Signs of the Times

with contributions from Henry Geerlings, James A. Pike, Donald McMillan

Henry Geerlings in an article in the Evening Sentinel Holland, Michigan

The sincere longing for righteousness before God shall be satisfied. This is Jesus' promise .

Happiness is not necessarily pleasantness and agreeableness of circumstances. It is not freedom from the testing and trying experiences of life. It may be the uprising of a great emotion out of a consciousness of a life well spent. It may be the consciousness of a spiritual enrichment and the ability to see things as they are. It may be a contentment that brings a great peace at the end of the day that has been marked with an unselfish service to one's fellows. But if we are going to be happy, we must follow the way of life of the Master.

Rev. James A. Pike in a sermon as reported in the New York Times New York

Emphasizing the necessity for Christians to derive the proper meaning from the passion and death of Christ [Jesus], Dean Pike said:

"Suffering does not mean tragedy. Suffering is tragic when it is without meaning and without fruit. Suffering embitters and hurts the personality when one is the helpless object of hurtful forces and cannot tic his experience to a larger meaning, cannot evoke from it new fulfillment."

It was the "will of evil men" that made the passion of Jesus a conspicuous example of human suffering, Dean Pike asserted.

"The spiritual fruitfulness of such suffering," he said, "has often caused men to attribute the suffering to God. Actually what he should attribute to God is the grace and illumination which turns what for some people would be a source of tragedy and cynicism into an avenue of witness to God and of healing to men."

Commissioner Donald McMillan of the Salvation Army, in The War Cry, Chicago, Illinois

When men give domicile to the Christ of Easter, the scales drop from their blinded eyes and the strident voice of tumult is stilled. ... The tramp of marching soldiers' feet is halted at [Jesus'] gentle but insistent command, "Peace, be still!"... "Did not our heart burn within us?" [Luke 24:32.] The disciples had left Jerusalem with lagging steps and heavy hearts. But they met Jesus in the way and their hearts burned within them. They returned with quickened pace, with uplifted faces and with revived spirits, to publish the glad tidings of the risen Christ.

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March 24, 1956

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