Earlier text: SOME VALUABLE BOOKSCome; for All Things Are Now Ready
By Arthur G. Daniells
This invitation and declaration are found in our Lord's parable of the great supper, recorded in Luke 14:16–24. This parable tells us that Jesus is ready to come; that those to whom he is about to come must proclaim that fact to the world; and that its proclamation means service, labor, toil, on the part of those who make the proclamation. The time of this parable has arrived. All things are now ready. The time has come in the progress of the great controversy between Christ and Satan for Jesus to come and end the controversy, break the reign of sin, and establish God's kingdom in the earth. The time has fully come for the consummation of all that the gospel holds out to man. The message of Christ's coming is a soul-purifying, heart-cleansing message. There is wrapped in it everything that pertains to the preparation of men to7dwell in the presence of God forever. Hence the third angel's message embraces every phase of true reform in the world to-day. The message of Christ's coming must be accompanied with the exhortation, “Prepare to meet thy God.” Salvation from sin is the only true preparation to meet God. The erection of large buildings, the organization and operation of large institutions, great activity and bustle in religious work,—these are not a preparation to meet God. All these may be indispensable in the work of those who are preparing, or who may be prepared, to meet him; but they are not the preparation. Salvation from the power of sin, clean hearts,—that alone is the preparation that will enable us to stand in the presence of him who is “a consuming fire.” Those who are commanded to give the invitation to the supper are to go out quickly. The time is short, the final crisis has come, the message is urgent, and there must be no delay. The messengers must be awake, active, and intense. They must give the message in a manner that will quickly arrest the attention of the whole world. This can be done, for God has ways and means, methods and processes, of working that we little appreciate, by which he can arouse the whole world in a very short time. Is it not evident that many of the inventions of these last days are designed by the Lord to be used in giving this invitation speedily to the world? The railway and steamship lines have not been brought into use simply to enrich stockholders, and transport pleasure seekers. They are to carry God's messengers and printed truth quickly to every part of the world. The printing press has not been perfected merely for financial gain, or for the publication of corrupting literature. This wonderful invention is to be used in every part of the world in sounding the invitation to the supper. The electric telegraph, cable, and telephone lines have not been wrapped around the world simply for the rapid transit of war intelligence or the condition of the stock exchange. All these facilities are to serve a higher purpose than the world recognizes. Every one of them is a factor for God's use. He will yet lay his hand upon all of them, and use them to great advantage and with great power in closing up his work. Nor will it take the Lord long to do this when his people are ready. God can work to-day just as he did with Peter and John at the temple when that poor lame man was given healing power. Let the Lord stretch forth his hand to work through his people with signs and wonders and mighty power, and it will not take long, with the facilities prepared, to arrest the attention of the whole world. The gaze of all nations could soon be fastened upon God's people, and an inquiry could soon be instituted that would enable them to proclaim the message to listening, interested people everywhere. Ah, yes; as soon as God's people are ready, the Lord will make use of all these facilities for extending the last invitation to a perishing world. The latter rain will begin to fall, the loud cry will be heard, and the earth will be lightened with the glory of God. This call presents to us the idea of consecrated service. God has made the preparation; he has sent out the invitation; he has told us where to go; he has given us a message to proclaim; and he has supplied the power. That is his part. But there is something in all this that belongs to man, and that is service, toil, earnest labor. That is our part, and that is the all-important thing for us to consider just now. When the light of this message first began to dawn, the leading thought was truth, Bible doctrine, the faith once delivered to the saints. And so men searched their Bibles, having as their primary object the development of clear lines of truth. They did not go to the writings of men. They got their light directly from the writings of God's own seers. But a few years ago another message was sent to this people with great emphasis, and that was righteousness by faith in Jesus Christ. The message was needed in order that rightness of heart might be blended with rightness of thought, and with these two we have the mightiest combination that the world has ever seen. Then later, the message came, “Receive ye the Holy Ghost.” This message was needed to qualify us for service. With the mind set right, and the heart made clean, man still needs the power of the living God to serve; and so the message came, “Receive ye the Holy Ghost.” The greatest need of this denomination to-day is the power from above which will qualify all the people for faithful service, and enable them to march on, with unbroken tread, to victory. Jesus is coming. Proclaim it to the world. This is the message, and it means earnest service on the part of all the people from this day forth until the work is done. A. G. DANIELLS. Press dispatches relating to the observance of “Good Friday” make note of the extent to which the leading Protestant bodies are following the example of Rome in this respect. The celebration of this papal day now seems to have become general in the Protestant churches. The New York Sun makes this mention of the deference paid to the day in New York City:— Good Friday was generally observed about the city yesterday. All of the exchanges were closed, but the banks were open, as were the courts, the day not being a legal holiday in this State. Many business houses, however, were closed. There were services in most of the churches, some continuing through the most part of the day, and in some instances in the evening. The Passion service in the Episcopal churches was held from noon till three o’clock. For at least two years, it is stated, The British government has been pouring into South Africa thousands of fresh horses and mules every month, sometimes as many as 13,000 monthly; and a conservative estimate says that 150,000 of these animals have perished as the result of the war in that country. This tells what war is from the standpoint of the crime of cruelty to animals. The Pope’s Encyclical on Liberty
By Editor
A RECENT press dispatch from Rome states that Pope Leo has prepared an encyclical which, believing that his end is now near at hand, he designs to be his testament to the Catholic Church. It is published in the Vatican organ, The Osservatore Romano. Only a summary of the document has yet appeared in the American press, but in this it is stated that the pope presents a dark view of the prevailing religious and political conditions, declaring that never has humanity found itself in more miserable conditions than at present. Socialism and anarchism, he says, have been fostered by excessive liberty, and he declares that the governments of the civilized world must adopt decisive measures for the defense of genuine liberty, and must enforce the teaching of religion. Religious liberty is, according to Cardinal Gibbons, a competent Catholic authority, the liberty to worship God "according to the dictates of a right conscience." The church tells what a "right conscience" must accept as the truth, and every person is allowed the liberty to believe the doctrines prescribed, and to be governed by them in his worship of God; this is "genuine liberty," of the papal kind. And the governments of the earth, says this encyclical, must adopt decisive measures for the defense of this "genuine liberty." They must, it says, enforce the teaching of religion; by which is meant, of course, the Catholic religion, that only being the true religion, from the papal standpoint. To do all this would mean nothing less than that the civil governments of earth should join hands with the papacy. Then "excessive liberty" would be restrained after the approved methods of the Middle Ages; but socialism and anarchy would only spread the faster. We regret that we have not the full and exact text of the encyclical upon these points; this may appear in English later. But from this summary of its contents it is evident that Leo's "testament" to his church is an important and eminently Roman Catholic document. Instruction to Church Members
By Ellen G. White
Many things that do not now appear in a correct light, will be made plain in the day of the Lord. But the question of forgiveness needs not to be interpreted. There is never a time when it is right for you or me to say, “I will not forgive my brother; I will not walk in fellowship with him.” He who does this places himself in opposition to the teachings of Christ. If your brother does you an injustice ignorantly, and then holds out the hand of fellowship, saying, “If I have erred and have done you an injury, forgive me,” and you draw away from him, refusing to forgive, you walk away from the great Counselor, and need yourself to repent and be forgiven. If he does you an injury knowingly, and afterward repents, saying, “Forgive me,” it is not for you to turn away, refusing to forgive because you may think that he does not feel humble enough, and does not mean what he says. You have no right to judge him, for you cannot read the heart. If a brother errs, forgive him if he asks you. If he is not humble enough to ask, forgive him in your heart, and express your forgiveness in word and action. Then the weight of his sin will not in any degree rest on you. “Considering thyself, lest thou also be tempted.” “If he trespass against thee seven times in a day, and seven times in a day turn again to thee, saying, I repent; thou shalt forgive him.” And we are not only to forgive seven times, but seventy times seven. Just as often as God forgives us, we are to forgive one another. One man is never to say to another, “When I see that you have reformed, then I will forgive you.” This is not God’s plan. This is in accordance with the promptings of human nature. By showing that you do not desire fellowship with your brother, you not only hurt his soul and your own, but you also wound and bruise the heart of Christ. While hatred is cherished, there is not an iota of love in the heart; therefore when a man has an offering to present to God, he is to clear away all hatred, that his path may not be blocked. If he humbles his heart before God, confessing his mistake in giving way to the passion which opened the door for Satan to enter and take control of the mind, God will forgive his sin and accept his offering. Christ sees that little heed is paid to his instruction. His people come to him in prayer, asking favors of him, while at the same time they are cherishing hatred against their brethren, not only thinking, but speaking evil of them. God cannot bless them; for they refuse to put out of the way that which causes discord and variance. They would not appreciate the blessing of God should he give it to them as they desire. O how much better it would be if church members would humble themselves under the mighty hand of God, seeking to remove everything that hinders pure, loving fellowship. Christ points his followers to the path of self-sacrifice and self-surrender. Those who walk in this path not only help themselves, but help their brethren and sisters, clearing away the cloud of misunderstanding which Satan throws across the pathway. My brethren and sisters, prepare the way, that you may come to God and be forgiven. Act your part in the work of confession. It is not your brother’s sin that you are to confess, but your own. In doing this, you are making straight paths for his feet, and softened and subdued, he will fall on the Rock, and be broken. And the Lord will look with pleasure on the offerings brought to him. Study the Saviour’s words, “Except your righteousness shall exceed the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, ye shall in no case”—whatever your position—“enter into the kingdom of heaven.” The righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees was of a selfish character, consisting of external forms. The righteousness which God requires is internal as well as external. The heart must be purified, else Christ cannot be enthroned there. The life must be conformed to the will of God. There is no need to marvel that the church is not vivified by the Holy Spirit’s power. Men and women are setting aside the instruction Christ has given. Anger and covetousness are obtaining the victory. The soul-temple is full of wickedness. There is no room for Christ. Men follow their own perverse ways. They will not heed the words of the Saviour. They take themselves into their own hands, rejecting reproofs and warnings, until the candlestick is moved out of its place, and spiritual discernment is confused by human ideas. Though deficient in service, they justify themselves, saying, “The temple of the Lord, The temple of the Lord are we.” They set the law of God aside to follow the light of their own imagination. “Who is among you that feareth the Lord, that obeyeth the voice of his servant, that walketh in darkness, and hath no light? let him trust in the name of the Lord, and stay upon his God. Behold, all ye that kindle a fire, that compass yourselves about with sparks: walk in the light of your fire, and in the sparks that ye have kindled. This shall ye have of mine hand: ye shall lie down in sorrow.” God is true to his covenant with his people. His word is infallible. His people bring suffering on themselves by forsaking his counsel for their own human wisdom. It is impossible for their prayers to reach his throne, because the rebellion of disobedience is the substance of their petitions. Christ came from heaven to teach the word which his Father committed to him for the fallen members of his family. Those who hear and obey walk in safe paths, under the protection of the Lord of heaven. Through the power of Christ they are victorious over every foe. Those who do faithful, unselfish service for God will be blessed in their unity, as they work in obedience to Jehovah. When the church allows within her borders those who are working on lines of worldly ambition, when church members cherish feelings of animosity toward one another, God is greatly dishonored. He cannot bless them with grace and power while they continue in sin, and therefore, unwatered by his grace, they become dry and spiritless. God has given all power to his Son to give to his people as largely as they prepare themselves for its reception. This power is in every way adapted to the necessities of perishing sinners, and God will use the members of his church as his helping hand, if they will place themselves where they can be used. But he does not communicate through impure channels; for this would dishonor his holy name. All who love Jesus will search the Scriptures, that they may know and obey his will. Christ will be to them a very present help in time of need; for God’s power is pledged to faithfulness. He will fulfill his word to all who are true. Christ triumphs in the triumph of his people; therefore prepare his way, that he may bestow his richest gifts on his church. Tell in every church what the individual members must be and do if they work successfully. In God alone is our strength. In quietness and forbearance we shall conquer. Those who reveal the patience of Christ will obtain deliverance. But those who forsake the way of the Lord, marking out new methods and following human surmisings, will surely lie down in sorrow. Perversity, carried into the religious experience, will place them outside the city of God.9 “And behold, I come quickly; and my reward is with me, to give every man according as his work shall be.” “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. . . . I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end, the first and the last. Blessed are they that do his commandments, that they may have right to the tree of life; and may enter in through the gates into the city.” UNDER an Eastern sky,
Amid a rabble's cry,
A Man went forth to die
For me. Thorn-crowned his blessed head,
Blood-stained his every tread;
Cross-laden, on he sped,
For me. Pierced are his hands and feet,
Three hours upon him beat
Fierce rays of noontide heat,
For me. Thus wert Thou made all mine;
Lord, make me wholly thine;
Grant grace and strength divine
To me In thought and word and deed
Thy will to do. O, lead
My soul, e'en though it bleed,
To thee. The Work of the Holy Spirit
By Ellet Joseph Waggoner
WHAT will the Spirit do for us when we receive him?—He will do everything. “He will guide you into all truth,” “and he will show you things to come.” John 16:13. He is the sevenfold Spirit of God—“the Spirit of wisdom and understanding, the Spirit of counsel and might, the Spirit of knowledge and of the fear of the Lord.” Isa. 11:2. “There is a spirit in man: and the inspiration of the Almighty giveth them understanding.” Job 32:8. Every gift of God to man comes by the Spirit. The chief of the blessings that come by the Spirit is wisdom and knowledge, and this knowledge—the knowledge of God—is life eternal. When the soul becomes separated from sin, it comes into connection with the Intelligence of the universe. “Blessed are the pure in heart: for they shall see God.” “Ye have an unction from the Holy One, and ye know all things.” 1 John 2:20. “We know that the Son of God is come, and hath given us an understanding, that we may know him that is true, and we are in him that is true, even in his Son Jesus Christ. This is the true God, and eternal life.” 1 John 5:20. The knowledge given by the Holy Spirit is of such a kind that even the world acknowledges its reality. This is seen in the immediate results of the reception of the Spirit on Pentecost. The disciples began to speak with other tongues. The reason why this particular phase of knowledge was imparted at that time was that there were thousands of people present from every nation under heaven, all of whom needed to hear the gospel. Whatever one needs in order to do the work of the Lord, that the Spirit gives as soon as one is ready to receive it, and will make the right use of it. But this does not mean that the Spirit relieves one of the necessity for study; far from it. God has no sympathy with laziness, and he does not give his Spirit for the purpose of pandering to it. Be sure that God will not impart the gift of tongues to a man who has not enough interest in the work of giving the gospel as a witness to all nations, to impel him to use all the means in his power to fit himself by study to engage in that work. Everything is a free gift from God, and all is by his power; but we must, nevertheless, be willing to work, and must expect that the reception of the Spirit will bring more active service than ever before. What Was Achan’s Sin?
By George B. Starr
The city of Jericho and everything in it were devoted unto the Lord, and by the Lord,—the city to destruction; the harlot Rahab and all her family to salvation. The silver and gold and all the vessels of brass and iron were consecrated unto the Lord. They were to be brought into the treasury of the Lord. So Joshua told all the people plainly, the very day that the city was overthrown: “And the city shall be devoted [margin], even it, and all that are therein, to the Lord: . . . and ye, in any wise keep yourselves from the devoted thing, lest ye make yourselves accursed, when ye take of the devoted thing, and make the camp of Israel a curse, and trouble it. But all the silver, and gold, and vessels of brass and iron, are consecrated unto the Lord: they shall come into the treasury of the Lord.” Joshua 6:17–19. All Israel heard this plain instruction, and shouted their approval. Verse 20. The spoils of battle belong to the conqueror. God was leading the armies of Israel. He overthrew the walls of Jericho, and gained the victory by his own power. To him belonged the spoils and the disposition of them. Now every devoted thing is most holy, even if devoted by man. A sheep selected from the flock and devoted to God, suddenly becomes of priceless value. Its worth now could not be estimated in money. It is beyond market value. It would be sacrilege to withdraw it, or sell it. And so with any other gift. Once devoted to God, it becomes most holy and of priceless value. The altar sanctifies the gift, and gives it its great value. “No devoted thing, that a man shall devote unto the Lord of all that he hath, both of man and beast, and of the field of his possession, shall be sold or redeemed: every devoted thing is most holy unto the Lord.” Lev. 27:28. This being true of what man may devote of his own free action, how much more sacred is that which God himself devotes to a specific purpose? All the gold and silver of Jericho were to be brought into the treasury of the Lord, and so support the proclamation of the gospel as presented in their sanctuary service. This very gold thus appropriated to a sacred and holy purpose, Achan coveted for his own use, and took it, and hid it among his own stuff, in his own tent. This he confessed, when his sin had fully found him out. But when one member of the body sins, all the members suffer with it. Israel was defeated at Ai, and fled before their enemies; and when Joshua rent his clothing, and cried unto the Lord to know the cause, the Lord said unto him: “Israel hath sinned, and they have also transgressed my covenant which I commanded them: for they have even taken of the devoted thing, and have also stolen, and dissembled also, and they have put it even among their own stuff. Therefore the children of Israel could not stand before their enemies, . . . because they were accursed: neither will I be with you any more, except ye destroy the accursed from among you. Up, sanctify the people.” A “devoted thing” misappropriated becomes an accursed thing. All Israel had suffered in the wrong action of one member of the body, and so all Israel must unite in disowning and putting away the sacrilegious theft. See Joshua 7. The casting of lots to find the guilty one was to give Achan an opportunity to make a voluntary confession of his wrong, and right it; but instead, he, like the majority of criminals, braved it out to the last, when the forced confession came too late to avail for him, or to lead to true repentance. Stoned with stones! Burned in the fire with all that he had! This was the Lord’s expression of his abhorrence of Achan’s sin, and of all similar sins. Every devoted thing is most holy, and every devoted thing misappropriated becomes most accursed. Devoted things brought into the Lord’s treasury bring his special blessing upon his people; misappropriated, they bring his special curse. “All the tithe of the land, whether of the seed of the land, or of the fruit of the tree, is the Lord’s: it is holy unto the Lord. . . . The tenth shall be holy unto the Lord.” Lev. 27:30–33. God has reserved to himself the tenth of all man’s increase, as a test of loyal obedience, and a constant recognition of God’s ownership,—an acknowledgment that God is God. Just as he reserved one tree in the garden from Adam and Eve, so has he reserved a tenth from us. The nine tenths we may freely use, but the tithe we may not use; it is his, and is devoted by him to a specific purpose, and must not be diverted from that purpose. It is all to be brought into the Lord’s appointed storehouse, and used solely for the proclamation of the gospel. “And, behold, I have given the children of Levi all the tenth in Israel for an inheritance, for their service which they serve, even the service of the tabernacle of the congregation. . . . The tithes of the children of Israel . . . I have given to the Levites.” A person can give away only that which belongs to him. God gave all the tithes to his ministers. After receiving the tithe from the people, God’s ministers are to pay their tithe also. Num. 18:20–31. Thus the Lord tests the whole human family, making them his stewards; telling them specifically what to do with his portion, and leaving them to separate the holy from the common, and to apply it to its appointed purpose. His command is, “Bring ye all the tithes into the storehouse, that there may be meat in mine house.” But, like Achan, God’s professed people have sinned, and coveted the Lord’s portion and stolen it, and hidden it in their tents, among their own stuff, or placed it in banks under their own names; and so he protests against us:—“Even from the days of your fathers ye are gone away from mine ordinances, and have not kept them. Return10unto me, and I will return unto you, saith the Lord of hosts. But ye said, Wherein shall we return? Will a man rob God? Yet ye have robbed me. But ye say, Wherein have we robbed thee? In tithes and offerings. Ye are cursed with a curse: for ye have robbed me, even this whole nation. Bring ye all the tithes into the storehouse, that there may be meat in mine house, and prove me now herewith, saith the Lord of hosts, if I will not open you the windows of heaven, and pour you out a blessing, that there shall not be room enough to receive it.” Mal. 3:7–12. God changes not. He put it into the hearts of Abraham and of Jacob to pay the tithe to him. Abraham paid tithe to Melchisedec. Melchisedec represented Jesus Christ, and Abraham is the father of all them that believe. “If ye be Christ’s, then are ye Abraham’s seed.” See Hebrews 7. As God planned that the temple service should be supported, even so has he appointed that the gospel work shall be carried forward. “Do ye not know that they which minister about holy things live of the things of the temple? and they which wait at the altar are partakers with the altar? Even so hath the Lord ordained that they which preach the gospel should live of the gospel.” 1 Cor. 9:13, 14. How is it with you, dear reader? Have you any of the Lord’s devoted things among your stuff? hid away in your tent? or in the bank to your credit? or in your business? If so, then for your own sake and the sake of God’s people, and the sake of those who could have the gospel carried to them if more laborers could be sent into the harvest field, separate God’s portion, and bring it into the storehouse. A blessing will overtake you in so doing, and a curse will be removed. LET the motive of devotion to God be the first object of our missionary gift, and how it changes its aspect! We are seized with the conviction of the overwhelming love of God. Love for me—that he condescends to care for me. Love for all men—that he condescends to care for them. Love for me and them—that he condescends to use me to bring a blessing to them. How this loving condescension of God develops the love of man to man. They are dependent—God makes them dependent—on me. His love for them is to be shown through me. He uses me as an instrument in showing his love for them. I become a middleman, a mediator, between God and men. And all this, not because God cannot act directly upon these others, but because he so loves me that he uses me to do that which, humanly speaking, he could do much more easily without me. Being desirous of opening his glorious kingdom to the millions of China and Japan and Africa and America, he, instead of going to them, comes to me, and tells me, on behalf of him, to tell them. What you, unthinkable evidence of the love of God for me, that he should make me an instrument of showering his blessing on these others whom he loves! Lord, what am I that thou visitest me, and givest me the high dignity of acting as thy vicar on earth! But suppose I am unwilling to do this? Suppose Noah had refused to build the ark; suppose Abram had refused to set out from Ur; suppose Isaiah had refused to prophesy; suppose Mary had refused to receive the angelic salutation—does any one wildly suppose the omnipotence of God would have been thwarted? God, in his love, chose to use Noah, Abram, Isaiah, Mary,—his servants in all ages, even me,—to act as his agents in performing his mighty works; but never, never once, did he abdicate his power to do it without them. God reigns; not Noah, nor Abram, nor Isaiah, nor Mary, nor I, nor even the twentieth-century millionaire who can write or erase his bequest of thousands or of millions. Herein, then, is the motive for missionary work. God lifts me up to such a mission as he conferred upon each one of those through whom he did his wondrous works of old. He makes me his vicegerent in his work. And this he does, as an act of love to me. The love shown in my gift to him, is as nothing compared with the love shown by him in accepting and using that gift. It is not I who am generous, but God.—The Living Church. The Spirit of Forgiveness
By Rev. H. C. Wallace
THERE is as much need for daily prayer for forgiveness as for daily prayer for daily bread. It is true that we have bodies, it is also true that we are souls, and that being so, there is as much need that we should pray for the spiritual cleansing as for the temporal sustenance. We are to be the manifestations of God in the world, and just as Jesus Christ represented God, so we living the Christ-life are to mirror forth God to man in the physical absence of our spiritual Master. Is the world better for our living in it? If not, our influence is counting upon the wrong side, for in this matter we cannot be neutral. We need to cultivate the forgiving spirit. If I cannot forgive my brother who has wronged me, there may be something wrong with him, but there is a great deal more that is wrong with me. If the forgiving spirit is absent from my life, the less I say about the religion of Jesus Christ, the better. “O,” says some one, “I will forgive the man, but——,” and he does not need to say anything more. I wonder, if God had acted like that, how it would have fared with some of us! It comes to this, “Forgive us our trespasses, as we also have forgiven them that trespass against us, but forget it we never will.” It is blasphemy to pray such a prayer. We are so to incorporate the Spirit of Christ that we are to live his life, forgiving men their trespasses. This does not mean merely letting things go. That may be laziness. Forgiveness is something more; forgiveness is the heroism of self-conquest, it is the triumph of the spiritual, it is man mastering himself. This is the victory that overcometh the world, even the faith that forgives and is strong; for any faith must be strong that has in it the element of forgiveness.—Rev. H. C. Wallace. PEOPLE speak of being “under a cloud” when they feel despondent; and to have the way cloudy means to them the absence of hope; yet God spoke to Moses and to all Israel out of the cloud, giving them instruction for all time; and it was by a pillar of cloud that he led them through the wilderness. It was only those who had rejected God that found the cloud a trouble. The same cloud that was darkness and gloom and disaster to the Egyptians, was brightness and joy and salvation to the Israelites. The same thing is true to-day; for the same God is leading his people from the same “house of bondage” to the same deliverance, and by the same means. “The Lord hath his way in the whirlwind and in the storm, and the clouds are the dust of his feet.” Nahum 1:3. Our gloom and destruction or our hope and salvation depend on our relation to the cloud. On one side it is dark, but on the side next to God it is light. Nothing that human eye has ever seen is more gloriously beautiful than a cloud lighted up by the sun. Whoever is crucified with Christ, and so risen with him, has been made to sit with him in the heavenly places, and so can look upon every cloud from God’s side of it. No cloud can shut out God from the view of him who makes Christ his dwelling place.—Selected. The Glorification of Life
O, THE glorious gospel of the Christ of God! To have affinity with God, to live in him and possess eternity of being, what glory is this that belongs to frail humanity! Christ circumscribes life? Why, his one thing includes all things—it is God. It includes life, continuous, unbroken, eternal life. O, the grandeur of this perpetual life in God! This is the one thing needful. Without it we have nothing. With it we have all things. Man leaves the creative hand of God, walks this earth, is lost for a few short moments, and then is seen going on, on, in point of existence, parallel with God. Life, according to Jesus, is an eternal now.—Methodist Times. “Somebody did a golden deed;
Somebody proved a friend in need;
Somebody sang a beautiful song;
Somebody smiled the whole day long;
Somebody thought, ’Tis sweet to live;
Somebody said, ‘I’m glad to give;’
Somebody fought a valiant fight;
Somebody lived to shield the right.
Was that somebody you?” LOVE wore a threadbare dress of gray,
And toiled upon the road all day. Love wielded pick and carried pack,
And bent to heavy loads the back. Though meager-fed and sorely tasked,
One only wage Love ever asked— A child's white face to kiss at night,
A woman's smile by candlelight.