Review and Herald, Vol. 20, No. 9. (7/29/1862)

Review and Herald

Jul 29, 1862

The Seventh-day Adventist Publishing Association · Battle Creek, Michigan · Jul 29, 1862

The Bible Standard of Giving.

[NONE will probably read the following article except such as desire to know their duty in relation to the important subject of honoring God with their substance; and such will find in it suggestions and instruction which will well repay the perusal. There is nothing in it that will please the covetous; for it is little that they like to think or hear about the duty of giving; and there is nothing in it to please those who are interested in only the light and trashy literature of the day, which is calculated to please the imagination, or arouse the passions. It is designed for those who think more of knowing their plain unvarnished duty, and how they may lay up treasure in heaven, than they do of any present gratification. Such will read, ponder, and put in practice.—U. S.]

In supporting the Gospel, what is the Bible standard of giving? From time immemorial the principle, the duty of giving for God's service, seems to have been recognized; and Jacob appears simply to have given expression to a common custom, when, in concluding his vow, he said, "And of all that thou shalt give me, I will surely give the tenth unto thee." Gen. xxviii, 22. *(See Gen. xiv, 20.) The establishment of tithes in the law, Lev. xxvii, 30, 32, fixed this principle, placing the limit, also, below which none, in their gifts, might fall. But though none might come short of the tithe, all might go beyond, as circumstances or inclination dictated; Lev. i, 2, 3; ii, 1; xxii, 18, 21; Ex. iii, 5. In fact, all vows, voluntary gifts and peace-offerings; all sin, trespass and meat-offerings; the first-born, first fruits and firstlings, were distinct from, and additional to these tithes, amounting in value oftentimes to more than the stated tenth. Thus there is found in the support of God's service, under the earlier dispensation, the element of permanency represented by the tithes, first-born, etc., which no circumstance, condition or event could change or invalidate; and the element of voluntariness represented by vows, free-will gifts, etc., which looks to and rests upon the character and circumstances of the worshiper. The unceasing demands for temple service, for the daily needs of priest and Levite, developed the former; while the varying circumstances of life, and the special exigencies of God's service, brought out and gave scope to the latter.

The tithes, binding only on recognized members of the theocracy, rating ever according to possessions, although permanent, yet fully harmonized with the voluntary element, and helped to develop right views and right action in the support of divine service. Here, then, at the foundation of God's plan, as devised by himself, for the support of his service, are found the elements of permanency and voluntariness. The obligation to God for this end was permanent, ever-binding, limited in extent only by ability and the wants of that service; yet the willing heart, the ready mind, could alone discharge the obligation. Here, as ever, acceptable service to God is abiding, free, heart service. That this plan was efficient, meeting the end designed, is witnessed by the singular regularity of the Jewish temple worship, and by the many and valuable gifts to the sacred treasury, 1 Chron. xxix, 6-9; xviii, 11; 2 Chron. xxxv, 7, 8; Ex. ii, 68, 69; 2 Sam. viii, 11. In view of these facts and principles, how appropriate the language of David, 1 Chron. xxix, 14; "For all things come of thee, and of thine own have we given thee!" How expressive are they of the truth upon which rests God's plan for supporting his cause, thus early and fully recognized, that all which the people of God have and are comes from and belongs to him; committed, for the time, to his servants, to be used freely and fully, when and as the needs of his cause demand. To the later dispensation was committed the trust of more completely developing and perfecting the plan, whose foundation principles and elements were embodied in the earlier. The Gospel is the perfection of the law, the emphasis of its claims, the explanation and application of its principles. "Not to destroy, but to fulfill," links the two inseparably. "Sell what thou hast, and give to the poor," Matt. xix, 21, brought the spirit of the law to the door of the Gospel. But he who, through the law, sought the gift of the Gospel, eternal life, found that the lack of the former barred the approach to the latter. Thus the inner harmony of the law and the Gospel is revealed, and the requirements of the one are satisfied in the other. With this principle agrees the condition, "He that forsaketh not all that he hath, cannot be my disciple." Luke xiv, 33.

The conditions of the Gospel are such, that no power or possession is reserved from the Master's control. 1 Cor. vi, 20. All, all, the noblest powers, the greatest wealth, is held in trust for God's service. This is the plain unequivocal teaching of both Old and New Testaments. "As God hath prospered, etc.," 1 Cor. xvi, 2, is the general rule for giving to support the Gospel, applying to each and every department alike. That is, as is a person's ability, so is his obligation to contribute for the Gospel. As God has given so he requires, Luke xii, 48. This is the general measure, applying to high and low, rich and poor. Liberally and freely of God's bounty, not only as stewards, but as children, should Christians give for the cause of Christ; and a Christian can no more evade a liberal and practical observance of this rule without sinning, than could a Jew neglect giving tithes and be guiltless.

"To their power, yea, and beyond their power, they were willing," etc., 2 Cor. viii, 3, is a special rule, which Paul commends to the Corinthian church as worthy of their attention and observance; citing it as proof of the "grace of God bestowed on the churches of Macedonia," 2 Cor. viii, 1. Here was an exigency to be met, the supply of the "poor saints at Jerusalem," Rom. xv, 26; but there were differences in the condition of the churches at this time. Through Achaia there was quiet, in Macedonia a "great trial of affliction;" in Achaia ordinary prosperity, in Macedonia "deep poverty;" therefore to the church at Corinth, as part of Achaia, the general rule, "as God has prospered," first applied; but the Macedonian churches, by their afflictions and persecutions brought into nearer sympathy with the "poor saints," cheerfully adopted the special rule, "to their power, yea, and beyond," etc. From their "deep poverty" the "riches of their liberality" abounded to their afflicted brethren at Jerusalem. Not that they gave more, absolutely, but under greater difficulties, hence relatively more, Mark xii, 43, etc. This was in advance of the general requirement; for not only so, but beyond their ability, for the time being, they gave to the necessities of their brethren suffering perchance even more than themselves. Instead of an excuse for neglect and indifference, their calamities and afflictions, leading them to a higher experience of Christian life, were made an incentive, a spur to nobler effort to do good. And Paul urges the Corinthian brethren, 2 Cor. viii, and ix, to come up to this high standard of Christian effort, this clearer proof of sympathy with the Christian spirit, the spirit of Christ.

"As many as were possessors of lands or houses sold them, and brought the prices, and laid them at the apostles' feet," Acts iv, 34, 35. In this further special rule provision is made for extraordinary emergencies and pressing necessities. It gives practical expression to the idea of God's absolute lordship over and right to all things, and the consequent idea of Christian stewardship. It is not a rule for an abiding community of goods, but for a voluntary contribution, under extraordinary circumstances, of all possessed at the time, as, under ordinary circumstances, part would be given. This is at once the test and proof of the all-pervading power of Christian faith and Christian love to subdue the man and enlist his all in God's service. These passages of Scripture are valuable, not only as giving rules for the regulation of Christian life and effort in this department, but also as showing the legitimate, progressive development of Christian principles under the various exigencies of every day life; and as showing that the support of the "poor" was a recognized duty, binding upon all the brethren; and also as bringing out the oneness

of interest and sympathy of all parts of the Gospel field, of all Christians. Rom. xii, 5; 1 Cor. xii, 26.

These rules, applied in their true scope and spirit, form a comprehensive standard of Christian duty in this branch of active, divine life; embracing within their proper range all the varied and varying exigencies of Gospel effort and Gospel need, and bringing to the support of the Gospel the whole combined wealth of the professed disciples of Christ. Under the workings of this standard, in fulfilling its requirements, there would be a fuller consecration of the wealth of individual Christians, resulting in increased activity in evangelizing agencies, and consequent higher attainments in Christian character and divine life. By this standard the possessions of each and every Christian are held as a deposit from God, subject to his draft, as his cause demands, even to the full amount; and this is according to the truth. He gives all, and will certainly demand no more than necessity requires. It can scarcely fail to be noticed how fully in harmony with the "Bible system" of supporting the Gospel ministry, is this "Bible standard" of giving to the support of the Gospel, and also how fully each and both are pervaded by the self-sacrificing, self-consecrating spirit of the Master. That this standard is fully in accordance with Scripture will be seen by a candid and careful comparison of its principles with Bible teaching in both the Old and New Testaments. That obedience to its requirements is voluntary, is evident from the rules themselves, and also from this, "While it remained, was it not thine own? and when it was sold, was it not in thine own power?" Acts v, 4. The performance of duty in this respect rests upon the same principles and obligations as other Christian duties, viz.: love to God in Christ, to his cause and his children.

But it may be objected that such a standard would deprive Christians of all personal possessions. Such a result does not necessarily follow. The general rule, "as God hath prospered," etc., would meet all ordinary demands in the common course of events. The special rules would apply in exigencies and extraordinary circumstances; and obedience to them, as in early times, would be the spontaneous expression of the life reigning within. That there would, by this standard, be no miserly hoarding of wealth by Christians, is admitted, and there should be none. That it calls for full consecration, a readiness for sacrifice, is cheerfully granted, and these are Christ-like. That it would be oppressive or injurious in its operations is emphatically denied. Resting, as does this standard, upon the principles and teachings of the Bible upon such principles as controlled the mission of the Master, upon such teachings as he uttered, there can be no question that its observance would highly conduce to the advancement of christianity, and tend greatly to develop a higher type of Christian character. With comparatively little wealth and little power, the early churches performed a very great amount of evangelical labor, despite the opposition of Jewish and Pagan powers, simply because both ministers and people obeyed the divine plan, the Scripture teaching, and received the consequent divine blessing. If ministers are ambassadors for Christ, 2 Cor. v, 20, then their reward should be specially subject to his control, should be regulated by Bible teaching; and if believers "are Christ's," 1 Cor. iii, 23, if they are Christians, then they and theirs should likewise be at the disposal of God, to be given up as necessity requires. If Christ be "all and in all" to Christians, if God be supreme in the affections of his people, then let his word, his rule, be their standard of action in this and in every department of effort, of life.—Am. Baptist.

Nearer Home.

O'ER the hill the sun is setting, And the eve is drawing on; Slowly drops the gentle twilight, For another day is gone, Gone for aye—its race is over, Soon the darker shades will come; Still 'tis sweet to know at even, We are one day nearer home.

"One day nearer," sings the sailor, As he glides the waters o'er, While the light is softly dying On his distant native shore. Thus the Christian on life's ocean, As his light boat cuts the foam, In the evening cries with rapture— "I am one day nearer home."

Worn and weary oft the pilgrim Hails the setting of the sun, For the goal is one day nearer, And his journey nearly done. Thus we feel, when o'er life's desert, Heart and sandal worn we roam, As the twilight gathers o'er us, We are one day nearer home.

Nearer home! Yes, one day nearer To our Father's house on high— To the green fields and the fountains Of the land beyond the sky; For the heavens grow brighter o'er us, And the lamps hang in the dome, And our tents are pitched still closer, For we're one day nearer home.

No Discharge in this War

By W. R. Williams, D. D.

[THE following practical and stirring article affords abundant material for serious meditation and reflection. To its forcible and pointed statements there is but one exception, and that is, the righteous living who are to be translated when Christ appears; and these can hardly be called an exception since the change they then experience is equivalent to death and the resurrection, and the preparation required for this change, is more difficult than that demanded of those who enter into life through the gates of the grave. U. S.]

No Discharge in this War.

There is a great fortress and line of siege confronting every homestead, and commanding every group of our people—a line whose pointed musketry we are, perforce, sooner or later, all of us to face and into the very mouth of whose death-dealing batteries we are steadily marching Sabbath by Sabbath—day by day—hour by hour—moment by moment, with each heaving of the lungs and with each winking of the eyelash—the young, the old, the rich, the poor, the thoughtless, and the gloomy, the ignorant and the scholarly, are walking up, in one inevitable procession, with the intermingled tramp of Manhood's heavy foot, and the patter of Childhood's footfall, into the flaming range of these terrible bastions. "THERE IS NO DISCHARGE IN THIS WAR." You fall here: I fall there. The rattling hail of Death is among us at this instant.—Sure as the daylight now shines, so sure is it that we must all abide this summoning, and must brook this conflict. I might go from bench to bench in the Sunday-school, and from pew to pew here, and without the least hazard of mistake say to every one,—"And you, too, must die." "IT IS APPOINTED UNTO MEN ONCE TO DIE"—appointed by an All-knowing One, whom there is no cheating,—an Omnipresent one whom there is no shunting—an Almighty one, whom there is no resisting. No skill, no craft, no force, no tears, no outcries, no affection can baffle the stroke. No heaps of golden ore, no ranges of widest empire can purchase exemption from the confiscations of Death. To-day, the capitalist stalks the Exchange, wielding his own large fortune, and it may be that of many another household than his own; to-day, the king rules his myriads of subjects, and all the cabinet and courts watch with solicitude the turns of his policy. The war of Death comes on; and by to-morrow the grim invader and destroyer has handed over the fortune of the millionaire to greedy heirs, and the keys of the bank to other office-holders; and has tossed the diadem and scepter of a dead Cæsar, perchance, into an infant's feeble and quivering hands. None pillages like Death, with such sweeping forfeitures; his victims "carry nothing away." None hunts like Death, never losing his scent or missing his game. None sings like Death, with a shaft that always strikes. Is there no flying—no bribing—no pleading—no reasoning—no treating with the enemy? No. "There is no discharge in this war."

If Death takes you away as you are, and without Christ, your soul is lost beyond a doubt. Will God let the destroyer hurry you away thus unprepared?—Why not, if God's book explicitly warns you that "the wicked is driven away in his wickedness?" Why not, if our text most plainly says, rounding out the words we first chose with this addition: "Neither shall wickedness deliver those that are given to it?" Why not borne away unprepared, if the fault, as to want of preparation, is all your own? You have been familiar with the gospel; you have lived in a land of Bibles and Sabbaths, and have had your personal warnings from Providence. When this great, dread war, to which you were born, and of which every cemetery, every tolling bell, every funeral notice, every passing hearse, every ache in your own person, and every ailment, warned you—this war, so long foreknown and so terribly fatal—calls you, the reluctant and the truant, to take yourself the front place—what show of reason is there in your pleading want of preparation as a discharge? For what was life given but to know God? And knowing God, as in Christ he most graciously revealed himself to be known by you, you would have been prepared. Why have you forborne to know your Saviour? Why refused to acknowledge his gracious claims, and been ashamed to wear his blessed livery? He shrunk not from ignominy, or any pain or any loss, that he might reach and rescue you. Why have you withholden the heart that he asked? and why clung to the sins and the idols that he denounced? and why rejected the love, and peace, and the heaven that he proffered freely, proffered sincerely, proffered often, and is proffering even now, but as yet has proffered to you all in vain?

It is, indeed, a terrible lot, from a land of light and revivals, to go down, unprepared and unforgiven. The death of one dying without Christ is a fearful sight to behold. But how many have so died! And if Death comes for us thus found unready, we may tremble and recoil; but the terrible sacrifice, and the hopeless doom that are before us as we go, are to the grim, pale King of Terrors no discharge.

"Not ready!" he may exclaim; "and after all this time—after twenty years, thirty years, fifty years, or even seventy years, not ready? When would you be? Come with me, then, as you are! If you have loitered, I, the messenger of a holy law and a just God, am no loiterer; here is my warrant, and it demands you, body and soul!"

The smoke of the torment of the willfully impenitent will go up day and night by the purpose of a just and justly incensed Jehovah. But, in this the day of opportunity and repentance, there is proclaimed to us who yet survive, One mightier than is either death or hell. It is the Prince of Life and the Lord of Glory. He came to destroy him that had the power of death, that is the devil. But Jesus, the Captain of our salvation, in bringing rescue, must himself "taste of death," must not only meet the common lot, but must bear upon himself the common and concentrated guilt of our race. Doing it, he tore from death its sting; and to them that believe he is become the author of life everlasting.

To them that receive Christ, the war, though fierce, has lost its main terror, and is stripped of its perils. To him, mortality loses its ghastliness, and puts on already hopefulness and promise. The grave is like the wet and cold March day now brooding over our heads and miring our streets. Of darker hue, and moister, chillier air, indeed, than he might have chosen; but behind all this gloom, and behind all this damp, lie the treasures of bursting spring, and the glories of refulgent summer. The light afflictions, that are but for a moment, work out for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory.—W. R. Williams, D. D.

The Billiard Tournament.

On the night of last April 3d a noted Billiard Tournament came off at Irving Hall, New York, between two champion billiard players, for $500, a side. The game lasted from eight o'clock in the evening till four o'clock in the morning. The reporter says:—

"The attendance was somewhat of the composite order, consisting of divines, lawyers, merchants, clerks, professional billiard players, horse jockeys, gamblers, and sporting men generally. The affair was rather

select, as far as appearances went, and at no time during the evening was there the slightest confusion or disturbance. Among the celebrities present were the following persons:—Henry Ward Beecher, Simeon Draper, Isaac A. Bell, Hiram Woodruff, Judge Mc Cunn, Capt. Rynders, Theodore E. Tomlinson, Neil Bryant, James Lingard, Thomas Stone, of this city; Ralph Benjamin and Chris Bird, of Philadelphia; Philip Tieman, of Cincinnati; L. Fox, of Rochester, and J. B. Riley, of Detroit."

Truly these are strange times, when popular ministers can stay in a billiard gambling hall till four o'clock in the morning, and the professed church of Christ pass it by unnoticed.

How Long Will Ye Love Vanity?

“How long will ye love vanity?”—Psalm iv. 2.

Vanity represents the light, changeable, carnal, and fading things of time. Upon these things the natural heart is set, around them the unsanctified affections gather. What a vanity it is to prefer human friendship to divine, earthly riches to heavenly, carnal honors to spiritual, and the pleasures of a day to the joys of eternity! Vanity appears in the intoxicating cup, the gay and costly attire, and trifling with Sabbath hours. Surely every man walketh in a vain show, like an actor on the stage, and displays the most consummate folly. Reader! are you in love with vanity? Do you love that which leads from God, keeps him out of thought, and binds you down to earth? This is vanity: how long will you love it? You have been doing so for years, though warned, convinced, and having promised to reform. You are doing so now, though mortality is at work within you, and eternity is within a step of you. You love vanity, when you may obtain mercy, enjoy peace with God, receive sanctifying grace, and walk in the way to heaven. “How long will ye love vanity?” Until some sudden stroke take you away, or some affliction put you beyond the reach of mercy, or God's Spirit cease to strive with you, or Satan fill your heart as he did the heart of Judas, or God laugh at your calamity? How long? No longer! so angels would say, so saints would say, so ministers would say, so the Saviour would say, and so God your Creator would say, who asks you, “Why will you die?” Will you carefully consider this question, and give the Lord an answer? Will you tell him why you prefer death to life, sin to holiness, and Satan to himself?

“They that observe lying vanities, forsake their own mercies.”—Jonah ii. 8.—Sel.

The World’s Conversion.

By F. Chapman

THE lameness of the various efforts to prove the world’s conversion from the Sacred Oracles, proves the fallacy of that theory. Mere assumption and inference can, in no case, be admitted as evidence. Take the following specimens, which are, in substance, what lately appeared in print, to prove the world’s future conversion in the present dispensation. First, to prove the world’s conversion the following language is quoted: “Where sin abounded, grace did much more abound.” Rom. v, 20. The most that this scripture proves, is that divine grace so abounds that whosoever will may be saved, and nothing more. Grace provides and reveals the means of salvation, but is not salvation itself, nor does its freeness prove that one sinner will accept of it, much less the whole world. Again, “All things are put under his feet.” Very true; and therefore must submit to be saved by his grace, or fall and perish by his righteous judgments. How does this prove the conversion of this world? Once more: “Ask of me, and I shall give thee the heathen for thine inheritance, and the uttermost parts of the earth for thy possession.” Ps. ii, 8. Why omit the ninth verse, which explains the meaning of the eighth, and is a part of the same paragraph, and which tells what Christ will do with the unbelieving part of that world given unto him? Certainly not save them, for they will not believe, more than would the Antediluvians or Sodomites. The ninth verse, so carefully avoided, clearly states what shall be the final doom of such heathens, thus: “Thou shalt break them with a rod of iron, thou shalt dash them in pieces as a potter’s vessel.” Does this prove, or look like, the world’s conversion, when the two verses are read together, as common honesty would dictate? This garbling and perverting the sacred Scriptures, to sustain a favorite, but false, theory, is one of the most alarming signs of our times, for which there can be no excuse or apology.

This is not the age or dispensation of the kingdom and reign of Christ, but a preparatory dispensation of the Holy Ghost to illuminate, purify, strengthen, and comfort those who receive him by faith in Christ. Thus is the Lord preparing a people for himself, “meet to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in light.” Col. i, 12. The fact that God is now raising up witnesses in all parts of the world to this precious truth, is certainly worthy of the consideration of all. Our limits will admit of the testimony of but one of these witnesses, which is here subjoined.

In a letter from Mrs. Phoebe Palmer, dated Barnard’s Castle, Eng., Aug. 9, 1861, published in the November number of the Guide to Holiness, we have the following extract on the period of the world in which we live:

“You know something of what have been my views for many years past, in regard to the period of the world in which we live. My convictions deepen that the drama of this world’s history is fast winding up. Is not the great tribulation spoken of by Daniel coming upon us? I have no sympathy with those who would fix the day or hour of the coming of our Lord. But I am free to acknowledge that during the past twenty years I have prayerfully been comparing scripture with scripture on the subject of our Lord’s second coming. All Scripture is given by inspiration. The scriptures on this topic are for our instruction in righteousness. . . . Though it is written, ‘Of that day and hour knoweth no man,’ yet our incarnate Lord, in answer to the inquiries of his disciples, gave certain signs which should precede his coming, and said, ‘When ye shall see all these things come to pass, know that it is near, even at the door.’ And why did he give these signs, if it were not important that we should observe them? He reproved the Scribes and Pharisees who did not take pains to observe the signs of his first coming. Had they done so, they might have been prepared for its solemn issues. Perhaps you wonder when I say that, though I have been so long interested, I have not studied human authors largely on the subject. But to my mind there is that which is so emphatic in the Scriptures of truth on this solemn, yet glorious theme, that I am amazed Christians of the present day do not feel more like early Christians, who would fain have hastened the day by their eager longings for it. They were told that a falling away must first come, and the Man of Sin who exalteth himself above all that is called God, must be revealed. See 2 Thess. ii, 3. Surely,

“The plague, the noise, the din of war, Our Saviour’s swift approach declare, And speak his kingdom near; His chariot will not long delay, We hear its rumbling wheels, and say, Triumphant Lord, appear.”

“Peter, in referring to the solemnity of the age in which he lived, says: ‘We upon whom the ends of the world are come.’ If the apostle, while writing through the direct inspiration of the Holy Ghost, could refer thus to the point of time in which he was living, what may we think of that in which we are now living? Are we not living in the Saturday evening time? ‘One day is with the Lord as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day.’ May we not anticipate some wondrous changes, as the seven thousandth year opens upon us? And what shall that change be? As far as the light of the Scriptures beams upon my own mind, I seem to see, in the dim haze, the dawning of millennial glory, the coming of Him whose right it is to reign, the new heavens and new earth, the ushering in of the grand Sabbatic year, the saints’ jubilee, when those who have attained a part in the first resurrection, shall live and reign with Christ a thousand years.”

Here we have the result of honest, prayerful searching and comparing of the Scriptures for at least twenty years. It is the testimony of one standing high in the literary and religious world, and occupying a most favorable stand-point. Let others go and do likewise, and doubtless they will come to the same truthful and blessed conclusion.—F. Chapman.

The Popedom.

By the Popedom we mean the temporal power of the Papacy. This now exists only in the merest shadow—having been reduced down to the nominal control of Rome and a very limited outside territory. And even this is now held by a most tenuous grasp. Archbishop Hughes, of N. Y. city, now in Rome, has written a document in defense of the Papal temporal dominion, which has been signed by some three hundred cardinals and bishops, and has made quite a sensation in Italy. The following item, clipped from some source to us unknown, by the Boston Journal, thus speaks of the effect of this address on the parliament of Victor Emanuel:

“The remarkable address was written by Archbishop Hughes, of New York, in behalf of the Catholic world, and more particularly of Italy, affected more than any other country upon earth by the question of the temporal power of the pope, and signed by the three hundred cardinals and bishops now congregated at Rome. In this address archbishop Hughes asserts that the temporal power of his Holiness, being granted to him by a peculiar desire of divine Providence, all the nations of the earth combined are powerless against it; that Rome and the Papal domain do not belong to Italy, but to the Catholic world, and that they can never cease to be its property.”

These arguments seem to have wounded to the quick the patriotism of the Italians, for on the 18th of June last the parliament of Turin presented an address to Victor Emanuel, stating that, “assembled for the purpose of making the rights of their country respected, they hoped his majesty would take the necessary measures to stop such pretensions as those announced in the cardinals’ address, and to prevent the Roman question to be any longer a cause of trouble for consciences, and of danger for the peace of the world.”

Every indication betokens the near end of the Popedom, so far as any temporal power is in question.—Ad. Herald.

An Appeal to the Young.

By Mary J. Cottrell

DEAR YOUNG FRIENDS : I have just laid aside Testimony to the Church, No. 4, and while perusing its pages thoughts like the following have come to my mind:

Do the young read this book as much as they ought ? I confess with sorrow that I have not. It has been read and then laid aside, and only occasionally been looked into. It has not been studied as a warning from God ought to be. Yes, young friends, God sees our waywardness, he knows our weakness, he marks each time we yield to self or Satan; and in love and pity he has condescended to send us warning. That warning is but little heeded. How soon are its words forgotten ! How soon do the fleeting things of earth take our attention ? How soon does trifling talk, &c., drown all recollection of that heavenly letter, the admonitory words of which should be stored away in our minds, written on our hearts and heeded ?

O young friends, the day is fast approaching when we must render an account of how we have used our many privileges, how we have prized these heavenly warnings. Young brother, young sister, we cannot meditate too much upon these things. I believe that if Testimony No. 4 was oftener read, we should find quite a difference in the theme of conversation when young Sabbath-keepers meet together, from what it now is. We should not then hear the remark, "I was not satisfied with our visit, there was not enough said on the subject of religion;" but instead would be heard, "What a good visit we did have; I feel almost as though I had been at meeting."

Yes, let us study Testimony No. 4. It is to the young its friendly voice speaks; and shall we disregard so holy an admonition ! Time is fleeting. Soon the last moments will come, and then he that is filthy must so remain. Now is the time for action. Work while the day lasts. Soon the night will come. The time of trouble is fast approaching, when we must be clothed with the white robe if we would stand.

May these things sink with due weight into our hearts, that we may awake from this lethargy into which we have fallen, and in which Satan is trying to keep us, and be prepared for a home in that world of beauty, of which we hear so much.

MARY J. COTTRELL. Mill Grove, N. Y.

The Resurrection.

By O. HOFFER.

THE resurrection of the dead was an important theme with the apostles, and one upon which they loved to dwell. All their hope of immortality was built upon the resurrection of the dead, or a change equivalent thereto. But that this glorious doctrine is too much neglected in this our day, the following testimony will show. Dr. A. Clarke says:

“One remark I cannot help making. The doctrine of the resurrection appears to have been thought of much more consequence among the primitive Christians than it is now. How is this? The apostles were continually insisting on it, and exciting the followers of God to diligence, obedience, and cheerfulness through it; and their successors in the present day seldom mention it. There is not a doctrine in the gospel on which more stress is laid, and there is not a doctrine in the present system of preaching which is treated with more neglect.”

H. H. Dobney says:

“Few will deny that the resurrection is uniformly represented in Scripture as a much more important doctrine than the popular style of the present day makes it to be.” Future Punishment, p. 144.

O. HOFFER.

Equivocation Is Suspicious

Whatever needs equivocation is suspicious.

Report of a Discussion in Gridley, Ills., on the Sabbath Question.

By Isaac Sanborn

PROPOSITION. Do the Scriptures teach that the seventh-day Sabbath was made at creation, and is binding through the gospel dispensation? I affirmed; Eld. Moss [Disciple] denied.

1. My first argument was based on the institution of the Sabbath. Gen. ii, 1, 2. I showed that God labored six days, and that he rested on the seventh day, which made it his Sabbath, or rest-day. I showed that this fact yet exists, and hence the institution based on the fact, yet exists. This was not replied to by Eld. Moss.

2. God blessed the seventh day, and sanctified it, because that in it he had rested from all his works which God created and made. Gen. ii, 3. I then called on Eld. M. to show that God ever removed his blessing from it, which he did not attempt.

I then proved that it was made for man, Mark ii, 27, and that man in that text must include the whole human family, according to Barrett's Grammar: "A noun without an adjective is invariably taken in its broadest sense; as, Man is accountable." Therefore the Sabbath was made for all men, which would perpetuate it through the gospel dispensation, as men would live through it.

I next proved that it was a sign between God and his people forever, that they might know that he was the Lord that sanctified them, Ex. xxxi, 13–17, which perpetuates it as long as God has a sanctified people in this world, which will certainly reach through the gospel age.

Next I proved from Rom. iii, 19, that every mouth would be stopped, and all the world be made subject to the judgment of God, by what the law said. As the fourth commandment of the law says that the seventh day is the Sabbath, therefore the Sabbath is binding throughout the gospel dispensation. These arguments were not noticed at all.

The Eld. said he would prove that no man could be a Christian and keep the first commandment. And how do you suppose he undertook to do it? He tried to show that we have two Gods in the gospel dispensation, therefore the first commandment was done away by the coming of Christ; for since that time we have had two Gods. I then quoted Paul, 1 Cor. viii, 4–6, "We know that an idol is nothing in the world, and that there is none other God but one; for though there be that are called gods, whether in heaven or in earth, as there be gods many and lords many; but to us there is but one God the Father, of whom are all things, and we in him, and one Lord Jesus Christ, by whom are all things, and we by him." This silenced his battery in that direction.

His next position was that there was not one of the ten commandments in the Christian institution, especially the last six, because they were political; therefore they were not binding. I pressed him to know when they ceased. He said, When Christ fulfilled them. They ceased as fast as he fulfilled them. I then showed that according to his own argument the law passed away at least three years before Christ was crucified, notwithstanding they crucified two thieves with him, three years after the elder's argument proved that the law, Thou shalt not steal, was done away.

He next said that the ten commandments and ceremonial law were all one law, which was the law of Moses, and all expired together, by being fulfilled. I then showed that there was one law nailed to the cross. Col. ii, 14. He then took the position that the ten commandments were abolished at the cross. His position stands as follows: 1. The ten commandments ceased by limitation, 2. By being fulfilled, 3. By being nailed to the cross.

As the Elder had asserted that the law was dead, and that there was not one of the ten commandments that could be found in the Christian system, which he said was contained in the twenty-one epistles, I pressed him till he acknowledged nine of them in the aforesaid epistles. Here he was completely down again.

In his next speech he brought forward as his new law, what Christ said in Matt. v, 27, 28: "Ye have heard that it was said by them of old time, Thou shalt not commit adultery. But I say unto you that

whosoever looketh on a woman to lust after her, hath committed adultery with her already in his heart." I admitted that the Saviour here told what adultery was, but did not tell whether it was right or wrong. So the Elder had to fall back to the original command, Thou shalt not commit adultery. So in 1 John iii, 15: "Whosoever hateth his brother is a murderer." But John does not say in this text that it is wrong to hate. So we are thrown right back to the original command, Thou shalt not kill.

I then showed that all that the Elder referred to as a new law, was but a fulfillment of the prophecy of Isa. xliii, 21: "The Lord is well pleased for his [Christ's] righteousness' sake. He will magnify the law and make it honorable." Here the Elder never attempted a reply.

We have large congregations, with a seemingly deep interest among the people to learn the truth. May God bless them and lead them out, is our prayer.

ISAAC SANBORN.

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