The Bottineau pioneer. (Bottineau, N.D.) 1885-1895, 1894-02-24
To the Public.
Communicated

usually of a speculative nature. therefore.
the closer we cling to scientific laws and
logical deductions. the safer the ground
on which We stand. Mature and nat
ure's laws lay hid in night. God said
let Newton be- and all was light" The
integral parts of physical nature are so
many tangible truths. their governing
laws intangible. The more profound our
knowledge of these things. the more in
telligent and correct will be our concep-
ton of the divine Author. To this end.
reason is indispensable. 1t discriminates
between good and evil, truth and fiction.
a wise chieftain guarding IN important
fortress which to surrender would be per-
ilous. cowardly and d~ishonorable. Lam
guage signally fails to portray even in the
most imperfect manner creations incom-
~prehensible magnitude and the infinite
goodness and wisdom displayed in beneh-
cent provisions made tor the creatures
present and future well-being. All have
their wants supplied from the same mex
haustible source, even to the most minute
details. by virtue of indiscriminative i'm
mutable laws. Man is a high order of be-
ing. a completely VT mortality and immor-
tality. the latter Gods peculiar precious
gift. an indistinguishable light shining
where darkness would otherwise prevail.
1t is a luminous orb suspended in the
moral arch of terrestrial Immortality,
scattering in benign profusion countless
blessings upon our race. Eternity. space,
the origin of material and immaterial
things, Gods unutterable DEGREES coupled
with mans accountability. as also the
atonsment of Christ. embody considera-
tons and questions outside and beyond
the range of human conception. and when
we attempt to scale their majestic heights
or sound their fathomless mysterious
depths. the mind stagge,s, the reason
reels. and we betray a presumption and
weakness both alike pitiable. These are
infinite and eternal v~erities laid away in
the chambers Of inscrutable wisdom, un-
approachable by man. Secret things
belong to God" As to the Great Sacri-
fce, it is sufficient for us to know that the
work has been completed. finished. fin
ished in all it was designed to accomplish
in earth and heaven. time and eternity.
In Christ, the Savior of the world, ''dwelt
all the f~ullness of the Godhead." In US,
it exists only measurably. yet it is our
Father in heaven making his abode with
was not polluted by Its contact with nor
tality, neither will ours ever be as both
emanated from tine one only fountain of
purity, truth ano love. Few would wish
to aver that Gods gifts to man were other
than perfect, present and perpetual bless
ings. Moses duplicated Jehovah as the
God of the spirits of all flesh" Nor does
1t appear that this great Hebrew lawgiver
ever received any supernatural intimation
of any future, amending state of punish
ment. The almighty Father has done all
that is possible for our comfort here and
hereafter. His proffered gifts are over
whelming the needful being always OBJ
tainable by a wise course of procedure.
Prayer properly is a wish crystallized in
to action. but to ask God to do more than
He has for His creatures is to require at
His hand an omnipotent im%possibility.
He knows what is best and has done it.
Shall not the Judge of all the earth do
All laws capable of being ignored
compound principles consisting of re-
wards and penalties, and. when correctly
applied, yield good results. but when in
correctly. their consequences are evil.
The man who ~disregards a law insults its
author and will most assuredly suffer the
penalty, there being NO conceivable means
of escape. In this way. and this only. we
conclude are the veracities of avs proved
and perpetuated. Eternal goodness legis-
lates. administers and executes the affairs
of this vast universe. no revisions of stat
utes. His DEGREES are eternal and un-
for God is not man that He
should lie or the Son of Man that He
should repent" Hath he not said it and
shall be not do it. hath he not spoken and
shall be not make it good?" Therefore,
without respect to rank or station. all men
stand on one common level, Zach alike
to the imperative requirements
the law and subject to its inevitable
penalties. In conclusion. we greatly re-
joice that our heavenly Father. the Lord
God omnipotent reigneth." 1--WE will
sing Him a new song. Let the heavens
rejoice. let the earth be glad, for his mer-
cies endureth forever.
Respectfully.
s HOwAR