IF YE LOVE ME KEEP MY COMMANDMENTS.
By E. Macomber Jr.
If ye love me keep my commandments. And I will pray the Father and he shall give you another comforter that he may abide with you forever; even the Spirit of truth whom the world cannot receive because it seeth him not neither knoweth him, but ye know him for he dwelleth with you, and shall be in you. I will not leave you comfortless; I will come to you. Some time has elapsed since I first believed in the near approach of our Lord and Saviour to restore all things spoken of by the mouth of all his holy prophets since the world began. A few months have elapsed since I fully made up my mind to keep the commandments of God; and I thank God he has manifested himself very sensibly to me since I have come to this conclusion. I can now claim the promise of God, and can exercise faith without which it is impossible for any one to please God. As we read in Heb. xi, 6: But without faith it is impossible to please him. For he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of all those that diligently seek him. Now dear brother I am led to conclude that no one can come to God with acceptance and believe he will manifest himself fully unto him except he fulfill the requirements that he has laid down, no more than I could expect a favour of an earthly monarch if I had transgressed the laws of that monarch. How much more should we be anxious to obey the laws of God. But I notice there are many that pay little or no attention to this all important matter. Dear reader how can you expect favors of God except you obey the laws of God. You may ask what is the law of God? What God has commanded is his law. There has much been written, and much has been said upon this subject, but it seems to me the more there is written, the farther off some are, especially many that are looking for the Lord from heaven soon. I read in Eccl. xii, commencing 10th verse, The preacher sought to find out acceptable words and that which was written was upright even words of truth. The words of the wise are as goads and as nails fastened by the master of assemblies which are given from one shepherd. And further by these my son be admonished: of making many books there is no end, and much study is a weariness of the flesh. Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter. Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the whole duty of man. If this is the conclusion of the whole matter which is declared to be by the word of inspiration, I cannot see why all that love God cannot come to a decision in regard to their duty at once without delay. We find in the Scriptures that many anciently came short of the glory of God by disobedience as far back as Adam. He fell through disobedience, and all from that day up to this have fallen through the disobedience of God's commands; and shall any of us that have been trying to grow in grace and a further knowledge of the truth fall through disobedience to God's commands. My dear friend, whoever you are, while you think of this subject be sure to thoroughly investigate and prayerfully search the Scriptures to see if these things are so, and seek to obtain the Spirit of Christ; for except ye have the Spirit of Christ ye are none of his. May the Lord help all that are striving to enter in at the strait gate to remember that the blessing is to them that do his commandments; they shall have right to the tree of life, and enter through the gates into the city. My friend, my anxious request is that you may study the commandments of God and try to keep them, and seek faithfully the Spirit of Jesus, and then you will be owned of God, and share in all the glories of his beloved Son. There are many that break the first and fourth commandments and do not realize it. Look at and attend to it, and be sure to be on the Lord's side. The day of the Lord hasteth greatly, and who may abide the day of his coming, and who shall stand when he appeareth? All such as teach for doctrines the commandments of men will be ashamed and cannot stand in that day that is so near. Is the observance of the first day of the week as a Sabbath for divine worship a command of God? The Scriptures do not teach thus. Is the seventh day the Sabbath of the Lord thy God? The Scriptures do teach that it is. They also teach that it is better to obey God than man. My prayer is, O Lord help thy wandering children to come to a knowledge of the truth as it is in thy word, and to be steadfast, immovable, ever abounding in the work of the Lord. Your brother waiting for Israel to be gathered into the promised land.
E. MACOMBER JR.
New Shoreham, R. I.