The Vermont watchman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1883-1911, 1910-06-23


than we fault ourselves. AS whole
we have been ioorkmen Dho need to
be ashamed We have dishonored God
through misunderstanding and misrep7
resenting his Word and his Character!
We have driven away from God and
the Bible some Of the most intelligent
Of our fellows, by reason Of the con-
Trajectory nonsense Of our creeds.
The Apostle urges. "Study to show
thysclf approved unto God" We are
not to suppose, therefore, that the
highest Of all science, that which per-
tains to the Divine purpose and the
Divine plan, can be acquired without
study. We are not in this claiming
that study alone would bring the de-
sired results of proper knowledge. We
heartily agree in the Scriptural prop
ositlon that ''the world by wisdom
knows not God" We are not there
fore to study along the lines Of world
ly wisdom, but along the lines of that
wisdom that cometh from above'-
along the lines of the inspired Scrip
lures. We must study Whoever win
not study will not know. 1.-THE secret
of the Lord is with them that rever-
ence Him." And reverencing him
means the giving of our best thoughts
and talents to the study of his Word,
that we may know the things freely
given to us of God" q Corinthians IL,
12).
We should note further as Bible stu.
dents that we must not study to be ap-
proved of men, but to have the Divine
approval. This will bring to US, as il
did to the Master and his apostles, the
disapprobation of the worldly-wise and
nominally religious. 1t was the Chief
Priests and Scribes and Pharisees, and
not the common people of the Jews, noI
the Roman soldiers, who were guilty
of the crucifxion of our Lord. And
we must expect similar conditions, be-
cause, as the Apostle says, "As he was
so are we in this world" The class
who called the Master Beelzebub is the
same class which will oppose his foot
step followers.
God permits all this with wise and
loving foreintention. Nothing connect
ed with the opposing forces Is in any
sense Of the word interfering with his
great Program. He set apart with Dt
vine wisdom this Gospel Age OF nearly
nineteen centuries for the sole purpose
of selecting from the world 'ths
Church of the firstborns"-the antityp
ical Priests and Levites. The restric
ton of his message, the darkening OF
counsel, the clashfng of creeds, the op
position of the world, the flesh and the
Devil, are all wisely permitted with
the foreintention on Gods part that
thus all through the Age the way OF
the cross-in the footsteps of Jesus
should be n marrow way" so that
comparatively few finding it would
care to walk in it.
1t is those few, that little flock
Jealous for God, for his Word fol
righteousness. that he is now marking
out as the prospective jOint-heirs with
Jesus in his glorious Kingdom. which
is to bless the world with full Opportu
mites for earthly salvation-"restitu
ton" The trials of the faith, the pa
thence, the love, the devotion of this
little flock" are all designed and moi
accidental. Satan and his hosts may
think to thwart the Divine Plan and
may mislead and use humanity as THEN
tools, but it shall yet be seen that ali
of the Divine purposes shall be ac
complished. The Word that has gond
forth out of Jehovahs mouth shall
prosper in the thing whereto he
sent it.
st. Paul declared of earthly Israel
that they enjoyed much advantage
every way, because to them were com
mitted the oracles of God" So now,
dear friends. it seems to me that you
and | and all sincere Christians the
world around enjoy much advantage
every way. Looking to the past we
find great excuse for our dear forefa.
theirs who, with sincerity Of heart, so
misunderstood the Divine Word and
so misinterpreted the spirit of the
Master that they burned one another
at the stake. We should not think SO
harshly of them for this-as though
they lived today under the greater ad
vantages which we possess. We
should sympathize with them. We
should consider them as blinded by
the great Adversary as was Saul of
Tarsus, when he, as member of the
Sanhedrin. authorized the stoning Of
st. Stephen. We should think of them
sympathetically-as St Peter spoke of
the Jews who crucified the Lord. He
said IL wot. brethren, that in igno-
ers." So also we should kindly. low
ingly cast q mantle of benevolenee
/ over similar conduct on the part Of
John Calvin and others of our foFefa-
Tiers. But as we would not go to the
Jewish rulers. nor to Saul of Tarsus
for religious instruction, neither should
we go to Brother Calvin or others Of
our forefathers who were blinded. as
he was, respecting the true character
of God and the true Spirit of his
Word.
Only within the past century have
the masses of Gods people been able
even to read the Bible If they had pos.
sessed It, And only within the same
time have they had the Bibr to read.
Our great hindrance has brCn that
with Bibles in our hands and with
ability TO use them. we looked fer in
struction to our wellmcaning fathers
| instead of going TO Gods Word itself.
Now by Gods grace the ewes of our