Am I a child of God? Am I a member of the heavenly family? Not particularly “Am I saved or am I not?” but “Am I in that relationship with God where I can leave all in His hands and know that it will be well?”
These are vitally important questions to the individual soul, and there are multitudes asking them.
There are worried, anxious souls all over this great world. They may hide the fear and anxiety and worry with a smile, or laugh, or jest, or trivial remark, but the question of eternity will arise. Alone in the dark, it is an utterly abnormal soul that will not think out beyond this brief existence and wonder what lies before.
There are many who believe the Bible who think the evidence of its truthfulness and inerrancy sufficient, but they are in doubt as to whether equally conclusive evidence may be theirs in their relationship with God. They look upon the unsatisfactory experience of others. They hear souls declare themselves saved because they feel saved and happy, but in a little while the feeling is gone, the happiness has given way to gloom, and the soul is discouraged, and then the question arises, Did that soul know God’s witness? Did it really make life connection with God? Let us study this question.
1. The Witness of God’s Spirit
The apostle Paul declares:
“Now the Spirit itself beareth witness with our spirit, that we are the children of God.” Rom. 8:16
The reader will note that it is the same divine law, twofold in its evidence, which we have been studying. This scripture clearly indicates that God would not have His people depend on a guess, or a wish, or a vain hope, that they were His children. He surely desires them to have evidence,—evidence absolutely unimpeachable. May we not say, therefore, that the Christian need not grope in blindness or doubt, that God will give him such plain evidence that it will not be presumptuous to make the claim that he is a child of God. First, what is the witness of the Spirit of God? Says an apostle:
“But God hath revealed them unto us by His Spirit: for the Spirit searcheth all things, yea, the deep things of God. For what man knoweth the things of a man, save the spirit of man which is in him? even so the things of God knoweth no man, but the Spirit of God. Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the spirit which is of God; that we might know the things that are freely given to us of God. Which things also we speak, not in the words which man’s wisdom teacheth, but which the Holy Ghost teacheth; comparing spiritual things with spiritual.” 1 Cor. 2:10-13.
The things of God, then, are known only by His Spirit. What is the voice of His Spirit? How may we learn just what the Spirit speaks? Shall we depend upon our feelings or impressions? That would be of the highest uncertainty, because good people have directly opposite impressions many times. Has not God left us something better than this by which we may know the voice of the Spirit?—Surely He has. God has revealed to us the things of the Spirit in His holy word, and that word was inspired by His Spirit. Take the following scriptures for instance:
“Of which salvation the prophets have inquired and searched diligently, who prophesied of the grace that should come unto you: searching what, or what manner of time the Spirit of Christ which was in them did signify, when it testified beforehand the sufferings of Christ, and the glory that should follow.” 1 Peter 1:10, 11.
“For the prophecy came not in old time by the will of man; but holy men of God spake as they were moved by the Holy Spirit.” 2 Peter 1:21.
“This scripture must needs have been fulfilled, which the Holy Spirit by the mouth of David spake before concerning Judas.” Acts 1:16.
“Wherefore, even as the Holy Spirit saith.” Heb. 3:7.
“All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness: that the man of God may be perfect, thoroly furnished unto all good works.” 2 Tim. 3:16, 17.
“Given by inspiration” is literally “God-breathed.”
Two of the above expressions refer to quotations from the Psalms. This, too, is true of the words which the Lord spoke through the prophets of the Old Testament. They were inspired by the Spirit of God, as expressed in 2 Sam. 23:2: “The Spirit of the Lord spake by me, and His word was in my tongue.” We are told by the apostle Paul that the apostles themselves taught also “not in the words which man’s wisdom teacheth, but which the Holy Spirit teacheth; comparing spiritual things with spiritual.” 1 Cor. 2:13.
The witness, or testimony, of the Spirit of God, therefore, is the word of God, the Bible.
That word reveals in the holy law of God man’s duty, and also man’s sinfulness by that same law, because man has transgressed the law.
That word reveals that Christ died to redeem mankind, and that every soul can be saved on conditions which are explicitly and clearly set forth, and which man through God’s offered favor can meet.6
That word reveals the promises and power of God, and how obtained.
That word reveals how the acceptance of God’s plan with the whole heart will affect the sinner’s mind, affections, and life. God’s word, or the Spirit of God through this word, reveals all the necessary things for man’s acceptance and salvation.
One text will not reveal all, man’s opinions of the text will not; but the Bible will by study, comparing scripture with scripture, passage with passage, prophet with prophet and apostle, and apostle with apostle and prophet,—in short, “comparing spiritual things with spiritual,” will reveal man’s duty. This is the testimony of the word, the witness of the Spirit of God.
2. The Witness of Our Spirit
“Our spirit,” or “the spirit of man,” refers to man’s mind, intellect, and spiritual nature. Its use in this scripture probably comprehends all of these. It is that by which we obtain knowledge. It does not of itself know the things of God, because of the limitations of its narrow powers and the greatness of the things of God. But in it is the only knowledge man has of himself outside of divine revelation: “For what man knoweth the things of a man, save the spirit of man which is in him?” The spirit knows man’s loves and hates. The unregenerated soul is against God; it is at enmity with the truth of God; it is in harmony with evil; but when regenerate the old passes away, a new spirit is created within. “A new heart also will I give you, and a new spirit will I put within you.” Eze. 36:26. And this new spirit is the creation of the Spirit of God. Verse 27.
This being the case, the Spirit of God dwells in the heart of the regenerate, or child of God, and this Paul expressly states: “But ye are not in the flesh, but in the Spirit, if so be that the Spirit of God dwell in you. Now if any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of His.” Rom. 8:9. The spirit of man, then, that which has been created within him by the Spirit of God, must be in harmony with the Spirit of God that created it. The testimony of the Spirit of God, the word, and the testimony of the renewed spirit of man, must agree, if we are to have the twofold witness.
The spirit of man is manifest in his thoughts, his words, his deeds,—not in one alone, but in all. It matters not what emotions he may have, or may have had, what feelings may have possessed him of joy or of ecstasy. These are not the witness of Rom. 8:16. The cherished thoughts of man, the words of man, the deeds of man, must be in harmony with the word of God, which is the testimony of the Spirit of God. Has he the Spirit of Christ? Then through that Spirit he must put to death the deeds of the body and the tendencies of the flesh. Rom. 8:13. The Spirit gives through the word what its fruits are. Gal. 5:22-24. Does the spirit of man witness that his thoughts, words, and deeds are in harmony with this? If it does, he has the twofold witness. If his heart is not in harmony with God’s word, if he hates instead of loves, it matters not what his joy or emotion, he is not a child of God. If he fails, does he sorrow for sin, even tho only known to himself? Heartfelt contrition and repentance is evidence of sonship, because it is in harmony with the testimony of the Spirit.
If the justified and regenerate man loves the commandments of God, his spirit knows it. It will not be a love of words alone, but deeds. 1 John 3:18. “For this is the love of God, that we keep His commandments: and His commandments are not grievous.” 1 John 5:3. The power to overcome sin, the willing obedience, the submission to God’s will, are evidences absolutely unimpeachable, as the following scriptures show:
“And hereby we do know that we know Him, if we keep His commandments.”
“But whoso keepeth His word, in him verily is the love of God perfected: hereby [by keeping His word] know we that we are in Him.” 1 John 2:3, 5.
See also 1 John 5:2-5. Many other scriptures teach the same thing.
3. An Infallible, Unimpeachable Witness
It will be readily seen from this what an infallibly clear and precious evidence of his acceptance with God the Christian has. It is infallible and unimpeachable. The testimony of the Spirit of God, the Bible, is the same forever; it teaches the same things to-day as it did when John on lonely, rock-bound Patmos wrote the Revelation, or penned his gospel. Its teaching as regards practical duty is plain, and can easily be understood. The Christian knows it, and knows whether he is in harmony with it or not in heart and through life. The Bible being infallible, and the testimony within himself being in harmony with the Bible, it also is an infallible evidence. The two agreeing testimonies are unimpeachable witness.
The above being the case, it is also clear; for if the Spirit through the word reveal all provisions and conditions of man’s salvation, if it plainly declare what the character of the man would be who accepted the truth, and if the man meets all these conditions and is in harmony with all these provisions, certainly the evidence is clear that it is God’s Spirit which has wrought the change.
It is a precious evidence because of its intrinsic worth. We often hear in revival meetings in these days of superficial experience, such expressions as, “I am saved; I feel that I am saved.” The expression is one of emotion and ecstasy,—poor evidence at best. A political meeting can give the same. Not that the Christian does not have joy at times, but joy is not the evidence; feeling is not the evidence. Emotion is but incidental, and the devil may cause emotion. Of itself alone, it is of no worth as assurance of acceptance with God. Faith in God’s word and the promises through Christ, coupled with a changed life and a character being molded after the living Word, is evidence upon which we can rest as a rock. Emotion may pass away, physical infirmities may lessen joy, feeling may depart, but God’s word is unchangeable, and the heart renewed is just as much in harmony with it all as when joy and feeling were dominant.
But even if the child of God has failed, the word of the Spirit invites him to come back with true contrition. Promise can not fail, and the submissive, faithful heart that trusts therein can not fail. “He that dwelleth in the secret place of the Most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty.” Ps. 91:1. “For if ye do these things, ye shall never fall.” 2 Peter 1:10. And the humble-hearted will ever know whether he is doing the will of God or not, will know whether he has a working faith, a “faith which worketh by love.” Gal. 5:6. The Spirit of God is the only power which can work in us that harmony with the testimony of the Spirit, the word of God. If we have not this Spirit we are none of His. If we have this Spirit, that Spirit will work in us that which is in harmony with the word. In other words, the Spirit in the word of God and the spirit in our hearts will be in perfect accord. “Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the spirit which is of God; that we might know the things that are freely given to us of God.” 1 Cor. 2:12. “Behold, what manner of love the Father hath bestowed upon us, that we should be called the sons of God.” 1 John 3:1. It is our privilege to be the sons of God; it is our privilege to know that we are. We have, if we are sons, an unimpeachable, infallible witness to the fact. Let us hold it fast.
Faithful Observance of the Sabbath
By Ellen G. White
By Mrs. E. G. White
PARTICULAR directions were given of God in regard to the manner of observing the Sabbath. All unnecessary work was strictly forbidden, and the day before the Sabbath was made a day of preparation, that everything might be in readiness for its sacred hours. “This is that which the Lord hath said, To-morrow is the rest of the holy Sabbath unto the Lord: bake that which ye will bake to-day, and seethe that ye will seethe; and that which remaineth over lay up for you to be kept until the morning.”
The Israelites were not in any case to do their own work on the Sabbath. The divine direction was, “Six days thou shalt work, but on the seventh day thou shalt rest: in earing time and in harvest thou shalt rest.” In the busiest seasons of the year, when their fruits and grains were to be secured, they were to remember that their temporal blessings came from the bountiful hand of their Creator, and He could increase or diminish them according to their faithfulness or unfaithfulness in His service.
The Lord places a high estimate upon His Sabbath. Through His prophet He has promised: “If thou turn away thy foot from the Sabbath, from doing thy pleasure on My holy day; and call the Sabbath a delight, the holy of the Lord, honorable; and shalt honor Him, not doing thine own ways, nor finding thine own pleasure, nor speaking thine own words: then shalt thou delight thyself in the Lord; and I will cause thee to ride upon the high places of the earth, and feed thee with the heritage of Jacob thy father: for the mouth of the Lord hath spoken it.”
With God there is no respect of persons. Those who fear Him and work righteousness are precious in His sight; but He requires His people to show their allegiance by strict obedience to all the precepts of the moral law, the Sabbath commandment with the rest. God is jealous of His honor, and let men beware how they remove one jot or tittle of that law that He spoke with His own voice and wrote with His own finger upon tables of stone, and that He has pronounced holy, just, and good.
THIS parable is often cited to prove that the disembodied spirit of man departs to its reward at death. It is said that if the man is righteous his soul goes to Paradise, if wicked it departs to the place of torment.
The advocates of man's consciousness after death tell us that the soul is not encumbered with bodily parts in the place of future rewards; and yet the parable plainly teaches that the rich man had eyes and a tongue and that Lazarus had fingers. We read that the rich man died, “And in hell he lift up his eyes, being in torments, and seeth Abraham afar off, and Lazarus in his bosom. And he cried and said, Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus, that he may dip the tip of his finger in water, and cool my tongue; for I am tormented in this flame.” Luke 16: 23, 24.
Now eyes, fingers, and tongues are members of the body. Did the rich man have two pairs of eyes, one pair in torment and the other returning to dust in the tomb? Or two tongues, one suffering in the heat of hell and the other motionless in the grave? And did Lazarus have two bodies, one in the pauper’s grave with the fingers decaying, and the other in Paradise visible to the rich man’s eyes?
It is certain that if this parable teaches consciousness after death, it also teaches that the soul is burdened with physical parts, and, therefore, nullifies the doctrine of disembodied souls. The soul represented with bodily parts disagrees with the Saviour’s teaching, “A spirit hath not flesh and bones, as ye see Me have.”
Object of the Parable
This parable was not given to teach man’s consciousness or unconsciousness after death, but to set forth the final punishment of the penurious, wealthy class, and the reward of the penitent poor. It rebukes covetousness and reveals the penalty that awaits all who allow this fatal malady to dominate the soul. It also teaches that the Paradise of God is the eternal dwelling-place of all who through Christ conquer sin, whether they are rich or poor.
According to Christ’s teaching man does not receive his reward at death, but at the resurrection. He said, “When thou makest a dinner or a supper, call not thy friends, nor thy brethren, neither thy kinsmen, nor thy rich neighbors; lest they also bid thee again, and a recompense be made thee. But when thou makest a feast, call the poor, the maimed, the lame, the blind: and thou shalt be blessed; . . . for thou shalt be recompensed at the resurrection of the just.” Luke 14: 12-14. Lazarus is a representative of all who sleep in Jesus, and they receive their reward at the resurrection of the just. There being no measurement of time in the tomb, it seems that the Saviour passed over the interval between death and the resurrection and presented the two characters at the final judgment-day. This must be so, as both parties are represented with bodily parts, and the body certainly does not appear until the resurrection.
It is not so difficult a task to maintain a Scriptural doctrine as it is to weave Bible principles into our daily lives. Every act, whether right or wrong, is deciding our future destiny. How important, then, that we seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness. If through faith in Christ we daily win the victory in the hour of temptation, then whether we live or die we are the Lord’s and all will be well when the righteous enter upon their eternal reward.
There's a Man in the glory! I know very well.
I have known Him for years, and His goodness can tell.
One day in His mercy He knocked at my door,
And, seeking admission, knocked many times o'er;
But when I went to Him, and stood face to face,
And listened a while to His story of grace,—
How He suffered for sinners, and put away sin,—
I heartily, thankfully welcomed Him in.
We have lived on together a number of years,
And that's why I have neither doubtings nor fears,
For my sins are all hid in the depths of the sea,
They were carried down there by the Man on the tree.
I am often surprised why the lip should be curled,
When I speak of my Lord to the man of the world,
And notice with sorrow his look of disdain,
When I tell him that Jesus is coming again,
He seems so content with his houses and gold,
While despising the ark like the people of old;
And yet at His coming, I'm sure he would flee
Like the man in the garden, who ate of the tree.
A stranger to Jesus? What? do you not know
He is washing poor sinners much whiter than snow?
Have you lived in a land where the Bible's unknown,
That you don't know the Man who is now on the throne?
Ah! did you but know half His beauty and power,
You would not be a stranger another half-hour.
I have known Him so long that I'm able to say,
The very worst sinner He'll not turn away.
The question of sin, I adoringly see,
The Man in the glory has settled for me,
And as to my footsteps, whatever the scene,
The Man in the glory is keeping me clean;
And therefore I'm singing, from morning to night,
The Man in the glory is all my delight.
—Anon.
He Is Coming Soon
By Mrs. M. C. Sellers
By Mrs. M. C. Sellers
Coming so soon! O the glad, happy day!
Sweetest of tidings, no longer delay.
This is my hope and the joy of my song:
My Saviour is coming; the time is not long.
Fare thee well, earth land; I'm going away;
The ties which have bound us are severed for aye.
We are parting in gladness,—no sorrow or tears,
I shall not return for a thousand of years.
There are mansions of beauty so bright over there;
There is nothing on earth land could ever compare;
And the fragrance of flowers and the songs of the blest
Float out on the air, in that home of sweet rest.
The hopes and the joys sin has withered away
Renewed we shall find in that land of sweet day;
The prayers still unanswered and blessings not given
We shall find over there in our home land, sweet heaven.
While journeying here through the enemy's land,
Sin has robbed and deceived, as the enemy planned;
Alone with his hosts, he is soon to remain,
In the land he has covered with sin and with shame.
O hasten, ye messengers! speed on your way!
Bear on the glad news of the glorious day;
And ye who have treasures, come yield up your store.
Why weep and lament when the harvest is o'er?
My Bible and I
We've traveled together, my Bible and I,
Through all kinds of weather, with smile or with sigh,
In sorrow or sunshine, in tempest or calm,
Thy friendship unchanging, my lamp and my psalm.
We've traveled together, my Bible and I,
When life had grown weary and death e'en was nigh;
But all through the darkness of mists and of wrong
I found thee a solace, a prayer or a song.
So now who shall part us, my Bible and I?
Shall "ism" or schism or new lights who try?
Shall shadow for substance, or stone for good bread,
Supplant its fond wisdom, give folly instead?
Ah, no, my dear Bible, revealer of light,
Thou sword of the Spirit, put error to flight,
And still through life's journey, until my last sigh,
We'll travel together, my Bible and I.
— Anon.
A Lesson by Night
By Violet Marian Bock
By Violet Marian Bock
I said, "I crave love; need it, too;
Must have it, or I die;"
And wept the bitter evening through,
And ceased not with my cry
Until, my pillow wet with tears
And in the silent night,
I lay, too wearied out for fears,
Too weak for further fight.
"And art thou very quiet now?"
I heard the Master say;
He laid His hand upon my brow
And wiped the tears away.
"The grain of wheat must die to live,
Dear child. Dost understand?
Whoso would have love, first must give."
I kissed His gentle hand.
"And dost thou love Me, little one?
Then give thy life in love;
The peace will come when day is done,
That world knows nothing of."
He bent above me where I lay;
In quietness I slept.
Strength came and courage with the day.
Obediently I kept
The words that He had given me,
And found, as He had said,
In giving love unstintingly,
My hungry heart was fed.
An Old Advent Song
Tune of “Nellie Gray”
We are voyagers on an ocean, and our destiny we know,
For our chart, it has pointed out the way,
And our Leader He is cheering us as o’er the waves we go,
Saying, “Courage, sailors, soon we’ll gain the day.”
Chorus
Then we’ll watch and we’ll pray, while our vessel bears away,
And we’ll never be disheartened any more,
For the port is getting nearer, and we hear our Leader say,
We soon shall reach the harbor and the shore.
We have passed the coast of Babylon, the Medo-Persian line,
We have left the coast of Grecia far behind;
We’ve been sailing down the Roman shore for eighteen hundred years,
And our chart declares the port we soon shall find.
Chorus
Tho’ hard the winds are blowing, and high the billows roll,
It will only make us sigh for land the more.
And our rest will be the sweeter when we reach the final goal,
And we’ll shout our triumphs o’er on the shore.
Chorus
The dark clouds now hover o’er us, and danger’s all around,
Our noble bark is bearing us away,
Then cheer up, noble sailors, for soon the trump will sound,
And bring us safe to anchor in the Bay.
Chorus
The “More Sure Word of Prophecy”
Its Purpose
1. What does the prophet say of God? “He revealeth the deep and secret things: He knoweth what is in the darkness, and the light dwelleth with Him.” Dan. 2:22.
2. Through whom does God reveal His purposes? “Surely the Lord God will do nothing, but He revealeth His secret unto His servants the prophets.” Amos 3:7.
3. To whom does the revelation belong? “Those things which are revealed belong unto us and to our children forever, that we may do all the words of this law.” Deut. 29:29.
NOTE.— A prophet is “one who speaks as the inspired representative of a divine being; one who delivers the divine messages, or interprets the divine will.”—“Standard Dictionary.” Prophecy, according to the same authority, is (1) “a prediction made under divine influence and protection; more loosely, any prediction or foretelling; (2) discourse delivered under divine inspiration or direction; something uttered by a teacher as the representative of God and for God.” The inspiration pertains rather to the words, the writing, than to the person. It is not the prophet, but the prophecy, that is inspired—God-breathed. Prediction of future events is therefore one of its great offices. It also reveals present conditions as God sees them and the duty of His people in view of these conditions and of their relation to Him.
4. What does the apostle call this revelation of the future and of present duty? “We have also a more sure word of prophecy.” 2 Peter 1:19.
5. “More sure” than what? What is the comparison? “More sure” than the evidences of the senses, seeing and hearing combined. See verses 16 to 18.
NOTE.— The apostle declares that the making known of Christ’s second coming was not a “cunningly devised fable;” for God revealed what it meant in the vision of the transfiguration of Christ on the holy mount; and that glory they SAW, and God’s voice they HEARD, while they were with Him there. See Matt. 17:1-8. But more than this visible, audible evidence is God’s “more sure word of prophecy.”
6. In what shall we do well? “We have also a more sure word of prophecy; whereunto ye do well that ye take heed.” 2 Peter 1:19.
7. What is it designed to be for the children of God, and for how long? “Whereunto ye do well that ye take heed, as unto a light that shineth in a dark place, until the day dawn, and the day-star arise in your hearts.” 2 Peter 1:19.
NOTE.— The time of sin in this world is known as the night, in contradistinction to the glorious reign of Christ to come, known as the day. The morning, or breaking of that day, is the rising of the Sun of righteousness, the giving of His last message, the outpouring of His Spirit, the ripening of the harvest, preparatory to the second coming of the Master. To that coming day belong His children of light, and until that day dawns and He comes into life and heart and experience of His people such as has never been known before, God’s prophecy lights their way. See Rom. 13:11, 13; 1 Thess. 5:1-8.
For the Latter Days
8. What does Daniel say of one of his prophecies? “But there is a God in heaven that revealeth secrets, and maketh known to the king Nebuchadnezzar what shall be in the latter days.” “He that revealeth secrets maketh known to thee what shall come to pass.” Dan. 2:28, 29.
9. Did the prophets themselves always understand the things revealed? “And I heard, but I understood not: then said I, O my Lord, what shall be the end of these things?” Dan. 12:8.
10. What reply was made to him? “And he said, Go thy way, Daniel: for the words are closed up and sealed till the time of the end.” “But thou, O Daniel, shut up the words, and seal the book, even to the time of the end.” Dan. 12:9, 4.
11. What would then occur? “Many shall run to and fro, and knowledge shall be increased.” Dan. 12:4.
NOTE.— That is, many would seek out God’s truth, searching the Scriptures, giving “sedulous attention to these things,” and knowledge of the prophecies, and especially of those prophecies having to do with our Lord’s priesthood, the work of the Judgment and His last message, should be increased.
12. What therefore are the prophets represented as doing? “Of which salvation the prophets have inquired and searched diligently, who prophesied of the grace that should come unto you; searching what [time], or what manner of time the Spirit of Christ which was in them did signify, when it testified beforehand the sufferings of Christ, and the glory that should follow.” 1 Peter 1:10, 11.
13. What was revealed to them? “Unto whom it was revealed, that not unto themselves, but unto us they did minister the things, which are now reported unto you by them that have preached the gospel unto you with the Holy Ghost sent down from heaven; which things the angels desire to look into.” 1 Peter 1:12.
14. What may we then conclude? “Whatsoever things were written aforetime were written for our learning, that we through patience and comfort of the Scriptures might have hope.” Rom. 15:4. See also 1 Cor. 10:11.
A Sign of the True God
15. What was Jehovah acknowledged to be because of His power to reveal? “Of a truth it is, that your God is a God of gods, and a Lord of kings, and a revealer of secrets.” Dan. 2:47.
16. What does God declare Himself to be? “For I am God, and there is none else; I am God, and there is none like Me.” Isa. 46:9.
17. What evidence is set forth in support of this claim? “Declaring the end from the beginning, and from ancient times the things that are not yet done, saying, My counsel shall stand, and I will do all My pleasure.” Isa. 46:10.
18. What does Jesus say of one of His noted prophecies? “Heaven and earth shall pass away, but My words shall not pass away.” Matt. 24:35.
Examples of Bible Prophecies
19. The Hebrew people.
“And the Lord shall scatter thee among all people, from the one end of the earth even unto the other.” Deut. 28:64.
“Thou shalt become an astonishment, a proverb, and a byword, among all nations.” Verse 37.
“The people shall dwell alone, and shall not be reckoned among the nations.” Num. 23:9.
NOTE.— What predictions are these of over three thousand years ago concerning one of the smallest nations? Go where one will, to every nation on the face of the earth, and the Jew has been there before him; and still he is, seemingly without reason, a proverb and a byword. Seeking political favors, all that he has found are exceptions which prove the rule, and create greater astonishment. He does not become a part of any people. Other great ancient nations have utterly perished, the Hebrews remain. No wonder that when the infidel king, Frederick the Great, asked the court chaplain for an evidence that God’s word is true, he replied laconically, “Sire, the Jews.”
Egypt
20. What prophecy was uttered against Egypt in the day of her greatness and pride, now literally fulfilled? “It shall be the basest of the kingdoms; neither shall it exalt itself any more above the nations: for I will diminish them, that they shall no more rule over the nations.” Eze. 29:15.
21. What is said of her idolatrous worship? and of her rulers? “Thus saith the Lord God; I will also destroy the idols, and I will cause their images to cease out of Noph; and there shall be no more a prince of the land of Egypt.” Eze. 30:13.
NOTE.— These are not all of God’s predictions concerning Egypt uttered when she was a mighty nation, a rival to Babylon. How completely have they been fulfilled! She has been a base, down-trodden land for centuries. No nation does her homage. Once the most idolatrous of lands, her idols have been abolished. And for centuries no native Egyptian has ruled over her.
Tyre
22. What prophecy was uttered against Tyre when she was the merchant city of the earth? “And I will make thee like the top of a rock: thou shalt be a place to spread nets upon; thou shalt be built no more: for I the Lord have spoken it.” Eze. 26:14.
NOTE.— Ancient Tyre was situated on an island, and in those days was almost impregnable. Nebuchadnezzar at first conquered her after a siege of thirteen years. Alexander captured the city after a siege of several months. By a mole he converted the island into a peninsula. Old Tyre was utterly obliterated, till its exact site is a matter of dispute. For centuries fishermen have spread their nets where once the proud city stood.
Timely Warnings
23. In view of the importance of prophecy, what admonition should we heed?9
24. What should we do regarding claimed prophecies? “Prove all things; hold fast that which is good.” 1 Thess. 5:21.
25. By what test are we to try the prophets? “To the law and to the testimony: if they speak not according to this word, it is because there is no light in them.” Isa. 8:20.
26. What is the result of rejecting the prophecies of God’s word? “And the Lord God of their fathers sent to them by His messengers, rising up betimes, and sending; because He had compassion on His people, and on His dwelling-place: but they mocked the messengers of God, and despised His words, and misused His prophets, until the wrath of the Lord arose against His people, till there was no remedy.” 2 Chron. 36:15, 16.
27. What blessing is pronounced upon those who heed His prophetic word? “Blessed is he that readeth, and they that hear the words of this prophecy, and keep those things which are written therein: for the time is at hand.” Rev. 1:3.
28. What then is our duty and privilege? “Believe in the Lord your God, so shall ye be established; believe His prophets, so shall ye prosper.” 2 Chron. 20:20.
God Still Speaks
THE Bible itself is not merely a record of what God said or was believed to say long ago; it is an organ through which God speaks perpetually to souls still. Even the modern mind can hear Him speak in it as He speaks nowhere else in the world, and can enter into fellowship with Him through it as through no other voice audible on earth. It is not a doctrine, but a fact, that this is so, and the preacher who has had experience of the fact will know how to make it tell in his preaching. He may or may not be able to define a doctrine of inspiration which will suit the modern mind; but that through the Scriptures he has dealings with the living God in the way of salvation, and that the Bible is the supreme, final, and sufficient means of grace, he has no doubt at all. Criticism was entitled to some latitude in discrediting false inferences that had been attached to such words as “inspiration” and “infallibility;” but it is time for Christian experience to assert again, even for the modern mind, the truth which these words were intended to express, and to vindicate the authority of the Bible in the church. That to which the Spirit of God bears witness, by and with the Word, in our hearts, can and will hold its ground as the truth from which there is no appeal. If there are those who can not see it, or who can not yet see it, all we can do is to bear our testimony to it, to pray, and to hope. There is no mind, modern or ancient, which can prescribe beforehand the scale or the contents of truth. On the contrary, it is the coming of the living God through His word that adds a new content, it might almost be said a new dimension, to the mind.—The British Weekly.
Mr. Bryan as a Bible Student
ON the editorial page of the Boy's World is a little sketch in regard to the personal habits of Mr. Bryan with reference to Bible study. The writer relates that he met Mr. Bryan while on one of his journeys through New England, and asked him “how the power of the Bible had grown upon him,” to which Mr. Bryan replied:
“My parents led me first into its study. In my boyhood we did not have a great variety of books to read, but the boy who wished to advance had to post himself through standard books. We had Shakespeare, the Bible, good spellers, and good readers. As I worked my way through all these I came to see how the Bible immeasurably leads all other books. There is not a line in it but that is pregnant with meaning. The teachings and history within the Book apply not only to the past, but to every human act of this day.
“The Bible makes the moral code, that which regulates human conduct, too plain for any human being to misunderstand it. There are stars in the heavens so bright that any one picking them out can not, by following them, lose his way. To human life the Bible is such a star—no person can go astray who reads it understandingly and then strives to put into effect what it teaches.
“I can not understand any education being regarded as completed which has ignored a study of the Bible.
“No human life is so strong but that it needs something more than human to lean upon, to guide and uplift. Christ supplies this need. He is an inspiration at all times. Everything that is breathed out of His life helps. He never destroyed. Those who understand what He lived for can readily see that He was the greatest constructor for human happiness that ever existed.”
Mr. Bryan has been before the world for a long time in the light of a politician as viewed by some, or as a statesman as viewed by others, but there is no one that has ever arisen to charge him with any kind of immorality or crookedness. His character stands out strongly as a clean, honest, pure man. The foregoing paragraphs will give the secret of it. Any man who conscientiously communes with God through His word every day can not fail to have strong moral principles implanted in his life and character. God’s word is the means through which He connects humanity with His infinite storehouse of righteousness and power. It would be well for the young men of this nation if they followed Mr. Bryan in this respect, regardless of what they might think of him in other directions.
