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Review and Herald, Vol. 89, No. 43.

En Voyage

Review and Herald

Oct 24, 1912

Review and Herald Publishing Association · Takoma Park Station, Washington, D. C. · Oct 24, 1912

En Voyage

By Caroline Mason

Caroline Mason
Whichever way the wind doth blow, Some heart is glad to have it so; Then blow it east or blow it west, The wind that blows, that wind is best.
My little craft sails not alone: A thousand fleets from every zone Are out upon a thousand seas; And what for me were favoring breeze Might dash another with the shock Of doom upon some hidden rock, And so I do not dare to pray For winds to waft me on my way, But leave it to a Higher Will To stay or speed me; trusting still That all is well, and sure that he Who launched my bark will sail with me Through storm and calm, and will not fail, Whatever breezes may prevail, To land me, every peril past, Within his haven safe at last.
Then, whatsoever wind doth blow, My heart is glad to have it so; And blow it east or blow it west, The wind that blows, that wind is best.
— Selected.

Polish Literature

By Editor

Our New York Branch house has been established for convenience and economy in handling our foreign publications in New York City, the chief gateway into this country from all other countries of the world. This house has a good supply of our foreign publications on hand. It will be helpful to all our people to secure a free catalogue of the foreign publications, and to note from time to time the announcements made in the REVIEW of the special new publications in different languages.

“Christ Our Saviour”

This is a new book in the Polish language, having been recently translated into this tongue. It is now in stock at our New York Branch office. This book sells well among the Polish people. One agent purchased the entire first shipment as soon as it arrived in New York, and he quickly sold all the books. The same work can be done in other places where there are Poles. The prices and discounts are the same to agents as on the English edition of this same book.
Board binding, 50 cents.
Cloth binding, 75 cents.

Other Polish Books and Tracts

The following list of other Polish publications may be had on short order through our New York Branch:—
His Glorious Appearing ................$.25 Steps to Christ, cloth ............... .60 Steps to Christ, paper ............... .30 Adulteration of the Law .............. .01 Children of the Light ............... .01 Blessed Hope ........................ .01 Deciphered Writing .................. .02 Faith or Meaning .................... .01 Full Assurance of Faith ............. .02 Immortality of Christ ............... .04 Is the Collection of Scriptures the Work of God or of Man? ............ .02 Is the End Near? .................... .01 The Millennium ...................... .02 Our Time in the Light of the Bible .. .02 The Second Coming of Christ ........ .04 Seven Reasons ....................... $.02 The Secret of Health ................. .02 The Sinner’s Fate ................... .01 Sufferings of Christ ................ .06 Tobacco a Poison .................... .01 Way-Marks to the Holy City .......... .02
Address all orders for foreign supplies and foreign catalogues to your tract society, or to the Review and Herald Publishing Association, 32 Union Square, New York City, N. Y.

“History of the Sabbath,” Revised

IN these days when the Sabbath is being assailed on all sides, and when efforts are being made by strong associations to secure laws for the observance of a rival day, it is essential that individuals know the history of this movement from its very beginning.
The “History of the Sabbath” gives the complete history of the Sabbath from creation to the present time. It shows how Sunday, the first day of the week, was introduced into the church, and follows the history of this usurper from the earliest apostasy to the present. History repeats itself, and many of the steps taken in centuries past to force upon the world the observance of a rival day to that of God’s Sabbath, and which finally led to the dark ages and terrible persecutions, are now being seen in the renewed and persistent efforts to bring about Sunday observance by law.
Read “The History of the Sabbath,” and be able to detect these modern encroachments upon civil and religious liberty.
The book is divided into two grand divisions: Part I, giving the Bible history, and Part II, the secular history, of the Sabbath. The book contains thirty chapters, 864 pages, with copious index, and a brief biography of the authorities quoted.
Bound in full cloth, price $1.50. Printed on India paper, bound in flexible leather, $2.50. Order of your tract society.

“Acts of the Apostles”

By Editor

The latest book by Mrs. E. G. White. Our readers are so familiar with the writings of Mrs. White that they need no recommendation by us. Many of those who have read this book think it is one of the very best productions from her pen.
The first chapter deals with “God’s Purpose for His Church,” and the closing chapter with “The Church Triumphant.” Between these two chapters are given the experiences of the early church in the time of the apostles; and the lessons drawn from these experiences are of the most vital importance and interest to God’s people to-day.
The book, containing a general index and a Scripture index, has 630 pages. Substantially bound in cloth, $1.50; flexible leather, $2.

“From Judaism to Christianity”

By Frederick C. Gilbert

BY ELDER F. C. GILBERT
This book, recently from the press, gives information concerning the customs and manners of the Jewish people. It also furnishes a great deal of information in regard to the work for the Jews.
While it contains much in biography, the matter is presented in such form as clearly to explain many things in the Bible not generally understood. It supplies a Jewish background to the Scriptures which we have not had before, and makes clear many passages.
The book contains twenty-three chapters; three hundred eighty-four pages; over fifty illustrations.
Prices: Cloth, plain edges, $1; gilt edges, $1.25.
Address all orders to your conference tract society, or to Review and Herald Publishing Association, Takoma Park, Washington, D. C.

The Lives of Missionaries

NOTHING is more interesting than to read the experiences of pioneer missionaries. The following missionary biographies are on sale by the Review and Herald Publishing Association, Takoma Park, Washington, D. C.:—
David Livingstone, missionary to Africa.
Robert Moffat, missionary to South Africa.
Samuel Crowther, missionary to the territory of the Niger.
Robert Morrison, missionary to China.
Florence Nightingale, “The Wounded Soldiers’ Friend.”
John Knox, missionary to Scotland.
James Hannington, missionary to Africa.

“The Waldenses”

The Waldensian church is the “burning bush” of Christendom. The history of that people presents to us little less than a series of ferocious persecutions, endured with the most heroic constancy.
Planted in the valleys of Piedmont, almost within the shadow of the papal throne, their Scriptural faith and order have been a perpetual and most significant protest against the corruptions of that colossal hierarchy. They rejected its monstrous dogmas and superstitious mummeries, which Rome has baptized with the sacred name of Christianity, and steadfastly adhered to the Bible as the only rule of faith and practise. Again and again did the Roman priests and princes decree their extirpation, and send forth armies to carry havoc and carnage through all the mountain fastnesses.
It is something for a Christian to be able to point to a church which for centuries exemplified the power of the gospel to sustain individuals and communities in scenes of the deepest suffering.
This book, of nearly four hundred pages, gives the most thrilling recital of the experiences of the Waldensian church. Price, 75 cents. Address Review and Herald Publishing Association.

“American State Papers”

“ALL constraint except what wisdom lays on evil men, is evil.” Are the readers of the REVIEW fully aware of the strenuous efforts that are being put forth at the present time to place constraint, not upon evil men, but upon those who keep the commandments of God and the faith of Jesus,—men and women who believe in law and order, but who do not believe in the interference of the civil power in matters pertaining to our relation to God?
The “American State Papers” gives a history of the Sunday-law movement in this country from the very first colonial Sunday law, which contained in it a death penalty for non-attendance at worship on Sunday morning, down through the history of colonial federation and national periods, to the very last attempts at securing recognition of Sunday by Congress during the year 1911.
This book is filled with matter of the most intense interest and of great importance. It should be read not only by every Seventh-day Adventist, but by your neighbors and friends, by judges, attorneys, and by other men of influence throughout the country.
If you do not already have a copy, order one at once from your conference tract society. Price, full cloth, $1.50; sheepskin, $2; printed on India paper, and bound in flexible leather, $2.50.

Valuable Literature for Personal Study and General Circulation

For His Dear Sake

By C. H. PRETYMAN

C. H. PRETYMAN
I SEE young Abram leaving kindred dear, His father's house, and country of his birth. For land unknown he sallies bravely forth, Ne'er to return. He journeys at God's word, For his dear sake.
I see the princely Moses at the court Of Pharaoh, trained to occupy the throne. He weighs the kingdom's treasures and its fame, And chooses, rather, suffering to endure For his dear sake.
I see the noble Paul with bleeding back And chained hands and feet in Roman cell; I hear his midnight prayer and song of praise From heart that loved to labor and to bear For his dear sake.
I see the aged Peter on the cross, Who once with curse and oath denied his Lord; With head to earth he dies unflinchingly, By grace sustained to die the martyr's death, For his dear sake.
I see a mother parting from her son; She clasps him tightly to her aching breast, Where she remembers how he nestled once; She bids him go to seek and save the lost, For his dear sake.
I see a husband left to mourn the loss Of her whom God had given till death should part; Worn with the conflict, she had sunk to rest; Alone, he bravely labors, at the thought, For his dear sake.
I see a wife and mother in the home Await the day when “father” will return; God knows the measure of the sacrifice She daily offers uncomplainingly For his dear sake.
I see a daughter, tender, pure, and fair, With anger thrust from the paternal home Because she loved the Christ who died for her. Fearless she stands—though head and heart are sore— For his dear sake.
I see a graveside in the distant isles, Where men are savage and where fever reigns; Two hearts are breaking, yet with mystic joy They lay to rest their loved and only child, For his dear sake.
I see one toiling on from day to day At tasks both uncongenial and severe; I hear no murmur, but glad smiles I see: It is not toil, but service sweet indeed, For his dear sake.
Come, tell me, all, would ye escape the cross? Wouldst be relieved, nor suffer loss or pain? Wouldst wish the path of pleasure and of ease? Nay! the reply, we joy to suffer thus, For his dear sake.
Wahroonga, New South Wales, Australia.

The Measure of Light Given Measures Our Responsibilities

By Ellen G. White

MRS. E. G. WHITE
God does not commend nor confirm men in impenitence, for this condition of the human heart does not glorify him, nor work good for humanity. God sheds light upon the souls of men, he grants them opportunities and privileges; and if these are not improved, if the precious moments of probation are neglected, the measure of the light given will be the measure of the guilt incurred through this inexcusable neglect of the gifts of God. The Saviour said, “If therefore the light that is in thee be darkness, how great is that darkness!” We are told that the Lord hardened Pharaoh’s heart. The repeated refusals of the king to hear the word of the Lord, called forth more direct, more urgent and forcible messages. At each rejection of light, the Lord manifested a more marked display of his power; but the king’s obstinacy increased with every new evidence of the power and majesty of the God of heaven, until the last arrow of mercy was exhausted from the divine quiver. Then the man was utterly hardened by his own persistent resistance. Pharaoh sowed obstinacy, and he reaped a harvest of the same in his character. The Lord could do nothing more to convince him, for he was barricaded in obstinacy and prejudice, where the Holy Spirit could not find access to his heart. Pharaoh was given up to his own unbelief and hardness of heart. Infidelity produced infidelity. When Pharaoh hardened his heart on the first exhibition of God’s power, he made himself more capable of a second rejection of God’s power. Pride and stubbornness held him in bondage, and hindered him from acknowledging the warnings of God. It was contrary to the nature of Pharaoh to change after once having given expression to his purpose not to believe. What Pharaoh has done, will be done again and again by men until the close of probation. God destroys no man; but when a man stifles conviction, when he turns from evidence, he is sowing unbelief and will reap as he has sown. As it was with Pharaoh, so it will be with him; when clearer light shines upon the truth, he will meet it with increased resistance, and the work of hardening the heart will go on with each rejection of the increasing light of heaven. In simplicity and truth we would speak to the impenitent in regard to the way in which men destroy their own souls. You are not to say that God is to blame, that he has made a decree against you. No, he is not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to the knowledge of the truth, and to the haven of eternal bliss. No soul is ever finally deserted of God, given up to his own ways, so long as there is any hope of his salvation. God follows men with appeals and warnings and assurances of compassion until further opportunities and privileges would be wholly in vain. The responsibility rests upon the sinner. By resisting the Spirit of God to-day, he prepares the way for a second resistance of light when it comes with mightier power; and thus he will pass from one stage of indifference to another, until at last the light will fail to impress him, and he will cease to respond in any measure to the Spirit of God.
Those who claim to be Christians are in continual need of a power outside of and beyond themselves. They need to watch unto prayer, and to place themselves under the guardianship of God, else they will be overcome by the enemy. The Christian must look to God, as a servant to his master, as a handmaid to her mistress, saying, “Lord, what wilt thou have me to do?” The servant of God must use his ability in such a way that it will bring glory to God. When he yields himself to the control of the Spirit of God, he will be renewed, transformed into the image of Christ. He will give his affections to God, he will be enlightened, strengthened, and sanctified, and will become a channel of light to the world.
But the sinner who refuses to give himself to God, is under the control of another power, listening to another voice, whose suggestions are of an entirely different character. Passion controls him, his judgment is blinded, reason is dethroned, and impetuous desires sway him, now here, now there. The truth will have but little influence over him, for there is in human nature, when separated from the Source of truth, a continual opposition to God’s will and ways. The physical, mental, and moral being are all under the control of rash impulses. The affections are depraved, and every faculty entrusted to man for wise improvement is demoralized. The man is dead in trespasses and sins. Inclination moves, passion holds the control, and his appetite is under the sway of a power of which he is not aware. He talks of liberty, of freedom of action, while he is in most abject slavery. He is not his own. He is not allowed to see the beauty of the truth; for the carnal mind is enmity against God, and not subject to his law. He views truth as falsehood, and falsehood as truth. The mind controlled by Satan is weak in moral power. Can such a one without change be taken into a holy heaven?—O, no; it would be no mercy to the impenitent sinner to place him in the society of the angels.
When the wicked dead are raised from the grave, they come up with the tastes, habits, and characters that they formed in the time of probation. A sinner is not raised a saint, neither is a saint raised a sinner. The sinner could not be happy in the companionship of the saints in light, with Jesus, with the Lord of hosts; for on every side will be heard the song of praise and thanksgiving; and honor will be ascribed to the Father and the Son. A song will be raised that the unsanctified, unholy ones have never learned, and it will be out of harmony with their depraved tastes and desires. It will be unbearable to them. The apostle John heard this song. He says, ‘I heard a great voice of much people in heaven, saying, Alleluia; Salvation, and glory, and honor, and power, unto the Lord our God: for true and righteous are his judgments. . . . And a voice came out of the throne, saying, Praise our God, all ye his servants, and ye that fear him, both small and great. And I heard as it were the voice of a great multitude, and as the voice of many waters, and as the voice of mighty thunderings, saying, Alleluia: for the Lord God omnipotent reigneth. Let us be glad and rejoice, and give honor to him: for the marriage of the Lamb is come, and his wife hath made herself ready.’ It is impossible for the sinner to enjoy the bliss of heaven.

CLARENCE SANTEE

By Clarence Santee

Substitution

CLARENCE SANTEE

“All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the Lord hath laid on him the iniquity of us all.” Isa. 53:6.
CAN one person die for another? Is there right or justice in the acceptance of the life of an innocent man to pay the penalty for one who is guilty? Is substitution right?
The danger of accepting an error does not lie so much in considering the question as in viewing it from a wrong basis. The usual viewpoint is as between man and man. This will lead to a wrong conclusion. One man can not pay the penalty of sin for another. In Ps. 49:7, I read, “None of them can by any means redeem his brother, nor give to God a ransom for him.” This should forever settle the question as between man and man. But when we consider it as between God and man, the conditions are vastly different. “Sin is the transgression of the law.” 1 John 3:4. “All have sinned.” Rom. 3:23. Can an innocent man pay the penalty for a sinner?
From God and Christ emanates the law. As God, they are not amenable to the law. They are above it. The builder is greater than the thing that is built. “He that built all things is God.” Heb. 3:3, 4. Then he is above and greater than “all things.” The law is a river of life (Rom. 7:10; Prov. 12:28) which flows, not from beyond the throne, but from the throne. Its source is there.
“And he showed me a pure river of water of life, clear as crystal, proceeding out of the throne of God and of the Lamb.” Rev. 22:1. While this is a real river, yet the Lord uses it to draw a lesson from the law that proceeds from his throne, bearing life and blessing to the one who keeps it. He says: “And let him that is athirst come. And whosoever will, let him take of the water of life freely.” Verse 17, last part. “With thee is the fountain of life.” Ps. 36:9.
Christ could die for any transgression under a law that he had made. His law depends upon himself and his Father. He can forgive sins, but only by suffering the penalty, and in this way upholding the integrity of his law. Either an offering equal to the demands of the law must be made, or the strength of the law must decline. If an offering of less value can be accepted, it is only because the requirement of the law can be relaxed. If it admits of this, it at once becomes uncertain and weakened.
An offering equal in value to the law itself, therefore meeting every requirement of the law, accomplishing for the sinner an entire freedom from its condemnation as if the law had ceased to exist, yet in full accord with that law, is the only substitute that can suffice and be effective. This was given in Christ.
Again “in him,” and in him alone, we all “live, and move, and have our being.” Acts 17:28. Then he alone can die the sinner’s death. No substitutional idea as applied to others can be a parallel. An angel or a man could not become a substitute. They have no renewing, creative power, no new life to give. It must be from the fountain. The source of that river can be mingled with an element that cleanses all whom it may wash in its onward flow. The troubling of the water brought the healing to the man who stepped in. John 5:2-4.
I can see the one who was “waiting for the moving of the water.” Compassionate friends carried him morning by morning to the pool, and there he waited and watched. When months were drawn out into years, and some said, “No use!” and turned away, there was some one, perchance a faithful wife, who sought out others to carry him, and in this way thirty-eight years had gone wearily by. A day must not be missed, as that might be the day of the troubling of the water, the propitious day for him. Even so may friends to-day bear upon their hearts loved ones stricken by sin. They may at times say, “It is of no use;” but not knowing the day when that wayward heart may be “troubled,” and there be a desire awakened by the Spirit of God to “step in,” can you afford to become discouraged?
Thirty-eight years some one hoped and prayed. It was long, but prayer was finally rewarded. The glad day came. It came, and the weary waiting was forgotten. The joy of the present freedom was intensified because of the hope so long deferred. But the substitution of another to answer for the sin that brought this man to his wretched condition, was not through friends, nor a patient, loving wife, but through Him alone who, bending over him, could say “Arise,” and in that word could change him into “another man.” A sick man lay on his rude mat; a well man, buoyant with health and animation, picked his way among the waiting multitude, and looked joyously toward his home. The change was effected; yet the admonition to “sin no more, lest a worse thing come unto thee” (verse 14) had lost none of its meaning by this exchange.
The law remained the same. “All his commandments are sure. They stand fast forever and ever.” Ps. 111:7, 8; Rev. 22:14. But with the unchangeable nature of the law was combined the element of mercy. Mercy is tenderness toward the offender. There was no call for mercy until there was an offense. Then, through the sacrifice of Christ, mercy was mingled with the justice of the law. This is beautifully expressed in Ps. 85:10: “Mercy and truth are met together; righteousness and peace have kissed each other.” “Mercy rejoiceth against judgment.” James 2:13. “Mercy and truth are met together;” “thy law is the truth.” Ps. 119:142. With the law is mingled mercy, and that mercy is everlasting. Psalm 136.
A change came also in the Giver of the law. Christ, “the Word,” was “made flesh.” John 1:14. “Forasmuch then as the children are partakers of flesh and blood, he also himself likewise took part of the same.” Heb. 2:14. While still God, he is also man—“God with us.” Matt. 1:23. What Christ was in substance before being “made flesh,” born “of a woman,” mortal can not comprehend. We can comprehend what it is to be “made flesh,” to be composed of the “dust of the ground.” But to be composed of an element that his own power created, is a great mystery. Many stumble over it to their ruin, because they can not fully understand it. But the mysteries of life all around us are alike unexplainable, even to the blade of grass, yet they are accepted facts because of the evidence of our senses, and our constant contact with them. Men would be foolish indeed to refuse bread because they could not explain how sun, water, and earth cause a seed of wheat to open and send up a little stem which continues to grow upward until fruit is formed. Even so it is not wise, nor an evidence of superior judgment, when men refuse the “bread of life” because they can not unravel the mystery of the growth of the “seed of the woman.” Christ took the part that we deserved, that we might have the part that he deserved. A wonderful exchange, yet not so strange when we consider his “everlasting love.” If earthly parents, with a small vestige of that love, will freely give all for the loved child, how could our God do less? No wonder that the psalmist declares, “And they that know thy name put their trust in thee.” Ps. 9:10.
Loma Linda, Cal.

Our Greatest Need

By A. E. Christian

A. E. CHRISTIAN
Our present needs are outlined in the message to the Laodicean church, and may be classified as follows: (1) Greater knowledge; (2) the true gold tried in the fire; (3) white raiment that we may be clothed; (4) eye-salve, that we may see. Let us consider these needs.
1. “And knowest not.” Here lies one of our greatest dangers. “The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it?” Jer. 17:9. It is hard for us to see ourselves as God sees us. Satan tries to destroy every individual, but especially the workers.
He endeavors to draw a curtain over our eyes so that we shall not see sin in its true light. Many in this way become deceived, thinking they are doing God service, when they only satisfy self.
Let us notice a few examples: The history and work of Moses are familiar. At the age of forty he decided to visit his brethren and begin to set them free. He knew God had called him to that work. See Acts 7:25. He decided to accept the task. He thought to do God service when he slew the Egyptian, and when he tried by physical force to separate the two Israelites. But there were lessons unlearned, experiences not yet attained. The whole history of the Jews is one continuous example on this point.
Paul was no doubt just as sincere when he persecuted the church as when he gave that mighty defense before King Agrippa. Note also the life of Simon the sorcerer, as recorded in Acts 8. He made a start and was baptized. When he saw that the Holy Spirit was received through the laying on of hands, he coveted that gift, and offered money to secure it. “Peter said unto him, Thy money perish with thee, because thou hast thought that the gift of God may be purchased with money. Thou hast neither part nor lot in this matter: for thy heart is not right in the sight of God.”
2. “Buy of me gold tried in the fire.” There may be different opinions as to what this gold represents, but let us apply it to the ideal Christian character. Christ is our great example. He says: “I can of mine own self do nothing.” Perfect as he was, but cumbered with human flesh, he could not of himself alone accomplish the work his Father had sent him to do. His body, like ours, was a temple for the indwelling Spirit. However, it is not our mere physical form that constitutes this temple, for then all would possess the Spirit. This temple is a complete Christian character.
There are lessons we can learn only by experience and development, which in many can be brought forth only through trials and sufferings. “My brethren, count it all joy when ye fall into divers temptations; knowing this, that the trying of your faith worketh patience.” James 1: 2, 3. See Rom. 5: 3-5. These lessons may be hard, but they decorate the temple and fill it with the sweet odors of heaven.
3. “White raiment, that thou mayest be clothed.” The Lord uses filthy garments to represent unrighteousness (Isa. 64:6; Zech. 3:4), and a clean garment to symbolize righteousness received through faith in Christ. Isa. 61:10. Sin in its manifold forms is the worst of all defilements. If the approval of righteous men is to be desired, how much more desirable and important is it that we meet the approval of God! And until we do this, we can not expect success.
4. “Eye-salve, that thou mayest see.” This must refer to the Holy Spirit. It is spoken of as an anointing. See Acts 10:38; 1 John 2:20, 27. The Lord has promised us this Spirit as a comforter, teacher, and director. John 14:16, 27; 15:26; 16:7-13. This is what we so much need in our Christian warfare. The former and latter rain spoken of are two special seasons when the Holy Spirit will be poured out in large measure. The former rain was at Pentecost. Its mighty results are well known. Before the apostles received this power, they unitedly sought God most earnestly. Without it they could never have established the Christian church.
The latter rain will be given just before Christ’s second advent, to finish the gospel work. We are living in that time. There is a most solemn work for us to do. We can never do it without the Spirit. We shall never get the Spirit unless we seek it as the apostles sought it, and for the same object for which they sought it. The thought of the thousands dying every day without Christ, should drive us to the forest or to the chamber, where we, through fasting, prayer, confession, and faith, may receive forgiveness, gain complete victory over every besetment, and receive power from on high that will enable us to rescue perishing souls.
This is our greatest need. O that we may speedily have this need supplied! Then our work will prosper, and Christ’s coming be hastened.

The Nature of the Judgment

By Stephen N. Haskell

S. N. HASKELL
Every Bible writer speaks of the judgment. It is mentioned over one thousand times in the Sacred Writings. It is more solemn than death; death separates friends only until the resurrection, but the judgment separates them forever. To ignore the thought of judgment and live without preparing for it will not enable one to evade it. Solomon recognized this fact when he wrote, “Rejoice, O young man, in thy youth; . . . and walk in the ways of thine heart, and in the sight of thine eyes: but know thou, that for all these things God will bring thee into judgment.” Eccl. 11: 9.
Money and friends can often change the decisions of earthly courts and release the guilty, but not so in the heavenly court. Every one must meet the record of his own life. “Every one . . . shall give account of himself to God.” Rom. 14: 12. Earthly parents have been known to sacrifice everything they possess to save one child from the condemnation of earthly courts. Think you our Heavenly Father would let Satan destroy all his earthly children without an effort to save them? He risked all heaven for their sakes. “God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.” John 3: 16. No human being can face his life record in the books of heaven and escape condemnation unless belief in Christ and love for his service are a part of that record. Christ, the heavenly Advocate, will plead the case of all who have given him their sins. He says, “I, even I, am he that blotteth out thy transgression for mine own sake, and will not remember thy sins.” Isa. 43: 25. The life record scarlet with sin and wretchedness, he covers with the spotless robe of his righteousness; and the Judge, looking upon it, sees the sacrifice of his Son, and the record is, “Accepted in the Beloved.” Who can reject such infinite love?
The judgment involves, first, the investigation of every case, the testimony of witnesses, and if there is an advocate, his plea is presented. Then comes the decision of the court, and after that follows the execution of the sentence rendered by the court. A just sentence can not be rendered upon an individual at death. Some, through their writings, have made more infidels since their death than while living. A just sentence could not be passed upon them until the record of the lives of those who had been lost through their influence appeared as witnesses in their case. On the other hand, as the waves of a lake continue until the shore is reached, so the influence of the righteous continues to the end. Abel “being dead yet speaketh.” Heb. 11: 4. Wyclif, that fearless man of God, could not have been judged at his death, for thousands have been enlightened by the influence of his life since his voice was silent in death.
If the Bible record was silent upon this point, it is apparent at a glance that the judgment could not be held before the last generation; but the Bible is not silent. The date of the opening of the great tribunal was revealed by the Lord thousands of years before it took place. Peter taught the same truth. “Repent ye therefore, and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, when the times of refreshing shall come from the presence of the Lord; and he shall send Jesus Christ, which before was preached unto you.” Acts 3: 19, 20. The sins will be blotted out just before the coming of the Lord.
The investigative judgment is an examination of the life record kept in heaven. Daniel says, “The judgment was set, and the books were opened.” Dan. 7: 9, 10. There are several books mentioned in connection with the records of heaven. The book of remembrance records even the thoughts of the heart. Mal. 3: 16. How just and merciful is our God that he takes cognizance of it when we only think upon his name! Often when pressed by temptations, our souls cry out after the living God, and a faithful record is kept of it all. Many deeds are done in darkness, hidden from even the most intimate associates; but when the books of heaven are opened, God “will bring to light the hidden things of darkness, and will make manifest the counsels of the hearts.” 1 Cor. 4: 5. “For God shall bring every work into judgment, with every secret thing, whether it be good, or whether it be evil.” Eccl. 12: 14. Not only the deeds are recorded, but the motives or counsels of the heart that prompted the deed; and of the bitter tears of repentance shed in secret, the psalmist says, “Are they not in thy book?” Ps. 56: 8.
Our daily conversation, the words spoken without thought, we may count of little worth; but “every idle word that men shall speak, they shall give account thereof in the day of judgment. For by thy words thou shalt be justified, and by thy words thou shalt be condemned.” Matt. 12: 36, 37. Words are the index of the heart; for out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh. Matt. 12: 34. The place of birth and the environments, everything that can in any way influence the life record, are all recorded in the books of heaven. Ps. 87: 4-6. The most wonderful book of all the heavenly records that pertain to humanity is the book of life. To have one’s name recorded in that book is the highest honor given mortals in this life. Luke 10: 19, 20. The book of life contains the names of the righteous. Phil. 4: 3. It is a source of great rejoicing to know that our names are written in heaven (Luke 10: 20), but the life must be in harmony with heavenly things if our names remain enrolled with the righteous. The names of those who turn from righteousness to wickedness do not remain in the book of life (Ex. 32: 33; Rev. 13: 8; 17: 8), but are written in the earth (Jer. 17: 13), for all their hopes and affections have clung to earthly things. All whose hearts are the dwelling-place of the Most High and whose lives show forth his character will, when their cases come up in the heavenly court, have an Advocate, Jesus Christ the righteous. 1 John 2: 1. He will confess their names before the Father and before the angels. Their sins will be blotted out, their names retained in the book of life, and they clothed with the white raiment of Christ’s righteousness. Rev. 3: 5.
On the day of atonement in the typical service only those sins that had been confessed and transferred to the sanctuary by the sin-offerings were carried out and laid upon the head of the scapegoat. In the investigative judgment only the cases of those who have confessed their sins will be investigated. Their names will be in the book of life. Peter says that “judgment must begin at the house of God: and if it first begin at us, what shall the end be of them that obey not the gospel of God?” 1 Peter 4: 17. Those who have not served God will go by default. There will be no one to present their case. They have no advocate in the heavenly court. Sad indeed will be the condition of those who have started on the heavenly way, and after experiencing the joy of sins forgiven and the peace of God in the heart, have returned to the world and its follies. Their names have been written in the book of life, and their cases will be presented, only to have the sentence “Unfaithful” passed upon them, and their names blotted forever from the book of life.
When the Saviour comes in the clouds of heaven, he gives reward to the righteous; but final judgment can not be executed upon the wicked, for all are to be judged “out of those things which were written in the books, according to their works.” Rev. 20: 12. During the thousand years following the second advent of Christ to the earth, the righteous join with Christ in judging the wicked. Rev. 20: 4; 1 Cor. 6: 2, 3. Then the justice of God in condemning the wicked will be demonstrated before all.
There are redeemed ones gathered out of every age who will sit in judgment on the cases of the wicked, and the punishment will be meted out to each one according to his works. In the day of judgment God will call to the heavens above. He will call for the angels’ records of men’s lives,—the record of the words that they have spoken, of the deeds that they have done; even the most secret deeds will then be called upon to bear testimony; for “our God shall come, and shall not keep silence: a fire shall devour before him, and it shall be very tempestuous round about him. He shall call to the heavens from above, and to the earth, that he may judge his people.” There is one class who then will be gathered. He says, “Gather my saints together unto me; those that have made a covenant with me by sacrifice. And the heavens shall declare his righteousness: for God is judge himself.” Ps. 50: 3-6. This day of God’s investigative judgment we have now entered, and the executive part of it will take place at the close of probation, after the witnesses have borne their testimony.
When the judgment of the wicked closes, saints, angels, and all the universe will be in harmony with the decisions rendered. At the end of the thousand years, when fire from heaven devours the wicked as “stubble fully dry” (Nahum 1: 9, 10), all the universe will say, “Even so, Lord God Almighty, true and righteous are thy judgments.” Rev. 16: 7.
South Lancaster, Mass.
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