Earlier text: SANCTIFIED BY THE WILL OF GODThe Resurrection.
By A. SMITH
“In the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die.” Gen. 2: 17. “And the serpent said unto the woman, Ye shall not surely die.” Gen. 3: 4. Thus the statement of the devil stands opposed to the word of God, and the record of six thousand years attests the truthfulness of the former assertion and the falsehood of the latter. Modern theology has taken up the strain, and opposed the immortality of the soul to the Bible doctrine of the sleep of the dead as necessary to preserve the identity of the individual in the resurrection. To make the position tenable, metaphysical reasoning is resorted to with some show of plausibility, were it not opposed to the omnipotence of God. It is claimed that the constituents of some dead bodies are absorbed by the plants, and, in turn, enter into the constituents of man, beast, and fowl; or, being resolved into their original gases and elements, sparkle in the dew, glow in the rainbow, or form a portion of the dust of the ground. It is also claimed that every successive period during man's life witnesses an entire change in his physical organization. Allowing this latter position to be correct in the main, it is evident that the new particles that, from time to time, enter into the constituents of the body become so incorporated with the old as to occasion no break in his individual existence. But, says one, will the same individual who falls under the dominion of death be brought up in the resurrection? We reply, Yes. To create a new race of beings exactly like certain others who once lived and died, and reward them for virtues they never possessed, or punish them for sins they never committed, would, we think, be a sublime piece of deception such as none but an enemy could perpetrate. The resurrection of Jesus is a pledge of the resurrection of all mankind. And how was Jesus raised? Was a new being created exactly like Jesus, bearing the marks of the crucifixion, while he who suffered the agonies of Gethsemane and the cross for us remained forever in the tomb? “I am he that liveth, and was dead; and, behold, I am alive forevermore, Amen; and have the keys of hell and of death.” Rev. 1:18. The resurrection of Lazarus and others while Christ was on earth, though not to immortality, was in kind like that which will take place at the last day. It was a re-organization and a reanimation of the partly disorganized and inanimate body. “Thy brother shall rise again,” said Jesus to the sorrowing Martha. “Martha saith unto him, I know that he shall rise again in the resurrection at the last day. Jesus saith unto her, I am the resurrection, and the life; he that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live.” John 11: 23–25. Had Jesus been present on the day of Lazarus' death, no one would question his ability to restore him to life. Would it have been a little more difficult on the second or third day, and was it still more difficult on the fourth day, when corruption had evidently begun its work? And how would it have been at the end of a week, or a year, or a thousand years? Did Jesus deceive the mourning sisters by creating a being exactly like Lazarus while he who had died still remained in the tomb? In the resurrection at the last day, will Martha's faith prove to have been misplaced? In all examples of the resurrection that we have on record, the same persons that had died were brought up again from the dead; and all the promises of eternal life for the dead are based upon this principle. See John 6: 39, 40, 44, 54; 1 Cor. 15: 16–18. In the midst of the desolation that sin has wrought in our earth, this hope has cheered the faithful in all time. It was the hope of Abraham, of Jacob, and of David. In sublime terms Job thus anticipates that day: “For I know that my Redeemer liveth, and that he shall stand at the latter day upon the earth. And though after my skin worms destroy this body, yet in my flesh shall I see God; whom I shall see for myself, and mine eyes shall behold, and not another; though my reins be consumed within me.” Job 19: 25–27. When amid afflictions the hope of Israel had nearly died out, God, by the mouth of his prophet, gave unmistakable assurance of a resurrection from the dead, and final possession of the promised inheritance. See Eze. 37: 1–14. It is the hope upon which the Christian's faith is based. 1 Cor. 15: 16–18. It is that which cheered the martyr at the stake; and, though his ashes should be scattered to the winds, he knew that his persecutors could not scatter his dust beyond the mighty power of God to re-organize. “Awake and sing, ye that dwell in dust; for thy dew is as the dew of herbs, and the earth shall cast out the dead.” Isa. 26: 19. “Why should it be thought a thing incredible with you, that God should raise the dead?” Acts 26: 8. A MINISTER whose praise is in all the churches was asked on one occasion to visit a family in the deepest distress. On his way to the house he met a brother minister, and repeated to him the sad story which had drawn him from his home. The minister was interested, and at once decided to accompany his friend on his errand of mercy. The sight which presented itself as the two friends crossed the threshold was one not soon to be forgotten. In a room destitute of all the comforts that make an attractive home, a woman was dying. She was young in years, but on her face the traces of want and suffering and care were plainly visible. A babe, wailing feebly, was on the bed beside the mother, but her ears were closed to its cries. A third person was present—the husband and father; but he seemed deaf to the voice of his child, as well as unable to comprehend the fact that his wife was even then passing away from earth. He was a man tall and well-formed, with a finely-shaped head and large, full eyes. He arose and staggered toward the two gentlemen as they entered, and muttered something meant to be a welcome and an apology for the condition in which they found his home. As his eyes met those of the gentleman who had been wont to accompany his friend, the two stood a moment as if spell-bound. The clergyman was the first to speak. “Bond, can it be possible that you have come to this?” The man thus addressed turned away his face a moment from the sad, reproachful gaze bent upon him by the clergyman, and in that moment he seemed to rally his scattered senses; then he turned fiercely upon his questioner. “You see me in a ruined home, and drink has brought me here. It has killed her,” he added, pointing to his wife, “and you, sir, are responsible.” “What do you mean?” exclaimed the clergyman in amazement. “I once attended your church,” continued the man. “I know,” answered the clergyman, “but as I had not seen you since your marriage, I concluded that you had left the city.” “You married me,” he continued. “At my wedding the wine cup was passed. I had never tasted the accursed cup; but that night, seeing you, my pastor, take a glass, I felt that it could not be wrong to follow your example, that it certainly could do no harm to take just one glass on my wedding night. But that one glass has proved my ruin; for it awakened an appetite for the intoxicating cup, and now I am its slave; and you, I repeat it, are responsible.” Hard must have been the heart of that pastor if he did not from that moment resolve to shun forever that which might cause a weak brother to stumble. Not alone for our own safety, but for the sake of those about us who may be led astray by our example, should we resolve to touch not, taste not, handle not.—Temperance Review. BUNYAN's imprisonment formed so considerable a part of his life as a minister of Christ, and was so fruitful in those writings that have not only immortalized his name, but been the means of doing so much good, that its story is well worth listening to. He had been for some five years preaching the gospel, and had had encouragement in his labors, when the enemies of Christ's cause determined to bring his preaching to an end. Accordingly, on the 12th of November, 1660, a warrant of arrest was served upon him as he was about engaging in a service in a village of Bedfordshire. His friends had heard that a warrant had been issued for his apprehension, and one of them, the brother in whose house the meeting was to be held, questioned whether it would not be wiser not to hold the service, that Bunyan might escape. “To whom I said,” says Bunyan in his autobiography, “No, by no means. I will not stir, neither will I have the meeting dismissed for this. Come, be of good cheer. Let us not be daunted. Our cause is good; we need not be ashamed of it. To preach God's word is so good a work that we shall be well rewarded if we suffer for that—or to this purpose.” The service proceeded so far as the prayer for the “blessing of God upon our opportunity,” when the constable presented himself, and the preacher was taken into custody, and the next day brought before a magistrate. This official, one Wingate, committed the preacher, upon his absolutely refusing to desist from proclaiming the gospel, to answer at the quarter sessions. Endeavors were made to have him released on bail, but his crime was considered too great, and no magistrate could be found willing to take the responsibility. As for Bunyan himself he was entirely at ease in the matter. “I begged of God,” he says, “I might do more good by being at liberty; but if not, his will be done; for I was not altogether without hopes but that my imprisonment might be an awakening to the saints in the country; therefore, I could not tell well which to choose, only I, in that manner, commit the thing to God.” The indictment under which he was tried was as follows: “That John Bunyan, of the town of Bedford, laborer; being a person of such and such conditions, he hath (since such a time) devilishly and perniciously abstained from coming to hear divine service, and is a common upholder of several unlawful meetings and conventicles, to the great disturbance and distraction of the good subjects of this kingdom, contrary to the laws of our sovereign lord and king,” etc. The sentence was that he be confined in jail three months, and if at the end of that time he would not consent to attend church, and give up preaching, he would be banished from the realm, upon penalty of hanging if afterward found within it. The banishment did not take place; but for twelve years, with an interval perhaps of six months, he was kept a prisoner. But divine grace was given to him to maintain his steadfast purpose. He would listen to no word of compromise. Preach he must if he had his liberty. He was not harassed by any thought of even the worst that his enemies might do. “Thus I reasoned with myself,” he writes, “If I provide only for a prison, then the whip comes unawares, and so doth also the pillory.” Again, “If I only provide for these, then I am not fit for banishment. Farther, if I conclude that banishment is the worst, then if death comes I am surprised. So that I see the best way to go through sufferings is to trust in God through Christ, as touching the world to come; and, as touching this world, to count the grave my house, to make my bed in darkness; to say to corruption, Thou art my father, and to the worm, Thou art my mother and sister; that is, to familiarize these things to me.” And so, in serene trust in God, though his heart bled at his separation from his family, particularly from his blind daughter, and he felt the privations they were obliged to endure, the years passed on, occupied in the composition of those works—particularly the Pilgrim's Progress—by which he being dead yet speaks, and will speak as long as the English language endures.—Christian Weekly. Mansions.
By H. M. Vanslyke
Jesus was going home to the glory that he had with the Father before the world was, and which he ever had, until, in the fulness of time he came, the Son of David, a man of sorrow and acquainted with grief. In prayer he pleaded for those who had kept his Father's word, for their sanctification and unity. He was joyful in prospect of going to his Father, while, because of his leaving them, sorrow filled the hearts of his disciples. Had they realized the tender affection existing between the Father and the Son, and the matchless splendor of the home Jesus had left to take upon himself the sins and reproaches of erring man, they might have rejoiced that he would so soon be set down with the Father, and the dark conflict so soon be ended. But no; they could not understand it; and the great heart of Jesus desired of his Father that they might be with him and behold the glory that he had with his Father before the foundation of the world. Glorious prospect! To the faithful overcomer, not only is promised an inheritance in the earth made new, but mansions prepared by Jesus, who will come and receive us unto himself. How consoling the thought! Yea, our joy may be full. In the world we may have persecutions, because the world knows not the Father; but if we are faithful we shall live and reign with Christ a thousand years. H. M. VANSLYKE. THE TWENTY-THIRD PSALM.
By Seb.
“The Lamb which is in the midst of the throne shall feed them, and shall lead them unto living fountains of waters; and God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes.” Rev. 7:17. He is my Shepherd, I his sheep;
I do not want to know
Whether the way be soft or steep
By which I am to go.
If green and smooth the mountain be,
I need not ask for more;
If stony, he will carry me,
As he has done before. He is my Shepherd, I his sheep,
We travel onward still,
By pools where water-lilies sleep,
By many a quiet hill;
I feed in many a grassy dell,
I drink the waters clear;
This gracious voice I know so well
Is music to my ear. He is my Shepherd, I his sheep;
I wandered once, I know;
I heard him on the mountains weep
That I should leave him so.
I trembled as I faintly guessed
A sorrow so divine,
For as he clasped me to his breast
The blood gushed forth on mine. He is my Shepherd, I his sheep;
And what if death be near?
The shadows up the valley creep,
And yet I do not fear;
As closer to his side I cling,
I feel the cross so true,
With which his love was pledged to bring,
And safe he has brought me through. He is my Shepherd, I his sheep;
We journey on and on;
At last the smile upon his lips
Shall tell me all is won.
The table that he spreads for me
My foes shall all behold,
And in these trembling fingers see
His cup of royal gold. The cup he put so gently by
When death was drawing near,
He freely fills for such as I,
And tells me not to fear.
And for those funeral odors shed
Upon his dying brow,
He pours the oil of joy instead
On each disciple now. Shepherd! Good Shepherd! Turn and see!
I follow far behind;
The voice of mercy, calling me
Comes borne on every wind.
Set wide the Father's open door,
That I the light may see,
And in his house forevermore
At last abide with Thee. The Minnesota Camp-Meeting.
By Uriah Smith
We left the place of the Wisconsin meeting in season to reach the Minnesota camp-ground Thursday evening. But when we reached Winona, Minn., we learned that a severe storm the night before had washed out the road ahead of us in two places, eight miles apart, rendering transfer impracticable, and suspending travel upon that road till the following day. Our patience having endured the severe strain of twenty-four hours' delay in Winona, we started out on time Friday at 12:50, the break in the road having been repaired. After we had run out about 15 miles, our train suddenly came to a prolonged halt, and the not very entertaining information came to our ears that a freight had broken through the mended place in the road, and we must wait again for repairs. We stood there upon the track till toward nine that evening and reached the camp-ground at 3 o'clock Sabbath morning. We found we had not been the only ones laboring under unfavorable circumstances. A very heavy rain storm had visited the encampment the day and night before. This was a new experience for Minnesota, the weather in all their six previous camp-meetings having uniformly been pleasant; hence it took some in a measure unprepared. However favorable the prospect may be in advance, a heavy, close tent, and a sheet-iron stove that can be used inside, in case of cold and wet, will be found a wise precaution. Nevertheless the people were of good cheer. The meeting had started in well. There were thirty-one tents pitched, and nearly four hundred brethren and sisters present. Two of the forty-feet tents were joined together, forming a pavilion forty feet by eighty. This furnished a pleasant place for meeting when the open ground could not be used. This audience room was well filled by the brethren present. Yet in point of numbers this meeting cannot be taken as an index of the strength of the cause in Minnesota, as it is estimated that there would have been fully two hundred more present, but for the financial embarrassment in this State caused by the grasshopper scourge. Sabbath morning at 9, a very precious season was enjoyed in social meeting. The testimonies borne were to the point, and well wet down with tears. Bro. and Sr. White spoke the word in the forenoon and afternoon with usual freedom. In the social meeting at 5 P. M., over one hundred came forward for prayers. Seventy-six of them spoke. Remarks from Bro. White fairly bore away the congregation on the wings of hope and courage. The season of prayer that followed was one of great freedom. The occasion could scarcely have been better. At this meeting, as in the preceding, our hearts were made to rejoice over the work of the Lord among those of other tongues. We have spoken, in reports of the Illinois and Monroe, Wis., Camp-meetings, of the French, Danes and Norwegians. Here we met an intelligent company of Swedes. Sunday, at 9 A. M., a service was held more especially for their benefit. Sister White spoke to them, her remarks being interpreted into the Swedish tongue by Bro. Lee. Thus all were edified, and many hearts were moved by the things they heard. It was clearly shown that the angels of God are moving upon hearts, not in this country alone, but in Europe and in different parts of the world, to call their attention to the golden coins of truth which have so long been buried up with the rubbish of error and tradition, but which are to be brought out for the church in the last days, that, through obedience thereto, they may be sanctified and prepared for the coming and kingdom of our Lord. This message is going to the nations, tongues, and peoples of the world, and soon the whole earth will be lightened with the blaze of its closing glory. In the night following the Sabbath, and during Sunday forenoon, a heavy rain-fall again came upon the encampment. But the brethren had been cheered by the meeting and blessed to that degree that they were raised above the influence of outward circumstances; and though the encampment might look to the outward observer like a dreary and uninviting place, it was nevertheless the happiest spot in all Minnesota; and there was more joy in those dripping tents than can be found in kings' palaces. Not many from without were present on Sunday forenoon, but the storm abating, some one thousand or twelve hundred were present in the afternoon, who listened with the deepest attention to a discourse from sister White, which was well deserving of the consideration they gave it. Monday nature seemed vying with herself to produce one of her loveliest days, as if to make amends somewhat for the previous “unpleasantness.” The work of various committees and officers of the Conference, and business matters generally, with the preaching of the word, filled up the day. Three discourses were given at the usual hours. And as the first part of the meeting had been in a measure interrupted by the rain, it was voted to continue it one day longer, till Wednesday morning. Tuesday, at 9 A. M., Bro. White spoke on the subject of baptism. At 11, after a short discourse from sister White, backsliders and sinners again came forward for prayers, and the meeting reached a degree of interest, to which the brethren thanked God for having brought it. In the afternoon, Brn. Wm. B. Hill, George M. Dimmick, and L. H. Ells, were set apart for the work of the ministry. The congregation then repaired to a stream about a mile distant, and eighteen were buried in baptism. In the evening, interesting remarks were made by Bro. and sister A. C. Spicer, S. D. Baptists. Bro. S. fully committed himself to the views and work of S. D. Adventists; and at the parting meeting the following morning, the congregation by a rising vote responded to his remarks, receiving him as a member of the body. Credentials will be issued to him by the Minnesota Conference Committee. Three new churches have been added to the Conference, and three other bodies are ready to join, when more fully organized. The membership has been increased some two hundred during the past year. Including the three ministers ordained at this meeting, they now have seven ordained ministers and eight licentiates, one minister and two licentiates being Swedes. Through the counsel of Bro. White, and the liberal proposition he made to the Minn. T. & M. Society, touching their relation to the Publishing Association, they were greatly relieved from financial embarrassment, and much encouraged. This meeting we believe will tell greatly for the advancement of the cause in Minnesota. All seemed exceedingly pleased with it, many regarding it as the best they ever enjoyed. For ourself, in addition to the general excellent character of the meeting, we acknowledge with gratitude the privilege of meeting many noble friends of the cause whom we never saw before. The memory of the happy acquaintance we have formed with them will be a lasting pleasure.
U. S. Cause in Minnesota.
By James White
At an early date in the history of our cause there were Sabbath-keeping Adventists in the State of Minnesota. In those days there was but very little well-directed labor in that good State. In fact, most of the labor and means expended were worse than lost in consequence of the want of consecration and experience of the men who first entered the Minnesota fields. The few friends then liberally gave of their scanty means to advance the cause, and were disappointed in their hopes in seeing unworthy men use it in a manner to disgust the people, rather than to bring men and women to the Lord and his truth. All this time, some valuable accessions were being made to the feeble, scattered numbers in Minnesota, mainly through the influence of our publications; and the old friends of the cause generally stood firm, and from time to time became very hopeful at indications of good. We have not a reflection to cast upon our brethren in Minnesota for the caution they have manifested in encouraging untried men into the field, after having been repeatedly disappointed in those on whom they expended their hard-earned money. On the other hand, as we look back upon the discouragements which have been cast upon the brethren, we are astonished that they have borne up so well, and have been so ready to sustain the cause in all its branches. And it is because of the hopeful, cheerful faithfulness of the brethren that the Lord has so greatly blessed his cause in Minnesota. We were happy to meet a large and intelligent body of brethren and sisters upon the camp-meeting ground last week. Circumstances had kept a large proportion at their homes, and yet this meeting, for numbers, fully equalled any we have attended this season. Here is a people willing to do more than their duty in the line of raising means for the cause. We were pained to learn from responsible parties that scores of brethren remained away from the recent camp-meeting for want of means to pay pledges they made last year. From what we know of the comparative ability of the brethren in the several States to donate to the general interests of the cause, and of Minnesota in particular, and we think we have had as good a chance to know as any one, instead of Minnesota donating to the General Conference, or to anything else out of the State, the brethren in that State should have been helped to sustain the local cause at home. Year before this last just passed, that Conference put $500 into the General Conference treasury, and at the close of that year paid her ministers only five and six dollars per week besides traveling expenses. Had the General Conference paid the Minnesota Conference $500 during that year, the cause, which should be one in all parts of the wide field, would have been better served. We found the brethren in Minnesota embarrassed; first, from too great demands upon them, and second, from too great promptness and willingness on their part to carry out that which they have been asked to do. We found on the Tract and Missionary Society a debt of more than $2,000. This debt was contracted to fill the suggested quota for Minnesota of The Voice of Truth and The Health Reformer, in consideration of changing the pledges for the Pacific Mission to pay for these periodicals, which pledges should never have been called out of that poor State at a time when the Conference was able to pay her active ministers only five and six dollars per week. And now but few are able to pay these pledges, therefore they cannot help pay this debt. The Conference Committee informed us that, judging from actual knowledge, from fifty to seventy-five brethren and sisters were absent from the camp-meeting, because they could not raise the money to pay their pledges. These facts fully justify the statements from the pen of E. G. W. against receiving pledges of poor brethren under the pressure of unqualified calls at camp-meetings. Under these circumstances we requested the T. and M. workers of Minnesota to immediately re-canvass the field, and collect all the names of persons who are not worthy to receive these periodicals, and forward them to the Office of publication before the first day of August, 1875, and the sum to be paid for these periodicals for the entire year shall be taken from the amount due the Office. In this way the debt can be reduced several hundreds of dollars. While some of our wealthy States have not filled their quota, poor Minnesota has more than filled hers. Here is a good illustration of the wrong of suffering the poor to do too much, while the rich do nearly nothing. Since our first connection with the cause, we have regarded it alike our duty to encourage the rich to give of their abundance, and to prevent the poor from being liberal beyond their ability. From the very first, we have called in question the apportionment of a certain quota to each State to be filled on a given time. Our fears are ripening into settled convictions. In the first place, it is a nice piece of work to divide a given number of periodicals among the several States, and take into the account the condition of things in each State, and the financial ability of each. And second, to set a certain number of weeks, or months, will inevitably result in a hasty and injudicious gathering of very many unworthy names. We do not believe that our people are doing a tithe the missionary work they should do. To simply gather up hastily 20,000 names in a few months and forward them to the Review Office is doing next to no missionary work at all. No person should be allowed to send in names on the Society's account, unless they follow up such names with visits and correspondence, and if the periodicals are not read with interest and profit, they should be changed to other persons. Here is work for the whole year round. And here is missionary work by which twenty times as much good can be accomplished with the same amount of means as we are now doing. In order that the T. and M. cause be healthy and permanent, we must work to the point for a “strong pull, and a steady and a long pull, and all pull together.” Reactions will inevitably result from ill-timed and over action. Like the other duties of our holy religion, that branch of our missionary work which consists in the circulation of our periodicals demands our constant efforts the year round. In the face of grasshopper raids and hard times generally, the brethren of the Minnesota Conference shoulder the burdens of the cause, some of them unreasonably laid upon them, with a readiness and spirit of good cheer which should put to blush the stingy murmuring of the wealthy of other States. And while they have a heart to come so nobly up to the work, we feel it our duty to assist them at this time in every way possible. God bless the dear brethren in Minnesota. J. W. Editorial Correspondence.
By John Nevins Andrews
In response to advertisements in papers in the cities of Amsterdam and Rotterdam, Holland, I have received a considerable number of letters of inquiry, all of which I have answered as wisely as I was capable of answering. The correspondence has given me considerable labor, for I have had to procure the translation of these letters from the Holland or Dutch language, and the translation of mine into that language. The German language and the language of Holland are not the same, though often spoken of in America as the same thing. The language of Holland is Dutch; the German language is the Deutsch as called by the Germans. They are two distinct languages, though confounded sometimes because of some degree of similarity in the names. Very few persons here understand Dutch. I will give some extracts from these Holland letters. My advertisement stated the object of my mission, the views of the people by whom I am sent, and it inquired after Christians who hallow the seventh day of the week as the Sabbath, or who may be interested to consider the subject. Here are some of the responses:— “THIEL, PROVINCE OF GUELDRE, HOLLAND, MARCH 27, ’75.
“To-day, in looking over the New Gazette of Rotterdam, I have read an announcement concerning the celebration of the Sabbath, and this upon the seventh-day itself. It will be very agreeable to me to learn the reasons of this observance, and this in respect to your position as missionary from America. In waiting your honored response, I am your devoted servant,
“H. A. VAN A.” The next letter is from three ladies. “ROTTERDAM, HOLLAND, APRIL 9, ’75.
“It is with astonishment that we have read in the Gazette of Rotterdam that you have been sent from America to Europe as a missionary by Christians observing the seventh day of the week, or Saturday. We have reflected a long time upon this subject, and though we do not partake of your sentiments, we nevertheless respect them; for we are not able to give the subject a satisfactory explanation. For this reason we have requested our pastor, who is instructing us and preparing us for our first communion, to give us some clear light upon this matter. After having conferred much with him upon this subject, he at last counseled us to address you, and to request, if not too much trouble, that you answer the following question: Why do you not celebrate the resurrection of Jesus Christ, but, like the Jews, observe the seventh day of the week? Hoping to receive a response from you immediately, we are your devoted servants,
“D. M., H. O., AND M. M. VAN E.” Here is a third letter, and it is written by one who supposed that I must mean Sunday in my advertisement. “MAASLUIS, PROVINCE OF HOLLAND, SEPTENTRIONALE (PAYS BAS), APRIL 1, ’75.
“In consequence of an announcement in the New Gazette of Rotterdam, No. 3931, in which you request to be put in communication with those persons who feel the need to sanctify the Sunday, and as I am much in union with this idea, I desire more full instruction on this subject from you.
“I have the honor to be with esteem your devoted servant,
“C. VAN R.” I answered each of these letters. When Mr. Van R. had read my answer, he changed his mind concerning the day of the Sabbath, and wrote a second letter as follows:— “MAASLUIS, APRIL 19, ’75.
“Your letter of the 11th instant has much interested me, and after having taken knowledge of the ideas which it contains, I must confess that I am perfectly of your opinion. But to obey is not possible for one who cannot live independent of others. Think a little of the case of a workman who must gain his bread at the house of another, and who takes for his day of rest the day instituted by God; his employer, who is not of his opinion, observes the first day of the week. He fails to receive from this workman two days of the seven, and yet the workman has been obliged heretofore to labor six13days and sometimes seven, not to speak of the nights also which he has had to pass at his work, to procure his daily bread. What sort of chance is there, then, for such a person to follow his own convictions of duty in this matter? You see that it is impossible for the workman. But if the employers and those who make the laws would set the example it would be possible. “The only thing which I am able to do for the good cause is this: I will give you the address of two gentlemen to whom I have shown your letter, and who have been touched with the truth of your sentiments. They will take your cause to heart, and as they possess much means with which to render assistance, they have invited me to give you their names. They are ready to enter into particular correspondence with respect to this subject, and if money is needed they are willing to help with their means. They will use French if you choose to have them. Their names are U. F. M. and E. M., both of Maassluis. Hoping that your work of Christian charity will succeed as you desire, I have the honor to be your devoted servant,
“C. VAN R.” I wrote these persons and received the following response:— “ROTTERDAM, HOLLAND, MAY 18, ’75.
“I have received your letter with pleasure, and have considered its contents. It is perfectly in accordance with my idea of the subject. I deeply regret the fact that the inhabitants of the earth do not understand, and will not accept, the seventh day from the creation, which is the only Sabbath that should be hallowed by mankind as sanctified by God. What to do in this case, each must know for himself. I am voluntarily of your views concerning the Sabbath, and am able to act in harmony with my convictions of duty. I wish you to know that I shall do all in my power to set this subject before others as Mr. Van R. has set it before me.
“I remain your very devoted,
“M.” To this gentleman I have sent a copy of nearly all the publications which I received in the box from America. To be sure they are in English and in French, but he understands French, and in Rotterdam he can certainly find those who can read to him from an English book. But the feelings of my heart are inexpressible. How can the truth be got before these people in the Holland language? As soon as I began to receive letters from Holland I wrote to Battle Creek for copies of our Holland tract upon the Sabbath. I have watched for their coming with intense interest, but they have not yet arrived. I shall spare no pains to get the truth still further before these and other persons in Holland. It seems to me that here are indications of Providence that labor should be bestowed upon that country, and that it would not be in vain. In my report from Germany, it will be remembered, I spoke of the manner in which this advertising was done. A gentleman in Gladbach, not a Sabbath-keeper, and not even a professor of religion, became so much interested in the truth to which he listened that he asked the privilege of doing this advertising at his own expense. He has been as good as his word, and this advertising has cost the mission funds nothing. I have from time to time reported to him the letters which I have received, and he has manifested interest to hear. Though I desire to keep a file of the REVIEW and of our other papers for my own use and for reference, I find it impossible to do it. The REVIEW has many very valuable articles which I wish to read again. But before I have fairly read the paper once, I have had an opportunity to put it into the hands of some one who can read English, and who may, as I hope, be benefited by it; and so all the papers from the Office have gone. I give or send them with many prayers that God’s Spirit may attend them to the reader. I feel confident that sometime I shall be able to report the result of this distribution of the papers. In my last report, I spoke of the state of religion in these countries. The condition of things is such that it brings much sadness to my heart. Grace is to save men without obedience, and without changing their evil disposition, at least not till they lie down in death. The people are generally lulled to sleep in the arms of Satan. My words are not to be taken without exceptions, but there are fewer exceptions than I could wish. I attend the service of the national church once every week for the purpose of hearing French. Two things in the service are quite impressive. Each person before taking a seat bows the head for a short time in prayer to God. It is with many perhaps but a mere form, but it seems to me something very suitable for the house of God. While the bell is ringing in the morning, the school-master ascends the pulpit, and the moment that it ceases he arises and invites the people to listen to the reading of the law of God. Then he reads from Ex. 20 the ten commandments, and from Matt. 22:37–40 the two great commandments. The preacher sits at the foot of the pulpit stairs till the school-master has finished the reading of the law and retired. This service is, I suppose, designed to represent the order in which the law and the gospel perform their work in Christian experience. At all events, the people hear the law of God in every service, and I think it very much in place. The Methodist brother of whom I have spoken will, I think, become a valuable helper. He is a man of good understanding, and very much in earnest to learn the truth, and not less in earnest to teach others. He is a German, but understands some French, and is very anxious to read English. Himself and wife and four others, all newly converted to the truth within a few weeks, will be baptized shortly. It was publications that first interested this brother. I hope by the time of the baptism there will be still others to offer themselves as candidates. Though the work is prosecuted at present under difficulties, yet we have tokens of good. J. N. ANDREWS.
La Coudre, Neuchatel, June 14, ’75.