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herald of christ s presence watchman what of the niqht the mornina cometh isaiah e e vol xiv xxi 11 no.1 allegheny pa january 1 1893 retrospective and prospective at the threshold of each new year it seems but natural to look about us-backward at the year just gone and forward to the year drawing on-e-reviewing our conflicts and god s mercies past and with hope as our telescope prospecting the future from your letters and otherwise dear readers fellowservants of our king and fellow-heirs of his glory we know sorneth ing of the tnals temporal and spiritual which have bestrewn your paths j but we know much more of how the grace of god has blessed you all sprritua lly through christ and we earnestly trust that with us of the tower office you can apply to yourselves the words of the poet looking back i praise the way god has led me led me day by day our day is peculiar in many respects not only is it a day of blessings advantages and conveniences beyond any other but it is a day of dissatisfaction and discontent heyond any other not only is it a day of greater light and understanding respecting the lord s plan but it is a day in which the great enemy of the truth is permitted to spread before the awakening nominal and real church more sophistical delusions in the name of new light than ever before xot onlv is it true that a man or woman has five times the opportunity for usefulness in god s service ever before enjoyed but it is also true that business worldly pleasure and ambition are five times as active and powerful to keep us back from this possible usefulness it behooves us therefore not only to get awake to our present privileges blessings and opportunities but to keep awake to them he who does not realize that this will require a constant battle with selfishness within and without-with the world the flesh and the devil-is very liable to fall into the snare in learning of it nevertheless it is possible even now for the intelligent christian to have absolute contentment to escape the errors of our day and to keep himself aetively in the love and service of god this blessing with the peace that passeth all understanding is however only for the few for those whose faith is resting in the perfect work of christ-in the ransom which he gave-and who are fully consecrated heart and body to the master s will and work and way in every matter such he does not leave in darkness and doubt in this day when the hearts of the worldly-wise are failing them for fear and for looking after those things coming upon the earth but to them are fulfilled the promises he will show you things to come j ye shall know the truth and the truth shall make you free free from the bondage of error free from the bondage of fear and from those other bondages of creeds of men and of social and religious societies into which fear is driving many under the plea of union but while we do well dear friends to remember gratefully the mercies of the past year and to rejoice in the grace sufficient with which it was so richly supplied it is wise for us to look carefully to our steps for the year beginning while we did not fall last year some did our trials and testings may be more severe during the year beginning and unless we feel our own insufficiency and look to our master continually we shall be liable to depart from humility to become puffed up with pride and haughtiness the sure precursors of a fall and again if we look merely to our own weaknesses we will become so discouraged as to yield readily to the adversary s assaults our only safe position will be to feel humble and to realize our insufficiency but to trust implicitly and always to him who has promised that he will never leave us nor forsake us if there be any breach between us if any leaving and forsaking it will be on our part not his y e can safely trust our all to him who assures us that all things shall work together for good to them that love god with all their hearts -to those called according to his purpose v e need have no fear of the ultimate results so long as we find our units fully submitted to our master s will and our hands and thoughts filled with his work we may have full confidence and may rest in peace upon the promise he will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able but will with the temptation provide also a way of escape be sober be vigilant because your adversary the devil as a roaring lion walketh about seeking whom he may devour whom resist [by standing steadfast in the faith knowing that similar afflictions are being accomplished in your brethren in the world 1 pet 5:8 the more we realize that we are in the harvest-the winnowing and testing time-the more we should each seek to follow the apostle s advice make straight paths for your feet lest that which is lame be turned out of the way each of us has learned some of his weak or vulnerable points of character and each should seek not only to strengthen these weak points but also specially to fortify himself against temptations and besetments of the adversary upon those weakest points lest he thereby be turned out of the straight and narrow way this means a circumspection of your affairs in general home affairs business affairs all should be ordered and systematized with a view to protect your own weak points to the lord s praise and to the good of yourself and others see that your heart is fully given up to the king and then with the wisdom which he will supply those who seek it divide your time and talents among your various duties so as to spend and be spent more to the honor of the lord and to the service of his truth and you will find yourself liberally repaid in spiritual favors ve suggest to all watch tower readers as a motto and watch-word for 1893 the words of the great apostle paul watch ye stand fast in the faith quit you like men be strong let all your deeds be done in love 1 cor 16 13 14 the political outlook dissatisfaction and unrest tell the story of the entire civilized world the growth of intelligence is making the world more unhappy daily because selfishness is the basis or principle upon which every fresh degree of enlightenment must be erected j for the world knows not of the other basis upon which the new nature builds the basis of love consequently intelligence makes possible gigantic trusts pools and swindling schemes on the part of many who occupy places of p?wer and the same intelligence permits those less favorably circumstanced to detect the frauds to see their own comparative disadvantage so far as a rapid or fraudulent accumulation of wealth is concerned hence the gradual unrest none but real saints of god know what full rest there is in christ-the result of having the christ-basis-love for god and men-substituted for selfishness we clip the following on this subject from a new york tribune editorial and call special attention to its closing sentence and yet how far from realization is this noble idea of peace today that europe is an armed camp is a hackneyed t.rui sm england holds millions of oriental peoples under her swav not bv the bond of brotherhood but by the iron hand of force france is rent into factions by a great national scandal in which many of her honored sons figure as de0-4 [1485]

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z j 0 1 s l v ate h tot v e k llighi!ny fa spoilers of the widow awl or pha n the tragedy of the great autr-scmrtic persecution is not yet played out in rus~ll.i and iii some other european countries tho echoes of its cry of hate are ominous ly dl~tlll·t xor has the shadow of gaunt famine yet ceased to fall u thw art the land of the mu-covrte at the same tune a social unrest unparalleled in history hu s taken possess ion of the nat ion of europe and has found ioll~lllent even in our own land l t dominant note is a pr ofo und dissatisfaction with things as t.hcv are not always i a t umn l or intelligent hut ha s d on ci ta in facts which no ·,in i invcvt iga.tor will donv tills unrest is constantly l llllg to the social insurrection known as anarchy and to the mdust.r iu l wars known as lockouts and s.tr ikes it may not 1 that the present social s.ystcm i dismtoarating but it is cer tu mly true that it conta ms within itself movements and element which are

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january 1 1893 zion s watch tower 16-8 sol id hasrs wind will not always pass current for worth and the punctured bubbles of earthly vanity will reveal the true status of every individual and well will it be 1il the cases of those in whom the humbling realization does not awaken a spirit of rebellion and strife against god which must inevitably end either in eorrtr rtron or in destruction how much easier and how much wiser is the course of humility the humble spirit seeketh not its own is not puffed up and does not attempt to speculate on inflated values does not think of self more highly than it ought to think but thinks soberly-neither overrating nor underrating its own acquirements or achievements humility strives always to do business on a solid basis though it strives lawfully to acquire a real worthiness and to achieve the true glory of the divine commendation and favor the man who underrates his worth comes much nearer the truth than the man who overrates for the fact is that no member of the fallen race however favorably he may compare with some of his fellows more bruised by the fall has anything whereof to boast consider for instance how meager is the aggregate of human knowledge in every direction as a race we are unable to trace our own history for centuries from the leginning or to account for our origin or to prognosticate our destiny we are unable to fully comprehend the deep philosophy of our physical and mental org~nisms there are mysteries within us and all around us which the wisest men cannot fathom and only those narrow souls who-« world of thought is bounded by the horizon of their own temporal interests ever vaunt their learning or wisdom or feel that they have aught of which to boast their fellow-men may call them great and wise and reverend but they know too well how small and ignorant they are and how unworthy of reverence realizing that beyond the ken of their short vision are vast unexplored fields of knowledge the truly noble soul feels humbled upon the borders of the vast unknown thankfully accepts the divine revelation as to his nature origin destiny etc and patiently await the lord s good time for a fuller understanding of all the mysteries of his wondrous grace pride of wealth or of fame is of still more iznoble character wealth selfishly hoarded and enjoyed cert~inly adds no degree of merit to the possessor whether he inherited or acquired it and fame among fallen men only proves that he who gained it has not to any considerable extent outstripped the popular limit of advancement at bevt he h only abreast of his times the man who has outstripped the current of popular thought is never a popular or famous man every such one has had to attest his true moral courage by facing popular opposition and enduring the popular reproach or in other words by humbling himself in view of these considerations we see how just and wise is the divine rule for abasing the proud and exalting the humble and how sound our lord s counsel to his disciples to cultivate the spirit of humility and to avoid even the appearance of pride observing the growth and manifestation of this spirit among the pharisees who did all their works to he seen of men who loved the uppermost rooms at feasts and the chief seats in the synagogues and to be ca.iled of men rabbi rabbi he said but be not ye called rabbi for one is your master even christ and all ye are brethren or in the language of today be not ye called reverend doctors of divinity and let there be no distinctions of clergy and laity for one is your truly reverend lord and instructor even chrrst and all ye are brethren let him that would be greatest among you be servant of all for the divine rule is that whosoever shall exalt himself shall be abased and he that shall humble himself shall be exalted god s plan viewed as a whole shows that the exaltation of any individual or class of his creatures is always for the purpose of blessing others who are not so exalted thus for instance the exaltation of our lord jesus and his church is for the blessing of all others so also was the election and special favor to israel to result in blessings to the nations not so favored such a rule it will readily be seen is the prompting of the highest benevolence and of the fatherly love of god for all his creatures of every name and order and manifests the depth of his wisdom as well as his love both in rewarding the truly worthy and in bringing righteous and benevolent power forward for the accomplishment of righteous and benevolent ends thus in benevolent service and mutual love he will in due time bind together in one the whole family in heaven and in earth through the mediation and service of the greatest of all servants jesus christ let us heed this counsel of the master and let us humble ourselves under the mighty hand of god that he may exalt us in due time 1 pet 5:6 we have already done so to some extent in refusing to own as our masters the various heads of the great nominal church vc own neither luther nor calvin nor knox nor wesley nor campbell nor any other man or body of men as our master nor do we own the pope of rome as our pope our father god is our father and his anointed son is our lord and head to them and not to our brethren let us look for the reward of faithfulness for says the apostle heb 6 10 god is not unrighteous to forget your work and labor of love which ye have shown toward his name in that ve have min istered to the saints and do minister · it is indeed no easy matter to tread the pathway of humility to continually cheek the human aspirations and to keep the sacrifice on the altar until it is fully consumed but thus it is that we are to work out our own salvation to the high calling with fear and trembling lest we come short of worthiness for the prize of the high calling promised to the faithful overcomers who tread closely in the footsteps of our ble~sed forerunner who was meek and lowly of heart.phd 2 8 12 it is when we are thus humble and faithful that the lord makes us his chosen vessels to bear his name to others thus emptied of self he can fill us with his spirit and with his truth and we can go forth strong in the lord of hosts and in his mighty power to do valiant service as soldier of tho cross eph.6:12-17 in our day bewa re therefore lest that come upon you which is spoken of in the prophets behold ye despisers and wonder and perrsh for i work in your days a work which ye shall in no wise believe though a man declare it unto you acts 13 :40 41 is3 2!l 14 hab 1:5 this prophecy was one of sufficient importance to be renot only the world but the vast majority of his professed corded by two of the lord s prophets isaiah and habakkuk followers too who have not been living on such intimate and from the apostle paul s reference to it in speaking to the terms with the lord as to be led into a clear knowledge of people of his day which was the end or harvest of the his wonderful purposes regard the future with fearful fore.iewish age we see that it had an application to that peculiar bodings and his present strange work as an innovation time and since that age with its harvest and all its peculiar ra~her than as a preliminary preparation for the glorious circumstances was as we have seen millennial dawn vol reign of the prince of peace for they wist not that this is ii chapter vii a type of the gospel age and its harvest we the day of his preparation spoken of by the prophet recognize this prophecy as well as the other prophetic features nahum 2:3 for the setting up of christ s kingdom of the context as having a yet fuller and more special before that kingdom can be fully established in the earth application to the present time-the harvest period of the all power and authority of whatever sort it be which gospel age belongs to this present order of things must pass away as it is true today as it was in the harvest of the jewish a consequence of this preparation for christ s kingdom which age that there are many despisers of the truth-especially of is now nigh even at the door see milj.ennial dawn vol the truth due and now coming to light in this our day but ii the time is at hand we behold the shaking of the nevertheless the lord s great work goes steadily forward he nations and the trembling of the very foundations of the is doing his work his strange work and bringing to pass his whole structure of human society as at present organized act his strange act isa 28:21 22 it is indeed a strange unwittingly under satan the prince of this world the work to those unacquainted with the lord s plan which sets great crisis of this world s affairs has not yet been reached aside all human theories and plans and pursues a course in but the preparations for that crisis are progressing steadily direct opposition to them all the world looks on and both in civil and in ecclesiastical circles and if we would beholds this work of the lord and with fear and trembling as be among those who are truly wise we will apply not only to the final outcome they regard its wonderful progress and our heads but also our hearts unto the instruction of the [1487]

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8-10 zion s watch tower allegheny pa sure word of prophecy that shineth as a light in a dark place until the day dawn for it is written dan 12 10 that none of the wicked shall understand but the wise [not according to the wisdom of this world which shall perish t isa 29 14 but with the wisdom of meekness which confcsses human ignorance and rel ies solely upon the wisdom which cometh from above they shall understand those who thus rely upon god and are simple hearted cnough to take him at his word view his present work in the light of his glorious plan they see light in his light they rea lrze the necessrty for the great scourge of trouble which -hn ll shat.ter all human ambition and pride and humble the nations in the dust they sce too the deformities of human theor-ies and the fallacy of human arguments and the futility of all human schemes for the uplifting and blessing of the world as they view them in contrast with the divine plan of the age which god is workmg out see l iillen ial dawn in consequence of this snperior vantage ground vol 1 trom which as children of god we arc permitted to view the w i k the strange work of our day we are not at all surpthed to sec all systems of men tottering to their final overt 111 ow nor arc we dismayed as we arc hrought to realize that their utter destruction is sure but what do we see as from god s standpoint we look «ut over his work his strange work in this our dav ve 5l fi r

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ja vary i 1893 zion s w:1tch tower 10-12 human mstrumeutalrty is i arsed up in gud 3 own tnne and way to declare the divine plan and work u-t us r ejoice ami be glad no human instrumentalrty has uuythnig 111 this matter whereof to boast the work is the lord s and the highest honor that any man can claim is to be his mouthpiece his messenaer the prophecies concernmg present tr uth were all securely closed up and sealed until this tune of the end dan 12 j and no wisdom or learning could break those seals until god s due time had come let us therefore as we now behold the work and plan of the lord lift up our heads and rejoice remembering as the psalmist expresses it that god is our refuge and strength a very present help iii trouble therefore will not we fear though the earth [society as at present organized j be removed and though the mountarns [kingdoms be carried into the midst of the sea [though they be engulfed in a sea of lawlessness and anarchy though the waters thereof [the ungovernable masses of humanity roar and be troubled [as we see them now and -ha ll see them much more so and though the mountains i kingdoms shake [with fear and dread and with an uncertain stability j with the swellings thercof.v-s-psa 4ti 1 5 with joy we have seen the light of truth breakrng and with joy it is our privilege to view every prophctrc fulfilment whether it be in the advancement of the truth or m the cumulation and culminat.ion of the troubles of this evi day for cvery step of the lord s great work lring u nearer the glorious outcome of everlasting peace not illally d.iy hpii e whrn the desii of all nations shall come a momentous struggle begun dear brother russell i enclose you herewith anothcr editorial from the new york sun of dec 15th 1892 on the prof smith heresy case it is of the same purport as the dr briggs case and points clearly to the inevltab~e dilemma of the future either to give up the bible or give up the creede the sword of truth is certainly doing its work eff ectual ly now exactly as you have interpreted the scriptures how easily would the acceptance of the truth of the bible settle all their disputes if they could hut see it yours j c bell jr at last a presbyterian heretic has been found guilty he is the rev dr smith a professor in the lane theological seminary of ohio and a prominent minister of the presbyterian church the charges against him were substantially the same as those on which dr briggs is now undergoing trial in new york that is he has taught that scientific biblical scholarship proves that there are errors in the scriptures like dr briggs and many other distinguished and nominally orthodox biblical r-rit ics he rejects the mosaic authorship of thc first five books of the bible upon which according to the rev dr birch the authority of the gospel rests and generally in his teachings he has been in agreement with this modern school ot criticism on monday the cincinnati presb,ytery pronou~ced .such doctrine to he contrary to the doctr-ine of the bible itself and of the wc-tmimster confession and it condemned dr smith to sus.pi-nsion from the presbyterian ministry until he renounces and recants his heretical teaching of course ho will not purchase his restoration at that price and he wrl not be tempted to make the humiliating submission by ipm that he wi ll be burned at the stake even if the conxtrtuted presbyter-ian authorities refuse to tolerate hia doctr me he knows that he can get toleration for it elsewhere and even among presbyterians themselves the cincinnati presbytery convicted him by a small majority only though 11i teaching is opposed to the westminister confession in both its spirit and its letter and is utterly subversive of the presbyter-ian faith in the bible as held for generations past if it is thus made apparent that dr smith has sympathizers with his views even in the conservative cincinnati presbytery how must it be here in new york where leading 1 1 p,hyt rian i11111htcrs nnd laymen have expressed their agreement with dr brtggs ~o openly yhat dov ius -u-pcnsion amount to under such cii eumstances because of ill condomnation as a heretic by the one party he is all the -tronger with the other party if the presbyterian church drivcs him out as a heretic he is only the first of a grout cumpany of its ministers whom in justice it must condemn to go out with him dr smith will appeal from the presbytery to the uiilo synod and thence to the general assembly thus keepmg .i hvo an issue of tremendous importance to the presbyter ian church unless the sentiment of both of these appellate courts changes radically meantime there is no probuln lity of his obtaining a reversal of the judgment from either of them the grcat majority of the general assembly has been strongly opposed to such views as his for two years past and there are no indications that the opposition will be less next spring it is more likely to become more intense even at the risk of dividing the denomination the presbyterians must hold their ministry to the teachings of their doctrinal standards for it is better to split than to go to pieces altogether if the bible is not the perfect and absolutely true word of god received by inspiration from heaven presbyterianism has no foundation of divine authority it rests on human reason that is the issue and the presbyterian church must meet it squarely and decide it positively it may be confused by subtle theologians like dr briggs and dr smith even in their own minds but rcally it is the issur between faith and agnosticism the conviction of dr smith is only the beginning of the most momentous ~tr lg6lc iii the whole history of protestantism at this writing the decision of the ncw york presbytery in the case against dr briggs is announced as dccrdcd in his favor thus has the presbytery of new york-om of the most influential religious bodies in thc wor ld-e-decided and proclaimed to the world its disbelief in the bible as the inspired word of god and its conviction that the few bible statements which measure up to nineteenth century idemshould be treated respectfully for that reason and that the remainder should be regarded as ipgcnd and old wives fables truly the wisdom of this wor ld 1 fool ishuo s with god -editor always for all things and be not drunk with wine wherein is excess but be flll od with the spirit speaking to vourselves iii ]j iiill and hvmn a nd spiritual songs singing and making melody in your heart to the lord giying thanks a lwuy« for all things unto god and thl father in the name of our lord jesus christ submitting your selves one to another in the fear of god eph 5 1 21 from the contrast here instituted between being drunken irnpossibls but the spirit of chr ist has the vpry 0j1j10slt.· with wine and heing filled with the spirit as well as from cffcct it is the spirit of love and of a sound mind who « the fact that christian and not worldlings are here adhcalthful tendency is to i llurninu to t lu undct ctu nd nur .m d dressed we understand the wine to be used as a symbol of the to invigorate every noble faculty of thc

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12-14 zion s watch tower always to give thanks to god for all tltings rom 8 :28 as for the days of natrona thanksgiving we as ci trzens of the liea enly kingdom have no pedal need of them for eh ly day -hould be wrth us a day of thanksgiving lor all tlllllg lor the pro-pcrrty of our loly nat ion under the ilghleous authoi rty of christ our king for its peace nnd .loy and its glorwus hope for ib prrvi leges of spirrtual lllightlllcnt and ble lllg foi the perfection of its laws and t h h ljlllg of it colli ~e and d t!ll.v and for the needed rh 1pi jil as well hu-h h to prep,lre it for its future ltatl ln and glolj let the ih ople of the woi ld and less liji ht ll d clu i t rans gi tluiuk a douhtle-« many of 11l 1li do out 01 a i t l e hr-art for tho r-onnnon bll illgs of t lu illc ellt life-fol t lu all u n.i

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january 1 1893 zion s watch tower 15-19 was given but like it also its chief lesson belonged not to them but to us l pet 1.12 the golden candlestick literally lamp wrth seven branches or burners is the same a that wluch in the typical tabernacle and temple shed the only hght of the holy the same even lamp in one are brought to our at.ten tron in the book of revelation 1 :20 and there explained to symbolize the church of chrrst during the present time the seven represents perfection or completeness hence as a whole the lamp-stand represents all the true saints or iight-bearr-rs in all the var ious phases of the xomtnal church development.c-s-rev 2 1 5 the oil represent the holy epirvt which burning in the true believers causes the illummation of the sanctified in chrrst je w the two olive trees from which the olive oil proceeds to the seven lumps we understand to be typical of the scriptures of the old and new testaments-god s two witnesses the holy s.pir rt is tlie sprrrt of the truth and god s yord is truth go<1 explained this to zerubbabel verse 6 saying not by an army not by fort-e but by my spvrit lthe spirit of the truth-the spirit or influence of god given through his exceeding great and precious promise etc the oliv« trees2 pet i 1 the word saith -iehovah of hosts who art thou a great mountain before zerubbabel thou shalt become a plain and he shall hr ing on the headstone with shoutings crying grace grace unto it a mountam symbolizes a kingdom and the one here represented a an obstruction before zerubbabel typifies sa tan s klngdom-s-thc dominion of evil under the prmee of rhis world zeruhhabcl typifies christ his name signifies a shoot or sprout 1 all t of babylon literally he was a son or

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20-22 zion s watch tower allegheny pa the taking of such diversrons as do not minister to godliness yet the church itsclf goes to shows and frolics and festivals and fairs which destroy the spirrtual hfc of the young as well as the old the extent to which this is now carried on is appalhng the earlv methodist min isters went forth to sacrifice and suffer for christ they sought not places of ease and affluence but of privatron and suffermg they glorified not in their big salaries fine parsonages and refined congregations but in thc souls that had been won for jesus oh how changod l a hireling ministry will be a feeble timid truckling timeserving min ist.rv without faith endurance and holy power methodism formerly dealt in the great central truth now the pulpit den l lrlrgplv in gpnpralltics and in popular lectures the glorious dor-trinr of entire sanc-tificat.ion is rarely heard and scldorn wi t nov-od to in the pulpits met1lod1st exchange that the good bishop is not unduly a.larrne.l about the actual state of tethodi-m is manifest to every observer who is not

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jauary 15 1893 zion s watch tower 22-26 the methodist church 1 of trying to bring the church down to the level of the ungodly by eneouragmg the ball the theatre nude and lewd art and social luxuries with all their loose moralities what a charge what a confession can the spirit of christ the love of the truth or the joys of hope and of communion with god dwell in hearts that are so led of the spirit of the world but does the bishop mean that only a few such have crept into the methodist church while the great majority are otherwise minded evidently not for he speaks of the membership of the methodist church as a whole he seems to see plainly that the whole methodist field is overrun with tares and that the true wheat-the saints who are actuated by the spirit of christ-are numerically so insignificant as to be unworthy of mention 2 he accuses them of trying to make satisfaction for this worldliness by giving more attention to the outward form.s of godliness-the keeping of lent and easter and good fr iday and attending to church-decorations etc in other words of having a form of godliness without the power 3 he shows how the early zeal enthusiasm sobriety consistency and devotion of methodism have given place to pleasure-seeking with the world-how they are now lovers of pleasure more than of god but what word of commendation has he for a faithful ministry that bravely endeavors to stem this fearful tide of worldliness in the ranks of methodism none whatever on the other hand his testimony agrees with that of the prophet isaiah 28:7 see also s s lesson on isa 28:1-13 in tower of jan 15 1892 that the ministry as well as the membership have become intoxicated with the spirit of the world and are therefore as far out of the way as the people he speaks of them as a hireling ministry-timid truckling time-serving without faith endurance and holy power says they have forsaken the great central truth of christianity and deal in generalities and popular lectures what an arraignment of methodism doubtless the good bishop would make some honorable exceptions among the ministry as well as among the membership of methodism were he not speaking here of his outlook over methodism as a whole this can only be understood as his general view of the rank and file both of the ministry and membership of the great methodist organization in his estimation and from his specially favorable standpoint of cbservation having a full acquaintance with the workings of the whole system and necessarily a large personal acquaintance with both the .ninistry and the membership he plainly describes the rank and file of both as tarcs mere imitation christians christians in outward appearance but not at heart and pointing to the fact that the society is only a httle over a hundred years old he declares that such a fall from the original devotion and zeal of methodists for god seems almost a miracle of history and adds but who that looks about him today can fail to see the fact it is high time in view of these things that any of the lord s true people who still abide in the midst of methodism and who support it with their influence their presence and their means should awake and consider what the lord would have them do ve are now living in the harvest or end of the gospel age when the wheat and the tares which the lord allowed to grow together all through the age must be separated matt 13:30 the great mass of tares is to be bound yet more tightly than ever in bundles preparatory to the burning symbolic in the great time of trouble predicted by the lord and the prophets and the apostles to occur within this harvest period and which therefore can be only a very few years in the distance the sickle which the lord is making use of to accompfish the separation is the truth due in this harvest period-the truth concerning the divine plan of the ages showing both scripturally and philosophically the glorious outcome of the work of redemption in the grand restitution of all things spoken by the mouth of all the holy prophets since the world began acts 3 19-21 and showing also the high calling of the gospel church-not the mixed company of wheat and tares which constitute the nominal gospel church but the true and faithful saints whose names were written in heaven and which have never been blotted out because of unfaithfulness the lord knoweth them that are his the divine plan of the ages shows how those called chosen and faithful ones rev 17 14 are to be joint-heirs with christ how they are to reign with him over the earth for a thousand years and how they with him constitute the promised seed of abraham which is to bless all the fumih of the earth rom 8:1i rev ii:l0 2 o gal :l:lti 2fl our lord s sermon on the mount no 1 matt v vi vii this sermon of our lord is characteristic of the great teacher who spake as never man spake it is wonderful alike for its simplicity its clearness its depth and its comprehensiveness it is entirely devoid of anything like oratory for evidently its object was to instruct rather than to play upon the emotions of his hearers indeed it is specially noticeable in all our lord s public ministry that his methods of teaching were calculated to keep reason on the throne and not to permit it to be overpowered by an unduly wrought emotional nature in this his methods are in marked contrast with many of those in vogue today we note also that his words were simple and easy to be understood and that they appealed strongly both to the judgment and to the heart the sermon was addressed not to a promiscuous congregation of saints and sinners but to his earnest and faithful disciples who had left all to follow him-who had forsaken business and business prospects and home and friends and reputation and who in lieu thereof had cheerfully accepted the reproaches that fell upon the master as well as the necessary toils und privations incident to such a life consequently its teachings apply not to the world nor to mere professors of christianity but only to those consecrated souls who have likewise left all to follow the master whithersoever he goeth the occasion was one of those seasons when wearied with exhaustive labor he withdrew from the multitudes who sought his healing touch and anxiously listened for the wonderful words that proceeded out of his mouth and seeing the multitudes [and being too weary to minister to them he went up into a mountain and having sat down his disciples came up verse i and he opened his mouth and taught them to those who follow their lord who though he was rich for our sakes became poor that we through his poverty might be made rich blessed are such poor ones-those who become poor in any sense of the word whether financially or socially or otherwise by sacrificing themselves for the blessing of others true we may have very little to sacrifice but never theless blessed are all the sacrificers the comforting words of verse 4 remind us of a similar expression of our lord-john 16 :2o verily verily i say unto you that ye shall weep and lament but the world shall rejoice and ye shall be sorrowful but your sorrow shall be turned into joy see also 2 cor 1:7 isa 61:2 3 it is those in zion who mourn over and lament the mighty power of evil in the high places both of church and of state and who setting themselves in opposition to it incur the rcpreaches both of the world and of lukewarm nominal christians blessed are all who so mourn for in due time they shall be comforted in receiving the reward of the righteous and in beholding the final triumph of righteousness and truth verses 5 10 11 the blessed meek ones of verse 5 who shall inherit the earth are the same class who according to verses 10 11 are bold and courageous enough to withstand evil and error and to champion righteousness and truth they are meek in the true sense in submitting themselves fully to the lord and bold in defence of his truth and his way even the endurance of persecution for r ighteousness sake blessed are all such meek persecuted and falsely accused ones for thev shall inherit the earth theirs is the kingdom of heaven by and by they shall reign with christ in his throne rejoice all ye and be exceeding glad for great is your reward in heaven the beatitudes verse 6 promises the satisfying portion of truth and righteousness in due time to all that hunger and thirst aiter a comparison of verse 3 with luke 6 20 seems to indicate righteousness verse 7 promises a merciful i1ldgment to all that the parenthetic phrase in spirit was matthew s comthose who exercise the same and is thus the strongest inment and not our lord s exact words which according to centive toward as lenient judgment of our fellow-men as cirluke were blessed are ye poor for yours is the kingdom cumstances will permit of heaven the reference we therefore regard as applying verse 8 blessed are the p1l1-c in heart for they shall 11-32 [1493]

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6-28 z ion s j w ate h t 0 t1 e r ali,p:cheny pa ~ee l greek horao discern god to be pure in heart is to have pure smcere motives and desires tbose 80 disposed come to the divine revelation with reverence and meekness and such and such only are prepared to see the breadth and scope of the wonderful plan of god and how far it transcends the narrowness of human theological creeds and philosophies having no films of prejudice or vain philosophy before their eyes and no clouds between themselves and god with delight they discover in ius wondrous plan of the ages the worthy lines of his truly glorious character-his wisdom justice 10 o and power verse [j god is pleased to own the peace-makers as his cluldr en these are they who have first themselves found peace with god through faith in the precious blood of christ and who thereafter devote their energies toward bringing others into this blessed rest of faith and peace with god and who further seek to show by word and example how a heart at peace with god always seeks peace with fellow-men under all circumstances where the sacrifice of the principles of righteousness are not involved all such peace-makers are the blessed sons and heirs of god thus first of all the great teacher bids us rejoice in counting oyer our blessings showing us that even here in this wilderness state our table is indeed bountifully spread and our cup runneth over with blessings the churoh the salt of the earth and the light of the world verse 13 ye are the salt of the earth etc the virtue of salt is its power to season and to preserve from decay and putrefaction which power the true disciple of the lord are here said to exercise over the masses of mankind in general this however is not because we have this power in and of ourselves it is the spirit of the truth the spir it of christ in us through the knowledge of the truth and obedience to it transforming the old creature into the new creature in christ according to these words of our lord it is by the intluence of such persons directly and indirectly that the world has been kept from sinking to greater depths of ignorance and sin when the spiritual life of the church has ebbed low the world has always suffered in consequence for example remember the dark ages and then the opposite effect of what is known as the great reformation when spirituality revived in the hearts of god s people the whole world began to wake up and to receive some droppings of the shower of blessing in the lives of god s people men see the moral distance between virtue and vice and reason of a coming judgment when each will receive the reward that is meet and they are thereby either shamed or persuaded to better and nobler lives but the possibility of losmg this savor of truth and righteousness is also intimated that is we may retain the outward forms of godliness and lose its real power its spirit or disposition and thus become false representatives of the truthhypocrites and in such a case the question is an apt and suggestive one if the salt have lost its savor wherewith shall it be salted or in other words if the truth have lost its power oyer us to what other power shall we look for the savor of the spirit of truth sanctify them through thy truth was the lord s prayer and if the truth ceases to avail for our sanctification and we turn from it the implication is that nothing else will do it and those who utterly repudiate its power are thenceforth good for nothing and their end is destruction see also heb 6 4-8 10 26 27 verse 14 ye are the light of the world etc the whole world walks in the valley of the shadow of death and the lord s disciples alone have the light of life the blessed truth of redemption and full restitution-the good tidings of great joy for all people let your light shine says the master let it dispel the nightmare which haunts so many minds-of a fiendish and all-powerful god whose purpose is to torment eternally nearly all of his intelligent creation let the light chase this and every other superstition back to the dark source whence it came do not hide your light but set it forth prominently and keep it trimmed and burning that its gracious beams may reach as far as possible through the gloom of ignorance and superstition and thank god the time is coming and is now not far distant when all the light bearers shall be exalted to power and great glory for it is written then shall the righteous shine forth as the sun in the kingdom of their father and when this heavenly city the new jerusalem is thus set upon a hill [in the kingdom it cannot longer be hidden but its glory shall lighten the whole world praise the lord for his mercy and grace mrs c t rvsseli fullness of joy these things write we unto you that your joy may be full l john 1 :4 joy may be regarded as the effervescence or overflow of 3:19-211 praise the lord i exclaim that fixes a definite true and genuine happiness and it is our heavenly father s time when the blessings of liberty from sin and death shall good pleasure that his children should be so full of happi begin to be actually realized ness as to bubble over all the tim to this end he h~s oh how we rejoice and even though we still wear the prepll:red a table befor them even i the presence of their prison uniform of a diseased and dying body and still abide enemies and filled their cup ?f happiness full e~en t rui within the prison wall of this present dying condition we this table of good things is his rejoice in hope of the glorious day of release mng over psa 23 5 precious truth to which we who were .poor conde~ned ereabut while clasping and holding and rejoicing in this tur~s under sentence of death but smce.rely p~m~ent and precious hope realizing that i am now recognized as a child desiring to return to god have been graciously invited of god and that in due time i shall be attired and blessed thcre most promincntly spread out before me lies a most accordingly my eye catches sight of a beautiful card with precious document it is my pardon sealed with the precious trembling hand and a vague suspicion that this may be still blood of christ and signed by the great sovereign of the another message of divine love i lift it and read hearken umver se it reads for god so loved the world that he gave 0 daughter and consider and incline thine ear forget also his only begotten son that whosoever believeth in him might thine own people and thy father s house so shall the king not perish but have everlasting life and thereto is apgreatly desire thy beauty for he is thy lord and worship pended this emphatic assert.ion challenging eoutradiction thou him psa 45 10 11 it is god that just.ifieth who i s he that condemneth john was ever a proposal of marriage couched in more delicate 3 hi rom 8.33 34 what i exclaim does that mean and beautiful phrase with astonishment i read it again and me yes says the documcnt if you are one of tl~e.world again surely it can mean nothing less than this i lim ne of .the cond~mned postor i ty of adam-an wi mg to invited by the king of kings to become the bride of his accept this free gift of god through jesus christ his son royal son-his only begotten son and heir of all things and then this pardon i s yours and you need no one else to tell since clothed with the imputed robe of his righteousness you so do yon not hear i it is god that just ifieth vho which hides all the unrighteousness of my own robes i am is he that condemncth really considered beautiful in the eyes of the king i am ,nth tears of gratitudc i gladly accept the favor and told so that he desires to make me his br-ide-s-if i am willing truly if there were nothing more on t he table we might for his dear sake to forget my own people and my father s well say our cup is full but no there is more much more [adam s house-the world in general with all its hopes and drying my tears i sec tha t side by side with this blessed aims and ambitions dor-ument lie« another which guarantees full re-toration to and while i gladly accept the offer and hasten to make all the willing and obedient of all the rights prinlege and ready for the glorious consummation i find on this same hlc mlg originally granted to our father adam but which bounteous table explicit directions as to how i may fit myself he long ago forfeited not only for himself but for all his to behold the king in his beauty-of how i must appear in po-lcr it.y it reads times of refreshing [or renewing shall this precious robe of his righteousness which now makes me r-ome from the prcsent p of the lord and he shall send jesus beautiful in his eyes and that i may work out upon it the chris.t whom the h iycns mu-st retain till the times fine needle work pains-taking embroidery of an actual of restitutron of all thnur« which god hath spoken bv the righteousness then too there are encouragements to permouth of his holy prophets since the world began acts severance in overcoming the world to ia ithfulnes in mak mg [1494]

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tanuar 15 1893 z ion s tva tcht rv e r ready for ius appearing and to watchfulness against any snares by the way then there are warnings of the dangers and hardships of the pathway which are permitted to prove my love and loyalty by my faithful endurance and there are copious promises of grace sufficient for every time of need and there is lme upon line to assure and reassure my faith in my hea venly father s good pleasui c to thu exalt me to joint-heirship with his son and to make me meet for such exaltation by making me also a par taknr with him of the divine nature 2 pet i :4 then there are precious secrets for those thus elected of god-with reference to the time and manner and circumstances etc of the lord s appeanng and to the glory and honor and blessing of the coming inheritance and the blessed mission of the coming kingdom ah surely lord thou hast prepared a table before me in the presence of mine enemies my cup runneth oper and i rejoice with joy unspeakable and full of glory ah says the inspired apostle who wrote some of these things and who saw the lord and heard his teachings when he was here in the flesh these things write we unto you that your joy may be full that which we have seen and heard declare we unto you that ye also may have fellowship with us fellow-heirs of the same promises and truly our fellowship is with the father and with his son .jesus christ 1 john 1 :4 3 oh what condescension on the part of the divine father and son and what favor toward us ve all are one-one family-the divine royal family whence universal blessing sha.il shortly flow to ali in heaven and in car tho but hold there may be some who unworthily claim this honor wlule really they have no part nor lot in the matter the only conditions upon which we can claim these precious promises are those of faith and obedience and if we are still trusting in the finished redemptive work of christ and obedient to the heavenly calling we are walking in the light of god s promises and instruction and since in god is no darkness at all and he has promised to guide us continually by his spirit through his word we cannot walk in darkness while we tollow lus leading and in thus following where he lead-s and heal kening to his voice and in making known our wants and our gratrtude and love in pra el wluch he has prormsed alway to hear and heed we 11;1 e sweet fel lowsiup with him and with his dear son our lord j esus and not only so but we have sweet icllowship abo with all saints who are faithfully traveling in the same wa~· this then says the apostle is the message which we have heard of him and declare unto you that god is light and in him is no darkness at all it w e have fcl lowsh rp with him we are walking progressing in the light-in the light which divine truth sheds about 11 and 111 the light of his approving countenance if we say that we han fellowship with him and wa lk in darkness [walk contrarv to hi s truth we he [for god dol s not lead hi« children tl~at way and do not the truth ah there is the trouble if any wa lk ill darkne s [awuv from the truth and toward enod it i not god s fault init their own in not obeying the hut 11 let u s walk in the light some congregationalists waking up an evidence of growth of public opinion on the subject of eternal torment was recently afforded in the plymouth church brooklyn of which henry ward beecher was formerly pastor the church takes up special collections for missions and it was decided recently that for the year is 3 no moneys should go into their usual missionary channel the american board of foreign missions unless at the specific request of contributors but that instead all should go to a missionary in japan known to hold views in opposition to eternal torment this motion was made by the present pastor and only one person voted against it-a mr bliss whose name suggests his composure and joy even though all others of the race wore in torment one gentleman pre sent dr raymond speaking on the subject at the meeting expressed his convictions h ry earnestly as reported in the 1i cw york tribune he said i am sick and tired of going to the a mor ican board in sufferance to aid in supporting missionaries who believe out and out in the damnation of all the hoathon and that damnable heresy that god doesn t love the heathen i am tired of the whole miserable humbug and i won t givp a cent to spread the news of damnation i won t let the damnable doctrine be disseminated by my money that god i love is good news but it is made stale old stuff by these men who drag a juggernaut car over the heathen and want us to feed the beasts that haul it it is my christ ian duty not to give to any concern that will teach the heathen that their fathers went to hell dedicating the temple i quarter lesson vi feb lolden i ext-s was glad when they said unto me let us go into the house of the lord psa 122 1 the time of this lesson is about five years after that of the last two lessons the temple had been finished although the wall of the city of jerusalem was yet far from completed and had been for a time abandoned verse 14 evidently refers not only to the rebuilding of the temple but also to the city wall because it mentions the commandment of artaxerxes as well as those of cyrus and darius king artaxerxes command went forth long after the temple was finished and had reference merely to the city wall completed over fifty years after the completion of the temple verses 15 16 draw special attention to the house of god the temple this structure was undoubtedly built according to the specifications of king cyrus and if so was sixty cubits high and sixty cubits long ezra 6 3 it was therefore of larger dimensions than that of solomon although greatly inferior to it in ornamentation its dedication was therefore a very notable event with the people returned from babylon not one of whom probably had seen solomon s temple which was destroyed about ninety years previous verses 17-22 describe the elaborate ceremony with which the temple was dedicated although it was ail as nothing compared with the dedication of solomon s temple however the people now were poor in comparison and certainly did nobly and generously their circumstances considered this suggests to our minds the consecration of the living temple 5th ezr 6 }4-22 and how the offerings of themselves to the lord on the part of the l iving stones i plea s ing and acceptable to god through christ none the les on the part of those who have few talents than of those who have many one point of this lesson specialty worthy of note by those who have fallen into the error of supposing that israel and judah were never re-united after their separation in the days of rehoboam and who claim that the ten t rihcs stvlod israel were all lost and that only tho two tr rho« .iudah and benjamin styled judah returned to palestine after the babylonian ca p trvi ty is that the people of .tud.i h and benjamin are not mentioned in this na rra t ive ln lo t.h levites are rnentroned and the people as a whole nro rpf rod to as children of israel and it is specially stated vor o 17 that the sin-offering was of twelve he-goats accordmg to the number of the tribes of israel what better evidence could we have that all the twelve tribes were represented among these returned captives than this fact that the sin-offering was for all the tribes none except that our lord and the apostles in their day repeatedly addressed the descendants of those people as israel and israelites the golden text is frequently misapplied by christian people to some earthly structure of wood or brick or stone let us see in it the real house of god-the church of living stones being fitted and prepared for the indwelling of god by his spirit let us rejoice to enter into this the antitypical house of god soon to be glorified let us rejoice to have our names written among its members written in heaven nehemiah s prayer 12 neh 1:1-11 golden tea:t lord be thou my helper psa 30 10 verses 1-3 nehemiah was an israelite of the tribe of previous he was an influential man a counselor to king judah he was of one of those families which had not reo artaxerxes for such is the significance of the title cupturned to palestine under cyrus decree of about ninety years bearer verse ii his attention was called to the pitiable [1495 i quarter lesson vii feb.

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o 2 zi0lv 5 watch tower llf.gheny pa comb tion of the returned jews by ins brother and certain others of his tribe who had returned to babylon the seventy veal s interveninz between this lesson and the last had not been years of p osperit but of adver ty to the israelites both iii jerusalem and iii babylon i heir enemies taking adv.mtuge of the weaknesses of ahasuer us who reigned durrng t hv internu had attacked the partially rebuilt walls and gates 01 the i-i tv ot jerusalem and had wi ecked the former and burned the latter which were of wood and at babylon as w lc.u n rrorn the book ot e~ther a plot for the complete oxt orun nu tion of the isracllte had almost succeeded under the guid,lllee of thclr enemle .ied by haman-but had been prevented by div me interpositton vlr~u -i-i l nohcuuau s subsequent history proves him to have been a o eat man-e-a man of wisdom and of executive ui a ln h tv-c-und 11is conduct as here related testifies to the same lor he at once sought the lord dceiring of him wisdom and gl ace that he might act aright-that he might perform what he telt to be his duty toward ins people israel in this we have a lesson which every real christian s expcrrcnce «orr oborates let nothing be done through strife or va in-srlorv t e for self-glonfication or honor but let all thmus b d~ne for the lord s glory and whoever is seeking set y~ee from such a motive will surely seek the divine wisdom to guide into the divine will and work prayer i not to be entered into with a view to changing the divine will and gl ttmg it to conform to our imperfect ideas but rather to brrng our heal ts and nunds and conduct into coutornu ty to the divine wrl l assured that thei clll is our greatest and truest happiness nehemiah s prayer was of tlll proper sort he confesses the justice of the lord s chastisement of israel for their sins he properly includes himself with the others of ius nation he recalls the fact that god s dealings were just-in exact fultilment of the covenant made with that nation lev 26:33 etc deut 4:2 etc 28:64 then he refers to the lord s promises in the same connection that if israel would repent he would return his favor to them deut 30:4 9:29 isa 11:12 nehemiah was so deeply in earnest that he continued his prayers and supplication after this manner for several days not that the lord needed urging on the subject but that the subject was growing upon nehemiah s mind and heart gradually he was made earnest and strong enough to take an important part in the answering of his own prayer as is shown by verse 11 his petitions closed not with a boastful feeling that he had thought out a plan for israel which would bless them and cover himself with honor but with a plan which he believed to be of goel and upon which he desired god s blessing he was about to bring the matter which was so close to his heart to the attention of the king artaxerxes and he prayed prosper i pray thee thy servant this day and grant him mercy [favor in the sight of this man the king let us each follow this same course in all thy wuyacknowledge him [god and he shall direct thy paths dear biwihlh l~u lll as yoll know i am engaged during week days iii cxauuumg titles to real estate

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our critical readers few journals if any other have such critical readers as has zion s w atcii tower and we are glad of this prove critically all that is offered you by us and by others by the word of the lord and let us know whenever you find a discrepaney we will le pleased to correct an error we refer more to a number of letters received calling attention to our comments on ei ses 13 anti ig of the brhle study for dec 25th in our issue or dec l st 92 these letters were nicely expressed and inquired whether the shepherds and the wise men who visited the infant j esus were identical and if so our proofs e answer no it was mcre ly a slip of the pen all our part which thu blended them the true church 1 one sabbath morn i roamed astray and asked a pilgrim lor the way oh tell me whither shall 1 search that i may find the one true church he answered search the world around the one true church is never found yon ivy on the abbey wall xlakes fair the falsest church of all but fearing he had told me wrong i cried behold the entering throng he answered if a church be true it hath not many but a few around a font the people pressed and crossed themselves on brow and breast a cross so light to bear he cried is not of christ the crucified each forehead frowning sheds it off christ s cross abides through scowl and scoff ve entered at the open door and saw men kneeling on the floor faint candle by the daylight dimmed as if by foolish virgins trimmed fair statues of the saints as white as now their robes ate in god s sight stained windows casting down a beam like jacob s ladder in the dream the pilgrim gazed from nave to roof and frowning uttered this reproof alas who is it understands god s temple is not made with hands 1 the pilgrim murmured as we passed so gained the all the crown at last men lose it now through luuking back to find it at the stake und rack the rack and stake are old with grime god s touchetone ts the liuuu time iii we passed where poplars gaunt and tall let twice their length of shadow fall then rose a meeting-house in view of bleached and weather-ben ten hue men plain of garb and pure of heart divided church and world a pal t nor did they vex the silent air with any sound of hymn or pr.lyer god s finger to their lips they pressed till each man kissed it and was blessed i asked is this the ti ue church then he answered kay a sect of men and sects that lock their doors in pride shut god and half his saints outside the gates of heaven the scriptures say stand open wide by night and day so then to enter is there need to carry key of church or creed iv still following where the highway led till elms made arches overhead we saw a spire and weathercock and snow-white church upon a rocka rock where centuries before came sea-tossed pilgrims to the shore my sandals straightway i unbound because the place was holy ground i cried one church at last i find that fetters not the human mind this church said he is like the rest for all are good but none are best ii we walked in ferns so wet with dew they splashed our garments trailing through and came upon a church whose dome upheld a cross but not for rome we brushed a cobweb from a pane and watched the service in the fane do prayers he asked the more avail if offered at an altar rail does water sprinkled from a bowl wash any sin from any soul do tongues that taste the bread and wine speak truer after such a sign i just then upon a maple spray two orioles perched and piped a lay until the gold beneath their throats shook molten in their mellow notes resounding from the church a psalm rolled quivering through the outer calm both choirs said i are in accord for both give praises to the lord the birds he answered chant a song without a note of sin or wrong the church s anthem is a strain of human guilt and mortal pain the orioles and the organ ceased and in the pulpit rose the priest the pilgrim whispered in my ear it profits not to tarry here he speaks no error answered i he teaches that the living die the dead arise and both are true both wholesome doctrines neither new the pilgrim said he strikes a blow at wrongs that perished long ago v then far from every church we strayedsave nature s pillared aisles of shade the squirrels ran to see us pass and god s sweet breath was on the grass i cha.llenged all the creeds and sought what truth or lie or both they taught i asked had augustine a fault the pilgrim gazed at heaven s high vault and answered can a mol·tal eye contain the sphere of au the sky i said the circle is too wide god s truth is wider i he replied though augustrne was on his knee he saw how tittle he could see j though luther sought with burning heart he caught the glory but in part j though calvin opened wide his soul he comprehended not the whole not luther calvin augustine saw visions such as i hn ve seen while yet he spake a rapture stole through all my still inquiring soul i looked upon his holy brow entreating tell me who art thou but such a splendor filled the place i knew it was the lord s own face i was a sinner and afraid i knelt in dust and thus i prayed 0 christ the lord end thou my search and lead me to the one true church he spake as never man may speak the one true church thou shalt not seek seek thou forevermore instead to find the one true christ its head l the lord then vanished from my sight and left me standing in the light but covers with a shielding phrase the living sins of present days we turned away among the tombsa tangled place of briers and blooms i spelled the ll gends on the stones beneath reposed the martyrs bones the bodies which the rack once brake in witness for the dear lord s sake the ashes gathered from the pyres of saints whose zeal our souls inspires -sci 08-2.n [1497]

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vol xiv ,allegheny pa february 1 and 15 1893 1 08 3 and 4 what saith the scripture about hell [reprinted in issue of march 15 1900 which please see christian home-schools wanted one or two sisters who have children dependent upon them for support write that they could probably provide better for thorn if they were in the colporteur work than they can now do-besides having the privilege of using their time and strenjrth in the blessed service of carrying spiritual food to the lorrls starving people the que-lion therefore arises are there others of the eon-cera ted so situated that they cannot engage in the more public work but who r-ould han a share in it by caring for sur-h r-hi ldrr-n tho mothers in question could not afford to pay large sums for boarding etc but could pay something if it occurs to any of the mothers of this way that they would like to offer such a home let such before offering consider whether the conditions of her home are suitable whether the influence of other members of the family would be favorable whether she would care not only for the physical but also for the moral health of those entrusted then let any who believe that they see their way clear to thus offer their services correspond with us rebuilding the wall of jerusalem 1 quar lesson viil feb l ol d en tpj·f we made onr prayer unto god and set a wa r h ag-alll-t them eh 4:9 i ii our last lesson we saw the earnestness of n eliem iah and noted his appeal to the right quarter for guidance and help his appeal to ar taxer xes was blessed of the lord-c-his pra:n r was answered he was grantpd permission to go to .icru sa lem and become its gowrnor with authority to act in tho na ine of the persian monarch upon his arrival at j rl1salpm his first work was to reconnoiter the walls of the city and layout a plan for rebuilding them he had awak onod the zeal of all tho people and the work of rebuilding tho wa ll wa s well advanced at the point where this lesson be,gills tho jealousy of the neighboring rulers was awakened hv this activity and they had come against .ierusalom to at tur-k it and spoil and stop the work of repairs fearing that after all it might succeed this compelled nehemiah and those who co-operated with him to divide their attention betw een building and defending their opponents were st.re-uut hr-nrxl by false brethren .te wfo from the surrounding «ount ry whose inter est lind sympathies were with these other 1 01,1 8 who soug-lit a ll they could to discourage the workers 19 neh 4 0-23 and to stop the work but watching and praymg and working they succeeded this lesson seems to enforce and exemplify the apostle s description of a true christian course not slothful in business fervent in spirit serving the lord it would be valuable to many of god s people today if it led them to resolve that they like nehemiah would henceforth do with their might what their hands find to do the building of the wall the opposition of enemies and relatives and so-called friends and the necessity for fighting as well as building furnish a good illustration of the experience of all who turn from sin to r-ighteousness they find the gates and fortresses of their nature weak and broken down and the moment they start to repair and build up good character they find enemies within and without to hinder persecution and ridicule will first be used as in the a hove case and if these fail to overthrow the good resolutions force will be employed there is no wa of avoiding a battle if you would proceed with your character-building each must at least do as did this band-i e put on the armor and watch and pray and build reading the law i quar lesson ix feb go z-f 1i ti rf ·open thou mine eyes that i may behold wondrou things out of thy law p-a 119 18 by the law h ip mentioned the writings of moses are meant tho law covenant was made with israelites at sinai lind hip ha-i of it was in the ten commandments engraved lipon tho two tah s of stone which were handed down to t ln-m as heret ofm o shown that was not the fullest possible ;lat mpn of tho d iv me will but a provisional arrangement a,i:tpted a mur-h a s possible to israel s degraded condition it iis a statement to the h-ouse of sci vants in terms which t hr-v could hp~t appreciate but when the time came to i i s t iu divine law to the house of 801ls his own house ru r lor d 1 1 1 1 the matter not only more concisely but phon crnr tl u iii t ho pcrfect law of love .vs t he lsraelitc returned from babylon were blessed l.y 1he n·arllll n nd understanding of moses law much 26 n h 8 1-12 more those who are now returning to the lord out of bondage to babylon the great the mother of harlots rev 17:1-6 are being greatly blessed by a fuller appreciation of the divine law love granted to the house of solls they are learning that god s law is of the essence of his own nature and that his dealings with his creatures are on the lines of that law for god is love and love worketh no ill to his neighbor and searching the entire word of god which in a larger sense is god s law his faithful followers learn that god s plans as therein stated are all plans of love and justice-love to those who love righteousness and a just recompense of everlasting destruction in the second death for all others and a full provision for all to come to this second trial for life through christ our lord who redeemed all from the condemnation of adam the result of the first trial -1 cor 15:21,22 keeping the sabbath s lf iohn 15:12-14 1 john 3:23 24 rom 8:2 jar 5th ni-h 13 15·22 2:8 gal 6:2 5:14 heb 8:10 10:16 jas 1:25 ai tlnl ri r rl.1 i llcl1lcj!1hcr the sabbath day to keep it col ding to this new covenant all who accepting of the re1 1 · t hi 20 s demption provided through christ have a disposition or spirit lu l« irnm t h i h rap of history we learn of the worthy in harmony with god s perfect law of love are reckoned of ,t1 of xohr-miuh for the observance of the sabbath day by god to be worthy of life regardless of the inability of their 1,18 1 iii a conlanee with the law of moses-the provisional fallen imperfect human nature to fully express that spirit slat mcn t or the jaw of god-it is necessary to remember or disposition this new covenant with these gracious and thrl t v a n ii viii ilia different dispensation the jewish or merciful provisions for the weaknesses of our flesh and this law ov liallt hav i np passed away col 2:14 we are now benevolent discernment of the willingness of our spirits to hvirur nuder tho provisions of the new covenant a coveconform fully to the perfect will or law of god is secured nant of life not through the keeping of the mosaic law and made possible by the fact that christ died for us to hut through fa i t h in christ whose righteousness is imputed liberate us from the curse of the law jews being set free to us hv faith rom 3:20-26 from the condemnation resulting from failure to obey the this n ew covenant unlike the law covenant does not law given by moses others being released by the same sacriflce st.ipulate that in order to prove ourselves worthy of everfrom the condemnation inherited through adam the penalty lasting life we shall not kill nor steal nor bear false witness of the original sin against god s law or command in eden nor that we must keep the seventh day as a sabbath or day and our lord s resurrection became our assurance of the of rest from labor etc etc but it does stipulate that acceptableness of his sacrifice and that in due time he will while we humbly trust in the provisions of the new covenant be the deliverer of all that obey him from the bondage of for our justification through the precious blood of christ we sin as well as from death its penalty must follow after the law of the spirit of life the law of love-supreme love to god and love to the neighbor as to the law of love is not given to all the world now but 34-63 [1498 1 r le o x ;lfar.

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