Los Angeles herald., 1892-05-02
PRE-M|LLENN|AuTES,
James J. Clark Analyses the
Agitation.
An Interesting Discussion on Theo-
logical Points.
A John the Baptist Must Prepare the
Way-some Prodding of the
Church-The Golden
Rule.

Mr.. James G. Clark writes to the
HERALD as follows:
Though, my life-work lies chiefly in
the realm Of song frequently alight to
rest my wings and to take part in the
discussion OF social and religious prob.
lens. I have become somewhat of an
interested spectator in the pre-millen-
nial agitation which is just now shar-
ing public attention with earthquakes
in divers places"
It reems to me that these well-mean-
ing pre-millennialitss should not per-
,plex their souh over the second coming
Of the Son Of Man until our powers of
moral digestion and assimilation have
first more completely taken in and more
properly utilized the lessons and COM
mands which marked His first advent.
The question is, may there not be a
practical work for the church and the
"world" to do before presuming to call
on the Lord Jesus to descend and do
what we ourselves ought to do? Ia there
not something left undone on our part
which we alone ought to do before the
time comes for Him to personally su-
perintend mundane matters?
1t is not well to be tooprevious, either
in spiritual or material affairs.
If we break the shells of partly incu-
bated eggs, we do not help hberate the
and possibility of creatures that must
hatch out their own salvation before
they can soar and sing.
Thera ara looiops of aaIfdaIndod
Christians who doubtless have the as.
surance to look the King of kings square
in the face, and shout: "Lord, Lord,
in Thy name have we. not cast out devils
and done many wrondfous works in
revivals;" but all this will be OF no
avail if they have not woven into the
every day fabric and texture of their
characters the essential elements which
Christ proclaimed 1900 years ago, as the
ones by which the sheep and goats are
to be distinguished and separated at the
final round up.
He made the text exceedingly plain
and simple-so plain that the most as
tute and ingenious theological hair
splitter cannot obscure it with sophistry
or mystery, though he may, for obvi-
GUS reasons, silently ignore it. s. doubt
if one in ten thousand of those who are
now apparently most anxious to meet
him in his descent from the "clouds"
would, if measured and weighed by the
supreme and only recorded test, be any
better prepared to understand and fol-
low and obey Him than q half-devel-
oped chicken would be to follow the
mother hen if rudely turned out of it's
shell week before the time decreed by
nature. "By their fruits ye shall know
them" -eart 1e@4
The man who can stand up in q
Christian pulpit and profess to advocate
the pure, unselfish, social ethics, and
practical humanitarian doctrines OF the
Nazarene, and yet treat with silence or
even fail to openly rebuke modern usury
and the commercial methods through
which Christians like Wanamaker,
Rockefeller, Astor and Russell Sage rob
the general public of millions, while
tens of thousands of better Christians
are starving in the same cities-and
these men are the ripe, logical fruit of
our present industrial system-may, in
q certain unnatural sense, have been
"born again." but, if 80, the birth must
have been an exceedingly premature
one.
No doubt the Son of Man will "come
again and again" in His own way and
time. He has been trying to come for
centuries, but the church and the world
combined have persistently shut the
door in His face whenever He has
knocked at the entrance of any specific
and needed social and moral reform
and sent Him away with the message,
''Not at home"
Many of those who are making the
most ado concerning His advent in
bodily form evidently do not realize that
He must come first-as He Himself de-
clared-through the law of clever" by
which humanity, in and outside the
church, shall be lifted up to Christian
altitude; that He is to come as prac-
tical and radical manifestation in the
lives of men as expressed in the regu-
lar heart-beats of society.
Up to date the race had not had any
thing like fair chance for this kind oi
manifestation, for we have been build
ing up in theory gospel which ou,
hands have been tearing down and our
feet trampling under foot in practice.
The love of self-preseryatio has been
wearing against the higher law of love
and the latter has gone to the wall.
1t was Satan. not Christ, who said: sAll
that man hath will he give for his
lll0y duQ Jul CdCn Auu lOI ulIu6clI AuO
devil take the hlndmost'' scheme fol-
sustaining mere animal life and has
been making his words true ever since.
In the meantime, while usurers, cor
porations, syndicates and trusts have
proved that they can mutually combine
and cooperate for the personal profit oi
the few at the expense of the many, the
latter, like sheep without shepherd
have been scattered. "each for himself, ,
while commerce has all the time been
fleeing or making mutton" of them
separately.
The combination, or cooperative idea
has in the past, and under the ramifica
tions OF swindlers and tyrants, and sane
ton OF the church, made theft respecta
bic and even decorated wholesale muir
der with laurels and with halo of glory
1t Is only when human beings, who
have formerly combined to wantonly
destroy property and life, begin to co
operate to help each other, and to con
serve and make the best and most O
all that is useful and divine. that W,
hear the howl of socialist, fanatic, ant
disturber of order, from the pulpit. tn,
political platforms and the press all owe
p the land.
Until Christian pastors cease spoilin,
their eyes star gazing and peering int
the clouds in search of the visible, per
.eonal coming of Christ, and begin t,
make a more visible and practical ap