The Present Truth, vol. 11
April 18, 1895
“Front Page” The Present Truth 11, 16.
E. J. Waggoner
“God forbid that I should glory, save in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom the world is crucified unto me, and I unto the world.” Galatians 6:14. PTUK April 18, 1895, page 241.1
The cross is carried with us. The Saviour said, “If any man will come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow Me.” All Christians have the same cross, and that is the cross of Christ. There is no other cross to which salvation from God descends to fallen man. PTUK April 18, 1895, page 241.2
The cross means suffering and death; not once, but daily, as long as we continue in this present state. But this is not all; for at the cross we need also the glory, the power, and the life of God. The world saw Christ’s suffering and humiliation, and it sees only this in the cross of Christ to-day. But faith sees the power of God working out for us truth across the eternal and glorious purposes of God. PTUK April 18, 1895, page 241.3
If we are to glory in the cross of Christ, we must glory in suffering and infirmities which are endured for His sake. We must experience “the fellowship of His sufferings,” which is to have fellowship with Him through sufferings. Philippians 3:10. But it is a glorious thing to have fellowship with Christ. It means walking in light. “If we walk in the light, as He is in the light, we have fellowship one with another.” 1 John 1:7. The Christian’s pathway, therefore, is not darkened by trials and distresses, but through all these it shines “brighter and brighter, unto the perfect day.” PTUK April 18, 1895, page 241.4
In fellowship with Christ through suffering we learn also the power of God. “For in that He Himself hath suffered, being tempted, He is able also to succour them that are tempted.” Hebrews 2:18. “Most gladly, therefore,” said Paul, “will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me. Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in necessities, in persecutions, in distresses for Christ’s sake; for when I am weak, then am my strong.” 2 Corinthians 12:10. PTUK April 18, 1895, page 241.5
Christians are not the only ones who experience tribulation in this life. That is the common lot of all; but it makes a vast difference whether it is met in “the pathway of the just,” or out of it. Upon that pathway is shed the light of the cross, and the peace and joy which the cross has brought to earth. Christ is all along that pathway-a ladder reaching from earth to heaven-and He bears His cross with us. We do not follow Him afar off, for we take the cross together. We are close enough to have fellowship one with another. PTUK April 18, 1895, page 241.6
So far from being, as some think, an evidence of separation from God, and of His displeasure, trials are to the Christian but a token of the cross that connects him with God, and with the eternal power and life and glory. And therefore he glories in the cross and all that pertains to it. There is glory for fallen man in the cross, and nowhere else. No man creates this, but by coming to the cross he receives it. To the world it appears as darkness, but to the eye of faith it is light. “If ye be reproached for the name of Christ,” writes Peter, “happy are ye, for the Spirit of glory and of God resteth upon you.” And this is true of all trials that are endured in following Him. They all pertain to the cross. PTUK April 18, 1895, page 241.7
“Superstition” The Present Truth 11, 16.
E. J. Waggoner
There is nothing so favourable to the development of superstition as ignorance of the Word of God. PTUK April 18, 1895, page 241.8
Superstition is ignorance. It is a belief of that which is not true, existing in the place of that knowledge which the Word of God supplies. The man who believes the Bible-the man of faith, who knows what the Bible says and accepts what it says as the truth-is never superstitious. PTUK April 18, 1895, page 241.9
Ignorance of God’s Word has created a vast realm of the “supernatural,” people with phantasms and vagaries of every sort. There is a proper role of the supernatural, upon which light is cast by revelation from God; but it is not this fact that is responsible for superstition. On the contrary, revelation is the special safeguard against it. Superstition comes entirely from ignorance of the revelation. PTUK April 18, 1895, page 241.10
From a priest-ridden part of Ireland there has recently come news of such a display of superstition as might only be expected from some of the inmost recesses of “darkest Africa.” A sick woman was taken by her husband, some of the neighbours assisting, and deliberately held over a fire till she was fatally burned, to ascertain if she were not a witch; this being the climax to other ceremonies for “exercising” the evil spirits supposed to be in her. The poor woman having failed to disappear up the chimney, thus making a witch-like exit from the scene, the perpetrators of this dreadful act decided that she was not a witch, and buried her like an ordinary mortal. The shocking occurrence is perfectly compatible with ignorance of the Word of God. Rome has suppressed the Bible where she has had full sway, and gross superstition is the natural result. But Rome’s suppression of the inspired Word is no worse than that suppression of it which comes from wilful disregard or indifference. PTUK April 18, 1895, page 241.11
The proper and essential place for the Word of God is in the heart. It gives no benefit to the person who has it simply in his hand. Disbelief or indifference will do for the Protestant what priestly vigilance does for the poor souls by whom God’s word is never seen. PTUK April 18, 1895, page 242.1
There are none of us beyond the reach of superstition. Let God’s Word be banished from the heart, and the door is open to the entrance of the worst fanaticism. The Lord has told us this in plain words. “For this cause,” we read, “God shall send them strong delusion, that they should believe a lie; that they all might be damned who believed not the truth, but had pleasure in unrighteousness.” 2 Thessalonians 2:11, 12. “The truth,” is the Word of God (John 17:17), and the only reason people will not believe it when it is presented to them is that they have pleasure in unrighteousness. PTUK April 18, 1895, page 242.2
When we know God, let us glorify Him as God by confessing that every word from Him is true; lest like the heathen of old we become vain in our imaginations, and our foolish hearts be darkened. Romans 1:21. PTUK April 18, 1895, page 242.3
“Conflicting Voices” The Present Truth 11, 16.
E. J. Waggoner
Many persons are troubled to know how to decide what is the truth, when there are so many voices, each claiming to be the truth, yet all disagreeing. It need not be difficult; Christ gave a sure rule by which we may know the truth, and avoid being deceived. He said, “My teaching is not Mine, but His that sent Me. If any man willeth to do His will, he shall know of the teaching, whether it be of God, or whether I speak for myself.” John 7:16, 17, R.V. PTUK April 18, 1895, page 242.4
This of itself is sufficient. God is anxious to have men saved. Therefore He has made the way of salvation very plain. He has provided that no one who is earnestly seeking after truth in order that he may serve God, shall be deceived. Let the reader stop and think, and he will remember that those who have such difficulty in deciding what the truth is, are those who are seeking some excuse for their rejection of it. PTUK April 18, 1895, page 242.5
“The Clergyman in Politics” The Present Truth 11, 16.
E. J. Waggoner
In the Jewish Criterion of Feb. 8, an American Hebrew journal, Rabbi Krauskoff had a vigorous article on the church in politics, from which we extract a paragraph. That the rabbi is not prejudiced, is shown by the fact that he is a member of the “Committee of Ninety-five,” of which he speaks:— PTUK April 18, 1895, page 242.6
The Committee of Ninety-five, which, if I am rightly informed, has sprung into existence largely through the influence of the Church, and which is composed of a goodly number of clergymen, has set for itself the ambitious task of cleansing this goodly city of all political corruption, and of selecting and electing the proper man to legislate for us. It seems a noble mission, and yet I dread it, and I said so; and I dread it not so much as for fear of success. More than the corrupt politician do I fear the priest, pastor, or rabbi, and politics. The pass between the clergyman and the fanatic is a very narrow one, and is easily and speedily crossed, and, given the alternative, given the tyranny of fanatics and the rule of the corruptest politicians, I would not hesitate to prefer the latter. One might shield himself against corruption; against fanaticism there is little protection. The Puritan in search of liberty of conscience inspired the thinking world with admiration; the Puritan, in possession of what he sought and for what he had fought, debased his boon into a fanaticism that filled the hearts of men with horror. PTUK April 18, 1895, page 242.7
ABOUT FIGHTING FOR LIBERTY OF CONSCIENCE
In the closing portion of the strong paragraph quoted from the Jewish Criterion, we have an example of the prevailing error in regard to the liberty of conscience. The Puritans never went in search of liberty of conscience; that was not what they fought for, and it was not what they obtained. This is evident from the simple fact that they fought. PTUK April 18, 1895, page 242.8
Liberty of conscience, or of the will, is a gift from God alone. When that freedom is preserved, the man is free, even though his limbs be bound with fetters of iron. And no man ever loses that liberty unless he sells himself, or gives himself away. “To whom ye yield yourselves servants to obey, his servants ye are.” Romans 6:16. Sad to say, every man has sold himself, but not beyond the possibility of redemption. “Behold, ye have sold yourselves for naught; and ye shall be redeemed without money.” Isaiah 52:3. PTUK April 18, 1895, page 242.9
Those who possess this liberty of conscience, which is the liberty wherewith Christ makes us free, know better than to fight for it. Christ said, “My kingdom is not of this world; if My kingdom were of this world, then would My servants fight.” John 18:36. To fight for liberty of conscience is like fighting to secure the grace of God, the forgiveness of sins, and an entrance into the kingdom of heaven. PTUK April 18, 1895, page 242.10
It was because of misapprehension of the nature of Christ’s kingdom, that James and John wished to call down fire on the Samaritans, and Peter attacked the murderers of Jesus with a sword. The same misapprehension has led professed Christians since then to “fight for their liberties” or for their “rights.” They confounded spiritual liberty with physical and civil liberty, because physical liberty is all that can be gained by carnal weapons. And the reason for this confusion is that the kingdom of Christ is confounded with temporal dominion. PTUK April 18, 1895, page 242.11
If the Puritans had not fought for their “liberty,” they would never have persecuted others after they had gained it. Of all the prominent men of those times, Roger Williams alone occupied the position of true Christian liberty. Instead of fighting to maintain his liberty, he suffered for it. In the depth of a bitter New England winter he was cast out alone, and went forth literally not knowing whither he went, finding among the pagan Indians that kindness and hospitality that could not possibly exist among those whose idea of Christian liberty was that it could be secured by force. As they had used force to gain their “liberty of conscience,” even so must they necessarily preserve it, and so they persecuted those whose opinions did not coincide with theirs. But Roger Williams did not fight to gain liberty which Christ had already given him, and consequently he did not, in the colony which he founded, use force upon others. PTUK April 18, 1895, page 242.12
“Christ and His Church” The Present Truth 11, 16.
E. J. Waggoner
The church of Christ is not a body which makes laws to which man must give heed if they would be saved. It is composed of all who yield themselves to Jesus Christ, allowing Him to fulfil the righteousness of the law in them by the power of His own life. The church does not make laws for God; it keeps God’s law. PTUK April 18, 1895, page 242.13
The church of Christ cannot save men from sin, which is the transgression of God’s law. The name of Christ is the only name under heaven whereby we must be saved. The church of Christ consists of those who could not save themselves, and who are willing to confess it, and to accept Jesus as the Saviour that He is, to save to the uttermost. Those, then, who could not save themselves, cannot turn round and profess to be able to save others. No; there is “one Mediator between God and men;” not the church, but “the Man Christ Jesus.” PTUK April 18, 1895, page 242.14
The unscriptural character of the claim of those ecclesiastical organisations which set themselves forth as the way of salvation, and which, in keeping with the claim, pass laws for men in contradiction to the very Word and law of God, is well summed up in a paragraph written by Dr. Arnold, of Rugby, and quoted by Dean Stanley in his life of Arnold:— PTUK April 18, 1895, page 243.1
The simple point is this: Does our Lord, or do His apostles, encourage the notion of salvation through the Church? Or would any human being ever collect such a notion from the Scriptures? Once begin with tradition, and the so-called Fathers, and you get, no doubt, a very different view. This the Romanists and Oxfordists say is a view required to modify and add to that of the Scripture. I believe that because it does modify, add to, and wholly alter the view of the Scripture, that therefore it is altogether false and antichristian. PTUK April 18, 1895, page 243.2
As the Word is preached, calling men back to the life of Christ as the example, and away from the traditions by which the great apostasy has sought to make void the Word, the real issue will come just here. Is it the “church” that saves, or is it Jesus Christ that saves the church? Have ecclesiastical organisations any life to give, or are we “saved by His life,” by believing His Word, which is Spirit and life? The problem is not a difficult one to solve if only the Scriptures are believed. It is the work of the church indeed, those who know Christ’s power to save from sin and self, to pass on to others the Word of life, and they that hear shall live. PTUK April 18, 1895, page 243.3
“The Fulness of the Sea” The Present Truth 11, 16.
E. J. Waggoner
“And God said, Let the waters under the heaven be gathered together unto one place, and let the dry land appear; and it was so. And God called the dry land Earth; and the gathering together of the waters called He Seas; and God saw that it was good.” Genesis 1:9, 10. PTUK April 18, 1895, page 244.1
When, as recorded in the last part of the Book of Job, the Lord would convince the patriarch of his weakness and dependence upon God, that he might know that righteousness comes from God alone, He referred to this gathering together of the waters as proof. “Who shut up the sea with doors, when it brake forth, as if it had issued out of the womb? When I made the cloud the garment thereof, and thick darkness a swaddling band for it, and brake up for it my decreed place, and set bars and doors, and said, Hitherto shalt thou come, but no further: and here shall thy proud waves be stayed?” Job 38:8-11. PTUK April 18, 1895, page 244.2
When the Psalmist speaks of the power of the word, by which God created the heavens and earth, he says, “He gathereth the waters of the sea together as an heap: He layeth up the depth in storehouses.” Psalm 33:7. It may be well to notice here, in passing, the words, “And it was so,” with which the record of every new step in creation is closed. God said, “Let it be,”—“and it was so.” His simple word was sufficient to establish it. Let it be remembered that this is the word which by the Gospel is preached unto us. Its power has never diminished; it is able to save as it was to create. PTUK April 18, 1895, page 244.3
It is impossible that anyone who is acquainted to any degree with the Lord should stand by the sea without being reminded of the mighty power of the Creator. Yet many gaze upon the sea day after day with never a thought of its Maker, and even openly defy Him. To such the Lord says: “Hear now this, O foolish people, and without understanding; which have eyes, and see not; which have ears, and hear not: Fear ye not me? saith the Lord: will ye not tremble at My presence, which have placed the sand for the bound of the sea by a perpetual decree, that it cannot pass it; and though the waves thereof toss themselves, yet can they not prevail; though they roar, yet can they not pass over it?” Jeremiah 5:21, 22. PTUK April 18, 1895, page 245.1
But it is not in order to produce fright that the Lord reminds us of His mighty power that can set bounds for the sea, so that it cannot pass over in its fiercest tumult. No; it is that we may trust Him. Perfect faith and love drive fear away. So the power of God over the sea is referred to as evidence of His faithfulness: “O Lord God of hosts, who is a strong Lord like unto Thee? or to Thy faithfulness round about Thee? Thou rulest the raging of the sea; when the waves thereof arise, Thou stillest them.” Psalm 89:8, 9. An example of this faithfulness is given in the Gospels. “And the same day, when the even was come, He saith unto them, Let us pass over unto the other side. And when they had sent away the multitude, they took Him even as He was in the ship. And there were also with Him other little ships. And there arose a great storm of wind, and the waves beat into the ship, so that it was now full. And He was in the hinder part of the ship, asleep on a pillow; and they awake Him, and say unto Him, Master, carest thou not that we perish? And He arose, and rebuked the wind, and said unto the sea, Peace, be still. And the wind ceased, and there was a great calm. And He said unto them, Why are ye so fearful? how is it that ye have no faith? And they feared exceedingly, and said one to another, What manner of man is this, that even the wind and the sea obey Him?” Mark 4:35-41. PTUK April 18, 1895, page 245.2
This was but a manifestation of the original creative power. He who created the heavens and the earth, the sea, and all that in them is, retains full control over all. In those words, “Peace, be still,” we hear the same voice that said, “Let the waters under the heaven be gathered together unto one place.” And this is the word which by the Gospel is preached unto us; so we are to learn from God’s power over the sea, which is His because He made it, His power over the waves of strife that surge through human hearts. PTUK April 18, 1895, page 245.3
For the angry sea represents the wicked. “The wicked are like the troubled sea, when it cannot rest, whose waters cast up mire and dirt.” Isaiah 57:20. Christ is our peace. The word which He spoke to the sea of Galilee that night is the word which He speaks to us. “I will hear what God the Lord will speak; for He will speak peace unto His people, and to His saints; but let them not turn again to folly.” Psalm 85:8. Surely here is comfort for those who have long struggled in vain with fierce passions. PTUK April 18, 1895, page 245.4
Not only is God’s power over the sea a symbol of His power to save men from the tide of sin, but it is also a pledge and surety of their final complete deliverance. It also shows the power with which God is going to clothe the preaching of the Gospel message in the last struggle preceding His second coming. Read the following soul-thrilling words:— PTUK April 18, 1895, page 245.5
“Awake, awake, put on strength, O arm of the Lord; awake, as in the days of old, the generations of ancient times. Art thou not it that hath cut Rahab [Egypt] in pieces, that pierced the dragon? Art thou not it which dried the sea, that made the depths of the sea a way for the redeemed to pass over? And the ransomed of the Lord shall return, and come with singing unto Zion; and everlasting joy shall be upon their heads: they shall obtain gladness and joy; and sorrow and mourning shall flee away. I, even I, am He that comforteth you; who art thou, that thou shouldest be afraid of a man that shall die, and of the son of man which shall be made as grass; and hast forgotten the Lord thy Maker, that stretched forth the heavens, and laid the foundations of the earth; and fearest continually all the day because of the fury of the oppressor, as if he maketh ready to destroy? The captive exile shall speedily be loosed, and he shall not die and go down into the pit, neither shall his bread fail. For I am the Lord thy God, which stirreth up the sea, that the waves thereof roar; the Lord of hosts is His name. And I have put My words in thy mouth, and have covered thee in the shadow of Mine hand, that I may plant the heavens, and lay the foundations of the earth, and say unto Zion, Thou art My people.” Isaiah 51:9-16. PTUK April 18, 1895, page 245.6
Surely the fact that “the sea is His and He made it,” and that He “hath measured the waters in the hollow of His hand,” is sufficient grounds for confidence in Him by any of His people, whether it be for deliverance from danger, for overcoming grace, or for help in carrying on the work to which He has called them. PTUK April 18, 1895, page 246.1
“The Drift of the World” The Present Truth 11, 16.
E. J. Waggoner
In the Investor’s Review of last month, the editor, Mr. A. J. Wilson, sketched the drift of current affairs as seen from the point of view of the cautious financier and men of the world. His forecast reads like a comment on the words of Christ concerning the last days. Jesus said that there would be “upon the earth distress of nations, with perplexity.” Luke 21:25. And the Apostle Paul in 2 Timothy predicts the lawlessness, the greediness, and the fierceness of the strife for the pleasures of life, which make the last days “perilous.” Mr. Wilson says of France:— PTUK April 18, 1895, page 246.2
Little doubt can be entertained that France is now fast hastening towards a catastrophe. Socialism and Anarchism are laying deeper hold upon the minds of the people every week, and, by different ways, both march towards the same goal. The latest budget of the country, presented by M. Ribot, indicates that the end of the existing order cannot be far off. He, like all recent Finance Ministers, has to deal with a deficit which he can raise no taxes to cover, and so he dips his hand into the deposits unclaimed in the Savings Bank. PTUK April 18, 1895, page 246.3
Of the lesson which this condition of things in France has for England, Mr. Wilson speaks as follows-and it is significant to see a writer on financial problems pointing ominously to the evidences of a lowering of the general moral tone of society:— PTUK April 18, 1895, page 246.4
Much of the illustrated literature poured out by our newspaper press, and displayed in all news shops and railway stations, bears a character which can only be described as pandering to the taste of the prurient, if not to the lusts of the obscene. We too have feverish restlessness among our labouring classes, a Legislature occupied... with Socialistic projects for curing evils...; we also have a poverty-stricken country party bawling out for relief through a tariff of protection, a Lancashire wailing over the decay of its trade, a shipping industry encrusted with bankruptcies, and can only pay our way as a State by hard-drinking. If, then, France is moving fast towards revolution, we are following in her wake, and the catastrophe, in France, at least, may not be long in coming. All the necessary explosives are there gathered together, requiring but the match. PTUK April 18, 1895, page 246.5
These things which cause anxiety to men of the world are to be signs to the believer by which he may know that the days are reached when he may lift up his head and know that redemption draweth nigh. And the unrest of the world should teach men the importance of cutting loose from the world and building upon the foundation which cannot be shaken when even the heavens and earth pass away, the everlasting Word of God. PTUK April 18, 1895, page 246.6
“Last Day Scoffers” The Present Truth 11, 16.
E. J. Waggoner
The Apostle Peter tells us (2 Peter 3:3, 4) that “there shall come in the last days scoffers,” who will 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 April 18, 1895, page 246.7
As there would be no occasion for scoffing without something to scoff at, it is evident that the subject of their words will in the last days be set prominently before the world. That subject is “His coming,”—a most weighty one indeed to consider, since His coming means an end to earthly things. And that subject is now before the world. With a voice that all can hear, the message of the approaching second advent of Christ is being proclaimed to “every nation, tongue, and people.” PTUK April 18, 1895, page 246.8
Who are the scoffers that Peter mentions? The only designation that he gives of them is that they say, “Where is the promise of His coming?” And this is all that is needed. This fact alone constitutes them scoffers, no matter what may be their social standing, or how respectable the profession which they make. And since “Satan himself is transformed into an angel of light,” it is nothing strange “if his ministers also be transformed as the ministers of righteousness.” 2 Corinthians 11:14, 15. The “ministers of righteousness” are in the church; hence it is not impossible that these scoffers should be found even there, as the transformed agents of Satan. PTUK April 18, 1895, page 246.9
Why can they not see the promise of His coming? Is it not in the Word of God? Did not the first recorded prophecy ever made by man-that of Enoch, “the seventh from Adam”—foretell it? Jude 14. Does it not abound in the writings of both prophets and apostles? Certainly, if anyone will look into the Scriptures, he will not need to inquire, “Where is the promise of His coming?” PTUK April 18, 1895, page 246.10
But God has done more than this. He has written the promise on the face of nature. The scoffers say, “Since the fathers fell asleep, all things continue as they were from the beginning of the creation.” This, however, is not true. Earth gives little evidence to-day of what it was at creation. It has seen many and great changes. The curse has rested heavily upon it, causing it to “wax old like a garment.” In the storm and drought and flood nature gives evidence of the unwonted derangement of her forces. The darkened sun and moon and the falling stars have borne mute witness from the heavens, of the approach of the great and terrible day of God. PTUK April 18, 1895, page 246.11
But all this the scoffers fail to see. And why? It is because, as we read, “this they willingly are ignorant of, that by the word of God the heavens were of old, and the earth standing out of the water and in the water; whereby 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 against the day of judgment and perdition of ungodly men.” 2 Peter 3:5-7. They are not ignorant of creation, or of the flood, in a limited sense, but they are ignorant of the connection between these things and the word of God. They have such a belief in them as is consistent with “evolution” and the “higher criticism,” but not one that is consistent with a knowledge of the power of God’s word. They do not know that “He spake, and it was.” Psalm 33:9. PTUK April 18, 1895, page 246.12
Here is the root which bears the evil fruit of scoffs at the doctrine of Christ’s coming. Not knowing the power of the word of God, they are ignorant that by that word “the heavens were of old, and the earth standing out of the water and in the water;” that by the power of that word the deluge came upon the earth, and that the same power reserves the present earth under fire, “against the day of judgment and perdition;” and being ignorant of this, they are unable to read the promise of His coming. Both the Word of God and the voice of nature speak to them as with an unknown tongue. PTUK April 18, 1895, page 246.13
Their ignorance is not the ignorance of those who have never seen or heard the promise, but willing ignorance,—the ignorance which comes from closing the eyes and ears against the evidence presented. The power of the word of God is the Gospel, “the power of God unto salvation;” for this power is in His word. Romans 1:16. Hence those who are ignorant of the power of God’s word are really ignorant of the Gospel, however well they may seem to know it; and there is nothing to keep them from taking part with the scoffers. PTUK April 18, 1895, page 246.14
There are many ways in which men deny the creative power of God’s word, while professing and even believing themselves to be His servants. They may be men of high standing and outward piety, whose scoffing will not be in harsh and vulgar tones, but in tones smooth and refined, which have power to lull the conscience. There is no safe place for us but that of those who know “the power of God and unto salvation” by simple faith in His Word. PTUK April 18, 1895, page 247.1
The word of God to every inhabitant of earth is, “Ye shall know that I am the Lord.” There is a day coming in which the Lord alone will be exalted. Isaiah 2:11, 17. He will not only be exalted in His will, but “among the heathen.” Psalm 46:10. The power, the wisdom, and the word of puny man will then be at a terrible discount, and utterly unable to sustain the hopes of those who have trusted in them. The Lord is exalted now; but in that day His exaltation will appear in the confessions of men who have opposed Him and disregarded His word. They will then take up the words of the Apostle Paul, “Let God be true, but every man a liar.” Romans 3:4. In the Judgment of that day God will be vindicated, and all His words found to be words of truth and life. There will be no wisdom in making the confession then, for the day of salvation will be passed; but there is wisdom in making it now. PTUK April 18, 1895, page 247.2
“Climbing in the Himalayas” The Present Truth 11, 16.
E. J. Waggoner
In the account of his eighty-four days’ climbing in the Himalayas, Mr. W. M. Conway speaks frequently of the overpowering sense of the immensity of surrounding things which the traveller feels amid the glaciers and solitudes of the Roof of the World. PTUK April 18, 1895, page 252.1
“A man coming into a land so new and strange is stricken and overpowered by the impression of the whole. He has no time to contemplate details with the lingering attention that makes the attainment of this or the other point seem desirable. It was the broad western wall in its entirety-the vastness and nakedness of the thing-that imposed itself upon my imagination. Here was Nature working out her own will unhindered and unhelped by man. Few piles of débris veiled even the bases of the rocks; no earth or grass found lodgment upon their ledges. The naked skeleton of the world stood forth with every stratum displayed and every mark of the sculpturing chisel undisguised.” PTUK April 18, 1895, page 252.2
One view on the road from Astor to Gilgit is thus described:— PTUK April 18, 1895, page 252.3
“When we emerged on the crest of the ridge a wonderful view burst upon our gaze. The notable feature was the Indus valley, coming end on end towards us from the north, bent at right angles, when, after receiving the waters of the Astor river, it had swerved past us, and so going away westwards into Chilas. I had never seen any valley that compared to it either in kind or dimensions. It was barren as an Arabian wady; it was floored with the strewn ruin of countless floods, blanched and blasted by the suns of countless summers; it was walled along by rocky cliffs, a maze of precipices and gullies, untrodden of human foot, bare of vegetation and almost of débris. The river wound through it in a gorge, cut down into the alluvium. The waters resembled a twisted blue ribbon, dusted with white here and there where there were rapids. It was hard to believe that we were gazing at a rushing river two hundred yards wide, so far was it below us. It looked like a sluggish stream that a horse might have leapt. The scale of things had taken another increase, and our eyes required a further adjustment.” PTUK April 18, 1895, page 252.4
At the high altitudes the travellers found breathing difficult when there was necessity for exertion in climbing. Sometimes at the lower altitudes the stagnation of the air made respiration even more difficult than higher up the mountains. The highest point reached was 23,000 feet, and there the tracings of the pulses of the party showed that they could not safely exert themselves to climb higher. The sudden changes in temperature were very trying. As soon as the sun sets it becomes frigidly cold, and when the sun rises it as rapidly sends the temperature up to uncomfortably high degrees. “Biting cold and grilling heat,” has to be endured, and the sudden changes night and morning start the avalanches which are continually thundering down the slopes and breaking up the rocks. Here is a picture of a sunset very unlike the quiet effects which we associate with the ending of the day:— PTUK April 18, 1895, page 252.5
“The sun went down; the hilltops grew first golden, then pink; the clouds in the west caught fire. The new moon peeped over the crest of the mountains, and the auguries were favourable. As the frost obtained power, enormous avalanches began to fall in quick succession, not merely down their orthodox couloirs (gullies or furrows), but enveloping all the width of the hills, burying the minor ridges out of sight, and sending up clouds of dust that were carried two miles and more before they dispersed. I reckoned that one of these avalanches fell 8,000 feet and that its solid part was a quarter of a mile broad at the base. The solid part, however, was hidden out of sight as it fell by a monstrous dust cloud, like a vast downward rolling puff of steam, which muffled the noise and turned it into a fine booming thunder. Such titanic artillery continued to salute till far into the night.” PTUK April 18, 1895, page 252.6
In the solitude of the higher passes no human beings are met with, but the valleys are of course inhabited. The subdued temper of the people may be inferred from a few reported conversations. The party came to the village where they expected to find provisions. PTUK April 18, 1895, page 252.7
“The men were on the look-out for us, and greeted us as a fawn might greet a tiger. They stood with hands joined, like a priest going to the altar, and answered our questions unhampered by prejudice in favour of veracity. Had coolies been sent to meet us? No, none bad come. Provisions, then-had they been sent? Oh, yes! plenty of provisions. How many sheep? As many as the sahib pleases. Eggs and chickens? Yes! as many as the sahib pleases. PTUK April 18, 1895, page 252.8
“Well, show us the sheep.” PTUK April 18, 1895, page 252.9
“There are no sheep.” PTUK April 18, 1895, page 252.10
“Why did you say there were? Bring the chickens, then.” PTUK April 18, 1895, page 252.11
“May the sahib be merciful! There are no chickens.” PTUK April 18, 1895, page 252.12
“Nor eggs either?” PTUK April 18, 1895, page 252.13
“No! no eggs. Nothing has come.” PTUK April 18, 1895, page 252.14
Another time they were inquiring the way to a fort which they knew was near at hand in the Gilgit valley. A native was found. PTUK April 18, 1895, page 252.15
“Where does the Colonel Sahib live?” PTUK April 18, 1895, page 252.16
“That way.” PTUK April 18, 1895, page 252.17
“How far off?” PTUK April 18, 1895, page 252.18
“Not far. A little way.” PTUK April 18, 1895, page 252.19
“A mile?” PTUK April 18, 1895, page 252.20
“Yes, a mile.” PTUK April 18, 1895, page 252.21
“Perhaps two miles?” PTUK April 18, 1895, page 252.22
“Yes, two miles.” PTUK April 18, 1895, page 252.23
“Out with it, man! how many miles?” PTUK April 18, 1895, page 252.24
“As many as the sahib pleases.” PTUK April 18, 1895, page 252.25
Notwithstanding the apparent childish guilelessness of the natives, all displayed the true Asiatic keenness in making a bargain. Mr. Conway speaks a good word for these timid dwellers in the Himalayan valleys. They are unaccustomed to strangers, and their attitude at first is one of fear, but upon closer acquaintance their fears are easily dispelled and “they become the friendliest folk in the world, and will do anything for you.” There is great need of Gospel work among these mountain valleys, to turn the people from superstition and fear to serve the Iiving God. PTUK April 18, 1895, page 252.26
“News of the Week” The Present Truth 11, 16.
E. J. Waggoner
-It is estimated that there are altogether over 113,000,000 women in India. PTUK April 18, 1895, page 254.1
-On the coast of Maine a few years ago one barrel of flour would buy 200 lobsters. Now sixteen lobsters will buy a barrel of good flour. PTUK April 18, 1895, page 254.2
-Obligatory vaccination in Switzerland has been submitted to a popular referendum in the Canton of Berne. It has been rejected by 24,000 votes against 23,000. PTUK April 18, 1895, page 254.3
-Proceedings have been instituted at Nimes, France, against the organisers of a bull fight which took place there April 7, when six bulls were killed. PTUK April 18, 1895, page 254.4
-Returns show that cholera still prevails in Podolia and Volhynia, Russia. In the former province there were eleven cases and six deaths March 10-23, and in the Volhynia fifty six cases and four deaths March 10-16. PTUK April 18, 1895, page 254.5
-A magisterial inquiry has been instituted into the “witch” burning case, involving the death of Mrs. Bridget Cleary, at Clonmel, Ireland. Nine prisoners concerned in the deed have been committed for trial on the charge of murder. PTUK April 18, 1895, page 254.6
-The woman suffrage movement in America is losing ground in the Eastern States, and gaining it in the Western. Recently it has mot a severe defeat in Massachusetts, but in Colorado women now sit in the Legislature, affording what is said to be the first instance of the kind on record. PTUK April 18, 1895, page 254.7
-The Armenian Commission is reported to have received a sufficient mass of evidence to confirm the truth of the statements regarding the Sessoun massacres. It is expected that their report will be ready by the beginning of June. Armed bands in Macedonia are causing uneasiness at the Porte. PTUK April 18, 1895, page 254.8
-The Sunday rest movement is gaining ground in Paris. Letter-carriers have obtained a Sunday half-holiday, and the work of letter-sorter has been greatly lightened. Sunday is now regarded as a day of rest by most business houses. The exceptions are principally those which cater to alimentary needs, like restaurants. PTUK April 18, 1895, page 254.9
-Christian Mission work among the Jews at Jerusalem is meeting with determined opposition from the rabbis and leading Jews. All Jews who accept Christ as the Messiah are excommunicated, and the same ban or tends to all who manifest any sympathy with such teaching. Jerusalem has not yet learned the day of her visitation. PTUK April 18, 1895, page 254.10
-There was recently celebrated at the City Temple, London, the thirteenth anniversary of the International Bible Reading Association, an organisation which has branches in nearly every important country in the world. The secretary reported that in 1882 the number of members was 11,000; in 1886 the number increased to 100,000, and to-day the number is 500,000. PTUK April 18, 1895, page 254.11
-Some unlooked for obstacles it is said, are being met by the builders of the great Transsiberian Railway. Vast spaces of the surveyed route are exposed to terrible snowstorms, which make it difficult to keep the track clear. In some places tigers have attacked the workmen, and an entire military guard was on one occasion put to flight by one of these ferocious beasts. PTUK April 18, 1895, page 254.12
-The Engineering and Mining Journal announces that a Bill has been laid before the Senate of the United States to authorise the Government to grant a price of ?12,000 to the inventor who, before the year 1900 A.D., shall have constructed an aerian vessel capable of transporting goods and passengers, under conditions of reasonable security, at a speed of thirty miles an hour. PTUK April 18, 1895, page 254.13
-It is reported that peace negotiations between China and Japan are making satisfactory progress at Simonoseki. The Chinese are meanwhile expecting a Japanese attack upon Canton. It is understood that, the terms of peace proposed by Japan will include the throwing open to foreign trade of a thousand square miles of the richest and most densely-populated portions of Chinese territory, and the flee navigation of some of the principal rivers. PTUK April 18, 1895, page 254.14
“Back Page” The Present Truth 11, 16.
E. J. Waggoner
The Lord has a post of honour for every individual who is content to be where the Lord puts him. PTUK April 18, 1895, page 256.1
The first edition of the “Statement and Appeal” was quickly exhausted, and a second edition has been published. PTUK April 18, 1895, page 256.2
The man who enjoys a controversy about the Bible is seldom the man who likes to have anyone talk to him about practical godliness and the Christian life. PTUK April 18, 1895, page 256.3
The opium curse has only begun to bear its fruit in India. The rapidity of its development, however, may be inferred from the statement that in Bombay, while the population has increased six per cent. in ten years, the consumption of opium has increased eighty-four per cent. PTUK April 18, 1895, page 256.4
“Whatsoever is not a faith is sin.” And faith can only come by the Word of God. Romans 10:17. Therefore any religious practice or institution that is not founded on the Scriptures must be given up by the enlightened conscience as sin. That which is unscriptural is of necessity sinful. PTUK April 18, 1895, page 256.5
An interesting report from Hungary and Roumania, which appears in one of our exchanges, shows that our brethren in those fields are letting the light shine, and the truth is being received among the people. On a recent visit to Roumania, Brother L. R. Conradi, of Hamburg, arranged for a publishing centre in Bucharest, the capital, from which the literature for that field will be issued. PTUK April 18, 1895, page 256.6
A popular preacher of Liverpool declares that the notion of a future coming of the Lord, “with attendant angels and with blare of a trumpet, has to be given up.” As the righteous dead are to be raised “at the last trump,” when Christ shall come (1 Thessalonians 4:16), this preacher is but repeating the error of Hymenaeus and Philetus who in Paul’s day said that the resurrection was passed already, and overthrew the faith of some. “Nevertheless,” said the Apostle, “the foundation of God standeth sure.” PTUK April 18, 1895, page 256.7
The Church Times has a paragraph on the origin of Easter. Of the custom of associating eggs with the celebration, it says:— PTUK April 18, 1895, page 256.8
Porter, in his Travels, says that in the land of Ormuzd and Ahriman, a festival and memory of the Creation is held, about the time of our Easter, lasting for six days, at which an egg is presented to friends, in obvious allusion to the Mundane Egg of the Eastern mythology. The transference of such a symbol to the Feast of the New Creation is both interesting and beautiful. All symbols are edifying when the thing symbolised is true and good. PTUK April 18, 1895, page 256.9
The same symbolism is found in the Egyptian rites. But the introduction of these things into the Church of course plainly marks the adulteration of the faith by the surrounding Paganism of the early centuries. PTUK April 18, 1895, page 256.10
Of the term Easter itself, the paragraph referred to states:— PTUK April 18, 1895, page 256.11
More remarkable is the derivation of the word “Easter,” which also appears to have its origin in the very name Ashtaroth, or Astarte, the false deity of whom Jezebel was priestess. The Church rescued the idea from falsehood and put it on a true foundation, by saying, “Here is the true Life; the Resurrection of the Son of God for your justification is the true Astarte.” PTUK April 18, 1895, page 256.12
The idea is that it is a good thing to re-christen heathenism and call it Christianity does not come from the Scriptures. The Lord utterly forbade any approach towards the pagan celebrations. When Elijah was sent in the days of Jezebel to turn the people from idolatry He did not say, “God is the true Baal,” nor was there any attempt to turn the rites of Baal and Astarte into the service of God. The message was clear, “If the Lord be God, follow Him.” It is the same message which the Word of the Lord has for the people of the world and our own day. PTUK April 18, 1895, page 256.13
God’s Word and works reveal Him as the Creator. And since He is our Creator, He is in the highest and truest sense our Father. He did not create us to throw us on our own resources, but to care for us, to love us and provide for us as no earthly father can; for “God is love.” This is what faith teaches; and therefore to those who have faith God is known as a Father. But to those who have not faith He is a Judge. It is in that light that they view Him, and complain of Him as being harsh and severe. But the fault is not with Him, or with the light He sends them, but with the murky atmosphere of unbelief to which they look. PTUK April 18, 1895, page 256.14
The French expedition to Madagascar is everywhere understood to be a case of simple freebooting. The Hovas never offended the French, nor have the latter a shadow of claim to the land. But the French prelates having enjoined public prayers for the success of the expedition. The taking of Madagascar is to enable the French to suppress the slave traffic in Africa, and thus to “cause the last traces of the crime of treason against humanity to disappear.” They are going to watch the slave traffic in Africa if they have to kill all the natives of Madagascar in order to do it. PTUK April 18, 1895, page 256.15
The voice of Wisdom says, “What shall it profit a man if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul? or what shall a man give in exchange for his soul?” Mark 8:36, 37. Every sin that a man commits is an exchange of his soul-a bargain with death-for something vastly less than the world. The devil never mentions that part of the bargain, but it is there, a hideous reality. The devil never makes a bargain with a person which does not include an exchange of his soul. PTUK April 18, 1895, page 256.16
A lady who has been investigating the Boys’ Brigade, reports that she has asked boys everywhere the question, “What do you learn in the Brigade, and what do you do with it?” and that they have answered, “I hope there will be a war when I am a man, and if I am a general I will be ahead of any of the others.” She finds that the one great result of the Brigade is to incite and strengthen the war spirit in the boys. PTUK April 18, 1895, page 256.17
There is nothing humiliating to a person except sin; and there is no sin that is not humiliating. The proud mortal who seeks to exalt himself is by that very effort working his own degradation. When our understanding is properly enlightened, we shall see humiliation in every sin, and will shrink from the thing that would bring us into condemnation, as much as we have been accustomed to shrink from the steps necessary to take us out. PTUK April 18, 1895, page 256.18
A great many men are willing that God should walk with them; but what God wants is that men should walk with Him. PTUK April 18, 1895, page 256.19