The Mount Holly news. [volume] (Mount Holly, Burlington Co., N.J.) 1891-1942, 1910-05-24
PEOPLES

boxes are owned by the nobility,
many Of whom occupied them, while
others. unable to attend. graciously
granted permission for their occupan-
cy by others; but hundreds were turn
ed away. The meeting was held un-
der the auspices of the international
Bible Students Association" The
speaker said
1t is appropriate that on this day,
celebrated and recognized as the an
niyersary of Pentecost. we should con-
slider the import. and have well in
mind what We celebrate. l therefore
take as my text. the words of st. Pc
ter explanatory of the occasion: This
Is that which was spoken by the
Prophet JOEL And it shall come to
pass in the last days. saith God, will
pour out my Spirit upon all flesh; and
your sons and your daughters shall
prophesy, and your young men shall
have the vision which your ancients
dreamed of; and ON my servants and
on my handmaidens l will pour out in
those days my Spirit, and they shall
proclaim" q give you a preferred
translation.)-Acts ii. 1918.
st. Peter declares that the outpour-
ing of the holy Spirit upon the waiting
believers at Pentecost was mentioned
by Joel the Prophet. but he does not
say that all of the prophecy was full
filed there and then. As matter OF
fact we know that the holy Spirit was
not then poured out on all flesh; il
was poured out merely upon Gods
servants and hand-maidens. A care
full inspection shows us that there are
two parts to the prophecy III All flesh.
and e. Gods servants and handmade
ems. The order of the blessing is also
stated. 1t will come upon all flesh
after those days, but upon the servants
and hand-maidens in those days The
days mentioned evidently refer to this
Gospel age-from Pentecost to the sec
Ond coming of Christ.
In this period, of now nearly nine
teen centuries. Gods holy Spirit has
been granted to his faithful ones, and
to these alone Only the fully conse-
Grated have been accepted of the Lord
as living sacrifices. and only such have
been begotten of the holy Spirit, that
they may be new creatures in Christ"
During all this time. the world has
hNlx
Spirit is concerned. Indeed. the Apos-
tie after Pentecost went still further
and declared that ''the whole world
ieth in the Wicked One" The only
action of the holy Spirit must be, as
in the case of Felix, to ''reprove
the world of sin and righteousness. and
of coming judgment" Our text de-
clares, however, that the time is COM
ing when the world will receive q
share of the great Divine blessing.
of Christ. But its time of favor will
be latter those days"-after this Cos
pei Age shall have come to an end:
after the New Dispensation. the Mil
lennlal Age, shall have come Let us
note first the blessings belonging to
this Gospel Age. in which we are spe-
cially interested, and subsequently let
US notice the blessings that God has
promised shall come to all mankind.
The church's Pentecost.
1t is not sufficient that we say that a
Pentecostal blessing came upon the
followers Of Jesus in the upper room
at Jerusalem totally different from
anything that had been known in the
world before. We want to know why
it was SO; and if blessing. why it did
not come sooner to Gods people? We re-
member Abel. Enoch. Noah. braham,
Moses, Daniel, the Prophets; we rec
ognize the fact that they were grand
characters, and. as st. Paul said.
''They had this testimony that they
pleased God" Yet there was no Pen
tecostal outpouring in their day. moi
until the age of man in the world was
more than four thousand years. Why
was this? We answer that God has
his own times and seasons for the va
rious features of his work.
We recall the words of our Lord Je-
sus. respecting his forerunner. Verify
| say unto you. Among them that are
born of women there hath not risen a
greater than John the Baptist; not
withstanding he that is least in the
Kingdom of heaven is greater than he
(Matthew xi. III. Why could not John,
and others Of the prophets preceding
him. enter in and enjoy this Gospel ia
vor? We answer. in the language of
st. Paul. God having provided some
better thing for us. that they without
US should not be made perfect" Gle
brews XII, 40). Our Creator has great
gifts to dispense to our race through
the Redeemer, and it is for him to de-
termine the times and the seasons for
the dispensing of these blessings. and
to whom they shall go. According to the
Divine arrangement, the Redeemer had
first to die as mans Ransom-Price
before any of the race could come back
into full relationship with the Creator.
1t Is true that by faith Abraham and
others of the past did enjoy certain OF
Gods favors. and much of his fellow
ship, but none could be received Into
full sonship and joint-heirship with
Christ. until first their sins had been
cancelled. Then they could be accept
ed in Christ on the terms which the
Father has appointed.
Those very disciples who received
the blessing in the upper room on Pen
tecost, had forsaken sin, had become
Jesus disciples. had made full conse-
Grafton Of all their earthly hopes and in
terests. had been accepted by the Lord
Jesus, and he had put his Spirit upon
them, enabling them to do many mighty
works in his name. However. it was
one thing to do mighty works through
his spirit. or power, and another mat
ter to possess that spirit Inherently
to act directly as agents of Divine ia
vor instead Of indirectly. 1t is in har-
mony with this thought that we read
that after our Lord breathed upon
them the holy Spirit, symbolicalIy i'm
parting his Spirit. and commissioning
them as his representatives to preach
the Gospel. he told them, nevertheless,
to tarry at Jerusalem until they were
endued with power-the holy Spirit
until the Father should recognize them
directly as his ministers and ambassa-
doris.
From the standpoint Of Divine. JUS
tice, the Apostles and believers were
still under the sentence of death as
sinners at the time of our Lords death,
at the time of his resurrection, at the
time of his ascension. Then he said
to them. "It is eXnedient for You that l