A Voice From The Past Speaks To The Present

I would like to share with you

 an excerpt from a memorable sermon

 by the Reverend Peter Marshall Sr.,
 who was twice elected

 Chaplain of the United States Senate.

  This was preached in Washington DC

 during the second world war,

 however, it sounds like he

 could be addressing the 

 current world situation of today!

Reverend Peter Marshall Sr.

May 27, 1902 – January 26, 1949

"God Still Reigns"

"There is no use trying to evade the issue.

There are times when God does not intervene-

The fact that He does nothing is one of the most

baffling mysteries in the Christian life.

It was H.G. Wells who voiced the dilemma

that many troubled hearts have faced in war-time:

"Either God has the power to stop all this

carnage and killing and He doesn't care,

or else He does care, and He doesn't have

the power to stop it."

But that is not the answer...

As long as there is sin in the world,

As long as there is greed, selfishness,

hate in the hearts of men

there will be war...

It is only because God is God
 that He is reckless enough

to allow human beings 
such free will as has led the world

into this present catastrophe.

God could have prevented the war!

Do you doubt for a moment
 that God has not the power?

But suppose He had used it?

Men would then have
 lost their free agency...

They would no longer be
 souls endowed with

the ability to choose...

They would become puppets,
 robots,machines, 
toy soldiers instead.

No, God is playing
 a much bigger game.

He is still awaiting 
an awakened sense of

the responsibility of brotherhood
 in the hearts of

men and women everywhere.

He will not do for us

 the things
 we can do for ourselves..."

"Salvation Is Not For Sale"

A clip from the movie,

"A Man Called Peter"

(1955)

“God will not permit

 any troubles to come upon us,

 unless He has a specific plan

 by which a great blessing

 can come out of the difficulty.”
– Peter Marshall