Earlier text: ROSESMr. Bryan's Objection to Darwinism
IN the year of Darwin's centenary, one prominent platform speaker has put into printed form his oft-repeated declaration that he does not accept the Darwinian theory. William J. Bryan is the man referred to; and his statement of the case, included in a volume of his recently published speeches, "revised and arranged by himself," occurs in the address called "The Prince of Peace," delivered at many Chautauquas and religious gatherings in America, beginning in 1904; also in Canada, Mexico, Tokyo, Manila, Bombay, Cairo, and Jerusalem. Mr. Bryan refuses to accept the theory, he says, because "it does not solve the mystery of life or explain human progress." Some, he fears, have accepted it "in the hope of escaping from the miracle;" but why, he asks, "should the miracle frighten us?" Mr. Bryan does not "mean to find fault" with any one who wishes to accept the theory. "All I mean to say is," he declares, "that while you may trace your ancestry back to the monkey if you find pleasure or pride in doing so, you shall not connect me with your family tree without more evidence than has yet been produced." He goes on: "I object to the theory for several reasons. First, it is a dangerous theory. If a man links himself in generations with the monkey, it then becomes an important question whether he is going toward him or coming from him—and I have seen them going in both directions. I do not know of any argument that can be used to prove that man is an improved monkey, that may not be used just as well to prove that the monkey is a degenerate man; and the latter theory is more plausible than the former." "It is true that man, in some physical characteristics, resembles the beast; but man has a mind as well as a body, and a soul as well as a mind. The mind is greater than the body, and the soul is greater than the mind; and I object to having man's pedigree traced on one third of him only—and that the lowest third. Fairbairn, in his 'Philosophy of Christianity,' lays down a sound proposition when he says that it is not sufficient to explain man as an animal; that it is necessary to explain man in history—and the Darwinian theory does not do this. The ape, according to this theory, is older than man; and yet the ape is still an ape, while man is the author of the marvelous civilization which we see about us." "One does not escape from mystery, however, by accepting this theory; for it does not explain the origin of life. When the follower of Darwin has traced the germ of life back to the lowest form in which it appears—and to follow him one must exercise more faith than religion calls for—he finds that scientists differ. Those who reject the idea of creation, are divided into two schools, some believing that the first germ of life came from another planet, and others holding that it was the result of spontaneous generation. Each school answers the arguments advanced by the other; and as they can not agree with each other, I am not compelled to agree with either." If compelled to accept one of these theories, Mr. Bryan would prefer the first, he says; adding, "For if we can chase the germ of life off this planet and get it out into space, we can guess the rest of the way, and no one can contradict us; but if we accept the doctrine of spontaneous generation, we can not explain why spontaneous generation ceased to act after the first germ was created." We read further: "Go back as far as we may, we can not escape from the creative act; and it is just as easy for me to believe that God created man AS HE IS, as to believe that, millions of years ago, He created a germ of life, and endowed it with power to develop into all that we see today. I object to the Darwinian theory, until more conclusive proof is produced; because I fear we shall lose the consciousness of God's presence in our daily life, if we must accept the theory that through all the ages no spiritual force has touched the life of man or shaped the destiny of nations." "But there is another objection. The Darwinian theory represents man as reaching his present perfection by the operation of the law of hate—the merciless law by which the strong crowd out and kill off the weak. If this is the law of our development, then, if there is any logic that can bind the human mind, we shall turn backward toward the beast in proportion as we substitute the law of love. I prefer to believe that love rather than hatred is the law of development. How can hatred be the law of development, when nations have advanced in proportion as they have departed from that law and adopted the law of love?" "Search the Scriptures"
By Miss Z. I. Davis
BIBLE study is the surest way to keep the faith pure. There is always something new and fresh to be found in the old texts. They must be faithfully mined for, but nuggets more precious than gold are sure to reward the seeker. Jesus said, "If ye abide in Me, and My words abide in you, ye shall ask what ye will, and it shall be done unto you." Christ's Word can not abide in us until we have made it ours. It needs to be assimilated that it may bear fruit. A plant draws upon the earth for what it needs to form the leaf, bud, and stalk. It must make these elements its own before it can bring forth bud and blossom. Only by feeding on God's Word are we nourished by it. It is "sweeter than honey in the honeycomb" when once we have learned to love it. It was said of Lincoln that there were few clergymen who knew the Bible as well as he did. Luther, Gladstone, and Washington were all men who searched the Scriptures. What a vast field for the sowing of the Word are China, Korea, Japan, and Africa. More Bibles were sold in China last year than in England and Wales combined. We need to increase the standing army of the Lord in the foreign lands. "Recall at once from all mission fields every man and woman who doubts the authority and integrity of the Holy Scripture, and who questions for a single moment the supreme glory of the person of Christ." Unto One of the Least of These
By Delwin Rees Buckner
A BEGGAR knocked to ask a crust of bread
When thou wast sitting at the evening feast.
The night was gathering within the east;
The sun was setting in a glow of red.
The dress he wore was spotted, tattered, torn,
And in his cheeks were Hunger's deep-cut lines.
Yet, man, if thou wert able to divine,
Thou might'st have known that he was noble-born.
Yea, all of this he might have been, and more,
As sad, so sorrowful, so slender, thin,
With pleading, plaintive voice and tearful eyes,
He mutely stood before thy open door.
O, friend, didst thou refuse to ask him in?
He may have been God's angel in disguise. THERE comes to our table what is called "A Message from the Commission of the Church," styled also "The Church's Appeal in Behalf of Labor," and beginning with the words: "The Federal Council of the Churches of Christ in America unanimously adopted among other specific principles for which it asserts the church must stand: 'First—The gradual and reasonable reduction of the hours of labor to the lowest practicable point, and that degree of leisure for all which is a condition of the highest human life.'" The Church of Christ must stand for no such thing. That is a perversion of its mission. Its business is to preach the Gospel. The work committed to it is not industrial, commercial, political, but exclusively spiritual. Therefore such matter always passes on quickly to the waste-basket. The Last Day
By Rev. E. Guy Talbott
[The first division of this sermon, “The Second Coming of Christ,” was given last week. It concludes with the last four divisions in this issue.—ED. S. OF T.] Text: “What shall be the sign of Thy coming, and of the end of the world?” Matt. 24: 3. Introduction: Universality and Importance of Eschatological Beliefs.
I. The Second Coming of Christ.
II. The End of the World.
III. The Resurrection.
IV. The Judgment.
V. Heaven or Hell? RELIGION and science agree that this world will sometime be destroyed. The indestructibility of matter is not a tenet of modern science. Philosophy likewise agrees in this belief. The best philosophers accept the fiat creation of religion — also fiat annihilation. The latest philosophy, that of Personal Idealism, teaches that the material universe is but the thought, or rather the manifestation or expression of the thought, of God. If this be true, then whenever the material universe ceases to represent the thought of God, it will cease to exist. In other words, the material universe has no ontological reality. Science reaches this conclusion on other and more material grounds. As a result of chemical disintegration, the material world will some day be consumed. Of course, science puts that fatal day far in the future; but time, even to the human mind, is but a form of thought, and has no ontological reality. “One day is with the Lord as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day.” To the Christian, the time of the end of the world is the day of Christ’s coming. The disciples asked the Lord, “What shall be the sign of Thy coming, and of the end of the world?” Jesus did not rebuke this conception of the end of the world as synchronous with His coming; hence we may accept it as the correct idea. Isaiah, with prophetic eye, saw the great day when “all the host of heaven shall be dissolved, and the heavens shall be rolled together as a scroll: and all their host shall fall down, as the leaf falleth off from the vine, and as a falling fig from the fig-tree.” Peter says: “But the heavens and the earth, which are now, by the same word are kept in store, reserved unto fire against the day of judgment and perdition of ungodly men. . . . But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night; in the which the heavens shall pass away with a great noise, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat the earth also and the works that are therein shall be burned up. Seeing then that all these things shall be dissolved, what manner of persons ought ye to be in all holy conversation and godliness, looking for and hastening unto the coming of the day of God, wherein the heavens being on fire shall be dissolved, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat!” Connected with the thought of Christ’s second coming and the end of the world, is the thought of the resurrection of the dead. Doubtless in point of time, the ideas of the second advent, the end of the world, the resurrection, the last judgment, and the entrance into the future world are synchronous; yet logically they come in the order named. The idea of the resurrection of the dead and the hope of immortality are instinctive in the human heart. Annihilation of the human ego is almost unthinkable. Even Robert G. Ingersoll, who loved to pose as an atheist, made this paradoxical statement at his brother’s grave: “Life is a narrow vale between the cold and barren peaks of two eternities. We strive in vain to look beyond the heights. We cry aloud, and the only answer is the echo of our wailing cry. From the voiceless lips of the unreplying dead there comes no word; but in the night of death hope sees a star, and listening love can hear the rustle of a wing!” How different is the hope of the Christian! The resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead marks the consummation of His mission to this world. Without the resurrection His mission would have been a failure. The mission of Jesus Christ to this world was far greater and grander than His message to the world. His message, aside from His death and resurrection, could not have saved the world. The preaching of the apostles was plainly characterized by the preaching of the resurrection Gospel. Indeed, the three doctrines most largely taught by the apostles were the crucifixion, the resurrection, and the second coming. The doctrine of the resurrection of the body was held by Abraham, Moses, Job, Isaiah, Daniel, and Hosea, and by the great majority of the Jews — except the sect of the Sadducees. St. Paul was the great defender of the doctrine. He says: “But if there is no resurrection of the dead, then is Christ not risen; and if Christ be not risen, then is our preaching vain, and your faith is also vain. Yea, and we are found false witnesses of God; because we have testified of God that He raised up Christ: whom He raised not up, if so be that the dead rise not. For if the dead rise not, then is not Christ raised: and if Christ be not raised, your faith is vain: ye are yet in your sins. . . . But now is Christ risen from the dead, and become the first-fruits of them that slept. For since by man came death, by man came also the resurrection of the dead. For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive. But every man in his own order: Christ the first-fruits; afterward they that are Christ’s at His coming.” We instinctively feel that death does not end our existence. Christianity teaches that death simply marks the end of our earth existence, but that it absolutely fixes our destiny. There is no room in any of Christ’s teachings, nor in the Gospel plan of salvation, for a future probation. The life here on earth is a probation if it is anything. Jesus said: “The time is at hand. He that is unjust, let him be unjust still: and he which is filthy, let him be filthy still: and he that is righteous, let him be righteous still: and he that is holy, let him be holy still.” The word translated “still” conveys with it the idea of both continuity and increase. As we are living here when we die, we continue to live in the life to come. The future life is a life of infinite progression, either upward or downward. The last judgment idea carries with it the idea of responsibility. “Conscience doth make cowards of us all.” That is, conscience makes us all feel that we are answerable for our lives to some higher power. That is why there are so many death-bed confessions of crimes and sins — men want to ease conscience before going to meet God. The judgment is for all men, and for the smallest act of each individual man. While death fixes our destiny — heavenward or hellward — the last judgment determines our reward or punishment. It is the great day, the last day, the day of Christ’s coming, the day that marks the end of time, the judgment-day — the day that is to determine the fate of the entire human race. Describing the scene, John says: “And I saw a great white throne, and Him that sat on it, from whose face the earth and the heaven fled away; and there was found no place for them. And I saw the dead, small and great, stand before God; and the books were opened; and another book was opened, which is the Book of Life: and the dead were judged out of those things which were written in the books, according to their works. . . . And death and hell were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death. And whosoever was not found written in the Book of Life was cast into the lake of fire.” What an awful scene that must have been! It were as impossible to count the number of that mighty host, as to count the drops of water in the ocean. Every man born into this world, from Adam until time shall be no more — all are there with bowed knee before the throne of Jesus Christ. But they are not there to worship, but to be judged. Every man is there to give account of himself to God. Adam is there; Cain is there, to give account of his murderous acts; Isaac is there; Jezebel, with her bloody hands; John, the butcher of Israel; David, the sweet singer; Paul, and Peter, and John, and Mary the mother of Jesus — all these and their friends and neighbors are there. The countless martyrs are there; the millions upon millions of pure, spotless babes; the thieves, the murderers,8the lecherous wretches who have ruined pure girls, the drunkards, the preachers, the mothers, the wives, the kings and princes, the rich men and the mighty men, the slaves, the beggars and scum of the cities — all, all are there before Jesus Christ, to be judged “according to his deeds.” You will be there; and I will be there. Are you ready to give account of yourself before God? Is there some dark crime or sin that you are hiding? Is there some secret sin you have not confessed? Is your record clear in the sight of the great Judge of all men? Have all your sins been blotted out, washed white in the blood of the Lamb, who has now become the Judge? There are two sets of books before the Judge. In one set are contained the life records of each one — the words, the thoughts, the acts of each one; in the other book are the names of those who have “washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb.” Is your name written there? “And whosoever was not found written in the Book of Life was cast into the lake of fire.” We still have before us the judgment scene. The result of the judgment is about to be pronounced. Sentence is about to be passed. Some are to go into everlasting punishment, some are to enter eternal bliss. “When the Son of Man shall come in His glory, and all the holy angels with Him, then shall He sit upon the throne of His glory: and before Him shall be gathered all nations: and He shall separate them one from another, as a shepherd divideth his sheep from the goats; and He shall set the sheep on His right hand, but the goats on the left. Then shall the King say unto them on His right hand, Come, ye blessed of My Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world. . . . Then shall He say also unto them on the left hand, depart from Me, ye cursed, into everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his angels. . . . And these shall go away into everlasting punishment: but the righteous into life eternal.” John Wesley was once preaching on the judgment-day. He seemed to have a vision of the coming King and of the judgment. “See! see! He cometh! He maketh the clouds His chariot! He rideth upon the wings of the wind! A devouring fire goeth before Him, and after Him a flame burneth! See! He sitteth upon His throne, clothed with light as with a garment, arrayed with majesty and honor! Behold, His eyes are as a flame of fire, His voice as the sound of many waters! “How will ye escape? Will ye call to the mountains to fall on you? the rocks to cover you? Alas, the mountains themselves, the rocks, the earth, the heavens, are just ready to flee away! Can ye prevent the sentence? Wherewith? With all the substance of thy house, with thousands of gold and silver? Blind wretch! Thou camest naked from thy mother’s womb, and more naked into eternity. Hear the Lord the Judge! ‘Come, ye blessed of My Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world.’ Joyful sound! How widely different from that voice which echoes through the expanse of heaven, ‘Depart from Me, ye cursed, into everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his angels!’ And who is he that can prevent or retard the full execution of either sentence! Vain hope! Lo, hell is moved from beneath to receive those who are ripe for destruction! And the everlasting doors lift up their heads that the heirs of glory may come in! O that ye now may give yourselves to Him who gave Himself for you, in humble faith, in holy, active, patient love! So shall ye rejoice with exceeding joy in His day, when He cometh in the clouds of heaven!” I HAVE had twenty-one years’ experience among the South Sea Islanders, and for at least nine years of my life I have lived with the savages of New Guinea. I have seen the semicivilized and the uncivilized: I have lived with the Christian native, and I have lived, dined, and slept with the cannibal. But I have never yet met a single man or woman, or a single people, that your civilization without Christianity has civilized. Wherever there has been the slightest spark of civilized life in the Southern Seas, it has been because the Gospel has been preached there; and wherever you find in the island of New Guinea a friendly people, or a people that will welcome you, there the missionaries of the cross have been preaching Christ.—James Chalmers. Our Bible Reading
By A. C. Plowman
Evidences or Full Assurance of Acceptance with God
1. Who are accepted of God?
"Whosoever believeth in Him shall receive remission of sins." Acts 10: 43.
"If thou doest well, shalt thou not be accepted?" Gen. 4: 7. 2. Since by nature man can not work righteousness, the carnal mind being "enmity against God; for it is not subject to the law of God" (Rom. 8:7), what transformation is necessary?
Be "born again, not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible, by the Word of God." 1 Peter 1: 23.
Be "a new creature [in Christ]: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new." 2 Cor. 5: 17. 3. By what agency is the new birth produced?
"That which is born of the Spirit is spirit." John 3: 6.
"It is the Spirit that quickeneth; . . . the words that I speak unto you, they are Spirit, and they are life." John 6: 63. 4. What do we receive in Christ?
"In whom [Jesus] we have redemption, . . . the forgiveness of sins." "He hath made us accepted in the Beloved." Eph. 1: 6, 7.
"All are yours; and ye are Christ's; and Christ is God's." 1 Cor. 3: 22, 23. 5. Through what act on the part of the receiver are sins forgiven?
"Therefore it is of faith, that it might be by grace." Rom. 4: 16. 6. What relation is thus established between God and the believer?
"I will receive you, and will be a Father unto you, and ye shall be My sons and daughters, saith the Lord Almighty." 2 Cor. 6: 17, 18. Also "one flesh, one spirit." See 1 Cor. 6: 17-20. 7. Can such a relationship exist and one not be conscious of the fact?
"But ye know Him [the Spirit of truth]; for He dwelleth with you, and shall be in you." John 14: 17.
"The Spirit itself beareth witness with our spirit, that we are the children of God." Rom. 8: 16.
"Hereby know we that we dwell in Him, and He in us, because He hath given us of His Spirit." 1 John 4: 13. 8. What does the knowledge of our acceptance with God bring?
"Being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ." Rom. 5: 1. 9. Of what nature is the believer's peace?
"My peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid." John 14: 27. 10. What does the world give those who have Christ's peace?
"In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world." John 16: 33. 11. What will be one of the delights of the converted man?
"I delight in the law of God after the inward man." Rom. 7: 22. His delight is in the law of the Lord. 12. How may true believers be identified?
"By their fruits ye shall know them." "He that doeth the will of My Father which is in heaven." Matt. 7: 20, 21. 13. What is the fruit of the Spirit?
"The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, long-suffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance." Gal. 5: 22, 23. 14. Can one bear this fruit himself?
"As the branch can not bear fruit of itself, except it abide in the vine; no more can ye, except ye abide in Me." John 15: 4. 15. What was the experience of the two disciples who talked with Jesus on their way to Emmaus?
"They said one to another, Did not our heart burn within us, while He talked with us by the way, and while He opened to us the Scriptures?" Luke 24: 32. 16. What blessed experience may all have?
"Rejoice in the Lord alway. . . . And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus." Phil. 4: 4, 7.
"Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on Thee: because he trusteth in Thee." Isa. 26: 3.
"Great peace have they which love Thy law: and nothing shall offend them." Ps. 119: 165.
A. C. Plowman. Schedule for Week Ending May 7 |
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| Sunday |
May 1 |
1 Kings 3-5 |
| Monday |
" 2 |
" 6, 7 |
| Tuesday |
" 3 |
" 8, 9 |
| Wednesday |
" 4 |
" 10-12 |
| Thursday |
" 5 |
" 13-15 |
| Friday |
" 6 |
" 16-18 |
| Sabbath |
" 7 |
" 19-21 |
OUR readings for this week are wholly historical, covering a large part of the book of 1 Kings, beginning with the third chapter and closing with the 21st. It is a sad, sad record, but full of important lessons. From the time of David the general moral tendency was downward in the kingdoms of Judah and Israel, tho there were times of reviving. Whenever the people sought God, God wrought for them and through them abundantly. We have also the great fact brought out again and again of the responsibility which rested upon the leaders of His people. Whenever king and priest were faithful to God and strong for Him, they molded immensely the people; but whenever the leaders failed to lead in right ways, the people also failed with them. See Judges 5:2. We have in these chapters covered the reign of Solomon, the building and dedication of the house of God, the wonderful wealth of his kingdom, his awful mistake of multiplying wives to himself and allying himself with the idolatrous nations around him. The division of the kingdom after his death between Judah and Israel, are told in much detail. His own son, Rehoboam, who came to the throne, was himself degenerate and effeminate. Jeroboam, who was given the kingdom of Israel, was a strong king, but not devoted to God. Following Rehoboam in Judah we have the reign of Abijam, a wicked reign; then Asa, whose reign was largely for the better; Jehoshaphat his good son, yet who made the great mistake of allying himself with the house of Ahab. In the worship of the calves, Jeroboam's reign over Israel was a curse to the ten tribes from that time forward. The king designed it to be that which would simply hold the people from going up to Jerusalem to worship. It was purely a political measure on his part. He still doubtless believed, if he believed in anything, in the great Jehovah, and those calves were evidently representatives of Jehovah to the people, or designed for that; but the effect of them is stated over and over again in the constantly descending history of the ten tribes, that Jeroboam's act made Israel to sin; and the sin persisted notwithstanding God's solemn warnings. After Jeroboam's long reign, came the reign of his son Nadab, which terminated in two years in a conspiracy against him by Baasha of the house of Issachar, who utterly destroyed the house of Jeroboam, "for the sins of Jeroboam which he sinned, and wherewith he made Israel to sin." Baasha reigned twenty-four years, but he walked in the sins of Jeroboam, and therefore came God's prophecy against his house. Baasha's son, like Jeroboam's son, reigned but two years, when one of his generals, Zimri, conspired against him, slaying him when he was drunk; and Zimri did as Baasha had done before him, slew all the reigning house. Zimri reigned but seven days, when the people made Omri king; Zimri committing suicide by burning himself with his house. Omri seems to have been a man of character, who reigned over Israel twelve years, building in the meantime Samaria, and beautifying it for his capital. Following Omri was his son Ahab, a weak king, but who had a strong, unprincipled, dissolute wife, Jezebel. At this time also comes the prophet of God, Elijah, upon the scene. That history becomes a type of later histories, even as Elijah becomes a type of the later reforms. The lesson of the week closes with the only record we have at all of any good traits in Ahab. We read that he humbled himself before God, and his repentance seems to have been even for the little time accepted. Making God His Strength
By Editor
THE man who makes man his strength, is trusting on one no stronger than himself, a broken reed at best, whose life is as a vapor or as the dew of the morning. But he who makes God his strength, has an unfailing refuge. He who believes a doctrine because God says it, whoever may be the weak instrument through whom the light is sent, will not be affected by the failures and shipwrecks of others. He knows whom he has believed, and is persuaded that what God has begun He is able also to finish in glory and perfection. There is nothing sure outside of God. He never can fail. And the one who makes the Lord his refuge shall never be confounded or made ashamed. A Cause of Stumbling
By Editor
THAT which ought to stand for character and loyalty to Christ, is becoming a stumbling-block in these days of loose moralities and disregard of the Scriptures. Membership in a Christian church ought to mean either a measure of Christian character or an earnest striving for that goal. It means neither. The fact that so many in the great schools and universities are church-members or attend church services, means little or nothing. Are they Bible believers; that is, of the Bible itself? or do they hold it as interpreted by the higher critics, by tradition, or merely because they were taught to believe it, and really do not know whether they believe it or not? Do they believe in the creative power of God in past and present? Do they believe in the virgin birth, the miraculous conception of Christ? Do they believe His miracles? Do they believe in His resurrection and what it means in vital Christian life, or have they lost it all in the nature worship of a yearly day? Do they believe in the regeneration of the soul through faith as a personal experience? The answers to the above and kindred questions are the determining factor, rather than church-membership or church affiliations. There were devoted church-members in Ezekiel's day, who came and listened attentively to the prophet's words, and did them not. John the Baptist found zealous church-members in his time, as did also Jesus, and who said, "We be Abraham's seed, and were never in bondage to any man," yet these very ones put to death the Lord of Glory. Martin Luther and John Wesley and other ardent reformers found church-members and faithful attendants on religious services galore in their days; but the test of the messages borne by God's witnesses revealed much chaff and little wheat. The emphasizing of church-membership and church attendance to offset the charge of infidelity, as so many religious journals and writers are doing, will prove a stumbling-block, a hindrance, rather than a help, in the winning of souls to Christ. The Master wants character, loyalty. Mere membership stands for neither. Not the Messenger, but the Message
'Is not this Joseph's Son?' It was thus the Nazarites reasoned after they had listened, and even 'wondered at the gracious words' which proceeded out of the mouth of Christ. And in thus reasoning they grieved away the Spirit, darkened their own understanding, and rejected the gracious message sent to save them. Instead of looking to the message, they looked to the messenger. By what authority could Joseph's Son instruct them? Was He not one of them? and had they not known Him from His youth? and was it not the height of presumption for Him thus to teach them, and claim for Himself the Messiahship? These were the questions implied by their query. How often to-day do we look at the humble instrument instead of the message he bears. The truth may fall from his lips in burning fire, and conscience may be awakened. Then Satan presents to us the messenger. We hear the oddity of his speech, the peculiar construction of his language; we see the antiqueness of his clothing; and, withal, we remember his humble parentage and humble station. Can God speak through such a man? rings in our ears. 'Is not this Joseph's son?'—Yea, it may be Joseph's son indeed, but there may come to us through his instrumentality a message which will prove the savor of life unto life or the savor of death unto death. Let us take heed how we hear, and how we judge. The messenger may be of clay, but the message may be the words of life from the King of Kings and Lord of Lords. "WHAT day is it? Many call Sunday 'the Lord's day,' and others tell us that this is not so," therefore the question. Now as "the Lord's day" means the day which the Lord claims as His, and as it is in its origin strictly a Bible term, where should we go but to the Bible to learn what day is the Lord's day? Here is the reply thrice told. In Isa. 58:13 the Lord calls the Sabbath "My holy day." In Mark 2:28 we read the words of Jesus, "The Son of Man is Lord also of the Sabbath." And in Ex. 20:10 is this declaration: "The seventh day is the Sabbath of the Lord thy God." This is "the seventh day" of the week, for the Sabbath comes just before "the first day of the week." Matt. 28:1; Mark 16:1, 2. What day is the Lord's day?—It is the seventh-day Sabbath. Could a Bible Christian come to any other conclusion?