The Progress., 1896-02-15
nrHr SIGN, OF THE TIMES"

In pe,,tion to the Second Coming of Our
But as the days Of Noe were, so
shall also the coming of the sou OF
man be. For as in the days that
we're before she floods they were eat
ing and drinking, marrying
and giving in marriage, until
the day that Noe entered into the
ark, and knew not until the Hood
came. and took them all away: So
shall also the coming Of the son Of
man be. Matt. M:364O.
In the words as quoted above, Our
Lord pictures to us the condition of
this age at the time Of His appearing
again. We love to pride ourselves
upon our intelligence and boosted
civilization, and dwell upon the inhe,
rent goodness of mankind, if it were
ionly properly developed. But God
who "seeth not as man seetb,' never
speaks but in terms Of condemnation
of our race, and always with sadness
because of It's folly and weakness,anc
ever warns mel of the evil which lle
latent within their hearts. SO Will.
we are tempted to look at what nigh
be called the bright side OF things
and to shut our eyes to all evil. yet !
is not what we think after all tina
settles matters, but what Saith tn
Lord :" So in reading Gods wore
f we find first of all that each of tn
preceding ages or dispensations {
the world, have ended
Judgment, in catastrophe and in wo'
q No matter how bright the future ma
Y appear to rs and no matter how Ii
# tie we may be able to discern tt
Signs Of the Times" yet Christ say
. that this age will end just as did IL
;s age in which Noah lived. Of TIL
t. age we read, that there were giants
S those days-giants in commercl
and in political life. 1t was perit
when there was n intellectual sta
nation, or low civilization, but on Il
~ contrary these were of the highest c
* der. Men bought and sold, ate al
u drank and lived in all probability
men before and since then have live
IS Yet at a period of the greatest pre-
perity when probably contentme
reigned and all looked around wit
out fear, yet God saw that the vic
a. edness Of man was great in t
earth, "and for l20 year, Noah preat
W ed the destruction which was
come upon all flesh. So to-day m
Cd are saying: We were never SO ri
70 and prosper.u $iook at the discov
les of the 18th centurS; the comic
and luxuries that abound, etc, a
nj, then they ask: "When is the sign
'pa His coming, fol since the fathers
Is, asleep all things continue as tt
were from the beginnings' W
does Carlyle say: ''Optlmism Is
fools way BLOCKING at things"
les, surely around and above the We
our to- day are the gathering ste
clouds, which are ever darkenlng 1
our soon must burst and precipitate tt
Of contents upon the earth; and whet
and we look at the condition of the sot
political or industrial affairs of
world, we can see the tokens wi
III; ~ portend and indicate great crisis
q the worlds career, and on all 81
we see the ''hurrying to and fro"
mems hearts failing them for fear
New for looking after those things wi
ana are coming upon earth" In the
und cussion of this subject if we find
and men everywhere are growing be
that Regeneratio2 is finding a 1
acceptable place IN mems hearts
to Reformation; that the stage 1
q 10 whole is growing purer and more
rs OF waited; that crime IS on a CONT
rect decrease; that men are becon
Tor more respectful of the law and !
are law-abiding citizens; that our
;'1s' is freer from scandalous details
corruption; that the nations are