Earlier text: A Historical Sketch of the Ancient City of BabylonOur Sins; Their Pardon and Their Blotting Out.
By G.
THE proposition we shall endeavor to prove under this head is, that though sins are pardoned in the present tense, they are not blotted out till the close of Christ's priestly work in Heaven, and that when the hour of final settlement arrives, whatever character the person is then found maintaining, all the acts of his life which go to make up that character, are placed to his credit or condemnation. Thus, if he is found righteous, only the righteousness of his life is held in remembrance, his sins being all blotted out, and remembered no more; and if he is found wicked, all the sins of his lifetime, notwithstanding he may many times have received pardon, still stand to his account. This may be to many a startling declaration, and it may seem, at first thought, impossible that a sin once pardoned, should ever again enter into the sinner's account. In illustration it is asked, if we incur a bill of indebtedness at a merchant's, and that debt is forgiven, is not that the end of it? So when our sins are pardoned is not that the last of them? If the question could be allowed to stand thus, the illustration would be hard to meet. But as it is, it is not fairly put; it is incomplete. For suppose the merchant in question should forgive our indebtedness only on the condition that we should never become indebted to him again; and suppose that thereafter we did again run into debt to that man: the conditions upon which our former indebtedness was canceled would thus be violated on our part, and of course the original debt would then stand against us. This is a fair illustration of the question of our sins between us and God. Sins are pardoned only on conditions. There never was an acceptable petition offered for the pardon of sin, without a condition being implied, on the performance of which the granting of the request depends. This may never have occurred to many who daily offer up their petitions to God for the forgiveness of their sins. Yet a moment's thought will make it plain to any mind. For a person to ask God to forgive any of his sins, while yet he feels no sorrow for them, but cherishes a purpose in his heart still to go on transgressing in those same particulars, would be most solemn mockery. Every sincere petition, therefore, which we offer to God for pardon, implies a vow on our part, to no longer transgress in those things for which we ask forgiveness. On this condition we receive pardon. That is, as we view it, in those books of remembrance wherein all our deeds are written, Rev. xx, 12, ever against our sins, is inscribed the word pardon, on the condition implied. Suppose now that by breaking our vow, and again transgressing, we destroy the condition on which our forgiveness was suspended; do not our former sins still remain against us? And thus matters must stand through an individual's entire probation. As all depends on the carrying out on our part of our pledge of future obedience, when we fail in that, our transgressions revive against us in all their force. If this principle is correct, then a part of our proposition already stands vindicated, that is, that sins are pardoned without being blotted out, this latter work being reserved to the time when the final adjustment of each individual case takes place. But we do not propose to rest the question on this ground alone. The Scriptures have something to say upon the point, which we will now consider. The Lord by the mouth of the prophet Ezekiel speaks as follows: "The soul that sinneth, it shall die. The son shall not bear the iniquity of the father, neither shall the father bear the iniquity of the son. The righteousness of the righteous shall be upon him, and the wickedness of the wicked shall be upon him." Eze. xviii, 20. It will here be noticed that it seems to be the righteousness and the wickedness of an entire lifetime, and not any limited portion thereof, that is taken into account. And the record continues: "But if the wicked will turn from all his sins that he hath committed, and keep all my statutes, and do that which is lawful and right, he shall surely live, he shall not die. All his transgressions that he hath committed, they shall not be mentioned unto him; in his righteousness that he hath done shall he live." Verses 21, 22. And concerning the righteous, in verse 24 we read, "But when the righteous turneth away from his righteousness and committeth iniquity, and doeth according to all the abominations that the wicked man doeth, shall he live? All his righteousness that he hath done shall not be mentioned; in his trespass that he hath trespassed, and in his sin that he hath sinned, in them shall he die." It would hardly seem possible to apply this language to any person in whose experience there may have been several successive points of time up to which his previous sins and transgressions had met with a definite and final disposition. The Lord, it will be noticed, speaks in the one case of all the transgressions not being remembered, and in the other of all the righteousness not being mentioned; not transgressions and righteousness from certain points of time, up to which transgressions had all been pardoned, and righteousness imputed. And although it is not here directly stated that when a man turns from his sins to righteousness, and then relapses into sin again, that all his former sins are remembered against him, yet enough is said to justify this conclusion. The only inference we can draw is, that it is the sum total of the righteousness or transgressions of a lifetime, and not any limited portion thereof, that come under the rule here laid down by the Lord through the prophet. But in the teachings of our Lord, we have a still more definite exhibition of this doctrine. It is found in the parable of the king and his wicked servant, recorded in Matt. xviii, 23-35. But to quote the language entire, to which the reader is requested to turn, the facts of the case may be summoned up as follows: A servant found himself indebted to his lord, to the amount of ten thousand talents. He had nothing to pay, and was about being sold with his wife and children to meet the demand. But by earnest entreaty he gained the compassion of his lord, and even procured the forgiveness of his debt. "The lord of that servant," it is said, "loosed him and forgave him the debt." The same servant then went out and finding one of his fellow-servants who owed him a trifling sum, refused him the mercy he had just received at the hands of his lord, but cast him into prison till he should pay him all. At this conduct the lord of that servant was wroth, he called him to account, re-instituted against him the claim of that debt which he had once forgiven him, and delivered him to the tormentors till he should pay him all that was due him. In making the application of this parable, our Lord plainly and definitely says: "So likewise shall my heavenly Father do also unto you, if ye from your hearts forgive not every one his brother their trespasses." Here is an enunciation of the doctrine too explicit to be for a moment questioned that though our sins may have once been forgiven, if we afterward become transgressors, the original debt returns upon us, and we shall be held responsible to the uttermost farthing. We offer these thoughts more especially on account of the beautiful harmony they present with the subject of the sanctuary. We there behold the records of the race unerringly kept, and a day of final adjustment coming when the sins of the perseveringly penitent will be blotted out, and the sins of those who are found transgressors at last, will be left to bear their witness against them, and crush them with their fearful load, and their names be blotted out of the book of life. The objection against our views of the sanctuary with its final work of atonement and blotting out of sins, which some attempt to raise on the ground that the pardon of our sins, as we receive it day by day, is the final disposition of them, in the light of the above argument is entirely removed. The great decision of the sanctuary is approaching. Then he that is holy will be holy still, and he that is filthy will be filthy still. In which company, reader, will you then be found, the righteous or the wicked? The Mighty Convulsion at the Flood.
MR. THOMAS DICK, the "Christian Philosopher," while speaking of earthquakes as one means which God sometimes uses to chastise the inhabitants of the earth for their wickedness, has the following remarks in reference to the convulsion the globe received at the flood: “We have also an experimental proof, that there are physical principles in the constitution of our globe, sufficient to give it a shock throughout every part of its solid mass, and that such a shock, at one period, is actually received. When the wickedness of man became great upon the earth, ‘when every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually,’ the fountains of the great deep were broken up, the cataracts of heaven were opened, and the whole solid crust of our globe received such a shock as rent the mountains assunder, and hurled them into the plains; the effects which are still visible, in every Alpine district, and in the subterraneous caverns of the earth. Of all the millions of the race of Adam that then existed, only eight individuals, after having been tossed for seven months on the tremendous billows of a boundless ocean, survived, to tell to their posterity the tidings of this universal wreck. The dreadful scenes of horror and consternation which must have been presented at this awful crisis, the stupendous forces which must have been in operation in the atmosphere above, and in the foundations of the earth beneath, and the tremendous clash of elemental war which must have ensued, throughout every region of earth, air, and sea,—it is beyond the power of the human imagination to depict, in all their terrific grandeur. But we have every reason to conclude, that the bottom of the ocean was lifted up to the level of the loftiest mountains, that disruptions of the mountains and of the densest rocks ensued, that dreadful explosions resounded throughout the whole expanse of nature, and that the mighty waters hurled their billows with resistless fury in every direction, rolling immense rocks and forests from one continent to another, and whirling the wrecks of different regions to the opposite extremities of the globe.”—Philos. of Religion, p. 33.
Confirmatory of this, we present the following paragraphs from Spiritual Gifts, Vol. iii, pp. 69, 70. The reader will be gratified to see the unanimity between the two records. “But upon the eighth day the heavens gathered blackness. The muttering thunders, and vivid lightning flashes began to terrify man and beast. The rain descended from the clouds above them. This was something they had never witnessed, and their hearts began to faint with fear. The beasts were roving about in the wildest terror, and their varied voices seemed to mourn out their own destiny and the fate of man. The storm increased in violence until water seemed to come from heaven like mighty cataracts. The boundaries of rivers broke away, and the waters rushed to the valleys. The foundations of the great deep also were broken up. Jets of water would burst up from the earth with indescribable force, throwing massive rocks hundreds of feet into the air, and then they would bury themselves deep in the earth. The people beheld the destruction, first of the works of their hands. Their splendid buildings, their beautifully arranged gardens and groves, where they had placed their idols, were destroyed by lightning from heaven. Their ruins were scattered everywhere.”
“The violence of the storm increased, and there were mingled with the warring of the elements, the wailings of the people who had despised the authority of God. Trees, buildings, rocks, and earth, were hurled in every direction. The terror of man and beast was beyond description. . . . Some in their desperation sought to break into the ark, but that firm made boat resisted all their efforts. Some clung to the ark until borne away with the furious surging of the waters, or their hold was broken off by rocks and trees that were hurled in every direction. Those who had slighted the warning of Noah, and ridiculed that faithful preacher of righteousness, repented too late of their unbelief. The ark was severely rocked and157 tossed about. The beasts within expressed by their varied noises the wildest terror, yet amid all the warring of the elements, the surging of the waters, and the hurling about of trees and rocks, the ark rode safely. Angels that excel in strength guided the ark and preserved it from harm.”
It is ever a source of gratification to see divine truth confirmed by the historian, the philosopher, or the man of science. And the foregoing we simply present as an instance of such corroboration. G. Note from Bro. Hutchins.
By A. S. Hutchins
Bro. White: The first Sabbath in Aug. I spent in Chelsea. Spoke to a few brethren and sisters, some of whom had not before heard preaching for more than two years. The next week, visited a number of friends and relatives in Vershire, West Fairlee, and Strafford. Met some Christian friends whom I had not met before since I left the Freewill Baptists; had good liberty in giving the reason of our hope. Sold a few books, and obtained one subscriber for the Review. The short visit in Strafford was very pleasant. The friends here desire to hear on the truth. Sabbath and first-day, 12th and 13th, held meetings with Bro. S. Pierce in Roxbury. By request of Eld. Ladd, we occupied the meeting-house on first-day. Elder Ladd was present, and with others, manifested much interest in the discourse of Bro. Pierce. On the 16th I spoke in Braintree, on the shortness of time, and the necessary preparation to meet the Lord. Here are a few who have recently embraced the Sabbath under the labors of Bro. Pierce, also other attentive hearers. Sabbath and first-day, 19th and 20th, we held meetings again in the meeting-house in Roxbury. Sickness and death probably kept a number from these meetings; yet we have reason to hope that some were benefited by them. A solemn conviction seemed to fasten upon the minds of some, that we have the truth on the Bible Sabbath. Oh, may such fully decide to obey God in all things. Our privileges with dear Bro. P. the past summer, were sweeter than language can express. But little did we think they were our last. We can never be too grateful that he has remained with us, till order is established in the church, and we have learned to give such servants of the Lord their proper place in the church of God. Men of so great moral worth, of such genuine piety and sober judgment, are to be loved on earth, for they are in Heaven. Their words, their prayers, their counsel in these perilous times, are more precious than gold, yea, than much fine gold. Our much-beloved brother Pierce and his family will live in the affections of God's people in the East. More About Fanaticism.
By R. F. Cottrell
We make another quotation from the History of the Reformation, Vol. III, pp. 216, 217, as follows: "The claims of a few fanatics to divine inspiration increased the evil. While the Reformation had continually appealed from the pretended authority of the church to the real authority of the holy Scriptures, these enthusiasts not only rejected the authority of the church, but of Scripture also; they spoke of an inner word, of an internal revelation from God; and overlooking the natural corruption of their hearts, they gave way to all the intoxication of spiritual pride, and fancied they were saints. "To them the holy Scriptures were but a dead letter," said Luther, "and they all began to cry, The Spirit, the Spirit. But most assuredly I will not follow where their spirit leads them. May God of his mercy preserve me from a church in which there are none but saints. I desire to dwell with the humble, the feeble, the sick, who know and feel their sins, and who groan and cry continually to God from the bottom of their hearts to obtain his consolation and support." These words of Luther's have great depth of meaning, and point out the change that was taking place in his views as to the nature of the church. They indicate at the same time how contrary were the religious opinions of the rebels to those of the Reformation." There are those at the present time who claim to be following in the footsteps of the Reformation, who nevertheless pursue the course of those whom our candid author denominates the rebels, fanatics and enthusiasts, thus distinguishing them from the real reformers of the time. They are, in their own estimation, so filled with the Spirit—so fruitful of the "inner word"—that the outer word, the holy Scriptures, can scarcely produce any conviction on their minds. Point out their errors by the word of the Lord, show them the commandments of God which they are violating, and they will appeal from the Bible to the "internal-revelation from God." Say they, It cannot be that we are wrong in this; for if we were, the Lord would not bless us as he does. We know that he accepts of us by the spirit he has given us. Like Luther, I would not follow the "leadings of their spirit." I prefer the spirit of obedience to the written word of God. And any spirit that sets aside the claims of that word upon such a claim or any other, I do not fear to say is not of God. Yet upon such a pretense many try to evade their obligation to keep the seventh day according to the fourth commandment. They feel rich in spiritual goods, having need of nothing, and know not that they are "poor, and miserable, and wretched, and blind, and naked." If such cannot be aroused to their obligation to obey God's word, their case is hopeless. As it was in the beginning of the Reformation, so it is now. Real reformers cling to the holy Scriptures, while fanatics of one class cry, The Spirit, and those of another, The Spirits. The one disparages the word, the other openly rejects it. The tendency of both is158 against the truth; and it is well to consider which is the most dangerous, the open enemy from without, or the disguised one in the bosom of the professed church. The great question before the people at the present time is whether we will have the Bible or not. The Reformation has put this sacred treasure in our hands, and we have time enough, graciously given us of God, to correct our errors and conform to its teachings. Now, in the closing up of the work of the Reformation, we are called upon to decide between the commandments of God and the doctrines and traditions of men. If we choose the Bible, we must take it as it is, and be guided by its teachings and requirements as it reads. Otherwise we range ourselves on the side of those who reject it altogether. The prophetic message of that Word, recorded in Rev. xiv, 9–12, asks us now to take our choice; and our final destiny depends upon the decision we make. Thrillingly interesting and important question! Transcendently momentous decision! Reader, will you have the Bible? Who are on the side of the Reformation? Those who continue the work of forsaking the errors of the Roman apostasy and conforming to the teachings of the Bible, or those who think the great work of the Reformation already completed? Those who take the latter view forget that the human heart is always inclined to follow tradition instead of learning the truth. Such, in order to be consistent with themselves, ought to belong to the first established churches of the Reformation. They ought not to be dissenters, and dissenters from dissenters. A Wesleyan Methodist used the following argument in conversation with me, against the Sabbath reform now advocated by us. "You acknowledge," said he, "that the Reformation of the sixteenth century was from God. But those reformers kept the first day of the week; and to be consistent with yourself you ought to keep it. But you teach that we should discard the first day and keep the seventh, thus taking ground against the Reformation." How could I answer this argument from a Wesleyan—a dissenter from a church of dissenters from the English church—that church which claims to be the "church of the martyrs?" Of course I could not retort that to be consistent with himself he should find his way back to the church of England; but I must candidly meet his argument with an argument. Here then is my argument: The grand principle taught by the Reformation was that men should turn from all doctrines, ceremonies, traditions and customs not taught in the Bible. "The Bible, and the Bible alone" was the motto. He that stands opposed to this principle stands opposed to the Reformation. Your first day Sabbath is not found in the Bible. Then if we adhere to the principle of the Reformation, we shall discard the first day and embrace the seventh—the Sabbath of the Bible. There must be some sophistry in an argument that places a man in opposition to the Reformation, because he adheres to the Bible. The Reformation is of God; and if those who profess to be its adherents have not cast away all their traditional errors and embraced all the Bible truth, it is certain that the Reformation is not yet completed. Consequently we should labor on in the good cause, so nobly commenced by our ancestors, and show ourselves true sons of so brave and noble sires. If they had seen all the light which we see, they would have embraced it. But God saw fit not to show them all the light, but to lead them out to commence the work and give their successors the opportunity to pursue it, and the last generation to finish it. Thus he gives us all a trial of our faith—a chance to labor in the same good cause, and to be imitators of those who laid down their own necks to the guillotine, were led to the blessing faggots, or were cast to the wild beasts, for the Heaven-born principle of adherence to Bible truth, in opposition to the doctrines and commandments of men. It is a question whether those who oppose any further reform than that attained in the sixteenth century—whether they would not, had they lived in those days, found some excuse for adherence to the "mother church," and left the Reformation, which now they prize so highly, to struggle on as best it might without their aid, or die in its infancy for want of reformers. But these remarks do not apply to my friend, in all their length and breadth; for he is not satisfied with the attainments of the first reformers, but is a reformer still. Had he not been a reformer, he never would have been a Methodist; for the rise of Methodism was a real reform, in that it proved salvation to be free. And still he is a reformer, or he never would have become a Wesleyan, thus taking a stand in advance of the old church which she was not prepared to take, until she was forced, as it were, to take it by the great pro-slavery rebellion. (A remarkable conversion! would it might prove genuine!) My friend, I say, is a reformer. He is welcome to take another step in the way of reform by embracing the Sabbath of the Bible. By so doing he will not derogate from the honor of the first reformers, but will be following their illustrious example. The reader will pardon the digression. I was to say something about fanaticism. Perhaps I shall still further pursue the subject in another article. Meets us in so many forms, and so frequently, that we become hardened; and as the war-worn soldier becomes accustomed to the scenes of battle and slaughter, so do we become accustomed to scenes of death and suffering. All around is decay, and only constant care and toil are able to renew and keep in repair the works of man; and nature itself, too, seems to languish. Not only does autumn bring blight and decay, but often we witness the destruction from unknown causes, of trees, plants, grain, and vegetables; and sometimes want and famine follow. The damps of night sow the seeds of pestilence, and the sultry heat of noon distracts the head with pain. Summer brings its fevers, and winter its chills. Diseases lie in wait for the hardy mountaineer, and for the dweller in the valley; and coffins and shrouds are as much needed at sea as on the land. Miasmatic, pestilential odors, arise from the decaying substances upon the ground, in the deep valleys, and in the forest; and, flying upon the winds carry sickness and death; and dreadful plagues breed among the filthiest of our race, and then travel around the globe. No more can we rely upon the purity of our food. The dweller in the city, gets perhaps even the cream for his coffee thickened with drugs and thinned with water; his beefsteak may have been cut from a carcass deceased with murrain; and his nice cut of bacon is probably perforated with scrofula. He knows not but sick wheat may have been mingled in the flour which composes his bread; and his nice potatoes may be just ready to turn into a mass of corruption. If he is sick, empirics stand ready to drug him with a thousand poisons, each with his own patent nostrum, for "only a dollar a bottle;" or the different "pathies," for from one to five dollars per visit, will hasten him with all medical decency to the tomb. All the different mineral and vegetable poisons, so deleterious to the man in health, are good for him when sick if administered in professional style; and a certain class of men may use opium, arsenic, lobelia, mercurial preparations, and all the various poisons may enrich their list of remedies, and thousands of victims may fail, yet no law can touch them, even if they deserve the felon's fate. Careless, drunken engineers and conductors, sea captains and pilots, do yearly hasten the death of thousands; and crafty distillers, to increase their gains, do make their alcoholic beverages ten times more poisonous than alcohol. The drunkard looks like a poisoned man; and the tobacco, so commonly used, does not abate the tide of death, but like a lulling opiate, puts men beyond the reach of argument, and accelerates their ruin. Death is a curse upon our race. Thorns, weeds, and thistles, are a curse; yet by some strange fancy, some would try to make it out, that all these are a benefit. They are of use, just as the rod is of use in training the child; for purposes of chastisement, and to hold in check the pride of man, which would otherwise overrun all bounds. J. CLARKE. Thoughts of Christ and Human Need
He that thinks he hath no need of Christ, hath too high thought of himself; he that thinks Christ cannot save him, hath too low thoughts of Christ. Geology and the Bible.
By G.
THE present age is notorious for its bare-faced skepticism and unbelief. The most specious sophistry is used to undermine the Christian's faith in revealed religion. In this, Spiritualism and Infidelity seem to coalesce. And the united efforts of the various free-thinkers are seen in their unmasked war against the Bible. If they can shake the faith of society in the Scriptures, their accursed end is gained. To this end they attempt to oppose science against revelation, and foremost in this comes the dreamy, incoherent utterances of geologists. Geology, say they, proves that the pentateuch is a fable, and that the earth was created millions of years since, and thus the faith of some is overthrown. But, thank Heaven! truth will stand firm, though puny man may mock at his Maker, and decry against his word. How much believers in the Holy Scriptures have to fear from the infant science of geology, may be inferred from the following paragraph in the Comprehensive Commentary, on Gen. i, 2. It is from the pen of Mr. Turner, and that well-known geographer, Malte-Brun. "The silence of the Mosaic record on the particular history of our geological construction, allows free latitude to every speculation, and repels no philosophical investigator. It merely presents a few points and outlines, which nothing has yet occurred to disprove, although much has been observed, which it requires great talents, enlarged reasoning, and further knowledge to reconcile to them with precision, and to explain what may seem inconsistent. This, however, additional researches may be expected to effect; for it is probable that that theory will be found the truest, the most scientific, and the most satisfactory, which is the most coincident with the Hebrew document." Turner. How little the Mosaic account has to fear at present from the infant science of geology, may be learned from the words of an eminent geographer. "The pretended science of speculative geology, promises no certain results, since it oversteps the evidence of facts. The portion of the globe known to us, does not constitute, at the very utmost, the thousandth part of its entire mass. Our excavations do little more than scratch the surface of the earth; our geologists have surveyed with attention scarcely the half of Europe, or the tenth part of America and Asia; the observations which have been made are extremely few; and yet unbounded scope has been given to speculation. In the vast and unexplored recesses of the globe, it is possible that there may lie, concealed, agents so active and so powerful, that to them the various revolutions which the earth has undergone, may have been the work only of so many moments. As long as the interior of the globe remains unknown to us, the conclusion we may draw from facts observed on the surface, can be no more than probable in reference to these facts; but whenever we attempt to combine the conclusions, in order to form a general system, their uncertainty will clearly appear; for, opposite to a finite sum of probabilities, however strong we may suppose them, there shall arise an infinite sum of unknown terms, of which one alone may perhaps be sufficient to counterbalance all our probabilities." Malte-Brun. Report from Bro. Fuller.
By N. Fuller
BRO. WHITE: As the Conference year is about to close, I thought I would write something of my labors and experience. I have not labored as much as I should on account of a severe sickness which came upon me last spring. I was taken with the measles the 28th day of April, and had to lay by several weeks on account of losing my voice and strength; but have labored some, a part of the time among the churches, and a part of the time in new places. In June I visited the church at Catlin, Chemung Co., N. Y., and labored some with them. I found them in a prospering condition. The blessing of God rested upon us each time we met together. There was a good interest outside. Others, by their good works, are being led to glorify their Father in Heaven. I next visited the church in Wheeler, Steuben Co., N. Y., where I found the little band of commandment-keepers still strong in the Lord and in the power of his might. We had some meetings in a barn, and some in a grove which had been prepared for camp-meetings. It was easy preaching the word, and I think the word was effectual. Two were buried with Christ by baptism, and joined the little company of pilgrims to journey to the better land. After laboring some in Pennsylvania, I reached Lancaster the 7th of July, where I met Bro. R. F. Cottrell, and we held a Quarterly Meeting with the brethren and friends in that part of the State. I think our meeting was a profitable one. I saw nothing discouraging, and think I could labor there hoping to see others brought into the truth. From thence I returned and held several meetings in a new place in the town of Belfast, Allegany Co., N. Y., where some interest was manifest, and I expect soon to return. I have labored at Roulette, Potter Co., Pa., at different times this summer, where about twenty decided last winter to obey the truth. A good interest has been kept up in their prayer-meetings, and I trust some at least, if not all, of these dear souls may at last reach the goal of rest. But those who come out under the last message of mercy to a fallen world, must first, if they expect the rich showers of the outpouring of the Spirit of God, and of his grace, leave every other influence and become wholly united with the people to whom God has committed this message. I would to God that this truth was impressed as it should be upon every one that becomes interested in this great and important work. I have often met with the church in this (Allegany) County, and I have been encouraged sometimes to think that the Lord was about to do a great work for this people, and make them a beacon light to those around them. But there is a lack on the part of some in regard to holy living, a preparatory work that must be done in order that God can work through his people. Does the church want the refreshing of the latter rain? the loud voice of the third angel to echo in the ears of this generation to awaken the honest, that they may flee for refuge, and lay hold on the hope set before them? If so, let the church come up to the standard of holy living; let them come into the unity of the faith. Let them prize the gifts God has set in the church as they should, and let us pray that God may bring every gift into working order; and then the power of God will be manifest in doing for his people what they cannot do for themselves in fitting them up for translation. The angels of God are interested in this great work, and why should we not act our part, that it may at last be said to us, "Well done, good and faithful servant; enter thou into the joy of thy Lord." Nile, N. Y., Sept. 27, 1865. MAKE use of me, my God!
Let me be not forgot;
A broken vessel cast aside,
One whom thou needest not. I am thy creature, Lord,
And made by hands divine;
And I am part, however mean,
Of this great world of thine. Thou usest all thy work,
The weakest things that be;
Each has a service of its own,
For all things wait on thee. Thou usest the high stars,
The tiny drops of dew,
The giant peak, and little hill;—
My God, Oh, use me too! Thou usest tree and flower,
The rivers vast and small;
The eagle great, the little bird
That sings upon the wall. Thou usest the wide sea,
The little hidden lake,
The pine upon the Alpine cliff,
The lily in the brake; The huge rock in the vale,
The sand-grain by the sea,
The thunder of the rolling cloud,
The murmur of the bee. All things do serve thee here,
All creatures, great and small;
Make use of me, of me, my God,
The weakest of them all. Wants His Paper Stopped.
By G.
THE undersigned, whose name and address we withhold, evidently is not very well pleased with the Review. We give his letter, which in every respect is true to the original: September the 24 1865
Mr James White Sir I Seete My selef this Morning for the purpass of droping you afew Lines in order to Let you know that I Wish to hav the paper stop the paper that you send to Me I Never subcribe for it and it dont Sute My Religioun and one of your breethern sent it for Me and dont send Enny More for God sake Wenn I Get to think that a man is Mere brute I Will let you know Nor Nether doo I beliv in your Sabath Nor doo I beliv that thes is the last days for you dont know More than the Angels and we are told that they dont know Our friend seems to be in high dudgeon, and we certainly hope the paper has not injured him, the few numbers he has received. It was doubtless sent to him by some of his friends, who thought he might thereby be benefited, and we, per directions, mailed him the Review. There is one point in his letter, however, which rather puzzles us. He says, "Wenn I Get to think that a man is Mere brute I Will let you know." Now there are three kingdoms, the animal, the mineral, and the vegetable. Mr. — seems to disclaim all connection with the animal kingdom, and the query with us is, to which of the other two does he belong? We mail him one more No. and beg pardon. Just as the brain may be removed from a tortoise, and the animal will still live, so, too, without brains, will certain books live. The arts of the publisher, and the circulating library, keep them in motion. Their life, however, is purely mechanical, and consists in being lifted from shelf to shelf. WORK for the Lord while you are waiting for him; wait for him while you are working.