The New Neighbors by L. Ervin Wright

Pacific Press Publishing Association · Mountain View, California, U.S.A. · Sep 16, 1930

FromSigns of the Times, Vol. 57, No. 36.

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The New Neighbors

By L. Ervin Wright

L. Ervin Wright

The story of how they turn a town upside down; and for the first time the town was right side up.

Chapter XVIII

The Story Thus Far

Mrs. Winters, her son, Dale, and daughter, Theresa, newcomers to Fairdale, start an active missionary campaign. They are the first Seventh-day Adventists ever to live in Fairdale. Dale holds several Bible studies in the home of Mrs. Helman. Theresa conceives the plan of starting a Sunday school. The club hall of the Chamber of Commerce is secured for the Sunday school and for Dale’s lectures. Pastor Dodson of the —— church begins an attack on the Adventists. He believes that all who do not keep Sunday as the Christian sabbath should be boycotted, and, as an extreme measure, all Sunday desecraters should be deemed guilty of treason, which he asserts merits the death penalty. Dale Winters explains the two-horned beast of Revelation 13:11 to be the symbol of the United States. He believes the mark of the beast will be enforced Sunday observance.

Dale Winters Rescues Pastor Dodson

Dale Winters paused after his last remark. Then, as if discerning the thoughts of his audience, he stated: “I know that many of you are wondering if I mean that Sunday observers now have the mark of the beast. Before answering that question, let me give you God’s program of meeting the beast worship. “In the fourteenth chapter of the book of the Revelation, and commencing with verse 6, I read: ‘I saw another angel fly in the midst of heaven, having the everlasting gospel to preach unto them that dwell on the earth, and to every nation, and kindred, and tongue, and people, saying with a loud voice, Fear God, and give glory to Him; for the hour of His judgment is come: and worship Him that made heaven, and earth, and the sea, and the fountains of waters.’”

Three Angels’ Messages

“And there followed another angel, saying, Babylon is fallen, is fallen, that great city, because she made all nations drink of the wine of the wrath of her fornication. And the third angel followed them, saying with a loud voice, If any man worship the beast and his image, and receive his mark in his forehead, or in his hand, the same shall drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is poured out without mixture into the cup of His indignation.”

“The primary meaning of the word translated ‘angel’ in the Greek means ‘a messenger.’ Since to men only has Christ given the task of the promulgation of the gospel, the three angels with these messages must symbolize men on earth who take up these divinely appointed and timely messages.

“You will notice that the first message calls upon men to ‘fear God, and give glory to Him,’ as if men were fearing some other power and were giving glory to some one else than the Creator. But the most startling thing about this first message is that it directs men to ‘worship Him that made heaven, and earth, and the sea, and the fountains of waters.’ This word translated ‘worship’ in the Greek means ‘homage.’ The same word is used by the prophet when telling that the two-horned beast would make the earth and them that dwell therein to ‘worship,’ that is, ‘to do homage.’ We have noticed that homage is paid to the beast by the observance of its sabbath. Now the way to ‘do homage’ to God is to keep His Sabbath, for if we ‘do homage’ to ‘Him that made heaven, and earth, and the sea, and the fountains of waters,’ we shall most certainly keep the seventh-day Sabbath, ‘for,’ says the fourth commandment, ‘in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is, and rested the seventh day: wherefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day, and hallowed it.’ Exodus 20:11. It was a thrilling discovery to me when I found that the first angel’s message was largely a quotation of the fourth, or Sabbath, commandment. That is proof enough for me that the Lord wants the seventh-day Sabbath proclaimed and expects His people to keep it.

“The work of Seventh-day Adventists for more than three quarters of a century has been the proclamation of the Sabbath truth. When our nation effects a union of church and state, this message will become louder and more distinct.

Work of Adventists

“The fullness of the other two messages has not developed, but as the image of the beast is formed and the pseudosabbath is enforced by law, these other messages will be proclaimed with ‘a loud voice.’”

“Let me read from a book that has been before the public for years: ‘Fearful is the issue to which the world is to be brought. The powers of earth, uniting to war against the commandments of God, will decree that all, ‘both small and great, rich and poor, free and bond,’ shall conform to the customs of the church by observance of the false sabbath. All who refuse compliance will be visited with civil penalties, and it will finally be declared that they are deserving of death. On the other hand, the law of God enjoining the Creator’s rest day demands obedience, and threatens wrath against all who transgress its precepts.’”

“With the issue thus clearly brought before him, whoever shall trample upon God’s law to obey a human enactment, receives the mark of the beast; he accepts the sign of allegiance to the power which he chooses to obey instead of God. . . .”

None Who Are Ignorant Suffer

“Not one is made to suffer the wrath of God until the truth has been brought home to his mind and conscience, and has been rejected. There are many who have never had an opportunity to hear the special truths for this time. The obligation of the fourth commandment has never been set before them in its true light. He who reads every heart, and tries every motive, will leave none who desire a knowledge of the truth to be deceived as to the issues of the controversy. . . . Every one is to have sufficient light to make his decision intelligently.”—The Great Controversy, pages 604, 605.

“The conscientious observance of Sunday as the Sabbath on the part of those who hitherto have supposed it to be the Sabbath, has, without doubt, been accepted of God as Sabbath keeping. It is only when light comes that sin is imputed.”

“There is such a thing as sins of ignorance, for we read, ‘The times of this ignorance God winked at; but now commandeth all men everywhere to repent.’ Acts 17:30. James lays down this rule: ‘Therefore to him that knoweth to do good, and doeth it not, to him it is sin.’ James 4:17. Christ taught the same truth in these words: ‘If I had not come and spoken unto them, they had not had sin: but now they have no cloak [margin, excuse] for their sin.’ John 15:22.

“Friends, I trust that you will study these things over in the sight of your Lord, and come and join in the loud cry of God’s message for to-day. As the result of these messages, John saw a company of people of whom he could write, ‘Here is the patience of the saints: here are they that keep the commandments of God, and the faith of Jesus.’ Revelation 14:12.” On the next day there was much comment,

favorable and unfavorable, concerning Dale’s lecture. Fairdale had never heard “preachin’ on that order before,” as Ezra Peters remarked, and Dale’s message had, in more than one instance, fallen upon fruitful soil.

Fire Breaks Out

A short time after midnight on Tuesday night, Fairdale was awakened by the fire siren. Dale awoke with a start and leaped from his bed. From his window, he saw that the fire was about four or five blocks away, and in the vicinity of the —— church. After hurriedly dressing, he made his way out into the night. Running to the scene of the conflagration, he saw that it was the parsonage of Pastor Dodson that was on fire.

The parsonage was a two-story dwelling, and hungry tongues of fire were leaping skyward over half of the roof. As Dale approached closer, he saw a score of men busily carrying furniture out of the doomed house. Women and children from adjoining homes were on the outskirts of the circle of light, watching the scene of the catastrophe. The fire engine and the hose wagon had not yet arrived.

Dale joined a group of men who had started to carry out the piano. As the fire grew more intense, Abe Walters, chief of police, ordered every one out of the house.

Pastor Dodson in Danger

Suddenly, above the crackling of the devouring flames, a woman’s cry pierced the night. It was from Mrs. Dodson.

“Oh, I saw him up there!” she cried.

“Who? Where?” asked Mrs. Wells, who was standing next to her.

“My husband! Oh, he’ll be burned to death! Oh, my husband, my poor husband!” Mrs. Dodson broke down into a hysterical sob, and hid her face in her hands.

Dale, being near by, rushed to Mrs. Dodson’s side.

“Mrs. Dodson,” he said in a soothing tone, “do you mean that your husband is in the house now?”

“Yes, yes; I saw him just a moment ago at the front upstairs window! Oh, my poor husband!”

“Don’t worry, Mrs. Dodson. He may be down by now,” Dale assured her, and he left the sobbing woman.

Rushing to Abe Walters, Dale inquired if he was positive that the pastor was not in the crowd. A hurried check up showed that Pastor Dodson was missing.

A few moments later, the crowd was horrified to see Dale Winters, with a rug over his head, rush into the doomed house. Abe Walters commanded him to stop, but he rushed on.

“He’s crazy!” “He’ll be burned to death!” came the various comments from the circle of onlookers.

Dale Effects the Rescue

After what seemed an eternity, Dale appeared with Pastor Dodson across his shoulders. Coughing, his lungs full of biting smoke, his breath coming in short gasps, and his eyes smarting, Dale stumbled across the threshold on to the porch with his human burden. Several men, now regardless of the approaching collapse of the doomed house, rushed to Dale’s assistance. They were none too soon, for scarcely had Dale and the pastor been carried from the porch when the upper story collapsed.

The pastor was totally unconscious, and he was somewhat injured. Dale had come through the fire quite unscathed, except for some burns on his hands, and singed eyebrows, but he was nearly exhausted. Some glasses of milk made him feel considerably better.

Mrs. Dodson was nearly frantic with joy. “Oh, how can I ever repay you for risking your life for my husband?” she half sobbed and half laughed.

“Your good will is all the pay I ask,” smiled Dale.

(To be continued)