Your ShelfYour Projects

LETTERS

8%

Publishing Committee · Battle Creek, Mich. · Oct 21, 1858

FromReview and Herald, Vol. 12, No. 22.

Read the full edition

LETTERS.

By Seth Newton

“Then they that feared the Lord spoke often one to another.”
From Bro. Newton.
BRO. SMITH: I feel thankful to God for what he has done and is still doing daily for me. I do feel more and more strengthened as I try to keep all of God's commandments, and also the rules laid down in the New Testament for us.
I think we have some watchmen now that are giving us the last warning message before the coming of the great and terrible day of the Lord. We are living in the time that Christ spoke of when he said, The harvest is great, but the laborers are few; and truly we should pray for more laborers to be sent into the vineyard of the Lord.
I feel that it was about the eleventh hour with me, in receiving the truth. I embraced the Advent faith in 1842, and had strong faith that the Lord would come on the tenth of the seventh month in 1844; but was disappointed as many others were. Since then I have been asleep, as it were, in regard to the time in which we are living; and I was led to embrace the views of the Age to come, which are that Christ will come and set up his kingdom here, and reign on the earth during the seventh thousand years, when, they say, the rest of the nations are to have a chance to hear the gospel. But how does this agree with Rev. xix, commencing at the 17th verse, which speaks of the angel's standing in the sun, and saying to all the fowls of the air, "Come to the supper of the great God, that ye may eat the flesh of kings, and captains, and mighty men, and horses, and they that sit on them, the flesh of all men, both free and bond, small and great. The beast and the kings of the earth and their armies gathered together to make war against him that sat on the horse, and against his army. (Who are these, if they are not those that are found keeping all of God's commandments?) And the beast was taken, and with him the false prophet that wrought miracles before him, with which he deceived them that had received the mark of the beast, and them that worshiped his image. These both were cast into a lake of fire burning with brimstone; and the remnant of them were slain with the sword of him that sat upon the horse, which sword proceeded out of his mouth, and all the fowls were filled with their flesh." I find none left for them to teach in their Age-to-come, as all, both bond and free, small and great, are to be the supper for the fowls.
There are about eleven souls in this neighborhood who are trying to keep all of God's commandments, and the testimony of Jesus. We are surrounded by those who believe the commandments were all done away at the cross of Christ, or at the destruction of Jerusalem; and now, they say, we are under the law of Christ. If so, who our mediator is I cannot tell.
The Bible tells me that if I sin, I have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous. It appears to me, if Christ is our lawgiver, he cannot be our advocate. I thank the Lord that he has led me to see the truth, and not left me in such errors, to live after the traditions of men.
Dear brethren, my faith has been tested some, I think,since I embraced the faith last January; for we have had some of the strongest ones along here, that preach the commandments done away and all abolished. My companion not having examined the subject so thoroughly as she should have done, was almost led back again, which gave me such feelings as I cannot describe. If ever I prayed, it was then; and blessed be the name of the Lord, he heard my prayers, and the way was opened for the truth to be preached again in this place, and the Lord led her to see the position she was in, also my sister who lives in the house with us; so now I rejoice in God much for his goodness to us, poor mortals. I would say that my sister come out in the time of our discussion here, in August. She has been a bitter opposer to our views, but is now rejoicing in the truth.
Dear brethren and sisters, take courage. The Lord hears prayer; and if any of you have companions that are not in the truth, hold on by faith, and it may be the Lord will open the way in his own time, and bring them in.
Are we the people that are to be found without guile in their mouths? If so, how watchful and faithful we should be in order to stand without spot or wrinkle or any such thing.
SETH NEWTON.