Earlier text: With Our Inquirers1. What gift did Jesus promise His disciples when He went away? "If ye love Me, keep My commandments. And I will pray the Father, and He shall give you another Comforter, that He may abide with you forever; even the SPIRIT OF TRUTH; whom the world can not receive." John 14:15-17. 2. To whom among His followers is the gift of the Spirit vouchsafed? "Then Peter said unto them, Repent, and be baptized EVERY ONE OF YOU in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost. For the promise is unto you, and to your CHILDREN, and to ALL that are afar off, even as MANY AS THE LORD OUR GOD SHALL CALL." Acts 2:38, 39. NOTE.—The Spirit of God COMES TO every soul upon earth to convict and convince of sin, of righteousness, of judgment. John 16:8-11. Into the life of the believer in the Lord Jesus Christ comes that Spirit, to cleanse of sin, to quicken conscience, to give new life, to sanctify and save. See the Bible-reading of last week. But the student must note the distinction between THE gift of the Spirit to EVERY BELIEVER, to sanctify and save, and the gifts of the Spirit, or spiritual gifts, bestowed for service. 3. Of what would the apostle not have us ignorant? "Now CONCERNING SPIRITUAL GIFTS, brethren, I would not have you ignorant." 1 Cor. 12:1. 4. When did Jesus Christ bestow these gifts upon His church? "Wherefore He saith, WHEN HE ASCENDED UP ON HIGH, He led captivity captive, and GAVE GIFTS unto men." Eph. 4:8. 5. Thru what agency does Christ bestow these gifts? "Now there are diversities of gifts, but the SAME SPIRIT. And there are differences of administrations, but the same Lord. And there are diversities of operations, but it is the same God which worketh all in all." 1 Cor. 12:4-6. 6. What are some of these gifts? "For to one is given by the Spirit the word of wisdom; to another the word of knowledge by the same Spirit; to another faith by the same Spirit; to another the gifts of healing by the same Spirit; to another the working of miracles; to another prophecy; to another discerning of spirits; to another divers kinds of tongues; to another the interpretation of tongues." 1 Cor. 12:8-10. "And He gave some, APOSTLES; and some, PROPHETS; and some, EVANGELISTS; and some, PASTORS and TEACHERS." Eph. 4:11. 7. For what purpose did He bestow these gifts? "For the PERFECTING of the SAINTS, for the WORK of the MINISTRY, for the EDIFYING of the BODY of CHRIST." Eph. 4:12. "But the manifestation of the Spirit is given to EVERY MAN TO PROFIT WITHAL." 1 Cor. 12:7. 8. Does God invest each and all with the same gifts? "Having then gifts DIFFERING according to the grace that is given to us." Rom. 12:6. "And God hath set some in the church, first APOSTLES, secondarily PROPHETS, thirdly TEACHERS, after that MIRACLES, then gifts of HEALINGS, HELPS, GOVERNMENTS, diversities of TONGUES. Are all apostles? are all prophets? are all teachers? are all workers of miracles? have all the gifts of healing? do all speak with tongues? do all interpret?" 1 Cor. 12:28-30. 9. Is it proper for us to desire great gifts? "But COVET EARNESTLY the BEST GIFTS: and yet show I unto you a more excellent way." 1 Cor. 12:31. 10. With whom does the bestowal of the gift rest? "But all these WORKETH that one and the SELFSAME SPIRIT, dividing to every man severally as HE will." 1 Cor. 12:11 NOTE.—It is well to covet excellent gifts, gifts which we can use for God; but it is better always to remember that the gift or gifts we can best use are those given by the Spirit. God knows our ability to use, knows our weaknesses, knows our limitations, and He will always bestow the proper gift or gifts if we are prepared to receive them and use them. 11. For how long are these gifts to be in the church? "TILL WE ALL COME in the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, UNTO A PERFECT MAN, unto the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ." Eph. 4:13. "For we know in PART, and we prophesy in PART. But WHEN THAT WHICH IS PERFECT IS COME, then that which is in part shall be done away." 1 Cor. 13:9, 10. NOTE.—The perfect man—Christ Jesus "the Head," and His church "the body"—is not yet complete. The Former waits and pleads with all the agony of that prayer recorded in John 17: "that they all may be one, as Thou, Father, art in Me, and I in Thee, that they also may be one in Us; that the world may believe that Thou hast sent Me." Verse 21. The body is scattered in hundreds of fragments and units in Babylon, and to them is He calling. "The fulness of Christ" is not yet manifest. "That which is perfect" has not yet come. The gifts are still needed; and he who would teach otherwise is in that teaching setting aside God's plan in Christ Jesus, depriving the church of her power, and is leaving her open to every weakness and deception of the enemy, while he endeavors to supplement her infinite need by human devices and subterfuges. There is no substitute for the Spirit of God. 12. To what are these gifts likened in two parables of Jesus? "He said therefore, A certain nobleman went into a far country to receive for himself a kingdom, and to return. And he called his ten SERVANTS, and delivered them ten POUNDS, and said unto them, Occupy till I come." Luke 19:12, 13. "For the kingdom of heaven is as a man traveling into a far country, who called his OWN SERVANTS, and delivered unto them his goods. And unto one he gave five TALENTS, to another two, and to another one; to every man ACCORDING to his several ABILITY; and straightway took his journey. Then he that had received the five talents went and traded with the same, and made them other five talents. And likewise he that had received two, he also gained other two. But he that had received one went and digged in the earth, and hid his lord's money." Matt. 25:14-18. NOTE.—The pound (the largest denomination in Roman money) and the talent (the largest in Hebrew) are used to illustrate the worth and preciousness and use of spiritual gifts. A study of these parables will show that the pounds and talents are identical with the "gifts." (1) These were bestowed at the same time as the gifts, when Christ ascended; (2) They were given by the same One; (3) They were given to the same ones—"His servants"—"His OWN servants;" (4) They were given for the same purpose—for profit; (5) They were given for the same time, till the Nobleman returned, till His church was made complete; (6) They are not natural, or fleshly, inherited talents or faculties or natural abilities, but are given to every one "ACCORDING TO his several ability." These scriptures can not be studied too thoroly. In their right understanding and employment lies the usefulness of the church of Christ. Disregarded, the goods of Christ are buried in the world, and he who might have shared Christ's joy is cast out. See the full accounts of the parables. 13. What will be their effect upon the church in preserving from deception? "That we henceforth be NO MORE CHILDREN, tossed to and fro, and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the sleight of men, and cunning craftiness, whereby they lie in wait to deceive." Eph. 4:14. 14. What is the design of the positive effect of these gifts? "But speaking the truth in love, may GROW UP INTO HIM in all things, which is the HEAD, even CHRIST: from whom the whole body fitly joined together and compacted by that which every joint supplieth, according to the effectual working in the measure of every part, maketh INCREASE OF THE BODY unto the edifying of itself in love." Eph. 4:15, 16. 15. What effort should each member put forth to improve his gift or gifts? "Wherefore I put thee in remembrance, that thou STIR UP THE GIFT of God, which is in thee." 2 Tim. 1:6. "AS EVERY MAN hath received THE GIFT [literally, "a gift," see A.R.V.], even so7MINISTER the same ONE to ANOTHER, as good stewards of the manifold grace of God. If any man speak, let him speak as the oracles of God; if any man minister, let him do it as of the ability which God giveth; that God in all things may be glorified thru Jesus Christ: to whom be praise and dominion forever and ever. Amen." 1 Peter 4: 10, 11. NOTE.—Not one of His servants has Christ left giftless, unfitted for service. If there is a single soul who feels he has no talent to work for his Lord, it is either because he does not believe in the abounding assurances of Inspiration, or he has not given himself to Christ, to be Christ's "own servant." 16. Should we esteem differently those who have different gifts, or seek to measure usefulness thereby? "For I say, thru the grace given unto me, to every man that is among you, NOT TO THINK OF HIMSELF MORE HIGHLY THAN HE OUGHT TO THINK; but to think soberly, according as God hath dealt to every man the measure of faith. For as we have many members in one body, and all members have not the same office: so we, being many, are one body in Christ, and every one members one of another." Rom. 12:3-5. 17. Should we depreciate our own gifts? "For I KNOW NOTHING BY MYSELF; yet am I not hereby justified: but He that judgeth me is the Lord. Therefore JUDGE NOTHING BEFORE THE TIME, until the Lord come, who both will bring to light the hidden things of darkness, and will make manifest the counsels of the hearts: and then shall every man have praise of God." 1 Cor. 4: 4, 5. 18. Should we exalt man because of the gifts? "And these things, brethren, I have in a figure transferred to myself and to Apollos for your sakes; that ye might learn in us NOT TO THINK OF MEN ABOVE THAT WHICH IS WRITTEN, that no one of you be puffed up for one against another. For who maketh thee to differ from another? and WHAT HAST THOU THAT THOU DIDST NOT RECEIVE? now if thou didst receive it, why dost THOU GLORY, AS IF THOU hadst NOT received it?" 1 Cor. 4:6, 7. 19. What should be the object of every one? "Having then gifts differing according to the grace that is given to us, whether prophecy, let us prophesy according to the proportion of faith; or ministry, let us wait on our ministering; or he that teacheth, on teaching; or he that exhorteth, on exhortation; he that giveth, let him do it with simplicity; he that ruleth, with diligence; he that showeth mercy, with cheerfulness." Rom. 12:6-8. NOTE.—There is one gift mentioned in the above scripture which every soul may use, MUST use, and will possess; namely, the simple gift of "ministering," or service, in the stead of the Master in some one or more of a myriad ways for needy humanity. 20. Will possession of the gifts rightly used lead to fanaticism? "Stir up the GIFT OF GOD which is in thee, . . . for God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of POWER, and of LOVE, and of a SOUND MIND." 2 Tim. 1:6, 7. 21. To whom will all the glory be given? "That NO FLESH should glory in His presence. But of Him are ye in Christ Jesus, who of God is made unto us wisdom, and righteousness, and sanctification, and redemption: that, according as it is written, HE THAT GLORIETH, LET HIM GLORY IN THE LORD." 1 Cor. 1:29-31. Schedule for Week Ending May 2, 1908. Chapters 26, 27, and 30 are a story of David's experiences in the land of the Philistines, where he went to avoid Saul. His trustworthiness won the confidence of the king of Gath, but not of the other lords of the Philistines. What David's object was in desiring to go with the Philistines to battle against Israel is not told us, but we can not believe that he would have turned his hand against his own people; for much of his time he was warring against the enemies of Israel. Chapter 28 is a sad record of the downfall of King Saul. Of course, it began long before the king was forsaken of God. It began when he began to prefer his ways to God's ways and to be restive and rebellious under reproof. When he would not receive His words the Lord must leave him. So He did, and answered no more by Urim or by dreams or by prophets. Then Saul sought an ancient spiritist medium, who brought up a spirit who pretended to be Samuel. See the tract on "Spiritualism," or the Bible-reading in the Signs of March 11. Chapter 31 records the king's death. Chapter 1 of 2 Samuel is the story of David's receiving the news, his unfeigned grief, and his "Song of the Bow," in remembrance of the great warriors, Saul and Jonathan, the latter of whom is one of the sweetest characters recorded in history. Chapters 2 to 11 inclusive are records of internal troubles, internecine strifes, incidents connected with the establishment of David's reign, evidences of his generous disposition, David's throne set in Jerusalem, his victories over his enemies, his plan to build a temple for God, his kindness to the house of Saul for Jonathan's sake, and his fearful sin against Uriah the Hittite, recalling God's warning, "Wherefore let him that thinketh he standeth take heed lest he fall." But two psalms come into our lesson this week: Psalm 118 expressing thanksgiving for God's loving kindness, and prophetic of Christ; Psalm 119, probably written by Daniel the prophet after some experiences in Babylon. Keep Daniel and his experience in mind as it is read. Note verses 9, 19, 23, 51, 98, 99, 100, etc. "The Spirit Is Life."
By Mrs. E. G. White
AND when He had said this, He breathed on them, and saith unto them, Receive ye the Holy Ghost: whose soever sins ye remit, they are remitted unto them; and whose soever sins ye retain, they are retained." The Holy Spirit was not yet fully manifested; for Christ had not yet been glorified. The more abundant impartation of the Spirit did not take place till after Christ's ascension. Not until this was received could the disciples fulfil the commission to preach the Gospel to the world. But the Spirit was now given for a special purpose. Before the disciples could fulfil their official duties in connection with the church, Christ breathed His Spirit upon them. He was committing to them a most sacred trust, and He desired to impress them with the fact that without the Holy Spirit this work could not be accomplished. The Holy Spirit is the breath of spiritual life in the soul. The impartation of the Spirit is the impartation of the life of Christ. It imbues the receiver with the attributes of Christ. Only those who are thus taught of God, those who possess the inward working of the Spirit, and in whose life the Christ-life is manifested, are to stand as representative men to minister in behalf of the church. It is thru the Spirit that Christ dwells in us; and the Spirit of God, received into the heart by faith, is the beginning of life eternal.—Mrs. E. G. White. THE following is from a couple of old pilgrims, aged respectively seventy-two and seventy-eight: "It is with a feeling of deep gratitude to God that we wish to thank you for the more than kindly interest you manifest in leading us Bible-band members each week with your helpful remarks. It is comforting to us old people to have you with us. We are reading the Bible with more interest than ever before, and are glad we joined the Bible Band." Here is another testimony which also came in to-day's mail as did the above: "I think the Bible Band is just splendid. I have read the Bible thru twice before, but this time I notice so many things I did not notice before. I read the lessons nearly always in the morning, and I believe it helps me all thru the day." So all will find God's precious word. It will to the thoughtful, faithful reader prove an ever upspringing well, pouring forth waters of life and health. Of what book could such a review and lesson be drawn as that presented by Emma Hildreth Adams in our last issue? Meaning of "Rabbi" Among the Jews.
SOME people not knowing what "rabbi" means, give that name to any Jewish teacher, or to one who administers circumcision, and thus lower the dignity of the title as understood among the Jews. In the strict sense of the term it is applied only to persons who have studied a certain amount of Hebrew literature, and who have attained a high standard of conduct both moral and spiritual, and there are few such rabbis in America.—The Chosen People. LENT with all its ritualistic solemnity and stated fastings is over. Easter with its ornate display and customary feastings and jubilations is in the past. And what better is the world? Christian or not, Saxe expressed the truth,
"'Tis not the stubborn fast nor stated prayers
Which make us saints." Not one day to afflict the soul, nor one week, nor six weeks, makes the soul one whit better in God's sight, tho all the time, like Simeon Stylites, the pillar saint, we batter the gates of heaven with "storms of prayer." It is only in the righteousness of God in Jesus Christ that we are righteous; only by simple childlike faith does that righteousness come into our soul, covering every iniquity, blotting out all sin; and, soul, God gives it "freely by His grace." It can not be purchased by fasting nor won by self-denial, nor gotten by prayer; it is the free gift of God in Christ Jesus. In all this we are not decrying fasting nor prayer; both are necessary to fleshly, spiritually insensate mortals, not for forty days in the year, but for three hundred and sixty-five. But neither the one nor the other will be counted current money for the purchase of the free gift of God. The proper celebration of the resurrection of Christ is not in the observance of a day, and worse than all a heathen festival still saturated with its heathen name and fleshly customs. Jesus Christ rose from the dead not for one day nor for two days, but for eternity; and he who truly would celebrate that rising from the dead first dies to sin with Christ, is buried in baptism, and rises to walk in newness of life forevermore. Men lose sight of a great truth of God when they memorialize it with a thing which has no connection with it. What has a day to do with the resurrection of Jesus? Of course, it was on some one day that He arose, but it came at a very time which is in dispute, when no mortal saw Him come forth. That rising from the dead occupied but a moment of time; but it stood for a great, eternal, living truth—that there was One who had broken the power of sin and death forevermore. And the only proper memorial, sign, emblem, of that, is not a day, either weekly or yearly, but a LIFE, beginning with baptism, and revealing to the world the power of a living Christ within, the power of God's righteousness by faith. Only so do we rightly celebrate or memorialize the risen Christ. It may be said of every form substituted by ritualism, howsoever impressive, as the angel said of the rock crypt of old, "He is not here; for He is risen." The Outpouring of the Spirit.
THERE are many Christian souls who are looking longingly for the outpouring of the Spirit of God. Many of them will fail to recognize it when it comes, because they ignore the conditions laid down in the Scriptures. Great danger lies here. The Spirit of God will be poured out in abundant measure in the last days. In what way or ways will this outpouring be manifest? This must not be decided by human consciousness or witness. There are many of the past centuries, from "Simon the sorcerer," who was called "the great power of God" (Acts 8), to present-day fanatics, who have believed they were Spirit-baptized and Spirit-filled; who have cried as did deceived ones in Luther's day, "The Spirit, the Spirit," but who have utterly ignored God's written word. Having no rule, no standard, save their own selfish hearts, such ones are bound to be deceived by that false spirit whose legions fill the world with evil. The prophet presents this test, not only for his own time, but for all ages: "To the law and to the testimony: if they speak not according to this word, it is because there is no light in them." Isa. 8:20. Jesus says of a class who profess to be His servants, and who will prophesy and work miracles in His name, yet who ignore His word: "Not every one that saith unto Me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of My Father which is in heaven. . . . Then will I profess unto them [the miracle-workers], I never knew you; depart from Me, ye that work iniquity." Matt. 7:21-23. The doing of God's will is loyalty to God; the working of iniquity is the opposite. Again Jesus declares, in speaking of Himself, the true Shepherd of God's sheep: "The sheep hear His voice. . . . The sheep follow Him; for they know His voice. And a stranger will they not follow, . . . for they know not the voice of strangers." "I am the Good Shepherd; and I know Mine own, and Mine own know Me, even as the Father knoweth Me, and I know the Father." John 10:3, 4, 14, 15. There is no guesswork in regard to this knowing. He who is truly of the flock of God Jehovah has given himself to God. He has renounced his sins, laid them all on the altar of God. He has accepted the righteousness of God in Jesus Christ for all the past of his life, and has chosen as the dominating motive power of conduct the life of the Spirit of God instead of the life of the flesh. That Spirit of life writes in the heart of the child of the flock the law of God (Heb. 8:10; Jer. 31:33); and the erstwhile sinner is in harmony with the law of God. He experiences the truth: "I will put My Spirit within you, and cause you to walk in My statutes, and ye shall keep Mine ordinances, and do them." Eze. 36:27. The law which the Spirit of God writes in the heart is the law which was spoken by the same "Voice" from heaven in the Ten Words of the Decalogue, the epitome of God's eternal code of moral conduct. Ex. 20:1-17; Deut. 5:22. Knowing that Voice, having its utterance written in the heart, having the life thus attuned to the utterance of the divine, we shall know all other voices in harmony with that voice of God. We shall ignore the discords of all voices out of tune with the divine harmony of its statutes. We shall know that the eternal Spirit which wrote the law on the tables of our heart will not speak contrary to the eternal God who spoke the law from Sinai's burning summit. If such could be the case, then God is divided against Himself, and His government and His plan of salvation are failures. God's law and God's Spirit are in harmony. God's Spirit is in harmony with the God-breathed, Spirit-inspired Scriptures. Any spirit speaking otherwise is not of God whatever its claims or manifestations may be. He who knows this truth will know from that word, and what he may see in harmony with the word, that God is now pouring out His Spirit upon all flesh to convict, convince of sin and righteousness, and judgment. Therefore there are "multitudes, multitudes in the valley of decision." Joel 3:14. Men may reject that Spirit, as many are doing and will do, but they have heard its pleadings to turn from the slavery of sin to the free service of Christ. As never before with the onsweep and outsweep of His widely scattered word, and thru that word and by His messengers, God is pleading with men, all men, as long as they will hear. The rejection will be of men, not of God. Not till the soul finally says, "I will not have this Man to reign over me," will the Spirit depart. But that Spirit is coming into the hearts and lives of those who yield to the voice of God. It comes in to work one of the mightiest miracles ever wrought, change the hard heart of a sinner to the obedient heart of a child of God. Not by outward show and pomp does the Spirit come. Not by an announcement of great miracles wrought or to be wrought, but to witness for Christ thru a regenerated life does the Spirit dwell with men. "If ye love Me, keep My commandments. And I will pray the Father, and He shall give you another Comforter, that He may abide with you forever; even the Spirit of truth, whom the world can not receive, because it seeth Him not, neither knoweth Him; but ye know Him; for He dwelleth with you, and shall be in you." John 14:15-17. And the "Spirit of truth" will witness with "the law of truth." Is the Sabbath Fictitious?
THE editor of the Western Watchman (Roman Catholic) says in a sermon on "He taught from day to day in the temple": "The Jewish people had made one advance upon the worship of the pagan world. While the idolaters, in their moments of highest enthusiasm, came together once a month to pay homage to their gods, the Jews subdivided the month into weeks, and required that the people should come together every seven days; and the worship of the synagog was based upon the observance of the Sabbath, or this once-a-week observance. Now this Sabbath was a FICTITIOUS subdivision of time. You can not make it fit into any of the natural subdivisions. It was created by God by a special enactment. . . . Our Saviour came on this earth, and He was known as NO PARTICULAR OBSERVER of the Sabbath. One of the crimes charged against Him was His neglect of Sabbath observance." Somehow our Roman Catholic friends always bungle when they come to Scripture exposition. In the first place, the text is not found in Luke 14, as the paper notes it. In the second place, the Jews did not divide 'the months into weeks.' The week is based on the very work of God in the making of the earth (Genesis 1); and the crowning day of that week was the Sabbath, made of God, before a month had rolled its round. In the third place, we could hardly call that 'fictitious' which God Himself made, even tho we could not see something in nature to correspond with it. Man's moral nature is more than the physical nature of this world, and that moral nature needs the Sabbath. Now if God 'enacted' it 'by special enactment' (He did man also), it9can hardly be called 'fictitious,' any more than the earth or man is 'fictitious.' In the fourth place, a thing which our Catholic friends do not see, if man should 'Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy,' he would remember God every day of the week, and hence be a daily worshiper. In the fifth place, Jesus Christ was not a 'no particular observer of the Sabbath.' When charged with Sabbath-breaking, He did not defend transgression, but appealed to the law to justify His right deeds. 'It is lawful to do well on the Sabbath.' Jesus did that which was lawful, according to law. The charge the traditionists brought against Him they bring against His followers to-day, with this difference: His sin in their eyes was in keeping the right Sabbath in the wrong way, and His followers are charged with keeping the wrong Sabbath in the right way. But according to the word of God, worth infinitely more than tradition, the true Bible followers of Jesus keep the right Sabbath—the seventh day; and Jesus kept it in the right way. Let us unite the two. Bound by the Law to Sin; But Christ Sets Us Free.
THE reasoning of the apostle Paul in his letter to the Romans shows very clearly the relation between the law and the Gospel; and in no part of the book is this shown more forcibly than in the seventh chapter. The first half of the chapter will be briefly studied in this article, and as has been suggested in former articles, it is to be hoped that the reader will go much beyond anything that can be brought out in the space here allotted to us. The book of Romans furnishes a most fascinating field for study, and the more we study it, the more we see in it, and the more we enjoy the study. Let us now with thoughtful consideration turn to the words of the sacred text: “Or are ye ignorant, brethren (for I speak to men who know the law), that the law hath dominion over a man for so long time as he liveth? For the woman that hath a husband is bound by law to the husband while he liveth; but if the husband die, she is discharged from the law of the husband. So then if, while the husband liveth, she be joined to another man, she shall be called an adulteress: but if the husband die, she is free from the law, so that she is no adulteress, tho she be joined to another man. “Wherefore, my brethren, ye also were made dead to the law thru the body of Christ; that ye should be joined to another, even to Him who was raised from the dead, that we might bring forth fruit unto God. For when we were in the flesh, the sinful passions, which were thru the law, wrought in our members to bring forth fruit unto death. But now we have been discharged from the law, having died to that wherein we were held; so that we serve in newness of the Spirit, and not in oldness of the letter. “What shall we say then? Is the law sin? God forbid. Howbeit, I had not known sin, except thru the law: for I had not known coveting, except the law had said, Thou shalt not covet: but sin, finding occasion, wrought in me thru the commandment all manner of coveting: for apart from the law sin is dead. And I was alive apart from the law once: but when the commandment came, sin revived, and I died; and the commandment, which was unto life, this I found to be unto death: for sin, finding occasion, thru the commandment beguiled me, and thru it slew me. So that the law is holy, and the commandment holy, and righteous, and good.” Rom. 7:1-12. There are some people who use the foregoing scripture to try to prove that the law of God is abolished. But the most casual reading should lead any one to see that the summing up of the apostle’s reasoning shows that he had no such idea in mind. His conclusion is reached in verse 12, which says: “So that the law is holy, and the commandment holy, and righteous, and good.” Then we are to see that the whole line of reasoning in the first eleven verses of the chapter is to show that God’s law is holy, and righteous, and good. It is always possible for a quibbler so to turn the plainest statements as to cause them to appear in a different light from that which is intended. But he who would enjoy the rich benefits of a correct knowledge of God’s truth must not quibble. He must seek for the plain meaning of the text so that he may be led into the fulness of its spiritual power. And when the inspired writer tells us in his conclusion that the law is holy, righteous, and good, we are certainly going very wide of the mark to say that the meaning of such language is the abolition of the law. Not only does the apostle give us the conclusion of the twelfth verse to show that he is teaching the binding claims of the law, but he also makes other statements, in connection with his reasoning, that are equally strong in proving the living necessity of the commandments of God. To provide against the possibility that some might think from his logic that he would have the law abolished, he asks, “What shall we say then? Is the law sin?” To this direct question he makes the plainest and the most unequivocal answer: “God forbid. Howbeit, I had not known sin, except thru the law: for I had not known coveting, except the law had said, Thou shalt not covet.” Verse 7. Paul clearly states, then, that the only means he had of knowing sin was “thru the law.” And it should be evident to any one that wrong-doing can not be pointed out in any other way. The law must reveal the depths of a person’s iniquity before that individual can feel the need of a Saviour. And there can be no mistaking the law that Paul has under consideration. The law of Ten Commandments is the only one that contains the precept, “Thou shalt not covet.” Therefore the whole argument of the seventh of Romans shows that the Ten Commandments are the living statutes of Jehovah, and absolutely essential in showing us our sins, and our consequent need of the salvation offered thru the Gospel. Passing to the fourth verse we read: “Wherefore, my brethren, ye also were made dead to the law thru the body of Christ; that ye should be joined to another, even to Him who was raised from the dead, that we might bring forth fruit unto God.” This text states what is “made dead.” It is not the law that is dead, but the sinner who repents and comes to Christ is “made dead to the law.” And the purpose for which the sinner is made dead to the law is plainly stated also. It is in order that he may be legally and consistently united to Christ. The figure of the law binding the wife to the husband is used in the first part of the chapter. While both the husband and the wife live, it would be unlawful for either of them to be married to another. But should the husband die, then is it lawful for the woman to be married to another husband, for she has been released from the law that bound her to the first husband. The law remains alive, however, all the time. It is the law that binds her to the first husband. When the husband dies, the law still lives on; and when she marries again, it is the same law that comes in to unite and also to bind her to the second husband. This is the plain logic of the apostle’s reasoning, and the figure is a beautiful and strong one, as well as an exceedingly plain one. It is hard to see how a person could get wrong ideas from such plain teaching. Among barbarous tribes a woman might not sense the binding obligation of law in joining her to her husband. But in lands where law has been brought into the life of the citizen, it is not permitted for a woman to leave one man and go to another, unless the first husband be dead. And in like manner the sinner is wedded to his sins, and can not be freed from them except as those sins are made to die out of his nature thru the power of the blood of Christ; then he is freed from those sins, and married to Christ. And having thus been united with Christ, he should look with loathing upon the thought of going back to the old body of sin, by forsaking the enjoyable companionship of his new Husband and Master. "THANKS be unto God for His unspeakable Gift."