September 24, 2001
___
___
A HISTORICAL REMINDER
___ The following message written by George W. Truett was published on the front page of the Baptist Standard Christmas Day 1941, less than three weeks after the attack on Pearl Harbor. The Baptist Standard shares it with our readers today as a reminder that God has been our help in ages past and will be our hope for years to come.
___We are ever to remember that all worthy and abiding success in life is to be measured, not by what the world gives us, but by what we give the world. In this comparably fateful house for humanity, everywhere, we must do more than read papers, and listen to radio commentators, who daily remind us of the unspeakable tragedies and sufferings of the whole world. The entire world is now at the crossroads, all its ethical standards are being brazenly challenged, and we are now facing one of the most ominous and momentous crises of all history. But, gravely critical and difficult as is the hour now facing America and all the world, it is not an hour for fear and defeatism and unfaith, but an hour for unwavering faith, and high-souled courage, and noblest behavior. Certainly, an indescribable horror chills our hearts as we think of war--bloody, merciless,inhuman war! But let us remember that there are some things more precious than life. The poet is right:
___ "Though love repine and reason chafe,
___ There comes a voice without reply,
___ 'Tis man's perdition to be safe,
___ When for the truth he ought to die."
___ Patriotism has ever been one of the loftiest passions of the human heart, from the day when the weeping captives sat down by the rivers of Babylon, and vowed to one another that they would never forget Jerusalem. The heart must always be thrilled by the patriotic cry of young Rupert Brooke, of the first World War: "If I should die, think this of me, that there's some corner of a foreign field that is forever England." Vast is the message on the Statue of Ben Hill in Atlanta: "Who saves his country saves all things, and all things saved do bless him. Who lets his country die, lets all things die, dies himself ignobly, and all things dying, curse him." If government of the people, by the people, for the people, is to endure, then the great freedoms--of speech, of press, of religion--must be upheld, whatever the cost!
___ As we fervently sing: "God bless America," let us wisely remember that He is a God of righteousness, and that He has principles by which He governs both nations and individuals, which principles He cannot, and will not compromise. "Righteousness exalteth a nation, but sin is a reproach to any people." The supreme question ever to ask is: "Is it right?" Principles do not change. There are moral principles and eternal values that must never be trifled with. An ancient prophet points the way for us--"To do justly, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with God." Another prophet warns us: "Woe to them that call evil good, and good evil; who put darkness for light, and light for darkness." Wrong cannot be permanently enthroned. The stars in their courses fight against all injustice and cruelty and inhumanity. Victory is ever on the side of righteousness. Writing of the battle of Waterloo, Victor Hugo asks: "Was it possible that Napoleon should have won that battle? We answer, No! Why? Because of Wellington? No! Because of Blucher? No! Because of God!" Let Hugo speak further: "The shadow of a Mighty Hand is cast over Waterloo; it is the day of destiny, and the Force which is above man produced that day. On that day the perspective of the human race was changed, and Waterloo is the hinge of the nineteenth century. The disappearance of the great man was necessary for the advent of a great age, and He to Whom there was no reply, undertook the task!" So was it in 1815. So was it again in 1918. And so shall it be again, please God, in the present ghastly death drama that challenges the world, "For right is right, since God is God, and right the day must win!"
___ In these difficult and desperate days, it surely behooves us all to fix our thoughts on those "unshakeable things that remain," as pointed out in the Bible, and to cleave trustfully and obediently to Him Who is "the same yesterday, today and forever." His purposes are as changeless as His own Being, and His righteous will is bound to prevail. "He shall not fail nor be discouraged till He have set justice in the earth." Let us, therefore, courageously face both the present and the future, with the faith that can go alone in the dark, with the love that suffereth long and is kind, and with the commanding and assuring hope voiced by the poet:
___ "Be Strong!
___ It matters not how deeply intrenched the wrong,
___ How hard the battle goes, the day how long;
___ Faint not--fight on--tomorrow comes the Song!"
___ Faithfully your friend,
GEORGE W. TRUETT
Get printer-friendly version of this story
Send this story to a friend
___
News of religion, faith, missions, Bible study and Christian ministry among Texas Baptist churches, in the BGCT, the Southern Baptist Convention ( SBC ) and around the world.
Contents/ Masthead / Why We're Here / Links / Archive / E-mail us/ SUBSCRIBE!/ Signup for FirstLook
