The Present Truth, vol. 10
May 31, 1894
“Front Page” The Present Truth 10, 22.
E. J. Waggoner
The Holy Ghost says, “To-day if ye will hear His voice, harden not your hearts, as in the provocation, in the day of temptation in the wilderness; when your fathers tempted Me, proved Me, and saw My works forty years.” Hebrews 3:7-9. PTUK May 31, 1894, page 337.1
One who is on probation is being approved, for probation means proving. It is a fact, therefore, that God was on probation during those forty years in the wilderness. Nay, more, God is on probation as long as man is, because He invites men to prove Him, to see if He is not to be trusted. When He speaks of the duty of tithing, and a blessing to follow, He says, “Prove Me now herewith.” Malachi 3:10. PTUK May 31, 1894, page 337.2
In the provocation in the wilderness, the Israelites were proving God by His works. He “wrought His signs in Egypt, and His wonders in the field of Zoan.” Psalm 78:43. Yet “they forgat God their Saviour, which had done great things in Egypt; wondrous works in the land of Ham, and terrible things by the Red Sea.” Psalm 106:21, 22. PTUK May 31, 1894, page 337.3
And so the Lord says, “Wherefore I was grieved with that generation, and said, They do alway err in their hearts; and they have not known My ways.” Hebrews 3:10. What a strange thing! They saw His works forty years, and yet did not know His ways? “As for God, His way is perfect; the word of the Lord is tried; He is a buckler to all those that trust in Him.” Psalm 18:30. PTUK May 31, 1894, page 337.4
There is no other method of learning a person’s ways, than by his works. Those years in the wilderness were filled up with the wonderful works of God, all of them showing His love and His power. Yet in all that time the children of Israel, with few exceptions, did not get well enough acquainted with Him to dare trust Him. And so because of their unbelief they could not enter into His rest. PTUK May 31, 1894, page 337.5
Nothing more marvellous was ever done than to cause water to gush out of a flinty rock. No doubt the Israelites wondered at the sight, and probably they acknowledged God for a little while as the Giver of it, and felt thankful to Him for supplying their needs. But it soon became an old story. As they drank of that same stream day after day, and month after month, they forgot that it had not always been flowing. As they went farther down the stream, they forgot even that it flowed from a dry rock. And so they quenched their thirst without thinking that they were beholding the wonderful work of God. For the water’s first gushed from the rock was no greater miracle than its continued flow. PTUK May 31, 1894, page 337.6
“Because that when they knew God, they glorified Him not as God, neither were thankful; but became vain in their imaginations, and their foolish heart was darkened.” Romans 1:21. This describes the Jews as well as the heathen. And does it not describe many who are called Christians? Who is there that is not every day beholding as wonderful works of God as the Israelites ever saw? If we do not daily recognise God as the direct supplier of our food and drink, because our needs are supplied by “natural” means, how much different are we from the Israelites, who got so accustomed to water that came from a dry rock, that they took it as a matter of course? PTUK May 31, 1894, page 337.7
We have no reason to condemn the Israelites for their unbelief. They were not exceptional people. They are no more disbelieving than other generations have been. Instead of wondering how they could have been so foolish, let is consider if we have not been beholding the works of God for many years, without learning anything of His ways. “Take heed, brethren, lest there be in any of you and evil heart of unbelief, in departing from the living God;” “lest any man fall after the same example of unbelief.” PTUK May 31, 1894, page 337.8
“Tell the Lord About It” The Present Truth 10, 22.
E. J. Waggoner
You find it very natural, when a very intimate friend calls, to talk over the little occurrences of the day. It is a relief sometimes to tell the perplexities that have troubled, and receive the sympathy of a friend. PTUK May 31, 1894, page 337.9
If every day you would treat the Lord in this way, with the confidence and assurance of sympathy and help that you have in the case of an earthly friend, you would find Him more precious to you than tongue can tell. If you have tried it, you can bear witness to the truth of it. PTUK May 31, 1894, page 337.10
When the disciples returned from the villages and towns to which they had been sent, they found the Lord, and “told Him all that they had done.” Luke 9:10. The Lord of all was not above listening to their story, either. No more will He turn from your story of the work and trials and triumphs of the day. He is the same Jesus, yesterday, to-day, and for ever. PTUK May 31, 1894, page 337.11
Those who are well enough acquainted with the Lord to talk with Him all through the day about their work, find that He is not only patient to hear the story, but glad to bestow the help and blessing that lightens the burden and gives rest in perplexing toil. The place of work may be in public, or within the four walls of the room at home. It may all be done as unto Him, and He will gladly give His presence in the daily tasks. PTUK May 31, 1894, page 337.12
If you have not tried it, try talking over your work with the Lord. It will be a help that you have never known before, if you will treat Him as you would an intimate friend. He is not too great to notice the little things of life. It is because He is so great and good that He does do so. PTUK May 31, 1894, page 338.1
“A Lesson from Real Life” The Present Truth 10, 22.
E. J. Waggoner
“Therefore being justified by faith we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.” Romans 5:1. PTUK May 31, 1894, page 338.2
“Therefore by the offence of one, judgment came upon all men to condemnation; even so by the righteousness of one, the free gift came upon all men unto justification of life. For as by one man’s disobedience many were made sinners, so by the obedience of one shall many be made righteous.” Verses 18, 19. PTUK May 31, 1894, page 338.3
“The kingdom of God is not in word, but in power.” 1 Corinthians 4:20. The promises of the gift of the Gospel are not matters of mere theory, but a fact. And in order to show us the reality of the power, Jesus Christ came to earth and demonstrated it in such a way that all can comprehend it. In the life of Christ we shall find every Gospel truth illustrated. Let us see something of how the above text worked in real life. PTUK May 31, 1894, page 338.4
A woman whose life had been slowly and steadily wasting away for many years, and who had spent all her living in a vain attempt to recover her health, and was only made to suffer the more from the experiments of many physicians, heard of the great Physician, and went to Him. She was tempted, and the multitude of people pressed about Jesus so closely that she could scarcely approach Him; but “she said within herself, If I may but touch His garment, I shall be whole.” Her faith was rewarded, for as she touched the border of His garment, immediately she was fully healed. PTUK May 31, 1894, page 338.5
Although Jesus was crowded and jostled by the people, He instantly detected that gentle touch. That touch was different from every other, because it was the touch of faith, and drew power from the person of Jesus. When the disciples wondered that in the midst of such a crowd He should ask, “Who touched Me?” He said, “Some one did touch Me; for I perceived that power had gone forth from Me.” That power was the power of His life: for it supplied the woman’s need, and what she wanted was life. PTUK May 31, 1894, page 338.6
Here we have something that our mind can lay hold of, and our senses can appreciate. A real thing was done. Something real went from Jesus into the woman. It was not imagination; it was not a figure of speech; but it was an actual fact that the woman was healed. She had the life that she before lacked, and that life came from Jesus. We can never know what life is,—only its Author can understand it,—but we do know the need of it, even of the righteous life of Christ; and here we to see how it is obtained. PTUK May 31, 1894, page 338.7
For the words of Jesus to that poor woman show that she was healed in the same way and by the same means by which we are justified and have peace with God. He said unto her, “Daughter, be of good comfort; thy faith hath made thee whole; go in peace.” Luke 8:48. If we should apply the words of the Apostle Paul to her particular experience, we might read, “Therefore being made whole in body by faith, she had peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.” Perhaps this may enable someone to grasp more fully the reality of the righteousness which comes by faith of Jesus Christ. PTUK May 31, 1894, page 338.8
Nothing is said about forgiveness of sins in this instance, but we may be sure from other instances that such faith as the poor woman had brought healing of soul as well as the body. But no one need have a doubt as to whether this is really parallel to Romans 5:1, and an illustration of the truth there stated, for we find the same words used with express reference to sins. In the preceding chapter (Luke 7.) we are told of the sinful woman who anointed the feet of Jesus, after her tears of repentance had washed them. Jesus did not repel her, but said to her, “Thy sins are forgiven.” And then followed words almost identical with those with which He dismissed the poor woman of whom we have been reading. To the woman who was well in body, but morally diseased with sin, Jesus said, “Thy faith hath saved thee; go in peace.” Luke 7:50. Compare Luke 8:48. PTUK May 31, 1894, page 338.9
This proves beyond all possibility of doubt that the same thing is done in the forgiveness of sins that was done in healing the woman with the issue of blood. The method is the same, and the results are the same. Therefore as we know that something real was done for the diseased woman, so we may be sure that something real is done for the repentant sinner. Just as something real, although invisible, went from Jesus into the person of the diseased woman, making her perfectly well and strong, even so we are to know that something real comes from Christ into the person of the repentant sinner, making him whole, and free from sin. PTUK May 31, 1894, page 338.10
That something is nothing less than the actual life of Christ. “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” 1 John 1:9. “If we walk in the light, as He is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanseth us from all sin.” Verse 7. The blood is the life; and so it is the life of Jesus Christ that cleanses us from sin. This is what we read in Romans 5:10, in continuance of the statement that being justified by faith we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. “For if, when we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the death of His Son, much more being reconciled, we shall be saved by His life.” PTUK May 31, 1894, page 338.11
Many think that the forgiveness of sins by the imputed righteousness of Christ, is something that exists only in the mind of God. Of course they acknowledge its reality, yet at the same time they do not realise it. There is always something unreal about it in their minds. The trouble is that they fail to grasp and to make real the living connection between Christ and them. There is between the true disciple and Christ a connection as real as that between the vine branch and the parent stock. The forgiveness of sins is too often thought to be illustrated by the payment of a poor man’s debt by a rich friend. If a rich man pays the debt of a poor man, then the shopkeeper credits the poor man with the sum, and the record on the books shows that the debt is cancelled. Of course the poor man is benefited, but he does not actually receive anything that will keep him in future. But it is different when God for Christ’s sake forgives his sins. PTUK May 31, 1894, page 338.12
Christ “gave Himself for our sins.” Galatians 1:4. His life is given to be manifest in our mortal flesh. 2 Corinthians 4:11. Just as the sap flows through the vine to the farthest branches, and just as the life of Christ went into the poor, diseased woman, to make her perfectly well, so the sinless, endless, inexhaustible life of Christ flows into those who have faith in Him, to cleanse them from sin, and to make them walk in newness of life. PTUK May 31, 1894, page 339.1
His life on earth was one of obedience to the commandments of God. John 15:10. The law of God was in His heart (Psalm 40:8) so that His very life was the fulness of the law. He fulfilled the righteousness of the law. Matthew 5:17. That is, the fulness, the perfection of the law, appeared in His life. And it is by this life that we are saved. It is not that we are accounted righteous because Jesus of Nazareth was righteous eighteen hundred years ago, but because “He ever liveth,” “the same yesterday, and to-day, and for ever,” to save by the power of His endless life, all that come to Him. PTUK May 31, 1894, page 339.2
Jesus fulfilled the righteousness of the law, in order “that the righteousness of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit.” Romans 8:4. The Revised Version reads, “That the ordinance of the law might be fulfilled in us,” and gives “requirement” in the margin, as an alternative. The idea is, therefore, that Christ kept the law, in order that its utmost requirement might be fulfilled in us. Not by us, but in us: for whereas we have no power to do even what we know to be right, Christ dwelling in us does the right by His own power through all our members when we yield them to Him. This He does for all who trust Him. And thus it is that “by the obedience of one shall many be made righteous.” PTUK May 31, 1894, page 339.3
We may thus note two things. First, how we are made partakers of Christ’s life, and second what the nature of that life is, and what it will be in us. The miraculous healing of the poor woman shows us the first. The second we learn by reading the ten commandments, and by studying the life of Christ. All that was in His life when He was on earth, is in it now, and that is what He gives to us. And that which was not in His life cannot possibly be given to us in it. Everything that is not in His life is sin, and Christ is not the minister of sin. PTUK May 31, 1894, page 339.4
“Stumbling-blocks—Foundation Stones” The Present Truth 10, 22.
E. J. Waggoner
“If you would only give up that idea of keeping Saturday, you might do so much more good. You preach Christ, and hold Him up in an attractive manner before the people, and if you would be content with that, you might reach thousands where you now reach tens; but your preaching that the seventh day should be kept instead of Sunday, is a stumbling-block,—a barrier to keep them away from Christ.” PTUK May 31, 1894, page 339.5
Thus spoke a friend to the writer a few days ago. The speaker was sincere, and was not the first one to entertain such a thought. Others have said, and many more have thought, that the preaching of the Sabbath of the fourth commandment is a barrier to prevent people from coming to Christ. “If it were not for that,” say they, “you might have multitudes join your ranks.” Let us examine the matter briefly. PTUK May 31, 1894, page 339.6
The fourth commandment, which enjoins the observance of the seventh day of the week,—the Sabbath of the Lord,—is one of the ten. The first and second forbid the worship of any false god, and the making and worshipping of images. Would our friends say that they are stumbling-blocks in the way of people’s accepting the Gospel? Perhaps not, yet to many people they are such as truly as the Sabbath ever can be. PTUK May 31, 1894, page 339.7
A missionary goes to Africa. He finds the natives wholly given to idolatry. They have charms and fetiches by the thousand. He begins to preach the Gospel, presenting Christ to the poor people, who are much attracted, when, lo, he begins to talk about the worship of images, the use of charms, etc. This cools their ardour. One of the most intelligent comes to him and says: “Why do you not preach the way the Roman Catholic missionaries do? They simply present the Gospel, and do not bother the people with the law. Our people are fairly settled in the worship of these idols. To give them up would cause much inconvenience and ridicule. The Catholic missionaries allow us to use them as aides to devotion, and if you would do the same you might make thousands of converts; but as it is, you are simply presenting a barrier to keep people away from Christ. Your preaching of the law nullifies the good that your preaching of the Gospel might do.” PTUK May 31, 1894, page 339.8
Would any man be at a loss to know how to answer such a question? Could not every reader of the Bible point out the fact that the worship of the one true God, and Him alone, is the very object of the Gospel, and that to gain image-worshipping professors of Christianity would be a calamity? PTUK May 31, 1894, page 339.9
Take the eighth commandment. It says, “Thou shalt not steal.” Now there are quarters in nearly every large city, where the people live almost entirely by preying upon others. Indeed, it appears to them that they are compelled to steal, in order to live. People will not employ them because of their bad characters. Some of them would gladly reform, but they have a police record, and it is a sad fact that even many professed Christians have a strong aversion to a man who has been detected in gross sin. Consequently the path of honesty seems to be closed up to these unfortunate people. PTUK May 31, 1894, page 339.10
Now a true missionary goes into the slums, and preaches Christ. But someone says to him: “You are cutting off your own usefulness in these parts, by telling the people that it is a sin to steal. Don’t you see that their ancestors for generations back have been thieves, and they are trained from infancy to steal, and if they should leave off stealing they could not live? Say nothing about the stealing and you could raise up a vast congregation here, and do much good; but by making so much of the eighth commandment, you are keeping people away from Christ.” PTUK May 31, 1894, page 339.11
The fallacy of such talk need not be pointed out. But why are the first, second, and eighth commandments any better than the fourth? How is it that they are an essential part of the preaching of the Gospel, if the fourth commandment be against it? PTUK May 31, 1894, page 339.12
In a very popular religious journal we have seen a correspondence carried on under the heading, “The Bible a Barrier.” One of the writers says:— PTUK May 31, 1894, page 339.13
My trade has brought me into contact with a great many fellows of my own age in London and elsewhere, and nearly all must be ranked as agnostics, simply because of the narrowness of their teachers, who have tried to force them to look upon all the Bible as perfectly true, and as all equally inspired. PTUK May 31, 1894, page 339.14
So here we have another stumbling-block. How many thousands of people there are who are kept out of the church solely by the Bible. There is not the slightest doubt but that the whole world would be “converted” almost in a body, if practical belief in the Bible were not made an essential part of conversion. But then what would be the use of preaching which ignored the Bible? PTUK May 31, 1894, page 339.15
But this is not all. The Apostle Paul found that Christ Himself was a stumbling-block. He wrote, “We preach Christ crucified, unto the Jews a stumbling-block, and unto the Greeks foolishness.” 1 Corinthians 1:23. “Wherefore also it is contained in the Scripture. Behold I lay in Sion a chief corner stone, elect, precious; and he that believeth on Him shall not be confounded. Unto you therefore which believe He is precious; but unto them which be disobedient, the stone which the builders disallowed, the same is made the head of the corner, and a stone of stumbling, and a rock of offence, even to them that stumble at the word, the disobedient.” 1 Peter 2:6-8. PTUK May 31, 1894, page 340.1
It is even so to-day. “The offence of the cross” has not yet ceased. Christ is still a stumbling-block to many. Many will be kept out of heaven, because they cannot get there without faith in Christ. If Christ were but left out, how many people would believe. Believe what?—Why, that they are about right as they are, and that they are safe in doing as they please. PTUK May 31, 1894, page 340.2
Notice that although Christ is a stumbling-block, He is also “a sure foundation.” What some imagine to be a hindrance to them, others find to be a support and a joy. Even so it is with the Bible and with all the commandments. For Christ is in the Word, and the law is in Christ. The law of God was in His heart, and He kept all the commandments. Psalm 40:8; John 15:10. To the extent that people find any one of the ten commandments a stumbling-block, to that same extent did they find Christ a stumbling-block, for His life is nothing but the perfection of the law in action. PTUK May 31, 1894, page 340.3
It is the hardness of the human heart that causes people to “stumble at the law,” so that the stumbling-block is in reality the stubborn heart. It was this that caused the ancient Jews to fall. See Romans 9:31-33; Hebrews 3:12-19; 4:11. The one who finds a stumbling-block in the fourth commandment, would find one in anything else that seemed contrary to his inclination and convenience. Whoever will exercise “repentance toward God and faith toward our Lord Jesus Christ” (Acts 20:21), thus keeping “the commandments of God, and the faith of Jesus” (Revelation 14:12), will find the stumbling-blocks removed, and will be one of those who will “raise up the foundations of many generations.” Isaiah 58:12. PTUK May 31, 1894, page 340.4
“The Church and Politics” The Present Truth 10, 22.
E. J. Waggoner
As an example of the untenable ground which those are obliged to taken who hold that the Church should concern herself with politics and with the affairs of the State, notice the following from an article in an Anglican journal opposing Church disestablishment in Wales:— PTUK May 31, 1894, page 340.5
As a rule it is a just principle to be observed, that the Church should not take sides in politics. That is to say, that the vantage ground occupied by the Church of her Ecclesiastical organisation and resources should not be used to promote the general ends and interests of any one political party more than those of another. PTUK May 31, 1894, page 340.6
The reasons why the Church should not do so are obvious. She is equally the home of all political parties, and her members who are of diverse political creeds have, within the bounds of lawful liberty, an equal right to the privileges of her Communion. PTUK May 31, 1894, page 340.7
In ordinary cases, then, for the Church to take sides in politics would be unfairly to use her influential position in the Dioceses and parishes throughout the land in promoting the political ideas of one section of her members, while assuming an antagonistic attitude to those advocated by another section of her community. PTUK May 31, 1894, page 340.8
Politics are of the world. But of His church Christ says, “Ye are not of the world,” and “I have chosen you out of the world.” John 15:19. Christ’s church is therefore not the home of all or any one of the political parties. The church has nothing to do with parties of any kind, but only with individuals. The church is the light of the world (Matthew 5:14), and as such her proper place is in the world, just as the proper place for a ship is in the water; but it is entirely improper to have any of the world in the church, just as it is to have the water of the ocean in the ship. PTUK May 31, 1894, page 340.9
Being the light of the world, the church should give to the world nothing but truth; for only truth is light. Her power should be used only to promote truth. How improper, then, to assume that the church can properly further the interests of opposing political parties, thus antagonising truth, provided she does not by partiality antagonise one or the other party! Thus a political party is placed above the truth. PTUK May 31, 1894, page 340.10
In the article aforesaid we are told that in view of the “attempts to dethrone the Church from her present lawful position, and to despoil her of her property,” the Church “must intervene in politics, and in this matter take sides against whatever political party it may be that attempts to do her this wrong, and side with whatever political party it may be that is prepared to defend her position and property.” PTUK May 31, 1894, page 340.11
Now the church, that is, the Christian church, is the body of Christ. 1 Corinthians 12:27. Is the body of Christ dependent upon a political party for its defence? And can any political party deprive the body of Christ of the position in which God has placed it? Can it separate the body from the head, which is Christ Himself? If the church will only keep her “lawful position,” which is that of the body of Christ, He being the Head, she has nothing whatever to fear from political parties. Her strength is in the arm of the Lord, and her property is the riches of Christ. It is only when she depends upon the “establishment” of the State instead of the power of God, that it becomes a matter of concern to her whether or not she is to have the favour of the leading political party. PTUK May 31, 1894, page 340.12
When the church allies herself with a political party, or with any worldly power, she disconnects herself from God, and ceases to be the Christian church. A church cannot be at one and the same time, dependent upon God and upon the world. “Ye cannot serve God and mammon.” Christ, the Head, will attend to all the wants of His body; and He has said, “All power is given unto Me in heaven and in earth.” Matthew 28:18. Therefore it is not only absurd, but a manifestation of unbelief in the words of Christ-a slight upon her Divine Head-for the church to seek in any way the aid of any of the powers of the world. PTUK May 31, 1894, page 340.13
“What the Gospel Includes” The Present Truth 10, 22.
E. J. Waggoner
What the Gospel Includes.-The Gospel of God is not a narrow, circumscribed thing which can be bound off by creeds, as many people seem to think. The Gospel includes everything that pertains to the life of man. By its provisions a man is born again,—created new in Christ. Consequently his life as a Christian knows nothing that is not in touch with that creative power. For this reason the Apostle Paul wrote to his brethren in the church, “Whether therefore ye eat or drink, or whatsoever ye do, do all to the glory of God.” 1 Corinthians 10:31. And to the Colossian brethren he wrote, “And whatsoever ye do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God and the Father by Him.” “And whatsoever ye do, do it heartily, as to the Lord, and not unto men.” Colossians 3:17, 23. PTUK May 31, 1894, page 340.14
The Gospel, therefore, touches our eating and drinking, and every occupation and act of life, be it business or pleasure. It makes every act a spiritual act, done with a view to the glory of God. The Christian life is a spiritual life. It is the life of Christ in human flesh,—in the individual who has put on Christ. And this does not make life a restricted thing, separated from the greater part of the life of the world around us; for all things were created by God, and intended to be used for the benefit and pleasure of man. It separates only from sin. It shows man how to use aright all things that creation affords. It reveals the spiritual aspect of all things, so that in everything God has made or ordained the individual can find Him, and that life and strength and peace which He has to bestow. It obliterates the distinction that men have set up between religion and business, making the service of God the proper business of man, by showing man how to serve God in all his business, and how to find in it all a higher pleasure than any the world has to bestow. PTUK May 31, 1894, page 341.1
“Divine Drudgery” The Present Truth 10, 22.
E. J. Waggoner
When the Lord said, “Whatsoever ye do, do all to the glory of God,” He plainly told us that He is glorified by any kind of work which it is legitimate for a Christian to do. This ennobles the commonest kind of toil and service. PTUK May 31, 1894, page 341.2
In another place we are told, “Whatsoever ye do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus.” Colossians 3:17. Every deed is to be done in the name, or by the authority of God Himself. Can there be such a thing, then, as irksome and monotonous drudgery? No; for God is glorified in the task, whatever it may be. The end of life is to glorify God. That is the service of the angels. PTUK May 31, 1894, page 341.3
These are good scriptures for the housewife who has the same daily round of duties to perform, from one year’s end to another. Remember that God is glorified in all the endless details of the daily tasks. And a preacher in the pulpit who preaches the word of God can do no more than glorify Him. PTUK May 31, 1894, page 341.4
This applies as well to the man or woman who is working for a master or mistress as to those who work for themselves. “Whatsoever ye do, do it heartily, as to the Lord, and not unto men; knowing that of the Lord ye shall receive the reward of the inheritance.” Colossians 3:23, 24. George Herbert sang truly,— PTUK May 31, 1894, page 341.5
A servant with this clause
Makes drudgery Divine;
Who sweeps a room as for Thy laws,
Makes that and the action fine.
PTUK May 31, 1894, page 341.6
If every professor of religion really thought that every word and deed was to be in the name of God, and by His authority, there would not be two rules of conduct, one for worship and one for business. It will be found a helpful practice to ask yourself in every work or conversation in which you may be engaged, Am I doing this by the authority of God? PTUK May 31, 1894, page 341.7
The Lord does not give His authority to every practice in which professed Christians often engage. It is a fearful sin to forge His name to that which He has never sanctioned. When the Lord authorises the believer to use His name in the performance of every deed and word in all the details of life, He grants a trust which cannot be lightly held. But it is a cheering thought that one may lay brick or stone, drive a nail, mend a shoe, cook a dinner, sweep a room, or add a column of figures-all to the glory of God. PTUK May 31, 1894, page 341.8
“Statues in Westminster” The Present Truth 10, 22.
E. J. Waggoner
It is stated that, in accordance with the express wish of the Pope, statues to St. Peter have been erected in many of the Catholic churches of Westminster, in commemoration of the reconsecration of England. Cardinal Vaughan recently “blessed” one that had been erected in St. Dominic’s Priory Church, Haverstock Hill, at a cost of ?140. All this means that Catholics are in earnest in their purpose to win England back to Romish idolatry. PTUK May 31, 1894, page 341.9
“Are You One of the Crowd?” The Present Truth 10, 22.
E. J. Waggoner
When Jesus was on His way to the house of Jairus to raise the ruler’s daughter to life, the crowd accompanying Him was so great as to throng and press Him. They were interested in His work, talking about what He had done, doubtless, and curious to see and hear more. PTUK May 31, 1894, page 341.10
But their contact with Him brought no special blessing to them; and they were really in the way of the timid woman who was struggling through the crush to touch but the border of His garment. The touch brought to her actual life, and she knew it. It was the touch of faith. The same story has been re-enacted ever since. To-day it is popular, and really almost necessary, in order to be counted respectable, to talk about the Christian religion and to patronise it. The crowd is thronging about the Lord. But how many who are about Him are touching Him with the touch of faith, for the healing of the soul, and for the life that heals? PTUK May 31, 1894, page 341.11
The multitude needed the life no less than the woman. But they did not feel the need. The work of the Lord was regarded only as a matter of deep interest, for intellectual discussion, and as a good thing generally. But to-day, as then, it means life to the dying, and so few realise there is daily spiritual life in touching Christ by faith. Many who long for deliverance from the power of sin are hindered from coming to the Lord for life by the formalism and lifelessness which well nigh hides the Christ from view. Yet, thank God, as the living Christ is lifted up, timid souls are pressing in amongst the crowd and finding life. PTUK May 31, 1894, page 341.12
“Faith and Evidence” The Present Truth 10, 22.
E. J. Waggoner
Faith is the Christian’s evidence. “Faith is the substance of things not seen.” Hebrews 11:1. The evidence of faith is the word of God. He who has faith will find his evidence for what he believes, in the words God has spoken. He will consider this sufficient evidence in all cases. He will not trust in anything else, for he knows that this is the only evidence that cannot lead him astray. PTUK May 31, 1894, page 341.13
But he who has not faith will reject that which is evidence, and be convinced by something which is not evidence at all, and in this way he will often be deceived. The case of doubting Thomas affords an illustration upon this point. The Saviour had often declared to His disciples that He should be crucified, and rise again the third day; but, as we are told, “they understood not that saying.” They did not believe what Christ said. But when the Saviour, after His resurrection, appeared to them, they called to mind what He had said, and believed that He was indeed risen. PTUK May 31, 1894, page 341.14
But there was one exception-doubting Thomas. He was not with the others at the first appearance of the risen Saviour, and a spirit of unbelief ruled his heart, and found expression in the words, “Except I shall see in His hands the print of the nails, and thrust my hand into His side, I will not believe.” John 20:25. A few days later Thomas, while with the other disciples, had the opportunity for which he asked, and expressed his belief by saying, “My Lord and my God!” But the Saviour said to him, “Thomas, because thou hast seen Me, thou hast believed; blessed are they that have not seen, and yet have believed.” PTUK May 31, 1894, page 341.15
The evidence which Thomas in his unbelief asked for, was really no evidence at all. The evidence was in Christ’s words, I will rise again the third day, and not in the fact that Thomas or any of the disciples could see nail prints and the wound of a spear in the hands and side of a being that appeared before them. This spurious evidence is the evidence which those have who believe in Spiritualism. Because the spirits assume the forms of their dead friends, and present all the characteristics manifested by the latter while living, people who see or communicate with them are led to believe that they are in reality the spirits of the dead; and thereby they entangle themselves in a fatal deception. The evidence of the truth lies not in these appearances, but in the word of God, which declares that the dead know not anything, that they have neither love, hatred, nor envy, and that their thoughts have perished. Ecclesiastes 9:5, 6; Psalm 146:3, 4. This evidence is that which faith accepts, for faith is belief of God’s word. The other is the evidence accepted by unbelief, which casts aside the testimony of the word. And it constitutes no evidence at all. PTUK May 31, 1894, page 342.1
The devil can transform himself so that he appears as an angel of light. 2 Corinthians 11:14. He could have appeared before Thomas, had he chosen, with all the outward characteristics of the crucified and risen Redeemer; but it would not have proved anything, for it would have been a lie. He was not interested in leading people to believe in the resurrection of Christ; so he had no incentive to do so. But he is interested in many schemes of deception which he carries out by means of his ability to transform himself into an angel of light. And only those who know the word of God, and depend upon it rather than upon appearances, will escape his deceptions. In other words, those and only those who have faith will have the evidence which is true. All the rest will accept as proof that which really is not evidence at all. PTUK May 31, 1894, page 342.2
“Supplying Need” The Present Truth 10, 22.
E. J. Waggoner
Supplying Need.—“But I am poor and needy; yet the Lord thinketh upon me.” Psalm 40:17. And He thinks upon the needy, for the purpose of supplying their need; for we are assured, “My God shall supply all your need according to His riches in glory by Christ Jesus.” Philippians 4:19. But whom will He help?—Why, those who need help, of course. This was shown by Jesus when the people followed Him. “He received them, and spake unto them of the kingdom of God, and healed them that had need of healing.” Luke 9:11. It is our need that recommends us to the loving care of the Lord, and our willingness to receive that measures the amount bestowed upon us. PTUK May 31, 1894, page 342.3
“Something Better” The Present Truth 10, 22.
E. J. Waggoner
Something Better.-To all who are looking for something better in life, it may be truthfully said, There is something better for you to have. You may not think it to be better, and they refuse to accept it as such; but this will affect only yourself, and not the facts. There is something better than a life the brightest spots in which are the occasional “holidays,” when people drop the burdens of existence for a moment only to engage in worldly dissipation and pleasure. There is something better than worldly pleasure, and that is the “love, joy, peace” which are the abiding characteristics of the life that is guided by the Holy Spirit. If we will take that Spirit, which God is more willing to give to them that ask Him than parents are to give good things to their children, we shall inevitably have its fruits; and thus our lives will be changed wonderfully for the better. You may have this; for the promise is to all, without distinction of race, sex, or condition. “Every one that asketh, receiveth; and he that seeketh, findeth; and to him that knocketh, it shall be opened.” PTUK May 31, 1894, page 342.4
“Justifying Meanness” The Present Truth 10, 22.
E. J. Waggoner
Justifying Meanness.-A few days ago a Russian mob attacked the Jewish quarters in a Russian town, with a battle cry, “Thrash the Jews for the torturing of Christ; they have sucked our blood all the year, and won’t let the orthodox do any business; now we will have our revenge.” It is a very common way for men to justify their meanness by professing that they are acting for the glory of God. An eloquent member and leader of the coloured race in America, Frederick Douglass, has well said that whenever a course of conduct is too wicked to be called human, it is called Divine. The Divine purpose is said to have decreed that the white race should rule the black, etc., etc. The Divine destiny of every civilised nation has been pleaded at times in extenuation of acts of oppression and robbery, perpetrated on some weaker people. So, too, men have engaged with zest and religious persecution, satisfying the vanity of their own minds and hatred of those who differ from them, all in the name of the Lord. So little do they know of the Lord, that as He said, they think that they do God service in persecuting His children when they are really serving the devil. PTUK May 31, 1894, page 342.5
“Simplicity” The Present Truth 10, 22.
E. J. Waggoner
The life that God intended men to live is a simple one. When God made man He gave him a garden, and his work was to dress it and keep it. Adam was a gardener, and as such he was contented and happy. He had greater facilities for enjoyment than the greatest and most honoured men of the world have ever had. It was when man fell that he lost his simplicity and began to seek out inventions, and as we read in the Book of the Ecclesiastes (chap. 7:29) his inventions have been many. From being natural and simple, life has in most cases come to be something highly artificial,—something which results from the running of ponderous and intricate machinery. And whenever by the wickedness or shortsightedness of men this intricate system gets out of running order, privation and want are the inevitable result. PTUK May 31, 1894, page 342.6
Consider, for instance, the financial depression which prevails over the world to-day. There has been no famine, no failure of crops, no lack of any of those things which supply the necessaries and comforts of life; and yet in all the great cities are scores of thousands on the verge of starvation. There is land enough, and enough of all that which the land produces; but some hitch has occurred in the money system, and the machinery of exchange is almost disabled. The system has been carried to a point of artificiality where its efficiency is for the time almost lost; and the more its intricacy is extended, the greater will be its liability to break down and become useless, with a panic and hard times as the result. PTUK May 31, 1894, page 342.7
What is needed is a return to simplicity of living, with a discarding of the artificial systems which the cupidity and folly of men have introduced. How this can be done for nations and for the world, if it be possible at all, is a problem for statesmen; but the way is open for every individual in the world to return to the simplicity of life which God ordained,—the life of the Christian. The wants of the Christian, so far as they relate to things worldly and temporal, are few and simple. Faith is a simple thing, the Gospel is plain and simple, and the union of the soul with Christ is as simple as that of the branch with the vine. In the Christian life, God attends to the intricacies, and the part of man is only to believe and live, receiving life from God with a thankful heart, and doing His will in love. PTUK May 31, 1894, page 342.8
“Terrible Revolt” The Present Truth 10, 22.
E. J. Waggoner
A correspondent of the Daily Telegraph tells the following story:— PTUK May 31, 1894, page 343.1
Thirty-eight years ago a peasant lad, named Rykoff, attended a wedding in a Russian village. He had taken too much vodka, and for some inscrutable reason he put into his pocket some wax candles from before one of the icons. This, of course, was shocking sacrilege, and the lad was sent to Siberia. He escaped, and, after enduring great hardships, obtained work from a farmer, ultimately settling in Tomsk, where he has lived an exemplary life, escaping detection by adopting the name of a deceased workman, whose passport he secured. Not long ago, the man’s sons and daughters and their children gathered round him to celebrate the anniversary of the wedding. In the fulness of his heart the old man told them the story of his life. The police heard of it, and he has been arrested, and in spite of all appeals, was order to be flogged for his escape, and sent back to the mines for a longer term than the original sentence. PTUK May 31, 1894, page 343.2
There will some day be a terrible revolt against this tyranny in religious guise, beside which the French Revolution will seem insignifcant. PTUK May 31, 1894, page 343.3
“Incense” The Present Truth 10, 22.
E. J. Waggoner
Incense.-It is well known that the use of incense in the services of the Greek and Roman and Ritualistic English churches was not borrowed from the services of the Levitical priesthood, but was taken over from the pagan ritual when the main body of the early church became corrupted and compromised with the idolatry and wickedness of the world that surrounded it. In the April Nineteenth Century, Mr. Edward Dillon has an article on “A Neglected Sense,” the sense of smell, in which he describes the luxuriousness of the pagan “fast” life, and the use of incense and their revellings and services. The early Christians inveighed against these practices, and “yet for all this,” he says, “the use of perfumes crept into the church, and we find the early fathers adopting an apologetic and uncertain tone on the subject.” Just in this gradual and insidious way the early piety slipped away from the majority of the church, and the corruptions of heathenism crept in. Speaking of the modern use of incense in church services, Mr. Dillon says:— PTUK May 31, 1894, page 343.4
Very striking is the ritual of the English Church in the extravagant use of incense. In Greece and in the Lavant so much is this the case that it produces oppression and headache to those not habituated to such an atmosphere. No doubt there is a purpose in this-the heavily perfumed air serves as a stimulus to a devotional frame of mind; so in the orgies of the later Romans, the spiced wines and the aromatics helped to promote other and baser passions. This at least is the opinion of the pious Didache. I think, too, that the heavily “drugged” look so often noticeable in the papsis of Greek convents and churches may be due in part to the constant exposure to these fumes. PTUK May 31, 1894, page 343.5
“In the Days of the Son of Man” The Present Truth 10, 22.
E. J. Waggoner
“As it was in the days of Noah, so shall it be also in the days of the Son of man.” Luke 17:26. PTUK May 31, 1894, page 349.1
Did you ever stop to think why the Lord has told us so much about the days of Noah and the flood? If you will read 2 Peter 3:5-7, 10, and 2 Thessalonians 1:7-9, and Matthew 24:27-39, you will see why. PTUK May 31, 1894, page 349.2
“By the word of God... the world that then was, being overflowed with water, perished: but the heavens and the earth, which are now, by the same word are kept in store, reserved unto fire.” PTUK May 31, 1894, page 349.3
As surely as the earth was once destroyed by water, so surely will it again be destroyed by fire; this will be done when Jesus, the Son of man, comes. PTUK May 31, 1894, page 349.4
But as it was in the days of Noah, so shall it be also in the days of the coming of the Son of man. Many will disbelieve the word of the Lord and will know not until the storm comes and takes them all away. PTUK May 31, 1894, page 349.5
Therefore God has sent this particular word about the days of Noah and about the days of the coming of the Son of man, that we may study them both carefully and know how to be saved from the flood of fire. PTUK May 31, 1894, page 349.6
For God is the same God to-day that He was then; He has no pleasure in the destruction of the wicked. He is just as anxious now to save each one, as He was then. And He promises, even as He did then, that He will save every one that has faith in Christ and yields himself completely to Him. PTUK May 31, 1894, page 349.7
All who come to Christ shall have eternal life, for He is still the only Way of life and salvation. But if any refuse to come to Christ that they may have life, they, like the people in the days of the flood, shall have their own choice—even though it be eternal death and destruction. PTUK May 31, 1894, page 349.8
It has been a long time since God first sent us word about His coming and about this flood of fire, and many are beginning to think that He has either forgotten His promise or that He never intended to keep it. As in the days of Noah, men are scoffing and making sport. They say, “Where is the promise of His coming? for since the fathers fell asleep, all things continue as they were from the beginning of the creation.” PTUK May 31, 1894, page 349.9
But God says, “Beloved, be not ignorant of this one thing, that one day is with the Lord as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day;” the time does not seem long to the Lord, for a thousand years does not seem longer to Him than one day does to us. He says that “the Lord is not slack concerning His promise;” He has not forgotten; He is not careless about His word. PTUK May 31, 1894, page 349.10
What, then, is the reason that He waits so long? PTUK May 31, 1894, page 349.11
Listen, oh, listen to the wonderful reason: He says that it is because He is longsuffering to usward and not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance! PTUK May 31, 1894, page 349.12
Just as His longsuffering waited and waited for long years in the days of Noah, so it is waiting now to give us all time and opportunity to choose Christ and get ready. God does not want one of us to be destroyed. He has sent us His written word and scattered its pages far and near, like the leaves of the forest. He has sent us His warning in papers and books, and by Sabbath-school teachers, and preachers of righteousness. He has drawn us toward Him and striven with us by His Holy Spirit. But the word comes now, as it did then, that His Spirit will not always strive with men. Only a little longer will He wait, and then “the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night; in the which the heavens shall pass away with a great noise, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat, the earth also and the works that are therein shall be burned up.” PTUK May 31, 1894, page 349.13
My dear child, are you ready? Have you yielded yourself completely to Christ? Have you confessed all your sins? And are you daily following in the footsteps of Jesus and by faith allowing Him to help you to walk with God? Seeing that all these things shall be dissolved and burned up, what manner of persons ought we to be in all holy conversation and godliness! How careful we should be to walk even as Jesus walked in every commandment of God? PTUK May 31, 1894, page 349.14
Why? PTUK May 31, 1894, page 349.15
Because the promise is, “Blessed are they that do His commandments, that they may have right to the tree of life, and may enter in through the gates into the city.” PTUK May 31, 1894, page 349.16
Jesus is preparing a beautiful city-a place of safety-for His children in that trying time. And He has promised to receive us unto Himself and take us there, when He comes, if we are found keeping the commandments of God and the faith of Jesus. As He said to Noah “Come thou and all thy house into the ark,” so He will say to the kingdom prepared for you.” PTUK May 31, 1894, page 349.17
But the fearful and unbelieving, and the abominable, and murderers, and idolaters, and all liars shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone,—on the outside the city. PTUK May 31, 1894, page 349.18
As it was in the days of Noah, there will be but two classes of people,—those on the inside and those on the outside, those who are saved because they are with Jesus and those who are lost because they are without Jesus. PTUK May 31, 1894, page 349.19
Oh, which side shall we be on? Who among us shall dwell safely among the devouring fire? The Lord says it is “he that walketh uprightly, and worketh righteousness.” In other words, it is he who has faith in Jesus and walks even as He walked. PTUK May 31, 1894, page 349.20
1. What kind of people lived upon this earth when it was first created? Ecclesiastes 7:29; Genesis 1:27. PTUK May 31, 1894, page 349.21
2. What kind of people lived on it in the days of Noah? Genesis 6:5. PTUK May 31, 1894, page 349.22
3. How did God feel when He saw their wickedness? Genesis 6:6. PTUK May 31, 1894, page 349.23
4. Why did it grieve His heart? PTUK May 31, 1894, page 349.24
5. What more could He do for them than He had done? PTUK May 31, 1894, page 349.25
6. Therefore since there was no hope of saving them, what did He see would be the best thing for them and for those around them? Genesis 6:7. PTUK May 31, 1894, page 349.26
7. Did He take pleasure in their destruction? Ezekiel 33:11. PTUK May 31, 1894, page 349.27
8. What did He do that showed that He loved them greatly and did not want one of them to be lost? 1 Peter 3:19, 20. PTUK May 31, 1894, page 349.28
9. How long did His longsuffering wait for them to turn from the ways of death and choose the way of life? Genesis 6:3, last part. PTUK May 31, 1894, page 350.1
10. What preacher of righteousness did He send to them? 2 Peter 2:5. PTUK May 31, 1894, page 350.2
11. How many chose Jesus, the Way of life? PTUK May 31, 1894, page 350.3
12. Therefore only how many could be on the inside of the ark of safety? Genesis 7:1. PTUK May 31, 1894, page 350.4
13. Where were all who would not have Jesus but who would have Satan?—On the outside. PTUK May 31, 1894, page 350.5
14. Which is always the safe side?—The Lord’s side. PTUK May 31, 1894, page 350.6
15. Therefore who only were saved? PTUK May 31, 1894, page 350.7
16. Why has the Lord told us about the days of Noah and the flood? Luke 17:26. PTUK May 31, 1894, page 350.8
17. Who is the Son of man? PTUK May 31, 1894, page 350.9
18. When is His coming?—It is near even at the doors. Matthew 24:29-34. PTUK May 31, 1894, page 350.10
19. What kind of flood will He bring with Him? 2 Thessalonians 1:7, 8; 2 Peter 3:6, 7. PTUK May 31, 1894, page 350.11
20. Who only will be able to dwell safely among the devouring fire? Isaiah 33:14, 15. PTUK May 31, 1894, page 350.12
21. Why?—Because they will be with Jesus. PTUK May 31, 1894, page 350.13
22. Where?—On the inside of the city of safety that Jesus has prepared. Revelation 22:14; John 14:2, 3. PTUK May 31, 1894, page 350.14
23. Where will those be who choose Satan?—On the outside. Revelation 22:15; 21:8. PTUK May 31, 1894, page 350.15
24. Therefore what will become of them? Revelation 20:9. PTUK May 31, 1894, page 350.16
25. What do some begin to do?—Scoff and say, “Where is the promise of His coming?” 2 Peter 3:3, 4. PTUK May 31, 1894, page 350.17
26. Why do they say that? PTUK May 31, 1894, page 350.18
27. Has He forgotten? Is He slack concerning His promise? 2 Peter 3:9. PTUK May 31, 1894, page 350.19
28. Then why does He wait so long? 2 Peter 3:9. PTUK May 31, 1894, page 350.20
29. But will His Spirit always strive with us? PTUK May 31, 1894, page 350.21
30. What will surely come? 2 Peter 3:10. PTUK May 31, 1894, page 350.22
31. Then what should we be doing? 2 Peter 3:14, 11. PTUK May 31, 1894, page 350.23
32. If we would be on the Lord’s side then, on whose side must we be now? PTUK May 31, 1894, page 350.24
“Interesting Items” The Present Truth 10, 22.
E. J. Waggoner
-In Servia a censorship has been established over the Press. PTUK May 31, 1894, page 350.25
-A smokeless locomotive has boon successfully tried in Austria. PTUK May 31, 1894, page 350.26
-A destructive fire at Philadelphia has caused a loss of ?100,000. PTUK May 31, 1894, page 350.27
-27,000 women are now engaged in the Post Office department of the civil service. PTUK May 31, 1894, page 350.28
-A rupture of diplomatic relations between Italy and Persia is said to be imminent. PTUK May 31, 1894, page 350.29
-Great damage has been caused by floods in the interior of Pennsylvania and New York. PTUK May 31, 1894, page 350.30
-An insurrection is reported from San Salvador, Central America, in which large loss of life has occurred. PTUK May 31, 1894, page 350.31
-Electrically operated typewriters are now in use. An instrument may be thus automatically worked at any distance. PTUK May 31, 1894, page 350.32
-The crown of Bohanzin, the conquered King of Dahomey, in to repose henceforth in one of the French national museums. PTUK May 31, 1894, page 350.33
-Serious disturbances have occurred in Siam, culminating in attacks upon foreign residents. Several Europeans were murdered. PTUK May 31, 1894, page 350.34
-The gold coins issued from the Mint during the year amounted to ?9,266,251. The silver represented ?1,008,971, and the bronze ?47,000. PTUK May 31, 1894, page 350.35
-Thirteen suicides were reported last week from Vienna within three days, most of the victims being well-to-do people. PTUK May 31, 1894, page 350.36
-The arrival of Jewish families in Odessa, South Russia, for the purpose of emigrating to the Argentine Republic, continues without a break. PTUK May 31, 1894, page 350.37
-It is rumoured in Shanghai that French missionaries in Hsian-fu, Shensi, have been seized, bambooed, and imprisoned by the Chinese officials. PTUK May 31, 1894, page 350.38
-The Brazilian Chamber has adopted a formal resolution expressing its approval of the attitude taken up by President Peixoto in the dispute with Portugal. PTUK May 31, 1894, page 350.39
-The latest intelligence from Samoa states that hostilities were imminent, and that the British and German war vessels there were awaiting orders. PTUK May 31, 1894, page 350.40
-Labour riots continue in America among the miners. Labour troubles also disturb business in Europe. The discontent and restlessness is world-wide. PTUK May 31, 1894, page 350.41
-Seven schooners have been wrecked in a severe storm on the coast of New Jersey, U.S.A. A terrible gale on Lake Michigan has also resulted in many wrecks. PTUK May 31, 1894, page 350.42
-There is some talk of deposing the mad King Otto of Bavaria in favour of a Regent. He now imagines himself a horse and tries to bite anyone who goes near him. PTUK May 31, 1894, page 350.43
-Prost in May is not a usual thing, but last week in the North and Scotland they had frost and snow. Kentish fruit growers report that the strawberry rep has been severely injured by the frost. PTUK May 31, 1894, page 350.44
-Volunteers’ iron-clad train, intended to prevent an enemy from landing, has been tried at Newhaven. A 10-pounder cannon was fired from an armour-plated truck without disturbing the train or rails. PTUK May 31, 1894, page 350.45
-Telegrams from Corea to the Tokio Press report an uprising in Zenrado, and state that the rebels threaten to advance upon Seoul, the Corean capital. Eight hundred Chinese troops are said to have been dispatched to the scene. PTUK May 31, 1894, page 350.46
-A Russian has been studying criminals, each group of which, he says, has its own particular colour of the eye. Murderers, it seems, possess ‘chestnut brown’ eyes; thieves slate-coloured; and vagabonds eyes of an azure-blue tint. PTUK May 31, 1894, page 350.47
-Herr Dowe has been submitting his bullet-proof cloth to tests in London, before a large number of military men. No bullets could penetrate the material, although a log of oak was penetrated by shots from the same guns to a depth of three feet. PTUK May 31, 1894, page 350.48
-The outlook in Servia is ominous. The King suspended the Constitution, and established rigid press censorship, which has led to plottings and discontent. Rumours of armed uprisings are circulated. The Powers are watching the situation anxiously, as the Eastern Question is always a live one. PTUK May 31, 1894, page 350.49
-A new system of advertising, by means of an electric searchlight projector, was tried at Trafalgar Square. The titles of newspapers were thrown upon churches and public buildings 200 yards distant. Portraits can also be projected in the same way. This new advertising terror can also project objects on to the clouds. PTUK May 31, 1894, page 350.50
-One Anarchist in Paris and six in Barcelona were executed on the same day last week. In Barcelona, it is said, a general feeling of terror prevails, lest the comrades of the executed men should attempt reprisals. The bloody scenes attending the executions are very sure to madden those who are warring against society. PTUK May 31, 1894, page 350.51
-The coal porters employed at the wharves at Port Said have gone out on strike, demanding a general increase of wages. The strikers, who number some 2,000 men, are preventing those who have not joined the movement from working, and conflicts have taken place, several men being injured. Twenty of the ringleaders have been arrested. PTUK May 31, 1894, page 350.52
-The student life of Russia is impregnated with germs of revolt. No matter in what direction one looks, one finds that the harsh official decrees that are so constantly being promulgated and so relentlessly enforced are spreading the seeds of discord and mutiny broadcast. Sooner or later they must bear fruit of a disastrous and far-reaching and oven sanguinary character. PTUK May 31, 1894, page 350.53
“Back Page” The Present Truth 10, 22.
E. J. Waggoner
Although Italy is bankrupt, the Chamber last week voted twelve million lire for military expenditure. PTUK May 31, 1894, page 352.1
He who thinks himself too good to fill the lowest position, thereby proclaims the fact that he is not good enough for anything higher. PTUK May 31, 1894, page 352.2
The “Orthodox” Church of Russia is fabulously wealthy. It is said that it could pay the thousand million dollars of the Russian debt, and not impoverish itself. PTUK May 31, 1894, page 352.3
There is a good deal of truth suggested by the announcement of a minister across the border: “Weel, friends, the kirk is urgently in need o’siller, and as we have failed to get money honestly, we will have to see what a bazaar can do for us.” PTUK May 31, 1894, page 352.4
A few years ago the study of the Bible was introduced into the theological course at Yale college. The Rev. Joseph Chandler, writing to the Congregationalist of the innovation, says: “Not only has it not proved prejudicial to piety, but in the meetings of the students there are frequent testimony as to the effect that the Bible study at Yale has been instrumental in saving men from a lapse into religious doubt and indifference.” What a comment upon the theological teaching of one of the leading seminaries, that the study of the Bible is introduced as a doubtful experiment, and a minister of the Gospel testifies, without any thought of sarcasm, that it has actually been beneficial, and has “not proved prejudicial to piety”! PTUK May 31, 1894, page 352.5
Some comment has appeared in the Daily Chronicle, under the heading, “Human Vivisection,” upon the recklessness with which many surgeons undertake operations which cannot benefit the patient, but are only tests of the surgeon’s skill. A surgeon writes: “It would be to the advantage of the medical schools to teach practical medicine more than theoretical medicine, and to rely on common sense more than the knife and physic. At present every three months some 500 qualified men are let loose on the public, who have no idea of practical medicine.” PTUK May 31, 1894, page 352.6
What a lesson Jesus set for us when in response to the request that the thousands who had followed Him should be sent away to buy food for themselves, He said to His disciples, “Give ye them to eat.” How astonished they must have been. They had scarcely enough for their own wants, and here was a multitude to be fed. Nevertheless they did feed them. They had no power themselves, but when they received the bread from the hands of the Master, it was sufficient for all. PTUK May 31, 1894, page 352.7
The Lord says to us, “Feed My sheep.” There are multitudes of them, lost and hungry, and we ourselves are poor and weak; yet if we receive the bread of life direct from the great Shepherd, we may be able to feed all. This is the condition of the servants of Christ: “As sorrowful, yet always rejoicing; as poor, yet making many rich; as having nothing, and yet possessing all things.” 2 Corinthians 6:10. PTUK May 31, 1894, page 352.8
Although God had given the Israelites light in their dwellings, while the Egyptians were groping in darkness; He had saved their cattle alive, while the cattle of their oppressors were destroyed by the plague and by the hail; He had preserved their growing crops, while just over the line the crops of the Egyptians were destroyed by hail and by the locusts; “He clave the rocks in the wilderness, and gave them drink as out of the great depths. He brought streams also out of the rock, and caused waters to run down like rivers” (Psalm 78:15, 16);-yet still they sinned against Him, saying in their blind unbelief, “Can God furnish a table in the wilderness?” PTUK May 31, 1894, page 352.9
“Ecclesiastical Millinery” The Present Truth 10, 22.
E. J. Waggoner
Ecclesiastical Millinery.-The Bishop of Lebombo (Church of England), assisted the other day at a “solemn function,” as the Church Times says, “vested in rochet, stole, pectoral cross, cloth of gold, cope, and orphreyed mitre.” “Before the sermon the Bishop divested himself of cope and mitre, and assumed a purple biretta, his chaplains attending him to the pulpit.” And the church was filled with people who have access to the New Testament. PTUK May 31, 1894, page 352.10
“Abolishing the Law” The Present Truth 10, 22.
E. J. Waggoner
Abolishing the Law.-Lodging-house keepers in the Isle of Man have long violated the law prohibiting them from selling beer, and now, in view of that fact, the authorities have abolished the law. The Echo says:— PTUK May 31, 1894, page 352.11
The Manx legislators have a curious way of getting out of a difficulty. You have only to flagrantly and persistently break their laws, and they introduce a measure to remove the law you break. PTUK May 31, 1894, page 352.12
A government that carried this principle out in every law would of course cease to exist, and be no government at all. But do not some people charge just such folly upon the Divine government, when they tell us that Christ abolished the law of God at the cross? Many urge this in order to excuse themselves from obedience to the law. But the apostle says, “Do we then make void the law through faith? God forbid: yea, we establish the law.” Romans 3:31. PTUK May 31, 1894, page 352.13
“With Lavish Hand” The Present Truth 10, 22.
E. J. Waggoner
With Lavish Hand.-Who that has a heart can spend a day in the country at this season of the year, when the showers and sun have given vegetation a vigorous stirring into life, without feeling the spirit of the sixty-fifth psalm springing up within him? “Thou makest it soft with showers; Thou blessest the springing thereof.” How lavish God is in multiplying the variety of plant life! A foreign journal says:— PTUK May 31, 1894, page 352.14
It is remarkable how the progress of geographical exploration is adding to our knowledge of the vegetable world. A few years ago it was authoritatively stated that the number of plants known to and described by botanists was 100,000; but the southern part of our continent and Eastern Asia are turning out novelties in great numbers. Works devoted to these topics are continually describing them. It is not improbable that one-half have not yet been known. PTUK May 31, 1894, page 352.15
And the lavishness with which the Lord causes the earth to bring forth its fruit is only an illustration of the way in which the fruits of righteousness would spring forth in the hearts of men if they were as submissive to the Divine power as the earth is. PTUK May 31, 1894, page 352.16