Publishing Committee · Battle Creek, Mich. · Dec 18, 1856
ON KEEPING THE HEART. No. 9.
By Flavel
Keep thy heart with all diligence; for out of it are the issues of life.—Proverbs iv, 23.
VIII. THE next season in which special exertion is necessary to keep the heart, is when we meet with great trials. In such cases the heart is apt to be suddenly transported with pride, impatience, or other sinful passions. Many good people are guilty of hasty and very sinful conduct in such instances; and all have need to use diligently the following means to keep their hearts submissive and patient under great trials.
1. Get humble and abasing thoughts of yourself. The humble is ever the patient man. Pride is the source of irregular and sinful passions. A lofty, will be an unyielding and peevish spirit. When we overrate ourselves, we think that we are treated unworthily, that our trials are too severe; thus we cavil and repine. Christian, you should have such thoughts of yourself as would put a stop to these murmurings. You should have lower and more humbling views of yourself than any other one can have of you. Get humility, and you will have peace whatever be your trial.
2. Cultivate a habit of communion with God. This will prepare you for whatever may take place. This will so sweeten your temper and calm your mind as to secure you against surprisals. This will produce that inward peace which will make you superior to your trials. Habitual communion with God will afford you enjoyment, which you can never be willing to interrupt by sinful feeling. When a Christian is calm and submissive under his afflictions, probably he derives support and comfort in this way; but he who is discomposed, impatient, or fretful, shows that all is not right within—he cannot be supposed to practise communion with God.
3. Let your mind be deeply impressed with an apprehension of the evil nature and effects of an unsubmissive and restless temper. It grieves the Spirit of God, and induces his departure. His gracious presence and influence are enjoyed only where peace and quiet submission prevail. The indulgence of such a temper gives the adversary an advantage. Satan is an angry and discontented spirit. He finds no rest but in restless hearts. He bestirs himself when the spirits are in commotion; sometimes he fills the heart with ungrateful and rebellious thoughts; sometimes he inflames the tongue with indecent language. Again, such a temper brings great guilt upon the conscience, unfits the soul for any duty, and dishonors the Christian name. O keep your heart, and let the power and excellence of your religion be chiefly manifested when you are brought into the greatest straits.
4. Consider how desirable it is for a Christian to overcome his evil propensities. How much more present happiness it affords; how much better it is in every respect to mortify and subdue unholy feelings, than to give way to them. When upon your death-bed you come calmly to review your life, how comfortable will it be to reflect on the conquest which you have made over the depraved feelings of your heart. It was a memorable saying of Valentinian the emperor, when he was about to die, "Amongst all my conquests there is but one that now comforts me." Being asked what that was, he answered, "I have overcome my worst enemy, my own sinful heart!"
5. Shame yourself, by contemplating the character of those who have been most eminent for meekness and submission. Above all, compare your temper with the Spirit of Christ. "Learn of me," saith he, "for I am meek and lowly." It is said of Calvin and Ursin, though both choleric natures, that they had so imbibed and cultivated the meekness of Christ as not to utter an unbecoming word under the greatest provocations. And even many of the heathens have manifested great moderation and forbearance under their severest afflictions. Is it not a shame and a reproach that you should be outdone by them?
6. Avoid every thing which is calculated to irritate your feelings. It is true spiritual valor to keep as far as we can out of sin's way. If you can but avoid the excitements to impetuous and rebellious feelings, or check them in their first beginnings, you will have but little to fear. The first workings of common sins are comparatively weak, they gain their strength by degrees; but in times of trial the motions of sin are strongest at first, the unsubdued temper breaks out suddenly and violently. But if you resolutely withstand it at first, it will yield and give you the victory.—Flavel.
THE SCRIPTURE AUTHORITY AND OBLIGATION OF THE SABBATH EXAMINED.
By Rev. W. M. O'Hanlon
BY REV. W. M. O'HANLON, BURNLEY, LANCASHIRE.
(Continued)
Pursuing our inquiries, we must not overlook here, the efforts which have been made to set aside the authority of the primeval Sabbath, by means of certain hypotheses as to the origin of septenary institutions. We have been accustomed to regard these as supplying at least some collateral evidence on behalf of a weekly rest. And the portions of Scripture to which we have appealed, are held by us to denote the existence of an economy of this order among those whose history is given in the volume of inspiration; while the records of other nations, and in some instances even their architectural remains, attest the extended empire of the idea. "The period of seven days, by far the most permanent division of time, and the most ancient monument of astronomical knowledge, was used in India by the Brahmins with the same denominations employed by us, and was alike found in the calendars of the Jews, Egyptians, Arabs, and Assyrians; it has survived the fall of empires, and has existed among all successive generations, a proof of their common origin." Such is the testimony of Mr. Somerville, in the "Connection of Physical Sciences;" and it is corroborated by various distinguished writers who have explored the antiquities of nations.50
A recent writer, however, has insisted that, because this septenary division of time has not been universally observed throughout all the nations of the earth, it cannot supply any argument on behalf of the Divine primeval institution of the Sabbath.
"From a passage in Genesis, in which the first reference to a Sabbath occurs, the inference has been drawn (an inference not warranted by the text) that the first parents of the human race were taught by God himself to divide time into weeks, and to set apart a seventh portion as a day of rest and for religious purposes. If so, it would of course follow that this institution, or some traces of it, would be found among all nations; and the impression, therefore, on the minds of a large class of persons, is very natural, that however much a Sabbath may have fallen into disuse or be now disregarded, the week of seven days has been kept by all generations of mankind from the days of the creation, and continues to be observed in every part of the world."
But this reasoning is most inconsequential. For, on what principle can it be shown, that the Sabbath tradition and observance must have been universally diffused and universally preserved, in order to the authentication of the divine, primitive origin of the institution? It would appear to us that the fact of its very general extension and perpetuation, even supposing it not to be absolutely universal, is a circumstance so remarkable as to warrant the inference drawn from it. That it should have existed and prevailed throughout the Eastern world, and that it should have found its way among Western nations who had no connection with the Jewish people, and most of whom would have scorned to adopt any custom derived from such a quarter; that it should have penetrated, not only the regions of civilization, but into the very centre of Africa—as we learn from Oldendorf—and been at home among the aboriginal Saxons of Europe and Peruvians of America; and, finally, that it should have been preserved and continued for so many ages, and amidst the social changes, the rise and fall of institutions and dynasties, upon so wide a theatre;—this is a fact, or rather congeries of facts, which has to be satisfactorily explained, even if we admit that some tribes and nations of the earth have been found wanting in regard to it.
Significant allusions to the week of seven days, and even to the sacredness of the seventh day, are observable both in Grecian and Roman writers; and the symbolic use of the number seven is familiar to every reader of the ancient classics. And yet we are told that "the week was unknown to the Greeks of the classical ages, and also to the Romans, till it was gradually adopted, along with Christianity, under the late emperors." We place, side by side with this statement, the following testimonies, bearing upon not only the assertion quoted, but upon the broader question at issue. Philo says, speaking of the seventh day, "It is a festival celebrated not only in one city or country, but throughout the whole world." Hesiod, in his "Days," observes, that the "seventh day is holy." Homer and Callimachus speak in the same strain. Lucian observes, in his Paralogist, that "boys were used to play on the seventh day." And the same historian writes: "Almost all the philosophers and poets acknowledge the seventh day as holy." Clemens Alexandrinus represents the "Greeks as well as the Hebrews" observing "the seventh day as holy." And Josephus declares, "No city of Greeks or barbarians can be found, which does not acknowledge a seventh day's rest from labor." These quotations are sufficient to demonstrate the wide diffusion of the Sabbath tradition. Nor is it possible to derive the whole, or even the greater part, of the knowledge implied in these testimonies, from a Jewish origin. We must go farther up the stream of time for the rise and spread of this distinction, so extensively known and practiced, in relation to the seventh day, among communities so widely separated, both by geographical limits and by the more formidable boundaries of natural customs.
But with all this, we repeat, it is not necessary to establish the universality of the knowledge of either the week or of a sacred day. We can easily understand how the tradition might be lost among some portions of the human family, in the progress and revolutions of ages; but we cannot see how it could be so widely diffused, and thus perpetuated, without looking for its origin in some event beyond and above the era of human dispersion, and an event invested with the highest authority and sanction, such as that to which the advocates of a primeval Sabbath ordinance are wont to trace it.
Attempts have been made to account for this septenary arrangement on other grounds. The lunar month has been referred to as the basis of the whole; and its division into four parts has been regarded as yielding the measure of time required for the verification of this hypothesis. But who can examine the detail and development of this notion, without perceiving its futility? "The recurrence of the lunar period is about twenty-nine and a half days." Is it not wholly unnatural and improbable, that men should fix upon the number seven, which constitutes no aliquot part of this period; and do so, not in one land, but in so many lands, and among tribes and nations in all stages of civilization? And why should such an unsatisfactory approximation to a fourth of this lunar revolution be adopted, instead of any other fractional portion of it? and wherefore any division whatever of the period of a lunation? The ancient Greeks had their decade; and the Romans had their nundinæ occurring every ninth day; and the Mexicans had a period of five days.
It may be naturally inquired, Why did not one or more of these chronological systems spread and establish itself among distant nations, instead of being limited within such narrow bounds? The more we reflect upon the subject, the more are we compelled to reject this method of solving the historic problem under consideration.
And the scheme patronized by Baron Humboldt and by Acosta, is equally wanting in soundness. They have endeavored to trace the origin of the septenary institution to the number and names of the primary planetary bodies, as arranged under the Ptolemaic system of astronomy. But while this may throw light upon the origin of the names given to the days of the week, in certain parts of the world, (a thing of comparatively little importance in this discussion,) it utterly fails to solve the enigma of the existence of this method of computing time, in regions where that system of astronomy was unknown, or where the designations of the days were altogether different from those which are supposed to have originated in this manner. Above all, it is utterly at fault, when we come to mark the presence of this method in the astronomy, for example, of the Hindoos; which, however we may reduce its pretensions as to antiquity, can never be brought within the limits of an argument founded upon the system of Ptolemy. This sage flourished about 140, B. C. The Hindoo astronomy was in existence many centuries before. It is probably the most ancient of all such systems. But it presents, everywhere, marks of this septenary division of time, and the number seven is in constant use in the Hindoo legends.
The failure, then, of all these attempts, throws us back, with stronger confidence, upon the only satisfactory solution of the whole matter. Here is a hebdomadal arrangement of time observed from the beginning, perpetuated through ages, found in the records of the antediluvian and postdiluvian worlds, and found not only among the peoples whose annals are placed in the inspired volume, but likewise among most if not all the nations of antiquity, wherever we follow their early migrations, or mark their settlement. An effect so almost if not altogether universal, so continuous, so unvaried, so early manifest, and so deeply wrought into the customs of the generations of the world, must have had a corresponding and adequate cause. And it is in vain we look into the constitution of human nature or abroad upon the mechanism and laws of the external universe, into the heights above or the depths beneath, for any principle or fact which might give birth to such an economy. It is evidently the offspring of the pure, sovereign, revealed will of Jehovah. The ordinance, in the early pages of Genesis, meets and satisfies, and this alone can, all the conditions of the problem. And to reject this, which constitutes a sufficient and the only sufficient solution of the question at issue, is to discard all the established and rational principles of historical evidence and deduction.
A LITTLE WHILE.
"A little while!" so spake our gracious Lord
To the sad band around that sacred board,
Where his long burdened heart
Already felt the smart
Of his own Father's sin-avenging sword.
Take thou the message, weeping, weary one!
Are not all things around thee hastening on?
Thy Father's hand ordains
All these thy griefs and pains;
"A little while," they, too, are passed and gone.
Have all the lights of love quite died away?
Does the last star withdraw its cheering ray?
Till the long night wears past,
Weeping and prayer must last,
But joy approaches with the dawning day.
Do friends misunderstand or mock thy pain?
Hast thou too fondly trusted, loved in vain?
The faithful One and true
Can blighted hopes renew;
And hearts long severed, re-unite again.
"A little while"—the fetters hold no more—
The spirit long enthralled is free to soar,
And take its joyous flight,
On radiant wings of light,
To the blest mansions of the heavenly shore.
There end the longings of the weary breast;
The good sought after here is there possessed.
Ride o'er the stormy sea,
Poor bark! Soon shalt thou be
In the calm haven of eternal rest.
"A little while," look upward and hope on!
Soon shall the troubled dreams of night be gone,
The shadows pass away
Before the abiding day—
The Saviour comes to save and bless his own!
The Church's Expectation.
By George Duke of Manchester
By George Duke of Manchester.
In a former chapter I stated what appeared to be certain characteristic features of this dispensation. I proceed now to point out what I conceive should be the longing anticipation of the Church with regard to the future.
The grace of God which bringeth salvation teacheth us, "that denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly in this present world." If now, a man denied worldly lusts, and lived soberly and righteously, but yet was not godly—if he fulfilled all the duties of the second table, yet neglected the duties of the first—we should not hesitate to say that such a man was not taught by that grace of God which bringeth salvation: a man truly under the teaching of the Spirit cultivates both godliness and righteousness. But is this all that the grace of God, which bringeth salvation, teacheth? No; it also teaches us to be "expecting . . . the glorious appearing of our great God and Saviour Jesus Christ," and, apparently, the text implies, that this expectation is as certainly and as universally taught, as is the denial of ungodliness and worldly lusts; there seems no difference; the hope respecting Christ's advent appears quite as prominently brought forward as the characteristic life and conduct of the believer—indeed, I should say more so, for the one is introduced as the end at which the child of grace is aiming; the others are the means towards the attainment.
We may lay it down as a proposition, that only those who deny ungodliness can be "expecting Messiah's advent; for if men cast not off the works of darkness, they continue in a state of darkness; they know not that the night is far spent, and that the day is at hand; for the service of God, and the waiting for Christ, St. Paul gives us as the two great characteristics of true conversion:—"How ye turned to God from idols to serve the living and true God, and to wait for his Son from heaven." But in this waiting, an anxious wish for the event is implied, as well as the belief in the probability of its immediate occurrence.
Taken conversely, the proposition is equally true. Those who are expecting Messiah's advent do deny ungodliness and worldly lusts; the expectation has a purifying efficacy: "Behold what manner of love the Father hath bestowed upon us, that we should be called the sons of God. Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and [or but] it doth not yet appear what we shall be." We are now in possession of this most exalted privilege, although the present is not the season when the sons of God are manifested: the world now knows them not, any more than when He was on earth it knew Him. "But," says St. John, "we know that when he shall appear we shall be like him; for we shall see him as he is." I understand the last clause not as assigning the cause, but affirming the proof, of our resemblance; it is not the transforming power of the beatific vision, but the discerning power of the beatified spirit. To see him as he is, to know him even as we are known, argues an exaltation of our nature commensurate with the glorified humanity of the Son of God; "and every man that hath this hope in him, [i. e., in Christ,] purifieth himself even as he is pure." Every one who has this exalting, exhilarating hope of being made like unto Christ at his glorious appearing, does now strive after, and in some measure attain unto, that purity which is in Christ himself. Hence St. Paul urges it, as the great motive to mortification: "When Christ our life shall appear, then shall ye also appear with him in glory. Mortify, therefore, your members which are upon earth; fornication, uncleanness, inordinate affection, evil concupiscence, and covetousness which is idolatry."
The passage which I have quoted from St. John's epistle, seems to refer rather to the expansion of the intellectual and spiritual capacity of the glorified believer; but there must also be a spiritual body—a body capable of being actuated immediately by the glorified spirit—a body of glory suitable for the perfected spirit. Such was St. Paul's expectation; and in setting forth his walk as an example, in opposition to that which ends in destruction, he implies that this desire of Christ's appearing, and of the consequent transformation into his likeness, was a great impelling motive to heavenly conduct, "for our conversation is in heaven; from whence also we look for the Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ, who shall transform our bodies of humiliation, in order that they may be fashioned like unto his body of glory." To attain to the hope, and to live in the expectation of the advent, is, in short, that which characterizes those who are not deficient in any spiritual gift. "I thank my God . . . for the grace of God which is given you by Jesus Christ; that in every thing ye are enriched by Him . . . so that ye come behind in no gift; waiting for the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ."
St. James speaks of patience as being the crowning and completing grace of the Christian, so that however perfect he might be, were he not placed in such circumstances as would elicit and call into exercise the grace of patience, he would be wanting in51something; and so great would be the want, that the believer should joyfully exchange a state of peace for one of manifold trials, in order that he might have the opportunity of exercising this grace. "But," adds he, "let patience have her perfect work, that ye may be perfect and entire, wanting nothing." What, however, can fortify the believer, and enable him to endure in the exercise of this perfecting grace, but the expectation of the Lord's speedy return? The same apostle says, "Be patient, brethren, unto the coming of the Lord: behold, the husbandman waiteth for the precious fruit of the earth, and hath long patience for it, until he receive the early and latter rain. Be ye also patient, stablish your hearts, for the coming of the Lord draweth nigh." St. Paul holds out precisely the same motive in support of the same grace: "Ye have need of patience, that after ye have done the will of God, ye might receive the promise; for yet a little while, and he that shall come will come, and will not tarry." In both these passages the consideration of the Lord's speedy advent to put an end to suffering and trial, is held out as the support of patience. And in neither of them is there a hint of a period of spiritual peace and triumph prior to the advent.
Precisely the same thought is held out for the consolation of those under bereavement: "I would not have you to be ignorant, brethren, concerning them which are asleep, that ye sorrow not even as others who have no hope; for if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so them also which sleep in Jesus will God bring with him. For this we say unto you by the word of the Lord, that we which are alive [and] remain unto the coming of the Lord, shall not prevent them which are asleep. For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first: then we which are alive [and] remain, shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we be ever with the Lord. Wherefore comfort one another with these words." To me it appears evident that the special ground of comfort here urged, is the prospect of speedy re-union with the departed brethren; and that, not by our being absent from the body, and so present with the Lord, but by the return of Christ together with those who sleep in Jesus. Here, then, evidently, the whole consolation consists in the probability of Messiah's speedy return.
This language of the Apostle seems to have taken such hold of the Thessalonians, that their desire for the Lord's return amounted to an error in the way of excess rather than of defect; for in his second epistle, St. Paul prays that the Lord would direct their hearts into "the patient waiting for Christ." Such, apparently, was their ardent desire for his advent, that it almost trenched upon the grace of patience. How very different is the condition of the Church now from what it was then! the Apostle having to rein in their ardor; whereas our sluggishness needs much goading. But with those who have the assurance of hope, and are living in the sense of God's favor, the Thessalonian would be the more likely state of the two; they would be hoping "for the grace which is to be brought unto us at the revelation of Jesus Christ;" those whose conversation is in heaven are looking from thence "for the Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ; and in all holy conversation and godliness, not looking for, but "hastening on, the coming of the day of God." . . .
It is distinctly said that the crown of righteousness "is laid up for . . . all those that love his appearing," and not only so, but apparently it is only for those, for it is, "unto them that look for him," that he will appear unto salvation. In that day the Church will say, "Lo, this is our God, we have waited for him, and he will save us; this is Jehovah, we have waited for him, we will be glad and rejoice in his salvation." The iteration seems to mark that the waiting was an evidence that his appearing would be to their joy.
I have now stated what I apprehend should be the expectation of the Church, and the blessed effects of that expectation upon the disposition and conduct of the believer. I will now show some of the evil consequences upon the character of those who profess to be followers of the Lord, but yet who do not live in this attitude of expectation.
In the perilous times of the last days, covetousness will be a leading feature among men who have the form of godliness while denying the power, but such men cannot be living upon the contemplation of Christ's speedy return, for nothing can be so effectual against the snare of covetousness as the expectation of Messiah's advent, for it is the thought which enables one to sit loose to the world, and which frees from all anxiety. "Let your moderation be known unto all men. The Lord is at hand, be careful for nothing."
Our Lord also intimates that some of his servants will be fostering a spirit of persecution, and indulging fleshly lusts, just because they say in their hearts, "My Lord delayeth his coming;" upon which he urges watchfulness; for those only who watch and pray always will be accounted worthy to escape; so our Lord says again, "Watch, therefore, for ye know not what hour your Lord doth come." And those who do watch for his advent are blessed: "Behold, I come as a thief, blessed is he that watcheth." The whole point and force would be taken away from the exhortation to watchfulness, if we admitted that there was to be a spiritual millennium intervening before the second advent; the idea intended to be conveyed seems to be the possibility, if not the probability, of Messiah's return within the period of a natural life. "The end of all things is at hand, be ye therefore sober, and watch unto prayer."
A similar exhortation, "Let us watch and be sober," is grounded just upon the fact of light or darkness upon this point being the distinguishing mark of the believer: "But ye, brethren, are not in darkness, that that day should overtake you as a thief:" the "but" here is a particle of opposition by which St. Paul distinguishes the brethren from others. The son of Jonas in like manner makes wilful ignorance the characteristic of the wicked scoffers in the last days, attributing to them this inquiry, "Where is the promise of his coming?" Hence he expressly warns the beloved not to fall into this error of the wicked.
The expectation of the Lord's advent has always been the aspect of the true Church: it was so in the apostolic days; it was so with the fathers for the first three centuries; and it was so with the Reformers. Our Church, therefore, teaches us to say, "I look for the resurrection of the dead and the life of the world to come." We do not merely state our belief that there will be a resurrection of the dead some time or other—a thousand years hence, or even a year hence; but we declare that we are in the attitude of hope and expectation: "I look for it"—I know neither the day nor the hour.
The notion of a spiritual millennium which originated apparently by the oscillation into the opposite extreme, from the excesses of the German Anabaptists and English Fifth Monarchy Men, has since been fostered by the expectations raised from the efforts of religious societies, till it has become the deliberate creed of many. Thus we are enabled to understand how it can be used by our Lord and St. Peter as a prophetic feature and sign of the last days. I do not mean to imply that carelessness or indifference alone, upon the subject of the Lord's return, could be considered a prophetic sign—for that, I fear, has been the melancholy feature in most ages of the Church—but the deliberate maintenance of a doctrine which virtually says "My Lord delayeth his coming," is a prognostic of the speedy approach of Messiah. Now, we before observed, that a man who holds the spiritual millennium cannot be expecting the advent of the Lord: is he not, then, saying in his heart, "My Lord delayeth his coming?" And of what is such a belief the forerunner?
Shortly, then, to recapitulate this chapter. We may be confident, that an expectation—which is taught by the grace of God, which is a sign of true conversion—which is purifying in the highest degree—which shows itself in all holy conversation and godliness—which is a mark of the highest spiritual knowledge—which therefore characterizes those for whom the crown is laid up, . . . is holy in its tendency—is in accordance with the divine Mind, and is a point of great practical importance. On the other hand, that ignorance upon this subject—which is wilful—which betokens a child of darkness—which encourages a covetous disposition—which fosters a persecuting spirit—which unbridles the animal desires—and which will end in sudden destruction—is to be reprobated and carefully avoided.
My second conclusion, therefore, is, that the Church ought, according to the Scripture, to be "looking for the glorious appearing of the great God and Saviour," which conclusion being inconsistent with the belief of an antecedent spiritual millennium, confirms our former inference, drawn from the character of the present dispensation.
I have shown, that during this present dispensation, the enemies of Christ and his Church are in the ascendant; and that the Church is, or ought to be, looking for the return of the Lord.
Our Present Condition.
By F. M. Bragg
BRO. SMITH:—I feel that we have abundant reason for gratitude, for the clear light that now shines to the remnant upon almost every subject.
Truly we are a favored people, having the greatest array of truth that has in any age of the church been brought to bear against error.
Yet with this great defense it is powerless without the spirit and power of the truth to set it home upon the heart.
There is indeed a great want of spiritual life among those who profess the Commandments of God and Faith of Jesus. And I think there is a peculiar fitness and force to the Message to the Laodicean church when applied to us.
Without the fruits of the Spirit, love, joy, peace, long-suffering, gentleness, meekness, we are indeed wretched, miserable, blind and naked, and in need of all things.
While I have felt an increasing love for plain truth, contrasted with mystical error, I have, in some degree, viewed my own poverty, and I long for a higher, purer position, where I can be less affected by the influence of the world, and have a more close communion with God.
I rejoice to hear any truth that will arouse us from our stupidity. I hope it will settle deep into our hearts. 'He that hath an ear to hear let him hear what the Spirit saith to the church of Laodicea.'
The message is to those that are lukewarm. This cannot be the case with the churches or nominal Adventists, for they are cold and dead. But with how much force should it come home to us who profess the Third Angel's Message, the last message of mercy to this world, when our efforts are so faint and feeble, and our lives so illy comport with this faith.
With almost a perfect theory, we have a perfect rule of life. The Commandments of God and precepts of Jesus. These shine out to us, under the Third Message, with more clearness than ever before. Do we realize that while we are not keeping the precepts of our Saviour we are breaking the ten commandments of God? Christ's teaching is but the ministration of his Father's law.
I believe the sifting time has come, and those who do not repent of the sins that bar Jesus from their hearts, and heed the exhortation to buy gold tried in the fire, (get pure love,) white raiment, (be clothed with the righteousness of Christ,) eye-salve, (receive the anointing of the Spirit,) will soon be spued out of God's mouth. Shall we like ancient Israel, prove indifferent to our sad condition, and the blessings offered by continuing in sin? God forbid. 'He that hath an ear to hear let him hear.'
The prophet speaks to us in these words, 'All ye meek of the earth seek meekness, seek righteousness it may be ye shall be hid in the day of the Lord's anger.'
The day of God's wrath is near and hasteth greatly. Soon we shall need a shelter beneath the wing of the Almighty.
Those who heed the message to the Laodicean church have the high and exalted position of communing with the blessed Son of God. He represents himself a humble suppliant at the door of our hearts. Shall we, can we, refuse him admittance? Those who welcome him in will be made like unto his lovely image, and will forever reign with him.
F. M. BRAGG.
Lake Mills, Wis., Dec. 2d, 1856.
Is the Silence in Heaven During the Cleansing of the Sanctuary?
By Editor
As John was shown in vision things which must shortly come to pass, he was carried forward to an event which he describes as follows: "There was silence in heaven about the space of half an hour." Rev. viii, 1. Is this the time during which the Sanctuary in heaven is being cleansed? We answer, It is not, and will proceed to offer our proof, simply premising at first that we are called to the subject by the following from a correspondent:
"I think your views (in the main) relative to the Sanctuary are correct; but I do not believe that our great High Priest has yet entered the Most Holy of the heavenly Sanctuary. When he enters there, I believe there will be silence in heaven about the space of half an hour—then the Son of man will be revealed."
We can assign no grounds on which a man can entertain such a view as this, only a want of attention to the order in which events are brought to view in the book of Revelation. We are well aware that all events from first to last in that book are not presented in their chronological order; but there are certain series presented which can in no wise be disarranged, but must take place one after the other in regular succession. Such are the seven seals of chapters vi, vii. The seven trumpets, commencing with chapter viii, the three angels of chapter xiv, and the seven angels with the plagues of chapter xvi. Such series of events as these, we say, cannot take place in any other than their regular order. This all will admit.
We will now look more particularly at some of the events transpiring in order under the seven seals; for with these seals our subject is connected. We read, "And when he had opened the seventh seal, there was silence in heaven about the space of half an hour." This silence as far as we have any account, occupies the whole of the seventh seal, and is the only event to transpire under it. But the seventh seal cannot be opened before the sixth; and the events of the sixth cannot take place before the fifth; but they must come in their order: the fifth, then the sixth; and after the events of the sixth have all transpired, the seventh, is opened which brings silence in heaven.
Fixing this fact in our mind, we will go back a little and see what took place under the sixth seal: "And I beheld when he had opened the sixth seal, and, lo, there was a great earthquake; and the sun became black as sackcloth of hair, and the moon became as blood; and the stars of heaven fell unto the earth, even as a fig-tree casteth her untimely figs, when she is shaken of a mighty wind: and the heaven departed as a scroll when it is rolled together; and every mountain and island were moved out of their places: and the kings of the earth, and the great men, and the rich men, and the chief captains, and the mighty men, and every bondman, and every freeman, hid themselves in the dens and in the rocks of the mountains; and said to the mountains and rocks, Fall on us, and hide us from the face of him that sitteth on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb: for the great day of his wrath is come; and who shall be able to stand?" Rev. vi, 12-17.
No one can be at a loss to understand the events here brought to view. If we are not here carried to the end of this present state, and the coming of the Son of man, we know of no scriptures carrying us to those events. It must be evident to any one, therefore, that when the great men of the earth shall call for the rocks and mountains to hide them from the presence of him that sitteth on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb, Christ will have left his mediatorial position, and the cleansing of the Sanctuary will have been finished. But it is not till after these events that the seventh seal is opened, and there is silence in heaven for the space of half an hour. Therefore it is fixed beyond the least shadow of a possibility of contradiction that the silence in heaven has nothing to do with the cleansing of the Sanctuary; for this cleansing is all finished under the sixth seal, before the seventh seal is opened, under which the silence occurs; and this objection therefore to the view that our great High Priest is now doing up his last work for the salvation of mankind, vanishes into thin air.