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Review and Herald, Vol. 77, No. 42.

GOD THE DEPENDENCE OF HIS PEOPLE

Review and Herald

Oct 16, 1900

Seventh-day Adventist Publishing Association · Battle Creek, Mich. · Oct 16, 1900

GOD THE DEPENDENCE OF HIS PEOPLE.

By Ellen G. White

MRS. E. G. WHITE.
Those who bear the message of mercy to perishing souls must themselves be under the discipline of God. The Lord is waiting to qualify men to carry his word to those that are afar off and to those that are nigh. He speaks to his people, warning them not to corrupt their simplicity and their trust in the Lord by sinking their individuality in any living person. The Lord will teach all who will seek him for wisdom, whatever their calling or profession. “Obey them that have the rule over you,” he says, “and submit yourselves: for they watch for your souls, as they that must give account, that they may do it with joy, and not with grief.” Those who give evidence that they are chosen of God will fulfill these specifications. The soul that is imbued with the Spirit of Christ becomes one with Christ in his deep, unresting love for perishing souls. Christ is formed within, the hope of glory, and he works through the human instrument.
Human beings desire too much power. They desire to control, and the Lord God, the mighty worker, is left out of their work. The workmen feel qualified to hold the highest place. Let no man attempt to manage that work which should be left in the hands of the great I AM, who, in his own way, is planning how the work shall be done. The Lord says to the unfaithful stewards, Stand out of the way, and let the Lord’s voice be heard. He waits not for the human voice to be heard before he works by his might and power. The message of the third angel will be proclaimed, and those who do not advance with it in knowledge and consecration will be left behind. God is the instructor of his servants, and he speaks through whom he will.
At the taking of Jericho the mighty General of armies planned the battle in such simplicity that no human being could take the glory to himself. No human hand must cast down the walls of the city, lest man should take to himself the glory of the victory. So to-day no human being is to take to himself glory for the work he accomplishes. The Lord alone is to be magnified. Oh that men would see the necessity of looking to God for their orders! The Holy Spirit will descend, and take up his abode in the heart of the sincere suppliant as he comes to the footstool of mercy. We are encouraged to come boldly to the throne of grace, believing that God hears and answers prayer. We have a great High Priest, who is passed into the heavens, Jesus, the Son of God. His promise to the children of men is, “I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter, that he may abide with you forever.” His dwelling-place is in every locality where men are seeking with honest hearts to do his work. “The glory which thou gavest me I have given them,” Christ prayed; “that they may be one, even as we are one. I in them, and thou in me, that they may be made perfect in one; and that the world may know that thou hast sent me, and hast loved them, as thou hast loved me.”
The world’s Redeemer worked in dependence upon the Father. “I came down from heaven,” he said, “not to do mine own will, but the will of him that sent me.” “Believest thou not that I am in the Father, and the Father in me? The words that I speak unto you I speak not of myself; but the Father that dwelleth in me, he doeth the works. Believe me that I am in the Father, and the Father in me: or else believe me for the very works’ sake.” “My meat is to do the will of him that sent me, and to finish his work.”
The eternal Father is waiting for us to take our eyes off finite man, and place our dependence on him. Then look not to man for your light and strength. Put not your trust in the arm of flesh. All your love and praise and exaltation are to be given to him who loved you and gave himself for you. Strive to be one with Christ as he was one with the Father; but in no case exalt man, not even the ablest speaker that ever lived. Lift up Jesus. Talk of him, extol his name, and by so doing your own hearts will be warmed and encouraged and strengthened. As the believer studies the word and beholds Christ, he will become more and more like Christ. Searching the Scriptures, he will learn of Christ, whom to know aright is life eternal.
The office work of the minister is not to attract people to himself. Christ declares, “Without me ye can do nothing.” Then to whom do all your words of praise belong? Not to man. He may have talent and ability, but these are only lent him by God. He is not to take the place of the great power of God, for at best he is only God’s instrumentality; God does his work through him. John the Baptist declared of himself that he was not that Light, but that he came to bear witness of the Light. To that Light he was ever pointing. His voice proclaimed, “Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world.” Let the minister of Christ direct every word of praise away from self; put self out of sight, and never feel that his work is well done until the mind’s eye can see only Jesus, the crucified One.
Self-esteem and self-love are eating out the vitals of true godliness in the church. Many whose names are on the church books are not truly converted. They do not realize the necessity of having a personal connection with Christ. The heart that has not fallen on the Rock, Christ Jesus, is proud of its wholeness. Men desire a dignified religion; they would walk in a path wide enough to take in their own attributes. Their self-love, their love of praise, excludes the precious Saviour from the heart; for God can not accept any heart that is not wholly his.
How many there are who are ignorant of what it means to be a child of God, an heir of heaven! They have a sneer on their countenances, and in their hearts, for the simplicity of true godliness. They suppose that they have advanced beyond such weakness. To such the preaching of the cross is foolishness. They have no experience in it. It is unintelligible to them. They are wise in their own conceits, and know not that they are “wretched, and miserable, and poor, and blind, and naked.” The True Witness says to them, “I counsel thee to buy of me gold tried in the fire, that thou mayest be rich; and white raiment, that thou mayest be clothed, and that the shame of thy nakedness do not appear; and anoint thine eyes with eyesalve, that thou mayest see.” To those who think that they have so great knowledge that they do not need to learn anything, God says, “I will bring to naught the understanding of the prudent.” Those who are full of self-conceit, and think themselves wise should read the words of Inspiration through the apostle Paul: “Whereis the wise? where is the scribe? where is the disputer of this world? hath not God made foolish the wisdom of this world? For after that in the wisdom of God the world by wisdom knew not God, it pleased God by the foolishness of preaching to save them that believe. . . . Because the foolishness of God is wiser than men; and the weakness of God is stronger than men. For ye see your calling, brethren, how that not many wise men after the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble, are called: but God hath chosen the foolish things of the world to confound the wise; and God hath chosen the weak things of the world to confound the things which are mighty; and base things of the world, and things which are despised, hath God chosen, yea, and things which are not, to bring to naught things that are: that no flesh should glory in his presence. But of him are ye in Christ Jesus, who of God is made unto us wisdom, and righteousness, and sanctification, and redemption: that, according as it is written, He that glorieth, let him glory in the Lord.”
The Lord’s ways are not man’s ways. Our minds are often attracted to the great deeds of men; but who is it that gives to any man the capability to do? Is it not the divine Teacher? And should not all praise and honor flow back to him? Just as long as the praise of man is in your mind and on your lips, you place him where God should be. You are weak in moral power, and every time you utter one word of praise of man you become the agent of Satan to destroy. Let heaven register the praises of men. It is not safe for you to do it.
The words of the psalmist, “O God, thou hast taught me from my youth,” may be true of every soul. God delights to teach those who will learn of him. The entrance of his word gives light and understanding to the simple. To all who will open their minds to comprehend the precious truths of his word, God will give knowledge that will make them wise unto salvation. We are to strike a keynote that will vibrate to every soul, and bring joy to the heavenly intelligences. Presenting the cross of Calvary, we are to cry, “Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world.” When we shall cease to trust in man, and shall make God our efficiency, we shall see the earth filled with the glory of the Lord as the waters cover the sea.

TROUBLES THAT DO NOT COME.

By Lettie S. Bigelow

Of the hard and weary loads ’Neath which we bend and fall, The troubles that do not come Are the heaviest ones of all.
For grief that cuts like a knife There’s oil of comfort and cure, And the Hand which binds the weight Brings strength and grace to endure.
But to phantoms of pain and woe The lips of pity are dumb, And there’s never oil or wine For troubles that do not come.
There’s a song to lighten the toil, And a staff for climbing the height, But never an alpenstock For the hills that are out of sight.
There are bitter herbs enough In the brimming cup of to-day, Without the sprig of rue From to-morrow’s unknown way.
Then take the meal that is spread, And go with a song on thy way, And let not the morrow shade The sunshine and joy of to-day.
— Lettie S. Bigelow, in Zion’s Herald.

HATRED OF SATAN TO CREATIVE POWER.

By W. S. Ritchie

W. S. RITCHIE.
(Darrowville, Ohio.)
All through the history of the controversy between evil and good the enmity of Satan has been especially directed against everything that reveals the creative power of God. For instance, when Moses threw down his rod before Pharaoh,—it became a serpent, in token of the character and power of the One who had sent him. Satan, alarmed lest the source of creative power should be discerned, immediately counterfeited the miracle, that he might bring doubt into the minds of those present.
The healing of the lame man by Peter and John at the Beautiful gate, excited the anger of Satan, because it revealed a power that was able to take the captive from his own cruel grasp. When Lazarus was raised from the dead, Satan’s wrath was aroused to such an extent that he sought to put not only Jesus but Lazarus also to death. This was because the latter’s presence was ample proof that a power existed which was able to undo Satan’s greatest triumph — death. He also sought to kill Paul for preaching the resurrection of the dead.
No wonder that Satan hates everything that reveals the goodness shown in the wonderful power of God to create. If man once knows the secret of it, he escapes like a bird from the snare of the fowler.
The most desperate efforts of the enemy will be put forth to keep this knowledge from us. He will imitate the healing of the sick, conversion, and everything that reveals God’s power to save. And the Sabbath, which was made for the express purpose of pointing us to this creative power, will be hated, and opposed to the utmost by every device that a great and fallen angel can invent. Our only safety, therefore, is in the Lord Jesus, to whom all power is given, both in heaven and in earth.

IS THE BLOOD UPON THE LINTEL?

By Mrs. M. D. Mc Kee

MRS. M. D. Mc KEE.
(Battle Creek, Mich.)
“For the Lord will pass through to smite the Egyptians; and when he seeth the blood upon the lintel, and on the two side-posts, the Lord will pass over the door, and will not suffer the destroyer to come in unto your houses to smite you.” Ex. 12: 23.
When the man with the writer’s inkhorn was told to go through the city and set a mark on the righteous, the Scripture tells us (Ezekiel 9) that the Lord said to the destroying angels: “Go ye after him through the city, and smite; let not your eye spare, neither have ye pity. Slay utterly old and young, both maids, and little children, and women: but come not near any man on whom is the mark.”
These solemn scriptures should impress all parents with the responsibility of knowing that all is well within their homes. Is the blood on the door-post of your own heart, and the hearts of your children? Has the cleansing power of the precious blood of Christ marked your children for eternal life? or will the destroying angel, when he passes through your city or town, see no mark to turn aside his avenging hand?
O parents, work and pray for your own households. See to it that Christ shall find an entrance into the hearts and lives of your children, and that they, by faith in the atoning blood of Christ, our Saviour, may thus be found when the destroyer comes; that he may pass over your dwellings, and no soul be slain. The message is turning the hearts of the parents to their children, and the children to their parents. Mal. 4: 6. Then if we heed this message, we shall both save ourselves and them that hear us. 1 Tim. 4: 15, 16.
Love in the hearts of parents will draw their children; and confession of harshness or injustice in authority, or of unchristian example in dress, eating, drinking, and other things, will soften the hardest hearts. Our children see our faults. Let us confess them (James 5: 16), and let the spirit of true repentance come in and move us to action.
There are parents who, in anguish of spirit, plead for the salvation of their children. Oh that God would roll this burden upon every parent’s heart! Time is short, and work must be done before night falls. At midnight the destroying angel did his work. Preparation for safety had to be made before the night fell. The Scripture says that when the children of ancient Israel asked what was meant by the service of blood on the dwellings, the parents explained to them its meaning, thus conveying to them a personal sense of the saving power of the blood which was, by faith, a type of the blood of Christ.
A story is told, descriptive of the time referred to in Ex. 12: 21–28, portraying the reality of the service, and its valuable lessons. The firstborn of Jewish parents, the pride of her father’s heart, the joy of his life, lay dangerously ill. It was Passover night, and the child was anxious to know if the blood was on the door-post. “Is it there, father?” she asked. “Yes, yes, my child, do not worry,” he replied. Tossing feverishly on her bed, she repeated her query. The answer was quietly and affirmatively given. The hour of midnight approached. Suddenly the child sprang up, and wildly clasping her arms about her father’s neck, cried out, “O father, do you know the blood is there? Take me in your arms, and let me see it on the door-post.” To quiet the anxious fears of his child, he carried her to the door to see the mark on his dwelling—when, lo! it was not there! He had left it to be done by other hands—and some one had forgotten: the sign of security had not been placed on his house. Horror-stricken, he hastened to slay a lamb, and with his own hand the blood was applied. The midnight hour passed by, and morning broke upon a saved and happy household. The child was well.
While this story teaches that even near the midnight hour the work may be done, it is better to work while the day lasts, and know, before earth’s dark night of final doom shall fall, that all is well within our homes.
The most important lesson of the story is that parents themselves should do the work of leading their children to Christ, and of teaching them the solemn importance of our precious truth. Let this be the motto of every parent, “As for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.” Then the children will be anxious to know for themselves that the blood is there, that they are ready for the time of trouble, and for final acceptance when Jesus comes. The work of salvation begins with the applied blood to the individual soul; and as “parents stand in the place of God to their children,” they should see to it that the saving blood of the slain Sacrifice is made sure to these little ones of the flock.
Work! work! live for souls about you. The day of God hasteth, and hasteth greatly. When the hearts of parents, filled with the love of Christ, are turned toward their children, the destroying angel will not smite; but angels of light and glory will soon gather all such families into the kingdom, to go no more out forever.

SOME BETTER THING.

By F. D. Starr

F. D. STARR.
The way I choose may not be best; If so, he will my steps arrest, And turn my feet, because that he Some better thing provides for me.
The path I took was filled with snares Designed to take me unawares; I knew it not, but he could see, And better things provided me.
Prophets and kings desired of old The Saviour’s coming to behold: This rapturous sight they did not see; God has provided this for me.
If human friendship should devise For me some favor, gift, or prize, The plan may fail—frustrated be: Some better thing he has for me.
There’s nothing ever could transpire That I could possibly desire, But that it far excelled shall be By what God has provided me.

Righteousness Freely Given to Every Thirsting Soul

“Not by painful struggles or wearisome toil, not by gift or sacrifice, is righteousness obtained, but it is freely given to every soul who hungers and thirsts to receive it. ‘Ho, everyone that thirsteth, come ye to the waters, and he that hath no money: come ye, buy, and eat.’ . . . ‘Their righteousness is of me, saith the Lord,’ and, ‘This is his name, . . . The Lord our Righteousness.’”

THE SABBATH-SCHOOL WORK

By Alonzo T. Jones

A. T. JONES.
Now I turn to the other consequence. You could not live at all to-day except for the sacrifice made by the Lord Jesus. But there is more to this text. Therefore let us read two verses together, in the fifth chapter of Romans: “By one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin.” “Therefore as by the offense of one judgment came upon all men to condemnation; even so by the righteousness of one the free gift came upon all men unto justification of life.” The thought is: By one man sin came; and therefore by one Man righteousness must come: by one man death came; therefore by one Man life must come. And as certainly as I became an heir of sin by that one man at the beginning, so certainly I must become an heir of righteousness by that one Man who hath appeared “in these last days.” As I became subject to death, possessed by death, by the sin of that one man at the beginning of the world, so I must become heir of life, and possessed of life, by that other one Man “in these last times.”
There is no hope of righteousness to any soul except by that one Man,—thank the Lord,—the last Adam. True, he is the second Adam; but the Scripture calls him “the last Adam,” and that is better; for, if it had been only “the second Adam,” there might have been a chance for the suggestion, “There may be a third Adam, and that will give me another chance.” But that will never do: there will be no third Adam. The last Adam who can ever come has come. And whosoever shall not be delivered by that last Adam is forever lost. “There is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved.” The first Adam sinned; and by him we became heirs of sin. The last Adam sinned not; and therefore by becoming heirs of him, we become heirs of sinning NOT. The first Adam brought death to us all; and the second Adam, by not sinning, brought life to us all. And do not forget that he is the LAST ADAM.
Thus you can see that life and righteousness must come from one source, precisely as death and sin came from one source. And that source must be not myself. Neither sin nor death entered the world by me, but by that one man. There is the means, though not the source. The source, of course, is in the one who stood back of the man, and persuaded him to go that way; that is, Satan. So Satan is really the cause of sin and death, while that one man is the channel through which he plunged this upon the world. On the other hand, God alone is the source of life and righteousness; and that one man, Christ Jesus,—the last Adam,—is the channel through whom life and righteousness are poured upon the world, in abundance, even to “all the fullness of God.” Therefore you can see that just as certainly as, to find the source of sin and death, we must look beyond ourselves. And as, to find the source of sin and death in this world, we must look to Satan through the first Adam; so, to find the source of life and righteousness, in this world and in the next, we must look to God through the last Adam, always, always, always.
Look at it on the other side again—on the side of sin. How many sins have appeared in your life that were not there the day that you were born? Is that saying too much? Have you and I accumulated something new, brought something new into the world, in the way of sin, that was not there before we were?—No. All that has ever appeared in you and me is what was in you and in me before it appeared; and it matters not how long in our lives it was before that thing appeared—it was there. True, it was latent; but it was there. But I need not argue upon that: I simply wish to draw your attention afresh to the reality of it, so that each can bring it home personally to himself, that there never has been anything in your life, or in mine, in the way of sin, that was not in us when we were born, and that did not come to us from the first Adam, who brought sin into the world.
But the time came, thank the Lord, when you and I were born again. And remember we are to be born “from above;” born of God; the children of the last Adam; for he, the Child that was born to us, is “The everlasting Father” as well as “The Prince of Peace.”
Then there is a second Father, the last Adam. And since you and I were born again, born from above, created of God in Christ Jesus new creatures, there never has appeared in our lives anything good, and there never can appear anything good, that was not there the day we were born again, and that does not come from him who caused us to be born again.
Then, as certainly as the first Adam is the source of all the sin that ever appeared in us, the last Adam is the source of all the righteousness that ever can appear in us. Therefore, there comes the next verse in the fifth chapter of Romans, the nineteenth verse: “For as by one man’s disobedience many were made sinners, so by the OBEDIENCE OF ONE shall many be made righteous.” Just so. As by that one man’s disobedience you and I were made sinners, so by that other one Man’s obedience you and I are made righteous. No man was ever made righteous by his own doing. You and I were not made subject to sin, not made heirs to sin, by our own sinning; it was in us before we had time to sin. That which appeared in us was what was in us—even the leading thing in us; and that is the truth forever. Never will anything appear in you but that which was in you before—and it the leading thing in you.
So then, since Jesus is the source of all righteousness, his obedience is that which makes us righteous. Therefore we read on now, in the third chapter of Romans, as to Jews and Gentiles, that they are all under sin, and all subject to sin. Nineteenth verse: “Now we know that what things soever the law saith, it saith to them who are under the law:” so that they shall know what sin is; for “by the law is the knowledge of sin,” “that every mouth may be stopped, and all the world may become guilty before God.” Not to make men guilty,—the law never came to make men guilty,—but to show to men that they are guilty. Neither the law nor anything that is connected with it, is sent to make men guilty; but that men may see that they are guilty,—that they may see where they are, what their condition is,—that they are lost, and need to be saved.
It is not straight; it is not fair; it is not a true presentation, nor representation, of things, to say to persons who are yet sinners, that they “will be lost.” They ARE LOST. They do not realize it; they do not believe it; but it is the truth. God wishes them to find out that it is so, that they may be saved; for “Jesus came to seek and to save”—what? That which might be lost?—No, sir; but to seek and to save “that which was lost.” Listen again: “If our gospel be hid, it is hid to them that ARE LOST.” 2 Cor. 4:3. Then he to whom the gospel, in its power, in its saving grace, is hidden is lost.
“If our gospel be hid, it is hid to them that are lost: in whom the god of this world hath blinded the minds of them which believe not, lest the light of the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine unto them.” Verses 3, 4. And it is the bounden determination of the god of this world to keep men so blinded that the light of the gospel may never reach them; while it is the longing purpose of God that the knowledge of his law may reach all men, that they may know, in the light of it, that they ARE LOST; and that there also shines the light of the glorious gospel of Christ that they may be saved; and by it, when they believe, they ARE saved. Thus “the law entered that the offense might abound; but where sin abounded, grace did much more abound: that as sin hath reigned unto death, even so might grace reign through righteousness unto eternal life by Jesus Christ our Lord.”
“Therefore by the deeds of the law there shall no flesh be justified in his sight: for by the law is the knowledge of sin. But now the righteousness of God without the law is manifested, being witnessed by the law and the prophets; even the righteousness of God which is by faith of Jesus Christ unto all and upon all them that believe: for there is no difference.” Rom. 3: 20–22.
Who are those that are lost?—They are those “in whom the god of this world hath blinded the minds of them which believe not.” The lost ones are those who believe not. The saved ones are the ones who believe in Jesus Christ the Saviour. So then, “all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God;” but “all them that believe” are “justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus; whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation through faith in his blood, to declare his righteousness [God’s righteousness] for the remission of sins that are past, through the forbearance of God; to declare, I say, at this time his righteousness [God’s righteousness]: that he might be just, and the justifier of him which believeth in Jesus.” Rom. 3: 22–24.
Now notice how continuous that is: men are justified by faith; saved by the righteousness of God, “without the law.” It is true forever, to all people, in every moment of the life of anyone who believes in Jesus. Listen: “NOW the righteousness of God without the law is manifested.” Is that word “now” thrown in there merely as a catchword, as we sometimes use the word “now”?—No. That is not the way the Scripture uses words. That word “now” is used in this place because it means just now—at this present time. This is made emphatic in the twenty-fifth verse: “To declare, I say, AT THIS TIME his righteousness.” Put the two verses together: “NOW the righteousness of God without the law is manifested . . . to declare, I say, AT THIS TIME his righteousness: that he mightbe just, and the justifier of him which believeth in Jesus.”
So, then, you see that that “now” is an everlasting word. It was “now” when Paul wrote it; it was “now” when Luther believed it and preached it; it is “now” yet. Nobody can ever get away from that “now.” “Now”—“at this time”—it is that the righteousness of God without the law is manifested. So no righteousness can ever come to anybody in this world, by any person, or by any means, but by Jesus Christ; and that, as the free gift of God.
And as life must come from the same source as does righteousness, and this must be life that stands over against the death that lasts forever, so it must be a life that stands forever. And so it is written: “The wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life, through Jesus Christ our Lord.”
And since it is only righteousness that goes with life,—and this life is eternal life,—it is only eternal righteousness that can ever go with eternal life. And since eternal life must come from God to me, or I shall never have life that is life indeed; and since I must have eternal righteousness in order to have eternal life,—it follows only that eternal righteousness must come from God to me, or I shall never have either righteousness that is righteousness indeed or life that is life indeed.

Sowing for Physical and Spiritual Health

By David Paulson; W. S. Sadler

David Paulson & W. S. Sadler

FRUIT IN HEALTH AND DISEASE.

(Continued.)

EFFECT ON THE KIDNEYS.

Frequently in disease, and even in apparent good health, when a person is partaking freely of flesh foods, tea, coffee, etc., the blood becomes very acid. Because of this the blood can not freely dissolve and carry off the uric acid and other poisons in the system. Thus the foundation for rheumatism and other ills is laid. Then various alkalies are generally prescribed, with the idea of assisting the blood to carry off the uric acid. Fruits are usually forbidden under such circumstances, owing to the erroneous idea that their acids would tend to increase the acidity of the blood. This is, however, a mistake; as the acids of fruits combine with the neutral salts that are stored away in the tissues, and so alkaline salts are formed, which tend to increase the alkalinity of the blood. The result of the liberal use of fruit for twenty-four hours will be to increase the alkalinity of the blood, and to increase the activity of the kidneys, without crippling them, as do some of the irritating drugs that are often used under such circumstances.

FRUIT AS A LAXATIVE.

Fruit is a natural laxative, while drugs are artificial. The use of fruit tends to correct the diseased condition, while the use of drugs only aggravates it, as is clearly indicated by the larger and larger doses that are continually required. The longer a natural stimulant is used on any portion of the body, the better the effects; while the longer an artificial stimulant is used, the less the effect. The more frequently a cold spray or cold bath is taken, the greater becomes the power of reaction; while the longer such a tonic drug as strychnine is used, the larger the dose must be in order to secure the same result.
The laxative effect of fruit is due to the cellulose and the acids that it contains. The cellulose in fruit is the mechanical agent that promotes peristaltic movement, while the normal fruit acids are physiological stimulants in the same sense that dry foods promote the secretion of saliva. To secure the best laxative effect from fruit, it ought to be taken on an empty stomach, because the presence of other foods will tend to lessen its effects. In aggravated cases it is well to give the patient nothing but fruit, four times a day, and for several days in succession. Such fruit as figs, apples, and oranges are particularly useful for this purpose.
Fruit also stimulates the production and flow of the digestive juices. The dextrin of fruit is a stimulant to the gastric juice, and some fruits stimulate the flow of saliva.

THE SWEETEST AND BEST PORTION JUST BENEATH THE SKIN.

The sweetest part of the potato, the most concentrated flavor of the apple and plum, in fact, the most nutritious portion of any fruit, is found just beneath the skin, while in the skin itself is found the bitter flavor. And as just beneath the bitterness that lies in the rind of the fruit are to be found the sweetest, and oftentimes the most nutritious, portions, so, in the varied experiences of the Christian life, the soul that is willing to perseveringly hold fast to truth and principle in the hour of bitter disappointments is the soul that finds, immediately following this moral bitterness, many of the sweetest experiences and grandest lessons in the Christian warfare.

THE USE OF FRUIT IN DISEASE.

In diseased conditions the power of digestion is, in most cases, seriously interfered with. At the same time, in such abnormal conditions as fever the system really needs nourishment to replace the tissue change that is rapidly taking place. This is why the invalid almost instinctively craves fruit; for in it the starch has already been converted into sugar, so that it is ready for absorption without any particular digestive activity on the part of the disabled digestive organs. Very often, however, in such cases, fruit is withheld, when, in almost all diseased conditions, carefully selected fruit could have nothing but a beneficial effect.

AUTO-INTOXICATION, OR SELF-POISONING.

The recent researches of Dr. Bouchard and other faithful investigators in reference to body poisons, have clearly shown that the toxic substances that are manufactured within the individual himself are the underlying cause of a large number of the maladies from which the human race is suffering. Man is, in reality, a laboratory of poisons, which continually threaten to submerge him; and he would certainly die within a short time were it not for the various eliminative organs that are continually draining off these products, a portion of which is the result of tissue breakdown.
It seems to be a law of nature that the substances eliminated from the body shall be poison to the person in whom they are produced. Anything that produces these toxic substances, or interferes with their elimination, is certain to produce serious conditions in the human body in a comparatively short time, and nothing is more certain than that the average mode of living,—reluctance to take sufficient exercise, living in poorly ventilated rooms, etc.,—is favorable to the accumulation of poisons within the system.

THE STOMACH THE HEADQUARTERS FOR AUTO-INTOXICATION.

A large share of diseases, naturally, have their headquarters in the stomach. Auto-intoxication centers largely around the stomach and intestines. Starches and sugars, if allowed to remain too long in the stomach, ferment; and by this fermentation, acids are formed—butyric, lactic, and acetic. The first is found in butter. Lactic acid is that which is formed in the souring of milk; acetic acid gives vinegar its sour taste. During the formation of these acids, various gases are also produced. Suchconditions set up local symptoms, which call special attention to the stomach; and there is no difficulty in convincing the patient that he is suffering with digestive disturbances.
Yet the fermentation of starches and sugars does not begin to compare, in point of danger, with that of proteid decomposition. When meats decay, they do not form acids, but alkalies. There are no gases, sour tastes, nor heartburn; for these intensely poisonous substances are nearly all tasteless; but as a result, the patient has headache and lassitude, and thinks that he is overworked, when in reality he has only overworked and poisoned his stomach. Under such conditions the foundation is being laid for serious trouble; yet it is almost impossible to persuade such a patient that he is suffering from any digestive disturbance. In fact, such invalids often argue that a flesh diet agrees with them much better than a diet of fruit and grains. This is natural enough; because a condition of the stomach that will allow meat to putrefy, even though the patient is not aware of it, would certainly allow the starchy foods to ferment. And in the latter case, the patient would be painfully aware of the fact, and, perhaps, would take steps to rectify it; while in the former case, he can scarcely be convinced that he has indigestion. So meat as well as wine is a mocker.

THE USE OF FRUIT IN AUTO-INTOXICATION.

The acid fermentation of starches and sugars will produce local symptoms in the stomach. The decomposition of meats, etc., will produce biliousness, sickheadache, nervousness, and other symptoms of general constitutional disturbances. In either case, if the usual food is entirely withheld, and the patient allowed to eat all the fruit he desires four times a day, in a few days the terrible coating on the tongue will have disappeared; the distressing symptoms will have been largely modified; and the germs that were producing the mischief will have been starved out, as they do not thrive well on fruit. Then the patient can begin gradually to use well-toasted bread and grain preparations, and, little by little, adopt a more liberal dietary. Those who have seen the almost magical result of fruit diet on such a patient have become convinced that fruit is one of God’s great gifts to man.
Infection of the alimentary canal beyond the stomach manifests itself in various ways—in diarrhea, cholera morbus, cholera infantum, summer complaint, intestinal catarrh, and dysentery. In all these conditions a large amount of absorption is taking place from the alimentary canal, and is poisoning the patient. While in the acute stage, the patient should take vigorous hot enemas, and should be allowed to eat freely of good, ripe fruit. External treatments, in the way of hot trunk packs, will tend to allay the irritation. Moderate doses of such substances as bismuth, which is not absorbed, but which tends to lessen the internal irritation of the bowels, is often found valuable. Doses of from fifteen to twenty-five grains may be administered with advantage every few hours.
Fruit is the most valuable intestinal antiseptic that can be used, not because of any direct power it has to kill germs, but because it furnishes material upon which the microbes which ordinarily inhabit the alimentary canal do not readily flourish. At the same time there are a few other additional substances, which, in many cases, can be used to advantage. Vegetable charcoal, thoroughly ground, has been found by long experience to be valuable as an intestinal disinfectant. The same is true of sulphur. In fact, in many cases sulphur and charcoal are a valuable combination, and may be used to advantage to assist the fruit. The great objection to many of the drugs that have ability to kill germs is that they also have a tendency to kill the man. It is far safer to live upon a pure, simple diet, and take plenty of exercise in the open air; for nature will then soon rally and perform her work without artificial aids.
Copyrighted, 1900, by David Paulson and W. S. Sadler.
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