IN his speech before the recent Lake Mohonk Conference on International Arbitration, the president of the Naval War College at Newport, Rhode Island, among other things, said: "A great peace conference lies ahead of the world, in which the United States will desire to have a part. Still other conferences, and more significant ones, will deal with a multitude of plans for securing permanent peace between nations."
One of the greatest dreams of the time is to secure "permanent peace between nations"; and without any question, "a great peace conference lies ahead of the world." The time will come when the great mass of humanity will think that it has secured permanent peace, but that will be just before destruction visits this wicked world through the great glory that will shine forth from the presence of Christ at His coming; for does not the Book tell us, in the plainest language, that it is when they are saying, "Peace and safety," that "sudden destruction cometh upon them, as travail upon a woman with child; and they shall not escape"? 1 Thess. 5: 3.
Before this war broke out in Europe, men everywhere were presenting their theories that we would never again have a clash between two first-class powers. A general war, they assured us, was an impossibility. But to-day Europe, on a far-flung battle line, is soaking her soil with the blood of men that have come hither to fight from practically all parts of Europe and Asia, as well as other portions of the earth. The United States is embroiled with Mexico. China is trembling before the revolutionary spirit. The Arabs are in rebellion against the Turks. There is practically no section of the world but is gripped by the war demons. Certainly we are having enough war at present time to shatter all the theories of the past. Still men theorize still further.
The prophets, however, have all the time been telling us plainly that the war of Armageddon will involve all the world. We are getting a little foretaste of it, and are seeing, as the revelator told us, that when the Judgment day was imminent, the nations would be angry.
Where will we stand,—on the side of truth and fact, with God and His divine word as given to us by His prophets, or on the insecure theories and speculations of mere men? It is well that we take care lest we be deceived in this great time of turmoil and strife. We need a stronger foundation than the doctrines of men. Nothing short of the Eternal Rock will endure the stress.