Vou. XL PITTSBURGH, PA., MAY 15, 1919 No. 10 VIEWS FROM THE WATCH TOWER “For the earnest expectation of the creaturc waiteth for the manifestation of the sons of Cod, For we know that the whole creation groaneth and traviileth in pain together until now. And not only they, but ourselves alse, which have the first-frurts of the spint, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, waiting for the adoption, towit, the redemption of our body.”—-Romans 8:19, 22, 23. Watchers in Zion are eager for each additional evidence of the fulfillment of prophecy relative to the bringing in of the kingdom of our Lord. It is a self-evident fact that the whole creation is groaning and travailing in pain now under the great load they are carrying, and hoping for some deliverance from that load. The desire of all men is for full liberty, happiness and life everlasting. They really desire the kingdom of the Lord, but they do not know that his kingdom will satisfy the desire of all nations. Many are the theories of men in good faith advanced, each theory put forth with confidence that it will bring the desire of all nations; but these are destined to failure. None but the Christian, however, can understand why such schemes must fail, and the Christian makes himself exceedingly unpopular in the world at this time because he tries to point out the reason why human schemes will not succeed. Yet, realizing his God-given privilege, he continues to hold forth the real hope of Messiah’s kingdom. The great world-war has opened the eyes of man to the fact, that the old order of things has passed away and tha: it is time for something new, Many of the less selfish are going forward with schemes for the establishment of the new order, that greater blessings may be enjoyed. Every noble thought is to be commended, and everyone who is honestly seeking for the betterment of his fellow-man should be treated with consideration; and while we sympathize. fully with the desire of the world to have relief from present burdens and to enjoy blessings of liberty, happiness and life, yet we cannot give wholehearted co-operation to their plans, because we know they are not the right ones for the accomplishment of “the desire of all nations.” However, as we see these various schemes unfold we witness in them the fulfillment of prophecy, bespeaking the near approach of the great kingdom of Messiah. To the student of the divine plan it is easy to understand why there are so many theories and why these are in conflict in large measures with each other. SATAN THE ARCH-ENEMY The arch-enemy of mankind is Satan, and hence he seeks to thwart every movement toward righteousness. It has ever been his purpose to keep the peoples under his control. Dominion he has always aspired to, and since he usurped the dominion of earth he has sought to maintain it. It is quite reasonable to conclude that he would try desperately to hold that dominion. Since we have reached the end of the old order greater light has come to all people, and particularly to those who are students 6f the divine Word. This greater light exposes Satan, and every device looking toward righteousness tends to weaken his hold upon mankind. Therefore he sees his kingdom tottering and is using various deceptions to keep the people still under his control. His method has always been to use fraud and deception, and to inject into the human mind thoughts that would accomplish his purpose, whether wholly, against the interests of mankind or not. He well knows that Messiah’s kingdom means the triumph of the “seed of promise”; hence we may expect that Satan has more or less part in all human projects. He is a wily foe, a pastmaster in politics. He places one class against the other and controls both. He incites the radicals to extreme action against the capitalists, and the capitalists to a radical position against the laborers. Having been able to control mankind largely through the influence of the clergy, he lines the prominent and influential among them up with the capitalist class. But if the various classes of mankind would only turn to the divine Word for instruction they would learn that the interest of one is the interest of all, and that Satan is the enemy of all. The clergy have pretended to be teachers of the divine Word, but having really ignored its teachings of merey and love and being blind guides they have led ail whom they could influence into the diteh. This is evidence in proof that Satan’s kingdom is nearing the end and that the Lord’s kingdom is at hand. EARTHQUAKES, FAMINES, PESTILENCES Answering the question propounded to him by the disciples as to what would be proof of the paysing of the old order and the coming in of the new, Jesus said: “Nation shall rise against nation and kingdom against kingdom [in a general warl great earthquakes [symbolically meaning revolution] in divers places, and famines and pestilences.” (Luke 21:10} One need not be a prophetic student to note the fulfillment of this prophetic statement of the Lord. Yor four years the greatest war of all time has ravished the nations and kingdoms of the [6431] earth, and has brought about a condition the like of which the world has never known. Moreover famines have followed in the wake of the war. The public press announces that every nation of Europe has a great food shortage, and from three hundred millions to four hundred millions of people face starvation unless America can furnish the food. A great pestilence has swept the earth during the last twelve months. It is announced that the four years war claimed victims to the number of nine million persons, while the pestilence of influenza claimed twelve million victims in a few months, and this was not confined to the war zone, but has spread over all nations of earth. Even in the northernmost parts whole tribes of the Esquimos have perished from this dread disease. And now the world ig threatened with another pestilence called lethargic encephalitis or epidemic coma—frequently, though improperly called “sleeping sickness.” We would not Le surprised if before another year the pestilence will be greater than it was in the year past. We say this not for the purpose of discouraging anyone, but rather that we might be encouraged to see that such are the fulfillments of the prophetic utterances of the great Master, bespeaking a better day near at hand, KINGDOM OF HEAVEN AT HAND In view of these facts should we not expect the other part of this prophecy to be fulfilled, and if we see it in the course of fulfillment should it not strengthen our faith that the old order is ended and the new order is coming in, and that the kingdom of Heaven is at hand? Jesus, in this connection, mentioned revolution as one of the evidences. Revolutions are of two kinds: bloody, or those which result in great destruction of human Jife and property; and bloodless, or those which by peaceful means overturn the old order and establish a new and supposedly better order. That the latter type of revolution has been going on without general public knowledge we have strong proof by what has transpired in recent months in the State of North Dakota. Here a revolution brought about by peaceful means hag fully upset the old or selfish order, and it is to be noted that while it was in process of development its opponents bitterly fought every step. The Literary Digest of March, 29th, 1919, discussing this revolution in North Dakota says: “Less than four years ago, when the sense of economic grievance that rankled in the hearts of North Dakota’s farmers had been fanned to a flame by the refusa] of the legislature to establish a state-owned terminal grain-elevator, a man named Arthur C. Townley jumped into a small, hired automobile and began by a farm-to-farm canvass the organization of the Non-Partisan League. For months the oldline politicians regarded this ‘Flivver campaign’ as a, joke, but today they see Mr. Townley’s league of farmers grown to a membership of more than 200,000 with a political organization in thirteen states, representation in the United States Congress, and completely in control of North Dakota’s government. Moreover— and it is this that is attracting the attention of the whole country to the Flickertail state—before it adjourned in February, the North Dakota legislature at Bismarck enacted a series of laws which friends and foes agree are revolutionary. ‘The farmers of North Dakota,’ declares the Fargo Oourier-News, a Non-Partisan League daily, ‘have proved that revolution can be wrought by peacefu] means, and, more than any other.body of men in this world, they have taught the folly of revolution by bloodshed.’ By this vindication of democracy, argues the Courier-News, ‘North Dakota has proved its right to be designated as the most American of all the United States’ A popular assertion among the Non-Partisans, according to a Bismarek correspondent of the St. Paul Dispatch, is that ‘it’s the greatest little revolution since 1776’; and this correspondent, who seems to think that the farmers will have a disillusioned awakening from their dream of a political Utopia, at least agrees that their future is now in the hands of ‘the most revolutionary politica] machine that ever gained complete autoeratic control of legislative affaira in any state in the Union.’ A Bismarck correspondent of the Boston Herald describes the Non-Partisan League’s program as ‘the most interesting, and perhaps the most important, political and social movement now visible in the United States’; and he adds that its opponents believe it to be ‘a disguised campaign for state and national socialism.’ The same correspondent quotes one of the League leaders as saying: (147 -148)
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