Review and Herald, Vol. 14, No. 12.
A FEW THOUGHTS ON 2 COR. V, 1—4Page 1
"For we know that if our earthly house of this tabernacle were dissolved, we have a building of God, an house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens. For in this we groan, earnestly desiring to be clothed upon with our house which is from heaven: if so be that being clothed we shall not be found naked. For we that are in this tabernacle do groan, being burdened: not for that we would be unclothed, but clothed upon, that mortality might be swallowed up of life." This scripture is held up by those who teach the double entity of man, as being a strong hold for their position. It is thought to teach that when one man dies, another steps out of him and goes off to a house in the heavens. But I have looked at it in every way that I can, and examined every point as critically as I am capable of doing, but fail to gather any such idea from it. Admitting the above position to be true, this text proves too much: immortal-soul-ists will not go all the way with it. They explain the "earthly house" to be the body, while that which dwells in it is said to be the soul. That being the case, the eternal house which is "in the heavens" must be a body which the saint puts on when he goes to heaven. But that which is in heaven which the saint puts on at death is eternal. Therefore when the saint puts off "this mortal coil," he puts on an eternal body in the heavens. Now where is the utility of the resurrection, as we have got eternal houses (bodies) without it? Paul did all he did, with reference to the resurrection. Phil. iii, 11. But when that event is brought about, Paul, as this view has it, will be in heaven inhabiting another body. And when his mortal body is quickened, (Rom. viii, 11,) alas! he will find no soul for that, for the soul has gone off to inhabit an eternal body in the heavens, and poor Paul must travel the long lines of eternity without a soul. That borders somewhat, I should judge, on no-soul-ism, unless we take the position that the "we" (plural) that are in this earthly house, means two or more souls for every body, and thus have two or more Pauls in the resurrection. Let us now compare scripture with scripture, in order to learn what the "tabernacle" is, which is to be dissolved. Paul says it is the "earthly house" (or home). Were we not biased by tradition, we should gather from that text that Paul meant the earth. What, says the objector, is the earth going to be dissolved? It is. See 2 Pet. iii, 10, 11. "But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night; in the which the heavens shall pass away with a great noise, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat, the earth also and the works that are therein shall be burned up. Seeing then that all these things shall be dissolved, what manner of persons ought we to be in all holy conversation and godliness." Here Peter declares that all these things shall be dissolved. All of what things? I answer, all the elements, and the earth. This is the "tabernacle" which must be "dissolved." We next inquire, What is the building of God? It cannot be a new body; but if the old tabernacle is this earth, our dwelling-place here, the new one must be our dwelling-place above—the new city. Peter says, "Nevertheless" (that is, notwithstanding the present elements and earth are going to be dissolved) "we, according to his promise, look for a new heavens and a new earth wherein dwelleth righteousness." This promise is found in Isa. lxv, 17—19. "For behold I create new heavens and a new earth. . . . I create Jerusalem a rejoicing" &c. Paul's testimony is that we have an eternal house "in the heavens." This is the city which Abraham looked for, "whose builder and maker is God." Heb. xi, 10. It is evident that Christ has gone to prepare a place for us, (Jno. xiv, 1—3,) and that the place which he has gone to prepare will come down from God out of heaven. Heb. xiii, 14; Rev. xxi, 2, 10. "Jerusalem which is above is free, which is the mother of us all." Gal. iv, 26. This earth with all its appurtenances must pass away. But the "building of God," the house which is in heaven, the city which hath foundations, which Abraham looked for, is eternal. "For we that are in this tabernacle do groan, being burdened, not for that we would be unclothed, but clothed upon, that mortality might be swallowed up of life." Here Paul represents all who are in this tabernacle as groaning, not for death, not to be unclothed, but "clothed upon, that mortality, (death,) might be swallowed up of life. Mortality will not be swallowed up of life at death—death is the event which gives mortality a complete victory. It is not until the dead are raised, that mortality is swallowed up of life. "Then," says Paul, shall this mortal put on immortality, then shall this corruptible put on incorruption." 1 Cor. xv, 52—54. "We groan earnestly." Yes! not only we, but the "whole creation;" and we travail in pain together until now. But this groaning is not for death, but for the redemption of our body." Rom. viii, 23. May the time soon come when our body shall be redeemed, and we be permitted to enter our eternal house.
M. HULL. Among the numerous graces given for the benefit and perfection of the gospel church, sobriety is not without its prominence; and in the development and formation of Christian character, it is certainly according to inspiration of the utmost importance. And if ever there was a time when this principle should be fully developed, it is the present. The world has become so poisoned with pride, fashion, frivolity, light and trifling conversation, and love of the world, that unless the child of God becomes fully fortified against it by the graces of the Spirit, he is liable to be90overcome. The definition of sobriety, is, temperance, calmness, seriousness, &c., hence out of it grow principles that are of incalculable benefit to those who would be pure in heart. Says the apostle, "Let us watch and be sober." I have found in the course of my religious observation that some seem to have stumbled here. They formed the idea that christians must always go with their heads bowed down like a bulrush; must seldom smile, and must be a disconsolate, dejected people. But this is a mistake. Christian sobriety does not lead in this direction. If any people on earth have reason to lift up their heads and rejoice it is the people of God. It is not that joy that addresses itself to the outward senses like the joys of earth, but that calm, peaceful, heart-felt joy that gushes from a soul renewed by the power of divine grace. Sobriety addresses itself not only to outward actions, but to the conversation, and thoughts, and individuals in various stations in life. For the grace of God which bringeth salvation hath appeared to all men, teaching us that denying ungodliness and worldly lusts we should live soberly, righteously and godly in this present world. Titus ii, 11, 12. Here it is introduced as a stepping stone to the relinquishing of sin in all its forms, and fits up the soul to receive the blessed hope, &c. Said Festus to Paul, Much learning hath made thee mad. But he said, I am not mad most noble Festus, but speak forth the words of truth and soberness. Acts xxvi, 25. The apostle in speaking of a bishop says that he should be a lover of good men, sober just, holy, temperate. That the aged men must be sober, grave, temperate, sound in faith, in charity, in patience. Young men likewise exhort to be sober-minded. In like manner that women adorn themselves in modest apparel, with shamefacedness and sobriety, not with broidered hair or gold or pearls, or costly array, &c. Dear brethren and sisters, are we fully awake to this subject? The apostle exhorts us not to sleep as do others, but to watch and be sober. We are living in a time when God calls upon the church to arise and put on sobriety; and may God grant that we come behind in no gift waiting for the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. Let us add to our faith all the gifts and graces of the Spirit; for so an abundant entrance shall be ministered unto us into the everlasting kingdom of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. "None but holy ones shall enter,
Through the pure celestial gates."
F. GOULD. "And what, O! what is good?"
'Tis first to seek the favor of thy God;
Let thy will blend with his, and honor him
By walking in the way thy Saviour trod. And then it is whate'er
Tendeth to raise thy heart and hopes on high,
Or to make others happier here
On earth to live, and peacefully to die. Go wipe from sorrow's eye
The burning tear, go aid the poor and lone,
Visit the sick, the stricken mourner cheer,
And O! of Jesus tell the erring one. Or it may only be
A cup of water to some wanderer given,
A word, a smile, but 'twill be written, Good!
On the great record of thy life in heaven!—Sel. TEMPTATION.
By E. B. Saunders
SATAN goeth about as a roaring lion seeking whom he may devour. He knows that the sins of the saints will be heaped upon his own head, and that he will have to suffer for the iniquity he has caused. This, with the hatred he bears toward Jesus, causes him to be constantly seeking to draw the saints into sin. He is very artful for he cannot compel them to disobey against their will, but he can induce them to gratify their own carnal desires, thereby causing them to break the law of God; for the carnal mind is not subject to the law of God; then he can taunt the blessed Saviour with the crimes of his saints. He stands accusing the saints thus night and day, but praise the Lord he will soon be cast down.—Temptation is not of God, for he tempteth no man: but he maketh the wrath of man to praise him, also the wrath of Satan is made to do the same, for it tends to purify the saints and fit them for obedience in the glorious kingdom of God. Do not despair dear tempted one, for God's people must be tried as gold in the fire, and you will come forth seven times purified. Blessed is he that endures temptation; hold on a little longer.—Jesus is coming, and then—farewell thou tempter, adieu temptation, for thy hands shall no more encompass me; thy seductions will be vain, and thy lying promises will recoil upon thine own head. We must overcome temptation by the blood of the Lamb and the word of our testimony, and perchance the Lord will give us a place with the 144000 when Jesus comes. Sore trials await us before our deliverance, but the trial of our faith will work out for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory. When temptations assail you think of the agony of Jesus, the pierced hands and feet, the crown of thorns, the mocking and spitting, and of his pleadings with the Father for you—O think of the crown of life, the city of gold, the paradise of God and the never ending life, and say, Away thou tempter, for I will keep the commandments of my God. A. JUDSON'S LETTER.
By A. Judson
To the Female Members of the Christian Churches in United States of America.
DEAR SISTERS IN CHRIST :—Excuse my publicly addressing you. The necessity of the case is my only apology. Whether you will consider it a sufficient apology for the sentiments of this letter, unfashionable, I confess, and perhaps unpalatable, I know not. We are sometimes obliged to encounter the hazard of offending those, whom of all others we desire to please. Let me throw myself at once on your mercy, dear sisters, allied by national consanguinity; professors of the same holy religion, fellow pilgrims to the same happy world. Pleading these endearing ties, let me beg you to regard me as a brother, and to listen with candor and forbearance to my honest tale. In raising up a church of Christ in this heathen land, and in laboring to elevate the minds of the female converts to the standard of the gospel, we have always found one chief obstacle in that principle of vanity, that love of dress and display (I beg you will bear with me) which has, in every age and in all countries, been a ruling passion of the fair sex, as the love of riches, power and fame has characterized the other. That obstacle lately became more formidable, through the admission of two or three fashionable females into the church; and the arrival of several missionary sisters, dressed and adorned in that manner which is too prevalent in our beloved native land. On my meeting the church, after a year's absence, I beheld an appalling profusion of ornaments, and saw that the demon of vanity was laying waste the female department. At that time I had not maturely considered the subject, and did not feel sure what ground I ought to take. I apprehended also, that I should be unsupported and perhaps opposed by some of my coadjutors. I confined my efforts therefore, to private exhortation, and with but little effect. Some of the ladies, out of regard to their pastor's feelings, took off their necklaces and ear ornaments, before they entered the chapel, tied them up in a corner of their handkerchiefs, and on returning, as soon as they were out of the mission house, stopped in the middle of the street to array themselves anew. In the mean time I was called to visit the Karens, a wild people, several days' journey to the north of Maulmein. Little did I expect there to encounter the same enemy, in those "wilds, horrid and dark with o'ershadowing trees." But I found that he had been there before me, and reigned with a peculiar sway, from time immemorial. On one Karen woman, I counted between twelve and fifteen necklaces, of all colors, sizes and materials. Three was the average. Brass belts above the ankles, neat braids of black hair tied below the knees, rings of all sorts on the fingers, bracelets on the wrists and arms, long instruments of some metal perforating the lower part of the ear, by an immense aperture, and reaching nearly to the shoulders, fancifully constructed bags, inclosing the hair, and suspended from the back part of the head, not to speak of the ornamental parts of their clothing, consisting of the fashion and the ton of the fair Karenesses. The dress of the female converts was not essentially different from that of their country women. I saw that I was brought into a situation that precluded all retreat—that I must fight or die. For a few nights I spent some sleepless hours, distressed by this and other subjects, which will always press upon the heart of a missionary in a new place. I considered the spirit of the religion of Jesus Christ. I opened to 1 Tim. ii, 9, and read these words of the inspired apostle: "I will also that women adorn themselves in modest apparel, with shamefacedness and sobriety, not with broidered hair, or gold, or pearls, or costly array." I asked myself, Can I baptize a Karen woman in her present attire? No. Can I administer the Lord's supper to one of the baptized in that attire? No. Can I refrain from enforcing the prohibition of the apostle? Not without betraying the trust I have received from him. Again I considered that the question concerned not the Karens only, but the whole Christian world; that its decision would involve a train of unknown consequences; that a single step would lead me into a long and perilous way. I considered Maulmein, and the other stations; I considered the state of the public at home. But "what is that to thee? follow thou me," was the continual response, and weighed more than all. I renewedly offered myself to Christ, and prayed for strength to go forward in the path of duty, supported or deserted, successful or defeated, in the ultimate issue. Soon after coming to this conclusion, a Karen woman offered herself for baptism. After the usual examination, I inquired whether she could give up her ornaments for Christ. It was an unexpressed blow! I explained the spirit of the gospel. I appealed to her own consciousness of vanity. I read the apostle's prohibition. She looked again and again at her handsome necklace, (she wore but one,) and then with an air of modest decision, that would adorn beyond all outward ornaments, any of my sisters whom I have the honor of addressing, she took it off, saying, I love Christ more than this. The news began to spread. The Christian women made but little hesitation. A few others opposed, but the work went on. At length the evil which I most dreaded came upon me. Some of the Karen men had been to Maulmein, and seen what I wished they had not. And one day, when we were discussing the subject of ornaments, one of the Christians came forward in my face, and declared, that at Maulmein he had actually seen one of the great female teachers wearing a string of gold beads around her neck!!! Lay down this paper, dear sister, and sympathize a moment with your fallen missionary. Was it not a hard case? Was it not cruel for that sister thus to smite down to the ground her poor brother, who, without that blow, was hardly able to keep his ground? But she knew it not. She was not aware of the mischief she was doing. However, though cast down, I was not destroyed; though sorely bruised and wounded, I endeavored to maintain the warfare as well as I could. After some conflict the enemy left the field, and when I left those parts, the female converts were, generally speaking, arrayed in modest apparel. On arriving at Maulmein, and partially recovering from a fever which I had contracted in the Karen woods, the first thing I did was to crawl out to the house of the patroness of the gold beads. To her I related my adventures—to her commiseration I commended my grief. With what ease and truth too, could that sister reply, Notwithstanding these beads, I dress more plain than most ministers' wives and professors of religion in our native land. Those beads are the only ornament I wear; they were given me when quite a child by a dear mother, whom I never expect to see again; (another hard case;) and she enjoined it on me never to part with them as long as I lived, but to wear them as a memorial of her! O ye Christian mothers, what a lesson you have before you! Can you, dare you, give injunctions to your daughters, directly contrary to apostolic commands? But to the honor of my sister, be it recorded, that as soon as she understood the merit of the case, and the mischief done by such example, off went the gold beads; she gave decisive proof that she loved Christ more than father or mother. Her example, united with the efforts of the rest of us at this station, is beginning to exercise a redeeming influence in the female department of the church. But notwithstanding these favorable signs, nothing, really nothing, is yet done. And why? This mission and all others must be sustained by continual supplies of missionaries, male and female, from the mother country. Your sisters and daughters will continually come out to take the place of those who are removed by death, and to occupy numberless stations still unoccupied. And when they arrive, they will be dressed in their usual way, as Christian women at home are dressed. And the female converts will run around them, and gaze upon them, with the most prying91curiosity, regarding them as the freshest representations of the Christian religion, from the land where it flourishes in all its purity and glory. And when they see the gold and jewels pendant from their ears, the beads and chains encircling their necks, the finger rings set with diamonds, and rubies, the rich variety of ornamental head dress, "the mantles and the wimples and the crisping pins," (see the rest in Isa. iii,) they will cast a bitter, reproachful, triumphant glance at their old teachers, and spring with fresh avidity to repurchase and resume their long-neglected elegancies:—the cheering news will fly up to the Dah-gyaing, the Laing-bwai, and the Sal-wen;—the Karenesses will reload their necks and ears, and arms and ankles;—and when after another year's absence, I return and take my seat before the Burmese or the Karen church, I shall behold the demon of vanity enthroned in the center of the assembly, more firmly than ever, grinning defiance to the prohibitions of apostles, and the exhortations of us who would fain be their humble followers. And thus you, my dear sisters, sitting quietly by your firesides, or repairing devoutly to your places of worship, do, by your example, spread the poison of vanity through all the rivers and mountains, and wilds of this far distant land; and while you are sincerely and fervently praying for the upbuilding of the Redeemer's kingdom, are inadvertently building up that of the Devil. If, on the other hand, you divest yourself of all meretricious ornaments, your sisters and daughters who come hither will be divested, of course; the further supplies of vanity and pride will be cut off; and the churches at home being kept pure, the churches here will be pure also. Dear Sisters,—Having finished my tale, and therein exhibited the necessity under which I lay of addressing you, I beg leave to submit a few topics to your candid and prayerful consideration. 1. Let me appeal to conscience, and inquire, What is the real motive for wearing ornamental and costly apparel? Is it not the desire of setting off one's person to the best advantage, and of exciting the love and admiration of others? Is not such dress calculated to gratify self-love, to cherish sentiments of vanity and pride? And is it not the nature of these sentiments to acquire strength from indulgence? Do such motives and sentiments comport with the meek, humble, self-denying religion of Jesus Christ? I would here respectfully suggest that these questions will not be answered so faithfully in the midst of company as when quite alone kneeling before God. 2. Consider the words of the apostle quoted above from 1 Tim. ii, 9: "I will also that women adorn themselves in modest apparel, with shamefacedness, and sobriety, not with broidered hair, or gold, or pearls, or costly array." I do not quote a similar command recorded in 1 Pet. iii, 3, because the verbal construction is not quite so definite, though the import of the two passages is the same. But cannot the force of these passages be evaded? Yes, and nearly every command in scripture can be evaded, and every doctrinal assertion perverted, plausibly and handsomely, if we set about it in good earnest. But preserving the posture above alluded to, with the inspired volume spread open at the passage in question, ask your hearts in simplicity and godly sincerity, whether the meaning is not just as plain as the sun at noon-day. Shall we then bow to the authority of an inspired apostle, or shall we not? From that authority shall we appeal to the prevailing usages and fashions of the age? If so, please to recall the missionaries you have sent to the heathen; for the heathen can vindicate all their superstitions on the same ground. O Christian sisters, believers in God, in Christ, in a heaven and a hell! and can you hesitate and ask what you shall do? Bedew those ornaments with the tears of contrition; consecrate them to the cause of charity; hang them on the cross of your dying Lord. Delay not an instant. Hasten with all your might, if not to make reparation for the past, at least to prevent a continuance of the evil in the future. And be not content with individual exertion. Remember that union is strength. Take an example from the temperance societies, which are rising in their might, and rescuing a nation from the brink of destruction. Unite, Christian sisters, of all denominations, and make an effort to rescue the church of God from the insidious attacks of an enemy which is devouring her vitals. As a counterpart to the societies just mentioned, may I respectfully suggest that Plain Dress Societies be formed in every city and village throughout the land, recognizing two fundamental principles—the one based on 1 Tim. ii, 9—all ornaments and costly dress to be disused; the other on the law of general benevolence—the avails of such articles, and the savings resulting from the plain dress system to be devoted to purposes of charity. Some general rules in regard to dress, and some general objects of charity may be easily ascertained and settled. Minor points must of course be left to the conscience of each individual. Yet free discussion will throw light on many points at first obscure. Be not deterred by the suggestions, that in such discussions you are conversant about small things. Great things depend on small; and in that case, things which appear small to short-sighted man, are great in the sight of God. Many there are who praise the principle of self-denial in general, and condemn it in all its particular applications as too minute, scrupulous and severe. Satan is well aware that if he can secure the minute units, the sum total will be his own. Think not anything small which may have a bearing upon the kingdom of Christ, and upon the destinies of eternity. How easy to conceive, from many known events, that the single fact of a lady's divesting herself of a necklace, for Christ's sake, may involve consequences which shall be felt in the remotest part of the earth, and in all future generations to the end of time, yea, stretch away into a boundless eternity, and be a subject of praise millions of ages after this world and all its ornaments are burned up. Beware of another suggestion made by weak and erring souls, who will tell you that there is more danger of being proud of plain dress and other modes of self-denial, than of fashionable attire and self-indulgence. Be not ensnared by this last, most finished, most insidious device of the great enemy. Rather believe that He who enables you to make a sacrifice, is able to keep you from being proud of it. Believe that he will kindly permit such occasions of mortification and shame, as will preserve from the evil threatened. The severest path of self-denial consists in encountering the disapprobation, the envy, the hatred of one's dearest friends. All who enter the straight and narrow path in good earnest, soon find themselves in a climate extremely uncongenial to the growth of pride. The gay and fashionable will in many cases be the last to engage in this holy undertaking. But let none be discouraged on that account. Christ has seldom honored the leaders of worldly fashion by appointing them leaders in this cause. Fix it in your hearts, that in this warfare the Lord Jesus Christ expects every woman to do her duty. There is probably not one in the humblest walks of life but would, on strict examination, find some article which might be dispensed with for purposes of charity, and ought to be dispensed with, in compliance with the apostolic command. Wait not, therefore, for the fashionable to set an example; wait not for one another; listen not to the news from the next town; but let every individual go forward, regardless of reproach, fearless of consequences. The eye of Christ is upon you. Death is hastening to strip you of your ornaments, and to turn your fair forms into corruption and dust. Many of those for whom this letter is designed will be laid in the grave before it can ever reach their eyes. We shall soon appear before the judgment seat of Christ, to be tried for our conduct, and to receive the things done in the body. Will you then wish, that in defiance of his authority you had adorned your mortal bodies with gold, and precious stones, and costly attire, cherishing self-love, vanity and pride? Or will you wish that you had chosen a life of self-denial, renounced the world, taken up the cross daily and followed him? And as you will then wish you had done, DO NOW. Dear sisters, your affectionate brother in Christ. Love Founded in Justice
By J. C.
LOVE is founded in justice. We cannot love with complacency the unjust; that is, we cannot take pleasure in them and love them as unjust. We see in them the work of God in ruins; we love them as the creatures of God, while we hate the image of Satan as therein developed; and the more we see the image of God stamped upon them, the more we love them; because it is safe to love a just person, just at heart. Such a one loves his neighbor, respects his rights, his feelings, his interests; will foster them, not infringe upon them. He is a true friend; for he cannot be false; for he is just. The perfect law is his rule; therefore there is no such foundation for true friendship as this just and perfect law. J. C. YEA, Christian, wherefore? Does not each promise still stand up, an unscathed pillar, upon the summit of which shines the pure, soft light of heaven? Are not God's strong-winged angels still all—aye, ALL—ministering spirits to the heirs of salvation? Does not Jesus still live, and does he not bear your name upon his heart as he maketh intercession? Is he not your sympathizing friend? And does not God reign? Shall not the Judge of all the earth do right? Is there not a home of sweet, sinless rest, where the battling soldiers of the cross shall by-and-by be crowned? Then why cast down? Right shall yet triumph. Dry up your tears. Look up—up! GOD REIGNS. There is enough in these two words for faith to fasten upon to give a present and permanent victory. Cheer up, and honor God by trusting in him. "Let the children of Zion be joyful in their king." "Live on the field of battle,
Be earnest in the fight;
Stand forth with manly courage,
And struggle for the right." Has the Messiah Come, or do we still Look for Another.
THIS startling question is embraced in a “proclamation” just issued by the Jews of New York in the form of a neatly printed handbill, and posted up in various parts of the city. The papers all copy it, but do not seem to understand what it means: “Eighteen hundred years have now nearly passed since our beloved land—the heritage God gave to our Fathers and to us their posterity for an everlasting possession—has been wrested from us by cruel and bloody idolaters. During that long period we have remained scattered and captives among the Gentiles. We have suffered the most cruel persecutions on account of our faith. We have long prayed and hoped for the coming of that Great Deliverer, whom the God of Israel has promised to send to restore us and to re-establish the Throne of David. This hope, in the minds of many, is now beginning to be shaken. Some, because the fulfilment of these promises has been so long delayed, deny the truth of God’s Word altogether. Many have already forsaken us, and have enlisted under the banner of Infidelity. Hundreds of others are embracing the religion of the crucified Nazarene. Is it not then most important for every one of us to ask himself the question: Has the Messiah come, or do we still look for another? Rabbis, answer! Teachers of Israel, to the Rescue! The faithful ones in Israel demand it!”—Sel. Two painters were employed to fresco the walls of a cathedral. Both stood on a rude scaffolding, constructed for the purpose, some forty feet from the floor. One of them was so intent upon his work that he became wholly absorbed, and, in admiration, stood off from the picture, gazing at it with intense delight. Forgetting where he was, he moved back slowly, surveying critically the work of his pencil, until he neared the edge of the plank on which he stood. At this critical moment his companion turned suddenly, and, almost paralyzed with horror, beheld his imminent peril; another instant, and the enthusiast would be precipitated upon the pavement beneath. If he spoke to him it was certain death; if he held his peace, death was equally sure. Suddenly he regained his presence of mind, and seizing a wet brush flung it against the wall, spattering the picture with unsightly blotches of coloring. The painter flew forward, and turned upon his friend with fierce upbraidings; but startled at his ghastly face, he listened to his recital of danger, looked shuddering at the dreaded space below, and with tears of gratitude he blessed the hand that had saved him. Just so, we sometimes get absorbed upon the pictures of the world; and, in contemplating them, step backwards, unconscious of our peril, when the Almighty in mercy dashes out the beautiful images, and draws us, at the time we are complaining of his dealings, into his outstretched arms of compassion and love.—Sel. MUSIC! There is something very wonderful in music. Words are wonderful enough : but music is even more wonderful. It speaks not to our thoughts as words do—it speaks straight to our hearts and spirits, to the very core and root of our souls. Music soothes us, stirs us up: it puts noble feelings into us ; it melts us to tears, we know not how ; it is a language by itself, just as perfect in its way as speech, as words : just as divine, just as blessed.—Kingsley’s Sermon. Preaching Controversial Sermons
A MAN must be a very holy man, before he is fit to preach a controversial sermon.—Sel. Just as we were going to press last week, the news came that peace had been concluded between the emperors of France and Austria. This is apparently reliable. So the war that so suddenly blazed forth in Europe, is as suddenly quenched. This is an event for which none were looking. Such a result never entered into the calculations of those who undertook to speculate upon the probable future. The only issue upon which human sagacity and foresight could calculate, was a long-continued, fierce, and wide-spread war. As Lord Derby remarked in the commencement of the struggle, "He greatly underrates the magnitude of the danger, who supposes the war will be confined to Italy. It will be a war, in the first phase of the most sanguinary description, because a war of principle and of passion. It will not be a war between two great nations contending for some definite object, but a war exciting the most violent passions, and once begun in Italy, it will extend far beyond the limits of that country. Other passions will be roused, other interests will be touched, other nations will be called upon to interfere, and war originating in Italy, will certainly, at no distant period, extend far and wide, wrapping the whole of Europe in one general conflagration." The "London Times" also speculated largely upon the magnitude and extent of the struggle. But contrary to all expectation, the flood of war is suddenly arrested; peace is concluded; and the emperor of the French returns in triumph to his capital, leaving the world to speculate upon the dark and hidden counsels by which he moves, as before they had speculated upon the probable issue of the "coming struggle." To the student of prophecy, however, there is nothing strange in this unexpected turn of affairs. Not looking for the fall of Babylon in the burning of Rome, he will not be in the least chagrined by the course of Napoleon III. He reads Rev. xi, 18, and chap. vii, 1-3, and knows that there will come a time in this world's history, when the nations will be filled with emotions of hatred and anger towards each other, and yet be in a measure restrained in their acts of hostility; for "wind" is the symbol which inspiration uses for strife and commotion among the people. Dan. vii, 2, 3; Rev. xvii, 15. He knows that this time will be in the last days; for it is just before that period when an innumerable company will assemble before the throne, and ascribe praise to their God and to the Lamb. Rev. vii, 9, 11. And knowing that the last days are upon us, he expects to see this restraining power manifested among the nations of the earth. He looks to Europe and does see it, in the sudden and unaccountable suspension of the Italian war. Thus prophecy is fulfilled, and those who wait for the consolation of Israel, are confirmed in their hope. It may be true, as is now generally thought, that the action of Louis Napoleon has sown the seeds of dissension and apparently interminable wars in the future; but this does not in the least affect the application we now make; for the struggle is for the time being suspended, and the issue staved off. Indeed, that the attempt the nations now make to wreak their vengeance on each other, would contain the seeds and germs of future strife, is what, upon consideration, we might expect; for the time will of course come when no check will be imposed upon their warlike proclivity. The restraining mandate covers only the time occupied by the sealing of the servants of God; [Rev. vii, 3]; and when that work is accomplished, it expires by its own limitation. The "winds" will then blow, the nations vent their anger unrestrained, and finally drink the unmingled wrath of God. Rev. xi, 18; xv, 1. Brethren, how are we improving this favorable time for work, and discharging the responsibilities that rest upon us? Once the Lord suspended the laws of nature in behalf of his people, and gave Israel, with Joshua at their head, time to avenge themselves upon their enemies; and we may be assured that that time when the moon stayed and the sun hastened not to go down about the space of a whole day, was well and thoroughly improved by those for whose benefit it was designed. But a power as far as that above human influence, and almost as marked, is now exerted upon the nations of the earth. Shall we then suffer ourselves to lie down in supineness and sloth, when everything seems waiting for us to fulfill our mission? No, no. "See, brethren, see, how the day rolls on,
Quickly will the Saviour come.
Hark! hear the sound, he will appear,
Sweetly falls upon the ear.
Then, haste, let us work till the daylight is o'er,
Our hearts filled with love as we row to the shore,
Our earthly labor being done,
How sweet the christian's welcome home."