p. 2 | Review and Herald, Vol. 86, No. 39. (9/30/1909)

Review and Herald

Sep 30, 1909

Review and Herald Publishing Association · Takoma Park Station, Washington, D. C. · Sep 30, 1909

The Coming of His Feet

By Independent

In the crimson of the morning, in the whiteness of the noon, In the amber glory of the day's retreat, In the midnight, robed in darkness, or the gleaming of the moon, I listen for the coming of His feet.

I have heard His weary footsteps on the sands of Galilee, On the temple's marble pavement, on the street, Worn with weight of sorrow, faltering up the slopes of Calvary, The sorrow of the coming of His feet.

Down the minster-aisles of splendor, from betwixt the cherubim, Through the wondering throng, with motion strong and fleet, Sounds His victor tread, approaching with a music far and dim— The music of the coming of His feet.

Sandaled not with shoon of silver, girdled not with woven gold, Weighted not with shimmering gems and odors sweet, But white-winged and shod with glory in the Tabor-light of old— The glory of the coming of His feet.

He is coming, O my spirit! with His everlasting peace, With His blessedness immortal and complete; He is coming, O my spirit! and His coming brings release, I listen for the coming of His feet. — Independent.

THE WORK — AND — THE WORKERS

The Western Washington Missionary Society has just sent us in one order 154 subscriptions for Liberty. If all our tract societies could follow the example of the Western Washington Missionary Society month by month for one year, Liberty would have a list of over 100,000 subscribers.

Praise for the Youth's Instructor

“THE Instructor is such a good paper for parents and teachers! I can not speak too highly of it. For some time I have thought of sending you words of commendation for it; not because others do, but because I really appreciate such a valuable paper.” Hundreds and thousands of people all over the United States feel just as this party expresses himself about the Youth's Instructor.

Protestant Magazine Builds Its Subscription List

The following reveals the way the Protestant Magazine is winning its way and building up its subscription list: “You sent Mr. —— two sample copies of the Protestant Magazine. He gave me one, and I read it through from cover to cover, and liked it so well that I spent a few hours among my neighbors in order to let them have it also. Enclosed find their orders for the Protestant Magazine; also a money-order to pay for them.”

A Seventy-Three-Year-Old Canvasser’s Success

This is a most remarkable record for periodical work: A sister 73 years of age, residing in Portland, Maine, sold 1,000 copies of the September number of Life and Health in less than a month. Her profits, therefore, gave her a salary of $70. What other business will yield a person 73 years of age a better income, and at the same time afford him an opportunity to effectively administer to the needs of the people, and sow seeds of truth?

Send the Protestant Magazine to Ministers

The following shows the result of two sample copies of the Protestant Magazine sent to a minister: “Dear Sir: I received the Protestant Magazine for the second and third quarters. Will you please send me one for the first and fourth quarters? Enclosed is 25 cents for the year.” Let none receive the impression that it is useless to send the Protestant Magazine to ministers, or men of other professions, for it contains a message especially for them. God will take care of the results. All we have to do is to attend to the soil.

A Successful Life and Health Canvass

A HOME worker for Life and Health, who usually orders 30 copies each month, has just doubled her order for the next month, and offers the following as the substance of her canvass: “I have brought you an up-to-date journal, prepared by reliable, conscientious Christian physicians. It contains just the information needed by the great majority of people for this special season of the year. It is only ten cents a copy. I believe you will like it, and I know it will be worth more than ten cents to you.” She says that this simple canvass, with a little extra effort, has enabled her to double her monthly order. This may serve as a good suggestion for many others who are selling a few copies of this excellent monthly journal each month.

Foreign Publications

By Editor

It may be of interest to the readers of the Review to know what publications we have in foreign languages. These can be obtained from any of our publishing houses or our tract societies. Read the following list carefully:—

Arabic Language.—11 tracts; 1 pamphlet.
Armenian.—4 tracts.
Bohemian.—2 books; 6 tracts; 1 periodical.
Bulgarian.—2 books; 6 tracts.
Chinese.—11 tracts.
Danish-Norwegian.—26 books; 14 pamphlets; 52 tracts; 1 periodical.
Esthonian.—5 books; 15 tracts; 1 periodical.
Finnish.—3 books; 13 tracts; 1 periodical.
French.—11 books; 12 pamphlets; 14 tracts; 2 periodicals.
German.—39 books; 16 pamphlets; 76 tracts; 5 periodicals.
Greek.—1 tract.
Holland.—9 books; 13 pamphlets; 14 tracts; 1 periodical.
Hungarian.—4 books; 18 tracts; 2 periodicals.
Icelandic.—4 books; 2 pamphlets; 2 tracts.
Italian.—3 books; 21 tracts; 1 periodical.
Japanese.—3 books; 4 tracts.
Lettish.—4 books; 16 tracts; 1 periodical.
Lithuanian.—2 books; 19 tracts.
Polish.—1 book; 15 tracts.
Portuguese.—4 books; 10 tracts.
Rumanian.—3 books; 8 tracts; 1 periodical.
Russian.—4 books; 12 tracts; 1 periodical.
Servian.—1 book; 6 tracts.
Slovakian.—7 tracts.
Spanish.—5 books; 1 pamphlet; 12 tracts.
Swedish.—26 books; 16 pamphlets; 58 tracts; 1 periodical.
Turkish.—14 tracts.
Welsh.—1 book; 5 tracts.
Wendish.—1 tract.
Yiddish.—1 tract.

We have six hundred ninety-eight publications in thirty foreign languages. A complete catalogue, giving the names of all these publications, with description and prices, will be sent for the asking. Get the catalogue, then get the literature, and place it in the hands of your foreign neighbors.

An Aged Worker for the Third Angel's Message

No one is too old to do a good work in the third angel's message. Here is one way in which the aged may labor: “I took 35 copies of Life and Health from a canvasser who had them to spare. The first afternoon I did not go out of sight of my house, but I sold six copies. I thought that was pretty good for an old lady, eighty-three years of age. As people come to my home for a call, I show them Life and Health and sell them copies. I will now send for 25 copies more, so as to have them on hand for others. It would be my delight to be out all the time scattering the printed pages, if I were strong enough. I am, however, doing all I can in praying for those who are younger and stronger. The Lord knows the circumstances of all, and has abundant strength and power for all who are willing to attempt something for him. He is just as willing to make efficient every part of the body as he was to loosen Moses' tongue, but there are many who are not getting the blessing within their reach because they do not trust God.”

The Weight of Weekly Periodicals

By Editor

THE total weight of the copies of the REVIEW, Youth's Instructor, Life and Health, and Liberty mailed during one week was 6,944 pounds. As we pay transportation on all of the magazines sold by our agents, it will be seen that the amount we expend each week for postage is no small item.

Selling Liberty

MRS. MABEL STANDISH reports 21 copies of Liberty sold in one and one-half hours. This represents nearly $1 an hour in salary, and a strong presentation of the principles of the third angel's message to at least 21 people. It is about as good work as it is possible for ministers to do in giving the message. Our entire membership of 100,000 doing that well would give several good message discourses to at least 2,100,000 people every hour and a half they work.

Oklahoma Tract Society Subscriptions

The Oklahoma Tract Society has just sent us an envelope as full of periodical subscriptions as it would hold. There were 62 Protestant Magazine subscriptions, 69 for Liberty, 7 for the REVIEW, 3 for the Instructor, and an order for 50 copies of the last number of Life and Health; making a sum total of 1,094 copies, all told. This is only one mail order through one tract society. We are receiving subscriptions at other times from this same society, and from more than 60 others and thousands of individuals direct.

Scholarship Worker Sells 250 Copies

The record of 230 copies of Life and Health in one day was broken on September 7 in Lincoln, Neb., by N. Rosella Smith, a student in Union College. On that day this scholarship worker sold 250 copies. She says: “I have earned my scholarship in a short time, and have a good start on the second. I trust my success will encourage others in this line of work.” The profits on 250 papers at scholarship rates amount to $17.50. At this rate a student could earn an average scholarship in one of our best schools in about ten days.

Why Not More Readers of Life and Health?

“WHY do not more of the readers of the REVIEW take Life and Health?” An appreciative reader of Life and Health, and a prominent member of one of our churches, answers this question as follows: “They do not know how good it is; if they did, they would not be without it. It is a great blessing to our home. I would rather go without something else than give up this good journal. Its visits I look forward to with much pleasure. Who in our churches will confer the favor of acquainting the members who do not have Life and Health with its helpfulness?”

Helping Church-School Work

Who wants to do something to help the church-school or any other church work? Let the sisters in the church “who have no money” notice the following order from a sister who is helping her church-school in a very practical manner: “I am sending an order for Life and Health for one year each to 40 of my friends and neighbors. There are still others who at present are away from home, but they will give me their order when they return. I am very thankful for the profit of this list of subscribers, for it will help so much in our church-school work, to which I have given it. I hope others may be blessed in the work as I have been.”

Things to Avoid

By W. A. S.

“But foolish and unlearned questions avoid, knowing that they do gender strifes.” So wrote Paul to Timothy. The apostle had spent a life in preaching the plain straightforward message of the fulfilment of prophecy and the way of salvation from sin. He had no time for anything else. That work had built up churches and gathered out believers in all parts of the field. Now he saw elements developing in the churches, bringing in speculative theories and fanciful interpretations. But those were not the things that had built up the work. His instruction was, Avoid them; preach the message that God has given for this time.

Again he wrote: “Study to show thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing [or cutting a straight course in] the word of truth. But shun profane and vain babblings: for they will increase unto more ungodliness.” And so they did increase, as history shows.

This counsel by inspiration is for our time, when every wind of doctrine is blowing. Fanciful interpretations and speculative theories abound. We know the straightforward message for this time, which has built up the work and has made us all Seventh-day Adventists. That is the message that will make other people Seventh-day Adventists and finish the work. Let us cut a straight course, and hold forth the great truths that God has committed to us. Everywhere the people need to hear them. The time is short, the work is great, and we have no time for side-issues or speculative and freakish theories, which will increase unto more ungodliness. W. A. S.

“The Letter Killeth, but the Spirit Giveth Life”

By F. M. W.

Much that passes for Christianity to-day is such only in name. In the minds of many, the standard has been lowered. Mere theory has been substituted for practical doing, and formal profession for a living experience. This is the tendency of human nature. All history shows that in proportion as the church of God has lost the power of the gospel, ritualism and ceremonies have taken the place of practical every-day religion, and men have come to trust in theory rather than in that for which the theory and form stood.

This danger in a marked degree is threatening Christianity in general at

the present time, and it also threatens the experience of Seventh-day Adventists. If any people in the world could trust to a beautiful theory of truth, it is this people. No church since the time of the apostles has had such a beautiful system of revealed truth as is possessed by this church. But no theory of the truth, however beautiful, will bring salvation. The theory has its place. It is necessary to present the argument of doctrine. It is necessary to convince the judgment as well as to move the heart. The danger is that the judgment only will be affected, and that while the theory is recognized by the mind, there will be a failure to make it a part of the life and experience.

Israel of old trusted to sacrifices and offerings to secure divine favor. They felt that God took pleasure in the blood of bulls and goats apart from heart service. The temple service, which was designed as an appropriate and fitting expression of faith, supplanted the faith itself. The Lord declared their sacrifices an abomination.

We to-day may substitute in our religious experience the expression and vehicle of faith for faith itself, and trust in the outward form rather than in the heart service which the outward form is designed to express. This we may illustrate:—

The keeping of the Sabbath is of divine precept. The payment of tithes and offerings is a part of Christian duty, but to the doing of these things in themselves can not be trusted our salvation. The Jews tithed mint and annis and cummin. Their conscientious regard for the divine command led them to carry the principle into the smallest detail; but while they were doing this, they failed in the graces of love, mercy, and compassion. The Saviour says that the tithing they should have done, but they should not have left unmanifested the graces of love and tenderness. The church at Corinth was taught that though one gave all his goods to feed the poor, and his body to be burned, yet if love did not prompt these sacrifices, they were counted for nothing. One may even engage in Christian missionary effort, and yet fail signally to apply the truth he teaches to himself. The apostle Paul recognized the danger of being a castaway, even though he put forth for others earnest Christian service.

Dead, empty form, the theory of heartless profession, has, in and of itself, no power, no life. It is a part of the old covenant of works. It belongs alone to

the letter of obedience, and the letter killeth. But truth held in righteousness and sanctification, while expressed in form, and constituting a beautiful chain and system of divine revelation, has in it the spirit and power of transforming grace. It becomes to the recipient life and light in the new covenant relationship. Thus it is that “the letter killeth, but the spirit giveth life.”

After all, the test of Christianity is found in the practical every-day life. A life of kindness and forbearance in the home; of honesty, charity, and helpfulness in the neighborhood; of meekness and humility, strength and lifting power, in the church and the world, all prompted by a living, abiding faith in the Lord Jesus, with all service rendered as unto him, without hope or thought of worldly honor or recognition,—this is practical Christianity. This spirit of Christianity, while it puts no confidence in the flesh or in religious forms as such, will repose steady confidence in the Lord Jesus. In seeking to meet his approval, and do his work in the world, it will consecrate every ability to his service. While it does not trust in form, it will make form the vehicle of its love. While it does not trust in Sabbath-keeping or tithe paying or any other Christian duty, for salvation, it will still be faithful in the performance of these duties, from loving gratitude to the One who has purchased so great a salvation.

Such a Christian will not possess the faith which trusts in works, but instead, a faith that works, an active, living faith. Christ in the person and flesh of his children to-day will work the same works that were wrought in the flesh in the days of his manifestation; and the child of God will be able to say, “I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me.”

F. M. W.

God’s Mercy Toward Israel

By Editor

Editorial

The infinite mercy and goodness of God were shown in a marked manner in his dealings with Israel of old. The prophet Isaiah says: “In all their affliction he was afflicted, and the angel of his presence saved them: in his love and in his pity he redeemed them; and he bare them, and carried them all the days of old. But they rebelled, and vexed his holy spirit.”

God’s Compassion for His Rebellious People

But even in their rebellion the Lord did not forsake them. “And the Lord God of their fathers sent to them by his messengers, rising up betimes, and sending; because he had compassion on his people, and on his dwelling-place.” It would seem that from a sense of gratitude his people would respond to these efforts; but the inspired word continues: “They mocked the messengers of God, and despised his words, and misused his prophets, until the wrath of the Lord arose against his people, till there was no remedy.”

The Lord Is the Same Merciful Saviour

The Lord to-day is the same merciful Saviour as of old. His heart yearns for his people. He will exhaust the resources of heaven in seeking their salvation, but he will not pass by their transgressions to-day any more than he has in the past. The lesson of all history exhorts us, “To-day if ye will hear his voice, harden not your hearts.” Let us heed the admonition.

A Delusive Hope

By C. M. S.

Closing Study on Principles of the National Reform Association Enunciated at the Recent Winona Lake Institute

Jesus Christ left us in his Word a plain statement as to the manner of his return and the nature of his kingdom. He said, “If I go . . . I will come again.” He went; therefore we believe he will come again. That Word declares he will come “in the clouds of heaven,” with “all the holy angels with him,” and that “every eye shall see him.” We must believe that if we are his and believe him. He is to come “in like manner as ye beheld him going into heaven.” Pressed by his followers to establish his kingship over nations, he replied, “My kingdom is not of this world.” In announcing the end of theocratic rule in the earth, God the Father declared that he himself would bestow upon his chosen One the rulership of this world. But this program, outlined by God himself, is entirely out of harmony with the program that is being so earnestly set forth by the National Reform organization. Said Dr. W. I. Wishart at this convention, on August 13, in emphasizing the importance of the success of that movement:—

Loyalty to Jesus Christ, the Prince of Peace, demands our favoring this movement. Nothing but the enthronement of Jesus Christ in national affairs will ever bring about the ultimate success of this great movement. Christ, the King of nations, is the only hope of true national success. Christ should be enthroned. He should be confessed by the nation as its King. This acknowledgment should be made in the nation’s confession of faith, the United States Constitution.

The principles thus set forth are very much like the principles held by many in the time of Jesus, regarding his kingdom. Such were emphatically rebuked by him when he declared that his kingdom was not of this world. To those who advocate the same thing now the same rebuke applies.

Says the Ruler of the universe, in speaking of Christ’s kingdom that was to be, “I will give it him.” Says the National Reform teacher, The Nations of the world must enthrone Christ as King. Thus we have the professed followers of Jesus declaring emphatically what he denies even more emphatically. Thus they are promulgating a system he repudiates.

A National Reform leader declares, “I do not believe that Jesus Christ will ever come to earth personally again.” This repudiation of the plain statements of the Bible in reference to Christ’s return has made necessary the invention of an entirely different program for the enthronement of Jesus Christ, a program which is entirely out of harmony with his purposes, contrary to his expressed declarations. And the adoption of this program, so out of harmony with Christ’s purposes, has made necessary another program, which is equally devoid of divine sanction. Said Dr. Wishart, in the same address:—

It [the confession of Christ as King of the nation] ought also to be made to furnish a legal basis for Christian teaching in all national life. Without such recognition we can have no fixed standard of morals.

To the true Christian the law of God is the standard of morals, and that was fixed by his own voice, and by the writing of his own hand on the tables of stone. The moral standard for the Christian came from that divine law, and not from the state. It is not rendering honor to our Lord Jesus Christ to claim that unless religion is established by human law, we have no fixed standard of morals.

Is it true, then, that the state is the author and finisher of our faith? Does the state establish moral principles? But if that be true, then the state is acting within its legitimate sphere when it sets itself up as the judge of morals, declares what is sin, and punishes for sin. But when it does that, it puts itself in the place of God, and merits the denunciation which he pronounces upon the power which does it. See 2 Thess. 2:2-8. God calls such an organization “the mystery of iniquity,” or “lawlessness;” and the leader in such a program he designates as “the man of sin,” “the son of perdition.”

It is a fearful denunciation; but an organization which would usurp the prerogatives of God is of necessity against God, and nothing that is against him can escape perdition. Any organization that attempts to make the stability of the great moral law of Jehovah dependent upon human legislation is attempting to unlaw the very law of God. As it is the very acme of lawlessness to destroy the law itself, this attack upon the dignity and perpetuity and sufficiency of the moral law of Jehovah can only properly be designated as the “mystery of lawlessness.” Primarily that term applies to that great system of religious tyranny which usurped the divine prerogatives and dominated the world during the Dark Ages; but it must apply also to every system that builds upon the same foundation, and works to the same end. That the National Reform Association does this is evidenced by these facts: It is working for the establishment of a hierarchy in America, which shall put the civil government under the dominance of the clergy and regulate religious practises by human law. This the Papacy did, and purposes to do again wherever and whenever she obtains the power. It proposes to make the stability and perpetuity of moral law dependent upon the sanction and support of human enactments, thus belittling the divine and glorifying the human. This the Papacy did, and still does.

The National Reform organization holds that the rule of the people must lead to “political despotism and religious intolerance,” and that “not the will of the majority of the people,” but the law of God as interpreted by the clergy, must be the supreme law of the land. The Papacy has held that position for hundreds of years, and still holds it.

Both these organizations, through their advocacy of laws that oppress conscience and take toll from conscientious Christians because of their religious convictions, do literally, as the revelator declares, make “merchandise” of the “souls of men.” Rev. 18:11-13. True, the National Reform leaders profess great antipathy toward the Pope of Rome; but they are, in truth, stepping

in his tracks. They berate the result of the Papacy’s work, but advocate the principles upon which the Papacy was working when it produced the results they deprecate. That two organizations can travel the same road at the same time toward the same goal and not eventually come together is not within the realm of probability; and the long experience and superior organization of the Papacy can leave no doubt as to which will dominate, when, as a result of the work of both, the nation shall have repudiated the principles of its founders, and submitted to the principle of church rule in civil things, and state dominance in religious affairs. That will be a sad day for America; for it will spell the ruin of popular and free government. It will be a sad day for the people; for it will mean that confused mingling of sacred and secular which spells Babylon, that premium on the performance of religious ceremonies which fosters hypocrisy, and that legal direction of individual consciences which always means bitter persecution.

When such things have been accomplished, such conditions brought about, it will then be the cry of that organization that Christ has come. He is not expected personally. His coming is to be the nations’ acknowledgment of his kingship. By that acknowledgment they crown him ruler of the world and usher in his reign. Vain and delusive hope! How unlike the program of the Almighty! Says the Word: “To you that are afflicted rest with us, at the revelation of the Lord Jesus from heaven with the angels of his power in flaming fire, rendering vengeance to them that know not God, and to them that obey not the gospel of our Lord Jesus: who shall suffer punishment, even eternal destruction from the face of the Lord and from the glory of his might, when he shall come to be glorified in his saints.” 2 Thess. 1:7-10. When he comes, the world will know it. The “voice of the archangel” and “the trump of God” will reverberate through the world, and every sentient creature in the world will know that beyond that day lies eternity; that the records of every soul are sealed forever. “The mighty man crieth there bitterly. That day is a day of wrath, a day of trouble and distress. . . . Neither their silver nor their gold shall be able to deliver them in the day of Jehovah’s wrath; but the whole land shall be devoured by the fire of his jealousy: for he will make an end, yea, a terrible end, of all them that dwell in the land.” Zeph. 1:14-18.

That is the day of the coming of the Lord Jesus. It will be a terrible and bitter disappointment to those who have arranged a program of their own for his coming and are not prepared for his program. Such will “say to the mountains and to the rocks, Fall on us, and hide us from the face of him that sitteth on the throne and from the wrath of the Lamb: for the great day of their wrath is come; and who is able to stand?” Rev. 6: 16, 17.

Any hope built on a program of human devising that contradicts the word of God is a delusive hope, and only the bitterest sorrow can come to the one who builds upon it or trusts in it. The great day of God is nigh, and the consequences of our choice are too important to warrant us in putting our trust in anything save the unerring word of God. In that is safety.

C. M. S.

Two Protestants of Hungary

By W. A. S.

IN Waldensian times many Protestants found refuge in Hungary. In the days of Luther whole villages in this land accepted the Reformation. Some went further than Luther himself; for one of the Reformer's letters (written about 1530) is to his Hungarian friend, Antonious Transylvanus, asking him “to use his influence with a preacher in Hermannstadt who had joined the Sabbatarians, and to try to bring him back.”

In those times one Matthew Devay was a close friend of Luther. Later he accepted Zwingli's views of the Lord's supper, and also wrote a book entitled “The Sleep of the Saints.” Many villages about the region of Caspar Dragfij accepted the faith through his preaching. The history says:—

Devay was accused before King John of being the cause of this commotion, and was thrown into prison in Ofen. It happened that in the same prison was a blacksmith, who, in the shoeing, had lamed the king's favorite horse, and the passionate John had sworn that he should die for it. The blacksmith heard Devay converse as never man spoke; the words were to him as the words of Paul to the jailer at Philippi, and the consequence was that when the blacksmith was shortly after to be set free, he declared he would share Devay's fate as a martyr, for he also partook of the same faith. The king, moved by this declaration, pardoned both, and set them free.—History of the Protestant Church in Hungary, by J. Craig.

Two hundred years later, in 1746, Romanists were still persecuting Protestants in Hungary. Matthew Bohil, a pastor, was in his home at Esperjes, when officers came in to arrest him. Moved by sudden impulse, he stepped into another room, and secreted on his person a short clothes-line. He was accused, not of heresy, but of treason, in order to secure the death sentence. He was entirely innocent, but his accusers made all manner of false charges, and his fate was sealed.

Two guards were placed over him, to watch day and night. He committed himself to God in prayer, and determined to attempt escape, whereupon a deep peace and joy filled his heart, as if in approving answer to his decision. Friends called that night, bringing an unusual supply of provisions, which he felt was in further confirmation of his purpose. The record says:—

In the presence of his guard he revealed to these friends in Latin his whole plan of escape. They took leave in tears, and Bohil laid himself quietly down to sleep. Two guards stood by him in the same room, and it was their duty to relieve each other alternately; but this night they seemed both inclined to sleep. Bohil prayed that their sleep might be as that of Saul and Abner when David passed unobserved through their camp.

It was midnight. Both guards were quite overcome with sleep. Bohil took his clothes and the line which he had brought with him from home, and, on reaching the door, he found the key still there. With little trouble he passed to the yard. The dogs, which were usually so fierce, were still to-night. Passing the monastery of the Minorites, he turned to the city wall. Making the cord fast, he pressed through a small aperture in the wall, and let himself down with so little caution that the flesh was torn from his hands by the small rope. The cord was too short, and being obliged to drop a considerable depth without its help, he received some wounds on the head. But he might now consider himself free. He praised God in the words of the one hundred twenty-fourth psalm:—

“Even as a bird Out of the fowler's snare Escapes away, So is our soul set free: Broke are their nets, And thus escaped we. Therefore our help Is in the Lord's great name, Who heaven and earth By his great power did frame.”

The second wall was easily passed. He wandered in the neighborhood for some days undiscovered. Though it was winter, he slept in the woods; often must he wade through the melted snow; yet at last he got safely away and reached Holland.—Id.

Later, his brave wife, though watched and threatened by the Jesuits, successfully made her way across the frontier with the children, and joined the husband.

W. A. S.

The Essential Teaching of the Second Advent Movement

By W. W. P.

It ought to be possible to give a good reason for the existence of every great movement. This is especially true in the religious world, where every such movement may result in adding to the many already existing denominations. It is therefore eminently fitting that we should here set forth some of the most important features of that system of teaching which constitutes the doctrinal basis of this second advent movement.

The fundamental idea which has served as the actuating impulse and the creative principle of this movement is loyalty to the plain teaching of the Word of God rather than to tradition or creed. United with this, there has been a recognition of the fact that in carrying out

his purpose to have human instrumentalities co-operating with the divine purpose, God gives special light upon the Scriptures to those who are willing to be used as instruments to proclaim the truth needed at any special time.

The example of King Josiah is an instructive one. The book of the law which had been too much neglected by some of the previous kings, was found “in the house of the Lord,” and was read in the royal presence. “Then the king sent and gathered together all the elders of Judah and Jerusalem. And the king went up into the house of the Lord, and all the men of Judah, and all the inhabitants of Jerusalem, and the priests, and the Levites, and all the people, great and small: and he read in their ears all the words of the book of the covenant that was found in the house of the Lord. And the king stood in his place, and made a covenant before the Lord, to walk after the Lord, and to keep his commandments, and his testimonies, and his statutes, with all his heart, and with all his soul, to perform the words of the covenant which are written in this book.” 2 Chron. 34: 29-31. The time had come for a great reform, and this was based upon divinely inspired instruction which was presented to the people.

In the same way, when the hour had struck for the manifestation of the Son of God in the flesh, “the word of God came unto John the son of Zacharias in the wilderness.” Charged with a divine message, this forerunner of our Lord proclaimed to rulers, priests, and people the truths which they needed to know in order to be prepared to recognize the Messenger of the covenant when he should appear. No new revelation was made to John the Baptist, but his mind was so enlightened concerning the messages already given through the prophets that he was able so to apply their teachings as to meet the needs of the hour. His words seemed like a fresh revelation to the people because the plain truths which he taught had either been neglected or wholly perverted by the religious leaders of that time. To old truths he gave a new setting, and the same spirit which furnished him with this message brought conviction upon the hearts of those who heard it.

When the great prophetic periods recorded in Scripture had either come to a close or were nearly fulfilled, the providence of God raised up a body of teachers, who, after much prayerful study, were able to present to the people instruction adapted to the time. They demonstrated the fulfilment of prophecy, they urged with great power “repentance toward God and faith toward our Lord Jesus Christ;” they sought “to make ready a people prepared for the Lord.” This was the beginning of this second advent movement.

Emphasizing the acceptance of the Word of God as a sufficient rule of faith and practise and the obligation of obedience to its plain instructions, the teachers in this movement have in a special way directed the attention of the people to the following truths:—

1. The literal second advent of Christ. This doctrine is based upon the fulfilment of time-prophecies, which, although they do not designate the exact time of the advent, do yet extend to the generation in which the great consummation will be realized. It also rests upon prophecies descriptive of the conditions in the political world and the religious world during the last years of earthly history, upon predictions of specific signs in the heavens, of social and economic conditions among the people, of general apostasy from Bible truth, and of that confidence in the established order of things which will lead many to say, “Where is the promise of his coming? for since the fathers fell asleep, all things continue as they were from the beginning of the creation.” The doctrine of the imminent coming of Christ must of necessity be an essential feature in the teaching of the second advent movement.

2. The priesthood of Christ in the heavenly sanctuary. The atoning work of Christ rests upon facts,—the incarnation of Christ, the death of Christ on the cross, the resurrection of Christ, the ascension of Christ, and the ministry of Christ in the heavenly temple. As the yearly round of service in the typical tabernacle closed with the great day of atonement, so the antitypical service in the heavenly sanctuary closes with the work of our great High Priest in the most holy place, and then the priestly garments are laid aside, the kingly robes are put on, and he who gave himself to save men from sin returns to this world to claim the fruits of his work. A clear understanding of the work of Christ as High Priest is therefore necessary, and this doctrine must have a prominent place in the genuine second advent movement.

3. Obedience as the fruit of righteousness. The apostolic teaching of justification by faith, so long hidden from men, but rediscovered and emphasized anew in the great Reformation of the sixteenth century, has been on the part of many perverted into a substitute for obedience. The truth should be stated clearly. We do not obtain justification by any works, but we retain justification by those works which are the fruit of the gift of righteousness. The justified man walks in the law of the Lord. The righteousness of Christ imparted through faith is revealed in the life in harmony with God’s law. This is the proof of genuine justification. The law is not made void by faith, but is rather written in the heart, and especially in the life.

4. The observance of the original Sabbath of the Lord. This is a necessary consequence of the doctrines already stated. The imminence of the second advent requires a people “righteous before God, walking in all the commandments and ordinances of the Lord blameless.” A study of the ministry of Christ, the great High Priest, reveals the law of God in the ark of the covenant, and shows that the fourth commandment remains unchanged. The prophecies concerning the man of sin show the attempt to change the law of God, and the papacy confesses that it has done this work. The prophecies concerning Sabbath reform find their fulfilment in the restoration of the true Sabbath in this second advent movement.

The application of the principle of loyalty to the plain teachings of the Scriptures has developed a complete system of harmonious Bible truth in which the four doctrines already mentioned occupy a leading place. It is an effort to return to primitive Christianity. It is a call to the simplicity of the gospel. In these days of apostasy from the fundamental doctrines of Christianity, there is surely abundant justification for such a movement. W. W. P.

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