| Summary: | Gospel Trumpet 1881-June 3, 1962, Vital Christianity June 10, 1962-Sept. 1996, One Voice June/July 2004-Apr/May 2007 .::-.,. . -. - -. And he shall send his angels with a great sound of a Trumpet, and they shall gather to-gether his elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other. Mat. 24: 3i. ,,.; 7_ / Ted/ rim/ iv item So will I seek . out my sheep, and will deliver them out of all places where they have beeq scattered in the cloudy and dark day. Eze. 34: 12. . Ter. 32: 39. Be Humble, BY B. E. WARREN. " For God resisteth the proud, and giveth grace to the humble."— i Pet 5: 5. WHEN Jesus denied himself, bore our " load of sins in his body on the cross, paid the enormous debt we con-tracted by sinning, which we could not pay, he exemplified true humility as is seen in the following quotation: " Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus: who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God: but made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men: and being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross."— Phil. 2: 5- 8. " Jesus came not into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through him might be saved." In the critical hour, with courage and strength from his Father, he bore the cross and died that we might live. Thus, true humility in Christ en-abled him to practically carry out these wonderful words. It was true, practical humility in Christ brought his blessings to you and me. We, too, my brethren, can only bring Christ's blessings to the world by true humility. " When thou grayest, enter into thy closet; and when thou hast shut thy door, pray to thy Father which is in secret; and thy Father, which seeth in secret shall reward thee openly." Matt. 6: 6. This is true humility. The spirit of the hurnole is always revived by the Lord leading them to keep his precepts diligently. See lsa. 57: 15. But feigned humility will sometimes lead one to go oft in secret and pray so loudly that those in reach of his voice can hear all that is said. Praying, preaching, testifying, singing, or acting in any way to draw. the attention of others to yourself, your good qualities on any line, is not humil-ity. Humility is much like love, she does not seek her own; she is not puffed up. And while humility has the heart, " puffed up" feelings, actions, looks, ex-pressions, and all that is opposite to hu.,--; i4 mility are out of it. Humility - will shine in those who have it as naturally as the sun shines. You can not make it shine. 1579 VOLUME XX. MOUNDSVILLE, WEST VIRGINIA, U. S. A., THURSDAY, MARCH 22, 1900. NUMBER 12 To the Gospel Trumpet. BY W. E. GROVER. Go forth, thou messenger of light, Clad in humility, And lift thy voice in trumpet tones, The call to unity. This world is wrecked by Satan's hand, With creed and carnal strife; And now thy mission from the throne Is unity in Christ. although discord be very great, And love be underpriced, Yet you your mission must fulfill— Cry unity in Christ Souls are deceived by creed and ism, They're made to look quite right; But in their midst confusion reigns Go show them gospel light. Oh, lift thy voice in mightier tones, Unheeding Satan's power Go show the world the bride of Christ Dressed in her robes so pure. And may thy voice be heard above The din of Babel strife, And may their convicts hear thy cry And come as one to Christ. And now God speed thee on thy way With grace and strength forever; And may thy pages ever glow With truths from heaven's Giver. " The Baptism of Fire." BY THOS. J. CARTER. 4iT INDEED baptize you with water, ± unto repentance: but he that cometh after me is mightier than I, whose shoes I am not worthy to bear: he shall baptize you with the Holy Ghost, and with fire."— Matt. 3: 11. The " fire- baptized" (?) people emphasize the latter part of this text, " and with fire," : and teach that a definite baptism of fire is to be received after receiving the Holy Ghost. o shall now, by the help of the Lord, coinuare their theory by the word of God, and see whether it will harmonize with the Bible. If not, it will be safe to re-ject it, since his word is what will judge us in the last day. Jno. 12: 48. Let us now see what the Bible says about the fire— when we are to receive it, and what it does for us when received at the proper time, etc. " And it shall come to pass [ this is the time] that in all the land [ kingdom of God] saith the Lord, two parts therein shall be cut off [ because they do not bear fruit— Jno. 15: 2] and die [ spiritually]; but the third part shall be left therein. And I will bring the third part through the fire, and will refine - [ purify] them as silver is refined and will try them as gold is tried: they shall call on my name, and I will hear them: I will say, it is my peo-ple: and they shall say the Lord is my God "— Zech. 13: S, 9. " For he [ Christ] is like a refiner's fire, and : like a fuller's soap: and he shall sit as a refiner and purifier of silver: and he shall purify the sons of Levi, [ God's people] and purge them as gold and silver, that they may offer unto the Lord an offering in right-eousness."— Mal. 3: 2, 3. We have clearly set forth in the fore-going scriptures that the fire is to purify, purge, and refine the people of God. As the purifier of gold and silver so com-pletely purges away and consumes all dross, by the fire of the furnace, that he can behold his likeness in the clear, bright, and pure metal; so also the Lord, when he comes to his temple ( which temple ye are- 1 Cor. 3: 17) so perfectly cleanses with blood, and con-sumes with fire, every vestige of carnal-ity, and selfishness, that he can behold his own image in our hearts; and the life also of Jesus is made manifest in our mortal flesh. 2 Cor. 4: 11. Now let us see what this fire is. " Is not my word like as fire?"— Ter. 23: 29. " But his [ God's] word was in mine heart as a burning fire, shut up in my bones."— Jer. 20: 9. " The fire [ word— Jno. 12: 48] shall try every man's work of what sort° it is."- 1 Cor. 3: 13. " His eyes were as a flame of fire, . . . and he was clothed with a vesture dipped in blood; and his name is called The Word of God."— Rev. 19: 11- 13. " He [ Christ] is like a refiner's fire."— Mal. 3: 2. " Our God is a consuming fire."— Heb. 12: 29. " The Lord Jesus shall be re-vealed from heaven . . . in flaming fire." — 2 Thess. 1: 7, 8. " His eyes were as a flame of fire, . . . and his countenance was as the sun shineth in his strength." — Rev. 1: 13- 16. " Jesus saith unto him, I am the . . . truth."— Jno. 14: 6. " The Word was with God, and the Word was God. . . And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us [ and this was Christ]." — 1: 1, 14. " There are three that bear record in heaven, the Father, the N ord, and the Holy Ghost, and these three are one."- 1 Jno. 5: 7. By preach-ing Christ the word is preached; and vice versa. Acts 8: 5, 35- 4u. " The words that I speak unto you, they are spirit, and they are life [ living words]." --- Jno. 6: 63. From the scriptures given above we understand that Christ and the living Word are the same; and this is the fire which is to purify or refine the people of God. Hence, to receive the truth ( gospel) is to accept Christ, and to reject the gospel is to reject him: and since he ( the truth) is the only way to the Father, it follows that whosoever will not obey the whole gospel and thereby accept a whole Christ, will be eternally lost. Therefore, as the fire ( word) is to refine, purify, purge, and cleanse ( Mal. 3: 3; Jno. 15: 3; 17: 17; Eph. 5: 25- 27), it certainly must be received at the same time the work of cleansing takes place, which is sanctification ( Eph. 5: 25- 27); and since the so- called " fire- baptized" people claim ( 1) Regeneration, ( 2) Sanctification or entire cleansing, ( 3) The baptism of the Holy Ghost and then fire, it is very well for them to call it " white fire," as it is entirely out of date; and must, therefore, be something like " foxfire." It is no marvel that they will not come to the truth ( light), which is the real fire indeed; because foxfire will shine only after night, in the dark, and when those people come out into the presence of the blazing truth of God, their " white fire" disappears, like foxfire, when brought to the light. This is the whole secret of their trying to shout down and out those who come to them with the truth. They say, " You are fighting our experience." When the fact is the light of God's eternal truth is shining on their " white ( fox) fire," and it soon vanishes away. May the Lord pity them, and deliver every honest soul, is my earnest prayer. The two olive- trees spoken of in Zech, 4: 11- 14, which emptied the golden oil through the golden pipes into the can-dlesticks, in the tabernacle of Moses, which supported the light, are the two anointed ones, which stand by the Lord of the whole earth, and these are the only types of the two witnesses — the word and the Spirit of Godl- mentioned in Rev. 11: 3, which produce the glorious light of the candlesticks ( Rev. 1: 2u) in the true tabernacle ( church), which the Lord pitched and not man. Heb. 8: 2. And since it takes both oil ( the Holy Ghost) and fire ( the word— Jer. 23: 29) to produce light, it is therefore these two by which we are baptized. The baptism is spiritual; hence, it is the spiritual, or inner man that is baptized; and this comes into the temple of the Holy Ghost, which is the body. 1 Cor. 6: 19; Acts 2; 1- 4. When the baptism of the Holy Ghost and fire is received, is the time when the purging, purifying, and refining is done, which is called sanctification. When a person is crucified with Christ ( Gal. 2: 20) and filled with all the fullness of God, he has both the Father and the Son ( 2 Jno. 9); also the Holy Ghost ( Acts 15: 8, 9), and these three are one. 1 Jno. 5: 7. It is then that he is a flame of fire ( Heb. 1: 7), by eating the little book ( the living Word). Rev. 10: 9. It is considered eating the flesh and blood of Christ ( for he is the truth); and this is where the spiritual life is obtained. Jno. 6: 53, 54. " This is the bread which cometh down from heaven, that a man may eat there-of and not die."— Jno. 6: 50. " If ye continue in my word, then are ye my disciples indeed; and ye shall know the truth, and the truth [ Son] shall make you free. . . . If the Sor, [ truth] therefore shall make you free, ye shall be free indeed. "— Jno. 8: 32- 36. This wonderful experience of purging, re fining, and cleansing, and consuming all dross, and then being filled with God himself, which is love ( for God is love- 1 Jno. 4: 12), and Christ ( the truth) in us, the hope of glory ( Col. 1: 27); and the Holy Ghost ( 1 Cor. 6: 19); Christ is all, and in all ( Col. 3: 11); " One God and Fa-ther of all, who is above all, and through all, and in you all" ( Eph. 4: 6), and around us a wall of fire ( Zech. 2: 5); we are knit and bound together with an endless chain of God's eternal truth and love. Col. 2: 2, 19. This is a real puzzle to the devil himself; and no marvel that Paul said, " I am persuaded, that neither [ physical] death, nor life, nor angels, nor princi-palities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature [ devil in-cluded] shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord."— Rom. 8: 38, 39. Summing up the entire lesson, we have Christ, the living Word, and fire; these three are one, and are all instrumental in the purging and refining, which takes place in sanctification. We have then in the work of entire sanctification: first, God the Father ( Jude 1; 1 Thess. 5: 23); second, Christ the Son, or word ( Mal. 3: 3; Jno. 17: 17; Heb. 13: 12); third, the Holy Ghost ( Rom. 16: 16; 2 Thess, 2: 13; 1 Pet. 1: 2); also the blood of Christ. 1 Pet. 1: 2; Heb. 13: 12. All these combined do a complete work of cleansing, which is the perfecting of grace, or perfect holiness ( 2 Cor. 7: 1; Heb. 10: 14; 13: 20); and this experience re-sults in ( 1) perfect purity ( 1 Jno. 3: 3), ( 2) perfect love ( 1 Jno. 4: 12, 17), ( 3) perfect unity, or oneness, in Christ. Eph. 4: 11- 13; Jno. 17: 17- 23. Therefore all that obtain Bible sanctification, will have this experience. DYNAMITE. I am sorry that we can not investigate the " dynamite" experience with the word of God, only to say, that the word " dynamite" can not be found in the Bible; therefore, it is not included in the plan of salvation, as the whole plan of redemption is thoroughly explained in the gospel. Hence, we shall do well to obey, and get what the Bible teaches, without adding anything to it. W e will also keep ourselves from under the curse, by not adding to the word of truth. Rev. 22: 18. Paul served the Lord with humility of mind, and with many tears, and temp-tations. Acts 20: 19. When we consider the many wholesome truths given to us in the Word by Matthew, Mark, Luke, John, The Acts, Romans, and all of the apostles, we are impressed with the fact that they were humble. They must have learned humility of Jesus. Peter says that we should follow his steps. See 1 Pet. 2: 21. Since humility is a divesting of one's self, and being assimilated into the very moral likeness of Christ, it is• evident that the onward march of this reformation is impeded for the want of more of it. A mere profession of humil-ity will not give you its rich fruitions in actual experience. When that woman, though a sinner, came to Jesus with an alabaster box of ointment and anointed him standing at his feet, washing them with her tears, wiping them with the hairs of her head, she • manifested true humility. Two things are especially seen in this act of humbleness: a sacrifice of the costly oint-ment with which- she anointed him, and a denial of herself, not caring what people would say about her, washing Jesus' feet with her tears and wiping them with her hair. Note how Christ approved her in these things. Luke 7: 37, 38. May we not be blessed too, in self- denial and sac-rificing for Christ and the good of souls? When - that poor Gentile woman of Canaan came to Jesus asking him to heal her daughter of evil spirits, notwith-standing the babble of the Pharisees and disciples against her, and Christ's appa-rent neglect of her and his reluctance in granting mercy, she held to him with importunity until her humble heart's petition was granted. As it was then not time for Gentiles to receive heaven's blessings through him, he virtually called her a dog, saying, " It is not meet to take the children's [ Jew's] bread and give it to dogs [ Gentiles]," etc. Then she said, " Truth, Lord, but the dog's eat of the crumbs which fall from the mas-ter's table." She humbled herself and received the desire of her heart, if it was not her time to be blessed. Read the whole narrative. Matt. 15: 21- 28. What a lesson! May the Lord teach us to humble our hearts and receive blessings too. But some may get insulted and have their feelings hurt at merely nothing. Think how humble you should be. Noth-ing can turn you from Christ or offend you, if you are as humble as he wants you. Reader, are you humble? Hum-ble as you know you ought to be? Mark the caution against the voluntary humility found in Col. 2: 18, 19. We have undoubtedly seen a great deal of voluntary humility manifested among people in this reformation, but this should not hinder us : from seeing this true grace of God. I do not speak of this for any one's condemnation, or to discourage you from " taking root down-ward and bearing fruit upward" on this line. We are truly commanded, many times in the Bible, to be humble, humble ourselves, etc. True humility will cause us to be non- assuming, as well as self-denying. We will do everything to have Christ prominent and ourselves in the back ground, lest through ignorance we might fail in some way. HUMBLED BY GOD. See what was done to King Nebuchad-nezzar because he was proud at heart, lift-ing himself up above the God of heaven. Mark how he talked before God, abased him, and how he talked after he was bumbled. See Dan. 4: 8- 37. Read it all. Notice, also, how the Lord brought King Herod down even to a horrible death because he became puffed up and did not give God the glory, but took it to himself. See Acts 12: 20- 23. May the Lord burn these things deep into all our hearts; and burn out such expres-sions as this: " Isn't he a wonderful preacher;" " Wasn't that a grand ser-mon?" " What a wonderful prayer that was," and all such expressions as will tend to puff one up. Let them never be spoken. Do not open the way for the devil to tempt your brother or sister. Do not put Satan's' bait out for any innocent soul to bite, and be caught in the evil snare. How quickly the Lord tore the king-dom of Israel from old King Saul be-cause his heart was lifted up with pride. Even after he was compelled to acknowl-edge his sins he was rejected of the Lord, because he tried to excuse himself and fault others for his disobedience. God is just, and he will maintain his own cause of right if he is thereby compelled to sacrifice you and me. If we are not humble like our Master we are not his true representatives. Grace and peace be multiplied unto all in Jesus' name. Privileges of the Children of God. BY WALLAOE M. POTTER. 4 4p EHOLD, what manner of love the 1-' 1 Father hath bestowed upon us, that we should be called the sons of God: therefore the world knoweth us not, because it knew him not. Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it cloth not yet appear what we shall be: but we know that, when he shall appear, we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is. And every man that hath this hope in him purifieth himself, even as he is pure."- 1 Jno. 3: 1- 3. What condescension! What singular love! How strange sometimes it seems that God through our Lord Jesus Christ would exalt us to be sons; would make us and doth make us " partaken of the divine nature." We who were dead in trespasses and in sins, while enemies of God and his righteousness, he sent forth his Son, that we might have life through him, even life eternal. Jesus saith unto his immediate disciples, " Henceforth I call you not servants, for the servant knoweth not what his Lord doeth: but I have called you friends; for all things that I have heard. of my Father I have made known unto you." How gracious are the words, " Behold, what manner of love the Father hath be-stowed upon us that we should be called the sons of God." His ways are unfath-omable, and unsearchable. Can we com-prehend the heights and depths of his love toward us, and the pains he has taken to bring " many sons unto glory"? He graciously receives back bis erring sons and daughters, and remembers no more their sins for Jesus' sake. Oh, the wonderful love of God! " Beloved, now are we the sons of God." There is no condemnation to us now. We have passed from death unto life. We shall not come into condemna-tion; for we believe that God will keep us unto his heavenly kingdom, and cloth and will preserve us from every evil work. " Love is the fu) ailing of the law"; therefore we fulfill every obligation that may rest upon us. As a dutiful son obeys all things that a loving parent may direct, so we as obedient children may render prompt obedience to our Lord and Master. We have no desire to grieve him by neglect of duty. W e keep his sayings because we love him. We desire the salvation of souls because he desires it. We desire edification of believers for , the reason our Lord would have them go on to perfection and holiness. We de-sire the perfection of the church because Jesus, the glorious bridegroom, earnestly desires it. " Christ also loved the church, and gave himself for it; that he might sanc-tify and cleanse it with the washing of water by the word, that he might pre-sent it to himself a glorious church, not having spot, or wrinkle, or any such thing; but that it should be holy and without blemish."— Eph. 5: 25- 27. " Be-loved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be: but we know that, when he shall appear we shall be like him; for we shall see him as he is." " We have this treasure [ that is, the joys of salvation] in earthen vessels, that the excellency of the power may be of God, and not of us."- 2 Cor. 4: 7. The power and the glory of Godis manifested throughout all the universe. Moreover; " when Christ, who is our life, shall appear, then shall ye also appear with him in glory." No more shall the eye be holden; for our mortality shall be changed into immortality. " We shall be like him." Can we comprehend his glo-rious majesty as he ascended from mount Olivet-- his power, his love, his faithful-ness, his pleading for sinners, his plead-ing for the salvation of the world, his ability to keep believers "' from falling and to present" them " faultless before the presence of his glory with exceeding joy"? 0 brethren, you who have tasted of the joys of salvation, the glorious Christ will come again. Ares you ready? Are your lamps trimmed and burning? Hast thou on the wedding garment? Art thou living without reproach? " And every man that bath this hope in him purifieth himself, even as he is pure." Are you doing this brother? Those habits and lusts which had you enslaved before conversion, do you let them again assert themselves in your soul and body? Or, have you through the Spirit mortified those members, which caused you so much sin? Your body, the home of the soul, are you lending to the devices of Satan; or have you kept it holy as unto the Lord? May the temple of God be kept holy, may your body, brother and sister in the Lord, truly be presented as a living sacrifice. Then may we exclaim, " But we all, with open face beholding as in a glass, the glory of the Lord, are changed into the same image from. glory o glory, even as by the Spirit of the Lord."- 2 Cor. 3: 1g. We are pilgrims and strangers in this world of sin. " Here we have no continuing city, but we seek one to come."— Heb. 13: 14. Let us lay fast hold of eternal life, " that when he shall appear, we shall be like him." 77, Faith and Trust. BY MARTHA LOVE. 64 HEN said Daniel unto the king, 0 king, live forever. My God bath sent his angel, and bath shut , the lions mouths, that they have not hurt me: forasmuch as before him innocency was found in me; and also before thee, 0 king, have I done no hurt."— Dan. 6: 21, 22. Oh, how beautifully this scripture shows forth the faith and trust Daniel had in the God of heaven! He knew very well the decree that the king had established, and that if he disobeyed, he should be cast into a den of lions. But with perfect faith and trust in God and innocence before God and man, he feared not what man could do unto him. God himself sent his angel and stayed the lions mouth, and he received no harm. Dear ones in Christ, the devil is going up and down the earth to- day as a roaring lion, '„ seeking whom he : may devour ( 1 Pet. 5: 8), teaching for doctrine the com-mandments of men. I pray that God will wake us up to a deeper faith and trust in him and his W ord. Like: faithful Daniel, may we have our windows open toward Jerusalem, and examine our hearts before him, that through perfect submission to his word and will we may be found innocent before God and man of having accepted any doctrine contrary to that we have received and wherein we stand; namely, the doctrine of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. We may have sweeping victory over the enemy and his ministers. Paul says, " Such are false apostles [ or teachers], deceitful workers, transforming them-selves into the apostles of Christ. And no marvel; for Satan himself is trans-formed into an ;: angel of light. There-fore it is ao great thing if his ministers 1580 2 THE GOSPEL TRUMPET also be transformed as the ministers of righteousness; whose end shall be accord_ incr to their work."— 2 Cor. 11: 13- 15. Although the precious word of God is being twisted in many ways, praise be to him who has brought us out of darkness into his- marvelous light, he has warned us of this; for in his Word he tells us that in the last days perilous times shall come. Surely, as we look around us and meditate upon these things, we can see of a truth these are perilous times. But what a blessing and comfort to know that faith and trust in : God, with decision, will carry us safely through; and we can say with Paul, " For I am now ready to be offered, and the time of my : departure is at hand. I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the faith."- 2 Tim. 4: 6, 7. 0 dear ones, it pays to watch and be very careful that we give no place to the devil. If we have our faith and trust. in God, he says, " The angel of the Lord encampeth round about them that fear him, and delivereth them. "-- Ps. 34: 7. How true it is that we find many who were once very useful in the Lord, opposing his truth with all the energy they can summon from the pit. How sad to see those who once rejoiced in the things of God, now set in violent opposition against him! We should 1: e thankful that we have God's word to follow; and if we obey it, we shall never be led astray, : but will be bright and shining lights in the world; and as the guide- board by the wayside directs the traveler on the right road, so we may be a guide to those who are in darkness. Sinners scarcely ever read the Bible, but are very careful to read our lives, especially when they: know we claim to be living without committing sin. If our lives do not harmonize with our pro-fession, our talking to them about getting saved, or our testifying in their presence, will have no effect upon them at all; the husbandman that laboreth must first be a partaker of the fruit. Jesus tells us to let our light shine before men that God may be glorified. Matt. 5: 16. " The trial of your faith, being much more precious than gold that perish eth, though it ne tried with fire, might be found unto praise and honor and glory at the appearing : of Jesus , Christ: whom having not seen, ye love; in whom, though now ye see him not yet believing, ye rejoice with joy unspeakable and full of glory."- 1 Pet. 1: 7, S. ' T.- Jet us ex-amine ourselves in the light of this scrip-ture; and see if we fully measure to its standard. Do we in time of trials and afflictions lovingly and confidingly trust all in his hands, and rejoice that he counts us worthy to pass through the fire for his sake, or do we murmur as did the chil-dren of Israel? When adversity or diffi-culty stares us in the face, do we rejoice with joy unspeakable, or do we sit down and brood over our miseries and let the devil make us feel that none of God's children are tried as we are? Paul says in 2 Cor. 4-: 17, 18, " For our light afflic-tion, which is but for a moment, work-eth for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory while we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen: for the things which are seen are temporal; but the things which are not seen are eter-nal." When afflictions and trials come we are too apt, like Peter, to look at the troubled waves instead of keeping our eyes steadfastly fixed upon Jesus. It may be, like your humble sister, that you are isolated from the rest of God's saints, and have not the privilege even of assembling in a weekly prayer-meeting, and seldom hear the gospel preached; but even if your r' surroundinus are such that the influence is of an oppos-ing nature, God loves and cares for you, and designs that you get good even andd iff your surround ing circumstances; you will seek a life of deeper spirit-uality, it will prove a benefit to you in meat with gladness and singleness of heart, praising God, and having favor with all the people." thus fulfilling what the prophet had said would take place ( Isa. 12: 1- 6); and from them or their life flowed rivers of living water to the peo-ple, giving them salvation and healing as the Lord had said. But sad to say, this did not always continue. The prophet said the people had committed two evils. " They have forsaken me the fountain of living Waters, and hewed them out cis-terns, broken cisterns, that can hold no water." " Hear, 0 heavens, and give ' ear, 0 earth: for the Lord hath spoken, I have nourished and brought up children, and they have rebelled against me. The ox knoweth his owner, and the ass his mas-ter's crib: but Israel doth not know. . . . And the daughter of Zion is left as a cottage in a vineyard, and as a lodge in a garden of cucumbers, as a besieged city. Except the Lord of hosts had left unto us a very small remnant we should have been as Sodom and we should have been like unto Gomorrah." Thank God for the seed, or the remnant, which God has preserved all through the apostasy, and that he is now visiting them. Praise the good Lord! " How is the faithful city [ lion, the church] become an har-lot: it was full of judgment; righteous-ness lodged in it; but now murderers." " Hear all ye people; harken, 0 earth, and all that therein is [ this truth shall go into all the earth and that speedily]: and. let the Lord God be witness against you, the Lord from. his holy temple." " The mighty God, even the Lord, hath spoken, and called the earth from the rising of the sun unto the going down thereof. Out of Zion [ not Babylon], the perfection of beauty, God hath shined. [ And will do so again in this evening time. Praise his name!] Our God shall come, and shall not keep silence: a fire shall devour before him, and it shall be very tempestuous round about him. He shall call to the heavens from above, and to the earth, that he may judge his peo-ple [ for their two transgressions]." And the time is here that God says: " Gather my saints together unto me; those that have made a covenant with me by sacri-fice. And the heavens shall declare his righteousness: for God is judge himself." " From the time the hills existed Israel has sinned." Building sects, or hills, is a sin itself. These are the broken cis-terns, that can hold no water living water. The building of them as an im-itation ( or image) of .1he church which Jesus built, is counted a grievous sin. The first evil is that of forsaking God the fountain of living water; the second is that of building images to the church of Jesus Christ. The Lord says they set their " threshold by my threshold, and their posts by my posts, and the wall between me and them." " When they set my doorway by their doorway, and my threshold near to their threshold." They make them just as near like the house of God as they can in imitation; or, as the Word says, in making images to the church of the living God, but what is a picture to the real? " A glorious high throne from the be-ginning is the place of our sanctuary. 0 Lord, the hope of Israel, all that for-sake thee shall be ashamed [ I pray that - they will, and that they will come back], and they that depart from me [ the church of the living God] shall be written in the earth, because they have forsaken the Lord, the fountain of living waters." Thus saith the Lord, " Return, ye back-sliding children, and I will heal your backslidings." Let us hear you say, " Behold, we come unto thee; for thou art the Lord our God. Truly in vain is salvation hoped for from the hills [ little sects], and from the multitude of moun-tains [ larger ones]: truly M the Lord our God is the salvation of Israel." " For in mount Zion and in Jerusalem shall be deliverance, as the Lord hath said, and in the remnant whom the Lord shall some way, until God in his wisdom sees fit to make the situation different. Man may not see how the present diffi-culties and_ seeming disadvantages could be for your good; but the promise of Rom. 8: 28 is sure. Praise our God! Two Great Evils. BY EMIL KREUTZ. t4rOR my people have committed two I evils; they have forsaken me the fountain of living waters and hewed them out cisterns, broken cisterns, that can hold no water. "— Jer. 2: 13. The heaven is amazed at this, and is very ex-ceedingly horror- struck, saith the Lord. " In the last day, that great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried, saying, If any man thirst, let him come unto me, and drink. He that believeth on me, as the scriptures hath said, out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water [ The Swedish says: out of his life, or from his life. This I think more correct.]. ( But this spake he of the Spirit, which they that believe on him should receive: for the Holy Ghost was not yet given; because Jesus was not yet glorified.) Again. Jesus says: " Whosoever drinketh of the water that I shall give him shall never thirst; but the water that I shall give him shall be in him a well of water springing up into everlasting life." In prophecy we have this day foretold " And in that day thou shalt say, 0 Lord, I will : praise _ thee: . . . Behold, God is my salvation; I will trust, and not be afraid: for the Lord Jehovah is my strength and my song; he also is be-come my salvation, therefore with joy shall ye draw water out of the wells of salvation. And in that day shall ye say, Praise the Lord, call upon his name, declare his doings among the people, make mention that his name is exalted." This was fulfilled in the apostolic church, " And the disciples were filled with joy and with the Holy Ghost." Peter says, " W home [ Jesus] having not seen, ye love; in whom, though now ye see him not, yet believing ye rejoice with joy unspeakable and full of glory: re-ceiving the end of your faith, even the salvation of your souls. Of which sal-vation the prophets have enquired and searched diligently who prophesied of the grace that should come unto you: search-ing what, or what manner of time the Spirit of Christ which was in them did signify, when it testified beforehand the sufferings of Christ, and the glory that should follow. Unto whom it was re-vealed, that not unto themselves, but unto us they did minister the things which are now reported unto you by them that have preached the gospel unto you with the Holy Ghost sent down from heaven; which things the angels desire to look into." " There is a river, the streams whereof shall make glad the city of God, the holy place of the tabernacles of the Most High." This river is the fountain of living water which " proceedeth out of the throne of God and of the Lamb." This was given to the church when the Lord first established his congregation. This river is the stream of love and sal-vation that was given to the saints through the gospel of Christ to the church which Jesus " purchased with his own blood." God sent " times of re-frc_ shings" to his people, who had re-ceiied and obeyed the gospel; and as he sent this river of love and joy and peace to his people, giving life and healing to both soul and body, this same life- giving stream would flow out from them to the people. This is why Peter tells them that they should repent and be in readi-ness, or be converted when these times of refreshing should come from the pres ewe of the Lord. Multitudes obeyed the preaching of the gospel, repented of their sins and re-ceived salvation, the Lord enlarging the congregations daily with those that were being saved; " and they . . . did eat their call." Yea, " upon mount Zion [ the only true mountain] shall be deliverance, and there shall be holiness." " The Lord bless thee, 0 habitation of justice, and mountain of holiness." " This is the law of the house: Upon the top of the mountain, the whole limit thereof round about, shall be most holy. Behold, this is the law of the house [ God's house the church]." " Therefore thus saith the Lord ask ye now among the heathen, who hath heard such things? the virgin of Israel hath done a very horrible thing." Will fertilizing streams fail to flow from a rock . . . will water violently impelled by the wind turn aside? for my people hath for-getten me, they have offered incense in vain, and they fail in their ways, " and they have caused them to stumble in their ways , from the ancient paths, to walk in paths, in a way not cast up." " Were they not ashamed when they had com-mitted abomination? nay, they were not at all ashamed, neither could they blush." " They have : transgressed the rule of judgment." " Shall I not visit for these things? saith the Lord: . . . A wonderful and horrible thing is com-mitted in the land: the prophets prophesy falsely, and the priests bear rule by their means; and my people love to have it so: and what will ye do in the end thereof?" " For from the least of them even unto the greatest of them they have all com-mitted iniquity, from the priest even to the false prophet, they have all wrought falsely, and they healed the breach of my people imperfectly making light of it, and saying, Peace, peace, and there was no peace. [ This surely has been done during the Protestant reformation.] They were ashamed because they failed: yet they were not ashamed as those who are truly ashamed, and they knew not their own disgrace. . . In the time of visitation shall they perish saith the Lord:" Now then " thus saith the Lord, Stand ye in the ways, and see, and ask for the old paths of the Lord, and see what is the good way, and walk in it, and ye shall find purification for your souls. But they said, We will not walk in them." Therefore " it is in. my desire that I should chastise them; and the people shall be gathered against them, when they shall bind themselves in. their two furrows." " Now also many nations are gathered against thee, that say, Let her be de-filed, and let our eye look upon Zion. But they know not the thoughts of the Lord, neither understand they his coun-sel; for he shall gather them as the sheaves into the floor." Praise God, this he is doing! Mary's Good Choice. BY WALLACE M. POTTER. 44n- r- T one thing is needful: and Mary hath chosen that good part, which shall not be taken away from her."— Luke 10: 42. Let us consider the circum-stances that led Mary to this choice, and of the utterance of these profound words of consolation to Mary and of the sharp rebuke of Martha. As Jesus went into the village and en-tered the house of Martha, no doubt he was weary and hungry, and needed rest and a meal to satisfy his hunger. It seemed that Martha was worried, prob-ably fretting over the small things with. which every housewife has to contend. Doubtless she loved the Lord, and was bent upon entertaining him the best she could. She probably thought this was the best way of doing him kindness and showing appreciation of his company. She had a sister who seemed to neglect help-ing her at this particular time. Martha was grieved at this neglect, and asked the Lord to request Mary to help her. Let us hear the words of Jesus: " Mar-tha, Martha, thou art careful and troubled about many things: but one thing is needful: and Mary hath chosen that good part, which shall not be taken away." It was a good thing to get ready the dinner for the Master; it was better to sit- at his feet and hear the word of life eternal. It is a good thing, brother,- for you to care for the preacher; it is far better for his word to sink deep into your heart. It is a noble thing for one by honest means to make a livelihood for himself and loved ones; but it is far more important that while making- this living you do not permit the cares and anxieties to weigh down upon your spirit-ual natures, closing up the avenues of the soul, causing you to neglect praising God and attending to the duties of the sanctuary. Do not- receive " the grace of God in vain"; do not, for thy soul's sake, permit the things of this life to prevent you from attending on the Lord's work without distraction. - W is there so much spiritual pov-erty in many Christians' hearts? Is it not chiefly the distraction caused by the frivolous things of time and sense? There are few sitting at the Master's feet to hear his word, to learn his will, to partake of his zeal, to be made par-takers of the divine nature, and to gather with him in winning souls. • It is the high-est privilege we have this side of heaven to sit at Jesus' feet and learn of his will, and receive the forgiveness of sins, and be made partakers of the Holy Ghost. Take Warning. BY SARAH A. FERRIS. I have just been reading a history of the Johnstown flood. That literal disaster impresses me very forcibly with the spiritual disaster that is so soon to take place. There Johnstown stood in all her magnificence on the morning of that fatal day, May 31,* 1889, not fearing the great calamity that was staring her in the face, and threatening every moment to over-whelm her. Warning after warning was sounded: " Flee to the hills for your lives!" As that warning had been given before and no great harm had come to the people, they became hardened, and paid but little or no attention to it; some even mocked and said, " We have heard such things before." Three hours before the disaster : the warning was given: " Flee for your lives; the dam will break!" A few obeyed the warning, and fled to the hills, and were safe. The hills were so near that those who took refuge on them could look down on the fated city and behold her disaster. Ample time had been given; if all had taken warning they could have made their escape and been saved. But they stood by their possess-ions, and perished with them. The spiritual warning is being sounded to- day over land and sea. " Babylon is fallen, is fallen to rise no more; flee out of her and deliver every man his soul." How few there are that heed the warn.: ing! The multitudes stand by their creeds to perish with them. The few who have fled to mount Zion and are safe, are look-ing down upon spiritual Babylon bemoan-ing the awful calamity that is so soon to come upon her. Many reformations have taken place in this world; many warnings have been given, but now near the end of time the last reformation that will ever take place is at hand. Oh, who will take warning and flee to mount Zion, the rock of safty? Beware, it is the final warning. Christ is coming to claim his bride; she must be holy; she must be spotless, pure and white; she must be one. Dear ones, hasten, there is barely time to put on the wedding garment, for the bridegroom is coming, and will not tarry. How sad the sentence, " Depart from me ye workers of iniquity into everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his angels." There shall be weeping and. gnashing of teeth. But this will differ from Johnstown, in that it will last through all eternity. Take warning before it is too late. 1582 4 TILE GOSPEL TRUMPET. THE GOSPEL TRUMPET Moundsville, W. Va., Mar. 22, 1900. A WEEKLY HOLINESS JOURNAL. Entered at the Post- dace at Moundsville, W. Va., as S“ ond- class Matter. E. E. BYRUM, Editor- in- Chief. Publisfied by GOSPEL TRUMPET PUB. CO. DEFINITE, RADICAL, and ANTI- SECTARIAN, sent forth in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, for the publication of full Salvation, Divine Healing of the body, and the 1.1iiity of all true Christians in " the faith once delivered to the saints." Subscription price, postage paid, United States, Canada, and Mexico, - - $ 1.00. England, - 6s. 2d. Germany, 6 marks 18 pf. All Subscriptions must be paid in Advance. Business Communications, moneys, etc., must to addressed to GOSPEL TRUMPET PUB. CO., MOUNDSVILLE, W. VA. to insure credit: otherwise we will not be responsible. Editorial. Do not forget the clay of fasting and prayer, Sunday, March 25. We are just in receipt of A letter from Bro. Tufts dated Feb. 23, mailed at Port Said, Egypt. He was at the time of writing on board the steamer, and expected to arrive at Calcutta, India, about March 15. A letter from Bro. Emil Kreuta, Neo-sho Falls, Hans., states that they have decided to have the general western camp- meeting at that place Aug. 2- 12. The general camp- meeting in June will be held at Moundsville, W. Va., June 7- 17. A short time ago we announced our desire to send one thousand dollars' worth of Bibles, Testaments, and books to India by April 15. This week we ship over $ 350.00 worth of Bibles and Testaments in one order to India, and hope to be able to ship the full amount by the appointed time. Brethren in every direction are becoming interested in sending Bibles and holy literature to heathen lands. We are also receiving many letters from children who are send-ing in their pennies and mites for that purpose. God bless them all. May the good work go on. A brother in. Champanagar, Bhagal-pur, India, writes as follows: " The books which you distributed in Calcutta have proved a blessing to many of our young men. You will be glad to learn that I have given up my appointment as a professor of English and Philosophy to devote my life and time to work in the vineyard of the Lord. I have been working in this place among the edu-cated Indians, and God is blessing my work. I have opened a preaching- hall, and reading- room for the students and English- speaking gentlemen, which is very eagerly and regularly attended by the people, who appreciate much the preaching and Christian literature." BOOKS OUT OF PRINT. Since issuing our' catalogue just before holidays a number of books which we had to purchase from other firms are now out of print and can not be ob-tained. Amony the number are " The Sweet Story of Old," " The Child's His-tory of the Apostle Paul," " The Fall of Jerusalem," " The Story of Mary Jones and her Bible," " Christian Heroes and Martyrs of the World, " A Dictionary of the Bible." We have just issued another catalogue which will be sent free upon application. A DAY OF FASTING AND PRAER. Last week Bro. Speck suggested that on Sunday, March 25, we have a day of fasting and prayer in behalf of the publish-ing work and the spread of the gospel in general throughout the entire world. One of the special features of this day of prayer was to call upon God for special _ . help to send forth gospel literature. It was suggested that every one on that day lay by something according as the Lord prospered, to be sent to the Gospel Trumpet Publishing Company as a dona-tion for that purpose, and to be continued from week to week. Let there be ear-nest prayers going up on that day and constantly that the gospel may speedily be spread in all its purity to all parts of the world and special prayers be offered in behalf of the publishing work. THE FREE- LITERATURE WORK. We are glad to know of the great in-terest the readers of The Gospel Trumpet are taking in the free distribution of holy literature, and'through your earnest prayers and free- will offerings on. these lines the Lord has enabled us to send out several thousand dollars' worth of Bibles, Testaments, and gospel litera-ture to different parts of the world. Money sent in for that purpose is imme-diately put to work preaching the gospel by way of scattering tracts, books, Bibles, etc. wherever most needed. It is our desire to be able through this free-literature fund to supply the preachers with an abundant supply of literature for their meetings, and especially the grove and camp- meetings. This can be done by each one of our readers making a spe-cial effort on this line, and also by the ministers stirring up the brethren to aid in this way. If money is sent in for that purpose the literature will be sent wherever directed, or if you do not know just where it is best to be sent, we will send it where we see it is most needed. Aside from this free- literature fund, if each one of our readers would see to it that a supply of books is purchased and placed in the reading- room or library of your town or community, the truth would speedily reach multitudes of peo-ple who have as yet known but little about the doctrine of holiness and full salvation. HOLY CONVERSATION. The Lord has instructed us in his Word not only to be holy in action, but to be holy in our conversation, holy in our thoughts, in fact our whole life has to be a life of holiness. The time for this to begin is not when death overtakes us and live holy beyond the shores- of time, but we are to be holy now even in this life, as he has said, " Be ye holy; for I am holy" ( 1 Pet. 1: 16), and again, " Be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect."— Matt. 5: 48. But some may really wonder when this life of holiness begins, or whether or not it can be in this life. We read in Luke 1: 74, 75, " That we being delivered out of the hand of our enemies might serve him without fear, in holi-ness and righteousness before him, all the days of our life." It does not say in the hereafter, but all the days of our life here upon earth. " God is love; and he that dwelleth in love dwelleth in God, and God in him. Herein is our love made perfect, that we may have boldness in the day of judgment: because as he is, so are we in this world."- 1 Jno. 4: 16, 17. Here it teaches us that we are in this world to be as Jesus was. And the apostle Paul says, " Only let your conversation be as it becometh the gospel of Christ: that whether I come and see you, or else be ' absent, I may hear of your affairs, that ye stand fast in one spirit, with one mind striving to-gether for the faith of the gospel."-- Phil. 1: 27. A holy conversation will not admit of jesting and joking, of evil-speaking, vulgar expressions, telling idle tales, backbiting, etc. It will bring others in communion with the Lord. A holy conversation backed up by a holy life will shed rays of purity and influ-ence of the power and presence of God that will be felt, and those who walk uprightly and follow the directions of the word of God in all things will be living epistles for the gospel of Jesus Christ. TO THE SAINTS IN THE SOUTH, AND ELSE-WHERE. Dear Brethren: I have felt for some time that the Lord would have me call your attention to this point in attending camp and assembly- meetings. Be sure and make provision not only to pay your way to the place of meeting, but also home again. A great many seem to think that all they have to do is to get to the meeting and others will bear all expenses and pay their way home again. Now this is certainly not what the Lord woulct have us do. The saints where the meetings are held are expected to hire a hall or place to hold meetings in, and pay the rent and to provide lights and fuel and feed all who come and then furnish car- fare to many to their homes again. My I rethren, these things ought not so to be. No doubt the clear ones who'd() this have not thought how much they were pressing their brethren. This is not doing as we would wish to be done by. In most places the saints are poor and unable to do much. Besides, in many cases they are one of a family. Either the husband or wife being un-saved. Now the unsaved one can easily see the imposition, and the enemy takes advantage of this and drives them from the truth. We ought not to put unne-cessaryburdens on any one. This course is working an injury to the cause. NOW I would suggest , that all who expect to attend any camp- meeting or assembly make preparations before hand to get to the meeting and also to pay your way home again. Yes, more than this, lay aside something to help support the meeting while there, and thus relieve your brethren from oppression. Do not go there simply to enjoy the meeting, but help those who live there to enjoy it too. Bear ye one another's burdens and so fulfill the law of Christ. Gal. 6: 2. Of course those who give all their time in the work must be supported from con-tributions. But the saints where they are laboring should help them to the camp- meeting or assembly— at least do all they can, and the place where they are expected next help them there. All should feel that they have a part in pro-viding for the spread of the truth— not that they are to be provided for. There are always poor enough, who can not help themselves, and all who can should feel it their privilege and duty to help such on their way. Now I pray God that this admonition may not be forgot-ten. Notice will appear in The Gospel Trumpet of all general meetings in time for all to prepare the : means. I do not mean sit down and do nothing and trust God to give you the means, but do your part to earn the money, and in this way not only help yourself but others who can not help themselves. If necessary, clip this notice and paste it on the fly-leaf of your Bible or some other place, where it will always be handy to remind you of your duty. In much holy love, J. F. Lundy. Columbia, S. C. HOW I BECAME DECEIVED. In a meeting held about thirteen years ago, in our community, the second work of grace was taught. I decided that it was necessary to be sanctified; so I prayed for the Hol y Ghost, but instead of receiving him, my muscles began to act in a spasmodic manner. As I was praying for the Holy Ghost, 1 thought I had received him when my muscles began to jerk, or contract. About two year.; previous to this I claimed to be saved,` and joined the Methodist denomi-nation; but during that time, like most Methodists, I sinned and had those sins against me when I prayed for the Holy Ghost, and that is why I became de-ceived. I should have first repented, and have been pardoned and then could have presented. myself to the Lord to receive the Holy Ghost. But as I had been brought up by sinful parents, and had not been taught much about the plan of salvation, I was very ignorant, and got into a very bad delusion. I think it was about six months after, ina to be held about ten miles southeast th at - , Dat the saints announced a camp- meet of James. Bro. Warner and others from the east came to the meeting. Bro. Warner found us going through with many peculiar performances, such as speaking in a supposed unknown tongue, and interpreting the same, and jerking, going into trances, falling, jumping; and when baptized and coming out of the water we were apparently in. a lifeless condition, being dragged out, etc. In a short time Bro. Warner publicly de-nounced the delusion as being of the devil. It was quite a shock to us, as we thought we were operated by the Spirit of God. But we had confidence in Bro. Warner, and accepted the rebuke, except two or three of the members. I did not see, however, at the time that I was unsaved, neither did I until after I got more instruction on the Word, which was some time after. It was several years after before I got to where I could live free from sin, and established. After I consecrated and received the grace of God, and the bless-ing subsided, the enemy would try to make me believe that I had only the same old delusion. While in this condi tion I learned to cling to the ord and take every step according to its teach-ing. Those that are digging into things too deep for them to understand, would better be careful, and sink into God, and the light will naturally come, not as some seem to think, by arguing or de-bating. Let us have trust enough in God to believe he will give us light enough if we will do our duty. It seems that some young ministers think they must handle Revelation and prophecy almost as soon• as they begin to preach. We think the main thing to teach at this time is the plan of salvation; how to get saved and how to keep saved. If those who have lately gotten into that awful delusion, the anti- cleansing theory, would have clung to the plan of salvation, they might not have become puffed up and might have been right now. After the delusion ' in which we were rebuked, I wondered how" it wa that I had gotten into such a delusion, knowing I was honest and trying to do right. But when I got more light I could see that I was in the devil's king-dom, trying to get something I was not ready for, trying to get sanctified while I had sins against me. The Lord could not honor my prayer, but he could send deliverance, by showing me that I was deceived. It is very hard to get out of a delusion, so we should deal carefully with those that are deceived. I find that our only safety is in being humble, and keeping filled with the Spirit of God. False prophets would deceive the elect, if it were possible, but, thank the Lord, they that will do his will shall know of the doctrine, and we do not need to be confused. I am saved, and sanctified by a second, definite cleansing. T. E. Ellis. LATE EXPERIENCES IN CHICAGO. BY GEO. L. COLE. Once more I greet you in Jesus' name, with sweeping victory in my soul. As the work advances it is our lot to gain some new experiences, which I believe will be edifying to the body, and spe-cially to the ministry. We all assuredly believe that a pure church is the prime wobijlel cht aovfe t hiti se lvaesnt raetf oar gmraetaiot ns, a acnridf iGceod. See Rev. 19. I wWa sh wene lGl oadw caarlele tdh mate ain tdois tpheen smatiinoinst oryf 1583 Gost, FL TRUMMT. little children. Others rebelled andI epso soef having " fun," a so- called " good time." So did this young man of whom I write, but his fun was turned into re-morse; his repentance came too late; for in his own words he was lost, eter-nally lost! Some time ago I was at a camp- meeting and saw young men even sitting among the young ladies, grunt and groan and mimic the preacher while he was delivering his discourse. Oh, how abashed I felt for those young ladies. My heart ached for those young men, whose faces conveyed intelligence enough to have known better, but they wanted to have their fun. Young men, " Be sure your sin will find you out," for " Wherewithal shall a young man cleanse his way! by taking heed thereto accord-ing to thy word." I hope this may be the means of turn-ing many to righteousness before it is too late, as it was in the case of Mr. Chas. B went out from us; and some had to be dealt with privately and publicly. Im-mediately following the execution of God's judgments was grand prosperity in a financial way—$ 25 on back rent, $ 14 to liquidate a debt of that amount snffi-cient to finish paying this present month's rent which is $ 90, and $ 40 to buy needed furnishings for the home, beside current expenses; and best of all, a loosing of hands that were being tied, granting full right to the Holy Spirit. Of course some that were only tainted recovered, while others are still digging. Truly the prospect is glorious. Much good was accomplished in the meeting in South Chicago, and we expect the Open Mission, 314 W. Madison St. to be a real jewel in the Lord's hands, to cap-ture1souls for Christ. I have fearlessly and frankly told- you all for your edify-ing, and trust you will not let Satan turn these experiences and warnings to lower your confidence, and hinder your co- operation in. this glorious work in such a wicked city. HARD TO UNDERSTAND. It is hard for some of our dear breth-ren to understand some of these things, and it may seem as if we were claiming too much discernment. I do not deny some discernment, but I assure you it does not take an overplus of discernment to discern some of these slimy spirits when one comes in contact with them as I have, and God clears them out like smoke before the flame. This is now the third line of difficulties that God has swept into oblivion during the past four months here, which assures our hearts that nothing but eternal victory awaits our onward march in the order of his plan. Hallelujah to our God, who is on the war- path, and fights mightily against sin. Brethren, pray for our increase in these essential qualities mentioned. his Word according to my capacity of understanding and ability, coupled with the power of his grace, was committed to my trust for the salvation of souls and the edifying of the church; but as it was my lot to fall in company with older and more experienced workers who had been used of God in the executive or ruling phase of the ministry, I naturally de-pended more or less on them to discern and dispose of wicked and deceptive spir-its; but after some years, and especially while in California, I felt God's hand on me to be used on such lines, and I yielded to him, and he has always placed his sweet approval on the same. But when I came to Chicago I began as a helper, only assuming the part common to evangelists, granting to those in charge of the work all the ruling power of the ministry, and preferred myself out on that line. When this was done, God let me down not only in that part of authority vested in the New Testament ministry, but in the discernment that necessarily accompanies the same. Then when others in the ministry needed to be dealt with, I was about like Eli Of old, who said, " My sons, why do ye so wrong?" But he restrained them not. Brethren, this is an essential endue-ment enabling the elder to " take care of the church of God." If we are defi-cient on this line, we are crippled, and sooner or later it will show in our labors. A pure and healthy church is not the result of a weak and timid ministry, and I venture to say the real suffering and fear-ful invasions the church has passed through during the year of 1899 can be traced to the same or similar causes. Well in consequence of these things, certain spir-its crept in unawares. Such were under the garb of profession when the work in Chicago fell into the hands of your hum-ble servants now in charge of the same; but they were suffered to continue, and they truly made some advances toward power and authority in the church that God never laid upon them. As these advances were made the work began to take a boom, but it was that kind of a buom that loosed similar spirits and gathered others into a profession in the same condition, and at that rate if unre-strained a few weeks would have brought the work into fellowship with all kinds of picking, croaking, insubordinate, and sectish spirits in the city; and the true saints would have had to take a back seat. About this time God sent : a brother to help us out, but I found my-self in a corner, walled in on three sides. In the first place, wrong spirits were in authority, and I was unable to dispose of them. Second, money almost ceased to flow into the treasury, and we were about sixty- five dollars short on rents for the first of March, and the time was nearly up when they were due ( as rents. are to be paid in. advance here), and it seemed that we could : not get our pray-ers through on this line. Next, when the brother : referred to above ' laid down the Word concerning " suffering certain ones to teach and usurp authority," and how God held the preacher responsible for the same, I was walled in again. Then I could see clearly, and I opened up my heart to God and confessed my shortcoming on this line to him, and be-fore the people publicly, and asked God's forgiveness, also that of the church; and God was so good to remove the blight, and to restore to me that which I had granted to others in which I had pre-ferred myself out. And now, beloved, I expect by your prayers and the abundant grace of God to fill my commission as a New Testa-ment minister on all points belonging to the ministry, and I pray God to make this experience I have passed through a blessing, not only to myself, but to the ministry at large. Amen. - PRESENT RESULTS. Some that were under Antichrist spirits have been delivered, and truly are like News from the. Field. Calistoga, Cal. As I have not reported for some time I will say that I am in the service of my - Lord and Master. We have meetings every Sunday and sometimes during the week in the evening. We have had two consecrations. The people are just get-ting interested. They do not seem to know very much about the pure gospel. I am intending to arrange for a camp-meeting at this place some time this sum-mer, and desire all those who can come and assist in the camp- meeting to do so. I feel that a good work can be done here for the Lord. Any of God's chil-dren passing through here we desire to stop, as we have plenty of room to hold meetings. 0. C. Shelly. Galesburg, Rails., Mar. 10. Six years ago I gave up my profession and my business as a druggist and in answer to my Master's call went forth to " preach the gospel." In the fall and winter I labored as evangelist, and in the spring and summer preached at appoint-ments on Sundays and farmed for the support of my family, thinking that surely that was all God required of me. But God has impressed me that I must sell my farm and spend all my time in the work— do what I can while I can. Surely the harvest is great and the labor-ers are few. So if any of the saints know of any one wishing to purchase a farm of 160 acres well improved, on rea-sonable terms, address me at Galesburg, Kans. S. G. Bryant. Enterprise, La., Mar. 12. I am glad ' to report victory in Jesus' name. V9 e closed meeting here last night with victory for God. We are to have baptizing to- day. Oh, it made our hearts glad to hear so many dear souls— sinners at that— who rose to their feet begging the prayers of the saints for their salvation. 0 brethren, do let us push the battle faster than ever, for this world in sin is lost. We aim. to have a camp- meeting here, this summer. if the Lord wills. All who feel God leading you oat in the rescue of souls, look this way; for truly the harvest is great and the laborers are so few. Pray for me. R H. Owens. Johnson City, Tenn., Mar. 9. To-
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