Signs of the Times, Vol. 7, No. 35. (9/15/1881)

Signs of the Times

Sep 15, 1881

Seventh-day Adventist Missionary Society · Oakland, California · Sep 15, 1881

General Articles.

By Mrs. E. G. White

A LESSON FOR MOTHERS.

BY MRS. E. G. WHITE.

WHILE Israel was sorely harassed by the children of Ammon on the east, and the Philistines on the west, the Lord hearkened to the prayers of his people, and began to work for their deliverance. After eighteen years of oppression, they made war against the Ammonites, and effectually destroyed their power. But a backsliding and idolatrous people soon forgot the lesson which divine wisdom had so often sought to teach them. As they continued to depart from God, he permitted them still to be oppressed by their powerful enemies, the Philistines.

For a period of forty years the children of Israel were constantly harassed, and at times completely subjugated, by this cruel and warlike nation. They had mingled with these idolaters, uniting with them in commerce, in pleasure, and even in worship, until they seemed to be identified with them in spirit and interest. Then these professed friends of Israel became their bitterest enemies, and sought by every means to accomplish their destruction.

There is still, as with ancient Israel, a constant tendency among the professed people of God to depart from the Lord's instructions, and to imitate the customs and practices of worldlings. The people of the world have given themselves to the service of Satan; and their hearts are opposed to the religion of Jesus Christ. They may profess to acknowledge him as their Redeemer, but they have the same hostility as did the heathen of old, to that religion which calls for self-denial and self-sacrifice. The spirit of the world to-day is the same that prompted the rejection and crucifixion of the Prince of Life; the same that has consigned his followers to imprisonment, exile, and death. The Christianity which will yield to the influence of the world, and conform itself to their principles and customs, is looked upon with favor by men who are the enemies of God. But when the necessity for holiness of heart and life is presented, then the world feels that its rights are endangered. When the church rebukes fashionable follies, demoralizing amusements, extravagance, and self-indulgence; when Christianity is spiritual, positive, earnest, and aggressive,—then the opposition of the world will be excited.

Our Saviour plainly taught that there could be no harmony between his followers and the world. "Marvel not that the world hate you. Ye know that it hated me before it hated you." The world will love its own. Those who value the things which it values, will enjoy its friendship. It is the spirit of the world that separates us from God. It is the love of those things which he has condemned that brings his displeasure upon us. As in olden times, the Lord still sends his messengers with words of warning and reproof. He makes it our duty to hear, to understand, and to obey. There are evils among the people of God that call for reform. The light of the present age, the experience of the church in ages past, the teachings of the sacred word for this time,—all bid us go forward.

There were still in Israel true-hearted ones whose souls were filled with anguish because of the condition of their people. Their prayers of confession, penitence, and faith, went up without ceasing before God. He was not indifferent to their cries, but while there was apparently no response, his providence was preparing for them help suited to their condition. There was not to be found in all Israel a man through whom the Lord could work for the deliverance of his people. The erroneous education given to children, indulgence of appetite, and conformity to the practices of heathenism, had greatly lessened both physical and moral power.

Godly fathers and mothers looked with gloomy forebodings to the future. Many a mother had secretly cherished the hope that she might give to God and to Israel a son who should deliver his people from the oppressor's power. But as parents saw their children coming up with perverted appetites and uncontrolled passions, the inquiry arose, What will the end be? What part will these youth and children act in the great drama of life? In the hearts of many mothers, hope battled against fear; but in other hearts reigned only discouragement and despair. What could the mother do to avert the threatened evils? How could she train her children for God? How banish the nameless terror which oppressed her soul? "Spare us, O God, spare us!" was the oft-repeated prayer. "Let not thy people perish; let us not see our children a prey of the enemy."

At this time the Lord appeared to the wife of Manoah, an Israelite of the tribe of Dan, and informed her that she should have a son; and

in view of this, he gave her special instruction concerning her own habits, and also for the treatment of her child. "Now therefore, beware, I pray thee, and drink neither wine nor strong drink, and eat not any unclean thing." He also directed that no razor should come upon the head of the child, for he was to be consecrated to God as a Nazarite from his birth, and through him the Lord would begin to deliver Israel from the Philistines.

The woman sought her husband, and after describing the heavenly visitant, she repeated the message of the angel. Then, fearful that they should make some mistake in the important work committed to them, the husband prayed earnestly, "Let the man of God which thou didst send come again unto us, and teach us what we shall do unto the child that shall be born."

In answer to this petition, the angel again appeared, and Manoah's anxious inquiry was, "How shall we order the child, and how shall we do unto him?" The previous instruction was repeated,—"Of all that I said unto the woman, let her beware. She may not eat of anything that cometh of the vine, neither let her drink wine or strong drink, nor eat any unclean thing. All that I command her let her observe."

Manoah and his wife knew not that the One thus addressing them was Jesus Christ. They looked upon him as the Lord's messenger, but whether a prophet or an angel, they were at a loss to determine. Wishing to manifest hospitality toward their guest, they entreated him to remain while they should prepare for him a kid. But in their ignorance of his character, they knew not whether to offer it for a burnt-offering or to place it before him as food.

The angel answered, "Although thou detain me, I will not eat of thy bread; and if thou wilt offer a burnt-offering, thou must offer it unto the Lord." Feeling assured, now, that his visitor was a prophet, Manoah said, "What is thy name, that when thy sayings come to pass we may do thee honor."

The answer was, "Why askest thou after my name, seeing it is secret?" Perceiving the divine character of his guest, Manoah "took a kid, with a meat-offering, and offered it upon a rock unto the Lord; and the angel did wondrously; and Manoah and his wife looked on." Fire came from the rock, and consumed the sacrifice, and as the flame went up toward heaven, "the angel of the Lord ascended in the flame of the altar. And Manoah and his wife looked on it, and fell on their faces to the ground." There could be no further question as to the character of their visitor. They knew that they had looked upon the Holy One, who, veiling his glory in the cloudy pillar, had been the guide and helper of Israel in the desert.

Amazement, awe, and terror filled Manoah's heart, and he could only exclaim, "We shall surely die, because we have seen God!" But his companion in that solemn hour possessed more faith than he. She reminded him that the Lord had been pleased to accept their sacrifice, and had promised them a son who should begin to deliver Israel. This was an evidence of favor instead of wrath. Had the Lord purposed to destroy them, he would not have wrought this miracle, nor given them a promise which, were they to perish, must fail of fulfillment.

The words uttered by the angel convey an important truth. Our Creator himself declares that the mother's habits prior to the birth of her child will affect its character and destiny. In speaking to this one mother, the Lord spoke to all the anxious, sorrowing mothers of that time, and to all the mothers of succeeding generations. Yes, every mother may now understand her duty. She may know that the character of her children will depend vastly more upon her own habits before their birth, and her personal efforts after their birth, than upon external advantages or disadvantages.

If the mother would be a fit teacher for her children, she must form habits of self-denial and self-control before their birth. She imparts to them her own qualities of blood, her own strong or weak traits of character. If her ways are established in God, if she heeds the admonitions which he gives, she will do her part to give right character, right temper, and right appetites, to her offspring.

Said the angel, "Let her beware;" that is, be prepared to resist temptation, and stand firmly at her post. Let principle control her appetites and her passions. Of every mother it may be said, "Let her beware." There is something to shun, a necessity of guarding herself if she would seek eminence for the gift of God in her child. If she is unstable, double-minded, unprincipled, she will in most cases cause the future ruin of her child. Her fixed principles of action, her unbending purpose to adhere to right rules, as the wisdom of God dictates, will give these same traits of character to her child. The Lord has spoken, and his words are not to be disregarded.

The divine command was very explicit, prohibiting the use of the fruit of the vine. Every drop of stimulant taken by the mother as a gratification of the appetite, endangers the physical, mental, and moral health of her offspring, and is a direct sin against her Creator. The accumulated misery and wickedness in our world exists in consequence of disregarding the express commands of God. The restrictions are given by the One who made man, who instituted the laws controlling his physical being, and who knows what is for his good. Dare any disregard the lesson with indifference?

"WAITING FOR THE ADOPTION."

By British Herald

(Rom. 8:23.)

Waiting amid the shadows For the blushing of the dawn, Waiting amid the darkness For the sunlight of the morn: Waiting, because the appointed age Has not told out its years,— Waiting, because a groaning earth Has not wept all its tears.

Toil-worn and very weary,— For the waiting time is long; Leaning upon the promise,— For the Promiser is strong; Waiting, because some straying sheep Are on the mountains still, They must be sought, and found, and saved; It is the Father's will.

Waiting, 'mid cruel taunting From many a scorning foe,— Chilled by the bitter night winds, The lamp of faith burns low; Waiting, because a patient God Is pitiful and kind,— The seeking Shepherd may not leave One halting lamb behind.

Waiting, 'mid angry billows, For the breaking of the light,— Heart-sick, and sad, and fretful, With toiling all the night! Waiting, because the Master stands To watch the rising tide, And He would have us cast the net Upon the other side.

Waiting, while skies still blacken With storm-clouds hanging low, Eyes fail with looking upward To find the emerald bow. Waiting, because the Master's eye Is on the ripening grain, Th' impatient sickle must be stayed, Waiting the "latter rain."

Waiting with hands still busy, Chiding the tears that fall, Stopping sometimes to listen, If haply He should call. Waiting because the mighty stream, Flows on with ceaseless tide; There's room within the palace halls— The open door stands wide.

Beguiling waiting hours, With rapturous thoughts of home. Breathing a yearning whisper, "When will the Master come?"

Hark! get thee to the mountains, There is sound of distant song, The Bridgroom King is coming, For His bride has waited long!

SANCTIFICATION.

IMPORTANT POINTS TOUCHED UPON.

JACOB and Theodore Schoonerhoven were brothers, and strikingly alike in some things; among which, was quick and strong perceptions, which gave them a talent for making money; for honest labor makes property, and shrewd perception takes it.

Jacob and Theodore were strikingly unlike in what philosophers call conscientiousness. The face of each projected over the eyes, like the cornice of a house; but whether they were alike in the higher organs of the brain, where conscience is supposed to dwell, I cannot tell.

Theodore, who was two years the elder often said to his brother, "Come on Jakey, what if mother did forbid it, she will never know it. It is a little thing, and mother is notional." Thus, Jacob by the greater energy of his brother, was often drawn into mischief, for which he lay sleepless and weeping at night, until his pillow was drenched with tears; and he often slipped from his bed in the earliest morning light, to confess faults to his mother, of which she had never heard.

They were educated in the sternest Calvinism. Theodore, who from his peculiar constitution, expected every good thing, and every advantage belonged to him, was rather pleased with the doctrine of election, having a vague, but comforting assurance that he was elected if any body was. Jacob, however, who was constitutionally generous and unselfish, felt that if any body was reprobated, it was most likely to be himself.

When the brothers were sixteen and eighteen, a fatal epidemic prevailed and many were dying. A general awakening occurred, and religious meetings were held night and day. Theodore was frantic with fear, when his confidence in election was shaken by a doctrinal sermon. He screamed aloud in the congregation, and rent the air with cries for mercy, distressed not so much by reflection on particular sins, and on the bearing of such sins on the law and honor of God, and the welfare of men, as by a general idea that he was a sinner, and exposed to hell. The struggle was not long. He was soon rejoicing in an assurance of pardon. Whether he was influenced by constitutional peculiarity, or not, it seemed comparatively easy for Theodore to be satisfied that he was pardoned and accepted. Jacob wore a serious countenance, sometimes wept, yet said but little, and attracted little notice. He was however, pained beyond description by a view of his sins, seen in the light of the divine character and law, as seen in their bearing on human welfare, and most of all, as seen in the light of the divine goodness. When he received the "oil of joy for mourning," he put on "the garment of praise" with great meekness, and quietly adored God, the beauty of whose attributes, character, will, laws, and government, he beheld with new eyes;

he heard the voice of God with new ears, and his melting heart received every divine impression. Every one said, "What a remarkable display of divine power in the conversion of Theodore Schoonerhoven. Jacob is rather thoughtful and may become pious, but Theodore is a perfect Gideon; what a gift in prayer and exhortation, and how he shouts!"

Theodore was foremost everywhere, urged on, flattered, and praised. Everybody knew him. Jacob labored by precept and example, to save men, making no display. Few knew him.

Jacob Schoonerhoven was asked to give his views of "Sanctification."

The interrogator walked him into the altar, and each seated himself in a chair. It was the interval between services, and they were alone.

"It is forty years," said Mr. S., "since my brother Theodore and myself experienced religion. Soon after our conversion, he professed sanctification, and urged me to seek for it. I considered the subject. Theodore after being sanctified, was more forward, more confident, but no more disinterested. He was greedy of gain, shrewd in speculation; taking advantage of his keen perception to amass wealth; having his constitutional selfishness still strong, still binding his judgment, and causing him to think he ought to be favored with all good fortune; men ought to work for him cheap; he ought to receive high wages for public service or mechanical labor; what he sells ought to bring a high price; what he buys ought to be got for little. My brother has never scrupled to buy property at a low price, which he knew was about to rise in value, and to sell at a high price that which was about to fall; he has not scrupled to buy cheap as possible young animals of great promise, from men who knew not their value, and to shift off young animals of no promise, to men who knew not their worthlessness. All this he said was according to law, upheld by public sentiment, and agreeable to his conscience. I considered the subject of sanctification, in the light of loving God with all my heart, and loving my neighbor as myself,—not so much a work of the emotions as of the judgment,—a work not of one moment, but of a life-time; agreement, union, and harmony with God; self lost in humanity; self lost in God; living for the honor of God and for human welfare, at all times, seven days in the week, three hundred and sixty-five days in the year; in all places, at home or abroad; in the sanctuary, at the mill, or at the market; in all business; laboring, buying or selling.

"I went into the woods and prayed for sanctification, when the Lord said: 'Jacob, dost thou love my will, my law, and my government with all thy heart?' I said, I do Lord; and the Lord said: 'Dost thou love thy neighbor as thyself?' I answered, I do Lord. The Lord said: 'Very well, and now Jacob, prove thy word in thy life.'

"I went to my house in a happy frame singing hymns. A week after this I took down a work on military science, and was reading, having a great ambition for martial fame. The Lord said: 'Jacob, remember thy word.' I saw my ambition was self; I dropped the book and never took it up again.

"I had made an arrangement to join a lodge of Masons, and was on my way, riding fast, when the Lord said: 'Jacob, remember thy word.' I saw that my desire to be a Mason was self, I turned and rode home. I had coveted two colts, which I knew would become horses of great value. They were rough and lean, and the owner, not knowing their value would sell them low. I was on my way to buy them. The Lord said: 'Jacob, remember thy word.' I saw I was not loving my neighbor as myself; I went on and said: 'Peter keep your colts, they will make the most valuable horses among all I know.' Peter said, 'I did not think them valuable; but I believe you, for you and your brother know more about horses than any men I ever saw; I would give a thousand dollars for your knowledge. But now Mr. Schoonerhoven, the fact is, I must sell them to save my house and land which is mortgaged.' 'I will lend you the money,' I said, 'to save your house; keep your colts.' He did keep them, and finally sold them for five hundred dollars.

"A man came to me to buy some city lots. I was about to take the price which he offered, when the Lord said: 'Jacob, remember thy word.' I said: Mr. Broderick, I cannot in conscience sell you those lots; that part of the city must fail in a few years. It did fail and I turned those lots into a farm.

"Thus my sanctification went on. These lessons were never forgotten; self was banished from my buying and selling; the quick discernment of the value of property, and the foresight of coming changes, which the Creator had given me, I no more used for my own increase and wealth. It was evident to me that no man could gain wealth by speculation, and yet love his neighbor as himself. I have instructed hundreds of the honest, industrious poor, and kept them from the gins of speculators. My eye was single, my light increased, and my knowledge of right and wrong, of justice and humanity; my perception became keen to understand what was consistent with loving my neighbor as myself, and to understand what it was to do to others as I would be done by.

"One morning I was awakened by the voice of the Lord: 'Jacob, arise, and be sanctified. Remember thy word.' I arose, and coming from my lodging-room, I met a committee of three, informing me for the part which I took in an anti-slavery meeting, I must recant, or come to trial. I remembered my word, stood my trial, and was excluded. To be separated from the church of my early choice tore my heart. The Lord said: 'Jacob, lovest thou me more than these?' I answered: 'Yea, Lord, I love thee more than all.' The cause of temperance long before cost me a similar trial.

"I had from early life set apart all of my income, above the plain support of my family, for charity, and with much prayer sought for the most needy. I had passed a day under the clear impression that a sore trial was coming. At evening I stepped into my barn and cried: 'Speak Lord, for thy servant heareth.'—The Lord said: 'Jacob, art thou ready to be sanctified in the loss of all?' I said; 'Yea Lord, take all. Thou gavest, and, if thou takest all away, blessed be thy name.'

"I answered a rap by stepping to the door. Three fugitive slaves, a mother and two daughters were there. The mother mournfully said: 'Will you send us back?' And the Lord said: 'Jacob, wilt thou obey my laws or the laws of man?' I answered: 'I will obey thy laws, Lord.' 'Come in,' I said. I landed them in Canada. I went to jail, and lost all—house, land, herd, and flock. I have gathered a little by hard work in old age. This little cottage is mine, with a few acres of land. My God is reconciled, my peace is like a river, and my treasure in heaven."

"I believe Brother Schoonerhoven, that you do not profess sanctification. I never heard you speak of it." "I never speak of it," said Jacob; "the word has become a term of reproach. Selfish, willful, proud men make high professions of sanctification. My brother Theodore is often referred to as a model sanctified man. He has amassed a fortune of a hundred thousand dollars by speculation, has always sought popular favor, and civil office; has ever remained pro-slavery, opposed to the Maine law, and has gone with the most profane and debauched political party. The Judge, by whose decision I was stripped of all my possessions, professed sanctification. I deem it my duty to make no noisy profession. We should, however, be sanctified every day, in all our volitions, motives, purposes, and designs; in our affections, in our temper, and spirit, and in all our business transactions. All other sanctification is mere emotion, excitement, and enthusiasm; and is consistent with selfishness, cruel oppression, and grinding the faces of the poor."

Selected.

No One Can Hide from the Judgment

No ONE can hide from the Judgment. A century ago an infidel German countess, dying, gave orders that her grave should be covered with a solid slab of granite; that around it should be placed square blocks of stone, and that the whole should be fastened together by strong iron clamps. On the stone, by her order, these words were cut: "This burial place, purchased to all eternity, must never be opened." Thus she defied the Almighty. But a little seed sprouted under the covering, and the tiny shoot found its way through between two of the slabs, and grew there, slowly and surely, until it burst the clamps asunder, and lifted the immense blocks. No wonder the people of Hanover look at that tree and that opening grave as God's answer to the terrible defiance of the young countess. Certain it is that no one can hide from that universal exposition.—Selected.

A BEAUTIFUL INCIDENT.

By Missionary Moffat

In one of my early journeys I came, with my companions, to a heathen village on the banks of the Orange river. We had traveled far, and were hungry, thirsty, and fatigued; but the people of the village rather roughly directed us to halt at a distance. We asked for water, but they would not supply it. I offered the three or four buttons left on my jacket for a drink of milk, but was refused. We had the prospect of another hungry night, at a distance from water, though within sight of the river. When twilight drew on, a woman approached from the height beyond which the village lay. She bore on her head a bundle of wood, and had a vessel of milk in her hand. The latter, without opening her lips, she handed to us, laid down the wood, and returned to the village. A second time she approached, with a cooking vessel on her head, a leg of mutton in one hand, and water in the other. She

sat down, without saying a word, prepared the fire, and put on the meat. We asked her again and again who she was. She remained silent, until we affectionately entreated her to give a reason for such unlooked-for kindness to strangers. Then the tears rolled down her sable cheeks, and she replied: "I love Him whose you are; and surely it is my duty to give you a cup of cold water in his name. My heart is full, therefore I can't speak the joy I feel at seeing you in this out-of-the-world place." On learning a little of her history, and that she was a solitary light burning in a dark place, I asked her how she kept up the light of God in the entire absence of the communion of saints. She drew from her bosom a copy of the Dutch New Testament, which she had received from Mr. Helm when in his school some years before. "This," said she, "is the fountain whence I drink; this is the oil that makes my lamp burn." I looked on the precious relic, printed by the British and Foreign Bible Society, and the reader may conceive my joy while we mingled our prayers and sympathies together at the throne of the Heavenly Father.—Missionary Moffat.

PEACE PROSPECTS.

ONE of the least pretentious of the anniversary meetings of this year was that of the Universal Peace Association, held at the Rev. Dr. Bellows' Church, in this city. One of the principal speakers, M. Fezandie, from Geneva, Switzerland, expressed the opinion that the resource of deciding international differences by courts of arbitration was assuming a favorable aspect in Europe, and diplomatists, he thought, attached great weight to it. There is undoubtedly a stronger tendency to adjust disputes by negotiation and by arbitration; but the fact remains that the strongest power in Europe to-day is strong because it is a great military power, and has shown the world that it cannot with impunity be meddled with. Protracted wars are less likely to occur now than formerly, for various reasons. One of these is the possibility of rapidly transporting troops. The question still remains, however, whether there is less inclination to engage in hostilities upon moral grounds than formerly. Arbitration is more economical undoubtedly, but in any case in which arbitration should fail, would France, Prussia or England hesitate to engage in war because it is wicked and wasteful? The distinction is worth bearing in mind; because it is one thing for a nation to remain at peace when peace is the best policy, and quite another to decline to resort to arms because it would be wicked. The small wars which are continually occurring, would seem to show that there has been no absolute change of opinion upon the abstract question. Again it is not observable that there has been any falling off in preparations for war. Great sums are annually spent even by bankrupt nations like Austria, in the support of standing armies. No European power has abandoned its military or naval system. A general disarming would show that peoples had a lively faith in arbitration, but of such a pacific demonstration it is not easy to discover any sign. — N. Y. Tribune.

A SENSIBLE VIEW OF IT.

THE alleged philosophic and æsthetic religion preached from certain platforms, while so severely criticising the various established creeds, is not itself without a flaw. What does it give in exchange for the faith it would take away? Does it clearly define anything? Does it tell aught that was unknown before? Is not every high principle it advocates, to be found within the Christian philosophy? Does it give any hope for the future? When its exponents are asked concerning the mysteries of existence, what is their answer?

Words. A polished jargon of words. Words in character brilliant, showy, scientific, and metaphysical, but non-committal.

Is there a personal God? Æsthetic religion says in substance, “Perhaps.” Is there a future state? “Perhaps.” Summed up and simmered down, the entire answer to such questions amounts to this.

The entire scope and limit of æsthetic religion lies in what is termed the “ascendancy of reason.” A narrow domain.

In fact it is another way of endeavoring to make the creature greater than the Creator. It pleases the ear with epigrams wrapped in polished sentences, and explain these by other epigrams equally polished and unintelligible.

Is human salvation to be wrought out by good grammar and clever sayings? Because if the vital truths taught by Christ have, through imperfect human agencies, been misrepresented and misapplied, shall they be ignored? As if because of some stale bread or stale meat, we should utterly refuse all bread and meat.—Sel.

HARD ON BOSTON.

“ONE clergyman testified that he recently exchanged with a brother minister, and although the senior pastor sat only one or two pews removed from the pulpit, and no one was between him and the stranger clergyman, neither this senior pastor nor any one else in the entire congregation spoke to him either before or after the service. They had not been introduced. Another clergyman testified to exactly the same experience in another congregation to which he preached both morning and evening. Another testified that when he came to the church as its pastor, persons who regularly attended the prayer-meeting would pass him in the aisle after the meeting without speaking, because they had not been formally introduced to their new pastor.”—The Golden Rule.

HOW TO MAKE YOURSELF MISERABLE.

IN the first place if you want to make yourself miserable, be selfish. Think all the time of yourself and your things. Don't care about anything else. Have no feeling for any but yourself. Never think of enjoying the satisfaction of seeing others happy; but rather if you see a smiling face, be jealous lest another should enjoy what you cannot. Envy every one who is better off than yourself; think unkindly towards them, and speak lightly of them. Be constantly afraid lest some one should encroach on your rights; be watchful against it, and if any one comes near your things, snap at them like a mad dog. Contend earnestly for everything that is your own; though it may not be worth a pin. Never yield a point. Be very sensitive, and take everything that is said to you in playfulness in the most serious manner. Be jealous of your friends lest they should not think enough of you; and if at any time they should seem to neglect you, put the worst construction upon their conduct.—Living Church.

GOING TO CHURCH

“I HAVE to go to church every Sabbath to keep my Christian life just passable,” said a very earnest believer. “When I omit public worship I feel that my standard of living is lowered.” We never go beyond our ideals. We need to be kept constantly at our best to maintain a high standard. It is said that the secret of Jenny Lind’s success was that she tried to excel on every occasion. When asked once why she sang her most finished pieces before an audience at the South, mostly of colored people, she replied: “I value my art much too highly to degrade it even occasionally by any willful disregard of what I consider due to it.” Without action we grow stagnant or retrograde in things pertaining to morals, as in mental acquirements. It is easy to say we can worship God by reading a good sermon at home. The cares of the household often crowd out the book we meant to read. The spirit of worship promoted by the sanctuary, the rest that the house of God gives, the taking of the mind from every-day duties and surroundings, the inspiration to better living, the influence upon others in keeping the day sacred, all make regular church-going a necessity to those who would keep their Christian hope and life in a condition that shall be a joy to themselves and an inspiration to others.—Congregationalist.

BENEFITS OF RELIGION.

By Hon. J. S. Black

THE Christian religion has come down to us through the ages, attended all the way by righteousness, justice, temperance, mercy, transparent truthfulness, exulting hope, and white-winged charity. Never was its influence for good more plainly perceptible than now. It has not converted, purified, and reformed all men, for its first principle is the freedom of the human will, and there are those who choose to reject it. But to the mass of mankind, directly and indirectly, it has brought uncounted benefits and blessings. Abolish it—take away the restraints which it imposes on evil passions—silence the admonitions of its preachers—let all Christians cease their labors of charity—blot out from history the records of its heroic benevolence—repeal the laws it has enacted and the institutions it has built up—let its moral principles be abandoned, and all its miracles of light be extinguished—what would we come to? I need not answer this question; the experiment has been partially tried. The French nation formally renounced Christianity, denied the existence of the Supreme Being, and so satisfied the hunger of the infidel heart for a time. What followed? Universal depravity, garments rolled in blood, fantastic crimes unimagined before, which startled the earth with their sublime atrocity.—Hon. J. S. Black.

NEVER FORGET ANYTHING.

CHARGE your mind with your duty. That is largely the true definition of faithfulness. But memory and mistakes are used as apologies a great deal oftener than necessary. A boy beginning business life will generally lose his place who pleads such an excuse more than once or twice.

A successful business man says there were two things which he learned when he was eighteen, which were afterwards of great use to him, namely, "Never to lose anything, and never to forget anything." An old lawyer sent him with an important paper, with certain instructions what to do with it.

"But," inquired the young man, "suppose I lose it; what shall I do then?"

The answer was, with the utmost emphasis, "You must not lose it."

"I don't mean to," said the young man, "But suppose I should happen to?"

"But I say you must not happen to! I shall make no provision for any such occurrence. You must not lose it!"

This put a new train of thought into the young man's mind, and he found that if he was determined to do a thing, he could do it. He made such provision against every contingency that he never lost anything. He found this equally true about forgetting. If a certain matter of importance was to be remembered, he pinned it down on his mind, fastened it there, and made it stay.

HILL AND THE ANTINOMIAN.

Rowland Hill had no sympathy with antinomianism. He was visited by one of them one day, who rebuked him for preaching the law so strictly.

"Do you, Sir," asked Rowland, "hold the ten commandments to be a rule of life for Christians?" "Certainly not," replied the visitor. Hill rang the bell, and when the servant made his appearance, he quietly said, "John, show that man to the door, and keep your eye on him until he is beyond reach of every article of wearing apparel or other property in the hall."

EVERY LADDER HAS TWO ENDS.

When a small boy, I was carrying a not very large ladder, when there was a crash. An unlucky movement had brought the rear end of my ladder against a window. Instead of scolding me, my father made me stop, and said very quietly: “Look here, my son, there is one thing I wish you to remember; that is, every ladder has two ends.” I never have forgotten it, though many years have gone. Don’t we carry things besides ladders that have two ends? When I see a young man getting “fast” habits I think he sees only one end of the ladder, the one pointed toward pleasure, and that he does not know that the other is wounding his parents’ hearts. Many a young girl carries a ladder in the shape of a love for dress and finery; she only sees the gratification of a foolish pride at the forward end of that ladder, while the end that she does not see is crushing modesty and friendship as she goes along thoughtlessly among the crowd. Ah! yes, every ladder has two ends, and it is a thing to be remembered in more ways than one.—Sel.

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