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PREFACE

iHANKS be to God that His grace has preserved us, "kept us from falling," through another year — that so many of us are still of one heart and of one mind in respect to His Word, and its service !

"Prove me now herewith, saith the Lord of Hosts, if I tviil not open you the windows of heaven and pour you out a blessing, that tliere shall not be room enough to contain it." Malachi 3:10.

Considering the helpful and inspiring messages presented by the dear Pilgrim Brethren at the CONVENTION and ANNUAL ELECTION of the WATCH TOWER BIBLE & TRACT SOCIETY, assembled at Pittsburgh, January 2-5, 1919, we have been moved to publish this Verbatim Report. We wish to thank the brethren for their assistance in this connection.

In sending out this SOUVENIR CONVENTION RE PORT, we do so with the prayer that the Lord's People will re- ceive as great spiritual benefit from its perusal as we have in its preparation.

Yours in the Master's Service,

GEO. A. GLENDON, Jr., 1265 Broadway (Suite 611),

New York City, N. Y.

INTRODUCTION

'Thou crownest the year with thy goodness." Psa. 65:11

iHE opening of a most significant New Year found several hundred friends assembled at the Bethel Chapel in Pittsburgh, Wednesday night, January 1st, reviewing in testimony the leadings of Divine Providence during the past year. The joy and rejoicing in the Lord knew no bounds. Many of the friends found it a special

occasion to make plenty of good resolves, respecting what we shall be willing to

be, to do, to suffer, in fellowship with our Lord.

The keynote of the meeting was based upon the Prayer Meeting text: "Be thou strong and very courageous." (Josh. 1 :7.) One brother testified that he was glad that he could stand up for Jesus and. hold high the banner of Truth. Others testified that they, as followers of the Lord, stood firmly for the truth: not fear- ing what man might do unto them, but trusted in the Lord, and in the power of Ilis might, with the promise that by so doing, they will be with Him in Glory.

Another brother voiced the sentiments of all in the following words: "How appropriate is this keynote in connection with our Text for the year: '.Vo -u.-eapon tluit is formed against thee shall prosper.' (Isa, 54:17.) I am perfectly wilting to give and sacrifice everything to gain this assurance. The only injury these weapon.s c^n do is to the old creature, which we have already consecrated to death. Therefore, God uses the 'wraih of man to praise Him/ — by turning what seems to harm us into everlasting joy and blessing."

At the conclusion of the service. Brother Wise requested all to join in silent prayer asking the Lord to direct their everv' word, thought and action during the succeeding four days, to the end that "the Love of God might rule in every heart" : that nil things be avoided which would aid the enemy.

■ It tras good to be there! And as we wended our way to our respective rooms we were confident that the opening of the Convention on the morrow would manifest more of the spirit of the Psalmist's words:

"Behold, how good, and hovv pleasant

it is for brethren to dwell

together in unitv."

WATCH TOWER OFFICE

"THE OLD QUAKER SHOP" Brother Kuitcll's Firit Haberdashery Stcre

SOLDIERS ME^JORI.VL itALL

ANiNUAL CONVENTION AND ELECTION

W. T. B. & T. SOCIETY PITTSBURGH, pliNN., JANUARY 2-Si 1919

'^■[ENLP.V PARK. Pittsliur!;h's ^n.tXHJ,-

Cn» Beamy Ciritt,-r. jiryvctl to be an

ideal place for a convciitiun ol die;

Watch Tuwet Bibk & Tiacl Suckly

during tlic period of Its Aiimial Kkc-

lion — the first Satiirttav iit the new

year. The location u-asa ileliffliTEiil uiii:.

Memorial Hal], doiUcaTcd in the

memory of the heroes oi another

cau&e< was appropriatel^v' the meciing

p\L c oj the soldiers of the "Cross of Cliriif who, to<i.

n;l:^l die to win.

Oti the morning of January '2d the Convention opened according to pru{;rain, aiul trom that timt: to ihc im reluctant farewells at the dose of the Coiivtntion. Sunday cvciiing, January oth* with a Love Feast, vve who were present considered tliis Convention the mo^t beneficial ever hcUL .\pproximarely one thousand attemkd. Brother C. .'\^ Wise served a!> chairman thruitghout the en:ir<: icsfion.

Brother K. G> Walters, of Tamaqna, Pa., was the musical djrecior. AW mingled in "^ong of tiiispeakable $weciEies5 to the praise of Cod," The inspiration derived from the music and words contained in "Hytnns ot DauTi" caused us to sympathijzc with our l>elovcd Brother J. I-. Rtithcrfornl :

"Often I !oHK to hear some of our hymns? Then I conlemi;>late the music of ihe Heavenly courts, aiid long for that, and am ihriUed with the prospect that in the chorus will brt the beautiful, wonderful, angelic hosts, the innu- merable company of honored ser^-anis before the throne, the Bride in all her u^ory and bean- ly and the majestic Bridegroom, all mingling iheir perfect voices in music and song of un- speakable sweetness to the praise of God. And Jehovah Himself wj]] for joy sing over alL (Zcph. 3:17.) "The Lord thy God in the midst of thee is mishlyi He will rest in His lo^'e. He wil] joy over thee with singing.* How glorious to be there, and (here I want to be, and want you to be. Let ttothin^ be done that win lessen our prospect. Let brotherly love abound and be faithful unto death." After experiencing bitter trials during the year past. our apjjetites were whetted to parukc of the spiritual footi so bountifully provided for this occasion, to increase onr hopes, even as the Lord promised that He wouM "prepare a table in the midst of our enemies" that we might be able to hear present cspericnccs.

Probably never before in the Clirlalian era have ^ucb earnest and fervent prayers been offered as those on behaU of the Convention, and our BRETHREN' who are now serving God while in prison: '^FillitiR up that which is behind of the afflictions of Christ for His body's sake, which is the Church." (Cul. 1 :24,) With eagerness every otie luoked forwjtid tu the events that would [ran' spire there, that the will of the Lord might he known. Their prsycrs were answered, even as our President and Brother J. F. Rutherford expressed the desire "that the spirit of Christ fill the heart of every attendant, drawing all of you closer together. Let every otic have in mind that we are in the final contlict of Rcvciaiion 1" ;H — 'These shall make war with the Lamb, and the Lamb shall overcome them, for He is Lord of lords, and i-Cing of kings.' It is the finale of the conflict between the Serpent and the Seed of Promise. Let all read KING- DOM NEWS No. 3 A'Orr; Wc must overcome or bt: overcome— there is no middle ground. Concerning: you and all, my sentiments are exisressed in I Cor. l:lii. 'Now I beseech you. brethren, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that ye ail speak the same thing, and that there he no divisions among you: but that ye be perfectly joine<l together in the same mind, and in the same jud^- menl'."

Nevertheless,

THE KEYNOTE

It was clearly manifest tfiat the sentiment throughout all stcssions centered around the yearly text: 'Wo lift'ttf'on tirai U fitrmt'd atjainst thin: shall pro^pi-r" (Isa. .>lj",) One brother said; "Since it is im|>ossib]e that they CaU do anything against the truths it is likewise inn:K>sf^tbic for anything tu hurt that oi... who is under the shadow of die ;\hnight}'. "Nothing shall by any means hurl joUi' the New Creature, for ^^-our life is hid with Lhri^t iu

The keynote of the Convention was in main along advanced tines, encoursetng all lo abound in tlu: hope ot bringing tlic Elijah and HIisha ly|}cs (also dial of Jezebel) to a compScte tultlllment, even as Brother Herr suggested that Whereas,

Enemies have striven to injure (and suc- ceeded in a measure to suppress)^ And Satan all his arts employ;

God has turned ivhat s«cmcO to harm ui Into Everlasting Joyf

And before the Conveulion came to a climax we lost sight of all opposition, calling to mind the Scripture, "If God Iw for uSi who can be agiiinsl ns?" V\ c determined to heed ihc admonition of the Apostle Paul to chug to the old ship Zion, and to partake heartily of ihe good nourishing food that our Master is providing through the same channel used during (he Harvest — the \Vatch Tower Bible & Tract Society — in order that we may be able to go forth and labor while wc have the opportunity by iriving the final witness for the truth. We realized more Uian e^'e^ before there is much wijrk to be done, and we were determined thpt no matter how stormy and trouble- some the condition of the times may be. we would not fi-ar, but stand by the old Ship of Zion until the very last.

INTERESTING NOTES

In accordance with an invitation extended by the Bible House family, several hundred friends made a special visit to the Watch Tower office at Allegheny — directly across the .Mletjhany River from Pittsburgh, Wc were entertained and granted the privilege o*" fellowship Jii the targe parlor, tastily arranged with fumiiHrc and mcnfcutocs of Hrother RusselVs study at the Bethel Home.

Upon inquiry we were directed over to Brother Rujsell's first hubi^rdiishcry stare, "The Old Quaker Shop/' diag- Dimlly across the slreetfrom the Watch Tower office.

It was here that, Charles Tazc Russell, at the age of eleven, formed a business parinership with his father, hiinscH writing the articles of agreement under which they trauihactcd business. Here it was that at the age of twelve years. Charles' father found him one lime at 2 A. .M. |>orin^ over a eoneordancc, uoconscious of the lapse of timCr

Within a few doors of this place, we were directed to a dusty, dingy hall where our dear Brother Russell first "stumbled upon Adventism," Ouoting his own words, he says: "Seemingly by accident, one evening I dropped into a dusty, dingj- hall in Allegheny, Pa., where 1 had heard that religious services were held, to see if the handful who met there had anything more sensible lo oflfcr than the creeds of the great churches. There, for the first time, I heard something of the views of Second .■Vdvenlisra, by Jonas VVendcll, long since deceased. Thua f confess in* debiedness to Adventists as well as to other Bible students. Though his Scriptural exposition was nut entirely citar and though it was very far from what wc now rejoice in. it was sul?icient, under God. to re-cslablish my wavering faith in the Divine inspiration of the Rible, and to *how that the records of the Apoitkis and the Prophets are indissolubly linked,"

/. B. S. A, CONVENTION

AT THE GRAVE

On ^[oilday, a party oi about i50 was conducted by

Brother Boliiiet to ill* grave of Brother Russell. Upon a hillside. slophiS towards the south, we joiiitd hands around the grave and sang;

"Bl«3l be the tie that binds

Our hearts in Christian love; The fellowship of kindred minds Is like u> ihit above.

^'Our glorious hope revives Our courage eveiy day, While eaci] with expectation strives To run the Heavenly way."

One last lingering look upon the scene recalled the peaceful manner of our Pastor's "passing beyond the vail." Brother Kuthcrford's words came to mintl: "I aiii glad this prisott experience was reserved tor us, rather than for our dear Brotlter Russell."

We visited the marble works and there watched the workmen slowly but surely chisel out the motiument to be erectetl as a memorial to [he Society.

Tlie Watch Tower Society burial lots in Rosttiiont United Ccrneterics. five miles due north of Pittsburgh City, contain ample grave space for all the members of the Bethel family, and the Pilgrims and their wives— in all more than 275 adult graves. In the exact centtr of the Bethel lot will be erected diagonilly the Pyramid Shape Monument as designed by Broilur ^BaSmit, and acreptcd by Brother Rmscil as the most fitting emblem for an enduring monument on the Society's burial space. The size of this structure is nine fett across the base, and its apex stotte is exactly seven feet above the ground surface level. It rests upon a concrete foundation five feet deep and hpavily reinforced whh l>srln-d wire, the work of Brother Eohnct, who would not entrust this important task to anyone else, so we are assured the job was well done. The' brother gave a full deicripUon of the securing of the rock material (after fruitless attempts extending over a period of about five years) at the time he piloted tire convention ists to the cemetery and urged us to help Ourselves to sottvcnir chips in tbe shop of the granite worker near by.

These monster blocks of pink (Brother Rtisscll's favor- ite tint) granite were brought all the way from Granite Aiountain Quarries, near Marble Falls City in Texas, upon

a special Hat car, and are said to be about 95 per cent flint rock.

Each slope of the pyramid will face one of the large lots and on each of these slopes is cut in four-inch embossment a. Teacher's Bible, on the pages of which will appeir the names of the ones buried there. The burial space for Brother Rutherford was indicated and his name, like that of Brother Russell, will be at the top of opposite Bible pages. A Bible space being set apart for the Pilgrims — all in one lot of forty-eight grave space, so all their names will appear on the same Bible.

Above the Bibles are spaces for inscriptions In full, W. T. B. &. T, S., I. B. S. A., "Dead with Christ," "Risen with Christ," etc. And above these the Cross and Crown and Wreath, and the wliolc capped with the apex stone, highly polished— its shape of course beins pyramidal.

Witiiin the slnictvire, incased in a block of griinltc. will be a sealed raetal box in which is a complete set of Karatol Scripture Studies, the Memorial Tower, and one of every tract, photographs of Pastor Russell, a copy of the Society's charter, and many other things to interest the people who at some future date may open the pyramid and find them.

Brother \Vm. U. Hurst, of Pittsburgh, who was assist- ant stiperintendent of the United Cemeteries under Brother Bohnet's general charge, will hare the care of Brother Rus- sel's grave in the pilgrimage absence of Brother Bohnet. It is c:<pected the monument Avill be in place beforft the next Decoration Bay. Any tnith people desiring i chip of the stone may send postage enough to carry a piece about the size of an z%^. WNth enough additional to pay the Society for the trouble of having it wrapped for the mail. Best for class members to order eollectively.

^'Long, long be my heart

With such memories it! led. Like the vase in which roses Have once been distilled,

"Yon may break, you ma:if shatter ^ The vase if you will.

But the scent of the roses Will cling to it still."

11:00 A. M., Brother A. M. Graham

Tbursday, January 2, 1919, Fellowship Day

Subject, "OUR FELLOWSHIP"

OUR prograro announces thai this is "Fellowship Day." In thinkirg about this matter of Fellowship, we may think of it from a variety of standpoints. Looking back over the past, we notice how God's people have had fellowship.

Away back in the very beginning Abel had fellowship with God because he was in harmony with God's arrange- ment. He was all alone in this fellowship because there was no one else who could share it with him. Still later on, Noah had fellowship with God because he was in harmony with the Divine arrangement. He had, however, some associates with him who could share the_ fellowship — his sons and their wives, also his own wife. Thus he had fellowship not only with God: his family shared this fellowship with him.

And that is the standpoint we propose to take this morning. We jump way down from \'oah'$ day to our own day^lDin — and seek to know and understand what God is now doing; come into harmony with it, and thus have fellowship with one another and with God.

_We notice that previous to 1S14 we had some fellow- ship with God and with one another. Some of us had some fellowship while in Babylon perhaps: we had fellow- ship with one another and with the Lord to the extent

that we were in harmony with the Lord's arrangement as we understood it In 1871, however, there came a change in the Lord's arrangements, and from that time forward we, who have learned of these changed arrange- ments, have been having fellowship in a broader and fuller and more complete setise than formerly because we understand the Divine arrangement better, and have tome into harrnony with it.

We notice, too, some little distinctions in respect to this fellowship which we have had since 18T4. When we first came to know about this "prtsmi fdiotiisksp" we have had with the Father, and with one another, we were talking chiefly about the Plan of the Ages, about the three worlds and their subdivisions, and about what God was purposing to do in these ages and their sub- divisions. Later on we studied Tabernacle Shadow's, then Chronology, and the Great P;,Tamid received our careful attention. ^ Yet more recently it was the wonderful events relating to the end of Gentile power in ISI-i. In all this we observe a progressive fellowship : we had fellowship together in all these things.

Since October, IHIJ. we have been watching the trend of events in the world with increasing interest, and we have been having fellowship along other lines. We do

/. B, S. A. CONVENTION

nor study so much about the thrtc ag^s and their sub- divisions nosv as formerly, but we arc ihinking, talking and having fellowihip respecting otlier titiLii,'^^: the fall of Babylon, and ihc establishment of the Kingdom of God, and the climax of cosufic forces taking; pLice in our own day. We have h^d sweet felloivship in respect to all ihcse matters. W'c could not have had that kind of fel- lowship away hack in 1374^ <ivtn as Abel could not liavc had lelE^wiiVLii) witli Noah hcc:iusc: lie kticw nothing of the events of Noah's day, the flood, etc So, then, wc see we cait have a fellowship now respectlitg present events, we cotild not have had in 1S74, or even ten or fifteen years aj^o— no, not cv*n five years ago. Ent we can aud do h^vt it now.

\\'e have fellowship together at the present time becaits*: we arc in harmony with the Divine arratigeinent as it is fulfiUing now ri^ht before us at ihc present moment. \V'e need tiot think so much about what has taken place in the past. That is past, \\'e do not forj^ct the pa^t. or set it aside; what wc learned then is still wSth its in our hearts and mind s— part of our life. We must, how- evcTf live in the present and act in the present. Therefore, the present has much more of interest for us than that which is past, no matter how imfjoriaiu and interesting.

Our Lord was born two thousand years ago. We just celebrated the birth of our Lord about a week ago. and have begun a new year™ A, D. W\^. There probaltly ne^er was a New Year in al! the historj- of the human family so remarkable in every respect as this one we are passing into. In fact, there has never been a New Year in the history of the humari family so wonderful. Poi- sibly there may be more wonderful New Year Days in [he futurcr ^ut there certainly has never been such a one as this in all the past.

^^ hat a remarkable condition ol things there is in the world at the present time. For four years the nations of earth have been fighting: the most remarkable war that ever was wa^jed on this planet. And now we have PEACE. I don't knoAv whether we are living in that day when the Scripture is beinfj fulfilled that says: "They will say. 'Peace. Peace,' and there will be no pcace.'^ That day, when they will say: "Peace, and sudden ctest ruction shall come upon them,"^ These Scriptures must certainly have a fulfillment and it does not quite seem that ihcy have yet been fulfilled* Doubtless they are being fulfilktl.

Truly there is "no Peace." No matter where you look, there is unrest. Not a nation on earth feels sure and safe, each distrusts the others. Along social and financial lines; also everywhere there is a feeling of unrest — a lack of peace. You remember that little message the angels brought: "Peace on earth, good will towards men." Look- ing over this Gospel Age, it is a remarkable fact that it has been the most bloody period of all human history. There have been more wars fought in this Gospel Aj*e than in any other; notwithstanding that it is called the Chr i St tan ei' a and p r < ^ui nably dom i natcd by wha t is termed the Christian Chtirch, Truly did our Master say of it: "There shall be wars and rumors of wars.*'

Look for instance *it western Europe. It is simply one vast, groat gravej-ard, where the dead from countless battlefields have been buried. There is scarcely a town or hamlet ibat Is worth mentioning on the map of western Europe where there has not been at some time or other a great battle fought and thousands of Etves lost. Most of these battles^ not all, but many of thein, have been fought to establish in the earth some ecclesiastical system or other. Yet we call it the Christian era, the Christian Age, and it is undoubtedly the most remarkable of all ages: but it has not been a period of peace. "Peace on earth" has not yet eome to poor mankind. \Vi are still looking in the future for the time of Jesus' reign, when He will rule in peace— The Prince of Peace.

Now. the Scriptures tell ug all about these Avondtrful things transpiring in our day. They clearly point out what is taking place at the present moment^ and those of God*s people who understand and are in full harmony with God's ar range rnent arc permitted to know and under- stand what these remarkable Scriptures mean, and how to apply them. We may not appiy them absolutely cf^r- rectly. We maVn perhaps, in some details fail to get jUiit

exactly the thought, bm in their general outline T am sure we can come very close to a proper, a correct interpre- tation of prophetic Scripture fulfiihrtg in this our day*

Wc have had now for four years a great war in progress. It stopped a little while ago. In November the war came to an end. Now then, the question is: IVhoi nozu is ffijinf; oni^ What is God doing now? To my mind, dear friends, there is a little pieture given to us in the \Yord of the Lord that illiEStrates very clearly what God has to do with present events. You are all familiar with it. It has been talked of and ej:plaincd many, many times, but you know every time we look at a beaistlful work of art» the more beauty we can see in El. The oftener we view a l>eautiful picture the more beaatv we discover in it. 1 am rcferrinjj now to the image of Daniel. (Dan. 2:3L) The oftener we look at that imajre the more remarkable it becomes. It was a GR1L\T IMAGE that reached up unto Heaven. This great image, whose bright- ness was excellent, and the form thereof tcrribEe, repre- sented fonr great Unhfrsdl Entpifis. Its head was of gold, breast and arms of silver, belly and thighs of brass, legs of iron, the feet part iron attd part of clay. This great image, therefore, pictured the political liislory of the human family from D.-tnicl's day down to the present time,

Daniel is the most remarkahte of all the prophets in many respects. He scanned the history of the human race from his own day down to our day— touching the salient points, but dwelling specially on the events at the close of the Gospel .-^ge. [s It strange then that our great adversary, the devil, should be very desirous indeed of lessenmi^ the influence oi that prophecy? Is it any wonder that he has done all he could do to cast discredit on that particular prophet? And so we find it. They have done e^'ery thing they could to weaken the force of the prophecy of Daniei.

Nevertheless, Daniel's prophecy still stands there. The prophet tells us what these things mean. The head of gold represented Babylon, the breast and arms of silver rep- resented Medo-Pcrsia, the belly and (highs represented Grecia, whereas the legs of iron represented Rome, and the feet and toes Rome divided into the nations of Europe, The smearing with clay represented the mixture of the ecclesiastical systems wilSt the nations of earth during the past ten centuries. ■ Everybody knows that these four world dominions have come into being, and GONE, No man can say that this testimony of the Prophet Daniel is not true. Babylon has come and .ijflfji^. Ifedo-Pcrsia has come and gofn: Greece has come and j^on^*. Rome has come aitd Kovn; Has goftf. too. Tl^ese are the facts of history that no man can gain-,say.

The next thing: that the prophet records is that a stone was "cut out of mouutatn without hands," This stone, we understand, is the Heavenly Kingdom of Qirist. the stone Kingdom, for which yoii attd I and all Christian people were taught to pray; '*Thy Kingdom comcn Thy will be done on earth even as it is done in lieaven," Xow notice, the prophet said the "stoi^e smote the image on its feet, etc." (Verse 'M,) Looking from the type down to the anti-type. I think w<: will pretty generally agree that that stone has Ixreu smiting that imase for the last tour years on its feet, vii., the Roman Empire, divided into Small kingdoms.

Now then, wc will notice some other tilings about that Image, We notice that it had two legs and stood on two feet. Well, you remember that Rome originally was a united emjjire, and conli[iucd fflr a few hundred vears as a united empire, but finally was split up and divided into two empires, known in history as the ^Vestern Empire and Eastern Empire. About the same time the political division took place there was also , a religious division. The Roman Catholic Churcii was also divided into two parts— an Eastern Church and a Western Church t the Greek Catholic Church and ihe Roman Catholic Church. The Eastern Church had its headquarters originally at Constantinople, afterwards when the Turks got posses- sion of that city and drove the Christians out. the seat of power was finally transferred to ^Toscow in Ru$sia and became associated with tlie Russian peoples so tha; the largest number of adherents of the Greek Catholic Church

/. E. S. A. CONVENTION

Is found amongst the Russian people, and it is frequently called the Russia It Church. Now then, this Eastern Empire, together with the Greek or Eastern Church, rep- rcscnts'one of the legs of Daniel's image.

The Etonian Cathotic Church has always been associated -^vith the k*ings of \\'e stern Europe and together with ihcrn constitutes the Western Umpire—the other teg of Dantel's Imagen Now then, would it not be a reasonable deduction that if one or the other of these legs would fall, or be broken, the image necessarily must fall? That ^vould be a reasonable deduction surely.

You just think a moment or two; what do w*e see be I ore our eyes? Not verv long ago— a little over a year jisc^-Russia fell. There 'is no RL^SSIA. Russia ha$ absolutely gone to pieces. When Russia fell the Russian or Greek Church fell with her. T lie re is now no Russian Ciiureh.

Cons tan tinople^ too» has fallen. The Turks who have held it for six hundred years have lost it. It is now in the possessioit of the Allies, hut it is a bone of contention with them. They don't know what to do with it Greece savs she wants It, "It ought to belong to us." they say, because two-thirds of the people living there speak the Greek langiiage. But the allied nations are not disposed to give it to them. It is best, they think, to havft it con- trolled by fill the nations. It is very clear, ihenn that the Eastern Empire, boih in its political and its religious aspect, has fallen. This means that one leg of Daniel's image has been "tjroken to pieces," as the prophet terms It, and the image itself has fallen to the ground.

What, we ask, is the ne.\t thiug in order? If it is true that one leg of that ima^c has been broken and the image has fallen, what would be the next thing to tran- spire? The nc^t thinfj ■would be tfie br^akijiff in pieces of she iviarfc Useif. Wc will keep in mind that the one foot of the image rests at Rome, and the other toot at Constantinople. When one leg is broken the image neces- sarily falls. 'The next thing that we will notice in respect to this record, is this: Daniel says, ''Thou sawest that a stone was cut out without hands which smote the image on the feet, which were of iron and clay, and break them ■in pieces. Then was the iron, the brass, the silver, and gold broken in pieces together. (Chapter "2:55,) Yon see^ the next thing after the image had fallen was to BREAK IT TO PIECES.

Is anything taking place at the present time that looks as though this is having a fulfillment? We answer, "Yes, assuredly." Russia, for example, has been broken into five or six smaller states, and the division still goes on! Nobody knows just how many pieces there arc yet to be. Russia in 19M was one vast, great, united empire. Today it is divided into many ''pieces.'^ We do not know exactly what is taking pla.cc in Russia, or indeed in any part of Europe. We may not be too sure, but it looks as though there were two great g;iants in this country. Two great newspaper syndicates striving for mastery. One probably headed hy J. P. Mgrgan, and the other headed by William Randolph Hearst; and they are fighting one another, and between the two we don't get the exact truth. But we do know enough to see that Russia has gone to piccesn divided into a number of small states — "broken to pieces/'

Now then, take another Instance: Austria also a little while ago was a united empire. It was called a dual monarchy, Austria and Hungarj\ but it was unitc<I. Lloyd George called it the ^'Hamshadrle Empire," but neverthe- less ft v^as united, and a master mind— Emperor Pranz Joseph— held it together for a long time. But Austria, too. has fallen. It has been divided into at least five pieces— five small states. She, too, has been "broken to pieces."

Furthermore, if we are to believe what wc hear in the newspapers we may understand that Germany at tiie present titne is divided into at least two pans, and we do not know how many more. Germany is .comprised of about twenty-five states, some smaller and some larger. ^Vc do not know how many "pieces" she will yet be broken into; how many small states will be made out of her.

Now. we step over into another realm. Here is the great British Empire— a great and mighty empire, T want

to tell you, 1! hope this isn't an unusual thing to say, but I think that of all the great empires that have spnmg up on the face of the earth, the British Einpirc is the most remarkable. This little ^'Island Empire" has doml-* nated the earth for four hundred years and still hopes to dominate it. Notice that this great and mighty empire is comprised of man3' parts, all over the world— India, Australia, Canada, and South Africa. And these parts are held together with cords or ties so slight that it will require very little to break them. She feels that she must, therefore, have almighty navy -with which to hold these far of^ parts in Kne, If she should fail in any way to have a mighty navy, she could not hold these far dtiit^nt empires. It is not going to take verv much to separate and <Uvide, "break in pieces," the mighty British limpire.

That is what was next in order; breaking the image in pieces. How long is it going to be before Caiiada will want "self -de termination^'? And how long is it going to he before Australia will want self-determination; and before India, too. will ivanr it And who are we, this GREAT AMERICAlSr PEOPLE, WHO SHALL SAY TIIEY SHALL NOT BAVE IT. A hundred and forty years ago we concluded to have "self-determination," and we threvi' off the British yoke. We kicked our old King George III, that "stuffy old drone from the German hive. Dr. Holmes called him. If the people of India, Australia, and Canada want sclf-dcterminationf shall they not have it? How easy it will be then to sever the ties tha^ binds the mighty British Empire together.

Wc have, therefore, in the breaking of Danicrs image a picture of what is taking place today. These great, mighty empires arc bein;^ '^broken to pieces." That is the prophet's declarattonn Our president, Woodrow Wilson, also agrees that this must he so. He savs, "All these people shall have the PRIVILEGE OF DETERMTKIN'G FOR THEMSELVES WHAT THEIR GOVERN Mf^XT SHALL BE AXO SHALL DO." And iUat is -whtji is breaking ihts^ kingdotn^s to Pieecj, preparatory' to their being ground to powder and "become like chaff," and blown hither and thither and no more place to be found for kin^s, emperors, popes, etc,, crowned or uncrowned powers-

I thitik wc can all agree that there are some powers that are veiy potent and hiflucLitial that liave never been crowned. We have them in our own land— very many of them I We have railroad kings, or used to have. We have telephone kings, and telegraph kings, and coal kings, steel kings, and wheat kings, and all kinds of industrial kings that never have been crowned, but they need to be "ground to powder," i. e., stripped of their power like all the otherSn Thus we are having fellowship with one another as we observe the fulfilling of the Divine prophecy at the present time.

I would like to call your attention to another little picture in this same connection, of a similar character*

This picture is found in the book of Kings. N'ow, in speaking about this matter I don't wish you to understand that I have found the solution of this thing, and that it is just so and no other way. I am suggestiiig something merely to stir up your thoughts. That is all, nothing more. It is good to have as many miniJs probing into these things as possible. That is what has marked our Age, the people are thinking. Before 1709 nobody thought, scarcely. There was no thinking done except by a very few — the learned. The farmer went to work at sunrise, and came hack at sunset, and scratched the mud off his shoes before he went into the mud floor of his cabin, and that wa$ all he thought he had to do, and he seemed to be contented and happy, tf he did slart to thinking about his hard lot it wasn't very long before some gentleman who buttoned his coat way up to the collar and tied his collar at the back, and to him said, "Don't you feel bad alxmt this matter at all. You. of coiirse, are having your hard time now; but yon just be patient, when you die you will get your reward in Heaven, That rich man. your master '^vho owns the farm, is having his goo^l Lime new, but when he dies he will have his hard time. He will get it then.'* And that thought contented them.

Now* since they have begun to think, they say: Away with this good time that you are talking about after I

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die. I want the good time now, and will h^va h, I will use a slacig word they arc saying now, "Yon can't bam- boo;:! q us any more. " So then, since 17^9 there have been A thousand tnjnds thinking upon every thing that you can possibly bring to your mind. That \& why so maiiv wlih- derful, remarkable things are taking place in the' world today.

So, in respect to the Bible pictures^ the more peoijlc who consider Ihem the mom we will get out of them. However, wc do not want to be foolish and tuiwise about the matter. We do not want 60 do as some brethreii do. There are some brethren who think they see a vision and they want to write a book or a tract about it. The chatTCes are, dear friends, they did not see a vision at all. Ali they saw was a ^host, a phamtom merely. If you do sec somethtng, and if ytm ihink it is worthy of being put m writing, Avrile it out, use the very best English you have, and the best information obtainaiile^ and when you have written it out send it down to the '"EdiEorial Com- mutec" that the Lord God in His arrangement provided for the spreading of present trulh and if they think it is Vl'ui Ih [jrinting you will thus have the privilege of serving the Truth. But don't take the matter into your ovjit hands. TS'ow Eheti, this other matter is the story of King Jehu, found in II Kings, chapters 9 and 10, remarkable work you remember, and only one, so far as we have any knowl- edge. He destroyed the family of Ahab, Jezeljel* Ahab's wife, and their sevetity sons. Every male that belonged to the family of Ahab was absoluteiy destroyed. And when he had accomplished that we hear nothing more about Jchn. My memory is that the record savs, "And Jehu reigned twenty^eight years, and ail the deeds which he did are they not recorded in the chronicles of the kins:?." And that is the end of the matter.

Now, we will point out some things that make the story of Jehu important. He certainly did a great work. Anybody who would destroy the wicked Jezebel would indeed be great. Jehu was anointed by one of the "sons of the prophets" fch. 9:1-7) to be king of Israel. You ktiow at that time Israel was divided into t^vo parts — Judah and Israel. Now then^ these two divisions repre- sent the two divisions of Christendom— Judahism 35 a whole represents Christendom. The northern portion- Israel, the ten tribes, the larger portion— represents the Catholic division of Christendom, in both its parts— both the Greek Church and Roman Church. There arc very httlc differences in these two Churches after all. One permits their priesthood to marry and the other forbids them, and a few little things like that. They originally were one and so they come in with that class and that dr'i'ision-

The other division— Judah, the two tribes— represents the Protestant side of Christendom. We wil] try to keep that in mind. Jehu was anointed king oi Israel and he was told that his duty was to destroy Jezebel and the family of Ahab. (Ch. 9, v, 7.) >7ow then, looking from the type to the antitype, we know tliat Jeicbel represents the Roman Catholic sysicjtt; the Roman hierarchy. Not the Roman Catholic people, but the great sysiem ilsdf. We make that distinction. You remember Lhat when the United States went into this war our President saidi "We are not fighting the German pcoffU, we are fighting Gi^rmaii uutttcracy." Wc make the JiiiJTf distinfiion be- hecrn ihe Papal system and the people coniroUed by U. Jezebel had a husband — Ahab, Me represenls the *'Holy Roman Empire." And ptrhaps we might stop here to notice something about that great "Holy Roman Empire." You know the pagan Roman Empire was very powerful m the days of Christ and the earlv Church. It wa$ not the "Hols- Roman Empire," however. The liolv Roman Empire came into beinij later on during the reign of Charlemagne, or Charles the Great, about the year 300 At D,

The circumstances which brought this Holv Roman Empire into being were something like this. This great emperor went to Rome to visit the pope, and while there and while he engaged in his religious devotion upon his knees m one of the churches at Rome, it is said that the pope came up behind him and placed a crown upon his head, and when he looked in surprific that- such should

be done the pope assured him that it was the will of Heaven that he should wear this crown and assist the Unurch ]n an her undertakings. This began the Holy i&Aft ^"^P^'"^' ^^^ a thousand years from SOO A. D, ^u 2-1^" ^' ^'^^^ empire exristed i]] Europe. It was called ru ^^ Roman Empire because united to the Roman Church. When Chariemagtie died his empire was divided mto three pans, but the portion comprising the western part of present Germany and the northern portion of present Austria continued to be recognized as the Holy Roman Empire.

At this point, in the year 800, or thereabouts, the antl- typical Jezebel, the Papal Church, was married to the antit^-pical A hah, the Holy Koman Empire. Here the union of Church and State began. There had been :i courtship, too. Tbey had been courting for a few hundred ycars^ from about the year 3S0 A. D, They were very timid at hrst, but became bolder^ and tn SW A. D. they w^jc ni^t^ried; Church and State were united. There Aliab and Jezebel in antitype were married.

They did not live very happily together. You know that IS frequently the case in married life. Married people live sometimes a whole lifetime and never spend a single day peaceably. They usually qnarre! about who will be ^bos5." Now that is Just the kind of marriage this was. From the \*ery beginning of the union of Church and State ihe.rn was a constant contest between these two mighty powers. The Papal Qiurch (Jezebel in the type) and the Empires of Europe (Ahab in the type) as to which was supreme- Church or State. This contest con- tinued during the entire period, from Charlemagne to Napoleon (800 A, D. to 1 800 A. D.), who ended it by bringmg the Holy Roman Empire to an end.

As the giving of the Goiden Crown to Charlemagne represented the marriage of Jezebel and Ahab, so the ending of the Holy Rotnan Empire represents the death of Ahab.

This occurred in 180fi. At that time Austria and Russia entered in a "coalitiun" to destroy Napoleon. Learning: of this fact. Napoleon executed otic of his rapid marches, and before the Russian army could unite with that of the Emperor he crossed the .Mps and dealt the Austrian power a deadly blow in two great battles. The last one, Austerlitz, said to be one of the fifteen decisive battles of the world, ended forever the power of the Emperor and at the treaty signed later the Holy Roman Empire was dissolved and came to an end. It does not now exist. There is no Holv Roman Empire, Thus in antitype Ahab died and Jesebel became a widow.

Since that time, ISOS, Papacy has been a widow, vii., s^eparated from the civil power. She shortly denies this however, and says: "I am no widow, T sit a queen and shall see no sorrow." (Is a. 47:7-11; Rev. 18:7,)

After Ahab's death, two of his sons rcif^ned over Israel (Aha?;iah and Joram, who were living when Jehu was anointed)- As Ahab typed the Holv Roman Empire. so we believe the reigns of those two sons of Ahab typed two nations in Europe who supported and aided to some extent the Papacy since 1S06. Ahaziah, who reigned firsts typed Italy, who lent some slight assistance until 1870 When Victor Emmanuel deprived the Church of the ''Papal States, ' a gift of Charlemagne in 800 A. D. Since that time they have been bitter enemies. Then in 1S70 Italy died as a supporter of the Church. Joram, the second s^, we believe typed Austria, the only State that since IS70 could and did give assistance to Fapacv. Germany and England were Protestant; Russia, Greek Catholic: France and Italy efitran^ed from the Cliurch: leaving Austria, a stronj^ Catholic country, the only nation in Europe who could help her.

It tiiight be remarked here that while a woman's hus- band lives she receives from hiiB many favors: but when her husband dies she receives hut little, and that frequently ^nidpintrly given, from her sons. So si nee 1S06 Papacy has had Imt few favors from the civil powers.

Keeping these matters in mind we return to Jehu, who was hastening up to Jeered, the summer capita], where Jezebel. Kins: Joram and Kitiff .Aha^iah (King of Judah) trom Jerusalem were residing. Joram was there, being healed of wounds received in a battle with ihc Syrians,

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Ahaziah from Jerusalem, King of Judah, had assisted Joram in this battle and returned with him to Jezreeh Aha^iah was Jezebel's son-in-law. Vou see, therefore, these three were bound by common ties and illustrates the very close relations between Papacy, Austria, and Germany.

As Jehu drew near to the city, he was observed by the watchmen from the citadeij who promptly notified King Joram of the approach of a troop. The King sent out a mounted messenger to ascertain who this might be. He was not permitted to return, however, and a second mounted messenger was dispatched. He, too, did not return. This alarmed Joram, who then inquired of the watchmeti ir they could tell who this was who was ap- proachiiij* and would have the temerity to treat the King's messengers in this manner. The watchtnen promptly re- plied, "It looks like the driving; of Jehu, the son of Mimshi, for he driveth furiously."

This information aroused Joram to quick action, Jehu was his generalissimo, head of his army, and had been led ftr Rnmoth-Gilead to \%'atch the border lest the Syrians returned. It was treason, disobedience of orders, for him to be here in Jetreel — or. mayhap there was trouble at Ramoth-Gilcad and Jehu had come to report. They would go out and see,

Jorain ordered the chariots and the two kings, Joram and .'\hazijh, rode out and met Jehu, "'is it pence, Jchnr" Has the war broken out again? "Is it well?" Is every- thing all right on the border? Jehu answered promptly, "What peace so long as the whoredoms of your mother Jczcliel, and her witchcrafts are so many?" (Ch. 0,\\ 21,)

Thoroughly alarmed the King shouted to Ahaiiah, "It is treachery. Flee. O Ah:iiiahl'' They fled, but Jehu drew s bow "with his full strength,'* which struck Joram "be- tween the arms" and came out at the heart and he sunk down and died — he died instantly. (Ch. 9, v. 24.) They then chased .Ahaziah and mortally wounded him at "Gur, which is by tbleam, and he died at Megiddo,'' (Ch. 9, v. 37,) He did not die instantly as did Joram. but lingered for some time; dying at Megiddo,

We observed that Joram typed Austria, His death, therefore, would mean the end of the Austrian Empire in October last. This was brought about by the with- drawal from the war of Bulgaria and Turkey, which broke the long strained relations between Austrta and Hungary, the two "arms" or powers that constituted that empire. Austria there died. There is now no Au>stria and never will he again. She died instantly.

Similarly the wounding and death of Ahaziah, King of Jndah, represents the fall of Germany. She has been "chased up" from the Marne River to the Hhine, until November II, l&lS. Avhen she received her mortal wound. She is not yet dead, but the death throes can distinctly be seen, the death stru^5:lcs have already begun in the unrest — Socialistic, Bolshevistioi etc.

It might be well to remember that Joram reigned oyer Israel, typing; the Catholic portion of Christendom, so Austria was connected with that portion. Ahaziah reigned over Judah, typing the Protestant portion of Christendom, so Germany Is joined to Protestantism.

Having dispatched the two kings, Jehu resumed his journey towards Jezreel, where Jezebel, well aware no doubt of what had taken place— the death of Joram and Ahaziah — awaited him. She could not flee, but what would she do? How couEd she expect to stand before this mighty warrior before whom two kings fell?

Notwidistanding the fact that she was full of "witch- crafts," as Jehu had said, she was a very resourceful old lady; very cunning and deceitful and withal a famous beauty in her day. She would charm Jehu, she promptly decided. Let him sec how charming, lovely and really desirable she was and perhaps he would not kill her. She was concerned only in saving her life. It was her only chance and she determined to attempt it. She went up into her chamber, where she "tied" her hair most bewitch- ingly and painted her face and arrayed herself in her <lueenly attsre, and sal in the window posing herself and an.'^iously hoping that a smile and a glance or two of her eyes would charm lehu and he would spare her life at least.

Jehu rolled into the court}'ard, heading his troop of chariots and horsemen. Spying Jezebel, the object ol his search, then in the upper window, and scorning all her attempts to charm Eiimi drove right up to the window. She smiled down upon him. He shouted. "Who is on my side? Who?" (Ch. 0, v. 32.) Some eunuchs looked out the chamber and quickly observing Jehu and his warriors there, concluded it was their safest plan to side with Jehu, and deserted their old mistress. "Throw her down.** coni- manded Jehu, and ihey instantly threw the frightened and struggling Queen Jezebel out the window. She fell with a thud and her blood spattered upon the wail and the horses. Thus perished that wicked Jezebel, the first person in history who persecuted anyone for religious belief.

Looking now from type to antitype, what may we hnd in this picture? We remitul you that Jezebel types Papacy, The fact that she was posing in that upper chamber would indicate that the Papacy has for some time past been striving to exhibit all her charms, her beauty. She loves all. hates none, she never persecuted. That is a myth of a darker day merely. She is the champion of liberty and freedom, also. The pope can cure all earth's woes. If he were only permitted to sit at the peace ta])le he could authoritatively settle all national differences, etc. The only one in the world who has the authority to speak the very power given him by God-

Thc faet that it was an upper chamber would imply that she is lifted up and frorn^ a superior position looks down on all others. So Papacy is now "exalted to Heaven" in a place of power as high as she ever will be — has^ indeed, reached her highest elevation and doubtless thinks she is on the crest of the wave> and on the morn of a glorious victory for the Church.

And those two or three eunuchs (Matt, 19:12). who are they? We answer: Rome's celibate priesthood, for- bidden to marry; many of whom will, when the hour of her doom arrives, through fear or because they realize the impossibility of longer perpetuating this anchicnt camou- flage, will assist in ^'throwing her down," destroy her, hoping to set up a new and better "Jezebel" more in harmony with the spirit of modern ideals.

The splashing ot the bloody on the walls and the horses show that hy her death the civil power (walls) that pro- tected her and the doctrine (horses) of Divine right of kings, ^pes, which niiide it possible to rule the world, will be polluted and become repugnant to the people, the soldiers, etc,

Jehu ordered her to be buried. "Shu Is a king's d,^ughter." (Ch. 9, v. 35.) But when the undertakers sought her out all that could be found of her body was the hands, feet and skull. The dogs had torn the flesh from her hones, leaving only the skeleton. This shows that when the antitypical Jehu is through with Papacy there will be only the memor>- of her doings (hands), the crooked walk during the 1000 years of her triumph, and (her feet) the plots, plans, etc., "witchcrafts'* Jehu termed them, (the skull) once guarded so successfully hut now made known "from the housetops," The dogs doubtless refer to the T, W, W., Bolshcviki, radical Socialists, etc., etc.

We now recall to mind Jehu's reply to Joram, ' (Qu 9. V. 22,) "What peace when the whoredoms of your mother, Jesebel. and her witchcrafts are so many?" We suggest that this may refer to Papacy's vaeillatinf^ course, especially during the present war. First siding with Germany, then straddling the fence; was sometimes on one side^ some- times on the other, but always leaning German -ward, until it became evident Gcrrnany would be defeated, and then she has strenuously striven to show she was neutral, "It is monstrous to say that the pope has ever been anything hut neutral," Catholic papers have said, both in the United States and Great Britain^ This is the whoredoms.

The witchcrafts refer to the cunning craft by which she hss aided and abetted the tTaiser while eiaimtnf^ neutrality, etc. Evidences of this are by no means wanting.

Jehu may type socialized Great Britain and United States, the two great democracies of earth, or socialized Italy, that is, after those nations come to be controlled by these radical elements.

In the foregoing we have been noticing what is taking

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jiics among llic naiionJ (Dinicl's rmage), ind Ihe destruc- tion of Papal power at the hands of the antilypical Jehu. Now, it might be asked where do the Mints o( God- Elijah or Elisha — fit in these wonderful i)icltirc$? We ansiver: Jeremiah seems to typify the experiences of the true Qiurch in these last days, evetv as Eiekiel. Tlicse (wo propiiecies seem to be two pictures of the same events taking place at the dose of the Gospel Ase, Eieicicl pictures the doom of the false Churdi. Babylon, ecclesi- asticism. While Jeremiah pictures the experiences of the true Church while Babylon is falling.

Rcfcring briefly to Jeremiah's experiences we note that after writing a book (ch. 36, v. 2) he was cast into prison at the behest of the princes of the realm »nd she mitilary aulhoritics. (Ch. 3S, v. 6.) While there in prison the Ethiopian eunuch with the jsw-breaJttng name, Ebed- melecli, on his tonr of inspection at the prison found Jeremiah, not in a cell, but in an unused reservoir full of mire and sunk up to his ann pits, and there likely to die. Ebed-inekth reported the matter to the king. The king, not wishing Jereniiah to perish, ordered his release. (Ch. 3S, V. 10.) Evidently Jeremiah was put into the pit of fnirc without the king's knowledge, supposing he was to be merely restrained of his liljcrties, but not destroyed. This

is implied in the reply of Ebed-melech. "It is an evil (wrong, contrary to orders) thing they have done to Jeremiah." (Ch. 38, v. 9.)

This pit of mire very well illustrates the mud slinging tactics of our enemies who have sought to destroy our work and influence (kill us antitypically) by making us appear disreputable, unpatriotic, pro-German, etc. We are just noiv emerging from tltis condition, still somewhat mussed up in the public estimation, but freed from any present danger of being destroyed, no longer "likely to die,"

Jeremiah remained "in the court of the prison" (ch. .TTi'l and '■iH-.H') until the city fell. This seems to imply that the antitypical Jeremiah, while being released from Vrisotl awiiiting a re-lrial, will continue under bonds until the city (Babylon) falls and possibly a re-trial will be avoided, postponed, because to rc-tr>- this case novtf that war restraints arc removed, would lay bare all Jezebel's (Papacy*s) witclicrafts : how and why she was able to hinder tlie5c men from having their constitutional rights Hentefl them. This she will not pertnit. Thus (hey may go beyond the vail into the Heavenly KinRdom while still "in the court of the prison" with the stigma of arrest and incarceration still resting upon them.

"WHY STAND WE HERE IDLE?"

WKy stand wc idle? Has the ringing Word,

"The Ktn^om is at liaiiU." now lost its worth?

The hearts of eager audiences stirred

At welcome tidings of the Kingdom's birth But for a little time. O'er all the eartJi

Think you, so soon, the listening peoples heard .'

Or have we lost our zeal? In times of old

"Thy Word," the Prophet said, "was in my heart

Like to a burning flame I cotild not hold

Till the glad Word fiew speeding like a dart. Shall it be said it had no power to start

Consuming zeal in our hearts blunt and cold?

Great men of God have labored for His cause,

Have suffered, and have died, and known no fear.

So that the knnwledge of His holy laws

Should be proclaimed. Today stands very near A prison "sepulchre" which, "garnished" here

With honeyed words, yet no like witness draws!

What shall we answer to these righteous men When we account for silent week on week?

Wiat shall we answer to the -Master when

He comes His faithful servants again to seek. And finds the Word He gave to us to SPEAK

Lay buried in a napkin until then ?

— Marx Bnrher.

I. B. S. A. CONVENTION

3:30 P. M. — Discourse by Brother W. J. Thorne

Subject: "FELLOWSHIP AND LOYALTY"

13

WE direct your attention, dear friends, to the words o^' the .Apostle John. 1 John 1 :3. .Vnd tlicre he says: "That which we have seen and heard declare wc iinio you, that ye also may have fellowship with us, and truly our fellowship is with the Father and with Ills Sun Jesiis Christ." . . , , . . .

This world's fellowship, dear friends, may be con- sidered in tile light of partnership. I believe the Greek gives that thought, and therefore we could read it like this '*fof we have partnership with the Father and with His' Son, JcsHS Qirisl, our Lord."

The thousht seems to be that during the last six thousand vcars there has been extensive business on the earth. The name of that firm is "Satan and Sons." And I am sure you will all agree, dear friends, that they have been doing a ilourishing business. They have been stih- slituttng the counterfeit for the real thing. They have watched very carefully the workings out of Gods plan and especially along the lines of God's dealings with the Church. Sut it seems that now. especially since 187j, that Satan begins to rcaliie, as well as those with him, that there is a new firm coming into cstistencc, and the name of this firm is to he "Jehovah and Son." And they are goinfr to deal with the things that are true, and arc going to estahlisli the world on a firm basis. There is a great deal ot opposition between these two firms, and evidences are that odds arc very greatly against the old tirm, atid the new firm will become citahlisbed in buiincsi and will never go out of business. The other, hoivever, will have to go completely out of business. We are very glad to see and to know that this is true. Jehovah tells us that at that time "Righteousness will encircle the whole earth, and the "judgments of the Lord will he abroad throughout the wliolc earth, and the pcupic will learn righteousness." Now. dear friends, in a partnership such as sujt^ested in the Bible, we can see how necessary it is that those who are taken into this business with Jehovah and with His dear Son must meet certain requirements. One of the requirements will be lo>'ally to the firm, and to its interests. And if there is any quality that is appreciated by men of the world, it is the quality of lovalty; and we helieve Jehovah and His beloved Son also appreciate loj'alty- "That is what God is looking for in those who are endeavoring, or striving to be members in that won- derful firm which is going to do business on the earth for a thousand years.

"Obeiiaicc" then, in the Bible, is made a very importatit matter. Indeed the Bible even indicates that in God's estimation it is more important than "sacrifice," ^ You know sometimes we are apt lo go to an exlrerne in thinking that God is looking for sacrifice. That is true, dear friends, but the Lord also tells us that "obedience is better than sacrifice." And we have no more faithful e.tample or pattern than our Lord Jesus Himself : and you remember the Apostle, speaking of Jesus, uses these words : "That though He were a son. yet learned he obedience by the thing! which Ho suffered." Isn't that a wonderful statement? Does that statement suggest that at any lime in our Lord Jesus' experience — either in His_ prehuman existence or earthly existence — fie w-as disobedient? No! But it docs suggest the thought that when Jesus was in His pre-cxislcnt state with the Father, it was easy to be obedient because the conditions were perfectly satisfactory". But Ihe Ihouglit of the Apostle here seems to be that it would be harder to tic obedient in the earthly experience when every condition of life was against our Lord: even His dear .\posilcs could not understand Hitn.

Wc find also that on one occasion the Lord even tested their !oy.iky and obedience by saiing something vcrj' sirangc to tbctn. He began to talk to them on one occasion about eating "His flcsli" and "drinking His blood," and He said to them "except ye eat My flesh and drink My blood, ye liave no life in you." We are told

that "many ot tile disciples no longer walked with Jcjui." The thought seemed to be in their minds: "We liave heard enough ! We propose to go no further with you." We think that it affected their materialistic minds, Itclievtng Jesus was teaciun;; them somcihinji iKirti of a cannibalism, "Eat His blood, and eat the flesh? Tliat is enough, we don't wartl to hear any more." So many ceased to "walk with Him." But the ".-Vpostles turned not back." .^nd Jesus turned to ihem and said: "Do ye abo turn away?" They said, "To whom shalt we no. .Master? Tlion Uait tile words of Eternal Life." And altliough they didn't understand any more than the others what His words signified, they stayed by the Lord, and after Pentecost, when the Spirit came lo them and illuminated their minds and gave the significance to the Lord's words, they said they Wfre glad to stay with the Master, They were rew.irded. And so llic Holy Spirit came upon them, and it says they caught the true meaning. And except ii-e appropriate the merit of the sacrifice -inc have no life, nor wit! anyone have any life.

But what a wonderful truth that was! Jesus then was obedient under the adverse conditions, and He learned "obedience by the things which He suffered." He was always lojal lo the Heavenly Father, even unto death, — even the death of the cross. "Wherefore, God hath liiglih- exalted Him and given Him a name which is above every name: that at the name of Jesus, cs'ery knee sliould bow of things in Heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth, and that every tongue confess the name of the Lord Jesus Christ." (Phil. 2:9, 10.)

Dear friends, we will have to learn that same lesson. Every one of Christ's followers and disciples must learn the lesson of implicit obedience to God's will. And when tjod asks fur Ujc human will to be obedient to His laws, He is not asking any more of us than He would require of Himself. What a wonderful God we have! And then you remember, too, that Jesus in the eleventh chapter of Matthew, verses twenty*eight and nine, gives us a vcr>" wonderful lesson when He says: "Learn of me." for I am proud and haughty? No ! It doesn't say anything like that. He says : "Learn of Me for I ara meek and lowly of heart, and ye shall find rest unto your souls."

Arc you ever troubled with pride, dear friends ? Per- haps nearly everj' one of us are troubled with this quality, Perliaps there may be one or two who are not, but I would like to get acquainted with you and find out what you look like. I am ashamed to tell you that I have a good bit of it sometimes. Brother Russell told us at one time that whenever you find that your backbone is straightened out, and you are walking up and down the streets thinkinn you, own the place, then place yostr«icU in a corner and give yourself a good talking to. Did you ever talk to yourself? Try that!

I talk to myself a good many times just as a father would talk to his boy: "Look here, young man, I want 10 have a talk with you. What are you getting proud fthont^ Are you getting to the point that you are so important in God's plan that He can't get along without you? Don't you make any mistake about that. The Lj^rd will carry out His plans just as well without you, and really better, perhaps. You arc really in His way, but He just permits you to have these privileges, not that it helps Him out, but it gi\ei you an opportunity to show your love and zeal,'*

How many mistakes we make! Most everything wc do has so be done over again. When I reason with myself like that I have two ".erscs in Isaiah 40:1.> 17. You wilt find them reading something like this; (Tiic Lord tells us how He regards the nations) "Behotd, the nations arc as a drop in the bucket, and are counted as the small dost of the balance: behold. He takcth up the isles as a very little thing. All nations before Him are as nothing; and they are counted to Him less than nothing, and vanity."

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1. B. S. A. CONVENTION

I thought t coiilit dcscrilw "nothing," hut if I attempt to describe somctliing "Icsi than nothinfi" that would be

Fretty hard. And so I say to myself: "Young nun, if the .nrd louks at the nations that way. and regards ihcm a5 sinall dust, etc, then what are yon? You must be a speck of dust." And I say, "You Httlc speck of dust, don't forKCt that." When I get out of that corner, I feel pretty small. Let us remember that I (Laughter.)

Someone says, "Now, Brother, of course those words apply to Jesus when He was on earth. Tlicy were so appropriate to Him, because He was not exalted at thai time, hut do you suppose that ie is just true of Hiqi today— 'meek and lowly ol heart'?" Tlie Apostle answers the question in these words; "Jesus Christ, the same yesterday, today and forever." (Heb. 13:3,) He is just as meek today. Jesus in His j^lorified state would not think of having His will done in anything. It is not tl>c will of Jesus which is done In Heaven. It is the will of the Heavenly Father.

What did Jesus say? Did He say: "Learn of Mc for I try to please all with whom I come in contact"? Oh. not Jesus could not please even His disciples. And you know that at one time t made a great mistake along that line. I ysed to try to please llie brethren, but I got in bad, and I tried 10 please the sisters, too. and I got in bad. Attd I found out. after careful consideration, that the Lord Himself could not please all the Bible Students. I said to myself. "I( the Lord cannot please them, I don't see how I can." And did Jesus say: "I do always those things pleasing to the disciples"? Oil. no! Jesus did not make any mistake about that. He did some things very dis- pleasinti to them. On one occasion, when He was going up to Jerusalem, He talked about the thinss He was going to suffer, and one of the disciples said ; "Lord, be it far from Thee." What did Jesus say to this man? Did He say, '*! will be very frank with you, you are certainly very wise. I will follow your directions, thank you"? Oh, no! He gave him a very sharp reproof, and said, "Get thee behind me. .Adversar>'." He did not say "satan." That IS a bad translation. And do you know, dear friends, that if our Lord had followed St. Peter's advice, it would have led Him into the Second Death? I think that if some of the advice which is often given by the Bible Students was always followed, would frequently lead to the same place. And therefore, when the friends rome to me for advice i give them as little as I can, I say, "Weil, you will have to think that tnatter over for yourself; you will have to come to your own decision." The time has come when you and I cannot go to the brethren any longer and say, "Brother, whst would you do?" Because after they have told you what they would do, you find out that you will havc^ to do just the way you think best after very careful consideration. The time has come for faith to be estcr- cised. If you go to a brother or sister all the time and follow the advice of each one you are goinjf to be in bad most of the time. More than that, if you followed Brother Smith's advice all the time you would be following Brother Smith instead of the Lord, and you would not be developing the character pleasing to the Lord. You would be another Brother Smith. THAT IS WHAT YOU WOULD BE.

The Lord trants you to be yourself. He does not want you to be any different from what you arc, so far as your individuality is concerned. He wants a variety. He does not want everyone to be the same. By way of illustration; Supposing the Pilgrim brethren were all alike, the friends would get so tired, they would say, 'They are ail alike ; they have the same mannerisms, the same phrase- ology-, etc." But is it not nicer, dear friends, when the Pilgrim brethren are all so dilTerenl? One has one way of presenting the matter, another has still another way, and thus the variety is so pleasing; and that, too, is pleasing to the Father. God wants yoa to he yonrstlf*. not Brother Smith, or Sister Jones.— but YOURSELF. Kceo your own individuality.

Now to show how difficult it is to please the Bible Students, we note the Lord is not trying to do so. You remember the case of 1914: We. as the Lord's people, were expecting the Church to be glorified and the Gentile Times to close. The latter was fulfilled, for in 19U the

Gentile Times did close; but the Church did not pass beyond the vail as expected. Then we also expected that there would be a great deal of persecution on account of the Truth, but that did not occur. And some became dis- appointed, and when 11)18 came, and the very things we were looking for did come to pass, those same Bible Students became disappointed because they did come to pass. Therefore, I have learned this lesson. 'Try to please the Lord just as Jesus did, and then we will have no trouble to please those Bible Students in harmony with the Lord. I can't even please myself. Sometimes I am so disgusted with the things I do; I don't feel able to please myself. I think we all feel that way. The great lesson is, as the Bible says, "God resisteth the proud." 'They are an abomination unto the Lord." (Jas. 4:6; Prov. 16 :5,) .i^nd so we want to be very wise alone these lines.

Speaking of the matter of loyally, our Lord Jesus followed the course outlined for Him. He pursued that course to the very endl He followed the Father's will, and came out all right. So the Lord has given to you and to me a certain course, and if we follow that wc are going to come out all right. We are going to notice, dear friends, that dear Brother Russell, under the Lord's guid- ance and providence, was permitted to organiie the Watch Tower Bible & Tract Society. This organization has been in existence for over forty years and has accomplished the work up to the present time. We do not think or share the opinions with some that the Society is going to be smashed to pieces. We believe there are indications that the Society is going to continue its worlj throughout the .MilEcnnial Age, and wc think there are some Scriptural proofs which will be found in the thirty-eighth anil forty- second chapters 01 Jeremiah. And if you will just study those chapters you will lind that the word "Miipah" occurs there. And it means "WATCH TOWER." It goes on to say, "And they came to Mizpah." If we read the Scriptures aright, we believe there is yet a tremendous work to do for the Church this side the vail. But I think the Lord will not trust us with the great work yet, because if the Truth were to become popular and the millions of people (of the Great Company class) would say, "We find that you have the Truth now. and tlie clergy is wrong." If this iverc to happen, I think Bible Students would get proud abuut it. "We are the only people who are right after all." I suppose not one of us could be touched with a fifty foot pole, if that were to happen now. So the Lord is permitting all ihcsc humiliating experiences to remove from our hearts all pride. There is a lot of it in us yet. It is going on.

Dear friends, the Watch Tower Bible & Tr.-vcl Society is going to be the means or channel the Lord will probably use during the Millennial Age. 1 think it is good enough for us to work on. and il Pastor Rus.scll founded the work under its auspices, I think we can do the same.

You remember the Lord permitted us to undergo a tremendous trial to test our loyalty. When Brother Russell was alive he was so strong that wc would naturally lean upon him. And alt with him were pretty strong char- acters. You would rub up against one another, and say sometimes, "It does hurt, doesn't it?" But the Lord permits these things just to see if wc arc patient And the thought seems to be in our hearts, as wc express it sometimes, "W'htle Pastor Russell was alive everything went along all right." And everything did go along alt right, for he was a very able man and a righteous man, indeed. As we come to understand the Scriptures, dear friends, wc are beginning to recogni:'e this fact.

And lo. and behold, about October 31, IBlfi. the great newspapers of the world annoimccd the fact that Pastor Russell had died- Pastor Russell gone' What will it mean? It will mean that the work will not progress. The Watch Tower will no longer be as it has been in the past. "What shall we do?" We did get disheartened, more or less. Well now, dear friends, have you missed a copy of the Watch Tower yet' No! It is just the same. And then the work continued, loo, and there were some wonderful things done after our dear pastor left us. God raised tjp those noble brethren who came along to eonduct the Society's affairs. Once more we felt en-

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15

couraged. and said. "We are all right." But the Lord permitted somethint; to come to us apin, and these dear brethren have been taken away, and m more or less dis- may, the cry went up, "Now what is going to happen? What arc we going to do?" Dear friends, the work went on. The Watch "Tower publications continued and you have not missed a number yet. .Are they not even getting better all the time? Yes, ittdecd! And we wondered what the lesson was! [ believe, dear friends, if I can read the lesson aright, it is this : that God w^ints to teach us that this great work which the Society is doing is not man's work at a!!. It is not Pastor Russell's work. It is the work of the Lord: and the Lord could use anyone whom He is pleased to raise up. ^„„-,^^ . ,

Tlicrc is an invisible presence. It is CHRIST. And He has been appointed hy Jehovah as the Head over all ihe Cliurch. which is His body, and the Lord would have us remember this more and more, that He i* at the helm directing the affairs of the Society- When our dear brethren were taken away, they went in such a hurry that those who were left in charge said. "It is difficult to bring the ends together." They said to themselves that they were "greenhorns." Wc marvel at the Lord's won- derful providences and arrangements. We are teaming the lesson that she PILOT is our Ijwd, and the good old Ship Zion is not going to be wrecked on the rocks; but rather, that with its pilot on board, it will he hrnnght to its "desired haven." So it is all a lest of our faith.

For my part I have been connected with the Society and its great work for about thirty years and I have not gotten tired yet. And when dear Pastor Russell was alive. I endeavored under the Lord's blessing to he just as obedi- ent to the arrangement as I possibly could tor I recogniied the Lord was back of it all. And then when Brother Russell passed away and the other brethren came in, then I said I am going to be just as obedient and loyal to the Society as when Pastor Russell was here, because ihat would be showing loyalty to the Lord and the friends. Then when they were taken away. 1 said : "I am going to show the same spirit to the other brethren who are put in there, and give them no trouble, or as little trouble as possible. I am going to fall in line with iheir arrange- ments and work with the Society, because it is still the Lord's arrangement," Therefore, I have received a bless- ing. Likewise, if you have done the same thing, yuu have received blessings.

Now wc find that after a while some dear brethren were not pleased with what was going on, so they formed a new society. We are not going to condemn them. This is a free country and there is plenty of room for them, and for all, God forbid that wc condemn. They have ihit privilege if they want to do so, but I for one would not have dared to do anything like that. It is a very daring thing to do. For we know of incidents where men were not pleased with God's arrangements. You remember that it was so with Korah, Dathan and Abiram and his company, "They gathered themselves together against Moses and af^ainst .^aron, and said unto dtem. Ye take too much upon you." And so they rebelled. Y'ou know what became of (hem. You notice how these dear brethren formed this new society and issued a new paper which is very much like the Watch Tow'cr, very deceptive indeed. There is very good reading in it too, but the front of it is not the Watch Tower. It has a very pretty front. It represents a man blowing his horn: and there are several spirits around that also are blowing their horns. It is very suggestive! But if you look at the Watch Tower, you ^vill find there that beautilul illustration of the INVISIBLE PRESENCE. And it tells us plainly it is the Lord behind it .til. I could not think ot a better design than that which wc have on the front page of the Watch Tower,

Dear friends, the Lord is looking for loyalty. Are we going 10 be loyal to Him? As our Morning Resolve sug- gests. "I will neither murmur nor complain at what the Lord's providence may permit, because faith can firmly trust Him come what may." H we remember that Morning Resolve daily, dear (riends, I am sure we will get a great blessing out of il.

In Zech. 1.^:7 we read, "Awake, Oh sworti, against My shepherd and against the war, saycth Ihe Lord of hosts, smile the shepherd and I will turn My hand upon the little ones," Who are the Lord's humble followers? Those who do not think themselves great in their minds, but who like Jesus arc learning more and more to be meek and lowly of heart. Has the Lord turned His hand upon His little ones? Dear friends. duriitK the last year I suppose there never has been in all the history of the Society so many conventions ; nor have the Lord's dear saints been so refreshed before the year 1018,— in spite of the trials and tribulations.

All these persecutions arc for what purpose? To make you and I take deeper root so that we may become grounded in the Truth; so that we will get to the point where the .Xposile intimates wc should : "Be ye steadfast in the Lord, immovable, abounding always." Dear friends, all these things, if rightly experienced, are designed by the Lord for oar hi^tiest good,— for the estaWishmenl in character, and God is going to make us partners to [he fullest extent. God wants those who will stick. He wants those to be loyal : and not be moved. The Apostle warns us in I Cor. 1-1 :20, and also gives us some very good advice. I am going to read it from the Weymouth trans- lation. "Brethren, do not prove yourselves to be children in your minds." What does that mean? The Lord reminds us thai for forty years He has been dealing with us as people, and the Lord would seem to speak to us like this: "My dear people, don't be children any longer, but more matured. Don't be moved about with what one brother suggests to your mind. Come to the point where you may be matured men. Do not prove yourselves to be children in your minds." "As regards evil, indeed, be utter babes, but as regards your minds, prove yourselves to be men of ripe years." "In understanding be men,"^ as Ibe other versions render it. The Lord would have us go over His leadings and providences in the past; and learn to think for ourselves, learn to be men, and under- stand things. Then, dear friends, if wc think for ouisclvcs and go to the Lord prayerfully and commit our ways unto Him, He says He will direct our path and then we won't be shifted about from pillar to post We will think for ourselves.

We want to notice, too, that today Satan, realizing that tlie Xxird's dear people have a better understanding of God's plan than they ever had, is trying to work upon the emotions of the dear friends: and if diey are guided by their feelings on any matter, he will work upon their passions; and then judgment will go, and justice also. We cannot a^ord lo do this. Do yoM remember any'oody who went by their feelings and got left? You will tind that in the Bible. When Ismc went to bless one of his sons, he was guided by feelings to such an e:^tent that he didn't seem lo regard the Lord's dealings. Feeling favoritism toward his elder son, he was going lo grant the blessing handed down from .Abraham. He told Esau to go and prepare him some venison. And in the meantime Jacob and his mother got their heads together and il was suggested that Jacob knew something that would get him the blessing. And so, yon remember how- Jacob was brought into Isaac's presence by Rebecca. She had been careful beforehand to take the skin of the goat and put it around Jacob's neck and around his hands, and then when he came his father said; "Att you Esau?" He sas-s. "Y'es." "It is the voice of Jacob, but the hands of Esati." So the went by feelings and got left. (Laughter.)

You see, it is a very easy thing to go by feeling. The religion of (Thrist is not the religion of feeling. God would have us to use our heads, and common sense.' As the Bible tells us in Isaiah 1:18; "Come let us reason together." What does that mean? Some call it gray matter. Others call il brains- The Lord wants us to use our brains. "Be no longer children, but be men."

Now then, dear friends, if we are not very careful, wc will go by our feelings, and the next thing, we will be trying to steady the ark. Some of the brethren feel titat way about the Watch Tower Bible h Tract Society. Like the literal ark, when they were taking it to its destination it so happened that it tipped a bit as they were transferrins it over the road. There was one instance

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when it actmcd as thoujih it i,vould Sail. Someone aaid, "I vi]]] go and steady h." He did and we know wha.t happened. He wns struck dead. If you and I iraerfcrc witli God's matters to steady ihn arrangements unduly^ wc arc sosng io sufTcr^ pcrh^iljs it will bu an etcrfial loss.

We watit to remember the lesson that God impressed upon Moses' micid when he came to the bnrnins^ bush. Brother Russell suggests the first thing that Jehovah had to do with the man of whom ihe Efbie tells tis was the meekest man of all the earth. Jehovah had to remiuci AEoses ul the necessity of humility by telling him to take off his shoes: *Take off thy shoes from off thy tcct, for the place whtrcon thou stand est Is holy ground." Dc^1^ friends, that is the lesson for you. We are standing on ho\y groncid. and it is well for us to retntmber that. In the Watch Toucr of recent date wt notice the "burning bush" is used to represent God's people in their present earthly e:<perieiices. The bush was not consumed: and the fire would represent the greit tribulations, and great trials through which the Church is passing today. And still it isn't consuTned. Why? Because "God is in the Ttiidsl oi her" i-Vnd so ihu rnort wc realize that, dear friends, the belter Avili it be for us, indeed. Do you not think so? I certainly do.

As we study the matter further wc will get sotnc more help. You rememl^r in Matt. 24:19 we read these words: (I will read from Weymouth) "Many false prophets will rise up and lead rc5ultitu4cs sistray (a$ the Apostle says, "men from amonRSt yoursdves"), because of the preva- lent disregard of God's law, the love of the great majority will gro'iv cold; but those who stand firm to the end shall be saved." In other woi'ds, the Lord suggests Ihat there will come a spirit of lawlcssttcss amongst God's peopEe— that some of the dear brethren would manifrist the spirit of anarchy. Isn't that a sullen test? — That God's people eogld manifest the spirit of anarchy? And any brother or sister who fails to recognise the headship of Christy and who docs not liold to the head, has the spirit of lawlessness; and such individuals, the Bible informs us, will never he. rsn the ni'vine piano with the dear Redeemer. Tt is absolutely necessary that we all act in harmony and thus recognise the prayer of our dear Redeemer: "I pray that they all may be one in us," (St Johit 17:2L) Where does the Lord manifest Hi& headship? At headquarters. And you remember when the Seventh Volume was banned, we were all perplexed whit to doi but the Society said "Stop! We see that this is the voice of the Lordi and find that it is very wise/' So we believe the Lord is still leading the Society and directing in all His afTairs, and we may trust Him implicitly.

Next, we will ttotice Psalms 33;5-[). There the Lord teaches us llic ^rcat lesson of reverence, ",And the Heavens shall praise Thy wonders. Lord: Thy faithfulness also in the congregation of the saints. For who in the Heaven can ije compared unto Jehovah, who among the sons of the niigbty can be likened unto the

Lord." Yoii knoWj dear friends, \vhcn I read anything like this it makes mc tremblCr I tremble at God's VVord. And do you not* Yes! "God is greatly to be feared in the assembly of His saints." fPsa. 89:7.) It is a very solemn hour. You and I are making headway, and later OJi the world is eoitis to look into your history, and going to find out everything ;/ou do. You arc making and determinidg your own destiny. Think before you act to do a thing. Oh, we cannot be too careful, Wc ought to tretnble indeed at God's words^ "for who in the Hea^vens can compart Jehovah/' "God is ffreatly to be feared in the assembly of His peopl*!/' If there wtre more of this there would not be so much electioneering going on. Some of the dear saints are afraid. They haven't learned the lesson yet. T am afraid I haven't learned it as I otiijht. I atn trying lo have the reverence tor God more deeply implanted in my heart. This is my earnest prayer for you and myself.

I think, dear friends, that one of the things that will help us more than anythinj? eUe will bt Co see to it daily that our wills arc completely dead. How important it is! How easy it is aiti>r wc have once made a con- secration to the Lord and submitted our wills, to taike up the will of another. Don't you notice that is illus- trated in the pvramid-' It suggests the individual passes under the granite leaf in order to get into the ante-room and into the King's Chamber, The granite leaf looks

as though It were going to fall right down. And our

dear Pastor suggests that e\'en iifter we have done that. there may be a time when you and I will take up the will of somebody else. Perhaps we will be tollowint Brother Smith, or some Pilgi-im Brother instead of following the Lord. Oh, how careful wc should bc^

And then, as Joshua aaid in his closing days: *'Qioose ye this day whom ye will serve, — but as for me and my house we will serve the Lord." (Josh. 24 :h^.) So let us suggest^ dear friends, that we renew our consecratio[i to the Lord dail^. 1 so often say this. Perhaps sottie of the friends think I have got it on the brain. Eut I see the necessity of the daily renewal of tjonsecration. I have it on the brain, indeed.

Jesus followed the Father's teadingrs. No matter whsfe the Father led he foUowtd. 1-Ie said, "I dqtight to do Thy will, O My God. Yea, Thy law is within My heart." How sweet. No wonder the Father loved Him. and honored Him so greatly. And if you and I will so do the same thin^. do you know, dear friends, the Lord Will honor us, too? J

Won't it be wonderful when the guardian angel intro- duces us to the Master, and to the Holy mgels? Oh, that will be a wonderfu] things !

May the Lord help us all to he faithful and earnest and loyal to the Lord that we will not turn to the right or to the left, but go straight ahead as did Jesus ; and then wc will be £^vfrd, it we endure to the end. May the Lord bless these suggestions to our hearts. \

Brother O. Magnus on

THURSDAY, Fellowship Day, Jan. 2d, 7.30 P, M.

Subject: "GOD'S PRECIOUS JEWELS'*

I AM very plea&ed- indeed to sec so many happy faces here this evening. It gives evidence that you are ImviiiH fellowship, and that fellowship is sweet, because you arq of one mind: For how gan two walk together unless they agree, and the better they agree the better or sweeter the fellowshtn. IVe wish to direct vour attenttoct tonight to God's "PRECIOUS JEWELS"— their Crystalli- sation and God's plan, outlined in the wonderful feature of His purposes therein displayed- You remember John the Revelator was privileged to have a vision of the entire Gospel and Millennial -Vges— the shifting scenes of Church and Slate; and then he pictured at the conclusion of this age that wonderful Heavenly City, that New Jerusalem,

which is so perfect in all its workings — Just like a Hoyai Bride ready to be presented before the altar. And we know nothing could be missing at such an tvent as that, Soj as John on the Isle of Fatmos was privileged to see in vision these things on the Lord's Day, the John Class. Iking at the time of our Lord^s Second Presence, would he privileged to understand the meaninjj of what John saw then. He tells n<: whai he saw hack there, and if you and r bclonpf to the John Class we will Itavc the sweet privilege of understanding the tilings therein written.

The Jirst thinsj the Lord did was to invite St. John to come up on a, high mountain^ aione with the Lord, and to view malters from God's standpoint. If yon and I were

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17

privileged to l>e on a high mountain^ how woukl earthly things appear to us? Would they be very great and en- ticing? Not at lin The higher we would climb on the

mountain the srnnller rhe things be"eath -ivould appoar^. Rivers would appear just like httle rlpijlea, and trees like patches of green; men and women would look like toys. Well, if you and I have taken that high and elevated

standpoint, the earthly things will be jltst as little in our

estimation as things would appear to those high up on the mount:tin top. But if the earthl>- things seem enticing and have a great de^l of tullueiice over us (.b^ks large and great), we are not very high ibp the mountain. We are pretty close to the base because they look so big and so real. But to ihe extentj then, that we are living in the Spirit and have the mind of the Lord, ihe earthly things will app4^ar like soap bubbles— hke toys — which amount to nothing. "Tor (he things seen" the Apostle says, "arc temporal"— they arc transitory, they pass away — but the unseen things tby the literal eye) arc the real things because they are eternal iu duration. He pictures this great Bride class under th« symbol of a city sur- rouLided by a wall having twelve foundations. '*And the foundations of tiic wall of the city H'e^^; garnished with all manner of precious stoneg." "ihe way and order in which they are mentioned illustrates to our mind their importance from God's standpoitit.

Thefts arc. two standpoints, ami unless we get the proper focus on these things wc are apt to miss the lesson. I'or instance, when the Tabernacle was erected they started with the Most Holy first* They covered the Ark within and without with gold, and put it in' then ihe Vail; the Table of Shew Bread; the Candlestick; the Incense Altar and the Vail again. Then they reared up the Court; placed nest the Altar, then the Laver; and last, the Gate. So God started from within, working Out. We start from wJthouT, working in, Xow we wiih to view this from Cod's standpoint

We read that the first stone in this wonderful foundation was

jASPF.a> Why 50?

What is the first and most impor- ^ — ^ tant thing for tis to know? It 15 ' about God, Con- sequently the Revelator in the 4th chapter of Revelations pic- tures Jehovah God and likens Him unto a. /bj- pcr sioy.i. ''And He that sat (upon the throne) was to look upon like a jasper stone/' and the light of that wonderful Being whs like the light ot a jasper stone most precious. Then Jtihqvah God \s the ttiost imiiortanx Being in the uni- verse. "God first T That is what wc have learned I That is the foundation of everythitig; because if we would omit God from the plan there would not be anything to it. So God is "first.-^ and He is like unto a jasper stone. Xoi that Jehovah God literally looks like a jasper stone, but there is something about ^bat stone that reminds the John Class of God. Now luT us see to what extent that is true. W'e have been told that the jasper stone crystalliies if properly cut to a shape of a pyramid— as it one is standing on top of the other— base to base. It is a green tinted diamond— the hardest substance known. It has eight sides, but four arc visible ai all times : no matter how you turn that stone you can sec four sides. But whiever one o\ tkese sides appears the laTL'est depends upon how you liold the stone. It says, this looks like Jehovah to the John Class in that this stone had us own l>ase. And it suggests to our minds that Jeho- vah IS sell -sustaining. He does not depend upon any one for Mis e.tistencc- He is the Great "I Am"l~rurtherrnore it is a j?rcen-tinted diamond— the hardest substance known— His Iiie IS what? Inherent life! The highest: kind of everlast- mg hte kniJWn. which ■^vc term immortality "green" — ever- lasting liiul Jehovah God has four attributes prominently

brougVn to our attention in His Word: Justice, Wisdom^ Love and Power. .-Vnd otie of these attributes when it takes the lead seems greater and larger; whereas the other three

are merely in uciison,— 'backirtj? the other up, m it were. Let us sec: For instance, when God condemned Adam to death the prominent side of God which was brought to our view was justice. Justice condemned man to death; but did love oppose? .\o ! Did wisdom or power oppose? No I They were in unison. However, justice took the leading part. The others were passive.

You turn the stone again and you see God from another standpoint of His attributes: What do we find? His love is more extensive than his justice, for He brings to our attention that "He so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Sott." Do we find justice in that attribute of love? Yes E Power!* Ves! Wisdom? Yes !: But love seemed the greatest at lliat time, and the other three seemed to be passive, — not doing anything. We realize what a wonderful love that was; — th* unspeakable gilt! X'ow then, God did not spare His only begotten Soui but gave Hitti freely for us all; and therefore love was very prominent at that time —the most prominent of all. His love was just as great as His justice. Love trinmphcd over justice! It found out how God could maiTitain His just decree and at the same time do someihing for His creatures.

We turn the stone again and have another side just as grt.'?it : Here we have power brought to our attention. And sure enough, friends, we realize and appreciate that won- derful power when God took that glorious Being, the Logos, and transferred Hitn from the spiritual plane to the human plane, and then allowed Him to grow up to manhood, consecrate Himself; and then translcrrcd Him from the human plane to the Divine plane aiid never lose His identity. That took a woi^derful power. But then He tells us He will remember all the human race who, have died from Adam down to the present time, every one oi these, except the witfuUy wicked, He will reproduce: some on the spiritual plane, some on the Divine pbiie and some on the perfect human plane. He will resuscitate them all and never niakc a tni stake. Isn't that wonderful? tn that act of His power ihein^ do we sec justice, love and wisdom.? Ind<ied we doE But tiot until the end of the millennial age, when God has been made known to His creatures, will His wisdom shine forth. And at what time from Creation will that be' That Aviil be on the eighth day. Oh, yes.f that 5tone did have BICHT SIDES i Therefore On the eighth day Jehovah will have displayed all His lov- ing attributes to His creatures, and all will know Him as tie really should be known,

A s that ston e had t wen ty- f ^u r angi e s — i o te rsecting perfectly — so therefore, God is pleased to make Himself known to His creatures through twentj'-four prophets and their particular utterances. And as these angles intersect perfectly, likirwise these twenty-four prophecies are in perfect harmony. That is a description of Jehovah God,— that Grtat "I Am 1" No wonder thtu, that that should be the foundation of that wonderful wall of the new Jerusa- lem. "Jehovah First?"

^'aturally we would expect that the next stone should bring to our attention the next thing in order. And so it does ! After we learned about Jehovah Go[l, we say where does that K^cat BeirtR: live.^ ^Vhere is His abode? So then the next stone brings that thought to OEir attention. The sec- ond foundation stone wfls a sapphire. It is blue sprinkled with gold dus^T and crys- tallizes on twelve sides, You look at that stone and see that it is hltie, sprinkled with gold: It invites com- parison to the heavens, Atid sure enough, you remember "God brought him forth abroad, ai^d said. Look now to-

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ward heaven, and tell the stars, tf (hou he able to number them: and He said unso him, so shall thy se^rd be." Let us see if the Bible speaks of this. In Exo. 24 :10 we read: "And they saw the Uod of Israel; and Uie place under Bis feet as it were a paved work of sapphire stone, and as it were the body of heaven in clearness." There he briiijis to our attention that fael ! And in Eztk. 10 :1 we read : "Then, I looked, and behold, m the firmament that was above the head of the cherubim there appca,red over them as it were a sapphire stone, as the appearance of the likeness of a throne/' Also in Exek. 1:36, we read: "And above the firmament that was over their heads was ihc likeness ot a throne, as the appearance of a sapphire stone: and upon the likeness of the throne wag the likeness of the appear- ance of a man above upon it/*

These Scriptures are ample proof to us that as this stone was second in order in this great and wonderful wall of Jerusalem, it brings to our attention Jehovah's abo^e- His thron^c is ruling over His creatures, and these stars represent wliat? The heavenly bcinffS. And twelve sides: Oh yesj the muUiplc of twelve is the Little Flock. Yes, it is just composed of a multiple of twelve heavenly beings. Is God faithful to that class? "God is faithftil!" Not that He was, or will be faithful, but it is always in the presenl tense. Has He been faithful to you and me? Oh yes! wc can, like Joshua, look back and say, "Not one of all God's promises have failed." And now remember that this class^ the little fiock, is represented as having the same characteristics as that stone. So that the same faithfulness that Jehovah has towards all His heavenly beings wUl like- wise be manifested to all olh^rSn You remember Abraliam's seed was to he all those who will eventually receive life on any plane. So then, "twelve" represents also the earthly seed, the twelve tribes of Israel. In Psalm 47 :9t wc read: ''The nobles of the people arc gathered together, to be with the people of the God of Abraham, (Leeser's translation.) Then we all arc accounted as children of Abraham, It means what? Faithfulness. Isn't that a charatterlstic that He wants you and me to develop? Oh yes. If you are ever to be in that class, that is one of the things we nmst de- velop more and more— full of faith; be wtlling to trust Him where we camiot trace Him. To know God's wiH ! What does that mean? U I want to find God's will, friends. I can never find that out as long as my will is running strong, because then if I want something myself, I never can mid out GckI's wilt. I will have to be passive first and then watch the Lord's leading, and by so doing, I will fmd out the Lord's will. But if I am determined to have a thing myself^ all I am looking for then is to have the Lord put His O. K. on my will, and then wy, "Lord, that ta your will," and you know vtc are so apt to do that. Let us re- member the Lord is guiding; His people today just as surely as He has done in the past. Just look for the Lord's prov- idetitial leadings, and we don't need to he concerned or worried about God's purposes and plans ; not for one minute. We can fully trust In the Divine providences in all our affairs.

If we have learned about that — (God's glorious throne ruling over all), the next thought will be God's kingdom- OK "f that same kind of rule wilt bK manifest on earth (because wc learned about His wonderful home) we would like to have him dwell here. Why then all this exertion? Why, away back there He told us about the time when all the lamtlics of the earih would be blessed by the means of that wonderful kingdom* and tils disciples were tctught to pray, '^Thy Kingdom come. Thy will be done on earth as it IB done in heaven,** And do you know that is just exactly what the next sione brings to our attention? Chaki'douy! h also rrystallixe* very- peculiarly. It is green in color and

it has twelve^ as well as twenty-four sides, and each side has five angles— ^twelve, twenty-four, five— blending in color. You see we are getttn;; our graduation lessons now. Wc should get away from our A, B, C*s. We have learned from God's glorious plan tha( it i$ going to be a kingdom composed of two phases. Two kinds of seed — one like unto the stars, and the other like unto the sands of the seashore, (Twelve here and twelve there.) And then what kind of a kingdom is it goinc to he? Why the color is green. Wkit does that stand for? Everlasting life. It is going to be an everlasting ksngtlom. How? Well, there were four uni- versal empires: Babylon, Medo-Persia, Greece and Rome, and the ncNt will be the fiitli empire. Sure cnoush it has five angles. So as you look at it from each phase, it was five in number. And it was green I And it had twelve and twenty-four sides. So in that way He is silently telling His children — the John Class — there is going to be a two-phased kingdom working in perfect unison. It is going to be established under the whole heavens for the purpose of blessing all the families of the earth. And it is not going to pass away liki: the foitnLT ones, but is guin^ to be »n everlasting kingdom, and it is going to continue, for the race is goinR to be brought to perfection, and Jehovah, and His representatives — the Christ — will have full charge of the heavenly phase of the kingdom, and full charge of the earthly pbase of the kingdom, for the purpose of extending blessings to all. And this is to last in duration— everSasting. Never again will it be necessary to review ihe past and present scenes of earth. So 'we are glad to know of that wonderful kingdom.

Next in order will be what? Well now, how is this class going to get their development. Who are they? Where do they come from? Ob, the stones tell us God's eternal parpose. He purposed to have what? A reigning and ruling class for the purpose of bringing to perfection out of this condition of affairs the whole human family. And He calls our attention to the class of people from which He is griing to r.ill rh<'fn and the steps rhey must take in order to gain that position. And then, when they get There what arc they going to do? Well, the next stone is an emerald. You re- member in the fourth chapter of Revelations Jehovah is sp'okcn of a.s being encircled by a rainbow* round about the throne, in sight like unto an emerald. And the general color was ijrEen^ If you and I were up in an airplane when a rainbow was visible, we would find a Dcrfect circle. And you know that a rainbow was a guarantee to Xoah and his family that another flood would never appear. God's covenant Jo them by means oi the bow was a guarantee of the blessings to follow, God covenanted what? To have a seedj so perfect that He will be able to accomplish all that He covenanted to do. As that rainbow had seven colors, and in general color was green, what docs that mean? Well now, here it was an emblem of peice. What kind of peace does God have? W'hy He had no beginning, and no end, consequently His peace had no beginning and no end. It was a perfect peace, and ever- lasting in duration. Now that i^ what is going to be brought about. The nations today are looking for peace, but wc are vcO' much afraid they will have a grtoti many pieces be- fore peace will come. (Laughter.) \\'bcn Cod's Kingdom comes, it will be an everlasting, perfect j^ace for all His creatures.

Now this class is going to be tried in everv" way. You look at that stone and yoti will find it crystallizes on six sides. It was six-sided, Vou lay the stone down (long

/. B. S. A. CONVENTION

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wnys) : what do yoa find? Four lines. Set those lines like the chart, and they line up perfectly: Mankind is standing on the plane of eon dem nation. The first step is justifica- tion by faith. Tlie second step is vitalized consecration — or spirit bcKftting, The third step is spirit birth. The fourth step is glorification. Sure enough, there is going to be four steps through which this class is to pass.

As this stone has six sides, it brings to our attention that ihii class has come from an imiierfcct race six - the number sue standing for impericction— incotnpletencss. And by means of four steps (divinely arranged), they will be able to reach the top of the ladder— "glory, honor and itn-

You turn the stone up and down: What do you find? Tbrct: sections t The chart brings to our attention three worlds: ^^Tlie world that tvas. The present evil world. And the world to ionu\" In the "world to come" this class, havinti rt-achcd that glorious condition^hoscn from that imperfect race, will be able to extend blessings to all the fcimilJcs of the earth, because they are taking the same vjewtioinl as God. They have the same kind of peace that the Heavenly Father has : To the extent that you and I can fully and truly believe God and enter into lus promises, to that extent will we have perfect peace' for he says. *'l will keep him iti perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on thee, because he trusteth in thee." (Isa. 2li :3.) So then to the extent of our trust, to that same extent will he our peace. When wc have lost our peace you see we. have been looking at something else — haven't wc? Yes! He says: "I will keep him m perfect peace ■ ■ ■ bi^ausc he trustclh in thee." Therefore, if we 'are not kept in perfect peace it is l>ccau&c our mind* have been elsewhere. We have been disturlicd alwut something else. You should not look at the elements as St. Peter did. because that is the time wlicn wc beRJn to sink. Wc look at the present ditficuUies in the wortd, atid the Church* ctc,» and say: "What does this mean?" Satan says; "You >ec that great big cloud over there I That is coming fur youT* Yes* but it is goini; to break blessings over your head. That is the way it is if we just trust God.

Now this ston^/was inclined to cling tenaciously to the dross while undeJthe cutting process. It would, therefore, require a great ffeal o^ heating in order to remove that dross; which shows that if we tenaciously hold on to these earthly natures and desires it may spoil us as stones in that wall, and we will have to take a Ics-^cr place or go with a greater company. So then. He brings to our atten- tion the class He is choosing and the steps that must he taken to obtain the prize.

In the next stone He brills something else to our at- tention: The filth stone was a Jiardtinyx. This illustrates the cardinal virtues necessary in order to be able to be fitted for that place in the Kingdom. The ancients claim that the true sardonyx stone was straight, with a black base, a white centre, aud a red surface. Black represcnia what? Humility] Do you think we need that? Well, i( wc do not have humility as the very foundation of our car- dinal virtues we will become tophea-^-y and lose out. Humil- ity is the essential principle, and Brother Russell has called pur atttniion to this; Tiut it is more necessary than "abil- ity. ■ Tt matters not how well wc arc able to express Ood*s fnirpQscs and plans, if we have not the proper kind of bu- mihty It is troing to take us somewhere before God gets LhrouRh with us. But humilitv must have another virtue, ind that is purity. Why? (Chastity!! They must alt be rirgms at heart, .^nd not only that. He brings the fed to fiur attention, which represents sacriHee! Martyred: willing lo spend and be spent in Gods service. Those are the three cardmal virtues, .^nd this sardonyx stone ivas used for Signets and cameos. Oh yes, inscriptions were made on this fctone and various imaecs were engraved upon it. What ^°" V 1"'* stiRKest? The character development of this class. The l^utd is working on that class whom He is m- kfiting to 3 hiKh station and if we have these three virtues horoughly ir^ heart and mind He will be able to carve the nscriptinn-His own— and the image of our T-ord. So Ihcn, It js not only putting it into the heart, but cutting tt riRht in. It IS not as if vou would write something on a itouc which might be easily rubbed olT. Xo, it is cut in !

It will stay! So wc have the image of our Lord and otir Heavenly Father cttl into our very actions, so that wc might say, like D.ivid; "My hrart is fivrd," U otir heart fixed — determined, that "come what may," we will be loyal to the Lord? Whatever cutting there is to he done, it is going to bring out the image of our Lord: so "wc are be- holding as it were in a glass the JmaiiC of the I^rd," we are changed from glory to glory, as by the spirit of the Lord,"

After this class has reached its perfection of character what arc they going to do when they get up there? Well, we used to think we were going to sit on a cloutl and play a harp throughout all eternity. We wondered sometimes how monotonous that would be. But we thought of others that would share the same thing, and concluded we could stand it if they conld, and it would be aH right. But the next stone shows what they are there for. .\nd it says, the sixth stone is a sardius. That was the ancient precious stone— the stone upon which they did all their engraving. It looks like raw Aesh! And Jehovah is likened unto the sardiifs stone. Whyi* He has the human family here to whom f'^e made promises too. They were smitten in Adam, and nearly everything which originally existed was wiped ouL Kow, He says, there is going to be a day when that class is going to have that image put in their heart, and written in their very being. The class who have gone through the very same experiences would be the most suitable ones to assist the human family in restoring that image back again. So, then. He is not going to forget His earthly creatures. No indeed! He says, "Can a woman forget her sudcing child, that she should not have compassion on the son of her womb? Yes. they may forget, yrt will T nnt mrget thei-,** He will never fofgcl those lost in Adam but redeemed by Christ. He is going to show in that WORLD'S BIRTH- D.AY how the original image will be put back into their hearts and make the very character that .-Vdam had before the fall. That will keep us busy, won't it? Yes! Let us be faithful. This Is what John saw!

The seventh stone would also briiirc to our attention the next thing in order. .After wc have learticd about Jehovah's wonderful character and His universe: His kingdom; the development and call of this class; and their character de- velopment, and the human race perfected what would we next sec? We would see God's wonderful wisdoni theieiu displayed. How?' Sure enough the dtrysolyic stone (the seventh in order) which was a golden stone, tinted with green, and ver>' transparent. We read in James ,1:17, "But the wisdom that is from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, easy to be entreated, full of mercy and good fruits, wiUiout partiality, and without hjijocrisy." And you re*' member in Ezek. 1:IC, it reads: "The appearance of the wheels and their work was like unto the color of a beryi** lio-wcvci'y this should read; "the (hrysotyif." because the description ol that stone answers perfectly, arKl **they four had one likeness and ibeir appearance anti their work were as it were a wheel within a wheel." In other words. G&d's wisdom is displayed in that wonderful plan; Age lapping over age — perfectly showing His wonderful wisdom: "that known unto God arc all f-lis works, from the foundation of the world.'* So that is the iiofdi-n stone, showing God's mar- velous wisdom displayed in His wonderful character which He has shown forth.

After we sec these wonderful things, lie ffocs over the ground more thorous^bly as to how the world of mankind will reach human perfection! .-Vnd by what means' Or, what is going to l>e use<l?

The cigh.^h stone was a beryl. That is a wonderful stone loo; It is also of a blnish green color. It has sixty-iis sides — two ends and six larger si^cs around the stone — on each end there are four diamond points: four on this end and four on the other end. and alternating throughout the stone. Five diamond points on one side, next eight, and next five, 2n<l next eieht, etc, — sfoincr around that stom^. Thjit illus- trates what? God's Word. For what does the Revelator say? "In that day the books are jioing to be opened." To whom? The world of mankind. They a'rc going to be on trial for life ! Xot the kind of a book you and I were form- erly told would be opened to the world, i. c, when the Churrh is glorified they are going to heaven for a thoniand y*an and arc going to open the books to sec whether they

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wCrs kept straightn and while the wotIiI is in that chaotic condition^ and Sats" strolling around (nol a living thing on tht cartii for a thousand years )j at the ciiid oi that lime they will liive finished look- ing over the books atiil of course they will put their 0. Vi upon tht^m and call forth billions and EyII them that God kept His books straijjht and "you must go back to where you came from," That was man's llieory, X'ay, it was a theory o£ a svoman and not of a man. But thai is not chc ki(id oi a book that is to be opened. It is God's books that will be optncd. AI! of them in fact I Yfts, siKty-siic books of the BibEeJ And when those books are opened to the world of mankind, wh^t will they learn? They will find it has two Testaments: the Old and the New. Yon will find God's four attributes mentioned in the Old Testament and the same in the New Testament. So» therefore^ each cad had four diatnojid points: It illus- trates that God's attributes will be displayed to mankind through the Old and New Testament. And as we study alongr what do we find? There were six thousand vears of man's suffering:, and during; this time God, in Kis Wordf has promised a Kingdom^ Fine! And by means of that King~ dom the whole race of mankind is going to be made per- fect. When? In the eighth day. For in the type you remem- ber they were circumcised on the eighth day — representing the circumcision of the heart — pertcetionn So by means of the Kinsfdoni the human family will reach perfection in the eighth thousand year day, and God's attributes will be dis- played to them. They will understand! Yes^ indeed! And they will discover that just like the Color of the stone, which wa-S blue and green, representing faithfulness — from first to last; and also everlasting perfection— brought about beeause of that, not that the Bible will be the entire source of information, but it wil[ verify the liistor>' of the six thousand years. For instancei it says: "Ji»Ioreover the light of the moon shall be as the light of the sun, and the light of the sun shall be sevenfold, as the itght of seven days, in the day that the Lord bindeth up the breech of His people, and healeth the stroke ol their wound." What does He mean by that? At that time the Old Testament Scrip- tures will be just as plain to mankind as the plain state- ments of the Gospel. "And the Gospel light," will be just like "seven suns'* — perfect life. Why? Because of the light of the seven days— seven thousand years. And if they question anything^ they have the living actors here atid can find out just eisactly what these things meann Thereforeh they will not need to read and ponder about Enoch. Some one says: *'Enoch, 1 want to know where you have been] I don't believe that statement in that book." And Enoch will be right on the scene, and will ?ay, ''I can tell you where I have been." Which would they rather do, read the record about him or have a talk with him? Well. I would rather |iave a talk with him. Furthermore, "how about Xoah and the ark? We have been reading about that," but when they have a talk with Noah it will he made perfectly plain, won^t it? Yes E Also about Jonah and tiic whale. Some one will say, "1 don't believe that, Jonah! Tell us about that: Did you swallow the Avhale. or did the whale swallow you?" So it will be opened up so perfectly E Why? Because there are the living actors corroborating the Scriptures, How many mftdels will there be then? None] How many higher critics? None! They will l>e lower critics then. But in studying God's Word, what wilt they find? They will discover that there is a solution. Ami in this they will discover also God's benevolence to His creatures.

The next and ninth stone—a topaa— was also green. It

tiad twcnty-si.'; sidesi Well now, the two pliases of the kingdom atid the whole earth will be perfected under the figure of twelve — heavenly, and twelve earilily: But here we have twenty-six? Yes, but there is goin^ lo be a class that has been ruiming for the high calling who will lose out in the second death. And you will alsn find a class among the human race who will go into everlasting death— destruction— for in the sixty-sixth chapter of Isaiah and twenty-loitrth verse, we read: "v\nd tliey shall go torth. and look upon the carcasses of tho men that have trans- gressed against me: for their worm shall not die, neither shall tlietr fire be quenched; and they shall be an abhorring unto all flesh." They will recogciize the justice in God's plan, and also God's benevoles^ce even towards these: Yes! So the plan will reveal to them that there will be some that Mrsit bt: lost.

.'\nd after we see that, next in order, would come the tench stOEie, the cftrysapmsus, \\b3t does that illustrate? Constant^ cheerful endurance. That stotie is yellow and green, and it has a cloudy c^ect. It is very hard and in trcquetitly cloudy^ due to microscopic cavities. What does that mean? The stone is hard and is capable oi en- during hardtK'SS. It wit! show God's cheerful endurance. He never lost His temper once- That will reveal God to ihem as they never have had God revealed to them be- fore. They will $ee in it all God's long suffering — His endurance — and also that class will have that same char- acteristic. When the clouds of trouble come, it will onl. make them more firm, more determined to do the Lord's wiEL

So, then, dear frietidSj it isn't ^e trials that you and I have, but it is the way we meet our trials, that will deter- mine where we are going to be. For the same trial that will make one fit for the kiiigdont, will make another one sub- ject to the second death. Would you say the trial did it? Not at all [ It is the way they met the trials. They both grow: That is true! And one grows sweet and the other sour. They both grow you see, Due to what? One class, in every experience in life is endeavoring to learn the les- son in the trial, and the other class is looking for somebody for which to shift the blame. And the one who looks for the lesson^ the trials become stepping stones all the way along: but the one who looks for some one to shift the blame upon, the trials become stumbling stones all the way along. That is just exactly what Adaicc did. You remem- ber God said: "Adam, why did you take of the forbidden fruit :'^ Adam said' "I am sorry but the woman you gave me asked me to do so. You know I got along very nicelyL and by the way she is a gift from you — consequently it is really yotir fault." So you see he shifted the blame on hij wife and God. God turned to Eve and said, "Why did you do that? I told you to be a help-mate to .\dam." Did she say, "i am sorry"? No] She said, "The serpent be- guiled me," But the serpent could not ,speak for himself^ and had to take all the blatne. It takes more courage V say, "that was my fault" than it would to jive a wonder- fu! discourse. Why: Becau.ic of self I So in these trials they will either fit us for the Kingdom or make us un* suitable for the Kingdom — cither one or the other. You cannot blame the trial on your wife neither Can she blame the husband. You cannot blame anybody but yourself.

We don't want to do like the little school boy. Th« teacher found that some of the scholars were inattenti to their lessons. Therefore, she ihoughtn "Now, I will 5« if I cannot in some way direct them." And so she said, "Now children, if you find anybody looking oft the book^ I will be very pleased indeed if you will tell me about thai boy or girl." And so there wa* a little fellow who said to himself r "1 don't like Johnny Smith very well; if I see him look off his book I will tell the teaclicr/* And sure enoui^h John Smith looked off his book^ and the little fellow marched up to the teacher' and said: 'Teacher, Johnny Smith looked ofl his hook f" The teacher replied: ''Indeed! And were your eyes on your book when you saw him?" So they all had a laugh on him. and he hannched his head and marched hack to his desk, disappointed. So then when we are attending to somebody else's affairs remember \y are neglecting our own every time. And I tell you. tViends. the more we learn to attend to our o^vci affairs, the hettei

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for all conecrned. Tell your troubles to Headquarters. Von can put all the complaints you want there, aud tell the good things to the irieodsr That is a good rule by winch to follow, Vou will never have any trouble tiie]i, and no misunderstaiidiiiLf will occur if you do that.

So then in all these various exncrjences this class Is doing w[i:iir Enduring hardness as good soldiers of Jesus Christ.

The next and eleventh stone is the jacinth: That is a wonderful stone: It crystallizes in many wutiderfnl ways. The stone itself is colorless, but the blue is distributed in patcnes. And it looks like — you might say — sonietliing round-poisitcd at each end. It is a sjx-sided pyramid. So there is a pyramid at each end. It has insets just like the shape of the stone. That stone has been called "uiKhaniEfeable- ness." Why? Well, let us see : After the world has learned about God's wonderful character, and all L4is creatures have been brought to per- fection^ they are to liave what? They are gomR to have a grand review of the pian: All heaven and earth — all His creatures are ^oing to be brought [offether iit one. fherc will then be a great rehearsal. A first drama: and j;ou will eJipect to find somethini^ like that in that stone. And that is just what we find. If you lay the stone down this way (long ways) it arches from point to point, it has J pyramid at each end. \ye thus learn what? In God's tyeat purpose from the time of Adam's creation to the en f of the millennial age, ymi wi[E find the drsma of enrth. You will find a pyramid in one end at that time — the man Adam. And you will find another one at the other end — the -Man Christ Jesus. As Adam brought imperfection— sin^ sLs-sided through his disobedience — Christ Jesus^ by means of His loyalty blotted this imperfection out of existence* And you will find the three worlds pictured there; three tngets and three harbors. You turn the stone up this way (lonjcr ways) you will have the same four steps to glory as you found in the other stone.

And these patches of blue in the 5tone> when properly cut, ^ive Color to the whole stone. So likewise, in prop- erly mtcrpreting the ages and purposes of God^ it brings harmony out of al! these wonderful things which seem to indicare, for the time beings that God was changeable Kim- self. However, God is unchangeable if we properly inter- pret the matter. It brings out God's glorious plan from start to finish, and you see then what a wonderful Being our God is,

\\t\\, now we have the grand review — remembering this is just the way St. John sees it. This is what the John class see. You say: "Well, where did you get it from? Did you get it up here (pointing to bis head) r" Not a bit ot jr. The Lord had a servant hcr^, who w.^s faith fnl in S'^''"S (5ut the proper allowance of food at the right time. Therefore, the twelfth stone was the amethv-st. It was J"^^ I>H^ The Jasper stone, having a base to base: but it was three-Sided, instead of four-sided, ft is called a royal stone.

There is a legend about the amethyst, that if any one drank wine from an amethyst cup they would not become intoxicated. We do not know if that is true, but we do know this: that ihts cup which that servant poured — six volumes of Scriprurc J , ,. Studies— did not make

us drtmk. did It. ^ Vou can drink all vou hkc from tnat cup and [ leU you it kept us sober all right. It 15 a royal stone. It is, in color, violet bordering on pur-

ple; composed of a strong bine and a deep red: So the:i it is that royal color— loyalty to tlic ransom. Oli yes, we used to think we were only hobbyists on the ransom, but that is our iiixTin doctrine, and like a scarlet thread, it runs through ail the doctrines: Loyalty to Christ and the heavenly Father, and otie another, and loyalty to Uod's purposes and plans, and to His children atid all.

Now noie: Who was it that showed the Jolm class these things? Rev, 21:^1; "And there came onto me one of the seven angels which had the seven vials full of the seven last plagues, and lalked with me, saying. Come hither, I will shew thee the bride, the Lamb's wife." Then He showed him a beautiful woman? Oh tio ! He showed him that new Jerusalem. Which volume was it? It was one of those seven. It was the seventh volume which was used to ex- plain that cit^ to you and me, the details of whieh we now have the privilege of understanding. Don't you sec that it was that stone— the summary of all contained in those volumes put toseth^r, which is the cup? Yes I

^\ c want to talk to yon about the pcari. It is a devel- oped stone. The pearl is unlike all other Jewels. But this pearl was developed. Now^ we sec the reason why the little flock in a particular sense is likened unto the jewels: In Matt, l3:4o, 46; "The Kingdom of Heaven is likened unto a merchant man seeking goodly pcarl,'^, who, when he had found one pearl of great price, went and sold all that he had, attd bought It/' We al! recognize who that was f Our Lord Jesus came down here on carih and sold all He had to piirclrase the pearl— the pearl being the Church. Yes, thrLt is iSe most precious of all. Now you know the heav- enly beings are like these precious stones, for even Lucifer in his perfection is said to be a preciou$ stone of "thin covering."

What about the pearl? Are they made that way? No, tliey arc developed. How? In the oyster shelly by means of a foreign substance coming into that shell the oyster is throwing one coat or layer over this foreign substance: Thus layer aftef la}'er is put on, and it is so thin that it cannot be discovered by the naked eye. and these layers with thousands of angles: and with all the colors of the rainbow. As a result of the oyster putting on layer after layer, the pearl is developed, until it is just simply reflecting all the rays of the sun^ the rainbow and the light. As the rays oi Hght surround it, it transmits a marvelous beauty. You sec the picture: If wc think we are somebody, just remember we are likened in this picture to an oyster, and it has about as little brain as anything alive. But this foreign substance Uiat conies into contact with the oyster is what? The new creature— the new mind. It is not something of the old mind at all. It is the new mind, and what are wc to do with this new mind? Develop it. HowP "Precept upon precept, line upon line, here a little and there a little." (Isa. ^;I3.) And just put one layer on after another: What for? That we might get the knowl- edge, and thus have wisdom. And since the Lord has fur- nished us with the knowledge and we arc feasting upon God's wonderful promises and it develops in us rightly we will receive of that pearl-like quality. Do we see then the reason why the great company class could not be likened to pearls? They fail to apply what the Lord has provided in the way of food. They are not putting over the layers. but are allowing something else to take their attention and thus do not become pearls.

Now then the gates of that wonderful wall of the city you remember was jost pearls. We sec then why the little fiock IS likened unto pearls, and likened unto gates. And the great company shall enter through the gates. They will not become gates. Why? Because they will not become pearls, Tlierefore, if you and I hope to be of that pearl class, you see what wc need to do. We must make use of all the good things the Lord has provided in His Word for that class; and if we do so, friends, wc will develop that pearl-like ([uality. If we do not, and eat only of the leaner foods we will he lean in character. Therefore, may the Lord bk-rs us with a gr^iter defermination that we will have all those quaEities '.ere pictured as being in that wall in that new Jerusalem class, and thus hear, eventually, the "Well done." Amen!

n

L B. S. A. CONVENTION

Friday, 2:30 P- M., Discourse by Brother T. Toujian Subjects "CHRISTIAN UNITY''

WE art very ebd ta Ijc with you, dear brctliren. Wc t>ntig Id you the greetings of iht; friends ol n^aiiy phtt^s ori the way. They wanted to be with you. Tlicy all iiiay lliat Uiij couvcutton may bft a success. And wc btlitve it is, l\\ harmony with our subject we call your atlcntSon to ?S£Lhn \2ti: "Eehold how good and how pleasant it [s for brethren to dwell together in uttity. It is like t!ie predous ointment uyon the hcad^ that ran down upon the beard, even Aaron's begird: that went down to the skirts of his garment. As the dew o^ Hermou, and as the dew tiiat descended lEpoit the mauntains o^ Zionj for ihcre the Lord commaitdcd the blessing — even life for evermore.''

In the midst of this great comnrotion, tribii Litton, dta- trcsSj revolution^ war, unrest, indeed it is the hardest proposition to "dwell logether in unily." However, it is possible if wc have the power. What power? "Not by might, nor by (human) power, bnt by My spirit, saith the Lord o( hosts." (Zeth. 3:4.) It is by the power of the Holy Spirit that we can dwell in unity; and those who remain faithful to the end. keeping tiie Christian unity, arc moro than conquerors ► They will shine mosl briiliantly in the Kingdom,

The Lord has a wonderful place for those who will remain faithful to the end and become the last members of the body of Christ, Otir Lord Jesus said^ "He that reapeth, receivqth W3}*es/' (John i'MJ)

Now, dear friends, that we have gone so far in this narrow wayt shall we stop, or go ahead? I say, by God's grace we wi31 ^o ahead. "Wc arc not of them who draw hack unlo pordction, but of them that believe to the saving of the soul/' (Heb. 10:39.) That is what wt expect of each one this afternoon. We expect that every consecrated dbild of God will strive to make his calling and election stire, and attain that wonderful Kingdom which the Lord promised on^y to ihc ovtrcomers.

Oh, what a "hi^h calling" we have. How high? "Higher than the heavens." "Eye hath not seen, nor car heard ', neither have entered in the heart oF man tht things which God hath pr^^pared for them that love Him." (Tsa.

64:4; I Cor, S, 9.)

Do you think for a moment that wc will draw back? ■^'o, wc will not. However, as today is a day of "exami- nation/' we want to examine ourselves to see if we have in our hearts the spirit of Christian unity or not.

You know people at large are governed by sentiment, Thfi world is guided by leaders, by influences. Tliercforc, today they are for, and tomorrow they are against certain propositions. You know how it was a little while ago; when you talked about "peace" they put you in jail. Now^ whiirt ^ou talk about T.var, they will put you in jail. WhaL

is the matter? You know why! Why? Because they are governed by seiitiment»—*'wi shy-washy," that is aEI. But to us, there is one God; one Christ; one baptism: one principle. War or no war, it doesn't make a bit of difference. You cannot change a man who is governed by printiplCr

^tow there are principles that under tie "Christian Un ity .^ ' I f u*e I earn these princ i files, we will rema i n faithful to the end. If not. we might just as well get outr Therefore^ the Lord is proving you, proving mc, to sec if wc are governed by certain principles of the doctrines of Christ, What do \ve learn about the prin- ciples of Christ? Oh. dear friends, we learn certain laws: certain regulations that will govern our conduct, and our thoughts, and our actions. If wc do not learn these prin- ciples wclK and put thetn into operation, we will never get there at all. Tf we are not united here, we will never be unhed there. There is a separation or division of mind. It Implies, thcreforcn dear friends, that one party is wrong, somewhere.

I^t ns realtie the imuortance of "ChristiFiii Unity," Let the dear friends sacrifice everi^thing which is not a principle : Your opinions, your likes and dtsHkcsH your sentiment, your reputation, j^our pocketbook.

Yon know that is a hard proposilioti for some. I was it) T^^as, meeting with a congregation (20 strong L B. S. A. members), atid they hired a place, and only had to pay $S.O0 per month. And yet they were two months behind the rent. I told them, "You will never be in the Kingdom." (Laughter.) i said^ "If you haven't any oi the spirit of sacrifice, as much as a common ordinary church member, you better quit." For pity's sakci a church of twenty members must support a reverend gen- tleman; and besides that, seiid eggs atid milk, and 1 don't kncv/ what else. But, dear friends, when wc come to the Lord and ntake a full consecration of ourselves* we say, '*Ail for ^esus ! AH for Jesus, but not a cent to Him. I won't give my money/' I am ciot taking any collectiotis this afternoon. So don't worry about that. (Lauj^hter.) Hut 1 tell you. dear friends, when the Holy Spirit gets into our heads and hearts, it goes into the pocketboak as well, and I Would be ashamed to go to a congregation where they can't pay their rent for a meeting place. I think they will learn their lesson later.

But, my friends, here is the thoujrhtt When we sivc our hearts to God, we give all. That inchides everything. I am sorry many of us are governed by this idea that the "money that I have is mine J My wife is mine, and my children are mine." They are noT' Don't you remember the text yesterday morning? "Yc are bi>uijht wtth i price: therefore, glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God's." You are purchased! If this body belongs to somebody else, then that wdnich belongs to this body belongs to somebody else, too. It includes your pocketbook and everything else. Let us live the true Cliristlike life- Give ail to the Father, rcaliiing whatever we have. We arc simply stewards over God's jffoods. That is all: we are His by creation. Wc are His by justiS- cation. We are His by consecration. We arc His in every l^'ay. Our bodies arc His, and also as New Creatures, wc are the sons of God. We have nothing to our name: all belotics to T-fim. i

The Psalmist evidently here in this Psalm paiJiled a' wonderful picture of the unity of Christians— the unity of the Gospel Age. You know the very wortl '^David." means Beloved, And Jesus received that name at His con- secration. The Lord says, "This is My only begotten Soil in whom I am well pleascdn" "My beloved Son," or "My David." Jesus received the name Davidn Therefore, David was a xy^f, of the Christ— the head: and the Church which is His body; and as we well know today. David is a man of war: so the Church Mihtant is a man (if w^ar. And in these daj's they do lots of fighting, and they put them in jail because they fight too much. You cannot call them' paci^stA. but thr::y fiffht tins man here — the ylU mmi, Thtj

fight the world, the flesh and the devil. Tt is a fight, friends, in which no common, ordinary man. or general on earth can participate. It is impossible that any human being on earth can fight the good "fight of failh," eitcept one who has the power of the Holy Spirit in his heart.

Therefore. David iays, "How good, and how pleasant it is for brethren to dwell together in unity," How sweet 1 You know that for yourself. If there is no inharmony, oh. ho^v sweet it is. We want to come to the meetingn and after the meeting is over we go home, about twelve o'clock midnight, and after we go home we think about the brethren you know% "How good and how sweet it ts," Isn't it remarkable. You have had the experience, and have it yet.

"How good and how sweet it is for the dear brethren to dwell toffether in unity." How good! Dear friends, the illustration ts a grand one. "It is like a precious oint- ment," What is the precious ointment that was poured on Aaron at the time of consecration? It was poured upon the head and came to the neck, then to the shoulders. then to the bod3% and then to the feet; and the whole oil went to the feet. ^?o wonder the feet class are '^oily," There is plenty of it- No ivonder that we have so much of it. I tell you we need it too, so that wc will not scratch

L B, S.

CONVENTION

23

one another, We need to be lubricated well to keep the spirit of utiityn Atid wc will need a lot of oil before we get through.' You take a piece uf m^ichinery and run it without oil, and it will have a "hot box."

And so. my frtciids, if we don't have plenty of oil, we will have a i^oi box" too. Tt will show tomorrow how much oil we have in our oil boxes v Are we of the class who reeeivcJ very much oil in our vcsseEs? Or are we of the Sooliih virgin class? It is onCf or the other. May the Lord help us show the spirit of Christ, and show really and truly that we are of the ciass spoken of here! "Plow good, and how pleasant it is for the (dear) brethren to dwell together in unity."

Xow< friends, we see Aaron there, and when the oil WhIS poured upon tils head, it lubricated all his body for it went way down his garment. There he stood, as the Advocate of the Je^vish people. There he realized he had a verj* important mission to make good the broken cove- nant. .-Vs he stood there he was lifted in the spirit, and he said "what a grand, and glorious office I have that I am a Hi^jh Priest over the people of God," and when Aarott on the Atonement Day, came and made "at-one- mcnt" between God and man. he satd; "Oh, God, how thankftd I am for this olTice! What a high calling this is I" (This is ordy typical you know.) It was indeed a "his;h calling." Hc was called of God, St. Paul says, "N'o man can take this honor unto himself, except he that is called of God," CHeb, n'?:'tO And he was called of God. And it \vas a rcmarkabk call at that. N'ot only that. Aaron's sons received the same anointing that he received. They did not receive an individual anointing. Xo. even as we did not receive an individual anointing. We received the anointing which is in Christ Jesus. We arc anointed as we become part of Him. Therefore, his sons received the same unctjon from the Holy One; and consequetiily they were ^lad. Oh, they were happy that they were also under-pr tests. And again, dear frieaids. the perfume of the oil was so soothing to smell the fragrance. Ok how sweet! "How good it isl"

Nosv, dear friends, in this picture this is a type of what? "Christian Unity." The oil anti-typical was poured on our Lord Jesus at Jordan. There He received the whole, great amount of oil^ without measure, because He had a very larjje vessel. He had a perfect vessel. He could have plenty of it. Tltcn, dear friends, for three yeari and a

half the oil Came down and ran below the head. Then, after His ascension on high, the oil dropped upon the neck. The apostles receivc^the holy anointinjf oil, and dien it came to the shoulders, ^^ow, if there was no neckj there wcuhl be no oil there^ and so, dear friends, the apoaties were the connecting link between the head and the body. They h?j tweh-e places if you please in the body, — as if thcviVcre immersed into the neck of the Christ, from whicV^ ' they received the anointing. Therefore, we tan understand the thought of the Apostle Paul *'Fil] tap that which la Ijchind of ihc afnictjoiia cf Qiii^L Eii my Uqih

(not for the head's sake but) for His bodv's sake* which is the Church." (CoL I'M.) And the oil ran down all during the ages and saturated the body. Suppose a person became a rib member, the oil went right over it. But tf it were not there, the oil conid not go over it. If wc have not Eht; spirit of Christ, we are ''none of His," and if you are not in the body, the oil will not go over you. Then later on, when due time came Chinee 1S7S) the Lord bcRan to deal with what is called in the Bible the "feet m-cmbcrs"— the last members. We have come to the ex- treme time of the feet members. In fact the heel members, if you please. Now, dear friends, as tong as wc, as mem- bers of Christ, remain in this great body wc will receive the hoty anointing oil. We will have the spirit of unitv. Or, reversing it, if we have the spirit of Christian unity we are members in His body now, prospectively; and. thank G od, bye a nd bye we wil I have a gtor i ous body which ihe Lord promised to the faithful.

'^^ remarkable thought, dear friends, that our dear Heavenly Father does place each one in the body as it plcaseth Him," You remember that it was the dear mother of John and James who came to our Lord and "^^kV^^^i^^ that her two sons (nice looking and certainly noble boys) might have a prominent place in the kingdom.

one on the right side and the otiier on the left side, and Jesus asked the question; "Are yc able to drink of the cup that J liiiall drink of?" Oh, yes, "we are abEe." So they knew what He meant. "But so far as placing you in tiie body is concerned that is not My prerogative, but Jeiiovah God Himself is the one who does the placing. But if you eat of My body (in mind) and masticate it well, — digest it well, you will be perfectly contented with your place in the body of Christ." What a glorious thing It is that the Lord has passed thousands and millions ol people, and has given to you and to me the privilege of becoming members En the body oi Christ.

If we come to the Lord in prayer and supplication^ asking Him that He may guide and direct us, thai impEies that He will hear our prayers. If we pray^ the Lord will guide tis in the important work we are about ready to enter into. After you go to Him m prayer, and then use your common sense (if we have any, and I think wc have some), wc Can leave the thing in the Lord's hands and say, "Amen."

There is one lesson I learned during 1915: it took me fourteen years to learn it— some of us have thick brains. I was with a large coiigrcgation [n tha West, and a ques- tion of great importance came up, whicii resulted in a great amount of trouble. I was on the minority sidCr Sometimes they call it the "G" side, because tiiat means the Seventh Book. I was on the minority side and wc feit we must do our duty, and tell the friends that if they took a certain course it would be detrimental lo the interests of the congregation. We put the matter Just as strong as we knew how. Later, however, the matter went the other way. It was a hard test, because it meant a great amount of suffering. However, I made up my mind once and for all that I would abide by the decision, and if the congregation made a mistake they have to suffer, and not I, because I told them not to do that. By the way. since theti I found I was wroEig. But I kept my mouth shut. Some brother said, "Well, how do you stand ? Have you changed your mind?" I said, "No, I believe I am right, but I am keeping my mouth shut, I am in harmony with you to the extent that I close my eyes. I will act as though everything is fine. Brcdircn, God bless you^ wc will unitedly co-operate." And as the result, we are before yo;! here this afternoon trj'ing to talk. The Lord gave us the priviitg^e and blessed us abundanJly, bec3.uEc we were governed by a wonderful principle. But if I. would raise trouble after the decision, I would be in the depths of outer darkness. [ was not governed by senti- ment. No, by God's ^acc, I was governed by principle.

In many congTC^ations, I find they eat the food, but they cannot talk until after the matter is decided. Then the steam goes out. And the first thing you know there is confusion. Well, what is the matter? Let the steam out. Punch the steam out before it is decided. Go ahead and put it as strong as ;you can — then keep your mouth shut That i^ the Way I vtiM da. It ETii^^lit tumc uut in hancjuiiy

with my views, or it might not. As a brother said, ''Why, there is a man who had ears that long (three inches), but he had sense. He was riding on a creature with ears only about one foot long. And the time came that the Lord used the one that went on four legs. The Lord asked: \\'hy do you whip him so hard? What is the matter* don't you see the angel before him?" I tell you, my friends, the I^rd can use anyone. If the Lord's people toll us that they want it this way. and [ say I want my way, too. — who is boss? The Lord^s people.

I find, too. many kinds of people. In one congregation three brethren couldn't agree vvith the Seventh Hook. X said, "What is the matter with you?" Well, we had a question meeting, and it lasted for about three hours. And we talked pro and con. and then these brethren began to talk ahout different things, and I caught on to where the trouble ^vas. I made a suggestion, something to the effect that those elders in the Church were "not supposed to be bosses"; they must not rule the congregation, for they were servants. They said, "St. Paul states, "Let those who rule get the greater proportion of honor," "Oh/* I said. "I sfie the point now. You want a double portion of the honor before you work like him. then get the proportion." Hoav is that? Oh, he worked himself to

u

I. B, s. A. coNv a .V no n

death. HerCp brother, you ought lo do just as Pastor Rus&cll (lid {yau dccted him 3S elder or pastor). When he wrote a tetter to you brethren, tlii^ is wliai I think he u^Ui^lly wrote, "If yoii don't Mke it, put it in ihc vva^tc basket.'' He did not say, "Here, you have got to do so and so/* Ob, no! I tell you, dear friends, many people ha^'c the wron^: idea of witac it mcins to rule the Church.

If there arc several hobbyisis (you know some people have hobbies: Some look at the sturs, and ajc always talking about the Great Company. One pJace I visited they didii'L talk of anything else for six months but "Great Company") I would stigscst, iriends, why can i you do this way: "The Sixth Volume says if a brother h4& a hobby, lee him let out the Aieam for haif an hour and let him talic all he wants to. Then say to the class: "Do you want iliis horrible ituff any more? Those in favor of it kindly manitcst same by a right hand vote'.'* These things are slopped like that [snapping thumb], but the trouble is this, we don't read or study the truth. We talk about tlie thrice double sword, and tiie point (you have heard itui: ^Thrice double"^ — three times two makes what? Six), but most of the friends don't know anything ahont it. They try to get the "point" without having the stock. You can't do that. If a brother has a knowledge of that Sixth Book— the encyclopedia of the New Creation, he can cut out rhe hobbyist. You can fix everything so nicely and beautifully. VVhy, friends, the study of ihe-ie thing*; win cause you to increase and abound in grace and love and knowledge.

In connection with this thought we would like to emphasijEe one point, i. e., this mailer of ruling. I find that there is danger for us to go into the nominal condi- tion. You knovi- what that is. It means just camouflage — something that isn't there, iVow the tendency for us is to slack our energy and say^ easy now: "1 believe in the ransom. I am saved.'* However, the apostle said, *'I brow-beat my body> I keep my body under." Wc roust strive^ and try hard to do this every day. ^Ve should improve or develop. Which way? Every' way, not only the Christian way, but even in otjr appcarajice, in otir expressions. Improvement must be the watchword of the Christian in every respect. You must not pass one thing without examining yourself to see if you arc in the faith; to see if you are making progresSr "Be ye clean that bear the vessels of the Lord/' {Isa. o2;ll.) Wc muai do that in order to get into the kingdom.

I find that some of the friends have the idea that we Pilgrims are just about two and one-half feet hif;her than others. Some of the friends are inclined to look at it like wc did before our eyes were opened, (They arc opened now for good.) VVc used to say, "Who is that coming?" The answer was, "Reverend Smith.'* "Oh, Reverend Smith? He is of the Divine or Apostolic ordin- ation." I donl mean to say our Pilgrim brethren are doing that now. I have seen them in the past write their name "S&-aud-So, FUgritu,^ in the manna. Oh, isn't it uict! But why should we put i\ that way? Alter you write your name, nothing more is essential. What is the difference between a Pilgrim and a Brother? No differ- ence, except that the Pilgrim has to work harder than the other brethren. Th^ have to preach five hours. One time I preached for five hours. 1 don't know whether I reported it to the Watch lower; for I was afraid. There was a reverend gentleman at the meeting and I talked for a long time and after we finished what we had to say^ the gentleman went hnmc—fifleen minutes after twelve, mid- night That is the difference. Sometimes the Pilgrims preach eight hours a day; sometimes six. Any^vay, that is the difference. Like St. Paul, they must be overworked. The Brother who is not a Pilgrim carries a lighter satchel, while the Pilgrim carries a very heavy one. The thought we have in our minds is for us not to make that great difl'crence, or contrast. When a Pilgrim talks to you, don't think they arc entirely the words of the lord. Of course, they are supposed to tell the plan, but if they say some- thing di(!crcnt from what yon have read before, lake that and put soap on it and weigh it until that soap soaks tn. We should honor and respect it. but at the same time, let us not make such a vast contrast. Clergj'^ Laity! "One is your master, even Christ, and all ye are

brethren." Our dear Pastor surely manifested that spirit.

Let us take the Scriptures and see the importance of Christian unity. We turn to John 1* ;21 to J3. jesus said in that wonderful prayer, "1 pray not for these alone (.which refers to the twelve apostles), but for them also which shall t>elieve on me/' Jesus prayed, dtar friends, for the friends meeting here to<iay. Why did He pray* He is emphasizing one point especially' "I pray for tlicm." Why? "'rhal they all may t>c on^. r»s Tlioti, Father, art in %lc^ and I in Thee, that they also may be one in us, that the world may believe that Tliou hast sent Me. "

Do we have a clear understanding of the height of Girislian unity? What is Christian utiity? Jesus says it is the unity whicti exists between Jesus and God. j3o you think that Jesus ever uttered a cross word to the Father? Can you imagine that Jeliovah God scolded Him because lie did someiliiiig wrong? The imity is so won- derful that wc, with our finite minds, cannot comprehend -such innnile unity. In other words, if wc want to keep the spirit of unity, we cannot utter one cross word. Well, we '^ny, we have done this in the past. Yea, and we are sorry we did. But, dear friends, wc can have the spirit of unit3- if we so wisfv Vou might say "we are imperfect.'^ Even St. Paul says, "Jesus was tested in all points tike as wc arc, yet He was without 'sin.*' Wc arc sinners. Well, shall we lower the standard? No! It is not our business to do aji>thjng with the siandord. Cod se'.s die statidiird. You just do the trying. Don't lower anything. You caEt't do it if you try. If you try to lower it you will be lowered yourself^ and you will be out of the race.

Let us keep the height of Christian unity^ which implies thai unity existing between the Father and Son,— that we may be in mind, m thought, in puipoiiie, and even as far as possible, in doctrine and also in relation to each other, that our unity nlay be like unto God and Christ.

Then what? "That the world may know'— Do you want to show tile world who you are? The sons of God! Our Lord Jesus is emphasizing this thought. We should demonstrate that unity to the people of the world of man* kind, *'that the world may believe that Thou hssl sent Mc." Therefore, if we have Christian uuity and because of our faithfulness to Him, the Lord in the age to come^ will bring millions of people into the truth, in other words, our actions, our words, and conduct, our spirit of Christian unity will bring millions into the truth. It is remarkable when wc think about that! Let them "see your good works" so that they might glorify God. When? In the "Day of His Visitation"— when He visits the earth atid makes His footstool glorious.

**And the glory which Thou gavest Me. I have given them, that they ma^ he one, as we are one," Again He is crnphasizing the pomE. U hat is the glory given us? Well, primarily speatiing. it is the "Glorious Hope"; also the begetting or the anointing. That is primary, but bye and bye it will be the wonderful privilege of^ shanng with Him in the Kingdom, "And the ulory which Thon gavest Ale, I have given them.'* \Vhat "glory" did He have? It was the opening of His vision, the "heavens were opened unto Him." He saw the antitypical things. "I have given it to them." He says. "I have given them the under- standing of the Tahernacle in the wilderness, and those Seven Books. Also, the Temple of God, and I don't know what alL" There is just oji^ purpose, and what is tliat? "That tkey way he one."

If we don't have the unity, it means we don't have the truth. Is tJjal possible? Tliat is what the Lord says: '*I have given My glory to them, that they may be one" How remarkable! "I in them, and Thou in Me/' Indeed, it is remarkable that our Heavenly Father and our Lord Jesus is in us, "That they may l* made perfect in one," Dear friends, we cauuat be in the kingdom if we arc not one here. If we are {wo here, we -will be two some\^'hcre else. If one here, wc will he one there.

You remember, dear fricndi, what wc learned about the construction of the great piramid. that cxtry course of that wonderful structure was pEaced and fitted together before it was laid upon the next layer, or the next course. Therefore, all (he congregations in di^ercnt places are certain layers in that wonderful structure of /orr— "living atones." They must now be chiseled and fitted. This

!. B. S. A. COMyENTION

25

ni„<t lit tluLic Iters, because they will never lake a liamniEr 1 1.1 lit vo» in tlic kingrfom. Tlicrc must be "no iwiic ot hitiiiiKT" in the tiiujdam. "bilente prevails in the

'"""I'llrav Ili.it they mav be perfect in one. that tlie world mav know that Tlioii hast sctit Me, and loic them as Tli;,ii lust lovetl Me." Tliat is one ot the inost precious icri .mrts in the Bihie. "Thai the Heavenly 1-ather loved TllL- Guirch as lie loved Christ Jcsua." Cliniltan unity is one of the' remarkable evidences that the Father loved the Oiurch as well as He loved His only begotten Son.

Wc have several Scripttires in this connection. Phil. ■I- 13- "K there l>e. titereforc, any consolation in Christ, \i aiiy comfort of love, if any fe1lowshi)> of the spirit, it any Uoivels atid mercici. Fultill ye my joy, that ye may In; like minded." St. Paul is telling the Church. "It you luie mc. and want me to joy forever more: fullill ye my jov"- till it full. overltewtiiBly; that ye be like minded! W'ell, Paul, what can we do to have the spirit oi unity? lie tells us. dear friends, "let nothing be done through strife or «itislory." "As the body is one and hath many members—" It makes no difference, for "the body is one." W hen you look at a person, you don't think of him as many members; you say he is "Mr, Jones." That is all. So ''also is Christ"— One I Let "nothing be done through strife or vailiKlory." No partisan spirit should be 'al- lowed in the Church. Yon remember St. Paul said. "It is a spirit of the .Adversary to say 'I am of Apollos'. etc. ' Some sav, "I am a Baptist," or "[ am a .Methodist." Sectarianism implies the spirit of division.— tarnal-mind- cdncss. I don't care whether it is inside or outside. Then he KOes on to imply I "Don't be called Russellite." Whai is the difference between a Lutheran and a Russellite? We belong to Christ and God, We love our dear Pastor more than any saints now livinB, but, my friends, wc don't want to take the name ot any human being. I will never do it. [ am a Bible Student. I am not a teacher! .Not a prophet, bul a Bible Student,— studying always until 1 graduate and receive my diplomi. ,'\nd in the Kingdom He will say, "Go ahead and teaeh." Then I will be a Bible teieher— hyc and bye. You can't graduate from the

Bible school until you are dead. ,\ wonderful graduation, isn't it.' (.Laughter.)

"But in lowhncsi of mind." Not through strife or vainglory. What is vainglory? It is that glory that you intercept or slop before it goes to God. riui is a plain way of putting it, isn't iir In other words, public speakers arc iti ilie Breatcst danger of losing their reward liecausc they are in the liinc-lisht,;aiid they shine. Vou know when the trouble cotties up it is the big man who goes out. it is ihe little man who stays in. So we appeal to you — especially to the public speakers— that by God's grace, when you serve the trulh— besorc you serve and alter vou serve- tell the Lord, ".Now. Lord, you get all the glory and I get nothing but the peace of heart." Thank God (or that, because bye and bye He will (jive lis c.ish. We want to work on credit; but it is cash on credit. We have so much faith in the Lord and His power, that when trouble comes we thank God for it. When we are alive, we say "all things work together for good," and when wc are dead, we can say the same thing. Surely, dear friends, it is a grind compensation for what Utile we do. Therefore, let us have the spirit of Christ, as He said, "I take no glory from any one." "Let nothing be done through strife or vainglory, but (in humility) in lowli- ness of mind, let eacli esteem the other belter than himself." .

"Look not every man to hjs own things, but every man also on the things of others." Look to the interest of the brethren; try to serve the brethren. Don't look to your own personal interests. "I.el this mind be in you which was also in Oirist Jesus, who being in the form of God, did not meditate a usurpation." He left the Heavenly glorv, anil became a inli, (a perfect man. holy, harm'eii. undcfiled, separate from sinners), and then He was put to death. — even the ignominious death of the cross. "Therefore, God has highly cialted Him, and given Him a name above every name."

My dear friends, let us follow m our dear Master a footsteps; let us keep the spirit of t'niry, as lie so prayed for us, and surely when we finish our course tn sacrihcial death, by God's grace we -w-ill have that wonderful place in the Kingdom.

Discourse by Pilgrim Brother M. L. Herr

Fridny Afternoon^ Jiin, 3, 1919

Subject: "U>T3ER HIS WINGS"

WE will take for our text the well-known words of Psalms 91 ; 4 ;_ "lie shall covci Llice with His feathers, and un- der His wings shah thou trust. His truth shall be thy shield and buckler." Not only do wc recognize the heauly of this picture but we perceive that the Lord has given us in this text something specially needed for the present time. The Lord always provides for our needs as He promised. "-My Goil shall supply all your need, according to His riches^ in glory by Christ Jesus," Phil. -1:19. Wc believe Ihat there is in this verse and in other ScHptnres. which wc shall examine together, a present moment message.

Both beautiful and tender feelings are awakened by the picture of the bird-mother and her little ones. When she ™'*" '*'em with her feathers she takes them very close to her heart just as the Lord at the present lime is taking His lanliful children very near to His heart, into His verv

close confidence. In Rev. 13 :U the two wings of a great eagle are mentioned as provided for the Church during her wilderness e.>ipericnce and the Scriptures tell us that it rcprcsenli the Old and the New Tcslamcnta provided by the Lord for her during the period represented by Elijah's three and a half years in the wilderness. Sec G comment also on Rev. 2.20. In G comment on Kzek. 1:11 we are told that the two wings with which the living ones cov- ered their bodies represent the Word of God, one function of which is to cover and protect.

What thoughts of warmth and comfort are suggested by the word "cover" so expressively symhoHierl by a bird's two wings. The wee birdies under the mother's Iwo wings are shielded from danger and from cold. The more we obser^'e how our loving Creator has employed this pro- tecting, covering principle the more we appreciate this element of His character. The roots of tender herbage are covered in winter with a coverlet of snow. Every organ of our bodies is protected by a covering encasement. The beings higher iian angels arc commissioned to act as pro* tcctors for other beings of a lower order as we read Ezek. 'J8 :14, "Thou art the annointed cherub that covereth." .\s we examine the Scripture testimony wc will not fail to see how- like the little ones close to the mother^s heart are God's little ones whom He covers with His feathers.

fn this 01st Psalm how expressively the Lord pictures the present hour. .\ time when we need refuge from a

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storni. A [line when there would be liatigtr from snares set by the fowltr. A time of attack when poison td arroivs oi-sn bitter \vortls would enclatiKCr our spiritual safety. Even m ancient time tliev ttiicw how to spread contieioua w^'j^^ by infected arrows. How effective is our Father's Word as a shield against the poison of fear and doiibt. His truth snail be ihy shield and buckler." If once the poiaoi! of tear gams entrance disease is introduced Ihst iweomes cotitagious. How important that we provide our- selves ivith the antiseptic protection of the truth ,„7,h ''.^'■^-"'o^cr gives a signal of danger to her brood and that 15 her method oi protecting them, What a sensible rnetliod It ts for she merely calls, "cluck, cluck, duck," and titey know that means come to the saie-nlace under my wings, and without asking for other ijiforniation thev obev the stgnll and are safe and warm wi.ere no harm can come d,™w I \%f "^^ P'""'-e 'he.Lofd uses to teil i,s how ™ should do. When the Lord calls us to the wings of His iy th!'r. "i"'' ''"'/ \".'',P™t=='i''"- How difleremly son,e 01 the Lord s people think that ive should do. These seem

ur s'o^f ' l" ?'f"yj<""" *-■<"" fiffi^e t!"= mind with p™ tures of dangers, H;tve we not heard sonic brother say wlien convention is closing: "Now, friends, we have had i

inah will begin, and the way the brother savs it makes you teel as it you (i-cre beiiiR giien a cold shower-bath I don t believe that is pictut:ed here. We do not hsve a oic- ture of the bird-mother telling her chicks : "See what terri- ble cla V5 the hawk has. If the hawk ever gets hold of vou ho will crush you trightfully. Look at his sharp hooked peak. I lunk ot how you would feel to have him tear you to small pieces with his sharp bea.k." Tha; is one wav of causing the iiltle birds to flee to the shelter of her wines But with their poor little hearts throbbing with terror In their agitation they cannot bo well enjov her cover as hv the way nature provides for them. How much better th'e simple danger-signal "cluck, cluck, cluck." Come to safety Ao terror, no alarm. That is the Lord's wav and the other way IS not of the Lord.

How slow have some of the Lord's pcoole been to dis- card some kind of lingering fear. Before "the truth came the bugaboo was that awful, terrible PLACE, I remember how grandmother used to hide behind the door and making |r^P'"Sn'"5e would groan in a deep voice: "I am the IT J , ' T ' ^^'"=" ''°>'^ *''= *>"<' ' 8=' ^heTii. There is a bad boy I am going to get soon." What a terror it was, just to think of It, We got iwav from that bugaboo when the truth came. But we didn't get away from recry buga- boo. There were a lot of truth-people who put the same hell -fire fear into the things they would teil about 1914 and the awiut ihiiigj tjiat woalil happen in 151-!. O what horrors hung around those awful figures "lOU." Time has dis- illusioned us and we discover that our fears were in our disordered imagination and while some still attach a certain horror to terrible experiences that they imagine in connec- tion with "The Image of the Eeast" we are coming to the conclusion that there is something seriouslv wrong with this whole system of fcar-thouglil and we conclude that it 15 no more wholesome to entertain than to frighten diildrcn with the goblins'li ketch you if you don't watch out."

Let us ask ourselves : is the Lord holding before our .iBinds Oiese terrible pictures of awful things? St. Paul says: That I might finisli my course with joy!" Paul was en route lor Jerusalem and they cried, "Paul, don't go don-n to Jerusalem. Youwillhavealotoftroublc, Paul,don'tgo" He said : "I am willing to meet any trouble the Lord may permit to come, I wish to do the Lord's will. I am willing to die when that is the Lord's will. I expect to finish my course with joy," That is the thought we are to have con- cerning the future. The /oy set before us.

I think of a story that illustrates how we have been feeling. You will not mistake the nationality of this gentle- man. He valued his property very highly. In the middle of the night he found a burglar in his aparlments. Before he could protect himself a revolver was thrust into his face riic burglar said : "You had better give me that silverware and be quick about it or you will die by a bullet." Our friend replied ; " Mine fricntjt, I would far rather die py a bullet ridt avay qvwick, than to vaid und dii py mdas

L B. S. A. CONVENTION

27

vatching you take avay my solid silverware." 0 yes, soms of us liave been dying by inches imagining terrible thingj we are yet to go through. When IDH did not end th, T -"^mo .^"'S?*^ °!' '""'' ^^'^ 5='''' '■ "We had the date wront- Jt IS i!JlS, r/in( u Ike date. And so in the spring of ISIS the t,,iurch niust go beyond the vail. A certain Roman Cath- olic bccret Order will see to it that wc go. We pictured ourselves m line before a firing-squad and shot at sunrise ^ow wasn t It a terrible thing for the Lord's people them- selves to plan worse things for us than our enemies could hink of.' I believe it is. lime for us to conclude that we will let the adversary make his own program and we will offer liim no suggestions. Wc will earnestly consult the program the Lord has made for us knoiving that the adver- sary Ins had to inake a new program over and over again J he reason for this is found in our text: "He shall cover thee with His feathers and under His -joings shalt thou trust. Hti truth shall be thy shield and buckler "

_ Probably the very greatest bugaboo held before the minds ot the Lord's people in recent time is the fear . papacy. History records the fact ihat the Heavcnlv Fathi permitted this wicked religious system to accomplish against some of the Lord's holiest children painful and prolonged persecution. Her spirit remaining unchanged It IS but reasonable that were she permitted the power she would again delight in the suffering of His saints, W^hat *,'=Sl'f',"? "Earns t our logical fear is the positive assurance of His Word.

When Satan heard the Divine pronouncement, "The seed of the woman shall bruise thy head, thou shalt bruise His heel. Gen. ,T:15, Satan was fiJled with a paroxysm of tear. He knew it was a serious thing to him to have his head bruised. In hij wickedness he seems to have greatly exaggerated the part relating to the Christ. "Thou shall briiisc His heel," He has sought to innocuiate tlie Lord's people with the same fear that terrifies himself, leading some to anticipate things that will never occur according to the Lord' program. This picture of bruising the heel has been made to mean a lot of terrible things the l^rd never intended that it should he made to picture, TJie heel IS not a vital part of the bodv and it would seem more reasonable to take from this picture the thought that the worst injury Satan could inflict upon the Christ— the seed of the woman— would result in no serious injury It is Satan who will suffer serious injury, "f/i jhall bruise tfiv head.

Stop and think who is interested in having the Lord's people fear, the Lord or Satan? When we put it that way ive have no trouble to easily decide. It is Satan Let us then put fear aside. I believe the time has come that we should sec from (he Word of God what the Scriptures so clearly and plainly point out that this false religious system IS soon to perish from the earth in order that the remain- ing features of the Han-est work might be accomplished, Notice how forcefully Daniel pictures it: "And I looked until the Heast was slain, and his body destroyed and given to the burning ikme," Dan. T :il. I wonder i£ we can get that divinely provided picture into its proper place 1 believe the Lord expects us to do so.

There are many things which wc expected to occur that have rievcr come to pass. No power on earth can cause the Uiurch to so beyond the vail before she has finished the work the Lord has given the Church to do. Why do we conclude that the Church must die by violence? Couldn't we get into the Kingdom were we to die by inlluenia? We do not have to wait for this wicked religious system to give us our passports into the Kingdom. We have been making a lot of needless inferences. Wc are learning to more iullv trust the Word of the Lord. (Ai;bie.n'ce— "Good,") , X!""^*,,"^^ certain Scriptures brought to our attention by The Watch Tower of August I, ISIS, relating to tlie service of the Church toward the great company and other believers as pictured in Joseph and his brethren. Which clearly show that the Christ still in the flesh has an im- portant sen' ice still future. Joseph was king, but a peculiar kind of king. Hq told bis brethren to tell his fat her about his great ghry in Egi-pt. The Christ is to be glorified while vet this side of the vail. The glory will be like the glory of Joseph. The glory of providing food in a lime ot famine,

for bis brethren who except for his provision would perish,

I vvish everybody had a Bible with them this afternoon. ,\s I wish some readings I have asked a brother to read from tlie comments of the Bible and another to read cer- tain Scriptures that I shall cite. We will notice how posi- tively the Scriptures indicate the complete downfall of our great enemy. Babylon, We will go back in the Bible history to the time when in Old Testament pictures she was repre- sented by Jcjebel. Our dear Brother Graham gave us some suggestions as to the present-hour fulfillment of these types. .\hab was the King of Israel and Jeiebel, his wife, daughler of a heathen king introduced Baal-worship amongst the Lord's people. Elijah u'as the prophet of the Lord, EEiiah told .Miab that there would be no rain for three and one-half years. During this time of famine the Lord provided for Elijah. "And the Word of the Lord came unto him saying, get thee hence and turn thee east- ward, mid hide thyself by the brook Chcrith, that is before Jonbn, .And it shall be that thou shalt drink of the brook and I have commanded the ravens to feed thee there. . . . AlKl the ravens brought him bread and flesh in the morn- ing and hrerid and flesh in the evening, and he drank of the brook," 1 Kings 17 :2-S.

(Reading of Bible Comments by Brother Hazlett) ;

1 Kings lf>:-0, .-Vnd .^hab. Type of the Roman Empire. B:2aG.

1 Kings Id:31, His wife Jeacbel, Typi; of the .Apostate Church of Rome, BBo6,

1 Kings 17:1, And Hij ah. Type of the true Church in the fiesh, B256.

I Kings 17:16, Bread and flesh. Typifying the Lord's care of ttie true Ciiurcb during the time she was hiding from Papacy. ZS)S-19L The ravens probably took these from the bazaars of Jerusalem or Jericho.

I Kings 17:17, No rain in the land. Typifying the lack of truth, the living water, during 1260 years C3Mi times) of papal persecution. E256,

Here we have the Lord's care over his people manifest both in Elijah the type and in the true Churcii in the ftesli in the [intilype,

1 Kings IS :ili Abundance of rain. Typifying the mil- lions of BiWes published and issued shortly after the end of the papal power in 1799, B2,5S,

1 Kings 19:1, And Abah. Type of the Tinman F.mpire, B356.

1 Kings ID :!, Told Jerebel. Type of lite Apostate Giurch of Rome and of the so-called Protestant sects im- bued ivith her false spirit since the year ITflS. B2S6.

We notice that after 1709 Jezebel pictures more than i^c^ Apostate Church of Rome and includes in the type the entire system, of Babylon, including Protestantism, so- called. We all remember what happened to Jezebel or if we do not we will know by the time we are through with this discourse. I will ask Brother Payne to read 1 Kings 13:1-3, "And ,\hab told Jeiehcl all that Elijah had done and ivitlml how he had slain all the prophets with the sword. Then Jezebel sent a messenger unto Elijah t So let the gods do to me and more also if I make not thy life as the life of one of them by tomorrow about this time. And when he saw that he arose and went for his life and came to Becrsheha."

After 1T[I3 the truth went forth with power. Uibles by inilhons were scattered everywhere. Previous lo this time the great Heformation movement occurred which seems to have been forshadowed by Elijah's experience with the prophets ot Baal, Through Ahab all the prophets of Baal were assembled at Mt. Carmcl. Eliiah and the Baal prophets each provided a sacrifice of a bullock. The test was to prove who was the true Cod, for no fire was to be put under the sacrifice and the god answering by fire would he recognized as the true God. All day long the Baal prophets besought their god to vindicate himself and to answer by lire, hut no fire came. Provokingly Elijah derided them. Having become hoarse with their loud crying it was no little aggravation to be told : "Cry a little louder. Baal may be sleeping or possibly he may be on a journev'.'* Elijah had a deep trench dug around his altar. He had twelve barrels of water poured over the sacrifice and the wood, "Then the fire of the Lord fell and consumed the

burnt sacrifice and the wood, and the stones, and the dust, and licked up the water that was in the trench. And when all the people saw it, they fell on their faces and lliey said, the Lord He is the God; the Lord He is the God " And Elijah said unto them. Take the prophets of Baal ; let not one of them escape. And they took them. And Elisha brought them down to the brook Kishon and slew them there 1 Kings 13:38-10. Cot»uii:nt on 1 Kings lS:-iO:

1 Kings IS:10: ".And slew them there. Representing the punishments visited upon the Papacy at the end of the three and one-half symbolic times." (1260 literal years.") B350.

Beersheba, to which Elijah tied from Jeiebcl, is the southern extremity of the land of Israel as Dan is the norchcrii extremity, hence the cTtpression "from Dan to Beersheba." But Elijah seeking more complete isolation went a day's jourtioy into the wilderness. "And as he lay and slept under a juniper tree behold an angel touched him, and said unto him, AHm and eat, Aad he looked, and behold there was a cake baken on the coals, and a cruse of water at his head. . . . And he arose and did eat and drink and went in lite strength of that meat forty days and forty nights unto Horcb the Mount of God." 1 Kings ig :o-S.

We have learned who was the angel of the Laodicean period of the Church. We also know something of the ready-to-eat f ood which that angel showed the Church. [ have no difficulty in identifying the forty day period as in antitype being the period lf>73 to I&13~the period of the Harvest. I also believe that J would receive a uniform reply were I to ask who was represented in the angel who showed Elijah the cake all nicely baked ready to eat. (Audiekce, enthusiastically: "Pastor RUSSELL.") Yes, he was the messenger (angel) who provided the cake or truth in the strength of which the Elijah journeyed from 187S to 1013, ,Aiid 1918 found us in the very condition which Mt, Horeb pictured, Ccunili^'iit Rcndulgt

1 Kings lO-%. Unto Horeb, Mt. Sinai, tjpe of the King- dom of God, Z04-23>,

Elijah went from Beersheba to lit Sinai (the place where Moses' face was transformed and shone radiantly). Elijah high up on the mountain -was very lonely. Did we not have a sense of isolation spring and summer of 1018? "And he came thither unto a cave and lodged there; and, behold the Word of the Lord came to him and he said unto him Whot doest tlivn here, Elijah? .\nd he said, I have been very jealous for the I-ord God of hosts : for the children of Israel have forsaken thy coi-enant, thrown down thine altars and slain thy prophets with the sword : and I, even 1 only, am left ; and they seek my life lo lake it away. And he said. Go forth and stand upon the Mount before Uic Lord. And behold the Lord passed by and a great and strong wind rent the mountains, and brake in pieces the rocks before the Lord ; but the Lord was nut in the wintiE; and after the wind an earthquake; but the Lord was not in the earthquake; and after the earthquake a fire: but the Lord was not in the fire; and after the fire a still small voice. And it was so, when Elijah heard it that he wrapped his face in his mantle and went out and stood in the entering in of the cave. .And behold, there came a voice unto him, and said, WHAT DO EST THOU HERE, ELIJAH?"

We cannot fail to note that under the peculiar circum- stances surrounding Elijah he could hardly be expected to obtain a correct view of matters until informed by the Lord, We c^n easily trace a correspondence between our expcriencc^'^918, and the experiences of Elijah. Like Elijah we were expecting to die and like Elijah we saw little to live for since to everj- appearance our work in the flesh was done. But today the Lord asks us the same question, "What are you able to do in the place you now find your- self?" Elijah could well have said that in this place of isolation there w^s nothing one coiitd do. But the X^rd was leading Elijah to discover that there were still im- portant matters that only the Church in the flesh could do. Let us bring before our mind Elijah's surroundings when he stood in the entering in to the cave. Nothing but dark-

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nesi around iurn :iml ilaDip cold rocky sides of lite cave, SiiaiEs, lizards and bats the only living ihrngs in si^EiL I believe we can appreciate ElijaVi's surtotmiiiiigs as wc re- cal[ how wz £gIl Ui stimmer, liilS, We felt very- much like Elijah and out sufroundings seeined very liard and coiil and we felt very mudi shut in with our liberiics of public uneraiicc grenily restrained.

Did you ever sec a wittd so powerful ihat broke into pieces the rocks of tlie mouitiainsj' Tlion Elijali saw some- tiling tliai you atid I ncv'tr saw. For t!ns is what Elijah saw when he Avas in that i$otatc place cm the moiiiiilain. Orice whefi standing on a ki^h motintain, Mount Tom in Massachusetts, observing the mighty rocks that project from the sides of titat moui^iain, I tried to pielure a \vi]nl powerful enouc;]] to break tiiese rock-s iutrt piece-j. I coulc! not imagine so strong a wind and you coaid not imagine it citlier. But RIEjaEi: saiv a ivind rend (lie niountaicis ajid faTcak itte rocks jtito pitcei. Our BrotEtcr Graiiam toid m chat the iriDuniaitis represented the strong autocratic em- pircs of Europe. Tliat the wind represented The war lOU- lOlS and that the stpfl ration ot tlia rent empires into smaller republics was chc /ulfilmetiE of this prophetic pic- ture. Now Itt Lis see what we iiave learned irocn our Bible commetits; Elifah represcnis (Audiexce "The Qurch in the flesh) ; Moumains represent (Audience "KiugdoEn*") ; Wind represents (AuorFycE "War'),

So ihff prophetic pieEure represents %hs Church in ihe fl«^ witness a division of some of the autocratic empires 01 Europe into smaller government with a popular forri <jf govyrivmenl. Did we see this iu 19IS? "Why, yes/' you say, "we witnessed this very thin:Sr" Now what does the ear!.hquake represent? (Au&itSCE "Revolution"). That ;s jutE what Etijfih saw, "Ami after the ■iiihid QU eanhquuk*:," *'£arth" in Scripture {anguage rtpt^esei^ts society aud earthquake reptcseniS great social chan;^c5* The Elijah class are witness to this also. But we are \viinc5s to eveti more than this. A nitasurc of anarchy has already appeared hut cvi*iently not the prophetic /i'nffd of artaichy. In V8S8 oar paiior gave US the wonderful exposition oi this Scripture given in the preface of Su^dles 7.

Twice the Lord asks or Elijah, "What doest thou here, Elijah?*' We slop to think what are we now doing. Some one says: "We are sladying; but there is nothing to do'' Elijah could have said the same thinj^, **Lord, I am doin^ nothing/' But Elijah in hii loneliness gave expression lo that which was directly on his niind, "And I alone am leit." But the Lord more correctly informed EJijah. "I hive left me T&Oi) in Israel who have not bowed the knee unto Baal." I Kings 13:18.

1 King 19:18, "^QOO itt hracl. T^eprcstniing thousands in the nominal systems today who are not in sympathy with the errors there taught but are merely confused and blinded.

1 Kings 19:9, IVkai doe^i thou. The Lord's people are not to be idle. Z9g-^07.

1 Kings 19 :9, here. The Lord's people are not to stay in a place where they cannot do anything^ ^93-207^

Do you tliiuk we are going to stai^ in a. place of isola- tion forever? Some one say*: *'Our work is over and thevc is nothins more for u& to do." Yes, brother, the vrork wc once did Is over, but let us not hastily conclude tha,t the Lord h^s nothing mt>re that wc 0.re to do. How about those thousands in Babylon who have not bowed the knee to B^al ? Do we notice what the Lord said to Eiiiah. "And the Lord said unto Elijah. GO." Has the Lord not ffiven us this Scripture to indicate His commission to the Church in the flesh? When Eiijah learned that the Lorfi had something for him to do it did not take Elijah long to GO from Ins isolation. Three things were given Elijah to Ao; "And the Lord said unto him, Go, return on thy Avay to the wilderness of Damascus: and when thou comest, snoitit Ha^ael to be ki;ig ov^r Ryria. .And Jehu the 5on of Sfimshi shalt thou anoint to be king over Israel: and Ehsha the son of Shaphot of Abclmehota shah thou anoint to be prophet in thy rooiti." I Kings lO:lo, 16.

J^et us now note what Fastor Russell says about the work of Elijah. We quote from Vol. 2, i^ges ^i5l-2-^3 :

"And thus Jolin Uie Baptist and hia disciples engaged in

/. B, S, A. CONyEiVTlON

W^

ihe same work ^^iih and under liinjj in attempting to cojv vert Israel and to prepare ihi:ni to receive Messiah^ repre scntcd the real Bijah (ihe true Christiaa Church/, whose work hai becit to attempE the conversion ot the world be- fore the cflming of ilessiah to the worlds the spiritual Xj^rd of glory and Kiisg of kings. John the Initnerser, in this spirit :yid power of EUjahj tailed lo reform Israel, and, ds a coiiseqiieuec (Matt, yi .V^) Israel rejected Jesus in the flesh and brought upon theniiylves a greaE day of ven- geance' trouble; and wrath. (Lukg .Il-.^il.) So likewise, only on the larger scale, the real and greater Elijah has failed lo convert and prepare the world to receive the King ot Glory, asid now coiissqueutly, the great day of wrath trnist come upon the world, to melt and mdlow ind humble 8nid preijarc uM ro cry out from the heart, Hosannahl Blessed is lie that cometh in the naintj of ihq Jehovah. John, at the first advetit was really a finishing out of the lype begnu in the person and %vork of Elijah."

Both [he Johu and the Elijah ivork was a work for the people. It ended with John's beheading. It did not con- liuutt iiftcr rhc beheading of JohEi the Baptist. A careful reading ot the foregoing quotation will leave no question as to the meaning ot the picture of the beheading of John the Baptist, JohiiV work was a ptibttc service to the entire nation. It completely ended with his beheading. It ne vet- was resumed by his Eiteral body reanimated ^.nd acting as. a headless body; on the contrary (Matt 14:12) ''and his disctpks came and took up the body atid buried it," John's Kork like the publicity ivork of the Christ in the flesh of which his p\iblic service \va^ a type closed with three dis- tinctly marked episodes: (1) Its gradual decrease. {2) John's imprisoniTtent. (S) John'j bftheading on the king's birthday. It is not di^eult to ra^rk three correspondinL^ epiioJes in the close of the pubtkity work of tl^e Church in ihc flesh— tile Elijah; (1) A gradual decrease i^i pnb- hc activity. (9) Great restraint in liberty to prodaim pub- licly, (S) Absolute eeasin;;: of the public message after Ju3y V 1913- It took both the John tjpc and the Elijah lype to picture the Church's experience Spring of IfflS.

A feature ot the experience that does not appear in the John picture is shown when Elijaii is carried aloft i^y ct cychne. We all know that a cyclone struck us tn IJJIS, For a time we imagined it would be the end of our stay on earth. Our aupposiiion was that this was the only possible interprcEaiion of the whirlwind that took Elijah to Heaven. When wc received iVugust I Watch Tower and we saw the Church as the Joseph class, food-provider for the Great Company ^iid. for the other believcrSf we perceived the sense in which Joseph was to be king, Jehovah's representa- tive in matters spiritual. King over the food provisions and their dispenser to the tamily. We iaw that the faithful witness for the truth acnomplished by the Church in the flesh (Elijah) when we declared that great iudgmeuls from the Lard were about to come upon Christendom wonid indeed be generaJly recognized after those indgments bad actnaily been visited upon Babylon. We also saw that the persecution heaped upon the Elijah (John the Baptist). espccialliy upon the executive head of this class, woulcj in time rtict to the esteem and recognition of these as true servants of the Lord. Even though these are not all ac- cofflplished facts as yet befom it has actually been accom- plished the^ Christ in the flesh "See" Elijah aloft- With thii the Elijah picture ends and, "£h'j/ia sa-jj hi%iv no mflrf ." Elisha in this thought does not picture a different class but a different office (service) for the Christ in the flesh after the Elijah work is doner

A short lime since I saw a picture oi Irvin, GiEtettc in an Edison Phonograph record catalogue. I recognized it as the same isce marked Henry Burr in the Columbia catalogue. He is the geutleman who sang the artgelophone hymns. I noticed that the Gillette records were secular while the Burr records were sacred music. ^1 observe," I said, "he is the same soloist acting i]^ different service, just like Elijah when declaring the judgments upon Baby- lon and Eliiha when giving food to Benjamin and the rest of Joseph's breEhren. Both sen-ices done by the Christ in the ficsh " Wc shared in the Elijah work when we assisted in the publicity service Spring oi IJJUS and we are hoping to have a share in the Elisha work of niaktng the poisoned

- . . nni-i- > Kinss 2.10 ^'i. U will iirobably lake twice 1^'nS o ih^ lister's si^irit to do the Elisha work as it to.k todo the Elijah work. This is made ev;idciit by the f^t 1 rn Jon e counted worthy to do the Elijah work seem to have s:ncTlost m'ch of the spirit of the truth and arc

"^'^^'^^V"^''^ ^Kat Eli.h. d^s what the 1 Jl coZti^nded Elijah to do. This is not difficult to nu- de rlnTXn we take the pomtoii that both type the rhrlst ifl the flesh. So the command oi the Lord givgn J S s El tlie Elijah work was benig done is earned into ^ieut on After Ihat work was competed and during the l^^^ldm the work pictured by Elisha .vas due to he doije Sisha anoints jehn and da.h[ug, impetuous Captain Jehu Womes Ikry fearless King Jehti who was informed at the ^«o that hf was anointed that he wis commtsstpncd of HeLord to avenge the blood of Ood's servants who suf- feted at th« hand of Jezebel. He was also to d ihat the whnk iiousc of Ahab nmst perish. Joram son of Ahab and j\lz'bet7s the reigning king ot Israel whom Jehu is to dis^ place.

pL. 30a, Vol. 7, we read, "The Hebrews ware dii-idtd imo tcii irilies (Israsl) thorouEiilj- Mmcd bv pjK^n bc- Utis and (tudah) holding mors ciosEly to Jeliovali. In a»tiiync when both Israci and Judah are ractiUcmeri and the proplvccy is intended for an ant.-typical £"lfii™<;»j Israel s anu'ics ihc papacy and Judah sign.:«s established p"tcsti?«Um." This furnishes us with a k=)- to the cor- recranli-typkal significance of ihtr two knijri of £ Kijigs S-n-"i Joram, king of Israel, and AhJiiah, king oj Judah, iv'ho in' a war-alliance came out to attack Jeha, W= have no diiftculty to liHcover iti the autocraUc govcrnnients of Europe two nations both successors to the old Roman EmiHiewho were iti a war-alliiii« ; une suviJorttna '-^"?' oliclsm and the other supporling Protestatism Austria corresponds to Israel and Certnany to Judah. Kor is it difficult in the least to trace in the exjietitnces of Austria that which corrcsijonds in a rtttiarkable degree to the ex- periences of Joram king of Israel. .i.,. i,„ -Anii it came to pass when Joritn saw Jehu that he said : 'is it peace. Jehu ?' and he answered, nV hat peaco so lonii as the iviioredoms oi thy mother, Jeichel and her witchcrafts are so many?' And Joram turned his bands and fled and said to Ahaziall, 'There is treachery, O Aha- liah ' And Jehu drew a bow with his full strength and smote Jorani between his arms and the arrow went out it his heart and he sank down in his chariot. 3 Kings J i^'^- 24 Who couid tail to see in the complete collapse cf the Austro-Hungarian Empire a remarkable correspondence to this record? Kor is the record less remarkable ivhen ap- plied in Germany. "And whm Abaii;ih, the King of Jii.ish, saw this he fled by the way of the garden house and J eta folloived after him and said: 'Sinitc him also in the chariot.' And he did so at the going up to Sur which ts by Ibleam, and he fled to MtRiddo ind died there. It is quite within probability that ivoimded Germany will come to a coifllilelt end in Armageddon. i .,i i When Jcjcbel learned thai her 5on Joram was killed and his ally Ahaziah she well knew she had good reason to fear Jehu, . ,, ^ PaiminLr her face and tiring her hair was an expsdietit as was also her act ot Jookins out of a window. We coiiKi not possibly think of a window wiihooi taking into account the wall in which the window is placed. Jeiebel has sought to make for herself a conspicuous niche in the ™->II ?' ™ defen.^cs in non-autocratic governments. Wall signincs KOvernmetisal dcfraisc. See comment on Jcr. al :W. It eon id not be the wall of Germany or Austria for the avails nf these autocritii: governments have talleti as Jcr. 51:4-1 predicted thcv would fall. It must there! ore he in non-aiitotratlc war-defenses that Jeiebel has sought to shew her painted face and her queenly head-display. But can autocratic Babylon be really at 'i«art interested -.n the support of democratic pritieiples" This attempt to deceive is represented in her painted face and it requires a ot ot paint to mike the old ladv even appear to be beautitul. bhe is not tjeautiftii. Those who see her before she is painted I: II an 5hc Ls JijK Iieautiiul. Those who assist her put on the paint and see the ludicrous make-up tittu;- zJiat ii a'ifl'.'a

t/tciyfiuii it is and in Ifltir hearts cannot but loalhc her. The eunuchs represent those who assisted her hs tier hair and put on lier paint. Tlicy coiiid not have esteem tor her for no one who knew the utter wickedness and cor- rupt seiiishness they must sec at dose range, coiild other than thoronslily despise so corrupt a system, iso when Jehu called from below "Who is on my side, who?' they looked out to to hiin so as to say; "VVe know what she really is, command us." So lie coranianded. ■'Throw her down ! And tlicy threw her down as though they were glad lor the op- porttinity. having doubtless suffered from her tyranny.

"And when he was conic in lie did eat and drink, and said, Go, see now this cursed woman, and bury her: lor she is a king's daughter. And they went to bury her: but they tciiiid no more of iter than the skull and the icet, and the pahns of her hands. Whcrifoce they came again and told him. Ar.d he said, This is the Word of the Lord whicli lie spake by his servant Elijah, the Tishbile, saying, In the coition of Jetiecl sliall (togs eat the Hesh o[ Jeiebel. And the oarcass of Jciebcl shall be as dung upon the tace ot the field in the portion of Jcrrecl. So that they shall not say, This is Jeiebel." Kings 9 M-il. 1 Kings 21 :2a records this prophecy that Jehu now recognizes as not only uttered by £liiati but now actually fultillcd to the letter. V^ hen the anti-typical Jeiebel is throwiv down and eaten up by tBe radical cleiiJcnts thousands beside the anti-type ot Jehu will recognine that the Bible students long since foresaw and foretold from Scripture prophecy tint while the wall (civil authority) is intact Babylon will tall not at the hands Of the radical elements, only too glad lo eat her up alter she has fallen, but at the hand oi her own caretakers, repre- sented by the eunuchs. It is intereitmg to note hovv this picture harmoniies with Ihe picture siveii. Rev. 1() :1 J, And oreat Babylon came in remembrance before tjud to give unto her the cup of the wine of the fierceness ot tiis wrath." -Notice also that this was necessary beiorc the great hail of U21. Hitherto Babylon his prevented the putting forth of the "hail." Rev. 17:12-16 tells, how a short "hour" of reigning with the beast wi 1 be too intimate an acquaintsnee with the corrupt system to endure these ihall hate the whore and shall make her desolate aiid naked, and shall eat her flesh and burn her with fire. Kev. IS -.41 tells how the conunon people at fir.st believed her claim to be a friend of popular interests so they hit her to heights of popular esteem. They too discover her real self-inter- ested corrupt character and from the heights of popular favor to which they have lifted her they hurl her to de- struetioii. "Thus with violence shall that great city Babylon be THROWN DOW^', ("itf shall be fotind no more st all. We must net overlook the completeness of Jehu's work nor how thoroughly he accomplished all assigned him by the Lord when through tlie Lord's commission he was given office for this designed purpose. Chap. 10 tells how jusliy he dealt wish the hou5e of -Aliab, oBenng to Jorani s successor opportunity for defense. There were seventy prospective kings— Ahab's sons. The persons who had these princes in charsc well knew tliat ihey could not maintain 1 defense, "Two kings stood not before you." Autocracy must utterly perish. The entire seventy princes were he- headed and the house of .Abab, all that rtmained to rcarc- sent Oie old Roman Empire, was destroyed. Autocracy ceased all claims to power on the earth. Who Can taiLJo see earth's new king preparing for the establishment ot /•'principles of righteousness?

a Kings 10;18, Baal, or Bel. Type of the God of Baby- lon the Pope, D40.

Sec also comment Jer. 51 :44.

lehu directs his efforts against Baal worship by assum- ing great respect for Bial. He assembles all the prophets of Bail bat specifies tliat they see that there be none ot the prophets of the Lord amongst them. All the Baal prophets were present. He stationed his eighty captains outside as- suring them that if one escaped his life would go lor the one that he let escape. He issued orders, "Slay every prophet of Baal" and every prophet of Baal was siain. Bring forth the images of Baal and destroy them and the images were destroyed. Dishonor the house oi Baal, and

30

/• B. S. A. CONVENTION

ihcT dcfiltd the house oi Bail. So the worshin of BmI cciiicil f r«n ilie pcuiile Di the Lord.

The Word of God is amizinsly specife in its uttcr- a.Kts concerning Liabyjor. Not onI.v in Ibe prophecy of Isauh but in the tuinor prophfts. as m Jonah, the Lord in- structs cor.cCTn.ns- Babjion. In yincvch and in i.he with- nowmg of judgment after fcptntaticc wc have pictured

ti ,; *'^^"l'; '^ n" ^^". "" "f^"'"" Md BaWon repented, ftlatt U-Al. But Babylon did not repent as did Xineveh iNovY nothing can prevest the coming of Divine jndement upon her. I,a. 2C .20-21 informs us: "Come, my people, entr- thou into thy chambers and shut !hv rfoorj about Ui«: hide thyself as it fere for a little moment, until Ihc indisnation be overpast. For deliold the Lord coraeih out of his plate to punish the inhabitants of the earth for their init)uity. Ihe earth also shall disclose her blood and shall no mare corer her slain.' It is only ^eai Babylon tnoush that III the- Scripture has sucli an enormity of inlQUltl- that Jehovah has sudi an account asainst her, "In her ivas found the blood of proiifiets and of saints and of all thai were sJain on the earth," Rev. 13:21, This is ih<? l.Ic«d thai she jliall disclose when judsments come upon her "Re- »-ard her even as she reivaraeff yau. and aouhk unto her

fi»" ;' fiH?'^**"5 \^" '^^^^^■J" *' ^^ "Wch she hath fitted (ill to her double. Rev, ig;(S.

The prcaehmg of Jesus immediately foilowincr the Iw- htading of John the Baptist seems to parallel the experi- ence ol [he Church m the period corresponding. "And the arostlcs OTthererl themselves logeiter unto Jciui and told rum all thmss both what they hid done and wha: they had Uiitrhr, Anti he said unto ttcm coMie w yaiiridvi:! aiart into a desert pliee, ar.d rest awhile: tor there were mjny com, OH and going. a..d they had im tcimrc jo ,mch ai lo tit. Hark b:30, 31. Kow won.krftlly is here pi«v.red our cxiierirnccs when engascd in our active PHblidty wnrlt. .^0 leisure so much as to eat." Now in the desert pljce apart we have time to eat the rich ipirilual food the Lord IS Drovidjn? anrl by this we are Wmg prepared for the lUttire service. An unnumbered host hungrv to be led came to Jesus and the disciples in this desert place. The supply or hand was anpliiied and »W0 me:i V>iii« women auil children wia-e fed. The Great Company and manv he- side are to be ie<l with the food the Christ in the flesh have I" supply- What gloricB! work this side of the vail iwaits the Christ when hindtriug Babylon is no longer in the way to hinder. How corafortms to everv true child of thn Lord to rcalke "He slisll cover thee with His feathers and under His wingi shalt thou trust. His truth shall be thy shield and buckler. <ArpL.ti:sE,)

MINUTES OF THE .\NNUAL ELECTION

OP THE

WATCH TOWER BIBLE & TRACT SOCIETY

January 4, 1919

1^' """I*^,"" "i* '!« CH.^RTEJt of the \V. T, B '-.^iKicty, ihe shareholders and proxy-holders as- setnbiea Saturday noming. January 4 191" and awaited the call to order. Utheri were stationed at each lisle to permit onlv those who had their -.-otini! shares with tnem to enter the first floor of tlic auditotium: several hundred others were directed to the bilcoiiv. The chair- inan. Brother C A, AndtTsuii, of Baltimore, Md.. called the mectinii to order at 11 a, m

f\-iDTE: SPECIAt. ATTENTION' IS CALLED TCI THE FACT THAT SPACE WILL XOT PERJIIT US TO REPORT THE ENTifiE ACCOUNT OVLY THE

We report the chairman's opcaiiig remarks as toliows' fte want to say we are very glad indeed to meet you .... ;. ■ k' !,' ''""= ■* P'''^"«8t- I assure yoj. and I am ture we have all mci toKetaer with one heart and mind in respect to the Lord's Word, and His Truth, and Service ^.M^J"!* "' "* *" r^ioicinr in the ureal privilege which He has granted you and 1 in having a part in this work. I am jure we ar* ill seeUng the Ijjrd'j guidance and direction ; and to this end we want to open our sen-ices 6y slandmtr ami ofTFerinu a jitcnt prayer -each one seekiuK

whoT h"" "-?■'"*■ ^tV' ^■'"- '^ "" remember aS Who are His, >nd especially let us remember the rlear ones

I.VP rV- '■^" ''"'f '"' y*^'- ^"' '^'■■o ^' "O"'

■n bonds of slUiciiuns— suffermB for righlcouiness' sake

I atr. sure we will all agree that the condition which

^uLTh f"^ "• "'l "J^?"™' *="« '^ ™<= 'h=' ''3= never ecrstcrf before in the history of (he Sodety, I am sure

i.d nr.Ji^^n*'' '"'" *'''"*i"K '*« "*"" 0^"=^ carefully f„ F.">^|"H"'' '" your minds, 03 to wliat would be best i^r the Society, and a so for those who represent the Society m eonneetton with this election and this meelinR

^JvT,"' *'?'' 'K'/'*, ""' yo" * '"'" f'Uf or i5vo . . "i?' ""'' P"''«l»'y know that it was thiucht he«

T ?-,?,' V" "«^"'"^- ^ ""'« '»'" '"' ^-^ r^ceivfd f?=m

ana )ou also received your proxies, I am sure that it

caused you (o think. Your board did not know just how to act. or what would be best. When the time tame to consider an election the SociV'y thought it adviiibic to call a tneclmg of the Pilqrims— in order to know their sentiment. It developed that they were in favor ol havinr an dection, Very shortly after that (when I got back to Baltimore) Brother Work 'phoned me. stating that he had had an mterview with the attorneys: that it was their opiiiiuii (hat It would work probably to some disadvantage towards gelliny the brethren out. This is Ike reascrn why that Idler was sent out by Brother Sexton. He was sent to Brooklj-a to consult with the attomei-s >nd aljo with some of the rest of the friends there, and that letter you receu-ed was the result of this trip.

The following week ic went to Pittsburgh and held a boarri meetinir. and it wm sgreed upon that n-c should not have an election. Brother Sexton was sent South the folIowmR week. When he came back he had received information that he thoajht it .vas wise and b<>st and ih* only ordinary course for iis to have an election, '\ftcr viewing the matter from all angles, we conduded it wsa best to have an tlcttion. You are here, therefore to hold 111 elccuon.

Xow it iias caused a division in your lioard. and a division among, 1 prcsm-ne, mnny of ,vou — ^as to tvhether II would be best lo hold an election' or to postpone it It IS for this reason Iha; vie have in/ited cur attorneys here that they may give you the legal status of the affairs I am luri: we all .v^ni to do the Lord's will in the matter Let us took to Hint and ask for His CTiidante We will now have the treasurer's retJort, It ^vas then moved, seconded and unanimouslv cirHcd that this report, as read, be accepted.

Before the election of officen, the Socictv look action on some changes in the by-laws, as offered bvi committee the chairman of wlich wis Brodrer E, H. Tilompson, of W ashington. D, C ■- . "•

•S'"''--' liujjhfji. Chairman ant dear friends, I would like to make a motion in view of the peculiar liiua- tion which now esists. and our hope that our present oftieers who are now in bonds tnay be rettimcJ to us v«rv shortly. '

/. B. S. A. CONVENTION

31

Sr£ilAi;r Viomfsm: I ask for the nnotion to be rtiad. llfalli.-' /■(ii-(yi"0.r.' I will rp;id the mritinn. "In view of die fact that our president and secretary- treasurer— bolh raonlKrl of our Board of Directors, are now being h,kl in the federal prison at AtLiiila. and llial iheit appeal i< now pending; and we believe llicm to be innocent; and i.it ttcV will be vindicated and returned to us wiihm a frf weeks or months, and that an election oi other officers ill directors at this time— under these peculiar circuni- Winces-might and would undoubtedly be misconstrued by ,h', r;.,vi'rnmi'iit us a reijiulialioii of t,icse brcilireii. .mil mieht therefore prove to be detrimental to their case. I tWefnre llOVf^ that we take a recess ol the annual meetiniT. so far as an election of officers is concerned, Vor a period of six months, or until the first Saturday in ]a\\- 11 *e interest of these brcihrcn and m the interests if the Society as a wliote," . , ■ j ^

fMotion seconded niid tlie ([ucstion submitted,) Bntlu-T Hudgiitji: In explanation of this motion I wish 10 siv ( a™ '"■■': ""' a" ^" cog^n'.ant of the very oeculiar situation that confronts us at this timt ni conncc- lion with our dear brethren who are now in bonds lor Christ's sake. It seems to me thii there are a great many aucstiens enlerins jiio Ihe dcliberaiior oi skn day that would niakc it practically necessary that an adjournment of this raecliiig be taken, . , u • „,! .

I might mention a few Ihinss that I have m mmd- 1 believe that the majnriiy who are present here, '>["er personally or by proxy, agree that there is undoubtedly a oreat work for this Society to do wiihm possibly the nest f,w mwths. Perhaps the greatest work that this Society has ever undertaken will be undertaken withm a short lime We have seen tho h»ri-ftt work profressing for forty years, but now we expect to wiinst a gieat awafcen- itiB on the part of the foolish virgin class, and perhaps millions will soon come to a recognition ot tlie truth Ihroucli the iiistrumciualiiy nf Ihos-e who ate iio>i ac- ouabited with the great Divine Plan. It stands to rcasoii that in such a work of this kind and character, we wouW be expected by the Lord lo act very cautiously m respect to the selection of our ofBccrs to direct that work. It also stands to reason that we would need to put loflh the best man for the place th?' the Ch!>;rfi c-u'd nos- jihlv nroduie. We would need hrethren nt couraEe^men who are fearless; men who would not lake a comproniis- mi; sund. And it is my belief, d«ir fiicnds, that it n the sentiment of this assembly, and the friends throughout the whole United States, and llie length and btcadlb oi the world that the one and only person Ihit is best qualihed to direct sucii a stupendous work is cur dear pres.tlent, now ill bonds for Christ's sake (Applause.) .

The question before us, therefore, at this time is . Sliaii we the ■shareholders, here aisemhled in person, atd Cry proxy, «cek to jeopardije the best interests ot this worl; by rushing forward and hastily installing mto office a set of new oflicers, adcnittedtv weak in coinparison to those selected here last year, in the very face ol the aptKJl Ol the case of our breihrcti, which we have evcr.v conhdcncc will restore dicm to us, completely vindicated in the eyes of the Government, and in the eyes of the world: Ur shall vie make the mistake of closing our eyes to^lje true situation simply because of sotne smaHer ^';'' "V"'f ,, ' tails of the work which some may suppose mifiht be better tak™ care oi by- a full set of officers than hy the pre'cnt arrangement? We thereby would, perhaps, miice the grave misL-ike of jeopardising the best internts ol the ^iKiiety as a whole, which mistake we would recogniie when these dear kelhrcn walk out (roni behind their prison bars: and which we trust ihcv will do, withn a comijara-.ivelv short time (applause)— but then it would be too late,

I have a commarication in my pocket which I trust to be privilejed to read at the close ot this discussion, which IS the expression of our dear president. respecting the situation that now confronts us, I was prtvilegcd to visit him In file Atlanta prf«nn a few days afro, »""."' the presence oi a guard the liberty was given him to dic- tate i rather lengthy interview touching upon the points that are so perplexing to you and to me— to all ot us at this time. But before reading tlial c^lJression from our president himself, 1 think it will be well lor us all to

Uke into consideration the Ucts and circumslliiccs in which we would be placed, and would he obli,ecd to con- front if we should take the action today ot clcetiiig a full s<it of new officers and directors of this S.v:iet.v in the absence of those who are now suffering bcliind prison walls for you and mc. , , . ,

I say for yoii and itic because o! the tact that it was ottr action here jne year ago that resulted in ilic imiinsoiyneiu of Brother Rutherford, Broilitr Van Ambargn and the other members of our Hoard of Directors. The.i' hive Imcn imprisoned, nut for anydiiig die/ did persona.ly and on their own initiative, but they have bcc:i imprisoned because ihcv faithfully carried out the poUcy that i^ou and I advoc.itcrt when we iilaced them in office. Tljey Hare been imprisoned, rlear friends, because they fulfilled, con- scicnliousiy and properly, the duties that jou and I as members of iho Society hid fifo" Hiffnl U ihey had been imprisoned tor something they individjaily did apart front their work as our oflicers, the sitiiauon would have been entirely different. But not so ! You and I to this extent are responsibit; (or their imprisonment; and they are at this moment in the Atlanta prison as your jv/rwciilJlii-t-J and mine. (Applause.; , , /.

It might have been argueil on the part ol the (jovern- • menl that since the actvitici of the Society were con- sidered to he improper during the period of die war, every member who participated in thai actisity should be i.idicted and called into court, and conrictcd and put into prison for that activitv. But the Goiernment did not do that. They merely selected SEVEN or EIGHT representatives of you and me, and wc cannot get jw«y from the fact that the Society's interesis are ■.■italiy linked with the case of these brethren, onr officers and directors., dotvn there in Atlanta at this time; and ihc condemnation of these men was a condemnation of Ibe whole Society. The in- teresis of the Society therefore stand vitally luiked with their intereitl in this connection.

It seems to me that from a business standpoint alone — leaving sentiment out of the matter attogcllicr— it is your duty and mine to uphold and rciain the situation, exactly as it existed at the lime of the iiidictnient of these omccrs. Furthermore, whca wc look fcirard to the work that we expect the Society to accomplish in the near future, from the business stanSpoint t believe it would be the greatest mistake that we as a Society could possiblj' make to drop these breihren ant! install a ne»- set itl offirerf— especially when we believe their rindiciiion is near through their appeal which is pending.

You and I. perhaps, would not mean such action as a repudiation of them, Wc do not have the i(ioiis|n that we want to repudiate our brethren, who are suffering for us. Of course not ! But we mast look at the matter^ from Ihe standpoint ol how the Government will view it. Il is a reasonable assumption that in tomorrow morning s press the newspapers will caro' a dispatch of the deliliera- tions and action taken by this Societi; todav. \\ e might pass a resolution, of course, eommenjing these brethren; but they won't print the resciution. \Vhai they would print would be our action In connection with the elec- tion ; and so surely as we proceed and elect iica' officers of itiis SiKieiy. wtitii wc are all cossiiiaiit oi tlic fact that the appeal mav Ije argued in the Circuit Court within the next thirty days, they would say that Ihe KusselliM organiitation, at their annual meeting yesterday in the city of Pittsbursh. dropped the otticerj indicted and found guilty by the Eastern District Court of \'ew York, and by tKs action they indicated that they believed those men guilty. Or they will «ay by this action we hive shown that we had no confidence that the men vi-ould 'je vin- dicated in the Court of .Appeals, EitHer one would work a detriment, and it would undoubtedly have a great in- fluence on the minds of ihe judncs of the .\ppcllatc Coutt, if the matter was thus stated in no uncertain terms by the counsel tor the Covernment, _ -r j j

Of course the Lord is tnana^in? his affairs. The Lord is able lo raise tip men to direct His work, ^o one disputes that! The Lord his all power to pertorro miracles. But wg do not believe that is the vv^y He usually works. Wc know that it ij no:. Wo thereiore are al«° upon, in view of the fact that we have a great work ahead

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of us, to use Iktt best judgment wa have, dear brethren; and io long 'as wc recognize that qtr brethren in bonds arc specially qmlified far the work, and liiat their present experiences are further training iheni for that work, we have s fespoiisibility hefote the Lord, We should not make tlic mistake of piiLtiii^ into office those admittedly wesJc in compirison to them, when we believe tlicy wiil soon be returned to us.

I have thus far speciaily dwelt upon the subject from the standpoint of the business interests of the Society and our restmnsibility ia connection with the case of our brethren — Icaviiisj ijut the question of seiitimeiil. But 1 do not knoiv why sentiment should not also enter into the problem. Suppose it was Brother Russell who was in prison at this time instead of Brother Rutlieri'ord ! Do yon suppose wc would meet hero todiy, if the conditions were exactly tlie sattie, and talte hasty action, electim; new otTiccrs— especially when we believed that Brother Russell ■would be returned to us from prison within a short time? And let me tell you, dear friends, if Brother Russell had remained alive with ns in the flesh dawn to the year ISIIS, he wouW undoubtedly be behind prison bars at this moment with our dear Brother Rutherford. We would not make this mistake if Brother Russell was in prison, however. Well, you say, "Brother Russell was the Seventh -Messenger of tlie Churcli!" That is trne. But since our dear Brother Russell has passed beyond the vail, we have had many evi- dences, have we [tot, that Brother Rtitherford is the next best quail Bed to carry on the work] I do not believe there is a dissenting voice.

The whole question is whether wc shall do a little sacrificing now, for a short period of time, and incur the srrtall petty annoyances iji connection with the work under present conditions; or shall we. because oi a few minor questions that enter into the affairs of the Society which might make it somewhat advantageous to have a full set of officers and directors, rush ahead and elect weaker officers ill their place? It seems to me that the tatter would be a great mistake. The other course open to us js Ihc one that we as a Society should take, i. e., adjourn this meeting now unless we intend (o re-elect our im- prisoned bretliren.

THE JEREMIAH PICTURE

There is just one more point that I would like to mention, and that is the situation as it seems to be out- lined by the T,ord in the IlGth chapter of Jeremiah. We believe that the Lord has there made a very wonderful picture oE tlie activities of the Lord's people down here in this end of the age. In this chapter we see tltc activities of the Society pictured, in connection with the Seventh Volume— even to the removal of the three or four leaves of the hook which we were required to do last spring — nine (Tj months after the book made its advent into the worldn

Then, in the 37th chapter, Jeremiah was accused of falling away to the Dialdeans," which, of course, he denied. Then hs was specifically charged with weakening the morale of the men of ivar, and on that point he was apprehended and placed into the dungeon. The account ejss, o". to say, that after a while he was brought out of the dutiKcon for an interview with the king (the last king of Israel), and the result was, of course, that the king did not follow his advice and his kingdom was taken away

The point is that Jeremiah was given liberty at the hand of the Chaldeans and was given the privilege of choosing to remain in the land or go elsewhere. We be- lieve that this also is s part of the picture, and it is a picture that the Lord has drawn.

Jeremiah, we believe, is a picture of the Lord's people at this Lime. The Society, of which ycu and I arc mem- bers, stands in relation to the whole body, at this time as Its head, so to speak. The head of this Societj- is in the dungeon—in exict accordance with this picture of Jeremiah 36:37, 33.

The remainder of the picture will be carried out. I firmly believe that we will see that as the head of the Jeremiah class (the Society— i-epresentcd in its president^ is noiv in the dungeon, even so, he will be called forth from the dungeon, and will appear before kings, and we

will find in connection therewith that there will go forth the greatest work the Church has ever done, and ever will do, on this side of the vaii. So surely as the head of the Jeremiah class went into the dungeon, so surely he will come out of the dungeon; and he will appear before kings, just exactly as it is shown in other parts of Scrip- tures, in Revelation IT, and Psairas 143— showing a great work (not yet fully accompHslied, but will yet be ac- complished)-— "the binding of their kings with chains and their nobles witfi fetters of iron."

Our dear Brother Russell, always expected that there would be a great work to be accomplished in the flesh, and that the truth friends would come into great promi- nence. I believe that will be accomplished. And I, for one, believe that the Lord has permitted the imprison- ment of our brethren for a special purpose in connection

with fiitnrc witnessing to tlie world. I want to tell yoil

something: If we proceed with the election today, and it is construed in the press reports as a repudiation of these brethren (as it undoubtedly will be), we are going to jeopardize, in the very beginning, one of the most int- portant features of the work just before us- Some of you perhaps know that the Society is atranging for some great activity— publicity— in connection with the ease, that we may let the world know why these men are in prison, and why they have been denied bail! While they have been kept in prison, the worst scditionists in the country have been given bail. When the facts are ill pnhlished they will come to recognue that there has been a hand behind the scenes, and that hand is Papacy — the great ecclesiaslicil system, which is headed bv Papacy— and it is that system which has been so immensely pleased over the imprisonment of our breliiren. It is that system, I verily believe, that has been largely responsible for their having been denied bail pending their appeal. Those facts shall he made known in the Lord's providence. (Applanse.)

That will mean that an agitation will be started respect- ing this matter. People will begin to talk about it just as they were talking all over this country about another case of considerable importance a few weeks aRo. i. e., the case of Tom Mooiiey in California. N'ow we have no particular interest in ihat case, bill the point is you can'! mention Tom Mooney's name on the streets today but everybody knows_wiio he is, yet he was not known a short time igo. The time is coming— and we believe it is not many months off— perhaps not manv afeii, until you wtll not be able to mention the name of J. F, Rutherford and the other convicted leaders of the I. B. S. A. without nearly everybody knowing who you are talking about. Tlicy will know why those men are in prison and un- justly held and that they have been even denied the right to baill (Applause.)

It is the thought to have various brethren who are specially qualified for such a work to interview the editors of the newspapers throughout the country respecting this ' °2"=r. Now then, it we take action today and elect new ' officer!, and the press reports go out through the country ' tomorrow that "the Russidlite organ iiiti on elected new officers yesterday, even in the face of the appeal of the case of their leaders, iliereby repudbiting ilirm, showing that they had no confidence that the appeal would result m their vindication; showing that they did- not believe in tlie activities of those men and were nut willing to back them -up in Ihe.r activities which got tbcni into trouble, then how do you suppose the editors of this country will answer these brethren when thev go to them and ask for publicity in this case? They "will answer, \\hy, we_ had a dispatch from the Associated Press on January ath, saying that the action taken by their oivn organization down there in Pittaburgh on the 4th of January, IfllU. dropped them from the Society, even though their appeal was pending, and was to be argued within thirty days I How is it that you come and ask me to give publicity and aid in connection with this case when tlieir ov,iv organiiation would not lift their finger to aid them?"

Now, dear brethren, one more point: Wc have lieard brethren here and there say many times, "Ob, I would do anything for those brethren in bonds. I would gladly go down there and exchange places with them!" (Amen!) But the brethren have not asked us to do that. Thev

/. B. S. A. CONVENTION

33

have not asked any of us to exchange places with tlienij eicii for one day! But they do ask that, on advice of counsel, the election here today be postponed for a limited period, so that nothing may be done by the Society to unfavorably affect the appeal.

Now, since we know tiiat it is legal to do so, and can undoubtedly sec that it will be advisable from numerous standpoints to do so, and when we know that the brethren thcinselvcs have requested and advised it, as the proper course, if wc then deliberately shut our eyes to the situa- tion and go ahead and elect new officers, I for one would not want anyorre who so votes to say in my presence, "I would do anything for those brethren in bonds. I would go down and cschangc places with them if I could," if you would not even raise your hand to yield to their simplest reqiiest. backed up by sound reason, shown to have a very vital effect upon their case and upon the future activities of the Society.

Someone may say; "^Vell, of course we know that Brother Rutherford is the best qualified to be the head of the Society, and we would therefore assunit that wiio- ever is elected (if we do carry out t!ic election today) would be glad to yield to Brother Rutherford when he comes out of prison ; that he would be glad to resign," But his resignation would not install Brother Rutherford back into office. It would lake an action of the share- holders to do that. We would need to call another meet- ing if anything like ihnt was sttlcmiited. Why not set the

date of that meeting at this time. Postpone it for a while and follow ,the advice of this morning's Manna le,Kt, if you please, and "VVait upon the Lord." (Applause,)

Why not, dear friends, take these matters into con- sideration and not make the mistake that some of us are inclined to make, because we feel wc are at present jeopardized a little in respect to some routine work of the Society, Let us wait upon the Lord, and Me will direct our paths. Let us not tie our hands today for the work that we expect to do tomorrow. Let us co-operate^ in this matter^ and we will see the Lord's purpose ripening into fruition in a few months, Wc will then be glad that we did "Wait upon the Lord" this time. As we see the grand work accomplished in the hands of those whom the Lord undoubtedly would be best pleased to use— -the head of the Jeremiah class, who is shortly to come out of the dungeon for the very purpose of directing that great work, , , , We will all be glad Aj hear Brother Ruther- ford's voice from the prison walis, after a silence of six months ; (Applause,)

'To the Dear Friends ; — Since the opportunity^ is kindly afforded me to dictate to a stenographer for a few moirients, I am pleased to take this occasion to send a message to the friends, I send love and greetings to one and all. Except for the fact that I am unlawfully held in bonds, I would be with you in person at this time, but let us consider the bondage of myself and brethren one of the things which the Lord permits the enemy to do, and which He will overrule for good, and to His glory. When I say tin! aw fully in prison I speak advisedly. Never before have men been imprisoned in America for preaclitng the truth, and then denied bail while their case is pending "an appeal. Concerning the legality of this, 1 quote from a decision of the United -States Supreme Court, which says; 'THE STATUTES OF THE UNITED STATES HAVE BEEN FRA.MED UPON THE THEORY THAT A PERSON ACCUSED OF CRIME SHALL NOT, UNTIL HE HAS BEEN FINALLY ADJUDGED GUILTY IN THE COURT, BE AB.WLUTELY COMPELLED TO UNDERGO IMPRISO:s"MENT OR PUNISHMENT, BUT MAY BE ADMITTED TO BAIL. NOT ONLY AFTER ARREST AND BEFORE TRIAL, BUT AFTF-R CONVICTION AND PENDING A WRIT OF ERROR.' IN ADDITION TO DENYIMG US OUR LIBERTY, WE have been deprived of the opportunity of counsel with our lawyers as the Constitution guar- antees.

"Brothers Van Amburgh, Fisher, Robinson and my- self are slill the editors of the "Watch Tower, having never resigned, and yet we are precluded front com-

municating with the Church through tfiis dtannel. Even in the times of the religious persecution in the dark days of England the conditions were better. John Eunyan, although a prisoner for twelve years, was granteil the privilege of communicating freely with the memlicrs of his Church on religious matters, which he did regularly, I mention this to again re- mind you, my dear bretiircn, of the perilous times in whjclt tve are living, and the adversaries that are ar- 1-ayed against us. We are not warring merely against Hesh, but with spiritual enemies arrayed against the Church in the final conflict which has beeiin. REVE- ■ LAI ION 17 : 14— 'Tlie beast shall make war with the lamb.' There is no warfare amongst the members of tlie body of Clirist, as indeed there cannot he ; but the adversary is on the alert to try to cause strife bi the ranks of his enemies. Let everyone look well to himself to see that the adversary does not succeed a$ to any of us. Remember," above all things, 'THE KI\'GDO-\l OF HEAVEN IS .AT H-'UND.' THE L,A.M!i WILL SHORTLY PREVAIL IN THIS CONFLICT, and only the called, chosen and faith- ful will be with Him in glory. This is the crucial hour for those who are now in the race course. Satan's chief weapons arc PRIDE, AMBITION and FBAR. If we find either of these in us and at work, wc may know that the enemy is advatidng upon" us.

If we see the enemy working in a brother, for his

sake and the sake of the body, wc should discourage and not render aid to his development. The qties- lioh is not who shall fill the official positions, but what is for the best interests of the body. Pride, ambition and fear, necessarily in a combat, lead to a coinpromise -with the enemy and any kind of com- promise leads to disaster in the ranks. Remember that since jesus came forth from the wilderness, Satan and his emissaries have warred against the Christ, and that now, and to the end, the conflict will be more subtle and desperate than ever before. Be assured then that whatever the beast says or intimates that we should do. that is the very thing that we should not do. Let our watchword always be, "WHAT WOULD OUR LORD HAVE US TO DO? AND ASCERTAINKVG THE MIMD OF THE LORD, DO IT," and He will take care of the result because this is the fight of Revelation 17 ;14, between the lamb and the beast, and it is no individual light.

"Oh, my brethren, how I long to he with you and speak with you face to face. For six months to this day i have not been permitted -to speak. How thank- ful I am that our Lord has permitted me to send this message to you now. Having a desire to be with you, that we might be of mutual help to each other in the narrow way, and believing the Lord would be pleased to help us to make effort to that end, we have urged counsel to do all that could be legitimately done for our needs. We knew* the adversary would put it into the minds of our enemies to keep us from being with you at this time. He has succeeded- We knew this upon genera! t<nowledge of his methods, and we 'had also the following direct and significant inforrtiation, to-wit;

"About the time of the arrest of my fellow prisoners and myself, one who icpiescnted himself as an ofiicial of the department of our vicious prosecutors said

in substance to Brother , of Harrisburg, Pa.,

as follows 1 'We are goitvg io put those leaders of yoitr sect behind the bars and keep than there. Then if your Society wants to redeem itself it jiiii.rf elect men to jlii its offices that will eonduet the Society alon^ more cQitservalive lines than did Rutherford.' They succeeded in rushing us behind the bars, and prevented bail in order to keep us here, l^ow v;ill they be able to fntl the Soeieiy jnto hands that wtit work to their pieasiire, or will they be able to use today's aetiOH of the Society to thtir disadvaniaijcf Let there be no cotnproinisc, dear brethren, between the seed of the Serpent and the Lord of Glory-^between the Beast and the £.fliii£i.

^'Having on two separate occasions been tlectetl as

3+

I. B. S. A. CONVENTION

prefident, whidi oiTtce I still hold, I feel at liberty W write yuu fritikty. Individual in this conllkt do not coiitit, because all are one in GtrisE Jesus, therefore we need not hesitate to mention one in- dividuAl and without reflection upon others. For ^ number o£ years the brother I am about to mtntion worked ntidei' Brother Russell's pcrsoiial supervision as a Pilgrim, and also later as having charge ex- clusively of the work in the West indies and countries of South America. He is calnt, sober in mind, dis- creet and ffiars only God. He possesses ejiecutive ability, ami that L mow. He is able to present the truth, and is consecrated to the Lord and the promul- gation oi His message, and would not compromise for a sinElt instant^ I am pcrstiadcd- I hutttbly suggest, therefore, as tjic most available man for president of our Society in the event election is held, the name of . our dear BrntKer E, J. Co^ward, and for vice-president. Brother C- H. Anderson, or Eroitier C. A, Wise, and for secretary treasurer I would suggest Brother Hugo H, Reitner.

"Some time ago, however, counsel advised that because of the importance oj our case that the aujiuat election should be deferred for a time until they could have liad the case heard in the .appellate Court ; and that an election of officers now would seem to indicate that the Society was not in harmony with the position which we took as officers and directors i and that they^ would he confronted in court by counsel for prosecution with the assertion that the Society 35 itot morally supporting us because we are wrong* They reasoti and claim such as sound reasoning that the brethren at the office could continue the manage- ment for a few months longer as at present without disturbirtg anyone ; and that qui case would then appear to a better advanta^, from every standpoint. The Society as an entity would have absolutely noth- ing to lose by siich a course ; licnte it was not thougiit unwise to a$k that a recess of the annual i^ieeting be taken for a time. Hence some of the friends on advice of counsel asked that such recess be taken,

"Now we learn that some have t^onsidered this as wire pulling and electioneering. We are exceedingly sorry that anyone should have such a thought. Not one of us now behind tlie bars is asking for of^ce, or' seefeins for office. No One has asked on our per^onai behaU, so far as wc know, but some have asked that the enemy be not deliberately handed a ctub with vfhich to mangle us further, We, brctitren, while deprived of our liberty illegally gained, persortaliy desire only the Lord's will to be done — \ have every confidence that it will be done, but I feel I would be derelict of t^Y duty to you, my brethren, if I failed to ^ve warning and give yon this message at this time. Let it be clearly understood that we (as a follower of the Lamb) stand firmly for the truth as the Lord wrote it by the prophet against Satan's empire and as He caused it to be interpreted in the .Seventh Volume as well as in the preceding jiV and for which testimony we are now in bonds. Let ua not fear, but trust Eiim and doing so wc will be with Him in glory shortly. It seems too bad to me that SO much ado has been ijiade about this election. Vet let us not say too bad, hut smilingly 5ay, the I-ord will overrule it Cor good if we keep our hearts right. We all know it is the province of the vice-president in this instance to publish the notice of the election, and his duty in that connection, of course, ends there. The voters determine all else. Members of the Board of Directors, as such, have absolutely nothing to do with the selection of their successors or the election itself. The discussion pro and con, therefore, dear brethren, I think has been out of place, but let us not say any- thing harshly about each other. If a brother over- steps the bounds of ethics, let it be considered an error of judgment and not of heart, 'Let brotherly love contintie,'

"Much may depend upon what is done on January 4lh. When we come to render an account to the Lord may no one have occasion to regret wltaE he

has said or done here. Therefore let each one before speaking or acting solemnly ask the Lord to help him in every word and act. Let the love of God rule in every heart, and vvitatcver you may decide to do, dear bretliicn, know this, that I love each and every one of you very dearly, My_ great desire for you and for myself and my associates is that -we may soon be ushered into the glories of the Lord. Anything that would hinder the consummation of such a hope should be strenuously avoided. The kingdom and its bless- ing is the only thing worth while. The approval of men is a snare. The approval of the Lord is So be desired above all else. To have His approval now may cost us much pain and sutTerinjj, but soon such" will be ended forever. *By love serve one another.'

*"Lct each esteem the other better than himself,' and count it a privilege to make a sacrifice for tbe other. Let us avoid all things that would aid our great enemy — Satan— nar tend towards division, or jeopardize us in our future work. Unfei^ed love will bind to- gether the hearts of His people. 1 will be with you in spirit and vjill remember you cspecitilly during your deliberations on the ^th of January.

"MANY OF OUR YOUKG BRETHREN KRE IN PRISON AS WE ARE, BECAUSE THEV DE- CLINED MIUTARY SERVICE. I WOULD THEREFORE SUGGEST THAT SOMEONE SHOULD SEE TO IT THAT THIS MATTER IS BROUGHT TO THE ATTENTION OF CON- GRESS AND THE EXECUTIVE, BY MOTION OR OTHERWISE, THAT THEV M.AY BE RE- LEASED.

"Very lovingly your brotber and servant in bonds

for Christ's sake,

"J. F. RvtiiEHVoMi." (Applause.)

After Brother Plaenker offered a few comments. Brother C. A. Wise presented a motion (which was carried) that a recess be taken for one hour. Upon betn^ reconverted it was moved and seconded and unanimously carried that the remarks of all the speakers be limited to five minutes. Brother C. E. Stewart, ot St. Paul, iWinn,, said in part; ". , . With respect to the remarks of our Brother Hudgings (not being acquainted with him per- sonally, but speaking front the standpoint of principle) three times our dear brother referred to tliose who carried the resporisibility for the past three or four months as weakling,'!. I desire to say, oil behalf of myself and Brother Spill (as his associate in years pa.'it), I know that he has borne responsibility. , . , Did it require cour- age of Brother Rutherford? Did it require courage of Brother Spill Jo step in at a time he did? Yes I Brother Rutherford was fearless! Indeed] Can we not equally say of the one who has taken the responsibility tailing from Brother Rutherford's shoulders that he was alsa fearless? He has exhibited before all the world, and the friends of spirit of fearlessness, both to know and to do the will of the Lord."

The election at this time is the step immediately before us, and tve can cover the point of repudiation by such means as this ; To elect seven directors — tv.-o of whom would be Brothers Rutherford and Van Ambiireh (which I understand is entirely legal). By doing this, brethren, wc wuuld not be repudiating befote the world these dear breihi-cn; but t rather think we would stand for them. We would place in the hands of six brethren the work of the present time so that the Lord's work shall go for- ward. It seems to me that it is the Society's v.'ork that we want to take care of at this time. (Applause.)

Brother Geo. !i. KfndaU, ^ajftington, Pa.: I voice very strongly the sentiments of our dear Brother Stewart,

Smlker 1-Vise: I move that we proceed to cast our vote on the motion. (.Re-fojtponimcni .}

Brgtiier Wcfk: J second the motion.

Brother Miikr: T move that we have counsel with our attorneys at this time.

Brother Thotuffsen: Arc the counsel members of ihfr Society? Have the lawyers any voice on the floor at this. |3articuJar meeting ? If they have, we -would, of course, like to hear from them. If not — ittterrtiptcd by

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;. B. S. A. CONVENTION

35

Brother Milkr: That is what they were invited licre

Sroihcr Thompson; No one has authority to invite them except the Society. , . ., j u

Clmirnmn: It is our impression ihey were invited here for the purpose of hearing from ihcm, therefore I think we ought to hear from our attorneys beiore we proceed with Brother Wise's motion.

Brslhcr thempsim: I will have to ask the chair to nut the matter to a vote of tlie shareholders of the Society— whether or not they shall hear from (he lawyers. 1 move that the sharehoUltrs decide whether the lawyers ■ shall be heard from in answer to any q.uest[on put forth. Brsther Pagi: I move we substitute tliat with ' Meet- ing, as assembled, request the aitotneys to give us their judgment on this matter."

BrolUer Thompson: The motion cannot be substituted without the withdrawal of the first motion just made and secoiKlod, . . As a matter of principle, I would say the lawyers have no right to speak, i would think that what- ever they have to say should he said through our chairman. The chairman is the speaker of the house. The chairman is the one who can tell us what the lawyers tells him. What they have already told us can be summed up in a few words. I could say it in about ten words; and this would likewise be true of the chairman. Therefore, I ask that the chair state whatever the lawyers have told roe ; that ought to be sufficient lor us all. (.Applause.)

C/iotniiaii: The chair cannot present the matter beiore you as the attorneys can. We have no one else to do u like they can. . , .

Brotiicr Thompson: ... I am raising a point of principle. They have no right to speak on the floor, and unless the gathering defeats my motion they can't speak on the floor. That is settled by the motion. Wc can very readily ask the chair a certain question, and the chair could answer it "yes" or "no," because the lawyers told us very plainly last night (the meeting asserablcd at Bethel office, at which the Pilgrims, etc., were present). , . -" C/iairtiifln.- Wc have been instructed by the lawyers that we will have to vote on the substitutionary motion which is before the house. .As I stated in the beginning, I have had no experience in conducting such a large meet- ing, and therefore in order to carry it on orderly wc have Mr. Sparks and Mc. Fuller — our aiioi iicys-.|-w advise roe in the matter. (Applause.) Now the substitutionary mo- tion is in order.

Brother Page: I niake that a term of an amendment, therefore this will avoid objection.

Brother Tfmmlrsois: I take exception. C^iairfittm; (After consultation with lawyers.) A sttb- stitutioniry motion as an amendment is proper. Now flie motion is— interrupted by

Broiher Thovtpsim: The tnotioti. Brother .Anderson, need not be put. , . . My motion is really on a point of order (which action is right at any time). If the chair wants to put It to the friends, he may. It is simply this : 1 inove that no one shall speak on the floor of this meet- ing, except he be one of the voters or proxy holders of the Society.

Cliniriiifltt." Tliat motion has been amended. Brother Jhoiapion: I wish to submit that.no amend- ment that completely nullifies another motion is in order. CdoiDiimi,- In this case you are wrong. , , . ClMsirman: Our attorneys say they will not address the audience until they are requested to do so by the audience. Now Brother Page's motion is in order,

firofil*r Fags: My motion vjas as a substitute that the shareholders and proxy holders invite the attorneys to give us the information that we may ask.

(THE VOTE SHO^VED that 112 were against 60.) . . Brother TliompsoH: The motion that is still before the house is that we postpone the election m montlis. 1 have now received word .ihont this matter ot having the Eawyers speak. . . , There are no motions enferiaiiiable now until we take Brother Hudging's mo- tion and tabic it or act upon it. Anyone can speak who is a shareholder. In addition to that the ludience here have requested certaitl information from the lawyers. Nothing else is pertinent now. . . ,

Brother Huigims: I move that we take a recess of about twenty minutes in order to give the tellers time to arrange for the counting of the proxies, etc,

(The vote indicated that tile majority opposed the

motion.) . . ...

(The meeting was then thrown open for the privilege of astins questions of the attorneys.}

JJrolJuT Faije: I am led to understand that we arc not in a position at present to lesally transact tha financial necessity of the business; that there is no one legally qualified in power to carry on the financial end ot this work. Am 1 right in this understanding?

Altoriiiy Sparks: Brothel Page, the Society is operat- ing with a Board of Directors, hiving full power to act

for the Socicly in every legal way.

BmtlKr Tliviiipsmi: I respectfully submit that the law- yers are wrong. .N'obody now is legally authorized to sign a check. They arc liable to go to the penitentiary.

. . Audience: Certain conimunieations have gone forth, over the signature of "Sparks and Fuller and .Strieker," indicating that certain things were udmissibk in connection with the election, etc. The question is: Do you therein express your best judgment lu connectiOtt therewith; Tlie letters read as follows:

"D.=t. L. C Work, 1-13 Montague St., Brooklyn, N. Y.— Dear Sir ; Wc beg to advise that if it appear to the members of the W, T, D. & T. Society, assembled at the annual mectiog at Pittsburgh on the first Satur- day of January, ISIH, that it is inadvisable at that time to elect officers tor the year, it will be within the law- hil rights and powers at such meeting to declare a recess, until such time as such meeting deems wise, for the completion of the work of such meeting and the electioii of officers ; and that a resoUition to tins effect will be a valid execution of the powers of said meeting, to determine when and how the election of officers should proceed. Wc are o£ the opinion that an adioumment without election of , officers will be quite legal and proper. We would advise, however, the taking of a recess so that the annual meeting shall remain unadjourned until reconvened at the time ap- pointed, will be a more satisfactory way of deferring action upon the matter of electing ofiicers— Very li^fy yours, (signed) Sparks, Fuller & Steickek. Per Jesse Fuller. Jr. Dated L>ec. 7, 1B18. "

"Dk, L. C. Work, 143 Montague St, Brooklyn, N. Y.— Dear Sir: We wiiie in reply to your inquiry as to whether or not the conviction last June in the Federal Court under the espionage act of Messrs. J, F, Rutherford, W, E, Van Amburgh, R, J. Martin, F H. Robinson, G, H. Fisher, C. J, Woodivorth, A H. MacMillan, G. De Cecca. affects the legal right of the members of the W. T. B. S: T. Society to re-elect any of these genlkmcn to the position of officer or direc- tor of the Society, now held by some of them-— or their leual right to eontiniir to hold such positions. Having examined ,inio the question, we beg to advise that we arc of th'e opinion that the members of the W. T. B. & T. Society have an unquestionable legal right to re-elect any of these gentlemen to the posi- tions whicii they now hold at the annual meeting which we understand is to be held In Jeuuary; and that upon election they can hold such positions wholly free from any disquatiftcations in law by reason of the judgment of conviction. Yours very truly [signed) F. H. Sf.iEKS, Jesse Ft/UES, Ju.— Dec. 6, 1918." Anornei' Sfarks: That expresses our opinion. Brother Page: Would it not vindicate our brethren in bonds it they were re-elected as members of the board fully as much as to pass tliem over without an election?

Attorney Sparks: Only having been invited to answer legal questions, my answer cannot be given to that as a legal answeri since it is not a legal question (.Applause.) Brother Tho^npsQii: May I ask whether an election, if held toda;^, of the directors and officers, would have any legal effect upon the appeal now pending?

j^ltijrijcy Sparkf: No, 1 do not believe a strict matter of law would be effected by any action that this assembly takes today: either to recess or to elect officers or direc- tors, 'Tiiis from this standpoint would not cficct the ap-

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;. B. S, A. CONVENTION

peal which is nuw pcndiiig^as a legal proposition. (Ap- plause.)

. , . Brother Planksr: If Brothers Ruihcrj'ord and Van Aniburgb were elected today as officers of ilie Asso- cLatiOEi, could they, duriiig^ the term of thsir imprison- mentj dischacgc fhe duties of that oflict?

Attorney sparks: If ihey are legally elected they eait legally discharge the dutici of office. I suppose vou refer to whuther they can hai-e pliysical ability lo sign certain documents. That is purely a inaUcr or a prison tcgHla- don, 1 am noi familiar with the prison regulations at Atlanta. But from a legal staridpgint, ihe legally elected off.cer5 of your Socleiy earn legally do anything that Elic law provides, providing the legal authortLiej at tlic prison will let them do so.

Audience: Would the tlcttion of our Brothers J. F.

Rutilerfnr^i and \V. E. Van AmbursU tnakc it possible for the officers of the Society, as representing the Society, to be held as joint congpira:ors, contiuuing a conspiracy, this malting them liable for prosecution as joint coii- spirators ?

Attorney FitUer: Not unless the courts were to hold thit the W, T. E. & T, Society is i conspiracy. (Lauiihiyr.)

. . , Brother Ncison: What altitude would the Gov- ernm&Jit take on having an election at the present time (leaving out the friends at ^vlanu) ?

Attorney Sparks: If you mean thti effect the election wouEd have upon the Government ia releasing them, I would say that in the firat placfi the Govertiment has no right to release them, They are uitdcr the sentence of Court. The Government has no right, ftKccpt through pardoning them, ^ind only E>y relea.sc of judsment of the higher court.

Brothir Flanker: I would like to- ask whether the present Board of Directors has any kg^l autViurny to appoint representativfi to act for them during the com- ing year, utiiess they a^rtr re-elected today?

Attorney Sl*ark$: So loi:g as the present Board of Directors hold over (£f this assembly should decide :o adjourn ihe election) the directors wilt have tlie same riyhi to appoint acting representatives as they did last year.

Brother 7'hoitipson; Brother Andersori, will you please ask Mr. Spatks under what authority oi the hy-la-ws of the Society can any officer or director of the Society delesaie iiis authority to another?

Ailorney Sp<jrks: 1 have not said that any director has the right to dElegatc his authority to another— as a di- rector. He has no right to step down and say I appoint and Order so and 50 in my place ; but the Bgard of Directors— or a tnajority— have the right to delegate cer- tain officials to incidental powers for the carrying otit of the work of the Sodety.

Audience: Would it be correct, proper or legal for this conver^tion hsre assembled ta appoint proxies to act for the present board— those who may be restrained of their liberty —until such recess ccmts to a conclusion?

AStontcy Sfftirks: No, it wniild not.

Attdicuec: I would like to ask if those who have been actinf as officers wcrt appotntcd by the mafority of the board? if so, could they legally act?

Aiiorjiey Sparks: Certainly. The vice-president^ Mr. Anderson, has been acting according to the by-laws.

CJiairwaii; Those who wcr? appointed to- take the

place of those wlici resided were elected by tiie majority of the board. In fact, xi was unanimous.

Aitdscncc: I may be wrong in my understanding of the statement made irom the iloor that there exists no one at the present time as an ofEcer of the Society who is qualified to sign a check, i would like to ask out at- Eorneys if this is correct.

Aiii^rney Sparks: I can't answer that question directly. But presupposing the fact that the treasurer of the Society, who was elected at the last meeting^ is one of your mein- bcrs nov'^ in ti\e South, under such circutnstincw and for prfLctical purpoies the Boii^d of Directors would have a right to appoint a person and designate him as they see fit m sign cheeks for the Society. Von could not deprive a corporation or an as^octatiou of its power to act and live by incarcerating four officers ol the company

in Jail. Thai \% an apparent and reasonable proposition ttiat no one could dissent fi-om.

Attorney PuIUt: I would like to say in further answer to the question that the amendment oi the by-laws you adopted today introduces the assistant treasurer, who is direcily empowered by the by-laws lo perform action with the consent of the Board of Directors of the Society, so that the (iviestton cowtd Jiol possibly arise under the by-laws ag aincnded and accepted today.

Chairman: Ttiat was done at a fiill mcetmg of the Board oi Directors. Brother Stevenson was elected assis- tant secretary with all ttic powers that the secretary and treasurer had.

Brother Graham: is it the legal opinion of our attor- neys that the best interests of tlie dear brethren confined at Atlanta would be served E>y a L^ostponement or recess Uikeii ai this time ?

Mr. Sparks: That is not a legal question and 'will QtiEy be answered in view of the wording of the resolu- tion which iivas passed, and under which I am speaking to you upon request of the entire board. (Applause.)

Aitdienee: We want that question answered. We want to vole that the lawyers answt-r Eroihcr Graham's ijues- lion.

Brother Graham: I n]Ove that our attorneys be given tht privilege ci esprcssing their legal opimon.

Brother Thoinpsoit: We have already decided upon that matter.

Chairman: Don't get us mixed up.

Brother Thompson: The motion that we all decided on \v3.i that we would permit the lawyers to answer ques- tions bearing on the legal phase of the situation from our dear friends the attorneys. This \$ not a legal questiori.

Mr. Sparks: There can be nn either motion come be- fore thu chair until other motions already made are acted upon.

Audiffnee: I am wondering whether such technical points of order and legal rules is the Lord's will. It seems to me that anything ^vhich miy be put in our pos- session to help us decjrto the Lord's will is proper bcfoTC

the convention, and that is the vital question to the con- ventiontfs* I would like to hive the questions answered.

AtlarJiey Sparks: It has to be done by amendment to the motion undei which ^vft are speaking.

Brother Graham: 1 make an antendnienC to EroiJier Page's inorinn that the attorneys he permitted lo aiiMver that qtiestion.

Brother Thompson: How can tliat be put?

Chairma}i: 1 don't know, (Laughter.)

Brother fttffc: We have iiever gone through these meetings before with such quibbles about that which is "parliamiintary'^ and what is not. Wc never liave had it aLt any other election. Not,v if the friends want to know an answer, let them have it t Applause.)

(Uppn vote the motion was carried unanifuously,)

Chairfftan: . . ♦ We will have Mr, Sparks or Mr. Fuller answer the Qticstion.

Attorney Puller: Yeji, it ivill unquestionably be for their best interests; and we Avill invite any cross-examina- tion or question that anyone desires to put to us a; to why we entertain that opinion.

Brother Hndymgs: I would like to know why the ad- journment of this election would be of benefit to the brethren in bonds?

AUor}%ey Fiilhr^ U will ftrit of all dishearten the men to know that the Society has declined to change its reta- tion to the eight men while they were in prison. It will show the people of the United States that the Society has said that if these men are guilty the Society is guilty, Tice reason for the incarceration of these eight men was summarised by the Court, and it is a. condemnation 01 the religious doctrities of the Soctely as mtich as It is a condtmnaiion of the tneii ■'ivhQ ofStially represented the Society :

"THE COURT: In the optntan o?' the Court, the religious propaganda which these defendants vigor- ously advocated and spread throughout the nation, as well 3s among our lives, is a greater danger thati a division of the German army. If they had taken guns and swords and joined together the Germany army,

/, B. S. A. CON t^ EN no N

37

the l)arm they couUl liavc done wowUl have been in- significant comijared with the results of their prop- aganda.

Iheat cncii received a twenty year sentence and they were stamped as dangerous to this cou[ttry. That is cither trye or falst!. If it is false ihity will be released.^ If it is true it is a condemnation of the religious doctrines of your Socieiy. If yon do not cliange the leaders oi your Society while in jail under an unjust condemnation, you are tdcmitying yourselves with them, and ihe pulfJic—the oeoplc of the b'nited States— will so construe your miction. It %vould be an expression oi confidence in the proprii^ty and truthluhiess of your beliefs not at this time to force ihc&e mtn. frow their relation to your Society. When the judgniienT is reversed and they come back . , . and if you believe they were false exponents of your doctrine, it is your duty to express that belief. It is the belief of ^^ur counsel that your aciEoit upon this question will be the determining factor wiih the sentiment of this country in their conclusion as to whether truly or falsely cJi- prcsscs the doctrines ot the Bible students, for which the> have been convicted, and it is to this extent that public semimeut supports the proposition that it ^vas an ouirage, to the extent that sentiment of the country supports the conviction that that action of yours— inducing that senti- ment— will favor the welfare of the defendant s, (Ap- plause,)

AnoieMce: Suppose that this assembly today elects Brother Rutherford and _ Brother Van Amburgh, would that not OTncrcome the objection?

Attorney P idler: If the only question that you are considering was. the welfare of eIvc eight men, I should say yes. But you also have to consider the welfare^ of your Society. You must contemplate the possibiliiy of this re- markable judgment In this trial, and contemplate the pos- sibility that it might not be reversed and the possibility that these men might serve twenty years in jail. If they did serve twenty years in jail, or even one full yearj the exigenr-ies which cc^n^ront youf Sociciy %wo«!d demand that

you" deal with the validity of th<; |udgmertt of conviction. At the present it expresses the legal viei.^^ of but one man in the hundred million dtiwns^udge Hariand B. Howe. When it comes to the Appellate Court and afiirmed there, and perhaps afiirmed in the United States Supreme Court (Avhich is a possibility you mnat conceive) it might be absolutely essential that you elect officials to that extem. ... So tliat pending the appeal iE the Society did not act but left itself present to act after the appeal, this would Ie:ivc the situation in a coitdition whereby you %v^ere demonstrating your continued loyihy attd expressing your view that they were sound exp'J^cnts of your reli- gious doctrines and those doctrines were proper. And at the same time yon would be preserving freedom which might, during the coming year, have to be exercised for the benefit of the Society.

Brother Sexton: I just arrived. My train was forty- eight huuis late, having been snowbound. 1 have some- thing to 5ay and for my own comfort T better say it now. My dear brethren, I have come here, as the batance of you have, with certain ideas in mind^pro and con. \Vc might say, with all due respect 10 our legal friends, that we have been talking to some other lawyers, f tind they are very much like doctors. They disagree sometimes. But I presume what I say will be in perfect agreement with what they have said. There is no legal obstacle in the way. It we desire to re-elect our brelhren in the South to any office they can hold, I cannot see. or find from any advice I liavc received, how this witi, in any sh ape or : orm, inte r f e re wi th t he a spec t 0 f the ir case before the Federal Court or before the public

I believe that the ^reate^t comjiliment we can pay to our dear brother Rutherford would be to re-elect him as president of the VV. T. E. & T. Society. I do not think there is any <itiestion in the mind of the public as to where we stand on the proposition. If our brethren, in any way technically violated a law they did not understand, we know their motives are good. And before Alinighr;- they have neither violated any law of God or of man. We could manifest the greatest confidctice if we re-elected Brother Rutherford as president of the Association.

I am not a lawyer, but when it comes to the legality of the situation I hnow something about the hzv of the hy^iL Loyalty is what God demands.. I canuos imagitit any greater confidence we could manifest than to have an election AND ISE^ELECT BROTHER RUTHERFORD AS PRESIDENT.

A f ter recess Erot he r W, F. Hudgin cfs wiihd re w his motion for a sis months* recess, in that tt was clear that a vasi majiirisy favored an electioti and that there was not the SLIGHTEST DOCRT AS TO THE RE-ELKC- TION OF OUR DEAR BROTHER AND PRESIDENT, J. F. RUTHERFORD, in the minds of the shareholders- The shareholders then proceeded with the nominations for directors.

Brother Str'xt^n-' It gives mc g;reaE pIcAsisrt in pre- sentiiig lb your attention as nominees for the ofTicers: Brother J. F. Rutherford, l^rother W. F, Hudgings. Brother Van Amburgh. Brother E. J. Coward.

Brother C H, Anderson. Brother R- H. Barber. Brother Bohitit: I want to suggest to the dear friends that I tookud over thti suggested list and heartily endorse the same, I w^ouid esteem it a pleasure and gratification on my part that if there were any votes intended for mc I would be very glad if they were ihro^yn over to Brother Rutherford instead of my place* Other nominations : Brother SpilU Brother G. S. Kendall.

Brother Thompson. Brother H. Rcimer.

Brother Stevenson. Brother Crist

Nominations closed by unanimous vote.

AFTER RECESS Brother Thompson ttien presented report of tellers: The seven highest were as fol low's;

J. F. Rutherford. 112,000

C. A. Wise lU.7f£

R. H. Barber 97,828

W. E, Van Ambutgh 68,^07

W. E. Spill. 84.145

W. Ft Hudgings - 75,043

C. H. Anderson ,. 70,113

Brother Se-rton: 1 was appointed as chairman of the nominating committee, and as such i wish to hand in, or put in. the following names for officers of our Society, Tutyraiiy beli^iving in my heart that tht: best interests of the Society would be preserved by the selection; President — Brother J. F, Rytherford. Vice-president— Brother C A. Wise. Secrctarj'-Trea surer — Brother W. E, Van Amburgh. Brother Ft^^e: I don't know that it \s necessary"i but I had the pleasure last year of nominating Brother Ruther- ford as president. It gives me great pleasure to secohd this nonunation^as well as the others.

Unanimously voted that the nomination be dosed. The ballot was then cast by Brniher Thompson. Brother Anderfifn: I am certainly delighted'. And r am sure you are, too ! We believe it to he fully the Lord's wit! l Brother Russell, you remember, always said, in taking the vote— and after the niajority had decided upon which way the matter should run— tliat ^ve always make It imRnimous Let us take a rising vote, making the present elected ones — as officers — a unanin^ous one. (Unanimous.)

yicc-presiaejit. Bra. C. A. Wise: Beloved, I appreciate the privilege and honor placed upon me. I assure you that anything that I might say would be expressed in a Tnaniier that wowld fall far short of what I desire to express. -And for anyone to enter upon the duties that evolve upon the vice-president, uiidcr titis particular timc^ it would, It seems to mc, be the hi^ight of folly. \\^e could ojjf)' enter upon these duties on the assitrance that eiferyotte here ifilt agree eoeh day io rcunftjbcr us fiil at the Threnic of Heaven iy Graec. How many agree lo that? (Unanimous.)

So we promise, by the assisting grace of our Heavenly Father, and ovtr dear Lofd aiid Savior Jesus Christ and your prayers in co-operatiotij that we shall endeavor to carry out the wishes at our dear pa.stor so far as it lies without our p^jwcr^ (Ai^plause.)

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/. B. S. A. CONVENTION

8 P- M* Sunday — Discourse by Bro. C A. Wise Sub}eet: "THH VALLEY OF HUMILIATION"

WE thought \vc would use tli^ UMi verse of the 21 st uliipter of Lulte as a basis tor a few remarks. "And when ihcse ihisigs bc^fih to come to pass, lhc» Euijk up, '-xtid lilt up your hcs,ds, ic>r your tadampuoa drawelh nigit."

Throuyliout the whole Gospel Age the Church of Christ has been walkitig in th^ Valti^y of HuTuiliation. The Oiurdi ai Christ has betn debasetl ti bas not been exallcd. Shi: has hcen going down in tht Narrow 'Way tiiai leads to death and lias not Jstted up her liead antl rejoicedj btcaiist; tach member oi ihc Body of Christ has made a Covena]il with the Lord by sacrihcci and it has been sacrificine from the begJEining to the end, and our text brings out the thought of the "ddiverancc" and CNalt^tion of the Chwrdu

\\ t: bchc^e that no thought that iias come to the minds of any of the Church is draught with such great joy and great anKtety as the coiripEction and deliverance o£ the Church of Jesus Christ, because tliis is our hope, our aiiTif our ambition, and our great desire. We arc anxious that the last or finishing touches of iht character shall all be made. \Vc arc anxious that our great .Master VVorkman luight look into the charicttr attd see all the dross con- sumed and the gold refined. We are aii.'cious to hear the "\\'en dont, enter into the Joys of thy Lordn" We are anxious lo have all Ihc aches and pains; all tlie discour- agements, and all of those thitigs laid asidp. We are wailinji, yea, we are longing for the change of mind and lou^ng for the new bodies, free from pain, free from all the present erivironment. We art longisig for the time to come when we can behold the King in all II is beauty and glory and grandeur.

Rm\ before cV\om tlmigs cau be realized the completio" of the offering, which all the membi;rs of the Body of Christ have laid upon the altar of sacrifice, must be finished. The last vestige of the offering must be con- sumed. And beloved, I understand that you and I can increase the flames, thus consuming the offering; or decreasing the Batn^^s, lengthen out the period of the time for the consunimalton of the ofFerinf^+ My understanding is that the offering will be consumed- If we fully appre- ciate our privilege in sacrificing it means to us the great Rest of mind we enjoy in the edifying and building up of the various members of the body of Christ with Psalms and hj'mti^ and spirit uat Psahns. And so this picture sho^vs that the event in which our text takes place witl take place down at this great Rest day. and you know we have entered that great Rest day. By fai;h, beloved, through our consecration to otjr Ileavenly Fathern we have entered the great Rest that remains for God's people, and ii you tfiid I aic Tjot rc^tln^, then viV iirc not aypicciating our privileflfe, or our consecration. Surely we did not make a full consecration of ourselves ii we are not fully resting in Christ Jesus.

Present Status AU Important 1 like to bring these things down to our present e;tpe- Tience. The Lord is not dealiiig ivhh us tike He did twenty j'Cars ago. Do not boast of the fact tliat wc made a consecration thirty years ago. but what is our spiritual state tonight!* It i$ true, we have now the spirit whose eJfer^'escence helps us Co stand on the moutuain top, dear friends, but each of us will soon be going to our several ho [Ties a lid avocations, and we will have to come do^vn to the natural experiences, and so we have verily fortified ourselves by the indwelling of the spirit and love of the Father, — putting on, as it were, the whole armor of God, and buckling on evtry feature of that armor^ in order that wc may firmly go forth and thus hold high the banner of King Emmanuel. We trust that all the experiences of the past four days have led to that cxuberattcc of mind. And Thus ^ve find, accor<lin^ to God'& i^eat plan, that in the Kingdom the great Christ gf God shaiE reign, and He has arranged that as soon as the Christ of God is all

comp[cte there will l>e no failure there. It is trtie Moses faiEed as a mediator because he was an imperfect mediator, and all under hitn were likewise imperfect, and thus not one of the nation of Israel, except our dear Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, could meet the requirentcnts of the Jewish Ijw. But not so with the great Prophet, Priest and Kins,^ the great Mediator, for He will be perfect. You and i are privileged xa be in the School of Clirist for the very purpose of learning the lessons that shall enable ug to be "able nunistcr oE the .New [Law) Covc- ]iant," because God has so designed that there is lo be no failures amotig that Clirist company, ai^d so oar training will be accomplished by some of the experiences, trials and sorrows, and also by some of those depressing expe- riences which come to us as we walk in the "vat ley o£ the shadow of death." All through the church's experi- ences the condition of sadness and humitiatton has pre- vailed. 0 n the oth er hand , ho wcver, the re has been s^,vect; peace and joy in the imierinuit hearts and lives of all those, satisfynag to hearts and souls, beloved, amid all the experiences which come to us. What lies before, no one knows but the Lord. He who has led thus far will lead tis on. Victory is ours, beloved, if we hotd fast our "faith." He that endureth unto the end is the one to be saved, and he who has full assurance of faith that takes hold of the promises of God and lives a whole- hearted life, is the one who wenrs the virrorious crown, and the one who will come off more than conqueror through Him that loveth us and bought us with His own preciotjs blood-

W^ Know Deliverance Is Nigh

We have come \o the time of action and recogmiC ihc "feet" members and know it is the time for you and me to look up and lift up our heads and rejoice. Why? All the evidences the Lord has given oi the presence of our Lord Jesus and the near approach of His Kingdom manifests to ns now that we ou^ht to hft up our heads and rejoice in as much as we know our redemption drawcth nifth.

While the great Ciiurch of Christ is composed of many members, it is but one body, and the Apostle says, "as the body is one, and hath many members atid all the members of that one body being many arc one body, so also is the Christ." Jesus the head and we all the various members of the body oi Christ! And "God has set the members in the body as it hath pleased Him." And how glad wc arc ! Aren't you?

tie doesn't need you and mfi. But you and I need him. Now we ought to render heartfelt devotion to our Heavenly Father that He has opened the eyes of our understanding, and now we believe we comprehend some- thing of the lengths and breadths and heights and depths of God's great character and realise that He, our Heavenly Father, is indeed a God of Love.

We are developing the same kind of character. We are all in tlie great runibtttig blocks of the world and polishing and sha.ping goes on of these blocks and will go on until the character is complete in all its beauty, glory and grandeur. And so our text reads, "When ye see these things be^in to come to pass" — Who is He talking to? I understand He is talking to the last members of the Body of Christ, because wc have reached a period of time when all the events as recorded in the 2-1 ih Chapter of Matthew^ which is positive evidence of the Second Coming of our dear Lor^l, have all been fulfilled, hut one — and that is the Great Time of Trouble, and wc know we are e:<periencing it, but not reached all the furies yet

The Heart Sealing Necessary So we find that Gyd intends that His Church, durirtsj this great time of trouble shall he protected. Some arc being taken home to glory, and others by being so fortified

/. B. S. ./. CONI'ISNTION

39

through the Word of God arc protected. "He ihat dweUeth in tht: secret place of the Alost High shall abide (.or lodge) under the shadow of the Alnughiy."

The Scriptures show us that before the close of the Age in all its fuhiess the Second sealing, referred to in Revelation, must be complete through the Sounding of the Seventh Trumpet and the mystery Of God, the plan made known to the last members and thus sealed in their fore- heads with the full conceptiou of God's great plsn, and then the second sealing upon the heart. \\c have reason to believe that this has almost, if not already, been accom- plished. Beloved, have you thai full assurance of faith, that you have been sealed by the second sealing? Can we assure ourseives that the sealing has reached its com- pleteness? We trust everyone is able to say that it h.

Rev, T;4 tells us the number of those sealed: *'And I heard the number of them that were sealed and there were sealed 114,000 of all the tribes of the Children of IsraeL" As the Revelator shows us at that time the scaling will be completed and deliverance of the Church at hand. "And I looked, and lo, a Ljmb stood upon Mount ^ion and with Him 144,000 having the Father's name written in their foreheads." These were the only ones that were able to sinff the sons of Moses and the Lamb, But I can hear someone say. Well can't all Christians sing the song of Moses and the Lamb? Oh, nof That is why we have seen such great discord throughout the Age. Only the true consecrated child of the Ij^rd, those who have made a covenant of sacrifice, and whose consecrations have been accepted by the Lord, arc the only ones who are able to sing the great song of Moses and the Lamb. We trust that we are able to sing that song. *'And they sang as it were before the four beasts and ciders, and no man could learn that song but the 144,000^ which were redeemed from the e3.rth."

All FulfiUec] Save One

NoWj beloved, the accounts of Luke 31 and Matthew 24, 'Which bring out sisch a great collection of tite tacts or events that ure transpiring in the second presence of our Lord, have practically all been fulfilled. The Lord said; "This generation shall not pass away until all these things have been fulfilled," Only Bible Students can glv^ a reasonable solution of that text It must be the gener- ation living at the present time when these events are taking place. So In our hfetime we have seen these great marvelous events taking place and now having been ful- filled, but one.

You recall as the Lord spoke of these great events; two days before His crucifiNionj as he sat upon the hill that overlooked the city of Jerusalem, he said, "O Jeru- salem, Jertlsalem, thou that kjUcst the prophets, and stonest them which are sent unto thee, ho\V often would T have gathered thy children together, even as a hen gathereth her chickens under her wings, and ye would not! Verily I say unto you. All these things shall come upon this generation. Behold, your house is left unto you desolate. For I say unto \qu^ Ye shall not see me henceforth, till ye shall say^ Blessed is he that cometh in the name of the Lord,"^

It was immediately after that that the Disciples came to Him asking for the sign of His Second Coming, and then the Lord goes on raking the hypocrisies of the Scribes and the Pharisees, and telJs His disciples that the temple will be thrown down. So history reveals that every stone of those marvelous buildings was thrown oven even the foundation stone was upturned, thus fulfilling the statement of our Lord and Saviour; and then Re goes on to speak about wars and rumors of wars: famine and pestilences, and all those ihin^rs you and T have f;een: which all tht world has seen: This was to be the evidence of something still greater — ^'a Time of Trouble, such as never was since there was a N'adon." And then, our te^t says, that we should, havintr leen the "distress of nations/' look up and "lift up our heads and rejoice/'

The Glpry oE Resurrection Beloved, are we rejoicing in the Prosoect of the near approach of the establishment nf the Kingdom of our dear Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ? Ah. yes, because

one by one the dear members of the Body of Christ arc padding beyond the vail. The number beyond ts large in proportion to those thl^ side the vail, and soon, wc btlicve, the last one will pass beyond. Ob, the scene that will take place in the Heavenly glory, when the last member of the Body of Christ passes beyond ! We sometimes let our minds run out, and yet we know that the wildest imaginations of our minds sinks way beneath the reahty of that grand sptjctaclc which Heaven ^vjll witness by and by — and we trust — in the '^'cry near future. Someone has said they thought they would like to be the last member of the Body ot Christ. But later on they said, "Oh, what a privilege and an honor it will be to think that in the Spiritual realm there will be 143,539 redeemed souls waiting for the last one." Ob, fric:nds, what a scene that will be J It seems to me the guardian angels, our dear Lord, and all the hosts of Heaven will throw protection around the last one in order that the offering may be consumed, and as they watch the fire consuming the offering gladness will fill them, and so when they sec the last vestige of the last rnuuber of the Body of Christ being fully con- sumed, it seems to me that wafted upon the wings of love, accompanied by the guardian angrel, the 143,1)99 redeemed soqIs wiEl lift the one up;— up — and up they will go; — not up where they have been. N'o, oh no 1 For I understand [hat since the ftrst resurrection began to take place our Lord lias hcEd the members of the Body of Christ some- where in the Heavenly condition, I ktiow not where. It matters not, but we know they are some place in the condition of Heavenly glory, waiting until the last member of the Body of Christ is prejsared.

Then this class, complete in all its beauty and glory, the Lord will take on up, dear friends, into the very Court of Glory and there in Hcavcn, in all beauty and glory and grandeur we will meet our Heavenly Father upon His great Throne, and T can sec our dear Lord ascending there— Tic presents this great Church,— the Body of Christ in a wave-offering as h werc^the first-fruits of the field. Beloved, we trust soon you and I may bring our wave- offering as it were™tbe 'first-fruits of the field— and add to that collectioTi. Then the dear Lord and all ^vith PTim shall he exuhant with joy as He presents them before the Throne without 5pot or wrinkle or any such thinrr. Then, beloved, the grandest event in all the Universe will have taken place.

The Earthly Resurrection Grand The Prophet Job tells us that when God laid tlie foundation of the earth the sons of God shouted for joy. Ob, dear friends, I understand diere are to be two other shouts '. One witl be when Christ presents the Bride before the Throne and when the Bride and Bridegroom are made one. All Heaven will rejoice then, and shout for joy. I think this third shout will be when "He whose right it is" to reign, returns and establishes His great Kingdom on earth ±nd bt^^ins lo unlock the prison ha(j:;c of death

and when the dead come forth and find they have not been down in eternal torment, suffering agony, but will be back on earth hearing the grand song of the Redeeming Love* the grand tidings of great joy, etc I believe there will be a shout of vtctory,"-a shout of triumph, and 1 think it will cover the whole world. The Prophet says tliat in that grand day "no one shall say, 'know thou the Lord,' for all shall know Him from the least unto the fjrcatcst." Then "every knee shall bow and every tongue sball confess the glory of God, the Father,"

Biit( beloved, return to the I^eavcnly scenes. W"c say. Heaven is bedecked with grands glorious scenes — sublime beyond mortal conception. The clitnas of the waiting period of over IfOO years Is come. We see our dear Lord present His Bride before our Heavenly Father, and then before the Throne will be that great innumerable company atid who will say with one grand anthem, "Let us be glad and rejoice atid j^ive honor to Uim. for the I^farriatie of the Lamb is come, (the day has finally arrived) and His wife has made herself ready." Think ye not, Ijclovcd, there will be joy in Heaven? Oh, yes, because it shows us that then the great attributes of our Heavenly Father^ — Wisdom, Justice. I^ove and Power—will say, "Holy. Holy* Lord God Almighty," and then John says, "I heard tlie

\^ll^.^!|jf .^^J^Wi^^f l^'?r?^fl^''^'>' ■ " ' -^" '■' ' 'V'.-'. - Wi^WjBfgiiJtJk j.f i-'^Aijitj, 'jyit^gg^ii^yu^ fv .' s g^---^'.^*!H^

■ ■F'-^^'--^^_

40

/, B. s. A, conve:^tion

four and tvreiaiy dOers singing Halklujah, Ameo." Why? The ciilnutiaiion tti all the icetie^fr, the conip1e]:£nf:$$ of the fottr attributes of our Heavenly Faih<:r Ims been mani- fested in the Diarrbge of the Lamb. Think y« not that Heaven rejoices? Oh, yes I

Desirability of Unshakable Faith W* say the Selection and Election of the Church of Oirisf has be«n such a precious work ths^t Goti could not trust this in your liaiid or my hand. "Ye liave not chosen mc" the Lord says^ "but 1 liave chosen you," Oh, ycg, ■*! have ordained you that ye should go and brinnj forth fruit abundantly and that your fruit shall remain, " Oh» beloved, are we among the chosen ones? Do yott know you have been chosen of the Lord? l-iave you that positive evidence now? God is dealing with us as Xew Creatures now. Have we that full assur:ince of faith? Do you know that God accepts your sacrii^ce now? Make it real, bcluvcd, because tliat is one of the ernnd things about the truth— its simplicily, Something you can see! Some- thing you can feci and there must be the transformation, the washing, the cleansing, the purification, and ultinutely the Lord will say to you and me. "now yc are clean through the Word which ! ha\'e spoken unto you."

In my own Christian experience (I have told this slory before, but I want to tell it again!) I was honestly seeking lor '^holiness" and seeking for di-at gieat blessing which I understood someone else had. I have always been very peculiar about that. Even during the years which tl has been my privilege to know the ^rand message oi Redeeming Love, if there is amy special blesstng going around t fia'^'e always wanted it. I am selfish along that lint*. If I fuid sumtrone else has some spiritual blessing J have not received. I wilt seek for them until I Dbtain them,— tf it is at all the Lord's will.

The Hocus-Pocus of **Hohness** And so someone moved in our section of the city — Rev. bmith, who was affUJated with the church I wa:$ connected with, and he sotMt begaii a series of Ht^Itness meetings. I was honestly seeking for holiness, and became intensely interested in the senices, seeking for the "Second Blessing." The dear brother knewmy desire and so on one occasion when we were having a snowstorm, and as Brother Barton would say, everything "warmed up/' Rev. Smith thought it was about time I should get the "Second Blessing." So he tried to help me: He said, "Brother Wise, come through, come through." But I couldn't "come through." There was no place to come to. And so that failed. So 1 tried other times. He told me lo say, "I got it, I got it/' ■ But I couldn't say it, because I didn't have it.

The Truth That Sanctifies So, beloved, whatever amount of s a notification or holi- ness that you and I pns^ipss. it is nnt hrrattse we arc a goody goody sort of a person. No^ it is because we have brought ourselves into conformily with the Truth- The Truth has come into our mindu,— into our hearts, — the cleansing, purification, and washing is taking place; and so this experience will continue to go on, if we stay by the Truth until eventually the dear Lord will say, now "Ye are clean through the Word which I have spoken unto you."

So this sanctifying influence of God's Truth has been applied because of the Prayer of our dear Lord, as recorded in the iTth chapter of John, where He prayed, "Sanctify them through Thy Truth, Thy Word Es Truth/' This is the sanctifying influence. We find during these strenuous experiences (particularly during the past j*ear), and_ during which period, it seems a thousand have been falling on our side, and ten thousand at our right hand. — wc find the two great texts which are so frequently quoted by our dear Pastor have come to my mind: "Let him that thinketh he standeth, take heed lest he fall/' And the other one is: "Everything that my Father hath not planted shall be rooted up/' If we have not got the Lord's planting, there will come into our lives sometime experiences that will pluck us out of the Camp of the Lord. But if we are the Lord's planting — if we really

I I. I'uu^l IHH.IWHW^IWPWPWI^

have been plaiitcil by the Lord — if our feet are upon the solid rock — ^Llinst Jesus — if wc arc building upon this foundation stone, using the gold, silver and precious stones (material of the Word of iiod)* tlicrc i$ no influence in all the Universe that will pluck us out of ihe hand of GocL Why? Wc have been planted by the Lord, and the Lord intends that none oi His seed tlut He plants which bears fruit shall be plucked up, but He will nurture and water it and it will grnw up m maturity.

Melchizedek Priest, the Blesser

So I tru^t that day by day in all our experiences, which come to us, that wc all are growing up in Christ and by and by we shall all become, as it were, full grown men in Qirist Jesus. But you and t are still wearii^ the sacrificial rubes, the High Priest has not raised his hands for the world*s blessing. Has the High Priest come forth with garments of beauty' and grandeur? Oh, no, not yet. Sacrilicing is going on in connection with the last "feet" members of the Body of Christ. In the case of Solomon's Temple, the glory ot the Lord was revealed, and the High Priest came forth and raised his hand and blessing went to the i>6t>plc, and so in the great anti-typical temph: which our Heavenly Father is now building and in which you and L we trust, are to be living stones, — when that temple b complete in all its beauty and glory and grandeur, then, we will have a King and a Pric$t after the order oi Melchiiedek, and He comes forth and raises his hands and the blessing follows.

But there must needs be, beloved, a little more of the polishing, a little more pruning, a little more taking off of this and of that. We must drop everyThing that is contrary to God's Will, And then, do all those things pleasing in His sight and by this meanst^using all the agencies at our command,— by feeding upon the Word of God,--we shall grow up into Christ and wc trust the time is not far distant when each of us will become a full- grown man in Clirist Jesus.

Oh, beloved, the "stones" all through the lasc forty years ha\'c been placed in the variotis pans of this great Building, anti 1 understand the experiences that we are having today, just [ircpares us for a character that will fit us just exactly in a place the Lord designs for us. Mo Atone too long I No stone too short T As all the material was in Solomon'^ Temple, and this grand building was constructed without even the sound of a hammer, so no polishing will be done over there. All the work must be done this side the ^'ail, and so wc say there will be no disappointments there. You will feel perfectly at home there. Hecause you are developing a cbsiractcr for a particular place there and that accounts for the peculiar trials that come to you— 'to all of us — in this evil day.

Faith Demonstrated by Works

Every n^'s work shall be made manifest Your faith and my faith; your work and my work is being made manifest. The fire of this present time is trying every man's work of what sort it is. Your faith has been attacked, and mine has been. There has crept into our hearts possibly a shadow of doubt because of the insinu- ations of the Adversary during the last stx months. Lo, as we enter upon the blessings and privileges and sacri- fices and labors for the New Year, beloved, let us determine by God's grace that wc shall put on tlic whole armor and kcip on the whole armor of God, and then go forth as valiant soldiers of the Cross of Christ, witnessing for Him, laying down our liv^s, if necr^nari'. sacrificing, in order that the w*ork which the Lord has tcit for the feet or last members of the Body of Christy shall be accomplished.

Mention has been made in this Convention of the possibility of the great work that lies. before us. Beloved, that being true, let us unite in prayer and prepare our hearts and mhids and bodies that we may go forth. I was glad to have gone through the various parts ot the Soulh, meeting so many of the dear Colporteur friends, who have been in the work previous to this* who arc preparing themselves for further activities subsequent to the signing of peace that they may the more fully enter into the work.

v^fmrmmim iL'>*f"'iJ

/. B. S. A. CONTENTION

41

Colporteurs Returninjg to Work I am inclined to think tliai in about one week after peace ha:i been signed, ^ve will Itiid abjui six. or seven hundred on thi; Coiimrteur list, dciutiug their time to the work. God is so pleaded to permit ua to liave a parL Let us lay all carts aside- Wluit for? For the privtiege of having a part in tins great work which our Heavenly Father has entrusted lo us. In the trying experiences dial come to U!>, He will help us to appreciate that the Eternal God is our Salvation and underneath is the ever- lasting arms, and so He who has led us thus far will never forsake us. God doesn't need you and me to carry on His work. This work will go on regardless of whethcr we appreciate the work or not; regardless of whether we have any part in it whatever. God intends the witnessing to go on and God will raise up messengers— those who appreciate the privileges and who will sacriBce; and thus the grand and glorious work shall be completed to its fulness. "God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in time of trouble. Therefore shall we not fear." i-'ear not* beloved, because he who fnrs will falter. Let us determine by God^s Grace, to uphold each other, daily, hourly— as far as possible, come to the Throne of Heavenly Grace, and then shoulder to shoulder face the battle, and Anally come off victors.

Personal Opinions Laid Aside le is a difBcult time now that all these little differences arise. These are only matters of opinion, because we find very few instances where principle is at slake— n^nty a little difference of opinion. It is time wc laid aside all these things because you agreed to sacrifice and so did L And we who presented ourselves to Him arc dead. "Ye are dead, and your life is hid with Christ in God/' Now, beloved, having laid that offering upon the altar of Con- secration, shall we draw back, and take the offering off, when certain little tilings arise in life which do not please tis?

It is true none of us reali^te the full depths of conse- cration. Oh, no! But the Lord said, "As thy days io shall thy strength be." "I will never leave lliee, nor for- sake thee"; anq so wc can say the Heavenly Father's srace has been sufficient for us for evcr>' time of need. Trust in Him, hrlovcrl. 'Mid all thf trying scpnirs. lay hold upon the Word of God. Have that full assurance of faith that takes hold of the promises of God and applies them to our hearts and lives, and thu3 get the necessary strength and sustenance. "God is in the midst of her" (ye daughters of 7Aon), "God is in the midst of hen She (Zion) shall not be moved.'' Why^ "God shall help her — (and thai right now)— early in the morning": and that is why the Lord said, "Look up, lift up your heads and rejoice, for your Redemption draweth nigh.*' and so we praise and magnify our Heavenly Father for the grand privileges of service, and for these grand and glorious things, and He tells us that having finished the work which He has given us to do, — having done all, to '*stand."

Oh. beloved, we have not reached the "standing" posi-

tion yet. We thought so for a while back, but wc ucrt; mistaken. We have not reached that condition yet There may come a time in our life when all opportunity of service may be denied, but not now. He has been i us t giving you and me a quiet season for the purpose of preparation: He expects you and me so thoroushlv cxammed, and fortified by the Word of God that wi' icill b€ quoUfiffd for the inork he has given its to da in thi: near M«r''- WE ARE DHTEKMINED BY GOD S GRACE AKO ASSTST.ANXE THAT WHATEVER HE MAy H,-VVE lOR US WE WILL DO WITH OUR MIGHT — and do everything in fact with our might "what our hands find to do/'

The closing days, wc believe, of John the Baptist and Elijah, were typical ot the cb»ing ilays of ttie last or feet members of the Body of Christ. The beheading of the one and the whirlwind experiences and fiery chariot expe- riences of the other, would indicate, we behcve, the bst experiences of the Church of Oirist, Beloved, as "the Disciple is not above his Master, nor the servant above h[s Loid" (but Ziun need not fear, for God is in the midst of her), so wc find Matt. 25:10 shows us the change will come when, as soon as the last member of the Christ is passed over and the door is closed. We must all be changed, for the .apostle says, "For this corruption must put on tncorruption and this mortal must put on immor- Uilily," and so be changed in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, from earthly conditions to Heavenly conditions, from weakness to power. Then also the Prophet showj us. "Thy watchmen shall li/t up the voice, with the voice together shall they sing, for they shall see eye to eye when the Lord returns to Zion." (Isa. 52 tS.) As our Lotd wa» despised, and rejected* and convicted of men. so all the experiences of the Church have been. As the finger of scorn and ignominy and shame was pointed at Him, so the finger of scorn, and ignominy is pointed at us. And so, aj one sit^cred. aii suffer u-ilh Him. As due nKUiber is hannred so all rcjaicc. There has been an opportunity for suffering, friends. When our dear leaders were cast into prison there was suffering throughout the lengths and breadths of the land, and when the prison doors are opened there will be rcioicing throughout the lengths and breadths of the land. ^ we say, if one suffers we all suffer with htm. If one member is honored, wr ari* nil honorrd.

Now, beloved, let us see that this sacrifice (which we placed on the altar at consecration) is bound with cords to the horns of tlie altar, and then, dear friends, having placed the offering upon the altar, let us sec tliat the offer- ing may soon be consumed. Then, we understand, that when the dross has been consumed, and the gold refined, the dear Heavenly Father c;in look into our hearts and see the reflection of His own image, then He will say, "It is enough, come up higher." Beloved, let me say in con- clusion. When ye see all those things, which the Lord mentions, begin to come to pass, then look up, beloved, and lift up your head, and rejoice, inasmuch as your redemp- tion "drawcth nigh,"

NoTEI<^e« la£C page for news regarding our brethren.

:a

SUPPLEMENT

3:00 P. M., Discourse by Brother Wm. F. Hudgings

SuDduy Afternoon, Feb. 3, 1919, Academy Hull, New York Ciiy Subject: "WHY I ACCEPT THE SEVENTH VOLUME"

OUR lesson this afternoon will be based upon the ivords of the Ri^vclator in the lijih diapier, verses 17 to 21, in part. We read, "And the scveiiiti augel pourcJ out Wis vial into the air; aiitl there came a great voice out of the temple of Heaven, front the throne, saying. It is done . . . And great Bibylon came in remembrance before God, to give unto her the cup of the tune of the fierceness of His wrath . , . And there iell upcm tiien a great liail out of Heaiien, every stone about the weight of a talent; and men blasphemed God beeame of ilie plague of the hail; for tfie piasue thereof ivas cxccedins grtat."

Now ive are going to talk this sfscrnoon about those verses; our topic will be "WHY I ACCEPT TtiE SEVEiS'TH VOLUME," It would be very difficult for me, dear friends, to stand here and enumerate all of tJie reasons that come to my mind 'for accciHing this book as not only the seventh of the series oi iicrijjture Studies, but as the particular message which the Lord had designed to be poured out for tlic Churdi and others at this particular juncture in the earth's history, tiowtvcr, a iew weeks ago when I had more time upon my haods than anything else (laughter), I enjoyed, fflore fhan at any ether time in my Christian espericnct, a cartful study ef the Lord's plans and purposes and particularty a study of Volume Soveii. I made a list of a few of tiie more prominent reasons that catne to my niitid which wtm absolutely convincing to mc ttiat this hook was irom the Lord ; and I will endeavor lo give you the benefit of tliem at this time.

Of course these tacts naturally classify tBcm selves uibJcr two heads, viz., EXTERN.'IL and iNTERi\'AL reasons. By exlcriiat reasons we sntan those reasons which hive nothing to do with the contents of the book itself; but rather those tilings which relate to its compil- ation, publication, etc The fiilfriiof reasons would of course cotirme themselves to the contents of the book— the things that arc therein Kiught; the explanations of Scriptures which prove themselves correct, and thercliy indicate that the book is filled, from beginning to end. with "meat in due season for the Ilquseliold of Faith.' We will be brief in respect to the esliriiai nasoiis, because we deiire to devote most of our time to the consideration of the icarhi!Si/s of the book. But, briefly speak ins, we will enumerate seven eKternat reasons that would be the first perhaps to come to the ininds of any of the Lord's people in their acceptance of the book.

Tlie firjt external reason would be the fact that the Lord's people have been led to beliere from the depth oi their hearts, that the Church would receiTC a seventh vol- ume in the series of Scripture Sludits, which book would expSaifi Kevelation and Eiekiel, We all know that it was our dear Brother Kusseil's thought from the very beginning of his work that ilie Church would receive a seventh volume, and in the early ediiions of the first volume of Scripture Studies, "Tlic Divine Plan of the Ages," he set forth the tact, more than thiny years ago, that there would be seven volumes in the series. It was not racrciv a thought that he once had. and later discar&d, but it was the thought that he carried with him throughout the forty years of his ministry. On every possible occasion he encouraged the Otureti to believe there ivould be a Seventh Volume which wonW explain Eiekiei and Rcvelatian ; and when we come down to the very last day of his human existence, standing there upon the verv threshold of the Kingdom, and in the jaws of

death, this saint of God, tliis wise and faithful servant, to whom the Loid hiitl cotnmiited al! His store of harvest truths, pissed from this life into the life beyond with the thought in Ms mind mid lite mords upait liii iifs, that the Church should csfs^t and wouliS rcrcitie the Seventh Volume !

The Mcofd external reason as to why I believe the book aulhcntic is that it does treat those very portions of tlie Bible which our dear Pastor said that it would treat, vii., Ezckiel and Revelation ; and it explains them thor- oughly, not omitting a single verse, and !L-iplaiivs them in harmony with all the other features ,of God's great plan. The third external reason relates to the (itte of the book itself. I recall when Brother VVoodworth and myself journeyed to Hammond, Ind., in June, 191T, to read the proof, then in the printers' hands, that the title of the book had not been t'lnallj- decided upon. Thtrs had been many titles suggested, but 1 recall the very last words of our dear Brother Rutherford as I left his study on that da7 were these, "Tell Brother Woodworth that of all the titles which have been suggested, I have concluded that the most suitable one is 'The Fall of Babyloti. I arrived in Scranton and gave Brother Woodworth the message, and he responded: "Well, 1 have been praying over the matter and thinking very seriously and have con- sidered every title that I have heard suggested, and the most appropriate one to my mind is 'The Winepress of God's Wrath',"

We started to Hammond! Nobody knew what the book would ullinialely he calltdl \Vc arrived there and through a very peculiar circnmslancf, respecting which ivc will not go into details, they finalty decided on a third title which neither of the brethren who had direct charge of the naming of the book favored. Thus they fuially decided, by compromise, upon this other title, suggested by the words ot our test, which say "the seventh angel poured oul his vial inlo the air; and there came a great voice out of the temple oJ Heaven, from the thront, saying, 'It is FINISHED'." So tliey agreed, at the last moment, to call it "The Finished Mystery," and furtlierfflore, as a compromise they concluded to use the two other titles suRgcsted as subtitles-, and you will see on the litlc page of The book in large iyi>^:"TNB PIN/SHED MYSTEHf! and down underneath it says in smaller type Thf ba\i flf 5o&j(o)i," or the "Winepress of Gad's Wrath. So, you see, we finally got them all in there. (Laughter.) But here Is the point I am making: the "Finished Mvstery" is not the title they specially preferred; they had not intended to use that as llic title; and yet, the Lord seemed to force Ihc iiiKC and they liai U call ti fhai-' Now a little later it was learned that Bt^other Russell, many years ago, in talking- with one of the friends, disclosed the fact that he had in mind that when the seventh volume would be puhUshed i.'J title would be Tin finished Mysleiy" I lake that, dear friends, as a strong external reason why this book is the book the Lord in- tended to give to the Qiurch.

The foiirili external reason is that it is published by the same auspices under which the preceding six volumes of the series were pnUished ! and that to you aorl me coli- itilutcs a very excsUent reason, does it not-' We all know how the Lord has used the Watch Tower Bible & Tract Socttiy, and is stil! using that Society tor the dispensing of His meat in due season— and no other,

Tlte fifth external reason wliv 1 accept the Seventh Volume is this: That in the Lord's providence, the circu-

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laiion of this book — up to tlie time lliat it ivas banned—

had attained the same water-mark as the preceding volutnes of the scries. Volume Four came onr over hfteeii years ago. A few years after that Volume I^ive was published; and sometime after that. Volume Six. They were not published in the same year, but at vastly different times, and with the colporteurs working with those books from the time of their publication we would naturally expect Volume Four would have a greater circulation tjiaii any other. Volumes Five, Sis and Seven would therefore be the least. But wiien wc got down to the end of the Harvest, in tiie final tabulation of the output of these books we found to our astonishment that the circulation of Volume Four, Volume I-^ivc and Volume Six stood almost exactly it th** same watcr-niark, i. c.. 500,000 copies each. 'They all had the i<imc outf^ut, with the cKCeption of just a few thousand copies, although they were pub- lished years apart. Now Volume Seven was published in July, 1317, and within the eight or nine months which it was circulated, to our amazement we find that under the Lord's providence it attained exactly the same circu- lation is the preceding books of the series, viz., SM,000 copies. There were S50,O0O copies of it ordered altogether. but the last edition was not cothpletcd, and there were also many copies held in storage, not going into circulation. But f am talking about the actual number of books oul in circulation, and it is cKacily the same as the preceding volumes of the series. Tliey all came, under the Lord's providence, to exactly the same water-mark, and I ask you, "How, except under the Lord's special providence, was it possible for Volume Seven to attain a circulation in eight months equal to Volumes Four, Five and Six, which took them over fifteen years to attain ? 1 consider this a very good external reason v/hy the book has had the blessing of the Lord, and that it is the seventh in the series of Scripture Studies, as the Lord intended.

The sixth external reason is that it has caused stich a furor in Christendom— exactly what the Scriptures pointed out it would cause. That, we will deal with in more detail a little later on.

The seventh e.'cternal reason is best of all, viz., the book had brought such a blessing to the hearts of the Lord's people! Speaking personally, dear friends. I remember that when I began to read that book in the summer of IP17, I received the same joy that I had experienced when I began to read the Divine flan of the .\gc,s — tleven years ago. The same Joy and gratitude filled my heart as I experienced when I was just coming into the truth. It was the same feeling. There was no mistake about that, dear friends, T know that this has also been true with thousands and thousands of the Lord's people throughout the earth. \ assume that the vast majority of you here this afternoon know exactly what I am talking about, for your experience has been similar. The fact that the Lord's people showed sui:h zeal and earnestness, and mani- fested it in the most practical way possible, during the latter part of 1917 and the early part of 1313, indicates that the book was a blessing to them, just as the Lord has been pouring out upon us throughout the Harvest period.

Now we come to the seven internal reasons as to "why I accept the Seventh Volume.'* It is hard to confine our- selves to seven of these internal reasons, for if I gave \-ou all the reasons that came to mind. I would have to .starid here and read to you the whole book : and that of course is nuitc too great a task for one hour's performance. We will therefore menlton seven of the most prominent reasons which come to our minds, based upon the contents and teaching! of the book, that lead us to conclude that it is truly the Seventh Volume of Scripture Studies which the Lord intended that His people should receive in the end of this aRC.

The first internal reason is this: That the message which the hook contains Is the same message which the Lord in His Word declarerj He would send at this time. If is the messace proclaimed in the svords of our text, when it says : 'The seventh angel would pour out his vial, and great Bahylon would come inlo remembrance before God. to give unto her the fierceness of His ivrath." Did it do that? I think it did very thoroughly. And then it

says, "there fell upon men a great hail"— hard, cutting, distressing truths. And that has been a fact I

I .ilso refer you to the words of the Psalmist in the Second Psalm (1-4), a message pcctiliarly applicable to this time, especially since the etid of the Gentile Times in the autumn of iSl-l. It says, "the nations rage, and the people imagine vain schemes." ^Vc have seen the raging tor the past four years ; and then it says that "the kings ot the earth set themselves, and the rulers"— the great ones of earth, and the great ones of ecclesiasttcism^-wouEd "take counsii t&gctlicr against the Lord, and againsi His anoinicd." We know what th.it refers to : taking counsel together against the Lord'i people who are yet on this side of the vail — the anointed of the Lord, ■ the anointed body of Clirist, the feet rncmbers in particular. ,^nd since the end of the Gentile Times, after the beginning of the raging of the nations, which commenced in 1814, ivc see this ful- filled—the "taking of counsel together h)f tlie rulerships of earth and the rulerships of ecdesiasiicism, against the Lord and against His anoitiled": and then the Lor<l says that He irould do something. What is it He was going to do? He says: "I shall /loW ^/leiii fn (fer'fjf<?H." How could He do that ? We know of no way in wliicll He could hold them in derision unless it be through the proclamation of a niessage that would be fdled with "derision" against those who had "taken counsel to^jether against the Lord and agaiEist His anointed." This Scripture conclusively shows that in the end of the age— since the autunm of 1914 — the Lord would cause to he sent out into the earth, a mes-. sage which would be filled with "derision" against the ecclesiastical system, artd it shows here that the message would necessarily be written in tlic very style in which Volume Seven is written. Have you heard any of the friends say that it has been a trial to them to accept the Seventh Volume because if contains such irony and sar- castic phrases, that if it was written like Volume One they would like it? I have heard statements like that. Now, I ask you, dear friends, why should we thus complain against the doings of God? Such persons are not com- plaining against the brethren who compiled it. .Thty are not .complaining against the Society. They arc actually complaining against Gad every time Ihe.v make a statement of that kind, because the Lord has said that that is the message he would scud forth since the autumn of 1911, when the nations would begin to rage. He has done that, and I for otie believe that He is going to continue it before long. We have made only one squeeze of the winepress as yet. The Lord, wf believe, intends after this season of rest to let the winepress give another squeeze, and an- other, until all the juice in that great vine of the earth has been squeezed out. He is not through yet. f Applause.)

The scroHii internal reason why I accept Voluine_ Seven as from the Lord is that it does explain the Scriptures which we did not previously understand, and it explains them in a way we can prove they are correct. Take for inatarttc the identification of the Seven Mc-Ssengers to- the Church. I ask you, how many in this audience knew who the Seven Messengers were prior to the pubUcation of the Seventh Volume^ Kow I am going to show you that Volume Seven has identified every one of those Seven Messengers, and identified them correctly. Take, tor liistance, the First Messenger, the messenger to the Church of Ephesus, which is said to be St. Paul. How do we know that St. Paul was the messenger to the Church ot Ephesus ? You turn to the second chapter of Revelation and you read the message there which would be given "by the messenger to the Church of Ephpsns." You turn then to your concordance and you see where in the Bible you can locate such a message as is there described. You will find in every instance, that the message that is there described is found in the Epistles of St. Paul. He is the one that gave, through his fourteen epistles to the Church, the very message, almost word for word, which the Revelalor there said would be given "by tlie Angel of the Church of Ephesus." Here is positive evidence that St. Paul was the messenger to the Cliurch of Ephesus.

The Second ^fcssenger is said to be St. John. How do we know? Sonic say, "Why should we not think he vvas the First Messeng<^r. since he wns an apostle scveriil i'ears before Paul was made an apostle,* Why not reverse

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It and say St, Paul wis tlie Second Messenger lo tbe Oiiird)?" I will tell j'ou Ehe rcasou. If jou will turn to the lUtli ver.^i^ of rhc Ist Chapter of Revebtion, you will Uii;rc fintl where St. John reccivcvl his commission to vitilis to the Chtirch^ and it there jhows in tio unetii statable terms thai hti was the messenger to write during the second epoch, and not die first epoch. Here is the Unguag^: " IV rite the things whicli thuu Uast smii, and the thinas TL'/iii'/f nrt-j and the things whicii shail be" What does il mean.'^ It means: "John^ you arc now rtccivitig i^our commission to write to tht Ciinrch, atid your cotntnission pertains to the second epueh. ^krift- of the things wliidi you hi^vc sctin (which are past). And then wria of the things which itQiij are. Von are living in the second epoeh of the Churchy and tllercforc write of Lheie things. Then, also writii of the thiiri^s which shall be in the succeeding epochs — the things whicit shall be hereafter," Jahn was giving a history of the thtircli iti Kevelitioii: and this text shows lifs particular message pertains to the things that theti were : not the tilings that had him because that epoch wai passed, lie wroie^ therefore, in tEie second epoch of tlie Churcli.

Volume Stjven says .Arius was the Third Messenger. How do we kstoM'? if you will turn to Rev. 2:M^ you will read the message gifeii by the Third Messenger, and tlierc ill that message is the firit rcb'tkc to Christendom far iJic farmalitiii of creeds. You will find there in the comtnents in Volume 5cveEi that the message that would be given by this Third Angel to the Church was a message of "rebuke" because they had starte<i to form creeds, aud it wss tile firit rebuke that had been adtniiiistercd. The two preceding niessengcrs had said nothing about creed idols, but the Third -Messenger specially reliukeil them because of their creed idols. Now we know when the creed idols began. We know when the lirst onc_ was formed — in the year 32a A. D,, at the Council of Meea, Turn to history, and yon will find who it was that the Lord first used to rebuke Chrisiendotn because of the formation of that first creed* and yovi will find That It is none other than faithful Arius ivho stood forth in the Kicene Council and rebuked the 33;^ bishops assembled at the direction of Constantine, He rebuked them in plain terms because of their fortnation of that Trinitarian Creed which was not according to the Bible, and the restjlt was that he was cast out, and had to fiee to the Balkan ^fountains, — ^wherc ht died. But Arianism continued to spread throughout the earth, and became the very back- bone of the lieformation which followed several centuries later. Here is the identification of the Third Messenger, because he was the first one who rebulced the formation of creeds, and the Revelator says that the Third Angel to the Churtli would be the first one to adrainister just such a rebuke.

I'lic F0Mrih Messenger of the Church is said to be Waldo- tfow do we know? You will h:id him identified in the 21st verse of the 2nd Chapter of Revelation. TEiere the Scriptures say that this Fourth Angel to the Church would tell C^ristctidom— Papacy — "1 will give you a ^pace to repent," And Volume Seven e:c plains that that word '^space" is translated from the Greek word "Cbronos," which means ONE YE.AR, And Bible Students know, according to symbolic reckoning, that it means 36t} years. Therefore^ according to this statement, the Fourth Mes- senger to the Church would say "t will give you ,'JtJO years to repent. If you do not reform within that lime, I will send the reformation movement in full force," The Lord performed that very thing, and we know when he fulfilled that statement- The great Rcforniiiiofi be^aii in the year 1521 when liartin Luther was e.'ccommunicated by the pope on the 25tli day of June; and SK'J years before, that brings us to llfiO. It was in the year lUiO tliat Peter \\'aido began the Waldeitsian movemetit, and he pro- claimed the truth then due. That was the first or early reformation, and it began exactly ,%0 years before Martin Luthcr*s time. Here Is positive identification oi Peter 'Waldo as the Fourth Messenger of the Church. Further- more, tiie same text that identifies Peter Waldo would identify Martin Luther, because they were exactly SGO years apart, Peter Waldo stood forth at the he!}iiimns oi the "space" of repentance, while -Martin Lutiier began

his work at tiie end of the "space" of repentance ; and both were in iulfillnieiit of Rev, 'l-.-A, Between these two there was to be anotiter messenger.

The Fifth Messeugilr was tlie ai^gcl of the Church of

"Sardis.'* Sardis means "tliat zuhiek remtiiits." in other words, when the iiesscuger of tiie Ciitirch of Sardis would begin his work tliere would still be some time "which remains" of this JUU years of repentance. We look at history to hnd out who was prominent in Keforniation work during that time, and lind that it was John WyclifE, because it was he who camu upon the scene in ISTft^— exactly 213 years after tlie beginning of this "s(iacc" of repentance. There was still l-l:i years runninj^ before the ■'space" of repentance would e-\pirc. And Sardiii means "that whitli reniains" — locating that epoch of the Church in bct^veen U aido and Lutiier, during the "space of re- pentance," and before it has expired. This is John vv'yciifr, for tlie reason that he was tlie only one dtiring that period prominent in the dissemination of the truth then diic- and it is to him that the Lord gave the privilege of translating the Bible into the English language,

Martin Luther was the Sixth Messenger who stood forth at the end of "the space oi repentance," as we have already seen.

Pastor Russell was the Seventh Messenger. I am sure that this feature does not ret^uire discussion iti an audietiec of this kind. We all know so many evidences indicating that our dear Brother Russell i^'as the Sevcnlh Messenger, tiiat there could be absolutely no doubt in our minds in accepting that statement in the Seventh Volume as correct. 1 also 3ay tiiere is just as niucli reason for accept ing die other six incsscngcrs as there is to accept the seventh.

Noiv the fact that the Seventh Volume is the first and only work ever published that identifies all seven messen- gers, and identities them in such a reasonable way that we can prove the interpretation is correct, that iti itself is positive proof that Volume Seven contains meat in due season for tlic houseiiold of faitli, and is the message whicli the Lord wanted you and me to receive at this time.

The Ihird internal reason why I accept the Seventh Volume as authentic and from the Lord^ is its interpre- tation of the Seven Seats, which can also be proven as absolutely correct. We used to read, dear friends, about the ''First seal, and the whiie horse" ; the "second seal and the red horse"; the ^ihird seal and the hhe^ horse"; the "fourth seal and the paie horse," etc. But what did we know about them? \Vc didn't know anything about them. But now how plain! And alt the time we knew, or should have known, from the writings of Brother Russell that a "horse " in prophecy is a symbol of dacirine. But we did not think of applying it. However, Voluttic Seven applied it, and applied it properly, so that we can see it.

N'ow, if a horse refers to a doctrine, then a tuiiite horse would refer to a yure doctrine. How did the Chtirch begin ? It be^an with the "Faith that was once delivered unto the saints" — the pure doctrines from the Lord and the Apostles. Thus the Revelator, picturing in symbol the history of the Church, shows the first period of the Church was likened to a white horse — possessed of true and pure doctrines. But later the Church began to corrupt the doctrines by the formation of creeds, and therefore when we get down to the operiing of the Second Seal it says that the rider had transferred his seat from the white horse and was now Tiding a red horse, which would mean impure doctrines. They had begun to corruiit those originally pure doctrines, Thus they went on for a time, attd the Third Seal was opened, and there that rider had now again tnnsfcr red his seat — this time from the red horse unto a coal black horse. Now if a white horse represents true doctrines, then a black horse would rep- resent doctrines that were absolutely devoid aj truih, I'his Third seal pictures the history of Papacy during those dark ages wiien they ivere forming creeds. They did not have one vestige of truth and 1 ask you when you go home, if you will look in Volume Seven and read over one of those creeds therein printed, you will lind absolutely no truth, — none whatever. Not one sentence from beginning to end in those creeds contains any truth-

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Tliere we have the picture oi Papacy riding upon the back or a black horse.

And then the Fonrtts Seal was opened, and it sairl there went forth a ghastly psU horse and the rider thereon was death. And death and hell followed him." What does it mean? It means that after I lie formation of creeds that was pictured by the black horse, there would go forth that ghastly death-dealing doctrine from the Catholic Church which was this, i. c.. during the period of the Crusades the doctrine would be diat no one who rebelled agamst the teachings of the Papal Church should live. By lilts sign, conquer" was their battle crv in those' terrible days of persecution. How better could tlio Revela- tor have pictatcd the leaching.t ot that particul.ir period of the Crusades than by Papacy riding upon a ghastly deathly pale horse?

Kow that brings us down to the Reformation period 3".st following the Crusades, and it savs that then the Fifth Seal was opened, ".^nd t saw underneith the altar the souls of them that were beheaded for the testimony Of Jesus, and they said 'how long. Oh Lord, lioly and true, wilt Tliou not judge and avenge our blood on iliem that dwell on the earth?'" And then it says in the 6fh chapter oi Revelation, and the llth verse: "--^nd white robes were given unco every one of them," and ''it was said unto them, thst they should rest yet for a little siasmi. uittit ihek itllow servants also and their brethren, that should be killed as they were, should be fulfilled," What does that mean' Let us see how accurately the Seventh Volume has not only explained these seals, bat shown us conclusively the time in which each one of them was opened,

Voliinie Seven says that the Fifth Seal followed the Crusades, and that it applied to the Reformation period beginning with Martin Luther's message in the year lolS. Hoiv do we know? The Ecveiator says those there in that period who were beheaded for the testimony of Jesu.! — those faithful ones who had sacrificed themselves that they mishl attain the fCingdom— it was promised that they should wear whits robes, but that they mtist "rest for a little season," How long? That word season is trans- lated from the same Greek word "Chronos," which means "a year," or, as Bible Students know, it refers to a period of 380 literal years. It means this: "You have been faith- ful, and therefore you shall wear white robes, but before you wear your white robes you must rest for 3S0 vea.rs-" Rest where? Rest in death, 330 years, and then voii shall wear white robes, Martin Lutlier began his work in the year 1518 A, D, Now then, 3R0 years from that very date brings us to the spring of 1878, which. Volume Two says was the date of the beginning of the "resurrection of the sleeping saints,**

Could anything be clearer than that? Do you accept that message as from the Lord? Did you know it before Volume Seven was published? Or did yon only come to understand it since? Then dnes Volume Seven contain "meat m due season for the household of faith"? It certainly does.

The next, at Si-'tth Sea], was opened and it savs there was a "great earthquake," That refers to revolution, and that would identify it with the time of the great earthquake between Jtarlin Luther's day and the procla- mation of present truth— which was the Seventh Seal. Thus, the Six 111 Seal comes in between .Martin Luther and Pastor Eusscll. And there would be an earthquake between that lirae says the Revelator, showing that it would refer to that period of general enlightenment about the time ot the great .American Revolution, ITTG, or the great French Revolution which fallosved a few years later. But of course the French Revolution reallv' had lis beginning with the American Revolution— as cause and effect.

Then the Seventh Seal opened, and Brotlier Russell shows that refers to the prociamation of "Present Truth," We need not go into detail on that. But can we not sec. dear friends, that if Volume Seven thus properly inicr- prois these Seven Seals, then it is from the Lord— "meat in dMe season" to His household.

The fcnrth Internal reason why I accept Volume Scveil

is that it accurately interprets the Seven Trumpets. "What

did we know about these before Volume Seven came o Nothing! i\ow ivc can understand them, and see t" the interpretations given here are correct- Tliey can Pfoveii. Brother Russell says that the Lord, when would descend from Heaven with a shout and with Trump of God in His hand {referring to the lene trump), that it alludes to tiic prodimaiion of the Tr- Message in the Harvest of this -Age. That being tr accordiiie to the same logic, tiie preceding six truniii would also reter to prociatiiations of truth, or eftc toward perpctuative truths in llic Chtircli. These trumi> would not ht with those creeds ot the Dark Ages becai they were devoid of truth. But they do fit e-\aetiy w the prodamatioii of truth by the mouth of tlie varii reformers. Therefore, Volume Seven says the Fi Trumpet refers to the jiroclamation of Truth by .Mar Luther when he nailed his ninety-five theses to the chui door at Wittenberg and we can see that is rcasoiial Alartin Luther did proclaim Truth. He riidn't have much as we have today, but he had a little, anil he pi claimed "meat in due season." He gave tiic message Ih Juo, and it was a truthful messige. There we have t hirst Reformation Trump,

The Anglican movement in England was the Seco:

Keformation Trumpet, even as the Third Trumpet refi

to the (jIvinisLc movement in France. Ygu will noti

how these are identified in the Scriptures we read th

the First was sounded and a third part of the earth w

burned up; the Second was sounded and another thi

part was consumed; then the Third Trumpet was sound

and the other thirrl part was burned up. Now we mere

have to reter to history and we will find that tack

those days the three dominating nations of she earth Tl

wiiole earth was practically dominated by these thr,

potential powers. Tliereforc, when these three Reform

tion movements started in those three countries, and whv

the first one was sounded all of Germany was turne

from Papist to Protestant, and therefore as Papists tht

ceased to be. The third of the earth was consumed t

'*'' as being jiapal was concerned. A few years later tl-

Anghcan movement started and Britain was converte

from Papacy to Protestantism, and there another thir

part was enniiimed. Then, down in France two or thrc

j'ears later, John Calvin started the next movement, Ther

xht Third Trumpet sounded, and that last diird part o

the earth was consumed. Thus those three art idcnlifiei

1 lien the next reformation message went forth in th

hands of the Baptists, about the year lo33, by Mennor

and the Mennonites and other "ites" have sprung from tha

movement, but essentially the Baptist tnovemeni whicl

began about the year 1S;J2 constituted the Fourth 'Trumpe

of Truth in the hands of that reformer.

And then by that time the reformation movement had practically died. The whole spirit of the Reformatioi; was dead. And they began to affiliate with the variou^ pov/ers just as Papacy had been doing before. And it ivas two centuries before we see any other particular effor- put forth along the line of the Reforination, But in tht seventeen hundreds we find that the Methodist moveiaoit began, and it became a very great movement; but it was peculiar from others in this respect, that Methodism did not bring forward any iicai truth. It merely took tlic truths taught by the previous reformers and mixed them up so that it confused the minds of the Lord's people searching for the truth, rather tiian clarifying matters. .Methodism said: "Why yes. Free Grace is taught in the Bible, and of course there arc certain texts there that seem to set forth the idea of John Calvin along the line of election, but ^ve won't p^y much attention to them," Thus they smeared it over with confusion. And then what about baptism? "Yes, that is taught in the Scrip- tures, but it doesn't make very much diftereiwe how you perform tiie cereitiony. You may use your own judgment. Sprinkle, Pour, Dip, — anything!" So they smeared over the truth on that also, and Methodism did not bring forth one iota of truth on anything. This is accurately described in the 5th chapter of Revelation. . It says the Fifth Trumpet would be sounded and there would arise a blind- ing haae, a smoke as the smoke oi a great furnace; that it would confuse the minds of the Lord's people, and

.

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instead cf idvincing tUc troths of the Reformation move- retut, it woulJ railicc ri:ia:a Oicm. Atid, ilicreiore, ii is dejcribcd as the firsS tum.

Tilings went on, sllliough il>c spirit of Ihe Keioraia- lioii liad died down, and it was ininossibic to resurrect it, until in the ycir ISlti there \ras one more edori iriatlc lo keep tlie Reformation alive. Tlic preachers Gaid: "VVe will get togctlier and form a union or irusi. We will call It the Erangclicol Alliance" and liy iM bolster up this losing cause of llic Reiormitiun, and keep other sects rroiii splitting off, and not let inytiody teadi or prcacli the trail! unless thej have an ordination ord. and come into harmony with us; if we wilt combine we will keep the Reiormation goifie" And this wai ihe Sixth Trump of the Reformation, but it was also a mne, because ot the fact that it did more harm than good to the Retor- ijiaiion movement. Then, m the year \e<i, the Lord sent the lUird and ^1 -Mt, which wis effective, which sealed the doom of Protesiinism and Papacy by procliimmK me true message of the Lord and tehii.cini! the ecclesiastical systems for their unlaithfulness. 1 sjy. ihfretore, dear friends, that the fsct thii these Seven Trumpets arc accurately explained in Vaumc Seven, and no p-aec eUc, this is conclusive evidence that Volume Seven contaiiis meal in due season (ur tile huasehoW of faith. Iiid IS from the Lord. , ,, ,

The ffllt internal reasoa why I accept the Volume as authentic is that it (iroscriv explains the Seven PIsit.im. We have overran oar allcied tiaic already and we will not have time to explain them in detail; Ijut we wdl briefly »>' that if anyone will read the explanation of these Seven Plagues in Volume Seven and cannot see that they are properly explained, even as the Seals and the Trumpets. I canrot understand the reasoning oi their minds. Vou take for instince the reference in the I4th chapter of Revelation, verses 6 and i. That chapter relates to the Harvest periods. No one can doubt that, if they will read the chapltr over. It says tie Lord wdl come with a aliarp sickle in His hand and Jo tlic Harvest work as the Oiief Reaper. We know that that diopter f ekics tn the Harvest which is the end of the age. 1 hen it -ells of the message that would be proclaimed Jurina the Harvest, and there describes it m the Ibth chapter, in different languaES. as Seven Plaguei upon Ecclesiasti- cisui; and here we see that the Volumes of Scripture Studies are accurately dcacribid. You take, for injliiii.c, the one ihai refers to Volame One. It says that durmg thij Harvest period, "I saw an angel fly through the niidst of Heaven, having the everlasting gospel lo preach to every nation and fmdred and people oi earth, and saying the hour of his judiment has cornel" £ atfc you. dear friends, where have we seen during die ciilire Harvest period anythins that would fulfill that picture, except the publication and dissemination of the "Divine Plan of the .\gcs," which Iwj cairied iliat very gospel there men- tioned—"the everlasting gospel," the true explanatkin of food's plan— to every nation and kindred and peoples, tiaiisIatcJ ill twenty-two IsimuaBcs and circulated to an extent even surpassin:? the circulation of any book known, except the Bible ilseli ? It also ciiried the message, "The Hour of His judijinciil is seme," in the next to tlie last diapter, entitled "The Day ot Jchovali," and sliowmj Chat we have corae down to the .WiiftjiiiioJ flamii— which Uic book itself was called. I do not know how anyone could doubt that that verse relates to the publication of Voluine One when vve see that the whole chapter refers 10 the Harvest work; and isn't it reasonable that the Lord would describe the instrtunents He would in accomplishing that work? It seems to roc the most rcasoniiblc thing iiaaRiu-

Tlie ntit ■ messenger was to proclaim "Babylon is fallen 1" And would show the time for Babylon to fall. The book is called "Tnt Time is at Hind," and the last chapter dc^rrihes ih*' "Man of Sin"— Papacy, also called by the Revclator "tlic greil harlot." and the Protestant ChurchM as her daoghicra. Volume Two shows clirono- logically that the time has come lor Babylon 10 tall.

The Third Volume was to proclaim a message which is Indeed first given in Vclume Three, namely, that the time is come for the resurrection of Lhc sleeping samts

in JST3, and that "U'csscd are they that die in the Lord from henceforth." that is the message thit the third messenger carried, and that is gi'.en in Volume Three of Scripture Studies, llicn in boili chapters 14 and lo. when it jets lo that rhird Plajue it say« dief* would he a "tTKSsenger come out from the aitar and say. Even so! We lurn to the Third Volume, Slid over lo the cliaptcr wluch deals with tlist ".^tliar" oi the Lord in the midst of ilic land o( ligypi, it says "corrolioranvc testimony. In other words thii Treatise on this alur of the Lord in the midst of the land oi Egj-pt is not dcsigticd to teach atlT new truth. !>ut mtrely to say "liven sol" lo corroborate whit yoa have already learned, and both chapters in Revelation, when dcalinB with the Third Plague or Jiiei- seiiger, identifies it positively by that statement that Volume Three would carry a corrohnraiive message, say- ing, "Even so!' . ,, ,

So it is in respect to all the others, until we get down to the seventh, and x% we read in the words of our text, "The seventh angel" would bring great Batylon into reniembrance befor. God, and u(KJM Hit men, tlie elcrgy- meii of Babylon, "a great hail"— hard, distrcsjing truths would fall. Volume Sever, has done iliat. If we have any doubt about it, suppose wc ask some of the dergy- mea! (Laughter.}

Wc will hardly have time to rcier to the ta« two external reasons as lo why I accept Volume Seven, but they alhidn to the iook of E»ehi«l,— the sixth reaion referring particularly to that wonderful e-nplanation of the svmbols in the first eUptci of Enckicl, whitli none of the Lord's people, to my knowledge, had iny compre- hension of until Volume Seven was ptblished; and now it is all cleared up aed we can see it ii in liarmory with all the symbols oi the Bible. - r- , ■ .

My i(«ii/)i reasoa relates to the Temple ot tzcfciel, and it seems to me, dear friends, that if there was nothing else in Volume Seven that wc could actcpl tlliil when we get to that Temple of Ezekiel chapter we would go on our knees and say, "This ii from the Lord' (audience— "Amen"), because it sels foiili llie iilan in all of its clear- ness, ifid all oi its details are tn exact accordance with the teachings of the Tabernacle Shadows, and ^ho^^•s a great deal more light from die Scriptures than Tabernacle Shadows could show. Not one of us. t dare say, bad ailj" coitiprehension of the teachings oi the last nine chapters uf Eickict uniil Volume Seven was publislied. 1 atn amazed when 1 read that chapter now lo think how it was possible lor the brother who compiled the book lo come to a clear comprchention of thos* d*ep statements of the last chapters of Ezekiel,— and yet he has cleared the wiiole matter up. How could he have doac it except through the blessing ot the 1/jrd ?

We will dose with one diougli!. VVc desire to answer briefly a criticism that is mere commonly brought apinst the Seventh Volume than any other which I have heard. and that is. "Why call il the posthumous wcirir of Pastor Russell ?" I have heard some of the fiiends say, "I get a great bleising out of the bcok, but still 1 can t understand why thev use that term, because it seems to be used wrong- fully." "I answer. "No, dear iticnis, U is used properly." And it is according to the literary usage ; and jet we have a deeper meaning, which we will endeavor to e.tplain. Some have said, "Well, .the mere fact that there it lo much in the bock which is tiot written by Erodier Russell would militate asainst using the term "posthumouJ." Wo answer, "So." When we recognize the fact that the book was dcilgitcd by our dear Tailor, that l.c really began lo write or publish Volume Seven of the series, and when he said the seventh book wouli rxplim Revelation, and ex- plain Ezekiel, and whea he said the Seventh Volnnii:. which he already annouaced viquA be pufalis.hed by the Watrh Tnwcr Bible & Tract Society; and the book was merely completed after his death according to the iiuMr Unci ■a-Mch ht dcsigiicil, and it was jjubllshcd properly as liii work. I will give you a prccedeat. You lake the last hook of fiction of Charles Dickens. There is i great deal in the book which Charles Dickens never wrote, and probably things he never ihought oi. because he died before he finished the work The work was finished by 3 friend of Dickens and was ptMished after Charles Dickens

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death. The story was eompleied by this other man, and published as the fostliumovn ziari of Chcrks Dickens, and I nev«rr have heart! aay criticism on that point by any me. It is generally accepted as the posthumous work of Charles Dickens. Cut yod Can Itcar a great deal of criti- cism about using the same term in connection with Volume Seven. Some say, "Well, that may be true, but the matter from Brother Russell's pen hac been publijlicd prior to his death in The Watch Tower, etc., and this would mili- tate aeainst th« usage of the term "poiihiarnQtis." \Ve answer, "No." Take for instance the posthumous work ot Martin Luihet. Tlte things lie said and did were col- lertcd by his friends and published subsnjuent to his death. I'lacticaJly every one of tliem appeared in maga- aioes before his death. The matter was compiled and broiielit together in iooi /una which had never been done prior (0 his death, ind it was properly published as his ■■posthumous work"; and not only the publishers call it ■'post humour," but also literary men like Thomas Carlyle in liis ovn writings have referred to the book ss Martin Luther's "posthumous worfc.'^ shewing :hat it is a correct nS2ge of the term in the literary world, — and yet we will find plenty to criticize Volume Seven en that very .score. But there is .1 deeper reason to our minds why Volume Seven should be considered as the posthumcus work of Brother Ruisell. The very opening Chapter and verse of Revelation says "that these thuigs were shown unto John by Hie .nsel,"— iij die Lords angel. Brother Russell in commenting upon this matter sa>s that John is a picture of ihc Qiurch in the Harvest period, and the things which John there saw— literally, in vision- the John dais down here would be made to understand in all their reality. In other wofds. the symbols ivould lie c,\pUlneri rn the John class; and when John said these things were shown unto him by the Lord's angel, lit was speaking for you and tne— the John class. By Ihe annel of the lord, to the John stage of the Church, these things would be made clear. In the Isth and 39ntl chapters vou will finii John speaking if these things again. .And he savs. '.And when I saw. and undtrstnotl, then I fell before tlie feet of Him that had ihown these things to me, and He said, see that thou tlo it not, tor I iiii diy felloivservant— of thy breth- ren, one o( the prophets worshipped God." Has it been true, dear friends? You and I oE the John class, when we have come to timjerstand the great bcauiies ui the Lord's plan, haven't we almost felt tike worshipping Brother Russell : hm lias it not been ilwavs his spirit to potn; us to the iorii.- "See thou do it not." 'Don't worship Brother RusselL worship Oud. I am raerelv thv fellow- servant, one of the prc^hets of the Lord." pVophei means one who proclaims the truth. And that is vvlui he was, and he was an honorej protJtet of the Lord, an honored servant— a fellow-servant indeed— of which vou and I are scarcely worthy. \ow it isys ihit dicjc things would be shown nnto John, and the John class would see these things and unJtrsiariJ them. There is the key lo the whole situation. John saw ihcm bick ihcre. hut literally he did not understand them. But to you and me these things became meat in due season. Now we have come to understand the . things which John literally saw back there m vision, Tliey were shown to John by the angel and they would be shown by the Ijjrd's angel 'to the johii class. There is no <juc9tion dial Fislor Kussai -dias lite

mgd It Ihc Mm tfoch of Jfic Churck-lo Uie last mem- ters oi the body of Christ, the Laodicean Church iVow if these things were to be shoivu to the John class by the angel, and the John class would feel almost like wor- slitppmg the Lord's servant for having ted thcni thus With the meat in due season, can we not see the picture complcle? And when dii this angel to the Laodicean period snow these things lo us? Before he died? Som» of the thinjis, ycj. But wc did not come to an under- standing of an the i>™bols of Revelation from Srst to last un 111 aficr Ais death; and kov? Tiirough Ihe medium of the Seventh Volume of Scriptnre Studies. I sav, thcrc- toic, that not only from the literary usage of tlie terra but according to (Iw Book of Eev-elatior, the Lord's people' are justified in considering il as the posthumous work of Brother Sits?ell._the servant la uliom :he Lord had com- mitted all His store of present iritlh. (Rev. 1.1; in-.io.)

,n,y'J'"\'^ ''■'"" ^'* '*'"^* "" "'« ^''t <^^y of October lUlb, but 'his works did follow on." and he himself m comineiiuiig upon that te.tt says that the words indicate that since 1878 those who would die would merely rest from the laborious features of the Harrest work, but the wo,'K which they were 6oins on this lidc the vail they would continue to do on ilis attur sidi: On the strength ot ihis tcit he Mid repeatedly in THE W.-VTCH TOWER and elioivjtcre, that the saints on the other tide of the vaii "• co-u^ciiting with us on this side" Do you think th,il has been true? If that is trne witli ihe saints from lSi« down 10 the present, it i.s sureiy true with ihe greatest servant 01 the Lord in this Harvest time, our dear Pastor. 1 say. He rested from the laborious feature but con- tinued Ihe Harvest work right on. and coatimjed to co- opciate with the Harvest workers from the other tide, and I believe in some way the Lord has honored him to bring to your altention and mine an e.^planaiion of ihosc sytnjols which John literally saw in vision. Therefore, the Words of the Revelator, as txplaired by our dear Pastor, have coroe true.- they havr been fulfilled.

In conclusion, done friends, when jou hear anyone speaking of Volume Seven, I hoje yon will encourage them to reahtc that it is just as much a message from the Lord IS arc the preceding six votunes Personally, I do not like to hear any of the truth friends, when they are addressed about Ihe "leventh VclufTK. aav, "Oh yes I accept it It is a good book, but of course there are lots of mi!Uakes m it." t don't like to hear that 1 would just as soon hear such a remark made when we would asit a brother ii, i|,c ttuili, "V\ hat do you think of Volume iJr.e? \ow suppose he would answer you, 'Oh It is a good book. I accept it, but of course there arc lots of mistakes in it." You wotiid say that Ijrotlier is Bot wry ckar iii the truth. I would say the same thing It he made such a remark about Volume Seven, When we hear anyone l>egin to set forth the mistakes in any of the b.3oks and overlook the good things there, they are discounting ihe messages the Lord has given them at thin time ; and I say such an individual does not have a proper appreciation of vvliat the Lord has given him. There is no mere reason -jihy -J!e slwutd reject the Seventh Volume beiOlttc of same statements tliert abaal Ihc eildifa of the war tH October, tpr. 'Jihich did nsl corns Irue. than there u thai ?u^ thttuU thr^isf t-'atmme TWO atmy beeavtse we wercH'l all slorificd in October, rg 14.

February 2, 1919, 8 P. M., Discourse by Bro. Wra. F. Hudgings

Academj- Hail, .New York iSity

Subject: "PRISON EXPERIENCES" ^^^"^

OUR icat for this evening, dear friends, is found in the ls> Chapter of Philitnians. versei 57. 23 and 29, in part; "Stand fist in one swrit, with one mind! striving together for the faith of the gospel; and in nothing terrified by your adversaries, whic'n is to them an evident token of perdition, but to }T)u of salvation, and that 01 God. For unto you it is given in the behalf of Lhnst, not only to believe on Him, tut also to sager for Ha sake.

I believe I voice the sentiment oi all when I say that ihis tect has been one of the most comforting to the Cnurcli as a whole that we h»vc had before our muidi durmK the past year. We have a!! been called upon to suffer much. Perhaps we may have some further privi- kges along that l:nc. But it isn't the snfferinj, ij it, dear iricnds, that specially concerns us when wt realize the great tavor that has b*en b»t<rwcd iip,an ua lo be ambassadors for Ihe great Kingdom, which is now being

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est.iWisficiJ upon llie tuins of the old srtlcr ; wlieii we rcaiia: tlui the Lord las pcroiiued us to have an iiisijt uuilffaUiidiiig «I His great plans and purjioics iii uKaiicc oi liic «orld' Can we mil apprcciite it is a jirivileyt ind«J, 10 sutlei i liulc in cuiinculiim with the diisemr- mwn lit Ihat mtisaac? I believe that is the S()iril oi the Lord's people generally. That was the spint oi the Apo^itlc ; and wImo kn penned these words he was uudcr- guiiig crucial triili aiitl tests, when he was ui priion aQd wo* culled upuil to sulicr considcrahlj because of the (atl tiiit !ie was taithfulls- upholding the bannef oi truth amidst that crooked and ijervene ijeneratiotr. It is even so today! Atid in our text he calls attention to the tact tliat the truth is not imparted lo you and to roe tor Ihc ,™rpose merely of our own benclit— our own eixjoymciit. He indiailcs that tte Lord is not noir disseminati^ig His iticssaKC simply that you and 1 miifht told our hunts and say. "Isn't this ivonderf iil '." Aiid then put forth no cftorl in carrying on tlw hlessinss to olhifrs. He indicaics thai unto us it is given not only to believe (enjoy) the tnitk but a/io to itigcr lor llis soke. '■Hcrcmito were ye tailed ; and wc shall be partakers of the Divine nature ; we shall share with the Lord as joint heirs with Uira in tlic King- dom "it so be tint we iiiffir with Him that wc .iiay be gtoriricd tenjelher" That is the spirit o( the Apostle, IS shonii throush all his writinss. Tliat is die true spin: of Jisciplcsliip 1 Anil 1 believe we will find that spirit still prevailing imonKst the members of the Chtirdi.

Tlic Lord's people, durinj; the past six months, have been called upon to undergo some very peculiar trials and tests. W c have had trials from ilic very beginning of our consecration, to be sure; but not in luch a public way have we been held up to scorn and ridicule as has hese true durlnj thr pasi f'w mrmifis. But even '™ " a blessing '. And when wc come to view it ia that light, dear friends, we tan reiliio that we hove the blessing oi Ihe Lord and that we are followius the Apostle— even as he ioUoweJ Christ, and so he asked us to du 1

Xow in the opening clause of this text whidi wc have read there .is a sugsesrjon (hat seems lo me peMliarlj appticable to this time, and one which we should follow very literally, just as it reads: "Stand fast inaiif spirit, with one tiiiiid, ilrivia} teacihtr for the faith of the gosfel. Mow complete and succinct are the Apost es words in this connection'. He leaves nothing out \\t find a teiv today who are advocating very icatously the first tuo words of this text. They lay ihit wt> mus: "staiid fasi," But they utterly ignore the ijalance of the Apostle's advice. He didn't say tnercly to "slani fait, ' and then dose the adinonition; but he emphasiHS /Ar« (iiiiM in ihis one smtcxcc the importance of the Lurd's people *iu(iHs (ojelJier,— standing together, wluie they "staud fasi." "Siand fast in tine minti; sinvina together for the faith of the Gospel." That is the argtitirent ol the Apostle in this connection; and some are preaching and advocitins that the friends should "stand last," but insttad ol "striving together" in one spirit, in am mmd. Ihev are jiullinif apart and 3epar,itin(r themselves from others and starting various sects and schisms in tb: body, just exactly contrary to the Apostle's ativice. Let tis, deal frier.ds, follow the admonition ot the .'yposllc. "Stand flit in one spirit— with one mind; slrivinE to gelher" to carrv forward the message that the Lord has ^vcn to yon o'nti me, &3 ambasiadon oS His Kingdom, to proclaim. .

Well, you aay. "Tliat may cost us sortieihiHS.' Yes, it will cost us soiiMthiitg. It has cost us something in the past, and will cost us something in the future, and if we ihink we can stand as ambassadors of this Rrcai King- dom which is to supplant the present earthlif oruei with- out opposition we are figuring wroag. The Sciiplurcs clearly indicate Ili,it everyone who seeks to hold lorth this message of truth amidst this croolsrd and perverse generation will meet with opposition. It is going to mean sufjtrinjj and trills and tests, iuit is we have seen in the past, and will probably see in the future.

I have heard some of the friend! make itatements respecting our dear brethren who are now suffering in bonds tor Christ's sake, and some have even gone so far as to say the brethren "are suffering because oi

indiscretion ; that if they had been careful they could have avaid,d tkeir experience" .And t sgroe. Vie ail agree that they could have avoided it. So cov.ld Jesus, bo could the Apostle Paul, and Ihe other faithful martyrs of the past. Tliej' all could have avoided their experiences o( sufterinB in tonncclion with disseiiiinating the truth message. But why are we talking about ttioidim these c.tijci ientcs, ivlicji tile Lord's Word dearly Indicates that "hereunto were vc called,'" and that wc "shall be joint heirs with the Lord, if so be that vie siigcr will: Hint, ,\nd svhy did Me suffer? Because of holdiiiE forth the message oi trnth; becanse He pointed the linger of deri- sion at the Pharisees— the clergy of that lime; ber.iuse He went into the Temple antl drm'e out the money chani4ers: because He tvent against the common thoughl of the dav. That is the reason He sutTerfd. "If so be that you sulTer sviili Him, you shall 'dc giorincd icgcther" with Him,

some lay. "Well, we should prcclaim the truth, but whv stir lip strife? Why not merely preach Ihc 'Divine Plii oi ihc .\scs.' and leave out this other feature about 'The Day of God's Wr»ih,' and The Day of His Venge- ance upon Ecclcsiastlcism'? Why say anything about that" Why featcre thai part of the message?" [ will lell you whj: Because the Lord lias commissioned us to do so.

Do you recall that on one Sabbath morning the tjiril stood in the synagogue of His home ci^— ■NaJarcth— and read a propheCT from the Bl<f of Isai'aK and He said, "■These words arc fulfilled in your hearing. What were the words? He said. "1 am anointed to pleach the glad tidings unto the meek, lo bind up the brokenhearted, etc. etc.'* And Hu closed the book, and aal down. W'heil we read those words loday we are naturally interested m the jiatemcnt of ihc Pruplict Isaiah whidi thus applied to tile Lord, and [hereby applies to every member of His anointed body. S'uw when we open the book of Isaiah and we read the original prophecy which ilie Lord quoted we find Ke only quoted it in fiort. He must have had some reason tor so doing. We find the balance of the projhecy which He did not quote says Ihis ; ".\nd to proclaim the day of vengeance of our Gni." Why did the Lord not quote diat part of the statement of Isaiaii when He read it in His home iynagogue at Kaiareth? The answer must be this: that pa.T of the prophecy did not relate to the Lord at the time Ihat He read this itt tlic sj-nagoKue on that Sabbath morning, but that the whcie pro^tccv applies to the anointed body of Christ, of which Jesus is the Held. He, therefore, qutxcd the part dial applied 10 I I'm personally; the message that w-as due at that lime. But the message of proclaiming "die veiigeince of our God" was not then due; thi: "Day of Vengeance" was then eighteen centuries off. But now. how is it? We ire standing right at that very time I II that prophecy of Isaiah is true, it must apply to you and to me, iie-at; and that is the reason wc understand the Lord did not quote it then.— because He left it for you and me to fulfill. He laiew that the feet members of use body wouitt courageously go forward and they would proclaim the meisage vihich the Prophet Isaiah foretold (hey should, "riiereiore, the peculiar tncssase oi today is the message that the Lorii has here put into your mouth and mint— to proclaim the "Day of die Veageatice of our God," ■Vengeance upon vbom? Upon the nation? Ifes, hut how and why? \\ c invesii;;aic the Scriptures and see the reason for it. Principally, it is because of the unfiithful- nesi o( the clcrg'j class: and Hence especially upon Hirin God's vengeance is now directed.

Therefore, dear friends, if I understand anyihin? about this orophecv of Isaiah, if I understand anything ahout the Scriptures applicable to the feet members of tlie boay of Christ now lising on the earth, it is this : That the Lord expects us to carry forward the message that is ppei^h'irlv applica'ote at this time, ajid to lelt the people that Babylon is going to fall; that it is already tosiernig. It has not yet finally g-nne down to destruction, but it will go shortlv. There are no doubt thousands upon thou.sanda of the foolish virgin class that arc still in darlness ia those systems and they must come to know the iruth, , , , ,

N'oiv, dear friends, it seems to me that those of tis

SUi'PLEME.S- r

who have folded our hands and said, "Well now, there IS hardly anything else to do on Utis »ide the vail, e.^cept tfie dcidopment of character— no opportunity to procJaiin tbe messauc" -I tlliiik lbe» are mak-mg tile miiltakc of theit lives : I believe the Lord is going to show to every one Ol Dj bcfoe long ihat instead ot Kie.'c being nolliing 10 do, tlic very greatest work that wc have tver heen called uiiou to perform is just before us I Whcreis, during me foriy years bancst period we have had die privilege of btingmg one another to the knowledge of tlie truth; and there arc about fifty or sevcniy-Hvc thou- sand re)oicing in the truth,— and many of these conse- crated to Ihc Lord. Kevertheless, 1 belitvc thai we arc going to see, within tile immediate future, such a privi- lege extended its the Lorti's people as nc^er before, i, c, the bringing ol the .Message of fruth to the thousands upon thosivands, and possibly hundreds of tttou^ands, of the foolish Virgin Class who are still slumbering and sleeping itid who do not know of the Divine FUn, You and I have already been made acquainted with ihe mes. • age. Wc arc standing upon the very threshold of the Ki.imSom, TbeSE people arc still in darkness 1

'1 lie Lord intends to ^t^iiid up earth's affairs, ghrify till Chunk, bring the Great Cainpany lo c imira/eiise cf the Trtilh, and ilien install titese as servants of the Bride on the olaer side of the fail— and this is alt to take place within a toraparatively short time. If that be true, dear friends, ti'tio 2vill the Lord wae to bring the MtUtlt/e of Tnth to those Foolisti yirgiisf Do you think He wi.I use some tine who does not hnow the Divine Ftanf He tiioMu't use anyone to teach the plan unliss tliej uisder- sfood the plan t/ietiisctt/es. Who in all the earth is tquipped to carry for-jurd ihis message to these brelhrea

in darUncia unless it he tlic rCWiaiHlM^ mtmbsrS of tilt

Church m this side tits vail? Some of us have beeo disappoinicd bcciiusc wc have not been glorified sooner. 1 believe, dear friends, that we will come to realize thai the Lord knew exactly what He was doing and kept ta here for a purpose, and now He is going to extend a great privilege to tliuse who are desirous of having a share in His service: anrl I think that time is Hearing,

Thinking of how the Lord may bring about corditions by which we will see thousands upon tiiuusands coming to a knowledge of the truth and coming with a desire to know the Divine Plan, I Iwvc coiac to the COUciusion. M no douLii you have, that the Lord will undoabiedly me lome one, apcclacular thing to rouse the attention of these who are now slumbering and sleeping and who do not rcalicc the presence of the Lord and the nearness of His iCiogdcm. I lelieve as surely as I know I am standing here tonigh: that the suffering experiences that the Church has passed through during the past six months may be the pivot m which public sentiment will turn; that the tacts wc make known respecting the imprisonment of our brethren who at this moment arc suffer:ng in prison bonds without being adTnitled to bail will prove of such interest thi: we will find multitude! of people desiring to know all about the ease. I shuuld not be surprises that wc will come to realize before long, dear friends, that the Lord's hand lias been in this whole experience- not merely for the good of the Church in the way of character development; not merely for the good cl the brethren themselves in bonds; but for the good oi His cause ill connection with the carrying forward of the Kingtiom Message to those now slumbering in darhness. I scarcely nted to refer to the facts in connection with the brethren's experience in order for you to appreciate the I,ord's provide:ice in it all. But we will mention a few things which were disensced by U3 during that blessetl week m Raymond Street jail before they were taken away from me to .Atlanta.

As you kaow, it wai my privilege to precede them in bond^ about ten days. On the 2lst ot June Ihcy were brought into that place where I was being held, and during the daily recreation periods (three tunes a dav, of aliout an hour each) wc had Ihe privileite of fellow- shipping and discussing some very interesting things in connection with their experience. I tell you. dear fritnds, it lifted the burden, and we could hardly see anvthing hut i<iy in connection with the whole experience, and

ooulu reahio vividly ihe words ol the Apostle that we should rejox^i ui tnouiation And ivc were able to do it ' Uoulrllesi many ol these facts have .tiready come to your attcmton, but they were so iiliercsting to us that we have feasted upuit iliciii ever since, t-irst of all, we mght menljoii lioiv tlic Lord has set tJiis- experience ot the brethren before the Lhttrch as a most representative one and has pointed an index hiigcr to it so that you and 1 can realue viVKliy that the Ijird lias a grand par- pose in conneoton with the whole atrair. h'oT instaiKc tlic prominence of tlic figure seven in connection with the whole trial has so prutruded itself upon our aiteaiiuu ihat wo cannot mistake thai it is more than merely a set oi coincidences, For instance, the trial itself covered ctaClly tuurtccn court days— .scjifK of those days were devoted to the prclimtnancs and the prosecution, whereas seven days were devoted to the defense. At ihe conclusion of

that period the brethren were sentenced and Convicted

ei(;ht of Ihem— aitd then in die musi remarkable way the ei(jhtli was scp«rntcd from the others and the sentence caiue upon only seven, on the sist day of Juue. The eighth was sentenced c.-iactly sttie >ily-oiu days later — Ihree times seven.

Then they were u'len down to Raymond Street jail. None of us knew how long they would be there. They keft them there exactly sevn days, and while there, the othcers of the .Society and Hoih compilers of the ^'eventti- Vdumc were placed on a Iter of eeiis known as Number ici'CH on the North side.

At the end of the sevtn days they were removed to Queen's County jail.

Nobody knew how long they would be kept there. Th^S' w.Te kept tlicre ejiaclly seven days.

.■\nd OB the seventh day they were removed from Iheie and taken to Atlanta on tlie .|ir/> day of July (the itvtntk moaihj, which day was being celebrated by exactly sevn nations tor the first time in history.

These things are more than coincidences, an5 serve as io many index fingers pointing to the importance of the drcumstancei. and saying in no uncertain matuier, to jou and to mc: This is one of the most reimrkable occi:rrcnces in the history of the Church, and these brethren are representatives of the Church in suffering; and that instead of the Lord permitting us all to go 10 jail He has taken stven rcprcsentativs there and their sentence (resting upon them) rest also upon you and upon me bctause of the fact that the court in pronouncmg the sentence said;

"In the opinion of the Court, the religious proptioanda which ihtK defendants vigorously advocated and spread throughout the nation, as well as among our allieB. is a greater danger than a division of the German array. If they had taken guns and swords and joined together the German array, the harm they could have done would have been insigi;ifi{:ant compared with the results of their propiganiia. A person preaching religion usually has M>uic_ influence, ard if he is sincere he is all die more effective. This aggravates, rather than mitigates the WTORg they have done, etc" Indicating in clear cut terms that it was because of the iocijines that they were being sent to prison.

Xow, dear friends, where does your responsibilitv and mine come in? Are we standing by those doctrines? If we are, then we are involved in ;haj sentence, are we not? If we arc not, dear friends, I ihink we are missing some- thing. I like to think of the brethren as not only them- selves suffeiing tor Christ's sake, but you and I are companions svith them in trlhnbiion, and die 3Ciiteiii;c that rested upon them rests upon you and me ; and I am glad to assume a share in the responsibility.

Lei me tell you, dear friends, just somethttig in tfti'j connection, f happened to kncsv that at least otie of those dear brethren Could have avoided his sentence by just remain IRT silent. One oi those brethren who is now It) prison at .\tlanta was going to have the case dismissed against him ^causc of itisulncicnt evidence. I will tell you his name: It was B.-other .Mac.Millan. At the end ot the govcr-imcni's case, the Court indicated he would probabJy dismiss Brother .'dacMiilan from the indictment because of insufficient evidence offered. That night

mm^^w^^fffff^^^T'.. II iJi-aii ijflsii mi

50

s u pp LE ^rr E n t

Brother MacMillati wcht to the attorneys oftice and said. "I want you to with<Iraiv your motion for the dismissal qf my share in this indianicnt^ \i Brother Ritiherford and brother Van Amhurgh and ihe<;e ottit;r brtrihren are going to prison because of Volume Seven I wani to go^ too/' anti he sal down and wrote out a statement uking hii share of thu responsibiEEty, signed his name to it, and nanded it to the attorneys, and (be ca^e went on; aitd he, as a voluntary sufferer, is there now in Allama pemcon- liary, and 1 ihink that the Lord loves inm for «. And you love him ior it, for we like to see such a spirit as that.

N'ow, dear friends, are we not ashamed? Some are trying to sidc-iitt-'p the responsibility that is restinjj upon us, and say, "It is not because Ot the doctrines thtse brethren disseminated, but because of their o\vn irtdiscrc- tion." Ohf dear trieudSj kc us ask the Lord to forgive US if we have e^'er had such a thought m our miadsl

Now, dear frictids^ the words of the Apostle here come very dose to our minds; ""Unto you is given not only to believe tlie truth, but aisa to sa^iir for [(j jakc." Are we williiEg to do the iaiter? Wc arc wiMing to di> the former J \\c are willing to believe the truth! \Vc are glad to believe the trLuh ! Eut are we willing to take thfc rest of the statement: We are, dear friends, art we not? Oh, I hate the spirit of fear that is sometimes sho^^n by a few. We are g]ad that it is a few.

I remember the case o^ Ode biolhcr who was arrested and put into a hhhy prison and the time came for his trial, and he said to his atlornevj "It will not be neces- sary for you to subpoena any of the witnesses in my case, I am a Bible Student, and I will find plenty witnesses in the class who will be ;ust anxiotis^and giad to testify OIL my bchal[, you won't need to subpoena any of thern," But that brother waj disappointed: he foutid aE least two or three in that class— consecrated and promi- nent in the class^ too — who hesitated or refused to appear as witnesses because they were afraid they might get into trouble thtmselvcs. They would not volunteer their serv- ice to sit upon the witness stand for a halt hour, and answer truthfully questions which might be asked them by an attorney, because they feared they might he put in prison for conlempt oi courts or somethin^f like that- Gh. dear friends, isn't it enough to make us ashamed?

I recall Brother Rutherford speaking one day, just before the distribution of the Kail of Babylon tracts. Lven then there were some who were afraid! There was one brother who wrote in and said, "I want you to send me a copy of the paper, and I will look it over, and tell you whether I will be willing to co-operate with the Society in distributing them." And that brother was supposed lo be in heart harmony with the Truth. Brother Rutherford wrote back .and said; ''I do not believe the Society would want yoti to co-optTate in the distribution of any of its literature, if you watit to first examine and look it over and then decide. I do not behevt that shows a very appreciative spirit of the aifencv the Lord has been plea ftp ri to use for more than forty years," I believe he answered the brother properly.

I think that the ones who are going to follow the admonition of the Apostle,— not only to "stand last in the faith," — but to strive together in one spirit and in one mind; co-operating for ihe artvancement of the faith of the gospel; and we know, dear friends, that the great work that is before us is one which the Lord has dearly out- lined.

The Fall of Babylon is near, and there is undoubtedly a ffreat inessaf;^ that is yet to go forth in connection with its accomplishment. The Lord is able to bring about the conditions, and He wijl bring about the conditions so chat His work will be effective. I believe that He is doing it Moit', and that we will we before long that instead of our having to hammer and drive to get anybody to listen to the truth. Wis will Iind a great many hungry hearts yearn- ing; for it. And as we intimated a while ai^, it may b^ the piibliihjjiff of ihc facts in coHnettion with the case of Oitr brethren thai may be the ejiiering -iuedgc. But that we 'oAl! wait and sec.

In addition to the proininencc of the figure jfVf" in connection with their case, I wish to also mention some

parallelisms suggested during the: blessed week we were in l^aymond Street jail togettter. First one brother would suggest something and then aEiothqr^ and by the end of 1 he Wf:ek we had some very i [Ue resting dat a comp 1 1 ed that 1 think has gJaddetied the hearts of the friends who ha^c heard it- The Lord, in a most remarkable way, has shown a direct relationship between liic experience of the feet inembL^rs of the body and the experience which came upon the iiead of the body nineteen centuries ago.

We know that iht moon was pictoriul of the Jewish dispensation, which came to a close in the days oi our Lord, iiven as the sun is a picture of the Gospel dispen- sation. There were ijireat privileges that had been extended to the nominal Jewish house that pai^^ed away bc;cause they did not appreciate the Lord from Heaven, who had come. Evan now wc sec that the Lord has cast aside the great nominal spiritual Israel because of the fact that they have not ajjpreciated the Lord's Second Preience and co-operated in the carrying lonvard of the message now due. Kather, they have totight against it; even as they fotight ayainst our Lord and persecuted tiiin to His death. iSow let us note sotne pavallcls.

Onee a year the sun reaches its ::cnith in the heavens- Brother llussell su^ests that the zvaniitc/ oi the waoti at the time of our Lord's cnuifijrion was suggestive of the pas^iiii/ aztjaj? oi the privikges that had been eit tended to that itominai Je-:iA^h house back there. Our Lard was crittifitid when the uttjttn was at its ^acttith in the heaven. He was crucified on the ijf/i of jVijon at high nooitt according to Matthew's account, "There was darkness over the earth from the sixth hour." That would be nooUt because the Jews reckoned daylight fro en about 6 A. M. It was apparently at high noon^ therefore, that our Lord's aai-uitiej on t'flrf/i were cut short, on tlie l&th of Nisan when the moon was at it$ monthEy zenith in the heavens.

These scvch representatives of titc Lord's people, and you and I, and all of us as feet members, had our acii-L'ities in coiitnection with the harvest cut short on the pist day of June, i^lH, the toti^cst day of the year, when the sun wag at its lenith in the heavens. It was at diat hotir that the setitjuee was pronounced upoti our seven representatives.

This. matter is further tinphasiied when we look into the details of the circumstances as ti^ey occurred. Our brethren were CQHvicted the day previous (June 20th), and the Court had aitnouneed that at iwoft on the following day he would pronoutice sentence. About U A, M. the officers came to Raymond Street jail and took our breth- roti to the courthouse. Everything was arranged just before Vi o'clock for the judge to make his appearance in the court room and pronounce the sentence according to schedule. But 12 o clock came, then 12 ;10, 12 rSO, 12^45, and the judge had not yet put in his appcarancen He did not arrive and impose sentence tiutU 1 P. M.

"Oh," you say, *'I am sorry he spoiled the picture. Why cnulftn'r he have gotten there on tim*?'^ I do not know why. He did not explain, but merely apologized for having been delayed an hour; and then he pronounced the sentence at I P, iL instead of 12 o'clock,— as an- nounced. But, isn't it a fact, that all the docks were runuinff one hour fast all last summer? Cl^ughter.) And if he had pronounced that sentence at 12, it would have been one hour before the sun reached its cenith in the hcavetis, on this longest day in the year. The Lord pertnitted him to be one hour iate in order that the sen- tence might come upon the seven representatives of the fEct members of the body at exactly hiffh noon, when the sun was at its very highest point in the heavens.

And then the sun began to wane, even as the moon waned back there at the crucifixion of our Lord, and showed the passing aivay oi the privileges upon the nomi- nal Jewish house. Just so, this pictures the passing aivay of the privileges of nominal Lhristeiidoiin down here. The picture is complete.

l^t us see further; the i-^th of Xisan back there when the Lord was crucified occurred on Friday. You look at the calendar and you will find the ^ist day of June in the year I0I3 came upon a Friday.

Furthermore , the Lord was found fj n ill y the n ifjh (

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51

previous, — Thursday, at a iate hour. Our brethren, the seven representatives of the Feet Members of Christ, were found i^uitty the nitjht previous, at a iate hour,

I tclJ you wc cannot say that tliese are merely eoinci- deuces and that the hand of God has not been in the whole circumstances ; we eamtot shut our eyes • and say this is merely an incident in which seven or eight men were involved. It is something in which you and / and everyone as mccnbers of the feet of Christ are involved.

Now, dear friends, in view of the fact that thu L^ord has thus so peculiarly and particularly set forth this circumstance before Onr minds leads me to the conclusion that He is not through with the circumstances; that He intends to use the case of our brethren for bringing the truth to the attention of the world, and especially the Foolish Virgin Lbss, with such telling force that it will arouse them from their slucnbers. Many will %^y^ "Why did these seven Christians have to go to prison on a twenty-year sentence, and why were they denied bad pending the appeal of their casci when real out-and-out seditionists the country over were freely admitted to bail?" We are not finding faulty We are merely stating , the facts as they existn But the Lord in His own due time will make manifest the answer to these questions. 'I he people will want to kno w the ans wer, they wi I L demand the answer^ I believe! Then they ^viII say: "What were these men teaching? What was that book?" And the Lord in His providence may give us the privilege of answering Iheir further questions,

1 had a talk with an editor in St. Louis the other day. I merely alluded lo the bookn I \vas talking about the case in genera], and I was struck with the interest that was aroused in his mitid^not merely the fact of those men being in bonds— but his interest was in what they were teaching that sent tht^m to jaiL 1 was telling him about the case, and he wouM bring me back to the point. "But — what is that book they were publishing?'* And after awhile he said: "Say, can you send me a copy?" I said, "N'o, I cannot, the book is under the ban." After a while he mentioned the book againn and just as I was leaving, as he shook my hand, he said, "Say, young man. will you promise me one thing? Will you promise to mail me a copy of that book tho very day that the ban is lifted?" (Laughter.) And so I promised! and t am going to keep my promise. (Applause.)

1 think, dear friends, that sentiment is rapidly chatig- ing, and I believe that it will not be very long before the people will be hungerittg for the truth. It seems- that" ^\QTy picture in the Scriptures relating to these things sets forth that very fact. You recall that beautiful and wonderful article in the Watch Tower about "J^s^^ph and His Brethren"? Our dear Pastor has written upon the subject at various times, treating Joseph and Benjamin as t^Tcal characters, and Benjamin as a type of the Great Company class. If that picture means anything, it un- doubtedly shows that there is a great work to take place

suutii th[il there wilt bg a.\\ of this Benjaniin class hun- gering for the truth before long, and you and I apparently arc the only ones in the world who can give it lo them. Of course, the Lord could give the blessing of truth by the angels of Heaven if He wanted lo, but He has kept you and me on this side of the vail — For what reason? I think wc v/ill see the reason before long. Wc know that our dear Pastor always e:!pected a literal fulfillment of the H&th Psalm on a scale that we have thus far never witnessed. "Let the saints be joyful in glory, and sing aloud upon their beds," "Sing aloud — " Do yoti get that? *'Sing aloud on their beds with the two-edged sword in their hands," and [)e says that that refers to this side the vail. You remember that article in the Watcli Tower from our dear Pastor regarding that applying to this side the vail; that the saints wouid have a glorious privilef^e of wieldicig that two-edg:cd sword on this side the vail, "crj'inij atoud upon their beds, and binding the kings with chains, and the nobles fof Babylon) with fetters of iron"? This honor hath all the saints.

We have had some privileges along that line already. But r believe the greater part of those privileges are in the future. No doubt we will soon see ,the message of truth brought to the attention of kings, and rulers and

great ones of earthy even as Revelation 10:11 shows. I think that we will hnd that the Lord has not put these statements In the Scriptures as mere idle words, but that He intends that before the Church on thiii side the vail have accomplished their mission tiiey will have so success- fully and thoroughly spread the truth from one end of the earth to the other that it will not be true, as it is today, that you can go right out in this city and find peoi^le who have never heard of Brother Russell or Brother Rutherford- 1 dare say that already more people have beeonie acquainted with the L E. S. .\. through last year's experiences than through any other one thing that has ever occurred in the history of the Church, If this he true even noWj what will it be when the Lord's time comes for us to send forth the message and tell these facts before all the world? Whh sentimi^nt rapidly chaetging %ve will probably enjoy before long ttie greatest privjieges that you and I have ever had,— and perliaps have ever dreamed of.

Frobably most everyone here has had some privilege along the line of bringing somebody into the truth, if so, you know the joy it brought to your heart as you went to your neigEibor, day by day, evening after eveiung^ and brought them to the class meetings and to Sunday lectures. Vou gave them tractsj and you gave them books, and you nourished them along and, oh, the joy that filled your heart when you r^atUed the fruits of your labors I How will you feel, dear friends, if the Lord gives you the privilege before long of not only bringing one indi- vidual to a knowledge of the truth, but probably letting you bring into the truth tens or hundreds of tho^c who are yet in darkness— real Virgins, even though foohsh? Oh, the joy that will come to your heart if the Lord gives you that privilege! It will be a glorious privilege indeed, and we can see we would be "joyiul in gloo'i singing aloud upon our beds," wielding this two-edged sword of truth, binding the kings (of ecclesiasticism, as well as otherwise) with chains, and the nobles with fetters of iron — ^the strong words of the gospel^ Let us bold ourselves in readinest and if the Lord extends any privileges like that to us before long, let us take hold of them and leave the results to the Lord, realising that "hereunto we have bceii called.'^ It is not for us merely to believe the fruth, but also to su§€r for its sake.

\\*c will now devote five or ten minutes to the discus^ sion of our recent prison c?rperietices, inasmuch as several of you have requested that 1 do so tonight, i do not consider these as matters of so much importance. In fact, there is not very much to tell, so far as my own experiences are concerned; but I believe if all the interesting facts in coiimtciion with the case of the other brethren were made known, you wo u Ed appreciate that a great deal.

I was in prison for six months to a day. I was three months in Raymond Street jail^ BrookljTi. and then was transferred to the >rassau County jail at Miticohj N. V. I found conditions there very different from what they were here Jn the Brooklyn jail. They always searched the prisoners at Raymond Street jail every time they came back from court, and even hteraturo, books, papers, etc., are taken away from them. When I entered I had a copy of the Bible, a copy of the Seventh Volume and a AVatch Tower. Tliey look the Watch Tower away from me, but let me have the Seventh Volume and the Bible. I think they thought both of them were Bibles. (Laughter.) And isn't it a fact? Volume Seven is merely part of the Bible, U is two books of the Bible with a few notes and comments upon those books. I asked the guard why he took the Watch Tower away from me. I explained that it was a religious magazine^ and presumed he would be glad to have the prisoners surrounded with all the religious reading possible. He said, "Yes, but not that kind." (Laughter.) He muttered something as he threw it over into the Avaste hasketn and I kindly asked him what it was he said. He responded. "1 said, if it wasn't for that stuff you wouldn't have been here." (Laughter.) I guess he was right.

At the Raymond Street jail, the conditions arc very different from what they are at llineola. At the former pbce the prisoners are locked up twenty-four hours a day, with the exception of three recreation periods of one

52

SUPPLEMENT

hour each, with only one recrcitioii period on Sundays and liolidays. But I had Much opportucity Sor study, and I api)r«ia[i;d that viry much, indeed.

l^iiially I was traKsfcrred tc lltneali.— much lo my iclic:. ll seems tint aU the officials at tlie Raymond Street jail arc Catholic— from the watdcn down—and I was surprised lo Snd ou: that it Mineola evcryihmg >s Protestant— from <hrriff dnvvn. And 1 had the privikBC oj rtining to tlie Mineola keepers some of my experiences. TTiey t^tenAtrd a vtry sirnipalhctic «ir and I wis jriviksed to talk with the prisoners tiicre, too. Some oi thCEu showed lome interest in ths tnlLh. One or two read she First Volume almost through white I was there. One of thetn had jlmoJt finished Volume Two at the time I left. After I had been there about three day», they ceased locking me up. I was plated amung tlie "trusties."

On Thanksgiving Day (indicative o! the kindness ot the uflTicials there) the sheriff and the warden and keepers, al their own expense, gave a turkey dinner to every ins- oner in both the mate and female part of the institution. Leartiing tliat I was a minister, as Ihey called me, they asked me it 1 wculd ofler thiaks at Ihc Ihankspiine meal This I did ! Then the shtriff asked me to go into the female prbon and speak a tew words to the women. It was my prjvilcRc to fivt a short discourse to the female prisoners about the Kingdom; which seemed to be very much appreciated by the tiniortunaies.

It was wondettul how the Lord seemed to prejiare circumstances for rae so f could do a greit deal of itudying there at Mineola. But I regretted very much there was no light in my cell It was iKvayj very dark during Ihc evenings. There was only a faint glimmer that entered the eclls from the outsi.le of she tier But one mijht wher l came down to my cell one of the prisoners fol- lowed mc in nnd said, "Why don't yuu turn an your light'" I said. "I wish 1 had one," and he immediaicly readied up and tattled on a light. The prisoners there bad jone to the trouble of procuring a cord which gave ibera liglu, and n.-) it into my cell that 1 might have a

li^ht. And thty had done it entirely unknown to me, and with (he consent and approval of tlw keepers I From that lime on I had the privilege of studying as looj as I wantpd to eacii evening- I tried to use this added blcssitij; lo the glory of the Lord as much as possible, because I considered that as aootlier *lircct evidence of the Lord's t'avor upon one of His children.

The time came for me to leave. It was through habeas corpus proceedings in the Soprcmc Court that I was re- leased. When :hc ijctition for the writ was granted. Chief justice White of the Li. S. Supreme Court at Washington iaid he cuiisidcied my imprisonment one of the greatest outrages upon justice whic'ti had come before the court, and for this reason Ihe petition was granted in a most unusual manner. It was granted by a means which never occurred bctort in the history of the Sunremc Court.

The proceedure first of ill is this: Vou file a copy of Ihe testimony and a preliminary brief, and if the Supreme Couri sees any merit in the c:tse they will then notify your attorney to file an application for the writ, which will he considered But that does nut moan the writ wiSI he g-anted. Bat in this ease, they didn't even wait for the artorncyj to file an application. As soon a» we filed the preliminary brief and they read over the lestimnny and found I had been held for contempt oi court (or six months for such truthful testimony as there given, they went rigiit ahead and granted die writ befi/rt forvtai afifilication ivits even viadc.

The result was that I was out on bail within about twc weeks from the beginning of the proceedings, whereas ordinnrilv it nuKht have taken four or five months. 1 am veo' ihankiulto the Lord for that! But I am specially iliankiul from this standpoint: that if Chief Justice White would characterize my imprisonment (whidi was merely an incident in the case of the other brethren) as one of the "greatest outrages on justice his mind could conceive of," what do yoo suppose the Supreme Court may say when they find that 125 other errors occur in the record oi our brelhreii's case?

BRO. CLAYTON WOODWORTII

Delivered Several D«ys Before Triil, BrgoklyB Tabernacle

STKC^ ihr opp<.irlunily has been afforded me to address j-oii once more I think yon probably have been ex- pecting to hear something in connection with the Book of Revelation. The whole of God's Word is equally precious to me; but you know I have given special itudy to one particular book in ihc last year and a half. Therefore, I iliouglu we would have a little Kevelation. Some of you know wlial 1 am going to talk about tonight. I iliought if you were going to have a lesson in revelation we better have just as hard a one as we knew how; the bardtr the better, ind so the te-tt whic'a I picked oul is ■what is admitted to be one of the most difficult passanes in the bookt (Chapter U.)

1 will read frcm the 15th verse on: "And another angel came out of the temple, crjing with a loud voice to him itiat sat on the cloud. Thrust in thy sickle, and reipt for the time is come for thee to reap ; for the harvest of the earth is ripe. And he that sat on the cloud rhruil in his sickle on the earth; and the carlh was reaped.^ ,\nd an- other annel came oat of the temple which ia in heaven, he also having a sharii sickle. Aa4 anothe.- angel came out from the altar, which had power over fire ; a.nd cried with a loud cry to him tliat had the shirp sickle, saving, Thrusl in thy sharp sickle, and gather ihr rhmers of the vine of the eajth: for her grapes are fulfy ript. And the angel thrust in his sickle into the earth and gatfiered the vine of the earth, and cast it into the great winepress of the wrath of God. And the winepress was trodden without the citv, and blood came out of the winepress, evetj unto the horse bridles, by the space of a thousand and six hundred furlonts." „ , ,- u

I am snre we will all agree tirat our Heavenly father must have hid some defmis; reason for putting this in His Word. Ko one can accuse m of hiv-ing it put in ourselves. It has been there about tii-n ihoiltand years. If anybody

had any very dear idea as lo what this was Intended to teach, it has not been disclosed only up until recently. The ' various cuuiniciitators are all at jca as to what tlie pas- sage might mean, and if I can judge from al! the infor- mation that caitie into my possession, tlie dear truth friends themselves don't seem lo be in any very different fr.ime of mind.

Before the Seventh Volume ot Scripture Studies was published, I had heard two explanations of the measure- ment. One was many times rffrrred to hy Brother Russell in his discourse on the "Battle of Armjggcdon." He said in that discourse, you rememh^r. that "w&rldly editors teve called attention to the fact that the battle tine m Europe was approximately 18ftO milK long." It was no- ticed that the Greek word here rendered "furlonjs" refers to a Greek unit of irwasure. And so these tditors have suggested that perhaps these 1600 units of measurement reprosenl 1600 milcj of the great battle front in Europe and .\sia. That was the view that I had accepted tenta- tively as beinu the correct cxpIaiiaiiDii because Brother Russell had referred to it. He did not indorse it I but he nietcly said, "WoriJfy edituri liavc referred lo this." After working upon the manuscript of this book, a »cry intelligent brother who had made a catcful study of the book for many years, sajgested that this was 1600 mi.nntes o£ longitude between the East and West, within which limits

the great conflict is rasing." .

Subsequently after the book was pubhshsd there came a number of suggestions from brothers and tiiiers who would have been glad lo fnid a tetter c.'cplaiiation than we offered- I gave close attention to every suBgestion which came to mc. One was that if 1600 furlongs were thrown into a jijuare^ — 10 furlongs each way- we might see that it referred to the harvest. Another brother suggested that 1800 had been thrown into a square; and made a city in

SU PPLEUENT

5,J

area about tht size iii uiicicui .\iuevcli, and that wai, in some respects a type of mystic Babylon; thus vse ini(jht see a reference Co tlie overthiovv of Jiabyloii. AuoUier brother suggested tfiai the units of measure would be L800 years from the council of Aries, which met .Vugust 1st, in die year 30U, therefore lUPiJ years would bring us iluwn to August 1, IDII; which statement was, that this council at Aries was the first council to suggest or bciuK hiio cliect a union o! Qiuidi and State: tliat there the horse bridles were put on. so to speak, liicrc were some good thoughts connected with this brother's intcrprelation, and he labored earnestly to get mc lo accept it. 1 am going 10 refer to this several times later.

.Another brother iLggcsiol (iiai iiWO units of Bieasure was merely intended as a symbolical number of dOO; which is. in some respects a very sisuilican; number of "wisdom, justice, love and power"; the "four beasts," many times referred to in tlic Bcrjk .of Revelation — lutj times a hun- dred. And then a sister noted that the Siiiiatic manuscript docs not jpLih ut iliis as ttiUO units of measure, hut 12ut> unitSf tills sister has received a good deal af respect for her knuTvlcUgc of the Bible as written before, and not during the Dark .Ages, So they suggested that we sund by ilic Siliiatic Manuscript which is the most raluabic wo have. Brother Russell used it as an autliorityj it is tt.e olde^ and most reliable ar.d complete copy of ^e New Testament that we have. The sister suggested that this 12U0 units of measure he tracslated in Sabbath day jour- neys. Kaw then eight goes into JWO I'M times, Tfiat would be 150 units of measure. She said this was a pos- sible reference to five moulht: November and December oi ISn, and January, February and .March ot itUB; it was within each of these tr.cnths that the Lord's Church was privileged to engage ia the last feature of the haniist wark.

1 gave a good deal of attention to all the suggestions, as I was bound lo do, and as you would wish mc, or any- body, to do who is trying to deal wi;h the Loid's Word, btsausc vre al! want the Truth, if we make a mistake in anylhitig we wan! to find whete it is, and rectify it, if we have nut iiMile any mistakes then we want to know that. So the object of this address is try to show, if 1 can, from tlte Scripuires that there haven't been any mistakes nude in the treatment of this matter in the ScvcMifi Volume: That it could col possibly refer to anything else, but a book. In order to study this passage properly let us consider tlie 1-llh chapter :

"And 1 jookcd and lo a LanSb stood on the ilcmnt 5ion, and with him an hundred forty and four Ihousaiid, hiving His Father's name written in dicir fofcliciitls." You flavc ni> diBieuiiy lo understand who is the Lamb 1 That is our Lord Jesus Christ : our Passover Lamb. That is the Lamb widtout spot or blemish: slain irom the foundation oi the world on our behalf. Oil, how beautifully the Apostle speiks of Itim as "the Power of the Flock." It also speaks about the sheep ; Uiwjc why arc not powers : merely ^little sheep" who are with Him. We are glad to be counted in WILT the Lord 43 liulc sheep. Glad that -Jic Lord recognizes us at all! I can never forget die lesson Brother Barton presented at the Toronto Convention : Yon want to realize just how cnportant your sacrifice is in the sisht af Cad; compared wiih one complete and perfect bullock in the complete picture. So there are I44,0«» sheep; and oar Lord is the central figure of the picture. This evidently was fulfilled ia the Lord's plan : about April 1, IKS. At that time there were evidently enough in the anli-chanber lo have made up the entire Churdi of Christ i but tiie Lord knew that many of them would aoE prove faithful, and so he allowed ihe general call to cuniinuc for three and one-half years longer, and it lasted (as we know) until October 1, tSSl. Since that time it fias not been proper for US to say to anybody : "If you make your consecration to the Lord, and cany out your consecration faithttiUy you shall be privileged to sit down with Christ on the Throne." No. we can merely say "that is our hope; ;hat ii oar expectation." On this basis we have made our coiisecraiioij. and it is on that basis that we still continue to serve the Lord as we have opportunity Most of us liivc come Into the truth since 1881,

I might mention an authority for ihii itaieroeni that

the wlioU: iM.WW were standing on Mount Zion ia the tpntig of ISrd, Brother Kusscll, in hi$ comments in Kevelation d, referred to this m an article in the Watch Ton-cr on the Parable «f the W eddhig Feast, "The king came m to sec the gusstj, "-Implying that the full nu,„t,ej was ilitre, 3mcc tliat time the Lord and His little com- pany have been standing upon .Mount Zion in the spirit ot their minds— whether on tliat side of tlic vail) or on this side. And in the spirit of our minds wc sec the Lord as an all-powerful king working out His good will and pleasure ; and tn the spirit oi our mindi, wc ate associated witli ilim although still on this side the vail.

Kow. those who are associated with die Lord on Mcmnt Zioo, have in their hands "harps." "Have you heard the new song; the song which the jaiiiis now may sing? How tilt old liitp of Moses, snd the sweet tlute of John, with harmoniout melody ring> It will Iloat o'er the world in rapturous strain of glory and jeace and good will." A song IS something iiaimonlous and pleasing to the ear. The Gospel IS referred to as a song, lor David says. "Thou hast put a new song into my month, even the loving kind- ness of our God," \Ve continually sing this song We could not ling it when we were in Babylon, Wc could not har- moniie tlie law with the Gospel. They would liavc been glad to have had us bring t'orth the pleasing things out of Gjd's word, if we just kept still. \^'c could have stayed in the Churches if we were only willing to retrain from telling ell the plan. There have been some who liave tried that, but I don't think the Lord is pleased witK that kind of a character.

"And they sang a new song." When I heard Brother Sampson tlie first time, I said, "I never heard anything; like ihat before in my life," And the more I have hearl of It Mnce, the better it sounds. Another thing about it too: The more you tell and siag about that song, the: tjetter 11 sounds to .yoursdf. Ttit truth is iCmitkuig tliat we keep by giving it o-jray. and ihi mare a-c liiiv auiay, the more breiiom it is to aJ.

"And I saw another angel fly in the midst of heaven, having the everlasting gospel lo preach unto them that dwell on the earth, and to every nation, and kindred, and tonsue. and people, baying with a loud voice. Fear God, and give glory to him: for the hour of his judgment is come; and worship him that made heaven, and canh, and the sea, and the fountains of waters." (Ch, H 6 7 ) The word -angel" is a broad word; In the Greek ii means a messenger. God may use any Idnd of a messenger in prescr.ting the Everlasting Gospel to every nation and kindrtrl and tonsua and people. Who? Or wliat is that angel.' Volume I of Scripture Studies, Jnst thine it over! It docs contain the "EverUjiiug Gospel," That is the one that God is going to preach b? and by lo every land, kindred and tongue and people.

Was it circulated through the heavens? "He saw an an^el rty.ng through the midst ot Hcjven." Powers t Spiritual control: Did this message go into the Baptist heaven? Or ibe Lutheran heaven? It did! It went back and forth through the ecclesiastical firmament and aceom- plished a purpose in "saying wiih a loud voice";— Did it have a low voice,' Kol There were over a million copies published and circulated in something like twenty-two lan- guages. Some of the literature is in ihirtv four languages That is a "loud voice" I It says : "Fea'r God, and give glory to him. ' Is there anything in Volume I that makes you feel like referencing God? After you were fod on the creeds ihat were mamifactured during the f>ark .Ages, and then suddenly God held this volume before your eyes, clid it not make you have a different idea vi Gtxl ?

"Fear God and give glory to Him for die hour of his Judgment is c^me." Is there anytliiog in Volume I about Jlidgment? Yes I The title of the hook originallv was ^Millennial Da^vn — the dniiu of the milUnniuni: and tltt JazLit of the thousand year iudgmeni Jay of Christ Is al hand,

I consider, therefore, that is a well proven noin; » A^'D AS FAST AS WE PROVE A POINT JliST TAKE A TACK AND DRIVE IT t.V. Yon kttow how it is to stretch a carpet: Yoii pull up a little piece, and try to tack it down. Of course you usually have (a repeat it because the first time it gets twisted.

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And it says the SECOND aiigct followed ihe first one, and its message was "Bal>y]ojt is fatieti." Vou reiiienibcr the dispeiisitions contained it) the second volume! An(l you know how sigatftcatttly they point to tht: date ISttJ; and ho\v that chronoloijically Babylon was due to begin to fall April 1st of that year (18'6J ; and she has been falling ever since. She is in a pretty bad condjtioti new. And as proof that Bah^'bn the great is in a fallen condi^ tion thtre is an interesting chapter in the end ci the book. The last chapter is devoted to "Tlie Men of Sin/* It shows there how the "Man of Sin'* is Papacy — the Attti-Christ : That Papal System is Babylon the Great.

Concerning the THIRD angel there arc a tiurr^her of statements made. The third angel speaks of the harvest. The- third vohnite of Scripture Studies speaks of the har- vest. It shows that durinff the harvest tirrtc the kind of work the Lord weald have ua do was the harvest work. There is also the jtatemeiit, "Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord frotn now^ and henceforth. They rest from their labors, but their worki do follow thtm." That ap- pears for the first time in Volntne III. Now 1 sitggesE something that will sho^v you whether a person is riead or not. Jf a person is really dead, you can step on his toes and he won't say a thing ; you can walk all over them, they won't object. Vou can scold at them, and they will not scold back. Yott can flatter them, but it is like water rolling off a diick/s back. You can think these things over aitd you will he able to decide whether yott belong to tht dead class or not. (Laughter.)

*'And another augtl came out of the temple, sayiitg to hirn that sat upon the clouds, thrust in thy sickle and reap the vine of the earth (harvest), and the angel thrust in his sickle on tlic earth." This refers to the reaping of Uic wheat front the tares; gathering the wheat in to the Lord's garner. Rovi could this iitgel be that came out of this peculiar temple (as though it was a tentple different from any other) ? It secros to ine that plainly refers to the Great Pyramid of Egypt, which is a peculiar temple of its OAvn; and there is something which came out of that tem- ple that has taught God's peopU a great many lessons. All the lessons taught by this Temple are in harmony svith the other lessons. .\nd the third voEume of Scripttare Sttidies, in which this appears as the last chapter, sets this off as though it wen; a separate book. It has a little pref- ace, and a title page, and some introductory remarks ; but it is hound in the third volume. And still it comes out of a special place! ft comes out of the "temple." You remem- ber that message which came to us itt hook form regard- ing God^s Pyramid in the Land of EgjTJt — the great "altar" !

"And he cried like a lion" (Isa, Jl)^which looks like the devil — the clergy, I am pretty sure. ''My Lord I stand upon the Watch Tott'cr atid behold here cometh a ci>artot of men . , , Coiue, Babylon is fallcnt and the great image is broken on the ground." This picture here is illustrating to ray mind the way the seven volumes of Scripture Studies appears to the clergy. Thty appeared as Ulagltes to them : "And 1 saw these seven angels come forth, clothed in white litten, and having their breasts girded with golden girdles." In preparing the manuscript for the large portion of the seventh volume I noticed that the word here rendered Utten is a different word than any otiier rendered in the Bible ; and I merely noted that it was not the kind of linen from which the robe of the Briile of Christ is wovctt. I wonder how many of you remember seeing that," (Three hands indicated they saw it,) Well, it is there just the same! Here is a peculiar word, and I thought God must have had some special reason for so statitig this matter; and I did not knotv what it was then, but 1 do now. It has reteientc to stie ^act that these nsessenj^ers who came forth are printed upon white paper — white linen : clean aitfl white. Linen is one of the finest kinds of paper known, "And girded with gold." How much value would a book be to you if it consisted of 600 pages but not pasted together. Where could I read page 4To? You ivoui<l l>e continually fussing atjout for the thing. This should he bound !o be of any use to you. You have to "gird" them lopether, Vou ask : "What about the golden girdle? You will see the golden girdles: Seven books would he printed on white paper ; well bound and stamped in gold.

Then it says : "They carne forth out of the Tabernacle." VOH have all studied Tabcriracle Shadows. (Laughter,) The i:ntir<: j^Vi'u i'otufiicj of S*:n^lHfc Studies came forth from Tab-rrutitli: Shttda-.v's, Here it was that Brother Rus- sell saw- clearly the philosophy of God's plan.

After introducing the third plague it says: "And I heard the Ahar say. Even so, Lord God .'Almighty." This "altar" is the altar to the Lord in the midst of the land of Egypt,

Conceruijig the FOURTH angel: "tie poured out his vial upon Uie sun," The fourth volume was sent to the ckrgy. Brother Russell sent (Ills volume to all the clergy ■whose addresses could Le procured. And St says: "The men cursed God*' because of these things, II" was about that time tiiat they began to accuse Brother Russell as being uiitruthtul and evil ; and so they continued dowit to the time of his death.

In connection with the FIRTH angel it says, "He poured out his vial upon the seat of the beast," (Siniatic MMS,) The beast is papacy: attd the seat of the beast is the placti where it rests ; presumably the doctrines. And the fundamental doctrines of papacy are the Trinity ; the immortality of man ; and the doctrine oi eternal torment. Those questions are thoroughly discussed in tht lifth volume of Scripture Studies,

And after introducing the sixth volume it also intro- duces a verse or two that would he jtist as well for me if it had not been iu the Bible. It says : "I saw three un- clean spirits like frogs come out of the mouth of the dragon, and out of the mouth of the beast, and out of the mouth of the false prophet . , , which go forth unto the kjtigs of the earth and of the whole world, to gather them to tite battle of that great day of God Almighty," I am not going to explain that now — for reasons that I expect to explain it to a scUcicd audience later in the week. (This tnattcr was thoroughly comnjentcd on at the trial^ of our brethren— as drawn out through cross-exam- ination of Brother Woodworth.)

However, all this is aside from the point which I want to bring out, i. tf,, the meaning of the last four verses of the Hth chapter. You see, dear friends, that through- out these chapters it has been discussing books— the har- vest liierattire. What would be the most reasonable thvHg to find "after noting that all the rest of the chapters were talking about books? I think you would say with me that tlie most reasonable thing to anticipate would be that it refers to a book.

■*And another aitgcl came out of heaven, he also having a sharp sickle." "Who is that "other angel"? I know of one "who has great power on the other side of the vail. That is Brother Kussell ! "Blessed is that servant whom you find so doing. Verily I say he will make hiin ruler over all the truth." I don't find any place where the Lord limited that to Brother Russelfs period on this side the vail; and we note that it says in this very same chapter that rest in their labors, but their works follo-^f after thcrn. Drothti Russell has more power there than he had on this side, Wliat do you think about that?

"And another angei came out of the temple: he had a sharp sickle ; aitd another t;amc out of the altar, which had power over fire." W'ho ts this angel? This angel is mentioned four times in the IJook of Revelation. It is mentioned in the seventh chapter (Srd to the 5th verses) : and there it seems to me very clearly refers to the Watch Tower Bible & Tract Society, Vou liavc the cKplanation in the seventh volume. The angel had power over the hrc and gathered these coals of fire and scattered them through the earth literally. After (he seventh volume of Scripture Studies was issued it -vvas suddenly sent out, or hurled deliberately broadcast amongst the readers of the Tower. .\nd it is referred to again ui the t8lh chapter as an "angel standinjf in the sun." ^ the second verse it speaks about otle tnighty voice saying, "mighty Babyloti is fallen and has become the habitation of demons, and un- clean and hateful birds. And attother voice said 'come out of her, my people.' " Noxv the truth people have backed up the message by distributing the literature which cs to tEH"ite lire people to come out. That h another voice which is here referred to: Here. I tvas prepared to see that the other angel which came out of the altar was the society—

SVPPLEME .V T

after Brother Rttssell s deatti. Tlicti wo get the thought too fiat thi.s other aiigel, coming out of the aliar, represents the fact that the society is supported by the sacrifices of the Lords httle ones. It is kept up by cotitributions

litt'le '^''"' ^°^' ^"'' ^'""' """" " '''"'^' ^"'' '''"'= *

..ji'^'''t ''^ '■""*, "'™='s fulfill Ihe latter part of this verse' Another angel came out oi the altar which had power over the fire! "And they cried with a loud ™iee: thrust m a sharp sickle, and gather the clusters of the vine of the earth! Was there anything like that happened' 1 will ask you a question When you heard Brother Kussell was uead (alter you thought ot your own personal loss) did you not think ot what an unspeakable loss it was to the cfinrch; just at this time when the world was passine through new, strange and terrible experiences.' Did it not seem to be a great pity that he was taken away without iurnishmg the seventh volume? Did you not fee! dis- appointed? I did! I thought; "Oh, dear Brother Russell, why did you go away without do ine what you c^peeted you would do througliout the entire harvest time I We looked to yoii! You promised' And we understood your mention! Why did you go away?" That is the way I tclt! Iherc you see was that cry. Don't you see? It was

IL'^rsT ,°"'>'""=' ^l'. '' '*■?= '" ■"'>'^'"<5 "'y- They cried with a loud cry lo him saying, "thru.!! in tiiy sharp sickle and gather the clusters of the vine of the earth" The statement is that the "angel thrust in his sickle and galhered Ihe vmc oi the earth. It into the great wine- press of the wrath of God. And the ivinepress was trodden

ti5t-1^' JV«-^^^'',^"i.'''°'«' =s™^ ""' "f 'he winepress ll't,^^ U^'TO THE HORSE BRIDLES, BY "THE luELONGS"'^ THOL-SA^-D ond SIX HUNDRED

That rneans the book was prepared outside of head- ttuarters—in Scranlon, at a certain distance from Bethel anti the Lord had his own reasons to thus have it pre- pared outside Bethel. And Babylon began to fall

You know what happened on the Ifith of March ! If you dont I do! (Laughter.) I believe the book has accom- p ished God s purpose i and if it has then surely we arc

This brings us down to the last clause: And it says ■ "-Vt a tiislancc IKOO furlongs." It In ";ao« furlongs" in the Siniatfc Manuscript. You know what the seventh volume has to say about that. Perhaps you would like to know how that came to he there, [n the first pi ace it was because I ctjuld not thmk of anything else. Had I been able lo » J , !t"Otiiep explanation I would have put it there And I did not think of that one directly. Here is the way I came to think of it, I was specially interested in the explanation Brother Hussell referred to. But 1 did not know how to identify it with the great European war for I noticed the European battle line was 2100 miles long "'S'ead of ItiOO, That was my first disappointment. Then when I found out the measurement had shrunken to 1200 1 cMld not see how any one could coiiscientiouslv stretch It. The truth tnends are pretty sharp vou know! One hun- dred for()--seven miles was the distance from the city. What city? It could hardly mean Babylon, because that is down through the middle of Europe. That don't mean Home I could not think of anything that was hlT miles away from Rome, This is ivhat went through my mind ■ The word cily means Ecclesiastical Go>-ernment. I thought of

Betliel. "lere is the Lord's Truth ilovemem. I wonder., that could be the city. I went out through .\cw Engbi, a tour-having a map i„ „i„<i-i (h^u^,,, that would somewhere around Hartford. Then I can,e do vn"he c.

Lai caster, I could not try going down that way I ita norih; and then west. I could not see how Albany " com,: _m in that it was about 130 miles away fr^,m city, riten I came to Scraiitou. But this was a v., thought I thought that ,0 l>c absurd for I knew ime table did not indicate this distance. I was a tout by he matter aside and go to ihe Lord. 1 did not k,

^ff 1 v'^i '''i- 1"= ^ i>^mn^'i to Ihink about the gr«t off by the Laek.„.ani,a R. R, where they run righV [1,™ the mountains; and there you go along abouf 'we ™ fifteen miles on the most wonderful road bed in the wo. Sometimes you find yourself as high as lweu"y!fo J°' in the iir; down below you see the farms, etc I ca «l> the railroad office to find out abour tbe disunee 'T

^ifl f fT" h"" '» =°?"™ .™" k"«v very well (a go taiiliful brother, who is an old farmer and accustor^ M passing upon land:i .nd requesting hit^ to c^refu measure the distance between Bethel and HoboSn J measured it twice and the measurements were put iu ^■^fT J'^T""'^\ '*'^='"'? "^ S''"'" I' =^'"<^ out with P t^, H° ^ ""'*=■ .^.^"* "'" 1"<^'-. I told Broil lishcr. He vvas surprised. On the first of April Bro b

,f:^' ,T''f' ^"^ '" ''"= '"■'" °* moving'^ forgo" about the distance matter and thought of nothing b acklug down carpets etc. He moved n number uf bloc further away from the railway station. I went down ai asked h.m, "Why did you mover" He said, '■Eeruse found rents were cheaper." t asked him. "Do you thin that was Ihe reason you moved? You are getting x'o" blocks larther away from the Lackawanna. TTiere Is on

f^rX-^^llr ?. rfr'!"''' "' » ""'«• Thus it came out a. cording to God s Word,

The Lord put that in the book. First, to make th book appear fodish in the eyes of those that do not bdic^■

H^ ,■, 1 ," ^r "i" ''=°P'=- ^"^ >"=>'■='' "5 to know tha He would jclcct His own tools to do the work. Thri^r, purposed to show the Church that the book would b written in such a place and in such a way, tbat none of th, truth friends need to stumble. Those who have since som out from us and made all these statements about V seventh volume never tell yen about the fact tha! tlie hook was written before they started this. The manuserip?, t hJi^X r h"' S^^^"'""^"' -"^^ =1". finished and in the hook KBtore f heard of even a suspicion, or difficulty of any kind, w e were too busy to know what was going on We were working for our worldly employers during the day ,^nd we were working earnestly on the book early in the morning, and late at night.

You can evidently sec that passage could not refer to anything eke bui this book. And the Lord wanted us to unow .that he is minagmg this whole affair ; and we are right in His hand, Wc don't care what happens. We be- long to the Li.id, and if He is tkrcwjh with us— fl/r."r,/i( It nat, we are reads. If «c wants to pitt lu in cold storage and save us for something He has yet to do, then let us be willing!

IT seems as though now at the close of the Age. lomj after rhe Master has knocked at the heart of each o'f His followers, that a muilitude. manv thousands, yet a little number comparatively, the remainder of the 14-1 000 are yet to enter the gate of Heaven, and it seems that the door ofHeaven opens a little ivider and the Lord gives us a little oelter glimpse of things beyond the vail and things beyond the trouble than we have ever had before.

"THE EZEKIEL TEMPLE"

By Bro. Geo. H. Fisher

At Brooklyn Tabernacle, Oct. 14, 1517, 3 ;00 P. ,\I.

PART I

This is just what we might expect of one so loving and kintl as our :ilaster. "We love Him, but our love for Him IS not to lie compared with His loic for us. .And so as we stand upon the threshold of this dooi- (the Temple door), he has opened it perhaps a little wider to let the crowd m that is cominff and as we ^tand before the portals prepared ro go in the Master opens the door a hltle more and gives us this wonderful picture, which is

36

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[)tii:ips n plainer visiQii of some things that iic beyond tliait we have ever had before.

One of the dear friends wis up there at Scrajiton,— Sister Slebert. Soii^ebcw or oxher, because I \\iA betu over Eiekiel it got around that I knew some thing about EzekicJ» but I didn'tn Brother Woodwqrch knew a grtat deal about ReveUiion. Siiier Sieben said xo rne, "Sit down and explain Ezekiel to me." li siic had asked me to do any other impossible thinff I could not have started with any greater misgivings. 1 opened tlie back of the Bible and Siert something Brother Russdl said opened up that first chapter and it was that comment which said the great cloud enfolding itself was the time of trouble. As often as E had looked it over 1 itad never noticed that. At any rate, it was a suggestion stid enough. I sat down atid explained the chapter then as it appears in the book. Eelorc that I had never understood it. Nothing suptr- na tu r al abo ut tt'.at , S omc th i ng B rother Russ el I had written was enough to throw light on the whole chapter* TIhs is the way it was ah through the book.

At every point where diHicuUtes seumcd insurmountable something Brother RusscU had written threw eiiouifh light on that section to make it tindtirstandable. // BTotimr Kii^S^li fmd 'o/ritten less than he did I Aoticc Brother Fisher ccuiii fiol have midcntaod ii. So we attribute the work to Brother Russell, and I think we do so justly. because the Lord iUuminatcd tht points thraugb Brother Russell's writings, which perhaps no other man could have explainedf which threw light on the whole thing.

The way it was started was like this. Sister Siebert came to Brooklyn and told the Executive Commtltee that two brethren krtcw something about Revclatiori and Eiekiel and the Executive Committee requested Brother Woodworth and Brother Fisher to present such matter a£ they might leql able, that it might be considered with other matter. That tyoj the cammissioti.

NoWt this chart represents the finished work of God- It also represents the steps toward that finished work.

In Ephesians 1:8-11 the Apostle speaks about "God hath abounded toward us in all wisdom and prudence, havinLi made known unto us the secret of His will (this is what we see before us), that in the dispensation of the fullness of times He might gather together in one (under one) all things in Christ, both which are iu Heaven and on earth, even in Him." He speaks of the same thing in CoL 1:19, "For it pleased the Father that in Him should all fulness dwell. And having made ^eace through the blood of His cross (by Christ) reconciling all things to Himself, whether they be in Heaven or on earth."

This is what is pictured in Ezekiel 40:14, and our attitude of mind toward this wonderful temple is expressed by the Prophtt, who was a type of our beloved Pa$tor Russelt, "And the man said unto me." You know in prophecy in the case of the man in iiuen and the six others which Ezekiel saw, the man represented Pastor Rus^elli. We know that Brother Russell saw that man was himself- *'Tht man said tinto me, Son of Man, behold with thine eyes and hear with thine cars (Spiritual ears unstopped. Doa^t treat it lightly, don't pass it over), set thine heart upon all that I shall show you.*' Why are we brought this far along the N'arrow Way? Why do we see the gales o£ Htaven throwing such a light upon our way? "It is to the intent that I might show them unto thee that thou art brought hither/' thus far along the way, that they might he shown unto us, that they might be opened unto Uit the vision seen of men of old time, which holy men of God desired to look into and had not been able. And as we see it, what are we to do? Shut it up in dark closetSn It might get us into trouble ! "Declare all that thou scest to the house of Israel (Christendom)." Every- one must have a chance to see it.

Eick. 4,^:10, "Thou son of man show the great sanctuary (the plan) unto the house of Isr5;el (tell about the great plan of GQd)i that they m^y be ashamed of their iniquities" And surely there is a showdown now of Christendom's iniquities. Who ever dreamed that that book contains the denunciations it does of the house of Israel. "That they nay be ashamed of their iniquities." I should think they would be ashamed, wouldn't you? Any Christian man that taVif.a that he has been a partner

ill these practices should be ashacned^ and alt meti having the Holy Spirit will be ashamed. "That tliey may be ashamed of their iniquities, and let them measure the paUcrn,' Let them take tlie word oi God and take their measure.

EieL 43:11. "If they are ashamed of all that they have done, then simw them the form of the house," TcEl dtem all they will hear. '^Shtjw tiujm the form of the house and the fashion thereof, and all the ordidances thereof and all the [aws thereof and write it down in their sight." They will read that Seventh Volume. "Write it in their sight that they may keep the form and all (he ordinances thereof and do them."

You see this man Eackicl going into the temple. It shows hitn at the East Gate. We first see the Teniple as though it was like a dream, and there is a lack of connectedness in it. It looks as though it was on the top of a mountain and on the slopes o£ the moutitatu was the frame of a city below. The city would refer to the civil government of the Age and the Temple the religious organization.

There stood the man with the measure. "Behold there was the tnan" — Pastor RusseEl — ^"whose appearance was like the appearuncu of brass/' or copper, a priest justified by faith in the merit of Christ imputed to him, "with a line of flax in bis hand." Flax is linen. In his power was linen to measure with, "and a rccd to measure with^"

In liev, 14 :i it says, "There was given me a reed like a rod, and the angel stood saying. Rise and measure the Temple of God." This measurement of a reed six cubits long applied to any object means the full measure of the Word of God relating to that object. So we would under- stand. Willi the reed he uccasurcd the Temple, Sanctuary, and the whole building, with the Jlax he measured only one thing. That measurement was that of the life-giving stream tjtat flowed out from the Temple, past the ahar, through the East Gate and thence through successive depths of one thousand to four thousand cubits respect- ively, thence to the Dead Sea. The world lies in the valley and shadow of death. The water of life flowed into the Dead I^ea for its cleansing and re\'ivifying.

Pastor Russell said something about four, vis., the four quafters of the race course. That was it* wasn't it? The waters gave life. "He that loveth is begotten of God.'* So with life, there is no life withotit love. Where love comes in there is life. So it was plain that the first thousand cubits meant measuring up to the extreme com- pleteness of obedience to the I^rd in duty love. The second thousand cubits meant measuring to the fulness of the Divine standard with reference to love for God's glorious character. The third thousand cubits meant meas- uring up to the standard of love for the brethren. The fourth thousand, measuring up to the full standard of Divine love in loving our enemies.

You will notice that anyone in that stream who possessed duty love only was paddling around in the water up to his ankles. No tuari has fully gotten into the stream oi Divine Love until he attains the Fourth Degree.

We will first compare the Temple with the Tabernacle. The Temple is simply the Tabernacle with additions. It is the Tabernacle over again. Instead of having a will around the Tabemaclei it had a ciirtatn, and a ctirtain Is. not made up of one, but many luembers^ many fibres^ many strings put together. When you think of it^ the curtain around the Tabernacle represented Christ, Christ's righteousness, and those to whom it was imputed. Here in the Temple wc find a. wall around the court. It is built of stones. These walls around the Courts and around the Temple arc built of large stones.

Some a.re going to be stones in the Temple^ That is where you want to be. You all want to be stones in the Temple. You have no invitation to be a part of the Inner Court wall or of the Outer Court wall. Why try to qualify for the Great Company wall when yo;i might as well be in the Temple? %Vhy be living stones not cut specificallv to pattern?

There is a measurement for the ouler wall. It was one rtdd thick. That is one of the: first things mcasur«d. It i$ called a building. "The building was siac cubits higb and six cubits thick." That wasn't a vtry large building.

What ksnd ot a building wa.4 it? A building is a structure, anytlung built. This struciure htrq. this wail here, ihat which was built here, this building was six by six cubits, ^ow remcniher the reed was six cubits long. The reed is the full measure of tlie Word of God. It rep- resents that this class represented in this wall measured up to the ful[ measure oi the Word of God relating to It, and stands as a wall in advance of whatever is indi- cated by this OuLer Court plane here.

This Outer Court plane represtctts human perfection. it represents tentative justification for those who had not received the Holy Spirit. Those who did receive the Holy spirit receive actual justification^ i. e., the priests anil the threat Company^ So this Outer Court wall represents tentative justification during the millennium, during the tliousand years when the hosts of mankind are struggling to nse up the seven steps to the Outer Court phne.

One class will already have qualified for it. That class IS spoken of m Hcb. Il, which endured incredible suf- teniigs and trials that they might have a better resur- rection, Elijah, Elisha, Efavid, Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and the other Ancient Worthies, Avho were living stones cut out and laid away, waiting to be built into this Outer t^ourt walh In the future we hope to he the ones who will be patterns to the great hordes of twenty billions of people now in the grave.

The Temple wall is also six cubits thick. The Temple has double walls, the inner is six cubits thick. What does It tnean? It means it is to be made up of living stones, *u ^1?"^*^**^^^*^^ ^^^ Pleasured to the full measure of the Word oi God for that plane indicated by its location, i> e., the Divme nature. One hundred and forty-iour thousand stones in that wall. One reed tjiick, si^t cubits thcck, they will have measured up fully to every require- ment of the Word of God before they pass beyond the vail.

,n F°;Sil'''^J^ '^ ""* ^'*^' Company wall? Turn to Ezek. 4U to •mm chapters and find it if you can. It isn't there. It just says It is a wall. Does it say it is six cubits thick? It isn t siK culiits thick. Those Vfho go into that ivail are stones cut ill manner of shanes and sizes. This is the class which is spoken of in 1 Cor. 3:10-15, in which the Apostle Paul speaks of himself as liic mister builder, laying tlie foundation. Paul lays the foundation, ivhich is t,hriEt, and everyone who has the Holy Spirit is on thit foundation. Does tht Great Company measure to the full stature of Chri.it, or the full requirements of the Word at Gpdf They measure all the way from (as Job says it) getting through by the skin of their teeth," to just coming a shivin^ short ot the six cubits of the full measure of the Word ot Cod. So there is no measure spoken of for the Inner Court wall.

This Inner Court types those in the Tabernacle Court after the Church has passed beyond the vail. You know what class will be livinjir there when those tenia lively

justified who h^vo fled from tht Cgui t through persecu- tions coming upon the world, and all Christian people, in the near future. In the French Revolution if any man happened to call himself a Christian, you know what hap- »"="=" 'o him. I don't need to tetl the dreadful -itovv. When persecutions get severe, every man will say, "This IS too warm for me, I ain no Christian." Those who are tentatively ;iistirieri and not on this strong foundation will be swept hy the fire of that day and leave in there the Great Company only. They are the only ones left there after the Church is KOne and they are the class that steps, as It were, from this life to the next to be on the Inner Court plane.

And so this inner place, the Most Holv, is called the Word of God, called under another word which means the same thing,— the Oracle. That word has two meanings. In ancient superstitions, when Alexander was startine on his world-wide conquest he went to the Oracle of Delphi and Dierc received the oracle of the gods The Qracic means the place, and also the message from the place The LoEOi also means the word that proceeds from Him or in Him.

Our place is in the Temple, We can't stop in the Outer Lour I. You can stop in the Inner Cou-t here if ynu want to. You would have breathing space you -hink

iou would be a servant 1 That is where you are called u the femple itself, "Few there be that rind i?" You%r, not some to stop on these steiis of the gate to the Inne Court, but you are Soing to stop in ihe "Oracle" of Gor the great Word ot Cod, a member of it

lliediffcreiit sjates have ditlereut mtaninss dilTcren usages ,n the Temple. The East Gate is colored red! th. sane as tire altar, I'.^ek J3, -Afterward he brouJh m R-iw ''?"'• *™ 'Ijat gate that looks toward the east " Bel old, he saw something there. Turn back to Ejekie' first chapter, and see Uiat wonder/ ul vision. When firs hcgimimg to understand that we didn't sec as clcarlv l now what that glory was. We first thought it was Go, Hmiself. No, It was not. Eroth<ir Russell threw ifeh on that tou. He made all things plain There isn't " thinK that he didn't make plain if^e'm^^e a ,t e ^ efui application of what he said. This is the place ivher. Pastor Russell makes this plain. Ejek. «:l~t "Xftenvarc he brought me ;o the gate, even the jjate that looketl oward the east, and behold the glor/ of the God o> Israel catne from the way o£ the east, and His voice wa'

Ills glory, .^nd It was according to the appearance of the vision which I saw, even according to the vision that I saw when I came to destroy the city, and the visions were like ^e vision t^iat I saw by the liver Chcbar, and I fell upon my face. And the glory ot the Lord came into the house by the way ot the east.

!:Jy"A f .T"?,' ^f ",'■ ^"?==" '"^'^ «* "'hat it was, Eiek, 44 :1, a, "Then he brought me back the way of the gate of the outward sanctuary which looketh toward the

III: ^["^i,".:'""^''"'-- ^h"^. '='* '*"= ■-°'"^ ""'0 '"<-'. This gate slial be shut, ,t shall not be opened, because the

^ u hi. ° .■ ''H 'A^* emend in hy it. therefore it shall be shut And Pastor Russell said the door would

( ?i'"i' .u'"' " "'?'"' ^^h" '' ">""' 's *at the glory ^umn S'^' ,y''" '" X'^^ '''^ =''"™l'' "" l'«l': Aodc of J 44,0(10 s.uall m number but great in glory. When you read the vision read this into it. Where you sec the great four living attributes. Wisdom, Justice. Love and Power each combining the others, and see the great wheels the great plan, whirling wheels it calls them in the Hebrew m constant operation, and see the firmament above,' thi^ soldcn globe, reaching up to the throne, it represents the Ciirist, head and body, and so when the glory of God went in at the east gate the Christ went in; and when they have gone in, according to another picture when the virgins have gone in the door is to be shut. So when [he glory of God went through the door was shut and the Oreat Company couM not come in that wav The only ones that can come in that way are those com'ing in by the blood, those that suflfer with Him,

The wonderful glory of God is the Church How harmoniie It, because it doesn't say the church entered in, but that Jenovah entered in? How ahnnt the Church' You know that little Tabernacle, the small room is called the Most Holy. It is made of gold. Gold types the Divine nature. What metal is the Holy made of? Gold too Have you got the Divine nature? What is Divine about "!v-J-?"" had the mind of God and we have the mind OJ Christ. You have the mind of God. There are some things you can't understand this side the vaiL It seems that God in a certain sense identifies Himself with His own word. I say His word, for anyone's mind is made up of a collection of ideas and thoughts. And so here, you speak of the mind of God and you speak of the Word of God. How bpaiitiful it is to sec clearly how those thmgs all mean the Word of God. So when the mind of God IS m us it Is the same mind of God that was in the Apostles and the Lord Jesus. When God. the mind of God, in His humble children, beginning with the Lord Jesus, down to the lowest child, when the mind of God goes in — in the Church, God .?ocs in because Cod identifies HimscH with the Church. Christ said, "if my words abids m you, I and -My Father abide in you."

This East Gate is the same color as the altar. The gate is peculiarly made, fn our land when going into a house, there is usually a simple door or gateway. In Oriental countries it was (and still is, I believe) a custom on account of the enemies and robbers, to make the door

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in the fcrm of a t(?fridor with dark cliambers on eUlier aitle and no nun could pass that gate without saiisfying the gtiircis that he would fulfill the cotiditiiiiu ticcesiary CO pais. And so thcjc gates rcimjicUL Chriat, the outer otic CEirisl in the ficsh, the one on Chc Inner Court, Christ &s a New Crcaiure.

There are seven diamliers, and seven steps lo p^5s> the fuU rtitasorc of the Word oi Gad to be met, seven chambers to go by. A place typifies a condition. The tuU measure of the Wort! uf Gad hai to be met by those passJEig through tbis gate and this is the gate oi justifi- cation by faith, beitjg justified by the blood of Christ.

Now notice this Inner Court gate here represents the same thittg on the spirit pUnc. Instead oi seveii sieps there arc eitjbt stc^>s. Seven is easy to undcr$^and. Seven is -^ symbol of completcneiS4 There is nothing symbolical aboiit eight until ypu think that cijht is nnade up of one pEti5 seven. The first step is the change from human to sptritLialH of the mind, the heart, the wit!. You can call that, if you so desire^ the resurrection,' It is called a resurrection, because vre are now spoken of as being raised to sir with Christ iti. heavenly places. That has happened. That is step number one.

Vou and I arc jjoisig up those steps no^v. This puts you on the lomidation of being hi Chrislp anointedn having the Holy Spirit, Paui says something about that founda- tion. He speaks about the only loundatiou which is laid, which is Christ, and then you are building something on it. If you arc building with wood, liay and stubbie you are stoppiflg on this Imter Court plane- There won't be much breathing jpacc there because of the great multitude of people on it. All who haven't measured to the full measure of the Word of Gnri after begetting are on the Inner Court plane. Here in the Temple is where the brealhinij space is, and here only, because there arc so few in there. Like the big jobs, the fellow at the topj earning ^Sf^OOO doesn^t need to worry 50 much ag the man down the ladder earning two dgllars 3 day.

Pant says this, "At the last day the fire shail try every tnan's work of what sort tt is." (1 Cor. 3:1.) The ftrt shall try your work and mine and before we get through everything that can be destroyed AviJl be wiped off.

The 1^4,000 and one will have built with gold, silver and precioiii: *:to»fS. Perhapii you are building- with gold, siivec and precloits stones, then you are groing up those golden steps of the Temple. How much higher? This Outer Court gate has seven slcps^ the inner eight. How much higher 15 the TetnpEc. You will ftr.d it stated in

chapters -ly to JS* You will find nothing stated about how many steps there are from the Inner Court plane to the luiniple plane. Why not? Who can mea.'iurc the difference between the rinite and the infinitCf the dif- ference between the alary of the Grfiat Company and the Little Floek, being of like subMance with the Father- It can't be expressed In number of steps, so the number is not given. But those who progress up those steps there, many of you are dotn^ it, are on tliosc steps, and will he raised to ihc plane of the Temple.

Its heig;ht was six cubits above tht Inner Court plane* That familiar old measurtment, which meaiia the full measure of the Word of God, Those ou the Temple plane have nicasured uy to the full measure of iVw: WorJ of God. Can you measure perfect love? It is immeasurable.

Here is a love that is like light. Some have dark hair and some while hair. The Tight shines on botii black and white. The Divine love frotn the Temple^ that wonderful Jove tight chines upon all. He gives His Eospel of love lo all. The love light of that GospcE shines on the jtist and the unjust. No diffcrencre. TJm 1 (4,OOf3 love tliat way. Are you one of them? That is the standard.

Uhat steps are you axi? Those steps lead to gl&ry, honor and im^nortaltty All ^vho remaiii on those Inner Court steps gel the place of servants. Do you want to be a servant when yon could be a king?

"And they shall not come near unto me to do the office of a priest unto me, nor to come near to any of my holy things in the most holy place, but they shalE bear their shame and their abominations which they have committed.^' (Ezek. Ai:i3.) II you are going to be of the Great Company give up all idea 01 direct service to God, and be prcps^red to take a lower place.

Do you want to be ashamed to look the Lord in the face? They shall bear their shame and be on the Inner Court plane where they might have been in the Temple. "And they shall bear their shine and the abominations which ihcy have committed."

God is good, I cannot exhort anybody too much. There is one place to which we are called. We are called to go thvough the gale of Juslification, and up the steps of spirit begetting, and through our course of preparation, just for one purpose, that we might participate in the blood. This is aB done in order that we might liave some- thing to of!er, >Jom- aren't we going to ofifer that which is gjveti us to oiTer? It is all given to us that we might build on the foundation of Jesus Christ, gold, silver, and precious stones, that when the fire comes, and the nrc is bunding now, our butEding might not be swept away.

"THE EZEKIEL TEMPLE"

By Bro. Geo. H. Fisher

Ai Bi-ooklvii Tabernoclc, Oct. 14, 1917. SitIO P. M.

PART II

THE Apostle Paul tells us in Eph. SilS-^i. "Through Him W'i boih (Jtw5 and Gcti tiles) have access by one spirit utito the Father." Think of iti Access to the Father J "Now, therefore, ye are tio more strangers and foreigners." Which we were^strangers. "But fel- low citizens with th* saints atid of tht Uouichold of God. .And are built upon the fotindation of th^ apostles and prophets. Jesu! Christ Himself being the chief corner stone, in wlioni all the building ttlie Sanctuiry, the Templet fitly framed togeti^er growetll unto a lioly temple in the Txird. In whom we ire also huilded together lor an habitation of God Throuijh the Spirit." ^ So. friends, we will look It this great Teniple tonight, ^vhich represents the liahitalion of God throueU the Spirit.

Our Saviour told us this, speakiitj; in dark bn^iajte, "Destroy this temple and in three dsys I will raise it np asain." They knctv not that He spoke of the tentple of His body. Ue are all familiar with the idea of the teniplc ot Hi5 hody Ijting destroyed and raised up in tftree tliousand I'car dai*s. \Ve have seen in addition to tliis body of Christ a company wlio ar^ not *?niircEi- faithful.

other inembers of His body, in a larger sense. And so irt this sanctuary of God, this great sanctuary to be the dwelling place of Gnd Through th* spirit, we have the ingathering of the whpic family of God, all the Tvandering, sinful children of Adam, ad t;3lhcrcd into this Outer Court, which represents restitntroti for the whole race of mankind. On a higher plane th« Inner Court, tinted in blue, represents the elevation of some of the children of Adam, who leave their father s house to be oa the angelic piaite. anrl a few of them ott this Temple foundation, which builded belter than the others, tvho build not of ^rood, hay and stubbie, but ot gold, silver and preeious stones, and they are represented by <he Temple, tinted in cf^ld. They arc raised to the nature of God Himself, Tiicse receive the eNeecdingi great and precious promises whereby they are made of the nature of Jehovah, with like substance of Cod and of Jesns Girist, So this great Temple which Ezekiel saw in vision represents the in- [jatherinff of the whole family of God.

l"n at tlie lop here is a little buildini; tailed the ivcstem Tinilding, iveat of the Temple. Isi looking up the various

pictures of Temiitc built liv Solomon, Zerubhibel, atid Werod, we could lind only one sketch showing a buildms^ tike this and we couldn't fmd out the use of it. Here is a building not in line with the ransora. They do not come by the blood, it answers in some respects to the position of the atigels. You know the Bible says the Church shall (udKe and rule the angels. We might e.>:pecE to find some- where represented the angelic hosts, those faithful and those not failiiful. and thus it seems as tfiough this western building, as it is called, may be considered as picturing the position of [lie augeU, subject to the Temple, but not connected with the ransom.

There is a difference between the inner and outer gales. Tlic pucnltarity is that the construction is reversed The Totch of the Outer Court is passed last on gettttig into tlie Court, and for the Inner Court it is passed first. You come by all the requirements first and the Porch last on getting into the Outer Court, and for the Inner Court you come by the Pordi tirst and all ilie renuirenienls last, Tlie difference is the difference between being resurrected on the human, or Ihe spirit plane, sayinj nothing of tiic Divmc plane. On the human plane a human being has to make all the conditions of the Word cf God before lie is resurrected. That is true, isn't it? So the Porch ri^pre- sents resurrection. Conditions all met, first progress made, and resurrection finally attained. Now on the spirit plane God reverses things.

As one brother pot it. "God reverses the process on the natural and spiritual planes, A child has no mind when it is born. lis miiHl comes by use of the five senses and by storing nerve centers of the brain. So in the natural world or natural birth, body comes first and mind iccond. In the spiritual birth, mind comes first and body afterward."

That is a wise provision. Consider something like this. There arc going to be 144.000 fortunate happy beings raised to the flivine, itnmortil plane. One hundred antl forty- four thousand and one. Suppose God gave U«m the immortal nature first, then developed mind in them. They might go wrong. So God reverses the process on the spirit plane, He gives them mind first, that is called spirit begetting, and body afterward— spirit birth.

There is no candlestick, or no table of shewbrcad in the T(*mple, Instead of the golden Altar for sacrifice. there IS a wooden table. "This is the table before Jehovah." (Eiek. 41:22.) It is one of the privileges of the priests that they should be at God's table." It is something like what the Lord said, "Ye cannot eat at the table of the Lord and the tables of devils," It means the condition in which you eat of spiritual food. It is possible that Ibts is the (able a round which the tnarriagc feast will gather.

At any rate it looks as though those in that chamber were members of the body of (he Christ, from whom will flow the word, as though this whole Temple represents them tn the glorified cotidittOEl. represents their mmds. as It were the new mind enclosed in the Divine body. This will be the memorial of the sacrifices gone through, rep- resented in the table, those sacrifices and that period of enlightenment at the golden candlestick and the feeding on the Word of God and ofTering of their best heart endeavors on the golden Altar, Everyone will remember all those things.

We might mention some things about these gates. Red represents, in a general way, the ransom, not eiitirelv 50, because the .\ncient Worthies are pictured as coming from the East Gate. While not partaking of the sufJcrings of CliriBt, ihey had sufferings like thcra. '.Moses preferred the reproach of Otrist to the treasures of Egypt. \'ow first you come right in to the altar. The altar is the mathematical center of the Temple It you take the plan of the division of the land amone the tribes, and the holy oftertng of the tribes, the ahir is the ccwer. "This place is so near to the Great Pyramid that it could be called the earth's geographical center. The Ancient Worthies are partners in the sufferings oi Christ. Thcv gome in at the East Gate, Others rcceivinst the application of the ransom are pictured by the pink color. Wherever vou see the pink color on this chni-t it represents the application of the ransom. The color we took for restitution is green.

!( is a good color for a chart. The Outer Court coi be colored a green tinl. representing the enjoyments ■ restitution.

An \n come into the Inner Court we see two lit! chatntjcrs called the singers' cliamljers, Tiiey are intCTid not to show Divine nature, hut that the priests, those tiie Divine nature, function or do something here, as th. do ui tlie Teinjjlc a«d chambers. What do they do her- The ones who attain the Divine nature will be fond . singing. We learn about a song in Rev. U:X "And heard as it were a new song, and no man could sins th song but the W.m.- \\c believe that the two chambe represent the royal priesthood singing the song of .Mos.' and the Lamb tliroughout eternity, tlie eternal song i the priests, singing the blessings of restitution for tl, people. Here they are near the Inner Couf c, their sineir can be heard by all the people gathered In the Outer Com This 13 represented by the chamber at the .\'orih Gate wi' Its aspect toward the South, Then there will be a rhstnti. alonsside the East Gate with its aspect toward the Nortl which represents the priests singing the song of the Lam that came from Heaven, singing the praises of that Lam and the praises of the Heavenly Kingdotn, because th Lamb ot God is spoken ot 15 supreme in the Kingdon

We find that the Levitcs had land given them 0 Che chart iti the Seventh Volume, you will find a squar piece of land with the upper portion for the priests th middle for the Levitcs, and the lower for the secular 0 civil government, the city. The land for the priests type the condition ot the Little Flock, types the same thing a the Temple plane. The land for the Levites tiT>es th. Court, and the land for the city types the Chiter Cour; It is said that the Levitcs would have land for thirf. chambers. Nor star difiereth from star in glory, Amon' those raised to this plane of being ive expect there wii be thirtj; grades of glory ami honor, because a place type- a condition, and those chambers or villages, or places, wi might ejtptct to symboliie the thirtj' conditions or degree: of honor among the Great Company, because the Grea" Company will consist of people on the spirit plane whi have been faithful all the way from just a little bit jus; cnoush faithfulness not to be called unfaithful, up lo thost that just miss going up the steps of the Temple and attaining the perfection oi the Divine life.

How about the priests? We find that the land given '"li ."" '■*'"^' '''^ condition of the nature of God. We are told ' star differeth from star in glory, so also is the resur- rection of the dead," (1 Cor, 16;41, 42,) That resurrcc- ''?"J* so K"at that tile .Apostle calls it "the Resurrection of the Dead." We think the priests' dv«lling places type glory and honor among ttiem. One brother might have tnade a greater exertion than another. All on the Divine plane will be equal as respects the attainment of Divine love, but there will be diifcicutcs in other rcspecEs. I wouldn't say it would be in the use of our talents. We find that the reward is one reward for all,— "enter into the joy of the Lord," Tlierc are going to he diiTcrences. One brother could attain Divine love and another might have more Divine love than he. ft might be that. It might be that is the explanation. It is the best l could offer. It is sorneihing that can only be seen darkly now.

There is an interesting class here, the Princes. They represent the Ancient VVotlhies. They were allowed to operate in the Outer Court, The East Door was closed because the glory of God had gone through it, yet that Gate the Princes could use. During Ihc period when the great Kingdom of God is being established, the Princes shall sit in Ihe East Gate and eat their "food. The food the Princes will cat of, might be considered as using the Word of Cod relating to the blood of Christ, to be applied for the world.

Brother Russell has indicated at different times, rather obscurely, that people in this life, who lived up to their consciences fairly ivell. even if they did not get the Holy Spirit, tvould be henefitted by it in the resurrection. Vou know he has made such statements and teachings.

We will take for example a Roman Catholic that lived a thousand years ago, .^!1 llie teachings he received were teachings, nothing about which were spiritual. He couldn't

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60

SUPPLEMENT

have a Bible, for a Bible cost a iortuiie. Tliis brother, a tiiciiibtr oi th^; household oi faiih, btlicvins i^iat thai whicli was taught liim was the truth, did liis level best to live up to it, would have an Ativamast; in ihu resurrec- tiun. SliouUf he have an iiflvaniagt:? 1 believe he should. Here ivf have it in Ezek. K-Ai. re/crriiia lu ihq land that belQiiued tci the Princes, tht Ancient Worthies, it says, "U the prince give a giit uitlo his suns, tht inheritance thereoi shall be his salts', it shall be thtit jiosscssioii hv- biheri- Laiice." A ill ace types 1 coiidiiioii. The land t>pilies the bener icivirtecuon of the .'Vncknt Worthies. 1 cannot see but that it means that it will be one oi the jcys and pleas- ures of tlie Ancient Worthies to lake tliose who by God's grace lived good, conscientious lives, ho{ kiiDmiig ipiritual Ihiiiffj, and eicviting them to the condition oi human ptirfectioti enrlier than the close oi the millenHium. It they have a loyal spirit and love the Ancient Worthies they will be called sons. .

Eict -itfilT. "If he (the Prince) give a Eiit oi his inheritance to one of his servants traised to the better resurrection) then it shall be the servatii's to the year of liberty (that year when Christ shall deliver tlic llillcnnial Kingdom over to God by givins it to the children oi Adam) after it shall return to the prince." I£ anyone has a mental attitude of a servant, to da Ihnigs simply because it pays to serve, or something like iliat, although he my get a reward he will lose it at the end oi the millennium, because there will be somebody aiound to see that the people are separated from everything they can be sepa- rated from. Satan will be loosed to see if some cannoi be deceived. Possibly means some will have a servile attitude, not that of a son. They will lose their inhtfitance, they will liasj into the Second Death po.^sihly.

Our Lord in speaking of i good deed done by some Jew, said, "Thou shall be recompensed in the resurrection a( the Just," He will be benefitted by his good deeds. I believe a heathen tnan who hss tried as Paul says to do by nature the things contained in the law, if he try by ■.trnng effort and a resolute gosd wiU to live a good tue, his conscience escusiiig him cotitinualiy, should be beoe- ftttcd in the resurrection of the dead. 1 believe he might be one of those, who, when he coffles to a knowledge of thv Son a£ God and the Kingdom in operation, the Ancient Worthies will be glad to honor with the same condition as themselves- ,,,-,. ,

l-Jcrc is the Temple, "Ye grow into an Holy 1 emple oi the Lord," It has a double wall with a space between. The space hetiveeii these double wralls is not a characa-nstic of the Esekiei Temple alone. If you read over carefully the description of the Tcmuits erected by Zerubbabet and Solomon you will find it speaks in similar knguase tlal those temples ha-vu double walls. It seems as thotigh the platform represents the plane of being, the nature, and the building represents the US'*' mind in that nature. Ynn kno'jj ail there is thai -s imd: of us no'ji lliat u 6ii)tu faihiBr.cd !iO~j! alU'r llie fashian o/ Clirijt, is ihe wmtt.

ffe an Irtinifofwli liy 'he rclteaiing "/ our miltis. fVe

tliiiilt till TsMplc reftiscnti the Miiuii of Ihc New CrmlttTi mi the Divine pknc. That is hovi tuc M« jay '*of the Hot}) ■mmild typify the msmorial of the Ikings of s«r pro- bationary or ientotim spirit liom coKdition i" ihis life.

What use was made oi these little chambers here? We read thw between the inner and the outer walls of the Temple were little chambers or rooms. What does it mean? A place typiftcs a condition. Those rooms typtfy a condition. Those rooms were in three stories. Accord- ing to the plan given us, the bottom story was four cubits, or six feet wide. ,

As the wall vfent tip to the second story they made the wall thinner. It went to the third story and fot still thinner, and the third was bigger than the first. The language is hard to re id, but that is what it means, These side chambers were in three stories. What does that mean ? A place typifies a condition. As these stories were one hitjher than the other, and as you know a place typifies a contliiion, the differences of height typifies differences of planes of being or condition. As this Court is higher than the outside ground, and the Inner Court higher than the Outer Court, and the Pavement or Platform of the TtropU higher than the Inner Court, so in these chambers

ive have three stories or levels. II. is more glorious to be in she Great Company than in the restilutiQii class, I hey wiJl see GotI, hut not serve Him.

\\ e read of tlic Levites that liie people were told to love litem. 5o, friends, if any of us happen to fall into the condition of the Great Company, while we may liive a certain memory of shame to bear, yet we will have the heartfelt love oi the whole world of mankind. That makes us feel better. God is good, no matter where we are.

These three chambers represent memories oi the Christ, head and body, memories of the things done on the three planes of being, memories of tilings done on the plane of lustificatioii, on the spirit begoucn plane, and on the highest, the Divine plane.

Our Lord tells tint there is something better than a bank account, something better than all the money in the .Sational Bank of New Vork. I£ we had the money in the Bank of iNew Vork we could move mottntaiiis. There is something better liian treasure. The Lord says we are to lay up treasures in Heaven. I think this heathen inau whom we spoke of, or the Jew of whom the Lord said "Thou shah be recompensed in tlie resurrection of the jusi," have laid up treasure in the mind of the Lord, treasures on the human plane. The Lord will not forget it. So we read that if anyone does a good deed to a prophet he will receive the reward of a prophet. The

heathen m3il wh^n his eonseienCG excuses him, is laying

up treasure in the lower chamber.

Some won't reach the highest nature, yet have striven, they have just coniii short of perfect love. They have laid up treasure in Heaven on the second story, 1 know there are thousands oi good men have laid a good deal ot trcisure in itie first story and many have laid up treasure in the second story, but the greatest treasure; is in she top story, treasures of gold, silver, and precious stones of character development, of true treasttrc in our minds and hearts, treasures of love. Divine love, represented by the gold, which typifies the love part of the Word oi God, "He that love 111 is begotten of God and is hi ilic light.

The light is the Word of God, and the Word of God is represented by the gold. So, friends, when somebody does vou a bad turn in or out of the Truth, and you lovt; them,' you are like the electric light, your love is shining upon all. If, no matter what a person does to or says about you, you love Ihein )ust the same, you have laid up treasures of gold. In laying up treasures like that you arc developing a character jeivel, maybe a diainond. It may be that God deposits a diamond and gold for you. Wlicn you learn more and more about the Truth and your mind becomes more and more filled with the transforming lull ue rite of the Word of God, tlic Lord lays up treasures of silver for you. Treasures of gold, silver, and precious stones. How big is your pile up there? Have you any kind of a pile up there?

Each of these stories had thirty chambers. There is that thirty again. We wilt know what thirty means as a symbol when we get beyond the vail. It this chart TVMC drawn to represent those little chambers we would have little cross lines indicating thirty conditions, and little staircases leading to each floor. If you are living in a house, which rooms would you lilte the best, front or back? Here are the front rooms, and here art; the back rooms, way back here to the West. A place typifies a condition. Thirty rooms, thirty conditions, thirty planes of glory,

Why, these little chambers in the front ot this great house are to be packed full of treasure, while the back ones will have just enough to let tlie occupant through on the Divine plane, each star differing from star in glory. Has your chamber a fulness of treasure, or is it empty? Are you going to be a front room or a hack room over- comer?. How are you overcoming? Are you piling the back room with a little treasure once in a while? Our Saviour will say, "Put down on the credit side one jewel for John Smith." Or are you piling them in so fast that Shcy can hardly be counted? I want my treasure on the top Hoor, front. Where do you want yours? It is the same on each story, rooms on each floor.

There is a beautiful picture In Ezek. M 1I6-IS of the purpose of the great sanctuary. It is the interior decora-

tive scheme. Perhaps some of die friends have been interior decorators, so they will want to know something abotit the inleriur decorative sclieme. The ticcorations were on e.ieh one of the i^atcs and the podts. l hey were decorated witli patni trees, Vou wouldn't call that very beautiful. Palm trees arc good enough for God. "The righteous is as the palm tree," If a man have the benelits of the ransom applied 10 him, the picture of perfect htimaniiy will be held before him continually, Tha picture is itupressed upon him that the purpose of this sanctuary is for the development and preservation of perfect human- ity, and so these palm trees occur 50 often, thai wherever a man turns he will see palm trees and the lesson is that of perfect humanity. The great sanctuary is for the pur- pose of blessing all the families and kindreds of earth with the blessings of perfect humanity, and as they come in here inside the porch they will see tlie palm tree deco- rations. There will be palm trees at the gates ; and cheru- bim and palm tree decorations in the Temple.

Those cherubini itt Ezekiel typify ciualtties of God embodied in the Church, in you and in all of us, all the faithful Ll.l,CKtO, v;hcthtti- thc>" be Methodists, Catholics, or Baptists, wliatever name they were called in past ages. Some overcome without shaking off the shackles of Baby- lon. No doubt about that. Of course, everybody now has the chance to get out of Babylon, and it would he difficult to overcome in Babylon now.

Twenty billioiii, when reanimated and when con- secrating themselves here to God, do not consecrate direct to God, but to the one to whom they belong. They con- secrate themselves to Christ, Head and Body, and the priests receive the consecrations in the side chambers here. The Litde I^lock; the Christ Head and Body, receiv- ing the consecrations of the people is pictured by the priest receiving the flesh of these sacrifices.

Now the priest wouldn't eat them raw. These buildings \tfere called side chambers. Before the priest wo-jM eat the oSering, something wot:ld be done. These corner chambers are called boiling places where the flesh was boiled. When a man offered an animal, it was taken by the priests to these boiling places. There were chitnneys in them. I know this, that when Ezekiel comes back he will know how to build the Sanctuary if it is ever to be built. I think he will laugh at our plan, but it was the best we could do.

Here is a man coming from the dead. We will select some man whose name we know. We will say he has been reanimated and cotisecrates himself. W''c will say It is a man who never claimed to be a Christian, a man Mho could hardly have lived a better lite in many respects, and wasn't an angel cither. .Abraham Lincoln never pro- fessed Christianity, We will treat of him as one case. Here is the Little Flock, represented in die side chambers here. Tlie word conaes up that Lincoln is back and has consecrated himsftlf. AVon't they feel good when .Abraham Lincoln comes back? Thar noble man, one ot the noblest men that ever iv;ilWed the soil of America ! Or wc have word that Edison is back from the dead. Hoiv useful he may be. how useful he is now. They lake him and bring him in here.

Abraham Lincoln told stories that the ladies couldn't be around when he told tliern. Abraham Lincoln starts to tell a story. He is told, ".\bratiam, those stoi ies don't go now." He starts another again, for nothing ever hap- pened before trora telling stories. Instead of being laughed at they take him up here and boil him a little bit, for the meat must be boiled before it tan be eaten and assimilated. Boiling is the application of heat tempered with water. It means the .ipplication of stripes tempered with Divine \o\-t^ the water of die Word of God, Each man like him coming up. not knowing the blaster's will, will be boiled a little. He wiii have to undergo a few stripes, a little boiling.

Then out here somebody else comes up. Say it is, well, perhaps some of your neighbors that wasn't qnitc what he ought to have been. U"e all knoiv people that

are not real good. Some men steal and some cheat. women gossip and things like tliat. This man comes u| from the dead atid starts to steal. Well, you must no steal. lie yets boiled a little. The Levites boil him a little this time. He is tlie Judas kind. Tlie characteristii of Jud.^s was that he took money and kept on takin;. what was in the bag. He was a willful thief. This ttiat says, "1 don't care if 1 did get hurt a little. " "He tha kiioweih the Master's v.-ill and doetli it not shall be bcatei; with many stripes." Tlie word tells that these cornel places are boiling and baking places. They will bakt hira. He will get some pretty sharp and severe trials many stripes — baked.

You and I have experiences like that. We suffer things, we have been boiled and roasted some tiines. Wc get into hot water vvhcn wc get boiled. \>e do something we know we should not have done, then we are baked. We have fiery trials as a correction to teacli us not to do that again- We arc baked too.

-As .-Xbraham Lincoln makes progress and Edison comes up and turns from making plowsh.nres into sword?, to turning battleships into mowing niacliities, how they will rejoice at the progress 01 these great men. If there is joy in Heaven over one sinner that repeiiieibi think of the joy svhen twenty-two billions repent. Do you want to be there to enjoy these feasts, to enjoy forever that great love feast? To all pternity there will be stories, they will talk over the glorious stories of consecration, not only for the thousand years, but year by year. As Brother John Edgar said, "Day by day renew your con- secration, and daily seek to carry it out." Day by day people of the world will consecrate at this Temple and the priests forever will feast with joy and gladness over the billions that have repented and are making progress on diis earth.

We see Heavenly- things plainer now. Do you want to he up there or down here? Is there any comparison? Do you want to be there standing before God with the privileges of the whole sanctuary area? You can go any- where if you are up there. The priests went anywhere. They can mingle with the people invisibly, as Christ did with the Apostles after His resurrection. By God's grace let us renew our consecration, and let us daily seek to carry it out and let our cotisecration be to the very best things. If the wealthiest man on earth ^ offered you or sent you an invitation and you looked him up in Brad- street^s or Dun's and find out that his offer is bona fide, he invites you to li^i with him and lie will treat you like a son, give you money, and you can live on Fifth Avenue, atid you can have a country hottic, and hfty automobiles, would you tell him, "^Ir. Jones, 1 think you have a beau- tiful, house. I like the looks of your automobiles and 1 know that the invitation is bona fidt;, but 1 like Child's restaurants. Ciiild's is good enough. They niako such good pies"? Why not live with the millionaire? Are your ambitions cheap or great? \Vill you be content, do you wane to bear shame and disgrace, and at tlie satnc time be loved and blessed of the people, or do you want to have the love of the people without shame and disgrace of having everybody know just how you failed, and it wasn't necessary, because you attempted to defend human rights? Brother Russell said of himself, "I have no humati rights that anybody has to respect." Arc we any greater than this great teacher? Have we got to fight for rights when Pastor RusscU set this example?

Let us so participrtte in the blood that when wc pa5S through here we will not be putting our treasures in sha second story or third story rear, but in the top story front. Let us be one of that company through whom Christ will bring back from the dead all the billions of mankind. If you want to bless your sons, your father, your mother, your brothers, your sisters, and' want to be in a position to pour blessings on them all, then by God's grace renew your consecration tonight right h^re now, that you may lay up treasure in tfeaven, that you might be in that eternal love feast of the priests! Aineni

62

SUFFLBM ENT

SEVEN BRETHREN IMPRISONED

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63

In a testimony oi Sister MacAlitUn, the Eollowm^ ex- ccrpu were rciid from a tcticr rcceistd from 9rot!icr Mac- Milbn ;

"Dec. 28, 1913. My Dear MolJic:— I am writing to you at Pittsburgh this week, as you ^vill no doubt be there at tht annventton in a lew days. Well, Chrl&tmafi ha^ come atiiJ is gont. Wc have a. real good time. Friends from all over the country scat lu good [liiii^^i to eat, or cards. U was i real Chri$imas. Brother \Voodworih would get as much excitement and joy out of each package as a 10-ytar-old boy; and I enjoyed seeiug him.

'^I will not attempt to answer all the kind remem- brances nor burden you to Ao so. however, yon wilt t;o doubt sec many at Pittsburgh, Tell them all that the gifts and cards made us glad and that we were able (through the kindness of the ofEcials) to share our ffood ihiiiij> with oihers, so instead of reaching eight, they reached over 150. I am enclosing a few letters from friends, but cannot st[id you all of them. . . . I hop^: you will have a good time at the convention. Please tell everyone tiiat 1 am well and as happy as a man or New Creature can be in jail, and that I am looking forward to the happy day when wc all will not only be free from prison, but also free from The old fallen bodies and forever united with the Lord and all Hit faithful. Had a tpitndid time in Sunday School today. We have united our class with the Jews, and I spoke today, while Brother Rutherford spoke to the Christian Scientists* "So on we go, no knowing," etc. "With heaps of love to you and all, as ever,

•A. H. MACMIUUVK."

In a testimony, Sister Van.\mburgh said^ "Brother VanAmburgh wanted to write a letter but was not per- mitted to do so, but desired iliat his testimony be given." She said, "Our brethren were quite well, rejoicing in all their experiences, knowing divine providence is over all. Shut up irt ibeir little 5x0 roomi for fourte*u hours_ a da/, they think of the Lord's goodnMS, the love nf the friends, their desire to serve them, and how much they will enjoy their freedom when in the Lord's due time. He says. 'It is enough. Come, I have other service now for you to per- form." Bro. VanAmburgh said:

""Assure the dear friends of our great love and fer- vent prayers that the Lord will continue to bleas them richly with grace for vvtry timc; of need. No doubt the new year has as many surprises and blessings as the past one. so we need to search our hearts carcfuily lest any root of bitterness start and we stumble. WE WAXT THAT CROWN. Assure them of my deep

luvc tvi all. A:)k lUciii lu plcttlse sin^ Itj^tnu ^23 as

part of my testimony.*"

She said further: "It would make you glad, indeed, to know how their hearts were wirmed, cheered and touched b>' the shower oi Christmas remembrances from the dear friends. They would like to thank all."

BROTHER RUTHERFORD

"i am now rejoicing in the sufferings on your account, snd I am Tilling up the remainder of the afflictions of the Anointed One^ in mv flesh, on behalf of his borly, which is the conKrcgation." Col. 1 :'J4, Diaglott.

VVhat couM brinf greater joy to the Oiriatiati here on earth than to have the Lord's favor clearly made manifest to him? The Apostle Paul who had such experience, wrote: "It is given unto you as a privilege, not only to believe on the Lord Jesus, but also to suffer on his account." (Phi!, 1 :2D.) There arc probably no men on earth today who are more hii;hly favored and \vho are happier Iban tlie brethren now in prison. They are conscious of their entire inno- cence of intentional wrong-doing, and rejoice to be suf- fering with Christ for ]o>'a]ly serving Him.

On the 6th day of Jlay an indictroent was returned by

the Federal Grand Jury for tlie Astern District of Xew York at Brooklyn asattist the following: J. F. Rutherford. W, E, VanAmburgh. A. H. MacMillsn. F. H. Robison, C J. Woodworth. Geo. K. Fiiher, R. J. Martin, G. Dc Cccca and R. H, Mirsh, charging them with conspiracy !0 obstruct the United States in ihi^ prosecutinn of the war. (Jcr. 3S:l,) TIte indictment was in four counts, each charging a sepa- rate and distinct offence under different parts of the statute. This statnie, known as the Espionage Law, was erucied June lb, 1917. and is striedy a war measure. It waild be impossible to violate it when the country is at pcjce.

The indictment as originally returned charged that the conspiracy was entered into some lime between April fl, 191? (the date when the United Slates declared war) and May G. 1918. Upon motion, the Government specified the date of the alleged offense as between June 15. iUlT, and May G. lOlS. Tlie taic was called for trial on June 3, and the Government dismissed as to R. H-. Hirsh-

The jury that was to try the case was impaneled June 4, <ind the taking of tcbliinony began June 5, The trial progressed until June 21, when sentence was pronounced. Throughout the entire time the defendants were calm and serenely happy» conscious that the Lord was with them and that he was permitting the experiei^ces for his own wise purpose. One spectator referred to them as "dignified, pale- tared Ruesellites." Another saidt "Those fellows always have a smile. -They will be smihng when they get behind th<: bars, and when they go to the gillows," Ljttle docs the world realise why the Christian smiles,

A conspiracy is an agreement between two or more per- sons to comtnit an unlawful act. At the trial the Govern- ment contended that "The Fnishcd Mystery" was written and published designedly to hinder the United States in raisins an army and prosecuting the war, and that the defendants had written to raembert of the International Bible Students Association within drait age letters that interfered with the raising of an army. "The Finished Mystery" was offered in evidence by the Government and poftions of it read, particularly the prcfaec» puges 24T-35S, 40$, 107 and 469. The Government's counsel contended that these pages were designedly hidden in different parts of the book for the purpose of first getting a person interested in some other part of the bM>ok and then he would be in- fluenced by the statements concerning war; that the pub* JishinCT of the book. The Bible Students' Monthly and The Watch Tower, and the writing of letters to coiiscictiitious objectors were overt acts in carrying out the conspiracy. Defendants denied all such, and proved clearly and sub- stantially the following facts:

Synopsis of Argument

That the International Bible Students n-Vssociation Is wholly a religious organization; that the members accept as their principles of be!ief the Holy Bible, as expounded by Pastor Russell; that Pastor Russell in his lifetime wrote and published six volumes of Studies in the Scrip- ture>« and as earlv as ISOC promised the Seventh Volume, and that it would treat the prophecies oi Eiekiel and Revelation; that on his deathbed he stated some tme eise would write the Seventh Volume; that shonly after his deaih the Executive Committee of the Watch Tower Bible and Tract Society autliorixccl Brother.^ Clayton J. Wood- worth and George H- Fisher to write and submit manu- script for consideration, witinout any pfiJiiiiae btant iiiddc concerning publication : that all the manuscript on Revcla- tiort. except the extract from an article by the Rev. John HajTics Holmes, was completed bcfoi-e the United States got into the war, and that all the manuscript of the entire boflk, except the "Temple" chapter tn liKckiel. was in the hands nf the printer lie tore the enactment of the E^pionaijo Law. hence the impossibility of any such conspiracy as charged having been entered into witli intentions to violate that law. Xot one of the defendants saw or even knew of the existence of the Espionage Law until March, 1018;

but the Court held this fact to be immaterial and ruled it out. even on the [pic:Jtion of intent.

The evidctice further showed that the letters written by the defendants were replies to inquiries made by brethren of the International Bitsle Stiitlfiit^ Astoctation, for idvice under the law governing the selective draft.

Brother De Cccd did not take the witness stand, Each of ihc other seven testified tliat they never at any titnc liad combined, agreed or conspired to do anything whatsoever to alTcet tlie draft or to intcifere wiili the Government in the prosecution of the war, nor did they have any tiiought of so doing; that they never had any intention oJ interter- ing in any manner with the war; that their work was wholly religious and not at all political; tfiat they did not solicit members, and never aivised or encom'aged any one to resist the draft: that the letters written were sent to those whom they knew to be consecrated Giristians who.

uiid«r the law, were entitled to advice; fliiil ihat (hey wqrt

not opposed to the Nation's going to war. but that as con- secrated Christians they themselves could not engage in mortal combat.

'l"he law requires that before one can he convicted the proof must show that he wilfully committed the act with the intent to interfere with gr obstruct the Govrrntnent in its prosecution of the war. The defendants testified that they never at any time entertained such an intent and had no desire whatsoever to impede the rio^'eTnTnoni in any manner. They further testified that their lives for years past had been devoted exclusively to religious work — telling the divine plan for the blessing of mankind ; that the Lurd bad foretold the war, and that for them lo be against the war would inc»ii to be agsiinst that which the l-ord has permitted; hence all their efforts were confined crcclusively to religious work.

Chrisrians Always MistJtiderstood Vcrtlj- die uiicuiisccraied cannot undersund the conse- crated Christian. It was so with the Master: and it is c<tually so with his followers. As an example, the Gov- ernment put in evidence a letter written by a brother to some brethren in camp. sa>-ing; "Wc rejoice with you. dear brethren, that you are having opportunities of study and fell(>wshi[i tn^cthpr. Be of good courage and hold fasi ; a little while aiut the fight will be nver. and ihen you will be glad that you bare stood for the Lord and righteous- ness." This ^e prosecution construed as an overt act to resist the draft and encourage insubordination, whereas all Christian brethren understand the words to apply en- tirely to the Christian warfare and as having no applica- tion TO worldly matters. To be misunderstood is a part of the sulTcringsi for Christ's sake. Some day all wilt be made clear. What a happy day that will be!

The summing up by counsel occupied the greater part of two days. Counsel for the defense^ Mr. Sparks and Mr, Fuller, Rtade splendid addresses, which were both eloquent nnd forceful, «nd wbicli btvuK^tl fuidj many expressions of commendation from their auditors. These are both noble men, and God will resvard them in His due lime.

Sentence Imposed

The case went to the jury 3.bout o P. \L cm June '20. and at 10:20 the sacnc night a verdict of "Gudty" on all four counts was returned against all the defendants. They were sent away to jaii at midnight and returned into court for sentence the day following, w'hen seven of them were sentenced to twenty years imprisonment at Atlanta^ Ga., on

each count, the setitcticc to commence atui riui concur- . rently on each of the four counts, Tlie lircthrcn were not at all dislnrE)ed, knowing themselves to be in the Lord's hands. Theii serene calunsess was astounding to the large crowd g:itlii;rcd i" the Court room, and oftiecr* were heard to say ; "Wc never before saw men like those,"

Our brethren were then taken to a private room, where their vifi\es and other friends were kindly permitted to scri'e a bountiful lunciieon; and several hours were spent in sweet fellowship together. The bystanders looked on i^ilh amazement at the liaiJpy faces of all these Christian brethren. Again the testimony was given that these have ivalked with Jesus and learned of tdim.

It was exactly high noon (sun lime) Friday^ June 21, when the Judge pronounced sentence against the seven brethren. Brother De Cecca's sentence being deferred for further investigation. This was the longest day of the vcar, and ju»t at nooii the &un Tcachcd Its zenith.

\VlH'n called upon by the Court to state whether they had atiything to say why sentence should not be passe<l upon them, the detend.ints remained silent. The Judge =aid in part: "Durhig the trial cour.sel for the defense at* tempted to impeach the law officers of the Government, the Army Intelliy«'nf<: Bureau, and all the ministerj throughout the land. The religious propaganda which these defendants have vigorously advocated and spread throughout the nation as well as among our allies is a greater danger than a division of the German army^ and a person preaching religion usually has much influence and if he is sincere he is all the more effective. This afirgra- vates rather than mitigates the wron^ they have done. Therefore, as the only prudent thing to do with such per- sons, the Court has coucltided that the punishment should be severe/'

The ecclesiastics slirred up the people against Stephen because "they were not able to resist the w]3dom and the spirit by which be spake." They chaigcd tl^at "this man ceaseth not to speak blasphemous word^^ against this holy place (church system) and the law," (.Acts tliS-lo) A number of clcrg\nnen were in the court room whea the stntencc was imposed. Some of them had attended throughout the entire trial.

Some Comparisons just a moment before the Judge pronounced sentence

Brother Woodworth leaned over and whispered in Brother

Rutherford's ear the following:

"Imagine yourself in the place of the dear Redeemer, or of one of the martyrs of Uuth whose hlood staiui the pages of history. See yourself in the midst of your enemies — persecuted, hated, reviled— conscious of your innocence, of the singleness of your purpose and the righteousness of your cause. Sec yourself with hands lied, your accusers clamoring for your life, your judge unable to stem the tide of human ignorance and pftSAiou. RciiU^t: tliai Ll]vii(£li tliey may take your ItfCp they can not injure the new creature, nor force you to renounce your faith* nor be unfaithful to yourself or to your cause."

"'A better day is coming, a morning promised long, V'l.'hcn truth and riKht widi holy miiCht

Shall overthrow the wrong;

When Christ the Lord shall listen to every plaintive sigh.

And stretch his band o'er sea and land With justice, by and bye,"*

The folbwmg comparisons will be of interest to many;

1. Jesus, the perfect one Head of tlie church, was without fault and was wrongftilly accused.

2. Jesiis offended the clergj'; and they stirred up the people against Him. He was broQgbt before the civil powers and charged with sedition as an enemy of Rome.

L Seven brethren were sentenced. The number symbolizes perfection, hence represents all of the Sew Creation on earth, wrongfully accused.

2. His tireihren offended tlieclergj'. who stirred up the peo- ple against them, sending petiticais to the oj^cers oi the law and causing the brethren to be arrested, charged with scdiiion and hindering the Government in the war.

64

SUPPLEMENT

3. Tlie moon symbolizes the law dispensation. A. Once each month the moon is full, or at iti zentth, and immediately besini to wane.

5. Jesus was tried and condemned on Thursday pight.

6. Jesus was dying on the cross at high noon, Friday, at full moon.— Matt. 27 :46.

7. The moon immediately Iwgaii to wane after the crud- fixion of our Lord Jesus, tkus signifyiag the fall of Judai&m.

Immediately following the sentence, counsel appealed the case and asked the Court to admit the defendants to bail pending the presentation of their case to the Appellate Court. Tn support of the applica:ion. counsel staled in sub- stance : "These men immediately stopped the publication of 'The Finished Mystery' when they learned of the Govern- ment's objection to it, and before the finding of the indict- ment. This seems to be the best evidence of good citizen- ship and th^t they are bw-abidicg; and they should be ad- tnitted to reasoEiablc bait. They are engaged in a great and good religious work, and it is of the greatest importance to others that they be permitted to return to that work." The Judge replied; "If they are out of their activities the Court should sec that they stay out of them, and do not return to them for some months. They arc worse than traitors. Ko greater harm cotitd be done than to admit them to bail." ThuB were the names of the Lord's children cast out as evil. Truly, all of our brethren present became a gazing stodc to others. Hebn 10r33.

Among the tltings Jesus said to his disciples were the swett words : "In the world ye shall have tribulation ; but be of ^ood cheer, I have ovctuotnc the world." How con- soling it is to know that he marks out onr experiences for us that we may be overcomersi Shortly after the arrest two of the defendants were wallcing together, and one of them remarked to his brother in bonds: "Brntlier. I wonld not want to go right from enthusiasm of a big public meeting to the kingdom wlicii I remember the didicult ex- periences through which our Master passed." How truly

3. The sun symbolizes the Gospel dispensation.

4. Once each year (June 21) the sun readies its zenith, and immediately begins to wane.

5. The brethren were tried and condemned at 19:29 Thursday night.

6. Seven of His brethren were sentenced exactly at high noon (sun time) on the longest day of the year CJunc 31), when the sun was at its zenith,

T. The sun immediately began to wane at the hour the seven were sentenced, signifying the fall of Ecdesiai- ticism.

that statement expresses the sentiments of a consecrated heart! "It is enough for the servant that he be as his Lord," It is a blessed privilege to be companions in suf- fering with die Master. St. Stephen and "ax, Paul, all of whom were charged with sedition, Jesns trod the wine- press alone. _ How sweet (o let seven brethren have the companionship of each other in the trying orde^il !

Long have we expected severe trials to be upon the church, and now they luive come. Ilie nails pierced the hands and feci of Jesus. The hands very filly represent the apostles and early martyrs. The "feet members" are the bst members of the body of Christ on earth, and these may expect similar treatment. Let not one of the dear friends be discouraged by reason of the imprisonment of our seven brethren. They are in the Lord's hands ; and proba- bly the Lord will see to it that their imiiri^onment will speak more e'oqucntly than their voices to the public Let us all rejoice and be glad of the increased evidences that the kingdom drawcth nigh,

(Since the writing of the above arlicle Brother De Cecca has be<n sentenced by the Judge to ten years in the Federal Penitentiary at AtbnU.) THE WATCH TOWER will continue as long as the Lord permits. The editorial committee will remain the same, each having a proxy to act for him at the oflice. Considerahle manuscript i« on hand and ready for publication. The vice president and bi>ard of directors are managing the work at Pittsburgh.

BRO. J. F. RUTHERFORD. •

The Following Letter Wa.s Forwarded to Messrs. Sparks, Fuller & Striker (Counsel for the Society), bxiion^ Judge Harland B. Howe

THE HONORABLE ATTORNEY GENERAL. WASIUNGTON. D. C.

SIR:^Ansu>ering your telegram of the 1st insl., I wired gou last evening as follows:

"Recommend immediate commutation for Joseph Rutherford, N. Fisher, Clay- ton J. Woodworlh, Gioifnnni Dececca, A. Hugh MacMillan. Thctj are all defendants ill same case in Eastern District of New York. Mg position is to be generous now that the war is over. They did much damage by preaching and publishing their re- ligious doctrines.

"The sei/ere sentence of twenty gears was imposed upon each of the defendants except Dececca, His was ten gears. My principal purpose was to make an example, a.i a warning to others, and I believed that the President would relieve litem after the war was over. As 1 said in my telegram, they did much damage and it mag well be claimed that they ought not to be set at liberty so soon, but as they cannot do any more here now, I am in favor of being as lenient as I was severe in imposing sentence. I believe most of them were sincere, if not all, and I am not in favor of keeping such persons in confinement after their opportunity for making trouble is Their case has not get been heard in the Circuit Court of Appeals."

past.

Respectfulhr, (Signed) HARLAND B. HOWE.

United Stales District Jiiflge.