Cresco plain dealer. (Cresco, Howard County, Iowa) 1913-1945, 1916-08-18

fire; and the fire
shall try every mans work of what
sort it is. u Corinthians 1913.
The pastor declared that his text was
one of many Scriptures which apply to
our day. The reference is not to a
twenty -four-hour day, but to period
of time in the end of this Gospel Age,
during which things will be different
from what they had been before. The
context shows that the text deals only
with Christians; for these alone build
upon Christ. One class builds with the
truths of Gods word; the other, with
the wood, hay and stubble of tradition
and creeds of the Dark Ages. The
light of knowledge is consuming the
false-faith structures of the majority
of professed Christians. In discarding
the errors of the past many have also
discarded true faith in God and His
Word. Those whose faith structures
are unframed are only those who un-
derstand Gods word.
The Scriptures show that God has d.
vided the history of the world under its
sin and death experiences into six great
Days of thousand years each, to be
followed by a great Sabbath Day. God
has given fallen man this Work Week
in which to demonstrate what the race
can do toward their own uplift, toprove
whether they can manage themselves.
Mankind have tried in vain to over
come the weaknesses and infirmities of
the race mental, moral and physical.
Gradually the whole world is being con-
WINGED that unless the Almighty shall
assist them, they are hopeless.
We have reached the end of mans
Work Week. Now is the Day of reck-
oning. We are living in the Day Of the
Lord, in which occur special trials,
blessings and enlightment. AS the fire
of trouble spreads, the light of Truth
spreads also. The whole world is being
involved This is exactly what the
Bible has predicted for this Day of the
Lord.
1.-THE FIRE OF THAT DAY."
The Scriptures represent God as a
consuming Fire and as Light. (He-
brews 1929; ! John 1:5.) Both figures
of speech apply to Him. The sun is
ball of fire and q source of light. God
is consuming fire to every form of
iniquity, of injustice. Therefore all
systems founded upon selfshness and
iniquity must 60 down in this great
Day of the Lord, when He has risen to
shake terribly the earth, to shake down
all righteousness. Isaiah 2:11-22
In this present time of trouble and
distress Of nations, there is blessing
for 1.-The children of the light while
the consuming fire is destroying every
thing wrong. This fire is burning up
false faith and false doctrines, togeth-
er with all that is built Herewith. Much
that is taught and accepted as Truth is
utterly subversive of all true faith and
doctrine. The fire of God in this Day
of Christ will destroy all this false
teaching and the works thereof.
The great universities of Europe and
today are hot-beds of infidel-
ity, although the majority of them
were originally established for the
Christian education of our youth. To-
day there are few Christian colleges.
Young people sent to these institutions
of learning soon lose faith in the Bible
as the Word of God. The fires of
almost consume their faith
in God. These young people need our
help; for many of them wish to be-
lieve, if only they knew what is right,
what is true.
When we tell them about the fall of
Adam, the Redemption in Christ, the
selection Of the Church during this Cos
pei Age, and the blessing of all man
kind during the next Age, when the
willing and obedient shall, through the
Messianic Kingdom, be helped out of
sin and death into life and peace, we
give them something that is soul-satis-
flying. The Evolution theory, on the
other hand, is poor comfort to hun
cry, sorrowing heart.
The Scriptures indicate that every
thing except the Truth and structures
built thereupon will be consumed in
this Day, begun more than forty years
ago. Not only the ecclesiastical ''heav-
ems" but the social EARTH" with all
It's elements-political, financial, etc
will be burned. The fire will last even
down into the Millennial Age; for our
God is irreconcilably opposed to al in
Justice, impurity and unrighteousness.
After His work has been accomplished,
Durs viii be clean world.
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