Earlier text: OUR BIBLE BANDThe Potter and the Vessel
By L. A. Reed
THE time of Jeremiah was a time of great apostasy in Israel. As an index of the times and the people, we need nothing more significant than their rebellious and wicked treatment of Jeremiah. They mobbed the faithful prophet. They threatened him with death. They put him in prison. They dropped him into a miry dungeon. But through it all God protected him and gave him warning after warning, promise after promise, and these He delivered to the people faithfully and without wavering. The history of that time is mainly the history of the infinite mercy and long-suffering of God, waiting for some token of repentance on the part of His sinful people. Long and faithfully, through His prophet, He pleaded with them to turn from their wicked ways and escape the threatened calamities, but they would not listen. Jeremiah’s first message is a warning of the coming of the kingdoms of the north to possess Jerusalem and all the cities of Judah, unless they cease from their evil ways. Over and over again was this prophecy of evil given: “I will bring evil from the north, and a great destruction. The lion has come up from his thicket, and the destroyer of the Gentiles is on his way; he is gone forth from his place to make thy land desolate; and thy cities shall be laid waste, without an inhabitant.” “Behold he shall come up as clouds, and his chariots shall be as a whirlwind; his horses are swifter than eagles. Wo unto us! for we are spoiled.” But even at this time there was hope; the very words point out a way of escape. “O Jerusalem, wash thine heart from wickedness, that thou mayest be saved.” Thus line upon line of prophecy and promise God sent His people through His faithful prophet, interspersing the solemn warnings with some of the most precious and gracious promises of salvation, conditioned on repentance. Through seventeen chapters of the book of Jeremiah we read the alternate warnings and promises and then the wonderful assurance that, if they will cease from sin and observe His holy Sabbaths, none of the threatened evils shall fall upon them. He promises to give them an uninterrupted line of kings and princes to sit upon the throne of David, and the beautiful city of Jerusalem shall stand under the sheltering providence of God as long as the world endures. Following all this, in the first verses of the eighteenth chapter, we have presented the wonderful parable of the potter and his wheel. Jeremiah is sent down to the potter’s house, where he sees the potter fashioning a work upon the wheel. “And the vessel that he made of clay was marred in the hand of the potter: so he made it again another vessel, as it seemed good to the potter to make it.” Then the word of the Lord comes to the prophet to teach him the meaning of the parable of the vessel that was marred in the hand of the potter. “O house of Israel, can not I do with you as this potter? saith the Lord. Behold, as the clay is in the potter’s hand, are ye in My hand, O house of Israel. At what instant I shall speak concerning a nation, and concerning a kingdom, to pluck up, and to pull down, and to destroy it; if that nation, against whom I have pronounced, turn from their evil, I will repent of the evil that I thought to do unto them. And at what instant I shall speak concerning a nation, and concerning a kingdom, to build and to plant it; if it do evil in My sight, that it obey not My voice, then I will repent of the good, wherewith I said I would benefit them.” In these words we have clearly stated both sides of God’s providence for nations and for individuals. If the vessel be marred, He can make another vessel as seems “good to the potter, to make it.” That is to say that Israel was now a marred vessel, marred because of her insubmission to the hand of God; but the Lord can remedy the calamity; however, Israel must place herself submissive as clay into the hands of the Potter. Nevertheless, if the potter have made a goodly vessel, if it is still in the plastic state, there is a possibility of its being marred. No nation or individual is beyond the possible danger of turning aside into ways of evil that lead to perdition. If the clay falls out of the path destined for the vessel of honor, it becomes marred,—a vessel of dishonor; and when it has once become hardened into this distorted shape, there is nothing left for it but to be broken in shivers. Israel would not hear the word of the prophet. God’s promise of an eternal dynasty of kings; His promise that, if they would obey Him, Jerusalem should stand forever; and this wonderful message of warning and hope in the parable of the potter’s vessel, were all alike unheeded. Israel was utterly disobedient and unreasonable. She had left the “snow of Lebanon, which cometh from the rock of the field,” and had put her trust in a broken, empty cistern. She had left a plain, smooth path to walk in the rough way of the thorns of the wilderness. Because the chosen people had failed to heed the parable of the marred vessel, God sends them another parable out of the house of the potter. And this second parable logically follows the first parable. It is a recital of the fate of the marred vessel when once it has been hardened into its distorted shape. Jeremiah was told to get a potter’s vessel and to take a number of the ancients of the people and of the priests forth into the valley of Hinnom, and proclaim there the word7 of the Lord. And when Jeremiah had led the people forth to the valley, he was to break the vessel in the sight of the people that accompanied him. Thus was he to act out for them a parable. That parable was terrible in its import. “Thus said the Lord of hosts: Even so will I break this people and this city, as one breaketh a potter’s vessel, that can not be made whole again: and they shall bury them in Tophet, till there be no place to bury.” Thus did God point out to them the irretrievable ruin that awaited them, if they persisted in the path of transgression. We know that God bore long with them, and sent them many promises of His protection, if they would but turn to Him. Even when the Babylonian was at the gate, and the city was besieged, God sent King Zedekiah a message, that if he would go forth and yield himself up a captive to the besieging king, his life would be spared, the city would not be destroyed, and none of the people would be killed. But Zedekiah was not brave enough to obey the word of God, and terrible was the captivity of the people. But not even then did the awful fate delineated in the breaking of the potter’s vessel in the vale of Hinnom fully overtake them. The complete fulfilment did not come until after they had rejected the Son of God, when Titus, the Roman, came to take away their city and their nation. Then was the vessel shivered in pieces. Then it was that in awful truth they buried the dead until there was no more place. Over a million of the people were slaughtered in the taking of the city. We call it the judgment of God, and such in a sense it was; but it was the fruit of their own doing. It was the harvest for which they had sown. They had been loading the cloud for years, and now it burst. It fell in torrents on their heads. They chose Barrabbas instead of Christ, and the cruelty of Barrabbas they were to feel to the end. God’s mercy waits long; He gives us opportunity to be redeemed from our evil ways; but His word is true; sooner or later destruction awaits the hardened and impenitent. God’s Holy Day the Sabbath
By Sarah H. Payne
I stood at the birth of the evening
And gazed at the sinking sun;
And the glow that it left behind it
Grew dark when the day was done.
But O, before the darkness
What a glow baptized the sky,
And tipped the clouds with splendor
Before my wondering eye. And how the colors sparkled
Upon the ocean’s breast,
The waves like priceless jewels
Seemed sinking into rest.
Above, the sea-gulls glided,
So still they seemed asleep;
Their graceful wings reflecting
The crimson of the deep. And then the moon came gleaming
From out her cloudy screen,
A silver half-rim, glinting,
Of night, the misty queen.
A veil of golden glory
Spread over land and sea;
The mossy spots, and stony,
Seemed brighter then to me. The seaside flowers, simple,
I’d thought so poor and pale,
Shone now with wondrous beauty
Within this golden trail.
I looked in awe and wonder
At all His hand had wrought,
The sky, the sea, the sunset,
The beauty of God’s thought. In rapture soared my spirit,
And by my Maker stood,
And there reviewed Creation,
And heard Him call it “good.”
My soul was stilled with wonder
As each star took its place,
Each creature of His power,
Filled with His perfect grace. It seemed as tho’ ’twere evening
Of His own holy day;
And then I asked the question,
Can this e’er pass away?
A few would stop to listen,
But none could tell me true;
Till in His blessed Bible
He brought the truth to view. The One, the great Creator,
Who spans eternity,
Who was from everlasting,
Who evermore shall be,—
He hallowed with His blessing
To crown His work of love
This day of rest and worship
To point the soul above. No power can change or alter
That Heaven-sealed decree,
To me the truth came bounding,
From doubting set me free.
And then I longed to tell it,
The truth that then I saw
Revealed by Sinai’s flaming,
His righteous, holy law. And God spoke loud and sternly,
My law thou shalt not break,
For I am God, unchanging,
Nor one word from it take:
From first to tenth is holy,
The fourth with all the rest;
Obey each holy precept,
And write it in thy breast. It is My sign of Lordship,
This holy seventh day,
Creator, King, Redeemer,
Thou shalt My will obey;
A righteous law, and holy,
Revealing My own name;
Hear and obey its precepts,
Its beauties e’er proclaim. I died upon the tree, child,
To set the whole world free,
Lifted sin’s heavy burden,
For love I died for thee,
That thou mightst be obedient,
My law within thy heart,
The old, the new, the first, the last,
They can not live apart. And so I bowed and murmured,
Thy law, dear Lord, I’ll keep,
Thy Sabbath shall be token,
A sign of purpose deep.
O glorious thought—Thy blessing,
Thy word within my breast!
I’ll leave the world behind me,
And come into Thy rest! MEN forget that, if they would reign with Christ, they must also suffer with Him. They have not understood that whosoever would be a disciple must take up his own cross. True refinement implies the fire of the smelting furnace, as well as the purified result which issues therefrom. Character, like conquest, presupposes conflict, none the less that it has come by the way of faith. Men easily forget that Egypt and the desert came before the Promised Land. They need always to be reminded that thorns composed the Messiah’s first visible crown, and that the sign of God’s choice, in men’s sight, is as likely to be pains and perils as it is any earthly pleasures. Christians must bear about in their bodies the marks of the Lord Jesus, as evidence that they belong to the elect race, the royal family of God. Refinement must in some sense have been an experience before it can become a possession. Faith implies active fellowship with a living Redeemer, and not merely passive assent to a work performed. The culture that comes from God is a gift which is costly to the receiver as well as the giver. No man can surely have faith in Christ and Him crucified who does not in his refinement show signs of the cross.—Sunday School Times. Unity of the Scriptures in Christ
By Arthur T. Pierson
The unity of the Bible itself evidences the divine origin of the Book—a collection of sixty-six books, written by about forty different men, during about fifteen centuries. Here are prophetic, poetic, historic, and didactic works in prose and parallelisms, bearing every mark of diversity of period and authorship; yet there are both unity and continuity; instead of discord, perfect concord, and a progress of doctrinal development concerning God and the Messiah. It is the unity of a structure that grows into completeness, and is the manifest development of an archetypal idea that must have been prior to, and exterior to, the authors themselves. It is an organic unity, like that of a body in which all parts bear one inseparable relation. For one thing, no rationalistic theory ever can account: the traditional belief of the Jews that One should come who should be at once a prophet greater than Moses, a priest higher than Aaron, a king wiser than Solomon. Back beyond 1,500 years of written revelations, we can trace this hope and faith through 2,500 years of oral revelations. This traditional belief holds steadily on its way, branching out into new particulars, till it reaches the minutest prophetic predictions; is never once lost sight of, even in days of apostasy and exile. The prophecies actually involve paradoxes and enigmas which only history could unlock. And yet, after 400 years of prophetic silence, and the closing of the Old Testament canon, all this marvelous unity of prediction and expectation finds, after 4,000 years of persistent growth, one marvelous Person in whom all is faithfully fulfilled.—Arthur T. Pierson. Backsliding a Sign of the Last Days
1. What did our Lord declare would be a marked sign of the end of the world or age? “And because iniquity shall abound, the LOVE OF MANY SHALL WAX COLD. But he that endureth unto the end, the same shall be saved.” See Matt. 24:12-14. 2. What does the apostle say will be a noted feature of the last days? “This KNOW also, that in the last days PERILOUS TIMES SHALL COME.” 2 Tim. 3:1. 3. For what reasons may these perilous times be expected? “For men shall be lovers of their own selves, covetous, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy, without natural affection, truce-breakers, false accusers, incontinent, fierce, despisers of those that are good, traitors, heady, high-minded, lovers of pleasures more than lovers of God.” Verses 2-4. 4. Among whom will these sins be found? “Men . . . having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof.” Verses 2, 5. NOTE.—The times are not perilous because these sins are found among worldlings; for there they have always been found, the natural works of the flesh. What makes the times perilous is that these sins abound in the professed church of Christ, those who make a profession, who have a form of godliness, but deny its power. When that body designed of God to lift up a standard to the world, loses its power, it takes off all restraint of crime and sin; and we witness its effects to-day in the increase of sin and crime. 5. How do backslidden religionists deny the power of godliness? “They profess that they know God; but IN WORKS THEY DENY HIM, being abominable and DISOBEDIENT, and unto every good work reprobate.” Titus 1:16. NOTE.—This does not mean disobedient to church creeds, or councils, or human traditions, but disobedient to Him whom they profess to know. 6. Should we accept such religionists as our standard or teachers? “Come out of her, My people, that ye be not partakers of her sins, and that ye receive not of her plagues.” Rev. 18:4. 7. What does Christ define as “vain worship”? “In vain they do worship me, teaching for doctrines the commandments of men.” Matt. 15:9. 8. Will some professors of Christianity be found denying Christ? “Not every one that saith unto Me, Lord, Lord, shall enter the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of My Father which is in heaven.” Matt. 7:21. 9. Are these people sincere in their mistake? “Many will say to Me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Thy name? and in Thy name have cast out devils? and in Thy name done many wonderful works? And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity.” Matt. 7:22. 10. What must we do “that we may work the works of God”? “This is the work of God, that ye believe on Him whom He hath sent.” John 6:28, 29. 11. What will those do who truly believe and love Christ? “If ye love Me, keep My commandments.” John 14:15. “This is love, that we walk after His commandments.” 2 John 6. “He that saith he abideth in Him ought himself also so to walk, even as He walked.” 1 John 2:6. The Sure Word of Prophecy
By Delwin Rees Buckner
FROM Tiber’s banks the Roman legions came,
Destructive as the locusts of the plain.
That march like armies through the golden grain
And turn it unto ashes, like the flame.
The cry of mourning pierced the pall of doom;
In sackcloth lay besieged Jerusalem,
Erstwhile a queen, with jewelled diadem,
Now brought unto the boundaries of the tomb.
Most certain are God’s holy prophecies.
What He predicts most surely He fulfils.
When Time’s true hour-glass marks the fateful hour;
As fell the city of the Maccabees,
So, too, will fall that of the Seven Hills,
When all Earth trembles at Jehovah’s power.
DELWIN REES BUCKNER. THE law of Jehovah is the expression of His character. In fact, whatever is said of the moral attributes of God is said also of His law. God is said to be righteous, holy, just, true, sure, faithful, pure, wise, spiritual, perfect, merciful, everlasting, loving, etc. These adjectives, or their equivalent nouns, are spoken of God over and over again, but not more emphatically than of His law, either directly or impliedly. Read the whole of Psalm 119, where nearly all of the above qualities are spoken of God’s law, under the various terms applied to it, such as law, commandments, statutes, testimonies, precepts, judgments, ways, words. Read also Ps. 19:7-9, where the terms perfect, sure, right, pure, clean, true and righteous, are all applied to the precepts of God. They are said to convert, make wise, rejoice, enlighten, endure, and warn. Love is the law’s fulfilling; he who loves the law keeps it. 1 John 5:3. Judgment, mercy, faith, and the love of God (Matt. 23:23; Luke 11:42) are all component parts of the great reflect of God’s character; and that law demands of every responsible soul all these things, and condemns those who do not meet its claims, as coming short of God’s glory, or goodness of character. Rom. 3:20; Ex. 33:18, 19. But man is a sinner. Not only has he sinned in the past, but it is his nature to sin. “The carnal mind is enmity against God; for it is not subject to the law of God, neither indeed can be. So then they that are in the flesh [carnally minded] can not please God.” Rom. 8:7, 8. Man has no righteousness in himself; he can not get it out of the law. In fact, man can not of himself get righteousness from any source. In his natural condition, following his natural desires, he does not want righteousness. And even tho he desired to do God’s will, he could not do it, for God’s law is of one nature, he another. Therefore, while God’s righteousness is in His law, man can not get it from thence, because his very nature is against the law, antagonistic to its principles. He thus stands condemned by the law. And the law can not impart to man its character, because man’s fleshly nature is against it. Rom. 8:3. But man’s is not a hopeless case. The sinless Son of God took man’s flesh and overcame sin in the flesh. He kept all God’s commandments in all their perfection while in the flesh. He demonstrated God’s character in the flesh. He changed it from what might be called an abstraction of law, the way it presented itself to man apart from God, and incarnated it in mortal flesh, that by union with Christ the law, or character, of God might be triumphantly manifest in the mortal flesh of every soul who wanted it. How all this is done, how God does it all, we need not now inquire, nor could we comprehend the working of infinite power. But we may apprehend, or lay hold, of the righteousness of God. All that God asks on our part is to choose His way, to yield up our way, to renounce sin in both deed and nature, to admit our demonstrated and condemned condition, and to accept of the death of Christ for the death of which we were worthy, the life of Christ for our life, the character of Christ for our character. That is all. What a glorious exchange, the poverty and wretchedness of sin for the eternal riches and joy of righteousness! This is the Gospel, which brings the righteousness of God upon all and into all who believe. “For I am not ashamed of the Gospel of Christ; for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; for therein [in the Gospel] is the righteousness of God revealed from faith to faith.” Rom. 1:16, 17. That righteousness comes to every man who will renounce all of self, and accept Christ for what He has revealed Himself; and the law comes in as a blessed witness to show that the righteousness is the same that before condemned the sinner. Rom. 3:21. The righteous man, the one whom God has made righteous, keeps God’s law. The righteousness of God’s law in Christ Jesus has been placed within and upon the man who has accepted Christ, and the righteousness within the heart recognizes the righteousness within the law, and by the same faith in Jesus Christ fulfils it. This is what the apostle states: “There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus. . . . For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath made me free from the law of sin and death. For what the law could not do, in that it was weak through the flesh, God [did by] sending His own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, and for sin, condemned sin in the flesh; that the righteousness of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit.” Rom. 8:1-4. He who hates God’s law knows not Christ as Saviour. He who knows Christ, loves God’s law, the blessed witness of the character of God, which is in him. “Do we then make void the law through faith? God forbid; yea, we establish the law.” Rom. 3:31. “Not as the World Giveth”
By R.
FRANCE when organized into a republic was so governed by sentiments of ideal liberty that “Liberty, equality, fraternity,” was adopted as her motto at a time when hundreds were going to the guillotine. This was liberty, this was equality, ministered by tyrants, and her fraternity was really fratricide. In order to save the nation, Napoleon had to change it, in fact, at least, into “Infantry, cavalry, artillery.” How empty often are the professions of men. “Not as the world giveth, give I unto you,” says Christ. His is no promise of an unseen, unrealized ideal. He does not merely profess to give, but gives all that He professes. Not empty titles, not tinkling cymbals offering pleasing sounds but nothing of substance, not a dream of all the heart longs for with a waking of despair—not there; but beauty for ashes, the oil of joy for mourning; yea, all delights and satisfactions and needs of the human soul: these He gives and gives for eternity. The great principle of God in nature is one of grand importance. Its proper acceptance will give much peace and comfort to the believer. At the same time, this great principle perverted becomes the foundation of teachings, perhaps more misleading and degrading than any others of which we have any conception. Of late, misleading doctrines and false teachings are becoming so prevalent and are pushed forward with such persistency and under such seductive forms and pleasing phases that many are misled; and those who are not, become in a large measure afraid of anything pertaining to the wonderful subject of God’s relation to His creative work. But the truth on this subject is so plain that none need be misled. And the importance of this truth is so great that no one can afford to remain uninformed concerning it. God made this world; there can be no question about that. But it is not just as it was when He made it; and there can be no question about that. Wherein it is as He made it, it represents Him. Wherein it has been changed or perverted, it can not possibly represent Him. And hence we are to be cautious about what conclusions we may come to through a study of nature alone. By a study of nature alone, it is quite as possible to misrepresent God as it is to represent Him. Nature does reveal God. In thousands of ways it speaks of its Creator. But it also reveals a power antagonistic to Him that tends forever to mar and destroy all within the range of its influence. Knowing always the difference in the workings of these two powers, we may study nature and not be misled. God made the world, and His power is still exercised in upholding it. Many scriptures represent this plainly. We read that “in the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.” And we know how this work was done. “Through faith we understand that the worlds were framed by the word of God.” The word made the worlds. “He spake and it was;” this is the origin of nature. “He commanded and it stood fast,”—still stands fast; and this is the continuation of nature. By the first word, all things came into existence. By the second word they continue in existence. The first makes God the Creator of the world. The second makes Him the upholder and preserver of the world. And no matter how much heresy and bad9 teaching there may be in the world, these two principles presented in all their truth comprise the real doctrine of God in nature. See how it is: He spake, and the power of His word built the world; He spake yet again, and the power of His word, undiminished through the years, still upholds and maintains the world. This divine energy still manifested in nature is the object of our study. All scientific study to be really scientific should acknowledge it. All religious teachings should in no wise misrepresent it. This creative power in the world is God’s power. His power made the world; His power still maintains the world. Then if I find a power in nature that is not creative, that is not healing, preserving, and sustaining nature, I know that it is an antagonistic power, an evil power, a destructive power. And I see that this antagonistic power would destroy nature were it not for the creative, upholding power of God’s work. When, then, I see the seed germinate, when I see the bark close over a wound on a tree, when I see the plant take on energy and thrive and bring its fruit to perfection, I know that I am witnessing the working of God’s upholding, preserving power in nature. And when I see the seed rot and blight, when I see the tree become unsound through the encroachments of germs and insects, when I see the plant weaken, sicken, and die, I know that I am witnessing the working of a power antagonistic to God’s preserving, upholding power in nature. I find, then, another power in nature, and I turn to ask,—If God is in nature, who else is in nature?—Can Nature tell, can she answer my question? Her only answer must be by the fruits, and by their fruits we shall know them. But in the Scriptures I am told plainly of this other power, its origin, intention, its workings, and its end. I am told that it is the power of evil. It is the accompaniment of that strange, inexcusable, unreasonable thing we call sin. Its workings are on every hand and in every thing. And the consummation of its work is death. Making this clear distinction at all times and on every hand, I will not ascribe to God that which does not belong to Him. I will not say that He is “all in all,” for I see here a power which He is not, and in which He is not. And if I see men give themselves up to the evil until it predominates in them, I will not be surprised at the words of Christ, Depart from Me, ye workers of iniquity, I never knew you. And knowing that this evil power is in the world to ruin and destroy, and would work this ruin and destruction but for the creative, healing, upholding power of God, I shall not be surprised to know that God, in exercising His power to heal and uphold, has even sent His only Son into the world with a new influx to this divine, creative, healing, upholding power by which to save even the souls of men. And I will know that the evil power seeks me, and I will seek to avoid it and will flee to the refuge of the Christ, to the healing and upholding of His power, that I may be saved. And I will know that He who gives a power in nature to quicken the seed, will much more give a power to quicken the good impulses of the soul. He who exercises a power to heal the wounded tree by infolding its bark, will much more seek to heal the wounds of the soul. He who gives energy to produce plant and animal growth and maturity, will much more give the energy that will mature and perfect the Christ-like character. But as in nature, not always does the seed quicken, not always does the bark infold, not always does the plant grow and mature, and so I will not be amazed when I see that not all men give themselves up to the power that heals and upholds. For if there be failure to the higher power in the realm of involuntary nature, shall it be thought strange that there is a failure to the higher power in a realm where men directly will against the ruling of that power? Looking at nature in the light of these two powers, we will have no sympathy with a teaching which calls God all-pervading. God does not pervade all things now, but the time is coming when every knee shall bow and every tongue confess to the glory of God. But the very promise that such a day is coming is one strong argument that the day is not yet. “Redemption Greater Than Creation”
WHEN the Sabbath question is discussed, this argument is presented in support of Sunday holiness: Creation was finished on the seventh day, and the seventh-day Sabbath is a memorial of Creation. Redemption was finished on the first day of the week, and as Redemption is greater than Creation, we should observe the first day of the week instead of the seventh. And sometimes, the more and more rarely, as modern geology and evolution have won their way, is quoted, “’Twas great to speak a world from naught,
’Twas greater to redeem.” And many seem to think that the mere statement is both argument and evidence. Let us see: 1. It is a fact that both Creation and Redemption are infinite works, which none but an infinite God could effect; and therefore man knows nothing of this relative greatness unless God reveals it. This He has nowhere done. 2. If Redemption were greater than Creation, this would in no way affect Sunday holiness; for Sunday as a day of the week, according to Divine Revelation, has no part in the scheme. In fact, “the first day of the week” of the Bible is not synchronous with the Sunday as usually observed. The Bible first day of the week begins and ends at sunset, while the Sunday begins and ends at midnight. 3. We are not said to be redeemed by our Lord’s resurrection, but by His blood, His life. Eph. 1:7; Rev. 5:9. He died in our behalf. He gave His life for us. But His blood was shed on the sixth day; and on that day He declared, “It is finished.” John 19:30. The height of His great sacrifice was reached. Surely, if a day were to be kept to commemorate His redemption, it should be the day on which He paid the fulness of the purchase price. 4. The work of redemption for individual souls is not complete, however, and will not be, till our Lord shall come again. Luke 21:28. 5. The redemption, the salvation, the sanctification of sinners, is simply the working of the creative power of God through Jesus Christ,—“created in Christ Jesus unto good works.” Eph. 2:10. See also 2 Cor. 5:17; Eph. 4:24; Col. 3:10. 6. The Sabbath is the sign of this very work; for thus saith the Lord: “I gave them My Sabbaths, to be a sign between Me and them, that they might know that I am the Lord that sanctify them.” Eze. 20:12. The Sabbath is therefore not only a memorial of Creation, but a sign between God and His children of His redeeming love and sanctifying power in the soul. 7. The proper expression is not Redemption versus Creation; nor is it, Redemption and Creation, but Redemption is Creation. The Responsibility of Blessings
By H.
WHEN a young man finishes a course in college, we naturally ask, What is he going to do? If he has made special study of a certain line, we ask, Where will he practise? It is expected that he will make use of his education. If one inherits means or acquires wealth, we ask, What is he doing with it? As with the mental asset, so with the monetary, it is expected that it will be put to some use. And it does not stop here. When one receives blessings from God, he is in duty bound to impart to others; and the greater the blessing, the greater the responsibility. “To whomsoever much is given, of him shall much be required.” H. NEGLECT, when poisoned, to take the antidote, and death comes by sure and certain steps. Refuse the remedy for sin, and death at last will claim its victim. “ZEUS,” the Greek word for God, is from the Greek Zao, “I am,” and shows us that the nation in prehistoric times knew and honored the true God. Deus, the Latin form, is descended direct from the Greek, and hence teaches the same lesson for us regarding the Roman nation. Take Things by the Smooth Handle
WE are admonished by a distinguished statesman to take things by their smooth handle, and it would be well to add, Be sure to offer the same smooth handle to others. The Destruction of Selfishness
SELFISHNESS is not only destruction of all outside of its possessor, but it is also the destroyer of the soul actuated by it.