Seventh-day Adventist Missionary Society · Oakland, California · May 13, 1880
General Articles.
By Ellen G. White
THE IDOLATRY OF ISRAEL.
BY MRS. E. G. WHITE.
At the command of God, Moses again ascended the mountain, and took with him Aaron, Nadab, and Abihu, with seventy of the most influential elders in Israel. These were placed where they might behold the majesty of the divine presence, while the people should worship at the foot of the mount. "And they saw the God of Israel; and there was under his feet as it were a paved work of a sapphire stone, and as it were the body of heaven in his clearness. And upon the nobles of the children of Israel he laid not his hand; also, they saw God, and did eat and drink."
They did not behold the person of God, but only the inexpressible glory which surrounded him. Previous to this, had they looked upon such a scene, they could not have lived, for they were unprepared for it. But the exhibitions of God's power had filled them with fear, which wrought in them repentance for their past transgressions. They loved and reverenced God, and had been purifying themselves, and contemplating his glory, purity, and mercy, until they could approach nearer Him who had been the subject of all their meditations. God had enshrouded his glory with a thick cloud, so that the people could not behold it. The office of the elders whom Moses took with him, was to aid him in leading the host of Israel to the promised land. This work was of such magnitude that God condescended to put his Spirit upon them. He honored them with a nearer view of the glory which surrounded him, that they might have a clear sense of his greatness and majesty and power, and thus be prepared with wisdom to act their part in the great work assigned them.
Moses and "his minister Joshua" were next summoned to meet with God. The decalogue was to be delivered, inscribed on two tables of stone, and as the time of absence was to be a long one, the leader had appointed Aaron and Hur, assisted by the elders, to act in his stead, giving them the injunction, "Tarry ye here, until I come again unto you." "And Moses went up into the mount, and a cloud covered the mount. And the glory of the Lord abode upon Mount Sinai, and the cloud covered it six days; and the seventh day he called unto Moses out of the midst of the cloud. And the sight of the glory of the Lord was like devouring fire on the top of the mount, in the eyes of the children of Israel. And Moses went into the midst of the cloud, and gat him up into the mount; and Moses was in the mount forty days and forty nights."
Even Moses could not go up at once into the mount; for he could not immediately approach so nigh unto God and endure the exhibitions of his glory. Six days was he preparing to meet with God. His common thoughts and feelings must be put away. During six days he was devoting his thoughts to God, and sanctifying himself by meditation and prayer, before he could be prepared to converse with his Maker.
The Lord then gave Moses directions for the building of a sanctuary, in which the divine presence would be specially manifested; he also gave further instructions in regard to the Sabbath. Finally there was delivered to Moses, by the hand of Divine Majesty, the testimony, or ten commandments, engraven on two tables of stone.
But while Moses was thus receiving instruction from God, the people were corrupting themselves at the foot of the mount. The mixed multitude that came from Egypt with the Israelites were the principal movers in this dreadful departure from God. They were called a mixed multitude, because the Hebrews had intermarried with the Egyptians.
The people had seen Moses ascend the mount and enter the cloud, while the summit of the mountain was all in flames. They watched for his return; and as he did not come as soon as he expected, they became impatient, and persisted that he had been slain by the burning flame.
A large company assembled around the tent of Aaron, and told him that Moses would never return—that the cloud which had hitherto led them now rested upon the mount, and would no longer direct their route through the wilderness. They desired something that they could look upon to resemble God. The gods of Egypt were in their minds, and Satan was improving this opportunity, to tempt them to imitate the Egyptians in their idolatry. They suggested that if Moses should never return to them, they could go back into Egypt, and find favor with the Egyptians, by bearing this image before them, acknowledging it as their god.
Aaron remonstrated against their plans, until he thought they were determined to carry out their purpose, and he then ceased reasoning with them. So violent were their clamors that he feared for his own safety. And instead of standing up nobly for the honor of God, and trusting his life in the hands of Him who had wrought wonders for his people, Aaron lost his courage, his trust in the Lord, and cowardly yielded to the wishes of an impatient multitude; and this, too, in direct opposition to the recent commands of God.
He told them to collect the golden earrings among the people, and bring the gold to him. He supposed this would deter them from their purpose. But not so; they willingly gave up their ornaments, and from these he made a calf in imitation of the gods of Egypt, and built an altar whereon to sacrifice to this idol. And he submitted to hear the people proclaim, "These be thy gods, O Israel, which brought thee up out of the land of Egypt." What an insult to Jehovah! Aaron himself "made proclamation and said, To-morrow, is a feast to the Lord. And they rose up early on the morrow, and offered burnt-offerings, and brought peace-offerings; and the people sat down to eat and drink, and rose up to play." They had recently listened to the proclamation of the law of God from Sinai, amid the most sublime demonstrations of divine power; and now, when their faith was tested by the absence of Moses for a few weeks, they engaged in idolatry, which had been so recently specified and expressly forbidden by Jehovah. God's anger was kindled against them.
Moses was warned to hasten back to the camp, for the people had turned again to the heathen worship. God said to him, "Let me alone, that my wrath may wax hot against them, and that I may consume them; and I will make of thee a great nation."
God saw that the children of Israel, especially the mixed multitude, were continually disposed to rebel, and, by their works, provoke him to destroy them. He knew that they would murmur against their leader, when in difficulty, and grieve him by their continual rebellion. He therefore proposed to Moses to consume them, and make of him a great nation. Here the Lord proved his servant.
He knew that it was a laborious and soul-trying work to lead that rebellious people through the promised land. He would test the perseverance, faithfulness, and love of Moses, for such an erring and ungrateful people. But the man of God would not consent that Israel should be destroyed. He showed by his intercessions that he valued the prosperity of God's chosen people more highly than a great name, or to be called the father of a greater nation than was Israel.
"And Moses besought the Lord his God, and said, Lord, why doth thy wrath wax hot against thy people which thou hast brought forth out of the land of Egypt, with great power, and with a mighty hand? Wherefore should the Egyptians speak and say, For mischief did he bring them out, to slay them in the mountains, and to consume them from the face of the earth?" And he begged that the people for whom God had so signally manifested his power, might be spared.
The thought that the heathen nations, and especially the Egyptians, would triumph over Israel, and reproach God, was overwhelming to Moses. He could not let Israel go, notwithstanding all their rebellion, and their repeated murmurings against himself. The news of their wonderful deliverance had been spread among all nations, and all people were anxiously watching to see what God would do for them. And Moses remembered well the words of the Egyptians, that he was leading them into the wilderness that they might perish, and he receive their possessions. And now if God should destroy his people, and exalt him to be a greater nation than Israel, would not the heathen triumph and claim that the God of the Hebrews was not able to lead them to the land he had promised them? As Moses interceded for Israel, his timidity was lost in deep interest and love for that people for whom he had, in the hands of God, been the means of doing so much. He presented before God his promise to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. He prayed with firm faith and determined purpose. The Lord listened to his pleadings, and regarded his unselfish prayer, and promised that he would spare Israel.
Nobly did Moses stand the test, and show that his interest in Israel was not to obtain a great name, nor to exalt himself. The burden of God's people was upon him. God had proved him, and was pleased with his faithfulness, his simplicity of heart, and integrity before him, and he committed to him, as to a faithful shepherd, the great charge of leading his people through the promised land.
CUMBERED ABOUT MUCH SERVING.
CHRIST never asks of us such busy labor
As leaves no time for resting at his feet;
The waiting attitude of expectation
He oft times counts a service most complete.
He sometimes wants our ear—our rapt attention—
That he some sweetest secret may impart;
'Tis always in the time of deepest silence,
That heart finds deepest fellowship with heart.
We sometimes wonder why our Lord hath placed us
Within a space so narrow, so obscure,
That nothing we call work can find an entrance;
There's only room to suffer—to endure.
Well, God loves patience! Souls that dwell in stillness,
Doing the little things, or resting quite,
May just as perfectly fulfill their mission,
Be just as useful in the Father's sight,
As they who grapple with some giant evil,
Clearing a path that every eye may see,
Our Saviour cares for cheerful acquiescence,
Rather than for a busy ministry.
And yet he does love service, where 'tis given
By grateful love that clothes itself in deed;
But work that's done beneath the scourge of duty,
Be sure to such he gives but little heed.
Then, seek to please him, whatsoe'er he bids thee;
Whether to do, to suffer, to lie still!
'Twill matter little by what path he led us,
If in it all we sought to do his will.
Never Chase a Lie
NEVER chase a lie. Let it alone, and it will run itself to death. You can work out a good character much faster than any one can lie you out of it.
THE UNITED STATES IN PROPHECY.
By Elder U. Smith
BY ELDER U. SMITH.
THE BEGINNING OF THE END.
Reference was made in another place to the movement now on foot for a grand union of all the churches; not a union which arises from the putting away of error and uniting upon the harmonious principles of truth, but simply a combination of sects, each retaining its own particular creed, but confederated for the purpose of carrying out more extensively the common points of our faith. This movement finds a strong undercurrent of favor in all the churches. And men are engaged to carry it through who are not easily turned from their purpose.
And there has suddenly arisen a class of men whose souls are absorbed with the cognate idea of Sunday reform, and who have dedicated every energy of their being to the carrying forward of this kindred movement. The "New York Sabbath Committee" have labored zealously by means of books, tracts, speeches, and sermons, to create a strong public sentiment in behalf of Sunday. Making slow progress through moral suasion, they seek a shorter path to the accomplishment of their purposes through political power. And why not? Christianity has become popular, and her professed adherents are numerous. Why not avail themselves of the power of the ballot to secure their ends? Rev. J. S. Smart (Methodist), in a published sermon on the "Political Duties of Christian Men and Ministers," expresses a largely-prevailing sentiment on this question, when he says:—
"I claim that we have and ought to have, just as much concern in the government of this country as any other men. . . . We are the mass of the people. Virtue in this country is not weak; her ranks are strong in numbers, and invincible from the righteousness of her cause—invincible if united. Let not her ranks be broken by party names."
A "National Association" has been in existence for a number of years, which has for its object the securing of such amendments to the National Constitution as shall express the religious views of the majority of the people, and make it an instrument under which the keeping of Sunday can be enforced as the Christian Sabbath. This Association already embraces within its organization a long array of eminent and honorable names: Governors of our States, Presidents of our colleges, Bishops, Doctors of Divinity, Doctors of Law, and men who occupy high positions in all the walks of life.
In the Address issued by the officers of this Association, they say:—
"Men of high standing, in every walk of life, of every section of the country, and of every shade of political sentiment and religious belief, have concurred in the measure."
In their appeal, they most earnestly request every lover of his country to join in forming auxiliary associations, circulate documents, attend conventions, sign the memorial to Congress, etc.
In their plea for an amended Constitution, they ask the people to—
"Consider that God is not once named in our National Constitution. There is nothing in it which requires an 'oath of God,' as the Bible styles it (which, after all, is the great bond both of loyalty in the citizen and of fidelity in the magistrate); nothing which requires the observance of the day of rest and of worship, or which respects its sanctity. If we do not have the mails carried and the post-offices open on Sunday, it is because we have a Postmaster-General who respects the day. If our Supreme Courts are not held, and if Congress does not sit on that day, it is custom and not law that makes it so. Nothing in the Constitution gives Sunday quiet to the custom-house, the navy yard, the barracks, or any of the departments of government.
"Consider that they fairly express the mind of the great body of the American people. This is a Christian people. These amendments agree with the faith, the feelings, and the forms of every Christian church or sect. The Catholic and the Protestant, the Unitarian and the Trinitarian, profess and approve all that is here proposed. Why should their wishes not become law? Why should not the Constitution be made to suit and to represent a constitution so overwhelmingly in the majority? . . .
"This great majority is becoming daily more conscious, not only of their rights, but of their power. Their number grows, and their column becomes more solid. They have quietly, steadily opposed infidelity, until it has, at least, become politically unpopular. They have asserted the rights of men and the rights of the government, until the nation's faith has become measurably fixed and declared on these points. And now that the close of the war gives us occasion to amend our Constitution, that it may clearly and fully represent the mind of the people on these points, they feel that it should also be so amended as to recognize the rights of God in man and in government. Is it anything but due to their long patience that they be at length allowed to speak out the great facts and principles which give to all government its dignity, stability, and beneficence?"
Thus for several years a movement has been on foot, daily growing in extent, and importance, and power, to fulfill that portion of the prophecy of Rev. 13:11-17, which first calls forth the dissent of the objector, and which appears from every point of view the most improbable of all the specifications; namely, the erection of the image and the enforcing of the mark. Beyond this, nothing remains but the sharp conflict of the people of God with this earthly power, and the eternal triumph of the overcomer.
An Association, even now national in its character, as already noticed, and endeavoring, as is appropriate for those who have such objects in view, to secure their purposes under the sanction of the highest authority of the land, the National Constitution, already has this matter in hand. In the interest of this Association there is published, in Philadelphia, a semi-monthly paper called the Christian Statesman, in advocacy of this movement. Every issue of that paper goes forth filled with arguments and appeals from some of the ablest pens in our land, in favor of the desired Constitutional Amendment. These are the very methods by which, in a country like ours, great revolutions are brought about; and no movement has ever arisen so suddenly as this to so high a position in public esteem with certain classes, and taken so strong a hold upon their hearts.
Says Mr. G. A. Townsend (New World and Old, p. 212):—
"Church and State has several times crept into American politics, as in the contentions over the Bible in the public schools, the Anti-Catholic party of 1844, etc. Our people have been wise enough heretofore to respect the clergy in all religious questions, and to entertain a wholesome jealousy of them in politics. The latest politico-theological movement [italics ours] is to insert the name of the Deity in the Constitution."
The present movements of this National Association and the progress it has made may be gathered somewhat from the following sketch of its history and the reports of the proceedings of some of the conventions which have thus far been held.
From the Pittsburgh (Pa.) Commercial, of Feb. 6, 1874, we take the following:—
"The present movement to secure the religious amendment of the Constitution originated at Xenia, Ohio, in February, 1863, in a convention composed of eleven different religious denominations, who assembled for prayer and conference, not in regard to the amendment of the Constitution, but the state of religion. Meetings—small in numbers—were held shortly after in Pittsburgh and elsewhere. At first, the association was called a 'Religious Council;' now it is known as the 'National Association to Secure the Religious Amendment of the Constitution of the United States,' and is becoming more popular and increasing largely in numbers
"The first National Convention of the Association was held in the first United Presbyterian church, Allegheny, Pa., Jan. 27, 1864, at which a large delegation was appointed to present the matter to the consideration of Hon. Abraham Lincoln, President of the United States. An adjourned meeting was held in the Eighth Street Methodist Episcopal church, Philadelphia, on the 7th and 8th of July of the same year; and another in the same city, in the West Arch Street Presbyterian church, Nov. 29, 1864.
"Conventions were held in New York in 1868, Columbus, O., Feb., 1869, and Monmouth, Ill., April, 1871.
"National Conventions were held in Pittsburgh, 1870; Philadelphia, 1871; Cincinnati, 1872; and New York, 1873. The National Convention which meets this afternoon [Feb. 4, 1874] in Library Hall [in Pittsburgh, Pa.], is we believe, the fifth in order."
From the Report of the Executive Committee at the Cincinnati Convention, Jan. 31, 1872, it appeared that ten thousand copies of the proceedings of the Philadelphia Convention have been gratuitously distributed; that a General Secretary (Rev. D. McAllister) has been appointed, with a salary of $2,500; and that a long and elaborate paper by Prof. Taylor Lewis, of Union College, in advocacy of the ideas and objects of the Association, will soon be published; that the number of the Executive Committee is recommended to be increased to twenty-five, besides including all presidents of auxiliary associations; that $2,177 have been raised the past year by the Association, and that a balance of over $90 remains in the treasury. Nearly $1,800 were raised at this Convention.
The Business Committee recommended that the delegates to this Convention hold meetings in their respective localities to ratify the resolutions adopted at Cincinnati; that twenty thousand copies of the proceedings of this Convention be published in tract form; and that the friends of the Association be urged to form auxiliary associations. All these recommendations were adopted.
Among resolutions passed were the following:—
"Resolved, That it is the right and duty of the United States, as a nation settled by Christians, a nation with Christian laws and usages, and with Christianity as its greatest social force, to acknowledge itself in its written Constitution to be a Christian nation.
"Resolved, That the proposed religious amendment, so far from tending to a union of Church and State, is directly opposed to such union, inasmuch as it recognizes the nation's own relations to God, and insists that the nation should acknowledge these relations for itself, and not through the medium of any church establishment."
Of the fifth annual Convention at Pittsburg, Feb. 4, 1874, Eld. J. H. Waggoner, who went as a correspondent from S. D. Adventists, says, in the Advent Review of Feb. 17, 1874:—
"This was a meeting of delegates, but largely attended. The number of delegates holding certificates was 641; non-certified, 432; total, 1073, representing 18 States. Petitions to Congress, partially returned as I understood, footed up over 54,000 names.
"It has been strongly impressed upon my mind that we have under estimated, rather than over estimated, the rapid growth and power of this movement. Those who think we have been deluded in confidently looking for a great change in the nature and policy of our government, could but be convinced that we were right in this if they would attend such a meeting as this, or by other means become acquainted with what is actually taking place in this respect. The reason assigned for calling a delegated convention is that no place could be found large enough to accommodate a mass meeting of the friends of the cause. But it is proposed to hold mass meetings in the several States, and have a general grand rally in 1876, the centennial anniversary of independence.
"The animus of this meeting cannot be understood nor appreciated by any one who did not attend it. It was a large gathering of delegates and others, and for enthusiasm and unanimity is rarely equaled. This feature can be but feebly described in any published report. And I notice that some of the most significant and stirring expressions are left out of the most complete reports of the speeches yet given.
"The officers of the Association for the coming year are, President, Hon. Felix R. Brunot, Pittsburgh, with 99 Vice-Presidents, among whom are 4 Governors, 5 State Superintendents of Public Instruction, 9 Bishops, 15 Judges of higher Courts, and 41 College Presidents and Professors; and the others are all eminent men. General Secretary, Rev. D. McAllister, N. Y.; Corresponding Secretary, Rev. T. P. Stevenson, Philadelphia."
In his opening address, the President of the National Association, and chairman of this fifth Convention, Hon. Felix R. Brunot, said that their "cause had made the progress of twenty years in five;" and the General Secretary, D. McAllister, said of the past year that it had "numbered a larger array of accessions to our ranks than any two, or three, or perhaps five preceding years."
(To be Continued.)
WALKING BY FAITH.
By E. Elliot
WE cannot see, when in the hush of some deep sorrow,
How shadows of the night,
With the glad coming of a happier morrow,
Grow into light.
We do not know how unseen hands are guiding
In dangerous paths our feet,
Nor how the shadow of the rock is hiding
Us from the noontide heat.
We do not know of snares and pitfalls lying
Where our short sight would lead,
Nor that the bread is all unsatisfying
On which our souls would feed.
But up alone, where threads of life are woven,
Wisdom directs our lot;
And God's own hand will guide us to the haven,
By "ways which we know not."
—E. Elliot.
A STRANGE VIEW OF CHRIST.
By Editor
In a sermon at an Institute of Unitarians, in Providence, R. I., is found the following paragraph:—
"There had been but four men who stood forth as great religious leaders. They were Confucius, Mahomet, Buddah, and Jesus. Confucius taught the Chinese, but the religion which he taught was not adapted to the race. Mahomet was a grand torch of infinite service, but his faith was not universal. Buddhism and Christianity were alike in their regard for the whole human race. A Buddah girl who had been converted to Christianity was dying, and her mother wept for the future of the girl. The girl, to comfort her mother, told her a dream which she had. She dreamed that she saw the Lord Jesus and the Lord Buddah standing side by side in Heaven. Both smiled upon her, both smiled upon each other; but she said the crest of the Lord Jesus was the higher. That dream, said the speaker, I believe will be realized. I believe the time will come when humanity will elect, if that word may be used, the Lord Jesus as the great leader of the race. The unity of race; the brotherhood of man was the key note of the religion of Jesus. Christianity, as a historic religion, stood or fell upon the unity of man."
So then the Lord Jesus Christ is, is he not, only the author of one of the religions of the world, by means of which men can be saved! Then is he only a little superior to Buddah, regarded as the superior of the authors of religions, and on terms of loving fellowship with him! Then by some process of reasoning, or otherwise, is the race coming to elect the Lord Jesus and his religion!
Now there are, doubtless, those who regard such notions as these not only as sober sense, but also as the advanced thought of the age. But to us they are strangely in contrast with the teachings of the old book known as the Word of God, which the world, we do not believe, has yet outgrown.
In it we find expressed such sentiments as these, "Neither is there salvation in any other; for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved." "One Lord, one faith, one baptism." "For there is one God, and one Mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, who gave himself a ransom for all." "And hath given him a name which is above every name." "Repent and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins." Now we may be behind the times and fogyish, but we greatly prefer the old teaching to the new.—Morning Star.
THE SABBATH.
By Rev. Geo. H. Griffin.
It is alleged by some that the fourth commandment is not binding under the gospel; that its requirements were abrogated when the Lord of the Sabbath declared that day made for man, and not man for it. But arguments based upon such an assumption prove too much; for if Christ did away with the fourth commandment of the decalogue, it may be reasoned that he also superseded the rest of the nine.
The confusion of ideas lies in the failure to distinguish between the moral, ceremonial and civil laws of the Old Testament dispensation. It is clear that when the veil of the Temple was rent in twain, an end was put to the law of commandments contained in ordinances; that all the ceremonies of sacrifice and priestly intercession gave place to the one great expiation and eternal advocacy of the One Mediator between God and men. So, when the theocracy had accomplished its purpose, the civil code of the Jews passed into desuetude. But to say that the moral law was destroyed by the introduction of the new dispensation is, by implication, to remove the very foundation of Christianity. Few can be found, perhaps, to favor such a view as this; and yet for consistency's sake, those who argue the abrogation of one of the ten commandments, must undermine the whole.
I believe, for one, that the entire decalogue is in full force now, and will be till "the last syllable of recorded time;" but that, instead of keeping these commandments from fear of the penalty of their violation, Christ inculcates the obedience of love. Hence we are to observe the Sabbath as a day of hallowed rest, of loving worship, and of cheerful service to God and man. Avoiding either extreme of austerity or levity, I hold to the duty of making the Sabbath a day of holy joy and attractiveness even to the children.—Rev. Geo. H. Griffin.
A TRACT FOR THE LABORER.
A DEAL of questionable literature has been freely distributed among the shops and tenement homes of the laboring classes in this country during the past few years—literature that adds discontent to discontent, fans the flame of hatred for employers, and leads directly to desperation and lawlessness. If now some real friend of the working classes, with no selfish ends to gain, would circulate that part of the report of Carroll D. Wright, Chief of the Bureau of Labor Statistics in Massachusetts, which refers to strikes, they would learn something to their advantage, as the advertisers say. Mr. Wright, who is distinguished down East for his zeal and success in gathering statistical information, has the trouble to prepare a summary of strikes in Massachusetts since 1830. During these fifty years there are recorded 159, or one strike every four months. Of this large number only eighteen ended successfully for the workmen, 110 entirely failed, sixteen were compromised, and six were partly successful, the result of the other nine being unknown. That is, in the light of experience, a Massachusetts laborer who undertakes to force his employer to advance his wages, stands only one-eighth of a chance of succeeding. These figures are just as trustworthy as those on which insurance companies invest their capital, and cannot be wisely neglected.
The disastrous strike of the Fall River operatives last year cost them in wages $1,400,000 during an idleness of fifteen weeks. Had they succeeded, it would have taken full two years for them to make good their loss. But they failed, and not only have lost the million and a half, but are in debt or have reduced their savings in order to live during the strike. A strike of crispins in Marlborough cost the operatives $200,000 in wages lost; another strike of crispins at Lynn cost them $140,000, and so the record rolls on. Usually the expenses during the strike equal the wages lost, so that the balance seems largely against the strikers.
One of the permanent results of labor uprisings, as noted by Mr. Wright, is the effort continually being made by mill-owners to introduce machinery wherever they can. A machine does not strike for higher wages, or get drunk, and when abandoned does not threaten other machines which take its place. Machines, therefore, can be relied upon. The question of contingencies in taking a large manufacturing order is much more serious in a factory of operatives than in a factory of machines. The tendency, then, is for the laboring classes to narrow their chances for employment by repeated strikes.—Examiner and Chronicle.
THE MOTIVE IN GIVING.
We used to invite people to subscribe to the missionary cause, but in a species of public competition not dissimilar from the methods of an auctioneer. Fortunately we have got past that, and the great cause rests on the conscience of the church and the principles it has adobted. Rev. Mr. Osborne told a story at the late Wesleyan annual meeting which recalls the olden time. It is as follows:
Many of the negro people in the West Indies are, in giving their money, subject to the same sort of influences as people at home. For instance some time ago a missionary meeting was being held, and a gentleman was reading the list of contributions, and cried out, "Nelson Coffee, one dollar." Nelson Coffee was in the chapel, and he said: "You say Mr. Nelson Coffee, and me give two dollar." "Well," said the gentleman, "if you give five dollars I will say, 'Nelson Coffee, Esquire'" "Massa, me pay de money!"
That seems to be applying the honorable designation of "Esquire" there pretty much as we do at home. I do not know by what principle people who prepare subscription lists are guided, or why they call one person "Mr. John Smith," and another "John Smith, Esq.;" but if ever they have a difficulty they will perhaps recollect how it is got over in the West Indies.—Northern Advocate.
God in the House
A little boy whose father neglects the duty of family prayer, spent some time with his pious relatives, where morning and evening devotion was carefully observed, and religious instruction imparted, remarked, "We haven't got any God at my papa's house." But isn't it true elsewhere that they haven't got any God in the house? How is it in yours?
The Value of Spiritual Blessings
ANY spiritual blessing is worth more than the most costly temporal good. A devout thought, a pious desire, a holy purpose is better than a great estate or an earthly kingdom. In eternity it will amount to more to have given a cup of cold water, with right motives, to an humble servant of God, than to have been flattered by a whole generation.
JESUS AND THE BIBLE.
By George F. Pentecost
"In the volume of the Book it is written of me" (Heb. 10 : 7). Commenting on this passage of Scripture, Martin Luther says:—
"There is but one Book; there is but one Person. That Book is the Bible; that Person is Jesus Christ."
In the highest and best sense of the great reformer's thought all devout persons agree with the truth of this noble sentiment. There are many books in the world, and of the making of more good, bad, and indifferent there seems to be no end; but the Scriptures, the Holy Bible, is still, as it ever has been, pre-eminently the Book. Just as Jesus was pre-eminent among the many who bore the same name while he lived, so he is designated in the Greek of the New Testament by the definite article. He was emphatically the Jesus. So the Bible is among other books the Bible. When Sir Walter Scott lay dying, he called to his son-in-law, Mr. Lockhart, and said: "Read to me." "Out of which book, Sir Walter?" said Mr. Lockhart. The dying poet looked at him earnestly for a moment, and then said: "Lockhart, there is but one Book. Read to me out of the Bible." Happy the man who, living or dying, comes to understand that the Bible is the Book in all the world, and that Jesus Christ, of whom the great writers of the Bible wrote, is the only person to whom he can yield his heart and mind in supreme and undivided allegiance.
If Jesus Christ was God manifest in the flesh, it is also true that the Bible, in a very high and important sense, is a manifestation of Jesus Christ in the word. The written Word is the living stenograph of the Eternal and Incarnate Word, who was made flesh and dwelt among us. It is this fact that makes Christ and the Bible inseparable. Should we take Christ out of the Bible, there would be no book, in any proper sense, left. Should we destroy or deny the authenticity and genuineness of the Bible record, the world is left without Jesus Christ. Thus we come to the practical conclusion that Jesus Christ is the key to the interpretation or understanding of the Bible. In reading its sacred pages, in contemplating its great characters, in unfolding its symbols, in interpreting its types, in reading the history of its chosen people, in making research into its historic pages of creation, as well as in seeking the interpretation of its great prophecies, we need to take Jesus Christ with us as a key to unlock all. He who reads with Jesus as the key will read understandingly and be made wise unto salvation. Otherwise he will only become wise in his own conceits and probably wrest the Scriptures to his own condemnation.
From the time God announced in the Garden of Eden that the seed of the woman should bruise the serpent's head (Gen. 3 : 15) until the time when John cried, in response to the apocalyptic vision, "Even so, come Lord Jesus" (Rev. 22 : 20), he is seen to be the great central figure of the Book. As the sun casts a shadow before a body advancing from it, so Jesus, who was a Lamb slain from the foundation of the world, and whose goings forth have been from eternal, casts the long line of typical and ceremonial shadows seen in the Old Testament Scriptures before him. These, says the great apostle, were the shadow of good things to come—Jesus the substance of all those good things.—Rev. Geo. F. Pentecost.