case God used a dream to instruct Abimelech, to show him the wrong he had unconsciously done, and to point out to him his immediate duty. Abimelech was a Philistine, and, so far as we know to the contrary, a heathen. He knew nothing of the fact that Sarah was the one chosen to be the mother of the Jewish race, and the one from whom, according to the flesh, the Messiah was to come. Appearances seemed to show that Jehovah's purpose was in immediate danger of being foiled. But how simply God dealt with the situation! By means of a dream, nothing more, Sarah is delivered, the seeming hindrances to God's purpose is removed, the situation is saved! What we here desire to emphasize is the perfect ease with which God can move men when He pleases. All this modern talk about man's "freedom" and man's going his own way in defiance of God's secret counsels leaves God out entirely. To say that God wants to influence men but that men will not let Him is to reduce the Almighty to a helpless spectator, full of gracious intentions but lacking in power to make them good. But what saith the Scriptures? Hear them: "The king's heart is in the hand of the Lord, as the rivers of water: He turneth it whithersoever He will" (Prov. 21:1). Yes, and so easily can He turn the king's heart, that when He pleases He needs employ nothing more than a "dream"!

"And God said unto him in a dream, Yea, I know that thou didst this in the integrity of thy heart; for I also withheld thee from sinning against Me: therefore suffered I thee not to touch her" (Gen. 20:6). In these words we have (as so often in Scripture) an apparently incidental statement which throws great light upon a difficult problem and which positively refutes the proud reasoning of the philosophic theologians. How often it has been said that in endowing Adam with the power of choice God was unable to prevent his fall. But how untenable are such theorizings in the face of the above passage! If God could "withhold" Abimelech from sinning against Him, then had He pleased He could have done the same with our first parents. Should it be asked why He did not "withhold” Adam from sinning, the answer must be that He permitted sin to enter that opportunity might be given to display His grace.

"Therefore Abimelech rose early in the morning, and called all his servants, and told all these things in their

ears and the men were sore afraid. Then Abimelech called Abraham, and said unto him, What hast thou done unto us? and what have I offended thee, that thou hast brought on me and on my kingdom a great sin? thou hast done deeds unto me that ought not to be done" (Gen. 20:8, 9). It is important to note that Abimelech recognized fornication as a "great sin." Unquestionably the heathen are aware of the criminality of many of the sinful acts which they commit "their conscience also bearing witness, and their thoughts the meanwhile accusing or else excusing one another" (Rom. 2:15).

A brief consideration of one other thought and our space is exhausted. Notice how differently God looked at and spoke of Abraham from Abimelech's words concerning him "Now therefore restore the man his wife; for he is a prophet, and he shall pray for thee and thou shalt live. All that Abimelech saw in our patriarch was a man guilty of barefaced deception. But God looked at Abraham in Christ, and therefore speaks of him as a "prophet" (one who has His mind), and makes Abimelech debtor to his prayers! This is how God ever vindicates His own before the unbelieving. It was a similar case to what He said. through Balaam concerning Israel at a later date "He hath not beheld iniquity in Jacob, neither hath He seen perverseness in Israel" (Num. 23:21). In some such way as this is now being answered on high the charges of the enemy who accuses the brethren before God day and night. Oh! blessed fact, "There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus." Will this encourage careless living? God forbid, "For sin shall not have dominion over you: for ye are not under the law, but under grace."

24. ABRAHAM "THE FATHER OF US ALL"

It is to be feared that many who read the Old Testament, particularly its earlier books, look upon these Scriptures as little more than historical narratives, as simply containing a description of certain events that happened in the far distant past, and that when they come to the record of the lives of the patriarchs they discover nothing beyond a piece of ancient biography. But surely this is very dishonoring to God. Is it not obvious that when we relegate to a remote date in the past what we are told about Abraham, Isaac, Joseph, etc., and see in the inspired record little or nothing applicable to ourselves today, that we virtually and practically reduce Genesis to a dead book? Suppose we express this in another way: If Genesis is a part of "The Word of Life" (Phil. 2:16), then it is a living book, charged with vitality; a book which must have about it a freshness which no other book, outside of the Sacred Canon, possesses; a book which speaks to our day, which is pertinent and applicable to our own times.

Let us now follow out another line of thought which will lead us to the same point at which we arrived at the close of the preceding paragraph. One truth which Scripture reveals about God is, that He changes not, for He is "the same yesterday, and today, and forever." Therefore, it follows that, fundamentally, His ways are ever the same; that is to say, He deals through all time with men, especially His own people, upon the same principles. It is this which explains the well-known fact that so often history repeats itself. Having stated the broad principle, let us now apply it. If what we have just said is correct, should we not expect to find that God's dealings with Abraham forecast and foreshadow His dealings with us? That, stripped of their incidental details, the experiences of Abraham illustrate our experiences? Grant this, and we reach a similar conclusion (as we anticipated) to the one expressed at the close of the preceding paragraph. Let us now combine the two conceptions.

Because the Bible is a living book no portion of it is obsolete, and though much that is recorded in it is ancient,

yet none of it is antiquated. Because the Bible is a living book, every portion of it has some message which is applicable and appropriate to our own times. Because God changes not, His ways of old are, fundamentally, His ways today. Hence, God's dealings with Abraham, in the general, foreshadow His dealings with us. Therefore, to read most profitably the record of Abraham's life, we must see in it a portrayal of our own spiritual history. Before we attempt to particularize, let us take one other starting point and lead up to the place where we here leave off.

"Therefore it is of faith, that it might be by grace; to the end the promise might be sure to all the seed; not to that only which is of the law, but to that also which is of the faith of Abraham; who is the father of us all" (Rom. 4:16). How is Abraham the "father" of us all? In what sense is he such? Not, of course, literally, by procreation, but figuratively, by typification. Just as naturally the son inherits certain traits from his father, just as there is a resemblance between them, just as Adam "begat a son in his own likeness, after his image" (Gen. 5: 3), so there is a resemblance and likeness between Abraham and those who are "Abraham's seed and heirs according to the promise" (Gal. 3:29). In a word, Abraham is to be regarded as a sample believer. Thus there will be a close correspondence, in the broad outline, between Abraham's history and ours. And here, once more, we reach the same point as at the close of each of the above paragraphs. We are now prepared to test the accuracy of these conclusions and follow them out in some detail.

I read, then, the life of Abraham as recorded in Genesis, not merely as a piece of inspired history (though truly it is such), not as an obsolete narrative of something which happened in the far distant past, but also, and specially, as a portrayal of the experiences of Abraham's children in all ages, and as a description of God's dealings with His own in all time. To particularize: What was Abraham at the beginning? A lost sinner; one who knew not God; an idolator. So were we: "Wherefore remember, that ye being in time past Gentiles....that at that time ye were without Christ, being aliens from the commonwealth of Israel, and strangers from the covenants of promise, having no hope, and without God in the world" (Eph. 2:11, 12). What happened? The God of glory appeared unto

him (Acts 7:2). So it was with us. He revealed Himself What was the next thing? God's call to Abraham to separate himself from everything which pertained to his old life. Such is God's call to us-to separate ourselves from the world and everything of it. Did Abraham obey? At first only imperfectly. Instead of leaving his kindred as commanded, Terah his father and Lot his nephew accompanied him as he left Chaldea. Has this no voice for us? Does it not solemnly condemn Abraham's "children"? Has not our response to God's call of separation been tardy and partial? To proceed: Soon after Abraham arrived in Canaan painful circumstances try his faith-a "famine" arose. How did this affect him? Did he make known his need to God and look to Him to meet it? Ah, can we not supply the answer from our own sad experience? Have we not turned to the world for help and deliverance in the hour of emergency, as Abraham turned to Egypt? See Abraham again in Genesis 16. He is childless. God has promised that his seed should inherit the land. But years have passed and Sarah is still barren. What does Abraham do? Does he patiently wait upon God and go on waiting? Suppose the Bible had not told us, could not our own experience supply the answer once more? Abraham has recourse to fleshly means, and drags in Hagar to assist God (?) in the furtherance of His purpose. And what was the outcome? Did God lose patience? Well He might. But did He cast off His erring child? Has He dealt thus with us? No, indeed, "If we believe not, yet He abideth faithful" (2 Tim. 2:13). We need not review Abraham's life any further. Do you not see now, dear reader, why Abraham is termed the "father of us all"? Is not the saying of the world-"Like father, like son"-true here? But let us look at one other line in the picture ere we leave it. Look at Abraham in Genesis 22, offering up Isaac. Does this apply to us? Is there anything in the experiences of Christians today which corresponds with the scene enacted on Mount Moriah? Surely, but note when this occurrednot at the beginning, but near the close of Abraham's pilgrimage. Ah! life's discipline had not been in vain: the fire had done its work, the gold had been refined. At the last Abraham had reached the place where he is not only willing to give up Terah and Lot at the call of God, but where he is ready to lay his Isaac upon the altar! In other