Review and Herald, Vol. 91, No. 2. (1/8/1914)

Review and Herald

Jan 8, 1914

Review and Herald Publishing Association · Takoma Park Station, Washington, D.C. · Jan 8, 1914

Special Club Rates

These special reduced rates are good only from December 1, 1913, to February 2, 1914. After that the regular prices will be charged, which are 15 to 25 per cent higher.

TO APPLY FROM DECEMBER 1, 1913, TO MIDNIGHT FEBRUARY 2, 1914.

Now while the low rates are on is the time to place your order for the papers you will want during the coming year. Club prices exclude all premiums.

Present subscribers may renew at club rates any paper or papers they are now taking, and which are listed in any club, for one full year from the date of expiration of their present subscriptions, by adding the other papers listed in the club with the paper renewed.

ALL CLUBS MUST INCLUDE THE REVIEW, AND BE SENT TO ONE ADDRESS

Suggestive Clubs

After each paper the regular price is given. The totals of the regular prices give the cost of the papers when taken separately at the regular rates. The special club prices appear in large figures to the right. Papers of the same price may be substituted one for the other in any club excepting “The Review Family Group.”

A Good Home Club

Review ................................ $2.00 Education ............................ 1.00 Worker ................................ .50 Instructor ............................ 1.25 Life and Health ...................... 1.00 Club Price Until Feb. 2 ........ $4.75 Regular Price ....................... $5.75

A Good Missionary Club

Review ................................ $2.00 Signs (weekly) ....................... 1.75 Watchman ............................. 1.00 Protestant ........................... 1.00 Liberty .............................. .35 Club Price Until Feb. 2 ........ $5.20 Regular Price ....................... $6.10

Workers’ Club

Review ................................ $2.00 Signs (monthly) ...................... 1.00 Protestant ........................... 1.00 Liberty .............................. .35 Life and Health ...................... 1.00 Club Price Until Feb. 2 ........ $4.50 Regular Price ....................... $5.35

Teachers’ Club

Review ................................ $2.00 Education ............................ 1.00 Worker ................................ .50 Life and Health ...................... 1.00 Liberty .............................. .35 Club Price Until Feb. 2 ........ $4.05 Regular Price ....................... $4.85

THE PERPETUAL CLUB

The Review Family Group

7 “The Perfect Number” 7 IN ONE CLUB TO ONE ADDRESS ONLY Review ................................ $2.00 Instructor ............................ 1.25 Life and Health ...................... 1.00 Protestant ........................... 1.00 Education ............................ 1.00 Worker ................................ .50 Liberty .............................. .35 Club Price $5.00 Regular Price ....................... $7.10 (No substitution in this list.)

Children’s Club

Review ................................ $2.00 Instructor ............................ 1.25 Little Friend ........................ .60 Club Price Until Feb. 2 ........ $3.30 Regular Price ....................... $3.85

Young People’s Club

Review ................................ $2.00 Life and Health ...................... 1.00 Instructor ............................ 1.25 Education ............................ 1.00 Club Price Until Feb. 2 ........ $4.40 Regular Price ....................... $5.25

Review ................................ $2.00 Signs (weekly) ....................... 1.75 Club Price Until Feb. 2 ........ $3.30 Regular Price ....................... $3.75

Review ................................ $2.00 Signs (monthly) ...................... 1.00 Watchman ............................. 1.00 Life and Health ...................... 1.00 Protestant ........................... 1.00 Liberty .............................. .35 Club Price Until Feb. 2 ........ $5.30 Regular Price ....................... $6.35

Review ................................ $2.00 Protestant ........................... 1.00 Liberty .............................. .35 Club Price Until Feb. 2 ........ $2.90 Regular Price ....................... $3.35

Review ................................ $2.00 Watchman ............................. 1.00 Club Price Until Feb. 2 ........ $2.60 Regular Price ....................... $3.00

Review ................................ $2.00 Education ............................ 1.00 Worker ................................ .50 Club Price Until Feb. 2 ........ $2.95 Regular Price ....................... $3.50

Review ................................ $2.00 Life and Health ...................... 1.00 Protestant ........................... 1.00 Liberty .............................. .35 Club Price Until Feb. 2 ........ $3.70 Regular Price ....................... $4.35

Review ................................ $2.00 Watchman ............................. 1.00 Worker ................................ .50 Club Price Until Feb. 2 ........ $2.95 Regular Price ....................... $3.50

Review ................................ $2.00 Worker ................................ .50 Liberty .............................. .35 Little Friend ........................ .60 Club Price Until Feb. 2 ........ $2.95 Regular Price ....................... $3.45

Review ................................ $2.00 Watchman ............................. 1.00 Protestant ........................... 1.00 Liberty .............................. .35 Club Price Until Feb. 2 ........ $3.70 Regular Price ....................... $4.35

SEND ALL ORDERS THROUGH THE CONFERENCE TRACT SOCIETY

Meditation on Jer. 31:35-37

By Charles P. Bollman

C. P. BOLLMAN

As rises the sun in the morning bright, So hope springs anew each day. As we look afar from the mountain height, So faith sees the onward way.

The Lord has pledged to us day and night, Has given the shining sun, That we may trust his infinite might, Make ours the victory won.

O, what could even the Infinite do, To give us a refuge sure, That he has not done in his love so true? Then rest in that love secure.

As the sun comes up in the morning bright, And nightly the stars shine out, We will lovingly trust his wondrous might, And cast to the winds all doubt.

Nashville, Tenn.

Power of United Prayer

By J. Frank Tolson

J. FRANK TOLSON

“I SAY unto you, That if two of you shall agree on earth as touching anything that they shall ask, it shall be done for them of my Father which is in heaven. For where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them.” Matt. 18: 19, 20. A careful study of this scripture will reveal wonderful possibilities for the children of God in united prayer. In fact, the possibilities are simply unlimited. “If two of you.” Two is the human unit, as three is the divine unit. The man is not complete without the woman, nor the woman without the man. The two together make the human unit, as the three persons of the Godhead form the divine unit. But the prayer unit is not limited to two. The number is unlimited above two, but it takes at least two to form the unit.

“If two [or more] . . . shall agree.” Agree is a music word. If there is perfect symphony in their hearts, if two or more shall make music in their hearts as touching anything, it touches a responsive chord in the Lord’s heart. Is there any limit to that word anything? Have we any right to say it does not include this, or that, or the other thing? The only limit to the “anything” is the “I”—“where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them.” Is anything impossible with Christ? Listen! “All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth.” “Heaven and earth shall pass away, but my word shall not pass away.” He who has all power in heaven and earth is behind that promise.

Do we realize what that promise vouchsafes to us? Do we not realize that Omnipotence is behind that word? “There am I in the midst of them.” If we shall “agree,” if our hearts beat in unison with one another and with his great heart of love, it will make sweet music in his ears, and “it shall be done for them of my Father which is in heaven.” What possibilities! What power is here vouchsafed to parents seeking the salvation of a wayward son or daughter! Infinite power is at their disposal; all heaven will vibrate in harmony with the music that is in their hearts, and mighty agencies will be set to work to reclaim the lost one.

But is there anything we can desire more than the triumph of the everlasting gospel, the finishing of God’s work on earth, and the ushering in of the glorious kingdom where there will be no more sin, suffering, or sorrow? And do we not yearn for that fullness of the Spirit and power that will enable us to finish the work quickly and thus bring in the glorious day? And shall we not, with hearts beating in perfect unison, get together and claim, yes, and obtain, the fulfillment to the utmost of that glorious promise? Shall we not lay hold on the arm of Omnipotence, and thus be enabled to accomplish a mighty work in the earth? There is wonderful power in individual prayer. “The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much;” but there is simply unlimited power in corporate prayer: “If two [or more] of you shall agree on earth as touching anything that they shall ask, it shall be done for them of my Father which is in heaven. For . . . there am I in the midst of them.”

Salem, Oregon.

The Fall of the House of Ahab

By Ellen G. White

MRS. E. G. WHITE

The evil influence that from the first Jezebel had exercised over Ahab continued during the later years of his life, and bore fruit in deeds of shame and violence such as have seldom been equaled in sacred history. “There was none like unto Ahab, which did sell himself to work wickedness in the sight of the Lord, whom Jezebel his wife stirred up.”

Naturally of a covetous disposition, Ahab, strengthened and sustained in wrongdoing by Jezebel, had followed the dictates of his evil heart until he was fully controlled by the spirit of selfishness. He could not brook any refusal of his wishes; he felt that the things he desired should by right be his.

Hard by the palace of the king was a vineyard belonging to Naboth, a Jezreelite. Ahab set his heart on possessing this vineyard, and he proposed to buy it or else to give in exchange for it another piece of land. “Give me thy vineyard,” he said to Naboth, “that I may have it for a garden of herbs, because it is near unto my house: and I will give thee for it a better vineyard than it; or, if it seem good to thee, I will give thee the worth of it in money.”

Naboth valued his vineyard highly because it had belonged to his fathers, and he refused to part with it. “The Lord forbid it me,” he said to Ahab, “that I should give the inheritance of my fathers unto thee.” According to the Levitical code, no land could be transferred permanently by sale or exchange; every one of the children of Israel must “keep himself to the inheritance of the tribe of his fathers.”

Naboth’s refusal made the selfish monarch ill. “Ahab came into his house heavy and displeased because of the word which Naboth the Jezreelite had

spoken to him. . . . And he laid him down upon his bed, and turned away his face, and would eat no bread.”

Jezebel soon learned the particulars, and indignant that any one should refuse the request of the king, she assured Ahab that he need no longer be sad. “Dost thou now govern the kingdom of Israel?” she said. “Arise, and eat bread, and let thine heart be merry: I will give thee the vineyard of Naboth the Jezreelite.”

The king cared not by what means his wife accomplished the desired object, and Jezebel immediately proceeded to carry out her wicked purpose. She wrote letters in the name of the king, sealed them with his signet, and sent them to the elders and nobles of the city where Naboth dwelt, saying, “Proclaim a fast, and set Naboth on high among the people: and set two men, sons of Belial, before him, to bear witness against him, saying, Thou didst blaspheme God and the king. And then carry him out, and stone him, that he may die.”

The command was obeyed. “The men of his city, even the elders and the nobles . . . did as Jezebel had . . . written in the letters which she had sent unto them.” Then Jezebel went to the king, and bade him arise and take the vineyard. And Ahab, heedless of consequences, blindly followed her counsel, and went down to take possession of the coveted property.

The king was not allowed to enjoy unrebuked that which he had gained by fraud and bloodshed. “The word of the Lord came to Elijah the Tishbite, saying, Arise, go down to meet Ahab king of Israel, which is in Samaria: behold, he is in the vineyard of Naboth, whither he is gone down to possess it. And thou shalt speak unto him, saying, Thus saith the Lord, Hast thou killed, and also taken possession?” And the Lord further instructed Elijah to pronounce upon Ahab a terrible judgment for his wicked course.

The prophet hastened to carry out the divine command. The guilty ruler, meeting the stern messenger of Jehovah face to face in the vineyard that had belonged to Naboth, gave voice to his startled fear in the words, “Hast thou found me, O mine enemy?”

Fearlessly the messenger of the Lord replied, “I have found thee: because thou hast sold thyself to work evil in the sight of the Lord. Behold, I will bring evil upon thee, and will take away thy posterity.” No mercy was to be shown: the house of Ahab was to be utterly destroyed, “like the house of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, and like the house of Baasha the son of Ahijah,” the Lord declared through his servant, “for the provocation wherewith thou hast provoked me to anger, and made Israel to sin.”

“And of Jezebel also spake the Lord, saying, The dogs shall eat Jezebel by the wall of Jezreel. Him that dieth of Ahab in the city the dogs shall eat; and him that dieth in the field shall the fowls of the air eat.”

When the king heard this fearful message, “he rent his clothes, and put sackcloth upon his flesh, and fasted, and lay in sackcloth, and went softly.”

“And the word of the Lord came to Elijah the Tishbite, saying, Seest thou how Ahab humbleth himself before me? Because he humbleth himself before me, I will not bring the evil in his days: but in his son’s days will I bring the evil upon his house.”

Less than three years later, King Ahab met his death at the hands of the Syrians, and Ahaziah, his son, became his successor.

(To be continued)

No More

By Francis Monroe Burg

FRANCIS MONROE BURG

“And God saw everything that he had made, and, behold, it was very good.” Gen. 1:31. Alas, what a contrast to this description of man’s Eden home are the conditions which we see in every part of the earth today! Instead of the fir tree we see the thorn. The brier is found where the myrtle tree should flourish.

The floodgates were opened when our parents in Eden put forth their hands in disobedience, and the earth is now deluged with woe and wickedness. The limitations of the human vocabulary forbid any attempt at describing the conditions that have resulted from this first transgression. Crimes, the recital of which would curdle the blood; sins so revolting that they would befoul the very pen used for their portrayal; woe, misery, and want, and cries of distress that rise to heaven itself; blight, decay, pestilence, and plague, a thousand other conditions that would exhaust the human language before the half were told, characterize our earthly abiding place and these times in which the “curse hath devoured the earth.”

The wickedness that prevails in the earth is described in the Bible in the following words: “The earth also is defiled under the inhabitants thereof.” Isa. 24:5. “The press is full, the fats overflow; for their wickedness is great.” Joel 3:13. “Evil men and seducers shall wax worse and worse, deceiving, and being deceived.” 2 Tim. 3:13.

But note the following vision of the future given to the seer of Patmos: “And I saw a new heaven and a new earth: for the first heaven and the first earth were passed away.” “Behold, I make all things new.” Rev. 21:1, 5. “Nevertheless we, according to his promise, look for new heavens and a new earth, wherein dwelleth righteousness.” 2 Peter 3:13. This whole scene is to be changed, “and there shall be curse;” “for the former things are passed away.” Rev. 22:3; 21:4. Who does not exult in the hope that God will some day renew the face of the earth and erase the dark blot of sin from this, the only orb of his vast creation that sin has cursed? Haste that day, cries the longing soul, when, the curse forever removed, this earth will again shine in its beauty, as in the beginning when it was first given its place among the shining spheres! O, joyful prospect! O, blessed hope!

death! How the cruel enemy has stalked throughout our world, ruthlessly and heartlessly wielding his sickle, till his slain are absolutely numberless! Old and young alike have fallen victims to his cruelty. Family circles are broken, and the strongest ties known on earth are rent asunder. Wives are widowed; husbands are left to walk life’s way alone; children are orphaned; brothers, sisters, are left to grieve over the graves of the departed. How long will the tyrant perpetrate his cruel ravages and spread his desolations? Thousands and ten thousands send up the cry to heaven, How long? How long?

The writer once stood before a snow-white casket. A fluffy pillow within held the head of one of the sweetest babes that ever, by its prattle, broke the silence of its home. Following this precious treasure down the aisle of the church were the grief-stricken parents, the father in his stalwart manhood seeking to control his pent-up emotions, and supporting by his strong arm the all but fainting wife and mother. Their only child, so tenderly cherished by them, had been torn from their hearts and home. Not a ray of light relieved the enshrouding gloom save that precious ray which, through the gates ajar, beams from the land of fadeless day. A few words spoken for their relief and comfort, they and their assembled friends admonished to renew their hold on eternal things by faith, and the faded floweret was carried away and laid to rest.

After a time of loneliness in their little home, save as true life companions can comfort the heart cravings of each other, another precious babe, like a gift from above, came into their lives, bringing light like a morning sunbeam. Then another was given, and the two parent hearts were further lightened and cheered.

Alas, the heartless reaper came again into this humble home, and with two cruel strokes of his sickle, in almost immediate succession, made fatherless and motherless these tender baby boys. How fraught with danger are these years on earth! No adequate expression can be given to the sadness that is felt as the above picture from real life presents itself.

Thank God, death and destruction have heard of their doom. “The last enemy that shall be destroyed is death.” “Forasmuch then as the children are partakers of flesh and blood, he also himself likewise took part of the same; that through death he might destroy him that had the power of death, that is, the devil.” Heb. 2:14. Let every believer in him who is the “resurrection and the life” join in the joyous refrain, “There shall be

death, neither sorrow, nor crying.”

Reader, are your eyes so dimmed with tears that the blessed realities of that good land seem hidden from your vision? If you cannot see, for your blinding, bitter tears, listen to the comforting words of this man of God who has given an undimmed view of your “home over there:”— “God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying.” And Isaiah, the seer of the Old Testament, portrayed the same happy condition: “The voice of weeping shall no more be heard in her, nor the voice of crying.”

The star of hope has arisen upon us, and its rays are piercing the darkness that enwraps the human family like a pall. Pallid faces are turning toward the light; and, rising above the wailing, everywhere is heard the song of hope and rejoicing that is born of faith in the promise.

“There are lonely hearts to cherish, While the days are going by; There are weary souls who perish, While the days are going by. If a smile we can renew, As our journey we pursue,— O, the good we all may do, While the days are going by!” “There shall be . . . pain.” What a cheering assurance! Who has not felt in his frail, mortal body the aches and pains that are common to man? It would be difficult to find any one who has not more or less added to the groans of men, till the volume drowns all mirth and song, and the world everywhere seems to be one great lazar house of suffering and misery. We might head the list with any one of the pains that rack these poor bodies, and write till the reader’s heart would ache; and some of man’s suffering and pain would not be included.

A pitiful example of human suffering was the case of a man in one of our cities who was mangled in a street car collision. Before death released him from his misery, he was confined to his bed for a year with suffering that it seemed impossible to relieve. One side of his body was freezing cold, as if exposed to a blizzard; the other side was hot, as if near a roaring furnace. Day after day, till the night of death dropped its curtain down, this patient sufferer endured this agony, sustained only by his trust in God and comforted by the sympathetic ministration of his friends. This is one picture of an endless number that might be presented.

The groans and shrieks of a suffering world have reached unto heaven, and the cheering promise has come down from the lips of him who “took our infirmities and bare our sicknesses:” “Neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away.” Listen again to Isaiah’s comforting promise: The inhabitant shall say, “I am sick.” Such a condition as this is almost beyond our grasp. The plaintive sound reaches our ears from every direction, “I am sick.” It comes from grandfather, from grandmother, from father, mother, brother, sister, and from the sweet, lisping babe. We become at once alarmed, and, lest delay add to the suffering that raised the cry, or possibly endanger the life of our loved one, we quickly resort to every recourse within our reach, perhaps calling the most skillful physician that can be secured, to bring relief to the afflicted. Alas, how often the best that we can do proves to be a futile attempt, and father, mother, wife, or child succumbs and falls; then our hearts are rent with grief.

A father was beginning to show signs of decline. Becoming alarmed, he resorted to every available means to check the ravages of the disease, the nature of which was all uncertain. After a few months, at the advice of his friends, he sought relief in traveling and change of climate. At last, despairing of ever recovering, he returned to his home and family to await the inevitable outcome.

I was often at his bedside to comfort him, and was with him and held his hand when only an occasional word could be caught as he spoke under his breath. He was praying for his dear children,—six of them,—soon to be fatherless. A little longer, and, though still breathing, all consciousness was gone, and the loving wife and clinging children waited and watched about the deathbed, longing, O, so intensely, for one more word, one more look of recognition! A return of consciousness for just an instant, and the last smile of this dying father, as he recognized his loved ones around him, was seen. O, the outbreak of grief! O, the sinking of loving hearts as the familiar look gave place again to the death-like stare! Just a little longer, and all was over.

Almost exhausted from weeks of watching, and almost dazed by the terrible shock of the last awful hours, the family, assisted by loving friends, withdrew to recover themselves before plans for the last sad rites were given thought. Till after the casket was lowered into the grave and the broken family returned to their lonely little home, I sought to comfort them. How the wails and wringing of hands caused my very soul to cry out for that day to come when such scenes as this will be forever past.

No more sickness! No more features drawn with pain! No more emaciated frames! No more the departure of youthful bloom from those that we love. O, could our minds grasp this cheering prospect! And while we wait for the fruition of the promise, we should do all that lies within our power to tell the glad news to this sorrowing, suffering world. Such a home as the blessed Book describes was given to man in the beginning, and would have been his forever had he remained true to his Maker. But he fell, and the curse then pronounced upon him for his sin has “devoured the earth.” But he who made the earth “to be inhabited” (Isa. 45:18) has promised the restitution of all things: “And thou, O tower of the flock, the stronghold of the daughter of Zion, to thee shall it come, even the first dominion; the kingdom shall come to the daughter of Jerusalem.” Micah 4:8.

From the prophet’s pen we have the comforting and cheering words, “There shall be thence an infant of days.” In that land of fadeless day we shall never witness the heart rendings as we have seen them here, when a precious little babe, like a sunbeam in the home, is rudely snatched from its mother’s arms, and its cooing and its prattle suddenly hushed. Who ever saw a sadder and more heart-touching scene than one like this? Who has witnessed it without crying out in his very soul for the day to come when such scenes will be eternally banished? O may this promise of the prophet be like the rising of the day-star, to cheer the sad and weary pilgrims in life’s journey with the hope of coming day!

Again this seer of the Old Testament pictures the cheering prospect to encourage the inhabitants of this stricken world: There shall be “an old man that hath not filled his days.” No more infirmity, suffering, helplessness, or loneliness of old age! Thank God for this assurance! Scarcely a sadder scene presents itself here than the decrepit old man or the tottering grandmother, after years of toil and sorrow, leaning on a staff, reclining in an invalid chair, or confined to the bed, shut in by four walls, just waiting and almost longing for the release that death may bring.

I saw an aged paralytic who was confined to her chair for eleven long years, and from her lips often fell the sad and pitiful words, “Sweet rest by and by; sweet rest by and by.”

No more old age with its infirmity! What a blessed promise to the travelers in this weary way! God is surely good to men to light up their journey with these precious promises.

As the prophet says, it is here the lot of the babe to die; though he lives for a hundred years, he must fall victim to the terrible enemy. “It is appointed unto men once to die.” Heb. 9:27. “The living know that they shall die.” Eccl. 9:5. And since all men are sinners, he who may live to be a hundred years old, dies accursed. But not so in the good land to come. Over there the redeemed “shall build houses, and inhabit them; and they shall plant vineyards, and eat the fruit of them. They shall not build, and another inhabit; they shall not plant, and another eat: for as the days of a tree are the days of my people, and mine elect shall long enjoy the work of their hands.” Isa. 65:20-22.

Not the least comforting to those who have struggled through weary years here

is the promise in 2 Sam. 7:10: “Moreover I will appoint a place for my people Israel, and will plant them, that they may dwell in a place of their own, and move no more”.

A home of our own! We have been pilgrims here, with no certain habitation. We have been an afflicted and poor people, while our enemies have spread themselves like a green bay tree. Sometimes we were tempted to envy their prosperity, until we went into the sanctuary of God and saw their end. Ps. 73:17. as beforetime, shall the enemies of God’s people afflict them. He has “chosen the poor of this world rich in faith, and heirs of the kingdom which he hath promised to them that love him.”

When their pilgrimage is over, they will have a home of their own, not to be robbed and spoiled by death nor oppressed by foes, and shall “long enjoy the work of their hands.”

Their enemies will be utterly destroyed, as Obadiah has said (verse 16); and the people of God shall inherit the possessions of those who so long oppressed them here. Verse 17.

No more while all the endless years Shall wing their age-enduring flight,

When fadeless day breaks o’er our world And no more come the shades of night,—

No more shall sin its ravage spread, And fill our world with countless dead;

No more the curse shall scourge the earth, As since transgression had its birth;

No more the pain of broken heart, When friend from friend is called to part;

No more “I’m sick,” and no more pain,— That cry shall not be heard again;

No more a precious infant born And rudely from its parents torn;

No more a man bowed down with years,— Years full of sorrow, toil, and tears;

No more to plant while other hands May reap the fruitage of our lands;

No more to build and leave our all To others, while we, fainting, fall;

No more to move, fore’er and aye,— At home in peace through endless day;

No more by cruel foes oppressed, But in God’s service finding rest.

Then, weary soul, bowed down with care And grief that seems too hard to bear, or

Shout this refrain forevermore: No more, praise God, no more! no more!

Los Angeles, Cal.

Eating With Publicans and Sinners

By Mrs. Iva F. Cady

MRS. IVA F. CADY

We have heard about the caste system of India, where the customs of the people forbid their eating with or taking food from one of lower caste, even if they are starving, and we regard this as a deplorable condition. We also denounce the pride and religious bigotry of the Jews in the days of the apostles, which led them to refuse to eat with the Gentiles. But while the Christians of this enlightened age profess not to believe in the caste system, do they not sometimes have a way of acting that is quite similar to this which they condemn in others, though their method may not be called by the same name? Do you ever turn a cold shoulder to even your brother in the church and shun him because you have heard some evil report concerning him, or because you have heard that he spoke disparagingly of you? Perhaps you have gone so far as to refuse to eat at the same table with one whom you judge as a sinner.

We may be sure that it will be safe and right to follow the example of Christ in such matters, as well as in everything else. Though he was the Son of God, what did he do? We find that while he knew of the deceit and unfaithfulness of Judas, he ate of the Passover with him, sitting at the same table. Notice also the course he took as he mingled with the people. “And it came to pass, as Jesus sat at meat in the house, behold, many publicans and sinners came and sat down with him and his disciples. And when the Pharisees saw it, they said unto his disciples, Why eateth your Master with publicans and sinners?” Matt. 9: 10, 11.

Because Jesus ate with publicans and sinners, the Pharisees condemned him, and accused him of being a friend of such people (Matt. 11: 19), in the sense of being one of them. Jesus answered them by saying, “They that be whole need not a physician, but they that are sick. But go ye and learn what that meaneth, I will have mercy, and not sacrifice: for I am not come to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance.” Matt. 9: 12, 13.

There are professed Christian people who, like the Pharisees, choose to associate only with so-called respectable persons who have a high standing in society, while they look with disdain upon the poor or those who have a questionable reputation. Might not these same Pharisaical persons feel highly flattered if some corrupt and immoral king or great man of this earth should condescend to be friendly with them? Would they not overlook his wicked character, and consider it an honor to be called his friend? But sin is sin wherever it is found, and the wicked rich man is no better in the sight of God than is the wicked poor man. And we are told that if we have “respect to persons,” we commit sin and are convinced of the law as transgressors.

We may have a refined taste, so that the rude, uncouth ways of the uncultured are distasteful to us, and we turn from them in disgust. The sins of criminals and outcasts may appear very black to us; but while we abhor the sin, we should at the same time love the sinner, because Jesus loves him and died just as much to save him as to save us. It is such as these that we are to “save with fear, pulling them out of the fire; hating even the garment spotted by the flesh.” Jude 23. If sin appears bad to us, how much worse must it be regarded by Christ, the sinless one! And yet he mingled freely with all classes, even with the most degraded, and improved every opportunity of helping such by feeding them when hungry, healing their sicknesses, and pointing out to them the way of life. His conversation with the Samaritan woman at the well, with the woman taken in the act of adultery, with Simon the Pharisee and Mary Magdalene when she washed his feet with her tears and wiped them with the hair of her head; with Zaccheus the publican, with the man in the country of the Gadarenes out of whom he cast the unclean spirits,—these and many other instances show that Christ was not a respecter of persons, but that he labored to save both high and low, rich and poor, not making any difference between them.

The parable of the lost sheep was given to show the loving care that we should have for the straying ones, and the diligent efforts we should put forth to bring them back into the fold. Luke 15: 2-7. Let us so cherish the Spirit of Christ and labor for the backsliders as we shall wish we had when we stand before God to give an account of our stewardship. If they will repent and turn to him, the Lord will receive them; for he says, “Return, ye backsliding children, and I will heal your backslidings.” Jer. 3: 22. And if Christ accepts them and casts their sins behind his back, should not we be willing to do the same?

Though we are to put forth every legitimate effort to save sinners, we are not to throw ourselves in the way of temptation by joining with them in their worldly pleasures, or by yoking up with them as bosom friends or boon companions. “And have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather reprove them.” Eph. 5: 11. We do not need to lower our standard of holiness and purity and descend to their level, but by our example we must seek to lift them up to a higher plane. We can never help them by keeping entirely away from them, or by passing them coldly by without recognition when we meet them on the street. We must show them that we have an interest in their welfare, that we love them and care for their souls; then we may hope to win them to Christ. But if we have the spirit of the Pharisee, who thanked the Lord because he was better than other men, we are sure to manifest that spirit, and such a spirit is so unlike Christ that it can never draw souls to him.

College Place, Wash.

Reverence for Love’s Purity

ALL the strength and all the arts of men are measured by, and founded upon, their reverence for the passion and their guardianship of the purity of love.—Carlyle.

CHARLES THOMPSON

By Charles Thompson

Selfishness

CHARLES THOMPSON

SELFISHNESS is ruinous to the human soul. It is unchristlike, and must be overcome by those who are followers of the Saviour. Jesus said: “If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me.” Following the path of selfishness leads away from God. Lucifer, a light bearer in heaven, followed it, and it turned him into Satan. Judas, one of the twelve chosen apostles, cherished it, and lost his position and his life here and hereafter.

Jesus warns against it in Luke 12: 15. He says: “Take heed, and beware of covetousness: for a man’s life consisteth not in the abundance of the things which he possesseth.” Then follows a parable of a man who was selfish. He lived for self, he talked to himself concerning himself, and planned wholly for himself, and lost his soul. This illustration is the foundation for the admonition given above.

We have another selfish character brought to view in the Bible. In 3 John 9 we read: “I wrote unto the church: but Diotrephes, who loveth to have the preeminence among them, receiveth us not.” John was a beloved disciple, chosen of God and ordained to bear responsibility in connection with his church upon earth. Seeing dangers threatening the church and being absent from them, he addressed a letter to them. But Diotrephes took the liberty to side-track it. The reason given is, “He loveth to have the preeminence.” He did not propose that any one should address the church but himself. He felt that he knew what the church needed. Then there were doubtless those who did not care to hear from any one but Diotrephes, and he, feeding upon this, took the preeminence.

This is the only mention we have of Diotrephes. He was evidently not the chosen leader of the church. We have no account of his being so. John addresses himself to Gaius, the well-beloved in the truth. But Diotrephes, who presumed to soar above and over all, ignores all rank, and as a self-opinionated and self-appointed leader, takes the preeminence.

He not only ignored John’s letter, but he prated against him with malicious words. Maliciousness is defined to be mischievous intentions; wrongful and done intentionally without just cause. Malice is a twin sister of envy, and envy is connected with selfishness.

Diotrephes endeavored to injure John’s influence with the church in his absence. He did not receive him or his letter, and forbade them that would. Thus we see he assumed to control the mind and dictate the actions of the brethren; and those who would dare to go contrary to his opinion, he took steps to eliminate not only from official position, but from the church itself. Immediately following the description of Diotrephes, the disciple admonishes the beloved to “follow not that which is evil.”

May the Lord ever keep his children humble. He that humbleth himself shall be exalted, and he that exalteth himself shall be abased. Let us bear one another’s burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ, who taught us that in all things whatsoever we would that men should do unto us we should do even so unto them. May the Lord deliver us all from ourselves.

Minneapolis, Minn.

Continue reading: A Little Child Shall Lead Them