The Advent Review and Sabbath Herald, vol. 75

September 13, 1898

“Editorial” The Advent Review and Sabbath Herald 75, 37, p. 586.

WHEN Paul and his company had sailed away from Miletus, by Coos, and Rhodes, and Patara, and had come to Tyre, there they found disciples, and remained with them a week. And these disciples “said to Paul through the Spirit, that he should not go up to Jerusalem.” ARSH September 13, 1898, page 586.1

When they had gone from Tyre, and had met the brethren at Ptolemais and stayed with them one day, they came to Cesarea, where they tarried many days. While they were at Cesarea, there came from Judea a prophet, who took Paul’s girdle, and, binding his own hands and feet, said, “Thus saith the Holy Ghost, So shall the Jews at Jerusalem bind the man that owneth this girdle, and shall deliver him into the hands of the Gentiles.” ARSH September 13, 1898, page 586.2

After all this had come to pass, with many other vicissitudes, Paul was finally brought to Rome. At Rome he called the chief of the Jews together, and told them how it was that he had been brought thither. Then they appointed him a day; and “there came many to him into his lodging; to whom he expounded and testified the kingdom of God, persuading them concerning Jesus, both out of the law of Moses, and out of the prophets, from morning till evening.” “Some believed, ... and some believed not. And when they agreed not among themselves, they departed, after that Paul had spoken one word, Well spake the Holy Ghost by Esaias the prophet,” etc. ARSH September 13, 1898, page 586.3

Thus the book of Acts begins and ends with the mention of the Holy Ghost; and all the way between the beginning and the end, the Holy Ghost is recognized and received. He is constantly deferred to; he is ever and everywhere recognized as being present as witness, counselor, and guide. ARSH September 13, 1898, page 586.4

That was the time of the early rain. The book of Acts is the inspired record of that time. It is the record of the working of the Holy Spirit in the time when he was recognized and allowed to reign. It was written for our instruction. And now, in “the time of the latter rain,” when again the Holy Spirit is to be recognized and allowed to reign, the book of Acts is especially present truth. ARSH September 13, 1898, page 586.5

The message of God to-day is, “Receive ye the Holy Ghost.” But the Holy Spirit is to be received only for service; only for guidance into a deeper, more thorough, and more stable experience; only unto sanctification: never for self-gratulation. And in this time the book of Acts should be carefully, diligently, and reverently studied, that we may know the way of the Spirit in his wonderful working. ARSH September 13, 1898, page 586.6

Have you received the Holy Ghost since you believed? If not, why? He is freely given; you are urged by the Lord to receive him; why do you not receive the Holy Ghost, and be filled with the Spirit? ARSH September 13, 1898, page 586.7

Do you say that you do not know how? Do you know how to receive the forgiveness of sins? If you do, you know how to receive the Holy Ghost. The Lord tells you to confess your sins, and that he is faithful and just to forgive you. You confess your sins, accept his forgiveness, and then thank him for it. You know you are forgiven, for he says so. ARSH September 13, 1898, page 586.8

Do you know how to receive the righteousness of God? If so, you know how to receive the Holy Ghost. Righteousness is the free gift of God, and is received by believing God. It is received by faith. So, also, is the promise of the Spirit received by faith. The Holy Spirit is received precisely as any other gift is received from God. ARSH September 13, 1898, page 586.9

He tells you, Ask for the Holy Spirit, and he shall be given you. “If we ask anything according to his will, he heareth us: and if we know that he hear us, ... we know that we have the petitions that we dired of him.” ARSH September 13, 1898, page 586.10

Ask for the Spirit: by so doing, you ask according to his will. Then, having asked, you know you have received, because he says so. Then thank him, and continue to thank him, that you have received the Holy Spirit. How you may feel has nothing to do with it. It is not how you feel; it is what he says. ARSH September 13, 1898, page 586.11

“Ask, and it shall be given you.” “Receive ye the Holy Ghost.” “Be filled with the Spirit.” ARSH September 13, 1898, page 586.12

“The Kings of the East” The Advent Review and Sabbath Herald 75, 37, p. 586.

THE water of “the great river Euphrates” is to be dried up, “that the way of the kings of the East might be prepared.” ARSH September 13, 1898, page 586.1

This way of the kings of the East is to be prepared, that they may come up to “the battle of that great day of God Almighty.” ARSH September 13, 1898, page 586.2

To that battle all nations, “the kings of the earth and the whole world,” are gathered and come up, when the time comes that the way of the kings of the East is “prepared.” ARSH September 13, 1898, page 586.3

That time is to be the culmination of the plagues of the wrath of God poured out upon all nations, upon “all the kingdoms of the world, upon the face of the earth;” for when these are all gathered unto Armageddon, “the seventh angel” pours out his vial “into the air,” and then comes “a great voice out of the temple of heaven, from the throne, saying, It is done.” ARSH September 13, 1898, page 586.4

Until this present season of 1898, however, all the “kings of the East” could have been mustered, and could have come up,—could have fought, and have been blotted out,—and still have left a mighty nation on the earth untouched, and, materially, unconcerned. ARSH September 13, 1898, page 586.5

Until this present season, the United States stood here, away in the extreme West, in a “splendid isolation” from all the nations and kings of the East; unconnected with their national interests, unconcerned with their national affairs. ARSH September 13, 1898, page 586.6

Now, however, this is not longer so. This present season of 1898, the “splendid isolation” of this great nation has been swept away, and this nation has become one of the world-powers. This extreme Western nation has become one of the powers of the extreme East. Now, this nation of the farthest West has itself become one of “the kings of the East.” ARSH September 13, 1898, page 586.7

Now when the way of the kings of the East shall be prepared, it will be prepared for this nation with all the others; for this nation is now one of the kings of the East. ARSH September 13, 1898, page 586.8

Now when the way of the kings of the East shall have been prepared, and when the kings of the East come up in the way prepared, this nation will come among them; for this nation is now one of the kings of the East. ARSH September 13, 1898, page 586.9

Now when the kings of the East shall be gathered to “the battle of that great day of God Almighty,” this great nation must be gathered among them; for this nation is now one of the kings of the East with the others. ARSH September 13, 1898, page 586.10

Now the interests, the controversies, and the entanglements of the Eastern question include all the kingdoms of the world that are upon the face of the earth; and when the crisis comes, and the wrath of God is poured out, all nations drink it, all nations come up to Armageddon, all nations join in the battle of the great day. ARSH September 13, 1898, page 586.11

And now all things are ready for the drying up of the “great river Euphrates;” all things are ready for the way of the kings of the East to be prepared. ARSH September 13, 1898, page 586.12

On the other hand, “the marriage of the Lamb is come, and his wife hath made herself ready.” And now the proclamation goes forth, “All things are ready: come unto the marriage.” “Come; for all things are now ready.” ARSH September 13, 1898, page 586.13

The Lord cometh. Are you ready? “Get ready, get ready, get ready.” ARSH September 13, 1898, page 586.14

“‘Give Ye Them to Eat’” The Advent Review and Sabbath Herald 75, 37, p. 587.

THE question is asked, in one of our exchanges, “Are we drifting away from the word of God, its truths and its requirements?” This is just what the nineteenth-century church has done and is doing. Wealth and show are thought too much of at a time when men and women are perishing all around. Do the finest churches contain the largest congregations of those who need and wish to hear the gospel? Does that mode of worship which embodies the most ritualistic forms evince the most spiritual power? Do the ministers who receive the largest salaries, and live in the highest style, accomplish nost for Christ, and move on the highest plane of godly living? ARSH September 13, 1898, page 587.1

Churches are becoming too much like what the Jewish church was when Christ came to this world. They are burdened with priests, laws, rites, and ceremonies. They are weighed down under ponderous systems of orders, officialism, aristocracies, taxations, and such like things. Everywhere there are hungry souls, who want something to satisfy the desire of their hearts; but those who ought to be where they could tell of God’s wonderful power to save, depend upon forms, which only lull to sleep. ARSH September 13, 1898, page 587.2

Of the possibilities of the church, a writer in the Baptist Standard says:— ARSH September 13, 1898, page 587.3

Never have ministers had such possibilities as at the present time. Sinners everywhere are hungry for the bread of life. I do not say they know just what their hunger craves. It may be they think it is pleasure, a church entertainment, some worldly device, wealth of earthly goods, the friendship of the world, or worldly fame. But when all these have been tried, and have failed to satisfy the soul’s longing, they are still left hungry, dark, and blinded by sin. They know not the way of life, and know not where to find it. They look on formal professors, and see little evidence that their souls are feasting on heavenly manna, and hear little testimony to indicate that Christ is enthroned in their hearts. ARSH September 13, 1898, page 587.4

How many there are in every vicinity who are longing for the gospel as they heard it in their childhood days, or as the read of it in the New Testament! God would have it so. He is doing all he can to preserve a people who will accept the responsibility of being light-bearers to the world. When a church so far departs from his truth that he can not show the power of the gospel through it, he raises up others, who will go out with his message. Churches that, less than a century ago, had a ministry blessed with a simplicity, a purity, a power, and a poverty, which would compare with the ministry of apostolic days, have so far departed from their simplicity as to feel the ease, the quiet, and the comfort, which wealth and popularity produce. More pay and less work; and the less work, the more pay. The result is the loss of the church’s apostolic simplicity, zeal, and influence. ARSH September 13, 1898, page 587.5

That God has raised up a people who are expected to do the work that the writer in the Standard inquires for, can not be denied; but it is also true that this people are as much in danger of pandering to the world as others have been. With the light that the Lord has revealed for the world in this time, and his willingness to pour out his Holy Spirit upon us, we may go forth in the power that crowned the preaching of the apostles. If we step in at this time, and give the gospel to hungry souls as God would have it given, we shall have all that we can do; and it will not be long before the people who are now wondering if the gospel has lost its power will “take knowledge” of us, that we have “been with Jesus.” Souls will be converted, because the hear the testimony of sins forgiven. ARSH September 13, 1898, page 587.6

It is not enough to be able to tell the people the theory of salvation. We must know salvation for ourselves, before others can receive it by our ministry. Conversion follows heartfelt repentance. If we do not know this ourselves, we shall not be able to help others to that point. What is needed in order to see pentecostal revivals is a pentecostal baptism of the Holy Spirit. “Receive ye the Holy Ghost.” “Be filled with the Spirit.” ARSH September 13, 1898, page 587.7

“Prosperity” The Advent Review and Sabbath Herald 75, 37, p. 588.

NOW that the war with Spain is over, the press is devoting much space to a discussion of the prospects of a time of great prosperity. We are told that the farmers will have good prices for their produce, and a market that will take all they can raise. The manufacturers are encouraged to believe that the prosperous period on which we are entering will cause millions of spindles to fly, and the blast of the forge to be heard from every part of the land. Great stress is laid upon the new relations between the United States and the new territory with which it has become so closely allied by the recent war with Spain. We are to have new markets for our produce, and, in return, be able to get tropical products at greatly reduced prices. ARSH September 13, 1898, page 588.1

There is danger that a short period of prosperity, such as is portrayed in many of the papers of the day, will be the precursor of a time of adversity that will be more fatal in its results than that through which this country has just passed. When the prospects are flattering, and prices are good for labor and produce, men become careless in regard to investments and expenses. High salaries usually encourage extravagant expenditures and many holidays. All these things prepare the way for a crisis, when many, who have spent all their income as fast as they earned it, must come to want. ARSH September 13, 1898, page 588.2

If prosperity does come, and it may, those who fear God should improve the time by studying how to make the “years of plenty” provide for the years of distress that will surely follow. If everybody in Egypt had done as Joseph did, none would have needed to part with their stock, and even their families, to provide food to sustain life when the famine came. Seven years of abundant increase in everything the land could produce was ample to supply present wants and provide a surplus for the years of famine. ARSH September 13, 1898, page 588.3

The Lord has told us that we are living in perilous times, when one prominent characteristic of human nature is selfishness. It is not God’s plan that his people should be either selfish or extravagant; but he urges his people to be industrious, economical, and liberal. It is not a sin for a man to make money. It is not wrong for a farmer so to till his land that it will bring forth a hundredfold, nor for the mechanic so to manage his business that he shall receive the highest possible wages for his services. Professional men and women have a right to a good salary if they are industrious in their profession. Even the minister and Bible worker should be liberally paid for faithful work. The sin does not consist in receiving a large income, but in the way in which it is used. ARSH September 13, 1898, page 588.4

A time of prosperity is the best time to study economy, and learn how to lay by something for future use. If we acknowledge that all we have and all that we receive belongs to the Lord, and we stand ready, as his stewards, to distribute where he directs, we may be Christians, even if we are millionaires. On the other hand, the smallest pittance, kept only to gratify self, is the riches that will keep a man out of the kingdom. ARSH September 13, 1898, page 588.5

“The Glory of a Naval Officer” The Advent Review and Sabbath Herald 75, 37, pp. 588, 589.

WHEN some great victory, like that gained by Admiral Dewey or by the fleet at Santiago, is gained, men are apt to look upon the commander as one who was born “lucky.” The cheers that go up from every public assembly where his name is mentioned create a spirit of envy in the hearts of those who aspire to great honors. ARSH September 13, 1898, page 588.1

The people hunt up everything in such a man’s past life that in any way shows superior intellect and tact. All his defects are buried by his great achievements. Even things that might have been considered against him when they occurred, such as “boy-fights,” are looked upon with favor, and published as showing the original make-up that finally resulted in such wonderful achievements. Every little incident is called up, and commented on in a way that would impress a stranger with the idea that the man who led a fleet to victory had lived a life of victories from his boyhood up. ARSH September 13, 1898, page 588.2

But the naval officer knows that things are far different than reports would make them. No doubt he is amused at the reports that he reads of himself in the journals and magazines. He knows what it has cost to gain the victory that puts his name on the list ofheroes, to be preserved in history as long as time shall last. ARSH September 13, 1898, page 588.3

The following from the August number of the Review of Reviews gives some idea of the assiduous study and practise required to fit men for the position of naval officers:— ARSH September 13, 1898, page 588.4

The naval profession, if properly followed,—and our naval men have so followed it,—may well be said to be the most exacting and inclusive of any. A naval officer must be an expert in half a dozen branches of science, any one of which, in civil life, is deemed sufficient for one man. His work is never done. In order to pass his examinations at every grade, he must keep up with the advance in steam-engineering, gunnery, electricity, and modern ship-building, and in much else. He must have international law at his fingers’ ends, and he must be able to think and decide quickly in the most trying situations. If he makes a false step, he is court-martialed. It is not all dancing o’nights. There is the ceaseless round of target-practise, which has done more than anything else to win this war,—for the United States has believed in target-practise above any other nation,—and of drills afloat and ashore besides, only meaningless rumors of which reach the ear of the citizen. ARSH September 13, 1898, page 588.5

In every station in life, energy and push, combined with good common sense, are required to give success. The better a man understands the work in which he is engaged, the more success he will have. It is not fine uniform that brings a man to the front, but a thorough acquaintance with the work he has to do, and an energy that enables him to meet every obstacle in a way to make things move. ARSH September 13, 1898, page 588.6

This principle is just as true in religious work as in any other. God wants men and women who are not afraid to study. He wants those who will not dare to go forth in his work until they understand what they are called to do, and are thoroughly fitted for their work. He wants leaders who have good judgment, and are not afraid of obstacles. These he will trust, because they trust him. With these he will go forth to gain great victories for his truth. And these shall have their names entered on the roll of honor,—not for all time, but for all eternity. ARSH September 13, 1898, page 589.1

“Empty Seats” The Advent Review and Sabbath Herald 75, 37, p. 589.

FREQUENT complaints are made by ministers that they are obliged to preach to “empty seats.” Pastor do not like to take a charge when they learn that both congregation and contributions are small. Having but little confidence in their ability to fill the pews, they prefer to go where there are larger congregations. ARSH September 13, 1898, page 589.1

It is said of Archibald G. Brown, of London, that he once went to a new church, where the deacons met him with the words, “We have a chapel and hundreds of empty seats.” His reply was, “That’s a great attraction, and that has brought me.” Such men are sure to win, because they trust not in special attractions to build up a congregation, but upon hard work and much prayer. ARSH September 13, 1898, page 589.2

In every city, town, and village, as well as in the country, there are hundreds of people who are anxious to hear the gospel. Many have heard preaching, but they have not been fed. They have heard sensational sermons until they are sick and tired. They look upon theological lectures as a mockery, and wonder if there is any such power in religion to-day as they read about in the New Testament. The following words from a churchgoer to his pastor express the feelings of many who attend the services in the large churches:— ARSH September 13, 1898, page 589.3

I can hardly express the pain I have felt lately in observing, even in so-called evangelical sermons of really true men of God, the absence of the gospel,—the omission of the atonement, and of the substitutional work of the Lord Jesus. ARSH September 13, 1898, page 589.4

Your sermon to-night, though perfectly true so far as it went, failed in this particular also. The mercy of God, in the gift of the Lord Jesus, was not mentioned. Though you urged the need of salvation, the unconverted man left the church as ignorant of the way of salvation as when he entered it. O, do forgive me for writing with so little reserve! but seeing, as I do every day, how much the Lord owns the simple proclamation of the full gospel, I feel constrained to press upon you the importance of preaching in ever sermon that which, by the grace of God and the teaching of the Holy Spirit, can and will make your hearers wise unto salvation. In every sermon tell of sin and its consequences; tell of what Christ has done for the sinner; of the punishment laid on him, of the atonement made—the righteousness imputed, and the peace and good works that follow the simple acceptance of the salvation thus provided. ARSH September 13, 1898, page 589.5

Your subject this evening was “Mercy.” For years I longed for mercy, not knowing that God had already shown mercy, and that I had only to accept it. It may be your rule to tell how, in Jesus, “mercy and truth are met together;” but if there were any in the church this evening, who were in my former state, did you not lose an opportunity, which you may never have again, of telling them how Christ has made peace for them by the sacrifice of himself? ARSH September 13, 1898, page 589.6

This shows how the people feel about the popular preaching, and the causes that lead them to vacate their pews, and spend the time at home or at some place of amusement. They want to heart the gospel with power in it. They do not want long, doctrinal dissertations; but they want to know of the power of God to save men from their sins, and keep them from sinning. There are hundreds who have ceased to attend church on account of disappointment over this very thing. The pews they formerly occupied are now empty, and are echoing the voice of some giant mind, who wonders why his intellectual powers do not draw the people. The people will be drawn to pews where Christ is lifted up; for the Bible says so. When formalism is dropped, and Christ is lifted up as a sure remedy for sin, the pews will be filled. When the preacher is willing to go out on the street corner, or in the dark shops, and tell of the power of Jesus Christ, men will follow him into the church, because they will see Jesus lifted up, and in him they find all their need. ARSH September 13, 1898, page 589.7

“And I, if I be lifted up, ... will draw all men unto me.” Life him up ARSH September 13, 1898, page 589.8

“Editorial Note” The Advent Review and Sabbath Herald 75, 37, p. 589.

THE people of Ann Arbor, Mich., are discussing the question of opening the university library, museum, and art gallery on Sundays. Somebody wrote a communication favoring the proposition, and signed himself “A Workingman.” This communication was printed in the Evening Times of Ann Arbor. Promptly there appeared, in the same paper, another communication on the subject, of which the following is a material part:— ARSH September 13, 1898, page 589.1

I read that vulgar workingman’s plea with amazement, sadness, and a very proper sense of alarm, such as I think any American citizen would experience in the face of the hidden dangers that threaten our noble republic, and are but thinly veiled in his anarchistic communication.... To say nothing of the downright sinfulness of opening the university library, art gallery, and museums on Sunday, just think for a moment of the persons who would avail themselves of this sacrilegious opportunity! And think, too, of the audacity that could suggest such a ridiculous proposition as that of throwing open an art gallery—to whom?—Why, to workingmen and their families! What on earth, pray, would a workingman do in an art gallery? Have workingmen the proper culture for the esthetic enjoyment of art? And what, indeed, is art, if it does not speak in language that workingmen can never understand? I do wish the workingmen would learn their proper place and keep in it. If they do not, I am afraid it will create trouble between the upper and the lower classes of society. I do not image the regents will give the least attention to this vulgar, impudent, and irreligious “please.” ARSH September 13, 1898, page 589.2

(Signed) MRS. PROFESSOR----.

There are some people in the world who will fully expose themselves, as certainly as they get a chance. If ever there should be trouble between “the upper and the lower classes of society,” it will be caused by just such people as this; because, except for such people as this, there never would be any upper classes of society. ARSH September 13, 1898, page 589.3

“Edward White” The Advent Review and Sabbath Herald 75, 37, p. 589.

EDWARD WHITE, of England, well known as a forcible writer on the subject of conditional immortality, died at his home in England, August 8. His last ministerial charge was Hawley Road Chapel, Camden Town, England, where he had labored for thirty-six years. He was the author of the following interesting works: “Life in Christ,” “Conditional Immortality,” “Mystery of Growth,” “Certainty in Religion,” and “Genesis 3: History, not Fable.” Mr. White had not been an active laborer in the ministry for some years before his death. While he was ready, with his pen, to present his views on the question of immortality, he would not allow himself to be drawn into public discussions over them. ARSH September 13, 1898, page 589.1