdom are but weakness and ignorance.
As an educating power the Bible is without
a rival. Nothing will so impart vigor to all the faculties as
requiring students to grasp the stupendous truths of revelation.
The mind gradually adapts itself to the subjects upon which it
is allowed to dwell. If occupied with commonplace matters only,
to the exclusion of grand and lofty themes, it will become dwarfed
and enfeebled. If never required to grapple with difficult problems,
or put to the stretch to comprehend important truths, it will,
after a time, almost lose the power of growth.
The Bible is the most comprehensive and
the most instructive history which men possess. It came fresh
from the fountain of eternal truth, and a divine hand has preserved
its purity through all the ages. Its bright rays shine into the
far distant past, where human research seeks vainly to penetrate.
In God's word alone we find an authentic account of creation.
Here we behold the power that laid the foundation of the earth
and that stretched out the heavens. Here only can we find a history
of our race, unsullied by human prejudice or human pride.
In the word of God the mind finds subject
for the deepest thought, the loftiest aspiration. Here we may
hold communion with patriarchs and prophets, and listen to the
voice of the Eternal as He speaks with men. Here we behold the
Majesty of heaven as He humbled Himself to become our substitute
and surety to cope singlehanded with the powers of darkness and
to gain the victory in our behalf. A reverent contemplation of
such themes as these cannot fail to soften, purify, and ennoble
the heart, and, at the same time, to inspire the mind with new
strength and vigor.
If morality and religion are to live in
a school, it must be through a knowledge of God's word. Some
may urge that if religious teaching is to be made prominent our
school will become unpopular; that those who are not of our faith
will not patronize the college. Very well, then, let them go
to other colleges, where they will find a system of education
that suits their taste. Our school was established, not merely
to teach the sciences, but for the purpose of giving instruction
in the great principles of God's word and in the practical duties
of everyday life.
This is the education so much needed at
the present time. If a worldly influence is to bear sway in our
school, then sell it out to worldlings and let them take the
entire control; and those who have invested their means in that
institution will establish another school, to be conducted, not
upon the plan of popular schools,
nor according to the desires of principal and teachers, but upon
the plan which God has specified.
In the name of my Master I entreat all
who stand in responsible positions in that school to be men of
God. When the Lord requires us to be distinct and peculiar, how
can we crave popularity or seek to imitate the customs and practices
of the world? God has declared His purpose to have one college
in the land where the Bible shall have its proper place in the
education of the youth. Will we do our part to carry out that
purpose?
It may seem that the teaching of God's
word has but little effect on the minds and hearts of many students;
but, if the teacher's work has been wrought in God, some lessons
of divine truth will linger in the memory of the most careless.
The Holy Spirit will water the seed sown, and often it will spring
up after many days and bear fruit to the glory of God.
Satan is constantly seeking to divert the
attention of the people from the Bible. The words of God to men,
which should receive our first attention, are neglected for the
utterances of human wisdom. How can He, who is infinite in power
and wisdom, bear thus with the presumption and effrontery of
men!
Through the medium of the press, knowledge
of every kind is placed within the reach of all; and yet, how
large a share of every community are depraved in morals and superficial
in mental attainments. If the people would but become Bible readers,
Bible students, we would see a different state of things.
In an age like ours, in which iniquity
abounds and God's character and His law are alike regarded with
contempt, special care must be taken to teach the youth to study,
to reverence and obey the divine will as revealed to man. The
fear of the Lord is fading from the minds of our youth because
of their neglect of Bible study.
Principal and teachers should have a living
connection with God, and should stand, firmly and fearlessly,
as witnesses for Him. Never from cowardice or worldly policy
let the word of God be placed in the background. Students will
be profited intellectually, as well as morally and spiritually,
by its study.