Earlier text: CONCERNING THE CHANGE OF THE SABBATH TO SUNDAYTO SAVE time is a duty. This all will allow. On the one hand, it is a Christian maxim “Redeeming the time;” and on the other, it is one of the few Christian maxims which the most worldly will approve. The true idea of economizing time is to turn it all to good account; so that when we take ourselves to task for the hours of the day, we will say that, having devoted so many to the necessary offices of the body, so many to the duties of our calling, such and such to reading and meditation, to recreation and amusement, we have spent our time to advantage. If this standard commend itself, then “let the dead past bury its dead,” so far as lost time is concerned, or so far as we have been spending our days on a wrong plan, and let us devote ourselves to the special duty of the moment, as it rises before us in a wisely ordered life. We fear, however, that this is not the common notion of saving time. You meet a business friend on one of these hot, dusty days, rushing along the street as if the whole block were on fire, and it depended on him to put it out. You cry out, “Halloo, Brother S——; what’s all the hurry?” He replies, “Can’t stop just now. I’m in a dreadful hurry; save time’s the word.” Or, you go into a restaurant, and just as dinner is being placed before you, in comes your particular companion, Harry, whom of all men at that moment you want to see. “Come along, Harry, and have some dinner with me,” you gladly say. Harry looks at his watch, and says he is sorry he has no time; and then, standing at a long counter, he bolts, in the twinkling of an eye, as much food as would serve a leisurely man for two or three meals. Or, you have just got a comfortable seat in the railway car. There is every sign of starting immediately. The engine is blowing her steam. The conductor has got on board. The last shrill whistle is heard, and the cars are in motion. Looking out, you see a man rushing along at as high pressure speed as a locomotive, puffing and blowing. With an effort, he springs on the step. Some one takes him by the hand, and helps him up to the platform; and during the rest of the journey he is pale and shivering. The other day we observed an illustration of the same thing. As we arrived at the Astor House, we observed a kind-looking man kissing his wife and children. He said to the children, “You’ll be all in bed by the time business is over and I get back to our home.” Though early in the morning, he had evidently brought his family with him to give them the air, and because his time was so precious that he could not spend any of it at home during the hours of the day. Well, is this economizing time? We say it is borrowing time that we cannot pay back. In other words, this is stealing time. The man who has not a moment for anything but business is taking time from some duty to which of right it belongs. The man who does his eating in five minutes, when he should spend half an hour at least, is robbing health of its proper time. He who rushes to the railway station, and then drops down almost dead, has stolen time from his heart and lungs. And what a number of men who are actually robbing their families of time! They see nothing of their children during the entire day, unless they resort to some such method as that described, of making them accompany them so far on their way. When they get home at night, their children are sound asleep in bed. They are too tired to say anything to their partners in life. And so it is, day after day, till Sunday comes round, and then they aggravate the evil by stealing time from Sunday’s duties. The hours of the one day in seven are regarded as a balance in the bank of life, on which they may safely draw and make up for the losses of the week. Alas! how many are compelled thus to economize time! They are the victims of circumstances. They must work, or else die. The cries of hungry and naked children are ever ringing in their ears. Their wages will hardly keep their own body and soul together, let alone those of their wives and children. They have to borrow time from sleep. For them there is no day of recreation. They have even to rob Sunday of its precious hours to spend them in labor, and ere long they die, miserable bankrupts in regard to time. ZION
By Mrs. C. A. Knowles
Jerusalem, shall we behold
Thy matchless grace? and shall our feet
E’er wander where thy every street
Is lined and paved with shining gold? And shall we see the branches wave,
And taste the fruit on life’s fair tree,
And where life’s river rolleth free,
Shall we amid its waters lave? And shall we walk, in robes of white,
Within thy walls of precious stone?
And look upon the great white throne
Of Him who is our life and light? And shall we join the thrilling song,
That yet shall make thy arches ring?
The song that angels cannot sing,
Of earth’s redeemed and blood-washed throng? Oh! should yon eastern light foretell
That soon the Bridegroom will return;
What marvel that the bride should yearn,
Forever with her Lord to dwell? And though the world, with scornful eyes
Looks on the written things of God;
We yet shall see the bursting sod,
And see the sleeping dead arise. —MRS. C. A. KNOWLES, in World’s Crisis. Take Courage.
By Emma E. Sturges
I KNOW the way at times seems dark to some of God’s dear children; the cross is heavy, and with tired feet and aching brow they anxiously inquire, “Why does my Lord delay his coming? I have been waiting these weary years, battling with the powers of darkness, able to keep my head above the clouds only as God has given me sustaining grace. I still toil on, but flesh and heart have well nigh failed me as I see that darkness still covers the land and gross darkness the people. The enemy ensnares one after another of my loved ones and I realize the truthfulness of the words, ‘There be few that be saved.’” These waiting ones may well take courage now; these evil days plainly tell us that time is very short. “Behold we count them happy that endure.” This load of care, these bitter tears, the anxious yearning over precious souls, God will remember and reward. Jesus sojourned in this vale of tears and his was a life of sinless suffering. But with what patient grace he endured all! Look, weary, burdened one to him. “He will strengthen thine heart.” We shall soon get home; there we shall see Jesus. Let us not then shrink from being baptized into the suffering part lest we fail of obtaining an entrance into his presence where is fullness of joy, and at whose right hand are pleasures forevermore. My dear young friends, think of the glories and beauties of our “Father’s house,” of the great white throne, and of him who sitteth thereon, of the jasper sea, of the harps, the crowns, of the song of the redeemed which angels cannot join in singing, and of eternal life in Christ’s kingdom. Can you not choose now to give up all of the pleasures and vanities of this world for an inheritance with those that endure to the end? It is the watching, fighting, waiting time now, but just beyond is the reward. Gird on the armor anew. Resolve in the strength of God to go through. None ever seek God with all their hearts and seek in vain. It is our privilege to hold communion and fellowship with the Father, and daily grow in grace until we become perfect in Christ Jesus. Let us seek this with all our hearts. The Noblest Influence: Shaping Character at Home
THE noblest influence on earth is that exerted on character; and he who puts forth this does a great work, no matter how narrow or contracted his sphere. The father and mother of an unnoticed family, who, in their seclusion, awaken the mind of one child to the idea of love and perfect goodness, who awaken in him a strength of will to repel all temptation, and to send him out prepared to profit by the conflict of life, surpass, in influence, a Napoleon breaking the world to his sway. Precipitation is acting without sufficient grounds of action. Youth is the peculiar season of precipitation; the young man’s motto is “Onward!” There is no such effectual cure of this evil as experience, when a man is made to feel the effects of his precipitation, both in body and mind; and God alone can thus bring a man acquainted with himself. There is a self-blindness in precipitation; a precipitate man is at the time a blind man. “That be far from thee,” said St. Peter, “this shall not happen to thee!” “As the Lord liveth,” said David, “the man that hath done this thing shall surely die.” There is great criminality in precipitation. A man under its influence is continually tempted to take God’s work out of his hands. It is not a state of dependence. It betrays want of patience with respect to God, and want of faith. “I shall one day perish by the hand of Saul.” It discovers a want of charity; in a rash moment we may do an injury to our neighbor which we can never repair. There are few who do not feel that they are suffering through life the effects of their own precipitation. “He, then, that trusteth his own heart is a fool.” In precipitate moments we should learn to say, “I am not now the man to give an opinion, or to take a single step.”—Cecil. 1. TURN a deaf ear to slanders; be sure never to mention them again. 2. Feed not the innate desire to hear ill of another. 3. Listen to no tale against another, that you are requested not to repeat. 4. Beware of conversation with a tale-bearer, or with one who reveals secrets. 5. Beware of the busy, self-important messenger; remember that “he that is first in his own cause seemeth just; but his neighbor cometh and searcheth him.” 6. If you should hear ill of another, remember that your informant may be mistaken or deceived; he may be misinformed, or prejudiced by party spirit. 7. In any doubtful case, communicate with the party before forming a judgment. 8. Ask counsel of God before mentioning a report again. 9. Prejudice distorts innocent and even praiseworthy acts; beware of even taking a fact from a prejudiced person. From other lips, matters might appear very different. 10. Charity puts the best—the want of it, the worst—construction on what is told to us. 11. “Meddle not with him that flattereth with his lips.”—Prov. 20: 17. This self-deceiving apology is heard, substantially, from the mouths of many Christians as an excuse for neglecting to bring the saving truth, in which they believe, into the consciences of their fellow-men. The following narrative sets this matter in its true light: Two friends, one of them a pious man, often met, and spent hours in trivial conversation, but the subject of religion was scarcely ever touched. The Christian man was troubled in his conscience by the thought that he could not say anything impressive enough to awaken the other to the care of his soul. But one evening when they were together again, and the latter was full of talk on all kinds of subjects, the former was silent and thoughtful. At last he turned an anxious look and a weeping eye upon his gay friend, and said to him in a gentle, impressive, and serious tone, “Oh! how I wish I could do something for your soul!” In an instant, his merriment was changed into a look of surprise and distress, and in a short time he left the room. God made this simple, earnest word an arrow in the young man’s heart. His convictions grew more and more deep and painful, till in a few days he found peace in believing, and became a preacher of the gospel. The real meaning of the above excuse is, “I have not enough interest in the salvation of others—it is not want of capacity—to undertake anything for them.” A single word, moistened by a tear, may, with God’s help, lead to the conversion of a soul. The Wise Man Conceals His Ignorance
A MAN who knows the world, will not only make the most of everything he does know, but many things he does not know; and will gain more credit by his adroit mode of hiding his ignorance, than the pedant by his awkward attempt to exhibit his erudition. Immortal and Immortality.
In turning to the Bible, our only source of information on this question, to learn whether or not man is immortal, the first and most natural step in the inquiry is to ascertain what use the Bible makes of the terms “immortal” and “immortality.” How frequently does it use them? To whom does it apply them? Of whom does it make immortality an attribute? Does it affirm it of man or any part of him? Should we without opening the Bible, endeavor to form an opinion of its teachings from the current phraseology of modern theology, we should conclude it to be full of declarations in the most explicit terms, that man is in possession of an immortal soul and deathless spirit; for the popular religious literature of to-day, which claims to be a true reflection of the declarations of God’s word, is full of these expressions. Glibly they fall from the lips of the religious teacher. Broadcast they go forth from the religious press. Into orthodox sermons and prayers they enter as essential elements. They are appealed to as the all-prolific source of comfort and consolation in case of those who mourn the loss of friends by death—they are not dead; for “there is no death; what seems so is transition;” they have only changed to another state of being, only gone before; for the soul is immortal, the spirit never dying; and it cannot for a moment cease its conscious existence. This is all right provided the Bible warrants such declarations. But it is far from safe to conclude without examination that the Bible does warrant them; for whoever has read church history knows that it is little more than a record of the unceasing attempts of the great enemy of all truth to corrupt the practices of the professors of Christianity, and to pervert and obscure the simple teachings of God’s word with the absurdities and mysticisms of heathen mythology. It has been only by the utmost vigilance that any Christian institution has been preserved, or any Christian doctrine saved, free from some of the corruptions of the great systems of false religion which have always held by far the greater portion of our race in their chains of darkness and superstition. And if we arraign the creeds of the six hundred Protestant sects, as containing many unscriptural dogmas, it is only what every one of them does, in reference to the other five hundred and ninety-nine. To the law, then, and to the testimony. What say the Scriptures on the subject of immortality? FACT 1. The terms “immortal” and “immortality” are not found in the Old Testament, either in our English version or in the original Hebrew. There is, however, one expression, in Gen. 3:4, which is, perhaps, equivalent in meaning, and was spoken in reference to the human race; namely, “Thou shalt not surely die.” But unfortunately for believers in natural immortality, this declaration came from one whom no person would like to acknowledge as the author of his creed. It is what the devil said to Eve, the terrible deception by means of which he accomplished her fall, and so “brought death into the world and all our woe.” But does not the New Testament supply this seemingly unpardonable omission of the Old, by many times affirming that all men have immortality? Remembering the many times you have heard and read from Biblical expositors that you were in possession of an immortal soul, how many times do you think that declaration is made in the New Testament? One hundred times? Fifty? Thirty? Twenty? Ten? No. Five? No. Twice? No. Once? NO! Does not the New Testament then apply the term immortal to anything? Yes; and this brings us to FACT 2. The term immortal is used but once in the New Testament, in the English version, and is then applied to God. The following is the passage: 1 Tim. 1:17: “Now unto the King eternal, immortal, invisible, the only wise God, be honor and glory forever and ever. Amen.” The original word, however, ἀφθαρτός (aphthar- tos) from which immortal is here translated, occurs in six other instances in the New Testament, in every one of which it is rendered incorruptible. The word is defined by Greenfield, “Incorruptible, immortal, imperishable, undying, enduring.” It is used, first, to describe God, in Rom. 1:23, “And changed the glory of the incorruptible God into an image made like to corruptible man, and to birds, and fourfooted beasts, and creeping things.” It is used in 1 Cor. 9:25, to describe the Heavenly crown of the overcomer: “And every man that striveth for the mastery is temperate in all things. Now they do it to obtain a corruptible crown, but we an incorruptible.” It is used in 1 Cor. 15:52, to describe the immortal bodies of the redeemed: “In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump; for the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed.” It is used in 1 Tim. 1:17, to describe God as already quoted. It is used in 1 Pet. 1:4, to describe the inheritance reserved in Heaven for the overcomer: “To an inheritance incorruptible and undefiled, and that fadeth not away, reserved in Heaven for you.” It is used in 1 Pet. 1:23, to describe the principle by which regeneration is wrought in us: “Being born again not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible, by the word of God which liveth and abideth forever.” It is used in 1 Pet. 3:4, to describe the Heavenly adorning which we are to labor to secure: “But let it be the hidden man of the heart, in that which is not corruptible, even the ornament of a meek and quiet spirit, which is in the sight of God of great price.” And these are all the instances of its use. In no one of them is it applied to man or any part of him, as a natural possession. But does not the last text affirm that man is in possession of a deathless spirit? The words “incorruptible” and “spirit” both occur, it is true, in the same verse; but they do not stand together, another noun and its adjectives coming in between them; they are not in the same case, incorruptible being in the dative, and spirit in the genitive; they are not of the same gender, incorruptible being masculine or feminine, and spirit, neuter. What is it which is in the sight of God of great price? The ornament of a meek and quiet spirit. What is the nature of this ornament? It is not destructible like the laurel wreath, the rich apparel, the gold and gems with which the unsanctified man seeks to adorn himself; but it is incorruptible, a disposition moulded by the Spirit of God, some of the fruit of that heavenly tree which God values. Does man by nature possess this incorruptible ornament, this meek and quiet spirit? No; we are exhorted to procure and adopt this instead of the other. This, and this only, the text affirms. To say that this text proves that man is in possession of a deathless spirit, is no more consistent nor logical, than it would be to say that Paul declares that man has an immortal soul, because in his first epistle to Timothy (1:17) he uses the word immortal, and in his first epistle to the Thessalonians (5:23), he uses the word soul. The argument would be the same in both cases. (Perhaps we need not have stopped to notice this objection, as it is only from a minister, and many of that class, it is well known, being committed to certain theological dogmas, when the ground is taken from under them, will engage in frantic efforts to stand on nothing, rather than surrender their position.) FACT 3. The word “immortality” occurs but five times in the New Testament, in our English version. The following are the instances: In Rom. 2:7, it is set forth as something for which we are to seek by patient continuance in well-doing: “To them who by patient continuance in well-doing seek for glory and honor and immortality, [God will render] eternal life.” In 1 Cor. 15:53, 54, it is twice used to describe what this mortal must put on before we can inherit the kingdom of God: “For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality. So when this corruptible shall have put on incorruption, and this mortal shall have put on immortality, then shall be brought to pass the saying that is written, Death is swallowed up in victory.” In 1 Tim. 6:16, it is applied to God, and the sweeping declaration is made that he alone has it: “Who only hath immortality, dwelling in the light which no man can approach unto; whom no man hath seen nor can see: to whom be honor and power everlasting. Amen.” In 2 Tim. 1:10, we are told from what source we receive the true light concerning it, which forever cuts off the claim that reason or science can demonstrate it, or that the oracles of heathenism can make it known to us: “But now is made manifest by the appearing of our Saviour Jesus Christ, who hath abolished death, and hath brought life and immortality to light through the gospel.” How has Christ brought life and immortality to light? Answer: By abolishing death. There could have been no life nor immortality without this; for the race were hopelessly doomed to death through sin. Then by what means and for whom has he abolished death? Answer: By dying for man and rising again, a victor over death; and he has wrought this work only for those who will accept of it through him; for all who reject his proffered aid will meet at last the same fate that would have been the lot of all, had Christ never undertaken in our behalf. Thus through the gospel, the good news of salvation through him, he has brought to light the fact, not that all men are by nature already in possession of immortality, but that a way is opened whereby we may at last gain possession of this inestimable boon. As with the word immortal, so with immortality: the original from which it comes, occurs a few more times than it is so translated in the English version. There are two words translated immortality. These are ἀθανασία (athanasia) and ἀφθαρσία (aphtharsia). The former is defined by Greenfield and Robinson simply “immortality,” and is so translated in every instance. It occurs three times, in 1 Cor. 15:53, 54; 1 Tim. 6:16, as noticed above. The latter is defined, by the same authorities, “incorruptibility, incorruptness; by implication, immortality.” In addition to the instances above cited, it occurs in the following passages: 1 Cor. 15:42: “So also is the resurrection of the dead. It is sown in corruption; it is raised in incorruption.” In verses 50, 53 and 54 of the same chapter, it is that incorruption which corruption [our present mortal condition] does not inherit, and which this corruptible must put on before we can enter into the kingdom of God. In Eph. 6:24, it is used to describe the love we should bear to Christ, and in Titus 2:7 the quality of the doctrine we should hold, in both which instances it is translated “sincerity.” We now have before us all the testimony of the Bible relative to immortality. So far from being applied to man, the term is used as in Rom. 1:23 to point out the contrast between God and man. God is incorruptible or immortal. Man is corruptible or mortal. But if the real man, the essential being, consists of an undecaying soul, a deathless spirit, he too is incorruptible, and this contrast could not be drawn. It is placed before us as an object of hope for which we are to seek: declarations which would be a fraud and deception if we already have it. It is used to distinguish between heavenly and eternal objects, and those that are earthly and decaying. In view of these facts, no candid mind can dissent from the following CONCLUSION: So far as its use of the terms “immortal” and “immortality” is concerned, the Bible contains no proof that man is in possession of an undying nature. A Good Step in Backsliding.
UNDER the heading, “A Backsliding Pastor,” the Bay City (Mich.) Journal of March 16, 1872, says:— “Rev. Jas. Paton, late pastor of the Baptist church at Almont, was tried before an ecclesiastical council February 28, whereof Rev. A. J. Frost, of Bay City, was Moderator. The following charges were preferred against him by the church. 1st. That he taught that man by nature is not an immortal being. 2d. That the souls of the dead are unconscious until the resurrection. 3d. That the wicked will be annihilated. When Mr. P. was asked by the council whether he would plead guilty or not guilty to these charges, he persistently refused to answer, although earnestly invited and advised to do so. The evidence being such as to abundantly sustain the charges, the council brought in its decision accordingly—that it was satisfied of Mr. Paton’s guilt. The finding of the council was embodied in a series of resolutions reported by Rev. S. W. Titus, of Flint, expressing the grief and displeasure of the council at the disrespectful and unchristian bearing of Mr. Paton toward it. Also in the opinion of the council, Mr. Paton was no longer worthy of being a minister of the gospel in the Baptist denomination, and that it withdraw the hand of ministerial fellowship from him, advising the church also to withdraw from him the hand of church fellowship—which was done by the church immediately after the rising of the council. In the afternoon an able sermon was preached by Rev. A. J. Frost, refuting the doctrines of Annihilation, so called, which was a clear statement of the history of the fallacy and the dangerous and immoral tendency of the doctrine. An interesting paper was also read by Rev. H. L. Morehouse, against the materialistic error that man by nature has not immortality.” And so it has come to pass that if a person presumes to differ from the belief and customs of the immaculate present, he is on the high road back to heathenism or something worse. A man cannot keep the Sabbath in these days of over refined piety without “falling from grace.” And if he returns to the Bible doctrine of the nature of man and the destiny of the wicked, he becomes at once a backslider. It would be well if the great majority of the theologians of the present day, having wandered far into labyrinths of heathen mythology, would backslide, that is, slide back, into the Bible path. On one point we would be glad to see a very thorough investigation instituted. The charge is very frequently made, as by the “Rev.” A. J. Frost, above mentioned, that the doctrine of Annihilation, so called, is “dangerous and immoral” in its tendency. Now we judge of the tendency of a doctrine by the course which it leads its adherents to pursue. If its tendency is immoral it is shown by leading them to immoral practices. We say that spiritualism is immoral in its tendency. Why? Because it leads its votaries to practice immorality. This fact is patent to all, and can easily be proved upon them. But we would like to know who has been led into immorality by the Bible doctrine of the unconscious state of the dead and the destruction of the wicked? Who pleads this doctrine as an excuse or a reason for sin? How many criminal cases can be found made up from this class? How many, on account of cherishing this belief, plunge into wholesale free lust, as spiritualists do, on account of the doctrines they hold? Will those who prefer so grave charges, give us some information on these points, and furnish some shadow of ground for the statements they make. Until they do this, all their talk in this direction is simply empty and hypocritical cant. The Sin of Presumption.
By Stephen Nelson Haskell
PRESUMING is defined to be “venturing without permission, too confident, unreasonably bold.” Presumption, “blind, or unreasonable confidence” (Webster). The death of the Son of God was to redeem man from his fallen condition and fit him to dwell in the kingdom of glory. The redemption covers his entire condition, all that was lost in consequence of the fall, both physical and moral. The object of the promises of God is to bestow upon man, in answer to prayer, such graces and blessings as will assist him in the formation of a character that will be God-like, and thus possess godliness which is profitable for the life that now is, and that which is to come. Therefore, to secure these promises, it is necessary for man to place himself in such a condition that the blessings promised may have this effect upon him. To claim these promises without duly considering the object of them, and placing ourselves in such conditions that the blessings promised will have the designed effect, is presuming upon the mercy of God, and should this be persisted in, and were they granted, they would prove a curse instead of a blessing. When God took the children of Israel by the hand to lead them in the wilderness, he promised, “If thou wilt diligently hearken to the voice of the Lord thy God, and wilt do that which is right in his sight, and wilt give ear to his commandments, and keep all his statutes, I will put none of these diseases upon thee, which I have brought upon the Egyptians; for I am the Lord that healeth thee.” Ex. 15 : 26. Such promises are many times repeated in the Bible. Certain conditions were as prominent as the promises and as necessary to be complied with if the promised blessings would be secured. That there might be no obstruction to their faith, and no hindrance to their receiving the blessings promised, he not only gave them133 the ten commandments, which are strictly moral in a prominent sense, but gave them particular directions relative to their physical habits. A compliance with all these conditions would just as surely bring the blessing of God upon them as the word of God is reliable; but to disregard these conditions and then attempt to claim the promises would be presumption on the part of the individual; and for God to grant them, he must deny himself and forfeit his own word. The promises of health are as explicit in the New Testament as in the Old. One gift of the Spirit that is placed in the church is the gift of healing (1 Cor. 12); and instances of the sick being healed by the apostles, as well as by Christ, are very many. No one can doubt the willingness of Christ to grant these blessings inasmuch as the price for the redemption of the body was paid by his blood on Calvary. A kind of foretaste of the redemption of the body (which takes place at the resurrection of the just) has been, and may be, experienced here in the restoration of health. Healing the sick and forgiving sins were often used by the Saviour as meaning about the same thing. Physical duties are as clearly enjoined in the New Testament as in the Old. It is therefore presuming upon the mercy of God, and lightly esteeming the price paid for these blessings, to neglect to give heed to the laws of our being. Is it too much to say that one great cause of the weakness, spiritually and physically, among the professed people of God, is neglect to obey the laws of our being? The laws that govern our physical being emanate from the same Being that spoke amid the thunderings of Sinai’s mount, and are as unchangeable as himself. Therefore, to neglect to inform ourselves on this important subject, and still expect God to bless with health is to occupy the position of the sinner who has no interest to know what sin is, yet expects that God, somehow, will forgive and save him. It is therefore presuming upon the mercy of God in a definite manner; and the Judgment will reveal that a fatal mistake has been made. There should be more of a waking up on this important subject. The religion of the Bible is as extensive as the world, and as high as Heaven; for it originated there. It embraces everything that is good. In lying down and rising up, in going out and coming in, the language of the heart should be, “Speak, Lord, for thy servant heareth.” And when he speaks, we make haste to do his commandments; and his voice is as distinctly heard in physical law, as in moral. Then will be verified the promise, “Whatsoever we ask, we receive of him, because we keep his commandments and do those things that are pleasing in his sight.” 1 John 3 : 22. But where there is a disregard for the practical duties of the Christian religion, and neglect to give heed to the voice of the Holy Spirit in what relates to health, then to venture to claim the promises of God is solemn mockery. Faith before and after Repentance.
By D. T. Bourdeau
FAITH, which may be defined confidence in the testimony of God, must necessarily precede repentance; for we cannot repent until we believe what God has said on repentance. But faith in Christ for pardon follows repentance; for we cannot consistently appropriate to ourselves by faith the merits of Christ’s death, and claim pardon for our sins, until we show sorrow for and turn away from our sins. A child who has offended his parents, by violating their just requirements, would not expect to be forgiven without first repenting. In view of these plain truths, what need is there of contention on the order of faith and repentance? When we see this contention we are reminded of the two kings who met on a certain occasion. Before them was a statue with an arm and hand extending over the road. One exclaimed, “See that red hand.” The other said, “No, it is white.” The first, feeling offended, replied, “No, sir, it is red.” The other also feeling his dignity humbled, retorted, “You know better, sir; it is white.” The two kings had a clinch, and when their fight was over, they looked up, and behold they were both right; for the hand was both red and white. So it is with many in the controversy on the order of repentance and faith. Why contend when we are agreed? Why not look on both sides and endorse the whole truth? But some will say, There is but one faith as well as one Lord and one baptism. Eph. 4:5; but you make two faiths. We reply that in Eph. 4:5, faith means doctrine to be believed, the gospel. In this sense there is but one faith. Faith is taken in the same acceptation in the following texts: “And a great company of the priests were obedient to the faith.” Acts 6:7. “It was needful for me to write unto you, and exhort you, that ye should earnestly contend for the faith which was once delivered unto the saints.” Jude 3. “Here are they that keep the commandments of God, and the faith of Jesus.” Rev. 14:12. Faith also means doctrine in the expressions, Methodist faith, Baptist faith, etc. Aside from this meaning, faith signifies confidence in the testimony of God, or credit given to God’s declarations or promises, as in the eleventh chapter of Hebrews, etc. It also signifies reliance on Christ for salvation from sin, as in the following, and many other scriptures: “Testifying both to the Jews, and also to the Greeks, repentance toward God, and faith toward our Lord Jesus Christ.” Acts 20:21. “Do we then make void the law through faith? God forbid: yea, we establish the law.” Rom. 3:31. It also means confidence in the lawfulness of things indifferent, as in the following passage: “Hast thou faith? have it to thyself before God.” Rom. 14:22. Surely it would not do for Paul to recommend our having faith in Christ or in the word of God to ourselves, without our making an effort to induce others to exercise faith in these directions.