heart’s abundance his mouth speaks.” It is commanded that the Christian publicly declare this good news, telling it to others; thus this is necessary for your own salvation as well as for the salvation of those who listen to you. “For if you publicly declare that ‘word in your mouth’, that Jesus is Lord, and exercise faith in your heart that God raised him up from the dead, you will be saved.”—Luke 6:45; Rom. 10:9, NW.

You learn, too, that this activity is not just a hobby, diversion or casual pastime, but that it is of vital importance and is a permanent way of life. It is in fulfillment of such a vital mission that, world-wide, Jehovah’s witnesses go from house to house with the message of God’s kingdom, visiting the people in their homes with the good news of his Word. Like the psalmist, they say: “I will sing unto Jehovah as long as I live: I will sing praise to my God while I have any being.” Can one honestly claim to be a Christian while offering God less than that? How much of your effort is thus being spent in helping others to learn of God’s way?—Ps. 104:33, AS.

THE VALUE OF THIS SERVICE

Why is this course of such great value? First, it brings happiness and contentment now. Second, and far more important, it provides Jehovah’s protection through the impending time of trouble. The Bible’s prophecies refer to our day. They warn that ours is earth’s most crucial period when the “accomplished end” of Satan’s wicked rule is at hand. (Matt. 24:14, NW) The graft, violence, insecurity and worry that are so evident today are soon to be abolished. They will cease and righteous conditions will replace them. God has promised: “I create new heavens and a new earth; and the former things shall not be remembered, nor come into mind.” Would you like to live under those conditions? Then follow the instructions of God’s Word and receive his favor, because “God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble. Therefore will we not fear, though the earth do change, and though the mountains be shaken into the heart of the seas.”—Isa. 65:17; Ps. 46:1, 2, AS.

Thus, following the Bible’s principles will improve your family life, will help you to raise better children and to have a more peaceful, contented mind. Further, you will see that Christ’s ransom makes it possible for you to benefit from God’s provisions, but that to accept that ransom you must take a positive course of action, must assemble with other Christians and participate with them in God’s service. So, study God’s Word, learn how it will benefit you and what is expected of you. Then follow its sound principles and obey its righteous instructions. Doing so is of vital importance, because it means your very life!

Training to Be a Clergyman

At Pasadena, California, 22-year-old Bernard York, a theological student at Pasadena Nazarene College, pleaded guilty in municipal court to a charge of cat-torturing. The youth admitted that he doused a cat with alcohol and then set the cat ablaze, watching the flames and hearing the shrieks. The judge, who placed the boy on a year’s probation with no jail term, commented that the youth is a “normal, intelligent and industrious student with a background of Christian training and anxious to become a minister.” (Los Angeles Examiner, April 16, 1955) One cannot help but wonder if the boy is training to become a teacher of the sizzling flames and shrieks that make up the fictitious clergy-inspired hell of eternal torment.