Signs of the Times, Vol. 6, No. 4.
THE GREAT CONTROVERSY,Page 1
Earlier text: SACREDNESS OF VOWSIt is encouraging to learn of conscientious individuals, here and there, who, although not church members, are ready to acknowledge the Lord's right to a tithe. These "do by nature the deeds of the law," and are worthy exemplars for those who profess to believe the prophecies concerning the last days and claim to accept the "present truth," but find excuses for disobeying the Master's will, and continue to rob him "of tithes and offerings." We are in receipt of a letter from Maine, the writer of which is evidently not a member of the Seventh-day Adventist church, or he would have paid his tithe to the Maine Conference, which contains this acknowledgment: "Having become convinced that the tithing system is lawful and right, by your kind and welcome paper, the SIGNS, and also the Holy Bible, you will find enclosed fourteen dollars and fifty cents tithing money." A brother of this city recently became acquainted with a prominent business man in San Francisco who, although not being a member of any church, has for years regularly laid by one-tenth of his income for the Lord's cause, to be appropriated in such manner as he should become convinced would most advance the interests of that cause. Another case is that of a lady in this city who has for a number of years systematically set aside a portion of her means for the support of the ministry. Although not a church member, she is thoroughly imbued with the idea that, receiving all from the Lord, a part is certainly due him in return. These are but isolated cases, and no doubt there are many others who would be like-minded were the subject properly presented before them. CALIFORNIA T. AND M. DISTRICTS.
By Barbara C. Stickney
As there have been many changes made in the boundaries of the districts in this State since the Tract and Missionary Society was organized, we give them as they now exist:— District No. 1 embraces the counties of Sonoma, Marin, Mendocino, Humboldt, Trinity and Del Norte. No. 2—Fresno, Tulare, Inyo, Merced and San Benito. No. 3—Napa, Lake, and that portion of Solano county lying south of Bridgeport. No. 5—Yolo, Colusa, Sacramento, Sutter, Yuba, Placer, Nevada, El Dorado, Amador, and that portion of Solano county lying north of Bridgeport. No. 6—Tehama, Butte, Shasta, Siskiyou, Modoc, Lassen, Plumas and Sierra. No. 7—Alameda, Contra Costa, San Joaquin, Calaveras, Alpine, Stanislaus, Tuolumne, Mono and Mariposa. No. 8—San Francisco, San Mateo, Santa Cruz, Monterey, San Luis Obispo, Santa Barbara, Kern and Santa Clara. No. 9—Los Angeles, San Bernardino and Ventura. It will be found convenient for both officers and members to preserve this for reference. Blessed Be He Who Gives
By Barbara C. Straney
BLESSED be he who gives to the poor, albeit only a penny; doubly blessed be he who adds kind words to his gift. -Naples has been visited by a snow-storm.
-A terrible famine prevails in Adrianople.
-Minister Noyes wants to come home from France.
-New York put $22,000,000 into new buildings in 1879.
-The distress in Ireland is intensified by a severe frost.
-Holland and Poland have suffered from inundations.
-Garibaldi was married at Caprera on the 26th instant.
-The Princess Louise has sailed from Liverpool for Halifax.
-The German Bundesrath has voted for an increase in the army.
-The Hudson River tunnel from New York to Jersey City is in progress.
-Philadelphia's debt, less stocks, bonds and other assets, is $46,546,222.
-The Cuban insurgents are becoming discouraged, and are surrendering.
-The cable brings us the rumor that England will intervene between Chile and Peru.
-Severe earthquake shocks are reported to have taken place in San Salvador, Central America.
-The St. Petersburg Golos announces the concentration of a large Chinese force on the Kuldja frontier.
-It is announced that the German government intends to levy a tax on advertisements in newspapers.
-A general snow-fall visited California on the 20th. Snow fell in the streets of San Francisco and Oakland.
-A party of sixty masked men lately lynched a negro in Winchester, Va., for seduction and miscegenation.
-By the recent earthquake shocks in Cuba, the public buildings of San Cristobal are reported to be in ruins.
-General Grant's visit to Cuba was co-incident with a severe earthquake. The Havanese were greatly terrified.
-Congressman Money, of Mississippi, hopes that the exodus will continue until every negro has left the South.
-The Montenegrins have withdrawn from Gusinje, and their campaign against the Albanians is at an end for the winter.
-Lane Emmons, town treasurer of Everett, Mass., has disappeared co-incidentally with $23,000 of the people's money.
-Heavy defalcations by its book-keeper has caused the suspension of the Merchants' and Manufacturers' Bank of New York.
-Lieut. Bonaparte Wyse gets $1,000,000 for transferring de Lesseps his canal franchise from the Colombian government.
-By a snow-slide on the Sierras, Jan. 18th, a cattle train was thrown from the track, and three and a half car-loads of cattle killed.
-General Lucius Fairchild, consul at Paris, has been appointed minister to Spain, vice James Russell Lowell, appointed to the Court of St. James.
-French scientists and electricians are generally of the opinion that Edison has made an important advance in the matter of electric lighting.
-The discovery of excavations in a number of houses in Odessa lead the police of that city to the belief that the Nihilists are undermining portions of the place.
-A rumor comes from Philadelphia that personal friends of General Grant are authorized to withdraw his name from the list of possible Presidential candidates.
-A telephone line is in successful operation between Omaha and St. Louis, a distance of 410 miles. Every note of a tune sung in St. Louis is plainly audible in Omaha.
-Fifteen Texas "cow-boys," belonging to a party of several hundred, camped near Las Vegas, New Mexico, entered that town and killed the city marshal and two citizens, and wounded five others.
-By the burning of the steamboat Charmer fifteen miles above the mouth of Red river, eight lives were lost. The boat and cargo of 2,100 bales of cotton, valued at $130,000, are a total loss.
-Gladstone announces that from his seat in parliament he shall advocate a general European disarmament. General Grant and Bismarck are said to believe in the practicability of such a policy.
-The shoe shop in the Kings County, New York, penitentiary was burned January 26th. The building cost $100,000. The Bay State Shoe and Leather Co. lost a stock of leather valued at $200,000; insured fully.
-The appointment of James Russell Lowell as Minister to England is very favorably received by the English journals. One London journal makes the amusing error of crediting him with the authorship of "Thanatopsis."
-The dead-lock in Maine still continues. As the Fusionist cause weakens they become desperate. The Republicans have called out State troops to protect the State-house, they claiming to have discovered Fusionist plots which justify them in this course. -The fatal wounding of a Liberal journalist by a Hungarian nobleman in a duel, has resulted in serious riots, at Pesth, Hungary. -A terrible explosion occurred in the Lycett Colliery, near Newcastle-on-Tyne, Jan. 21st, resulting in the death of some 70 miners. Fire-damp was the cause of the accident. -The New York police have been actively raiding dance-houses and other disreputable resorts. A notorious resort, known as the Hotel Mabille, was raided on the night of the 17th instant, and 300 men and 100 women were taken prisoners and marched to the station-houses. -The dispatch boat Lively, with the Prince of Wales and the Duke of Edinburgh on board, collided with the British ship Arnott Lyle, as it was returning from the Sarmatia, whither their highnesses had been to bid farewell to the Princess Louise. The party were taken off in safety. -A visionary scheme is now before Congress to secure the proper authorization for the construction of a railroad from the United States through Mexico, Central America, and the South American republics. The line would be some 4,500 miles in length; 1,200 through temperate, and 3,250 through tropical regions. No estimate as to the cost has been given. -On Jan. 24, an engine on the New York elevated railway, which was running at the rate of thirty miles an hour, was thrown from the tract by a misplaced switch and fell to the street below, a distance of twenty-five feet, landing squarely on its wheels. The single car which it was drawing remained on the track. The engineer, fireman, and conductor, who were in the cab of the engine, were severely but not fatally injured. -A Congregational minister in London, England, Mr. Williams, has addressed the other ministers of the denomination in a pamphlet, in which he urges that special prayer shall be made for the conversion of the devil." Men are saved by preaching; perhaps Mr. W. will consent to go and preach to the devil. We shall not be surprised if his conversion is soon announced. -The population of our globe, estimated at about thirteen hundred millions, is ruled by 12 Emperors, 25 Kings, 47 Princes, 17 Sultans, 12 Khans, 6 Grand Dukes, 6 Dukes, 1 Vice-king, 1 Nizam, 1 Radai, 1 Imam, 1 Bey, and 28 Presidents, besides a large number of Chiefs of wild tribes. Of the Republics, nineteen are found on American soil, leaving only nine for the rest of the world. Advice Is Easier Than Action
It is much easier to urge another to undertake a perilous adventure than it is to undertake it yourself. It is said that Sir James Mackintosh and Dr. Parr were one day riding together, when for some reason the horse became very restive, threatening to overturn the carriage. Dr. Parr was quite timid, and said: "Handle him gently, Jemmy; don't irritate him; always soothe your horse, Jemmy. Just let me down; I am in your way, I fear." When safely on terra firma, however, the case seemed to assume different proportions. "Now then," cried the Doctor, "now then, Jemmy, touch him up. Never let a horse get the better of you. Touch him up, Jemmy, and I'll walk home." BUSINESS DEPARTMENT.
By Editor
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A Friend of the Cause 14.20. THAT FORM OF DOCTRINE.
By R. F. Cottrell
"Ye were the servants of sin, but ye have obeyed from the heart that form of doctrine which was delivered you; being then made free from sin, ye became the servants of righteousness." Rom. 6:17, 18. True conversion is a change from sin to righteousness. It is not exemption from service, but a change of masters. It is ceasing to be the "servants of sin," and becoming "servants of God." "His servants ye are to whom ye obey; whether of sin unto death, or of obedience unto righteousness." And since "all unrighteousness is sin," and "sin is the transgression of the law," it is a change from transgression of the law of God to obedience of the same. The text teaches us how and when this change is effected. The first thing required is obedience; ye obeyed. And it is not merely an outward obedience to a form, but it must be a sincere heart obedience; ye obeyed from the heart. But the form is of importance as a testimony to the obedience of the heart. There needs be some outward manifestation of "repentance toward God, and faith toward our Lord Jesus Christ," else the Lord would not have instituted it. What is the form? This is an important question; for when it is truly obeyed the sinner is made free from sin. The form of a thing is not the thing itself, but a likeness or resemblance of it; hence the form of a doctrine is an image, model, or figurative representation of it. This leads to the question, What is the great central and all important doctrine of the gospel of salvation from sin? It is "that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures; and that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the Scriptures." This was "first of all" in the gospel that Paul preached. See 1 Cor. 15:1-4. The fundamental doctrine of the gospel is the death, the burial, and the resurrection of Christ. All depends upon these facts. "And if Christ be not risen, then is our preaching vain, and your faith is also vain;" and the sinner is not delivered; "ye are yet in your sins." The form is something to be obeyed; and it is a likeness or resemblance of the doctrine. Christ died for our sins. The sinner in order to be forgiven, must die to sin. To die to sin is to live no longer therein—to cease sinning, that is, cease transgressing the law of God. "How shall we, that are dead to sin, live any longer therein." This is a vital point; hence the apostle lays great stress on it. He teaches that we shall be in the likeness of Christ's resurrection; but we must be sure of one thing as a condition, and that is, that the old man is dead. "Knowing this," says he, "that our old man is crucified with him, that the body of sin might be destroyed, that henceforth we should not serve sin." We do not bury our friends till we feel sure that they are dead; but when we know they are dead we immediately prepare to bury them. So when the sinner is slain by the law, in other words, feels the justice of that law which condemns him to death as its transgressor, and voluntarily dies to sin to live no longer in it, then he may be buried in the likeness of Christ, which is the next thing in the form. "Know ye not, that so many of us as were baptized into Jesus Christ were baptized into his death? Therefore we are buried with him by baptism into death; that like as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so also should we walk in newness of life. For if we have been planted together in the likeness of his death, we shall be also in the likeness of his resurrection." In these acts of obedience, we have the form or resemblance of the work of Christ, on which our salvation from sin depends. The form closely resembles the doctrine—it has a death, a burial, and a resurrection to a new life. The old life was a life of sin; the new is a life of holiness. Whoever obeys from the heart this form of doctrine is made free from sin, and becomes the servant of righteousness; and this new life persevered in will end in life everlasting. "For when ye were the servants of sin, ye were free from righteousness. What fruit had ye then in the things whereof ye are now ashamed? for the end of those things is death. But now being made free from sin, and become servants of God, ye have your fruit unto holiness, and in the end everlasting life. For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord." In chap. 7 the apostle slightly changes the figure, representing the "old man," the "body of sin," the "carnal mind," as the person himself; and he is said to be slain by the law, because of sin, or through its agency; and by faith in Christ he becomes "dead to the law;" the law having put Christ to death, instead of him; and thus he sees himself put to death by the law in the person of Christ, delivered from sin, condemnation, and death, and given a new life in union with him, being married to him who was raised from the dead. He is "delivered from the law, that (sin) being dead wherein he was held" in condemnation. These are figures, the literality of which is "repentance toward God," whose law we have violated, and "faith toward our Lord Jesus Christ," who has suffered the penalty for us, and offers us pardon. It is plainly and literally expressed in the great and entirely commanding, "Repent, and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ, for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost." Those who obey this form of doctrine heartily and entirely, becoming truly "dead to sin" by genuine repentance toward God, and by faith in him who died for our sins, was buried, and rose again, are buried in the likeness of his death, arising to walk in newness of life, shall then be made free from sin and become servants of righteousness; and by abiding in him, and continuing to walk in this new life of obedience to the commandments of God and the faith of Jesus Christ, they shall, when Christ shall appear the second time, be like him, and enter into the joys of eternal life. May this be the portion of the reader and the writer. R. F. Cottrell. HUMILIATIONS.
By John Nevins Andrews
THESE are not pleasant, but they are very profitable. They give us true views of ourselves. They help us to find our right place. They serve to show what manner of spirit we are of. Some persons profess to serve God, when a secret desire for promotion is the mainspring of their zeal in his cause. How much better that such persons should meet with humiliating disappointments than that they should be apparently successful. The effect will be to cause a decided change. They will discover the baseness of the motives that have prompted them to activity in the cause of Christ, or if they do not, they will forsake that course in disgust at their failure to procure promotion. Not so with those who love our Lord in sincerity. The humblest place in the house of God will be by them preferred to the highest exaltation that the service of sin, of self, and of the world, can give. Welcome to humiliations. They are like our Lord's crown of thorns, painful to wear, and sure to be the occasion of many blows upon our heads from the reeds in the hands of our enemies. But they are a mark of honor, as well as abasement. They indicate our willingness to suffer with Christ. They evince our willingness to bear the cross of Christ. They are a part of our badge of discipleship. Faith esteems them, though at present sharp and painful, as of more value than all the treasures of earth; for it looks forward through the telescope of God's word to the time when the crown of thorns shall be changed into a crown of inexpressible loveliness, and of priceless value. Then every thorn will become a ray of glory, and every pang of anguish be changed to joy unutterable. Welcome the cross of Christ! Welcome the shame, the pain, the humiliation! Welcome the humble life of Christ's disciples, and welcome at last their infinite reward! J. N. A. The Powerful and the Rich
Who is powerful? He who can control his passion. Who is rich? He who is contented with what he has. PRAYER implies the attention of the Almighty to our petitions, and that he has power to grant them. We cannot pray to a machine; no more can we pray to a god who is shut out of the universe and restrained from any direct participation in human affairs by pre-established laws. A god who is entombed in creation, who has no existence separate from his works,—the god of Pantheism—is not a god who can hear and answer prayer. Nor can we pray intelligently to an unknowable god. If God is only a name for an unknown force, or for the moral order of the universe, prayer becomes irrational and impossible, for "of what avail is it for any man to pray if God has given over the line of his life to the control of law, which has no love, no sympathy, and no power to hear and answer, when he prays?" Therefore, the possibility of intelligent and availing prayer implies that God is a personal, extra-mundane, and yet omnipresent being, independent of the world, almighty in power, having complete control over all the operations of nature. Moreover, prayer implies the loving interest and care of God, that he has the disposition and the ability to do for us that which is best. For he is our Father, whose love for us is infinitely greater than that of earthly parents for their children. And if men, who are evil, know how to give good gifts unto their children, how much more shall our Heavenly Father, who is infinitely wise and good and loving give the best things to them that trust him? The very word Father, with which every petition begins, carries in it the ample assurance that he will always do that which is best for us. This assurance that God's will is best for us, and that he will certainly do it, is an essential element of all availing prayer. It is indispensable to faith. No man can have entire faith in God, can trust him with all his heart, who cannot say with perfect acquiescence, "Thy will be done." For this language of submission is also the language of trust, of filial confidence, which says: "I do not know what is best for me, but God, my Father, does, and though his will may be painful for me to do or endure, yet I know it is for my good, therefore I will trust him; "Though he slay me, yet will I trust him." "Not as I wish, but as thou wilt." Manifestly, if a man does not have enough confidence in the wisdom, goodness, and power of God to believe that his will is best, that he can work his will in all things, he cannot trust him, and therefore cannot pray with faith. It follows that whenever we pray, and for whatever we pray, we must, if we would receive the highest benefit from our prayers, be able to say from the heart: "Thy will be done." This is the essential condition of effectual prayer. And wisely so. It would be a singular theory of prayer to say that God will answer an imperious or unsubmissive request, in which a soul says: "God, give me this desire—spare the life of my loved one—I must have it; I cannot be resigned without it." How much more effectual a prayer like that of the Saviour: "O my Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me: nevertheless, not as I will, but as thou wilt." "And there appeared an angel unto him from Heaven, strengthening him." If you say sincere concerning your most cherished desire: "Not my will, but thine be done," you are sure to receive, if not the thing you ask, that which is better—the ineffably precious ministrations of the Holy Spirit, clearly showing you that God's will is better than your wish, and giving you strength to cheerfully do or suffer that will. "That prayer which does not succeed in moderating our wish, in changing the passionate desire into still submission, the anxious, tumultuous expectation into silent surrender, is no true prayer, and proves that we have not the spirit of true prayer." Forgiveness Under Persecution
A PLANTER who tried to prevent his little slave-boy from going to a prayer-meeting, ordered him to be well flogged, and while he was witnessing the cruel whipping he said to him, "What can Jesus do for you now?" To which the noble boy replied, "Him help me to forgive you, massa!" The Lord Is with You in Storms
Do NOT conclude the Lord is not with you, because things go very contrary, and he does not appear for you. He was in the ship, notwithstanding the storm, and the fear of the disciples of perishing. HOPE AND DUTY OF THE CHURCH.
By Matthew Henry
Matthew Henry was born in Flintshire, England, in 1663. He was a pious dissenter, and deservedly eminent as a commentator of the Scriptures. Wm. Romaine declaring, "There is no comment upon the Bible, either ancient or modern, in all respects equal to Mr. Henry's." We give extracts:— ON Luke 12:45, 46: "Our looking at Christ's second coming as a thing at a distance, is a cause of all those irregularities which render the thought of it terrible to us." On watching: "To watch implies not only to believe that our Lord will come, but to desire that he would come, to be often thinking of his coming, and always looking for it as sure and near, and the time of it uncertain. To watch for Christ's coming is to maintain that gracious temper and disposition of mind which we would be willing that our Lord, when he comes, should find us in. To watch is to be aware of the first notices of his approach, that we may immediately attend his motions and address ourselves to the duty of meeting him." On 2 Pet., chapter 3, of the final fire he says: "It is yet to come, and will surely come, though we know not when nor upon what particular age or generation of men; and therefore we are not, we cannot be, sure that it may not happen in our own times." On John 18:19: "It is meet that disciples should be warned of the haste and end of time, and apprised as much as may be of the prophetic periods of time." On Rom. 8, Henry makes "the creature" to mean "the whole frame of nature, especially that of this lower world; the whole creation, the compages of inanimate and sensible creatures;" the vanity and bondage and corruption is the curse to which the whole creation is subject, now "hastening to a total dissolution by fire." He says: "The creature that is now thus burdened shall, at the time of the restitution of all things, be delivered from this bondage into the glorious liberty of the children of God. They shall no more be subject to vanity and corruption, and the other fruits of the curse; but, on the contrary, this lower world shall be renewed, when there shall be new heavens and a new earth; 2 Pet. 3:13; Rev. 21:1; and there shall be a glory conferred upon all the creatures which shall be (in the proportion of their natures), as suitable and as great an advancement as the glory of the children of God shall be to them. The fire at the last day shall be a refining, not a destroying, annihilating fire." Compare with this Ps. 96:10-13; 98:7-9; "Let the heavens rejoice," &c. On verse 19: "At the second coming of Christ there will be a manifestation of the children of God. Now, the saints are God's hidden ones, the wheat seems lost in a heap of chaff; but then they shall be manifested. . . . And this redemption of the creature is reserved till then; for it was with man and for man that they fell under the curse, so with man and for man shall they be delivered. All the curse and filth that now adheres to the creature shall be done away then, when those that have suffered with Christ upon earth shall reign with him upon earth. This the whole creation looks and longs for. Verse 23: "We groan within or among ourselves. It is the unanimous vote, the joint desire of the whole church; all agree in this. Come, Lord Jesus, come quickly. The groaning denotes a very earnest and importunate desire, the soul pained with the delay, . . . groans, not as the pangs of our dying, but as the throes of a woman in travail, groans that are symptoms of life, not of death." 2 Pet. 3: "That time which men think to be the most improper and unlikely, and therefore are most secure, will be the time of the Lord's coming. Let us then beware how we in our thoughts and imaginings put that day far away from us; let us rather suppose it to be so much nearer in reality by how much further off it is in the opinion of the ungodly world." "The first coming of our Lord Jesus Christ was what the people of God earnestly waited and looked for; that coming was for the consolation of Israel. How much more should they wait with expectation and earnestness for his second coming, which will be the day of their complete redemption, and of his most glorious manifestation." "They (the wicked) will still attack us till the end of time; till our Lord is come, they will not themselves believe that he will come; nay, they will laugh at the very mention of his second coming, and do what in them lies to put all out of countenance who seriously believe and wait for it." On Luke 18:8: "Now when he comes will he find faith in the earth? The question implies a strong negative; no, he shall not, he himself foresees it. . . . In general, he will find but few good people, few that are really and truly good; many that have the form and fashion of godliness, but few that have faith. Even to the end of time there will be occasion for the same complaint; the world will grow no better, no, not when drawing toward its period. Bad it is, and bad it will be, and worst of all just before Christ's coming; the last times will be the most perilous. In particular, he will find few that have faith concerning his coming. It intimates that he will delay his coming so long that wicked people will begin to defy it, and to say, 'Where is the promise of his coming?' They will challenge him to come; Isa. 5:18, 19, and Amos 5:18, 19; and his delay will harden them in their wickedness. Even his own people will begin to despair of it, and to conclude that he will never come, because he has passed their reckoning." On Matt. 25: "As Christians, we profess not only to believe and look for, but love and long for, the appearing of Christ, and to act in our whole conversation with regard to it. The second coming of Christ is the center in which all the lines of our religion meet, and to which the whole of the divine life hath a constant reference and tendency." On Dan. 12:10: Henry, though looking for an extensive proclamation of the gospel, looked not for its universal reception, but says: "As long as the world stands, there will still be in it such a mixture as we now see there is of good and bad. We long to see all wheat and no tares in God's field; all corn and no chaff in God's floor; but it will not be till the time of ingathering, till the winnowing day comes. Both must grow together until the harvest. There is no remedy but that wicked people will do wickedly; and such people there are and will be in the world till the end of time." On Rev. 22:20: "This is Christ's farewell to his church, and Christ's promise. Come, Lord Jesus! Thus beats the pulse of the church, thus breathes that gracious spirit which actuates and informs the mystical body of Christ, and we should never be satisfied till we find such a spirit breathing in us, and causing us to look for that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ. What comes from Heaven in a promise should be sent back to Heaven in a prayer. Come, Lord Jesus, and put an end to this state of sin, and sorrow, and temptation, and gather the people out of this present evil world!"
So writes the pious Henry in a commentary, the superior excellences of which, says Dr. A. Alexander, are admitted by "thousands of judicious theologians," and of which Dr. Adam Clarke affirms, "It is always orthodox!" Henry died in 1714.—Ancient Landmarks. EXPERIENCE PROVES THE BIBLE TRUE.
PUERILE would it have been for the world to have risen in consternation when Barnum succeeded, with his movable wax figures in such perfect imitation of the human race, and cried for fear of the extinction of the race. They looked like men, moved like men, opened their eyes and mouths like men, and yet were only wax. Skepticism looks sometimes like truth, moves like truth, shines and speaks like truth, and yet is simply an ingenious lie. The true soldier of Jesus should fear skepticism, as a man one of these wax figures. Is it not time for Christians to rise above the atmosphere of doubt, and walk in the light of God? We never doubt whether there is a sun when it shines on us and makes us warm. We can never doubt the existence of bread when we are eating it. He who feels the life of God, gets beyond the reach of philosophical questioning, which is the very atmosphere of the age. Brethren, you will not question whether prayer is a reality if every day you receive answers to your petitions; you will never doubt the atonement of Jesus Christ or his deity, if sin is your daily grief, and Jesus your abiding companion. You will look the scoffers of the age in the face, and say to them, "Our eyes have seen, and our ears have heard, and our hands have handled the word of life." Let ministers lead their flocks to these hights, and glorious results will follow.—Central Baptist. A REMARKABLE JOURNAL.
By Printer's Circular
The official organ of the Chinese government, known as the Pekin Gazette, is certainly a most remarkable journal. Not only is it the oldest newspaper in existence, but it is highly probable that it was the first journal ever published, and what is more, the first that was ever printed; for it is pretty well settled that the spread of news by means of written documents was attempted in Europe at certain periods long before the days of the printing press. The contributors to the Gazette are now, and have been for many centuries, the ablest men in the country noted for the attention paid to education. On this account the files of the paper must at some future time prove of immense service to the historian who desires to write an account not only of the Chinese Empire, but of the Asiatic nations with which in times past she has held diplomatic intercourse. Although the paper is published under the immediate supervision of the government, this much must be said of it—that its columns have been open to those holding divergent opinions, and from this point of view it has carried out the modern idea of a review more thoroughly than the modern conception of a newspaper. An instance of this impartiality can be found in the recent publication by it of the letter written by Wu-ko-tu, one of the board of civil office, just before his suicide, reflecting severely on the usurpatious actions of the Empress Regent. The intent of this document was to force them to abdicate, and the arguments against their further continuance in power were very strongly given. A civilized despot would have deemed it advisable to suppress this seditious communication; but the Chinese rulers have perhaps shown their good sense, as they certainly have their consciousness of strength, by giving it the publicity its authors desired.—Printer's Circular. BATTLE CREEK SANITARIUM.
By John Harvey Kellogg
INSTITUTION FOUNDED, . . . . . . 1866.
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THIS INSTITUTION, for completeness of appointment, and extent of facilities, is unrivaled in this country. Its splendid arrangements for HEATING AND VENTILATION, together with special appliances for regulating the humidity of the atmosphere, makes this Institution UNEQUALED AS A WINTER RESORT FOR CHRONIC INVALIDS. Even persons suffering with pulmonary difficulties do much better here than in Florida. All known useful remedies for disease are employed, including Turkish, Russian, Vapor, Electro-Thermal, Electro-Vapor, all kinds of Water Baths, Sun Baths, Swedish Movements, Electricity, etc., etc. Terms very reasonable, J. H. KELLOGG, M. D., Medical Superintendent. Address for Circulars:—SANITARIUM, Battle Creek, Mich. THIS POPULAR JOURNAL enters upon its fifteenth volume with the most flattering prospects not only of a continuance of the prosperity which has attended it in the past, but also of a great increase of patronage, although it already enjoys THE LARGEST CIRCULATION OF ANY HEALTH JOURNAL IN AMERICA. The interest of the journal for 1880 will be greatly increased by a series of practical articles from the well-known pens of ELDER AND MRS. WHITE. Whose contributions in the past have done so much to increase the popularity and the usefulness of the journal. A SPLENDID PREMIUM BOOK is offered to new subscribers. Address, for specimen copy:— GOOD HEALTH PUBLISHING CO., Battle Creek, Mich. Or:— SIGNS OF THE TIMES, Oakland, Cal.