Review and Herald, Vol. 92, No. 49.
Abide in Me, and I in YouPage 1
Earlier text: Abide in Me, and I in YouThe Blessed Bible
By G. B. Thompson
WHEN Sir Walter Scott lay dying, he is reported to have turned to a friend and said, “Lockhart, my dear, reach me the Book.” “What book?” said his friend. “Ah,” said the great man, “there is but one theme, and one book, for a dying man, and that is Christianity and the Bible.” When the death damp gathers, and the relentless tyrant Death, with his icy hands, begins to feel for our heartstrings, and we stand looking into the portals of the tomb, it is then that the tremendous pillars of truth revealed in God’s Word stand out in their grandeur and power, bringing hope to the soul. The old Book stands, notwithstanding the assaults of its enemies. Voltaire boasted that “with one hand he would overthrow the edifice of Christianity, which required the hands of twelve apostles to build up.” Voltaire has disappeared, and it is said that the very presses which printed his arrogant blasphemies have been used for years to print Bibles. Thomas Paine is reported to have said, “I have gone up and down through the Christian garden of Eden, and with my simple ax I have cut down one after another of its trees till I have scarcely left a sapling standing.” But Paine is gone, and his ribald calumny and impious vilification have left the Scriptures of Truth unscathed. The Bible still lives. Men have reviled the Bible, but have never been able to refute it. Skeptics have marched around it and examined its foundations. It has had a multitude of vulgar assailants who, in various ways, have endeavored to show that it was but a book of myth and fable. Science has tested this Gibraltar of strength by casting against the Bible the husks and hulls of its logic and its conclusions. But the effort has been in vain. Historians have denied some of the Bible’s most important statements, only to have the spade of the explorer turn up afterward tablets which established the Word, and caused its enemies to go in search of some new material with which to daub their untempered wall. Geologists have ransacked the bowels of the earth, and as a result have reached certain conclusions, showing that the old Book is mistaken. But, like the witnesses who condemned Jesus, no two ever agree. Yea, verily, more than eighteen hundred years of research and criticism only serve to establish the Bible as the infallible word of God. Dr. Cummings has truly said:— The empire of Cæsar is gone; the legions of Rome are moldering in the dust; the avalanches that Napoleon hurled upon Europe have melted away; the pride of the Pharaohs is fallen; the pyramids they raised to be their tombs are sinking every day in the desert sands; Tyre is a rock for bleaching fishermen’s nets; Sidon has scarcely left a wreck behind; but the Word of God still survives. All things that threatened to extinguish it have only aided it; and it proves every day how transient is the noblest monument that man can build, how enduring is the least word that God has spoken. Tradition has dug for it a grave; Intolerance has lighted for it many a fagot; many a Judas has betrayed it with a kiss; many a Peter has denied it with an oath; many a Demas has forsaken it; but the Word of God still endures.
A Great Concerted Effort
By Frank M. Wilcox
WE are now beginning another great missionary campaign in behalf of our foreign missions. Great blessings have resulted from the campaigns of past years. Those who have taken part in the work have experienced a blessing in their own hearts as they have gone out among their friends and neighbors, great blessing has come to our foreign missions in the contributions which have been received, and blessings have been imparted to the givers of these offerings. We earnestly hope that this year, as never before, there will be a strong, concerted effort on the part of our entire membership. Particularly in the North American Division should earnest effort be put forth by every member of the church in the circulation of the Harvest Ingathering Signs. We have never had such a beautiful missionary number to carry to the people. How it thrills one's heart to read of the manner in which God is going out before his people, and the blessed experiences which he is giving to the workers. Our Pacific Press brethren have done most commendable work in the mechanical make-up and printing of this number of the Signs. In the past we have got out some beautiful numbers of both the REVIEW and the Signs, but this year's missions number is the best of all. We may carry it to our friends and neighbors with confidence and assurance, and we may believe also that the Lord will go before us and impress the hearts of the people to give us a kindly reception. Already our churches are responding most heartily for this campaign. It would appear now that a larger number of the Signs will be circulated than was ever circulated either of the Signs or the REVIEW. But it is not enough that this work should be done by even a majority of our church membership. The interest of the minority needs to be enlisted. The faltering ones should be encouraged. Those who have never taken part should be induced to take part in the campaign this year. Those who have gone out in the past, and have felt that they made a failure, should be encouraged to go out this year, trusting God to turn the defeat of the past into victory. Two years ago the writer engaged in the Harvest Ingathering campaign, but had nothing whatever to show in the way of donations for his effort, although he did obtain rich blessings otherwise. Last year he again took up the work, expecting richer blessings and greater material results. Three days were spent in soliciting, with most encouraging results financially and otherwise. He speaks of this for the encouragement of others who have had a similar experience. Let every one go out again this year, regardless of what the past has brought. Go out with prayer, with faith, with confidence that God will open the way before you and give you a hearing, that you may reach the hearts of the people through the words which his Spirit gives you to speak. He will not leave you to confusion, but will bring to your soul rich blessings. THERE are balky horses and balky individuals. Recently in a Western town the driver of a balky horse was arrested for impeding traffic, even though he protested earnestly that he was doing his best to get his horse to move on. In the same way a balky member of the church not only brings disgrace on himself, but upon the church as well. The world looks on and judges the entire membership by his frowardness. As members of the church of God we are representatives of the Father whose children we profess to be, and of the brethren and sisters in the church. Let us be careful that we give a right representation. Justified, How?
By T. GODFREY
“How then can man be justified with God, or how can he be clean that is born of woman?” Job 25:4. BEFORE the fall of man, man maintained his righteousness by obedience to the law of God, the law witnessing to the same. At that time man was upright, or righteous. Eccl. 7:29. He was perfect in his nature. Gen. 1:26, 31. Then there was no sin in the world. There was no sickness, no sorrow, no crying, no pain, no death. Then man conversed with God face to face. Holy angels were his daily companions and instructors. The effulgence of God's glory and presence flooded the garden of God. Joy and peace reigned supreme. Oh, how we long for the return of those days of innocence, when again we can see him face to face. Rev. 21:1-7; 22:1-4. But there came a time when man disobeyed the voice of God (the law of God), and fell from that high, holy, and intimate relation with God and holy beings, and was brought under the law (Rom. 6:14); under condemnation (Rom. 5:18); under sentence of death, for God had said, “In the day thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die” (Gen. 2:17). The lawlessness of man had separated between him and his God, and his sins had hidden God's face from him. Isa. 59:2. Therefore the law could no longer witness to man's righteousness. The law of God, like its author, is eternal (Deut. 33:27; Ps. 111:7, 8) and unchangeable in its very nature (Ps. 89:34; Mal. 3:6; Eccl. 3:14). Therefore the law could not be repealed or amended, neither could sentence for its violation be changed or commuted. Man could not be his own deliverer. He could not deliver himself by works. Man was in a lost condition. He was without hope and without God in the world. Eph. 2:11, 12. But God, through his infinite wisdom, had provided for fallen man a way of escape from sin and death. This plan was laid before the world began (1 Peter 1:18-20), and was put into effect at the fall of man. Concerning this plan of redemption, the Word of God says:— “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved. He that believeth on him is not condemned: but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.” John 3:16-18. God gave his only begotten Son to become a substitute for fallen man, to die in his stead to satisfy the demands of a broken law, for man had transgressed the law that demanded the life of the transgressor. Says the apostle Paul:— “But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. Much more then, being now justified by his blood, we shall be saved from wrath through him. For if, when we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, being reconciled, we shall be saved by his life. And not only so, but we also joy in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom we have now received the atonement” (“reconciliation,” margin). Rom. 5:8-11. “Herein is love, not that we loved God, but that he loved us, and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins.” 1 John 4:10. Since the fall of man, we are justified by faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, the law witnessing to our righteousness. Jesus having died for us, we accept him as our substitute and personal Saviour. We become dead to the law through him. We are no longer under its condemnation. Says the apostle:— “For I through the law am dead to the law, that I might live unto God. I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me.” Gal. 2:19, 20. “But that no man is justified by the law in the sight of God, it is evident: for, The just shall live by faith.” Gal. 3:11. “For by the law is the knowledge of sin.” Rom. 3:20. The apostle Paul tells us that he had not known sin or lust except the law had said, “Thou shalt not covet.” Rom. 7:7. “Knowing that a man is not justified by the works of the law, but by the faith of Jesus Christ, even we have believed in Jesus Christ, that we might be justified by the faith of Christ, and not by the works of the law: for by the works of the law shall no flesh be justified.” Gal. 2:16. “Is the law then against the promises of God? God forbid: for if there had been a law given which could have given life, verily righteousness should have been by the law. But the scripture hath concluded all under sin, that the promise by faith of Jesus Christ might be given to them that believe.” Gal. 3:21, 22. “Do we then make void the law through faith? God forbid: yea, we establish [confirm] the law.” Rom. 3:31. “The Towers and Bulwarks of Zion”
By AMMY W. WELSH
The heading of this article is the subject of a sermon by French E. Oliver, D. D. (Presbyterian), in the Christian Herald of April 14, 1915. The following extract from it contains truth that will be especially appreciated by the readers of the REVIEW. His text is Ps. 48:12-14. After naming Zion’s towers as being Divine Revelation, Saving Faith, Righteousness, and Personal Service, he says:— “The towers of Zion are guarded and protected by impregnable bulwarks. The first bulwark for our consideration is that mighty fortress called Creation. Upon it we read, ‘In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.’ There is scientific and philosophic security in hiding behind that bulwark. I pity the man who is larger than the rampart behind which he tries to hide. I am sorry for the little professors who are trying to hide behind a ‘protoplastic monad,’ or ‘spontaneous generation,’ or any other paper fort of atheistic evolution. “The people of the earth who are hunting for a satisfactory explanation of creation can find it in the Bible: ‘Through faith we understand that the worlds were framed by the word of God, so that things which are seen were not made of things which do appear.’ The fallacy of denying God in creation is easily proved. All creation pulsates with life; and it is stupendous folly to claim that life is produced by a pulseless, lifeless, inanimate nonentity. “The second bulwark which I behold in Zion is God’s law. Law or lust rules every life in the world. You are servant to whom you yield yourself servant to9 obey. The man who hates and breaks the ten commandments is not fit to be trusted ten seconds. “Law is necessary to every worthy enterprise. There must be order and system in our thinking and living, or else disorder, chaos, and mental degeneracy will prevail. “Had God not preached the ten commandments to Moses on Mt. Sinai, Jesus would never have preached the beatitudes on the mount to the assembled multitudes. “The man who pretends to love the Sermon on the Mount, and who hates the commandments, which are called the law of God, is not the man to trust. Christ came not to destroy the law, but to fulfill it. . . . “The third bulwark in Zion is God’s love. . . . Every child of God can say with Isaiah, ‘Thou hast loved my soul from the pit of corruption.’ . . . “When we have the knowledge of his presence and blessing, we can see the wisdom of obeying the next exhortation of the text: ‘Tell it to the generation following.’” It seems a great pity that one holding such sound views on creation and the ten commandments, and who sees so clearly that they, with God’s love, are the great bulwarks of Zion, should not also see and teach the relation of the Sabbath to all three, and its important significance. The Sabbath was made for and given to man at creation, as its great memorial by which he should know God as creator. Gen. 2:1-3. It became, as such, the seal of his power or authority as lawgiver; and so we find it as the fourth commandment of his great moral law given from Mt. Sinai. Ex. 20:8-11. And now that man had sinned, it became the sign or pledge of God’s power and love to redeem or save him; for only the Creator and Lawgiver can save, or recreate, man unto obedience to God. Ex. 31:13, 17. When we know that God ‘created all things by Jesus Christ’ (Eph. 3:19); that ‘God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto himself’ (2 Cor. 5:17); and that he ‘so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son’ to bear the penalty of man’s transgression and become his righteousness (John 3:16), we see clearly that God’s great seal of authority and sign of salvation is also Christ’s; and that he is indeed ‘Lord also of the Sabbath day’ (Mark 2:27, 28). When we consider its great importance as the sign between God and his people, that they may know him who only can save, and he them as his peculiar people whom he is sanctifying unto himself (Ex. 31:13, 17; Eze. 20:12, 20), we understand why Satan strove to make man forget it in the Old Testament times, and substituted the counterfeit, papal, Sunday sabbath in the New Testament age. As the closing gospel message of reform on the commandments of God and the faith of Jesus (Rev. 14:6-16) tests this generation, we find that the cross of Christ in “the time of the end” is in this Sabbath question: so we need not be surprised that Satan opposes it so bitterly. Like every other great reform-message of the Bible, when the time comes for its proclamation, it becomes a ‘savor of life’ or of ‘death,’ according to the way we relate ourselves to it. Shall not we who have experienced some of the promised blessings in its acceptance (Isa. 58:13, 14; 56), ‘tell it’ to ‘every nation, and kindred, and tongue, and people?’ Let us take heed lest, like the Jews of old who rested in the outward sign of circumcision, though lacking the righteousness it signified, we be found doing likewise in Sabbath observance at this time when our King is examining the guests for the marriage supper of his Son. Surely we must not be found lacking the furnished wedding garment of Christ’s righteousness. Matt. 22:1-14; Rev. 19:7-9. Our own, however it may seem to us, is but ‘filthy rags.’ Isa. 64:6. The Autumn Hills
By Llewellyn A. Wilcox
In the twilight of the year
Nature dons her robes of splendor;
From her high throne, tier on tier,
With gay dryads to attend her,
She stretches out her scepter o'er the hills,
And, lo, all recreant glory wakes and thrills. Clothed in crimson, bound in brown,
Robed in russet, garbed in golden,
From the topmost summit down,—
Hoary ash and maples olden
Bow in the breeze throughout the autumn days,
On distant peaks, through amethystic haze. Mellowed grown, the year at end,
From the flowery valleys driven,
In its glory doth ascend
Toward the lambent lights of heaven.
I lift mine eyes unto the holy hills,
And all my soul with loftier feeling fills. The Sabbath Not Changed
By Henry Balsbaugh
THE supposition of so many that the Sabbath has been changed, or that the identity of the day has been lost, is not according to the Scriptures. The Sabbath is first mentioned at the time of creation as the seventh day and God's rest day. Gen. 2:2, 3. God blessed and sanctified it, which made it a holy day, and in this respect different from the other six days. Therefore we are commanded to “remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy.” When “God saw everything that he had made, and behold, it was very good” (Gen. 1:31), the work of the six previous days was included in what he saw as being “very good,” but he blessed and sanctified only the seventh day. The seventh day is first called the Sabbath in Ex. 16:26. The word “remember” signifies something already known. Therefore, in this instance, it refers to the time when God made the seventh day a different day from the other days. “The Sabbath was made for man.” Mark 2:27. The purpose of the Sabbath also furnishes a strong proof that it was never changed nor lost. According to the Sabbath commandment (Ex. 20:8-11), God's manifest purpose of the Sabbath is to keep alive in man's mind a memorial of God's goodness and wisdom and power as first shown at the creation of the world. Christ's saying the Sabbath was made for man, is renewed assurance that it was made a means for man's constant good, and that this is a fixed purpose as long as there is a man. This being so, it is evident that Christ contemplated no change of the Sabbath day. True Witnesses All the Way
About twenty-five hundred years after the Sabbath was made, Moses called attention to the exact day by the fact that on that day God withheld the fall of manna. Ex. 16:25, 26. In the time of Christ there was no question about the identity of the day. “As his custom was, he went into the synagogue on the Sabbath day, and stood up for to read.” Luke 4:16. In this direct testimony of Christ's time there is a twofold witness for the true day, for, besides this being Christ's custom, it was also the Jews' custom to worship on the Sabbath day. As “the Sabbath was made for man,” this custom shows how God uses man's natural intelligence to help preserve a knowledge of the day he ordained for man. Christ and the Jews knew the very day. The Jews, as a race, still live, scattered throughout the world. From generation to generation they have naturally and accurately retained a knowledge of the true Sabbath since Christ's time, as truly as from the time of Moses to Christ's time. The Jews, therefore, have been living witnesses in all these generations up to our time, that the seventh day, now called Saturday, is the original Sabbath day. Many think that changes of calendars have disarranged the week, so making the very day uncertain. In October, 1582, such a change was made to correct ten days of inaccurate reckoning of time, sometimes called “lost time.” The correction was made by calling October 5 October 15. Oct. 5, 1582, was Tuesday, and that Tuesday was then called October 15. Nothing has ever occurred or can occur to change the order of the days of the week. Some months have more days than others, and leap year has a day more than the common year, yet the days of the week always remain the same. Made for Time and Eternity
In all the prophecies as well as in all the history of the Bible there is not found the least uncertainty regarding the true Sabbath day. In Rev. 14:12 there is a prophecy that reaches to the end of probationary time. It reads, “Here are they that keep the commandments of God.” The commandments of God are the ten commandments. This scripture leaves no room to doubt that all the commandments are meant, the Sabbath commandment as truly as the others. The fulfillment of this prophecy is just before the second coming of Christ. Read verses 14 and 15. Prophecy being as true as history, this prophecy is another plain proof that until the coming of Christ the Sabbath remains unchanged, and also the knowledge of the exact day. Another prophecy, Isa. 66:22, 23, carries us into eternity. This scripture connects both time and the Sabbath with eternity. It is doubtless as clear and fitting a proof as can be found anywhere to persuade and convince us that when God made the seventh day his rest day and Sabbath (Gen. 2:2; Ex. 16:26), he made it to continue unchanged and unlost for time and eternity. These witnesses and proofs, by the providence of God, are full assurance that it is impossible to lose the true Sabbath10 day. Whosoever will sincerely and prayerfully heed them may know which day is the Sabbath, for the Bible teaches us to “prove all things; hold fast that which is good.” 1 Thess. 5:21. Because the Sabbath is an evident, great, everlasting truth, let us be persuaded that just as evidently God's watch care is ever upon it to preserve the selfsame day forever. The Meek
By MRS. H. E. HOPKINS
‘Blessed are the meek: for they shall inherit the earth.’ It was a spirit of meekness that one of Christ’s chosen disciples possessed, willing to be taught. Every word that the Master imparted to the disciples was eagerly received and cherished in the heart of Matthew. Though a man of wealth, he was desirous to make any sacrifice for the advancement of Christ’s kingdom. He had a heart full of love for the Saviour, whose teachings had a great attraction for him; and when Jesus said, “Follow me,” he willingly did so, although he felt that it was an undeservable honor conferred upon him. To be in his presence was the disciple’s delight; he gladly listened to his words of wisdom, and beheld his wonderful works. Is not this a lesson for the true child of God in this present age, while forming a character for a home in the new earth? He is willing not only to listen to words of wisdom to fit him for the future home, but anxious to treasure them up in his heart. He follows the divine leading, neither murmuring nor doubting as to whether he should or should not. Like the sweet singer of Israel, he can say, “I delight to do thy will, O my God: yea, thy law is within my heart.” May these beautiful words find a ready response in the heart of every humble disciple of the meek and lowly Jesus. ‘If we possess the humility of the Master, we will rise above the slights, the rebuffs, the annoyances to which we are daily exposed, and they will cease to cast a gloom over the spirit.’ ‘Lowliness of heart is the strength that gives victory to the followers of Christ.’ God Is Not Partial; He Treats All Alike
By W. F. Caldwell
LUCIFER questioned the Son’s ability to rule the universe in the manner most beneficial to all his creatures. He claimed that he was better qualified than the Son to stand at the head of God’s government, next to the Most High. He declared that because he was his Son, God was partial toward Jesus, and was placing him in the position which rightfully belonged to Lucifer. Therefore he would not submit to the Son’s government, but would speedily prove to God that he had made a mistake in making the Son ruler in place of Lucifer. As a first step in this process of setting God right, Lucifer started a rebellion in heaven. Driven from that field by lack of sympathy, he sought and found entrance to the earth. See Isa. 14:12-14. Adam and Eve were under the direct government of God. He walked and talked with them. “They heard the voice of the Lord God walking in the garden.” But Eve entertained a question of his wisdom, and doubted his motive in forbidding them the fruit of the tree of knowledge of good and evil. She concluded that she was better able to decide for herself. She feared the Lord was depriving her of her rights. She rejected the Son’s government, and fell under the rule of the only other power. This is the process by which sin still gains entrance to man’s life. When one sins, he rejects the government of the Son. He decides to take matters into his own hands. When one rebels against the Son, the rebel chief immediately takes possession. Man has not sufficient power or wisdom to rule himself in his own best interests. There are just two ruling powers, the Son of God, and Lucifer, who is also called that old serpent, the devil, and Satan. The Son is God’s anointed. Lucifer is the rebel against his government. The question before men has always been the same that was placed before Adam and Eve: Who shall be your ruler? Will you obey the Son of God and walk with him, or will you deny the holy one of Israel and walk in your own ways, which are ordered by the chief rebel? “The prince of this world” offers his followers riches, fame, power, and even the kingdoms of this world if they will fall down and worship him. But his promises are vain. He is but a rebel. “Come now, and let us reason together, saith the Lord: though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow.” He tells you that, no matter if you have been a rebel, if you will confess your error and yield to his rule, he will blot out your transgression. He will cleanse you from all unrighteousness, and place you where the first Adam stood. This is Christ’s offer, and he has power to fulfill his promise. He is King of kings and Lord of lords. He is the great High Priest. “All power” is given into his hands, and very soon he will return to earth and take possession of his dominions, thrusting forth all rebels. Then the falsity of Lucifer’s claims and his utter impotence will be manifest. From the refuse of sin’s process, the Saviour gathers a people who, through his grace, so completely overcome sin and the destructive power of its course, that they even triumph over death, and many of them are translated without seeing death. Through the questioning doubt of Eve, Satan has flooded the earth with sin, sorrow, pain, and death. And through this same channel, woman, God has sent a flood of righteousness to meet and drive back the destructive deluge. Eve doubted God’s word, admitting sin. Mary believed his word, and gave birth to his Righteousness. Which example will you follow? We have the same opportunity that Adam had. Jesus, the Son, is “the same yesterday, and today, and forever.” With him is “no variableness, neither shadow of turning.” Dutch Johnny
By Alta B. Harvey
For several years past a familiar figure upon the streets of our city is a vegetable vender who bears the figurative name of “Dutch Johnny.” He is known to almost every man, woman, and child in the city, and his bluff good nature and quaint way of calling his wares bring smiles to every face he meets. One day last spring while passing by our house he was met by one of our brethren, and they stopped just outside of my window to talk, seemingly a continuance of some former conversation. Our brother tried hard to convince him of the Sabbath truth, but without avail, and as they parted to go their separate ways, I heard the vender say, “I am nothing but a dumb Dutchman, but my preacher, he knows all about it.” My heart ached as I thought how many others have made just such a remark, maybe not in the quaint and broken language of poor Dutch Johnny, but still the same in meaning. How often do we hear these words: “There is the Rev. Mr. So-and-so, who is one of the most intelligent of men, a11 fine Bible student and an honest, upright, Christian man. If what you say is true, why, surely he would know it and say so.” Then this thought came to my mind as I pondered these things: If we were passing by a great precipice and our only guide and helper was a rope held out to us by another, would we travel on, trusting blindly to the one who held the rope, or would we examine the rope ourselves and be assured that it was strong and safe to walk by, when a single misstep would mean death on the cruel rocks at the foot of the precipice? We often read of the wonderful feats accomplished by the Alpine climbers, and also of the many narrow escapes of some of them,—how they were saved from a terrible death on the jagged rocks of some yawning chasm; how but for the soundness and strength of the rope which bound them, their lives would have been dashed out and their mutilated bodies left to decay in some cleft of the mountain. Think you they made no examination of that rope before they started on their perilous journey? Yes, every inch of the rope was gone over; every strand was tested, and its strength assured ere they trusted their lives to its support. My brother or sister, yours is a more perilous journey than any of the Alpine climbers. You are walking along a fearful abyss, the abyss of eternal death. Just beyond are the beautiful fields and green valleys of the eternal world. Have you tested the rope, your religion? Are you sure it will carry you over every steep chasm, or will its strands loosen and fall apart and you be hurled down to eternal destruction? You may have every confidence in the minister whom you love and respect; but, my brother, I implore you to know of yourself what is truth. Grace of God
By MRS. H. E. SAWYER-HOPKINS
MRS. H. E. SAWYER-HOPKINS Have you ever noticed Paul's statement, “Most gladly, therefore, will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me”? 2 Cor. 12:9. Why does he make this declaration? Let him answer: “For when I am weak, then am I strong.” Verse 10. The manifestation of God's power is here seen, and a realization of his nearness is worth so much to Paul that all the suffering he might be caused to pass through is as nothing in comparison. When buffeted by Satan, Paul sought the Lord thrice for relief. What does the Great Restorer say to him? “My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness.” Blessed assurance! How many of modern Israel can take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in necessities, in distresses for Christ's sake? What about the little vexations of life that we have to contend with? How we strive for release from these troublous buffetings of the enemy! Is it not time that we learned to trust the Almighty more fully? Is it not time that we should be able to say from the depths of the heart, God's grace is sufficient for all things? Reasons Why I Keep the Seventh Day as the Sabbath
By C. F. CAMPBELL
BECAUSE the Creator rested upon the seventh day, and blessed and sanctified it. Gen. 2:2, 3. Because God says the seventh day is the Sabbath, and commands us to remember to keep it holy. Ex. 20:8-11. Because the seventh-day Sabbath is based upon the facts of creation, and facts can never be changed. Ex. 20:11; Gen. 2:2, 3. Because we have the highest authority in the universe for it,—the commandment of the only true God. Ex. 20:8-11. Because “the law of the Lord is perfect” (Ps. 19:7), and “all his commandments are sure. They stand fast forever and ever” (Ps. 111:7, 8). Because whatsoever God doeth shall be forever. Eccl. 3:14. Because “blessed is the man . . . that keepeth the Sabbath from polluting it.” Isa. 56:2; 58:13. Because God says, “I am the Lord, and I change not” (Mal. 3:6), and with him “is no variableness, neither shadow of turning” (James 1:17; Num. 23:19). Because Jesus kept the Sabbath, it was his custom to do so (Luke 4:16); he kept the Father’s commandments (John 15:10); and we should walk “even as he walked.” Because our love to God is made manifest by our keeping his commandments. 1 John 5:2; 2:3, 4. Because the last promise in the Bible is, “Blessed are they that do his commandments, that they may have right to the tree of life, and may enter in through the gates into the city.” Rev. 22:14. As at their work two weavers sat
Beguiling time with friendly chat,
They touched upon the price of meat,
So high a weaver scarce could eat. “What with my brats and sickly wife,”
Quoth Dick, “I’m almost tired of life;
So hard my work, so poor my fare,
’Tis more than mortal man can bear. “How glorious is the rich man’s state—
His house so fine, his wealth so great.
Heaven is unjust, you must agree;
Why all to him? Why none to me? “In spite of what the Scripture teaches,
In spite of what the parson preaches,
This world I’ve thought, indeed so long,
Is ruled methinks extremely wrong.” Says John, “Our ignorance is the cause
Why thus we blame our Maker’s laws:
Parts of his ways alone we know;
’Tis all that man can see below. “Seest thou that carpet not half done,
Which thou, dear Dick, hast well begun?
Behold the wild confusion there!
So rude the mass it makes one stare. “A person ignorant of the trade
Would say, ‘No meaning’s there conveyed;
For where’s the middle? where’s the border?
Why! man, thy carpet’s all disorder.’” Says Dick, “My work is yet in bits,
But still in every part it fits;
Beside, you reason like a lout.
Why, man, this carpet’s inside out.” Says John, “Thou say’st the thing I mean,
And now I hope to cure thy spleen:
This world which clouds thy soul with doubt
Is but a carpet inside out. “As when we view these shreds and ends,
We know not what the whole intends;
So when on earth things seem but odd,
They’re working still some scheme of
God.” “No plan, no pattern, can we trace;
All wants, proportion, truth, and grace;
The motley mixture we deride,
Nor see the beauteous upper side. “But when we reach that world of light
And view the things of God aright,
Then shall we see the whole design,
And own the Workman was divine. “What here seem random strokes, will there
All order and design appear;
Then shall we praise what here we spurned,
For then the carpet will be turned.” “Thou’rt right,” quoth Dick, “no more I’ll grumble
That this sad world is such a jumble;
My impious doubts are put to flight,
For my own carpet sets me right.” I Will
By MARY BROWN BECKNER
“I WILL.” What a short sentence, and yet how full of meaning. How we like to hear some one who we think can help us in time of trouble, say, “I will,” to us. These words add new hope. “And, behold, there came a leper and worshiped him, saying, Lord, if thou wilt, thou canst make me clean.” What was the answer?—“I will; be thou clean.” How these words must have thrilled his very being, and how his heart must have been filled with praise to God, as he went on his way to show himself to the priest; and how thankfully he must have offered his gift. “And when Jesus was entered into Capernaum, there came unto him a centurion, beseeching him, and saying, Lord, my servant lieth at home sick of palsy, grievously tormented.” Note the answer again: “I will come and heal him.” The centurion did not merely tell Jesus, but besought him; and it must have been with great joy that he received these words, “I will come and heal him;” but they must also have made him feel his need of the Saviour, for he immediately said he was not worthy that Jesus should come into his house. With delight we sing that good old song, “I will follow thee, my Saviour.” It always seems like a new consecration every time we say, “I will follow thee.” Let us as true followers of Jesus ever be ready to say, “I will,” when it comes to doing the work of the blessed Master, who has done so much for us. Huaheine, Society Islands. “CHARACTER is property. Are you making a wise and careful investment, or are you speculating? Are you daily adding improvements, or is your property deteriorating? These are questions well worth our consideration.”