IN Banza Manteke, Central Africa, no converts had been won to Christ, tho a missionary had preached to the people patiently for seven years. He had proved that they were sinners and deserved death, and that God was good. The people acknowledged all he said and their interest was growing, but they were not ready to give up their evil habits. At last in translating to them the Gospel of Luke, Mr. Richards came to the story of the crucifixion. As he told of the wisdom, and power, and love of Jesus, and of His kindness to sinful and suffering men, and described His death on the cross between two thieves, he said: “Jesus, the Son of God, died there for your sins and mine. Now He asks us to receive Him as13our Lord and Saviour.” This made a deep impression on the African minds, and not long after the missionary heard Lutale, his translator, singing: “I do believe that Jesus has taken away my sins; I do believe that He has saved me.” As he sang, his dark-skinned face lighted up with joy, and from that day he began to tell others what Christ had done for him and was ready to do for them.
The cross is the emblem of Christianity. The death of Christ for sinners is the central, unique fact of the Gospel. Other religions tell of divine incarnations, of noble examples and exalted teachings, and even of heroic martyrdoms for faith, but no other tells of God Himself paying the penalty for man’s sins and thereby opening to him the way of life and peace and power. This is the heart of the Gospel—the love of God in giving Himself for the salvation of men. It is not the Gospel to righteous men; but to sinners who feel their need it is indeed good news.
And what this Gospel means to us it may mean to the whole world. Christ was to be lifted up to draw all men unto Him (John 12:32); He is the propitiation for our sins: and not for ours only, but also the sins of the whole world (John 1:29; 1 John 2:2; 2 Cor. 5:15, 19; 1 Tim. 2:6). Christ’s death has made life possible for all men. What is our responsibility? Eze. 33:8, 9.
Send It.
"SEND the Gospel of salvation
To a world of dying men;
Tell it out to every nation,
Till the Lord shall come again."
The Grand Old Book of God
By James D. Dana
THE grand old Book of God still stands; and this old earth, the more its leaves are turned over and pondered, the more it will sustain and illustrate the sacred word.—James D. Dana.
How One Found the Truth
By Editor
From Our Correspondents.
ONE earnest Christian writes: “I am not a member of your Bible Band, but I would like to suggest to you to ask the members of the band what verse in the first five books gave them the most comfort.” She evidently follows the Band, for she writes: “Deut. 33:27 was of most blessed help to me. I have read the Bible thru as many as twenty times and I do not want any of the New Theology.”
Another writes: “I have been attending meetings for about two weeks in Redlands. Have been trying to be a Christian for about ten years, but had about concluded that the Bible was of little worth. I see it all differently now, since it was so clearly explained to me by Brethren Whitehead and Hare. I asked the Lord to show me the way, and He has done so. I kept the Sabbath for the first time last week and the Lord wonderfully blessed me. Praise His glorious name.”
How One Found the Truth.
A brother writes us: “I feel to rejoice and give thanks to God for what the great Threefold Message has done for me and my wife. Last year when on our way to the theater we saw a large tent, where a meeting was almost over. When we came along the speaker, the late Wm. Simpson, gave a pressing invitation to about 1,500 people to come back the next night. The subject he announced interested me, so I collected a goodly number of my neighbors together to hear why Satan was not destroyed in the beginning. We were members of the Catholic Church; my wife was very devout, and I thought there was very little truth except in the church of which we were members. A few weeks later I noticed that he was going to speak on Daniel and the Revelation, so I gathered my good Protestant friends together again and we went to the meeting and took a front seat, and as he explained the visions of Daniel we were intensely interested. He invited me back again, so I went with my wife for fifty-two evenings. I then made up my mind that I could not let the church do my thinking any longer. I saw how clearly God’s word had pointed out the apostasy and its developments, and rejoice that I have found something better than going to the theater, using tobacco, and playing games. I praise God that there is power in His word to change me. So I would plead with my Catholic friends, Study the Bible, as each one of us is responsible for his own salvation; each one of us must give account of himself to God. I to-day rejoice that I have heard the books of Daniel and the Revelation explained.”
An old pilgrim in the Christian way writes: “I must testify to the truth. Since I became a member of the Bible Band I have gained more light by the reading and study of the Bible than I had in twenty years of my past life. Two articles were of special help to me,—one on the ‘Outpouring of the Spirit,’ on page 8; and one, ‘Bound by the Law,’ on page 9,—Christ sets us free, was made so plain that an infant could almost understand it. While the Lord sees fit to spare me to journey on toward three score years, I hope to enjoy the privilege of journeying toward that beautiful city, the New Jerusalem, the home of every one who endures to the end.”
Bible Band Member, No. 234.
Our Work and Workers.
By Editor
AT a general meeting at Tunesassa, N. Y., seven candidates were baptized June 10.
TEN new members have been added to the church at Brenham, Texas, thru the labors of Brethren C. W. and B. E. Miller.
ON Sunday, June 3, Brother W. H. Randle baptized four candidates at Jack’s River, Jamaica. Eight others were baptized by him June 17.
AT Sugar Run, Pa., where Brother E. W. Durkee has been laboring for some months, eleven have accepted present truth, eight being baptized May 21.
FIFTEEN responded to a call for those who desired baptism in the church at Mankato, Minn., at a recent Sabbath meeting. Twelve of these are young people.
SISTER E. E. PARLIN, a Bible worker in San Francisco, reports that eight of her readers have accepted the truth and are keeping the commandments of God.
WALLA WALLA COLLEGE (Wash.) closed a successful year’s work May 17. The president of the college, Prof. M. E. Cady, delivered the address to the class, which numbered twenty-one.
“SABBATH, June 6, the Lord was very near in all the services of the day. Eleven good souls were baptized at the close of the morning service,” says Elder G. W. Anglebarger, of Denver, Colo.
REPORT has been received of a lecture on “What Do These Things Mean?” by Brother Henry Wm. Rose, at Minneapolis, Minn., May 2, before a large audience. Animated criticism and discussion were provoked by the lecture.
BRETHREN E. J. DRYER and E. C. Townsend write from Buffalo, N. Y.: “May 30 we had the pleasure of baptizing seven more precious souls. There are at least as many more who we expect will be ready for baptism in a few weeks.”
“THE Lord is surely blessing the work in this city. Friday, May 29, seven earnest souls were baptized by Elder Westworth at Ocean Beach and welcomed into church fellowship.” So says Atlantic Union Gleaner, reporting work at New London, Conn.
“SABBATH, May 16, six students from the college and church school were baptized, and Sabbath, May 23, seven more from the college signified their desire to walk in newness of life by the ordinance of baptism,” says Columbia Union Visitor, of the work in Mt. Vernon, Ohio.
INDIA is receiving the light of truth. Brother J. L. Shaw writes: “Our literature is being widely scattered. We are now issuing tracts, papers, and pamphlets in Bengali, Hindi, Urdu, Burmese, Tamil, and English, and are finding that small pamphlets can be sold even to the poor. Those who earn only five or ten cents a day purchase them.”
WRITING of the work at Rosehill, N. Dak., Brother C. J. Kunkel writes: “One year ago there were only six souls holding up the light of truth at this place. Now there is a company of twenty-nine. Sabbath, May 23, was a good day, for the Lord came very near by His Spirit. On Sunday six souls were buried with their Lord in baptism by Brother Chas. Leer.” Brethren Leer and Wm. Westland sowed the seed for this harvest of souls.
Union College Calendar.—The successful work of Union College during the last year, its present outlook, and plans for future work, with courses of study, general information as to expenses, home life, etc., can be had by applying for the Annual Bulletin of the president, C. C. Lewis, College View, Neb.
Laymen’s Missionary Movement.
THE laymen of the Baptist Church have organized what is called “The Laymen’s Missionary Movement,” the object of which is to stimulate the true missionary spirit in the membership of the church. Its history covers but little more than a year, but already advance steps have been taken as a result of its organization. The ambition of the founders of the organization is:
1. To bring all the men of all the churches into the fellowship of prayer for the speedy extension of Christ’s kingdom.
2. To induce every layman to enjoy the privilege of proving his faith in Christ and his belief in the extension of His kingdom by contributing, according to his means, to the cause of missions.
3. To awaken and arouse in men a true sense of the awfulness of the needs of the heathen world, the enormity of the task of giving the Gospel to every creature, and to encourage them to immediate and energetic action by the certainty of success within a lifetime.
4. To secure the publication and distribution of literature on missions, written from the layman’s viewpoint, and presenting the facts with reference to missions in a way that will appeal to business men.
5. To so interest many Christian men that they will personally visit the foreign fields in order that they may become acquainted first-hand with the problems that continually confront the missionaries.
It is certainly a good thing for Baptist laymen, and for the laymen of every evangelical Christian body of believers, a movement that will indeed help to sound the Gospel of the kingdom in this generation.
Sunday Observance and Religious Liberty
Naples, according to the "Western Watchman" (Catholic), is a "very Catholic and a very religious city." Speaking of the observance of Sunday in that city, the editor says: "There was not a store in the whole city open yesterday. We were told that no purchases could be made on that day. We drove thru the city in an open carriage and saw all the people dressed for Sunday. There was not an exception. The people can best be seen in the streets, and of a Sunday afternoon few are found indoors. The whole city had a Sunday air not seen outside of Canada. This was a revelation." This is the Sunday that many Protestants desire.
France has held third place in the world's navies for decades, but now it is stated she has slipped down one place. The building of two new cruisers of the largest type, provided for in her budget for 1909, will not bring her back to her former rank. The decrease in population, slight as it is, is adding so much to the financial burden of France that she is unable to keep up her army and navy appropriations.
The Presbyterian General Assembly at its recent session in Kansas City passed strong resolutions in favor of the prohibition of the liquor traffic, and voted an appropriation of $35,000 to meet the expense of the campaign they have planned to wage against it.
According to the "Philippine Christian Advocate" the Methodists of the islands demand protection or religious liberty. Why should they plead for it there and work against it here in their effort for Sunday laws?
Open the Door.
By British Weekly
OPEN the door, let in the sun;
He hath a smile for every one;
He hath made of the rain-drops gold and gems;
He may change our tears to diadems—
Open the door!
Open the door of the soul; let in
Strong, pure thoughts which will banish sin;
They will grow and bloom with a grace divine;
And their fruit shall be sweeter than that of the
vine—
Open the door!
Open the door of the heart; let in
Sympathy sweet for the stranger and kin;
It will make the halls of the heart so fair
That angels may enter unaware—
Open the door!
—British Weekly.
Regretting.
Some Good Common Sense to Mix with Genuine Christianity.
ONCE there was a good woman with a conviction that she was called of Heaven to lift a section of the slums of her city. She dropped her housework and lifted like everything. But she was hampered in her success by a distressing, domestic circumstance. She had a husband and some children and a home. While the mother's missionary face wore a perennial golden glow, the family and the home wore sackcloth and ashes. The home surroundings reminded you of the spot where the soldier of the legion lay dying in Algiers; "there was lack of woman's nursing; there was dearth of woman's tears." Mother finally recognized this hampering domestic limitation and fell to regretting that she had ever married, and so cut off a career of blessed helpfulness to the world. This chronic regret of course was a source of cheer to the husband and the children!
Years ago we had a little minister at our church in the country who had an abiding regret that he had never learned to read the Bible in the original Greek and Hebrew. He was sure he could have gotten so much more out of the text in the original; but his time for such study had gone by. A wife and three babies stood between him and a theological course. So he pined and mourned and finally got a fixed pathos in his daily vocalization like unto that in the voice of your invalid Aunt Isabel, who walked on the edge of the grave for eighty-four years and finally died in spite of her infirmities.
I once was in the home of a thrifty farmer of ninety-four years who owned a fine quarter-section in a beautiful valley near the St. Lawrence River. He had prospered and had much to thank Providence for; but he had a big smothering regret. "O, my boy," he said to me, "If I'd a' only took the Bealses quarter across the road when I come here fifty-four year ago I'd o' hit it! I'd o' hit it! But it was a dollar a acre more'n this, an' I couldn't seet no dollar's wuth in that more'n this, and so I tuck this. Now Bealses is wuth nigh fifteen dollar a' acre more'n mine. Fifteen a' acre on a 160 acres makes $2,400. Think on it! Me a lettin' $2,400 slip out'n my fingers like a plumb fool!" The neighbors told me that the old man had been heaving that $2,400 sigh for forty years.
If the farmer instead of raising his sigh had put his breath into raising an extra bushel an acre for fifty-four years he could have had the Beals place beaten to a batter. And if the little minister had used his breath preaching the good tidings out of King James' Version of the Scripture, instead of sighing for a diet of Greek and Hebrew roots, he probably would have won more men over to the higher life. And as for the woman with the blasted missionary career—the saving of a husband and a few children might have been as large a job as she was capable of doing in a lifetime. We count that quite large at our house.
Regret is a dangerous medicine. One good dose is all that is safe to take for one complaint. Even then one should be dead sure he has the complaint. Taken regularly the effect is cumulative like that of opium or alcohol; it leads to the regret habit and to final and fatal soul-wilt. Have you lost the best chances in life? Very well; there is always a next best. Cheerfully go after that; make it your own. Did you lose it because of no fault of your own? Then that was not the best chance. Something better was intended for you. Did you miss it because of your own fault? Then put away the fault and get the best yet coming. Once there was an invalid man who seemed near his final collapse. "My constitution is all gone," said he cheerfully, "and I am just living on my by-laws. But I reckon I can patch out a year or two yet." And while he lived he handed out good cheer and a good example to his more husky neighbors. Such a brief life may come nearer success than the one that lugs a great big sighing, blubbering regret thru a long series of mournful years. If we find after taking our bearings that our life's way is walled in by unchangeable circumstances, let us not waste ourselves by butting the wall nor leaning against it to weep; but fitting our little plans to the larger plan, do great things with our small material. It is not what circumstances did to us, but what we did under the circumstances, that measures our life's success.—Wheat Belt Review.
Strawberries Canned Without Cooking.
HAVE your jars perfectly clean and dry, then take equal parts of fresh berries and sugar, and mix and mash thoroly. To accomplish this, take only a small quantity in a dish at a time, that you may be sure every berry is mashed. Put into the jars, and seal immediately, inverting the jar for a short time before putting away.
The work is easily and quickly done, as there is no heating. My berries canned in this way last summer kept perfectly and have preserved their delicious flavor unimpaired. Strawberry shortcake equal to that of the summer has been an enjoyment whenever we wished thru the winter.—Woman's Home Companion for June.
Getting On in the World
“The positive, comparative, and superlative degrees of getting on in the world are simply these: Get on, get honor, get honest.”
His Clothes.
By A. M. H.
A NEAT, personal appearance means everything to every person, and neatness is a good thing for boys as well as girls, and if they do not learn it when they are young, perhaps they never will, and a mother whose money is not plentiful must study economy in order to keep her boy presentable. I often see boys, otherwise well dressed, with grease spots on their clothing.
These spots can be removed from woolen garments quite readily in the following way: Take half a teacupful of warm soft water, and pour one tablespoonful of liquid ammonia into it, then with a small brush scrub the spots with this solution, and before they are quite dry dip the brush into a small quantity of coal-oil and scrub the spots vigorously. If the cleaning is well done, there will be no spots on the cloth when it is perfectly dry.
If their coats and pants are not soiled enough to be washed, they can be cleaned with gasoline, but the only safe place to use it is out-of-doors. Put the garment in a large bowl and pour enough gasoline over it to saturate it thoroly, cover closely and let it stand for two hours, then press the fluid out and hang over the line. In an hour it will be perfectly dry and clean.
If it is necessary to economize closely, it may be worth while to examine the old garments before buying new suits, as an old suit or a woolen dress skirt will often furnish plenty of good material for a small suit. One economical mother fashioned a stylish suit for her small boy from a faded blue cloth suit of her own, but the pieces were first washed clean and then colored a rich dark-blue with diamond dye for wool, and a faded blue straw hat was renewed by dissolving some of the dye in a little alcohol and applying to the hat with a soft brush. When perfectly dry, the hat was given a coat of thin varnish, and with a new lining and a band of ribbon it was as nice as a new straw hat, and this stylish and serviceable outfit cost a very small sum of money.
A. M. H.
A New Publication
By Editor
SIGNS OF THE TIMES MONTHLY
Ready July 15, 1908
In response to repeated and earnest calls from the field, the publishers of the SIGNS OF THE TIMES have decided to issue a monthly journal, covering all phases of the Gospel message, for the use of agents and pioneer missionary workers.
It will be printed in magazine form; pages about 6 x 9 inches; and will contain 52 pages, including cover.
The cover will be printed in two or more colors, and the whole magazine beautifully illustrated thruout.
This new monthly magazine is in nowise intended to take the place of the regular weekly SIGNS OF THE TIMES which has been used so effectually for over a quarter of a century. That will be published the same as heretofore.
The weekly paper is for home study and general missionary work.
The monthly magazine is designed especially for agents to sell on the streets, in stores, offices, and shops, and from house to house.
At the late meeting of the General Conference Committee held in Washington, D. C., April 14 to 26, the whole question was carefully considered and the following resolution adopted:
"Whereas, There is a strong demand from the field for a monthly magazine covering all phases of the message, to be used by agents in pioneer missionary work; and,
"Whereas, For over a quarter of a century the SIGNS OF THE TIMES has been recognized as the pioneer missionary paper of this denomination; therefore,
"Resolved, That we approve of the action of the Board of Directors of the Pacific Press Publishing Company in deciding to issue a monthly edition of the SIGNS OF THE TIMES in magazine form, with cover, to retail at ten cents per copy. This edition to be used especially by agents to sell on the streets, in the stores, and from house to house.
"And we further recommend, That the Pacific Press continue to publish the regular weekly edition of the SIGNS for general missionary work, the same as heretofore."
The first number of this new journal will be dated August, 1908, but will be issued early in July.
This journal in its monthly issues will cover every phase of the Gospel message in short, concise articles which will appeal especially to busy business men as well as to others.
The Outlook.
Under this heading attention will be called to all the important events of the month in the physical, social, religious, and political worlds, and the bearing they have on the fulfilment of prophecy. In other words, it will be a review and outlook of world conditions, originally written and up-to-date, no article to exceed one column. Particular attention will be given to great missionary problems of all denominations, the needs of the fields, and the progress of the work. These articles will be illustrated by maps and charts, as well as statistical information. Thrilling incidents, illustrating God's providential care over His servants, will also be given from time to time. This will be a most interesting and important part of the magazine.
Illustrated Bible-Readings.
Each number of the magazine will contain one or more short Bible-readings on some important topic, the answers to questions being given in the exact words of the Scripture.
Temperance.
In this department instruction will be given on true Christian temperance in all its various phases, and the progress noted that is made in the temperance-political field.
The Home Circle.
Here it will be our purpose to present matter of interest and instruction to every member of the family, both old and young.
No reasonable expense will be spared to make this journal attractive and helpful to all classes.
Prices.
Single copies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10 cents
5 to 25 copies, per copy . . . . . 5 cents
25 to 500 copies, per copy . . . 4 cents
Special rates on large orders.
Three months' subscription . . . . $0.25
Six months' subscription each . . . . .50
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Ten or more copies, one year, to one address, one order, each. . . . .50
Foreign subscriptions, including Canada, yearly . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.25
Agents wanted in every city and town. Liberal commission. Permanent work.
Address
SIGNS OF THE TIMES MONTHLY
Mountain View, Cal.
SUBSCRIPTION RATES.
By Editor
Four months ...............................$0.50
Six months ................................... .75
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To foreign countries, including Canada ........... 1.75
One new yearly subscription and one renewal, or two new yearly subscriptions, sent at one time, $2.50.
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Three new yearly subscriptions and one renewal, or four new yearly subscriptions, sent at one time, $4.00.
Sample copies sent on application.
DATE OF EXPIRATION.
By Editor
THE SIGNS wrapper bears date of last issue due on your subscription. Unless renewed in advance, paper stops with expiration date.
If herewith is an order-blank, you will know you have overlooked sending renewal. You will not wish to miss a single issue. Back numbers often can not be furnished.
Imported Beauties
Special 100 Bible Cards $3.00; 100 Heavy Paper Mottoes 12x16, $6.00; (27,000 sold in April and first half of May). We have four languages: English, German, Danish, and Swedish. The more you buy, the less they are. 15 for $1.00. Address with stamp.
HAMPTON ART COMPANY
Lock Box 257 Hampton, Iowa
Saves Money
Saves Money.—In every home where this paper goes, there are doubtless leaking vessels of agate, enamel, tin, brass, zinc, aluminum, iron, or wood. Don't throw them away, for Agatite will mend them. Trial box only thirty cents, enough to mend a number of holes. $1.50 a dozen, for a short time only. H. F. Phelps, Station F, Minneapolis, Minn.
Patent Patches
Patent Patches.—Not a plaster to disappoint, but a clamp. It mends hot-water bags if the hole is not larger than the clamp. Nine clamps, a wrench, and instructions, 25 cents. H. F. Phelps, Station F, Minneapolis, Minn.
Steps to Christ
By Editor
Steps to Christ. This little work, by Mrs. E. G. White, presents in a simple and attractive manner the steps by which the sinner may be made complete in Christ. While the book is an excellent guide for inquirers and young converts, it also contains a wealth of counsel and encouragement for those who are laboring with the difficulties that beset a growing experience. Paper covers, 25 cents; cloth, plain edges, 50 cents; cloth, gilt edges, 85 cents. Address this office.
Garden Neighbors
By L. A. Reed
Garden Neighbors, By L. A. Reed. A new nature-study book just fresh from the press. All will be interested in the true story of the sparrows who learned to imitate the bluebirds, of the cat that went wild, of the cowbird that imposed on a sparrow, and all the others in this instructive and entertaining book. It contains 256 pages with over fifty illustrations, several of them colored. Bound in cloth, $1.00. Address this office.
Christian Science in the Light of Reason and Revelation. By R. A. Underwood.
By R. A. Underwood
"If the claims of Christian Science are founded on the doctrines of Christianity and the facts of science, then every lover of Christianity and science should hail the teachings of Mrs. Mary Baker G. Eddy with delight, and accept the claims of Christian Science. If it is not founded upon the word of truth, it should be rejected and exposed."
With this fair and impartial statement the writer of the pamphlet named above opens a very interesting and instructive discussion of the doctrines set forth in "Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures," the text-book for all true believers in Christian Science. In parallel columns many full and complete quotations from this book are compared with quotations from God's holy word, the only rule of faith for the followers of Jesus Christ.
Such fundamental truths as "The Creation of Man and the Universe," "The Existence of Sin," "The Atonement for Sin," "The Gospel of Salvation," "The Miracles of Jesus," "The Existence of Material Matter," "Sickness and Suffering," "Death and the Judgment," are candidly considered in a way that will please every lover of truth and fair play.
Every one who has any question as to the truth or falsity of the doctrines of Christian Science, in fact, every seeker after truth and light, should give this pamphlet a careful reading.
Fifty pages, printed on fine egg-shell paper, with attractive colored cover. Issued as No. 197, Bible Students' Library. Price, ten cents.
Order now of your state tract society, or Pacific Press Publishing Co., Mountain View, Cal., 61 Park St., Portland, Ore., 1109 E 12th St., Kansas City, Mo., Box 666, Regina, Sask., Canada.
Seventh-day Adventist Hymnal
By Editor
Seventh-day Adventist Hymn and Tune Book. The best selected and arranged hymn and tune book ever issued. Contains 1,413 hymns and 568 of the choicest tunes and sacred songs ever written. 640 large pages. Cloth, plain edges, 75 cents; half leather, marbled edges, $1.50; Russia, marbled edges, $2.00; Turkey morocco, gilt edges, $2.25; Levant, round corners, gilt edges, leather lined, $3.25. Address this office.
Helps to Bible Study
By Editor
Helps to Bible Study. A series of Bible-readings, simple and easy, designed as an aid to the personal study of the Scriptures, and adapted to the use of individuals or families; also a valuable assistant for Bible workers. 125 pages. Paper covers, 25 cents; cloth, net, 50 cents. Address this office.
The Meaning of Independence
By Editor
Soon the Fourth of July with its boom and rattle and roar will be upon us. Spread-eagle orators will declaim. Chinese fire-crackers and all sorts of fireworks will be burned by the millions, and Young America and Old America, too, for the matter of that, will have a good time for a few hours, save those of burned fingers, broken limbs, powder-burned faces, blinded eyes, and the mourning of friends for their dead. After the day of "patriotic" dissipation is over, the reaction comes.
We have no condemnation for those who find that their highest enjoyment, as Lincoln remarked of a certain thing, "for those who like that sort of thing that is about the sort of thing they would like." Such a manner of celebration is more often the impulse and indulgence of the flesh instead of a patriotic celebration. Independence and liberty are glorious things in which all who enjoy them should rejoice; and we do praise God for a free country. But all who enjoy liberty should also think of the other man who may be deprived of its blessings. Lowell has truly said that
"They are slaves most base
Whose love of right is for themselves,
And not for all the race."
While we cheer for Independence, we ought to ask ourselves what it means. When we shout for the Flag, we ought to remember what it symbolizes; that it stands for the broadest civil and religious liberty for the individual consistent with the equal rights of all; that the oppression of one is the oppression of all; that the restriction of the rights and liberties of one is the restriction of the rights and liberties of all. Forgetting these things, and the Fourth of July is but a condemning tradition, and the Flag but a tricolored, meaningless cloth thrown to the breeze. It is not traditions which make men and nations, but living principles.
Profane Swearing.
Of all open infractions of the Ten Commandments, profane swearing is said to have as little excuse as any other conceivable. For in the commission of most sins the devil presents before the sinner some apparent gain. It may be unlawful, but it has profit of some sort in it for the sinner. For instance, a man steals in order that he may get plunder; he drinks to satisfy a perverted appetite; he indulges in lust to satisfy passion; he tells falsehoods to avoid punishment; he kills for money or revenge; but swearing is said to be biting at the devil's hook without any bait upon it at all, or anything to tempt the soul to do it. It has been well said that it satisfies no desire, gives no pleasure, acquires no property, makes no one happier, wiser, or better. Many times, of course, it is the result of an outburst of anger, but in many other cases it seems to be purely mechanical. Let the words be choice words.
Paper Distribution and Bible Versions
By Editor
We send no papers from this office to individuals without pay in advance. When persons receive copies without ordering them, they are sent by other parties, and we can give no information in regard to them. Persons thus receiving copies of the SIGNS are not indebted to the office, and will not be called upon to pay for them. Please read the papers you may receive, and hand them to your friends to read.
Our authority is the Bible, the Holy Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments. When the Common ("King James" or "Authorized") Version, or the American Standard Revised Version is used, quotations will not be designated in reference. Any Bible quotation in this paper, therefore, differing from the Common Version, unless otherwise indicated, will be almost invariably from the American Standard edition of the Revised Bible copyright 1901, by Thomas Nelson & Sons.
Contained in This Issue.
By Editor
With Our Inquirers
Questions Nos. 2545 to 2549 . . . . 2
General
Christ Our High Priest . . . . 3
The Kingdom of Christ . . . . 4
Gain That Is Loss . . . . 5
The Law Is Holy and Just and Good . . . . 5
The Beginning of the Inquisition in Portugal No. 2 . . . . 6
What Sunday Laws Involve . . . . 7
Our Bible-Reading
Christ's Coming . . . . 7
Your Relationship with Christ Jesus . . . . 7
Editorial
Will the World Be Converted? . . . . 8
Studies in Romans . . . . 9
Religious Socialism . . . . 9
Our Bible Band . . . . 16
The Outlook
Sunday and the Civil Law . . . . 10
Let Them Be the Witnesses . . . . 11
A Plea for Equal Rights . . . . 11
Missions
Enter Bibles, Exit Opium in China . . . . 12
Fear and Respect for the Dead . . . . 12
Those for Whom Christ Died . . . . 12
Laymen's Missionary Movement . . . . 13
The Home
Regretting . . . . 14
His Clothes . . . . 14
Poetry
The Angel of Patience . . . . 1
The Repairer of the Breach . . . . 4
"The First-Begotten of the Dead" . . . . 5
Religious Legislation . . . . 11
Send It . . . . 12
Open the Door . . . . 14
South Lancaster Academy Calendar
By Editor
We wish to return our thanks to the South Lancaster Academy for their new calendar, beginning with the close of the school year, June, 1908. It is always welcome and we have come to want it as our desk calendar. It places the red-letter days at the close of the week where they belong instead of at the first of the week; also giving the time of sunset on the sixth day of the week for the latitude of South Lancaster. Together with the calendar comes the announcement for the year 1908 and 1909. This can be secured by addressing Mr. B. F. Machlan, business manager, South Lancaster, Mass. It presents splendid courses of study, and the academy is doing excellent work.
Prayer
Prayer.—Dr. R. F. Horton in a recent address says that prayer is a lost art. He stated: "Our prayer-meetings are empty, and I am not surprised, for a prayer-meeting is often a dreary infliction. We have lost the art of praying. We want nothing more to-day than men who are good at praying." He went on to say that the "Mauretania," the great Cunard liner, was built by prayer. The architect who constructed it would not put in a single piece of that great ship without definitely asking God to aid him. Nor would he receive any part of the machinery without having the consciousness that it had also received the divine acceptance. If a man would do that in building a ship in which human lives would be risked, how much more ought those who are workmen for God in the building of His spiritual temple want the Master's guidance at every step.
Soul and Spirit
Soul and Spirit.—The original terms from which these words come occur in the Hebrew and Greek an aggregate of about one thousand seven hundred times, and yet not once is soul or spirit said to be immortal, deathless, never-dying. All these expressions and the ideas they convey are anti-Biblical and anti-Christian. Life is found only in Christ. The soul without His life perishes forever. He is "the Way, the Truth, and the Life." Let not Satan deceive you thru a false and pagan philosophy which aims to exalt sinful man, and takes from Christ the honor that belongs to Him.
Submission and More
By Editor
Submission and More.—It is thus that the Western Watchman puts it concerning the "Modernists" in the Roman Catholic Church and the papal decree:
"We do not want mere submission on the part of the cowardly little heretics; we demand an explicit acceptance of the letter and spirit of the decree. The bishops should now do a little weeding. They have a sharp hoe, and there need be no fear of injuring wholesome plants. All these 'moderns' in our seminaries and universities are tarred with the same stick. Give them a long retreat, and then employ them in lines for which their limited abilities better fit them."
The first three days of this week finish the book of Nehemiah, closing with the energetic marriage reforms of chapter 13. This chapter also clearly shows to us when the Sabbath began; namely, at sunset, when it would begin to grow dark under the deep shadows of the walls of the city.
Intermarriage with Unbelievers
One of the evils among God's people thru all the ages has been intermarriage with the people of the world. It led them astray before the Flood; in all the various ages of the history of the children of Israel, it always had the same effect. It was the means of overthrowing the greatest king that Israel ever had—Solomon. It has always worked to the destruction and impoverishment of souls in the Christian church. Any one who loves the Lord Jesus Christ with all his heart ought not to yoke up in one of the closest unions which humanity knows with an unbeliever.
