LESSON 13.—DECEMBER 27.—THE REAL PRESENCE RESTORED.
The Gospel is the divine provision for salvation from sin. Rom. 1:16. It supplies righteousness to the believer. Verse 17. This is the Gospel of the manifested life (1 John 1:1, 2) through which we are brought into fellowship with God (verse 3). The Son of God took the flesh in order that we might be brought into the same relationship and fellowship with God. Gal. 4:4, 5. This relationship is established on our part through our faith in Jesus, the Son of God. Gal. 3:26, R. V. This faith lays hold upon the righteousness of God (Rom. 3, 20-22), and he who exercises it is justified by it. Justification by faith is the basis of salvation for the whole world (Gal. 3:8), Jew as well as Gentile (Gal. 2:15, 16). The experience of it is the experience of the real presence of Christ in the service of the living temple, the mystery of godliness.
In taking away the continual, the real presence, the Papacy struck at the very heart of the Gospel, and took away justification by faith, changing the law of faith into the law of works, and substituting the mystery of iniquity for the mystery of godliness. This ought to be clear from the lessons already studied. The Reformation of the sixteenth century was an attempt to restore this fundamental doctrine of Christianity. Says D’Aubigne, the historian of the Reformation: “The church had fallen, because the great doctrine of justification by faith in the Saviour had been taken away from her. It was necessary, therefore, before she could rise again, that this doctrine should be restored to her. As soon as this fundamental truth should be re-established in Christendom, all the errors and observances that had taken its place—all that multitude of saints, of works, penances, masses, indulgences, etc.,—would disappear. As soon as the one only Mediator and His only sacrifice were acknowledged, all other mediators and sacrifices would vanish. ‘This article of justification,’ says a man whom we may consider enlightened on this matter [Luther], ‘is what creates the church, nourishes it, edifies it, preserves and defends it; no one can teach worthily in the church, or oppose an adversary with success, if he does not adhere to this truth.’ ‘This,’ adds the writer whom we quote, in allusion to the earliest prophecy, ‘is the heel that shall bruise the head of the serpent.’” (“History of the Reformation,” Vol. I, page 90.)
The teaching of the Scriptures on the subject of justification by faith was both the cause of the Reformation and the power for the Reformation. It brought light to the mind of Luther, the monk at Wittenberg. D’Aubigne says: “In the retirement of his quiet cell he used to consecrate whole hours to the study of the divine Word, this epistle of St. Paul [to the Romans] lying open before him. On one occasion, having reached the seventeenth verse of the first chapter, he read the passage from the prophet Habakkuk, ‘The just shall live by faith.’ This precept struck him. . . . This promise, which he received into his heart, as if God Himself had placed it there, unveils to him the mystery of the Christian life, and increases this life in him.” (“History of the Reformation,” Vol. I, page 186.) “This powerful text has a mysterious influence on the life of Luther. It was a creative sentence, both for the reformer and the Reformation. It was in these words God then said, ‘Let there be light; and there was light.’” (Id., page 198.)
In our day a message is to be given announcing the fall of the church (Rev. 14:8), and a call is to be made for a separation from this fallen church (Rev. 18:1-4). This movement is to carry to a successful issue the work of the Reformation, and its keynote must be the same, “The just shall live by faith.” It is clear then that the purpose of the Third Angel’s Message, the message against the beast and his image, must be “to make ready a people prepared for the Lord” by restoring the continual, which the horn, the Papacy, has taken away, and that this can be done only through the ministry of the experience of the real presence of Christ in the heart, the experience of the doctrine of justification by faith.
QUESTIONS.
What is the Gospel?
What is revealed in it to the believer?
Under what other form of statement is this same Gospel taught?
What is the result of accepting this Gospel of life?
For what purpose was the Son of God “born of a woman”?
How do we accept the offered relationship of sons?
What is received by all believers? What experience does this bring?
What is the only basis of salvation for all times and for all peoples?
Is there any different plan for the Jew than for the Gentile?
What experience does this way of salvation bring to those who accept it?
What did the Papacy take away? What changes did it make in God’s way of salvation?
What does D’Aubigne say was the cause of the fall of the church?
What does he state to be necessary for her restoration?
What consequences would follow the re-establishment of this fundamental truth of Christianity?
Of how much importance did Luther regard the doctrine of justification by faith?
What connection did Luther make between this great truth and the first promise of the Gospel?
What statement of the Scripture was the creative sentence for the Reformation?
What message is to be given in the present generation?
What definite call is to be sounded throughout the world?
What truth must be the inspiration and the power for this work?
What must be the purpose of the Third Angel’s Message?
What is the only way in which this purpose can be accomplished?
Infants’ Clothes
By Mrs. Rev. J. S.
I have found PEARLINE a great help in cleansing badly soiled infants’ clothes, as it does away with all rubbing. Mrs. Rev. J. S.
(8) “And there were shepherds in the same country abiding in the field, and keeping watch by night over their flock. (9) And an angel of the Lord stood by them, and the glory of the Lord shone round about them; and they were sore afraid. (10) And the angel said unto them, Be not afraid; for behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy which shall be to all the people; (11) for there is born to you this day in the city of David a Saviour, who is Christ the Lord. (12) And this is the sign unto you: Ye shall find a babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, and lying in a manger. (13) And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God, and saying, (14) Glory to God in the highest, And on earth peace among men in whom He is well pleased. (15) And it came to pass, when the angel went away from them into heaven, the shepherds said one to another, Let us now go even unto Bethlehem, and see this thing that is come to pass, which the Lord hath made known unto us. (16) And they came with haste, and found both Mary and Joseph, and the babe lying in the manger. (17) And when they saw it, they made known concerning the saying which was spoken to them about this child. (18) And all that heard it wondered at the things which were spoken unto them by the shepherds. (19) But Mary kept all these sayings, pondering them in her heart. (20) And the shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all the things that they had heard and seen, even as it was spoken unto them.”
Golden Text.— “For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord.” Verse 11.
Special Helps.— “Patriarchs and Prophets,” Ch. 4, pp. 63–70.
SUGGESTIVE QUESTIONS.
(1) What class of people are first noted in this lesson? Where and at what time were they watching their flocks? Verse 8. Note 1. (2) What appearance suddenly confronted them? How were they affected? Verse 9. (3) What did the angel say to the shepherds? Verse 10. Note 2. (4) What were the good tidings? Verse 11. Note 3. (5) By what sign would they know the Babe? Verse 12. Note 4. (6) Then who suddenly appeared with the angel? Verse 13. Note 5. (7) What were their words of praise? Verse 14. Note 6. (8) After this what did the shepherds say to one another? Verse 15. (9) Then what did they do? And what did they find? Verse 16. (10) After seeing the Child, what did the shepherds do? Verse 17. (11) How was their message received? Verse 18. (12) How was Mary affected by all these things? Verse 19. (13) After publishing the tidings abroad, what did the shepherds do? Verse 20. Note 7.
NOTES.
1. Shepherds abiding in the field at night is evidence that the event did not occur in the latter part of December, and therefore that the day popularly called Christmas is not the anniversary of our Saviour’s birth. However, while the day, whatever the date, was not in any sense made sacred by the event, it is proper and becoming for us to give thanks and sing praises to God on any day for the gift of His Son. It was the manifestation of a promise to which the children of faith had long been looking, and to the full enjoyment of which true believers are looking forward to-day. See John 14:1–3; 1 Thess. 4:14–18; Heb. 9:28; 2 Tim. 4:6–8.
2. “Good Tidings.”—There could be no tidings of greater moment than the advent of a Saviour from sin and death. Imagine the arrival of reinforcements to rescue a besieged city, or the coming of a life-saving crew to a sinking ship, and then compare the advent of a Saviour able and willing to save an entire perishing world. Heb. 7:25; 2 Peter 3:9.
3. It was essential that Christ be born in “the city of David” (Bethlehem), for so had the prophet said. Micah 5:2. This would be a mark of recognition to those who had been studying the prophecies and looking for the Messiah. That the shepherds had been thus engaged is shown by the fact that the announcement was made to them.
4. The manger was in the stable of the inn where there was no room in the house for Joseph and Mary. This was no fault of the inn-keeper; those who came first were first served. The people of God have to take things as they come in the world, just as other folks do. Jesus was subject to this necessity all through His earthly career, and made no complaint. But Joseph and Mary were themselves to blame for their dilemma. Had they read the prophecies concerning the birthplace of their Son, and heeded the instruction, they would have been settled in Bethlehem before that critical moment. It would not have required a political decree to bring them there, and that too at such an untimely season. Even the Lord’s own people bring much trouble upon themselves through neglecting the plain teaching of His Word. Many of their trials and inconveniences are their own fault.
5. The “heavenly host” have been interested in the work of salvation from the first proclamation of the Gospel in Eden, and they are all employed in its consummation. Heb. 1:14.
6. Peace is the purpose of Christ’s incarnation, of His great sacrifice. Through transgression of the law man became at enmity with God. Through faith in the atonement of Christ peace is restored. Rom. 5:1, 2; John 3:36. So “the work of righteousness shall be peace; and the effect of righteousness quietness and assurance forever. And My people shall dwell in a peaceable habitation, and in sure dwellings, and in quiet resting-places.” Isa. 32:17, 18.
7. The course of the shepherds was logical. First, they believed the Word, and a revelation of the whereabouts of the Saviour was made to them by heavenly messengers. Then they sought Him and found Him. (“Seek, and ye shall find.”) Having found the Saviour, they glorified God and forthwith made known the glad tidings to their neighbors. And this is the course the Lord would have all believers pursue.
New England CONSERVATORY OF MUSIC
Half a million dollars has been spent on our new building; nearly as much more on its equipment. The result is we have the finest institution in the world devoted to music, and our reputation for thorough teaching makes it second to none for creating individual results in music and elocution.
GEORGE W. CHADWICK, Director.
Year-book on request. FRANK W. HALE, General Manager, Boston, Mass.
Take a Tourist Car
—A Santa Fe tourist car—if you would enjoy your trip across the continent.
The cars are so comfortable, the route so interesting, the people so pleasant, the excursion manager so accommodating, the porters so obliging, and the meals so good, that you simply can’t help being satisfied.
Personally conducted east and west three times a week—Mondays, Thursdays and Saturdays—to Chicago, Kansas City, Los Angeles and San Francisco.
Folder giving full information furnished on request by any Santa Fe Agent.
Genuine Levant Bibles...
On the inside front cover of every genuine Levant or Goatskin bound Oxford Bible of recent manufacture, there is a scroll on which “Oxford India Paper, silk sewed” appears. Every such binding is kid lined, silk sewed, has leather joints, and is guaranteed perfect. With careful usage they will last a lifetime. The following are a few especially good styles which we have selected from our large stock:—
STYLE F. Minion type, references, self-pronouncing dictionary of Scripture proper names, harmony of the Gospels, chronological tables, maps, facsimile series. :: :: :: Price $4.50
STYLE F 1. Same contents as above, but printed on India paper. :: Price $5.05
STYLE F 3. Same as Style F, except that it has Concordance. :: Price $5.55
STYLE F 4. Long Primer type, not facsimile, printed on same paper and contains same helps as F 3. Price $6.65
STYLE F 5. Bourgeois type, full teachers’ helps including Concordance. Largest type facsimile Oxford published. :: :: :: Price $8.05
PACIFIC PRESS PUBLISHING CO. OAKLAND, CALIFORNIA
A BIBLE WITH PICTURES
We have an illustrated Bible with large type, leather cover, leather lining, overlapping edges, full teachers’ helps, including maps, which we are offering for—
$2.50 Post-Paid
This is below the regular rate and will be allowed only until January 1, 1903. The illustrations are very good indeed, and it is a Bible which would be prized for family use particularly. It is not a large family Bible, but measures 6½x8¼ inches, and it is less than 2 inches thick. It is No. 934.
Address
Pacific Press Publishing Company
OAKLAND, CAL.
Power for . . . Witnessing
PAPER COVERS
The paper-covered edition of this book is now ready for our friends.
The price is 25c post-paid
It is an ideal volume for class and school gifts. A small discount is made on orders of ten or more. Ask your Tract Society about it.
Pacific Press Publishing Co.
OAKLAND, CAL.
11 W. 20th St.
N. Y. City
18 W. 5th St.
Kansas City, Mo.
Children's Column
Do you like good stories and pretty pictures?—Of course we do, you all answer at once. Then we know you will like the books named below.
Things Foretold The editor of Our Little Friend has written this book especially for you. In it he tells many interesting things about the prophet Daniel, the visions he had and what they meant. He also tells why these visions should be studied at this time by boys and girls as well as by older people. You ought to get a copy, and after you have read it carefully, loan it to your little friends. Price 50 cents.
Sabbath Readings Volumes one and three of this set of books are still on hand. They contain such stories as your parents will like to read to you, because they are interesting to grown-up people as well as to children. Price for one book 40 cents; for two 80 cents.
A B C Books The three following books are 8½x11 inches in size, and are filled with easy reading and colored pictures. Price 25 cents each, or 60 cents for the three.
Bible Alphabet Each letter of the alphabet is connected with some illustrated Bible scene.
Animal Alphabet This book contains a series of animal pictures, each of which represents a letter.
Farmyard Alphabet Familiar incidents of life around the farm are illustrated in this little book.
Wood’s Natural History A very interesting book in which the habits and pictures of many animals are given. 249 pages, price 50 cents.
Best Stories One of the very best little books we have to show you is “Best Stories from the Best Book.” It will help you to read and write well, and it also contains many Bible stories and pictures. Price 50 cents in board, and 75 cents in cloth.
The House We Live In This is a book of twenty-six stories, told by a mother to her children—Percy, Helen, and Amy. These stories are all about the effect different foods and drinks have upon the body, and how you can keep yourself well and strong. It is full of new pictures, and has a very pretty cover showing a boy and girl going to school. Price 75 cents.
Black Beauty This book tells about the way a good horse was treated by his different owners. Price 60 cents.
Golden Grains Ten very small books with paper covers, filled with good stories. Only 25 cents for the whole set.
Gospel Primer More than half a million boys and girls have already studied this good book. The most of its reading lessons are well-told Bible stories. These stories are told both in words and pictures, and are very interesting. Cloth covers, 50 cents; boards 25 cents.
Sketches from Bible Child Life Stories of some Bible children with a great many pictures. Cloth covers, 50 cents.
Jack the Conqueror How a poor, ragged little boy became a great and good man. Cloth covers, 50 cents.
Left with a Trust Maybe your parents are poor, and you are trying to help them by not asking for rich clothing and expensive food. This is just what the children did who are told about in this book, and they were perfectly happy in it all, knowing they were making life easier for father and mother. Cloth covers, 50 cents.
OUR LITTLE FRIEND
We have on hand a limited supply of various volumes of Our Little Friend neatly and durably bound in cloth, with a beautiful cover design. There are over 400 pages in the volume, and each one is full of good stories for the children.
In Bound Volumes for 50 Cents
While the stock lasts the price will be 50 cents per volume post-paid. This is just one-half the regular price. Send your order at once to—
Pacific Press Publishing Co.
Oakland, California
Farm Work for Adventist Man
Wanted.
To hire, good Seventh-day Adventist man for farm work. Good wages, steady employment, to right man. Address J. D. Fink, Crows Landing, Cal.
OLD STAMPS
Wanted to buy, collections of old postage stamps, also used stamps from old letters, United States or foreign. Address "Collector," Pacific Press, Oakland, Cal.
BIBLE ELECTION.
By Milton C. Wilcox
By M. C. Wilcox. A brief presentation of God's plan and purpose concerning man, showing that the doctrine of election, or predestination, according to the Bible, is full of comfort and instruction. It throws new light on old controversies. Bible Students' Library, No. 67; 24 pp.; price 3 cents. Address Pacific Press Pub. Co., Oakland, Cal.
What Makes for Peace?
“What Makes for Peace?”—The New York World significantly asks this question, and continues:—
Which is likely to be the better promoter of peace—the “strong man armed” who goes about with pistols in his pockets and a big knife in his belt, proclaiming that he wants peace so much that he will kill anybody who interferes with him, or the man who diligently minds his own business, and trusts to law and justice to protect him and his rights?
Then referring to the constant claim put forth by certain strenuous statesmen in Europe, and latterly in this country, that the way to have peace is to prepare for war, the World remarks:—
It is precisely this theory put in practise which keeps Europe an armed camp, eating out the substance of the people to build great navies and to maintain large standing armies.
And it is true. Every peasant nearly carries on his back a soldier. Italy even now is on the very verge of collapse. Referring to the arbitration of the past, the World says:—
But in the last half century no nation has ever threatened us with war. The United States is a world-power by virtue of its ideas, its intelligence, its illimitable resources, and its unrivaled reserve of strength, not by reason of the little one-sided war with Spain or our new battle-ships. Liberty as exemplified in this great republic is the leaven that is raising the governments of the world to a higher plane, and safeguarding the rights of man. Enlightenment, industry, and commerce are the great peacemakers, not ships, and cannons, and gunpowder.
But America is well on her way in the retrograde movement past that station where she was one glorious beacon-light to the nations of earth. She reached her summit at the close of the great Civil War. Since that time human rights and individual rights, and the principles of civil and religious liberty have been on a decline. The gospel of greed and force, the union of Church and State, the division into classes, and the domination and enslavement of the individual by the machine have made amazing progress. The nation that was lighting the nations of the Wilderness of the Dark Ages is by her own retrogression turning them back to medievalism.
Isthmian Canal Route Choices
Our thanks are due to Hon. John T. Morgan, senator from Alabama, for senate document on the “Isthmian Canal and the Choice of Routes.”
Take Home to Your Heart
Take home to your heart each day at least one great thought from the Word of God. Think God's thoughts after Him, and let the soul grow in its contemplation. Nothing will so expand the mind and drive out all its meannesses. It will prove a seed which, if matured, will bear fruit unto eternal life.
No Beerless Hall.
The W. C. T. U. voted to hold their next annual meeting in Milwaukee, but it is reported that up to the present the committee can find no hall which has not a beer-selling annex identified with it. Every hall in Milwaukee is said to be equipped with beer bars as it is with doors. Truly Gambrinus reigns there. Milwaukee surely and sorely needs the W. C. T. U.
The True Messenger of God
If “Father John,” a Russian priest of Cronstadt, could even up matters with some American “prophets,” doubtless they would be glad. Without seeking it, and against his indignant threats, it is reported that in the priest’s own church, because of his goodness and philanthropy, his people consider him a reincarnation of Christ, and in many villages, his portrait takes the place of the sacred ikons (images). There are certain men in this country, each of whom is anxious to be recognized, through his own proclamation, as Elijah. A few poor souls grant some of these “Elijahs” the homage they claim. Others are as yet unrecognized, except by themselves. All might take a hint from the Russian priest,—show their credentials by works. But then they would, like “Father John” of Cronstadt, and John the Baptist of old, when asked, “Art thou Elijah?” emphatically answer, “No.” The true messenger of God is modest as regards his own claims. The true messenger acts forth not himself, but his Master.
Sharing God’s Love Through Giving
We can preserve in our hearts the love and life of God only by using. If we try to shut His blessings up to ourselves, it will be like shutting sunshine into a dark dungeon. We get God’s life and love by giving, spending, using, for others’ good.
Blood Money from Liquor Licenses
Liquor-license money is “blood money,” and to a great extent it is blood money of the poor. To whatever department of municipal or State expenditure it is applied, it costs much more than the benefit derived can possibly be worth. “Woe to him that buildeth a town with blood, and stablisheth a city by iniquity!” Hab. 2:12.
Chinese Shorthand
“Chinese Shorthand” is the name of a little book just published by the Pacific Press Publishing Company. Its author is Mrs. Julia A. Barrett, to whom the Lord gave the means and methods of adapting the Pitman system to the Chinese language; that is, so as to express its varied intonations and prolongations of sound, the only means by which certain words of dissimilar meaning are distinguished in the spoken language. Mrs. Barrett has, for many years, been a teacher in shorthand, and for years she has wrestled with this problem, ever seeking God for His guidance, that an easier, shorter way of faith might be opened to the millions of China. This little book tells, in brief, the story of her struggles, her buffetings from those who should have proved friends, and her final success. The work is practical, as Mrs. Barrett has demonstrated by teaching. It can be quickly learned; the Bible, in parts and in whole, and other books, can easily be printed in this new alphabet, and the millions of Chinese taught it much sooner than they could possibly learn to read their own language in the native characters. The system has been indorsed by Chinese scholars, by missionaries and teachers among the Chinese, and it seems to us that it ought, in God’s providence, to revolutionize missionary work among the Chinese and Japanese. Really, the book is the first in a series which would develop into a universal stenography. Besides the story of the discovery, the little book (a first reader, in fact) contains a table of phonetic characters, with corresponding sounds; the Lord’s prayer and several other selections in Chinese shorthand; explanations as to how to learn the alphabet, and the Lord’s prayer in both the stenographic and regular Chinese characters. The price is 50 cents. It is Mrs. Barrett’s desire that the profits accruing from the sale of this book shall be used to get out one more advanced, containing much more of the Word of God. Address, Pacific Press, Oakland, Cal.
Chinese Shorthand
The W. C. T. U. organ of the West, the Pacific Ensign, of Nov. 20, 1902, has this to say of Mrs. Barrett’s book, “Chinese Shorthand”:—
The long-looked-for adaptation of the Pitman system of stenography to the writing of the Chinese language, by Mrs. Julia A. Barrett, is now ready. It can be obtained at W. C. T. U. headquarters. Price 50 cents.
Dr. T. W. Hing, a Chinese Physician of Sacramento, who has studied the system, says: “I am glad to endorse and recommend it.”
C. T. Moore, Chinese Vice-Consul, who has studied the system says, “I have the same opinion as Dr. Hing, and think it should be taught in our public schools.” Mrs. Barrett has been teaching this system to the heathen and in undenominational schools of San Francisco and Sacramento for the past eight years. She is now teaching gratuitously in the Presbyterian and Methodist Chinese Missions of San Francisco.
Rev. Li Qui Chung, a Presbyterian minister, thinks so highly of the book, that he is now agent for it and is selling it in Chinatown. His address is 20 Prospect Place.
Funston and the Army Beer Canteen
By Editor
The American Anti-saloon League well answers General Funston's attack on the action of the last Congress in abolishing the army beer canteen. Edwin C. Dinwiddie, head of the legislative department of the League, truly says:—
If such reports as just published from General Funston are correct, two things are apparent on their face: First, the canteen or beer-selling army saloon so debauches men in the service that these conditions of drunkenness and disorder exist in the army not by reason of its abolition, but because its presence during twelve years has had a demoralizing effect upon officers and men; and, second, when generals and commanding officers are ready to state they can not maintain discipline and order in the army without a beer saloon, it is certain proof, under military conditions, of incompetency, and cries for more efficient leadership in the service.
Which horn of his dilemma General Funston will choose to impale himself on, or whether he will acknowledge his fault we know not. He can meet the argument only in the last way.
The Bubonic Plague in San Francisco
The Bubonic Plague in San Francisco.—The California State Journal of Medicine, in its November issue, quotes with no disapproval at least, a long chronicle of the bubonic plague in San Francisco, from American Medicine of Nov. 8, 1902. Here is a paragraph from the last named journal:—
Since March 8, 1900, there have been 88 cases recorded in California, 15 of this number occurring since Sept. 9, 1902. It is rumored that many other cases have occurred which were not reported. The strange persistence in the policy of concealment on the part of the political and commercial authorities in San Francisco is thus having the result of which we have repeatedly given warning. It is not improbable that cases of plague are occurring in many parts of the West and South. We hope the officers of the Marine Hospital Service will extend their investigations into these sections, and that the policy of publicity and absolute frankness may prevent the appalling calamity that is bound to follow secrecy in these matters.
Hard Years
Hard Years.—The Christian Word and Evangelist has this to say:—
The past few years have been hard years for the religious press—especially for the denominational journals—and we must admit that the interest in religious journalism, not to say in religious matters, has by no means kept pace with the wonderfully increasing material progress of the country. Perhaps this will come later. We hope so, and rather expect it.
Unbelief at the End of the Age
Uncertain, isn’t it? But according to God’s Word it will not come. The age will end in general unbelief. The faithful will be a “little flock,” a “remnant.”
