Earlier text: THINK NOT THAT I AM COME TO DESTROY THE LAW“’Tis but little I can do;
Let this be my effort still,
Ever to be kind and true,
Ever watchful against ill,
Doing, Lord, thy holy will. “’Tis but little I can say;
Let me ever keep in mind
Something true to speak each day,
Spurning every word unkind;
So thy favor I may find.” BEAN, PEAS, OR LENTIL DRESSING OR ROAST.
2 cups beans, cooked.
2 cups granola or bread.
1 teaspoonful sage, ground.
1 small onion, grated.
Salt to taste. Moisten with milk or water, using only enough to enable you to mix well with a spoon. If this mixture is kept hot on top of the stove, we call it a “dressing;” if baked, we call it a “roast.” Serve with tomato sauce (or gravy) or brown gravy. Eggs are not necessary in our roasts and dressings, if we use full grain flour with equal quantity of peas or beans. But if we use two cups of potato and two cups of bread or granola, then it is better to use one or two eggs to make the mixture as nourishing as needed. Nuts of almost all kinds (crushed) are good to add to our roasts. 1 pint milk (or cream and milk). 1 heaping spoonful browned flour. A little cream added to one pint of bean broth and one tablespoonful (heaping) of browned flour, makes a good gravy; or one-half cup of sifted beans, one pint of water, one tablespoonful of browned flour, and two spoonfuls of thick cream may be used. It is hard to give exact measures for bean gravies, for the beans must be sifted; hence the consistency may vary, sometimes being thick, and other times thin. Gravies should be nourishing. Baked Irish potatoes are good food; but if eaten with bean or peas gravy, they are far more nourishing, and more satisfying. All kinds of beans as well as good peas make excellent gravies, but we should use browned flour to give a nutty flavor,—some say “meaty” flavor, but it is the flavor of the nut or gluten we enjoy in the meat. EXTRACTS FROM CORRESPONDENCE.
Last week I visited nine sick persons, helping those who needed help; I also loaned four REVIEWS. This would be a good place for a medical missionary. A friend writes as follows:— Inclosed you will find an order for one dollar for the Woman’s Gospel Work. Please accept it with my best wishes. I will send a list of the work I did last year. I received a desire to do this work, through reading an account of another’s work for the Master. God has greatly blessed me since I began to work for Him. I wonder how some can say, “I don’t see that I can do anything,” or, “There is nothing that I can do.” There is work for all who wish to work. I find more than I can possibly do. MISSIONARY REPORT FOR 1900.
July 24 mailed 8 REVIEWS .......... 120
“ “ “ 11 Little Friends .......... 88
“ 27 “ 2 Advocates .......... 50
“ “ “ 5 Life Boats .......... 100
“ loaned 1 “Marshaling of the Nations” .......... 44
Aug. 11 “ 1 “Test. on S.S.” .......... 115
“ 18 “ “Early Writings” .......... 350
“ 23 “ 1 “Marshaling of the Nations” .......... 44
“ 31 mailed 5 REVIEWS .......... 80
“ “ “ 11 Little Friends .......... 88
“ “ “ 2 Missionary Magazines .......... 92
“ “ “ 2 Life Boats .......... 44
Sept. 11 loaned Testimony, Vol. I .......... 724
“ 16 “ 1 Tract .......... 150
Oct. 12 mailed 7 REVIEWS .......... 112
Nov. 12 loaned Testimony, Vol. IV .......... 720
“ 16 gave 2 tracts and loaned 1 .......... 108
“ 17 “ 5 tracts .......... 360
“ 29 mailed 7 REVIEWS .......... 126
“ “ “ 3 Signs .......... 48
Dec. 8 loaned 5 Vol. Testimonies .......... 3498
“ “ “ 1 REVIEW .......... 16 Visits to the sick, 14½; days sewing, 7; nursed a girl with typhoid fever for four weeks; took a sick woman out riding; sent to sick and others, eighty-five bouquets; gave away some clothing; am giving a home to two children, so they can attend the church school. Articles for Study in the June Missionary Magazine: Protestantism in Brazil; In Basutoland; Central American Mission, South; Aborigines in Australia; Our Work in Egypt; Sketches from the European Field. 1. What is the State religion of Brazil? Give some evidences that other denominations are scarcely tolerated. 2. When was the first actual Protestant missionary effort undertaken in Brazil, and under what denomination? 3. Relate briefly the results of the work of the Presbyterian, Methodist, and Baptist missions. 4. Tell something of the labors of the American, and the British and Foreign, Bible societies in this field. 5. When was the Third Angel’s Message first carried to Brazil? IN BASUTOLAND; CENTRAL AMERICAN MISSION, SOUTH.
6. What is the population of Basutoland? 7. How extensively has the Third Angel’s Message been preached among them? 8. What difficulties are encountered in this field? Mention some of the needs. 9. Tell something of the results of the canvassing work in the Central American field. 10. Describe the physical features of Central America. The climate. The products. 11. What denomination alone is engaged in work in this country? ABORIGINES IN AUSTRALIA; OUR WORK IN EGYPT.
12. Mention some of the characteristics of the aborigines of Australia. Describe their mental ability. Their idea of religion. 13. What can you say of their morals? 14. Where are the aborigines located? What denominations have mission stations among them? 15. What can you say of the Egyptians? What is bringing about a change for the better among them? 16. What is the population of Egypt? How many are Mohammedans? In what way can these be approached by the Christian worker? 17. How many Sabbath-keepers are there in Egypt? Tell something of the experiences of our worker in Cairo? SKETCHES FROM THE EUROPEAN FIELD.
18. Tell something of the Netherlands. What is the area? How many dialects are spoken? What is the population? 19. Outside of Holland, how far does the influence of the Netherlands extend? How is the population divided as relates to religion? 20. Describe the first effort to carry the Third Angel’s Message into Holland. How was the message carried to Amsterdam? 21. Mention other places in Holland to which it has been extended. What is the status of our work at the present time in this field? 22. What can you say of the work in the Waldensian valleys? How many Sabbath-keepers there? How many in Italy? 23. Describe the progress of the message in Rumania and Bulgaria. Give the number of Sabbath-keepers. 24. What have other denominations been able to do here? How many laborers have we in this field? What plea is made? “I EARNESTLY desire prayer for my husband, that he may be healed of a terrible attack of rheumatism, and that he may see the true gospel as it is in Christ Jesus. Pray also for the conversion of my three children. I know we should never become discouraged, but there are terrible battles to be fought when all the family are not in harmony. I can not send for any of our books or publications without trouble. Pray that I may be patient.” “I wish the prayers of the circle for my husband and only son, who are both unconverted. They do not care to go to any church, and have no interest in their soul’s salvation. My son is given to the drink habit, and seems to be going from bad to worse; he spends all his money for drink, and often stays out all night. I cannot think that he is a hopeless case, so let us earnestly plead with the Lord that he may be saved from this great evil. Also pray for me; I have not had good health for many years, but I know the Lord can fully restore me.” “I feel a longing to write to you this evening and request prayers for my children who are not saved. They are good boys, but not concerned about their spiritual welfare. They are not born of the Spirit. Pray that they may be speedily saved. Also pray for my husband, who was very bitter against the Sabbath; he does not say so much now, but he does not love the message. He thinks it a dangerous error. Pray that he may be deeply convicted and converted to the truth. Pray also for me, that I may ever walk in the light, and be kept from the burden of cares that crowd my life.” “Dear sisters, pray for me, that I may soon be relieved of this terrible affliction, and be able to begin my work again. About two years ago, I had a similar sickness, only not so severe. I went to Battle Creek for treatment; but after taking a few baths, I asked the prayers of Sister Henry. After she had prayed, a meeting was called by Brother Prescott, and prayer was again offered for my restoration. In a few weeks I returned home with all traces of my trouble gone. Sisters, pray that God, in His mercy and power, will heal me again; for I am most terribly afflicted, and my soul is anxiously awaiting deliverance.”},{ The Tree God Plants
By Lillie E. Barr
The wind that blows can never kill
The tree God plants;
It bloweth east, it bloweth west;
The tender leaves have little rest.
But any wind that blows is best. The tree God plants
Strikes deeper roots, grows higher still,
Spreads wider boughs, for God’s good will
Meets all its wants. Faithful Missionaries Wanted for Gospel Work
“MISSIONARIES for God are wanted, faithful men and women who will not shirk responsibility. Judicious labor will accomplish good results. There is real work to be done. The truth should be brought before people in a careful manner by those who unite meekness with wisdom. We should not hold ourselves aloof from our fellow men, but come close to them; for their souls are as precious as our own. We can carry the light into their homes, with a softened and subdued spirit plead with them to come up to the exalted privilege offered them, pray with them when it seems proper, and show them that there are higher attainments that they may reach, and then guardedly speak to them of the sacred truths for these last days.” Take Courage, Humble Believers in Daily Service
“TAKE courage, ye humble believers, who are daily treading the lowliest paths of life, feeling dissatisfied that you are doing so little for Christ, longing for something to do! What if you are unknown to fame? Even a cup of cold water given in His name, is remembered and rewarded. And shall your years of toil, little daily sacrifices of your own cherished wishes, hopes, and happiness for the sake of others, be forgotten by our tender, loving Father, who pities even our tears?—No; you are gathering gems for your crown of life—gems more brilliant in luster than the kings of earth have ever dreamed of—that shall sparkle throughout the endless ages of eternity!” THE HISTORY OF THE WORLD, AS AN ORGANIC WHOLE.
On this subject Benjamin Morgan Palmer, D. D., preached a sermon in New Orleans, La., published in the Homiletic Review of May, 1901, from which we take pleasure in quoting the following glowing description of that everlasting kingdom which the God of heaven will set up. After speaking of the course of earthly kingdoms, and the working of God’s providence to His own beneficent ends in the affairs of men, he describes the grand consummation as follows:— The Consummation in the Everlasting Kingdom.—Now I come to the last thought with which I shall address you. We have seen through the whole progress of ancient, medieval, and modern times, how God, with definite purpose, has been moving along all lines, until we reach the dawn of this century. What is to be the final outcome? . . . Ah, my hearers, guilty and sinful as this world is, shaken by wars prompted by human ambition through all the centuries of the past, there is yet to be a period of rest for the agitated and unhappy earth; when the angel with the silver trumpet shall fly in midheaven, and proclaim to the stars that “the kingdoms of this world are become the kingdoms of our Lord, and of His Christ.” But what is there beyond that? There shall come a time when the earth, which has revolted from the law and authority and government of this King, and which has been stained through all its history with guilt and sin, shall, through that amazing love which can be found only in a divine Being, be redeemed with all the people that dwell upon it, and His kingdom established here below. There will be a cleansing by fire, answering to what took place in the beginning, with the baptismal waters of the flood. The earth, redeemed, shall stand at the blessed feet of Him who came to die so that the dead might live through the power of His name, and He shall come and reign forever. This earth, in that day of its purification, wrapped in its winding-sheet of flame, shall tell the most distant world that the time has come, in the decree of Him who reigns above, when God shall be honored by the whole universe for His matchless justice, upholding government, providing salvation for the lost, and building up for himself a kingdom which shall never be moved. “And I John saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a great voice out of heaven saying, Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and He will dwell with them, and they shall be His people, and God himself shall be with them, and be their God.” My brethren, human language is inadequate to do anything more than state the simple fact. There is no speech given to man, nor, I suppose, even to the angels, that shall ever describe the glory of that kingdom which shall never be moved, which shall be a kingdom upon this earth, and which shall be inhabited by men in their raised spiritual bodies; and there will be seen upon that new earth the golden city, which the prophet describes in his vision, in which there were twelve gates, and each gate a several pearl, and at each nothing unclean or defiled shall ever enter,—a city that has no need of the sun nor of the moon to shine in it; “for the glory of God did lighten it, and the Lamb is the light thereof.” And on this earth, through all the cycles of uncounted eternity, will God Almighty dwell with His redeemed and glorified saints; and it shall be His kingdom, an eternal kingdom, and yet an earthly kingdom, a standing witness before the universe; for all those stars which shine in space, our science tells us, are revolving worlds, vast systems circling around their appointed centers, and all combined in a joint movement around some center common to them all, which, perhaps, may be the burning throne upon which Jehovah, the King of kings and Lord of lords, sits forever in His glory. This earth, and we—we—we, in this sanctuary to-day, a part of this inhabited globe, shall, I hope, stand on this redeemed earth, this glorious and purified earth, this earth that, as it sweeps in its orbit around its appointed sun, shall testify to the glory of God in the redemption of man and the building up on earth of the kingdom which is righteousness and peace and joy forever. The vast significance of all this history of our ransomed earth is to reflect itself upon the destinies of moral beings occupying, it may be, myriads of worlds, and teaching them the glory of God in the last perfect revelation of himself through the splendor and majesty of His love. CHRISTENDOM’S SHAME.
By A. J. B.
IT is a notorious fact that so-called “pagan” Japan has been reasonable and humane in her treatment of China. On the other hand, the great “Christian” or “civilized” Powers, so-called, have, in the words of the leading Episcopal weekly of the country, “given ample cause to Christendom to hide its face in shame—not for its religion, but for the barbarous inhumanity of professedly Christian nations.” Continuing, it says: “The wholesale robberies, murders, massacres—and worse—which these representatives of Christian civilization have perpetrated in China, will do more to discredit the religion of Christ among the four hundred millions of Chinese than an equal number of missionaries will be able to undo in fifty years; and what was thus begun in organized crime seems now to be ending in remorseless rapacity.” A confirmation of these statements is found in the following incident, taken from a published letter of Dr. L. L. Seaman, surgeon-major of the United States Army. Dr. Seaman says:—345 At the command of General Grodekow, now governor-general of Manchuria, between twelve and thirteen thousand men, women, and children, unarmed and defenseless, were driven into the Amoy River at Bladigovinski, because an attack had been made on the Manchurian Railway, further up the river. Homes were ferreted out, and the old and decrepit were driven with the women and children to their death—all to strike terror to the heart of the Chinese. One of the officers in command of the troops which executed that order is a friend of mine, and he told me that his heart grew sick as he assisted in carrying out this command. The only Chinese to escape from that terrible massacre were sixteen employees of the firm of Kunst and Albers. This firm protested strongly against the murder of their shroffs, compradores, and clerks. “Well,” said Grodekow, “if you don’t like it, give me forty thousand rubles.” And this amount was paid, then and there, to save the lives of their men. It was the best investment that firm ever made, for the reputation it gave them has gone abroad, and their business has increased largely as a result. As this is but a sample of what the allied troops have done in many parts of China, is it any wonder that the natives hate the very name of Christianity, and that the latest news received from a missionary there under the auspices of the London Mission, is that “reports from the provinces show that discontent and intense hatred of foreigners prevail”? This missionary predicts that “the withdrawal of the foreign troops will be signalized by a massacre of the native Christians.” Who can blame the natives of that country for wanting to get rid of such “Christianity”? The Sunday Spirit Reviving.
By Editor
REVIEW AND HERALD: Inclosed please find clipping from the Grand Rapids Evening Press, which may prove of some interest to the readers of your paper. Mrs. W. I. Bruce. From the clipping forwarded, it appears that the Sunday spirit is reviving in various parts of our land, where it has heretofore made its presence offensively and dangerously prominent. It says:— An organization of clergymen has been formed in Atlanta, Ga., for the purpose of enforcing the Georgia Sunday law, under which a person may be fined one thousand dollars and made to serve a year in the chain gang for working on Sunday. Everything except churches, hotels, and restaurants, is to close on Sunday, in Omaha in future. The Labor Secretariat, an organization formed by trades unions, is watching butchers, bakers, barbers, and others, in New York, for violations of Sunday laws. In Philadelphia warrants were issued against thirty-eight barbers for plying their avocations on Sunday, and eighteen others were under bonds at the time, on the same charge. In London, England, an agitation is in progress against Sunday concerts. The Sunday closing law is now a fixed and probably permanent feature in Bangor, Me. In other places, not in this country only, but in Europe, the spirit seems to be rapidly growing that the way to secure the observance of Sunday as a day of rest and worship, is to enforce Sunday laws upon the people, and force them to pay deference to it, independent of, and perhaps in opposition to, their own convictions in the matter. So much for the statement of the fact. Now what about the philosophy and the spirit of such a course of action. We call it the Sunday spirit reviving, not the Sabbath spirit, which is a very different thing. There can be no Sabbath spirit, which is a holy, elevating spirit (Isa. 58: 13, 14), in anything which is not the Sabbath; and Sunday is not the Sabbath. It is not “the Lord’s day” of Rev. 1: 10. It is in no sense a holy or sacred day, above any other working day. Matt. 15: 9. But even if it were the Sabbath, no one thus observing it would or could, attempt thus to enforce it. This is our answer to those who cry out, “Oh, if the law was only in favor of the seventh day, you would be just as much in favor of the law as we are in favor of the Sunday law, and would be just as glad to have it enforced upon the people.” We reply, Not by any means. Every one who has been enlightened upon the Sabbath, and has the spirit of the Sabbath in his heart, knows and feels that the Sabbath is not to be enforced upon any one. He is too well instructed in the principles of religious liberty not to know that Sabbath obedience, or any other kind of obedience, rendered to the Lord, must be voluntary, not compulsory. If by any strange vicissitude a law of the State should be promulgated for the observance of the seventh day, although we observe the seventh day, believing it to be the right day to keep, still we should oppose such a law as strenuously as we now oppose all Sunday laws. Why, it may be asked, since such a law would apparently be in your favor? We answer, In our favor, or not in our favor, makes no difference; for the least step toward enforcing religious duties by law, is wholly wrong in principle, and should not be tolerated. To attempt to force any one’s conscience, or control his actions in spiritual things, is not from above, but from beneath; it is an act of the papacy, pure and simple. Against all such action, the Third Angel’s Message is a warning in trumpet tones from heaven: “If any man worship the Beast,” etc. [Designed for the consideration of such questions as will be of interest and profit to the general reader. All correspondents should give their names and correct post-office address, that queries not replied to here may be answered by mail.] How do people in Norway, in the long night of winter, which continues for weeks, and in the more northern portions for months, know when the Sabbath begins? E. C. G., Sigourney, Iowa. Ans.—The Sabbath begins at the setting of the sun; and right here is the supposed difficulty: What is the setting of the sun in such a region as the one referred to, and how does one know there when the sun does set? In the summer of 1896, it was our privilege to visit the North Cape, the northernmost point in Norway, which gave us an opportunity to communicate with some dwelling in the highest inhabitable northern latitudes, as to their method of preserving their calendar, and keeping their daily reckoning of time. On that visit, we had the opportunity of seeing the “midnight sun,” that is, of watching the sun pass the midnight hour, and not go below the horizon. But was there any difficulty then in marking the motion and position of the sun?—Not the least. One revolution of the earth on its axis, with the apparent motion of the sun around the earth, marks the passage of a day; and every revolution thus accomplished can be as accurately marked there as it is here; in the summer, when the sun comes to its lowest point, though it does not disappear, a revolution of the earth is accomplished; and in the winter, when the appearance of the heavens shows that the sun is nearest to the horizon, though it does not appear above it, the revolution of the earth is just as clearly marked; and that is all that need be known. When the people in Norway were told that there were people in these lower latitudes who wondered how days could be kept in those northern regions, and asked how it could be done, they laughed such a question to scorn. There is not the least difficulty. Every traveler in the frigid zone keeps his diary as accurately as those traveling in the sunny regions of the south. CRITICISMS OF THE BIBLE.
By L. A. Reed
NOTWITHSTANDING the fact that the criticising spirit blinds the mind of its possessor, there are multitudes who indulge in it. Their work is proof positive of man’s littleness when dealing with the things of eternity. Who can turn a straight furrow through the universe? It is a long way, but there are many who attempt to plow through; and it is not necessary to give the furrow much of a look in order to detect its crookedness. For ages the Bible has been criticised. “Foes and pretended friends have been at it. It was buried in the tomb of the dead languages for centuries, and sealed with a seal, and a watch set. But the stone was rolled away, and it came forth in the glorious speech of the men of to-day. Then the vastest army on the earth was sent to hunt, pursue, and find every copy that had escaped, and burn it. But its ashes were like the blood of the martyrs. Men established a substitute for its teachings, and decreed that one man should be infallible in its place. But it would not be retired.” It came forth “fair as the moon, clear as the sun, and terrible as an army with banners.” What is our attitude toward the Word? It is settled that we must have something to do with it. It is here, and in one way and another will have to do with us. As one has said, “You may ignore the tariff, but the customhouse officer will not ignore you when you come into port.” We may seek all the years of our lives to ignore that sacred Word, but in the Judgment day at least, we shall find it dealing with us. “He that rejecteth me, and receiveth not my words, hath one that judgeth him: the word that I have spoken, the same shall judge him in the last day.” In judging, men always erect their own standards. Thereby they have made significant mistakes. Now a test for one thing is no test whatever for another. In testing for an acid, the chemist uses blue litmus; but in testing for the truth of a proposition, of what use is red or blue litmus? With my eyes I judge a painting, and with my ears the symphony of the pianist. Closing my eyes, and feeling with my fingers, I cannot know the marvelous coloring of a painter’s masterpiece. Closing my eyes, no man can convince me by any of my other senses that the rose is red: the touch will not do it, the rose is soft and delicate; hearing will not do it, the rose gives forth no sound; smell will not do it, though the flower is sweet with fragrance; argument will not do it, for argument gives no comprehension of color. Only an eye can sense and know color, for color is an appeal to the eye. And so I shall not be able to find truth or God by searchings with the telescope; for truth and God appeal to human hearts and minds, and not to telescopes. Nevertheless La Place said, “In my heaven I find no God;” and Lalande wrote, “I have peered through the heavens for sixty years, and have never seen Him yet.” Ages ago God anticipated this mistake of men, and counseled us not to make it: “Say not in thine heart, Who shall ascend into heaven (that is, to bring Christ down from above)? or, Who shall descend into the deep (that is, to bring up Christ again from the dead)? But what saith it? The word is nigh thee, even in thy mouth, and in thy heart.” “The natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned.” What a mistake men make in seeking God with eyes, or ears, or touch, or ill-constructed logic, when God is not thus apprehended; He is revealed to the heart and the conscience through a self-surrendered life. The eyes are not for hearing, but for seeing. Eyes cannot taste, eyes have no sense of touch. And eyes and ears and fingers are all in vain in the final approach into the presence of God. Eyes and ears and fingers have their proper places even in a search for God, but their use is well known, and should not be misdirected. God tells us how to secure truth and eternal salvation; it is not by eyes or ears or fingers or telescopes, but by the simple act of faith. And if we disuse and misuse our power to know and apprehend God, the power will eventually be forfeited. Even Darwin, the mightiest agnostic and skeptic of them all, admits the possible death, through disuse, of the mental organs. But this law of the disuse of the mind is not exceptional; it applies as well to every other power and capacity of our being. To use and train our faculties is to develop them. To neglect and abuse them is to lose them. A miser may be so engrossed in his horrible, insatiable appetite of hoarding, that every high emotion of his soul, love of home, wife, child, heaven and God, utterly perish. Even so, they who do not desire to retain God in their knowledge, are given over to a reprobate mind, to do those heathenish things which forever are not convenient. Therefore, let us remember always that there are those who will criticise the ways and word of God. Huxley’s standard by which he tested the universe was the unchangeable, and to him unalterable, dogma that “there is no supernatural.” Tried by this rule, he found all miracles are fictions, the mighty deeds of faith are myths, and Jesus Christ an impostor. Such judgment as this is partisan and unfair. Men erect a standard of their own, and by it prove that the very foundations of eternity are out of place. But let us remember that a test for one thing may be no test for another thing, and some things erected as standards are not fit as a test for anything. Men may attempt to judge the Word by their systems of philosophy; but philosophy is something or nothing according as it is the truth. Therefore, being itself tested by truth, how can it be a test for truth? Men may try the Word by their ideas of science, but their ideas of science are meager and often contradictory, while true science and the Word forever agree. We may think that man’s wisdom is great, and his mind greater; but faith is infinitely greater than they all. For, with eyes we see, with ears we hear, with hands we touch and handle, with feet we walk, with minds we think; but “with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.” “For after that in the wisdom of God the world by wisdom knew not God, it pleased God by the foolishness of preaching to save them that BELIEVE.”