Earlier text: A Story about FishingGOD’S LIKENESS.
By Stephen N. Haskell
“AND God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness. . . . So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them.” But man lost the image of God by sin, and became fallen in nature, so that his likeness was changed or perverted by sin. And of Seth we read, “And Adam lived an hundred and thirty years, and begat a son in his own likeness, after his image.” Thus from that time on mankind have been born sinners, and we have all partaken of the fallen nature that Adam and Eve entailed upon the human race. But immediately upon the fall of man, a promise was revealed to him that God would put enmity between the serpent and the woman, between his seed and her seed; and there has been war from that time to the present. Christ was to bruise the serpent’s head, while the serpent would bruise his heel. Christ therefore becomes man’s restorer to that which he lost by sin. He becomes man’s Redeemer, the great Healer of the race. He did not come to this world and take upon himself Adam’s condition, but he stepped down lower, to meet man as he is, weakened by sin, polluted in his own iniquity. Now we are asked to “put on the new man, which is renewed in knowledge after the image of Him that created him.” Christ bears the fullest resemblance to the Father, so much so that any person who beholds Christ’s character beholds the character of God. “For in him dwelleth all the fullness of the Godhead bodily.” “Have I been so long time with you, and yet hast thou not known me, Philip? he that hath seen me hath seen the Father; and how sayest thou then, Show us the Father? Believest thou not that I am in the Father, and the Father in me? the words that I speak unto you I speak not of myself; but the Father that dwelleth in me, he doeth the works.” Those therefore that receive Christ receive the image of God. The mind becomes transformed. The inclinations of the new man, created in Christ Jesus, become by this recreation the inclinations of Adam when purity reigned in his breast. His interests become identical with those of Adam when he came fresh from the hands of his Creator, before sin had entered into the world. The possibilities of the mind of man when it bears the image of the Creator, unblinded by the god of this world, God alone can measure. Most certainly all the intelligence of Adam is before us as an object lesson, and so is the wisdom of Solomon. What God has done for humanity, God can do again, and he can do more. This is only what God will do where there is full consecration to him. The Christian religion is not simply a passive trust, but an active principle of love. It is impossible for it to live without activity. And when every power of the mind and body is wholly occupied with the motives that actuated Christ in coming to this earth, it brings into the heart and soul, the power, the glory, and the possessions of our Lord Jesus Christ, for it is Christ himself that comes into the heart with all his graces. God is not worshiped in the abstract, but when we come near to him, and partake of his nature as he partook of ours, then Christ reigns in and through us to the glory of God. Heavenly intelligences are waiting to coöperate with human agencies in accomplishing the purposes of God on the earth. Shall we not, then, yield to God all our hearts? Shall we not let the mind of Christ dwell within us, let the word of God dwell within us richly? And so with the power of God, let it work, and grow in the heart as the seed grows in the earth. May the Lord help his people to bear the image of the Divine as it was first planted in Adam when created. “And put on the new man, which is renewed in knowledge after the image of Him that created him.” This embraces every principle of knowledge that was in Christ. TAUGHT BY THE SPIRIT.
By Wm. Covert
ALL the treasures of wisdom and knowledge are hid in the Father and Son (Col. 2:3), and through the Holy Spirit they impart of the same to their children. As stated by the apostle, we have received “the Spirit which is of God; that we might know the things that are freely given to us of God.” 1 Cor. 2:12. That wonderful wisdom by which Jesus was enabled to conduct his work without a mistake, and that righteousness which gave him victory over sin, all came to him through the Spirit. The reason assigned for the complete success of Christ’s mission is that “God giveth not the Spirit by measure unto him.” John 3:34. His consecration was entire, and his faith was without question or doubt. Not one attribute of his nature was withheld from the Father. Not one atom of selfishness was allowed to darken his mind, and shut out faith and the light of heaven. There was therefore nothing to hinder the fullness of the Spirit working through him. Upon such a life, wholly surrendered to the interest of righteousness, the Father could bestow the Spirit without measure or limit. Therefore was seen in him “all the fullness of the Godhead bodily.” Col. 2:9. The same fullness dwells in him still, and it is of this fullness that the believer receives. See John 1:16. It is withheld from none, “but the manifestation of the Spirit is given to every man to profit withal.” 1 Cor. 12:7. Tho given to all, yet its workings are manifested in all the varied ways necessary to meet man’s needs. “There are diversities of operations, but it is the same God which worketh all in all.” Mankind are differently situated, differently constituted, and variously capacitated; and God must in wisdom meet them where they are, and work for them as best he can under the circumstances in which they are found. Among the first lessons taught the sinner by the Spirit is the knowledge that he is accepted of God by faith. This thought is expressed in these words: “After that ye believed, ye were sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise, which is the earnest [part of purchase price advanced as a pledge] of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession.” Eph. 1:13, 14. It is this pledge of God’s love that gives assurance of a title to an eternal home. As soon as the believer is assured of an inheritance beyond the present life, the Lord prepares the way to teach him of its beauties. Thus the petition is “that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give unto you the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of him; the eyes of your understanding being enlightened; that ye may know what is the hope of his calling, and what the riches of the glory of his inheritance in the saints.” Eph. 1:17, 18. It is not the office of the teacher to do the work of the learner, but he is expected to lead and guide in the studies. So it is with the work of the Spirit. “When he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth.” John 16:13. But every scholar should study hard, and apply himself diligently, under the guidance of the good Teacher. In this school the Lord has furnished the Bible as the text-book, while the Holy Spirit is the Teacher that guides in its study. Jesus says this Teacher “shall not speak of himself; but whatsoever he shall hear, that shall he speak.” John 16:13. It is not the design of the Lord to draw such attention to the Spirit as to cause the claim to be made that it is an independent, separate being, apart from the Lord. The heat, and the light, and life from the sun would not exist were it not for the sun; in like manner, there can be no Spirit of the Lord only as it comes forth from him. For these reasons Christ said, “He shall glorify me; for he shall receive of mine, and shall show it unto you.”6 And yet the Saviour would not have any one think for a moment that he works through the Spirit in any sense separate from the Father. Therefore he immediately adds: “All things that the Father hath are mine; therefore said I, that he [the Spirit] shall take of mine, and shall show it unto you.” John 16:14, 15. The Father and the Son use the same Spirit as an agent or medium of communication with man, because they are so wholly united in mind, purpose, and power, that they two act as one. They think, teach, and love as one, are perfectly joined together in one mind and in one spirit, so that there can not possibly be any disagreement between them on any point. And every lesson imparted to man by the Spirit is equally from both the Father and the Son. The Christian learns no lesson of truth independently of the Spirit. It is in every thought and word and act of righteousness. It is both an abiding guest and a continual servant, “for he dwelleth with you, and shall be in you.” Concerning the service rendered by the Spirit, Jesus said, “He shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you.” John 14:26. The beauty and the strength, the height and the depth, the richness and the glory, the sweetness and the love in any scripture are seen or known only through the teachings of the Spirit. It must be as constantly present with the Christian as the air which he breathes. “Lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world.” Matt. 18:20. The child of God lives in the Spirit and walks in the Spirit. Gal. 5:25. He loves his brethren only through the Spirit. “For ye yourselves are taught of God to love one another.” 1 Thess. 4:9. Also, “By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another.” John 13:35. A disciple of Christ is a learner of Christ, one who is receiving lessons from him. “But the anointing [Holy Spirit] which ye have received of him abideth in you, and ye need not that any man teach you; but as the same anointing teacheth you of all things, and is truth, and is no lie, and even as it hath taught you, ye shall abide in him.” 1 John 2:27. The learner is required to study vigorously, yet the Spirit as a teacher will clear the mind and strengthen the perception of the one who applies himself in the ways of the Lord. That the highest point of spiritual excellence might be attained, the apostle prayed, “That ye might be filled with the knowledge of his will in all wisdom and spiritual understanding; that ye might walk worthy of the Lord unto all pleasing, being fruitful in every good work, and increasing in the knowledge of God; strengthened with all might, according to his glorious power.” Col. 1:9-11. There is no limit to the Spirit’s ability to teach, only as man himself fails to receive the lessons. God on his part is able and ready to do for us far more than “we ask or think, according to the power that worketh in us.” Eph. 3:20. The marvelous possibilities which God stands ready to do for the believer through the Spirit appear not to be comprehended by man. God is willing to do far more by his Spirit than man seems ready to grasp by his faith. As all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge are through the Spirit placed at our demand, let there be a fuller consecration of our whole nature, a wider opening of the mind, a more hearty drinking in of the thoughts of God. If there were a larger feeding in the rich pastures of his grace, there might be a much stronger people going forth to victory. “CHRISTIANITY’S MILLSTONE.”
By George H. Heald
“NEVERTHELESS when the Son of man cometh, shall he find faith on the earth?” Luke 18:8. The pertinency of this question is well attested by the growing disbelief in the Old Testament scriptures manifested by many Bible expositors. For instance, Goldwin Smith, a doctor of divinity, in an article in the December North American Review, characterizes the Old Testament as a millstone about the neck of Christianity. He says:— The history of every nation begins as a myth. . . . The figure of the patriarch Abraham, a typical sheikh, as well as the father of Israel, is exceptionally vivid, and his history is exceptionally dramatic. But to regard Abraham as a real founder, not only of a nation but of the church, and as the chosen medium of communication between God and man, sound criticism will no longer allow us. He quotes Canon Bonney’s denial of the authenticity of the story of creation, the flood, and the tower of Babel, and rightly adds:— With the historical character of the chapters relating to the creation, Canon Bonney must resign his belief in the fall of Adam; with his belief in the fall of Adam, he must surrender the doctrine of the atonement, as connected with that event, and thus relieve conscience of the strain put upon it in struggling to reconcile vicarious punishment with our sense of justice. He will also have to lay aside his belief in the serpent of temptation, and in the primeval personality of evil. And we may add, both the canon and the doctor will have to lay aside the authority of many New Testament statements. In fact, Dr. Smith himself says:— The evangelists, simple-minded, find in the sacred books of this nation prognostications of the character and mission of Jesus. No real and specific prediction of the advent of Jesus, or of any event in his life, can be produced from the books of the Old Testament. Let the New Testament speak for itself on this subject: “Then he said unto them, O fools, and slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have spoken; ought not Christ to have suffered these things, and to enter into his glory? And beginning at Moses and all the prophets, he expounded unto them in all the Scriptures the things concerning himself.” Luke 24:25-27. Dr. Smith calls the disciples simple-minded for finding “in the sacred books of their nation prognostications of the character and mission of Jesus.” Jesus calls these same disciples foolish, because they were slow to believe what the prophets had spoken; and he expounded unto them in “all the Scriptures [Old Testament, for there was no New then] the things concerning himself.” Evidently, the Saviour was “simple minded” enough to believe that these scriptures related to him; and one who doubts it is left with the alternative of impeaching the sincerity of Jesus or the veracity of Luke’s Gospel. To regard Abraham a mythical character, we must ignore the witness of the apostle Paul, in the Epistle to the Romans, to the Galatians, and the book of Hebrews, and James, and the Gospel of John. What are these words worth, if founded on a myth: “For when God made promise to Abraham, because he could swear by no greater, he swore by himself. . . . That by two immutable things, in which it was impossible for God to lie, we might have a strong consolation?” Where is the “strong consolation” in that passage to one who believes Abraham to be a myth? The fact is that the New Testament stands or falls with the Old. Any argument against the authority of the Old applies with equal force against the New. We are not surprised that the wisdom of the nineteenth century finds the Old Testament record “imperfect,” “inaccurate,” “incredible.” “Hath not God made foolish the wisdom of this world? For after that in the wisdom of God the world by wisdom knew not God.” (Call to mind in this connection the quotation above given, “and thus relieve conscience of the strain put upon it in struggling to reconcile vicarious punishment with our sense of justice.”) “For the Jews require a sign, and the Greeks seek after wisdom.” “But we speak the wisdom of God in a mystery, even the hidden wisdom, which God ordained before the world unto our glory; which none of the princes of this world knew; for had they known it, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory.” Infidelity with a “D.D.” after it is as truly infidelity, and more dangerous, than infidelity prefixed by a “Col.” It was infidelity in high places in the church that crucified the Saviour. It will be infidelity in high places in the last days which will persecute the remnant church. SATAN’S BOND OF UNION.
By Julia H. Duffie
IT is not only in good causes where it has been proved that in “union there is strength;” the agencies of evil have been quite as quick to avail themselves of the advantages of this fact. It was chiefly on this principle that the huge system of iniquity, the Papacy, was founded. On this foundation also rest the main pillars of most large secret societies. The terms upon which these wrong unions are based, framed in simple words, are something like this: “If you will work for my interest, I will work for yours; if you will support me, right or wrong, I will do the same by you. If you will strike those whom I dislike, I also will strike those whom you dislike.” In the written regulations of some societies this condition is plainly stated, and the members bind themselves to defend a brother in any case, no matter how guilty he may be. The sentiment is also quite as fully carried out many times when the terms may not be as distinctly cited, and often among private individuals as well as in organized societies. This principle is one of Satan’s strongest, and appeals directly to the dominant element in the average natural heart, namely—selfishness. Self-interest is the motive power. In order to gain the benefits to be derived from such a union, the members are willing to assist their allies in like manner, and in support of this compact the fangs and teeth of the wolf often flourish under the sheep’s clothing, while the noblest of principles are prostituted, and made to appear to uphold these evil dogmas.7No doubt many are led into these relations who aim to be honest and honorable, yet who are so gradually drawn into the net that they do not perceive the wrong theories involved until they consider it too late to retrace their steps. One evidence of the existence of this sentiment is the manifestation of the effort to intimidate the constituents, and thus prevent their breaking such a compact, or failing to carry out all its requirements. A good system never seeks to hold its members by intimidation. But in these unrighteous alliances this is one of the strongest arguments employed. This was Rome's most powerful weapon in the days of the Inquisition, and still continues to be one of her main supports. In the government of the class of secret societies referred to, this wrong principle is also one of the chief bands by which they are held together. The members are afraid to sever their allegiance to the unions because of the persecution and annoyance to which they would be subjected in consequence; for they are sometimes sworn to harass, perplex, and injure those who desert them, in every manner which presents itself, especially if such an one should in any way expose the evils into which he had been unwittingly drawn; while for those whose professions will not permit such measures, the same principle is carried out by various methods, even down to the despicable one of "calling names," and seeking to undermine reputation. The advocates of these evil unions usually place great stress upon loyalty, etc., when the real thing to which they are loyal is their own selfish interest, and to these agencies simply as a means to that end. All honor to those who, rather than uphold such institutions, will not shrink from being called and treated as disloyalists or even (falsely) traitors. I have known of families who, while they were under the parental roof, where their interests collided, were so quarrelsome as to almost endanger each other's lives, who upon separating and going out into the world, virtually entered into a compact of self-interest, thus aiding each other in the accomplishment of evil purposes, helping to conceal and misrepresent the true character of each, purely from evil, selfish motives. It is to be regretted that Christian societies, calling themselves Protestant, should ever descend to the level of these tenets, yet when ministers will say to their congregations, "Never mind about your moral character or your personal Christian experience, only stand by your church [meaning sect and creed], and the Lord will take care of your salvation," it is to be feared that such teachers are leading their flocks otherwise than in the strait and narrow way pointed out by Him who said, "Except your righteousness shall exceed the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, ye shall in no case enter into the kingdom," and, "Ye must be born again." The Pharisees were great sticklers for sect; they "stood by their church" every time, in this very sense. What better invitation could the "unclean and hateful birds" have to enter the "cage," or abide therein, than such sentiments as these uttered by professed Christian ministers, especially if their hearts could be made to believe that God would accept them under such conditions? The more apparently good moral instruction is mingled with such teachings as these, the more dangerous the mass becomes. What unprincipled person would not be willing to make free use of party or sectarian "shop talk," and keep up the outward appearance of respectability, for the aid of this sort of fellowship? Just as far as any society, religious or otherwise, rests upon such principles as these, just as far will it be among the lofty works of man, which shall be brought low in that day when the "Lord alone shall be exalted." Isaiah 2. Let us, then, seek to work into our building only the pure metal of Gospel truth, that when the "hay, wood, and stubble" of men's or Satan's inventions shall be consumed by the fires of that day, we may not suffer loss by that great consummation. Religious Freedom for All
ALL men shall be free to profess, and by argument to maintain, their opinions in matters of religion, and the same shall in nowise affect their civil capacities.—Jefferson. May every thought of mine this day
Be pure as sunshine's clearest ray.
May every word that I shall speak
Be wise and gentle, true and meek.
May every act be just and kind,
From dross of selfishness refined.
May thought and act and kindly word,
Together bound, a threefold cord,
Reach out to men and help me save
Some sinking one from sin's cold wave.
—Selected. WORSHIPING IN LETTER AND SPIRIT.
By J. H. Waggoner
THERE are views widely differing on the subject of worshiping in letter and in spirit. Those who object to the law, and lay claim to a system of license, for this is what no-lawism amounts to, affirm that to serve God according to the letter of the law is a slavish service, a service of bondage, being bound and hedged in by forms which leave no freedom to the human spirit and will. They say there is a higher and purer service, a voluntary service, one of the affections only, not guided by any expressed rules and regulations, but in which all is left to the choice and will of the worshiper. They declare that where there are legal injunctions and restrictions there is no freedom, and therefore no pure, spiritual worship. This theory appears plausible to many; and to such as love to have their own way, it is captivating. But it is both defective as a theory and contrary to Scripture. The true theory of choice, or of freedom of the will, is the choice between that which God requires and that which our own hearts would suggest. This choice God gives to every one. This is probation. Of course true worship is to do that which God requires; false worship is to offer to God that which our own hearts devise, or, in other words, to choose our own way. If we try that theory in the state or in the family circle, we shall find it to be destructive to order, and subversive of every correct principle. A citizen scorns the restraints of legal enactments. His ideas of serving the government he thinks are far too exalted to be trammeled. He loves the service of his country, but he must be left to serve in a manner dictated by his own mind, and approved only by his own will. If he is a soldier, he refuses to obey the orders of his superior, and maneuvers according to tactics of his own devising, and moves only when he chooses, without regard to the rules adopted for the army. If he is a civil officer, he disregards the statutes and forms for the government of his office, and adopts forms and regulations of his own. If he is a private citizen, he pays no heed to the laws of the state, but acts as the impulse of his own heart may prompt, at all times and on all occasions. Now what shall we say of such a citizen as this? As a soldier, he would soon be tried for insubordination, and punished for his disloyalty. As a civil officer, he would be broken of his office, and have to retire in disgrace. As a private citizen, he would soon end his career in prison. And why not? Is not the best service to the state rendered by obeying the laws of the state? Rather, is not this the only service the state can accept?—Certainly it is. Any other course has its origin in self-will, and leads to open rebellion. This much for no-lawism in the state. Take it in the family circle. A child professes great love for his father; he assumes to be exceedingly anxious to honor and serve his father. When his father commands him to do a certain thing, he considers it altogether beneath such exalted love as he bears to his father to obey the command; he must do what the father orders in a manner quite different from that in which the father said it should be done, or he must substitute something entirely different in the place of that which is required by the father. He says he loves to serve his father, but his love must not be cramped, nor forced, nor restrained by rules and restrictions laid down by his father. He must be left free to carry out those plans formed in his own mind, and to follow the promptings of his own heart. This he claims is the only way to manifest pure love for his father. But what shall we say to such love as that? Without hesitation we pronounce it spurious—a mere mockery of love. Such a son would constantly dishonor his father, and become a disgrace to the family to which he belonged. When we refer it to Scripture, we find such a system always and everywhere denounced. Both the word of God and the providence of God have always been against it. This spirit led the priests to offer strange fire before the Lord, instead of that fire prescribed by the Lord. It caused them to offer polluted bread upon his altar, and to change his offerings, substituting the lame and the blind at their own wills. It is the fruit of this perverse spirit of which the Lord asks, "Who hath required this at your hand?" It is such professed service to God which Paul calls "voluntary humility," and of such persons he says, "Intruding into those things which he hath not seen, vainly puffed up by his fleshly mind." Col. 2:18. The "fleshly mind" is the same as the "carnal mind, which is not subject to the law of God," which volunteers an offering not required, and withholds that which is commanded. All such is "will worship." Of such voluntary worshipers the Lord says: "Woe unto the foolish prophets, that follow their own spirit, and have seen nothing! . . . Have ye not seen a vain vision, and have ye not spoken a lying divination, whereas ye say, The Lord saith it; albeit I have not spoken?" Eze. 13:3-7. They declare that to be the will of God of which the Lord hath not spoken. Truly, they have followed their own spirit. They claim this as "true Christian liberty." To do that which the Lord hath spoken is to them bondage, a legal service, worshiping in the letter, not by them to be borne. But the Lord pronounces a woe upon them. Thus we learn that to be guided by our feelings and our will, and to disregard God's commandments, is will worship,—is to follow our own spirits. This is not worshiping God in spirit, tho by some supposed to be so. Such, instead of worshiping God in spirit, are vainly puffed up by their fleshly mind. There may be a false worship in the letter. For this we never plead. This is a Pharisaical, heartless outward observance of precepts, without the promptings of love. Some are so blind that they think all obedience to commandments is of this kind. A greater mistake can not be made. The Lord himself has distinctly assured us, "This is the8 love of God, that we keep his commandments." Obedience is required of the citizen in the state. Obedience of the child is the only evidence of love in the family. Obedience is the only manifestation of love recognized in the Bible. "If then I be a father, where is mine honor? and if I be a master, where is my fear? saith the Lord of hosts." Mal. 1:6. Paul says, "We know that the law is spiritual." Therefore, loving obedience to it is spiritual service, the only true worship. To disobey is to deny the Lord the honor and fear which are his due. Professed worship in wilful disobedience is will worship and mockery. It is worth while to notice that this plea against the letter of God’s law is invariably urged against the fourth commandment, and seldom against anything else. And they who make this plea will seize with avidity any sentence in the Bible from which they can possibly infer, however forced the inference, that we are taught to keep Sunday. They would cling to the letter if the letter suited them. Theirs is the spirit of self-will, not of obedience.—J. H. Waggoner. Winning Others to Christ
By Mrs. George A. Paull
WINNING OTHERS FROM WHAT? TO WHAT? AND HOW? So LET our lips and lives express
The holy Gospel we profess;
So let our works and virtues shine,
To prove the doctrine all divine. The Christian who is not winsome loses his greatest power of usefulness. In proportion to the measure of Christ’s indwelling within our hearts will we be able to show forth his love to those with whom we come in contact. If we make ourselves lovable and attractive, we reflect in some faint degree the love and beauty of Christ’s character, and win those to him who might never have known him had not some human hand clasped their own and laid it within the Father’s hand. It is not what we say as much as what we do that will bring others to Christ. “We must preach as we walk.” Many of the best sermons are sermons without words. Francis of Assisi one day stepped down into the cloisters of his monastery, and said to a young monk, “Brother, let us go down into the town to-day and preach.” So they went forth, the venerable father and the young man, conversing as they went. Along the principal streets, around the lowly alleys, to the outskirts of the town, and to the village beyond, they wound their way, returning at last to the monastery gate. Then spoke the young monk, “Father, when shall we begin to preach?” “My child,” said Francis, looking down kindly upon the young man, “we have been preaching; we were preaching while we were walking. We have been seen, looked at, our behavior has been remarked, and so we have delivered a morning sermon. Ah, my son,” continued the saintly man, “it is of no use that we walk anywhere to preach, unless we preach as we walk.” In this way we may all be preachers; in this way we must all walk if we would win souls. Paul said, “For me to live is Christ.” Wherever he went, men saw Christ mirrored in his character, his disposition, his conduct, his temper. We must be Christ to those whom we would win for Christ. Love is the great magnet that will give us the power to win others. If we let strong love continually well up in our hearts toward every one with whom we come in contact, we will find it easier to make of ourselves channels through which God’s love will pour upon them. “He that dwelleth in love, dwelleth in God, and God in him.” It is not easy to love every one. Dr. Meyer aptly says: “We must love people whom we can not like, with whom we have no natural sympathy, and who seem made to irritate us. It is easy to like nice people. No special grace is required for this. Our affections naturally entwine around the amiable and gentle, and if these alone filled our homes, there would be no education in the divine art of loving. We only learn what the love of God is when we have to deal with people who defy our own powers of affection. The fairest flowers of nature are never so apparent as when they are called in to drape the rents in earth’s surface, or to clothe some unsightly rock, rearing its form amid a paradise of beauty. Is there such a person in your life, the source of constant chafe, annoyance, fret? You feel you can not love, you can not speak gently, or stroke that fretful face, or find pleasure in that uncongenial presence? Anything but that. You could be lovely if only you were thrown with a congenial temperament. Yet how much you would miss of divine education! Do this: fall back on the memory of the divine indwelling, and since the strong Son of God, who is immortal Love, is in you, let him love that loveless one through you; let him pour out a torrent of love through you, as the channel and medium of blessing; let his love speak through your voice, and look through your eyes, and nerve your fingers. Love with his love. You can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth you.” It has been well said that there is no one of so discordant and jarring a temper, to which a tunable disposition may not strike a harmony. Let us each cultivate so loving a character that whoever strikes across our plans, our prejudices, our feelings, may only jar from us a ripple of sweet music. Thus shall we win other hearts to the all-loving Christ, when we manifest his indwelling love towards them ourselves. There are many who are so antagonistic to us in temperament, who can wound us so cruelly by misunderstanding, by blunt and unkind speech, that love seems an impossibility. Only by taking our hearts to the Fountain of all love, where they may be filled to overflowing so that there shall be no room for any other emotions, can we love the unloving, and win them to Christ by the magnetism of his divine Love, manifested in human affection.—Christian Work. My friend Lapham was telling a few of us last evening how he got on, when he first came to the city, in trying to find a pleasant church home. It was in the suburbs, and as he entered the church door, he was met in a friendly way by four young men, who took him by the hand, and said, one after another: “I’m glad to see you. Come again.” That sounded attractive, and seemed a good omen of a speedy acquaintance. The next morning the four young men were on the train with him going into the city to business, but not one of them noticed him; and the same thing occurred every day that week, going into town and out again. But, thinking that they might not have recognized him as the same young man they had welcomed at church, he went again the following Sunday, and was met by them all with the same greeting: “I’m glad to see you. Come again;” and, as before, not one of them spoke to him on the train that week. So he tried it the third Sunday, by way of seeing how long that sort of thing would last, with precisely the same experience,—“I’m glad to see you. Come again,” and no recognition in the station or on the train on Monday. So, seeing one of them sitting alone that morning, and being a good deal piqued by the way things were going, he went forward and volunteered a little conversation on his own account. “Excuse me,” said he, “but I feel like asking you a question. For three Sundays now I have been at your church, and you have said each time: ‘I’m glad to see you. Come again,’ but during the week you do not seem to know me. Doesn’t that strike you as a trifle odd?” “I suppose it does,” the young man replied, “tho I hadn’t thought of it. Next Sunday I’ll try to say something different.”—The Advance. Is not self-gratification. Is not afraid of hard work. Is not destitute of courage. Is not in danger of backsliding. Is not attendance at church for show. Is not inclined to manufacture excuses. Is not going to church to be entertained. Is not singing hymns until you feel good. Is not serving God that you may feel happy. Is not opposed to God’s plans for supporting his cause. Is not in search for a napkin in which to hide its talent. Is not accustomed to spend money in habits of worldly conformity. Is not afraid to spend some money to furnish good spiritual reading. Is not constantly looking out for the easiest place in the service of God. Is not fault-finding about how the funds of the missionary society are expended. Is not continued feasting at good spiritual meetings while others do all the work. Is not inclined to plead poverty when money is solicited for some church project. Is not so anxious for personal comfort or reputation as the salvation of souls and the glory of God. Is not in favor of questionable methods of raising church finances in order to avoid paying God what it owes him. Is not going from one church to another in order to see how many religious advantages you can get without paying anything for them. Is not lying in bed on Sabbath morning to the neglect of God’s cause around you, when you rise early during the week to promote your own interests.—Selected. “WHATSOEVER ye would that men should do to you, do ye even so to them.” Matt. 7:12. Equal Justice for All
By Thomas Jefferson
EQUAL and exact justice to all men, of whatsoever state or persuasion, religious or political.—Thomas Jefferson. MORE ROMAN IMITATION.
By Editor
"Ye observe days, and months, and times, and years. I am afraid of you, lest I have bestowed upon you labor in vain." Gal. 4:10, 11. The context shows that the "days," etc., to which the apostle referred were such as were observed by the heathen. The Roman Church has a famous list of such occasions, many of which are made-over heathen festivities, and many others having grown out of that church's own idolatry; for it is well known that she has, in this respect, gone far beyond the "weak and beggarly elements" of the heathen. When the Church of England seceded, she carried with her this peculiar feature of the "mother church," and still holds to it. Protestantism, after having "known God," has become so weakened by divisions and the adoption of human traditions, as to manifest an ardent "desire again to be in bondage" to the festivals and other outward forms of Rome. But there comes to the front a suggestion, from a professed Protestant source, to go even beyond Rome in the matter of observing "times and years," altho the proposed innovation is to stand on a Roman foundation. The proposition is so strikingly in keeping with the general trend of apostate Protestantism toward Rome that we give it in full, as it appears in the New York Observer of February 20:—