                                           -





              VOLUME XXII .                        OCTOBER 15, 1945  - GRAND RAPIDS, MICHIGAN                                     NUMBER 2
.i_".._.,                                                                    he not discovered that there is "and end of ,all' perfec-
                       .MEDI-l+ATI.ON                                        tion, but that God's.commandment is exceeding broad"?
                                                                             Small won!der .than that,..having  once chosen that Word
                                                                             of God as the theme of ,his song, he contilnues  to sing
                                                                             as if he cannot find the ,end!
                                Order'  MY  Steps:                               Jehovah's testimonies are wonderful : therefore the
                                                                      r.    auth,or's  soul.  Beeps  them.
                                                                                 Understanding and light the words of the Lord give
                             O&P  my  Steps  i?z thy  'Word:  (H'L@  kt  not  to  themthak  enter,intothem .
                           any iniquity ,ha:ve clominion  over me.               And so the psalmist greatly longs for these words,
                                                        Psalm 119:133.,      for t,he connnandments of his..God. He, would know
                                                         Q
                     Thy Word !                                              them, possess th:em, hide them-in his soul, with great
                     Exalted theme!                                          longing and panting, he opens his mouth for them. . . .
                     Highe; than the heavens, deeper tham :the ideepest          He deeply realizes his sinfulne% and imperfection
              sea, inexhaustible in the ricches  `of its contents !          in the~light of the Word of God, and it' is a cause of
              '  Quick   and  ,powerful,   &+p&   than  a  +.cw&&   profound   Sorrow  `b                 *
                                                                                                    hb. "rivers of waters run do_wn
                                                                                                                                    -    =
             `sword, purer than crystaline water rising fresh from my eyes, because they keep not thy l,ajw."
              a founta-in .and sparkling in the golden sunlight, sweet-         From all oppression of evil men He desires to be
              er than honey and the honeycomb. . . .                         ,delivered,  that he may keep the preaepts  of hisi God.
                     Mighty in. its ,effect, accomplishing that which it         He longs to be liberated comp1etel.y  from all domin
                                                                            ion of iniquity.
              spe?ks ; calling the things which. are not into existence,
              holding the universe in its embrace, .establishing  lche           And for direction of his steps. by the  Wondl of
             `heavens ; bringing light out of .darkness, righteousness Jehovah he prays.
              out of  ,corruption,  life out `of  death ; converting the         Let not any iniquity have dominion over me!
              soul, giving wisdom unto the simple,  rejoicmg  the                Order Thou my steps in Thy Word!
                                                                                `Blessed Word of God!
             heart; promising and  .fulfilling.  awhat it promises,                                                 -.
              faithful and true ; enduring for !ever. . . .                                          -         -             -
                     The living and abiding Word .of God !
                     Of it the poet sings!  ~ j                                  Deliver me from evil!
                     Let others sling of men and mighty `deeds, of wars         ,Let not any iniquity have dominion over me!
              and deeds of prowe%,  of the glory of arms, of horses              Such is, and must needs be, .the cry of him in whose
              and chariots, of m.an's  ingenuity and power; of human hea!& has ,shone and #does  shine the discerning light of
              inventions and accomplishments,-the poet chooses the the Word of God.                                  `.+`
              exalted and iglorious Word of God f.or his-theme.                  Does he not, in principle,. to be sure, but then in
                !-Is it snrprising that he cannot find the end of his ` deep&  p,rinciplte,  in the depth elf his heart whence are
             song, that `it seems as if he repeatedly expresses the the issues of life, love that Word as the revelation of
              same thing, while to the carefully observing reader, the  living  God,  anId of the will  ,of Jehovah to' himi
             who shares a little in the inspired author's love of thal And does he not, as he knowsand  loves that Word, dis-
             Word of, God, it becomes evident that he ever id&covlers        cover ,in its @ear light t,he iniquity of his nature, his
             a new aspect ,of his theme, new riches, new bliss, new imcapl@ility   to do any good and in&nation to every
             sweetness `which he must still extol, in his song? ' Had -iniquity.3 And must not, then,  mevitably  arise from
                _

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

         that new principle of life that has been wrought in his            pending danger that he will yield to the persuasive
         heart, and according to which-he knows and loves the pleading, or  snccomb  under the oppressive hand of
             Word of God, --arise the longing cry: "Let  not, any his former master, he prays : "0, let not iniquity have
       iniquity have dominion over me,!"?                                   any dominion over. me !"                             D  _
        _       `0, let us not misunderstand  this prayer, as if it were       <Y.Iniquity.!,,
         the cry~of  one that is still under the dominion of sin!              `By thisvery  word he expresses how thoroughly he
                It&not!                       -.                            has come to know the corrupt rule of that former lord,
                The dominio,n.of  iniquity is of su& a nature that and how .he loa.thes Tand &despises  that, dominion.
         one that is ?n its power never cries f,or liberation. He is            For  "miquity" is  ,vanity, emptiness.      1
         in full agreement with his own enslavlement. He loves                  InSquity is, according to the meaning of the iHebrew
       his subjection.  Willhgly  he serves  hh  lo.rd. Would word thus translated: that whiich is void of any posi-
        -.you free him, he wo3d cling to his bonds. Would you tive good.. .It has no positive aim, it. tends not to the
         separate him from his master, he woul@ isleek anld run glory of God, it yields no positive fruit; Even though
.-after him  algain.                                                        the sinner, und$er the dominion of iniquity, ,imagines-
. .             He, that committeth sin is a servant of sin !               that, in pursuing the pleasures of sin, he strives atfter
             ._, A slave, yes, but a  .willing slave ! '                    a positive good ; t.hough he seeks riches an.d honor and
                And so, the prayer: "let not any iniquity have do- pleasure and delight, though he "enjoys the pleasures
:* minion-over me," is t.he cry of the liberated!                           of sin for a season," he only deceived himself, and the
                But it is the prayer ,of the free that is ever on the       end of it all is more ,bitter than deabh. That apparent-
       --  :a+lert against .the lurking enemy, that realizes deeply ly pleasing lord of sin isI a cruel, faithless, i8eceiving
        `that "eternal vigi,lance  is the pritce of liberty." . .           tyrant : the `wages of sin is death !
                For the child of God is, indeed, free. .He is not               Any iniquity !
         ua$er the law, but  und,er   igrace: sin shall  .not have             Ear, though all iniquity is. principally alike, it as-
         `dominion over him.         The law of the Spirit of life in sumes different forms : pride, lust, covetousness, malic-
             Christ Jesus has made him free from the law of sin iousness, deceit, envy, hatred,  vile affections, adultery,
' and  d!eath. He is in Christ Jiesus ; he is aI new creature ;             idolatry, lying,Oslander, enmity .against God and hatred
-        old things, the things. of the  adominion  of sin, have of  lone another, strife, debate, war, contention, covenant
         passed away, behold, all things have become new ! But breaking.  i . .
_ the old lord of sin is ever near, and is extremely jealous                    But why ,even attempt to complete the list?
.:. `of his former dominion. He does not readily relinguish                     As manifold  .as human  life in the world, as the
       his right to rule. He consistently, stubbornly, .refuses             issues of the human heart, is the horribly corrupt
' to abdioaite.  Always he leonspires to regain his former nature o!f the dominion `of `iniquity!
         ,domin!ion, to subject his former slave into  caDtivity                And the liberated child of God, though, no doubt,
         oncie again. And this would appear to be easy. He aware of the fact that he is inclined to yield to `one form
         dwells  in the same house with his former subject. He more readily than to another, according to his peculiar
:' operates in his members. He finds a strong ally in the character and position in ,the'world,  abhors them all.
         old  nature  ,of the believer. He did, indeed, lose his                He deeply realizes that to yield to any @artilculiar
         right, to rule; and, in principle, be also was deprived form of iniquity is to, become enslaved once more Lo its
         of his power. But he is not yet completely cast out,               entire dominion.
        cannot be Icast out `until, through death and resurrec-                And he hates it all.
        tion, he will see his former slave',escape  him; finally and           No particular sin he tries to'hide, to nourish in his
        forever, into the glorious liberty of the children of God.          bosom, to hold .in his right hand.
        Moreovler, everything seems to be in his favor, and to                 Let not iniquity have dominion over me !
        support his  attempt to regain his former dominion.                   Deliver .me from evil! `"
        The "wor1d" is full of the lust of the flesh, amd the lust             From all evil!
       of the eyes, anId the pride of life, : and conspires with                                                  .
        him to bring the redeemeid and lilberated believer into                                   -em
        bondage of sin once m.ore. The devil gores about like                  .And lead me, 0, my. God !
        a `roaring lion, seeking whom `he may devqur. . . .                    Seaulch me, and know my heart ; try `me, and know
               Very near, encompassilng  him on every side, is the my  thoLr/ghts  ; and see if there be  `any wickedness
Ch:ristian's former lord!                                                   in' me ; and lead me. . . .
               And realizing `his precarious. posit,ion,  and loving           In the way everlasting!
       . his newly acquired liberty, and ha&g the idlominion of                `Qrder my steps in Thy Word!
        sin with a perfect hatned, and realizing that in his own               That is the -positive content of the prayer. of the
        strength he can never fight the battle to the end and               liberated  ihil'd of God.      For, while he abhors  and
        have the victory, conscious,' in fact, of the always im-` eschews the .dominion of iniquity, `he has a new delight


                                                               ~  - -~
                                            T.HE  S T A N D A R D   B E A R E R   .                                                2 7

      .in the  laiw of the Lord. The  testiinonies  !of  Jehdvah Scriptures. From them we. may learn in which rclirec-
       are wonderful to him.. ~Thejr goodness he has tasted. tion the Wlord qf God would order our steps. And yet,
       Sweeter than honey they are to him. The entrance of indispen,sabl,e  though tlnose Scriptures ar,e ; ani': though
       Jehovah% words gave him light and  understandilag             it is certainly true that,  Ir:  order  to have  our steps
       such as he can fimc$ nowheke  else. They a@or,ded  him directed by what  God  spea!;a to  us, it is absolutely
      spiritual discernment of spiritual thi*nigs. In their way necessary that- we-  search those Scriptures, and that
       he found forgivleness  and deliverance, mercy  and" `graze, we live iin daily and constant contact with them; and
       life and fellowship witl;' `God, joy and pleasares f;or though ,it must be maintained, lest we become hope-
       evermone. . `. .                                              lessly lost in the quagmire  ,of mysticism, that God
          He found,GGold, the God of hi$ savation!                   never speaks to us apa& from those S.cri,ptures,-yet'
          In Him is now his del<ght.                                 it remains1 ever true that God can only speak His own
          His statutes Ke desires to keep.                           Word.
          IQ the way of His commandments he would- run.                   We cannot lay holid of it,' unless it please Him to
          And. so, he prays : "Order my steps in Thy Wo,pd."' spexk it to us!
          A very  f;amiliar figure of speech underlies these              Never can it become a power within us, ali irresist-
       won& : that of comparing man's Iwhole life, from the ible power,.  ;an  all-motivating  power in our deepest
       +i&wpoint of its spiritual-ethical direction, to a way heart, directing all the issues of our aife, unless, through
      -in which he walks. Only, the-psalmist views his walk- the Spirit of  {our Lord  Jesus  Ch.rist, it pleases  .Him
       ing in thie way of Jehovah's precepts, not as 81 whole,       to cause that Word to become a Sire in our bones."
       not with a bird's eye view, but rather in detail, with             Then, and then only,  `we are  mlled out of dark-
      r&!pect  to all his particular. and individual expnelssions    ness into  ,His  marvellous  light., once, again, con-
      land manifestations of his life in relati,bn  to. $$ Gold!     stantly.
       For he speaks, n&t .of his, way, -in general, but of his           Then we carry it in our hearts; n:ay, then it over-
       steps o,n that way, in partilcular. And by these "steps" powers us, so that we willingly and with delight of
.,.,+he refers to his  actiqns:  ;These  are manifold. They our intiost heart, subject (ourselves to it, and love it,
,. ;are ias varimous as. the @lness of human life in relation obey it.~
      to the work% abotitbhim, before the face of God. They               Then it (betcomes the motivatdng power in the very
      refer to hi,s tho*ghhtis and aspirations, his inclinationd center ,of our existence ldiirecting  all the issues of our
      and'desires,  his joys and his sorrows, the deepest stirr- l i f e .   _
      ings ,of his inner life. They .d,enote the expression. of           Lead mej 0 my God ! ~~ Lead me, day by day!
       all these inner motions and emotions, in seeing and                Direct my every individual step by what Thou
      hearing  ,a!n.d speaking, in. touching and tasting  anltil. sayest !
      hul?dling, in all his walk and convlersation. They  refiey          Order Thou my steps!
      to his active personal life, and to his activity in rela-'                                          :
      tion to the whole outside word': ins the home, in society,
      in the Ichurch,  in the state ; to` his walk in rel,aition          Humble expres&n of dependence !
      to  l& wife .and chilfd.ren,  to his brothers  and sisters,         Here all prow8  self-will and self-reliance ciases!
to his fellow  chill&en  of God, to  .men in general  i in                I am wea,k,  prone to halt and to stumble, inclined
      business `and industry, in. the school and in the shop, to seek th'e former d,ominion of iniquity; and not for
      in private and isn public. . . . .                             a mom& can I stand, not one $ep Iam I able to take
          My steps!                                                  in the right direction !
          Order them in Thy Word!  -                                      F,orsake me not, 0, my God!
                                            . .
          The original might be translated by:  O,rder  my                                                           .  IH.  H:
      steps   bzj  @at Thou  say&.  L1
       ' Let all my life; 11% r& every action, Zet every step
      I take !n lif,e's"wajr, alet every thought I think, every           I
      etiotion that  " arises  ,sthin my  so'ul, every  choice I
      make;" &&j; -a$&at?on I pti&`ue,  &very inclination of                      Under the shadnow  of Thy throne
      my h&a&;,, &%j, &%ce- of hy &+, every falvorable  in-                         Thy saints have dwelt' secure;         0
      &n&  df rii$ehr, every word `I .spe&,  every a'ct I per-                   Xufficient iS Thine arm alone
      f,orm,-let,  if-be motivated and &r&ted by what Thou                          And our  itiefense is.  sure:
-  Sdyi%i Unto  nie`!' .
. `"F+,' indeed, this ordering of our steps is realized                           Before the hills in order stood
      `thkli:;: and then only,  (when it  `pieases  C?&d to speak                   Or earth received her frame;.
      t--,m!"e.                                                                   From everla&ing  Thou art God
`.        Indeed, `in ial s'etie, wle-have  His Woind in the Holy         .         To endless years t,he sanie.


     2                      8                                                                                                T H:E S T A N D A R D   B'EAREI?  ..


                                                                                                                                                                                                                                EDITORIALS  `-
                          Semi-Monthly, except Monthly in July and August
                                                                               Published by
                             - The Reformed Free Publishing Ass5ciation
                                                    .1463 Ardmore Street, S. E.                                                                                                                                                The Liberated &urches
                                                     EDITOR - Rev. H. .Hoeksema                                                                                                                                                   In The Netherlands .
          Contributing Editors..-Rev. G. M.  OphoZf, Rev. G.  .Vois,  Rev.
          R. Veldman, Rev. H. Veldkan, R&v:  H. De Wolf, Rev. B.:Kok;                                                                                                                                                    By this time, we have received so much material
          Rev. J. D. De. Jong, Rev. 4. Petter, Rev. C. Hanko, Rev. L.                                                                                                                                                about the separation of the "licberarted  6hurches" in the
          Vermeer, Rev. G. Lubbers, Rev. M. Gritteq  Rev; J. A. Be@,                                                                                                                                                 Netherlands, material -in the form of papers, official
          Rev. W. Hofman.'                                                                                                                                                                                           ,dlocuments, ahd letters, that we can proceed quite con-
             Communicatio8rs  relative to  +  conten&  should  be addressed                                                                                                                                          fidently with our discussion, are in a position to stake
       to REV.  I-I. HOEKSEMA,  Xl.39 Franklin St., S. E., Grand
       R a p i d s ,   Mi,chigan.   -                                                                                                                                                                                the f&s. objectively, and to foPmulate motivated con-
                                                                                                                                                                                                                     clusions about the whole n&ter.           -.       -
             Communications relative to subscription should be addressed
          to MR. GERRIT  PIPE,,1463 Ardmore St., S. E., Grand Rapids,                                                                                                                                                    In fact, the material is so -abundant' th& not &y
       Michigan. All Announcements,- and Obituaries must be sent                                                                                                                                                     would it -be quite impossible to reproduce it a!1 in our
       \`o the above address and wili aot be placed unless th,e regular                                                                                                                                              paper, but it'is even somewhat difficult to decide where
       fee of  $1.00  accompanies the notice.  -                                                                                                                .,                                                   to begin  our  dLcussion,.     But some  ,qrder must  ,be
                                          (Subscription price $2.50  per year)                                                                                                  _,                                   introduced into ishis chaos in order to ,give our neaders
       Entered as Second Class mail  at- Grand Rapids,  -M&.igan.                                                                                                                                                    as complete and intelligible a ,pi&ure of the cgntrotnersy
                                                                    ,                                                                                                                                                latnd secession as possible. We shall, therefore, attempt
                                                                                                                                                                                                                     to do this Under -three heads; viz. :
                                                                                                                                                                                                                         I. The doctrinal decisions adopted' .iy the synod
                                                                           CONTYENTS                                                                                                                                 of  `the Reformed  (Ger&i?oimeer?de)  Churches  in the
     MEDUFATION   -                                                                           ;                                                        a'                                                            Netherlands in 1924,. their meaning and their binding
                                                                                                                                                                           .                                         force.
     ORDER  MY  STEPS . . . . . . . . . .
.                                                                                . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  ,25        II. The actions of this same synod from a church-
                        R e v .   H .   Hoeksema   _                                                                                                                                                                 political aspect, and the stand .of ,the "liberarted church-
                                                                                               -                                                                                                                     es". over against these actions. .
EDITORIALS -                                                                                                                                                                                .._
                                                                                                                              . .                                     _-                                                 III. The doctrinal position  `.of both factions,  bit
     THE  LIBE.RATED  CHURC,HES   Iti THE NETHERLANDS....&                                                                                                                                                           esp&ially  of the. "lib&rated churches," particularly with
     EXPOSITION `OF THE HEIDELBERG CaTECHISM . . . . . . . ...32                                                                                                                                                     respect to the questilon  concerning the cove~ia~rxt.
                Rev. H  .Hieksema                                                                                                                                                                                        Here follows a copy ,of the Idrecisions regarding the
                                                                                                                                                                                                                     well-known doctrinal differences.        Thtise  decisions
     THE WICKED  DEEcD OF  &IE GIREATHITES AND THE                                                                                                                                                               `wene adopted Iby the- synod -of Utrecht in 1942. I will
     Wti AGAINST BENJAMIN . . . . . . . . . 1 . ..I...................................... "34                                                                                                                        copy them literally in t;hft Holland language, an.d then
     MONASTICISM. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ...! . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .37. t,ranslate them for our readers into Einglish.
                Rev.  G:. M.  Ophoff                                                                                                                                                                                     "Aangaande  rde algemeene genade:
                                                                                                                                                                                                                         1. Dat God (Die aanstonds na #den val begonnen
     OFF TO SCHOOL . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  r . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
                                                                                                                                                                                                      39             is Zijn Kerk te vergaderen die Hij van zonde en dood
_               Rev:  R .   V e l d m a n                                                                                                                                                                            en  `vloek verlost)  al wordt Zijn toonn ovep  alle gadde-
                                                                                                                                                                                                                     loosbeid  en ongerechtilgheid d'er nienslchen,@eopenbaard
     FROM  HOLY   .WRIT                                                                                                                                                               I:
                                                                 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  I.... . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  1 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
                                                                                                                                                                                                      42              (Ram. 1:18), -nochibans over de gevalle~.werellti  iln deze
                Rev. H. Veldman                                                                                                                                                                                      bedeeling nog niet de voile straf &er zonde brengt ;
                                                                                                                                                                                                                     maar  terwijl- Hij haar in Zijn lankmoedigheid  ver-
     AN  APPRE,CIATION . . . . . . . . . . . ..L.......~.....".......~.................................44                                                                                                            draagt, Zijn ztifi adoet bopgaan ?ver,boozen e& goeden en
     SAN  FRANCI,SCO . . . . . . . ..i....~........~................................................... 45. aan heel de me~schheid ,goed idioet  vain den hitmel (Matt.
               Bev. W.  Hoffmm                                                                                                                                                                                  _ 5 :45 ; Handel; 14 :17) ;
                                                                                                                                                                                                                 -       "2.  <d&t Hij ook' in: den mensch nog kleine over-
                                                                                                                                                                                                                     blijfsellen  der  oorspronkelijlke  soheppingsgaven en
     STEDFASTNESS   & OUR  YOUNIG-PEOPLES'  SOCIETIES....Q                                                                                                                                                           eenig licht ;de? natuur heeft doen oveEblijven, al is het
               Rev. H. Hoeksema  _                                                                                -'                                                                                                 ook, dat idi% alles ter zaligheid rgansch onvoldoende is, ,
                                                                                                                                                                                                                     en de mensch ielfs in natuurlijke .en burgerlijke zakefi


                                                                        -_

   ~,..a."     .                             THE`  S%ANbARb  BE`AREE                                                               29
  dit licht niet recht #gebruikt  (Nedl. Geloofsbel. Art. 14 ;                1. D,o not speak elf a favorabl'e ittitude :or ,disposi-         _ _
  Dordtxb&  Leerr; III, IV, Art. 4)  ;  ..:.  :             `.         tion of Gad toward the  reprobate  ; the decisions.. of
          "3. dlak mdeze loverblijfselen en weldadan. niet slechts 1924 sdo.
  moeten dienen  .om i&en mensch alle  on&huJ,d   te  be-                     2. Do not speak  bf the  "Yell-meaningiffIer of sal-
  nem'en, maar ook ,om de  zonde in k;q,ar doorwer#king                vation" and the preaching of the  ,gospel as  commlon
  tijdelijsk  te. beteugelen, en om tie beprerken, ,dat moge- .gralce; the decisions of 1924 do.
lijkhe,den,  i!n;  sde oorspronkelijke schepping  ,gegevferi,                 3. Do  Inot  speak  of.  a gracious operation. of the
  nag in de zondige,wereld  tot ont+keling komen ;                     Holy Spirit restraining sin in the individual ; the de-
          "4.  ,dat God hierin  aan  boozen  `en  goeden,  .aan , &ions- of- 1924 do.
  rechtvaardigen en onrechtqardi,gen ongehouden goed-                         4. Do not rspeak of civil good or righteousness which
  heid bewijst, Idie onder ons met de Inaam `algemeene the unregenerate  can do; tee Ifiecisions of 192& *do.
  ,genade' of `gemeene gratie' wordt aanigeduid, maar we1                     5. Do declare that the natural man cannot use the
  te onderscheiden is van de `zaligmlalkende genade aan "natural light" aright ,even in things lnatural  and civil ;
  hen, die van den Vader aan Christus zijn gegeven."                   the decisions of 1924 don't.
          Tra&lated :                                                         6. Do speak of the gifts @rnd remnants as provid- -
                                                                       in.g an opportunity .for`the development elf the original
          "Concerning common grace :                                   creat,ioti  ordinance : (c la Kuyper  ; the ,decisions of 1924
          "1. That God (Who, immediately after the fall, idon't.                                     .
  began- to' gather His Church, Iwhich He deiipers  from                      But more about. this later. We muat now cqntinue
  sin, death, and the curse), even though His wrath -is .our report of the decisions of the Netherland synod.
  revealed ovler all. ungodlifi&s  an'd unrighteousness of
  men (Rom. 1 :lS) , yet, do& not .bring, updn the fall&
  world, in this dtipjensation,  the full punishme&  qf sin;                  "Aangaande het Igenialdeverbond :
  but, while IHe bears her in His `longsuffering, causes                      "1. `dat het genadleverbond  van zulk een ftindamen-
  His sun to rise over the evil and over the good, and dqes            teele  beteekenis voor hit g&ofsleven  is, dat zoowel de 1.
  good from heaven to the whole ,of m&i&d.  (Matth. ,prediking als elke andere  arbeid der  Kek ervan be-  ;
  5:45; Acts  14:17) ;                                                 hoort Uit te aga&, en dat iedere voorstelling of praktijk ?
        "2. -that-He also left to man& small remnants of his moet gemedten, die aan :de beteekenis van -Gqds verbond!
  original creation-gifts, and some light of nature, even tekort   iou  doen ;
  though all, this is &tirely insufficient unto salvation,                    "2. `dat de Heere in de belofte dss verbonds onge-
  land man, even in things natural and civil, does not use twijfelfd toezegt .de God, niet alleen van de geloovigen, '
  this light aright (Netherland  Conf. Art. 14 ; C,anons `of maar ook van hun zaad te zijn  (Gen. 17  :7  ;  doch in                           _
  Dordt III, IV, 4) ;                 '                           I    Zijn  wooed   onB niet minder  sopenbaart,   dat-,zij niet  _
               "3. That these remnants and benefits must serve, _ allen Israel zijn, die uit Israel zijn. (Rom. 9 :6) ;                   ,
  not only to render  m& without  excuse,  but also to                        "3. dat daarom-oveceenkomstig  h&ge:en  .de synode                    .
  .bridl,e  thie course  ,(working through) of sin  tempor-            van Utrecht  (Acta art. 158) uitgesproken heeft--!het
arily,  an'd to  cause  lhat possibilities,  ,given in the zaaJ& des verbonds krachtens de beloft% God&e houden
  origin&l creation, may still be developed in the sinful1             is voor wedergeboren  en in Christus geheiligd, totdat
  world; --                                                            bij het opwassen  uit hun wandel of leer het tegendeel
          "4. that, in this, God shows to (or bestows uponj            lblijkt' ; al  heeft de synode  daaraati ook terecht  toe-
  the evil an! the gooid\ the righteous and the unright- tgevoe&d,  d$t Idit `geenszins zeggen wil, dat daarom elk
  eous unbounden goodness, which, amon,g us, is denb;ted kind waarlijk wedergeboren zou zijn';
  by the name `general lgnace' ,or `common .grace', -but-                     "4. &t de Kerk ook Faar ten Atrondmaal  toegelaten
  which must  .be  ,well  distinguhhed from saving grace led&n naar ditzelfde  oondeel der  liefde  heeft  t'e  be-
  to thexp whom the Father :gave to Christ."                      -    schouwen  ,en te `behandelen.
                                                                        "5.  Idat het met de  waarachtigheid   ,Gods  strijbdt,
                                                                       ztilk een tweeheid in  Ide  Schrift  aan te  nemem; dat  :zij
          I cannot  refrab  from  insertinlg  here the remark aangaaade  dez&fde  zaa;k  ja en  n&n zegt en  eenerzijvds
  %hat I cannot understan.d how the editor of The Bamer                de volharding der heiligen leert,  anderziij.ds.dat  w'eder-
  cou11d  :chim that the  .&b&e  ,deci.sions  ,by the  Net,her- lgeborenen  kunnen afvallen en verltorqn  gaan ;
  land Churches are essentially the same as those adopted                     "6. dat men niet hirider feil gaat door een vtiJs\ehe
  by the synod of the  Christiati  Rmeformed   Chnrches in tegenstelling   te  maken  tusschen  een eeuwig verbond
  1924. Elven at first glance, the differences stare you               en een verbon&ab@deeling  irn: ,den tijd ; en do& de spueek-
  in the face, and that,' too,  ,on  lessentim  points. For wijze ,der Schrift, ,om de leden  ader Kerk in "net gemeen
  instance, the shove  ,decisions :                                    geloovigen  te! noemen, aldus ,op te vatten, dat alle kerk- _


       38                                              THEI  STA-NDABD  BEARER
I      leden geloovigen  zijn,.n?aar dan "geloovigen in .den tijld?        elusions" were originally  .de:signe!d as a compromising
       ien daarom nog niet in Iden Rla.ad Gods'; wat in strij,d declaration, r,egarding various points of doctrine (sup&
       is met de Schrift, die I$e aeden ,der Kerk in het gemeen            lapsarianism and  infralapsarianjsm,   m&ate  or. im-
       evenzeer aanspreekt als `uitverkorenen naar de voor- mediate  regener&ions,   eternal   jus$if%ation, presup-
       Dennis van God Iden Vader.' (I Petr.  1:2 V:gl. Col. 3 :12 ;        posed regeneration) that were a constant  SOLLE~ of
       Ef. 1:4-5) ."                                                        debate and friction betwe,en the tiwo main factions of
             Translation :                                                 the Reformed Churches  of. that time;  those1  of the
                                                                           "Afscheiding" of  X3$4 and those of the  `LDolea&ie,,  of
             "Concerning the cdvenant  of grace :                           1886, united synodically in 1892, but, remaining locally
             !`l.  thait  l&e covenant of  &race  is  ,of  suih  funda-     quite idistinct and long known as A and B. These con-
       men_tal silgnificance for the life of fait'h that the pr#each-      clusions were never added to the-Confe&oqs,  but were
       ing as  we13  $s all other  bwlork  of the Church  must ,definit,ely meant as a Izompromisti  statement to create
       proceed from it, and that, in presentation ,or practice,            peace and harmony. The Christi1a.n Reformed Churches
       e+erything must be avoi~ded  th1a.t minimizes the signifi- adopted these same "Conclusions" at the Synod  of
       cance ,of God's covenant.                                           Muskegorn;` 1908. ,Our  qhurches  nev&  adopt& them
             "2. that in `the promise of the covenant the Lord officially, nor is there a_ny occasion for adoptin!g, them,
       undoubtedly pledges t,o be the Go.d, not only 09 believ- seeiln!g that the points of  dqctrine  regarding which
       ers, but also of their seed (Gen1 17 :7) ; but that He they express themselves, la.re not in ,debate  among us.
       neveals tie la,s in His Word that they are not alI, Israel
       that are of Israel (R,om.  9 :,6) ;
             "3. that theref,ore-in  accord with the ideciarations             "Aangaande het zelfbnderzoek  :                         2.
       of the s$nod;of Utrecht 1905 (Acts of `Synod art. 158)                  "1. `dat onder de be&ien@g van de sleutelmacht, die.
       - `in virtule ,of the promise of God, the seed of the Christus aan zijn Kerk heeft toebetrouwad,  efscht, dat
       coveGa@  must be considered regenerated and sancti- in het  mi,dden  ,der  getieente tot  leen ieder  uitgtga. de
       fied  in: Christ, until, as they grow up, the  o.pposite   I mernstilge vermaning tot het  zelEonfierzo&k   oak  aan-  :
       appears' ;+although the synod rightly added that this gra,ande de  vraag of hij waarlijk  in!  Christus  gelooft
       `does cot .at all mean to say that, theulefor"e,  each child         (Heirdelb.  Cateeh. antw. 84) ;
       iS  t r u l y   r e g e n e r a t e d ';   -                .-          "2. dat Idit zelfonderzoek ,ongetwijf@d  in het "ver-
             "4. that the Church must con&ive and deal with bond ,der genade zijn uitgangspudg`b-ehoort  te nemen,
       the  m&m,bers that lare admitted to the Lord's table,               maar daarom  door den ,doop niet minder noodzakelijk
       according to the same jud!glment  of love ;                         gemaakt  wordt, alangezien niet ieder gedoopte het ware
             "5. that it is in conflict with the veracit,y of Goid .gel'oof  bezit ;
       to accept such a duplicity in S,criptur'e  that, in regar,d             "3.  `dat  ,de vermaning tot  z&onderzoek   !ntiet in
       to the same matter, it says yes and no, land teaches, strijd is met den oproep  tot geloof en bekeering,  maar
      . on the one hand, the perseverance of the saints, an,d on -veeleer .als een onderdeel Idlaarvaxi is te $$houwen,  en
       the other, the possibility that the xgenerated  fall away vdaarom `noojt l?laar den' achtergronid  rnag,. dringen .de
       land $e lost ;-                                                     -vermaning-om  zijn vertrouwen' alleen: te stellen op de
             "6., that it is no less erroneous to make a false offerande van Jezus Christu~ aan het kruis, v&heen
       contrast  `( distinction) between an eternal covenant and Woord en  Sacrament. ons  lgeloof  als op  ldlenc  &nigen
       a covenant-l~ispe~sa;t16n  in time ; an,d when Scripture, grond onzer  zra.lighei,d   wijze,  (Heidelb.   Cat&h. ant.
       clalls the members of the `Church as.a whole beli'evers; 1 67) en dat  (de  st,erking des geloofs  <door de  werking
       to nl;:derstand this as meaning that all#ohurch members ,des Heiligen Geestes bet allereerst .hiervan te verwach-
       are, indeed, believers, yet only "believers in time' and ten is;
     not necessarily `in  the counsel  of God';  ,which is in                  "4. ld'at dit echter niet uitsluit, ,dat de, christeri  van
       conflict wit,h Scripture, ,which addresses the members zijn geloof ook wordt verzekerd  uit ,de weaken (Heidelb.
      : #of the Chunch in common also as `el,ect according to the           C&tech. antw. 86) en in het  Algemeen uit het  waar-
       f,oreknowledge of Gold the Father' (I Pet. 1:2 ; Cf. Col. . nemen van `de kenmekenl  der ,genla;de, ,die .door  Woord
       3:12; Eph.  1:4,  5)."                                               en  `Gee&t  in  [Her&  wond!& gewerkt  `(Dordtsche  Leerr.
                                                                           I,  12:v,  lo)."
                                                                               Translated :
             AB Ia matter (of informatitin, I may remark here that
       synod, in 3 above, refers to the frequently mentioned                  a "Concenning  self-examination :
                                                                                                 .-
       but little known "Conclusions of  UtrechY  that, after                  "1. that the administration ,of the keypower  which
       forty years, appear once more in. the limelight of the               Christ has entrusted.  .to His  Church, among  other.
       present controversy in the' Netherlands. These  `"`Con-   1 things, demands that each one ,in the midst ,of the


                              ~    THE           STANDA-kb.kEAkER                                                              81  _
 Icotignegation  is earnestly a,dmonished  unto zelf-examin-         Tr3nslation  :
 ation- also in respect to the question whether he truly             "Concerning the immortality of the soul':
 beliesles  in Christ (tiei~delb. ,Catech.  answ. 84) 
                                                    .  :,              .
     "2. that this self-ex&.mination  must, no doubt, take           "1. that; according to Scripture and the confeseion, ]
 its startingpoint in the covenant of grace, but rdloes not, Iwhen a man dies, his body- returns. to the ,dust; but his
 on this account, become less necessary through braptism, soul, whether in communioh  with Christ enjoying eter-
 seeing that not every .one that is baptized possess&s the nal  salvati'on, or suffering in  ,desolation,  conti!flues to               '
 true faith ;                                                     ,exist, until on the  la& day, when the dead shall be
     "3. that th'e admonition unto self-examinat,ion  is not raised, it is reunited to exist, until on the last day, when
 in conflict with the exhortation, to repentance and fiaith,      the dead shall be raise&; it- is reunited with the body,
 but is much rather to be viewed as a subdivision of the and the beli@vers shall receivle  *eternal salvation, while
 latter, and, therefore; may never press into the back- the unbelievers, on1 the contsary,  shall be delivered unto
 ground the admonition that one must put his donfi.dence.         a contiinued  extitence  in eternal misery; which truth,
 only in the sacrifice of Jesus Christ  <on the cross, from of yore, was expressed in the  dolctrine of the
 whither the W,ord !anrc$ the Sicraments #direct our faith immortality of the soul ;
 as to the onlJi ground of our salvation (Heid. Cat. answ.           "2. that, therefore, it must ,be. m2intaine'cl  that the
 67) and that from this first ,of 8'1, the strengthening soul of ,man, $ithouh in a marveIl,ous way ,constitut-
 of `our faith, through the operation of the Haoly ,Spirit,       ing .a unity with the body, nevertheliss  has, something
 is to be expected ;                                              proper to itself, anId is distinct from-.the body in such
  "4.  .that this, however, -does not  (deny that the a' way that it may be separated from the latter and
                                                                                                              `-
                                                                  exist separat&y."
 ,Christian is I&O assured elf his faith ,out of good works
 (Heid. Cat. answ. 86)  an&, in general,  aby  thee  dis-                                         -
 &g.uishing  marks of. grace wrought ifi him through                 The "irinmortalitv  of the soul" was another point of
 the Word and the Spirit (Canons of Dor,dt,  I, 12 ; V,
 ioy                                                              debate' in the Netherlands before the war, as we re-
                                                                  member. This controversy was largely a matter  ,0-f
                                                             :    terms. In the above  decisi~on~, synod,  &dently,  de-
                                                                  signed to maintain the phrase "immbrtality bf the s&#'
     We recall here thlt the question concerning self-, in t he old, philosophical s&se,of the worn& She would
examination  was  on& of the  poi& of controversy in havIe served the cause of the truth blet;ter,  it seems to
 the Reformed Churches of the Netherlands before the tie, if  sh& had definded the term; "soul" and "im-
 war. Some insisted  that to examine oneself was to mortality" in the light of Scripture. But about this
 doubt the p?orniTe  of the covenant. : Hence, the above later.
 ,declarations.                                                                             --

                                                                     "Alangaanie de  vereeniging van de  be&  naturen
     "Aangaa.nge de  onsterfelijkheM   d,er ziel :                in Christus :
     "1. ,dat, naar Schrift en belijdenis, bij bet sterben           `tdat wile zqu willen jeeren, dat in .de vleeschwoord-
 van den mensch  zijln, lichaair; wederkeert,  tot stof, maar ing de eeuwige Zbne Gods zich zou he~bb.en-  v$bonden
-zijn zjel, hetzij in de gemeenschap met Christus zalig- met een  menschelijlke   persoon,  uiteraarrfi   ,in strijd zou  ._
 heid genietend, hetzij in  ,de  rampzlsligheid  lijl&end,        komen met hetgeen in Art. XIX der Nederl. Geloofs-
 voortbestaat;  totdat zij op .den jongsten dag, wantieer belijdenis -wordt uitgesproken: `Wij gelooven, dat *door
 de dooden zullen opgtaan, .wedlerom met haar lilchaam deze ontvangenis de Pens'oon dels Zoons onafscheidelijk
 vere&gd wordt, en d+e g$oovigen inaLar ziel ,en lichaam <ereenig$  en tezamen ,gevoegd  is met de menschelijke
 eeuwige zaligheid zullep ,ontvang&,  de ongeloovigen natuur; zoodat er niet zijn twee Zonen Gods, noch tlv?ee
 daa,rentegen zulien worden  oaergegeven. tot een voort- personen,  maar twee naturen in eenen  eenigen  per-
 bestaan' in eeuwige  rampzaJighei@  welk,e  waarl@d              soon vereenigd.' "                                ,/
                                                                                       s
 vanoudl-, ook wordt uitgedrukt in de leer van  ,de on-              T.Eanslatioln,  :-  .,'                              *
 sterfelij>kheid  der ziel;                                          "Concerning the union of the two natures in Christ : ,
     "2.' d1a.t .daarom moet gehandhaafid!  worden, `dat de
1 ziel des menschen, ofschoon op, wonderbare  wijze, met             "that whoever would  Iwant to teach that in the
 het lichaarff een eenh&d  vorm,ende, nochtans iets ;eigen        incarnation the eternal Son of God united Himself with .
is, enI van het lichaam dermate onder&heid+, Idfat zij a human person would, in the nature of the case,. Come
daarvan kan  wor,den  a!fgesch$den   ,en  a$zu?d@ijk   be- into oonflitct  with what is. exprFsed in the I$theriand  :
 staan.,'               _.                                        ,C,opfession  Art. XIX:. `We believe that by this coneep-


                                                                                    .  .               \                                                    . .


                                                                       .=.

     g-.;                       -'
                                               -.           T H E .   S T A N D A R D   -`BEA,RE,R

     tion, the person of the Son of God is inseparably united have this Ifa& producing effect. upon the apostle John ?
      and connected with  the' human nature; so that there.                                                        -we *answer thlat the apostle found. the- ,grave in

     natures united in o:~e.sing`le person.' "                                              .-              a `folded and-piled ,up, `even the napkin that had been
              Note here the hypothetical form of the deiclaration :                                           aroutncd' the  S,avionr's head in a  pbce  *by itself ;  an3
      "whoever would wrant to Iteach.  : . . .would come into                                                 that thus John concluded that this was the work of the
      conflict." Although Dr, V. Hepp,  as we recall,`a';ticused                                              Saviour's hand, an,d that He had risen from the delld ?
      Dr.-.Vol-enhoven  of the heresy referred to- above, the This w80ultd hardly be sufficient evidence for the recur- '
heresy of Nestorianism (two persons in Christ), he rection. For any human hand might have unwrapped
      fail~e&,tosay  the least, to prove hiJ indictment. This the body ,of the Lord. Besides, .what Iwould have been
      is probably the reason why the synold expressed itself the sense .of neatly fol.ding all the lint& (clothes, in which
      in this hy.pbthetical  manner.                                                              0           the body of Jesus had been wrapped;  and, above all,,
              No ,decision was made  as yet concerlning  the "multi-: -what would, .be the mea!rnng  of the statement that the
      formity ,bf the chunch."                                                                                napkin was  f,ound lying alone, in. a  place by itself?
                                                                              H..  H.  '
                        . .                                                                                   There can be <but ,one answer to the question why the
                                                                                                              position ,of the linen clothes was sufficient to make
                                                            c                                                 John believe: they were f,ound in the exact position
                                                                                                              and shape in which they hamd been <wrapped la.roun:d the
 The  Triple  Knovdedjge body of the Lo&.
                                                                                                                     We must remember that, on that gloomy Friday
                                                                                                              evening when the ,body  of our Lord was stored -away
       An Exposition of The Heidelberg in the sepulchre of Joseph, even though the sabbath
                                                                                                              drew nigh, the burial of Jemrs had really been com-
                                          Cate&ism                    . . .                                   pleted. About this fact the apostle John informs us:
                                                                                                              "Aed after this Joseph of Arimathea, being a disciple
                 _-            .-            P a r t   T w o ,                                                of Jesus, but secretly ,for fear ,of the Jews, besought
-                                    Of Man's Redemption                       .                              Pilate that .he might take the boidy of JS,LN  : and Pilate
                                                                                                              gave him leave. IHe came therefor%,  and took the body
                                          LORD'S DAY' XVIII                                                   of Jesus: And there came also. Niccodemus,  which at
                                                     1.          ,                                            the first came to Jesus by night, an'd brought a mix- .'
                The Fact Of ,Christ's Resurrection. (8cont,.)                                                 ture of myrrh and aloes, about an hundred pound
                                                                                                              weight.. Then took they the'bady of Jesus; and wound
       T,o give the answer- that the  peiople believed the                                                    it in linen clothes withthe spices, as the manner :of the
      report of Mary that -they, h:ad stolen the body ,of the ~Jews is to bury." John 19 :38-40. R,ev. A. Edersheim' '
     Lord, as some do, would be too superficial, anS surely describes' thi,s burial aoc0rdin.g  to the manner of the
      unscriptural, an interpretation of the words  %nd be- Jews as follows : "It was in the court of the tomb that
      lieved." If that ha.d been the meaning of the evangelist the .hasty embalment-if ,su&h  it may be !called-took
      he must needs have added: "the (words  of Mary." No,                                                    place. None of Christ's f,ormer  idisciples seem to have
      but he believed that Jesus had risen `from .the ,dead.                                                  taken part in the burying. John may have withdrawn
      The :words that f,ollow : "For as yet they knew not the to bri!ng tidings to, land to comfort-the, Virgin-Mother f':-
      s:cri,pture,  that he must rise again: from the dea'd," !do the  .others also, that had stood afar off, beholding,  `I'
      not contradict this explanation. To be sure, they did appear to have left. Ony a few faithful ones, notably
      not as yet understan,d the Old Testament prophesies among them Miary Magdalene and the other Mary, the
      concerning this  marveillouls resurrection. For a clear mother of Joses, stood .over against the tomb, watching
      understan,ding  ,of these scriptures they must wait until lat some distance where and how the Body of Jlesus was
      the promise `of the Spirit hard; been fulfilled in them.                                                laid. It would Scarcely. have .been in acconclance with
      Had they understood these Scriptures, as Peter did the Jewish manners, if these women had mingled more
      sixteenth Psalm on the aday of Pentecost,  John would closely with the two Sanhedrkts  and their attendants.
      have had no need of the sight of the Iempty <grave ,and From where they stood they could only have had a dim
      the linen .cl,othes to  convinoe him of the resurr&ion. view of  w*hat  ,passed  within the court, and this may
      Now he saw,  and #believed. Perhaps, we may cdd: -explain how, on their return, they  `prepa!red  spices
      "the words of Jesus concerning `His .own resu.rrection.`.' and ointments' f,or the more full honors w`hich they
      Som.ehow these linen <clothes-,  reminded him .,of awhat hoped to pay the Dead after the Sabbath was past.
      the Lord had spoken concerning the resurrection  ,on.the                                                For, it is of the greatest importance to remember, that
     -third ,day. And thus the apostle `was ,led to believe. - : haste characterized all .that was .id!one. It `seems as if
              But why should the position of the linen `-i&&es.-` the `clean linen cloth' in wh,ich' the Body had been
                                                                                                                               z
        ,.                                                                                                                                                         .


                                              T3i.E    S T A N D A R D- B E A R E-R'                                     - 3 3
                                                                                                    L7.
wrapped, was now  torn into  %$hs' or swathes:  .into mangeT? *Angels appear; when, immediately after the
1 which the Body; limb ,by limb was now bound, nq idoubt,          ascension of our Lord, the amazed ,diaciplss Etill. &are
  between lay!ers of myrkh' and aloes, th,e , h&ad. being i&o. the heavens. And the same occurs at the resur-
  wrapped in a llz:pkin. Anlcli so they lai,d H& to rest in . . r.ection' of' Jesus f&m the dead on the t&d day. . Had
 -the niche of the  roek$hewn  new  t,omb.  AnId. as they the .resurrection  .of Christ',been similar in,character to
  went out, they, rolled, as was the custom, a ,great- stbne ,that of Lix.zarus `and othersi there .would have been no
  -the  Golel-to close  the  entranae  to  the tomb; prob- need of this message from heaven: Jesus Himself
  ably leanilllg against it for support, !as ,Fae the practice, might have awaited the arrival of the women an'd con-
  a  smallfer stone-the so-called  ..Dopheq..  It would be vilalced them that He was alive. But now, the Lord had
  where the one stone was laid against (the other, that risen., yet Hle :w1~1s with, them no .more. He had ad-
  on the next da.y, ,Sabbath though it was, the Jewish vant?eb$.,i.nto  thersphere of the spiyitual, the incorrupt-
 -authorities would have affixed thei .neal,- so that thti ible, and the immortal.., The wo6der  must be explained,
 `slightest ,disturbance  might become apparen$."l)                must, at iea&,, f&-e announeeld, before the Lord. could
      In this connectioni, w&e wish to call special attention evep:app,ear  tolthe -disci$es. They must become pre- .
, to the `fact that aacoEding to E,dersheim, "the manned           cared for-the glorious gbspel of the risen Lord. Unto
  of -the Jews" regarding burial, implie;`d that the body this  ,preparation   serves the  *evidence of the  v&&d
  1) Life and !hnes of Jesus, 11, 61.7, $18.                       grave. But added to this, in a sense negative, evidence,
  was wrapped,  !limb by limb, in separate  swathe13 or iI-, the  resurre&ion  gospel that  was  prkach'ed  bj;  the
  cloths. It is these cloths that marked "the place where ainlgel at th& grave: `%e is not here, f6r he is risen !"
 the  I,lord lay" on the resurrection-morning; and  .that That $rief rnes+sAge,  in connection with the evidence of .-
 *drew the special attention and excited, the won&er  08 th:e empty `sepulohre,  and connecting it&f, too, `with
  the two apostles &hat went to inspect the grave upon the words Jesus HimselP had. spoken.to.  them when He
  the report ,of the Magdalene. What elise can it mean was still s%ith them, certainly prepare&  the hearts and
  than that these linen clothes still lay there, in the empty minds of the witnesses- for the wonder.of  meet&  the . .
  grave, in the very shalje in which they'had. been wrap- risen Lord as He would app(ear  unto them.
  ped around -i& -body? They had- not .been:: disturbed               And this ippeanance,  on manifol,d  oocasions,.a`nd  in
 .2n the light  faf' this explanation we  can'.  iunderstand .,dif$eyent  forms, constitutes the final- link in this 1chai.n
  why the angels oa.ll- special,. attention `t,o the place iwhere of evidence by which the first -witnesses became con-
 the Lord ha,d lain. `That plaice was `clearly  marked by vinced, both of the reality, an113  of the .wonder  of the
 the position of- the linen clothes. Then,+oo, we  can resurrection of their Lord. Even on that first (day -of
  under&and why the separ&te  place of the na:pkin that the week,. He .shew@d  Himself to His disciple sever&l
 ha& been la;r_ound  Jesus' head reoeived special .&ttention, .times. ' He.appearefd  to Mary Maigdalene, to the women
 and was consi,dered porthy of special mention; for, ilnt returning  rfrom the  .grav&  to Simon! Peter, to the
case this  expla:natioti is adopted, that `napkin would tpavellers  `to  Emmaus; and to the gathering of the
 naturally Ia; by itself, somewhat apart ftiom the rest disciples. without Thorn&. A week later He appeaned '
 of the clotlies. Am3 then only are thaSe litiep  clothes again to the @isciples  as they were gathered, and mani-
 significant : they {estify to the wonder of the reaurrec-         fested Himself particularly to Thomas. Some time  '
 tion on the third day. xcazarus had come forth from later He was seen by seven &the apostles at the Sea-of
 the gna.ve,' still bound in thk liinien clothes in which he Tiberias. Hd shewed  [Himself  to a large.r+mber of the
 had been -buried ; but Jesus had truly -risen, atid.in His        disciples on a mou&s:in in `Galilee, to James alone, and,
 .lglori&d,  spiritual btidy, He could leave .His bur,ial *gar- finally, to `the disciples on the Mount of ,Q,livers,  when
tientts in the v&y position and sh%pe i:n which they h&d He departed from them into heaven:. A'nd also these
 been'&$pped around His body,?imb by iimb. Tbait is manifestations, for such they ,were,  convinced the dis-
 the  testitiony  bf `the linen  c!othes!                    -     ciples of the reslity of the :botdiily  resurrection of- the
     But other factors must  ,be considered  to explain Lord, yet also of the."otherness" ,of that resurrebtion.
 that, while the disciples were who!ly.`urip?ep+red!  for. `He w'as real, their risen Lord, for He-ehewed them His
 the- wonder of the resurrecticm  ori: `ihe `third,.dayi  they handa and His feet,  andi..the  v&y  iu-rprinks  of His
 were tiobvinced  of -its truthi and-bee&&  f&,luful wit- crucifixion ; .$nd He .ate in `their- presence to convinde
nesseis  o f   the  risen.Load,        .-         r                th.er@hat  He `was no ,mere !`gho&.`r And yet, He was
 * There-is;  ,of  cqtirse, the  messagk   if the  Angels  that    different.    Hfe was no longer with them in earthly
`. waited-5or.  the won&in the vacate&:g?av&` The &ok- fellowship.: Mary  Magtialene  must not touch  rI=Zim.  :
 -.en Word' of- Go13 always accompanies the "Word that O@y ,occasiohally,  -He ia,ppe&reid!  from His resurrection
s came to  .ptiss." It  was  eo- at  .the  indaFnati&  of  tih& sphere' to manifest Him&f to the disciples. He would
 S3n df God : hGav@nly ties&nj@rs-p`oitit'to ihe tionder Suddenly- atan,d iii their midst, while they were as-
 -,of :B@thlehem. How -otherwise-w&bd  m&ti' h_ave. recog-         sembled with closed -doors. And also this "otherness" .
&i!&d the fulfilment`of the proiYiise%i'&e  Babe in: the .of the risen  8Lo~d the disciples  :faithfully-  recordetd,


                                                                           ,
  ,:3;4                                        -TfHiHE.  .S  T  A:N:D)&R~;D   `B&E:&&E.R
-:  `.  "                       . . .                                                 .
 .,-exactly as they experienced it. rl'hey%hong@%at4hey                    effect  %hat  dFhoso  putteth  away  .his  -wife,   saving  f,or
 sa-w a.ghoit. At the Sea..of Tiberi1a.s `%ne of .the ,dis- the; `cause  of fornication, commits adulter-y. Only here
       ciples..durst  ask-.him, -Who -art thou? knowing that it -the-offender .was&he wife. But -it is more likely that
 ,' was the Lord." John 21.92. ,.On `the .tiount ,in `Galilee the Isentence  "and she played $he whore against him"
 "they  worshippled  him:  but  .:some doubted."  .Matt.. means th& she.actuall,y col'nmitted  aldultery.  .Especially
       28  :17. Through.. all this  -experieilce;  an  ,expe:l:ien.ce ..\vhen viewed in thelight of her terrible end.                 -..
       ~whiich, when. they had received the .Holy Ghost was                     S:he ilad -already remained away four whole months,
       sealed in  them,  anrcl also clearly  .un.derstood in -the when.th& Levite set out to induce her to return. This
  `-light .-of the Old -Testament ..ScriptuEes, so that the favors  the other view. If she  .had committed actual
       last vestige of. <doubt. was rempved,  the -disciples :be-          adultery, `would he have put .her [alway? It would seem
       `came fully pr_epared.  to become witnesses bf the resuP- so. The Levite spake friendly to her or, as the Hebrew
       rection, and -to proclaim to all men : "The ~Lord is risen text -has it, accordilacg to her heart, and they became
 :  &deed  !                                                               .reconciled. .May thils .not indicate that thie reason she
        ._`,                                          .H.     --JJ.  `.    hash desert&d .him, was that he had- been treating her
                                                                           with too little consitderation  and not that she had ceased
                                                                           to love her.husband? If so, the other view would have
                                                                           that much more support. The notice that she brought
                                                                           him-to-.her  sather's  house indicates that the fin$ meet-
                                                                           ing .of the -two had .tialken place perhaps in the fileld,
                                                                           where in *the moment of his arrival, she was occupied
                                                                           in so&e manner not revealed. The woman's father
       The~Wic`kedDeed of %he- Gibeathites was overly.gla,d to see t.he man and extended to him
                and .&he War Against .Benjamin                             an uncommon hospit&ity,  why, the narrative doa not
                                                                           -say. Perhaps he `was giving expressjon to a wish for
                                                                           reconciliation. Though the Levite wanted to depart
  :             As was .sai:d: the final section .of the *book of the soon, `he allows hims-elf to be .detained for three days
       Judges is formed of .three .examples..of  the 1a:wlessness which he-spent eating and Idri;ilking with hils host. On
       that characterized the age of the judges. The  last the .fourth-morning.he.would  go but his host urged' him
       exzimpl,e  record'ed,  .and.tb which. we now Ihave regard, -first to %ake a moi;sel  of breed. He still might have
       is that .of the infamous. deed.at  Gibeab in-the .tribe of -taken his leave. But his-host besought him to linger
       .-Benjamin. The nanration of .thiis crime, too, is pre- -on and even to tarry all night. So they ate and drank.
       -faced by the n&ice-that  there was n< king in .Isra61,             But ,in the.evening  the Levite rose up to go nevertheless,
       t.he -thought conveyed -being -that, on this -account, the .but .his. host demurred and he ladged there again. The
       infamy iat Gibesh cduld take place. .Also this history next morning he rose at -early da*ybreak. Everything
       c0ncerns.a  -Levite. Ther,e  wasla certain Levite sojourn- was. in readiness for the start but at the invitation of
       .ing `on the side of mount Ephraim." Btithlehem  lay to his host the Levite prolonged his stay until `the after-
       the south of Ephraim; so that -the' "side of" or, as the noon. He makes the impression df .bein.g carnal. .It
  Hebrew text has -it "the -hinder parts" of .Ephraimts                    speaks not swell for him tha:t he cannot resist a good
       mountains. "Here  is where the L_evite  `was a resident, table.  .But. at last he  was determined to,  1:eave.  .Hi~s
       when he took-him a conrcnbine  out df-,Bethlehem  Judah. host even  would  Idetain him  now.  "Behol,d," said he
       That the woman -stood to him in -the ,relation  of con- to ,his `guest, "the day draweth toward the evenilng, I
       cubine warrallts the asstimption  that he already had a pray you, tarry, la:11 night; behold, the day groweth ,t?
  *wife.           Else he would :hi%ve %tiken #her to. b,e `his wife. an ,end, lodge here, that thine heart may be merry; and
       The anewly ,acquir&d  mate, `by whose beauty he .had been tomorrow get you early on your way, that thou mayest
       smitten-why else should hehave-fetched -her way from igO -ho'me." But no- amoun;t  of coaxing on the p~s:rt of
       Bethlehem-turned -out to be  `an unfaithful spouse. the man, this time could make the Levite change his
       "She  played  thle `harlot against  ,him.`"  -The  -m&nitig mind! Though the sun was rapidly  decling, he set
 ' m1a.y (be that she-cdmmitted adultery not -by illicit inter- ,out* ppon hits >journey. It was -not the part ,of wisdom
       course *with -another man, but by returning %o -her for him to leave at that `hour.. What we have in this
       father's house with. a view to -effecting .a permanenk              scripture .pasqage is -a striking picture of .irresolution.
       separation. She went homc riot f,or-a visit .but to stay. -Evide~t!y  the Levite -felt obliged to idepart soon. after
       She was- not disposed t.o be, willirig t:o live with .hi?n.         the  I."eco@iliation.  Perhaps duty called or it  may  be.
       She &I& ceased .to love her husband -or her sensuality that -he -had no time to spare if he was to rest .-upon
       was not satisfied with him. If thiis' interpretation is the-sabbath at home. yet he -defers. this lusts for the
       correct,  the sacred  miter,   iln!  brandin,g  her doing pleasures of. the table Iare too strong. The fattier-in-law
       "Wh.oredom" anticipates the teaching  of .Christ to the .may `have,ineant well, in overwhelming liim with food


  :
                                          T,HE  S T A N D A R D   BEAR8.R  -.                                                 85.
                                                                                                 .                 .          _
  and  id&k and  pres"sing  invitations." But it  was  not ,shelter  that he needed. The entertainer should: ;be at:
  becoming to Levi&s  to be swayed from the .course df no  ekpense. He called himself "his servant" and his.
  duty by such matters.              '                             concubine "thy handmaid". The old man was glad .to
       Once  oil his way, the Levite  has  haste. The sun be his host;  land assumed  r+sponsibility  for  all.  his,
  already was going down, when be came over- against wants. Hiw ,one thought was that the Levite lodge- not
  Jerusalem, he, his twp beasts of burden, his servant in the street. `%o he brought him into the  house;
  and ,his.concubine. His servant lajdvised that they turn and g&e proveedler  unto the a&es i and. they .nwa,shed..
  into bhat c&y, and lo!dige there. But the Levite feared their feet and .did eat &d drink."                             -
  that he might b,e plundered,.  as the" city at that time            As the Levite and his host la.te and dranki "then&
  was still inliabited Ijy the Jebusites, a non-Isl?aleXtish       ,of the city; sons of wickedness" assaulted! the :-house
  geople. Fearing that in this place the rights of hos- and-shamelessly avowed their pederastic purpqse. They
  pitality might be violated, he pressed on i:n. the hope say to the master of the house, Bring forth the man
  of  reachiqg one of the Israelitish cities  fart,her on,_ that came into thine house, that we may know. him."
  G&ah or  Rlamah. To Gibeah they came, just as the This. well-known euphemism, `as words of their -lips;
  sun went dotin upon them. It `was necessary to lodge, is  .an  expk'ession of shameless  efifrontery. The  .Levite
  there all night,. But he was soon to.`discover  that' he. they would cori?pel to co-operate with them in. commit:
  could not have [done worse had he lodged in the heathen ting that s& at which-the apostle strikes when he say?,,
 city.  Now  Gibeah belonged to Benjamin.  The Levite "And li,kewh&e  also the men, leaving `the natural use
  came to rest in the square of the city, expecting to be          of the woman, burned in their lust one towar,d another ;
  taken @to the house-of one ,of the residents. But no. men wit,h men, w,ofking that Which is' unseemly, and- .
  one took not,ice  of hiti. Sojourning in Gibeah ai+ the. receiving in tbeniselves.  that recompense- of their error
  time was an old man who also was of mount Ephraim. which was meet" (Rbm. `1:27). .It] was this same lust-
  Coming in from the field; and seeing the Levi&,  who ful, abomin&ion  that formed the curse of. heatheadom,
  had dreedy made preparations to pass the night in the               The master of the houlse want out to.these."sons of
  street, be went to him with good intent. He td!;d not wickedness", and remonstrated with `them, "Nay,. my
share the  inholspitable  dispositio:n:   *which characterized brethren, nay, I pray- you, do not so, ,wiekedly ; see+g
  the inhabitants of the city. That-they had failed to re- this man is come into my house,, do not this- folly." But
  ceive the stranger portended no good. Love  to. the tihese  savage men woul,d hear no reason. So the host
  stranger  was com.&and'ed by law (Deut. 10 :19). , It            offered them his virgin  *daughter  to do  %ith her as
  was Itioubtless the result of Monishment  that anyone;. they might choose, if only they woulrdi  spare the man.
  s~hould want to spend the night in Gibeah, out 03 doom, The parent would sacrifice his child on the altar oh
  that the aged Ephraimite asked, Whence art thou? the lust of debased men in order that a ,g.uest might go
  Whither goest thou.? The-city probably ha,d acquired forth unmolested. hrael's law did aot require that
  .a bad reputation- and was being shunned by travellers. certiainly. It was an Arab cnstom. Sparing his.,dau,gh-.
  The Levit,e's reply was an invitation for the old! man's- ter, &his host, as assisted ,by all who. were in his house,
 hospitality.    It was  lar  pl,ea that he show  him.  mency      the  guostu  inclnded, should have fought to the death
  by grantiqg him f'or the night the,Ehelter.olP-  his home.- those men ti Gibeah, seeking pleasure in the vio1atio.n
  f'We. are. passing," says he t`o -the ancient. householder, of nature. But the host was not called upon to make
  f`from Bethlehem Judah, -but we -dwell on the nether the sracrifice. They would not have his daughter. Her?:
  side of mount Eph.raim, and thence we came.. He re- upon- the Levite led f,orth his concubine, and- sh.e satis-
  frained from (divulging the  reaBoe of the  jou&ey.              fied the wantons, doubtless b'ecause she `was beautiful
  But, on the other hand; he did tell. the man that he ,w&         and because-she was a stranger. A+d they abused her
  a Levite-by making the statement- that "I walk `with all night till  rday+break.  ,Letting  her go, she  &me to
  the ho+use of Goidt," that is, with the- tabernacle". The the man's house, where she fell (down at the door. H,ere
  implication of this-manner of speech-  &, that the taber- it was where the Levite in the morning found ker:+h
  nacle had no fixed place of ,abode and that,, when moved,        hands upon the thresho1.d.    He ordered her- up 3s he
  the-  Lcvites; in pl%rticular  the ,levitical. priests, went wanted t,o-resume his-j-ourney. But he got no response.,
  along with it. The `Levite of our story used this form She iYas dead. It is remarkable that she `shouJ& &e
  of speech to reveal bis.dilgnity. For he-sought hoi3pital-       to this terrible end, seeing that she bad played the
  ity and- nothing could be .worse-  than the- refuqal- of *it, harlot agailllst the. Levite. That was .divine retribution-.
  to a .mini@er., of God's house. He understood this, was But those  "fien of  wiokeclness"  awer;e  none the  less
  aware that the-[fact of his being B& Levite, if .only known,     g u i l t y .
  yould ,wo+:m,eatlyY  f,or.his-  benefit. He. also.iet  it b.e       There  is- a  ,conspicuous  agreement between this
  know+ &hat ,.he .was -well ~proyi-de& with provender  for history and- the- one. that occurred in- Sodom in the.:days
  his `beask of burden- and: w-it% fo.od-  and- wine-for him- of  Lot.       The- aged  Ephrlaimite  was a comparative
  self ,and :h+ compiani,ons  in, travel,. :. Thuait was only stranger in  Gibeah,  just as Lot  was in Sodom. The


36'                                             THE.                   STAND,ARD                       BEAIiER-              .'      i      -.
             i           2                             -
lather had gue&+ iti: hi&house and likewise the former;                                  Th%tacf;icis of  the Levite had  iffect. There was a
The Sodomites sur%&&ed Lot's house ,aa& demanded. %tvti.`&pc$ular  indi!gn&ion so great that by it-riearly
the sukretider  .of h& daughtersin.  the: aam& way that, the Iwhole tribe of Benjamin was swept into &ernity.
the men of Gibeah ,did here. ~~ Lot proposed to brings The tribes `were horrified! All that saw,said  that there
them forth and the aged host maidle a.n identical prom-                                 was no suckdeeid! done nor lseen.from the day that the
ise. But the edissimilarities  a;Ee &qu&lly obvious. Lot's childFen of. Israel, cam6 out of the lafnd of E,agypt  until
guests  webe  :angls, who  frusrtrated all evil  Edesigns.                              this day. And  their':  Ba.st  wor.d  was, "Consider of it,
Her,e the host received a frail Levite who stood h'elp- take advice and speak your minds" (chap. 19 :30) .: All
less over against- the assaults ~of the aiolen&;of  de- were agree3  that the criminals ,had to be made to atone
praved -me,n'i' *' The- men of Sodom w,ere  "wicket and for their crime. Then. all the ohiidren of Isnael went.
sin&rs before the Lord exceedingly,`? but the rnefi.af- forth  aed assembled  %  aye man from Dan even to
-Gibeah. had  ,greater- sin,.  fOr  l%r/a.el had  `.Go,d's law,                         Beersheba, with the land of Gilead, unto the iLord in
tihich ,punished such crinies with death (Lev. 22 :13).                                 Mizpah (chap. 20 : 1) .     That is, not all the  pedple-
Yet `in Gibeah the biolence  envolaed Idliirectly  ,olily the prbmi'scuously-  but the  representxtives   qf the tribes.
"men of the city, certain sons of. Beiial," but in Sodom                                They hastened to Mizpdh, .called  hither .by the high-
it was the- men of the city, both. old and*ybung,  all the                              pri,est to Jehovah, with -till the men af Israel able to
people from every quarter" that `compassi&  the ho&se.                                  bear arms, a huge army of "four hundred  housanlh
                                     *-*  *            : ., :. ,. .                     footmen that  ,drew the sword, presenting themselves
       It was a: terrible morning when the Levite found in the la.ssembly of the people of God." The Levite was
h.is _concubine ,on the threshold dea'd.~ Had he given up: also on hand and they asked the man to tell them "horn
all iIdea ,of recovering $er m hopeless or. may' he ha$e' `was this' wickedness .7" And the Levite toBd his terrible
entertain&d plans for rescuing her. in. some .effective                                 story in the ears of his countrymen. And in more than
way. -`Or is it-jilst tq suppose that he went on! his way one  %spect his story is remarkable. "I came to Gibeah
wi;thout a though&of wheat had become of his unhappy that belong&h to  Benjamilil;" such  w&e his words,
&ompdnion an'd `was remieded.of ,h:er ,only by stu+hb!ing "I ,and my concubine to lodge; _ Aed the men of Gibeah
u.pon her `dead body ? It is difficult to determines  with ro1ze against me, and beset the house round abotit upon
detiainlty from  the  Idata  -oti hand just what  was his me by night, and thought to have slain me: ani& my
atti&d&      That he had delivered her up in order that concubine have they forced, that she is desld."
he m&l-&: be spared, insiead ,of. fighting to the-death in                                . He  refrsins from revealing that to pacify those
saving her lrrom the vioience  of the. mob, viras nbt to his `wantons he had brought' out to them ,his concubine;
.cnedit   certainly.   Wh,ate+er may have  be&l  hesr sin, Hii lafiguage seems calculated to .leave the impression'
he' had -wanted  h&r bhac$ &gain, titid spe.ha,d  been willing thlat his ,concubinle  havd been torn f?om his side, snatched
tb be  recon&il&d to  hiin. It is difficult-to make  ,oUt f.roin his very ;arms. It would not have sounIfied weU_
.&is -L&ite.  He makes the impressioti bf- being weak had he told th;m that he, himself, had delivered the
and heartlms. -True,' he now brough$ to the `attention womati  to'the lusts of the  violen;t.  In presenting his
of.$he *hole nation what th-e men of Gibe$h had done chal"ges,  .he was  ca_reful to  avoid. such language as .
to h$. Buit it& `not at tall Certain.  that he was acting' would brin)g him under Ia Icloud.  z "1 ,'
out o$ right :`p$inciple. He'imay simply. have beei? &iv-.                                 The chatiges. lolfiged again& the men of Gibeah were
in&-exp%ssion to a; <great rage aroused by the considera- fadeed  that terribl,e as to justirfy the verdict that there
tion th& he' had been deprived! of `a ,desirable eoncu-                                 `was no such deed ever done or seen in Israel. `This
bin&.        :- .                                                                       may `have been true. But what was being ,overlooked
       7%e Levite n&v cut the corpse  into twelve pieces w?a..S that thin&' j&t Las %ad -and perhaps wonxe had
and sent them out in every direction, n.nd,- of course,                                 been taking pla@e' all along. Aad! the reference now is
accompzQ@cl  the pieces by a  mels-sage  the  con&&  of to' Israel!&  spirikual, whoredoms, their temples and idol-
which is given at chap. 20 :4-7.  They who  bor&"`the                                   %&ship fillitig the land even then when those wor& of
pie,ces told ,what had (been  done to the concubine' 6$*& &e?&ure  ;iYere  .beilllg spoken. And there was no repent-
men of Gibeah.- Saul, sent forth~the  pieces of a divildea                              %ii?e. ,!EveryzAan did that xwhich was right in his own
ox aticonipanied, by the message that                                  ,I,  ,...<;`z
                                                 "Whosoever c@nd tijres.                        Aid yet, when they `hearId the Levite's story'
eth not forth after Saul and-after Samuel; so shall it the tribes ire- loud `-in ,denouncing  the deed, and their
lb6 do& unto hi's oxen.". But the L&vite  sent a divided indignatidri%nb~~~  nb bounds. Aa aroused by a Levite
woman.aed  thereby intimated that, if the evil were not WOu&$  *he lo&s bf a concubine, who .had played the.
exterminated in Isnael, the trakedy  that had befall:eti                                bar&~`ti&o him even, the tribes rise. u,p as one man
hits concubine might  d-vertake  any  womgn. in  Ifirael.                               &%d gather unto the:Lord at Miqeh.-  But they do not
The woman cut `in pieces tiade the .report  of the w?cked                               $tit  apray their  dwri  zabomifiations.    That.-was their
doings iti Gibeah terribly real before'the  minds of the hypocrisy. But the Loti~3 will show them.                                         `,  '
people.           .,          ~-'    .Y,. .     _,          _`
                                                               ,__                      - The  .people'  66 Israel now took action.  But  -911 the


                                           THti  STANDARD  BEAR.E%                                                                                        37
            ._     .i_     &L.Z

400,000 m&ii `of &&~l;~referred  to In the s.eti&d'verse,' f$o&  the Greek  "koirios.  bios" ootition  life. The final
do. not Ijroceed  la&a&& Gibe&.`%f  Benjamin; but only &age of ,development  was reached when the separate
40,0@ of tliat nun&er.~ This' iS plainly stated  in vers& cdggregations- of  monk&  roqganized   t% form  mon&tic
     9 and 10, ,(of chap. 20). The tenth verse' states that orders. These, as was said, were unions of a numb&r
what was taken is ten men of a hundred throughout-                                             of rcl,oisters  unifier  one rule or common government.
all the tribes ,of Grael, land a hundna3 -of a thousand,                                          As to .an,choretism,  it did not take long before the-
ati,d a thousand of ten thousand, thus 40,000, " to f,etch                                     deserts  of Egypt were peopled with anchorites. This
victuals `for the people, that they' may &; Iwhen they was due to the great influence its founder, Anthony,
     come to -Gi,b&ah  of Benjamin, acicdFding  to all the folly ha,d  wit.h  ,his generation.  Wha.t was sought  iti most
tl-& they `have' wrought  i$  `Is~&$.`~   So all  t& men caa3es is fame upon earth and Y;eward in heai,en through
     of Israel were (gathered against the'city-th&40,000-                                      the, `works of men.       A% to the Coenobjtic type  .,of
knit together as one man. The mention of' the 400,000 monasticism, its founder was Pachomius, an Egypt&n
     in Verse 1 and 17 is  ,@~~lily `desi.gn,@$ to pijint otit the lql& conteqporary of -Anthbny. Born i6 292, he iyas
     enormous .auperidrity .of the other trib&, in the %eans the offspring ?f heathen parents. As a soldier inthe
of war. Benjamin, `who +imbere dbut 26,,000 "(vjerse `15)                                      army of. the tyrant Maximian, he contacted the Chris-
     wduld ,haye shown no resistance, w.ith all -Chg 400,000 tians in Thebes. :By their kindly*treatment  they'.won
men .of Isnael in t,he field.               _                         .                        `hini for their faith. After his  dischange  fr,om the
        While the 4?,000 men of th,e tribes inarched, against army, `he spent severa. year's with the heirnit Palemon.
     Gibeah messengers were sent throughput all_iKe tribe Pachomius' tells' us that in the year 313 an angel in;
     of Benjamin, who `demanded to know "What %vi:tiked-                                       &r.ucted him in a vision. to establish in upper E,ept
nesw.  is this that is (done among you?" They insist that a congregation of monks. He did  150, and a century
the Benjamites disown the deed by surrendering the ;later it numbered fifty thou&nd me&ers. Coenobit-
guilty. But the Benjamites were  -defii%nt,.  They- re- ism stooldi much clos-er to a normal way -of life. In the
     fused to comply.  Instead.they'prepare  for  waE Their first place it' took `bognizance  ,of the sotcial  &st&t  in
     reactii>n  can have but  oile  emlanation.               They were Ynan, of his rieed of the society of his @ello,ws. Besides,
     indifferent  toward  the atrocity in  Gibeah and they its rule called for spiritual exerci& not-only but also
     were. too proud! to la.llow  ttiemselves  to be told t,o root it fop manual laGor.  such as, agriculture, boat building,
     ,out. Rather  .than  h&aEken  unto the  voitce of their basket  .mtiking, mat  weavihg by which fhe monks
     brethren, `they would run the risk -of `war, sn:d shield                                  earned  their own living and supported the poor and thb
     those  sinnens in  Gibeah.  The  aeaction of this  tribe silck.  .But  t,hey had to  live three in a cell. Tliough
     shows to what a pass conditions-political,- social and together at the table, they had to eat in silence !with
     spiritual-had come in the .nation.  80 #he Benjamites their faces  veilecl.                                       Such was the  rule as fixed' by'
     gathered  `themselves  together- to go  ou,t to  dabtle                                   Pachomius. Though this forti of monasticism stood
     against the children  elf Israel.                  :            -'                        closer to a normal way of life, it still had its den&em.
                                                         G. M:O.:
                                     .:                                                        Men like  -C,l?ysostom,  Basil,  Glegory, Jerome, Milus
                                                         .                     :..-.i          ~&ml'!  I.sidora,`-added  to: their spiritual  FZe?cises  theoi
                                                              .%.                              logical studies, `and. t&s turnac+  an institution that -.is
_                                                                          f.. i :.            inher'eritly : &il to their advantage. But most of .the
                                                                                               mo&s -l-&d no liking for such studies &nd spent the
           ?miOUGH  THE.AGES
                                      3.         _.I                                           time Yi&.needed  for their exencises  and 1,abors in brood-
                                                                                               ini dver gloomy fel.in:gs  or sank `into the coarsest tiage
                                                                                               ivo?ship.    Their sexual cravings; `which ~0~118 not `be
                           Monasticism.  _1                                                    repressed, ,externalized  themselves to them in "female
                                                                                               horlns; pleasing and seductive, wlhibh appeared in $heir
                                                                                               dreams: And their soiled conscience and f&r of death
        As was said,  Mon&ticisni  ptissed  through. four peopled the  desert  with  s,tiarms of demons. Their
     stages of development. During- the first stage the .excessiG@. asceticism -degenerated  into unnatdral vice
     ascetics were  unorgan.ized   raad  loo:nkin.ued  to  dlwell land often- ended in madness and suicide. Th&s&  sam&
     among men: During the second stage they withdrew saints; who denounced the ma&al state as inherently
     from the society of men, ,even-from the society of one- uncletin, were themselves disturbed by unchaste dream%;
     another, `and took their abode in the willdterness.                                 This which defiled their imagination.                          rr  ,,  +yt,
     form of mdnasticism is known as &tic~o~etisrri.from the                                       The great reformer of Western  monasticism was'
Greek  "anachooreoo" to  retire   fro&  huma; society)`. Benedict of  -Nursia, born about 480. Having  sf;udie'd
     During the  thircl.  &ate  of  .developmefit,  the ascetics for a brief ti?e`iri Rome, he took up the'hermit life in
     oQa&zed to form cotigrtigations  of ascetics or ,monks;                                   ia.a'ave `east of Rome. La&r he sounlded a monastar$oh
     This `form :of monasticism is -known .as `-`coenobiti$m"                                  the hill of Monte Cassino'abo'tit  midway between Naples
                                                                                                                                                   I


 :38  ,.                                  T33.E~  STANQAK4  B E A R E R   .

  and'8om.e.   His.fatious rule, known  as the "Benedict and `the. Summa of Aquinas ; produced the best bdohc of
  Rule" contains in it the following  eltements.  At the devotion, and sacred h$mns ; promoted the eduoattion  of
  head of +ch monastary stands an abbot, who is el,eoted         the people ; transcribed the Bible and the works of the
  by the mon;ks and who must b.e implicitly obefed. In church fathers, -sent forth missionaries, .aad! gave to
  weighty .matters  he consults with the br,ethren of the $he church some of  iB,  best bishops and popes. Yet
  congregation  but  iri minor matters with the older monasticism, as an institui;ion  was evil. It stood for
 members only. The formal entrance into the cloister `aIn' unscript,ural  view `of life and of the worl'd, an& for
  must be preceded by a trial of  monlastic  life* of one an unscriptural way of life. Its motive  `was sinful.
  year, but once  admitt.ed  his  vow is  :irrevocable. The Th$alsl an institution, it was a bad tree and bore fruit
`. lifie. ol the cl,oiister  consists of. alternation of spiritual after its kind. _ It defused a low opinion of family
  and ,bodily.,exercises.  Fou.r hours must be devoted! to anld marital life, and thus exerted a demoralizing in-
  prayer, singing of  psalqs and meditation and  seven ifluence on the people, tiho came to regau;d themselvees
  hqurs t,o manual labor in the field or .in the house or', as .the profane vulgarians of the world. It substituted
  instead of this,. to the training bf children. Also, Borne for salvation by- grace thrc%ugh faith in Christ `a freak
  fixed time must be  spen$t in reading each day. The holiness, as  la meritorial  ground  of life everlasting.
  indi,vildu@ monk mu& possess no p&sona! property ; Hence, in the sixteenth century it was the bitterest
 Qe,fruits- of his lab& go to the common treaE;Llry, and enemy of `the  ref,ormation.           This  opposite   k.inds of
 he,.mtist avoid all con+.ct with the world as harmful oper&ion of the monastic institution has perplexed
to the  sou! and engage  .in works of love. This rule many who attempted  t,o correctly  ,evaluate it. Says
 was- characteriied ,by great moderation and ig,oold sense Dean Milman,  "It is imposB)ible to stirvejr moaasticism,.
  in its requirements as tq food,' labor and disciplijne.        in its general. influence, from the earliest period of.
  The monk- w&s allowed to eat much better. He `eve11 its inworking into Christianity, without being aston;
  received daily a flagpn of wine, an,d the mode of life, ished and  perplexed  with its  ,d,iametrically `opposed.
 though simple, was without extreme, rigor` and- thus effects. kere is the  undoucbted  parent of  blcindest
 not at all uninviting for the average earnest man. Not ignorance and the most ferocious bi,gotry,  some times-
  so `many years later ,also leafning -was joined to the of the most debasing licentiousness ; there. the gu,a.rdia,n
monlastic life, after the example.  tset by a monastary of learning, the author of civilization, the propagator
  fouuded  by Cassiodorus, a `retired high civil officer, of humble- and peacleful- religion." The monastic in-
  i-n lower Italy. The Holy Scriptures, the works of the stitution in its op&ations .ueed n$ perplex US. As such,
  chuF.ch fathers and even the aocient  classics were now- it was an evil institution and, as operative through the
  copied .&nd &ud.ied. The resul;t was that, in coumle  of carnal seed and the flesh of the true  church  im it,,
time, W.estern monasticism becwnie the,asylum of learn- it brought forth after its kind; and this fruit was evil.
  ing, .w!hic&, in Anthony its foun.der, it had despised, But those Benedi&ine  monastaries housed also many.
  and the.rconservatdr  of the literature of antiquity.          a true believer, who, despite their affiliation with the
        -The Benedict rule  rapidcly spread. By the  time monastic-  in&itutliin,  `brou;ght forth fruit after their
  0&0harlemagne,  it  had.  sl&%d all  oyer  Europe;   Anjd. Gnd, and that fruit was good.
  33 the monastaEies  grew in numbers, the separate con&            Motiast,icism, however mighty as a movement, was
  gregations  of monks united to form monastic orders.           not without opposition. The Christian statesmen atid!
  I     Monasticism was always cegarded  as a lay institu- emperors, like Valets, were of a mind that the monks
  tion. Says Jerome, "The monk has not the office df -a          would do bbetter;.  if they placed themselves at the dis-
  teacher, but of a per&&t, who endures suffering either posal of the state for-military and civil~ service r&her
.. f@ himseif ,or for the world. Some monks shunned than-shut themselves up in cloisters to spend their time
  the office ,of bishop, others coveted it. With few ex-
                                 . . .                           there in  iIdleness. The  degenders  of heathenism, like
  ceptions the abbots  ,of monastaries-  wer,e   ondGn!ed, Julian, rev&&  the monks for their fanatical opposition
  prie&si. undoer th,e jurisdiction- of the bishop of the- dio- to temple and idol-worship. And as the monastic insti-
  cese. -Later the popes ma~de *them independent of the tution stood as a perpetual protest- against the fr.ivolity
  jurisdiiction of the bishops andthenceforth they were and fworldly-indulgence of the carnail seed in the church;
  the spiritual armies- of the pope.                             it was hated. by this seed. But monastici&m-  also was
       it  `was especially- this improved  mona&icism,  the being.  opposadi  on purely biblical, grounds among others
  benedictine  type, of. which history reports that it by Jovinian,  IHelvidius,  Vigillantius   anId Aerius. The
 raised its voice against ~the- `worldliness and' frivolity, most important. of this- &sa of objcectors was Jovinian;
  Fn the church of. the big ioithes ; sho,wed hospitality to ,who wa.s himself a monk but tihose eyes-like-those of
  the wayfaring and liberality to the poor and the needy ; Luther;were  opened to the defects of monastieism and
  was: a prolific seminary of the cler;gy and trained di,- to &e &utility of its aim, by his own experience. In a
  vines Iike Chrysostom and Jerome ; foste+ed plrofound- work,. wr$ten in -Rome before- -390, be attacked mon-..
 est -theologictil  /discussions; l?ke- the tracts of Anselm,    a&&&m, in.its basic colieeptions. According to Jerome,


             r

                                       T H E   .StCANDARD   BtiARE.R                                                                ,39
                                                                                                              -            .
 he defended these four  propo&iou?a : "1.  V!i&ns, at Ezter -should we sing -hdlelujah;`-he- declares ab-
 .wildolws, .and-mar&d persons, who hlave onbe been :bap-         stemiousliess  to be heresy,  aad!  chasity.`a nursery of
 tized into Christ, have- equal merits, -other things in licentiou8ness.  . . . The innkeeper -of South -Gaul (the
 their conduct being equal. 2. Those  .who  onoe with father of Vigilantius was1 an innkeeper) .mingles--wa.fer
 full .faith are born again by -bapt.iim,  cannot be over- r with the win.e, aed would, according -to ancie& -art,
come ,by the devil. 3. There -is no difference between- combine hiis poison with the genuine faith.,. He o~pOs&s
 al&air&@ from food aad enjoying `it with thanksgiv-              virginity, -hates-  Ichastity,  cries -against -the fastings of
* ing..  4. All, who keep the baptismal covenant,, will the saints, and would  dnly  against.  jovial  -feastings
 receive an equal reward  in heaven. In def,ence  of his `amuse himgelf with the Psalcms  bf David. It is terrible
 -first proposition, he directed attention to the `institu- to hear, that even <bishops  are companions of. his s;hati-
' tion. -of marriage by God! -Himself be'foze  the fall ah tormess, if those deserve this niirne; who -.ordain only
 Gen. 11:24 ;`. to the ,sanction of marriage by Christ `at married persons ,deacons, am+ trust not the chast&y  -:of
 Ma& 1.9 :5 ; $6 the lif6. of wedlock of `the patriarchs the single." Vigilant&s, too, did not mince-~wo+c@`i:n
 b&one and after, the flood, of ,M&es and- the prophets, &nouncinlg the superstitions of h.is ,a&. `IO ill&rate,
 Zalchariu,s  anld  .Elizabeth. He  +ppealed  further to the he called the  Ch&fi'ans who  worshipped:  `+h.&\-.korr&s
 &pos:itles, particularly to Peter, `cited ,Paul's.exhortation    of deceased saints "ash-gatherers a:njdi idoolaters.          .'
 to marr.iage, his ,1-equirement  that the bishop and dea-            The Presbyter Aerius, -too, oppossd by the written
 con be the husband of orie wife ; aa& his .adviee  to the word.the laws for fa&ing-as a curtailnient of Christian
 young' widows thait they marry and bear children. I n   1ibeAy. ..He also denied` the FapeFiority  ,of bishbps &
 refutation of. +hese -arguments, Jerome is so crassly presbyters, for which -he was persecuted by &e bier-
 u&air and places marriage in a light so disjgraceful,  as archy.
 to  offfend even his friende.  Jov.inian's  defence of his                                                        -`G.  M,  0 .
 second proposition` approla!ches  the Augustinian  an8
 Calvinist.ic  doctrine of the perseveirance  of the: saintcs.                        -       -     -
 ~This  thir.d point is directed against the great value                                                                              :
 placed upon fasting,  `,with  referent to Rom.  14:20,
 where the apost -af@irms  th$t all things are pure ;                           1  N  H  1  S  F  `E  A  !&-  .;  .,::.`.;;   `;`;
 an.d .to I. Tim. 4 :l-5 where Paul warn's `Timothy that
 in  the latter times some  ishail depart  from.the faith,                                                              . . . .
 forbidding tb marry, an16 comn?ianding to abstain from
 meats,  wh.ich God  bath  -created-  to  b6 received with Off To school y Tlw&vemnt R&i
 thanksgiving of them which believe and know the
 tr.uDh. .  : .                                                   Th*e Ourtitian Sch~ool.,
   Helvidius, of  ,whom little is known, `wrote a work                                                                    .
 before 383, in which he refutes the Romish ,doctrine of           ' There&e some. things which a Christian par&t
 the .perpetual  virginity of Mary the mother of Jesus. ahoulld simply  f,ind it  impossi!ble  to' do. Seniing. his
 He hold- ..the  marriage state in equal hqnor with that of children to the public school is one of them.
`virginity.  -                         \                             The public school is the school of the world. . It is
     More is- known of Pi!gilla&ius a Presbyter in Spain. `established., supported and controlled by the ,world.
 He `was a mafi of true but somewhat vehement zeal, and In-all its instruction .and `discipline and life it bears..the
 of Iiterary tslent,`who dire&d in the begin&g of the &amp oif the world. There the fear of the Lord has'no
 fifth century a polemic against asoeticisni with all its         place  a,illd the only wisdom men know is thgt of the
 concomitants such as fasting, virginity, vigils and the fallen and blind sinner. Tahere stones are offered for
 honoring of .the-graves  of.the martyns. Jerome replied brea.d  an-d serpents for -fish. There our  coveritint
 also t,o this work, opposing to -its -0a:rgumentationl  not. Jehovah is .deliberately  expelle& from .his own domain,
 rehsoning  &om the  Scriptu?es,  for he had none, but ' the `Lord's Christ is crucified af%esh and the' Word .of
 sarcasms,' r.idicule,  and  revilings.     Here follows an God is den,ied and mooked.             Therefore we sair$: send-
 exam:ple  ,of `his `tactics  : `There have .been  monsters on ing ,his child to the public school is `one of the things
 earth,  cen6aurs,  .syrens, leviathens,  behemoths.  . . . which -shoul.d not even enter into the `Christiati's mind
 Gaul alone has bred no  .monsters  - (Vigilantius `was           to  zdo. Nor  shodld:+he  favor of the  LoP$:be..expElcted
 :ortginally  from Gaul), but has:e+er  abotindecl `in `btiave ,in that way. "The curse of the Lord is iin the :h&se
 I&l:nd noble `men,-when,,  df a  s&den, there  has risen of the widked:  but he blesseth the habitation of.. .the
 ,one Vigillantius,  who should rather be calle&Dormitan-         just." Prov. 3 :33.
 tius-meaning sleepy-contending in an impune spirit                  We are' dee$ly grateful, therefdre,  as `v& see our
 against the `spirit  of Christ, ,an,d forbidding to htonor -6lii1,dren prepare anid depart for-school, that .i?t is t,o .one
thle graves `of -6h'e mdrtyrs ; :he rejects th? `Vigil&only of our Christian schools that they may go. Unr:atis-


                   4 0                                       T H E   STAND,AS$.D:.BEARER
                 . --                                                                                                               - .-
                   factory as the present situation is f,or us as Prqte&ant, Refoi-med brethren  undeTstafid this, especially their
                   Reformed- people and churches, we rcou$@  and would leaders.,and,,~~~~ators,   bettert-obvio&y,   than  many  OS
                   choose nd oth&. course.. In the Chrirstian  school` OLIN       o& own people. This ha.s nothing to do with loving
                   $@dne,n are in the care of I those <who confess .to believe the institutions `Therein.  we ourselves were raised and
                   im. God and in Jesus Christ  `oni Lord  and  wfh6 are          in:tructec$  in .years gone. by. As such ,we do, love our
                   therefore concerned not only about &heir material. but ~Chi-istian .schools and the Christian chur&e;s also, I
                  also their spiritual  welfake.      There our children are may add.: Therefore it is in no way of malice or:preju-
                  taught the necessity and value df prayer, ant& -there ISice or. from other ulterior motives  t,hat we oppose'
                  they are instructed  iri the knowledge of the Word of  t&em.             God forbid !            But, the  Christ!ian  Refor,med
                   God. There  ths vain and  levolutionigtic  philosophy of  chur&ies and  with them the  Chtitian schools  ,have
                   the world is rej'ected and the Word of Golrl is rconfessed     arpositatized  from the truth. They have depart,ed,  laad.
                  to be "$he lamp before our feet and the light upon our tflat most s&iously,  from the ways of our fathers. And
                   pathway."                                                      where  the .-trdt;h is involved, sentimetit  is no factor.
                    `Hoyever,  apart horn the actual instryjion our .Ther&cre ,ye;:must-
                                                                                                      _        oppose 
                                                                                                            _..           these. churched an&can- `@Id
                 .children receive and `cheir ,assolciation  with other child- jus&cat&~  .for  .no  ,other   course%han that  of.:@ole-
                  ren of Christian parents, there are many other rea.so;s        hearted-   SFmmitment  to the principle, that  the. only
                  why Christian parents can imp&sibly follow another ??~@estant-  ,Reformed  tiay is that of establishing our
                  course than that of sending their children to +he schools own schools:
                  *of the, covenant. "Our  chilcilren  :,must learn, also by l$r 80 many -reason, basic all of them, it is ,&nply
                  example and experience; that no  ,other  principle may  -.  irnpos'sible, it  seems to me, for devoted Protestant
                  ever be defended than that  t,he children of the covenant ~erbormed  people to be happy about things as they now
                  must be trained in the way of the .covenatit. We may ' are; After all, `whatever is contrary to the truth as
                  not raise a genera'cion  that gradually loses al.1 love _ we beliepe it is the lie; is it not? It &ould ,be, for us.
                  for the principle of Christian education as such. We In  .as far as  the. Christian Reformed. churches  atid
                  dare not kill, th.<s id&al.in the minds anld hearts of our +chools teach a conception of. God that is in conflict
                  ch<ldren by sending them for whatever reason i,t m@ Iwith our-s they are' teaching the lie and feeding their
                  ,be to the 8schools  of the sworlmd. Our Christian schools, people atid children-stones for (bread: In as far als t,he
                  `as sutih, a13 institutions, `are testimonies for the truth well-meaning offer of  aalvat.ion,  an,& all that doctrine
                  overagainst the lie of the world. On that, foundation - presupposes and implies .lies at the f,ound$tion  of the
                  and with. that in  -view  thejr were  estibl,ished  many ,qducation our ,chid$rel;l receive, subtly permeates the'
                  years ago. They are tl-+e emblems of God's covenant. prayers our chilbd!ren .&ear  every .day, the songs. they-
           .      They are part a.m3 parcel of the l&e ,of the Christian!. learn to sing, their. Bible instruction, etc., in so far
                  I, know, that all this <does  .nof make .good a spiritually that  educatibn is rooted in the lie. In as far as the
                 and.  ,doctrinally  defective education, but  even as our doctrine of "the Igo,o& thst sinners do" under,lies  and
                  children paes through the  -.portals   ,of our  Chrisiian      permeates the instruction in t,he &hool,  in that m,easure
                  schools they are taught that they are a different people, the instruction is not  @ording `to truth. Again, in
                  a unique people, a people `that "shall dwell in -safety        as:$r as the teacher is committed in her own. sohl and
                _ alone." The  yery fact  thtit they attend a  ,Christjan mim3 to the bernicious  doctrine of common grace, be-
                  school  tesches them, th& we may' not be unequally lieves it, practices it, tea:ches  it,. whether directly or`
                  .yoked! together with  unibelievers,  .that  righ$eousne& by impl~icaticm; in as `far as she conceives of God, of
                 has no fellowship  with  unrighteoulsnle&  ancl light has -the.world,  of man and of all things in that light; iri as
           . no cotimunion with Idarkness; `that there is no' concord far as she.sees  la.nd interprets current' events from that
                  &&we&n Christ and Belial aed that he that believeth            point' of view;-in `exactly so far- she is incapable of
     _.           has no part with  the  irifidel.   Ntithing may stand in teachin,g the truth. What Protestant RefoYmed pemon
                  the way' of instilling into the hearts of our children can' possibly Ideny this ?                                -.
                _  this  all4mportant lesson.           '                           We- and our  Chysitian  Ref&tiei brethren  ,I&iff&
                      AIS lon&theref:ore,  as our ideal has not been reached tin so much tha.t is. fun~damental.                  It is not merely a
                  stie &oulld! aQd shall most certainly patronize and `co- question of common grace atid the "three p&-&s'! $I
                  operate with the ,schools  we now have. 10.f this there thq narro,? sense. 01$ $he, lord.: Z-Because  .of: these -.we
                  Should be. no  ;question in the minds  _of  afiy of  our ,differ:&ore  or less on..w41 tigl? :ev&ry  .doctrine,&the
                  people.                        _                               -doctrines as such as -well- as *th&r @rope?  ,~lac~~-.~~d
                                                                1                egphasls. -.. It-.stanlds  .ta reason-..@a$  -our view.- of :any
                  i$ot-ow          IdeaL                                         , giaeri.::d~ct-ri~e.,~ and--the. more -%&e-the: dodtririe  the
                      All. this does not mean, however; that as Pro&ant more $his.will. be .the.case;must :have:  its &feet-on ou?
                                                                                              .  j
                  Reformed people we can or may- be content wjth:,the            9tir.e  do&ipal..:ou~look; The one gives cola? 2nd per-
                  present   situ&on. 1%  sur,e that,  even  .our-%hristi&n .spect$ve  :$o,.all, .: Let me4llustrate, It n&y be %h&, as
                                                                                   . .

L


                                                                                       _

                                     THE STANDARD                                           B%ARER                   _ 41

long as bhe Christian Reformed brethren speak only of can must -<be the position of them who ogposie  the estab-.
the countiel  `of God, election,. reprobation, .the fall of ~lishment  of our own schools. When we  call these
man, depravity,D atonement, etrc;,  &hey speak m&h the teachers  n6n- and- anti-Protestant Reformed' we a.@~! not
sa.me language we do. But, -if overagainst these truths stooping'to name-calling. By the same-token `we are
they place anid stress `(another  si,de,  &  si.de. which is ta.ntiXhristian  Refsormed, of course;
Vastly -different and `seeminglVy" contradictory, then,              Can. a church ultimately survive whose doctr-ines
surely; that `{other side" will affect and color the above- ar'e either ignored or  den&e@ directly  `or by  implica-
me&ion&d  doctrines too. You may believe in repro& -tion, in all the -daily"in&truction  of the children?
tion. However,, if you  also.  b&eve in a love of God                Can our churches expect to prosper and (develop if
Ifor all, your view  anid  emphasis of reprobation  @oes         the-verg doctrine that ocewioned'our separate existence
not remain thhe same either. Thus your.view of limited lies la:t the basis of all the daily instruction our children
atonement `will certainly' ,be affected by your boncep-' receive? Can they, really ? They tiho oppose-OLD  own
tion of the  well;meaning  offer of  sal,vation, your schools must assume the position that they can.
emphasis of total depiavity will be dependent on your                If "common grace" is Riot an isolateI& doctrine that '
view of the good the unregenerated a&e still abi'e to has little or nothilig  to do with the education of our
perform, etc.                   -                                children, but definitely a world  an,d  life view, does it
    In-the light of all thti, how czn the present set-up not follow  tha& it will color  and. determine all the
be anything but unsatisfactory to any- who is really instr,uction  -that is giveiz in the school ? Is not every
Protestant Reformed?                                      I      prayer as well as all  in&r&ion and interpretation
A @me to a& &ues&~~                                              of  worlld  events determined by one's world and  lifie
                                                                 .vi,ew?                                             0
   It is well,  .now that the school season  has again               If common grace, including the "3 points", is ,snch
set in, that we ask ourselves some pertinent questions, a dan&rous doctrine as we have 8:lways maintained it
q&&ions  that must be ans:werec$  .as in the presence. of to, be, how can we entrust our children to t.hem who
the .Highest. After al#l, we are not acc-+ntableto man:, are committed to that error? I,f it is not, why should
but `to. God. Wlhat will the Lord have us do? That is we separate at ,all? IIs it not t,ime to consider possible
tlhe question that should answer all  .others for  us. reunion with the Christian Reformed churches?
Nothirlzig  ,else matters. T&e school issue is not a per-            If doctrine is not basic to fall eicliucation, why have
sonal one, a matber that Ican or may be determined by Christian schools-at all? If it is fundamental, +v can
carnal bias or m&e &shly sentiment. It is a'question we be content with any but our own Protestant Re-
of the glory of God, of !H;is coventant  and truth and of f,ormed  doctrine?
the spiritual welfare  _ of our  ~chil&en.         With these        .Can our children be expected to gro,w spiritually
things in mind the follo%ving  questions are asked. With aed in. denominational love and loyalty. on a diet that
these things in mind they must be answered.                      is in constant conflict with itself? Can we expect th&m
    Are we as. Protestant Reformed peo$l,e  satisfied with- to  rdievlelolp  daearcut  tioncepticms  when they -hear  one-
havling our chil.d,ren-  instructed in Christian Reformed Janguage on Sunday and another daring  the week,
s c h o o l s ?                                                  ope  langugge in church  land home and  anothe,r  iti
    Are we giving due heed to the. mandate of Deut.              school ?
11:18, 19, "Therefore shall ye lay tip these my words                     If it is true `that home and church and school de-
in your heart and in yourQsotil,  atid bind them for a pend on one .another  for thkir welfare and growth,
Isign upon your baud,  ,that they may be S$ frontlets            ca'nl we be happy with tlhe present eiituation? If not,
between your- -eye& ~ And ye'lshall teach'; them your what, have Christian leaders been maintaining all &is
children, speaking `of them when thou sittest in thine time?
hou.se, and when thou yalkest by the way, when thou                       Many more questions could be asked, no doubt,
liest down, an@when thou .risest up"?         c                  along these same lines. Hoiwever  space (does not permit
    Are we training up our children "in, th&way they and these e:hould suffice f,or the present.
should go" ?                                                         Think L them over,-prayenfully and `daily. That,
    Are we oonsciously  fulfilling our baptismal pledie?.: certainly, is the least we can ,ao.
Has the "arf'oresaid  idoctrine" priority in our hearts and :                     -                                       R. V.
                                                                                                                           ... .
ilives and aa:re we teaching it. to our `children "to;:!he-                                                                               `I'
utmost of our powers"?  .'                                                                                                          f.
    Can non- anid! anti-P~j!o&stant Reformed people pro-             .
perly  instract  our  chil~dren?, If they cannot it  sis our                   Eearch me, 0 God, and know my heart,                              _
solemh  duty to establish our bwn echools. If they can,                        `Try be, mj, though,& to know;
then what place is there at- all for doctrine;`. fdr the                      ,O.  -leatd me, if in' sin I stray,
R,eformed   tr&h, in the Christian, school?.  That they                       D In paths of life to go.       ~


    4             2                                  THE  ST-ANDARDe  BEARjZR

                                                                                must .bear in mind that the 8emnphasis here must not be
                  . .FROM HOLY WRIT                                             laid on the quantity of the Saviour's works but on their
                                                                                character. They were  works which manifested the
                                                                                %ather, as the Father of light. Only God makes alive,
                                                                                (gives sight to the blind, enajbles the deaf to hear and
                         "Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth     the lame to. walk. The `works of the Saviour were
                       on- Me,  th? works that I do shall he do also; and       therefore those, wurks or mira*cles yvhich revealed! God
                       greater works than these shall he do; because I go       because all these works operated directly against the
                       unto  My Father. And  whatso'wer   Ye shall  ask in      curate of sin  ,a:nd manifested the Father as Life and
                  My Name, that I  $11 do, that the Father may be               Light.
                       glorified in the Son. `If ye shall ask anything in My       But what does Jesus mean when He teaches us that
                       Name, I will do it." - John  14:12-14.
         .-.;.                                                                  we shall do the same works, yea, greater works than
          Christ's departure from His brethren was to them His? Must we seek the fulfillment of these words
   a  tqememl!ous  mystery. They  beheved in Him as the among  thojse who believe in Divine healing.?_ They
   Messiah. Their con,cepti,on  of the M'e:ssiah  was earthly, Iprofess to  accomplis,h  miracles. They would regard
   however, and they could not  unld'erstand  that their Divine healing as an earmark of. the true Chu,rch  and
   Lord must Idepart from them through suffering :and pri!de themselves in their, ,giving sight to the blind,
   <death., This explains their troubled  hear& whereof hearing to the ,deaf, `etc. Does not this Iword of God
   the Saviour speaks in verse one. And this also explains teach-us that we shall perf,orm the same works?* How-
   why Jesus rcomforts  thecm,  in the chapters 14-16 of this ever, it must be evidem  that this explanation d Jesus'
Igospel  accor@ing to St. John.                                                 words is utterly impossible. It is irue that the apostles
           According to the immediate context of our text, performed miracles after Jesus' departure. However,
   Jesus is the revelation of the Father, and who&ever we may note, in the first ,place, that the apostl,es  (Cer-
   hath ,seen and kn'own Jesus bath seen and. known the tainly never exceeded the Lord in this working of mir-
   Father. Inasmuch as Christ Himself is Immanuel He acles.                               C&r&t  certainly performed more wonderful
   is'God in the &flesh and therefore God revealeid:  And works than they. But, in the secon,d  place, this text
   because He is Gold! revealed He speaks and does the                          does not refer to the apostles alone but to the entire
   words and works of God. God ,worked in and through church.                              The expression, "(Hle that  believth. in  me"
   Him. l3e spoke the words of the Father because His is too general to be limited merely to thle aposthzs. All
   words were words of life. iHi(s works, too, were works the believers are m.eant  here. And they shall not.only
   of life; He gave life to the  Idea&,  sight to the blind, do what Jesus did, but they shall exceed! Him, do more.
   hearing to the deaf, speech to the mute. His works, What, then, does the Lord mean in this text?
   which `were works of life, were works of the Father                             To understand thissaying of our SLord we must bear
   because the F,ather is life and these is no darkness in                      in mind the character and significance of Jesus' works!.
   `Hi.m. He that hath iseen the Christ hath therefore seen His works' were  funclament+ally  signs and therefore
the Father.                 His disciples, however, and all God's transitory in character. This does not mean, of course,
   people shall  ,do the  same`.works;  yea, they  ,shall do. that they were not real. But it does mean that the
   greater works than these, inlasmuch as Christ goes unto miracles `of Christ, Iperformed  in this earthly, physical
  , His Father.                                                                 sphere, were not the,  r-eality  but merely signs, symbolic
    What does Jesus mean when He tells us that we forms.  1.t was  .eot the purpose  o,f the Saviour,  e:g.,
   shall ~cto the same, yea, greater works. than His? It merely to cure the earthly  si,ck. His, miracles  were
   must, be self-evildent  what is meant with Jesus' ,-works.                   a transitory form. and direct us to Hie real, spiritual.
   JELSUS' works  are His miracles.               We rea:d in verse 9 :. significance.
  "Jesus saith unto him, Have I been so long time wit.h                            Christ's miracles.were  earthly symbols bif the won-
   you,- and yet hast thou not known me,- Philip?" It der of Divine grace. Scripture itself leads or directs
   must be conceded that He had' been with them only us. to IHis real, slpiritual significance.
   three years. IHlowever, these years had been ISO full                           Christ's miracles were earthly symbols of the won-
   that, if the apostles had narrated all th,e happenings, the der of .Divine grace. Scripture itself leaids or directs
   world woul11.3 !not be aMe to .contain all the books. What us to this thought. Do we not read that the Kingdom
   a multitude of works Jesus had wrought! We need but ,of Heaven occurs through miracles and parables? This
   recall the host of mirades recorded for us on the pages -Kingdom is heavenly.                           These miracles are earthly.
   .of Holy Writ.  Besides,  these works were works of Hence, they are but earthly symbols of their spiritual
  -the Father. SatBan does not perform these works. He reality. Whenever Jesus performs a miracle He  g&s
   ,,does not give life, appease hunger, give sight to, the us a pilcture of that Iwhich actually takes place in the
  -blind, and hearing to the deaf. The devil Iworks de- real,  slpiritual-heavenly  Kingdo,m  of Heaven.  ,Only in
   structively.  Go,d's  works are works  of life. And we li,ght  [can we  understan,d the miracles of  ,our Lord.


                    t
                                     TH-E  STANDAR.D  BE-ARER.                                                     43
                         Ij    .-
GolcYs  grace, we know, is that Divine .wonder,. where- elect-who *by nature lie in the midst of death. Without'
by the Lord delivers this accursed creation, .through        that people He cannot  conceivably,,be   glorifie$, Our
sin .anld death, into the eternal, heavenly glory. .God's glo,ry .and that ,of Christ `are inseparable. And whereas
grace `is that wonderful power of God. whereby `the _  Ee: is the Head of a guilty  apeople  He cai2 go to the
Lord, through sin s:nd idlarkness;  realizes1  His eternal Father only, in the way of the cross, in the way of
and heaven1.y tabernacle. Jesus .Ch.rist Himself is cen- the perfect and complete1  satisfaction of the justice of
trally this.wonder  of Divine grace. In Him God mak'es       God... That Jesus goes to His Father implies therefore
dwelling among us, descends into our m&t, realizes that He will suffer and die for us, completely satisfy
His -own Kinlgdom, s'o th'at it is litera.lly true that, in God's justice, and consequently be seated in the right
Christ, Goid'; through our sin and death, estabhsihes  our hand of  pojwer  ,and glory.                     .
eternal glory. This Jesus1 is exalted at-the right hand          This explains why Christ's going to His Father is
of power. And it is He who, by His Spirit, causes the-basis  .for the  ,assurance that we will  *do these
spiritually the dead to live, the biind to see, the ,deaf to. greater works. Fact is, at the right. haa.nd of God He
hear, the lame to walk, the dumb to speak! Of .-this swill receive glory and honor and be, exalted as Zion's
`actual power of the grace of God, tt%e wonder of grace, Head, having merited that glory through His sutffering
Christ's miracles are but isigns and symbols.                anid death. Ani3  IHe  ,will therefore be able,  a81 our
   This enables us to.understand  why we shall not only life-giving Head, to call' us out of darkness into light
do what Jesus  ,did but perform greater works than His. and enable us to work th,e works of God through the.
What works shall we perform? The wonder. of grace power of His ,grace.
has been poured  `out into our  hela!rts.  We, who are           Secondly, we may be assured that we .will perform
spiritually dead and blind and deaf and dumb and lame, these works because thereby the Father .will be Iglori-
are enabled by this power of grace to live an see .anld fied in the Son., _ This is the Di,vine purpose of our good
h.ear and speak and walk. We are enabled to. fight the works and therefore constitute ,a sure guarantee for
good, fight .of faith against sin and. unrighteousness.      our performance of them. God is -glorified  in the Son.
These. are the works! which chareoterize  the people of This occurs within the Trinity inasmuoh as the Son,'
Gqcl. And they are works of God also because they being th,e Image of the Fathelr,  manifests the Father.
testifyof and manlifest  ;Him. T,hese works glorify God, Tshis ,aislo Bap$lies  to Christ as Mediator. Christ mani-
our Father, Who is in heaven. '                              fested the Father in a!1 His rwords and works." But
   It is for this reason that we hear Christ slay that, then `it is also true that the Father is glorified in the
we shall perform greater  ,work.s.  Indeed, we shall Son in and through the Church. This tiot only implies
,do, the same woks, not because we shall perform earth- that the glory of the Father has b,een poured out into
ly miracles, but in the sense that `we shall perform the Church through ithe Son. But the Church-will also
factually, and spiritually what,- Jesus did symbolically. glorify .the Father through the Son, inasmuch ,as the
For this reason our works shall, be :grea.ter..  In the Son is eternally b'or LIS the"revelation of the F.ather.
measure that the reality is `greater than. its a'ymbol,      And inasmuch as the Father will be glorified in us,
.its shadow, our works are greater tlxan, Christ's His throu'gh the Son, because our war-ks will reveal Him,'
works were symbols., Cur-works are their correspond, [being works of light anid life, we may be ,&sured that,
ing reality.                                                 upon Christ's going to Hi:3 Father, we' will perform
   The assuran,oe that we will perform these greater these greatfer works, because the heavemy  Father will
works is, first of all,  express&  in this text in the Iglorify  H i. m.,.s e l f .
wordls~ : "Because I go unto My Father.". These &words           Finally, how shall `we be able to do these greater
must not .be understood as merely conveying t,o us `a works? The text directs us to this thought, in  the-
temporal thought. .~The implication, then, would be, first place, in the- words!: "He that belie&h on Me."
that, inasmuch as Jesus. is going to His Father and His Tihis needs little explanation. W,e must believe .into
disciples remain behind, Chri&s. time to perf,orm mir-        (thus literahy the text) the Christ. Pa.ith  into Christ
acles will be cut short but they will be a,ble .to continue. is that operation by grace whereby we spiritually reach
In the light of what we read in this cha.pter  we can out unto the Saviour  anld thus live out of Him. We
definitely assume that this cannot possibly be the must live out of Christ to be able to perform the good.
meaning of these words of the L,ord.                         We .have no life in ourselves!.
   JC+UIY  goes unto His  F,ather.  Jesus  here1 is the          Secondly, the possibility for the  idoing of these
Mfediator,  Who, according to, His human nature, is the works is expressed in the  wor,ds:  "And whatsoever
Head of His people, Who came to suffer and- d,ie that ye shall  ,ask in My Name that will I do. . . . If ye
we might Eve. Neither need we be in doubt how Hle shall .ask anything in My Name, I <will  do it." `To ask,
goes unto His Father. `The entire. context in John 14 or pray, in Jesus' Name implies, firstly, that we our-
throws light on `this point. Jesus goes unto His Father selves must be in Him. It implies, secondly, that we
in the way of the crops. For  H&e1 is the IHead of the (consciously, in all our thinking  an'd  wil.ling, move

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

 about in His Name, His revelation, and that therefore                        The gurpose  of Whosoever Will is -set forth in the Preface
     the content of our prayer be in harmony with, that in the words:
     .revelation.      Then we shall desire the, things of ,the               "As the title of this book may suggest'to  those that under-
     Kingdom of  IHteaven. And, thirdly,  this, implies that stand, the following pages are intended to set forth the insepar-
     that Name, that revelationof Christ, His Icross  and re- able connection between the cel:tainty  that `whosoever will may
     surrection,  is the ground of 0u.r prayer. If we believe              comle', and the truth of God's sovereign grace: the former is
     in Him, seek God in prayer `in thje Name of Christ, seek              based on- and rooted in the latter."
     His Kingdom and the glory of `His Name, God will . No ,one, it seems .to the reviewer, can disagree with this pur-
     work through uq for thereby. He wil,l be glorified and .pose. In a country filled with Arminianism, it is necessary,
     this Divia:e purpose is always realized. _                            indeed, to set forth the true relation between the "whosoever"
                                                              H. V.        truth and the  dloctrine of divine, sovereign grace.
     (Speech delivered Aug. 29, .1945'to  the Federation of Protestant        With the general trend of this  boo,k  every truly Reformed
-' Reformed Young People's Societies).                                     believer will be in hearty agreement. Yet, when the author on
                                                                           page 148 and,: 149 absolutely rejects any form of the  double-
                                                                           track theology, I cannot follow him. Both Scripture and our
                                                                           confessions teach that in a certain sense the gospel of salvation
                                                                           is presented sinc'erely  and' earnestly `even to those who perish.
                                                                           If the author means to deny that, I must, disagree.
                       P.ERISCOPE                                             One of the finest books is the one on The Lord's Prayer.
                                                                           Title  1~ The  Sktua.ry.  On the whole, this book is a gem. It
                                                                           is so very practical, lapository, .deeply devotional, and original
                     A N   APPRECIATICN                                    in the best sense in which that term can be used. I consider it
                                                                           one of the best books on that subject on which so very many
a        Under the Book Revilew volumn in. The Banmer of books have been written. My  only~ regret is that on pages
     September.21,  we found the follow-ing:                               17, 13 the author has-not made his meaning more clear. Does
                                                                           he mean that in time of war, the. believer has not the right to
     FIVE BOOKS, by the Rev. Herman Hoeksema; namely, The                  pray for the return of peace and that in time of sickness he
     Royal `Sufferer, The Amazing Cross, The Mystery .of BethPehem,        should  not pray  .for physical recovery?    Or does he  .mean  to
     In The-Sanctuary, and Whosoever Will. Published by Wm. B.             warn us against a refusal to submit to the will of the Lord in
     Eerd-ma&  Publishing Com.pany, Grand. Rapids, Mich.                   all things ? If the latter-and the pages can be read thus-then
        The first two volumes are books for the Lenten season. The         we are in hearty agreement. We feel, however, that the author
     titles of the chapters of  The Amazing  Cross  are as follows:        might have clarif?ed  his meaning a little. Let the reader judge
     (They follow).                                               r        for himself. Here are the author's own words: (Here  Eollows
        These two books are among the very best that I have- read          quotation-from pages referred to above. W.H.)
     on the general subject of our Lord's suffering. They have the            A&er all, a prayer t6 &ll tGc&  will d!oes  not exclude a peti=
     following commendable characteristics :                               tion for peace or for recovery from illness. We.holpe  that it was
        1. They are deeply devotional and practical..    .                 not the intention of the- author to  ,ex&ude such petitions, but
        `2. They stress the divine, not the human aspect; that is, we      that his purpose was' to warn us against thbughtless  and rep
     are made to see Jesus as  ,our Lord who  voh@arily  laid down         bell&s  prayer.
     His  life, and not as a mere- martyr, however virtuous or  tour:         We have tried earnestly to give a fair, impartial review  of.
     ageous..                                                              these books. All in all, we regard them to be five worth-while
        3. They are expository; that is, they seek to delve into the- volumes. We congratulate the author and the publisher.
     meaning of the text. This is lacking in almost all Lenten                 The reviewer isthe Reverend Prof,essor Wm. Hen-
     volumes.                                                              driksen of Calvin Seminary. We believe he has suc-
        4. The style is very  cllear  and very simple. The thought is      ceeded, and very nobly, in his effort as expressled in the
generally rich and original.. All in all, a fine piece of work!            last paragraph above. We wish to thank-the professor
        All of this does not mean that we endorse every statement          #for ,his rioh prais.e  and ,obpective  consideration of .these
     in these two books. The books, nevertheless, are two of the           works. We feel that a review of this type gives1 us,
     finest Lenten volumes we have-seen. We have read them with            who `live in the constant fellowship. of the truth pro-
     delight.            -                                                 claimed in these works, an even  !greater  appreciation
        .This  is true also with respect to that fine  littlle  volume:    of God's grace in revealing it unto us ; and of the author
     The Mystery of  Bethlihek   (Christmas meditations). Though           whom. He has used `as a means to that end. We hope
     the themes are old, the manner in `which Rev. H. Hoeksema             that Professor Hendriksen will  cuntihue to inform.
     treats them is original. This book, too, is  worth.reading.  It is    his readers of other works by the same author; notably
     excellent -in every respect.                                          the volumes on the Heidelberg Catchism.                     _.


                                             T H E   S T A N D 'A R D   B E A R E R                                                     4 5
                             0
       Incidentally, personally, we ,were  more than a bit                     In part the Rev.  Tanis' comment is as follows:
  surprised  ,to read this tribute. A few years ago we
   were actively engaged in the R&ho work from which                          "Dr. Barnhouse writes as if all the delegates at San Fran-
  these book3 result; as they were all originally Radio cisco, including. such men as Stassen; Vanden  Berg and `Smuts,
  addresses. At that time we visitted the                                 were substituting the San Francisco Charter for the Ten Com-
                                                     Bmner office                                             . .
  seeking to p'urchase advertising space for our Radio mandments and the Sermon our the Mount. That was `never in
  program, featuring these  leotures.                                     the.minds  109 those men and probably .not  in the minds of most
                                               On  our first visit
  we were received by t,he_bns&nes's  manager who ifelt of the, delegates. If anything &hey  were trying to apply the
  that our request might be granted. A few days later second  table of the law. to international  relatian&ips.  (Italics
  we returaed  to make definite arrangements and were mine; thinking of-opening "prayer" at San Francisco. W.H.) .
  once again. cordially received, this time by the Editor-                . . . . The real `Calvinist . . . . also believes that during the
  in-Chief. After a few minutes of conversation, how-. centuries which precede the coming of  ,Christ, the Lord restrains
  ever, he had quite  discoura~ged  us from buying the the wickedness and lawlessness of men in various  ways.  t . .
  advertisinfg:space we .desired. And now we get it free ! No Cal&St  believes that this wilr-  bring the eternal kingdom
       Once again we thank the Professor for hiis gracious of God. . . . but.  : . . he believes that it is more than worth-
  won&s-and  courage !                                                    while to create a more stable international order."
                                                                               The E.ditor of The YoungCdvi&kt,  emphasizes and
                                                                          clarifies a few of tshese points w'hen he writes:
                    S A N   FR.ANCISCO                                        "Typical of the attitude assumed by some well-meaning but'
                                                                          sadly mistaken  .Christians  is the one expressed by . . . . Dr.
       While-on the subjfect of The Bawner we would like Donald Grey Barnhouse  1 . . . we deeply; deplore the statements
                                                                                                                     ":.
  to comment o-n another articl,e .appea.ring  in the Sep- made ia-the  article. We thank God for what was accomplished
  tember 7 issue, in-the department conducted by the in San Francisco and we pray that His blessing may rest upon
  Rev. E.- J. Tanisr The World Today, and written under it. Not to-appreciate and support earnest attempts to establish
  the title : Barnhouse Condemns Charter. We appreciate a- more  lstable  and durable international order is contrary to
  the consistency which we- ,find among the Christian Christian principles and ideals. To write the `way Dr. Earnhouse
  Reformed  jbrethren  for in  The  Moung  Caltiwist of did is tragic."                                 `.
  October, we find a isimilar comment under the title:
  T.ragic. We, quote from The B.anner :                                        Our comment is as follows:
                                                                 I                                                               _
     "`BARNNHOIXE  CONDEMNS CHARTER.  - The. Rev.                              1. We wish ta be counted amongst the "well-mean-
  Dr. Donald Grey  BaTmhouse,  pastor of the Third Presbyterian           ing but sadly mist&en Christians" by giving our whole-
  Church, Philadelphia, has nothing but condemnation for the              hear&d  approval to Dr. Barnhouse's expression of San
  San Franc&o Charter of the World Security Organization. He              Francisco anad the Charter.
  wrote  thme following in  United  Evqngelical  Action:  `Had we been         2.  R,ather than being merely  "`well-mea.niang but             .
  writing the  headlirnes  for the San Francisco meeting-we would         zadly mistaken" w+e maintain that this is the position
  have put in largest type, "NATIONS RAGE" and then with the              of a wide-awake Christian who has a goo!$ undersbsnd-
  initial letters in capitals, "People Imagine Vain Things." The          ing of the Truth of Scripture.  Notice' that Dr.  Barn.-
  Ten `Commandments have been in the  worlxd  for three thousand          house quotes Scripture to support his contention rather
  five hundred years and look at the world.  ,The Sermon on the           than to philosophize after the manner of this world ;
  Mount has been in the world for two, thousand years and look            a.nd many more. passages could be added. A thought
  -at the world.    Yet there are some people so foolish that             jup;t  eltrikes me: perhaps, the  Edit.or  of.  The Young
  they think that the San Francisco Charter will do in six months         CaZvKst would like  to-  a.rrange a mass  mheeting of
  what the Sermon on the Mount and the Ten Commandments                   Christian Youth at which a debate COUM be scheduled
  Sailed to do in centuries. The answer is that they are deceived.        on the proposition: Resolved, that it is the Christian's
  If righteousness is  come by the law Christ  is dead in vain.           &ling to pray for God's blessing -on th,e work and ef-
  (,Gal. 2:21). Just as truly we could say, if righteousness should       forts of the San  Fran&co Conference.  IOur Young
  come  by,the Sermon on the Mount, Christ is dead in vain. Even          P,eople  would welcome the opportunity of disproving
  more truly,. if righteousness and a just peace come by any              that resolution. .I&t's fill one of our large auditoriums
  thing that man does Christ is dead in vain.                             of  an evening and give Dhe proceeds to relieve the Chris-
    . We will not even go along with those people who say:  "Ai           tian Brethren in the N:etherlands,,  or some other `worthy
  least give it a trial and show good will toward it and trust and        Iaiksfi  !
  pray  that the United Nations may bring about some sort of                   3. We maintain that the heart of Calvini.sm is not
  peace for a time at  least." From the very' start we hail it as.        !ynthesis  but `antithesis; - And: that the true Calvinist
1 godless, as' a child of illegitimate alliances, born I,ame  and due     proclaims, therefore, that Christ's' kingdom is not of
  to die in the further catastrophies  that comle  upon the  earth.' " this world but in heaven, and that the Christian's call-


              46                                                                T H E   STANDARD~EARER.~

              ing is t6 seek the Kingddm of Hlejaven ; that Christ came
              not to bring peace but the sword and that to the end                                                           Stedfastness and Our Youiig
              there shall be wars-a,n,d  rumors .of wars ; that is this
              woflr! we *have tribulation buk in Christ alone `we have                                                       : Peoples' `Societies  T
              peace for IHe ha`s over_come  the world ; Ohat He prays1
              not for the. wor11d ,but reproves $he world of sin and                                                     .' Your invitation td be present at this convention and
              ,righteousne& and jadgement; th& the curse of God is to deliver the inspirational addrdss I va&e highly. It
              in the-house'of the wicked while- He blessed His people is a ,cause of happiness and joy to m@. First of all, the
              with beace thatpasisleth all understanding; +hat we are very fact that ia:noiher convention of. our Yloung People's
              called to take'heed that we be not deceived a~? go after Societies was convoked reveals: that the societies them-
             `them  .which  `are  false Christ's  .%ut put on the- Lord selves are still alike and active, and that our young
              Jesus Christ; that presently th;ongh  the EIorcer4es of people, I take it, Iare interested in the thiligs of the
              the great men of :+he world all nations ay:e deceived but kingdom  of God. `, For, not to be entertained chiefly,
              the elect ,df God"have been sealed,; that in the mild@ OIP but to be edified has been and still i3:. the main purpose
              it all we look unto Jesus, the ,Author and `Finisher of. lof these conventions. And' in-this I'rejoiee. Tlhen, too,
              auk faith through  whom the world'is crucified unto us there is a personal, a more or less sentimefital  reaion
              .and .wi2 -unto the' world-!                                                                             why your invitation was to me la caulse elf happiness.
                       4. Finally, we mna.int,ain that "to appreciate-$fid  to I consider it a signal &tinction, when oae's own life's
              su)plport  earneslt'attempts  to estal$$h a more stable and swi stands well .Post Merid.ian, to be.invited to speak,
              durable anld International order" such.as ema,n&es  .from and that, too, to deliver an inspirational la:ddrec:s  to a
              Sa? )?raneisco,  is to promote the cause ,of anti&r&!                                                    conventSon of t,hose iwhose  life's `day has hardly reached
                       Brethren, be not ~,deceived  !                                                                  mid-morning.  .And, lastly,  1 am  particuBarly  happy
                                                                                                  W. H.                that you selected me once moreio delliver this address,
                                                                                      .
             _  :-                                                                                                     because by this time you ought to know what you ca3
                              -                                                  .:                                    expect of me in the line, of inspirational addresses.
               ..`.                                                                                                    Accoi-ding  to a  cetiajin  st?nda& for this kind. of
                                                 ~-                                                                    speeohes,  `I Would consider .myself the least St, and,
                                                                                                                       therefore, the least eligible, to meet the requirements
                                                                                                                       for this sorlt of laiddresses.         ,       `.
                                                                                           . .                          ' The word  `?nspirational", you' know, contains the
                                                   LNNIVERSARY                                                         well-knotin  term "spirit." And it is a striking fact
                                                                                                                       that in almost 1~11 languages, as far as I know, such as
                On October 5, 1945,  *bur beloved parents,                                                             the  Hebrew   ruccch~  the Greek  pneumn,  the Latin
                                                                                                                       spi&us, this word signifies air, ,breath,  wind, `as well
                                                MR. PAUL  REGNtiFXJS                                                   as the spirit of God or man. Perhaps; it is -due .to this
                                                               a n d                                                   that mnzny- inspirational speakers, speaking for con-
                                          MRS.   TENA  REIGNERUS-Boefsma                                               ventions or revival meetings, appear to consider it their
      ;<                                                                                                                special task to deliver "airy addresses," preiferably hot ;
: r y celebrated their  40th wedding.  anniaers?ry.   I                                                          j.
                                                     `:  >'
      i.                                                                                                               Iwindy speeches, that are calcuhted to app&l to, :and
      .I.              We,  their   child&,  e&&l  to  tliem our' most sincere and                                      to sway the  etiotions,  but that leave behind them
        hearty  congk&il&`tioins,  and it is- our sincere  .praysr  tha.t the                                           nothing but  empt'iness, or;  what is worse,  `when the
 ' Lord may contiiitie  to `bless them in His love arid mercy.                                                          emotional appeal of these addresses is very iiolent, only
                                                                                                                        do'ct.rinal  ha:voc  and  destrtiction.  You  ape aware that
                                    ,                  Their grateful children:                                         thgis is not my coiideption  of a `tyuly inspirational ad-
                                                                     Mk. and Mrs.  j.  Kampstra                         dr&s. `To me an inspirational speech rescognizes  that
                :I ,                      .'             _           Mr. and Mx%.k.  Beyer                              other meaning o!f the w&d `%pi&", according to w.hich
                                                          ,          Mr. and Mw.  Cl Regnerus                           it referis to th'e Spirit of Go:&, lalnd to the spirit of man
                                    :`
._                                                                   Mr! dna Mns. L. Regnerus                           as it is renewed .by  Dhe indwelling Spiiit of Christ.
                                   :'                                Mr. and Mrs. E. .Z?egneru,s                        Your .rebo?n spi& I se$k to `reach. But this reborn
                             -<  :                                   Cpl. and Mrs. R. keeneruS
                             . .                                                                                        spirit can be "irispired", not by mere' emotionalism or
                            . . - c
       .   .               ..-;k                                     Mr. and  Mrs:  5. `%k&tra                         @mpty  ,sentimentalism,   -btit only  bp the sword of  *he
                                                                     Cpl. and Mrs. G. Regnerus                         "`Spirit which -iis: `the Word of God. -And that .$Vora of
                              .                                      Sgt.  and,-Mrs.  C.  Ttinstra                      God `is able' tb` "inspire" you, not `ky a [direct appeal to
                                                                        --22  g r a n d c h i l d r e n ;   :           j;our emot&is, but only through your thinking mind.
                    11.035  Sto. Spaulding Ave.                                                                        `Truly inspir&tidi;nlal, then, in `the C!h<istian  sense of the
             ,Chicago,z.+glinois.                              _        L        _                                     Wrd, is an address that stands `in the seryice `of the


                                                  T H E -   S-TANDARD  B E A R E R                                  4        7
                                 __-                                                                                .- .-
  Spir.it of Christ, to inspire some of the ,contelits  of the iis., they must not deviate from the course prescribed by
  Word of God into -the regenerated spirits  elf the faith, in spite of the attacks of. the devil, and ,of the
  audience. It is  thus  tha.t I conceive of my task to- persecutions by the  worlld. But also in other ways
  night.            -                                             scripture  emph!a:siies   t,his calling to be stedfast.    It
      My subject Iwas assigned to me. The theme of this admoniishes us to be faithful even unto death, to ,holcl '
  convent~ion  is  "Stedfiastness." Rut this time, I  `was that `which we have, to persevere unto the end;to  be
  asiked to speak, not simply on the theme in general,            rooted in Christ; and not to be like children, tossed to
  lbut to bring it in connection with `our Young `People's .and fr,o by every `wind of doctrine.
  Societies. I must,. therefore,' f&t of all,`~expl&n  to you        Fundamentally, then, we may- say that Christian
  the meaning of the' Christian virtue of stedfastness ; stedfastness is that virtue of  belilevers  according to
  secondly, demonstrate `how this gift of grace may be w'hlch they stand firm in the covenant of, God. The
  cultivated la,nd strengthened ; and, lastly, show how our central idea of this covenant is that of friendship. Aad
  Young People's Societies may be instrumental-in culti- our'part  in, the covenant of friendship is that we love
  vating this virtue.                                             the Lord our God with all our heart, with all our mind,
      From-the ou.tset,  I v+ish to emphasize that this con- `with all our soul, and w.ith all our strength, that we
  vention by its present theme is expresaing its interest         cleave to Him, .trust in Him, forsake the world, and
  in spiritual stedfastness. One can speak ,of stedfast- walk in a new and holy life. To do this constantly,
  `ness in a general, a natural sense of the word. Then without wavering, without being  tosis'ed  to  .and fro,
  it is a matter of stability of .character  t.hat reveals itself without deviating from the way of truth and of the
  in the `constancy wherewith ,one pursues his life's aim,        precepts of our God,-this is steclfastness. It refers,
  the steady direction of Ahis life's coume, ,without  per- .therefore; both to ,our inner life, and to *our outward
  mitting himself to be ,discouraged  by Idifficulties  that walk and conversation: As to our inner lilfe, it means
  are met, or to deviate from his course by obstacl,es  in that our mind & established in the truth of the Word. of
  the way. But with this ,natqral sted&@ness  in the pur- God. We know the trut:h  as it is revealed to us, `and
  suit of natural aims .and ideals .we are -not now co,n- [delivered unto us. through the Church of Christ in
  cerned. On the contrary, we are interested in s.piritual -the world," the truth concerning God and man,  co;?-
  stedfastness, in stedfastness, which is a gift of grace, cerning Chr,ist and salvation, concerning the kingdom
  and which becomes rna~nifest  in a constant seeking of of God and things to come, concerning God's everlast-
  the kingdom of God, alway and everywhere, in #spite             ing covenant `with us and our calling as being of. the
  of .opposition?  Stedfastnese,~  as w.e ,now conceive of it,    party of the living God. W'e know t,hat truth with the
  is spiritual stability.                                         know1,edg-e  of a living faith in Christ, and our.minds are
      In more than one way, Holy Writ speaks of .this             fixed .in it, so that we do not waver, and we are not
 spiritual virtue, @:nd exhorts believers to be  stedfa,:t.       tossed about with all kinds of false doctrines. We do
  In Psalm  78:8 ff. we read  of.-carnal  and rebellious not halt between two opinions. For us this means that
  Israel that their "spirit was not stedfast with God." we are  unlwaveringly  established in  t,he  Protestant
  And this  is. explained as  revearling  itself in the fact Reformed truth.. It means that we are firm: in ,our
  that they turned back in the day of battle, even though confidence in the Gold of our ,salvation, so that `we trust
  they `were armed ; that they kept ,not the covenant of, in His promises, and no matter what may `come, we
  the God, and refused to #walk in His law; t&t, in' the.
                         -._-._.-.-- __... -__                    believe that He shall give us all things `with Christ.
  des,ert,  they lusted after carnal things, and trusted not -It means that we are stable in ,our will and :a11 our
  in God, W,ho daily sup,pli'ed ,a11 their needs. And one.2       desires, so that we are not cast about between the love
  more the covenant idea .is brought to the fore in this of God and the love of the world, but have' a constant
  coimection, when  ,in the--thirty-seventh  ven?e of the inner delight in doing the will of God from the heart.
same psalm it is said that they were. not "stedfast in            And it means that our hope is &irm, so that, our hearts
 `his covenant." . In Acts  2.~42 it `is said of the first .go out for the-things that are above, not the. things that
  `New Te&ament converts. that "they continued' sted-             lare on the- earth. And thus being stedfast in our
  fa&ly in the apostles' doctrine," where- the. Word of inner spiritual life, we will also be stable in our out-
  God. is indicated as the sphere in wh,ich believers must `ward"walk and. conversation. Consistently we will con-
  ,be stedfast.    I,., Gor. 15 i58 contains the well-known fess  :the truth as it is in. Christ; a&d. never waver.
.- ,exhort!a;tien to be'"stedlfast unmoveable,  always abound-
                             .  ..J                               Steadily we will pursue the path of God's prece,pts in
  ing in the' work of the Lord," `where stedfastness is the midst of the world without devilat&g  froin`it`to the
  further characterized as immoveabihty;  and the sphere r.ight br to the left. ' In :brief, as `th.e w'ord' i&?elf  indi-
  of stedfastness &indicated as "the lwork of the Lord." cates, we ,have taken a firm `stand, we have tiken up
  In I Pet. 5 :9 believers are exhortled  to resist the devil, our positi,on in `the covenant of' God,' and in that posi-
  "stedfast in the faith, knowing  thjat the same afflictions tion lwe remain fixed nd i&&&r what powers of oppo-
  are accomplished-in your brethren in the Iworld," that sition may rise against us!


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                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                         ,.
                  4 8                                  .~  ,?HE'  S.TA'NDAR,D  B.EARER                                                                                                                                                              -
                         For let -11s not forget that Christian izte&ftistnas is the  natural  -man,  w&se  positio,n is  outsi&-.  Gf,  :;a3
                  an aritithetical -idea. It presupposes  that  there are contrary to the.covenant  of God. Bit I mean .to apply
                  forces #of oppositi&  that constantly'attack us, and aim this truth -also to the regenergted~  child .of God, -to.$he  -
                  to remove US rfrom our .p&itiqn in the cove.nant.Of God. I believer in Christ Jesus. We can make a distin$ion
      \           These ;fo&sg ia,re..;within  us, for we have but ? srnal! between f!a.ith` and the &$fa&ness  of faith, between
                  beginnin-g-  o-f the new. obedience, al!d all, that Lbe_ongti th_e_  grace  @  @?ii!.g  receiqed   into  the  ,eternal- covenant
                  t6 our ob$ nature is against ,u.s::  Ace&ding to that old of God, an& our bein,g stedfast  in that covenant. And
                  nature, our'n&d`is b~$~ed to the truth of God, re&cts  -`the.point  1 now &,&  to make  is that not only the faith,
                                       ,.
                  .it, an,d follows after the lie; and our will is motivate2 -but alio the ,stedfastness  of fia:ith .is-a gift of grace. If
                  by enmity ra.gain'st God, and lusts1 ifter the things- of the faith; as a gift .of grabe, were noi inherently stegfast,
                  world. &d  the&z   ftitices  are  idso  without.  Fqr we no.. amount of cul$vation<  or training could~ make it ,SO.
                  <have qur battle not-agiifist flesh-AnId bloo'd,  but against But now it is  tiff&T-en&                                                                     For it is. giyeix UntQ _ I+ by
           -- powers and principal'ities,~&ainst  spiritual wickedmezs <grace,. nit o&&~ -`b,elieve  in Christ,  lazed to ,be, elf the
                  in high places, again& `the .devil and his host. ,;And              party of the living, God, but also to. remain .stedfast i.9
                  these powers of darkness &sume `a `very c&c&+ form :. that faith and in the co@nant rel&qship.--  ,. ,_ _
                  in the :evil influences in and ,o< the -world witih.whWhi$fi `.                                                                                                                           H.                     :H:
                  we needs come:into  co2nt+ct  every ,dla:y. ,This contact is                                                                               (To be continued) .
             especially close in our  modern   t&es, now  *he world                                         .,  .--
                  is considered smaller than half a. century- ago, ,literal                                 .                                                       -                -
           iiol&ion -becomes more and more impossible; and the                                                                                                                                                               0
             -radio brings +he- lust of the flesh, ia:n,d the lust of the,                                                                                                                                                                    .
                  eyes, and the pride af life into your very home. The6                                                     .                                      IN  MEMORIAM
                  is the sinister influen,ce of all kind& ,of false doctrin;                                                                                                                                                                 1 `r.
                                                                                                                                                                                                 :
                  that comes to you  Jn  speech  aml sermon,  .in  s&g and                                             -
                                                                                                     .Iri the earlj;  lp&rdng  of September 20, 1946, it behooved-  our
                  `Story, and whi,ch encroaches upon you at al&q& every Heavenly- Father iii His' infinite wisdom to take from US OUT
                  turn  ,of  youi  radio  dSa!l. There is the temptation  o_f  darling  baby                                                                                                     -
                  the worl,d,  whereby it offers you a good position, better                                                     !
                  pay, honor and- glory, or amualement  and pleasure, if                                                                                      RIGHARD  ALLEN
                  you will but become unfaithful to the coven&t-of your  at  ihe  age  of  6  moolth;                                                                                            .-                                          .,.
                  God. And  ther:e is also the  pow&  of  thi world to
                  make your position in the worltcl i.mpossible, to deprive                          His little life  wasp but a rdad of  Buffering,`!iet  it is not for
                                                                                                                                                                                                            _.
                  you.of a job, tb inflict upon you depr&a;tion,  reproach, us to'.questilon, Lord, what ,do&t Thou? We be&ve  God has a
             ~ suffering,. and even death,. if you insist to maintain purposa and His way is best. We  find great  comiort to know
                                                                                                                                                                                                                  : : r `, ._,
                  your stand and to ,be ifaibhful to -the good confession: - that the sufferings of this present time are not  wb~?$y  to be
                  All t&se e%l `influences1 are operative in-the wdrld now, revealed to us, .&d .one day wt! hope. to &et him `&gai,n,jn'that
                                                                                      better  land                                                                              ;
            and the Word of. God forewarns us- thialt they lwjll be-                  _
                  come` str&ger as, the Day of Christ api,roatihes,  until                                                                       Mr. and.Mrs: Richard Slot and joy,, Ard&he.
                                                                                                _
            the-time comes that  YOU will be able neither to buy  or                                                                                                                                                                          .-
                  sell, unless you-will adopt?  the sign of the bea&.. And
                  if all signs do not fail, we ere on the eve of thes.e  things,      `-                                                                                                               -
            ._                                                                                                                        _
                  and we are #approaching them the fast,er as the time of
-_         I the end draws nearer. And  stedfa&ne_s is  that'chris-                                                                              '                                                                          . :
                  t&n, v+%ue according to whitch we xrnaill faithful to                                                                                            ` I N '   ME&jRI&
                                                                                                                                                      ; .
                  the covenant of our God, stand firrqly as of the party                        - The  Consistory-   of  tlie' First Protestant Reformed Church
                  .gof the- living God, `in $he miid'st of- all these opposing of Grand Rapids, Michigan, he<eby v&he& to eipress its heart-
                  forces,  &d thus fight the good  fight even unto the felt sympathy to 
                  end that no one take dur crown,                                                                                                     O&  brother-elder,  .garry Bloem,  fin  the loss
                                                                                                                                                                                           -
                                                                                    of his father,                                                                                                                                 .
                         Now, this st&dfastnesB  is-first of all and principally                                       -.                                    ,-
                  B spiritual virtue,,  aed as  s,uch  .it  `-is. a gift  of%. grace.  _                               _  ::                                       H E N R Y                    BL&M
                  It goes without- saying that one cannot -cultivate this                            May the `i&d of all-grace  comfort ~he`&reaved  by the assur-
                  virtue, unless it iis1 present in the `heart to' start -with;       ante that he w~as c,a!ldd  to hi%`%ernal  home  in glory.                                                                                         _
           Just  as you cannot cultivate the art  ofi,music   #where-                                            ;                         `.                                         _                %
                  there is `no musical- taMt, or the la?t tdf teaching unless              -                                                                              + The  Consistory  of  &he  Wrst
           ' there  3irst be teaching  +bility;  So- it is  impoaisible   to                          :                          '                                       Protestant   Ref0rme.d   C h u r c h
                                                                                                                                                                              _  ,,  H  ,Hoe~sema'  Pres,
                   cultivate t.he virtue of stedfastness unless `it first be                          "                               -
                   present as a gift of grace.  -Thilsl,  of"course,  &elude+                                                                                                              G. Stonehousi,  Clerk.
                                                                                                                                                 /


