The Yakima herald. [volume] (North Yakima, W.T. [Wash.]) 1889-1914, 1912-05-15

4 mlSSlOD OF converting tue WOEiu III Tue
present Age while that work remains
! for her to do In the coming Age in
connection with the Lord and His
Kingdom-nevertheles she was COM
missioned to do a work of ,Dttnessing
in the present Age.
The Church's witness was to be the
telling Of the Message of Gods grace
to those having an ear to hear, al
though they be but few. Secondarily,
she was to witness to the world by
I her faithfulness to the principles of
! righteousness, and thus to show forth
the praises of Him who called her ''out
Of darkness into His marvellous light"
; But this witnessing was not in order
to the converting of the world, but IS
order to gather out of the world the
number necessary to complete the Dr.
vinely foreordained elect Bride of
Christ
The Second Reason.
AS the first error was in respect to
J the worlds conversion to the Lord, the
second error was in respect to t1hdt
tconld happen to the acorld if they were
not converted to the Lord When the
erroneous idea gained credence that
everyone who does not accept the in
f! vitation and become member of the
Bride of Christ is to be eternally tor
mented. can we wonder that it led
many good people to frenzy of error
respecting what should be done to
! save their families and neighbors and
I the heather millions from a supposed
/ eternity OF torture?
1t was because of this supposed ur-
Jesus were exhorted not to stop to feed
and to grow strong in the Lord and to
| study His Word, but to be moved by a
| frenzy of zeal to bring others to the
| Lord This frenzy in turn led to most
unreasonable teachings and practices
which we are only now gradually get
ting rid of as we realize that a great
| mistake was made.
How strange that we did not stop to
| think Of the absurdity Of our position
and how it misrepresented the Heav-
/ emily Father In a most detestable light,
| How strange that any should ever
| think that when the Heavenly Father
| sent out the call to those who have
| the hearing ear, to joint heirship with
Jesus Christ their Lord, He would
| consign to eternal torment any who
| would decline to accept the admittedly
| stringent rules and conditions appertain
| ing to this ''call'-the marrow way
| of the footsteps Of Jesus--self-denial
| etc!
Well do the Scriptures assure us that
| the saints ''wrestle not with flesh and
blood merely" but rather with wick
ed spirits in high positions" of infiu
| ence. (Ephesians vi, 12) Well does
| the Apostle tell us that it is the Goo
| of this Age who hath blinded the
minds of those who believe not. VI
Corinthians w. A. Well can we see
how he put light for darkness and
| darkness for light during the Dark
Ages
Another Lesson We May Learn.
We must not leave our text without
| calling to memory most wonderfully
instructive lesson concerning the prop
brethren when the same is surely nee
essary. So far as the record shows, the
three inquiries which our Lord made
| of st. Peter respecting his love for Him
| were the only rebukes ever given MIN
as an offset. or punishment for his
| shameful denial of the Master on the
| night in which He was betrayed.
1 Of n 10
| place we would have felt that it was
! necessary to make st. Peter very num-
| bly, apologize before we would have
| anything further to do with him. We
would have been inclined to speak of
| his weakness, of his ingra titude, of
| h.w he knew better, etc, etc. Our
sense Of justice would in many in
stances have entirely overshadowed
our sense of mercy and sympathy.
| But not so with the Master. He knew
the loyalty of St Peters heart He
knew that he had already gone out
and wept bitterly over the matter.
He knew what sense of shame
would be upon him and how much
courage it would mean for him to
| mink at All OF ueetlug the MASTER
whom he had denied
Surely it was on account OF this
sympathy for st. Peter and this appre
citation of the tendency he would have
to become entirely discouraged that led
our Lord to mention st. Peter first
amongst the Apostles on the morning
of His resurrection, saying to Mary, to
1 whom He fivst appeared. go and tell
MY disciples. and Peter don't let Pc
ter think that he Is an outcast. Let
him know that think of him and love
him and sympathize with him and
have forgiven him, because know he
did it under stress.
We Should Copy tho Masters Methods
Aud if our Lord and Master has Sc
us such an example of henevolenct
and forgiveness without request, hoy
are we learning this lesson? TO wha'
extent do we forgive others thei
rreSpasses and to what extent do We
go more than half way TO let then
know that we harbor no resentful feel
lngs toward them? To what extent dc
we send them word that we think OF
them kindly, generously? And when
| the appropriate time comes and 1t is