THOSE who boast of wisdom beyond the teaching of the word of God, need to drink deeper of the fountain of knowledge, that they may learn their real ignorance. Men boast of their wisdom when it is foolishness in the sight of God. Let no man deceive himself. "If any man among you seemeth to be wise in this world, let him become a fool, that he may be wise. For the wisdom of this world is foolishness with God. For it is written, he taketh the wise in their own craftiness." The greatest ignorance that now curses the human race is in regard to the binding claims of the law of God; and this ignorance is the result of neglecting the study of the word of God. It is Satan's plan to so engage the mind that men shall neglect the great guidebook, and thus be led into the path of transgression and destruction.
The Bible is not exalted to its place among the books of the world, although its study is of infinite importance to the souls of men. In searching its pages the imagination beholds scenes majestic and eternal. We behold Jesus, the Son of God, coming to our world, and engaging in the mysterious conflict that discomfited the powers of darkness. Oh, how wonderful, how almost incredible it is, that the infinite God would consent to the humiliation of his own Son that we might be elevated to a place with him upon his throne! Let every student of the Scriptures contemplate this great fact, and he will not come from a study of the Bible without being purified, elevated, and ennobled. The truth will be opened to the mind, and applied to the heart by the Spirit of God. Through connection with God the Christian will have clearer and broader views, unbiased by his own preconceived opinions. His discernment will be more penetrating, his judgment be better balanced and far seeing. His understanding, exercised in contemplation of exalted truths, will be expanded, and in obtaining heavenly knowledge, he will better understand his own weakness and grow in faith and humility.214When there is little attention given to the word of God, divine counsels are not heeded, admonitions are in vain, grace and heavenly wisdom are not sought that past sins may be avoided, and every stain of corruption may be cleansed from the character. David prayed: "Make me to understand the way of thy precepts; so shall I talk of thy wondrous works." "Open thou mine eyes, that I may behold wondrous things out of thy law."
There is a great work to be done by earnest Bible students, for gems of truth are to be gathered up, and separated from the companionship of error. Though the Bible is a revelation from heaven, yet many do not comprehend its divine teaching. We are to discover new aspects of truth in both Old and New Testaments, to behold the exceeding breadth and compass of truths which we imagine we understand, but of which we have only a superficial knowledge. He who earnestly searches the Scriptures will see that harmony exists between the various parts of the Bible, will discover the bearing of one passage upon another, and the reward of his toil will be exceedingly precious.
All over the field of revelation are scattered glad springs of heavenly truth, of peace and joy. These glad springs of truth are within the reach of every seeker. The words of inspiration, pondered in the heart, will be as living streams flowing from the river of the water of life. Our Saviour prayed that the mind of his followers might be opened to understand the Scriptures. Whenever we study the Bible with a prayerful heart, the Holy Spirit is near to open to us the meaning of the words we read. The man whose mind is enlightened by the opening of God's word to his understanding, will not only feel that he must more diligently seek to understand the word of God, but that he must have a better understanding of the sciences. He will feel that he is called to a high calling in Christ Jesus. The more closely connected man is with the Source of all knowledge and wisdom, the more he will be convinced that he must advance in intellectual and spiritual attainment. The opening of God's word is always followed by a remarkable opening and strengthening of man's faculties; for the entrance of God's words giveth light. By contemplation of great truths the mind is elevated, the affections purified and refined; for the Spirit of God through the truth of God quickens the lifeless spiritual faculties, and attracts the soul heavenward.
Then take your Bible and present yourself before your Heavenly Father, saying, "Enlighten me; teach me what is truth." The Lord will regard your prayer, and the Holy Spirit will impress the truth upon your soul. In searching the Scriptures for yourself, you will become established in the faith. It is of the greatest importance that you continually search the Scriptures, storing the mind with the word of God, for you may be separated from the companionship of Christians, and placed where you will not have the privilege of meeting with the children of God. You need the treasures of God's word hidden in your heart, that when opposition comes upon you, you may bring everything to the Scriptures.
Truth is eternal, and conflict with error will only make manifest its strength. We should never refuse to examine the Scriptures with those who we have a reason to believe desire to know what is truth as much as we do. Suppose a brother holds a view that differs from yours, and he comes to you, proposing that you sit down with him and investigate that point in the Scriptures; should you rise up filled with prejudice, and condemn his ideas, while refusing to give him a candid hearing? The only right way would be to sit down as Christians and investigate the position presented in the light of God's word, which will reveal truth and unmask error. To ridicule his ideas would not weaken his position, though it were false, or strengthen your position, though it were true. If the pillars of our faith will not stand the test of investigation, it is time that we knew it, for it is foolish to become set in our ideas, and think that no one should interfere with our opinions. Let everything be brought to the Bible; for it is the only rule of faith and doctrine.
We must study the truth for ourselves; no living man should be relied upon to think for us, no matter who he may be or in what position he may be placed. We are not to look upon any man as a perfect criterion for us. We are to counsel together, and be subject one to another, but at the same time we are to exercise the ability God has given us to learn what is truth. Each one of us must look to God for divine enlightenment, that we may individually develop a character that will stand the test in the day of God.
We are living in the last days, when error of a most deceptive character is accepted and believed, while truth is discarded. Many are drifting into darkness and infidelity, picking flaws with the Bible, bringing in superstitious inventions, unscriptural theories, and speculations of vain philosophy; but it is the duty of everyone to seek a thorough knowledge of the Scriptures. The importance and benefit of Bible study cannot be overestimated. In searching the Scriptures our minds are caused to dwell upon the infinite sacrifice of Christ, on his meditation in our behalf. As we see his love, as we meditate upon his humiliation and sufferings, the same spirit of self-denial and sacrifice for the good of others will be kindled in our hearts. As we behold Jesus by the eye of faith, we shall be "changed into the same image from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of the Lord."
PRESENT SALVATION.
By William Covert
BY ELDER WILLIAM COVERT.
SALVATION is presented from two standpoints in the Scriptures. There is salvation from sin which is present, and there is salvation from the grave through the resurrection, which is future. In this article we design to speak of salvation from the bondage of sin. Of this it is written:—
"According to his mercy he saved us, by the washing of regeneration, and renewing of the Holy Ghost; which he shed on us abundantly through Jesus Christ our Saviour." Titus 3:5, 6.
This scripture declares that the Christian is saved and tells how it was done. Again the same writer, when referring to the attitude of himself and brethren toward the Lord as they drew near by faith, said they were "giving thanks unto the Father, which hath made us meet to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in light; who hath delivered us from the power of darkness, and hath translated us into the kingdom of his dear Son; in whom we have redemption through his blood, even the forgiveness of sins." Col. 1:12-14. The apostle is not in this place speaking of the physical preparation for eternal blessedness, but of deliverance from the power of Satan over the mind and will, whereby he is enabled to render cheerful, loving service to the Father. He is now delivered from the power of darkness and is in the kingdom of Christ. In this condition his sins are all forgiven and his allegiance to the laws of heaven unquestioned. This constitutes him a member of the heavenly family.
This salvation is enjoyed by the justified believer. Such an one can exclaim, "O how love I thy law! it is my meditation all the day." Ps. 119:97. He is a laborer together with God. 1 Cor. 3:9. He is "accepted in the Beloved." Eph. 1:6. He is sealed with the Holy Spirit, and waiting till the redemption of the purchased possession." Verses 13, 14.
Concerning the relation of the Christian to God and his government it is recorded that they "are built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ himself being the chief corner stone; in whom all the building fitly framed together groweth unto an holy temple in the Lord; in whom ye also are builded together for an habitation of God through the Spirit." Eph. 2:20-22. In the heart of each one in this building God abides by his Spirit, and also in the aggregate he dwells, that the whole may be united in one.
The presence of God's power, dwelling in those who have been saved and washed from their sins, gives them the victory over the enemy, which victory is held by faith. 1 John 5:4. Instead of being overcome by Satan, the promise is that they shall cast out devils. Mark 16:17; Luke 10:17. Instead of being under the power of the enemy, they are to have power over the enemy. Luke 10:19. The promise of God is that he will "turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan unto God." Acts 26:18. It is God himself who is the strength of his people. David sang: "God is my strength and power; and he maketh my way perfect. He maketh my feet like hinds' feet; and setteth me upon my high places." 2 Sam. 22:33, 34. God's children are complete in Christ. His righteousness is theirs, being imputed to them and inwrought by faith in them. This makes their way perfect and keeps them, like the hind, from slipping as they climb upon the rocky heights.
In conversion the whole course of life is to be reversed, so that there will be left no confidence in the flesh to cause the mind to turn away from Christ. Self and the flesh are to die with Christ and with him be buried to remain in the grave, while from the seeds of God's word, made life in the soul, is to grow up a new being, created in the image of the Lifegiver. Says the apostle:—
"That ye put off concerning the former conversation [manner of life] the old man, which is corrupt according to the deceitful lusts; and be renewed in the spirit of your mind; and that ye put on the new man, which after God is created in righteousness and true holiness." Eph. 4:22-24.
Christ having thus been put on, the believer is exhorted in the following language: "As ye have therefore received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk ye in him; rooted and built up in him." Col. 2:6, 7. This heavenly plant is rooted in and grows from the soil of Christ. It must therefore partake of the divine nature. The seed and the life are of Christ, and the roots grow in him and from him and of him. The being is therefore essentially a new creature. 2 Cor. 5:17.
This is salvation from self. This salvation must be a fact in the present, in order that the physical man be saved at the second coming of Christ. If there is no salvation from sin in the present life, there can be no salvation from death in the future. Everything depends upon the present standing. It is this which is given most thought in the Scriptures, because to us the glorious hope of eternal blessedness hangs upon it. The Christian is told to not let sin reign in his mortal body, and that sin shall not have dominion over him. Rom. 6:12, 14. The apostle says that Christians are "quickened" into a new life, and that they are "saved by grace," and "created in Christ Jesus." Eph. 2:5, 8, 10. Now they are fellow citizens and of the household of God. Verse 19. Another says they have passed from death unto life. 1 John 3:14. It is even now that the Christian is joint heir with Christ. It is here that he may resist the devil, steadfast in the faith of Jesus Christ, and the promise is that Satan will flee from him. It is only when the mind is withdrawn from the Saviour that the adversary will have power over him. Jesus puts Satan himself to flight when our battles are fought in him. Out of him all is defeat. In him we are more than conquerors.
"For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord." Rom. 8:38, 39.
THE EVIDENCE OF SONSHIP.
"Now THE Spirit itself beareth witness with our spirit, that we are the children of God," is the language of Paul in Rom. 8:16. It is the same divine law of the twofold witness which we have just considered. God would not have his people depend on a guess or a wish or a faint hope that they might be his children; he desires them to have sure evidence, evidence absolutely unimpeachable. The Christian need not grope in blindness or doubt. God will give him such plain evidence that it will not be presumptuous to make the claim or to rest upon the assurance that he is a child of God.—Bible Students' Library No. 85.
Miscellaneous.
"For God so loved the world, that he gave his only-begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life."—John 3:16.
VICTORY.
By Eliza H. Morton
BY ELIZA H. MORTON.
BREAK forth with song, O earth; to-day
Rejoice, O heavens above;
O mountains, clap your hands and sing,
The Lord is near in love.
The church is feeling now the power
Which consecration gives.
The Lord is comforting his own,
And Christ, our Saviour, lives.
Thanks be to God. Our hearts are full;
We praise his holy name.
The mighty one of Jacob's seed
Forever is the same.
He'll ne'er forget his children here;
Their names are graven deep
Upon the palms of both his hands;
A constant watch he'll keep.
We feel such present blessings sweet,
We see such victories won.
We call on hills and stars to praise
Our God and Christ, his Son.
PETITION FOR A SUNDAY LAW.
By William N. Glenn
BY W. N. GLENN.
THE Sunday-law effort in the present Legislature of California has made its appearance in the form of a petition. At this writing no bill has been introduced. The following is a copy of the petition:—
To the California House of Representatives of 1893: We, the undersigned, citizens of the State of California, twenty-one years of age and over, most earnestly petition your honorable body to enact a law forbidding all Sunday traffic and work, as well as all coarse and noisy amusements on that day of the week, making suitable exception for works of necessity and mercy, and for private work by those who religiously and regularly observe another day of the week by abstaining from labor and business on the same.
The petition bears the well-known stamp of the American Sabbath Union. It was expected that the union's agents would make a strong pull at this session. Their three years' campaign in the State, at the close of which they confidently promised their supporters a Sunday law, has been zealously though quietly prosecuted. The time is up, and it now lies with the Legislature to announce the success of the plotters, or their doom to disappointment and another two years of campaign.
The special mark of the Sabbath Union lies in the religious requirement. They have always claimed that they only asked a civil rest day, but their dictum that those who observe another day shall do so "religiously," invariably discovers that the move is a religious one, and its purpose the enforcement of a religious tenet by the power of civil law. They well know that the masses of the people, as well as intelligent and capable lawmakers, are not blind to the fact that the civil government has no legitimate business to interfere with the religious scruples of the people, either to enforce or to restrain; therefore they have so far endeavored to dress the Sunday-law movement in a civil garb, with a garniture of solicitude for the physical well-being of the workingman. But the requirement that those who observe another day shall observe it "religiously" and "regularly" so, shows that such is the design for Sunday observance. The logical point is that men should be compelled to be religious at least one day in the week, and that the State is the proper authority to see that such duty is performed.
Should the Legislature lend its aid to such a scheme, it becomes the abettor of two gross evils: First, it legalizes a process ostensibly to inculcate morals, but which can only result in making many hypocrites. Secondly, it places in the hands of bigots and fanatics a weapon with which they can persecute those who do not agree with them in the matter of true Sabbath observance, to an almost unlimited extent. And we know from the example of some other States that such men are not lacking when the opportunity is presented.
And, furthermore, when the door is once opened to legislation of a religious character, the demand will not cease with the first success. The tendency already is forcibly to set215aside everything that comes in the way of ambitious churchmen and church work. And, surely, if the right exists to say what men shall do religiously on any particular day of the week, there is no reason why other and further demands shall not be enforced at the call of the same influence that should secure the first step.
But some will say there are Sunday laws in nearly all the other States, and only in a few of them have such persecutions arisen, and it is designed here to exempt the class that have been persecuted in those States. But it should be borne in mind that the American Sabbath Union is a New York corporation organized for the very purpose of securing more stringent enforcement of State Sunday laws, and making those laws more stringent in their provisions. And to this end a part of their program is to secure the enactment of a national Sunday law so that the general government will not in any of its operations infringe upon the State laws.
And our Legislatures should bear in mind that a California Sunday law is a prominent factor in the effort for a national law. And this is why the agents of the American Sabbath Union (the California branch) are so zealously working to secure a State law. California stands almost alone among the States as having no such law, and hence is a barrier to the design of presenting before Congress the argument of a unanimity of the States on the Sunday-law question. Therefore the importance to the union of securing something, be it ever so mild at present, that can be called a Sunday law. But when the national law shall have been secured, then, according to the program, will come a general stiffening up on the part of the States in the matter of enforced Sunday observance. It remains to be seen whether the California Legislature will become a party to any such sinister scheme against the rights and liberties of the people.
SPRINKLING.
By Editor
THE editor of the Harbinger, having been asked, “About what date was sprinkling adopted for baptism, by whom, and where?” gives the following reply:—
This question cannot be answered in its own terms, for it cannot be said that sprinkling was adopted for baptism by any particular person nor at any particular time. It gradually grew into practice and required several centuries for doing this. The first case on record of anything being used for baptism except immersion is the case of Novatian, given by Eusebius. Novatian, being very sick and it being thought he would die immediately, had water poured all over him in bed. This occurred not earlier than A.D. 251. But Novatian recovered and was refused recognition by the church because of the incompleteness of his baptism. Other sick persons subsequently desired to receive this “clinical” baptism, but the authorities of the church strongly condemned it, yet the custom gradually grew in spite of these objections.
The Encyclopedia Britannica says: “The Council of Ravenna in 1311 was the first council of the church which legalized baptism by sprinkling, by leaving it to the choice of the officiating minister.” This will come nearest answering our brother’s question, in that sprinkling was first legalized for baptism in 1311 by the Council of Ravenna.
THE GIFT OF THE HOLY SPIRIT.
By Stephen Nelson Haskell
BY ELDER S. N. HASKELL.
No LANGUAGE can overestimate the importance of the Spirit of God. By it every agency for good is quickened in the accomplishment of the work of God in the earth. As Christ opened before the disciples the great work that was to be done, he promised them the Holy Spirit to reveal to them truths which were new only in the sense that their finite minds had not before comprehended them. They were to present the greater and glorious truths of God's holy word that would convict and convert souls through this agency,—the Holy Spirit.
If the story of astronomers be true, that not only secondaries revolve around their planets, and planets their suns, but that suns revolve around the center of immense systems, and all these centers throughout the immensity of space move around one great center, who can conceive the magnitude of a force or power that can thus operate through infinite space with precisely the same law of attraction for vast worlds and infinitesimal atoms? Think of the magnetic power which makes the steel filings, though in a mass of dust and rubbish, and clippings of tin and iron, leave them all and fly up and kiss the magnet. It touches the pivoted needle, and lives and treasure are secure upon the stormy ocean in the darkest night by its unerring guidance. The winds may blow ever so fiercely, the waves may roll ever so furiously, and the vessel pitch and sink as though it would be submerged, and yet that strange influence, unheeded, unfelt even by the most sensitive nerves, holds the needle in its place.
Who can tell what is power? We see it in its effects, we measure it in its results. So with spiritual power. We cannot tell "whence it cometh or whither it goeth." It breathes upon the human spirit, the stormy passions subside, and truth, purity, meekness, and love reign in the soul. It is beyond the philosopher's fabled stone, whose touch would transmute into gold. Spiritual power is not beauty of presence nor dignity of form. It is not learning, nor rhetoric, nor logic, nor oratory; but it can use these for its one great end. It can burn and shine in the highest periods of the most eloquent speaker, and it can thrill in the accents of the unlettered man. It can use all there is of a human being for the glory of God and the advance of his work.
It is a spiritual force in its highest manifestation, committed to God's people for the accomplishment of his work in the earth. It uses the power of thought, which is immense in its character—thoughts not only of good men but of angels and of God. It causes light to shine on God's thoughts from eternity which are expressed in his sacred word. It uses the power of language in all its various forms. It is a tongue of fire to preach among all nations, and to carry to every heart the knowledge of the power and love of God.
If there was a power in the eloquence of Demosthenes when he stirred the people of Athens as a sea is stirred by the storm; if there was power with Napoleon that could inspire his soldiers under the most discouraging circumstances to lay down their lives for the accomplishment of nothing but his own stubborn will; if there be, as some claim, a magnetic power which kindles in the eye and sparkles responsively from the speaker to the hearer, and from the hearer to the speaker, if there be some subtle current established between them, which is manifested in the energy of the speaker and the rapt attention of the hearer—all of this is subservient to the child of God, who receives from heaven that "unction from the Holy One."
It was promised by God through the prophets Joel, Isaiah, and Daniel. It was what the Saviour referred to when he said, "Behold, I send the promise of my Father upon you," and again, "Wait for the promise of the Father which ye have heard of me." It was the "Comforter" whom the Father would send in his name; it was the "power from on high," and was to be manifested like power seen occasionally in ancient times, as when the Spirit of the Lord came upon Saul and he prophesied, and was turned into another man, so that the people said, "Is Saul also among the prophets?" or when Moses "gathered the seventy men of the elders of the people, and set them round about the tabernacle. And the Lord came down in a cloud, and spake unto him, and took of the spirit that was upon him, and gave it unto the seventy elders; and it came to pass, that, when the spirit rested upon them, they prophesied, and did not cease." Num. 11: 24, 25.
This power is not only "from on high," but it is a connecting link between the throne of God and our hearts. It is the indwelling of the Holy Spirit, not simply for conversion, but to use the whole of a purified nature, and especially the tongue, for aggressive Christian work. It enabled the receiver to see that there is a divine power which can save and rescue fallen man, that this power is in the gospel of Jesus Christ, and that it is exercised through the preaching of the word. It involves the idea of expectancy on the part of the minister. He believes that while he preaches, and as he preaches, a divine power accompanies his word, and is mysteriously working in the hearts of his congregation.
SIN IS SIN.
By Rev. C. Spurgeon
BY REV. C. SPURGEON.
SIN is a fact. The popular estimate of sin, however, does not coincide with the Bible view. There is a vast amount of jugglery with words over this as well as over other matters of grave importance, until some unsuspicious folks, who, judging the subject as serious, cannot for one moment credit the fact that it is trifled with, are led to believe there is virtue in vice. The necromancy of the present day is so skillful that the black of our forefathers goes for white with their grandchildren. Sin even uses its deceptions upon itself and impersonates the Christ.
By a strange twist a lie becomes the truth, and the fiend of the pit "an angel of light." Moral lepers are counted clean, and fallen men and women are looked upon as paragons of perfection. Carrion crows are doves, and sparrows are painted like canaries. Fair names, like the rouge on the harlot's face, make sin appear healthy, but its Jezebel nature remains unchanged. Civilization may dress "the workers of iniquity" in fashionable attire, and education train criminals to good manners; but neither can make sin in its essence less sinful. The fountain is polluted, and while the source is vile the streams must of necessity be foul. There are whole broods of vices caged within the heart. Dislocation has come upon the symmetry of a nature once perfect, and an utter collapse has ensued. But men will not believe this against themselves. Thus it comes about that crime is at a premium, and he who indulges most finds court with many who otherwise would taboo him. Alas, that the assassin of the Saviour has of late become the confrère of his accredited disciples, and the murderer of Jesus the friend of those who profess to revere the Crucified!
God has called it "an abominable thing," and all the ingenuity of human metamorphosis cannot change the evil into good. The immaculate mantle woven by the newly fallen snow may cover a dust heap, but it cannot convert it into a mound of diamonds. The refuse will remain such, and its vileness will be the more apparent when the sunshine has melted its coverlet. The scorching wrath of God will soon evaporate the superpose of worldly compliment, and the reeking feculence of sin will be the more obnoxious. Let the pulpit be true in unmasking the highwayman of the heart, and exposing the real nature of this robber of our eternal inheritance. Some preachers need to be reminded that the ages have not lessened its virulence, but the added years have rather increased the acrimony of its malevolence. Give no quarter to such a knave, but smite him hip and thigh. Whether your weapon be battle-ax or sledge hammer, hit hard at sin and deal lusty blows with the hammer of God's word at every iniquity.—Christian Inquirer.
SPIRITUALISM, ANCIENT AND MODERN.
By T. B. Snow
BY T. B. SNOW.
IN an article published in the Signs of January 9, 1893, entitled "Spiritualism and the Bible," I showed that the Bible did not teach that "frequent communication of intelligence from the world of spirits" of dead men, was possible, for the reason that the "dead know not anything," and that in the very day that a man dies his "thoughts perish." This condition would render communication impossible. The object of this article is to show that Spiritualism is no new thing, and that it is not only proven by the Scripture to be impossible, but the practice of seeking for information from the world of spirits is condemned by the word of God, and that those who formerly sought for information from that source were to be put to death. To find out what the Bible teaches in regard to this we will first ascertain just what Spiritualism is.
Let us look at a few definitions:—
"Enchanter—one who enchants; a sorcerer."
"Sorcery—divination by the assistance of evil spirits; magic."
"Magic—science or practice of evoking spirits or educing the occult powers of nature, and performing wonderful things by their aid. Synonyms, sorcery, witchcraft, necromancy, conjuration, enchantment."
"Necromancy—art of revealing future events by means of a pretended communication with the dead, conjuration."
"Spiritualism—a belief in the communication of intelligence from the world of spirits."
"Witchcraft—practices of witches; sorcery; enchantment; power more than natural."—Webster.
By a comparison of these definitions, it will be readily seen that enchantment, sorcery, magic, necromancy, witchcraft, and Spiritualism are one and the same thing; or, in other words, Spiritualism is only a new name given to sorcery, necromancy, etc., which were practiced among the heathen. These practices were an abomination unto the Lord, and it was because of this that these nations were to be driven out. Deut. 18:10-14. Witches were to be put to death. Ex. 22:18. False prophets were not suffered to live. Deut. 13:1-5. Charmers, consulters of familiar spirits, wizards, and necromancers were not allowed to exist among God's chosen people. Deut. 18:10-14.
These things were practiced throughout the heathen world, but originated with Satan, and by him were given to man. He laid the foundation when he said, "Ye shall not surely die" (Gen. 3:4); and upon this foundation he built a doctrine, which has been accepted not only by the heathen, but was brought with them into the Christian church.
This doctrine is that of the inherent immortality of the soul. It tends to undermine the whole plan of salvation through Christ. It does away with the necessity of the resurrection of the dead, and of a future judgment day, for it teaches that man goes direct to his reward at death. It embraces within its folds the Catholic doctrines of purgatory, prayers to the dead and for the dead, worship of the Virgin Mary and saint worship, together with Universalism and eternal torment of the wicked, and other equally unscriptural doctrines still held among Protestants. The Reformation by Martin Luthur and his co-workers failed to eradicate many of these false doctrines from the church, therefore we find Protestants still clinging to them.
So we have this fact, that the devil in saying, "Ye shall not surely die," laid the foundation for the greatest possible deceptions.
Almost all the people of the world have believed it. The heathen first, then an apostate church accepted it. Hence of the last days we read: "And I saw three unclean spirits like frogs come out of the mouth of the dragon, and out of the mouth of the beast, and out of the mouth of the false prophet [symbol of the great apostate religions of earth]. For they are the spirits of devils, working miracles, which go forth unto the kings of the earth and of the whole world, to gather them to the battle of that great day of God Almighty." Rev. 16:13, 14.
Thus we find that Spiritualism is simply a device of the devil to deceive men and lure them on to perdition. God, in his great mercy and love to fallen man, has given him warning not to give ear to it or practice it, on pain of death. The sorcerers will be found on the outside of the city of God, with its gates closed against them (Rev. 22:15), and they will finally suffer the second death in the lake of fire (Rev. 21:8).
Leon, Wis.
A DIVINE COMMAND FOR CLOSING THE GATES OF THE WORLD'S FAIR ON SUNDAY.
By Wm. Penniman
BY WM. PENNIMAN.
At a mass meeting held in a Baptist Church in New York City, for the purpose of jubilating over the Sunday closing of the World's Fair, the editor of the Examiner, the Baptist organ of that city, took the position that the American sabbath is by the command of God. At the annual meeting of the American Board of Commissioners for Foreign Missions, held in Chicago, October 4-7 (reported in the Herald and Presbyter of October 12, 1892), Rev. Joseph Cook, the noted writer and lecturer, who is not only learned in all of the schools of the Occident, but has also sat at the feet of the most learned Gamaliels of the Orient, presented resolutions expressing devout gratitude to God that Congress, by great majorities in both houses, had voted for the Sunday closing of the Columbian World's Fair, and, in view of current agitation for Sunday opening, renewed their petition to Congress and the directors and commissioners of the World's Fair, to keep the doors of the Exposition closed in accordance with the divine command.
Mr. Cook must agree with the editor of the Examiner that the American sabbath is by the command of God, as he expresses his gratitude that he has commanded the gates to be shut on that day. We would like to have the learned theologian show the chapter and verse in the Bible where there is any "divine command" for shutting the doors of the World's Fair on Sunday. Can he prove that we are now living under a theocracy, as were the Jews at the time of Nehemiah, when he commanded the gates of Jerusalem to be shut on the Sabbath? Here are two difficult cases for Dr. Cook to cure. In the first place, he must prove that Sunday is the Sabbath; and in the second, that we are now under a theocracy. Dr. Cook is not always logical, as he reasons from a wrong premise as occasion requires, and irrationally expects a correct conclusion.
It is encouraging to know that, while so many are wishing for a union of Church and State, there are many true reformers who are zealously opposing this movement. A standard is lifted up against this work in the American Sentinel and in other papers, and we are glad to know that many others are lifting a warning voice against it.