The Pulpit Speaks: February 13, 1960

An article written by my father, the Rev. C. Thomas Paige, as it appeared in the Tri-State Defender on the date shown.

“And he said unto them, ‘I am a Hebrew; and I fear the Lord!'” — Jonah 1:9

The above are the words contained in an answer to a question directed to Jonah by the men on the ship. Many answers could have been given at this point but Jonah was satisfied only to give the one most pertinent to the occasion. These men were in the midst of a great storm. This storm was one unseen before in this section. There must have been a reason for such a storm and these men, in their anxiety, sought to find this answer.

The conditions of the world of these men was very much akin to the conditions of our world. The majority of the people with whom we come in contact today are people being tossed around by the storms of life. While there are many turning here and there in quest of solutions to their many problems, there are many people who are somewhere asleep. These people, in the midst of their troubles, are arousing to see if you might offer some solution to their weary lives.

I wonder if many of us were asked to identify ourselves this day, what would be our answer? Many people I know could and would lay claim to the fact that they are students, homeowners, civic leaders, and the like. As important as these things are, we need people whose knowledge transcends these things. While the storms of life are raging and the very existence of all of us is threatened, we must conclude that we need a greater knowledge than what which is expressed earlier. Whereas the knowledge expressed by many of us results in a certain amount of success, we must have a greater knowledge if we are going to be able to rise up against the many and varied storms that face each of us as time goes on.

Although half asleep, Jonah, when queried about his identity, readily identified himself racially and religiously. Jonah was glad that he was a Hebrew and equally glad that he was in knowledge of God. “I am a Hebrew and fear (or have a knowledge of) God.” What a difference it makes when a man has a knowledge of God. What a difference it would make on the part of each of us if we had a knowledge of God of which we were not ashamed.

Today an anxious world is asking each of us “who are we?” Our identity will be meaningful only to the point that we are in a position to help someone else. The real meaning behind our existence today is wrapped up in the fact that we are doing something tangible for those with whom we come in contact. Whatever our position in life, we should strive to better each life with which we come in contact. Our thinking, our behavior, our utterances, and all that we do and say should speak to the point that we are living for the glorification of God.

Never before in the history of man has the responsibility of the individual been so great. We are at the point in human activity and human endeavor that each of us must stand up for something. The things that make life most meaningful to all of us is wrapped up in the fact that each of us must be in a position to identify ourselves with the best available to each of us. Anything short of this will greatly hamper all efforts to make this world the place for which it was designed.

Above all else that we have to identify ourselves this day must be the fact that we are in a position to identify ourselves with the best of our day and time. This is indicative that we have failed to live up to that which God expects of us.