The Advent Review and Sabbath Herald, vol. 75

June 7, 1898

“Evangelistic Temperance. What Is Not Good Food” The Advent Review and Sabbath Herald 75, 22, p. 363.

I

WE have already studied what is not food at all; that is, those things which have only a stimulating effect upon the system. We found that “from tea to hashish, we have, through hops, alcohol, tobacco, and opium, a sort of graduated scale of intoxicants, which stimulate in small doses and narcotize in larger.” We studied the effect of these things, particularly tea and coffee, because they are so largely used by people who profess to be strict temperance reformers. ARSH June 7, 1898, page 363.1

All these things having only a stimulating, narcotizing, intoxicating effect upon the human system, it follows that they are not foods in any sense, and therefore are never to be used at all by those who would present their bodies “holy, acceptable unto God,” and who are preparing to be translated at the soon coming of the Lord. ARSH June 7, 1898, page 363.2

Having found, then, what is not food at all, we will now study— ARSH June 7, 1898, page 363.3

WHAT IS NOT GOOD FOOD

It is proper, indeed, to study not only what is not good food, but what is not the best food; for the Lord wants his people to have the best of everything. He has given us the best Gift in his possession. In this he has given us the best religion in the universe. And he wants his people to have the best health, so that we can enjoy, in the best way, the religion which he has given. And that we may have the best health, he wants us to live on that which is best. On this subject the Testimonies use the expression that such and such “is not the best” many more times than the expression, “is not good.” This simply illustrates the thought that the Lord wants us to use that which is the best. ARSH June 7, 1898, page 363.4

Having shown the injurious effects of tea and coffee, and that those things have no other than injurious effects, the questions have been asked: “What about cocoa?” and, “When we leave off tea and coffee, is not cocoa a good substitute for them?” ARSH June 7, 1898, page 363.5

If we use the word “substitute” in the sense of doing the same thing that tea and coffee would do, then cocoa is a perfect substitute for them. But if we use the word “substitute” in the sense that is evidently here intended, of using cocoa with the expectation of its doing good where tea and coffee do only evil, then it is not a substitute at all. ARSH June 7, 1898, page 363.6

We have seen that the evil effects of tea and coffee come altogether from the theine and caffeine that they respectively contain—theine and caffeine, however, being but different names for the same identical thing. Now the truth is that a given amount of cocoa always contains nearly as much, and often more, of the same identical poison that is found in the same quantity of tea, and one-and-one-fifth times as much as is found in the same quantity of coffee. The active principle of tea is theine; the active principel of cocoa is theobromine. And all three of these words are simply three different names for the same thing. Theine and caffeine and theobromine are identical. Perhaps we had better give the proof of this; so here it is:— ARSH June 7, 1898, page 363.7

“Theine is an alkaloid identical with the caffeine obtained from coffee.... Theine is precisely the characteristic constituent of coffee.”—“Encyclopedia Britannica,” art. “Tea.” ARSH June 7, 1898, page 363.8

“The constituent upon which the peculiar value of cocoa depends is the theobromine, an alkaloid substance which, till recently, was supposed to be distinct from, though closely allied to, the theine of tea and coffee. It is now, however, known that the alkaloid in these and two or three other substances similarly used is identical, and their physiological value is consequently the same”.—Id., art. “Cocoa.” ARSH June 7, 1898, page 363.9

“The physiological and dietetic value of coffee depends principally upon the alkaloid caffeine, which it contains in common with tea; cocoa; mate, or Paraguay tea; guarana; and African cola-nut.”—Id. art. “Coffee,” also under “Tea.” ARSH June 7, 1898, page 363.10

The proportion of this constituent that is identical in tea, coffee, and cocoa is as follows: tea, 1.8 to 3 per cent.; average, 2.4; cocoa, 2 percent.; coffee,. 8 per cent. ARSH June 7, 1898, page 363.11

Now when you leave off coffee because of the evil effects of four fifths of one per cent. of stimulant, and take in its place cocoa, which has in it two and one-half times as much of the same identical stimulant, it is evident enough that that is not exactly health reform. Indeed, it is not reform of any kind; it is only to make the matter worse than it was before. And when you leave off tea because of the injurious effects of two-and-two-fifths per cent. of stimulant, and “substitute” for it cocoa, which has almost as much, and in many cases more, of the same identical stimulant, it is evident that this is also just as far from being true health reform as the other. ARSH June 7, 1898, page 363.12

This only illustrates the necessity of our using thought and judgment in all this work of health reform. It is not acting, sensibly to leave off a thing that we have learned is bad, and then blindly take up, simply because it tastes good, something that is as bad, or perhaps worse, or is the same identical thing under another name or in another form. This is not health reform. We need to think on all these things, and act upon a thoughtful, well-formed, and well-balanced judgment. Of all things, this is one in which haphazard action is not allowable. Every one needs to learn, and never to forget, that health reform does not consist in simply leaving off what we have learned is not good, but in using that which is food, or even the best. When we use only what is good or the best, all those things that are injurious will drop away like dead leaves from a tree, and will simply be left behind and never missed. ARSH June 7, 1898, page 363.13

There is a difference, however, between cocoa and tea and coffee. That is, whereas tea and coffee have a very small proportion of food elements, or none at all, cocoa has a large proportion. More than four fifths of the constituents of cocoa—82 per cent—are food elements; while in coffee less than one fifth is food, and in tea there are practically no food elements at all. From tea and coffee, therefore, practically nothing is obtained but the stimulants, which are only injurious; while from coca the same, or a greater amount of the same, stimulant is obtained, yet along with it there is more than forty times as much of food elements. The proportion is: theobromine, 2 per cent.; food elements, 82 per cent. fat, 20 percent. Nitrogenous compounds, and 10 per cent. starch. The effect of the stimulant is the same, whether taken with the larger proportion of food elements in cocoa, or with very little, or none, in tea and coffee. It is better to do without the food elements as found in cocoa, and thus escape the stimulant, than to take the stimulant with the food elements. In other words, it is far better to use that which contains only food than to use what contains both food and stimulant. ARSH June 7, 1898, page 363.14

This brings us to another principle of health reform. It is this: As anything, the effect of which is only to stimulate, is not food, and therefore is not to be used at all, so also anything that carries with it any stimulant is not good food, and is therefore not to be used if it is possible to avoid it. ARSH June 7, 1898, page 363.15

“Editorial” The Advent Review and Sabbath Herald 75, 22, p. 364.

THE Lord is coming. ARSH June 7, 1898, page 364.1

And without holiness, no man can see him in peace. ARSH June 7, 1898, page 364.2

Have you holiness? ARSH June 7, 1898, page 364.3

How can anybody have holiness without “the Spirit of holiness”? ARSH June 7, 1898, page 364.4

And how can anybody have the Spirit of holiness without the Holy Spirit? ARSH June 7, 1898, page 364.5

Have you the Holy Spirit? ARSH June 7, 1898, page 364.6

“Do ye think that the Scripture saith in vain, The Spirit that dwelleth in us lusteth to envy?” ARSH June 7, 1898, page 364.7

Then surely, with such a spirit as that, no man can see the Lord in peace. ARSH June 7, 1898, page 364.8

But he says, “A new Spirit will I put within you,” and “he shall ... abide with you forever.” ARSH June 7, 1898, page 364.9

He does not want the spirit that lusteth to envy to abide with you forever. Do you? ARSH June 7, 1898, page 364.10

He wants his own Spirit—the Holy Spirit—to abide with you forever. Do you? ARSH June 7, 1898, page 364.11

Having thus the Spirit of holiness abiding with you, forever, you will have holiness. ARSH June 7, 1898, page 364.12

And, having holiness, you can see the Lord in peace when he comes. ARSH June 7, 1898, page 364.13

And he is coming soon. “Get ready, get ready, get ready.” ARSH June 7, 1898, page 364.14

“Ask, and it shall be given you.” “Receive ye the Holy Ghost ARSH June 7, 1898, page 364.15

“Editorial Note” The Advent Review and Sabbath Herald 75, 22, p. 364.

WHEN it is known that we were predestinated to be gathered together with all things in heaven and on earth, in Christ, into glorious and eternal harmony in God, it is easy to see that the Lord’s predestination is a glorious thing. Ephesians 1:9-11. ARSH June 7, 1898, page 364.1

When it is known that according to this glorious purpose, the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ chose us in Christ, before the foundation of the world, that we should be wholly and without blame before him in love, it is easy to see that the Lord’s predestination is a glorious thing. Ephesians 1:3, 4. ARSH June 7, 1898, page 364.2

When it is known that Jesus, the Lamb without blemish and without spot, was foreordained before the foundation of the world, that we might believe in God, and so attain to this position and condition of holiness and eternal harmony in God, then it is easy to see that the Lord’s foreordination is a glorious thing. 1 Peter 1:20, 21. ARSH June 7, 1898, page 364.3

When it is known that in order that all this glorious destiny might be attained by us, even though we are sunken in sin, God predestination did us unto the adoption of children, by Jesus Christ, unto himself, according to the good pleasure of his will, then it is easy to see that the Lord’s predestination is a glorious thing. Ephesians 1:5. ARSH June 7, 1898, page 364.4

When it is known that, having predestinated us unto the adoption of children of Jesus Christ unto himself, in this he also predestinated us to be conformed to the image of his Son, because that in all things that Son is the example of what all his children are to be, with God and in God, then it is easy to see that the Lord’s predestination is a glorious thing. Romans 8:29. ARSH June 7, 1898, page 364.5

When it is known that, to make all this glorious destiny sure to all, unto every one of us is given grace according to the measure of the gift of Christ, for the perfecting of the saints, for the building up of the body of Christ, will we all come in the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ, then it is easy to see that the Lord’s predestination is a glorious thing. Ephesians 4:7-12. 13. ARSH June 7, 1898, page 364.6

And when it is seen that this glorious destiny is eternally fixed for every creature in heaven and on earth, and that it is worth all that it cost to make it sure to all, then it is easy to see that the Lord’s predestination is the most glorious thing in the universe of God. glory to his name! ARSH June 7, 1898, page 364.7

And by all this it is easy to see what a fearful thing it is for any soul to question, to criticize, and to reject, the Lord’s glorious predestination: he is rejecting all the good that there is in the universe, and for nothing. ARSH June 7, 1898, page 364.8

“Unto Holiness” The Advent Review and Sabbath Herald 75, 22, p. 364.

EIGHT times in immediate succession in these columns, we have quoted, from the word of God, his longing desire, and faithful promise, that you shall be freed from sin and kept from sinning. ARSH June 7, 1898, page 364.1

All these eight quotations were from a single chapter of the Bible; and surely no one will for a moment claim that this one chapter contains all that there is in the Bible to that blessed purpose. ARSH June 7, 1898, page 364.2

We have taken all these quotations from only one chapter, expressly that all might see how rich the Bible is in promises of the great blessing of deliverance from sin and from sinning; for when only one chapter contains so many, what must the whole Bible contain! ARSH June 7, 1898, page 364.3

Let it not be forgotten, either, that with these promises of deliverance from sin and from sinning, there are given promises of the service of righteousness. For Christianity is not a mere negation, but a mighty affirmation, it is not simply the absence of sin; it is decidedly the presence of righteousness. ARSH June 7, 1898, page 364.4

Only, as sin and righteousness can not occupy the same field, as they are diametrically antagonistic forces, the service of righteousness can be maintained only by a persistent fight: and in order to begin this fight with certainty of success, the decks must be cleared for action; and all impedimenta must be put away, and left behind for ever; we must be freed from sin. ARSH June 7, 1898, page 364.5

Then, “being made freed from sin,” we become “the servants of righteousness.” And having become “the servants of righteousness,” under “the Captain of our salvation” we “fight the good fight of faith,” quitting ourselves like men, ever, in all things, to “please him who have chosen us to be soldiers.” ARSH June 7, 1898, page 364.6

But the blessing does not end here. No, no! not by a long way. It is a great blessing to be freed from sin; but that is not enough of a blessing to us to satisfy the Lord—we must have the blessing of the service of righteousness. ARSH June 7, 1898, page 364.7

But that is not enough yet. It is, indeed, a wonderful blessing to be made a servant to righteousness. Yet even such a blessing upon us is not enough to satisfy the Lord; for it is said that “being made free from sin, and become the servants of righteousness,” “ye have your FRUIT UNTO HOLINESS.” ARSH June 7, 1898, page 364.8

But even this is not the end. Freedom from sin and from sinning, the service of righteousness, and to holiness,—all this wonderful blessing upon us is not enough to satisfy the Lord. No, no! For when you have been “made free from sin, and become the servants of righteousness,” “ye have YOUR FRUIT UNTO HOLINESS, and the end EVERLASTING LIFE.” ARSH June 7, 1898, page 364.9

And everlasting life has no end. ARSH June 7, 1898, page 364.10

Bless the Lord! ARSH June 7, 1898, page 364.11

“To the Critics” The Advent Review and Sabbath Herald 75, 24, pp. 366, 367.

WE offer no criticism of the critics: we have no return criticism to make. We constantly endeavor to profit by every criticism that comes to us, of which there are many. We intend only to offer a few simple suggestions, which we are sure will be of value to the critics in their work. ARSH June 7, 1898, page 366.1

First of all, it is well for the critic to remember that he is not the only subscriber that there is to the REVIEW AND HERALD,—that, as a matter of fact, there are more than fourteen thousand of these besides himself. ARSH June 7, 1898, page 366.2

Along with that, it is well for him to remember that each one of these thousands possesses all rights that the critic possesses, and has an individuality and a preference of his own, that is entitled to all the respect which that of the critic is entitled. ARSH June 7, 1898, page 366.3

Upon this it will occur to any critic who thinks, that there is a possibility that among all these thousands there may be some who may not be of exactly the same mind with himself in all things; and that therefore there is a possibility that there may be some who are pleased with the very thing that he criticizes, and who approved the very thing which he condemns. ARSH June 7, 1898, page 367.1

Then just at this point it may occur to the critic that some of these who approve the thing which he condemns may write to the editor their quiet, kindly approval, just as he writes his scorching disapproval. And lest it might not occur to the critic, we will whisper, for his information, that it actually occurs sometimes that these letters of quiet, kindly approval come in the very small mail with his letter of scorching disapproval. And, as a matter of fact, there are more of them than there are of his. We do not say this to boast,—far be it: We simply call attention to it as a point that may help the critics. ARSH June 7, 1898, page 367.2

When a person recognizes, and has well fixed his mind, the great truth that there are thousands of other people who have precisely the same rights as himself, and whose individuality and preferences are entitled to precisely the same respect as his own; that these people think for themselves as well as he for himself; and that these people may approve the very thing that he disapproves, it is a great help to him when he would engage in the blessed work of criticizing. ARSH June 7, 1898, page 367.3

When there are more than fourteen thousand people, all possessing rights absolutely equal, and each one having an individuality inalienably his own, and preferences which are entitled to all the respect to which those of any of the others are entitled, is it exactly fair, is its right, for one person to insist that all that belongs jointly to all shall exactly meet his unqualified approval and every point? ARSH June 7, 1898, page 367.4

The REVIEW AND HERALD contains sixteen pages, composed of matter on many subjects, fifty-two times in a year. The editor is bound to render the best possible service to the whole number of subscribers; for all have equal rights, and individuality is entitled to equal respect. He can not, he dare not, attempt suit the paper, or even any single copy of it, to the mind of any particular subscriber. ARSH June 7, 1898, page 367.5

Let us say, again, that we are not complaining of the critics. However, we would suggest that suggestion is far better than criticism. Anybody can find fault with what is done; but not everybody is able to suggest where in improvement can be made. The editors of the REVIEW AND HERALD sincerely aim at constant improvement. We want each number of the paper to be better than the one before it. And we desire the co-operation of every subscriber to this end. Now, finding fault does not help us at all; the calling attention to mistakes and the making suggestion where improvement can be made, do help. ARSH June 7, 1898, page 367.6

For illustration we may mention that not long ago a brother suggested that shorter notes on the last page would be an improvement. We knew this all the time, and we wanted it so, and put it into practise. Then after a little while, the same brother wrote to was that to have so many news notes on the last page was not good, and was not what he meant; that what he meant was that there should be shorter notes, giving the developments of the cause up to date. Yet that brother, so far as at present known, never in his life sent a single note, item, or pointer on the development of the cause up to date. Now if he had sent, or if he would send, to us some such notes as he wants to see on the last page of the REVIEW, that would be worth something. But what he said is worth nothing. We aim to do just that thing on the last page, but we do not know everything all are self; we are obliged to learn some things. And not being on the present, we cannot learn what is beyond our reach. And in fairness we should not be blamed for not telling what we do not know. Let this brother tell us all that he knows, and surely we can do better. And so with all the other critics. ARSH June 7, 1898, page 367.7