Earlier text: Contained in this IssueTHE GREAT SALVATION
By Geo. W. Reaser
THE TESTIMONY OF THE AGES.
"Behold, the former things are come to pass, and new things do I declare; before they spring forth I tell you of them." NOT the least important factor in convincing men of the existence and overruling power of Deity, is the answer of history to the utterance of prophecy. Heaven-inspired prophecy, or the power to correctly foretell future events, is history, written in advance of the occurrence of the events recorded. To dictate true prophecy requires foreknowledge, and not only this, but also power to "work all things according to the counsel" of the One who inspires the prophecy. As we may stand in the clear light of day, at a point from which our view is uninterrupted, and note scenes which are enacted in our immediate presence, so God the Author of all scriptural prophecies, stood at the foundation of the world. He looked down thru the stream of time—the entire history of the world—and saw, with unclouded vision, the end, and all intervening events, and declared "the end from the beginning." While certain influences for good, working under the direction of Deity and in behalf of the government of Heaven, for the saving of men, and certain counter influences of evil, operating under the supervision of Satan for the destruction of humanity and the defeat of the plan of redemption, have culminated in natural and inevitable results, and have thereby fulfilled prophecy, yet it is also true that God Has Specially Wrought
in the fulfilment of prophecy, that His counsel should stand and His pleasure be performed. We cite one example to verify this statement. About one hundred years before the children of Israel went into Babylonian captivity, the Lord said of Cyrus, king of Persia, who was yet unborn, and whose kingdom was not yet prominent on the stage of action: "He is My shepherd, and shall perform all My pleasure: even saying to Jerusalem, Thou shalt be built; and to the temple, Thy foundation shall be laid." "I have raised him up in righteousness, and I will direct all his ways; and he shall build My city, and he shall let go My captives, not for price nor reward, saith the Lord of hosts." When the seventy years of captivity, foretold by the Lord thru the prophet Jeremiah were about fulfilled, the God of Israel sent Michael (Christ) and Gabriel to influence the heart of Cyrus to give God's people full liberty, and every needed facility to return to their own land and rebuild their holy city and restore its ruined temple to its former glory. Hence it was that "in the first year of Cyrus king of Persia, that the word of the Lord by the mouth of Jeremiah might be fulfilled, the Lord stirred up the spirit of Cyrus king of Persia, that he made a proclamation throut all his kingdom, and put it also in writing, saying, thus saith Cyrus king of Persia, The Lord God of heaven hath given me all the kingdoms of the earth; and to build Him an house at Jerusalem, which is in Judah. Who is there among you of all His people? his God be with him, and let him go up to Jerusalem, which is in Judah, and build the house of the Lord God of Israel (He is the God), which is in Jerusalem. And whosoever remaineth in any place where he sojourneth, let the men of his place help him with silver, and with gold, and with goods, and with beasts, besides the free-will offering for the house of God that is in Jerusalem." Let no one imagine that in this influence, by which the heart of Cyrus was stirred to let God's people go, the Lord coerced or used arbitrary or physical force, nor that all personages who have acted prominent parts in the fulfilment of prophecy, have not had their free choice in taking the part which they acted, even as we, to-day, have our choice between serving God and serving Him not. There is, figuratively speaking, a sacred circle placed around every individual, into which God Himself will not intrude to compel choice. It is "whosoever will may come," not must come. The Lord simply looked down thru the ages and saw the choice that Judas and all others would make, under the influences of good and evil brought to bear upon them; and hence, in particular cases, wrote such portions of the record of their lives in advance as touch vital points in the fulfilment of prophecy Dr. Cyrus Hamlin tells the following story. While he was in Constantinople, soon after the Crimean War, a colonel in the Turkish army called to see him, and said: "I want to ask you one question. What proof can you give me that the Bible is what you claim it to be—the word of God?" Dr. Hamlin evaded the question for a purpose and drew him into conversation, during which he learned that his visitor had traveled a great deal, especially in the East, in the region of the Euphrates. "Were you ever in Babylon?" asked the doctor. "Yes, and that reminds me of a curious experience I had there. I am very fond of sport, and, having heard that the ruins of Babylon abound in game, I determined to go there for a week's shooting. Knowing that it was not considered safe for a man to be there except in the company of several others, and money being no object to me, I engaged a sheik with his followers to accompany me for a large sum. We reached Babylon and pitched our tents. A little before sundown I took my gun and strolled out to have a look around. The holes and caverns among the mounds which cover the ruins are infested with game, which, however, is rarely seen except at night. I caught sight of one or two animals in the distance, and then turned my steps toward our encampment, intending to begin my sport as soon as the sun had set. What was my surprise to find the men striking the tent? I went to the sheik and protested most strongly. I had engaged him for a week, and was paying him handsomely, and here he was starting off before our contract had scarcely begun. Nothing I could say, however, would induce him to remain. 'It isn't safe,' he said. 'No mortal flesh dare stay here after sunset. In the dark, ghosts, goblins, ghouls, and all sorts of things come out of the holes and caverns, and whoever is found here is taken off by them, and becomes one of them himself.'" "Finding that I could not persuade him, I said, 'Well, as it is, I am paying you more than I ought to, but if you'll stay, I'll double it.' 'No,' he said, 'I couldn't stay for all the money in the world. No Arab has ever seen the sun go down on Babylon. But I want to do what is right by you. We'll go off to a place about an hour's distance and come back at daybreak.' And go they did. And my sport had to be given up." "As soon as he had finished," said Dr. Hamlin, "I took my Bible and read from the 13th chapter of Isaiah: 'And Babylon, the glory of kingdoms, the beauty of the Chaldees' excellency, shall be as when God overthrew Sodom and Gomorrah. It shall never be inhabited, neither shall it be dwelt in from generation to generation; neither shall the Arabian pitch tent there; neither shall the shepherds make their fold there; but wild beasts of the desert shall lie there; and their houses shall be full of doleful creatures; and owls shall dwell there, and satyrs shall dance there. And the wild beasts of the islands shall cry in their desolate houses, and dragons in their pleasant palaces; and her time is near to come, and her days shall not be prolonged.'" "That's it exactly," said the Turk when I had finished, "but that's history you've been reading." "No," answered Dr. Hamlin, "it's prophecy. Come, you're an educated man. You know that the Old Testament was translated into Greek about three hundred years before Christ." He acknowledged that it was. "And the Hebrew given at least two hundred years before that?" "Yes," "Well, wasn't this written when Babylon was in its glory, and isn't it prophecy?"7 "I'm not prepared to give you an answer now," he replied. "I must have time to think it over." "Very well," Dr. Hamlin said, "do so, and come back when you're ready and give me your answer." From that day to this he has never seen him, but what an unexpected testimony to the truth of the Bible in regard to the fulfilment of prophecy did that Turkish officer give. In this connection a few of the most striking of the answers of history to the statements of prophecy, concerning the overthrow of Babylon, may be in order. Babylon was surrounded by a wall 350 feet in height and 87 feet in thickness at the base. She was abundantly supplied with water by the River Euphrates flowing thru the midst of her. The Lord said, "A drought is upon her waters; and they shall be dried up." "And I will dry up her sea, and make her springs dry." It is a well-established, historical fact that in order to gain access to the city thru the river channel, the armies of the Medes and Persians turned the waters of the Euphrates out of the natural channel, thus drying them up, and thereby gained access to the city and accomplished her overthrow. Again the Lord spake, saying, "Surely, I will fill thee with men as with caterpillars; and they shall lift up a shout against thee." The manner in which this was accomplished has been described in the preceding paragraph. Still further, giving in advance the details of the overthrow of Babylon, the Lord said, "The mighty men of Babylon have foreborne to fight, they have remained in their holds." "In their heat I will make their feasts, and I will make them drunken, that they may rejoice, and sleep a perpetual sleep, and not wake, saith the Lord." The response of history to this prophecy reads in part as follows: "Belshazzar the king made a great feast to a thousand of his lords, and drank wine before the thousand." "In the same hour came forth and wrote over against the candlestick upon the plaster of the wall of the king's palace; and the king saw the part of the hand that wrote." "In that night was Belshazzar the king of the Chaldeans slain. And Darius the Median took the kingdom." As God had said, they forebore to fight, remained in their strongholds, and engaged in a drunken feast. But before Babylon, "the glory of kingdoms and the beauty of the Chaldees' excellency" had performed her part in the great drama of history, and her Sodomlike capital, the city of Nineveh, came under the searchlight of the prophetic eye, and bore witness to the truthfulness of God's word. This solemn message was delivered to her: "Wo to the bloody city! it is all full of lies and rapine. . . . Behold, I am against thee, saith Jehovah of hosts, and I will uncover thy skirts upon thy face; and I will show the nations thy nakedness, and the kingdoms thy shame. And I will cast abominable filth upon thee, and make thee vile, and will set thee as a gazing-stock. And it shall come to pass, that all they that look upon thee shall flee from thee, and say, Nineveh is laid waste." What is the appearance of the site of ancient Nineveh to-day? The once wealthy and populous city of Nineveh is nought but a scene of utter ruin, the symbol of complete desolation. God's prophetic word is verified. BE WHAT THOU PRAYEST.
By Horatius Bonar
Be what thou seemest; live thy creed;
Hold up to earth the torch divine;
Be what thou prayest to be made;
Let the great Master's steps be thine;
Fill up each hour with what will last;
Buy up the moments as they go.
The life above when this life's past
Is the ripe fruit of life below.
—Horatius Bonar. CHRIST AND NICODEMUS.
By Ellen G. White
CHRIST'S lessons of instruction to the Jews appeared to them as altogether new, but in reality they were the old truths which Christ Himself had given to the people of God. The precious treasure committed to Israel was lost sight of as men departed from God, and Christ as the great center of light and life came to the earth to rescue it from the rubbish of error under which it had been buried. As Nicodemus heard Christ, his heart was stirred within him. The words of this humble Teacher aroused him to inquire if these things were so. But Nicodemus was proud of his Jewish faith, and he sought to hide his curiosity from the Saviour. He did not wish to be known as an inquirer, and he put on an appearance of dignity, as tho it were an act of condescension on his part to seek an interview with Jesus. He did not at once make known his errand, but opened the conversation by speaking in praise of the penetration of Christ and of His rare gifts as a speaker. But Christ, after courteously receiving His guest, came directly to the point, and laid open before Nicodemus the object of his visit. Nicodemus was surprised that Christ should understand the burden of his heart. With solemn power the Saviour said: "Verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he can not see the kingdom of God. . . . The wind bloweth where it listeth, and thou hearest the sound thereof, but canst not tell whence it cometh, and whither it goeth; so is every one that is born of the Spirit." At thought of a kingdom so pure that he could have no part in it unless he was born again, Nicodemus was filled with amazement. "How can these things be?" he asked. And Jesus said unto him: "Art thou a master of Israel, and knowest not these things? Verily, verily, I say unto thee, We speak that we do know, and testify that we have seen; and ye receive not our witness. If I have told you earthly things, and ye believe not, how shall ye believe, if I tell you of heavenly things? and no man hath ascended up to heaven, but He that came down from heaven, even the Son of Man which is in heaven. And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up; that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have eternal life. 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." When the Israelites were dying from the sting of the fiery serpents, a brazen serpent was uplifted in the midst of their camp, that all might look and live. But there were some who would not accept the help provided. They stopped to reason concerning the foolishness of looking for relief to such a source. That they should be saved by looking to a piece of brass was absurd in their minds, and they said, We will not look. Their decision was fatal, and many of the children of Israel perished. The brazen serpent was uplifted in the wilderness that those who looked in faith might be made whole. In like manner God sends a restoring, healing message to men, calling upon them to look away from man and earthly things, and place their trust in God. That brazen serpent uplifted in the wilderness was a symbol of Christ. The faith which the believing Israelites exercised as they looked at it, we must exercise as we look to Christ. With the same simplicity, sinners must receive the Saviour; for He alone can save from sin. He is our ransom. Whoever rejects the salvation He proffers is lost to God and heaven. What would have become of the wounded Israelites had they all refused the only remedy provided for them,—had they said, We will try other means; we shall try the skill of our physicians; there is wisdom enough among us to heal the disease?—Had they done this, they would all have perished. So8 those who to-day slight the remedy God has provided for sin, who refuse to accept Christ as a personal Saviour, will perish in their sins. To-day God has given to men the truth with power. He has opened His word to those who are searching and praying for light. But when these messengers gave the truth they had received to the people, many were as unbelieving as were some of the Israelites. To-day many are caviling over the truth brought to them by humble messengers. How can this message be truth? they question. How is it possible that by looking to Jesus, and believing in His imputed righteousness, I can gain eternal life? Those who have thus refused to see the truth do not realize that it is God with whom they are in controversy, that in refusing the message sent them, they are refusing Christ. God designs that the message of redemption shall come to His people as the latter rain; for they are fast losing their connection with God. They are trusting in men, and glorifying men, and their strength is proportionate to the strength of their dependence. We are to know more than we know at the present time. We are to comprehend the deep things of God. There are themes to be dwelt upon which are worthy of more than a passing notice. Angels have desired to look into the truths which are revealed to those who are searching God's word with contrite hearts. Those who will devote their powers to the study of God's word, and especially to the prophecies referring to these last days, will be rewarded by the discovery of important truths. The last book of the New Testament Scriptures is full of truths that need to be understood. Satan has blinded the eyes of men, and they have been glad of any excuse for not studying this book. But here Christ has declared thru His servant John what shall be in the last days. As we search the Scriptures, the character of Christ will appear in its infinite perfection. He is the One in whom our hopes of eternal life are centered. He is eternal life to all who will eat His flesh and drink His blood. Those who look to Him may be healed of the serpent's sting. By beholding Him, we may become changed into the same image. Faith, love, and holiness will grow in the soul. "This is life eternal," Christ said, "that they might know Thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom Thou hast sent." When we realize the value of this knowledge, these glorious truths will glow in our hearts, tremble upon our lips, and thrill our entire being. RISE, my soul, my God directs thee,
Stranger hands no more impede;
Pass thou on, His strength protects thee,
Strength that has the captive freed.
Is the wilderness before thee,
Desert lands where drought abides?
Heavenly springs shall there restore thee,
Fresh from God's exhaustless tides. Light divine surrounds thy going,
God Himself shall mark thy way;
Secret blessings richly flowing,
Lead to everlasting day.
God, thine everlasting portion,
Feeds thee with the mighty's meat;
Saved from Egypt's hard extortion.
Egypt's food no more to eat. Art thou weaned from Egypt's pleasures?
God, in secret, shall thee keep;
There unfold His hidden treasures,
There His love's exhaustless deep.
In the desert God will teach thee
What the God that thou hast found,
Patient, gracious, powerful, holy:
All His grace shall there abound. On to Canaan's rest still wending,
E'en thy wants and foes shall bring
Suited grace from high descending,
Thou shalt taste of mercy's spring.
Tho thy way be long and dreary,
Eagle strength He'll still renew;
Garments fresh and feet unweary,
Tell how God has brought thee thru. When to Canaan's long-loved dwelling
Love divine thy feet shall bring,
There, with shouts of triumph swelling,
Zion's songs in rest to sing.
There no stranger-God shall meet thee;
Stranger thou in courts above!
He who to His rest shall greet thee,
Greets thee with a well-known love.
—Anon. CONSCIENCE AND ITS PLACE
By Prof. J. A. L. Derby
In Three Parts: "Conscience;" "Cause of Unbelief;" "Thinketh No Evil." DRUMMOND says that this means to impute no motive, to put the best construction upon every action. How eminently this is true in the highest and noblest examples we have of the power of charity—love—in the human heart! "Forgive them, Father, for they know not what they do." This is the dying prayer for His enemies of the crucified Christ. "And now, brethren, I wot that thru ignorance ye did it, as did also your rulers," said Peter, excusing the murder of the Son of God. Yes, they were ignorant of what they did—culpably ignorant. But the suffering Messiah could not bear to add the incriminating word. Peter could not bear to risk losing the soul of any of his audience by telling the whole truth. Ignorant indeed the people were, but it was an ignorance whose cause was deep and malignant. Still it was unnecessary to taunt them with it. "You knew better!" has little charity in it. "Serves him right!" is pure malignance. No, this can neither raise the drunkard from the ditch nor reclaim the outcast woman. "I will not excuse her, her sins are indeed many; but she loved much, therefore those sins are all forgiven her." "Woman, doth no man condemn thee?" "Neither do I condemn thee. Go, and sin no more." Yes, the world is deceived. True, it is to blame for the deception. It need not be deceived. But the Bible puts the best construction on the matter. God knows the deceitfulness of sin, and He remembers that we are dust—born in sin. There is no vindictiveness, no spirit of accusation in the Lord's call to repentance. Jesus is not the accuser of His brethren—mankind. He came not to condemn. He is rather the Preacher of good news to the poor, the Healer of the broken-hearted, the Deliverer of the captive, the Recoverer of sight to those afflicted with blindness, the Liberator of those that are bruised by Satan. It is not that they are not to blame for their captivity, that they are not wilfully blind, that they are not bruised for their own obstinate folly. But they know that,—why remind them of it? "To be trusted is to be saved. If we try to influence or elevate others, we shall soon see that success is in proportion to their belief in our belief in them. For the respect of another is the first restoration of self-respect a man has lost; our ideal of what he is becomes to him the hope and pattern of what he may become," says the author already quoted. "Thinketh no evil!" Have we learned this spirit? Do we try to put the best face on the mistakes of others? Are we willing, even, to call them mistakes? Or, are they to us malign outcroppings of a corrupt heart? "Him that is overtaken in a fault," do we try to restore in the spirit of meekness, or do we rather consider the advisability of a church trial and a disfellowship? Alas! is there not enough of sordid suspicion, of malicious innuendo, of secret distrust, and open accusation? Let the adversary do that. He will see to it anyhow. Let us learn what this meaneth, "thinketh no evil." "Thinketh no evil!" This is the law of charity. Palliation and extenuation—not censure and reprehension. The sinner, the persecutor, the bigot, the heathen—all are deceived, deceived by an unfathomably deceitful heart. Where is the psychologist that understands the springs of human action? The libraries of mental science are crowded with books that seek to analyze the mind. But here, as everywhere, human curiosity serves only to make clearer the existence, but not the explanation, of the inscrutable. "His ways [are] past finding out." So it easily comes about and is the chiefest deception of all, that the sinner thinks he is not deceived. Even as God uses man for the accomplishment of His purpose, while man "meaneth not so, neither does his heart think so" (Isa. 10:7), so the deceiver of the race, the prince of the power of the air, "now worketh in the children of disobedience." These are in "the snare of the devil," "taken captive by him at his will." Eph. 2:2; 2 Tim. 2:26. Like the song of the sea sung by the shepherd boy of the Alps:
"There's a smile on the sea,
To the bath 'tis inviting;
On the shore's verdant lee,
All his senses delighting.
The youth falls asleep,
Into sleep that is mortal,
For a voice from the deep
Lures to death in its portal." So the deadly hypnotism of sin. We yield to the principle, not seeing the results involved. The blame lies not so much in what we do when hypnotized, but in consenting to be hypnotized. So also it is when in this condition we "know not what we do," even as the victim in the mesmeric trance knows not what he does; still we are guilty for being in such a condition. But divine love makes no note of that; it is content to pity us as deceived.9 What a lesson might we learn from this in dealing with the souls for whom we labor. Here is one subservient to the pope, worshiping the Virgin Mary, bowing to images, praying to the saints, and hating Protestants. Who can say that such a one can not be reached if the good news of salvation by grace be rightly and charitably preached to him. The charity that thinketh no evil does not rail at the poor victims of superstition as obstinate and incorrigible lovers and defenders of what they know to be error. No, what they believe they believe to be true, and believe it as firmly as we believe true what we accept for doctrine. Nothing is gained by attacking doctrine until we have first made the soul ready to forsake sin. It is the deceptive power of sin that makes men believe Mohammedanism, Catholicism, and every fantastic, superstitious, and unscriptural notion. To break the power of sin is the first problem. How can this be done? Not by mere logic. By a curious irony, logic was the chief science of the Dark Ages. Not by ridicule and sarcasm. These have no effect but to embitter. Not by denunciation; this is the weapon of enemies. Not by criticism; this but arouses prejudice. Not by any means that a sinner can retort on us, that he can use in defense, and remain a sinner. There is but one weapon that disarms him. It is the charity that thinketh no evil. This he can not use and retain the mood of a sinner. The moment he attempts to meet love with love, he is conquered. THE SPIRITS IN PRISON.
By Chas. Nelson
“For Christ also hath once suffered for sins, the just for the unjust, that He might bring us to God, being put to death in the flesh, but quickened by the Spirit; by which also He went and preached unto the spirits in prison; which sometime were disobedient, when once the long-suffering of God waited in the days of Noah, while the ark was a preparing, wherein few, that is, eight souls were saved by water.” 1 Peter 3:18-20. MANY, as they have read the above verses, have thought that the spirits here referred to had an opportunity to hear and accept the Gospel after they had departed this life, that Christ between His death and resurrection, while His body was in the tomb, went and preached to them. But rightly to understand this subject it is necessary to note carefully what the Scriptures say of spirits. The wise man writing of what takes place at death says: “Then shall the dust return to the earth as it was; and the spirit shall return unto God who gave it.” Eccl. 12:7. Going back to the record of the creation of man, we read that God “formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul.” Gen. 2:7. Of what was man made?—Out of the dust of the ground. How did he become a living soul?—By God breathing into his nostrils the breath of life. What is this breath of life? We will let the word answer: “The Spirit of God hath made me, and the breath of the Almighty hath given me life.” “All the while my breath is in me, and the Spirit of God [margin, the breath which God gave him] is in my nostrils.” Job 33:4; 27:3. We learn from this that the spirit of life which is in man’s nostrils is the breath of the Almighty. What becomes of man when God takes this spirit to Himself?—“If He set His heart upon man, if He gather unto Himself his spirit and his breath; all flesh shall perish together, and man shall turn again unto dust.” Job 34:14, 15. But the question may arise, Has not man an individual spirit?—Yes. We read in Job 32:8: “But there is a spirit in man; and the inspiration of the Almighty giveth them understanding.” “For what man knoweth the things of a man, save the spirit of man which is in him?” 1 Cor. 2:11. How did man get this spirit?—It was formed within him (Zech. 12:1), not breathed into his nostrils like the breath of life. When was the spirit formed?—When man was created out of the dust of the ground. This spirit is separate and distinct from the spirit of life. It can fail (Isa. 57:16) and must be renewed. David prayed: “Create in me a clean heart, O God; and renew a right spirit within me.” Ps. 51:10. What spirit was it that David pleaded with the Lord to renew?—It was his mind. This is clear from reading Rom. 12:2: “And be not conformed to this world; but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.” From this it is plain that the spirit of man is his mind. If not renewed, it is the carnal mind, which is enmity against God because it is not subject to the law of God. Rom. 8:7. As man can not serve God with the carnal mind, he is sold under sin. Rom. 7:14. The law of God which he has transgressed shuts him up. Gal. 3:23. As the law of God is spiritual and can only deal with the mind, it follows that men while in this condition are in a spiritual prison. How are they to be delivered out of this prison, and who shall deliver them?—In Isa. 61:1, we read: “The Spirit of the Lord God is upon Me; because the Lord hath anointed Me to preach good tidings unto the meek; He hath sent Me to bind up the broken-hearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to them that are bound.” “And Jesus returned in the power of the Spirit unto Galilee; and there went out a fame of Him thru all the region round about. And He taught in their synagogues, being glorified of all. And He came to Nazareth, where He had been brought up; and, as His custom was, He went into the synagogue on the Sabbath day, and stood up for to read. And there was delivered unto Him the book of the prophet Isaiah. And when He had opened the book, He found the place where it was written, The Spirit of the Lord is upon Me, because He hath anointed Me to preach the Gospel to the poor; He hath sent Me to heal the broken-hearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised, to preach the acceptable year of the Lord.” Luke 4:14-19. When was this prophecy fulfilled?—“And He began to say unto them, This day is this scripture fulfilled in your ears.” Verse 21. That day, Christ, by the preaching of the Gospel, set captives free from the bondage of sin, spirits who had been in prison were liberated. It was not only while Christ was personally upon the earth that He preached liberty to the captives, but in all ages ever since sin came into the world, Christ has been the One that has preached liberty to them, and those who have believed have been delivered out of bondage. It is this the apostle Peter refers to when he says that Christ went and preached to the spirits who were in prison, living in disobedience in the days of Noah, “while the ark was a preparing.” But how did he preach to them at this time?—By His Spirit that was in His servant Noah. The Spirit of Christ was in the prophets. 1 Peter 1:10, 11. Noah was a prophet, and thru him Christ preached to that people one hundred twenty years. If they had heeded the warning and turned from their evil ways, they would have been set free, they would have escaped condemnation, and would not have perished in the Flood. Heb. 11:7. But some may ask, What does Peter mean when he says that the Gospel was preached also to them that are dead? 1 Peter 4:6. He means that it was preached to them while they were alive; because it would be impossible for them to hear or accept of it after they were dead, as we can see by the following scriptures: “In death there is no remembrance of Thee; in the grave who shall give Thee thanks?” Ps. 6:5. “While I live will I praise the Lord; I will sing praises unto my God while I have any being. Put not your trust in princes, nor in the son of man, in whom there is no help. His breath goeth forth, he returneth to his earth; in that very day his thoughts perish.” Ps. 146:2-4. “The grave can not praise Thee, death can not celebrate Thee; they that go down into the pit can not hope for Thy truth. The living, the living, he shall praise Thee as I do this day; the father to the children shall make known Thy truth.” Isa. 38:18, 19. It is while men live that they are prisoners of hope (Zech. 9:12), and can turn to the Lord and receive pardon and forgiveness; for when death comes, the destiny of every soul is fixed, and the spirit (mind) of man lies dormant in the grave till the resurrection. CHAS. NELSON. THE DAWNING.
By Geo. A. Snyder
As I look from out my window,
When night's veil has been withdrawn
There I see a snow-capped summit
Kissed by golden light of dawn;
And the sunbeams' orient splendor,
Driving out the shades of night,
Weaves the mantle of the morning
O'er the mountain tall and white. Like the mountain's snowy summit
Reared in majesty sublime,
So the principles of freedom
Towering o'er the wrecks of time,
Will live on thruout the ages
In the light of fadeless day,
When the shadows of oppression
Have forever passed away. Many bright prophetic sunbeams,
Shining from the sacred page,
Herald forth the coming glory
Of a brighter, better age.
Even now o'er gray horizon
Shine some beams of glory bright;
Like the fingers of the morning
Pointing to the land of light.
Geo. A. Snyder. Reading the Bible Daily
By John Quincy Adams
THE Bible is the book of all others, to be read in all ages and in all conditions of human life; not to be read once, or twice, or thrice thru, and then laid aside, but to be read in small portions of one or two chapters every day, and never to be omitted unless by some overruling necessity.—J. Quincy Adams. Pray in Prosperity and Sorrow
“WHEN life seems bright, then is the time to pray, lest we should forget God, the Giver of all our joys. In time of sorrow, when the world looks dark, then is the time to pray, that we may prove the loving-kindness of the God who never tires in watching over us.” LORENZO DOW AND THE COBBLER.
LORENZO DOW, an eccentric circuit preacher, lives in tradition chiefly for his oddities; but he was a man of strong character, who loved the souls of men. His sermons and his ways of doing good were peculiarly his own, but they were often surprisingly effectual—not merely because he was singular, but because he was sincere. An aged lady whose father’s large farmhouse was one of Mr. Dow’s favorite stopping-places, related some years ago the following story of him from her earliest recollections: One winter afternoon my father overtook the eccentric preacher on his way to fulfil an engagement, and took him into his wagon. “I am glad to ride,” said Dow, “for one of my boots has sprung a leak.” As they went on, my father suggested a way to repair the damage. “A cobbler lives in that little red house yonder,” he said. “He is poor, lame, crabbed, and cross, but a good workman.” “Just the place for me,” said Dow, jumping off, and going into the little shop. He sat down silently in front of a few brands smoldering upon the hearth, and, pulling off his boot, handed it to the cobbler. The man looked at the leak, and swore. “I am afraid you are not a Christian, my man,” said Dow, quietly. “There are no Christians,” retorted the cobbler. “There are plenty who pretend to be;” and he waxed his thread with an angry jerk, which seemed to emphasize what he said.11 “Your room is so cold that your wax is hard. Shall I put more wood on your fire?” “I work to keep warm,” was the shoemaker's curt reply, as he pushed a last into the boot and adjusted his clamp. “I've little enough wood cut, and no one to cut more, and this lame leg won't allow me to do it myself.” Dow removed his long-caped cloak, put his bootless foot into an old shoe lying near, and going out to the shed, found an ax and went to work. Before the boot was ready, he had split and carried in all the wood in the shed, piled it neatly in a corner, and made a blazing fire of the chips. When the boot was done, he put it on, paid for the work, and, taking his cloak, said, "Thank you, my friend; you have proved yourself 'a workman that needeth not to be ashamed.'" The reply came this time with real civility, "I'm much obliged to you. I shouldn't wonder if there are some Christians in the world—and you are one of 'em." "I try to be one; good-by;" and Dow was off, leaving the astonished cobbler saying to himself: "Well, if he's tryin', he don't take it all out in talk. He never preached at me so much as a word." That evening, Dow, who often picked up his text on the way to meeting, spoke from the words that had come to him in the shop—2 Tim. 2:15: "Study to show thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed." He had a large audience, and he preached practical religion to them, enforcing in his original way the truth that everywhere there were poor and unfortunate people for Christians to look after, and this work must be done if we expect the world to believe in our Christianity. Dow spent that night with us, and the next morning one of my father's teams left a load of wood at the lame cobbler's door. Passing the shop on his way to his next appointment, Dow looked in, and said: "Good morning, my friend, I would saw this wood for you, but there are duties awaiting me further on. I think there must be Christians enough in this community to look after a useful citizen like you." Before the cobbler had recovered from his astonishment at being called a "useful citizen," two or three schoolboys came to have little jobs of cobbling done; and while they waited, they acted on the hint given by Dow in his sermon, and worked at the woodpile. From that time on, little kindnesses done to the cobbler became so common that he quite lost his crabbed temper; his neighbors gave him no use for it. "Everybody seems to be helping me," he said. "If I'm 'a useful citizen' I ought to be ashamed not to help somebody myself." The next time Dow came to our neighborhood he was told, "The cobbler has given up his cider and pipe; he sings hymns instead of foolish songs, and reads the Bible to a blind neighbor." Dow replied: "A little leaven leaveneth the whole lump—and a good example goes a great way." Whatever Lorenzo Dow's singularities were, he understood the religion of the New Testament. He knew that a Christian is at his best only when he makes himself an object-lesson of his doctrine.—Christian Advocate.