The Mount Holly news. [volume] (Mount Holly, Burlington Co., N.J.) 1891-1942, 1914-11-24

which successive ages form links, can
understand why Divine Providence
should permit peculiar experiences,
trials, ETC., upon the Church at one
time, not permitted at another Would
that all Christians would awake to a
proper study of the Bible-to see the
object Of the Divine dealings with the
Jews during the Jewish Age, with
Christians during the Gospel Age, and
with the world during the MillenniaI
Age They would see that the Scrip
lures show that there Is a seed time,
Gowing time, and a harvest, a reaping
time, with each Age, which when 1t
has served its purpose passes away,
giving place to another Age and a diff
ferent work.
In the end of the Jewish Age, for
instance, there came to that people a
peculiar sitting and testing. while John
the Baptist. the last Of the Prophets,
was preaching; namely, winnowing
Of the wheat, a separating of the chaff
preparatory to the gathering of the
wheat into the garner of the next Age.
and the permission Of trouble to come
upon the chaff class, which utterly de
str0yed them as nation.
Similarly, in one of His parallels
(Aatthew 1924, 81, our Lord tells us
that in the end of the Gospel Age there
will be separation of wheat from
tares, the former being gathered into
the glorious Kingdom for which we
pray, Thy Kingdom come,' and the
latter being consumed as tares. though
not as individuals. The destruction OF
q tare. an imitation Christian. viii
signify that the person thus posing as
Christian. drawing nigh unto God
with his lips while his heart is far
from Him, will cease to make such pro-
fession. Thenceforth the true Church
win be recognized in its peculiar posi-
ton as "the very Elect" of God, Lit
tie Flock who follow In the footsteps
Of the Master, gladly sacrificing earth
ly interests for the attainment of
Heavenly ones. Thereafter, as the par
able shows. these will shine forth as
the sun in the Kingdom for the bless
ing Of all the families of the earth. in
Guiding the tare class, who will be no
longer deceived or deceivers in respect
to their true position, but be privileged
with the remainder Of mankind to come
into full harmony with God.
an the Evil Day.
We have not the necessary time to-
<7ox k<x he
evidences which indicate that we are
now living In this particular period
Many Of you have our STUDIES IN
THE SCRIPTURES, in which this sub
ject is fully presented. We must con
tent ourselves at this time by pointing
to some Of the outward demonstrations
that we are in the time which the
Apostle designates 1.-THE evil day
Throughout the Scriptures this pc
Rod is most dramatically set forth as
time of thorough testing, time in
which the separation of wheat from
tares will be most absolutely accom-
piished, SO that not one grain Of wheat
will be lost or one grain of tare pre-.
served with the wheat 1t seems diff
cult for the majority Of people to think
that they should be in the midst of
fulilments of prophecy. If we were
telling that these things would take
place within a century or within a
thousand years, many more would be
ready to investigate and to acknowl-
edge the force Of the arguments. But
familiar with the conditions, the trials.
the perplexities OF our day, many shut
the eyes of their understanding to the
very remarkable condition of affairs in
the world
As st. Peter predicted, many in our
lay are suggesting that all things will
continue as they have been from the
beginning of the world. The Apostle
also declares that this class are will
ingly ignorant e Peter $3.50. Indeed
tbe majority do not desire knowledge
Imbued with the spirit of the world
they desire money, pleasure or fame.
To say the least. the majority of pro
Tossing Christians are careless. indif-
ferent, to what the Lord has caused to
be written for their admonition, en-
enlargement and assistance in this
evil day.
Such are not of "the very Elect.
The latter. as st. Paul shows, will not
be In darkness that that Day should
overtake them as thief. q Thessa-
Ionians 6:1-6) They win be earnest
watchful, standing fast in the faith.
Therefore, using the means the Lord
has provided, they will receive the spe-
cial reward, while others by neglect
ing their privileges mark themselves
as unworthy the great favor which
the Lord is now dispensing to the Lit
tie Flock. We will not say that they
will not have opportunities in the Great
Company that will come up out Of
great tribulation and stand before the
Throne. instead of being in the Throne.
Revelation 10, IA, 10.
Mark our Lords declaration that the
trial of our day would be so critical,
DO crucial, that 1t would deceive If pos
sible "the very Elect" Matthew
24:24.) But this viii not be possible;
for the Lord has promised them as
sistance, and they will be in the atti
tude of heart and mind to seek that
assistance and use it. Mark how the
Lord through the Prophet David fore
told Che special trials of this time, pic
turing the various devices of Satan
Spiritism, Higher Criticism, Christian
Science, Evolution, etc-as pestilences
and arrows. He tells us that thou
sand shall fall at our side, yea, ten
thousand at our right hand-amongst
those whom we consider most favored
and, In some respects at least. as our
friends In the Lord.
Then the reason is given why the
very Elect viii not fall under these
pestilences and arrows; namely. Be
cause thou hast made the Lord, even
the Most High, thy refuge and thy
habitation, no plague shall come nigh
thy dwelling" What to others will be
stone of stumbling will to this class
be an assistance, In that they will
climb upon 1t to still higher personal
development and character-likeness to
the Lord. All things must work to-
gether for good to these because they
love God truly, sincerely, above self or
any other creature, and because of
their faithfulness to their covenant Of
conservation to him.-Psalm 81.
A Divinely Provided Armament.
Note again that our text applies to
the Harvest Of the Gospel Age. which
It calls an evil day-a day Of trials,