A World-Wide Proclamation—The World Marvelously Prepared to Receive It—“And Then Shall the End Come”
By Calvin P. Bollman
Elder Bollman gives us, in this, the conclusion of seven articles on our Lord’s great prophecy in the twenty-fourth chapter of Matthew. Each article has been an independent treatment of some phase of the prophecy; and it is not essential to have read the previous articles, in order to enjoy this one.
Editor.
In the first part of the wonderful twenty-fourth chapter of Matthew, our Lord gives a very brief outline of events down to the end of time and the dawning of eternity, reaching the climax in verse 14: “And this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a witness unto all nations; and then shall the end come.”
The question the Master was answering was, “What shall be the sign of Thy coming, and of the end of the world?” The reply admirably fits the question.
The kingdom was the great thing in their minds. All down through the ages, from the fall of man, God’s people had looked forward to the time when that which was lost in Adam should be restored in and to the seed of the woman; when should be fulfilled the promise, only dimly understood for centuries, until so beautifully voiced by inspiration: “And thou, O tower of the flock, the stronghold of the daughter of Zion, unto thee shall it come, even the first dominion.” Micah 4:8.
The Dominion That Was Lost
When man was created, dominion was given him over the earth and over all things therein. Under God, the supreme Ruler, Adam was king of one of the states of the universe. His dominion was lost in the fall; it is restored in Christ, the second Adam. This was the meaning of Gen. 3:15. It was all bound up in the promise to Abraham, “All the land which thou seest, to thee will I give it, and to thy seed forever.” Gen. 13:15.
An everlasting inheritance means also everlasting life. The apostle tells us, in Rom. 4:13, that the promise to Abraham embraced the whole world. Blessed promise! And to us the divine word comes, “If ye be Christ’s, then are ye Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise.” Gal. 3:29.
It was for this the children of Abraham had lived, hoped, prayed, labored, and even died; and Jesus put its realization definitely before His followers as an incentive to earnest faithful labor in doing the work He was soon to leave with them, the work of giving the gospel not to the Jews alone, but to all nations.
It Means More to Us
“This gospel of the kingdom” means more to us who live to-day, perhaps, than it meant to any past generation. To us it means, first of all, the gospel as it has always been preached. But now, conjoined with the gospel as the apostles preached it, is the announcement of the advent near; and to-day we see the Christian world afire with the inspiration of the thought of the speedy accomplishment of this work.
After foretelling the signs that would in due time show His coming near, the Saviour, speaking from the standpoint of the future, when the signs He had given should be fulfilled, said: “Verily I say unto you, This generation shall not pass, till all these things be fulfilled. Heaven and earth shall pass away, but My words shall not pass away.” Matt. 24:34, 35.
May Know When He Is Near
Everything foretold by our Saviour in this line of prophecy as signs, everything that could possibly serve as a timely warning, has been fulfilled. And to those who would be in a position to recognize these things as signs, our Saviour says: “Now learn a parable of the fig tree: When his branch is yet tender, and putteth forth leaves, ye know that summer is nigh: so likewise ye, when ye shall see all these things, know that it is near, even at the doors.” Matt. 24:32, 33.
The coming of the Lord cannot therefore be a matter of indifference to this generation; for Jesus has said of the generation that would be in a position to learn “a parable of the fig tree,” “This generation shall not pass, till all these things be fulfilled.” Truly,
“We are living, we are dwelling,
In a grand and awful time,
In an age on ages telling,
To be living is sublime.”
The writer recalls hearing years ago, as a small boy, a number of Presbyterian ministers discussing informally in his father’s home the question of how long it would take93to finish the work of giving the gospel to all the world. All who participated in the discussion were in their prime, but not one hoped to live to see the work accomplished. But during less than the last score of years, practically the whole Christian world has adopted as its slogan, “The gospel to all the world in this generation.” Why this change? Ah, we have reached the generation that is to see this work finished, the generation that shall not pass till all these things be fulfilled.
A Century of Changes
Think of the wonderful changes that have taken place in the world within the last century. A hundred years ago, a large part of the world was closed against the gospel. The interior of Africa was practically unknown. Japan, Korea, and China were for the most part sealed books. India was locked, bolted, and barred by caste. In Turkey, Mohammedanism barred the way. In Russia, the Greek Church seemed an impassable obstacle to the giving of the gospel to the millions in that land. In Italy, Spain, Portugal, Austria, and Belgium, Roman Catholicism sternly forbade the preaching of the gospel, as it did also in South America and many of the islands of the sea. Even Mexico, our near neighbor on the south, was unapproachable.
It Has Gone Everywhere
But a new day has dawned; and now there is scarcely a corner anywhere into which the light of gospel truth has not penetrated. Bible societies are printing and circulating the Bible by millions of copies every year. All who will, may buy at a price within their means; while to those who have nothing, the Bible, in whole or in part, is freely given. The meaning of it all is that God has set His hand to the work. The work of giving the gospel to all the world is soon to be finished, and then comes the end, “the end for which we sigh.”
Think, too, how modern invention has made it easy to do this work, and to do it speedily. Rapid transit by means of steam and electricity has made even the most distant nations near neighbors, until to-day there is scarcely a nook or corner in all this world which is not in close touch with every other part—if by no other means, at least by wireless telegraphy.
“Many Shall Run”
Less than seventy-five years ago, telegraphy was unknown. But more than five hundred years before Christ, an angel of God had said to the prophet Daniel, “Many shall run to and fro, and knowledge shall be increased”; and to-day we see that word fulfilled—literally, strikingly fulfilled. This is a most significant sign of our times, for it means that the work of giving this gospel of the kingdom to all the world is almost accomplished. “And then shall the end come.” Reader, are you ready for the issue?
False Clues to Happiness
“In the pursuit of happiness, people are apt to follow many false clues.”
Were They Always on Sunday?
By I. A. Crane
Christ’s Meetings After His Resurrection—When Were They Held? Did He Sanction Fishing on Sunday?
By I. A. Crane
No one in this day seems to doubt that the seventh day was once the Sabbath and was observed by all sincere worshipers of the true God. A great many honest people, however, have become greatly perplexed over what purports to be a transfer of the day of worship from the seventh to the first day of the week. Many ministers confidently affirm that Jesus honored the first day by always meeting with His disciples on that day, thus showing preference for Sunday as a day of worship.
Fishing Day — Day Not Known
THEY ASSEMBLED THROUGH FEAR
For the benefit of all honest seekers after truth, the accompanying diagram is presented. It will be seen, from this diagram, that the disciples gathered in their room at the close of the day upon which Jesus had risen from the dead. John 20:19. The place of this meeting was the upper room where they abode while in Jerusalem. Acts 1:13. Their Lord had been slain, and they themselves were accused of having stolen the body of Christ. Fearing further violence from the Jews, they sought their room as evening drew on, and shut themselves in. Evening is the time of the going down of the sun. Mark 1:32.
With the doors securely fastened, we can comprehend why they were so startled when Jesus suddenly appeared in their midst. Luke 24:36, 37. We are not told how long this first meeting lasted; but it evidently continued till late in the evening of the second day, which had begun as the sun went down.
WHEN DOES THE DAY BEGIN?
It seems difficult for many people to understand that one Bible day ends and another begins at the going down of the sun. They cannot grasp the fact that Sabbath evening is the night before Sabbath, and that first-day evening is the night before the first day. They well understand that Christmas eve is the night before Christmas, and Halloween is the night before Allhallow. Let such be assured that in Bible reckoning, all the twelve hours of night belong to the following day. God said, “From even to even, shall ye celebrate your sabbath.” Lev. 23:32.
The first day closed, and the second day began, at sundown when Christ held His first meeting with His disciples. Men now call this Sunday night, but God calls it the evening of the second day of the week, our Monday. See Gen. 1:5, 8.
The second meeting, being after eight days, as shown in the diagram, could not have been earlier than the evening of Tuesday, the third day of the next week. This is now called Monday night.
DID THEY FISH ON SUNDAY?
The third meeting is recorded in John 21:1-14. Verse 14 says this was the third time that Jesus met with His disciples after He arose from the dead. If, as many ministers aver, Jesus met His disciples every time on Sunday, then of course this meeting was on Sunday. Those who make this assertion, certainly ought not to try to enforce laws against Sunday labor, especially against fishing; for the disciples were fishing at the time of this meeting, and Jesus told them where to cast the net.
Ascension day was another time when Jesus met with His disciples. This is recorded in Acts 1:1-13. Verse 3 states that He was with them forty days. As the illustration shows, this meeting was on Thursday.
With these plain facts before us, how can we honestly assert that Christ met with His disciples only on Sunday, or that He honored that day by special meetings?
THE LORD’S SUPPER ON SUNDAY
Another equally unscriptural doctrine is the claim made by many to-day, that the early disciples honored Sunday by meeting that day to celebrate the Lord’s Supper. The only Scripture used in support of this theory is Acts 20:7. But again the proof is wanting. This text does not say they celebrated the Lord’s Supper on that day. It says they came together to “break bread.” They broke bread daily. Acts 2:46.
Even if it could be proved that breaking bread here means the Lord’s Supper, this solitary meeting certainly could not make that day the Sabbath, or Lord’s day.
INSTITUTED ON THURSDAY NIGHT
We have positive evidence that Jesus celebrated the Lord’s Supper the night before He was crucified, which is now called Thursday night. That night and the day following surely have far greater claims for sacredness than has Sunday. On that night, Jesus celebrated the Lord’s Supper with the disciples; and on the day following, He consummated by His death the greatest of all acts in the plan of salvation. Yet no one claims that these stupendous events occurring on the sixth day have made that day sacred.
The breaking of bread spoken of in Acts 20:7 does not even bear proof that it was the Lord’s Supper, or that it occurred, or was intended to occur, on what is now called Sunday. The meeting was a night meeting, and Paul preached until midnight. If we take the Bible reckoning, they came together at sundown Saturday night. While Paul was preaching, his company set sail for Assos. Verse 13. If, however, as some allege, this was a Sunday night meeting, then they did not break bread on Sunday at all, but sometime between midnight and Monday morning. See verse 11.
Shall we set aside the plain command of294God which says the seventh day is the Sabbath, and be satisfied with the groundless claim for Sunday sacredness? The New Testament shows that the Sabbath had passed when the first day began. Matt. 28:1 and Mark 16:1, 2. We have also the example of those early Christians who kept the Sabbath according to the commandment and went about their work on Sunday morning. Luke 23:56; 24:1.
A BLESSED HUNGER
By Rufus A. Underwood
A Longing That Will Be Satisfied—Strong Growth Assured—They Will Be Filled
By Rufus A. Underwood
This is the fourth of several short articles by Elder Underwood on the fundamentals of the gospel as set forth in the Sermon on the Mount. Each article is independent, and complete in itself, and you will enjoy it whether you get to read any of the others or not. Editor.
“BLESSED are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they shall be filled.” Matt. 5:6. This brings us to consider the fourth step in Christian experience. Those who have tasted of the good things of God, and of the powers of the world to come, find a growing appetite created, which longs for more.
HEALTHY GROWTH OF DESIRE
The student of science who pursues a certain line of study soon finds his desire for more knowledge greatly increasing. So it is in spiritual things. All the Bible illustrations of the new birth and the growth and development of the Christian life, present a constant advancement in knowledge and power.
The idea that the Christian is to realize in his first experience the greatest achievements of joy and power, is too suggestive of the bumblebee. That is largest when first hatched. Those who “hunger and thirst after righteousness” “shall be filled.” David said: “As the hart panteth after the water brooks, so panteth my soul after Thee, O God. My soul thirsteth for God, for the living God.” Ps. 42:1, 2.
WILL SUP WITH HIM
Christ, the great Teacher, stood before the multitude, and said, “If any man thirst, let him come unto Me, and drink. . . . This spake He of the Spirit, which they that believe on Him should receive.” John 7:37, 39.
Again the Saviour says: “Behold, I stand at the door, and knock: if any man hear My voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with Me.” Rev. 3:20.
All these expressions and invitations show that God will meet the desires of the human soul in granting the power needed to conquer in the battle against evil. The promise to those who hunger and thirst is, “They shall be filled.” The last words of Christ on earth to the early disciples were, to “tarry” until they should receive power from above: “And, behold, I send the promise of My Father upon you: but tarry ye in the city of Jerusalem, until ye be endued with power from on high.” Luke 24:49.
YOU SHALL RECEIVE POWER
Again Luke, in writing the book of Acts, refers to Christ’s parting words in this manner: “And, being assembled together with them, commanded them that they should not depart from Jerusalem, but wait for the promise of the Father, which, saith He, ye have heard of Me. For John truly baptized with water; but ye shall be baptized with the Holy Ghost not many days hence. . . . But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto Me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth. And when He had spoken these things, while they beheld, He was taken up; and a cloud received Him out of their sight.” Acts 1:4-9.
HIS LOVE SHED ABROAD
By the power of the Holy Spirit, the heart is changed, and divine love is planted in the soul; for the apostle says, “The love of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghost which is given unto us.” Rom. 5:5. The Holy Spirit is the divine Comforter, to sustain, support, and cheer the believer amid disappointment, and amid suffering and death. He is the agent who makes the sacrifice of Christ effectual to cleanse and sanctify the believer. “Know ye not that the unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom of God? Be not deceived: neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor abusers of themselves with mankind, nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners, shall inherit the kingdom of God. And such were some of you: but ye are washed, but ye are sanctified, but ye are justified in the name of the Lord Jesus, and by the Spirit of our God.” 1 Cor. 6:9-11.
THEY SHALL BE FILLED
“Blessed are they that hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they shall be filled,”—filled with the love of God; filled with faith and courage; filled with boldness to meet the world’s cold frown; filled with loyalty to the word of God; filled with unconquerable love for dying souls; filled with power to serve, suffer, and die for Christ; and filled with power to stand unmoved by human friend or foe in the hour of crisis; filled with joy and peace that will know no end; yea, filled with the life of Christ, as expressed by the apostle Paul in these words: “That He would grant you, according to the riches of His glory, to be strengthened with might by His Spirit in the inner man; that Christ may dwell in your hearts by faith; that ye, being rooted and grounded in love, may be able to comprehend with all saints what is the breadth, and length, and depth, and height; and to know the love of Christ, which passeth knowledge, that ye might be filled with all the fullness of God. Now unto Him that is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that worketh in us, unto Him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus throughout all ages, world without end.” Eph. 3:16-21.
The Only Source of Life
By Albert M. Dart
Is Man by Nature Immortal?—May He Secure Immortality?—If So, How?
By ALBERT M. DART
This is the first of several articles by Elder Dart on the general theme of the nature of man and the immortality of the soul. Each article will treat some phase of the subject independently.
PERHAPS no theme studied by the human family has called forth more serious consideration, or deeper thought, from the ablest minds, than has the nature of man.
It is our purpose to discuss the subject from the standpoint of the Scriptures, believing that man’s Creator has revealed His purpose concerning man in the Bible.
Is it not reasonable to conclude that as man is a created being, all his efforts to solve the problems of his nature and destiny apart from the mind of his Creator would be futile? “Nay but, O man, who art thou that repliest against God? Shall the thing formed say to him that formed it, Why hast thou made me thus?” Rom. 9:20. “This people have I formed for Myself; they shall show forth My praise.” Isa. 43:21.
How Man Was Formed
How formed? “And the Lord God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul.” Gen. 2:7. Here is the source of life; and great though the efforts, no one has been able to show other source than this.
Man’s relationship to his Maker is his relationship295to life. His relationship to his Creator is determined by his own choice; for God has endowed man with the power of choice, that he might be supremely happy; for who is happy when forced into something that he does not choose?
Adam and Eve, in the Garden of Eden, chose to be out of harmony with their Creator, and thus chose death; “for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die.” “And now, lest he put forth his hand, and take also of the tree of life, and eat, and live forever: therefore the Lord God sent him forth from the Garden of Eden.”
Now man, whom God formed for His own pleasure (Rev. 4:11), is in a dying condition. “Dying thou shalt die.” Gen. 2:17, margin.
If no provision is made for him, by his Creator, beyond the one indicated by the sentence pronounced upon him, he cannot live forever either in heaven or in hell, in bliss or in torment. It was “lest he live forever” in a sinful state that he was driven from his Eden home. Is his case hopeless? Must he be as though he had not been? Obadiah 16.
Christ to Man’s Rescue
“For God so loved the world, that He gave His only-begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life.” Webster thus defines “perish”: “To be destroyed; to come to nothing; to be ruined or lost; to die.”
The nature of man is apparent. In sin he is perishable, corruptible, mortal. As a believer in Christ he has everlasting life—the thing that he lost when he separated himself from his Maker by sin.
But what shall we believe about Christ to get everlasting life? What did He do to secure life to us? “God commendeth His love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.” Rom. 5:8. How would a person be a believer in Christ if he did not believe that Christ died for him? Would it not be cruel to refuse to believe that He died for us, when God says that He did? But if we believe that Christ died for us, because we were sinners, we must believe that man dies; “because we thus judge, that if One died for all, then were all dead.” 2 Cor. 5:14.
The Sinner Counted as Dead
Thus a man in sin is counted as dead. “And you, being dead in your sins.” Col. 2:13. So if one is not saved from one’s sins, he will “perish,” “come to nothing,” be as though he had not been; in short, will die. Again it is proved that man’s relationship to God determines his relationship to life.
When man separated himself from God through sin, the provision for him to be restored to divine favor through Christ applied. His relationship now to Christ is his relationship to life. He cannot reject Christ and live; and if he does not live, he “comes to nothing,” ceases to exist. “He that believeth on the Son hath [by faith] everlasting life: and he that believeth not the Son shall not see life; but the wrath of God abideth on him.” John 3:36.
The wrath of God is against sin. Rom. 1:18. Unless man is saved from the wrath of God, he must meet the same end that sin meets. Who would claim that sin is to be eternally perpetuated? Nay, dear reader, Christ died for us. “Much more then, being now justified by His blood, we shall be saved from wrath through Him.” Rom. 5:9.
It Makes a Difference
Some one asks, “Does it make any particular difference what we believe about the nature of man? Just believe in Christ, and you will be all right.” But our belief in Christ is determined by our attitude toward His word—the record He has left. “And this is the record, that God hath given to us eternal life, and this life is in His Son. He that hath the Son hath life; and he that hath not the Son of God hath not life.” “For there are three that bear record in heaven, the Father, the Word, and the Holy Ghost: and these three are one.” “He that believeth not God hath made Him a liar; because he believeth not the record that God gave of His Son.” 1 John 5:11, 12, 7, 10.
Does it make a difference? Yes; the atonement is at stake. The facts concerning the nature of man strike at the very foundation of the plan of salvation; and to treat them with indifference is fatal.
There is no provision for life outside of Christ. Yet it must be admitted that if man is immortal, he must live forever, whether rightly related to God or not; but the facts of redemption call for conditional immortality. This will be considered in our next article.
Resurrection Morn
By Lillian E. Peters
BY LILLIAN E. PETERS
O, wondrous morn of long ago,
By prophet and by priest foretold,
When angels mighty, sent from God,
The stone from Joseph's new tomb rolled!
For full four thousand weary years,
The grave had held its captives well,
Till captivity was captive led
By Christ, the blest Emmanuel.
How many Mary Magdalenes
Had laid their loved dead away,
Not knowing that in God's own time
Would dawn a resurrection day!
How blest are we, since that glad time,
The marvelous tidings to proclaim,
That mortals, dead in sin and shame,
Can pardon find, in Jesus' name;
Can rise from sin's dark sepulcher,
And lay the death robes far aside,
As did the Master on that day
When death's dark door was opened wide.
O, blessed resurrection morn,
An earnest of that morn to be,
When all the dead in Christ shall rise
To sing His praise eternally!
For yet again, with trumpet sound,
Angels of God, descending, come
To roll the stone of death away,
And burst the fetters of the tomb.
And then, throughout the earth and sky,
The glad hosannas loud will ring:
“O grave, where is thy victory?”
“O death, where is thy sting?”
WHEN THE Scourge of Sin Is Gone
By Worthie Harris Holden
ByWorthie Harris Holden
THERE is beauty in the morning blush
Caressing vale and hills,
’Mong the willow and the stately rush
That listen to the rills,
In the feathered songsters warbling forth
From choir lofts in the tree,
In the flowers bearing perfume rare
To nature’s harmony.
O, the world is wondrous beautiful
And fair, on every hand,
In a marvelous variety
For joy throughout the land:
And I wonder what our earth can be
When scourge of sin is o’er,
What the blissful sounds of ecstasy
That vibrate heaven’s shore.
Paint the beauty words depict as rare
In books of earthly lore,
Dream of wondrous music passing sweet
All voices heard before,
Yet no artist ever visioned scenes
That wait for you and me
When amid angelic heavenly hosts
We join God’s symphony.
The Ten Commandments
By Adolphus Smith
The Ultimate Application of the Two Great Commandments
By ADOLPHUS SMITH
The law of God to all created beings in all the worlds is tersely given in the words of Christ, by whom all were created, and in whom they live. See Matt. 22:36-40.
The Ten Commandments spoken by God from Mount Sinai, and written with His own finger in tables of stone, to indicate their imperishable character, were not a new law, but a drawing out and an ultimate application of existing law to local conditions. They have ever been universally binding upon sentient beings.
The fourth commandment was at Sinai drawn out of the first great commandment and of supreme love to God, which it permeates eternally, and of which it forms an integral part. This law of God was the basis of the covenant with Abraham. See Gen. 17:1-8; and 26:1-5. The same law was also the basis of the covenant made with Israel at Sinai four hundred thirty years after. See Ex. 19:5-8.
This covenant differed from the Abrahamic covenant in that by it the birth of a new nation was effected (see Deut. 7:6-9), of which, in the new earth, Abraham will be a subject. It did not at all affect the Abrahamic covenant.
The ceremonial law given at Sinai was remedial to the transgressions of the basic law of Ten Commandments. See Gal. 3:19. The nation of Israel is perpetuated under the new covenant (Heb. 8:8-13), the law of God, as in the old covenant, being its legal basis.
The difference in the two covenants was in the character of the people, and in the administration. “Sin is the transgression of the law.” 1 John 3:4. There can be no sin outside the pale of the moral law; therefore the law was binding from the beginning. “For until the law sin was in the world: but sin is not imputed when there is no law.” Rom. 5:13.
This may be better understood by the following paraphrase: “Even before God had spoken the law from Sinai, its transgression was in the world, else sin could not have been imputed to man.”
The Plan of Redemption
By James White
THE sacred Scriptures reveal but one plan by which fallen men may be redeemed. In the development of this grand plan, there has been in each succeeding age greater light and glory; but there is no intimation in all the book of God, of three plans to save sinners, one for the patriarchal age, one for the Jewish, and one for the Christian age.
Jesus Christ is the only Redeemer of the fallen sons and daughters of Adam in all the ages of human probation. He is “the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world.” Rev. 13:8. “Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved.” Acts 4:12.
The gospel of the Son of God is the good news of pardon and eternal redemption through Jesus Christ. That good news was proclaimed to Adam, and embraced by Abel, Enoch, and all the holy patriarchs and prophets.—James White.
The Cost of Gratifying Appetite
By Ellen G. White
What man would, for any sum of money, deliberately sell his mental capabilities? Should one offer him money if he would part with his intellect, he would turn with disgust from the insane suggestion. Yet thousands are parting with health of body, vigor of intellect, and elevation of soul, for the sake of gratifying appetite.— Mrs. E. G. White.
