November 8, 1898

“Editorial” The Advent Review and Sabbath Herald 75, 45, p. 714.

SO entirely is it true that the sole purpose of the gifts of the Holy Ghost is to bring to perfection the believers in Jesus, that when this shall be been accomplished, these gifts will “cease” and “be done away.”ARSH November 8, 1898, page 714.1

Charity is the bond of perfectness. And as it is true that though a person were to have all the gifts, and yet had not charity, it would profit him nothing, this of itself shows that perfection in the believers is the object of the gifts.ARSH November 8, 1898, page 714.2

This is also shown in the fact that “charity never faileth; but whether there be tongues, they shall cease; whether there be knowledge, it shall vanish away.” Prophecies, tongues, knowledge, and the other gifts are all given to bring us to charity; but when they have brought us to charity, they “fail,” “cease,” and “vanish away.”ARSH November 8, 1898, page 714.3

“For we know in part, and we prophesy in part. But when that which is perfect is come, then that which is in part shall be done away.” Even by the gift of knowledge, we know only in part until we attain to that which is perfect. But when that which is perfect is come, we shall then know fully; we shall know even as we are known. Therefore the gift of knowledge, like all the other gifts, is given only as a means of bringing us unto perfection,—to bring us to charity, the bond of perfectness.ARSH November 8, 1898, page 714.4

Charity is the love of God, and “this is the love of God, that we keep his commandments.” Therefore the object of all the gifts of the Spirit is to bring the believers unto the keeping of the commandments of God. And this shows that the greatest gift that can be bestowed upon men, the greatest thing that can be done for them, by the Lord, is to bring them to the keeping of the commandments of God.ARSH November 8, 1898, page 714.5

This is the third angel’s message; for “here are they that keep the commandments of God, and the faith of Jesus.”ARSH November 8, 1898, page 714.6

“Ask, and it shall be given you.” “Receive ye the Holy Ghost.” “Be filled with the Spirit.” “Desire spiritual gifts.” “Covet earnestly the best gifts.”ARSH November 8, 1898, page 714.7

“Editorial Note” The Advent Review and Sabbath Herald 75, 45, p. 714.

WE are to hold the beginning of our confidence steadfast unto the end. The reason that people do not do this is that they forget that it is to be done to-day. They wonder how they are going to get through to-morrow, how they are going to meet this difficulty and that one to-morrow; and in the whirl of doubts and fears about to-morrow, they forget to believe in God to-day. What did Jesus say of to-morrow?—“Take therefore no thought for the morrow: for the morrow shall take thought for the things of itself.” He did not say that even the Lord will take thought for to-morrow. No; “the morrow [not the Lord] shall take thought for the things of itself.” Then let it. God does not have anything to do with the morrow, and he does not want you to have.ARSH November 8, 1898, page 714.1

“What Israel Missed” The Advent Review and Sabbath Herald 75, 45, p. 714.

DID you think that last week we were saying too much when we analyzed that scripture that shows that God desired to take Israel into the new earth when he took them out of Egypt? If so, we wish you would look at that subject again for a few minutes.ARSH November 8, 1898, page 714.1

As Stephen stood before the Sanhedrin, speaking under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, he said: “When the time of the promise drew nigh, which God had sworn to Abraham, the people grew and multiplied in Egypt.” Acts 7:17.ARSH November 8, 1898, page 714.2

What was the promise to Abraham? While Abram was in Ur of the Chaldees, God said to him, “Get thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and from thy father’s house, into a land that I will show thee.” Genesis 12:1.ARSH November 8, 1898, page 714.3

Then Abram, with his father’s house and his kindred, came to Haran, and dwelt there. There his father died; and then, being separated from his father’s house, Abram departed to go into the land of Canaan; but Lot, of his kindred, was yet with him.ARSH November 8, 1898, page 714.4

Thus, with his kindred, Abram came into Canaan, passed through the land, went into Egypt, and back again into Canaan. But still God had not yet shown to him the land that he had promised to show to him, nor could he show it to him so long as any of his kindred were with him; for God had said to him, “Get thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and from thy father’s house, into a land that I will show thee.” Abram had got out of his country, and from his father’s house, but not yet from his kindred, and so had not yet been shown the land.ARSH November 8, 1898, page 714.5

However, before long the flocks and herds of Abram and Lot had so multiplied that “the land was not able to bear them.” Also the herdsmen began to strive. Then said Abram to Lot: “Let there be no strife.... Separate thyself, I pray thee, from me: if thou wilt take the left hand, then I will go to the right; or if thou depart to the right hand, then I will go to the left.” Lot chose him all the plain of Jordan, and dwelt in the cities of the plain, and pitched his tent toward Sodom.ARSH November 8, 1898, page 714.6

Now Abram is separated from his kindred, as well as from his country, and from his father’s house. Now the Lord can show him the land that he promised to show him. And so it is written: “The Lord said unto Abram, after that Lot was separated from him, Lift up now thine eyes, and look from the place where thou art northward, and southward, and eastward, and westward: for all the land which thou seest, to thee will I give it, and to thy seed FOREVER.” Genesis 13:14, 15.ARSH November 8, 1898, page 714.7

Now what land, how much, did Abram see when at the Lord’s word he lifted up his eyes and looked?—Answer: “The promise, that he should be the heir of the world, was not to Abraham, or to his seed, through the law, but through the righteousness of faith.” Romans 4:13. “To Abraham and his seed were the promises made. He saith not, And to seeds, as of many; but as of one, And to thy seed, which is Christ.” Galatians 3:16. The promise was “the world to come,” the new earth.ARSH November 8, 1898, page 714.8

To Abraham and Christ, then, was the promise made; and to Abraham only in Christ and with Christ. Christ, the seed, could not receive the inheritance, the land, without Abraham; Abraham could not receive the land without Christ.ARSH November 8, 1898, page 714.9

And yet when Israel was to leave Egypt, “the time of the promise drew nigh, which God had sworn to Abraham.” Even this did he tell to Israel while they were yet in Egypt, though preparing to leave: “I will bring you in unto the land, concerning the which I did swear to give it to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob; and I will give it you for an heritage.” Exodus 6:8. But how could he bring them into the land which he sware to give it to Abraham, without bringing them into the land which was shown and promised to Abraham, which was the world to come, the new earth, an heavenly country, having “a city which hath foundations, whose builder and maker is God,“—the land which Christ is to have?ARSH November 8, 1898, page 714.10

Again: at that time Abraham had been long dead. Yet “the time of the promise drew nigh, which God had sworn to Abraham,” to give to him the land promised to him and Christ. How, then, could this promise be fulfilled to Abraham but by his resurrection from the dead? Therefore “the time of the promise drew nigh,” when Abraham should rise from the dead, and with Christ possess the land.ARSH November 8, 1898, page 714.11

This is why it was that in the beautiful faith of their triumph in God at the Red Sea, Israel sang: “Thou in thy mercy hast led forth the people which thou hast redeemed: thou hast guided them in thy strength unto thy holy habitation.... Thou shalt bring them in, and plant them in the mountain of thine inheritance, in the place, O Lord, which thou hast made for thee to dwell in, in the Sanctuary, O Lord, which thy hands have established.”ARSH November 8, 1898, page 714.12

Yet for all this, Israel “entered not in because of unbelief.” They hardened their hearts in the provocation, in the day of temptation in the wilderness. “So I sware in my wrath, They shall not enter into my rest.” Hebrews 3:7, 11. This is what Israel missed; this is the rest into which, through unbelief, they failed to enter.ARSH November 8, 1898, page 714.13

This same habitation, this same inheritance, this same rest, which they missed, remains for whosoever will to enter. “Let us therefore fear, lest, a promise being left us of entering into his rest, any of you should seem to come short of it.” Hebrews 4:1.ARSH November 8, 1898, page 714.14

“Wherefore take heed, brethren, lest there be in any of you an evil heart of unbelief, in departing from the living God. but exhort one another daily, while it is called TO-DAY; lest any of you be hardened through the deceitfulness of sin.”ARSH November 8, 1898, page 714.15

That blessed inheritance, that holy habitation, that eternal rest, still waits for you and me to enter. The time of the promise has again drawn nigh. Let not unbelief rob you of entering in. Believe God to-day, while it is called To-day. “Consider the Apostle and High Priest of our profession, Christ Jesus, who was faithful,” and so entered in.ARSH November 8, 1898, page 714.16

It is possible that some may say, “I do not see that all this was for Israel to enter when they left Egypt.” That was just the trouble with the children of Israel themselves: they did not see it, either. And that is just why they missed it. And they did not see it simply because they did not believe it. If they had believed God, they would have seen it all, and would have entered in. And how can you enter in, even now, if you do not believe?ARSH November 8, 1898, page 714.17

“Which Character is Moral?” The Advent Review and Sabbath Herald 75, 45, p. 715.

MORALS is character, and science is knowledge; therefore, moral science is character-knowledge. The study of moral science is the study of the knowledge of character.ARSH November 8, 1898, page 715.1

What character is it that Christians shall study—human or divine? What knowledge—science—of character is it that Christians shall accept as the true, and so the one worthy of study—human or divine?ARSH November 8, 1898, page 715.2

It must not be forgotten, in the study of any science, that a guess is not knowledge, conjecture is not knowledge, hypothesis is not knowledge; but that knowledge is to know, to know for certain. It is to know, and know that we know.ARSH November 8, 1898, page 715.3

Where shall the certainty of knowledge be found?—Only in God; for “he that teacheth man knowledge, shall not he know?” Psalm 94:10. To accept man’s knowledge of things is to drink of the turbid streams of the valley or from common sewers, rather than to go to the Fountain Head. Why delve and dwell in the uncertainties of human knowledge, when the divine knowledge, the fountain of all knowledge, is open to all?ARSH November 8, 1898, page 715.4

What, then, does God say is the certainty of knowledge on the subject of character—morals?ARSH November 8, 1898, page 715.5

What is it as to human character, human morals?—Here it is: “Both Jews and Gentiles... are all under sin; as it is written, There is none righteous, no, not one: there is none that understandeth, there is none that seeketh after God. They are all gone out of the way, they are together become unprofitable; there is non that doeth good, no, not one. Their throat is an open sepulcher; with their tongues they have used deceit; the poison of asps is under their lips: whose mouth is full of cursing and bitterness: their feet are swift to shed blood: destruction and misery are in their ways: there is no fear of God before their eyes.” Romans 3:9-18. “Out of the heart of men, proceed evil thoughts, adulteries, fornications, murders, thefts, covetousness, wickedness, deceit, lasciviousness, an evil eye, blasphemy, pride, foolishness: all these evil things come from within, and defile the man.” Mark 7:21-23.ARSH November 8, 1898, page 715.6

That is a sketch of human character by the One who certainly knows. And the study of human moral science is simply the study of that sort of character. It is, therefore, as plan as A B C that human “morals” is simply the grossest immorality; and the study of human “moral science” is but the study of immorality. Strictly and truly speaking, there is no such thing as human moral science; for moral science is the science of morals, and human morals is nothing but immorality, and the science of it is nothing but the science, the knowledge, of immorality.ARSH November 8, 1898, page 715.7

But how long can people study immorality before they become moral? How much of the science, the knowledge, of immorality must a person acquire in order to be moral?—It is perfectly plain that the whole worldly idea and conception of moral science is not only “science falsely so called,” but is a fatal delusion.ARSH November 8, 1898, page 715.8

On the other hand, how is it with true morals? What is the certainty of knowledge as to divine character, divine morals? Here it is: “I will make all my goodness pass before thee, and I will proclaim the name of the Lord before thee.” “And the Lord passed by before him, and proclaimed, The Lord, The Lord God, merciful and gracious, long-suffering, and abundant in goodness and truth, keeping mercy for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin, and before whom no man is guiltless.” Exodus 33:19; 34:6, 7. “God is love.” 1 John 4:8. “God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.” John 3:16. “I have loved thee with an everlasting love: therefore with loving-kindness have I drawn thee.” Jeremiah 31:3.ARSH November 8, 1898, page 715.9

And “God, who commanded the light to shine out of darkness, hath shined in our hearts, to give the light of the knowledge [the science] of the glory [the character] of God in the face of Jesus Christ.” And “we all, with open face beholding as in a glass the glory [character] of the Lord, are changed into the same image from glory to glory [from character to character], even as by the Spirit of the Lord.” 2 Corinthians 4:6; 3:18.ARSH November 8, 1898, page 715.10

Here is a character that is entirely worthy of the most devoted contemplation. Here is the very perfection of morals. Knowledge of this character is the truest moral science. And the diligent, earnest, prayerful study of this blessed transformation of the soul, through the faith of Jesus Christ and the power of the Spirit of God, from evil to good, from wickedness to righteousness, from sin to holiness, from the human character to the divine character, from immorality to morality,—the study of this is the study of the true science of morals, and is the only true moral science.ARSH November 8, 1898, page 715.11

Shall not this, therefore, be the only character studied, or even referred to, in any Seventh-day Adventist school? If not, why?ARSH November 8, 1898, page 715.12

“Back Page” The Advent Review and Sabbath Herald 75, 45, p. 728.

THE folly of time-setting is still rife among those who have not a knowledge of the truth. Captain Totten is now out with “pages of calculations, mathematically perfect to a hair, all based on passages of Scripture,” claiming to prove that next March “will witness the second advent of the Lord.” This is one of the “lo here’s” and “lo there’s” that the Saviour warned his disciples against, and is a trick of the devil to bring into disrepute the real knowledge of the Bible concerning the second coming of Christ.ARSH November 8, 1898, page 728.1

TRULY the “winds” are being held. Rumors and threats of war in the Old World have of late been like the clouds of a spring day,—now shadow, now sunshine, fearful apprehensions followed by smiling confidence. The world does not understand these things, and some declare that all the ado is but a repetition of the story of the shepherd boy who cried, “Wolf! Wolf!” But by and by the wolf will come as a “thief in the night” “on all them that dwell on the face of the whole earth.” Now is the time to work, now is the time to throw our whole soul into the message; for this holding of the winds is only that time be given for the sealing of the “servants of our God.”ARSH November 8, 1898, page 728.2

A YEAR ago we said that during the year we would present to our readers, articles, illustrated and otherwise, on the signs of the near coming of the Lord, which are predicted in the Bible, and are now being plainly fulfilled in the financial world, the labor world, and any other world that may come to mind. This we have done, and we are going to keep on at it. Indeed, that is all that THE ADVENT REVIEW exists for, and we should make it false to its title if we did not keep this up constantly. And the predicted signs of the Lord’s coming are now being fulfilled so rapidly that diligent work is required to keep the paper “up to date” in noting them. Strides so mighty toward the coming of the Lord that they could not have been dreamed a year ago, have surely been made, in the year past, before the eyes of all the world. Such will continue to be made; and THE ADVENT REVIEW will continue to call the attention of all people to them, and urge all to “get ready, get ready, get ready.”ARSH November 8, 1898, page 728.3

The Sabbath, too, will still be heralded as it is in Christ. And thus THE ADVENT REVIEW AND SABBATH HERALD will continue to proclaim the third angel’s message, which is the great threefold message of the judgment hour, the fall of Babylon, and the keeping of the commandments of God and the faith of Jesus,—and all in view of the soon coming of the Lord.ARSH November 8, 1898, page 728.4

An extra large number of subscriptions will expire December 31. Please renew as soon as possible between now and December 31, so that in the greatly increased amount of work at the beginning of the year, there may be no delay in your paper. And ask your neighbor to subscribe.ARSH November 8, 1898, page 728.5