The Present Truth, vol. 9

October 26, 1893

“Front Page” The Present Truth 9, 30.

EJW

E. J. Waggoner

Jesus said to Pilate: “For this cause came I into the world, that I should bear witness unto the truth. Every one that is of the truth heareth My voice. Pilate saith unto him, What is truth? And when he had said this, he went out again unto the Jews.” John 18:37, 38. PTUK October 26, 1893, page 465.1

If Pilate had remained with Jesus he might have found out the answer to his question. It would have been well for him if he had. Many are to-day asking this same question, and like Pilate, are running away from the answer. The reason why people fail to know the truth is not that it is so difficult, but because they do not enquire in the right place for it, or are in too great a hurry to wait for an answer. PTUK October 26, 1893, page 465.2

Pilate enquired at the right source, but he did not stay for the answer. He probably thought that the question could not be answered. But Jesus had already answered it. Only the night before He had said in His prayer to the Father: “Sanctify them through Thy truth; Thy word is truth.” John 17:17. And but a short time before He said, “I am the way, the truth, and the life.” PTUK October 26, 1893, page 465.3

Whoever would know the truth must come to Jesus, and must remain there. He is the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth. All truth is to be found in Him, and aside from Him no truth can be found. He is “the true light which lighteth every man that cometh into the world;” but men must cherish the light, and walk in it, or it will be of no use to them. PTUK October 26, 1893, page 465.4

This is shown by the case of the Jews, who, like Pilate, had the Truth before them but did not recognise it. “Jesus said unto them, Yet a little while is the light with you. Walk while ye have the light, lest darkness come upon you; for he that walketh in darkness knoweth not whither he goeth. While ye have light, believe in the light, that ye may be the children of light. These things spake Jesus, and departed, and did hide Himself from them.” John 12:34-36. PTUK October 26, 1893, page 465.5

But Jesus will not depart from those who do not reject Him. To those who accept Him as the truth, He says, “I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world.” And so all who wish may know Him as the very present truth, to shed light on every difficult question. PTUK October 26, 1893, page 465.6

“Overcoming in Christ” The Present Truth 9, 30.

EJW

E. J. Waggoner

To His disciples on one location Jesus said, “In the world ye shall have tribulation; but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world.” John 16:33. PTUK October 26, 1893, page 465.7

Why should this fact cause us to be of good cheer? Why should we rejoice because some one else has overcome the world, when it must also be overcome by ourselves? The grand truth which answers this question is, that we are not overcomers in ourselves, but overcomers in Christ. PTUK October 26, 1893, page 465.8

To the Corinthians the apostle writes, “Now thanks be unto God, which always causeth us to triumph in Christ, and maketh manifest the savour of His knowledge by us in every place.” 2 Corinthians 2:14. How is it that we are always caused to triumph in Christ? It is simply because Christ has triumphed over everything, and in Him victory is ours. PTUK October 26, 1893, page 465.9

Christ was tempted in all points like as we are, yet was without sin. He has met and overcome every obstacle that can possibly be brought against humanity in the struggle for the life to come. And whenever any of these things, “the world, the flesh, and the devil,” meet Him, they meet their Conqueror. The victory has been already won. And therefore in Christ we have the victory; for when we are in Him, the temptations assail Him, and not ourselves. When we hide our weakness in His strength, there is only His strength to fight the battle. He has gained the victory, and the beaten foe can never recover from his defeat so as to hope for victory over Him. PTUK October 26, 1893, page 465.10

What, then, must we do to overcome? And why is it that we are so often overcome? The obvious answer is that we cannot overcome outside of Christ. What we have to do is to take the victory that has been already won, the victory that has been gained by Him. He overcame for us, that He might bestow His triumph upon us. And we take the victory by faith, for it is by faith that Christ comes into our hearts. PTUK October 26, 1893, page 465.11

This is what is meant by the apostle John, when he says, “This is the victory that overcometh the world, even our faith.” 1 John 5:4. By faith we bring Christ into our hearts and lives. Ephesians 3:17. And Christ being there, He is there as the Conqueror of all that is to be met and overcome in the Christian warfare. PTUK October 26, 1893, page 465.12

The glorious truth is thus made manifest, that the victory over every temptation and difficulty is already ours, in Christ. We need not, therefore, come up to the conflict with a faint heart, but with all confidence, knowing that defeat cannot possibly be the outcome, no matter how formidable the foe may make himself appear. The battle is already fought, and Jesus Christ holds out to us the victory. We have simply to take it, and say, “Thanks be unto God, which giveth us the victory throughout our Lord Jesus Christ.” 1 Corinthians 15:57. PTUK October 26, 1893, page 465.13

“Hearing, Seeing, and Handling” The Present Truth 9, 30.

EJW

E. J. Waggoner

“That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked upon, and our hands have handled, of the Word of life; for the life was manifested, and we have seen it, and bear witness, and show unto you that eternal life, which was with the Father, and was manifested unto us.” 1 John 1:1, 2. PTUK October 26, 1893, page 466.1

The Word of life is that which was from the beginning. Life must necessarily have been before all things,-the source of all things. “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. The same was in the beginning with God. All things were made by Him; and without Him was not any thing made that was made.” John 1:1-3. “And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth.” Verse 14. PTUK October 26, 1893, page 466.2

Christ, then, is the Word of life, which was from the beginning, from whom proceeded all things. He is eternal life, and those who heard and saw and handled Him, heard and saw and handled life-eternal life. He is all life, for He said, “I am the living bread which came down from heaven; if any man eat of this bread, he shall live for ever; and the bread that I will give is My flesh, which I will give for the life of the world.” “Whoso eateth My flesh, and drinketh My blood, hath eternal life; and I will raise him up at the last day.” John 6:51, 54. PTUK October 26, 1893, page 466.3

John says “the life was manifested, and we have seen it, and bear witness, and show unto you that eternal life, which was with the Father, and was manifested unto us.” We are therefore to see and hear and handle the Word of life as really as did the apostles. How can that be? PTUK October 26, 1893, page 466.4

Let us first look at the other side. There were many on earth in the days of Christ’s first advent, who saw Him, and heard Him speak, and who had their hands on Him, who yet knew really nothing of Him. They did not perceive the life that was in Him, and derived no benefit from it. Christ is the wisdom of God (1 Corinthians 1:24) “which God ordained before the world unto our glory.” 1 Corinthians 2:7. But the apostle says of that wisdom, “Which none of the princes of this world knew; for had they known it, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory.” 1 Corinthians 2:8. PTUK October 26, 1893, page 466.5

Why did they not know Him? Because they had not faith. “He came unto His own, and His own received Him not. But as many as received Him, to them gave He power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on His name.” John 1:11, 12. “He that believeth on the Son hath everlasting life; and he that believeth not the Son shall not see life.” John 3:36. PTUK October 26, 1893, page 466.6

Take as an illustration the case of the poor woman who was diseased with the issue of blood. She “came behind Him, and touched the border of His garment; and immediately her issue of blood stanched. And Jesus said, Who touched Me? When all denied, Peter and they that were with Him said, Master, the multitude throng Thee and press Thee, and sayest Thou, Who touched Me? And Jesus said, Somebody hath touched Me; for I perceive that virtue is gone out of Me.” Luke 8:43-46. Then the woman came forward, and Jesus said to her, “Be of good comfort; thy faith hath made thee whole.” PTUK October 26, 1893, page 466.7

Now we see how it was that the apostles, and others, saw and handled the Word of life. It was by faith. Multitudes thronged the Saviour, but in that crowd there was but one who handled the Word life. She touched Him by her faith. She saw life in Him, for her own life was ebbing away, and she touched Him for the purpose of receiving life from Him. It was not mere physical contact that made known to the apostles the Word of life; it was by faith that they saw and heard and handled the life. When Peter said, “Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God,” Jesus said, “Flesh and blood hath not revealed it unto thee, but My Father, which is in heaven.” Matthew 16:16, 17. “Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love Him. But God hath revealed them unto us by His Spirit; for the Spirit searcheth all things, yea, the deep things of God.” 1 Corinthians 2:9, 10. PTUK October 26, 1893, page 466.8

And so we may hear and see and know and handle Christ, the Word of life. John says that he and the other disciples wrote that which they had heard, and seen, and handled, for our sakes. That which they saw, they have shown unto us, that we may, by faith, see it with them. So our knowledge of Christ, and benefit from Him, may be the same as theirs. The fact that He is not present to our physical senses, makes not a particle of difference, since it was not by their physical senses that they knew Him as the Word of life. PTUK October 26, 1893, page 466.9

“The healing of the seamless dress
Is by our beds of pain;
We touch Him in life’s throng and press,
And we are whole again.” PTUK October 26, 1893, page 466.10

“Fellowship with God” The Present Truth 9, 30.

EJW

E. J. Waggoner

“That which we have seen and heard declare we unto you, that ye also may have fellowship with us; and truly our fellowship is with the Father, and with His Son Jesus Christ.” 1 John 1:3. The last clause of the text shows what the fellowship is, which the apostle desires us to have. He wishes us to have the same fellowship with the Father and the Son that he and his fellow-apostles had. PTUK October 26, 1893, page 466.11

The association of Jesus and His disciples was very intimate. They brought all their troubles to Him, receiving His sympathy and help; and He also shared their joys. He ate with them, directed and assisted them in their work, and healed their diseases. He was their companion at feasts and also in the solitude of the desert. He rejoiced with them at the wedding, and wept with them at the grave. No human companion could ever be more close, and on terms of greater intimacy than was the companionship of the disciples and the Son of God on earth. PTUK October 26, 1893, page 466.12

But while they were thus associating with the Son, they were also having fellowship with the Father, as well. “God was in Christ.” 2 Corinthians 5:19. Jesus said, “He that hath seen Me hath seen the Father.” “Believe Me that I am in the Father, and the Father in Me.” John 14:9, 11. Those who fail to recognise the fact that God the Father is in every respect just what Jesus was when here on earth, lose the whole object of the ministry of Christ. PTUK October 26, 1893, page 466.13

Jesus was the genial companion of His disciples. But while they associated together as fellows, His lowly position did not obscure His greatness, nor lead them to lightly esteem Him. When He washed His disciples’ feet, it was with the full knowledge that He was their Master and Lord, and that the Father had given all things into His hand, and that He came from God and went to God. See John 13:3, 4, 5. PTUK October 26, 1893, page 466.14

Thus they had fellowship with the Father and with His Son Jesus Christ. And the companionship which they had-which the beloved disciple had when he reclined on the bosom of Jesus,-is the same companionship which we are privileged to have. It was for the purpose of letting us know this, that John wrote his epistle. PTUK October 26, 1893, page 467.1

Who may have this companionship? Is it only the wealthy, and those whom the world calls “noble”? Listen: “For thus saith the high and lofty One that inhabiteth eternity, whose name is Holy; I dwell in the high and holy place, with him also that is of a contrite and humble spirit, to revive the spirit of the humble, and to revive the heart of the contrite ones.” Isaiah 57:15. PTUK October 26, 1893, page 467.2

In the world there are “classes,” and so there will be till the end of time. No device nor organisation of men, no vows nor pledges will break down the barriers between the “classes” and the “masses.” Socialism is powerless, even though it bear the prefix “Christian.” In Christ Jesus, “there is neither Greek nor Jew, circumcision nor uncircumcision, Barbarian, Scythian, bond nor free; but Christ is all in all.” Colossians 3:11. In the true Church of Christ there is but one standard,-love to God and love to man,-and nothing can bring men to this but the love of God shed abroad in the heart, by His Holy Spirit. PTUK October 26, 1893, page 467.3

The life of Christ on earth shows that in His church there can be none of the false standards that exist in society. He came as a servant, showing that none who follow Him must think themselves above serving. “By love serve one another,” is the exhortation of the apostle, and the Master says, “Whosoever will be chief among you, let him be your servant; even as the Son of man came not to be ministered unto, but to minister.” Matthew 20:27, 28. He was a carpenter on earth, in order that none of His followers might think it beneath their dignity to work. “The servant is not greater than his Lord.” PTUK October 26, 1893, page 467.4

Companionship with God involves humility, for Jesus said, “Take My yoke upon you, and learn of Me, for I am meek and lowly in heart, and ye shall find rest unto your souls.” Matthew 11:29. “What doth the Lord require of thee, but to do justly, and to love mercy, and to humble thyself to walk with thy God.” Micah 6:8, margin. “Before honour is humility,” for “He that humbleth himself shall be exalted.” And what greater exaltation could created beings have, than to associate on terms of loving familiarity with the Creator of the universe? to be esteemed by Him as a friend, and to have God reveal His secrets to him? See John 15:15; Psalm 25:14. Let us then give good heed to the message of the beloved disciple, which he has written unto us that our joy may be full. PTUK October 26, 1893, page 467.5

“Walking in the Light” The Present Truth 9, 30.

EJW

E. J. Waggoner

“This then is the message which we have heard of Him, and declare unto you, that God is light, and in Him is no darkness at all. If we say that we have fellowship with Him, and walk in darkness, we lie, and do not the truth; but if we walk in the light, as He is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanseth us from all sin.” 1 John 1:5-7. PTUK October 26, 1893, page 467.6

Of the Word which was in the beginning, which was God, the apostle says, “In Him was life; and the life was the light of men.” John 1:4. Jesus said, “I am the light of the world; He that followeth Me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life.” John 8:12. Christ is God, and God is light. The light of God is His life, so that walking in the light is nothing but walking in the life of God. PTUK October 26, 1893, page 467.7

The Apostle Paul says of the heathen, that “they have their understanding darkened, being alienated from the life of God.” Ephesians 4:18. Apart from His life there is darkness. The Holy Spirit moved David to say to God, “For with Thee is the fountain of life; in Thy light shall we see light.” Psalm 36:9. Since the life is the light, this is the same as saying, “In Thy life shall we see light.” PTUK October 26, 1893, page 467.8

How is the life of God to be obtained? The Saviour said to the woman at the well, if thou knewest the gift of God, and who it is that saith to thee, Give Me to drink, thou wouldst have asked of Him, and He would have given thee living water.” John 4:10. And again He said, “If any man thirst, let him come unto Me, and drink. He that believeth on Me, as the Scripture hath said, out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water. But this spake He of the Spirit, which they that believe on Him should receive.” John 7:37-39. The life of God is bestowed through the Holy Spirit, which may be had for the asking in sincerity and faith. See also Luke 11:13. PTUK October 26, 1893, page 467.9

“This I say, then, walk in the Spirit, and ye shall not fulfil the lusts of the flesh.” Galatians 5:16. That is to say, walk in the light,-the life of God,-and the life of God, and not that of fallen humanity, will be manifest in you. Some people expect a great deal of humanity; God does not. It is not to be depended on, and therefore we are exhorted to become partakers of the divine nature. Human nature will always be imperfect, but the nature of God may take its place, and that is perfection. PTUK October 26, 1893, page 467.10

“A Wonderful Bargain” The Present Truth 9, 30.

EJW

E. J. Waggoner

People are usually on the lookout for good bargains, and when they see one, are not slow to improve the opportunity presented. Oftentimes it happens, however, that they fail to see the opportunity that is before them, and the chance for a wonderful bargain is discovered only when it is too late; and then there is occasion for much vain mourning and regret. PTUK October 26, 1893, page 467.11

There is a most wonderful bargain that is within the reach of every one of us, one that will bring us greater and more lasting benefit than was ever bought by gold or silver, if we will only be wise enough to see and improve it. It is a bargain offered us by the Lord of heaven. And though He is so much wiser than we are, we need not be afraid to accept what He offers, for there is no trickery or dishonesty about Him, but all His thoughts toward us are for our benefit. He offers to make with us a most wonderful exchange. In His word He has told us what this is. We find it referred to in Paul’s letter to the Galatians in these words: “Grace be to you and peace from God the Father, and from our Lord Jesus Christ, who gave Himself for our sins, that He might deliver us from this present evil world, according to the will of God and our Father.” Galatians 1:3, 4. PTUK October 26, 1893, page 467.12

To whom did Christ give Himself? Who are the principals in this wonderful transaction? We find several texts which answer this question. In His prayer for oneness among His disciples, recorded in John 17., Jesus said, “I in them, and Thou in Me, that they may be made perfect in one;” and we are told that the “mystery” that had been hid from ages and generations but is now manifest to the saints, is “Christ in you, the hope of glory.” Colossians 1:27. Again Paul tells us in 1 Corinthians that all things are ours, and we are Christ’s. 1 Corinthians 3:21-23. Also in his letter to the Romans we find him saying, “He that spared not his own Son, but delivered Him up for us all, how shall He not with Him also freely give us all things?” Romans 8:32. Christ therefore is in His followers, and God “with Him,” freely gives us all things. Thus it is evident that Christ gives Himself to us; and as the text says, “He gave Himself for our sins.” PTUK October 26, 1893, page 467.13

The transaction is now clearly before us. On the one side is ourselves, with all that we have, which is our load of sins; and on the other side is Christ with all that He has. Christ says to us, I will give you Myself, and what I have, for yourself, and what you have. Christ has all that we need: We have only that which we do not need. He has righteousness, we have none; He has spotless raiment, we have only filthy rags. Isaiah 64:6; Zechariah 3:3. He has “all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.” Colossians 2:3. He has “unsearchable riches.” Ephesians 3:8. He has a name which is better than that of angels. Hebrews 1:4. He is the Son of God, and we also, through Him, are sons and daughters of God. 2 Corinthians 6:17, 18. We, of ourselves, have none of these things. We may think ourselves to be “rich and increased with goods,” but if so we simply do not know that we are “wretched and miserable, and poor, and blind, and naked.” Revelation 3:17. Christ has everything, we have nothing. PTUK October 26, 1893, page 468.1

What an exchange is this! We are offered everything for nothing; yes, for worse than nothing, for our load of sins would surely sink us in perdition unless we should become freed from it. And Christ simply asks us to give it all to Him; for He has purchased us, and our sins with us. He has paid the penalty of our sins, and He knows what to do with them. He will remove them as far from us as the east is from the west; He will cast them into the depths of the sea. Psalm 103:12; Micah 7:18, 19. PTUK October 26, 1893, page 468.2

Have we made this wonderful exchange? If not, do we realise that the opportunity is now before us? Will any of us be so foolishly unwise as to refuse to exchange debt for life? Christ will not compel us to make the trade; but He invites and urges us to do so. The offer will not always hold good, for we read that the time will come when it will be said, “He that is unjust, let him be unjust still: and he which is filthy, let him be filthy still; and he that is righteous, let him be righteous still; and he that is holy, let him be holy still.” Revelation 22:11. And how terrible will it be to awake to a realisation of this neglected opportunity after it is gone! The opportunity to exchange nothing for everything, death for life, and yet we did not improve it! We let it slip out of our hands! Verily, among those who thus awake, there will be wailing and gnashing of teeth. PTUK October 26, 1893, page 468.3

But this wonderful exchange can be made just now. It only lies with you to decide to make it, and to do so when you have so decided. “Now is the accepted time; now is the day of salvation.” “And the Spirit and the bride say, Come. And let him that heareth say, Come. And let him that is athirst come. And whosoever will, let him take the water of life freely.” Revelation 22:17. PTUK October 26, 1893, page 468.4

“Is the World Growing Better?” The Present Truth 9, 30.

EJW

E. J. Waggoner

A great deal has been said of late years an answer to this question. We printed last week the brief but pointed reply thereto of the evangelist Mr. Moody, which appeared among a number of others in a “symposium” on the question in the Independent. Aside from the interest lent to Mr. Moody’s remarks by his expectation of a general “smash-up” at the close of this dispensation, what he says is noteworthy for the truth it contains in reference to the real point which the question involves, and concerning which many dangerous and misleading ideas are entertained in the religious world. PTUK October 26, 1893, page 468.5

Mr. Moody stated that there was power in the Gospel of Christ, and that wherever it was presented, people were reached by it and converted to God; while at the same time those who rejected it were growing worse and worse, and thus there was a development, side by side, of the kingdoms of light and of darkness. This is true; and this is really all that can be said in answer to the question. Men are growing better, and men are growing worse; the world itself shows no perceptible change in either direction. PTUK October 26, 1893, page 468.6

How could the world, in its relation to spiritual things, be any worse than it is, and has been for ages in the past? How can worldliness be any different in one age than it is in another? How can the carnal heart, which is not and cannot be subject to the law of God, be any more subject to that law at one time than at another? How can the natural man, which “discerneth not the things of the Spirit of God,” and is “dead in trespasses and sins,” be either more or less acceptable with God? How can a dead man become any more dead than he is? PTUK October 26, 1893, page 468.7

There is not one thing about the natural man or the carnal heart that can ever find favour with God. The path to salvation lies through death to self. Self is so utterly and totally bad that the Lord cannot use a particle of it in His kingdom, but every bit of it must die. How then can it be any worse, so far as God is concerned, than it is? PTUK October 26, 1893, page 468.8

“The [human] heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked.” How then can the human heart be any worse, spiritually, than it is? PTUK October 26, 1893, page 468.9

We are careful to relate this question to spiritual things, because while there is no difference spiritually in hearts that are not regenerated by the power of God, there is a great difference between them in other respects. The world has its standard of morality, to which some individuals conform much more closely than others. And the Spirit of God strives with all men, even the most worldly. But there is no power to uplift men save the power of the Spirit. Man, left to himself, is subject to the rule of sin and Satan; the inevitable tendency of which is downward. Until the man yields to the invitations of the Spirit and is “born again,” he cannot be in a position to be uplifted to a higher plain of life. He can do many things that make an appearance of improvement, but all the time he has the heart which is deceitful above all things, and at enmity with God, and is the subject of sin and the devil. He cannot therefore become really and permanently better by any power that he has in himself. PTUK October 26, 1893, page 468.10

All these-the natural heart, the enmity against God, the fruits of the flesh, its lusts and desires, we find in the world. The apostle John writes, “all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world.” It is respectable enough, according to the popular standard. It is often gentlemanly, refined, and polished, so that there is nothing wrong with its outward appearance; for “Satan himself is transformed into an angel of light.” But it has no power to become better, in the true sense of the word. The difference between men of the world is one of circumstances, not a moral power. The only uplifting force in the world that can successfully combat the power of sin and the devil, is the force of the gospel of Christ. The grace of God, not any inherent power of man, makes the difference between the honest, virtuous, upright man, and the consciousless knave. PTUK October 26, 1893, page 468.11

Times change, and with them there is a change of customs, institutions, and ideas. But worldliness does not change. The fruits of the flesh do not change. The carnal heart unrenewed by the grace of God, does not lose any of its carnality; pride, love of money, the thirst for power, are the same now that they always have been. The only way in which there can be any real growth toward a better state is through the substitution of the works of the Spirit for the works of the flesh, which can be done only through the power of the gospel. PTUK October 26, 1893, page 469.1

Christian people are apparently very slow to learn the great truth that the only road to a better life lies through death. There is nothing of all that which fell under the dominion of sin, that can be reserved to a future life, or that can be changed over to suit the conditions of life with God. All must die, all must pass away. The new birth comes only through death to self, and the new birth comes only through the destruction of the old. The apostle John declares that “the world passeth away, and the lust thereof,” and Peter tells us that the world of to-day has long been reserved under fire against the day of wrath and perdition of the ungodly. PTUK October 26, 1893, page 469.2

The question, therefore, whether the world is growing better or not is not one of any moment to us, for so far as spiritual things are concerned, the world can no more grow better than the leopard can change his spots, or the Ethiopian his skin. But the point is one in regard to which a great many good people are deceived. The world does not seem to them quite too bad to be reformed, and they are continually in hopes of seeing some wonderful transformation take place, which will usher in the millennium. A great many of the worlds leading men,-kings, emperors and zealous ecclesiastics, have tried to usher in the millennium, and the same thing is being attempted by men and women to-day. And in perfect keeping with such Biblical and spiritual ignorance is the short-sighted means by which they hope to accomplish their aim,-the ballot box and legislative enactments. But the millennium will never come in that way. It will never be brought about by the efforts of man for the reformation of the world. It will never come as a result of the world’s growing better. PTUK October 26, 1893, page 469.3

People who are looking to see how much faster the world is growing better, with a view to determining the nearness of the millennium, are entirely off the track, and liable to be fatally misled. The truth is, as Mr. Moody has expressed it, that the development of the kingdoms of light and of darkness are going on side by side. Men are being gathered out and converted by the Gospel, and its opposers, on the other hand, are waxing worse and worse. But God’s purposes in the world will be accomplished; the mystery of godliness will be finished; and then will be ushered in the long-looked-for millennium, but not, as people have expected, upon the world rejoicing in an era of universal goodness, prosperity and peace; but a world desolated by sin and evil, all prepared for its final destruction by the fire to which it has been reserved. PTUK October 26, 1893, page 469.4

The conflict between sin and righteousness, good and evil, will not go on for ever. It will terminate, in the day when a people shall have been gathered from every nation, and kindred, and tongue, prepared to stand without fault before the throne of God, and to inhabit that new earth which shall arise from the ashes of the old. The conflict will deepen as it nears the end. The efforts of Satan to overthrow that which is good and to establish his kingdom of sin and rebellion against God will become more fierce and determined. We are told that “in the last days perilous times shall come; for men shall be lovers of their own selves, covetous, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy,” and so on through a long catalogue of sins (2 Timothy 3:1-5), and the prophet John tells us that he heard a voice from heaven saying, “Woe to the inhabiters of the earth and of the sea! for the devil is come down unto you, having great wrath, because he knoweth that he hath but a short time.” Revelation 12:10-12. When the devil knows that his time is short, that the conflict is near its end, he only becomes more furious than before, and in the climax of his fury, the end comes. It is cut short by the appearing of Christ in the clouds of heaven, “in flaming fire taking vengeance on them that know not God and that obey not the Gospel” (2 Thessalonians 1:7, 8), and sending forth His angels “with a great sound of a trumpet,” to “gather together His elect, from the four winds, from one end of heaven unto the other.” Matthew 24:30, 31. The righteous dead will be raised, and together with the living servants of God will be taken to heaven, to reign with Christ a thousand years. 1 Thessalonians 4:16, 17; Revelation 20:4. This is the millennium, and this is the manner of its ushering in. PTUK October 26, 1893, page 469.5

Let it never be forgotten that the purpose of God toward men and toward the world is not a changing over of what already is, but a new creation. If we will keep this fact, so abundantly set forth in the Bible, before our minds, we will not be misled by all the talk and speculation in the religious world as to the world’s growing better, and the dawning of a millennial era of righteousness and peace. PTUK October 26, 1893, page 469.6

“Zeal and Knowledge” The Present Truth 9, 30.

EJW

E. J. Waggoner

Zeal and knowledge are equally essential to the worker for Christ. Without zeal, the knowledge which one has is put to little or no use; and without knowledge, the zeal that one may possess is often put to a very bad use. The two must go together, or the result will not be for advancement of the cause of truth. PTUK October 26, 1893, page 469.7

A person who possesses knowledge without zeal will not be so conspicuous or do so much harm as one who has zeal without knowledge. It is better to have nothing done than to have that done which is evil and wrong. That is therefore a condition more carefully to be shunned which the Scriptures designate as a zeal “not according to knowledge,” than that which comes from the possession of knowledge without zeal, although the latter condition is certainly not one to be desired. PTUK October 26, 1893, page 469.8

Our knowledge and our zeal should both come from the same source, and that source should be Christ. The trouble is that so many persons mistake the source from which their zeal or knowledge,-or both, it may be-come. They imagine that it is given them of God, when in reality it comes from themselves. And whatever comes from themselves, is self. To just the extent that their zeal or knowledge comes from self, to that extent they are serving self in their fancied service of God. Such people need to be converted before they can realise what the true service of God is. PTUK October 26, 1893, page 469.9

It is a very common thing for people to serve self under the pretence of serving Christ. And they pass, with many or most of their associates, as very exemplary Christians. Their activity in religious duties is known far and wide, and to all outward appearance they are all that they profess to be, and imagine themselves to be servants of Christ. But here is manifested the deceitfulness of the human heart,-that heart which “is deceitful above all things and desperately wicked.” It clings most tenaciously to self, and puts itself into the life in so many ways, and so completely disguised, that only by the closest possible test can the presence of that evil be detected. PTUK October 26, 1893, page 469.10

In the word of God there are presented several conspicuous examples of men whose lives were actuated by this self-originating zeal. There was Jehu, the king of Israel, who when he met Jehonadab, exclaimed, “Come with me, and see my zeal for the Lord.” 2 Kings 10:16. True zeal for the Lord is never boastful. It is only self that boasts, and desires to put its zeal on exhibition. Jehu’s zeal is the zeal so often possessed by those who engage in work for God to-day. Self can be displayed in apparent zeal for God, as well as in anything else. PTUK October 26, 1893, page 470.1

In the New Testament there is brought before us the example of Saul of Tarsus. He was the most zealous man, but, until his conversion, he was sadly lacking in knowledge. He imagined, however, that he was just such a man as God would have him. He was a Pharisee of the Pharisees, a strict observer of all the Jewish ordinances, and an indefatigable worker in all that pertained (as he thought) to the service of God; but his zeal was directed in a channel which made him not the servant of God, but the persecutor of Jesus of Nazareth. While thinking himself to be a most exemplary man, which opinion was no doubt shared by his associates, he was in reality engaged in that which was most wicked. While appearing to be a zealous servant of God, he was in reality fighting against Him. PTUK October 26, 1893, page 470.2

There is also the case of Peter, and his example is more profitable to us in this connection than either of the others. Peter was a follower of Christ. He was the personal companion of Christ during the Saviour’s earthly ministry. There is nothing in the narrative of his association with Christ, up to the time of the betrayal, to show that Peter was not a true and devoted follower of his Divine Master. That he was devoted to Him, personally, there can be no doubt; but he did not possess the spirit and the mind of Christ. He did not understand the real nature of the work that Christ came to do; he did not see the path to the kingdom of glory led up to the cross and through the valley of death. In common with the other disciples, he had fixed his mind upon a temporal kingdom to be set up on the earth, upon the throne of which should sit Jesus as the “king of the Jews.” In all that he did, his eyes were fixed upon this alluring vision; and deep in his heart there was a motive which God could not approve. PTUK October 26, 1893, page 470.3

Peter acknowledged Christ to be the Son of God, and was very zealous for the success of His cause. When the night of Christ’s betrayal came, Peter stoutly declared that he would never forsake his Lord, and was willing, if need be, to die for Him. And to show that he meant what he said, he drew his sword when the mob came to take Jesus, and smote one of them and cut off his ear. But when he saw that Christ made no resistance but suffered Himself to be taken captive and resigned Himself into the power of His enemies, his zeal and courage suddenly disappeared. When the decisive test came of his loyalty to the cause of Christ, and of the loyalty of the others with him, “then [as the record runs] all the disciples forsook Him and fled.” PTUK October 26, 1893, page 470.4

What was the trouble? Had they not been the true and faithful disciples of their Master? Had they not been zealous for His sake? Yes; they were not lacking in zeal; but their zeal was found to be “not according to knowledge.” All the time there was before their minds the picture of a glorious earthly kingdom, upon the throne of which Christ should sit, and (this is the important point) they themselves associated with Him in His glory. For as the record tells us, they had frequently fought among themselves about which one of them should be the greatest. They had disputed among themselves on this point on the way up to Jerusalem, and James and John, to the indignation of other disciples, had even requested that they might sit, one on His right hand, and the other on His left hand, in His glory. So firmly fixed was this idea of an immediate kingdom in their minds, that they were entirely unable to comprehend the plain statements of Christ, several times repeated, concerning His crucifixion and death. Even when they were seated at supper on the very night of the betrayal, and Christ told them that one of them should betray Him, and designated Judas by giving him the sop, when Judas arose and went out, they thought he had gone to purchase something! How was it they were so blind, in the face of the plainest statements that could be uttered? It was simply because self clung so tenaciously to the idea of a glorious earthly kingdom in which it would be honoured and exalted. They could be followers of a Christ going to a throne, but to follow Christ going to the throne and to the tomb,-that was a very different matter. When self saw at last that it was to get nothing, all their zeal and devotion left them, and they “forsook Him and fled.” PTUK October 26, 1893, page 470.5

Peter thought, and the other disciples doubtless thought, that he was a true disciple, partaking of the mind and spirit of his Master. Such zeal as he displayed for Him was certainly, it would seem, conclusive evidence of the fact. But Christ, just before His betrayal, said to them, “When thou art converted, strengthen thy brethren.” Ah; Peter, with all his seal of an apparent devotion for his Master, was not converted! And how many Peters has the world seen since his day! How many very zealous and devoted persons are there to-day who will imagine themselves good Christians, and are thought to be such by their associates, who are not really converted. How many are there whose zeal and devotion is but a subtle form of the service of self! PTUK October 26, 1893, page 470.6

The actuating motive of the true Christian is “faith, which worketh by love.” Galatians 5:6. “Neither circumcision nor uncircumcision availeth anything,” neither zeal, nor works, if the motive is other than this. And why? Simply because any other motive than this is a selfish motive. Let us examine our motives and see if our zeal is zeal for Christ, or for self; whether “the love of Christ constraineth us,” or whether we are constrained by some motive that springs from an unconverted heart. PTUK October 26, 1893, page 470.7

“Heathenism at the Expense of Christianity” The Present Truth 9, 30.

EJW

E. J. Waggoner

“The Parliament of Religions,” is the subject of a letter to the Daily Chronicle, by Mrs. Annie Besant, and a single quotation which she makes shows how exactly correct those were who predicted that the only result the “Parliament” would be to exalt heathenism at the expense of Christianity. She says:- PTUK October 26, 1893, page 470.8

“The impression created on the great crowds of Christians who thronged the halls day after day, by the learning, gentleness, power, and lofty spirituality of several of the Eastern representatives was startling in its strength of generality. ‘We have been for years spending billions of dollars,’ said one man, ‘in sending missionaries to convert these men, and have had very little success; they have sent over a few men, and they have converted everybody.’ The phrase very well expresses the general feeling as to the noble types of the Eastern races who represented their ancient faith in the most modern of Western cities.” PTUK October 26, 1893, page 470.9

This is nothing to the disparagement of Christianity, because it had no place in the Parliament. True Christianity teaches, and does not exhibit itself on a stage, along with other religions, for people to see how nearly alike they all are. PTUK October 26, 1893, page 471.1

“Liberty and Bondage” The Present Truth 9, 30.

EJW

E. J. Waggoner

Where sin is, there is bondage: but “where the Spirit of God is, there is liberty.” 2 Corinthians 3:17. PTUK October 26, 1893, page 471.2

“Whosoever committeth sin is the servant of sin.” John 8:34. “Of whom a man is overcome of the same is he brought in bondage.” 2 Peter 2:19. Sin overcame Adam, and through him the whole human family; so that every man is by nature in bondage to sin. We hear a great deal said in the world about liberty, and the best means of securing and preserving it; but it comes for the most part, from those who know little or nothing of liberty in its highest form. “While they promise them liberty,” says Peter, “they themselves are the servants of corruption.” It is not to such a source that we should look for liberty. We cannot be satisfied with liberty of the body or of the mind, if there is not with these liberty from the bondage of sin. Better is it to be shut up in prison than to be bound in the chains of evil habit. Paul and Silas when they were cast into gaol and their feet made fast in the stocks, sang praises to God; but Paul in the bondage of sin exclaimed, “O wretched man that I am; who shall deliver me from the body of this death?” Romans 7:24. And many a slave to sin since Paul’s day has echoed in his heart these words. If we have never felt their force ourselves, it is because the stupor of sin has never been lifted from our minds. PTUK October 26, 1893, page 471.3

But Christ came to bring us liberty. He came “to preach deliverance to the captives,” “to set at liberty them that are bruised.” Isaiah 61:1. And Jesus Himself said, “If the Son therefore shall make you free, ye shall be free indeed.” John 8:36. That liberty is the liberty of the Spirit. If the Spirit of God is in the heart, liberty is there; and the Spirit comes into the heart as soon as it is yielded to Christ. PTUK October 26, 1893, page 471.4

Where the Spirit of God is, it rules. It controls in the actions and the life. And as the Spirit is all-powerful, it does whatsoever it will. There is no obstacle that can stand before it, nothing that can restrict its action in any direction. Sin, the conqueror of Adam, gives way before it, and the individual realises that he is at last delivered from the body of flesh, and has come into the glorious liberty of the children of God. PTUK October 26, 1893, page 471.5

Let us seek first for the true liberty, the freedom that is in Christ; and then liberty of mind or of body will inevitably follow in God’s own time. PTUK October 26, 1893, page 471.6

“Trees of Righteousness and Secret of Their Strength” The Present Truth 9, 30.

EJW

E. J. Waggoner

What a wonderful thing a tree is! Look at it closely; study it carefully. Heaven-sent messages unfold with its opening buds, flutter on its rustling leaves, wave from its swaying branches, and cling to its spreading roots. And if we but pause to listen, from every part of it may be heard the still small voice of the great Creator whispering words of love and instruction, of warning and comfort. PTUK October 26, 1893, page 475.1

Look at that old familiar friend! For years and years it has guarded the entrance to our home. We have climbed its rugged sides, swung in its branches, rested in its shade, eaten of its fruit, and sought its shelter in the storm. PTUK October 26, 1893, page 475.2

How often we have seen it bent to the ground and twisted in every limb by the mighty storm-winds. And yet it has straightened up as soon as the storm was passed, and has seemed to grow stronger every day. PTUK October 26, 1893, page 475.3

The heat and droughts of summer have never affected it. When the grass and flowers were drooping and dying for want of rain, the old tree stood there as bright and green as ever. PTUK October 26, 1893, page 475.4

Every spring it has put on a new green dress, and adorned itself with fragrant blossoms; every autumn it has rained upon us the most delicious fruit. PTUK October 26, 1893, page 475.5

What is the secret of its great age and strength, and of its ever-green leaves and never-failing fruit? PTUK October 26, 1893, page 475.6

Look down at its roots. Uncover them and follow them throughout their endless twistings and turnings, and you will discover the secret of the old tree’s strength. PTUK October 26, 1893, page 475.7

Great and gnarly, underground branches it has spread out on every side, which strike deep into the ground and throw out multitudes of tough, wiry rootlets that twist themselves round the very rocks. PTUK October 26, 1893, page 475.8

But look again. The old tree is not content to find merely a solid resting-place, it seeks for life and nourishment as well. Down, down, and then farther and farther to the right it has sent out a great strong root. Where does it go? Follow it and you will see. Down under the celler floor, tearing up the cellar floor, and out at the other side of the house goes that wonderful root, until you find it quenching its thirst at the family well, or at the little stream that flows through the garden! PTUK October 26, 1893, page 475.9

Ah, no wonder the old tree stands so fresh and green through the heat of summer; it has moisture and nourishment of which we little dreamed! No wonder it stands unmoved through the storms and tempests; its roots are clinging fast to the solid rocks beneath! PTUK October 26, 1893, page 475.10

Now listen to the heavenly message, “As ye have therefore received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk ye in Him, rooted and built up in Him, and stablished in the faith.” Colossians 2:6, 7. “Blessed is the man that trusteth in the Lord, and whose hope the Lord is. For He shall be as a tree planted by the waters, and that spreadeth out her roots by the river, and shall not see when heat cometh, but her leaf shall be green and shall not be careful in the year of drought, neither shall cease from yielding fruit.” Jeremiah 17:7, 8. “Being rooted and grounded in love” (Ephesians 3:17), and “God is love” (1 John 4:8), “the root of the righteous shall not be moved” (Proverbs 12:3). PTUK October 26, 1893, page 475.11

There is the secret of the strength and never-failing fruit of the righteous man. He is rooted and grounded in Christ the solid Rock, and yet the living, life-giving Rock. There is the source of all his power to resist the storms of trouble and sorrow, to withstand all the fiery heat of temptations. From Him he draws all his nourishment, and satisfies all his thirst. Christ dwells in his heart by faith, and he is strengthened with all might “by His Spirit in the inner man.” His branches bring forth holy fruits because he has sent his roots down deep in Divine love; “if the root be holy, so are the branches.” His fruits never fail, for Christ, in whom he is rooted, is “the same yesterday, to-day, and for ever,” and daily gives him just the nourishment that he needs. PTUK October 26, 1893, page 475.12

But the wicked are not so; “their root shall be as rottenness” (Isaiah 5:24), “the whirlwind passeth, so is the wicked no more” (Proverbs 10:25). PTUK October 26, 1893, page 475.13

Oh, shall we not learn, before it is too late, the lesson that God would have us learn from the trees? In what kind of soil are we sending down the strong rootlets of our affections? In the barren soil of this earthly wilderness, or in the rich, nourishing soil of heaven? Are we sending out our roots to broken and empty cisterns thinking to quench our thirst? or to the cool, crystal waters of the never-failing Fountain of Life. Do the rough winds of persecution and tempests of sorrow cause us to strike our roots still deeper and twine them still closer round the Rock of Ages? If not, can we hope to stand unmoved in the great whirlwind that is just before us? Can we hope to be found standing in our place and bearing good fruit when the Master cometh? PTUK October 26, 1893, page 475.14

“A Lesson from the Trees” The Present Truth 9, 30.

EJW

E. J. Waggoner

“We should bring forth fruit unto God.” Romans 7:4. PTUK October 26, 1893, page 477.1

As we sit down to rest in the shade of a grand old apple tree and look up at the strong branches bending neath their load of rosy apples, we ask, “Lord, what lesson would you have us learn from this fruit tree? Help us to understand.” Suppose we begin to study and think about it, and recall what He has said about fruit trees in His holy word, and see if He will not make us understand. PTUK October 26, 1893, page 477.2

We know that this is a good fruit tree because it has such good fruit; and we know that that one over yonder is a bad tree because it has such little, hard, bitter fruit. It is just as Jesus said, “Every good tree bringeth forth good fruit; but a corrupt tree bringeth forth evil fruit”; and, “by their fruits ye shall know them.” We wonder why that bad tree does not bring forth good fruit like this good tree. And then we remember that it cannot because it is all bad inside; of course nothing good can come out unless something good is in it. And we read this also in our Bible. It says, “A good tree cannot bring forth evil fruit, neither can a corrupt tree bring forth good fruit.” We turn on a little farther, and read the strange words; “A good man bringeth forth that which is good; and an evil man bringeth forth that which is evil.” What! does God mean that men are like fruit trees, and that bad men are like bad fruit trees, and good men are like good fruit trees? Yes, that is just what He means, for read Romans 7:4. It says that “We should bring forth fruit unto God.” Ah, that is the lesson, then, that He wants us to learn from this good fruit tree: We should bear good fruit for Jesus. PTUK October 26, 1893, page 477.3

But what kind of fruit can He mean for us to bear? The Bible says that “the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, long-suffering, and gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance.” These are the kinds of fruit that Jesus loves best, and that He wants us each to bear. He says that if we bear these kinds of fruit we shall be called His “trees of righteousness,” because we do only those things that are right. Are you not glad that you may be a good fruit tree for Jesus, and bring forth loving looks and words, and kind gentle actions to please Him? PTUK October 26, 1893, page 477.4

But there is one thing that you must never forget. You cannot bear these fruits unless you have the Spirit of Jesus in you, for it says that these are the fruits of His Spirit. He says, “Without Me ye can do nothing.” Do you know why? It is because without His Spirit in you, you are all bad inside and full of naughty thoughts and feelings, so that no good fruit can come forth a bit more than it can from a dead tree. But if you ask Jesus to fill your heart with His sweet, gentle Spirit, He will do it. Then your thoughts and feelings will be pure; then you can bear good fruit, for it changes you from a bad tree into a good tree. You need not wait till you are older, Jesus is willing to take the bad out of your heart now and help you to be His own little fruit tree. Would you let Him do it? PTUK October 26, 1893, page 477.5

1. Did you ever see an apple tree loaded down with apples? PTUK October 26, 1893, page 477.6

2. How can you tell whether the tree is good? Matthew 7:20. PTUK October 26, 1893, page 477.7

3. How can you tell whether the tree is bad? PTUK October 26, 1893, page 477.8

4. Always what kind of tree bears good fruit? Matthew 7:17. PTUK October 26, 1893, page 477.9

5. What kind of tree bears bad fruit? PTUK October 26, 1893, page 477.10

6. Why cannot the bad tree bring forth good fruit? PTUK October 26, 1893, page 477.11

7. How is a good man like a good fruit tree? Luke 6:45. PTUK October 26, 1893, page 477.12

8. How is a bad man like a bad fruit tree? PTUK October 26, 1893, page 477.13

9. What lesson does God wants us to learn from the good fruit tree? Romans 7:4. PTUK October 26, 1893, page 477.14

10. Then whenever we see a good fruit tree, what should we remember? PTUK October 26, 1893, page 477.15

11. What kinds of fruits does Jesus love best and want us to bear? PTUK October 26, 1893, page 477.16

12. What is it to be loving? Joyful? Peaceful? Long-suffering? Gentle? Good? PTUK October 26, 1893, page 477.17

13. What is it to have faith in God? PTUK October 26, 1893, page 477.18

14. How are we when we are meek? Temperate? PTUK October 26, 1893, page 477.19

15. If you can do all these things, what will Jesus call you? Isaiah 61:3. PTUK October 26, 1893, page 477.20

16. Can you bring forth these could fruits alone? PTUK October 26, 1893, page 477.21

17. Why not? PTUK October 26, 1893, page 477.22

18. Who only can take away the bad that is in your heart? PTUK October 26, 1893, page 478.1

19. Then who only can help you to bear good fruit? PTUK October 26, 1893, page 478.2

20. Is He willing to do it now while you are so young? Matthew 19:14. PTUK October 26, 1893, page 478.3

“Interesting Items” The Present Truth 9, 30.

EJW

E. J. Waggoner

-A ministerial crisis is reported in Spain. PTUK October 26, 1893, page 478.4

-A $3,500,000 fire occurred in Now York city, Oct. 18. PTUK October 26, 1893, page 478.5

News of a decisive battle with the Matabele is expected from South Africa. PTUK October 26, 1893, page 478.6

-The internal political situation in Austria is greatly strained, and rumours of a ministerial crisis are current. PTUK October 26, 1893, page 478.7

-The death of the eminent musical composer, Gounod, is reported from Paris. Deceased was seventy five years of age. PTUK October 26, 1893, page 478.8

-A railway collision is reported from Jackson, Mich., U.S.A., by which a dozen passengers were killed and thirty injured. PTUK October 26, 1893, page 478.9

-By a recent flood on the Yellow River, in China, three ferry boats were swept away, and a hundred persons were drowned. PTUK October 26, 1893, page 478.10

-Brigandage is unusually prevalent in the island of Sicily, and the authorities are devising energetic plans for its suppression. PTUK October 26, 1893, page 478.11

-From Paris comes the news of the death of the veteran Marshal MacMahon at his chateau, Oct. 17. He was in his eighty-sixth year. PTUK October 26, 1893, page 478.12

-There are over 2,600 cases of scarlet fever being treated in the metropolis, and the death rate from the epidemic is about thirty-five in a week. PTUK October 26, 1893, page 478.13

-The president of the republic of Guatemala has declared himself dictator, dismissed the special session of Congress and ordered a new election. PTUK October 26, 1893, page 478.14

-The National Protestant Congress is in session at Bath. The subjects considered are largely related to the danger to the country from Romanism. PTUK October 26, 1893, page 478.15

-A fire which occurred a fortnight ago at Brad-ford small-pox Hospital has resulted in a great increase in the number of cases of small-pox in that vicinity. PTUK October 26, 1893, page 478.16

-On the 16th inst. five men were killed and five injured at Wilmington, Ill., U.S.A., by an explosion of dynamite which they were using in digging a well. PTUK October 26, 1893, page 478.17

-A dispatch from Belgrade brings news of the explosion of one of the government powder mills, Oct. 16, killing six men and shaking the country for miles round. PTUK October 26, 1893, page 478.18

-Somewhat serious anti-European excesses are reported from Fez on the occasion of the celebration of the Moslem feast of the Moolood, or birthday of the Prophet. PTUK October 26, 1893, page 478.19

-An industrial Co-operative Conference was held at Chelsea to consider the advantage of a closer union between the different working-class movements of the country. PTUK October 26, 1893, page 478.20

-The secretary of the United States Treasury has announced to the Senate that if present conditions continue to the end of the year, there will be a deficit of $50,000,000. PTUK October 26, 1893, page 478.21

-The Gaikwar of Baroda has just passed a law making education compulsory for both sexes in his territory. All boys are to attend school from the age of seven to twelve, and girls from seven to ten. PTUK October 26, 1893, page 478.22

-Pope Leo is endeavouring to impress the people of Europe with the idea that the Vatican is in a very dangerous situation, owing to the liability of war in Italy. His aim is to secure a conference of the powers of Europe upon the subject. In the event of a war to which Italy should be involved, the movable part of the papal treasury should, it is said, be transported to London- PTUK October 26, 1893, page 478.23

—The Chronicle’s Moscow correspondent telegraphs that towards the end of the month a conference of Orthodox Churchmen will be held to consider what steps to take for the repression of the Stundist and Baptist sects. PTUK October 26, 1893, page 478.24

-The reception of the Russian fleet at Toulon has been the occasion of great demonstrations of friendship on the part of the French and Russians. There seems to be something approaching an understanding between those two powers. PTUK October 26, 1893, page 478.25

-Mortality from cancer has increased nearly seventy per cent in the last twenty-throe years. Out of a million persons, six hundred and seventy-five die of this disease. Deaths from tuberculosis are on the other hand steadily decreasing. PTUK October 26, 1893, page 478.26

-At a conference held at the Eleusis Club, Chelsea, under the auspices of the Metropolitan Radical Federation, it was resolved to commence an agitation for the abolition of the House of Lords, and a committee of thirteen was nominated. PTUK October 26, 1893, page 478.27

-Official statistics show that in Europe alone the quantity of boor consumed last year was not less than 3,000,000,000 gallons. Germany heads the list with 1,051,000,000 gallons, the United Kingdom coming next with 885,000,000 gallons. PTUK October 26, 1893, page 478.28

-Slowly but surely the revolutionists in Brazil are gaining ground, having received important accessions to their forces by recent defections from the forces of the government. Rio Janeiro is still under fire from the insurgent fleet, and has suffered much damage. PTUK October 26, 1893, page 478.29

-Two Hamburg doctors are reported to have discovered a new treatment for combating typhus, consisting of the subcutaneous injection of a preparation made from typhus bacilli. The treatment, it is stated, has already been successfully applied to patients. PTUK October 26, 1893, page 478.30

-The Assembly of the Congregational Union, which was recently in session, at its final meeting considered a resolution dealing with the question of strikes, and also passed resolutions on the subjects of local option and Sunday closing, religious persecutions, and disestablishment. PTUK October 26, 1893, page 478.31

-The struggle between the miners and coal-owners still continues, but the former are apparently certain of victory, as they are obtaining fresh advantages every day by the opening of the pits at the old rate of wages. Nearly 88,000 has been raised by the Chronicle for their relief. PTUK October 26, 1893, page 478.32

—The Belgian mail steamer Marie Henriette from Ostend to Dover, ran down the Danish schooner Elinor, in the English Channel, soon after midnight on the morning of Oct. 14. The schooner, which was cut in two, sank immediately, only one of the six men on board being rescued. PTUK October 26, 1893, page 478.33

-A New England firm is introducing an automatic gas-lighter for street lamps, which works on the principle of an eight-day clock. It is explained that the only attention the lighter requires is a weekly winding of the clock movement, and that it lights the lamp at the required time and extinguishes it at daybreak. PTUK October 26, 1893, page 478.34

-A disastrous storm is reported from the eastern seaboard of the United States. In Washington, New York, and Philadelphia it appears to have been very severely felt, some lives being lost, and a considerable amount of property being destroyed. Several wrecks are reported from Lake Erie, with the loss of thirteen lives. PTUK October 26, 1893, page 478.35

-It is computed that the number of missionaries throughout the world is 5,034, of unmarried female missionaries 3,445, of native ministers 3,730, and of native helpers 40,438. The total income raised annually for foreign missions amounts to £2,749,540. Of this sum England contributes £1,228,211, or nearly half, and the United States of America £786,991. PTUK October 26, 1893, page 478.36

-According to accounts received in Madrid from Melilla, the Moors are continuing their war-like preparations, and have numerous and well-drilled forces in strong entrenchments, whence they make daring sallies against the Spanish lines. The Spanish remain on the defensive, and will delay an attack in force until they have 10,000 troops and a strong artillery train. PTUK October 26, 1893, page 478.37

-A mysterious epidemic has raged the past week at Greenwich workhouse, the number of inmates attacked being over 300, of whom a dozen or fifteen hate died. The disease exhibited some symptoms of Asiath cholera, but the latest declaration of examining physicians is that it is not true cholera, which opinion would seem to be substantiated by the small percentage of deaths. PTUK October 26, 1893, page 478.38

“Back Page” The Present Truth 9, 30.

EJW

E. J. Waggoner

Thibet and Nepal are the only two countries of Asia not open to Christian missions. Nepal is an independent kingdom lying along the southern slopes of the Himalayas in Northern India. Its population is said to be about two millions. PTUK October 26, 1893, page 480.1

Towards the end of this month a conference of Russian churchmen will meet in Moscow, under the presidency of the Metropolitan, to take into consideration what steps are necessary for the extermination of dissenters, special reference being had to the Stundists and the Baptists. This will be the third conference of the kind. The Government has adopted all the propositions of the preceding conferences, so that about the only thing now left to do in the way of suppression of “heresy,” is wholesale banishment and murder. PTUK October 26, 1893, page 480.2

The New York Independent has articles from several noted men, in response to the question, “Is the World Growing Better?” Dr. Cuyler’s article contains a thought that is worth bearing in mind in this age when every intention, even of an instrument of death, is hailed as a sign of the speedy approach of the millennium. He says:- PTUK October 26, 1893, page 480.3

“The wonderful advance made in science, arts, and mechanical inventions, has nothing to do with the question, which is purely ethical. Brain-culture does not mean heart-culture; steam-engines and telegraphs are not spiritual agencies. In making humanity permanently better, God’s word is the standard, and God’s Spirit is the regenerating factor.” PTUK October 26, 1893, page 480.4

The following is from Lloyd’s Weekly London Newspaper, of the 8th: PTUK October 26, 1893, page 480.5

“The Lovestoft Standard is constrained to say a word with regard to the prosecution of Frederick Leach, the Kirkley newsagent and tobacconist. Leach has been breaking the law by opening his shop on Sunday, and as a result has been twice fined by the magistrates. He feels himself hardly treated, and that not without reason. You see in the same town a man fined for selling a Lloyd’s paper in his shop, whilst Salvationists are allowed to hawk the War Cry about the streets and to turn their place of worship into a newsagent’s shop with impunity. There is another aspect of the case with respect to the boats which during the season ply for hire on Sundays. Their proprietors are not summoned, although the Act forbids the use of any boat or barge on the Lord’s day. Then why should Leach be punished? Again, there are those grogers who possess beer licenses. Why should they not be summoned for selling other articles on Sundays? Why should two restaurants be permitted to open? The Act is simply absurd. The publican may sell tobacco on Sundays, whilst a regular tobacconist may not. A Salvationist may hawk papers, whilst a recognised newsagent may not; and some few people may imagine the Act to be a good one, whilst others may not.” PTUK October 26, 1893, page 480.6

There is an evident inconsistency in the law, but that is not the thing against which complaint should be made. The trouble is with the existence of any Sunday law. There never has been, and never can be, a consistent Sunday law. Sunday laws are arbitrary and inconsistent because they have no shadow or foundation in right and justice. In the first place the observance of Sunday in any way is contrary to the law of God, and therefore to compel men to observe it, is to compel men to sin; and in the second place, to compel men to rest even on the Sabbath of the Lord, is contrary to God’s law, and so Sunday laws are evil in principle and in application. PTUK October 26, 1893, page 480.7

It is well known that there is now in the United States a law which calls for the expulsion of every Chinese who will not consent to become a ticket-of-leave man. On account of lack of funds for that particular purpose, no general enforcement of the law has been attempted. It is no small affair to transport a hundred thousand Chinese, and the probability is that if it were seriously attempted, China would retaliate by expelling all Americans from China. The author of the infamous law is prepared for that, however, for he says:- PTUK October 26, 1893, page 480.8

“I am perfectly willing to vote for a bill requiring every American missionary in China to return to his country within a year, the protection of this Government to be withdrawn from him at the expiration of that time. I would do this just as I would vote to expel every anarchist from the United States within a year.” PTUK October 26, 1893, page 480.9

This brings up for consideration the question of the right of the people residing in one country to say who shall and who shall not dwell in that country. It is a large question. There are very few, if any, people on earth who were the original occupants of the land in which they dwell. Therefore, when the people of any nation claim that people from any other nation have no right to dwell upon “their soil” without their consent, they thereby undermine their own claim to the land. The fact is that the only right is that of might. The nations of earth occupy lands which they call their own, only because they or their remote ancestors dispossessed the original inhabitants, and killed them; and the only right that they now have to say that people from any other country shall not dwell among them, is the fact that they may be more powerful. PTUK October 26, 1893, page 480.10

The Chinese outnumber, by hundreds of millions, the inhabitants of America. If they should pour into the United States by millions, overpowering the present inhabitants, they would have as much right to the exclusive control of the country as the present inhabitants have, and that is just none at all. “The earth is the Lord’s, and the fulness thereof; the world and they that dwell therein.” Psalm 24:1. “God hath made of one blood all nations for to dwell on all the face of the earth.” Acts 17:26. PTUK October 26, 1893, page 480.11

Nevertheless the nations of earth assume the exclusive right to the land in which they dwell, and if they be what are called “Christian nations,” they also assume the right to the possession of the lands of other people. It would not be at all surprising if these other nations should learn the lesson that is given them, and should enact laws expelling strangers from among them. What would the missionaries do then? If they were missionaries of Christ they would remain, and God would protect them, or else He would make their death contribute more to the advancement of the Gospel than their lives could do. The Gospel does not depend on carnal weapons. Whenever the Gospel has really been carried to heathen people, it has been by the sacrifice of life, but not in battle. Christ has condemned the use of the sword in His behalf, and He will not accept its service now. It would be well if this fact were remembered by those missionaries who are declaring that the success of the mission work in Africa depends on the overpowering of the Matabele by the English. PTUK October 26, 1893, page 480.12