2029.-The Heathen by Editor

Pacific Press Publishing Company · Mountain View, California · Mar 27, 1907

FromSigns of the Times, Vol. 33, No. 13.

2029.—The Heathen

By Editor

[We are willing to answer all questions in this department that are practical for the department and that would minister to the general good of our readers, but we answer no questions unless the name and address accompany the question. We do not ask this for publication, nor will it be published unless the inquirer so desires; we ask it, however, as an evidence of good faith, and that we may answer by letter if deemed best. Inquirers will please take notice. There is no departure from the rule. Unsigned questions reach the waste basket by the most direct route.]

2029.—The Heathen.

Please give me your ideas as to what will become of the heathen. Does it not say somewhere in the Bible they will be as tho they had not been? Do they not have a chance at salvation? J. E. W.

Every soul that lives in the world, who has come to the age of responsibility, has the opportunity of choice. Ps. 19: 1-4; Rom. 10: 18; 1: 20; John 1: 9; 2 Chron. 16: 9. Read these texts, compare Psalm 19 with the passage in Romans 10, note what is said in John 1: 9, Jesus “lighteth every man that cometh into the world,” and that Paul tells us they are “without excuse.” All this modern-day delusion that the heathen have not had a chance is contrary to the Scriptures and to God’s dealing with men, contrary to the very sense of justice there is in man when exercised toward others. Man holds his fellow men responsible if they have committed wrong toward him; are they not equally responsible when they commit wrong toward God? It is not the amount of light which one accepts which saves him; it is the heart with which he receives it. One ray of light received, to which the life and its purposes are given, will bring men to the great source of light. One may possess all the light of the Bible, however, and reject one ray of light and be lost. The rejection of that ray of light turns him from the source from which that ray emanated, and throws him into darkness; but those who reject God will die, heathen and all, and be as tho they had not been. Obadiah 16.

2030.—The Union of Judah and Ephraim, Eze. 37: 16-22.

Will you kindly explain this parable, and state if the Book of Mormon is the word of God as they say it is? P.

The passage in Ezekiel above referred to is simply a prophecy that the Lord would unite all His children again in one fold. He would, however, have done that then and there if they had only yielded to Him. They said that their hope was dried, that they were entirely cut off, that their cases were hopeless. Verse 11. God tells them what He has the power and the willingness to do, that He would bring them up out of their graves, and put His Spirit upon them, and they should live; but all this was based on their turning to Him. See Eze. 33: 11. According to the general conditions which the Lord lays down in Jer. 18: 7-10, if the nation for whom God speaks would not turn from their evil ways, they would not receive the good which He had spoken for them. Israel failed then and there to yield to the Lord, except in the slightest measure, after the captivity; consequently that promise and prophecy were conditional. Israel did not meet the conditions; consequently we never will have them fulfilled just as God gave them there. They will, however, in the new dispensation be fulfilled more gloriously, as recorded in Revelation 21, 22; or as our Lord Himself expressed it, “Other sheep I have, which are not of this fold; them also I must bring, and they shall hear My voice; and there shall be one fold, and one Shepherd;” and the one Shepherd is Jesus, and the true children of Abraham are all those that accept Christ by faith. Gal. 3: 29.

The Book of Mormon is not the word of God. The one preeminent word which God has given us is His holy book, the Bible. Everything which is contrary to that can be set aside as not His word. “To the law and to the testimony [to God’s holy law and to His prophecies]: if they speak not according to this word, it is because there is no light in them.” Whether the Book of Mormon or any other book claiming to be the word of God, test it by the Bible, and more especially by God’s eternal law.

2031.—The Doom of Ariel.

Kindly explain Isa. 29: 1-4. A. M. P.

We will not quote the scripture as it is quite long. It is simply a prophecy against Jerusalem. “Ariel” is a poetical name of Jerusalem, meaning “the lion of God.” In her backslidden condition, while her feasts might be held from year to year and the regular round of religious ceremonies take place, yet destruction would come to her; for God Himself would be against her. He would suffer siege to be laid to her, and her walls brought low. She should be brought very low, so that her very voice would seem as tho it were one whispering out of the dust. That is the import of the prophecy, the great trouble which would be brought upon Jerusalem.

2032.—Playing for Dances.

Is it not as great a sin to play for dances as to dance? INQUIRER.

Mere dancing in itself is not wrong. David danced before the ark of God; children in the exuberance of their spirits dance. Presumably our Inquirer does not refer to these kinds of dances, but to the popular dance, the promiscuous gatherings of both sexes, which have been abundantly fruitful of evil. The late hours, the dissipation, the overwrought nerves, the unnatural familiarity, and other things connected with the modern popular dance are corrupting, debasing, and productive of other evils. These dances without music would be of no interest. What justification then can there be for one who may not believe in the dance playing for these dances? To us it would seem there could be no difference. Sometimes there is more madness in the music than in the dancing. We can not understand how one who held scruples against the one could take part in the other.

2033.—Abstinence from Swine’s Flesh.

Why do Adventists not eat hog meat? H.

Seventh-day Adventists and thousands upon thousands of others do not use swine’s flesh for food because it is unwholesome. That is the very nature of the swine itself; it is a scavenger. If one is ill, it is one of the first foods prohibited generally. In convalescence it is one of the last foods permitted. The strong laborer with strong digestive powers, working in the open air, can use it for years with seeming impunity. With his tremendous digestive powers and good circulation, it does him little harm. It may and will affect his blood, filling it full of humors. The very word “scrofula” itself comes from scrofa, a sow, a female swine. For its unwholesomeness, God prohibited it to His people anciently. Leviticus 11, Deuteronomy 14. We can see witness to its benefits in the better health of the Jews as compared with every race of people. We can not understand that the Lord did this for mere local or national consideration, but that His people might be stronger, possess better health, and therefore glorify Him. And we have no data by which to conclude that the nature of the swine has changed since the Lord laid His prohibition upon it; and, therefore, among the many good things which God has given us, we have no use whatever for that kind of food.

2034.—Lamech’s Complaint. Gen. 4: 23.

Will you please explain Gen. 4: 23? P.

Read as in the American Standard Revised Version: “And Lamech said unto his wives; Adah and Zillah, hear my voice; Ye wives of Lamech, harken unto my speech; For I have slain a man for wounding me, And a young man for bruising me; If Cain shall be avenged sevenfold, Truly Lamech seventy and sevenfold.” The thought is this, that some young man in his wrath rose up and smote Lamech, and Lamech slew him. God said that whosoever slew Cain vengeance should be taken on him, yet Cain slew his brother without justification. Lamech was justified in slaying the young man; and if the Lord should avenge one who slew Cain, far above this would He avenge any who might slay Lamech. In other words, Lamech felt that God would justify him in the act that he did, and would preserve his life from any who might avenge him. This is the first instance of poetry we have in the Scriptures.

2035.—Voting.

Does the Adventist vote under this government? J. A. H.

He does if he so desires, and is a citizen of the United States and of the State in which he resides. The government itself makes no discrimination whatsoever in regard to belief. If one fails to vote, he has his own reasons for it. There are many devoted religious people who see no solution to the great problems of society in voting, or any remedy for its ills at the ballotbox. Consequently many of these refrain from voting. There are many other Christians who feel that their citizenship is not here, but in heaven, even as the apostle Paul declares in Phil. 3: 20, 21. As citizens of that better country, they do all that they can to win others to the same allegiance. At the same time such as these are always blessings to the country in which they live, because if they heed the words of the Scriptures, they will render to the government all that belongs to the government, and pray for those who are administering it.

2036.—Support of Catholic Schools.

Please state whether this government raises money for the benefit of Catholic schools or not.

For Indian schools, yes. Some years ago the government was supporting Catholic, and the schools of some Protestant, denominations among the Indians. When some of these Protestant denominations saw that the Catholics were getting the lion’s share, they protested against the principle that was utterly wrong from the beginning. Thru this agitation the support was for a time withdrawn, but it is obtained now in different ways. All the statistics that we had upon that question were burned at the time of our fire, so we can not give exact data. If any of our correspondents can, we should be glad to hear from them. But we understand at the present time that the United States money is used for the religious teaching of Catholics in Indian schools.