Review and Herald, Vol. 34, No. 5.
THE NATURE OF MAN AND PUNISHMENT OF THE WICKED, AS TAUGHT IN THE APOCRYPHAPage 1
Earlier text: THE NATURE OF MAN AND PUNISHMENT OF THE WICKED, AS TAUGHT IN THE APOCRYPHATHE JUDGMENTS OF GOD FOR THE SIN OF DAVID.
The sin of David has given great occasion for the adversaries of the Lord to mock at everything sacred. Yet if these persons were men of candor, instead of being mere scoffers, they would never utter one word of derision and mocking over this great transgression. The guilt of David was very great. His repentance was manifestly deep and genuine. But the God of Heaven, against whom David had so grievously sinned, could not, if he vindicated his own honor, do otherwise than visit David with such calamities as should show to all mankind his utter abhorrence of his wicked acts. Nathan, by his parable, led David to pronounce sentence of death upon himself. When David humbly acknowledged his guilt, Nathan replied that he should not die at once, though in accordance with his own decision, he could be justly cut down by the angel of God for his transgression. But for the remainder of his life, he must expect trouble and anguish for his portion. Surely, none but a scoffer can say of this case, that God passed lightly over the sin of David.37 1. The child born to David was smitten with disease; and though David did most earnestly seek God to spare the life of the child, his prayer was refused. 2 Sam. xii. 2. Next occurred the grievous crime of his son Amnon in the case of his own sister Tamar. 2 Sam. xiii, 1–21. Doubtless, though Amnon was very wicked, the providence of God would, for David’s sake, have interfered to prevent the consummation of this crime, had not David, by his own transgression, broken down that wall which God places around every good man. Job i, 10. 3. And next, in revenge for this, came the murder of Amnon by Absalom, the brother of Tamar. 2 Sam. xiii, 22–29. 4. Then a false report came to the king that Absalom had slain all the king’s sons. But Absalom fled for his life to Talmai, the king of Geshur, his grandfather. And David mourned the murder of Amnon, and the absence of Absalom. 2 Sam. xiii, 30–39. 5. Then, in a brief time from this, the rebellion of Absalom occurred. And David, not knowing whom to trust, and sensible that it had been suffered in punishment of his own guilt, fled from his royal city, Jerusalem, for life. He would not suffer the ark to go forth with him; but he said, with deep penitence, “Carry back the ark of God into the city: if I find favor in the eyes of the Lord, he will bring me again, and shew me both it, and his habitation: but if he thus say, I have no delight in thee, behold, here am I, let him do to me as seemeth good unto him.” 2 Sam. xv, 25, 26. “And as David ascended the Mount of Olives, he wept as he went up, and he had his head covered, and went barefoot.” Verse 30. When he reached Bahurim, Shimei came forth, and bitterly cursed David and his party, and threw stones and cast dust at them. When Abishai desired to take Shimei’s life, David said, “Let him curse, because the Lord hath bidden him curse David. Who shall then say, Wherefore hast thou done so?” 2 Sam. xvi, 10. David acknowledged this as a judgment from God for his own transgression. And now to show men that with what measure they mete it shall be measured to them again, Absalom is suffered to inflict upon David, his father, the same outrage which David had committed upon Uriah. The sin of David was secret. The sin of Absalom was in the sight of all Israel, and of the sun. And there were many things connected with this that showed the avenging hand of God. 2 Sam. xvi, 21, 22, compared with chap. xii, 11, 12. And now David flees across the Jordan for life. Had not the counsel of Hushai defeated that of Ahithophel, David and his companions had been destroyed at once. But Absalom, though used by Providence as a scourge for the wicked acts of David, must himself now be punished. His own measure of crime was full, and with his ruin comes still more of bitterness to David’s cup. When the decisive battle is fought between the forces of David and of Absalom, the tenderness of the father’s heart awoke in David, and he charged all his captains to deal gently with the young man, Absalom. 2 Sam. xviii, 5. But Absalom was utterly defeated in the battle, and, falling into the hands of cruel Joab, was stabbed to the heart while he hung by the head in the oak tree. When the tidings of the battle were borne to David, his first inquiry expressed the great anxiety of his heart, “Is the young man Absalom safe?” When he learned that this wicked son was dead, then a sense of his own sins that had caused the providence of God to suffer this great rebellion, and a sense of Absalom’s lost condition, greatly moved the king, and he cried out in words expressive of the utmost distress, “O my son Absalom, my son, my son Absalom! would God I had died for thee, O Absalom, my son, my son!” 6. But the troubles of David were not yet ended. On the suppression of Absalom’s revolt, a quarrel breaks out between the men of Judah and the men of Israel. And this quarrel gives occasion for the revolt of Sheba, the son of Bichri, which threatened to prove a very serious thing. 2 Sam. xx. 7. Even the last days of David were disturbed by an event that proved the death of another of his sons. Adonijah attempted, in the old age and feebleness of David, his father, to seize his throne, and it is not unlikely that, had he succeeded, the lives of David and of Solomon would have been sacrificed. The plot was defeated by the wisdom of Nathan, but it proved the words of Nathan true, that the sword should never depart from his house. The plot of Adonijah ended in his own overthrow and death. 1 Kings i; ii. Here is a list of calamities, every one of which is directly traceable to the sin of David in the case of Uriah. Let the reader review this list, and then decide whether it pays to sin against God. David repented of his sin with the deepest humiliation. Yet the chastening hand of God was upon him all his life long. For one moment of sinful pleasure, he suffered inexpressible anguish of spirit during many long years. Surely there is no profit in sin. And those who dare to test this statement will, one day, acknowledge its truth. J. S. BLODGETT: You have failed to read Gen. ii, 1–3 with proper care. You say that “in the second chapter of Genesis is an account of the Lord’s resting on the seventh day, and blessing that day, but nothing is intimated that man was ever to keep a day of rest.” This is, no doubt, your exact idea of the chapter, but if you will read it again with candor, you will see your mistake. God did three things which pertain to the seventh day. You mention only the first two. 1. He rested on that day. 2. He put his blessing upon it. 3. He sanctified it. The third act you overlook entirely. Having blessed the day of his rest, he sanctified it, i. e., set it apart to a holy use; for that is the literal signification of the word sanctify. To set apart the seventh day to a holy use was simply to inform Adam that that day must not be given to dressing the garden, but devoted to sacred rest. Not that Adam was wearied, nor that the Creator was wearied who first rested on that day. But the Creator rested in order to lay the foundation of a divine memorial of creation, and Adam was to rest in commemoration of the like act by the Creator. But you will see that the act of setting apart the seventh day to a holy use in memory of his own rest thereon, was simply commanding Adam to use that day differently from the other days. You speak of the act of gathering a double portion of manna on the sixth day as being a sufficient proof that the people had some knowledge of the Sabbath. See Ex. xvi, 22. You think the people understood the Sabbath, but that the rulers had not been informed on the point. Yet were it really true that but one class understood the Sabbath, it would have been the rulers and not the people; for God spoke to the people by addressing Moses personally, who communicated with the people through their rulers. It does appear, indeed, by the act of gathering a double portion of the manna on the sixth day, that the people did have knowledge of the Sabbath, and a disposition to observe it. For the manna was designed to prove the people, whether they would walk in God’s law or not. So Moses did not communicate to the people what God said to him in verses 4, 5, until they had first shown by their own action whether they had any regard for the Sabbath or not. Compare verses 4, 5, 22, 23. And if you will read carefully verses 4, 27–29, you will see that God had at that very time a law, and in that law a precept relating to the Sabbath. You will also see that the violation of the Sabbath in Ex. xvi, 27, was not the first time that that people had violated it; for God says, “How LONG refuse ye to keep my commandments and my laws?” The Sabbath did not originate, therefore, at the fall of the manna, but was an existing institution, forming a part of his law, and as such had “LONG” been transgressed by many of the Hebrews. No command is given in Ex. xvi for the observance of the Sabbath till after the people had violated it. See verses 28, 29. It is therefore absolutely certain that the Sabbath did not originate at the fall of the manna, but did exist as a sacred institution before God rained the bread from Heaven. When the fourth commandment is given, it traces its obligation back to its real origin. And observe that this is not the fall of the manna in six days, and its cessation on the seventh; but it is that God created the heavens and the earth in six days, and rested on the seventh, and that he, for that reason, hallowed, i. e., appointed the seventh day to a holy use. Ex. xx, 8–19. You seem to suppose that the commandment is entirely indefinite as to what is meant by the seventh day. In fact, any seventh day after six days of work will answer your conscience. Yet, if you will read the commandment carefully, you will see that it is the day of God’s rest that we are commanded to keep holy. And if you will read Luke xxiii, 56; xxiv, 1, you will see that those who keep the Sabbath day according to the commandment do keep the day that precedes the first day of the week. As to the week itself, it owes its origin to the six days of creation, and to the rest of the seventh day. The rest day of the Lord is certainly a definite day, quite distinct from the six days in which he wrought in the work of creation. The Sabbath of the Lord is the rest day of the Lord. The seventh day is the Sabbath of the Lord thy God, because on that day he rested from the work of creation. If, Bro. B., you have hitherto trampled this sacred day in the dust, will you not, for the honor of God, and for your own conscience’s sake, hereafter observe this sacred memorial of the creation of the heavens and the earth? The sin of David was very grievous, but his repentance was most heartfelt and earnest. No case of sin ever seemed so hopeless and desperate where God has condescended to send a message of rebuke and warning. David fell asleep in the arms of Satan. When he awoke to his own awful situation he acted with the energy and decision that his case demanded. He did not cover up his guilt. He did not excuse his crime. He did not attempt to throw the blame upon others. Nor did he seek to conceal from future ages the record of his repentance. He was ashamed, indeed, of his sin, and well he might be; but he was not ashamed to make known his penitence for his great transgression. In the fifty-first Psalm, he has placed on record one of the most humble confessions of guilt that was ever penned. Several things in this confession are worthy of special attention: 1. His sense of the greatness of his guilt. David did not think his wrong done to Uriah a light thing. He had been guilty of as great wrongs toward him, as one man can be guilty of toward another. But so great was his guilt toward God, and so derogatory to his infinite majesty and purity was his crime, and so calculated to bring lasting reproach and dishonor upon the name and cause of God, that even his wickedness toward Uriah was a small matter compared with that toward God. And so with the strictest propriety he says: “I acknowledge my transgressions; and my sin is ever before me. Against Thee, THEE ONLY have I sinned, and done this evil in thy sight: that thou mightest be justified when thou speakest, and be clear when thou judgest.” Verses 3, 4. 2. His intense desire to be cleansed from his sin. It was not the shame of his guilt, nor the pain that he experienced from the rod of God upon him, that gave him his greatest distress and solicitude. It was the fact that he was stained with sin, and polluted with evil and with blood-guiltiness, that caused him such intense anguish of spirit. Witness his words: Verse 2: “Wash me thoroughly from mine iniquity, and cleanse me from my sin.” Verse 7: “Purge me with hyssop, and I shall be clean: wash me and I shall be whiter than snow.” Verses 9, 10: “Hide thy face from my sins, and blot out all mine iniquities. Create in me a clean heart, O God; and renew a right spirit within me.” Verse 14: “Deliver me from blood-guiltiness, O God, thou God of my salvation; and my tongue shall sing aloud of thy righteousness.” 3. His zeal in seeking God, though he knew that the rest of his life was to be filled with affliction from God's chastening hand. When Nathan reproved David, he announced to him the judgments of God which were never to depart from his house. David did not say that it was no use to try, if such was to be his case. Not so, by any means. He knew that the chastening hand of God if it ever spared anything to him, would leave him more than he deserved. He accepted the chastening with thankfulness, and bowed his whole soul to the just judgments of God. There can be no doubt that David did truly repent. He was indeed guilty of dreadful crime toward God and toward man. But he was taken by the Devil in his snare before he was aware of his danger. The blindness which sin brings upon its victims was upon him till he was most pointedly rebuked by Nathan. Then he was made to see his awful guilt, and to arouse to the most heartfelt repentance. Had he ever afterward returned to the like transgression, we have no reason to believe that God would have extended pardon to him. Probably no man ever came so near perdition and yet escaped it as did David. Had there not been in his character some most noble qualities, he would never have been able to avail himself of the bare possibility of escape which alone remained to him. The fall of David is a warning to all who fear God, that they never for a moment forget their danger. His repentance does not furnish the slightest ground of hope for the deliberate transgressor of God's law. THE sin of David has furnished occasion for reproaching the cause of God in every age since David lived. It was a fearful act of transgression. Rather, it was a combination of many dreadful sins against God and man. It seems incredible that a man of David's noble qualities and excellent traits of character should plunge into such an abyss of sin and shame. Adultery gave occasion to the only crime which is more heinous than that, viz., murder. The crime was one in which lust, cruelty, treachery, and base ingratitude, all unite with awful intensity. From beginning to end it was such a work of iniquity as only can be wrought when Satan has complete control of the man. How did David fall into this dreadful work of evil? Not in a moment, by any means. Men do not depart from God by one act of transgression. They backslide first in heart. Then, perhaps, to the astonishment of all who know them, they commit deeds of outbreaking crime. We may be sure that David was fearfully backslidden before he committed this crime, which has brought such a stain upon his memory. He had laid down his watch. His crime is thus introduced: "And it came to pass in an eveningtide, that David arose from off his bed, and walked upon the roof of the king's house." 2 Sam. xi, 2. He had been spending the afternoon in listless indolence. He had not been agonizing before God for victory over Satan. No; he was at ease in Zion. He thought himself strong enough to cope with the powers of darkness. He stood upon the very brink of ruin, and he knew it not. Had that afternoon been spent in earnest prayer and in faithful self-examination, how different had been David's whole future life! Alas! that he was thus taken captive by Satan. What sin did it produce! What reproach did it bring upon the cause of God! What guilt, what shame, what anguish upon David! And what ruin has it wrought in causing men to stumble to perdition! How faithful is the Bible. It gives us an exact history of the men whose lives it portrays. It conceals nothing. And so the case of David is placed on record as a warning to all that read the book of God. Here fell a man highly favored of God. You, reader, are exposed to the same danger. Take heed, lest you also stumble to your final ruin. "EXPLODED"—"FALSE PROPHETS."
By D. T. BOURDEAU
THESE are some of the epithets that are maliciously and slanderously flung at the Advent doctrine and at those who preach it, by the religious press and in the pulpit, because Adventists were disappointed in their expectations in 1844. It is claimed that because the Lord did not come in 1844, the Advent doctrine38 is exploded, and those who preached it in 1844, as well as those who proclaim it now, are false prophets. But a thing that is exploded is dead, and there is no propriety in raising an alarm against it. Why make such a great ado through the religious press and in the pulpit, if Adventism, or Millerism as it is falsely called, is exploded? No, my readers, Adventism is not dead. The Bible is full of it. It is, as it were, the Alpha and Omega of the Old and New Testaments, and of the plan of salvation. Without it the doctrine of the first coming of the Saviour has no power. He comes the second time to save and redeem that for which he died at his first coming. The second coming of Christ is the great event towards which the typical law and the prophets point; for the second advent is contemplated in the first. Why don't those who raise the cry of "explosion," "false prophets," etc., touch these points? Why don't they show that Adventists were wrong in their teachings on the four universal monarchies as symbolized in the prophecy of Daniel, by which it is shown that we are this side of the reign of Papacy as a persecuting power, and that consequently we have reached the time of the end, and that Paul's caution to not look for Christ (see 1 Thess. ii, etc.) until these things have transpired, is removed? Why do they not meet Adventists on the signs of Christ's second coming, as given by himself in the twenty-fourth chapter of Matthew, and elsewhere, and which bring us to the last generation? Why do they not even show that Adventists were not right on the fulfillment of all prophetic times, and that the longest period in the Bible—the 2300 days—given of course for the benefit of God's people, and to be understood at the time of its termination, did not end in 1844? We still stand by the old landmarks. Let them dispute the territory, and show that we occupy forbidden ground. These periods were given for some wise purpose. Why is it not our duty to understand them, when they are being fulfilled, as Christ understood those times of Daniel that were to reach to Messiah the Prince, when he entered upon his mission, saying, with the first breath, "The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent ye, and believe the gospel?" Mark i, 15. Let them also grapple with additional signs of Christ's coming accumulating on our pathway, and which were unknown even to Adventists in 1843; such as Spiritualism, the Two-Horned Beast, as a symbol of this government, (see Rev. xiii, 11, etc.,) and the three messages of Rev. xiv, symbolizing the three great advances in Advent experience, the last of which exposes the corruptions of Papacy, and brings to view "the commandments of God and the faith of Jesus." Will they show us that we are wrong on these points? Will they in all candor, as Christians, as Protestants, give us Bible authority for the change of the Sabbath, and show that the fourth commandment, enjoining the observance of God's rest-day, the seventh day, is not still binding? and not set out to write an article on the Christian Sabbath, without quoting one full text from Scripture, to prove the change of the Sabbath, but referring to the fact of the first day's being universally kept, and quoting from Eusebius and Justin Martyr, as did the editor of the Advocate at San Francisco, not long since. We are in earnest upon these points. The Lord is coming, and the masses are unprepared to meet him. We preach to all. Sinners need the present truth, and professors should not turn from it. If they do, there is something wrong, and they, too, need converting. When we go into a place to preach, we invite the preachers and people to come and hear. We offer to sit and consult with preachers as brethren, at their dwellings, in our tent, or at our home. But when they bitterly oppose us, and the truths that are dear to us, behind our backs, and by false reports prejudice the people against the truth, then it is time to expose their inconsistencies in plainness, however high may be their profession. But because we were disappointed in 1844, they will have it that we are wrong, and are false prophets after all. But the fact of our disappointment does not in the least invalidate the great truths that we had on time and on the coming of the Lord in this generation. The disciples, who shouted, "Hosannah! Blessed is He that cometh in the name of the Lord," with the expectation that he was then coming to be their king, were greatly disappointed when the Saviour was crucified, even more so than were Adventists in 1844; yet who will, for one moment, hence contend that the gospel that the disciples preached was a humbug, and that the disciples were false prophets? But our disappointment is all explained in the subject of the cleansing of the sanctuary, at the end of the 2300 days, which clearly sets forth our great High Priest, Jesus Christ, as accomplishing his last solemn judgment work for the church, preparatory to his return to earth to reward every one according as his work shall be. But if Adventists had understood the whole truth in 1844, how could the path of the just have shone more and more unto the perfect day? and where would there have been room for the second and third messages to do their work? And what would have become of the cross of Christ in the message, which is so necessary? When the disciples were disappointed 1800 years ago, the Jews verily thought that the gospel of Christ had exploded; but to their astonishment and great annoyance it had a resurrection when its Author was raised from the dead; and the cross of Christ, which was a stumbling block to the Jews, and foolishness to the Greeks, was preached with power, and accomplished a great work. So we believe it will be with the Advent doctrine. And men should take heed how they oppose it, lest peradventure they be found fighting against God, saying, "My Lord delayeth his coming," "smiting their fellow-servants," who try to give meat in due season; Matt. xxiv; and uniting with the "scoffers" that were to "come in the last days," "saying, Where is the promise of his coming? for since the fathers fell asleep, all things continue as they were from the beginning of creation," 2 Peter iii, 3, 4, and thus tearing down a work of divine origin, which they should heartily engage in building up, and adding to the labor of those who would do their whole duty, in response to the law of God and the prophetic word. REPORT FROM CALIFORNIA.
By D. T. Bourdeau
We have now been at Healdsburg over three weeks, and have held upwards of thirty meetings, besides meeting with the brethren at Santa Rosa four Sabbaths, and holding one meeting with the brethren at Windsor. Last Sabbath we had our first Sabbath meeting in this place, while Bro. Loughborough was keeping up the interest in Santa Rosa. We both had a good time. The brethren and sisters in Windsor met with us in the tent, with over a dozen from this place, a few of whom have commenced to keep the Sabbath. Owing to harvesting, our attendance from the country is small during the week, except Sundays, when we have a large audience. We have now quite thoroughly canvassed the Sabbath question, and last evening we closed a series of four discourses on the immortality theme, which greatly increased the interest. Yesterday (Sunday) the main burden of preaching rested upon me, as Bro. Loughborough was called to Santa Rosa to listen to an opposition discourse on the Sabbath, now that we have left the place. This discourse is to be replied to this evening. Notwithstanding the burdens of yesterday, this morning finds me as well as I was yesterday morning, which encourages me to trust in God. The journals in this county have from time to time noticed the progress of the work, and their columns have been kindly opened for us to speak in defense of the truth, and to expose false assertions thrown out to prejudice the minds of the people against us, for which we are thankful. But we regret that we are not treated so kindly by the religious press. To illustrate: The first Sunday evening we were in this place, Mr. H. C. Benson, editor of The Advocate, a Methodist paper published at San Francisco, preached at Healdsburg, and had but a small congregation. In his next editorial, he came out against us and our views, calling us false prophets, saying that in 1843, as well as now, “the lecturers only exhorted the people to believe that Christ would come that year, and on the day named, and be immersed—then they would be ready;” that “they did not preach repentance, and faith in Christ; they said nothing of the new birth; they did not implore mercy and pardon through the blessed Saviour; they offered no gospel to perishing sinners. They simply harangued the gaping crowds on prophecy, exhorted them to abandon the churches—to come out of Babylon, to believe that Christ would come on or about the 6th day of April; and with such belief they would be ready to meet him in the air.” He also resorts to the oft-repeated, but unsubstantiated assertion, that “a multitude of believers procured fine muslin and prepared ascension robes,” etc. Again, he says, “Well, to come to the point, the Millerites are repeating the old stories in Sonoma County. They opened their mission last fall at Petaluma; they have labored at Santa Rosa, also at Windsor; and now their tent is pitched at Healdsburg. The people, being curious to hear, flock to their tabernacle for a time. They do not worship, at least they do not pray and preach. They do not have any message for sinners, etc. Such, we are told, is the character of their teachings.” And such is the impression made on those who are not acquainted with us and our teachings. With those who know us, and were acquainted with the Advent movement, this article refutes itself. Now what if these things are not just so? What if the coming of the Lord is a strong incentive to repentance? What if the commandments of God and the faith of Jesus are the burden of our message, and the means of true conversion, and what if sinners and infidels are being converted to the Lord? What then? What shall we say of a Christian (?) editor, who publishes with eagerness, on the strength of hearsay, and saying that he was acquainted with the Advent movement, such bare falsehoods? God pity the man. We are sorry for him, and for those whom he may, for the time being, influence against the truth. But, in the language of Paul, he “can do nothing against the truth, but for the truth.” This is a sample of the article, and he concludes in the following words: “Christian people should give all such prophets a wide berth. In listening to their harangues, you give them encouragement. The apostolic injunction must be kept in mind: ‘With the unfruitful works of darkness have no fellowship.’” Healdsburg, Cal., July 5, 1869. VISIT TO ST. CHARLES, MICH.
By Uriah Smith; W. H. Littlejohn
JULY 13, we left Greenville, for Lansing, for the purpose of holding meetings there, if the way should open. After due examination, the prospect not appearing favorable for meetings in that place at the present time, we went, on the 16th, to St. Charles, to spend Sabbath and first-day with the brethren there. During the two days of our stay there, five discourses were given, and one social and one business meeting were held. The principal object of the business meeting was the formation of “The Christian Philanthropic Association of St. Charles, Mich.,” after the model of the one formed in Battle Creek. The members of the church took hold of this work with spirit, and seem determined to have a part in all the good enterprises of the day. Five have recently embraced the truth in that place, through the efforts of the church. The people turned out quite well on first-day to hear the truth. The brethren seemed to be cheered and strengthened by our visit. From the encouragement we received from the brethren there, and their interest to have a tent-meeting, and also the camp-meeting, for this year at least, in Owosso, we decided to return to this place. The way has seemed to open very providentially before us here. The brethren of St. Charles, Chesaning, and the few near here, have taken hold with a noble zeal and liberality to assist in starting the enterprise; so much so, that, notwithstanding we were considerably delayed by wet weather, the tent was ready for use by Thursday, the 22d inst., and the first meeting was held that evening. The tent is located on a pleasant spot, in a good part of the city, at the corner of Oliver and Saginaw streets. Having been disappointed by not receiving handbills from Battle Creek, our facilities for getting out the notice of the meeting were very imperfect; yet word was sent abroad to some extent, and the attendance was quite fair. The present truth has never been preached in this place; and before the curiosity of a new thing shall have lost its power to bring out the people, we hope that some will begin to be drawn hither by a higher motive, even an interest in the great truths which pertain to this time. We request all who have an interest in the truth to remember us in their prayers. Our P. O. address will be, until further notice,
Owosso, Mich. Box 300.\u2003U. SMITH,
W. H. LITTLEJOHN. Some things the Christian should fear, others he should not. God said to his people anciently, “When thou goest out to battle against thine enemies and seest horses and chariots, and a people more than thou, be not afraid of them: for the Lord thy God is with thee.” Here the strongest possible reason is assigned why they should not fear. “For the Lord thy God is with thee.” And again, “For the Lord your God is he that goeth with you, to fight for you against your enemies, to save you.” Deut. xx, 4. Only let us know that our lives are such, that we are so humble, so obedient and faithful, in the cause of our divine Master, that God and holy angels are with us to guide and protect us, and it is enough. For, “If God be for us, who can be against us?” In him and in his cause we may be strong and bold. But we should fear self-righteousness. We should fear self-exaltation. We should fear self-deception. For here thousands are going to be ruined. To-day they are on the sure road to destruction; and are going to reach the solemn hour of Judgment deceived, to be lost, forever lost! Matt. vii, 22. Says Paul, “Examine yourselves, whether ye be in the faith; prove your own selves.” Mark: the examination is not to see whether we have been in the faith. A good experience and rich blessings from Heaven, in the past, will not answer for to-day. The food we ate39 twenty years since, does not afford us physical strength now. Christians pray, “Give us day by day our daily bread.” How false, how delusive then the hope of the individual, who to-day is in the dark, and far behind the fast-closing work for the world, using tea and the foul poison weed, tobacco; and yet flattering him or herself that God will not leave them now. “No, we have had too great an experience in this work to be left here.” We pity you, brother; we pity you, sister; and beg you to heed the injunction, “Be not high-minded, but fear.” “Wherefore let him that thinketh he standeth take heed lest he fall.” 1 Cor. x, 12. Prove yourselves. “The Lord is with you, while ye be with him: and if ye seek him, he will be found of you; but if ye forsake him, he will forsake you.” Kind reader, examine again carefully and prayerfully Rev. iii, 15–18. Oh! that we may all “buy the gold” and be “rich.” Rich in faith. Rich in good works. Rich in the blessed hope. Rich in favor with God here and in the world to come. A. S. Hutchins. MEETINGS IN MAINE.
By L. L. Howard
We have had some cause of encouragement in our fields of labor, and in the churches this season. Our last two Monthly Meetings, one in Canaan and the other in Cornville, were interesting and, I hope, profitable, both to ministers and people. We had good liberty in preaching the word, and the brethren and sisters listened with unusual eagerness. Our social meetings were lively, animating, and very cheering to me. About all the preaching that our churches have is what they have at their Monthly Meetings; therefore they are looked forward to with interest by the most, if not all. But there is one thing that I sincerely regret, and that is the habit our brethren and sisters are getting into of going a dozen or fifteen miles on Sabbath morning and returning the same day, leaving the meeting to go on as best it can till Sunday night. This ought not to be so. In the first place it looks very much like breaking the Sabbath, and in the next place it is discouraging to those who remain. It detracts a great deal from the interest of a meeting to go in Sunday morning and find perhaps half of the brethren and sisters missing. If ministers can spend their time and all their energies in preaching the truth, surely it ought to be worth spending one day in a month to hear it. And instead of losing the day, as some say, it is possible they gain something that is infinitely more valuable. It is too late in the day to allow the world to drive us away from duty. We find that those who make a sacrifice of their time, and remain with us to the last, helping all they can by their prayers and exhortations, are the ones who make the most advancement in present truth. If only those are going to be gathered who have made a covenant with the Lord by sacrifice, shall it be the few, or will all take hold of the work together? Let serving the Lord in faithfulness, be the primary object of all our lives, and the world secondary, then it will be well with us, both in this world and in that which is to come. MONTHLY MEETINGS IN N. Y.
By S. B. Whitney
The last two Monthly Meetings in this part of the State were such seasons of interest and encouragement to the brethren and sisters here, that I have thought some time of giving a brief report of them. The first of these was held with the new friends of the truth at Chase's Mills. Freedom characterized all the exercises of the meeting. Our testimony relative to the health reform and S. B. was well received, and S. B. was organized, amounting to $171.36, although it is probable these figures may be altered some. Three were baptized. The brethren and sisters there are doing well, and growing strong in the truth. Our opposers, mostly religious professors, are doing all they can to hinder the work, but are so short-sighted that they injure themselves every time. May God pity them. The other meeting mentioned above was held at this place, and was truly a season of refreshing. We were favored with the presence and help of Brn. Lockwood and Whipple, of Battle Creek, who providentially called here on their way East. Their testimony was timely, and was appreciated. Four were baptized, one of whom has been a backslider from the present truth and Sabbath for about ten years. Pledges were made to the Foreign Missionary Society, amounting to $66.50, to which has since been added $11.00. The Lord speed on the good work, and help us to act well our part that we may share in eternal life with all the saved. Buck's Bridge, July 9, 1869. The pure in heart, O God,
How blest their lot shall be,
Amid the worship of thy throne
To stand and look on thee! To stand and look on thee,
So long beloved unseen;
Assured, perfected in thy sight—
Without a shade between. What must it be to walk
Where sinless seraphs throng,
With palm, and crown, and raiment white,
With golden harp and song! What that refrain to join
Thy saints alone may sing;
“Thou hast redeemed us by thy blood,
O everlasting King!” The men of peace are blest,
And all who wisdom seek;
The poor in spirit, true in soul,
The merciful, the meek. Some wondrous grace, O God,
Thou wilt to each impart;
But the sum of all the joys of Heaven
Is for the pure in heart. BRO. ANDREWS: Permit me to say to the readers of the REVIEW who have been acquainted with me, that I am with full purpose of heart returning unto the Good Shepherd and his flock, I trust, never more to stray. On account of my wandering and sinful course in departing from the Lord, and forgetting his people and his holy commandments, I must take to myself words of confession to his people who have known me, as I have to my God. I must make thorough and sure work, for my sins are great, relying solely upon His promise that if I confess my sins he will forgive them. With sorrow too deep for utterance do I confess that the vain things of this world had deceived and blinded me until I forgot my God, his holy law and Sabbath, and his people; and I must have been very near the verge of perdition, when the Good Shepherd came to my rescue and gave me to feel that if I would return unto him he would return unto me, and fully and freely pardon. This is what I am trying with all my might to do. I am deeply in earnest. I feel as the prodigal son must have felt. And that my restoration may be complete, I ask the forgiveness of God's people. I cannot rest until I have redeemed the time spent in departing from God. I trust a godly sorrow for my sins, which worketh repentance that needeth not to be repented of, is having its cleansing, reforming, and sanctifying effect upon my mind and heart, and is revealing unto me the exceeding sinfulness of my sins, creating in me, I trust, a daily dying to sin, self, and the world. Brethren, I must join in the song that is to be sung by the overcomers on Mount Zion. Pray that this may be my lot.