The young people, youth, and children in the ranks of Seventh-day Adventists constitute a large and exceedingly important factor.
Our church-membership is reported to be seventy-five thousand. But this does not include all who are directly represented in our denomination. It is estimated that there are twenty-five thousand children and youth in our ranks who are not church-members. This makes one hundred thousand persons who are intimately associated together in this cause, and it is safe to say that one half of these are young people, youth, and children.
An army of this size and character certainly constitutes a great factor. It is one that should receive more attention and better service from the older members than it has heretofore.
The salvation, the education, and the personal service of this splendid young company call for the very best help that can be rendered by ministers, teachers, church officers, and parents.
The first and most important consideration is their salvation. What is the spiritual condition of the fifty thousand children, youth, and young people in our ranks? How many of them have been converted? How many who have been born from above are holding on and growing in grace? How many are receiving a Christian education? How many are planning definitely and intelligently to devote their lives to God for the proclamation of the advent message to all the world in this generation?
These are questions of great meaning to the souls of those of whom they are asked. Surely every parent, teacher, church elder, and minister in our ranks should give them the most serious and consistent consideration. Let us think soberly, and count up the number of youth who are under our care, instruction, or influence. Where do they stand? How many are unsaved? How many are drifting? How many are losing hope? Dear friends, how are you reckoning with these matters? Are you troubled? Are you wrestling with God for the lost? Are you striving to live a beautiful, godly life before them, that they may be won to Christ? Are you patient with them in their weaknesses? Do you try to help them to overcome their faults? Do you give them unmistakable evidence every day that you love them, and want them to be Christians?
Parents, teachers, church elders, and ministers hold the key to this situation. Their influence for good or for evil over the young is almost unlimited. O brethren, shall we not weigh and measure with new care and interest the vast and sacred responsibilities we have assumed? Let us realize how much of the right or the wrong that marks one's after-life is the outgrowth of the living experience of childhood and youth.
Education
What is the education the fifty thousand young people in this denomination are receiving? I do not refer alone to the technical instruction given in school. What are the ideas, impressions, and lessons they are receiving in their homes, in the churches, and in the schools? Are they being taught the truth of the7gospel as it is revealed in the third angel's message?
The ideas and impressions made on the minds of the young regarding the time in which we live, and the work God has raised us up to perform, do not come alone from the Sabbath-school, nor the day-school. It is exceedingly questionable whether the strongest impressions are made in these schools. As we reflect upon childhood experiences, many of us can bear witness that our deepest and most lasting ideas of our time, our message, and our work came from the earnest sermons of our devoted preachers, the conversations of God-fearing brethren and sisters, and the well-defined plans of parents and believers generally to make everything contribute to the advancement of this cause.
We well remember how careful all the church-members were to take the REVIEW, Instructor, and Signs, and how eagerly they read them each week. We remember, too, how promptly they sent for the latest book, pamphlet, or tract announced in our papers. And how clearly we remember the plans laid each fall for earnest missionary work through the winter. The latest tracts were ordered in large quantities, and were carried to the neighbors for miles around the churches. We can remember how conscientiously our parents reckoned up their possessions that they might pay what was called the systematic benevolence. Later, when the tithing system was brought to light, it was universally adopted.
These and many other details of Christian life were worked into the warp and woof of our being. And this was not done so much by formal teaching as by the daily deeds of the believers. Our Sabbath-schools were simple compared with those we have now. We had no church-schools, and only one or two colleges. Most of us were exposed to the evils of the worldly schools. But the power of the home and church influences that were constantly exerted upon us fortified us against influences of the world.
We would not undervalue the aids brought into the Sabbath-school, nor the advantages of church, intermediate, and training-schools; but we would emphasize the value of right home and church influences. The third angel's message must be clearly understood, fully received, and conscientiously lived by parents and church-members if we would have the fifty thousand children, youth, and young people in our ranks receive the education that will hold them in this cause, and lead them to devote their lives to the finishing of this work. They must be made to feel that the preachers are deeply in earnest. They must be made thoroughly conscious that the church believes that Christ is coming in this generation. And they must see in every plan of father and mother that they are counting on the closing of human history in their day. These influences must be so strong and all-pervading in the church and in the home that they will breathe them into their spiritual being as they breathe the air into their physical frames. This vitalizing breath will give them a sturdy Christian experience that will not only hold them in the truth, but prepare them for valiant service. A. G. DANIELLS.
Modern Methods of Church Fundraising
The antichristian influence of some modern methods of raising church funds which have become popular to-day in many churches, is well described in the following words by the Rev. Gerald S. Lee, in an article contributed to The Outlook:—
The average man of the world can not help judging a God by the worship of his followers and by the conduct of his church, and when he is so hard pressed in his capacity as a God that he indulges in the face of a whole community in the most palpable tricks for getting money, he judges accordingly. It does not interest him to go to a church whose God is so hard put to it that he conducts his business affairs in such a way that the most average business man in the street can look down on him. Who cares to accept an invitation to come and pray to a God who has just worked out the last week some new way of picking one’s pocket or of cornering people in giving?
Such ways of raising money are the methods of those who have a form of godliness, but deny the power thereof, and have no warrant in the Word of God. “The earth is the Lord’s, and the fulness thereof,” “the silver and the gold,” and “the cattle upon a thousand hills.” God’s method of raising money for his cause is by the willing gifts of those on the earth who acknowledge his sovereignty, and who, in making an offering to him, say with David, “All things come of thee, and of thine own have we given thee.”
Note and Comment
AN effort is being made in the Pennsylvania Legislature to secure a modification of the rigorous Sunday law which has so long been in force in that State. A bill to this end was introduced recently by Senator McNichols, and a hearing on the bill was announced for February 14. We can not state whether the hearing was held or not, or what the prospects of the measure are at this date.
The Philippine Imperialist Mistake
THE Washington Post says: “Undoubtedly Congress shares the almost unanimous conviction that our rush into the Orient as a colonizing power was a deplorable mistake.” This is part of a comment by the Post on a quotation from a Boston Republican paper, which says that “deep in their hearts the members of Congress are to-day sick of the Philippine experiment. . . . Like a child with a new toy, Congress took the Philippines all a-tremble with eager interest, but now that it has taken the toy apart and seen the works, it is wholly ready to discard it.” But it is now too late to discard the “toy;” it is too late to turn back from the imperialistic pathway. A fearful price in blood and treasure, closer relations with Rome, the turning down of the Constitution, and an unlimited prospect of future trouble when Japan or some other formidable power shall turn covetous eyes on the islands, are the fruits of this “deplorable mistake.” Just government is now held to require only the consent of “some” of the governed. The nation is fast preparing to act the part assigned it in the prophecy of Revelation 13.
The Constitution and Arbitration Treaties
RECENTLY the United States Senate manifested great concern for the preservation of the integrity of the United States Constitution, which of late years has not received high honor at the hands of many statesmen and newspaper editors of note in this country. The occasion arose from the consideration of arbitration treaties between the United States and a number of foreign powers, which were taken up by the Senate in executive session on February 10. The Senate Committee on Foreign Relations insisted on amending these treaties by substituting in them the word “treaty” for the word “agreement,” thus requiring that each separate case selected for arbitration shall be submitted to the Senate for approval, as a separate treaty, instead of being considered and provided for by the President and his advisers alone, as would have been impliedly permissible if the word “agreement” had been retained. The Senate felt that there was danger of an assumption of power by the chief executive which would be in violation of that provision of the Constitution which states that the President shall conclude treaties with foreign powers “by and with the advice and consent of the Senate.” Where a seeming violation of the Constitution touches only a foreign race across the sea, it is not regarded by the government as a matter of great concern, and the Constitution can even be treated as an outgrown document not suited to present-day requirements of the nation; but it is a very different matter when it is a branch of Congress that is to feel the effect of a seeming unconstitutional exercise of governmental power. It would be well if the provisions of the Constitution were always as jealously guarded by the national legislature.
His Lamps
His lamps are we,
To shine where he shall say.
And lamps are not for sunny rooms,
Nor for the light of day;
But for dark places of the earth,
Where shame, and wrong, and crime
have birth;
Or for the musky twilight gray,
Where wandering sheep have gone
astray;
Or where the light of faith grows dim,
And souls are groping after him.
And as sometimes a flame we find,
Clear shining through the night
So bright we do not see the lamp,
But only see the light,
So may we shine — his light the flame —
That men may glorify his name!
— Missionary Tidings.
Labors in Central California
By Ellen G. White
Notes of Travel—No. 4
Labors in Central California
MRS. E. G. WHITE
FRIDAY morning, October 28, we left St. Helena for southern California. We had been at home less than three weeks, and the need of completing unfinished books was urgent. But there were two new sanitariums in southern California in which I was deeply interested, and I hoped to be able to help our brethren who had the burden of the work in arranging for the opening and successful operation of these two sanitariums.
We spent the Sabbath in Fresno. I spoke to the church there on Sabbath afternoon. The large meeting-house was well filled, and the Lord helped me to bear my testimony. Here we met Dr. G. A. Hare, from Washington, who had been called back to his old home by the sickness of his mother. He told us of the advancement of the work at Takoma Park, and of the excellent place secured for treatment rooms in the city of Washington.
We intended to go on to Los Angeles Saturday night, but we were unable to secure accommodations on the train, so we stayed over, and on Sunday went to the Hanford-Lamore district, intending to spend the day visiting old friends. On our arrival there, we found a missionary convention in progress, and the brethren asked us to stay with them for a few days. This we consented to do, and I spoke each afternoon while I was there, twice in Hanford, once in Lamore, and once in Armona.
On Sunday afternoon, when I spoke at Hanford, the Lord gave me much liberty, and I think that a good impression was made. I dwelt especially on the words, “Let not your hearts be troubled: ye believe in God, believe also in me. In my Father's house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also.”
I sought earnestly to carry the minds of those present from the things of this world to the things of eternity. I sought to impress them with the thought that those who are saved must now prepare for the heavenly mansions by washing their robes, and making them white in the blood of the Lamb. I urged the fathers present to realize the duty resting upon them to train their children for God. I told them that this work is of infinitely more importance than all the advantages that they gain by undue devotion to the things of this world. “Those parents who set their affections on the things of earth rob themselves and their children of a place in the mansions that Christ has gone to prepare for those who love him.”
It was at an infinite sacrifice that Christ redeemed the human race. But in his parting conversation with his disciples, he made no reference to the suffering that he had endured and must still endure. He did not speak of the humiliation that was before him, but sought to bring to their minds that which would strengthen their faith, leading them to look forward to the joys that await the overcomer.
Adam sinned, and his posterity became sinners. Christ came to this world, and died on the cross of Calvary, that human beings might not “perish, but have everlasting life.” O how diligent and faithful we should be, in view of the great sacrifice that has been made for us! How earnestly we should strive to separate from all sin, and through Christ become partakers of the divine nature.
On Tuesday afternoon I spoke at Lamore. I spoke of the great opportunities offered God's people to present the truth for this time to those who know it not. This truth must be proclaimed throughout the world. It is positively necessary that we become more deeply interested in the work that must be done to prepare the way for the coming of the Lord.
“How beautiful are the feet of them that preach the gospel of peace, and bring glad tidings of good things!” “For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved. How then shall they call on him in whom they have not believed? and how shall they believe in him of whom they have not heard? and how shall they hear without a preacher? and how shall they preach, except they be sent?” Those who know the truth must give of their means to send it to those who know it not. They must not be so engrossed in worldly business that they have little time to keep their souls refreshed and strengthened with the bread of heaven, of which they must eat daily if they would prepare for the future immortal life.
I endeavored to set before those present the necessity for strict economy in the outlay of means, that they may have something to bring to the Lord, saying, “Of thine own we freely give thee.” Thus they are to offer God thanksgiving for the blessings received from him. Thus, too, they are to lay up for themselves treasure beside the throne of God. Hear the words of the Great Teacher: “Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth, where moth and rust doth corrupt, and where thieves break through and steal: but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt, and where thieves do not break through and steal: for where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.”
“The light of the body is the eye: if therefore thine eye be single, thy whole body shall be full of light. But if thine eye be evil, thy whole body shall be full of darkness. If therefore the light that is in thee be darkness, how great is that darkness!”
“No man can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. Ye can not serve God and Mammon.”
“Therefore I say unto you, Take no thought”—no anxious, troubled, complaining thought—“for your life, what ye shall eat, or what ye shall drink; nor yet for your body, what ye shall put on. Is not the life more than meat, and the body than raiment?”
“Behold the fowls of the air: for they sow not, neither do they reap, nor gather into barns; yet your Heavenly Father feedeth them. Are ye not much better than they? And which of you by taking thought can add one cubit unto his stature? And why take ye thought for raiment? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow; they toil not, neither do they spin: and yet I say unto you, That even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these.”
In these words the great Master speaks to every one. There are many who spend upon dress large sums of money,—money that ought to be used in feeding and clothing those who are suffering from hunger and cold. Many of those for whom Christ died have but little even of the cheapest, most common clothing, while others are spending thousands of dollars in the effort to satisfy the never-ending demands of fashion.
Even among those who profess to be children of God there are those who spend more than is necessary upon dress. God's children should be neatly and tastefully clothed, but they should leave off all unnecessary trimmings, and lay aside the means thus saved for the advancement of the cause of God.
Parents, learn the lesson of self-denial, and teach this lesson to your children. Every dime that you can spare is needed now in the work that must be done. The necessities of the suffering must be relieved; the naked must be clothed, and the hungry fed. The truth for this time must be proclaimed to those who know it not. By denying ourselves9of that which is not necessary, we may all have a part in this great work.
We are Christ's witnesses, and we are not to allow worldly interests and plans to absorb our time and attention. There are higher interests at stake. “Seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.”
Christ gave himself willingly and cheerfully to the carrying out of the will of God. He became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross. In view of all that he has done, should we feel it a hardship to deny self? Shall we draw back from being partakers of Christ's sufferings? His death ought to stir every fiber of our being, making us willing to consecrate to his work all that we have and are. As we think of what he has done for us, our hearts should be filled with gratitude and love, and we should renounce all selfishness. What duty could the heart refuse to perform, under the constraining influence of the love of God and Christ? “I am crucified with Christ,” the apostle declares; “nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me.”
Let us relate ourselves to God in self-denying, self-sacrificing obedience. Faith in Christ always leads to this. The Saviour died to redeem us from all iniquity, and to purify unto himself a peculiar people, zealous of good works. There is to be perfect conformity, in thought, word, and deed, to the will of God. Heaven is for those only who have purified their souls through obedience to the truth. It is a place where unsullied purity alone can dwell. “Every man that hath this hope in him”—the hope of seeing Christ—“purifieth himself, even as he is pure.”
In perfect obedience there is perfect happiness. “These things have I spoken unto you,” Christ said, “that my joy might remain in you, and that your joy might be full.” May the Lord bless his people, and strengthen their faith, and lead them onward to the heights to which they have not yet attained. He gave Christ to die for us, that we might be purified from all iniquity. He has promised to pour out his Spirit upon us, that we may be sanctified through the truth. He has given us his Word, that through obedience to its teachings we may be made holy. This is the will of God, even our sanctification.
Praying for the Sick
By Stephen N. Haskell
S. N. HASKELL
“Is any sick among you? let him call for the elders of the church; and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord: and the prayer of faith shall save the sick, and the Lord shall raise him up; and if he have committed sins, they shall be forgiven him,” James 5:14, 15. This is one of the many encouraging promises that are left on record for the people of God.
The position has been taken by some that the instruction regarding the anointing of the sick is simply to teach that means should be used for their recovery, and that faith in those means is all that is intended. Such a position introduces a principle that will undermine every direct promise in the Bible. We should use every lawful means to preserve our health; and when our health is broken, it is right to use rational remedies for our recovery. But here is a special promise based upon a particular condition. If there be “any sick among you, let him call for the elders of the church.” This is the first step. Second, “Let them pray.” Third, “anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord.” Fourth, confession of sin; for this should not be entered upon in a thoughtless manner. There should be an examination of the heart. Fifth, when these conditions are complied with, the prayer of faith saves the sick, and the Lord will raise him up. In these things we co-operate with the Lord.
To the man with a withered hand, Jesus said, “Stretch forth thine hand.” He did so, and it was made whole. Christ anointed the blind man’s eyes with clay, and told him to go and wash, and he went and washed, and came seeing. The man might have said, It does not make any difference whether I wash, or simply wipe off the clay. But would that have healed him? Was it necessary to do as the Saviour said? We might as well substitute Sunday for the Sabbath as to sit in judgment on the Saviour’s words.
It is a promise given so that when other means fail, the sick can be encouraged to come, and be healed. But it is not necessary to wait for every other means to fail. It does not tell us what kind of sickness, nor how to anoint, but to do it in the name of the Lord, and the prayer of faith saves. The anointing does not save, but the prayer of faith. The anointing is the co-operation with the Lord. Luther said on a certain occasion: “If I go to Rome on my knees, there is no virtue in it, because the Lord did not say it. But if God tells me to pick up a straw, there is virtue in it, because God tells me to do it.” Not one of God’s commands is meaningless.
We know not how any who have had an experience in the third angel’s message, and have witnessed the power of God in healing the sick, could take the position that there is nothing specific in this. The Lord would revive in our midst the faith that was practised among those who first accepted the message. On the one hand, God would not have his people become fanatical, and throw away their judgment, and do nothing for the sick except pray; neither would he have them lose sight of the power of God. He can heal as well to-day as in the past. When every earthly resource has failed, as in the experience of the woman in the gospel who had spent all her means on many physicians, and was no better, but rather grew worse, a touch of his garment can heal at the present day the same as when he walked on the earth.
When God has given light upon any point, as he has on healthful living, there is danger that we shall arbitrarily measure every man by our standard, and thus lose sight of the power of God; that is, that we shall recognize the power of God only when manifested in one particular way, or through certain agencies. These agencies are all right, but when we set any agency or form, however correct it may be, and God-given, above the principle guarded by it, we thereby place ourselves in the position of the Pharisees. Mercy is the greatest element in the law of God. The form is to guard this principle. The Pharisees saw this form, and were very strict in it, but they neglected “the weightier matters of the law, judgment, mercy, and faith.” The same danger lies in the pathway of God’s people to-day.
An illustration of faith is given in the case of Elijah’s praying that it might not rain, and again praying for rain. “Elias was a man subject to like passions as we are, and he prayed earnestly that it might not rain: and it rained not on the earth by the space of three years and six months. And he prayed again, and the heavens gave rain, and the earth brought forth her fruit.” “Elijah said unto Ahab, Get thee up, eat and drink; for there is a sound of abundance of rain.” Then “Elijah went up to the top of Carmel; and he cast himself down upon the earth, and put his face between his knees, and said to his servant, Go up now, look toward the sea. And he went up, and looked, and said, There is nothing. And he said, Go again seven times. And it came to pass at the seventh time, that he said, . . . Go up, say unto Ahab, Prepare thy chariot, and get thee down, that the rain stop thee not. And it came to pass in the meanwhile, that the heaven was black with clouds and wind, and there was a great rain.” 1 Kings 18: 41-46.
While the writer was in Africa a few years ago, tons of powder were shot into the air to cause it to rain; but there was no artificial means used in Elijah’s case, and no resort was made to natural methods to cause it to rain. It was simply the result of praying to God. God heard the prayer, the clouds gathered, and the rain fell. At first there was only a cloud as big as a man’s hand, and then the clouds and rain immediately followed.
This illustrates the power in praying for the sick and anointing with oil. There is hope given for the church of God. It is one of those divine legacies imparted by the Holy Spirit to give encouragement and hope for the afflicted among the people of God. Remove from the church these promises that bring instantaneous manifestations of the power of God, and you have robbed it of its divine commission.10“They shall lay hands on the sick, and they shall recover.” “And they cast out many devils, and anointed with oil many that were sick, and healed them.” Mark 6: 13. “These signs shall follow them that believe; In my name shall they cast out devils; they shall speak with new tongues; they shall take up serpents; and if they drink any deadly thing, it shall not hurt them; they shall lay hands on the sick, and they shall recover.” Mark 16: 17, 18. The writer has witnessed many such instances. God is the same yesterday, to-day, and forever. What is needed, is a revival of our faith.
Will You Deny Christ’s Ownership?
By R. A. Underwood
R. A. UNDERWOOD
“Ye were sealed with that Holy Spirit of promise, which is the earnest of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession, unto the praise of his glory.” Eph. 1: 13, 14. “Ye are bought with a price.” Reader, will you deny the ownership of the loving Saviour who gave his life to purchase you and your lost home? See 1 Peter 1: 18, 19; Luke 19: 10; Micah 4: 8.
Satan disputes the right and title of Christ to this world. Just before the coronation of the Son of God, after the wicked dead are raised, true to his text, Satan’s last effort to deceive is upon the same question of the rightful ownership of this world. I read in “Great Controversy,” page 663:—
“Yet, true to his early cunning, he does not acknowledge himself to be Satan. He claims to be the prince who is the rightful owner of the world, and whose inheritance has been unlawfully wrested from him. He represents himself to his deluded subjects as a redeemer, assuring them that his power has brought them forth from their graves, and that he is about to rescue them from the most cruel tyranny.”
On which side of this controversy do you stand, my brother and sister? What is your confession of faith and practise upon this vital question? Christ says, “Whosoever shall deny me before men, him will I also deny before my Father which is in heaven.”
What is the confession of the loyal servants of Christ upon this great question? Listen to the answer given by Moses before the wicked Pharaoh: “Moses said unto him, As soon as I am gone out of the city, I will spread abroad my hands unto the Lord; and the thunder shall cease, neither shall there be any more hail; that thou mayest know how that the earth is the Lord’s.” Ex. 9: 29. David proclaims, “The earth is the Lord’s, and the fulness thereof; the world, and they that dwell therein.” Ps. 24: 1. Paul reiterates the same truth: “The earth is the Lord’s, and the fulness thereof.” 1 Cor. 10: 26.
Notice the positive statements of the Lord: “For every beast of the forest is mine, and the cattle upon a thousand hills. I know all the fowls of the mountains: and the wild beasts of the field are mine. If I were hungry, I would not tell thee: for the world is mine, and the fulness thereof.” Ps. 50: 10-12. “The silver is mine, and the gold is mine, saith the Lord of hosts.” Haggai 2: 8. “For the Lord your God is God of gods, and Lord of lords, a great God, a mighty, and a terrible, which regardeth not persons, nor taketh reward: he doth execute the judgment of the fatherless and widow, and loveth the stranger, in giving him food and raiment.” Deut. 10: 17, 18.
Of a fallen church, the Lord says: “For she did not know that I gave her corn, and wine, and oil, and multiplied her silver and gold, which they prepared for Baal. Therefore will I return, and take away my corn in the time thereof, . . . and will recover my wool and my flax given to cover her nakedness.” Hosea 2: 8, 9. My brethren, those broad acres of corn, rye, and wheat are the Lord’s. That vineyard of grapes, that field of flax and cotton, are the Lord’s. Yes, your multiplied merchandise, silver, and gold, those fine herds of horses, cattle, and sheep are all the Lord’s. The beautiful birds, the flowers, the golden grain, the luscious fruits, and our raiment, yea, all are the Lord’s.
In David’s prayer of thanksgiving, he says: “Thine, O Lord, is the greatness, and the power, and the glory, and the victory, and the majesty: for all that is in the heaven and in the earth is thine; thine is the kingdom, O Lord, and thou art exalted as head above all. Both riches and honor come of thee, and thou reignest over all; and in thine hand is power and might; and in thine hand it is to make great, and to give strength unto all. Now therefore, our God, we thank thee, and praise thy glorious name. But who am I, and what is my people, that we should be able to offer so willingly after this sort? for all things come of thee, and of thine own have we given thee. . . . I know also, my God, that thou triest the heart, and hast pleasure in uprightness. As for me, in the uprightness of mine heart I have willingly offered all these things: and now have I seen with joy thy people, which are present here, to offer willingly unto thee.” 1 Chron. 29: 11-17.
The Weekly Prayer-Meeting
By H. J. Farman
H. J. FARMAN
“AGAIN I say unto you, That if two of you shall agree on earth as touching anything that they shall ask, it shall be done for them of my Father which is in heaven.” “Hitherto have ye asked nothing in my name: ask, and ye shall receive, that your joy may be made full.” What greater blessings could be offered the church than those contained in the first text? or could a more definite reason be given for her lack of power and blessedness than is stated in the second,—“Hitherto have ye asked nothing in my name: ask, and ye shall receive”?
Do not these texts have special reference to us and to our time, and more especially as we draw near the end? There are many churches and companies among us that have no weekly prayer-meetings. Why should so important a meeting be overlooked? Some will answer, “It is too expensive to keep it up;” or “We are too scattered;” and perhaps others, “It is too much exertion11after a hard day’s work.” These excuses may seem quite plausible at first, but will they offset the blessings offered? “If two of you shall agree on earth as touching anything that they shall ask, it shall be done for them of my Father which is in heaven.” “Ask, and ye shall receive, that your joy may be made full.” It may be said that the interest can not be kept up, but if those conducting and taking part in such services, have a daily experience in the knowledge of God, and prevail at the throne of grace as did Jacob, there will be no trouble about the interest.
The old-time prayer and social meetings were places where God met with his people; for there his Word was read, his promises believed and acted upon. Sincere prayers were offered in faith and answered in power. People enjoyed such services because there was a power attending them that moved sinners to repentance. To us God has given greater light, larger responsibilities, and a world-wide message to be given in this generation. For this reason we need to be the most devout people on earth. Why, then, are not our prayer-meetings considered of more importance? Are we to become a prayerless people? There is certainly danger of our greatly neglecting this part of the worship of God. Why do not our ministers give more attention to establishing prayer-meetings in all our churches and companies of Sabbath-keepers? If new companies and churches were raised up under a prayer-meeting influence, we should have fewer apostasies, more spirituality, greater missionary zeal, and more conversions. There is no duty more often enjoined in the Bible than prayer, both secret and public. See Luke 18:1-8; Eph. 6:17-20; Col. 4:2-4; and many other texts.
Of the importance of the prayer-meeting, the following is to the point: “Why do not believers feel a deeper, more earnest concern for those who are out of Christ? Why do not two or three meet together and plead with God for the salvation of some special one, and then for still another? In our churches let companies be formed for service. Let different ones unite in labor as fishers of men. Let them seek to gather souls from the corruption of the world into the saving purity of Christ’s love.”—Testimonies for the Church, Vol. VII, page 21. Yet how often the very opposite course is taken. Some one gets offended because things do not go as they ought to, and immediately draws away from the rest, thinking thereby to improve matters, but instead they grow worse. How much better it would be to draw together and follow the Saviour’s teaching. Matt. 18:15-20.
“The formation of small companies as a basis of Christian effort has been presented to me by One who can not err. If there is a large number in the church, let the members be formed into small companies, to work not only for the church-members, but for unbelievers. If in one place there are only two or three who know the truth, let them form themselves into a band of workers. . . . As they work and pray in Christ’s name, their numbers will increase; for the Saviour says, ‘If two of you shall agree on earth as touching anything that they shall ask, it shall be done for them of my Father which is in heaven.’”—Testimonies, Vol. VII, pages 21, 22.
Aside from the Sabbath service, what more important meeting can be held than the weekly prayer-meeting? If those taking part in it can tell of what Jesus is to them, and what they are to him, how he answers their prayers, conquers their sins, and makes them victorious through grace, there will be no deadness in that meeting. Saints and sinners alike will want to attend. There are many who would like to go to such a meeting. When Christ is in the life of the individual, he will draw men to himself. Therefore, let there be more prayer-meetings where Christ is lifted up, prayer answered, and souls converted, “that your joy may be made full.”
A Personal Covenant
By David Livingstone
I WILL place no value on anything I have or may possess except in relation to the kingdom of Christ. If anything will advance the interests of that kingdom, it shall be given away or kept only as by the giving or keeping of it I shall most promote the glory of him to whom I owe all my hopes in time and eternity. May grace and strength sufficient to enable me to adhere faithfully to this resolution be imparted to me, so that, not in name only, all my interests may be identified with his cause.—David Livingstone.
The Presence of Christ
By Margaret E. Sangster
HERE in my workshop, where I toil
Till the head and hands are well-nigh spent;
Out on the road, where dust and soil
Fall thick on garments worn and rent;
Or in the kitchen, where I bake
The bread the little children eat—
He comes; his hand of strength I take,
And every homely task grows sweet.
Sometimes in halls of feasting rare,
With lamps and scent of flowers in bloom,
Among brave men and women fair,
He enters, blessing all the room.
I hear the music of his voice
In tones familiar to my ear,
And straightway, swift, my thoughts rejoice,
For consciously I feel him near.
I sit among the books I love,
Or bend above life's dearest Book.
Softer than wing of whitest dove,
Kinder than friend's most welcome look,
He broods upon the page I read;
He tells me he is at my side.
Even here he gives what most I need,
And stays by me, my blessed Guide.
The tempter dares an evil spell
To weave around my wayward mood;
His hateful minions fain would dwell
With me in desert solitude;
But, ere their craft can drag me down,
One strong to save defeats their end,—
One, once who wore hate's thorny crown,—
One, evermore my deathless friend.
O Master! while the moments drift
So fast away, till night draw near,
Be with me still, that I may lift
Unceasingly my song of cheer.
I would not have an hour apart
From thee, sweet Lover, matchless King,
Abide with me. Take thou my heart:
Low at thy feet myself I fling.
—Margaret E. Sangster.