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THE HERALD
of Christ's Kingdom

VOL. XXV APRIL 1942 NO. 4
Table of Contents

Leaves from a Christian Diary

The New Dawn

Right Habits of Thought

"Sound in Faith, in Charity, in Patience"

The Beauty of Holiness

Annual Meeting of the Pastoral Bible Institute

Recently Deceased

Two Resurrections

"The resurrection of life . . . and the resurrection of judgment."
- John 5:28, 29.

THE HOUR is coming," said our Lord, "in the which all that are in the graves shall hear His voice; and shall come forth; they that have done good, unto the resurrection of life; and they that have done evil, unto the resurrection of judgment." - John 5:28, 29.

These two resurrections, the one to life, the other to judgment; the one for those who have clone good, the other for those who have done evil, are distinguished in other passages of Scripture. Speaking of the resurrection to life, St. John, in the Book of Revelation, chapter 20, verses 5 and 6, declares : "This is the first resurrection. Blessed and holy is he that hath part in the first resurrection; on such the second death hath no power, but they shall be priests of God and of Christ, and shall reign with Him a thousand years." The very fact that the resurrection of these is designated the "First" resurrection, implies another resurrection, which he proceeds to discuss in the following verses. However, before we take up the special features in which the two resurrections are to be distinguished, it may be well for us to first consider the question of any resurrection, for concerning the general subject of a resurrection varying views have been, and still are, entertained.

Long ago the question was asked "If a man die. shall he live again?" This question appears in one of the oldest books of the Bible, and today it has lost none of its interest to the intelligent mind. It is only a few years since a canvass was made of public personages whose opinions are highly regarded, with a view to securing a satisfactory answer to it. This answer was sought from learned men and women-ministers of religion, eminent scientists, famous authors, doctors, lawyers, statesmen, business executives, social workers, men and women whose opinions carry weight, and whose records entitle them to be heard with respectful attention. While a number of these expressed a belief in life beyond the grave, this belief was admittedly based on hope. From the purely scientific standpoint no evidence was advanced to prove that the life we now live has any continuance after death.

Some of the ancients thought that whereas the life of the lower orders of creation ceased at death, that of human beings continued on the other side of the grave, and this view is still held by many. When this idea was suggested to King Solomon, noted for his wisdom and learning, his comment was: "Who can prove it?" While he knew that human beings were endowed with moral attributes not possessed by the lower animals, yet, so far as the kind of life they possessed, his observation was: "That which befalleth the sons of men befalleth beasts; even one [and the same] thing befalleth them: as the one dieth, so dieth the other; yea, they have all one [kind of] breath; so that a man [in this respect] bath no pre-eminence above a beast. . . . All are of the dust, and all turn to dust again." - Eccl. 3:19-21.

Nor was this conclusion which he reached different from that of other Scripture writers. The thought which he expresses in another place, namely that the dead know not anything^-, that there is no work, nor device, nor knowledge, nor wisdom in the grave, is their united testimony. David in the Psalms declares that in the very day one dies, his thoughts perish. (Psa. 146:4.) Job, discussing the same question, says: "The" dead man's sons come to honor and he knoweth it not; they come to dishonor, but he perceiveth it not of them." - Job 14:21.

What is the Nature of Man?

What, then, is the soul? The Bible account of creation of man reads as follows: "And the Lord God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed [or blew] into his nostrils the breath [or wind] of lives; and man became a .living soul." From this account it appears that the body was formed first, but it was not a man, it was not a soul or being until animated. It had eyes, but saw nothing; a mouth, but no taste; nostrils, but no sense of smell a heart, but it pulsated not; blood, but it was cold, lifeless; lungs, but they moved not. It was not a man, but an inanimate body.

The second step in the process of man's creation was to give vitality to the properly formed, and in every way prepared, body, and this is described by the words: "blew into his nostrils the breath of lives." As the vitalizing breath entered, the lungs expanded, the blood corpuscles were oxygenized and passed to the heart, which organ in turn propelled them to every part of the body, awakening all the prepared, but hitherto dormant nerves, to sensation and energy. In an instant the energy reached the brain, and thinking, perceiving, reasoning, looking, touching, smelling, feeling, and tasting commenced. That which was a lifeless human organism had become a man, a sentient being; the "living soul" condition mentioned in the text had been reached.

Candle Illustration

This has been illustrated by the candle. For instance, the candle, unlighted, would correspond to an inanimate human body; the lighting of the candle would correspond to the spark of life originally implanted by the Creator; the flame, or light, corresponds to the sentient being, or intelligence; the oxygenized atmosphere which unites with the carbon of the candle in supporting the flame corresponds to the breath of life or spirit of life which unites with the physical organism in producing soul or intelligent existence.

If an accident should destroy the candle, the flame, of course, would cease; so, if the human body be destroyed, the soul, the life, the intelligence, ceases, or, if the supply of air were cut off from the candle-flame, as by an extinguisher or snuffer, or by submerging the candle in water, the light would be extinguished, even though the candle remained unimpaired; so the soul, the life or existence of man would cease, if the breath of life were cut .off by drowning, or asphyxiation, while the body might be comparatively sound.

As the lighted candle might be used under favorable conditions to light other candles, but the flame, once extinguished, could neither relight itself nor other candles, so the human body, while alive, as a living soul or being, can start or propagate other souls or beings-offspring. But so soon as the spark of life is gone, soul or being has ceased, and all power to think, feel, or propagate, has ceased.

A candle might be relighted by any one having the ability; but the 'human body, bereft of the spark of life, wasteth away, returneth to the dust from which it was taken, and the spark of life cannot be re-enkindled except by a miracle.

The Good News of the Gospel

Coming back, then, to our question: "If a man die, shall he live again?" it is not difficult to see that its true answer must lie in the power and purpose of God. If the Creator has the power, it may be so; and if it is His purpose, it will be.

Concerning His power we do not doubt. That which we may see in His handiwork, in the physical universe, and in our own wonderfully made bodies abundantly attests His power to perform all His will.

But is it His purpose to restore the dead to life again? It would be good news to learn that this is God's purpose, would it not? Well, the word "gospel" means good news, and the gospel or good news of God, the "good tidings of great joy," announced by the angels at the birth of Jesus,' is, that God has provided for the race of mankind an opportunity whereby all may have and enjoy everlasting life. Through the Prophet Hosea God declared: "I will ransom them from the power of the grave." Jesus said: "The hour is coming when the dead shall hear the voice of the Son of God, and they that hearken shall live." And again, He said: "The hour is coming in the which all that are in the graves shall hear His voice, and shall come forth." Lest there should be a question in the mind of any one as to whether this refers to the good only, we remind you of His further words, quoted as a text at the beginning of this meditation: "They that have done good and they that have done evil." St. Paul expressed it as "a resurrection of the dead, both of the just and unjust." - Acts 24:15.

The Resurrection of Judgment

But some one may inquire: What is the purpose of this awakening? Is man to live on in sin again, as he has been permitted to do in the past and present?

We answer: Not so! Let no one suppose that the mere awakening from the sleep of death will constitute one a possessor of everlasting life. No! while this will be true of those who in this life have done good, they that have done evil will need to experience a change of heart ere they are granted this blessing. The surrounding conditions of society will then be greatly improved knowledge will have taken the place of ignorance and the reign of righteousness and the law of love will at that time have superseded the rule of sin under the law of selfishness. Under the favorable conditions of that mediatorial Kingdom all mankind will be required to make progress in the knowledge of the Lord, and in the bringing of their own hearts and lives in accord with His law of love. Whosoever then will make no effort in the right direction will be cut off from life in the second death. But while judgment will thus pass against one who fails to make progress, and will after he has had one hundred years of trial cut short his further opportunity, the same judgment, by the same Judge, will operate favorably to all who will seek righteousness and make progress in harmony with the laws of the Kingdom, so that year by year they will be growing mentally, physically, and morally stronger.

Thus the resurrection, so far as the world of mankind is concerned, will be a gradual work. Its first step will be an awakening from the sleep of unconsciousness and non-entity. Its successive steps will be along the lines of judgment, the conduct of those who are on trial being approved or disapproved, and culminating either in their sentence to the second death, incorrigible, and unworthy of the gift of God--eternal life; or in their perfection, and their adjudgment to have and enjoy the great boon of life eternal, and the blessed conditions which are then promised to prevail, when there shall be "no more sighing, no more dying, no more crying," because there will be no more sin, and none of the penalties of sin, for the former things will have passed away, Christ having made all things new.

The First Resurrection

Having seen that the Scriptures establish the general principle of a resurrection, and its applicability to all mankind, because the redemption accomplished by our Lord was a ransom for all and not for a chosen few, we wish to notice, in the briefest possible way, a few of the special marks by which the Scriptures distinguish the "First" resurrection from this general one. For our guidance we will turn to the closing verses of St. Paul's first letter to the Corinthians, chapter 15. His words, found in verses 42-44 (1 Cor. 15:42-44), describe, as clearly as it is possible for us to understand things so far beyond our plane of existence, the grandeurs and perfections of being which shall be ours when we shall have experienced this great change of the First Resurrection.

We shall no longer be weak and imperfect, with dying tendencies, and animal bodies, but shall be incorruptible, powerful, and have spiritual bodies. We "shall be like Him, for we shall see Him as He is."

In the 50th verse, where the Apostle declares that "flesh and blood cannot inherit the Kingdom of God," we are not to suppose as some have done, that while flesh and blood cannot inherit the Kingdom of God, "flesh and bones can. We are to recognize that the Apostle in the use of these words, "flesh and blood," signifies human nature, just as our Lord did when He said to Peter, on the latter's confession of his belief that Jesus was the Messiah, "Flesh and blood hath not revealed this unto thee." Our Lord did not mean or say that it had been revealed unto Peter by "flesh and bones." No human being had revealed it to Peter; that was His evident meaning.

The Apostle's declaration thus properly understood is that human nature cannot inherit the Kingdom of God. This is in full accord with his other statements and the statements of the other Apostles, that we muse: become "new creatures in Christ Jesus," partakers of the divine nature, if we would be sharers with our Lord in the coming Kingdom, and its great and glorious work. This is in full accord also with our Lord's words to Nicodemus, when He declared: "Except a man be born again [begotten now to a new nature and born in the resurrection] he cannot enter the Kingdom, and cannot even see it." Earthly beings of human nature, flesh and blood, can see earthly things, but as no man hath seen God at any time, likewise no man can see the glorified Son of God; and for similar reasons none will be able to see with the natural eye the glorified Church, for all ,these, in their resurrection change, will be spirit beings, and like their Lord, the express image of the Father's person. We must keep in mind the fact that the Church is entirely separate and distinct from the world; and that the hopes of the Church are to be differentiated from those of the world in every particular.

"We Shall not All Sleep"

The Apostle proceeds next to notice a difficulty which might arise in the minds of those to whom he wrote. Those members of the Church who have died will, it may be realized, be raised incorruptible, immortal, in the end of the Gospel Age. But how will it be with any who may chance to be still in the flesh, at the time of the Second Presence of the Lord, and the setting up of His Kingdom, and His awakening of their sleeping brethren? Will these living ones pass over, into the Kingdom with bodies of flesh and blood?

The Apostle undertakes to solve this mystery. "Behold," says he, "I show you a mystery," or, as Weymouth translates the passage: "I reveal to you a truth hitherto kept secret. We shall not all sleep."

Note the expression carefully. He does not say that we shall not all die, but that we shall not all sleep. Death comes in a moment; sleep, on the contrary, occupies (a period of time. When, therefore, the Apostle says that we shall not all sleep, he is to be understood as saying that we shall not all experience the condition of unconsciousness that is styled in the Scriptures "sleep." "But," he goes on to say, "we shall all be changed." It will be as impossible for the human nature, the flesh and blood, of those living at the close of the Gospel Age, to participate in the spiritual Kingdom which Christ will then establish, as it was impossible for any of the brethren of the past to do so.

How, then, will these get rid of their flesh and blood, their human nature? We answer that the Scriptures are most explicit on this point. None need err in the matter. All who will be partakers with Christ in this, His resurrection, must be sharers with Him in His death. As He Himself expressed it: "Be thou faithful unto death, and I will give thee a crown of life." The change from corruptible to incorruptible, from mortal to immortal, from weakness to power, from ignominy to glory, from human nature to divine nature, in the case of these last members will be so sudden as to occupy no appreciable space of time, and so the Apostle illustrates it by saying that it will be, in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye-the instant of their dying will be followed the next instant by their change.

When?

Again, the thought of some, that this resurrection change has come to each individual at the moment of dying, all down through the Gospel Age, is contradicted by the Apostle. For, after having said that "we shall be changed, in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye," he goes on to tell us when that is to be. It is to be "at the last trump" "when the seventh trump shall sound." Then it is that the dead, that is to say, these special dead who are under discussion, the dead brethren, the dead "in Christ" shall be raised incorruptible. Then it is that "we," that is, those of Christ's members who will be living, shall be "changed."

The last trump, or the seventh trump, just alluded to, like the previous six trumpets, is symbolic, as students of the Book of Revelation arc aware; and these seven trumpets represent seven great periods of time and their events. It is sufficient here to say that we find ourselves today in the midst of the very events which mark the sounding of the seventh trumpet. The increase o' knowledge, the angry nations, taken in connection with time prophecies, establish this as a fact. Its fulfillment extends through a period of 1,000 years. Its events mark and coincide with all the various features of the Millennial reign of Christ.

After this change of the Church has been completed, after this first, or chief resurrection, has been accomplished, then, the Apostle goes on to tell us, the prophecy written in Isaiah (25:8) will meet fulfillment: "Then shall come to pass the saying that is written, Death is swallowed up in victory."

Here, again, the Apostle's statement is generally misunderstood; most readers get the impression that he means that the victory over ,death and the grave is already accomplished. Others, a little nearer to the truth, infer that the victory will be fully accomplished in the change of the Church, the Body of Christ, in the First Resurrection. However, neither of these views meets the scope of the statement. On the contrary, the First Resurrection, the change of the Church, will be but the beginning of the great victory which Christ is to achieve over death and the grave. This will be merely the bringing forth of the first-fruits, as St. James declares: "A kind of first-fruits 'of His creatures."

The force, then, of the Apostle's statement is seen to be that then, at the First Resurrection, this prophecy of victory over death will begin to have its fulfillment. It will require all of the Millennium to accomplish the victory over death, and Christ and the glorified Church will be the victors, as it is written: "He must reign until He hath put all enemies under His feet; the last enemy that shall be destroyed .s death." To accomplish this complete victory over death and the grave will be the very object of the establishment of the Kingdom, and will require a thousand years; as it is written again respecting the reign of those who have part in the First Resurrection: "They lived and reigned with Christ a thousand years."

"Therefore be Ye Steadfast"

What a wonderful hope this is, and how inspiring to the hearts of every one who has heard the invitation, and who has become a follower of Jesus, and is seeking to walk in His steps, as He has set us an example. Let us not forget, however, that special , privileges, bring correspondingly special responsibilities. "He that hath this hope in him purifieth himself even as Christ is pure." If we expect to be with the Lord and to share His glory, and to be associates in His work in the future, we know it will mean that our characters must be transformed, that our hearts must be renewed; that we must become, not only pure in heart, that is, in intention, in will, in purpose, toward God, but, so far as possible, in word and deed also. Let us, therefore, resolve afresh at this joyous "resurrection" season., that as for us, we will henceforth endeavor to walk more closely in our Master's footsteps, and to let the light of His truth and grace more and more shine out through our lives. "Now is Christ risen from the dead, and become the first-fruits of them that slept." "Therefore, my beloved brethren, be ye stedfast, unmovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, forasmuch as ye know that your labor is not in vain in the Lord."

"Oh, let me know
The power of Thy Resurrection!
Oh, let me show
Thy risen life in clear reflection!
Oh, let me soar
Where thou, my Savior Christ, art gone before"!
In mind and heart
Let me dwell always, only, where Thou art."

The Light-Bearers

"Ye are the light of the world. Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven."
- Matt. 5:14-16.

THE GREATEST of all. the light-bearers is God. He is said to dwell in eternal light. To Him David addresses the words, "Who coverest Thyself with light as with a garment." His presence was manifested in the Shekinah light in the Most Holy of the Tabernacle. "O Thou that dwellest between the cherubim, shine forth," said the Psalmist. Light is frequently used in the Bible as a. symbol of truth, and God the Father is the great source of truth, the great fountain-head from which truth eternally springs.

Another wonderful light-bearer was the Logos, the Word, the only-begotten Son of God. By Him God made the worlds and robed them in light Habakkuk says, "His brightness was .as the light, and there were beams of light going forth out of His body." John says, "In Him was life; and the life was the light of men." John the Baptist was sent to "bear witness of the Light." And "That was the true Light, that lighteth every man that cometh into the world." And while Jesus was on earth He said, "I am the light of the world." In the Book of Revelation He is pictured as standing in the midst of seven golden candlesticks, to see that they give light. Next to Jehovah, Jesus is the greatest of all the light-bearers.

Another light-bearer of distinction was Lucifer. In fact the very name of this being signifies light bearer. The fact that he was a glorious creation resplendent in light is clearly borne out by the Word of God. Referring to Lucifer, the Prophet Ezekiel says, "Every precious stone was thy covering, the sardius, topaz, and the diamond, the beryl. the onyx, and the jasper, the emerald, and the carbuncle, and gold. . . Thine heart was lifted up because of thy beauty; thou hast corrupted thy wisdom by reason of thy brightness." (Ezek. 28:13-17.) Then in process of time Lucifer fell from his high estate and became a false light-bearer. Indeed he himself has posed as an angel of light, and his angels have done likewise.

To show how Satan poses as a light-bearer we take the following excerpt from an article entitled, "Satan's Counterfeit of True Religion."*

----------------------------
*Z-Feb. 1, 1916.

"When the Father of Lies enters the pulpit, he does not flatly deny the great doctrines of Christianity, but he rather tacitly acknowledges them and then proceeds to give an erroneous interpretation and a false application. For example, he would not be so foolish as to boldly announce his disbelief in a personal God-he takes His existence for granted and then gives a false description of His character. He announces that God is the Father of all men, when the Scriptures plainly tell us that we are 'the children of God by faith in Jesus Christ.' (Gal. 3:26.) Again, Satan would not make so flagrant a blunder as to ignore the central figure of human history, the Lord Jesus Christ. Instead, He is acknowledged to be the most perfect person who ever lived. Attention is drawn to His deeds of compassion and acts of mercy, the beauty of His character, and the tenderness of His teaching. His life is eulogized, but His death is ignored the all important atoning work upon the cross is never mentioned. It is a bloodless Gospel, and a cross-less life and, in regard to His person, He is merely considered as the Ideal Man."

Early in the Gospel Age Satan sowed "tares" among the Lord's "wheat," and they have been there ever since. Even at the present time it is not easy to tell just who belong to these respective classes. "Man looketh upon the outward appearance, but the Lord looketh upon the heart." Because we cannot tell exactly who the "tares" are and who the "wheat," we are not qualified to separate them. Only the Lord can do this in His appointed way. To change the figure of speech to terms in harmony with our subject, the "tares" of the parable would be false light-bearers, while the "wheat" would be true light-bearers. And the "light" of course would be the truth.

Various Lighthouses

True light-bearers always give off true light. Some years ago off the coast of Maine a vessel was nearing her home port. It was late in the season. Snow had begun to fall. It was very dark. A certain lighthouse was looked for by the captain, but it was not seen. Evidently it was farther away than was supposed, and owing to the fact that this light did not appear, the vessel went on the rocks and the crew had a narrow escape from being drowned.

What was the trouble? The lighthouse was there all right, but it had not been lit that night. The old keeper of the lighthouse was seriously ill, and his wife had sprained her ankle and could not mount the steps to send the beacon light out over the dark waters. Everything was all right except the light itself, but that meant a great deal and so a vessel went on the rocks. If we have spiritual lamps, they should be lit. As that fine old hymn expresses:

'Brightly beams our Father's mercy
From His lighthouse evermore,
But to us He gives the keeping
Of the lights along the shore.
Let the lower lights be burning!
Send a gleam across the wave!
Some poor fainting, struggling seaman
You may rescue, you may save.

There are lights that lie along the shores of life for the benefit of the mariner on the darksome main. There are various lights and various light bearers throughout the ages of the world. There have been literary light-bearers, and scientific light-bearers. There were many centuries when it was believed that the sun, moon, and stars moved around the earth. Then Copernicus, the father of modern astronomy, discovered what every schoolboy knows today, that the sun is the center of our planetary system. This was real light, but, the darkness hated this light, and it was pronounced a heresy to go against the established belief of the times. It was claimed that Copernicus could not possibly be right, for if he were, then Venus would show phases like the moon. But soon Galileo invented a telescope and discovered these phases. Then he too was denounced as a heretic and a menace to society. When Robert Fulton spoke to a wealthy magnate about making a vessel sail by means of steam, the big man looked at him and said, "Go away, I have no time to talk to fools." Thus the light of scientific knowledge was opposed right and left.

And what a fight the Anglo-Saxon people have had for the light of liberty. The barons had to corral King John and over-awe him by the might of arms before he would sign the Magna Carta, the first great charter of English liberty, stating that no man could be imprisoned or punished in any way without the proper judgment of his peers and the sanction of the law. Neither could justice or right be delayed or denied to any one. But it was. a constant struggle down to the Bill of Rights and the Petition of Rights. Then when some of the people of Britain came over to this side of the water, they soon had another struggle, and their attitude was set forth in the Declaration of Independence.

Lights of Religion

But after all, the greatest lights have been those of religion, and the greatest light-bearers have been those who have stood for divine truth in every age. These have been the lights along the shore to direct the mariner to the safe waters. Doubtless Enoch was a great light-bearer in his day. He must have been out of harmony with the order of things that then obtained. Perhaps even the members of his own family were to some extent ashamed of him and his light-bearing.

All the true prophets of God were light-bearers, "of whom the world was not worthy." John the Baptist testified of that great light which was Jesus, who said, "I am the light of the world. He that followeth Me shall not walk in darkness but shall have the light of life." But He also said to His followers: "Ye are the light of the world. A city that is set on an hill cannot be hid. Neither do men light a candle and put it under a bushel, but on a candlestick; and it giveth light unto all that are in the house. Let your light so shine before men that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven." The bearing of this, light has cost many of God's people their lives, but they remember the Master's words, "He that loveth his life shall- lose it; and he that hateth his life for My sake and the Gospel's, the same shall save it" (John 12:25; Mark 8:25), and this assurance enables them to keep on in the appointed way. The golden lampstand in the holy of the Tabernacle, would seem to be a picture of the Church of Christ holding forth the Word of Truth. And this thought is upheld by the symbolism that is employed in the first chapter of the Book of Revelation, where a similar lampstand is used to symbolize "the seven Churches that are in Asia," or the one true Church of Christ in its completeness.

Light-Bearers Today

It is a great honor and privilege to be a light bearer for the Lord. The world is in great darkness today in spite of all the advantages of education. It is remarkable that church-going people frequently cannot answer the simplest questions on Bible subjects. They do not know the meaning of the words mortal and immortal. They do not know what death is. They have no future hope for the world. If we were to ask them just when and under what circumstances the first Gospel sermon was preached, they could not tell us. We once put this question to a lady who had the reputation of being an advanced student of God's Word, and she said she thought that John the Baptist preached the first Gospel sermon. So we referred her to the sermon that God preached to Abraham, and she said she never dreamed that the Gospel went back as far as that. Then we told her of the divine promise that the seed of the woman should bruise the serpent's head, and what Enoch meant by his prophecy that the Lord would come with ten thousands of His saints to execute judgment in the world, etc. She honestly confessed that she did not know what these things meant, yet she had been a church-goer all her life. How deplorable is such ignorance! How thankful we should be that we have the light of truth.

A long time ago David wrote, "Light is sown for the righteous." During the past ages it has been useless to sow light for any but the righteous. For it is true that "The light shineth in darkness and the darkness comprehendeth it not." True light-bearers are light-lovers; therefore they are light seekers. They realize that light is progressive and they want all the light obtainable at a given time. So their faces are turned upward to catch the rays of light that God will send them. Desiring the higher wisdom in fullest possible measure, they ask it of God, not of men. And possessing this wisdom, they are in a position to understand things that other people do not. "The wise shall understand."

The light of truth is not something to be afraid of, for the truth of God must finally triumph; therefore the sooner we come into alignment, with this unconquerable power, the sooner will life's victory be ours. We are bearers of light when we go forth in the strength of the Lord and stretch out hands of good-will and blessing to other lives with a view to imparting to them some measure of the faith and hope that animate our own hearts.. We are bearers of light when we point men away from the earth with its trials and cares, and point them up above the clouds to God, and to the bow of His divine promise. We are real light-bearers when we daily take up the cross that God has assigned to us and follow the Master "through good report and through evil report." We are messengers of heavenly light when we catch the rays from Calvary and reflect them during this world's night-time of sin and death. We should indeed be bearers of light at all times. Let us then consider the words of the poet, as follows

"A thousand hands reach down
To help you to their peace-crowned heights,
And all the forces of the firmament
Shall fortify your strength. Be not afraid
To thrust aside half-truths and grasp the whole."

- Contributed.

Leaves from a Christian Diary

THE PATIENCE OF THE SAINTS

(Received from a brother and sister in Great Britain.)

"Tribulation worketh patience; and patience, experience;
and experience, hope." - Rom. 5:3, 4.

"When the storms of life are raging Tempests wild on sea and land."

WITHOUT the storm winds blow; within are conflicts and struggles. We are threatened, driven and tossed like frail skiffs upon a boisterous sea. Around, the dear ones struggle, half-fainting with the effort to steer their frail earthly craft, amidst overwhelming sorrows, difficulties, and temptations, toward the heavenly shore. Comes the question, What is man? At our very bravest and best, we are frail human fragments. Tired, faulty, yet striving; not merely against flesh and blood but against the unseen forces of darkness.

"Weak and weary in the conflict,
'Wrestling not with flesh and blood,'
Help us, Lord, as faint we falter;
O revive us by Thy Word!"

Above the strife and tumult, rings the sweetness of assurance: "My grace is sufficient for thee." Fainting hearts revive and ears become more alert to catch each word. "Beloved, think it not strange concerning the fiery trial which is to try you." Faltering steps are spurred forward again. It is no strange thing to pass through the furnace. We gave our gold to the Refiner to be purged of its dross, and the cleansing flames we said we would bear. Or to turn to the other picture, we tread with patient zeal the narrow tortuous way. Come storm or tempest, we will continue on to the end, but how we wish the end were in view.

"Be thou faithful unto death." Like a sweet clarion call, sounding above the din of conflict, the words of a risen, glorious Savior, rouse us to activity. Gone is all the lassitude and weakness. Clothed in His strength, we continue to fight the good fight just for today.

Conscious of Failings

And what of today? Each day is so nearly like yesterday we become dismayed by our examination of the hours. We seem to have such a struggle with the simplest of things. The days are filled with common tasks. It seems an effort to do these tasks at times, we get so tired, so beset by weaknesses. To get ,a little time for study or private meditation is well nigh impossible some days. When we do get it, we are so tired it is a mental effort to concentrate upon whatever we want to read or think about.

And when it comes to the evening hour and we look back across that gap from dawn to setting sun, how disappointed we often feel. What an ordinary, empty, unsatisfactory day it has been. We cannot recount our victories, we cannot revel in opportunities we have had to tell the Good Tidings to some questioning soul. There has been little time to think or study, and worst of all we are conscious of failings--thoughts, words, action perhaps, not quite all of that sweet, pure gentleness which becometh "His very own."

We cannot go to our Father and tell Him of joys; we have only a story of rush and bustle, of failings and regrets to relate. We feel poor and mean, dissatisfied, sand restless, longing with all our heart for better things.

"God hath chosen the poor of this world, rich in faith." Hence the dear ones of His choice need to work hard and long under present conditions for their temporal sustenance. To those who have given their lives wholly to His service, the everyday routine, the constant jar and fret of little things, seems at times, scarcely understandable. Why should we have to live such ordinary work a day lives, with so little opportunity to do the things we want, when we long so much to do them?

Tribulation Worketh Patience

Many earnest children of God question thus, forgetful of the full import of the Apostle's words, "tribulation worketh patience." Tribulation is a state of affliction, oppression, pain and misery. We are oppressed by the daily round. All these ordinary, mundane tasks filling up consecrated hours which we long to use for other things, become at times an oppressive burden.

We grow discontented and tired. Then little things begin to go wrong. An unkind thought may creep in. Perhaps we are unjustly dealt with and a sharp word is spoken. Some mean action may be done to us in the course of the day. We may retaliate, become resentful, or refuse to do something, outside our province, because we find that others only take advantage of our kindly efforts.

Reviewing the day we experience a sense of pain, because the good we would do, we have not done, and the wrong we would not do, we have done. Then do we say to ourselves as did the Apostle Paul: "O miserable man that I aim, who shall deliver me from this body of flesh."

Truly did the poet write:

"The daily round and common task,
Will furnish all we need to ask."

God knows our needs; He is much too wise to err. In the daily round are the very experiences which will develop patience, that sweet virtue, without which no Christian character will be complete.

"We long to do good in the after-while,
But what are we doing today?"

Today we are in the school of Christ. Today there are lessons to learn from our common tasks. Those little ordinary things we tripped over were the tests,; the thwarted longings were the disciplinary measures good for our wayward hearts. Passing through troubled times, enduring reproaches, or standing up valiantly for truth, brings keen cutting pain. These larger experiences of our Christian warfare are often borne more valiantly and with more fortitude than the lesser trials. They are so evidently a test, we school ourselves to patient endurance. We know our feet are planted upon a rock. The clash and din of conflict, though hurtful and wearisome, does not bear our courage down. Right nobly we keep the banner of truth flying brightly burns our faith in the darkest hour. These sharp conflicts have always brought a measure of joy to God's 'people. Exultant faith, triumphant through His grace, has poured forth eloquent testimony to His praise. But what of the little every-day things. How many have falteringly and tearfully confessed to failure in the daily round and common task.

It is specially important to watch the little things. Seldom do we conquer trifles as we conquer great things.

God Chooses a Man of Stammering Tongue

We know that it has been God's eternal purpose to have with Him a royal family-children who would reflect the beauty of His character; children whom He could love with all the fullness of His Divine nature; children who would be all love, even as He is love, who could and would fully reciprocate His love bestowed upon them.

When we stop to consider this we see something of the importance of the daily round. Out of the fallen race He has chosen this family which shall be His future joy. His creative works have required long ages for their accomplishment, but in the space of our short life time, His grace is sufficient to transform the sin-stained worldlings of His choice, into vessels of praise to His own glory.

"I know this stained tablet must first be washed white,
And there Thy bright features be drawn."

If some other way would have been better for the imprinting of that sweet image of Christ upon our hearts, then surely the wisdom of God would have chosen it. But since most of us are left to 'live these ordinary work-a-day lives, then that must be the very best way in which to develop those sweet graces of the Spirit which will enable us to reach the mark, and win the prize, of eternal life with Jesus Christ.

Nothing is more remarkable than some of the means which God has chosen in times past for the carrying out of His purposes. As if to teach us to trust in nothing and in none but Himself, He selects means that seem the worst fitted to accomplish His ends.

Does He choose an ambassador to Pharaoh? -- It is a man of stammering tongue. Are the streams of Jericho to be sweetened? -- salt is cast into the spring. Are the battlements of a city to be thrown down? -- no explosive is employed, but simply the breath of an empty trumpet. Is a rock to be riven? -- neither earthquake nor lightning is employed, but a simple rod. Leaving schools, halls and colleges, God summoned His preachers from the shores of Galilee. The helm of the Church is entrusted to hands which have never steered ought but fishing boats. By the mouth of -one who had been His bitterest persecutor, Christ pleaded His cause before the philosophers of Athens, and in the palaces of Rome.

A Little While

What wonder then, that looking for a stone upon which to trim and polish the living stones for His eternal temple and dwelling place, He uses the apparently simple daily round of common tasks. The very fact that the daily routine is so unsatisfactory, so full of struggles and failures, makes us long for that day when we might leave it all behind, and enter into the bright realms of Immanuel's land. In these imperfect bodies we do so much we dislike, and only the sweet promise that "Christ shall change our vile body and fashion it like unto His own glorious body, keeps us patient; keeps us still striving.

Daily tribulation cultivates patience-patience to strive continually to make today better than yesterday, and tomorrow better than today. It develops in us experience, or character-the character of Christ. With the knowledge that by His grace we are getting ever nearer to the mark for the prize, comes sweet hope-the hope of seeing Hint face to face and being made like Him.

"'A little while,' with patience Lord,
I fain would ask, 'How long?'
For how can I, with such a hope
Of glory and of home,

With such a joy awaiting me,
Not wish the hour were come?
How can I keep the longing back,
And how suppress the groan."

As the Apostle Paul says, "We ourselves groan within ourselves," longing for an end of strife, and an entrance into the joys of our Lord. So often the heart, tired by the ceaseless battle with the little things, whispers its longings to Him with the ever-open ear. In sweet assurance comes the answer

"Not now, My child, a little more rough tossing,
A little longer on the billows' foam,
A few more journeys through the darkened wilderness,.
And then the sunshine of thy Father's Home."

"Let patience have her perfect work," in the little things. Once more through the furnace, once more to the battle, once more that-lonely walk in the dark, with only the touch of His hand, once more round that slowly turning grindstone of daily little things,. and then--Oh the sweetness of then! That blessed after-while of rest, peace, and joys for evermore.

In the Hands of the Great Sculptor

It is not so many years ago since one we dearly love, said, "As the sun sinks at the close 'of each day and the shadows gather around us, how sweet to sing, 'I'm one day nearer Home.' We have nearly reached the mountain top, and every day multiplies the evidences that the journey is nearing its end. Just how long it will be we cannot know; probably it is best we do not know. But we believe that it will not be very long."

"Herein is the patience of the saints," to keep on day after day, week after week, year after year,, if it please Him in whom we trust,, until He shall call us Home. "This day the noise of conflict, the next the victor's song," should be the inspiration of those oppressed by the daily littleness. Being girt about by patience, strong in experience and inspired by hope, such can never fail. In the sweet hereafter, looking back on those little things, when each succeeding day was "twin sister of the last,"' they will see that nothing could have been a better instrument in the hands of the Great Sculptor, by which to fashion in them, beauty which would stand the eternal years.

"Let patience have her perfect work, that ye may be perfect and entire, wanting nothing." - James 1:3.

The New Dawn

The first hues of dawn illumined the eastern sky above the housetops. A blessed quietness pervaded the air, contrasting with the tumult of the night which had but lately died away.

At a busy street corner, now almost deserted, the dim light revealed a tall, slender pillar supporting an object which has become only too familiar a sight in our [British] towns in these days. Suddenly it gave voicea deafening, strident, unwavering note, reverberating over street and housetop, but, for all its harshness, coming as music to the ears of the hearers. The word passed quickly from lip to lip: "All clear; All clear." It meant that the winged messengers of death had departed; that the coming of day had banished the terrors of the night. The doors of the shelters were opened; men and women straggled forth into the street, blinking a little at their emergence into daylight, and breathing in with relish the sweet, pure air of the morning. And the sun rose higher as its healing rays spread over the earth.

What a fitting picture of the New Dawn. There will be a day -- may it come soon -- when the sweet, searching motes of the Great "All clear" will sound over all the earth. The great Trumpet of Jubilee will "wax louder and stronger" and summon all men and women from their graves to rejoice in the healing beams of the "Sun of Righteousness." The forces of evil will be speeding away as the light of Millennial Day waxes stronger and brighter. The powers of death will have flown away and be gone. The confusion and distress, the sorrow and suffering and strife of earth's dark night will be over, and upon all the earth -shall he peace.

"And it shall be said in that day, Lo, this is our God.. We have waited for Him, and He will save us. "This is, the Lord. We have waited for Him; we wild be glad and rejoice in His salvation." - Bible Students Monthly, Eng.

Right Habits of Thought

"Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report -- if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things." - Phil. 4:8.

AS THE mouthpiece of the Lord, the Apostle Paul is here giving instructions to the Church respecting how she should build herself up. Referring to the great influence of the mind over the body, he lays down' certain rules for thinking; for as a man thinketh, so he will become. The more he thinks on good things, the better he will be. The more he thinks on evil things, the more evil he will be. The things we think about, the Apostle says, should be honorable, just, praiseworthy, beautiful. If a thing has none of these qualities the Lord's people should not think on it at all. A wonderful transformation of character is effected by thinking on those things which have wisdom and depth of instruction-those things which come from no one else, but God.

"When the Spirit of Truth is Come It Will Guide You Into All Truth"

St. Paul was the one privileged to see the Lord after His ascension. We perceive that he, as well as all the other Apostles, had fulfilled in him the Master's words, "Whatsoever ye shall bind on earth shall be bound in heaven; and whatsoever ye shall loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven." (Matt. 18:18.) That is to say, the Apostles would be so guided by divine wisdom that whatever they should declare necessary in life, would be upheld in heaven, and whatsoever they should declare unnecessary, would be so considered in heaven. Hence, the whole duty and responsibility of the Church is outlined by this Apostle.

Much that our Lord said was spoken„ in dark sayings. The exposition of some of these sayings and some of these particular instructions he left to the Apostles, under the direction of the Holy Spirit. The reason Jesus did not, give the explanation of the deeper and more spiritual things was that the disciples were not then spirit-begotten and could not understand these things; whereas, after their begetting of the Holy Spirit, they were able to understand the deeper things of the Word of God.

Our Lord said, "When he, the Spirit of Truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth; . . and he will show you things to come." (John 16:13.) This he has done through the writings of the Apostles and by believers all through the Gospel Age. Thus the Lord is making ready for the glorious consummation of our hopes; and thus the Bride is making herself ready for the marriage of the Lamb, which will shortly take place.

"Keep thy heart with all diligence; for out of it are the issues of life." (Prov. 4:23.) These are inspired words of the wise king, Solomon, and it was evidently with the same thought in mind that the Apostle penned: the words of our text. How beautiful this, the Apostle's final admonition to the Philippian Church, whom he addressed with affection as his "joy and crown"; and how. much in keeping with the thought that out of the heart are the issues of life!

The heart represents the will, the intentions; the will must be kept true and centered in God, for it is the governing power of the whole man. Yet, though the will is the controlling power of man, it is also subject to influences. If the thoughts be impure, unjust, or unholy, the power of the will becomes more and more impaired. Hence the wisdom of the admonition of the Apostle as to what should be the character of our thoughts. In those who are striving to perfect holiness in the fear of the Lord-to adorn themselves with the beauty of holiness-the thoughts must not be neglected and permitted to browse in every pasture, but must be disciplined to feed upon pure and healthful food, as the Apostle directs.

The Truth of as Thing is but One of the Tests

Is this true, or is it false? is the first question to be asked in the consideration of any matter. Love for the truth lies at the very foundation of a righteous life, and whoever sympathizes with falsehood or exaggeration is more or less defiling himself; but whoever cleanses his thoughts is to that extent purifying his entire character. With our poor and imperfect brains there is great danger of our being misled; and hence the Word of God exhorts us earnestly that we should not touch that which we realize is untrue.

The truth of a thing, however, is but one of the tests to which we should subject every matter. Who does not know that there are many things that are true, and yet dishonorable, not worthy of our thoughts. The true, but dishonorable and unworthy things presenting themselves for our consideration are, perhaps, oftenest in connection with the weaknesses, the errors, the follies, or what not of our neighbors, our brethren. The dismissal of these thoughts, so unworthy, will leave us the opportunity and the energy, if we will, to spend upon things that are honorable as well as true, worthy of our attention as new creatures in Christ Jesus.

"Things that are just." Here we have another limitation. That which is just is that which is right. Justice and righteousness are synonymous terms. Very often that which is just is supposed to be the same as that which is lovely; as, for instance, The Golden Rule, "Do unto others as you would have others do unto you." This is not the rule of love, but of justice. We have no right to do unto others anything that we would not that they should do to us. In keeping the Golden Rule therefore, we are not keeping the great Law of Love, but we are taking a step in the right direction. No one should begin to think about love until he is just. Love would be something more than that which is right. Love is more than justice. We have no right to expect more than justice. Whatever we receive more than justice is love, favor,

Justice Should be the Rule of Our Lives

In thinking on those things suggested by the Apostle, we should think, first of all, on our own course. We should critically consider whether we are always thinking on these things which are right, just. We should never be prejudiced in the matter. Justice should be the rule of our lives, of our conduct. Again, in thinking on these things, we might naturally think in respect to the conduct of others. We could think about the influence, for instance, of various things. We could allow our minds to dwell much on the injustices practiced about us and elsewhere; on how much injustice is done in Africa against those who could rule themselves better; on how much injustice is done in business, etc. Thus there could be a great deal of muckraking. But this should not be the subject of our general thoughts. We should think of the good things, the higher things, the happier things; not only the good things of this life, but the blessed things of the life to come; and thus have our minds running along the lines of justice at all times.

We Should not Wait for the Lord's Chastening Hand

No one can cultivate justice until he gets some appreciation of what it is. This necessary knowledge is obtained through the Scriptures. Some are born with a larger sense of justice than are others and some are born who seem to have no appreciation of right or wrong. But whether we have, naturally, a keen sense of justice or not, the Bible is the standard. As we know, the Scriptures say that we should do unto others as we would that they should do unto us; that we should forgive others as we would they should forgive us. When we have considered well these first lessons, then we are ready to cultivate justice and to put it into practice in our daily lives. This we do by asking in respect to our words and acts, Did I tell the truth? And was it just to tell it? Was it right to tell it? Was it in harmony with what I should wish others to tell in respect to my affairs? Did I do the right thing?

Whoever is in the school of Christ is there to study and practice along the lines of justice and of love. It is the work of a life time. We find that we can improve from day to day. We should not. wait for the Lord to chasten us, but should be so desirous of having the Lord's will done in us that we would scrutinize our thoughts. We should walk circumspectly. We should think about what. we are doing, about what we are thinking. We should not allow our thoughts to ramble. People who do so do not keep themselves under proper grip. The will dominates the life. First of all, we should make a full surrender to the Lord by giving him our wills, the control over our thoughts; our words, our actions. Those who have accepted the control of Christ over their affairs are not at liberty to act as they will. They are to be controlled by His Word, and to walk according to His rules. Our Master said, "A new commandment I give unto you, that ye love one another as I have loved you." (John 13:34.) This is more than justice. The Lord so loved the world that He laid down His life for them. So should we be ready and willing to lay down our lives for the brethren.

We are not to allow our minds to run along lines. that would be unjust. We are to learn to apply this test of justice to every thought and word and act of ours, while learning at the same time to view the conduct of others, so far as reason will permit, from the standpoint of mercy, pity, forgiveness, helpfulness. But we cannot be too careful how we criticize every thought we entertain, every plan we may mature, that the lines of justice shall in no way be infringed by us with our heart's approval.

Our Minds Should be Filled with That which is Pure and Lovely

In scrutinizing our thoughts from the viewpoint of purity, we should consider, first, the nature of the thoughts; and., second, their influence upon others. Not only should our thoughts be true and honorable and just and right, but they should be pure, and such as will not excite others to impurity. We should avoid anything that, while not impure-in itself, might have the effect of arousing impurity in another. The Apostle's thought seems to be that we should guard our thoughts at all times.

"Whatsoever things are lovely" calls to our attention the fact that we should not allow our minds to dwell upon things that are not lovely, that are not praiseworthy. We might permit our business to so fill our thoughts that we would think continually about that particular thing; for instance, one interested in the iron business might always think about structural iron; another, about the coal business; another, about potatoes and codfish, etc. These things might be just enough, true enough, honorable enough, but constant thought on these lines is not profitable to the new creature. When we are employed in digging, we should give attention to that business; when we are in thy iron-work business, we should give proper attention to it. But when we are in the thinking business, we should not allow our minds to dwell on the things which the Apostle stipulates to be injurious. We must endeavor to bring our thoughts into subjection and train them along the lines that will transform us more and more into our Lord's glorious character likeness.

Our thoughts must not only be true, honorable and just, but they must be pure, they must be beautiful. By the word beautiful we understand, not only the thoughts relating to the beauties of nature, the flowers, the animal creation, the fruits, etc., but also and chiefly the things of character -- the fruits and graces of the Holy Spirit-meekness, gentleness, patience, long-suffering, brotherly-kindness, love. With these things our minds can become filled and enamored. If, on the contrary, we allow ourselves to neglect these things that are pure, just, lovely, we shall not grow in the fruits of the Spirit; but by thinking on these things and cultivating them in our hearts we become more and more Godlike. If we do not cultivate these desirable qualities, then will be developed envy, hatred, strife, works of the flesh and of the Devil-the fruits contrary to righteousness.

In a word, then, we can hardly overestimate the importance of right thinking. There are on record instances of persons who were naturally depraved in mind, but who, by giving their attention to the things of the Truth, have become very noble characters, indeed. We can scarcely overestimate the power of the mind over the body. If we take pleasure in the cultivation of the fruits of the Spirit, they will prove a rich blessing to ourselves and to others. Thus we shall follow in the Master's footsteps and eventually become overcomers and associates with Him in the Kingdom.

Purity of Thought an Essential

We are to love and cultivate that which is pare to such an extent that that which is impure will become painful to us, distressing, and we shall desire to drop it from memory. This will be accomplished only by continually thinking upon those things that are pure, and avoiding the giving of thought to the things that are impure. We are to recognize true loveliness and to esteem it. When we would think on the purest of things, we must of necessity lift our mental vision to as high a point as possible and, as nearly as we may be able, discern the loveliness of the perfect character of our God and of our Lord Jesus Christ and, proportionately, the loveliness manifested in one and another of the followers of Jesus who walk closely in His footsteps.

"If there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things." While we should not think to praise ourselves nor to strive to obtain praise, yet we should strive to be praiseworthy. We should think about the praise of God. If there is anything that has any value, any merit, that has anything worthy of praise, we should recognize it. We should note in those about us, and particularly in the Church, the elements of character which are worthy of praise. We should not underestimate gentleness, faithfulness, patience. We should take note of constancy, of energy, of devotion to duty. We should not think of the trifling failures of others or of even their greater failures. If we continue to fill our minds with unhappy thoughts, we shall do injury to ourselves. As we continue to recognize the commendable things in our own lives and in the lives of those about us, we shall become the more Godlike.

Things of any virtue, or value, things in. any degree praiseworthy-the noble words, or noble deeds, or noble sentiments of any one-we may safely meditate upon and, as a consequence, find ourselves growing toward those ideals upon which our minds, our new natures, thus feed.

Thus shall we become more and more transformed by the renewing; of our minds, and approach nearer and nearer to the glorious likeness of our Master, being changed from glory to glory, inch by inch, step by step, little by little, during the present life; and our thoughts being in this attitude and our union with the Lord maintained, we shall have part in the First Resurrection, which will perfect us forever in the Lord's image, and likeness. - R4826, W. T., June 1, 1911.

"Sound in Faith, in Charity, in Patience"

When in the providence of God our eyes have been opened to see truths of which previously we had been quite ignorant, is it not possible that we feel a certain amount of annoyance or even resentment in thinking of, and dealing with, those who are still in the dark.

This may be natural but hardly Christian.

Whatever we feel about the doctrines they continue to believe and teach now that we realize their falseness, we must remember the time when being in the dark ourselves we held those same doctrines without in the least recognizing or realizing our error, and even fought hard for them, and this should make us tenderly sympathetic with those whose eyes have not been opened.

We may still remain in some darkness ourselves, and need to humbly pray daily that our eyes may be still further opened to see all that is possible to us in this present life. - Selected.

The Beauty of Holiness

"Having therefore these promises, dearly beloved,
let us cleanse ourselves from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit,
perfecting holiness in the fear of God." - 2 Cor. 7:1.

HOLINESS IS moral purity; and it is written that "Without holiness no man shall see the Lord" (Heb. 12:14); and again, "Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God." (Matt. 5:8.) Purity of heart signifies purity of the will or intention, the mainspring- of life. To be perfectly holy or pure in every sense of the word would signify absolute 'perfection, which no man can now claim; but those who by faith are clothed with the righteousness of Christ are now reckoned "holy and acceptable unto God" (Rom. 12:1), the righteousness of Christ being imputed to them by faith. These, whose hearts are fully consecrated and loyal to the Lord, are "the pure in heart," whose privilege it is to see God.

While the heart of every accepted child of God must be pure from the very beginning -f his Christian life (otherwise he is not accepted or owned as a child), yet, as the Apostle suggests above, there must be from that time onward a gradual work of perfecting holiness in the fear (filial fear) of God; that is (being graciously reckoned of God as holy through Christ, from the hour of our entire consecration to His will, because our will and effort are to be so), we are to go on striving daily against our natural imperfections, and endeavoring as nearly as possible to make the reckoned holiness more and more actual. Thus we should continue to grow in grace and in the actual likeness of the Lord.

Some Christians make the very serious mistake of supposing that they, as merely passive subjects, may receive instantaneously the blessing of holiness as a mark of God's special favor. But such a conception is very far from the Apostle's idea, as expressed above. He presents the attainment of holiness as a life work, and the individual Christian as the active, and not as the passive, agent in accomplishing it. From the standpoint of a reckoned holiness, he is to go on day after day, and year after year, in the work of actual cleansing of himself from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit-of person and of mind-"perfecting holiness in the fear of the Lord."

In the exceeding great and precious promises we have abundant incentives to strive daily to perfect holiness; but these must be held before the mind that they be not crowded into the background by the cares of this life and the deceitfulness of its pursuits. The pure in heart--whose will is only to serve and please Him-do see God by faith and with the eyes of their understanding. They see Him in His Word and His Plan, as He graciously opens it up to their minds as meat in due season; they see Him in His mighty works of creation, and of redemption and salvation; they see Him in nature, whose open book is ever eloquent in His praise to those who have eyes to see; by faith they see Him in the secret closet communions when there is no eye to see and no ear to hear but God's, where the heart may freely unburden itself of its load and lay down its cares and feel that unutterable sense of divine sympathy and love which only those can understand who have taken the Lord as their personal friend and counselor. They see Him, too, in His providences; for, having entered into their closets and shut to the door and prayed to their Father in secret, the open reward of His sure and safe leading always follows, according to His promise.

How blessed it is thus to see God -- to realize His presence and power and His abiding favor in all the vicissitudes of life; to watch Him and see how, as the days and years go by, He makes all things work together for good to them that love Him, and to see also, from the grand standpoint of observation He gives us, how glorious a destiny He has carved out for us and for all the willing and obedient subjects of His authority.

If we cultivate acquaintance with God and with our Lord Jesus, communing with them through the divine Word and prayer, almost unconsciously to ourselves the work of perfecting holiness progresses. To he thus in communion with Them is to receive more and more of Their mind and disposition. And having the mind of God thus in us, as the controlling principle of our actions, to what purification of the flesh it will also lead!

It begins at once to clean up the whole man. Old unclean, as well as sinful, habits are put away; unseemly conversation is not permitted to pass the door of the lips, or if, by force of old habit, slips of this kind occur, they are promptly repented of and rectified; and unholy thoughts are not entertained. The same spirit of holiness prompts also to the cleansing and purifying- of the body, the clothing, the home, and all with which we have to do; for the outward man must be in conformity with the pure heart within, and with the heavenly Guests that make Their abode with us. - John 14:23.

It is quite possible, however, that the more we succeed in purifying ourselves of the old carnal nature, the more we may realize the imperfections that still remain; for the purifying process is also an educating one: we learn to appreciate and admire purity, holiness, the more thoroughly we assimilate it, until "the beauty of holiness" becomes the most desirable of all possessions, that which is lacking of its glory is our deepest concern, and the great work of perfecting holiness becomes the chief business of life. Let the good work go on, dearly beloved, and, in the end, the Lord Himself shall be your exceeding great reward.

Annual Meeting of the Pastoral Bible Institute

Due to be Held June 6, 1942

Members of the Pastoral Bible Institute are hereby reminded of the privilege which is theirs of nominating in the pages of this journal the brethren they wish to elect as directors for the fiscal year 1942-1943. While the attention of new members is especially drawn to this matter, we desire to emphasize in the minds of old members also, not only the privilege, but also, the responsibility which continued association with this ministry brings.

All should be aware of the fact that the affairs of this Institute are in the hands of seven brethren who are elected from the Institute's membership to serve for a period of one year or until their successors are elected. In accordance with the by-laws the next annual meeting is due to be held Saturday, June 6, 1942, at two p. m., in the parlors of the Institute, 177 Prospect Place, Brooklyn, N. Y.

The seven brothers whose term of service will expire next June are:

Bennett, S. D.
Jordan, J. C.
Blackburn, J. J.
Read, P. L.
Friese, H. A.
Stiles, C. E.
Thomson, P. E.

The brethren named above are pleased to report that a spirit of Christian love and harmony exists in their midst; and they have reason to believe that the Lord has seen fit to bless their association in this ministry. They realize, however, that those carrying on any work often fail to see opportunities for improvement and expansion apparent to others not charged with such responsibility. For this reason changes in office not infrequently have beneficial effects. They desire above all things that the work of the Lord (for the furtherance of which this Institute was formed) be prosecuted with the greatest possible efficiency, and to this end are ready cheerfully to step aside for others whom the membership believe to be fitted for the work. They therefore urge upon all the members of our Institute that they make this a special occasion of prayer, and they also earnestly pray that our Father's dear will may be expressed in the vote of the members.

If after prayerful meditation any are led of the Lord to nominate brethren, and will forward the names and addresses of such brethren so as to reach this office on or before April 15, 1942, such names will be published in the May issue of the "Herald," that all members may have an opportunity of voting for them.

Recently Deceased

Mr. William Whitney, Beloit, Wis.-(December).
Mrs. J. P. Benson, Jamestown, N. Y.-(February).
Mrs. Minnie Ellen Dillon, Warren, Ohio-(February).
Mr. E. D. Kingston, San Antonio, Texas-(February).
Mr. John Parker, Montebello, Calif.-(February).
Mrs. Anna Sivert, Worcester, Mass.-(February).
Mr. Wallace Brooks, Canton, Ohio-(March).
Mr. John B. Stoner, Canton, Ohio-(March).
Mr. Jesse Swager, Beaver Falls, Pa.-(March).
Mrs. A. M. Whitfield, Los Angeles, Calif.-(March).

1942 Index