Signs of the Times, Vol. 30, No. 40. (10/12/1904)

Signs of the Times

Oct 12, 1904

Pacific Press Publishing Company · Mountain View, California · Oct 12, 1904

“IT IS I; BE NOT AFRAID.”

OUR worst enemies are often our foolish fears,—fear of anticipated trouble, of imaginary dangers. Sometimes the danger of seeming danger which looms greatest is the mightiest weapon we could have against present or anticipated trouble.

A MOST graphic lesson of this is illustrated on this page, while the story is told in three of the Gospels, by Matthew (14: 13–19), Mark (6: 35–51), and John (6: 5–21).

It had been a day of wearing toil for Jesus. The news of the cruel death of John the Baptist by Herod at the instigation of his fiendish, unlawful wife, had come to Jesus and His disciples. The Master felt that the disciples needed special instruction and encouragement, so He designed to withdraw them for a time into a deserted place apart from the crowds where a little time could be given to study, meditation, and prayer. But the people saw them and followed to the number of five thousand men, perhaps ten thousand all told of men, women, and children.

THE Saviour of men could not turn them away, so all the remainder of the day He healed their sick and taught them the words of life. As the day wore away, the disciples began to be anxious. No food had as yet been taken. Soon the Teacher must dismiss the multitude, and, unfed, unsupplied, many would faint by the way on their journey home. Some of the disciples tell the Master, and He responds, “Give ye them to eat.” He knows it is impossible. They also know it. They have barely food sufficient for the twelve. But the Master takes it and feeds all abundantly, and has much more left than the original supply. Even so God’s power multiplies responsive human effort.

THEN the fickle people, John tells us, wanted to make Jesus King. He had provided for them what their hearts longed for, the bread that perisheth, and surely He could deliver them from the hated Roman yoke, and furnish them abundance of all things for their comfort. But the Master dismisses them with noble, gentle, kingly authority, sends His disciples by boat to the other side of Galilee, and He Himself retires into the solitude of the mountain that He may have undisturbed opportunity there to plead with God.

THE disciples doubtless were disappointed at the Master’s refusal to acquiesce in the wishes of the people. Surely here was an opportune time to proclaim His kingdom. With brooding, discontented hearts they started for the other side of the lake, when one of the fierce, boisterous winds, for which the little Sea of Galilee is noted, swept down upon them. Long and hard they labored to reach the other shore, but in the morning watch they were only about three miles distant from their starting point. They were utterly worn out, sad, disappointed, discouraged, an easy prey to their fears.

It is at such times that Satan besets the children of God with his fiercest and subtlest temptations. He may not be able to turn them aside into paths of dishonesty, intemperance, or open, flagrant sin of any sort, but when worn and weary and disappointed perhaps in some cherished expectation, the subtle adversary suggests that God has forgotten them. Then it is that the Father’s kind providences and kindly corrections seem to be the overwhelming darkness of despair or the darts of death, when God sends them as messengers of light and healing and helpfulness.

WHEN Jesus sent His disciples away, it was for their own good. When their hopes of a temporal kingdom were swallowed up in the sea’s fierce waves, it was that they might look beyond to the more enduring reign of life and grace. They must learn the lesson that

Christ must rule in the heart before He could truly be their King. They were such slow learners, but are we better than they?

LABORERS TOGETHER WITH GOD.

By Alonzo Briggs

BY ALONZO BRIGGS.

EVERY Christian should esteem it a grand and glorious privilege to be a laborer for, and with, God. There are numerous ways in which the followers of the Lord may become workers with Him. Jesus said, “My Father worketh hitherto, and I work.” The explanation is, that the human, as well as the divine, should be instrumental in lifting up the fallen, encouraging the weak, and breaking the bread of life to hungry, perishing souls. It is a comforting thought that our blessed Lord has promised to direct the steps of all who enlist in His service.

Christ’s direction to His followers is: “Go ye therefore into the highways, and as many as ye shall find, bid to the marriage.” Matt. 22:9. “He shall not fail nor be discouraged” should be a constant incentive for us in all of our conflicts with the powers of darkness and error. “Be strong in the Lord, and in the power of His might.” Then will we be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked one. As we are God’s workmanship, let us pray that He fashion us more and more like the divine Example.

Separate and apart from a loving Father, man is altogether vanity; for he is cut down like the grass, and withereth like the flower of the grass. Having chosen “that good part,” it is the business of the Christian to be a bright and shining light at all times, and under all circumstances. Having enlisted in His service, it is not for us to become “weary in well doing; for in due season we shall reap, if we faint not.” The Lord will soon come to reward His servants; and our watchword should be, Get ready, get ready, for an “inheritance incorruptible, and undefiled, and that fadeth not away.”

It should be considered an exalted privilege to be a co-worker with Him in the work for the world. He who wins souls is wise; and when Jesus comes to separate the righteous from the wicked, he who has done good and faithful service will be privileged to hear His welcome voice, “It is enough,” “Come up hither!” “Thou hast been faithful over a few things, I will make thee ruler over many things.” In view of these exceedingly great and precious promises, let us do with our might what our hands find to do.

Morganhill, Cal.

ENOCH

By Ellen G. White

BY MRS. E. G. WHITE.

MANY regard Enoch as a man to whom God gave special power to live a life more holy than we can live. But the character of the man who was so holy that he was translated to heaven without seeing death is a representation of the character to be attained by those who will be translated when Christ comes in the clouds of heaven. Enoch’s life was no more exemplary than may be the life of every one who maintains a close connection with God.

Surrounded with influences so corrupt that God brought a flood of water upon the earth to destroy its inhabitants for their wickedness, Enoch was by no means free from temptation; yet in the midst of a society no more friendly to righteousness than that which surrounds us, he lived a life of holiness. Breathing an atmosphere tainted with sin and corruption, he remained unsullied by the prevailing iniquity of the age. For three hundred years he “walked with God.”

It was through constant conflict and simple faith that Enoch walked with God. He realized that God is “a very present help in trouble.” When in perplexity, he prayed to God to keep him, and teach him His will. What shall I do to honor Thee, my God? was his prayer. His will was submerged in God’s will. His feet were always directed in the path of obedience to God’s commandments. Constantly his meditations were upon the goodness, the perfection, the loveliness, of the divine character. His conversation was upon heavenly things; he trained his mind to run in this channel. As he looked to Jesus, he became changed into the glorious image of his Lord, and his countenance was lighted up with the glory that shines from the face of Christ.

Enoch lived an active, zealous life of self-denial. He walked with men as one among them, but not as one of them; as one whose purposes and works and hopes were based, not only on time, but on eternity. He did not give the worldly-wise any reason to question his profession or his faith. By earnest words and by decided actions he showed that he was separate from the world. After periods of retirement he would mingle with the ungodly, exhorting them to abhor the evil and choose the good. As a faithful worker for God, he sought to save them. He warned the world. He preached faith in Christ, the Saviour of the world, the sinner’s only hope.

We are living in an evil age. The perils of the last days multiply around us. Because iniquity abounds, the love of many waxes cold. Enoch’s example is before us. Like him we must walk with God, bringing our will into submission to His will. We must train our minds to love purity, and to think upon heavenly things. Let us remember, too, that our responsibility is proportionate to our entrusted talents. If we abide in the True Vine,—if we bear the fruits of righteousness,—we shall go about doing good. In seeking to save the souls for whom Christ has died, in conquering difficulties, and in keeping ourselves unspotted from the world, we may reveal the genuineness of our religion.

The faithful Christian does not seek the easiest place, the lightest burdens. He is found where the work is hardest, where his help is most needed. Very many who claim to be Christians act as if they were in this world merely to please themselves. They forget that Jesus, their pattern, pleased not Himself. They forget that the self-denial and the self-sacrifice that characterized His life must characterize their lives, else in the day of God they will be found wanting, and will hear from His lips the irrevocable sentence, “Cast ye the unprofitable servant into outer darkness; there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth!” Fearful sentence! Let every professing Christian, by zealous activity in the Master’s cause, seek to avert this fearful doom.

Enoch was an Adventist. He directed the minds of men forward to the great day of God, when Christ will come the second time, to judge every man’s work. Jude tells us, “And Enoch also, the seventh from Adam, prophesied of these, saying, Behold, the Lord cometh with ten thousands of His saints, to execute judgment upon all, and to convince all that are ungodly among them of all their ungodly deeds which they have ungodly committed, and of all their hard speeches which ungodly sinners have spoken against Him. These are murmurers, complainers, walking after their own lusts; and their mouth speaketh great swelling words, having men’s persons in admiration because of advantage.”

Like Enoch, we should earnestly proclaim the message of Christ’s second coming. “The day of the Lord,” the Scriptures declare, “cometh as a thief in the night. For when they shall say, Peace and safety; then sudden destruction cometh upon them, . . . and they shall not escape.” In these words is emphasized the importance of being constantly prepared for this great event. “But ye, brethren, are not in darkness, that that day should overtake you as a thief. Ye are all children of light, and children of the day; we are not of the night, nor of darkness. Therefore let us not sleep, as do others; but let us watch and be sober, . . . putting on the breastplate of faith and love; and for an helmet, the hope of salvation.”

Be of Good Cheer; It Is I; Be Not Afraid

THE deepest darkness of the night had settled down upon the sea, just before the breaking of the day. The overwrought nerves of the disciples, with all their past superstitions, magnified every trivial incident which portended evil. As they peered into the darkness, they saw a form walking upon the rolling waves as tho they were a rock. To them it was a storm-wraith, foretokening destruction, and, strong men as they were, they cried out in terror. But their Lord had not come to terrorize them. He had seen their sad plight, and had come to save; and He came in a way to inspire their utmost confidence, revealing to them that however the sea might roar and be troubled and lash its proud waves, He was its Master, able to save to the uttermost. In response to their cry of fear, the words of assurance come, “Be of good cheer; it is I; be not afraid.” With open, broken hearts they receive Him, and immediately they reach the desired haven, confessing that He is indeed the Son of God.

“THE sea is His, and He made it.” “He maketh the storm a calm.” His mighty word can speak peace to the turbulent sea or the sin-troubled heart. He knoweth our need. He would save us from the mad, selfish ambitions which would wreck our lives. He can not go with us as our leader or protector into schemes that are not of His planning. We may proclaim Him King in our own imaginary realm of selfish ambition, but at the last we shall find the kingdom of self upon the throne viewing a wreck, and we disappointed and disheartened.

BUT be not discouraged. All the time the Master has been trying to help you, but you would not let Him. Selfishly you misinterpreted His kind offers. You thought cruel His perfect kindness. When He appeared, you thought Him—the Good—an evil spirit, a herald of destruction. O, treat Him so no longer. Yield to His will. Know that He controls all things for the good of His own, and will make them work together for good to them that love Him. Singly the trial may be rude and harsh and ugly, but it may be the only foundation that God can lay in your nature for a superstructure of blessing. The fierce wind and sea may seem pitilessly destructive, but the Master is walking the storm-tossed waves, and saying with sweetest voice, audible always to the ear of obedient faith, “Be of good cheer; it is I; be not afraid.” O, listen, and hear, and receive Him; and immediately all shall be well.

“Sometime when all life's lessons have been learned, And sun and stars forevermore have set, The things which our weak judgments here have spurned, The things o'er which we grieved with lashes wet, Will flash before us out of life's dark night, As stars shine most in deepest tints of blue. And we shall see how all God's plans were right, And how what seemed reproof was love most true.”

Set Yourself to Your Purpose

By Phillips Brooks

SET yourself earnestly to see what you were made to do, and then set yourself earnestly to do it; and the loftier your purpose is, the more sure you will be to make the world rich with every enrichment of yourself.—Phillips Brooks.

THY WILL.

By Cornelia Snow

BY CORNELIA SNOW.

Why should I doubt that this way is Thy will,— This rugged way, beset with darkest ill?

Did I not plead for wisdom in my choice, And prayerful listen for Thy guiding voice?

Did I not count the cost, come weal or woe, To follow bravely whither Thou shouldst go?

Now, that darkness looms on every side, Dare I to think that Thou wast not my guide?

Altho the foe with painful, dead’ning blow, Has in the dust my forces all laid low;

And changed my morning song of hope and joy To pleading for this draught some sweet alloy;

Yet still, I will believe Thou’st brought me here; Nor backward look with vain regret and fear.

Enough to know that I have followed Thee, And so, this path must be the best for me.

Portland, Me.

LET NO MAN SPOIL YOU.

By H. A. St. John

BY H. A. ST. JOHN.

EVE, the first woman on earth, was spoiled by the first enemy of God and humanity, and she, in turn, spoiled her husband, Adam, the first man on earth. Then they two, unable to give their posterity any better nature than they themselves possessed, spoiled all the millions of human beings who are their legitimate offspring. This terrible work, in its very beginning, resulted in spoiling the possessions and prospects of all humanity, both for time and eternity.

But the Lord, in His infinite love and mercy, came to the rescue. “For God so loved the world, that He gave His only-begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life.” At infinite cost our loving heavenly Father has provided a means of rescue, restoration, and complete restitution for all who will accept, believe, and obey the good news of the Gospel.

First, this glorious Gospel restores the spoiled moral image of God in the man, bringing back to him eventually a divine nature and God-like character. Second, it will restore his spoiled body, for when he shall at last behold Jesus as He is, the vile body of the man will be instantly transformed, changed and fashioned like unto the glorious body of the glorified Redeemer. And third and last, the great Creator and Restorer will recreate, out of this spoiled heavens and earth, a new heaven and a new earth, in which there will remain no marks of the spoiler.

But the great original spoiler of all that is good and beautiful still lives and reigns as god of this world, as prince of the power of the air, and in his ruinous career is still working with “all power, and signs, and lying wonders,” determined, if he can not prevent the overthrow and complete destruction of his kingdom, that he will at least do his utmost to utterly spoil every soul that seeks regeneration, and full and final restitution. He is meeting with much success, because so successful in using multitudes of unbelieving men as his efficient agents, and a host of invisible agencies known as evil spirits.

Hence it becomes a matter of great importance that every soul in whom Christ has begun the good and glorious work of restoration, should heed with all diligence the admonition of the great apostle, “As ye have therefore received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk ye in Him; rooted and built up in Him, and established in the faith, as ye have been taught, abounding therein with thanksgiving. Beware lest any man spoil you through philosophy and vain deceit, after the traditions of men, after the rudiments of the world, and not after Christ. For in Him dwelleth all the fulness of the Godhead bodily.” Col. 2:6-9. Of the many agencies at work to spoil us, let us consider a few of the most prominent.

1. Philosophy. Vain and false philosophy abounds, and is very fascinating to the thinking man, and multitudes are continually being spoiled for this life and the life to come by its seductive influence. Beware of these dangerous rocks that so thickly beset the voyagers on the ocean of time as we approach the eternal shore. The Word of God points them out, and shows the way of escape that we be not shipwrecked.

2. Vain deceit. The great deceiver has multitudes of human mediums of deception. Signs and wonders will they perform, yea, miracles, so that if it were possible they would deceive and spoil the very elect of God. In the same blessed Word of our God is to be

found our only shield from all this host of spoiling deceptions.

3. Worldly elements. All seeking after mere worldly treasures, honors, or pleasures, must be eliminated from our hearts and lives, and the kingdom of God and His righteousness become first, last, and all the time, the all-absorbing passion of our souls.

It is a blessed truth that we are able to keep ourselves in the love of God, and if this we do, there is nothing that can spoil us. With the grace of God so freely and abundantly given us, we may keep the commandments of God, and thus abide in His love; then Jesus can finish moulding us after the divine image, and then crown His work with a glorious immortality. And in that great day of the restitution of all things spoken of by the holy prophets since the world began, Christ will divide the spoils with the spoiler. The great arch-spoiler himself, together with all things and beings he has hopelessly spoiled, will be hopelessly destroyed. The spoiled heavens and earth will be made new, paradise restored, a new race of beings, the children of the second Adam, evolved from the spoiled race, or children of the first Adam, will be the glorified and immortal inhabitants of the restored earth, a country where no spoiler will ever enter. And we’ll be there, we’ll be there in a little while.

ECCLESIASTES

By F. D. Starr

BY F. D. STARR.

THIS book is a book of experiences, the experiences of a man who had tried the ways of the world to find out what pleasure there was in them, and ascertained to his sorrow that, from a worldly point of view, “all is vanity and vexation of spirit.” This is a penitential book. There can be no doubt but that Solomon sincerely repented of his folly, and was fully and freely forgiven, and will be among the redeemed in the kingdom of God. After testing all the gratifications there were in worldly grandeur and riches, and sensual pleasure and mirth, he turns away with utter disappointment, for the world is full of sorrow, not only in the life experience of the poor, but of the rich and pleasure-loving also. So the sum of it all is expressed in the last two verses of the book: “Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: Fear God, and keep His commandments; for this is the whole duty of man. For God shall bring every work into judgment, with every secret thing, whether it is good, or whether it be evil.” In this short book of only twelve chapters there is some instruction on numerous fundamental points of doctrine, as well as so much wholesome admonition in regard to practical godly living.

Take the quotation already noticed; the sublime scene of the judgment is brought to our attention, and the profound minuteness with which every detail of human life shall be there examined. The rule in the judgment is also stated, the immutable law of Jehovah, the commandments of God, spoken with His own voice from Mount Sinai. This law is perfect, and in it is contained the whole duty of man, or, as the German renders it, “This is the duty of all men.” The “all” is really applicable in both ways; it refers to all men, and to all the duty of all men. How apt the conclusion. At the judgment there will be a final conclusion of all earthly matters. Human history will then be concluded. “Finis” may then be written at the close of the volume of earthly existence in the mortal state. No one can get beyond the conclusion of this matter, but some vainly imagine they can. Such are wise above what is written. They come to the conclusion that it is not necessary to keep the commandments of God; but their conclusion is the result of sophistry. Nothing could be more unreasonable. Another statement against Antinomianism is found in ch. 8:5: “Whoso keepeth the commandments shall feel no evil thing.” As our Saviour teaches us, it is the safe way, and the only safe way, to keep the commandments, and teach them to others, also. Matt. 5: 17–19.

The condition of the dead is very clearly taught in this book: “For the living know that they shall die; but the dead know not anything, neither have they any more a reward; for the memory of them is forgotten. Also their love, and their hatred, and their envy, is now perished; neither have they any more a portion forever in anything that is done under the sun.” “That which befalleth the sons of men befalleth beasts; even one thing befalleth them; as the one dieth, so dieth the other; yea, they have all one breath; so that a man hath no pre-eminence above a beast; for all is vanity. All go unto one place; all are of the dust, and all turn to dust again.” Ch. 9: 5, 6; 3: 19, 20. The next verse contains a statement that is rendered in the Septuagint: “And who has seen the spirit of the sons of men whether it goeth upward? and the spirit of the beast, whether it goeth downward to the earth?” The rendering of the German and the French also agree with this. Solomon had just said that they all go unto one place, and he now calls for any proof to the contrary, to show that the heathen, or contrary, idea could not be established.

The sorrows that abound in this vale of tears are vividly brought to our notice in the pathetic language of ch. 4: 1: “So I returned and considered all the oppressions that are done under the sun; and behold the tears of such as were oppressed, and they had no comforter; and on the side of their oppressors there was power; but they had no comforter.” What a mighty Amazon of woe it would be, if all the tears that stream down the face of oppressed humanity should unite in one briny river!

The oppressed and the oppressor are here distinctly drawn up in two opposing lines. All are standing on one side or the other. On which side are we standing? “Envy thou not the oppressor, and choose none of his ways.” Prov. 3: 31. What are the ways of the oppressor? Let us find out, and shun them as we would the plague. On which side was our Lord?—“He was oppressed, and He was afflicted.” Are we willing to follow Him? How forlorn the expression “no comforter,” twice repeated in our text. This is earth’s wailing, distracted appeal for a Comforter, and, thank God, that Comforter has been sent. John 15: 26, 27.

The Silences of History

“The silences of history are the strengthening periods of a people.”

HIS WONDROUS WORKS.

By Archer Wright

BY ARCHER WRIGHT.

When day's last embers smoulder in the west, And twilight shadows deepen into night, When evening breezes hush and fall asleep, And the pure stars are left alone to watch O'er slumbering nature,—'tis a time to gaze On those far-flaming brother worlds of ours, And feel the eternal power of Him who holds The mighty forces of the universe In His control. This is a time to think The thoughts of Him whose thoughts are high as heaven.

Look out across the infinite expanse, And let the harmony of sinless spheres Touch thy mute soul's deaf ear with life, and let Their perfect rhythm time thy pulse's beat Till thy life echoes unison with God's. Once every life was thus in tune with Him; That harmony was marred, and human souls, Racked with discord of a fallen world, Oft fail to hear, above earth's Babel sounds, The sympathy, and power, and praise, that make The matchless music of the heavenly host.

O God, how great Thou art! The height, the depth Of Thy broad wisdom is unsearchable! Thou callest worlds from nothing with a word; Thou thinkest on earth's lowliest living thing; Thy voice shakes heaven, yet it gives response To the unuttered longing of a soul!

How often do we lose these lofty thoughts; And, wandering through the world's great wilderness, We move on, scarcely conscious of the cloud That guides us, and protects us, till at length A voice like Sinai's thunder greets our ears, And we awake to our ingratitude. Thus startled, we, like Israel's host of old, Too oft attempt, by means impossible, Obedience to a code, whose inward depth Our carnal minds, self-clouded, fail to see. When, all disheartened by our failure, we Lie suppliant at His feet, God shifts the view. Through blinding tears we see Gethsemane, Moonlit—a kneeling form—a blood-stained brow— The world's Creator fainting neath the cross. Then Calvary melts our cold, sin-hardened hearts, Till, by the alchemy of heavenly love, A golden promise each command becomes. That hallowed cross! How darkened ways grow bright, And petty trials vanish, as we gaze On that meek visage 'neath the crown of thorns, And know 'tis with His stripes that we are healed. O precious truth, O mystery divine! Love unexplained, incomprehensible! The Prince of Life lays heaven's glory down, Leaves the angelic throng, the realms of bliss, And myriads of sinless, song-swept worlds, To drink the cup of wrath earth's rebels earned! To offer them instead His spotless life! The Shepherd leaves the flock to seek the lost. Tho but one speck amid unnumbered spheres, And He, the Shepherd, knows too well how few Will take the gift His precious blood has bought, He, willing, bears the load of shame and pain That we deserve, to rescue you and me.

And now, in human flesh before the throne, He stands and pleads for sinners—lifts the hands Once pierced in token of His sacrifice For others' guilt.

And still the world sweeps on, Groaning and trav'ling 'neath its weight of woe, While wicked men blaspheme, and spurn the grace Of Heaven, and brother curseth brother. God And all the heavenly universe look on In wondering pity at the spectacle Of human blindness and ingratitude. Not long will He in silence bear the sight: Earth's cup of wrath is all but brimming o'er. Quickly the scene will change, and He who pleads Shall take His scepter, and begin His reign. But woe unto the kingdoms of this world When on the cloud appears her rightful King. Dispersed like chaff before the whirlwind's blast, No place is found for them who've found no place For Christ within. May we the lesson learn, And in our hearts accept the Saviour's rule Of righteousness and peace, that, when He comes, We may say boldly, “Lo, this is our God.”

Yet when old earth in desolation lies, Keeping her Sabbath day so long delayed, The spheres their broken anthem still shall chant Till death shall silence each discordant voice, And every living creature shall ascribe All “blessing, . . . honor, . . . glory, . . . power . . . to Him That sitteth on the throne, and to the Lamb.” The stars of God shall still their luster keep Till this lost world, redeemed and purified, Shall sing as in her youth, and man's abode, So long the battle ground 'twixt love and hate, Restored to Eden's purity, shall shine, The costliest gem in her Creator's crown.

THE PROGRAM.

By T. E. Bowen

BY T. E. BOWEN.

The program of any exercise is expected to cover the entire proceedings. From the opening scene until the very closing event, the carefully-prepared program will reveal each succeeding change in the exercises.

Thus God has prepared the program of events to transpire in our world. We sometimes lose sight of this stupendous truth, and because of its infinity some do not believe it; but whether we believe it, or disbelieve it, it still remains the truth. The great and mighty God knew the end from the beginning. He arranged the program for nations, giving each its allotted time for existence, the bounds of its habitation before it came to be a nation, all for the purpose that individuals composing them might have opportunity to work out character and determine whether or not they would honor and obey God. “And He made of one every nation of men to dwell on all the face of the earth, having determined [beforehand] appointed seasons, and the bounds of their habitation; that they should seek God, if haply they might feel after Him and find Him, tho He is not far from each one of us.” Acts 17: 26, 27.

The great prophetic portions of God’s Word reveal clearly to us that God knew the program before nations existed. He faithfully delineated to the prophets that which was yet untranspired. Accurately has history chronicled these events in their order. One had only to consult God’s revealed program to know by faith what was the next great event to transpire. And those who have studied the prophecies carefully, and ascertained their ponderous revelations, and believed, have never been deceived as to the coming scene.

Thus Daniel, by studying the writings of Ezekiel, learned that after seventy years of captivity in Babylon, Israel was to be restored to their home land. And so it was.

Instance after instance can be cited where the weary mariner on life’s sea has been safely guided by consulting this heavenly chart—the Word of God.

The program having been accurately fulfilled from the beginning until now, certainly men and women are foolish indeed to set aside, or neglect to study, the chart to ascertain what is just before. The foreshadow of terrible events to come throws itself across our pathways, and men’s hearts fill with fear and dread as to what these untranspired events will be. And well they may. The Bible only holds the sequel. The program for the immediate future is contained therein. The program is in the hand of the Infinite.

Ezekiel at one time beheld the throne of the great God. To him it looked like many complications of wheels within wheels, but when it moved, all was guided by the hand of the Eternal so that it moved in perfect order. “As the wheel-like complications were under the guidance of the hand beneath the wings of cherubim, so the complicated play of human events is under divine control. Amidst the strife and tumult of nations, He that sitteth above the cherubim still guides the affairs of earth.”

Reader, your name is on the program. A place is given you in the great drama of life, or you would not be here. For whom are you playing your part? No man lives or dies to himself. He is either serving the purpose of God, or God’s great enemy. This is a sure thing. Behind the scene are both good and evil unseen heavenly agencies at work, and for one or the other company every human being is acting.

The outcome is on the program. The last scene is about to take place, and when it closes, with it will be decided the destiny of every soul. Study the program. God has placed a copy in your hands. By following it carefully you need not be deceived.

Rome, N. Y.

BE OF GOOD COURAGE.

By C. L. Taylor

BY C. L. TAYLOR.

“Be strong and of a good courage.” “Have not I commanded thee? Be strong and of a good courage.”

THERE is absolutely nothing which God calls upon men to do which they can not perform. It were as easy to fly at the command of our Father as to walk at His command, because in His word is the power which enables one to do what is required.

In one sense the Lord is constantly asking of His people the impossible; that is, that which they of themselves are utterly unable to accomplish. He requires more than any one can render. All that man may reasonably ask of his fellow man is that he do the best he can; but God tells him to do better than he can.

You will remember that Jesus at one time said, “It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle, than for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of God.” When the disciples heard this they said in amazement, “Who then can be saved?” Jesus replied,

“With men this is impossible; but with God all things are possible.” Jesus simply stated that is true to a great extent of everybody; namely, that in entering the kingdom there are some things which are commanded which are impossible if left to be done by human power alone.

Now this is especially true in the matter of courage. How can a person be of good courage when he is literally filled with discouragement? How can one be bright and sunshiny when he has “blues” in the very worst form? As well might one try to be white when he is black. It is simply out of the question for a weak, cowardly heart to make itself strong and courageous.

And yet, God calls upon His servants to do that very thing. “I have commanded thee, says He, to ‘be strong and of good courage.’”

Of the man at the pool of Bethesda Jesus asked an equally impossible thing when He said to him, “Rise, take up thy bed, and walk.” The cripple rose up, however, in obedience to the Master’s word, doing that which for thirty-eight years he had tried in vain to do. There was no struggle or painful effort of any kind connected with the doing; it was a blessed experience throughout. And from it there comes to men and women of to-day the assurance that as he could rise and walk when commanded, so one in obedience to the divine Voice may now rise up out of his blues and cowardice and discouragement and live a bright and strong and courageous Christian life.

The secret of the whole matter lies in the exercise of the will in response to God’s word. Or, to state it in another way, the truth is found by means of faith. Faith in the command of the Lord causes that command to become a part of one’s self. The Bible makes it very plain that to believe—have faith—in the word is the equivalent of receiving the word. John 1:12. And as the word of the Lord is full of power (Ps. 29:4), therefore he who receives the word will be filled with power. And when the power comes into the life, the work called for by the command is performed by the command itself.

God speaks of those things which be not as though they were. Rom. 4:17. He has a right to speak thus because He is the Creator. That which was not before He speaks, is brought into existence by His speaking. His speaking makes the thing a fact. Now, when His word is taken by His people and is allowed to speak to them, that which was not in them before the word was received, is a fact at once when it is received.

It matters not who the person nor what his condition, he is able to say, “I will” to God’s command; and in thus responding, he opens the door to the Lord Jesus who comes in and does away with all the evils of his nature and makes him upright and pure. When the discouraged man hears the word of God saying, “Have not I commanded thee? Be strong and of a good courage,” he may willingly and voluntarily respond, Yes, Lord, and I will be of good courage; and so soon as he thus yields himself to the great Jehovah, the courage of heaven enters into his soul and he has a new experience. The word of God does the work, not himself. He simply wills himself to God; he opens the door to the reception of all that is in the word.

Are you discouraged? You need be so no longer. Take your Bible, your Father’s letter to you; find His command to “be of good courage,” read it carefully; and then, without any regard to natural feelings, yield to it, and claim it as yours. Say in faith, Lord, thou hast told me to be of good courage, and my heart says, Amen. The courage in Thy word, I now take into my soul. I thank Thee for the gift. I am of good courage. And let me assure you that you will have all that God calls for.

This is not a theory. It is a tried, well-proved plan. To a young man greatly discouraged and cast down the Lord sent, through His servant, this message: “Will you not, without delay, place yourself in right relation to God? . . . Give Satan no chance to say, You are a wretched hypocrite. Close the door, so that Satan will not thus accuse and dishearten you. Say, I will believe, I do believe that God is my helper, and you will find that you are triumphant in God. By steadfastly keeping the will on the Lord’s side, every emotion will be brought into captivity to the will of Jesus. You will then find your feet on solid rock.” “Have not I commanded thee? Be strong and of a good courage; be not afraid, neither be thou dismayed; for the Lord thy God is with thee whithersoever thou goest.”

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