An article written by my father, the Rev. C. Thomas Paige, as it appeared in the Tri-State Defender on the date shown.
Ye seek Jesus … He is not here! — Matthew 28:5-6
Today our minds automatically turn to the Easter season. No one thinks of this season without thinking of Jesus coming forth from the grave. How disappointed these people must have been to learn that Jesus, who, only a few days before had been buried, was gone. They had gone to the grave expecting to find Jesus still there. They had gone there expecting to find Jesus only to be disappointed.
Today is no exception. Men are running here and yonder expecting to find Jesus only to learn that He is not there. We live in a day when people are seeking Jesus everywhere. Unfortunately, in their quest for Jesus, many are disappointed. People are turning to homes, to schools, to churches, and many other institutions looking for Him. In each of these institutions, in far too many instances, there is no Jesus.
World conditions today tell us that, in many aspects, Jesus is not here. Things are going on to tell us that Jesus is not here. Increasing evidence of family breakdowns, church splitting, crime of all descriptions, and countless other anti-social things going on force us to know that Jesus is not here.
MEN ON THE BRINK
The things for which Jesus stood are no longer with us. The brotherhood for which Jesus stood has been exchanged for prejudice. The love for which Jesus stood has been traded for hatred. The doctrine of the “second mile,” the “other cheek,” or many other things which Jesus stood for are being displaced. Man stands today on the very brink of disaster. Man stands today on the very brink of failure. Because Jesus is not here.
Many people have tried in vain to substitute intellectuality and materialism to gain those things for which Jesus died. They have been disappointed because they are not finding in intellectuality and materialism the answers for which they are looking. As much as men has been able to gain through increased intellectualism and materialism, they wake up one day to learn that what they have sought in these things has only brought temporary happiness. Day by day, I see men making sacrifices to gain a lasting happiness only to learn that the avenues down which they are going bring them only a fleeting happiness.
The lasting happiness which many of us are seeking will never be realized through great homes, big bank accounts or college degrees. Some of the most unhappy people I know are those wrapped up in good homes, big bank accounts, social prestige and college degrees. They thought they had the answers. Nothing is more heart-rending than to find out one day that what you are doing is the wrong thing.
MANY ARE FRUSTRATED
There are countless people today who are frustrated and disappointed because the lives they have chosen to live have been the lives that brought them the least.
A few days ago, I heard Prof. Campbell of Hamilton High School say, “Service is the rent we pay for living here.” What a great thing it would be if all of could come to know this!
The whole life of Jesus was a life of service. His sole mission for coming was to let men know of the abundant life. What a great thing it would be this morning if each of us would realize that our reason for being is to render a service to our fellow man. Only in proportion to which we catch the spirit of Jesus, to the extent that we’re here on business for the King, will our lives be worthwhile. Jesus is here today only to the extent that His spirit is in each of us. When we as individuals allow His spirit to be our spirit, we will be justified in living here.
When each of us lets the spirit of Jesus be our spirit, this world will be a better place in which to live. Our hearts must be changed, our will must be changed, our goals must be changed, our whole outlook must be changed – to the point that the spirit of Jesus will be foremost in us.
VIVIAN J. PAIGE | All Politics is Local 