Pacific Press Publishing Company · Oakland, California · Jan 8, 1894
Choosing Christ as Our Pattern
"I know just what pattern I want," said a young lady to her mother as they started out on a shopping excursion. The remark suggested a thought. Whether the daughter's remark was right or wrong, the words express what should be true in a spiritual sense of every soul. All are moulding character after some pattern, but, sad to say, many do not know the pattern they want. It is first this, then that, and so they go through life, and will come up to the great judgment day characterless. Their pattern changes with every passing hour. The world presents many patterns, but God presents only one, namely, Jesus Christ. God wants us all to choose that pattern, and has made it possible for us to copy it. It is perfect in its fullness. Why not choose it, then? Why not know that we want it?
CHRIST OUR ALL IN ALL.
HE who was called Jesus the Christ in the flesh was with the Father "before the world was." John 17:5. His "goings forth have been from of old, from the days of eternity." Micah 5:2, margin. By him were created the glorious suns and systems of suns, and countless worlds, wheeling their endless cycles in illimitable space. From his hand came forth all the creatures of intelligence which people these worlds; "without Him was there not anything made that was made." He not only made all these things, but the same word which called them into being upholds them in their varied paths; "for by him do all things consist," and he upholdeth everything "by the word of his power." In all this he was only exercising his own royal prerogatives,—infinite wisdom, love, and power,—received by inheritance from the Eternal Father. All this was the Godhead manifested through God the Son.
But one of the shining worlds which came forth from his hand in perfection marred that perfection by sin, and from sin came its inevitable results, woe, misery, and death. Man yielded to the Dark One who had rebelled against Heaven, and united with him against God.
It would seem, faintly as we can comprehend even "the parts of God's ways" which are visible to the eye, faintly as we can comprehend the wisdom and love which ordered and established such a home for men, that God's wisdom and love were exhausted in the creation. But no. Their most wonderful manifestation is yet to be revealed. Infinite pity stooped down to poor fallen humanity, saw and was touched by his weakness, his woe, and his misery, and Infinite Love became a substitute to die for man, an enemy. Christ "emptied himself" that God might fill him with his own fullness, in order that he might show to the rebel world how much God loved them, how terribly they had sinned against that love, and how earnestly God wanted them to return and share that love. All this and more was revealed by our Lord Jesus Christ. His death was but the climax of the sacrifice of all that had gone before. Love and sacrifice marked every step of the way from the first giving of himself before Christ came to this world, to his words upon the cross, "it is finished," and his life was offered a ransom for guilty man.
But Jesus is not a dead Saviour. His death marked the measure of his love. The mighty Creator of the universe dies for sinful, rebellious man. But he has power as well as love. In emptying himself he gave room for God to work. "For it pleased the Father that in him should all fullness dwell." "For in him dwelleth all the fullness of the Godhead bodily." He laid down his blameless life, but the grave could not hold him. Acts 2:24. The mightiness of his righteousness triumphed over death, and he arose, a living Redeemer.
And now his Infinite wisdom, power, and love are exercised for all who will trust him, who will walk in his paths. Such is the wondrous wisdom of that plan that it cannot be overthrown by art, deceit, or subterfuge of all the craft opposed to it, and yet it is so simple that the little child may grasp it. Its wondrous power has triumphed supreme over the prince of opposers. His love transcends all love. Where sin abounds grace does much more abound.
All that he asks is that we shall do as did the eternal Son of God,—yield ourselves, renounce self and choose Christ, give up the sins, the ambitions, the temptations, the acts in all of self, and accept in its stead Christ Jesus. For your best garment, which is "filthy rags," he will give you his own spotless robe of righteousness; for the ashes of humiliation and disappointment he will give his glorious beauty; for mourning he will give the oil of joy; for the spirit of heaviness he will give the garment of praise; and the crown of thorns we may here wear for his146sake will be transformed into a crown of life and glory.
"For in him dwelleth all the fullness of the Godhead bodily. And ye are complete in him." "Not in ourselves?"—No; not in ourselves. In ourselves must be emptiness. We can do nothing, we have nothing, we are nothing. In Christ is the fullness, the completeness. All we can do is to believe and choose Christ in preference to self. This is all he asks. All can meet his requirements. What more do we wish? What more can we ask? Wisdom infinite, riches untold and eternal, power all-triumphant, are found in him. Will you not choose him? He longs to be all in all to you; will you not let him?
Christ’s Coming and Reward
"Behold, I come quickly; and My reward is with Me, to give every man according as his work shall be." Rev. 22:12.
The Church and Civil Aid
It may be safely said that no live, working, spiritual church ever asked civil aid or the power of human law to promote its operations. It is always an evidence of weakness when the church turns to the world for help. It shows that she has forsaken the Fountain of Living Waters for the broken cisterns of men.
Warnings Against Deception
OVER and over again in the New Testament are we warned of the deceptions of the enemy. Over and over again are we admonished to "be not deceived." These three facts are plainly set before us: (1) That the devil will use every means in his power in order to deceive men; (2) we may, by giving heed to God's warnings, escape his deceptions; and (3) we will escape them in no other way. God knows and is merciful; therefore he gives warning. "Be not deceived; God is not mocked."
Prayer for the Persecuted
By Editor
The Evangelical Alliance has suggested as one of the subjects of prayer for Wednesday, January 10, "The Persecuted." It is well indeed to so pray; but while those in bondage and trouble in foreign countries are remembered, would it not also be well to remember the men who are suffering the loss of property and liberty of person for conscience' sake in the States of Tennessee, Maryland, and Georgia? No one contends that the men thus suffering are criminal, lawless, or dangerous, save with the exception that they are not in accord with the State religion. Is not their persecution, therefore, religious persecution?
The Church’s Union with the State
THE church is the spouse of Christ, married to him by individual faith as expressed in baptism. See Rom. 7:4; Gal. 3:27; 2 Cor. 11:2. Christ is to be the head of that church in all things. Eph. 1:22. When a woman leaves her husband and unites with another man, she shall be called an adulteress; and so also when the church leaves Christ and unites with the world she becomes a harlot, guilty of spiritual fornication. James 4:4; Jer. 3:20. Has not the professed church of Christ already done that in her union with the State over the matter of Sunday laws—a purely church dogma?
"THE WEEK OF PRAYER."
By Editor
A SUGGESTION FOR WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 10.
JANUARY 7-14 is the time set apart for the week of prayer generally held by most of the great Protestant churches. The Evangelical Alliance suggests topics for the several days as follows: Sunday, January 7, Sermons on "Pentecostal Power;" Monday, Humiliation and Thanksgiving; Tuesday, The Church Universal; Wednesday, Nations and Their Rulers; Thursday, Foreign Missions; Friday, Nations and their Rulers; Saturday, The Family; Sunday, January 14, sermons on "The Coming of Our Lord."
Under these general topics are subheads with suggested Scripture references. Among other things for Wednesday's prayer meetings is suggested "Sabbath, Neh. 13: 15-22." That is, we suppose, it is desired that this scripture shall be read, commented upon by the leader of the meeting, and prayer be offered for the Sabbath. We would like to suggest the following points as worthy of consideration in connection with the Sabbath question:—
7. In view of these facts is it not well to inquire whether Sunday is the Sabbath or not, or whether "Christian" rulers or any others have any right to adopt the theocratic methods of Nehemiah? Is not so doing the work of antichrist, who has assumed to put himself in the place of God? And when the church turns from Christ, in whom is all her power, to the world and to an institution of the world, has she not committed spiritual fornication? See James 4:4; Rev. 14:8.
8. Is not the only true Sabbath reform that which God has foreshadowed, rather, clearly predicted, in Isa. 56:1-6; 58:12, 13?
The above suggestions are made, not in a spirit of strife, but in the interests of truth, to all who take part in this coming week of prayer. Will you not consider them, brethren, in the light of the Scriptures?
THE EFFECT OF THE PARLIAMENT OF RELIGIONS IN JAPAN.
THOSE who opposed the Parliament of Religions as against the Christianity of the Bible have been considered narrow and bigoted. Those who favored it were sure that it would tell greatly in favor of Christianity upon the representatives of the great foreign or historic religions of the world, and would greatly favor Christian missionaries in the oriental countries. Just how much it has done the following, in a recent number of the Independent, from the pen of an American Baptist missionary, Rev. J. L. Dearing, of Yokohama, will tell (Italics ours):—
The Buddhist representatives from Japan who were in attendance at the Parliament of Religions have returned, and their reports are interesting as showing what effect the great convention really had upon the representatives of the various religions there assembled, and as also showing what the second-hand effect is upon the people who listen to the reports brought back. Soon after the return of the Buddhist orators and representative men, a public meeting was called, under the auspices of the Buddhist Young Men's Association, in Yokohama, an organization copied after the Y. M. C. A. Some seven hundred people were gathered in one of the largest theaters in town, and from ten o'clock in the morning till about seven at night continuous addresses were given by one after another, recounting the reception they had received and the impression the meetings had made upon them.
The two chief speakers were Bourju Yatsubuchi and Shaku Soyen. The former is a priest of Kamakura, and a graduate of the college of which Mr. Fukuzawa is the head in Tokio, a man well versed in modern learning and a scholar of no mean ability. He was one of the speakers at the Parliament in Chicago. Shaku Soyen, also one of the speakers at Chicago, is a great scholar, and is regarded as the most talented priest in Kiushiu. Some eight others occupied some time in giving their impressions. Among the statements that were made by the priests were the following:—
"When we received the invitation to attend the Parliament of Religions, our Buddhist organization would not send us as representatives of the sect. The great majority believed that it was a shrewd move on the part of Christians to get us there and then hold us up to ridicule or try to convert us. We accordingly went as individuals. But it was a wonderful surprise which awaited us. Our ideas were all mistaken. The Parliament was called because the Western nations have come to realize the weakness and folly of Christianity, and they really wished to hear from us of our religion, and to learn what the best religion is. There is no better place in the world to propagate the teachings of Buddhism than in America. During the meetings one very wealthy man from New York became a convert of Buddhism, and was initiated into its rites. He is a man of great influence, and his conversion may be said to mean more than the conversion of ten thousand ordinary men, so we may say truthfully that we made ten thousand converts at that meeting. Christianity is merely an adornment of society in America. It is deeply believed in by very few. The great majority of Christians drink and commit various gross sins, and live very dissolute lives, although it is a very common belief, and serves as a social adornment. Its lack of power proves its weakness. The meetings showed the great superiority of Buddhism over Christianity, and the mere fact of calling the meetings showed that the Americans and other Western peoples had lost their faith in Christianity, and were ready to accept the teachings of our superior religion."
These remarks and more like them were received with great applause by the enthusiastic audience. They will be thoroughly believed by the masses of the people, for whose benefit meetings are to be held here and there throughout Japan to spread these interesting reports. The educated classes, as a rule, know too much to believe such statements, but the effect upon the lower classes will be to strengthen the147power of Buddhism and to neutralize the influence of missionaries and native Christians.
Said an earnest, intelligent young Japanese Christian man, "How could American Christians make so great a mistake as to hold such a meeting and injure Christianity as the influence of those meetings will do in Japan?"
Why Fret, O Soul
"WHY fret thee, soul,
For things beyond thy small control?
But do thy part and thou shalt see
Heaven will have charge of these and thee.
Sow thou the seed, and wait in peace
The Lord's increase."
Sunday and Sun Worship
The Christian Statesman of December 9 rails out in the interests of "purity" against an indecent dance, tolerated in Chicago, but forbidden in New York. On the claim by the proprietor of the thing that the dance was of a "religious character" in the Orient, the Statesman remarks, "Yes, a part of the worship of Venus, of which prostitution is also a part." And yet this very worship finds some part in all these various great historic religions of the world. And listen, there is a worse part of it still connected with this worship of nature—yet worse than that—which a greater part of Christianity wittingly and unwittingly holds to-day. Worse than the image of jealousy, worse than the worship of beasts and creeping things, worse than the longing for Tammuz (or Adonis, the paramour of Venus), was the worshiping of the sun with the face to the East, turning the back upon the Lord. Sunday comes from the sun worship of the past. Let Christians make thorough work.
The World-Wide Sunday.
The following is quoted by the Templar of Hamilton, Ont., from the Missionary Herald:—
There is in India an organization known as the "Lord's Day Union," the object of which is to further in all practicable ways the observance of Sunday as a day of rest. It seeks to prevent all unnecessary labor on that day, having, of course, as an ultimate object the use of the Sabbath in a Christian way. It is a striking fact that applications are now coming for membership in this society from large numbers of non-Christian natives, so that the society is seriously perplexed. Of course it would like the aid of men of all faiths in the prevention of unnecessary toil on the Lord's day, and yet it cannot afford to lose its distinctive Christian character as basing the obligation to observe the day upon divine authority. But it is a significant fact that Hindus and Mohammedans and Parsees recognize so clearly the value of the Christian Sabbath.
Now if it is the Sunday as a rest day alone that were needed, why should not the "non-Christian natives" be welcomed? But the note (friendly in intent and utterance to the "Union") says that the ultimate object of all this is "the use of the Sabbath [Sunday] in a Christian way." It will only be a little while ere the allegiance to Sunday is held to be the mark of a Christian in all the heathen world, as it is now held by some in this country.
THE SABBATH OF THE FOURTH COMMANDMENT UNCHANGED.
By Ellen G. White
BY MRS. E. G. WHITE.
THE commandment for Sabbath observance reads: "Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy. Six days shalt thou labor, and do all thy work; but the seventh day is the Sabbath of the Lord thy God; in it thou shalt not do any work, thou, nor thy son, nor thy daughter, thy manservant, nor thy maidservant, nor thy cattle, not thy stranger that is within thy gates; for in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is, and rested the seventh day; wherefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day, and hallowed it."
The Sabbath commandment is placed in the very bosom of the Decalogue, amid the unchangeable precepts of Jehovah. And yet from many pulpits of our land a contemptuous cry is raised against the Sabbath instituted by the Lord God of heaven, and it is stigmatized as "the old Jewish Sabbath." Let all who are seeking for truth remember that the Sabbath was instituted in Eden before there was a Jew in existence, and that the Saviour said, "The Sabbath was made for man." The fourth commandment was spoken with the other nine of God's moral precepts, amid the thunders and grandeur of Mount Sinai, and in the holy of holies in the heavenly sanctuary above, is the ark of God. It is called the "ark of the testament," and under its cover,—the mercy seat,—are the ten commandments that were written with the finger of God.
On the tables of the law, written with the finger of the infinite God, is the fourth commandment. Does the commandment read, "The first day is the Sabbath of the Lord thy God?"—No, it reads: "Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy. Six days shalt thou labor, and do all thy work; but the seventh day is the Sabbath of the Lord thy God; in it thou shalt not do any work, thou, nor thy son, nor thy daughter, thy manservant, nor thy maidservant, nor thy cattle, nor thy stranger that is within thy gates; for in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is, and rested the seventh day; wherefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day, and hallowed it." Thus it reads to-day in the sacred law as engraven by the finger of God, and thus it is preserved in the ark in the temple of God in heaven.
The institution of the Sabbath was made when the foundation of the earth was laid, when the morning stars sang together, and all the sons of God shouted for joy. Like the other nine precepts of the law, it is of imperishable obligation. It is the memorial of God's creative power, the reminder of his exalted work. The fourth commandment occupies a sacred position in the law, and bears the same hallowed nature as do the other great moral precepts of God. God has stamped it with his divine authority as a law of his eternal government. No change can come to it, nothing can alter the thing that has gone out of his lips, or lessen in any degree its sacred obligation. The law of the Sabbath is placed in the very midst of the Decalogue, and walled in with the sacred immutability of truth, justice, and holiness.
The fall of Adam was a terrible thing, and the consequences of his sin so fraught with evil that language cannot portray it. By his disobedience of the divine law, the world was thrown into disorder and rebellion. Because of his disobedience, man was under the penalty of breaking the law, doomed to death. The only definition given in the word of God as to what is sin, is found in 1 John 3:4: "Whosoever committeth sin transgresseth also the law; for sin is the transgression of the law." The law of God is that standard by which character is to be measured in the judgment. Do those who are contending that the first day of the week should be observed instead of the day commanded by Jehovah, understand what they are doing? Do they realize that they are leading men to trample upon one of the precepts of Jehovah?
What significance has the Sabbath if its observance is transferred to the first day of the week? God gave it to men as a memorial of his creative work in six days and his rest upon the seventh. "And the Lord spake unto Moses, saying, Speak thou also unto the children of Israel, saying, Verily my Sabbaths ye shall keep; for it is a sign between me and you throughout your generations; that ye may know that I am the Lord that doth sanctify you. Ye shall keep the Sabbath therefore; for it is holy unto you; everyone that defileth it shall surely be put to death; for whosoever doeth any work therein, that soul shall be cut off from among his people. Six days may work be done; but in the seventh is the Sabbath of rest, holy to the Lord; whosoever doeth any work in the Sabbath day, he shall surely be put to death. Wherefore the children of Israel shall keep the Sabbath, to observe the Sabbath throughout their generations, for a perpetual covenant. It is a sign between me and the children of Israel forever; for in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, and on the seventh day he rested, and was refreshed. And he gave unto Moses, when he had made an end of communing with him upon Mount Sinai, two tables of testimony, tables of stone, written with the finger of God."
Satan, the apostate, the rebel against the government of God, has proposed to obliterate the fourth commandment, which brings to view the Creator of the heavens and the4earth, and, instead of the Sabbath, he designs to cause all men to honor a common working day. God blessed the seventh day, he rested upon it and sanctified it for man's observance, but Satan is determined to set aside the claims of the Sabbath, and cause men to accept a spurious sabbath. The excuse for refusing to observe the Sabbath of God's appointment is often made that it does not make any difference upon which day we rest, so long as it is one day in the seven. But it makes every difference upon which day you rest. Resting upon the day God commanded reveals the fact that you honor the Maker of heaven and earth; but disregarding that fact makes it evident that you do not honor God or obey his commandment to "remember the Sabbath day to keep it holy." Your non-observance of the memorial of creation shows that you place no merit upon the day that has been sanctified and blessed, and think that you will be excused if you observe the day that has been appointed by the Papacy, which has exalted itself above God and all that is worshiped.
You accept a common working day instead of the day that has been sanctified and blessed, but in thus doing you offer positive insult to the God of heaven. In holding to an observance commanded by the Papal Church, you exalt the opinions and traditions of men above the commandments of the God of heaven.
The Lord understood in just what lines the enemy would work in seeking to tear down his memorial, thus destroying from the minds of men the reminder of his creative work and rest. But to his children he has given this message,—that the Sabbath shall have such significance in their eyes that they will not be moved away from obedience to his requirements: "Speak thou also unto the children of Israel, saying, Verily my Sabbaths ye shall keep; for it is a sign between me and you throughout your generations; that ye may know that I am the Lord that doth sanctify you. . . . It is a sign between me and the children of Israel forever; for in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, and on the seventh day he rested, and was refreshed." "And hallow my Sabbaths; and they shall be a sign between me and you, that ye may know that I am the Lord your God."
PEACE OR WAR?
THE year 1893 ends with an uneasy feeling all over Europe. There are 130,000 more men under arms than there were last Christmas. The strain is almost more than can be borne. And business depression, which has generally been a forerunner of war, is universal. The number of unemployed men in England is larger than usual; in the mining districts poverty and debt are pressing with unusual severity. The Christmas trade has been dull not only in England, but also in France, Germany, and Austria. Italy has just gone through a ministerial crisis, and the disorder of the finances is such that Signor Zanardelli found it impossible to find a leading statesman who was willing to accept the post of Minister of Finance. France is still thrilling from the effect of the dynamite explosion in the Chamber. A new press law to crush the dynamite press, and another new law to suppress assemblages of dynamiters, were necessary, but they have added to public nervousness. England is not easy under the uncertainties of the home-rule question; Gladstone has left the problem of the House of Lords unsettled; sooner or later something will have to be done to determine whether the kingdom is run by the lords or by the people; whichever way the inbroglio is settled, there will be plenty of room for trouble.
Whenever the preparations for war are complete, and nothing is wanting but a pretext, the pretext generally turns up, and in some unsuspected place. When Napoleon had made up his mind to consolidate his empire by a war, a trumped-up dispute about the rights of the churches at Jerusalem answered the purpose; and when France and Germany had goaded each other to the fighting point, the Hohenzollern candidacy served as the chip which one knocked from the other's shoulder. There is a possibility that the pretext on this occasion may be furnished by Constantinople. It appears that the recent visit of the Russian naval officers to Paris was intended as a prelude to a Russian demonstration in the Bosphorus. This is an open secret at Constantinople, where a panic prevails, and the probable assassination of the sultan is freely predicted.
Russia proposes, it is said, to unite her Black Sea fleet with her Mediterranean fleet by sending the former through the Dardanelles in violation of the treaties. When she last uttered this threat, England moved an army corps to Cyprus and a fleet to Tenedos, while the Turks bestirred themselves to defend Constantinople. Now England is in no condition to go to war in the Mediterranean. France has ten first-class battle ships at Toulon and Carthage; if they should join the eleven battle ships which the combined Russian fleet would contain, the squadron would be far stronger than any naval force which Great Britain could assemble in the Mediterranean. Constantinople itself is defenseless. The forts would not survive a bombardment of half an hour with modern guns, and the Turkish fleet is lying within the inner horn, without coal or modern weapons of war.
There may be no purpose on the part of Russia to throw this firebrand among the combustibles of Europe. But if she did, everything is ready for war. There is a chance that Mr. Gladstone would try to keep England out of it and to leave Turkey to her fate. But Germany would understand that a junction of the Russian and French fleets in the Mediterranean meant a renewal of the Franco-German War, and young William would act accordingly. It is significant that at such a crisis Signor Crispi, Bismarck's bosom friend, should have been invited by King Humbert to form the ministry which Zanardelli has been unable to constitute.
Conscientious Zeal and Cruelty
By Palmer
THERE never was found any pretended conscientious zeal but it was attended with a spirit of cruelty.—Palmer.
Forms in Unworthy Hands
ALL forms and means in unworthy hands are ineffectual.
WHY WAIT?
By Eliza H. Morton
BY ELIZA H. MORTON.
O YE who know the truth and feel
Its power, why wait?
Delay may mean so much, dear soul,
Perchance, "too late."
Obey and, lo! a blessing sweet
Will fall like dew.
The light which lighteth all the earth
Will shine for you.
List not to Satan's wily words;
They but beguile.
Push forward, trembling one, and bask
In Jesus' smile.
Step out upon God's word by faith;
It will uphold;
Angels are near, and naught can harm.
Be brave, be bold.
Lift ye the cross, though flesh may shrink,
And you will know
The peace which, like a mighty stream,
Doth onward flow.
Why Go So Far from Home.
By Editor
The New York Observer of December 14 has the following:—
The martyr's stake and the Inquisition are out of date, but the spirit of persecution still prevails. A correspondent of the Truth, an English religious journal, reports an incident that is in point. In the village of Brockworth feeling has run very high between the High Church and Low Church parties. The vicar and the High Church being in the ascendant, the Protestant Union sent out lay readers to hold private religious meetings. A cottage where such meetings were held was occupied by a woman whose son was a gardener to a lady connected with the High Church party. This son was actually informed that his mother must stop the meetings at her cottage, or he must take lodgings in another house and undertake not to support his mother out of his pay. The young man naturally declined to accept either alternative. As a consequence he was summarily dismissed from his situation. Such a dismissal is a crime against liberty of conscience.
This is true; but why should the Observer go so far from home? There have been during the past ten years a score or more of cases where men were prosecuted, imprisoned, or fined simply because they observed the Sabbath of the Lord and worked on Sunday as God gave them the right to do; and further, in all these cases it was shown in courts that these men guilty of "crime" intermeddled with no one, and were in all respects good citizens and good neighbors. Has the Observer noticed these?