To Him that Hath - Glenn Conjurske

To Him That Hath

Introduction
It is perhaps universal among the sons of men to desire something more or better than we have. Whatever may be said for such desires in the material or temporal realms, they are certainly perfectly legitimate in the spiritual sphere. It is a sign of lukewarmness to be complacent with such things as we have, and to think we have need of nothing. It is a sign of spiritual life and vigor to desire greater things—a greater sphere, a greater ministry, more or better spiritual fellowship, a more spiritual church, a greater sphere of influence. Now the Bible tells us plainly how to obtain such things. To him that hath, it teaches us, shall more be given. The sure way to obtain more, then, is to have.

What Does “To Have” Mean?
But what can this mean? No doubt the meaning is enigmatic, yet it is plain enough for all that. To have means to be faithful with what we have, and so to have it to good purpose. To have is to have some increase, by the faithful use of that which has been committed to us. In the parables of the pounds and of the talents, this is set forth with the utmost clarity. Every man had something, but every man was not faithful with what he had. Every man did not have it to good purpose. Of the man who hid his talent in the earth, the Scripture says, “Take therefore the talent from him, and give it unto him which hath ten talents. For unto every one that hath shall be given, and he shall have abundance: but from him that hath not shall be taken away even that which he hath.” (Matt. 25:28-29). It is perfectly plain, then, that every man has something. “He that hath” is he that hath it to good purpose. “He that hath not” is he that makes no proper use of what he hath.

The Parable of the Pounds
It is just the same in the parable of the pounds. “And he said unto them that stood by, Take from him the pound, and give it to him that hath ten pounds. (And they said unto him, Lord, he hath ten pounds.) For I say unto you, That unto every one which hath shall be given; and from him that hath not, even that he hath shall be taken away from him.” (Luke 19:24-26). All this is as clear as a sunbeam, and it follows, of course, that the way to obtain more, and to have abundance, is to have what we have to good purpose.

Faithfulness and Advancement
I am perfectly well aware that the proper application of these scriptures is to the salvation of the soul, for the parable of the talents closes with, “And cast ye the unprofitable servant into outer darkness: there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth.” (Matt. 25:30). I am aware also that the more which is given is in the resurrection, and the abundance which is therefore possessed is in the eternal state. Nevertheless, I believe also that God proceeds upon just the same principle in this life. The judgments and rewards of the Almighty are not all reserved for the life to come. Some of them are doled out in the present life, and these doubtless upon the same principles as the rewards which await the life to come.

I hold it as a certain truth, then, that the way to advancement in the present life is faithfulness. The way to obtain more is to have what we have to good purpose.

Restlessness in the Age of Technology
But to increase our stock by faithful dealing is a long and laborious process, such as ill suits the present impatient age. There are many who can never be content to be faithful in the place and with the portion which God has given them. They pine for more. They look at the five talents of their neighbor, and are discontented with the two which God has given them. Instead, therefore, of settling down to make the most of what they have, we see them scouring the country, or the globe, hunting for a better place, and a larger portion. Modern technology has made this easy. The automobile, the airplane, and all the wonders of electronic communications, have made it easy to scour the globe in search of a better place, and there are many in the church who make this their business, instead of making it their business to be faithful with the place and portion which God has given them. They could do something for God where they are, but instead of this they must hunt for a bigger place. If God has given them but little to do, they might be something where they are. What did Moses more than this in his forty years in the back side of the desert? God surely gave him more in due time, but it did not come to him by his restless seeking. What could Joseph do in the prison-house? God surely gave to him a better place in due time, but this did not come to him by his restless seeking. It came to him as the reward of his faithfulness with the little which he had.

The Way of Faith and Patience
Ah! but the way of Moses and the way of Joseph, which is the way of God, takes time. It requires faith also, and patience besides. And what is so far from the present restless age as “faith and patience”?

Mark, this restless seeking for higher things, for a better place, for a more substantial portion—though it all be purely spiritual—is not the work of faith, but precisely of unbelief. We all have something, and it is the way of faith to receive the portion which we have as the allotment of the Lord. This is the obvious fact in both the parable of the talents, and that of the pounds. The Lord determined what every man should receive, and this he did, by the way, according to every man’s several ability, and that ability consists not of skill and capacity only, but of character also. But you think God has mistaken your case, and overlooked your abilities. You are fit for a greater place than he has given you. By all means, then, prove your fitness by making the best of the little which he has given you. If he has given you but a little garden to till, and you think yourself fit to farm a square mile of land, prove your fitness by making your little garden the best in the country. Surely the man that is fit to farm a section can till a tenth of an acre. But instead of this, you neglect your little garden, while you go off to search for a ranch, and probably claim to do this by faith also.

Seeking by Faith, Not Restlessness
We have nothing against seeking higher and better things, so long as we seek them by faith, from the hand of God, and in the way of patient faithfulness in the smaller sphere in which he has placed us. It is not such seeking which I impugn, but that restlessness which seeks a greater place instead of being faithful in the smaller place in which God has placed us. The man whom God has set in the pew wants the pulpit. He scorns to be faithful in the pew. He scorns to knock on doors, or support the man in the pulpit, or bring others to hear him. He must have the pulpit himself, and if he sees no prospect of having it where he is, he will scour the globe in search of one elsewhere. The man who has a small church must have a big one, and instead of making it his business to be faithful in the small church, to make all that he can of the little which God has given him, he scours the country in search of a bigger church.

Unfit for Promotion Through Restlessness
And I have commonly observed that it is usually the least fit who are the most determined for a promotion. The ignorant, the unspiritual, the proud, the contentious, the selfish, the belligerent, the hair-brained, all these are possessed of what has been called the preaching fever. They must have a pulpit, and will go anywhere, and sacrifice the truth besides, to obtain one. I am not speaking theories now, but what I have seen with my eyes.

The Dangers of Restlessness
Thus do pride and unbelief and impatience conspire to keep men from their duty—pride which supposes itself worthy of a better place, or fit for a higher one, coupled with the unbelief which has no confidence that God will give the larger place in his own way and time, and the impatience which is unwilling to wait upon him for it.

But let it be understood, we say nothing of this to encourage lukewarmness, much less compromise. Those to whom God has given but little ought by all means to aspire to more. We say nothing against this. The lack of such aspirations is surely lukewarmness. We frankly doubt that any could aspire more than we do ourselves. But those aspirations ought not to lead us to neglect our duty. They ought to lead us precisely to a long and determined course of faithful plodding in the narrow sphere or the obscure corner in which God has placed us. This much is safe, whatever else our aspirations may lead us to. “Unto every one that hath shall be given,” and to have means neither more nor less than to make the best use of those things which God has committed to us—to increase our little stock by the faithful use of it. And after all, there may be more of lukewarmness in scouring the globe for a bigger farm, than there is in diligently cultivating the little farm which I have.

Faithful Examples of Service
But if I would say nothing to encourage lukewarmness, much less would I encourage compromise. There are some places which ought to be left. It is not faith to remain in an apostate church or a compromised organization, on the plea that this is where God has put me. I do not blame men for leaving worldly and unspiritual churches. But I have observed another thing. The restless seeking for higher things quite often takes the actual form of embracing lower things. Men leave a good place—a spiritual church—because it fails to give them the personal advancement which they seek, though they are sure to profess some other reason. Having left the spiritual church, they seek out a shallow and worldly one, merely because it offers them a larger place than they had where they were. They strain out gnats, and swallow camels. And all this they do under the guise of faithfulness, of zeal, of devotedness, or of some other spiritual virtue. It is nothing of the sort. It is pride and unbelief and impatience.

Conclusion
Let men aspire all they please to higher and better things, and we shall have nothing to say against it. Only let them do this in the way of faithfulness in the smaller sphere which God has committed to them. There is no better way on earth to prove our fitness for a larger sphere, than to be faithful in a smaller one. And there is no surer way to prove our unfitness than by failing to keep the vineyard which God has given us, while we go about to find a better. Such a course proves only our pride and unbelief and impatience. “He that is faithful in that which is least is”—and will be—”faithful also in much.” And so God will reckon when he seeks a man to fill the larger place.

And oh, what a refreshing thing it is to behold faithfulness in a small sphere—to find a man or woman who, instead of whining over their hard lot or their small sphere, instead of blaming everyone who might be responsible for it, will simply take hold with determination and make all that they can of the little which God has given them. I wish to present to my readers a couple of examples of such faithfulness, and of the glorious fruits of it. Both of these are taken from the chapter entitled “Pioneer Women” in J. B. Finley’s excellent Sketches of Western Methodism.

The Power of Faithfulness in Small Things
“When the Rev. Bennet Maxey traveled as a missionary in Georgia, about the close of the Revolutionary war, the following incident occurred, which he related to me with his own lips. It will be recollected that nearly all that country was a wilderness, inhabited by savage Indians. There were but few Methodist societies, and they were widely separated. The missionary, in his long and perilous journeys, could only reach them occasionally, and in doing so would have to encounter almost as much toil and hardship as the emigrant now does in crossing the plains to California. Even then, with all his zeal and perseverance, there were some settlements that could not be reached without a reinforcement of missionary laborers. In one of these settlements, six miles distant from each other, there lived two pious women, who had emigrated to the country from the state of Maryland, where they had been converted and joined the Methodist Church. They felt the loss of the ministrations of the Gospel. No Sabbath brought with it its holy scenes and sanctuary privileges. The time of the people seemed to be occupied, on Sabbaths, in the sports of the chase, or in idle and frivolous amusements. While, however, the neighbors were engaged in the desecration of the holy Sabbath, these two pious women agreed to meet half way between their respective cabins, and hold a prayer and class meeting by themselves. Sabbath after Sabbath these devoted females walked to their appointment in the woods, and there, in the depths of that southern forest, with no eye to see but God, they spoke to one another about their trials, and conflicts, and hopes, and ‘the Lord hearkened and heard, and a book of remembrances was written before him.’ The voice of praise and prayer echoed through the wildwood. They not only prayed for themselves and their neighbors, but they besought the Lord that he would send the Gospel into that wild and destitute region.”

Glenn Conjurske

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