VOL. XXVII FEBRUARY 1944
NO. 2 St. Paul's Obedience to the Heavenly Vision Lessons from the Life of Joseph Another Course Finished with Joy St. Paul's Obedience to the Heavenly Vision"Whereupon, 0 King Agrippa, I was not
disobedient unto the heavenly vision." - Acts 26:19. WE ARE all
familiar with the circumstances leading up to the scene in which the words quoted above
were uttered. The speaker, the Apostle Paul, is one of the most remarkable characters in
history, and especially in religious history. If there be one stumbling-block to the
higher critic more outstanding than any other, it is doubtless the Apostle Paul -- born
at Tarsus, into a family with pronounced pharisaical connection in all probability,
educated, wealthy or of more than ordinary financial standing, trained in the Jewish law
by Gamaliel, a man of considerable influence in the council and himself a member of
that council. This is a brief description of Saul, the arch-persecutor of the early
Christian Church. These
critics find it difficult to reconcile Saul of Tarsus with Paul the Apostle of Jesus
Christ, the great evangelist of the Christian faith. How could a man with this background
come to so radical a change of allegiance, from the dreaded antagonist to the staunch
defender of and martyr to the cause? How can the higher critic understand anything about
the changed life of any man, not having experienced that change himself? And we know that
he has not done so because he is not led by the Spirit of God; therefore he is not a son
of God. How can one who denies the foundation of the faith, and stigmatizes the personal
experiences of the Christian as emotional and superstitious, be expected to speak the
language of the consecrated believer? His conclusions are reached by the cold reasoning
of his intellect, he knows nothing of the heart experiences. He has not been drawn of God,
he has never had a heavenly vision to which he might be "not disobedient." He
has never been led by the Holy Spirit into all truth. He knows nothing of the Comforter.
What humble believer would exchange these things which he possesses, for the mighty
intellect of an Alexander Hamilton, or for the power of a Caesar? Let us
contrast the principal actors in this scene. On the seat of authority' we see the
representative of the great Roman Empire and the Idumean king and his beautiful sister,
wearing the garb of worldly authority and surrounded by all the pomp and ceremony of
those things which shall pass away; officials, soldiers, and crafty Jews, filled with an
unholy curiosity to see the prisoner, who in due time is ushered into their presence,
bound in chains, but well poised and with firm step, as one who is supported by -t knowledge of the righteousness of his
position, and who is ministering the truth and those things which are eternal in the
heavens. Hark back in
your imagination and listen to the prisoner's account of his conversion on the road to
Damascus, an account so stirring as to elicit from one: "Paul, thou art beside
thyself. Much learning doth make thee mad," and from the other, "Almost thou
persuadest me to be a Christian." What a witness especially under such
circumstances! "Let him who would be My disciple take up his cross and follow
Me"! Has one ever taken up his cross more effectively than this marvelous man, or
shown a deeper insight into the truths of the Christian faith? He has a message of
comfort and instruction for all, from the babe in Christ to the one who like himself can
say as he finishes his course, "I have kept the faith"; and we like to add,
"Henceforth there is laid up for me a crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the
righteous Judge, shall give me at that day, and not to me only, but unto all them also
that love His appearing." What a blessed assurance of hope and of faith! THE HEAVENLY VISIONWhen Paul
spoke of the "heavenly vision," he voiced an experience which at some time, in
some way, must come to every growing Christian. Not that one must or can see Jesus in
either the fleshly body or the spirit body, but by extension of the meaning of the word
vision, each must reach the point in his experience when he rises to a more exalted
height of appreciation of the grace of God to him; when the things of time are seen in
their true worth and his soul sincerely cries out:
Paul had
other visions in his life than this of which he here speaks, and by these he was led onto
do the mighty works which were his. We do not look for the miraculous visions in this day,
nor is it necessary for our guidance and sustenance. Paul's vision was for a definite
purpose and his experience marked a momentous incident in the history of the Church.
Nevertheless, circumstances often work out in such a way that we see the will of God, and
figuratively speaking, hear His voice as though calling to us, "This is the way, walk
ye in it." When we search the Scriptures in order to show ourselves workmen that need
not be ashamed and to discover the will of God concerning us, and are led step by step
into a higher life and have revealed to us the ever-increasing glories of the imparted
life, we as truly have the vision as did Paul on the Damascus road, and as Moses when he
saw God in the burning bush and received his revelation concerning the next phase in His
plan relative to the Israelitish nation. Peter and John saw heavenly visions also which
were given for a definite purpose. Luke and Mark received their inspiration through the
sustained facts concerning our Savior's life, death, resurrection, and ascension. And so
we of today have the record of these facts and the experiences of the Apostles to inspire
us in our heavenly work. OUR SPIRITUAL VISIONPaul saw
Christ in this vision-the risen, glorified Christ, but we have the authenticated story of
its effect upon the Apostle and others with whom he came in contact, to which we may turn
again and again in this search for a clearer leading and guidance of the Holy Spirit.
His vision was only momentary, though never to be forgotten. Ours may be perpetual if we
take advantage and look often upon Him who promised to send the Spirit of truth that we
may learn of Him and come unto Him and humble ourselves under His mighty hand, that we may
put off the things of the flesh and put on the things of the Spirit, that we may on bended
knee and with bowed heart truly and sincerely pray:
Besides
these usual, common ways, the ways which reach us through the medium of the understanding
and intellect, may there not be a more subtle way, one which reaches us through the heart
side of our minds, still deeper and more real perhaps-at a time when the affairs of the
flesh are laid aside and our minds have drifted into the more rarified atmosphere of the
spiritual, and we feel lifted up and in closer harmony with the Infinite? Not the mere
ecstasy of the emotional, but are there not moments when we seem to grow in stature as men
in Christ Jesus and when we feel that God has answered our prayer and has "bid our
soul on soaring wings ascend into a purer clime"? In this
state we discern more clearly the value of our experiences and impressions of life; and
inspirations come and help us, when we again descend the mountain top where we have
communed with God and our faces glow with His reflected glory, and it seems easier to
mingle with men because of this assurance of faith. Our hearts go out in love and
sympathy and we thank Him for His revelations, for the visions He has given us. These
are no idle dreams or mere emotions, for men have been influenced by such things; some
seeming trifle has been the turning point in their lives. They have gone on to greater
things and looking back have recognized that the hand of God has been leading them. The
natural circumstances of life, its environments and preferences, have often fitted men
for important roles in the unfolding of God's plans, after perhaps they have been purified
in the crucible of Christian enlightenment and faith. This has been true of many of the
fellow-servants of Christ. This
Damascus road experience of Paul may be duplicated by many, in that the light of God's
truth concerning them comes equally suddenly to them and indeed seems to be demanded by
the uninformed, some even questioning the validity of their conversion because they have
known no such spectacular moment. It is to be doubted that any true, conversion can be
said to be instantaneous. Such cases are those where the seed has fallen by the wayside or
upon stony ground-merely emotional manifestation of a superficial mind. True conversion is
invariably associated with a condition or series of events leading up to it. The words of
the voice from heaven in Paul's case would lead one to think that he had been one of those
over whom the power of God had been hovering. That statement, "It is hard for thee to
kick against the pricks," would seem to emphasize this thought. Saul of
Tarsus was a Christ hater. He had pursued His followers to harass them and persecute them.
Nothing seemed too evil for him to do in his animosity. But he had seen their courage,
their faith, their trust, their allegiance to the cause of Christ; their despoiling was
taken calmly, their dispersion was accepted as one of the all things of which the Apostle
later spoke. He had been present at the death of Stephen, had heard his great testimony,
had seen the reflected glory of Stephen's Master in his face as he looked into the open
heavens and pleaded for the forgiveness of his murderers as, "he kneeled down and
cried with a loud voice, Lord, lay not this sin to their charge." Could it be
possible that these hated ones were right, and he with his pharisaical attitude might be
wrong? Here perhaps was one of the mysterious ways in which God moves, His wonders to
perform. True to the psychology of such a mind, when it began to have imaginings as to
his own position, he all the more earnestly tried to carry out his object to exterminate
these unbelievers in the Law. Self-justification in regard to a false premise or
proposition invariably, in the human mind, will stimulate an increased activity along
these erroneous lines, and so it was in this case. WHAT WILT THOU HAVE ME TO DO?Paul could
not shut from his sight the agony and the beauty of the face of the dying martyr, Stephen.
Unconsciously the thought had begun to break down his resistance, until at that final
moment he became helpless. "Saul, Saul, why persecutest thou Me?" "It is
hard for thee to kick against the pricks." These words coming from Him whom he had
viciously pursued, destroyed his last vestige of opposition. "Who art Thou
Lord?" was his last feeble stand. God had been little by little breaking this giant
whom He had selected -to carry the message to the Gentile peoples; and incidentally,
largely through his efforts was it brought to the western world. "What
wilt Thou have me to do?" was not the question of a deluded man, nor of an epileptic,
nor of the victim of a sunstroke, as some of the critics would have us believe; but of a
man who had been brought to a complete, unquestioned final state- of submission to God.
And he was not disobedient to the heavenly Vision, but immediately in his helpless
condition expresses his determination to do Christ's will. He now has none of his own
will. What does the higher critic know of such an experience as this in his own soul? ARE WE OBEDIENT TO THE HEAVENLY VISION?The
practical value of this record to the professing believer is, Are we "kicking against
the pricks"? We surely could not be accused of persecuting the Lord, but are we
kicking against the pricks, or are -we constantly by our lives and attitude asking, What
wilt Thou have me to do? If we are guilty of the former, then we need not, nor can we,
properly ask the latter question. If we are still kicking against the pricks, we have not
made a full consecration. Our wills are not wholly dead. Therefore, our standing in Him is
merely nominal. Paul's reaction to the vision was obedience. Many professing Christians
are dreamers, merely idealists into whose minds come beautiful visions of what they would
like to be in character, and service, but they are not obedient to the heavenly vision.
Their lips have not been touched by the live coal from off the altar, their iniquity has
not been taken away, nor have they said, "Here am I; send me." They have never
consecrated. If they have, they should take the viewpoint of the Psalmist when he says,
"line eyes are ever toward the Lord, for He shah pull me out of the net"; and
with the Apostle again we must forget the things which are behind and reaching forth to
those which are before, we must press towards the mark for the prize of the high calling
of God in Christ Jesus. If we are
still kicking, let us cease to do so and ask this question of Paul's, "What wilt Thou
have me to do?" If done earnestly, then we have the evidence that we are led by God
in the knowledge of our complete submission, our obedience to the heavenly vision. Now if we
have had the vision and if we have been obedient, what effect will it have upon our lives?
This matter of vision and obedience to it, is a factor in the accomplishment of the things
of the world about us. The great advancement along all lines of human endeavor are
dependent on a vision of better things to be attained unto, but in this sphere of
activities men have failed to conform their ways to the ways of God, so that because of
him who is the prince of this world great confusion has come, with distress to-nations and
fear of those things which are coming to pass. If this with
regard to the vision of better things be true of the world, how much more may be done by
and to those who have laid their all upon -the altar of sacrifice and are carrying their
two hands full of in. tense beaten fine and placing it upon the coals of the altar within
the Holy. Visions and
dreams are an oft-repeated incident in the lives of those prominent in the Scriptures.
Some are manifestly of God, while some are as surely of the Adversary. It is no doubt
because of this that we are cautioned to "believe not every spirit, but try the
spirits whether they are of God: because many false prophets are gone out into the
world." It behooves us then to watch lest we yield obedience to a vision which does
not harmonize with the Spirit of God. That there are such today is very manifest. Is it
possible that any of God's people may have erected an idol at the door of the inner Gate,
that looketh toward the north, or caused God to go far off from His sanctuary in our
hearts? Have we possibly polluted His temple, which temple we are, by marring its walls
with the form of any creeping thing or abominable beast; or have we turned our faces
toward the east and are we worshiping the sun toward the east; or in the chambers of our
imagery do we offer false fire? If we have committed any of these abominations is it a
light thing? IMPORTANT LESSONS FOR THE CONSECRATEDThese are
the things the Adversary is constantly tempting the consecrated to do, and these are the
things which obedience to the heavenly vision will prevent us from doing. If we have to
any degree been living "after the commandments and doctrines of men," which
things have indeed a show of wisdom, it is because we have not set our affection on things
above, but on things on the earth. We are not dead and our lives are not hid with Christ
in God. Neither shall we appear with Christ in glory when He shall appear because He is
not our life. (Col. 3:3, 4.) We cannot say with Paul that we have been "not
disobedient to the heavenly vision." Let us show
forth the fruits of the spirit in love, joy, peace, long-suffering, gentleness, goodness,
faith, meekness, temperance, and let us remember that we have been "called unto
liberty; only use not liberty for an occasion to the flesh, but by love serve one
another. For all the law is fulfilled in one word, even in this: Thou shalt love thy
neighbor as thyself. But if ye bite and devour one another, take heed that ye be not
consumed one of another. Walk in the spirit, and ye shall not fulfill the desires of the
flesh." (Gal. 5:13-16.) And again, "Brethren, if a man be overtaken in a
fault, ye which are spiritual, restore such an one in the spirit of meekness; considering
thyself, lest thou also be tempted. Bear ye one another's burdens, and so fulfill the
law of Christ." (Gal. 6:1, 2.) How can we bear one another's burdens if we have not
been obedient to the heavenly vision? "What
is it that makes a man obedient or disobedient? It is the man's own will. For there are
two mysteries in life, the one that man can, and the other that men do, resist Christ's
pleading voice. As to the former we cannot fathom it. But do not let any difficulty
deaden the voice of our own consciousness. If I cannot trust my sense that I can do this
thing or not do it, as I choose, there is nothing that I can trust. Will is the power of
determining which of two roads I shall go, and, strange to say, it is incapable of
statement in any more general terms than the reiteration of the fact. Yet here stands
the fact that God, the infinite Will, has given to men, whom He made in His own image,
this inexplicable and awful power of coinciding with, or opposing His purposes and His
will." "HAVE YOU FELT THE SPIRIT'S POWER?"In other
words, man is a free moral agent and is responsible for his conduct up to the point of his
intelligence. Conscience is his guide, and if he violates that conscience he commits
sin. Sin is selfishness expressed in some form, and is as much a truth as is
righteousness or any other virtue. If we wish to follow the heavenly vision, we can. It
may cost us something in time, effort, or sacrifice. If we wish to be led by, the Spirit
of God, we can. It may lead us into unpleasant places, but nothing impossible will be
asked. Nothing beyond our ability to attain will be expected, provided we exercise our
conscience, which plays so large a part in the Christian's life and of which one has
spoken thus:
Obedience to
the heavenly vision requires the leading of the Holy Spirit. No man by strength of his own
spirit can react to this vision, for the Holy Spirit mist bear "witness with our
spirit that we are the sons of God," and by this witness we are not to expect any
special manifestation inside ourselves that we might call the voice of God, for while it
comes through His power and by His will, it comes to and through and with our spirit also.
Many Christians have failed to enjoy their privileges to the full extent because they have
looked for some assurance of their standing from a source outside themselves, and many
also have had a false sense of security because of an emotional experience within
themselves, in which case they are trusting in their own spirit and not in the witnessing
of the Holy Spirit with their spirit that they are the sons of God. We may have
this confirmation first by a realization that we are His sons; the spirit of sonship
prompts our attitude toward Him because we are bringing forth the fruit of this Spirit
which can properly be called filial obedience, and thus we find that we arc less
carnally minded, "for if ye live after the flesh, ye shall die; but if ye through the
Spirit do mortify the deeds of the body, ye shall live." Now the carnal
things are not necessarily sensual or in themselves evil. They are the things which the
spirit of the flesh clings to and which obedience to the heavenly vision requires should
be relinquished. Delight in the old order of things passes from the life. Old affections
are supplanted by a struggle for the more spiritual, a new freedom inspires this struggle,
and some have risen to a point where the martyrdom of death and the persecutions of life
patiently borne have witnessed to the spirit within them that He who called Himself the
Light of the world reigns within them and that He finds "no fault in them." They
may rejoice humbly in the knowledge that they arc led- by the Spirit of God and are
therefore sons of God. Paul had this assurance because lie was not disobedient to the
heavenly vision. THE INHERITANCE OF THE DIVINE NATUREIn the passage
concerning those who are led by the Spirit of God, the Apostle has nicely discriminated in
the use of, the word "led." It is not exactly synonymous with guide, as used
for example in our Lord's statement that the Spirit of truth shall guide you into all
truth. The word "led" seems to carry the thought of active compliance,
cooperation, with no desire to resist the influence when recognized. Therefore, if we are
led by the Spirit of God voluntarily, this is again evidence that we are His sons, and
this being the case certain definite results are produced which stamp one as of this
class. . If ye be
Christ's, then are ye Abraham's seed, and heirs according to the promise; heirs of God and
joint-heirs with Jesus Christ. This means heirship to the divine nature. And so this
vision is borne in unto all who are Christ's by a proper understanding of His Word, and
becomes a fixed conviction of eternal life within; a component part of thought, of faith,
of consciousness, and assurance of hope and of faith, with no doubts, no waverings,
because such an one is the recipient of the imparted life. He knows, "Christ in him
is his hope of glory." This new relationship becomes a life principle unto him,
deep, pure. God is his light, "and in Him is no darkness at all. If we say we have
fellowship with Him, and walk in darkness, we lie, and do not the truth. But if we walk in
the light, as He is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of
Jesus Christ His Son cleanseth us from all sin." Only so can it
be said that one has put off the things of the flesh and put on the things of the Spirit;
only so can one become like-minded with God, for the likeness is within and reveals itself
by its fruits. I say unto you, "Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good
to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you;
that ye may be the children of your Father which is in heaven; for He maketh His sun to
rise on the evil and on the good, and sendeth rain on the just and on the unjust." "Ofttimes
when the days are bitter and the pulse of life is low, "Oh, once
centuries olden, before Damascus Gate - S. D. Bennett, M.D. The Letter to the Colossians"Put to death therefore your
members which are upon the earth: fornication, uncleanness, passion, evil desire, and
covetousness, which is idolatry; for which things' sake cometh the wrath of God upon the
sons of disobedience: wherein ye also once walked, when ye lived in these things; but now
do ye also put them all away: anger, wrath, malice, railing, shameful speaking out of your
mouth: lie not one to another; seeing that ye have put off the old man with his doings,
and have put on the new man." - Col. 3:5-10. A. R. V. THE PORTION
of this epistle that pertains to the building of Christian character, opens with these
verses, showing how to clear the ground that the new building may be erected. Just as a
conquering king invading a country must, as the first act of his reign, destroy the
power previously established, just so the Christian's first endeavor must be, in
cooperation with his powerful Ally, to obliterate the last vestige of enemy-power within
his being. To war against the world and the Adversary while the will of the flesh still
persists, would be like a general going forth to battle against his country's enemies when
there is rebellion in his army's camp. Therefore Paul deals with this enemy first. That
course is the wise one also from another standpoint: one can become so engrossed with the
absolutely essential battle against the world and the Adversary, particularly the former,
as to entirely forget the necessity of vanquishing self. Then, too, unless self-will is
first attacked, one's battle against the world and the Adversary is almost certain to
degenerate into an effort to reform the world. For that task we will not be ready until
God has stamped His approval upon us by investing us with the power and the wisdom of the
divine nature. These verses
are connected with the preceding discussion by the word "therefore," referring
back to two reasons given for the destruction of the fleshly will: because "ye
died" with Christ, and because ye "were raised together with Him." The
hard, practical facts that the Apostle is setting forth are thus built on the foundation
of mystical truths that to the world would be no basis of argument, but to the Apostle and
all those who have the mind of the Lord, are more convincing than any human reasoning that
could be adduced. To slay
habits that have grown to hardened manhood through many years of nurturing requires a
blade of keenest edge. This the Apostle has supplied. In fact, something serious has
happened to dull the edge of these doctrines if they are not effective in killing our
human desires. Truth held in self love has lost all power for this work. A consuming
desire for the approval of our fellow-men may drive us to the curbing of some of the most manifest of our fallen
desires, but only divine grace can nerve our hand to the striking of the blow that will
make the work of destruction complete. Of wisdom
the Wise Man says, "Her ways are ways of pleasantness, and all her paths are
peace" (Prov. 3:17); and the new creature by faith recognizes the truth of this
description: but to the old creature the paths of true
religion, the "wisdom that cometh down
from above" (James 3:17), are steep, and climbing there is never easy. The upper air
is bracing and exhilarating to the new creature, but trying to the old, accustomed as he
is to the lower levels only. The self that is denied finds no joy in the experience. On the other
hand, one wholly devoted to God finds no true satisfaction until the denial of self is
as real and complete as the Apostle's forceful figure of death makes it. He knows that the
genuine holiness on which his heart is set can never be attained as long as the will of the flesh is permitted exercise in
any detail of life. It is the love of Jesus Christ and the power of His Spirit that
dwells within that urges on to victory in this unending fight against the flesh in its
daily strife to regain rulership in our lives. Only implicit trust in our Captain and His
assurance of ultimate victory can give the courage to stand our ground day by day in the very center of the raging battle. Though
a thousand fall at our side and ten thousand at our right hand, there is no reason for
quailing, no reason for cowardly shrinking in the presence of the foe, for the form of our
beloved Captain (Rotherham: "Princely Leader" - Heb. 2:10) is always visible in the very forefront of the fray. THE GRIM CATALOGUE OF THE CONDEMNED"The
Apostle stands like a jailer at the prison door with the fatal roll in his hand, and reads
out the names of the evil doers for whom the tumbril waits to carry them to the
guillotine. It is an ugly list but we need plain speaking that there may be no mistake as to the identity of the culprits. He enumerates
evils which honeycombed society with rottenness then, and are rampant now. The series
recounts various forms of evil love, and is so arranged as that it starts with the coarse,
gross act, and goes on to more subtle and inward forms. It goes up the stream, as it were,
to the fountain head, passing inward from deed to desire"; "fornication,"
all immoral sexual relations, then "all uncleanness," embracing every
manifestation in word or look or deed of the impure spirit. Then follow the sources of the
evil deeds, "passion," and "evil desire." They include all forms of
hungry appetites and desires after "the things that are upon the earth." No
lesser condemnation could be passed on these criminals, for they are the murderers of
our race, "dead in trespasses and sins." The "wages of sin [in us or in the
world] is death." The placing
of "covetousness" in such close connection with the grosser forms of
sensuality is deeply significant. It has the same root, and is therefore closely allied
with these-it is but another form of selfish desire going out to "the -things which
are on the earth." (Exod. 20:17; Psa. 10:3; Prov. 28:16; Jer. 6:13; Ezek. 33:31; Hab.
2:9; Luke 12:15; Eph. 5:3; 1 Tim. 3:3; Heb. 13:5.) So ingrained is selfishness in the
animal nature that it is incomprehensible to it that self can be actually dead in the
new creature. Therefore the carnally-minded gossip may not realize that the evil passions
yet living in his own nature may be dead in the one whom his unholy imaginations condemn. Some
translators, and they are justified by the Greek Lexicons, make the phrase which follows
"covetousness," a reason for its condemnation to death. They read
"inasmuch as," or "for it is idolatry." It is an even more debased
form of idol worship than that practiced by the heathen since it means the depriving of
others in order that our selfish desires may be gratified. Though unacclaimed among men,
it numbers among its votaries more worshipers than all other religious combined. The act of
cutting off the fleshly members can never be pleasant except to the one who has learned
the hideousness of sin and the beauties of true holiness. We can never hope for a full
revelation of the latter in this life, nor can our imperfect minds ever realize how
hideous sin in its mildest forms must appear to the eternally pure minds of our Heavenly
Father and our Heavenly Bridegroom. But we can increase our appreciation of the things
that are lovely by "thinking on these things," and as these things daily gleam
before our eyes with added luster, blacker will appear every sinful tendency, every trace
of the old self and its ways. No longer will we make excuses for them, but rather will
join with our worst enemy in the inventing of terms of reproach to heap upon them,
knowing well that the condoning of our offenses only delays the day of the death of the
earthward members. It is not enough to say, "That is my weakness," unless we can
also say, "His strength manifests its perfection in my weakness." (2 Cor. 12:9.)
Let us not say, "That is my way," but rather, "That was my way." THE END--DEATH"There
is a way which seemeth right unto a man, but the end thereof are the ways of death."
(Prov. 14:12.) Because they think it is inconsistent with His love, many students of the
Word refuse to hear anything of the wrath of God. Paul shuns not to declare the whole
counsel of God, and therefore he declares that, "on account of these things the wrath
of God is coming upon the children of disobedience" (Eph. 5:6, see Diaglott), or as
the Authorized and Revised Versions have it, "for which things cometh the wrath of
God upon the sons of disobedience." In every one of these selfish propensities there
is, by His pre-arrangement, the seed of destruction. Any of them uncurbed will lead to the
utter oblivion reserved for all who are wedded to unrighteousness; for every form of
selfishness is a crime against the God of love, and a disgrace in those who bear His name,
and so must be condemned of Him. - James 1:15. GOD'S WRATH MANIFESTING LOVEThe two
thoughts of love and wrath are not incompatible. True love, associated with power and
wisdom, could not eternally permit a sinner to continue in his downward path of misery.
Love must spare him the misery of complete degradation. There is this distinction between
the divine and the human wrath, that God's always operates because of love for all the
inhabitants of the universe, and even, for the one against whom His wrath moves; whereas
the hu man is too often a mere manifestation of malice toward another. Paul can
truthfully speak of God's love toward us when we were "children of wrath." (Eph.
2:3, 4.) A God who could countenance evil and permit its continuance eternally, under any
condition, would not be a God of holiness any more than we can be holy if we countenance
and condone sin in our mortal bodies. God is angry "with the wicked every day,"
(Psa. 7:11) and "with the perverse He will show Himself froward." (2 Sam.
22:27.) And unbelievable though it may be to our human senses, there will be froward ones
even in the Millennial Kingdom, "the land of uprightness." When the judgments
of the Lord are abroad in the earth and the inhabitants will be learning righteousness,
even then . "Let favor be showed to the wicked, yet will he not learn righteousness;
in the land of uprightness will he deal wrongfully, and will not behold the majesty of the
Lord" (Isa. 26:9, 10, R.V.); or as Young's Literal Translation renders it: "In a
land of straightforwardness he dealeth perversely and seeth not the excellency of
Jehovah." "THE WRATH OF GOD COMETH"The
"majestic present tense" may be accepted as expressing both the recompense
already manifest in the depravity of the creature given over to sin, and also the
inevitable "utter destruction," as Thayer defines it. Accurately Zophar the
Naamathite states the principle by which retributive justice works in this life: "His
bones are full of his youth, but it shall lie down with him in the dust. Though wickedness
be sweet in his mouth, though he hide it under his tongue, though he spare it, and will
not let it go, but keep it still within his mouth; yet his food in his bowels is turned,
it is the gall of asps within him." (Job 20:11-14.) During the many centuries in
which God, willing to show His wrath, and to make His power known, endured with much
long-suffering the vessels of wrath "fitted to destruction," His wrath thus has
been just as much in the present tense as it will be in the day of their destruction.
Then, too, the absolute certainty the "word that goeth forth out of His mouth shall
not return unto Him void" is expressed in the present tense which He uses of future
events. Since the
slaying proposed in this passage can be accomplished by no blade with a dull-edge, it must
be done by "the truth as it is in Jesus." (Eph. 4:21.) Not only will perverted
truth fail to give the blessing for which truth was divinely purposed, but if willfully
"added to" or "taken from" will undoubtedly bring great injury. This
seems to be the teaching of Romans 1:18, A.R.V.: "For the wrath of God is revealed
from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who hinder the truth in
unrighteousness." Every Christian whose motive in holding to the Word is as pure
as the Apostle's, can make as effective use as he of Spirit-revealed truth in slaying
the tendencies of the old creature and in building up the new into the likeness of Him who
is Truth. THE SPIRIT-GUIDED LIFEAppreciating
the important mission of divinely given truth, every sincere student will not only make
certain that he is "established in the truth" (2 Pet. 1:12), but will be eager
to most earnestly scrutinize everything that is offered to him as truth with the dual
endeavor of never becoming established in any error and of never failing to apprehend, as
promptly as possible, all truth that comes within the range of his spiritual vision. Nor
need this carefulness result in, an ungodly fear lest in his searching he should be led
into some error, for he has the promise Jesus left with us that if he has the guidance of
the Spirit it will lead "into all truth." On the other hand, to devote one's
time to what lie realizes is error would demonstrate an ignorance of his need of
sanctification and a lack of love for truth. DEATH, A FORCEFUL FIGUREThe milder
meaning which common usage has attached to the word "mortify,"- doubtless in
the minds of most readers nullifies the effectiveness of the King James and the English
Revision. So far as we have noted, all other translations, evidently having in mind this
difficulty, have substituted synonymous but more effective expressions such as "make
dead," "put to death," "slay," "destroy,"
"kill." It will not be safe to be less drastic than these expressions indicate.
A dead member ceases to function, and no sincere Christian can countenance less than
this for any of these criminal tendencies. Jesus tells us the only effective: method of
dealing with each of them: "Pluck it out, and cast
it from thee." (Matt. 5:29, 30.) Accurately the word "mortify"
describes -the sentence pronounced by God upon our earthward habits, the sentence in which
we must concur not only with our will, but also with all our power and our inventive
genius, discovering every possible way in which we can cooperate in the work of carrying
out the divine sentence. Note that
the Apostle Paul's theology and our Lord's recognize our "members which are upon the
earth" as sin-cursed, God-condemned. They do not have the thought of taking the old
creature and working with the few faint evidences of righteousness that may be found in
it, and developing them until they have reached perfection and then calling it a "new
creature"; but their proposition is a clean-cut one: slay the old, and secure life
for the new from the only Source of life. Paul's exhortation in this passage is to first
put off the old with its characteristics, and not until then does he instruct regarding
"putting on." Christ Jesus
is made unto us "all things" in this work. Neither the death nor the life can be
completed outside of the "truth which is in Christ Jesus." We would not,
however, belittle the commendable efforts of moral men to attain the highest standard
within their reach, even though under present conditions it roust be far below the
perfection which is the goal of the new creature-"without spot or wrinkle or blemish
or any such thing." While the
"bringing into subjection" of a Christian's body must undoubtedly bring results
apparent to all discerning beholders, the eye of the flesh will never be able to fully
comprehend the beauty of this "new creature in Christ Jesus." (1 Cor. 2:15,
margin; 1:21; John 1:10; 1 John 3:1.) Only our Heavenly Father and the Heavenly
Bridegroom, and, others in proportion as they have their mind, can discover all the
intricacies of the character-likeness that is being worked out in them. How can one walk
in and appreciate the light who is bound with the chains of darkness? How can one be
freed from blindness while still under the blinding influence of Satan and self seeking?
And how can we hope with bare and unaided hand to tear out the members that are the very
idols of the old life? To the Christian, "Repent and be baptized," means to
"possess [the control over] your members which are upon the earth" and
"rise to newness of life with Him." To have a good "victory
garden" we must plant seed. Watering the weeds will only assist their growth. They
must be plucked out and cast far enough away so, that they will not again take root there. There is no
more lamentable evidence of self-seeking than the using of truth for personal ends: such
as, to glorify the flesh by argument, to sow discord among brethren, or to build up an
earthly organization. If the fact that we differ with other students of the Word is of
more importance to us than the sanctifying power of the truths in which we are
established, then we are just another cult, holding the truth, but in selfishness. Truth
is not given us just that our heads may differ or that we may work in a different part of
the Harvest field, but that "Thou mightest create in me a clean heart, O God; and
renew a right spirit within me." - Psa. 51:10; Eph. 4:23; Col. 3:10. "SINS IN WHICH YE ALSO WALKED"Being
reminded of a sin-infested past is not an occasion for discouragement, but for rejoicing
in the blood shed for us. Being reminded of the cleansing power of the blood is not that
we might continue in sin, but that we might take courage in struggling against it. Being
reminded therefore of the sins "in which ye also walked beforetime, when ye lived in
them," should be helpful for any Christian, encouraging him to thankfulness and to
faithfulness. But all the benefit of retrospection is lost unless there is no faith in
self and implicit faith in the power of the blood. There must be also every evidence that
we are giving "all diligence" to walk in the footsteps of the Master. All should
know well that they can be "acceptable sacrifices" only as His righteousness is
ours through justification and His will ours through education. This will mean (1) a deep,
heartfelt contrition for sins, past and present; (2) a complete turning away from them
in our wills; (3) a daily battle against them -- a relentless battle fought in the
strength which He supplies and with which every power of our being cooperates; and (4) the
humility that can never fail to result in one who personally knows God, and therefore has
learned to hate iniquity as our Lord hated it. An excellent
test as to our hatred for sin and our love for our brethren is to note whether we have
plausible and nice sounding explanations of our own "slips," and harsh ones for
others'; or whether we are able to speak charitably regarding others, while violently
hating our own imperfections. How frequent ly we will use- words and phrases regarding our
own faults that sound almost like terms of affection, as compared with what we have to say
about the faults of others. Let us make sure the matter is reversed and the mild sounding
phrases saved for others than ourselves. True
thankfulness for the strong and loving Hands which have brought us from the filthy mire of
the pit of sin cannot but result in rejoicing that the "power of salvation" is
for all, and will even eventually call from the grave every one that sin has condemned,
that all may have a full opportunity to "seek the Lord." (Acts 15:17; Gal. 3:8,
14.) If the spirit of this promise (Eph. 1:13, Diaglott) fills our hearts, we will never
be tempted to dethrone our Heavenly Father and take His place as Judge of either our
brethren or the world. Every trace of imperfection discovered will be only an occasion for
greater rejoicing in the deliverance that lies ahead. That spirit alone will effectually
crowd out all criticism and condemnation. The root of
no sin of the past life has taken deeper hold than that one of judging others. There are
few of us who, if we could but see ourselves, would not discover this sin prevalent in
some thoughts and perhaps even in some words of every day. Though so ingrained in our
being as to be committed unconsciously, there is no excuse for our not using every
endeavor to eradicate it and every other sin; for the wheat will not grow to its golden
maturity in a field choked with thistles. "YOU ALSO"The phrase
"you also" appears in the fourth, the seventh, and the eighth verses, but each
time apparently with a different application. In the fourth verse it associates the
believer with Christ; in the seventh it associates him with the entire heathen world; but
in the eighth it seems to be reminding him that there are other faithful and sympathetic
brethren associated with him in the desperate struggle against the inherited and
cultivated imperfections of the flesh, such as "anger, wrath, malice, railing, and
shameful speaking. This is another reminder than they have been translated out of the
kingdom of darkness into the Kingdom of light (Col. 1:13); that whereas at one time they
walked in conformity with the ways of the world, they should now conform themselves to the
rules of the new association. It is not sufficient, however, to limit their attainments to
conforming with the example of the poorest Christian they know or of the best. All must
keep their eyes fixed on the perfect Pattern, the beauties of whose holiness will so
entrance them that no amount of failure will deter from daily struggling for a little
closer approach to His likeness. These two things therefore are essential in the life of
every Christian: a clearer vision of the divine perfections, and a deeper contrition for
sins past and present. "PUT OFF THEREFORE"In the eighth
verse the Apostle substitutes for the figure of slaying another of which he also makes
frequent use throughout his letters-that of "putting off" as one would lay
aside clothing. This "stripping off" of various forms of wicked hatred is as complete as the previously
mentioned slaying of different types of wicked love.
It is not unfitting that the first should have been dispensed with by the more
passionate figure of slaying, and the chill malignity of this new list dealt with finally
and by the more deliberate "putting off." The virulent
poison of hatred-like jealousy, "cruel as the grave,"-is in this last list:
"anger, wrath, malice, railing, shameful speaking." In fact jealousy is often
easily traceable as the root of these evils. Who then, discovering them in his garden,
could hesitate to grub deep until the last desecrating fiber has been removed? No
Christian life can flourish to full maturity while they are permitted even a feeble
existence. The Apostle
proceeds (verses 5 and 8) in opposite directions in describing the two streams of vice. In
the first he began with action, and then went up the stream to its source of evil desire;
in the second, beginning with the source in evil thought, he proceeds down stream to
shameful communications. Our Master informed us that the real pollution is not that of
physical dirt, but of mental filth such as these. - Matt. 15:18-20. The
"anger" which opens the list is of course not the righteous kind, but selfish,
fleshly. "Wrath," the second in the list, is anger boiling over, uncontrolled.
The mere control of it is not however satisfactory. It also must be stripped off. Who
would think of venturing before the throne of God with either of these in his heart? The
putting-off process is necessary if we are to enter into the "fullness of joy"
which should be ours every moment of every day, and will be if spent in His presence. The
dove, not the eagle, is the divine symbol of the Holy Spirit. "Malice"
is anger that is planning action in accordance with its wickedness. Even slight
satisfaction in the misfortunes of others should therefore be recognized and repelled as
at least a faint trace of this wicked perversity. Instead of the
"blasphemy" of the Authorized Version, Alexander McLaren accepts the rendering
of the Revised, "railing," as better. He says: "The word means, 'speech
that injures,' and such speech may be directed either against God, which is blasphemy in
the usual sense of the word, or against man. The hate blossoms into hurtful speech. The
heated metal of anger is forged into poisoned arrows of the tongue." "Then
follows 'shameful speaking out of your mouth,' which is probably to be understood not so
much of obscenities, which would more properly belong to the former catalogue, as of
foul-mouthed abuse of the hated persons, that copiousness of vituperation and those
volcanic explosions of mud, which are so natural to the angry Eastern." An exhortation
against lying completes the Apostle's list, and it is in the proper relation, for a
failure to love others as we love ourselves must usually be the explanation of this fault.
The injunction is to "Lie not one to another" -- a course that is obligatory
since we are "members one of another." If my brother's interests are my
interests, I must of necessity deal honestly with him. It is not
asking too much, as the association of the Apostle's ideas here indicates, to expect the Christian to give
equal consideration to purity of word, with purity of life and conduct, however much more
difficult the process may be. The writer once sat under the instruction of a teacher
whose English was a model of purity. Her friends testified that her ability was the result
of three years of painful, painstaking consideration of every word she spoke. She thought
the goal worthy the effort. We might doubt the wisdom of her inflicting that three years
on her friends, but no one will doubt the wisdom of equal or greater care in the weighing
of our words that we speak nothing harmful to others or dishonoring to our glorious
Head. - "Let no corrupt speech proceed out of your mouth, but such as is good for
edifying as the need may be, that it may give grace to them that hear." - Eph.
4:29, R. V. The principles
stated in these verses are so elementary and obvious as to cause one to wonder why the
Apostle has taken time to state them. His reason most probably is because we are prone to
forget, and because we need to be assured that through grace the victory can be won.
Though the victory be not manifest to all, if the striving is in heavenly strength and
with faith in the covering of Christ's righteousness, the result will be acceptable to
the One who is able to judge, and with authority. "O
sacred union with the Perfect Mind! "Thus, in Thine arms of love, O
God, I lie; "O go, and learn this lesson of
the Cross, - P. E. Thomson. Lessons from the Life of JosephCONCLUDING THOUGHTS Scripture Reading: Psalm 105:17-23; Genesis
chapters 37, 39-50 AFTER THE
burial of his father the story of Joseph is almost a blank. Only one incident is given.
When Jacob was gone the brothers grew uneasy. They thought that their father's influence
had restrained Joseph from seeking revenge upon them for their sin against him, and they
feared now, when this restraint had been taken away, Joseph would visit punishment upon
them. The memory of sin dies hard. It had been forty years since this wrong was committed,
and for seventeen years the brothers had lived in the sunshine of Joseph's forgiveness,
nourished by his love, without a word or an act to suggest aught of resentment; yet here
we find the old dread still lingering. Guilt makes cowards of men. Sins against love plant
thorns in the heart. Joseph wept
when he heard his brothers' words. It pained him to learn that they doubted his love and
forgiveness. When you have been loyal and faithful to a friend, loving him unselfishly,
making sacrifices for him, giving of your life's strength and skill to help him, putting
honor upon him, it grieves you sorely to have him misunderstand you, suspect your
sincerity and doubt your affection. Seventeen years of such generous love as Joseph had
shown to his brothers in Egypt ought to have made it forever impossible that they should
doubt or suspect his forgiveness. Do we ever treat our friends so? Do we ever treat
Christ so? Do we ever doubt His forgiveness, or question His love for us whatever our
experiences? Let us not grieve that gentle heart by even the faintest doubt of a love
that is infinite in its constancy and tenderness. Joseph was
pained when he heard of the fears and distrust of his brothers, but his patience did not
fail. "Fear not," he said to them, "for am I in the place of God? And as
for you, ye meant evil against me; but God meant it for good, to bring to pass, as it is
this day, to save much people alive. Now, therefore, fear ye not: I will nourish you and
your little ones. This was his answer to their distrust. The Apostle
Paul prayed that our hearts might be enlarged. (2 Cor. 6:13.) It takes a large, a
generous, heart to love on in spite of doubt, suspicion, and unwholesome discontent; but
Joseph had a large heart. His generous love never failed. His answer was only a new
assurance of affection undisturbed by their treatment; he would nourish them in the days
to come as he had clone in the past. He would share his honor with them. He would provide
for them in the land where they were strangers. He would care for their children. So he
comforted them and spoke kindly unto them. THE TESTINGS OF OLD AGEAfter this
incident Joseph lived fifty-four years, but nothing whatever is told us of these years. We
can picture a ripe and beautiful old age, full of honors and full of usefulness. We know that
his life continued beautiful to its close. Sometimes old age does not fulfill the
prophecy and the promise of the earlier years. Sometimes men who live nobly and richly
until they have passed the meridian of their days, lose in the splendor of their character
and the sweetness of their spirit as they move toward the sunset. A great many sermons are
preached to the young. Youth has its perils, and needs constant warnings. But there is
need also of wise words of counsel to those who are growing old. Old age has its perils
and its temptations. It is difficult to bear the honors of a good and worthy life as
they gather about the head when the years multiply, and not be spoiled by them. It is hard
to keep the heart humble, and the life simple and gentle, when one stands amid the
successes, the achievements, the fruits of one's life victories, in the days of a
prosperous old age. Some old men grow vain in their self-consciousness. They become
garrulous, especially about themselves and their own past. The ease and
freedom from care which come sometimes as the fitting reward of a life of hardship, toil
and sacrifice, do not always prove the happiest conditions, nor those in which the
character shows at its best. Some men who were splendid in incessant action,, when bearing
great loads and meeting large responsibilities, and in enduring sore trials, are not
nearly so noble when they have been compelled to lay down their burdens, drop their tasks
and step out of the crowding, surging ranks into the quiet ways of those whose life work
is mainly finished. They chafe in standing still. Their peace is broken in the very days
when it should be calmest and sweetest. So in many respects old age puts life to a crucial
test. Then
sometimes old age grows unhappy and discontented. We cannot wonder at this. It becomes
lonely as one by one its sweet friendships and its close companionships fall off in the
resistless desolation that death makes. Feebleness of health, too, comes in ofttimes as an
element which adds to the difficulty of living beautifully when one is old. These are
some of the reasons why old age is probably just as severe a testing time of character
as youth or midlife. The grace of God, however, is sufficient for the testings and trials
of the old as well as of the young.. We should set ourselves the task of making the whole
day of life to its last moments beautiful. The late afternoon should be as lovely with its
deep blue and its holy quiet, as the forenoon with its freshness; and the sun setting as
glorious with its splendor of amber and gold as the sunrising with its radiance and
brightness. The old, or those growing old, should never feel for a moment that their
work, even their best work, is done, when they can no longer march and keep step in the
columns with youth and strong manhood. The work of the riper years is just as important as
that of the earlier years. Young men for action, old men for counsel. The life that one
may live in the quieter time, when the rush and the strife are left behind, may be even
more lovely, more Christlike, more helpful than was the life of the more exciting,
stirring time that is gone. Life ought' to grow more beautiful every day to its close. Let
no one think lie has finished his task of sweet, true living when he has gotten safely
through middle life into the borders of old age. No; we must not slacken our diligence,
our earnestness, our fidelity, our prayerfulness, our faith in Christ, until we have come
to the gate of eternity. God's plan for our life takes in all. Age is a
time for praying, hoping, and for reflecting to others something of the peace and love of
the heaven we are nearing, and of the Christ we hope soon to see. At last the
time came for Joseph to die, as this time must come to all. "And Joseph said unto his
brethren, I die: but God will surely visit you, and bring you up out of this land unto
the land which He share to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob. And Joseph took an oath of the
children of Israel, saying, God will surely visit you, and ye shall carry up my bones from
hence. So Joseph died, being an hundred and ten years old; and they embalmed him, and he
was put in a coffin in Egypt." Joseph was
not buried at all in Egypt. His body was embalmed there, but not entombed. Egypt had long
been his home. It had been the scene of all his honors and triumphs. His wife was an
Egyptian; his friends were Egyptians. But he was still a loyal Israelite, and would not
lie in an Egyptian grave. He would be buried in an Israelite grave. But there
are other thoughts: In the Epistle to the Hebrews when the faith of Joseph is spoken of,
it is remarkable that it is this command concerning his bones that its mentioned. "By
faith Joseph, when his end was nigh, made mention of the departure of the children of
Israel; and gave commandment concerning his bones." This showed his faith in God's
promises concerning his people. His faith was so strong that he refused to be buried at
all in Egypt; his burial must wait until 'his people went up out of Egypt to their own
land. Mark the
difference in the dying requests of Jacob and Joseph. Jacob, too, refused to be buried in Egypt. He had spent seventeen happy years
there, but he could not die until he had the pledge that he would be buried beside his
kindred. Joseph's request was different. He was not to be buried in Egypt, yet his body
was not to be carried to Canaan until his people should go there. He was so confident of
their exodus that his mummy was not to be laid in the grave at all until they went back to
the land of promise. Doubtless
Joseph felt that his body left among them unburied, waiting to be carried away to Canaan
and buried there, would do more to keep hope alive in their breasts than if it lay at rest
yonder in Hebron. Every time they saw it, they would remember why it was unburied, and
their thoughts would turn toward their land of promise. By and by
things grew dark in Egypt. The dynasty of the Pharaohs who had been Joseph's friends gave
way to a new dynasty who cared not for his memory and who were jealous of the growth of
the Israelites. Bitter oppression followed. In those days of gloom, who knows how much the
unburied body of Joseph, with its unspoken words of hope, helped to keep the people from
despair? Then one
night there was great excitement in Goshen. The hour of departure had come. Here is the
record: "And Moses took the bones of Joseph with him: for he had straitly sworn the
children of Israel, saying, God will surely visit you; and ye shall carry up my bones away
hence with you." Then followed forty years of marching and wandering, and during
all this time the mummy of Joseph was in the column or in the camp. At length
there was a funeral one day at Shechem, and those bones, in their Egyptian mummy case,
were laid to rest by Joshua. Here again is the record: "And the bones of Joseph . . .
buried they in Shechem, in the parcel of ground which Jacob bought of the sons of
Hamor." When tourists visit the Holy Land, they are shown at Shechenr a place
purporting to be the tomb of Joseph. It is but a little way from the pit at Dothan into
which his brothers cast him to die. We may take
two lessons from Joseph's dying words. One is a lesson of faith. "I die, and God will
surely visit you." He would die, but the fulfilling of God's purposes would go on.
Some one has said, "God buries His workmen, but carries on His work." We each
have our little part to fulfill in the divine purposes; then we shall die, but the work
will go on. God ever lives, and His plans and purposes halt not. The other
lesson is that we should so live that the memory of our life and its influence, when we
are gone, shall inspire those who stay behind. The memory of the just is blessed.
Joseph's faith, as expressed in his last words, manifested the future hope. In effect he
still declared to them, This is not your home. You are but tarrying here as strangers and
pilgrims. By and by you will go on. Such should
ever be the impression that our life makes and that our memory keeps alive in other
hearts. We should so live that when we are gone every recollection of us shall make
others think of heaven as home. We have not lived at our best if the memory of our life
only makes our friends think of us. The true life must ever speak of things spiritual and
eternal. Let us then
seek to be so filled with Christ that every influence of our life shall incite men upward,
toward God, and onward, toward imperishable things. The Choir Invisible
"God Meant It Unto Good"Genesis 50:20
- Freda Hanbury Allen. Another Course Finished with Joy"Henceforth there is laid up
for me a crown of righteousness, Unusual
vitality, in spite to of failing health in
recent months, kept Brother Silas J. Arnold, active in physical and in spiritual duties
until the end which came in the night of December 22, at his home near Dayton, Ohio, at
the age of eighty-three. Physical sleep merged into the rest that waiteth for those whose
trust is in the Lord. Reared in
the Dunkard faith, and as a very young man, a minister in that denomination, he soon came
in contact with the earliest writings of Brother Russell and promptly saw that he was
being guided of his Heavenly Father to the true understanding of His Plan of Salvation.
His energetic preaching of these truths to his associates in this faith, however, bore no
immediate fruit except for his life-companion and one sister in the flesh. His zeal and
ability soon came to the attention of Brother Russell, who was prompt to press him into
the service of the truth -- the first to do any Pilgrim service, though it was later that
this title was applied to that branch of the
work. While the responsibilities of a home and family precluded the possibility of
continuous activity along that line, he was never idle, but always active in the local
Ecclesia. It was only in the closing months of his life that failing strength forced the
slackening of his energetic cooperation in all the services of the local group. Formerly
his guiding hand gave ready assistance to many Classes in several surrounding States. For
many years he was prominent on the programs of a large percentage of the conventions in
the Central States, and also at times engaged in Pilgrim service among the "free
brethren." In the years 1928 to 1932 his services were appreciated as a member of the
Editorial Committee of the "Herald." A son and a
daughter, both sympathetic with their father's views, and a number of spiritual sons and
daughters are left to mourn their loss in his passing, and to rejoice in the confidence
that he has fought a good fight, finished his course, and kept the faith. None who has
heard him in recent years, or at any time, can doubt his full devotion to the Lord and his
love for His appearing.
Encouraging MessagesDear Brethren: Greetings in
the Lord's name. I am writing to thank you for your kindness and brotherly love in sending
me the "Herald" for the past year. You have sent me two copies per month, which
I have received safely despite the submarines, and which I have passed on to interested
Christians. If I am not asking too much, I could use three copies per month, for every one
who has read them tell me they are pleased to get such help in the proper interpretation
of God's Holy Word. I am an aged
pilgrim, now in my eightieth year, and praise God I have been in the Truth as it is in
Christ Jesus for thirty years now. It was hearing Pastor Russell in April 1913 here at
East Ham that was the means of my learning the full duty of a convert to consecrate land
then go on to perfection, by walking daily in the light till the end, for only they that
endure to the end will be saved. There is only one other brother in this district, and we
meet as often as possible. I thank God we
do not suffer overmuch through this World War. Our food is good, but we get plenty of air
raids, and have had just about twelve bombs in this district, though not many deaths --
seven, I think, is the number; so I feel the Father is caring for His own. One of these
bombs fell in our garden, fifty feet from the bungalow, but my dear wife and I lost only
one fingernail each by things falling on us in the house, which shows to me the Father's
loving care. He preserved us. The bomb must have fallen on a very soft patch of earth and
gone down so deeply that it had so much earth to lift, the blast could do no damage above
the surface. It blew up twenty-one fruit trees, twenty-four small bushes, and of course a
lot of flowers, leaving over one hundred tons of earth above grass level. So I think you
will agree that it is a wonder we were preserved. Farewell now,
dear brethren. I hope this may, interest you, for it does show the Father cares. I pray
God to bless you all abundantly for your love and kindness to the brethren, and that your
work may prosper till we all need it no longer. Yours in
Christ Jesus, S. W. N. -- Eng. Beloved in the
Lord: Once more I
esteem it a joy and privilege to greet you at this season of the year. I would like to say
that the past year has been full of blessings, and prominent among them have been the
monthly visits of the journal we love. We have eagerly devoured its contents, yea read and
reread the precious messages that I am sure come from the Lord. We are now
looking forward to the new year with its privileges and opportunities, bearing in mind it
is to us as well as to Abraham that God said, "I will bless thee and thou shalt be a blessing." Amongst the
glad services I feel I can render unto the Lord during the coming year is that of passing
on the "Herald" to some of the Lord's dear sheep. I have forwarded to our
London Office (B. S. C.) the sum of £1 for you to send me month by month four extra
copies, and these I pray and trust will be as big a blessing to others and as helpful in
fighting The good fight as they have been to me. Our prayers will continue to ascend to
the Throne of Heavenly Grace for you, dear brethren, that our Heavenly Father will be your
keeper (Psalm 121:5) and will feed and bless you that you may be channels of His grace to
us. Once again
thanking you, and asking a share in your prayers for us, that we with you may ever be kept
faithful, finding our greatest pleasure in serving and praising God's glorious name. Yours in His
great favor, J.
W. -- Eng. Dear
Brethren in Christ: Warm
greetings in the Lord. We would
thank you for your letter of October 25th with its enclosures, and would say that all
matters therein have now received attention. As per enclosed account, you will see that
your latest Order Sheet has also been dealt with. We are pleased to say that all Order
Sheets have come to hand up to and including No. 33. . . . As we now
draw to the close of another eventful year, we would again assure you of our very warm
love and of our prayers for you dear ones "over there" that grace and strength
may be given you for the future days. We cannot say what lies in store for each of us who
are sincerely walking this "narrow way"; we do not know and we would not know,
for our trust is in our all-wise Father, and we'd "rather walk in the dark with God,
than go alone in the light." All the indications are that the year upon which we are
entering will be full of severe tests and trials; the whole world is in keen expectancy,
and who knows just when the storm will break? However, we are not fearful; the Lord is our
Refuge and Strength -- "He that dwelleth in the secret place of the Most High shall
abide [pass the night] under the shadow of the Almighty." What wondrous peace is
ours, even though our hearts are filled with sadness as we note the agony of the world's
travail. We know that these are but the "birth-pangs" of the new and better
world which is to be under the Kingship of our Prince of Peace. Then will come the
"desire of all nations" and the world will be at rest. And what
about us who are "in the world, yet not of it"? Our hearts are lifted- up
because we see in all these things our own deliverance and the consummation of our
glorious Hope. Just think of it-to be united with our glorious Lord for the wondrous
purpose of sharing with Him that work so near to His heart, of bringing to His Father
the redeemed world restored to full perfection and with hearts filled with love for Him
and their fellow-men. What a ,prospect! Shall we not "hold fast to the end,"
enduring whatever transitory difficulties are permitted to fit us for our future
service? If we are weak, then He is our strength and will give us grace and courage for
each moment as it comes. God bless
you all "over there" is our prayer, and may we be accounted worthy to meet in
the Grand Convention of the "First-horns." I would just
like to add a personal word of appreciation for the blessings received through the
"Herald." Carry on the good work and may our Father guide you in all wisdom for
the edification of His people. With
Christian love, Your brother
in Christ our Lord, On behalf of
Bible Students Committee E. A. -- Eng. Dear Ones in
the Lord: Just
received the parcel containing the two years, 1941 and 1942, of the "Herald,"
and what can I say or do to show my gratitude to you and my Heavenly Father for the
bountiful provision of food He is providing to two hungry souls such as my daughter and I
are and have been for quite a few years past. When I opened that parcel, and scanned over
some of the items (I say scanned, as I can ,only read a little at a time due to very poor
eyes), a lump came in my throat, and I could not keep back the tears of joy and
thanksgiving as I thought of the days to come when I could get in to my daughter's and
together we would feast on the truths so dear to our hearts. I am reminded of the
Savior's words, "Blessed is he who hungers and thirsts after righteousness, for he
shall be filled." It took me back to the days when Brother Russell was with us. When
our "Watch Tower" would arrive, at that time, I would leave everything and sit
right down and feed to my heart's content. Can you wonder that I am thrilled to know now
that I can have these precious truths brought to me while I am still able to grasp the
deep things of God's Word? While I am quite dependent on others to care for me in temporal
things, the Lord is now providing graciously for my spiritual sustenance. Praise God
from whom all blessings flow! How I would
love to tell all of my former brethren what blessings are in store for them if they would
just taste and see these things so dear to us, in these few remaining years of our earthly
pilgrimage. Many, many
thanks, and God bless and keep you, and give you the necessary strength to continue to
feed His flock. Yours in the
One hope of our calling, H. D. B.
- Mass. |
