Monroe City Democrat. (Monroe City, Mo.) 1888-1919, 1913-07-24


Woe unto you
that are rich! for ye have received
your consolation. And He lifted
up His eyes on His disciples, and said.
Blessed he ye poor: for yours is the
Kingdom of God. "-Luke 600, "a.
The Pastor began by declaring that
his address was not intended to arouse
class animosity Although not rich.
he could sympathiZe with the rich in
their position, as well as with the poor
in theirs. God, who is very rich, is
able to sympathize with both classes.
The Savior is also able, who being
rich. for our sakes became poor, that
through His poverty we might become
rich in. the truest sense. Some of
Gods faithful in the past were very
rich Abraham, for instance. Never
theless, during this Gospel Age, not
many great, rich or learned have been
called to the blessing now offered. Its
recipients have been chiefly the poor
of this world, rich in faith.
The Master evidently included riches
of wealth, honor education, ETC., in His
statement He implies that all now
possessing any of these blessings will
be more or less hindered from obtain
ing Gods highest blessing. and more
or less subject to woes. We are not to
suppose that He meant that at death
the rich would be thrown into ever
lasting torture. These woes appertain
to the present life At the close of the
Jewish Age, this class experienced Sc
we're trials; and our Lord intimates
that at the close of this Age the same
class will have similar experiences.
Wrath to the Uttermost Upon Jews.
Wrath came upon the Jewish people
to the uttermost. in the End of their
Age. Il ThessalOnians 2:16.) Those
woes did not belong to a future life.
That fluctuations come to all in the
present life is unbeatable. But the
most terrible fOrebodings are associat-
ed with imaginary woes of the future
life-quite contrary to Scripture. We
are glad to set aside this nightmare of
the Dark Ages.
The Jews, whom our Lord addressed,
did not realize that they were living In
the End of their Age, and that great
settlement was about to come. SINH
larly, we are living in the End of this
Gospel Age. and a settlement is now
due. Jesus foretold the crisis of the
Jewish nation. His message gathered
out from that nation all the Israelites
indeed, and then the nation was given
over to itself. The Divine Hand which
had guided them loosed it's hold; and
human passions accomplished their
overthrow in anarchy, which caused
their downfall, A. ID. 70.
So we understand that the End of
this Age has come, and God is gather
ing His Elect. AS soon as this Is ac-
complished, God will permit mankind
to wreck their present civilization. AS
the rich of Jesus day suffered most
keenly, so the rich will suffer most in
the coming time of trouble.
Compensations In Nature.
The Pastor then showed that both
rich and poor have compensations The
rich have trials and perplexities that
the poor know not Of They also have
many more temptations to make them
less likely to seek the priceless things
of Gods Kingdom But we are not to
understand that God is partial to the
poor. He is choosing "A special class,
and the conditions surrounding the rich
and great make them less susceptible
to His message and to the cultivation
of humility. The experiences Of the
poor are most favorable, apparently, to
the cultivation of meekness, gentleness,
patience and love-qualities God esti-
mates greatly
Some poor, however, instead of be-
ing drawn to God by poverty. cultivate
a spirit of hatred. malice and strife.
Such turn away from Him.
The class described by Jesus as I'VE
poor" are those hungeriug and thirst
ing after righteousness. who have be-
come Gods children. These may he