The Present Truth, vol. 12

August 20, 1896

“Thine Is the Kingdom” The Present Truth, 12, 34.

E. J. Waggoner

“Thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for ever. Amen.” Matthew 6:13. PTUK August 20, 1896, page 529.1

This is an everlasting truth, for the Lord Himself has spoken it; yet to how many who daily utter the words are they little more than a form of speech. As a matter of fact, it is a confession, which, if made with the spirit and with the understanding, brings the soul into the closest and most perfect relation to God. PTUK August 20, 1896, page 529.2

The kingdom belongs to God. How exhaustive is it? “The Lord hath prepared His throne in the heavens, and His kingdom ruleth over all.” Psalm 103:19. “The Lord is in His holy temple; let all the earth keep silence before Him.” Habakkuk 2:20. “The earth is the Lord’s, and the fulness thereof; the world, and they that dwell therein.” Psalm 24:1. “The Most High ruleth in the kingdom of men, and giveth it to whomsoever He will.” Daniel 4:17. “For God is the King of all the earth; sing ye praises with understanding. God reigneth over the heathen; God sitteth upon the throne of His holiness.” Psalm 47:7, 8. Wherever in the universe created beings can look up and see a canopy of space above them, there is God’s kingdom. Read Psalm 139:1-12. PTUK August 20, 1896, page 529.3

People in general do not recognise God as universal King, but that makes no difference with the fact. A portion of God’s dominion is in rebellion against Him; but that does not destroy the fact that the kingdom is His by right. Many people worship gods of their own making, but that does not destroy the fact that there is but one God. In the beginning God gave the dominion of this earth to man (Genesis 1:27), but He did not thereby renounce His right to it. God is the King of kings, and it pleased Him to rule this portion of this dominion through man, whom He had made in His image. Man was to be simply the agent through whom God would manifest His power on earth. The fact that man has refused to be the instrument of God’s will, does not in the least impair God’s original and eternal right to the kingdom. PTUK August 20, 1896, page 529.4

But our confession to God comes closer home. When the unbelieving Pharisees demanded that Jesus should tell when the kingdom of God should come, he replied: “The kingdom of God cometh not with observation; neither shall they say, Lo here! or, lo there! for behold, the kingdom of God is within you.” Luke 17:20, 21. PTUK August 20, 1896, page 529.5

There is a story of a king who visited a school and questioned the pupils. Taking up a paper weight, he asked them to what kingdom it belonged. They replied, “To the mineral kingdom.” Then pointing to a plant, he asked the same question, and they said, “To the vegetable kingdom.” Then he asked, “To what kingdom do I belong?” The children were afraid to say that he belonged to the animal kingdom, and, as they hesitated, one said, “To God’s kingdom.” That was a truth, for every created thing in the universe belongs to God’s kingdom, and there is but one law for all, namely, God’s law. PTUK August 20, 1896, page 529.6

Some one will say, “But God does not rule in wicked men’s hearts.” Quite true, because His rule is love, which they reject; but the fact remains that every human heart is God’s rightful kingdom. His right is demonstrated by the fact that “He giveth to all life, and breath, and all things,” “For in Him we live, and move, and have our being.” Acts 17:25, 28. It was with His life alone that we live, for we have none of our own; and since the life belongs to Him, He alone has the right to direct it. PTUK August 20, 1896, page 530.1

That which may be known of God, that is, “His eternal power and Godhead” is manifest in men, even in the heathen, as well as in all the things that God has made. Romans 1:19, 20. But men, unlike the trees of the field, “hold down the truth in unrighteousness,” choosing rather to be their own masters than to allow God to rule. But “the way of man is not in himself; it is not in man that walketh to direct his steps.” Jeremiah 10:23. Man has no more power in himself than the grass of the field has, and therefore when he attempts to rule the kingdom himself, he makes a sad failure. PTUK August 20, 1896, page 530.2

Who alone has the right to rule?-He to whom the kingdom belongs. So when we say to the Lord, “Thine is the kingdom,” we acknowledge that He alone has the right to rule, not only in our hearts, but in all the earth. But if we truly acknowledge the fact, we yield the kingdom fully to His control. PTUK August 20, 1896, page 530.3

Just here is where many make a fatal mistake. They say, “The kingdom is the Lord’s, but people in general will not acknowledge it, therefore we must compel them to submit to Him.” Such a course as that is virtually a denial of the fact that the kingdom is the Lord’s. To say the least, God is as able to use force as we are, and if He wished people to be forced to submit to Him, He would do it. The fact that He does not compel people to serve Him, is sufficient evidence that He does not wish man to seek to do so. His law is love, and therefore force is in direct opposition to His kingdom. PTUK August 20, 1896, page 530.4

All that we are called upon to do, no matter who we may be, is to acknowledge God’s right to the kingdom. Whoever acknowledges that the kingdom-that is, all mankind, including himself-belongs to God, will very naturally refrain from attempting to rule any part of it. He to whom the kingdom belongs has the sole right to rule, and if we are sincere in our acknowledgement of God’s right, we will not meddle with His affairs. We will leave Him to deal with other people as He sees best. By acknowledging His right to rule all the kingdom, we ourselves disclaim the right to rule any portion of it, even to our own lives. The only part of the kingdom, however, that we can yield up to God, is ourselves. When we have done this, then we may tell others how good His rule is, and persuade them also to yield to His dominion. PTUK August 20, 1896, page 530.5

There is strength in the heartfelt confession, “Thine is the kingdom,” for God is able to protect His own. The battle is not ours, but His to whom we belong-“the King of glory.” “Who is this King of glory? The Lord strong and mighty, the Lord mighty in battle.” In His hand is power and might, so that none is able to withstand Him. His thoughts toward us are thoughts of peace, and He desires nothing so much as our welfare both here and in eternity. What a blessed thing to know that “the Lord is our Judge, the Lord is our Lawgiver, the Lord is our King; he will save us.” PTUK August 20, 1896, page 530.6

“The Rival Popes” The Present Truth, 12, 34.

E. J. Waggoner

At a time when the Papacy was preparing to destroy Wycliffe, and silence his testimony, the papal agents had their attention distracted, and the Reformer was granted a little time for quiet work, by the great schism in the Papacy which exhibited to the world two Popes, each anathematising the other as antichrist. Wiley thus describes the origin and history of the schism:- PTUK August 20, 1896, page 530.7

“On the seventh of April, 1378, the cardinals assembled in the Quirinal to elect a successor to Gregory. The majority of the sacred college being Frenchmen, the Roman populace, fearing that they would place one of their own nation in the vacant chair, and that the Pontifical court would again retire to Avignon, gathered round the palace where the cardinals were met, and with loud tumult and terrible threats demanded a Roman for their Pope. Not a cardinal should leave the hall alive, so did the rioters threaten, unless the request was complied with. An Italian, the Archbishop of Bari, was chosen; the mob was soothed, and instead of stoning the cardinals it saluted them with ‘Vivas.’ But the new Pope was austere, penurious, tyrannical, and selfish; the cardinals soon became disgusted, and escaping from Rome they met and elected a Frenchman-Robert, Bishop of Geneva-for the tiara, declaring the former election null on the plea that the choice had been made under compulsion. Thus was created the famous schism in the papal chair, which for a full half-century divided and scandalised the papal world. PTUK August 20, 1896, page 530.8

“Christendom now saw, with feelings bordering on affright, two Popes in the chair of Peter. Which was the true vicar, and which carried the key that alone could open and shut the gates of Paradise? This became the question of the age, and a most momentous question it was to men who believed that their eternal salvation hung upon its solution. Consciences were troubled; council was divided against council; bishop battled with bishop; and kings and governments were compelled to take part in the quarrel. Germany and England, and some of the smaller States in the centre of Europe, sided with the first-elected pope, who took possession of the Vatican under the title of Urban VI. Spain, France, and Scotland espoused the cause of the second, who installed himself at Avignon under the name of Clement VII. Thus, as the first dawn of the Gospel day was breaking on Christendom, God clave the papal head in twain, and divided the papal world.” PTUK August 20, 1896, page 530.9

“In an Unknown Tongue” The Present Truth, 12, 34.

E. J. Waggoner

The Bohemian churches were missioned from the East, and had received from the Greek Church the custom of conducting their services in the tongue of the people, at a time when Rome was shutting away the Word of God by insisting that the public service should be in Latin. In 1079 Pope Gregory the Great issued an order requiring the Bohemians to conform to this practice, telling them that “after long study of the Word of God, he had come to see that it was pleasing to the Omnipotent that His worship should be celebrated in an unknown language, and that many evils and heresies had arisen from not observing this rule.” PTUK August 20, 1896, page 530.10

One wonders what portion of the Word the great Gregory found on which to base his conclusion that God liked to have people address them in a language which none of them could understand. PTUK August 20, 1896, page 530.11

“The Promises to Israel. ‘The Reproach of Christ’” The Present Truth, 12, 34.

E. J. Waggoner

“By faith Moses, when he was come to years, refused to be called the son of Pharaoh’s daughter; choosing rather to suffer affliction with the people of God, than to enjoy the pleasures of sin for a season; esteeming the reproach of Christ greater riches than the treasures in Egypt.” Hebrews 11:24, 25. PTUK August 20, 1896, page 531.1

Here we are told most positively that the treasures of Egypt were the pleasures of sin; that refusing the treasures of Egypt was to refuse to live in sin; that to cast in one’s lot with the Israelites, was to suffer the reproach of Christ. This demonstrates that Christ was the real leader of that people, and that that which had been promised them, and to share which they were to be delivered from Egypt, was to be theirs only through Him, and that, too, through His reproach. Now the reproach of Christ is the cross. Thus we are again brought face to face with the fact that the seed of Abraham,-the true Israel,-are those who are Christ’s through faith in His blood. PTUK August 20, 1896, page 531.2

Very few stop to think what it was that Moses gave up for the sake of Christ. He was the adopted son of Pharaoh’s daughter, and was heir to the throne of Egypt. All the treasures of Egypt were therefore at his command. He “was learned in all the wisdom of the Egyptians, and was mighty in words and in deeds.” Acts 7:22. The crown prince, a scholar, a general, and an orator, with every flattering worldly prospect open before him,-he gave up everything to cast in his lot with a despised class of people for the sake of Christ. PTUK August 20, 1896, page 531.3

He “refused to be called the son of Pharaoh’s daughter.” That implies that he was urged to retain his position. It was in the face of opposition that he gave up his worldly prospects, and chose to suffer affliction with the people of God. We cannot over-estimate the contempt with which his action would be regarded, nor the epithets of scorn that must have been heaped upon him, among which that of “fool” must have been the mildest. When people in these days are called upon to accept an unpopular truth at the expense of their position, it will be well for them to remember the case of Moses. PTUK August 20, 1896, page 531.4

What led him to make the “sacrifice?” “He had respect unto the recompense of the reward.” It was not merely that he sacrificed present position for the hope of something better in the future. No; he got more than an equivalent as he went along. He esteemed the reproach of Christ, of which he had a full share, greater riches than the treasures in Egypt. That shows that he knew the Lord. He understood the sacrifice of Christ for man, and he simply chose to share it. He could not have done this if he had not known much of the joy of the Lord. That alone could strengthen him in such a case. Probably no other man has ever sacrificed so great worldly prospects for the sake of Christ, and therefore we may be sure that Moses had such knowledge of Christ and his work as few other men have ever had. The step that he took is evidence that he already knew much of the Lord; the sharing of the reproach and the sufferings of Christ must have made very close the bond of sympathy between the two. PTUK August 20, 1896, page 531.5

When Moses refused to be called the son of Pharaoh’s daughter, he did it for the sake of Christ and the Gospel. But his case, like that of Jacob, as well as of many others, shows that the most sincere believers often have much to learn. God calls men to His work, not because they are perfect, but in order that He may give them the necessary training for it. At the first Moses had to learn what thousands of professed Christians have not yet learned in this age. He had to learn that “the wrath of man worketh not the righteousness of God.” James 1:20. PTUK August 20, 1896, page 531.6

He had to learn that the cause of God is never advanced by human methods; that “the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strongholds; casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ.” 2 Corinthians 10:4, 5. PTUK August 20, 1896, page 531.7

“And when he was full forty years old, it came into his heart to visit his brethren the children of Israel. And seeing one of them suffer wrong, he defended him, and avenged him that was oppressed, and smote the Egyptian; for he supposed that his brethren would have understood how that God by his hand would deliver them; but they understood not. And the next day he showed himself unto them as they strove, and would have set them at one again, saying, Sirs, ye are brethren; Why do ye wrong one to another? But he that did his neighbour wrong thrust him away, saying, Who made thee a ruler and a judge over us? Wilt thou kill me, as thou diddest the Egyptian yesterday? Then fled Moses at this saying, and was a stranger in the land of Midian, where he begat two sons.” Acts 7:23-29. PTUK August 20, 1896, page 531.8

It was true that the Lord designed that the people of Israel should be delivered by the hand of Moses. Moses himself knew this, and he supposed that his brethren would also understand the matter. But they did not. His attempt to deliver them was a sad failure, and the reason for the failure lay in him as much as in them. They did not understand that God would deliver them by his hand; he understood that fact, but he had not yet learned the method. He supposed that the deliverance was to be affected by force; that under his generalship the children of Israel were to rise and conquer their oppressors. But that was not the Lord’s way. The deliverance which God had planned for His people was such a deliverance as could not be gained by human efforts. PTUK August 20, 1896, page 531.9

By this failure of Moses we learn much as to the nature of the work which God proposed to do for the Israelites, and of the inheritance to which he was about to lead them. If it had been a deliverance from mere physical bondage that He designed for them, and if they were to be led only to an earthly, temporal inheritance, then it might possibly have been accomplished in the way that Moses began. The Israelites were numerous, and under the generalship of Moses they might have conquered. That is the way in which earthly possessions are gained. History affords many instances in which a small people threw off the yoke of a great one. But God had promised to Abraham and his seed a heavenly inheritance, and not an earthly, and therefore it could be gained only through heavenly agencies. PTUK August 20, 1896, page 532.1

LABOUR TROUBLES AND THEIR REMEDY

At the present day we find very much the same conditions that existed in the case of the children of Israel. Surely the “sweating system” prevailed at that time as much as it ever has since. Long hours, hard work, and little or no pay, was the rule. Capital has never oppressed labour more than at that time, and the natural thought of the oppressed then, as now, was that the only way to secure their rights was to meet force with force. But man’s way is not God’s way; and God’s way is the only right way. No one can deny that the poor are grossly abused and trodden down; but very few of them are willing to accept God’s method of deliverance. No one can condemn the oppression of the poor by the rich any more strongly than it is done in the Bible, for God is the poor man’s friend. PTUK August 20, 1896, page 532.2

The Lord cares for the poor and the afflicted. He has identified Himself so closely with them that whosoever gives to the poor is considered as lending to the Lord. Jesus Christ was on this earth as a poor man, so that “he that oppresseth the poor reproacheth his Maker.” Proverbs 14:31. “The Lord heareth the poor.” Psalm 69:33. “The needy shall not alway be forgotten; the expectation of the poor shall not perish for ever.” Psalm 9:15. “The Lord will maintain the cause of the afflicted,and the right of the poor.” Psalm 140:12. “For the oppression of the poor, for the sighing of the needy, now will I arise, saith the Lord; I will set him in safety from him that puffeth at him.” Psalm 12:5. “Lord, who is like unto Thee, which deliverest the poor from him that is too strong for him, yea, the poor and the needy from him that spoileth him?” Psalm 35:10. With the Almighty God so interested in their case, what a pity it is that the poor are so ill-advised as to seek to right their own wrongs. PTUK August 20, 1896, page 532.3

The Lord says: “Go to now, ye rich men, weep and howl for your miseries that shall come upon you. Your riches are corrupted, and your garments are moth-eaten. Your old and silver is cankered; and the rust of them shall be a witness against you, and shall eat your flesh as it were fire. Ye have heaped treasure together for the last days. Behold the hire of the labourers who have reaped down your fields, which is of you kept back by fraud, crieth; and the cries of them which have reaped are entered into the ears of the Lord of Sabaoth. Ye have lived in pleasure on the earth, and been wanton; ye have nourished your hearts as in a day of slaughter. Ye have condemned and killed the just, and he doth not resist you.” James 5:1-6. PTUK August 20, 1896, page 532.4

This is a terrible indictment against the oppressors of the poor, and those who have defrauded them of their rightful wages. It is also a promise of sure judgment against them. The Lord hears the cry of the poor, and He does not forget. Every act of oppression He considers as directed against Himself. But when the poor take matters into their own hands, meeting monopoly with monopoly, and force with force, they put themselves in the same class with their oppressors, and thus deprive themselves of the good offices of God in their behalf. PTUK August 20, 1896, page 532.5

To the rich oppressors God says, “Ye have condemned and killed the just, and he doth not resist you.” The injunction, “I say unto you, That ye resist not evil,” means just that, and nothing else; and it is not out of date. It is just as applicable to-day as it was eighteen hundred years ago. The world has not changed in its character; the greed of men is the same now as then; and God is the same. Those who heed that injunction, God calls “the just.” The just do not resist when they are unjustly condemned and defrauded, and even killed. PTUK August 20, 1896, page 533.1

“But how then can there ever be any remedy for these wrongs, if the poor suffer even to death?” Listen further to what the Lord says to the poor themselves. He is not ashamed to call them brethren, and He says, “Be patient, therefore, brethren, until the coming of the Lord. Behold, the husbandman waiteth for the precious fruit of the earth, and hath long patience for it, until he receive the early and latter rain. Be ye also patient; stablish your hearts; for the coming of the Lord draweth nigh.” James 5:7, 8. PTUK August 20, 1896, page 533.2

The coming of the Lord is the time when all oppression shall cease. The trouble is that, like Esau, people do not have faith nor patience to wait. So a lesson is drawn from the farmer. He sows his seed, and does not become impatient because he does not reap the harvest the same day. He has long patience in waiting for the fruit of the earth. “The harvest is the end of the world.” Matthew 13:39. Then those who have committed their cause to the Lord will receive ample return for their trust and patience. Then will be proclaimed claimed liberty throughout all the land, and to all the inhabitants thereof. PTUK August 20, 1896, page 533.3

That which makes known this deliverance, and which gives even now the joy of it, although grievous trials oppress, is the Gospel of Jesus Christ. That is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth. The worldly-wise scoff at the preaching of the Gospel as the remedy for the labour troubles of the present day. But the labour troubles of to-day are no greater than they were in the days of Moses; and the proclamation of the Gospel was the only means that God then approved of and used for their betterment. When Christ came, the strongest proof of the Divinity of His mission was that the Gospel was preached to the poor. Matthew 11:5. He knew the needs of the poor as no other ever can, and His remedy was the Gospel. There are possibilities in the Gospel that have scarcely been dreamed of as yet. The right understanding of the inheritance which the Gospel promises can alone make man patient under earthly oppression. PTUK August 20, 1896, page 533.4

“An Important Difference” The Present Truth, 12, 34.

E. J. Waggoner

An Important Difference .-Dr. Gordon was once asked the secret of his power as a soul winner, and replied: “I used to pray for the baptism of power that I might be a successful preacher. I used to try to use the Holy Spirit. Now I let the Holy Spirit use me.” He here makes a very fine distinction, but an all-important one. It is so easy for zeal to attempt to make of the Lord a servant; to talk and act as though the Lord were in duty bound to carry out the will of His servants instead of His servants being subject to His will. PTUK August 20, 1896, page 533.5

“Development of Religious Law” The Present Truth, 12, 34.

E. J. Waggoner

What is the origin of the present development of human law for the enforcement of religion? Paul asked the Thessalonians if they did not remember that when he was with them he had told them of these things; and that they should let no man deceive them, for there should be a falling away and the man of sin be revealed, by whom the mystery of iniquity was already, even at that time, working. PTUK August 20, 1896, page 533.6

The Thessalonians were to remember-and are we to forget that this was said to them?-that God was to be opposed, and there should be one who would exalt himself above God, and should, from the very temple of God itself, attempt to show that he was himself God. They were told not to forget-and are we to fail to remember?-that the iniquitous workings, then begun in secret, should at length be revealed, and that which was planned in secrecy should finally be proclaimed on the housetops. PTUK August 20, 1896, page 533.7

Here was the origin of human laws for the enforcement of religion, and this subtle deceivableness of unrighteousness, which is now working with power and signs and lying wonders, is the mystery of the deeds of sin of that wicked one who will be consumed and destroyed by fire out of heaven in that last great and terrible day of the Lord. PTUK August 20, 1896, page 533.8

This wicked one still works in secret and his deeds are yet a mystery to most-but not to all. That mysterious antichristian influence which has permeated the world-has invaded and corrupted churches-has, with consummate tact and diplomacy, insinuated itself into civil councils and dominated governments-is not now utterly unknown and unrecognised. PTUK August 20, 1896, page 533.9

Prophecy has pointed out the progress of the mystery of iniquity, and history has recorded the fulfilment and realisation of prophecy step by step, and emphasised each prophetic milestone by such unmistakable inscriptions that the most ignorant may read and comprehend. The line of march of the mysterious commander of the forces of Antichrist is marked by ever increasing inroads into the confines of true religion and civil justice; while pagan observances are added to, or mingled with, methods of worship, and practice, until they become accepted forms. Those who have resisted the encroachments of evil, and remain true to the teachings of Christ and the apostles, acknowledging no rival authority, and submitting their lives to no rule but that of God and His Word, have, at the behest of this commander, filled the cells of the Inquisition, suffered under its instruments of torture, fed the flames with their flesh, and soaked the earth with their blood. PTUK August 20, 1896, page 533.10

The same spirit of fraud, and violence, and force, and cruelty, and injustice, is still at work. Its field of operations is not circumscribed. It is not confined to the battle-grounds of former campaigns. Fresh fields of conquest have been opened in new worlds. The same tactics which have been so successful in former ages are still in vogue, in forms modified to suit changed and social and political conditions. Religious observances, pagan and idolatrous in character, have been ingrafted into the accepted religious formality. These observances have grown and developed until they overshadow the real purpose of religion, and take the place, in the minds of their devotees, of true religion itself. The test of a profession of religion has, oftentimes, become the acceptance of the popular and accepted forms of superficial and fashionable devotion. PTUK August 20, 1896, page 533.11

Not infrequently they who occupy the highest seat in the synagogue ignore Christ and His teachings, and, although they profess to accept the Word of God, deny the authority of its precepts, and affirm the authority of the traditions of men. PTUK August 20, 1896, page 533.12

The pulpit has been set in the open doorway of the temple of Janus. While it remains there those doors can never be shut. From such a pulpit the gospel of force must be preached. From such a pulpit but the soldier and the police constable will be accredited emissaries. Such a gospel does not persuade or convert, it subjugates; it does not convict sin, it establishes the sinner in an hypocrisy which covers people with an affectation of good, and imputes evil were good is. PTUK August 20, 1896, page 534.1

“Prayers for the Dead” The Present Truth, 12, 34.

E. J. Waggoner

The revival of ultra-Catholic practices in the Church of England continues. Speaking of the increase of prayers for the dead in that Church, the English Churchman says:- PTUK August 20, 1896, page 534.2

The Guild of All Souls exists for the special purpose of organising prayers for the dead. Every month, according to its own printed statements, Masses are said for the “faithful departed.” The notorious Society of St. Osmund has published a pamphlet on the subject, dealing with a variety of details, and suggesting the desirability of setting apart paid Mortuary Priests! The Confraternity of the Blessed Sacrament offers Masses for the dead yearly, as does the English Church Union. As instances of the spreading influence of this mischievous propaganda, it may be added that the usage of praying for the dead has been openly advocated in the pulpits of St. Paul’s Cathedral and Westminster Abbey, while at its recent Diocesan Conference the Archbishop of Canterbury expressed a sympathetic opinion on the practice. PTUK August 20, 1896, page 534.3

Much as Evangelicals deprecate the practice, it is a fact that when they stoutly maintain the doctrine of man’s natural immortality they build up the foundation of error on which rest those other Romish doctrines-prayers for the dead, invocation of saints, and purgatory. PTUK August 20, 1896, page 534.4

The only safeguard against these dealings with the dead, and against Spiritualism is that Word which reveals the only source of life, and which declares that the departed “sleep in the dust of the earth” until the awakening of the resurrection. This is the testimony from one end of the Bible to the other. But the mythology of ancient heathen religions peopled a fabulous region with the souls of the dead, and the living sought to the dead for knowledge and offered sacrifices for them and to them. The same notions came into the church in the days of apostasy, and are to-day responsible for this propaganda which is making such headway in the Church of England. PTUK August 20, 1896, page 534.5

“‘Their Flesh Shall Ye Not Eat’” The Present Truth, 12, 34.

E. J. Waggoner

Some interest has lately been aroused by a mysterious case of poisoning at an English country house, where the entire corps of servants, eight or more in number, were made very ill from eating rabbit pie, one of the number dying. PTUK August 20, 1896, page 542.1

The Daily Chronicle commenting upon this says:- PTUK August 20, 1896, page 542.2

“Any doubt cast upon the wholesomeness of the rabbit as an article of food will alarm a very large proportion of the humbler population of this country. Thanks to the reproductive habits of the rabbit itself, and also to the fact that it serves as an object of sport to so many people, its flesh forms one of the cheapest articles of animal food. Dr. Stevenson, however, the eminent analyst to the Home Office, stated in his evidence at the inquest on the servant who died of eating rabbit-pie, that in the course of his experience he had found large numbers of live rabbits affected with micro-organisms to such an alarming extent that they frequently died in consequence. The organisms, he added, were generally killed by cooking, but this could not be taken as a safeguard.” PTUK August 20, 1896, page 542.3

In the eleventh chapter of Leviticus may be found the word of the Lord Himself to Moses directing him as to what animals were fit for food and what were not. This is the counsel of Him who created these animals, therefore no more competent expert testimony could possibly be had. In the sixth verse of this chapter the hare is especially mentioned as being unfit for food, and the eighth verse says, “of their flesh shall ye not eat, and their carcass shall ye not touch: they are unclean to you.” The prohibition even of contact with the dead body of these animals would seem to suppose a possible condition of poisonous virulence, which, in the light of investigations of modern science, we know would be accompanied by the very condition which Dr. Stevenson names. PTUK August 20, 1896, page 542.4

“Items of Interest” The Present Truth, 12, 34.

E. J. Waggoner

-In making experiments to test the varying currents of air, at different heights, a kite has lately been flown to the altitude of one and twoflf the miles. PTUK August 20, 1896, page 542.5

-The German Inventor who was thought to have found at last a flying machine was killed by a fall from a height of about 100 feet while testing his invention. PTUK August 20, 1896, page 542.6

-Southern Spain has been troubled lately by whole districts being ravaged by brigands. The hard times have driven many of the peasantry to a life of brigandage. PTUK August 20, 1896, page 542.7

-The Blackburn Chamber of Commerce has sent a mission to China to work in the Interests of the Lancashire cotton trade. The mission in expects to spend three years in its work. PTUK August 20, 1896, page 542.8

-For the second time this summer serious floods, causing much damage, have occurred In different parts of Switzerland. The Canton of Basel it said to have especially suffered. PTUK August 20, 1896, page 542.9

-The different censuses of church goers in Newcastle, taken since 1851, show the increase in population of that city to be about six times greater proportionately than the increase in the number of church-goers. PTUK August 20, 1896, page 542.10

-Numerous fatalities are reported from the Alps, which furnish every year a list of victims. It is strange that people will climb in dangerous places, where there is no reason for going except that it is adventuresome. PTUK August 20, 1896, page 542.11

-According to a census of Great Britain, lately published, the population of her African colonies and dependencies of 4,035,669, while that of her protectorates, or spheres of influence, is 25,504,374, making a total of 29,540,048. PTUK August 20, 1896, page 542.12

-Greek insurgents in Macedonia are advancing constantly, driving Turkish troops before them. The feeling in Greece is so intense that the Government has been compelled to cease its efforts to forcibly hinder its subjects from going privately to the relief of the Cretans. Rumour now has it that Russia and England are approaching an understanding by which they hope to restore order in the near East. PTUK August 20, 1896, page 542.13

-The second week in August was one of unparalleled heat throughout portions of North America. In New York and Chicago large numbers of men and horses died from the effects of the heat. Two hundred persons are reported to have been struck down in one day in New York,-three hundred and sixty-nine died from sunstroke during six days. Hundreds of horses are said to have died. Central Europe has also been suffering from an unusual hot wave. PTUK August 20, 1896, page 542.14

-The first part of the Report of the Royal Commission on Vaccination recommends that the operation of vaccination shall not be insisted upon when a parent tasked a written declaration of his objection to it. In part two the majority urge new methods of procedure, and insist upon the employment of calf lymph. In part three the minority wholly discountenance any State or public interference with a parent as regards vaccination. The report, as a whole, approves of vaccination. PTUK August 20, 1896, page 542.15

“Back Page” The Present Truth, 12, 34.

E. J. Waggoner

The state of anarchy in Madagascar is said to be unparalleled. Over three hundred churches have been burned, and missionaries have fled from outlying stations to the large centres. PTUK August 20, 1896, page 544.1

The Rector of Hutton writes to the Church Review, “as an English Priest and son of a Bishop,” urging that the English Church should accept the doctrines of papal infallibility and the immaculate conception in order to facilitate complete reunion with Rome. PTUK August 20, 1896, page 544.2

Arbitration is much talked of nowadays. The Bible suggests a court which will keep the Christian altogether out of disputes. “Let the peace of God rule [arbitrate, literally] in your hearts.” Colossians 3:15. Where this arbitration is allowed no third party is necessary to find terms of peace. PTUK August 20, 1896, page 544.3

The remarkable fulfilment of prophecy in the ruins of Nineveh, Tyre, Babylon, and in the history of ancient empires cannot fail to convince every open mind of the truth of Revelation. A well illustrated booklet, called “The Testimony of the Centuries,” issued by our publishers, calls attention to these facts of prophecy and history. Price 1d., by post, 1 1/2nd. PTUK August 20, 1896, page 544.4

Three hundred French priests meet at Rheims next week to form an active “Christian Socialist” party. Socialistic theories are all abroad and the Church of Rome has long given evidence of a desire to turn the movement to the advantage of the Catholic Church. The temper of the times favours the tyranny of the majority over the individual, and when ecclesiasticism is able to dominate the majority it will be as well able to place its mark upon all men as ever it was in the days when it worked through kings and princes instead of the democracy. PTUK August 20, 1896, page 544.5

That well-known missionary traveller Mrs. Isabella Bishop, has lately been travelling in the extreme Western Provinces of China. In some provinces she found the hostility to missionaries and Europeans astonishingly intense, the feeling having greatly increased since the provinces were forced to pay large sums as compensation for mission property destroyed in the riots two years ago. It is a very short-sighted policy for missionaries to apply to governments to punish their enemies. Paul had many hard experiences, but we never hear of his appealing for the punishment of those who wronged and mobbed him because he preached the Gospel. PTUK August 20, 1896, page 544.6

“Sunday Baking” The Present Truth, 12, 34.

E. J. Waggoner

Sunday Baking. -It seems that in Broad-street a Jewish baker has lived and carried on his business for many years. This Jewish baker’s yeast works, and his bread rises, and his fire burns, and his oven bakes on Sundays,-therefore the London District of the Amalgamated Society of Bakers sent its spy, at four o'clock Sunday morning, to look through a basement window and see this forbidden industry of the yeast, the dough, the fire, the oven, and the Jew, and to report the same to the magistrate. The baker’s solicitor explained that the defendant was a Jew, that he had not baked his bread upon the Sabbath, and that he had baked bread for years on Sunday, and it was necessary that those who neither baked nor bought on the Sabbath should buy on Sunday. But the reply of the magistrate was that “by the Act the baking of bread on Sunday mornings was forbidden. The defendant would therefore have to pay a fine of 10s. with 4s. costs, and he would advise him not to offend again.” There is a grim humour about all this, the ponderous title of the prosecutor, the loitering spy in the grey of the morning, the application of the law irrespective of justice, and the gratuitous warning of the magistrate which is suggestive of history. PTUK August 20, 1896, page 544.7

As a parallel to the case of the London baker referred to in another paragraph, we make mention that our American exchanges say that the enemies of the Sabbath in the wilds of Tennessee, after sending three male Sabbath-keepers to prison, have been trying “to secure indictments against some of the women and larger children for doing the family washing on Sunday” in their country homes. From New Zealand and Australia, across America, and eastward to Russia, every nation is giving proof of having partaken of the wine of Roman apostasy, and all are moving simultaneously to revive Sunday laws. Prophecy is truly fulfilling. PTUK August 20, 1896, page 544.8

“Sabbath Essays” The Present Truth, 12, 34.

E. J. Waggoner

Sabbath Essays .-The “Sabbath Observance Society,” Edinburgh, offers to all Y.M.C.A. and Y.W.C.A. members an opportunity of winning a bronze medal for essays on the Sabbath. The Society requires that the following admirable specification shall be complied with:- PTUK August 20, 1896, page 544.9

The Essay is to be based entirely upon the Word of God, the following to be the heads of the Essay:- PTUK August 20, 1896, page 544.10

The Sabbath ordered by our Creator-Genesis 2:3. PTUK August 20, 1896, page 544.11

Christ our Creator-John 1:1-3 and 10. PTUK August 20, 1896, page 544.12

The Sabbath amplified and enforced-Exodus 20:8-11; 31:18, and 34:28. PTUK August 20, 1896, page 544.13

The Sabbath a sign between God and His people-Exodus 31:17, Ezekiel 20:12, 20. PTUK August 20, 1896, page 544.14

Sabbath-breaking punished by God-Numbers 15:27-36. PTUK August 20, 1896, page 544.15

Sabbath obedience specially rewarded-Isaiah 58:13, 14, and Jeremiah 17:19-27. PTUK August 20, 1896, page 544.16

Christ’s teaching as to obedience-John 14:15, 1510, 14, on Matthew 28:20, and Luke 6:46. PTUK August 20, 1896, page 544.17

Christ’s teaching as to the permanence of the Commandments-Matthew 5:17-20, and Luke 16:17. PTUK August 20, 1896, page 544.18

Christ’s instructions how to remember the Sabbath Day to keep it holy-Matthew 24:20. PTUK August 20, 1896, page 544.19

If this outline is intelligently followed the Society must certainly receive some good essays. But what has all this to do with Sunday? Not a scripture contains a hint of Sunday sacredness. On the contrary the scriptures referred to establish the Divine authority and permanent obligation of the Sabbath of the Lord, which He says is the seventh day, not the first. PTUK August 20, 1896, page 544.20

“Religious Strife” The Present Truth, 12, 34.

E. J. Waggoner

Religious Strife .-No wars in history have been so cruel and vindictive as those in which religious feeling has had a place. This has recently been illustrated in the troubles in Turkey and Crete. The Under-Secretary for Foreign Affairs said last week in the Commons:- PTUK August 20, 1896, page 544.21

The second difficulty with which we are confronted is one which it is almost impossible to escape, and that is the outbreak of religious and political animosity which unhappily prevails in the island. One day one party is the aggressor, and the next day the other party is the aggressor. It is not fair to say that in every case the Christians have been the victims. If the House could all realise the intensity of the religious feeling which prevails, it would try and avoid taking sides. PTUK August 20, 1896, page 544.22

The origin of all trouble is political, and religious animosity on both sides causes men to act as men can only act when they make a religion of violence and intrigue. It is for this very reason that the introduction of religious questions into politics in all countries can only embitter politics and ruin religion. History speaks with one voice on this matter. PTUK August 20, 1896, page 544.23