Rev. John B. Nettleship, B.A., B.D. in The Expository Times Edinburgh, Scotland

When a man presumes to talk about religion, whether publicly or privately, we have every right to demand his credentials, to know his authority. I do not mean that he must be a trained theologian, or be well versed in Greek and Hebrew. What I do mean is that the only man who has a right to be heard when he passes opinions about God is the man who has had an experience of God.

Therein lies, surely, part at any rate of the authority of the Bible. Its writers are men with a firsthand experience of God. They would say in the words of Jesus himself: "We speak that we do know, and testify that we have seen."

There are no joys to be compared with the joys of the man or woman who is seeking to do the will of God—the joy of conscious growth, the joy of sharing in the purposes of God, of seeing His plans unfolding, the joys of giving and serving.

Stephen J. England in an article in Front Rank, St. Louis, Missouri

Most Christians are in little danger of yielding to the [greater] lusts of the flesh.... But they may seek so diligently for what is relatively good that they lose what is best.

Jesus pointed out what is one of the most common and most dangerous ways in which men miss the best (Matt. 6:25-33)....Food is necessary and good; so is clothing. But since a man cannot live without bread, it is easy to suppose that if he has bread in abundance he has the abundant life. To devote all energies to providing food and clothing, or the money that will buy them, may lose us the life we suppose we are preserving.

Paul had the same thing in mind when he prayed for his friends (Phil. 1:9—11). Desiring them to grow, he based all on love—the love to God... and the love for others that is the only real evidence that we love God.... One who sincerely loves God will embrace what God loves. One who regards others as brothers will unfailingly choose what is right in relation to others. This love abounds in knowledge and discernment. It does not always operate by set rule, but it knows what is right. It is like what we call "taste" in music, art, or dress. One may not be able to tell why he knows a picture or a musical compositon is good, but if his taste is trained he will choose the best without mistake. Paul wanted Christians to develop spiritual "taste," so as to "approve things that are excellent."

Paul goes on (Phil. 4:8) to say that there is a way of life that is excellent and that way deserves and receives praise from all. A man's spiritual "taste" will be reflected in the movies he sees, the books he reads, the friendships he makes, and all that he enjoys in life. If a thing is true, honorable, just, pure, lovely, and gracious, it is worthy of a Christian's choice. "Think on these things," said Paul. Thoughts make men, and they become honorable, lovely, and gracious as their minds dwell on such things. The Christian life makes ample room for the best books, including the Bible; the best art, including Christian art; the best music, including the noble oratorios of Handel and Bach; and the best in friendships, including association with the sharpest minds. By choosing what is best, a man will not lose his life to what is merely good.

From Joliet Universalist Illinois

Right motives are the fundamental success in everything that we do. In all that we do or plan to do, the motivation for action is most important of all. Wrong motivations can spoil our every endeavor. It is true of our religious lives, too. If we approach our religious endeavors in a right spirit, much will be gained from them; if we approach in a wrong spirit, little or nothing can be expected. It is a good habit to check our religious motivations frequently.

From an editorial in The United Church Observer Toronto, Ontario, Canada

A great spate of religious books has come off the press in recent years.... Interestingly enough, [many of these] so-called popular religious books are on one theme—peace of mind.

It is a question whether the books which ring the changes on this theme are really serving well their day and generation. There is the danger that instead of being fired with new zeal, the readers will be lulled into a religious slumber from which they will be awakened with difficulty, if at all.

Albert N. Williams of Denver University spoke wisely in a recent article in Saturday Review, when he said: "The powder of prettiness and pettiness that has sifted down on the shoulders of our Old Testament prophets and New Testament fathers has served altogether to smother them as human beings and to take them, heels dragging in their own greatness, out of the arena of history."

The church and religious writers need to restore the prophets, both old and new, to their pristine ruggedness and, instead of soporifics, serve our generation with a bit of religious dynamite. The last thing most of us require is peace of mind. We need to be disturbed with a sense of urgency and personal enlistment in the good fight.