Earlier text: The Necessity of the ResurrectionAt What Are You Aiming?
By Helen Adair
OR what are you steering, Christian? Are you heading toward the broad and traveled Incline of the Sinner? to the respectable, dead-level Road of the Pharisee? or to the steep and narrow Way of the Saint's "High Calling"? The marksman knows that if he would hit the target, he must aim at the target. The chauffeur has learned that if he would keep out of the ditch, he must steer for the roadway. In like manner, the Christian should learn that he will reach only that for which he aims. At what, then, should the Christian aim? Is it possible for him to hit it, if he does aim at it? If so, how? Attach yourself, for a moment, to that crowd of scribes and Pharisees in the temple court. Draw a little nearer. They have dragged a poor, cringing sinner before the Master, and ask Him if they shall stone her. Jesus reads their hypocritical hearts, and stoops down and writes with His finger in the sand. Like bloodthirsty wolves, they press nearer and nearer, vehemently urging the Master to tell them if they shall stone her. Rising, the Lord looks on them, and says, "He that is without sin among you, let him first cast a stone at her." Again He stoops down and writes in the sand. Self-condemned, one by one, the accusers quietly withdraw, leaving the One who makes no mistakes, to deal with the sinner. Lifting Himself up, and seeing none but the woman, He says, "Woman, where are those thine accusers? hath no man condemned thee?" She replies, "No man, Lord." Jesus says to her, "Neither do I condemn thee: go, and sin no more." Now, must we give this message all away to this sinful woman? We are told, sometimes, how business men have mistaken their places in life and have never succeeded in finding them, how square men have tried to fit themselves into round holes, and round men into square holes; but when we remember that we "all have sinned and come short of the glory of God," it need not take us many moments to discover that we belong in the same hole with this sinner in the temple. Even tho we are considered respectable, and are found among the proud accusers, as soon as our false wigs and broidered coats are removed, we find that we slip into the sinner's hole without the slightest difficulty. Hypocrite, or common sinner, then, whoever we may be, we may claim this message of mercy, and also this God-given aim. Tho we are among those who have always declared that they would not try to be Christians for fear of becoming hypocrites, like so many others, yet we may take this message to our hearts. When received, by faith, it precludes all possibility of our becoming hypocrites. By the way, let us not call every professed Christian who makes mistakes, a hypocrite. There is a wide difference between hypocrites and inexperienced Christians. It takes time for any novice to learn how to use his tools; and many are the blunders he makes before he becomes a really skilled workman. When a wolf, however, dons a sheepskin, and slyly creeps into the flock, he is apt to do it knowingly; and so does the hypocrite. When the Lord says, "Go, and sin no more," does He really mean that we need not sin any more? that we are to aim at perfection? He says so, in the Sermon on the Mount; and Moses, Peter, James, and Paul, moved by the Holy Spirit, assure us that we are to be perfect, even as our Father in heaven is perfect. Paul reiterates that we are to be partakers of His holiness, "without which no man shall see the Lord;" and John, the beloved, adds, "Every man that hath this hope in him [the hope of seeing Him as He is] purifieth himself, even as He is pure." Paul goes so far as to say that God sent His Son to earth "that the righteousness of the law might be fulfilled in us." "Impossible!" you say. "I am utterly powerless to do right. I've tried often enough, and failed. Nobody can." Not so fast! Look at that trolley-car. Are you any more helpless than that car? Watch it suddenly put on power and fly through our streets and up our hills with its living freight. Is the man who gave that inanimate car the power to move, greater and wiser than the Creator of the heavens and the earth and all things therein? Might not the Creator, if He willed, put puny, helpless men in touch with a power by which they, too, could renew their strength, and "mount up with wings, as eagles," "run, and not be weary," "walk, and not faint"? Was it not to Nicodemus, a teacher of Israel, that the Lord once explained how it could and must be done, if any man ever entered the kingdom of heaven? As silently and invisibly as a summer's breeze, this wonderful power — the Spirit of God — descends upon the praying publican, taking away his old, sinful nature, and leaving in its stead the divine nature; shedding abroad in his heart the love of God, which love, and no other, can fulfil the law. Go on, now, dear publican, says Paul; by faith ye have received the Spirit, by faith go on walking in the Spirit, and "ye shall not fulfil the lust of the flesh." As a new-born babe desires its milk, so desire the sincere milk of the Word, "that ye may grow thereby," chimes in Peter; "for," adds the Lord Himself, of His words, "they are spirit, and they are life." Back comes the voice of Peter: That is why ye are given these exceeding great and precious promises — that by these ye might be "partakers of the divine nature." Those incorruptible seeds of God's nature and power received into your heart, caused you to be born again [from above]. Yes, says John, and this is why "whosoever is born of God doth not commit sin; for His seed remaineth in him: and he can not sin." "O Israel," pleads the Lord, "if thou wilt harken unto Me; there shall no strange god be in thee;" thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image; thou shalt not take God's name in vain; thou shalt remember the Sabbath day to keep it holy; thou shalt honor thy father and mother; thou shalt not kill; thou shalt not commit adultery; thou shalt not steal; thou shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbor; thou shalt not covet. I PROMISE thee, that if thou wilt harken unto Me, thou shalt not do one thing that is wrong, thou shalt do what is required of thee. (If we can keep the first commandment by harkening to His words, we can keep the second, third, and all the rest of them, in the same way.) David witnesses, That is true, Lord, for "Thy Word have I hid in mine heart, that I might not sin against Thee." The Word is profitable, agrees Paul, "for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness: that the man of God may be perfect, thoroughly furnished unto all good works." John, in vision, looking into the future, sees a hundred and forty-four thousand on Mount Zion, who have conquered by the Word, and are "without fault before the throne of God." Joshua encourages us to try, by reminding us of the mother and her babe. The babe is learning to sit alone; the mother sets it before her and spreads out her arms to catch it if it falls. Again and again it wobbles from side to side and almost topples over; but it persists in straining its little muscles to their utmost, sometimes falling into the outstretched arms, but immediately getting up and trying again — until it finally can sit up strong and well. Then, not content, it rises to its feet and tries to stand. When that is accomplished, it learns to walk, and then to run, constantly going on, and on, and on, to perfect manhood. As we stand in awe before this moving picture, Joshua whispers, "The eternal God is thy refuge, and underneath are the everlasting arms;" and the voice of a trained singer is heard chanting the words, "Like as a father pitieth his children, so the Lord pitieth them that fear Him." As tho that were not enough, lo, a voice from heaven says, "Fear thou not; for I am with thee: be not dismayed; for I am thy God: I will strengthen thee; yea, I will help thee; yea, I will uphold thee with the right hand of My righteousness." "The omnipotent power of the Holy Spirit is the defense of every contrite soul. Not one that in penitence and faith has claimed His protection, will Christ permit to pass under the enemy's power. The Saviour is by the side of His tempted and tried ones. With Him there can be no such thing as failure, loss, impossibility, or defeat; we can do all things through Him who strengthens us." Perfection, then, shall be our aim; the Spirit of Almighty God, our power; His words, the channel through which His power can flow; faith, childlike faith in His words, that which transmits His power to us. Despairing Christian, "go, and sin no more!"7 to a mere sullogus." It was therefore an assembly regularly summoned, lawfully called, opposed to a coming together without call. God's church is called out by His sent messengers, and that call is always "the Gospel of truth," to a life of truth and righteousness. Those who yield to that regular summons constitute God's Ekklesia. Such in times of crisis have been His faithful remnant, either to abide steadfast when all fell away, or to come out from apostasy when apostasy possessed the material citadel and center of God's work in the earth. In the light of the foregoing propositions, facts, and principles, trace the church of God from the beginning. In the dawning of time the church was Abel, not Cain, tho Abel was the younger. In the time of the Deluge it was Noah and his family, tho with the multitude who were lost were the "men of renown." A few generations later that church centered in Abraham, who obeyed God's call and left apostatizing kindred and friends. Out of Egypt it was the nation of slaves led by Moses. In the apostasy of that people priestly houses and royal houses were set aside, and others honored who hitherto had not so served. God's remnant — His people in the ten-tribe division — were not the people of the tribes, but the seven thousand loyal souls who had not bowed the knee to Baal, unknown even to God's prophet. And when apostasy in Israel became so grievous that there was danger that God's truth would be lost to the earth, He brought upon them the Chaldeans, suffered them to go into captivity, so that their very apostasy witnessed to the truth of His word given by His prophets, while the positive power of His truth in holy character was manifest in Daniel and his fellows and an erstwhile heathen king. At the close of that captivity it was not the many thousands of scattered Israel in Babylon and elsewhere that constituted His church, but the called-out ones — less than fifty thousand — who returned to Jerusalem. It was not the scribes and Pharisees and doctors of the law and chief priests who were His church in the crisis of John the Baptist's mission, but the repentant people and publicans; for "all the people that heard Him, and the publicans, justified God [witnessed to His truth], being baptized with the baptism of John. But the Pharisees and lawyers rejected the counsel of God against themselves, being not baptized of him." Luke 7: 29, 30. When our Lord died upon the cross, it was not Israel after the flesh, through whom God had kept His truth, that constituted His church; but it was the few loyal ones who had heard the call, who met in the upper room, who were together — of one accord — by the Word on the Day of Pentecost. The nation was rejected with all their appointments, all their priestly authority, all their succession of priesthood, all their honored tradition. The humble fishermen and artisans, clothed with the Spirit, loyal to His truth, bearing His Gospel, were leaders in His church. In the time of the Reformation the church was again constituted of those that heeded the call of God and were loyal to His Word. This must be ever so. For when men in positions of trust in God's work apostatize — when they prove disloyal to His Word — He must set them aside and call out those that will be loyal, or suffer His truth to be lost to the earth. The latter He will not do; can not do, and be true to Himself and those for whom Christ died. Now this whole career of God's church has been set forth in prophecy always years and sometimes centuries before the events in her history took place. Her backsliding, her apostasy, her captivity, the gathering of the remnant, the rejection of the nation at our Lord's first advent, the "remnant according to the election of grace" at that time, the later apostasies, and wandering in the wilderness of trouble, persecution, error, and confusion, have all been set forth in the Word of God; and the church even in her wandering and scattered condition has witnessed to it all. Despite all the planning and plotting of her enemies, despite anathemas and persecutions, nay, more, despite utter rejection and death even as her Master suffered, she has witnessed in character and career to the Word of God. And so has apostasy witnessed. The career of the apostate system has been foretold. Her exaltation of man in the place of God, her substitution of the traditions of men for the Word of God, mere material substance in the place of the Real Presence, succession of men instead of living call and connection with Christ, the worship of the dead, the changing of the times and the law of God, the claim to universal and sole rulership, the usurping of authority over kingdom and conscience, and the logical consequent persecution, — all these and much more have been foretold in the "sure word of prophecy," and abundantly fulfilled, it seems to us, in the Roman Catholic Church, to whom many are now turning as the living spouse of God. Let us say that in this we are not condemning Catholics; we have naught but the kindliest feelings toward them all, and doubtless there are many among them whose hearts are perfect toward God and all the light they have. But we would not be true to our Lord and Master did we not warn against the marvelous, mighty system of error with which they are connected, and which still exists in vigor, as declared by prophecy. So it will increase till the nations shall again acknowledge it as the church of God, and former persecutions will be repeated. In all this apostasy, in all its career, the Papacy has witnessed to the truth of God's Word by doing in its entire career just what the Word declared she would do. From all these errors, out of all wrong systems, God is calling His people by the living message of the everlasting Gospel. He knows they are scattered through Babylon, the organized confusion in the religious world. He is calling them out by His Gospel, His eternal truth. He is calling them to a character that will bear witness to His holy law, to a faith that will witness to the faith of Jesus. And that called-out church, small in comparison with the world, God's "little flock," will bear these characteristics of prophecy, named eighteen centuries ago by the prophet of Patmos: "Here is the patience of the saints: here are they that keep the commandments of God, and the faith of Jesus." Rev. 12: 17; 14: 12. Are you looking for the true church in these days of peril? Are you looking for God's remnant church that will be — is — waiting for His coming and working for souls? She will bear the above divine marks of authenticity, the twofold infallible witness of the Word of God. Consider Others’ Faults Kindly
"In praying for others' faults, recollect how long you have been correcting your own." THAT Christian who wins the final victory over self and sin will not be swayed by feeling. He will be one who will many times seek God when he does not feel like prayer, who will be generous when he feels inclined to be niggard, who will speak gently and soberly when he feels like speaking harshly, who will deny self for Christ's sake, and in this way overcome and perfect a Christian character. He will by faith press through all darkness into the light of God. Light from Heaven
By F. A. Lorens
FRIENDS, within my heart is burning
Intense love by day and night.
I am praying, I am yearning,
God may lead you in the light.
Jesus help you to surrender,
And to make a choice like Ruth;
To accept in all its splendor
This so grand and precious truth. Honor, fame, and reputation,
Worldly rank in this our day,
Are but transient in duration,
And will swiftly pass away;
But celestial things we cherish,
Love for God, and for His flock,
Will endure, can never perish,
Based on the eternal Rock. God's professed church has sunken,
And is vain in her design;
Babylon has made her drunken
With her fornication's wine.
Hark! a special invitation
Calls you out! O, search God's Word,
Which goes now to every nation,
Telling of our coming Lord. Darkness reigns, but light is shining
From God's Word so bright and clear;
Signs in heaven and earth combining
Witness that the end is near.
Heed the solemn warning message
Which encircles now the world,
Prophecies and many a presage
Which have been to you unfurled. Light from heaven, may you never
Spurn this overwhelming flood.
It means death and doom forever
To confer with flesh and blood.
Rise and follow the example
Now of our dear brother Paul.
There is help. The flesh may tremble;
Christ will lead you through it all. The Real Presence of Our Lord
ROMAN CATHOLICS and High Churchmen among the Anglicans emphasize the importance of the "Real Presence." It is important; we not only concede it, but affirm it. In it is the very Gospel of Christ. The devout Roman Catholic and the true Protestant, or intelligent Bible Christian, alike concede the importance of the Real Presence, but they are decidedly diverse in their views as to where the Real Presence is found. The Roman Catholic view is thus stated: Every one knows that example loses much of its efficacy in passing through the medium of history, and that virtues perceived at a distance of eighteen centuries are not sufficiently eloquent to move our hearts. It was then very necessary that the Divine Model [Christ] of the elect should dwell in the midst of us full of grace and truth, and that He should offer to each one the living picture of the same virtues which charmed the witnesses of His mortal life and attached to Him so powerfully the hearts of His disciples. This need Jesus Christ satisfies IN HIS EUCHARISTIC LIFE. Could Jesus Christ manifest more strikingly His unspeakable tenderness for sinners, and His ardent zeal for their salvation, than He does IN THE ADORABLE SACRAMENT in which He condemns Himself to remain on the earth so long as there is one soul to save? —Religion in Society, by Abbe Martinet.
Here the Real Presence is placed in the eucharist; and this change in the wafer is made by the will or word of the priest, whatever his character. The same author says: Every day multitudes of priests, be they FERVENT, LUKEWARM, OR VICIOUS — IT IS THE SAME — summon Him WHERE it pleases THEM, give Him to WHOM THEY will, CONFINE Him under lock and key, and DISPOSE of Him at THEIR will. —Id.
Another Catholic work, "Catholic Belief," teaches that the conversion of the elements is solely by the word of the priest: The Catholic Church teaches that, before consecration, that which on the altar appears to be bread and wine, is simply bread and wine; and that after the consecration of that bread and wine, what appears to be bread and wine is no longer bread and wine, but the body and blood of Jesus Christ. Something remains, namely, THE OUTWARD QUALITIES OR SPECIES OF BREAD AND WINE; and something is changed, namely, the INWARD, INVISIBLE SUBSTANCE OF THAT BREAD AND WINE, into the body and blood of Christ; this inward change or CONVERSION is what is called transubstantiation.
Roman Catholics, therefore, place the Real Presence of Christ in the eucharist, called there by a priest, whatever his character, given to whom he will, converted according to that priest's word, a mere example to man. The Bible Christian believes that the Real Presence of our Lord is equally vital, but that instead of being in the eucharist, or wafer, it is in the individual believer, "Christ in you." For this we present the following evidence: 1. Our Lord desires that His disciples be with Him — a desire which will ultimately be realized. "Father, I desire that they also whom Thou hast given Me be with Me where I am, that they may behold My glory." John 17:24. But this can not be till they have borne the character test that this world imposes. "I am no more in the world, and these are in the world, and I come to Thee. Holy Father, keep them in Thy name. . . . While I was with them, I kept them in Thy name. . . . I pray not that Thou shouldest take them from the world, but that Thou shouldest keep them from the evil one." John 17:11-15. 2. That they might be thus kept, He promises to come again. "I will not leave you desolate [comfortless]: I will come unto you." John 14:18. This is stated even more strongly in the great commission and its promise: "Lo, I am with you always, even unto the end of the world." Matt. 28:20. And this promise is given with direct reference to effective service for Him. While they can not be with Him, He will be with them. Then of the great fact of His Real Presence with His people there can be no question. He Himself has expressly declared it. The very announcement of His birth demands His constant presence; for said the angel, "They shall call His name Immanuel: which is, being interpreted, God with us." Matt. 1:23. 3. Now is this presence created in a wafer at the will of a priest, kept in a sacred pyx, given in one element to believers now and then, or is it Christ coming into the very life of the believer? Listen to what Paul said: "I have been crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I that live, but Christ liveth in me." Gal. 2:20. Again: "But when it was the good pleasure of God [not of man] . . . to reveal His Son in me, that I might preach Him among the Gentiles." Gal. 1:15, 16. Christ then lived in Paul, and was revealed in Paul, that Paul might reveal the blessed Master to those who needed Him. 4. It has always been God's plan to bless His people with His presence. When He called Israel out of Egypt, He said to Moses, "My Presence shall go with thee, and I will give thee rest;" and Moses responded, "If Thy Presence go not with me, carry us not up hence." Ex. 33:14, 15. God's presence then was a very real thing, not something dim, or vague, or shadowy. It was not something borne by men as an idol or object of adoration. It was the living presence of God in Christ Jesus, the Angel of the covenant. Ex. 23:20, 21. For "the Angel of His presence saved them: in His love and in His pity He redeemed them; and He bare them, and carried them all the days of old." Isa. 63:9. So God was manifest in Christ, and the Son of God was Immanuel in the days of old, before He was invested with human flesh. 5. And this presence of God is not designed to be an occasional manifestation of His Real Presence, but a constant one, coming direct home to the heart of the believer. Read the wonderful promise: "For thus saith the high and lofty One that inhabiteth eternity, whose name is Holy: I dwell in the high and holy place, with him also that is of a contrite and humble spirit, to revive the spirit of the humble, and to revive the heart of the contrite." Isa. 57:15. Thus it comes home to the individual soul, and is therefore true of all His children, "As God said, I will dwell in them, and walk in them; and I will be their God, and they shall be My people." 2 Cor. 6:16. Roman Catholicism has said that the priest can give the Real Presence to whom he will, but God promises it to every one who will come out from among the wicked and be separate. Verse 17. 6. This indwelling, this Real Presence of Christ, is by the Holy Spirit. Read again from the words of our Lord: If ye love Me, keep My commandments. And I will pray the Father, and HE SHALL GIVE YOU ANOTHER COMFORTER, that He may abide with you forever; even THE SPIRIT OF TRUTH; whom the world can not receive, because it seeth Him not, neither knoweth Him: but ye know Him; for He dwelleth with you, and shall be in you. I will NOT leave you COMFORTLESS: I WILL COME TO YOU. . . . If a man love Me, he will keep My words: and My Father will love him, and WE WILL COME UNTO HIM, and MAKE OUR ABODE WITH HIM. John 14:15-23.
How then do Christ and the Father dwell with us? — By the Holy Spirit, the Comforter, to comfort the otherwise comfortless. "But when the Comforter is come, whom I will send unto you from the Father, even the Spirit of truth, which proceedeth from the Father, He shall bear witness of Me." John 15:26. "He shall glorify Me: for He shall take of Mine, and shall declare it unto you." John 16:14. "For He abideth with you, and shall be in you." John 14:17. That Christ dwells in the believer by the Spirit, is made even more emphatic, if possible, by Paul: But ye are not in the flesh, but in the Spirit, if so be that the SPIRIT OF GOD DWELL IN YOU. Now if any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of His. And if CHRIST BE IN YOU, the body is dead because of sin; but the Spirit is life because of righteousness. But if the SPIRIT OF HIM that raised up Jesus from the dead DWELL IN YOU, He that raised up Christ from the dead shall also quicken your mortal bodies by HIS SPIRIT THAT DWELLETH IN YOU. Rom. 8:9-11.
Christ and the Father are one, and forcibly indeed does the apostle emphasize that union. The Spirit of God and Spirit of Christ is the one Spirit. The indwelling of that Spirit is the Real Presence of the living Christ. "For in Him [Christ] dwelleth all the fulness of the Godhead bodily, and in Him are ye made full." Col. 2:9, 10. And that fulness, the riches of the glory of that mystery of God, received by faith, "is Christ in you, the hope of glory." Col. 1:26, 27. Again, the apostle prays that Christians "may be strengthened with power through His Spirit in the inward man; that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith," and thus the believer is "filled unto all the fulness of God." Eph. 3:16, 17, 19.9 7. It is this, the only Real Presence, that the soul needs. Continually he walks with God. Continually he is cheered by His Real Presence. Continually is he enlightened and illuminated. Continually he draws from the Spirit, the great Fount of God's life, to strengthen him for spiritual conflict and all the trials by the way. "The light of the glorious Gospel of Christ, who is the image of God," shines in the heart. "For God, who commanded the light to shine out of darkness, hath shined in our hearts, to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ. But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the excellency of the power may be of God, and not of us." 2 Cor. 4:4, 6, 7. And thus we bear about in the body "the dying of the Lord Jesus, that the life also of Jesus might be made manifest in our body," "in our mortal flesh." Verses 10, 11. Such, friends, is the Bible doctrine, the true Protestant doctrine, of the Real Presence of our Lord. It is Christ's actual presence, His Spirit, His power, His life, in the believer, bringing with it all potency, all help, all comfort,—an Abiding Presence. Priest and wafer may be absent; Christ is present, and by the creative power of His Spirit places His own presence within our hearts. Which will you have, the creative power of Christ, or the supposed power of the priest? Which will you have, the human, asserted presence in the eucharist, or "Christ in you, the hope of glory"? Which will you have, the pretended power of a priest to convert bread into Christ, or the power and presence of the Spirit of God which converts men into His character? It is for you to choose. Choose the real and the eternal. Music in the Bible
By Augusta W. Heald
MUSIC is of more ancient origin than the earth itself. The Almighty inquired of Job, "Where wast thou when I laid the foundations of the earth; . . . when the morning stars sang together, and all the sons of God shouted for joy?" Job 38:4, 7. The use of musical instruments was well known in the antediluvian age; for we read that Jubal, the son of Lamech, was "the father of all such as handle the harp and organ." Gen. 4:21. After the victorious passage of the Red Sea, Moses led the children of Israel in a song of triumph. Miriam the prophetess also led the women with the timbrel and dance, in the responsive strain, "Sing ye to the Lord, for He hath triumphed gloriously; the horse and his rider hath He thrown into the sea." Ex. 15:21. The youthful David played skilfully upon the harp, and by his sweet music drove out the evil spirit from Saul, the favored King of Israel. 1 Sam. 16:17, 23. The psalms and sacred songs composed in later years, when he sat upon the kingly throne, have brought comfort and strength to Christians of every age. King Solomon also was a musical composer. "His songs were a thousand and five." 1 Kings 4:32. There were musical families in Israel, Asaph and Jeduthun with their sons, and Heman the King's seer with his fourteen sons and three daughters. All these, and others, were trained "according to the King's order," for the service of the sanctuary, with song, cymbals, psalteries, and harps. The number of trained singers was "two hundred fourscore and eight." 1 Chronicles 25. The good King Jehoshaphat, when attacked by the enemy in great numbers, appointed the singers to go out before the army; and as they sang loud praises to God, the ranks of the enemy became disorganized, and they destroyed one another. Thus a signal victory was accomplished through the instrumentality of song. 2 Chronicles 20. Our Saviour's first advent to earth, as the Babe of Bethlehem, was heralded by the song of angels, "Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good-will toward men." Luke 2:14. There will be glad songs in the glorious resurrection morning when Jesus comes again, to claim His own. "Awake and sing, ye that dwell in dust: for thy dew is as the dew of herbs, and the earth shall cast out the dead." Isa. 26:19. There is song in heaven. "As well the singers as the players on instruments shall be there." Ps. 87:7. "And they sing the song of Moses the servant of God, and the song of the Lamb, saying, Great and marvelous are Thy works, Lord God Almighty; just and true are Thy ways, Thou King of saints." Rev. 15:3. We may well believe that when Jesus gathers His own to the home above, hands now unskilled will touch the golden harps with sweet accord, and voices now untuned to harmony, through earth's limitations, will there join in sweetest strains the "new song" which none can learn save those "which were redeemed from the earth." 1. What did our Lord promise on His going away?
If ye love Me, keep My commandments. And I will pray the Father, and He shall give you another Comforter, that He may abide with you forever; even THE SPIRIT OF TRUTH; whom the world can not receive, because it seeth Him not, neither knoweth Him, but ye know Him; for He dwelleth with you, and shall be in you. John 14: 15-17. 2. How does God assure us of His willingness to give us that Spirit?
And I say unto you, Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you. For every one that asketh receiveth; and he that seeketh findeth; and to him that knocketh it shall be opened. If a son shall ask bread of any of you that is a father, will he give him a stone? or if he ask a fish, will he for a fish give him a serpent? or if he shall ask an egg, will he offer him a scorpion? If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children: HOW MUCH MORE SHALL YOUR HEAVENLY FATHER GIVE THE HOLY SPIRIT to them that ask Him? Luke 11: 9-13. 3. What will it give?
Power. 4. What will that power do?
But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be WITNESSES UNTO ME both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth. Acts 1: 8. NOTE.—That Spirit will enable the sinner to overcome his sin; it will cleanse that sin away. It will crucify the flesh with its passions and lusts. Rom. 8: 13. And it will enable the soul to be a true witness for God. 5. What will it give?
And hope putteth not to shame; because THE LOVE OF GOD hath been shed abroad in our hearts THROUGH THE HOLY SPIRIT which was given unto us. Rom. 5: 5. 6. What will love do for the soul?
For this is THE LOVE OF GOD, THAT WE KEEP HIS COMMANDMENTS: and His commandments are not grievous. 1 John 5: 3. 7. What else will it do?
Write God's law in the heart. "For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, saith the Lord; I will put My laws into their mind, and WRITE THEM IN THEIR HEARTS: and I will be to them a God, and they shall be to Me a people." Heb. 8: 10. 8. How will the soul then regard the law?
O how LOVE I THY LAW! it is my meditation all the day. Ps. 119: 97. 9. What are we admonished to do?
Ask ye of the Lord rain in the time of the latter rain; so the Lord shall make bright clouds, and give them showers of rain, to every one grass in the field. Zech. 10: 1. NOTE.—It is time for God to pour out His latter rain, and He earnestly exhorts us to ask for rain in the time of the latter rain. Surely bearing in mind His promise we can ask in faith believing. The only thing that will hinder His Spirit from coming in is cherished sin. Gideon Bibles in Hotel Bedrooms
SIXTY thousand Bibles have been placed in the bedrooms of hotels in the United States and Canada by the "Gideons," the Christian Commercial Travelers' Association of America. It is the aim of this organization to scatter the Word of Life broadcast for the spiritual enlightenment of those who, like themselves, have to spend so many of their hours in the "unhomelike atmosphere of hotel bedrooms." As a result of this act of the "Gideons," "a United States senator's thoughts and memories were so stirred from the reading of one of these Bibles in a hotel, as to move him to send a check for $50.00 to aid in the distribution of Bibles under this plan, confessing in an accompanying note that the reading of that Bible in the hotel had led his 'thoughts back into channels where they had not been for many years.'"—Caribbean Watchman.