The Advent Review and Sabbath Herald, Vol. 55, No. 7 (Thursday, February 12, 1880)

The Advent Review and Sabbath Herald

Thursday, February 12, 1880

Seventh-Day Adventist Publishing Association · Battle Creek, Mich. · Thursday, February 12, 1880

DANGERS AND DUTIES OF MINISTERS.

By Ellen G. White

BY MRS. E. G. WHITE.

Some ministers feel but little disposition to take the burden of the work of God upon them, and labor with that disinterested benevolence which characterized the mission and life of our divine Lord. Such men are a hindrance rather than a help to those churches which have had faith in the testimonies God has been pleased to give, and have acted upon them, while the preacher himself is far behind. He may profess to believe the testimony borne, and even go so far as to make an iron rule for those who have had little or no experience, and thereby do hurt. Such a course, to say the least, is very inconsistent.

The people of God generally feel a united interest in the spread of the truth. They cheerfully contribute toward a liberal support for those who labor in word and doctrine. This is no more than they should do; yet it is the duty of those who have the responsibility of distributing means, to see that the contributions of the church are not squandered. As these liberal brethren freely give a portion of their substance, which it has cost them so much hard labor to obtain, it is the duty of those who labor in word and doctrine to manifest a zeal and self-sacrifice at least equal to that shown by these brethren.

God’s servants should go out free. They should know in whom they trust. There is power in Christ and his salvation to make them free men; and unless they are free in him, they cannot build up his church and gather in souls. Will God send a man out to rescue souls from the snare of Satan, when his own feet are entangled in the same net? God’s servants must not waver. If their feet are sliding, how can they say to those of a fearful heart, “Be strong”? God would have his servants hold up the feeble hands, and strengthen the wavering. Those who are not prepared to do this would do better to first labor for themselves, and pray until they are indued with power from on high.

While the Author of our salvation was laboring and suffering for us, he denied himself, and his whole life was one continued scene of toil and privation. He could have passed his days on earth in ease and plenty, and appropriated to himself the pleasures of this life; but he considered not his own convenience. He lived to do others good. He suffered to save others from suffering. He finished the work which was given him to do. And now, can it be that we, the unworthy objects of so great love, will seek a better position in this life than was given to our Lord? Every moment of our lives we have been partakers of the blessings of his great love, and for this very reason we cannot fully realize the depths of ignorance and misery from which we have been saved. Can we look upon Him whom our sins have pierced, and not be willing to drink with him the bitter cup of humiliation and sorrow? Can we look upon Christ crucified, and wish to enter his kingdom in any other way than through much tribulation?

Let the history of the Waldenses testify what they suffered for their religion. Though persecuted and driven from their homes, they conscientiously studied the word of God, and lived up to the light which shone upon them. When their possessions were taken from them, and their houses burned, they fled to the mountains, and there endured hunger, fatigue, cold, and nakedness. And yet the scattered and homeless ones would assemble to unite their voices in singing and praising God, that they were accounted worthy to suffer for Christ’s name. They encouraged and cheered one another, and were grateful for even their miserable retreat. Many of their children sickened and died through exposure to cold, and the sufferings of hunger; yet the parents did not for a moment think of yielding their faith. They prized the love and favor of God far more than earthly ease or worldly riches. They received consolation from God, and with pleasing anticipations looked forward to the recompense of reward.

Look at the case of Martin Luther. His mind was starving for something sure upon which to build his hope that God would be his Father and Heaven his home. The new and precious light which dawned upon him was of such priceless value, that he thought if he went forth with it he could convince the world. He stood up against the ire of a fallen church, and strengthened those who with him were feasting upon the rich truths contained in the word of God. Luther was God’s chosen instrument to tear off the garb of hypocrisy from the papal church, and expose her corruption. He raised his voice zealously, and in the power of the Holy Spirit rebuked the existing sins of the leaders of the people. And although proclamations went forth to kill him wherever he might be found, and he seemed left to the fury of a cruel and superstitious people who were obedient to the head of the Roman church, yet he counted not his life dear unto himself. Luther knew that he was not safe anywhere, yet he trembled not. The light of truth in which he rejoiced was life to him, and consequently of more value than all the treasures of earth. Earthly treasures he knew would fail, but the rich truths that opened his understanding, and operated upon his heart, would live, and, if obeyed, would lead him to immortality.

When summoned to Augsburg to answer for his faith, he obeyed the summons. Firm and undaunted, he stood before those who had caused the world to tremble—a meek lamb surrounded by angry lions; yet for the sake of Christ and his truth, he unflinchingly and with holy eloquence, which the truth alone can inspire, gave the reasons of his faith. Various inducements were offered to allure him from his position, but life and honors were valueless to him if purchased at the sacrifice of truth. Brighter and clearer shone the word of God upon his understanding, giving him a more vivid sense of the errors, corruptions, and hypocrisy of the papacy. His enemies then sought to intimidate him and cause him to renounce his faith, but he boldly stood in defense of the truth. He was ready to die for his faith, if God required, but to yield it never. The angels of Heaven brought him through the stormy conflict unharmed, and baffled the rage and purposes of his enemies.

The calm, dignified power of Luther humbled his enemies, and dealt a most dreadful blow to the papacy. The great and proud men in power meant that his blood should atone for the mischief he had done to their cause. Their plans were laid; but a mightier than they had charge of the great Reformer. His work was not finished. Foiled in their designs upon Luther at Augsburg, they summoned him to Worms, fully determined to make him answer for his folly. His feeble health did not deter him from responding to the call, though he knew full well the danger that threatened him there. The minions of the papacy were crying for his blood as eagerly as the Jews clamored for the blood of Christ, yet he trusted in that God who preserved the three worthies in the burning, fiery furnace. The intrepid man of God sought not his own ease or preferment, but felt that he would rather die than see the precious truth exposed to the insult of its bitter enemies.

The great men of earth, in all their pomp and splendor, are not attended by a larger company than crowded the streets of Worms as Luther entered the city. From the midst of that surging throng which pressed around and followed him, was heard the shrill and plaintive voice of one chanting a funeral dirge to warn the Reformer of his impending danger. Intense excitement prevailed, and for a time Luther’s faith and courage were severely tested; but as his agonizing prayer went up to God, the clouds that seemed to envelop him in darkness were lifted, and light from Heaven beamed in upon him. That prayer was heard, and Luther received strength to deliver the message that God designed those mighty men of earth should hear.

The meek bearing of this messenger of the Lord was in striking contrast with the passion and rage exhibited by the so-called great men composing that vast assembly. But they could not frighten him into a recantation of the truth. The opposition of his enemies, their rage and

threats, like the mighty wave, surged against him; yet in noble simplicity and calm firmness he stood like a rock. They were chagrined to have their power, which had caused kings and nobles to tremble, thus despised by a humble man, and longed to make him feel its force by torturing his life away; but One who is mightier than the potentates of earth had charge of this fearless witness. God had a work for him to do. He was yet to see the cause of truth made through bloody persecutions, and to suffer in its behalf. He must live to justify it and be its defender, when the mighty ones of earth should seek to destroy it. He must live to see it tear away the errors and superstitions of the papacy. Luther gained a victory at Worms which awakened the man of sin, and struck an effectual blow for the Reformation throughout the world.

The last merciful message is intrusted to God’s humble, faithful servants of this time. Those who have not shunned responsibility, have, by the help of God, been enabled to lay systematic plans by which all can work if they will. With everything furnished to his hand, it is displeasing to God for any minister to now refuse to throw his whole energy into this all-important work. Some, however, think they are sacrificing much, and having a hard time, when they really know nothing about suffering, self-denial, or want. They may often be weary, so would they be if they were dependent on manual labor for a support. Some have felt that it would be easier to labor with their hands, and have often expressed a desire to do so, thinking they would be more free from anxiety, and could better labor at home for their families. But in this they are deceived; for should they engage in manual labor, they would not be free from anxiety and weariness. And while laboring to support their families, they could not be sitting down at their firesides. God marks every thought, and word, and feeling; and Heaven is insulted by any such exhibition of weakness and lack of devotion to the cause of God. In the early stages of this work, there were but few friends of the cause. These servants of God wept and prayed for a clear understanding of the truth. They suffered privations and much self-denial, in order to spread a knowledge of it; and although as the result of much labor but few received the precious message, yet step by step they followed as God’s opening providence led the way. They did not study their own convenience or shrink at hardships. God, through these men, prepared the way, and the truth has been made very plain; yet some who have since embraced the truth have failed to take upon themselves the burden of the work.

In every age men have arisen who have thought it noble to doubt the word of God. Those who think it a virtue to quibble can have plenty of room to disbelieve the inspiration and truth of God’s word now. God does not compel any to believe. They can choose to rely upon the evidences he has been pleased to give, or doubt, and cavil, and perish; but those who are troubled with doubts and difficulties which they cannot solve, should not throw other weak minds into the same perplexity. In the past, some have hinted or talked their unbelief, and have passed on, little dreaming of the effect produced. The seeds of unbelief, in some instances, have taken immediate root, while in others they have lain buried quite a length of time, until the individual in whose heart the seed was sown has taken a wrong course and given place to the enemy, and the light of God has been withdrawn from him; then the seeds of infidelity which were sown so long ago have sprung up and borne fruit. Ministers as well as people have a warfare before them in resisting the devil. The individual who represents God’s truth is in a sad plight when found serving the purposes of Satan by listening to his whisperings, and letting him captivate the mind and guide the thoughts. It is, furthermore, a grievous sin in the sight of God for one to talk out his unbelief, and draw other minds into the same dark channel, thus suffering Satan to carry out a twofold purpose in tempting him.

By such a course the work of death is carried on at a fearful rate. It is time that the watchmen upon the walls of Zion should understand the responsibility and sacredness of their mission. They should feel that a woe is upon them if they do not perform the work God has committed to them. If they become unfaithful, they are endangering the safety of the flock of God, endangering the cause of truth, and exposing it to the ridicule of our enemies. Oh, what a work is this! It will surely meet its reward. God is not dependent upon any man for the advancement of his cause. He is raising up and qualifying men to bear the message of truth to the world, in whose weakness his strength can be made perfect. Ready speech, eloquence, and great talents, will not convert a single soul; but the converting power is of God. Pulpit efforts may stir up minds, and the plain argument may be convincing; but a little imprudence upon the part of the minister out of the pulpit, a lack of gravity of speech and true godliness, will counteract his influence every time, and do away the good impressions made by him. The converts will be his. In many instances they will seek to rise no higher than their preacher. There will be in them no thorough heart-work.

The success of a minister depends very much upon his deportment out of the desk. When he leaves the desk, his work is not finished. He should follow up his public labors by private efforts, laboring personally for souls at every opportunity, conversing around the fireside, beseeching and entreating them to seek those things which secure their peace. He should never move heedlessly, but set a watch over himself, lest something that he may do or say may be taken advantage of by the enemy, and a reproach be brought upon the cause of Christ.

“I AM A STRANGER IN THE EARTH,” PS. 119:19.

By L. D. A. Stuttle

BY MRS. L. D. A. STUTTLE.

I AM a stranger in the land; Hide not thy precepts, Lord, from me, But guide me by thy loving hand, Nor let me ever stray from thee, Till Zion’s beauteous hills I see.

I am a pilgrim, lone and sad; I have no dwelling here below; In coarse and humble garments clad, A stranger wandering to and fro. Oh, lead me wheresoe’er I go!

I am a stranger, poor and blind; But thou art full of truth and grace, Art ever merciful and kind, Nor hidest long thy gentle face From the lost sons of Adam’s race.

And thou, the Prince of Heaven, didst come, Filled with compassion strong and deep, Didst leave thy glorious, blissful home, And wander o’er earth’s mountains steep To seek and save thy wayward sheep.

Then of thy sufferings, dear Lord, Oh, let me joyfully partake; And may I never scorn thy word, My blest Redeemer ne’er forsake, Who dwelt a pilgrim for my sake.

Vernon, Mich., Feb. 1.

The Structure of the Earth.

By D. N. Lord

THE GEOLOGICAL THEORY OF THE AGE OF THE EARTH.—THE CRITERIA BY WHICH IT IS TO BE TESTED.

Among the various speculations that are adverse to the teachings of the Bible, and naturally lead those who accept them to doubt and reject its inspiration, the theory of modern geology in respect to the age of the world, holds, we believe, a conspicuous place; and from the title and air with which it is invested of an inductive science, from the great number of interesting and extraordinary facts that are alleged as demonstrating it, and from the acquiescence and sanction it receives from men of learning and worth, it is one of the most imposing and seductive. Geologists have not confined themselves to the discovery and description of the great facts of the science;—that the crust generally of the continents and islands has received its present form since the creation of plants and animals; that it consists of a series of different rocky and earthy beds, in many places very numerous and of great depth, which have either been deposited from the ocean or thrown up from beneath; that many of them are interspersed with the relics of other rocks, and of plants, shells, the bones of fish, and the skeletons of land quadrupeds, a large share of which are of species and genera that no longer exist; and that subsequently to their formation, most of them have been raised into new positions, contorted, dislocated, and broken into fragments;—but they have, on the ground of these facts, framed theories respecting the causes of which they are the result, and the sources from which their materials were derived, that have led them to conclusions that conflict with the inspired account given in Genesis of the creation. Proceeding on the assumption that they are the product of forces like those that are now giving birth to somewhat similar effects, as on volcanic mountains, at the mouths of rivers, and on the shores of seas, they have inferred that their deposition must have occupied a period immensely larger than that which is assigned to the earth by the Mosaic record. If they are the result, they reason, of the chemical and mechanical forces that are now in activity, and operating with only their present intensity, instead of being the work of but six thousand years, they must have required an almost inconceivable duration; they must have been the growth of an incalculable round of ages. And hence, unfortunately, mistaking that conclusion from a mere hypothesis for a scientific induction from these facts, and elevating it to the rank of a demonstrated truth, they have exhibited geology as contradicting the Scriptural history of the creation, and prepared the way for the inference that that history is not true, and therefore cannot have proceeded from God. For that conclusion is the logical consequence of their theory. It is incredible, they themselves admit, that the truths of science should be at war with the teachings of a divine revelation. It is impossible that God should make a communication to us through one medium, which he contradicts and confutes in another. But we know, they assert, that the great volume of nature, the vast monuments of the material world, proceeded from his hand; and on these indestructible tablets he has inscribed a record, which announces in the most unequivocal and emphatic terms that the earth and its organized and living races, with the exception of man, instead of having been summoned into being, as Moses relates, only some six thousand years ago, had at that epoch existed through myriads and millions of ages. And contemplated thus, the inference is inevitable that the contradictory testimony of Moses is false, and cannot be from God. That Hebrew writer, it is said, may have been ignorant of the date of the creation; God cannot. Moses may have deliberately framed a fiction; it is impossible that God should not have spoken the truth.

The question, then, whether the conclusion geologists thus draw in respect to the age of the world is legitimate, or not, is of the greatest moment. If founded on just grounds, it disproves the inspiration, not only of the record in Genesis of the creation, but of the whole of the writings of Moses, and thence, as we shall show, of the whole of the Old and New Testaments, and divests Christianity itself of its title to be received as a divine institution. The whole Revelation is changed at once from a Heaven-descended reality, into a fable; from the most glorious of God’s works, into a device of man. This geological doctrine deserves therefore to be carefully and effectively tested, that if mistaken, and unscientific, the false principle on which it proceeds may be pointed out, and the Scriptures vindicated from the objections of which it is the source: and that if, on the other hand, it be found to be just, the friends of Christianity may be apprised of the blow with which it strikes away the object of their faith. And its merits are to be determined manifestly, not by specious appearances merely, plausible conjectures, showy hypotheses, or vague and shadowy speculations: it is to be tried by the laws of nature, the great facts of the strata, and the forces that are now and have been at work in modifying the earth’s surface. If supported by these, in a clear and demonstrative manner, it must stand, so far as its truth is to be decided within the sphere of nature; if not supported by them, if irreconcilable both with the facts of the strata and the laws of nature, it must fall, and the objection against Christianity fall with it, of which its doctrine of the great age of the world is the source. That question we propose to try.

The theory on which geologists found their inference of the great age of the earth is, that the materials of which the strata consist were derived from mountains and continents of granite and other rocks; that these rocks were gradually disintegrated by the action of the air, water, and heat; that they were borne down from those mountains and continents by rains, currents, and rivers, to the ocean, and distributed over its bed in successive layers; and that they were at length elevated from the bottom of the ocean to their present position; that the agents by which these vast effects were wrought, were those by which the somewhat similar changes that are now taking place, are produced; and that the number and thickness of the strata, the vast multitudes of vegetable and animal remains that lie buried in them, and the slowness with which similar processes of erosion and deposition now advance, prove that an immense series of ages must have been required for their formation. This inference of the age of the world, is thus founded on a theory of the sources from which the materials of the strata were derived, the agents by which they were transferred to the bottom of the ocean, and the forces by which they were raised to their present position;—not irrespective of that on the strata themselves.

On the other hand, we reject their hypothesis respecting the derivation of the materials of the strata, and the mode in which they were distributed over the bed of the ocean, as a mere assumption, inconsistent with the laws of nature, and the facts of the strata, and subversive of itself: and thereby confute the inference they found on it of the great age of the world, as unproved and unscientific.

The question, then, we are to debate is, not whether the strata that have been formed since the earth was created, are such in nature and number as geologists represent; nor whether such vegetable and animal relics lie entombed in them. These facts are indisputable, and are admitted as freely in our reasonings as in theirs. But the question between us is, whether their hypothesis respecting the formation of the strata

is legitimate; and thence whether the conclusion which they found on that hypothesis respecting the age of the world, is just and authoritative.

In order that the hypotheses and reasonings on which geologists build their inference of the age of the world, may be legitimate and fill the office which they assign them, they must possess, it will be admitted on all hands, certain characteristics, and be free from certain faults.

1. They must be consistent with—not contravene—the laws of nature. Geologists must not assume, for example, as a preparative for their hypothesis respecting the formation of the strata, that the world originally existed in a state that is incompatible with its present nature; such as that it was created a gas or an assemblage of gases; as that implies that there was an immensely greater amount of caloric in it originally than now belongs to it; which is wholly unauthorized and unscientific. Geologists have no more right to assume that it was imbued originally with thousands and millions of times its present sum of heat than they have to assume that it had thousands and millions of times its present bulk of water, air, quartz, lime, or any other ingredient that enters into its composition. It is against the great principle, also, on which they proceed in their attempts to account for the changes which the surface of the earth has undergone: namely, that the effects that have been wrought in it were the work of identically the agents—air, water, and heat—that are now producing changes on the earth’s surface, and acting on their present scale both of extent and of intensity. It is to contradict the laws of matter likewise, to assume that the world was created in the form of gas. Matter, with the exception of a few species—such as the elements of air and water—is raised to a gaseous form only by intense heat. But heat is naturally latent. It is developed or made perceptible only by chemical action. To suppose the world to have been created in a gaseous form, is therefore to suppose it to have been created in a condition in which it could not, according to the present laws of matter, have existed, except as a secondary state; or as a consequence of the action of its elements on each other after they were created. That supposition therefore contradicts the laws of heat and the formation of gaseous bodies. It is as unphilosophical and absurd to suppose the matter of the globe to have been created in the form of a gas as it is to suppose that it was created in the form of vegetables and animals; organic structures which matter never assumes until after it has existed in another form. An inference of the great age of the world, founded on an assumption, on the one hand, of the creation of its matter in a state in which by its laws it could not exist, until after it had existed in another form; and, on the other, of its originally containing a far larger share of one of its elements than now belongs to it, can have no claim to be regarded as legitimate and authoritative.

2. They must not assume as a basis of their inference of the age of the world, that it once existed in a form of which they have no proof; such as that it was in a state of fusion; and that a granite crust was formed over its molten ocean, by the cooling of its surface. Such a supposition is forbidden, indeed, by the consideration to which we have already referred; that it implies that the earth originally had a far greater proportion of combustible matter than now belongs to it; as at present there is not—so far as can be judged—a hundredth, and probably not a millionth part of the combustible matter in the globe, that would be requisite, if ignited, to reduce its whole mass to a state of fusion. On the assumption, however, that there is no lack of combustible matter in the earth for the fusion of all its substances, there yet is no proof nor probability that it ever was in a state of universal fusion. It is as impossible to prove that it ever was in such a state, as to prove that it once existed in a gaseous form. To build an inference of the age of the world on such an assumption, is therefore to build it on an hypothesis of what cannot be shown to have been a fact; and that is to build it on nothing, and render it wholly unscientific and worthless.

3. They must not found their inference of the age of the world on the assumption of a condition of the globe, which if it is supposed to have existed, instead of contributing to the formation of the strata, would have made their construction impossible: such as the supposition that the materials of the strata were drawn from mountains of granite, that were ten or fifteen miles above the level of the ocean. The strata of the earth are held by geologists, to be on an average, about ten miles in depth. To maintain, therefore, that their materials were derived from continents and mountains of granite, and were borne from them by torrents and rivers to the ocean, is to imply that those granite continents and mountains,—even if they covered as large an area as the strata now occupy,—were at least ten miles above the level of the ocean; and if the mountains from which it is represented the matter of the strata was chiefly drawn, were of but half or two-thirds the extent of the strata that are supposed to have been formed from them, then they must have been elevated at least fourteen or fifteen miles above the level of the ocean. But mountains elevated to such an enormous height and extending over vast areas, could never have been disintegrated by the action of the air, water, and heat. There would have been no air, except of the most attenuated kind, and no water at all probably at that elevation. On the supposition that vapors could have ascended to such a height, and fallen in the form of snow, they would forever have remained congealed. No heat could have been developed there, sufficient to dissolve them. No rivers therefore could have flown from them, and consequently no detritus could have been borne from them to the sea, to be distributed over its bottom, and form layers, like our present strata. The supposition of such mountains, as the source of the materials of the strata, defeats itself, and renders the inference from it of the great age of the earth, unscientific and absurd.

4. They must not assume that the effects for which they attempt to account, are the work of agents that are wholly inadequate to produce them: such as that the torrents and great rivers which they represent as having borne the materials of the strata from mountains and continents, entered the ocean with such a rush as to diffuse the gravel, mud, and vegetable matter, with which they were loaded, through all its waters, and cause their deposition in layers co-extensive with its bed. None of the present rivers of the globe enter the ocean with such an impulse. So far from it, the currents of all the principal rivers are greatly checked as they approach the sea, divided into numerous channels, and brought to a dead pause, at the distance usually of fifty to one hundred miles from the shore; and consequently the detritus with which they are charged, falls to the bottom within a narrow space. The great mass of the ocean is no more affected by them, than are the continents that lie opposite to the points where the rivers enter it. To assign to the rivers, therefore, or the tides and currents of the sea, the distribution of the materials of the strata, throughout their whole domain, is to ascribe to them an effect that wholly transcends their power.

5. They must not found their inference of the age of the world on an hypothesis, respecting the mode in which the strata were formed, instead of the strata themselves. To found their inference of the age of the world on the hypothesis, for example, that the strata were formed by the agency of heat, air, and water, acting only on the scale, and with the intensity, with which they are now disintegrating rocks, and bearing their detritus to the sea—is to beg at the outset, the very point which they affect to prove. For if the strata were formed by no other agents than those which are now acting on the land and the sea, and their deposition proceeded at no more rapid rate than similar strata are now forming on the bottom of the ocean, then of course a vast series of ages must have passed before their construction could have been completed; not to say that it could never have taken place. But such a method of establishing the antiquity of the globe, has no title to be regarded as demonstrative or logical. Geologists must first prove by irrefragable evidence, that the strata were formed by the slow process which the hypothesis represents, before they can make that mode of their formation the ground of an inference of the vast age of the world. To assume that hundreds or thousands of years were necessary for the structure of any one of the layers of which the strata consist; and that, therefore, as many hundreds or thousands of years were consumed in the construction of the whole, as there are layers in the whole of the strata, is to take for granted—not to prove—the vast antiquity of the earth.

6. They must not assume any condition of the world, the existence of any agents, or the occurrence of any events, the reality of which they cannot demonstrate; and all their assumptions and reasonings must be consistent with all the facts, and all the laws of nature, which the question affects.

To these axioms geologists themselves will undoubtedly assent; and it results from them, that if the strata demonstrate that the world has subsisted through a vast series of ages, it must be by what they themselves are, in composition, bulk, and number—not by any theory of an antecedent state of the earth, or the processes by which they were formed. If they do not prove the great age of the world, by what they themselves are, irrespective of any speculations in regard to the agents by which they were formed, they cannot prove it at all; precisely as, if the nature and number of the elements of which the great pyramid of Egypt consists, and the fact that it was erected by human hands—do not prove that millions of ages were occupied in its erection; no theory, respecting the agents by whom it was built, and the method of their procedure, can demonstrate that such a period was occupied in its construction.—D. N. Lord.

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