TT
Striiiii
Zion’s Landmarks : Wilson, N. C.
all worlds and saving his people, and
exercising all power. Jesus here ap
pears to be all-wise and all powerful;
■able to execute its wenderful trusts.
He is law-giver, Judge and King.
vTesus is the God-man divinely fitted
to judge all men and award to each
his portion. He is touched with a
fellow-feeling for his brethren as -a
tnan of sorrows, afid is joined to tltem
as head to body, and loves them ‘unto
the end.
He as God kwfOws the thoaglits of
vdll hearts and fcno'Ws tvhalt is hi man.
He has all powet to e^cecute the ])ur-
poses of God and is appointed the
judge of quick and dead, for God has
committed all judgement unto his
8on.
In this sealed hook are the hidden
mysteries and great judgments of
Gofl—which are revealed in the fol
lowing chapters hut hid and embos
omed in inaccesible mystery until
Jesus comes to view. As such they
all worship him. Who are the four
beasts and four and twenty Elders?
Ezekiel had a vision of four living
eatures with eyes before and behind
John here sees them, the -first
ike a lion, the second like a calf, the
.lird had a face as a man and tflie
til was like a flying eagle,
j’s living creatures had the
^ man and were all joined
ijaviug
four faces, of
^^ai^d ox. Sinners
“•^tnres, made after
US’®!?! ■“fflS’TTTimai
rSani was a likeness as a liv-
jul, but only in the image, for
|is a quickening Spirit.) Christ
fhe first begotten or first born
^the dead, that is the first one
^ed in this new creation, and in all
Filings has the pre-eminence. These
Iliving creatures are in his order of
rcreatioii. As Ezekiel saw, they have
one likeness and one spirit, and can
equally move in all directions. John
sees substantially the same thing,
four beasts, having the face of a Hon
a calf, a man and a flying eagle.
The four gospels are a perfect
square with their faces ■of expressions
(teachings) the bold Iton, the humble
«alf, saved man, and the far-seeing,
flying eagle. They have six wings,
and are full ot eye& within, (inspired)
and continually are crying, holy^ holy,
holy. Lord God Almighty, which
Avas, and is, and is to come. The
our
r writers of the gospcte, Matthew,
Mark, Luke and John, in their ex
hibition of Christ, thus continually
adore and set him forth. I mean
what these men wrote, and that all
these excellencies expressed in their
.gospels are treasured up without
measure in Jesus, for no record can
-equal the substance recorded. These
fonr and twenty Elders are. doubtless
Hke characters. When we see what
prominence is given the twelve tribes
and their Elders, of the old Testa
ment, and to the twelve Ajmstles of
the Kew one, ^Ye shall find a clue to
the fonr and twenty Elders. One
thing at least is true, they were re
deemed sinners, for they say, ’«‘tho«
wast slain, and hast redeemed -ts 'to
God by thy blood, 'OPt'of -C-veiy Itin-
dred and tongiiC, jttid -pCdpte and
nation.”
They are represenatiVe tiliaracters,
redeemed out of every nrftiOn, they
are 6ea^fe, (four of them) yet 'fieftr 'the
throne of God. How much ‘Hke
beast saved sinners feel to be. Th'ey
as savmd blend in them the sympa
thetic man, the fearless lion, the
patient, humble ox, and the far-sieht-
ed eagle that can see before and be
hind, within and without. They are
Eldeis, ruling as k-ilTgs and priests
unto God, and reining on earth.
What wonderful ailthority have the
Apostles in the teachings of God’s
word : power to bind and loose, for
Christ is doing this through them by
his Spirit. M"hat an encouragement
to John that he, while in the flesh
was in the isle of Patinos sutferino'
o
for the testimony -of Jesus, yet in the
Spirit he was around the 'throne of
God, in the doctrine and glory of the
gospel.
Kot; that John, or the writers of
the four gospels, or the twelve Apos
tles were actually in ImaVOfi while
they were in the flesh, but they were
repre^^ented there in the truth, power
and glory of the gospel of Christ,
and thus were reigning in the.tfuth.
Th^rhiajj^hnst was in glory and
^lerin heavenly
futir®aiKi
and power of redemp
tion. As Peter saw in a vision a net
k'nit at the four corners coming down
from heaven, having all manner of
four-footed beasts of the earth &c.,
and saw it -taken up into heaven
again : Which was a spiritual repre
sentation of the safety of Gentile
sintiei’s in -the covenant of redemp
tion, So liere is a more glorious
view of men actually washed, robed,
beautified by the application of the
redemption to them ; so that the
glorious estate of these is thus repre
sented to John in the vision.
All these beasts and Elders were
re.presenativecharacters,having harps,
a precious sign of victory; and they
all had golden vials full of odours,
or the sweet smelling savor, accept
able to God, which are the jirayers
of the saints. David says, all his
tears are bottled up. "What wonder
ful care God takes of these signs -ot
sorrow. So the prayers of saints are
preserved in golden vials, and are (.f-
ferd by these beasts and Elders as
represenative characters. Thus they
represent all saints and are near the
throne of God, and certainly Worship
before the throne, crying hnly^ holy,
holy, Lord God Almighty. All
these redeemed and happy characters
worship the I^mb, and ascribe di
vine honors unto him, who alone is
worthy to take the book, having the
destiny of all men and the measure
of all things, who has power to ex
ecute all the pleasure and do all the
will of God, and subdue all things
unto himself.
in the word of God as written in the
Old find New Testaments the writers
'tv’di'ship Je^irs. Tlie spnit of HI
God’s sefvants thYGugh the word 6f
‘^(;d cries holy, holy, holy, Lord God
Almighty : the trtie ’ti^oi'ship, the ordi
nances of the Church, the teachings
and examples of the Apostles all
wbtship Jesus, find ascribe divine
honors ufito him.
These leading-* servants, such as
the writers of the fGur gospelsj the
Kpi^tles, &c., as the living creatures
which Ei;ekiel saw. Worship Jesus as
they fall before his thr6iie. All
that they tefich, preach and write in
the soriptCires worshiil the Laiiib. In
the imperfections of the flesh it is net
the perfect Worship which in spirit
they render around the throne In
heaven, where the doctrine and word
is catight up in the eterna'l record on
high, and where the perfection of
beauty dwells.
A lidle foretaste of this spirit and
faith is shared by Christians now in
the flesh, for they all Worship God
and the Lamb paying equal honors
to each and ascribing all salvation
unto God find the Lamb fcr sinners
slain. So far as any man has a chriso
tian experience he that far has realized
that it is the Lord that saves ; or so
far as we have evidence that we are
saved that far we truthfully say,
“salvation is of the Lord.”
When one feels an impression to
speak ill public as a teacher, exhorter
or preacher, would it not be Well for
him to commence in the Conference
at his own church, by telling his im
pressions or giving his liglit on some
text or portion of scripture? All
have the right of speaking, in proper
order, in Conference. When one
reveals his views of truth and states
his impressions it will open the way
for jiim to rise in Conference, from
time to time,-and express his impres
sions to the brethren. This will give
them an opportunity of judging
whether such a person has a gift that
should be liberated. When it ap
pears that he has, the church can bid
him go forth as fin exhorter, teacher,
preacher &c., as she may deem him
worthy. This is more becoming than
for one to state boldly in the first
instance that he wants to preach;
and we think it much more in ac
cordance with the felt unfitness and
drawing back of one truly called.
Then he shoiild let others be the judge
of the proper time for his ordination^
and whether he needs ordination at
all. Kor should he desire to 2:0 far
oft’ among strangers much, until he is
established at home. For if he is
profitable the brethren about home
will soon find it out. Lay hands
suddenly on no man. One should not
be ordained to preach who has a
doubtful or bad character. He must
have a good report of them that are
without. He should also be fipt to
teach, not merely to repeat over
the system of faith, but to bring out
things new and old which edifV.
Who Ke-^P's Hohs®---Sarati or
Hagar ?—Ai‘e ydfi under the cove
nant of grade, t'lle iJerltBfilem a'bovC ?
or, under that of works, the bfirren
Jerusalem on earth that bepe''te bdnd-
fige?
Those born of Sarah are free-bori>,
not obtained with a great sfi'm of
money: while those born of Hagai-
love bondage, for it is ‘theii'’ element-.
These children'fifedifferent seeds.
One is born 'figaih a-nd the second
birth is‘df afi irtcOrrnptible seed and
serves God, being in the image of
Jesus. The other 'Is bdrn of corrupt
flesh, children tlifit a're perverse, fi
generation of evil doers; boasting of
their great ability: and hence they
love the coVenan't 'of 'Works. Ca'st
out this seorriCr and POntCntien will
cease.
lMMORTA'Li'f''i’;, in t'he 'blesSed sensd
of fulness of life'and light, belongs t6
Christ-. The'fi, are the dead in sins
immortal? Of course not, in this
sense, or they would not be dead.—
But do they not have some sort o-f
existence ? Certainly they are not ih
a state of non-entity or annihilation,
in the ^ sense that they ever will
cease to be, for there shall be fi
resurrection both of the just afid
the unjust. All m-en shall lie raised
from the dead, which forlfids the
when they die. They continue to
exist kit it is in death. It is ban
ishment from happiness and joy,
peace and love. The resurrection wi-ll
not take place in o-rder to annihilate
the wicked, but that they may be
punished with everlasting destruc
tion from the presence of the Lord,
that is be driven away in their wick
edness, “where the worm dieth not
and the lire is never quenched,” or
where they will be tormented forever
and ever, as the reward of their deeds-.
The Toisnot Union met at MemxP
rial, represented by a full attend
ance of brethren; and the preaching
was of the ancient order in doctrinO
and exhortation. There was joy
among the believers. The next
meeting will be with the church at
Wilson, commencing on Saturday be
fore the fifth Sunday in January*,
1875.
We understand that ofir sister, the
Skewafkey Unioii^ had true a'nd
good one; and that its next meeting
will be with the cluirch at Flat
Swamp, commencing on Friday be
fore the fifth Sunday in January-^
1875.
Contributions for biuldinu a
O
Primitive Baptist meeting liotiseat
Raleigh K. Cv., can be setit to Jefter -
son Gulley^ Raleigh-, X. C. Wo
hope that a house of Worship ofi
that order will be built there.
P. D. Goein
' .'5