The Present Truth, vol. 10
January 11, 1894
“Dare You Trust Him?” The Present Truth 10, 2.
E. J. Waggoner
Righteousness is its own reward; for righteousness is life, the life of Christ; and he who has this knows that he has all things that are needful. Therefore the Lord says, “Seek ye first the kingdom of God and His righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you. Take therefore no thought for the morrow,” or “be not therefore anxious for the morrow.” Living only one day at a time, we know that He who is from eternity will be living on the morrow and in days still future, and His life is ours, and the care that is over the grass of the field and the fowls of the air is over us all. PTUK January 11, 1894, page 20.1
At the beginning of the Christian life we count the cost. We forsake all, give up everything; and then, having lost our own life, we have His. There is therefore no more anxiety, and nothing for us but to follow Christ withersoever His voice may lead us. He never yet let anyone out into the wilderness to perish. There may be the path to the wilderness, seemingly impenetrable, but “when the poor and needy seek water, and there is none, and their tongue faileth for thirst, I the Lord will hear them, I the God of Israel will not forsake them. I will open rivers in high places, and fountains in the midst of the valleys; I will make the wilderness a pool of water, and the dry land springs of water.” Isaiah 41:17, 18. PTUK January 11, 1894, page 20.2
All we need is to know what the Lord says, and we turn to obey Him and follow His leading, knowing that He takes the responsibility of fulfilling His own promises. The man who steps out in faith, believing God, and not as an experiment to find out if the Lord really means what He says, will always find that “the way of the righteous is made plain.” Proverbs 15:19. We are so apt to take counsel with our fears and our own resources, and forget the Lord our Maker, “that hath stretched forth the heavens, and laid the foundations of the earth.” PTUK January 11, 1894, page 20.3
Some men are afraid to be strictly honest in business, for fear they will fail in these days of keen and unscrupulous competition. Others fear they may come to want, and dare not walk out on the bare promise of God when some duty is newly brought to their mind in the word. If they could but plan the future, and see clearly the way out they would not hesitate. But have we more confidence in our own plans and ability than in the Lord’s? He has planned a way out from the beginning to the end. He is the Way, and the man who has Christ as a living Presence knows that he has more than all the world can afford. Israel in the wilderness limited the Lord’s power in their behalf by unbelief, and yet He cared for every detail of their necessities. The Lord says by Moses, “Yet in this thing ye did not believe the Lord your God, who went in the way before you, to search you out a place to pitch your tents in, in fire by night, to show you by what way ye should go, and in a cloud by day.” Deuteronomy 1:33. PTUK January 11, 1894, page 20.4
In this busy world men are every day putting confidence in their own ability and efforts to make their way, forgetting that they are dependent upon God for the natural life and strength which they are daily using. And even those who profess to believe the Lord are often thrown into doubt and perplexity when the path of right and duty interferes with previously formed business relations, just as though the Lord is not able to make up to them all that is vital to life and godliness if they trust Him. The Lord warned the Israelites against being tempted to disobey Him in the busy harvestime. He said, “Six days shalt thou work, but on the seventh day thou shalt rest: in earing time and in harvest thou shalt rest.” Exodus 34:21. No pressure of circumstances can shut the real believer away from obedience to God’s word. The blessing of God in Sabbath-keeping is worth more than all the riches of the Orient, because it has in it all that Christ is to men. So it is in every duty and privilege. Not an anxious thought need be given to temporal necessities. “Your heavenly Father knoweth that ye have need of these things.” PTUK January 11, 1894, page 20.5
In days when Israel dwelt in the land of Canaan they were commanded to let the land rest every seventh year, and the Lord said, “And if ye shall say, What shall we eat the seventh year? behold, we shall not sow, nor gather in our increase; then I will command My blessing upon you in the sixth year, and it shall bring forth fruit for three years.” Leviticus 25:20, 21. PTUK January 11, 1894, page 21.1
Sometimes the Lord comes to men plainly revealing some duty which seems to involve their whole life work. Perhaps the labour and capital representing many years must all be left if the call of duty is responded to. Many have this to face when they come to consider the question of true Sabbath keeping, and in various ways the test may come. Whatever it may be, and however it may come, we have only to remember God’s promises and power. The King of Judah had once hired an army of Israel to help him, when the word of the Lord came saying he should not let Israel go with him to the battle. “And Amaziah said to the man of God, But what shall we do for the hundred talents which I have given to the army of Israel? And the man of God answered, The Lord is able to give thee much more than this.” 2 Chronicles 25:9. PTUK January 11, 1894, page 21.2
God is able to make all things to abound unto His children, and He will withhold no good thing. Therefore He says, “Receive My instruction, and not silver; and knowledge rather than choice gold. For wisdom is better than rubies; and all the things that may be desired are not to be compared to it.” Proverbs 8:10, 11. PTUK January 11, 1894, page 21.3
“Though I have friends so many,
Love, and gold, and health,
If I have not Thee, my Saviour
Hold I any wealth?”
PTUK January 11, 1894, page 21.4
“One Voice” The Present Truth 10, 2.
E. J. Waggoner
One Voice.-The Jews professed to believe the writings of Moses, but they did not. Christ said to them: “For had ye believed Moses, ye would have believed Me: for he wrote of Me. But if ye believe not his writings, how shall ye believe My words?” The man who rejects one word from God really rejects the whole; for it is the same voice throughout. PTUK January 11, 1894, page 21.5
This is illustrated in the progress of so-called Biblical criticism. The critics began with the Old Testament, and the writings of Moses. Then Isaiah and the other prophets, and the Psalms were disposed of, higher criticism deciding what portions should be received. Now the critics deal with the words of Christ in the New Testament in the same manner. This is as Christ said, “If ye believed not his [Moses’] writings, how shall ye believe My words?” Christ spake by Moses and the prophets as verily as by His own lips. It is the same voice, the same tone, and the same Gospel,—“Jesus Christ the same yesterday, and to-day, and for ever.” PTUK January 11, 1894, page 21.6
“The Power of the Spirit” The Present Truth 10, 2.
E. J. Waggoner
Just before the Lord ascended to heaven, He said to His disciples, “Ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you; and ye shall be witnesses unto Me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost parts of the earth.” Acts 1:8. PTUK January 11, 1894, page 21.7
This promise is to us as well as to those who heard His voice as He uttered it; for every one who knows the Lord is to be a witness for Him, and nothing can be done without the power of the Holy Spirit. God has promised the Spirit to all who desire it; that is, to all who are willing to receive, or to undergo, all that is involved in the receiving of the Spirit. PTUK January 11, 1894, page 21.8
The marginal reading of the text above quoted is, “Ye shall receive the power of the Holy Ghost coming upon you.” The question is, How is this power to be received? What are we to expect and pray for? One thing may be definitely answered, and that is that the Spirit will not come to any man in the way which he may have marked out. For the thoughts of God and the power of God are not after the model of man’s mind. PTUK January 11, 1894, page 21.9
When the word of the Lord found Elijah in the wilderness, as he fled from Jezebel, it said to him: “Go forth, and stand upon the mount before the Lord. And, behold, the Lord passed by, and a great and strong wind rent the mountains, and brake in pieces the rocks before the Lord; but the Lord was not in the wind; and after the wind an earthquake; but the Lord was not in the earthquake; and after the earthquake a fire; but the Lord was not in the fire; and after the fire a still small voice. And it was so, when Elijah heard it that he wrapped his face in his mantle, and went out, and stood in the entering in of the cave. And, behold, there came a voice unto him, and said, What doest thou here, Elijah?” 1 Kings 19:11-13. PTUK January 11, 1894, page 21.10
But for the express declaration to the contrary, we should have said that the Lord was in the wind and the earthquake. It is natural for man to suppose that nothing less than a hurricane could reveal the power of God; but from the above we learn that God shows his power in more quiet ways. It was a voice, “a still, small voice,” that revealed the Lord to Elijah. So it will be with us. PTUK January 11, 1894, page 21.11
God says to us: “Be still, and know that I am God.” Psalm 46:10. It is “in quietness and confidence” that our strength lies; in returning and rest we find salvation. We must be silent before the Lord, or else we shall miss the still, small voice which alone reveals Him to the soul. God can thunder with a terrible voice, but we could not understand that; so He reveals Himself to us in a whisper. That conveys intelligible sound to our understanding, whereas the thunder would only startle and terrify us. So we read, “Lo these are but the outskirts of His ways; but how small a whisper do we hear of Him! But the thunder of His power who can understand?” Job 26:14. PTUK January 11, 1894, page 21.12
Jesus was on the sea of Galilee with His disciples, when “there arose a great tempest in the sea, insomuch that the ship was covered with the waves.” The disciples in their terror appealed to the Master. “And He arose, and rebuked the wind, and said unto the sea, Peace, be still. And the wind ceased, and there was a great calm.” Matthew 7:24; Luke 8:39. Who that reads this ever imagines that Jesus lifted His voice above the roar of the tempest, in order to calm it? We cannot imagine such a thing. Only the weak man, conscious of his weakness, raises his voice in giving commands. The loud tone is used for the purpose of trying to conceal the lack of real power. The man who has authority, and who knows that he has the power to back up his commands, uses a low tone. Jesus always spoke as one that had authority; so that in stilling the tempest we find the same “still, small voice” which Elijah heard. PTUK January 11, 1894, page 21.13
This still, small voice is the same voice by which the universe was created. “By the word of the Lord were the heavens made; and all the host of them by the breath of His mouth.” Psalm 33:6. Was it necessary for God to utter His voice in thunder, in order to bring the worlds into existence? Certainly not; an order from the commander of an army, given in a whisper is just as effective in setting troops in motion as though shouted at the top of his voice. So with the King of the universe; the simple breathing from the Lord was sufficient to create all the worlds. The still, small voice that spoke to Elijah, was the voice that created. And it is the same word of power that now upholds all things (Hebrews 1:3), because, as before noted, it is only a small whisper that we hear of Him in all the works,—the “parts of His ways,”—that we know anything about. PTUK January 11, 1894, page 21.14
Most of the great manifestations of the power of God in the earth, are silent and unseen. We know that the power is there, only by the results. Think of the thousands of millions of tons of water that the sun is constantly lifting up from the earth to the clouds, to send down again in dew and rain. Not a sound is heard throughout all; but man cannot pump a cup full without much noise. The power manifested in plant growth is beyond all human conception, yet there is no sound. A plant may in its growth rend a rock asunder, yet it is all done silently, and unseen. The heavens declare the glory of God, yet they ring no bells, and blow no trumpets. God’s work is so mighty that the results speak; advertisement would belittle it. PTUK January 11, 1894, page 22.1
But the word by which the heavens were made, and by which they are upheld, and by which all the operations of nature are carried on, is the word of the Gospel which is preached unto us. The words of the Lord are Spirit and life. The word of God is living and powerful (Hebrews 4:12), and it works effectually in all who believe in it. 1 Thessalonians 2:13. The Saviour breathed on the disciples, saying, “Receive ye the Holy Ghost.” John 20:22. It was the same breathing by which the worlds were made, and by which they are upheld. The power of the Spirit, therefore, is creative power, and that is in the word of the Lord. And so we may know that the power of the Holy Ghost, which Christ promised to His followers, comes only through His word. PTUK January 11, 1894, page 22.2
God speaks to us in His word. The word of God is the sword of the Spirit. Ephesians 6:17. It is the Spirit that reproved sin (John 16:7, 8), and it does it by the law; for “the law is spiritual” (Romans 7:14), and “by the law is the knowledge of sin.” Romans 3:20. The first thing, therefore, that the Spirit does when it comes, it is to convict of sin. If the reproof is accepted, and the sin is acknowledged, then the Spirit’s power is manifested in taking the sin away. It convinces of righteousness. If the reproof is rejected, then of course the Spirit is resisted, and its power will not be given to that person. As the reproofs which the Spirit gives through the word are heeded, the word abides within, and the life is shaped by it. Such an one is then led by the Spirit. As a result of thus heeding reproof, the Spirit is poured out (Proverbs 1:23), and of course its power is manifested in those upon whom it is poured. PTUK January 11, 1894, page 22.3
Thus it will appear that it is utter folly and mockery to pray for the pouring out of the Spirit of God, while we are holding off any reproof, or cherishing any sin pointed out by the word of God. The office of the Spirit is to lead into all truth, and therefore to pray for its outpouring means to yield ourselves without reserve to every commandment of God. If we do this, God will give us His Spirit without measure. It will not be given simply for our pleasure, but it is given that we may be witnesses to the Lord. The pouring out of the Spirit makes known the words of God, so that we may make known to the world those words of power. PTUK January 11, 1894, page 22.4
But all this will be without boasting or ostentation, although it will be the mightiest manifestation of power ever known among men. The Lord says: “Behold My Servant, whom I uphold; Mine Elect, in whom My soul delighteth; I have put only My Spirit upon Him; He shall bring forth judgment to the Gentiles. He shall not cry, nor lift up, nor cause His voice to be heard in the street. A bruised reed shall He not break, and the smoking flax shall He not quench.” Isaiah 42:1-3. That is the way the Lord works by the Spirit. He shall bring forth judgment unto truth, working with such power that the nations will be amazed, yet with such gentleness that even the reed that is bruised will not be broken, and the wick that is but dimly burning will not be extinguished. It will not be the power of the tempest, but the power of the sunlight and of plant growth. PTUK January 11, 1894, page 22.5
The power that the Spirit gives, therefore, is the power that works throughout all creation. It is the power of God’s word, and is manifested only in those who are fully yielded to that word. God says, “As the snow cometh down, and the rain from heaven, and returneth not thither, but watereth the earth, and maketh it bring forth and bud, that it may give seed to the sower, and bread to the eater; so shall My word be that goeth forth out of My mouth.” Isaiah 55:10, 11. The Spirit is also likened to water; it is “poured out” as the rain. See Isaiah 44:3. The power of the Spirit in man will therefore be the power that is put in operation when the rain falls on the earth. Who will yield to that blessed influence? “For the earth which drinketh in the rain that cometh oft upon it, and bringeth for herbs meet for them by whom it is dressed, receiveth blessing from God.” Hebrews 6:7. As the earth brings forth fruit, so we are to bring forth righteousness. Isaiah 61:11. Therefore “it is time to seek the Lord, till He come and rain righteousness upon you.” PTUK January 11, 1894, page 22.6
“Hypnotism and True Liberty” The Present Truth 10, 2.
E. J. Waggoner
A striking illustration of the way in which Satan works on the minds of men may be drawn from the workings of mesmerism, or hypnotism. In fact it is more than illustration, it is a sample of the working itself; for it is a well-known fact that the person who yields himself as a “subject” weakens his will just to the extent that He indulges in it. And anything that tends to make a man subject to another is only of the devil. A writer in Cassell’s Saturday Journal gives an account of his experience as a subject. First he was instructed to yield his will completely, and directly the operator had full possession of the mental and physical impulses. PTUK January 11, 1894, page 22.7
When the professor moved, I felt compelled to follow and imitate those movements. Onlookers assured me afterwards that I watched him as earnestly as though my life depended upon keeping him in sight. This he explained by saying aloud that an invisible wire had been established between our two selves; when he commanded I must obey, without consulting my own will. Practically, I had no will, said he; his own had subjugated mine entirely. He was the magnet and I the needle. To myself everything was real and sober enough. I saw nothing ridiculous in the situation. Thus, when he beckoned, I followed; when He waved his hands before my face, saying confidently, “You cannot utter your name. Try!” lo, I found I could make no sound! He lifted an arm, and I was straightway impelled to do likewise. “You cannot drop that arm!” said he; and for the life of me I could not. He next restored my voice-merely by telling me that it was restored-and bade me sing. I did so without hesitation-a thing I could never have done in ordinary circumstances. Then he handed me a glass, remarking that it contained wine. I drank the liquor, and can honestly affirm that it looked and tasted exactly as wine would have done-albeit I subsequently learned that I had imbibed unadulterated salt and water! PTUK January 11, 1894, page 22.8
The subject had lost his own individuality and was simply a tool of another. PTUK January 11, 1894, page 22.9
It is the same with the sinner. Having yielded to sin, he walks “according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience.” Ephesians 2:2. For “know ye not, that to whom ye yield yourselves servants to obey, his servants ye are to whom ye obey; whether of sin unto death, or of obedience unto righteousness.” Romans 6:16. Just as the hypnotic operator suggests impulses to the subject, Satan insinuates his suggestions, and makes the subject believe that the bitterest draught is sweet, and while a veritable slave, that he has liberty. Thus it is that men do the work of the devil and “know not what they do.” PTUK January 11, 1894, page 23.1
But there is this feature that gives a refuge of hope, sure and steadfast. God did not leave man to himself when he by his own choice became a subject of sin. God said, “I will put enmity between thee [the serpent] and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed,” and as this consciousness of the thralldom of sin and a longing for freedom in the inmost soul of every man leads him, though in the depths of sin, to wish for deliverance, the Gospel proclaims a Deliverer. The apostle describes this stage in the soul’s experience when he tells how he longed to be free but found a power within him “warring against” the law of his mind, and bringing him “into captivity to the law of sin.” He was under the control of Satan, powerless to control his impulses, and cried out, “O wretched man that I am! who shall deliver me from this body of death?” No effort of his could do it, but by faith alone in the Gospel he answered his question. “I thank God through Jesus Christ our Lord.” Christ came to proclaim liberty to the captives. Even the physically dead can hear the voice of God and live, and the captives of Satan’s art hear the voice and find in the power of that voice something which breaks the spell of sin, and lets the oppressed go free. PTUK January 11, 1894, page 23.2
Then the man who yields his will to God becomes again a captive and a tool. “Yield yourselves unto God, as those that are alive from the dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness unto God.” Romans 6:13. “It is God that worketh in you both to will and to do of His good pleasure.” Philippians 2:13. Even every thought is brought “into captivity” “to the obedience of Christ.” 2 Corinthians 10:5. This captivity is unto righteousness, to be sure, but in another respect it is the very opposite of the devil’s bondservice. Every time we yield to him, the power of the will is weakened. But God never invades the freedom of the will. His service energises and quickens every faculty, and only in His service is the will perfectly free and unfettered. At every step it is free to choose. Satan promises men freedom while he himself is a servant of corruption. The Lord asks us to become His slaves, and in subjection to Him we find the only true freedom, the very liberty of God; for whom the Son makes free “shall be free indeed.” And as Satan worked wickedness by us before, so now with greater power the Lord works righteousness by us; “because greater is He that is in you, than he that is in the world.” 1 John 4:4. PTUK January 11, 1894, page 23.3
“The Nature of God’s Commandment” The Present Truth 10, 2.
E. J. Waggoner
“If a man say, I love God, and hateth his brother, he is a liar; for he that loveth not his brother whom he hath seen, how can he love God whom he hath not seen? And this commandment have we from him, that he who loveth God love his brother also.” 1 John 4:20, 21. A little consideration of this text will give a very clear idea of the nature of the commandments of God. Let us first ask a few questions about it. PTUK January 11, 1894, page 23.4
Does the text teach that whosoever loves God is thereby laid under obligations to love his brother also? that if a man loves God, and does not love his brother also, he will be punished for violation of law?—Manifestly not, from the very statement of the text, that a man cannot love God without loving his brother. “He that loveth not his brother whom he hath seen, cannot love God whom he hath not seen.” Since a man cannot love God if he does not also have love for his brother, or neighbour, it is evident that the text does not mean that there is a special law enacted for those who love God, requiring them to love their brethren. PTUK January 11, 1894, page 23.5
Love comes from God. “Everyone that loveth is begotten of God, and knoweth God. He that loveth not knoweth not God; for God is love.” Therefore whoever loves God must of necessity love his brother also. He must love all men, for God’s love is without respect of persons. And this shows that men cannot, as is now quite commonly thought, learn to love God by first loving their fellow-men. Love to God is first. Jesus said, “The first of all the commandments is, Hear, O Israel; The Lord our God is one Lord; and thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind, and with all thy strength; this is the first commandment. And the second is like, namely this, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.” Mark 12:29-31. PTUK January 11, 1894, page 23.6
No man can love his neighbour unless he loves God, because love is of God; and nobody can love God without loving his brother. Love is one. It cannot be forced, for the use of force is sure death to love. It must flow spontaneously. Yet we have the statement, “This commandment have we from Him, that he who loveth God love his brother also.” The thing therefore that we are to learn from this is that the commandment of God is something far different from the commandments of men. Human laws are wholly a matter of force; but God’s commandment is that we should love one another, and that cannot be a matter of force. PTUK January 11, 1894, page 23.7
The law of God is love. “For this is the love of God, that we keep His commandments; and His commandments are not grievous.” 1 John 5:3. “For all the law is fulfilled in one word, even in this: Thou shall love thy neighbour as thyself.” Galatians 5:14. “Owe no man anything, but to love one another; for he that loveth another hath fulfilled the law.” “Love worketh no ill to his neighbour; therefore love is the fulfilling of the law.” Romans 13:8, 10. When God spoke His law, it was because “He loved the people.” Deuteronomy 33:2, 3. PTUK January 11, 1894, page 23.8
It is clear from the Scriptures that the law of God is love, even the love of God. But God Himself is love. He does not merely have love, but love is the very life of God. Therefore the law of God is His life. And this brings us to the words of Jesus: “For I have not spoken of Myself; but the Father which sent Me, He gave Me a commandment, what I should say, and what I should speak. And I know that His commandment is life everlasting; whatsoever I speak therefore, even as the Father said unto Me, so I speak.” John 12:49, 50. The commandment of God is life eternal, and to know God is life eternal (John 17:3), showing that the commandment of God is His own life. We know one only as we know his life. So we know God only by knowing His life, and His life is eternal life; but His commandment is life eternal, because His commandment is His life. In other words, the life of God is the law for man. PTUK January 11, 1894, page 24.1
“No man hath seen God at any time; the only begotten Son, which is in the bosom of the Father, He hath declared Him.” John 1:18. God set forth His Son, in whom was His own life, in order that we might know what the law is. In Christ we have the real, living law. PTUK January 11, 1894, page 24.2
We read that out of the heart are the issues of life. Now Christ said of Himself, “Lo, I come; in the volume of the book it is written of Me. I delight to do Thy will, O My God; yea, Thy law is within My heart.” Psalm 40:7, 8. Therefore the life which issued from Christ was the law of God; and as He lived by the Father (John 6:57), we see again the law of God is His life. PTUK January 11, 1894, page 24.3
In Christ “all fulness” dwells, even “all the fulness of the Godhead bodily.” The Apostle Paul wrote thus of his prayer: “I bow my knees unto the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, of whom the whole family in heaven and earth is named, that He would grant you, according to the riches of His glory, to be strengthened with might by His Spirit in the inner man; that Christ may dwell in your hearts by faith; that ye, being rooted and grounded in love, may be able to comprehend with all saints what is the breadth, and length, and depth, and height; and to know the love of Christ, which passeth knowledge, that ye might be filled with all the fulness of God.” Ephesians 3:14-19. PTUK January 11, 1894, page 24.4
This is an inspired prayer, and therefore we know that it is the will of God that its request should be granted. If we but allow Christ to dwell in our hearts, He will bring in all His fulness, which is all the fulness of God. From our hearts will issue the same life that issued from the heart of Christ on earth, even the life of God. And so we shall find that His commandment is not grievous, because it is not an arbitrary requirement laid on us, but our very life. It is not something which we are to do by our own strength, but which, if we allow it, will work itself out in us. PTUK January 11, 1894, page 24.5
How will this life be manifested in us? Just as it was in Christ when He was on earth; for He is the same yesterday, and to-day, and for ever. When tempted to idolatry, He replied, “It is written, Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and Him only shalt thou serve.” Matthew 4:10. Therefore the one in whom is the life of Christ, cannot be an idolater. PTUK January 11, 1894, page 24.6
When the parents of Jesus found Him in the temple, asking and answering the questions of the doctors, He was not impatient of control, although He was so wonderfully wise, far exceeding them in that respect; but “He went down with them, and came to Nazareth, and was subject unto them.” Luke 2:51. Therefore the one in whom is the real law of God, in the form of the life of Christ, will honour his father and his mother, as required in the fifth commandment; and He will not find it burdensome to do so. PTUK January 11, 1894, page 24.7
Jesus said, “To this end was I born, and for this purpose came I into the world, that I should bear witness unto the truth.” John 18:36. He “did no sin, neither was guile found in His mouth.” 1 Peter 2:22. Therefore those in whom He dwells will not only tell the truth, but they will love the truth. They will love the truth so much that they will never seek to parry its force, nor to evade any portion of the truth of God’s word. PTUK January 11, 1894, page 24.8
The tenth commandment says, “Thou shalt not covet.” So far was Christ from coveting, that He freely gave up everything that was His own. And so those in whom He dwells will not find it a grievous matter to be content with such things as they have. PTUK January 11, 1894, page 24.9
Christ kept the Sabbath, even the seventh day of the week, and no other. His life was God’s life, and the life of God is the law for men; therefore those who live solely by Him will also keep the Sabbath day. They will not consider this a burdensome thing, but will delight in it, even as Christ delighted to do the will of God. Those who delight in the Sabbath, also delight themselves in the Lord (Isaiah 58:13, 14), this showing again that the law of God, including the fourth commandment, is the life of God. To delight in the law, is to delight in the life of the Lord. PTUK January 11, 1894, page 24.10
Let us therefore say to Christ as He stands at the door and knocks, “Come in, Thou that comest in the name of the Lord.” Let Him come in with all the Divine fulness, to live in us His own blessed will. It will be different from anything that we have ever before done, “for My thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways My ways, saith the Lord. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are My ways higher than your ways, and My thoughts than your thoughts.” Isaiah 55:8, 9. The desire of man is to rise, and here is elevation indeed. The life of God will lift the one who accepts it from earth to heaven. PTUK January 11, 1894, page 24.11
“In the Pond” The Present Truth 10, 2.
E. J. Waggoner
When our eyes are once opened to behold the wonders round us, we shall be surprised to find the most commonplace little pond turned into a veritable school of learning with teachers innumerable. PTUK January 11, 1894, page 26.1
There are the newts with beautiful “crimson-stained and undulating crests,” and eyes “gleaming like fiery topaz,” with their curious habits and strange, baby ways. PTUK January 11, 1894, page 26.2
Swarms of water-beetles may be seen, the most interesting, perhaps, a “living, diving bell” with wondrous swimming-legs and set of strongest suckers. PTUK January 11, 1894, page 27.1
Then there are the whirlwig beetles with their water telescopes; each one has four eyes, two above and two below-two to see below the water and two to see above it, each eye, of course, being composed of many little eyes. PTUK January 11, 1894, page 27.2
Numberless water-boatmen float on their backs and row themselves along with their oar-like legs. PTUK January 11, 1894, page 27.3
The curious larv? of of the dragon-fly “propels himself forward by squirting water backward, having within him a ‘direct action’ propeller.” See! How the dragon-fly eats. His mouth opens four ways at once! PTUK January 11, 1894, page 27.4
May flies, many species of caddis, and swarms upon swarms of the larv? of gnats and other flies are found there besides aquatic crustacean almost without number, and hundreds of other creatures fully as interesting as these. PTUK January 11, 1894, page 27.5
“Insects” The Present Truth 10, 2.
E. J. Waggoner
“Go to the ant, thou sluggard; consider her ways, and be wise.” Proverbs 6:6. PTUK January 11, 1894, page 29.1
By reading the above verse, we find that God wishes people to study even the little insects. Although some are so small that most people never notice them, they can teach us many useful lessons; they are all wonderful, and many are really very beautiful. PTUK January 11, 1894, page 29.2
If you notice carefully, you will see that there are two kinds of insects, those having jaws or mouths, like the ants, bees, beetles, and grasshoppers; and those having sucking-tubes, like the butterflies, moths, flies, and mosquitoes. A full-grown insect always has six jointed legs, and two horns or feelers. They have a row of breathing tubes along their sides, and most of their bones, instead of being on the inside of their bodies, are on the outside, like a soldier’s armour, to keep them from getting hurt. PTUK January 11, 1894, page 29.3
No kind ever had a better or more beautiful armour than the Tiger Beetle, or Sparkler. Its suit is light but strong, allows the insect to move in any direction, and yet covers every part of its body; it shines with more then steely brightness, and looks as though it were trimmed with gold, and dotted with sparkling stones. This beetle even folds up its wings when not in use, and lays them carefully away in a stout little case on its back. PTUK January 11, 1894, page 29.4
How delicate and beautiful are the wings of insects! Look at the common fly. Its wings are so thin and clear that you can see through them, and yet they are so ribbed, like a leaf, that they are quite strong. If you move them in the sunlight you see all the colours of the rainbow dancing over them. The most beautiful of all insects are the butterflies and moths. And yet these things of beauty were once but creeping caterpillars! Then let us not despise one little creature that God has made; it may not appear beautiful to us, and we may not know that it is good for anything, but we may be sure that it is, or God would not have made it. The more we study about them, the more we wonder and admire. PTUK January 11, 1894, page 29.5
The eyes of insects are very wonderful. They are often smaller than the hole made by a tiny pin, and yet they are really often composed of thousands of little eyes or facets. Some ants have about fifty, the dragon-fly 12,000, and some beetles and butterflies as many as 25,000, while the common house-fly has two eyes, each made up of 2,000 little eyes. It is thus enabled to see in almost all directions at once. PTUK January 11, 1894, page 29.6
The tiniest insects have tools as perfect as those belonging to the larger creatures that God has made. The little breathing holes along the sides of the fly have fine sieves to keep out dust. The bottom of its foot has two strong hooks and some small suckers with which the fly can hold on the wall and even walk on the ceiling. The saw-fly has a saw and glue, and one kind of bee has a boring tool and a cutting instrument with which it can cut leaves to fit its nest as well as you could with the scissors. The mosquito has a pump, the earwigs, pincers, and the baby glowworm has a brush with which to keep itself clean. The honey bee has a honey bag, and the fire-fly carries a lantern under his wings; the wasp has a paper mill, and the silk worm a spinning machine. PTUK January 11, 1894, page 29.7
Although so small, insects are very useful. The Burying Beetles bury in the ground every dead bird, mouse, or small reptile that they find, and thus keep them from making the air impure. Lady-birds kill the plant lice that get on our flowers and plants. The bright reds and pretty pinks in pink, water paints, wool, and silk, are made from the dried bodies of the Cochineal Insects. The Lac Insects give out a reddish brown substance that is used in making sealing wax, varnish, and cement. And who has not seen, yes, and eaten, the many little six-sided rooms full of sweet honey, made by the busy bees? When you put on your shining ribbons and silk clothing, do you ever stop to think of the little worms that worked hours and hours in spinning those silken threads? A silk worm hands itself by its hind feet and, for seventy-two hours, spins away until it has a fine unbroken thread of silk eleven miles longs wound round its body! PTUK January 11, 1894, page 29.8
It is no wonder that God thinks that sluggards (lazy persons) might learn something by watching the ants. The farming ants of western Texas clear a piece of land four or five feet wide round their city, take away all plants, stones, and rubbish, sow a certain kind of grass, tend it carefully, keep it free from weeds, and when ripe carry the seeds to their nests. If the seeds are found too damp, they are carried out, laid in the sunshine until dry enough, and housed again. In South America, the Leaf-cutting Ants build nests about two feet high and often forty feet across; and in one instance it was found that they had dug a well one foot across and thirty feet deep, so that they might have water. The White Ant often builds its houses sixteen or seventeen feet high, and, although hollowed out into many rooms, it is strong enough to hold up heavy cattle. There are many other things which you must find out for yourself. PTUK January 11, 1894, page 29.9
What wonderful insects, wonderful birds, and wonderful water-animals! And they were all made on one day! No wonder that the One who is kind-hearted, powerful, and wise enough to do that is named “Wonderful.” Isaiah 9:6. Let us show Him how much we thank Him, by treating every creature that He has made with gentleness and kindness, and by learning the lessons that He would have us learn from them. PTUK January 11, 1894, page 29.10
1. Do you like to work? PTUK January 11, 1894, page 29.11
2. What does God say that lazy people should do? Proverbs 6:6. PTUK January 11, 1894, page 29.12
3. Why does He wish them to watch the ant? PTUK January 11, 1894, page 29.13
4. Can you think of some other little creature that is always very busy? PTUK January 11, 1894, page 29.14
5. Where does it find the honey that it gathers? PTUK January 11, 1894, page 30.1
6. In what does it carry it? PTUK January 11, 1894, page 30.2
7. Where does it store it?—In little six-sided rooms that it makes itself. PTUK January 11, 1894, page 30.3
8. How can it do such fine work in the dark?—It uses its feelers. PTUK January 11, 1894, page 30.4
9. Do you think of anything that you can learn from the bee? PTUK January 11, 1894, page 30.5
10. What strange thing is done by the Burying Beetles? PTUK January 11, 1894, page 30.6
11. Name some other things for which insects are useful? PTUK January 11, 1894, page 30.7
12. Out of what do wasps make their nests?—Some use clay, others use paper, while others use hard white shiny cardboard. PTUK January 11, 1894, page 30.8
13. Where do they get their paper and cardboard?—They make it out of fine bits of wood. PTUK January 11, 1894, page 30.9
14. What can a fly do that you cannot do? PTUK January 11, 1894, page 30.10
15. How does he manage to walk on the ceiling without falling off? PTUK January 11, 1894, page 30.11
16. Name some of the strange tools that insects have. PTUK January 11, 1894, page 30.12
17. What kind of clothing do insects wear? PTUK January 11, 1894, page 30.13
18. Which are the most beautiful of all insects? PTUK January 11, 1894, page 30.14
19. Then should we despise the caterpillar and other insects that do not at first appear beautiful or useful? Why not? PTUK January 11, 1894, page 30.15
20. How do insects breathe? PTUK January 11, 1894, page 30.16
21. How many kinds are there?—Two: those having jaws, and those having sucking tubes. PTUK January 11, 1894, page 30.17
22. How long would it take a man to make one of these smallest insects? PTUK January 11, 1894, page 30.18
23. How long was God in making all the insects, all the birds, and all the water animals. PTUK January 11, 1894, page 30.19
24. What new name have we learned by which He is called?—“Wonderful.” PTUK January 11, 1894, page 30.20
25. Do you not think that a good name for Him? PTUK January 11, 1894, page 30.21
26. How can we show Him that we thank Him for His great goodness in placing around us these wonderful creatures? PTUK January 11, 1894, page 30.22
“Interesting Items” The Present Truth 10, 2.
E. J. Waggoner
-It is reported that a Ministerial crisis has occurred in Servia. PTUK January 11, 1894, page 30.23
-Central European time has been adopted throughout Denmark. PTUK January 11, 1894, page 30.24
-A midwinter international exhibition has been opened at San Francisco. PTUK January 11, 1894, page 30.25
-The influenza is very severe in the Crimea among all classes of the population. PTUK January 11, 1894, page 30.26
-The wheat harvest in the Argentine Republic is expected to yield over 72,250,000 bushels. PTUK January 11, 1894, page 30.27
-The grounds of the World’s Fair at Chicago have been restored to the possession of the public. PTUK January 11, 1894, page 30.28
-A Washington telegram states that last year’s revenue deficiency will amount to $37,000,000. PTUK January 11, 1894, page 30.29
-About 500 dockers have already been engaged to work at Manchester in connection with the new ship canal. PTUK January 11, 1894, page 30.30
-There is a prospect that the difficulty between Ecuador and Peru will be settled by the intervention of the Pope. PTUK January 11, 1894, page 30.31
-The opening of the Manchester Canal has given an impetus to a scheme for connecting Birmingham with the sea. PTUK January 11, 1894, page 30.32
-The Bristol Town Council have decided, by 88 votes to 19, not to open the City Museum and Free Libraries on Sundays. PTUK January 11, 1894, page 30.33
-Cholera has broken out in several boarding schools in St. Petersburg. There are about thirty fresh cases and fifteen deaths daily. PTUK January 11, 1894, page 30.34
-Twenty-nine million letters passed through the General. Post Office in London at Christmas, compared with 32,000,000 last year. PTUK January 11, 1894, page 30.35
-The known murders in America in twelve months numbered 6,790. In five years 1,042 supposed murderers have been lynched. PTUK January 11, 1894, page 30.36
-An attempt is being made to reopen the Maybrick case, evidence in favour of Mrs. Maybrick having, it is stated, been discovered. PTUK January 11, 1894, page 30.37
-Public indignation in Italy at the acquittal of the Aigues Mortes rioters was testified at Genoa and Turin by anti-French demonstrations. PTUK January 11, 1894, page 30.38
-Great distress prevails among the population in the district of Apulia, in Southern Italy, owing to the dearth of money and the scarcity of work. PTUK January 11, 1894, page 30.39
-A serious fire occurred at Toledo, Ohio, on Jan. 3, the Chamber of Commerce and other buildings being destroyed. The loss is estimated at $1,000,000. PTUK January 11, 1894, page 30.40
-The present visit to Rome of Dr. Zerr, Roman Catholic bishop of Tiraspol, is expected to lead to the re-establishment of diplomatic relations between Russia and the Vatican. PTUK January 11, 1894, page 30.41
-The epidemic of cholera in Teneriffe is rapidly subsiding. A thousand deaths have occurred in that island since the outbreak, an enormous proportion to so small a community. PTUK January 11, 1894, page 30.42
-Owing to the continued hard treatment meted out to the Stundists, large numbers of them have left the province of Kieff, and have settled in a colony in the province of Ekaterinoslav. PTUK January 11, 1894, page 30.43
-The German Emperor is having a new crown constructed for himself, and has made a bid for the enormous diamond recently brought to England from the Cape. PTUK January 11, 1894, page 30.44
-Naples is greatly exalted over a painting of the Virgin, which is said to have miraculously appeared on one of the windows of a building under the control of the priests. PTUK January 11, 1894, page 30.45
-Nothing has yet been heard from the party under Captain Wilson who went in pursuit of Lobengula some weeks since, and the general opinion is that it was surrounded and annihilated by the Matabela. PTUK January 11, 1894, page 30.46
-The Japanese government is showing its antipathy to foreigners by passing laws forbidding all Japanese to hold land or do business in their own name for foreigners living outside certain “foreign settlements.” PTUK January 11, 1894, page 30.47
-A preliminary announcement issued by the Russian Public Treasury states that the toted revenue from Jan. 1, 1898, to Oct. 1 last, amounted to 778,615,000 roubles; the total expenditure for the same months was 708,997,000 roubles. PTUK January 11, 1894, page 30.48
-The London Fire Brigade received about 5000 calls during the year, against 4,449 in 1892. Over 1,000 of the calls proved to be false, although the magistrates have the power of inflicting a fine of ?20 for midi timely tampering with the fire alarms. PTUK January 11, 1894, page 30.49
-Parcels can now be sent to Greece by parcel post, both our Brindisi and via Marseilles. Parcels are also now accepted by the Post Office authorities for transmission to Persia at the following rates: For the first pound, 4s. 4d.; for each additional pound or fraction of a pound 8d. PTUK January 11, 1894, page 30.50
-Advices from Paris state that 2,000 search warrants were issued on Jan. 1, in the provinces, which resulted in the seizure of some papers which are acted to prove that a real union exists among the Anarchists in the different parts of France. The preparations for Vaillant’s trial are being hastened. PTUK January 11, 1894, page 30.51
-Further rioting is reported from Trapani, in Sicily, where two petards were exploded by the mob, but without causing much damage. At Gibellina, in the same province, the police magistrate was killed in a scuffle. More troops have been called out for service in Sicily, and the garrison of the island will be brought up to 40,000 men. PTUK January 11, 1894, page 30.52
-According to telegrams from the Cameroons, there has been a serious mutiny of native soldiers in the service of the Germans, who, to the number of sixty, together with forty armed women, provided themselves with rifles, cannon, and ammunition, and attacked the loyal garrison, as well as the factories, including those belonging to the English traders. The mutineers were at first successful, but were eventually put to flight. PTUK January 11, 1894, page 30.53
-The eastern portion of Siberia is said to be experiencing a veritable Chinese invasion. A telegram from Vladivostock states that bands of Chinese robbers are pillaging on the outskirts of that town and along the Ussuri railway, now in course of construction. The chief of the fifth section of the line telegraphs that the Chinese are openly threatening an attack, owing to which the Cossacks and workmen are in a state of panic. PTUK January 11, 1894, page 30.54
-The Russian Government continues to take systematic measures for the expulsion of the Jews from Russia, by enacting laws restricting to a very small minimum the number of Jews allowed in various avenues of trade and learning. The educational status of the Russian people is indicated by the statement that of 14,000,000 Russian children between the ages of seven and fourteen only 4,000,000 receive education of any kind. PTUK January 11, 1894, page 30.55
-It is announced from Odessa that in several important provinces in Russia, the drink traffic is henceforth to be under the control and supervision of the State. “Curatoriums” will be instituted, the members of which will be the leading officials of the province, whose duties it will be to take measures for the extirpation of drunkenness among the people, and maintain a sharp supervision over the officials connected with the sale of drink. PTUK January 11, 1894, page 30.56
-Three Vienna tourists lost their lives on the Alps at Christmas. The last survivor cut the rope which held them together, to rid himself of his two dead comrades. Another party ascended the Alps with the intention of greeting the New Year at the summit of Gnifetti. Being overtaken by a storm, they were forced to pass the night on the glacier. One was frozen to death, and four others were carried down next day in a dangerous condition. PTUK January 11, 1894, page 30.57
“Back Page” The Present Truth 10, 2.
E. J. Waggoner
At the recent annual meeting of Wesley’s Chapel Mission, the chair was occupied by a Member of Parliament, who in the course of his address said: “The Church must pronounce itself emphatically on the side of temperance, social purity, and against gambling.” A sadder and more humiliating confession could not be made. Think what is implied in such a statement. It is nothing less than that the world cannot tell how the church stands on such questions, unless it makes a formal declaration of its principles. No one was ever at a loss to know how Christ stood in regard to sin, yet He never issued a confession of faith, nor a formal declaration of principles. The power of the Church of Christ is in living, and not in declarations and resolutions. PTUK January 11, 1894, page 32.1
The Catholic Times, under the heading, “Catholic Influence in America,” calls attention to the almost universal celebration of Christmas as “a fact which shows how successfully Catholic thought and Catholic sentiment has permeated American public life.” It notes the former disregard of the day, quoting a law was enacted against the celebration of Christmas, in the colony of Massachusetts, and then says: “At the present day nowhere in the world is the Christmas festival observed more generally and with a true sense of its real significance than in the place where it was thus legislated against. The cold Puritanism of New England has been thoroughly leavened with Catholic sentiment.” Every recognition of Christmas by professed Protestants is justly regarded by Rome as a tribute to her influence, and in the almost universal observance of Sunday by professed Protestants she sees the hope of return of her ancient supremacy. PTUK January 11, 1894, page 32.2
One of the missionaries of the Siam Presbyterian Mission, who is said to be “a superior linguist,” has found himself unable to accept the idea of the inerrancy of Scripture, and the American Board of Foreign Missions has accepted his resignation. The Evangelist says: “If, as the action of the board seems to indicate, such men who are not qualified to be missionaries, to whom can the church look to do its work?” We cannot answer this question, but we know to whom Christ can look to do His work. It will be to those who implicitly believe His word. He is not so hard up for labourers that He must accept men who do not believe the Bible, even though they be good linguists; for He can take believing fishermen and make them able to speak to all men in their own tongue. But of what use is it for a man to know many languages, if he has not the word of God to give in any of them? PTUK January 11, 1894, page 32.3
The news comes from Sierra Leone that a body of French troops fired upon a British force, with the result that four British officers and twenty-six native soldiers were killed. It is claimed that the French fired by mistake, supposing that they were attacking a hostile tribe against which both French and English were proceeding. PTUK January 11, 1894, page 32.4
Commenting on the above, an evening paper supposes that the English officers recognised the character of the opposing force, and restrained their men from firing. If it had been otherwise, it says, “the situation might be a less troublesome one, for if the French and English losses had been equal, and the mistake mutual, we might shake hands with a good heart, and make the best of it.” Quite so, for then there would have been no international complications, and sixty human lives lost is so small a matter that it need not be given a second thought. Such is the shocking indifference to human life that we see everywhere displayed. “In the last days perilous time shall come; for men shall be lovers of their own selves.” Love of self makes men indifferent to the welfare of others. Only the love of God produces compassion and regard for others. PTUK January 11, 1894, page 32.5
“Christ’s Life” The Present Truth 10, 2.
E. J. Waggoner
Christ’s Life.-One of the incongruities of the Christmas services which have met the eyes of some newspaper readers, was the spectacle of a preacher, “wearing the magnificent cape of cloth of gold and a jewelled mitre, and holding the crozier, or pastoral staff,” preaching from the text, “I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me.” Such display illy comports with the life of Jesus. But we have not to look to Catholic pulpits alone to see what Christ would not do. He would not lose patience and speak the sharp or thoughtless word, nor slam a door, nor gossip about His neighbours. There are many things common to most lives every day, which show that it is the old self and not Christ that is living. PTUK January 11, 1894, page 32.6
“Casting the First Stone” The Present Truth 10, 2.
E. J. Waggoner
Casting the First Stone.—“He that is without sin among you, let him cast the first stone.” Thus Christ spoke to the scribes and Pharisees when they brought to Him the woman taken in adultery; and thus would He say to-day to all attempts of men to punish for sin. And this clearly shows that it is wholly outside the province of the civil authority, or of any authority that men possess, to inflict penalties for the transgression of law of God. God never leaves it for sinners to punish for sin. The Apostle Paul exclaims, “Is God unrighteous, who taketh vengeance? God forbid; for then how shall God judge the world?” Romans 3:5, 6. Judgment and condemnation, and its execution, must be in righteousness; and therefore it can never be done by sinners. For all sinners are equally worthy of death. And he who assumes authority to cast a stone at the sinner, thereby claims to be without sin. PTUK January 11, 1894, page 32.7
“The Nature of Greed” The Present Truth 10, 2.
E. J. Waggoner
The Nature of Greed.-Press dispatches announce that the war in South Africa is ended, and the conquest of Matabeleland is complete. Mr. Rhodes has returned to Cape Town, and in reply to an address of welcome stated that the prospectors in Matabeleland are much pleased with the outlook. The Chartered Company have averted a threatened bankruptcy, and their stock is booming. Captain Wilson and his company, to be sure, are yet to be heard from, while a score or more of other whites have been killed or wounded, with several thousand of the natives; but after all the cost, according to Mr. Rhodes, is but trifling. He is reported as saying that “there never would be on record a campaign conducted with such a small expenditure of money and human life.” Several thousand lives have been sacrificed, several thousand souls lost, for whom Christ died, but the success of the great financial speculation is assured! Such is the nature of greed. PTUK January 11, 1894, page 32.8