Signs of the Times, Vol. 22, No. 48. (12/3/1896)

Signs of the Times

Dec 3, 1896

Pacific Press Publishing Company · Oakland, California · Dec 3, 1896

Fruit-Bearing.

The purpose of the husbandman in planting grape-vines or almond, apple, or any other fruit trees, is that they may bear fruit. Fruit-bearing in good quality and quantity is the glory of his vineyard and orchard. The kind of tree determines the kind of fruit. The care and devotion of the husbandman affects its quality. And life in the vine or tree is absolutely necessary that there may be fruit at all.

In Human Character.

All the above is true as respects the disciples of Christ. Jesus says: "I am the True Vine, and my Father is the Husbandman;" "ye are the branches." (John 15:1, 5.) In verse 8 he declares: "Herein is my Father glorified, that ye bear much fruit; so shall ye be my disciples." By this we learn that fruit-bearing is the means by which God is glorified by us or in us. It is by fruit-bearing, and by that alone, that we may glorify him on the earth. Furthermore, it is only thus that we may be his disciples. He who bears no fruit to God's glory is not a disciple, a learner of Jesus Christ; for He could say to the Father: "I have glorified thee on the earth, I have finished the work which thou gavest me to do." (John 17:4.) Jesus was the great Fruit-bearer; the One above all others in whom God was glorified.

How Did He Bear Fruit?

It is an all-important question. For as he was the great and perfect Fruit-bearer, and perfectly glorified the Father; and as we are Christ's disciples only as we bear fruit and, like him, glorify the Father, or shew forth to the world, by the fruit we bear, what the glory of the Father is, it is important that we shall know by what means or power Christ bore fruit; for by that same means we may bear fruit. Well, in the first place, it was not the fruit of the self of Jesus, howsoever righteous that may have been. Christ's fruit-bearing did not reveal himself or his glory, but the Father and the Father's glory. He was the Medium through which the white light from the Great Central Sun could shine upon our world unperverted, unadulterated, undimmed, without aberration. Therefore he said: "Believest thou not that I am in the Father, and the Father in me? the words that I speak unto you I speak not of myself; but the Father that dwelleth in me, he doeth the works." (John 14:10.) The means, therefore, by which Jesus Christ bore fruit, the life by which the fruit was produced, the works which he did, was the presence of God in him. And God is present in his followers by his Holy Spirit. So in the prediction concerning Christ it is said:—

"Behold My Servant, whom I uphold; Mine Elect, in whom My soul delighteth; I have put My Spirit upon Him." Isa. 42:1.

"The Spirit of the Lord God is upon Me; because the Lord hath appointed Me to preach good tidings unto the meek; He hath sent Me to bind up the broken-hearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives," etc. (See Isa. 61:1-3.)

When Christ came, these predictions were thus fulfilled:—

"And Jesus, when he was baptized, went up straightway out of the water; and, lo, the heavens were opened unto him, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove, and lighting upon him. And lo a voice from heaven, saying, This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased." Matt. 3:16, 17.

Jesus himself witnessed to the fulfilment of Isa. 61:1, 2 in himself when in the synagogue at Nazareth. (See Luke 4:16-21.) Again we read in Acts 10:38:—

"How God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Ghost and with power; who went about doing good, and healing all that were oppressed with the devil; for God was with him."

That Spirit was not given to Christ "by measure" (John 3:34), but in its fullness, so much so that it was his Spirit. And he implies that it was "by the Spirit of God" that he "cast out devils." (Matt. 12:28.) In fact, his works were all wrought, his life-fruit borne, by the Spirit of God which was in him.

How Obtained.

How did Jesus obtain this Spirit? This also is an all-important question; for as we are not his disciples unless we bear fruit, and as we can not bear fruit without his Spirit, and as we must obtain the Spirit in the same way as did our great "Elder Brother" and Exemplar, how important it is that we know how that Spirit is obtained! But upon this the word of God is very explicit. (1) He emptied himself and the Father filled him with his Spirit:—

"Have this mind in you which was also in Christ Jesus; who being originally in the form of God, counted it not a thing to be grasped to be on an equality with God, but emptied himself, taking the form of a bond-servant, becoming in the likeness of men; and being found in fashion as a man he humbled himself, becoming obedient even unto death, yea, the death of the cross. Wherefore God highly exalted him." Phil. 2:5-9. R. V., margin.

"For it pleased the Father that in him should all fullness dwell." Col. 1:19.

"For in him dwelleth all the fullness of the Godhead bodily." Col. 2:9.

How many times we read in the words of Jesus: "I came down from heaven, not to do mine own will, but the will of Him that sent me." "My meat is to do the will of him that sent me, and to finish his work." (John 6:38; 4:34.) Jesus therefore "emptied himself," renounced all that would have pleased self, gave up all glory and honor for the sake of the Father; and into that vacancy of heart the Father poured of his infinite fullness. The Son humbled himself to the very lowest. God exalted him to the very highest. Jesus gave up all spirit of ambition and self-seeking; the Father gave him his own Spirit without measure. "If any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of his." (Rom. 8:9.) But all may have that Spirit if they will yield up all of self for Christ's sake as Christ yielded up all for our sake.

2. Again, to possess the Spirit of God means such an appreciation of the blessed boon as will lead us to seek for it earnestly. It was when Jesus was praying that the Spirit of God rested upon him and the Father's approval came. (See Luke 3:21, 22.) So Jesus tells us:—

"Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you. For every one that asketh receiveth; and he that seeketh findeth; and to him that knocketh it shall be opened. If a son shall ask bread of any of you that is a father, will he give him a stone? or if he ask a fish will he offer him a scorpion? If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children; how much more shall your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to them that ask him?" Luke 11:9-13.

"Ask, and receive, that your joy may be full." John 16:24.

3. And yet again, the Spirit comes by feeding upon God's word. "It is the Spirit that quickeneth; the flesh profiteth nothing; the words that I speak unto you, they are Spirit and they are life." (John 6:63.) God's word is breathed, or inspired, by his Spirit. It is saturated or filled by his Spirit. And he who feeds upon that word, who esteems it more than his daily food, will find in it the Spirit of God in abundant measure. By emptying of self, by earnest seeking of God, by feeding upon God's word, we may obtain his Spirit in its fullness according to our capacity.

What the Possession of the Spirit Means.

The reception of that Spirit into our hearts means power. By that Spirit God created the heavens and earth, brought cosmos out of chaos, and light out of darkness; garnished the heavens, and beautified the earth. (Gen. 1:2; Job 26:13.) By the same Spirit God renews life upon the desolated earth. (Ps. 104:30.) By that same Spirit God regenerates man, cleanses and sanctifies the sinner, upholds and keeps him, instructs him in the way, and raises those from the dead who fall asleep. (1 Cor. 6:11; 2 Thess. 2:13; 1 Peter 1:2; Ps. 51:11, 12; Neh. 9:20; Rom. 8:11.) It brings into our mortal frame the life of God, not in sentiment, or in feeling, or in hope; but in actuality, and in power. All men have life; and that life—all life—comes from God; but in the sinner and in all nature under the sinner that life is perverted by sin, and its possessor eventually dies. He possesses only a perverted life of God, perverted by the transgression of God's law, "the law of sin." But he who opens and empties his heart for the Spirit of God to come in, who yields all to God, receives the Spirit, or life, of God according to God's law; there is in it all the power of God's "endless life." Its effect is freedom; "for the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath made me free from the law of sin and death." (Rom. 8:2.) It sets free from sin and its power. "The strength of sin is the law," the perverted law which ends in death; but the strength of righteousness is the eternal power of the Spirit of life working in harmony with the unperverted law, as manifest in Christ Jesus, and through him to all who believe. It means that new life shall actuate the mind, the intellect, the aims, the ambitions, the purposes, even the life of God's love; for the love of God is shed abroad in the heart by the Holy Spirit. (Rom. 5:5.) It means that the members of the fleshly man which before were yielded to sinful appetites, lusts, and passions, shall, under the new life, be not only held in check, but controlled and used to God's glory. (Rom. 6:19-22.) It means—the reception of God's Spirit does—separation from sin and the world, and separation unto God. It means new life, new love, new purposes. It means, in short, a fruit-bearing life to God's glory. O reader, whoever you are, professor of religion or the lowest sinner, seek for the Spirit of God. Do not be deceived. Apart from that you are nothing. The Spirit is the life which connects you with the True Vine, which unites you to Christ. "If any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of his;" but if any have the Spirit of Christ he possesses that which brings all the fullness of heaven in its train; and makes the possessor a fruit-bearer to God's glory.

Christ’s Soon Return

"Behold, I come quickly; and My reward is with Me, to give every man according as his work shall be." Rev. 22:12.

THE PRESENT BABYLONIAN HEAD.*

The Babylonian System.

WE have learned in past studies that the Papacy in its connection with worldly powers is only a phase of that evil system of union of church and state which began with Babylon of old; and that behind it all is Satan, the deceiver, accuser, and adversary. He has deceived the nations by making them believe that this system, in some of its forms, was necessary to salvation, to the maintenance of good order in society, to the perpetuation of civil government, to the preservation of religion in the earth. He has carried on this work of deception in every age, through the great and popular, but apostate, religious bodies. These religious bodies have always in the beginning of their history known the truth, but in departing from the truth and righteousness of God by faith have eternally united with the powers of earth, in order to enforce religious dogmas by law. Through them Satan has always accused those who protested against this great prevailing system of religion, and the accusations have always ended in persecution, unless God interposed. And through this great system, with its various phases, has he always opposed the simple, but, if received by faith, all-effectual, truth of God’s free Gospel of grace.

The System One.

We speak of "system" in the singular; for the system is one, tho the phases of that system are many. There are gods many and lords many in all these phases, but all are founded upon, and all exist by virtue of, the principle of self-salvation apart from God. It is but the repetition, in various forms, of the old Babylonian cry, "Go to, let us build us a city and a tower, whose top may reach unto heaven; and let us make us a name, lest we be scattered abroad upon the face of the whole earth." Both ideas—salvation of soul and earthly preservation—are contained in the purpose expressed; but the doers of it all are the we, the us. And so their monuments tell us, they named the city and the tower, Bab-il, "The Gate of God," or "The Gate of Heaven;" but God called it just what it truly was, is, and always shall be, "Babel," confusion. In every phase of the system, from Babylon of old to the present time, is echoed and re-echoed the ambition of Babylon’s king of her ages, Lucifer, the once day-star of God: "I will ascend into heaven; I will exalt my throne above the stars of God; . . . I will ascend above the heights of the clouds; I will be like the Most High."* (Isa. 14:13, 14.) This is the spirit of Satan and this is the spirit which has been manifest in all the phases of the great Babylonian system. Jesus Christ came as a teacher from God, assuming no power to rule, dictate, oppress, judge, or condemn those who did not agree with his teachings. He was the Master of humility and meekness, and they clothed him as garments. His ministers were not to be "lords over God’s heritage, but ensamples to the flock." They did not possess dominion over faith, but were helpers of the joy of all who believed. But in every phase of the Babylonian, or Satanic, system of religion there has been manifest in creed, in arbitrary decrees, in religious dogmas, in statute law, in a multitude of forms, the principle of religion by dictation, by law, by force.

Protestants in Every Age.

"Protestants" is doubtless too narrow a term. Not only have there been faithful servants of God in all ages who have protested against the Babylonian religion of self-salvation, of union of church and state, of force, but they have held high in their own lives the principles of righteousness and truth. In Israel’s day the prophets of God lifted true voices amid the prevailing babel of false worship. When the captivity and travail of the church began in Babylon, Daniel and the three Hebrew children were lights in the center of earth’s empire. Faithful servants of God existed in the Medo-Persian and Grecian phases of the system. During the time that Satan was using Pagan Rome John the Baptist, Jesus Christ our Lord, and the apostles lifted the clearest light

of all the centuries; its blazing beams showing the errors of all the mysteries of iniquity in past and future, and revealing clearly the only way of salvation—personal faith in God through Jesus Christ, with the Scriptures the one divine rule of faith, the true church of Christ as those who are called out according to the Gospel, obedient to every known ray of light and precept of truth.

During the reign of the fifth head, the Papacy, God had also his faithful witnesses, some with less, some with more, light in the unnaturally darker ages of superstition which followed the Gospel morning. Many of those who protested and held aloft the torch of truth confirmed their testimony with their life. The darkness increased, the light grew more dim, the darker ages grew more dark, till in the fifteenth century was born the "Morning Star of the Reformation," John of Wycliffe. Following came John Huss and Jerome of Prague. The former escaped death by martyrdom; but, to show the bitterness of the Papacy, his body was exhumed and burned after death. Huss and Jerome were burned at the stake. A century later the Protestant Reformation burst forth, based on true Gospel principles. They are thus stated by D'Aubigne:—

The principles contained in this celebrated protest of the 19th April, 1529, constitute the very essence of Protestantism. Now this protest opposes two abuses of man in matters of faith; the first is the intrusion of the civil magistrate, and the other is the arbitrary authority of the church. Instead of these two abuses, Protestantism sets up above the magistrate the power of conscience; and above the visible church the power of the word of God. It declines, in the first place, the civil power in divine things, and says with the apostles and prophets, We must obey God rather than man. In presence of Charles the Fifth it uplifts the crown of Jesus Christ. But it goes further; it lays down the principle that all human teaching should be subordinate to the oracles of God.*

Here was again set forth the principles of Jesus Christ: The word of God as the rule of faith, and personal, individual faith in that word the means of salvation; and that over these the civil magistrate had no control, and with them no civil ruler as such had anything to do.

Fall of the Papacy.

In 1798 the papal head of the great Babylonian system fell under the deadly wound. (Rev. 13:3, 10.) Its power to persecute, to lord it over the faith and worship of men, was taken away in the controlling kingdoms of earth. The Papacy has not since possessed that power, tho still demanding it. Her enemies declare that she will never again possess that power. She is honored, perhaps, as never before as an ecclesiastical power, but she does not control the nations nor command them under the temporal pains and penalties due to heretics. But has the beast ceased to exist?—In the papal phase, under control of the papal head, yes; but as an existing, continuing system to the end, in the light of prophecy, no. The principles as embodied in the system continue operative; the form in which they are manifest, changes. The underlying principles in Pagan and Papal Rome are the same; it is that of self-salvation, a religion of force; but the forms are widely different; hence they are denoted by different heads.

READING THE PROTEST AT THE DIET OF SPIRES.

The Sixth Head.

Satan, the originator and king of the system used his masterpiece, the Papacy, after Pagan Rome; to 1798. When the Papacy passed away another phase took its place. It no longer had one centralized head at Rome; but a phase of church and state governments, similar in form to each other, followed. In the papal system the church was dominant, the state subservient. In the phase which followed, manifest in the church and state governments of Europe, the state was dominant, a modification of the pagan idea among Christian peoples. This phase of the system is so well set forth by Bryce* that we quote:—

The principles which had led the Protestants to sever themselves from the Roman Church should have taught them to bear with the opinions of others, and warned them from the attempt to connect agreement in doctrine or manner of worship with the necessary forms of civil government. Still less ought they to have enforced that agreement by civil penalties; for faith, upon their own showing, had no value save when it was freely given. . . .

But whether it was that men only half saw what they had done, or that, finding it hard enough to unrivet priestly fetters, they welcomed all the aid a temporal prince could give; the result was that religion, or, rather, religious creeds, began to be involved with politics more closely than had ever been the case before. Through the greater part of Christendom wars of religion raged for a century or more, and down to our own days feelings of theological antipathy continue to affect the relations of the powers of Europe. In almost every country the form of doctrine which triumphed associated itself with the state, and maintained the despotic system of the Middle Ages, while it forsook the grounds on which that system had been based.

It was thus that there arose national churches, which were to be to the several Protestant countries of Europe that which the Church Catholic had been to the world at large; churches, that is to say, each of which was to be coextensive with its respective state, was to enjoy landed wealth and exclusive political privilege, and was to be armed with coercive powers against recusants. It was not altogether easy to find a set of theoretical principles on which such churches might be made to rest; for they could not, like the old church, point to the historical transmission of their doctrines; they could not claim to have in any one man, or body of men, an infallible organ of divine truth; they could not even fall back upon general councils, or the argument, whatever it may be worth, "Securus indicat orbis terrarum."

But in practice these difficulties were soon got over, for the dominant party in each state, if it was not infallible, was at any rate quite sure that it was right, and could attribute the resistance of other sects to nothing but moral obliquity. The will of the sovereign, as in England, or the will of the majority, as in Holland, Scandinavia, and Scotland, imposed upon each country a peculiar form of worship, and kept up the practices of medieval intolerance without their justification.

Not Protestant Governments.

This is the condition of the eastern world, where has existed the empire of the great beast power, from which empire has gone forth the law to the rest of the world. The sixth head of that fearful system of government is the present phase of church and state governments existing among the nations of Europe, the horns of the beast, the most influential of which profess to be Protestant. But if these governments were truly Protestant they would not persecute. No church which holds to the principle of Protestantism will in any way unite with the civil power, or solicit aid from the civil power, or permit the civil magistrate to interfere in matters of religion. Her rule will be the Bible and the Bible alone, with no mixture of tradition. Her power will be in the Spirit of God, the life of Christianity. Her means of propagating her belief will be by persuasion and teaching. All recusants and enemies she will in love commend to the mercy and wisdom of God. And when the Protestant churches or any Protestant church turns from these principles to accept of tradition and human creed she brings confusion instead of power, and becomes a part of Babylon, because molded by the principles of Babylon. Her creed may be called "The Gate of God," but God calls it Confusion. And when she unites with the state, to seek to enforce or better to maintain that creed, she commits

fornication with the kings of earth, and is a part of the Babylonian family. She is no longer Protestant. She may have true Protestants and Christians in her fold, but all such God will call out. So the Papacy has had within her fold in all ages true Christians, living up to all the light they possessed, but they were Christians not because of the papal system, but in spite of it. Germany, England, France, Denmark, Norway, and Sweden are not Protestant governments or nations in the sense of being Christian. They may be called Protestant, and Christian; there are Christians in them, but the system of government is not Christian, but Babylonian; simply another phase in the great system of which Lucifer was the inventor, Babylon was the head, and the Papacy the masterpiece.

Legitimate Earthly Government.

By this we do not refer to the legitimate rule and sphere of these governments and all civil governments; for civil government is ordained of God. But we refer to the union of church and state, or religion enforced by law, which is a characteristic of all these powers. When this church and state principle is developed into law, it always leads to persecution for conscience' sake. And this has been the case in all these countries. The persecutions under "good Queen Bess" were as truly of Satanic origin as were those under "bloody Mary." The name does not alter the fact; the character of a government determines its author. In a general way "the powers that be are ordained of God," but not to take God's place. Nebuchadnezzar, the heathen king of Babylon, God calls "my servant" (Jer. 27:5-8; Dan. 2:37); but when he aspired to take God's place, to direct and control worship, to punish those who would not worship as he decreed, God humbled him and proud Babylon with him (Daniel, chapters 3, 4). And so in all ages the dominant ruling powers of earth are God's servants to restrain evil, and prevent incivility; but not to aid religion or to coerce conscience in any way. And when the powers of Europe revolted against the tyranny of the Vatican authority, they again justified it all by perpetuating the church and state system in another form. It matters not how good the men, how mild the system at first, it logically and inevitably leads to evil. The first step means the second, and the second the third, until the last step is taken, and Jesus Christ is again mocked, maltreated, and put to death in the persons of his saints.

Thus far we have the following heads to the great Babylonian system: Babylon, Medo-Persia, Grecia, Pagan Rome, Papal Rome, Pago-Papal and Pago-Protestant governments of Europe. The future heads will be considered in our next.

DECLARATIONS ARE NOT PROOFS.

IN the Sunday Reform Leaflets for August, the organ of the Sunday League of America, is an article which attempts to prove the change of the Sabbath by divine authority from the instructions found in Eze. 43:27, which reads:—

"And when these days are expired, it shall be, that upon the eighth day, and so forward, the priests shall make your burnt offerings upon the altar, and your peace-offerings, and I will accept you, saith the Lord God."

We showed in our last, what every reader may know for himself if he will candidly read the chapter in which the above occurs, that "the eighth day" has reference to the eighth day of the cleansing of the altar. The seven days previous were days of special ceremony to purify the altar and consecrate the priests, and on the eighth day after that ceremony, and every day to follow, the altar would be ready for the regular offerings. There is no reference to any weekly day or weekly Sabbath, or any other sabbath. It might be well, however, to point out the fact that "the Sabbath," a term everywhere applied to the seventh day, and nowhere to the first, is recognized in the prophecy in contradistinction to "the six working days" of which the first day of the week was one. (See Eze. 41:6.)

The article concludes with the following declarations:—

"1. We have a plain prophecy [Eze. 43:27] concerning the change of the worship from Saturday to Sunday. "2. We find its fulfilment under the sanction of Christ and his apostles in the New Testament. "3. We have apostolical authority to observe the first day of the week as the Christian Sabbath. Paul observed it. See Acts 20:7. "4. Christ Jesus, the Lord of the Sabbath, approved of it in commemoration of his triumph over death, hades, and the grave. "5. The Triune God sanctioned the change by the descension of the Holy Spirit, and by the blessings which rested upon its ordinances."

1. But the context shows that the prophecy has no reference whatever to any day of the week, or weekly Sabbath.

2. We find no sanction of any first-day Sabbath by Christ or his apostles. The whole word of God, from Genesis to Revelation inclusive, mentions no first-day sabbath, or first-day holy day. And, as we have shown many times, this is acknowledged by eminent first-day observers.

3. If the reader will turn to Acts 20:4-14, he will see that a farewell meeting was held by the apostles on the evening of the first day of the week (answering, according to Bible reckoning, to our Saturday night); that at that time a notable miracle was performed, even the raising of the dead; that that meeting held till Sunday morning; and that that Sunday the apostle spent in the hard labor of journeying nineteen miles to Assos, while Luke and his companions went around the promontory by boat. That is the way the apostle Paul kept Sunday.

4. Inspiration has not given us a syllable which shows that Christ approved of the Sunday sabbath. He kept and taught the Decalogue, and sealed his holiness by his death on the cross. Who has a right to add to his will?

5. The "descension of the Holy Spirit" on Pentecost was to honor the antitype of that feast and not the day of the week on which Pentecost fell. This is shown by the fact that Pentecost is mentioned while the day of the week is not referred to, some arguing it to be Saturday.

Declarations are not proofs. The Bible knows but one weekly Sabbath, namely, the seventh day, the day instituted and kept by Jesus Christ.

The Apostolic Church

By M. F. S.

No. 440. The Apostolic Church.

It is claimed by Episcopalians that the Church of England in its service and ritual, comes nearer to the church of Christ in apostolic times than that of any other denomination. Is this true? M. F. S.

The way to know whether this is true or not is to compare the Church of England with the word of God. The instructions given by Christ and his apostles were simple. The offices and gifts placed in the church by Jesus Christ are enumerated in Eph. 4:8-13; 1 Cor. 12:8-28; Rom. 12:3-8. We have also the offices of elder, or bishop, and deacon. These were not "lords over God’s heritage," but "ensamples to the flock." The apostles or ministers had no great or stated salary, nor were they paid by the state. The church knew no particular forms except such as were essential to the simple Gospel ordinances, no creeds of men, or human articles of faith, no unwritten, unauthorized traditions. There was no connection with the state. The word of God as it is in Christ Jesus, by the aid of the Holy Spirit, was preached to dying men, and souls were saved. Here are some of the essential and more prominent characteristics of the apostolic church. Does the Church of England have these characteristics? Not what the Church of England claims, or what her opposers claim, but what does the word say? How does that church or any other compare with the word of God? See the "True Church and Its Test," in the SIGNS of September 24, No. 38.

Mode of Burial and Baptism

By M. F. S.

No. 441. Mode of Burial and Baptism.

It is said that in the days of the apostles the dead were laid away in caves and not buried under the ground; that being buried with Christ in baptism does not necessarily imply immersion; and that the text most frequently quoted by those who believe in immersion, is perverted to suit immersionists' own peculiar views. M. F. S.

Where it was possible the dead were buried in caves and rock-hewn sepulchers; but these were buried in the earth nevertheless, and it is so called in the Bible; and by works upon the Bible. See, for instance, Gen. 23:4-15; 1 Kings 11:15; Jer. 19:11; Matt. 27:7; Mark 14:8; John 12:7; Acts 5:6, 9; 1 Cor. 15:4, etc. Cemeteries were, it seems, a necessity. 2 Kings 23:6; Jer. 26:3; Matt. 27:7. Jesus died, was buried, rose again. 1 Cor. 15:3, 4. These three acts are symbolized by baptism, or immersion. Jesus was buried, covered up completely in the earth. Had not rich friends then come forward he would have been buried in a common grave instead of a rock-hewn tomb; but in either case it would have been a burial, just what the Bible calls each; and it also says, "We are buried with him by baptism." Rom. 6:4. The word "baptize" in its original form means immerse, dip, overwhelm. It is safe to abide by the word. People say many things.

Sign of the Son of Man

No. 442. Sign of the Son of Man.

Will you please explain Matt. 24:30: "And then shall appear the sign of the Son of man in heaven."

When Christ went away, a cloud received him out of the disciples' sight. The last thing they saw was the cloud of angels which escorted him on his way. He "shall so come in like manner" as they saw him go into heaven. Acts 1:11. The first thing which will therefore be seen will be the clouds or great cloud of angels which accompany him on his return. "Behold he cometh with clouds;" "coming in a cloud." See Rev. 1:7; Luke 21:27; also "Spirit of Prophecy," vol. 4, page 458, edition 1885.

"TILL HE COME."

[The following lines were composed by a blind and deaf girl, who attended the recent Niagara Conference on the Second Advent. A sweet-faced woman sat beside her, and by a rapid movement of the right hand upon the palm, fingers and thumb of her outstretched left hand, communicated to her imprisoned mind every word that was uttered. She had just learned to use a typewriter, and these verses—entirely her own production—were among the first she wrote.]

My heart is filled with a grand, sweet song, A joyous jubilee; A song of my Saviour's matchless love, His love for even me. I can not put this song in words, Nor sing its melody; It far surpasseth human thought, Or human harmony.

Yet, O! it thrills my inmost soul, And strikes each tuneful chord; It tells of hope and joy and peace In Christ, my risen Lord. It tells me that amid the strife, He'll be my Guard and Guide; Through every change of light and shade, He's always at my side. And, O! it tells of rest so sweet For every laden one; And says the tears of earthly life Last only "till he come." Till then I've just to rest in him, And trust his Shepherd care; And lay me down in pastures green, Where peaceful waters are. Thus sheltered in this safe retreat, Tho storms may fiercely blow, They only sweep the surface waves— 'Tis calm and still below. Thanks, O my God, for this glad song Of love so full and free! Grant me thy help to tell to all What thou hast told to me. —Prophetic News.

Continue reading: THE PRAYER THAT GOD APPROVES