Lift Up Thine Eyes, . . . and See
By W. A. S.
THE prophet is speaking of the evangelization of the nations; and the scripture applies especially in the last days, when the church is to rise and shine, and the light of the last message is to reach to the uttermost parts. The danger is that many will not see; that the marvelous work of God will be wrought out before men's eyes, and those who see the things transpiring will really not understand the meaning of it all until it is too late to have a saving part in the fulfilment of God's purposes. So it has been in the past, and warnings have been written for our learning in the solemn present. Paul declared to the Jews at Antioch, in Pisidia:— “We declare unto you glad tidings, how that the promise which was made unto the fathers, God hath fulfilled the same unto us their children.” Acts 13: 32, 33. They had the Scriptures in their hands, telling of the wonderful work being done in their time; and the apostle appealed to them:— “Beware therefore, lest that come upon you, which is spoken of in the prophets; behold, ye despisers, and wonder, and perish: for I work a work in your days, a work which ye shall in no wise believe, though a man declare it unto you.” Verses 40, 41. We are seeing remarkable things to-day. God forbid that we should fail to see their meaning in the fulfilment of prophecy. Things that the pioneers in our work preached as matters of prophecy fifty years ago, we see taking place before our eyes. And as we lift up our eyes round about, and look at the signals of the end in the progress of the message toward the uttermost parts of the earth, we see prophecy fulfilling rapidly. Really the leaven of this message is being placed in all parts of the great lump of humanity. Here is a word from Sister O. E. Davis, of British Guiana, South America, that shows how God is working away beyond our knowledge. She says of a trip Elder Davis is now taking:— He left Georgetown for Bartica [on the Essequibo River]. From Bartica he travels in an open boat from forty-three to forty-six days until he reaches Arawi Landing, Wenamu River. After three days of hard traveling from here he will reach Brother Dinklage's home. He expects to spend about ten days with the Indians at that place [we have several companies of Indian believers in Guiana]. From there he takes an Indian guide, and proceeds still farther into the interior, along a trail known only to the Indians. It will take about two weeks' traveling along this trail before he will reach a tribe of Indians who have never seen a white man. In some way they have heard of the Sabbath, and are keeping it. They have heard Elder Davis is coming to see them, and are anxiously awaiting the arrival of the “God-man,” who will tell them all about the soon-coming Saviour. Elder Davis will be away from home three months or more. The time has come, and God is fulfilling his promise to cut short the work in righteousness. “Lift up thine eyes round about, and see: all they gather themselves together, they come to thee: thy sons shall come from far.” It is startling to see how the message is reaching out into the dark corners of the earth. We hear of a thousand people crowding around a meeting-place in the interior of China, and of scores of heathen coming forward for prayer as the message of Christ's soon coming is12preached in their ears. Regions that once we looked toward as lying at the end of the way, are yielding fruitage to-day. We are near the end of the way. What we see is sufficient to set every believing heart aflame. It is a time to dedicate our means and service to the closing work. How otherwise can we hope for a part in the soon-coming triumph? W. A. S.