1 Chronicles 9:13

Very able men for the work of the service of the house of God.

Religious ability

We are not called to ecclesiastical statesmanship in this verse; we are called to the kind of work we can do best. There are very able doorkeepers, as well as very able preachers; there are very able administrators, as well as very able expositors: the one cannot do without the other. What we want in the house of God is ability--that is to say, faculty that can utilise all other men, penetrate into the meaning of all passing events, and tell exactly when work is to be done and when it is not to he attempted. Many are willing who are not able; many are able in nine particulars but fail in the tenth. Sometimes a whole number of talents is thrust away, because one talent--the talent of using the others--is wanting. (J. Parker, D. D.)

Obstructive forces

The era to which the statements of the text belong was, like every other era of the militant people of God, one that required men of ability--and it had them. In close connection with these statements, we read of them that they were “men that had understanding of the times, to know what Israel ought to do”; that they “could order the battle array”; that they were mighty men of valour, “whose faces were like the faces of lions, and were as swift as the toes upon the mountains”; and their deeds of personal prowess are stated in detail, showing that they were men of heroic blood and daring and achievement. Brawn and brain and blood stood in good stead in those ages of war and conquest, when the cleavage of swords and the thrust of spears and the might of muscle determined victory. Yet more than even this, does the Cause, in our day, call for. It calls, with profound beseeching, for the faith and the devotion of the majority, nay, of the whole body, of all who love it and love its Lord. After the battle of Solferino, one of the world’s decisive conflicts, when the line of battle extended for fifteen miles, Victor Emanuel concluded his “order of the day” in these words: “Soldiers! in former battles I have often had occasion to mention the names of many among you in the order of the day; this time I put the whole army on the order of the day!” The personal daring and deeds of every man made that battle the most memorable in modern warfare. When our Victor Emanuel can put the whole army in the order of the day the staid and suffering kingdom will come to victory. In our day there are patent obstructive forces to this end.

I. In the first place, we may notice that there is much unconsecrated ability which is due to Christ, but which is withheld from Him. His cause, as we have said, is committed to human instrumentality. He retains His own Divine efficiency in it, but He permits men to advance or to hinder it. Ordinarily, the power of the Church, in a given community, is in the ratio of the human influence and character which are allied to it. If the popular sentiment is decidedly in its favour, if the men and women who are able, intellectually, socially, pecuniarily, are unequivocally and spiritually Christian, the Church is easily progressive and controlling. But if the social leaders are divided in sentiment, and if the two parties are about equal in standing, in intelligence, in business and professional ability and in property, the kingdom is loaded with a serious disadvantage. Men form their opinions under the lead of other men. Social influence is powerful. The young look up to their seniors, to those who have had experience in affairs. The multitude are not independent thinkers and actors. And so, in this state of things, religion contends with odds against it. But human nature is not, of itself, in favour of religion. Human nature is not only unsanctified, but it is depraved. Men run downward naturally. So long as a moiety of those who have influence in the community are arrayed against personal religion, are even not practically and personally in its favour, the drift will be largely away from it. Religion needs the combined influence and example of all worthy people. Those who decline such support oppose an obstructive force to the progress and sway of the kingdom.

II. Not only have we a great amount of this concentrated ability, but that ability which is nominally consecrated to Christ is to a large extent inefficient. If the Church, such as it is in numbers, in ability, in social standing, were a compact, disciplined, working, spiritual force; if they were individually and collectively, able men for the service of the house of God, there would be the certainty of victory. But plainly it is not so. The nominal body of Christ, taken as a whole, cannot be relied on. The battle array shows a long, thin line, and therefore a weak one. We may take any department of our Christian work, and the report will be the same from each and all. Even public worship has scant attendance. If we should take our measure by the systematic endeavour of the Church to evangelise the parish, the showing, in the aggregate, would be no better. Now this inefficiency of great Churches, strong in numbers and character and resources, is an obstructive force to the progress end acceptance of real religion: it has a depressing influence on the Christian body and a repulsive effect on the world. We can readily see how different the popular impression would be were the whole Church engaged, with interest, with devotion, with the fervour of a passion, in its Christian enterprises. We are well aware that there are able and consecrated men and women who are faithful. The hope of the kingdom is in them: but the burdens of the kingdom are well-nigh insupportable by them. They need support; they need to-day the efficient aid of all those who are nominally consecrated to Christ. There is still another obstructive force.

III. We have to contend with misdirected ability. It may be consecrated and efficient, but it is unwisely used. It is of the guerilla order: “Self-constituted, or constituted by the call of a single individual; not according to the general law. It consists in its disconnection with the army; it is irregular as to permanence.” The semi-secular cause which they have espoused is made supreme. For that public worship is abandoned. The holy sacraments are supplanted by it. The devotional services of the Church are obliged to give way before gatherings for it. Devotion to Christ ranks lower than devotion to the cause. Now, what the Church needs for its efficiency, and what the world needs for its salvation, is the right use of all the misdirected ability of the workers. They should be called in from their petty guerilla undertakings to co-operation with the combined and disciplined army. No obstructive force should hinder the great work or postpone its final triumph. The effort that is now wasted is enough to give success to the one cause. The zeal spent in predatory excursions would insure victory to the Lord’s host.

IV. Further, in obstructive force is the influence of inconsistency. The Christian profession is of a strict order. Christian character is definitely marked. Disciples of Christ are separate from sinners. They belong to another kingdom. They should stand in their right and righteousness. They should command the respect and confidence of all other men. They should surround Christ as nobles surround their king. (B. Hart.)