"The Work of Christian Charity"

 1. The Character of Christian Charity.

Christian charity is, as the name indicates, a specifically Christian virtue, the fruit of saving grace. It is Christian love extended to those that are in misery, a love that reveals itself in a voluntary and unselfish devotion to those that are subject to the ills of life, particularly, when they are in straitened circumstances.

The Christian, in his work of charity, seeks those that are in misery, of whatever rank they may be, and aims at promoting the glory of God.

Christian charity differs even from the charity that was exercised by Israel under the Old Testament. This was limited almost exclusively to the poor of their own nation. Moreover, it was carefully regulated by an external law. Christian charity, on the other hand, is inspired and regulated by an internal principle and is universal.

2. The Motives for Christian Charity.

The primary motive is found in the fact that the Word of God calls upon us to show forth the image of God also in this respect. "Be merciful, even as your Father is merciful" (Luke 6:36). This is a very high ideal.

In the second place the Christian love that fills our hearts prompts us to exercise charity. This charity will reveal itself in all its tenderness and compassion where misery is greatest, as, for instance, during a pestilence, or a famine, or on the battlefield.

Moreover, it is necessary for our own spiritual development that we exercise charity. This is not selfishness, but merely a part of the law of our spiritual existence.

3. Opportunities for Exercising Christian Charity.

There is always abundant opportunity for exercising this virtue. We can do it wherever we come in contact with misery.

[Louis Berkhof]

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The Work of Christian Charity

 1. The Character of Christian Charity.

Christian charity is, as the name indicates, a specifically Christian virtue, the fruit of saving grace. It is Christian love extended to those that are in misery, a love that reveals itself in a voluntary and unselfish devotion to those that are subject to the ills of life, particularly, when they are in straitened circumstances.

The Christian, in his work of charity, seeks those that are in misery, of whatever rank they may be, and aims at promoting the glory of God.

Christian charity differs even from the charity that was exercised by Israel under the Old Testament. This was limited almost exclusively to the poor of their own nation. Moreover, it was carefully regulated by an external law. Christian charity, on the other hand, is inspired and regulated by an internal principle and is universal.

2. The Motives for Christian Charity.

The primary motive is found in the fact that the Word of God calls upon us to show forth the image of God also in this respect. "Be merciful, even as your Father is merciful" (Luke 6:36). This is a very high ideal.

In the second place the Christian love that fills our hearts prompts us to exercise charity. This charity will reveal itself in all its tenderness and compassion where misery is greatest, as, for instance, during a pestilence, or a famine, or on the battlefield.

Moreover, it is necessary for our own spiritual development that we exercise charity. This is not selfishness, but merely a part of the law of our spiritual existence.

3. Opportunities for Exercising Christian Charity.

There is always abundant opportunity for exercising this virtue. We can do it wherever we come in contact with misery.

[Louis Berkhof]

Novel-Reading

 1. Negative:

Novels do not, as a rule, contain a sound, healthy view of life, a view that corresponds with reality, and as a result raise expectations that are doomed to bitter disappointment.

The reading of novels, like the use of liquor, produces unnatural excitement, after which a reaction follows, resulting in general lassitude. Many a person was thereby brought to the verge of despair.

Novel-reading robs a person of a great deal of time that might be spent to much better advantage. It often makes him unfit for the serious tasks of life.

Many novels foster a spirit that is inimical to Christianity. They are all the more dangerous because they often do this in a very subtle way.
 

2. Affirmative:
We must discriminate between different kinds of novels. Many of them picture life as it really is, others represent it ideally and thereby lead us up to a higher view of life.

The reading of a good novel affords healthy relaxation to the mind. For students it is as refreshing as a bath. Instead of making them unfit for work, it renews their strength.

Many novels give us an insight into the life of past ages that could not be conveyed in any other way. They enable us to realize conditions and customs of the distant past.

In many cases too the religious and moral views of life which they contain are truly uplifting.

[Louis Berkhof]

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The Christian and War

Q: 

Must a Christian Take an Active Part in War When Called Upon? 

 A: 

1. Affirmative: Through the influence of sin war is, under certain circumstances, a necessity. The sword was entrusted to the government and must be wielded by it in defense of justice. War is not always forbidden, but in several instances commanded in the Bible. The Christian is a citizen of the State, enjoying the privileges of citizenship and therefore also obliged to shoulder its duties. When the call to arms comes, he is in duty bound to obey the government. If he did not, he would be a traitor to his country. If a Christian refuses to take part in a war that is waged in the interest of justice, he not only helps the enemies of his country, but, in fact, upholds injustice while he should minister to righteousness. 　 

 2. Negative: The Bible commands love and forbids hatred, and especially murder. Now war is simply wholesale murder, in which Christians are compelled to slay their own brethren. The Church of Jesus Christ is the great agency of God to promote peace on earth. She must reflect in her own life and in all her activities the peace that she enjoys in virtue of the saving work of the Prince of Peace. A Christian is in duty bound to obey the government only as long as its demands do not go contrary to the Word of God. If these do conflict with the clear precepts of the Bible, he must refuse obedience, must obey God rather than man. 

[Louis Berkhof]

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The Work of Missions

 1. Missionary Motives.

The true missionary must first conquer sin in his own life before he can successfully combat it in the lives of others. The missionary motives are naturally derived from the Word of God and from the new life that is born within the hearts of the missionaries, in connection with the condition of those who are the objects of missionary efforts.

In the Word of God, we find the great commission that Christ gave His disciples to preach the Gospel to all nations (Matthew 28:19). The missionary goes out first of all because it is the command of his King.

But the new life of the missionary operates in various ways also as a motive:

(1) The grace that fills his heart is of a communicative character.

(2) The holiness of his new life reacts strongly against sin in the world and naturally seeks to create a holy atmosphere in which it can flourish.

(3) This new life feels that it is responsible also for sin in the lives of others, and therefore impels one to conquer sin in the world of unbelief.

(4) That new life, as it exists in the lives of individuals, is conscious of the fact that it forms but an insignificant part of the body of Christ, and necessarily seeks to complete itself.
 

2. The Great Importance of Missionary Work.

This work is very important, first of all, for Christ, for in it He sees the good pleasure of Jehovah prosper in His hand. It is the ingathering of the fruits of His labors, the increase of His subjects and the completion of His body.

It is very significant too for the Church--it promotes her growth, leads her on to completeness and strengthens her by increasing the number of the soldiers of the cross.

It is of the utmost importance for the nations that are won for Christ. New life is born within them; new light kindled in their hearts. Schools are opened for the education of their children; their moral life is raised to a higher level and their religion is purified.
 

3. The Factors on Which Missionary Victory Depends.

Negatively we can say that spiritual victory does not depend on the sword or on persecution. Neither does it, in the last analysis, depend on any efforts of man, such as great oratory, educational activities or measures of social reform.

Positively it does depend, first of all, on the grace of God, operating in the hearts of the missionaries, of those that support the work of missions and of those that are the objects of missionary efforts. And in the second place on the preaching of the Gospel of Jesus Christ in its purity. Some of the above-named agencies may, of course, aid in the work.

[Louis Berkhof]

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