ZION’S LANDMARKS.
117
J-
dred fold more precious. Brother
Rice, as poor in spiritual fruits, and
feeble and suffering daily in body, as
full of trials and teinpta^tions as free
ly persecuted, as besf’t with gloomy
doubts and fears, as poor in earthly
goods as 1 am, to-day I would not
exchange places with Empress Eu
genie, for I hope and believe I have
a treasure an hundred fold richer
than .ill her earthly goods and joys
combined—a hundred fold more in
this time, to say nothing of that eter
nal life in the world to come.
But, says a self-righteous sinner,
^‘what shall I do that I may inherit
this eternal life—I have observed the
law of Moses from rny youth ?” Go
sell all you have, all your vast pos
session, discard all youi self-rightc-
ousness and human merit—all your
legal deeds, and come as a poverty-
stricken, penniless suppliant, come as
a helpless child, for “v/hosoever shall
not receive the kingdom of God m a
little cldld^ he shall not enter therein,”
how hardlv shall they that have rich-
es “or legal merit” enter in the king
dom of God! Impossible! “With
men it is impossible, but not with
God, with God a 11 things are possible.”
If you trust in yourself as a man, it
is impossible, but if you trust in God
as a “God in Christ,” who has mad'e
reconciliation through the death of
Christ a.nd by cjrace through faith,
believe in Christ as the Saviour of
sinners, thou shalt enter the kingdom.
But says a faithless disobedient child
of God, “How shall I enter the visi
ble kingdom of God ? Here is my
mother or father, sister or brother,
who are my flesh and my bone, or
here is my wife and children, who
are one with me, they oppose me ;
and here is my worldly goods and
interest, it will suffer; here is my
position in society, I shall lose it;
here are my dear friends and associ
ates, they will discard me if 1 oppose
all, and leave all to enter that king
dom everywhere spoken against and
opposed and hated by the world.”—
Once Jesus commanded a man to
follow him, he said “Lord let me first
go and bury my father.” Was not
this excuse as reasonable, as urgent,
as natural and filial as yours ? An
other simply asked to go home and
bid his friends farewell, Jesus said,‘fol
low me, and let the dead bury their
■dead.’ “He that loveth father or
mother more than me, is not tvorthy
of me.” “If any nan come to me
and hate not his father and mother,
and wife and. children, and brethren
and sisters, yea, and his own life al
so, be cannot be my disciple, and who
soever :*^orsaketh not all that he hath,
he cannot be my disciple.” (Luke
14.) “All, but says you, in forsak.-
ing and leaving all, I shall lose much,
if not all.” There no man that bath
left bouse, and brethren or sisters,
or father or mother, or v/ife or chil
dren, or lands for Christ’s sake and
the gospel’s, but he shall receive an
hundred fold, 7ioto in this time,
houses and brethren, and sisters and
mothers, and children and lands, with
persecutions and in the world to come,
eternal life; these are the words of
Him who has all power, who can
make all things work together for
good to them who prove their love to
God by obedience to His commands.
Paul in reference to his natural ben
efits
and advantages
enter the kingdom or be the servant
of Christ.
I must close, as my health is quite
feeble. I have writen very hastily,
and have not time to revise. I hope
Brother Rice will excuse this scatter
ing effort to comply with his request.
I feel that it will not be worth its
space. R. ANNA PHILLIPS.
said, “what
things men gain to me” in earthly
or fleshly considerations, “tho«e I
counted loss for Christ, yea, doubt
less, and I count all things but loss
for the excellency of the knowledge
of Christ Jesus my Lord, for Avhom
I have suffered the loss of all things;”
yet Paul testified in joy, “I have
fought the good fight, I have kept
the faith, I have finished my course
with joy, henceforth, there is laid up
a crown for me.” He saw that eter
nal life inheritance, how much better
that, than to have all our works
burned and we saved, as if by fire.—
Truly we act as if the Almighty
Sovereign Lord was not equal to His
word ; we profess to desire to* follow
Christ, yet, that desire is not equal
to worldly and fleshly influences ; we
are troubled and grieved, as if we
should lose by following and strictly
obeying Him ; yet, we have His ever-
faithful word for it, w’o shall receive
an hundred fold more than we lose.
Is it a dear mother, who has loved,
nourished and tenderly cherished us
all our life, that forbids obedience to
Christ ? “He that hateth not his
mother,” that is the carnal principle
that opposes and forbids obedience
to Christ, for “no man ever yet hated
his 'own flesh” but hate the principle
generally in mother, father, brother,
wife, yea in ones own self, that op
poses and forbids obedience to Christ;
I hate it and heed it not, for it is not
subject to the law of God, it is an
enemy and not capable of pleasing
God in anywise, and if you yield to
it, no matter in what, otherwise be
loved bosom it is found, you yield
yourself servant to it, you bind your
allegiance there, and hence cannot
Ruffin Station, N. C., 1
May 29th, 1869. /
Dear Brother Bodenhamer :—For
a considerable time I have been wish-
ino; to write a communication for
Zion’s Landmarks, but a superabun
dance of labor has hitherto prevent
ed the accomplishment of my pur
pose.
I now give my views in reference
to the following: “My brethren,
count it all joy ivhen ye fall into
divers temptations.” (James 1 : 3.)
The descendants of Adam are divid
ed into two classes, viz : The children
of Avrath, and the children of promise.
Every human being belongs to one
or the . ther of these classes. “He
that is not Avdth me, is against me,
and he that gathereth not with me,
scattereth abroad.” (Math. 12 : 30.)
All are by nature, the children of
wrath, but the children of promise
are rendered heirs by adoption. In
the second chapter of Ephesians,
Paul, including other Christians with
himself, testifies that they “umre by
nature the children of wrath even as
others ;” and in the fourth chapter
of Galatians, he says, “God sent
forth his Son, made of a woman,
made undet the law, to redeem them
that Avere under the laAV, that Ave
might receive the adoption of sons.”
Any circumstance which tends to
convince Christians that they are
heirs of promise, ought to give them
great joy; hence, they should not be
deispondent when the Devil shoAvs
great uneasiness about the course
Avhich they are pursuing. Tins event
itself, ouglit to shoAV them that they
are not of Satan’s family, for he is
well pleased with the action of his
own children, and quiets their appre
hensions of danger, Avhereas he en
tertains great jealousy and hatred
toAvards the children of promise, and
not only seeks every opportunity to
allure them from the path of duty,
but perpetually harasses them Avith
doubts in reference to their future
Avelfare. These are the temptations
alluded to, for when individuals pro
fess to know that they are Christians,
they exactly fulfill the wishes of the
Devil, Avho thus quietly rocks them
to sleep, in order that they may final
ly become his captives. “And if any
man think that fie knoweth anything,
he knoAveth nothing yet, as he ought
to knoAV.” (1st. Cor. 8 : 2.) The
Devil even had the audacity to try
to persuade Jesus Christ, himself,
that he Avas not the Son of God, and
tried to induce him to test the matter
by changing the stones into bread,
and by casting himself doAvn from the
pinnacle of the temple. “If thou be
the Soa of God, command that these
stones be made bread.” (Math. 4:8.)
Even Avhen Christ said, “get thee
behind me Satan,” we find that he
left him for “a season” only ; there
fore, how absurd it is, for a poor
worm of the dust to boast of being
free from temptation. There is a
striking difference betAveen Christ’s
temptations and those of man. Jesus
shoAVs no disposition to yield to the
suggestions of Satan, therefore, there
Avas no sin in his temptations. “For
we have not an high priest AA'hich
cannot be touched with the feeling
of our infirmities, but was in all
points tempted like as wo are, yet
without sin.” (Heb. 4 : 15.) All
temptations to eTiil originate from
Satan-^--“ no man say, AAdien he
is tempted^ 1 am tempted of God;
for God cannot be tempted with evil,
neither tempteth he any man.”—
James 1 : 13. Paul’s “ thorn in the
flesh ” Avas a messenger of Satan, sent
to buffet him. Doubtless, before
Paul was convicted, he was, like our
modern Pharisees, well pleased with
his OAvn actions ; but Avhen convic
tion, Avhich he styles the command
ment, came, he, for the first time,
saw that he was a sinner by nature
■—“ For I was alive Avithout the laAV
once, but Avhen the commandment
came, sin revived and I died.” He
does not here allude to the laAV of
Moses, for he, being a Pharisee, Avas
never Avithout that laA\', but it Avas the
laAV of conviction, Avritten upon the
tablet of his heart, and Avhich he af
terwards speaks of, as being AANitten
upon the hearts of the Gentiles.-—
Without this knowledge of sin, he
Avas alive to his OAvn self-righteous
ness, but Avhen the commandment
came, he saw his sins Avorking in
him “all manner of concupiscence,”
therefore he died to the love of sin.
“Hoav can avc that are dead to sin,
li\m any longer therein ?” Men who
say if they believed in the doctrine of
election, they Avould take their fill of
sin, prove by their oAvn assertions