1930
Evangelist Deals With Universal Longing At Baptist Church
"It is our purpose at this hour to deal with a universal longing," declared the Rev. John W. Ham, evangelist, in opening his talk on "The City Foursquare" at the First Baptist Church, Monday evening. "The leaf in immortality antedates the Christian revelation of Heaven. The hope of Heaven is humanity wide. No race has been found that does not possess a basic idea of life beyond the grave. This hope often expressed in crude form is present in all dialects."
"The Old Testament conception of man and its revelation of God sets up in a pagan world the doctrine for immortality and Heaven. Man is set forth as made in the image of God. Sin marred that image.
"An unprejudiced study of the hopes and aspirations of the New Testament saints will convince that they held firmly to the hope of Heaven. They desired a better country. They were in search of perfection. Their lives were modeled according to that hope.
"The New Testament saint is seen wishing to go but willing to stay for the benefit of others. This marks a decided advance in the knowledge and hope of the one who stands in the full glare of a revelation, final and authoritative on the question of Heaven.
"There are three Heavens set forth in the Bible. We all live in the first Heaven. It extends up for fifty miles. The second Heaven is the area in which the constellations have their position. The vastness of space in this second sphere staggers the mind. The third Heaven is positioned beyond the second. Paul was caught up to this position. Stephen looked up and saw Jesus in the third Heaven, standing at the right hand of God. Jesus went up into the third Heaven while his disciples stood gazing.
"Materialistic science and philosophy has steadily denied the literal aspect of Heaven. Strange to say the majority of this group accept as literal a city called Babylon, described in the seventeenth chapter of Revelation, but reject the literal aspect of the new Jerusalem.
"It is interesting to study the characteristics of the City Foursquare. The external views of the city beautiful are set forth in language that is in thorough keeping with the spiritual ideals and hopes of the race.
"The streets of gold are transparent like the most perfect glass. The illumination staggers the imagination. The light will be of an uncertain character. It will need no material power to sustain it.
"The architectural harmony and beauty of the city will surpass the most exalted imagination of the artistic mind. There is neither symmetry, harmony or beauty in the lines of long rows of buildings. The perfect city will not assault the artistic sense of such a conglomeration of structures. Beauty and harmony will be written in every line of its streets.
"God loves the beautiful. He is the author of beauty. Nature witnesses to that fact. At certain seasons of the year, the earth is crammed with the beautiful that feeds the artistic sense lavishly.
"Sin marred the beauty of the first paradise. It was lost. The redemption on Calvary made possible its regaining. Heaven is a place of intellectual activity. Its internal characteristics are in keeping with its external beauty. We live in the prep school of eternity at the present.
"Social activity will characterize the citizens of the City Foursquare. Jesus in good-bye conference, pointed out that he was going away for the purpose of preparing mansions. That word suggests social activity.
The City Foursquare will be free from all trouble and sorrow; pain and crying will have passed away. Nerve wracking, fatiguing toil will be unknown. It will be a place of rest.
"John saw a city with twelve gates, three of these opened on the north, three on the east, three on the south, three on the west. These gates symbolize the various groups of earth, temperamentally and religiously.
"The New Testament closes with a call. The spirit and the bride utter the word 'Come.' The redeemed join in this invitation. Any who have tasted the water of life are in turn to issue the invitation to those that are thirsty. Six hundred and forty-two times the word 'come' is iterated and reiterated between Genesis and Revelation."
—Olean Times, Olean, NY, April 1, 1930, p. 3.
Monday, March 31, 2008
Friday, March 28, 2008
Isle of Patmos, the Abode of St. John
1906
The isles of Greece, "where burning Sappho loved and sung," are forever reappearing in history. Even the least known of them all in antiquity, hardly mentioned by the prehistoric writers, but made famous by the visions of the best-beloved of the apostles, Patmos, is frequently familiarly spoken of, though seldom visited. For throughout the length and breadth of the Christian world many edifices stand in commemoration of St. John. Great and small, humble and grand, cathedrals, churches and chapels, they cover a period of history extending from the day when the conversion of Constantine made Christianity the official religion of civilization down to the present time.
At one end stands the little chapel built by the piety of the simple fishermen of Patmos above the cave where St. John passed the long days of his banishment from the mainland of Asia Minor. At the other are the central arch and the columns of the Cathedral of St John the Divine now being erected at the cost of a king's ransom and years of thought and patient toil. The contrast between the capital of the New World and the barren island in the Grecian archipelago, between the wealth of the twentieth century and the provincial village of the Roman empire, is typified by the unlikeness of the two structures.
Cave Refuge of St. John
High up on the steep hillside of the little island of Patmos is still to be seen to-day the natural cave in which St. John lived for many years and wrote his "Revelation." The cave, roughly divided into two compartments, is cut deep into the solid rock, the walls are damp with the natural moisture of the earth, and the only light comes from a single candle burning before an ancient shrine.
The city is built around the peak of the hill in a series of three or four tiers. One finds no poorer district and no exclusive quarter. The inhabitants appear to be equally prosperous or equally poor — and in either event equally content. The houses are all alike, square in shape, plain and unadorned, of one or two stories in height, and covered with simple, flat roofs. There are no sidewalks in the streets, which again, like the roadway, are paved with slabs of stone. No horses, or wagons, or traffic of any kind, with the exception of the trains of pack donkeys, ever pass through. Flights of stone steps in various places lead upward, from one tier to another until finally a second massive gateway is reached which marks the entrance to the main courtyard of the monastery.
Monastery a Refuge
The exact date at which the earlier parts of the monastery were first constructed is still at matter of conjecture, but according to the condition of life which existed in those far-off days, it had been built with the purpose of providing a refuge for the people in times of peace. Huge stone battlements completely surround the courtyard and the little chapel, with battlements within battlements and corridors and hidden passageways leading up to the different points of vantage behind the parapets. The monastery stands, a massive fortification, enclosing tbe church on the hilltop.
The cave itself is situated a short distance down the northern slope of the hill from the city wall. In the present day, a small chapel stands above the entrance. You are informed that the chapel is of recent construction, but this word "recent" is applied after the manner in which periods of time are counted by the inhabitants of the island. The informant probably means that it was built after the death of St. John. In appearance the chapel looks to be as old as the rock itself.
From a door in the interior of the chapel a crooked, twisted stairway of stone dips downward abruptly into the earth. This stairway is comparatively dark, illuminated merely by a shaft of meager light from the open door of the chapel above. At the end of the first flight of steps you are given a candle to light your further progress and are advised to move with caution over the slippery stones.
St. John's Pillow a Stone
The cave lies at the bottom of the second flight; it is divided into two compartments, the main body of the cave, where the shrine still stands, and a natural alcove in the rear in which, it is said, St. John spent most of his time, working and praying during the day and sleeping there at night. In the solid rock of the wall, close down to the flooring of the alcove is a smooth, round stone, which was used by St. John for a pillow, and directly above this, seen when the light is raised, is a long fissure running diagonally across the ceiling. Through this fissure the spirit descended and inspired/the "Revelation."
All this, however, belongs to the history of nearly 2,000 years ago. Since then, in better known parts of the world, cathedrals have been built and dedicated in the name of the saint who lived and worked in the cave of Patmos, where still to-day, as ever before, a single candle burns perpetually in front of the ancient shrine. Structures like the Church of St. John Lateran in Rome or the far larger Protestant Cathedral of St. John the Divine rising stone by stone on Morningside Heights, in New York, are works far beyond the resources of the simple fishermen of Patmos, but to the English church and to the Episcopal church of America, which is its lineal descendant, the island cave and the chapel over it must always be objects of special interest. It was by disciples of St. John that the southern province of what is now France was converted to Christianity, and it was from these provinces that the missionaries came to spread the gospel in England. The great Cathedral of St. John in New York is bound to the little Patmos chapel by a link nineteen centuries long. — Los Angeles Times.
The isles of Greece, "where burning Sappho loved and sung," are forever reappearing in history. Even the least known of them all in antiquity, hardly mentioned by the prehistoric writers, but made famous by the visions of the best-beloved of the apostles, Patmos, is frequently familiarly spoken of, though seldom visited. For throughout the length and breadth of the Christian world many edifices stand in commemoration of St. John. Great and small, humble and grand, cathedrals, churches and chapels, they cover a period of history extending from the day when the conversion of Constantine made Christianity the official religion of civilization down to the present time.
At one end stands the little chapel built by the piety of the simple fishermen of Patmos above the cave where St. John passed the long days of his banishment from the mainland of Asia Minor. At the other are the central arch and the columns of the Cathedral of St John the Divine now being erected at the cost of a king's ransom and years of thought and patient toil. The contrast between the capital of the New World and the barren island in the Grecian archipelago, between the wealth of the twentieth century and the provincial village of the Roman empire, is typified by the unlikeness of the two structures.
Cave Refuge of St. John
High up on the steep hillside of the little island of Patmos is still to be seen to-day the natural cave in which St. John lived for many years and wrote his "Revelation." The cave, roughly divided into two compartments, is cut deep into the solid rock, the walls are damp with the natural moisture of the earth, and the only light comes from a single candle burning before an ancient shrine.
The city is built around the peak of the hill in a series of three or four tiers. One finds no poorer district and no exclusive quarter. The inhabitants appear to be equally prosperous or equally poor — and in either event equally content. The houses are all alike, square in shape, plain and unadorned, of one or two stories in height, and covered with simple, flat roofs. There are no sidewalks in the streets, which again, like the roadway, are paved with slabs of stone. No horses, or wagons, or traffic of any kind, with the exception of the trains of pack donkeys, ever pass through. Flights of stone steps in various places lead upward, from one tier to another until finally a second massive gateway is reached which marks the entrance to the main courtyard of the monastery.
Monastery a Refuge
The exact date at which the earlier parts of the monastery were first constructed is still at matter of conjecture, but according to the condition of life which existed in those far-off days, it had been built with the purpose of providing a refuge for the people in times of peace. Huge stone battlements completely surround the courtyard and the little chapel, with battlements within battlements and corridors and hidden passageways leading up to the different points of vantage behind the parapets. The monastery stands, a massive fortification, enclosing tbe church on the hilltop.
The cave itself is situated a short distance down the northern slope of the hill from the city wall. In the present day, a small chapel stands above the entrance. You are informed that the chapel is of recent construction, but this word "recent" is applied after the manner in which periods of time are counted by the inhabitants of the island. The informant probably means that it was built after the death of St. John. In appearance the chapel looks to be as old as the rock itself.
From a door in the interior of the chapel a crooked, twisted stairway of stone dips downward abruptly into the earth. This stairway is comparatively dark, illuminated merely by a shaft of meager light from the open door of the chapel above. At the end of the first flight of steps you are given a candle to light your further progress and are advised to move with caution over the slippery stones.
St. John's Pillow a Stone
The cave lies at the bottom of the second flight; it is divided into two compartments, the main body of the cave, where the shrine still stands, and a natural alcove in the rear in which, it is said, St. John spent most of his time, working and praying during the day and sleeping there at night. In the solid rock of the wall, close down to the flooring of the alcove is a smooth, round stone, which was used by St. John for a pillow, and directly above this, seen when the light is raised, is a long fissure running diagonally across the ceiling. Through this fissure the spirit descended and inspired/the "Revelation."
All this, however, belongs to the history of nearly 2,000 years ago. Since then, in better known parts of the world, cathedrals have been built and dedicated in the name of the saint who lived and worked in the cave of Patmos, where still to-day, as ever before, a single candle burns perpetually in front of the ancient shrine. Structures like the Church of St. John Lateran in Rome or the far larger Protestant Cathedral of St. John the Divine rising stone by stone on Morningside Heights, in New York, are works far beyond the resources of the simple fishermen of Patmos, but to the English church and to the Episcopal church of America, which is its lineal descendant, the island cave and the chapel over it must always be objects of special interest. It was by disciples of St. John that the southern province of what is now France was converted to Christianity, and it was from these provinces that the missionaries came to spread the gospel in England. The great Cathedral of St. John in New York is bound to the little Patmos chapel by a link nineteen centuries long. — Los Angeles Times.
Saturday, March 22, 2008
World Is In Need of a Real Revival, Says Minister Here
Texas, 1920
In his sermon the theme of which was "Christ Standing and Knocking at the Door," Rev. J. F. Carter of the Thirty-third Street Methodist Episcopal Church South told his congregation last night that the greatest need of the world is "genuine revival of old-time religion." He said in part:
In the third chapter of Revelation Jesus Christ says: "Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If any man hear my voice and open the door. I will come in to him and will sup with him, and he with me." At the door of a lukewarm, indifferent, worldly, backslidden, apostate church the Lord Jesus is standing and knocking. Will the church hear his voice and open the door and invite him in to be its gracious guest? How tragical that the Christ is compelled to stand on the outside and knock at the door for admittance! But how far more tragical that some within will not hear his voice and open the door and let him in to sup with them and they with him!
But suffice it to say there are always faithful few, "a remnant," who are "the salt of the earth" that have not lost their savor; who are "the light of the world" that can not be hid. I thank God for these and take fresh courage and press forward with greater energy for the heavenly prize. But for these and their Christ and our Christ we would not and could not bear the burdens that weigh so tremendously upon us.
Christ would have the vilest sinner, the most indifferent, self-satisfied, stubborn backslider hear his voice and open the door that he may come in and be with him. Christ died for him as well as for "the ninety and nine" out on the bleak mountain side. He gave himself even for the apostate who openly renounces him and crucifies him afresh tonight: who forsakes Jehovah the God of his fathers for the god of this world; who surrenders the love of the Lord for the love and the passion of worldly power and of worldly influence that can not last. Yes. the price was paid for him who gives up the Christianity of the Christ for the philosophy and the learning and the wisdom of Plato that pass away forever. Aye, the Christ suffered and died on the cross to save a poor wretch like him, like you. Will he, will not you take warning before it is too late, lest God Almighty hurl his thunderbolt out of the skies and strike him, to strike you dead in his, in your fight against Christianity, against its holy teachings, as tradition tells us he struck Julian the apostate dead on the battlefield for his apostasy, for his love and his passion for worldly power and worldly, influence? God save Methodism. save the church from plunging deeper into worldliness, deeper into apostasy, from turning farther away from "the old paths, where is the good way," where the Lord is found and where his love and truth shine forevermore.
Your greatest need, my greatest need, therefore, is a genuine revival of old-time religion in the heart and in the life. And that's the greatest need of the church today. The Wall Street Journal, that is wont to be permeated with the cold metallic ring of the dollar, in a recent editorial said: "America's greatest need is a genuine revival of old-fashioned religion." Think of a journal like that having to tell the church, America, that the greatest need today is not the ring of the almighty dollar, not world power and world influence in the money markets, in the political forums, in the knightly courts of the parlors, but that her greatest need is a genuine revival of old-fashioned religion. Henry Watterson, the brilliant old Bourbon, but recently declared: "The only power that can keep this world from sinking into the hell toward which it is bound is the cross and the Gospel of him who died on Calvary." And a writer of a recent article in a leading magazine says: "The world needs a spirit-filled ministry that preaches the straight gospel rather than political science. The individual must first get an individual experience not in political science, but in the science of salvation, before he can help others to higher ground. We have been working at the wrong end of the line. We must come back to the Gospel plan, and preach the Word."
Now tell me if you will that the signs of the times point in another direction. Now tell me if you dare that there is no added need of preaching the old-fashioned religion in the Gospel of Jesus Christ. And then I will tell you that you have eyes and see not, ears and hear not, brains and think not. mouths and speak not — that you are as dumb as idols of stocks and of stones.
The "one thing needful" is to go with the Gospel message first to the individual, and then to the crowd. Jesus never moved from the multitude down to the individual but always from the individual up to the multitude. The New Testament revivals never went from the people down to the individual, but always from the individual up to the people.
—Galveston Daily News, Galveston, TX, April 19, 1920, p. 8.
In his sermon the theme of which was "Christ Standing and Knocking at the Door," Rev. J. F. Carter of the Thirty-third Street Methodist Episcopal Church South told his congregation last night that the greatest need of the world is "genuine revival of old-time religion." He said in part:
In the third chapter of Revelation Jesus Christ says: "Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If any man hear my voice and open the door. I will come in to him and will sup with him, and he with me." At the door of a lukewarm, indifferent, worldly, backslidden, apostate church the Lord Jesus is standing and knocking. Will the church hear his voice and open the door and invite him in to be its gracious guest? How tragical that the Christ is compelled to stand on the outside and knock at the door for admittance! But how far more tragical that some within will not hear his voice and open the door and let him in to sup with them and they with him!
But suffice it to say there are always faithful few, "a remnant," who are "the salt of the earth" that have not lost their savor; who are "the light of the world" that can not be hid. I thank God for these and take fresh courage and press forward with greater energy for the heavenly prize. But for these and their Christ and our Christ we would not and could not bear the burdens that weigh so tremendously upon us.
Christ would have the vilest sinner, the most indifferent, self-satisfied, stubborn backslider hear his voice and open the door that he may come in and be with him. Christ died for him as well as for "the ninety and nine" out on the bleak mountain side. He gave himself even for the apostate who openly renounces him and crucifies him afresh tonight: who forsakes Jehovah the God of his fathers for the god of this world; who surrenders the love of the Lord for the love and the passion of worldly power and of worldly influence that can not last. Yes. the price was paid for him who gives up the Christianity of the Christ for the philosophy and the learning and the wisdom of Plato that pass away forever. Aye, the Christ suffered and died on the cross to save a poor wretch like him, like you. Will he, will not you take warning before it is too late, lest God Almighty hurl his thunderbolt out of the skies and strike him, to strike you dead in his, in your fight against Christianity, against its holy teachings, as tradition tells us he struck Julian the apostate dead on the battlefield for his apostasy, for his love and his passion for worldly power and worldly, influence? God save Methodism. save the church from plunging deeper into worldliness, deeper into apostasy, from turning farther away from "the old paths, where is the good way," where the Lord is found and where his love and truth shine forevermore.
Your greatest need, my greatest need, therefore, is a genuine revival of old-time religion in the heart and in the life. And that's the greatest need of the church today. The Wall Street Journal, that is wont to be permeated with the cold metallic ring of the dollar, in a recent editorial said: "America's greatest need is a genuine revival of old-fashioned religion." Think of a journal like that having to tell the church, America, that the greatest need today is not the ring of the almighty dollar, not world power and world influence in the money markets, in the political forums, in the knightly courts of the parlors, but that her greatest need is a genuine revival of old-fashioned religion. Henry Watterson, the brilliant old Bourbon, but recently declared: "The only power that can keep this world from sinking into the hell toward which it is bound is the cross and the Gospel of him who died on Calvary." And a writer of a recent article in a leading magazine says: "The world needs a spirit-filled ministry that preaches the straight gospel rather than political science. The individual must first get an individual experience not in political science, but in the science of salvation, before he can help others to higher ground. We have been working at the wrong end of the line. We must come back to the Gospel plan, and preach the Word."
Now tell me if you will that the signs of the times point in another direction. Now tell me if you dare that there is no added need of preaching the old-fashioned religion in the Gospel of Jesus Christ. And then I will tell you that you have eyes and see not, ears and hear not, brains and think not. mouths and speak not — that you are as dumb as idols of stocks and of stones.
The "one thing needful" is to go with the Gospel message first to the individual, and then to the crowd. Jesus never moved from the multitude down to the individual but always from the individual up to the multitude. The New Testament revivals never went from the people down to the individual, but always from the individual up to the people.
—Galveston Daily News, Galveston, TX, April 19, 1920, p. 8.
Bible Conference at Grace Baptist Church
1933
Rev. Frank C. Torry will conduct a Bible conference during the week on the following subjects: "The Revelation of Jesus Christ and the Church," "The Revelation of Jesus Christ in Heavenly Preparation," "The Revelation of Jesus Christ and the Preceding Judgments," "The Revelation of Jesus Christ and the Man of Sin," and "The Revelation of Jesus Christ and That Which Follows."
—Tyrone Daily Herald, Tyrone, PA, Feb. 18, 1933, p. 3.
Rev. Frank C. Torry will conduct a Bible conference during the week on the following subjects: "The Revelation of Jesus Christ and the Church," "The Revelation of Jesus Christ in Heavenly Preparation," "The Revelation of Jesus Christ and the Preceding Judgments," "The Revelation of Jesus Christ and the Man of Sin," and "The Revelation of Jesus Christ and That Which Follows."
—Tyrone Daily Herald, Tyrone, PA, Feb. 18, 1933, p. 3.
Wednesday, March 19, 2008
Preaches on Theories About Revelation
Phoenix, Arizona, 1908
Subject of Rev. A.R. Maclean's Sermon
At the First M. E. church yesterday Rev. Alexander R. Maclean, in deference to the wish of many of his congregation, repeated one of the evening discourses lately given by him upon the Book of Revelation.
He told his hearers at the outset that it was his purpose, in this sermon, to go rough-shod over some of their old theories touching the second coming of Christ, and he asked them to give him a patient hearing as he had given the theme a careful study for fifteen years.
The Book of Revelation is one of the most wonderful, most mysterious and most difficult books of the Bible — so much so that we have almost left it as a sealed volume. Unfortunately it Was placed at the end of the Bible, when, following its chronological order, it should have been given a much earlier place. It was the first book written by John. The Gospel of St. John was written twenty-five years afterwards.
Men who have devoted years to the study of the Hebrew and the Greek languages have discovered, and practically agreed, that the Greek, in which the Book of Revelation was written was the work of a man unfamiliar with Greek idioms, and that the discourse is as mixed and incoherent as would be that of a German on first coming to this country, and trying to build up good English sentences. When you compare the tangled and uncertain phraseology of this book with the Gospel and Epistles of St. John, you quickly see the wide difference in their diction. When Revelation was written John had just come from Ephesus. After a series of years he mastered the Greek language, and his work shows it. It is logical, precise and elegant. Indeed he became so proficient in this ancient tongue that some of his commentators aver that his Gospel, and the three Epistles, could have been written by no other hand.
The Book of Revelation was written between the two great historic fires, the burning of Rome and the burning of Jerusalem, and was written for contemporary purposes, dealing with what were then live questions; while the Gospel, and the three Epistles of St. John, were written in his old age. At the first writing, it was a question of change and alarm, of disaster and bloodshed. When the others were written, none of these things were in marked evidence; in the churches, or in the kingdoms of the world.
There are three conspicuous theories as to the second coming of Christ. The Futurists believe in the future fulfillment of the prophecy made in the Book of Revelation. The next class believe that that book simply anticipates the life of the world, historically, for a given period. The Praeterist school claim that the prophecy has been fulfilled already, and that Christ has come as foretold.
By one sect, which has a wide following, the year 1000 A. D. was believed to be the year of His coming, and numbers went to Judea to meet Him. But He did not come.
The Millerites proclaimed that His advent would be in 1843. Time after time the date has been set only to lead to disappointment. The Thessalonians believed that Christ had come. Paul argued that He had not come. The great apostasy, the falling away in the churches, that Christ predicted, which was to be manifest before His second coming, had not come. The Man of Sin has not yet been revealed, the Anti-Christ has not come.
The Thessalonians did not look for a visible Christ. Nobody has seen Jesus in His second coming. He is coming with clouds as He went away; He will be obscured by them, seen only by spiritual eyes.
All the authors of the New Testament looked for His speedy coming. "Behold I come quickly," He said. "This generation shall not pass away till these things be fulfilled," and many such passages.
Mr. Maclean is thoroughly optimistic in his predilections. He believes the church of Jesus was never as good as it now is. It is a queen compared with the apostolic churches. It has more Bibles, and better men and women, than ever before. The Golden Age of human experience is coming — it has not gone. Tomorrow will be better than today. Twelve centuries ago our Anglo Saxon forefathers drank blood from human skulls — roasted their victims before slow fires because of their alleged religious heresies.
It is a wonderful thing to live today. The thought that the world is growing worse is a nightmare; let us get rid of it. It has been getting better, is getting better, and will be getting better. Open your eyes! Jesus Christ is reigning — has His hand on the nations. We look hopefully forward to the establishment of His kingdom in every continent, in every land and in every island of the sea. In a discourse to be given later, Mr. Maclean promises to give proofs further substantiating his views, and his interpretation of the Book of Revelation.
—The Arizona Republican, Phoenix, AZ, April 8, 1907, p. 8.
Subject of Rev. A.R. Maclean's Sermon
At the First M. E. church yesterday Rev. Alexander R. Maclean, in deference to the wish of many of his congregation, repeated one of the evening discourses lately given by him upon the Book of Revelation.
He told his hearers at the outset that it was his purpose, in this sermon, to go rough-shod over some of their old theories touching the second coming of Christ, and he asked them to give him a patient hearing as he had given the theme a careful study for fifteen years.
The Book of Revelation is one of the most wonderful, most mysterious and most difficult books of the Bible — so much so that we have almost left it as a sealed volume. Unfortunately it Was placed at the end of the Bible, when, following its chronological order, it should have been given a much earlier place. It was the first book written by John. The Gospel of St. John was written twenty-five years afterwards.
Men who have devoted years to the study of the Hebrew and the Greek languages have discovered, and practically agreed, that the Greek, in which the Book of Revelation was written was the work of a man unfamiliar with Greek idioms, and that the discourse is as mixed and incoherent as would be that of a German on first coming to this country, and trying to build up good English sentences. When you compare the tangled and uncertain phraseology of this book with the Gospel and Epistles of St. John, you quickly see the wide difference in their diction. When Revelation was written John had just come from Ephesus. After a series of years he mastered the Greek language, and his work shows it. It is logical, precise and elegant. Indeed he became so proficient in this ancient tongue that some of his commentators aver that his Gospel, and the three Epistles, could have been written by no other hand.
The Book of Revelation was written between the two great historic fires, the burning of Rome and the burning of Jerusalem, and was written for contemporary purposes, dealing with what were then live questions; while the Gospel, and the three Epistles of St. John, were written in his old age. At the first writing, it was a question of change and alarm, of disaster and bloodshed. When the others were written, none of these things were in marked evidence; in the churches, or in the kingdoms of the world.
There are three conspicuous theories as to the second coming of Christ. The Futurists believe in the future fulfillment of the prophecy made in the Book of Revelation. The next class believe that that book simply anticipates the life of the world, historically, for a given period. The Praeterist school claim that the prophecy has been fulfilled already, and that Christ has come as foretold.
By one sect, which has a wide following, the year 1000 A. D. was believed to be the year of His coming, and numbers went to Judea to meet Him. But He did not come.
The Millerites proclaimed that His advent would be in 1843. Time after time the date has been set only to lead to disappointment. The Thessalonians believed that Christ had come. Paul argued that He had not come. The great apostasy, the falling away in the churches, that Christ predicted, which was to be manifest before His second coming, had not come. The Man of Sin has not yet been revealed, the Anti-Christ has not come.
The Thessalonians did not look for a visible Christ. Nobody has seen Jesus in His second coming. He is coming with clouds as He went away; He will be obscured by them, seen only by spiritual eyes.
All the authors of the New Testament looked for His speedy coming. "Behold I come quickly," He said. "This generation shall not pass away till these things be fulfilled," and many such passages.
Mr. Maclean is thoroughly optimistic in his predilections. He believes the church of Jesus was never as good as it now is. It is a queen compared with the apostolic churches. It has more Bibles, and better men and women, than ever before. The Golden Age of human experience is coming — it has not gone. Tomorrow will be better than today. Twelve centuries ago our Anglo Saxon forefathers drank blood from human skulls — roasted their victims before slow fires because of their alleged religious heresies.
It is a wonderful thing to live today. The thought that the world is growing worse is a nightmare; let us get rid of it. It has been getting better, is getting better, and will be getting better. Open your eyes! Jesus Christ is reigning — has His hand on the nations. We look hopefully forward to the establishment of His kingdom in every continent, in every land and in every island of the sea. In a discourse to be given later, Mr. Maclean promises to give proofs further substantiating his views, and his interpretation of the Book of Revelation.
—The Arizona Republican, Phoenix, AZ, April 8, 1907, p. 8.
The Doctrine of the Trinity
1907
At Grace Episcopal Church yesterday afternoon Rev. Bowers, the rector, preached on "The Doctrine of the Trinity," taking his text from Revelation of St. John 4:6 — "And the four beasts had each of them six wings about him, and they were full of eyes within; and they rest not day and night, saying, Holy, holy, holy, Lord God Almighty, which was, and is, and is to come."
"In the word of God," said Rev. Bowers, "two comings of Christ are recognized; his first coming when he came in deep humility, and his second and last coming, when he will come again to this earth in divine majesty. But also as Christ shall come, the Holy Ghost shall come; as Christ came to testify of God, the Holy Ghost shall come to testify of Christ. But God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Ghost, though different, are the same.
"The mystery of the Trinity is so far above and beyond man's understanding that for him to attempt to comprehend it is preposterous. But as is the case with reference to numerous other things, both physical and spiritual, because with his limited intelligence he is unable to understand its origin, such is no reason for refusing belief in its existence. From the physical world I shall draw a comparison. God is the true, the eternal light of the world, of the universe. Everything is born of God. A single ray of pure white light in the physical world furnishes some idea of what God is in the spiritual world, but of course only in a very limited scale. This ray of white light may be separated into its three component colors, each of which possesses its own peculiar properties. God, though like the ray of white light a unity, is at the same time a Trinity, consisting of the Father, Son and Holy Ghost. Faith demands of us that we worship God in Trinity and Trinity in Unity. There is no doctrine in the Bible more plainly presented than that of the Trinity. Proofs of its truth are to be found in almost every chapter. Take, for example, the first verse of the first chapter of Genesis: 'In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth. The Hebrew word for 'created' in this verse is of the plural number and agrees with Jesus Christ sitting upon his heavenly throne, and that he heard the angelic host crying, 'Holy, holy, holy, Lord God Almighty, which was, and is, and is to come!" This church demands belief in the doctrine of the Trinity as a condition of membership. Those joining are baptized into the church in the name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Ghost. When I dismiss you this afternoon I will dismiss you in the name of the Trinity.
"The Holy Ghost dwells not only in the church, in the town, but in our hearts, our souls; not only in this world, but in the world to come.
"The church and the Bible require us to believe facts; they do not require us to understand the origin of all facts. We do not know the ultimate origin of light, of the world; but we believe in the existence of light and the world. We do not know the origin of the Trinity, but, as Christians, believe in its existence."
—Galveston Daily News, Galveston, TX, June 3, 1907, p. 10.
At Grace Episcopal Church yesterday afternoon Rev. Bowers, the rector, preached on "The Doctrine of the Trinity," taking his text from Revelation of St. John 4:6 — "And the four beasts had each of them six wings about him, and they were full of eyes within; and they rest not day and night, saying, Holy, holy, holy, Lord God Almighty, which was, and is, and is to come."
"In the word of God," said Rev. Bowers, "two comings of Christ are recognized; his first coming when he came in deep humility, and his second and last coming, when he will come again to this earth in divine majesty. But also as Christ shall come, the Holy Ghost shall come; as Christ came to testify of God, the Holy Ghost shall come to testify of Christ. But God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Ghost, though different, are the same.
"The mystery of the Trinity is so far above and beyond man's understanding that for him to attempt to comprehend it is preposterous. But as is the case with reference to numerous other things, both physical and spiritual, because with his limited intelligence he is unable to understand its origin, such is no reason for refusing belief in its existence. From the physical world I shall draw a comparison. God is the true, the eternal light of the world, of the universe. Everything is born of God. A single ray of pure white light in the physical world furnishes some idea of what God is in the spiritual world, but of course only in a very limited scale. This ray of white light may be separated into its three component colors, each of which possesses its own peculiar properties. God, though like the ray of white light a unity, is at the same time a Trinity, consisting of the Father, Son and Holy Ghost. Faith demands of us that we worship God in Trinity and Trinity in Unity. There is no doctrine in the Bible more plainly presented than that of the Trinity. Proofs of its truth are to be found in almost every chapter. Take, for example, the first verse of the first chapter of Genesis: 'In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth. The Hebrew word for 'created' in this verse is of the plural number and agrees with Jesus Christ sitting upon his heavenly throne, and that he heard the angelic host crying, 'Holy, holy, holy, Lord God Almighty, which was, and is, and is to come!" This church demands belief in the doctrine of the Trinity as a condition of membership. Those joining are baptized into the church in the name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Ghost. When I dismiss you this afternoon I will dismiss you in the name of the Trinity.
"The Holy Ghost dwells not only in the church, in the town, but in our hearts, our souls; not only in this world, but in the world to come.
"The church and the Bible require us to believe facts; they do not require us to understand the origin of all facts. We do not know the ultimate origin of light, of the world; but we believe in the existence of light and the world. We do not know the origin of the Trinity, but, as Christians, believe in its existence."
—Galveston Daily News, Galveston, TX, June 3, 1907, p. 10.
Mosaic From The Commentaries (on Revelation 1)
1905
In the Spirit: Transported out of everyday consciousness and placed in the condition of prophetic ecstasy.—Lange. Caught into a state of spiritual rapture. — Camb. Bib. I came to be in a state of ecstasy capable of receiving revelations. — Pulpit Com. Lord's Day: Our Sabbaths should be islands of light and joy in God's presence.— Beecher. Term used here for first time. — Camb. Bib. Heard behind me: Represents utter unexpectedness and surprisingness of the Divine voice. — Lange. Alpha and Omega: A and Z, and, of course, all the letters between. — Holmes. Write into a book: Twelve times St. John reminds us that he writes this book by Divine command. — Pulpit Com. Ephesus, Smyrna, etc.: Seven cities enumerated in the order in which a traveler on a circuit would visit them. — Camb. Bib. Seven candlesticks (lamp-stands): First things seen, for whole Apocalypse treats of the future of the kingdom of God as represented by the churches. — Lange. Son of Man: Saw a human being — Camb. Bib. A garment to foot: A cloak of dignity. — Ibid. His hairs: Since that, according to Oriental ideas, was the special representative of his dignity. — Lange. Out of his mouth: Symbolically pregnant. Expressive of the fact that Christ overcame the world with his Word as with a two-edged sword. — Ibid. This description of the glorified Lord sublime as a purely mental conception, but intolerable if we were to give it an outward form. — Trench. — International Sunday School Lesson (excerpt), June 11, 1905.
In the Spirit: Transported out of everyday consciousness and placed in the condition of prophetic ecstasy.—Lange. Caught into a state of spiritual rapture. — Camb. Bib. I came to be in a state of ecstasy capable of receiving revelations. — Pulpit Com. Lord's Day: Our Sabbaths should be islands of light and joy in God's presence.— Beecher. Term used here for first time. — Camb. Bib. Heard behind me: Represents utter unexpectedness and surprisingness of the Divine voice. — Lange. Alpha and Omega: A and Z, and, of course, all the letters between. — Holmes. Write into a book: Twelve times St. John reminds us that he writes this book by Divine command. — Pulpit Com. Ephesus, Smyrna, etc.: Seven cities enumerated in the order in which a traveler on a circuit would visit them. — Camb. Bib. Seven candlesticks (lamp-stands): First things seen, for whole Apocalypse treats of the future of the kingdom of God as represented by the churches. — Lange. Son of Man: Saw a human being — Camb. Bib. A garment to foot: A cloak of dignity. — Ibid. His hairs: Since that, according to Oriental ideas, was the special representative of his dignity. — Lange. Out of his mouth: Symbolically pregnant. Expressive of the fact that Christ overcame the world with his Word as with a two-edged sword. — Ibid. This description of the glorified Lord sublime as a purely mental conception, but intolerable if we were to give it an outward form. — Trench. — International Sunday School Lesson (excerpt), June 11, 1905.
Thursday, March 13, 2008
The Beauties of Revelation
1930
Berean Christadelphian Church
Mr. William Blacker will address the congregation at 7:30 p.m., speaking upon the subject, "The Beauties of Revelation in Relation to Man's Redemption."
On Wednesday at 8 p.m. the subject of the address will be, "How Long, O Lord, the cry of the saints for nearly six thousand years. Messiah's promised glory soon to be realized," by Mr. Sidney T. Batsford.
We extend to all a hearty invitation to attend the services in this church.
—The Lethbridge Herald, Lethbridge, Alberta, Canada, Aug. 2, 1930, p. 8.
Berean Christadelphian Church
Mr. William Blacker will address the congregation at 7:30 p.m., speaking upon the subject, "The Beauties of Revelation in Relation to Man's Redemption."
On Wednesday at 8 p.m. the subject of the address will be, "How Long, O Lord, the cry of the saints for nearly six thousand years. Messiah's promised glory soon to be realized," by Mr. Sidney T. Batsford.
We extend to all a hearty invitation to attend the services in this church.
—The Lethbridge Herald, Lethbridge, Alberta, Canada, Aug. 2, 1930, p. 8.
Sunday, March 9, 2008
"I Will Give Thee a Crown"
1902
At St. Mark Methodist Episcopal church, south, the pastor, Dr. Alonzo Monk, preached at the afternoon hour from the text, "Be thou faithful unto death and I will give thee a crown of eternal life," Revelations 2:10.
He said in substance:
"One has a narrow view of human nature who would shut up human life in the fleeting moments of but three score years and ten. Man is not born to die, and by dying to end the soul's full existence. We cannot die, man is essentially immortal. Our Savior was gentler with us, gentler than the gentlest mother. He took care to tell us, 'Lay not up for yourselves treasure upon earth, but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, for where the treasure is there will the heart be also.' His plain meaning was we are to go to heaven to get our treasure. Death is but the removal of the tenant from this tenement of clay. The change that has occurred that we call death is not properly so called. This animal life we hold so dear is naught, the ox and the ass have it. This life is but one period of our existence, brief it may be, but in it we have opportunity to be placed in harmony with God, and to be saved from a death that never dies. The life to be is to be beautified by the presence of the King. Men need not necessarily die to be in heaven; some saints live today almost in the outskirts of heaven. Heaven will have surprises for us. We shall see many whom we do not expect and we shall miss some faces we confidently expected to find among the blood washed throng. Some may barely squeeze through the gates beneath the wings of some kindly angel; others may sweep through with an abundant entrance. Heaven is too much etherealized; it is but the home of redeemed humanity. We may not be altogether happy there; there may be regrets lingering in our souls that we did not win more stars for our crown.
"Jesus Christ did not live, suffer and die simply to keep us out of hell. Were this all it would be about equal to say that should your child be lost in a wilderness you would seek him merely to keep some wild beast from destroying him, but you seek to restore the child to his place in your heart and your life that you have so fondly hoped he would take. God seeks to restore man to his own proper position and real sphere where he should dwell. Man's place in heaven is but a step beyond this life and the gradations there will compare with the real differences existing here between men. St. Paul fought for Christ; he finished his course and went to take a crown of glory laid up for him. The crown jewels of heaven outshine all the royal possessions of earth's greatest monarchs. The faithful of earth will alone wear crowns in glory. A crown in heaven gives the wearer a throne in the heavens, and it will carry with it a scepter of authority over those unknown and unnamed worlds peopled by pure spirits, subjects of our God. The inhabitants of those worlds are not heirs to the throne nor are they redeemed by the blood and the kinship of Jesus Christ, our elder brother, Savior and King."
Dr. Monk's flight into the field of speculation as to the future state of man's redeemed spirit were bold and well sustained, however unwarranted by the literal reading of the Bible by a layman.
—The Atlanta Constitution, Atlanta, GA, Jan. 6, 1902, p. 9.
At St. Mark Methodist Episcopal church, south, the pastor, Dr. Alonzo Monk, preached at the afternoon hour from the text, "Be thou faithful unto death and I will give thee a crown of eternal life," Revelations 2:10.
He said in substance:
"One has a narrow view of human nature who would shut up human life in the fleeting moments of but three score years and ten. Man is not born to die, and by dying to end the soul's full existence. We cannot die, man is essentially immortal. Our Savior was gentler with us, gentler than the gentlest mother. He took care to tell us, 'Lay not up for yourselves treasure upon earth, but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, for where the treasure is there will the heart be also.' His plain meaning was we are to go to heaven to get our treasure. Death is but the removal of the tenant from this tenement of clay. The change that has occurred that we call death is not properly so called. This animal life we hold so dear is naught, the ox and the ass have it. This life is but one period of our existence, brief it may be, but in it we have opportunity to be placed in harmony with God, and to be saved from a death that never dies. The life to be is to be beautified by the presence of the King. Men need not necessarily die to be in heaven; some saints live today almost in the outskirts of heaven. Heaven will have surprises for us. We shall see many whom we do not expect and we shall miss some faces we confidently expected to find among the blood washed throng. Some may barely squeeze through the gates beneath the wings of some kindly angel; others may sweep through with an abundant entrance. Heaven is too much etherealized; it is but the home of redeemed humanity. We may not be altogether happy there; there may be regrets lingering in our souls that we did not win more stars for our crown.
"Jesus Christ did not live, suffer and die simply to keep us out of hell. Were this all it would be about equal to say that should your child be lost in a wilderness you would seek him merely to keep some wild beast from destroying him, but you seek to restore the child to his place in your heart and your life that you have so fondly hoped he would take. God seeks to restore man to his own proper position and real sphere where he should dwell. Man's place in heaven is but a step beyond this life and the gradations there will compare with the real differences existing here between men. St. Paul fought for Christ; he finished his course and went to take a crown of glory laid up for him. The crown jewels of heaven outshine all the royal possessions of earth's greatest monarchs. The faithful of earth will alone wear crowns in glory. A crown in heaven gives the wearer a throne in the heavens, and it will carry with it a scepter of authority over those unknown and unnamed worlds peopled by pure spirits, subjects of our God. The inhabitants of those worlds are not heirs to the throne nor are they redeemed by the blood and the kinship of Jesus Christ, our elder brother, Savior and King."
Dr. Monk's flight into the field of speculation as to the future state of man's redeemed spirit were bold and well sustained, however unwarranted by the literal reading of the Bible by a layman.
—The Atlanta Constitution, Atlanta, GA, Jan. 6, 1902, p. 9.
A Series of Bible Meetings
1902
Rev. W. E. Wight, of Kalamazoo, Michigan, will conduct a series of Bible studies at the Berry street M. E. church from Tuesday to Friday inclusive. The evening addresses will be from Revelation 5 to 7 and the subjects will be "The Unsealed Book," "The Church of the Past," "The Sealing Time," "The Gathering Home."
—The Fort Wayne Sentinel, Fort Wayne, IN, Jan. 18, 1902, p. 2.
Rev. W. E. Wight, of Kalamazoo, Michigan, will conduct a series of Bible studies at the Berry street M. E. church from Tuesday to Friday inclusive. The evening addresses will be from Revelation 5 to 7 and the subjects will be "The Unsealed Book," "The Church of the Past," "The Sealing Time," "The Gathering Home."
—The Fort Wayne Sentinel, Fort Wayne, IN, Jan. 18, 1902, p. 2.
Tuesday, March 4, 2008
A New Heaven and A New Earth – Part 6 of 6
1901
Questions on the Lesson
What is the character of "the Revelation," and what is its purpose?
What is said of the scene which passed before John, and what is the relation of this lesson to that of last week?
What did John see, and hear, when the door was opened in heaven?
How was God's grace revealed to the heavenly host, and what song did they then sing?
What followed this vision, and what is said of the leaders of the opposition against God and His people?
What did John then see concerning Satan, and what is said of the millennium which it ushered in?
What happened when the millennium had passed, and what was then done to Satan?
What followed, and what is said of "God's Book" and of "The Lamb's Book"?
What is said of this new condition, and why is it a better condition than that of unfallen Adam?
How is this heavenly city described, and what provisions are made for its inhabitants? — John R. Whitney.
Questions on the Lesson
What is the character of "the Revelation," and what is its purpose?
What is said of the scene which passed before John, and what is the relation of this lesson to that of last week?
What did John see, and hear, when the door was opened in heaven?
How was God's grace revealed to the heavenly host, and what song did they then sing?
What followed this vision, and what is said of the leaders of the opposition against God and His people?
What did John then see concerning Satan, and what is said of the millennium which it ushered in?
What happened when the millennium had passed, and what was then done to Satan?
What followed, and what is said of "God's Book" and of "The Lamb's Book"?
What is said of this new condition, and why is it a better condition than that of unfallen Adam?
How is this heavenly city described, and what provisions are made for its inhabitants? — John R. Whitney.
A New Heaven and A New Earth – Part 5 of 6
1901
The Holy City
This condition of new relationships is presented to the mind under the character of a "city" — "The Holy City, New Jerusalem." The term "city," however, is not probably to be taken literally. It is only a symbol. It brings before us — as probably no other term could — an idea of a populous community, active, social, wealthy, and secure in the highest and best meaning of each characteristic. In the midst of this "great multitude which no man can number" (7:9,) God has His dwelling place. (21:3.) So united to Him and to each other blessings of every kind abound on every side and for all.
Moreover, this "city" is described as being surrounded by "walls," resting on foundations of "precious stones" (21:19,) in which are gates of "pearl," (21:21,) opening upon streets of "pure gold" (21:21.) It "lieth foursquare, and the length is as large as the breadth." It measured "twelve thousand furlongs" in each direction (21:10.) The mind of man fails to realize such a description, in any literal sense. Although we know nothing of the unit of measure employed by the angel in this description, yet measuring the city by our own human standards, every street in it was as long as from the Atlantic Coast to the banks of the Mississippi. Every influence which encircled and protected this blessed community, like walls, was based on that which was esteemed most precious — the great truths set forth by the twelve patriarchs and by the twelve Apostles" (21:12,14) And every step taken by the inhabitants was true and holy, for they walked on streets of "pure gold." Surely it was "a wealthy place" (Psalm 66:12.)
Moreover, this city of magnificent proportions, of infinite wealth, of impregnable security, and with a population which could not be numbered, was entirely independent of everything artificial and human for the guidance and comfort of its people. No temple was needed, or seen, in it to cultivate the spirit of holy worship, "for the Lord God Almighty, and the Lamb, are the Temple of it" (21:22.) The inhabitants walked at all times in such close fellowship with their Maker and Redeemer that every act of every day was an act of worship and of praise. Walking thus they always walked in "The Light," and so "the city had no need of the sun, neither of the moon to shine in it" (21:23.)
And not only were the inhabitants thus provided with light and guidance, but they were provided with water and food in abundance. For "a river of water of life, clear as crystal," proceeded "out of the throne of God and of the Lamb. In the midst of the street of it, and on either side of the river, was the tree of life which bare twelve manner of fruits, and yielded her fruit every month, and the leaves were for the healing of the nations" (22:1,2.)
So, walking in fellowship with God, in companionship with each other, feasting upon the "tree of life," and drinking of the "water of life," no pains racked their bodies, no sorrows cast them down, no sound of crying was heard and no tears fell from their eyes, no deaths separated them, for death and him that had the power of death had been swallowed up in victory, and there was no more sin to engulf them and wreck all of their hopes, for "there was no more sea."
This is the everlasting portion of all those whose names are written in "The Lamb's Book of Life." — John R. Whitney.
The Holy City
This condition of new relationships is presented to the mind under the character of a "city" — "The Holy City, New Jerusalem." The term "city," however, is not probably to be taken literally. It is only a symbol. It brings before us — as probably no other term could — an idea of a populous community, active, social, wealthy, and secure in the highest and best meaning of each characteristic. In the midst of this "great multitude which no man can number" (7:9,) God has His dwelling place. (21:3.) So united to Him and to each other blessings of every kind abound on every side and for all.
Moreover, this "city" is described as being surrounded by "walls," resting on foundations of "precious stones" (21:19,) in which are gates of "pearl," (21:21,) opening upon streets of "pure gold" (21:21.) It "lieth foursquare, and the length is as large as the breadth." It measured "twelve thousand furlongs" in each direction (21:10.) The mind of man fails to realize such a description, in any literal sense. Although we know nothing of the unit of measure employed by the angel in this description, yet measuring the city by our own human standards, every street in it was as long as from the Atlantic Coast to the banks of the Mississippi. Every influence which encircled and protected this blessed community, like walls, was based on that which was esteemed most precious — the great truths set forth by the twelve patriarchs and by the twelve Apostles" (21:12,14) And every step taken by the inhabitants was true and holy, for they walked on streets of "pure gold." Surely it was "a wealthy place" (Psalm 66:12.)
Moreover, this city of magnificent proportions, of infinite wealth, of impregnable security, and with a population which could not be numbered, was entirely independent of everything artificial and human for the guidance and comfort of its people. No temple was needed, or seen, in it to cultivate the spirit of holy worship, "for the Lord God Almighty, and the Lamb, are the Temple of it" (21:22.) The inhabitants walked at all times in such close fellowship with their Maker and Redeemer that every act of every day was an act of worship and of praise. Walking thus they always walked in "The Light," and so "the city had no need of the sun, neither of the moon to shine in it" (21:23.)
And not only were the inhabitants thus provided with light and guidance, but they were provided with water and food in abundance. For "a river of water of life, clear as crystal," proceeded "out of the throne of God and of the Lamb. In the midst of the street of it, and on either side of the river, was the tree of life which bare twelve manner of fruits, and yielded her fruit every month, and the leaves were for the healing of the nations" (22:1,2.)
So, walking in fellowship with God, in companionship with each other, feasting upon the "tree of life," and drinking of the "water of life," no pains racked their bodies, no sorrows cast them down, no sound of crying was heard and no tears fell from their eyes, no deaths separated them, for death and him that had the power of death had been swallowed up in victory, and there was no more sin to engulf them and wreck all of their hopes, for "there was no more sea."
This is the everlasting portion of all those whose names are written in "The Lamb's Book of Life." — John R. Whitney.
A New Heaven and A New Earth – Part 4 of 6
1901
Satan's Power Destroyed
This, however, did not last long, for in the next scene John saw that "the devil that deceived them was cast into the lake of fire and brimstone, where the beast and the false prophet are, and shall be tormented day and night, forever and ever" (20:10.) Thus his power was destroyed.
Then John saw in his vision that the judgment was set, and all "the dead, small and great," stood before the throne of God. Two books were opened; "and the dead were judged out of those things which were written in the books according to their works, (20:12.) One was God's Book. The other was "The Lamb's Book." The one was The Book of Creation, the other was The Book of Redemption. In the one, the name of every one that was born was entered; in the other, only the names of those who had been "born again." When the names were written in God's Book, then each one entered into life with all of its opportunities, experiences, and promises. But it was only those who had used these opportunities, experiences, and promises aright whose names were found in "The Lamb's Book of Life." These entered' into the "new heaven" to go no more out forever. All others had their portion with "the devil that deceived them"; "where the beast and the false prophet are" (20:10.)
As this grand panorama now ceased to move forward John's attention was concentrated upon the "new heaven" and the "new earth," into which those whose names were written in "The Lamb's Book of Life" had entered. It must have been an entrancing view. It was not the old heaven and the old earth renewed and improved, "for the first heaven and the first earth were passed away; and there was no more sea" (21:1.) Nothing like this new condition had ever before been seen. Not only did those who had entered into these "new heavens and a new earth, wherein dwelleth righteousness" (2 Peter 3:13) stand in a new relation to God and to each other, but they stood in a new relation to sin. It was a far better condition, therefore, than any in which unfallen Adam had ever stood, for they not only walked in fellowship with their Maker, but now there was no Tempter anywhere to ever assail them. — John R. Whitney.
Satan's Power Destroyed
This, however, did not last long, for in the next scene John saw that "the devil that deceived them was cast into the lake of fire and brimstone, where the beast and the false prophet are, and shall be tormented day and night, forever and ever" (20:10.) Thus his power was destroyed.
Then John saw in his vision that the judgment was set, and all "the dead, small and great," stood before the throne of God. Two books were opened; "and the dead were judged out of those things which were written in the books according to their works, (20:12.) One was God's Book. The other was "The Lamb's Book." The one was The Book of Creation, the other was The Book of Redemption. In the one, the name of every one that was born was entered; in the other, only the names of those who had been "born again." When the names were written in God's Book, then each one entered into life with all of its opportunities, experiences, and promises. But it was only those who had used these opportunities, experiences, and promises aright whose names were found in "The Lamb's Book of Life." These entered' into the "new heaven" to go no more out forever. All others had their portion with "the devil that deceived them"; "where the beast and the false prophet are" (20:10.)
As this grand panorama now ceased to move forward John's attention was concentrated upon the "new heaven" and the "new earth," into which those whose names were written in "The Lamb's Book of Life" had entered. It must have been an entrancing view. It was not the old heaven and the old earth renewed and improved, "for the first heaven and the first earth were passed away; and there was no more sea" (21:1.) Nothing like this new condition had ever before been seen. Not only did those who had entered into these "new heavens and a new earth, wherein dwelleth righteousness" (2 Peter 3:13) stand in a new relation to God and to each other, but they stood in a new relation to sin. It was a far better condition, therefore, than any in which unfallen Adam had ever stood, for they not only walked in fellowship with their Maker, but now there was no Tempter anywhere to ever assail them. — John R. Whitney.
A New Heaven and A New Earth – Part 3 of 6
1901
The Rebellion of Man
Then, as the panorama continued to unfold itself, "seals" were broken, "trumpets" were sounded, and there were poured out "vials of the wrath of God upon the earth." Under these expressive symbols it was seen that while in heaven angels and archangels, cherubim and seraphim, united in adoring the grace of God, on earth it met with most bitter and determined opposition. The very ones for whom its graciousness was designed were at war with each other, and with Him who sat upon the throne, and with all who belonged to Him or desired to serve Him. They were defeated in their expectations time and again, and were brought under great trials, but neither defeat nor suffering quelled rebellion.
The leaders in this opposition were designated by the expressive names of "The Beast" and "The False Prophet" (16:13.) Their one purpose was to overthrow the authority of God and to destroy all who served Him. At last, however, they were themselves overthrown, and "both were cast alive into a lake of fire burning with brimstone" (19:20.)
But even this did not give peace, for "The Beast" and "The False Prophet" were simply the tools of Satan, the arch enemy of man, and as long as he was free there could be nothing like rest for the children of God. But as the panorama again moved forward, John saw "an angel come down from heaven, having the key of the bottomless pit and a great chain in his hand. And he laid hold on the dragon — that old serpent, which is the devil and Satan — and bound him a thousand years, and cast him into the bottomless pit, and shut him up, and set a seal upon him that he should deceive the nations no more till the thousand years should be fulfilled, (20:1-3.)
Then in the glorious scene which passed before John's view, all war, and tumult, and strife fled away. A millennium of righteousness and joy was ushered in, and he "saw the souls of them that were beheaded for the witness of Jesus and for the word of God; and they lived and reigned with Christ a thousand years. But the rest of the dead lived not again until the thousand years were finished" (20:4-5.) Only the most holy, those who had been faithful witnesses for Jesus and His word even unto death, were partakers of the joy of this millennium. It was for them a grand training in righteousness.
Whether the length of this millennium is intended to be literally a thousand years, as we measure time, or whether the term is simply the expression for an indefinitely long period, or whether it is a prophetic measure, wherein every day is a year, and the whole the immense term of three hundred and sixty-five thousand years, is not clear, and it is not important. On either supposition it is long enough to test whether man, if kept by God's grace and daily schooled in ways of righteousness for a sufficient length of time, can acquire in himself strength to "stand against the wiles of the devil," and maintain his integrity before God. For the time is evidently a time of spiritual satisfaction and privilege rather than one of physical enjoyment. The time when Adam walked with God and was without sin may have been a similar millennium of gracious experiences. But at the end he fell. Now, however, the test is made with redeemed man, and the holiest among the redeemed are tested.
So again the panorama moves on, and even the millennium passed beyond John's view, and a new scene came before him. Again he saw "Satan loosed out of his prison," and going out again "to deceive the nations which are in the four quarters of the earth" (20:7-8.) At once war and tumult everywhere prevailed. Man had no strength to resist sin, and even the "saints" were deceived again, "and fire came down from God out of heaven and devoured them" (20:9.) — John R. Whitney.
The Rebellion of Man
Then, as the panorama continued to unfold itself, "seals" were broken, "trumpets" were sounded, and there were poured out "vials of the wrath of God upon the earth." Under these expressive symbols it was seen that while in heaven angels and archangels, cherubim and seraphim, united in adoring the grace of God, on earth it met with most bitter and determined opposition. The very ones for whom its graciousness was designed were at war with each other, and with Him who sat upon the throne, and with all who belonged to Him or desired to serve Him. They were defeated in their expectations time and again, and were brought under great trials, but neither defeat nor suffering quelled rebellion.
The leaders in this opposition were designated by the expressive names of "The Beast" and "The False Prophet" (16:13.) Their one purpose was to overthrow the authority of God and to destroy all who served Him. At last, however, they were themselves overthrown, and "both were cast alive into a lake of fire burning with brimstone" (19:20.)
But even this did not give peace, for "The Beast" and "The False Prophet" were simply the tools of Satan, the arch enemy of man, and as long as he was free there could be nothing like rest for the children of God. But as the panorama again moved forward, John saw "an angel come down from heaven, having the key of the bottomless pit and a great chain in his hand. And he laid hold on the dragon — that old serpent, which is the devil and Satan — and bound him a thousand years, and cast him into the bottomless pit, and shut him up, and set a seal upon him that he should deceive the nations no more till the thousand years should be fulfilled, (20:1-3.)
Then in the glorious scene which passed before John's view, all war, and tumult, and strife fled away. A millennium of righteousness and joy was ushered in, and he "saw the souls of them that were beheaded for the witness of Jesus and for the word of God; and they lived and reigned with Christ a thousand years. But the rest of the dead lived not again until the thousand years were finished" (20:4-5.) Only the most holy, those who had been faithful witnesses for Jesus and His word even unto death, were partakers of the joy of this millennium. It was for them a grand training in righteousness.
Whether the length of this millennium is intended to be literally a thousand years, as we measure time, or whether the term is simply the expression for an indefinitely long period, or whether it is a prophetic measure, wherein every day is a year, and the whole the immense term of three hundred and sixty-five thousand years, is not clear, and it is not important. On either supposition it is long enough to test whether man, if kept by God's grace and daily schooled in ways of righteousness for a sufficient length of time, can acquire in himself strength to "stand against the wiles of the devil," and maintain his integrity before God. For the time is evidently a time of spiritual satisfaction and privilege rather than one of physical enjoyment. The time when Adam walked with God and was without sin may have been a similar millennium of gracious experiences. But at the end he fell. Now, however, the test is made with redeemed man, and the holiest among the redeemed are tested.
So again the panorama moves on, and even the millennium passed beyond John's view, and a new scene came before him. Again he saw "Satan loosed out of his prison," and going out again "to deceive the nations which are in the four quarters of the earth" (20:7-8.) At once war and tumult everywhere prevailed. Man had no strength to resist sin, and even the "saints" were deceived again, "and fire came down from God out of heaven and devoured them" (20:9.) — John R. Whitney.
A New Heaven and A New Earth – Part 2 of 6
1901
The Vision of St. John
The scene, therefore, which passed before John's rapt vision was a panoramic view of the whole history of God's dealings with man from the creation, to the full consummation of His plans in "a new Heaven and a new earth." Last week we looked upon the first scene of this panorama. This week we look upon the last. Then, with John, we saw Jesus of Nazareth in His ascended glory moving among His people and directing all things for them. Now we see Him in the "new Heaven" receiving His people to Himself with the assurance that "they shall reign for ever and ever" with Him (22:6.) John, however, saw many things pass before him that had taken place, and that were yet to take place, in order to bring about this blessed consummation. and it will help us to understand and appreciate the final result, if we glance for a moment at these intermediate scenes as the panorama moves rapidly forward.
The vision of Jesus as "The Son of Man," in the midst of the golden candlesticks, which we considered last week, was simply preparatory; a summoning of the aged apostle to attend to what was about to be made known to him, and directing him concerning its use. Being thus summoned and instructed, he says: "After this, I looked, and, behold, a door was opened in Heaven" (4:1.) As he looked through this open door he saw the throne of God, surrounded by the heavenly host, and he heard them with one voice singing: "Thou art worthy, O Lord, to receive glory and honor, and power; for Thou hast created all things, and for Thy pleasure they are and were created" (4:11.) It was — The Song of Creation — the song which "the morning stars sang together," when God "laid the foundations of the earth" (Job 38:4-7.) For then they could only adore His wisdom, and power, as seen in His creative work.
But then, as the panorama moved on, John saw another attribute of God revealed to the heavenly host. For the mystery of creation was locked up in a "book," which He "that sat upon the throne" held in His right hand, and which was "sealed with seven seals." "No man in heaven, nor earth, neither under the earth, was able to open the book, neither to look thereon" (5:1-4.) But "the lion of the tribe of Juda, the root of David," came forward and "took the book out of the right hand of Him that sat upon the throne (5:7,) saying: "Lo, I come; I delight to do Thy will, O my God; yea, Thy law is within My heart." (Psalms 40:7,8.) By Him the mystery of creation was solved, for now before the heavenly host there "stood a lamb, as it had been slain" (5:6), and it was seen that "the lion of the tribe of Juda" was none other than "the lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world." Then "a new song" was heard in heaven (5:9.) It was "The Song of Redemption," for now the heavenly host could adore not only the wisdom and power, but the grace of God as well. — John R. Whitney.
The Vision of St. John
The scene, therefore, which passed before John's rapt vision was a panoramic view of the whole history of God's dealings with man from the creation, to the full consummation of His plans in "a new Heaven and a new earth." Last week we looked upon the first scene of this panorama. This week we look upon the last. Then, with John, we saw Jesus of Nazareth in His ascended glory moving among His people and directing all things for them. Now we see Him in the "new Heaven" receiving His people to Himself with the assurance that "they shall reign for ever and ever" with Him (22:6.) John, however, saw many things pass before him that had taken place, and that were yet to take place, in order to bring about this blessed consummation. and it will help us to understand and appreciate the final result, if we glance for a moment at these intermediate scenes as the panorama moves rapidly forward.
The vision of Jesus as "The Son of Man," in the midst of the golden candlesticks, which we considered last week, was simply preparatory; a summoning of the aged apostle to attend to what was about to be made known to him, and directing him concerning its use. Being thus summoned and instructed, he says: "After this, I looked, and, behold, a door was opened in Heaven" (4:1.) As he looked through this open door he saw the throne of God, surrounded by the heavenly host, and he heard them with one voice singing: "Thou art worthy, O Lord, to receive glory and honor, and power; for Thou hast created all things, and for Thy pleasure they are and were created" (4:11.) It was — The Song of Creation — the song which "the morning stars sang together," when God "laid the foundations of the earth" (Job 38:4-7.) For then they could only adore His wisdom, and power, as seen in His creative work.
But then, as the panorama moved on, John saw another attribute of God revealed to the heavenly host. For the mystery of creation was locked up in a "book," which He "that sat upon the throne" held in His right hand, and which was "sealed with seven seals." "No man in heaven, nor earth, neither under the earth, was able to open the book, neither to look thereon" (5:1-4.) But "the lion of the tribe of Juda, the root of David," came forward and "took the book out of the right hand of Him that sat upon the throne (5:7,) saying: "Lo, I come; I delight to do Thy will, O my God; yea, Thy law is within My heart." (Psalms 40:7,8.) By Him the mystery of creation was solved, for now before the heavenly host there "stood a lamb, as it had been slain" (5:6), and it was seen that "the lion of the tribe of Juda" was none other than "the lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world." Then "a new song" was heard in heaven (5:9.) It was "The Song of Redemption," for now the heavenly host could adore not only the wisdom and power, but the grace of God as well. — John R. Whitney.
A New Heaven and A New Earth – Part 1 of 6
1901
Notes of the International Series Selection for June 23, 1901, Sunday School, by John R. Whitney.
SUBJECT — A New Heaven and a New Earth. — Revelation 21:1-7,22-27.
GOLDEN TEXT — He that overcometh shall inherit all things; and I will be his God, and he shall be My son. — Revelation 21:7.
The book which we term "The Revelation" opens with the declaration that it is "The Revelation of Jesus Christ." But it evidently is not so much a revelation given to John by Jesus Christ — somewhat similar in character to those we have recently considered, but infinitely higher in degrees it is a revelation given to him "of Jesus Christ" — an unfolding before his eyes of all that "God gave unto Him" — the revelation of His complete work.
The purpose of the revelation was "to show unto His servants things" — or events — "which must shortly come to pass." This, however, does not signify that the "things" revealed were such things, or events, as would "come to pass" immediately, or soon after being revealed — as we are apt to consider it — but rather that they were such things as do surely come to pass without any halting or unnecessary delay — "come with speed" (Young.) They thus include past things as well as future things. In other words, this revelation declares that God's purposes in Christ concerning His people are everlastingly moving on with irresistible power and velocity, for although one day is with the Lord as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day," yet "the Lord is not slack concerning His promise as some men count slackness" (2 Peter 3:8,9.) For, as Eldridge S. Brooks very justly says, "Years count for but very little in the evolution of a Divine plan; the tyranny of figures is a matter of human limitations." — John R. Whitney.
Notes of the International Series Selection for June 23, 1901, Sunday School, by John R. Whitney.
SUBJECT — A New Heaven and a New Earth. — Revelation 21:1-7,22-27.
GOLDEN TEXT — He that overcometh shall inherit all things; and I will be his God, and he shall be My son. — Revelation 21:7.
The book which we term "The Revelation" opens with the declaration that it is "The Revelation of Jesus Christ." But it evidently is not so much a revelation given to John by Jesus Christ — somewhat similar in character to those we have recently considered, but infinitely higher in degrees it is a revelation given to him "of Jesus Christ" — an unfolding before his eyes of all that "God gave unto Him" — the revelation of His complete work.
The purpose of the revelation was "to show unto His servants things" — or events — "which must shortly come to pass." This, however, does not signify that the "things" revealed were such things, or events, as would "come to pass" immediately, or soon after being revealed — as we are apt to consider it — but rather that they were such things as do surely come to pass without any halting or unnecessary delay — "come with speed" (Young.) They thus include past things as well as future things. In other words, this revelation declares that God's purposes in Christ concerning His people are everlastingly moving on with irresistible power and velocity, for although one day is with the Lord as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day," yet "the Lord is not slack concerning His promise as some men count slackness" (2 Peter 3:8,9.) For, as Eldridge S. Brooks very justly says, "Years count for but very little in the evolution of a Divine plan; the tyranny of figures is a matter of human limitations." — John R. Whitney.
Dr. Tucker Continues Teachings on Book of Revelation at Church
New York, 1925
Last evening, Dr. Tucker continued his teachings on the book of Revelation at the First Evangelical church, taking for his lesson the eight chapter.
"The first angel blew his trumpet," said Dr. Tucker, "and with the blowing of the first trumpet, judgment is brought upon things agricultural. Judgment falls upon the fields, horticultural and agricultural, and reduces the yield about one-third. See how very near famine you are. My God knows how to send a famine when He is ready.
"The next angel now sounds the trumpet, and this time judgment falls upon the aquatic, and the sea is touched by this judgment. A great meteor falls into the sea and turns its waters into blood. One-third of the fish die. With one-third of the fish dead and the sea itself a stinking mass, the ships are imperiled. One-third of the ships went down the bottom of the sea.
"The third angel sounds. Judgment falls upon things astronomic. The sun is reduced one-third its heat; the moon is reduced one-third. I tell you this old earth is greatly controlled by those heavenly bodies, and when God reduces them one-third look at the condition that exists.
"Another angel sounds. There is heard screams of an eagle. He cries, 'Woe, Woe, Woe!' three times. How could an eagle's scream be heard over the whole earth? If you had asked me ten or twelve years ago, I could not have answered you. I can now. The whole world is joined together by ether air waves. if man's voice can be carried by means of ether air waves, then an eagle's voice can.
"The fifth angel sounds. There was a great cloud of smoke, and out of the smoke came locusts upon the earth. They had tails like unto scorpions and there were stings in their tails, and their power was to hurt men five months, when nobody can die. I am telling the truth, for this book says, 'In those days shall men seek death, and shall not find it.
"Someone says, 'I want a God of love.' You have had Him. Look to Calvary. 'God so loved the world.' This world is dying because it has rejected love. A greater love hath no man than to give his life.
Sunday will be the last day Dr. Tucker and his party will be in Olean, and it is expected that the church will be crowded at all services.
Sunday morning at 10:30 o'clock Dr. Tucker will hold children's service. Sunday afternoon at 2:30 o'clock, Dr. Tucker will continue his lecture of last Sunday afternoon on the "World Map." Sunday evening the service will start at 7 o'clock instead of 7:30, as usual. The subject will be "The Greatest Question Ever Asked and Answered in This World."
—Olean Times, Olean, NY, April 4, 1925, p. 9.
Last evening, Dr. Tucker continued his teachings on the book of Revelation at the First Evangelical church, taking for his lesson the eight chapter.
"The first angel blew his trumpet," said Dr. Tucker, "and with the blowing of the first trumpet, judgment is brought upon things agricultural. Judgment falls upon the fields, horticultural and agricultural, and reduces the yield about one-third. See how very near famine you are. My God knows how to send a famine when He is ready.
"The next angel now sounds the trumpet, and this time judgment falls upon the aquatic, and the sea is touched by this judgment. A great meteor falls into the sea and turns its waters into blood. One-third of the fish die. With one-third of the fish dead and the sea itself a stinking mass, the ships are imperiled. One-third of the ships went down the bottom of the sea.
"The third angel sounds. Judgment falls upon things astronomic. The sun is reduced one-third its heat; the moon is reduced one-third. I tell you this old earth is greatly controlled by those heavenly bodies, and when God reduces them one-third look at the condition that exists.
"Another angel sounds. There is heard screams of an eagle. He cries, 'Woe, Woe, Woe!' three times. How could an eagle's scream be heard over the whole earth? If you had asked me ten or twelve years ago, I could not have answered you. I can now. The whole world is joined together by ether air waves. if man's voice can be carried by means of ether air waves, then an eagle's voice can.
"The fifth angel sounds. There was a great cloud of smoke, and out of the smoke came locusts upon the earth. They had tails like unto scorpions and there were stings in their tails, and their power was to hurt men five months, when nobody can die. I am telling the truth, for this book says, 'In those days shall men seek death, and shall not find it.
"Someone says, 'I want a God of love.' You have had Him. Look to Calvary. 'God so loved the world.' This world is dying because it has rejected love. A greater love hath no man than to give his life.
Sunday will be the last day Dr. Tucker and his party will be in Olean, and it is expected that the church will be crowded at all services.
Sunday morning at 10:30 o'clock Dr. Tucker will hold children's service. Sunday afternoon at 2:30 o'clock, Dr. Tucker will continue his lecture of last Sunday afternoon on the "World Map." Sunday evening the service will start at 7 o'clock instead of 7:30, as usual. The subject will be "The Greatest Question Ever Asked and Answered in This World."
—Olean Times, Olean, NY, April 4, 1925, p. 9.
Sabbath Day, Sermon Topic
Utah, 1932
Willmonte D. Frazee delivered his third address, on "The Temple of God," last night at the America Legion chateau before a large, attentive audience. The fact that God is the creator of all things through His Son, was presented as a reason why the angel of Revelation 14:6,7 should be heeded. It says, "Fear God and give glory to Him, for the hour of His judgment is come, and worship Him that made heaven and earth . . ."
The memorial of creation was studied quite thoroughly and its relation to "God's eternal law," as Frazee calls it. The statement in the heart of the law declared the seventh day Sabbath to be the memorial of creation. The commandment says, "Remember the Sabbath day to keep it holy; six days shalt thou labor and do all thy work, but the seventh day is the Sabbath of the Lord thy God; in it thou shalt not do any work . . . For in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is, and rested the seventh day; wherefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day and hallowed it."
Mr. Frazee reminded his audience that since time eternal the seventh day had been God's holy day, and that Saturday is the seventh day according to any calendar, dictionary, or encyclopedia. He referred again to the ark in the temple in heaven that contains the law of God as the standard of judgment.
The institution of the Sabbath in Eden was read from the record in Genesis 2:1-3, and in Mark 2:27-28 was found as follows: "The Sabbath was made for man, and not man for the Sabbath; wherefore the Son of Man is Lord even of the Sabbath day."
The speaker invited his listeners to join him today to getting the blessing out of the day that God has put in it for man. He announced the services to be held in the chateau this morning, Sabbath school at nine-thirty and preaching service at eleven.
For tomorrow night was announced, "The United States in Prophecy." In the preliminary, the nurses will again demonstrate another simple home treatment, and Mr. Frazee will give a short talk on the prohibition issue, "Wet or Dry."
—The Ogden Standard-Examiner, Ogden City, UT, June 11, 1932, p. 2.
Willmonte D. Frazee delivered his third address, on "The Temple of God," last night at the America Legion chateau before a large, attentive audience. The fact that God is the creator of all things through His Son, was presented as a reason why the angel of Revelation 14:6,7 should be heeded. It says, "Fear God and give glory to Him, for the hour of His judgment is come, and worship Him that made heaven and earth . . ."
The memorial of creation was studied quite thoroughly and its relation to "God's eternal law," as Frazee calls it. The statement in the heart of the law declared the seventh day Sabbath to be the memorial of creation. The commandment says, "Remember the Sabbath day to keep it holy; six days shalt thou labor and do all thy work, but the seventh day is the Sabbath of the Lord thy God; in it thou shalt not do any work . . . For in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is, and rested the seventh day; wherefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day and hallowed it."
Mr. Frazee reminded his audience that since time eternal the seventh day had been God's holy day, and that Saturday is the seventh day according to any calendar, dictionary, or encyclopedia. He referred again to the ark in the temple in heaven that contains the law of God as the standard of judgment.
The institution of the Sabbath in Eden was read from the record in Genesis 2:1-3, and in Mark 2:27-28 was found as follows: "The Sabbath was made for man, and not man for the Sabbath; wherefore the Son of Man is Lord even of the Sabbath day."
The speaker invited his listeners to join him today to getting the blessing out of the day that God has put in it for man. He announced the services to be held in the chateau this morning, Sabbath school at nine-thirty and preaching service at eleven.
For tomorrow night was announced, "The United States in Prophecy." In the preliminary, the nurses will again demonstrate another simple home treatment, and Mr. Frazee will give a short talk on the prohibition issue, "Wet or Dry."
—The Ogden Standard-Examiner, Ogden City, UT, June 11, 1932, p. 2.
World War I
1915
While it may not be possible to say which one of the seven vials of wrath the angel of Revelation is emptying on the earth, it seems to be pretty certain that this war is one of them.
—Charleston Daily Mail, Charleston, WV, Nov. 17, 1915, p. 4.
While it may not be possible to say which one of the seven vials of wrath the angel of Revelation is emptying on the earth, it seems to be pretty certain that this war is one of them.
—Charleston Daily Mail, Charleston, WV, Nov. 17, 1915, p. 4.
Views of Evangelist on the Book of Revelation — What He Said
1903
Wight on Bible
Third Series of Union Studies Began Tuesday at the Baptist Church
The third series of union Bible studies under the direction of Mr. Wight begun yesterday afternoon. By way of a short review the lecturer called attention to Christ who is represented in the tenth chapter of Revelation as a mighty angel standing with one foot on the land and one foot on the sea. It is quite characteristic of human nature to want to stand in with those who have great influence. Surely then it is the part of wisdom to be on the most intimate terms with Christ, for full power is given unto him in heaven and in earth. Christ's attitude in this picture is that of ownership. This will indeed be his attitude when he comes again. Some Christians are saying these days that they don't want Christ to return while others are saying that they don't believe he will ever come back anyway. But he will come just as he said he would when his time comes. If we want to have an influential person as a friend of ours we better trust in Christ. "It is better to trust in the Lord than to put confidence in princes" — even merchant princes.
In the evening Mr. Wight took up the twelfth chapter of this book. The chapter opens with the wonder of the woman which appeared in heaven clothed with the sun. This was shown to be all Christendom united as it will be at the time of the second coming of Christ. The man child of which the woman was delivered was shown to be typical of those who are prepared to go into heaven when the Lord comes for his own. It is easy to identify the man child from the fifth verse, which says that he shall rule all the nations with a rod of iron. From other parts of the Bible we are taught that those who are the overcomers during the time when these things occur, will sit with Christ in his throne and shall rule with him. Moreover we are taught in the book of Ephesians of the oneness of the believer with Christ.
In being delivered of the man child the woman was in pain. The reason is evident. The woman represents Christendom, not as we see it to-day but as it will be after the union of churches, evidences of which are seen on every hand even to-day. We see it in the commercial world where the watchcry is Combination. We are seeing the formation of great trusts. We are seeing it in the international affairs. Great nations are combining against other great nations. We see this thing also going on in the religious world and already there is a good beginning toward the federation of the churches. As these great corporations are being formed even, there is great distress in the industrial world as seen in the endeavor of the working men to resist the cruelties of corporations and vice versa.
This same thing is beginning to be seen in the churches which are made up of spiritual and worldly people. The worldly are distressed because of the presence of the spiritual in their midst. The godly element in the churches are pained, because of the presence of worldliness. There is no agreement between these two elements, therefore there is being felt distress. In our day too, we are seeing the godly pastors being distressed because of the worldly people in the church, and many of them having to go elsewhere because they are faithful to God. On the other hand we are seeing pastors who are catering to the worldly in the churches, and this worldly thing on the part of ministers is distressing to the spiritual people. The church cannot remain half godly and half worldly and Christ has made provision for taking the godly element out of the professed church and out of the world at his second coming, which taking away is typified by the birth and flight of the man child.
These lectures are free to all in the lecture room of the First Baptist church at 3 o'clock every afternoon and at 7:30 in the evening.
—Dubuque Telegraph-Herald, Dubuque, IA, Jan. 7, 1903, p. 8.
Wight on Bible
Third Series of Union Studies Began Tuesday at the Baptist Church
The third series of union Bible studies under the direction of Mr. Wight begun yesterday afternoon. By way of a short review the lecturer called attention to Christ who is represented in the tenth chapter of Revelation as a mighty angel standing with one foot on the land and one foot on the sea. It is quite characteristic of human nature to want to stand in with those who have great influence. Surely then it is the part of wisdom to be on the most intimate terms with Christ, for full power is given unto him in heaven and in earth. Christ's attitude in this picture is that of ownership. This will indeed be his attitude when he comes again. Some Christians are saying these days that they don't want Christ to return while others are saying that they don't believe he will ever come back anyway. But he will come just as he said he would when his time comes. If we want to have an influential person as a friend of ours we better trust in Christ. "It is better to trust in the Lord than to put confidence in princes" — even merchant princes.
In the evening Mr. Wight took up the twelfth chapter of this book. The chapter opens with the wonder of the woman which appeared in heaven clothed with the sun. This was shown to be all Christendom united as it will be at the time of the second coming of Christ. The man child of which the woman was delivered was shown to be typical of those who are prepared to go into heaven when the Lord comes for his own. It is easy to identify the man child from the fifth verse, which says that he shall rule all the nations with a rod of iron. From other parts of the Bible we are taught that those who are the overcomers during the time when these things occur, will sit with Christ in his throne and shall rule with him. Moreover we are taught in the book of Ephesians of the oneness of the believer with Christ.
In being delivered of the man child the woman was in pain. The reason is evident. The woman represents Christendom, not as we see it to-day but as it will be after the union of churches, evidences of which are seen on every hand even to-day. We see it in the commercial world where the watchcry is Combination. We are seeing the formation of great trusts. We are seeing it in the international affairs. Great nations are combining against other great nations. We see this thing also going on in the religious world and already there is a good beginning toward the federation of the churches. As these great corporations are being formed even, there is great distress in the industrial world as seen in the endeavor of the working men to resist the cruelties of corporations and vice versa.
This same thing is beginning to be seen in the churches which are made up of spiritual and worldly people. The worldly are distressed because of the presence of the spiritual in their midst. The godly element in the churches are pained, because of the presence of worldliness. There is no agreement between these two elements, therefore there is being felt distress. In our day too, we are seeing the godly pastors being distressed because of the worldly people in the church, and many of them having to go elsewhere because they are faithful to God. On the other hand we are seeing pastors who are catering to the worldly in the churches, and this worldly thing on the part of ministers is distressing to the spiritual people. The church cannot remain half godly and half worldly and Christ has made provision for taking the godly element out of the professed church and out of the world at his second coming, which taking away is typified by the birth and flight of the man child.
These lectures are free to all in the lecture room of the First Baptist church at 3 o'clock every afternoon and at 7:30 in the evening.
—Dubuque Telegraph-Herald, Dubuque, IA, Jan. 7, 1903, p. 8.
Entering That City
1902
"And had a wall great and high, and had twelve gates, and at the gates twelve angels, and names written thereon, which are the names of the twelve tribes of children of Israel." Revelation 21:12.
It comes to me like an inspiration that one day I shall enter that city. Can you say it? Your children are going in, your parents are going in, your husband is going it, your wife is going in; are you going in? It is a great joy to know that the things that bring us the representations of heaven are so substantial. Some people tell us that heaven is a state, not a place. What then did Christ mean when He said, "I go to prepare a place for you," and what again when He said, "In My Father's house there are many mansions?" What is the doctrine of the resurrection? Is that only the spirits of men are raised? This is not our teaching. There must be some place for the resurrected body. When Christ went out with His apostles to Bethany and a cloud received Him out of their sight, He arose bodily from their presence. It is certain, absolutely certain, that heaven is a place.
What Is Heaven?
It is a place of overpowering brightness. Everything that ever came from thence tells us so. Chariots so bright that the only thing to which they could be likened was fire. Angels with faces shining so that men must veil their eyes before them. Moses and Elias so surrounded with glory that the three disciples were overcome with the vision on the mount of transfiguration. The walls are like a great jewel, the streets of pure gold and every single gate a pearl. You know the brightness of one little gem as it sparkles on your finger, but O! the wonderful thought that every gate is a pearl, and the day will come when we may go sweeping through the gates if we will. God has done everything that He could do, and our entering in now rests upon ourselves. But the brightness of heaven, aside from the presence of Christ, is not due to the gates, nor to the walls, nor to the streets, but to the presence of those who have been redeemed. — Rev. Dr. J. W. Chapman.
"And had a wall great and high, and had twelve gates, and at the gates twelve angels, and names written thereon, which are the names of the twelve tribes of children of Israel." Revelation 21:12.
It comes to me like an inspiration that one day I shall enter that city. Can you say it? Your children are going in, your parents are going in, your husband is going it, your wife is going in; are you going in? It is a great joy to know that the things that bring us the representations of heaven are so substantial. Some people tell us that heaven is a state, not a place. What then did Christ mean when He said, "I go to prepare a place for you," and what again when He said, "In My Father's house there are many mansions?" What is the doctrine of the resurrection? Is that only the spirits of men are raised? This is not our teaching. There must be some place for the resurrected body. When Christ went out with His apostles to Bethany and a cloud received Him out of their sight, He arose bodily from their presence. It is certain, absolutely certain, that heaven is a place.
What Is Heaven?
It is a place of overpowering brightness. Everything that ever came from thence tells us so. Chariots so bright that the only thing to which they could be likened was fire. Angels with faces shining so that men must veil their eyes before them. Moses and Elias so surrounded with glory that the three disciples were overcome with the vision on the mount of transfiguration. The walls are like a great jewel, the streets of pure gold and every single gate a pearl. You know the brightness of one little gem as it sparkles on your finger, but O! the wonderful thought that every gate is a pearl, and the day will come when we may go sweeping through the gates if we will. God has done everything that He could do, and our entering in now rests upon ourselves. But the brightness of heaven, aside from the presence of Christ, is not due to the gates, nor to the walls, nor to the streets, but to the presence of those who have been redeemed. — Rev. Dr. J. W. Chapman.
Saturday, March 1, 2008
A Long-Ago Business Woman
1935
One curious fact always pops into my mind in connection with Lydia, Paul's first European convert, and a business woman. That is the persistence of women's commercial activity in her native city of Thyatira. It will be recalled that Thyatira was one of the "Seven Churches of Asia," addressed by John in the Book of the Revelation. It is an inland Turkish town; and when I visited it, I was struck by the extraordinary proportion of women in the market place as merchants. It seems as if today a large part of the business of Thyatira is managed by women.
Lydia's line was Tyrian purple dyes and cloth. That links her to the interesting relics which a traveller may find outside of both Sidon and Tyre — the great heaps of tiny murex shells, from which the famous Tyrian purple was extracted, one drop from each shell. This was the royal color; and in a robe so dyed, Jesus was mockingly arrayed at His trial.
Because of the fame and value of Tyrian purple, the trade in it had spread over the whole Roman world. So it was at far Philippi that Paul found Lydia, the dealer in this precious dye. To many students of the New Testament, Lydia's name is the outstanding one in connection with the City of Philippi, a case of a woman's stealing the fame of the city of Philip of Macedon, and his greater son. Alexander, conqueror of the world.
—Daily News, Huntingdon, PA, Sept. 6, 1935, p. 8.
One curious fact always pops into my mind in connection with Lydia, Paul's first European convert, and a business woman. That is the persistence of women's commercial activity in her native city of Thyatira. It will be recalled that Thyatira was one of the "Seven Churches of Asia," addressed by John in the Book of the Revelation. It is an inland Turkish town; and when I visited it, I was struck by the extraordinary proportion of women in the market place as merchants. It seems as if today a large part of the business of Thyatira is managed by women.
Lydia's line was Tyrian purple dyes and cloth. That links her to the interesting relics which a traveller may find outside of both Sidon and Tyre — the great heaps of tiny murex shells, from which the famous Tyrian purple was extracted, one drop from each shell. This was the royal color; and in a robe so dyed, Jesus was mockingly arrayed at His trial.
Because of the fame and value of Tyrian purple, the trade in it had spread over the whole Roman world. So it was at far Philippi that Paul found Lydia, the dealer in this precious dye. To many students of the New Testament, Lydia's name is the outstanding one in connection with the City of Philippi, a case of a woman's stealing the fame of the city of Philip of Macedon, and his greater son. Alexander, conqueror of the world.
—Daily News, Huntingdon, PA, Sept. 6, 1935, p. 8.
City of Akhisar Hides Ancient Thyatira
1964
Calkins Concludes Tour
[ORIGINAL] EDITOR'S NOTE: Today's report by the Reverend Harold Calkins, pastor of the Temple City Seventh-day Adventist Church, concludes an exclusive series on his visit this summer to the sites of the seven ancient cities addressed in the New Testament Book of Revelations. Continuing his studies toward a doctorate in New Testament, Pastor Calkins and his wife this summer joined 18 other members of an extension class conducted in Europe by Andrews University, Michigan.
Thyatira, the last of the seven churches of Revelation which we visited, is still a living city, known today as Akhisar. Because the old city is buried under modern residences, there has been almost no excavation of the area. A few years ago when the hospital was built, they discovered an old sarcophagus with the name "Thyatira" in the epitaph.
At another location some walls and foundations of Roman and Greek buildings have been unearthed showing that the town does date back before Christ. Some of the stones from the ancient buildings have been used to build the walls of houses found there today.
The vessels of a potter mentioned in Revelations 2:27 are a well-known item here since many potters still make clay pots and water jugs in and near the city.
As a commercial city Thyatira seems to have been prominent, judging from the Greek inscriptions which speak of many trade guilds to which every skilled worker belonged. There were woolworkers, linemakers, tailors, tanners, potters, bakers, slave-dealers and bronze workers. These labor organizations were incorporated, owned property, made contracts and had sales representatives in other cities. Lydia of Thyatira (Acts 16:14) the seller of purple, represented the dyers guild at the Greek city of Philippi. It can readily be seen that business and labor in this city was more highly organized 1900 years ago than it is today.
The countryside around Thyatira is much like Southern California. The land is flat and fertile. Unlike most important cities of ancient times, there is no acropolis, or fortified hill, at this town. In early times the city was a fortress town controlled by either Pergamum or Sardis, to protect them from invaders from the East or North. Hence it was controlled first by one power, then another, until the Roman peace prevailed and removed its importance as a military base.
The raising of grapes, tobacco, grain and other agricultural products provides a livelihood for the people. If there were technical know-how and ambition, this region could produce more than enough for their own needs. But most of the work is still done by hand with the burro and camel working side by side with the women and men as burden-bearers. Some of these people carry unbelievably large loads on their bent backs, from furniture to large bundles of weeds which almost hide the person carrying them. The weeds are used to make a little hut for shelter from the sun. Later when dry, they are fed to the goats or used for kindling to build a little fire. Agriculture and much of the daily routine differs little from the customs of 1900 years ago.
—Arcadia Tribune, Arcadia, CA, Dec. 24, 1964, p. 22.
Calkins Concludes Tour
[ORIGINAL] EDITOR'S NOTE: Today's report by the Reverend Harold Calkins, pastor of the Temple City Seventh-day Adventist Church, concludes an exclusive series on his visit this summer to the sites of the seven ancient cities addressed in the New Testament Book of Revelations. Continuing his studies toward a doctorate in New Testament, Pastor Calkins and his wife this summer joined 18 other members of an extension class conducted in Europe by Andrews University, Michigan.
Thyatira, the last of the seven churches of Revelation which we visited, is still a living city, known today as Akhisar. Because the old city is buried under modern residences, there has been almost no excavation of the area. A few years ago when the hospital was built, they discovered an old sarcophagus with the name "Thyatira" in the epitaph.
At another location some walls and foundations of Roman and Greek buildings have been unearthed showing that the town does date back before Christ. Some of the stones from the ancient buildings have been used to build the walls of houses found there today.
The vessels of a potter mentioned in Revelations 2:27 are a well-known item here since many potters still make clay pots and water jugs in and near the city.
As a commercial city Thyatira seems to have been prominent, judging from the Greek inscriptions which speak of many trade guilds to which every skilled worker belonged. There were woolworkers, linemakers, tailors, tanners, potters, bakers, slave-dealers and bronze workers. These labor organizations were incorporated, owned property, made contracts and had sales representatives in other cities. Lydia of Thyatira (Acts 16:14) the seller of purple, represented the dyers guild at the Greek city of Philippi. It can readily be seen that business and labor in this city was more highly organized 1900 years ago than it is today.
The countryside around Thyatira is much like Southern California. The land is flat and fertile. Unlike most important cities of ancient times, there is no acropolis, or fortified hill, at this town. In early times the city was a fortress town controlled by either Pergamum or Sardis, to protect them from invaders from the East or North. Hence it was controlled first by one power, then another, until the Roman peace prevailed and removed its importance as a military base.
The raising of grapes, tobacco, grain and other agricultural products provides a livelihood for the people. If there were technical know-how and ambition, this region could produce more than enough for their own needs. But most of the work is still done by hand with the burro and camel working side by side with the women and men as burden-bearers. Some of these people carry unbelievably large loads on their bent backs, from furniture to large bundles of weeds which almost hide the person carrying them. The weeds are used to make a little hut for shelter from the sun. Later when dry, they are fed to the goats or used for kindling to build a little fire. Agriculture and much of the daily routine differs little from the customs of 1900 years ago.
—Arcadia Tribune, Arcadia, CA, Dec. 24, 1964, p. 22.
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