OFTEN obedience to the moral law involves an inconvenient duty; hence the perversion of the utterance, “I am not under the law, but under grace.” Instead of rendering cheerful obedience, through Christ, to the requirements of the law, it is argued that the law was abolished at the cross, and a new order of things instituted, even the fullness of grace without the law.
Strange logic, indeed! As if, in the former dispensation, men were saved by the law of the Father, and in the latter dispensation, by the grace of the Son! To prove this theory, Rom. 6:14 is cited. It reads, “For sin shall not have dominion over you: for ye are not under the law, but under grace.” Let us read the fifteenth verse also: “What then? shall we sin, because we are not under the law, but under grace?” The Scriptures teach that “sin is the transgression of the law.” 1 John 3:4. Now let us read this definition of sin into the fourteenth and fifteenth verses of Romans 6: “For the transgression of the law shall not have dominion over you: for ye are not under the law, but under grace. What then? shall we transgress665the law, because we are not under the law, but under grace?” The answer is that which every Christian should cheerfully render: “God forbid.”
GUILTY WHEN UNDER THE LAW
What, then, does the expression “under the law” mean? Rom. 3:19 forever settles its meaning. It reads: “Now we know that what things soever the law saith, it saith to them who are under the law; that every mouth may be stopped, and all the world may become guilty before God.”
Here the law speaks to those who are under it, and pronounces them guilty.
Now when is a man guilty—when he keeps the law, or when he breaks it? All are forced to answer, “When he breaks it, of course.” Very well. It is obvious, then, that it is the guilty man, or lawbreaker, who is under the law; and the guiltless man, or law observer, who is under grace.
It is only through imparted grace that the transgressor is enabled to obey. The moment the penitent, pardoned soul violates the law, he becomes guilty, falls from grace, and is again under the law. He must again sue for pardon before he can be reinstated to grace, “for,” says the apostle James, “whosoever shall keep the whole law, and yet offend in one point, he is guilty of all.” No sort of reasoning can consistently apply this Bible statement to any other but the Ten Commandment law; for the apostle quotes two of the ten by saying that whoever keeps the seventh commandment and violates the sixth, he becomes a transgressor of the law, of which these two commandments are a component part. James 2:10-12.
SEES HIMSELF EXCEEDING SINFUL
When a man has transgressed the moral law, and under the influence of the Holy Spirit, is trembling with guilt, he is under the condemnation of the law. It is then that the transgression of the law, by the commandment becomes exceedingly sinful. Rom. 7:13. Were it not for the interposition of the sin-pardoning Redeemer, the individual would perish. Without the law to bring the sinner into a penitent condition, and a sympathizing Saviour to pardon, there could be no redemption for the transgressor of the law.
The law must act its part before release from sin can be experienced. Says the psalmist, “The law of the Lord is perfect, converting the soul.” Ps. 19:7. It is absolutely essential that the sinner have a knowledge of his sins before he can be converted and come under grace. Therefore “by the law is the knowledge of sin.” It must be apparent to all, that there can be no real change of heart without the intervention of the divine law.
When, through the instrumentality of the law and the agency of the Holy Spirit, the sinner is made to realize his guilt, he will cry out with the apostle Paul, “O wretched man that I am! who shall deliver me from the body of this death?” The moment the sinner is willing to obey the mandates of Heaven, that moment our compassionate Redeemer is ready to deliver the sin-bound soul. Christ would send every angel of heaven to the rescue, if necessary, rather than let the penitent one perish.
The thunders of Sinai cause the penitent transgressor of the moral law to look to the blood-stained cross for pardon. There he receives forgiveness full and free, and is released from the death claim of the law. He is immediately under grace. Such a one will never make void the law of God, or deny his Saviour, so long as he holds his position by faith. No; he will never, never plead, “I am not under the law,” in order to have his own will and way; but will exclaim with the apostle: “Do we then make void the law through faith? God forbid: yea, we ESTABLISH the law.” Rom. 3:31.
“As for Hid Treasures”
By Charles L. Taylor
The Ardent Prospector—His Apparently “Insane” Earnestness—The Still More Valuable Treasures Should Be as Ardently Sought
By CHARLES L. TAYLOR
INSANE! Is that the word? He was a “prospector.” I visited him at his cabin. My first view of the little home revealed various “specimens” brought in from the hills. They were scattered here, there, and everywhere.
To the unschooled mind, those chunks of rock were as so much trash, which should be gathered up and put out of sight as soon as possible. But to that “prospector,” they were all objects of greatest interest. One piece was of quartz, another of porphyry, a third of iron, a fourth of sulphide; but each and all sustained a peculiar relationship to the great subject of earthly treasure.
ENTHUSIASTIC ABOUT HIS TREASURES
Within a few minutes after the welcome to his home, he was busy showing his visitor what he had found. His miner’s hammer was breaking open the chosen specimens, that thus a clearer view might be had of the actual nature of each. Head and heart and hand were all occupied in the effort to reveal the secrets of the business, and to dilate upon the revelation which he was sure the work of the assayer would make.
Then he invited his new friend to take a walk with him up to his “claims” in the mountains. Perhaps the invitation was not altogether appreciated, but for courtesy’s sake it was accepted nevertheless. And so we went out into the wilds of desert, and mountain, and canon, and gulch, and sagebrush, and barrenness, to find larger opportunity for investigation and discussion of the question which to that prospector was paramount—the question of how to find hidden treasure.
MERE HOLE IN THE GROUND
Our journey brought us to a hole in the mountain side. To me it was a very ordinary hole, a very unpromising place indeed. But not so to my host. It was really a wonderful hole in a very wonderful place. Why, he had followed the “float”—loose rock on the surface; and that float was the guide to the ledge; and as the float gave evidence of great values, so the ledge, when found, must contain the unlimited treasure which he sought, and which he must have.
A hole?—No, no! This was the beginning of a great mine. Down in one corner, where he had placed his last blast, he had found the beginnings of the vein of treasure. So he was not satisfied simply to tell me about it, but must jump down and hand up to me an actual sample, that I might see for myself that his story was true. And all the time, he found new things to say about his “prospect.”
CAREFULLY GUARDED HIS CLAIM
To make sure that this “prospect” should not be stolen away, he had erected, according to law, his claim “monuments,” or rock pillars, upon each of which was found a tin box, and in the box a written statement, signed by him, saying that he had “located” this claim, and forbade others to trespass upon his rights.
That prospector talked of naught else, worked at naught else, and apparently thought of naught else, than treasure hidden in the rock. His whole nature was tense over the matter. Noting his apparent indisposition to interest himself in any other question, I asked him one day if he did not think himself slightly insane upon the question of ores. He smiled; but his reply only made plain the fact that he had so long given himself up to seeking gold and silver, that it was impossible for him, apart from grace, to change the bent of his life.
WAS HE INSANE?
Yes, he was insane, if to be given up entirely to one great purpose is insanity. He was a one idea man. Gold seeking was all he knew. And while more than once he had “struck it rich,” only to find that his vein could not be worked except by some man of wealth, to whom it must be sold for a song, yet he always kept on, hoping to find, some day, the life of comfort and ease that he felt ought to be his.
GOD’S ILLUSTRATION
This is God’s illustration of the true way to search for Him—with the exception, of course, that no one shall ever really search in vain. They that seek Him with all the heart “shall find.” They shall find the “good part, which shall not be taken away.” The “one thing needful,” when found, shall be an “everlasting inheritance.”
Think of it—“as for hid treasures”! This is no tame, lifeless conception. It is the insane idea. It is the life-and-death thought. It is that expressed by the apostle when he said, “Forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forth unto those things which are before, I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God, in Christ Jesus.”
Insane?—Yes, call it that if you will; but after all, it is no more than the spirit which filled Jesus’ breast, and made Him long for His baptism of blood, for the complete realization of the purpose He came to accomplish. See Luke 12:50. It is that which puts intensity into the experience. It loosens the tongue to speak for Christ, so that “in season, out of season,” the believer will be making known to others the “values” of the promises of God.
PRAY FOR THE GIFT OF EARNESTNESS
Ah, why should not Christians pray for the gift of earnestness? Why should they allow a poor, uncultured miner to put them to shame? Let us begin anew the search for the hidden gold of life. Let us carefully follow the “float”—the simple and most apparent truths of revelation—treasuring each little gem as we find it, but ever “following on to know the Lord,” knowing that the great “ledge,” the infinite treasure of inexhaustible love and life, awaits the greater efforts of faith. The pick and the shovel, the blasting and the chiseling, the digging and the driving, are absolute prerequisites to the finding of the great ultimates of spiritual values.
BEGIN TO-DAY
To-day is a good time to begin to take others with us in this blessed experience. Let us invite our neighbors and our callers to inspect with us what we have already found. Let us invite them for a walk into the very mountains of prospect, and lead them, if possible, to join us in uncovering the veins of truth, which for ages and generations have been hidden from the gaze of mankind.
Possibly some may think us mad, as Festus thought Paul; but the knowledge that we have really found the mine of character, which yields the imperishable treasure of the world to come, will more than compensate for the reproach, and will keep us to the end. Then we shall be rewarded with the “crown of life, that fadeth not away.”
Strength to Withstand Temptation
“Those who do nothing to encourage temptation will have strength to withstand it when it comes; but those who keep themselves in an atmosphere of evil will have only themselves to blame if they are overcome and fall from their steadfastness.”
THEY ALL WORSHIPED LUNA
By W. Mayhew Healey
Many Heeded an Apostle’s Teaching — The Uproar Stirred Up in Consequence — Is the Experience Repeating Itself?
By W. MAYHEW HEALEY
WHEN the apostle Paul was preaching in Asia, the people were worshiping the goddess Luna, the moon. They called her Diana. In Ephesus they had erected a magnificent temple to her honor. It was 425 feet long by 220 feet wide, and had 127 columns of white marble, each 60 feet high. It was 220 years in building, and was one of the seven wonders of the world.
MANY SILVERSMITHS HAD WORK
A large number of silversmiths were engaged in making “silver shrines for Diana.” These were models of her beautiful temple, and the people purchased them for use in their home devotions, to show that Diana was the goddess of worship in their family circle. Acts 19: 21-41.
The great apostle Paul had a message for that people, which called them to leave their idolatry, and worship the true God. He told them that the “God that made the world and all things therein, seeing that He is Lord of heaven and earth, dwelleth not in temples made with hands; neither is worshiped with men’s hands, as though He needed anything, seeing He giveth to all life, and breath, and all things.” Acts 17: 24, 25.
SHOWING THE TRUE GOD
Pointing out the true God was a leading feature of the gospel as preached by Paul. This God was not the moon, the sun, nor any other creature, but the Creator of all these things. Temples, images, or laws made by the hands of sinful men were not necessary to His worship. He asked men to “obey His voice,” to “keep His commandments.” He gave them His holy Sabbath, to keep in their memory the true God, who made heaven and earth, and all that therein is, in six days, and rested upon the seventh day, and blessing it, set it apart as His memorial.
Paul’s preaching was so full of reason and truth that it was permeating all Asia. It was rapidly breaking down false worship, and lessening the demand for images, and for models of Diana’s temple, until this branch of the silversmiths’ business was in danger of being ruined.
SILVERSMITHS WERE ORGANIZED
The silversmiths appear to have been organized to resist any encroachment upon the craft by which they made “no small gain.” There seem to have been at least two classes in their order, one of craftsmen, the other of workmen. Acts 19: 24, 25.
One of their number, named Demetrius, called a meeting of the order. To this call they readily responded, although most of them “knew not wherefore they were come together”; which indicates that Demetrius was a man of some authority among them, presumably the official head of their organization. When he had called the meeting to order, he said: “Sirs, ye know that by this craft we have our wealth. Moreover ye see and hear, that not alone at Ephesus, but almost throughout all Asia, this Paul hath persuaded and turned away much people, saying that they be no gods, which are made with hands: so that not only this our craft is in danger to be set at naught; but also that the temple of the great goddess Diana should be despised, and her magnificence should be destroyed, whom all Asia and the world worshipeth.”
A GREAT UPROAR STARTED
Then all the silversmiths set up the cry, “Great is Diana of the Ephesians.” The people joined in this praise service until the town clerk interfered and dispersed them.
The only reason given for the worship of Diana was that, until Paul came, all Asia and the world worshiped her. Verse 32 says that “the assembly was confused,” and that “some therefore cried one thing, and some another.” They certainly were hard pressed, and were having a trying time to find some reason for Diana’s worship; but all agreed that Diana was “great.”
View of the wreck produced by the explosion of a gas main in one of the streets of New York City.
The “International Lord’s Day Congress” held in Oakland, California, July 27 to August 1, 1915, in some of its leading features, closely resembled this meeting at Ephesus. The congress was not called to sustain the worship of the moon, or to make a demand for her shrines; but it was called to protect from desecration the day that the pagans set apart to the honor of their principal god, the sun, from which it derived its name of Sun’s day. One of the leading speakers in the congress admitted that the first law for observing the day was made by Constantine, March 7, 321 A. D. This law was made for “the venerable day of the sun.”
UNANIMOUS THAT IT WAS GREAT
The congress was unanimous in the one thing,—that this Sunday is “great,” very “great”; and that worshipers in all the world think so. But they did not agree on the reasons why it is great.
Some said it is great as the day to go to church, to forsake all worldly labor or amusement, to refrain from excursions, picnic parties, ball games, the reading of Sunday papers, etc., not even allowing such things to exist on the earth on that day.
Others consider it “great” as a day of pleasure and recreation, with a portion spent in church, and the balance in amusement, with rest from all “wearing toil,” with automobile rides in the country, etc.
The permanent chairman, Alton B. Parker, considered the day “great” from a political point of view, and “necessary to good citizenship” and true “patriotism.” He thought that a portion of it should be spent in the study of civil government, investigating political parties and issues. This would naturally include the reading of the Sunday political paper, so much denounced by others.
But it was universally agreed that Sunday is “great,” and that some means must be found to check the waning of its glory.
THE SAME OLD CONFLICT
It was also claimed, at least by some, that its only enemies worthy of note are those who are keeping the Sabbath of the Lord, and calling upon men to worship the “God that made the heavens and the earth,” and gave for His memorial the seventh, not the first, day of the week — the same gospel truth preached by Paul, with similar results.
Doing the Impossible
By Max Hill
By MAX HILL
OFTEN, when we read the story of Peter’s experience of walking upon the stormy waters of Galilee, we think only of his failure. The result is that we lose a great lesson.
Peter did walk on the water. At the Master’s invitation, “Come,” he sprang from the boat, and contrary to all the experience of the past—for Peter had sprung from a boat a thousand times before—he did not sink, but walked lightly, buoyantly, upon the surface. Jesus bade him do a thing impossible for humanity,—to do a thing that only divine power could do; and at the bidding of the Saviour, he did it. “Come,” from the lips of Divinity, is assurance of divine upholding.
The Saviour has given another command to His believers of this day,—“Go ye.” And in this case also, it is a command to do the impossible; for humanity cannot go “into all the world, and preach the gospel,” in human strength.
True, we do go into all the world—we have sprung out many a time; but often, as in the case of the apostle of old, we have not been able to walk on the water, to stand upon the simple word of God, and be miraculously upheld thereby. Yet the call comes, and the duty of God’s church is, to go.
It is not for the people of God to do as Peter did,—look around to see the effect on others, or to note the great waves trodden so lightly; but to keep the eye of faith upon the One who bids us go. Then the “gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world”—the impossible will be accomplished.
It has been the characteristic of God’s people through the ages, that they were able to accomplish marvelous things, miraculous things, when they trusted the word of God—when they obeyed His “Come” or His “Go ye.” And the day of miracles is not past. The miracle of transformed lives is seen in every company of true believers, successfully denying the accusations and quibbles of doubters and unbelievers and persecutors; and the miracles of God’s providence are seen in home lands and in the dark places of the earth.
God has taken the “weak things of the world”—though strong in faith—to do His work in the world and for the world—to do the impossible. And when the work is done, and the day of triumph comes, these faithful ones will stand with the Saviour—and Peter—upon the sea of glass, a redeemed and victorious host.
EARS
By J. E. F.
TRAIN FOR ACUTENESS—THE EFFECT OF LISTLESSNESS—THE DANGERS NEAR THE SHORE
We use the word in its plural form, for there is more than one kind of ears. There are the “hearing ear,” the “obedient ear,” and the “ears of the wise.” The Bible also tells us of the “ears of a fool,” “heavy ears,” and “itching ears.” The wise man tells us that God has made “the hearing ear.” Prov. 20: 12. Job informs us that the ear is capable of trying and distinguishing words. Job 12: 11.
The ear is a most wonderful organ, very delicate, easily injured, yet well protected. The ear was made to hear; but the ear can be easily abused, and hearing be impaired or entirely lost.
Superintendents of mission fields tell us that young missionaries sent to the foreign field, who in some cases are occupied for the first year in other work than language study, get their ears dulled by hearing the foreign language, but not being able to distinguish the meaning of the sounds. Then when they do start on language study, they are unable to learn so fast.
The common illustration of the alarm clock will appeal to all. The first morning, it is distinctly heard, but it is not heeded. The next morning, it is heard, but not so vividly, and again it is disobeyed. Finally the sound is no longer heard. “Hearing they hear not.”
Not only do we lose the benefit of our ears by not giving heed, but our hearing may be impaired or lost by very loud sounds breaking in upon the ear’s delicate membrane, such as a mighty clap of thunder or a fearful cannonade.
Seven times in the Gospels, the Saviour says, “He that hath ears to hear, let him hear,” or an equivalent expression. Seven times in the messages to the seven churches in the book of Revelation, do we read, “He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches.” Why this repetition of twice seven times if it is not to warn us of the Christian’s danger of abusing the spiritual hearing?
As a race, we are afflicted with torpid senses. “For this people’s heart is waxed gross, and their ears are dull of hearing, and their eyes they have closed.” And so again and again the Saviour would arouse us by asking us to use our ears.
How necessary at this time, when God has important messages for His people, that we hear aright! The enemy of our souls has his counter attractions. Earth’s songs and sounds break in upon our ears. And this din of sound impairs our hearing, and shuts out from our ears the whispering of the “still small voice” by which God would be pleased to lead us. We may be tempted to think that God is in the strong wind, the great earthquake, and the fire. But we must get away from the great noise and bustle, so that we can listen to the “still small voice.”
As illustrating the importance of listening in time of crises, the writer well remembers a rather thrilling incident in island experiences. With a number of others, mostly natives, I was making a missionary trip among the islands of the Fiji group. Pauliasi, the native minister, had been acting as captain of our mission yacht. But we were to visit islands surrounded with dangerous reefs that Pauliasi had not previously visited; so we hired a native pilot. He appeared to be a man of experience; and as he took us safely from island to island, we saw no reason to question his ability as an island navigator.
We had some experiences with calms; and on our way to one of the largest islands of the group, we were becalmed much of the day and into the night. But toward midnight, the wind suddenly freshened, and soon we were carried along in our little craft at a speed of about seven knots an hour.
In a few hours, we knew that we must be nearing the island, and hoped that we were making a straight course for the entrance through the reef. The night was dark, and the sea was rising. Peering into the darkness, we could discern the dim outlines of the high mountains, and could hear the moan of the waves beating on the dangerous reef.
Our pilot seemed uneasy, and finally he asked me if I had been on this island before. When assured that I had been there the year before, he wanted to throw off his own responsibility to take the little vessel in, confessing that he had not been inside this reef since he was a boy, and asked if I could not direct in taking the yacht inside the harbor.
Realizing the seriousness of the situation, I called to Pauliasi, and at once placed the boat in his charge, telling him of the pilot’s fear and incompetency. Even though he had never been at this particular island before, he was an experienced sailor, careful and deliberate.
There was now some excitement among the natives on board, some suggesting one thing, and some another; but as Pauliasi assumed charge, he immediately issued a command of silence, and then took his position where he could both watch and listen. Any one speaking above a whisper, received an order to be silent. The vessel must now be navigated largely by sound.
We were drawing near that fringe of danger; and if we missed our way, we must be dashed upon the great coral barrier. We could hear the roar of the breakers, and now and then we could see the white spray in the darkness as the waves spent themselves on the reef. Pauliasi at this juncture changed the course of the vessel, and ran her along, with sail shortened, parallel with the reef, or nearly so, all the time listening intently for the two points of the barrier between which the entrance must be found.
Finding what he thought to be the passage, he sailed back and forth listening to the waves beating upon the points of the reef, and then for the place of quietness between, which meant the entrance we were to take.
It was a time of intense feeling to us all. At last the order was given to sail in. Imagine our joy to know that Pauliasi had judged correctly! We were soon anchored in the calm lagoon within that coral rampart.
He had navigated not by eye or chart alone, but largely by ear. To do this, he had shut out every other sound. He had given his ear up to the one voice.
We are nearing the haven of eternal rest. But dark is the night of sin. The oncoming breakers threaten to engulf us. Now, as never before, we must listen, lest we miss the way. Every world sound must be shut out. We must educate the ear to hear the “still small voice.” “He that hath ears to hear, let him hear.” J. E. F.
Christ and the World
“No man can hold Christ in one hand and the world in the other.”
QUESTION CORNER
By Milton C. Wilcox
CONDUCTED BY MILTON C. WILCOX, MOUNTAIN VIEW, CALIFORNIA
NOTE.—This department is for the purpose of helping Bible students. Answers must of necessity be brief, often only suggestive, never exhaustive, never infallible except as they agree with the infallible Word. Such questions only will be answered as space permits to minister to the mission of the paper. Questions of the same import cannot be answered repeatedly in the same volume. Name and address must be given, not for publication, but as evidence of good faith and to insure reply by letter if thought best. It is well always to inclose stamp, not stamped envelope, unless answer is desired by letter alone.
The first scripture reads in the Revised Version as follows: “God is a Spirit: and they that worship Him must worship in spirit and truth.” The margin is, “God is spirit.”
The second scripture reads thus: “For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, these are sons of God.”
The first scripture is instruction from our Lord to the Samaritan woman. God is a spiritual being. The Samaritans had so confused the nature of God with idolatry, that they looked upon God as merely a little in advance of other heathen deities. They had come to believe that an absolute place was necessary to worship Him. Jesus wished to disabuse their minds of that. He taught that God can be worshiped everywhere; because God is a spiritual being; and they who worship Him must also worship Him in a spiritual way, must appreciate somewhat of His nature; must conform their own minds to that; must recognize that not the bare, outward material is the essential thing, but the very soul and life of the thing which they do. And so the living God demands a living worship, and a worship in truth, not a mere form, not a make believe so, but that which is genuine in every respect.
The second scripture is simply a statement as to who are the sons of God. The sons of God are led by His Spirit. The sons of the world would be led by the spirit of the world. Compare Eph. 2:2, 3. Those who are of the world walk “according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the powers of the air, of the spirit that now worketh in the sons of disobedience,” and therefore are by nature children of wrath.
God’s children have been changed, born again, born of the Spirit. Being born of the Spirit, they have the same nature as the Spirit of God, and therefore are led by that Spirit; and the fact that they are led by the Spirit of God, or the word of God, which was inspired by His Spirit, proves that they are genuine sons of God.
The scripture should be taken in connection with its context. The preceding verses in the chapter tell us of a class of people that should arise in times subsequent to the apostle’s day. “The Spirit saith expressly, that in later times some shall fall away from the faith.” They do this by “giving heed to seducing spirits and doctrines of demons.” They are led to do this “through the hypocrisy of men that speak lies,” men who are “branded in their own conscience as with a hot iron,” who have so turned away from God that their conscience has become hardened. And this very spirit leads them to lay down rules — man-made rules — for the guidance and direction of God’s children. That is, they forbid to marry, they command to abstain from meats — or properly, foods — things which God gave to every one to use to His glory. In other words, it indicates a class of teachers, or a system, which commands fasts, and aims to control the individual soul, who ought to be under the control of his Master, Christ.
Then the apostle declares that “every creature of God is good, and nothing is to be rejected, if it be received with thanksgiving: for it is sanctified through the word of God and prayer.” Now, God’s word has told us what foods are good and what foods are not good. It has even given us a classification in the animal kingdom itself, as in Leviticus 11 and Deuteronomy 14. It is no arbitrary distinction which the Lord there draws between clean and unclean animals. In the very nature of things, the unclean animals are unfit for food. Clean animals are better; but in these last days, when disease is everywhere abroad, when the animal kingdom is affected as truly as the human race, man finds his better, purer foods, in fruits and grains, nuts and vegetables. If God’s children would eat and drink to His glory, as we are instructed in 1 Cor. 10:31 — eat that which is sanctified by God’s word, or set apart through His word, and prayer on our part to do just what He would have us do — there would be little trouble on the food question.
The scripture reads: “I know, and am persuaded in the Lord Jesus, that nothing is unclean of itself: save that to him who accounteth anything to be unclean, to him it is unclean.” This scripture must be read in connection with its context. It does not stand out alone. Read verse 13: “Let us not therefore judge one another any more.” That is the real subject of the scripture — judgment. In its strong instruction against those who would judge or condemn each other, it points to the great fact that all must stand before the judgment seat of Christ. Man is not to put himself in the place of God. He is not to set himself in judgment upon his brother.
There are some who eat herbs. Others think they can eat all things. The judge of the motive is God. One may be doing wrong who eats all things; but the one who decides the matter at last is God, before whose judgment seat all shall appear.
Now, there would be in the church of Christ those uninstructed, those to whom nothing whatever seemed unclean; and their faith would allow them to eat many things. But to one who was better instructed, who had learned from God’s word that there were clean and unclean things, if he esteemed anything to be unclean, if his conscience condemned him, if he did not regard his convictions in this respect, it would be unclean, and he himself would be condemned in eating it; while the man who knew nothing about it, or did not understand, might be justified, because he did not know.
The whole diet question is not a matter of mere texts, or prohibitions, of petty, irritating laws and rules. That is not the thought of the thing in the instruction the apostle has given in Romans 14 and elsewhere. The great thought is this: First of all, we belong to the Lord Jesus Christ. Our body is the temple of the Holy Spirit. We are not our own. We are to live not for ourselves, but for God; and in living for Him, whatever we eat or drink, or whatever we do, we should do all to His glory. Our brother may not look upon the thing as we do. We should not judge him nor condemn him. He stands or falls to his own Master, and not to us.
If we would look upon the matter in this way, we would find far less hardship in denying ourselves the thing which our better knowledge and conscience tell us is wrong. We would eat and drink that which would give us better bodies, stronger, clearer minds, and souls better fitted to do the Lord’s will.
186 — THE LORD OF DEATH
In Rom. 6:23, we read that the wages of sin is death; in Rom. 5:12, that death entered into the world by sin; and Ezek. 18:32 and 33:11, that the Lord saw no pleasure in the death of the wicked; and therefore that death came into the world in consequence of sin, and sin was introduced by Satan. In Heb. 2:14, we read that Jesus came to destroy him who had the power of death; yet elsewhere in the Bible we read of the Lord’s direction that certain ones should be slain. How can it be shown that God does not exercise the power of death, which power is vested in the devil? O. O. P.
It is well for us to get the meaning of these terms. Rotherham’s translation will throw a little light upon Heb. 2:14. He renders it “dominion of death.” In other words, Satan is lord of death. That kingdom belongs to him; for everything that he does, tends toward death, and all the fruitage of his work is the fruitage of death. All the issues of his actions are issues of death. Therefore he is spoken of as having dominion over death. That does not mean that he can exercise the power of death so as to destroy every one whom he will. That does not belong to him. There is only one Being in all the universe who can exercise power over death. Satan himself cannot do that. He reigns in the dominion of death; but he does not say that the dead shall do this or that or the other thing, for the very realm in which he reigns will at last come to him with its final fruitage—death.
God has the power over all things. Death comes because men have transgressed God’s law. “The wages of sin is death,” but “the strength of sin is the law.” It is the perverted law of God which kills, not because the Lord wants it so, but because men will transgress the law. And in that realm to which the dead go, Satan is preeminent. However, as before remarked, it does not mean that he has the power to inflict death, or the power to use death, only as men may yield to his will. He is the cause of it, but not the master.
WANTED for MISSIONARY PURPOSES
Fred L. Burdick, Alvin, Texas: a continuous supply of all denominational literature for free distribution.
Request for Missionary Papers
Mrs. S. J. Garlock, Marcellus, Michigan, an isolated member, desires late clean copies of the SIGNS OF THE TIMES and the Watchman for missionary use.
Denominational Literature Available
By Mrs. A. T. Hamblin
Mrs. A. T. Hamblin, Lake Arthur, Louisiana: clean denominational literature of all kinds, tracts, periodicals, and books.
One of the 564
Mock Chicken Pie
Potatoes, boiled, 4 cups.
Nuttolene, or nut loaf, ½ lb.
Eggs, 3.
Pie crust.
Protose, or nut cero, ½ lb.
Milk, 1 cup.
Onion and parsley, chopped.
Nut gravy.
Substitute milk for tomatoes in the nut gravy.
Put into an oiled baking pan a layer of the thinly sliced boiled potatoes, and over this a layer of nuttolene or nut loaf cut into thin slices. Sprinkle on a little chopped onion and parsley, then a layer of sliced protose or nut cero. Pour the gravy over this, put the sliced hard-boiled eggs over all, and let set five minutes. Cover all with pie crust, and bake till done.
There are 563 other mouth-watering recipes in the Vegetarian Cook Book.
It contains tables which give the average composition of common American food products and their nutritive value. This alone is worth the price of the book. Good and bad food combinations are set forth. There are thirteen pages on table etiquette and rules for waiters.
The book was written by a vegetarian restaurateur of long experience. His thousands of patrons, and other thousands who daily employ the recipes in the home, can testify to their healthfulness and unusually good taste.
BE A VEGETARIAN
Start in right. It is easy to learn how to prepare the foods, with a copy of the “Vegetarian Cook Book” in your kitchen. Send $1.00 to our representative in your state (see address page 15), or to us direct.
MOTTOES, MOTTOES
Bible mottoes are selling as they once did. One agent who has sent in for another 1,000 to-day, says to rush his order. We would like to see many more agents in the field. 200 for $7.50, 1,000 for $25.00, express prepaid.
We are headquarters for fine Vegetable Cooking Oil. Two 5-gallon cans, $7.40. The more you buy, the less the price will be. Hampton Art Co., Nevada, Iowa.
