Fesruary 1, 1901 and they therefore count themselves base unbelievers, when they may be exercising all the faith that is required of them, and should ‘rejoice with joy unspeakable and full of glory,’ because they are receiving the end of their faith, even the salvation of their souls.—1 Pet. 1:8, 9. ; . It will, therefore, be a desirable thing to disprove this unwholesome doctrine, and, in order to do so, it will be only necessary to show that the Lord Jesus Christ was sick, for he “did no sin” (1 Pet. 2:22), “and in him is no sin” {1 John 3:5), and he could boldly ask, while he walked the earth, “Which of you convineceth me of sin?” (John 8:46), and, therefore, personal sin could not have been the cause of sickness in him, as it was not in the case of the man born blind, and may not be in a thousand other instances. Jesus was a very sick man in the garden of Gethsemane. Luke, who was a physician, tells us that, being in an agony, he prayed more earnestly, and his sweat was, as it were, great drops (thromboiclots) of blood falling down to the ground. This sickness with which Jesus suffered was diapedesis, a sickness not very common, and yet frequent enough to receive note and attention in the medical works and the cyclopedias. In McClintock and Strong’s great work we have several instances given, under the phrase, “bloody sweat,” especially that of Charles IX, of France, and allusion is made to Dr. Stroud’s book on “The Physical Cause of the Death of Christ,” where the matter is scientifically treated. . oe . No one can read the fifty-third chapter of Isaiah, in the original, without being fully convinced that (the chapter containing a prophecy of Christ) it is intended to present him as one suffering from sickness. In_ the third verse we have the words, “a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief,” Here the Hebrew word for sorrows is “makaboth,” and means pains, while the word for grief is “choli,” and is from the verb “chalah,” which means to be sick, weak, diseased. This word “choli” is the word used when the sickness of Hezekiah Vou. XXII ZION’S WATCH TOWER ALLEGHENY, PA., FEBRUARY 15, 1901 (64-67) is spoken of, also when it is said, “Elisha was fallen sick of his sickness whereof he died (2 Kings 13:14), and in numerous other instances of bodily sickness. The same word is used in the fourth verse, when it is said, “Surely he hath carried our griefs.’” In Matthew 8:17 this word is translated in the Greek asthencias, “infirmities” in our version, but it is the word that is used in the singular when the sickness of Lazarus is spoken of (John 11:4), and as a verb in various other instances of unquestionable bodily illness. Again, in the tenth verse, “he hath put him to grief,’ where the reading in the Hebrew is, “he hath made him sick,” as in the margin of the Revised Version. Thus the proof from the Scriptures is ample that Jesus Christ was sick, and so able to sympathize with us in our sicknesses and “infirmities” (Heb. 4:15); being without sin, personal sin could not have been the cause of his illness, and, therefore, may not be of ours. W. S. Urmy, Pastor of Potrero M. E. Church, California. DeaR BROTHER IN JESUS CHRIST:—Your divine theology is certainly a helping hand to me. I hope, dear sir, that you will let me have many tracts and Zion’s WATCH Tower for my religious education. I do certainly believe that the “little flock” will be an instrument by whom all the families of earth will be blessed; because all the churches are in a very poor situation and the world in great desolation [distress]. May God give me opportunity to know more about your divine mission. Come to my help and let me take the water abundantly in your publication. I am, dear sir, with much gratitude Very truly yours, J. R. Vi~atre, Archbishop of the Orthodox Catholic Church, Canada. No. 4 VIEWS FROM THE WATCH TOWER Naturally enough at the opening of a new century thinking men inquire each other’s views respecting the outlook. Naturally enough, too, hopes and fears chase each other through these imaginings, according to the temperaments of the thinkers and their experiences and their light. . The child of God, with his Father’s Word of revelation in his hand, surely has much advantage every way over others as he seeks to scan the horizon of the twentieth century. But alas! how few among the millions of Christendom are in this position scanning the future through the glass of divine revelation. The masses nominally assent to the wisdom of such a course, yet will not follow it, confessing themselves “babes” as respects the Bible, “unskilful in the word of righteousness.’ (Heb. 5:11-14) Such “babes,” realizing their own inabilities, look to their teachers as to nurses, care-takers; and the latter, sad to relate, are fulfilling prophecy in turning away their ears from the truth unto fables—evolution theories and higher criticism unbelief—2 Tim. 4:3, 4. But the few, the very few, the Lord’s “little flock,” those who do trust the Lord and search his Word—the very class to whom our Lord declares, “To you it is given to know the mysteries of the kingdom”—the very class specified by the Apostle as “taught of God” and guided by his holy Spirit to an understanding of his Word—these certainly have much advantage every way; notably as respects the kingdom, but also in respect to the affairs of the present evil world—1 Cor. 2:6-16; Matt. 13:11. As this class faces toward the sunrise to note the world’s prospects for the twentieth century, what a sunburst meets their eye of faith peering with the aid of the divine glass— God’s Word—through the clouds and mists! They see, just beyond the vail, the Lord of Glory ready to take possession of earth’s empire, just as soon as the allotted “Times of the Gentiles” shall have run out! They see, with the same eye of faith, the Lord’s jewels, his bride, his joint-heir in the kingdom, mostly with him and waiting now while the remainder of the 144,000 finish their course and make their calling and election sure—passing one by one beyond the vail—changed in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, to the glorious perfection of the first resurrection, with its glory, honor and immortality, which eye hath not seen nor ear heard, neither hath entered into the heart of man, but which, as the Apostle declares, God hath revealed unto us by his Spirit. . Then looking for the world’s portion through the same inspired glass and with the same eye of faith they see still other wonders and glories. They see God’s (spiritual) kingdom about to be established in the earth: they see its wonderful provisions of heavenly love—for justice, equity, righteousness and the resultant blessings of peace on earth, good-will toward men: they see the binding of Satan and every evil principle and thing: they see the release of earth’s dead and dying millions from the curse to an opportunity then to be theirs to return to full heart-harmony with the Creator through their Redeemer: they see the channel of this favor to be Christ and that the knowledge of this grace of God is yet to fill the whole earth as the waters cover the great deep. Seeing these things their hearts rejoice and their faces are glad—truly the holy anointing oil, the holy Spirit and the blessed enlightenment which it brings them, is the oil of joy which replaces the spirit of heaviness. True, they see also the intervening trials of faith to themselves, and the sharp experiences which lie before them in the narrow way ere the goal is reached, and they see with even clearer distinctness than do the worldly-wise the great time of trouble coming upon nominal] Christendom; but realizing all these things to be but incidentals preparing the way for the great blessing so soon to follow, they can and do lift up their heads and rejoice in the God of our salvation, saying: “Great and marvelous are thy works, Lord God Almighty; just and true are thy ways, thou King of saints.” “What if the clouds do for a2 moment Hide the blue sky where morn appears? Soon the glad sun of promise given Rises to shine a thousand years!” But now let us contrast with the above bright prospect the fears and doubts which trouble the wisest of the “children of this world,” because they see only with their own mental eyes and lack the cheering enlightenment of the Bible spy-glass. These views have been collated by the New York World, which sent out some time since to prominent people a query respecting their view of the greatest menace to twentieth century progress. Some of the replies are summarized as follows: “TI believe that ere the twentieth century closes, the earth will be purged of its foulest shame, the killing of men by men in battle under the name of war,” says Andrew Carnegie. W. T. Stead declares that the chief menace to man’s progtess is “war, which threatens Christendom as the result of ignoring Christian principles in its dealings with one-fourth of the human race which ig born inside a yellow skin.” Sir [2767]
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