October 16, 2020

OCTOBER 16 , 2020 Editor | Dr . Shelton Smith Vol . LXXXVI , No . 20

The Soul Winner ’ s Spirit 7

Who Is Right ? 15

One Nation Under God 18

Where Flows the River F . E . MARSH

To Be Like Jesus DR . CLYDE BOX

“ There is a river , the streams whereof shall make glad the city of God , the holy place of the tabernacles of the most High .”— Ps . 46:4 .
Rivers large and rivers small , hundreds of them , are strategically located around the globe . Their waters are a major boon to the lands they serve . It should not surprise us to find that the Lord

“ Eureka ”

DR . SHELTON SMITH
uses the imagery of the rivers to illustration His truth .
Consider now the benefits of “ Where Flows the River ” with these excerpts from F . E . Marsh ( 1858 – 1931 ).
• • •
Rivers often have been great devastators , but they have also been great benefactors . In the land of Israel where a river was such a boon , we are not surprised that it is frequently used to illustrate the beneficent work of the Spirit . Let us briefly ponder a few things rivers are said to do .
1 . Rivers Fructify
“ And he shall be like a tree planted
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“ For even hereunto were ye called : because Christ also suffered for us , leaving us an example , that ye should follow his steps :
“ Who did no sin , neither was guile found in his mouth :
“ Who , when he was reviled , reviled not again ; when he suffered , he threatened not ; but committed himself to him that judgeth righteously .”— I Pet . 2:21 – 23 .
When we were starting our church in DeSoto , Texas , we met one evening to discuss plans we had previously made . Then we had some refreshments and fellowship . It was a great time ; we were excited about the new work about to begin .
Suddenly one of our older ladies

A Call to Prayer for Our Nation ! Sunday , November 1

fainted . We knew she had a bad heart and we were very concerned . I picked her up and carried her to the couch .
Just as I was putting her down , she opened her eyes , looked at me very startled , then said , “ Preacher , I thought you were Jesus ! I thought I had died and was in Heaven and that Jesus had taken me in His arms .”
I didn ’ t think very much about it at first , but on my way home I thought , What a tremendous compliment , to be thought of in the same breath as the Lord Jesus Christ ! But what a solemn responsibility !
It is the responsibility of every Christian to be like Jesus . Paul ’ s greatest desire was “ that I may know him … and the fellowship of his sufferings .”
But wait a minute ! Christ is sinless
and we are sinners saved by the grace of God ; so we cannot be like Him in that .
He is omnipotent , all-powerful , while we are weak in this flesh ; so we cannot be like Him in that .
He is omniscient , all-knowing , and we are without knowledge concerning many things ; so we cannot be like Him in that .
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“ Princes have persecuted me without a cause : but my heart standeth in awe of thy word .
“ I rejoice at thy word , as one that findeth great spoil .
“ I hate and abhor lying : but thy law do I love .
“ Seven times a day do I praise thee because of thy righteous judgments .”— Ps . 119:161 – 164 .
Verse 162 is the text for this message .
“ I rejoice at thy word , as one that findeth great spoil .”
When I read this verse , im - mediately there came to my mind the word eureka .
Eureka is an expression , more Continued on p 10 ▶
As we draw close to our nation ’ s national elections on November 3 , it seems prudent to me for Christians to get on their faces before God in prayer . Specifically , we need to pray for our national leaders and for the process of selecting them .
Leadership is a major factor in everything at all levels of our society . Success or failure is not incidental or accidental . If there is success , someone can always be credited . If there is failure , you can be sure there is a culprit . You cannot expect any organization , including a nation , to rise above its leadership .
We understand that Christians have a God-given commission to preach the Gospel , win souls , plant churches and live holy lives . But let there be no misunderstanding about the responsibility we also have to be good citizens . For us to refuse to use our influence in our own day in the world where we live is to be guilty of spiritual mal -
feasance and moral irresponsibility .
I keep hearing well-meaning but , I believe , very unwise folks say things like , “ It doesn ’ t matter whether or not I vote ”; “ We will get whomever the Lord wants us to have ” and such like .
Dear friends , please hear my plea . In America , we vote for leadership . Votes count ! The guy with the most votes wins !
If you don ’ t think it matters who wins , try telling that to the dear people who live under tyranny in China , Russia and Cuba . Try singing that tune to Christians who live in Iran , Saudi Arabia and Egypt .
We had better wake up before we too are living under the duress of tyranny .
So , please , let ’ s pray fervently during these days coming up to November 3 .
Churches could set aside Sunday ,
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Virologist Who Fled China Says Beijing Is Lying About COVID — and She Has the Evidence to Prove It

A Chinese virologist who escaped to the United States earlier this year claims the coronavirus is manmade — and she says she has the evidence to prove it .
Dr . Li-Meng Yan , who was formerly based in Hong Kong , explained … that she was one of the first Chinese scientists to conduct research on the novel virus . She claimed the Chinese government , which is controlled by the Chinese Communist Party , is lying to the world about the origins of COVID-19 .
… Yan … said the virus actually came from the infamous Wuhan bio lab .
“ It comes from the lab — the lab in Wuhan — and the lab is controlled by China ’ s government ,” Yan said .…
Yan told FOX News earlier this year that she fled to the United States in April because she was silenced by her supervisors at the Hong Kong
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