The Signs of the Times, Vol. 8, No. 34; Special Edition, No. 1
Humility Before HonorPage 1
Earlier text: Humility Before HonorMake an Effort.
By G. D. Ballou
You who are just developing into manhood and womanhood, let me have a few words with you. Have you stopped to consider the grand possibilities and probabilities of this fleeting life? Have you measured its brevity, and pondered on its closing scenes? Have you gone farther, and with the eye of faith looked beyond the gates of death and seen the saints of God come forth with glad shouts of triumph? Have you meditated on the life eternal, and the glorious beauty and loveliness of our Father's everlasting kingdom—the earth redeemed and renewed? Have you thought of the King in his beauty, reigning in righteousness and peace, and the innumerable company of angels, and the multitude of the redeemed clothed with immortality, bearing palms of victory, and ascribing honor to their blessed Redeemer? Have you drawn the curtain over earthly scenes, and thus looked forward to the time when you might be permitted to mingle with that glorified throng and become acquainted with the good and blest of every age? And have the thoughts of these scenes thrilled you with longings to be there, and animated you with a more intense desire to do the will of your Father in Heaven? If your thoughts have ever been thus exercised, you will better appreciate what I am about to say to you. Surely the contemplation of the Christian's hope will fill the soul with aspirations after purity of life, and nobility of character. The anxiety to make the best possible improvement of your mental and spiritual powers, not only for your own good, but for the good of perishing humanity, ought to pervade your entire being. You are passing rapidly along, and a few years will decide the entire course of your life. You may make much of yourselves, or you may remain dwarfs all through your lives. The cause of God may be greatly benefited by your efforts, or you may remain only a cipher in the work. God will lead you in a way that you know not of, if you will improve upon the talent he has given you. Stir up your dormant energies. Rouse your latent powers. Seize every opportunity to store your minds with useful information. Brush away the chaffy literature, and gather only the wheat. Think, study, investigate. Don't dream; your future depends not so much on what you hope for as what you labor for. Hopes and aspirations expressed in earnest unflagging efforts will work wonders for you. Don't be satisfied with doing as well as others; aim to do all you possibly can in the way of self-improvement. Don't be discouraged because your present attainments are not as good as those of others. Begin at once, and if you persevere, you will soon be conscious of an increase of power and vigor in your own soul. Don't be discouraged by mistakes. Success depends in your not making the same mistake the second time. If you suffer defeat, draw a lesson from it which will pave the way for future success. Don't tie yourselves up to mere physical labor until you have spent a few months or years trying to cultivate your minds. There are men and women enough in the world to devote themselves entirely to physical employments, who have no higher aspirations. The work of God demands cultured minds, minds disciplined to think and plan for the spreading of the last message to the world. Go to school if possible. Excellent opportunities are offered. Schools are in operation designed to assist the youth to make themselves useful in the cause of God. Make an effort to attend one of these schools. If you are poor, study economy. Dress plainly; live on simple food, and attend for a little while to the inward adorning. If you cannot possibly attend school, read and study all your leisure time at home. Among other things, buy a concordance, and devote much time to the study of the Bible. Compare scripture with scripture. Nothing will better help to improve the mind. It will develop the power to think. The great aim in education should be to so train the mind, and so store it with information that we can think systematically and connectedly. Those thus thoroughly trained are ready for emergencies, and can adapt themselves to circumstances, and they know better how to handle human nature with all its perverse peculiarities. Young men and women, the seed-time of your life will quickly slip away. Make an effort now; don't wait till next year or next month, but begin at once to prepare to fill a larger place in the world. Try to be worth all you possibly can to the cause of Christ. Let your aim be to do all you can, either directly or indirectly, to prepare others for that kingdom, the hope of which is solace and comfort to your soul. There we shall see the results of our life-work, and enter into the joy of our Lord. Remember the “well done” will be said only to those who have used their talents. You surely have at least one talent. Don't hide it in the earth. (Read Matt. 25.) Strive to consecrate your life to the cause of Christ, and you will at last hear the “well done.” May God help you. That Blessed Hope.
By A. J. Gordon
MICHAEL ANGELO, by perpetual looking up to the marvelous frescoes on which he wrought in the church-domes, acquired a fixed upward gaze, which he never outgrew, so that as he passed along the street he seemed all the while to be contemplating something in the sky. And Christ left this great hope to his church in order that it might give a steady, moral uplift to the life—that so the disciple might have his face turned heavenward, and not earthward. Mourner, do not look toward the grave, and allow your life to reflect its shadows; but look toward the sky, and catch the light of the coming resurrection morn. Christian, do not look toward the earth, or let your countenance be tinged with the reflection of the yellow gold; but look toward the throne, and let your face reflect “the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.” May God help you to be like men who wait for their Lord when he shall return from Heaven. “For every one that hath this hope in him purifieth himself even as he is pure.” And besides this purifying influence is the mighty uplifting power of this blessed hope. “Which hope we have as an anchor of the soul, both sure and steadfast, and which entereth into that within the vail,” whither Christ, the forerunner, has for us entered. When the high priest entered within the vail of the holiest, every eye in the Jewish congregation was directed toward him, watching for him to return. They heard the sound of the silver bells which he wore upon his garments, telling them that he was alive, though in the presence of the awful Jehovah. “We have a great High Priest that is passed into the heavens.” The cloud that received him out of sight, as he ascended from Olivet, was the curtain of the holiest, which was to shut him from view till his ministry in glory should be completed, and he should return again to earth. His blessed promises sound out to us from glory like bells with solemn, sweet vibrations. “I am he that liveth, and was dead, and behold I am alive forevermore.” “Seeing he ever liveth to make intercession for us.” These words tell us that he is still there at the Father’s right hand, though we see him not. And our attitude should be that of perpetual watching for his return, with eager longing and with upturned vision until the day dawns. Meanwhile he is our anchor cast within the vail, to hold and steady us in our Christian life. The idea of the anchor within the vail seems to be this: A ship is coming into port; but, owing to sand-bars and shallow water, it cannot get into the harbor, so the anchor is taken in a boat and brought in and secured to the dock, till the tide shall rise. The vessel cannot get in as yet, but it can be secured from being driven out to sea. We cannot get into Heaven as yet; the tide of resurrection power that is to lift us in has not yet risen; but our anchor is there, fastening us securely, fixing us immovably. In the mighty drift of unbelief we are held fast; the receding tides of apostasy cannot bear us away from God; the adverse winds of false doctrine cannot break our heavenly mooring, that we should drift out to sea. Anchorarius was the name which in ancient time was given to the anchor-bearer. Christ is our Anchorarius, who has taken our great hope and fixed it for us within the holiest. What power shall drag it thence? Who shall separate us from this steadfast anchorage?—A. J. Gordon, D. D., in the Watchword. Justice Cannot Exist Without Wisdom
JUSTICE without wisdom is impossible. A correspondent of the World’s Crisis writes a long article to prove that the Lord’s Supper should be eaten in the evening. In this, he gives the following testimony as to the time of the meeting mentioned in Acts 20:7: “It should be remembered also that the first day of the week in Jewish and Greek count began about sundown, and, therefore, if they had eaten before sundown, it would have been on the seventh day of the week and not the first. They probably did not come from their homes till the Jewish Sabbath was over, or till about dark. But it is certain that Paul preached to them on the first day of the week, and on that part of the day that preceded midnight, which day began about sundown, and has but one midnight, that being not far from six hours after sundown.” This is very true; but as the writer believes that he has apostolic example for Sunday-keeping, he may now consider whether the little journey of twenty miles on which Paul started “at break of day” (Sunday morning), was proper Sabbath work. Another correspondent claims Acts 20:6-12 as proof that it was their custom to meet on the first day of the week, still claiming that we must follow apostolic example. Does the Crisis believe in holding services on Saturday night instead of on Sunday? Dr. John Hall, pastor of the Fifth Avenue Presbyterian Church, New York, says: “In tracing the development of the spiritual worship of the Father, we find things began to insinuate themselves in disguise into the system and spirit of the Christian Church, although they had been rejected in substance and form many times. So with paganism, which had been rejected as a whole, and was execrated. Many of its elements in time grew into the custom of the Christian Church—notably, the holy days, and the imputing of secular powers to those who had held spiritual office.” And the Sunday is one of the Pagan “elements” which “grew into the custom of the Christian Church.” But too many Protestants are of the same mind as the lecturer who said, recently, when speaking on the Sunday question: “We are not now so much concerned to discuss whether Sunday is right, but whether we shall enforce its observance.” In the Lesson Comments in the S. S. Times, we find the following text and comment: “‘For in those days shall be affliction, such as was not from the beginning of the creation which God created unto this time, neither shall be.’ We must be careful to interpret this verse according to the analogy of prophetic inspiration. There may have been days of as great distress before or since; but to the mind of Christ, in the prophetic state, the awfulness was terrible. He speaks according to his deeply roused feelings.” Which means, in plain language, that Christ was so excited that he didn’t really know what he was saying, and was therefore guilty of exaggeration. We know that the one who made that comment did not intend any irreverence, but it is even worse than that. If he had only seen that Christ’s discourse recorded in Mark 13 does not apply entirely to the destruction of Jerusalem, he need not thus have put a club into the hands of Universalists and infidels. In an address on the “Wonders of Electricity,” the statement is made that “in a million years the day will be longer by one minute than it is now; and Prof. Robert Hall, the astronomer royal of Ireland, says that “in one hundred and fifty million years we shall have a day which will be fourteen hundred hours long.” “Our remote posterity,” he says, “will have a night seven hundred hours long, and when the sun rises in the morning, seven hundred hours more will elapse before he can set. They will look back at our short periods of rest and short periods of work with mingled curiosity and pity.” And these same people, and many others who greedily swallow everything that is labeled “science,” contradictions and all, will solemnly protest that they are unable to believe the Bible. All of which shows that belief is more a matter of inclination than most people think. The Jewish Times discusses the question of the return of the Jews to Palestine, and concludes that “there is no present prospect of the return of the Jews to Palestine, even though that event may prove the end of prophecy.” It quotes from an able American writer, for many years a resident of Beynet, who declares that the newspaper stories of great Jewish colonies pouring into Palestine and buying up large tracts of land are mere fabrications, and adds: “On the other hand the tide of Jewish emigration seems turning to the western continent, and if the Jews are as shrewd in the selection of a home for their families as they are in the transaction of business, they will not long hesitate between such a land as Palestine and such a country as the United States.” This is a sensible conclusion, and entirely consistent with prophecy, which does not predict a return of the Jews to Palestine. In closing a book notice the Independent truthfully says: “A large amount of pagan thought and feeling lingers on in the world, and has acted a part of more or less importance in the history of Christianity. . . . It was not to be expected that Christianity would keep itself clear of all pagan alloy, and that part of the heavy work it has always been doing, and has still to do, is to achieve its purgation of these elements.” Iceland is well supported with pastors. There is, on an average, one pastor for every two hundred inhabitants. Our Sabbath-school lessons are now of a most interesting nature. The events connected with Christ’s betrayal and crucifixion should be very thoroughly and carefully studied. The following from the pen of Mrs. E. G. White will throw valuable light on certain points:— As the disciples sat at the passover with their beloved Master, they observed that he still appeared greatly troubled and depressed. A cloud settled over them all, a premonition of some dreadful calamity, the character of which they did not understand. As they ate in silence, Jesus said, “Verily, I say unto you that one of you shall betray me.” Amazement and consternation seized them at these words. They could not comprehend how any one of them could deal treacherously by their divine Teacher. For what cause could they betray him, and to whom? Whose heart could give birth to such a design! Surely not one of the favored twelve who had been privileged above all others to hear his teachings, and who had experienced his marvelous love, and for whom he had shown such great respect by bringing them into close communion with himself! As they realized the full import of his words, and remembered how true his sayings were, a sudden fear and self-distrust seized them. They began to examine their own hearts to ascertain if one thought against the Master found lodgment there. With the most painful feelings, one after another inquired, “Lord, is it I?” But Judas sat silent. John in deep distress inquired at last, “Who is it, Lord?” and Jesus answered, “He that dippeth his hand with me in the dish, the same shall betray me. The Son of man goeth as it is written of him, but woe unto that man by whom the Son of man is betrayed; it had been good for that man if he had not been born.” The disciples had searched one another’s faces closely as they asked, “Lord, is it I?” and now the silence of Judas drew all eyes to himself. Amid the confusion of questions and the expressions of astonishment, Judas had not heard the words of Jesus in answer to John’s question. But now, to escape the searching scrutiny of the disciples, he asked as they had done, “Master, is it I?” Jesus replied with solemn accents, “Thou hast said.” Confused and overcome by the unexpected discovery of his crime, Judas hastily rose to leave the room; but as he went out, Jesus said, “What thou doest, do quickly.” There was a touching forbearance manifested in the dealing of Jesus with Judas. It evinced an infinite mercy, giving him one more chance of repentance, by showing him that all his thoughts and purposes were fully known to the Son of God. He designed to give one final, convincing proof of his divinity to Judas before the consummation of his treachery, that he might turn from his purpose before repentance was too late. But Judas, although surprised and alarmed, was not moved to repentance. He only became more firmly settled in his plan as the discovery of his guilt was made apparent. He went forth and proceeded to carry out the work he had engaged to do. The purpose of the Saviour in pronouncing the woe upon Judas was twofold: First, to give the false disciple a last opportunity to save himself from the betrayer’s doom; and, secondly, to give the disciples a crowning evidence of his Messiahship, in revealing the hidden purpose of Judas. Said Jesus: “I speak not of you all; I know whom I have chosen; but that the scripture may be fulfilled, He that eateth bread with me hath lifted up his heel against me. Now I tell you before it come, that when it is come to pass, ye may believe that I am he.” Had Jesus remained silent, in apparent ignorance of that which was to come upon him, an impression might have been left on the minds of his disciples that their Master had not divine foresight, and had been deceived, surprised, and betrayed into the hands of a murderous mob. A year before, Jesus had told the disciples that he had chosen twelve, but that one was a devil; and now his words to Judas on the occasion of the passover, showing that his treachery was fully known to his Master, would strengthen the faith of his true followers during his humiliation. And when Judas should have come to his dreadful end, they would remember the woe which Jesus had pronounced upon the betrayer. The withdrawal of Judas was a relief to all present. The Saviour’s face lighted immediately, and the oppressive shadow was lifted from the disciples, as they saw the peace of Heaven return to the pale, worn countenance of their Lord. Jesus had much to say to his beloved disciples that he did not wish to say in the presence of the multitude, who could not understand the sacred truths he was about to unfold. Even the disciples could not fully understand them till after the resurrection should have taken place. Looking upon his faithful followers, Jesus said, “Now is the Son of man glorified, and God is glorified in him. If God be glorified in him, God shall also glorify him in himself, and shall straightway glorify him.” He then informed them of his approaching separation from them. The ardent Peter could not rest while the matter remained in uncertainty. He inquired, “Lord, whither goest thou?” Jesus answered, “Whither I go, thou canst not follow me now; but thou shalt follow me afterward.” But Peter’s interest was intensely roused, and he urged Jesus to explain his full meaning, saying, “Lord, why cannot I follow thee now? I will lay down my life for thy sake.” Jesus answered sorrowfully, “Wilt thou lay down thy life for my sake? Verily, verily, I say unto thee, The cock shall not crow till thou hast denied me thrice.” Then, looking with pitying love upon his little flock, so soon to be left without a shepherd, he sought to draw their minds from the perplexity into which his statements had thrown them, and said tenderly, “Let not your hearts be troubled; ye believe in God, believe also in me. In my Father’s house are many mansions; if it were not so I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also. And whither I go ye know, and the way ye know.” With the deepest interest Jesus poured forth the burden of his soul in words of comfort, of counsel and prayer, which would ever remain imprinted on the minds and hearts of his disciples. These words from the lips of the Saviour, traced by the inspired John in chapters fifteen, sixteen, and seventeen, were repeated again and again by the disciples to stay their sinking hearts in their great disappointment and trial. Not until after the resurrection, however, were the words spoken upon this memorable occasion fully understood and appreciated. But the truths uttered by the Redeemer in that upper chamber have spread from the testimony of the disciples over all lands, and will live through all ages to comfort the hearts of the desponding, and give peace and hope to thousands who believe. Jesus with his disciples now left the upper chamber, and crossed the brook Kedron. Sorrow and anguish again pressed heavily upon his heart. With touching sadness he addressed his companions: “All ye shall be offended because of me this night; for it is written, I will smite the Shepherd, and the sheep shall be scattered. But after that I am risen I will go before you into Galilee.” Peter, again anxious to assure his Master of his fidelity, said, “Although all shall be offended, yet will not I.” Jesus, reproving his confidence as before, said, “Verily I say unto thee, that this day, even in this night, before the cock crow twice, thou shalt deny me thrice.” But Peter only “spake the more vehemently, If I should die with thee I will not deny thee in any wise. Likewise also said they all.” A Loving Heart: The Best Sunday-School Help
The Rev. Dr. William M. Taylor has well said that “the best” Sunday-school help is “a loving heart.” It is necessary to know something of the laws of teaching, or to have that instinct that answers the same end; it is necessary to have accurate information and sound exegesis; it is necessary to be able to impart what one knows in a way that will interest; but above all, it is necessary to have a loving heart. That is the most potent aid that a teacher can have. By means of what it can do, some illiterate teachers have had a most extraordinary success: and, for want of it, some men, very learned, and even eloquent, have been complete failures. Only a loving heart can effectually present a loving gospel; only one who himself loves sinners and is willing to deny himself for their sakes, can faithfully and persuasively represent Him who loved and gave himself for sinners. Attention to Definitions.
By G. M. Hammell
To DEFINE, is, in fact, to crystallize thought—to give such real and complete expression to ideas as to be intelligible and clear. Too often in schools, whether secular or ecclesiastical, insufficient attention is given to definitions; and the result is an obscurity of mental view, and looseness of intellectual grasp, which is the bane of our universal education. Scholars cram for hasty recitation, and receiving no idea, soon forget even the memorized formulae, and enter society burdened with a confused mass of rules, axioms, isolated facts, and historical dates, needing classification and exact definition. My attention has been directed to this defect in our educational systems by visits to secular schools, in which answers have been given and words mechanically spelled with no adequate conception of their meaning. For example, in a certain school, taught by a gentleman of some local repute as an educator, a girl defined Christianity as a “monotheistic religion,” and was about to return to her seat, when I asked, “What is the meaning of ‘monotheistic’?” A blank stare and piteous look of appeal was the only answer. Assuming control of a Sunday-school class on that October Sunday when the “Peace Offering” was the subject of study, I assigned the following words for definition: sacrifice, unleavened, anointed, oblation, priest, leavened, and vow. The first word was left undefined, although the pupil was at least twelve years of age, and a daily attendant at the secular school. Unleavened was defined as “smooth;” priest, as “a preacher in the Catholic Church;” and but one word was correctly defined. After the knowledge of the pupils had been tested, and found so lamentably defective, I gave the correct definitions, and quickly saw, by unmistakable signs of interest, that they were real discoveries, as, no doubt, they essentially were. If I were a teacher in daily contact with growing mental life, I should insist on knowledge of the meaning, and so far as possible, the history of words; for it is true enough that the etymology of a word is often as fascinating as the story of a campaign; and I would take as my model “Old Adam Hope,” who, as Carlyle says in his “Reminiscences,” “knew what he did profess to know in every fiber, and to the very bottom. More vigorously solid teacher of the young idea, so far as he could carry it, you might have searched for through the world in vain. Self-delusion, half-knowledge, sham instead of reality, could not get encouragement from him. He had a Socratic way with him; would accept the hopeless pupil’s half-knowledge, or plausible sham of knowledge, with a kind of welcome. ‘Hm! h’m! yes;’ and then gently enough begin a chain of inquiries more and more surprising to the poor pupil till he had reduced him to zero,—to mere ne plus ultra, and the dismal perception that his sham of knowledge had been flat misknowledge with a spice of dishonesty added.” “Old Adam Hope” may have been voted a hard teacher, but the pupils who learned what he taught became more and more thankful that they had been led below surfaces to the depths, and that they actually knew what they thought they knew. —G. M. Hammell, in S. S. Times. Religion and Good Citizenship
Whatever makes men good Christians, makes them good citizens.—Webster. THE YOUTH’S INSTRUCTOR.
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Having shown the identity of the law of ten commandments with the golden rule, and that the commandments to love God and our fellow-men embrace “all the law”—not merely three-fourths or nine-tenths of it, every reader can understand the expression, “Love is the fulfilling of the law.” Some read it as if it said, Love is a substitute for the law. But it does not read so, nor does it mean so. Obedience to God is the sole test and proof of love to God. That is but shallow love—rather a mockery of love—to God, which seeks its own benefit, merely. But this is the kind of love which too many show, who find nothing in the Bible but simply a provision for their salvation, or more nearly, their gratification, without regard to the claims of God’s law upon them. They see little or no necessity for any vindication of the justice of the divine government in the maintenance of the law. This is an error into which the “perfectionists” naturally run. Its end is antinomianism—a disparagement of all law. It is a religion of the emotions alone. Its only use for the gospel is the service of self. But true Christian love is more than an arousing of the emotions. It is a deep and fixed principle controlling the actions of the life, bringing all the powers of the mind and heart into entire subjection to the revealed will of God. It is the very opposite of the carnal mind, which “is enmity against God, for it is not subject to the law of God, neither indeed can be.” That which depreciates the law because it is the law—because it is legal,—and considers that the law has too great restraining power to suit its ideas of Christian liberty, is nothing but carnality. They who possess this kind of religion profess a very exalted state of Christian knowledge and experience. And this shows the strength of what Andrew Fuller very truthfully styled “this antinomian delusion.” It is self-deception of the most dangerous type. It gradually undermines the authority of all revelation, and makes the experience of the individual the sole test of truth, and his feelings the sole index of duty. We have found the most remarkable instances of this self-deception among the “Free Methodists” and the “United Brethren;” though scarcely any denomination is free from it now, as prejudice against, and opposition to, the law, is everywhere increasing. It is the prevalence of this superficial religion, this subordination of duty to feeling, this preference of benefit to self to the glory of God, that has caused so large a rejection of the Bible doctrine of the atonement. That which is denominated “the moral view”—an atonement as affecting man only,—is much more nearly the immoral view, in that it does not uphold justice, or bring back rebellious man to subjection to the broken law. Self-will and self-glorification is its sum and substance. “Love is the fulfilling of the law.” Let us briefly notice the connection of these words (Rom. 13:8-10): “Owe no man anything, but to love one another, for he that loveth another hath fulfilled the law.” That is, the law requires that, instead of doing injury to your neighbor in any of his interests or relations, you shall do him only good. And he that loves his neighbor cannot do him injury, but will do him all the good he can. Therefore, he only fulfills the requirement of the law who loves another. If the other view be taken, that love, but not obedience to the law, is required, then we should have the singular and absurd rule of duty, namely, that we may injure our neighbor in all his relations, of life, chastity, property, and reputation, if we only love him! Can any one accept so great an absurdity as this? By no means. Hence the view we present is the true and reasonable one, namely, that the law defines our duty to our neighbor, but we can never fulfill its requirements unless we love our neighbor. And all profession of love without doing that which the law defines to be duty, is a pretence and a deception. The text specifies in duty as follows:— “For this, Thou shalt not commit adultery, Thou shalt not kill, Thou shalt not steal, Thou shalt not bear false witness, Thou shalt not covet; and if there be any other commandment, it is briefly comprehended in this saying, namely, Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself. Love worketh no ill to his neighbor; therefore, love is the fulfilling of the law.” The fifth commandment is not mentioned. What a splendid opportunity is here presented for the antinomian to claim that it is not wrong to dishonor parents, because Paul in re-affirming the commandments to the Gentiles, which forbid wrongs against our social relations, did not mention it! If such a chance were offered in relation to the Sabbath, how eagerly it would be seized upon, and heralded to the ends of the earth as a death-blow to Sabbatarianism! Yet there is no occasion here for antinomian rejoicing. The apostle includes all the commandments of that nature in this word: “Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself.” No one who truly loves as here required will dishonor his parents, more than he will injure any one in his property or reputation. How senseless, then, is the cavil which has been based upon this text, namely, that the Sabbath is not binding because Paul did not mention it in this enumeration of duties! The truth, evident to every reader, is, that Paul did not specify all the duties in our social relations, but included them in a summary which had been before mentioned in both Testaments. And he was speaking only of our duty to one another, to our neighbor, not at all referring to the precept, “Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart.” On the precept, love thy neighbor, every duty to mankind depends, or is included in it. So on the precept, love God, every duty to God is included. Or, as the Saviour shows, “all the law” is contained in these two. And as the duty to care for the honor of our parents is included in the second table, though not mentioned in Rom. 13, so the duty to keep the Sabbath is included in the requirement to love God, for it is a part of the law; and “all the law” is contained therein. Love is the spring of obedience, and obedience is the proof of love. They are positively inseparable. “God is love.” That holy law which emanated from God is a law of love. It lives only in the atmosphere of love; love to God, and love to our neighbor. In the light of its revelation of duty, “God shall bring every work into judgment, with every secret thing, whether it be good or whether it be evil.” It is that word of God which is “quick and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.” Heb. 4:12.