The Christian index. (Atlanta, Ga.) 1892-current, June 18, 1896, Image 1

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ESTABLISHED 1821. WChristianlndex Publiihel Every Thunday By BELL VAN N ESS ▲ddrea* Chkihtian Indbx, Atlanta, Ga. Organ of the Baptist Denomination in Georgia SvBBCRirTioK Paten: One copy, one year **.oo One copy. »lx months I,o*l About Oub Advbrtibbbb.—We propose hereafter to very carefully Investigate our advertisers. We shall exercise every care to allow only reliable parties to use our col ■mas. Obituabibb.—One hundred words free of charge. For each extra word, one cent per word; cash with copy. To COBBBBPOWDBNTB—Do not use abbrevi ations; be extra careful In writing proper names; write with Inh. on one side of paper. Do not write copy Intended for the editor and business items on same sheet. Leave OS personalities, condense. Bubinbhs.—Write all names, and post offices distinctly. In ordering a change give the old as well as the new address. The date Os label Indicates the ttme your subscription expires. If you do not wish it continued, or der It stopped a week before. We consider each subscriber permanent until he orders his paper discontinued. When you order It stopped pay up to date. Bemittanceb by registered letter, money Order, postal note For the Index. The Risen Lord. Sunday School Lesson for June 21— Luke 24 .36 53 BY S. G. HILLYER. We saw last week Jesus on the cross. We found that his death meant substitution,expiation and redemption—he died in the sin ner’s place. He died to expiate the sinner’s guilt, and to redeem him from his condemnation under the law. The present lesson gives us a view of Christ risen. I need not detain you with an account of the interesting facts connected with his resurrection. They are given by all the evangelists,and though they vary in some details, yet they all concur in the important facts, and give their united tes timony to the reality of the Sav ior's resurrection. If Christ did not rise from the dead, then the Apostles were false witnesses; and Christianity is a fable, and our holy religion is a mere superstition. There is no escape from the logic of the foregoing statement. If Christ be not risen, then let the pulpits be silenced,let the congregations oe dismissed forever without a benediction, let the Bible socie ties be dissolved, and let the re ligious press be allowed to stand still as no longer needed for the well-being of a lost world, and finally, let our missionaries be called home, because their “great commission” would be no more than the senseless utterance of a crazy enthusiast. These sacred institutions,above named, have their basis in the resurrection of Christ. Had he not risen, they would never have existed. And if it were possible to destroy the belief of mankind in the reality of that sublime event to-day, those institutions would soon be swept from the face of the earth; and the human race would be left without a “Tree of Life” any where, whose “leaves” should be “for the heal ing of the nations.” In that case, there would indeed be “no balm in Gilead, and no physician there.” The experiment has been tried. About a century ago the Nation al Assembly of France tried to abolish Christianity. The unbe lieving savants of that day were hailed as the apostles of a new dispensation. But they lived to see their theories culminate un der the “leign of terror,” in the horrors of the unrelenting guilo tine. “But now is Jesus arisen from the dead, and become the first fruits of them that slept?” The Apostles were not false witness es; they testified what they had seen. Jesus revealed himself after his crucifixion by such in fallible proofs, through a period of forty days, that they could not doubt his identity. They were compelled to believe the testi mony of their own senses. Then, some months later, he revealed himself to his, perhaps, greatest human enemy—Saul of Tarsus — in such a mode as to revolutionize the life of that proud man, and to make him the greatest of all the Apostles. All these witnesses gave their testimony at the sacrifice of every earthly hope, and in the face of impending martyrdom. If one lied, they all lied. If they lied, they knew it. Would ten men wilfully lie under such fearful conditions? But their testimony has been verified down to the present time by its results. Beginning on the day of Pentecost, its effect was wonderful. Peter addressed the vast multitude before him. When he boldly charged them with their guilt in having shared in the murder of Jesus, whom God had raised from the dead, they were cut to the heart. Would they have been cut to the heart if they THR CIIRISTLW INDEX. had not believed Peter’s testimo ny? Would they have been thus affected with remorse and shame if they had believed that Peter was lying about the resurrection of Christ? Take notice: If Jesus had not risen, he himself would have been proved to be an impos tor. This was what the people who murdered him believed. And yet, when Peter affirmed his lesurrection, they were cut to the heart. Why? I again ask. It was because they were, some how, constrained to believe his testi mony. What was it that con strained them? Jesus had said to his disciples just before he was taken up from them: “Lo, I am with you to the ends of the earth ” So, while Peter was preaching, Jesus was there in the power of his Holy Spirit. It was he who gave efficacy to Peter’s words, and thus affixed the stamp of Heaven to the truth of his story. It was the spirit of Jesus that constrained the people, though not conscious of his pres ence, to believe, and joyfully to confess their faith in baptism. We find in such results corrobo rative proof of the resurrection. Such results attended the Apos ties wherever they went. All the teachings of human experience and of human learning were against the story which they told of the risen Lord. Then they had to confront the most power ful system of paganism ever known on earth. It was a sys tem hoary with age. Its legends formed the staple of Grecian and of Roman literature. It was en shrined in the most magnificent temples, adorned with the very highest achievements of human art. Its worship was gorgeous in its splendor, attractive in its forms and convivial in its feastings and revelries. Moreover, the gov ernment was its patron and the Emperor was its “Pontifex Max imus,” its Chief Priest. It was against this mighty power that twelve men, without prestige, without money, and with no carnal weapons, dared to declare war. Their whole mag azine of resources was wrapt up in the story of Jesus and his res urrection. Was there ever such an unequal fight undertaken on this earth? Even David,when he met Goliah, was armed with a shepherd’s sling and pebbles from the brook With >these he slew the giant, and yet we all agree that his success was due to the God of Israel. But the Apos tles went forth empty-handed against the mighty powers of Paganism, armed only with their simply story, and trusting in the invisible presence of their risen Lord. And in less than forty years Christian churches were planted far and wide over Rome’s vast empire. And within a few centuries, Paganism had passed away. Do not such re sults as these, not only corrobo rate, but actually confirm, the testimony of the Apostles, that the crucified Jesus has risen from the dead ? I have briefly sketched these facts. Meditate upon them,dear reader, that your faith in the res urrection of Christ may abide un shaken. “For if Christ be not risen then is our preaching vain, and your faith also is vain.” No matter what else we may think that we believe, if we believe not that Jesus rose from the dead,we have no saving faith; for it is written, “if thou shalt confess, with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thy heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved.” Here it is evident that faith in the res urrection of Jesus is an essential condition of salvation. This truth is confirmed by an other Scripture: “He was deliv ered for our offenses, and was raised again for our justification.” This text teaches, that while the death of Christ was designed to be an expiation for sin, it was made efficient for that purpose by his resurrection from the dead. He might have died for our offenses; but if God had not accepted the offering, it would not have availed for our justifica tion. But God did accept it, and the proof of its acceptance was the resurrection of the holy victim. When God sent down fire from Heaven to consume the offering of Elijah, it was the evi dence that he accepted the sacri fice. So when the “well-beloved Son” voluntarily made himself a sin-offering for man, God mani fested his acceptance of the sac rifice, not by fire —a mere tran sient glory—but by raising him from the dead up to the “power of an endless life.” By raising him from the dead God affixed his own “sign-manual” to the covenant of redemption, whereby he could be just and yet “thejus tifier of all them that believe in Jesus.” Glory be to our risen Lord! 563 S. Pryor st., Atlanta. The most indolent men are busilyengaged in the manufac ture of good intentions.—jFx. 1 SUBSCRIPT! Ay. 'Yb*b,....82.00. | (TO Baptists and the Saloon. BY J. H. GAMBRELL. NO. 1. The Georgia Baptist Conven tion, during its session at Cedar town last April, adopted a re port on temperance containing the following recommendations: 1. “That the churches use the knife of discipline against mem bers who are known to indulge in the use of intoxicating drinks. 2. That Baptist voters all over the State be urged to support no one for the legislature who will not use his influence in favor of some measure looking to the sup pression of the liquor traffic in this State.” Touching this declaration I make two remarks: 1. It has been said that the Methodists are in advance of every other denomination on the temperance question. That is not true. In the South, so far as the declarations of religious bodies are concerned, the Bap tists are clear light ahead of all other denominations. If any other denomination has ever ad vised men how to vote or who to vote for to make laws it has es caped my notice. 2. The recommendations quoted are simply advisory. The con vention cannot enforce their ob servance, but the sovereign churches can, and the convention advises them to do so. The churches will do as they-please with the advice, and bear the re sponsibility attaching to their decision. Though the convention is simply an advisory body, ought not its deliberate judgment and advice be worth a great deal to the churches? Ought not indi vidual Baptists to hesitate long before arraying themselves against the judgment and con victions of a great body of their own representative brethren? Let two things about the Geor gia Baptist Convention be noted and pondered by everyone, and Baptists especially: 1. It is a body of as brainy men as can be found in the common wealth. These men are thought ful and conservative, keeping within the bounds of truth and righteousness. In the main, they are men who 1 ‘ seek not their own, but another’s good.” The ‘LMotif” of their busy lives, is not to “feather a nest” for them selves, but to contribute to the safety and enrichment of the lives of others. Their ambition is not for political preferment or the spoils of office, but to make straight, unimperilled paths for the people to walk in. They think and reach conclusions under the impulse of him who “guides into all truth,” touching any matter. In the ‘ ‘ ointment ” of their counsels and advice are no “dead flies” of selfishness. 2. Those who compose the Georgia Baptist Convention are citizens of Georgia. They are not only clothed with citizenship, but that which is inseparably linked with citizenship, respon sibility, is theirs too. They are responsible to God and society for the use they make or do not make of the opportunities they have for honoring him and con tributing to the wellbeing of the social compact. They cannot rid themselves of this responsibil ity until they rid themselves of citizenship. Clerical robes, pre fixes, suffixes, none of these, or a’l of them, can absolve one from the duties and responsibil ities of citizenship, any more than the title of Judge, Major, Captain, Colonel, Governor or General, absolves one from the duty and responsibility of ser vice to God. Our Lord laid down the rule for every soul on earth, whatever his vocation, in these words: “Render, therefore, unto Caesar the things which be Caesar’s and unto God the things which be God’s.” Every soul, preacher or politician, comes under this divine rule. Look again at that first recom - mend at ion to Georgia Baptist churches. D d the convention act wisely in giving the churches such advice? Let’s study the matter a little and see. 1. It is a fact certified to by every reputable scientific and medical authority in the known world that there is no place in a healthy system for alcoholic liquor, and that alcohol is a most powerful narcotic poison, whose introduction into the healthy system always damages it. 2. The same authorities tell us that there are twenty-eight distinct and terrible diseases that result from the moderate use of intoxicants as a beverage. Con sumption diabetes, and hobnail liver are in this list of diseases. The negro, who before his eman cipation, could not drink and had none of these diseases, but to whom emancipation brought a new and more awful servitude to the saloon, and with it these dis eases, is proof quite enough to ATLANTA, GA., THURSDAY, JUNE 18, 1896. sustain the charge that drink produces disease. 3. The court records of the country reveal the astounding fact that three-fourths of the crime which afflicts us is com mitted by men and women while under the influence of intoxi cants. Scientists tell us that drink is the greatest crime-pro ducing agency the would ever knew. 4. All medical and scientific authority is back of the declara tion that more than half of the appalling lunacy of the world is result of the drink habit. The records of asylums for the in sane certify to the truth of this statement. 5. The records of our eleemosy nary institutions show that more than two-thirds of their inmates are there as the result of drink. The figures that tell the number of paupers in a country, county, or community, also tell whether there is sold and drunk there in toxicants. 6. God has put the whole world on notice that no drunkard shall enter the kingdom of heaven. Yet through drink, one hundred thousand souls are staggering into eternity every year in this country. Many of these go out of Baptist homes, and all of them began their downward leap to despair with the social drink. For these reasons, and thou sands of others, the Georgia Bap tist Convention advises that those who persist in drinking, be eliminated from Baptist church es. Surely no Baptist church can afford to have complicity in so dark and damnable a business! Let the elect of God not drink. Greenesboro, Ga. For the Index. Touching Humanity. BY MRS. LAURA RICHARDS. It is said that the necessity of a general judgment at the end of time arises from the fact that the influence of every human being that has ever lived in the world will then be at an end, and not until then. Influences that are set in motion, either for good or evil, do not stop at the death of the individual, bu.go on through Time, ceasing only when Time stops. „ Life is a stern L ali’y, viewed in the light of these iacis; com paratively short, its responsibili ties are immeasurably great. Great value is set upon human life by the laws of our land, but the true value of human life, in God’s sight, is beyond concep tion. Life is the jewel in the casket of clay, so precious in God’s sight thatthe“grave is not its goal.” Longfellow’s “Psalm of Life” beautifully and truth fully pictures life in its earnest ness and reality; and as an au thor he has left his “ footprints on the sands of Time;” and his influence is still going on, after his death, touching the lives of others. It is this influencing, impress ing, touching the lives of others, that we would consider. God looks at man singly and collectively; as individuals and as nations. Christ died for man aS an individual, and by faith in him they are brought in touch and harmony with the father, and in touch with the brother hood of mankind, in a new rela tionship; in touch with divinity on one hand, and with humanity on the other. That is the posi tion of a Christian in this world. With the dual nature within, a new responsibility to God de volves upon the life in relation to others. The parables of the talents and the pounds brings out a lesson on this line; and the Apostle Paul comments on the Christian’s attitude towards oth ers touching humanity in the twelfth chapter of Romans: “Re joice with them that do rejoice, and weep with them that weep. Distributing to the necessity of the saints; given to hospitality; if hunger, feed him, if thirsty, give him drink; pre sent your bodies a living sacri fice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable ser vice.” The life of a hermit or the life of a nun, shut out from the busy, active world, is not the life that God in his wisdom, has planned for the soldiers of the cross—for his redeemed. God’s plan is that the Christian is to touch humanity, within and without— within the soul’s confine, and without in respect to others; nor need we enter a convent to be withdrawn from contact with the world. We may be unsocial, uncommunicative, unaggressive to the outside world and yet in wardly be very d evout and wor shipful. It is a convent on a small scale. It is a Romish idea, a selfish Pharisaical spirit that be gets a life that withdraws from the outside world, even to give a life of praise to God. It is the missionary spirit that would touch all humanity with the touch of Christ. Life is both giving and receiving, and must serve the twofold purpose for which it is created. Jesus Christ was “ touched with the feeling of our infirmi ties,” and taking on a human body he became visibly in touch, and set an example for us in that the Christian life is not brought to perfection unless it touches humanity as he touched it. Con secration is not concentration. A large portion of our consecrated lives must go to the service of our fellow man. “ God’s truest worshiper is he Who loves and serves his fellowman the beet, And in whose works self is repressed.” Eradicate the spirit of mis sions from the Christian life, and it develops into the quintescence of selfishness; the very opposite of that for which it was created. When the Lord Jesus was on earth he touched humanity in closest proximity, being very God and very man; but in an other sense he touched humanity as impressing and influencing. It is true his words were with power, yet to his disciples he promised power, through the Holy Spirit, accompanied with the assurance, “greater works than these shall ye do.” That power it still behind his faithful followers: “Lol am with you always, even unto the end of the world.” It behooves the Christian to touch' with good influences, im pressions, uplifting toward God, as many human beings as possi ble during a life-time. Do you live contemporary with, and cime in touch with the best es forts for good of the day ? What a fearful thought that you are obliged, in a measure, to help or hinder. There is no half way ground between right and wrong; we are either on one side or the other, in God’s sight. “ Inso much as ye did it unto one of the least of these my brethren ye did it unto me.” What an in centive to lend a helping hand to a struggling brother, to the fel low soldier in the same line of battle, in elbow touch of sympa thy. We are held responsible for what we can do, not what we would do. Our obligations are to those with whom we come in touch first. The gospel was to be* preached, beginning at Je rusalem, but oh, not toend there; neither are our obligations lim ited. Spurgeon, that great and grand man with whom we have lived contemporary, yet whom we never saw, has touched us with his sermons and with his life of usefulness, though a con tinent divided us. Who in this day has not read his gospel ser mons ! Their influence is good, and good only. At the ei.d of Time who but God can compute the value of such a life ? We can understand how his influence for good through his written sermons can go on through time to eternity, but it is hard to understand that God will require at our hands the one talent en trusted, and yet it is true. In the judgment, when the whole life with its influences, running on as long as time lasts, is reckoned up, no doubt the ag gregate will be a great surprise to the “one talent Christian,” and the question, almost uncon sciously, be asked : “When, Lord?” Christian reader,do not under rate your talents, your ability, your trust. God’s gifts are never invaluable. Let your light shine; if only a taper, do not seek to hide its light. While I have only ‘ ‘ touched ” the subject on a few of the main points, still I hope I have come in touch with humanity , suffi ciently, through the Index, to impress some one with the im portance of it. The Western Recorder: Many definitions are inadequate, but so far as our observation goes, the old ones, which have stood the test of time, are better than the new ones,which in all probability will not stand that test. Still, if anybody sees how a definition can be improved, whether it be old or new, let-him improve it. To say in knowing fashion “the old definitions are inadequate,” does not throw any light on our way. Neither do we knew any more after being told with a flourish that “the truths of theol ogy need restating.” If the man who says this knows of any such truth which needs restating, why does he not restate it and be done with it? If he does not know of any such truth, how can he say “the truths of theology need re stating?” The man who tries to be con sistent with himself instead of with the truth, will fail as miser ably as the school-boy who tries to write like the last line he wrote, instead of like the copy at the top of the page.— Ex. The Daily Battle. So weary! not of labor, not of struggle; Nor yet of failure—nor Its kindred, pain; But of the myriad little rubs of living— The endless round of things that seem in vain 1 Yet not by mighty acts Is life made lovely; He worketh best who does the little deeds; Content, amid the struggle and the hurry, To satisfy the spirit's smallest needs. Houl rapture, visions, dreamy exaltation, May be the throes that lift the soul above, But dally self control and self-repression Can also teach the spirit how to love. 'Mid homely scenes and dreary common places, Hold fast the fortress, self, while strength is thine I Oh, weary not I for from the height God watches, And wants to re enforce each feeble line, —Edith Willis Lunn The Guidance of the Holy Spirit. As communion is for the heart, guidance is for the feet, and those who have received the former, as we have seen in the chapter just closed, may well look for the’ latter. 1. But what are we to under stand by the “leading” or guid ance of the Spirit? Is there something substantial and real signified by the term, which we cannot comprehend under other experiences of the Christian life? We read in 2 Peter 1. 21 (A.V ) that of old “holy men of God spake as if they were moved by the Holy Ghost.” Has this “moving” been confined to them and to what we call the “inspira tion of Holy Writ?” Or is there any sense in which it is true that Christians are still “moved” by the Holy Spirit, though of course in a different manner, for a dis ferent purpose, and with a differ ent result? 2. It is-remarkable how one of the earliest things told us as to the public ministry of our Lord is that He “was led by the Spirit into the wilderness” (Luke iv 1, A. V.). St. Matthew va ries the phrase slightly—“ Then was Jesus led up of the Spirit in to the wilderness to be tempted of the devil” (Matt. iv. 1). And St. Mark gives us the very strik ing alternation, “Straightway the Spirit driveth Him forth into the wilderness” (Mark i. 12). The three words are egeto ane chthe exballei. The distinctive meanings of the three are — The Spirit leadeth Him; the Spirit carrieth Him away the Spirit casteth Him out into the wilderness. There is no diverg ence in the statements. The first refers to the action on the soul of Christ which induced him to go; the second to the actual guidance on me-journey up to the wilderness, which lay higher than the Jordan; and the third, though it does not signify any resistance on the part of Jesus, yet does very forcibly remind us of the abhorrence by His pure soul of that personal contact with the enemy He was about to encounter. He who entered the garden with “amazement” was “driven forth” into the wilder ness. If He, then, who was “full of the Holy Spirit” was so led by Him, we are prepared to find that the people of God have, in their measure, a similar expe rience. 3. Accordingly we read that there is such a “leading” for Christians. In the beautiful par able of the Good Shepherd (John x. 3) we are told, ‘ ‘He calleth His own sheep by name, and leadeth them out," which refers, of course, to Jesus Christ. But in Rom. viii. 14, we have, “Led by the Spirit of God;” and in Gal. v. 18, “If we are led by the Spirit, ye are not under the Law.” The former passage intimates that the lead ing of the Spirit is a mark of God’s children which cannot be mistaken, and the latter indi cates that those who submit to the leading of the Spirit are de livered from the bondage and power of the legal mind. 4. In order more fully to un derstand what is meant by the two leading passages on the sub ject, we naturally turn to the Apostolic history in the New Testament to see whether any light is cast upon the subject there, and we find, at all events, three chapters in the Acts of the Apostles which give us very in teresting explanations. 5. One of these is Acts xvi., which narrates how St. Paul and his companions were induced to pass beyond the bounds of Asia, and to set foot for the first time on the European shore. The story is familiar, but will have to be looked at in connection with our subject. Paul, Silas, and Timothy made a tour through the districts of Phrygia and Ga latia, and, as we gather, propos ed to continue in Asia Minor, when something occurred which St. Luke describes in these words— “ Having been forbidden of the Holy Ghost, to speak the Word in Asia” (Acts xvi. 6). The phrase signifies a definite command, but, so far, we know not in what manner it was given, whether by an audible voice, or a distinct revelation from the Lord, or how. In the next verse we read that they “came over against Mysia,” and “assayed to go into Bithynia: and the Spirit of Jesus suffered them not’’ VOL. 76“N0. 25 (verse 7). Here we have a clear er indication as to the mind of the missionaries they “assayed,” made an effort, attempted (epeira z<m)possibly even were attempted to turn intoßithynia;but the Spir it of Jesus did not give permis sion to do so. Here, on the other nand, the word as to the Spirit’s leading is not so definite as in the former verse. In this uncer tainty they continued their jour ney through Mysia (probably not preaching there, as being in Asia), and arrived in Troas. There Paul had “a vision in the night” (verse 9). A man, who was a Macedonian, and known by him to be so, stood appealing to him to go over into his country and to help them. Then there occur the remarkable words (verse 10), “straightway we sought to go forth into Macedo nia, concluding that God had called us for to preach the gos pel unto them" (sumbibazontes) put ting things together, and so coming to qhis conclusion). They were left, then, to interpret the guid ance they were receiving. The “called” them (verse 10). The leading of the Spirit of God was itself quite clear, but it had to be gathered by them in their own Christian experience. 6. The chapters in the book of Acts which tell of St. Paul’s visit to Jerusalem (xix-xxi). also cast light on such movements of the Spirit within men, and are in this, as in other respects, very interesting, as part of the spirit ual story of the great Apostle. Luke begins (Acts xix. 21) by telling us that “Paul purposed in the Spirit” (laid it down, plan ned it beforehand, the word means) “ . . . to go to Jerusalem, saying, After I have been there, I must also see Rome,” a verse which may be considered 'by those who think that all plans of ours are to be avoided, and that it is the duty of Christians to live only from day to day. This was Paul’s “purpose,” and he be lieved that he had come to it through the leading of the Holy Ghost. We then read, in what follows in the 19th chapter, and that he did go through other parts as he had- planned, in chapter xx. there is an ac count of his voyage to Cesarea. At verse 22 there is a re-state ment of Paul’s purpose, as led of the Spirit—“bound” (that is, in bonds, as a captive) by th’e Spirit’s power; and he declares that he has a strong promonition that there is trial in store—“not knowing the things that shall befall me there, save that the Holy Ghost testifieth unto me in every city, saying that bonds and afflictions abide me.” He was thus led of the Spirit, and yet warned by Him of troubles. In chapter xxi. the leading be comes more definite, yet at first sight perplexing. In verse 4, certain disciples at Tyre “said to Paul through the Spirit, that he should not set foot in Jerusalem.” Here we have what looks like a contradiction: the Spirit telling Paul to go, and telling these dis ciples that he should not go. But the explanation almost certainly is, that the Spirit had led the disciples at Tyre to know that he would be in danger at Jerusalem, and that, acting on their own judgment, they had therefore en treated him not to go; a consid eration which reminds us how, even when the Spirit speaks, we may make a mistaken use of what He says, by not waiting on Him farther to guide us to the right use of His instructions or warnings. The same thing is still more clearly seen at Cesa rea, where Agabus, a “prophet,” tells of the miraculous prophetic intimation given him by the Holy Ghost (verse 11), “Thus saith the Holy Ghost, So shall the Jews at Jerusalem bind the man that owneth his girdle, and shall de liver him into the hands of the Gentiles.” So far the prophetic utterance, given no doubt to pre pare the church in both places for the event which was to come. With strange inconsistency, the Cesarean Christians, and the apostle’s own companion also, St. Luke among the rest, tried to prevent the journey, and so render the prophecy untrue. “And when he heard these things, both we and they of that place be sought him not to go up to Jerusa lem.” But Paul knew better than to resist the leading of the Holy Ghost. “What do ye, weeping and breaking my heart? for I am ready not to be bound only, but also to die at Jerusalem for the name of the Lord Jesus. And when we would not be persuaded, we ceased, saying, The will of the Lord be done” (verses 13,14). That will, which we have done our utmost to resist, which now we accept as a necessity; and only because Paul will not join us in resisting God! So distinct, on the one hand, is the leading of the Spirit; and so apt are Christian men, on the other, to deal with it in a wrong way!— Through the Eternal Spirit.—Cum mings.