Earlier text: WORTHIE HARRIS HOLDENIf the Blind Lead the Blind
A LADY missionary of the Methodist Church, laboring in Angola, Africa, has this to say in reference to the work of Roman Catholic missionaries in that field:— They do not help us much to enlighten the people here in Angola. At Malange, six miles from Quessua, they have a school and church. Among the trades taught is brewing. And a great quantity of beer is sold from this “religious” center. Some time ago one of the priests went through the country touring and teaching the people. He took with him large quantities of rum, of which the people are very fond, to entice them to his meeting. At one of these places a chief drank so much rum that he died in a short time from the effects of it. This proves true again the declaration of our Saviour, that “if the blind lead the blind, both shall fall into the ditch.” Sanctified Service
By Ellen G. White
When Christ gives to any of his followers a place in his service, he expects that they shall not only learn how to work intelligently, but that they shall labor in his spirit of consecration and submission to the will and ways of God. No worker is to bring into his labors ungoverned, unsanctified traits of character; for Christ can not co-operate with unconsecrated human beings; he can not use unsanctified human talents. He who has not learned to be a laborer together with God is to search the Word diligently that he may learn God’s perfect will concerning him. “The flesh profiteth nothing,” Christ declared, “the words that I speak unto you, they are spirit, and they are life.” The Lord will work for his people if they will work for him in his way, and not according to the ways of unsanctified hearts. The diligent, humble worker, seeking by earnest prayer and study of the truth as it is in Jesus, will most assuredly be regarded. He seeks for help, not from the ideas of human writers, but from the very fountain of wisdom and knowledge; and the Holy Spirit fulfils his office work to empty the golden oil into the golden bowls, that the lamps may send forth clear, perfect light, bringing to the understanding of others the purposes of God. Those who work for God need a daily supply of divine power. They need to be filled with a determined purpose to run in the way of God’s commandments. As little children, they must come in humility and meekness to the feet of Jesus, and learn of him how to promote the glory of God by working for the salvation of their fellow men. God would have his ministering servants come up to the standard which in their sermons they set for others. The principles of self-sacrifice which they lay down for others, they should exemplify in their own lives. The Spirit of God can enable them to reach this perfection of character. It is possible for all who believe in Christ to reveal in their lives the grace of humility, of liberality, of self-denial and self-sacrifice. Christ is our example in all things. He laid aside the glory that he had with the Father, that he might live on earth the life of a poor man, and reveal to all classes of society, rich and poor alike, the principles of the kingdom of heaven. His perfect life, in which were so fully revealed the attributes of mercy and compassion, enabled him to say to men and women, “Be ye therefore merciful;” “Do good unto all men;” “Be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect.” There is no defect in God’s plan for the salvation of men. If the gospel is not to every soul the power of God unto salvation, it is not because the gospel is at fault, but because men are not practical believers, practical receivers of the grace and righteousness of Christ. It is because professing believers do not take Christ as their personal Saviour, but follow Jesus a long way off. The Holy Spirit through the apostle Paul declares, “He gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers; for the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ.” Since the ministry of the word is the appointed agency for the perfecting of the saints, is there not a deficiency in the ministry which will in some way explain the deficiency in our churches? Have believers been educated in the vital principles of practical religion? or has this work been neglected because the one who ministered the word was not himself maintaining a living connection with God? The direct teachings of the Word of God must be brought to bear on the practical life, and no minister should feel satisfied unless fruit is seen as the result of his personal labor. Eloquent sermons will seldom do the work of breaking up long-established habits of selfishness, and leading the church to a deep Christian experience. The true servant of God will be in earnest. He will manifest humility of soul, and will labor untiringly for the church of God. He will reveal the attributes of the faithful shepherd, and will tenderly care for the sheep of the Lord’s pasture. He will “be watchful, and strengthen the things which remain, that are ready to die.” A true shepherd of souls will care for the sheep and lambs of his flock; and the love of Christ, filling his own heart, will flow through him to them. He will guard them carefully. His tender love for his charge has been presented in a picture I have seen representing Christ, the true Shepherd. The shepherd is leading the way, while the flock follow closely behind. Carried in his arms, and enfolded in his robe, is a helpless lamb, while its mother walks trustingly by his side. The prophet Isaiah, speaking of the work of the true Shepherd, says, “He shall gather the lambs with his arm, and carry them in his bosom.” The lambs need more than daily food. They look to the shepherd for protection. They need watchcare. The one that goes astray must be faithfully searched for until it is found and restored to the fold. The figure is a beautiful one, and well represents the faithful, loving service that the under-shepherd of the flock of Christ is to give to those under his protection and care. My ministering brethren, arouse the people,—those who know not the present truth, those who are strangers to the blessings of the gospel, and those who are neglecting their work for God. God is waiting to give to men and women the riches of his grace, that truth may become to them a sure refuge in time of trial and need. “Let the priests, the ministers of the Lord, weep between the porch and the altar, and let them say, Spare thy people, O Lord, and give not thine heritage to reproach, that the heathen should rule over them: wherefore should they say among the people, Where is their God? Then will the Lord be jealous for his land, and pity his people. . . . Behold, I will send you corn, and wine, and oil, and ye shall be satisfied therewith: and I will no more make you a reproach among the heathen.” All the congregations in our land need to learn more of Christ and him crucified. A religious experience that is not founded on Christ, and him alone, is worthless. Let the truth, in its simplicity and power, be presented to them. This will hold the attention and arouse the interest, and lead the mind to heavenly and divine things. In every congregation there are souls who are unsatisfied. Every Sabbath they should hear something that will help them in the way of salvation and teach them how to become better Christians. The important thing for them to know is, How can a sinner be justified before God? Let the way of salvation be presented before them in simplicity. Lift up Jesus as the sinner’s only hope. Let the one to whom God gives success in his work, keep on the garments of humility and contrition, if he desires to remain of value in the sight of heaven. Whether he be a successful evangelist,8a gifted teacher, a clear writer, let him strive to also be a man of faith, a man of prayer; let him never place human merit where God’s honor should be. Only those who are cleansed from all self-exaltation can become complete in Christ. While the workers keep their eyes fixed on Christ, they are safe. When they lose sight of him, they are in the greatest danger. The spirit of wisdom that dwelt in the early disciples was the secret of their success. And Paul declared, “Howbeit we speak wisdom among them that are perfect: yet not the wisdom of this world, nor of the princes of this world, that come to naught: but we speak the wisdom of God in a mystery, even the hidden wisdom, which God ordained before the world unto our glory.” Jesus is the fountain of all wisdom. Those who connect with him receive their counsel from a divine source. And it is only such as have “the wisdom that is from above” who can “walk in wisdom toward them that are without.” If we keep the glory of God ever in view, our eyes will be anointed with the heavenly eye-salve, and we shall be able to see deeper, and to behold afar off what the world is. As we discern its dishonesty, its craftiness, its selfishness, its eye-service, its pretense and boasting and grasping covetousness, we are to take our stand to represent the cause of truth by a revelation of sound principles, a firm integrity, and a holy boldness in acknowledging Christ. Love and Hope
By L. D. SANTEE
The love of my Saviour prevents me
From sharing the sins of the world;
But a glorious prospect contents me,
Where the banners of peace are unfurled. For my heaviest loss it requites me,
That prospect of heaven and home.
From the cross, ’tis the crown that invites me,
To be given when Jesus shall come. O that “home of the soul”! with emotion
I dream of its bright jasper walls,
With a loving and loyal devotion,
Of the Saviour who patiently calls. And now, in my chamber, while kneeling,
What hopes are enshrined in my heart;
What visions of beauty are stealing,
Of the country where friends never part! I’m free from the world, I can never
Engage in its sin and its wrong;
For Christ has redeemed me forever,
His love is the theme of my song. The End of All Things Is at Hand
By Florence Lloyd Evans
THE “time of trouble, such as never was since there was a nation,” is at hand. The earth is laying aside her usual quiet habits, and is participating in a general unrest. Cyclones and hurricanes, earthquakes and tidal waves, are no longer unusual things, neither are they confined to a few localities, but are becoming much more frequent, and are often felt in places where the reeling “to and fro” of the earth was never before known. Any one who is candid with himself must admit, in the moment of his soberest reflection, that the world is in a terrible condition. Never before have the nations made such gigantic preparation for war as at the present time. To-day there is not a single nation that is not straining every resource to increase its fortifications, armies, and navies. We are confronted with a social problem that increases in difficulty with every new day. Oppression of the lowly and unfortunate—the amassing of money out of the miseries of life—is one of the noteworthy abuses. The great concentration of wealth, whether it be in corporate trusts or by individuals, has reached a point dangerous to the future prosperity of the nation. In every strike it may be seen that “violence” is becoming more pronounced. We can easily recognize that the greatest evil of any civilized age is confronting us. Society to-day is a school that is filling the world with criminals. The world is driving headlong unto the time when every imagination will be only evil continually, as in the days of Noah; when the corrupting vice of Sodom, as in the days of Lot, will break out as a debasing plague. Though this violence has not as yet broken out with all its malignant powers, nevertheless the seeds of the evil are rapidly growing into a prolific harvest. Stability of governments is no longer a fact. Change is in the atmosphere. There is dissatisfaction everywhere. Statesmen are at their wits’ end, and philosophers speculate in vain. New diseases are constantly breaking out upon man and beast. Even the tiller of the sod is painfully aware of the fact that it is becoming more and more difficult to raise a crop. The outlook before the world to-day is filling men with fear and perplexity. What does all this mean? Jesus gives a vivid description of the conditions that will prevail on the earth near the close of time. He foretells the time of trouble, the last-day perils, and the distress of nations: “There shall be signs in the sun, and in the moon, and in the stars; and upon the earth distress of nations, with perplexity; the sea and the waves roaring; men’s hearts failing them for fear, and for looking after those things which are coming on the earth.” Luke 21:25, 26. Looking down to the end of time, the prophet beheld the angry nations. He heard the piteous cry of the laboring man oppressed by those who are heaping to themselves treasures for the last days, and he saw the injustice, crime, and violence that fill our land. Who can doubt the fulfilment of prophecy? Will God allow sin to reach to the heights of folly, plunging men to the lowest depths of wickedness, and do nothing to expose the danger, and to rescue those whom he gave his only begotten Son to save?—No, never! “Behold, he cometh with clouds; and every eye shall see him, . . . and all kindreds of the earth shall wail because of him.” Rev. 1:7. “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. 6:14-17. But to those who have heeded the admonition of the Father in heaven, it will be the gladsome day of all ages. With exultant joy God’s people will shout, “Lo, this is our God; we have waited for him, and he will save us.” The Lord is coming soon to destroy all evil, and if wickedness is still found in our hearts, we shall perish with our sins. But just now he is inviting us to come to him. The same Jesus that hung on the cruel cross on Calvary is pleading for us. Let us not crucify him again, but accept him while mercy pleads, that we may greet him with rejoicing when he shall come. Who will heed his warning? Is it possible for any to spurn so devoted and faithful a friend? “To-day if ye will hear his voice, harden not your hearts.” Turkey the Flash-Point
By Percy T. Magan
In the last issue of the Review, under the title “The Great Sign Plague,” it was made clear from the Word of God that the sixth in order of the seven last plagues is the only one that can be seen taking shape and coming into being. It was further established that this plague has to do with the operations of “the kings of the East,” or, as the Revised Version reads, “the kings that come from the sunrising,” and with “the kings of the earth and of the whole world,” and that all of these are to be gathered to “the battle of that great day of God Almighty.” And again it was made manifest that the lining up of the world powers for the final fray constituted God’s great sign that human probation is about to close, that opportunity for salvation is soon to cease. It is therefore all-important that every point in the Scripture bearing upon this plague be thoroughly and clearly understood. I quote again the story of this plague as it is in the Scripture:— “And the sixth poured out his bowl upon the great river, the river Euphrates; and the water thereof was dried up, that the way might be made ready for the kings that come from the sunrising. And I saw coming out of the mouth of the dragon, and out of the mouth of the beast, and out of the mouth of the false prophet, three unclean spirits, as it were frogs: for they are spirits of devils, working signs; which go forth unto the kings of the whole world, to gather them together unto the war of the great day of God, the Almighty. (Behold, I come as a thief. Blessed is he that watcheth, and keepeth his garments, lest he walk naked, and they see his shame.) And they gathered them together into the place which is called in Hebrew Har-Magedon.” Rev. 16:12–16, R. V.
Now notice that the closing scene in this plague is the “war of the great day of God,” and that by means of the agency of unclean spirits, “the kings that come from the sunrising,” and “the kings of the whole world,” are gathered together for the battle of Armageddon. And notice again that the starting point of this entire drama, the opening scene in the plague, is laid around the river Euphrates,—is the drying up of the water of the great river Euphrates. Whatever this is, it is the flash-point of the whole international situation. It is the thing which touches off the powder in the world-wide magazine. For it is when the water of the great river Euphrates is dried up that the way of the kings that come from the sunrising is made ready—made ready for them to do battle with “the kings of the whole world.”9 What, then, does the prophet mean by saying that the water of the great river Euphrates is to be dried up? and what is portrayed in the expression, “the great river, the river Euphrates”? The Euphrates River plays a prominent part in Bible history. It is called “the river” (Ex. 23:31), and “the great river” (Deut. 1:7). The breadth of this stream varies from two hundred to four hundred yards, and the general depth of its upper waters is approximately eight feet. “It is shallow enough in some places for loaded camels to pass in autumn.” See Bible Encyclopedia, edited by Rev. Samuel Fallows, Art. “Euphrates.” Now this literal river Euphrates, which rises in the Armenian mountains and empties into the Persian Gulf, has been crossed and recrossed by kings and their armies times without number. Eight feet of water could not for a moment be expected to check the onward march of a twentieth-century army, with all the modern bridge equipments. There is no reason why “the kings that come from the sunrising” should be stopped for any appreciable length of time by this river. Does the prophecy, then, refer to the literal flowing waters of the Euphrates?—We think not. Many things referred to in the book of Revelation are referred to by means of symbols. The book is largely one of signs and symbols. This is made clear from the first verse of the first chapter:— “The revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave unto him, to show unto his servants things which must shortly come to pass; and he sent and signified it by his angel unto his servant John.”
The word “signified” is only signified. Signifying is letting a person know a certain thing by means of a sign. Is it fair interpretation, then, to hold that the “great river, the river Euphrates,” and the drying up of the water thereof, are symbolic, rather than literal terms? First, is a river ever taken in the Bible to represent the nation, or power, or empire, which occupies the territory contiguous to its waters? That this is a fact can be proved from a number of scriptures. It can be shown in the case of several rivers, and of none more clearly than of this very river Euphrates. Note the following texts:— “And now what hast thou [Israel] to do in the way of Egypt, to drink the waters of Sihor? or what hast thou to do in the way of Assyria, to drink the waters of the river?” Jer. 2:18. In this text the expression “the waters of Sihor” is clearly synonymous with Egypt. Sihor was the ancient name for the river Nile. Therefore the waters of the river Nile are taken to represent the Egyptian nation. And the same principle is seen in the latter part of the verse—“Or what hast thou [Israel] to do in the way of Assyria, to drink of the waters of the river?” Here again the Assyrian nation is referred to as “the waters of the river.” And the great river of the land of Assyria was the Euphrates. But note again:—
“Now therefore, behold, the Lord bringeth up upon them [Israel] the waters of the river, strong and many, even the king of Assyria, and all his glory: and he shall come up over all his channels, and go over all his banks: and he shall pass through Judah, and he shall overflow and go over, he shall reach even to the neck; and the stretching out of his wings shall fill the breadth of thy land, O Immanuel.” Isa. 8:7, 8.
There can be no possible question as to the meaning of the expression, “the waters of the river, strong and many,” in this verse, for it is explained immediately after its use by the words, “even the king of Assyria, and all his glory.” This is so clear on the face of it that it scarcely needs any comment. And the same characteristic of Scripture imagery is seen in the following:— “Let not the swift flee away, nor the mighty man escape; they shall stumble, and fall toward the north by the river Euphrates. Who is this that cometh up as a flood, whose waters are moved as the rivers? Egypt riseth up like a flood, and his waters are moved like the rivers; and he saith, I will go up, and will cover the earth; I will destroy the city and the inhabitants thereof.” Jer. 46:6–8.
Here again the words “river” and “flood” and “waters” are taken to describe the Egyptian nation. And from all these it must be clear that the practise of signifying a country and nation by the name of its great river was a common custom in that elder day. There is, therefore, nothing strange in the fact that the book of Revelation should describe the nation and people dwelling in the territory contiguous to the Euphrates River as “the great river, the river Euphrates.” Indeed, the term can hardly be truthfully described as symbolical. It is simply the use of a very common piece of Bible imagery. But even if this be not proof sufficient, let it be noted that “waters” are plainly stated in the very next chapter of the book of Revelation to signify “peoples, and multitudes, and nations, and tongues.” Rev. 17:15. And therefore, from all of the above, it is evident that the word “waters” in this plague signifies the people and the power which dominate the territory adjacent to the Euphrates River. Now these people are none other than the Turks, and this power no other than the Ottoman Turkish empire. It is this Ottoman empire, then, which is to be “dried up.” It is this power which is to come to an end in order that “the way might be made ready for the kings that come from the sunrising.” It is the drying up of this Turkish empire which is the signal for the coming of these kings from the rising of the sun to do terrific battle with the kings of the earth and of the whole world. In other words, it is the passing of the Turk which acts as the flash-point, and brings about the long-looked-for universal war. In all seriousness let it be asked, Are there signs in the political and diplomatic world that the Turkish empire is liable to come to an end almost any day? And are there also signs that the kings from the rising of the sun are preparing for world-shaking combat with the powers that lie to the west of the Turkish empire? Are the mutterings of battle-storm to be heard in the far East,—in the lands of the rising of the sun? Did not the deathless fame of Nanshan, the splendid victory of Liao-yang, the Mukden triumph which set the world aquivering; the failure of Muscovite against Japanese at Port Arthur, and the annihilation of the Russian battle fleet in the Straits of Tsu Shima,—did not one and all of these cause the heart of every child of the Orient to leap, and to believe to the very depths of his soul that the verdict of the battle of Marathon had at last been reversed, and that it had now been demonstrated that Orientals could conquer Caucasians, and that the hour for the yellow men and the brown men, and for all the dusky sons of the East, to come into their own had at last struck on the great clock of time? Some Rules for Killing a Church
By G. B. Thompson
An exchange gives some rules for killing a church, which read somewhat as follows:— 2. If you should decide to attend, get there late. 3. If the weather is too wet or too dry, too hot or too cold, abandon all thought of attending. 4. If you attend, sit on the back seat; people might think you bold if you should take a front seat. 5. Find fault with the services; be sure the family are all present when you express your disapproval of the way the leader conducted the meeting. 6. Never pray for the minister or any of the backsliding members. 8. Don’t attend prayer-meetings; or if you do, be sure not to take part. 9. Don’t encourage the minister or leader by telling him that his sermon helped you, for it might make him vain. Your criticism will help to keep him humble. 10. If you see a stranger in the audience, do not shake hands with him, or invite him to come again, for people might think you bold. These negative suggestions may be helpful to us. Prompt and regular attendance at church on the Sabbath or at the weekly prayer-meeting is always to be commended. While we are admonished not to forsake “the assembling of ourselves together,” and “so much the more, as ye see the day approaching,” I sometimes wonder if we are as faithful in attending church services as we were a few years ago. How is it in your church? What about the weekly prayer-meeting? Is it as well attended as it should be by a people who claim to be preparing for translation? Do you attend, or do you excuse yourself for various reasons, none of which will answer at the bar of God?10Has the prayer-meeting died in your church? If so, why? Did you help kill it by not attending? If so, is there not something you can do to resurrect it, and thus bring back new life to the church? Do you attend the Sabbath-school each week? or are you habitually absent, with the excuse that you can not get there on time, or that you are not able to attend both the Sabbath-school and the preaching services, for the meeting is too long? Poor excuse, indeed! We can get to our own business generally quite early in the morning; why not to the Lord’s work by nine or ten o’clock? We have heard of people who could sit for two hours or more reading a book, or gossiping about their neighbors, who were unable to attend Sabbath services lasting for two hours, without experiencing mental and physical exhaustion. In many churches we believe there might be a reform in the attendance at the weekly services. Shall we not study faithfulness in this matter, as well as our duty in other things pertaining to the Lord’s work? God Knows
By Mrs. M. V. Nowlin
Sometimes as we contemplate the future, it seems so dark, so uncertain. We look forward with foreboding to its barred gates, beyond which we can not see. Sometimes we feel afraid and discouraged. It may be the lines of our lives will fall in pleasant places; it may be that only the dark morass of loneliness and sorrow will stretch pathless away for our weary feet. It may be we shall come to a land of Rephidims and Marahs, with scarcely an Elim to bless us in our travels to the goal. Because we can not know, because we can not see, need we tremble and feel afraid? If we do not know, God does. His eye has scanned every turn of the road. His Father’s heart of love has planned from beginning to end our life’s journey; planned it over the very road that would be best for our feet, holding back every trial except those needful for our best good, those that will be blessings in disguise to help us reach the home land. But we have failed so often in the past that we are prone to think the future holds no victories for us. The unknown is God’s, not ours. Let us trust him, fellow traveler. The everlasting God, he that neither slumbers nor sleeps, has said, “Fear thou not; for I am with thee; be not dismayed; for I am thy God: I will strengthen thee; yea, I will help thee; yea, I will uphold thee with the right hand of my righteousness.” Did Jacob know, when he left his father’s home?—No; the failures and anguish, the blessings and the victories, were alike hid from him. Mark the fugitive as he flees from home—a deceiver, and a seemingly utter failure. He knows not an inch of the ground he must pass over; but God does. With the past behind him, full of mistakes, and the uncertain future before him, how dark the way to the weary wanderer! No star of hope lights the gloom. On, on he goes, until the sun has sunk beyond the western hills, and daylight fades. Homesick and afraid, he lies down to rest. Afraid of God, afraid of man, the unknown future how appalling! Has God forgotten him, or forsaken him?—Nay, verily; his great love yearns to call his son nearer, that he may know His peace. At last, as the dews of night are falling, with his head pillowed on a stone, hot tears scalding his cheeks, Jacob falls asleep. He dreams. And O, that dream! Glorious vision of the gospel—angels ascending and descending on the Son of man—the mystic ladder connecting earth with heaven. He wakes to know more of the Christ. “Though, like a wanderer,
Daylight all gone,
Darkness be over me,
My rest a stone;
Yet in my dreams I’d be
Nearer, my God, to thee.” How sweet, how blessed, to feel God knows and sees! No path is hid from him. All through the anguish of the darkest night that comes, he guides us with his eye. There is hope in the thought, the kind of hope that made Paul rejoice in tribulation; the kind of hope that can make us also rejoice in tribulation; “the hope that maketh not ashamed.” Did Jesus forget the little boat in which were his beloved disciples, tossed on the dark billows that stormy night on Galilee?—No. “In storm and darkness the sea had taught them their own helplessness, and they longed for the presence of the Master. Jesus had not forgotten them. The watcher on the shore saw those fear-stricken men battling with the tempest. Not for a moment did he lose sight of his disciples. . . . When their hearts were subdued, their unholy ambition quelled, and in humility they prayed for help, it was given them.” At the very moment they thought they were lost, Jesus was nigh them. There are disciples of Jesus to-day storm-tossed in life’s great sea, and the night is dark; but the Master is the same yesterday, to-day, and forever. He is no respecter of persons, and will not forget his own. He will not forget you, fellow traveler, whoever you may be. His love will guide to the end. “There is no path in this desert waste,
For the winds have swept the shifting sands;
The trail is blind where the storms have raced,
And a stranger, I, in these fearsome lands.
But I journey on with a lightsome tread;
I do not falter nor turn aside,
For I see his figure, just ahead—
He knows the way I take—my Guide.
“There is no way in this starless night;
There is naught but cloud in the inky skies,
The black night smothers me; left and right, I stare with a blind man’s straining eyes;
But my steps are firm, for I can not stray;
The path to my feet seems light and wide;
For I hear his voice—‘I am the way!’
And I sing as I follow him on—my Guide.” Success in Our Work
By L. D. Santee
“For yet a little while, he that cometh shall come, and shall not tarry.” Heb. 10: 37, R. V. There is nothing that will give success and power to our work like a realizing sense of the nearness of the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. Paul said: “I charge thee therefore before God, and the Lord Jesus Christ, who shall judge the quick and the dead at his appearing and his kingdom: Preach the word.” In presenting reasons why men should accept the truth, we should not merely consider the brevity of human life, and the uncertainty of all things earthly, but the grandeur and nearness of the advent, and the events connected with it. Paul reasoned of “righteousness, temperance, and judgment to come” (Acts 24: 25), and we should hold up the certainty of the judgment and its results. The grand truths of the coming of the Lord and the judgment will always find interested hearers. The prophetic words of the apostle will lose none of their force or significance until they are fulfilled, and we are actually in the kingdom of God. “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 ever be with the Lord.” 1 Thess. 4: 16, 17. In addition to this, is the terror unspeakable, and the final destruction of the unsaved. Of the ransomed, resurrected, or translated, can be said, “Neither can they die any more: for they are equal unto the angels.” When he comes the second time, it is as “the Lion of the tribe of Judah,” and he will “gather out of his kingdom all things that offend, and them which do iniquity.” Matt. 13: 41. Were we to live a life of expectation of these events, we should be a power indeed. Here was the secret of the astonishing success of the primitive church. They never preached Jesus Christ crucified, without preaching Jesus Christ glorified. They never preached the first advent, without preaching the second; for the two are complemental, and their union makes the entire gospel. Paul says, “I have not shunned to declare unto you all the counsel of God.” Acts 20: 27. The third angel’s message will have power, just as we make prominent the event that follows. Let us give to the world the evangel of the11throne, as well as of the manger, the glad tidings of the scepter, as well as of the cross. To feel the apostolic power within us, we must have the apostolic doctrine within us. John the Baptist cries, “Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world.” John 1: 29. John the revelator points to the “Lion of the tribe of Judah,” and it is the “same Jesus.” Peter, when near his death, left the promise of the advent as a precious legacy to his successors. Hear him in his second letter. 2 Peter 1: 12: “Wherefore I will not be negligent to put you always in remembrance of these things, though ye know them, and be established in the present truth. Yea, I think it meet, as long as I am in this tabernacle, to stir you up by putting you in remembrance; . . . moreover I will endeavor that ye may be able after my decease to have these things always in remembrance. For we have not followed cunningly devised fables, when we made known unto you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but were eye-witnesses of his majesty.” He had heard the promise from the lips of his Master, “I will come again.” He had listened to the wonderful prophecy given to us in Matthew 24, and later had seen on the mount of transfiguration a miniature of his coming. No wonder that he wanted the church to remember it forever. John joyously assures us, “We shall soon be like him; for we shall see him as he is.” 1 John 3: 2. Paul counsels to “wait for his Son from heaven.” 1 Thess. 1: 10. Above five hundred had seen him ascend from the mount of Olives, and heard the assurance from the angels, “This same Jesus, which is taken up from you into heaven, shall so come in like manner as ye have seen him go into heaven.” Acts 1: 11. The prayer of the church through all the ages has been, “Amen. Even so, come, Lord Jesus.” Now that it is about to be realized, we can tell to the church and the world, “Maranatha,”—the Lord cometh. His coming is not the advent of the Holy Spirit, for that is denominated “another Comforter,” but it is to be “this same Jesus,” or, as Paul says, “the Lord himself,” and when he comes, the redeemed will bid farewell to pain and sorrow forever. As coworkers with him, our success is in telling of his advent, and the events attending it, the preparation necessary to “abide the day of his coming,” and that “he is able also to save them to the uttermost that come unto God by him, seeing he ever liveth to make intercession for them.” Heb. 7: 25. May the Lord help us to be among the number that “look for him.” How to Treat Your Brother
A GIRL may be busy saving some other girl's brother to the neglect of her own. Too often there is no comradeship between the boy and his sister. If she is the older, she may domineer over him. If he is the older, he may treat her as a chit whose questions are not worth listening to. He may tease her and be rude to her. Very well, then the girl, whether she be older or younger, must win the boy. How? Generally the boy is unconsciously rude, and he teases because he is afraid of being called a “sissy.” By nature most boys would rather be called a “bully” than a “sissy.” If he continues of that mind, he is sure not to develop into the right kind of man. It is the boy who is kind, and thoughtful of his sister and mother, who wins admiration, and who is not pleased with low, vulgar, or cruel words or deeds; therefore he will not seek that kind of society, or be tempted by what the saloon and kindred places have to offer. The boy should be won before he is lost. Good comradeship in the home, fun and frolic in the home, unselfishness in the home, pride and joy in the home, will hold even a boy. These should be manifested by all the members of the family, and the boy must be won to the partnership. The sister is an important factor in family life. Her brother thinks more of her than she knows, and she should make him feel that he is necessary to her happiness. She should share not only her pleasures with him, but her perplexities, make him a confidant and ask his advice. . . . The comradeship of sharing work and play and perplexities once entered upon, the boy will seek his sister's advice, for he will have his own worries. Make a friend and confidant of your brother, bear with his “infirmities,” and you will save him from a multitude of sins.—Union Signal.