[Believing it would be of interest to our readers, the editor of the SIGNS OF THE TIMES has asked Sabbath-keeping ministers and evangelical workers to tell in a few words the scripture or scriptures, the truths and principles, which constrained them to accept the unpopular truth of the seventh-day Sabbath. These testimonies must not exceed 500 words. Let us hear from all.]
CLVIII.
THE year I was twenty-five, I fully decided to be a Christian, and united with the Presbyterian Church of Corinne, N. D. I would go twelve miles to attend their preaching services, and on my return from one of these services I was accosted by two small boys, who urged me to turn in and visit them. I had given them several reasons why I could not comply with their kind wishes. But it only made them the more urgent in pressing their request that I should stop. I finally agreed, and as we came near the house, the door opened, and a pleasant woman greeted us, and kindly asked me to come in, which I gladly did.
We had not been visiting long, when our conversation turned to the Sabbath question, and the lady asked: "Did you ever think whether we were keeping the Sabbath that the Lord would be pleased to have us keep?" I responded, "Why, certainly we do." And in justification of my position, I said, "We keep Sunday because Jesus rose on that day."
"But," said my hostess, "did Jesus tell us to keep it because He rose on that day?" I replied that I thought He did. Then she said, "I have some little tracts that would help to make it clear, and if you will promise me to read, I will give you one." I said, "Certainly I will read it." And as I left, she gave me a copy of each of our denominational papers, and about a dozen tracts, most of which were on the subjects of Sabbath and Sunday.
I can well remember the tract, "Which Day Do You Keep, and Why?" whose title struck so directly at the root of my difficulty. And another which made the subject especially clear and forcible, was entitled, "Elihu on the Sabbath." My Sabbath-keeping friend earnestly requested that I would promise to read them.
The roll lay in my trunk almost a year, when I again remembered the promise, and set about to read them. When I finished reading them, the question of the true Sabbath was perfectly clear, and I began to keep it.
I can not thank the good sister too much for the question, "Do you think that we are keeping the Sabbath that the Lord would be pleased to have us keep?" nor for the good tracts and papers that so ably expounded the subject. "Search the Scriptures; for in them ye think ye have eternal life; and they are they which testify of Me." John 5:39.
ANTHONY BEANS.
TO WHOM DOES THE SABBATH BELONG?
By T. L. Waters
BY T. L. WATERS.
"Moreover also 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 [margin, 'I Jehovah do sanctify them.']" Eze. 20:12.
THE question is often asked me, "As an Adventist, you believe that people will be saved by keeping the Sabbath, do you not?"
I always reply, "O, no; people must be saved before they can truly keep it, or have any right to it; like the Lord's Supper, it is exclusively the Lord's, and none but His people have any right to it."
They may obtain physical rest, but that is the least part of its blessing.
None but God's children—spiritual Israel—can receive the spiritual blessings of the Sabbath.
Of these benefits the prophet writes: "If thou turn away thy foot from the Sabbath, from doing thy pleasure on My holy day; and call the Sabbath a delight, the holy of the Lord, honorable; and shalt honor Him, not doing thine own ways, nor finding thine own pleasure, nor speaking thine own words; then shalt thou delight thyself in the Lord; and I will cause thee to ride upon the high places of the earth [places of worship], and feed thee with the heritage of Jacob thy father; for the mouth of the Lord hath spoken it." Isa. 58:13, 14.
The heritage of Jacob is the new earth. See Heb. 11:8-16. All these promises belong to the people of God—so also the Sabbath; it is a "sign between Me and them," and to all others its observance is mere form without the blessing.
God does not make this so arbitrarily; it is so in the very nature of the case. We must be made a new creation in Christ Jesus to do His work; then we shall truly know the rest and blessing of His Sabbath.
Riverside, Mich.
Rebellious Sons as Sovereigns
“He who is rebellious as a son ought to be rejected as a sovereign.”
THE GLORY OF BEING IN THE MINORITY.
HE who stands with the minority for any question of right or truth, stands with the heroes of earth. Every great good, social, political, or religious, has been secured through the influence and labors of the minority. Much of their work is unappreciated, and when they have gained best results, they are not always recognized by those who enjoy them. Usually, however, long after the heroes who make up the minority at first, have gone to their graves, men honor their ashes.
A great truth of history is embodied in the saying that in the earlier centuries of Christianity "the ashes of the martyrs were the seed of the church."
From the Highlands near Stirling, Scotland, the writer once looked upon the distant shore where heroic martyrs, tied to the stake at low tide, were strangled by the rising tide rather than renounce Christ. That one feature of the picture remains more prominent in the memory of that morning than everything else connected with Stirling Tower and its history.
The minority of to-day, standing with God, will change to the majority sometime. When that time may be, matters little. The majority of to-day, which is not in accord with God and righteousness, will not exist to-morrow even as a minority. It will finally be ground to powder by the millstone of divine justice, which works for the minority at first, and destroys the disobedient majority at last. One with God is a majority. God's arithmetic is not like the arithmetic of man. His definitions of majority and minority are not the definitions found in human lexicons. The Christian should seek his definitions from God's lexicon.—Sabbath Recorder.
WISDOM.
Its Importance.
"Wisdom is the principal thing; therefore get wisdom; and with all thy getting get understanding. Exalt her, and she shall promote thee; she shall bring thee to honor, when thou dost embrace her. She shall give to thine head an ornament of grace; a crown of glory shall she deliver to thee." Prov. 4: 7-9. "How much better is it to get wisdom than gold!" Ch. 16: 16. "He that getteth wisdom loveth his own soul." Ch. 19: 8. "They that be wise shall shine as the brightness of the firmament; and they that turn many to righteousness as the stars forever and ever." Dan. 12: 3.
The Insufficiency of Human Wisdom.
It originated with Satan, and was imparted to the human race through falsehood and disobedience. Of the forbidden tree, God had said to the man, "Thou shalt not eat of it; for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die." But Satan said, "Ye shall not surely die; for God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil." Gen. 2: 17; 3: 4, 5. But from that teacher man never could learn anything but evil. By such wisdom it is impossible to know God. 1 Cor. 1: 19-25. "The wisdom of this world is foolishness with God." Ch. 3: 19. "The wisdom of their wise men shall perish." Isa. 29: 14.
Where to Get True Wisdom.
"But where shall wisdom be found? and where is the place of understanding? Man knoweth not the price thereof; neither is it found in the land of the living. The depth saith, It is not in me; and the sea saith, It is not with me. It can not be gotten for gold, neither shall silver be weighed for the price thereof. . . . Whence then cometh wisdom? and where is the place of understanding? . . . God understandeth the way thereof, and He knoweth the place thereof. . . . And unto man He said, Behold, the fear of the Lord, that is wisdom; and to depart from evil is understanding." Job 28: 12-28.
"Behold, I have taught you statutes and judgments, even as the Lord my God commanded me, that ye should do so in the land whither ye go to possess it. Keep therefore and do them; for this is your wisdom and your understanding in the sight of the nations, which shall hear all these statutes, and say, Surely this great nation is a wise and understanding people. For what nation is there so great, who hath God so nigh unto them, as the Lord our God is in all things that we call upon Him for? And what nation is there so great, that hath statutes and judgments so righteous as all this law, which I set before you this day?" Deut. 4: 5-8. Verse 13 shows that the Ten Commandments are included in that which is Israel's wisdom. See also Phil. 3: 3 for a description of the true Israel.
"The Holy Scriptures . . . are able to make thee wise unto salvation." 2 Tim. 3: 15.
How to Get True Wisdom.
"If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him." James 1: 5. "Take My yoke upon you, and learn of Me; for I am meek and lowly in heart; and ye shall find rest unto your souls." Matt. 11: 29. "Let the Word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom; teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord." Col. 3: 16. "A good understanding have all they that do His commandments." Ps. 111: 10.
The Character of Such Wisdom.
"The wisdom that is from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, easy to be entreated, full of mercy and good fruits, without partiality, and without hypocrisy." James 3: 17.
EXALTING MAN ABOVE HIS MAKER.
THE chief characteristic of the religions of heathendom, from Babylon down, was the exaltation of man and the consequent debasing of their estimation of God. The evil passions of the human heart were deified, and the most loathsome creatures of earth were worshiped as gods. Because they preferred iniquity to righteousness, their own ways to God's ways, He "gave them over to a reprobate mind." In that reprobate mind all the conceptions of sin served as attributes of their gods.
At the same time they chose to build their own way to heaven, and in that way find their refuge from all the calamities of earth. It was the prerogative of God alone to provide that way and furnish that refuge; but in the exaltation of self, man sought to usurp that prerogative of God.
Just so it is to-day. The sin of Babylon and of ancient Egypt is the sin of this generation. Man is building his own tower to the heaven of heavens, is trusting in his own power to keep him, and to his own guidance to direct him to the choicest place in the garden of God. That the doctrines of New Thought were the doctrines of Babylon and Egypt is easy of proof. Babylon was "the beginning of kingdoms," and Egypt borrowed from her all that she had to lend. Beethoven kept constantly on his work table these sentences found in an ancient Egyptian temple:—
I am that which is,
I am all that is,
All that has been,
All that shall be.
No mortal man has lifted my veil.
All these ascriptions to Deity man took to himself, and so "worshiped and served the creature more than the Creator." Man to-day is being taught to do the same thing; is being led back to Egypt and to Babylon, and through them and their teachings to the service of him who taught Egypt and Babylon to dishonor God and set man above Him. Listen to these declarations borrowed from the creeds of the man-worshiping ancients: "As Life I am perfect." "Through faith in myself as a manifestation of the Infinite Life I am health and happiness." "I can not be sick, for as an Ego I am God manifest in the subconscious, and God can not be sick." "As an Ego I can not be weak, for Life is omnipotent, and all power is mine." "I think of myself as the I Am, which is infinite." "I live now the omnipotent and omnipresent Life." "Man is spirit here and now, with all the possibilities of divinity within him, and he can consciously manifest those possibilities here and now."
The only purpose in quoting these assumptions is to show the direct connection between the religion of Egypt and the dogmas of New Thought. They are the same in conception and substance. They both exalt man to the place of God, and consequently make God less than man.
In view of that fact the warning of God to ancient Israel is as apt to-day as then. Hear what the Word says: "Woe to them that go down to Egypt for help; . . . they look not unto the Holy One of Israel, neither seek Jehovah! . . . Now the Egyptians are men, and not God; and their horses flesh, and not spirit; and when Jehovah shall stretch out His hand, both he that helpeth shall stumble, and he that is helped shall fall, and they all shall be consumed together." Isa. 31: 1-3.
Such helping is not help at all, and the light of such teachings is but the grossest darkness, to follow which is to walk into the open jaws of destruction. But the world is full of such teachings to-day. The religious press and the religious pulpit give utterance to it in polished phrase and word-worship, and the people drink it in as the milk of very truth. The Lord says, "The Egyptians are men, and not God." The doctrine of ancient Egypt, as the doctrine of modern New Thought, declares that man is God, with all the attributes of divinity in him, living the omnipotent and omnipresent life here and now, and having within himself the power to create himself. That is their own claim plainly declared, and the man who believes that he has that power falls down at the altar of self to worship there.
How fitting it is, in view of the startling growth of these heathen, man-worshiping teachings in these last days, that the last message of God to this world should be a message of warning against the worship of anything but God Himself. So Christ declared to Satan, the author of all these doctrines of heathen-7ism, "Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and Him only shalt thou serve." That is the message for the world at this time, when the world is being polluted as never before with the doctrines of idolatry. God declares that those who listen to and accept such teachings shall stumble and fall with their teachers, and be consumed together. "Fear God, and give glory to Him; for the hour of His judgment is come."
CONDITION NOT DEEDS.
THE deeds of sin are many times especially hateful. Nay, more, they are oftentimes desperately wicked, repulsive, horrible. Yet it is ever well to remember for our own soul's sake, that primarily it is condition not deeds which should give us most concern.
Satan would, if possible, blind mankind to the true nature of the case. He would lead them to think that if the deeds are good, or, rather, if they are not very bad, it will be well with the individual in the judgment, or at least quite tolerable. And men thus love to be blinded; they love to think themselves better than they are; and so they solace themselves in their "good deeds," hoping that their worst will not be counted very bad; and, measuring themselves among themselves, boast of their own righteousness. Thus Satan deludes them. Thus they delude themselves.
But let them know that even the small outcroppings of sin in themselves are evidences of a source of corruption within. Man's condition is one of spiritual, incurable disease. That is, there is no power in man or in his fellow men to cure him. He is incurably sick. He has the leprosy of sin. "The heart [man's natural heart] is deceitful above all things, and it is desperately sick." Jer. 17:9, R. V. "Every head is sick, and every heart faint. From the sole of the foot even unto the head there is no soundness in it; but wounds, and bruises, and festering sores." Isa. 1:5, 7, R. V., margin. This is man's natural condition, poisoned through and through with the leprosy of sin. It may not be as outbreaking in some as in others, the sores may be few, the inflammation little, and, to the diseased eyes of earthly observers, the man may appear well; nevertheless, the disease is there, working, developing, ever tending toward and ripening into the death, which is inevitable; for "sin, when it is full grown, bringeth forth death." James 1:15, R. V.
The deeds of such a diseased man must be imperfect. The fruit of a corrupt tree must be corrupt. However good may be the deeds, or fruit, of a sinful life, they still "come short of the glory of God." Rom. 3:23. Jesus says, "A corrupt tree can not bring forth good fruit." The works of the flesh are uncleanness, envyings, strife, emulation, wrath, sedition, adultery, fornication, evil thoughts, pride, murders, wickedness,—all of which come from the carnal heart, all of which are inherent in sinful flesh. See Gal. 5:19-21 and Mark 7:21-23. How can man, with such a nature, bear any other than such fruit? It is evident, therefore, that what the sinner should long for is not merely that a sinful deed might not be repeated, but that he should have such a heart and such power that he would never repeat it. He should not only mourn over the individual sins against God and his fellows, but plead that the disease of sin itself might be removed.
Praise God, there is a Balm for the bruise, there is a Physician who is able to make whole. Jesus Christ can change the sickness to wholeness. He can not alone forgive each and every sin, but can heal the disease. "He was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities; the chastisement of our peace was upon Him, and with His stripes we are healed." Isa. 53:5. He says: "A new heart also will I give you, and a new spirit will I put within you; and I will take away the stony heart out of your flesh, and give you a heart of flesh. And I will put My Spirit within you, and cause you to walk in My statutes, and ye shall keep My judgments, and do them." Eze. 36:26, 27.
The Lord will do all this through simple faith; "for ye are all the children of God by faith in Christ Jesus." Gal. 3:26. If we will yield all to God and accept Him as He is revealed in Christ Jesus, His power will regenerate us, and make us new creatures in Christ Jesus. See Titus 3:3-7; 2 Cor. 5:17. Where sin and Satan before reigned incarnate, poisoning and destroying body and soul, righteousness and Christ will reign, healing and building up the entire man, bringing forth fruit to the glory of God.
DEATH.
DEATH is the opposite of life. When "the Lord God formed man out of the dust of the ground," he was an inanimate body, until the Lord breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; then he became a living soul, or living man. Here was a condition just the opposite of what the man was before the breath of life was put into him. He was given access to the tree of life, that his life might be perpetuated. When he disobeyed God, he was sentenced to death. He was shut away from the tree of life, lest he should eat and live forever. The sentence of death meant a return to the condition of the man before he lived at all. "In the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread, until thou return unto the ground; for out of it wast thou taken; for dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return."
The warning to the man had been, that in the day when he should eat of the forbidden fruit he should surely die. Why, then, did he not die that day? Because the Gospel of Christ was ready to apply to the sinner; the grace of God and His long-suffering mercy were immediately available. Then, as now, God was "not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance." As God is not a respecter of persons, and as the atoning Lamb was "slain [in purpose] from the foundation of the world," the honored head of the race could not be made an exception. So there and then the promise was made that the Seed of the woman should bruise the serpent's head. The Gospel of Christ gave the sinful pair a new probation. It was wholly of grace, wholly undeserved.
So the Gospel of salvation means that, while "the wages of sin is death," "the gift of God is eternal life, through Jesus Christ our Lord." But the eternal life is conditioned upon the acceptance of Christ's atonement by the sinner. "He that believeth on the Son hath everlasting life; and he that believeth not the Son shall not see life; but the wrath of God [death] abideth on him." That the death of the sinner does not mean existence somewhere is shown by the inspired Word: "Evildoers shall be cut off; but those that wait upon the Lord, they shall inherit the earth. For yet a little while, and the wicked shall not be; yea, thou shalt diligently consider his place, and it shall not be." Ps. 37: 9, 10. That death is a complete blank, is also shown in the Word: "The living know that they shall die; but the dead know not anything, neither have they any more a reward [while dead]; for the memory of them is forgotten. Also their love, and their hatred, and their envy, is now perished; neither have they any more a portion forever in anything that is done under the sun." Eccl. 9: 5, 6.
But to those who shall attain to everlasting life through the "first resurrection" (Rev. 20: 1-11), death will be abolished forever (2 Tim. 1: 8-11). This is the class to whom David refers when he says, "The meek shall inherit the earth; and shall delight themselves in the abundance of peace." The Lord also personally testified: "Blessed are the meek; for they shall inherit the earth." This, however, is the "new earth," mentioned in 2 Peter 3, "wherein dwelleth righteousness." This is the new earth described by John in Revelation 21, on which New Jerusalem descends "from God out of heaven;" where God and the Lamb will dwell with the people. "And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain; for the former things are passed away."
ACCESS TO THE TREE OF LIFE.
“To him that overcometh will I give to eat of the tree of life, which is in the midst of the Paradise of God.” Rev. 2:7.
This promise comprehends a complete redemption. When the first man was created, God provided for him a beautiful home. The story is told in Genesis 2: “The Lord God planted a garden eastward in Eden; and there He put the man whom He had formed. And out of the ground made the Lord God to grow every tree that is pleasant to the sight, and good for food; the tree of life also in the midst of the garden, and the tree of knowledge of good and evil. And a river went out of Eden to water the garden. . . . And the Lord God took the man, and put him into the Garden of Eden to dress it, and to keep it.”
Thus the man was given an excellent start in life, and his home was to be a model for home-builders of the future. But Adam being the head of the race, and having the dominion of the earth, his home would, of course, be more extensive—a dominion capital, where all might come to partake of the tree of life, and for special occasions of worship. The tree of life was for the perpetuation of life. But the man disobeyed God, and was driven out of his Eden home. Angels were set to guard the way to the tree of life, lest the man should eat of it, and live forever. This is evidence that there is no inherent principle of immortality in the natural man. Cut off from the tree of life, his death was only a question of time. The penalty of his disobedience was that he should return to dust, of which he was made; and this was to be brought about by cutting him off from the tree of life.
But God preserved the tree of life, and the Paradise in which it grew (2 Cor. 12:3, 4); and, logically, a promise of eternal life, a redemption, would be a restoration to the privilege of access to the tree of life. This is what we learn from the record of John’s vision in Revelation 21 and 22. The apostle had a vision of the future, and saw a new heaven and a new earth, the first having passed away, as is stated also in 2 Peter 3. John also saw the holy city, New Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven into the new earth. He was also shown “a pure river of water of life, clear as crystal, proceeding out of the throne of God and of the Lamb.” He further tells us that “in the midst of the street of it, and on either side of the river, was there the tree of life, which bare twelve manner of fruits, and yielded her fruit every month; and the leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations.”
The tree of life was “in the midst of the garden,” and it “is in the midst of the Paradise of God.” (The word “paradise” means a garden, or pleasure ground.) So that the redeemed overcomers will again have access to the tree. This is shown in the promise of Christ to the penitent malefactor on the cross. The man said to Jesus, “Lord, remember me when Thou comest into Thy kingdom,” and the Lord promised him there and then that he should be with Him in Paradise. What is involved in the work of overcoming is also shown in this Revelation: “Blessed are they that do His commandments, that they may have right to the tree of life, and may enter in through the gates into the city.” An overcomer, then, is one who turns from a life of disobedience to obedience of the commandments of God; and he is finally restored from a condition of disgrace to the position of favor which was enjoyed by the first man before his fall.
OUR PERSONAL ACCOUNTABILITY.
THERE is danger, when contemplating the crucifixion of Christ, of allowing the mind to be absorbed in condemnation of those who were guilty of that awful sin. The lesson is lost to us if that is all that we learn from the story. Let us not forget that it is possible for us to “crucify the Lord afresh.” Thus do they who, having been once enlightened, and having tasted of the heavenly gift, and having been made partakers of the Holy Ghost, turn away from the truth. See Heb. 6:4-6. And they who, in partaking of the communion, do so in a merely formal manner, not discerning the Lord’s body, are guilty of His blood. 1 Cor. 11:27. The danger of judging others than ourselves is set forth in the epistle to the Romans in these words: “Therefore thou art inexcusable, O man, whosoever thou art that judgest; for wherein thou judgest another, thou condemnest thyself; for thou that judgest doest the same things.” Ch. 2:1. And Christ emphasizes this danger by giving us the ultimate consequences: “With what judgment ye judge, ye shall be judged.” Matt. 7:2. It would be well for us all to remember that “every one of us shall give account of himself to God” (Rom. 14:12), and take this counsel to our own hearts: “Let us not therefore judge one another any more; but judge this rather, that no man put a stumbling-block or an occasion to fall in his brother’s way.”
1. How could the record of the sun's standing still be written in the book of Jasher before it occurred? Who wrote the book of Jasher, and where can I obtain it?
2. Can I get the Apocrypha of the Bible separate? if so, where?
(1) Joshua was not written till several years after the events occurred related in chapter 10. In the meantime the song in the poetical Book of Jasher may have been written, from which Joshua quotes. The word "Jasher" means "The Upright;" and the book seems to have been one in which Israel recorded in song the deeds of her heroes. See reference to it also in 2 Sam. 1: 18. That book, as well as others referred to in the Bible, are not now known to exist. It is not found in the "Apocrypha." You can get the revised version of the Apocrypha (by all odds the best) from any of the dealers in the Oxford Bibles. We can secure it for you if you desire.
Does 2 Peter 2:9 (American Revised Version) teach the punishment of the wicked at death, and before the judgment?
Not necessarily. It may simply mean under sentence of punishment. "He that believeth not is condemned already." John 3: 18. Rotherham translates Wescott and Hort's Greek text as follows: "To keep the unrighteous unto a day of judgment to be punished." When Jesus comes, and not till then, will the rewards be given. 2 Thess. 1: 7-10; Rev. 22: 12; Matt. 16: 27.
Is it not possible that the mark here referred to may be a mark or badge? Some argue that it is the cross.
There is not space in this department to present a full explanation of the mark of the beast; but these facts will be obvious to the reader: (1) The beast is a power antagonistic to God, and one which demands universal worship. (2) The ancient badge, or mark, of servitude is here used to symbolize that which distinguishes the worshipers of the beast from the worshipers of God. (3) The truest worship is service, obedience. "Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and Him only shalt thou serve." Matt. 4: 10. "Why call ye me, Lord, Lord, and do not the things which I say?" Luke 6: 46. The mark of the beast is the characteristic token of obedience to the beast, and disobedience to God. This could not refer to a mere sign of a cross; for, as has been stated, there is no law against making crosses, circles, rectangles, parallelograms, triangles, rhomboids, or other figures geometric. The mark, in itself, or in its opposite, pertains to moral duty. (4) Duty to God is summed up in the observance of the Decalogue. Eccl. 12: 13; Matt. 19: 17. (5) The very point where the beast-worshipers and the worshipers of God differ constitutes on the one hand the mark of the beast and on the other the seal of God, the name of God. Rev. 7: 1-3; 14: 1-3; 15: 2, 3; Ezekiel 9. Note the contrast between the true worshipers as set forth in these scriptures, and the beast-worshipers. Rev. 13: 16, 17; 14: 9-12. (6) The true child of God will keep all His commandments. John 14: 15; 15: 10; 1 John 5: 3; Rev. 14: 12. The beast-worshipers will obey the beast law, and the difference between the two laws will be the difference between the worshipers. That difference in the beast law is the mark of the beast in its followers. (7) Many may have followed the beast law through ignorance; many others through prejudice, believing it divine. But the prophecy implies a direct issue, which we have not yet seen, between man-made and God-given laws. The difference now, as always, has been in respect to the day of the Sabbath. Study that question, and place yourself on the side of God. When the clear lines are drawn, there may be outward badges indicating the inward worship.
Please explain Isa. 65: 20. To what time does this refer?
See article in another column on the above text.
SUNDAY-LAW MOVEMENT IN CANADA.
By George B. Thompson
THE people of Canada are having the experience of a campaign for compulsory Sunday observance. The principles involved are the same as are involved in like efforts in the United States. The arguments for and against such legislation are the same in the Dominion north of us as in our own country. The reasons why such tyranny should be opposed everywhere ought to be kept before the people, because the enemies of religious liberty are ceaseless in their endeavor to enforce the Sunday dogma upon all classes. A paper entitled, "Sunday Laws vs. the Laboring Man," is being circulated in Canada, by the friends of liberty of conscience, and, as the thoughts presented are of world-wide application, we reproduce some extracts. The author of the paper is Mr. George B. Thompson, of Hamilton, Ont.:—
The claim is repeatedly put forth by those who are strenuously urging that Parliament enact further laws favoring Sunday, that Sunday laws are wanted in order to secure for laboring men a day of rest. The secretary of the Lord's Day Alliance tells us that there are 150,000 laboring men in Canada who are now compelled to work on Sunday.
This statement is misleading, and serves to obscure the real issue. In the movement lurks the monster of religious legislation. The real thing that is sought after is the exaltation of the festival day, Sunday, and an enforcement of its religious character. Parliament is being asked to interpret the Bible, and settle by law the controversy as to which day is the Sabbath of the Fourth Commandment, and determine how all shall observe it, regardless of their convictions. But the true province, allow me to say, of governmental legislation, is not to settle religious controversies, and invade by law the sacred convictions of minorities, and determine the duty of citizens to the government of heaven, but to determine their duty to each other. It was the legislation upon religious questions which gave the world the Dark Ages with all the terrible work of the holy (?) Inquisition, by means of which savages were taught to shudder at the name of Christianity.
The laboring men of Canada are not compelled to labor on Sunday. Not a single son of toil is forced to do anything of the kind. No law, unless it be that of greed, makes any such demand. All who work do so from choice, and are paid for the labor performed. And their working does not interfere in the least with the worship of those who do not desire to work, choosing rather to observe the day. It is perhaps true that some of them might not be retained in their present positions if they refuse to work on Sunday. But this is no reason why Parliament should legislate on the question. There are a number of good citizens in Canada who lose their positions because they will not labor on Saturday, contrary to their convictions. Why should Parliament legislate in favor of a man who loses his job because he will not work on Sunday, any more than the man who loses his job because he will not work on Saturday? A religion that is not worth a man losing his job for, is not worth the effort of Parliament to enforce, for it will do no one any good, either in this world or in the world to come. Think of the martyrs. They asked for no legislation in their behalf.
But all the laboring men are not seeking for compulsory Sunday laws, as is claimed. This same claim was put forth by the clergy in the United States when Congress was being besieged to close the Columbian Exposition on Sunday. The claim was made that it was to help the laboring men, and that they desired it. But labor unions sent influential representatives to the hearing before Congress, such as Samuel Gompers, president of the American Federation of Labor, Thomas Morgan, and others, who stated that the working men did not want the exposition closed. That they had built it, had constructed its massive buildings, its beautiful parks and fountains, and they protested strongly against its gates being closed on the only day on which they could attend. Many laboring men in the Dominion feel the same concerning such legislation here.
A moment's consideration will show that Sunday laws are class legislation, discriminating against the laboring man in favor of the rich. The preachers composing the Alliance seem very solicitous to have all street-cars, excursion trains, etc., stopped on Sunday. Why is it any worse to ride in a street-car on Sunday, or to take the train and ride out in the country, than to go in a buggy, or in an automobile? It is perhaps true that many who can go nowhere else will in this way be led to go to church, and incidentally replenish its exchequer as opportunity offers. But going to church because you can go nowhere else, is like going home for the same reason. During the week many of the rich in our cities, who do not have to toil for bread in just the same way that the working man does, can go for an "outing" with their families. But the laboring man can not do this, and on Sunday, the only day on which he could go, he is deprived of the privilege.
But we are told that it is detrimental to health to work seven days in the week, and we must, therefore, have a day of rest. Well, there are a number of things that are detrimental to health, and if the Dominion starts in to legislate on health matters it has a wide field to explore. It is essential to good health to get the proper amount of sleep (which is rest in the truest sense). We should also eat the right kind of food, and at the proper time, and in the proper amount, and have it hygienically prepared and combined. It is proper that we diet for the dyspepsia, or have a limb amputated because of a diseased bone. Certain kinds of clothing are proper at different seasons of the year in order to have the proper protection against colds. Bathing is also necessary and very healthful, provided the temperature of the water is suited to the physical condition of the person. Many eminent physicians also tell us that it is detrimental to health to smoke. Shall Parliament legislate on all these questions, and countless others that might be mentioned? If not, why do so on the Sabbath question from the standpoint of health?
