Your ShelfYour Projects

Review and Herald, Vol. 78, No. 8.

THE WEEK OF PRAYER IN SAN FRANCISCO

Review and Herald

Feb 19, 1901

Seventh-day Adventist Publishing Association · Battle Creek, Michigan · Feb 19, 1901

THE WEEK OF PRAYER IN SAN FRANCISCO

By Ellen G. White

MRS. E. G. WHITE
On Monday, December 21, I went to San Francisco, where I was to spend the Week of Prayer. Sabbath afternoon I spoke to the church there, although I was so weak that I had to cling to the pulpit with both hands to steady myself. I asked the Lord to give me strength to speak to the people. He heard my prayer, and strengthened me. I had great freedom in speaking from Rev. 2:1-5.
The deep moving of the Spirit of God came upon me, and the people were strongly impressed with the message borne. After I had finished speaking, all who desired to give themselves to the Lord were invited to come forward. A large number responded, and prayer was offered for them. Several who came forward are persons who have recently heard the Advent message, and are in the valley of decision. May the Lord strengthen the good impression made upon them, and may they give themselves wholly to Him. Oh, how I long to see souls converted, and hear them sing a new song, even praise to our God!
Sunday afternoon I spoke to a large audience, many of whom are not of our faith. My strength was renewed, and I was able, without clinging to the desk, to stand before the people. The Lord's blessing rested upon us, and increased strength came to me as I spoke. As on Sabbath, those seeking spiritual help were invited to come forward, and we were glad to see the ready response. The Lord came very near as we sought Him in prayer. I felt greatly strengthened, and after the meeting walked to the place where I was staying, a distance of five blocks.
As I stood before the large congregation in the San Francisco meeting-house, I thought of our experiences twenty-four years ago, when a small company of believers were struggling to secure a house of worship large enough to meet future demands. It had been presented to me that San Francisco would always be an important missionary field. In a dream I saw two beehives, one in Oakland, and the other in San Francisco. In the Oakland hive all was activity, in the San Francisco very little was being done. Again I looked at the hive in San Francisco, and all was activity among the bees. They were hard at work. We understood this to mean that a large work would be done by the church in San Francisco, although it started slowly. For many years it was thought by some that the San Francisco meeting-house was too large. Now it is well filled on the Sabbath day, and we wish it were larger.
We have every reason to believe that the work carried on in San Francisco by Elder Corliss and his brethren, is the work that needs to be done. San Francisco is a great center, and must be thoroughly worked. A much more extensive work should be done in this great and wicked city. The message of mercy must be proclaimed in the highways and hedges; all classes must be invited to the banquet provided by the Lord.
One day Brother Pearson drove us to Strawberry Hill, one of the beautiful parts of the city, and then to our vegetarian restaurant, on Market Street, near the heart of the city. Here we met Brother E. G. Fulton and his wife, who, with a company of willing helpers, are serving about five hundred meals a day. The building is narrow, and will accommodate about fifty persons at once. Everything about the place was clean, wholesome, and attractive. We were pleased to see that right principles are observed in the selection and preparation of all the foods. There was not a particle of meat, poultry, fish, nor anything that requires the sacrifice of life. We were also pleased to learn that this restaurant is wholly closed on the Sabbath. At first the complaints and pleadings of regular boarders were listened to, and some meals were served on the Sabbath. Many declared that the enterprise could not be maintained if it closed its doors on Saturday. But since the Sabbath closing, a special blessing has manifestly rested upon the work.
We are glad that an effort is being made to provide those who wish to change their diet, with food which is wholesome, nourishing, and palatable. The only thing I regretted on this occasion was the inability of the managers to accommodate many of those who wish to patronize the restaurant. If more of these restaurants could be carried on by our people, what a blessing they would be! By the practical demonstration of the best methods of preparing wholesome, palatable food without flesh-meat, many would learn valuable lessons. They would become acquainted with health principles.
I wish that some of those who have means tied up in banks, could be led to study the situation, and devise means whereby this work of establishing vegetarian restaurants could be enlarged, so that more might be benefited.
Notice was given that I would speak on Christmas afternoon. At the time appointed we found a large company gathered in the church. I presented, verse by verse, part of the second chapter of Colossians. I have read this chapter many times, but it never seemed so impressive and encouraging as on this occasion. Please read this chapter carefully and prayerfully, and the Lord give you understanding. It is a treasure-house of encouragement to the believer.
I tried to show what Christ is to us, and what we may be to Him as His helping hand. I dwelt upon the folly of turning from Christ to humanity for help, and urged all to accept the rich promises of God, which are so full, so abundant, and so assuring. When Jesus is appreciated, we shall see of the salvation of God; but when we treat the Saviour indifferently, closing the door against Him, and looking to man for guidance, how can we expect to have power?
“As ye have therefore received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk ye in Him: rooted and built up in Him, and stablished in the faith, as ye have been taught, abounding therein with thanksgiving.” If the heart is filled with gratitude, its treasure of love and thanksgiving will flow forth to refresh others. Little grievances will not be noticed. Larger difficulties will be met in the spirit of Christ. Hearts will go out in prayer for patience, perseverance, and forbearance. Then, when the enemy comes in like a flood, the Spirit of the Lord will lift up a standard for tried, tempted souls.
We are warned, “Beware lest any man spoil you through philosophy and vain deceit, after the tradition of men, after the rudiments of the world, and not after Christ. For in Him dwelleth all the fullness of the Godhead bodily.”
We show altogether too little reverence for God. Those who are serving under the blood-stained banner of Prince Immanuel, who have on their side the whole heavenly host, should give to the world a bright evidence of the saving power of truth. Our joy should be proportionate to the greatness of the truth we claim to believe. “Let your loins be girded about, and your lights burning; and ye yourselves like unto men that wait for their lord, when he will return from the wedding; that when he cometh and knocketh, they may open unto him immediately.” Now, just now, in this day of preparation, may the Lord awaken His people to a true sense of their responsibility! May they be led to give the world a correct representation of the great work for this time. Let us not mar our faith by accepting errors. We may be complete in Him who is the head of all principalities and powers.
The Lord gave us special victory in this meeting, and the countenances of those present showed their desire to grow in grace and in the knowledge of the truth.
During the Week of Prayer my burden was to show the people that true service makes the believers self-sacrificing. It leads them to keep in view the need of personal holiness and consecration, that through the sanctification of the truth they may abound in works of benevolence for the uplifting of those around them.
Christ said to the Samaritan woman, “If thou knewest the gift of God, and who it is that saith to thee, Give me to drink; thou wouldst have asked of Him, and He would have given thee living water. . . . Whosoever drinketh of the water that I shall give him shall never thirst; but the water that I shall give him shall be in him a well of water springing up into everlastinglife.” Thus is represented the experience of the thankful heart. It continually overflows with blessings for others.
The word of God is full of consolation. It presents before us great possibilities and advantages, which all should appreciate. By a faithful improvement of these blessings we may rise to the highest standard of Christian excellence. The gospel influences those who receive it to attain to perfection. They are inspired with faith and hope, and become Christlike in character.
Christ is our Creator and Redeemer, and He is glorified by the service of those who on earth act as His helpers. To fail to devote every capability to His service is to rob Him. He, our Lord and Master, calls for the co-operation of every human being.
Conversion is not a half-and-half-work, a serving of God and Mammon, but an entire turning to God. It is the working of the Holy Spirit upon the heart. Those who are truly converted have an understanding of spiritual things, which unites them to God and to one another in Christian love.
The Lord calls for workers who will deny self and follow in His footsteps. He calls for a faithful tithe, and for gifts and offerings, that there may be money in His treasury for the advancement of His work. Our money is His, and is to be returned to Him. Christ is the light and life and joy of His self-denying people. Because He lives, they shall live also. When He comes, it will be to be glorified in His saints and to be admired in all them that believe.
The spirit of liberality came into our meeting in San Francisco, and the people gave willingly to the Lord's work. I feel very thankful to our Heavenly Father for this evidence of the moving of His Spirit upon hearts. Let the ninth chapter of second Corinthians be read in all our churches, that the members may catch the inspiration of liberality. God help His people to see things in a correct light, and to arouse to meet the pressing emergencies that always arise in aggressive warfare. As they give cheerfully and willingly of the Lord's intrusted means, He will intrust them with more to impart. He is able to make all grace abound toward cheerful givers, that, always having all sufficiency in all things, they may abound to every good work.

OUR GOD HAS A DWELLING PLACE

By H. F. Phelps

H. F. PHELPS
(Minneapolis, Minn.)
In our every-day language, and that is just the kind of language that God uses when He tells us anything, a dwelling is a house built for habitation; an abiding place; a dwelling-place. Now it is a fact that “our Father” in the heavens has a dwelling-place; for we read, “In my Father’s house are many mansions.” John 14:2. And that house, whatever it may be, was built for habitation. “Who is like unto the Lord our God, who dwelleth on high?” Ps. 113:5.
That house has “many mansions,” and it is in the heavens; for we read again, “O thou that dwellest in the heavens.” Ps. 123:1. And that “house,” which contains “many mansions,” and is “on high,” “in the heavens,” is within the city of God, the New Jerusalem, the Zion above. This is so; for God dwells in Zion: “Sing praises to the Lord, which dwelleth in Zion.” Ps. 9:11. And again: “But ye are come unto Mount Zion, and unto the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem.” Heb. 12:22. And still we read: “Jerusalem which is above is free, which is the mother of us all.” Gal. 4:26. And so it is that this “Jerusalem,” “the city of the living God,” the “Zion” of the Old Testament, the “Mount Zion” of the New Testament, in which “many of the mansions” are now being prepared by our blessed Lord for His people, “is free,” “is above,” “on high,” even “in the heavens,” and “is the mother of us all.”
But where is the wonderful house of our Father in heaven? In which direction shall the mind’s eye look for that wonderful city, our mother? Read the answer in Ps. 48:1, 2: “Great is the Lord, and greatly to be praised in the city of our God, in the mountain of His holiness. Beautiful for situation, the joy of the whole earth, is Mount Zion, on the sides of the north, the city of the great King.”
By no stretch of the imagination can this be made to apply to the “Jerusalem which now is, and is in bondage with her children.” Gal. 4:25. Instead of being the joy of the whole earth, she is soon to be the bone of contention of all the “kings of the earth and of the whole world,” as they come up to the battle of the great day of God. Then where are “the sides of the north”? They are not on this earth; for, “He stretcheth out the North over the empty place.” Job 26:7. Thus the ultimate North is not at the north pole, but far away out in space, “over the empty place.” He “hangeth the earth upon nothing,” and the world goes on rushing through space, always revolving upon its axis, that imaginary line passing through its center, the northern extremity of which always points to that ultimate North.
When Christ was here upon this earth, walking as a man among men, He said: “And I, if I be lifted up from the earth, will draw all men unto me.” Of course He is drawing all men. But it is more than that. That word “men” is a supplied word. Read it this way: “And I, if I be lifted up from the earth, will draw all unto me.” In this we have the whole truth. All the heavenly bodies are kept in their places by the power of that Christ who died to save a fallen world.
Gravitation, attraction, cohesion, and adhesion are the terms generally used to explain the laws that govern the worlds. But what are these? We are told that they are the laws of nature. But what are the laws of nature? We are told again that they are gravitation, attraction, etc. But this is only reasoning in a circle. This is the answer: It is the power of God in Christ; that same power that is pledged to our salvation, holds the worlds in their places. It is “His Son, . . . by whom also He made the worlds,” who is now “upholding all things by the word of His power.” Heb. 1:2, 3. “And by Him all things consist,” or hold together. Col. 1:17.
Therefore we conclude, and with reason, too, judging from what we see of this world, that all the untold millions of worlds revolve in space, with their northern axes pointing to the ultimate North, where may be found the city of the great King, the dwelling-place of God. And this must be so; for the North and the South are not relative, like the East and the West; but are positive. And this is so; for God has created the North and the South. Ps. 89:12.
There is more land north than south of the equator. The longest lines running through the land are north and south. The longest mountain ranges are north and south. And we are told that there are more stars north than south of the equator. Thus we see that there is a cause for all the harmony among the heavenly bodies. It is the power of the Christ of Calvary, drawing all unto himself, holding everything in the places assigned them — except sinful man.
And He has a place even for sinful men, every one, if only we will let Him hold us there. But this is dependent on our choice. The mind of man is left free, and he must make the choice for himself. Otherwise he will not fill the place designed of the Creator. But when the time comes for God to cleanse the world of sin, that He may have a clean universe, the wicked will be left to go down with their sins into eternal night. Why not make the wise choice of the service of Him who “worketh in you both to will and to do of His good pleasure”?

Jesus, Thou Joy of Loving Hearts

By Bernard of Clairvaux

Jesus, thou joy of loving hearts! Thou fount of life! Thou light of men! From the best bliss that earth imparts, We turn unfilled to thee again.
We taste thee, O thou living Bread, And long to feast upon thee still; We drink of thee, the Fountain-head, And thirst our souls from thee to fill!
— Bernard of Clairvaux.

THE EARTH WILL BE THE HOME OF THE RIGHTEOUS

By Chas. P. Whitford

CHAS. P. WHITFORD
1. God made the earth to be inhabited. Isa. 45:18.
2. It was not made for wicked men. Prov. 10:30.
3. It was made for the righteous. Matt. 5:5; Isa. 60:21.
4. It will be the home of the righteous when the wicked are cut off. Ps. 37:9, 34; Prov. 2:22.
5. The end of them that continue to do wickedly will be destruction. Ps. 37:20; Mal. 4:1.
6. This destruction takes place when Christ comes. 2 Thess. 1:7-9.
7. Having been removed “from the presence of the Lord,” there will be no place for the wicked in all the universe of God. Ps. 37:10.
8. “But the meek shall inherit the earth.” Verses 11, 9.
9. The earth will be their eternal home. Verse 29.
10. The inhabitants of the new earth will always be happy. Ps. 37:11; Isa. 65:17-19; 32:17.
11. Then will be fulfilled the promise, “The earth shall be filled with the knowledge of the glory of God as the waters cover the sea.” Num. 14:21; Hab. 2:14.
12. The “glory of God,” which is to cover the earth “as the waters cover the sea,” is the love of God. Ex. 33:17-19; 34:5, 6.
13. The curse of sin will have been removed. Rev. 22:3.
14. The earth will undergo a change. Ps. 102:25, 26.
15. The change will be accomplished by fire. 2 Peter 3:10.
NOTE.—The word “melt” in verse 10 is from the same word as “dissolved” in verse 11, and means to loose, to untie, to set free. The elements of earth will become invisible. Rev. 20:11.
16. God will make all things new. Rev. 21:5.
17. As the result the wilderness will blossom as the rose. Isa. 35:1-8.
18. This prophecy applies to the future eternal home of the saved. Isa. 35:9, 10.
19. Then the purpose for which Christ came (Luke 19:10) will have been accomplished.
20. When the good and the pure and the true are gathered to their peaceful, happy home, sickness and death will be at an end. Isa. 33:24; Rev. 21:4.
21. Persecution is the experience of those who live godly lives in Christ Jesus now. John 15:18-20; 2 Tim. 3:12.
22. But a change will take place. Rev. 7:14-17; Ps. 37:12-18.
23. Man and his home were lost through unbelief in God and faith in Satan. Gen. 2:16, 17; 3:1-6; Rom. 6:16. Faith in Satan resulted in rebellion against God. But the Lord is not discouraged. Isa. 42:4.
24. By faith in God we can become His children (Gal. 3:26), and inherit the home of the righteous.

A FUNERAL ADDRESS

By Stephen Nelson Haskell

S. N. HASKELL
(Concluded)
The highest type of heaven on earth is an entire family — father, mother, and children — united in the service of God. They will be a family in heaven, as far as association is concerned. The bond of union is the blood of Christ; and if that blood has washed away the sins of the entire family upon earth, they will be united as such in the kingdom of glory. The families in the kingdom of God will not be families as they were here; for their relationship is the blood of Christ. They will be arranged by the grace of Christ. They will be associated together with those who have been instrumental in their salvation here. That the influence of parents should be instrumental in the salvation of their children is in harmony with the original plan of heaven. The family are thus brought together in the kingdom of God through the merits of Jesus Christ. So when that family, begun on this earth by natural ties, is sanctified by the blood of Christ, then in the kingdom will be accomplished what would have been accomplished if sin had not marred all.
Three characteristics will identify the redeemed in the kingdom of God. We shall recognize them by the peculiar tone of their voice. We shall recognize them by their personal appearance. And we shall recognize them by their former peculiar ways, which are God-given.
“Then shall I know,” says the apostle, “even as I am known.” Our individuality we shall carry with us into the next world. God gave it to us to be sanctified by the grace of Christ. There are no two persons alike in this world. They do not do the same things alike. God works through these personalities to carry forward His work. They go with us into the kingdom of God. Paul was not Peter, nor was Peter John. But they were men of God, and each had a part to act through His own individuality.
Let us turn back again to Thessalonians, and by reading further we may find something more that is interesting and profitable for us on this occasion: “For this we say unto you by the word of the Lord, that we which are alive and remain unto the coming of the Lord shall not prevent them which are asleep [that is, we shall not go before those who are asleep]. For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the Archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first: then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord.” 1 Thess. 4:15, 16.
Here, as in other portions of the Scripture, the resurrection of the dead is based upon Christ’s resurrection, and will take place when He comes to take us from earth to heaven. The apostle then concludes, “Wherefore comfort one another with these words.” Here is another reason why our friends are taken away — for their own good as well as ours. First, He takes them away from the evil that is to come. Second, He would have us, on all such occasions as this which has called us together here to-day, look forward with increasing interest to the time when Christ shall come in the clouds of heaven, — to the time when He who alone has the keys of death and the grave will unlock the prison house, and say to the sleeper: “Awake thou that sleepest, and arise from the dead, and Christ shall give thee light.” And as Christ walked forth from Joseph’s new tomb, so they, in response to the voice of Christ, will again appear with all the vigor and freshness of youth, clad with immortality. Yes, He will take the prisoners out of their prison house, and then we who remain shall be caught up together with them to meet the Lord in the air.
To me there is something very comforting in all this. I have passed through trials similar to the one that has called us here to-day. I often contemplate these scriptures when I think of my wife who sleeps, of her habits, and the words she frequently used while living. When the needs of the cause called me from home, often her parting words were, “We will take our visit in the kingdom of God.” This one thought was ever uppermost when going to some foreign field. Do you suppose she will not think of it in the resurrection of the just? I think she will. No partings! No going to a foreign field! No separation by death! All tears are wiped away, and sorrow is not found. The resurrection leaves in the grave only that which is earthly, that which is related to sin and pertains to mortality, that which is of the earth, earthy. But the current of thought which grasped eternal things will be resumed the same as it existed before the dissolution.
This brings us to another inquiry, What is death? It is ceasing to think. It is returning back to earth. The life is hid with Christ in God. To the child of God, the instant he ceases to think, that very instant comes the Archangel’s trump and the resurrection of the dead. He measures no time; to him it is a rest, beyond all trouble, beyond Satan’s temptations. The dead know not anything. We who live and remain are among the snares of Satan; but those whom the Lord takes from the evil to come, quietly rest in their graves. In the twinkling of an eye from the time they fall asleep, they awake to find themselves and their friends in the kingdom of glory.
There is an expression in Rev. 14:13 which I would like to read as I bring my remarks to a close: “And I heard a voice from heaven saying unto me, Write, Blessed are the dead which die in the Lord from henceforth: Yea, saith the Spirit, that they may rest from their labors; and their works do follow them.”
Language fails in the attempt to present in a few words the thought expressed in this verse. You will notice these words came directly from the throne of God, and not through the angel, as almost every other expression in the book came. When a certain period of this world was reached, and the ravages of death were invading the ranks of God’s people, sorrows were being multiplied on account thereof, some charging the misfortune of dying upon a mistake or sin as the cause of death, then the great heart of God was stirred, and from His own throne came a voice to His prophet, saying, “Write.” What shall I write? “Blessed are the dead which die in the Lord from henceforth: Yea, saith the Spirit, that they may rest from their labors; and their works do follow them.” What works follow them? — “Their works.” The very works they would have done had they lived, the confessions they would have made for Christ, the works of righteousness they would have done, the testimonies they would have borne, are taken up by Christ, in the heavenly sanctuary, and by His abundant righteousness He carries them forward as He would have done in them had they lived. Do you think, my friends, that Christ is competent to do this? Will this be done as acceptably to the Father as if they had lived? Then will they in any sense whatever be losers? One answer alone can be returned, “He hath perfected forever them that are sanctified.”
“Blessed are the dead which die in the Lord from henceforth: Yea, saith the Spirit,” as if all heaven bore testimony, “that they may rest from their labors; and their works do follow them.” Shortsighted humanity often reasons that in death the believer’s usefulness ends. But God can use death itself to produce more good than all the past life, and more than could the future had life continued. “But,” it may be said, “they have not lived through the time of trouble, they have not performed the works they would have done, and therefore their position is not as it would have been in the future state.” But who was responsible for their not living? Is it not He in whose hand is the life of every created thing? Is it not He who is at the right hand of the Father? Does He not promise to take up the works left undone, and to carry them forward? Think you He will do it so that the believer will come out as well as if he had lived and performed them himself?
The more implicitly we trust our Saviour, the better; the more we quietly rest in Him, the better it will be for us here and hereafter. He sees the end from the beginning, and what He permits to come to His people is in the great plan of God, and designed by Him to accomplish His own purpose, which can be accomplished better by the death than by the life. Yes, I repeat it, God permits it to come, and He would not permit it to come were it not for the best.
He has marked the pathway all the way through the journey of life. He knows who will be translated, and who will sleep; and if He permits death to overtake some, it is because death is a blessing to them and their friends. They lose nothing; but they gain something. They gain rest,— rest in peace. They have lost nothing because they fail to live out their works; because Christ takes them up.
We can thank God for the Christian’s hope. And the more we contemplate it, the more impressed we shall be with the importance of the time in which we live, and the more will this scripture impress itself upon the mind, “Blessed are the dead which die in the Lord from henceforth.”
The most important thing with each of us is to know that we have a living connection with the Lord, and that our names are written in the Lamb’s book of life. Then if the Lord says we had better sleep, we shall sleep, and shall praise God for the privilege. If He says, “Live,” then we shall live; and no power of the enemy can take life from us; for it is hid with Christ in God. My dear friends, we who live, live in perilous times. There are dangers along our pathway at every step we take, which the one who sleeps in Jesus is allowed to escape, perfectly free.
I remember a dear sister, one of the first to accept the Sabbath, who was taken very sick one winter, and being, as she thought, about to die, gave away many of her things. But she lived until the next winter, and was then again taken sick, and died. In conversing with one who had cared for her, she was asked how she felt when she learned she was to live. The only reply was: “When you get ready to go somewhere, as I got ready one year ago, it is a disappointment not to go. But now,” she continued, “it seems so peaceful and happy that I can be laid away to rest. It will be but a short time. They will put me in my coffin, and lay me in the grave, andshall lie there peacefully until the Archangel’s trump shall sound, and then I shall arise, and see my Saviour. And no man can hinder me; no snares of Satan can be set for my feet, which would entangle them in this world.”
We can say the same of every one who sleeps in Jesus. We can not mourn as those who have no hope. We can look forward to the resurrection of the just, and point to the tie that will connect the souls of the parents at that time—a stronger tie than anything that has ever bound them in the past. And we can point them to the hope of the gospel. We can only give them the words the Saviour, the prophets, and the apostles have given, when pointing to the second coming of Christ. Angels will be sent to gather the faithful, and the great Magnet, the Lord Jesus Christ, will draw the living and the dead around Him in mid-air, and then Christ with His people will ascend to a heavenly paradise, remain there a thousand years, and then return to the earth made new, and dwell through all time, even forever and ever. This life and all it gives is but a speck in comparison with the reward of His people. May the Lord enable us to put our faith in Him, lay hold of the promises He has given us, and live so near to Him here that we shall be saved with an everlasting salvation in the kingdom of God.

GOD AT WORK IN DISEASE

By David Paulson; W. S. Sadler

DAVID PAULSON AND W. S. SADLER
It is universally admitted that God is working in man in health; but the idea very generally prevails that the devil is master of the situation in disease. Hence it is the most natural thing in the world to ask God to drive out of the sick man the demon of disease; while, as a matter of fact, health is God at work under the conditions of obedience, and disease is the same God who is at work under conditions of disobedience. In either case, God is doing the very best He can for the individual. God simply allows a man to reap a harvest from the seed he has sown, for His own word is pledged that what a man sows that must he also reap. The part the devil acts in producing disease is to tempt the man to sow the thorns and thistles of ill health. The dew and the sunshine cause the thorns and the thistles to grow, just as truly as they cause the roses, lilies, and pinks to flourish. Either may grow in the same soil; the difference is only in the matter of sowing.
God's power is at work in disease, just the same as in health; but by transgression we are compelling Him to serve with our sins. Isa. 43:24. What a blessed privilege the missionary, especially the medical missionary, has of teaching the sufferer that in his affliction he is dealing with God, and not with the devil, and that God is doing the kindest thing possible in view of His perfect knowledge of the circumstances, and the sufferer's need. His warning voice has spoken to him in whispers unheard, and now it speaks to him louder, in the voice of disease. Job 33:14, 19, 24. If a man will but repent and co-operate, God will, if His name can be honored thereby, bless that which is being done for the restoration of the afflicted one, and “his flesh shall be fresher than a child's: he shall return to the days of his youth.”

DISEASE AND DEMONOLOGY

The prevailing view of disease is really a remnant of the old idea of demonology,—that something that ought to be driven out had taken possession of the sick man,—when the real fact is that the man has taken possession of something that is not good for him; and it is this that is the cause of his trouble. Modern scientific research has clearly established the fact that disease is simply nature at work, the same as in health, bravely fighting out its battle for the individual's existence; and the cause of this battle is the abuse that has been heaped upon the human system by the transgression of the laws that govern its existence.
But the notion is still abroad that somehow the doctor's shadow or his drugs must contain in themselves some inherent power that can drive a disease out of a man. When drugs are introduced into the system, nature has to begin a second battle of reacting against them. And in rising to this emergency, she often succeeds in unloading other poisons that have been accumulating, but all the while the man is the battle ground on which nature is fighting out this twofold battle. How much more simple and reasonable it would be to seek for and remove the cause of the disease, and then co-operate with God by the intelligent use of simple and natural remedies, than to compel Him to make this extraordinary second effort.

ONENESS OF PHYSICAL AND SPIRITUAL HEALING

Many would shudder at the thought of going to a human being to request forgiveness of sin and the healing of the soul from the wounds that sin has made; yet they go to the doctor, with the full confidence that he in some way is able to heal them of the result of their physical transgression, little appreciating that physical sin and spiritual sin are transgressions of the same law. We have but one law, but one Lawgiver; and there is but one Saviour from the transgression of the law, whether the transgression be physical or spiritual. To be healed of either, requires the life-giving ministry of Him who came “that they might have life, and have it more abundantly.” John 10:10.
Healing and Conversion.—“The power of the Lord was present to heal them.” Luke 5:17. The power of the Lord is a healing power, and the gospel is “the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth.” “According to your faith be it unto you.” Divine healing is a transformation, by the aid of divine power, from the sphere of disobedience to the realm of obedience; from the realm of sin and death to that of righteousness and life. Divine healing is a process whereby man is able to get out of a wrong state into a right state, after having secured the disposition to make this change,—a disposition to cease to do evil and learn to do well. The healing power of God, whether manifested mentally, morally, or physically, is the same. It requires the same power to heal the body that it takes to forgive sin.
To the Christian, divine healing is but the continuation of the miracle that was wrought when the soul returned to God, and first tasted the sweets of heaven's healing graces. “Where sin abounded, grace did much more abound.” Where healing is most needed, there the healing power of God is most manifested. The inflammation surrounding an injured part signifies the marshaling of a larger array of blood corpuscles for the purpose of effecting the repair of the injury. Sometimes the irritation is too intense, or the injury is so great that this reparative attempt of nature is unsuccessful, for the same reason that very often firemen fail to extinguish the flames of a burning building.
Where sickness is, God's healing power much more abounds. He who is sick in mind or diseased in body does not need to go around the world to find healing, nor is it necessary to go to some man or to any particular institution to obtain divine healing. Just as a soul may be converted anywhere in this broad world, so that soul may be healed, as far as securing divine healing is concerned, anywhere, regardless of time, place, or surroundings, the only condition being that the one who desires healing shall turn to God—come into harmony with the physical or spiritual law that has been violated. And so the miracle of conversion and the miracle of health are identical. They are but different manifestations of the same healing power.
Speaking to the backsliders, the Lord says: “Return, ye backsliding children, and I will heal your backslidings.” Jer. 3:22. The backslidden soul is in need of healing. He has drifted away from the source of life and health and strength, and thus his healing is made dependent—consequent—upon his return. Every man who was doing wrong yesterday, and who receives strength to do right to-day, has to that extent been healed of God. The evidence of the backslider's healing is in his return to the old paths, to the sheepfold of Christ, which he forsook, and as a consequence was torn by the enemy when in the land of strangers. Those who are knowingly transgressing God's laws, physically or morally, thus separating themselvesfurther and further from the Lawgiver, can not expect to be recipients of a special manifestation of divine healing, while they continue to disobey and trample upon the laws of the divine Healer.

Strength Sufficient for the Day

“OH, ask not thou, How shall I bear The burden of to-morrow? Sufficient for the day its care, Its evil, and its sorrow. Thy God imparteth by the way Strength that's sufficient for the day.”

THE HOLY GHOST

The King's Messenger
THIS is an age when people dislike the workings and movings of the Holy Ghost. If you don't believe it, watch the spirit of disapproval among fashionable preachers and church-members when some real saint gets burdened for souls, or shouts aloud for joy. Let a repenting sinner become desperately in earnest and begin to scream for mercy, and the baptized worldlings will be completely confounded to know how to relieve him.
During Jesus Christ's dispensation the Jews were continually referring to the dispensation which had just closed. They were living behind the times, and it is just the same to-day. How seldom is to be heard a sermon in one of the fashionable churches on the office and power of the Holy Ghost. They preach about Christ, and all that is said is historical. The reason men do not preach more about the third person in the Godhead is that they do not live in the realm and dispensation of His mighty, supernatural power. Since Holy Writ does not record much about the Holy Ghost, what we positively know about Him must be obtained largely through personal contact in communion with Him.
But even among those who profess to know Him, there seems to be a lack of knowledge of His workings. This accounts for the many errors in doctrine so prevalent everywhere. For instance, some teach that one does not receive the Holy Ghost until he enters upon the “higher life.” They report meetings like this: “There were twenty-five professions to conversion, and thirty professed to receive the Holy Ghost.” This is unscriptural; for when a soul is regenerated, he then receives the Holy Ghost, which is the Spirit of God. Jesus breathed upon the disciples previously to the day of Pentecost, and said, “Receive ye the Holy Ghost.” Afterward they said: “We are His witnesses of these things; and so is also the Holy Ghost, whom God hath given to them that obey Him.”

A Right Life Requires a Right Heart

“If the heart is wrong, how can the life be right?”
Continue reading: SHALL WE EAT FLESH ?