Earlier text: The Reward of ObedienceTHE existence of the spirit as a separate entity apart from the body, and its power to express itself independently of any physical medium, are conditions absolutely essential in establishing the claims of Spiritualism. The doctrine that death is only a separation of the spirit from the body, and that the spirit continues its conscious existence in a higher sphere, which is maintained in nearly every orthodox creed, has laid the foundation for Spiritualism, and the structure is rapidly rising. Belief in the probability of communication between these disembodied spirits and those still in the flesh is constantly being encouraged, and the way is thus being prepared for a union with Spiritualism. As an illustration of this we quote the following from a leading religious paper:— We are quite sure
That He will give them back—bright,
pure, and beautiful.
We know he will but keep
Our own and his until we fall asleep.
We know he does not mean
To break the strands reaching between
The Here and There.
He does not mean—though heaven be
fair—
To change the spirits entering there, that
they forget
The eyes upraised and wet,
The lips too still for prayer,
The mute despair. Thus those whose friends have been stricken by death are encouraged to look for comfort to the hope of continued fellowship with the departed, rather than to rest upon “that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ.” A CORRESPONDENT of the Homiletic Review furnishes a very clear analysis of that movement which is designated as “New Theology.” He affirms that there are four facts which furnish the explanation of it. To quote his own words:— The first is the rise of a new cosmical philosophy, the theory of evolution; the second is a new psychology; the third is a new sociology, partly for interpreting, and partly arising out of, a new set of social facts, of which the chief is the modern industrial organism; the fourth is known as the historical criticism. In developing these four facts the writer shows plainly that they are all so related to the doctrine of evolution as to be only the application of this theory in different departments of knowledge. Thus he continues:— Evolution has been the method followed in developing certain phases of the “New Theology,” and has largely determined its fundamentals. . . . Modern psychology is an evolutionary science. . . . Sociology, as largely taught to-day, also uses evolution as its formative and energizing idea. . . . The critical process [Higher Criticism] gets its most powerful incentive from the necessity that every critic is under to interpret Scripture in harmony with evolution, psychology, and man’s present social life. It will thus be seen that the one fundamental teaching which is responsible for all that is included under the term “New Theology” is evolution. When the professed believers in the inspiration of the Scriptures yielded to the claims of evolution concerning the first chapter of Genesis, they accepted principles which have led to the repudiation of all the essential doctrines of Christianity. Evolution and the Christianity of the Bible are utterly irreconcilable. The Crown of Life
By H. C. Nutting
Nor all may share the battle’s shock,
And blood-stained colors onward bear;
Not all may deadly peril mock,
Not all the victor’s chaplet wear. What man shall say that aught of these
No part hath wrought in victory won?
Could warrior’s hand the laurel seize,
Were sober, homely tasks undone? No service for the King that’s wrought
Escapes his ever-watchful care:
Not all may see the battle fought,
But all a crown of life may wear. — H. C. Nutting, in the Christian Advocate. Accepted in the Beloved
By Ellen G. White
“PAUL, an apostle of Jesus Christ by the will of God, to the saints which are at Ephesus, and to the faithful in Christ Jesus: Grace be to you, and peace, from God our Father, and from the Lord Jesus Christ.” “Grace be to you.” We owe everything to God’s free grace. Grace in the covenant ordained our adoption. Grace in the Saviour effected our redemption, our regeneration, and our exaltation to heirship with Christ. Not because we first loved him, did God love us; but “while we were yet sinners,” Christ died for us, making full and abundant provision for our redemption. Although by our disobedience we have merited God’s displeasure and condemnation, yet he has not forsaken us, leaving us to grapple with the power of the enemy. Heavenly angels fight our battles for us, and, co-operating with them, we may be victorious over the powers of evil. We should never have learned the meaning of this word “grace,” had we not fallen. God loves the sinless angels, who do his service, and are obedient to all his commands; but he does not give them grace. These heavenly beings know naught of grace; they have never needed it, for they have never sinned. Grace is an attribute of God shown to undeserving human beings. We ourselves did not seek after it, but it was sent out in search of us. God rejoices to bestow this grace upon all who hunger for it, not because we are worthy, but because we are so utterly unworthy. Our need is the qualification which gives us the assurance that we shall receive this gift. “And peace, from God our Father, and from the Lord Jesus Christ.” Every man’s experience testifies to the truth of the words of Scripture: “The wicked are like the troubled sea, when it can not rest. . . . There is no peace, saith my God, to the wicked.” Sin has destroyed our peace. While self is unsubdued, we can find no rest. The masterful passions of the heart no human power can control. We are as helpless here as were the disciples to control the raging storm. But he who spoke peace to the billows of Galilee has spoken the word of peace for every soul. However fierce the tempest, those who turn to Jesus with the cry, “Lord, save us,” will find deliverance. His grace, which reconciles the soul to God, quiets the strife of human passion, and in his love the heart is at rest. “He maketh the storm a calm, so that the waves thereof are still. Then are they glad because they be quiet; so he bringeth them unto their desired haven.” “Being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.” “The work of righteousness shall be peace; and the effect of righteousness quietness and assurance forever.” Whoever consents to renounce sin, and open his heart to the love of Christ, becomes a partaker of this heavenly peace. There is no other ground of peace than this. The grace of Christ, received into the heart, subdues enmity; it allays strife, and fills the soul with love. He who is at peace with God and his fellow men can not be made miserable. Envy will not be in his heart; evil surmisings will find no room there; hatred can not exist. The heart that is in harmony with God is a partaker of the peace of heaven, and will diffuse its blessed influence on all around. The spirit of peace will rest like dew upon hearts weary and troubled with worldly strife. Christ’s followers are sent to the world with the message of peace. Whoever, by the quiet, unconscious influence of a holy life, shall reveal the love of Christ; whoever, by word or deed, shall lead another to renounce sin, and yield his heart to God, is a peacemaker. And “blessed are the peacemakers: for they shall be called the children of God.” The spirit of peace is evidence of their connection with heaven. The sweet savor of Christ surrounds them. The fragrance of the life, the loveliness of the character, reveal to the world the fact that they are children of God. Men take knowledge of them, that they have been with Jesus. “Every one that loveth is born of God.” “If any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of his;” but “as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God.” “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ,” the apostle continues, “who hath blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ.” What is there left for us to ask, that is not included in this merciful, abundant provision? Through the merits of Christ we are blessed with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ. It is our privilege to draw nigh to God, to breathe in the atmosphere of his presence. If we keep ourselves in close union with the common, cheap, sensual things of this earth, Satan will interpose his shadow, so that we shall fail to discern the blessedness of the promises and assurances of God, and so shall fail to be strengthened to attain to a high spiritual standard. Nothing short of abiding in the presence of Christ will bring peace, freedom, courage, and power. “According as he hath chosen us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before him in love.” There can be no misunderstanding here, unless there is wilful blindness. We are to be holy and without blame before him in love. The condition on which we receive an increase of grace is that we improve upon the light we already have. If we would find, we must go on continually seeking; if we would receive, we must ask; if we would have the door opened, we must knock. “God hath from the beginning chosen you to salvation through sanctification of the Spirit and belief of the truth.” In this text the two agencies in the salvation of man are revealed,—the divine influence, the strong, living faith of those who follow Christ. It is through the sanctification of the Spirit and the belief of the truth, that we become laborers together with God. God waits for the co-operation of his church. He does not design to add a new element of efficiency to his Word; he has done his great work in giving his inspiration to the Word. The blood of Jesus, the Holy Spirit, the divine Word, are ours. The object of all this provision of heaven is before us; and it depends upon us to lay hold of the promises God has given, and become laborers together with him. Sanctification is the work, not of a day or of a year, but of a lifetime. The struggle for conquest over self, for holiness and heaven, is a life-long struggle. Without continual effort and constant activity, there can be no advancement in the divine life, no attainment of the victor’s crown. Paul’s sanctification was the result of a constant conflict with self. He said, “I die daily.” His will and his desires every day conflicted with duty and the will of God. Instead of following inclination, he did God’s will, however crucifying to his own nature. God leads his people on step by step. The Christian life is a battle and a march. In this warfare there is no release; the effort must be continuous and persevering. It is by unceasing endeavor that we maintain the victory over the temptations of Satan. Christian integrity must be sought with resistless energy, and maintained with a resolute fixedness of purpose. There is a science of Christianity to be mastered,—a science as much deeper, broader, higher, than any human science as the heavens are higher than the earth. The mind is to be disciplined, educated, trained; for we are to do service for God in ways that are not in harmony with inborn inclination. There are hereditary and cultivated tendencies to evil that must be overcome. Our hearts must be educated to become steadfast in God. We are to form habits of thought that will enable us to resist temptation. By8a life of holy endeavor and firm adherence to the right, the children of God are to seal their destiny. God has “predestinated us unto the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to himself, according to the good pleasure of his will, to the praise of the glory of his grace, wherein he hath made us accepted in the Beloved.” The word that was spoken to Jesus at the Jordan, embraces humanity. God spoke to Jesus as our representative. With all our sins and weaknesses, we are not cast aside as worthless. “He hath made us accepted in the Beloved.” The glory that rested upon Christ is a pledge of the love of God for us. It tells us of the power of prayer,—how the human voice may reach the ear of God, and our petitions find acceptance in the courts of heaven. By sin, earth was cut off from heaven, and alienated from its communion; but Jesus has connected it again with the sphere of glory. His love has encircled man, and reached the highest heaven. The light which fell from the open portals upon the head of our Saviour, will fall upon us as we pray for help to resist temptation. The voice which spoke to Jesus says to every believing soul, “This is my beloved child, in whom I am well pleased.” “Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be; but we know that, when he shall appear, we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is.” Our Redeemer has opened the way, so that the most sinful, the most needy, the most oppressed and despised, may find access to the Father. All may have a home in the mansions which Jesus has gone to prepare. “These things saith he that is holy, he that is true, he that hath the key of David, he that openeth, and no man shutteth, and shutteth, and no man openeth; . . . Behold, I have set before thee an open door, and no man can shut it.” The Spirit of the World Versus the Spirit of God
By S. H. CARNAHAN
It is interesting to notice some of the words which show the spirit of the world in its working in contrast with those that indicate Christ’s methods of doing. In the schools of to-day it is cram; in business it is push; in political and social circles it is compete for advantage or supremacy. The multitudes on the streets crowd. It is all hurry, and the idea is enforce, compel, in short, rule or ruin. Some say it is only competition. Satan strove to compete with the God of heaven—even to setting up a kingdom of his own. And this as well as the ways of the world is on the rush to destruction. The Lord’s ways are the opposite of this. He took six days to make the world and the things that are therein, and rested the seventh day. His work will stand through all eternity. His methods are not to drive and force; but to attract, draw, lead. Christ says, “No man can come to me, except the Father which hath sent me draw him.” It is the goodness of God that leadeth to repentance. Greed, love of money, of fame, or of fortune now drive men mad, and incite them to do desperate things. The apostle Paul by inspiration of God says, “This know also, that in the last days perilous times shall come.” It is the spirit of the world that is making these times perilous, and it is only the Spirit of God that can enable us to pass through such times unscathed. Individual Obligation and Personal Effort
By G. A. IRWIN
I copied from the Home Missionary some years ago a statement made by Arthur T. Pierson, one of the world's greatest missionaries, which I wish to have the insert here, since it contains a truth not infrequently overlooked in the consideration of our subject:— “You can not absolve yourself by any personal liberality out of your purse for the personal duty of laboring for the lost. We can never bring this world to the knowledge of Christ by an ordained set of ministers of the gospel. We must do what the primitive Christians did when they ‘went everywhere preaching the Word,’ except the apostles, who remained at Jerusalem. They went everywhere talking about Jesus; they simply told what they knew. Theirs was no eloquent discourse, after the dialectical fashion of the schools. No, dear friends; the men that were in the apostolic succession remained at Jerusalem, while the common laity went out; and the apostles are mentioned as being excepted, in order that we may understand that the preaching that was done was not done by the apostles, because they were not scattered abroad, but it was done by the common disciples; and the reason why in the first century heathen fanes began to be forsaken of their worshipers, and heathen priests began to tremble lest their idols should have no more devotees, was because this magnificent work was taken up by the great bulk of the disciples; they were scattered abroad with the message of salvation flying from lip to ear, descending from ear to heart, coming up from heart to lip, and again going forth from the lip to the ears of others.” This statement is in perfect accord with the spirit of prophecy, as will be seen from the quotations that follow:— “But many of our people are surfeited with the privileges they have enjoyed, and have lost the sense of the value of human souls. “Christ has given to every man his work. He expects every man to do his work with fidelity. High and low, rich and poor, all have a work to do for the Master. Every one is called to action. But if you do not obey the voice of the Lord, if you do not do his work in firm reliance upon Christ as your sufficiency, if you do not follow his example, ‘unfaithful, slothful servant,’ will be registered against your name. Unless the light that has been given you is communicated to others, unless you let your light shine, it will go out in darkness, and your soul will be left in awful peril. God speaks to every one who knows the truth, ‘Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven.’ Communicate the knowledge of the truth to others. This is God’s plan to enlighten the world.” To communicate the knowledge of the truth we have received to others, means more than simply to send out tracts that contain the truth. That is a part of our work, but the giving of our means and the sending out of tracts and papers will not absolve us from our obligations in a personal way. It is the personal contact of soul with soul, heart with heart, that makes impressions upon the hearts and minds of the people. “Communicate the knowledge of the truth to others.” I maintain that if we would communicate the light that God is giving us, it would not be long before the loud cry would sweep over the earth like a tidal wave, and the work of God would be finished. If only one church of any considerable size in each conference or mission field would adopt “God’s plan to enlighten the world,” namely to “communicate the knowledge of the truth to others,” and keep perseveringly at it, it would not be long before the influence of such churches would extend and widen until it embraced the whole world. This is what the Lord would be pleased to see, and he is waiting expectantly for such a consecration on the part of individuals and churches that he may pour his Spirit upon them for service. “Brethren and sisters, many of you excuse yourselves from labor on the plea of inability to work for others. But did God make you so incapable? Was not this inability produced by your own inactivity and perpetuated by your own deliberate choice? Did not God give you at least one talent to improve, not for your own convenience and gratification, but for him? Have you realized your obligation, as his hired servant, to bring a revenue to him by the wise and skilful use of this entrusted capital? Have you not neglected opportunities to improve your powers to this end? It is too true that few have felt any real sense of their responsibility to God. Love, judgment, memory, foresight, tact, energy, and every other faculty have been devoted to self. You have displayed greater wisdom in the service of evil than in the cause of God. You have perverted, disabled, nay, even besotted your powers, by your intense activity in worldly pursuits to the neglect of God’s work.”—Testimonies for the Church, Vol. V, page 457. “Remember that your responsibility is measured not by your present resources and capacities, but by the powers originally bestowed and the possibilities for improvement. The question which each one should ask himself is not whether he is now inexperienced and unfit for labor in God’s cause, but how and why he is in this condition, and how it can be remedied. God will not supernaturally endow us with qualifications which we lack; but while we exert the ability we have, he will work with us to increase and strengthen every faculty; our dormant energies will be aroused, and powers which have long been palsied will receive new life. “So long as we are in the world, we must have to do with the things of the world. There will ever be a necessity for the transaction of temporal, secular business; but this should never become all-absorbing. The apostle Paul has given a safe rule, ‘Not slothful in business; fervent in spirit; serving the Lord.’ The humble, common duties of life are all to be performed with fidelity, ‘heartily,’ says the apostle, ‘as unto the Lord.’ Whatever our department of labor, be it housework, or field work, or intellectual pursuits, we may perform it to the glory of God so long as we make Christ first and last and best in everything. But aside from these worldly employments, there is given to every follower of Christ a special work for the upbuilding of his kingdom,—a work which requires personal effort for the salvation of men. It is not a work to be performed once a week merely, at the place of worship, but at all times and in all places.”—Ibid., page 459. There is a statement in “Great Controversy,” under the title of “The Final Warning,” which reads as follows:— “Servants of God, with their faces lighted up and shining with holy consecration, will hasten from place to place and proclaim the message of heaven. By thousands of voices, all over the earth, the warning will be given. [Then it will not be given by our ministers alone unless we have a marked increase in our ministry before that time comes.] Miracles will be wrought, the sick will be healed, and signs and wonders will follow the believers.” This is just how it was in the early rain, when the believers were scattered everywhere from Jerusalem to the four corners of the earth. The Lord is going to cut his work short in righteousness. The only thing that is lacking now is for us to become imbued with the zeal and the missionary spirit which characterized the believers in the early Christian church. “The message will be carried not so much by argument as by the deep conviction of the Spirit of God. The arguments have been presented. The seed has been sown, and now it will spring up and bear fruit. The publications distributed by missionary workers have exerted their influence, yet many whose minds were impressed have been prevented from fully comprehending the truth or from yielding obedience. Now the rays of light penetrate everywhere, the truth is seen in its clearness, and the honest children of God sever the bands which have held them. Family connections, church relations, are powerless to stay them now. Truth is more precious than all besides. Notwithstanding all the agencies combined against the truth, a large number take their stand upon the Lord’s side.”—“Great Controversy,” page 612. This prediction is going to be fulfilled, and that not very far in the future. There are thousands who have heard the truth at some time. When the time finally comes that the Spirit of God is poured out upon his people, and they go forth clothed with the panoply of heaven, these halting ones will come out and connect with the people of God. “If you do not stand in your allotted place, if you do not let your light shine, you will become enshrouded in darkness. God calls upon all the sons and daughters of the heavenly family to be fully equipped, so that at any period they can step into the ranks ready for action. The heart made tender and sympathetic by the love of Jesus will find the precious pearls designed for the casket of the Lord Jesus.” How is the heart going to “be made tender and sympathetic by the love of Jesus”?—Just by giving our hearts to him, and allowing him to use us where he indicates. Then we shall go out and find the precious pearls designed for the casket of the Lord Jesus. “For as the rain cometh down, and the snow from heaven, and returneth not thither, but watereth the earth, and maketh it bring forth and bud, that it may give seed to the sower, and bread to the eater: so shall my word be that goeth forth out of my mouth: it shall not return unto me void, but it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall prosper in the thing whereto I sent it. For ye shall go out with joy, and be led forth with peace.” Joy and peace are the fruits of the Spirit, and when individuals go out to publish his word of truth, with the joy and peace of the Holy Ghost in their hearts, they will find other souls who will be ready to respond to that same influence, and there will be joy and peace in many families that are now destitute of these things. In the joy and peace that come to such souls it will be seen that inanimate objects, such as mountains and trees, unite with them in ascribing praise to God. “Instead of the thorn shall come up the fir-tree, and instead of the brier shall come up the myrtle-tree: and it shall be to the Lord for a name, for an everlasting sign that shall not be cut off.” Isa. 55:13. (The thorns and briers are the result of sin.) “Cursed is the ground for thy sake; in sorrow shalt thou eat of it all the days of thy life; thorns also and thistles shall it bring forth unto thee.” Gen. 3:17, 18. Sin in some of its forms is in nearly all the families in the land, and it is wounding and piercing on every hand. When the truth of God is taken into the soul, the thorn will be supplanted by the fir-tree, which is emblematic of beauty, glory, and praise, since its wood was used for the doors and ceiling in Solomon’s temple, and also in making harps and other musical instruments for use in the temple worship. The brier is supplanted by the myrtle, a beautiful aromatic tree, whose dark, glossy leaves and scented white flowers were used in synagogues at the feast of tabernacles, and its dried berries and flowers as perfume, symbolic of the fragrance of Christ’s life that filled the whole earth. That is what we shall find in the homes of the people when we go out imbued with the Spirit of God. We shall find that the word of God will not return to him void. God’s word will accomplish that whereto it was sent. The time has fully come when we must arouse to our duty. Everything gives evidence that God is ready to work. May the Lord hasten the day when this can be said of all his people. Something Unusual
By E. K. SLADE
DURING the past few years many efforts have been made, with excellent success, to secure a large circulation of certain special numbers of our periodicals. We have come to look upon the issuing of specials as a very common practise, and the frequency of such efforts may in some measure detract from the effectiveness of these efforts. This plan to make the Thanksgiving number of the REVIEW a special is not to be considered an ordinary thing. It is not an effort to secure a large circulation for one of our periodicals, but to secure a large contribution of means for the spread of the message. The proposition to make this a strong effort to secure contributions from our neighbors and friends is an unusual one in our practise, yet one that we believe is in perfect harmony with the plans and purposes of God. The demands of the foreign field for means have far exceeded what we as a people have supplied. While this plan is not designed to excuse the people of God from their financial obligations to this work, it does use his people as an agency by which the way may be opened for “the wealth of the Gentiles” to be brought in. Our people in the churches have responded more or less in efforts that have been made to use the various specials of the past. This effort, we believe, should call for a more general co-operation than has ever been seen in the efforts that have been made before.10If the ingathering week passes with but just a few in each church having a part in it, it will come far short of the desired object. Our church elders may do much to have this effort properly understood, and to secure a full co-operation, by entering into the work at once. By a wise effort, in which the young and the old take part, and in which true faith is exercised, great things may be accomplished by this admirable plan for ingathering week. Shall we not take the proper steps sufficiently early to have this become the most unusual effort and the most successful move that we have ever made in the gathering of funds, as well as in bringing a knowledge of our message and our missionary operations to the attention of the public? God's Wind
By Lillie E. Barr.
The wind that blows can never kill
The tree God plants;
It bloweth east; it bloweth west;
The tender leaves have little rest,
But any wind that blows is best.
The tree God plants
Strikes deeper roots, grows higher still,
Spreads wider boughs; for God's good
will
Meets all its wants. Has the Church Any Protection From Inward Foes?
By GEORGE I. BUTLER
THE next testimony we adduce is St. Paul’s directions concerning the incestuous Corinthians, and the case of Hymenæus and Alexander. 1 Cor. 5: 2-5; 1 Tim. 1: 19, 20. Of the first, he says to the Corinthian church: “Ye are puffed up, and have not rather mourned, that he that hath done this deed might be taken away from among you. For I verily, as absent in body, but present in spirit, have judged already, as though I were present, concerning him that hath so done this deed, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, when ye are gathered together, and my spirit, with the power of our Lord Jesus Christ, to deliver such an one unto Satan for the destruction of the flesh, that the spirit may be saved in the day of the Lord Jesus.” Concerning Hymenæus and Alexander, Paul says: “Holding faith, and a good conscience; which some having put away concerning faith have made shipwreck: of whom is Hymenæus and Alexander; whom I have delivered unto Satan, that they may learn not to blaspheme.” These persons were excommunicated; the first for immorality, the others for heresy. Evidently the phrase, “delivered unto Satan,” is equivalent to excommunication. It must mean that. If they were left in the fellowship of the church, it could not truthfully be said that they were “delivered unto Satan.” Let us notice other scriptures to make this point plain. In Col. 1: 2-14 Paul addresses the church in these words: “To the saints and faithful brethren in Christ which are at Colosse.” Paul exhorts them to give thanks unto the Father, “which hath made us meet to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in light: who hath delivered us from the power of darkness, and hath translated us into the kingdom of his dear Son: in whom we have redemption through his blood, even the forgiveness of sins.” Here these brethren are represented as coming forth from Satan’s kingdom of darkness into the church of our Lord Jesus Christ, where the light of heaven prevails—out of Satan’s dark kingdom into Christ’s kingdom of light and glory. They come into that kingdom by repentance and faith in Jesus Christ, the outward evidence of this change being their admission into the church of Jesus Christ. But now by sins of transgression or of heresy they have violated the principles of their holy religion, the evidence of which they plainly give. Their fellowship was withdrawn, and they stand just where they were before. Where was that?—In the darkness of Satan’s dominions. ‘Put on the whole armor of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against wicked spirits in heavenly places.’ Eph. 6: 11, 12, margin. This language quoted from the apostle’s writings clearly demonstrates that giving one’s heart to God and becoming connected with his visible church on earth is reckoned by him as a translation into the kingdom of our Lord Jesus Christ on earth; and consciously committing flagrant sins, persisting in them in self-justification, and being cast forth without the fellowship of his people, is a transference to the kingdom of Satan—delivered ‘unto Satan.’ Paul describes the commission he received from the Lord Jesus when he was sent to the Gentiles: “To open their eyes, and to turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan unto God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins, and inheritance among them which are sanctified by faith that is in me.” Acts 26: 18. Here again the act of being placed in Christ’s kingdom, the church, is pronounced to be a translation from darkness to light, from the power of Satan unto God. Conversely, to be cast out of the church would be to be removed from light to darkness, to be transferred from God’s government and delivered unto Satan. Lest after all these clear evidences of the meaning of the term, ‘delivered unto Satan,’ any may doubt whether it refers to withdrawing fellowship, let us notice Paul’s statements concerning the incestuous person. See 1 Cor. 5: 5. After the statement in verse 5, “To deliver such an one unto Satan for the destruction of the flesh,” the apostle proceeds: “Your glorying is not good. Know ye not that a little leaven leaveneth the whole lump? Purge out therefore the old leaven, that ye may be a new lump.” He writes this to the Corinthian church. But the principle is the same in any other church. Verse 9: “I wrote unto you in an epistle not to keep company with fornicators.” Verse 13: “Therefore put away from among yourselves that wicked person.” We know not how language could be made plainer than in these various expressions. Paul is referring to one and the same thing—the expulsion of this incestuous person from the church, and the danger of the church being contaminated in holding in fellowship persons who are living in wickedness and known sin. Let us briefly notice a few other scriptures before closing our consideration of this subject: “Mark them which cause division and offenses contrary to the doctrine which ye have learned; and avoid them.” Rom. 16: 17. “I would they were even cut off which trouble you.” Gal. 5: 12. “If any man teach otherwise, and consent not to wholesome words, even the words of our Lord Jesus Christ, and to the doctrine which is according to godliness; . . . from such withdraw thyself.” 1 Tim. 6: 3-5. “A man that is an heretic after the first and second admonition reject.” Titus 3: 10. A heretic is one who holds not to doctrines taught by the Scriptures, which he once believed but now disowns. “Though we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel unto you than that which we have preached unto you, let him be accursed.” Gal. 1: 8, 9. There are many other scriptures that speak just as decidedly as these we have quoted. But if these do not demonstrate the absolute necessity of being sound in the faith of God’s Word, and the duty of watching carefully lest heresies come in, and of dealing decidedly with those teaching them, when in the church, then others will fail to teach these important truths. The Word teaches the necessity of soundness in the faith, and that wicked conduct in the membership is not to be tolerated. The Scriptures demand that those in error be faithfully dealt with, that they be warned, and if possible saved. It is a duty we owe to those indulging in wickedness, or teaching contrary to sound doctrine, to show such their wrongs. If they repent and humble their hearts, then all will rejoice. But if they stubbornly refuse to correct their conduct, it is best for the church and best for the individual, for the church to take its stand and no longer hold them in fellowship. All should be done in love and faithfulness. Thus we see that God has placed in his church on earth power to protect itself from internal evils. Christ himself commands that we should use this power when necessary. A REPULSIVE-LOOKING old woman, who, after a life of unbelief, had been converted, became the subject of persecution at the hands of her godless neighbors. In every way they sought to anger or otherwise disturb the spirit of patience and loving-kindness that now possessed her. Finally an old persecutor, having exhausted all her resources in the attempt, venomously exclaimed, “I think you’re the ugliest old woman that I ever saw.” To which the old woman, her face beaming with a light that made her beautiful, replied, in tears, “Wasn’t it wonderful that He could love an ugly old woman like me?”—Selected. The Blessed Bible
By Charles Wesley
When quiet in my house I sit,
Thy Book be my companion still;
My joy thy sayings to repeat,
Talk o'er the records of thy will,
And search the oracles divine,
Till every heartfelt word be mine. O, may the gracious words divine
Subject of all my converse be!
So will the Lord his follower join,
And walk and talk himself with me;
So shall my heart his presence prove,
And burn with everlasting love. Oft as I lay me down to rest,
O, may the reconciling word
Sweetly compose my weary breast,
While on the bosom of my Lord
I sink in blissful dreams away
And visions of eternal day. Rising to sing my Saviour's praise,
Thee may I publish all day long;
And let thy precious word of grace
Flow from my heart, and fill my
tongue;
Fill all my life with purest love,
And join me to the church above.