Review and Herald, Vol. 78, No. 27. (7/2/1901)

Review and Herald

Jul 2, 1901

Seventh-day Adventist Publishing Association · Battle Creek, Mich. · Jul 2, 1901

WORKING IN CHRIST'S LINES.

By Ellen G. White

MRS. E. G. WHITE.

The very first lesson for the Christian to learn is that God has given to every man his work, even a part to act in His great plan for the uplifting of humanity. Each one has his appointed post of duty. Not one has been left out.

Christ has linked together the human and the divine. On this earth, in the garb of humanity, He lived the life He desires His children to live,—a life of unselfish service. He is our pattern. He says to us, “Learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart.”

Some work in the ministry, some in various trades; but all, whatever their work, may do service for God. He who gives himself unreservedly to the Saviour serves Him with a devotion which calls for the energies of the whole being. He realizes that Christ is his owner, and this knowledge makes Him kind, gentle, and courteous. His every act is an act of consecration. “Holiness to the Lord” is his motto. Christ is training him for the courts above.

In His wonderful prayer for His disciples the Saviour said, “Sanctify them through thy truth: thy word is truth.” The word of God is the great medium of sanctification. By studying and practicing this Word we receive power to glorify God. But the Word cannot strengthen those who do not receive it by faith. As we daily partake of food that we may be strong physically, so, if we would be strong spiritually, we must eat the Word, making it a part of ourselves.

“For their sakes I sanctify myself,” Christ continued, “that they also might be sanctified through the truth. Neither pray I for these alone, but for them also which shall believe on me through their word; that they all may be one; as thou, Father, art in me, and I in thee, that they also may be one in us: that the world may believe that thou hast sent me.” If those who claim to be the children of God would make determined efforts to answer this prayer, they would be one with Christ and with their brethren. Then Christianity would be a power in the world, convicting and converting sinners. Then men would be given unmistakable evidence of the power of the gospel.

God’s people should draw together in even cords; for in their unity lies their strength. They are weak when they love themselves more than Christ and their brethren. When they work unselfishly, each striving to help the other, and to build up the work in the great harvest field, they will lead men to believe that God has indeed sent His Son into the world.

“Come out from among them, and be ye separate, . . . and touch not the unclean thing; and I will receive you, and will be a Father unto you, and ye shall be my sons and daughters, saith the Lord Almighty.” This is the message we are to proclaim. False religions must be exposed, that the truth may triumph. In this work the contest is unceasing. Earnest and untiring efforts must be made if those who are fighting against God lay down their arms and acknowledge the truth as it is in Jesus.

Truth is to be presented in clear, straight lines, and those to whom the light has come are to help in this work. Obligations are mutual. If God has done such a great work in our behalf, should we not be willing to make sacrifices to help Him in the work?

God’s work has an eternal significance. Eternity is bound up with the ever-present now. Everywhere, every moment, let the worker for God link the seen with the unseen, that his faith may be complete.

The Lord says, Time is mine; the minutes, the hours, are my property; and those in my service should work faithfully and willingly, bringing love into all their service. As they labor to the best of their ability, I will labor with them. The world is dead in trespasses and sins. Prepare the way for the warning message to be proclaimed. Call for laborers. I will enable them to work for me with definite results.

Only those who are fully consecrated, who realize the sacredness of God’s work, can labor successfully for Him. Not all who claim to be Christ’s disciples are disciples indeed. The Saviour is grieved when men work against His plans. His work calls for entire consecration. He can co-operate with those only who have a right understanding of the work He wishes to accomplish, and who submit willingly to His control.

The way for Christ’s coming is to be prepared. In this sacred work no worldly schemes or practices are to be adopted. Those who work for the Lord should labor diligently and self-sacrificingly. Christ gave himself for us, and He calls for workers who will share in His self-denial. Let us remember that we are working for the Master above, not for ourselves, and that we can make the way easy for Him to accomplish His work in the world. He foresees all the possibilities before those who work unselfishly. He, the divine Worker, calls His followers together, and makes a covenant with them, promising that they shall be abundantly blessed if they work as He worked to make His cause a success in the world.

We know not when the Master will come to settle the accounts of His servants. Let us be always prepared to meet Him in peace. The probation of any one of us may cease in a moment. Death by accident may suddenly and unexpectedly close our earthly history. How stands our life-record to-day?

THE CHURCH.

By John Norton Loughborough

State Conferences.

ELDER J. N. LOUGHBOROUGH.

“If a man think himself to be something, when he is nothing, he deceiveth himself. But let every man prove his own work, and then shall he have rejoicing in himself alone, and not in another. For every man shall bear his own burden.” Gal. 6: 3-5.

In “Testimony for the Church,” No. 31, page 243, is the following comment on this text: “The apostle adds a caution to the independent and self-confident: . . . He who considers himself superior in judgment and experience to his brethren, and despises their counsel and admonition, evinces that he is in a dangerous delusion.”

From the earliest period of what we denominate the Third Angel’s Message, the Testimonies have presented to this people the importance of unity in the work, and the counseling of the laborers together in order that this unity might be secured, as the following quotation from “Experience and Views” (1851) will show: “I saw that the shepherds should consult those in

whom they have reason to have confidence, those who have been in all the messages, and are firm in all the present truth, before they advocate new points of importance, which they may think the Bible sustains. Then the shepherds will be perfectly united, and the union of the shepherds will be felt by the Church.”—Page 52.

In 1855 the following Testimony was given: “There is too much of an independence of spirit indulged in among the messengers. This must be laid aside, and there must be a drawing together of the servants of God. There has been too much of a spirit to ask, ‘Am I my brother’s keeper?’ Said the angel, ‘Yea, thou art thy brother’s keeper. Thou shouldst have a watchful care for thy brother, be interested for his welfare, and cherish a kind, loving spirit toward him. Press together, press together.’”—“Testimonies for the Church,” Vol. I, pages 113, 114.

Again: “Much evil will be avoided if the ministers of Christ will be of one mind, united in their plans of action, and united in effort.”—Id., pages 212, 213.

The following was published in 1858: “God is leading out a people, not a few separate individuals here and there, one believing this thing, another that. Angels of God are doing the work committed to their trust. The third angel is leading out and purifying a people, and they should move with him unitedly. Some run ahead of the angels that are leading this people; but they have to retrace every step, and meekly follow no faster than the angels lead. . . . But some restless spirits do not more than half do up their work. As the angel leads them, they get in haste for something new, and rush on without divine guidance, and thus bring confusion and discord into the ranks. They do not speak nor act in harmony with the body.”—Id., page 207.

In 1860 the following was published: “As we near the close of time, Satan comes down with great power, knowing that his time is short. Especially will his power be exercised upon the remnant. He will war against them, and seek to divide and scatter them, that they may grow weak and be overthrown. The people of God should move understandingly, and should be united in their efforts. They should be of the same mind, of the same judgment; then their efforts will not be scattered, but will tell forcibly in the upbuilding of the cause of present truth. Order must be observed, and there must be union in maintaining order, or Satan will take the advantage.”—Id., page 210.

The force of these quotations will be more clearly seen when the reader gets before his mind a view of the situation. Until the year 1861 there was no organized Conference of Seventh-day Adventists. The Testimonies, all along, had been speaking of “plans, counseling together” to secure unity in the work, and to save confusion. There was no system by which the labor of a minister could be regulated, or laborers be appointed for a specified field. Sometimes three ministers would be with one small company at a time, neither knowing that the others were to be there; and that in a place where there was no special need of even one minister. The labors of a minister were often scattered from place to place with no concentrated effort. Thus it was becoming more and more evident to our people that something was wanting to remedy this growing difficulty.

In the REVIEW of July 21, 1859, is an article from Elder James White, in which was first suggested the plan that each State hold a yearly meeting, in which the brethren could plan for the work in their respective States, that in place of the confusion which too frequently existed, order might be observed.

Nothing is said in this article concerning delegates, but it was supposed the meeting would be composed of all our people who might come together. It was in a meeting of this character, held in Battle Creek, Mich., in the fall of 1860, that the matter of legal organization was decided upon.

As a result of this suggestion of Elder White’s, compared with instruction given in the Testimonies, the different States where the message was established, beginning with 1860, held, in their respective fields, their yearly meetings for counsel, and to plan for the work of their ministers. The adoption of this mode of procedure we will denominate point number four in church order.

The practical utility of such councils, meeting together prayerfully to plan for the work, and the comparing of ideas and methods, must commend itself to all. Clearer and clearer have been the Testimonies borne to us respecting the harmony that should exist among the laborers, as shown in the following quotations:—

“As the Lord’s workmen, you are to open your plans to one another. These plans must be carefully and prayerfully considered, because those who do not this the Lord will leave to stumble in their own supposed wisdom and superior greatness.”—“Unpublished Testimony,” 1898.

“Many want to do things after their own style; they object to consultation, and are impatient under leadership. Well-matured plans are needful in the service of God. Common sense is an excellent thing in the worship of the Lord. The thinking powers should be consecrated to Christ, and ways and means should be devised to serve Him best.”—“Testimonies for the Church,” Vol. IV, page 71.

“The peril which threatens our usefulness, and which will prove our ruin if not seen and overcome, is selfishness,—placing a higher estimate upon our plans, our opinions, and our labors, and moving independently of our brethren. ‘Counsel together’ have been the words repeated by the angels again and again.

“Satan may move through one man’s mind to warp things out of their proper channel; he may succeed with two who view things in a similar light; but with several minds enlisted, there is greater safety against his wiles. Every plan will be more liable to be viewed from all sides, every advance will be more carefully studied, so that no enterprise will be so likely to be entered upon which will bring confusion and perplexity, and defeat the work in which we are engaged. In union there is strength; in division there is weakness and defeat.”—“Special Testimony,” No. 5, page 3.

“It is your duty to counsel with your brethren. This may touch your pride, but the humility of a mind taught by the Holy Spirit will listen to counsel, and will banish all self-confidence. When counsel is given that conflicts with your personal wishes, you are not to think that your own wisdom is sufficient for you to give counsel to others, or that you can afford to neglect the counsel given. . . .”

“Let your plans be closely investigated; and with earnest prayer commit your case to Him who knoweth all things. Counsel together. Let not the whisperings of your own mind, or of other minds, close the door of your heart against the counsel of the Lord’s servants.”—Id., No. 7, pages 48, 49.

“Companies should be gathered together to call upon God for special help, for heavenly wisdom, that the people of God may know how to plan and devise and execute the work.”—Id., No. 2, page 19.

“Committees of councils, as far as possible, should let the people understand their plans, that the judgment of the Church may sustain their efforts. Many of the church-members are prudent, and have many other excellent qualities of mind. It is proper that their wisdom should be exercised, that others may become aroused in reference to the great question to be considered. Many may be awakened to the fact that they should have deeper insight into the work of God.”—Id., No. 3, pages 49, 50.

“As a people we should study God’s plan for conducting His work. Wherever He has given directions in regard to any point, we should carefully consider how He regards His expressed will. This work should have special attention.”—Id., No. 8, pages 28, 29.

“Never allow any one’s ideas to unsettle your faith in regard to the order and harmony which should exist in the Church. Many of you do not see all things clearly. . . . The God of heaven is a God of order, and He requires all His followers to have rules and regulations, and to preserve order.”—“Testimony for the Church,” No. 32, page 30. “There is order in heaven; and there should be system and order upon the earth, that the work may move forward without confusion and fanaticism. Our brethren have been working to this end; but while some of our ministers continually bear the burden of souls, and ever seek to bring the people up in spiritual attainments, those who are not so conscientious, and who have not carried the cross of Christ nor felt the value of souls as reflected from Calvary, will, in teaching and educating others in the mechanical working, become formal and powerless themselves, and bring no Saviour to the people.”—“Testimonies for the Church,” Vol. IV, pages 601, 602.

While these Testimonies teach the necessity of order and organisation in the advancement of the cause, they as distinctly show that these forms, separated from a body of living members of Christ, avail nothing.

PROSPECTIVE

SOMETIMES I catch a glimpse of all God's plans, I see the earth as it comes forth A glorious thing, out from His hands, As fair as in Edenic days, The curse all gone. All sin, all suffering, and all of death Are gone, thank God, forever gone; No more of wrong can blast this fair new earth, Temptations are not here, instead We have a crown.

And then methinks we'll see how all God's plans For us while here were just and good, That though sometimes the clouds hung dark, His hands Were stretched toward us in tenderest love, Knowing the while That sunshine was not good for us alway, It took the cloud which shaded us Awhile, so that we might long for the day In which the clouds might break apart And show His face.

What loud hosannas will go up to God When we put off mortality, And greet our own who lie beneath the sod, And know that nevermore for us Will be the grave.

And when we see Him face to face, we'll praise Him who so wisely led us on, And all the ages through we still will raise A song to Him who was but fitting us For all this joy.

— Selected.

THE CHARACTER OF THE REMNANT.

By George F. Brown

GEORGE F. BROWN.

Oak River, Manitoba.

“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.” Gal. 2:20.

Let us read a few scriptures and see what the character of the Lord’s people will have to be as the plan of God is being finished: “Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be: but we know that, when He shall appear, we shall be like Him; for we shall see Him as He is. And every man that hath this hope in him purifieth himself, even as He is pure.” 1 John 3:2, 3.

Shall we be like Him when He appears? How many are purifying themselves as pure as He is, in order to be like Him? Another text reads: “In their mouth was found no guile: for they are without fault before the throne of God.” Rev. 14:5. Still another text says, “Without holiness no man shall see the Lord.” Heb. 12:14. So if we are without fault, pure and holy, like Christ, we shall see Him. If we do not reach that standard, then what?—We shall not see Him in peace.

Some will say: “Why, that is living without sin, which is presumptuous; no man can live without sin.” Of course the man cannot do it. Read again the text at the beginning of this article: “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.” If Christ is in us, living His righteous life in us, is it we that should glory? Read Rom. 3:22: “Even the righteousness of God which is by faith of Jesus Christ unto all and upon all them that believe.” It is the righteousness of Christ and not our own, “where is boasting then? It is excluded.” Verse 27.

The character of the last, or seventh, Church is shown in Rev. 3:14-21: they are lukewarm—in such a condition that the Lord will spew them out of His mouth; they have not reached that high standard that is required of them, although they think they have. Verse 17 says, “I am rich, and increased with goods, and have need of nothing.” They are blind, cannot see their imperfections. That is the state of the Church now, according to the Word. Is there not danger of our continuing in that condition till probation is closed? Let us be in earnest, then, and seek the Lord for a revelation of our true condition, that Christ may live His perfect life in us before it is too late.

“Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be: but we know that, when He shall appear, we shall be like Him; for we shall see Him as He is. And every man that hath this hope in him purifieth himself, even as He is pure.” “Whosoever abideth in Him sinneth not: whosoever sinneth hath not seen Him, neither known Him.” “Little children, let no man deceive you: he that doeth righteousness is righteous, even as He is righteous. He that committeth sin is of the devil; for the devil sinneth from the beginning. . . . Whosoever is born of God doth not commit sin, for His seed remaineth in him: and he cannot sin, because he is born of God.” In verses 2 and 3 we see that those who hope to see Him when He comes will have to be “pure, even as He is pure.”

A little further on in this same chapter, one great sin that is hindering us is brought to view: “In this the children of God are manifest, and the children of the devil: whosoever doeth not righteousness is not of God, neither he that loveth not his brother. For this is the message that we heard from the beginning, that we should love one another.” Has every grudge and every particle of envy been removed from our hearts?—If not, we are still the servants of sin. Can we know when the Christ-life has entered us?—Yes. Verse 14 says: “We know that we have passed from death unto life, because we love the brethren. He that loveth not his brother abideth in death.” What is it that hinders the Spirit of God? Is it not the lack of love for one another? As the roll is now being called, let us not resist the Holy Spirit when it convinces of sin; for if we throw the door of our hearts wide open, God’s Holy Spirit will bring to our view every sin in its hideousness, that we may put it away.

“Grudge not one against another, brethren, lest ye be condemned: behold, the Judge standeth before the door.” James 5:9. We are in danger of being condemned in the great court above, if we hold any grudge against one another. “The Lord will not look upon sin with the least degree of allowance.” “We are living right on the borders of the eternal world.” “We have, as it were, but a moment of time in which to work.” Examine yourself in the light of God’s word. Does your heart lack love for others? Do you hold any grudges? “Behold, the Judge standeth before the door.”

The Lord is soon coming, we have only a short time in which to improve our talents. It is not the present life which is at stake, but eternal life. It will require constant watchfulness and prayer on our part, not forgetting the love of God and the great atonement, even for a moment. “Watch and pray, that ye enter not into temptation.” “And if the righteous scarcely be saved, where shall the ungodly and the sinner appear?” 1 Peter 4:18. Let us all have the “grace of humility;” and, dear brethren, if we find the Lord using us in bringing souls to Him, let us not allow self-exaltation to enter our hearts, knowing that it is not we but Christ working in us “to will and to do of His good pleasure.”

If we have any doubt about such scriptures as 1 John 2:6; 3:6-9; Col. 1:22, 28; Eph. 1:4; 5:27, we doubt the power of God to keep us from falling. He is “able to keep you from falling, and to present you faultless before the presence of His glory with exceeding joy.”

THE SUPPORT OF GOSPEL MINISTERS ACCORDING TO GOD’S PLAN.

By D. T. Bourdeau

ELDER D. T. BOURDEAU.

(Continued)

TITHES AND OFFERINGS.

Tithes and offerings were used in supporting the ministry before Christ, and God designs that they shall be used for the same purpose under this dispensation. Paul, speaking on the maintenance of gospel ministers, says, “Do ye not know that they which minister about holy things live of the things of the temple? and they which wait at the altar are partakers with the altar? EVEN SO hath the Lord ordained that they which preach the gospel should live of the gospel.” 1 Cor. 9:13, 14.

“The things of the temple” here spoken of, and of which those ministering about holy things used to live, must embrace the tithes. These were to be brought to the temple. Deut. 12:5, 6, 10, 11; Neh. 13:10–14, etc. At the altar various offerings were made, of which those that waited at the altar were partakers. The words “even so” mean “in like manner.” As ministers under former dispensations depended on tithes and offerings for their support, so ministers under this dispensation are to depend on tithes and offerings for their support. It is thus that those who preach the gospel are to live of the gospel. Not that bloody beasts are to be offered on Christian altars in Christian temples; but as Christian ministers wait at altars in Christian temples, and set forth the Lord of glory, the bleeding Lamb of God, as crucified before the eyes of their hearers, they are to expect from those for whom they labor tithes and contributions as a mark of appreciation of the great sacrifice that was made to save them, and as heavenly appointed means of supporting messengers of the cross and of advancing the work of salvation in the earth.

Therefore it is a fact that there is not in Holy Writ the least intimation that the tithing system was done away by a change of dispensations. There is not a valid reason for the abrogation of this system; on the contrary, there are many good reasons for believing that divine wisdom did not limit it to the Jewish dispensation:—

1. As already seen, Paul, the apostle to the Gentiles, taught that it exists and should be utilized under this dispensation.

2. Christ, as mediator and great divine teacher of the new covenant, sanctioned it. Proof: “Ye pay tithe of mint and anise and cummin, and have omitted the weightier matters of the law, judgment, mercy, and faith: these ought ye to have done, and not to leave the other undone.” Matt. 23:23.

3. The Bible nowhere intimates that it was abolished; therefore it still exists. That being the case, it is a divine truth to-day that the tithe is the Lord’s, and should be given unto Him for the support of His ministers; and such words as the following are as applicable now as when traced by the pen of Inspiration: “And all the tithe of the land, whether of the seed of the land, or of the fruit of the tree, is the Lord’s: it is holy unto the Lord.” Lev. 27:30.

4. The tithe being the Lord’s, and the tithing system resting on God’s right and claim of ownership, knowingly to deprive Him of it must necessarily be a trespass against God, of the same character as was that of our first parents in taking and partaking of the fruit that the Creator had reserved to draw out their love and gratitude toward their Maker. And how does it compare with using the seventh day for secular purposes? Are not both “holy unto the Lord”? Lev. 27:30; Ex. 16:23, 25; 20:8–11.

5. The tithing system was known and recognized by Jacob before the Jewish nation existed. The words “Jewish” and “Jew” come from “Judah;” but Jacob had a knowledge of the tithing system, and promised the Lord to pay tithe unto Him when on his way to Padan-Aram; and before having a child, he awoke from the wonderful dream of the ladder, whose base stood on the earth, and whose top reached to heaven. “And this stone, which I have set for a pillar, shall be God’s house: and of all that thou shalt give me I will surely give the tenth unto thee.” Gen. 28:22.

6. Abraham, Jacob’s grandfather, upon his return from a successful campaign against the four kings who had taken Lot and his family captives, gave his tithes to Melchisedec, a true representative of Christ, of whom Inspiration says that He is a priest “after the order of Melchisedec.” Heb. 7:11, 17. On that occasion Melchisedec blessed Abraham, and said: “Blessed be Abram of the most high God, possessor of heaven and earth: and blessed be the most high God, which hath delivered thine enemies into thy hand. And he gave him tithes of all.” Gen. 14:19, 20. Is there not here more than a hint that Christ has a claim on our tithes for the maintenance of His ministers and the furtherance of the work of salvation?

7. Under the former dispensation the tithes were given to the Levites and priests, because they served in spiritual things, teaching the people the way of salvation. Num. 18:24, etc. In the sixty-sixth chapter of Isaiah we are brought down to the time when the Lord is about to appear to the joy of His people, and when those who hate the people of God “shall be ashamed;” when the Lord is about to “come with fire, and with His chariots like a whirlwind,

to render His anger with fury, and His rebuke with flames of fire. For by fire and by His sword will the Lord plead with all flesh: and the slain of the Lord shall be many.” Verses 5, 15, 16. Surely this brings us to our time, and all must admit that this prophecy relates to events that are to take place under the present dispensation. According to this prophecy, “a sign” was to be set among the nations. Verse 19. By comparing this prophetic statement with Luke 2:34, it will be seen that this sign is Christ. Then the Lord was to send men “unto the nations to Tarshish, Pul, and Lud, to them that draw the bow [which means war], to Tubal, and Javan, to the isles afar off [and the Lord adds:], that have not heard my fame, neither have seen my glory; and they shall declare my glory among the Gentiles.” Surely, gospel work among the Gentiles is here intended. And of these very Gentiles the Lord says, “And I will also take of them for priests and for Levites, saith the Lord.” Isa. 66:21. Are not the temporal wants of these as great as were those of the priests and Levites under the former dispensation? Are they not justly entitled to the tithes?

8. To regard the tithing system is to regard the golden rule, to do unto others as we would that others should do unto us. Matt. 7:12. Not less than the tithes is required to sustain the messengers of the cross. Should we, if placed in their situation, like to come short of an income needful to sustain us while doing the work that God has assigned us? Let us do unto others what we should like to have them do unto us.

9. True to the sacredness and significance of the number ten, the tithing system is a tribute of respect to the divine law of Ten Commandments. It is based on the precepts of supreme love to God and equal love to our fellow beings, and has, in connection with, and through the aid and sanction of, other agencies and other means of grace, for ultimate object the salvation of men from their sins, or transgressions of the divine law (1 John 3:4), and the bringing of them into a state of holiness, or conformity to God’s law. Ex. 19:5, 6. And the tithes being the Lord’s, is it not a breach of the law of God, even of its precept, “Thou shalt not steal,” to deprive the Lord of them, and apply them as we do that which is our own?

10. The Lord thus speaks on the subject of tithes and offerings, for our benefit as well as for that of the Jewish nation in the days of the prophet Malachi, and thence forward till near the first advent of the Messiah: “For I am the Lord, I change not; therefore ye sons of Jacob are not consumed. Even from the days of your fathers ye are gone away from mine ordinances, and have not kept them. Return unto me, and I will return unto you, saith the Lord of hosts. . . . But ye say, Wherein have we robbed thee? In tithes and offerings. Ye are cursed with a curse: for ye have robbed me, even this whole nation. Bring ye all the tithes into the storehouse, that there may be meat in mine house, and prove me now herewith, saith the Lord of hosts, if I will not open you the windows of heaven, and pour you out a blessing, that there shall not be room enough to receive it. And I will rebuke the devourer for your sakes, and he shall not destroy the fruits of your ground; neither shall your vine cast her fruit before the time in the field, saith the Lord of hosts. And all nations shall call you blessed.” Mal. 3:6–12.

This interesting portion of Scripture is found in a prophecy, several traits of which have a twofold application. This is also true of prophecies concerning Babylon, Idumea, Jerusalem, etc. See Isaiah 34; Matthew 24, etc. The passage under consideration may truthfully be said to have a double application, from the fact that as the Hebrew nation had for a long time neglected to pay tithes and offerings, even so most Christians have for a considerable lapse of time done the same thing. And as the paying of tithes and offerings is now a duty, there is as urgent need for the generality of Christians to reform on this point as there ever was with the Jewish people.

Nor does the fact that the “sons of Jacob” are here addressed invalidate this position. Why may we not, if we exercise the faith that Jacob and Abraham exercised, be as justly entitled to the appellation of “sons of Jacob” as to that of children of Abraham, or that of “Abraham’s seed”? Gal. 3:7, 24, 26, 29. On this principle the Lord himself applies the expression “Jacob thy father” to those who engage in the final Sabbath reform just before the second coming of Christ (see Isa. 58:12–14; 56:1–7; 25:8, 9), and the expression “the time of Jacob’s trouble” to the time of trouble that all the saints shall pass through in the great day of the Lord, which is indeed very near, and in which God’s people shall be saved. Jer. 30:7; Dan. 12:1, etc.

Through such expressions in ancient prophecies, God often speaks to His people in the last days, addressing them under titles primarily applied to His ancient people, thus making His ancient Church typical of the remnant of the Christian Church, and, as it were, the telephonic mouthpiece by which He speaks to that remnant near the very close of probationary time. And the connection of the passage before us shows that it is especially to Christians in our day that God is speaking on the subject of tithes and offerings. The passage in question is preceded by these words: “Behold, I will send my messenger, and he shall prepare the way before me: and the Lord, whom ye seek, shall suddenly come to His temple, even the messenger of the covenant, whom ye delight in: behold, He shall come, saith the Lord of hosts. But who may abide the day of His coming? and who shall stand when He appeareth? for He is like a refiner’s fire, and like fullers’ soap: and He shall sit as a refiner and purifier of silver: and He shall purify the sons of Levi, and purge them as gold and silver, that they may offer unto the Lord an offering in righteousness. Then shall the offering of Judah and Jerusalem [terms not infrequently meaning the Christian Church in the last days, as in Isa. 2:1, etc.] be pleasant unto the Lord, as in the days of old, and as in former years.” Mal. 3:1–4. Then the Lord threatens to come near “to judgment” to those whom He addresses, to be a “swift witness against the sorcerers, and against the adulterers, and against false swearers, and against those that oppress the hireling in his wages, the widow, and the fatherless, and that turn aside the stranger from his right, and fear not me, saith the Lord of hosts.” Verse 5. Alas! that very much of this evil work is done by not a few in our day!

Even to admit that the text under consideration contemplates and embraces the coming and work of John the Baptist, the forerunner of Christ; the coming of Messiah to His temple at Jerusalem; and the work of moral cleansing connected with it, etc., would not militate against the position that the duty of paying tithes and offerings was to be perpetuated beyond the first advent. Why preface what God here says on tithes and offerings with the first advent and a work and events connected with it, if the tithing system and the duty of paying offerings, or making donations to the Lord, were to cease at the first advent?

But this Scriptural prophetic preface, or introduction, has a broader application. In many respects the first and second advents are parallel events. Both these events were to be preceded by a preparatory work: the first by that of John the Baptist, answering to that of Elijah; the second by that of persons properly represented by Elijah and John the Baptist. Again, as the sudden coming of Christ to His temple at Jerusalem was to be followed by a spiritual cleansing of those who would accept and improve upon His ministration, so His sudden coming to the most holy place of the heavenly sanctuary—the temple of God in heaven (Rev. 11:19)—at the termination of the two thousand three hundred days in 1844, was to be followed by a spiritual cleansing of those who would accept and improve upon His closing ministration as great High Priest, shortly before His return to our earth.

(To be continued.)

OPPRESSION

By L. D. Santee

ELDER L. D. SANTEE,

“Go to now, ye rich men, weep and howl for your miseries that shall come upon you. . . . Ye have heaped treasure together for the last days. Behold, the hire of the laborers, . . . which is of you kept back by fraud, crieth: and the cries of them which have reaped are entered into the ears of the Lord of sabaoth.” James 5: 1-4.

By the pen that was prophet-guided Was the ominous truth foretold, That the rich, from the poor divided, Would be drunk with their greed of gold, And forgetting the claims of neighbor, Would be covetous, proud, and cold, Would urge on the poor to labor, But the laborer’s hire withhold.

The pen that was prophet-guided Tells of the poor and their cry, But a shelter has God provided; For the coming of Christ draws nigh. They present their plaint to the Highest, They trust in Him more and more, It is then that their Lord is nighest, And “the Judge stands at the door.”

The rich may revel in pleasure, But “the hand on the wall” is there, And fearful will be their measure When Oppression begets Despair. Though the high of earth have been lauded, They will see a fiery path When the toiler, so long defrauded, Shall arise in his desperate wrath.

There are judgments surely coming That shall thrill through the hearts of men When the high of earth, and the haughty, Shall “call for the rocks” in vain. Mid the earthquake and the thunder Will the vials of wrath be poured, And the fetters shall fall asunder At the coming of the Lord.

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