A FEW days ago while weighed down with painful solicitude regarding the enlargement of our missionary operations in home and foreign mission fields, there flashed through my mind the following statements from the spirit of God’s prophecy:—
God’s plan in the tithing system is beautiful in its simplicity and equality. All may take hold of it in faith and courage, for it is divine in its origin. . . . If one and all would accept it, each would be made a vigilant and faithful treasurer for God; and there would be no want of means with which to carry forward the great work of sounding the last message of warning to the world. The treasury will be full if all adopt this system, and the contributors will not be left the poorer.
Under all the circumstances, no message ever seemed more comforting and assuring to me than this. The tithing system is God’s plan; it is divine in its origin. If all would accept it, “there would be no want of means with which to carry forward the great work of sounding the last message of warning to the world.”
That is precisely the information needed at this time. Our work is to proclaim the third angel’s message to all the world. Christ can not come until this is done. One of the great needs in world-wide missionary effort is money. The lack of means is greatly hindering the progress of this cause at the present time. Great advance moves should be made at once. They should be in progress at this very time; but they are held up and bound because the treasury is empty. The situation is painful. Devoted, loyal missionaries and Sabbathkeepers in all lands are waiting with the deepest anxiety for us to send them help from our abundance. And while they wait, we are forced, for lack of means, to bind everything about with cords until our treasury is replenished. This is disappointing, painful, and humiliating, but it can be helped in one way, and that is by a faithful payment of tithes to the cause of God. This will change the whole situation. It will relieve the terrible strain all around.
This, then, is a trumpet call to every one identified with this cause to immediately place in the treasury of God a full, honest tithe of what the Lord has given during the year 1904.
“All the tithe of the land, whether of the seed of the land, or of the fruit of the tree, is the Lord’s; it is holy unto the Lord. . . . And concerning the tithe of the herd, or of the flock, even of whatsoever passeth under the rod, the tenth shall be holy unto the Lord.” Lev. 27: 30, 32.
From these statements it is as plain as words can make it that one tenth of what the Lord entrusts us with is not ours to use for ourselves. It is not ours at all. It is the Lord’s. It belongs to him, and the one who appropriates it to himself robs his Maker and Benefactor. And hence we read: “Will a man rob God? Yet ye have robbed me. But ye say, Wherein have we robbed thee? In tithes and offerings. Ye are cursed with a curse: for ye have robbed me, even this whole nation. Mal. 3: 8, 9.
The remedy for this fearful thing is plain: “Bring ye all the tithes into the storehouse, that there may be meat in mine house, and prove me now herewith, saith the Lord of hosts, if I will not open you the windows of heaven, and pour you out a blessing, that there shall not be room enough to receive it.” Verse 10.
Our empty treasury cries to God against us for the sin of robbing him of his revenue reserved by him for the support of his gospel work. A little study of the tithes received by the church and conference treasurers from the church-members, will show plainly that there is a sad unfaithfulness on the part of some of God’s stewards in the disposal of the tithes.
The tithes received from the Sabbathkeepers in the North American union conferences during the year 1903 amounted to $9.04 per member. The largest tithe per member received in any local conference was $17.78. The lowest average in any conference was $4.33. The average in the majority of conferences was from seven dollars to nine dollars.
Passing to the union conferences outside of North America, we find that the average tithe paid by the Sabbathkeepers amounts to $9.25, the largest tithe paid by any local conference being $28.57, and the lowest, $5.20.
These comparisons show that the believers in the union conferences in foreign lands pay an average of twenty-one cents per member more than is paid by the believers in the United States. This seems incredible. Our people in the densely populated countries of Europe are poor people when compared with our people in the United States. Wages, prices, and the products of toil are not to be compared with those prevailing in North America. And yet our brethren there pay a larger tithe per member than is paid by our brethren in the States.
Why is this? Are the brethren in foreign lands paying more than a tithe? No one believes that. The only reason why the tithe of the American believers is not nearly double that of the brethren in foreign lands, must be because the American brethren are not all paying a full tithe. Nine dollars is a tenth of ninety dollars. Ninety dollars is not two dollars a week for a year. There are very few families, or persons even, who receive as little as that. Ten dollars a week would make a tithe of fifty-two dollars a year. If there were but two in the family, that would make an average of twenty-six dollars for them. If there were four in the family belonging to the church, it would make an average of thirteen dollars for each. This is nearly double what is paid in many of the richest States of North America.
Surely there must be a reformation on this point. We can not possibly look for the showers of the latter rain to fall upon us while withholding from the Lord’s treasury that which is his, and which is so sorely needed to hasten his work forward. Lord, arouse and alarm thy people! Cause thy goodness to lead them to repentance. Show them the awful throng of human beings going down to perdition every day without hope!
A. G. DANIELLS.
The World Filled With War
It is a striking commentary on the “peacefulness” of the world in this enlightened and progressive day that it is so filled with war and strife, political and industrial, that dreadful massacres which are frequently perpetrated in a thickly settled district of Europe, become in the general, world-wide pictures of unrest mere incidental features, of which it is considered hardly worth while to speak in the newspapers, summary of events.
He Touched My Hands
My hands were filled with many things,
Which I did precious hold,
As any treasure of a king's
Silver, or gems, or gold,
The Master came, and touched my
hands;
The scars were in his own.
And at his feet my treasures sweet
Fell shattered one by one;
“I must have empty hands,” said he,
“Wherewith to work my works through
thee.”
My hands were stained with marks of
toil,
Defiled with dust of earth,
And I my work did oftimes soil,
And render little worth.
The Master came, and touched my
hands,
And crimson were his own.
And when, amazed, on mine I gazed,
Lo, every stain was gone.
“I must have cleansed hands,” said he,
“Wherewith to work my works through
thee.”
My hands were growing feverish,
And cumbered with much care,
Trembling with haste and eagerness,
Nor folded oft in prayer.
The Master came, and touched my
hands,
With healing in his own,
And calm and still to do his will,
They grew, the fever gone.
“I must have quiet hands,” said he,
“Wherewith to work my work through
thee.”
My hands were strong in fancied
strength,
But not in power divine,
And bold to take up tasks at length,
That were not his, but mine.
The Master came, and touched my
hands,
And might was in his own;
But mine, since then, have powerless
been,
Save his were laid thereon.
“And it is only thus,” said he,
“That I can work my works through
thee.”
— Selected.
A Call to Repentance
By Ellen G. White
MRS. E. G. WHITE
We are living in the time of the end. Thrones and churches have united to oppose God's purposes. The association of man with man, which God designed should be a means of strengthening goodness and happiness, is used as a means of strengthening evil and of developing tendencies to rebellion. Men have assumed despotic power, and human laws have been put in the place of the law of God.
It is the reign of Antichrist. God's law is set aside. The Scriptures are exchanged for the traditions of men. Satan has become the ruler of the world; and in his hands temptation has become a science. He rules over a vast, well-organized empire. Sin has stimulated his followers into fearful activity. Men have combined to perpetuate evil. The sale of intoxicating liquor, destructive alike to soul and body, is legalized by Christian governments.
Influences are to be set in motion that will proclaim to the world the first, second, and third angels' messages. The world is to be warned, and I beseech those who know the truth to do all in their power to sound the message, “Prepare to meet thy God.”
“It is time for thee, Lord, to work,” David said; “for they have made void thy law.” David lived many hundreds of years ago, and he thought then that the time had come for God to interfere to vindicate his honor and repress the swelling unrighteousness. To-day men have almost filled the cup of their iniquity. But the Lord does not execute the death penalty on the transgressors of his law until they have heard the warning, and have been given an opportunity to see the result of rebellion against him. How wonderful is his forbearance and patience! He is putting a constraint on his own attributes. Omnipotence is exerted over Omnipotence.
“The Lord is slow to anger, and great in power,” “plenteous in mercy” and forgiveness; but he “will not at all acquit the wicked.” Soon there is to be an awakening of his displeasure, and who then can stay his wrath?
There is a work to be done in our cities,—work to be done in every place. God will take men from the plow, from the sheepfold, from the vineyard, and will put them in the place of those who think that they must have the highest wages. Those who grasp for high wages will find in the money they get all the reward they will ever receive. Such ones can not be expected to feel a burden for the salvation of perishing souls. The Lord can not use such ones in his work. Until they banish selfishness from their hearts, their efforts are worthless.
God says to his people to-day, “I have somewhat against thee, because thou hast left thy first love. Remember therefore from whence thou art fallen, and repent, and do the first works; or else I will come unto thee quickly, and will remove thy candlestick out of his place, except thou repent.” Will they heed the reproof? Will they dare to trifle with so direct and decided a statement, and keep their commended excellencies blasted as with a mildew because they allow Satan to steal in among them. “Thou hast left thy first love,” and therefore there is no steadfastness of purpose. Without this love, all knowledge, all capabilities, all outward zeal and service, are worthless. You do not receive from Christ grace to impart to others. And while you do not reveal the love that Christ has commanded you to reveal, your light is not shining forth to the world.
Leaving the first love is represented as a spiritual fall. Many have fallen thus. In every church in our land, there is needed confession, repentance, and reconversion. The disappointment of Christ is beyond description. Unless those who have sinned speedily repent, the deceptions of the last days will overtake them. Some, though they do not realize it, are preparing to be overtaken. God calls for repentance without delay. So long have many trifled with salvation that their spiritual eyesight is dimmed, and they can not discern between light and darkness. Christ is humiliated in his people. The first love is gone, the faith is weak, there is need of a thorough transformation.
My brethren and sisters, humble your hearts before the Lord. Seek him earnestly. I have an intense desire to see you walking in the light as Christ is in the light. I pray most earnestly for you. But I can not fail to see that the light which God has given me is not favorable to our ministers or our churches. You have left your first love. Self-righteousness is not the wedding-garment. A failure to follow the clear light of truth is our fearful danger. The message to the Laodicean church reveals our condition as a people.
Satan is seeking with all his subtlety to corrupt mind and heart. And O how successful he is in leading men and women to depart from the simplicity of the gospel of Christ! Under his influence hereditary and cultivated tendencies to wrong are roused into activity. Ministers and church-members are in danger of allowing self to take the throne.
Human wisdom, human ability, is nothingness in God's sight. He who supposes that he is superior to his fellow men in wisdom will sooner or later reveal traits of character that are a dishonor to God. In the church to-day there are many of this stamp,—men and women in whom the loveliness of Christ is hidden by traits of character that unfit the possessor for membership in the Lord's family in the heavenly courts.
There are many who are not Bible Christians. They follow a standard of their own devising. If they would see their defective, distorted characters as they are accurately reflected in the mirror of God's Word, they would be so alarmed that they would fall upon their faces before God in contrition of soul, and tear away the rags of their self-righteousness.
My brethren in the ministry, you ought to be reaching higher and still higher in Christian experience,—higher, not by self-assertion, self-assumption, and self-confidence, but by growth in grace and in the knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. Press forward toward the mark of the prize of your high calling in Christ. How much we need to be faithful watchmen over self, to make sure that we have not the spirit that leads us to hurt and destroy in the place of using our God-given talents to awaken the inhabitants of our9world to a realization of their lost and undone condition. Let us not be content to be as those who have left their first love.
Shall We Give or Relinquish?
By G. B. Thompson
G. B. THOMPSON
WE hear frequently of persons who at death leave all or a portion of their property to some philanthropic enterprise or charitable institution, and everywhere their generosity is favorably commented upon. They have left behind, it is true, that which can be used for a good purpose, but did they really give anything? They held on to all they had in life, enjoying all the comforts and pleasures which it afforded, until their grasp upon their hoarded treasures was rendered nerveless by the relentless stroke of death. But this can hardly be called giving. We give while we live of that which we might retain. We relinquish, or leave behind, at death what we are powerless to longer hold on to, and utterly unable to take with us beyond the portals of the tomb. Having refused to give while they lived, and could use it themselves, they unwillingly relinquish, or leave behind them at death, all they have. They never once enjoyed the sweet blessing which comes to the soul by giving to the Lord.
In reading in the “Spirit of Prophecy” recently, I was impressed with the statement that some among us are in danger of making a similar mistake. Standing as we are on the borders of the heavenly Canaan, with numberless calls coming for means to advance the work in the home and foreign fields, some are holding on to surplus treasures, expecting to give, not relinquish, to the cause of God at death what they can no longer use, or hold on to. Notice the following:—
“Many people selfishly retain their means, and soothe their conscience with a plan for doing some great thing for the cause of God after their death. They make a will donating a large sum to the church and its various interests, and then settle down with a feeling that they have done all that is required of them. Wherein have they denied self by this act? They have, on the contrary, exhibited the true essence of selfishness. When they have no longer any use for their money, they propose to give it to God. But they will retain it as long as they can, till they are compelled to relinquish it by a messenger that can not be turned aside.”—“Testimonies for the Church,” Vol. IV, page 81.
“Those who neglect known duty by not answering to God’s claims upon them in this life, and who soothe their conscience by calculating on making their bequests at death, will receive no words of commendation from the Master, nor will they receive a reward. They practised no self-denial, but selfishly retained their means as long as they could, yielding it up only when death claimed them. That which many propose to defer until they are about to die, if they were Christians indeed they would do while they have a strong hold on life. They would devote themselves and their property to God, and, while acting as his stewards, they would have the satisfaction of doing their duty.”
“The Lord designs that the death of his servants shall be regarded as a loss, because of the influence for good which they exerted, and the many willing offerings which they bestowed to replenish the treasury of God. Dying legacies are a miserable substitute for living benevolence.”—Id., pages 480, 481.
The cause of God is still calling for help. For this we are glad. It would be a sad hour for many of us if there were no more calls, and the last gift that could be used in the message was in the treasury. Such a time is speedily coming, but as yet the Macedonian cry is still heard. We still have the blessed opportunity of renewing our consecration to God, and making some sacrifice to extend the healing rays of the message into the dark corners of the earth. The privilege of giving instead of relinquishing is before us.
“God Lives and Reigns”
By A. E. PLACE
A. E. PLACE
The statement, “God lives and reigns,” is taken from the article, “A Call to Service,” by Mrs. E. G. White, in the REVIEW of October 20. The entire article has impressed me deeply, not only because of its intrinsic value at any time, but especially at the time and for the purpose for which it was written—the opening keynote of our great missionary campaign. The text also, if taken alone, is a soul-inspiring truth; but as I have viewed it, in the setting given to it by the author, it has been especially appreciated, and it has thrilled my soul with courage, hope, and joy. I quote briefly the immediate connection as follows:—
“God and Christ and the heavenly angels are working with intense activity to hold in check the fierceness of Satan’s wrath, that God’s plans may not be thwarted. God lives and reigns. He is conducting the affairs of the universe. Let his soldiers move forward to victory. . . . As a mighty Conqueror, the Lord will work for them. Let the gospel message ring through our churches, summoning them to universal action.”
This is a most wonderful array of truth for this very time. We behold the many signs of the awful day of God rapidly fulfilling before our eyes. Truly, “the nations are angry.” Men’s hearts are hard and selfish and scheming. Greed and selfish indulgence seem to be in the very atmosphere of this last generation. Battle and war is the talk and action of to-day. The land is being “filled with violence” and bloodshed. Murder and suicide are coming to be the popular crimes. A trivial word or act, and the next moment a mortal combat. Soldiers of opposing armies, wounded on the battle-field, and unable to use gun or sword, clinch in the awful death struggle, and when cold and stiff in death, they are found like bull-dogs, the one with his teeth closed upon the throat of his antagonist, and the other with a finger or thumb in the socket from which the eye had been gouged with his last remnant of physical power and dying animosity.
The whole world is organizing. Capital is against labor, and labor against capital. Trade is pitted against trade, and man against man,—all professedly in the interests of self-protection, but in truth against even their own selfish desires and the hope of the nation.
In our own land, mob is coming to be the lawmaker, and lynching the capital punishment. The great statesmen of the earth are alarmed at what is happening, and at what is liable to happen. Six hundred thousand are to-day on the battle-field in mortal combat. Over seventy thousand already fill soldiers’ graves, or lie unburied where they fell in the recent battles of the far East. The earth fairly trembles beneath the measured tread of armed men, while the sea foams with the mad rush of great naval monsters. All England has within the past few weeks been aroused to the fighting point, and hastily donned her war paint to meet the Russian battle-ships, to avenge the English fishermen in the North Sea. Why the sudden check on the very precipice of war? Some say, “The Hague.” We say, The four angels to whom it was given to hold the winds till God’s servants are sealed. It is because “God lives and reigns.” It is because “he is conducting the affairs of the universe.”
I say that at this time, with the earth filled with satanic agencies, moving forward in their death-dealing and soul-destroying work, these words come to our anxious hearts like the encircling arm of a mighty father, with comfort and encouragement for his trembling child. Above the roar of cannon and the cry of selfish and angry men, in the face of the most trying and discouraging climax of earth’s history, those grand words, “God lives and reigns,” banish fear and discouragement, check the course of the backslider, and thrill the heart of every true child of God with confidence and joy. “He is conducting the affairs of the universe.” Praise his holy name. The angels of his own choosing are holding the winds of strife, and in all nations precious souls are leaving the selfishness of this world to stand with that company which erelong shall be translated into a kingdom of absolute glory and peace.
What more fitting words can be used in closing than those which immediately follow the quotations given above? “Let his soldiers move forward to victory. . . . As a mighty Conqueror, the Lord will work for them.” Brethren, lift up your heads and rejoice; for “God lives and reigns.”
The Lord Is Our King
“THE Lord is our King.”
A Definite Call for a Definite Purpose
By W. M. ADAMS
W. M. ADAMS
SEVERAL years ago the annual-offering plan was established among our people. It was devised to meet the pressing calls from home and foreign fields, but especially the latter. It has resulted in great good to our people, and has enabled the truth to find its way into the darkest corners of the earth. As a result hundreds are now rejoicing in the truths of the last message.
What heart is there that has not thrilled with joy as tidings came through the good old REVIEW, and other agencies, of souls won from the darkest of heathenism to an intelligent knowledge and faith in our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ? Can we think for a moment that our prayers and offerings have been to no avail?—No, no. When we see the self-sacrificing spirit of our missionaries and the eagerness of benighted souls to learn the sweet name, Jesus, do we think that we have given too liberally for such a cause? Do we sometimes feel chafed when the call comes repeatedly, Give, give, give? Let us look for a moment at what is involved in the principle of giving. “God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son.” Jesus Christ “gave himself for our sins;” and when he left the earth, he “gave gifts unto men.” “The Lord will give strength unto his people.” “The Lord will give grace and glory.” “And I give unto them eternal life,” says God.
When we fall into transgression, we go to God and say, “O Lord, for Jesus’ sake for-give us our sins.” What does that mean?—It simply means “give for” our sins. What has God to “give for” our sins?—The life of Jesus, which is righteousness—right doing. Then every time we are for-given our sins, God is giving, and we are receiving.
O, how sublime the thought that salvation is wrapped up in giving! It is give, give, GIVE, to us poor mortals. That is what salvation means. If God should cease to give, we should lose eternal life, and this temporal life also—we should lose all. He gives that we may give, and every one who has tasted of salvation can not help but give. We will give ourselves, our talents, our time, our money, our all.
“But how much shall I give?” says one. “If there be first a willing mind, it is accepted according to that a man hath, and not according to that he hath not.” “God loveth a cheerful giver.”
Last year the annual offering amounted to a little over forty thousand dollars, but it was not sufficient to meet the demands. Cries for help are increasing from every field. Shall we not heartily respond to these calls by doubling the amount given last year? Surely we can say, “Thine, O Lord, is the greatness, and the power, and the glory, and the victory, and the majesty: for all that is in the heaven and in the earth is thine. . . . Both riches and honor come of thee, and thou reignest over all. . . . But who am I, and what is my people, that we should be able to offer so willingly after this sort [$80,000]?” The answer is, “For all things come of thee, and of thine own have we given thee.” 1 Chron. 29:11-14. “Freely ye have received, freely give.”
The Sanctuary
By Stephen Nelson Haskell
THE Scriptures plainly state several things respecting the work of our High Priest in heaven which it would be well for us all to remember. First, Christ is on the right hand of the throne of the Majesty in heaven, a minister of holy things, and of the tabernacle which the Lord pitched, and not man. Heb. 8:1-3, margin. If he is a minister of holy things, how many holy things do we receive that he does not minister to us? He is a minister of holy things at the right hand of God in heaven. David says that the sanctuary is in the heights of heaven, and “from heaven did the Lord behold the earth.” Ps. 102:19.
“The Lord looketh from heaven; he beholdeth all the sons of men. From the place of his habitation he looketh upon all the inhabitants of the earth.” Ps. 33:13, 14. “Then hear thou from the heavens, even from thy dwelling-place, their prayer and their supplications, and maintain their cause, and forgive thy people which have sinned against thee. Now, my God, let, I beseech thee, thine eyes be open, and let thine ears be attent unto the prayer that is made in this place.” 2 Chron. 6:39, 40.
In these quotations there are several statements which I will notice. One is that the words “tabernacle” and “sanctuary” and “habitation” and “dwelling-place” all refer to the place from which Christ ministers. It is the place where God dwells in heaven.
In each instance where these words occur, the location is in heaven, and the truth is taught that forgiveness comes from God's dwelling-place. I call your attention to these expressions because some have questioned me about my statement in my last sermon, that “a genuine Christian experience in connection with the work of God comes from the sanctuary question.”
You will notice that Christ is on the right hand of the throne of the Majesty in heaven, a minister of every holy thing that ever comes to this earth. To Israel the condition of God's hearing up in heaven was that they make prayer and supplication toward the house that Solomon built. This is stated seven times in Solomon's prayer. They must recognize that which God recognizes on earth as a representation of that which is in heaven. Then, does not forgiveness come from God's throne in heaven? Does not every blessing that men receive day by day come from the courts above?
The genuineness of our Christian experience will largely depend upon the knowledge we have of the work of Christ in heaven in our behalf, because every ray of light comes from our Lord Jesus Christ. It comes from the throne of God in heaven.
I will mention a few expressions that speak of God's throne. It is the throne of the Majesty in heaven. Heb. 8:1, 2. It is called the throne of grace (Heb. 4:16), and that throne is said to be in the temple of God (Ps. 11:4), between the two cherubim. Ps. 80:1. David plainly states that the Lord prepared that throne for judgment. Ps. 9:7. When do you think he prepared it for judgment? Jeremiah gives a key to this in the seventeenth chapter and the twelfth verse. “A glorious high throne from the beginning is the place of our sanctuary.” When is the beginning? Let the Gospel of John answer in the first two verses: “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. The same was in the beginning with God.”
The beginning is before the creation. At a general meeting I was asked when the beginning was, and for a full hour they discussed that first text in John; and when they finished, they concluded they were right where they were at the beginning—they did not know. Now let this book (holding up a book) represent seven thousand years measured out of eternity. I go back seven thousand years, and I step into eternity. Is there any measurement back there?—No. There is where God was. I go over the seven thousand years, I step again into eternity. Any measurement there?—No. All I know of time is the seven thousand years measured out from eternity. Then where was the beginning?—Back there where God was. What was back there?—A glorious high throne. And that was the place of God's sanctuary. Then the sanctuary was from the beginning, and it will continue forever and ever,—there will be no end to it. It will be on the earth made new. Eze. 37:25-27; Rev. 21:1-4. But what that ministration would have been if man had never sinned is not revealed. All I know is this, that man did sin, and the service of the sanctuary was for the salvation of the human family, and was made manifest after man sinned. In the Levitical law God has given us light about Christ's work in heaven for the salvation of man; and when I think of it in that light, it seems to me that if there ever was a people that should be interested in this question, it is Seventh-day Adventists. Here is a representative people, the last generation, which is supposed to live when the Lord will come. This is the work that God inaugurated before man sinned. He prepared a throne for judgment; he prepared a sanctuary, and when man sinned, he turned all its services to accomplish the redemption of man.
(To be concluded)
Every Day
By Dinah Mulock Craik
Every day hath its dawn,
Its soft and silent eve,
Its moontide hours of bliss or bale;
Why should we grieve?
Why do we heap huge mounds of years
Before us and behind,
And scorn the little days that pass
Like angels on the wind?
Each turning round a small sweet face
As beautiful as near;
Because it is so small a face
We will not see it clear.
We will not clasp it as it flies,
And kiss its lips and brow;
We will not bathe our wearied souls
In its delicious now.
And so it turns from us and goes
Away in sad disdain;
Though we would give our lives for it,
It never comes again.
Yet, every day has its dawn,
Its moontide and its eve;
Live while we live, giving God thanks;
He will not let us grieve.
—Dinah Mulock Craik.
Sound Philosophy and Genuine Experience
By G. H. HEALD, M. D.
G. H. HEALD, M. D.
“ALL are bound by the most sacred obligations to God to heed the sound philosophy and genuine experience which he is now giving them in reference to health reform. He designs that the great subject of health reform shall be agitated, and the public mind deeply stirred to investigate.”—“Testimonies for the Church,” Vol. III, page 162.
Sound philosophy; a correct knowledge of physiology and of its practical application in hygienic laws,—from whatever source obtained.
Genuine experience: increased health as a result of obeying these laws.
I believe that the context and the general tenor of these writings will justify the definitions given above, and I would ask the reader to read again the paragraph quoted, substituting the definitions for the phrases. Lest some might think the “sound philosophy” refers entirely to the special light sent by the Lord, I call attention to other quotations, showing that the Lord expects us to get our knowledge of the human body from a study of physiology:—
“A practical knowledge of the science of human life is necessary in order to glorify God in our bodies. It is therefore of the highest importance that among studies selected for childhood, physiology should occupy the first place.”—Health Reformer.
“It is best for those who claim to be sons and daughters of God to avail themselves, while they can, of the opportunities now presented to gain a knowledge of the human system, and how it may be preserved in health.”—Medical Missionary.
In order that “the great subject of health reform” may “be agitated, and the public mind deeply stirred to investigate,” we must have strong convictions, born of “sound philosophy and genuine experience;” we must have a good theory, successfully carried out in good practice. We must “be able to give a reason” for our belief. This reason should tell just why some articles, or combinations, or practices are harmful, and why others are not. These reasons should be backed up by the personal experiences of the speakers, who should themselves be examples of what health reform will do for a person.
A tree is known by its fruit. Health reform claims to produce a superior type of people, physically, mentally, and morally; and naturally, people look to health reformers to see whether the claim is substantiated. Are the advocates of this doctrine more free from tuberculosis, pneumonia, scarlet fever, malaria, colds, dyspepsia, rheumatism, etc.? Is the death-rate less or the average length of life greater in this class than in those who pay little or no attention to their health?
The promise has been made: “When we do all that we can on our part to have health, then we may expect the blessed results will follow, and we can ask God in faith to bless our efforts for the preservation of health.”—“How to Live,” Chap. 4, page 64.
“A careful conformity to the laws God has implanted in our being will insure health, and there will not be a breaking down of the constitution.”—Health Reformer.
If we, as a people, are not noticeably better in health than the average people who pay little or no attention to health, what is the matter?—Simply a lack of the “genuine experience,” which would have followed the cherishing of a “sound philosophy.”
This is not the result of insincerity. One class of people adopts, or attempts to adopt, “health reform” without taking time to study the foundation principles. They think, because they have left off certain proscribed articles of diet, and made some other changes, that they are health reformers. They have adopted certain changes because others have done so, or because these changes are advocated in certain writings or in the Testimonies, without learning whether these things are adapted to their individual needs or circumstances.
As we are told, “Many have misrepresented health reform, and have received perverted ideas of what constitutes right living.”—Instructor, May 31, 1894.
Their health is no better as a result of their change in habits. It may not be so good as before. They are conscientious, and, believing they are right in observing the “letter of the law,” they keep on in this way, with, perhaps, more or less disastrous results.
They do not realize that the Testimonies give general directions and general principles, but do not attempt to give details for the regulation of every act. They do not appreciate the significance of the statements quoted above, regarding the importance of a knowledge of physiology and hygiene, and the necessity of regulating the life by this knowledge. As a result, their effort to live healthfully is more or less of a failure.
Others see that Brother A and Sister B, who are always advocating “health reform, have as poor health as the rest of us,” and so they make no attempt to restrict their appetites or change their habits. So Brother A and Sister B, in their zeal for the letter of health reform, turn many away from a true spirit of reform. It is a “zeal without knowledge.” In both cases there is a failure to study the “sound philosophy”—the foundation principles.
The writer has no quarrel with true health reform. But he wants to see results. He has little sympathy with the theoretical health reform which has little to show for it except poor health.
It is about time we, as a people, were getting ready to “agitate” the “great subject of health reform;” but before the “public mind” can be “deeply stirred to investigate,” we must be better grounded on true principles ourselves. Some who have not had the light we have are going ahead of us.