The Present Truth, vol. 10
July 12, 1894
“Christ or Self?” The Present Truth 10, 28.
E. J. Waggoner
The following extract from the first paragraph of the Pope’s Encyclical, shows what is to be the basis of the unity which he desires:— PTUK July 12, 1894, page 433.1
Throughout the whole course of Our Pontificate it has been Our constant purpose, and We have endeavoured, as far as We could by word and deed, to bind all nations and peoples more closely to Ourselves, and to place in evidence the power of the Roman Pontificate, which is salutary in every respect. We therefore feel deeply grateful... to rulers, Bishops, the Clergy, and private individuals everywhere, who by numerous proofs of piety and affection have taken care to honour Our person and Our dignity, and to tender to Us opportune consolation. PTUK July 12, 1894, page 433.2
We have given the capital letters as in the document, in order that the reader may get the full benefit Papal arrogance. Everything is to centre round the Pope’s person. To bind people more closely to himself is his “constant purpose.” This one statement shows that the Pope is of the class against whom the Apostle Paul warned the Elders of the church at Ephesus: “For I know this, that after my departing shall grievous wolves enter in among you, not sparing the flock. Also of your own selves shall men arise, speaking perverse things, to draw away disciples after them.” Acts 20:29, 30. The true shepherd leads people to Christ; the wolf, or the false shepherd, seeks to draw them to himself. PTUK July 12, 1894, page 433.3
The blasphemous presumption that characterised the Papacy in ancient times, is not lacking in this Encyclical, as will appear from the following. After mentioning the vast number of people who are not Catholics, Leo XIII., says:— PTUK July 12, 1894, page 433.4
By this thought We were and are seriously affected; nor would it be right We should without poignant grief think of such a large portion of the human race who are far separated from Us, and have, as it were, taken a path that leads them astray. Now, as We are on earth the Viceregent of the Omnipotent God, Who wants all men to be saved, and to come to the knowledge of truth, and as both Our protected age and the bitterness of the cares we have to bear are pressing Us to imitate the example of Our Redeemer and Master Jesus Christ in this, that when He was just about to return to heaven He besought the Father with most earnest prayers that His disciples and followers should become one in mind and heart: “I pray... that they all will become, as Thou Father art in Me, and I in Thee that they also may be one in Us.” PTUK July 12, 1894, page 433.5
“A Convict’s Letter” The Present Truth 10, 28.
E. J. Waggoner
True to the traditions of every “Catholic” church that ever existed, the Greek Church uses the power of the State to punish dissenters from her formularies. The Stundists who meet together to read the Bible, the Baptist who refuses to have his children sprinkled by the priest, the Seventh-day Adventist who keeps the Sabbath of the Lord in preference to the Sunday of the Catholic Church,—all are under the ban, and liable to be called upon to suffer the loss of all things save the faith of Jesus, which brings the possession of all things. PTUK July 12, 1894, page 434.1
Thus Russia makes “convicts” of the men who are loyal to real principle and to God. Many a little Russian home is scattered by the persecuting priests and civil officers. A writer in Good Words gives the following letter, written by an exile in Tomsk to his little daughter in a village of Bessarabia, one of the provinces which the priests have been raiding in their search for men who fear God:— PTUK July 12, 1894, page 434.2
My darling little Varatchka, you must have waited so long for a letter from papa, and now you have it, and I can hear you kissing it. And you’ll give it to mother to let her read it, and to Vanya and Vasya as well. Won’t they just wonder at getting a letter from a convict in Siberia! But you, darling, you know that although papa is a convict he is no criminal. Thank God, I have a good conscience! You will pray for me will you not? You and mother together? PTUK July 12, 1894, page 434.3
This gives us a peep into a broken Russian home circle, the like of which may be found all over Southern Russia. There is a healthy life where men are willing to suffer for conscience’ sake, and where mothers and children yield up those whom they love with resignation. The Christian fortitude of these and others is a rebuke to the sickly religious life that weighs duty in the scales of convenience and worldly prospects, and stifles the voice of conscience wherever the word of God points out the narrow path. PTUK July 12, 1894, page 434.4
“Our Victory” The Present Truth 10, 28.
E. J. Waggoner
The wicked glory in their own works, and their triumphs are but the precursors of their overthrow; but the righteous find no cause of glory in themselves. They have no confidence in the flesh, but all their confidence is in God. The Psalmist, in setting forth the beauty of praise and thanksgiving to the Lord, exclaims, “For Thou, Lord, hast made me glad through Thy works; I will triumph in the works of Thy hands.” Psalm 92:4. The Psalmist recognised that there was no occasion of triumph for him or any man in any other works than the works of God. And therefore, since men glory only in that which they regard as a triumph, his only occasion of glory was in the works of God, and he ascribed to God all the glory, and took none of it to himself. And so is it with all the righteous. PTUK July 12, 1894, page 434.5
But far different is it with the man who has not faith. He neither sees the hand of God in that which befalls him, nor is he able to discern between victory and defeat. In his ignorance he is compared to the brutes that pass unwittingly to the slaughter. “O Lord, how great are Thy works! and Thy thoughts are very deep. A brutish man knoweth not, neither doth a fool understand this. When the wicked spring as the grass, and when all the workers of iniquity do flourish, it is that they shall be destroyed for ever.” What a terrible significance is given to the prosperity of the wicked, and how far are all their imaginations from such a truth. Being destitute of faith, he cannot see beyond the present hour, and his pride goes before his fall. PTUK July 12, 1894, page 434.6
Yet there is nothing more common among men, or more natural to human nature, than to triumph in the works of the flesh and give praise and glory to self. All the works of the flesh are against the works of the Lord, and therefore no real triumph can ever attend them. And because they are against the Lord, they against His people. “The wicked plotteth against the just, and gnasheth upon him with his teeth.” Psalm 37:12. They will oppress the just and rule over them and persecute them, and because of the prosperity of their wicked devices they imagine that their power has caused them to triumph; but the very triumph of the wicked are defeats, while the seeming defeats of the just are their victories. For we read that “the prosperity of fools shall slay them” (Proverbs 1:32); but neither persecution, nor distress, or even death in any of its forms can bring defeat upon the righteous, for “in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him that loved us.” Romans 8:35, 37. PTUK July 12, 1894, page 435.1
The victory of the saints is not always made manifest in the things of this world, for their welfare is not with flesh and blood, but with principalities and powers, and spiritual wickedness in high places. Ephesians 6:12. And the weapons of their warfare are “not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strongholds; casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ.” 2 Corinthians 10:4, 5. Their weapon is “the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God,” and their victory is the victory of faith. God works with their faith, and in the works of His hands there is always triumph. PTUK July 12, 1894, page 435.2
“Ignore Him” The Present Truth 10, 28.
E. J. Waggoner
Ignore Him.-It is the privilege and the duty of every person to ignore Satan and his evil hosts in all the affairs of life. Not that we should ignore the fact of his existence, or that of his going about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour; but we should ignore him. He is constantly seeking to hold communication with us, in order that he may deceive or discourage us in our spiritual undertakings. He is a constant meddler in all our affairs pertaining to our relation to God, and he should be treated as such. His suggestions should not be listened to, or his authority or power recognised. To parley with him is of no possible use, for we can never convince or persuade him, while He only too often persuades us thereby. We can ignore him by “looking unto Jesus,” whose glory and loveliness have power to charm the eye and can take hold on the affections of the heart. PTUK July 12, 1894, page 435.3
“The Papal Plea for Unity” The Present Truth 10, 28.
E. J. Waggoner
The Roman Pontiff has issued an “Encyclical” in behalf of Church unity, which is remarkable in that it is addressed to all Christendom,—Protestant, Greek, and Roman Catholic. The fact affords strong evidence of the feeling of confidence which pervades the Roman hierarchy at this stage of their struggle for the recovery of Rome’s former supremacy. It is said that the Pope was previously in possession of reliable assurances both from Greek and Anglican Church parties that such a plea for himself would be welcomed in their midst; though doubtless the ever increasing flow of the Romeward tide in so-called Protestant churches throughout Christendom, furnished the Pontiff with all the evidence needed that his effort would not be in vain. PTUK July 12, 1894, page 435.4
The papal plea for unity is, of course, nothing more than a plea for union with Rome. No other kind of unity is desired or recognised by the Papal Church. The Pontiff has deliberately invited the Protestant bodies throughout the world to acknowledge the authority of the Church of Rome in spiritual things, and to declare that the Reformation was wrong and that Wycliffe, Luther, Wesley, and their co-labourers were agents of the devil, instead of servants of God. An Italian, surrounded by others of this kind, brought up in an atmosphere that knows never a ray of Gospel and liberty, invites those who have been reared in the atmosphere of freedom to acknowledge him as their spiritual leader! But on the other hand, the insult has itself been invited by the inconsistent, compromising, and spiritually-lifeless character of the Protestantism which a great part of the Protestant world has now for some years exhibited. PTUK July 12, 1894, page 435.5
The basis of the desired union is as stated, an acknowledgement by all other churches of the authority of Rome, of the error of all doctrines which stand in opposition to hers, and of the wickedness of the work of all by whom such doctrines have been taught; for this is what a compliance with the Pope’s proposition involves. It is not Christian unity for which the Pontiff pleads, but for the “unity of Christendom,” in that sense of the word which refers more to a profession of Christ than to possession of what He gives. Christian unity is “the unity of the faith” (Ephesians 4:13),—not unity of belief merely, nor unity which men can bring about with respect to the faith, but unity which the faith itself gives to men, as many as will receive it. Faith-Christian faith-is a gift of God, and not an outcome of a will or reason of man (Ephesians 2:8), and Christian unity is the result of the faith which they have, and not of any efforts on their part to agree on points of doctrine while in a state of discord. There being but one faith, there must necessarily be unity among all who possess it. All who are united to Christ are by that very bond united to each other. And therefore no anxiety need ever be felt by anyone for Christian unity itself, for that must always exist wherever there are Christians; and the very fact that a plea is put forth for the unity of Christendom is itself proof that it is not Christian unity that is called for, but only such unity as can be produced by the will and efforts of men. PTUK July 12, 1894, page 435.6
The Encyclical declares, as stated in the Catholic Times, that “the Church continues with an ardour that knows no abatement the work of propagating the faith which has lived through nineteen centuries,”—in which assertion there is more of truth stated than is realised by the Pope or his defenders; for what he miscalls “faith” has, in its Catholic phase, existed since the days of the Apostle Paul, who saw the beginning of its working nineteen centuries ago (see 2 Thessalonians 2:7); but the Christian faith is very much older than that, for “by faith Abel offered unto God a more excellent sacrifice than Cain, by which he obtained witness that he was righteous” (Hebrews 11:4), and the Gospel was preached to Abraham (Galatians 3:8), and to his descendants who came out of Egypt. Hebrews 4:1, 2. The Christian faith is as old as the days when God first spoke to men, for faith is belief of God’s word, and we read in the first epistle of Peter, “the word of the Lord endureth for ever; and this is the word by which the Gospel is preached unto you.” The Gospel is everlasting (Revelation 14:6), and therefore the Christian faith,—the faith which God gives to man,—is everlasting; it has been prepared for eternity. The doctrines of the Papacy are, in principle, older than nineteen centuries, extending back into the darkness of ancient heathenism until they become lost in the mists of time; but in their Christian guise they have existed for nineteen centuries and no more. PTUK July 12, 1894, page 435.7
The Pope offers himself to the Protestant world as an infallible religious guide, since they have, as he informs them, no certain rule of faith or authority. In other words, since the word of the Lord, which by the Gospel is preached unto men is not a sure rule of faith or authority to them, the Pope offers them the word of man, preached by the prelates of Rome! Sad indeed it is that the attitude of professed Protestants should invite such a deliverance from the “man of sin.” The root of this terrible evil is neglect of the words of God,—the holy Scriptures. Turning away from them and refusing to accept them in childlike faith, they have indeed no certain rule of faith or authority left them, but have only the dire remedy for their schisms of going back to Rome. But “nevertheless the foundation of God standeth sure, having the seal: The Lord knoweth them that are His.” 2 Timothy 2:19. PTUK July 12, 1894, page 436.1
“A ‘Strong Man’ on Health” The Present Truth 10, 28.
E. J. Waggoner
In the Cosmopolitan magazine, Sandow, the champion strong man, gives his views and experience in the matter of physical development. The wonderful strength which he possesses has been developed by constant exercise and training, having regard for the principles of healthful living. Of eating, drinking, and sleeping, he says:— PTUK July 12, 1894, page 436.2
“In passing, let me say that tea and coffee contain alkaloids, which are injurious to the nerves and stomach. I never drink either. Water is nature’s offering to the thirsty, and, when distilled, cannot be improved upon. It should always be taken when the stomach is empty. PTUK July 12, 1894, page 436.3
“Good health depends upon sound asleep as well as upon good nutrition. I encourage as much sleep at one time as possible. People who seek to do with a small amount of sleep are burning their lives at both ends, and wasting nature’s reserve of vitality.... I sleep nine hours always, and often more.” PTUK July 12, 1894, page 436.4
Again, he says in conclusion:— PTUK July 12, 1894, page 436.5
“I do not keep to any special diet, but eat whatever I have a taste for, without stinting myself unduly; nor do I restrict myself seriously in what I drink. I abjure everything intoxicating, and never suffer myself to touch tea or coffee... I endeavour to have my meals at regular hours, and prefer that they shall be simple and easy of digestion. I take plenty of sleep, and find this essential to my well-being.” PTUK July 12, 1894, page 436.6
“Studies in Romans. God’s Revelation to Man. Romans 1:21-25” The Present Truth 10, 28.
E. J. Waggoner
Let us not forget that it is from the very words of the Bible that one is to learn. All the real help that any teacher can be to any one in the study of the Bible is to show him how to fix his mind more clearly upon the exact words of the sacred text. Therefore, first of all, read the text over many times. Do not do this hastily, but carefully, paying particular attention to every statement. Do not waste one moment in speculating as to the possible meaning of the text. There is nothing worse than guessing the meaning of a text of Scripture, unless it is the acceptance of somebody else’s guess. Nobody can know any more of the Bible than the Bible itself tells; and the Bible is just as ready to tell its story to one person as to another. PTUK July 12, 1894, page 436.7
Question the text closely. Probe it again and again, always in a reverent, prayerful spirit, to make it reveal itself. Do not be discouraged if you do not at once see all that there is in the text. Remember that it is the word of God, and that it is infinite in its depth, and that you can never exhaust it. When you come across a difficult statement, go back and consider it in connection with what precedes. Do not think that you can ever get at the full meaning of any text apart from its connection. By constant application to the words of the text, in order to be sure that you know exactly what it says, you will soon have them constantly in your mind; and it is then that you will begin to reap some of the rich fruits of Bible study; for at unexpected times new light will flash from them, and through them from other scriptures as you read. PTUK July 12, 1894, page 436.8
Our last lesson covered verses 16, 17, which contain the statement of what the Gospel is, and what it reveals to men. The remaining portion of the chapter may be summarized thus:— PTUK July 12, 1894, page 436.9
THE JUSTICE OF JUDGMENT. Romans 1:18-20
“For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who hold the truth in unrighteousness; because that which may be known of God is manifest in them; for God hath showed it unto them. For the invisible things of Him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even His external power and Godhead; so that they are without excuse.” PTUK July 12, 1894, page 436.10
HOW MEN LOST KNOWLEDGE
Romans 1:21-25
“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. Professing themselves to be wise, they became fools, and changed the glory of the uncorruptible God into an image made like to corruptible man, and to birds, and fourfooted beasts, and creeping things.” PTUK July 12, 1894, page 436.11
RESULT OF IGNORING GOD. Romans 1:24-33
“Wherefore God also gave them up to uncleaness, through the lusts of their own hearts, to dishonour their own bodies between themselves; who changed the truth of God into a lie, and worshipped and served the creature more than the Creator, who is blessed forever. Amen. For this cause God gave them up unto vile affections; for even their women did change the natural use into that which is against nature; and likewise also the men, leaving the natural use of the woman, burned in their lust one towards another; men with men working that which is unseemly, and receiving in themselves that recompense of their error which was meet. And even as they did not like to retain God in their knowledge, God gave them over to a reprobate mind, to do those things which are not convenient; being filled with all unrighteousness, fornication, wickedness, covetousness, maliciousness; full of envy, murder, debate, deceit, malignity; whisperers, backbiters, haters of God, despiteful, proud, boasters, inventors of evil things, disobedient to parents, without understanding, covenant breakers, without natural affection, implacable, unmerciful; who knowing the judgment of God, that they which commit such things are worthy of death, not only do the same, but have pleasure in them that do them.” PTUK July 12, 1894, page 436.12
QUESTIONING THE TEXT
From what place is the wrath of God revealed? PTUK July 12, 1894, page 436.13
“The wrath of God is revealed from heaven.” PTUK July 12, 1894, page 436.14
Against what is the wrath of God revealed? PTUK July 12, 1894, page 436.15
“Against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men.” PTUK July 12, 1894, page 436.16
What is done to the truth by ungodly men? PTUK July 12, 1894, page 436.17
“Who hold down the truth in unrighteousness.” Revised Version. PTUK July 12, 1894, page 436.18
What is the justice of the revelation of God’s wrath against all ungodliness of men? PTUK July 12, 1894, page 436.19
“Because that which may be known of God is manifest in them.” PTUK July 12, 1894, page 436.20
How is it that the knowledge of God is manifest in them? PTUK July 12, 1894, page 436.21
“For God hath showed it unto them.” PTUK July 12, 1894, page 436.22
Since what time have the invisible things of God been seen? PTUK July 12, 1894, page 436.23
“Since the creation of this world.” R.V. PTUK July 12, 1894, page 436.24
What are these invisible things? PTUK July 12, 1894, page 437.1
“His everlasting power and Divinity.” R.V. PTUK July 12, 1894, page 437.2
By what are the everlasting power and Divinity of God made known? PTUK July 12, 1894, page 437.3
“Being perceived through the things that are made.” PTUK July 12, 1894, page 437.4
What then is the condition of all who sin? PTUK July 12, 1894, page 437.5
“They are without excuse.” PTUK July 12, 1894, page 437.6
When they knew God, wherein did they fail? PTUK July 12, 1894, page 437.7
“When they knew God, they glorified Him not as God.” PTUK July 12, 1894, page 437.8
In what respect did they fail to glorify Him? PTUK July 12, 1894, page 437.9
“Neither were thankful.” PTUK July 12, 1894, page 437.10
What caused their ingratitude? PTUK July 12, 1894, page 437.11
They “became vain in their imaginations.” PTUK July 12, 1894, page 437.12
What was the result of their vain imaginings? PTUK July 12, 1894, page 437.13
“Their foolish heart was darkened.” PTUK July 12, 1894, page 437.14
In what sad condition were they? PTUK July 12, 1894, page 437.15
“Professing themselves to be wise, they became fools.” PTUK July 12, 1894, page 437.16
What did they then do? PTUK July 12, 1894, page 437.17
“Changed the glory of the uncorruptible God into an image made like to corruptible man, and to birds, and fourfooted beasts, and creeping things.” PTUK July 12, 1894, page 437.18
To what were they left as a consequence? PTUK July 12, 1894, page 437.19
“Wherefore God also gave them up to the lusts of their own hearts.” PTUK July 12, 1894, page 437.20
How did they pervert the truth? PTUK July 12, 1894, page 437.21
“They “changed the truth of God into a lie.” “Exchanged the truth of God for a lie.” R.V. PTUK July 12, 1894, page 437.22
What false worship did they introduce? PTUK July 12, 1894, page 437.23
They “worshipped and served the creature more than the Creator.” PTUK July 12, 1894, page 437.24
What was the result of this self-exaltation and creature worship? PTUK July 12, 1894, page 437.25
“For this cause God gave them up to vile affection.” PTUK July 12, 1894, page 437.26
What was the result of their refusing to have God in their knowledge? PTUK July 12, 1894, page 437.27
“God gave them over to a reprobate mind,” or “a mind void of judgment.” PTUK July 12, 1894, page 437.28
With what were they therefore necessarily filled? PTUK July 12, 1894, page 437.29
“Being filled with all unrighteousness,” etc. PTUK July 12, 1894, page 437.30
All Unrighteousness Condemned.-The wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men. “All unrighteousness is sin.” 1 John 5:17. “But sin is not imputed when there is no law.” Romans 5:13. Therefore enough of the law of God is known in all the world to deprive all people of any excuse for sin. The statement in this verse is equal to that in the next chapter, that “there is no respect of persons with God.” His wrath is manifested against all unrighteousness. No person in the world is so great that he can sin with impunity, and no person is so insignificant that his sin will be overlooked. There is strict impartiality with God. He “without respect of persons judgeth according to every man’s work.” 1 Peter 2:17. PTUK July 12, 1894, page 437.31
Restraining the Truth.-The statement is that men “hold down the truth in unrighteousness.” Some people have superficially read verse 18 as though it said that men may possess the truth while they themselves are unrighteous. It does not say so. Sufficient evidence that such a thing is not meant is found in the fact that the apostle is speaking in this chapter especially of those who did not possess the truth, but had exchanged it for a lie. Although they had lost all knowledge of the truth, they were in condemnation for their sin. PTUK July 12, 1894, page 437.32
The statement is that people restrain the truth by unrighteousness. We might note the fact that when Jesus went into His own country “he did not many mighty works there because of their unbelief.” Matthew 13:58. But the apostle in the text before us means much more than this. He means, as the context plainly shows, that people by their perverseness restrain the working of the truth of God in their own souls. But for their resistance of the truth, it would sanctify them. And herein is seen the PTUK July 12, 1894, page 437.33
Righteousness of God’s Wrath.-The wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, and justly, too, “because that which may be known of God is manifest in them; for God hath shown it unto them.” Note particularly the statement that that which may be know of God “is manifest in them.” Although in the common version the margin gives “to them” as an alternative reading, the Greek gives no warrant for any such rendering. No matter how blindly men may sin, the fact remains that they are sinning against great light, “because that which may be known of God is manifest in them.” With such knowledge not only before their eyes, but actually within them, it is easy to see the justice of God’s wrath against all sin, no matter in whom it is found. Even though it should not be perfectly clear to us how the knowledge of God is really placed in every man, we may accept the apostle’s statement of the fact. In the wonderful description of the foolishness of idolatry, given in Isaiah, we are told that the man who makes an idol lies against the truth which he himself possesses. “He feedeth on ashes; a deceived heart hath turned him aside, that he can not deliver his soul, nor say, Is there not a lie in my right hand?” Isaiah 44:20. PTUK July 12, 1894, page 437.34
Seeing the Invisible.-It is said of Moses that “he endured, as seeing him who is invisible.” Hebrews 11:27. This was not a privilege peculiar to Moses. Every other man may do the same thing. How? Because the “invisible things of Him since the creation of the world are clearly seen, being perceived through the things that are made.” There has not been a time since the world was created when all men did not have the knowledge of God within their grasp. PTUK July 12, 1894, page 437.35
“Lord, how Thy wonders are displayed
Where’er I turn my eye!
If I survey the ground I tread,
Or gaze upon the sky.
PTUK July 12, 1894, page 437.36
“There’s not a plant or flower below
But makes Thy glories known.”
PTUK July 12, 1894, page 437.37
Eternal Power and Divinity.-The invisible things of God that are known by the things that are made are His everlasting power and divinity. “The heavens declare the glory of God; and the firmament showeth His handiwork.” Psalm 19:1. Jesus Christ is “the power of God.” 1 Corinthians 1:24. “For in Him were all things created, in the heavens and upon the earth, things visible and things invisible, whether thrones or dominions or principalities or powers; all things have been created through Him, and unto Him; and He is before all things, and in Him all things consist.” Colossians 1:16, 17. “He spake, and it was.” Psalm 33:9. He is “the firstborn of all creation.” Colossians 1:15. He is the source, or beginning, of the creation of God. Revelation 3:14. That is to say, all creation springs from Christ Jesus, who is the power of God. He spoke the worlds into existence from His own being. Therefore the external power and Divinity of God are impressed upon everything that has been made. We can not open our eyes, we can not even feel the breeze upon our face, without having a clear revelation to us of the power of God. PTUK July 12, 1894, page 437.38
“We are His Offspring.”-When Paul upon Mars’ Hill rebuked the Athenians for their idolatry he said that God is not far from every one of us, “for in Him we live, and move, and have our being.” The men to whom he was speaking were heathen, yet it was just as true of them as it is of us. Then he quoted one of their own poets, who had said, “For we are also His offspring,” and placed upon it the stamp of truth, by saying, “Forasmuch then as we are the offspring of God, we ought not to think that the Godhead is like unto gold, or silver, or stone, graven by art and man’s device.” Acts 17:27-29. Every movement of men, and every breath, is the working of the external power of God. Thus the eternal power and divinity of God are manifest to every man. Not that man is in any sense divine, or that he has any power in himself. Quite the contrary. Man is like the grass. “Every man at his best state is altogether vanity.” Psalm 39:5. The fact that man is nothing in himself, and even “less than nothing, and vanity,” is evidence of the power of God manifested in him. PTUK July 12, 1894, page 437.39
God’s Power in the Grass.-Look at the tiny blade of grass just pushing its way through the hard ground to the sunlight. It is a very frail thing. Pull it up, and you will see that it has not power to stand alone. Even scrape the soil away from it as it stands in the earth, and it will at once lose its upright position. It depends upon the soil to hold it up, and yet it is pushing its way to the surface through that very hard soil. Dissect it as carefully as you please, and you will find nothing to indicate the possession of power. Rub it between your fingers, and you will see that there is scarcely any substance to it. It is about as frail a thing as there is in nature, and yet it will often remove quite large stones that are in the way of its growth. Whence comes this power? It is not inherent in the grass, but is nothing less than the power of the life of God, working according to his word, which in the beginning said, “Let the earth bring forth grass.” PTUK July 12, 1894, page 438.1
The Gospel in Creation.-We have seen that in every created thing the power of God is manifested. And we also learned from the scripture studied last week that the Gospel is “the power of God unto salvation.” God’s power is ever the same, for the text before us speaks of “His eternal power.” The power, therefore, which is manifested in the things which God has made is the same power that works in the hearts of men to save them from sin and death. Therefore we may be assured that God has constituted every portion of his universe a preacher of the Gospel. So then men may not only know the fact of God’s existence from the things which he has made, but they may know His eternal power to save them. The twentieth verse of the first chapter of Romans is an expansion of the sixteenth. It tells us how we may know the power of the Gospel. PTUK July 12, 1894, page 438.2
The Stars as Preachers.—“The heavens declare the glory of God; and the firmament showeth His handiwork. Day unto day uttereth speech, and night unto night showeth knowledge. There is no speech nor language, where their voice is not heard [Or, “without these their voice is heard”]. Their line is gone out through all the earth, and their words to the end of the world.” Psalm 19:1-4. Now read Romans 10:13-18: “Whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved. How then shall they call on Him in whom they have not believed? and how shall they believe in Him of whom they have not heard? and how shall they hear without a preacher? and how shall they preach, except they be sent? as it is written, How beautiful are the feet of them that preach the Gospel of peace, and bring glad tidings of good things! But they have not all obeyed the Gospel. For Esaias saith, Lord, who hath believed our report? So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God. But I say, Have they not heard? Yes verily, their sound went into all the earth, and their words unto the ends of the world.” PTUK July 12, 1894, page 438.3
In this text all the objections which men raise against the punishment of the heathen are answered. As stated in the first chapter, they are without excuse. The Gospel has been made known to every creature under heaven. It is admitted that men cannot call on one in whom they have not believed, and that they can not believe in one of whom they have not heard, and that they can not hear without a preacher. And that which they ought to hear, and which they have not obeyed, is the Gospel. Having stated this, the apostle asks, “Have they not heard?” and at once answers his own question by repeating the words of the nineteenth psalm, “Yes verily, their sound went into all the earth, and their words unto the ends of the world.” Thus we learn that the speech which the heavens utter from day unto day is the Gospel; and the knowledge which they show from night unto night is the knowledge of God. PTUK July 12, 1894, page 438.4
The Heavens Reveal Righteousness.-With the knowledge that that which the heavens declare is the Gospel of Christ, which is the power of God unto salvation, we can easily follow the nineteenth psalm through. It seems to the casual reader that there is a break in the continuity of this psalm. From talking about the heavens, the writer suddenly begins to speak of the perfection of the law of God, and its converting power. “The law of the Lord is perfect, converting the soul; the testimony of the Lord is sure, making wise the simple.” Verse 7. But there is no break at all. The law of God is the righteousness of God, and the Gospel reveals the righteousness of God, and the heavens declare the Gospel; therefore it follows that the heavens reveal the righteousness of God. “The heavens declare His righteousness, and all the people see His glory.” Psalm 97:6. PTUK July 12, 1894, page 438.5
The glory of God is His goodness, because we are told that it is through sin that men come short of His glory. Romans 3:23. Therefore we may know that whoever looks upon the heavens with reverence, seeing in them the power of the Creator, and will yield himself to that power, will be led to the saving righteousness of God. Even the sun, moon, and stars, whose light is but a part of the glory of the Lord, will shine that glory into his soul. PTUK July 12, 1894, page 439.1
Without Excuse.-How evident it is, therefore, that men are without excuse for their idolatrous practices. When the true God reveals Himself in everything, and with His power makes known His love, what excuse can men have for not knowing and worshipping him? But is it true that God makes known His love to all men? Yes, it is just as true as that He makes Himself known, for “God is love.” Whoever knows the Lord must know His love. This being the case with regard to the heathen, how utterly without excuse are people who live in lands where the Gospel is preached with an audible voice from His written word. PTUK July 12, 1894, page 439.2
The Cause of Idolatry.-How is it that if God has so clearly revealed Himself and His truth, there are so many who are in utter ignorance of Him? The answer is given, “Because that, when they knew God, they glorified Him not as God, neither were thankful.” There is one thing which God has given as the seal and sign of His Divinity, and that is the Sabbath. Speaking of men, He says, “Moreover also I gave them My Sabbaths, to be a sign between Me and them, that they might know that I am the Lord that sanctify them.” Ezekiel 20:12. This is in keeping with what we have learned in Romans; for our text tells us that God’s power and Divinity are perceived by thoughtful people through the things that He has made; and the Sabbath is the great memorial of creation. “Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy. Six days shalt thou labour, and do all thy work; but the seventh day is the Sabbath of the Lord thy God; in it thou shalt not do any work; ... for in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is, and rested the seventh day; wherefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day, and hallowed it.” Exodus 20:8-11. If people had always kept the Sabbath as it was given, there would never have been any idolatry; for the Sabbath reveals the power of the word of the Lord to create and to work righteousness. PTUK July 12, 1894, page 439.3
Vain Imaginations.-Men became vain in their imaginations, and their foolish heart was darkened. Gibbon says of the speculations of the ancient philosophers that “their reason had often been guided by their imagination, and their imagination had been prompted by their vanity.” The course of their fall was the same as that of the angel who became Satan. “How art thou fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning! how art thou cut down to the ground, which didst weaken the nations! For thou hast said in thine heart, I will ascend into heaven, I will exalt my throne above the stars of God; I will sit also upon the mount of the congregation, in the sides of the north; I will ascend above the heights of the clouds; I will be like the Most High.” Isaiah 14:12-14. What was the cause of this self-exaltation and fall? “Thine heart was lifted up because of thy beauty, thou hast corrupted thy wisdom by reason of thy brightness.” Ezekiel 27:17. Dependent entirely upon God for all the wisdom and glory that he had, he did not glorify God, but assumed that all his talents sprang from himself; and so, as he disconnected himself in his pride from the Source of light, he became the prince of darkness. Even thus it was with man. PTUK July 12, 1894, page 439.4
Changing the Truth into a Lie.—“There is no power but of God.” In nature we see the manifestation of mighty power, but it is the working of God. All the different forms of force which philosophers name, and which they declare to be inherent in matter, are but the working of the life of God in the things that He has made. Christ is “before all things, and by Him all things consist,” or hold together. Colossians 1:17. Cohesion therefore is but the direct power of the life of Christ. Gravitation also is the same power, as we read of the heavenly bodies, “for that He is strong in power; not one faileth.” Isaiah 40:26. But men looked upon all the operations of nature, and, instead of seeing the power of the one supreme God in them, they attributed Divinity to the things themselves. So, as they looked upon themselves; and saw what great things they could achieve, instead of honouring God as the giver and upholder of all things, the One in whom they lived and moved and had their being, they assumed that they themselves were by nature divine. Thus they changed the truth of God into a lie. The truth is that the life and power of God are manifested in everything that he has made; the lie is that the force which is manifest in all things is inherent in the things themselves. So men put the creature in the place of the Creator. PTUK July 12, 1894, page 439.5
Looking Within.-Marcus Aurelius, who is accounted the best of the heathen philosophers, said: “Look within. Within is the fountain of good, and it will ever bubble up, if thou wilt ever dig.” That expresses the spirit of all heathenism. Self was the supreme thing. But that spirit is not peculiar to what is know as heathenism, for it is very common in these days; nevertheless, it is nothing but the spirit of heathenism. It is a part of the worship of the creature instead of the Creator. It is but natural that they should put themselves in his place; and when they do that, it is a necessary consequence that they look to themselves, and not to God, for goodness. When men look within, what is the only thing that they can see? “Evil thoughts, adulteries, fornications, murders, thefts, covetousness, wickedness, deceit, lasciviousness, an evil eye, blasphemy, pride, foolishness.” Mark 6:21, 22. Even the apostle Paul said, “I know that in me (that is, in my flesh) dwelleth no good thing.” Romans 7:18. Now, when a man looks at all this evil which is in him by nature, and thinks that it is good, and that he can get good out of himself, the result can be plainly seen: the vilest wickedness must be the result. He virtually says, “Evil, be thou my good.” PTUK July 12, 1894, page 439.6
The Wisdom of this World.—“The world by wisdom knew not God.” Keenness of intellect is not faith, nor is it a substitute for faith. A man may be a brilliant scholar, and still be the basest of men. Several years ago a man charged with half a score or more brutal murders was hanged, and yet he was a scholar and a scientist, and had held a high position in society. Learning is not Christianity, although a Christian may be a learned man. Modern inventions will never save men from perdition. Some modern philosopher has said that “idolatry can not live by the side of steam engine and telegraphs.” But it does. It lived in ancient times by the side of the highest art and culture that the world has ever known. And at the same time men were sunk in such wickedness as referred to by the apostle in the last part of the first chapter of Romans. Even the reputed wise men were such as are there described. It was the natural result of their looking at themselves for righteousness. PTUK July 12, 1894, page 439.7
In the Last Days.-Read the last verses of the first chapter of Romans if you wish to have a picture of the world in the last days. The one who believes in a millennium of peace and righteousness before the coming of the Lord will doubtless be shocked; but he needs to be. Read that list of sins carefully, and then see how exactly it tallies with the following: “This know also, that in the last days perilous times shall come. For men shall be lover of their own selves, covetous, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy, without natural affection, trucebreakers, false accusers, incontinent, fierce, despisers of those that are good, traitors, heady, high-minded, lovers of pleasures more than lovers of God; having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof.” 2 Timothy 3:1-5. This all springs from self, the very source of the evil with which Paul charged the heathen. Those things are the works of the flesh. See Galatians 5:19-21. They are the natural result of trusting in self. PTUK July 12, 1894, page 440.1
In spite of the declaration of the apostle, there are very few who will believe that this state of things will ever be general, and especially among those who profess godliness. But the seed which produces such a crop is already sown broadcast. The Papacy, “that man of sin,” “the son of perdition; who opposeth and exalteth himself above all that is called God, or that is worshipped,”—is the strongest force in professed Christendom, and its power is daily increasing. And how is it increasing?—Not so much by the direct accessions as by the blind acceptance of its principles by professed Protestants. It has placed itself above God in thinking to change His law. Daniel 7:25. It boldly adopted the heathen sun festival day, Sunday,—in the place of the Sabbath of the Lord, the memorial of creation, and defiantly points to it as its badge of authority. And the majority of Protestants follow in its train, accepting a custom which stands for the exaltation of man above God,—the symbol of justification by works instead of by faith. When professed Christians cling to a human ordinance in spite of the express command of the Lord, and support their custom by appeals to the Fathers, men who were learned in the philosophy of heathenism, the road to any evil which their hearts may choose is but a down grade. “He that hath ears to hear, let him hear.” PTUK July 12, 1894, page 440.2
“The Resurrection Literal” The Present Truth 10, 28.
E. J. Waggoner
OLD AND NEW TESTAMENT HARMONY
“If a man die, shall he live again?” Job 19:14. PTUK July 12, 1894, page 440.3
“The dead shall hear the voice of the Son of God; and they that hear shall live.” John 5:25. PTUK July 12, 1894, page 440.4
“Thou wilt not leave my soul in hell; neither wilt thou suffer Thine Holy One to see corruption.” Psalm 16:10. PTUK July 12, 1894, page 440.5
“This Jesus hath God raised up.” Acts 2:32. “He whom God raised again saw no corruption.” Chap. 13:37. PTUK July 12, 1894, page 440.6
“I know that my Redeemer liveth, and that He shall stand at the latter day upon the earth.” Job 19:25. PTUK July 12, 1894, page 440.7
“I am He that liveth and was dead; and, behold, I am alive for evermore.” Revelation 1:18. “And I looked, and, lo, a Lamb stood on Mount Zion, and with Him an hundred forty and four thousand, having His Father’s name written in their foreheads.” “These were redeemed from among men, being the firstfruits unto God and to the Lamb.” Chap. 14:1, 4. PTUK July 12, 1894, page 440.8
“My flesh also shall rest and hope.” Psalm 16:9. “Thy dead men shall live; together with My dead body shall they arise.” 26:19. PTUK July 12, 1894, page 441.1
“If the Spirit of Him that raised up Jesus from the dead dwell in you, He that raised up Christ from the dead shall also quicken your mortal bodies by His Spirit that dwelleth in you.” Romans 8:11. PTUK July 12, 1894, page 441.2
“I will ransom them from the power of the grave.” Hosea 13:14. PTUK July 12, 1894, page 441.3
“There is one God, and one Mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, who gave Himself a ransom for all, to be testified in due time.” 1 Timothy 2:5, 6. PTUK July 12, 1894, page 441.4
“I will redeem them from death.” Hosea 13:14. “The wages of sin is death.” Romans 6:23. “Sin is the transgression of the law.” 1 John 3:4. PTUK July 12, 1894, page 441.5
“Christ hath redeemed us from the curse of the law, being made a curse for us; for it is written, Cursed is every one that hangeth on a tree.” Galatians 3:13. PTUK July 12, 1894, page 441.6
“Behold, O My people, I will open your graves, and cause you to come up out of your graves.” Ezekiel 37:12. PTUK July 12, 1894, page 441.7
“God hath both raised up the Lord, and will also raise up us by His own power.” 1 Corinthians 6:11. PTUK July 12, 1894, page 441.8
“God will redeem my soul from the power of the grave; for He shall receive me.” Psalm 49:15. PTUK July 12, 1894, page 441.9
“If I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto Myself.” John 14:3. PTUK July 12, 1894, page 441.10
“O death, I will be thy plagues; O grave, I will be thy destruction.” Hosea 13:14. “He will swallow up death in victory.” Isaiah 25:8. PTUK July 12, 1894, page 441.11
“This corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality. So when this corruptible shall have put on incorruption, and this mortal shall have put on immortality, then shall be brought to pass the saying that is written, Death is swallowed up in victory. O death, where is thy sting? O grave where is thy victory?” 1 Corinthians 15:53-55. “Thanks be to God, which giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.” Verse 57. PTUK July 12, 1894, page 441.12
“We Are All Alike” The Present Truth 10, 28.
E. J. Waggoner
Little folks are very much alike in many ways, no matter where they may live. The same is true of grown-up people. The Apostle Paul said in one of his sermons, that God “hath made of one blood all nations of men for to dwell on all the face of the earth.” PTUK July 12, 1894, page 445.1
It makes no difference what language they speak, or what the colour of their skin, the Lord made them all, and loves one just as much as another; for does it not read, “God so loved the world”? Sometimes we in Great Britain may perhaps wonder if the peculiar looking people we see pictured in books of travel really feel and think as we do. Did you ever think that possibly they may have the same doubts about us? PTUK July 12, 1894, page 445.2
A lady missionary to Africa, in the early days of missions, learned that the natives thought white people were of an altogether different order of beings from themselves. They were surprised and delighted to find that she loved her children, and that white people had the same feelings that they had. We know more now about the world we live in, and the people in it, than our grandfathers did when they were young; because steam engines and newspapers and books are multiplied. But it is not easy for many to acknowledge that all men are really of one blood, and that the Lord cares for all and loves all. But so He says, and all who believe Him must believe it. PTUK July 12, 1894, page 445.3
If we could see the games that children play in different lands, we should see that all like a good time. Away in the interior of Africa, Stanley found the children playing games, some of which were after all not so very different from those that you like to play. The play that is inside of the children is the same; it works out in different ways, that is all the difference. PTUK July 12, 1894, page 445.4
When it is too warm to play cricket on these warm summer days, perhaps some boys cool themselves by thinking of icebergs, and wonder what the children in Greenland and the arctic regions play. They play games with a ball, that is sure. The ball is probably made of Walrus hide, or bone, and the bats are bones. Many hours of their long winters are enlivened by the merry shouts of these little Esquiman (Eskemo) players, in skin clothing. PTUK July 12, 1894, page 445.5
In some places in our southern lands the children have a snow game that they play in winter, fancying themselves Esquimau children. Taking hold of hands they sing something like this,— PTUK July 12, 1894, page 445.6
Oh, do you know the Esquimau
The Esquimau, the Esquimau?
Oh, yes, I know the Esquimau,
He dwells in lands of ice and snow,
Of ice and snow, of ice and snow.
PTUK July 12, 1894, page 445.7
And then they hop about in the snow in supposed imitation of the children of the Far North. A traveller in arctic lands, a few years ago, found a game very similar to this one, in which the little people in fur garments fancied themselves imitating the games of boys and girls in lands where they think it must be very warm and uncomfortable. They think about us, you see, and fancy that we are a very strange and unnatural kind of people. And so we are to them. PTUK July 12, 1894, page 445.8
When missionaries first went to Greenland the people felt at first very much as we perhaps once felt. They did not want to be told that their ways were not right, and that their only hope was in turning to the Lord and loving Him. They laughed at the missionaries, and thought them very ignorant because they were unable to speak the Esquimau language properly. But the missionaries trusted in God and refused to leave the people, even though they were brought almost to death by starvation; and finally the cold, icy hearts of the people were melted by the warm love of Jesus, and very many received a knowledge of the true God. PTUK July 12, 1894, page 445.9
The Lord is so great that His kingdom ruleth over all, and now He is sending to all men the message of His everlasting Gospel,—“to every nation, and kindred, and tongue, and people.” He says, “I will say to the north, Give up; and to the south, Keep not back; bring My sons from far, and My daughters from the ends of the earth; even every one that is called by My name; for I have created him for My glory, I have formed him; yea I have made him.” Isaiah 43:6, 7. PTUK July 12, 1894, page 445.10
So the Lord made us all, and made us to glorify Him. Then we are to remember, as we are all alike, and all made to serve God, that if we know more of Him than some people in far away lands, or even people living near us, He has told us about His love in order that we may tell them, and not because He loves us more than them. We cannot be selfish with the Lord. PTUK July 12, 1894, page 445.11
“News of the Week” The Present Truth 10, 28.
E. J. Waggoner
-The hay crop of the United Kingdom is estimated at 12,900,000 tons. PTUK July 12, 1894, page 446.1
-The total of deaths from bubonic plague in Hong Kong is slightly over 2,800. PTUK July 12, 1894, page 446.2
-There is some prospect of an early settlement of the railway strike in the United States. PTUK July 12, 1894, page 446.3
-Sir Henry Layard, the well-known diplomatist and Eastern explorer, died July 6. He was horn in 1517. PTUK July 12, 1894, page 446.4
-In an accident on the Canadian Pacific Rail-way, July 5, five persons were killed and eight injured. PTUK July 12, 1894, page 446.5
-The infant great grandson of the Queen is to be baptized with water brought for the purpose from the Jordan. PTUK July 12, 1894, page 446.6
-The Royal Navy protects the commerce of the entire empire. The value of this commerce is ?970,000,000. PTUK July 12, 1894, page 446.7
-An Inter-colonial Conference, sitting at Ottawa, Canada, has been seriously considering the subject of a Pacific cable. PTUK July 12, 1894, page 446.8
-General Booth states that be has now under his command in this country 10,791 officers, and 200,000 unpaid workers. PTUK July 12, 1894, page 446.9
-In Dresden a thread is produced from the common nettle so fine that a length of 60 miles weighs only two and a half pounds. PTUK July 12, 1894, page 446.10
-A despatch from Warsaw states that the authorities have just given orders that all synagogues in the neighbourhood of Russian churches are to are closed. PTUK July 12, 1894, page 446.11
-A destructive fire occurred at Buda-Pest on Sunday, July 1. Ten houses were burned to the ground, and twenty-five adjacent buildings wore partly destroyed. PTUK July 12, 1894, page 446.12
-Signor Bandi, an Italian journalist and patriot, was assassinated July 2 at Rome, in a manner similar to the assassination of President Carnot. The assassin escaped. PTUK July 12, 1894, page 446.13
-Only 450 out of 11,000 workmen remain at work in the great Austrian rifle factory of Steyr, the others having been dismissed, apparently on account of orders being exhausted. PTUK July 12, 1894, page 446.14
-The famous racing yacht Valkyrie was sunk by a collision while starting in it race off the Clyde, July 5. By good fortune no lives were lost, though several persons were injured. PTUK July 12, 1894, page 446.15
-The silkworm is in some danger of being superseded. Artificial silk is actually being produced at Bradford from very ordinary fibre, the process having been discovered by a Swiss chemist. PTUK July 12, 1894, page 446.16
-It has been discovered that before the assassination of the lute President the Anarchists formed a plot to kidnap Madame Carnet, to hold her as hostage against the punishment of the murderer. PTUK July 12, 1894, page 446.17
-A man in France is said to be 126 years old. He accounts for his longevity by the privations of his youth, followed in after-life by abstinence from intoxicating liquors and from excesses of all kinds. PTUK July 12, 1894, page 446.18
-It is stated that the Russian Government has intervened between China and Japan, urging them to withdraw their respective troops from Korea, and then endeavour to arrive at an amicable settlement. PTUK July 12, 1894, page 446.19
-It is said that when the Queen of Madagascar closed the drink-shops in her kingdom, and the ex-publicans asked for compensation, she replied, “Compensate those you have wronged, and I will pay the balance.” PTUK July 12, 1894, page 446.20
-President Casimir-Perier, on the occasion of his election to the presidency of the French Republic and in view of the National F?te on July 14, has signed a decree granting an amnesty to 314 prisoners sentenced for offences connected with strike movements. PTUK July 12, 1894, page 446.21
-Owing to an outbreak of cholera at Cronstadt the military governor of that place has taken far-reaching measures for the suppression of the epidemic. The Government of Kielce, in South-West Russia, has been declared by order of the Minister of the Interior to be suspected of cholera infection. One death from suspected cholera has been announced from the Fejan quarantine station near Stockholm. There are at present eight cholera patients at Liege. PTUK July 12, 1894, page 446.22
-President Casimir-Perier in his message to the French Parliament, said he is not a man of any party, but belongs to the Republic and to France. He appeals, to Frenchmen to avoid personal ambitions, and to work for public order and the social peace. PTUK July 12, 1894, page 446.23
-During the eleven months ending May last the number of immigrants who arrived in the United States was 288,020 as compared with 430,210 in the corresponding period of last year. The greatest decrease was in Poles and ltalians, who numbered a third less than last year. PTUK July 12, 1894, page 446.24
-The boy-King of Spain him horn provided with a costly toy in the shape if a juvenile regiment. Four hundred children, ranging in age from five to eight, have been gathered and provided with miniature rides and a uniform. The King amuses himself by drilling the baby battalion. PTUK July 12, 1894, page 446.25
-If hot rolls are indigestible, they, it seems, are not without their redeeming points. A Russian investigator declares that now and uncut bread is free from the disease producing microbes which find the ant loaf an excellent breeding-ground. PTUK July 12, 1894, page 446.26
-A terrible disaster at Nyiregyhaza, near Budapest, on July 3 was reported. A large ferry boat was crossing the River Theiss, near Mad, when it capsized, and those on board, numbering about 200, were thrown into the water, and the greater part of them drowned. PTUK July 12, 1894, page 446.27
-The reports of the crops in the various districts of Italy are satisfactory, and a good harvest in anticipated. The season has so far been generally favourable. The hay crop has been most abundant and the wheat harvest is very advanced. Reaping will probably be finished by the middle of the month. PTUK July 12, 1894, page 446.28
-News has been received from Sitka, Alaska, of the arrival there of seventeen survivors of the craw of the whaler James Allen, which was wrecked off the western coast of Alaska. The men had suffered the most terrible privations, and had been compelled to eat the flesh of their dead companions. Four of the crew were drowned, two died from starvation, and fifteen were missing. PTUK July 12, 1894, page 446.29
-The latest thing in automatic machines is an automatic gallows. The condemned criminal steps upon a certain place in the scaffold. His weight releases a flow of water, which releases a spring, which in turn permits the drop to fall. Thirty-four executions have taken place by its means in Colorado, but the people of Connecticut object to its introduction on the ground that the State has no right to make a man commit suicide. PTUK July 12, 1894, page 446.30
-Strained relations exist between Italy and Brazil, owing to the hardships to which the Italian colony at Rio de Janeiro is subjugated. Signor Crispi has sent instructions to the Italian Legation there to act with energy. The Brazilian Government having refused to submit to the arbitration of the United States the questions still pending regarding Dalian subjects in Brazil, Signor Crispi is determined to take energetic steps. The warships Fieramosca and Vesuvio will proceed to Rio de Janeiro to support the demands of the Italian Legislation. PTUK July 12, 1894, page 446.31
-One result of the assassination of President Carnot has been to make more work for the Scotland Yard officers. All the Royalties at present in England are to be carefully guarded by detectives who know the Anarchist desperadoes. Prominent politicians on both sides of the House of Commons and in the Howe of Lords are also to have increased protection by men from Scotland Yard. The Czarevitch is almost surrounded by a special guard of detectives, as it is feared he may have bean followed to England by some of the desperate Nihilists of Russia, and an eye has to be kept on the numerous Anarchists usually resident in London. PTUK July 12, 1894, page 446.32
-According to Mr. Wardell, the Government Inspector, the existence of floating dust in mines is becoming every year more and more an acknowledged element of danger, and especially when gas is given off. In spite of the scepticism of some persons, he assures us that by means of duet an explosion can be spread over large areas, and be enormously aggravated. It is curious that a very small percentage of gas will suffice to cause the initial explosion-so small a percentage, in fact, as to be undiscoverable by the ordinary mode of testing with a safety lamp. If drastic measures are to be adopted, Mr. Wardell considers the prohibition of the use of gunpowder in mines would be the safest and most desirable. The use of high explosives might be substituted. PTUK July 12, 1894, page 446.33
“Back Page” The Present Truth 10, 28.
E. J. Waggoner
M. Decle, the French traveller has returned from a 7,000 mile march in Africa. During his three year’s journeyings amongst the natives, he was not responsible for the death of a single human being, although passing through districts where other expeditions had battled and burned. PTUK July 12, 1894, page 448.1
It takes a German scientist to get at the bottom facts of any event recorded in the Bible. Herr Hening has ascertained that “the flood was contemporaneous with the glacial period, and was due to some unknown cause which led to an unusual rainfall.” It is not likely that his discovery will displace the Bible narrative. PTUK July 12, 1894, page 448.2
Last year, at this time, Chicago was glorying in its achievements at the great World’s Fair. Changes come rapidly nowadays, and American cables bring the news of rioting, and burning, and bloodshed in that city, attending the struggle between labour and capital. The unrest is world-wide, and the spirit of lawlessness rules in hearts that are not subject to the Divine law. The lawlessness of wealth is pitted against the lawlessness of poverty, and covetousness is at the root of the struggle. The signs of the times are not difficult to read. The Lord says to Christians, “Be patient, therefore, brethren, unto the coming of the Lord.” PTUK July 12, 1894, page 448.3
A recent book on “Society in China,” by Robert K. Douglas, keeper of the Oriental books and manuscripts in the British Museum, makes it appear that there is a vast difference between the people of China and the official classes. The people are democratic, peaceful, and friendly; the officials are bigoted, tyrannical, and hostile to foreigners. Mr. Douglas declares that Chinese riots are made to order. When the occasion is thought fit, then the emissaries of the mandarins are let loose on the multitudes. Disorders at once follow, and cease as soon as the provincial ruler finds that he has gained his point, or that further disturbance will be disastrous to himself. PTUK July 12, 1894, page 448.4
What wonderful provision God has made for the salvation of all men! “That which may be known of God is manifest in them, for God hath showed it unto them.” That is, the true Light, has lighted “every man that cometh into the world.” Therefore whoever would follow the light that he has, even though it be but a glimmer, would be brought to the perfect day. To be lost requires not simply a failure to accept Christ, but a positive rejection of Him. Christ said, “If I be lifted up, I will draw all unto Me.” He has been lifted up, and He does draw. If men are willing, He will save them; if they are not saved, it is because they wilfully break away from Him. It is a blessed truth, that the Lord “is longsuffering to usward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.” PTUK July 12, 1894, page 448.5
“Spoiling of Their Goods” The Present Truth 10, 28.
E. J. Waggoner
The following extract from a letter from Brother H. P. Holser, of the Seventh-day Adventist publishing house in Basel, Switzerland, will be of interest to many readers. The thoughtful reader will learn the lessons of practical importance from the story. It may be necessary to state for the benefit of some that the fines spoken of were imposed by the city authorities, for labour done on Sunday:— PTUK July 12, 1894, page 448.6
I received notice from the authorities last week that they would come Friday to attach goods for the fines. I had an appointment out with some churches, and had to leave Friday evening, and the officer did not come before my departure. He spent a while with my wife, and tried to get her to pay it, or just sign her name that it was all right, bringing it about in a smooth way, but she would not. He evidently did not expect to have to attach our goods, and when she refused any sort of promise that we would pay, he seemed hardly to know what to do, but finally postponed the matter till Monday, when I would be back. PTUK July 12, 1894, page 448.7
When he came, I took him into my office, and explained to him quite fully our position, and the light in which we considered his act. He tried to induce me to pay it, or promise to do so in the future, and seemed quite reluctant to take our goods; but when he learned what our position was, he saw that there was no hope of getting me to pay. He listened attentively to all I had to say, and was gentlemanly throughout. He next went to list the goods, and wanted me to tell him what to take. I told them that I would have no part in the matter whatever; he must perform the act alone. He took our private furniture and attached about all that was attachable, except our organ. The goods are left with us, and if not redeemed in thirty days, will be taken to town and sold at public auction. PTUK July 12, 1894, page 448.8
I expected that they would take office property; but they hold me personally responsible, and so take my personal property. If they go no farther than this, they will not have far to go in this direction, for the law allows a man to have what is necessary for a living. I shall buy no more than this in the future, as it would be better for me to put what little surplus I may have into the cause them to give the civil authorities another chance to shear me. PTUK July 12, 1894, page 448.9
To the present I have had several opportunities to explain the principles of the message to those that I have had to do with in this place of injustice, and shall have several more opportunities. When they come to take the goods, I shall again take the opportunity, and perhaps there will be another chance when they sell our goods. PTUK July 12, 1894, page 448.10
When the officer left, he stated that he regretted having to take up my time with such an affair: I replied that it was worse for him and the city than for me; I was entirely safe in keeping the ten commandments, but he and the city were not for robbing me for it. PTUK July 12, 1894, page 448.11
“Using His Talents” The Present Truth 10, 28.
E. J. Waggoner
Using His Talents.-Some people who are in possession of all the natural senses think they have no talent that can be consecrated to service. But a visitor at a school for deaf and dumb children, who was asked to address them, tells of one boy bereft of two of the senses was able to instruct a companion more unfortunate. “Now and then,” says the visitor, “I caught sight of some flying fingers and half-hidden signs, which showed that whispering was taking place, and I was much affected by one sight that caught my eye. On one of the upper seats a boy who is deaf, dumb, and blind was sitting, facing another boy who was spelling in his hand the meaning of my sermon. The scene was extremely touching, and I could hardly repress tears of emotion. Here was one who, though himself shut out from one great avenue of knowledge, hearing, was labouring to inform an associate to whom the two great avenues, sight and hearing, were closed. Truly, thought I, the Great Father of all sees no better imitation of His own beneficence than the service which this little death-mute is giving to the deaf, dumb, and blind lad whose receptive hand he holds!” PTUK July 12, 1894, page 448.12
“Consistency” The Present Truth 10, 28.
E. J. Waggoner
Consistency.-A very faulty idea prevails quite extensively as to what consistency is. Most people think that it is never changing one’s views and practices, so if they have held a wrong opinion once, or have followed a bad custom, they will hold to it for ever, in order to be consistent. Such a course is most inconsistent. The consistent man is the one who always follows the light of truth. This necessarily means that he always changes the worst for the better. He acts in harmony with a principle, and does not make his own past life the standard. PTUK July 12, 1894, page 448.13