"When They Are Saying, Peace and Safety."
By T.
Is there a time of peace and safety before us? We say most emphatically, and positively, Yes. The most glorious period of all the centuries is dawning even now. But we must look in the right place for this peace and safety in order to possess and enjoy it. For we read of a certain class: "For yourselves know perfectly that the day of the Lord so cometh as a thief in the night. When they are saying, Peace and safety, then sudden destruction cometh upon them, as travail upon a woman with child; and they shall in nowise escape." 1 Thess. 5: 2, 3. This scripture tells of certain persons who are saying, "Peace and safety," and the very thing that they are saying, because of the ground on which they are saying it, is to be a sure sign to those who are truly intelligent upon the subject that "sudden destruction" is right upon them. Another fact is apparent from the text, and that is that it is when "the day of the Lord" is imminent that a refrain of "peace and safety" is to be sounded as the precursor of "sudden destruction." The apostle speaks of a class in the third person. He says when "they" are saying "peace and safety," it is then that "sudden destruction" is to be visited upon "them," and "they" are to "in nowise escape." But of another class the Scripture continues to speak in the verses that immediately follow the foregoing quotation, by referring to them in the second person. The words are: "But ye, brethren, are not in darkness, that that day should overtake you as a thief: for ye are all sons of light, and sons of the day: we are not of the night, nor of darkness; so then let us not sleep, as do the rest, but let us watch and be sober." 1 Thess. 5: 4-6. Those whom the apostle classes as "brethren" are not "in darkness;" they are "sons of light, and sons of the day:" and therefore the day of the Lord will not overtake them as a thief. They will not be pointing to a species of "peace and safety" which can produce only destruction. In the very nature of things, the persons that would be claimed as "brethren" of the inspired writer would be those who believe in and abide by the teachings of the word of God. They must be those who are not merely assenting to the teaching of the Bible, but they are such close students of the divine Book that they know what it says and are therefore standing in the light. They are "sons of light, and sons of the day." We have entered upon a time of much discussion of the question of peace. Peace congresses and conventions are the order of the day. The texts already quoted in these paragraphs tell of "they" who shall say "peace and safety," when only "sudden destruction" can await them. Then those who are thus deceived must be looking for their peace and safety in the wrong direction. And now the question for us to look into is, What hope has the world for a general peace? Certainly there is no very bright prospect before us in that direction. There never were such great preparations for war as now. And no nation is willing to set the example of disarming its army and navy. But rather the sentiment is constantly gaining ground that the only way to make assured peace is to have such a well-equipped army and such a formidable navy that other nations will be afraid to fight us. And with that sentiment prevailing, every nation is exerting itself to the utmost to keep ahead in the arts of human destruction. But they all know that it is inconsistent to make the professions of enlightenment and civilization that are made in these days and still devote so much thought and energy to the preparation of the slaughter of our fellow men. And so some of the foremost manufacturers of armor plate and other war implements and materials are the loudest in calling for peace congresses and peace proclamations among the nations. And, judging from the import of the scripture quoted at the beginning of this article, the agitation for peace will continue right in the midst of the prevailing preparations for war, until the great mass of the people will persuade themselves that all is "peace and safety," regardless of the facts and conditions that actually exist, and that every one can see if not blinded by a contrary sentiment. And, now, note particularly that when this peace and safety talk becomes general, it is one of the tokens by which the careful student of Bible prophecy will know for sure that the destruction of the world is here. This prophecy in Paul's letter to the Thessalonians is very significant. The words of peace and safety are being talked, while all the facts show that the world is preparing for the most furious war that has ever been9seen in the history of all time. God says that "sudden destruction" is the next number on the program. Keep your eye on what He says; for He knows the truth, and tells it plainly. In the face of the appalling evidences to the contrary, the whole world will take up the "peace-and-safety" refrain, and may even continue to sing it while on their furious march to the great battle of Armageddon. But those who study the word of God intelligently will not be deceived by such voices. They will clearly see the "sudden destruction" that lies just beyond. T.