The Bible, unlike most books, is adapted to all times and all classes of people. Much of it was written for a special purpose, for the reproof or encouragement of those then living, yet it is as applicable to us as it was to persons who lived hundreds of years ago. The parables of Christ were all given for the purpose of meeting some pressing want, yet they are as fresh to-day as when uttered. All of the epistles were addressed to persons who lived in the days of the apostles, yet Christians in all intervening time have felt that they were for them as much as for those who are named in them. In the case of the epistles to the Thessalonians, we readily see that the apostle had in mind not only the Thessalonians brethren, but those especially who would live in the days immediately preceding the coming of the Lord. If we remember this fact, it will add new force to many passages.SITI November 1, 1883, page 485.1

In the fifth chapter of 1 Thessalonians, the apostle gives several short precepts that are worthy of our careful consideration. First we notice the exhortation to the brethren to “know” those who labored among them, “and to esteem them very highly in love for their work sake.” And what is the work for which the brethren are to esteem those who labor among them? It is to admonish, or, as Paul says to Timothy, to “reprove, rebuke, exhort with all long-suffering and doctrine.” Ministers are not to be esteemed because they succeed in pleasing their hearers, or in expressing the sentiment of the congregation, but because they are faithful in exhortation and reproof. The true Christian will always love the one who faithfully admonishes him, no matter how severe the rebuke may be. David said, “Let the righteous smite thee; it shall be a kindness; and let him reprove me, it shall be an excellent oil, which shall not break my head.”SITI November 1, 1883, page 485.2

The apostle writes: “Now we exhort you, brethren, warn them that are unruly.” He does not seem to have had any faith in the idea that no one has any right to interfere to set matters right in the church; that church difficulties are to be left alone to work themselves clear. He knew that under such circumstances they usually work themselves clear through the church. As much reproach is brought on the cause of God by lax discipline as by any other thing. The church relation is of divine origin, and unless each member does his duty faithfully, and all work in harmony, its object will be defeated. On this point we can do no better than quote the words of another:-SITI November 1, 1883, page 485.3

“The word here used is one which properly means not keeping the ranks; and then irregular, confused, neglectful of duty, disorderly. The reference here is to the members of the church who were irregular in their Christian walk. It is not difficult for an army, when soldiers get out of their places in the ranks, or are thrown into confusion, to see that little can be accomplished in such a state of irregularities and confusion. As little difficulties is it, when the members of the church are out of their places, to see that little can be accomplished in such a state. Many a church is like an army where not half of them could be depended on for efficient service.... an army would accomplished little if a large proportion of it were irregular, idle, amiss, or pursuing their own aims, to the neglect of the public interest, as there are members of the church, who can never be depended on in accomplishing the great purpose for which it was designed.”SITI November 1, 1883, page 485.4

“See that none render evil for evil unto any man; but ever follow that which is good, both among yourselves, and to all men.” The easiest way to see that this injunction is carried out would be for each one to hold his own evil tendencies in check. But if there are those who do not practice that charity which is described in 1 Corinthians 13:4, 5, then the church has a duty in the matter. It is the duty of the body to see that the members are in harmony. This should not be done in a harsh, censorious matter, but in accordance with the command in Leviticus 19:17, 18: “Thou shalt not hate thy brother in thine heart: thou shalt in any wise rebuke thy neighbour, and not suffer sin upon him. Thou shalt not avenge, nor bear any grudge against the children of thy people, but thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself: I am the Lord.”SITI November 1, 1883, page 485.5

“Despise not prophesyings.” It must be remembered that there is a difference between prophecies and prophesyings. The command does not have reference especially to the prophecies of the Old Testament, or of the New, although it is a sad fact that they are quite generally despised at the present day. But it has to do with something in the present tense. It needs no argument to show that this chapter is addressed through the Thessalonians to those who would be living in the very last days. Then it must be that there will be some in the last days who will prophesy, and not only so, but there prophesying is to be esteemed. There will be false prophets, but this only makes it the more certain that there will be true ones. Joel says, “And it shall come to pass afterward [“in the last days,” Acts 2:17], that I will pour out my Spirit upon all flesh; and your sons and your daughter shall prophesy, and your old men shall dream dreams, and your young men shall see visions.” But if there are to be both true and false prophets, how can we tell which to believe? The same rule applies now as of old: “To the law and to the testimony; if they speak not according to this word, it is because there is no light in them.”SITI November 1, 1883, page 485.6

It is not optional with us whether or not we will try the spirits. The command is, “Prove all things.” We are in duty bound to test every doctrine or professed truth that is presented to us. To turn away from a new truth, simply because it is new to us, and then to imagine that we cannot be condemned, on account of our ignorance, is a fatal mistake. We do not know but that the new thought may be true; therefore we are to turn upon the blazing light of God’s word, to try it. If it proves to be good, then we must hold it fast, at whatever sacrifice. This necessarily implies the utter rejection of everything that is bad, for good and evil cannot dwell long together. Not only must we reject the wrong; but we must “abstain from all appearance of evil.”SITI November 1, 1883, page 485.7

“And the very God of peace sanctify you wholly.” Entire sanctification is most clearly brought out in the Scriptures, as necessary for all; but like every good and necessary thing, it has been sadly abused. The prevalent idea at the present time is that sanctification is a state of mind or feeling; a state in which the individual feels very good, in short, perfectly satisfied with himself. It arises from the idea that the sole object of religion is to make man happy. This is a mistake. Man’s first great duty is to please God, whether the duty be pleasant or disagreeable. And we can please God only by keeping his commandments. With this agree the words of Christ. “Sanctify them through thy truth; by word is truth.” We can test every man’s professed sanctification by the law of God. If his life is wholly devoted to carry out its requirements, his sanctification is genuine; but if he ignores, or tramples upon God’s law, or any portion of it, his sanctification is spurious. And true sanctification does not loudly proclaim its own excellence. “Charity [love] vaunteth not itself.” The man who loudly “professes entire sanctification,” may well be suspected of insincerity.SITI November 1, 1883, page 485.8

Much of the so-called sanctification is a manifestation not only of selfishness but of obstinacy. A religion of feeling must necessarily be a selfish religion. The great object of the person is to get in a state of mind where nothing will trouble him. Duty may be acknowledged in theory, but if it is contrary to the feelings, it is rejected. We have known persons who confessed that the fourth commandment is as binding now as it ever was, and that there is not the slightest warrant in the Bible for Sunday-keeping, yet they deliberately decided not to obey, because they did not feel as though they ought to. They had such a “perfect love” for God that they were excused from obeying him! We think we are warranted in calling such a course a manifestation of “perfect obstinacy” and self-will. Purity of heart and soul comes only through obeying the truth. 1 Peter 1:22.SITI November 1, 1883, page 485.9

“And pray God your whole spirit and soul and body be preserved blameless unto the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.” “There,” says one, “You materialistic Adventists do not believe that man is a compound body, composed of soul, body, and spirit; and what do you do with this text?” We accept every word as true. Our friends are sometimes too hasty in telling what we do and do not believe. We believe most heartily that man has a soul, body, and spirit, because Paul speaks of those different part; but we utterly reject the idea that any or all of these parts are essentially immortal, because the Bible gives positive evidence to the contrary. If these elements compose the man, what reason have we to suppose that the man can maintain a conscious existence without any one of them? Such a supposition is contrary both to reason and Scripture. See Psalm 146:3, 4, etc.SITI November 1, 1883, page 485.10

2 Thessalonians 1:9 says that the wicked “shall be punished with everlasting destruction from the presence of the Lord, and from the glory of his power.” This is commonly supposed to mean that the wicked will be banished from the presence of the Lord, and that this alone will constitute their punishment. But, in the first place, to be out of God’s immediate presence is what the wicked desire; no greater punishment could be devised for them, than to be obliged to be in the sacred presence of God. Wicked men do not now seek the place where God manifests himself, and we cannot suppose that they ever will, unless they become converted. Indeed, the prophets tell us that at the last day, the wicked will say to the mountains and rocks, “Fall on us, and hide us from the face of him that sitteth upon the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb.” Revelation 6:16. And secondly, there is no place in the universe where the wicked could flee from the presence of God. See Psalm 139:7-12. The wages of the sinner will be death, destruction that comes from the presence of the Lord. And when their destruction shall have been accomplished, no place will be found for them. Daniel 2:35. The wails and blasphemies of the damned will not forever rise to mar the harmony of a portion of God’s universe, for there will come a time when “every creature which is in heaven, and on earth, and under the earth, and such as are in the sea, and all that are in them,” will unite in saying, “Blessing and honor, and glory, and power, unto him that sitteth upon the throne, and unto the Lamb forever and ever.” E. J. W.SITI November 1, 1883, page 485.11

“That Blessed Hope” The Signs of the Times, 9, 41.

E. J. Waggoner

“But I would not have you to be ignorant, brethren, concerning them which are asleep, that ye sorrow not, even as others which have no hope.” There are several points that may be noted on this text: 1. Those who are dead are represented as asleep. The term is very common in the Bible. Read Job 7:21, Daniel 12:2; John 11:11-14, etc. The righteous are asleep in Jesus. 2. This being the case, it follows that the dead are unconscious, for a sleeping man knows nothing of what is going on around him. The general tenor of the inspired writings is in harmony with this idea. For examples see Job 14:14-21; Psalm 6:5; 88:10-12; 115:17; 146:3, 4; Ecclesiastes 9:5, 6, 10. 3. It is folly to say that we cannot know anything of the future. Paul said that he would not have his brethren ignorant; if we believe his words, we must admit that something can be known of man’s future. 4. It is not wrong for Christians to sorrow; the only sin is in giving away to uncontrollable grief, as did the heathen. They, having no hope, indulged in the most extravagant expressions of sorrow-tearing out the hair, rending their garments, uttering loud shrieks, cutting their flesh, etc. A Christian’s grief may be even more acute than that of the heathen, for Christianity tends elevate, and to quicken the sensibilities, but it will always be tempered by hope.SITI November 1, 1883, page 487.1

“For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so them also which sleep in Jesus will God bring with him.” From what place will God bring them? “From Heaven,” many persons say. But the apostle says that those whom he brings have been asleep, and if the view of our friends be true, it must be that the saints in heaven do nothing but sleep, and that is absurd. The psalmist says, “In thy presence is fullness of joy; at the right hand there are pleasures forevermore.” We think it will need no argument to convince any rational person that David’s conception of “fullness of joy” and “pleasures forevermore” would not be met by a long period of unconscious sleep. Those who are asleep are in the grave, and from thence God will bring them, even as he did our Lord. Just as surely as Jesus died and rose again, so surely will God raise from the dead all the sleeping saints.SITI November 1, 1883, page 487.2

“For this we say unto you by the word of the Lord, that we which are alive and remain unto the coming of the Lord shall not prevent [precede] which are asleep.” Paul says, “we which are alive and remain unto the coming of the Lord.” From this some have supposed that Paul expected that the Lord would come in a very few years, and that he would live until that event; but this was not his expectation. We must believe him when he says, “For this we say unto you by the word of the Lord.” Paul received his instruction directly from Heaven. Not to say that Paul was mistaken in regard to the time of Christ’s second advent, is equivalent to saying either that he was not inspired, or that the Holy Spirit was mistaken. Neither of these positions can be taken by those who believe the Bible. That Paul had a correct idea of the time of the second advent, is clear from 2 Thessalonians 2:1-8. In his vivid narrative, Paul speaks of things to come as though they were present.SITI November 1, 1883, page 487.3

The word “prevent” is from the Latin words pre, before, and venio, to go, meaning “to go before,” and was formerly used in this sense. It is so used in King James’ version. See Psalm 88:13; 119:147, 148. But as one who went before another was able to “head him off,” as it is commonly expressed, the word finally became restricted to its present signification, to hinder. The Revised Version has the passage in harmony with modern usage. The word “conversation” is another word whose signification has been thus changed. It now means simply familiar talk; but in the Bible it has an entirely different meaning, being applied to one’s manner of life.SITI November 1, 1883, page 487.4

“For the Lord himself shall descend from Heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first; then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord.” We cannot regard this text in any other way than as a description of an actual occurrence to take place in the future. If the expression, “the Lord himself,” does not mean Jesus Christ in person, but is a figure of something else, what words could the apostle have used to express the reality? If this be figurative language, then there is no literal language in the Bible. It it agrees, however, with the words which the angel spoke to the disciples at the ascension of Christ. Acts 1:9-11. The last clause of the verses quoted settles an important point. “And so shall we ever be with the Lord.” How shall we be with the Lord? By the descent of Christ to raise the dead and change the living. Can we not be with him before that time? No; for so he told his disciples when on earth. The ardent Peter said, “Lord, why cannot I follow thee now? I will lay down my life for thy sake;” John 13:27; but still Jesus did not reverse his former sentence: “As I said unto the Jews, Whither I go ye cannot come; so now I say to you.” Then he comforted them with these words; “In my Father’s house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also.” This is the “blessed hope;” with these words the apostle Paul commended Christians to comfort one another. Men should be careful how they attempt to improve on the methods laid down by inspiration.SITI November 1, 1883, page 487.5

Some time ago a religious journal of note made an admission on this text, that was fatal to the popular view (the one which it also holds), that all men have inherited immortality. It said: “It is hard for us to understand how those converts could have imagined that it was peculiarly unfortunate to die before Christ’s second coming. It was because they imagined, and Paul too, perhaps, that Christ was to come soon, in the lifetime of some of them (we have already shown that he did not imagine any such thing), and that his coming was physical; and they did not understand the doctrine of the immortality of the soul.” That is, the doctrine of the immortality of the soul is so opposed to the doctrine of Christ’s second coming, that those who hold to the former necessarily ignore the latter. We believe that this is the case. But the doctrine of Christ’s second coming is one of the most prominent in the whole Bible, and it must therefore follow that the Bible is opposed to the doctrine of the immortality of the soul. It was well said that “they did not understand the doctrine of the immortality of the soul;” but if Paul and his co-laborers did not understand nor teach it, whence is it that our modern teachers have learned so much about it? Have they a later revelation in which inspiration has corrected its former mistakes? Away with a doctrine which leads men to treat God’s word. Such teachers would do well to ponder upon Paul’s words to the Galatians brethren. Galatians 1:8.SITI November 1, 1883, page 488.1

“But of the times and the seasons, brethren, ye have no need that I write unto you. For yourselves know perfectly that the day of the Lord so cometh as a thief in the night.” No argument can be drawn from this to prove that Christians cannot know anything about Lord’s coming, for the next verse shows that he comes as a thief only to those who cry “Peace and safety,”-those who are not watching. The brethren, Paul states, are not in darkness that that day should overtake them as a thief. Christ gave his disciples very full instructions in regard to the times and the seasons (see Matthew 24), and as the whole gospel was revealed to Paul by the Lord himself, he had imparted the same information to the Thessalonians brethren. The prophecies of the Old Testament, especially the Book of Daniel, give much light on the times and the seasons.SITI November 1, 1883, page 488.2

On 1 Thessalonians 5:10, Dr. Barnes makes the following comment:-SITI November 1, 1883, page 488.3

“‘Whether we wake or sleep.’ Whether we are found among the living or the dead when he comes. The object here is to show that the one class would have no advantage over the other. This was designed to calm their minds in their trials, and to correct an error which seems to have prevailed in the belief that those who were found alive when he should return, would have some priority over those who were dead. ‘Should live together with him.’ The word rendered ‘together’ is not to be regarded as connected with the phrase ‘with him,’ as meaning he and they would be together, but it refers to those who wake and those who sleep, those who are alive and those who are dead,-meaning that they would be together, or would be with the Lord at the same time; there would be no priority or precedence.”SITI November 1, 1883, page 488.4

That is exactly the truth on this important subject. Happy would it be for Christianity if the churches had never departed from it. E. J. W.SITI November 1, 1883, page 488.5

October 25, 1883

November 15, 1883