196                                                                                                       TGE  S T A N D A R D   B E A R E R

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            Semi-Monthly, except  MonthIy  in  July and August                                                                                                                               EDITORIALS
                                                                 Published by  t
                     The Reformed Free Publishing Association
                                               1101  Hazen  Street, S.  E.                                                                                                                        Common Grace
                                        EDITOR - Rev. H. Hoeksema
  Contributing editors-Revs. J. Blankespoor, A. Cammenga,
  P.  ,De  Boer, J. D. de Jong, H. De Wolf, L. Doezema,                                                                                                                                                      5.
  M. Gritters,  C. Hanko, B. Kok, G. Lubbers, G. M. Ophoff,                                                                                                                         I Before we pass to the 
  A. Petter, M.  Schipper,  J.  Vanden   Breggen,  H. Veldman,                                                                                                                                                  discussion of other elements
  R. Veldman, W. Verhil, L. Vermeer, P. Vis,  G. Vos,                                                                                                                             of the philosophy of  Dr. Van  Til, we must still make
  and Mr. S. De Vries.                                                                                                                                                            one remark concerning his conception of what he calls
  Communications relative to contents should  be addressed                                                                                                                        the Moment. We have  +a question here. Van Til speaks
  to REV. H. HOEKSEMA, 1139 Franklin St., S. E., Grand                                                                                                                            of Moment A. and Moment B., and of a certain corn-
  Rapids, Michigan.                                                                                                                                                               moness, in Moment B., both with respect to the atti-
  Communications relative to subscription should be ad-                                                                                                                           tude of God to the believers and non-believers, or rath-
  dressed to MR. R. SCHAAF SMA, 1101 Hazen  St., S. E.,                                                                                                                           er, to elect and reprobate, and with respect, to the re-
  Grand Rapids,  Mich.   '  AI1 Announcements  and Obituaries                                                                                                                     lation between these in `the world, But as far as I
  must be sent to the above address and will not be placed                                                                                                                        have been able to find out, he does not express him-
  unless the regular fee of $1.00 accompanies the notice.                                                                                                                         self at all with regard to the real meaning of history,
                                             Subscription $2.50 per year                                                                                                          particularly of Moment B., and of the relation of the
                                                                                                                                                                                  latter to the kingdom of heaven in the new creation.
                                                                                                                                                                                     Yet, this question concerns the very heart of the
                                                                                                                                                                                  common grace problem. To be sure, common grace
                                                                                                                                                                                  postulates an attitude of grace on the part of God to
                                                                                                                                                                                  the righteous and wicked alike in this world ; it teach-
                                                                                                                                                                                  es that this common grace so operates that sin is re-
                                                                C O N T E N T S
                                                                                                                                                                  Page            strained and the fallen human nature is improved.
M E D I T A T I E   -                                                                                                                                                             But all this is developed only in order to make room
                                                                                                                                                                                  for a relatively good culture in the sinful world. Thus
  DE HEERSCHAPPIJ VAN DE KIZNNIS  DES HEEREN..193                                                                                                                                 it is with Dr. Kuyper. He sees a good world, in spite
            Rev. H. Hoeksema.                                                                                                                                                     of the fact that Scripture teaches us that it is wholly
EDITORIALS  -                                                                                                                                                                     corrupt ethically, and that it bears the curse of God
  COMMON GRACE . . . . . . . . ..I................................... . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 196                                                           and is subject to vanity. He did not simply find a
  THE CERTAINTY OF HOPE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 198                                                     doctrine of common grace in Scripture and develop
  HOPE AND SANCTIFICATION . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 202                                                             it. On the contrary, he went to Scripture to find out
            Rev. H. Hoeksema.                                                                                                                                                     whether it would support his conception of a good
                                                                                                                                                                                  world and nobIe  sinner. lHe surely did not develop
  THE NUMBERINGS OF THE PEOPLE . .  ..,........................   205                                                                                                             his theory of common grace in  or&r to  find a "well
            Rev. G. M. Ophoff.                                                                                                                                                    meaning offer on the part of God to all men" as was
                                                                                                                                                                                  adopted in the First  Pomt of 1924. No,  ,but he ap-
  HET WONDER VAN DE  GENEZING  VAN DE  ME-                                                                                                                                        proached the matter from the viewpoint of the ques-
             LAATSCHE . . ..I.... . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  * . . . . . . . . . 208        tion: how can  on.e who holds the Reformed truth of
  Rev. J. Blankespoor                                                                                                                                                             total depravity explain thae goodness of the fallen man,
                                                                                                                                                                                  and the marvel of culture? A,nd his answer is : "com-
  THE DOCTRINE OF NON-RESISTANCE                                                                                                                                                  mon grace." IGod established a covenant of friend-
                                                                                                                         . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 210
  Rev. L. Vermeer                                                                                                                                                                 ship with the wicked world as such. In that cove-
                                                                                                                                                                                  nant He assumes an attitude of grace and mercy to
  SERMON READING  ,QND  THE MINISTRY OF THE                                                                                                                                       all, and restrains the operation of the curse, of  si*n
             WORD . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 212 and death, in order that fallen man may become co-
                                                                                                                                                                                  worker with God in the development of this world
  Rev.  A. Petter                                                                                                                                                                 and all  i&s hidden wonders, and in order that  *thus
  THE ERROR OF SEVENTH  DaAY  ADVENTISM . . . . . . . . . . . . . 214 God's original creation ordinance may be realized.
  Rev. Wm. Verhil                                                                                                                                                                    That this is, indeed, the heart of the question
                                                                                                                                                                                  in Kuyper's "Gemeene  Gratie", and that he approazh-
       _                                                                                                                                                                          es the whole problem with  this in mind, would not


                                   TaHE  S T A N D A R D   B E A R E R                                         197

be difficult to prove. Kuyper can find no room for his- tion of other aspects of this criticism. Danhof and
tory without common grace. According to him, there Hoeksema have called our attention to the fact that
is not even a providential preservation and govern- to an extent Kuyper has to use our own terms, though
ment of the world conceivable without common grace. abstractly rather than concretely. Kuyper himself,
And through common grace there is positive develop- as his critics admit, has taught us to think concretely.
ment and progress of the world according to the orig- He has taught us to regard all the facts in the light
inal purpose of  cr,eation.  This purpose Satan meant of the comprehensive  counse1  of God. But if we are
to frustrate. It was his purpose to prevent the reve- to think ,thus concretely it is in order to say with Dan-
lation of God's glory through the development of all hof and Hoeksema that there is no such thi*ng as an
the wonders of creation, and for this purpose he independent creation plan. Nor can we speak of the
tempts man to fall away from God. But to carry ,metaphysical  situation as on the verge of stopping
out His original creation ordinance, and thus reach short when sin came into the world. Again, we can-
the glory of His name, God enters into a covenant of not, as Kuyper sometimes does, speak of redemption
common grace with the sinner and all men, and thus particularistically.        Nor,  6nally,  can we speak of a
makes man His coworker for the development of the `common judgment' and a `territory-between' when we
powers of creation. Apart from the salvation of the speak of believers and unbelievers."           '
Church, and the ultimate new creation, there is an           It is evident, then, that Van Til does not ~ believe
organic developmenlt  of ,this world with positive fruit. that by common grace God carries out an original
And this positive fruit of "`common grace" has signi- creation plan. That is not the meaning of history, of
ficance and value even for the eternal kingdom of Moment B. But the question remains: how does he
heaven, it is carried into the New Jerusalem. It is       explain the history of this present time? That the
thus that Dr. Kuyper  expIains Rev.  21:24  "and the righteous and the wicked have  tall things in common,
kings of the earth do bring their glory and honor into is evident. That there is such a thing as  "worlc1Iy
it,." This "glory and honor" refers, according to him, culture" is also plain. But what is its meaning? How
to the culture of the world in this present age. He does Van  Til evaluate it? Does it actually accomplish
writes :                                                  something?    Is there positive fruit of the "culture"
   "Nothing needs be excluded from this. It refers of the ungodly? And what is the significance of the
to &heir development in the sphere of their family present world with a view to the world to come, the
life and social life, of their political institutions and kingdom of heaven in the new creation? It is im-
their jurisprudence, of science and art, of heroism portant that Van Til give us an answer to these ques-
and tact, of commerce and industry, in short of all tions. For, closely connected with the answer to these
that which in its connection `and unity constitutes questions is .tie answer ito another: just what is the
the glory of a nation, and which  gives  it a place a- position and calling of the believer in the present
mong the civilized nations. And since, as the expres- world ?
sion demands, not the glory and honor of a single na-
tion in a single period is meant, but this glory and
honor here appears as the property of the  natz'o1zs,        We pass on now to another element that occupies
and that, too, in their entire course of history, we only an important place in Van Til's philosophy, the element
think here of the continuous communal development of the "paradox". Let us quote him on this subject:
attained or still to be attained by our entire human         "Cur position is naturally charged with  b&ng  self-
life in the history of the nations. And of this fruit,    contradictory. The full bucket  difhculty expresses the
which is necessarily nothing else than the fruit of nature of that charge. ?t might seem at first glance,
common grace, it is said, that this fruit is not simply as though we were willing, with the dialectical theo-
submerged and destroyed in the general world-con- logians, to accept the really contradictory,. We urge
flagration, but that it will have abiding significance that unless we  !may hold to the presupposition of the
for the New Jerusalem, i.e. for the new earth, for this self-contained ontological trinity, human rationality
glory and honor that shall then be attained  Iby the itself is a mirage. But to hold to this position re-
human race is being carried into the new Jerusalem." quires us to say, that while we shun as poison the idea
Gem. Gr. 1:460,  461.                                     of the really contradictory, we embrace with passion
   NOW we understand that Van Til does not agree          the idea of the a~~?%n~ll/  contradictory. It is through
with this, and this we appreciate. Sometimes we get       the latter alone that we can reject the former. If Et is
`the impression from what he writes, that he funda- the self-contained ontological trinity that we need for
mentally agrees with us in his conception of history.     the rationality of our interpretation of life, it is this
Thus ,he writes on p. 41 of his book.                     same ontological trinity that requires us to hold to the
   `LWe have had occasion to criticise  some aspect of apparently  contradi.ctory.  This ontological trinity is,
the criticism of Kuyper given by Danhof and  Ho&- as the larger Catechism of the Westminster Standards
sema. We do not hesitate to express also our apprecia-    puts it, `incomprehensible'. God dwells in the light


I.98                                T,HE  S T A N D A R D   B E A R E R

that no man can approach unto.  This holds of His `tion, when our vile bodies shall be made like unto
rationaIity  as -well as of ,His being, il:asmuch  as His the most glorious body of our Lord Jesus Christ, this
being and His self-consciousness are identical. It corruptible shall put on incorruption, this mortal im-
follows that  i,n everything we deal with we are, in  <the mortality, and we shall bear the image of the heavenly.
last analysis, dealing with this infinite God,, this God    And we hope for the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ
who hi,deth  Himself, this mysterious God. `In every- in the day of His glory, when He shall put all enemies
thing that we handle we deal finally with the incom- under'His  feet and completely destroy them, when He
prehensible God. Everything that we handle depends          shall make all things new and take His glorified
for what it is upon the counsel of the infinitely in-       church with  iHim into ;f;he everlasting covenant and
exhaustible God. At every point we run into mystery. kingdom of heaven in the new creation, in which we
All our ingenuity will not aid us in seeking to avoid       shall reign with Him, and God will be all in all.
this mystery. All our ingenuity cannot exhaust the              But now we briefly treat of hope itself, of the
humanly inexhaustible rationality of God. To seek spiritual power and activity of hope. What is hope?
to present the Christian position as rationally explic- How must it be explained that the believer hopes for
able in the sense of being comprehensible to the mind       things which eye hath not seen, and ear hath not
of man is to defeat our own purpose. To do so we heard, and thet never arise in the heart of man; yea,
must adopt the standard of reasoning of our opponent,       what is more, how is it, that hope stretches itself to
and when we have adopted the standard of reasoning that which lies beyond death, and the reality of which
of our opponent, we must rest content  u-ith the idea of is apparently `conttradictory  to all, experience? And
a finite God. No Christian can answer the full bucket how do you explain that this hope of the Christian is
dficulty in such a way as to satisfy the demands of a       so certain, so self-assured, that because of it the be-
non-Christian epistemology. We can and must main- liever will gladly suffer all things, and will even glory
tain that the Christian position is the only position in tribulation? For so thast apostle writes : "we rejoice
that does not destroy  reaso.n  itself. But this is not to in the hope of the glory of God. And not only  SO,  but
say  tha,t the relation between human responsibility we glory in tribulations also : knowing that tribulation
and the counsel of God is not apparently contradictory.     worketh patience  ; and patience experience ; and ex-
That all things in history are determined by God must perience hope." Rom. 5 :2-4. And then he adds "And
always see,Tn,  at first sight, t;o contradict the genuine- hope maketh not ashamed; because the love of God is
ness of my choice. That the elect are certainly saved shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Spirit which
for eternity must always Seerrh to make the threat of       is given unto us." Rom.  5:5. No wonder that, if
eternal punishment unreal with respect to them. That we really manifest this hope in our lives in the midst
the reprobate are certainly to be lost must always          of this world, we are asked a reason  for' it. And
sczern to make- *the presentation of eterncll  life unreal the proper answer to that question must include some
with respect to them." p. 16.                               explanation of the wonderful power of hope itself, as
   We shall have more to quote from Van Til's book          well  `as of the reason of its inner certainty.
on this point, especially to make clear how he applies         Zt is of the power and activity of hope that the
this to the theory of common  garce.  But this must apostle speaks, when he writes that hope maketh not
wait till the next issue.                                   ashamed.    And in general  <this  act of hope may be
                                              H. H..        described as a reaching out of the inner, new, spiritual
                                                            life of the Christian for its final and full realization
                                                            and expression. Hope is the tendency of the new life
                                                            of the believer to seek its own level, You know thh'
                                                            water always seeks the level of its own source. But
         The Certainty Of                                   the same is true of life. If your life is from below, it
                                                            cannot rise <above the things that are below. If it has
   We have been speaking of thee object of the Chris-       its source in darkness and sin, it  cannot aspire to the
tian hope. We tried to answer t.he question: What is        righteousness of  *the kingdom of heaven. If your life
it that the Christian in this world hopes for? Scrip-       is from above, you ca,nnot  possibly be satisfied with
ture exhorts us that we shall always be ready "to give the things that are below, you cannot rest u&i1 you
an answer to every man athat asketh you a reason of         have attained to the heavenly things. Now, this is ex-
the hope that is in you." I Pet. 3  :15. And to this actly true of the Christian. He is reborn. He received
answz-  belongs, no doubt, that we shall be able to give    a new life thru the power of the grace of God. And this
some account of that for which we hope. We expect new life is from above. It is characterized fby right-
,that our death shall be a translation into immediate ,eousness  and holiness and truth, for it is free from
glory, a passing out of our earthly house into the          sin; but it is also different from our present, earthly
heavenly house of God, not made with hands, eternal life, in that it is heavenly. It is resurrection-life. Et
in the heavens. WC look for the glory of the  resurrcc-     has its source, not in sin, but in the righteousness of


                                    T H E   S T A N D A R D   B E A R E R                                         199 .

,God; not on the earth, but in the risen and glorified that it actually exists, and that it is not a mirage, an
Lord. For so writes the apostle Peter: "Blessed be illusion, an object of his imagination; and at the same
the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, which time, he is confident that he shall personally attain to
according to his abundant mercy  bath begotten us            it. It is, therefore, inner assurance. And, thirdly,
again unto a lively hope by the resurrection of Jesus        the Christian hope is longing for the realization of
Christ from the  deadt."  1 Pet.  :I  2. And Paul writes the promise of  ,God concerning the final salvation and
to the Colossians, that we  are risen with Christ, that,     glory. It is not a cold, disinterested expeeta:ion,  but
therefore, we should seek the things which are above, a powerful yearning of the soul, that causes the be-
and not those on the earth ; for, being risen with liever even now, in this present world, to strive for
Christ, our life is hid with Christ in God. And be the final goal, so that even now his conversation is al-
cause this is the case, because the  principle  of  new ready in heaven That certain expectation with long-
life within is from `above,  is a spark of the life of the ing for the future good, that reaches out beyond time,
New Jerusalem, we cannot rest until we have attained and beyond all  <things earthy, and that is victorious
to the perfect likeness with Christ in soul and bod,y,       over death and the grave, is the Christian hope.
and to the heavenly glory of the heavenly city. This            Now, in Rom. 5  :5 the apostle emphasizes that this
characteristic, this tendency and striving of the new hope of the believer is certain, or rather, that the bei
life in Christ to seek its own level is called hope.         liever shall not be disappointed in this assurance of
    If we try to  analize this spiritual power of hope,      hope. He writes: "hope maketh not ashamed." We
we find, first of all, that it is the expectation of some    may ask: when does hope make (ashamed? And to this
future good. "Hope that is seen is .not hope: for what we may suggest a threefold answer. First of all, hope
a man  se&h, why doth he yet hope for?" But when maketh ashamed, when it is finally proved ,that the
we say that hope is expectation of some good in the          object of hope is an illusion. The thing for which we
future, we must take the word "future" in the strict, hoped does not even exist. We spoke of our hope to
i.e. in the eschatological sense of the word, as lying,      all the world. We declared plainly that we sought a
not within the scope of the present time at all, but be- country. We gave an account of our hope to every
yond it. All men look forward and live in expecta- one that asked us for a reason. So certain we were of
tion. We are children of time. And  tha,t  means that the object of our hope, that for the sake of it we were
we are forever moving. Incessantly we are carried willing to deny ourselves, to forsake the world, to suf-
onward on that indivisible moment that lies between fer want and poverty, to go into prison and into death.
the past, which is no more, and the future, which is We declared to all the world that we should be justi-
not yet, and which we call the present.                      fied, and that in the end our cause would be vindicated.
                                                             But behold, all things continue as they were from the
             "Time, like an ever-rolling stream,             beginning, and there never arrives a day of the Lord
                  Bears all its sons away ;                  in which the cause of God is vindicated, all the wick-
             They fly forgotten, as a dream                  ed are destroyed, and the new heavens and the new
                   Dies at the opening day."                 earth are created. Our confession .is put to shame.
    And because we are children of this ever moving We are laughed to scorn. They that mocked at the
time, no man can be satisfied with the present. Al- hope of the children of God are ,vindicated.            Well the
ways we look forward. The future tha)t became pre- apostle assures us that this is impossible. Hope  mak-
sent always disappoints. And always we reach out eth not ashamed. The object of the Christian hope
for a new future, until the curtain of death is dropped is not an illusion. It is very real, and it surely shall
upon the stage of our life. But the hope of the Chris- be  reaveled  in the day of our Lord Jesus Christ.
tian is different.    It is not satisfied  wi,th anything       But hope may make ashamed in another way. It
time may offer. It looks beyond all time, over death is conceivable that the objeect for which the Christian
`and the grave, to another age, the age of another hopes is, indeed, real ; and that it is revealed in due
world,.    In this respect the attitude of *the Christian time ; but that is far below our expectation in glory
is  dmidedly  other-worldly. His hope transcends the and value and blessedness. Also in that case hope
boundaries of space and time. And by it he is vic- makes the professors of it ashamed. For they spoke
torious even over death.  Seco,ndly,  this hope of the       very highly of this object, of its riches and bliss
Christian is .certain.  We often employ the word hope and glory and beauty. And they sealed this testimony
to  express that we are not quite certain whether or         wi,th their life. For because of this hope they endured
not we will attain to a certain goal, and realize a cer- many tribulations in the world, confessing that they
tain ambition. But that is not the Scriptural meaning were strangers and sojourners in the world!, looking
of the word hope. On the co.ntrary,  the Christian hope for the city that hath foundations, whose builder and
is an inner certainty of the heart, that the object  of m&er is God. They  belie-ied   ,that all the sufferings
his hope shall be reached. By hope the Christian of this present time are not worthy to be compared
is assured Ithat the object for which he hopes is real,      with the glory that shall be revealed in them. They


200                               /  ,,T*HE  S T A N D A R D   B E A R E R                       -        -
suffered reproach and shame, loss of position and of lous  works; these, however, did the will of their Fath-
freedom, tortures of body and soul; they allowed             er which is in heaven.     For "every man that hath
themselves to be thrown before the wild beasts or to         this hope in him, purifieth himself even as he is pure."
be burned alive at the stake, and to become the most 1 .John 3 9. And, therefore, it remains true that one
miserable of all men ; and all the while they had their cannot have the true hope in his heart, and be disin-
eyes  fxed upo.n  the glory that was set before them.        herited in the day of our Lord Jesus Christ. Hope
But, behold, in the end all their hope and boasting is       maketh not ashamed. The objeof is certainly real;
put to shame, for the simple reason that the object its glory surpasses our boldest imagination; and it is
of their hope, when it is finally revealed, falls far be-    assuredly for those that with  *a true hope in Christ
low their expectation, is, in fact, so insignificant, that Iook for the city &a&t  hath foundations.
they certainly were fools ever to speak of it, and to           But why is this true? What is the ground of this
suffer for it. And when the apostle writes that hope         unqualified statement that hope maketh `not ashamed?
maketh not ashamed, he declares  Urat  aIso this situa- The apostle supplies the answer to this question when
tion shall never arrive, that the final glory for which he adds: "because the love of God is shed abroad in
the believer hopes shall not be disappointing and un- our hearts by the Holy Ghost which is given unto us."
worthy of the boasting of the Christian in this world. Here everything is of God, and, in His work rests the
Positively speaking, he means to say, that when that certainty of our hope. Let us note, first of all, that
final inheritance which is the  objseet of the Christian's the love of God, of which the apostle here speaks, is
hope shall be revealed, its glory will be so great, that     emphatically the love of God. It is necessary to under-
all shall confess that half of it was not told them, and stand this clearly. The meaning of the text is not that
that they would rather  suf?er all the sufferings of we love God, and that, therefore, hope maketh not a-
this present time a thousand times over than lose that shamed. How could this possibly be the sense of t,he
inheritance. Hope maketh not ashamed.                        apostle's words? Our love of  Got% can never be the
       There is one other conceivable possibility of hope    basis of any assurance of hope. Yes, through the
making us ashamed. It is the possjbility  that the object grace of God, and as a reflection  ,of His  love to us,
of the hope is not for us personally. The inheritance we love Him. But it is only in principle that we love
for which we hoped is real, and its glory and blessed- Him. It is only a small beginning of love to God that
ness transcends all expect.ations,  but when the saints      we experience. But if in this love of mine to God I en-
are called to inherit the kingdom prepared for them deavor to find a ground of assurance for my hope, I
from before the foundation of the world, we are not          immediately discover ten thousand reasons to deprive
among the heirs. We hoped to enter in, we looked me of that assurance. For "our sins rise up against
for the city that hath foundations, we confessed our         us, prevailing day by day !" How, t.hen,  could it pos-
hope before all the world, but in the day of the Lord        sibly be said, th!at my hope makefh not ashamed, be-
it is evident that the  inheritance  was never meant         cause I love God? But this is not the significance of
for us.  IHope maketh ashamed. And when the ap- the word. On the contrary, the apostle speaks of  #the
ostle declares that hope maketh not ashamed he cer-          love of God,  ,not of our love. He refers to  &the love
tainly implies that also this can never happen, that no wherewith God loved us, not to the love wherewith we
one who has the true hope eternal in his heart shall be love Him. If I know that  IHe loves me, I possess a
disinherited in the end. To be sure Scripture teaches sure ground of ho.pe,  and may be perfebtly  confident
that there will be those who clamor for entrance into that my hope in Him shall not make me ashamed.
the kingdom of glory, and who shall not be able to              For let us remember that this love of God is re-
enter in. "Not every one that saith unto me, Lord,           vealed to us in the death of His Son, our Lord Jesus
Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven ; but he Christ. For "hereby perceive we the love of God, be-
that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven. cause he laid down his life for us." 1 John  3:16. Andi
Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we "in this was manifested the love of God toward us,
not prophesied in thy name? and in thy aame have because that God sent his only begotten Son into the
cast out devils? and in thy name done many wonder-           world, that we might live through him.            `Herein is
ful works? And then I will profess unto them, I love, not that we loved God, but that he loved us, and
never knew you: depart from me, ye that work in-             sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins." From
iquity." Katt. 7 :%l-23. But there is a marked differ- this central revelation of the love of God, #to us we
ence between these wolves in sheep clothing, these learn, first of all, that it is a love that is first, thlat can
would-be pious workers of iniquity, and those that have stand alone, that is wholly independent from our love,
the true hope in their hearts.     The former base their that is eternal and unchangeable. Never could this
claim to enter into the kingdom upon their own won- love of God have been manifested, if God had waited
derful works, the latter only on the perfect obedience for some token of our love to Him For we were dead
of the Lord Jesus Christ. Those loved and worked             in trespasses and sins. We were enemies of God,
iniquity, in spite of their apparent zeal and mcarvel-       .when He loved us. And such an independent, eternal


                                    T H E   S T A N D A R D   B E A R E R                                            201

 and unchangeable love I need, if I am to hope in Him.        gotten Son is for him? `Does he, perhaps appropriate
I need a  love  tha+t is strong  enough  to overcome sin,     to himself something that was never meant for him?
 sto which I can appeal in my sins; a love that blots         That would, indeed, be the case, if there were even a
 out iniquities, and that forgives transgression. That grain of truth in that presentation of the gospel, Ithat
 is the love revealed on the cross, and if I know that I      makes a man lay hold of the love of God in Christ by
 am the object of that unfathomable, unchangeable, an act of his own free will. God offered His love to
 all-victorious love of God, I have a sure ground for my him, and he accepted it. The ultimate ground of his
 hope. Certainly I know that He, Who so loved me,             hope is, in that case, in his act of accepting  Jesus
 will deliver me from all evil, and seek my everlasting       Christ, and the love of God in Him.  Hut if hope is
 good. But  #there is more. It was in the death of  Hi; based on my acceptance of the love of God, it can never
 Son, His only begotten Son, that He received this love. be said of my hope  thalt it shall never make ashamed,
 In other words, the love wherewith tHe loved us was for who shall assure me that I had a right to appro-
 a mighty, a great, an infinitely marvellous love, and        priate that love of God to myself? And, besides,
 the price paid by that love for our redemption was rd where is the guarantee that  T shall not rejeot and de-
 most precious price. By the  *greatness  of that price, spise the love of  Gods again by the same determination
 I may measure the greatness of the love of God, and          of my will by which I once accepted it? There is no
 from the greatness of that love I may conclude that ground of certainty and assurance in the will of man.
 the glory unto which He  ordlained those, for whom He        Only when  $he assurance of our hope is based on and
 paid that price, is greater than my boldest imagination rooted in  `an act of the unchangeable God Himself,
 can conceive. "He that spared not His own Son, but           can I be sure that hope will never make ashamed. If
 delivered him up for us all, how shall he not with him my hope is rooted in the knowledge of the love of God
 also freely gi,ve us all things?" Rom. 8:32. 0, indeed,      to me, and if that knowledge of the love of God is His
 if I may know that I am the object of that marvellous own work, not mine, then, indeed, I may rejoice in the
 love of God, manifested in that death of His Son on          hope of the glory of God. And this is, indeed, the
 *the accursed tree, I may hope in `Him, look in hope         truth. For the apostle does not speak of the love of
 for the glory of God, and be assured that hope maketh        God that was offered me, and which I accepted,  but of
 not ashamed !                                                the love of God that was shed abroad in our hearts
     When 1: look at the cross, I know the object of my       through the Holy Spirit which He hath given unto us.
 hope must !be real, ,for the love wherewit,h  God loved Never could we know the Iove wherewith God loved US
 me is very actual. When I survey the cross, I am sure        in Christ, never could we even desire that love by
 that the object of hope is very wonderful and glorious, nature. For we are enemies of God. But God sent
 for it is the death of God's only begotten Son I there [His Spirit into our hearts, and through that Spirit
 behold. And when I look at the cross in hope, I know         He shed abroad in those hearts His own love. By
 that the glorious inheritance for the possession of that  Spirit, through the Word, He Himself leads us
 which our Lord died, and into the possession of which        to the accursed tree, and assures us that He loves us
 EIe entered through the resurrection, is also for me,        with an everlasting love. It' is all of Him, none of us !
 and that in this hope I can never be disappointed.           It is Himself that causes us to know Ithat He loved us;
 For nly very hope is rooted in the knowledge that He Himself that causes us to hope for the eternal inheri-
 loved me in the death of His Son, and that through tance, and that causes us to rejoice in the hope of (the
 that death my sins are blotted out forever! Unless I glory of God? And, therefore,it is absolutely sure
 knew this, unless I were assured in my heart that the        that the believer's hope maketh not ashamed, because
 love of God manifested on the cross is a love <to me, I: that hope is rooted in the love of God, and that love of
 could not possibly hope for anything from Him. All God is shed abroad in his heart by the Spirit He hath
 we can expect, apart from the love of God in Christ          given him. And nothing can possibly seperate us
 Jesus our Lord, is His wrath Iand condemnation. !Hope,       from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord!
 therefore, the believer's hope is rooted in the assur-                                                     EL H.
 ance of faith, that God loves him with the love that was
 manifested in the death of the Son of God.  I know
 that God loved me, therefore do Z hope for His salva-
 tion, and therefore 1' ;am assured that hope maketh
 not ashamed.                                                                        NOTICE
     But, perhaps, you will remark,  @that even so the
 ground, the ultimate basis for the certainty of the             Classis West of the Protestant Reformed'Churches
 Christian hope is in himself, in his knowledge of the        convenes March 3, 1943, at 9 :30 A. M. at Sioux Center,
 love of God to him. How, then, can he be sure that           Iowa, D. V.. Those desiring lodging please write for
 he does not deceive  himlself  in this assurance that the    reservations to undersigned.
 love of God manifested in the death of His only  be-                                   Rev. `M. Gritters, S. C.


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           iHope :And Sanctification                          walk and conversati,on  honest and pure in the midst .
                                                              of the world. To the Corinthians the apostle writes:
                                                              "Having therefore these promises, dearly beloved, let
       In the Christian School of old Holland, where I us cleanse ourselves from all filthiness of the flesh and
received my early education, we used to sing a hymn spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God." II Car.
about the object of Christian hope, and the longing 7:l. The apostle himself, longing for the  perfect
of the believer for that object, that ran as follows:         knowledge of Christ and the attainment of  ,the resur-
            "0, daar te zijn,                                 rection, professes that he does this one thing: "forget-
        Waar nimmer tranen vloeien,                           ting those things which are behind, an,d reaching forth
Waar `t hart geen angst, geen kommer kent  noch pijn, unto those things which are before, I press toward the
        Wear  doorn noch distel groeien,                      mark for the prize of the ,high calling of God in Christ
            0 daar te zijn !                                  Jesus." Phil. 3 :13, 14.    And while he laments the
            0 daar te zijn!"                                  walk of those, "whose end is destruction, whose god is
                                                              their  (belly and whose glory is in their shame", he
and which, translated into English, would run some- writes that even now "our conversation is in heaven;
what like this:                                               from whence we also look for the Saviour, the Lord
            `$0, were I there !                               Jesus Christ." Phil. 3  :19, 20. For the grace of God
        Where never tears do flow,                            that bringeth salvation, and that hath appeared to  a!1
Where knows the heart no fear, distress ,or pain,             men, teaches "us that, denying ungodliness and worldly
        Where thorn nor thistle grow,                         lusts, we should live soberly,' righteously and godly
            0, were I there!                                  in this present world ; looking for that blessed hope,
            0, were I there !"                                and the glorious appearance of the great God and our
                                                              Saviour Jesus Christ." Tit. 2 :11-13. We are admon-
       And "when I was a child and spake as a child, ished to follow peace with all men, and holiness, with-
and understood as a child, and thought as a child", out which no man shall see the Lord ; Heb. 12 :14 ; and
I loved to sing that song, and could long for that to gird up the loins of our mind, and be sober, as we
beautiful country, where we would be free from want hope to the end for the grace that is to be ,brought
and distress, from all sorrow and suffering. And I unto us at the revelation .of Jesus Christ. `I Pet. 1:13.
considered that `hymn one of the most adequate and            And as strangers and pilgrims we are admonished to
appealing expressions of the Christian hope.             But abstain from fleshly lusts, which war against the soul,
"when I became a man, and put away childish things",          and to have our conversation honest among the gen-
I began to look at the hope of the Christian, and, con- tiles. I Pet. 2:11,  12. And we must sanctify the Lord
sequently, also at that hymn from a different view-            God in our hearts, and be always ready to give an
point, and oame to the conclusion tha,t  the hymn did answer to every man that may ask us a reason of the
not touch upon what was most essentia1 in the hope            hope that is in us, having a good  conscience.  I Pet.
of the believer. I still believed that the heavenly 3:15, 16. For "seeing that all these things shall be
country would be beautifu1,  and a land of .bliss, where dissolved, what manner of pemons  ought ye to be in
"God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes", and          all holy conversation and godliness, looking for and
where there is neither sorrow or crying; but I no             hasting unto <the coming of the day of God." II Pet.
longer think that we express  ,the very heart of the 3 :ll, 12. And we are admonished, seeing that we look
Chris,tian  hope if .we' say no more. For the longing for such things, to be diligent that we may be found
of the believer is fixed centrally, not upon the blissful of him in peace, without spot and blameless. II Pet.
environments and circumstances of God's house, but 3 :14. Everywhere the Christian hope is presented as
upon God Himself; and, therefore, it reaches out, not a power and reason for a godly life in the world.
chiefly for freedom from suffering, but for perfect               And this raises the question: why is there (such a
liberation from sin, for perfection. And beoause the close relationship between hope `and sanctification?
Christian hope is chiefly fixed upon this object, it is a HOW must it be' explained that hope is a power and
mighty power in the believer's life, a power of sanctifi- incentive unto  lip life of godliness? There can be no
cation, an incentive unto. holiness.                          answer to this question as long as the Christian hope
   Everywh*ere  the Bible teaches that there is an in- to us means nothing more than the prospect of a
separable relation between hope  <and a godly life. The nice place after death, a beautiful city with pearly
relation is mutual.      On the one hand, a living and gates and  str&s of gold, where we shall be free from
conscious hope is quite impossible for one who lives in trouble and worry, from suffering and death. I am
sin, and who sets his heart on the ,things of the world.      afraid that for many who profess to be Christians,
To lead a sanctified life is indispenable  to the enjoy- this is just about the main contents of their hope.
ment of the blessedness of the Christian hope. But on They strive after the very best things in this world ;
the other hand, hope is also an incentive to keep our if they  possitbly  could, they would be perfectly content


                                    TlH:E   S T A N D A R D   B E A R E R                                         203
-.
to remain here; but seeing that "implacable death" is the Lord Almighty,." Now, if that is the object of our
inevitable ,and that after death the judgment must be hope, that God will walk with us and talk with us,
expected, it is a consoling thought that one may escape and that He will call us His sons and daughters, and
hell, and look forward to a beautiful and happy home draw us into His blessed fellowship, if we have these
after death. But if that is the real meaning of our           promises, then  <that hope will be a power within us
hope, it could never be a power unto a godly and sanc- to cleanse ourselves, and to perfect holiness in the fear
tified life. Nor is it in the case of those who entert,ain    of God. Beautifully and clearly this is expressed by
such carnal notions of hope. Usually, they live not the apostle John: "Beloved, now are we the children
only in the world, but also as those that are of the          of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be:
world: their (hope is something that must help them but we know that when he (better: it) shall appear,
along on their deathbed, or at the funeral of their we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is.
dear ones.    It certainly is `not a power that causes And every man that hath this hope in him purifieth
them to strive to be pleasing to God. And yet, there himself, even as he is pure." I John 3  :2, 3.
is in the hope of the Christian something that causes            Every man that hath this hope in him ! What
him to flee from sin, and perfect holiness in the fear hope ? The hope that we shall be like Him ! `Like
of God. What is that something? It cannot be the              whom shall we be? We shall be like God ! Yes, that
impulse to make ourselves worthy of the heavenly and nothing less the text declares. That may not be
glory, for we enter it by grace, not by works. You            clear from the translation, but it is evident from the
and 1 can merit exactly nothing by our works, what-           original, which may Ibe and should be ren'dered  thus:
ever they be,. The desire to earn something with God "Now are we children of God. . . . and when it shall
is no motive in the Christian's life of godliness and be manifest what we shall be, then we shall be like
walk in good works. There is, therefore, something Him." That,  %herefore,  is the real heart of the object
else that causes hope to be a power of holiness in the of our hope: to be like God.. But, you object, that is
believer. And that something else is the element of impossible. We can never  lbecome like God. In fact,
longing to be like and Ito be with God. That, and not         the ideal to be like God is exactly the invention of the
the beautiful surroundings of the eternal inheritance,        devil, held before man as the highest good in paradise.
is the chief object of the believer's hope. And be- The motive of that aspiration is unbounded pride.
cause hope is the longing and expectation for the per- And that is true, if you mean that we shall ,never Ibe
fect likeness, and the most intimate fellowship with essentially like God. #God is GOD, and we are men;
God, therefore it causes us to strive after that perfec- He is the Creator, and we are creatures. There is a
tion even now.                                                chasm that can never be abridged between God and us.
   This truth is emphasized frequently in the Word            In this sense we do not even approach likeness with
of God. In II Cor. 7  :I the apostle writes :  "Having        God. There is no approximation of the  finite to the
therefore these  pronaises,  dearly beloved, let us cleanse Infinite, of the temporal to the eternal, of the relative
ourselves from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit,        to the Albsolute. And we shall never be like God in the
perfecting holiness in the fear of God."  Xt is clear         sense that we shall be sovereign as He is sovereign.
that the apostle means  `to say that there is something       He alone is Lord, and with relation to Him we shall
in the nature of `the promises which we have, for the         always be servants.     But there is another kind of
realization of which we look and long, in the very likeness to God, which Scripture certainly teaches, and
nature of hope, therefore, that should be and is an           -frequently mentions. It is a  spiritual-ethica  resem-
incentive to a sanctified Christian life. Now, what are blance, the highest possible perfection of the  image  of
these promises, the possession of which constitutes           God in us, the perfect conformation to the image of
such a strong" power of godliness? The answer you             His Son.    That highest possible realization of His
may find in the immediate context, where the apostle          image in us, on the plane of heavenly perfection is
writes : "Be ye not unequally yoked together with un- God's purpose with  His people. "For whom He did
believers : for what fellowship hath righteousness with foreknow He also did predestinate to be conformed
unrighteousness, and what communion hath light with according to the image of His Son, that He might be
darkness? A,nd what concord hath Christ with Belial? the firstborn among many brethren." Rom. 8 :29. And
or what part bath he that believeth with an infidel? the apostle Peter writes that "his divine power hath
And what agreement hath the temple of God with given unto us all things that pertain unto life and god-
idols ? For ye are the temple of the living God ; as          liness, through the knowledge of him that hath  called
God hath said, I will dwell in them, and walk in them;        us to glory and virtue. Whereby are given unto us
and I will be their God and they shall be my people.          exceeding great and precious promises: that  Iby these
Wherefore come  out from among them, and be ye ye might be partakers of the divine nature, having
separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean           escaped the corruption that is in `the world through
thing: and I will receive you, and will `be a Father unto     lust." 11 Pet. 1:3,4. This, then, is `the likeness which
you, and ye shall be my sons and daughters, saith ,also the apostle *John has in mind in 1, 3 :2, and which


204                                 j  T H E   S T A N D A R D   B E A R E R

is the chief object of the Christian hope,. To be right-       a good `deal that is quite in conflict with the perf,ect
eous  as He is righteous, to be holy as He  i,s holy, to be    likeness with God, and so, it is not yet manifest what
pure as He is pure, to know Him as we are known, to            we shall be ; it is not yet revealed that we are kings
be faithful  an,d true as He is faithful and true, to walk and princes, rich in glory, partakers of the divine
in ,the light even as He is a light, and thus to dwell         nature, holy and righteous, clothed with immortality
with Him, to see Him face to face, to enter into His           and power, k,nowing  as we are known, and walking
secrets, to know His mind and to will His will, and to         in the light of God. But it shall be manifest. For
taste that He is good, and that, too, in the perfection children grow up, and when all that is *bestowed upon
of heavenly glory,-that is the object of the Christian         us in this gift of sonship  shall be revealed, `we shall
hope, that shall some day be manifest,                         be like Father! And to attain to that perfect likeness
        That this is, indeed, the end of our salvation, is is the hope of the children!
guaranteed  ,by the fact that even now we are children            And that this end of perfect likeness with God
of God. And it is this same  sonship  that makes it            shall really be attained follows from the fact that we
possible for us to hope for the perfect Iikeness with shall see Him as He is. So that the apostle writes : "we
God. "Beloved",.thus  the apostle writes, "now are we know that if it shall be manifested, we shall be like
children of God". Children of God we are, not by him, for we shall see him as he is." We shall see God !
nature, for  ,then  `we are children of our father the         Of this the Old Testament Psalms already sing. "AS
devil, and we love darkness rather than light; but by for me, I will behold thy face in righteousness: I shall
grace. By nature we have no right to be called the             be satisfied, when I awake with thy likeness." Ps.
children of God, we have forfeited  all the rights of          17:15.  One thing the poet desired of the Lord, and
sons: the right to Father's love and favor, the right          that He would seek after: "that I may dwell in the
to His loving care, the right to dwell in His house, house of the Lord all the days of my life, to behold the
the right `to His inheritance. But in His great love beauty of the Lord and to enquire in his temple." Ps.
,He Ibestowed upon us the right to be called the sons of       27 :4. His soul thirsted for Him, and his flesh longed
God through the perfect obedience of our Lord Jesus            for  iHim, to see His power and His glory, so as he had
Christ. He adopted us by !His grace, and He gave unto seen Him in the sanctuary. Ps. 63  :l,  ,2. The Lord
 us the Spirit of adoption that witnesses with our             pronounces those blessed that are pure in heart, for
spirit that we are the sons of God. But He did more.           they shall see God. Matt. 5% And He even tells His
He not merely adopted us, and gave us all the rights           disciples that even here they enjoy the beginning of
of sonship,  but He.also  actually made us into sons of this spiritual vision of God: "from henceforth ye
God, so that we are born of Him, and we look like Him          know him, and have seen him." And the apostle Paul
in true knowledge, righteousness, and holiness. And            writes : "`For now we see through a glass darkly; but
so we can take the words of the apostic on our own             then face to face: now we know in part; but then shall
lips; now are we children of God! But all this is true         I know even as I am known." Yes, indeed, that pre-
only in beginning, in principle. It is not yet manifest cisely expresses the difference between the present
what we shall be. For we are still earthy, and we still and that glorious future, when we shall see Him as
carry about with us our sinful nature. We are child-           He is.    We shall, of course, never see the infinite,
ren of God, but how often we appear as children of the         invisilble essence of God, No one has ever seen God.
devil! We are heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ, Our seeing of God will always be through His revela-
but here in the world we Iook like poor beggars. We tion of Himself to us. But there is a great difference
are kings, but we do not reign. We are victorious,             between His revelation here, and that by which we
but we suffer defeat. We have eternal life, but we die shall see Him in heavenly glory. Here I look in a
as all men. The perfect, heavenly, glorious likeness           glass, a mirror.    And God stands behind me. HP
with God is not yet manifest. No, but it surely shall          reflects Himself in the mirror. And as I gaze into the
lbe.      In our present  sonship in Christ we have the looking-glass, I behold some dim outline of Him. Or,
pledge of  ,that final perfection. Children grow up,           if you please, here I have a letter of Father written
and then they are like their father. When my child- on the pages of Holy Scripture, in which 1He tells me
ren were infants, they were, indeed, my children, and          all about Himself, as my God and Redeemer, through
there was a beginning of my likeness in them. But I Jesus Christ my Lord. And, to be sure, I love to read
could not walk with them, and talk with them, and take         that letter over and over again. But I do not see Him.
them into my secrets, and open unto them my heart,             However, all this is to be changed. When it shall be
and explain to them my problems, and take counsel manifested what we shall be, then we shall see Him as
with them: they were not yet like  me. But when they           He is.. We shall no longer stand with our back to-
grew up ,they became like me, they entered into my             wards Him, gazing in a mirror to see a reflection of
fellowship, our love became friendship: they became            Him; we shall no longer have to be satisfied with a
my chums. Beloved, now are we the children of God,             word-picture of Him in a letter; we shall see His face.
and we 3re still very small, and there is in US :XS yet        For in heavenly glory we shall meet with that higher,


                                           TiHE  S T A N D A R D   B E A R E R                                           205
I that highest possibl,e revelation of God which the Scrip-
      tures call the face of God, in Jesus Christ, our Lord:           The Numberings Of The People
                Soon I in glorious righteousness                       After the plague in which 24,000 perished on ac-
                Shall see Thee as Thou art;                         count of Israel's whoredoms and idolatry with Moab,
                Thy likeness, Lord, when I awake,                   (Nu.  25.), Moses and Eleazar, the highpriest, received
                Shall satisfy my heart.                             from the Lord the command to number the people from
                                                                    20 years old and upward `"throughout their fathers'
         But if this is the object of our hope, we can also house" (Nu. 26). This was .to be the second numbering,
      understand the close relationship between the  .believer's    the.first  having taken place some  39 years previous in
      hope and a godly life. For as the  apostle  continues:        the beginning of the second. year of Israel's sojourn in
      "And every one that hath this hope on him purifieth           the wilderness.
      himself even as he is pure." Do not misinterpret these           `In treating this subject I arrange my materials
      words. We do not cleanse our own nature from sin:             under?  <the two points :
      sanctification is the work of God by  th,e  Spirit  of               I)    The numbering  `as such;
      Christ. But to purify ourselves here signifies that in the           2) Its purpose,
      strength of God's own work of grace withIn us, and               The method of numbering to Ibe used is set forth by
      motivat,ed  by the incentive of hope, we fight against the command : "Take the sum of the ,congregation  of
      sin, and against all carnal and worldly  lust.s,  and walk the children of Israel. . . . throughout t2heir father's
      in the way of the precepts of our God. We purify our- house. ,. . ." For a complete statement of the method
      selves daily with respect to our walk in  the world. we must turn to Nu. 120 : "by their generations, after
      Always there are new temptations we meet, always their families, by the house of their fathers, according
      there  `are new sins we  ,discover,  and from these we        to the number of names, by their polls, every male
      purify ourselves daily by  th,e grace of God. We  do          from twenty years old and upward. ,. . ."
      that. Let us note this. The apostle does not write               The  &m&es were the independent clans, founded
      an admonition: let us purify ourselves. He states a by the immediate sons of the twelve patriarchs. This
      fact: He that hath this hope on him purifieth himself is plain from the language employed in Nu. 26, for
      even as :He is pure ! But of course ! How  could it be example at verse 5 : "Reuben, the eldest son of Israel:
      different? Hope is expectation, it is looking forward the children of Reuben: Hanoch, of whom cometh the
      to some future good. It is certainty that I shall attain family of the Hanochites: Pallu, the family of the
      to that future good. It is an earnest longing and Pallunites: of Hezron, the family of the Hezronites:
      yearning of the entire soul, of mind and will and heart,      of Carmi, the family of the Carmites. These are the
      for that future good. It is reaching out for its objett.      families of the  Reubenites."    Thus as there were born
      For what object? For a beautiful place? Yes, indeed  ; to Reuben four sons, he appears in the account as'
      for God's house must certainly be beautiful. But if branching off into as many families. The fathers'
      the object of my hope were no more than this, it would houses were pbinly the subdivisions of the families
      be no incentive +,o purification and a godly life. No, and were thus founded by the grand- and greatgrand-
      but I look forward to, I expect with certainty, I yearn sons etc. of the twelve patriarchs. The data are want-
      earnestly" with my whole heart for that greatest of ail ing for a clear Ianalysis of the subdivisions of the con-
      glories and benefits, for that highest possible state of gregation as represented by the terms  fawdy and
      blessedness in which I shall see God, mark you well, fathers' houses. But this much is reasonably clear:
      see GOD, the true, the righteous, the holy God, who The former was the grand subdivision of *the tribe and
      dwelleth in an inaccessible light! And therefore, I the Batter were the subdivisions of the former..
      long for being like Him in knowledge, holiness, and              The two terms generations and fathers' houses are
      righteousness, an'd to walk in the light, even as He of identical signification. Jointly they denolte the an-
      is in the light, for only when I am like Him shall I be cestral lineages of the individuals to be numbered as
      able to see Him! But if this hope be in me, if I am           extending through the founders of the clans within
      really motivated by this mighty longing to be like God, the tribes to the t,welve  patribarchs.
      this strong desire will manifest and translate itself
      into the constant strife for a walk in holiness and              Thus the task to which Moses was once more com-
      righteousness in the midst of this world. "If we say manded to address himself consisted in requiring of
      that we have fellowship with him, and walk in dark- the israelite from twenty years old and upward that
      ness, we lie, and  `do not the truth." I John  l:6,. And each give his name, his house, his family, and his tribe.
      if we have `this hope on Him, we purify ourselves even What the imposition of such a task reveals is that
      as .He is pure !                                              there was on hand a complete history of family pedi-
                                                                    grees ; and the genealogical tables of the first book of
                                                     H. H.          the Chronicles, of the books of Ezra and Nehemiah,


                                            S ' T A N D A R D   B E A R E R

and of Matthew's gospel show that through the cen- house founded by Ephraim's grandson Eran, a direct
turies this history was kept up to date. For  w,hat       offspring of Shuthelah, Ephraim's firstborn, numbers
reasons we shall see presently.                           32,500.    In the account Eran's house is listed as a
   Reuben, so the numbering reveals, subdivides into family, the reason being that he was the only son.
four families and numbers 43,730. Dan, with only one         The genealogical history of the first book of the
family numbers 64,400. This has led to the conjec- IChronicles  (7 :20-23)  tells of a tragic event in the life
ture that there may have been families that, for some     of the patriarch Ephraim not recorded elsewhere in
reason, were not enumerated in this census, especially the Scriptures and consisting in the slaying of Ezer
so in the ,case  of Dan. This tribe, however, was formed and Elad, either sons or near descendants of Ephraim.
of but one family at its starting-point (Gen. 46 :23).    These sons, it must be supposed, made a warlike
But Simeon at this point numbered six families (Gen.      expedition from Goshen  into the land of the Philistines
46 : lo), while in the account of the second numbering for plunder, and were slain by "the men of Gath that
he appears as branching into five. Obed's family-the were born in that land. . ,. ., because they came down
one not reckoned-may have become extinct or it may to take away their  attle."  This  oan scarcely have
have attached itself to a more powerful house within, taken place before the descent into Egypt, as Ephraim
the tribe.                                                was born in Egypt, (Gen. 46  :20). "And Ephraim
   Tlhe account also brings out that the grandsons of their father mourned many days, land his -brethren
Pallus,  the immediate son of Reuben, were the rebels came to comfort him." These words cannot. be taken
Dathan and Abiram.  With reference to these names figuratively as applying to the whole tribe of Ephraim,
the account goes back to the judgment that overtook       for the following verse asserts: "And when he went
these insurgents. The earth swallowed them up "to-        in to his wife, she conceived and bare a son, and he
gether with  Kora,h" the prime mover of the rebellion. called  his name Beriah, because it went evil with his
This fearful end, however, is not to be identified with house." The going in of Ephraim to his wife, can only
the fire-judgment upon the 250 offerers of incense. be (taken literally; and as their is no indication that
The exception of the ,children  of Korah; who took no     another Ephraim is meant, the narrative must be to
part in the rebellion, and did not therefore perish, is the effect that the old patriarch Ephraim begat a son
also mentioned (Nu. 26 :5-10).                            Reriah, after those two sons were slain by the Gathites.
   Simeon, five families, numbers 22,200, Nemuel of Beriah's name, however, occurs neither in the tables
Nu. 26 is the Jemuel of Gen. 46; and Zohar of Gen.        of Genesis nor in those of the book of Numbers.1 The
is the Zerah of Nu. The two names last mentioned are explanation may be that this son had died.
of the same import  (Zerah, the rising of the sun ;          Benjam&.-Five  families and two houses (listed
Zohur,  candor, splendor).                                as families in the text) founded by grandsons, num-
    Gad, seven families, numbers 40,500. Ozni is called bered 45,600. Some of these  descendents are listed
Egbon at Gen. 46  :15.                                    as grandsons of Benjamin here and as sons in the
                                                          account of Genesis. It shows that the term son in
    J&h. Two of Judah's five sons-Er and  Onan- Scripture does not necessarily determine nearness of
had perished in Canaan. The five families, of which relation. Also, Genesis lists three more names of sons
two were founded by grandsons, offsprings of Pharez,      than are found in these tables. This may be explained
number 76,000.                                            by the probability that some of those named in Genesis
    lssachur.  Four families, numbered 64,300. Jashub had died childless or  withoult founding a distinct
is named Job at Gen. 46 :13. Both names signify to family. Finally, Shuphan and  Huphlan  are Nuppin
return.                                                   and !Huppin in the Genesis record.
    Joseph-Manasseh.      Michar was Manasseh's only         &%.-One  son Shusham ((Husham in Genesis 46).
son; and the only son of Michar was Gilead, the found-    whose family, divided into smaller families, numbered
er of the family of the SGileadites. As Gilead had six 64,400.
sons, this. family subdivided into as many houses,           As&r.-Five  families, two from grandsons, num-
which numbered 52,700 Israelitish males qualified for bered 53,400. There was one daughter Sarah. Isllua
military service. One of these houses was the Shechem-    of Gen. 46 is wanting here,  probably  because as in
ites, founded by Shechem, the fourth son of Gilead.       other cases he had founded no family.
Mention is also made of the fact that to Hepher, the         Naph&li.-Four  families, numbered 45,400.
sixth son of Gilead, was born a son,  Zelophehad  by         The total number of persons is 601,730. A com-
name, who begat daughters to the number of five but parison of the totals here and in chap. 1 shows a small
no sons. These daughters again appear in the  follow- loss of 1820. The people that had grown so rapidly
ing chapter in connection with the division of  `the in Egypt, had scarcely held its own through the tilder-
land.                                                     ness with its sins and judgments. The loss would have
 m Joseph-Ephraim.        Three families and a fourth been much greater, however, if seven tribes-Judah,


 ..-  _-  _.  _                      T H E   S T A N D A R D   B E ' A R E R                                         207
                                                                                         ._.
 Issachar, Zebulon, Manasseh. Benjamin. Dan. Ashur- Because King David was unmindful of this, he ordered
 had not held more than their own. A' comparison of ~Israel  numbered.
 the  ItotaIs for these tribes, here and in chap 1. shows a        Regard must be had once more to the method used :
 joint gain of 59,500 as compared with a loss of 60,020         "by their generation, after their families, by the house
 sustained by the others. The heaviest loser was Sim- of their fathers, according to the number of names."
 eon. His decrease amounted to 37,100. The judgments St is clear from this language that the near purpose
 of God that had ravaged the nation may have taken              of the enumeration was to  ,bring  every Israelites of
 their largest toll from this tribe. There is indication twenty years old and above under the necessity of giv-
 that rat least in the most recent apostacy-the whore-          ing his pedigree, his ancestral line, and thus of reveal-
 doms with Moab-Simeon was the chief offender.  * The ing to which tribe, family, and house he belonged.
 greatest gain was made by the tribe of Manasseh. The authorities in the nation-Moses and his assist-.
 The tables show an increase of 20,500.                         ants-had need of such information'as they did forty
     The Levites occupy little space in the  Itables of Nu. years previous at the beginning of Israel's sojourn in
 26, the reason being that this last enumeration is main- the wilderness.            Then the twelve tribes. had to be
 ly in reference to the inheritance, and the  Levites  were divided into four divisions in the order of East, South,
 not to have any inheritance or possession.         Three West and North, with the tabernacle in the center.
 chief families and five houses numbered 23,000.               The four  Ieading  tribes were Judah, Reuben, Ephraim
     The text at 26 :59 has occasioned some difficulty: and Dan. To the East  was Judah in conjunction with
 "And the name of  -4mram's  wife was Jochebed,' the           Issachar and  ZebuIon.  To Reuben in the South was
 daughter of Levi,  w,hom  her mother bare to Levi in          joined Simedn and Gad. On the West Manasseh and
 Egypt: and she bare unto  Amram  Aaron and Moses Benjamin were encamped under the leadership of
and Miriam their sister." Jochebed  could not have Ephraim. To the North was Dan in conjunction with
 been the direct offspring of Levi, nor could  Amram           Ashur and  Naphtali.        The  fomation was that `of a
have been Levi's grandson. If so, Amram  did the for- square with an inner square, the east of which was
bidden thing  <by marrying .his own aunt. Generations          occupied by Moses, Aaron and his sons at the door
intervened between Levi and Jocohebed. She was  no: of the tabernacle. The Kahathites  on the South, the
his daughter in the strict sense.                              SGershonites on the West, and  4he Merirites on the
                                                               North completed this inner square. In this structure,
    The account of this numbering  cIoses with the organization, each tribe and each chief family, house,
remark : "These are they that were numbered.  by and individual Israelite in the tribe occupied his own
Noses  land Eleazar the priest, who numbered the child- place. And there was besides an order of the march'
ren of Israel in the plain of  Moab by Jordan near determined by the order of the encampment. Now
Jericho. But among these there was not a man of such an organization, it must be plain, could not have
them whom  lMoses and Aaron the priest numbered, been brought into being without a knowledge of the
when they numbered the children of Israel in the pedigree of each Israelite. The obtaining of this know-
wilderness-of Sinai. For  .the Lord had said of them, ledge with a view to the bringing. into being of this
They shall surely die in  +he wilderness. And there peculiar social structure had formed the purpose of the
was not left a man of them save Caleb the son of Jep-          first enumeration.
hunneh, and Joshua the son of Nun" (26  63-65).
Thus Jehovah's sentence had been  fuIIy executed ; the            The period of the sojourn in the wilderness has  ~
old generation, with the exception of Joshua and Caleb, come  Ito an end. The nation in the new generation has
had  all been wasted by death; i.e. those only who were been purified through two judgments, especially by the
more than twenty years of age when the earlier num- last great visitation as by fire ; the entire older genera-
bering took place. The entire generation of warriors tion has passed away. The people of, Israel are about
had passed away before Israel crossed the  Zered.. The to  possess  their inheritance ; and the individual Israel-
fact of the carrying out of the penal sentence is men-         ites are once more required to declare their pedigree.
tioned here, w,hen  the new generation had just been And again the definite purpose is the' organization of
numbered and  assembIed  with a view to warring God's the people not in the wilderness but now in the land of
warfare for the possession of the Holy Land.                   Canaan; the bringing into being in Canaan of another
                                                               social structure, a  hoIy commonwealth, in which each
   2. The purpose and objective of this numbering.             tribe, and each family house, and individual Israelite
   The purpose was not merely to ascertain the mag- in the tribe would have his very own place and ir&erit-
nitude of the fighting force. Such knowledge could ante assigned to him by Jehovah Himself. That this
serve no purpose other than that of stimulating trust is the primary purpose to be achieved also by this
in the arm of flesh. But Israel must understand that second  numberir.,n:  is proven by the circumstance that
no king is saved by the multitude of an host: that a in the sacred narrative the matter of the division of
mighty man is not delivered, by much strength ; but the land immediately follows the numerical tables.
that his help comes from the sanctuary of Jehovah.             Having recorded. in his account the grand total of per-


      208       ,                            T*HE  S T A N D A R D   B E A R E R

      sons,  the.  narrator goes on to say: "And the Lord
      spake unto Moses saying, Unto these the land shall              Het Wonder Van !De `:Genezing Vari
                                                                      m&
 be divided for an inheritance according to the number
      of names. To many thou shalt give the more  ihherit-                              iDen Melaatsche
      ante, and to few thou shalt give the less itieritance:
      to every one shall his inheritance be given according                                                 Ma&h.  8  :1~4.
      to those that were numbered of him. Notwithstanding.                  Van al de krankheden, waarmede de HeiIand in
      the land  shall be divided by lot : according to the names aanraking kwam, gedurende Zijn omwandeling  OP
      of the tribes of. their fathers they shall inherit. Ac- aarde,  w&s die der melaatschheid,*  &n der meest voor-
      cording to the lot shall the possession thereof be komende ziekten. Niet alsof zoude es Toor Zijn  om-
      divided between many and few" (26:25, 26).                      wandehng geen sprake  van zijn geweest, .want aIreeds
         Here then the enumeration relates to the settle- in'de ceremonieele  wetten, kwamen er in  verband met
      ment in Canaan.        Without the knowledge of the deze krankheid verordeningen voor, die door den me-
      people's pedigrees, this instruction could not have been laatsche in scht moesten worden  genomen.
      carried out, the social structure here demanded could                 In het Oude Testament komen deze ziekten in ver-
 not have been.                                                       schillende graden  en  vormen  voor. Zoo heeft men in
         These instructions then plainly bring out the  pur- de ziekte  ,van Job  &n der meest ernstige gevallen  ge-
      pose and objective of this numbering. The purpose was zien, zoo ontzettend,  .dat zijne drie .vrienden  van ver-
      firstly' to compel the Israelite  to declare  this pedigree,    stemming geen woord van  troost  tot hem durfden
      show that he was a true son of Abraham, in whom the spreken. Het lijden van Jab en den aanblik, ma&ten
 nation was chosen and blessed,, and thus make clear het  schier  onmogelijk, om de  ontzettingte  verbergen."
      that he belonged to Israel and had a part in its work                 Deze melaatschen  waren,  wanneer de ziekte tot in
 and blessing. Secondly, the purpose was to ascertain de hoogste graad was door gewerkt,  .ni&  veel  meer
      who were. Ephraimites and who were Benjamites etc.. ,dan Ievende dooden. Als Miriam door den heere ge-
      and how many there were of each tribe in order to               &raft  is met deze ziekte, vanwege haar  rebelleeren
      enable the rulers in Israel to divide the land of Canaan' tegen Mozes, dan smeekt Aaron  Mbzes:   "Last zij  tech
      among its rightful heirs and to divide it equitably niet zijn als een doode,  van wiens. vIeesch,.als  hij uit
      according to the standard, "To many thou shalt give zijn moeders lijf uitgaat, de  helft  we1 verteerd is".
 the more inheritance, and to few thou shalt give the                       Alle deze soorten van melaatschheid-haddenS+,.  ge-
      less inheritance." And the grand objective of the meen,  dat (op  cent  enkele  uitzondering na) medische
      enumeration `was the bringing into being of God's hulp hier  diets  vermocht uit te  richtea  Alleen een
 house-that commonwealth of Jehovah in which each wonder was in staat genezing  te brengen.
      of the numbered should have his allotted place and                    We willen  er even op wijzen, dat men vaak meende
      in which Jehovah should  ;be all  Andy .in all.                 en nog dikwijls de gedachte is toegedaan, dat deze
 '       It' is-plain that in this enumeration we have to do ziekte  overerfelijk  was. Dat daarom de melaatschen
 .with a type of the church universal as the object. of genoodzaakt werden, om buiten Israels Iegerplaats, in
      God's election. This church is the ,twelve tribes in the de eenzaamheid te  leven. Dathet verkeer met anderen
      book of Revelation, forty,four  thousand strong, serv-          daarom  geweerd werd en zij in de &eden  niet mochten
ants of God, all' of them sealed in their foreheads, vertoeven  en wanneer iemand in hun nabijheid zich
      and ,with their names written in .God's book of life, bevond,  zij moesten uitroepen, "Onrein onrein". Van
      thus a numbered host, twelve thousand from each wat we er. op nazagen, schijnt dit op ekn misverstand
      tribe, Rev. 3 :5 ; 7 : 1-8. But in his vision John saw also te  berusten.  De overerving was beperkt en geschiedde
      a great multitude, which no man could number; of slechts van mbeder dp kind en omgekeerd, en dan nog
      all nations, kindreds, and people, and tongue, stand- slechts  sporadisch.
      ing before the throne and before the Lamb, clothed                    Wat de oorzaak was van deze ziekte schijnt ook
      with white robes and palms in their hands. This is nu nog een geheim te zijn. Dat dezee-  ziekte Ben der
 the church in glory, the true house of God, the heaven- meest  af%ichtelijke was behoeft geen nader betoog,
 ly and imperishable commonwealth of Israel, in which wanneer  we slechts letten  dp de afbeeldingen  hiervan.
 each of His numbered servants  has. his allotted place In het Oude Testament werd  ,deze bezoeking beschouwd
      where he  secureiy  dwells-the city of God, the new als een speciale  straf, voor een speciaal bedreven zonde
      Jerusalem, founded on righteousness through the waaraan  de lijder zich had schuldig gemaakt. Op zeer
 atonement of Christ, a city that bath no need of the ibijzondere  wijze gaf de Heere Zijn heilig misnoegen
 sun, neither of the moon to shine in it; for the glory               te kennen. Alszoodanig   werd het in Israel  aange-
      of God doth lighten it, and the Lamb is the light merti Wij Westerlingen, die het afzichtelijke en het
 thereof, Rev. 22:23.         It is the home of the numbered afschuwelijke van sommige ziekten  niet kennen,  schoon
 ones, of those chosen and blessed in Christ.                         ook in onze hospitalen veel is, det het oog beter niet
                                                   G. M. 0.           ziet en waarvan het oor beter niet hoort,  kunnen ons


  210                                ,-'  BITHE  S T A N D A R D   B E A R E R                        .

  dat de  priester  hem rein had  ~uerklaurd.   Christus          Vleesch geworden en woont nu onder hen, vol  van
  houdt  Zich hier strikt  aan de Wet van Mozes (Lev.             genade en Waarheid en Zijn stem zal zijn  als de
  14:1u, 21, 22). Hierop valt echter  ook nog niet aller-         stemme Gods en  ni,et eens menschen. En zooals  zij
  eerst den nadruk.                                               bet Wonder pas verricht uit de Schrift  alleen kunnen
         Dit is dul'delijk uit `de bijvoeging "hun tot een ge-    verklaren, zoo ook zullen ze den Christus  Gods, alleen
  tuigenis".     Zij, de Priesterschap, zijn het belangheb-       kunnen verklaren, als de zuiverste openbaring ylan den
  bend voorwerp. Er is immers een wonder verricht ?               Vader, bij het licht der  Schrift. Zoo zullen zij in
  En een wonder is een openbaring van Gods  tegen-                Zijn licht het Iicht zien.
  woordigheid. `Het predikt, dat de Heere in den duiste-             Of ook omgekeerd, zij zullen vanwege de hardheid
  ren  nacht der zonde  `Zijn licht laat  schijnen. Zijn          des  harten,  Zijn wonderwerk verklaren te zijn het
  Verbond wordt geopenlbaard.  Daarom  staat het won-             eigen werk van den Satan en den Zoon verwerpen,
  der dan ook altij,d in verband met de Kerk. En tot de Wiens werk zij  hebben aanschouwd,  maar  Wien zij
  Kerk komt nu s'Heeren  stem, om  te onderzoeken of dit niet hebben  gewild
  is naar den Woorde Gods. Dat die man nu niemand  op                Gelijk het ook werkelijk geschied  is.
  den weg inli+ting mag geven-straks kan dat immers                                                            w. v.
  nog we&is enkel en alleen, -dat deze priesters .recht-
  streeks dit wonder zullen moeten  verklaren. Hun werd                                         --
  geen tijd gegeven, om te vragen wie bet wonder heeft
  verricht,  doch  enkel en alleen of het overeen kwam
 met wat de Heilige Schrift  er van zeide.                          The Doctrine Of Non-Resistance
       Met  dit wonder zullen zij dan ook, of zij. het straks
  zullen  gaan ontkennen komt er niet op  aan, zij zullen            The subject of the present essay has been a mat&er
  oak Jezus moeten beoordeelen. ,Of [Hij het is, de van of interest through the ages of the church. That it
  (sodgezondene  of een bedrieger ? Het wonder' is du             would be so might be expected from the emphasis
  ook een  teeken.  Een  teeken,  of iemand onder eigen           which the Scriptures place upon the virtues of love,
  pretentie  optreedt, ofdat hij wettiglijk is gezonden en humility and meekness, and also on the other-worldli-
  aldu,s de bevoegdheid en de bekwaamheid bezit tot de ness of the Kingdom of `God.. And that the Scriptural
  uitoefening van het ambt, dat hij bekleedt. De wonde-           doctrines would be carried beyond their meaning might
  ren  waren de  attestatie voor Mozes, als hij in den            also be expected.
  Naam des Heeren, Pharaoh den eisch voorlegt "Laat                  Thus, in the 15th Century we have the Bohemian
  Mijn volk trekken". Zij bewezen de eehtheid van zijn            Brethren who took "the law of Christ" (Matt. 22 :
  zending En nu moet ook  ,de Oud Testamentische Kerk 37-39 ; Gal. 6 :2) as their ideal of Christian life and re-
  haar  oordeel  uitspreken over den  Zoom           Daarom, jected as irreconcilable with it, such things as civil
  spreekt  es met niemand over, laat er een getuigenis power, .wealth,  war, and trade. Also the extreme paci-
  gegeven  worden  omtrent Mijn werk. Het `wonder ge-             ficism of the Quakers, and their well-known conscen-
  schied dus maar niet,, om een indruk te maken, neen,            cious objection to military service is a manifestation
  maar het geschied, opdat het een  teeken  mag zijn van          of this same tendency of mis-applying the words of
  Gods nabijheid. Hier dus, dat God Zijn Zoon waarhjk             Scripture. And in the teaching of the Russian count,
  heeft gezonden in het vIeesch  en dat in bet werk van Leo Tolstoy, this was carried to such an extreme that
  Dien.  Zoon, de  Zending van den Vader wordt beves-             he condemned all civil and criminal law, prison system
t i g d .                                                         and execution, police force, armies and navies as im-
         Nog eens weer, daarom moet die man direkt naar           moral. Now it is true that this principle was, in Tol-
  `de "bevoegde kerkelijke authoriteiten", die niet alleen stoy's case especially, asserted against the brutal
  moeten,  mear ook kunnen oordeelen over de echtheid government and the persecuting church,  .but since the
  of den namaak van het Goddelijke wonder hier ver-               consistent application of this claim would  d,eprive the
  rich-t.                                                         powers of all executive might, the other extreme lay
         ,41s dat dan eenmaal is geschied, dan zullen zij  als    at hand, namely, `that the government does not live in
  vanzelf  we1 gaan vragen, naar ,de eigenlijke beteekenis the realm of this principle of Christ.
  van deze wondere genezing. Eigenlijk  zal het  dan                 We, therefore, do best by learning from the Scrip-
  ook in het geheel niet moeilijk zijn, om te zien,,  dat         tures how this law of Christ is of application and what
  Hij die de  lichaamskwaal  kan te niet  doen,  die zelfs are the limitations set to the use of force. And since
  macht  heeft over de doodelijke ziekte van de mehatsch-         I am rather certain that many are interested in this
  heid, ook de Zoon is, die Zijn volk. reinigt van het            question from the view-point of the labor-strike prob-
  verderf, de straf, den dood, van ,den toorn Gods en Die lem I shall also touch on that angle.
  daarvoor in de plaats  geeft,  het  Ieven der  gemeen-              Now it is remarkable that the principle passage in
  schap met den levenden God.                                     this question is considered to be the expression of
         Zij zullen dan allereerst zien, dat het Wonder is Jesus : "Resist not evil," and yet it should be evident


                                    T!l3E  S T A N D A R D   B E A R E R                                            211

 that no theory or doctrine can safely be ,built  on one not even to the legitimate civil power.             But, from
 such expression. Therefore we shall look at a group lack of assured exegesis, I would rather not assume
 of passages.                                                 this, but take it as personal  offence,  insult, grievance.
    Matt. 5. The main theme of the Sermon on the &lowever,  then the text also teaches the same general
 Mount is "the Righteousness of the Kingdom of Heav- principle, that it is better to suffer wrong than to give
 en." 0.f that  Righteousness  Jesus says that it must be any  occassion  of reproach to those outside, and t,hat
 greater that that of the Pharisees and Scribes, which the `very occurance of litigations among brethren is a
 is a popular way of saying that is must be not rela- shame for such as profess that they shall one day be
 tively greater, but absolutely greater, of a different accounted worthy to judge the world and angels.
 kind. This righteouness is that of the law of love.             James 5 :  6-11, Since this passage mentions speci-
 In the light of that law the citizens know themselves        fically the relation of the greedy industrialist to the
 and their relation to God and their fellow-men, and laborer, we might expect it to give very definite mater-
 are therefore,  lowly'of Spirit, meek, hungry for right- ial on the question of rights and redress, and the use
 eousness, merciful, pure, peace-makers, willing to suf- of force. Yet the part that seems to be very decisive
 fer. They love the law as to its deepest principle, for the question of force, nl., "He doth not resist  you,"
 (vss. 17-4'7) and thus also love even their enemies, and     vs. 6 is of questionable interpretation. Calvin says,
 are ,able and willing to forego all vengeance, all self-     "When the Ap. adds, "the ju,st doth not resist' he sig-
 assertion, vindictiveness, and appearance of  self-          nifies that the audacity of the rich increases, because
 maintenance. Rather than blacken an eye for an eye,          those whom he oppresses are  destitute,of  defense. . . .
 or knock out a tooth for a tooth the citizen of the King- However although the just doth not resist because he
 dom will turn the other cheek to him that strikes him, must bear wrongs patiently, I nevertheless, opine that
 in order that that virtues of the beatitudes may shine       at the same time his helplessness is indicated, that, nl.,
 forth, to the glory of the Father in heaven.                 he doth not resist because he is defenseless and for-
    Romans 12. "Be not overcome of the evil, but over- saken of the help of man." Be,sides  it would presup-
 come the evil with the good," is the climatic summary pose a very high spiritual life in these righteous if we
 of this chapter, (see vs. 21.)      The entire chapter interpret that they prre. it. ,ci ihe do;,trine  of non-re-
 teaches the service of love, the perfect will of God, vs.    sistence to death.
* 2. Vss. l-13 show this love working in the church in            However,  in this  +&ion he is  e.xhorted to the
 a positive sense. Vss. 14-21 show this same love in spiritual virtues of patience whereby he commits his
 the midst of opposition and temptation, as seeking cause to the Lord's judgment-day.
 the welfare of the other and as willing to forego any            1 Peter  2:11-s  :I?.    The general theme of this
 self-assertion and revenge.     If we would match sin long list of exhortations is found in 2 :11, 12, "as pil-
 with sin we will be overcome of the sin, of course.          grims and strangers abstain from fleshly lusts that
    1 Corinthians 6. This chapter speaks of litigations war against the soul, having your walk honest among
 among brethren. The Apostle maintains that litiga- the Gentiles that whereas they speak against you as
 tions before the civil court may never be resorted to evil-doers, they may by your good works which they
 among  #brethren,  and that they must rather suffer behold, glorify God in the day of *visitation." Now in
 themselves to be wronged. For the conclusion we vs. 18ff. the servants are. specifically admonished. They
 would draw, the question is of some importance, name- are to be subject to their masters in all things for God's
 ly, what was the material in these litigations. Were sake, and they are to suffer abuse and wrong without
 they prosecuting about property and possessions or  a- murmuring, for that is pleasing to God. in that re-
 .bout offenses and insults? The first would of course spect the unresisting suffering of Christ is their exact
 seek a judgment of equity whereby  ,the property example.
 would  *be adjudged to the possessor.       The second          These are some pertinent passages.
 would seek a judgment of vindication as a means of              Now someone will say ; even so we have no answer
 self:assertion  and revenge.     Commentaries  ,do not to the question, whether a strike is ever permissible
 touch this point, but I am inclined to hold that these i.n a labor dispute. I will grant this. For though the
 cases involved property  an'd tangeable values, because emphasis in all these passages is strong on the theme
 a. The very fact that they went to the civil court of non-resistance the Bible does not prohilbit  the use
 would suggest that they sought a redress which the           of force in human affairs. We can mention the of-
 church had no power Lo grant as they desired it. Thi,s fensive and defensive wars of the Old Testament; but
 can only apply to tangea,ble   fvalues  that must be re- ,also many cases that cannot be classed as strictly
 stored by force. b,. The word apo-stereo in vs. 7, trans- moral persuasion, such as the cleansing of the temple
 lated "defraud," means definitely to defraud, to rob, by Jesus and the dismissal of Judas; Paul's discom-
 to despoil.                                                  fiture of the council by his appeal to the resurrection,
    If this be, indeed the meaning, then the Ap. teach- and his appeal to Caesar.
 es here that we, Christians may not resort to any force,        And here 1 may say 1. am sorry that the editor of


212                                   F'lSE  S T A N D A R D   B E A R E R

the Standard Bearer has not covered this very problem ,God,  yet in this world it will, mean continuous self-
in his series on the Strike in Vol. XVII;  llff.  It is       denial, suffering, cross-bearing, with no other encour-
just at this point that his series is fatally weak. The       agement that the reflection that it is the will of the
apparent strength of his argument lies in the fact that       Lord and He shall recompense.
h.e has given the word force the meaning of the word                                                             A.  P,.
violence. A strike is simply assumed to be the illegal
retaining of a job which you have in fact lost claim to.
This inadvertant equivocation has still left us in the
dark on just the point where so much interest centers
among those interested in a true  CX,A. And in view
of the fact that some among us would outright con-            Sermon Reading And The Ministry
demn all force, I once asked if it is sin to force a car
salesman to drop $25.00 from his price by walking                                  Qf The Word
towards the door. And I did not ask this to reduce the
position of the brethren to absurdity, but to show how                During  t,he early stages of the history of our
serious the problems of our Christian calling are if          Prot. Ref. Churches, all our churches were very much
we would live the life of heaven in this world.               acquainted with "Sermon Reading." This was due to
       Therefore I believe that we gain a great advantage     a lack of students, or because of the distance of our
if on the basis of Scripture we approach the question         vacant congregations from our School in Grand Rap-
from exactly the other side. Instead of always asking         ids.      Then one of  ,the Elders in the church took a
how far our rights go and where they stop we must sermon, for which he sought sometimes all the week
ask the other question, namely, what is our duty?             through, because of the lack of good ones, and he would
That is the emphasis in all the passages we have re-          read that sermon to the congregation on the Sabbath.
#viewed. Rights are  .not considered; our duty is point- He would do this of course upon the authority of the
ed out; Gabe ist  Aufgabe.  Any rights we may have            consistory. However, this was usually not considered
are immediately seen as duties. And on the high ideal to  be* the "Ministry of the Word." Rather it was
plane of the kingdom of heaven there are no adiaphora, considered to be somewhat like the bringing of a mes-
no indifferent things. We cannot state the case by sage by a student, namely, an edifying word. Surely
saying, "May we use force?" But rather in every it was a word from Scripture, which the elder or stu-
given case we must use force or we may not. We                dent brought, but it was not official, and the `word
must always and only seek that kingdom.                       brought by the elder or student, brought edification
       `And this in the second place points also to the       to the people of God, but it was not brought by an of-
principle ,whereby  we must circumscribe the limits of ficial  Ibearer  of the office of the Ministry, (nor was
%orce. It must be subservient to love and wherever it authoritative.)                I remember `very well that during
love is not advanced it is proved as wrong. There-            the years from 1925 to 1929 while being a student,
fore it is not so that the government may use force be- it was emphasised that we spoke "een stichtelijk
cause it is "onder  and boven de wet." Not at all. On         woord," but that there was no Ministry of the Word.
the contrary she falls under that same law of Christ.         I must admit that I did not understand this clearly
No `vengeance, no self-vindication, no aggression may then, and I am today more than ever doubtful of this
be the motive of the government acts, but love of             distinction. I am very open to conviction however.
righteousness and equity, as the exectutive of God's                  First of all let us state at the outset that we be-
righteousness in this world, must motivate her.               lieve firmly in the offices which Christ has instituted
       And so the question arises, is the Christian ever in His Church. Immediately upon the ascension of our
called to use force in performing that duty (not right, Lord, and the pouring out of the Holy Spirit upon the
but duty) of love? And my answer is that Scripture            Church, the offices of Apostle, Prophet and Evangel-
concerns itself with the motive and the manifestation ist were instituted. These were the gifts of Christ
of the motive. It forbids hatred, vengeance, violence         unto His Church in the midst of the world, in order
self-assertion and every ,act that might give the ap- through them, to instruct, comfort and thus guide her
pearance of such and it demands that all our acts be          into all the truth. These offices were called the special
controlled by the wisdom of the love of the heavenly          offices and terminated at the death of the Apostles.
kingdom.                                                      Then the so-called general offices were instituted and
       And specifically, with respect to the Strike ques- given unto the Church, comprising the offices of Elder
tion, if the well-known objectionable clause in the  eon-     and Deacon, the former again being divided into the
stitution of the C. L. A, can be placed in such context,      Teaching-Elder and the Ruling-Elder,. These three
L will have no objection to it.                               offices in the Church are of course to be d'istinguished
       But this will be no easy task, for although the law    from the general offices of  Ibelievers.  All believers
of love is an easy burden to those that are born of           are also in office, that is, they are given the unction of


,     ;     ii     .--.,     "    .<*---      -     '     .-    TlHE  S T A N D A R D   B E A R E R                                  213

 the Holy Spirit, and as such they are all prophets, creation, when God said: Let there be light, there was
 priests and kings, with Christ under God. This of- caused to be light, as the direct result of God's speech.
 fice is primary. It is also essential and eternal. For- So also in grace. When God says anything, He causes
 ever shall the people of God rule over all the works it to be. When He speaks of righteousness and peace,
of Gods  han'ds,  and offer sacrifices of praise and speak then He causes righteousness and peace to be in the
in the name of God. They do this now only in prin- hearts of His own. Therefore also, the people of God
ciple  ,and very imperfectly, but by and by they will do must know that the word is being ministered, when
this together in highest unity and perfection forever. they hear the voice of their blessed God saying: Come
 So that this office of the believers is essential and                            unto Me. God is preaching His Word.
 eternal.                                                                            Secondly the Ministry of the Word, implies that
            But the better to develop that Body of Christ in the there be a Minister, who does ind,eed  minister that
world, the better to cause it to grow in the knowledge Word of God. Such a minister is sent unto the Church
and grace of our Lord and Saviour, God gives unto by the Author of that Word that is to be ministered.
 it the various offices to Teach, Rule ,and show Mercy He is called upon to clothe that office of the Ministry,
unto it. This is taught us in Eph..  4: 11, 12. "And and in the measure that he does this, in that measure
he gave some, apostles, and some prophets; and some he is worthy of the name Minister of God's Word. He
 evangelists; and some pastors and teachers; for the then stands in Christ's office, administering that office
 perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, in God's Holy  Templ,e,  as that  Holy Temple is not
for the edifying of the body of Christ." These words made up of brick and stones, but of living members
 leave no doubt as to the relation between the body of the body of Christ. He is Christ's ambassador,
 and these various offices. The body is the body of through Whom God speaks unto the heart of Jeru-
 Christ and is therefore essential and primary. The salem. We must understand that the Minister does
various offices are gifts unto that body for its growth not speak ABOUT God and as such ministers the
and edification. Yet we must not think that the var- Word, but God actually speaks, and He speaks through
ious offices instituted in the church are given by the                            His ambassador. Through the preacher Christ causes
membership of the body. The Body of Christ is not a His own voice to be heard. Thus the body of believers,
Democracy, nor are her officials, Elders, and Deacons, when listening to the preacher, actually does say: "I
the Ministers, chosen OF THE PEOPLE, BY THE hear the voice of Jesus, say, come unto Me and rest".
 PEOPLE and FOR THE PEOPLE. For this is not                                          Therefore thirdly, that Preacher is the mouthpieae,
the case. It is very plain from Scripture that the not only of God but of the Church. For the Church
offices are instituted by Christ and Christ will  fill receive the commission to  PREACH THE GOSPEL.
these offices with men, CHOSEN BY HIMSELF, Giver1  this commission to preach the gospel, when
whom (He especially fits with various gifts unto their                            Christ was about to ascend to heaven, the church must
respective tasks. These officers are then responsible therefore keep that word, receive  it? interpret it, con-
to their Sender, Jesus Christ, and are bound by His                               fess it. This the church  does through the Ministry
Word alone, even as also the whole Body of Christ is of the Word. It is well to emphasize this in our day,
bound by and to that Word. So that all the labor,                                 It is not the task of everyone to preach the Word. In
preaching and ruling and also mercy, centers about truth, it is the duty of every believer to witness of the
that Word. Yea, it is all based upon that Word and truth. Surely we must all let OLP light shine in the
from that Word it receives its direction, and its au- darkness. He who does not confess the Saviour before
thority. Therefore the bringing of that Word, both men, will also not be confessed by the Saviour before
on Sundays during the public worship, as well as dur- the Father in heaven. But the official preaching of
ing the week days in Catechetical instruction to the                              the Word is not everyones task. It is only the task
covenant youth, is the chief labor of the Church, and of the Church, officially through the officebearers,
this labor is called the Ministry of the Word. The that is, through the Minister, whom God has called
Word then is being ministered unto the body of Jesus unto that task. Such a Minister then must devote all
Christ.                                                                           his time and talent and effort to that exclusive work,
            As to that Ministry of the Word we may make a Ministering the Word. He does this upon authority,
few remarks. First of all it is necessary to remember first of Christ, secondly of the Church of Christ,
that only God's Word is to be Ministered unto God's through whom Christ calls him.
people. Any other word ministered is vain and sinful.                                Therefore also no elder, nor student is a minister
And in the measure that the words of men are minis- of the Gospel.. He has not the authority of the office
tered, in that measure there is no spiritual fruit at all.                        vested in his person. The Elder does have the author-
Because men's words are ineffective and without any ity to rule and the Deacon  does  have the authority to
power to accomplish any good. On the other hand be the Merciful High Priest's representative. Also
God's Word is effective and powerful and causes the the Minister is at the same time an Elder, but the rul-
thing that is not, to be, as though it were. Even as in ing Elder is not the Minister. Only the Minister is at


214                          --`-,?T'HE  S T A N D A R D   B E A R E R                                    -  _  ._(-- Y
the same time an Elder, but the ruling Elder is not the      the courts of the Lord to hear what the Spirit hath to
Minister. Oniy the Minister receives the authority to say unto His Church, by the Ministry of the Word,
preach the Word, although he does this under the             which is always present, when God's Word is brought
supervision and upon the request and calling of the          upon authority, of the official body,.
Church through its  cons&tory.                                                                            L.  v .
       Now this brings us also before the question as to
how we must regard the public services when an Elder
reads a sermon or a student brings to us the message
from the Word of God. And in the light of the above,
we `believe  th,at whether there be the Minister deliver-
ing the Word, or a Student bring the message, or an                   The Error Of Seventh-Day
Elder reading it out of a book unto the congregation,
we have the  oficial Ministry of the Word. Does not                              Adventism
the official ruling body of the Church, that is the con-
sistory, authorize the elder to read or the student to          The doctrine of Adventism as we know it, found
deliver the sermon? Is it not true, that whenever the        its origin in Wm. Miller, of Low Hampton, N. Y.
congregation comes together to worship the Lord, and         His first occupation was that of a farmer, but later
the Word of God is being brought to her, that then he devoted his life to clerical work and became a fanat-
we have the Ministry of ,the Word? And does not the ical student of prophecy. He began his studies of the
approval of the official body make the service also the prophecies in the year 1818 but did'not enter upon the
the official ministry of the Word? We believe it does,       work of the ministry until 1831. He soon satisfied
and that essentially there is therefore no difference himself that the advent of Christ was to be personal
for the body of believers, whether a Minister, Student and premillenial, and that it was near at hand. The
or Elder brings the message from the Word. If this year 1843 was the date agreed upon in which Christ
were not the case, then often the Church of God would        would return. (Hence the name Seventh Day AcZvent-
be without official Ministry of the Word, sometimes          ids).     Before the specific day came all business of
for years. Often it happens that churches are without the fol.lowers  was put to a standstill, their goods and
their own pastor for such a  !ength  of time, and the        properties were liberally distributed to others; These
Elders read sermons, or Students bring the Word of would no longer be of any avail to them. But the day
God.                                                         passed and no Christ came. ,Other  ,dates were set, but
       With this we do not  recommend  that the church again, as natural, ending in bitter disappointment for
does without its own pastor for such a church would them.                                       .
be lacking in one of the  .grea!est  gifts of God unto          In the year of Miller's death his followers were
His people. We must not forget that the pastor and           estimated at 50,000. Many who had been drawn into
teacher is the gift of God to His church in the world. the movement by the prevalent excitement left it and
That also a pastor, laboring in one place continually,       returned to the churches from which .they had with-
becomes ever more valuable. If he is faithful to his         drawn.     But ere long there also appeared divisions
calling, he wiil grow with the body of believers, and        among the faithful of the sect. Such as the Evangeli-
know them better and better, as to their needs and           cal Adventists, the Life and Advent Union, .the Age-
wants, their weaknesses and strength. But when it to-Come Adventists, and finally the Seventh Day Ad-
pleases God for awhile not to send one of His minis`zers     ventists. Some of these believe in the mortality of the
t-.0  His church, then it surely cannot mean that such a     soul, others that it's immortal, some in the annihila-
church has not the official ministry of the Word. We tion of the wicked (like the Russelites) and some deny
believe it does, if the rulers of the church seek dili- this. Of these various groups we know and hear
gently for the best reading sermons and authorize an most of the latter-the Seventh Day Adventists. They
elder to do this reading. Though then that elder is not do not go to the extremes of speculating about the
a minister, yet the minister of another flock is being exact day of Christ's return, but do lay special empha-
used, to not only edify but to Minister the Word of God      sis on the fact and its nearness. But they are dis-
unto the Church of Jesus Christ in the midst of the          tinguished from others especially by their keeping of
world. Whether  t.herefore  an Elder read a sermon in the Sabbath on the seventh day of the week. Hence
the absence of the `Pastor, or a student is called upon the name  Seventh Day  Adventists.
to bring the sermon, we, as members of the body of              Concerning this they maintain that it still is ob-
Christ, must desire to be present, because God is ligatory to observe ,the Sabbath on the seventh day.
Preaching  iHis Word through the Ministry of  His Nowhere, according to them, does God in His Word
Church. Bearing this in mind, it would greatly elim- command us to consecrate the first day unto Him.
inate the sinful spirit of: I am of Paul, and I am of And they challenge us to find one text that literally
Apollos and I am of Cephas. But we would come to             proves our standpoint.      Hence, they as in the Old


                                     T*HE  S T A N D A R D   B E A R E R                                            215

Testament keep the seventh day. Consequently they typical Sabbath, which pointed to this rest. And cling-
also maintain that the seventh day in itself is holier          ing to the promises of that rest they went forth. But
than the other `days of the week, and that the consecra-        always and again it was six plus one, six plus one.
tion of it to the Lord is also pleasing to Him.                 Six days and then the Sabbath, and after the Sabbath
   According to the topi,c of our essay we are to ex-           they again found themselves in the toil and labor,
pose this error.     We readily understand, of course, difficulties and strifes of this life. The true rest they
that if it would be merely a matter of different days,          had not attained. Even the  Iand of Canaan, which
the error wouldn't be so great. But a principle is in-          was a type of the rest to come, didn't bring them the
volved. And to show the fallacy of that principle we            rest.
do not intend to go into the details and different angles           That's the history of the Old Testament Church
of this doctrine." Neither to come merely with a few from the viewpoint of the rest. So for  i1000 years.
texts to prove the contrary.. Fact is that the  positive You ask why so long? Why was the time of the
idea of worshipping on the first day is nowhere taught Old Testament of such a long duration? The answer,
or  ,commanded  us in Scripture  with so  many words.           from our particular viewpoint, is to show the Church
But that must not offset us. Neither do we find that that it  by itself could never attain the perfect rest
in respect to Infant Baptism. But we will try to show with God. It showed that the prophets couldn't usher
that their conception of this doctrine is fundamentally them into that rest, neither the priests or kings. In-
erroneous in the light of the whole of Scripture. The sead it became darker still. Think of the time shortly
one error of the Seventh Day Adventists, then, is that          before the coming of Christ. And  when  the church
they fail to see the one whole of God's work as revealed had seen and Iearned  that it by itself was utterly help-
to us in iHoly Writ; that they do and act as if God has less to reach that rest, then the fulness  of time had
never spoken nor given another Day of Rest than that come. And Christ, the Immanuel, God Himself, ap-
of Paradise. Or to put it in a still more concrete pears on the stage. He it is that will bring the rest.
form: they do not see the relation of God's work in             He through suffering  *and battle and strife  wi11 pay
Christ to that of His work in Paradise.                         our debt, overcome the power of the devil which de-
   To clarify the above we must take notice of Go,d's           prives the church of rest. He will do the .work  of God,
day of rest in the Old Testament according to the               the  work of God.  ,He will bring God to man, yea,
ordinance of creation. In the book of the Beginnings in the heart of man, lay the foundation and build the
we read that  it was God who rested first of all on house of God, and through Him God's covenant and
the Sabbath Day. And God's resting on the Sabbath fellowship with His people will really come to pass.
certainly does not mean that He relaxed from the                    This is the heart of Christ's work on earth. He
mighty works He had done, bu,t that He now enjoyed              manifested that in His words, works and  .miracles.
the finished  work of His own hands. He delighted in            A,nd take notice that He performed many miracles  on
it, found His pleasure in the completed work of crea-           the Old Testament day. ,4nd 0 how <the Pharisees be-
tion. That work was good and it pleased Him. Man                came embyttered  tow,ards  Him for this. But why did
now, as imagebearer and imitator of God, was called             Jesus- perform so many on that day? Couldn't He
unon to do the same thing. Enter into God's finished have avoided this and prevent some  offence? The
work, and delight himself in it, enjov the fellowship           reasons for this certainly were not arbitrary, but to
with God as an imagebearer and praise God.                      prove and show the principle of His work. No more
   But this apparently was of short duration. Sin               appropriate day for our Lord to perform mirac!es  -an
r-me,  man became a covenant breaker and child of be found than the Sabbath. For miracles were signs,
+-he devil, and no longer did he po ir*`n .L1lat  --sf. God,    signs of His spiritual work, that He spiritually de-
however, promised to do another  work. much more livers us from our state of blindness, infirmity, sick-
glorious than the first. His work  fn Christ  desus.            ness and death, and gives us the life of God. His
The work of the Immanuel, God  ,?r?ith us. the taber-           miracles were signs of giving us the rest. Therefore
n.?cle  of God with man, the Almighty, Omnipotent, All-         He is Lord also of the Sabbath. He rules and has
Sufficient One dweliing  with creatures. In that work authority also over this day. He is Lord in that He
He would show the wonders and riches of His grace,              gives us the Sabbath, and delivers us from sin and
His unfathomable love, and a mercy that is greater weariness. Then He suffered and died. By it `He was
than the height of the heavens above the earth. And doing the work of the Immanuel, delivering  LLS and
man entering into that glorious state would enter .bzinging  us to God, and God to us. He lay in the
into the finished work of God, the work in which all            grave on the Sabbath. (to bury the Old Testament
of God's virtues would be manifested. This Adam did Sabbath too?) On the third day He arose on the other
not enjoy before the fall, but was promised to him side. And now-the work of God has been completed,
after it                                     1-t*     :-y-s+    that work by means of which God and His people are
   But the fulfillment was yet very distant, some 4000 again united, only now never to be separated again,
years. During this time they had no more than the               and that work which is characterized by heavenly  re-


                                   &%+3 i3 S T A N D A R D B E A R E R

lations and fellowship. In splendour  and excellency it very small, and th,e earthIy  things cleave to us. Our
far exceeds the  :first work in Paradise. The former           celebrating the eternal Sabbath every day is very
was the creation, the htter the beginning and essence little, and therefore we certainly can receive much
of the recreation. On that day it was that  ,God `Himself benefit from this special day. Suppose once that we
entered into `His finished work. Soon Christ  .ascended        had no Sunday worship at all. I can assure you that
to heaven, received the Spirit, and on Pentecost day the remnants of our religion and knowledge of Scrip-
poured it out. Then it was that He gave His church ture would be very little even with the second genera-
to enter into that, work, the eternal Sabbath, the             tion. In the second place such is necessary because
eternal Sabbath in principle.                                  it simply is well nigh impossible for us with our
   This beautiful reality the Seventh Day Adventist earthly vocations and work to serve God and attain
fails to see. He sees the first day of re.st,  but is blind    the necessary knowledge of Him without our worship
to the second, the fulfillment of it. Essentially he           on Sunday.
misses the heart of the matter.                                   And the special day we have on the first day of
   But we still have one more point to prove. If no            the week, on Sunday, because on it Christ arose. On
more is said he will still maintain cthat the seventh day that day God finished His work in principle, and we
is the proper day for the Sabbath and that we certain-         were delivered from our toil and labor and entered
ly have failed to prove him wrong.                             the rest. On that day the eternal Sabbath began for
   In answering we can say first of all that Scripture the Church. Which day then is more appropriate for
plainly teaches that this work of Christ takes the us to serve our God in a special way, and enter that
place of t.he old, that the New Testament is the ful-          rest? Now it is true that we nowhere read of the
fillment of the Old Testament. Hebrews 8 teaches New Testament Church having  t,heir  regular worship
this in very plain terms, as well as many other pas-           on Sunday. But we do read that they gathered on the
sages of Scripture. All of the old has been fulfilled. Lord's Day. Acts 20 :7; I  Car,. 16  :2; Rev. 1:lO. This
Consequently the old falls away, the Old Testament             certainly must have been on the first day of the week.
rituals, external worship, types and also the Sab- But even then the Adventist points out that these texts
bath.    The reality also of the Sabbath has come,             do not prove their regular worship was on Sunday.
and when the reality appears the shadow vanishes.              To them these gatherings on the Lord's Day may have
   But why do we now have the Sabbath day on the               been purely incidental. Taking these texts by them-
first day of the week? And does our Sabbath have selves we must concede this possibility. But  ,in the
the same meaning to us as  ,th,e seventh did to the light of God's one work in Christ, as fulfilling the old,
Old Testament saint? It certainly does not. That these texts certainly cannot just be brushed aside.
idea is sometimes found even among  LEL Our Sun-                  In the light of all this the Adventist still maintains
day in itself, to the exponents, is more holy than the         his point. Always and again he calls for a text ,that
other six.    Consequently their keeping of the Sab-           with so many words prove ,his error. The whole of
bath often consists in as much refrain from earthly            Scripture he fails to see, yes, refuses to see. But this
labors as possible and the positive element often is           is characteristic of many beliefs, even in our  day-
absent. `But such is not the teaching of Scripture.            The Baptists do likewise. But such there always have
In the New Testament every day is Sabbath day, in been. The apostle Paul also had to contend with them.
principle enjoying the rest of God every day. The              Time and again he met up with those clinging to the
idea certainly is not that we must serve God but               Old Testament rituals and ideas, and as is evident,
one day per week and the other six lose sight of this          also with Seventh Day worshippers. And so we in
and be busy with the things here below. The New conclusion can do no better than state his words, which
Testament is heaven in principle. In  #that sense all to our mind are very conclusive proof of the Seventh
days are alike. Every day we must enter into that Day Adventist's error. Col. 2 :16 : "Let no man there-
rest, flee from the earthy, sinful, and enter into God's fore  .judge you in meat or in drink, or in respect of
completed work. Or to express i't in the terms of our any  holyday,  or of ,the new moon, or of the Sabbath
Heidelberg Catechism: I must cease from evil works days." And Gal. 4  :lO: "Ye observe days and months
all the days of my life. .  ,. . and thus begin in this and times and years. I am afraid of you, lest I have
life the eternal Sabbath.                                      bestowed upon you labor  in vain."
    Out of this it follows from some  tha,t  we need                                                          J. B.
not consecrate any special day to the Lord. They
abolish all Sunday worship. All days  are alike any-
way. We, however, still maintain, and strongly so,
that even though it is our  c.alling to celebrate the                   Our help is in the glorious Name,
eternal Sabbath ,every day we must do thst in a special                      The Name of matchless worth,
way one day per week. That for two reasons. In the                      Of Him to Whom all power belongs,
first place because our principle of obedience is yet                        The Lord of heaven and earth.


VOLUME XIX                                                         FEBRUARY 15, 1943
-                          -                                                                                                NUMBER 10
                                                                                                  -
-CL..II--I
     -"-....-_i_l-"_.-_
-..*..1__-_-  ---.--                                                             The very first words that leave the king's lips when he
                                                                                 met the prophet of the Lord reveal but too clearly that
              IYI                                      I                         there was no thought of self-abasement in his heart,
                                                                                 that, in fact, he was filled with bitterness and domin-
                                                                                 ated by a spirit of rebellion. And as to the people, stil1
                                                                                 they were halting between two opinions, being com-
                                   The Chaknge                                   pelled to acknowledge the power of Jehovah, but never-
                                                                                 the Iess inclined to follow after Baal. Pet, God's time
                                And Elijah, came unto roll the people, and had arrived. `The judgment had served His purpose.
                     mid, How  long halt ye bctzuem  two opinions? And woe unto those that are not led to repentance by
                     if  the Lord be God  follow   him:   7,,ut  ,if  B~cMz~,    `the revelation of His divine glory!
                     fhen follow h%,ryL. And the people mswered                     And Elijah had obeyed the Word of the Lord, eag-
                     him not  n  7corcl.                                         es, no doubt, to resume the battle for the name  of
                                                     I  Kinys  18.21.            Jehovah.
      Ah, thou troubler of Israel!                                                  And first, as he traversed the land of his fathe;rs;
                                                                                 he had met Obedish,  one of the remnant according Ito
        Such was Ahab's greeting when, after three years the eIection  of grace in Israel, a representative of the
and six months, he met  EIijah,  the lonely representa-                          seven thousand that had not bowed the knee before
tive of Jehovah in the midst of apostate Israel.                                 Baa1 governor, indeed, of the house of Ahab, but  fear-
        Diligently, persistently the king had searched for ing the Lord greatly; timid, perhaps, yet faithful, and
the prophet of the Lord that had power to shut the                               deeply concerned albout the cause of God's covenant,
heavens and to open them again. No nation or king- f.or he had protected a hundred prophets against the
!dom.  there was whither he had not sent to inquire f.urious wrath and hatred of the wicked queen, and hid
after him. "And when they said, He is not here; he them by fifty in a cave, at the same time finding means
look an oath of the kingdom and nation", that they in that period of scarcity t,o keep them alive ! Be-
had not found him!                                                               tween himself and his governor king Ahab had divided
        And now the prophet took the initiative !                         '      the land in search for possible provender for their
        `He showed himself to Ahab !                                             beasts. And on his way Obediah met and immediately
        A long time he had sojourned with the widow of                           recognized the .prophet that "standeth  before God."
Zarephath, content to wait for the Wor,d of the Lord,                               Struck with terror had he been at the command
and blessing with his presence the home of  ihe  Zidon-                          of Elijah: "Go, tell thy lord, Behold, Elijah is here!"
ian woman and her son. But finally, in the third year                               Would such a message not mean its bearer's death?
of his stay in the very stronghold of BaaI, the Word Had not the king in his anger searched for the prophet
of the Lord for which the prophet had patiently waited everywhere? And would not, after Obediah had deliv-
had come unto him, and commanded him to depart and ered the message to the king, the Spirit of the Lord
to show himself to Ahab.                                                         carry the prophet once more to a safe hiding place?
        God would give rain again upon the thirsty land!                         And would not the king in his fury slay the governor
        Not, indeed, as if the judgment of the drought and for having sent for him on a fool's errand? But had
the resulting famine had produced the effect of a true he, Obediah, not deserved a better lot? Did not the
repentance and return unto the Lord, either on the                               prophet know, then, that he had saved the fives of
part of the wicked king, or on the part of the people.                           one hundred of he Lord's prophets, and fed them with


                      ,-
 23.8                                    T8HE  S T A N D A R D   B E A R E R

bread and water? . . . .                                        they must not hesitate to follow Him and Him only,
         Yet, the prophet had insisted, and he had sworn by with all their heart and mind and soul and strength!
 the living Lord of hosts that he would show himself               A fair enough proposition !
 that day to  !the king. And Ahab's governor had obeyed.           It implies that someone is God! The question at
         And so they met: Elijah that stan,deth  before God,    Carmel  is not whether there is a God at all. The pos-
 and the apostate ruler in Israel! And lo, the king sibility that the position of the fool, who says within
speaks first: "Thou here, thou troubler of Israel? . . . .      his heart that there is no God, may, perhaps, also be
         It must needs be thus, when the vain peace and         correct, does not enter into the challenge. The pro-
prosperity of the wicked is disturbed and condemned             phet is not dealing here with atheistic philosophers,
by the representative of Jehovah's cause in the world,          but with covenant people, that have become unfaith-
and hardening rather than repentance is the result. ful, that have departed from the ways of Jehovah, and
 For, indeed, Elijah had troubled Israel when in the apostatized from the living God, but who strangely
 wilds of Gilead he had cried to Jehovah his God to             hesitate to be consistent, and to accept the full con-
shut the heavens, and to withhold the rain from bless- sequences of their apositacy. No, the question is not
ing th,e thirsty land. Yet, his #troubling had been but whether there be a God at all. It concerns rather His
the act of the surgeon that firmly plants his knife in i,dentity : Who shall He be, Jehovah or Baal?
the festering wound to heal  ilt. The deeper, the real             It must be either-or!
cause of all the trouble in Israel were Ahab and his               But the proposition implies more.
fa$her's  house, in that they  hald forsaken the com-              It presupposes as self-evident, that whoever is God
mandments of the Lord, and followed after Baal! . . . must be followed! You cannot simply ignore God!
         Thus the prophet replies.                              He is not a fellow creature, an object of your curios-
         And in the consciousness of his authority  anad pow- ity, or of your scientific investigation, or philosophic
 er, he now orders the king of Israel to gather all the         contemplation, which you may  <discuss in your uni-
 people of Israel, and all the prophets and priests of versity halls, or in your night clubs; whose identity
 Baa1 on mount  Carmel.                                         you may, perhaps, establish, and having established
         There the battle is to  ibe fought!                    it ignore Him for the rest. God is the Lord ! He is
         There it is to be  marvellously  revealed that Je- your Sovereign, your Creator, your sole Possessor, un-
hovah is God alone!                                             to Whom  all things, for Whose sake you exist. If this
         The mighty Lord of hosts!                              be not so, He is not God ! Hence,  Ht must be self-evi-
                                                                dent that here you deal with a question of life and
`6                                                              death. It is of profound practical interest. It con-
         Bold challenge !                                       cerns your very existence ! A God must be followed.
                                                                You must hear His Word and hide it in your heart.
         Follow ye whoever is God !                             You must ackowledge Him as God, serve Him, obey
         If it be Baa1 that is God, follow him !                Him, glorify Him. You must enshrine Him with fear
         But if it be Jehovah, then forsake  Baal, and follow in your deepest soul, and put all your confidence in
Him !                                                           Him, expect all good things from Him only! . . . .
      Thus rings out, the challenge from the heights of            If He be ,God follow Him !
Garmel  to all the people that congregated on the moun-            StilI more.
tan slcope at the call of this strange prophet, lone, yet          The challenge is very definite. It proceeds from the
mighty champion of the cause of God's covenant in the assumption, as being equally self-evident, @hat who-
midst of general  apostacy.                                     ever is really God, must be followed wholly and ex-
         He does not attempt to arouse them into a mighty clusively. There can be no compromise between Je-
revival.                                                        hovah and  Baal. It cannot be "Both-And." It must
      He has nothing to o&r.                                    be  "EitherdOr."    If Jehovah be God, then the possi-
                                                                bility that  Baa1 also is God is excluded. If  Baa1 be
      ,He does not sweetly try to persuade them to turn God, then Jehovah cannot be. For whoever is God,
back to Jehovah by holding before them the prospect He is God ! And God is One. There is none beside
of rain, as, he might have done.                                Him. He is surely the Incomparable ! None can  Ibe
      He does not beg them to return.                           Iikened to Him, if He is really God! And, therefore,
      He draws the lines.  SharpIy,  distinctly, with a He must be followed wholly or not at all! He is
clear decision he brings to them the challenge: Choose surely a jealous God, whoever He is! He will have the
now ! It is either-or. Do not hesitate to serve  anld love of all your heart, ox nothing at all. He will not
follow with all your heart whomever you profess  *to be ,divide His glory between Himself and another. He
God. But by all means let it be just one, not two,.             will have your entire devotion, your whole heart and
decide once for all who is  ,God, and having decided Make up your mind, and act accordingly! They must


                                     TGE  S T A N D A R D   B E A R E R                                               219

mind and soul and strength, or He will surely condemn agination.  Baa1 is God-this, indeed, is mere opin-
YOU as godless, and strike you down in His wrath !          ion, a thought that arises from the wicked heart of
He will have all your confidence, or curse you! You man, who always stands in enmity over against the
must expect all ,good  from Him, or you must expect living God, and prefers to invent his own idol. But
Idamnation!  . .  ,i . .                                    Jehovah is God,-this is the everlasting truth, having
    Who is GOD!                                             its source in the mind of the living God Himself, and
    Not an academic problem is to .be solved at Carmel, revealed to His people through His Spirit and Word.
but a question of life and death is  to be answered !       But they, the apostate people, treated both as if they
    Who is GOD!                                             were mere opinions: the one `was Ithe opinion of their
    Jehovah or Baa1 ? Which shall it be?                    fathers, and of their prophets; the other was the opin-
    Neither were unknown to  ,the people. They are ion of the Phoenicians. . . . .
not unknown today.                                             And between these they <halted in their actual life !
    Jehovah is the God of Israel. He is the God of             They attempted to maintain both. They did not
revelation. He had manifested Himself to them in openly deny that Jehovah is God ; but they professed
word  anld  d,eed.     He had redeemed them, delivered that Baa1 is God also. They tried to serve Jehovah,
them from bondage, shown them His salvation. He and they would also follow after Baal, And the result
had spoken to them through the prophets, and reveal- was that they presented a most miserable spectacle,
ed Himself in the shadows. He is our God, Who more miserable, in fact, than the heathen round about
revealed Himself in Christ, His cross, His resurrec- them. They halted between two opinions! Though,
tion, His exaltation, as the God of our salvation. He of course, in reality they served Baal, yet they did not
is the God that calleth   th,e things that are not as if qu3.e give him the fuI1 confidence of their heart. They
they were, and thart  quickeneth the dead !                 were like all those, that profess Christ, but never can
   And Baa1 is the god of the nations, of the world.. make up their mind, whetrher  they will serve God or
He is the god, not of revelation, for he is not the liv-    Mammon !
ing God, but of man's own invention. He is like unto           Unstable in all their ways !
them  ,that make him. . . . .
    If they follow Jehovah, they must keep His cove-           Halting between two opinions !
nant, love Him, with all their heart, forsake the world,       And the cause of this double heartedness must not
walk in a new and holy life, hope for His salvation!        be sought in their ignorance, as if they actually did
   If they follow Baal, they walk after the imagina- not know that Jehovah is God, and that Baa1 is a mere
tion of their own heart, love the lie, commit iniquity, invention of the wicked human heart. This is never
pursue after the things of the flesh !                      the case. They had the knowledge of Jehovah, and
   If  they. follow Jehovah they must forsake Baal;         Baa1 was, on the very face of him, a lie, a wicked in-
if they follow Baal, they mnst abjure Jehovah!              vention.
   If they follow Baal, they must incur the fierce             The cause was their sinful heart !
wrath of the living  CTod !                                    Pride, covetousness, the lust of the flesh, the lust
   If they follow Jehovah, they must expect the fury of the eyes, the pride of life,-these could be satisfied
of Baal's power in the world!                               in the service of Baa1 ; never in the service of Jehovah!
    If Jehovah is God, follow Him!                          A11 the great nations of the world round about them
    If  Baa1 is God, follow him !                           claimed that  Baa1 is God: why not  ajdopt this opinion?
   Tremendous challenge !                                   lTliey  were ashamed of their narrow minded position!
                                                            Besides,  Baa1 had become the State religion, the
                                                            "Beast". To confess that Jehovah alone is God, and to
    Choose ye !                                             follow after Him, to reject Baal, and condemn his
   Be no longer double hearted, two-faced, unstable worship, meant that one could not be Caesar's friend.
in all your ways !                                          The prophets were persecuted to the death ! It was
   How long halt ye Ibetween  two opinions?                 safer to compromise, and to acknowledge that  Baa1 is
   Indeed such was the condition of the people gath- also God! . . . n
ered there on the slopes of mount  Carmel. Such is             Yet, on the other hand, they were afraid of Je-
the state of many would-be Christians throughout the hovah, of His power and just judgment. They desired
ages. Such must be the state of mind of those that to remain the objects of His favor. Double hearted
try to -decide the question as to who is God from the men like to go to heaven, while they love the world. . .
utility standpoint.                                            And so they halted between two opinions!
   Between two opinions they halted.                           And when the bold challenge of Elijah rang over
   The opinions were : Jehovah is God-Baa1 is God ! the hills, the people answered him not a word !
Not, indeed, as if both `are actually opinions, mere           Choose ye  :this day!  Tt is either-or! . .  I*  .
considerations of the mind, inventions of human im-            Silence ! . ` . .                             H. H.


220                                                                                                        :   TBE  S T A N D A R D   B E A R E R

                                The Sfandard Bearer
        Semi-Monthly, except Monthly in July  and  August                                                                                                                                                       EDITORIALS
                                                              Published by
                    The Reformed Free Publishing Association
                                            1101  Hazen  Street, S.  E.                                                                                                                                                Common Grace
                                     EDITOR - Rev. ,H. Hoeksema
  Contributing editors--Revs. J. Blankespoor, A. Cammenga,
  P. De Boer, J. D. de  Jong,   H.  De Wolf, L. Doezema,                                                                                                                                                                         6.
  M. Gritters,  C. Hanko, B. Kok, G. Lubbers, G. M. Ophoff,
  A. Petter, M.  Schipper,  J.  Vanden Breggen, H. Veldman,                                                                                                                                            We cannot possibly call attention to every  ,detail in
  R. Veldman, W. Verhil, L. Vermeer,  P. Vis, G.  Vos,                                                                                                                                              Van Til's work for I  *aam afraid that I would  ,weary the
  and Mr. S. De Vries.                                                                                                                                                                              attention of our  realders  too much by doing so. As an
  Communications relative to contents should be addressed                                                                                                                                           illustration of Van Til's meaning when he speaks of
  to REV. H. HOEKSEMA, 1139 Franklin St., S. E., Grand                                                                                                                                              the "paradox", and his application to the matter of
  Rapids, Michigan.                                                                                                                                                                                 "common grace", therefore, I will make just one other
  Communications relative to subscription should be ad-                                                                                                                                             quotation. The writer is discussing Point I, 1924, and
  dressed  to MR. R.  SGHAAFSMA,   1103.   Hazen  St., S. E.,                                                                                                                                       parti,cularly Dr. Schilder's appraisal of its meaning"
  Grand Rapids; Mich.                                        All Announcements and Obituaries                                                                                                       over against Zwier. He writes:
  must be sent to the above address and will not be placed
  unless the regular fee of $1.00 accompanies the notice.                                                                                                                                               "The point of logic raised by Schilder is of a
                                          Subscription $2.50 per year                                                                                                                               similar nature.     Zwier replies that something more
                                                                                                                                                                                                    should have been said on the subject. Again we agree.
                                                                                                                                                                                                    It is one thing to say that our Scriptur,e  exegesis must
                                                                                                                                                                                                    seek to be consistent. We must, as f,ar as we are able,
                                                                                                                                                                                                    interpret accordiqg  to the analogy of faith. It is an-
                                                                                  -                                                                                                                 other thing to say that our interpretation must accord
                                                              CONTENTS                                                                                                                              with logic as that is generally taken. If the second
                                                                                                                                                                                Page                statement is not to be out of accord with the first it
MEDZTATION                                                                                                                                                                                          must refer to a genuinely Christian-theistic conception
  THE CHALLENGE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 217                                         of logic. It may perhaps be said that much of the
          Rev. H. Hoeksema.                                                                                                                                                                         abstract reasoning of Hoeksema comes from his failure
                                                                                                                                                                                                    to distinguish between Christian and non-Christian
EDITORIALS  -                                                                                                                                                                                       logic. We do not mean, of course, that the rules of
  ,COMMON  GRACE                                                                                                                                                                     T?O
                                                    . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  ..~    the syllogism are different for Christians and  non-
  THE SIGN OF THE VIRGIN MOTHER . . . . . . . . . . . ,................. 222                                                                                                                        Christians. Hoeksema refers to the idea of insanity,
          Rev. H. Hoeksema.                                                                                                                                                                         saying that sin has not made us insane. We may
                                                                                                                                                                                                    agree if he means'merely that the unbeliever can fol-
  THE  BIBLICaL IDEA OF MYSTERY I............................... 226                                                                                                                                low the technical processes of intellectual procedure
          Rev.  B. Kok                                                                                                                                                                              as well or often better than the believer. But when he
                                                                                                                                                                                                    says or assumes that God's revelation in Scripture may
  CHRISTIAN ISOLATIONISM . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 227                                                                          be expected to reveal nothing which will be apparently
          Rev. H. De Wolf                                                                                                                                                                           self-contradictory we demur. `He attempts to harmon-
  PRAYER FOR PEACE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 229                                                    ize  lthe revealed  an,d secret will of God, prayer and
          Rev.  A. Cammenga                                                                                                                                                                         the counsel of God, etc.       His efforts on this score
                                                                                                                                                                                                    would not be accepted by unbelievers. He cannot solve
  NEWS FROM OUR CHURCHES . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 232                                                                                the full bucket difficulty, a difficul*ty whi,ch, they think,
       .*Mr. D. De Vries                                                                                                                                                                            lies at the heart of the Christian religion. To them
                                                                                                                                                                                                    the whole idea of a God who is self-sufficient and all
  dN "EXTREMIST" REPLIES . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ..a.................... 234                                                                                                glorious precludes the idea of anything taking place in
         Mr. G. Ten  Elshof                                                                                                                                                                         history that should glorify Him. To say that no one
                                                                                                                                                                                                    resist the will of God, not even the murderer is for
  THE GAINSAYERS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 235                                            them, to say that we simply believe in fatalism. Have
  THE  x4VENGING  MARCH AGAINST THE  MID'IAN-                                                                                                                                                       we then the right and courage to say tha*t Christian-
             ITES . ..I............. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 233 ity does not contradict the laws of logic? We do by
  THE NUMBERINGS . . . . . . ~ . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 240                                          pointing  out that i,t is God, the self-sufficient God, in
         Rev. G. M. Ophoff.                                                                                                                                                                         Whom is no darkness at all, Who made us His creat-
                                                                                                                                                                                                    ures. Then it appears natural that there should be


                                     TsHE  S T A N D A R D   B E A R E R                                              221

  in all that pertains to our relation to God (and what        a difference in the application and appraisal of the
  does not?) an element of mystery. As finite creatures value and power of logic. The Christian admits, of
  we Ideal in all our contacts with an infinite and inex-      course, that with his finite mind he can neither reach
  haustible God . .  ,.  . On the other hand, the Chris- out for, nor deny the Infinite; the rationalistic unbe-
  tian doctrine of God is the presupposition of the pos-       liever refuses to admit this. But even so, the formal
  sibility of true logical procedure. The rules of formal processes of logic remain the same for both. Also in
  logic must be fallowed in all aur attempts at system- this respect they have what Van Til calls "the meta-
  atic exposition of God's revelation,  wherther  general or physical si,tuation"  in common. The distinction maide
  special. But the syllogistic process must be followed Jy Van Til between Christian and non-Christian  logic
  in frank subordination to the notion of a self-suf- to me appears erroneous.
  ficient God. `We must here truly face the Absolute.             2. To formal logic certainly belongs the law of
  We must think His thoughts after Him. We must con.tradictions,  and I maintain that this law holds for
  think-analogically rather <than univocally. To reason the Christian as well as the non-Christian, and, what
  as though we can remove all the "logical difficulties" is more, that even Van Til can never escape its bind-
  which will naturally appear to be contained in Chris- ing force. It is iny conviction that for anyone to state
  tian system of truth is to say, in effect, )that on the that he believes both sides of a contradiction, appar-
question  i of logic the believer and the non-believer ently or real, is itself a contradiction. He that makes
  occupy neutral territory and to assign to the un- the statement simply contradicts himself. What is a
  believer a competence he does not in reality possess." contradiction? It is  a statement that is the direct op-
  pp,. 59, 60.                                                 posite of another statement, so directly the opposite
     It is evident that in application to ,the first point that it denies the truth of the latter statement.
  of 1924 this means that, when Scripture teaches that And what is the formal rule ,of logic that applies here?
  God hates the reprobate,  zboth as reprobate and as          This, that a thing cannot be and not be at the same
  histori,cally  existing wicked, this does not preclude the time, or a'thing  must either be or not be; and ,that the
  possibility that the same Scripture also teaches that        same a,ttribute  cannot be denied and affirmed of the
  He loves them, both as reprobate and as wicked, and same subject at the same time. Now it ought to be as
  is gracious to `them. The first point is defended by plain as ,the sun in the heavens that no one can pos-
  an appeal to the Paradox. `The same application is slbly escape the stringent necessity of this formal law
  made, of course, with regard to the second and third of logic. If I maintain the truth of one of two con-
  Points of 1924. The fact that the Bible ,teaches  that tradictory statements, I thereby have ah-eady stated!
  the wicked is wholly corrupt, not only in his nature, that I have denied the truth of  th.e other  stc&menrt.
  but also in his ways, does not preclude the doctrine that    A thing may have two quite different attributes, of
  he also does good in this world. It is admitted that         course. The statement: this paper is white, does not
  these  things are  apparently  contradictory. It is de- contradict the statement this paper is black, for the
  nied, however, that they are  yeally  contradictory. The simple reason that it may be white on one side, black
  apparently contradictory is a mystery. And all  this         on the other. But after I have stated: This paper i.s
  is maintained by an appeal to  thge self-sufficiency and w/hi&e,  I cannot `say and believe the  stateme&:   this
 `absoluteness  of God.                                        paper ti not white, for the simple reason that in my
     Now, on .this entire philosophy of the "paradox" I first statement I did already state: this paper is not
  wish to make the following remarks:                          not-white. Now, Van Til admits this. He emphas-
      1. That it is still not quite clear to me ,what the      izes that he does not Ibelieve  in the ,reaZZy  contradict-
  author means by his distinction between Christian and ory. But he claims that he can maintain the appur-
  non>Christian logic. He appears to admit that the for- ently  contradictory,. Let us see whether this be true,
  mal rules of logic are the same for the believer and         i.e. whether any normal mind, Christian or non-Chris-
  the unbeliever. But if this is fully admitted, it seems tian, can really accept the apparently contradictory.
  to me that it is admitted also that there is no differ- What is meant by the  a.pparently  contradictory? This,
  ence between .the logic of the <believer and the logic that two propositions appear  contradictory to me, al-
  of the `unbeliever, anymore than there can be any though I know that they are not. As far as I can see,
  difference between the formal rules of arithmetic for they are absolutely contradictory, so that the one pre-
  the Christian and the non-Christian, For what is log-        cludes the truth of the other, and the other precludes
  ;ic otherwise than a system of formal rules of reason- the truth of the one. I know that this paper is not:
  ing? There may be difference in fundamental premi- white and not-white. Yet, so it appears to me. What,
  ses from which the Christian and the non-Christian then, is my only conclusion? The contradiction? Do I,
  start their reasoning process; anld there is, of course.     in that case, say categorically: this paper is both
  `The former starts from revelation, the latter refuses white and not white? Not at all! I know that this
  to take his starting point in the Word of God. But           statement cannot be truly made. I am convinced, that
  this does not effect their formal logic. There may be        wha$tever  may be the truth about the  color  of that


822                                   T H E   S T A N D A R D   BEARGR

paper, the statement that it is both white  aed not-white    a. We adhere to the current teaching of Scripture,
is  CC&&& not true!  Wlhat then is  th,e result? That        and b. We humbly confess that as yet we have not
I can say absolutely nothing about the color of that         sticient light to solve all the  difficulties,  and continue
paper! And so it is evident, that no normal mind can our search. I sincerely believe that I have always
possibly entertain two contradictory propositions.           followed this method, and that Van Til does me an
    3. This does not at all deny the  mystery.  I can        injustice  when he accuses me of abstract reasoning
very well believe the mystery on the basis of revela-        or rationalism.                                 H. H.
tion. I know that the Infinite is forever beyond the
reach of the finite, and that if we are to  lcnow the
Infinite, it can only abe by revelation, and, moreover,
that this revelation of the Infinite must necessarily
involve mysteries for my finite mind. The Scriptural
notion of mystery is that of something which cannot             The Sign Of The Virgin Mother
be known by man at all, `except by revelation. And
even though it is known by faith, it my be too high,            The fulness of time, the time when "God sent forth
too deep for me to comprehend and fathom. But a His Son, made of a woman, made under the law," is
mystery is no contradiction, nor an apparent contra- noted for its many visions and revelations. Shortly
diction. The doctrine of the holy trinity is a mystery, before the birth of the Saviour,.the  angel Gabri,el  was
but it is no  doctrine  that involves logical  contradic-    ,the bearer of amazing and glad tidings. He had been
Cons.  If it did, we could not have a doctrine of the        sent to the aged Zacharias as the latter was minister-
trinity at ail. That God is the absolutely self-suf- ing in the temple, to announce to him that his wife
ficient Being, and that He, nevertheless, purposes to Elizabeth should bear him a son, at whose birth many
be glorified by the creature, may involve matters too        would rejoice, and who would be great in the sight of
high for us, but it implies no logical contradiction.        the Lord. Six months later the same Gabriel, "that
But that God wills to damn and save ,the same man, is        stands in the presence of `God," was sent to <the humble
to say: ,God wills to dnmn ihim, and :God wills not to       and despised village of Nazareth, out of which no
&mn him. And that is a contradiction.                        good thing was ever expected, to bring Mary the most
    4. But Van Til claims that there are apparent con- amazing  messyge  that was ever brought to human
tradictions in the Bible, and that in such cases we being, that she, a virgin, should conceive, and bear a
simpIy accept both sides of the contradiction. I deny .son, and should call His name Jesus. "He shall be
this. For: 1. The Bible is the revelation of God to great," thus the angel had spoken, "and shall be called
us, adapted to our understanding. God, Who created t%le Son of the highest; and the Lord God shall give
our logical mind, also adapted His own revelation to unto him the  ,throne of his father David ; and he shall
that mind. Hence, ther,e surely cannot be contradic- reign over the house of Jacob for ever; and of his king-
tions in the Word of  Gold. There are no contradictions dom th.ere  shall be no end." And when Mary, perplex-
in  .God.    How could there  dbe contradictions in His ed, had inquired : "How shall this be, seeing I .know not
revelation to us? 2. It is true, that there may be, a man?,' the heavenly messenger had explained : "The
there are, in Scripture statements that at first blush Holy Ghost shall come upon thee, and the power of the
appear to contradict each other. But it has always Highest shall overshadow thee: therefore also that
been sound Reformed method of exegesis to make a holy thing which shall be born of thee shall be called
serious attempt to solve the difficulties by explaining the Son of God." And other revelations had followed.
those passages that appear to contradict the current When Mary, at the suggestion of Gabriel, had visit-
teaching of rthe Bible, the arwxZogia Sctipturae,  in the ed her cousin Elizabet.h,  the latter had called her the
lighk of the latter.     Van Til emphasizes that this mother of her Lord, the blessed among women; and
method must be applied in such eases. Only, for some Mary's soul had magnified the Lord, and her spirit
reason, he quite arbitrarily wants to stop at a certain had rejoiced in God her Saviour, as she envisioned
point. And his objection to my method can only be ,through  the Spirit of prophecy the salvation of God,
that I insist that this method must be applied through- and the realization of His promise to Abraham. So
out, to the very end. And when I apply this thorough- too, the birth of John the Baptist, Zacharias' tongue
ly Reformed method to the interpretation of Holy had been loosed, and being filled with the Holy Ghost,
Writ, I come to the conclusion that the theory of com- he had prophesied of salvation through the "dayspring
mon grace is a myth, an invention of man's mind, not from on high." And soon, when the Christ-child is
a truth of revelation. 3.. But suppose now that after born, the heavens rend, and angels bring the message
all our efforts there should still be apparent contra-       of the gospel in speech and song, shepherds spread
Idictions in the Bible. What then? Must we then not abroad what they had seen and heard, Simeon speaks
accept both sides of the contradiction? I have already of the child as a sign that shall be contradicted, and
shown  that this is impossible. No, <but in that case:       Anna tells the glad story to all that looked for redemp-


                                   T,HeE  S T A N D A R D   B E A R E R                                             223

tion in Jerusalem.    Revelations, through visions of           Everything in this narrative revolves, as you notice,
angels as well as through prophetic inspiration, a-         around the sign of the virgin mother. For the text
bound in the fulness of time. The irmarnation  of the       declares that all this was done that the sign of the
Word is richly accompanied by the spoken Word of virgin mother might be fulfilled. Unto this end, Mary
God !                                                       was espoused, yet not married, to Joseph, who was,
   And how could it be different? Was not the birth         like Mary, of the house of David. This although giv-
of Jesus, the inca.rnation  of the Son of God, the high- ing her the legal status of a wife, left her a virgin
est revelation of the Invisible ; but was it not, at the    still; and so the sign could be realized, and at the same
same time, shrouded in the most impenetrable veil:          time hidden from profane eyes, and, perhaps, from
the likeness of sinful flesh? Who, then, is ever able       wicked hands, and presently, Jesus could be legally
to understand the deep ways of God Who hideth Him-          registered as the son of David. But, evidently, and
self; and Who, of finite human beings, would have           quite naturally, Mary had not informed her espoused
been able to trace the steps of the Infinite as He came husband of the message she had received from Gabriel.
in the Person of His only begotten Son to dwell with She kept all these things pondering them in her heart.
us for ever, unless `He Himself had announced His           The subject was too delicate for discussion with Jo-
coming, and explained His inscrutable ways? Who seph. And, besides, how could he possibly believe her
would' have recognized Him in that babe in the manger,      word? It was a matter that could only be accepted on
wrapped in swaddlingclothes, had He not sent His the Word of God Himself, And so she trusted that
angel to the shepherds in the fields of Ephratah, to the same God W,ho shad revealed the Wonder of the
explain the Word that had come to pass? Was not the Sign to her, would in due time interpret it to Joseph.
Christchild in ~Bethlehem  like every other babe Ito all And so all these thin'gs:  the wrong interpretation by
appearances, except that he was poorer than the poor- Joseph of Mary's pregnancy, his determination to put
est on the earth? Or how could Mary have understood, her away privily, without going through tehe process
or even endured, the awful experience of her virgin of a public trial, the vision of the angel, and the fol-
pregnancy, had not God Himself explained the cause lowing up of the word of the angel by Joseph,-all
to her before it came to pass? Or who would have these things took place that the sign of the virgin
believed the sign of the virgin mother, so capable of mother might be realized, believed and understood
quite a different interpretation, if the spoken Word of by believers, and protected against the assaults of
God had not accompanied the Word becoming flesh?            wicked men !
   Joseph, to whom Mary was espoused, certainly                Long ago the sign of the virgin mother had been
did not correctly read and interpret the sign of the promised.           Even then, almost eight hundred years
virgin with child. And who can lay it to his charge,        before its final realization, it  Chad  been given as a sign
or hold it against him? But the sign was divinely ex- that Jerusalem should surely be saved. The wicked
plained to him, and he believed the Word of God. The Ahaz was then king of Judah. And the existence of
narrative of this revelation, as beautiful as it is         God's people was then threatened cby Rezin, king .of
simple, you may find in Matthew 1:18-21: "Now the           Syria and Pekah, king of Israel, who made war
birth of Jesus Christ was on this wise: When as his against Jerusalem and Judah. The prophet Isaiah is
mother Mary was espoused to Joseph, before they Isent ,to the wicked king, as he is examining his fortifi-
came together, she was found with child of the Holy         cations, with the promise that Jerusalem shall be
Ghost. Then Joseph, her husband, being a just man,          saved, and that her enemies shall not prevail against
and not willing to make her a public example, was her; and with the exhortation to put his confidence in
minded to put her away privily,. But while he thought Jehovah. But this the wicked king dare not do. How
on these things, behold the angel of the Lord appeared can the wicked trust in the Lord? Ahaz would rather
to him in a dream, saying, Joseph, thou son of David,       rely on his strongholds, and on his alliance with the
fear not to take unto thee Mary thy wife: for that king of Assyria. `The prophet suggests that the king
which is conceived in her is of the Holy Ghost. And ask a sign that the Lord will surely save Jerusalem.
she shall bring forth a son, and thou shalt call his `He may ask for a sign, either from heaven above, or
name Jesus: for ,h.e shall save his people from their in the depth beneath. But the king refuses. Piously
sins. Now all this was done, that it might be fulfilled he offers the excuse that he will not tempt the Lord,
which was spoken of the Lord by the prophet, saying,        but in his heart he is afraid that the sign, when it
Behold, a virgin shall be with child, and shall ,bring      is given, will only aggravate his guilt, seeing that in
forth a son; and they shall call his name Emmanuel, his heart he is determined not to put his trust in the
which being interpreted is, God with us. Then Joseph Lord. However, the sign will surely be given, for the
being raised from sleep did as the angel of the Lord prophet declares : "Therefore the Lord Himself shall
had bidden him, and took unto him his wife: and knew give you a sign ; Behold a virgin shall conceive, and
her not till she :had brought forth her firstborn son:      bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel."  The
and he called his name Jesus."                    _.        `sign  of the virgin mother, therefore, is  God?s own


224                                   TpHE   S T A N D A R D   B E A R E R

sign that Jerusalem, that His people :;hall surely be          it was nevertheless, conceived an.d born without the
saved. And that sign is fulfilled, when Mary is with will of man. The sign of  tihe virgin mother represents
child, and when the angel interprets  her condition as the inscrutable mystery that the Son of God, the
being due to a divine conception.                              second Person of the Holy Trinity, prepared for Him-
   A sign in Scripture is always some perceptible to- self a human nature from the flesh and blood of the
ken of representation in the world of our experience of virgin Mary to unite Himself with us for ever. The
the invisible wonder of salvation. Salvation is a won- sign, therefore, must needs be unique. But unique the
der. It is itht ,work  of God whereby He lifts us and all      sign is, too, in its lowliness. It  .is lowlier still  thzn
dcreation from the depth of sin and death and the the Babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, and Iying in
curse, into  t,he eternal glory of His heavenly  taher-        the manger. It cannot be seen except by faith, and in
nacle and everlasting kingdom of righteousness and the light of the Word of God. In fact, to the natural
peace in Christ Jesus our Lord. The power whereby eye the sign speaks only of sin, the sin of `adultery, so
this wonder is accomplished is His grace. Now, a sign that, as it were, the sign is completely hid by its very
is a perceptible token of this invisible wonderwork of form. Thus Joseph at first interpreted thee sign. And
grace in our sin cursed world. Sometimes something being a just man, he purposed to let Mary go, and to
becomes a sign merely by God's appointment. Thus break  the bond that existed between them; while, lov-
*he rainbow is set in the clouds to serve as a sign of ing her, he meant to put here away privily, that he
IGod's everlasting and all-embracing covenant ; the sand might not expose her shame.               But surely,' the sign
that is by the seashore is a sign of the multitudinous speaks only of shame, until the Word of Gold interprets
seed of Abraham; the bread and wine in our Lord's              it to him, and he believes and obeys. This, too, must
Supper are appoin'ted  to be signs of the broken body needs be so. For it is a sign of the Son of God come
and shed blood of our Lord Jesus Christ. But some-             in the flesh, in fact, in the likeness of sinful flesh.
times, very often, signs are directly connected with In the manger of Bethlehem Iies the most astounding
the operation of God's handiwork in our world, an'd are Wonder of `God,  yet it is completely hid ! So is the sign
caused by it. Thus the wonders of our Lord, per- of the virgin that conceived and bare a son the most
formed during His earthly sojourn: the healing of the amazing sign, yet it does not even speak of the Wonder
sick, the opening of the eyes of the blind, the cleansing which it represents, in fact, it suggests nothing but
of the lepers, the raising of the dead,-.-all these are        sin and shame, except to him that believes!           How
signs of the immediate presence and operation of the unique and how fitting is the sign of the virgin mother !
wonderwork of God's power of salvation. When the                   Shall we attempt to explain this marvellous  sign?
wonder of God's grace breaks through our sin-cursed Shall we try to demo.nstrate  the possibility of it? That
world, the blind see, the deaf hear, the  lame walk, the       would mean to destroy it. Shall we make  ,plain its
Idumb speak, the lepers are cleansed, and the dead are necessity?            This has been attempted, but in last
raised. And all these wonders are signs of that power, ianalysis even this must fail. We believe that Christ
that will ultimately completely triumph over all the was born of a virgin without the will of man. be:ause
power of sin and death and the curse, in the new               this is the indubitable testimony of Holy Writ. Even
creation, in which the tabernacle of God shall be with this has been denied. It is argued that the word trans-
men, and righteousness shall dwell forever.                    lated "virgin" in Isa. 7:14 may just as well denote `2
       To this latter category belongs the sign of  the young married woman ; it is observed that Christ  was
virgin mother.      And it is  bot.h  unique and fitting. of the house of David, while the genealogies we have
Unique it is, first' of all, because it does, and must in the Bible of Jesus are not of Mary but of Joseph ; it
needs stand alone. It is never, nor could it ever, be is suggested that it was not at all necessary for the
r,epeated. In all (the history of ,the world there .appears    incarnation of the Son of God, Ithat He should be born.
only one sign of a virgin that conceived and bore a of a virgin: He could have united Himself  ,equally  well
son.     Other signs there are many, this sign stands with a normally conceived and born human nature.
alone. Just as there may be a multitude of radiuses However, there can be no doubt about the Scriptural
in  d circle, but  ther,e  is only one center? so there are a (teaching on this point. When the angel announces to
multitude of wonders, but there is  only one sign of the `Mary the birth of her great Son, Mary asks the ques-
virgin mother. For it is the sign of signs, without tion of astonishment : "How shall this be, seeing I
which there could be no &her signs, bepause  it is the /know  not a man?" And the  Iangel explains: "The
sign of the incarnation, the coming into the flesh of Holy Ghost shall come upon thee, and the power of the
ithe Son of God, .which cannot be repeated, and which -Highest shall overshadow thee."  AI1  t,his can only
is tlie heart and source of all the wonders of salvation. mean that Mary was a virgin, and that the conception
It signifies, as the angel of the Lord explained to of the human nature of Jesus was of the Holy Ghost.
.Joseph in a dream, that t.hat which was conceived in          And the same .is true of the narrative in Matthew,.
Mary was of the Holy Ghost. It means  that the                 The attitude of Joseph toward his espoused wife, and
human nature of Jesus was, indeed, human, but that             his intention to leave her, have meaning only on the


                                    T H E   S T A N D A R D   B E A R E R                                             225

supposition that Mary was still a virgin: they were be very man, but also perfectly righteous, that he may
betrothed, but not yet married. And,  besbdes,  the bring the perfect sacrifice. But He must be more than
angel assures Joseph in a dream that "thlat which is man: He must be very God, for how could mere man
conceived in her is of the Holy Ghost." Surely, the            ever live through  t,he fire of God's wrath, and how
Word of God teaches that Jesus the Christ was born             could the obedient death of one ever be sufficient to
of a virgin, without the will of man! The sign of the justify millions that had sinned? And, besides, how
virgin mother is very real!                                    could mere man deliver us from the dominion of death,
   To them that believe this sign represents the great-        and make us partakers of the eternal life of God?  .He
ost of tall wonders, and proclaims the very heart of the must be very God and very man ! Immanuel-Jesus :
gospel concerning our salvation. For it signifies that         He is the Saviour indeed! The sign of  t.he virgin
lthe Son of God, the second  P.erson  of the Holy Trinity, mother proclaims that He Who Idied on the accursed
who is  and remains very God, co-eternal with the              tree is the Son of God, so that God was in Christ re-
Father and the `Holy Ghost, became  very man, assumed `conciling the world unto Himself, not imputing their
the flesh and blood of the children, that He might save trespasses unto them ! We are justified ! Immanuel
them from their sins, and lift them up into the highest ds the God of our salvation! God with us is God for
glory and blessedness of God's heavenly fellowship.            us! And if God be for us, who can be against ns?
Great, indeed, is the mystery of godliness! God also              And so the angel does not contradict the word of
became man: He did not cease to be God, but He took prophecy, which had predicted that they should call
`upon Himself the human nature ! The Creator also              His name Immanuel, when he enjoins Joseph to call
`became creature: He did not abdicate as Creator, but His name Jesus, but rather interprets `it and completes
He assumed the  rreaturely  nature and form. The it.                For, as the angel himself explains to Joseph:
Infinite ~ccarne to dwell within .the limits of the finite;    "He shall save His people from  (their  sins." To ap-
the Eternal came into time; the Almighty became a preciate the significance of this brief gospel message,
weak man ; the Lord of all became servant ! God came we should, in turn, emphasize every single part of it.
to dwell, to tabernacle with us: He lived our human H,e shall save His people from their sins. Sin is our
life, in our humian  soul and human body; He thought misery; from sin, from guilt and pollution we must be
human thoughts, He experienced human emotions, He saved, and we must be  clotheld  with everlasting right-
saw through human eyes, and heard with human ears,             eousness and holiness and truth in nrder to be saved
and spoke through human mouth. who can explain                 at all. He shall 8mue them from their sins: He shall
this mystery of godliness? To be sure, in the light of lift bhem  out of the depth of {their  misery, in wrder to
Scripture, we can and must say a little about it, to           raise them into the highest possible &ate of blessed-
safeguard it against the attack of profane men. And            ness in heavenly  gIory.      He  shaZE save  His people
from very early times the Church so interpreted the            from their sins. Salvation is not an opportunity, a
sign of the virgin mother, that it signified that the          chance, a possibility, ,the realization of which is contin-
Person of the Son of God took upon himself the real            gent upon the will of man. He is .not merely willing to
human nature from the flesh and blood of the virgin {save,  but powerless if you refuse to let Him save you.
Mary, so that Jesus the Christ is one Person, the Salvation is an absolute certainty: He  shall  save! He
divine, but in two natures: the divine and the human.          shall surely accomplish  all the work necessary to
He is very God and very man, in unity of the divine change His people from miserable sinners, hating and
Person of the Son. Let us, however, consider the sign cursing God into beloved and loving children of God,
of the virgin mother as proclaiming to us the heart of         dwelling forever in His house! But if the absolute
the gospel: God has united Himself witsh us in  most           certainty of this salvation is to be maintained, you
itnimate fellowship ! The Incarnation is  tthe begin-          must not fail to shift the emphasis once more, and
ning and ithe heart of that wonderwork of salvation            read the words of the angel thus: He shall save His
that will  culmin'ate  in the perfected  ct;Rbernacle  of people from their sins! Salvation is not universal,
God with us, whlere  we shall know Him as He is, and but' particular, both in actual fact and in the eternal
see Him face to face !     And that is why  tihey shall purpose of God. For His people are those, whom the
forever call His name Immanuel, God with us!                   Father hath given to this Jesus from before the foun-
       But as Immanuel He is alsd Jesus,  Jehovah-             dation of the world. And them He shall surely save.
Salvation! For He came to save His people from AnId when you and I believe on His name, it is only
their sins ! But in order to accomplish this salvation because the eterna1 elective purpose of God reached
He must be Emmanuel, God and man in unity of the               down to us and ingrafted us into Jesus by a living
divine Person of the Son ! He must be very man, for faith. And, finally, let us emphasize one other pati
man had sin.ned,  and man must speak the final Yes of this brief gospel, the most important of all:  He
that will negate for ever the No he once uttered in shall save His people from their sins. There is the
paradise. He must die, and ,die willingly, thus bring-         guarantee of it all. For He is Jesus-Immanuel, Im-
ing the perfect sacrifice for sin. He must, therefore,         manuel-Jesus, the God of our salvation with US and


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226                                  T.H,E  S T A N D A R D   B E A R E R

for us! The sign of the virgin mother proclaims that the `mysteries' of  palganism  which are based upon
Jerusalem shall certainly be saved!                           superstition and false supernaturalism, and. degener-
                                              H. H.           ated into all kinds of secret heathen cults and pagan
                                                              rituals.    Such is also the `mystery' of the Roman
                                                              -Catholic doctrine of the Eucharist, also based upon
   ..1"*
   ,b-.,                                                      a  faIse antithesis of the natural and supernatural, but
                                                              these have nothing in ,common  with the Biblical idea
            The Biblical Idea Of Mystery                      of mystery.
                                                                 Christianity has no secret doctrines which must
                                                              be kept cautiously concealed, as some seem to think
   Generally speaking we may say that there are of the doctrine of predestination, or religious truths
especially two wrong conceptions of the Biblical idea which have not been, or cannot be explained. Just the
of Mystery which are very prevalent in the Church opposite is true, for the Scriptural idea of  rn~stc~~~
today. The first is, that the scriptural idea of mystery is always, without exception, identified with revelation.
is something which is hidden, something which is con- The mysteries of Christianity are its revealed doc-
cealed from us. It is especially those who are addidted       trines. They refer not to the hidden, but to the re-
to this view, who  <are always ready to admonish those, vealed things of God. Indeed they were hidden in t,he
who would seek to ,penetrate  into the mysteries of God,      eternal decrees of ,-God, but now they are ,revealed.
and of His Word, with the words of Moses as recorded Thayer in his Greek lexi.con defines the New Testamen",
in Deuteronomy 29 :29 : "The secret things belong unto term `musterion' as "God's plan of providing salvation
the Lord. our God; but those things which are revealed for men through Christ, which was once hidden but
belong unto us and to our children forever, that we now is revealed."
may do all the words of this law." The second wrong              A study of the various passages of Scripture in
conception is, that the Scriptural idea of mystery re- which the term mystery occurs, strikingly reveals that
fers to that wliich  is contrary to human reason and the scriptural idea of mystery is very closely related
logic, and emphasizes that childlike faith in Scripture to such terms as  revelation, to make known, to know,
demands that we accept propositions that are directly to manifest, to proclaim, to  ideclare, to  ~understdnd.
contradictory to each other, and in conflict with our In Scripture the term mystery  is almost synonymous
logical  minld. Not to' do this, is to deny the Biblical with the terms  revelation, knowledge, and unde&ctn.d-
idea of mystery. They accuse those, who seek to har- in.g. Note the following passages : Romans 16  :2!5, 26,
monize the seeming contradictions of Scripture, of "Now to Him that is of power to stablish you accord-
being rationalists, who refuse to bow before the mys- ing to my gospei, and the preaching of Jesus Christ,
teries of the Word of God. Over against them we according to the revelation of the mystery  which was
maintain that the scriptural idea of mystery always kept secret since the world began, but now is rgade
far transcends the limits of the finite mind and our manifest, and by the scriptures of the prophets, ac-
boldest comprehension, but firmly deny that it is ever cording to the commandment of the everlasting God,
in conflict with the logic of the human mind. I believe made knou?n to all nations for the obedience of faith.."
that it was Dr. K. Schilder who once stated that "God's N&ice  especially the words I .have underscored. Thus
denkwetten maken nooit `s menschen,  denkwetten te- also Colossians I. :26, 27: "Even the  mysteyl which
niet." Faith in Scripture never demands that yea is hath been hid from ages and generations, but now is
also nay, that black is also white, that in respect to the    made  munifest  to his saints: To whom God would
same object and the same thing God wills, and He `make known what is the riches of the glory of this
wills not.                                                    mys'tery  among the Gentiles; which is Christ in you,
       The first wrong conception of the scriptural idea the hope of glory." Here the apostle emphasizes that
of mystery, that it is something hidden or concealed,         God would make known what is the riches of the glory
is perhaps due to the fact that this is the usual modern of this mystery, which had been hid from ages and
meaning of the term. Webster defines the term mys- generations, namely Christ in you, the hope of glory.
tery as " a rirte to which only privileged worshippers In Ephesians 6  :19 the apostle requests the prayers of
were admitted, and that, after preparatory ceremonies the Ephesian believers, "that I may open my mouth
and under obligation of secrecy ; -4 profound secret ; boldly,  to make  7mown the mystery of the gospel."
something wholly unknown, or something kept cau- Again in Ephesians 1:9 "Having made known unto us
tiously  con'cealed,  and therefore exciting curiosity or the mystery of His will." See also Ephesians 3 3, 4, 8 ;
wonder; an enigma ; something that has not been, or Colossians 4 3, 4 ; Revelations 10 :7 ; I Cor. 2 :2. In all
cannot be explained, as a religious truth or fact, that these passages mystery is closely associated with Yevel-
is beyond human `comprehension'; a sacred and at the ation'   as well as with word of similar import  "Z;o make
same time mysterious thing." This is not at all the knowin",. "to  .mnnif&",  and  "hath declared", clearly
scriptural idea of the term mystery. Such indeed are revealing unto us that the scriptural idea of mystery


                                   T#HtE  S T A N D A R D   B E A R E R                                              227
- . --
is just the opposite from  hidden, or that  which   is con-    the Spirit, seen of angels, preached unto the Gentiles,
ceal&. This is also the idea expressed in the only pas- believed on in the world, received up into glory."
sage in which the term `irrby~tery"  is attributed unto           And the reason thait this divine wqstery is hid from
our Lord; "And he said unto them, unto you it is the wise and pruldent,  (Matthew 11:25)  and from the
given  t~ know  the mystery  of the kingdom of God."           princes of this world, (I Corinthians 2  :6) and also
Mark 4:ll. See also Matthew X3 :I1 and Luke 8:lO.              that it is not given unto them to understand the mys-
In these passages `the Lord emphasizes that it has been teries of the kingdom of God, (Mark 4 : 11) is not due
given unto us to know, i.e. to understand the mysteries to the fact that his revelation of the mystery is veiled
of the kingdom of God, Never may we present it as in such enigmatical and esoteric language that they
though the scriptural idea of  mystery  is something cannot undersand it. On the contrary the language of
which is hidden, unknown, or something which must scripture is unmistakeably clear, so that they are
-be kept cautiously concealed. Neither may it be pre-          without excuse. It was just for the purpose, that  they
sented as though these mysteries of God should not might clearly and unmistakably see and hear this revel-
be the object of our earnest, and prayerful study, so ation, that the, Lord spake unt.0 `them in parables.
that we may come to an ever fuller undertanding of             "That seeing they may see, and perceive not, and
them, or that they should not be proclaimed unto the ,hearing  they  mi,ght hear, and understand not." (Mark
church.    It were far better that the prayer of the 4 : 12). That they nevertheless do not perceive and do
apostle were also our prayer, "And for me that I may not  unlderstand  these mysteries of the kingdom of
open my mouth boldly,  Eo make  knodn  the mystery of          God, which came to pass before their very eyes and
the gospel."                                                   ears in parables, and are clearly revealed in the Word
   But why then does Scripture speak of that which of God, (Isaiah 6  9) is not due to any secrecy or
is revealed, made known, manifested, as a  I mystery? indistinctness in the medium of revelation, but is due
The answer is self evident, namely && because `that to the fact that their carnal minds are blinlded. This
which is revealed, made known, manifested, is not the apostle Paul emphasizes in 2 Corinthians 43, 4.
the product of intellectual research, or human reason- "But if our gospel be hid, it is hid to them that are
ing, but of Divine  reljelation;  Not from below, but lost; in whom the God of this world hath <blinded the
from above,. This is especially the reasoning of the minds of them which believe not, lest the light of the
Apostle Paul in I Corinthians 2:1-16.  In this passage         glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image of God,
he speaks of the mystery of God, in contrast to the should shine unto them."                  (,See also I Corinthians
philosophy and wisdom of this world. God's plan of 2 :14). On the other hand, the ability to perceive and
providing salvation for men through the cross of understand the mysteries of God, is a gift of grace.
Christ Jesus, which once was hidden, but now reveal-           "Unto you it is given to know the mystery of the
ed, is the mystery of which he speaks in verses I, 2 kingdom of God". (Mark 4 :ll),.
which none of the rulers of this world knew, for had              Lack of space forbids us at this time to discuss
they known it, says the apostle, they would not have the second wrong conception of the scriptural idea of
crucified the Lord of Glory. Vss. 7,  8, In verse  9 mystery, namely that it is something which is con-
he emphasizes that this  ,mystery,  which God ordained trary to human reason and understanding. Perhaps,
before the world unto our glory, was not the product           with the consent of the Editor, I will do this at some
of the human intellect, or worldly wisdom, for "Eye later date.
bath  nort  seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into                                                  B. K.
the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared
for them that love him." That which God prepared
for them that love Him, namely, salvation through the
cross, is the mystery which we could never under-
stand through human wisdom, but can come to us
only by Divine revel&ion. Vs. 10, "But God hath re-
vealed them unto us  Iby his Spirit."       Hence in the                 Christian Isolationism
scriptural sense all mystery is revelation, and all
revelation  is mystery, because that which is revealed,           It was New Year's Eve. Two young men of the
namely salvation through the cross of Christ, is not same neighbourhood were proceeding down the street
the product of human wisdom, but of Divine wisdom,             together. As they came abreast a large building where
and comes to us only by Divine revelation. (See also an all-night dancing party was in progress, one of
Dr. Schilder, Wat is de Hemel. p. 253). The content them turned in, the other proceeded down the street
of this mystery, which was hid, but is now revealed,           until he came to  thee church which he regularly at-
is briefly explained by the Apostle Paul in I Tim. 3 :16,      tended and where divine services were being held that
"AnId without controversy great is the  mystery   of evening. The one chose the pleasures of sin, the other
godliness. God was mtrm?:fest  in the flesh, justified in      passed it bv for the service of his God,.


 228                                  T - H E   S T A N D A R D   B E A R E R

    That% Christian isolationism.                              ,the temple, I Kings 5:53,  when he declares that God
        The dictionary defines the verb "to isolate" as fdeparated  Israel from among all the people of the
 meaning, "to set apart". Th,e word "Christian' `in our `earth, to be His inheritance, as He Himself spake  by
 `caption describes the kind of isolation we have in the hand of Moses when He brought them out of
 .mind. Christian isolation refers to the state and con- *Egypt.         Moses, speaking with the Lord at Sinai,
 dition of an individual  ias the result of having been set <Exodus 33 :16, says, ". . . . so shall we be separated,
`apart in the Christian sense of the word. Or, it may r1 and thy people, from all the people that are upon
 L&O  refer to  :that activity of the individual whereby he    the face of the earth". Turning to the New Testa-
 sets himself apart, in the Christian sense, from others.      ment,, we find that it teaches this same truth with
 The first views that isolation from the passive point of      a vi,ew  to the people of God. The Lord Himself de-
view, the latter from the active point of view. The clares in John  15:19, "If ye were of the world, the
 former refers to the work of God whereby He has set           world love his o,wn; but because ye are not of the world
 the Christian apart, as Christian, from others who are but I have chosen  YOU out of the world, therefore the
 not Christian; the latter refers Ito Ithe activity of the     world hateth you." In' John 17:14 the Lord repeats
 indivi,dual  whereby he sees himself apart from others, [this truth. The apostle Peter declares in I Peter  2:9,
 not as individual but as Christian. As far `as the re- that we are a cihosen  generation, a royal priesthood, an
 lation is concerned, we may say that the latter is the `holy nation, ,a peculiar people and therefore are pil-
 result of the former. ,God has isolated the Christian         grims and strangers in the worl,d,  vs. 11. Also John
 and therefore the Christian has the calling to isolate supports this truth of isolation, from a negative point
 himself in the midst of this world of sin and dark-           .of view in I John 2:19, when he saps, "They went out
 ness.                                                         from us, but they were not of us ; for if they had been
    And Christian isolationism is the doctrine that            of us, they would no doubt have continued with us:
 concerns itself with the above described reality.             but they went out, that they might be made manifest
    Like  salmost all Christian  ,doctrines,  so also this     that they were not all of us", while in I John 5 : 19, he
doctrine of Christian isolationism has been  misinter-         speaks as follows, "And we know that we are of God,
 pret.ed  and corrupted in its practical application. There and the whole worId lieth in wickedness". The apostle
 have been-and I suppose there still are-extremists Paul likewise teaches this truth by implication in Rom.
 who have placed  ,a11 the emphasis upon the  `Ysolation"      119 by the example of the ingrafting of the olive
 to such an extent that the Christian character of it branch.
 was almost forgotten. They made of it an isolation of            In the second place, we find that Scripture teaches
 Christians and that is entirely different from Christian this same truth by means of various admonitions which
 isolation. As most of us know, `the Anabaptist is icome to the child of God. Israel is, for example,  con-
 known for this radical view.                                  ,stantly admonished against amalgamating with the
     Now the first  ,thing which we shall have to  de-         heathen round about them. Scripture very clearly
 .termiae in our discussion is  wh,ether or not Scrip- `demands isolation on the part of the child of God in
 ture in any sense teaches a Christian isolation. We           II Cor. 6 :14-1'7, "Be ye not unequally yoked toge.ther
 Iare of the opinion that it does.                             with unbelievers : for what  feIlowship  hath  righlteous-
     We may notice, in `the first place, that Scripture,       ness with unrighteousness? . . .And what concord
 both in the Old and New Testaments, declares it  to be ihath Christ with Belial? .  ,.. . .And what agreement
 a fact that God has set His people apart as His peculiar      hath the temple of God with  i,dols? for ye are the
 possession.     We find that the history of Israel, the `temple of the living God ; . . . .Wherefore  come out
 &osen race of the old dispensation, begins with the           from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord,
 isolation of  Abrahfam  from the land of his nativity, *and touch not the unclean thing: and I will receive
 Ur of the Chaldees, G-en. 12 : 1, 2. Moreover the whole `YOU." Notice also if you will the warning in I John
 `&&cry of Israel is one that is characterized through-        `2:15, "Love not the world, neither the things that are
 `out by constant isolation. Jacob and his family are in the world". Moreover, every exhortation to holi-
 given the land of Goshen to dwell in when they come           ness implies the necessity of Christian isolation ; the
 to Egypt, Gen. 47 :ll ; Israel is cut off from Egypt by       basic meaning of holiness is separation. We could,
 lthe Red Sea and is miraculously preserved in the             therefore, multiply the Scriptural quotations which
 `wilderness and passing through the Jordan it enters          plainly  prove this fact if the above mentioned were
 the promised land of Canaan. That Israel is a peculiar .not  suthcient.
 people,  in distinction of all  o%her peoples, God Himself       Finally, Scripture gives us many personal ,examples
 .declares  in Isa. 43 :21, "This people have 1 formed for af Christian isolation. Moses refuses to be called the
 myself ; they shall show forth my praises." And this, son of Pharaoh's daughter and chooses to suffer afflic-
 we all  underhand,  has  ,bearing also on the  c.hurch of tion  w&h the people of God; Ruth forsakes her  father-
 the new dispensation. This same fact re-occurs in iland, Moab, and desires to be reckoned among the
 ithe beautiful prayer of Solomon at the dedication of         children of God ; Rahab is delivered from the  destruc-


                                      TiHE  S T A N D A R D   B E A R E R                                            229-.
ition of  ,Jericho and is numbered with Israel.  In the       coming of  Christ, and the Kingdom of God has
\New Testament all the apostles may be quoted  as ex-         spread itself over all peoples, such a local isolation as
`amp&;   the author to the Hebrew's mentions, in chap-        well as the necessity of it does not exist. Moreover,
ter  11,  that there were many who were cast out "of          we must not forget, that even in the local sense of the
whom the world was not worthy", while Christ Him-             word, Israel, in fact, Scripture leaves the impression
,self speaks of the necessity of forsaking father and that this was true of the majority. Scripture affords
imother  for His sake.                                        no basis whatever for the Anabaptistic  conception of
    It must be evident to everyone that many more Christian isolation  ; to the contrary, it plainly teaches
Scriptural examples could be quoted, however, the that a local separation is  n,ot possible. The Lord says,
cabove  men*tioned  are  sufficient for us to draw our in John 17 :15, "I pray not that thou shouldest take
conclusions in respect  ;to the teaching of Scripture on them out of the world, but that thou shouldest keep
Ithis point. Nutice that Scripture teaches:                   Ithem from the evil." The apostle Paul says in I Car.
    1. That God's people are throughout all ages a  pe- 5 :9, 10, "I wrote unto you in an epis,tle  not to company
culisr  people which He has seperated (isolated) unto with fornicators: yet not altogether with the forni-
Himself as His  inheritice. They are, therefore, cators of this world, or with the covetous, or extor-
.from  a spiritual point of view, a  Idifferent  people. tioners, or with idolators; for then must ye needs go
They are in the world but not of the world, chosen out out of the world." From the above  .mentioned pas-
of the world, holy, called out of darkness into light, sages, as well as many others, it appears that the
itranslated  into the Kingdom of His dear Son, etc. etc. ScripturaI  conception of Christian isolation is a thor-
         2. That this difference, this isolation,  finds its oughly spiritual one. It consists in a separation from
deepest cause and basis in God's election. God has sin  ; both from the principle of sin, `Whosoever is
 formed them for His praise, He has chosen them in born of God doth not commit sin ;" I John 3 :9, as well
Vhrist before the foundation of the  worl,d,  has  predes- as from the pollution of sin. It consists in the second
%inated them unto the adoption of children by Christ place, in an isolaltion  from wicked men, not in Ithe earth-
`Jesus to Himself, has foreknown them and has pre-            ly, local sense of the word because that is impossible,
adestinated  them to be conformed to he image of His but in the spiritual sense of the word-as having fel-
&Son, etc. etc.                                               lowship with them.
    3. That  Goy3 realizes this isolation through the way         Christian isolationism teaches us, therefore, that
of regeneration calling and faith. They are not by because God has made us His peculiar possession, has
nature children of God. By nature they are, like all formed us for Himself, has called us into His fellow-
others, born dead in trespasses, without God in the ship through Jesus Christ our Lord, we must there-
world, children of wrath, darkness, servants of sin fore also be to His praise and glory in the midst of this
tand the ,devil,  fulfilling the lusts of the flesh. By na- world of sin and darkness; that therefore we must be
ture, therefore, they cannot enter the Kingdom of Hea- holy in all our walk, which means, negatively, that we
 Gven, cannot see it. But God causes them to be born keep ourselves unspotted from the world  `and positive-
&again, He makes them alive, He begets them through ly, that in distinction of all those who deny and dis-
the word of truth, (conversion). Moreover, He calls honor Him, we shall glorify Him in all our life.
them unto Himself out of darkness into His marvel-                                                       H. D. W.
ous light, for w@nn He did predestinate, them He  also
called. &He grants them lively faith through the know-
ledge of Him,  ingrafts  them into Christ and grants                                                           is.-*-
them all things that pertain to life and godliness, and                                                                       I
SO  causes them to walk as children of light, in new-
ness of life, in the midst of this world of darkness and
 sin.                                                                        Prayer For Peace
    4. That, finally, this isolation is of a spiritual na-
ture. It is neither natural, earthly nor local. It does           ,One of the most beautiful gifts in Christ J~SLSUS  is
not consist, as the Anabaptist contends, in a local  sep- *prayer ; there is no gift greater, none more sacred,
 eration, in the earthly sense of the word, from the more*intimate  and holy. Upon the divine injunction:
 worId and  tihe children of  adarkness.    It does not de- "Be careful for nothing; but in everything by prayer
mand an isolated Christian community. That was the and supplication with thanksgiving let your reguests be
 case with a view to Israel in the old dispensation can- known unto God", the Christian in prayer withdraws
 not, need not be ,denied. But we must remember that himself from the world about him  an,d stands face
 Israel was a type and its history was typical. Its lo- to face with God to Whom he pours out the thoughts
 cal isolation was demanded #by God as means for the          of his heart, and in it finds the fullest expression for
 bringing forth of the Christ. However, since all his soul both in sorrow and in joy.
types and shadows have been fulfilled through the                 In discussing the subject "Prayer for peace" we


 230                                 T*HE  S T A N D A R D   B E A R E R

are, therefore, dealing with a very sacred matter. sdesire things, but he desires God and His Kingdom.
When answering the much asked question, "Should we .And when we thus pray prayer does not  "clrange
pray for peace?", I feel that we are standing on ,holy things" but it changes us, that is, in prayer we seek
ground ,where it behooves man to take the shoes off and learn to will God's will only; we seek to learn and
his feet an'd tread carefully lest this can be answered trust that He rules in.all things and worketh all things
with a simple "yes' `or "no" gives evidence that he             unto our eternal Gelfare  that thus we may have peace,
has never considered the sacredness of prayer, the              the peace of him "whose mind is stayed on God."
highest and most holy of all Christian duties. N,eith-             If, therefore, tithe Christian's heart is troubled in
er has such a person ever stopped to consider the ser- these trying days of war he brings his troubles to
iousness of the times in which we live.                         God in prayer. He pours out his soul to Him. He tells
   In discussing the subject of prayer for peace one            Go*d of his fears and woe, about that son go.ne far from
naturally finds extremists. One might find some who home who lives in the midst of sin, temptation and
want to be super-ultra-R,eformed  who woul,d  not think death. He tells God all, the thoughts of his heart, the
of mentioning peace in their prayers because: "God desires of  hfs soul, nothing is withholden. And this
builds His Kingdom  <by means of war and this thought           the Christian  may not only do, he must do it, God
should suffice and bring us peace."        Narturally  sucsh    wants it so, for Scripture says: "Casting all your car-
people forget that God also builds  Ris Kingdom by es upon Him" and "let your requests be known unto
peace and secondly, they forget that true submission God." Did not Christ do  ,the same in  Gethsemane?
to God and His will is not as simple as all this since we       And did  I-le teach His disciples to pray for such a
are but men and the holiest has but a small beginning .simple   m&er as that, their flight should not be in
of this obedience, But there is the other party, which the winter, neither on the Sabbath day? Should we
is extremely great in numbers, which desires to be then not pray in these ,days when our hearts are bury
`both super-patriotic and pious and storms the throne           dened,  when fear and  (dread is on every hand? We
of grace for peace at any `cost. They pollute prayer certainly should.
;as to its sacredness, purpose. character and content              However, when thus praying in faith we are not
and are ignorant of the sovereignty of God Who rules telling God what Re should do. In "the unburdening of
in war and peace and have never stopped to consider our heart we may never once tell God that He ought
that, therefore, war and peace are both serious mat-            to do as we think should be done. But we unburden
ters.                                                           our heart with but-one purpose: that God may, teach
   The last mentioned party proceeds from the idea us that His way and will is always ,best.  Therefore,
that prayer is a communication system with heaven :w,e pray that we may renounce our own will and desire
whereby sinful men are able to obtain their  h:eart's           God's will and way alone and have p:eace therein know-
(desire. Their motto is: "Prayer changes t,hings,"  for ing that He worketh all things to our salvation. Hence,
it is considered ,as a spiritual lever whereby men can          we conclude our prayer after pouring out our troubled
move  CZd and heaven and earth for the purpose of               heart,  anad say: "Lord, not my will but Thine be done".
obtaining what they want.                                       This means, that if this war has troubled you and you
   The Scriptural idea of prayer is not to change               have told God all about those troubles, even telling  H,im
"things."    Prayer does not center about things, but that your flesh desires the war to cease and you then
around God and His Kingdom. This is evident from conchrde  : "Not my will but thine  be'done", you have
"The Lord's Prayer," it is centered entirely around said this: "Lord, though I dread this war ancd long for
God, therein we are taught to pray for His Name,                it to cease, but Thou dost deem that it must continue,
His Kingdom, His will; even then when we pray for then Lord, I pray, contifnue Ithis war until Thy will is
our own personal needs such as bread and forgiveness            done and in that `way give me the peace of heart and
of sins and not being led into temptation since we con- thankful submission to Thee knowing that Thou  doe&
clude that prayer by saying: "For Thine is the King-            all things well",. Then and then only can we have
dom and the power and the glory."                               peace with Gold and with all things that He sends us
   How could it be  ,different  since `not man but the for we know that His will is only and always best,
Holy Spirit is the Author of all true prayer. Could             w'hile we are oft' times foolish and blind.
the Spirit be conceived of praying for the material                From this it may be concluded that the common
things of man entirely disconnected from God and prayer for peace by which men generally storm the
His Kingdom? On the other hand can man, regener- throne of grace in their personal prayers as well as
ated by this Holy Spirit, pray God that man's will may those offered in the congregation and in the "Prayer
be done, his desires realized ? Of course not, for a sin- <for Peace Mass Meetings" are to  <be condemned. In
cere Christilan  knows only too well that by nature he hearing these prayers the words of Christ always
always desires and wills that which is sin, and even recur to me: "The children of this world are in their
after receiving -grace  he knows that he often chooses generation wiser than the  chil'dren  of light". Why?
that  .which is foolish. The true Christian does not Because 6he tvorld refuses to have peace except the


                                    T H E   S T A N D A R D   B E A R E R                                                     231

Icause for which they fight has been won. In  this            For further proof one need but point to the many
cause, which they thl!nk is a good one, they give their citations of like nature in the book of Revelations all
all and desire no peace  .until it is reached ; we, on the proving that both  war and peace are of God, who has
lother hand, Icnwto  that God has a good purpose with but one purpose in all these things, namely, the honor
<this war but Christianity will sacrifice nothing but and glory of His own name and the salvation of His
sue for peace at any price.                                   chosen saints.
    To all those, therefore, who for patriotic reasons           Naturally,  i,t  ,must be  granted  that no man can
`or because of piety imp1ore God that pea,ce may come understand and fathom the marvellous #works  of de-
*now and emphasize that it can never come too soon,           hovah.      Never will we be able to comprehend the
%he warning ought `co be sounded that they ought to depth of Gods wisdom, love and mercy in all `His
`consider first of all for what kimd of peace they are ,doings and especially not in such terrible things as in
praying. Anyone praying simply for peace is playing sin,  death   and war. But how can it be different? Gan
with fire and may be praying for that which will result the creature ever understand t.he Creator? Shall we
in something far worse than the present  canflict.            who by nature are unmerciful and haters-of-one-an-
    It is but too often forgotten  t.hat peace is a matter other be able to understand Him who is love and the
of equally as serious  a nature as war. We know only God of mercy? Of course not!  But does our incom-
too well that the present conflict of nations is nothing prehensibility alter the truth of God that in war and
but the outgrowth of the Peace of Versailles. The men peace, in prosperity and adversity, in life and in
in whose hands rests the government of the nations            death He  g1orifies Himself and saves His people?
\fully realize that the future of their peoples depends       Certainly not, for He is God and God alone, high above
solely on the character of the peace  that wiI1 follow iall creatures, worthy of al1 praise and adoration for-
this  war. This is very evident from the famed "At- ever.
lantic Charter" drawn up by our President and Win-                To find peace, therefore, we must learn to <do His
ston Churchill ; and ilt becomes still more evident in        will and submit ourselves to Him in all our  `u-ays
`Russia's past hesitancy in agreeing to the same. The knowing that He  ,doeth al1 things well.  To the man,
?recent  decision at Casablanca that the Axis must sur-       woman  or  child who by grace has learned to say:
render unconditionally is still another proof that the iLord, not my will but Thine be done", there shall be
coming peace involves as much as the war itself.. To peace and joy in all circumstances of life for he is at
Ithe Christian  this reasoning should not be strange at peace with the God of peace in Christ Jesus who
all since he knows that all the misery of all men lies        worketh all things according to His own good pleasure
in nothing else than the "peace" which man made and to the glory of His saints. Hence, the true prayer
with Satan in Paradise.                                       for true peace is: "Lord, teach me Thy will".
    On the other hand it may be worth while to con-                                                                 A.  G.
sider that the same Bible which Iteaches that all our
misery finds its source in the "peace" which we made
with Satan, also teaches that our T-edemption  lies in
co9zf&t  or war which God brought about by putting
enmity between  ;the seed of t.he woman and that of                                  ANNIVERSARY
the serpent; and there is no conflict in which more
blood has flowed and will flow than in this one of Gen.           On %ebruary  24, 1'343, our dear parents,
3 : 15, a battle in which sinful man will reach the zenith                      MR. CORNELIUS N. KUNZ
of his cruelty. But bloody and cruel  ithough this battle                                   and
`may be it is no curse but redemption and blessings                     MRS. X=. N. KUNZ  nee Magdalena Vander Lugt
innumerable for all those who are of the seed of the hope to commemorate their 35th Wedding Snniversary.
woman, namely, the children  of  God.                             We thank our God for the great blessings which He has
   Now what may be said of t.he confilct of Gen. 3 :15,       given us in them and pray that He may continue to bless them
may also be said of all wars, namely, that  ithey are all and spare them for each other and for us for many years to
by divine appointment and intended for Ithe eternal come.
peace of all God's people. Who would dare -contend                                   Their Grateful Children,
that the present war is not divinely ordained? Em-                                                 Mr. and Mrs. Nicholas Kunz
ph.atical,Iy  Scripture teaches that God makes both war                                            Gertrude
and peace : "Shall there be evil in a city an,d ithe Lord                                          Blyda
hath not done it?" (Amos 3  :6).  "I form light and                                                Mr. and Mrs. Hubert Kunz
create darkness,  I make peace and create evil". ( Is-s.                                           George
45:7). And pointing to a war-like character such as                                                Cornelius
Cyrus, God says: "Whose right hand I have  holden,                                                 Leonard
to subdue nations before him.  ,. .  ." (Isa.  45:lff).       Grand Rapids, Michigan.              and 3 grandchildren.


232                                     Tsl3E  S T A N D A R D   B E A R E R

                                                                   It is also noticable  in our Societies that the boys
                                                                leave us; especially in our Young Men's Society. Let
                                                                us all try our besit to keep things going, for it is very
       Well friends, here 1 am again width a bit of news for    essential to be instructed in our  Protesta&  Reformed
our Standard Bearer. All too soon the year of 1942 ,truth.
has slipped away; and in the year gone by there was                 Our `consistory  began a good work to bid the boys
much sorrow and grief, but also pleasure and joy..              farewell in  the evening service. What is mlore fitting
       In the world at large there are signs of much con-       than that? The minister speaks a few words of com-
fusion, disharmony; war and destruction; but not a fort and consolation, and admonishes the boys not to
turning unto  the God of  rthe nations. And the Church          forget the instruction ithey  received at home and in
in the midst of the world is inclined to lament: who            the church. They must never compromise but walk
shall show us any good? To be sure a sinful lamenta-            worthy, also in the army  of  our Country, unto the
tion.                                                           honor and glory of God. In &sing, the congregtition
       It is well  that the world asks this question, for she sings a number of the Psalter fitting for the occasion.
has no solution  Ear her problems, and sees no way out          Words as %hese: "Help me thy will to do, Thy truth
of her difficulties. She is always boasting, but also in        I will pursue, Teach me to  fea??. . . . and, "To the
that she trembles.                                              ihills  I 13% my eyes, Whence shall help for me arise?
       Frequently you read in the daily papers : The Allies     From the Lord shall come my aid, who the heavens
are on &he way to victory ; #but you also hear, don't be        and earth has made". . . ;.
too enthusiastic for it may last for years. However,               They also receive a nice Zipper'Bible. The Gideons
the world forgets and loses sight of the fact that must learn from  us,  not  to give  only the New  Testa-
Christ is King  an'd  ithat He has the victory  ; and ment to the soldier boys, but the  "whole  Bible. Never-
through all these incidents He judges the world and :tlueless they do a good  work,  a.nd the Fuller Ave.
establishes His kingdom, which is an everlasting king- IChurch did collect for this worthy cause on Christmas
dom. And the truth in the matter is  ?&is: that the day.
Church in this chaos has nothing to fear, for in the               There are many labors to be performed in a church
future she shall rule with her King over the work of of our size by the consistory such as: family visiting,
His hands. This is also a cornfont for the individual ,the calls to be made on the sick and shut-ins, the var-
believer, hence he must fight the good fight, although ious Caitechism  classes and societies, and also ;the in-
he must never forget or close his eyes for the reality,         struction of our students in our school.
that as God comes with His jndgments,  (then His child-            If I have been rightly informed, then the publish-
ren are also the recipients.                                    ing of the book of the, Heidelberg Catechism as taught
       There were no unusual happenings in our ranks in by the Rev. I-I. Hoeksema is on ;the way. Some of these
the year gone by. The Word `was preached amongst articles have been in the Standard Bearer,. This paper
us, and it was divided  aright.       Our Churches from has been a blessing  to many in  the past. `In it our
East and West came  Logether  in  Classis and Synod, Protestant Reformed truth is broughit  to' the fore @t
and their labors were not in vain, but blessed by God           all  Itimes, and we don't have to be afraid that we read
from Whom all blessings  fl,ow.  There was harmony such things as I have read in the missionary Monthly
and mutual understanding..                                      of November, 1942. It is a poem and reads as follows :
       The need of a missionary was again  re.alized  to        "Jesus and I-I can ndt do it alone, The waves run
preach and teach our Protestant Reformed truth unto fast and high, And the fog close chill around, And the
those who should worship with us; and the Rev. G.               light goes out in the sky, Today so eager an'd bright,
Lubbers was  called,  but he could not see his way clear        Tomorrow too weak  ito try: But He never gives in,
to accept the call e&ended  unto him. '                         so we two S~UQU  win-Jesus and I."
       Well friends, news of our individual Churches I             I suppose this is meant to be a gospel truth for the
can not write, because I haven't received any. A little heathen. It sounds so common, so humble and pious.
bit of news of the First Church may interest you.                  There is a pilgrim sojourning through the midst of
Our congregation hss 527 tamilies  and 122 individuals, a sinful world. It is dark and chilly round about him:
and it has a Sunday School enrollment of 400. There and it is true that by nature we are cowards, and ofiten
were 98 ,of our boys called by the Government to serve grope in th*e dark and utter the words: hath God for-
the Country. You see, friends, we also feel the horror gotten %o be gracious? But this pilgrim has a frien,d,
of the war in our own midst. It is not so easy for although it is not the Jesus of the Scripture, but only
parents  $0 see their boys go away to the soldier camps,        his next door neighbor and now together tihey  Itry to
and to the battle fields, in which environment, to say win, for this Jesus never gives in.
the least, it is not pleasant. ,4nd let us not think light         Ah friends, Jesus, the Son of God, the Everlasting
of the fact that perhaps some of our boys will stay on Jehovah, Himself in the likeness of man wikhout sin,
the battle field and never return. "That is war  !"             He who has paid the ransom for those who were given


                                     T ' H E   ,STANDARD   B E A R E R                                              233
                                                              M.
.Him  by the Father, He tries with man to win the formed youth must again remember that $-here is no
battle.                                                       pleasure in  the things of this pleasure-seeking world.
   The Almighty, Sovereign, Omnipotent, Everlasting There is real abiding happiness in  ,things as these:
God is put on a par in this poem with sinful man. Searching the Scriptures, feasting `and banqueting ito-
He tries with man to overcome sin, the <devil and his gether  in the fear of God ; have your societies,, make
angels, and because He is  ;the strongest, they together use of the means  ,of grace  a!s much as possible. Yes,
are victorious. But the Jesus who saves to the full is have your fun, but remember thy Creator in the days
gone, and the pilgrim is still in the dark.                   uf thy y0u1t.h.
   You may call it a nice poem, but I call it blasphemy.         %od forbid that it should ever be said of our cove-
    Shall we listen once to another pilgrim sojourner? nant youth, they have knowledge of many things, but
Hear him pray in confidence: "0 Lord to thee I cry, `not of sin, and the fear of God is not in  Ithem, for
Thou art my rock and trust, 0 be not silent, lest I die ithen we are lost, and our Protestant R:eformed  dis-
and slumber in the dust. 0 let me have no pant with tinctiveness is gone. In it lies our strength. That is
those that hate the right; For as their works, so their our shibboleth, and it shoul,d not become a sibboleth.
reward. Jehovah will requite.  Q hear me when in                  Don't you think, friends, that it is farsightedness
prayer. Thy favor I entreat, Hear while  I lift implor-
ing hands, Before Thy mercy seat." Psalm 28: 1,2,3.           of our Young Men's Society that our radio system is
                                                              extended, and that people in Traverse City, Muskegon
    In a prayer like this there is hope and rest for the
weary sojourner. In it is balm for the afflicted soul; and Battle Creek may also  h&en  to the speaker, Rev.
salvation to the full. In this prayer man is nothing H. Hoeksema, who comes with the undiluted Word of
and God is all and in all ; blessed be His Name for ever !    God in his radio speeches, which are beneficial for all
And all that is not in harmony with this prayer, with it those who love the Reformed truth? Let us encourage
the Lord is  displ,eased.                                     the young men and pray the God of the harvest that
    I know, that you agree with me, that in all our ac- He also may bless these efforts put forth. I know it,
tivities we must walk and act as a people saved and           it is not direct mission work for that musit be ruled
redeemed.      The world must see in us that we are a by the churches, but indirectly it is, for all those who
peculiar people, and that we aim at different things tune in get acquainted  witth our Protestant Reformed
than  ;&ey.                                                   tru*th, which is the purest truth in accordance with
    As individuals we must love each other, and act Scripture; and in that way we may speak of Mission
accordingly. We must also respect  ithe brother in his work.
convictions, and never with a few chosen words out                Praise God: that as churches we may stand upon
of our own brain, brush away the opinions of others, the truth of God's Sovereign grace. It  is'not mixed
and make black the brother upon the streets of Ash- with the false philosophy of this world without found-
kelon, for that is not in ,harmony  with God's holy law ation. To be sure there is sin and corrupition  in the
and precepts, and a dishonor to the Church.                   world at large, but also in nations small and great.
    As Christians we may not raise altars of pleasure, And their slogan is: no God and no King, although
wealth and fame: In our money, pleasure-mad world they have a God of their own imagination.
of today we must break down these altars ; for we must            It may seem  tha!t we are in the grip of circum-
have connections with heaven, otherwise life is nut stances, however, God Almighty rules as the Sover-
worth living. It is good to spend our money freely eign, and ithat also holds f,or the true Church in the
but not for our own pleasure; and athe more we earn world to the which *we  ,belong as  Prot. Ref. Churches.
the greater  ;the responsibility.                             The  faIse Church is a compromising Church. In  iH;
    We would be grieved in our soul, would we not, if you find no' hope; no joy; and no rest for the weary
our churches shoubd <become  places where altars are soul ; and the question echoes and re-echoes down the
raised for every conceivable God. Let us then also centuries, out of 4he troubled soul of the Christian: if
be careful not to do it in our own lives as individuals,      the foundations be  desitroyed what shall the righteous
or families; for then ,we do the same thing as others         do? And the reassuring answer comes: My grace is
who live day by day in such an atmosphere.                    sufficient for thee.
   We leave all things in the ,hand of Him who assures            Well friends: this is my last article for the Stan-
us in His Word, that if we seek first the kingdom dard Bearer in the English, as I have not received any
of God, all other  t.hings will be  a*dded unto us. And cooperation of any of our ,Churches. Two more  ar&ic-
let no one tike you believe that thtit is fatalism ; for les in the Holland language will follow in the future
that is f&th,                                                 D . V .
   Things, in many churches of today are not the way             I asure you that I have done my best, although I
they should be. There is a wandering away from the have only one talent and, b,esides  an inferiority com-
principles of  Holy  Writ, and a seeking of  the things plex.
which have no value: and also our Protestant  Re-                                                         S.D.V.
                                                                __,  P_ ,  -  .-             _.


  234                      _       3  T ' H E   S T A N D A R D   B E A R E R

            An "Extremist" Replies                             it and don't expect to, so rest in peace." `But never-
                                                               theless the potentiality remains does  iit not? If a man
                                                               were to hold a loaded gun to my head, had the hammer
 Esteemed Editor: '                                            pulled back, and finger on the trigger, he could easily
    The undersigned was interested to note that in still my anxiety by informing me  thati   .he  ,had never
 your Jan. 1 issue of The Standard Bearer he has re- shot a man in his life ! Cub bears may be harmless
 ceived this classification card from Mr. Veldkamp. He and make interesting playfellows-until they are full-
 is classed as an extremist which is extremely inter- grown and have attained enough strength to crush a
 esting.                                                       man in Ithis embrace. Even the law recognizes poten-
                                                               tialities. How often haven't you read of the appre-
    It appears from B.V's. arti,cle that there are three hension of an armed man who had  intent to do bodily
 classes or schools of  ithought  in regard to labor organ- harm?
 izations. There are, on the one hand, Ithe radical mat-          It also appears that it is rather easy for B. V. ito
 erially-minded C.I.O.`s  and the A.F.L.`s ; on the other question what is the will of God. I am very glad that
 hand the extremists such as Rev. Hanko, Mr. Ten Els-          Moses did not question, to  ithe extent of disobedience,
 hof and others and between the  itwo we find B.V. and and that he did not say that it could not be the will
 .his social justice plans which he expects to attain of God that Israel leave Egypt. Indeed it `was slavery
 through the C.L.A.                                            but they might all, starve in the wilderness #too ! Per-
    However, let me state ,ait t.he outset that I am al- haps Lot should have queationed the will of God in re-
 ways a bit suspicious when someone states that this or speot to leaving Sodom. No doubtvhe  had a good living
 that is what he- believes to be more Biblical and neg-        there. Perhaps he had an abundance. Remember Lot's
 leots to quute a single text to substantiate his point. wife!  W,as not she questioning the will of God? But
 Perhaps is was merely an oversight, And I wonder w:hy draw more references? Their number in the
 too how we can use the comparitive  degree in this con- Scriptures is legion.
 nection. Can one `thing or one expression be "more               Bluntly B. V. tells us thaii it is God's will that His
 Biblical" than another? Could we on this basis then people shall have a sufficient amount of it. (i.e. daily
 say that ithe Arminian .cloctrine is Biblical but the Re- bread) Then there is never a case of a Christian who
 formed position is "more Biblical." I'm sure I don't had died of starvation? Then, to cite one  ,exampie,
" understand. And 1 am still waiting for someone to there is  noit a starving Greek Christian in, all of
 refute or disclaim the words of Jas. 5 :6-8. Surely you Europe?
 do not with Luther call ithis a "straw book." It is in-          However, B,, V., my gyroscope is working and I'm
 deed news to me that the Christian fights against sin not so unbalanced that I would refuse to employ  God-
 and injustice by means other than  ithrough  the power given talents and energies to advance or promote my-
 of the Spirit. I was under the impression that our            self.  T*hat is not only our right but also our  duty.
 weapons of warfare were specified in Eph.  6:11-I&            We certainly may and must use and not abuse the
 And since when have we taken the position that we are t;hings of this world so that as Eph. 4225 puft it, `<we
 going  ito band together, outside of the band  ,which may have to give to him that needeth."
 there is in Christ, and with this band which is a con-           But, you ,will  object, regardless of how true your
 glomeration of all beliefs, no beliefs, all creeds and no statements  are they are merely negative and filled
 creeds and therewith make our influence felt. I truly with destructive criticism. Have you nothing positive
 know that that is  not an exaggerated or "extreme" to offer? Anyone can knock but it takes a  carpenter-
 description of the C.L.A. I know both by personal knock and at  the same time build a house.
 experience and contact with officers of this  "Chris-            May  I then humbly suggest that if you will bear
 who have had similar experiences. As far as I know in mind these points (and perhaps others have more
 tian" organization and ithe direct testimony of others        and better to offer) we can come to  som.e  under-
 it isn't even required you be a Christian, even in the standing:
 external sense of the word, in order to belong to this           1. We understand  (that the duty of the punishment
 "Christian" association ! Ah5 least such has not been of the evildoer rests with the government and not some
 my experience. I do not say this simply to slander or organ&&ion  outside of it. I wou1.d consider an unjust
 to heap infamy upon those with whom I do not agree robbing employer an evildoer.
 but my point is this: If you  abe going to  l%estify  a-         2.  .Have an organization if you will in order to
 gainst sin and injustice shouldn't you  first see to it protest and petition our government that they func-
 that the organization which you represent at least tion la;r, they should in resped to evildoers,.
 bears a semblance to the name by *which it is called?            3. If  that  organizatison  is to  *be called Christian
     In regard to the strike clause, B. V. would seek to       (not <necessarily ,denominationaI)  make provision and
 allay our fear somewihat. "You see," he says in sub- enforce it that only  ithose who confess  athe name of
 stance, "thajt's  in there all right but w,e've never used    Christ be admitted as members.         I


                                  TB.E  S T A N D A R D   B E A R E R                                               235

   4. If after you have used legitimate and Christian the  `way of truth shall be evil spoken of."
means to attain your end you fail-let it rest wMh the           I:n this essay regard is had to  ith.ese false teachers,
Lord and kn& for a surety that their day is coming. to their slander and Iheresies  by means of which they
Remember, they have their reward.                            &rove to  detroy  the faith of God's people and so to
   However, I full well realize that such a proposition silence the  kruth. Secondly, account is taken of the
would not be  pop&r.' They  woulid  not  "get things reactions of God's people to this wicked striving. Fin-
dune". But I do believe that it is a Christian method ally, attention is directed to the significance of this vile
and one whiclh without faith we could not subscribe to. doing for  khe church and the truth.
Whether or not B. V., you and your followers agree is           The adversaries of the Christian religion with
not all-important I am ready to say with the  well- which we now have to do were men of letters. Their
known Dr. Machen: "God and I are a majority".                weapon was not the swor'd but the pen. Hence, under
                                            G. T. E.         the caption of Ithis writing (the Gainsayers) appears,
                                                             in parenthesis, the title "The Literary Contest of
                          --                                 Christianity in the First Three Centuries".
                                                                The opponents were not of one kind. They divided
                                                             into two main classes: .non-Christian  and Christian.
               The Gainsayers                                The former, the non-Christian, included the Judaists
                                                             among the Jews and the pagan wisemen-the philoso-
       (The Literary Contest of Christianity in              phers, scientists and patrons of art-in the  Graeco-
              the First Three Centuries)                     Roman world, mostly  neo-platonists,  `They were not
                                                             of the church  and opposed and derided all that was
   The Christians in the Craeco-Roman world were a called Christ. But this much can be said in their
people who, by the mercy of God,  ha;d identified them- favor that they were not wolves in sheep's clothing.
selves with the truth in Christ Jesus. For the truth They were enemies of We gospel and wanted to be
they witnessed. Christ's name they confessed before known as euch.
men. And the result was, as we have seen, that the              ;However,  already in the time of the apostles many
nameless pollutions of Rome were roused to a frenzy Jews and pagans became Christians but in name only
of rage. For Rome's works were evil and the religion and smuggled ltheir false religious notions and prac-
of Christ, the truth, was pure. So an  attempk  was tices into the church, where they matured and eventu-
made by the wicked, unbelieving Jews and Gentiles, ally became known as Ebionism and Gnosticism. Ebi-
to silence the Christians. One of the weapons  us.ed onitism is Judaizing Christianity; Gnosticism is a
was persecution. All  ithe violence perpetrated against paganizing Christianity. The  Ebioniites were thus
Cod's people formed a means resorted to in the vain the successors of the Judaists ; the  Gnostics were the
effort to induce them to relax their hold on the truth, successors of the pagan Neo-Platonists. The Ebionists
renounce their Saviour, and refrain from Iteaching  in and &e Gnosties were the heretics in the church. They
His name. To achieve this purpose still other means          formed the  Ghtistian   cless of opponents of the re-
were employed. The adversary also spake evil of the ligion of (Christ, and their thought-structures were
truth, heaped maledictions upon the gospel, in the  *hope Ithe heresies of the first three centuries.
that all men and the  ~Chrhtians  in particular, perceiv-       These Ebion and Gnostic teachers spake of them-
ing that the gospel was a thing utterly disgraceful and selves as converts to the gospel of Christ. And their
ridiculons, nuuld be shamed into keeping  silence followers, of whom there were many, believed them
about it. The  trtih had to be crushed-crushed to to be such. Aotually  they were thieves and robbers,
earth so that  ilt never again would rise. Such was the that entered not by the door into the sheepfold but
,determination  of the wicked opposition. So, under the climber up some other way. St. John  10:12.  They
impulse of lche inspiration of the powers of darkness, were the wolves in sheep's clothing  wilthin  the *walls
it even fabricated false gospels of i;ts own for men to of Zion. Their presence in  :the church bespeaks the
believe in, that the sect of the Christians might dimin- attempt of Satan to  Judanize  and paganize the  church
ish and completely disappear and that their hated by sowing his lies as cuncealed in the garb of truth.
.doctrines  might disappear with them. Also this riot- And S&an's tares grew wellnigh  as rapidly as did the
ing of unbel,ief,  the attempt to deatroy the religion of wheat sown by Christ through His servants. As the
Christ  with these weapons, was foretold. At II Pet.         Christians were multiplied and began to be numbered
2:1, 2 we read, "But there were false prophets also by thousands, so the heretical bodies numbered also
among the people, even as there  shal1 be false teachers their thousands.        There were in all nineteen such
among you, who privily shall bring in fdamnable here- bodies,  gno&ic schools of thought, and the heretics
sies, even denying the Lord that bought them, and were named after the leaders of the special schools to
bring upon themselves swift  destruotion.  And many whiclh they belonged.
shall follow their pernicious ways ; by reason of whom          The first  oppos&ion  encountered by  It.he Gospel


2%                                   `I'lH.E:   STANDARD   B E A R E R

came from the sects of the Judaists in P.destine,  the       cher training a pupil, introduces a Jew, whom  he
leaders of bwhich  were the Jewish Scribes and Phari- represents as entering into a personal discussion witih
sees.    Judaism is known from the New Testament Jesus during which he dispetes  rwith Rim and Confutes
Scriptures as a  schoul  of  thou&t  that  ,denied  the      Him on many points.  .He accuses Christ of having
Messiahship of  Christ and makes salvation dependent "inv.ented  His own birth from a virgin," and  ap-
on the observance of the law. It enveighed against proaches  Him with being  "*born  in a certain Jewish
Christianity for the following reasons:  T*he illegitimate village, of a poor woman of the country, who gained
birth of Christ its founder; His fraternizing with sin- her susrtenance  by spinning, and who was turned out
ners and apostate publicans ; His surrounding Himself of doors by (her husba.nd, a carpenter by trade, because
witrh illiterate fishermen ; His being without stature  ; she  w,as convicted of adultery  ; that after being driven
His having hailed from a region in Palestine that had away by her husband, and wandering about for a time,
never yet produced a ,teacher  of any account; His im- she disgracefully gave birth to Jesus, an illegitimate
mod(erate use of food and wine; His profanity: He ,child,  who, having hired Himself owt as a servant in
desecrated the Sabbath ; His being demon-possessed ; Egypt on account of His poverty, and having there
His ignominious  deatsh. We get some idea of how :&he acquired some miraculous powers, returned  4~ His
later Jews attacked Christ from  lthe Dialogue of Justin own country, highly elated on account of tihem,  and by
Martyr (a Christian teacher in the church) with means of these proclaimed Himself God". Then He
Thypho the Jew. In this  wrirting  we come upon the          "gathered around Him ten or  itwelve persons of notor-
following rebuke of  ithis Jew's unbelief and profanity :    ious character, the very wickedest of *tax-gatherers and
"(Yet) you not only have not repented, after you sailors, fled in company with them' from place to place,
learned that he rose from the  .dead, but, as I said, you and obtained His living in a shameful and importunate
have  se& chosen and ordained men  tihrough all the manner."  Futiher on  Celsus has his informant ask:
world to proclaim that a godless and lawless heresy "How should we deem him to be God. ,. . .who also,
had sprung from one  Jesu,s, a Galilean deceiver, whom after we had convicted  Him and condemned Him as
we (the Jews) crucified, but his disciples stole him by deserving of punishment, was found attempting to con-
night from the tomb, where He was laid when unfast-          ceal Himself, and endeavoring to escape in a most
ened from the cross, and now deceives men by assert- disgraceful manner, and who was betrayed by those
ing that he had risen from the dead and ascended to whom He called His disciples?" .According  to his in-
heaven. Moreover you accuse him of having taught formant, the  divinity  of Christ is contradicted also
those godless, unholy and lawless doctrines which you by his evident lack of foreknowledge and by his lead-
mention to the condemnation of those who confess ing his own disciples and prophets to such a degree of
him to be tihe Christ, and a teacher from the Son of wickedness, that  tihey  became impious and unholy men.
God. Besides this, even when your city is captured, Breaking away from his informant, Celsus voices his
and your land ravaged, you do not repent, but dare to own hateful opinions . .He derides the Gospel narrative
utter imprecations on  .Him and all who believe in of Christ's resurrection. If Jesus desired to show ithat
Him." Th.en f,ollows {this significant statement : "Yet His power was divine, He ought to have appeared to
we do not hate you or t.hose who, by your means, have        His enemies. He gives it as his opinion that, whereas
conceived  such prejudices against us; but we pray that both Christians and Jews believe that  iit was predicted
even now all of you may repent and obtain mercy from that one was to come as a Saviour to the human race,
God, tihe compassionate an*d long-suffering Father of the discussions which thley have with each other re-
.a&"                                                         garding  Christ differ in no respect "from what is
      Let  ti be said in this connection that all our know- called in the proverb, `a fight about the shadow of an
ledge of *what these adversaries taught and of how ass'; and thinks that there is nothing of importance in
they slandered is derived from  writings in which their the investigations of  ithe Jews and the Christians".
opponen&s--the  Christian teachers in the church- Moreover, God does not come down or send another
withstood stem. The enemies of the truth produced a *down;  for then He must needs undergo a change  "from
prodigious  literslture it seems; but all their original good to evil, from vintue to vice, from happiness to
works have  daisappeared,  except the  por43ons  quoted misery, and from best to worst." Tlnat He should take
by their opponents, the churcrh fathers.                     up  His abode among His people alone  i,s for Celsus
      The literary attacks upon  Christianiity  by the hea- a thought too ridiculous to contemplate. He compares
then did not begin until about ithe middle of the second Jews and Christians alike 60 "a flight of bats or to a
century   &-ccc  AD.  X50.    The first work  ,devoted  (to swarm of  a&s issuing out of their nest, or to frogs
this purpose  bears the title "The True Discourse" (it h,olding  council in a march, or to worms crawling to-
is anything but true) and was put out by a Grecian ether in the corner of a dunghill, and  quarrelling
philosopher,  Celsus~.    In  this discourse, of which the with one another as to which of tthem  were the greater
church father Origin has preserved considerable rem- sinners."           He upbraids  bhe teachers of the divine
nants in his Refutation, &~SUS, in imitation of a tea- Word wilth  wishing to make converts only among "fool-


                                   TlHE  S T A N D A R D   B E A R E R                                          23`7

ish. and low individuals, and persons devoid of percep- the same class with the various kinds of pagan fanati-
tion, and slaves, and women and children." He de- cism. "They still `worship", says he of the Christians,"
mands to know why it "is an evil to have been educated that great man who was crucified in Palestine, because
and to have both the reality and the appearance of it was he by whom  ithe initiation into these mysteries
wisdom? What hindrance does this offer to  sthe know- was introduced into human life. These  poor creatures
ledge of God? Why should it  not rather be an assist- have persuaded themselves that they are all immortal,
ance,  and  a means by which one might be better able ,and shall live forever. For this reason they despise
to arrive at the ,truth." Especially o,bnoxious  to him is death itself, and many even court it., But again, their
the teaching "that it was to sinners that God has been first lawgiver has persua<ded them to believe that, as
sent." He charges the Christians `with acting "insol- soon as they have broken loose from the prevailing
ently towards God, in order to lead  on wicked men by customs and denied the gods of Greece, reverencing in-
empty hopes, and to persuade (them to despise better stead of these rtheir crucified teacrher,  living after his
things." He denies the resurrecition  of the dead o,n the laws, they stand to each other in the relation of breth-
ground that there is no case on record of any one who ren. Thus they are led to despise everything alike, to
was really dead rising again with a veritable body.       consider everything else as profane, adopting those
   The opinions which we encounter in  %hese frag- notions without any sufficient grounds for evidence."
ments bespeak grossest ignorance but ignorance ris-          Then Were was the more earnest and dignified, but
ing from bitter hatred and contempt of the truth- for this very reason more lasting and ,dangerous,  `oppo-
a hatred that was roused to a frenzy of rage on ac- siticm which proceeded from Neo-Platonism i.e., from
count of the absence on the part of this mocker of  khe the modified and greatly amplified teachings of Plato,
will to forsake his abominations and return to Christ's the Grecian philosopher.
God and be saved. This the truth demanded of him.            The founder of Neo-Platonism was Ammonius
The reproaches of Celsus render invaluable service in Saccas  of Alexandria, who  `was born of Christian
this respect. They emphatically affirm that, if a man parents but who apostatized and died in the year 243.
will see the kingdom of heaven, discern the things The one to develop the Neo-Platonic ideas into a  sys-
which are of Ithe Spirit of God, he must be born again. &em was Plotinus, his pupil. In forming his doctrine,
Then, too, Celsus spake not for himself alone but for he selected what seemed best from all the  ,various
the world of pagan men and women  of his day. For existing religious and philosoplhic  sytems;  but his per-
t,o that world he belonged.  H,ence,  the language of vading interest was the religious. He dealt with God
these fragments mirrors the soul of that world,  ilts and His relation to the world, the nature of sin, or evil,
wickedness, itts pride and arroqnce, its contempt of and the way of salvation. From the religious and
God's gospel and of the followers of Christ.              moral point of view, Neo-Platonism was the consum-
   As an enemy of the truth, Celsus was not the dan- mation of all  lthe worldly wisdom of the ancient world.
gerous type. Opposition of the kind that he offered          In this system God becomes the unknowable one,
springs from ignorance too glaring, &oo shocking and not in the sense that, dwelling, as He does, in an
openly spiteful.    It could impress and mislead such inaccessible light, He, as such, lies beyond the boun-
only who were as ignorant and hostile as Celsus. This ,daries represented by our thought-processes ; but in
type of slander had weight only with Celsus and his the sense rthat even in and for Himself He is wholly
kind. it could have no effect on God's believing people unintelligible, super-rational, and infinite blank, be-
except to strengthen them in the convicltion  that the fore whom all thought is powerless, thus a primeval
man devoid of saving grace is a profound fool. The being, an infinite background,  without  attributes of
devil is -real ,dangerous  when, turning theologian, he ,any kind, "wicthout  magnitude, without life, without
#conceals  his ugliness in the mantle of light and glibly, thought, above existence, above goodness, yet an active
correctly quotes Scripture in defense of his lies. Cel- force, perpectually producing something else, without
sus did anything hut quote Scripture correctly. His motion or diminuation of self."
perversion and abuse of the facts to which he alludes        It is plain thait to so reason about God is equivalent
is amazing.    Yet all that  ,he  Itells us, even though to saying that there is no God ; and that thus man can
expressed in language of abhorrence, bears  wiitness  to sin  Gwith impunity.     If  ,God by Himself is  super-
the reality of the historical facts the Gospel record.    rational, His revelation of self  Cto man is an unintelli-
   Another enemy of God's people of the type of Cel- gible blank like Himself; and His background is mark-
sus was `Lucian,  who was born in Syria and who died ed by utter absence of relations with respect to self
in Greece before  200. He uses the same  weapons- and to man.
those of  wict. and scorn-and urges substantially the        ,Consequently,  in the system of Plotinus, God is
same objections.    The Christian  h.ope of an eternal known only by blind feeling; ad &he goal is a panthe-
life and resurrection, its opposition to the depraved istic absorbtion  into the being of God. Here matter as
way of life of the pagan world, the brotherly love such is evil and evil riots independent of God's will;
which bound Christians Ito one another, he throws into and salvation, which comes by man's own effort, con-


                                                                                                                    --,
23 8                                  T?SE  BTANDARD   B E A R E R

sists in exterminating the life of the senlses, leaving it      to God the opinions of the multitude." Sentiments
,behind, and in returning to the original perfection            such as these, coming, as they did, from a bitter foe
from which man has fallen and for which all men of the truth, shows the power exerted by Christianity
long. "The true goal is reached when the soul loses             even over the minds of those who opposed it.
all thought, desire, and activiity,  all individual life, in                                               G.  MI. 0.
an  ecstacy of immediate union with God." Such is
the primary principle of  Plotinus.'  religious philosophy.                              ---
Neo-Platonism was an attempt to Christianize pagan-
ism and to found a universal religion that  coul,d serve            The Avenging March Against
as the counterpart to the religion of Christ. It there-
fore soughit for support in all the popular religions of                        The Midianites
that day, to all of which it gave a meaning. It shunned
a rigid monotheism.                                                This is the aftermath to the judicial  puni&ment  ito
        Among the leading Neo-Platonists, Porphyry was which the Israelites were doomed on account of their
lthe  m,ost notorious on account of his  dire& attacks whoredoms and idolatry with  Mcab and  Midilan.  It
upon Christianity. His  ,&York   against the  Christians        will be recalled  that Midian  and Moab had acted upon
was directed against the books of the Bible,  whioh,            the advice of Ballaam  [to call the children of Israel to
according &o this pagan, w.ere th.e works of deceivers the sacrifice of  atheir gods in the consideration that, if
and ignorant peo.ple. In his crilticism  of the origin of the call were heeded, Jehovah in His anger would de-
Christianity, he spoke bitter and  `severe  words. He stroy Israeel. The call was heeded, and we know with
endeavored to set the  01,d Testament against  ithe New wha& results. The camp was ravaged by a terrible
by pointing out what `he took to be contradictions be- plague in which 24,000 died.
ltween them. He seized upon the contention between                 If  tie tempted Israelites deserved to  <be punished,
Paul and Peter at Antioch (Gal. 2 :11) to prove that muoh  more the people  who were the tempters. Ac-
the dootrines of such apostles must needs be lies and cordingly, Moses wsus now commanded to undertake an
fraud. *He did not spare even Jesus Himself, whom avenging march against th.e Midiankes.,  The history
he accused of ,deceptive  conduct at John  7:8, 14. He of this war is soon told. Each tribe  hlad  rto contribute
was a violent enemy of the Christians. What especially a thousand, which formed an army of 12,000 men.
vexed his soul was their unmoveableness in their re-            Because the war was a holy war, Phinehas w&s sent
jection of and opposition to the pagan gods  in his ialong with the sacred ttrumpets to blow in his hand-
system and their  ,worshipping  Christ as God. Thus sent along not as commander butt as priest. He was
in another work he has the pagan god Apollo advise  a doubtlesa chosen because he had manifested such un-
crestfallen husband, whose wife had embraced Chris- usual zeal. Zimri, a prince of the tribe of Simeon,
tian&y, to forsake her to lament her deceased God. had lead his illicit lover, a Midianitish woman, with
The husband might sooner "write  ,on the flowing shameless impudence  into his tent, in the presence of
stream, or fly on the empty air, than endeavor to Moses and of all the weeping Israelites. It was Phine-
chafnge atie mind of his wife after she had become god lhas who had pursued the man into his tent, an.d had
less"-godless from the point of view of Apollo.                 thrust both of them thru. He would now be the fihtest
        Yet, apparently, like so many rationalists of more person to inspire  ,the army  wit,h sacred zeal in the
recent times, Porphyry was not wholly adverse to mission.
,Christ.  He deems Him a  pi,ous soul, who, by a "cer-             In the ensuing combat, all the males of  tthe ad-
tain fatility had become an occasion of error to those versary were slain. In addition to those who perished
souls (meaning the Christians) which were destined  rtX,        in battle, the five kings of the people were slain, prob-
have no share in the gifts of the god,s and in fthe know-       ably after they had been  bken captive. They are
ledge of the eternal Zeus". The error of these souls recorded ,by name: Balsam,  too, the fomenter of the
was that they worshipped Christ as God. On this ac- mischief, meets his doom. The cities an'd the castles
count they should be pittied. Like these rationalists, he of the enemy were destroyed by fire ;  rtheir wives and
evidently distinguished between the pure dootrine  of children carried captive,  and all their cattle, flocks
Christ and what he took to be the derived and pervert- and goods taken as booty. But the  MSdianites,  as a
ed  do:ltrine of the apostles. Yet he seems to have been people, were not  uuterly blotted out of  existen& The
strangely effected even by  `some of the teachings of destruction concerned only those tribes of the  Midian-
the latter, for instance by St. Paul's characterization ites who dwelt on the  highhmds of Moab. The  m,ain
of faith, hope, and love. He described this triad as the stock of the tribe shared neitiher  in the sin nor in the
foundation of piety. He was, further, a zealous  advo-          judgment.    For later in history they appear as a
cake of image worship; yet he wrote to his wife "that           mighty and hostile power against Israel (Judges 6  :8).
a man is not so much of an Atheist who rtleg1ect.s  to             When the victorious army returned, Moses, Elea-
worship the images of the gods, as he who transfers             zar  tthe highpriest, and the victorious army was re-


                                    T@HE  S T A N D A R D   B E A R E R                                            239

ceived  at the front of the camp by Moses, Eleazar  the prime movers in the temptation and fall of Israel.
,highpriest and  sthe  elcders. But Moses rebuked the And they in  distinctions  from the Moabites continued
1,eaders  of the host, because they had spared the women to  pra&ice their wiles after  &he plague was stayed,
alive. He insisted that they (all be slain, tog&er with as is plain from chap. 22 :18 : "And the Lord spake
every male among the children and every female, ex- unto Moses, saying, Vex the Midianites, and smite
cept those whose virginity could be established. The them: for they vex you with their wiles,  wherewilth
reason that h,e gives i,s worthy of careful consideration. they have beguiIed  you in the mak'ter of Pear,  and in
It is a justification of Midian's. doom; and it answers       the matter of Cosbi, the daughter of  +he  primce  of
&he question why of the two Moab and  Midian,  the Midian,  the sister of which was slain in the day of the
latter only was vexed.                                        plague for Pear's sake." As urged on by Balam, `who
   Said Moses to the leaders : "Behold, thme (women)          had continued in rtheir midst, instead of r&urning  to
caused the children of Israel, through the counsel of his place, they persisted in the attempt to seduce God's
Balsam,  to commit trespass against the Lord in  lthe people. Their defiance of Jehovah  was amaztig,  as is
maitter  of  Pear,. . .  ." This brings out just what the also evident from the doing of Cozbi. Finally, M,oab
kings of the Midianites  .hed  wa&ed to accomplish had soughtt  the material vic&ory over Israel, its sub-
through these women. The invitation to idolatrous jugation as a political power. The Midianites sought
worship was not simply a friendly gesture calctiated          to demoralize Israel.    It was not victory that  it.hey
Ito win the good will of a p&ential  foe in order that it     wanted, but Israel's destiruction.    And they were not
might cease to be a menace; but the deliberate purpose moved by fear as was Moab-by fear  thst they were
was to beguile the people of Israel into trespassing about to be  suppIanted  by bhe people of `Israel  in their
,against  their God in or,der  that His anger flame again& land. They had no fixed place of abode. They were
them and they be destrope,d. This time the aim was nomads of the desert. What moved  (them to work
to compel  the Lord. The hand of  Baalam was evident Israel's ruin was sheer malice. The  branch  of the
in it all. Wheras his attempts to  ind'uce God Wrough  en-    Mi*dianitish  family,  with whom  *we  there  have to do,
chantmats  had failed, he now hatched out a scheme was an utterly depraved, nomadic horde, a people
,that, if successful, wo'uld  necessitate God to curse Is- matu,red  in sin, and thus ripe for judgment. It was
rael. He would force God against  Sirs will, if  cthis hherefore  necessary that they be destroyed, necessary
were possible. And the Midianitish  chiefs had proven for God's honor and necessary for Israel's own  Isafety.
very willing to collaborate  wibh him.                        In their persistent attempt to seduce God's people, they
   As to these women, they had been the immediate w,ere deliberately and consciously striking at God.
cause of the sin and mischief into which  Israel had Hence, in communictiing  the will of God to the people,
fallen. They were doubly deserving of death. Besides          Moses said : "Arm some of yourselves. . . . and avenge
as associated with the  Israelitish   famili,es, they would the Lord of  Midian"  {31:2).  The war of vengeance,
become destructive of the people. Persons so des- here undertaken, was the  precurser  of the exterminat-
perately wicked, a's were these women, could not be           ing judgment which was soon &o overtake the Canaan-
incorporated in Israel's commonwealth. And lthe boys, ites.
too, would have corrupted the  `Israelltish  women.. The         Now the  Lord could have  extirpded the  Midian-
virgins only might safely become fused into the life          ites by Himself; but He chose to do it through the
of Israel.                                                    agency of His people. And with reason. Israel must
   But was Moab not just as guilty as  Midian?  Ilt fight-fight the good  fighIt of faith. And this con-
was  Moab who had hired  BaIaam to curse Israel; sisted not merely in serving God and in confessing His
Numbers 22:1-3.  Also Moab's daughters had taken a name positively, but it had to cons&it  also in the people
hand in seducing the people of Israel. "And the of Israel participating in Jehovah's warfare against
people began to commit whoredom with the  daughtiw            His enemies. The foe must not only be shunned. and
of Moab. And they-these daughters--called the people avoided but attacked. The lie must be assailed. The
unto ithe sacrifice of their gods" (Num.  25 :1-Z?). Yet world bgether with the invisible powers  of darkness
the  ,avenging  march was again&  Midiaa  alone.  Ac- must be overcome and destroyed.  ,Only   w,hen God's
cording to one explanation there comes anto view again peopIe are ready for this, can it be stid of them that
with respect to the Moabites the  blood-relsvtionship         they have actually broken with the lie, are whole-
which was `ever an object of pious regard 6% the IBrael-      heartedly oppused  to the *devil and all his works, are
ites. The Moabites, as the  descendenti  of  L&, were of a mind  rto be actually done with sin and are wholly
ne'ar kinsmen of the people of Israel. But this  is true and consciously consecrated to God with their entire
also of  the Midianites.  Mi,dian, the  faeher  of  th& being. For this very purpose God had placed Midian
people, was  lthe son of Abraham by his concubine on Israel's path. The Midianites suffering their just
Keturah, Gen. 25 :%-4.                                        deserts at the hands of the people of Israel, is only an
   The right explanation is that the Midiamites,  who instance of a general principle operative through the
were then encamped upon the plains of Moab, were the ages in lthe sphere of God's covenant. Christian pol-


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230                                    T H E   S T A N D A R D   B E A R E R

emits is willed by Cod. To live ,the antithesis is very     ment required a bloddy  sacrifice. They simply meant
actually to bear down on the lie. The man wlho can be       to give expression to their feelings of unworthiness of
satisfied simply with the setting forth of the truth, is    the Lord's mercy  #through  yielding to Him these spoils
a half hearted soldier of Christ, if a soldier at all.      of war,.                                       ,G.M.O.
H.owever  godly his form may be, he is in all likelihood
a double-hlearted  man, w#ho receives nothing from the
Lord. James 1:7, 8. Whait would have been done to
the Israelite, who stubbornly refused to participate in
Jehovah's warfare with Midian and w&h the Canaan-                           The Numberings
ites?It was doubdtless due to a natural feeling of sym-        This enumeration does indeed represent an in-
pathy `that the leaders had spared  lthe  wom'en and the terest in numbers. But it is plain that its purpose
children. It was hard, very hard to slay these defence-     `was sot to learn,  through determination of numbers,
less ones especially the children. But the justice of the numerical  s,trength  of the nation as a fighting
God called for the extirpetion  of the whole seed of evil- force.  Nur'does  the command, "Take  ,the sum of all
doers; and the voice of the humanity of the mere na-        the  congregaltion.  . . ,. from twenty years old and  UP-
tural feeling had to be silenced. Well might the pro-       ward,  all that are able to go cto war in Israel," lend
phet of old exclaim: "0, God, how terrible art thou         support to &is view. It can be shown from the con-
in all thy works !"                                         text that the meaning of (this instruction is : "Enumer-
       Moses, the highpriest, and the heads of&he fath-     ate all of twenty years old and abo.ve,  those in this class
ers' houses took charge of the whole sum of the prey.       disqualified for combat service by sickness  a-nd the
Then it was divided into two equal parts, one of which      infirmities of age as well as those physically  fit for
was given to the army and the dther to the congrega-        such service; but exclude from  the enumeration  all
tion. This too, shows that the purpose of the number-       such wlho have not attained to the age of twenty." The
ing was not to ascertain the aumber  of ithe males in       clause, "all thalt are able to go to war in Israel," was
Israel  physicahy qualified' for combat service because calculated  +o  exclud,e  from the enumeration solely the
ed. The .warrioTs, however were to yield one soul of youth beneath twenty, as  these in  tlhe eyes of God
it was only among such that the land was to be  divid- were still too young to be counted. If the enumeration
five hundred, both of the persons and of @he cattle,        had incmded  only lthose  of military age who went to
to  (the high priest for Jehovah, while the congregation war, the land would have gone to the soldiers in Israel
had to give one of fifty for the Levites. The division and the sick would have been disinherited, as also
of the prey into two equal parts was just. For it was those famihes  in Israel in which there were no male
not by their own choice (that others went not to war.       Israelites. But the evidence that the Lord, in dividing
Hence they were fairly entitled  lto a share of the spoil the land among His people, was also mindful of these
which Itheir representatives (had taken. In the case we is the case of the five daughters of Zelophehad, the
now consider, the warriors were  allowted  to retain a offspring of Manassah. Zelophehad, t.he father of
much larger &are of their half than the others. This, these daughters, had <died in the wilderness without
too, was fair as the former lhad all the peril.             sons having been born to him  t.o preserve his memory
   The  warr.iors had taken an enormous booty : 675,000     in a corresponding inheritance. The request of these
sheep; 72,000 beeves ; 61,000 asses, 32,000 virgins. It daughters therefore is that,  rthere  being no sons, they
shows sthat the wealth of those nomaad tribes was great. be given a possession among the brethren of their
       A roll  call was taken of the warriors and it ap-    father that his name might b,e preserved among his
peared that *not one had fallen in battle. It shows that family. They based 6heir demand upon their father's
the warfare was the execution of a  .divine sentence. right which he had not forfeited. `H,e was not in the
Because  *they  were in a special sense God's instru-       company of Korah but died in his  crwm sin, i.e., he had
ments, He `was their shield in battle. In their grati-      not, as Korah and his company, hastened his death
tude they present a  ~t~hankoffering consisting of all the through a special kransgression.  Moses brought their
gol.den  ornamfents,  w,hiclh Ithey had taken. It amount- cause before the Lord by whom it was maintained in
ed to the sum of 16,750 shekels and was put into nhe        the following emphatic language: "The daughters of
[treasury of the sanctuary.                                 Zelophehad speak right: thou shalt surely give them
       The officers, in consecrating their gifts,  say to a possession of an inheritance among  their father's
Moses : "We have therefore brought an oblation for brethren; and thou shalt  Cause the inheritance of their
the Lord . . . . to make an atonement for our souls be- fakher to pass unto them." Thus, whereas he enumer-
fore the Lord." The  H:ebrew  for  atoneme&  is  COVEY- ation included even female Israelites, .daughters  of a
+zg. Thus they cover their souls before the Lord with       deceased sire who had no sons, its purpose could not
the spoils of war-thegolden ornaments. This was have been to determine the magnitude of Israel's
not any real atonement for any sin, for such an  atone- ,fighting  forces.


