The Advent Review and Sabbath Herald, vol. 74

November 2, 1897

“Editorial” The Advent Review and Sabbath Herald 74, 44, p. 696.

IT is not what is outside of us, but what is inside, that makes us Christians and keeps us so. ARSH November 2, 1897, page 696.1

If you think you could be a better Christian if they were better brethren and sisters in the church, you greatly mistake. It is just the other way: if you were a better Christian, you would find better brethren and sisters in the church. ARSH November 2, 1897, page 696.2

If you think you could do better if only you had better neighbors, you greatly mistake. The truth is that if you would do better, you would have better neighbors. And if you were a better Christian, you would do better. You must be better before you can do better. ARSH November 2, 1897, page 696.3

Christianity does not come from ourselves, nor from anybody nor anything that is around us. It comes down straight from heaven to every soul who will receive it. And having its source in heaven, it is not, and cannot be, effected by anything that is of earth. ARSH November 2, 1897, page 696.4

Thus the Christian has joy in sorrow, peace in perplexity, riches in poverty, society in loneliness, and friendship among strangers and even enemies. ARSH November 2, 1897, page 696.5

“That Broken Heart” The Advent Review and Sabbath Herald 74, 44, p. 696.

JESUS died of a broken heart. Psalm 69:20. This is intensely significant. ARSH November 2, 1897, page 696.1

It was the ingratitude and the reproach of those for whom he endured the cruel suffering of the cross, that broke his heart. ARSH November 2, 1897, page 696.2

And when, in that great and awful day that is to come, all those who hold to ingratitude or reproach see what they have really done, and what they have lost, reproach will also break their hearts—though with them it will be self-reproach. Who can bear it? O then, please do not any longer be ungrateful or reproachful in the presence of the cross of Christ. ARSH November 2, 1897, page 696.3

A deeper truth than this is that it would be the same with those persons if they were in heaven itself instead of in hell. To them heaven would be the same as hell; for it will not be what is outside of them, but what is inside, that will hurt. ARSH November 2, 1897, page 696.4

And a yet deeper truth is that even though their ingratitude and reproach did not return upon them, and they were placed in heaven, yet they would die of a broken heart. For to take those persons, wholly unacquainted with true and lasting joy, and place them in the transcendent and eternal bliss of heaven, with the assurance that it was all and eternally theirs—the overwhelming consciousness of this fact would break the heart. ARSH November 2, 1897, page 696.5

Do you not know that the heart can be broken by joy as truly as by sorrow? Do you not know that such a thing has occurred in this world—though of course in this world of trouble and sorrow, a heart broken by joy is far less usual than hearts broken by sorrow? ARSH November 2, 1897, page 696.6

The one great consideration in all this is that it is not all of heaven to be in heaven; nor is it all of hell to be in hell. The all of either place is in being fit for it. ARSH November 2, 1897, page 696.7

To be fit for heaven is what will find heaven to be all of heaven. And—awful truth!—to be fit for hell is what will find hell to be all of hell. No one can possibly find either place without the fitness for it; and there is no other place. ARSH November 2, 1897, page 696.8

O then, dear friend, do not, against the cross of Christ, heap up ingratitude and reproach that fits for hell, and that will surely break the heart. Receive him, yield yourself to him, that now you may become acquainted with an enjoy the true and everlasting joy of heaven, that fits for heaven, so that when heaven itself, with all its glory, with all its transcendent bliss, with its fulness of eternal joy, is placed upon the hearts of the redeemed, your heart will not be broken by it. ARSH November 2, 1897, page 696.9

Everything that occurred in the life of Christ on earth is laden with meaning. And this one—the most awful of all—is freighted with a most awful meaning. That broken heart! Think of it carefully, study it reverently. ARSH November 2, 1897, page 696.10

“What Is Your Covering?” The Advent Review and Sabbath Herald 74, 44, pp. 696, 697.

“WOE to the rebellious children, saith the Lord, that take counsel, but not of me; and that cover with a covering, but not of my Spirit, that they may add sin to sin.” ARSH November 2, 1897, page 696.1

The Spirit of God is the only safe covering for any soul. But here is described a people who are seeking to cover themselves with a covering that is not of God’s Spirit. ARSH November 2, 1897, page 696.2

Of people just as they are in this world the Lord says they “are wretched, and miserable, and poor, and blind, and naked.” And it will never do to appear thus before the Lord. The hearts of men know this, and therefore they seek a covering. This is right; they must have a covering. But the great difficulty is, they do not seek in the right way for their covering: they “cover with a covering, but not of my Spirit,” saith the Lord. ARSH November 2, 1897, page 696.3

In another place (Isaiah 59:5) he says they “weave the spider’s web,” of which to make for themselves garments for covering. What a queer notion a person must have, indeed, to think that such stuff as spider’s web will be sufficient for a covering in that day! No, no! The Lord continues, “Their webs shall not become garments.” ARSH November 2, 1897, page 696.4

But what is the material out of which they weave this spider’s web stuff, to make garments to cover themselves? Here is the answer: “Neither shall they cover themselves with their works: their works are works of iniquity, and the act of violence is in their hands.” ARSH November 2, 1897, page 696.5

Of their own works they would make garments to cover themselves in the day when God shall search Jerusalem with candles. But such righteousness is as filthy rags, and can never cover any one so that the shame of his nakedness will not appear. Such material is but spider’s web for protection and covering in the great day when the towers fall. ARSH November 2, 1897, page 696.6

Their works are works of iniquity, and in doing more works they only “add sin to sin.” But sin is what has made us naked. And surely that which made us naked can never clothe us. Therefore no works of our own can ever clothe us; by these we can never have any secure covering. ARSH November 2, 1897, page 696.7

Yet this need not discourage us. Hear what the Lord, the righteous Judge, says: “Buy of me... white raiment, that thou mayest be clothed, and that the shame of thy nakedness do not appear.” This will clothe us perfectly, and acceptably to the great King. ARSH November 2, 1897, page 696.8

But “Buy,” says he; and how shall I buy, how can I buy, when I am only “wretched, and miserable, and poor”!—O, “Come! Buy... without money and for nought; and ye shall be redeemed without money.” Therefore, “I will greatly rejoice in the Lord, my soul shall be joyful in my God; for he hath clothed me with the garments of salvation, he hath covered me with the robe of righteousness.” ARSH November 2, 1897, page 696.9

This robe is no spider’s web stuff. Every thread of it—warp and woof—was manufactured of the character of the eternal God; and it was also woven by himself in the precious loom of the life of his only begotten Son on earth. This robe of the righteousness of God, which is by faith of Jesus Christ, will perfectly cover every soul who will receive it, and will make him fully welcome to the courts of the great King in that great day. To have this robe prepares us, too, for the covering of God’s Spirit. For that Spirit is the seal of God’s righteousness upon all who have that righteousness. And when he has covered us with the robe of his righteousness, he seals that righteousness upon us by the baptism of his Holy Spirit. And thus is the covering of his Spirit sought. Thus is it rightly sought. Thus is it sought so that it surely shall be secured. ARSH November 2, 1897, page 696.10

This covering of God’s Spirit is to shelter God’s people in the terrible times of “the hour of temptation, which shall come upon all the world, to try them that dwell upon the earth,” and when the plagues of the just judgments and wrath of God are poured out upon a world confirmed in wickedness. ARSH November 2, 1897, page 696.11

“I saw that Satan was at work to distract, deceive, and draw away God’s people, just now in this sealing time. I saw those who were not standing stiffly for present truth. Their knees were trembling, and their feet sliding, because they were not firmly planted on the truth, and the covering of the Almighty could not be drawn over them while they were thus trembling. ARSH November 2, 1897, page 696.12

“Satan was trying his every art to hold them where they were, until the sealing was past, until the covering was drawn over God’s people, and they left without a shelter from the burning wrath of God, in the seven last plagues. God has begun to draw this covering over his people, and it will soon be drawn over all who are to have a shelter in the day of slaughter.” ARSH November 2, 1897, page 696.13

That is so. This covering will soon be drawn over all who will have a shelter. It is the covering of his Spirit. O, then, seek earnestly the gift of the Holy Spirit! Never rest till you receive the baptism of the Holy Ghost. ARSH November 2, 1897, page 696.14

Do not try to clothe yourself with your works; it is but weaving the spider’s web: they are but works of iniquity, and the Holy Spirit cannot put upon them his seal of approval. Clothe yourself only with the robe of God’s righteousness; for this the Holy Spirit will willingly and gladly seal upon you as perfect righteousness forevermore. ARSH November 2, 1897, page 696.15

Thus and then will you be covered with the covering of his Spirit, and will be sheltered, protected, saved, and delivered in the great day of his wrath. For the great day of his wrath is shortly to come, and who shall be able to stand! ARSH November 2, 1897, page 696.16

What is your covering! “Receive ye the Holy Ghost.” ARSH November 2, 1897, page 697.1

“Editorial Note” The Advent Review and Sabbath Herald 74, 44, p. 697.

SOME men and women resort to the toggery of some fantastic and grotesque garb or article of dress in which to do what they call the Lord’s work. But religion is not for show, but for service. The only raiment which God will acknowledge and accept on the part of his servants is the robe of righteousness. ARSH November 2, 1897, page 697.1

“‘Modern College Education’” The Advent Review and Sabbath Herald 74, 44, p. 698.

IN the Cosmopolitan’s series of papers on “Modern College Education,” number VII, in the October Cosmopolitan, is by Mr. Grant Allen, and is one of the best that has yet appeared. He does not hesitate to state plainly some wholesome truths, that ought to be repeated often, concerning the current system of education. These truths, though perhaps unpalatable to many professed educators, need to be emphasized by all possible means. ARSH November 2, 1897, page 698.1

Mr. Allen declares that America, “in its system of higher education,” “is imposing upon its young men in the nineteenth century a curriculum devised by dead-and-gone priests for the young men in the twelfth.” He then continues in the following strain of plain truth:— ARSH November 2, 1897, page 698.2

“College education, as we know it to-day, is mostly a matter of the dead languages, more particularly Latin. Greek, it is true, is still included in the ordinary course; but its inclusion is hardly more than nominal. Nobody really knows any Greek, except a few very scholarly university professors. We all know in our hearts that the ordinary student never even acquires a sufficient smattering of the language to enable him to read a single page of classical Greek at sight. Let us clear our minds of cant on this subject—of cant, and still more of pretentious humbug. There is a conspiracy among college-bred men to bolster one another up in the conventional pretense that they all know Greek. Now, Latin they often enough do really know; Greek never, or next to never. ARSH November 2, 1897, page 698.3

“On this point I will be explicit at the outset, for fear of misrepresentation—lest an opponent say, ‘He sneers at an education of which he has not the rudiments.’ I am myself an Oxford graduate in classical honors,—I took a First Class in our one classical examination,—and I was a classical foundation scholar of my college, Merton. I have also been a classical teacher in more than one English public school (Brighton College, Cheltenham College, etc.); and I have “coached” at Oxford. But I say unhesitatingly that I have only met three or four men in my life who had a competent knowledge of Greek; and I am not one of them. Our existing system teaches Greek efficiently to about one per cent. of its pupils; Latin efficiently to about fifteen per cent.; Latin alone, and badly, to the remainder. ARSH November 2, 1897, page 698.4

“For brevity’s sake, then, we may say, The modern college course is a course of instruction primarily in the grammatical elements of the Latin language; and secondarily, for a few students in the main contents of Latin literature. If we ask what relation this curriculum bears to the needs and requirements of modern life, we get no articulate answer; but if we ask, How did this curriculum come to be fixed for the higher education in Europe and America, the answer is clear—it was the necessary training of a priest in the twelfth and thirteenth centuries.... Our so-called education remains to this day an education originally devised for priests, and suited to the ideas of the thirteenth century. ARSH November 2, 1897, page 698.5

“Of course it has been modified; especially it has slowly admitted the elements of science. But it still bears traces everywhere of its priestly origin; and it is still wholly out of accord with modern requirements. ARSH November 2, 1897, page 698.6

“An education that should educate—that is to say, that should train the faculties—would have to proceed on very different lines. It would have to be constructed entirely de noco, beginning from ground upward, and sweeping away at once all relics of medieval preconception.... ARSH November 2, 1897, page 698.7

“In a well-organized community, I doubt not, it would be found desirable always that a few specialists should know Greek or know Latin, just as it is found desirable that a few specialists should know how to decipher hieroglyphics and to read Assyrian cuneiform. But nobody would suggest that hieroglyphics or cuneiforms ought to be made the main subject of study for every English or American barrister, or doctor, or merchant, or manufacturer. The bare idea is ridiculous. These are special subjects for a learned class, it is well that a few among us should know such things; it is impossible for any of us to know them all; it is undesirable for all of us to know any one of them. For if too many people knew hieroglyphics, and nothing else thoroughly, the importance of hieroglyphics would be absurdly exaggerated, which is just what happened, indeed, with Greek and Latin. Few of us know them, it is true, but all our learned class pretend to know them: and the mere pretense has caused an undue sense of their relative importance to grow up among us. ARSH November 2, 1897, page 698.8

“Languages, however, though useless in themselves, are ‘so valuable as training!’—error pure preconception. Most people have been put through no other mental gymnastic than the linguistic; therefore they think that particular form of gymnastic exceptionally important. When one comes to look the facts in the face, however, who learn languages most easily?—children, negroes, servants, the uneducated; these pick them up without an effort, and retain them well, while great philosophers and great scientists are often unable to acquire a moderate command of any tongue save their own. Even philologists are sometimes very bad linguists; and I have seldom met with highly developed philological faculty in a man who spoke several languages fluently.... ARSH November 2, 1897, page 698.9

“People say we must learn Latin, in order to understand our mother tongue. That is because most educated men have a smattering of Latin. But they never say we must learn Anglo-Saxon, or un-Latinized English, for the same purpose; though a knowledge of Anglo-Saxon is immeasurably more important than a knowledge of Latin for the comprehension of English, and though we see every day the most erroneous conceptions about our own language set forth, through pure ignorance of the ground-work of its most fundamental Teutonic portion. ARSH November 2, 1897, page 698.10

“I first began to take an interest in Anglo-Saxon from spelling out the bits of authorities cited in the notes to Freeman’s ‘Norman Conquest.’ Having my interest in the language thus aroused, I bought a grammar, dictionary, and reader, and found at the end of six months I had taught myself more Anglo-Saxon in odd hours than I had been taught of Latin at school and college in ten years of hard labor. That was because, in the case of Anglo-Saxon, the interest preceded the learning; in the case of Latin, the drudgery came first, and by the time some spark of interest was aroused, drudgery had killed out all sense of freshness and pleasure in the subject.” ARSH November 2, 1897, page 698.11

The reason why “children, negroes, servants, the uneducated,” learn languages so easily, is that they go at it the right way, instead of the wrong way, as is done by the would-be wise ones: they learn a language by using it, instead of studying from three to six years about the language in a grammar of it, without being able to use it. Grown people and the educated can learn language as easily as do the children and the uneducated, if only they will go about it as these do. ARSH November 2, 1897, page 698.12

Mr. Allen rightly says: “An intelligent system of higher education, designed to meet the needs of modern life, would begin by casting away all preconceptions equally, and by reconstructing its curriculum on psychological principles.” This is the very thought in education, and even in true higher education, to which God is calling his people. ARSH November 2, 1897, page 698.13

The world is finding out the serious lack in that which has been passed off upon it for higher education. Will the Lord’s people recognize this, and earnestly seek God for guidance into that which is indeed the true higher education? Let us get away from the systems of the Dark Ages and into the light of God for to-day. ARSH November 2, 1897, page 698.14