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THE HOLY SPIRIT

POWER FROM ON HIGH

AN UNFOLDING OF THE DO'-^TRINE OF THE

HOLY SPIRIT IN THE OLD AND

NEW TESTAMENTS

[■

REV. A. B. SIMPSON, D.D,

PJRT L THE OLD TESTAMENT

CHRISTIAN PUBLICATIONS, INC.

Third and Reily Streets

Harrisburg, Pa.

NEW EDITION FROM NEW PLATES

With Foreword by

WALTER M. TURNBULL, D.D.

(All rights reser'ved)

• of

FOREWORD

Among the many treatises upon the Person and Work
of the Holy Spirit, these two volumes from the pen
of Dr. A. B. Simpson have won a unique and com-
manding place. Lucidity of style, comprehensiveness
of treatment, and spirituality of message are the marked
characteristics of these, as of all the works of this gifted
writer. Profound students of Scripture and a host
of beginners in the faith have alike been helped by their
rich spiritual instruction. Just as his great series,
''Christ in the Bible,*' opens the Scriptures to reveal
Jesus upon every page, so this great exposition, **The
Holy Spirit; or, Power from on High " leads the
reader to recognize the Holy Spirit in the types, sym-
bols, and prophecies of the Old Testament, and in the
promises, records, and revelation of the New Testa-
ment. This monumental work shoidd be in the library
of every worker who covets a spiritual ministry, and
should be prayeriuUy perused by every Christian who
longs for a life of victory. Its pages will repeatedly
convict, inspire, and refresh.

The chapters of these books were originally given as
burning messages from the Gospel Tabernacle p\dpit
in New York and were designed to lead the members
of the congregation into the personal experience of the
truth set forth. Sunday after Sunday Dr. Simpson
poured out his heart in Scriptural teaching and earnest
exhortation, aiming constantly to lead his auditors to
definite acceptance of the fullness of the Spirit. His
own life flamed with the reality of the message his lips
proclaimed. These volumes, therefore, are the vials con-
taining the essence of Dr. Simpson's deepest ministry.
Because of the nature of their preparation, there is in

FOREWORD

tliesL' pa^es a pinifjfcm-e that penclratt's the soul and
a power that strangely moves the spirit.

Keadcrs of these and other books of Dr. Simpson will
readily understand the constant increase of the move-
ment which he initiated. The man passed on, but his
message abides. It was given to him to restate in
kindling word the eternal truths of Scripture. He
brought no new message but earnestly summoned the
Church to listen to the old, old story in its revealed
completeness. The conviction is growing that Albert
B. Simpson was a voice to his generation like that of
Luther and Wesley. Like Luther's classic on Galatians
and John Wesley's immortal sermons, the writings of
Dr. Simpson are a sacred heritage. Among all these
treasures none is more vitally important to Christians
generally or more worthy of wide dissemination than
"The Holy Spirit; or, Power from on High."

Walter AL Turnbull.

if.

INTRODUCTION.

BY REV. STEPHEN MERRITT.

Dear Brother Simpson :

It was a cause of great joy to
my soul to read the announcement that the first volume
of The Holy Spirit, or, Power From on High, would
soon be issued. You will remember that at the Old Or-
chard Convention last year I was led to exclaim, "The
hook of the Holy Ghost is yet unwritten," and to ro(iuest
tlie vast audience to rise and pray that the Holy Spirit
might inspire Rev. A. B, Simpson to write the work of
llie age for Ilim. That this petition is now being an-
swered is the delight of my life,

I cannot but believe that He has selected you for this
work of faith and labor of love, and that He has had
you in peculiar training and made Himself personally
known to you, so that you may be able, with the pen
of a ready writer, to make Him known to a hungry,
famishing church and world. I rejoice that you know
Him, and that He knows you, and I believe that you
know by wisdom from above how to make Him known.

1 am so glad you have written not an artick, a
treatise, or sermons; but volumes — to show His com-
pleteness of power, His adequateness, and adaptibility
to meet every need of the body, soul, and spirit, for
time and for eternity. 1 have not read tho. forthcoming
volume, but shall do so with intense interest, pleasure,
and profit, for in it I shall see the mind of the Spirit
as expressed by Him thr ugh your God-touched pen.

What strides He has taken since you first began to

INTRODUCTION

toach Hira; with what desire the people receive Him
and tht. truth eonceming Him; and how abundantly
He blesses with power all who accept Him. This is
the Book of His Age. Thousands will rise up and call
you blessed for its publication, and your influence for
Ilim will be greatly enhanced by Him for His glory
ParousYa '^'^^*^"' "^'^'^^ ^^ ^«'^'' heart-the coming

Stephen Mebritt.

CONTENTS

PAGE

Foreword 3

Introduction 7

I. liike a Dove (Genesis) 15

II. The Breatii of God (Genesis) 24

III. The Sword of the Spirit (Genesis) 37

IV. The Pillar of Cloud and Fire (Exodus

and Numbers) 53

V. The Livin«jr Water (Exodus and Num-
bers) fi6

VI. The Anointing: Oil (Exodus and Levi-
ticus) 76

Vll. The Baptism witli Fire 87

VITI. The Spirit of Wisdom 98

IX. The Holy Spirit in the Book of Judges 109

X. The Spirit-filled Man 121

XI. The Holy Spirit in the Lives of Saul

and David ( I and 2 Samuel) 129

XII. The Holy Spirit in the Book of Proverbs 141

XIII. The Still Smnll A^oice (1 Kings) ...... 151

XIV. The Pot of Oil [2 Kings) 165

XV. The Valley of Ditches (2 Kings) 174

XVI. The Spirit of Inspiration 183

XVII. The Holy Spirit in the Book of Joel ... 195

XVIII. The Holy Spirit in the Book of Isaiah . . 206
XIX. The Holy Spirit in the Life and Testi-

mony of Jeremiah 217

XX. The Holy Spirit in Ezekiel 232

XXI. The Spirit of the Resurrection (Ezekiel) 244

CONTENTS

FAGK

XXTT. The River of Blessing (Ezekiel) 253

XXIII. The Holy Spirit in the Days of the Res-

toration 263

XXIV. The Olive Trees and the Golden Lamps

(Zechariah) 274

XXV. The Last Message of the Holy Ghost to

the Old Dispensation 285

chaptp:r I.

LIKE A DOVE.

THE first cmhlcin under which we see the IToly*
Spirit in the New Testament is the dove desct^nding
upon the head of Jesus at His baptism on the
banks of the Jordan.

The first emblem under which the Holy Spirit is pre-
sented in the Old Testament is also a dove. In th\i
story of creation, in the first chapter of Genesis, second
verse, we read: "The earth was without form and void,|
and darkness brooded over the face of the deep, and
the Spirit of God brooded upon the face of the waters."

This is the figure of the mother dove brooding over
her nest and cherishing her young. What a strange
background for such a picture; chaos, desolation, the
seething waters, the hissing flames, the wild abyss, th(^
starless night, the reign of ruin, death, and desolation!

This was thf! scene where the mother dove of eternal
love and peace began to build her nest, and she rested
not until out of that scene of wreck she had evolved a
bright and happy world, and a smiling paradise, with
its human family and its pure and heavenly happiness
and hope.

We pass over seven chapters, and we come to anoti er
scene of desolation and wreck. The waters of the de-
luge are sweeping round the world. The work of twenty
centuries is submerged beneath that awful flood, and
'he world's countless millions are lying in d'cath beneath
those waves. One solitary ship is riding above the
f.torm with eight human beings within its walls, the sole
survivors of all earth's population.

Once again we behold the figure of the dove. We read
in Genesis 8: 6-12: "And it came to pass, at the end of

rOWEK FROM ON HIGH

forty clays, thrt Noah opened the window of the ark
which he had made: and he sent forth a raven, which
went forth to and fro, until the waters wt3re dried up
from off the earth.

"Also he sent forth a dove from him, to see if the
waters were abated from off the face of the ground:
but the dove found no rest for the sole of her foot, and
she returned unto hira into the ark, for the waters
were on the face of the whole earth : then he put forth
his hand, and took her, and pulled her in unto him
into the ark.

"And he stayed yet other seven days, and again he
sent forth the dove out of the ark: and the dove came
in to him in the evening; and, lo, in her mouth was
an olive leaf, pluckt off: so Noah knew that the waters
were abated from off the earth.

"And he stayed yet other seven days, and sent forth
the dove, which returned not again unto him any more."

Back of this dove there is another figure, the black-
winged raven, the emblem of Satan, as the other is
of the Holy Ghost.

And now we see three very remarkable stages iu the
sending forth of this dove, and they seem to sp^ak of
three dispensations of the Holy Spirit.

First, we have tlie dove going forth frcia the a'\,
and finding no rest up^ r the wild and di'ifting waste
of sin and judgmc^nt. This represt^nts the Old Testament
period, perhaps, when the Holy Ghost visited this sin-
ful world, but could find no resting-place, and ever
went back to the bosom of God.

Next, v/e have the dove going forth and returning
with the olive leaf in her mouth, a symbol and a pledge
of peace and reconciliation, a sign that judgment had
passed and peace was returning. Surely this may beau-
tifully represent the next stage of the Holy Spirit's
manifestation, the going forth in the ministrj^ and resur-

LIKE A DOVK

rection of Jesus Christ, to proclaim reconciliation to
a sinful world.

But, as yet, He is not at liberty to reside in this Kin-
cursed earth. There is, therefore, a third stage, when,
at length, the dove goes forth from the ark and returns
no more, but makes the world its home, and builds its
nest amid the habitations of men. This is the third
and present stage of the Holy Spirit's blessed work.

Thus He has now come forth, not to visit this sinful
world, returning again to heaven, but to make it His
abiding home. During the ministry of Christ on earth,
the Spirit dwelt in Him, and not in men. Jesus said
He was with the disciples, but He adds, **He shall be
in you." Like Noah's dove, still lingering in the ark.
and going forth only to visit the earth, so the Holy
Ghost dwelt in Jesus, and touched the hearts of men
from time to time.

But now Jesus has sent Him forth, and His residence
is no longer in heaven, but in the heart of the believer,
and in the bosom of the Chureh. This earth is now His
home; and here among sinful, suffering men, the same
dove is building her nest and rearing her brood for
the celestial realms, where they shall one day soar and
sing In the light of God.

Such is the symbolical unfolding of the Holy Spirit
in these two first pictures of the Old Testament. Let
us now gather out of the figure itself, some of its most
pointed lessons and suggestions.

The first thought is motherhood. It is the figure
of the mother dove. In one of the recent and most
brilliant works of Mr. Drummond, he develops with
great fullness the idea that the goal of nature is always
motherhood.

In the vegetable ereation everything moTt>s toward

POWER FROM ON HIGH

seed and fruit. The flower is but the cradle and the
swaddling bands of the living germ. The plant lives
simply to develop the life of another plant, to reproduce
itself.

Thus, in the natural world, the first appearance of love
is not in the sexual, but in the maternal relations; and
in like manner, the great thought in the heart of God
is motherhood, and God Himself possesses in Himself that
true nature which has been manifested in the creation.

There is in the divine Trinity a personality corres-
ponding to human relationships. Human fatherhood
express-es a need which is met in God the Father. Hu-
man motherhood has its origin in the Holy Ghost. Hu-
man brotherhood, and the higher, closer fellowship of
the husband and the bridegroom, are met in Christ, the
Son of God, our Brother and our Bridegroom. We
cannot reason out the divine Trinity, but God can make
it real to our spiritual instincts.

There are times when we need a father's strength
and love, and our pressed spirits cry out, **0h, if my
father were only here, how quickly he w^ould help me!"
And God our Father answers that cry.

There are times when the orphaned spirit feels the
need of a mother's more delicate and tender touch, and
we think how mother once used to comfort and help us
as no other frend could do. Then we need the mother
heart of God. " ~ "' ~

I envy not the man who has outgrown the weakness

of needing a mother's love, and whose heart finds no

response to such words as these:

Who fed me from hpr gentle breast f
Who taught me in her arms to rest?
And on my lips sweet kisses pressed!
My mother.

\', ho ran to help me when I fell,
And would sotne pretty story tell,
Or kiss the plsi^'.o to make it well?
My mother.

LIKE A DOVE

The Holy Ghost, the author oi the mother's heart and
the child's dependent love, is able to meet in us the
deep need which has outgrown our infant years, and
still lo:)ks up to God with its orphaned cry for love and
sympathy.

Also there is in eveiy human heart the memory of
some brave, true brother, and a longing for o divine
arm that can uphold us with a love **that sticketh closer
than a brother"; yes, there is a deeper longing for
»i friendship more intimate and a fellowship more dear,
which Jesus meets as the divine Husband, the Ishi of
our heart.

All the representations which the Scriptures give us
of the Holy Ghost are in harmony with this thought
of divine motherhood.

The regeneration of the soul is described as a new
birth, and the Holy Ghost is the mother that gives us
this birth. The guidance and nurture of the Spirit
after our conversion are described in language bor-
rowed from the nursery and the home. In the deeper
needs of the soul, the comfort of the Holy Ghost is
described to us under the very iiuage of a mother's
caresses and a mother's love. "As one whom his mothei'
comforteth, so will I eomfort you, and ye shall be com-
forted, saith the Lord."

In turn, as we are filled with the Holy Ghost, we
ourselves have the mother-heart for others, and are
able to reflect the blessing and dispense the comfort
which we have received. Our prayers for others be-
come maternal longings, travailings, and soul-births, and
we learn to say with the apostle, ''My little children,
of v.hom I travail in birth again, until Christ be formed
in you," and to understand such language as this, "As
soon as Zion travailed she brought forth."

The Holy Ghost in the consecrated heart often gives
a yearning for others, and a prayer for the lost and
the tempted, as intensely real as the pangs of maternal

POWER FROM ON HIGH

auguisli iiud love; and people are born of us as truly
as the children of our households, and are linked to
us by bonds as real as our natural kindred.

The figure of the dove is suggestive of peace. The
dove from the ark was the messenger of peace, and
brought back an olive branch as the symbol of recon-
ciliation. Thus is the Holy Spirit the messenger of
peace with God through the Lord Jesus Christ. He
loads the soul to understand and accept the message
of mercy and to find the peace of God. He then brings
the deeper *' peace of God, which keeps the heart and
mind through Christ Jesus." Wherever the Holy Spir-
it reigns there is peace.

Back of the picture of the dove is the raven, rest-
lessly passing to and fro, to and fro, to and fro, a type
of the troubled spirit of evil, that finds no rest even in
the pleasures of sin, but is driven from excitement to
excitement in the vain pursuit of rest, until at last it
is thrown upon the wild billows of a lost eternity, the
victim of everlasting disquietude and unrest.

But the spirit in which the Holy Ghost rules is at
rest. It has a peace that nothing can offend, ' ' the peace
of God that passeth all understanding."

ui.

THE DOVE IS THE SYMBOL OF PURITY.

''Harmless as a dove," is Christ's interpretation of
the beautiful emblem. The Spirit of God which is
purity itself, cannot dwell in an unclean heart. He
cannot abide in the natural rjind. It was said of the
anointing of old, "On man's fiesh it shall not be poured."

The purity which the Holy Spirit brings is like a
white and spotless little plant which grows up out
of a heap of manure, or out of black soil, without one

LIKE A DOVE

grain of impurity adhering to its crystalline surface,
spotless as an angel's wing.

So the Holy Spirit gives a purity of heart which
brings its own protection, for it is essentially unlike
the evil things which grow around it. It may be sur-
rounded on every side with evil, but it is uncontami-
nated and pure because its very nature is essentially
holy and divine, It cannot be soiled, because like the
plumage of the dove, which, protected by its oily cover-
ing, comes forth from the miry pool unstained and \
unsullied by the dark waters, it sheds off every defile-
ment and is proof against the touch of every stain.

THE DOVK IS THE SYMBOL OP GENTLENESS.

The Comforter is gentle, tender, and full of patience
and love. How gentle are God's dealings even with sin-
ners! How patient His forbearance! How tender His
discipline with His own erring children ! How He led
Jacob, Joseph, Israel, David, Elijah, and all His ancient
servants, until they could truly say, "Thy gentleness
hath made me great"!

The heart in which the Holy Spirit dwells will al-
ways be characterized by gentleness, lowliness, quiet-
ness, meekness, and forbearance. The rude, sarcastic
spirit, the brusque manner, the sharp retort, the unkind
cut, — all these belong to the flesh. They have nothing
in common with the gentle teaching of the Comforter.

The Holy Dove shrinks from the noisy, tumultuous,
excited, and vindictive spirit, and finds His home in
the lowly breast of the peaceful soul. "The fruit of the
Spirit is gentleness, meekness."

THE HOLY SPIRIT IS THE SPIRIT OF LOVE.

The dov<> is the special emblem of affection. The
special object of the divine Comforter is to "shed abroad

POWER FROM ON HIGH

the love of God in our hearts," and to show that **the
fruit of the Spirit is love." Wherever He dwells there
is to be found a disposition of unselfisliness, considera-
tion for others, loving helpfulness, and kindness; and Ho
wants love from us. He asks not so much our service
as our communion. He has plenty to serve Him; but
He wants us to love Him and to receive His tender love
for us. He is longing for our tiffection and is disap-
pointed when we give Hira anything else.

A very sweet thought connected with the symbol of
the dove, and true also of the Holy Spirit, is that we
find in the Scriptures many allusions to the mourning
of the dove. It is a bird of sorrow, and its plaintive
notes have more of sadness in them than the voice of
any other bird. Any one who has heard the cooing of
the turtle dove will never forget the plaintive sadness
of its tone.

How can this be true of the Holy Spirit? Simply
because love is always sensitive to suffering. The more
we love, the more we sorrow, especially when the loved
one disappoints our expectations, or our affection. The
lone dove coos for its lost mate, and mourns for its
scattered brood.

And so the Holj^ Spirit is represented as loving us
even unto the extreme of sorrow. We do not read of
the anger of the Holy Ghost, but of the grief of the
Spirit. "They rebelled and vexed His Holy Spirit,"
and we are w^arned, "Grieve not the Holy Spirit where-
by ye are sealed unto the day of redemption."

There is a beautiful passage 11. James which has
been unhappily translated in our Revised Version : "The
Spirit that dwelleth in us lusteth to en\y." It ought
to be, "The Spirit that dwelleth in us loveth us to
jealousy." It is the figure of a love that suffers be-
cause of its intense regard for the loved object.

The Holy Ghost is so anxious to accomplish in us and
for us the highest will of God, and to receive from

I IS !

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LIKE A DOVE

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in us and
?ceive from

us the truest love for Christ, our divine Husband, tluit
He becomes jealous when in any way we disappoint
Him, or divide His love with others. Therefore, it
is said in the preceding passage, "Ye adulterers and
adulteresses, know ye not that the friendship of the
world is enmity with God?"

Oh, shall we grieve so kind a Friend! Shall we dis-
appoint so loving a Husband? Shall we provoke bo
tender and unselfish a jealousy? Shall we not meet
the blessed Holy Spirit with the love He brings us, and
•give in return our undivided and unbounded affection?

Strange, indeed, that God should have to plead with
us for our love. Strange that He whom all Heaven
adores should have a rival in the hearts of the children
whom He has created, and the beings who owe every-
thing they have to His i^^finite mercy! Strange that
so gentle a Friend should have to plead so long and
so tenderly for our affections!

Let us turn to Him with penitential love, and cry:

*'Come Holy Spirit, Heavenly Dove,
With all Thy quickening powers;
Kindle a flame of sacred love
In these cold hearts of ours."

CHAPTER n.

THE BREATH OF GOD.

"And the Lord God formed man of the dust of the ground,
and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man be-
came a living soul." — Genesis 2:7.

"The wind bloweth where it listeth, and thou hearest the
sound thereof, but canst not tell whence it cometh, and whither
it goeth: so is every one that ig born of the Spirit." — John ?>: S.

"And when He had said this, He breathed on them, and said
unto them, Receive ye the Holy Ghost." — .John 20:22.

THE first of these passages contains the second refer-
ence to the Holy Spirit in the Old Testament, and
the other passages prolong the line, and fix the
application of the beautiful picture in Genesis to the
person and work of the Holy Spirit.

The e- blera under which the Spirit is here presented
to us is the breath and the air, the atmosphere in which
we live, and the act by which we inhale or exhale its
vital properties and its vitalizing power.

The value and importance of the atmosphere U self-
evident. We can live for days Avithout food, and for
a lifetime without sight or hearing, but we cannot live
an hour without breath. To breathe is the most essential
of all our physical functions and is in the Scriptures
almost synonymous with life.

Again and again we find such expressions as, ''Everj-
living thing that hath breath upon the earth." We
cannot see it, we can scarcely feel it, and yet around
us there is an ocean of air without which we could not
exist, and without which almost all our senses would
be blind, deaf, and vain, Sound could not be communi-
cated without air, the sweet hymns that we have sung
could not have been uttered or heard, the voices of our

THE BREATH OF GOD

e grounc^,
1 man be-

sarest the

(I wliitlu'r

John 3 : S.

and said

1(1 refer-
ent, and
fix the
s to the

iresented
in which
chale its

. self-
and for
not live
ssential
riptures

friends would never reaoh ns, and the harnionioH of
mnsie would be silent and dead.

Sight also is dependent upon the atmosphere. Yonder
sun seems like a ball of fire in the midst of a pall of
darkness, when we get beyond the earth's atmosphere.
Like a fine, transparent lens, the atmosphere reeeivinj?
the solar rays, diffuses them in floods of light for the
organs of vision.

Without the atmosphere heat would be unknoMrn. In
yonder upper spaees, although seeming to be nearer the
sun, there is an everlasting frigid zone; and every droj)
of blood in our body would be frozen into ice in an
instant, were we to pass beyorul the tempering air whioh
receives and distributes the solar heat.

Such is the striking and beautiful image under which
the Spirit of God is represented. He brings to us the
the verj^ breath of life for spirit, soul, and body, and
creates the atmosphere in which we see the things of
God, hear His voice, and dwell in the warmth and radi-
ance of His love.

The present passage unfolds the work of the Spirit
in man's original creation, and also suggests the Spirit's
work in the higher unfolding of His restoring and
quickening grace.

The first thing we notice in this passage is the marked
distinction that is made between the creation of man
and that of all other animals. At the creative word, they
sprang immediately into existence, and fell into their
places in the great economy of nature, without further
note or comment.

But when man 's creation is about to begin, everything
is different. By a significant pause our attention is
called to a most important crisis. Then, step by step,
the great transaction is accomplished, and we see the
first human being coming forth from his Creator's di-
rect touch in all the completeness of his manifold nature,
the wondrous handiwork of God.

POWER FROM 0\ HIGH

Wc sec cvon the Creator Himself appearing under
a new nauie and in an entirely new aspect. The lii^^her
criticiKni has been loud of questioning the unity of
the book of Genesis, because this second chapter gives
an entirely new name to God. Because we here meet
with Jehovah Pilohim, the critics liave worked up the
astute hypothesis that this is a different God from the
Elohim of the first chapter, and that this chapter, there-
fore, must have had a different author. They tell us
also tiuit this is another of the old fragments of Hebrew
lore that have come dov.n to us along with Babylonian
and l']^yptian scrolls and tablets, and that this distinctly
proves that ]\loscs could not have been the author of both
these chapters.

Ah, how much deei)er is the thought of God! They
used to tell us that the creation of the sun on the fourth
day contradicted the statement that light was formed
in the beginning. But science has lately discovered that
ligiit did exist before the sun, and still exists apart from
it ; and thus has this earlier wisdom fallen into a ruinous
mound of folly.

Moreover, reverent and heaven taught scholarship has
found that there was an infinitely wise and beautiful
reason for the change in the divine Name in the second
chapter of Genesis. In the first chapter the writer is
speaking about dead and soulless matter, and it is quite
proper that he should thus speak of God as the Creator
of matter.

In the second chapter he comes to deal with God in
direct relation to His children. It is the Father coming
to His household. Man in his spiritual nature is now to
be created and presented to us in all the tender spirit-
ual relationships winch he is to sustain to God, and to
his own race. Therefore, it is as a Father that God
comes down into human relations with man and reveals
His name as Jehovah God, the God of infinite love and
tenderness, the God who was about to send His Son,

ot
tel

THE BREATH OF GOD

our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. The very change
of name is both a mark of the kindest design and the
tenderest proof of love.

Next we see the formation of the human body out
of the dust of the earth. Man's form was not created
out of nothing. The elements of matter were made
from nothing, but man was made out of elements already
existing, made however, not by a process of evolution
whif'ii gradually developed a human being of a higher
order, but made immediately a complete human form.
It was still lifeless, until God touched it with His divine
breath, from His own lips; just as in the vision of
Ezekiel, where the picture of the final resurrection shows
the body first appearing reorganized in all its constitu-
ent parts, *'bone to its bone, with flesh and skin to cover
them above; but there is no breath in them."

There is no evolution here, but the immediate act of
creation, succeeded by another act of animation, inspira-
tion, and the divine quickening of the soulless matter
into immortal life.

We see here surely, the sacredness of the human body
and the value and importance of life. It is the direct
work of the Holy Spirit. Therefore, the life of a man
is infinitely more precious than the life of a beast ; and
the crime of murder is recognized by God as a blow
struck at God's own life, and one which He will most
terribly avenge.

The daring act of suicide, therefore, is a defiance of
the Creator and a reckless destruction of His grandest
work. It is one of the awful signs of our times that
not only are men killing others, but that in our public
press, one of the leaders of infidelity has been allowed
publicly to discuss the question of suicide, and to point
out the perfect right of every man to do what he chooses
with his own life. It is no wonder that such discussions
have been followed by an awful increase of suicides in
our midst. Such men are desperate and dreadful crim-

I'OWEB FKOM ON HIGH

inals who pass redhandod in the very act and crinin
of rebellion into the presence and up to the judgment
sent of God.

No man has a right even for an instant to entertain
such a thought. Life is God's gift and jnan's momentous
trust, to be used for God and given back to Him at
last in the great account.

We see here that human life eome.s through the hu-
man soul, not through the human body, and springs
from the direct touch of the Creator and tiie inspiration
of the Almighty.

Man's life is not, like the life of the brute, a pari
of hi.H physical organism. The human organs are com-
plete before they receive the touch of life. Our life
came not from the ground, nor from the phj'sical forces
and functions, but from the imparting of the human
soul through God's direct inbreathing,

Man's life is so sacred, because it is the direct gift of
Go<i's love, and the very communication of God's own
life.

We see the Holy Spirit presented here as the author
not only of life, but also of mind and soul. What a
glory it gives to our conception of the Holy Ghost, to
think of Him as having part in creation! Job says:
"Thy Spirit hath garnished the heavens." The glowing
stars, the beautiful firmament, the rainbov, the golden
sun. the silvery moon, the sunset clouds in all their
radiant glory, are but touches of His infinite wisdom and
taste.

The talents and endowments of the highest minds,
the splendid g^ * is of a Home," and a Milton, the re-
fined taste of a Phidias and a Rembrandt, the sublime
musical harmonies of a Haydn and a Beethoven, as
well as the seraphic and lofty flights of an Isaiah and
a John ; all these likewise came oriirinally from the Holy
Spirit, and all must reflect the higher qualities of wis-

THE liUKATH OF (JOD

2i>

wis-

dom, grace, and i^\oTy which constitute His infinite
attributes.

True, man has perverted these splendid gifts, and
often made them become selfish, unholy, and even diaboli-
cal ; but they are none the less splendid, and they were
no less originally the gifts of the Spirit and the proofs
of His wisdom and power.

Is it not inspiring to think that this Holy Ghost who
fills our heart, is no mere sentiment of spiritual ecstasy
or emotional joy, but is the great Mind from which all
minds come, the mighty Soul by Whom all souls were
made, the Infinite Spirit from whom all being emanated?
As we look at the rainbow as it spans the cloud, and the
verdure as it crowns the mountain, the fragrant blos-
soms that hide in every nook, clothe every rock, and
smile on every field, let us think that these are only
some of His royal robes, revealing to us a little of what
His own essential glory means, and making us think :
"How beautiful, how glorious, how infinite is the bless-
ed Holy Spirit!"

Brother, sister, He made thy soul, He gave thee thy
mind. He created for Himself and His high purpose
thy talents and thy powers of both brain and being.
What art thou doing with thy trust? What wilt thou
say, when He shall ask it back, and call upon thee to
give an account of thy stewardship?

We see here the peculiar characteristic of man as
originally created. "'Man became a living soul." The
predominant characteristic of natural man is expressed
by this word, "soul," just as the predominant character-
istic of the new man in the New Testament is expressed
by the word, "spirit."

The soul represents the intellectual and emotional
elements that constitute man. The spirit represents
the higher and the divine life which links us directly
lu God and enables us to know and to come into rela-
tionfthip with divine things.

POWER FROM ON HIGH

There is no doubt that man, as originally created, bad
also a higher and spiritual nature, because the true
translation of this passage is, ''The Lord God breathed
into his nostrils the breath of lives, and man became
a living soul." His life was manifold. There was
physical life, mental life, and spiritual life, but the
controlling element was soul. So we read in Corinthians,
''The first man Adam was made a living soul, the sec-
ond man Adam was made a quickening Spirit."

It would seem as if, at his fall, man lost his spiritual
life, or, at least, it became so utterly subordinated to
his soulish nature that the natural man was not spiritual.
He needed to be born from above by the Spirit of God,
and to receive a new spiritual being, in order to be
saved.

Even in his highest estate Adam was distinctively
a living soul, rather than a lofty spirit. His soul life
was predominant. It was sinless and loyal to God, hrt
it was a lower life than that which redeemed men now
enjoy.

It v/as, notwithstanding, a verj'^ glorious life, received
as it was by a very significant and glorious touch from
the Spirit of God. "The Lord God breathed into his
nostrils the breath of lives." The Great Artist fash-
ioned his outward form from the finest clay, and per-
fected every feature and everj^ function, and then, like
a fond mother, kissed the cold lips with His own warm
oreath of life, flashing into the lifeless form the spark
of His eternal life, and lo! the beautiful form sprang
into His arms, and man became the living child of his
loving Creator.

It was only a touch of life, a touch of love, that
forever separated and distinguished man above all other
beings as the special object of God's infinite love and
care.

THE BREATH OF GOD

*'Lord, what is man? Extremes how wide
In his mysterious nature join;
His flesh to worms and dust allied,
His soul immortal and divine."

that
other
and

Such was the Spirit's work in the original creation
of man. Our text suggests, what the New Testament
so freely unfolds, the higher work of the Holy Spirit
in the new creation. The Lord Jesus in His discourse
respecting the new birth, in the third chapter of John,
gives us a very significant hint of this work under the
same figure which we find in our text. There He in-
troduces the figure of the wind in its viewless, yet
mighty energy and potency, in connection with the re-
generation of the human soul b}^ tne Holy Ghost.

In His closing interviews with the disciples, in the
twentieth chapter of John, "He breathed upon them,
and said. Receive ye the Holy Ghost." That picture
is so much like the picture of our text that the one
seems the complement of the other. In the one case
we see the Spirit breathe the old creation into life, and
in the other the same Spirit breathes into the new crea-
tion the life of God and the power of a higher principle.

The figure of the new creation runs through all the
Epistles of Paul. "If any man bo in Christ Jesus, ho
is a new creation." "Put on the new man, which
after God is created in righteousness and tri'e holiness."
"After God" distinctly implies not only resemblance
to God, but derivation froin God.

Now, what is the work which the Holy Spirit per-
forms in this now creation? Is it simply the restora-
tion of the Adamic nature in perfection, or is it some-
thing higher and more divine? Most assuredly it is the
latter. "The first man." the apostle tolls us, "was
of the earth earthy, the second Man was the Lord from
heaven; the first man was made a living soul the sec-
ond Man a qniekenin£r Spirit." Then he adds. "As

POWER FROM ON HIGH

if !•

we Have borne the image of the earthly, so shall we
also bear the image of the heavenly."

The Adamic life at its best was only a human life.
The Christ life is divine. Natural life is soul life.
Divine life is Spirit life.

When the New Testament talks about the natural man
it does not mean a gross, sordid, sensual, brutal wretch,
grovelling in swinish lusts; but it means a man with
all the graces and gifts of the highest genius and the
most refined culture. He may be a poet like Shakes-
peare, a composer like Mozart, a sculptor like Phidias,
a painter like Raphael, an architect like Wren, an ora-
tor like Cicero, or a man with a face as beautiful as an
angel and a life as virtuous and stainless as a marble
statue, and yet be purely natural, earth-born, and merely
a soulish man.

When the apostle speaks of *'the natural man who
perceiveth not the things of God, nor can he know
them, because they are spiritually discerned," he uses
the word "psychical" man. Now everybody knows that
Psyche was not the figure of sensualism, but of beauty,
virtue, and moral purity.

The spiritual man is entirely distinct from all this.
His life ever finds its centre in God, and its delight
in His will and fellowship. Its sphere of existence
is not the earth, but the joming world, the heavenly
kingdom. It does not belong here. Its very instincts
turn higher. It has its natural affection and qualities:
but they have been transformed by death into a higher
life and have risen from the old to the new life, from
transient to everlasting. It is true by the veiy nature
of things that **they that are of the Spirit do mind the
things of the Spirit."

As the river runs to the sea, as the fire ascends to the
sun,

THE BREATH OP GOD 33

•*So a soul that's born of God
Pants to see His glorious face;
Upward tends to His abode,
To rest in His embrace."

Thus the chief characteristic of the spiritual man
is to have his abode with the Heavenly Spirit. It is
not so much the man, as The addition to the man, which
constitutes his high character and heavenly power. A
spiritual man is not so much a man possessing a ^^rong
spiritual character as a man filled with the Holy ISpirit.
So the apostle says : * ' Ye are not in the flesh, but in the
Spirit, if uo be that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you."

The glory of the new creation, then, is not only that
it recreates the human spirit, but also that it fits it for
the abode of God Himself, and makes it dependent
upon Him for its life, just as the flower is dependent
upon the sun, and the child upon the mother. The
liighest spirituality, therefore, is the most utter help-
lessness, the most entire dependence, and the most com-
plete possession by the Holy Spirit. The beautiful
act of Christ in breathing upon His disciples, and im-
parting to them from His own lips the very Spirit
that was already in Him, expressed in the most vivid
manner the crowning glory of the new creation. When
the Holy Spirit thus possesses us, He fills every part
of our being. Our spirit is Kis central throne, our
soul is under His control, and even our body becomes
*'the temple of the Holy Ghost." We may be sancti-
fied wholly, that is, in the whole man ; and our whole
''spirit, soul, and body preserved blameless unto the
coming of Jesus Christ."

The final stage of this glorious indwelling will be
reached when the vision of Ezekiel is fulfilled, and the
Spirit shall breathe into the resurrection body the life
of glorious immortality. "And we shall be like Him
when we shall see Him as He is."

1>0WER FROM ON HIGH

There are some lessons which we may leam from this
picture and from the whole subject.

1. The lower is dependent upon the higher, and
should be kept subordinate to it.

Man's physical frame was lifeless until his higher
nature, the soul, entered it; and then he lived. So,
still, our life is dependent upon our higher being; and
life and health come not from below, but from above
and from within.

This is the essential principle of divine healing,
founded as it is on the great law of creation, and ex-
pressed by Christ Himself in His answer to the tempter,
about His own physical life and ours, **Man shall not
live by bread alone, but by every word that passeth
o.ut of the mouth of God."

Our higher spiritual nature should control the soul.
Just as the soul is superior to the body, so the spirit
should be predominant to the soul. The fatal defect
of natural life is that the soul is predominant, and the
natural mind controls both spirit and body. The culti-
vated Athenian, therefore, is just as much in the flesh
as the brutal African savage.

The true life is where the body and the soul are un-
der the control of the spirit, and the spirit is under
the control of the Holy Ghost, the indwelling Spirit
and Life of God.

2. The beautiful figure of the breath and the air
teaches us some practical lessons about the receiving
of the Holy Spirit.

It is a simple law of nature, that air alwaj's comes
in to fill a vacuum. You can produce a draught at
any time, by heating the air until it ascends, and then
letting the cold air rush in to supply its place. Tlius
we can always be filled with the Holy Spirit by provid-
ing a vacuum. This breath is dependent upon exhaust-
ing the previous breath before you can inliale a fresh
one. We must in like manner empty our hearts of the

THE BREATH OF GOD

last breath of tlit» Holy Spirit that we have reeeivo«1 •
for it becomes impure tlie moment we have received
it, and we need a new supply to prevent spiritual as-
phyxia.

We must learn the secret of breathing out, as well
as breathing in. Now the breathing in will continue
if the other part is rightly done. One of the best ways
to make room for the Holy Spirit is to recognize the
needs that come into the life as vacuums for Him to
fill. We sliall find plenty of needs all around us to be
filled ; and, as we pour out our lives in holy service,
He will pour His in, in full measure.

A board of trustees once put a heating apparatus into
a church, and then put in a furnace, and announced
the opening service. But the church was as cold as a
barn. The hot air would not come in, although the
ducts were open and the fire burning at its hottest. An
expert was called in, who quietly told them that while
they had made provision for letting in the fresh air,
they had made none for letting out the old air in the
building, and that no fresh air could come in until the
old air was expelled. As a result the people sat there
shivering.

Thus some of us are shivering and wondering why
the Holy Spirit does not fill us. We have plenty com-
ing in, but we do not give it out. Give out the blessing
you have, start larger plans for service and blessing.
You will soon find that the Holy Ghost is before you,
and that He will present you with blessings for goodness
and will gi\e 3''ou all that He can trust you to give
away to others.

There is a beautiful fact in nature which has its spir-
itual parallels. There is no music so heavenly as that
of an ^olian harp. This harp is nothing but a set of
musical cords arranged in harmony, and then left to
be touched by the unseen fingers of the wandering v^nnds.
As the breath of heaven floats over the chords, it is said

POWKl{ rU'OM ON FfTOTr

l.i'

that notes almost divine float out upon the air, as if
a choir of angels were wandering around and touching
the strings.

It is possible to keep our hearts so open to the touch
of the Holy Spirit that He can play upon them at
will. As we quietly wait in the pathway of His service,
again and again the touch of hands unseen will wake
the echoes, and the heavenly song will spring within the
depths of our being, and vi^e shall wonder at our strange
gladness. But it is still the ^olian liarp of a heart
wholly consecrated and attuned to God, and under the
touch and breathing of the Holy Ghost.

This is what it moans, ''The Lord thy God in the
midst of thee is mighty; He will sav»», He will rest in
His love, He will joy over thee with singing. ' '

evi

v'i

r, as if
oiiching

f! ioucli
hem at
service,
11 wake
hin the
strange
I heart
lor the

in the
rest in

CHAPTER III.

THE SWORD OF THE SPIRIT.

"So He drove out the man; and He placed at the east of the
Garden of Eden Cherubim, and a flaming sword which turned
every way, to keep the way of the tree of life." — Genesis 3: 24.

"And the Sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of God." —
Eph. 6: 17.

"For the Word of God is quick and powerful, and sharper
than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder
of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a dis-
eerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart." — Hebrews 4: 12.

WE are accustomed to think of this scene at the
gate of Eden as a picture of terror and judg-
ment. Cowering under their awful curse, the
fugitive pair stand in the front of the picture, hurrying
forth from their happy Eden home, to return no more :
while behind them, and above the gate that was closing
upon them forever, a fiery sword flashes with angry
severity, to keep the way of the tree of life from which
they are henceforth to be debarred, as they go forth
on their sorrowful journey to the grave.

But as we take a second look at that glorious symbol,
it assumes a brighter phase ; until, after a little while,
we learn to behold it as a symbol of grace, and not of
judgment. Doubtless it so became to them, and ere
long, the very symbol of the divine presence that marked
the place of worship where they came to meet with their
covenant God at the gate of Eden.

The figure of the cherubim, which appears for the
first time in this chapter, becomes in the later Scriptures
the very signal of God's covenant love and manifested
presence. We see it in the tabernacle of the wilderness
above the mercy-seat. We see it in the visions of Isaiah
and Ezekiel in connection with the throne of God. And

POWER FROM ON HIGH

i;^

ti*

it reappears in the Apocalypse in the vision of heavenly
glory.

It was doubtless a type of the Lord Jesus Christ,
or, at least, a symbol of His person and glory. The
I'our faces of the lion, the ox, the eagle, and the man,
represent His kingliness, His sacrifice. His humanity,
and His Deity; and the four Gospels of Matthew, Mark,
Luke, and John are just an unfolding of His person
in these four glorious aspects.

As this figure appeared at the gate of their lost Eden,
it became to our first parents the symbol of Him, the
promised seed of the woman, in whom that lost inherit-
ance was to be restored and that forfeited paradise re-
gained. It did not mean that the tree of life was lost
forever; but rather it pointed out the new way by which
that tree could be restored again, restored by way of
the cherubim, through the redeeming work of the Lord
Jesus Christ.

BUT WHAT ABOUT THE SWORD?

The sword was the token and emblem of the Holy
Spirit, even as the cherubim was the figure of Christ.
The word in the Hebrew is, The Lord God Shekinah,
the cherubim, the fiaming sword. This was the same
Shekinah that afterward appeared in the Holy of Holies.
This flaming sword, therefore, was nothing else than the
special symbol of God's immediate presence with the
Holy Ghost.

It was the symbol, therefore, of grace rather than
of judgment ; and while it involved essentially the prin-
ciple of the divine righteousness, which could no longer
permit a sinful race to partake of the tree of life in
the old way, yet it also pointed forward to the coming
redemption and the pro\nsion through Jesus Christ
which was to open those gates of mercy even to sinful
men through the blood of Jesus and the renewing grace
of the Holy Spirit.

THE SWORD OF THE SPIRIT

eavenly

Christ,
►'. The
le man,
inanity,
, Mark,

person

t Eden,
im, the
inherit-
dise re-
^as lost
r which
way of
le Lord

3 Holy
Christ,
skinah,
i same
Holies,
an the
th the

■ than
) prin-
longer
ife in
oming:
Christ
sinful
grace

The flaming sword at the gate of Eden was the embryo
of the cross. It emphasized the great truth that judg-
ment must come before mercy, that death must be the
gate to life, and that the old natural life must fall before
the piercing sword, ere we can enter through the gates
of the new paradise, and partake of the tree of life,
that life that is incorruptible and everlasting.

It represents the slaying power of the Spirit. The
sword is the symbol of death, and death is the deepest
revelation of Christ's great salvation. The grave is for-
ever the symbol of the Gospel, and the Cross means not
only His death, but ours too. Therefore Satan hated it,
and tried to make Peter reject it, as he cried, "Pity
Thyself, Lord"; but Jesus refused it, and told him
his thought was born of Satan.

The reason men try to get the Cross and the Blood
out of their new Gospel is because they have a shrewd
suspicion that as there was a cross for Him, so there
must also be a cross for them; but in no other way
can we enter into life everlasting. All that is born of
the flesh is flesh, and under the curse. Every fragment
and fibre of the natural life is evil. You may coax it,
you may flatter it, and it will smile upon you; but
some day, if you cross its will, it will spring upon you
and strike you.

Therefore, the sentence of death has passed upon all
the Adam race, and the fierj'' sword must destroy every
vestige of the old humanity before the new life can enter
in and partake of that life-giving tree which stands be-
hind the glorious cherubim.

And this is the work of the Holy Spirit, to put to
death the life of self and sin. "We cannot do it. He
alone can. We may trj' to crucify ourselves and muti-
late ourselves with a thousand blows; but every time

POWER FItOM ON llIGJl

wc will succeed in just missing a vital part, and the old
/ will come through the process, all alive still. Only
the flaming sword can smite to death the self-centred,
self -destroying life of the natural man. Wo, therefore,
read in the eighth of Romans, "If ye through the Spirit
do mortify the deeds of the body, ye shall live."

We see this truth foreshadowed through the whole
Old Testament. The destruction of the race by the flood
was but a figure. The Apostle Peter says of the true
baptism, ''The like figure whereunto baptism doth also
now save us, by the resurrection of Jesus Christ."
Therefore, the apostle intimates that the eight souls who
passed through the waters of the flood were saved hy
water, not from water.

The flood that destroyed and swept away the ungodly
race that was engulfing everything in corruption, was
God's merciful judgment, sending salvation through
destruction. God Himself had said, "The end of all
flesh is come before me." The deluge was just the
death and burial of the great putrid carcase of corrupt
flesh into which humanity had ripened.

The sacrifice on Mount Moriah was another foreshad-
owing of the life that comes through self -surrender.
The sufferings of Joseph were the very pathway to his
elevation and coronation. The passage through the
Red Sea w^as Israel's baptism of death. The death of
the first-born and the destruction of Egypt 's host in the
same flood emphasized and vivified the same picture.
.Vnd the redemption of Israel's firstborn was God's own
striking figure of the fact that the whole nation was ac-
counted dead, and saved as from the dead.

Before Israel could enter Canaan, the old generation
was left in Egypt to die, and a new race passed through
the gates of Kadesh. The passage of the Jordan was
but the type of deeper death. The death of Moses and
the succession of Joshua who alone could bring them

he old
Only
ntred,
refore,
Spirit

whole
e flood
e true
th also
hrist."
lis who
ved b?y

n godly

>n, was

h rough

of all

list the
orrupt

reshad-
I'cnder.
to his
h the
ath of
in the
icture.
's own
as ac-

»ration

irough

m was

les and

them

THE ?WORI> OF THE SPIRIT

into the proiniscul land, hlill further emphasized the
(Irath-side of IIumt liiglirr inhoritance ii'ul ours.

'I'hu cireiuucisioi] was the Hguro of God's death-stroke
upon our natural life. All the types of the canonical
law were touched by the death-mark. Through the
blood of burnt oftVrings, sin offerings, and peace offer-
ings, the Hebrew worshippers and the Aaronic priests
entered into their pbu'e of privilege and acceptance.

The cleansing of the k'i)er was accompanied by the
touching figure of the death of the little bird and the
sprinkling of its blood upon the wing of its companion.
The two were the parable of (Jod's cleansing of the sin-
ful heart of man. I'ivcn the razor nnist cut off the last
hair of his natural strength before he could pass in
among the worshippers. And in the ordinance of the
red heifer, not only the s(!arlet wool that was the figure
of sin, but also the little hyssop which represented our
natural life and the finest tendrils of its strength and
beaut}', must be consumed with the burning heifer.

Not only must **the grass wither, but the flower of
the grass must perish, because the Spirit of the Lord
bloweth upon it." The death sentence must be executed
against the beauty and the blossom, as well as against
the grossness and the sensuality of the natural life.

Even the very best things become a curse to us so
long as we hold them with our natural hands and hearts
and self-centred spirits. That sweet and innocent child
whom God has taught you to love, can be only an idol
until he coasos to be your child, and becomes God's child,
and the death stroke passes upon your love, and you learn
in the resurrection life to hold him for God, and love
him not as a selfish pleasure but as a sacred trust.

Even the husband into whose strong hand God may
have put your trusting little hand, may become but a
substitute for your God, and a separating influence
from Him, until you die to your own selfish affection,
and learn to love him not for your own gratification,

■■'H

POWER PROM ON TIIGII

in:

or his, but in God and unto (rod and for his own highest
good.

Money cannot hurt you if you do not love it for its
own sake. It is not your fortune that hurts you, but
your clinging fondness for it ; and so long as that fond-
ness is alive, your little world of five hundred dollars
a year is as much hindrance to you as would be a mil-
lionaire's palaces and vast investments. It is not the
size of your world that God sees, but the extent to which
it fills your heart.

Even your Christian influence, your reputation as
a worker for God, and your standing among your breth-
ren, may be to you an idol that must die, before you
can be free to live for Him alone.

If you have ever noticed the type on a printed page,
you must have seen that the little **i'^ has always a
dot over it, and that this dot elevates it above the other
letters in the line.

Now, each of us is a little i; and over every one of
us there is a little dot of self-importance, self-will, self-
interest, self-confidence, self-complacency, or something
to which we cling and for which we contend, which just
as surely reveals self-life as if it were a mountain of
real importance.

This i is a rival of Jesus Christ, an enemy of the
Holj^ Ghost, and of our peace and life. Therefore, God
has decreed its death, and (he Holy Spirit, with His
flaming sword, is waiting to destroy it, that we may
be able to enter through the gates and come to the Tree
of Life.

How can this be accomplished?

1. We must ourselves consent to it. We must rec-
ognize the true character of our self-life and the real
quality of the evil thing. We must consent to its de-
struction, and we ourselves must take it as Abraham
did Isaac, and lay it at the feet of God in willing sacri-
fice.

lii

THK bWORD OJ' THE HPIUIT

UghPRt

for its
u, but
; fond-
dollars
a mil-

lOt tlU!

which

;ion as

breth-

re you

i page,
ways a
e other

one of
11, self-
[lething
eh just
tain of

of the
re, God
th His
^e may
le Tree

ist rec-

he real

its de-

)raham

sacri-

This is a hard work for the natural heart; but the
moment the will has been yielded and the choiee has been
made, that death is past; tlu; agony is over, and we
are astcmishud to find that th. death is aec^)niplisliod.

Usually the erisis of life in such cases hangs u[)on a
single point. God does not need to strike us in a hun-
dred places to inflict a death wound. There is one ])oint
that touches the heart, and that is the point God usually
strikes, the dearest thing in our life, the decisive thing in
our plans, the citadel of the will, the centre of the
heart. Wlien we 3'ield there, there is little left to yield
anywhere else; and when we refuse to yield at this point,
a spirit of evasion and compromise enters into all the
rest of our life.

The man or woman who has honestly and entirely
met God at tlie decisive point will always be found un-
compromising and thorough at every other crisis; and
the man or woman who has begun with a half-sur-
rendered will always has a reservation up to the end
of the chapter, unless he meets with God at some later
point and begins where he ought to havvi begun before.

The cause of Saul's ruin was his unwillingness to obey
God and yield up Agag and Anialek to death. Saul
carried out the divine commission through every chapter
but one. He fought his battles bravely, he managed his
campaigns skillfully, he subdued Amalek, he captured
Agag, he left no point in the possession of the enemy ;
but he kept the best of the spoil and the life of the
king for hw own gratification, pretending that he did
it for the worship of God.

This was the cause of his ruin. Old Samuel gave to
the ages to come an object lesson of what God meant
when he took his great broadsword and hewed Agag to
pieces before the king, and told his cowardly master
**that obedience is better than sacrifice, and to hearken
than the fat of rams."

At one time when we talked with a dear friend who

POWER FROM ON HIGH

had been struggling for years to enter into a satisfactory
spiritual experience, she told us how disappointed and
unsatisfied her heart was. As we looked at her earnest
face it seemed to us that there must be something in
the way, and we asked her if tiiere were not some reserva-
tion in her entire consecration. We did not need to
wait for the answer for it bespoke itself. "We then asked
her if she would not be brave enough to let the last
cord go, to give herself unreservedly to Christ at any
cost, and especially to let go the thing that she shrank
most at the thought of surrendering. She looked so
sadly in our face, and answered, "I have not the cour-
age." Alas! it is the old and oft-repeated story; and
yet those coward hearts who shrink from God's gentle
8v/( rd will yet have to bear suiferings inconceivably more
severe, and to be pierced with sorrows that make one's
heart ache even to think of.

The brave heart that dares to die once for all and
forever is the wise heart, the happy heart, the heart
that finds **the yoke easy and the burden light."

Beloved, will you dare to die, or rather to yield unto
death that thing in your heart, your life, your will,
V'hich constitutes the strength of your natural life, and
the axis around which all your being is enfolded?

Having yielded yourself unto death, you must next
believe that God accepts you, and that the Holy Ghost
undertakes the work, and really accomplishes it. The
command of the Scriptures is very simple and explicit
at this point, "Reckon yourselves dead indeed unto
sin, but alive unto God, through Jesus Christ our Lord."

This act is purely a matt^n* of faith. Faith and sight
always differ to such an extent that, while to your senses
it does not seem to be so, your faith must still reckon
it as true. This is a very difficult attitude to hold, and
only as we thoroughly believe God, can we thus reckon
upon His Word and His Working. As we do so, how-

THE SWORD OF THE Sl'IRIT

ever, faith will convert it into fact, and it will be even
so.

These two words, ** yield" and ''reckon," are pass-
words into the resurrection life. They are like the two
edges of the "Sword of the Spirit" through which we
enter into crucifixion with Christ.

Thia act of surrender and this reckoning of faith are
recognized in the New Testament as marking a very
definite crisis in the spiritual life. It does not mean
that we are expected to be going through a continual
dying, but that there should be one very definite act
of dying, and then a constant habit of reckoning our-
selves as dead and meeting everything from this stand-
point.

In the sixth chapter of Romans, the apostle takes
the position that we arje to meet God as those that are
alive from the dead, and thus enjoy the benefit of an
accomplished act of crucifixion. Once for all we are
to hand over our sin, our self, and all our belongings
to the Holy Ghost; and henceforth, whatever comes up
in us, we are to reckon it as no longer a part of ourselves,
but to steadily refuse to recognize it, and count it simply
as a temptation. Thus we shall have power to overcome
it, and shall be able to maintain our consciousness of
purity and victory unmoved.

As any evil comes up, and the consciousness of any
unholy thing touches our inner senses, it is our privilege
at once to hand it over to the Holy Ghost and to lay it
upon Jesus, as something already crucified with Him;
and as of old, in the case of the sin offering, it will be
carried without the camp and burned to ashes.

There may be deep suffering, there may be protracted
pain, it may be intensely real ; but throughout all there
will be a very sweet and sacred sense of God'*: presence,
of intense purity in our whole spirit, and of our separa-
tion from the evil wliicli is b'^ing consumed. Truly, it
will be borne without the camp, so that even the smell

POWER FROM ON HIGH

of the burning will not defile the holy sanctuary of the
consecrated heart; and we shall come out of the fire
without even the smell of the flames upon our garments.
It is so blessed to have the Holy Spirit slay things.
No sword but His can pass so perfectly between us and
the evil, so that it consumes the sin without touching
the spirit. Just as the skillful surgeon, with brave heart
and keen instrument, can pass between the arteries and
veins with such exquisite delicacy that no fibre is severed,
and no injury done to a single organ, so the blessed
Holy Spirit, and He alone, can separate the evil from
the good, and "pierce even to the dividing asunder of
soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow."

This brings us to the searching power of the Holy
Spirit, for this fiery sword is a heart-searching weapon
as well as a sin destroying power.

Undoubtedly the passage in the fourth chapter of
Hebrews already quoted, refers to this ancient figure.
"The Word of God is quick and powerful, and sharper
than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the dividing
asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and mar-
row, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of
the heart; neither is there any creature that is not
manifest in his sight."

There is a strong and subtle power in electric fire
to search out and discriminate between substances and
detect abnormal and unwholesome conditions. When the
electric sponge passes over the human frame, it leaves no
sensation in the healthful places; but if there is disease
anywhere it will cling to the spot and seem to search it
out and penetrate it with a subtle touch, often with
the keenest pain.

In like manner the Holy Ghost passes through those
portions of our being that are right and pure, without
any sense of resistance, or, perhaps, without any sen-

THE SWORD OF THE SPIKIT

'ch it
with

sation whatever. He has such free course that He just
seems to blend with our own consciousness. But when
He comes to anything wrong, there is immediate resist-
ance; and as He presses His hand upon it, there is
intense suffering.

The sword of the Spirit is searching out the evil and
compelling it to declare itself, just as the skirmishing
companies in the advance guard of the army, by their
firing and their feint attacks, bring out the foe and
compel him to sliow his position.

The greatest hindrance to our spiritual life and prog-
ress is found in the disguise of the enemy and the de-
ception of our own nature. The evil cannot be crucified
^ntil it is recognized, diagnosed, brought into the Hght.
and delivered over to death.

Self clothes itself in so many disguises that nothing
but the piercing sword of the Holy Spirit and the
Holy Scriptures can compel it to take its true place,
and own its evil character.

Some one has said that it is half the battle of life
to call things by their true names. The Holy Spirit
searches out our sins, and He finds sin in many places
where our own self-complacency would never have sus-
pected it. Not only does He detect and condemn the
gross ' furms of immorality and disobedience, which
hav<^ ii»al directly with the ten commandments and
the ia\^ ^r i.'ighteousness; but He brings us face to face
with the la*, of love, and shows us that even the unkindly
thought is murder, the unforgiving spirit is an unpar-
donable sin, the habit of living to ourselves rebellion
against God, and a selfish motive, even in the holiest
act, a soul-defiling sin.

He brings us face to face with the law of faith, and
shov i us that to doubt God is a crime, to treasure an
aiixii {3 care for the morrow is wickedness, to pray in
unbelief is to take the name of God in vain, and, in
short, that "whatever is not of faith is sin."

\t'y

POWER FROM ON HIGH

He takes us through the realm of truth and error.
He gives us the touchstone whereby we detect the false,
and learn to answer even Satan 's quotation of Scripture
by Christ 's own weapon, * ' It is written again. ' '

He discriminates between the false peace and the true,
the earthly and the incorruptible joy, the love that is
purely a natural instinct and the charity that is Christ 's
love, which never faileth, the zeal of Jehu, which is
but a selfish passion, and the holy zeal that burns as
strongly when no man approves, and stands as firmly
when it costs ut -^nr very life, as when it leads us to a
throne. He disui lates between the false and the
true worship, the pi^/er prompted by the Holy Spirit
to the Father who seeth in secret, and the religious
emotion which is kindled in the aesthetic nature by an
eloquent sermon, a pathetic story, a sentimental appeal,
or a sublime musical symphony which may bring tears
to the eyes while the heart is as hard as adamant to
God and our fellowmen.

He shows us the difference between true and false sub-
mission and the weakness that yields to sickness and
Satan. On the other hand. He shows us the true patience
that lovingly bows to the will of God, bui refuses the
weights that the adversary would put upon us.

He leads us to pray with the Psalmist, ''Search me,
God, and know my heart; try me and know my
thoughts; and see if there be any wicked way in me,
and lead me in the way everlasting.'*

He gives us that perfect abandonment of spirit which
makes us willing to be searched and glad to be laid
open to the eye of God, and to cry, "See if there be
in me any way of grief," as the margin reads, or **any
way of pain," as the new version renders it. It makes
us glad to be sanctified from not only the wicked but
also the earthly thing, and to be so separated from all
self-life that every way of pain shall be prevented.

THE SWORD OF THE SPIRIT

which
laid

re be
any

Tiakes
but

m all

nted.

and everything in us that could hurt us shall be sub-
dued. Thus shall we be enabled not only to lay aside
the sin that so easily besets us, but every weight that
would so lightly hold us back.

The blessed Holy Spirit, who possesses the consecrated
heart, is intensely concerned for our highest life, and
watches us with a sensitive, and even a jealous love.
Very beautiful is the true translation of that ordinary
passage in the Epistle of James, "The Spirit that dwell-
eth in us loveth us to jealousy."

The heart of the Holy Ghost is intensely concerned
in preserving us from every stain and blemish, and
bringing us into the very highest possibilities of the
will of God.

The Heavenly Bridegroom would have His Church
free not only from every spot, but also from "every
wrinkle, or any such thing." The spot is the mark of
sin, but the wrinkle is the sign of weakness, age, and
decay. He wants no such defacing touch upon the holy
features of His Beloved. Therefore, the Holy Ghost,
who is the Executor of His will, and the divine Mes-
senger whom He sends to call, separate, and bring home
His Bride, is jealously concerned in fulfilling in us all
the Master's will, and is ever searching us through and
through, with more and more tenderness, and with the
most earnest solicitude, to find out every hidden fault
and every unsupplied lack, and to bring us up into the
fullness of the stature of spiritual manhood and entire
preparation for the marriage of the Lamb.

Shall we wel ome His loving scrutiny and His faith-
ful caret Shall we cry,

"Search me, O God, search me and know my heart,
Search me and try me in the hidden part;
Cleanse me and make me holy as Thou art,

And lead me in the way everlastinjj. "

POWER KKOM ON HIGH

i'M 'i.

THE SUBDUING POWER OP THE HOLY SPIRIT.

The Holy Ghost is God's Executive not only for the
salvation and sanctification of His people, but for the
conviction of sinners and the judgment of wicked men,
the destruction of the enemies of God, and the final
punishment of the devil and his angels.

This sword is God's weapon for slaying the proud
and willful sinner and laying him at the feet of mercy.
We can entertain and interest men, but only the Holy
Ghost can convict them of sin, and pierce them to the
heart with profound and soul-saving conviction. We
are so glad that there is One who bears this mighty
sword, and uses it through His Holy Word, when faith-
fully presented, to break the sinner's heart and bring
him to the feet of Jesus.

But the Holy Spirit is also God's mighty hand to
avenge His honor against the wicked, and punish those
who disobey Him and harm His people. The same power
that struck down Ananias and Sapphira in Pentecostal
days is still in the church and the world; and wher-
ever God's presence is, there, in a remarkable degree.
His judgments are made known.

It is a very solemn thing to presume against the Holy
Ghost. He is the author of liuman life, and in a moment
He can take it away. "If I whet my glittering sword,
and my hand take hold on judgment," God Himself
hath said, and "Who is he that can deliver out of my
hand?" That is a true and awful word: "Vengeance
is mine, I will repay, saith the Lord," and again, "De-
fraud not one another, for God is the avenger of all
such."

I would not like to have orphan children and widowed
wives cry out against me to God. I would not like to
have the little hand of wronged and innocent children
pleading to heaven for my punishment. T would not

i .

THE SWORD OF THK SPIRIT

like to have to meet that tvemendoiis sentence, after n
life of reckless evil-speaking against the servants of
God, "Touch not mine anointed, and do my prophets
no harm." I would rather play with the forked light-
ning, or take in my hands living wires with their fiery
current, than speak a reckless word against any servant
of Christ, or idly repeat the slanderous darts which
thousands of Christians are hurling on others, to the
hurt of their own souls and bo<lies.

You may often wonder, perhaps, why your sickness
is not healed, your spirit filled with the joy of the Holy
Ghost, or your life blessed and prosperous. It may be
that some dart which you have flung with angry voice,
or in an idle hour of thoughtless gossip, is pursuing you
on its returning way, as it describes the circle whicli
always brings back to the source from which it came
every shaft of bitterness, and every idle and evil word.

Let us remember that when we persecute or hurt the
children of God, we are but persecuting Him, and hurt-
ing ourselves far more.

Finally, there is an hour coming, in which "the Lord
with his sore and great and strong sword shall punish
leviathan, the piercing serpent, even leviathan, that
crooked servant; and He shall slay the dragon that
is in the sea."

Then even Satan himself shall feel the sharp and
fiery force of that flaming sword, which he saw for the
first time in its awful gleam, as he went out from Eden's
gate with the fearful crime of man's destruction upon
his head, and the tremendous curse which that fiery
sword is yet to execute.

That hour has not yet fully come ; but even yet, thank
God, that Blessed Holy Spirit is here to resist and to
overcome the power of the destroyer.

He was Christ's strength and defence in the conflict
in the wilderness, and He Himself hath said, "When

POWER FROM O.N HIGH

the enemy coiucth in like a flood, the Spirit of the Lord
will lift up a. standard against liim."

There arc aome things tiiat only God can wither;
and it is very blessed that, in connection with the only
miracle of judgment that Christ performed, the wither-
ing of the fig tree, He gave to us His strongest lesson
upon human faith, and told us that we might claim
such faith as would wither the barren fig tree, and de-
stroy the powers of evil that were too strong for us.

It is blessed to have a God who knows how not only
to cleanse and purify us, but to destroy our spiritual
foes, and to deal even with our human adversaries.
"Our God is a consuming fire, and the Lord shall judge
His people." If we could only realize what those tre-
mendous words mean, "Our God is a consuming fire,"
we should feel so sorry for the man who wrongs us,
that we should wish him no evil, but would tremble at
the thought of his judgment. We would get down upon
our knees and plead with God to have mercy upon him.

Beloved, let us pass through this flaming sword with-
out a reservation. Then we shall not only be fearless
of its power to harm us, but it will be our mighty
weapon against every adversary and every evil, and
the power of our aggressive warfare for the service of
men and the triumph of our Master *s Kingdom.

I ISii

I i i'hi

e Lord

Aithcr;
ic only
wither-
lesson
; claim
ind de-
r us.
ot only
jiritual
rsaries.
I judge
)se tre-
r fire,"
ngs us,
iible at
n upon
n him.

with-
"earless
mighty
il, and
vicQ of

CHAPTER IV.

THE PILLAR OF CLOUD AND PIRE.

"And the Lord went before them by day in a pillar of cloud,
to lead them the way; and by night in a pillar of fire, to give
them light; to go by day and night: he took not away the pillar
of the cloud by day, nor the pillar of fire by night, from before the
people. "—Exodus 13:21, 22.

"And the Angel of God, which went before the camp of
Israel, removed and went behind them; and the pillar of cloud
went from before their face, and stood behind them: and it came
between the camp of the Egyptians and the camp of Israel ; and it
was a cloud of darkness to them, but it gave light by night to
these: so that the one came not near the other all night." —
Exodus 14: 19, 20.

"Then a cloud covered the tent of the congregation, and the
glory of the Lord filled the tabernacle. And Moses was not able
to enter into the tent of the congregation, because the cloud
abode thereon, and the glory of the Lord filled the tabernacle.
And when the cloud was taken up from over the tabernacle, the
children of Israel went onward in all their journeys: but if the
cloud were not taken up then they journeyed not till the day
that it was taken up. For the cloud of the Lord was upon the
tabernacle by day, and the fire was on it by night, in the sight
of all the house of Israel, throughout all their journeys." —
Exodus 40 : 34-38.

"And the cloud of the Lord was upon them by day, when
they went out of the camp. And it came to pass, when the ark
set forward, that Moses said. Rise up. Lord, and let Thine enemies
be scattered, and let them tUat hate Thee flee before Thee. And
when it rested, he said, Return, O Lord, unto the many thou-
sands of Israel." — Numbers 10: 34, 36.

"Moreover, brethren, 1 would not that ye should be ignorant,
how that all our fathers were under the cloud, and all passed
through the sea; and were all baptized unto Moses in the cloud
and in the sea." — I Corinthians 10: 1, 2.

THE application to the Holy Spirit of these beauti-
ful passages, and of the sublime figure that runs
through all of thc^, is rendered certain by the
words of the prophet Isaiah, in the sixty-third chapter.

POWER FROM ON HIGH

"In all their afBiction He waa afflicted, and the angel
of TTis presence saved them : in His love and in His
pity He redeemed them : and He bare them, and carried
them all the days of old.

"But they rebelled, and vexed His Holy Spirit: there-
fore He was turned to be their enemy, and 11 o fovijjht
against them.

'*Then He remembered the days of old, Moses, and
his people, saying. Where is He that brought them up
out of the sea with the shepherd of his flock? where is
He that put His Holy Spirit within him? That led
them by the right hand of Moses with His glorious
arm, dividing the water before them, to make Himself
an everlasting name? That led them through the deep,
as an horse in the wilderness, that they should not
stumble f

"As a beast goeth down into the valley, the Spirit
of the Lord caused him to rest: so didst Thou lead
Thy people, to make Thyself a glorious name."

The prophet expressly recognizes the Holy Spirit as
the presence who dwelt in the midst of Israel, and led
them through the Ked Sea and the wilderness.

The figure under which He is represented in these
passages is striking and sublime. It was customary
for ancient armies, when marching through a foreign
country, to be led, especially by night, by great illu-
minations of torches and beacons carried in front of the
advancing host, and rising in the darkess with lurid
smoke and flame.

It would not, therefore, be altogether surprising for
the host of Israel to see in front the majestic signal
of the pillar of cloud and fire; and yet, this Avas no
merely human beacon light. With a majesty unearthly
and divine, it reared its fiery column to the sky, and
marched, like a mighty sentinel, before the host, pausing
when they were to rest, moving when they were to ad-
vance, separating them from their foes, and sometimes

TWK PILL A I? OF OLOUD AND FIRE

R angel
in His
carried

: there-
fovigbt

les, and
hem lip
v^here is
hat led
glorious
Himself
tie deep,
uld not

e Spirit
lou lead

Spirit as
and led

Hn these

Rtoinary

foreign

?at illii-

t of the

h lurid

ing for

signal

was no

earthly

and

)ausing

to ad-

letimes

spreading its folds like the canopy of a great oplestial
tent about their heads, and sheltering them from the
fiery heat of the desert sun.

1. It was a supernatural symbol. They were to be
guided henceforth by Jehovah Himself. This was their
peculiar distinction, that "the Lord alone did lead
them." This was the place where Moses was interceding
for them with God. "Wlierein shall we be distinct
from all the other people of the earth, except Thou
go with us," and His gracious answer was, "My pres-
ence shall go with you and I will give you rest."

The pillar of cloud and fire did not represent even
an angel's guidance and guardianship. It was the sign
of God's own presence.

In the same way the Church of the living God has
a supernatural leadership. The Christian has a divine
guide. Our holy Christianity is not a collection of wise
human opinions, and an organization combining the
strongest forces of human wisdom and power. It is
nothing, if it is not divine. Give us a supernatural
religion, or none at all.

The church of the Apostles was a living miracle,
and so should the church of the nineteenth century be.
Anything less and anything else is a disappointment
to God and to every true man.

Not with such transcendent portents as in days of
old does He now appear. But none the less real are
His living presence and His mighty working in the
hearts of His people and in the events of His provi-
dence.

Why should God be less real and glorious today than
in the days of Moses, the triumphs of Joshua, and the
miracles of Pentecost? Let us send up to Him the
heartfelt prayer, "Awake, arm of the Lord, as in
the days of old ' ' ! And let us hear in answer, His own
sunmions to us: "Awake, awake, put on thy strength.
Zion. thy beautiful garments, Jerusalem!'

i>»

powKu FROM ON Tiir.n

2. The pillar of cloud aud lire wa^ a sour(3e of light,
of truth and guidance to His people. BarbHric super-
stition delights in the wonderful, but divine power mani-
fests itself in the practical and the useful. God wants
not to play with us, an a magician with his wondering
audience, but to guide us as a shepherd would his Hock.
Because He wants to give us His life, His Word has
little to say about subjects that appeal principally to
our curiosity, but speaks mainly to the intelligence, the
understanding, and the heart.

The Holy Grhost comes not to give us extraordinary
manifestations, but to give us life and light. The nearer
we come to Him, the more simple will His illumination
and leading be. He comes to ''guide us into all truth."
He comes to shed light upon our own hearts, and to
show us ourselves. He comes to reveal Christ, to give,
and then to illumine the Holy Scriptures, and to n\p
divine realities vivid and clear to our spiritual ap]
hension. He comes as a Spirit of wisdom and revelation
in the knowledge of Christ, to "enlighten the eyes of
our understanding, that we may know what is the hope
of his calling, and what the riches of the glory of his
inheritance in the saints, and what is the exceeding
greatness of his power to usward who believe, according
to the working of his mighty power."

Without Him there is no true light. These holy mys-
teries, these divine realities which to us are so dear,
are incomprehensible to the most intelligent human
minds. Two men sitting side by side hear the same
truths, read the same words, live under the same re-
ligious influences. To the one they are uninteresting
and unreal, while to the other they are his very life.

As of old, when the same cloud was light to Israel,
and darkness to the Egyptians, "so that they came not
near each other all the night," so still it is true that
"the natural man perceiveth not the things of the Spirit
of God, neither indeed can he know them, for they are

THE PILLAI? OF CLOm AND VUIK

f light,
i supcr-
r mani-
i wants
lulering
lis tiock.
ord has
pally to
jnce, tlie

ordinary
le nearer
inination
I truth."
I, and to
, to give,
to m;'
al api
'cvelation
3 eyes ol:
the hope
ry of his
'xceeding
leeording

loly mys-
so dear,

human

he same

same re-

|teresting

ery life.

o Israel,

ame not

rue that

e Spirit
they are

spiritually discerned; h\\\ Ijo tliat is spiritual scarchoth
all things, yea, the deep things of God."

3. As it was a pillar of cloud as well as of light,
so, as we have seen, the Holy Ghost is as dark to the
unbeliever as He is light to the saint. The things of
God are as dark to the world as they are beautiful and
plain to the true disciple. And even to God's children
there is an element of cloud, as well as luminousness.

There is a veiled light which is as necessary some-
liiiies as the unclouded sun. The Holy Ghost is given
to reveal many things to us, '*but we cannot bear them
now." Ho reserves His deeper teachings until we can
stand them and understand them. We do not always see
our way, and it is better that we do not. We nmst
learn, as well as trust, even in the c' »ud. The very
highest lessons on faith are taught by the veiled light,
and the way we cannot understand. *'I will lead them
by the way they know not," is still His word to every
trusting child; but He always adds, "These things will
I do unto them, and not forsake them."

The presence of clouds upon your sky, and trials in
your path, is the ver>' best evidence that you are fol-
lowing the pillar of cloud, and walking in the presence
of Gt)d. They had to enter the cloud before they could
behold the glory of the transfiguration. A little later
that same cloud became the chariot to receive the as-
cending Lord, and it is still waiting as the chariot that
will bring His glorious appearing.

Still it is true that while "clouds and darkness are
round about His throne," mercy and truth are ever in
their midst, and shall go before His face.

Perhaps the most beautiful and gracious use of the
cloud was to shelter them from the fiery sun. Like a
great umbrella, that majestic pillar spread its canopy
above the camp, and became a shielding shadow from
the burning heat in the treeless desert. No one who

POWER FROM ON HIGH

has never felt an oriental sun can fully appreciate how
much this means, — a shadow from the heat.

So the Holy Spirit comes between us and the fiery,
scorching rays of sorrow and temptation, and under
His shadow we sit and sing:

' * All my hope on Thee is stayed,
All my help from Thee 1 bring;
Cover my defeuseless head

With the shadow of Thy wing."

4. It was a pillar of fire. Fire is more than light.
It not only iliumiiios, it warms, it purifies, it destroys.
It is the same Holy Ghost who baptizes with water and
with fire, but it is not the same measure of the baptism.

The baptism of fire is a baptism that penetrates
the inmost fibres of our being, consuming the old life,
cleansing and quickening our entire being,, and endu-
ing us with power from on high.

God wants to bring every one of us to such a place,
that we shall not fear the fire, because everything com-
bustible will have been consumed.

5. The pillar went beforr them. They saw it first
in front of them, far off, and far above them. It came
to them first when they were in Egypt, and it led
them out of the land of bondage.

And so the Holy Spirit aomes to us even in our life
of sin, and ieads us out of the world to Christ, and to
begin our pilgrimage toward oar Promised Land.

The presence of the Holy Ghost in His first mani-
festation is distant, and we shrink, perhaps, from Hi.s
closer touch. We know Him an One that brings to us
the knowledge of God, the message of Christ, and the
hope of salvation, and guides us in our first steopings
into Christian life; but we have not yet come to know
Hira as our indwelling Guest and our everlasting Com-
forter.

THE PILLAR OF CLOUD ANV FIRE

ate how

le fiery,
i under

an light.

destroys.

'ater and

baptism.

lenetrates

old life,

nd endu-

a place,
ling com-

it first

It came

id it led

our life
It, and to
land.
hi mani-
Erora Hift
igs to us
and the
^teppii'gs
to know
if.g Com-

6. The pillar of cloud came closer to them, passed
through the camp, and baptized them in its very pres-
ence, and then passed and stood behind them. This
was as they went through the waters of the Red Sea
When that hour of peril came, and they walked down
by faith into what seemed a living death, tlien their
glorious Guide came nearer to their trembling hearts,
enfolded them in His very arms, and then stood behind
them like a wall of defence against their foes.

Thus when we step out in living faith, and cross
the Red Sea which separates us from our past and sin-
ful life, and we go down into the waters of death with
Jesus, the Holy Spirit comes nigher and baptizes us
with His very touch and presence.

The baptism of water, which is the type of death,
is significant of the baptism of the Holy Ghost. When
Jesus went down into the Jordan and received baptism
at the hands of John, "He saw the heavens opened,
and the Spirit, like a dove descending, and it abode upon
Him." And the nromise of the Spirit, in Acts wa.s
connected with baptism. "Repeat and be baptized,
everj' one of you in the name of Jesus Christ, for the
remissions of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the
Holy Ghost." So we read that "they were all baptized
unto Moses in the cloud and in the sea." As they
stepped into the Red Sea, the heavenly cloud enwrapped
its folds around them, and they were immersed in both
baptisms. . Probably at the moment when th^ cloud
passed through the midst of the camp, they were less
conscious of its presence than they had been when it
stood in the front.

So when we pass into the cloud we are not conscious
of it. All we are conscious of is mist and darkness,
so that, frequently, when we receive the Holy Ghost we
are not directly conscious of what is occurring. We
are, perhaps, so plunged in darkness, so consumed with
hunger and desire, and so constantly reachinc out to

POWER FROM ON HIGH

'f :

.■i!;;:|

■ , 1

God that we do not realize our own condition. All
the better, should it be so.

A friend said to me the other day, "I am so hungry,
I so long for the baptism of the Holy Ghost." T asked
him, **Wlio made you so hungry? Who gave you this
longing? It was the very Holy Ghost. He is already
with you in the shadow-side of the blessing, and He
who gave the capacity for the appetite is Himself near
to meet it and satisfy it."

7. The pillar stood behind them.

The Holy Spirit is ever our rear-guard. He takes
our past and hides it from us. Behind them lay Egypt
and the Egyptians, all the past with its sin and its
shame, and all their adversaries.

Thus the Holy Ghost shuts us off from all that we
have been, and from all that can come against us. Oh,
how blessed it is, to put Him between you and your
sins, between you and your troubles, between you and
your enemies, between you and your memories, and to
have Him for your glorious rearward!

8. The pillar of cloud and fire, a little later, came
and dwelt within them. There came a day, — and it
was an era in their history, — when a very wonderful
change occurred in the position of that pillar. It was
the first day of the first month, in the second year of
their history.

They had just completed the erection of the taber-
nacle, that simple and divinely planned little sanctuary,
which was God's perfect pattern and type of the Church
and the individual saint. Every board, tache, loop,
and curtain had been finished and placed according to
God's precise command. Every article of furniture
wa.s in its place, and they simply took their hands off,
and gave it God, anointing it with oil, as the symbol
of the Holy Spirit's receiving and accepting the offer-
ing.

^.k

THE PILLAR OF CLOUD AND FIRE

I. All

lungry,
[ asked
ou this
already
md He
slf near

ie takes
^ Egypt
and its

that we
us. Oh,
nd your
you and
and to

»r, came
-and it

mderful
It was
year of

le taber-
(nctuary,
Church
le, loop,
Irding to
lurniture
mds off,
symbol
offer-

Immediately that majestic cloud which had crowned
the mount with its fiery glory, and floated in the heavens
in its lofty grandeur, stooped from the skies and entered
that holy place; and there, in the Holy of Holies, be-
tween the wings of the cherubim and the mercy seat, it
took its place as the glowing Shekinah, that mysterious
light and awful flame, which henceforth became the
supernatural sign of God's immediate presence, and
which lit up the holy chamber with supernatural light
and glory, God had moved into His consecrated and
accepted abode, and henceforth He was no longer at
a distance on a throne of glorj--, but within the midst
of Israel, seated on the throne of grace.

i\jid so in the opening verses of the very next chapter
we read that God spoke unto Moses, not from the moun-
tain, nor from the cloud, but from the tabernacle.
Mystery of mysteries! Gift of gifts! Privilege un-
speakable and divine! This is the promise which He
has at length fulfilled to His Church and Hi^ people,
and which every believer may now personally claim.
''Know ye not that ye are the temple of d. and that
the Spirit of God dwelleth in j'ou?" *'! will put my
Spirit within you. and cause you to walk in my stattites,
and ye shall keep my judgments, and do them." 'I
will dwell in them, and walk in them; and I will be
their God, and they shall be my people."

"If any man w'ill hear my voice, and open the door,
I will come in unto him, and sup with him, and he
with me." "He dw^elleth with von, and shall be in
you." At that day ye shall know that I am in my
Father, and ye in mo, and I in yon." "If a man love
me, he will keep m.y words; and my Father will love
him, and we will come unto him, and make our abode
with him."

Where is thy God? Yonder on a throne of glory,
in the heights of heaven, or here in the aanctuaiy of
your heart, enthroned within you?

POWER FROM ON HIGH

' I ,1 !

" jj i; i

;!i :'

' I

Yes, this is the second great era of Christian life,
the fiist day of the second year. The first year was the
Passover, the sprinkled blood, the acceptance of Jesus
as the Saviour. That was the beginning of Israel's
history, for God said it should be the beginn'^^g of
months. But this is the second blessing, a crisis just as
definite, an era just as marked, a moment just as eter-
nally memorable. That was Calvary. This is Pentecost.

It has its time, and there is a day, when Pentecost
has fully come. No soul that has ever known it can
mistake it or forget it.

Beloved, has it come to yoia, or rather has He come to
abide in you forever?

9. The pillar of cloud and fire continued to lead them
thenceforward in all their journeys. When they were
to march, it moved before them. When they were to
rest, it paused and spread its covering wings above
them, as the mother bird brooding over her young, as
the mighty canopy of a heavenly tent under which they
were gathered.

And so the Holy Spirit is our Guide, our Leader and
our Resting-place. There are times when He presses us
forward into prayer, into service, into suffering, into new
experiences, new duties, new claims of faith and hope
and love; but there are times when He arrests us in our
activity, and rests us under His overshadowing wing,
and quiets us in the secret place of the Most High, teach-
ing us some new lesson, breathing into us some deeper
strength or fullness, and then leading us on again, at
His bidding alone. He i^ the true guide of the saint,
and the true leader of th(! Church, our wonderful Coun-
sellor, our unerring Friend. He who would deny the
personal guidance of the Holy Ghost in order that he
might honor the Word of God as our onh guide, must
dishonor that other word of promise, that His sheep shall
know His voice, and that His hearkening and obedient

THE PILLAE OF CLOUD AND FIRE

n life,
7as the

' Jesus

[srael 's

S'^g of
just as
IS eter-
citecost.

jntecost
it can

come to

id them
By were
were to
s above
^ung, as
eh they

This

children shall hear a Voice behind them saying,
is the way, walk ye in it."

And now let us notice that the pillar of cloud which
had entered the tabernacle did not linger there and cease
to be visible externally; but it rose from the presence
chamber where the Shekinah shone, and hovered above
'ii, and then spread over the sky just as before, an ex-
ternal as well as an internal presence.

The difference was this. In its first stage it was an
external sign only ; then it became an int^ernal presence ;
and then, finally, it become both internal and external,
the Shekinab within and the eloud above.

So in our earlier experiences we know the Holy Ghost
only at a distance, in things that i:appen in a providen-
tial direction, or in the Word alone; but after awhile
we receive Him as an inward Guest, and He dwells in
our very midst, and He speaks to us in the innermost
chambers of our being. The external working of His
power does not cease, but it is increased and seems t<he
more glorious. The Power that dwells within us works
without us, answering prayer, healing sickness, overrul-
ing providences, ** Doing exceeding abundantly above all
that we ask or think, according to the Power that worketh
in us."

There is a double presence of the Lord for the con-
vsecrated believer. He is present in the heart, and He is
mightily present in the events of life. He is the Christ
in us, the Christ of all the days, with all power in heaven
and earth.

As that pillar led them all the way, triumphiug over
their enemies, dividing the waters of the Jordan, and
never leaving them until they entered the promised
land, so the Holy Ghost is oui* Wonder-worker, our all
suflEieient God and Guardian. He is waiting in these days
to work as mightily in the affairs of men as in the days
of Moses, of Daniel, and of Paul.

I/.
5

;ii '!.>i

POWER FROM ON HIGH

5.'

■, !

if.i

10. It will be noticed, however, that aft»er they entered
the Land of Promise, all the external manifestations of
God's presence disappeared, and the vision that came
to Joshua in front of Jericho — the Son of God with a
drawn sword in His hand — became henceforth a pledge
of the same presence, protection, and power. Hencefortli,
Ihe external sign was withdrawn, and their Leader was
to be with them by faith and not by sight.

In like manner, when we come into the fullness of
Christ, we have fewer signs, we have less of the wonder-
ful in form ; but we have more of the working of faith
and power.

God showed Himself to Joshua, not by the luminous
cloud, but by the falling of the walls of Jericho, by the
defeat of the Canaanites at Beth-horan, by the capture
of Hebron, by the conquest of the Anakim, and by the
subjugation of all the thirty-one kings of Canaan. These
were the wonders of His power and the signals of His
presence.

Thus God, as He leads us into a deeper life of faith
and power, will show to us His mind, and manifest His
presence by the things He does every (Uiy through us.
by the salvation of souls around us, by the breaking of
proud and sinful hearts, by the opening of heathen na-
tions to the Gospel, by the working of His providence in
the events of our time, by the evangelization of the world,
by these mighty overturnings which are to bring the
glorious advent of His Son.

But in all this, the blessing will be given to faith, and
not to sight. We must learn to trust the Holy Ghost, even
when we cannot perceive the signals of His presence.

In conclusion; have we kept pace with this advanc-
ing cloud? Have we followed Hira from Egypt down
into the depths of the Red Sea and the floods of the
Jordan? Have we let Him lead us into the Promised
Land? Has He come to be our holv Guest, our indwell-

THE PILLAR OP CLOUD AND FIRE

Dtered
ons of
came
with a
pledge
eforth,
er was

less of
;'onder-
.f faith

ing Presence? Have we proved His mighty works with
us as well as in lis, and has He led us out into victories
of faith and service for which His own heart is longing,
that He may glorify Jesus and hasten His return? Shall
we not send up the prayer :

Holy Ghost I bid Thee welcome,

Come and be my holy Guest ;
Heavenly Dove, within my bosom

Make Thy home, and build Thy nest.

minous
by the

[japture

by the

These

of His

)f faith
est His

gh us.

ing of

en na-
e in

world,
Ing the

lenc(

jth, and
\i, even
^nce.
dvanc-
down
lof the
)mised
lid well-

• !

CHAPTER V.

(Hi;.!

THE LIVING WATER.

"And did all drink the same spiritual drink; for they drank
ef the spiritual Rock that followed them: and that Rock was
Christ. ' '—I Cor. 10 : 4.

"Having therefore, brethern, boldness to enter into the holiest
by the blood of Jesus, by a new and living way, which he hath
consecrated for us, through the vail, that is to say, his flesh;
and having a high priest over the house of God; let iis draw
near with a true heart, in full assurance of faith, having our
hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience, and our bodies washed
with pure water." — Hebrews 10: 19-22.

INHERE is no emblem of the Holy Spirit" more fre-
quently used in the Scriptures than water. Natural-
ly suggestive of cleansing, refreshing, and fullness,
it expresses most perfectly the most important offices of
the Holy Ghost.

It is not possible for us to refer to all the passages
and incidents which are based upon this figure ; but we
shall call attention to four remarkable passages which
unfold in logical and chronological order the work of
the Holy Spirit in our redemption and complete salva-
tion.

I" I

M'l:

J I!.

The first of these passages, quoted above, refers to the
first three of these unfoldings of the Holy Spirit. They
are all connected with incidents in the journey of the
Israelites through the wilderness.

The first is the smiting of the rock in Horeb, of which
we read in the seventeenth chapter of Exodus. They had
come to the fountain at Meribnh, but t'onnrl it dry; and,
as usual, instead of trusting and praying, tliey began to
murmur and complain. Then God commanded Moses to
lead them to the rock in Horeb, and to ^miio it with the

If'

THE LJVTNO WATER

y drank
ock wa8

e holiest
he hath
is flpsh;
us draw
^'ing our
j washed

ore fre-
satural-
'uUness,
ffices of

•assages
but we

which
ork of

salva-

to the

They

I of the

which
ley had
and,
li^an to

)ses to
Ith the

rod wherewith he had divided tlie Red Sea and per-
formed the miracles of judgment in Egypt. The cleft
rock gave forth a flood of water, and the people drank
abundantly, and their cattle.

The smiting of the rock in Horeb was, of course, a
type of the Lord Jesus Christ* and the stroke of the
Father's judgment on Calvary by which our guilt was
expiated and the fountain of mercy was opened for sin-
ful men. But the water which flowed from that rock was
also a type of the Holy Spirit, purchased for us as the
most precious gift of His redemption.

Water is always a type of the Holy Ghost. Jesus,
Himself, has explained the symbol in John 7 : 88-39,
where, after speaking of the living water which was to
flow from the believer, he added, ' ' This He spake of the
Holy Spirit, which they that believe on Him should re-

» J

ceive

The water from the rock in Horeb was the type of the
outpouring of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost, in conse-
quence of Christ's accomplished redemption. This is its
dispensational meaning. So far as the successive eras of
our Christian life are concerned, it prefigures our first
experiences of the Holy Spirit after our conversion.

There is a very real sense in which the Spirit of God
is given to the believer as soon as he accepts t«he Lord
Jesus Christ as his Saviour. There is a deeper fullness
which follows at a later stage. But let not that discredit
nor displace the other real experience in which He comes
to the believer, in so far as the heart is open to receive
Him. This was the first promise to the infant church
and the youngest believers of Pentecost, "Repent, and
be baptized every one of you for the remission of sins,
and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost; for
the promise is unto you, and to your children, and to
all that are afar off, as many as the Lord, our God. shall
call." This is the only security for the establishing and
standing of any believers ; and no convert should be left

POWKU FROM ON TITO IT

until \ui has definitely received the Holy Spirit, and bern
sealed unto the day of redemption by the indwelling
power and the presence of God.

f I

In the twentieth chapter of Numbers we have a second
incident very similar to the first and yet essentially dif-
ferent. Again the people come to the place of extremity.
They are without water and ready to perish from thirst.
Once again, God interposes for their deliverance. Once
again, He leads them to the rock and the waters ilow in
abundance for the supply of all their need, ''and the
people drink, and their cattle," and they are refreshed
and satisfied. All this seems exactly like the other mir-
acle, but when we look a little closer we find important
differences.

In the first place, it is forty years later in their history.
The first miracle was at the beginning of their wilderness
life. This is near its close, and is intended, therefore,
to mark some advanced stage in their experience.

It is at a different place — Kadesh. The word "Ka-
desh" means holiness, and we know that Kadesh was the
gate to the Promised Land. This, therefore, would sug-
gest that the outpouring of the Holy Spirit here set forth
has reference to the more advanced stages of our Chris-
tian life. There is an era in every complete Christian
life ; there is a Kadesh where God brings us into His holi-
ness and gives to us the Spirit to dwell within us, and
causes us to walk in His statutes and keep His judg-
ments and do them ; there is a promised land whose gate-
way lies at Kadesh, into which we enter by receiving the
Holy Ghost in His fullness. There is a place where we
either pass out of the wilderness into the ''rest that re-
maineth for the people of God," or where we pass on
to the ceaseless round of ^ailure and disappointment in
which so many ar« living.

THK LI V J NO WATKK

id been
welling

. Roeond
illy dif-
tremity.
Li thirst.
I. Once
, flow in
and the
efreshed
her mir-
iportant

■ history.
ild(irness
lerefore,

•d **Ka-

was the
uld sug-
;et forth

Chris-
hristian

is holi-
us, and
is judg-
•se gate-

ing the
Ihere we
Ithat re-
;s on
lent in

There is an infinite difference between t«his reception
of the Holy Spirit and His coming to us at our conver-
sion. There He comes to witness to our acceptance and
forgiveness; here He comes to accept our perfect offer-
ing of ourselves to Him, and to possess us fully for Him-
self, bringing us into personal union witli Jesus, and
keeping us hencefortli in obedience and victory.

Again, it will be noticed t»hat the manner of the mir-
acle was entirely different. In the first instance, the
rock was to be struck by the rod of the law-giver, but
in this case it was not to be struck. Moses was simply
to speak to it, and it« would give forth its waters at tlie
quiet voice of faith and prayer. Moses disobeyed this
command and vehemently struck the rock repeatedly.
"Hear now, ye rebels, must we fetch water out of the
rock?" God, displeased with his haste and unbelief,
severely punished him by excluding him from the Prom-
ised Land; yet He honored His own promise by giving
the water to the people, notwithstai ''ng the failure of
Moses.

All this action is exceedingly significant. The rock
was not to be struck again, because it was already smitten
and opened, and the waters were already flowing freely.
All that was needed was to receive by faith what had al-
ready been secured by the great sacrifice. And so for
His, the Holy Ghost* is given, the sacrifice is finished, the
price is paid, the conditions are fulfilled, the heavens are
opened, and the Holy Ghost has come.

Let us not crucify Christ afresh, or ignore the value
of His death by trying to bring down the Spirit again
from heaven. All we have to do is to simply receive
Him and make room for His entrance. Our part is not
to strike but to speak to the Rock, and, as we come in
the simplicity of trust, quietly, expectantly claim His en-
tering in ; more willingly than a father would give good
gifts to his children, will the Father on high bestow the
Holy Spirit on them that ask Him. Not like the priests

If.

POWER FROM ON HIGH

-I

of Baal, with noisy clamor and imbelicnitifx r<^potitions are
we to ask for Him, but in unliesitating eoMU<lcncc and
full asyurancn of faith are we to com*^ and receive what
He is waiting to bestow.

The bells within the innermost shrine of God s holy
dwelling-place are very delicately hung, and a rude touch
will jar the exquisite wires and break the diilicate mech-
anism. All you need is the lightest touch, in the days
of your childhood, you got access to a building by pound-
ing on the door with a rud(! knocker ; but now you come
and softly touch a little button, and the electric current
signals to the highest storey your approach. God's bells
all move in answer to electric wires, and your rude,
clumsy blows only hinder your petition.

The Holy Ghost is very sensitive, as love always is.
You can conquer a wild beast by blows and chains, but
you cannot conquer * woman's heart that, way, or win
the love of a sensitive nature. That must be wooed by
the delicate touches of trust and affection. So the
Holy Ghost has to itaken by a faith as delicate and
sensitive as the gentle heart with whom it is coming in
touch. One thought of unbelief, one expression of im-
patient distrust or fear, will instantly check the perfect
freedom of His operations as much as a breath of frost
would wither the petals of the most sensitive rose or lily.

Speak t«o the Rock, do not strike it. Believe in the
Holy Ghost and treat Him with the tenderest con-
fidence and the most unwavering trust, and He will meet
you wit'h instant response and equal confidence.

Beloved, have you come to the rock in Kadesh? Have
you opened all your being to the fullness of the Spirit?
And then, with the confidence of the child to the mother,
the bride to the husband, the flower to the sunshine, have
you received by faith ? And are you drinking of the full-
ness and dwelling in the innermost centre of His blessed
aife?

.''I 1'!

THE LIVING WATER

ns are
e and
1 what

s holy
! touch
iiiech-
e days
pouud-
Li come
iurrent
's bells
r rude,

vays is.
ins, but
or win
ooed by
So the
ate and
ming in
of im-
perfect
of frost
or lily,
in the
St con-
ill meet

' Have

Spirit?
mother,
Qe, have
he full-
blessed

We come to the third stage in the following chapter,
Numbers 21. We have a very striking little picture:
"And from thence they went to Beer: that* is the well
whereof tlie Lord spake unto Moses, Gather the people
together, and I will give them water.

**Then Israel sang this song, Spring up, well; sing
ye unto it;

* * The princes digged the well, the nobles of the people
digged it, by the direction of the lawgiver, with their
staves. And from the wilderness they went to Mat-
tanah."

At first sight the meaning is a little obscure, but as
we look more closely, we see a very striking picture. The
people have passed on from Kadesh, and again the parch-
ed desert is all around them. There are no oases, rills,
or flowing streams in sight, and they are famishing with
thirst. Then comes the divine command: "Gather the
people that I may give them water." "Where shall
they be gathered? Gathered to the well of Beer. Oh!
there is no well in sight." Never mind, gather them all
the same. Right there in the desert sand, bring them
together. ' '

Now the command is given to the nobles to bring out
their pilgrim staves and to dig the well in the desert
sand; and while they dig, the people are gathered
around and are commanded to sing. And so they
dig and sing, and sing and dig, and their song is
given us in this simple refrain: "Spring up, well;
sing ye unto it." As they sang, the waters burst
forth from the depths, and overflowed and ran like a
river through the camp ; and the people drank and sang
and wondered.

This is the explanation of that strange expression in
the text, "They drank of that rock that followed them."
This is the way it followed them. The rock did not travei

POWER FROAI 0\ TrOM

{ I

1 ' I '

through the desert beliind the camp, aor was it carried
about with them in their caravan, like some fetish or car
of Juggernaut; but the water of the rock followed
them. It ran under the desert sands, a subterranean
stream. They could not see it on the surface, but it
was there all the same. All they needed to do was to
gather above it, and with their staves dig the well and
sing the song of faith and prayer, and lo! the waters
flowed abundantly.

What a beautiful picture of ihe abiding life in the
Spirit, and of the continuous sources of our spiritual
life! When we receive the fullness of the Spirit, the
same blessed promise of life and salvatdon continues to
follow us through all our wilderness journey. Not al-
ways will we see llie water, or be able to trace the channel
of the river ; but it is there beneath our feet, even under
th<i fiery sun and burning sands of the hottest desert,
and all w^e need iu do is to dig the well of need with
the staff of promise, then sing the song of trust, and the
Holy Spirit will be found springing up, as ever, in His
infinite supply for all our need.

Every promise in the Bible has some fitness to some
need in our life. As wo use the promise faithfully and
meet its simple conditions, we shall fi.nd that the waters
will spring and our wants will be supplied from tHe
Fountain of Life.

To dig is not always very pleasant work. There is a
good deal of excavation, and room has to be made by
s<-ooping out the sand ; and so the promises of God have
their sharp edges as well as their gracious fullness. They
empty us as well as fill us ; but as we meet the conditions,
we shall always find them faithful and full, "exceeding
abundantly above all that we ask or think."

This striking figure of the desert well teaches us the
secret of abiding in the Spirit. Our deeper life in Christ
is not always apparent even U:> ourselves, for it is hid
with Christ iu God; but the fountain is always there,

THE LIVING WATER

carried
li or car
[oUowed
rranean
, but it
) was to
,vell and
i waters

e in the
spiritual
)irit, the
tinues to
Not al-
3 channel
en under
?t desert,
leed with
,, and the
r, in His

to some
Eully and

e waters
[from tlie

'here is a
made bv
iGod have
;ss. They
editions,
exceeding

les us the
I in Christ
it is hid
lys there,

and we may ever drink from its hidden depths and find
the supply of every need in Him.

IV.

There is another figure of the Holy Spirit suggested
by the pasvsage quoted from the Hebrews. There we see
the worshipper entering int'O the Holy of Holies with
his body washed with pure water. This suggests the
ancient laver which stood at the entrance of the tab(n'-
nacle, and was intended for the use of the priests who
went within to wash their faces and their hands and
cleanse t<heir robes from every spot and stain whenever
they entered the holy precincts. It was made out of the
looking-glasses of the women of Israel, and it is probfiblo
that externally it was a great polished mirror in Avhich
they could see themselves and their defilements. Then
in the water they could cleanse away the stains.

This laver was the type of the Holy Spirit as our
fountain of cleansing and our way of approach to the
holy place of Christ's immediate presence. Only as we
are cleansed in that laver can we enter in as the priests
of God and feed upon the Living Bread, dwelling in the
light of the golden lamps, and breathing the sweet odor
of the incense that fills the presence chamber Avith the
atmosphere of heaven. At once it reveals and removes
the defilemcLts of our hearts and lives. There is a sense
in which, once for all, the Holy Spirit cleanses us. This
v.as what our Master meant when He said, "He that
is washed needet'h not save to wash his feet, but is clean
every whit."

But there is a constant liability to contract at least
the stains of earth, if not the taint of sin. The very
atmosphere we breathe is so laden with t-he breath of
evil that it is almost impossible to escape its touch and
taint; but the blessed Holy Spirit stands ministering
within the sacred teinple of the heart, and is ready everv

POWER FROM ON HIGH

1/ - rv

j.'i I

1 '■: I

i :

moment to wash away the faintest touch of earth or evil,
and to keep us spotless, undefiled, and perfectly accepted
in His sight.

* ' If we walk in the light as he is in the light, we have
fellowship one with t'he other, and the blood of Jesus
Christ, his Son, cleanseth us from all sin." The laver
speaks to us of the permanent and unceasing operations
of the Holy Spirit. The rock in Horeb and Kadesh, and
even the w^ell in the wilderness, were but the transient
types of these spiritual verities. But the laver was God 's
abiding symbol, and continued in the tabernacle through
all their future national life. It speaks to us of that con-
tinual provision which He has made for our abiding life.
Let us, therefore, receive Him and abide in Him ; let us
wait in the Holy Place ; let us not only come for cleans-
ing, but let us keep coming; and let us so dwell under
the continual influences and in the very atmosphere of
His love that we shall never be out of communion, and
that we shall be kept cleansed from all sin.

We read, in the description of the tabernacle, not only
of the la\ oi* but also of its foot. What was the intention
of the foot of the laver? Perhaps it was a little outlet
through which the waters could more easily flow within
the reach of one who sought cleansing. The laver itself
was too high to be easily reached, at least at its brim;
but through this little pipe, which probably could be
opened by a simple mechanism, the waters flowed to the
ground and were always within the reach of even the
littlest child, had it needed to come.

How truly this illustrates the blessed nearness of the
Holy Ghost! Not in the highest heaven do we need to
seek Him, not afar off do we have to cry to Him ; but He
is our Paraclete, One by our side, One very near and
ever near to help in time of need. He is to us the pres-
ence of the Holy God, already given and ever present
in the heart of His Church. He is as ready to enter the
yielded and trusting heart as light is to flow into the

THE LIVING WATE-R

or evil,
iccepted

we have
>f Jesus
le laver
erations
3sh, and
ransient
Ks God 's
throu^li
hat con-
ing life.
; let us
:♦ eleans-
11 under
ahere of
ion, and

not only
ntention
le outlet
V within
'er itself
ts brim;
2ould be
id to the
3ven the

open window and sunshine to meet the petals of the
opening flower.

Let us send up to Him the simple, whole-hearted
prayer,

Blessed Holy Spirit

Welcome to my breast;
In my heart forever
Be my Holy GuesU

5s of the
need to
but He
lear and
the pres-
' present
inter the
into the

CHAPTER VI.

THE ANOINTING OIL.

"Now He which stablisheth us with you iu Christ, and hath
anointed us, is God." — 2 Cor. 1: 21.

THE usG of oil is more common in eastern lands
than it is with us. The olive tree is one of the typ-
ical trees of Palestine. It is a wonderful tree. Its
leaf is lustrous and seems always as if it had been bathed
in the oil of its own olive tree, and the tree itself seems
almost indestructible. It is usually crooked, gnarled,
twisted, and almost torn to pieces. Nearly every tree is
hollow, and oft»en you see the larger part of the
trunk apparently t'l-n away, with perhaps a single root
adhering to the soil ; but above it rises a luxuriant mass
of boughs and foliage seeming to be imbued with imper-
ishable freshness. Some of the olives of Gethsemane must
be at least a thousand years old; indeed the olive tree
seems as if it could scarcely die.

It is a good type of the Holy Spirit and the soul
anointed with His life and power. He may be exposed
to all the trials of time; but, filled with the elixir of im-
perishable life, his leaf is always green, and he shall not
cease from yielding fruit even in ishe parched land and
the most inhospitable climate.

The ordinance of anointing with oil was one of th<^
most common and signifieant ceremonials of the Old
Testament. The leper was anointed, the tabernacle was
anointed, the priests were anointed. t«he prophets were
anointed, the kings were anointed, the guest was anoint
edj the sick were anointed, t was the special symbol of
the Holy Ghost and the dedication of tin- person anointed
to His service and possession.

THE ANOINTING OIL

id hath

lands
le typ-
e. Its
bathed
' seems
oarled,
tri'e is
of the
;lc root
it mass
imper-
le must
ve tree

ne sold

xposed

of iiii-

all not

lid and

of th<'
ho Old
(de was
ts were

anoint -
mbol of
nointed

THE PREPARATION OF THE ANOINTING OIL.

We have a full acount of this in Exodus 30:23-33.
"Take thou unto thee principal spices, of pure myrrh
five hundred shekels, and of sweet cinnamon half so
mucli, even two hundred and fifty shekels, and of sweet
ealumus two hundred and fifty shekels, and of cassia five
hundred shekels, after the shekel of the sanctuary, and
of olive oil a hin : and thou shalt make it an oil of holy
ointment, an ointment compound after the art of the
apothecary : it shall be an holy anointing oil. And thou
shalt anoint the tabernacle of the congregation therewith,
a!id the ark of the testimony, and the table and all his
vessels, and the candlestick and his vessels, and the altar
of incense, and the altar of burnt offering with all his
vessels, and the laver and his foot. And thou shalt sancti-
fy them, that they may be most holy: whatsoever toucheth
them shall be holy. And thou shalt anoint Aaron and
his sons, and consecrat'C them, that they may minister
unto rae in the priest's office."

The method was particularly prescribed in every de-
tail, and no counterfeit was allowed under the most
severe penalties.

It will be noticed:

1. That this oil was specially prepared. It» was not
ordinary olive oil; but other ingredients were added,
chiefly perfumes, making it exquisitely fragrant, so that
it not only was visible to tne eye, but expressed to the
sense of smell the sweetest suggestions of the divine pres-
ence, of which fragrance was always a peculiar sign.

The Holy Ghost has been prepared in like manner
for His special work in us, just as the body of Jesus
was prepared and His incarnation arranged for, so that
He might come to ua, not as the pure Deity alone, but
as Ood manifest in the flesh. So the Holy Ghost has
been prepared to dwell within us and to bring us into the

POWER FROM ON HIGH

11^

[ : ' i

If r

presence of God in the way best adapted to our weak
human nature.

The Holy Ghost who dwells in the believer is not
the Deity who comes directly from the throne in the
majesty of His Godhead. He is the Spirit that dwelt in
the human Christ for three and a half years, the Spirit
who wept in His tears, suffered in his agonies, spake
in His words of wisdom and love, took the little children
in His arms, healed the sick and raised the dead, allowed
John to lean upon His bosom, and said to the sorrow-
ing disciples, **Let not your heart be troubled." This
is the Spirit, therefore, that comes to us, softened and
humanized by His union with the blessed Jesus, and
calling Himself the Spirit of Christ, so that in receiv-
ing Him we receive the heart of Jesus and the person
of Jesus into our inmost being.

How gracious of the Holy Ghost to come to us thus
fitted to meet pur frailty and our need and to satisfy
the wants of all our being!

2. As the oil was fragrant and sweet, so the Holy
Ghost brings to us the very sweetness of heaven. iVlI
these spices have, perhaps, some special significance.
The myrrh used, as w(^ know, for embalming the dead,
suggests to us the comfort of the Holy Ghost; the
cinnamon was sweet to the taste, and fitly expresses
the delightful and joyful influences of the Spirit; and
the cassia, a healing and wholesome ingredient, reminds
us of the Holy Ghost as our Health Bringer and our
Sanctifier.

3. The oil was not to be counterfeited or imitated.
Neither can the Holy Ghost be imitated. Satan has
always tried to stimulate the Spirit of God, and to get
us to worship him instead of Jehovah. Even in the
days of Moses men sometimes brought strange fixe;
but they were met with fiery judgment from the jealous
God, who will not suffer His holy things to be profaned
or confounded with evil. Men are still constantly in

THE ANOINTING OIL

danger of accepting the false for the true. Spiritualism,
Christian Science, and Theosophy come with their un-
holy imitations, but no deep discernment* is needed to
detect tlieir disguises. He would be a bold man who
willingly would be mixed up with these sorceries and
Satanic delusions which leave a blister and a scar wher-
ever they touch the soul. ,

There are other counterfeits less glaring and daring.
Intellectual brilliancy, eloquence, and pathos often pre-
sume to imitate the operations of the Spirit and pro-
duce the impression w^hich only He can bring. Music
attempts to thrill our aesthetic nature wdth the emotions
and feelings which many mistake for real devotion.
Architecture and art are called into play to impress the
imagination with the scenic effects of senuous worship.
But none of those do the work of the Holy Spirit. Peo-
ple can weep under entrancing music and heart-stirring
eloquence, and yet as much as before go out and live
lives of cruel selfishness and gross unrighteousness.
People can bow with a kind of awe under the imposing
arch and before the vivid painting, or the impressive
pageant of ceremonial worship, and yet> have no fear
of God before their eyes. There is no substitute for
the Holy Ghost. He alone can produce conviction,
divine impression, time devotion, unselfish life, and rev-
erent worship.

4. The oil must not be poured on man's flesh. It was
to be used exclusively for the consecrated and separated
ones. No stranger was to receive this anointing. It
was the badge of separation to God. Thus the Holy
Ghost comes upon the separated, dedicated, consecrated
heart. You cannot receive it upon a carnal and fleshly
soul. God will not dwell in a sinful spirit. You must
separate yourself from evil, dedicate yourself to Him,
and be crucified wit-h Christ to self and sin before He
will make your heart, His abiding place. His promise
is: "I will take away the stony heart out of your flesh,

f
i

POWER FKOM ON HIGH

$ i

i ill,

and a new spirit will I put within you. ' ' Then he adds,
' ' I will put my Spirit within you and cause you to walk
in my statutes, and ye shall keep my judgments and
do them."

You cannot get power from God until you receive
holiness. Simon Magus wanted this power from the
Apostle Peter ; but his wicked heart received only God 's
terrific rebuke and the awful words, "Thou art in the
gall of bitterness and the bond of iniciuity." Men are
still trying to get power without holiness, but it can
only bring disappointment and danger. In their search
for power they will probably end where Simon Magus
did, with the unholy power of the wicked one and the
curse of a holy God.

The Spirit's first work is to cleanse us, to separate
ua, to sanctify us, to dedicat«e us wholly to God. Then
as the property of God, He takes passession of us for
God and uses us for His service and glory alone.

PARTICULAR CASES IN VTKICH THE ANOINTING OIL WAS

USED.

1. The anrnting of the leper is described in Leviti-
cus 14. This represents the Holy Spirit's cleansing
and consecrating work upon the sinner. This poor leper
outside the camp represents our worst estate, and it is
for such sinners t'hat the Holy Ghost has come to bring
all the fullness of Jesus.

First, the poor leper must be met and welcomed, and
then brought by the priest inside the camp and under
the cleansing water and sprinkled blood; then the an-
ointing oil is applied, and he is touched over the blood-
mark that has already been given, upon his right ear,
his right thumb, and his right toe. This means the
consecrating and the filling of all his powers of appre-
hension and reception represented by the ear, all his

THE ANOINTING OIL

adds,

walk

i and

Bceive
a the
God's
n the
m are
it can
search
Magus
id the

parate

Then

us for

L WAS

eviti-
ansing
r leper
d it is

bring

;d, and
under

;he an-
blood-

ht ear,

ns the
appre-
all his

powers of appropriating faith and holy service repre-
sented by the hand, and all his stoppings and ways
represented y his feet. All these are dedicated to God
and taken possession of by the Holy Ghost.

The oil does not come first, but< the blood. Then the
oil is placed upon the blood. The Holy Ghost comes
only to those who have received Jesus. There is no
spiritual power apart from the cross and the Saviour.
Those higlicr revelations and deeper teachings which
discard the blood of Calvary come from beneath. Like
the ancient St. Francis, we can always know the true
Christ by the print' of the nails and the spear. How-
ever, we need the oil as much as the blood. Our ears,
our hands, and our feet must be divinely quickened,
possessed, and filled before we can rightly hear and
understand for God, rightly appropriate the things we
know, rightly work for Him, and walk in His holy
ways.

But this is not all. This is but a drop of oil.
We no\v read that the remnant of the oil was poured
upon the head of him who was to be cleansed. This
is a much larger filling. The \ev}' word "pour" means
a fullness of blessing, and the remnant of oil means
all the oil that was left, all that was in the priest's hand.
We know that the priest is no one else than the Son
of God, the Mighty One, who holds the ocean in the
hollow of His hand, and, therefore, the rest of the oil
that the palm of His hand can hold is an ocean of in-
finite fullness. Tt means that all the oil, t»hat Jesus
Himself had, is poured upon our head. The same anoint-
ing came upon Him that He also shares with us. All
this for a poor leper !

Beloved, have you received the remnant of the oil?

2. The anointing of the priest is unfolded in Exodus
29:7-21, and Leviticus 8:12, 80. Here we find a dif-
ferent application of the oil. Tt is applied to the priest
with the object of fitting him for service in waiting

POWER FROM ON HIGH

t .

fi:

upon the Lord and ministering in His presence. We
also must receive the holy anointing, not only for cleansr
ing but for service. We are not fit to represent God
in the world or to do any spiritual work for Him until
we receive the Holy Ghost.

You will notice a double operation here in connection
with the oil. First, Aaron is anointed, and then after-
wards his sons are anointed with him, Aaron is anointed
alone, even as Christ received the baptism of the Holy
Ghost first upon Himself on the banks of the Jordan;
and then later He shed the same spirit upon His diciples.
Even as He, we may receive this divine anointing. The
oil that falls on Aaron's head goes down to the skirts
of his garment. The Spirit that was upon Him He
shed upon His followers. ^ nding in their midst,
He breat'hes upon them and sa^s unto them, ** Receive
ye the Holy Ghost," and then He explains the great
enduement and the great commission by the strange
and mighty words, "As my Father hath sent me, even
so send I you."

This is our true preparation for the highest of all
priestly ministries, for prayer, and for every other serv-
ice in which we would represent God or bless men. Even
the blaster did not venture to go forth to fulfill His
great commission until He could stand before the world
and say, **The Spirit of the Lord is upon me; because
he hath anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor;
he hath sent me to heal the broken hearted, ....
to set at liberty them that are bruised, to preach the
acceptable year of the Lord." For any man to pre-
sume to represent the Son of God, to stand between
the living and the dead, to act as ambassador for Christ,
to bear salvation to dying men, to bring men from dark-
ness to light and from the power of Satan unto God
without the anointing of the Holy Ghost, is the most
daring presumption and the most offensive impertinence

THE ANOINTING OIL

, We

'leansr
t God
I until

lection

after-
lointed
e Holy
ordan -,
iciples.
^. The
i skirts
[im He

midst,
Receive
le great
strange
le, even

t of all
ler serv-
i. Even
IfiU His
le world
because
le poor;
• • •
each the
to pre-
between
r Christ,
lorn dark-
nto God
the most
ertinenci

to the God whom he misrepresents and to the men on
whom he imposes.

3. The anointing of the tabernacle represents some-
thing higher than even cleansing or service; namely,
the indwelling and abiding presence of God Himself
in the believer, as His consecrated temple. We read
the full account of it in Exodus 40:9-16. As we have
seen ii a former chapter, it is a groat' day; it marks a
special era in their national history. It was on the
first day of the first month of the second year. It marked
a new departure and a higher experience. The glory
that had hitherto marched in front of them or shone
above them in t>he cloud or on the mountain, was hence-
forth to be brought into their very midst in the Holy
of Holies. But before that presence could come and
dwell among them, that tabernacle, that was to be its
shrine and home, must be completed according to the
divine commandment in every part, and then presented
to God in the solemn ordinance of anointing.

It was definitely laid at the feet of Jehovah, and the
sacred oil was poured upon it, as a symbol that God
God Himself now took possession of the sacred edifice
and was to make it« henceforth His personal abode.
Then the cloud descended and the tabernacle became
the very throne of the divine presence.

And so, when we present our bodies "a living sacri-
fice, holy, a(^ceptable unto God," we become the sacred
abode of the Holy One. Be not conformed to this world,
but be ye transfigured, is the apostle's inspiring message
to such consecrated lives. Life henceforth becomes a
transfiguration and we go forth shining like the Master,
with the glory of the inward presence which the world
cannot understand, but which the angels perceive, and
which makes the consecrated heart the house of God
and the very gate of heaven. Beloved, have we come
to this also ? Have we reached the glory of this mystery,
which is ''Christ in you, the hope of glory"?

POWKR KUOM ON ilWU

1 P

Ancient minds in heathen lamls rlreanied of something
like this, when they cut in marble tiM-ir ideals of beauty
and grace and then called them gods. It was the dream
of the human heart, trying to bring CJod down in union
with man. But Jesus has accomplished it t-iirougli His
incarnation in our image and the indwelling of the Holy
Ghost in our hearts, the incarnation of tin; Fathei* in
Jesus and the incarnation of Jesus in us by the Holy
Ghost.

This is the climax; this is the consummation; this is
the crowning glory of redemption; and all that which
is now being realized in the individual, shall yet, some
glorious day, be gathered tc^ether into the whole num-
ber of glorified and transfigured ones. Theu when the
whole Church of Christ shall meet and the body shall
be complete, and the building shall be crowned with the
glorious headstone, then the universe shall look upon
a spectacle for which all ages have been preparing, the
infinit« and eternal God, enshrined in glorified human-
ity. And the heavens shall cry, "Behold, the tabernacle
of God is with men, and he will dwell with them, and
they shall be His people, and God Himself shall be with
them, and be their God."

There are three or four other instances of anointing,
to which we shall briefly refer, inasmuch as they will
be considered more fully in a later chapter.

4. The ancient prophets were anointed. Thus Elisha
was called to his high office. And thus we are called
and qualified by the Holy Ghost to present the will of
God, to bear the Word of God to our fellowmen.

5. Kings were anointed, as David was set apart by
the anointing oil to be God's chosen king. Likewise
we are anointed kings and priests unto Him — a royal
priesthood of love and victorious life, to bear upon our
brow the majesty of the saints of God as the joint heirs
with Christ in His coming kingdom.

6. The sick were anointed for healing. The Holy

THE ANOINTING OIL

heirs
Holy

Ghost boi'onu's to us the quicken in<; and health-bringing
power, ulio imparts the life of Jesus to our mortal
frames, expelling disease and bringing us into the divine
and resurrection life of the Son of God.

7. Guest«< were anointed. We read in the twenty-
third Psalm the beautiful picture of the guest sitting
ut the table of the royal banquet and exclaiming, "Thou
preparest a table before me in the presence of mine
enemies: thou anointest my head with oil; my cup
runneth over." We find Jesus complaining to the
Pharisee, "My head with oil thou didst not anoint;
but i,lie hath anointed my feet."

The ancient host received his guest with great court-
esy and took him into the bathroom, where the stains
of the wayside were washed away, where fresh gar-
ments were put upon him. Then sweet and fragrant oil
was poured upon his head.

So the blessed Holy Ghost not only becomes our
guest; but He turns around and makes us as guests,
and then anoints us with the sweet, fragrant oil and
feeds us with the heavenly banquet of His love.

A missionary of the Northwest tells us that once
in a while he and his wife used to visit the Indians
and have a little feast with them in their homes. The
missionary's wife would tell the Indian mother on Sab-
bath at the little chapel to be ready for her on a certain
day that week, and to prepare her best for dinner. The
poor squaw perhaps would answer that she had nothing
worthy of the missionary save a little fish. But the
missionary would toll her to prepare what she had and
to have everything clean and bright, and it would be
all right. So on the appointed day the missionary would
arrive, and she would take from her dog-sleigh bundle
aft-er bundle of things. There were tea and coffee, there
were sugar and bread, there were potatoes, and perhaps
butter and little delicacies that that poor savage never
had seen before. When all was ready the missionary

' ■ n

n f^i: ir

\ I

POWER FROM ON HIGH

husband would arrive in another dog-sleigh from visiting
the stations, and then the feast would begin, and they
would dine together. The missionary and his wife were
the real host and hostess, and the poor Indian family
ate of things that day that they had never tasted be-
fore; and the missionaries found their joy in the joy
wliieh they brought.

Ah, that is the way that our precious Lord loves to
do with us. We take Him into our humble home, and
we give Him our best, although it is very poor at the
best, and He condescends to accept it; and then He
brings His best — all that heaven affords— and He feeds
us out of His bounty, and it< is true, as He promised,
*'I will sup with him and he will sup with me." He
takes what we have to give, but He brings His richer
gifts to us; and as we sit at His table and feast upon
His love we say with the Psalmist, *'Thou preparest
a table before me in the presence of mine enemies ; thou
anointest' my head with oil; my cup runneth over."

CHAPTER VII.
THE BAPTISM WITH FIRE.

"He shall baptize you with the Holy Uhost, and with fire." —
Matthew 3:11. "For our God is a consuming fire." — Hebrews
12: 2iJ.

FIRE is one of the most powerful and striking ele-
iuents of the material world. \:. has always been
an object of importance and of superstitious regard
in the religious ideas and customs of all nations. In
ancient Greece and Rome the sacred fire was guarded
by consecrated priests and vestal virgins, and was t'he
centre of the commonwealth and the home. When the
fire went out, all executive and national affairs were
suspended, and it had to be rekindled, either from the
lightnings of the skies, from the concentrated rays of
the sun, or by the process of friction and the rubbing
together of two pieces of wood.

The foreign ambassador had to walk by the holy fire
before he could be received in the Council of State.
The Slavonic and Teutonic bride had to bow before
the holy fire as she entered her new home. The Red
Indian sachem walked t'hrice around the camp-fire be-
fore he would give his counsel or confer with his i)ublic
visitor. The twelve Grecian tribes brought their twelve
firebrands to Theseus, and were tlius consolidated into
the State, and their sacred fires were combined in the
Oracle of Delphi.

The Persian fire-worshippers looked upon tlie sim
and the flame as sacred things, and it was an unpardon-
able profanity to spit in the fire or conunit auy im-
propriety in the presence of these holy elements.

Fire was recognized as identical with life, and the
Parsees of India today worship it v/ith holy veneration.

.K-^M^;,

._y-„

POWER FROM ON HIGH

Gc/d had always recognized it in His Word, not as an
object of superstitious regard, but as the symbol of His
own transcendent glory, and the power of His presence
and His Holy Spirit.

As the discoveries of science and the progress of
human knowledge increase, we learn to trace the deeper
analogies and more significant lessons in this sacred
symbolism.

Fire is the most valuable physical force with which
we are acquainted. In yonder sun it is the centre of
power in our n'hole planetary system. Stored up in
our vast coal-mines, it is the power that drives the en-
gines of commerce and the wheels of industry throughout
the world. We see it in the tremendous forces of modern
artillery, the torpedo, the bomb, the dynamite, the nitro-
glycerine, and the death-dealing cannon. It is the prime
factor in all t'he implements of modern warfare.

In the still higher forces of electricity, witli their
countless and ever-increasing adaptations, it is revolu-
tionizing all the methods of modern busines.^, and direct-
ing the whole course of trade and labor. Science is be-
ginning to believe that the ultimate force of all Jiature
is just electricity, and that the power that moves the
plpnets in their orbits and the stars in their courses is
biic a form of electric fire. The t»ruth is, that when they
get to the end of their ultimatum they will find that
God Himself is there, the personal source of all these
forces, and by His own will directing this tremendous
battery by which the universe is kept in moMon. For
** power belongeth unto God." and He is the "Consum-
ing Fire" from whose bosom all other forces emanate.

The Holy Ghost Himself has taught us to recoj»nize
in this tremendous force His own appropriate symbol
**He shall baptize you with the Holy Ghost and with
fire."

There is someMiing very striking in the analogy be-
tween the story of fire and the dispensational unfolding

THK BAPTISM WITH FIRE

as an
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?sence

2SS of
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sacred

which
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of the Holy Ghost. There was a time in the history
of the natural world when yonder celestial fires were
the objects of mystery, uncertainty, and almost dread.
The lightnings of the skies were known to be real forces,
but men knew not when they would strike, and dared
not attempt to use or control them. But in these last
days science has scaled the heavens, has caught the light-
nings, and has brought the tremendous forces of elec-
tricity under the dir<:'Ction of such laws that the simplest
child can use them at pleasure. They have become the
instruments of our everj'-day life, ringing our front
door-bells, driving our street-cars, lighting our chambers
and our streets, moving our machinery, carrying on our
business, and even conveying our messages on the phono-
graphic and telegraphic wires over the world.

So, in like manner, there was a time when the Holy
Ghost's heavenly fire was a mysterious force, flashing,
like the lightning in the skies, we krew not why or
whither; coming now upon a Moses, and again upon an
Elijah; sometimes falling as at Carmel, in awful majesty
upon the altar of sacrifice; sometimes striking, as in
Israel's camp, in the destroying flame of God's anger;
sometimes appearing, as in the burning bush at Horeb,
as tile strange, mysterious symbol of Jehovah 's presence.

But since Christ's ascension the Holy Spirit has con-
descended to dwell amongst us under certain plainly-
revealed laws, and to place at our service and command
all the forces and resources of His power, according
to definite, simple and regular laws of operation, in ac-
cordance with which the simplest disciple can use Him
for the needs of his life and work just as easily as we
use the force of electricity for the business of life. He
has even been pleased to call Himself ''the law of the
Spirit of life in Chrisi Jesus."

He has come down to the level of oui' common life,
and is ready to meet us in every need of our being, and
to become to us, not only the Author of our higher

J'OWEK l''KOM ON HIGH

:f (c

sijE^irit ual lile, but tl:w> Director and power of our 4m^y
i:0Ti4\i<!t, and of all our work hf^ro, whether in the seeu
lar or Mie spiritual sphere.

Let us first look at some of the illustrations of this
figure in the Heriptures, especially the use of fire in the
Mosaic ritual.

At the very beginning of the Exodus we find God
revealing* Himself to Moses under the symbol of the
burning bush, the tr<^ that burned but was not con-
sumed, thus makinjf the cmbleHi of fire the special symbol
of His presence with iHrael.

The pillar of clotid m^^ i^re was but a grander mani-
festation of the same fi^yfyrtiH emblesfe An in the vision
of Abraham, centuri+'i< befor*-^ th*' symbol of the divine
presence that appeared r« th* fp\fgiti ^'ision given to the
patriarch, was a burning lamp ^/w) a ninoking furnace,
so all through the wilderrw"!** M w«4 by fire th; ' iiod
manifested His presence. In H^int Hmai fie 'loscended
in fire and spake to the peopl*- frrm the midst of the
fire. The Shekinah glory in the midst o^' the Holy of
Holies was probably a glowing flame of fire. It was
by fire that He answered the prayei of Elijah on Movnit
Carmel, accepted the moYyiU^^ of Samson's panmts, and
revealed His presence in f>me,n j/»«t to His servants.

In all the sacrifices and (M^nniiA Hfo. was an important
element. Tlie pascbj^l hmh w#m roayred in the fire
and eaten by the peopU^ a^ a symbol of Christ s fic;;h
prepared for us and m'lnis^ ff/i to us by th ^ Holy Ghost
as our Living Bread.

The sin offering was carried withoit the camp and
burned wit-h fire, as a symbol of our sin laid upon »jesus
and consumed by the Holy Ghost outside the pale of
our consciousness, so tluit we \ ave nothing more to do
with it, but shuply to lay it on the Lamb of God and
leave it with Him.

The burnt offering was eonsunicd upon the altar by
fire, the type of (Christ., offered not fm our sins, but

THE BAPTISM WITH FIRE

for our acceptance with God, and the type of our true
consecration as we yield ourselves up to God by the
Holy Ghost.

As the fire was kept ever burning, so the Holy Ghost
in the consecrated soul will make our whole life a living
sacrifice, holy and acceptable unto God.

The peace offering was also connected wit-h the sacred
fire. It was the type of our communion with God. In
this sacrifice the fat and the inwards were given to God,
and consumed upon the altar by the fire. This was the
type of God's part in the communion of the believer.
Then the shoulder and breast were given to t-he priest
and eaten by him, a symbol of our part in this holy com-
munion. But it is the Holy Ghost alone that can maiu-
tain the true fellowship of the peace offering, and en-
able us first to give to God the worship and homage due
t'^ Him, and then to take our part and feed up^ Christ
as our Living Bread.

Next, the nipiil oll'ering whs an offering b^^ fire. It was
fine flour baked in the fire, mingled with oil and frank-
incense, and free from leaven and honey. It v. as the
type of Jesus Christ, our spiritual sustenance, nour-
ishing and feeding us with His own life by the fire
of the Holy Ghost'.

It is one thing to feed upon the truth; it is anotiu r
thing to feed upon Christ Only the Spirit of God cat?
raak»^ even the life of Christ our Living Broad. The
difference is just the same as if you should attempt to
feed upon raw wheat instead of prepared bread. It
is the work of the Holy Spirit* to prepare for us tlu^
Bread o^ Life, and to minister il to us as the Living
Christ.

One of the most beautiful of all the offerings was the
incense prerf'nted in the holy place. This also was an
offf'ring by fire. The sweet spices were ground and
mixed, some of them beaten very small; and then they
were burned in the golden censer, and their sweet' fra-

M ' ■>•

POWER FROM ON HIGH

i |i

grance went up in clouds of incense before the Lord,
filling all the holy place with fragrance, and breathing
out the very spirit of worship continually.

This is the type of Christ's priesthood first, and then
of our true ministry of prayer. Like the incense beaten
small, it may have to do with the most trifling things.
Like the spices, whose very names we do not now under-
stand, and whose nature is unknown, except the frank-
incense, so in all prayer there is much of mystery, and
much that even the praying heart does not fully compre-
hend. And yet, like the frankincense, which was well
known, there are ingredients and elements in prayer
of which we do know, and things for which we ask of
which we are definitely aware, and for which we may
definite believe.

But' above all, the fire which consumed the incense
is the type of the Holy Ghost, without whom all our
prayers must stop short of heaven, and through whom
alone our desires can reach the throne and become ef-
fectual with God.

There is no deeper experience in the Christian life
than this ministry of prayer in the Spirit. '*For we
know not what to pray for as we ought, but the Spirit
maketh intercession for us with groanings that cannot
Ik uttered. And he that seareheth the heart knoweth
what is the mind of the Spirit, because he maketh in-
tercession for the saints according to the will of God,"

Again, we see the use of the fire in the ordinance
of the red heifer. This type was especially for God's
people in their wilderness life. The red heifer repre-
sented Christ our Sacrifice, slain and consumed for us
on the '\ltar of God. But in the burning of the heifer
there come the scarlet wool, the cedar and the hyssop
leaves, representing something which is to be consumed,
along with the death of Christ.

The starlet wool represents our sins, the cedar oiJ*

THE BAPTISM WITH FIRE

>r 01 J

strength, and the hyssop our weakness and the clinging
element in our nature.

All these things are to be crucified with Christ, and
this can be done only through the power of the Holy
Ohost. We are not equal to the task of self-crucifixion,
but we can hand over anything and everything to flini.
and consent that it shall alv.. Then by the power of His
Holy Spirit He will put it to death and make the cruci-
fixion real.

Even after the death of the heifer the fire was to be
preserved and made perpetual by the preservation of
the ashes. You know ashes are a kind of preserved
fire. By pouring water upon these ashes you create
lye, a very acrid, pungent, burning substance. Now,
these ashes were preserved and water poured upon them,
and used as a water of separation or purification when
any one had contracted any sin or defilement whatso-
ever.

It was the type of the work of the Holy Spirit in
constantly cleansing us from defilement or pollution con-
tracted from earthly things and absorbed from the Ht-
mosphere in which we live.

This cleansing is not always pleasant. It is sometimes
like the touch of lye, a consuming fire ; but it is a whole-
some thing, like the burning away of proud flesh by caus-
tic, to have our very nature purified for us from self aihl
sin.

It is blessed to be able thus to come in every moment
of defilement, and to walk in the constant cleansing of
the Holy Spirit, knowing that we are not only cleansed
but kept clean, ever acceptable to God through Jesus
Christ, and ready for constant fellowship and holy
service as He may require.

We find the fire manifested in a very remarkable way
in connection with Elijah's history. On Mt. Carmel
the fire came from heaven as a special sign of God's
acceptance of the saerifi(;e and the manifestation of His

it'.

POWER FROM ON HIGU

f 1

power to His returning people. As it fell upon the
altar it not only consumed the sacrifice, but it licked
up tiie water in trenches. To complete the faith of the
people in Jehovah, He made the miracle as difficult as
possible by covering the altar and filling the trenches
round about with floods of water, so that deception was
impossible.

God met the faith of His servant, and wrought a work
so glorious and divine that it was manifest to every
eye that it was the finger of God ; and the great multi-
tude sent up the cry, ''Jehovah, He is God! Jehovah,
He is God!"

The Holy Ghost is thus the power of God in our
work, the fire that' all the devil's floods cannot extinguish,
the fire that delights in the hardest places and the most
difficult undertakings.

We need not fear to claim this power for even the
impossi))!e, but may boldly bring to God the mightiest
difficulties, and glorify Him all the more in the face of
Satan's fiercest and most formidable opposition.

Once more, we see the fire as the emblem of destruc-
tion. When the presuming priests dared to offer strange
fire before the Lord, t-hen God's consuming fire fell upon
them and destroyed them.

And so the Holy Ghost is still present as God's aveng-
ing power. He that struck down Ananias and Sapphira
in their presumption and hypocrisy, is still present in
the Church as the Executive of Jehovah, and the "con-
suming fire," to whom we can safely leave all our en-
emies and all the hate of earth and hell.

There are several lessons which we may learn from
the figure itself.

Fire is a cleansing element. It diffei*s from water in
this, that, while water cleanses externally, fire purifies
internally and intrinsically, penetrating lo the very
substance of things, and filling everv^ fibre and particle
of matter with its own element.

THE BAPTISM WITH FIRE

>phira

mt in

con-

ir en-

frora

er in

uifios

very

irticle

The baptism of John represented the cleansing of our
life and conduct, the reformation of our character, and
the work of the law and the truth upon human hearts.
But Clirist's baptism was by fire, and went to the roots
of conduct. The purity He required included motives,
aims, and "the thoujrhts and intents of the heart."
He not only requires but He gives the purity that
springs from the depths of our being. Like the flame
that consumes the dross and leaves the molten metal
pure and unalloyed, so the Holy Ghost separatos us
from our old sinful and self-like and burns into i-s
the nature and the life of Christ.

Again, fire quickens and gives life. The returning
spring and the solar heat call int'O life the buried seeds
of field and garden, and all nature springs into beauty
and fruitfulness. The heated greenhouse germinates the
seeds and plants of the gardener and pushes them for-
ward into rapid and luxuriant growth. The process of
heat incubates the little birdling in its shell and nurses
it into life.

So the Holy Ghost is the quickener of life. We are
born again by the Spirit, nursed into spiritual being,
and cherished into growth and maturity, by the Spirit
of God.

Again, t-he Holy Spirit warms and cpiickens the heart
into love. Like the change from the cold winter to the
vernal sunshine of the spring is the transition which
He brings into the heart. It is His mission to break
the fetters of fear and sorrow, and to kindle in the
heart the love of Christ and the joy of heaven, warming
every affection of the new nature, and shedding abroad
the love of God in the soul until it becomes a summer-
land of love.

And, finally, fire is an energizing force. It gives
power. So the Holy Ghost is the source of power. Sure-
ly, if He has been able to give to the forces of nature
iheir tremendous power; to give to the sun the force

it'

POWER FKOM ON HIGH

that can hold the planets in their course, and quicken
and warm the earth into life and luxuriance; if He
has stored up in the lightnings, and the coal-mines,
and the atmosphere, the yet only half-revealed dynamics
which propel the industries of the human race, He Him-
self is able to accomplish more than any of His agencies
or works.

How blind are they who are trying to do the work
of God without His power! How we would laugh at
the man who today would try to turn the great driving-
wheel of a factory by a treadmill, with a dozen men
turning it with their weight, as they still do in China!
And yet thousands of Christians are trying to carry
on their Lord's work by their own puny hands.

Science has grown wise enough to turn on the forces
of steam and electricity. Oh, let faith turn on the
dynamo of heaven and the power of the Holy Ghost !
This is the secret' of victory over temptation and sin
and all our spiritual enemi**s.

Archimedes of old was said to Ifeve consumed ^h«
vessels of the enemies of his country by setting fire to
them in the harbor of Syracuse by a burning-glass,
by which he attracted the solar rays in a focus upon
the hostile fleet ; and they went up in a blaze of destruc-
tion. So let us consume our enemies and His by the
fii*e of the Holy Ghost.

When the little camp on the vast prairie finds that
a wave of fire is sweeping over the plain, and that in
and hour or two they will be engulfed in flame and
destroyed by tlie resistless element, they are wise enough
to clear an open space around them and then start
another fire from their own camp and send it out to
meet the approaching wave. As it* rolls across the
open plain, destroying every combustible thing that
is in the way at length it meets the advancing fire;
and the two leap up to heaven in one wild outburst
of fury and then expire for the want of fuel. The

THE BAPTISM WITH FIRE

travellers are left in safety on the prairie, where there
is nothing to feed the fire.

So let us meet the fire of evil with the fire of the
H'jly Ghost. We have divine resources. Why should
we stoop to the human? We have God to fighl our
battles for us. Why should we do it ourselves?

In ancient Rome when the fire went out all statb
business had to cease. They dared not do a tiling with-
out the sacred fire. So all true work ceases when the
Holy Ghost is withdrawn from the Church of God and
from the midst of tht^ work. God does not accept any-
thing that is not done in the power of the Spirit.

In ancitMit Rome the fire had to be rekindled either
from the lightnings of the sky, or from the sun, or from
the friction of two pieces of wood. So sometimes God sends
u>s the lightnings of his power to rekindle the flame
Although this is often a very dangerous thing, He has
sometimes to strike with a stroke of judgment before
His people awake to their need.

We can always draw the fire by the burning-glass
of faith from the Son of Righteousness. And God has
yet another way of increasing our spiritual fire, and
that is by friction.

The other day, in one of our cities, I was asked to
notice the factory where the electric force was gen-
erated for the trolley engines. I found it was generated
entirely by friction. Great wheels were constantly re-
volving and producing the electric force by rubbing
together.

So GrO(\ in like manner often quickens our lives and
deepens our spiritual force by the tests and trials which
throw us upon Him, and compel us to take more of His
life and strength.

Then let us, instead of quarrelling with our circum-
stances and mourning over our trials, use everything that
comes to bring us more of God, and strengthen us for
higher service and mightier usefulness, through the
power of the Holy Ghost,

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''vAs. :i

CHAPTER VIII.

THE SPIRIT OF WISDOM.

"God hath . . . given us the Spirit ... of a sound mind/' —
2 Tim. 1 : 7.

"Thou gavest also Thy good Spirit to instruct them." — Nehe-
miah y : 20.

THE latter passage suggests the work of the Holy
Sprit as the teacher and guide of God's people
through their history in the wilderness. The pre-
vious verses connect the passage with the history of Israel
during the forty years of their wandering, and identifies
the pillar of cloud and fire which led them through the
wilderness with the Holy Spirit who is our Leader and
Guide.

The other passage from the Epistle to Timothy pre-
sents to us the Holy Spirit as the Spirit of wisdom and
of a sound mind.

It is interesting and instructive to trace the revelation
of the divine Spirit in the Old Testament, as the Spirit
of wisdom and guidance. Let us look at a few special
examples.

1. The first is the case of Joseph, referred to in Gene-
sis 41 : 38-40, "And Pharoah said unto his servants. Can
we find such a one as this, a man in whom the Spirit of
God is? And Pharoah said unto Joseph. Forasmuch as
God has shewed thee all this, there is none so discreet
and wise as thou art : thou shalt be over my house, and
according to thy word shall all my people be niled : only
in the throne will 1 be greater than thou,"

Here we get a glimpse of the secret that lay back of
Joseph's extraordinary life; it was the Spirit of God.
Perhaps there never was a life that touched more closely
the common life of suffering humanity. We see in him a

THE SPIRIT OF WISDOM

true and noble nakire exposed to the discipline of tlio
keenest suffering ; separated from home and friends ; car-
ried into captivity in a foreign land; misunderi-tood
traduced, unjustly condemned, and cast into a prison
under the deepest and most unjust opprobrium and dis-
grace; and yet, so heroically standing true to God and
righteousness, and so steadfastly trusting in the divine
faithfUiUess and love, that he triumphed at length over
all his difficulties, rose from the prison to a princedom
of honor and influence, and from the very lowest place
found a pathway to the highest position that it was pos-
sible for a mortal to attain. Was there ever a more ex-
traordinary transformation, was there ever a more st-nk-
ing object lesson of the power of high and holy char-
acter?

But the passage we have quoted reveals the secret of
it all. It was not the triumph of human character, but
the result of a divine direction that led him through all
his steppings and lifted him above all his trials. It was
a beautiful illustration of the work of the Holy Spirit in
the practical affairs of human life, and the commonplace
sphere through which the largest part of our existence
here has to pass.

The most beautiful fact about it all was, that even
Pharoah himself, the proud and ungodly king of Egypt,
was the first to recognize this divine presence in Joseph's
life. Joseph did not have to advertise himself as one
possessed of the Holy Spirit ; but as the men of the world
watched him, they themselves were compelled to say,
' ' Can we find such a one as this in whom the Spirit of
God is?"

It is so beautiful when even ungodly men are com-
pelled to see and glorify God in our lives. There is no
greater triumph of holy character than to compel the
testimony of the men of the world to the power of God
in us.

100

POWER FROM ON HIGH

This was the glory of Daniel 's life, that even his worst
enemies had to say, "We can find nothing against this
man, except it be as concerning the law of his God ' ' ; and
the grandest testimony ever given to Jesus Christ by hu-
man lips was that of His judge, Pontius Pilate, when he
was forced to say, ' ' I bring Him forth to you that ye may
know that I find no fault in Him."

0, men of the world, 0, young men, looking out upon
the future and wanting to know the secret of the highest
success, would that you might know that the same Spirit
that guided Joseph 's steps, and led him through his pain-
ful pathway until from the dungeon of Pharoah and the
kitchen of Potiphar he reached the premiership of all
Egypt, and indeed of all the world, is ready to be your
Guide, your Teacher, your Wisdom, and the Source of
all your strength, success, and happiness.

2. The next example is the case of Moses and Aaron:
Exodus 4 : 10-16. In this passage we have an account of
God's call to Moses to undertake the leadership of Israel
from Egypt to Canaan, and the special task of going to
Pharoah to demand the release of God's people from
their bondage. We find Moses shrinking from the task
because he was slow of speech and asking God to send
somebody else. God answers Moses by saying, "Who hath
made man's mouth, or who maketh the dumb, or deaf,
or the seeing, or the blind ? Have not I, the Lord ? Now
therefore go, and I will be with thy mouth, and teach thee
what thou shalt* say."

Still Moses was iinsatisfied and unwilling, and then God
became displeased with him and bade him call his brother
Aaron. ''And thou shalt speak unto him, and put words
in his mouth: and I will be with thy mouth, and with
his mouth, and will teach you what ye shall do. And he
shall be thy spokesman unto the people: and he shall
be, even he shall be to thee instead of a mouth, and thou
shalt be to him instead of God."

Here we see God offering to be to Moses not only the

THE SPIRIT OF WISDOM

101

wisdom to know what he ought to say, but the power of
utterance to say it rightly. The faith of Moses, however,
was not quite equal to the mighty promise. God, there-
fore, indulged him in his timidity and unbelief by shar-
ing the commission with another, and giving him Aaron
to be a voice and an utterance for him.

In accepting this compromise, Moses lost a great deal,
for the same God that gave Aaron the power of utterance
could just as well have given it to him. It was all of
God from beginning to end, and Moses might just as
well have had the whole blessing as the half. Indeed,
as the sequel proved, the partnership of Aaron was per-
haps a doubtful blessing, because the day came when this
same Aaron became the tempter of Israel and the snare
of Moses. It was he who made for the children of Israel
the golden calf which they worshipped in idolatrous
wickedness at the foot of Mt. Sinai, thereby bringing
down upon their heads the anger and judgment of an
offended God. So that, instead of being altogether a help
to him, the prop that he leaned upon broke under his
weight and pierced his own hand and heart.

The lesson is a very practical one for us. The same
Spirit that called and commissioned Moses for his great
undertaking is promised to us as our enduement of power
for the service to which He sends us. He is able to be
to us a "mouth and wisdom, which all our adversaries
shall not be able to gainsay or resist." But if we look
to our own strength or weakness, or lean upon the
strength and wisdom of others, we, like Moses, shall find
that our earthly reliance will become a snare, and we
shall be taught by painful experience the wretchedness
of ''the man who trusteth in man and maketh flesh his
arm," and the safety and happiness of depending only
upon God for all cur resources of wisdom and strength
for the work for v/^hieh He sends us.

3. The next example of the Spirit of wisdom we find
in Numbers 6 : J 1-1'^, and also verses 24-29. This passage

''I
it

MUMH

102

f'OWER FROM ON HIGH

is .similar to tlie last in its general significanct^. We find
Moses feeling' the heavy pressure of t'he responsibility
tiiat re8t<Ml upon him as the leader of the people. Their
unbelief and rebellion were eontinunlly grieving and
breaking his heart, and at last he breaks out with a
discouraged and p(itulant complaint against God,
''Wherefore hast Thou afflicted Thy servant? . . . that
Thou layest the burden of all this people upon me? . . .
1 am not able to bear all this people alone, because it is
too heavy for me," God took him up immediately, as He
is always read}' to take us at our word.

It is a very serious thing to spe«k hasty words to
God and words of discouragement and distrust. It is a
very sad and solenui thing to ask God to relieve us of
any trust that He has put ui)on our shoulders. It is very
easy to miss our crown and our life service by petulance
and unbelief. "And the Lord said unto Moses, Gather
unto me seventy men of the elders of Israel, . . . and I
will come down and talk with thee there: and I will
take of the Spirit which is upon thee, and will put it
upon them ; and they shall bear the burden of the people
with thee, that thou bearest not thyself alone." And a
little later it is added, "The Lord came down m a cloud,
and spake unto him, and took of the Spirit that was upon
him, and gave it unto the seventy elders : and it came to
pass, that, when the Spirit rested upon them, they proph-
esied, and did not cease."

Now, at the first sif>:ht, all this looks like a very great
increase of help and power to Moses; instead of iDearing
the burdens of the people alone he gets seventy men
to help him, men of wisdom aad experience, men poss'is-
sing the same Spirit which was upon him. But when we
look more closely at it we notice that these men did not
receive any additional power whatever, but only a por-
tion of the same Spirit which was already upon Moses.
In other words, God took a little of the power that Moses
already had and distributed it among a number of per-

■^:i'iiii:-'h

THE SPIRIT OF WISDOM

103

Their
; aud
nth. a
God,
. that

sons, so that instend of one person having the power, sev-
enty-one persons now had it ; hut there was no more power
among tlie sev^enty-onc than there had been upon the one.
All the wisdom of God and all the strength of God had
been given to Moses personally, and God had no more to
give to the seventy elders. It was spread out a little
more and over a wider surface. Nay, before the storj'-
was ended, these seventy elders became as great a trial
to the heart of Moses as Aaron, his brother. Indeed,
they were the beginning of the famous Council of Seven-
ty, who afterwards were called the Sanhedrim or Coun-
cil of the Seventy Elders, the very Council of Seventy
who afterwards condemned to death and became guilty
of the crucifixion of the Son of God Himself. These,
the seventy elders for whom Moses in \\vt. unbelief asked,
instead of being a real help, became, perhaps, a hin-
drance.

What is the lesson for us? That the Spirit of God
is our All-Sufficiency for every work to which He sends
us, and that He is able to work as well by few as by
many, by one as by one thousand. Our trust should
not' be in numbers or in human wisdom, but in the
strength of God Himself, whether that strength is given
without human instrumentalities, or through the sym-
pathy and help of multitudes. Men may help us in
the work of God, but only as God sends them and fills
them with His ovm power.

A little later in this narrative we have the account
of two of the elders, namely, Eldad and Medad, verses
26-29, who were found prophesying beyond the limits
of their special appointment. Moses' friends were dis-
posed to rebuke them and restrain them, but Moses in
his large-hearted wisdom recognized the fact that God 's
gifts often overrun all ordinary channels and that the
Holy Spirit cannot be confined by our ideas of pro-
priety. He let' them alone, as we should do with our
brethren when we see them working for God and wit-

'j^mmmmmmft

101

POWER FROM ON llIGti

nessiuj^ Tor the truth, eveu outside the pale of our con-
ventional forms and organizations. God's power is
greater than our petty programs, and if a man is but
honoring Christ and witnessing for Him in the power
of the Holy Spirit, let us not try to bring him into our
particular set or make him pronounce our petty Shi-
boleth.

4. The next example of this divine enduiement is
Joshua, Numbers 27 : 18. " And the Lord said unto
Moses, Take unto thee Joshua the son of Nun, a man
in whom is the Spirit, and lay thine hand upon him;
and set him before Eleazar the priest, and before all
the congregation; and give him a charge in their sight.'*

In this i)assage we see Joshua already possessing the
Spirit before Moses ordains him to a special charge,
showing that personal preparation must always come
before public ordination. It is not the act of ordination
that gives a man the Spirit, but it is the possession of
the Spirit that entitles a man to public ordination.
God must make a minister first by his own direct en-
ablin<?. When God has given him the Spirit, it is the
part of man to recognize what God has done and to
set apart the truly-consecrated instrument for special
service.

There is another passage, Deuteronomy 34 : 9, which
shows how the act or ordination may be followed in
a truly consecrated person by added blessing and deeper
fullness of the Spirit. *'And Joshua the son of Nun
was full of the Spirit of wisdom; for Moses had laid
his hands upon him." Here we see that after Moses
laid his hands upon Joshua there was added fuUnesa
of blessing. There are two stages, therefore, in Joshua's
spiritual history: first, he has the Spirit before he
was called to his great trust; and then, his call to the
trust brought him a higher fullness of the Spirit. Would
we be honored with special service for God? Let as be
filled with the Spirit continually, and ready at His hand

Tilt: SPIRIT OF WISDOM

105

con-
er is
s but
)ower

our
Shi-

jnt is
unto

1 man
him;

>re all
ight.'*
Qg the
iharge,
; come
mation
sion of
nation.
3ct en-
is the
md to
special

which
^ed in
deeper
Nuii
id laid

Moses
uUnesa
Dshua's
ore h«

to the

Would

as be

s baud

for whatever ministry He needs us, and \vc shall be
more likely to be called. Have we been called to special
service? Then let us throw ourselves upon Him for
larger measures of His grace and, like Joshua, be filled
with the Spirit.

This was the secret of Joshua's wondrous life. While
Muses was divinely endued for his great task by the
Spirit of wisdom, and Joseph was fitted for his practi-
cal life by the Spirit of righteousness, discretiou, and
courage, Joshua needed just as distinct and divine an
enabling for his mighty undertaking. He was to be
the military leader of Israel's great campaign, the war-
rior captain of the Lord's triumphant host, and he need-
ed peculiar equipment for his mighty task. He was sent
against the mightiest nations of antiquity, the powerful
Hittite kings, who, as we learn from the records of the
post, were the rivals of the Egyptians themselves in
military prov^'css. He was sent with an army of undis-
ciplined men to attack the mightiest strongholds of
powerful nations. Before his victorious legions in a few
short years their mij^htiest citadels fell, and no less than
thirty-one powerful sovereigns were brought into sub-
jection.

No grander military campaign was ever fought, and
the very highest qualities of wisdom, strategy, courage,
faith, and perseverance were needed for this mighty un-
dertaking. All these were given by the Holy Spirit;
and all these the Holy Spirit can still give to the soldier
of Christ and the servant of God for conflict, leadership,
service in the grander undertakings of these last days
when Christ is marshalling His hosts for the conflict of
the ages and the coming of the King.

5. We have yet one more example of the practical
gifts of the Holy Spirit. In some respects it is the most
remarkable and encouraging of all. We find the record
in Exodus 35 : 30-35. It is the story of Bezaleel and
Aholiab, who were specially skilled as mechanics and

MO ''

TOG

POWER FROM ON HIGH

,'iitisans to prepan* the skilk'd work for the erection of
the tab'Tiiacle in the wilderness. And Moses said unto
the children of Israel, "See, the Lord hath called by
name Bezaleel . . . and hath hlled him with the Spirit
of God in wisdom, in understanding, and in knowledge,
and in all manner of workmanship; and to devise curi-
ous works, to work in gold, and in silver, in brass, and
in the cutting of stones to set them, and in the carvinj?
of wood, to make any manner of cunning work. And
He hath put in his heart that he may teach, both he
and Aholiab . . . Them hath He filled with wisdom of
heart, to work all manner of work of the engraver, and
of the cunning workman, and the embroiderer, in
blue, and in purple, in scarlet, and in fine linen, and of
the weaver, even of them that do any work, and of those
that devise cunning work."

Here we have a list of almost all kinds of mechanical
and artistic work. It is work of the most practical kind
and of the very highest style of decorative art, the work
of the jeweler, the carver, the embroiderer, the sculptor.
All this is the result not of education, nor of careful
training, but of direct divine inspiration. Here were
people who had come from the brickfields of Egypt, a
race of slaves without the advantages of culture, and
yet God divinely enabled them in the hour of need, to
devise and execute the most elaborate and ornamental
designs for the most perfect and beautiful edifice which
ever was constructed by the hands of man.

"What a lesson for the toiling artisan, for the hard-
working Christian, for the man of business, in the practi-
cal affairs of our work-a-day life. Here we have the
divine Presence revealed as not only for the pulpit,
the prayer meeting and the closet of prayer, but just
as available for the factory, for the workshop, for the
business office, for the school-room, and even for the
kitchen.

Here is a Holy Spirit who is just as much at home

THE SPIRIT OF WISDOM

107

on of

\into
h\ by
Spirit
ledge,

curi-
5, and
irvinf?
And
)th he
om of
r, and
er, in
and of
£ those

lanical
il kind
e work
ulptor,
careful
were

ypt, a

and
ced, to
mental
which

hard-
practi-
ive the
pulpit,
at just
for the
or the

t home

amid the toiling hours and heavy pressures of Monday
and Saturday, as in the holy worship and the r ligious
occupations of the Sabbath. Here is u divine sulmicncy,
not only for our spiritual experiences and our ivligious
duties, so-called, but for everything that fills up our
common life.

Oh, how it helps and comforts us in the plod of life
to know that we have a Christ who spent the first thirty
years of His life in the carpenter shop at Nazareth,
swinging the hammer, covered with sweat and grimy
dust, physically weary as we often are, and able to under-
stand all our experienees of drudgery and labor, One
who still loves to share our common tasks and equip
us for our difficult luidertakings of hand and brain!

Yes, humble sister. He will help you at the washboard
and the kitchen-sink as gladly as at the hour of prayer.
Yes, busy mechanic, He will go with you and help you
to swing the hammer, or handle the saw, or hold the
plow in the toil of life ; and you shall be a better mechanic,
a more skillful workman, and a more successful man,
because you take His wisdom for the common affairs of
life. The God we serve is not only the God of the Sab-
bath, and of the world of sentiment and feeling; but
He is the God of Providence, the God of Nature, the
Author and Director of the whole mechanism of human
life. There is no place nor time where He is not al)le
and willing to walk by our side, to work through our
hands and brains, and to unite Himself in loving and
all-sufficient partnership with all our needs and tasks
and trials, and to prove our all-sufficiency for all things.

Such then is the Old Testament picture of the Holy
Ghost as the Spirit of wisdom and of a sound mind.
In Joseph we see Him in the trials of human life.
In Moses we see Him qualifying a great leader for his
high commission, and able to sustain him through the
most trying emergencies and pressures. In Joshua we
see Him able to equip a mighty warrior for his conflicts

■■Hni

108

POWER FROM ON IIKJH

III

and campaigns and to crown his career with splendid
victory, and in Bezaleel and Aholiab we st'o Him coming
down to the level of our secular callings and our com-
monplace duties, and fitting us for all the tasks and
toils of life.

Blessed Holy Spirit — our Wisdom and our Guide I
Let us enlarge the sphere of His operations, let us take
Him into partnership in all the length and breadth of
our human life, and let us prove to the world that,

'*We need not bid ft)r cloistered cell,
Our neighbor and our work farewell.
The daily round, the common task,
Will furnish all we need to ask.
Room to deny ourselves a road
To bring us daily more of God."

CHAPTER IX.
THE HOLY SPIRIT IN THE BOOK OF JUDGES.

"But God has cbosen tho foolish things of the world, to con-
found the wise; and God hath chosen the weak things of the
world, to confound the things whu'h are mighty; and base things
of the world, and things which are despised, huth God chosen,
yea, and things which are not, to bring to nought things that are;
that no flesh should glory in his presence. — 1. Cor. I: ii7, 28, 29.

TILE book of Judges marks the deepest depression
and declensiou in the Old Testament records, just
as the book of Joshua which precedes it, marks
the most glorious triumph of Israel's history. That
triiunph staiids between the story of the wilderness on
the one side, with its forty years of wandering, and the
story of the Judges on the other, with its four hundred
years of declension,

Tlie dark cloud that followed the conquest of Canaan
WHS far deeper and denser than the one that preceded
it, and it lasted throiii^'h four and a haii; centuries, until
the time of the Reformation under Samuel and David.
But God loves to use the darkest clouds as Ilis back-
frround for the rainbows of His most gracious manifesta-
tions. The br!<?htest exhibitions of God's grace have
always been ih the face of the adversary's most fierce
assaults.

The ministry of Elijah came in the dark hour of Jeze-
bel 's idolatrous rule. The story of Jeremiah stands over
against the sorrowful scenes of Judah's captivity and
Jerusalem's fall; and the book of Judges, with its four
and a half centuries of idolatry and sin, have given us
the beautiful incidents of Othniel and Deborah, Gideon
and Barak, Jephthah and Samson.

Each of these is an object lesson of the grace and

109

110

POWER FKOM ON HIGH

power of the Holy Spirit, in calling and using His own
agents and messengers for the great work for which
He needs them.

Othniel represents the Spirit of courage, Judges 3: 10:
**And the Spirit of the Lord came upon him, and he
judged Israel, and went out to war: and the Lord de-
livered Cushan-rishathaim king of IMesopotamia into his
hand." Othniel was the first of Israel's judges, and by
the power of the Holy Spirit he conquered the mighty
monarch of Mesopotamia, and secured for his country
nearly half a century of peace.

All this is directly attiibuted to the Spirit. The same
power that fitted Closes for his legislative work, and
prepared Joshua for his military career, called and quali-
fied Othniel for his successful presidency over the affairs
of his nation, and gave him the lion-hearted courage
that enabled him to defy the mightiest potentate of
the world.

But as every distinguished career has an earlier chap-
ter behind it, so there was an hour in the story of Oth-
niel of which all his subsequent career was but the
sequel. The earlier chapter is given to us in Joshua
15:16, 17. It is the little incident connected with the
capture of one oi the strongholds cf Canaan. After
Caleb had conquered Hebron, he found an adjacent city,
Kirjath-sepher, which was the literpry capital of the
Canaanites. It means **The City of Books." To the brave
warrior who should conquer it he offered the hand of
his fair daughter Achsah. Othniel was the hero who ac-
cepted the challenge and won the double prize.

When we see some public character accomplishing
distinguished service before the eyes of the world, and
leaping apparently from obscurity to fame in a moment,
we are apt to forget that back of thi /^^ brilliant success
there lies some little incident that happened, perhaps

;hap-
0th-

the
)shua

the
iter
city,

the
)rave
id of

thing
and
lent,
'cess

Ihaps

HOLY SPIRIT IN THE BOOK OF JUDGES

111

long years before, but which really struck the keynote
of that life, and prepared that individual for the public
Bcrvice which the future held in store.

God is always preparing His workers in advance ; and
when the hour is ripe He brings them upon the stage,
and men look with wonder upon a career of startling
triumph, which God has been preparing for a lifetime.
That was a wonderful day in Israel, when, in a moment,
the chambers of the dead heard the voice of God, and
the first human spirit came back from the world beyond
to the tenement of clay, and her living son was placed
in the arms of a Hebrew mother at the word of the
prophet Elijah.

But if we look back a few years, we find the key to
all this in a little incident that happened one day in
that Hebrew home. The old prophet was passing by
when he met that mother and asked of her a mighty
f^acrifice, even that she should take the last morsel in
her famine-stricken home, prepare it for him, and leave
her child to die of want along with herself. But she
shrank not from the test. Without a moment's hesita-
tion she obeyed the prophet's command, and from that
hour she and her little son lived in that home on the
bread of heaven. When the test came that required
a faith that would bring back her child even from the
dead, she was ready for the hour.

God is preparing His heroes still, so that when the
opportunity comes He can fit them into their places i)i
a moment while the world wonders where they came
from. Let the Holy Ghost prepare you, dear friend, by
all the discipline of life, that when the last finishing
touch has been given to the marble,, it will be easy tor
God to put it on the pedestal, and fit it into the niche.

There is a aay coming when, like Othniel. we, too,
shall judge the nations, and rule and reign with Oarist
on the millennial earth. But ere that glorious day can
be, we must let God prepare us as He did Othniel at

^mmmmmmmm

112

POWER FROM ON HIGH

Kirjath-sepher, amid the trials of our present life, and in
the daiiy victories, the significance of which, perhaps,
we little dream. At least, let us be sure of this, that
if the Holy Ghost has got an Othniel ready, the Lord
of heaven and earth has a throne prepared for him.

Deborah shows forth the ministry of woman. Judges
4. Deborah is the first example of a woman called to
public service by the Holy Ghost. True, Miriam had
already been known as the leader of sacred song in
Israel, but this was the first time that a woman had been
called to exercise the public functions of a leader.

What a glorious multitude of noble women have fol-
lov/ed m her train ! The great ministry of the Church
today is being done by holy women. It is less than
half a century since women began to go to the foreign
mission field, and already more that half the foreign
missionaries in the world are women. They are the most
potent spiritual and moral force.^ of our age.

Deborah's name means "a be<^," and her little beehive
under the palm tree of Mount Ephraim has swarmed
and spread over all ages and lands until the hearts of
millions have tasted of the honey, and every form of
evil has felt the wholesome sting; but Deborah, like
every true woman, had a good deal more honey than
sting. It is too late in the day to question the public
ministry of woman. The facts of God's providence, and
the fruits of God's Spirit, are stronger than all our theo-
logical fancies.

The Holy Spirit has distinctly recognized woman's
place in the Church, not only to love, to suffer, and to
intercede, but to prophesy, to teach, and to minister
in every proper way to the bodies and the souls of men.
And yet, when we have said this, all this, there yet re-
mains a restriction which every true woman will be
willing to recognize.

HOLY SPIRIT IN THE BOOK OF JUDGES

113

There is a difference between the ministry of woman
and of man. God Himself has said that the head of
every woman is the man, and the head of every man
is Christ, and the head of Christ is God. "I suffer not
a woman to teach, nor to usurp authority over the man."
After all that can be said on both sides of this question,
it seems to remain, as the practical conclusion of the
whole matter, that woman is called without restriction
to teach, to witness, to work in e^^ory department of the
Church of Christ, but she is not called to rule in the
ecclesiastical government of the Church of Christ, or to
exercise the official ministry which the Holy Ghost has
committed to the elders or bishops of His Church; and
whenever she steps out of her modest s])here into the
place of public leadership and executive government,
she weakens her true power and loses her peculiar charm.

Deborah herself, the first public woman of the ages,
was wise enough to call Barak to stand in the front,
while she stood behind him, modestly directing his work,
and proving in the end to be the true leader. It is no
disparagement of woman's ministry' to place her there.
Who will say that the ministry of Aloses as he stood
that day on the mountain, with his hands uplifted to
God, while Joshua led the hosts in the plain below,
was a lower ministry than that of Joshua? He was
the true leader and the real power behind the hosts
of Israel, although he was unseen by the eyes of men.
This was Deborah's high honor, and no one was more
ready than Barak himself to acknowledge her pre-emi-
nence.

May God more and more mightily direct and use the
high and holy ministry of woman, in these last days,
for the preparation of her Master's coming!

Gideon, or the Holy Ghost, used the weak things of
the world to confound the mighty. There is something

114

POWER FROM ON HIGH

dramatic and almost ludicrous in the calling of Gideon.
When hiding behind his barn for fear of the Midiauites,
the angel of the Lord appeared to him and called, "The
Lord is with thee, thou mighty man of valor." Gideon
was taken by surprise with the strange greeting, and
seems himself to have felt as if the angel were laughing
at him, for he was anything but a mighty man of valor ;
indeed, at that very moment, he was hiding from his
enemies in abject fear.

His answer to the angel seems to express this feeling,
but God meets him with the reassuring word, "Go, in
this thy might, and thou shalt deliver Israel from the
Midianites." The new might which God had pledged
him was His ov/n great might, the power of the Holy
Ghost. Accordingly every step of his way from that
hour was but an illustration of the principle of our
text, "that God hath chosen the weak things of this
world to confound the things that are mighty."

Next, we see the same principle in Gideon's workers.
God could not use the great army that gathered to his
standard. They were too many to afford an opportunity
for God to work and, therefore. He had to sift them,
and then resift them, until from over thirty thousand
they were reduced to only three hundred.

It is beautiful to notice how the Holy Spirit sifted
them. He allowed them to do it themselves, by a natural
process of reduction. First, all the timid ones were al-
lowed to go home, ana this thinned out two-thirds of
the crowd. Next, all the rash and reckless ones were
tested by giving them the opportunity of drinking at
the brook that lay across their line of march; and, as
Gideon watched, it was not difficult to find out, by the
way they drank, the character of the men.

The reckless ones just got down on their hands and
knees and drank, without even stopping to think of
their danger or their enemies. The prudent ones, on
the contrary, looked carefully around, and keeping guard

HOLY SPTT^TT IN THK BOOK OF .niDdKS

115

against a surprise from thoir foos, drank with prudont
care, dipping up the water with their hands, and looking
carefully around with their watchful eyes; thus were
the wary ones chosen, and the others dismissed.

God wants not only brave men, but prudent men, for
Ilis work and warfare; and every day we live we are
passing judgment on ourselves, and electing ourselves
either to places of honor and service, or to be left at
home, because of our unfitness. God wants fit men for
His work, and lie lets every man prove his fitness or
unfitness by the practical tests of his daily life. We little
dream, sometimes, what a hasty word, a thoughtless
speech, an imprudent act, or a confession of ujibelief
may do to hinder our highest usefulness, or to turn it
aside from some great opportunity which God was pre-
paring for us.

Although the Holy Ghost uses weak men, He does not
want them to be weak after He chooses and calls them.
Although He uses the foolish things to confound the
wise, He does not want us to be foolish after He comes
to give us His wisdom and grace. He uses the foolish-
ness of preaching, but not, necessarily, the foolishness
of preachers. Like the electric current, which can sup-
ply the strength of a thousand men, it is necessary that
it should have a proper conductor, and a very small
wire is better than a very big rope.

God wants fit instruments for His power, wills sur-
rendered, hearts trusting, lives consistent, and lips
obedient to His will; and then He can use the weakest
weapons, and make them "mighty through God to the
pulling down of strongholds."

Again, we see the Holy Spirit using the weak things
of this world in the weapons of Gideon 's warfare. They
were very simple — lamps, pitchers and trumpets. That
was all. The lamps, or torches, were expressive of the
light and fire of the Holy Ghost; the pitchers suggested
the broken vessels of our surrendered bodies and lives;

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POWER FROM ON HIGH

and the trumpets signified the Word of God and the
message oi' the Gospel that we are sent to proclaim.
These are sufficient to defeat and destroy the hosts of
Midian; and these are the weapons of our warfare,
which are still mighty through God to the pulling down
of strongholds.

A single officer of the court, with the proclamation
of the president behind him, is stronger than a mob
of a thousand men; and the humblest servant of the
Lord Jesus Christ, armed with the Holy Ghost and the
Word of God, stands with the whole power of heaven
behind him. I\Ien reject His message at their peril ; for
Christ has said, "He that receiveth you receiveth me,
and he that rejecteth you rejecteth me."

The true secret of all i)ower with God and mc-i is
to stand behind our message and our Master, and, like
Gideon's pitchers, to be so broken ourselves, that the
light of our heavenly torches can flash through the
broken vessels through which the message comes.

IV.

Jephthah, or the Holy Spirit, used "the things that
are despised."

Jephthah, through no fault of his own, was the child
of dishonor. He had the bar sinister on his breast, and
was an outlaw from his father's house. But God loves
to use the things that man highly esteems. The stone
which the builders disallowed has often become the head
of the corner. It was Isaac, not Ishmael, the first-born ;
it was Jacob, and not Esau, the father's favorite; it
was Joseph, the persecuted, wronged and outcast son;
it was Moses, the son of a race of slaves, and the found-
ling child of the Nile; it was David, the shepherd lad
of Bethlehem, and the despised one of Jesse's house;
these were they whom God chose for the high place f t
each received in the story of His chosen people. Ace: ^-
ingly the outcast and the outlaw of Gilead, poor Jeph-

HOLY SPTRIT IN THE HOOK OF JUTXJES

117

I child

it, and

loves

stone

head

born ;

e ; it

son;

bund-

d lad

lOUse ;

e f t

cc: .-

Jeph-

thah, was clioson of the Lord to deliver his people I'rom
the Ammonites.

Th€ call of Jephthah is expressly ascribed to the Holy
Spirit. "Then the Spirit of the Lord came upon Jeph-
thah, and he passed over . . . unto the children of Am-
mon . . and the Lord delivered them into his hand ' ' —
11:29.

The Lord still is using the things that are despised.
The very names of Nazarene and Christian were once
epithets of contempt. No man can have God's highest
thought and be popular with his immediate generation.
The most abused men are often the most used. The
devil's growl and the world's sneer are God's marks of
highest honor. There is no need that we should bring
upon ourselves by folly or wrong the reproaches of
men ; but if we do well, and suffer for it, fear not, but
**let Shimei curse, the Lord will requite us good for
his cursing this day."

There are far greater calamities than to be unpopular
and misunderstood. There are far worse things than to
be found in the minority. Many of God's greatest bless-
ings are lyine' I>ehind the devil's scarecrows of prejudice
and misrepresentation. The Holy Ghost is not ashamed
to use unpopular people. And if He uses them, what
need they care for men?

There was once a captain in the British army, pro-
moted for merit, but despised by his aristocratic com-
panions. One day the colonel found it out, and deter-
mined to stop it. So he quietly called on the young
officer, and walked arm and arm with him up and down
the parade ground, the captains meanwhile being obliged
to salute both him and his companion every time they
passed. That settled the new captain's standing. After
that there were no cuts nor sneers. It was enough that
the commanding officer had walked by his side.

Oh, let us but have His recognition and man's notice
will count for little, and He will give us all we need of

n
I

mmm

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POWER FROM ON niGII

human help and praiso. Lot us make no compromise
to please men. li^t ns only seek His will, His glory,
His approval. Let us go for Him oti the hardest errands
and do the most menial tasks. Honor enough that He
uses us and sends us. Let us not fear in this day to
follow Him outside the earap, bearing His reproach, and
bye-and-bye He will own our worthless name before
the myriads of earth and sky.

Samson in whom the Holy Ghost is the source of
physical strength.

There is no more remarkable figure in the Bible than
the sturdy giant of Timnath-serah, who represented in
his own body, as no other man has ever done, the con-
nection between physical strength and the presence and
power of the Holy Ghost. The strength of Samson was
not the result of physical culture and unusual size and
vigor of bone, muscle, or members, but was entirely
due to the presence and power of the Holy Spirit dwell-
ing in him and working through him. The secret of
his great sti-ength is given very simply and plainly in
such passages as these: Judges 13:25; 14:6, 19; 15:
14.

In all these cases it will be noticed that it was the
Spirit of the Lord that moved upon Samson and gave
him his superhuman strength of body. It was not the
strengtli of muscle or frame which comes from food or
stimulants ; but it was the direct power of God Himself
working through his being. This was connected entirely
with his separation to God and his obedience to his
Nazarite vow. The strength of Samson, therefore, was
divine strength given through spiritual conditions and
entirely dependent upon his righteousness of life and
obedience to God.

This is the very principle of divine healing, as God
is teaching it to us in these last days. It is not the self-

HOLY SPIRIT IN THE BOOK OF JUDGES

119

constituted strength of physical organism; but it is
the supernatural force of a divine presence, filling our
frame and quickening our vital system when we are
wholly separated from earthly and forbidden things and
living in touch with the Holy Spirit. It may be enjoyed
even in th^" fullest measure by a feeble constitution and
a man or womar naturally frail. It is not our life,
LUt i life of Jesus manifested in our mortal flesh.
It is a very sacred life, for it keeps us constantly sep-
arated from the world and unto God, and is a wholesome
check upon the purity and obedience of our lives.

Samson lost his strength the moment he touched the
forbidden world and the lap of Delilah. For us, too,
the secret of strength is this: **If thou wilt diligent^}
hearken to the voice of the Lord thy God, and wilt do
that which is right in his sight, and wilt give ear to his
commandments, and keep all his statutes, I will put
none of these diseases upon thee, which I have brought
upon the Egyptians: for I am the Lord that healeth
thee." This is the blessed ministry of the Holy Ghost;
first, to give us this practical righteousness and keep
us in the perfect will of God, and then to give us the
physical life and quickening promised in connection with
obedience. His own promise is, "If the Spirit of Him
which raised up Jesus from the dead dwell in you, He
that raised up Christ from the dead shall also quicken
your mortal body by His Spirit that dwelleth in you."

Such, then, is the blessed fullness of the Holy Spirit
as unfolded in this ancient book of Judges. How much
more rich and full the grace we may expect from Him
today !

Shall we take Him with Othniel as the Spirit of cour-
age; with Deborah, for woman's high and glorious min-
istry ; with Gideon and Jepthah, to use the weak things
of this world to confound the mighty, and the things
which are despised, yea, and the things which are not,

V20

POWER FROM ON HTOTI

to bring to uauglit tlio things vvliicli are; and shall we,
like Samson, "out of weakness be made strong, wax
valiant in fight and turn to flight the armies of the
aliens"?

CIIAPTEK X.

A SPIRIT-FILLED MAN.

"But there is a spirit in man: and the inspiration of the
Almighty giveth thenj undorsjaiulin^. " — .lob '^2: 8.

"The Spirit of God hath made me, and the breath of \ho
Almighty hath given mo life. ' ' — Job 33 : 4.

THE book of Jol) is rhc oldest poem in the world.
It has come down to us from a period somewhere
between the time of Abraham and Joshua. It is
a profoundly interestinjjj drama. unfoldin<r some of the
most importa!it principles of the divine government, and
revealing God's personal dealings with His people
through the Holy Spirit.

First, Job himself a])pears upon the scene as the type
of a high and noble character, a man of perf(»et upright-
ness, one who represents the very highest ideal of hu-
man character.

Next, we see God testing this man, revealing to him
the depths of self and sin which lie r>r»ncealed in vvery
human soul, until, at length, Job appears imder the
searchlight of the Holy Ghost a pitiful spectacle, not
only of disease and suffering, but of self-righteousness,
self-vindication, and rebellion against God Himself.

One by one various characters appear upon the scene,
representing the wisdom and comfort and friendship
of the world — in fact, all that the world can do to help
us in our trouble. We have Bildad and Eliphaz and
Zophar representing, perhaps, the wisdom, the wealth,
and the pleasure of the w^orld, but all failing to bring
to Job the comfort, the instruction, and the discipline
that he needs.

Finally, Elihu appears upon the stage; and, for the
first time, he brings the message and the help of God.

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POWKR I'HO' ON nTGII

His very name signifies God Hiraself, and his words are
in keeping with the source from which his message
comes.

Let us look at him as one of the old(!st examples of the
indwelling, iuworking, and outflowing of the Holy Spirit.

First, we have the man. Secondly, we will consider
his message. And then we will notice the effect of his
message in its influence upon Job, the object of attention
in the whole drama of this wonderful book.

First, he tells us himself that he was a young man.
**I am young," he says, "and ye are very old; where-
fore I was afraid, and durst not shew you my opinion."
God can speak to and through even the; youngest of His
disciples. But notice the modesty of Elihu. He was
sensitive, shrinking, and full of that modest diffidence
which is always the criterion of true worth. The more
God uses us, the more should we shrink out of self -con-
sciousness and human observation. Then, we see not
only his modesty, but his respect for others and his
beautiful disi)osition to wait and to show the utmost
deference to those who are naturally his superiors.

There is no reason why we should thrust ourselves
forward because we have the Holy Spirit and are
trusted with His messages. The Spirit-filled man will
always be filled vnth deference and consideration for
others. In speaking to the New Testament assemblies,
the apostle tells them particularly to guard against this
very thing, for He says, "The spirits of the prophets
are subject to the prophets.'* When God gives us a
message He can afford to have us wait. So Elihu waited
till the others were through, and then he spoke with
effect.

But while Elihu is respectful and modest, he is at
the same time perfectly independent of the opinions of
people, and is bold and fearless in obeying the voice of
God, which he has heard in the depths of his own soul.

Let me not, I pray you, accept any man's person*,

A SPIRIT- KILLED MAN

123

neither let me give flattering titles unto man. For I
know not to give flattering titles; in so doing my
Maker would soon take rac away." And so the Spirit-
filled man is free from all men. He does not try to
copy any man, but listens directly to the voice of God
through His Word and II is Spirit. So many of us are
parrots, catching the opinion and the ideas of others.
God wants individual characters and individual mes-
sages, and every one of us to be himself filled and taught
of the Holy Ghost.

We see in Elihu a man so filled with the Holy Ghost
that he cannot keep back his words. He says, "The
Spirit within me constraincth me. Behold, my belly
is as wine which hath no vent; it is ready to burst like
new bottles." This is the way the apostle felt, "We
cannot but speak the things which we have seen and
heard." We need this volcanic power to give force
and propelling power to the message with which God
trusts us.

Again, we see in Elihu a man supremely anxious to
glorify God, and grieved because Job's friends have
not answered his questions and vindicated God. llis
one desire is to glorify his Maker and his Master. Such
a man always will be taught and used of His Master.
The Holy Spirit is waiting for such men and women.

THE MESSAGE OP ELIHU.

It is a very wonderful message. It unfolds the deepest
principles of God's moral government, and rises to the
loftiest height of inspired eloquence. There is no pro-
founder discussion of God's dealings with His chil-
dren. God is always speaking to His people. "God
speaketh once, yea, twice, yet man perceiveth it not,"
is heedless, or blind and deaf, failing therefore, to un-
derstand his Father's voice. Then God has to speak

12-1

POWER FROM ON HIGH

if !

again through sickness and physical suffering; and so
we have the picture in the thirty-third chapter, from
the nineteenth to the twenty-socoud verses.

It is the picture of a poor sufferer chastened with pain,
sinking day by day into emaciation and exhaustion,
until he is ready to drop into the grave. This, however,
is not God's last voicv; there is another message, but
oh, how rarely and how seldom the true messenger is
found ! * * One among a thousand. ' ' What a blessed mes-
sage He brings ! He shows man His uprightness, the lov-
ing kindness of His chastening, leading him to repent-
ance, and then He unfolds the blessed message of the
great atonement, and cries, "Deliver him from going
down to the pit ; I have found a ransom. ' ' What is the
effect of this? *'His flesh shall be fresher than a child's;
he shall return to the days of his youth."

This is the blessed Gospel of the Atonement — atone-
ment for sickness as well as sin; this is the blessed Gos-
pel of Healing — healing for body as well as soul. It
was God's ancient thought, and it is still unchanged —
His will for all who will simply believe and receive.

This is God's uniform principle of dealing with His
children. ''These things worketh God oftentimes with
man, to bring back his soul from the pit, to be enlight-
ened with the light of the living." God's chastenings
are not the zigzag lightnings of the sky, that strike we
know not where or when, but the intelligent, inti-lligible,
loving dealings of a Father, who will let us understjvnd
why He afflicts us. He Himself has told us in the New
Testament, "If we would judge ourselves, we should not
be judged. But when we are judged, we are chastened
of the Lord, that we should not be condemned with the
world." This is God's object in dealing with His chil-
dren, to bring them out of some position that is wrong
into His higher will; and as soon as we learn our les-
son. He is glad to remove the pressure, and to bring us
into the full manifestation of His favor and blessing for

A SPIRIT- FILLED xMAN

125

both soul and body. Can we find anywhere a wiser,
broader, truer unfolding of God's gracious providence
and His loving, faithful dealings with His children
than in the old message of Elihu, more than three thou-
sand years ago.

Then He passes on to a more sublime discourse, in
which He sweeps the whole circle ^f the heavens and
the whole field of nature and unfolds the glory and
majesty of God in all His works. At length, as He
reaches His loftiest height, God interrupts Him, and
closes His sublime oration with a yet grander perora-
tion, as? He speaks through the whirlwind to Job with a
voice that he can no longer answer nor gainsay.

III.

THE EFFECT OF THE MESSAGE.

This brings us to the effect of the message upon Jol)
himself. This is the great central thought of the whole
book and the entire drama.

Job meets us as the central figure and the type of our-
selves. He represents man at his best, just as Elihu
at the close represents mjin at God's besit.

We see in Jol) an upright man. the best man of his
time, the best that man can be by the help of divine
grace, until he dies to himself altogether and enters into
union with God Himself.

The first picture of Job is a favorable one, both to
himself nnd to everybody else. He seems to be all right,
until God brings the searchlight and the surgical probe
to bear upon him, when, like everything else that is hu-
man, he breaks conipictely down, and shows himself in
all the weakness and worthlessness of our lost humanity.
The woi-st thing that we find in Job is Job himself.
God was not trying to convin<*e him of any glaring sin.
hut of his self-sufficiency, self-righteousness, and sHf-eon-
fidence. The thing that we have to deny is self. The

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POWER FROM ON HIGH

hardest thing to see and to crucify is our own self-con-
fidence and self-will ; and we have to pass through many
a painful incident and many a humiliating failure be-
fore we find it out and fully recognize it.

Accordingly we find Job, under the divine searchlight,
signally failing, revealing his unbelief, vindicating him-
self, and even blaming God for unjustly afflicting him.
One by one his various friends appear upon the scene
representing the wisdom, wealth, and pleasure of the
world; but Job sees through the fallacy of all their
arguments, and refuses their messages, until, at length.
Elihu comes with the inspired messpge of God. God
follows it by directly revealing Himself to Job, and
speaking from the whirlwind with a voice that he can
no longer resist.

Job in the light of God at length wakes up to his
own worthlessness and nothingness, and falling silent
at Jehovah's feet, he cries, "I have heard of Thee by
the hearing of the ear: but now mine eye seeth thee.
"Wherefore I abhor myself, and repent in dust and
a.shes." This is, at last, the death of self; and now
God is ready to pick up His servant, to forgive his
errors and faults, and even to vindicate him in the
face of his friends.

Then, for the first time, we hear God approving Job
and saying to his unwise friends, "Ye have not spoken
of me the thing which is right, as my servant Job hath. ' '
What was the thing which Job had spoken of Him
that was right? It was his language of self-condemna-
tion, humiliation, renunciation. Job had now ended
and God was ready to begin. God immediately responds
to him not only with His favor and blessing, but with
all the prosperity and blessing which he had lost; and
Job rises to a new place in every way.

This is the resurrection life unfolded in the ancient
type. This is the resurrection life into which the Holy
Ghost is waiting to bring all who are willing, like Job.

A SPIRIT-FILLED MAN

127

to die to the life of self. God was not looking in Job
for any open sin or flagrant wrong ; but He was search-
ing for the subtle self-life which lies concealed behind
a thousand disguises in us all, and which is so slow
and so unwilling to die.

God has often to bring us not only into the place of
suffering, and to the bed of sickness and pain, but also
into the place where our righteousness breaks down, and
our character falls to pieces, in order to humble us in
the dust and to show us the need of entire crucifixion
to all our natural life. Then, at the feet of Jesus we
are ready to receive Him, to abide in Him, to depend
upon Him alone, and to draw all our life and strength
each moment from Him, our Living Head.

It was thus that Peter was saved by his very fall.
He had to die to Peter that he might live more perfectly
to Christ.

Have we thus died, and have we thus renounced the
strength of our own self-confidence? Happy, indeed,
are we if this be so; for we shall have Christ and all
His resources of strength. Then He can afford to give
to us, as he did to Job, all the riches of His goodness and
all the gifts of His providence that we need in our secu-
lar and temporal life.

We begin life with the natural, next we come into
the spiritual; then, when we have truly received the
Kingdom of God and His righteousness, the natural
is added to the spiritual, and we are able to receive the
gifts of His providence and the blessings of life with-
out becoming centred in them or allowing them to sep-
arate us from Him.

This is the sweet lesson of the life of Job. This is
the bright and happy sequel to all his sorrow. This is
the ripening of the seed of death and pain. This is the
blessed fruition of all his affliction. This is but a little
type of that richer resurrection life which the New
Testament reveals.

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POWER FROM ON HIGH

The blessed Holy Spirit is waiting to lead us all
into the path of life through the gates of death. Some
one tells of a gentleman who called upon an old friend
and was invited by the proprietor to go with him to
survey his splendid new warehouse. As they started
to go to the upper floor, the visitor began immediately
to climb the stair. **01i," said his friend, "this way,"
and opened a little side door and led him down a few
steps to a platform where a door opened into an eleva-
tor. "This is the way we go up now"; and then they
mounted by that elevator to the very top of the build-
ing, eight or ten stories high, and came down from floor
to floor without the slightest effort. As they returned
to the office the gentleman said: "I have just been
thinking that this is God's new way of ascension. He
leads us down first, and then He puts us into His ele-
vator and lifts us up to Himself."

This is the story of Job. This is the story of Jesus.
This is the story of everj^ true life. "Except a com of
wheat fall into the ground and die, it abideth alone ; but
if it die, it bringeth forth much fruit." God help us
to die. Fear not the pain, the sacrifice, the surrender.
"Though I walk through the valley of the shadow of
death, I fear no evil: for thou art with me." And on
the other side you shall say, "Thou anointest my head
with oil; my cup runneth over. Surely goodness and
mercy shall follow me all the days of my life; and I
will dwell in the house of the Lord forever."

Oh, how sweet it is to die with Jesus,
To the world and self and sin!

Oh, how sweet it is to live with Jesus,
As He lives and reigns within!

::3

CHAPTER XI.

THE HOLY SPIRIT IX THE LIVES OF SAUL AND

DAVID.

' ' Create in nic a clean heart, O God ; and renew a right spirit
within nie.

Cast nie not away froni thy presence; and take not thy holy
Spirit from me,

"Restore unto me the joy of thy salvation; and uphold in«
with thy free Spirit."— Psalm 5: 10-12.

THESE words express the prayer of David at an
important era in his life, and suggest to us his rela-
tion to the Holy Spirit in his deepes.t experience.
Back of this picture there lies in dim outline another
picture, that of a life that had also possessed the Holy
Spirit but had lost Ilis blessing; and it was, perhaps,
in reference to this dark, sad background that David
cried, "Take not Thy Holy Spirit from me." The other
picture is that of Saul. These two lives stand side by
side as companion pictures illustrating the dealings of
the Holy Spirit with tvo opposite characters, and lead-
ing to entireiy opposite issues. It is a very solemn con-
trast and a very instructive lesson.

1. First, in the story of Saul we find that he, too,
had the Holy Spirit. We have a very distinct account
of his call and enduement by the Spirit. We find the
story in the tenth chapter of First Samuel. Here we
see the Spirit coming upon a man almost unsought, and
apparently without any spiritual preparation. It was
the Spirit of God coming for service, giving him power
to prophesy, to conquer, to rule, the enduement for
service rather than for personal experience.

There is always real danger just at this point. It is
a very serious thing to want the Holy Ghost simply

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POWER FROM ON HIGH

to give us power to work for God. It is much more
important that we should receive the Holy Spirit for
personal eharacter and personal holiness. Perhaps the
deep secret of Saul's failure was that, like Balaam, he
had power to witness and to work rather than to live
and obey.

God's graces are higher than God's gifts, and one
grain of love is worth a thousand lightning flashes of
prophetic fire.

Again, we see, perhaps, another secret of Saul 's failure,
in the fact that the power came upon him largely from
others. It was when he was in company with the proph-
ets that the spirit of prophecy came upon him.

There is always danger of absorbing much from the
atmosphere around us, and being too little self-contained
and directly centred in God. "Cursed is the man that
trusteth in man, and raaketh flesh his arm, and whose
heart is departed from the Lord." The difference be-
tween Saul and David was that David knew God for
himself, and knew Him from a deep personal experience
of the indwelling life of the Spirit, and the outflowing
life of habitual obedience, while Saul knew Him only
as a supernatural impulse for his public life.

But notwithstanding these drawbacks, the enduement
of Saul with the Spirit of God was very deep and very
important. It marked a complete crisis in his life, and
his heart was changed into another heart, and he became
another man.

It is very remarkable how fully God can possess a
human soul. We read of demoniac possession through
which the entire being of a man becomes so controlled
by evil spirits that they are able to add tenfold intensity
and force to his life. Why may not a man be just as
much God-possessed as he can be Satan-possessed, so that
every faculty and power of his being shall be filled with
the power of the Holy Ghost, and his energy and capa-
bility shall be redoubled?

THE HOLY SPIRIT IN SAUL AND DAVID

131

This was the case with Saul, and it may be true of
us. Look again, how all-sufficient His divine presence
was for every emergency. "When this is come upon
thee," Samuel said, "thou shalt do as occasion serve
thee; for God is with thee."

We do not need to have elaborate plans or depend
upon our own wisdom; for we have a Guide and a
Friend that will direct us as need shall require, and, if
we will acknowledge Him in all our ways. He will direct
our paths.

So Saul started in his career. No man ever had a
more promising beginning, supported by splendid per-
sonnel, an enthusiastic people, a clear call of God and
a manifestly divine endueraent for his great work. Sure-
ly he had every opportunity to accomplish the grandest
results for God and man.

But, alas! he ended in disappointment and failure.
His kingdom ere long was rent from him by the hand
of God, and his sun went down in darkness and blood.
What were the causes of his failure, and what are the
lessons of this strange career?

We find the test coming to him very soon. Samuel
sent him on a high commission, and told him to wait
a certain time until he should arrive. He bade him
tarry seven days, promising him to come and oft> r sacri-
fices to God before marching against their enemies. Saul
waited until the seven days had expired, and then, be-
coming impatient and anxious, he rashly offered the
sacrifice himself. No sooner was the sacrifice accomp-
lished than Samuel arrived and told him that, by his
disobedience, he had forfeited the approval of God and
the permanence of his kingdom.

It may seem a little thing, but little things are always
deciding the issues of life because they are the best
tests of real principle and character. It was but a little
thing that wrecked the human race. One trifling act of
disobedience, one minute detail of God's commandments

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POWER FROM OX Hinir

ill whieli Dur iirsi pun ills (himl to tjtkc lljt'ir own way
began the career ol." rebellion and in«lf>ptMi<lei)ce wliich
has brought upon llie hiimaji race all their sorrow.

This act indicated the true spirit ol' Saul. One word
expresses that better than any other, s*elt'-will.

Although God had appointed hira to be His king,
Saul insisted upon being his own master, thereby proving
liiraself unfit for his ti'ust.

It was not long before the second t«st came. God
^ave Saul another chance, He sent him on an expedi-
tion against the Amalekites, Israel's ancient foes, types
of the flesh and the world, and the enemies of the true
life of God in the soul. His instructions were implicit
and peremptory. He was to destroy Anialek utterly.
Because God went with him in his expedition and cntwn-
ed him with success, Saul returned victorious, having
subdued Amalek and laid waste all their cities; but
he brought back with him the best of tire spoil and Agag,
their king, to grace his triumph.

Samuel arrived just as he was congratulating himself
on his splendid success, and his faithful fulfillment of
his great commission. Saul met him with confidence,
but Samuel responded with a stern rebuke. "I have
obeyed the commandment of the Lord," says the king.
Then followed those terrible words of divine denuncia-
tion, which ended at last in the withdrawal of Samuel.
As Saul clung to him in despair, the prt)phet's garment
parted in the hands of the king, and Samuel declared
that it was thti pledge of the broken covenant and the
loss of his kingdom.

Saul betrayed the real earthliness of his heart by his
last appeal. ''Honor me," he cried, "at least before the
people," and God granted him the little gratification
which for the time satisfied his poor shallow heart. Out
of this dark and dreadful scene there comes one sen-
tence which is the keynote of true obedience and true
success. "Obedience is better than sacrifice and to

Tin: HOLY SPIRIT IN SAUL AND DAVfD

r^'^

hearken than the lat of the rams." This was llic s»cret
of Saul's failure; he laeked the true hearkening spirit
an<l the obedient will.

He was quite willing to go half wa;y with God as long
us it did not eross his personal preferences; but when
there came a test and a sacrifice, his obedience failed,
and he pleased himself rather than God. This was the
essential difference between Saul and David. It was
this that made David a man after God's heart. He
wanted to obey God, and the real purpose of his heart
was to please Jehovah.

Saul was a man after his own heart, and he wanted
to please and glorify poor Saul. He was the type of a
man that had power without grace, and gifts without
holiness.

His desire to spare Agag was but a sample of his
whole spirit. He wanted to spare himself. Agag is
the type of the self-life and the whole story illustrates
the great lesson of self-crucifixion, which lies at the
threshold of all spiritual blessing. Amalek and the flesh
must die. Saul was not willing that they should die,
and, therefore, Saul had to die. He that would save
his life must lose it, and he that is willing to lose his
earth-life will keep it unto the life that is not of earth
but eternal.

This was the turning point in Saul's career. From
this time the Spirit of God left him, and "an evil
spirit from God" possessed him. It was the spirit of
Satan, but it was by divine permission.

We touch a very awful theme here, but one that we
dare not evade. We are taught in many places in the
Holy Scripture that when men refuse the leading of
the Holy Ghost, and choose their own way and the ways
of Satan, the Lord lets them be filled with ther own
devices and gives them over to the power of evil.

Oh, let us not trifle with the sacred things of God!
Let us not talk lightly of the perseverance of the saints

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POWER FROM ON HIGH

• I

' i

when we are presumptuously disobeying God. Like
the little child who keeps her hoop steady in its move-
ment by touching it first on the one side then upon
the other, so God speaks to us His promises and His
threatenings as we are ready to receive them. To the
disobedient and careless disciple He says with great
solemnity, **Let him that thinketh he standeth take heed
lest he fall." But to the poor trembling heart, sinking
in its own discouragement, He cries, ' ' I will never leave
thee nor forsake thee " ; " My sheep hear my voice, and
I know them, and they follow me : and I give unto them
eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall
any man pluck them out of my hand."

Like the pilgrim in Bunyan's dream, let us both
hope and fear. Let us guard against the first step
backward. We never know where it is going to end.
The apostle hints that it may be unto perdition, and
he pleads with us, "Cast not, therefore, away your con-
fidence." **Tf any man draw back, my soul shall have
no pleasure in him. But we are not of them who draw
back unto perdition, but of them who believe to the
saving of the soul."

2. David, likewise, has his experience of the Holy
Ghost.

In the same paragraph that tells us of the Holy Spirit's
departing from Saul, we read these simple words, ' * Then
Samuel took the horn of oil, and anointed him in the
midst of his brethren : and the Spirit of the Lord came
upon David from that day forward" (1. Samuel 16: 13).

The first effect of the Holy Spirit upon David is
shown in the next reference, in the eighteenth chapter
of first Samuel and the fifth verse, where we read that
* * David went out whithersoever Saul sent him, and he be-
haved himself wisely."

This was not only an anointing with power, but an
anointing also of wisdom and grace, enabling him to

THE HOLY SPIRIT IN SAUL AND DAVID

135

live a true life and to eommeud himself to this master
ynd to all men.

The subs»'(|U(Mit story oi' David's life is but an un-
folding of the power of the Holy Spirit. In the book
of Psalms we have the inner life of David, and in the
historieal books we have the outer story that correspond-
ed to this.

We find David himself attributing his military ex-
l)loits and his physical power, as well as the success of
his whole kingdom, to the power of the God upon whom
he depended. There is no finer illustration of this than
the eighteenth Psalm, in which he himself tells us the
secret of his strength.

**He teacheth my hands to war, so that a bow of
steel is broken by mine arms."

* ' Thou hast also given me the shield of thy salvation :
and thy right hand hath holden me up, and thy gentle-
ness hath made me great." Yet the warrior king rec-
ognized in his body the same power which gives us
strength today in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ,
and attributed all his victories to the power of the Holy
Ghost.

In the story of his campaigns we have some vivid
illustrations of his constant dependence upon the pres-
ence of God and the leadership of His Spirit. Even
when he wandered as a fugitive among his enemies, we
find him constantly inquiring of the Lord about all his
movements. When, as he ascended the throne, the Phil-
istines came up against him, we see him at once appealing
to Jehovah, and asking, * ' Shall I go up to the Philistines ?
Wilt thou deliver them into my hand? Not until the
answer came and the order was given to move, did he
presume to go forward.

It is needless to say that his movements were crowned
with victory. A year later when the same enemy re-
turned in force, David did not go against them as be-

;»

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POWER FROM ON IITOTI

f r

Nil!

fore. He again went to God for diroct pfiiidancc, })ut
he received an entimly diftVrciit dinrtion.

"Thou shalt not, go up; but fetch a compass behind
them, and come upon thorn over against the mul!jerry
trees. And let it be, when thou hearest the sound of a
going in the tops of the mulberry trees, that then thou
shalt bestir thyself: for then shall the Lord go out
before thee, to smite the host of the Philistines." Surely
this was a divine plan of battle and a divine victory.

Thus he fought his battles, thus he won his crown;
thus he ruled and organized his people; thus he planned
the glorious temple; and thus he lived his wondrous life
in the power of the same Holy Spirit which comes to us
in the fuller light of the New Testament Dispensation.

We have in the Psalms some delightful revelations
of the relation of the Holy Spirit to his inner life. We
find in one of the most profoundly spiritual of them
this prayer, **Thy Spirit is good; lead me into the
land of unrightness. " We see in some of them the
unfoldings of a deeper life which makes them light-
houses for us upon the voyage of our higher Christian
experience.

Nowhere else can we find a pro founder conception
of faith than in some of these Psalms. The thirty-
seventh Psalm is not unlike the beatitudes of the Lord
Jesus Christ Himself.

There we see two pictures, one corresponding to the
story of Saul and the other to the spirit of David. There
we see a man who is plotting against God's servant and
seeking to slay him ; and there we see the spirit of trust,
fretting not because of evildoers, but trusting in the Lord
with holy obedience, committing his way unto the Lord,
and waiting patiently for Him, resting in the Lord and
delighting himself in Him, and receiving from Him the
desires of his heart.

Surely the man who could write this must have drunk
deeply of the fountain of the Holy Spirit.

THE HOLY SPIRIT IIT SAUL AND DAVID

137

In the paasapo which wo have quotetl as our text we
have a most definite unfolding o£ the Holy Spirit in
David's personal experience. He is nipresented here in
a three-fold aspect, and under three distinct names.
First, as the right spirit, "Renew a right spirit within
me"; second, as the Holy Spirit, "Take not thy
holy Spirit from me"; third, as the free spirit, which
literally means the princely spirit, the lofty, noble spirit,
the spirit which communicates life and liberty. * * Uphold
me with thy free spirit."

These are not repetitions. First, there is the right
spirit. This is connected with the clean heart It ia
a work of creation. It is the spirit of the new-born
soul. It is the heart that has been purified. It is not so
much the indwelling person of the Spirit a»s the effect
of His work in producing rightness of heart toward God
and toward man.

Secondly, we have the Holy Spirit. This is the per-
son of the Holy Ghost Himself, which will come into the
heart that has been made right, and dwell within us
in His power and holiness.

It is the Holy Spirit, the spirit which brings holiness ;
and holiness just means wholeness, completeness, entire
conformity to the will of God. David here intimates
the possibility of losing this Holy Spirit, as Saul had
done; but he cries, "take not thy holy Spirit from me.''

David's trust is very beautiful. He had come to a
great crisis. He had forfeited his kingdom and his
place of deeper blessing. Had it not been for his con-
fidence in God, he would have been driven to despair.
He had fallen and fallen so far that his whole moral
nature was stunned, and his spiritual sensibilities were
so paralyzed that he was left for four long years with-
out the consciousness of his very fall. When he awoke
from his dream to the dreadful consciousness of his ein
the realization of his iniquity was fearful.

He beheld himself in the light of the Holy Qhcst, and

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POWER FROM ON HIGH

eried again, "Against thee, thee only, have 1 sinned.**
Yot, in the face of this dark and dreadful vision, he
saw the grace of God as perhaps no one ever saw it
before; and he was able to rise from the depths of
sin to the heights of mercy, and cry, "I shall be whiter
than snow." Judas had a similar vision of his sin,
but without the vision of mercy, and he sank to rise no
more. But God in His infinite mercy gave David the
faith to realize the divine love, so he rose from the
abyss of sin to the heights of salvation. We have a
similar incident in the story of the woman of Canaan,
to whom Jesus gave the fearful words, "It is not meet
to take the children's bread and to cast it to the dogs."
That expression, "dogs," meant the very depths of sin
and unnatural crime. She did not deny it ; she accepted
it with lowly heart. Then she leaped from the depths
of her unworthiness and penitence to the highest place
in His love, and claimed, even as a dog, a crumb of
her Master 's bread. Jesus looked upon her with wonder,
because she had been able to see her own unworthiness
and yet to accept His mercy and grace.

This was the spirit that enabled David to trucst God
even in the darkest hour, and doubtless it brought David
nearer to God than he had ever been before.

There is a third designation of the Holy Spirit here,
"Uphold me with thy free spirit." There was danger
that, in coming back to God from such an awful state, he
should come in the spirit of servile fear.

And so he asks that God would give him the spirit
of love and holy liberty. David is the prodigal coming
back to take the highest place, to wear the best robe, the
royal ring, and to sit at the heavenly banquet. God
wants us all to have this spirit. It is the spirit of son-
ship; it is the spirit of confidence; it is the new-born
spirit; it is the princely spirit.

God takes us in Jesus Christ "even as He." He has
made us accepted in the Beloved, and we cannot honor

THE HOLY SPIRIT IN iSAUL AND DAVID

139

Him so much in any other way as by accepting the place
He gives us and counting ourselves the objects of His
perfect complacency and infinite love through Jesus
Christ, our Lord.

This is the spirit of power, the spirit of love, the
spirit that has spring in it and force in it, and leads
us out to self-sacrifice and unselfish love. And so Tie
adds, ''Then will I teach transgressors thy ways; and
sinners shall be converted unto thee . . . and my tongue
shall sing aloud of thy righteousness."

Was it with reference to this experience that he
wrote the wondrous twentj''-third Psalm ? Surely we find
there the same progression of thought and experience.
First we see the restored sheep under the Shepherd's
care, rejoicing in the green pastures and lying down by
the waters of rest. Next we see a different picture. It is
the wandering sheep, but the wandering sheep is not
remembered except in the song of restoration. He re-
storeth my soul, He maketh me to walk in the right
paths, for His name's sake.

It is here that the crisis comes, "The valley of the
shadow of death." This is not literal death, but that
deeper death to self and sin through which everv' true
life must pass, and through which, perhaps, David passed
after the tragedy of Uriah and Bathsheba.

Although it is a veiy dark valley, there is one bright
thing through it all — the presence of the Lord. "Thou
are with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me";
"I will fear no evil."

You will notice that here He speaks of the second
person. It is no longer He but Thou. God is now by
his side and in his very heart. Now, how all has
changed ! Instead of the Shepherd, it is the Father ; and
instead of the fold, it ir the banqueting house and the
home circle. Instead of the painful returning of Ihc
prodigal, it is the table spread in the presence of his
enemies, the head anointed with oil. and the overflowing

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POWER FBOM ON HIGH

.1:

*'<

m'< ■'•

cup. This is "the free spirit." This is the blessing
that there is not room enough to receive. Before him
all is brighter still. As he looks out into the coming
vista he cries, "Surely goodness and mercy shall follow
me all the days of my life; and I will dwell in tho
house of the Lord forever."

Beloved, these are "the sure mercies of David." Thv
Lord is waiting to give the same right spirit, the same
Holy Spirit, the same free spirit, the same fullness of
blessing for spirit, soul, and body. Oh, it may be that
some of us, like David, have sunk with him into sin
and despair! Do not yield to discouragement, but rec-
ognize the hand ot jrierv in the fall. Perhaps it was
divine love, showing jc a Uiai you were not strong enough
to stand alone, and bringing you back, not to the old
place of blessing, but to a place where He is able to
keep you from stumbling, and to present you faultless
before the presence of His glory with exceeding joy.

That blessed Holy Spirit is ready to come to you and
to "cause you to walk in his statutes, so that you shall
keep his judgments and do them." That "Free Spirit"
is longing so to fill you that "the water that he shall
give you shall be in you a well of water, springing up
into everlasting life"; nay, mo^ v that drinking of His
fullness you shall not be able • Id the blessing, and
out of your inmost being sha'l fr th to others rivers
of living water; and your blessiiiU shall reach its con-
summation in David's closing song, "Then will I teach
transgressors thy way; and sinners shall be converted
unto thee." "0 Lord, open thou my lips; and my
mouth shall shew forth thy praise.'

»»

CHAPTER XII.

THE HOLY SPIRIT IN THE BOOK OF PROVERBS.

"Wisdom crieth without; she uttereth her voice in the streets;

"She crieth iu the chief place of concourse, in the openings
of the gates : in the city she uttereth her words, saying,

"How long, ye simple ones, will ye l«ve simplicity f and the
scornera delight in their scorning, and fools hate knowledge!

"Turn you at my reproof: behold, 1 will pour out my Spirit
unto you, I will make known my words unto you." — Prov. 1:
20, 21, 22, 23.

THERE is a beautiful incident in the early history
of Solomon which reveals the secert of his extra-
ordinary life.
Just after his accession to the throne of his father,
David, the Lord appeared to him in Gibeon, and gave
him the right to choose any blessing he desired. Instead
of choosing wealth, power, long life, and the lives of his
enemies, he simply asked for w'sdom; and God was so
pleased with him for his simple single choice that He gave
him not only wisdom, but all these other blessings also.
Solomon became renowned for superhuman wisdom, and,
in this book of Proverbs, we have some of the utterances
of that wisdom, crystalized in the form of these short,
sententious words, which have been well called "pearls
at random strung."

It is said that the people of Scotland are accustomed
to carry in their vest pockets a small copy of the book
of Proverbs, as a sort of "vade mecum," a kind of man-
ual of practical wisdom, for the guidance of their every-
day life.

This book reveals to us a phase of life that is extremely
practical and important, and shows us the teachings and
workings of the Holy Ghost as they affect our everyday

141

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POWER FROM ON HIGH

life. The key-word to this wliole book is the word Wis-
dom. It occurs scores of times.

It is a peculiar Hebrew word, and in these pages it
becomes personific^d until it is really a proper name. It
is very much like another term applied to our Lord
Jesus Christ in the New Testament ; namely, the Word,
or Logos, introduced to us in the first chapter of the
Gospel of John, Indeed, the Word in John and Wisdom
in Proverbs are realJy the same Person, tlie Lord Jesus
Christ Himself, revealed in these ancient pages in His
primeval glory. But the Lord Jesus Christ always stands
connected with the Holy Spirit, who reveals Him, and
who filled Him, and spake and wrought through Him
during His earthly ministry ; so that Wisdom in the
book of Proverbs is not only the personification of Jesus
Christ but also of the blessed Holy Ghost.

Let us look at some of the pictures of this blessed
Person in these ancient pages.

First, we see Him in His personal and primeval glory.
This is unfolded in the sublime vision of the eighth chap-
ter' of Proverbs. *'Tlie Lord possessed me in the begin-
ning of his way, before his works of old." This blessed
Person is older than the creation. "I was set up from
everlasting, from the beginning, or ever the earth was.
When there were no depths, I was brought forth ; when
there were no fountains abounding with water. B(>-
fore the mountains were settled, before the hills was I
brought forth : while as yet he had not made the earth,
nor the fields, nor the high<>st part of the dust of the
world."

Next, we see Him taking part in the work of creation.
*'When he prepared the heavens, I was there: when
he set a compass upon the face of the depth ; when he
established the clouds above; when he strengthened the
fountains of the deep; when he gave to the sea his de-

THE irOTiY SPIRIT IN PR0VERB8

143

^ord Wis-

pages it
iam(3. It
;)ur Lorr!
lie Word,
iv of the
[ Wisdom
)rd Jesus
3S in His
ys stands
lim, and
igh Ilim
n in the

of Jesus

s blessed

al glory,
ith chap-
le begin-
^ blessed
up from
rtli was.
1 ; when
sr. Be-
s was I
le earth,
: of the

reation.
: when
vhen he
ned the
his de-

cree, that the waters should not pass his commandment;
when he apt)ointed the foundations of the earth : then
I was by hira, as one brought up with him; and I was
daily his delight, rejoicing always before him."

Oh, what depths of light these strange illuminated
verses pour upon the fellowship of the Father, the Son,
and the Holy Ghost, in the remote eternal ages ! And, oh,
what love to our poor human race these words reveal,
"Rejoicing in the habitable part of his earth; and my
delights were with the sons of men"!

This blessed Christ, this blessed Comforter, who seeks
your love, is no less than the second and third Persons
of the Eternal Godhead. By them these heavens were
made and this earth was formed. All the majesty of
nature is their handiwork. All the wisdom of the ages
has come from their eternal mind. Not only do they
represent the wisdom and power of God, but they repre-
sent a love that has thought of us from the very begin-
ning, and will love us to the end.

When this world was made, when the mountains
were settled and the fountains and the rivers were
opened. God was thinking of us, the Holy Ghost was
planning for our happiness and welfare.

The whole material universe, the whole structure of
nature, the whole economy of the ages was planned with
a view to our creation, our redemption, our eternal glory.
Redemption is no after-thought of God; but when He
made this earth, and settled the stars in their orbits,
He did it with a view to man's creation and future
destiny. Oh, surely we can trust Him with our future
when we think of His eternal past! Oh, surely we
need not hesitate to commit our destiny to those Al-
mighty hands, that have spanned these heavens and
laid the foundations of the earth, and to that heart of
eternal love that loved us from the first of time, and
loves us to the last!

But not only do we see His part in creation, but also

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POWER FROM ON HIGH

futn

in providence. "By me," he says, "kings reign, and
princes decree justice. By me princes rule, and nobles,
even all the judges of the earth." His is the wisdom
that has inspired every high and mighty thought of
man; His is the fire that has kindled every touch of
human genius. He is the foundation of all life, and
truth, and wisdom, and power; and He offers to be
at once our wisdom, our guide, our power, and our all-
sufficiency.

Surely we may well heed His gentle voice, as He calls
to us in the light of all this record of glory: "Now,
therefore, hearken unto me, ye children; for blessed
are they that keep my ways. Hear instruction, and be
wise, and refuse it not; for whoso findeth me findeth
life, and shall obtain the favor of the Lord, but he that
sinneth against me wrongeth his own soul ; all they that
hate me love death."

The next chapter reveals to us this divine Wisdom
building her house, hewing out her seven pillars, killing
her sacrifices, spreading her table, inviting her guests,
and calling her friends to the banquet of her bounty and
grace. This, also, is a picture of the Holy Ghost. The
house that she is building is the Church of Christ. The
seven pillars that stand in the front are truth, righteous-
ness, life, faith, love, power, and hope. The sacrifice
is that of Christ, our great atonement ; and the banquet
prepared is the feast of His love, the Living Bread
which He Himself provides, and the wine of joy and
blessing that comes from the indwelling of His Holy
Spirit. Into this blessed house of mercy and unto this
table of every heavenly blessing, the Holy Spirit is
inviting a starving world.

In contrast with this blesvsed woman, who stands in
the front of the picture, there is another woman revealed
in the closing verses. It is the woman that so often

THE HOLY SPIRIT IN PROVERBS

145

appears in the pictures of Proverbs, that evil woman who
sits in the highway of life calling to the passers-by to
partake of her unhallowed joy, inviting the foolish and
the simple to partake of her forbidden pleasures, saying
to them, "Stolen waters are sweet, and bread eaten in
secret is pleasant. ' ' But, alas ! there is an awful skeleton
behind that door, and a fearful cry that comes from that
house of folly and sin, for the prophet tells us "that
the dead are there ; and her guests are in the depths of
hell."

So the two houses stand face to face on the highway
of life; the heavenly house, with the Holy Ghost stand-
ing at its door and inviting in the children of sin and
sorrow, and saying, "IIo, every one that thirsteth, . . .
come ye, buy and eat; yea, come, buy wine and milk
without money, and without price. Wherefore do ye
spend your money for that which is not bread ? and your
labor for that which satisfieth not?" And right across
the way, with the multitude surging by and pressing in,
is the house of pleasure, the house of shame, the house of
sin, whose steps are hard by the gates of hell.

We turn back to the first chapter of Proverbs, and we
have another picture of Wisdom as an impersonation of
the Holy Ghost. She is standing now in the streets of
the great city, in the entering in of the gates, in the
places of public concourse, and calling to the passing
crowd as they go heedlessly by, "How long, ye simple
ones, will ye love simplicity? and the scorners delight
in their scorning, and fools hate knowledge. Turn you
at my reproof: behold, I will pour out my spirit unto
you, I will make known my words unto you." This
is the Holy Ghost pleading with a lost, perishing world.
This is the Spirit of God, in the messengers of the Gos-
pel, inviting men to turn to God. This i« the vision

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POWER FROM ON HIGH

•lis:

•i

of divine mercy trying to save men through the message
of the Gospel.

Notice that she does not stand behind a pulpit railing
and inside upon the marble steps of a splendid cathedral.
This was the way that Isaiah prophesied, that Jonah
preached, that Jesus preached, and that Paul often pro-
claimed the Gospel.

We cannot wait for a sinful world to come to our
doors. We must go out quickly, and constrain them
to come in; and if we are filled with the Holy Ghost,
our cry, like Wisdom's, will still be heard in the streets,
and amid the concourse of crowds, and at the entering
in of the gates. It is the same old cry, ** Repent";
"Turn you at my reproof." It is the call to men to
turn from sin and turn to God ; and the promise comes
with it that God will give His Spirit to the returning
sinner, and enable him to repent, believe, and obey.

Oh, is there any sinful soul listening to this message
or reading these lines? He calls to thee, ''Turn you at
my reproof, ' ' and He will pour out His Spirit upon yon
as you put yourself in the place of blessing, and He will
make known Plis words unto you, and lead you into all
truth as you follow on and obey the light that He has
alreatly given you. But there is the same solemn warn-
ing to those that refuse to repent and believe. Oh, how
sad and solemn is this warning cry, "Because I have
called, and ye refused; I have stretched out my hand,
and no man regarded; but ye have set at nought all
my counsel, and would have none of my reproof; I
also will laugh at your calamity ; I will mock when your
fear coraeth as desolation, and your destruction cometh
as a whirlwind ; when distress and anguish cometh upon
you." Oh, how dark the angry cloud!

And then there comes a strange and awful change
in the .structure of the sentence; from the second per-
son it changes to the third person. It is no longer you.
but they ; for God has now gotten so far away that He

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thedral.
; Jonah
ten pro-

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THE HOLY SPIRIT IN PROVERBS

147

is speaking to the poor lost soul no more, but only speak-
ing about it. "Then shall they call upon me, but I will
not answer; they shall seek nie early, but thoy shall
not find me: for that they hated knowledge, and did
not choose the fear of the Lord: they would uono of
my counsel; they despised all my reproof: therefore
shall they eat of the fruit of their own way, and be filled
with their own devices." This is still the Holy Spirit's
solemn voice to all who reject His message and refuse
the Gospel of His grace.

But as the storm cloud sweeps away, the rainbow
rises upon its last dark shadow, a rainbow of promise to
those who have heeded His warning and have hearkened
to His voice. God grant, brother, that it may be His
word to you, and thou even yet shall turn at His re-
proof. "Whoso hearkenth unto me shall dwell safely,
and shall be quiet from the fear of evil." Blessed
promise ; saved from all evil, saved even from its shadow
and from its touch.

TV.

How shall we find the truth? How shall we receive
this heavenly wisdom? The answer is given in the
second chapter of Proverbs and the first nine verses.
"If thou will receive my words, and hide my command-
ments with thee; so that thou incline thine ear unto
wisdom, and apply thine heart to understanding; yea, if
thou criest after knowledge, and liftest up thy voice for
understanding ; if thou seekest her as silver, and search-
est for her as for hid treasures, then shalt thou under-
stand the fear of the Lord, and find the knowledge of
God." Here is the secret of divine teaching, deep earn-
estness and singleness of purpose, and perseverance of
pursuit; the ears, the heart, the whole being must be
yielded up. We must desire God above everything, and
seek Him as men search for treasures and mines, for
silver and for gold.

148

POWER FROM ON HIGH

God has hiddon cvory procious thinp in such a way
that it is a reua"d to the diligent, a prize to the earnest,
and a disappointment to the slothful soul. All nature
is arrayed against the lounger and the idler. The nut
is hidden in its thorny case; the pearl is buried be-
neath the ocean wave; the gold is imprisoned in the
rocky bosom of the mountain; the gem is found only
after you crush the rock that incloses it; the very soil
gives its harvests as the reward of industry to the labor-
ing husbandman. So truth and God must be earnestly
sought. "They that seek shall find ; to him that knocketh
it shall be opened."

The Holy Ghost is given in His fullest measure to
deep earnestness and singleness of purpose and desire.
You cannot have the higher things of God without the
sacrifice of everything else. "I have suffered the loss
of all things, and do count them but dung," **for the
excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord."
This is the true Spirit of divine attainment. The prize
is not for all. All run, but one receiveth the prize.
God give us the diligence, the singleness, the self-sacri-
fice, the concentration of desire, purpose, and every
power upon the one thing which really means all things,
and we, too, shall find that God is waiting to reward the
true heart with Himself. It is as true as ever, "ye shall
seek me, and find me, when ye shall search for me with
all your heart."

The message of wisdom to the seeker and searcher
after treasure is found in Proverb 3:13-18, "Happy
is the man that findeth wisdom, and the man that getteth
understanding: for the merchandise of it is better than
the merchandise of silver, and the gain thereof than
fine gold. She is more precious than rubies: and all
the things thou canst desire are not to be compared
xmto her, Length of days is in her right hand; and

THE HOLY SPIRIT IN PROVERBS

149

in her left hand riclies and honor. Iler ways are ways
of pleasantness, and all her paths are peace. She is
a tree of lif« to them that lay hold upon her; and happy
is every one that retaineth her."

Then again, in chapter 8:10, 11 we find: "Receive
ray instruction, and not silver; and knowledge rather
than choice gold. For wisdom is better than rubies;
and all the things that may be desired are not to be
compared to it."

And in verses 18-21 we read : * * Riches and honor are
with me; yea, durable riches and righteousness. My
fniit is better than gold, . . . and my revenue than
choice silver. I lead in the way of righteousness, in the
midst of the paths of judgment; that I may cause them
that love me to inherit substance; and I will fill their
treasures. ' '

These are some of the treasures which this heavenly
wisdom has to bestow upon those who truly seek her.

The keynote of the whole lesson was given in Sol-
omon's own life. He had the wisdom to choose wisdom
and wisdom only, and God added to him all the things
he did not choose. It is still true for us that, if we
will choose the Holy Ghost, He will become to us the
sum and substance of all good things.

He will be to us peace and happiness, joy and rest,
health and strength, providence and protection, guidance
and provision, freedom from fear and care, and all the
gifts and blessings which God can bestow upon a trust-
ing heart.

Like the widow's pot of oil, the Holy Spirit in us
will be the equivalent of everything that heart can de-
sire or life can need. God help us to make the wise and
happy choice, and have all in Him and Him in all;
and, as we seek the Kingdom of God and His righteous-
ness, all things shall be added unto us.

This was where Solomon began his illustrious career.
Happy would it have been for him if he had ended

•V

■A
••V

150

POWER FROM ON HIGH

li; j*'
' < kite

wluTe he began. Alas! (Jod's very blessing beepmo a
snare, llis heart turned away from the source of all
his blessings to the blessing themselves. His afl'eetions
were set on the things that surrounded him, his wives,
his friends, his treasures, perhaps his own wisdom; and
he sank from the Creator to the ereature, from the
height of wisdom to the depths of folly, shame, and
.sorrow.

Alas! Moses had to fail to show that the law made
nothing perfect, and Solomon had to fail to show that
the highe.st wisdom of man is insufficient for the child
of God. Thank God, "a greater than Solomon is here,"
the Lord Jesus Christ; not wisdom but Himself, the
wise One; not holiness but Himself the Holy One, not
our best but Himself within us to be His best.

Let ns receive Christ the wisdom of God, and let it
be true of u hat "of him are ye in Christ JesiLs, who
of God is ra anto us wisdom, and righteousness, and
sanctification, and redenii)tion."

The blessed Holy Ghost is waiting to bring Him into
our hearts, and to reveal Him and unfold Him in our
life, the Wonderful, Counsellor, the Mighty God, the
Everhistinu: Father, the Prinee of Peace, the Light of
the World; and "He that foUoweth him shall not walk
in darkness, but shall have the light of life."

CHAPTER XIII.
THE STILL, SMALL VOICE.

"And he said, Go forth, and stand upon the mount before the
Lord. And behold, the Lord passed by, and a great and strong
wind rent the mountains, and brake in pieces the rocks before
the Lord; but the Lord was not in the wind: and after the wind
an earthquake; but the Lord was not in the earthquake: and
after the earthquake a fire; but the Lord was not in the fire: and
after the fire a still, sniall voice.

"And it was so, when Elijah heard it, that he wrapped his
face in his mantle, and went out, and stood in the entering in of
the cave. And, behild, there came a voice unto him, and said,
What doest thou here, Hlijah?"— 1 Kings 19: 11-13.

THIS beautiful expression, **A still, small voice,"
has almost eome to be recognized as one of the
names of the Holy Spirit. Tlie whole scene is a
fine illustration of the Spirit's working not only in the
ages and dispensations, but in the experience of every
individual heart.

The scene is a most dramatic one. Elijah had just
reached the climax of his marvelous ministry. In that
magnificent scene on Carmel we behold him in the very
zenith of his career. God has answered his faith and
prayer by the descending fire. The whole nation has
been swayed at his will, and the very king is helpless
as a child at his bidding; while the prophets of Baal,
unable to resist the storm of popular enthusiasm, have
been swept away by a stroke of judgment. Even the
very heavens that have been closed for years have opened
the flood-gates at the prophet's command, and, like a
commander-in-chief of the armies of earth and heaven,
Elijah has led the victorious procession to the very gates
of the capital. But now another scene occurs as dra-
matic as the first.

151

•%

152

POWER FROM ON HIGH

There is oue other lieart iu Israi;! as thoroughly pos-
sessed of ihxi tlevil {US Elijah was possessed of the Holy
Ghost. She li^ars the atartliug tidings without the
quiver of a musele or a nerve, and with a face of iiint
and a heart of steel, she speaks but one sentence, of
fierce, defiant threatening, "So let the gods do to me,
and more also, if I make not thy life as the life of one
of them by tomorrow about this time." It was a well
directed shot from the batteries of the pit. In a
moment it had done its fearful work, and the prophet
of fire was broken like a child. There is something al-
most ludicrous in the graphic description of his flight,
"Elijah arose and went for his life"; nor did he stop
till he had reached the utmost confines of the land, away
down at Beersheba. Nor even there did he linger, but,
leaving his servant, he hastened on across the desert,
until, exhausted with hunger and fatigue, he sank on the
sand, and lay down beneath a juniper tree with one
gasp of hopeless despair, "Lord, take away my life;
for I am no better than my fathers."

God tenderly nursed and cherished Kis weary child,
put him to sleep, then awoke him and fed him by angel
hands, until he was strong enough for his farther jour-
ney. Then He sent him on to Horeb, the Mount of God.

There, on some mountain crag and at the entrance
of a cave, he waited for the message of his Lord. His
spirit was all agitated and chafed. He felt his life
was a failure, and he longed for power to accomplish
the things for which he felt unable. Perhaps he even
thought that if he could rule the world for a little how
different things would be. He was just in that mood
where he wanted something to happen. Anything was
better than this silence, and the very war of the elements
would seem to such a spirit a luxury of rest.

It was not long before his thought was fulfilled, and
God began to speak to him through the voice of nature.
First came the migh.ty earthquake, heaving the solid

THE STILL, SMALL VOICE

153

ground, tearing the rocks asunder and making the <h's-
ert's bosom heave like the biUows of the ocean, till it
seemed that lie himself must be torn from his resting
place, or engulfed in the awful chasms that were opening
around him on every side. But he looked upon the
whole scene unmoved. There w^as nothing in it to touch
his spirit; the earthquake came antl went, and he felt
that **the Lord w<is not in the earthquake."

Next came the wild tornado, tilling tlii^ air with clouds
of sand, sweeping through the mountains, and tearing the
solid rocks from their base and hurling the forests into
the abysses below, while the air reverberated with the
crashing thunder, and quivered with the awful lightning.
His ears were stunned with the tempest's awful roai';
but through all the wild confusion the prophet stood
unmoved. Perhaps his fierj' spirit was even rested by
the elemental war. There was nothing in it that spoke to
his deeper heart. The whirlwind passed; but "the Lord
was not in the whirlwind."

Then came the fire. Perhaps it was the thunderbolt
of the sky; perhaps it was some flame caused by the
lightning stroke, kindling the forests and sweeping over
the mountains, with fiery blaze; or, perhaps, it was
some supernatural and awful flame, falling from the
skies, quivering before his gaze like the fire that came
down on Sinai ages before, when JMoses received the
law. But even this did not blanch his cheek nor move
his heart; Hk. ^azcd upon it with his spirit still unbroken,
and his heart chafing as before. And then, like the
hush that comes before the storm, or like che emj^hatic
pause in some musical strain, there came an awful still-
ness, and there fell upon his oar a strange and "still,
small voice," or as the New Version expresses it, *'A
sound of gentle stillness," softer than evening bells,
sweeter than a mother's tones, gentler than music's ten-
derest notes. Perhaps it spoke as much to the senses of
his soul as to his outward ear; but there was something

154

POWER FROM ON HIGH

in it so deep, so tender, so penetrating that it thrilled
his inmost being. It broke his whole spirit into tender-
ness and awe, and, gathering his mantle about him, he
crept into the cave, and fell upon his face at the f(!ct
of God to listen to His message. The fiery heart at
length is subdued, the mighty will is broken, the stern
prophet is like a little child.
What is the meaning of all this wondrous drama?

,ii

*mt:t

Elijah's lesson.

In the first place, it has a meaning for Elijah himself.
He needed to be quiet, he needed to find that the forces
that he was longing for were not the highest forces at
God's command, and that even his own stern, strong
nature needed to be subdued and taught the deepest
power of gentleness and love.

ELIJAH AND ELISHA.

Secondly, it had a yet higher meaning: it was a sort
of picture of the two ministries of Elijah and Elisha.
His was but a temporary dispensation ; he came as the
winter before the spring, as the plow before the sower.
as the storm before the shower. His was the ministry of
judgment and destruction. But the sunshine of spring
is stronger than the storms of winter, and the little seed
that drops into the soil is mightier than the plowshare
that digs the furrow or the dynamite that blasts the
rocks. So the gentle ministry of Elisha which was to fol-
low was more mighty and more fruitful than all the
destructive miracles of the great Elijah. He had his
place; but the earthquake, the whirlwind and the fire
of his awful judgments had to pass away, and **the
still, small voice" of Elisha 's gentler teachings and
miracles of grace had to come instead.

THE

STILL,

SMALL

in.

VOICE

-1
155

THK NEW DISPENSATION.

All

this

was pr

ophetic

of a y

et higher

era

and a

grander transaction. For Elijah and his ministry were
typical of the law and the dispensation of Moses, while
Elisha was the type of the Lord Jesus Christ and the
Gospel of His grace. And so the scene on Horeb is a
representation of the difference between Law and Grace,
Judgment and Mercy, the Old Dispensation and the
New.

God had alreac*- proved how much, or rather how
little, discipline can do to perfect human character and
lead to lasting righteousness.

All that suffering and chastening can accomplish to
purif}'- a people was done for ancient Israel. W^^t can
ever surpass the pathetic story of Israel's fall, dah's
captivity, and Jerusalem's doom? But alas !hov ansi-
tory the effect upon the character of the nation . They
wept, they suffered, they died, they left the awful re -
ord burned into the very heart of the nation; but the
ipxt generation went on repeating the sins and follies
of thpir fathers, and Or ! ould only cry *'Wh. should
ye be s^ icken any mon? ye will revolt more and more.
The whol( bend is sick, and the whole heart is faint.
From the sole of the foot even unto the head there is
no soundness in it ; bui wounds, and bruises, and putri-
fying sores."

Thank God, there is a better way. The Gospel of
His grace, the gentleness of His love, and the power
of His Holy Si have accomplished what law and

terror never coiud while they wrought alone. *'The
Btill, small voice" of Jesus' love is mightier than all
the thunder of Mount Sinai's law, or Assyrian or Chal-
dean armies. The law made nothing perfect, but the
bringing in of a better hope did. **The earthquake,
the whirlwind, and the fire" have gone, but "the still,

I!:

156

POWER FROM ON HIGH

small voice" of Calvary and Pentecost is speaking to
the hearts of millions, and speaking them back to God
and righteousness and heaven.

IV.

THE EXPERIENCE OF THE INDIVIDUAL SOUL.

The scene at lloreb is of ten repeated in our individual
life. We, too, have to pass through the earthquake, the
whirlwind, and the fire in our vain search "jr God;
and, at last, we find Him iis the still, small voice in the
depths of our soul. Perhaps the experience comes
through great trial, outward or inward sufferings, tests
that rend our very heart ajid crush our spirit. But the
suffering has no saving power. The human heart can be
torn to pieces, and yet every single piece be as full of
pride and rebellion as the whole.

It needs the quiet divine influence of the Holy Spirit
to change the heart and sanctify the soul. Suffering
without the Holy Ghost is the saddest thing on earth.
Trials unsanctified are like the lightning strokes that
blight but cannot bless.

Sometimes it is not so much external suffering as
a struggle within the secret soul itself to find God and
peace. Oh, how we labor and long and try ! But the
best result of all our struggles is to show their own
fruitlessness and to lay us helpless and silent before the
feet of Christ; and then we awake in the arms of His
love and power. And as we awake, we find that there
is so little in the new experience that is tangible or
strongly marked. In fact, the most frequent experience
is to find that we really have come into nothingness.
The stillness is so quiet that there is often the absence of
all self -consciousness and feeling, and even the presence
of God is "a still, small voice" so quiet that we have
to hush every other sound before we can hear it.

Indeed, the first experience is often one of great

THE STILL, SMALL VOICE

157

emptiness, bareness, and nothingness, and one is apt to
be disappointed, and to say, "Is this all that is meant
by the rest of faith ? ' ' But we soon find that the nothing-
ness of self is but the beginning of God's all-sufficiency,
and as wo are willing to rest in our nothingness and
His all-sufficiency, we soon begin to know the sweetness
and the power of that voice.

i^iii

V.
THE HOLY SPIRIT AS THE VOICE OP GOD.

The keynote of all this wondrous story is the voice.
The earthquake had a sound, but it had no voice. The
tempest and whirlwind could make a mighty noise, but
there was no voice. The fire could speak through the
sense of vision, and fill the soul with awe, but it had
no voice to speak to the heart. But "the still, small
voice" had behind it an intelligent mind, a living per-
sonality, a loving heart, and it was mightier than all
the lifeless forces which had gone before.

Oh, the power of a voice ! How it lingers in our mem-
ory ! How certain tones arrest our attention and wake
up all the old chords of the past ! How that voice speaks
to us of the difference between nature and revelation,
between the language of the earth and sky, and the
language of God's precious Word! God hath spoken
once in the voice of creation, but it is only like the
inarticulate language of the earthquake, the whirlwind,
and the fire. God hath spoken a second time, in the
voice of His Holy Word and His blessed Son, and this
is the message that brings light and life and salvation
to man.

A voice is more than a message, more than a printed
page, more than even an inspired book. A voice means
the presence of the person who speaks, and his personal
and living words to us. And so God speaks to us, not
only in the Bible, but by His own personal voice. His

■!iii'

i ;

158

POWER FROM ON HIGH

sheep know His voice, and "a stranger will they not
follow, but will flee from him: for they know not the
voice of strangers."

There is more in the Bible and in the revelation of
Christ than merely a message of truth. It is also a
personal message of love. He has a special voice for
every one of His children, and it is our privilege to
know His voice.

Oh, how that voice can speak to us! It is not an
audible voice; it does not reach our outward senses;
it would not be possible to explain to a stranger how it
makes itself understood in the heart; but, as we kneel
in prayer and ask His counsel, as we come with our
heavy-laden hearts and throw ourselves upon His bosom
for comfort; as we bring our petitions and wait for the
whispered answer, how it speaks to us, how it satisfies
us, how it identifies itself to us, and makes us know
"it is the Lord"! How it gives its approval to the
plans that He commends ! How it seals the promise that
is suggested to the mind, and lets it fall upon the heart
like balm upon the bleeding wound ! How it brings home
the words that fall from the speaker's lips, and makes
them God's living messages to our hearts! How it em-
phasizes every word we read, and how its sweet and
heavenly whisper fills all our inmost being with peace
and joy and life, until our glad and grateful heart can
only say, "T will hear what God the Lord will speak;
for he will speak peace to his people and to his saints'

c
I

, »»

VI.

THE POWER OP GENTLENESS.

The New Version translates this phrase, **The sound
of a gentle stillness." It speaks of God's gentleness.
Gentleness is always an attribute of the highest natures.
The bravest soldier, the loftiest character, is always the

THE STILL, SMALL VOICE

159

most child-like, simple and tender. Jesus Christ was
the incarnation of meekness, lowliness, and gentleness.

The apostle used this as his strongest plea when he
besought His disciples "by the meekness and gentleness
of Christ." *'I am meek and lowly in heart" was the
Master's own highest claim. And this was but th(3
ancient prophetic picture. "He shall not strive nor
cry, nor cause his voice to be heard in the streets; a
bruised reed shall he not break, and the smoking flax
shall he not quench."

1 Is there a sublimer spectacle, is there a more heart-

moving sight in all history, than that patient Sufferer
standing in the judgment hall or hanging upon the
Cross and allowing His murderers to do their worst,
answering not a word, "led like a lamb to the slaughter,
and as a sheep before the shearers is dumb, so he openeth
not his mouth"! The Holy Ghost, the Representative
of Christ, also is gentleness itself. He came upon Jesus
as the Dove, and He dwells in us as a Monitor so kind,
a Comforter so tender, that we can only "grieve" and
"vex" Him, but we cannot make Him angry. He ap-
peals to our obedience by His sensitiveness to the hurt
that we can give Him. Oh, let us be gentle as He;
let us treat Him with the consideration that His sensi-
tiveness should claim!

He will not force an entrance to our heart. He will
not do violence to the freedom of our will. He will not
compel us to do what we do not choose, nor to surrender
what we want to keep. He appeals to the finest motives
of our being, to the will that springs from our deepest
heart, and to the obedience which we are only too glad
to give.

Let us imitate His gentleness ; let us ask Him to trans-
late it into all our beings until we shall be simple, sen-
sitive, considerate, yielded, lowly, meek and child-like,
**even as He." Our faces, our manners, our tones, and

*^- i

•WMMnHfl^-wiHmMMrMaH-tlhw

160

POWER FROM ON HIGH

*3'

the whole complexion of our life shall be the blending
of the spirit of the Lamb and the Dove.

VII.

THE POWER OP STILLNESS.

It was "a still, small voice," or "the sound of a
gentle stillness. ' ' Is there any note of music in all the
chorus as mighty as the emphatic pause? Is there any
word in all the Psalter more eloquent than that one
word, "Selah, (Pause) "? Is there anything more thrill-
ing and awful than the hush that comes before the burst-
ing of the tempest or the strange quiet that seems to fall
upon all nature before some preternatural phenomenon
or convulsion ? Is there anything that can so touch our
hearts as the power of stillness?

The sweetest blessing that Christ brings us is the
Sabbath rest of the soul, of which the Sabbath of crea-
tion was the type; the Land of Promise, God's great
object lesson. There is for the heart that will cease
from itself "the peace of God that passeth all under-
standing"; "a quietness and confidence" which is the
source of all strength; a sweet peace which "nothing
can offend " ; a deep rest which ' ' the world can neither
give nor take away." There is, in the deepest centre
of the soul, a chamber of peace where God dwells, and
where, if we will only enter in and hush every other
sound, we can hear His still, small voice.

There is, in the swiftest wheel that revolves upon its
axis, a place in the very centre w^here there is no move-
ment at all ; and so in the busiest life there may be a
place where we dwell alone with God in eternal still-
ness.

This is the rTily way lo know God. "Be still, and
know that T am God." "God is in his holy temple;
let all the earth keep .silence before him."

A scoro of years ago a friend placed in my hand a

lit
m\

ni(
tlij
to

th<

THE STILL, SMALL VOICE

161

little book which became one of the turning points of
my life. It was called "True Peace." It was an old
mediaeval message with but one thought, whiiih was this
that God was waiting in the depths of my being to talk
to me if I would only get still enough to hear His voice.
I thought this would be a very easy matter, and so
I began to get still. But I had no sooner commenced
than a perfect pandemonium of voices reached ray ears,
a thousand clamoring notes from without and within,
until I could hear nothing but their noise and din.
Some of them were my own voice, some of them were
my own questions, some of them were my own cares, and
some of them were my very prayers. Others were sug-
gestions of the tempter and voices from the world's
turmoil. Never before did there seem so many things
to be done, to be said, to be thought; and in every direc-
tion I was pushed, and pulled, and greeted with noisy
acclamations and unspeakable unrest. It seemed neces-
sary for me to listen to some of them, and to answer
some of them, but God said, "Be still, and know that
I am God." Then came the conflict of thoughts for
the morrow, and its duties and cares, but God said,
* ' Be still. ' ' And then there came the very prayers which
my restless heart wanted to press upon Him, but God
said, "Be still." And as I listened and slowly learned
to obey and shut my ears to every sound, I found after
awhile that when the other voices ceased, or I ceased
to hear them, there was a still, small voice in the depths
of my being that began to speak with an inexpressible
tenderness, power and comfort. As I listened it be-
came to me the voice of prayer, and the voice of wis-
dom, and the voice of duty. I did not need to think so
hard, or pray so hard, or trust so hard, but that "still,
small voice" of the Holy Spirit in ray heart wns God's
prayer in my secret soul, was God's answer to all my
questions, was God's life and strength for soul and body,
and became the substance of all knowledge, and all

162

POWER FROM ON HIGH

prayer, and all blessing; for it was the living God
Himself as my Life and my All.

Beloved, this is our spirit's deepest need. It is thus
that we learn to know God ; it is thus that we receive
spiritual refreshing and nutriment; it is thus that our
heart is nourished and fed; it is thus that we receive
the Living Bread; it is thus that our very bodies are
healed, and our spirit drinks in the life of our risen
Lord, and we go forth to life's conflicts and duties like
the flower that has drunk in, through the shades of night,
the cool and crystal drops of dew. But as the dew
never falls on a stormy night, so the dews of His grace
never come to the restless soul.

We cannot go through life strong and fresh on ex-
press trains, with ten minutes for lunch. We must
have quiet hours, secret places of the Most High, times
of waiting upon the Lord, when we renew our strength
and learn to mount up on wings as eagles, and then
come back, to run and not be weary, and to walk and
not faint.

The best thing about this stillness is that it gives God
a chance to work. "He that is entered into his rest,
he also hath ceased from his own works, as God did
from his"; and when we cease from our works, God
works in us; and when we cease from our thoughts,
God's thoughts come into us; when we get still from
our restless activity, God worketh in us both to will
and do of His good pleasure, and we have but to work
it out.

Beloved, let us take His stillness, let us dwell in
"the secret place of the Most High," let us enter into
God and His eternal rest, let us silence the other sounds,
and then we can hear "the still, small voice."

There is another kind of stillness, the stillness that
lets God work for us, and hold our peace; the stillness
that eeavses from its contriving, and its self-vindication,
and its expedients of wisdom and forethought, and lets

THE STILL, SMALL VOICE

163

God provide, and answer the unkind word and the cruel
blow in His own unfailing, faithful love. How often
we lose God's interposition by taking up our own cause
and striking for our own defence.

Never shall 1 forget a little scene which happened
not long ago. A quiet Christian girl was sitting at
a table among a party of friends, who were discnissing
a Christian work in which she was deeply interested.
Some of the criticisms were very severe, and, as she
thought, unjust and unfair. She said a few simple
words to correct the statements; but then, as the criti-
cism, more and more severe, went on, she simply held
her peace. 1 saw the mantling brow and the tear just
springing to her eyes, and I thought how easy it would
have been for her to give the quick reply, and answer
just as sharply as she might have done. But the grac'e
of God had become ascendant in that young heart; the
Holy Ghost was on the Throne. She sat in silence, and
simply suffered and waited. After a few moments I
saw she could stand the struggle no longer, and
she gently and lovingly rose and left the table and went
to her room to lay her burden upon the bosom for her
Saviour.

In a moment it all flashed upon the other person, who
loved her very tenderly. He saw how he had wounded
her; he knew how she would have answered months
before. The sweetness and gentleness of her spirit cut
him to the very heart, and taught him a lesson that he
was manly and noble enough fully to acknowledge.
Never again will his lips utter those hasty words, and
never will he forget that spectacle of gentleness and
silence.

It was her best vindication, and it made up for her,
besides, a jewel of unfading lustre in the crown above.

There is no spectacle in all the Bible so sublime as
the silent Saviour answering not a word to the men that
were maligning Him, and whom He could have laid

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IBS*

proslrnic at His foot I)y ono look of divino powor or
cue word of fiory rebuk'n. liut II«' let them say ami
do their worst, and lie stood in the power of stillness —
God's holy, silent Lamb.

God give to us this silent power, this mighty seli'-sur-
render, this conquered spirit which will make us "more
than conquerors through Ilim that loved us." Let our
voice and our life speak like "thti still, small voice" of
Iloreb and as "the sound of a gentle stillness." And
after the heat and strife of earth are over, men will
remember us as we remember the morning dew, the
gentle light and sunshine, the evening breeze, the Lamb
of Calvary, and the gentle, Holy, Heavenly Dov«.

lia

CIIAPTKR XIV.
Tlir. I»0T OF OIL.

**Tell me: what hast thou in the houscf And sho said, Thine
handmaid hatli not anything in tlie house, save a pot of oil.

' ' Then he said, Go, borrow thee vessels abroad of all thy
neighbors, even empty vessels; borrow not a few. And when
thou art come in, thou shalt shut the door upon thee and upon thy
sous, and shalt pour out into all those vessels, and thou shalt set
aside all that which is full.

"So she went from him, and shut the door upon her and upon
her sons, who brought the vessels to her; and she j)Oured out.

"And it came to pass, when the vessels were full, that she said
unto her son, Bri..g njc yet a vessel: and he said unto her, There
is not a vessel more. And the oil stayed.

"Then sho came and told the nxan of God: and he said, Go,
sell the oil, and pay thy debt, and live thou and thy children
upon the rest." — 2 Kings 4: 2-7.

THE events of Elisha's life are more like those of
the life of Christ than are any others in the Old
Testament. Just as Elijah represented the Spirit
of the Lord and the ministry of John the Baptist, u
ministry of judgment and fire, so Elisha represented
the ministry of Jesus Christ in its gentleness, benignity
and grace; and very many of his beautiful miracles
are distinctly parallel to the miracles of our Lord, while
they preach the same lesson and breathe the same spirit
of love and graciousness.

The passage before us is a striking object lesson of
the Holy Ghost in His all-sufficiency for the supplying
of every source of need.

HER NEED.

First, we have, in the case of this poor widow, an ex-
ample of great need. Her situation was one of debt,

165

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(I auger, distrqss, and of aomplete helplosfiness. She
had no one to go to but God, and, unlesvs delivered
by Him, her situation must have become one of the
greatest extremity. It represents the very worst and
most helpless state in which a child of God can be found.
But such a situation is often the greatest blessing that
can come to us, because it throws us upon God, and
compels us to trust in the all-sufficiency of Ilis grace.

Nearly all the great examples of faith and victorious
grace which we find in the Scriptures came out of situa-
tions of extremity and distress. God lovos hard places,
and faith is usually born of danger and extremity.

It was thus that Jacob was transformed from Jacob
to Israel in the conflict at Peniel. It was thus that
Israel was awakened to claim the great redemi)tion from
the bondage of Egypt, by the doubling of the tale of
brick and by the heated furnace of iron. It was thus
that David learned to know his God, and was able to
testify, "Thou hast known ray soul in adversity." Let
us not be discouraged by difficulties, nor regard them
as always mi;ifortunes ; but rather let us receive them
as challenges to our faith and opportunities given to us
by our God to show that there is nothing too hard
for II im.

HER RESOURCES.

Was there, then, nothing left for her? Was she en-
tiivly without resources? "Tell me, what hast thou
in the house?" And she answered, "Thy servant hath
nothing, save a pot of oil." To her that seemed nothing,
and yet it contained the supply of all her need. God
loves to utilize and economize all the resources which
lie has already given to us. Just as a master workman
can do a great deal of excellent work with very common
tools, so God can work with very simple instruments;
but lie wants us to utilize what He has already

THE POT OF OIL

167

j^iven. It was very little that Moses had, but that
little rod was sufficient to divide the Red Sea and to
break the power of Pharoah. It was very little that
the lad on the (Jalilean shore had that day; but his tive
loaves and two small fishes were sufficient to feed the
five thousand, when they were given to Jesus and placed
at His service. Our least is enough for God, if we allow
Him complete control.

But that little pot of oil was not a little thing. It
represented the power of the Holy Ghost, the infinite
attribute of God Himself.

We need not stop to prove that oil is the Scriptural
symbol of the Holy Spirit. This little vessel of oil
represented the presence and the power of the Spirit,
which every believer may have, and in some measure
does have, and which, if we only know how to use Him,
is equal to nvery possible situation and need of our
Christian life. But in how many cases is this an un-
realized power and an unemployed force?

There is a grim story told of a poor Scotchwoman who
went to her pastor in her extremity, and told him of
her poverty. He kindly asked her if she had no friend
nor member of her family who could support or help
her. She said she had a son, a bonny lad, but he was
in India, in the service of the government. "But does
he not write to you?" "Oh, yt-s; he often writes me,
and sends the kindest letters, and such pretty pictures
in them. But I am too proud to tell him how poor I
am, and, of course, 1 have not expected him to send
me money." "Would you mind showing me some of the
pictures?" said the minister. And so Janet went to
her Bible, and brought out from between the leaves a
great number of Bank of England notes, laid away with
the greatest care. * ' These, ' ' she said, ' ' are the pictun^s. ' '
The minister smiled, and said, "Janet, you are richer
than I am. These are bank notes; and every one o1
them might have been turned into money, and you might

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11
It

IK'

have had all your needs supplied. You have had a
fortune in your Bible without knowing it."

Alas, beloved, many of us have fortunes in our Bibles
without knowing it, or without using our infinite re-
sources. The Holy Spirit is given to us to be used for
every sort of need; and yet, with all the power of
heaven at our call, many of us are going about in star-
vation, simply because we do not know our treasure,
and do not use our redemption rights. * * Know ye not, ' '
the apostle asks us, * * that your body is the temple of the
Holy Ghost?" If we but use the power that is given
within our breast, behind the name of Jesus and the
promises of God, we would fail no more, we would fear
no more, we would no more be a reflection upon our
Saviour and a dishonor to His name, as well as a dis-
couragement to the world, but we would rise up into
victory, and cry, * * Thanks be to God, who always causeth
us to triumph, in Christ."

What is the difference between Japan and China to-
day ? It is this : while Japan has learned the secrets of
modern progress, and is using them in still victorious
warfare, China does not know what other races have
learned. What is the difference between our age and
the age of our grandfather? It is simply that we have
learned from nature. We are using the great secrets
of steam, electricity, and the various appliances of
practical science in all our industrial life, so that one
man can do today what it took twenty to do in the
days of our fathers. The business man can sit in his
office and annihilate both space and time as he talks
through his telephone to the most distant parts of the
land, and through his phonograph into the ears of the
coming generation.

What was the matter with Hagar in her bitter sor-
row? Nothing but this; she could not see the fountain
that lay so near, she and her child were perishing with
thirst. There was no need that the angel should create

THE POT OF OIL

160

a fountain; he needed only to open Hagar's eyes and
let her see it and drink of it.

There was no need that God should make a spring
of sweetness at Marah's waters; all that was needed
was to show to Moses the branch of healing that was
already there. As he plunged it into the waters the
people were healed.

There was no need that an army of angels should
come to the help of Elisha on the mountainside. The
angels were already there; all that was needed was
that the eyes of Elisha 's servant might be opened to
see the heavenly army that surrounded and defended
them. In like manner the iountain of life is waiting
for us to drink; the waters and the branch of healing
are at hand, the angelic army are all around us. All
we need is to see them, to know that they are there, to
realize our redemption rights, and then to claim them and
triumph in His name. God is saying to us, "Arise,
shine; for thy light is come." Christ has appeared, the
Holy Ghost has come, and all that we need to do is
to know and receive and use the great divine commis-
sion.

III.

THE CONDITIONS OF RECEIVING AND REALIZING DIVINE HELP.

First, she, the woman, was directed to make room. She
must get vessels, empty vessels, to hold the supply
which was about to be revealed. Our greatest need
is to make room for God. Indeed, God has to make
room for Himself by creating new vessels of need.
Every trial that comes to us is but a need for Him to
fill and an opportunity for Him to show what He can
be to us and do for us. But it is not enough to have
need; we must also have empties. We must realize
our needs, and we must realize that He alone can sup-
ply them. We must be emptied of self-consciousness

POWER FROM ON HIGH

f 5

It
I

and dependence upon man; and as we lie fully at His
feet, He will prove

''How wise, how strong His hand."

Again, there must be faith to count upon God and
go forward expecting Him to meet our needs. This
woman did not wait till the oil was running over from
her little pot ; but providing the vessels in advance, she
acted as though she had an unbounded supply. So it
was that the disciples had to go forward to feed the
multitude with their five loaves and two fishes, and had
to count upon the supply which had not yet appeared.
"We must anticipate God's fulfillment and trust Him
sufficiently to pay in advance; then He will make good
our expectations in His glorious and ever-fiowing grace.

Again, we must have not only faith, but unselfish
love. These were borrowed vessels. The needs were
not all her own; and, no doubt, as the vessels went
home they did not go home empty. God loves to give
to us when we are, like God, receiving that we may
give to others.

The most blessed thing about the blessed God must
be this, that He has no needs of His own; but that
He is always giving, always blessing, and always seeking
some new channel through which to bless and to pour
out the fullness of His life. If we would receive that
fullness, we, God like, must be great givers. The secret
of joy is to want nothing for ourselves, to be rich in
dispensing His grace and blessing, to live for others, and
to be ever filling the vessels of need from the world
around us with the overflowing of His heart and of
ours. The beauty of the parable of the friend at mid-
nigiit lies chiefly in this, that he wanted the loaves
from his friend that he might give them to another
that was in need. Likewise, when we come for grace and
help to the helpless, we shall find that God will open

THE POT OF OIL

171

the windows of heaven and pour us out a blessing until
there shall not be room to receive it.

Again, the woman's faith was necessary. Slio must
show it by beginning to pour out the contents of the
little pot into the larger vessel. As she poured, the
oil continued to flow and overflow until every vessel
was filled, and it might have been flowing still if there
had been room enough to hold its multiplying stream.

So faith must go forward and act out its confidence
and risk itself by doing something and putting itself
into the place where God must meet it with actual help.
It was when the water at Cana was poured out that
it became wine. It was when the man stretched out
his hand that it was healed. It wavS as the lepers went
on their way that they were made whole. It was as the
father went back to his home that the messenger was
sent to tell him that his son was alive.

There is a beautiful expression in Hebrews, to the
effect that the ancient fathers were persuaded of the
promises and ''embraced them," or rather as the new
version translates it "ran to meet them." Let us run
to meet the promises of God. Let us measure up to
them. Let us act our confidence, and God will meet
us more than half way with His faithfulness and grace.

There is yet another lesson, the most important of all :
"Go, sell the oil, . . . and live thou and thy children
of the rest." The oil was but the representative value,
and was convertible into everything that she could need.
It was equivalent to currency, food, houses, clothes,
lands, anything and everything that possessed value
and could meet her need. Thus is the Holy Ghost con-
vertible into everything that we can require.

There are parallel passages in the Gospels of Matthew
and Luke which teach a great lesson. In the one passage
it reads, "if ye then being evil, know how to give good
gifts unto your children ; how much more shall your heav-
enly Father give the Holy Spirit to them that ask him."

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POWER FROM ON HIGH

:J;:

.1-

In the parallel passage in the other Gospel, instead of
the Holy Spirit, it reads, "Give good things to them that
ask him." That is to say, the Holy Ghost gives all
good things, and He is equivalent to anything and every-
thing that we need. Do wt* need salvation? He will
lead us to Christ, and bring us to witness of our ac-
ceptance. Do we need peace? He will bring into our
hearts the peaces of God. Do we need purity? He will
sanctify us and "cause us to walk in His statutes, and
keep His judgments to do them." Do we need strength?
He is the Spirit of power. Do we need light ? He is the
Teacher and Counsellor and Guide. Do we need faith?
He is the Spirit of faith. Or love? By Him "the love
of God is shed abroad in our hearts. ' ' Would we pray and
have our prayer answered ? ' ' The Spirit itself maketh in-
tercession within us with groanings which cannot be ut-
tered. ' ' Do we need health ? He will quicken our mortal
bodies by the Spirit that dwell eth in us. Do we need cour-
age ? He will give us faith, faith that shall claim the sup-
ply of all our needs by believing prayer. Do we need cir-
cumstances changed by the mighty workings of God's
providence? He is the Spirit of power. The hearts of
men are in His hands and He can turn them as the
rivers of water, and make all things work together for
good to them that love God.

He is the Almighty Spirit, the Great Executive of the
Godhead, and with Him in our hearts, God can do ex-
ceeding abundantly for us "according to the power
that worketh in us."

Oh, let us use the Holy Ghost, not merely for spells
of emotional feeling or what we call spiritual experi-
ence, but in the whole circle of our life as the Executor
of God, the all-sufficient Lea der of our victorious faith !

There is yet another lesson taught us here; namely,
that we may increase and multiply the effectiveness of
the Spirit of God in our lives, by wisely using the
power and grace He gives us.

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173

The idea of trading with our spiritual gifts is brought
out more fully in the New Testament in the great parable
of the pounds, where the one pound that represented,
no doubt, the gift of the Holy Ghost, is increased to
ten by wise and profitable use. So we can take the
Holy Ghost, and as we obey Him and learn to use Him,
and become subject to the great laws which regulate
His operations, we shall find that there is scarcely a
limit to the extent of His working and the sufficiency
of His power. All that is needed is room, opportunity,
vessels of need, and faith to go forward in dependence
upon Him.

The oil did not stop until the woman stopped; God
was still working when her faith reached its limit. The
same God is working still, and our faith will stop long
before His willingness and His resources are exhausted.
Shall we trust more boldly? Shall we recognize every
difficulty, every situation which conveys an opportunity
of proving Him yet more gloriously; and shall we go
on from strength to strength until every adversary has
been subjected and compelled to help us, till every moun-
tain of difficulty has become a mountain of praise, and
every hard place in life a vessel into which God may
pour the overflowing fullness of His all-sufficiency?

Beloved, as we step out into the future, shall we for-
get the experiences we have had and press on to higher
and greater? Shall we leave the vessels that have been
satisfied, and bring new vessels for him to fill ? Shall we
Forget the blessings we have had from the Holy Ghost,
and think rather of those we have not yet had? And
shall we go on to prove His mighty promise, **I will
open the windows of heaven and pour you out a blessing
until there shall not be room enough to receive it"?

CHAPTER XV.

THE VALLEY OF DlrCIlES.

!!r

: i'

"Thus aaith the Lord, Make this valley full of ditches,
"For thus saith the Lord, Yo shall not see wind, neither shall

ye see rain; yet that valley shall be filled with water, that yc

may drink, both ye, and your cattle, and your beasts.

"And this is but a light thing in the sight of the Lord: Ho

will deliver the Moabites also into your hand. ' ' — 11. Kings 3 :

16-18.

THIS is another of Elisha's parabolic miracles; for
it was both a parable of divine teaching and a
miracle of divine working. It is full of practical
lessons about the Holy Spirit in our lives.

A GREAT EMERGENCY.

First, we see a great emergency. The king of Israel
and the king of Judah had united in a campaign against
the IMoabites. and in marching through the wilderness
they had come into great straits. Their water supply
was cut off, and they were in danger of perishing of
thirst. This may represent any hard ])laces in our lives.
Such an emergency is God's opportunity of blessing, and
is the only way by which many of us can ever be
brought to realize the fullness of divine grace.

There was a peculiarity, however, in this trying situa-
tion to one of the party at least. To Jehoshaphat, the
king of Judah, it was a trouble that he had brought
upon himself, and he had no one else to blame for his
ill fortune. Because he had hastily and generously
formed an unholy alliance with a wicked king, he was
suffering on account of his forbidden act. As God
has warned us to have no fellowship with wicked men,

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TUK VALLKV OF DITCHES

175

we never can (li.s()l)cy this commandment, either by mixed
marriages or by business partnerships, without suifer-
ing in consequence.

We see at once the difference between a wicked man
and a child of God. In his extremity the wicked king
of Israel gave up in despair, and never once thought
of turning to God for help. He uttered a hopeless cry,
and said practically, "God has brought us here to de-
stroy us." That is the way ungodly men look at their
troubles.

In contrast with him, Jehoshaphat at once thought of
God and called for Ilis servant and His message. No
matter how trying our situation, no matter how much
to blame we ourselves are for it, let us always go at
once with it to God, and seek His direction and de-
liverance ; and we shall never seek in vain.

Jehoshaphat called at once for the prophet of the
Lord. It was a prophet he wanted. lie was willing
to hear God's message and to take God's way of de-
liverance. It is so beautiful to find that the prophet
was there. Elisha was the beautiful type of the Holy
Ghost and the ever present Christ. Unlike Elijah, who
was the prophet of judgment and represented the law,
Elisha was always among the people, helping the poor
widow in her poverty, the students on the banks of the
Jordan when the axe went off the handle, and even the
army of his country when on this laborious and danger-
ous expedition. He represented that God who is always
within our call and a God at hand. The very meaning
of the word Paraclete or Advocate is, One near by,
One we can call to our side and call upon in every
time of need. Let us bring Him all our burdens; let
us cast upon Him all our care; let w^ use Him for
every emergency, and prove His all-sufficiency in every
time of need.

]7(i

POWEH FJIOM ON HIGH

II.

PREPARATION.

We next see the pr-eparution for God's deliverance.
First, Elisha called for a minstrel. You know that this
minstrel represented the spirit of praise. Our prayers,
too, should always begin with praise. If our difficulties
and dangers be met with a song of believing triumph,
we shall find God ready to echo it back with the song
of deliverance. When we cannot pray, it is a good
time to praise.

Next came the divine message, "Thus saith the Lord."
God must be heard in this matter, His voice must be
listened to, His message received, and His way adopted.
When trouble comes w^e usually run in every other
direction first, get everybody else's advice and help, and
then at last think of appealing to heaven.

The first thing in trouble is to hearken and ask, "What
saith the Lord?" What lesson is He teaching? What
rebuke is He sending? What direction is He giving?
What way of escape would He have us take? God
has always one way out of every difficulty, and only
one.

Next, they must make room for the coming blessing.
**Make this valley full of ditches." One would have
supposed that the valley was deep enough without the
ditches. But the valley was there anyhow; the ditches
must be ma/le on purpose. It is possible to have need
of God and not have room for God. These ditches
represent special preparation and the opening of the
channels of faith to receive the blessing.

What is a ditch? It is a great, ugly opening in the
ground. There is nothing oraamental nor beautiful about
it; it is just a void and empty space, a place to hold
water. How shall we open the ditches for God to fill ?
By bringing to Him our needs, our failures, the great
rents and voids and broken up places in our lives. It

THE VALLEY OF DITCHES

177

is a good time at the commencement of another year
to think of the places where we have come short, and the
needs in our hearts that have not yet been supplied.
Let us bring them to Ilira, and like the widow's vessels,
He is able to fill them all.

The answer must be claimed by simple faith. *'Ye
shall not see wind, neither shall ye see rain," said the
prophet, "yet that valley shall be filled with water."
There was to be no outward demonstration, but it was
to come quietly and without observation. This is the
way God loves to bless us, and this is the way that
faith must always receive the blessing. This is not,
however, the way that unbelieving man likes to have
it come. He would like to see wind and rain, and have
a great display of outward circumstances ; then he would
be able to believe in the coming of the water. "Except
ye see signs and wonders, ye will not believe," was the
Master's reproof in His own day; and it is as pertinent
today as ever.

Faith, however, is "the substance of things hoped for,
the evidence of things not seen," and it loves to claim
the promise and rest in the Promiser, allowing II im
to bring the answer in His own way and time, and
counting upon it as though it were already a present
fact. Shall w^e thus trust our God and learn to walk
by faith and not by sight?

III.

THE DIVINE ANSWER.

The divine answer was not long in coming. With the
morning light, lo! the ditches had disappeared and the
valley was filled with water, reflecting the crims^m hills
of Edom from its glassy bosom, and looking to the
Moabites as pools of blood.

It was water that came, and only water. That wa.s
all they wanted. Water was the symbol of the Holy

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pet

Ghost, and the Holy Ghost is all we want in ">ur ex-
tremity and need, lie will be to us answered prayer,
tempond provision, spiritual supply, and all things per-
taining to life and godliness.

Notiee again that when the water came, the ditches
disappeared from view. Likewise, when the Holy Ghost
comes, our needs will be supplied, and the very remem-
brance of our sorrow and distress will leave us. So long
as you are looking at the ditches and thinking of your
desperate nc^d, you are not filled with water. God
wants so to fill you that n(^ will even obliterate the
remembrance of your sin and sorrow, and, as Job beauti-
fully expressed it, you will remember your misery as
waters that pass away.

Again, when the water came there was enough, not
only for them to drink but also for their cattle and their
beasts; so when God fills your life with the Holy Spirit,
the blessing overflows not only to every person around
you, l)nt the very beasts that serve you will be the better
for your blessing. That truckman was not far astray
when he said that his horse and his dog knew that he
had been converted. Oh, the groans of the irrational
creation around us that are ever going up to God, because
of man's sin. Oh, the blessing that will come to the
whole universe when man receives his Saviour and be-
comes prepared to be the lord of this lower crea-
tion!

There is a very remarkable expression used respecting
this glorious miracle of divine grace and bounty. ''This
is but a light thing in the sight of the Lord." This
wonderful blessing was not, in God's estimation, any-
thing extraordinary nor at all hard for him to do. Nor
is it a groat or difficult thing for Him to baptize you
and me with the Holy Ghost till all our wants are sup-
plied and all our being is filled with His blessing. We
are constantly thinking of it as though it cost Him some
great effort. Thousands of Christians are looking for-

THE VALLKV OF DITCHES

179

ward to it at a Rn'nt distance as the culrninatinff point
of life. On the contrary, it is but a lipiit thinp for
God to do, and is intended to mark rather the begin-
ning than the close of a career of usefulness.

The great purpose of Christ's coming was "that we,
being delivered out of the hand of our enemies might
serve him without fear, in righteousness and holiness
before him," — not the last days, but "all the days of
our life. It is not our preparation for heaven but our
preparation for life.

IV.
THE GREATER BLESSING.

Next comes God's deliverance and the greater blessing
which He has for them. "This is but a light thing in
the sight of the Lord : he will deliver the ^Ioabiti>s also
into your hand." This was the great purpose of their
campaign and the design of God in drlivering them in
their peril, that they might go forward and conquer
their enemies and His. This also is God's purpose in
our sanctification.

He does not give us the Holy Ghost that we should
receive a clean heart merely, and then spend our lives
complacently looking at it and telling people about it,
but that we should go forth in the power of His Spirit
and His indwelling life, to conquer this world for Him.
We, too, have a gre^.l foe to face and a great trust to
fulfill. We are sent ' ■ f^onquer the world, the flesh, and
the devil, and to gi"* . the Gospel to the whole inhabited
earth. It is a shame that thousands of Christians should
spend their lives without even claiming this baptism;
and it is a far greater shame that thousands more should
be occupied all their days in getting a satisfactory in-
terest in Christ and an experience of sanctification.

What would you think of the gardener who, after
spending five years in planting an orange grove in
Florida, in watering, pruning, and cultivating it, should

180

POWER FROM ON HIGH

then find that, lie has to spend a quarter of a century
more keopin^ the plants in a healthy condition, without
any return of fruit? You woidd certainly think it a
poor investmert. It is all right to spend a while in
getting your orchard ready ; but you expect this to end
some day, and the trees will begin to do something'
better than grow, even to reward your labors with tli(?
abundant harvest.

What would you think of the manufacturer who took
all the trouble to set up a water wheel, and a lot of
machinery, and then simply amused hinLself with haviiij^
the wheel turn round, without driving any machinery,
or doing any practical work? God must get very tired
of everlastingly keeping us in repair. Surely he has
a right to ei'pect that the time of fruit will {'ome. God
help us, beloved, to get at things and to stay at them.
Keep your engine out of the repair shop. Get it in
working order as <'uickly as you can, and then ask God
to put an expret>.s train behind it, and l«t it run and
carry its precious freight on the great highway of His
holy will.

It is verj miserable work to be always getting sancti-
fied, and it is very unworthy of God's infinite grace
and power. Let us get into conflict and victory and
agressive work for God and this lost world, and He
will sur*'ly deliver our enemies into our hand, and make
us more than conquerors through Him that loved us.
And then we shall find that the using of our blessing
is the best way to loeep it, and the running of the wheel
is the surest means of keeping it from, falling.

THOROUfill AND FINISHED WORK.

They were commanded, as soon as they had conquered
the Moabites, to do thorough work, to smite every fenced
city, to spread stonos upon every fertile piece of land,

THE VALLEY OF DTTOHTCS

181

baueti-

grace

' anil

1(1 lie

make

n\ us.

wheel

t'eii(^c<i
ianil,

and to fill up evory well of water, leaving the land deso-
late and H.»rthU^s. It was simply an iUnstration of
thorough and ••orapleted work.

Wben G«v! begins, to work for us, it is time for us
to work for Him. and our work should be as thorough
as ilis. It is all folly for us to sit down and fold our
ajans, and say, "God will do it." We must work out
our own salvation, all the more because it is God that
worketh in us.

When David heard "a sound of going in the tops
of the mulberry trees," it was the very time for him
to bestir himself and do His best, for God had gone
out before him to deliver his enemies into his hand.
When we see the almighty working of our God, it is
the \('ry time for us to stir ourselves up to faithful
co-operation and thorough work.

It 'vas the failure of Israel to do thorough work that
last them the blessing which Joshua's conquest secured.
They left some of their enemies in the land, and in due
time this remnaiil became their roasters. It is very
foolish for us to leave a vestige or a trace of evil behind
us. Let us do thorough work in our repentance, in our
obedience, in our sanctification, in our divine healing,
in our service for God.

How foolish it is for the builder to rear the costly
walls and leave them unroofed; the elements will soon
crumble the unprotected masonry to a heap of worth-
less ruins. Let us finish our work day by day. Let
everything we say and do be as thorough and complete
as the finished measure of the musical melody and har-
mony, without which the rest of the note would be thrown
away. So let us live from day to day, that, when the
close shall come, we shall have nothing to do but to go
to our reward and say with our departing Master,
"Father, I have glorified thee upon the earth, I have
finished the work which thou gavest me to do."

Beloved, it is a time of God's mighty working in

•182

POWER FROM ON HIGH

J*.

the world and among the nations. Let it stimulate us
to arouse ourselves to holy action, and to co-operate with
Him in His mighty piirpos(^ of preparing the world
for the speedy return of His dear Son, our blessed
Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ,

There is "a sound of going in the mulberry trees,"
and the Lord has gone up before us. Let us bestir
ourselves, and haste the day of our Master's coming
and the cry of victory around the world and from the
ranks above, * ' AUeluiah ; for the Lord God omnipotent
reign eth."

As Dr. Chalmers has so wisely said, ''Let us trust
as if all depended upon God, but let us work as if all
depended upon ourselves

CHAPTER XVI.
THE SPIRIT OF INSPIRATION.

"No prophecy of the scripture is of any private interpretation.

"For the prophecy came not in old time by the will of man:
but holy men of God spake as they were moved by the Holy
Ghost."— 2 Peter 1:20, 21.

THIS passage directs our attention to the inspiration
of the ancient prophets, and to the work of the Holy
Ghost is revealing the will of God to His chosen
messengers. Go:', at sundry times and divers manners
spake to our fathers by the prophets.

Divine revelation began in Eden, and God has never
ceased to maintain communication with His devoted
subjects. In the antediluvian and patriarchial dispen-
sations He spake at intervals to particular men, reveal-
ing His will to them ; but from the time that He called
Moses to lead the chosen people out of Egypt, He has
had a special class of messengers through whom He has
revealed His will to His people. These have been called
the prophets of the Lord. Moses was, perhaps, the firat
of them.

In the fourth chapter of P^xodus, God distinctly calls
him to this special ministry. "Now, therefore, go," He
says, "and I will be with thy mouth, and teach thee
what thou shalt say." When afterwards He appointed
Aaron to be His spokesman, He added, "Thou shalt
speak unto him, and put words in his mouth : and I will
be with thy mouth, and with his mouth, and will teach
you what ye shall do. And he shall be thy spokesman
unto the people: and he shall be, even he shall be to
thee instead of a mouth, and thou shalt be to him
ins1;(;ad of God."

183

]84

POWEB FBOM ON HIGH

Moses re//)gaiz('f\ himsulf as a prophet, and said of
his Antitype', "A frf ophel shall the Lord your God
raise np unto you, of your brethren, like unto me ; him
shall yo hear."

The next great prophet was Samuel. Like Moses he
also appeared at a special crisis in the history of his
I)eople. They had been for centuries in the deepest
declension and distress. Like Luther, God's instrument
iu the Reformation of our own time, God sent him t<»
yall Israel back to Himself. The call of Samuel w^ts
most marked and his ministry most important. Iji
[. >Samuel 3: 19-21, we read concerning him, "The Lord
wag with him, and did let none of his words fall to
the ground. And all Israel . . . knew that Samuel
was est.ibli.shed to a prophet of the Lord. And the
Lord appeared again in Sliiloh : for the Lord revealed
himself t Samuel in Shiloli by the Avord of the Lord."

Ind .'d, Samuel was really tlir founder of the pro-
phetic institutions and the schools of the prophets whieli
from hii* time we find in Israel. No nobler race of men
ever lived than the proph<'ts of Israel. The.\ w<^re the
only class that was true to God. The kings, with h few
excej^tions, were disastrous failures; and even the priest
hood became subservient to a corrupt throne and a god-
less jKipulace. But the jirophets were God's true rep-
resont.it Ives and witnesses, and stood for righteousness
and godlines* in the darkest ages of God's ancient
people.

When Savu failed to ra'^et Ihe purpose of hi? high
caliir.g, Samuel was still true to Jehovah. When David
sank in his double crime, Nathan was there to reprove
him and to bring him the message of Jehovah. When
Solomon allowed his heart to be turned away from God,
the prophet Abijah was there to bear God's message of
warning, and to tell Jeroboam what God was about to
do in rending the kingdom asunder. When Rehoboam
succeeded his father and was about to ruin his kingdom

THE SPIRIT OF INSPIRATIOX

185

i of

God
him

^s he
E his
epest
inent
in to
I was
, In
Lord

clll t(.

amuel
d th(5
vealed
iord. '
e pro-
which

thv
few
riest

I god-

usiiess
lu'ieitit

J high
David
('prov<'
AVheu
God,
iuge of
)out to
liohoam
iiigdom

in presumptious recklcssnoss, the proplirt Sheniaiali was
ready to carry God's message In him and arrest liim
in his reckless purpose. When Jeroboam had asctMided
the thront) of Iracl and reared his idolatrous altars at
Dan, there was a prophet of the Lord ready to stand
before him and to warn him of God's judgment because
of his idolatry. When tlie wicked Baasha, king of Israel,
had filled his cup of sin, God had His servant, Jelm
the prophet, ready to uttor His message of warning and
judgment against the wicked king. AVhen Shishak. king
of Egypt, came up against Rehoboam, then Shemaiah
the prophet was there to call tho nation to repentance,
and to promise them deliverance from the hand of the
enemy.

When King Asa summoned his people to meet the
common enemy, and to trust in the arm of Jciiuvali,
thep God sent Azariah the prophet to bear to him the
mc ;^e of encouragement and covenant promise ; and
when, later in his reign, Asa became willful an 1 self-
reliant, and turned from God to the arm of flesh, God
sent Hanani the prophet to tell him of the divine dis-
pleasure and of the judgment which he was about to
bring upon himself. When Jehoshaphat stood face to
face with the Ammonites and Moabit»"s in the valley of
Herachah in grrat peril and humiliation, then God sent
the prophet Jeheziel to announce the victory of faith
tliat wUiS to come with the morrow.

W^hen Joash, king of Judah, turned away from God,
then Zwhariah, the prophet of the Lord, stood up to
reprove him for his sin, and suffered mai*tyrdom at the
hands of the king and people, the first of that hand
of witnesses who sealed their testimony with their bl(H)d.
When Ahab and Jezebel reigned in >Samaria. and all
Israel was given up to the worship of Baal, then Elijah
appeared as God's mes^^ —^r of lire to warn the people
and to lead them ba( heir allegiance to heaven.

When Elijah's ministry , completed, Elisha. I'oming

" y

186

POWER FROM ON HIGH

as the messenger of peace, for half a century guided
and counselled the king and the people in the name
of Jehovah, the gk)rious type ofc' the coming Christ.

The brightest light of tlu; good Hezekiah's reign was
Isaiah, the prophet of the Lord. Even when Jerusalem
fell, and Judah passed into captivity, Jeremiah, like
a guardian angel, hovered over its dark midnight, and
sought by his warning and pleading to avert it , cruel
fate; and then, when he could do no more, like the
Master Himself, he wept over the city that he had
loved. The last days of Israel w^cre linked with the
prophetic ministry of Ilosea, the prophet of love. The
exile of Judah was lighted up by the prophetic ministrv'^
of Ezekiel by the river Chebar, and of Daniel in far
off Babylon. The days of Restoration were less de-
pendent upon the leadership of Zerubabel than upon the
prophetic ministrations of Haggai and Zeehariah; and,
finally, the Old Testament Dispensation was closed by
Malachi, the messenger of Jehovah and the prophet of
the coming age.

The very names of these prophetic messengers are
beautifully significant. "Isaiah" and "Hosea" mean that
God is the Saviour; "Jeremiah," God is high; "Ezek-
iel," God is strong; "Daniel," God is judge; "Joel," Je-
hovah is God ; * ' Elijah, ' ' God is Jehovah ; * * Elisha, ' ' God
is our Saviour. "Jonah," who stands first among the
prophets whose writings are recorded, means "the Dove,"
and suggests the Holy Ghost in His gentle grace. "Na-
hum," who wrote amid the sorrows of Israel's ruin, sig-
nifies "the Comforter," and "Malachi," who was the
messenger of the new dispensation, means "My messen-
ger." Thus w^ere their very names and lives consistent
with their high character and their divine commission.

The prophets of Israel may be divided into two classes ;
first, those whose lives alone are recorded; and, sec-
ondly, those whose writings have come down to us. The
latter company may again be divided into six classes.

THE SPIKIT OF INSPIRATION

187

uided
name
nAt.
n was
isalem
I, like
t, and
, cruel
ke the
e Ii^kI
th the
. The

inisto'
in far
ess de-
3on the
i; and,
)sed by
phet of

ers are
an that
'Ezek-
," Je-
"God
>ng the
>we,"
"Na-
in, sig-
v^as the
nessen-
isistent
nission.
'.lasses;
d, sec-
s. The
aes.

First, we have Jonah, standing alone as the pioneer
and the earliest of the prophets whose writings are
recorded. Next, we have the prophets who were con-
nected with Israel's last days; namely, Hosea, Amos,
and Nahum. Thirdly, we have the prophets connected
with Judah from the reign of Hezekiah for about two
generations and about a century before th(! fall of
Judah. These were Joel, Micah, and Isaiah. They lived
in the palmy days of Judah 's kingdom, and were sent
to hold the nation back from the captivity to which they
were hastening. Through their ministry the catastrophe
that came to Israel was averted from Judah for more
than a century. It came at last, however, and we have
a fourth group of prophets, who cluster around the
sinking fortunes of the kingdom of Judah and fall of
Jerusalem. They are Jeremiah, Obadiah, Zephaniah,
and Habakkuk.

We have a fifth class a little later, who may be called
the prophets of the exile. They prophesied in captivity.
They are Ezekiel and Daniel, the one in the country,
the other in the capital of Babylon.

Finally, we have the prophets of the Restoration,
the men who counselled and comforted the returning
bands who went back to rebuild the temple and city of
Jerusah'm. They were Ilaggai, Zechariah, and Malachi.
These sixteen names constitute the glorious company
of the prophets whose writings have come to us. They
are commonly divided into the major and minor prophets,
Isaiah, Jeremiah and Ezekiel belonging to the former,
and all the others to the latter class. They all claimed to
be the special messengers of Jehovah, and they were all
accredited by Ilis signal presc^nce and power. They
belong to that class of whom our text says they "spake as
they were moved by the Holy Ghost." The same lan-
guage might yet more em])hatically be applied to the
prophets and writers of the New Testament.

And so we come to the great subject of the inspira-

188

POWER FROM ON HIGH

tion of the Holy Scriptures and the messengers of God's
will in the various dispensations. Let us briefly consider ;
first, the nature of inspiration; secondly, its evidences;
and, thirdly, the responsibility that it lays upon us.

As to the nature of inspiration what do we mean
by the inspired prophets and the inspired Scriptures?

The Scripture writers themselves settle this question.
There is no doubt that tliey claim for themselves, and
the Lord Jesus Himself recognizes the claim, that they
are the special messengers of God and bring to man
the expression of His will. It may not be easy for us
to explain the precise nature of their inspiration. All
we need to know is its practical extent and value, and
that it was a divine influence which so possessed them
that it preserved them from all error and enabled them
to give to men a correct and infallible record of the
facts they intended to represent, and the message which
God intended they should bear. It was such a super-
intendence by the Holy Ghost as made their mesvsage
absolutely inerrant and infallible. It was not always
necessary that they should receive a revelation of all
the facts in the case, because they may already have
been familiar with many of them or even all of them.
What they needed was such a divine guidance and con-
trol as would enable them to state these facts accurately
and as fully as God required.

This divine control did not make them necessarily
passive and mechanical. They were not writing as a
phonograph would speak, or as a typewriter would obey
the touch of the performer. While in many instances
they may have been unconscious, in others they undoubt-
edly wrote and spoke in the free possession of all their
faculties and in the exercise of their own intelligence. We
know that they acted with perfect individuality, and
that each man's message was colored by the complexion

1 - pi I

THE Sl'IKlT OF INSPIRATION

189

ot his own mind, so that we know the writings of Isaiah
from those of Jeremiah; we know the voice of Elijah
from that of Klisha; we know the style of John from
that of P-'ul. The Book of God is like a beautiful garden,
where all the flowers grow upon the same soil and are
watered from the same heaven, but each has its ov i
unique colors, forms, fragrance and individuality. This
is a harp of nearly a hundred strings; but all are in
perfect harmony, and every measure is resolved into oni;
glorious refrain, Jesus, redemption, "Glory to God in
the highest; on earth peace, goodwill to men." It is
not nec( ssarj' for us to believe that the Holy Ghost
inspired the wicked words which the Bfible records, the
ungodly speeches and the foolish utterances contained
in the Book of Job, and many such things. All that
was necessary was that it should give a correct record
of what Job's wife and Job's friends really said, and
even of the devil's wicked speeches. The speeches were
inspired by the devil, but the record of them was in-
spired by the Holy Ghost.

The Apostle Paul records the nature and fullness
of inspiration very explicitly when he says, in I. Cor.
2: 12, 13, "Now we have received, not the spirit of the
world, but the Spirit which is of God, that we might
know the things that are freely given to us of God.
iWhich things also we speak, not in the words which
man's wisdom teacheth, but which the Holy Ghost
teacheth. " We, therefore, know that those records arp
divine, that these messages are from the throne, and that
this blessed book is the very Word of the living and
everlasting God.

The Lord Jesus Christ bears witness to the inspiration
of the Scriptures. Again and again He quotes from
the Old Testament books, and He tells us that it was

190

POWER FROM ON HIGH

the "Word of the Lord and the Word of the Spirit
through the prophet.

The New Testament bears witness to the Old, and the
Holy Spirit, through His later messengers, confirms His
messages through former oracles.

The message brings its own evidence, and bears to
every true heart the conviction of its divinity and its
truth.

The best evidence of the Holy Scriptures is the re-
sponse which they find in the consciences of men. Listen-
ing to the great Teacher, we are compelled to say, "He
told me all that ever I did." "Is not this the Christ?"

To the child of God the divinest testimony to the
Holy Scriptures is the blessing which they have brought
to his own soul, the witness of the Holy Ghost within
him, and the effect that this book has produced upon his
heart and life.

Its miracles of grace are its divinest credentials. It
has changed the sin-possessed soul into a saint of God,
and has made the wilderness of evil and misery to blos-
som as the rose.

But it has also divine and supernatural credentials.
Side by side with God's inspired Word have always
marched the twin witnesses of miracles and prophecy.
These mighty words have moved the heavens and shaken
the earth. In response to their command the dead have
been raised, the living have been transformed, and all
the powers of nature have witnessed to the supreme
authority of God's inspired commands.

This book is the panorama of the ages, and history has
kept time to all its paragraphs. Here we find, centuries
in advance, God's inspired prophecies of coming events,
which have all been fulfilled so literally as to read more
like history than prophecy. When Babylon was in its
glory, Daniel dared to say that it would fall and be
superseded by the Persian Empire. He lived to see the
prophecy fulfilled.

THE SPIRIT OF INSPIRATION

191

When Cyrus was flushed with universal conquest,
again Daniel looked through the horoscope of prophecy
and saw the coming of Grecian and Roman conquerors.
Again all the events of later times and history have
literally fulfilled the visions of Daniel, and are fulfilling
them today.

What but a divine mind could have given these predic-
tions? What but an inspired book could contain such
records ?

Even in the minutest particulars we see the traces of
divine wisdom and omniscience. The ancient prophet de-
clared in one place that Zedekiah, the last king of Judah,
should be carried to Babylon, and in another place he
declared that Zedekiah should never see Babylon. It
looked like a discrepancy at first, but history literally
fulfilled it. Zedekiah, blinded by Nebuchadnezzar before
he reached the city, entered it a captive, but never saw
it with his sightless eyes. Thus Iiejh God been confirming
His Word as the ages have come and gone.

One of the greatest mosques of the Mohammedan world
has recently been destroyed by fire in the city of Damas-
cus. It was an ancient Christian temple, on whose facade
was cut in stone this inscription, "Thy kingdom,
Christ is an everlasting kingdom, and Thy word endureth
to all generations. ' ' When the Moslems captured Damas-
cus, and took possession of the old Christian church, they
obliterated the inscription on the front by plastering it
over and emblazoning in gold a verse from the Koran
above it.

As ages went by, that archway spake only the message
of the false prophet. But by-and-by time wore off the
plaster, so that within the past two years the old Chris-
tian inscription has come out again, and God's word
stands forth through all the wreck of time. When a few
weeks ago the old church was burned down, strangely
enough, the tower was left standing with the inscription
untouched by the destroying elements; and there it

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stands today, declaring to the world, "Thy word, O
Christ, endureth to all generations.

>»

We have our responsibility for God's Holy Word. If
this is the inspired Word of God, how solemn and ,iu-
preme its claims! Let us believe it implicitly; let us
believe it without compromise or questioning.

Let us not try to eliminate the supernatural and bring
it down to the plane of our own reason and Knowledge ;
but let us bow submissively before the throne of Him who
speaks from heaven, and say with every fibre of our
being, **It means just w'hat it says."

But let us also obey. Believe means to "live by."
Our faith has two sides; one is faith, the ether is faith-
fulnt^ss. One is trust, the other is trustworthiness. They
are the two wings that bear us above the dark abyss;
they are the two oars that carry us through the danger-
ous rapids ; they are the two hands that grasp and hold
fast forever the eternal covenant.

Obedience is always the condition of faith. Only as
we live by this blessed book can we fully claim its prom-
ises and rest upon its words of grace.

Let us live up to the fullness of our Bible. Let us
translate every word cf it into our lives. Let each of us
be a new edition and a nev/ version of the Scriptures,
translated into flesh and blood, words and acts, holiness
and service.

God has spoken to the successive generations, expecting
each age to correspond to the message given ; but to our
generation He has given the largest measure of His
truth and th-e fullness of His revelation. He expects
from us a deeper, fuller, larger life. Let us live out
the whole Bible in this dispensation.

There is a day coming when we shall have larger
revelations of truth and an eternity in which to live
them out : but in this life let us measure up to the

THE SPIEIT OF INSPIRATION

ld'6

rd,

d. It-
id r,u-
let us

bring
ledge ;
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faith-

They

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of us
itures,
oliness

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to our
His
xpeets
ve out

larger
to live
to the

Word of God without abatement, and, like the Master
Himself, fulfill every word of Scripture before we shall
have run our course.

Have we lived out all the Bible? Have we proved
its every promise? Have we illustrated its every com-
mand ? Have we translated it into the living characters
of our own record? God help us, not only to have a
Bible, but each of us to be a Bible.

Finally, if this is God's inspired Word, it can be
understood only by inspired men. There are two senses
in which inspiration can be received and understood.
The inspiration of the apostles and the prophets was to
write the Bible, but we need an inspiration just as real
to read it and to understand it. It was not written for
the cold intelligence of natural man, but for the spiritual
eyes of the heart. And so no man knoweth the things
of God, save the Spirit of God which is in him. We
must have **the mind of Christ" and the Holy Ghost
before we can rightly and fully understand the Holy
Scriptures.

Shall we receive His blessed Spirit to understand His
blessed Word? Shall we read the Bible, not as a book
of histor}^ and biography, but as the love letter of a
Friend, the personal message of our Bridegroom and our
Lord? Then shall we understand it, love it, and know its
blessed meaning and heavenly power,

A poor blind girl was dying. Her cold fingers had
ceased to feel. She called for her dear old Bible, and
tried to read the raised letters once more, but all sense
having gone from her hands, she turned away with sor-
row, and clasping it to her bosom, and pressing it to her
lips, she said, "My dear Bible, I cannot read you longer,
but I love you still." At that very moment she found
that as her lips touched the characters they could still
feel and read them. She gave a great cry of joy, and as
she passed her lips from line to line the words still spake
to her intelligence and to her heart.

194

POWER FROM ON HIGH

Beloved, let us take the Bible a little closer and we
shall understand it better, and it will speak from the
heart of God to our inmost heart as the living message of
His love.

I'i

' ¥.

id we
n the
ige of

CHAPTER XVIl.

THE HOLY SPIRIT IN THE BOOK OF JOEL.

And it shall come to pass afterward, that I will pour out my
spirit upon all flesh; and your sous and your daughters shall
prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, your young meu
shall see visions." — Joel 2: 28.

JCr' was the oldest of the prophets of Judah whose
writings have come down to us. His little book con-
tains the substance and the text of the deeper and
larger unfoldings of Isaiah, Jeremiah, and the later
prophets, and is the keynote of the Day of Pentecost and
the Christian Dispensation.

It is the text of all the volumes that have been written
about the Holy Ghost, and the germ of all the manifesta-
tions of His power and grace throughout the ages that
have followed this ancient message.

Just as God gave to Habakkuk, in one little verse,
the text of the whole Gospel of salvation, so He gave to
Joel the text of the whole doctrine of the Spirit. Like a
rainbow upon the storm cloud, like a gleam of sunshine
out of a dark sky, like a blossom amid the regions of
eternal snow, so Joel's beautiful vision comes out of a
dark calamity, a great national catastrophe.

It opens with the picture of an invasion of locusts,
one of the most frightful scourges of the East. But be-
yond this little picture there is evidently some greater
trial suggested, and some more formidable enemy fore-
shadowed. Perhaps the locust plague was but the type of
the invading armies of tre Chaldeans, and of the more
dreadful judgments that are yet to come to Israel.

In the midst of this great national trial the prophet
was sent to utter the trumpet call to the people to come
together in fasting, peiitence, humiliation, and prayer,

195

196

POWER FROM ON TITOir

uml l.<» sock the interposilion jind dolivorHnro oC their cov-
enant God. Xor did thpy cull upon llim in vhiii. IU-
sent the gracious answer; »Tnd. as lie always does, He
gave more than they asked, ev«'n the promise of His own
personal coming to dwell among them, and the outpour-
ing of the Holy Spirit in the fullness of Pentecostal times,
and the brighter promise of the glory which is to follow
through the advent and reign of the Son of God Himself.
The whole vision is a kind of ground plan of the Dis-
pensations, and especially of the Christian Dispensation
and the times of the Spirit. It is also a sort of (Mitlined
sketch of God's dealings with the Church still in the
manifestation of His presence and the outpouring of His
Spirit; and not only wuth the Church, but with every
individual soul.

THE MINISTRY OF REPENTANCE.

Before the promise of the Spirit c(mld be fulfilled,
there must come the dispensation of repentance, humilia-
tion, and earnest prayer. There came, therefore, the call
to national penitence. "Blow the trumpet in Zion, sancti
fy a fast, call a solemn assembly: gather tlie people,
sanctify the congregation." It was to be a r^eneral and
deeply earnest movement, including all classes. "Gather
the children and those that suck the breasts : let the bride-
groom go forth of his chamber, and the bride of her closet.
Let the priests, the ministers of the Lord, weep between
the porch and the altar, and let them say, 'Spare Thy
people O Lord, and give not thine heritage to re-
proach.' "

Such a dispensation of ix»pentance must precede at
every season of spiritual blessing. Its great tj'^pe is John
the Baptist and his ministry of warning and reformation.
Doubtless it is prefigured by the vision of the prophet,
and it preceded the coming of the Lord Jesus Christ and
the outpouring of the Holy Ghost, So, still, before any

TTIE TIOLY SPIRIT IN JOEL

197

ir rov-
\. Ilr

?s, lie
is own
tpour-
tiuies,
follow
iiuself.
le Dis-
istitiou
i1 lined
ill the
of His
I every

(tliurch or people can receive the sho^v>ers of heavenly
blessing,', they must hninble themselves before God; turn
from sin, worhilineys, and disobedience; publicly rec-
ognize God as the Author of their blessing; and wait
upon Him in definite acknowledgment of their depend-
ence. Then there will come to them the same gracious
answer which the Prophet Joel was sent to bear to God's
ancient people : * * Fear not, O land ; be glad and rejoice :
for the Lord will do great things. ... Be glad then, ye
children of Zion, and rejoice in the Lord your God : for
He hath given you the former rain moderately, and will
cause to come down for you the rain, the former rain,
and the latter rain. ' *

ilfilled,
umilia-
le call
sancti
people,
al and
Gather
bride-
closet,
etween
re Thy
to re-

ede at
s John
nation,
ophet,
ist and
re any

THE COMING OP CHRIST.

Next, here came the personal presence of the Lord
Himself. **Ye shall know that I am in the midst of
Israel, and that I am the Lord your God, and none else :
and my people shall never be ashamed." This personal
manifestation of the Lord in the midst of Israel was ful-
filled in its most emphatic manner by the coming of
Jesus, and His incarnation and ministry on earth after
the preparatory ministry of John the Baptist. So Jesus
must come personally before we can receive the full bap-
tism of the Holy Ghost. Jesus does come to the penitent
heart, the surrendered heart, the humble heart, and makes
it His abode. "But to this man will I look, even to him
that is poor and of a contrite spirit, and trembleth at
my word."

Jesus is the giver of the Holy Ghost, *'He that bap-
tizeth with the Holy Ghost ; ' ' and we must receive Christ
before we can receive the Spirit. The sinner's first act
is not to receive the Holy Ghost, but to receive Jesus,
turning to penitence from all sin, and opening his heart
to the Saviour. ** As many as received him, to them gave

198

POWER FROM ON HIGH

he power lo l)eeome tlie sons of God." And then He
gives the \uv.\ri in whieh He dwells the sume Spirit which
dwelt in llim.

III.

THE COMING OP THE HOLY SPIRIT.

And it shall come to pass afterward, that I will pour
out my Spirit upon all iiesh; and your sons and your
daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream
dreams, your young men shall see visions : and also upon
the servants and upon the handmaids in those days will
I pour out my Spirit. And I will shew wonders in he
heavens and in the earth, blood, and fire, and pillars of
smoke. The sun shall be turned into darkness, and the
moon into blood, before the great and the terrible day
of the Lord come. iVnd it shall come to pass, that whoso-
ever shall call upon the name of the Lord .shall be de-
livered." This is the very promise the Apostle Peter
quoted on the day of Pentecost as the explanation of that
extraordinary manifestation of the presence of God.

1. First, we will notice that it is a personal coming
of the Spirit. It is not, "I will pour out of my Spirit,"
but "I will pour out my Spirit." It is the Spirit Him-
self who comes.

The Third Person of the glorious Trinity removed His
residence from heaven to earth, just as literally as the
Second Person, the Lord Jesus Christ, removed His resi-
dence from heaven to earth when He became incarnate
and dwelt for thirty-three and a half years in Galilee
and Judea.

This world is now the home of the Holy Ghost, a real
personal Being, with affections, intelligence, and will like
our own. The very Spirit that dwelt in Jesus during
His earthly ministry is now residing among us, and is
willing to dwell within every consecrated heart.

2. The abundance of the outpouring is very strongly
expressed. The Hebrew word **pour" means a very

lu'n He
t which

ill pour
id your

dream
[so upon
ays will
's ill lie
illars of
and the
ible day
t whoso-
II be de-
le Peter
n of that
od.

coming
Spirit,"

it Him-

)ved His
as the
[lis resi-
icarnate
Galilee

It, a real
Iwill like
during
and is

strongly
a very

THE HOLY SPIRIT IN JOEL

199

large effusion, a boundless filling of the Spirit. God does
not give some of the Spirit, but gives the Spirit in
all His infinite fulluess. There is no limit whatsoever.
He givetli the Spirit "without measure" unto Jesus, and
Jesus gives us all that He has of the Spirit's fullness.
"We have not yut begun to realize the illimitable power
and resources which God places at the call of His peo-
ple's faith and obedience.

3. The extent of the outpouring is universal "upon all
flesh." Hitherto the Spirit's manifestations had been
confined to individuals and to a single nation. Now there
was to be no distinction of race or nation. It was to
be a universal blessing for Jews and Gentiles, and equally
open to all the human race.

There is, perhaps, an intimation of the physical aspect
of the blessing. The Holy Ghost makes our flesh His
home and our body His temple.

4. There was to be no distinction of age. The promise
was to ''the young men and to the old men," to "the
sons and daughters" as well as to the sire. Henceforth
even experience, age, and natural advantages were not
to count ; but the Holy Ghost was to be the wisdom and
power of all that trusted Him. He would use the young-
est as well as the oldest, and * * out of the mouths of babes
and sucklings" would "ordain strength" and "perfect
praise."

As we reach nearer to the climax of the age, the full-
ness of the Spirit, and the coming of the Lord, we find
God choosing the young as well as the old, and making
them the special instruments of His power. Many of the
saintliest lives of today are those of young men heroes
and young women heroines of the mission field, the holy
ones whose consecration is more marked because it is not
expected so much from them, amid the attractions and
allurements of their youth and their worldly surround-
ings. Oh, that the young might know that the blessed
Holy Ghost is willing and able to possess them in all the

-^tfWw.' ^.>..^ f »^«Mii WHiMw ■ an ^

200

I'OWER VROM ON UUUJ

n
111

i,'

enthusiasm ol' their uature, iu all the tTeshiiess of their
love, in all the glow of their ambition, and not only to
till and satisfy their own hearts, but to use them as
"burning and shining lights"!

The saintliest man that ever lived iu Seotlaud was
young MeCheyne, whose spirit still lives in the present
generation. The most influential lives that have ever
adorned the mission field have been those of the young
men and the young women who have given up their life
as a sacrifiee for Christ. Yes, and the very Leader whom
we love to follow was Himself a young man, and never
will be old. He will put His young heart, and His glori-
ous Spirit, into the youngest as v cU as the oldest, and
will accept the bright and beautiful offering of a conse-
crated youth, and give to it the glory that the world can
never bestow. Let us receive Him, and give Him our
brightest and best.

5. All social classes and conditions without distinc-
tion had the promise. **The servants and the hand-
maids," mentioned in the next verse, literally mean the
slaves, for the servants in ancient families were bond-
slaves, and the absolute property of their masters. Upon
this class the especial gifts of the Holy Ghost were to
descend under the Christian Dispensation.

There is no record of a slave's having been called spe-
cially into service and divine enduement in the Old Dis-
pensation ; but under the New, the poorest, the lowliest,
and most unlikely classes were to be elevated and to re-
ceive the enduement of power from on high, and the honor
of special service in the kingdom of God. So we find in
the New Testament, Onesimus, the slave, recognized as
the friend of Paul, and commended to the affection of
Philemon, his former master. In his epistles the Apostle
Paul enjoins the servants to accept their position as serv-
ice for Jesus, and promises them an equal recompense
in the kingdom of the Lord, when all social positions may

Tire HOLY SPIRIT IN JOEL

201

f their
)Ml.y to
leiu as

id was
present
ve ever
1 young
leir lii'e
r whom
d never
is glori-
3st, and
a conse-
orld can
lim our

distinc-
hand-

lean the

•e bond-
Upon

were to

|lled spe-
nd Dis-
lowliest,
id to re-
Ihe honor
find in
Inizod as
;etion of
Apostle
as serv-
lorapense
Ions may

be reversed an<l they may win the crown of liighcst serv-
ice in tlie niillftinial a^'e.

il.

Holy

Ghost upon the
servants and handmaids is specially «»mphasized in this
verse. The two little words, **and also," are meant to
designate this class as the particular objects of the
divine care and blessing. Surely it has been true that
the outcast classes of soeiety have been raised up under
the Gospel to be the vessels of God's richest mercy,
and many of them the instruments of His noblest work.

No man is so low nor so i)ressed down by natural hin-
drances as to prevent his taking the highest plaec in
the kingdom of Christ. Let the young, let the lowly,
let even the illiterate know that the Holy Ghost is will-
ing to choose them as the vessels of His grace, and is
able to train them for thv highest spiritual culture and
the most honored service for that blessed Master, with
whom is no respect of persons.

6. Special gifts and manifestations of the Holy Spirit
were to be bestowed. "Your sons and your daugthers
shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, your
young men shall see visions." These various expressions
have reference to the peculiar gifts of the Spirit in the
revelation of His will to man, and the high service for
which He fits us.

Prophesying is speaking the divine message in the
power of the Spirit. Dreams and visions refer to the
special illuminations which He is pleased to give to
His consecrated servants.

Of course, it includes the peculiar ministry of inspira-
tion of which we have formerly spoken, and which is not
continued in the Church. But there is a sense in which
God still opens the inner ear to hear His voice, and
illuminates the * * eyes of the heart ' ' to behold the visions
of His glory and His Word.

It would seem as if to the aged it came in dreams and
to the young in visions. To the old, the faculties of

202

POWER IKOM ON HIGH

nature l)oiiif» sominvliat suspended, the voice of God has
lo Im- more direct. In the young the spiritual and menial
powers arc still in vigorous activity, and they are il-
lumliiated and quickened to catch the heavenly vision.

We do not encourage such an interpretation of these
words as would give liberty for the extravagant and
dangerous spiritualistic manifestations of the trance and
medium, the pretended revelation, and other illusions
and vagaries of our times. But after we have made
necessary provision for holy caution, and the sober regu-
lation of all spiritual manifestations, there is ample
room for the quickening of the spiritual mind, the il-
luminating of the spiritual eye, and the unfolding of
the mind of the Spirit to the humble, holy, and listen-
ing ear. God does give His visions still, especially to
the young. lie gave them to Joseph, He gave them
to Timothy. He gave them to Paul. He gave them
in the hour of consecration, in the season of waiting
upon God, in the retirement of the closet, in the time
when the nearest heart looks out upon a world of sin, and
ui)on the vision of prohecy and inspired truth. God
does make real to us His purpose for our lives. His pur-
pose for the world, and the great prophetic plan which
He is pleased to unfold through the Holy Ghost to the
humble heart. He will ''show us things to come."
He will give to us inspirations, illuminations, aspira-
tions, hopes, assurances, wliicli become to our faith and
hope like the little glimpse of sunlight which comes to
the mariner on the pathless ocean, when for a moment
the clouds divide, and a singl ; observation can be taken
of the sun in the blue heavens; and then the clouds
return and the ship sails by that little glimpse of sun-
light for the days to come.

God does give the holy heart its visions. Let us be
sure they are the voices and the visions of God; then
let us cherish them, let us '' e by them, let them lift
up, and lead us on to all the heights of His love and

^ocl has
mental
ar«^ il-
siou.
)f thest;
,nt and
Qce and
Uiisions
e made
er regu-
1 ample
the il-
ding of
I listen-
lially to
ve them
/e them
waiting
:he time
sin, and
God
lis pur-
which
it to the
come."
aspira-
ith and
omes to
Imoment
le taken
clouds
of sun-
US be
then
lem lift
}ve and

THE iIOLY SPIRIT IN JOEL

203

will. "Thine eyes shall see the King in his bea\ity:
they shall behohl the land that is very far off." "I am
the light of the world: he that followeth me shall not
walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life."

7. The coming of the Holy Ghost will bring salvation
to all who are willing to receive it. Not only does He
endue the few with power for special service, but
He opens the doors of mercy to all who are willing to
believe and receive the Saviour.

In the day of His coming it shall come to pass that
"whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall
be saved." And so the Day of Pentecost is not only
a day of blessing to the disciples, but a day of salva-
tion to the multitude, and when He comes to us, "he
will convict the world of sin, of righteousness, and of
judgment."

How easy it is to lead souls to Christ when we are
filled with the Holy Ghost ! How the whole atmosphere
is charged with heav(!nly i)ower when God's waitinij: peo-
ple are baptized with the fullness of His ^^irit! Thvn
the consciences of men are stricken sometimes without
a single word, and hearts are led to seek the Saviour
through an influence that they cannot understan(w

Doubtless, as the days go by and the coming oi' the
Lord draweth nig^ there shall be great revivals, times
of wonderful awakening, seasons of special blessiiijr,
when multitudes shall seek the Lord, both at home aiid
abroad, and there shall be great ingatherings from
among the unsaved.

Our own generation has witnessed some examples of
these great movements; and we may be encouraged to
look for them still, a»s we go forth in the power of the
Spirit, and give tJie Gospel in its fullness and simplicity
to men.

8. This promise also includes the supernatural mani-
festation of divine power. "I will shew wonders in
the heavens above, and signs in the earth beneath."

TVWt x HOTB —l

204

POWER FROM ON HIGH

The Holy Ghost came at Pentecost with supernatural
power; and He still operates through the faith of His
people in His healing and wonder-working might, as
a testimony to His word and a witness to an unbelieving
world that He is still the living and the present God.

These wonders also include the manifestations of His
providence in answering prayer, in removing difficulties,
in breaking down barriers, in providing means for the
carrying on of His cause, and in all those wonders of
providence and grace of which so many examples have
been given in our own time.

The Holy Ghost, who dwells in the Church, is the
omnipotent Executive of the Godhead, and is able to
control the hearts of men, the elements of nature, and
the events of providence, and to work together with
His people, not only in the ordinarj^ operations of
His grace, but in the extraordinary manifestations of
divine power which may best bear witness to His word
and work.

We may trust Plim for all the power we need 2or the
carrying on of His work, and for the accomplishment
of His will If He dwells within us, He will work
without us. If He is piegnant in our hearts, He will
show His dominion in the whole empire of His Divine
power, both in the things that are in heaven, and the
Jxings that are on earth, and tne things that are under
the earth.

9. Once more we see the coming of the Hoh' Ghost
leading up to the coming of the Lord Jesus Christ.
The vision of the wonder-working Spirit leads right up
to the events that preceded and ushered in the advent
of Christ. The next chapter is the picture and prophecy
of His coming. It is full of profound prophetic in-
terest.

Among its pictures are the restoration of Israel from
their long captivity, the final conflict of the ungodly
nations with Christ, and His people, the great battle

natural

of His

ght, as

alieving

it God.

of llis

iculties,

for the

iders of

les have

, is the
able to
ire, and
ler with
tions of
Ltions of
lis word

£or the
llishment
lill work

He will
Divine

and the

e under

Ghost
Chri>5t.
'ight up
advent
prophecy
letic in-

THE HOLY SPIRIT IN JOEL

205

of Armageddon, the coming of the Lord Jesus Christ,
ai.d the establishment of His blessed kingdom.

Just as the coming of Jesus brought the Holy Ghost,
so the coming of the Holy Ghost in the fullness of
His power will bring the second coming of Jesus; and
as that advent approaches, His power will be more glori-
ously manifested, and His people will better under-
stand His great purpose and His infinite resources.
Oh, let us understand His special business, which is
to gather out of the nations a people for Christ, to finish
the work of the Gospel, to sanctify and prepare the
Bride for her coming Lord, then to prasent her to Jesus,
and hand over to Him the government of the millennial
world.

The Holy Ghost is longing for Christ's coming, and
longing for a people that can understand Him and can
co-operate with Him in bringing it about.

Just as tb3 coming of the Holy Ghost in His full-
ness will bring the millennial Advent, so there is a sense
in which His coming to each heart will bring a millennial
blessing to that heart.

There is a millennium for the soul as well as for the
Church. There is a kingdom of peace and righteousness
and glory into which, in a limited sense, we can enter
with Him here. There is a Kingdom of God which
is within us, which is righteousness ?nd peace and joy
in the Holy Ghost. Come, blessed Comforter, and uehef
it into every willing heart.

lel from
ungodly
It battle

CHAPTER XVIII.

THE HOLY SPIRIT IN THE BOOK OP ISAIAH.

*'Well spake the Holy Ghost by Esaias the prophet unto our
fathers. ' ' — Acts 28 : 25.

THE name ** Isaiah" means the "Salvation of Je-
hovah." Isaiah is the prophet of salvation, and the
revealer of the Lord Jesus Christ and the Holy
Ghost, the divine agent in the work of salvation.

■fr,

ISAIAH'S CONSECRATION.

Isaiah's revelation of the Holy Ghost begins with his
own call and consecration. We have the account of
this remarkable experience in the sixth chapter of Isaiah.
It began with a vision of the glory of God, which the
Apostle John tells us, was the vision of Christ in His
primeval glory.

The immediate effect of it was the revelation of his
own sinfulness and unworthiness, and he threw himself
upon his face, crying, **Woe is me! for I am undone;
because I am a man of unclean lips, . . . for mine
eyes have seen the King, the Lord of hosts."

Every true baptism of the Holy Ghost must begin
with the revelation of our sin, and this must come
from the revelation of God's holiness and glory. As
soon as we get undone, God is willing to begin to do
exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think.

Isaiah took the place of death, and then came the
touch of life. A living coal from the heavenly altar
was brought by one of the seraphim and laid upon his
lips. What an angel's fingers could not endure the
lips of mortals can receive. This was the baptism of fire,

206

iiiifi

THE HOLY SPIRIT IN ISAIAH

207

A.IAH.

into our

of Je-
ind the
B Holy
a.

^rith his
mnt of

Isaiah,
dch the

in His

of his
Ihimself

ndone ;
ir mine

begin
It come
|y. As
to do
link,
le the
altar
ion his
ire the
of fire,

and its eflPeet was to cleanse his lips and purge away
his iniquity, that he might be fitted for his great commis-
sion.

No man is fit to represent God and be the instrument
of the Holy Ghost until he first receives the cleansing
power of God. It is n'^t the baptism of power we first
receive, but the baptism of purity of fire that con-
sumes and cleanses intrinsically and utterly.

Like the baptism of Pentecost, which was a tongue
of fire, so it came to Isaiah's lips and so it must come
to ours. The effect was consecration for service. Then
he could hear the voice of God. Then he could see the
great purpose of Jehovah, desiring to fill the earth with
His glory. Then he could hear the heavenly cry, * * Whom
shall I send, and who will go for us?" And then
he could answer unreservedly and unconditionally,
* * Here am I ; send me. ' '

God wants to send His workers, but He will send
only volunteers. There must be perfect partnership.
We must be willing to go, and then we must be sent.

But how was Isaiah sent? He was sent to do the
hardest work. He was sent to a people that would not
receive him. He was sent knowing that his message
would be rejected. He was sent to a place of failure
and persecution, and, at last, to a martyr's death. He
was sent to know that his words would come back as
echoes in his own lifetime, and that not until later
generations would they be fully received and the glorious
harvest gathered.

This knowledge, however, made no difference to Isaiah.
Enough that God had sent him, and that he was carry-
ing out the divine commission. Some would receive it;
but it would be a tenth, a remnant, a little flock, who
would hearken to his voice and become the seed, the
holy seed, of a future harvest.

So God sends us, when we receive the baptism of fire.
Often there is hard, uncongenial, unrequited service.

f
El

208

POWER FROM ON HIGH

Let us go, like Isaiah, as the witnesses even of unpopular
truth and a misunderstood ministAj, So long as the
Master is honored and pleased, what are men?

We are talking through the telephone of the ages.
Some day the answer will come, and the Lord will say,
''Well done!"

THE HOLY SPIRIT IN THE LORD JESUS CHRIST.

Isaiah's next unfolding of the Holy Ghost is in con-
nection with the person and work of the Lord Jesus
Christ. lie gives us three pictures of the baptism of
Jesus with the Spirit.

The first is in the eleventh chapter, from the second
to the fourth verse: "And the Spirit of the; Lord shall
rest upon him, the spirit of wisdom and understanding,
the spirit of counsel and might, the spirit of knowledge
and of the fear of the Lord ; and shall make him of
quick understanding in the tear of the Lord: and he
shall not judge after the sight of his eyes, neither re-
prove after the hearing of his eai^s: but with right-
eousness shall he judge the poor, and reprove with equity
for the meek of the earth : and he shall smite the earth
with the rod of his mouth, and with the breath of his
lips shall he slay the wicked."

Here we have three sets of qualities which the Holy
Ghost w^as to bring Christ. First are His intellectual
enduemeuts, "The spirit of wisdom and understand-
ing."

V/isdom is the power to apply knowledge, under-
standing k-nowledge. Both are necessary to real practi-
cal wisdom. One may know much, and yet not know
how to use it to advantage.

The Holy Ghost gives not only knowledge, but practical
wisdom. So He rested upon the Lord Jesus, as He
will rest upon those in whom Jesus still abides, un-

THE HOLY SPIRIT IN ISAIAH

20i)

folding the will of God, the mind of Christ, the mean-
ing of the Scriptures, their particular messages to us,
and the lessons of our lives and our times.

In the second class of qualities bestowed on Christ
is executive power, the spirit of counsel and might.
Counsel is the power to plan rightly, and might the
power to execute our plan.

Without a good plan the most earnest work is often
a failure, and without executive ability the best plans
often come to nought. In human affairs, these are
usually divided; one has the conceiving mind, and an-
other the executive right arm. But the Holy Ghost is
both, and He gave both to the Lord Jesus Christ, mak-
ing Him the Wonderful Counsellor, and, at the same
time, the Mighty God, whose counsel shall stand and
who will do all His pleasure.

The third class of attributes represents the moral
and spiritual: "The spirit of understanding, and the
fear of the Lord." And this is still further amplified
by the words, **IIe shall make him of quick under-
standing (or quick smell) in the fear of the Lord."
These are highest attributes of character. These the
Lord Jesus possessed in an infinite measure.

The Scotch have a phrase which is very expressive.
They talk of "sensing" things. To sense a thing is
not to reason it out or know it by information, but it
is to know it by instinct and intuition. It is somewhat
like the sense of smell, or the instinct of the bird that
knows the poison berry by the flash of intuition, while
the scientist must analyze it and detect the poison
by a chemical search.

Jesus had this intuition of right and wrong, this in-
stinctive intuition of His Father's mind and will, this
holy fear of evil, and this holy intuition of good; and
this the sanctified soul has in proportion as it knows the
Lord Jesus and is filled with the Holy Ghost.

Ui -;

■-^ -

-;t HI

210

POWER FROM ON HIGH

It may seem strange to talk about Jesus, the Son of
God, having the fear of His Father. But the more
intimate we are with the truest lives, the more respect
and veneration we have for them. Love is not opposed
to fear in this high, sweet sense, for the more we love
and trust a friend, the more we will dread to displease
him, fear to offend him, and sensitively seek to please
him.

This is the fear of the Lord, which is the beginning
of wisdom, which the Holy Spirit is willing to give to
every true and sanctified heart. Beloved, let us receive
this indwelling Christ and the baptism of the Holy
Ghost, which He brings in wisdom, executive power,
and the quick sense of right and wrong.

The second picture of the baptism of Jesus with the
Spirit is in the first four verses of the forty-second
chapter of Isaiah : * * Behold my servant, whom I uphold,
mine elect, in whom my soul deligh+eth; I have put
my Spirit upon him; he shall bring forth judgment to
the Gentiles. He shall not cry, nor lift up, nor cause
his voice to be heard in the street. A bruised reed
shall he not break, and the smoking flax shall he not
quench : he shall bring forth judgment unto truth. He
shall not fail nor be discouraged till he have set judg-
ment in the earth : and the isles shall wait for his law. ' '

Here we have a beautiful blending of gentleness and
power in the character of the Lord Jesus Christ. "He
shall not cry, nor lift up, nor cause his voice to be
heard in the street. A bruised reed shall he not break,
and the smoking flax shall he not quench; he shall
bring forth judgment u^ito truth. He shall not fail
nor be discouraged till he have set judgment in the earth :
and the isles shall wait for his law."

Every truly great character is simple and gentle.
Jesus is the perfect combination of the lion and the lamb,
of the dove and the eagle; and He will so fill us that

THE HOLY SPIRIT IN ISAIA.H

211

cause

i reed

le not

.iudg-

law."

and

"He

to be

Dreak,

shall

fail

earth :

we shall bo crowned with the glory of meekness and the
strength of love.

There is a third picture of the baptism of the Lord
Jesus Christ with the Holy Ghost. It is found in the
first four verses of the sixty-first chapter: **The Spirit
of the Lord God is upon me; because the Lord hath
anointed me to preach good tidings unto the meek: he
hath sent me to bind up the broken-hearted, to proclaim
liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison
to them that are bound ; to proclaim the acceptable year
of the Lord, and the day of vengeance of our God;
to comfort all that mourn; to appoint unto them that
mourn in Zion, to give unto them beauty for ashes, the
oil of joy for mourning, the garment of praise for the
spirit of heaviness; that they might be called trees of
righteousness, the planting of the Lord, that he might
be glorified. And they shall build the old wastes, thoy
shall raise up the former desolations, and they shall re-
pair the waste cities, the desolations of many genera-
tions."

This well known passage was directly applied to Him-
self by the Lord Jesus Christ in His public address at
Nazareth. Here we see the Holy Spirit anointing the
Lord Jesus; first, for the ministry of the Gospel of
salvation to the poor; secondly, with the ministry of
healing; thirdly, the ministry of deliverance for the
captives of sin; fourthly, the ministry of teaching, the
recovery of sight to the blind ; fifthly, with the message
of His coming, to proclaim the acceptable year of the
Lord and the day of vengeance of our God , and, finally,
the message of comfort and consolation to all that mourn.

This was Christ's ministry, and He fulfilled it in
the power of the Holy Ghost. He did not presume
to preach the Gospel until He had received this en-
duement; neither should we. And, as we receive the
same Spirit, ours will be a ministry of salvation, a
ministry" of healing, a ministry of sanctification, a min-

I' i

^\ II

212

POWER FROM ON HIGH

istr;/ oi' teaching, a ministry ol' hope, a ministry of
cunsolatiou, joy and gladness.

There is a very striking order in these three passages
respecting Christ's haptism. First, it is promised in
the second chapter, by the prophet. Next, it is pro-
claimed in the forty-second chapter by the Father to
the Son. Here, it is confessed by the Saviour, and
claimed by Himself, as He goes forth to exercise the
ministry and claim the power.

Only thus can we receive the baptism of the Spirit.
It is promised to us as well as to Him, and there must
come a moment when it is really given by the Word
of God and our act of consecration. Then there must
come a third step when we ourselves confess it, accept
it, and step forward to realize it in the actual exercise
of the gift we have claimed, by proving our faith in
our obedience. As we, like Jesus, go forth with the
Gospel of salvation in dependence on the power of the
Spirit, we, too, shall find, like Him, that we are endued
with power from on high.

ra.

THE HOLY SPIRIT ON ISRAEL AS A NATION.

We have a beautiful picture of this outpouring of
the Spirit upon Israel in Isaiah 27:15-18: "Until the
Spirit be poured upon us from on high, and the wilder-
ness be a fruitful field, and the fruitful field be counted
for a forest. Then judgment shall dwell in the wilder-
ness, and righteousness remain the fruitful field. And
the work of righteousness shall be peace ; and the effect
of righteousness, quietness and assurance forever. And
my people shall dwell in a peaceable habitation, and in
sure dwellings, and in quiet resting places. ' '

This follows a long season of national depression and
sorrow. It brings a complete and blessed revolution,
turning the nation to righteousness and God, and chang-

THE HOLY SPIRIT TN TSAIAH

213

,■■1

ing every sorrow into prosperity, blessing, and peace.
The first droppings of this hiesscd rain arc already
beginning to come, and the remant of Israel is turning
to God, as well as many to their aneient fatherland.

The Holy Ghost is beginning to visit the seed oT Abra-
ham, and soon the wilderness of Palestine shall rejoice
and 1 lossf ^ as the rose. Let us pray for Israel, and
its restoration will be to the Gentiles and to i\\(t world
as life from the dead.

There is another picture of the same national blessing
in Isaiah 59 : 19-21. The Apostle Paul, in his letter to
the Romans, quoted from this passage with direct refer-
ence to the coming of Christ and the return of Israel.
This is to be accompanied by a wide effusion of the
Spirit from on high, which is to be a permanent and
everlasting presence.

The Holy Ghost is not going to leave this world when
Jesus comes back, but, as of old He dwelt in Christ
in the days of His suffering and humiliation, so He
shall dwell in Him again as He comes to reign in glory.

All that we know of His comfort, joy, love quicken-
ing life, and effectual power, is but the merest foretaste
of the glory with which He will fill us in those coming
ages. Then we shall know not only the fullness of
Jesus, but we shall receive the residue of the Spirit,
and it shall be true of Israel and of the Church of Christ,
"My Spirit that is upon thee, . . . shall not depart out
of thy mouth, nor out of the mouth of thy seed, nor out
of the mouth of thy seed's seed, saith the Lord, from
henceforth and forever."

IV.
THE HOLY SPIRIT FOR EACH OF US AS INDIVIDUALS.

There is another and a greater promise of the Holy
Ghost in Isaiah which each of us may claim for our-
selves. It is found in the forty-fourth chapter, verses
three to five. **For I will pour water upon him that

^4'

^■I^MJiWgiig.!

214

POWER FROM ON HIGH

is thirsty, and floods upon the dry ground; I will
pour my Spirit upon thy seed, and my blesvsing upon
thy otrspring; and they shall spring up as among the
grass, as willows by the water-courses. One shall say,
I am the Lord's; and another shall call himself by
the name of Jacob; and another shall subscribe with
his hand unto the Lord, and surname himself by the
name of Israel." The only limitation of this promise
is our fitness and capacity to receive it. We have here
a beautiful picture of the field, the flood, and the fruit.

First, the field is "the thirsty and the dry ground."
In nature as well as in grace there must be a prepara-
tion of the soil for the seed and the harvest. The same
seed on one field comes to nothing, and on another
it produces one hundredfold; so the Holy Ghost is af-
fected by the personal qualities of the heart in which
lie dwells, and the capacity of the soul for spiritual
life, power and blessing. Some seem to be vessels pre-
pared unto glory, and others only for sin and evil.

Two men sit down at the same table. To one it is
a feast, to another it is a famine, simply because the
one is hungry and the other satisfied. The very best
dish on our dinner table is a good appetite. So God's
spiritual preparation for the coming of His Spirit is
a deep hunger and thirst. Let us thank Him as He
gives it to us, and show more need than fullness, more
want than blessing; for "blessed are they which do
hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they shall
be filled."

Our best preparation for the Holy Spirit is empti-
ness, a sense of need, and a real spiritual capacity.
Sometimes God has to bring this about by our very
failures, and a revelation to us as to our nothingness
and worthlessness.

Next, we find that on such a soil He will pour out
** floods." It is not merely a few drops of rain, but the
abundant rain, the ample, boundless overflow of His

THE HOLY SPIRIT IN ISAIAH

215

I will
; upon
ng the

II say,
elf by
e witli
by the
romise
re here
} fruit.
Dund."
repara-
e same
mother
t is af-

which
Diritual
;ls pre-
1.

le it is
ise the
ry best
. God's
pirit is

as He
s, more
dch do
y shall

empti-
ipacity.
ir very
ingness

)ur out
but the
of His

Holy Spirit. Oh, that we might prove the richer lull-
u€ss of this promise, and let Him pour out a blessing
until there should not be room to receive it!

Finally, there is a threefold fruition. First, there
is the salvation of individuals. "One shall say, 1 am
the Lord's." Next, there must be the public conftission
of those who are saved. "Another shall call himself
by the name of Jacob." And, thirdly, there is the
deeper consecration of God's people. "Another shall
subscribe with his hand unto the Lord, and call him-
self by the name of Israel." This describes a higher
spiritual life.

This is a covenant voluntarily signed between the
soul and the Lord, in which there is a perfect and entire
surrender, and a complete claim of all His blessing
and fullness.

Then comes the new surname, which, as with the
patriarch Jacob of old, marked a cri-is in his history,
and a new departure of power and blessing. Israel
means "a Prince with God," the conquering soul, the
life that has entered into the divine fullness.

This is the work of the Holy Ghust, to lead us on to
all these things; first, to accept the Lord, then to
unite with His people and to acknowledge Him publicly,
and then to go on into all the fullness of His grace
and blessing.

As we receive the Holy Ghost, we must go on, and
only as we go on, can we continue to receive His in-
creasing and satisfying fullness. Beloved, have we
taken all the steps? Have we signed the personal cov-
enant? Have we special relations with God? Is He
to us what He is to no one else ? Have we recedved the
eternal surname, and are we written in heaven in char-
acters which no one knoweth, save Him that gave
the name and the soul on whom He has inscribed it?

Such, then, is Isaiah's vision of the Holy Ghost, the
Spirit that came first upon him and enabled him to re-

"""mmmmmt

21 fi

POWKR I'KOM ON HIGH

I
I

veal it to others iu his yet more glorious ministry, in
the person ol" the liord Jesus, in the future glory of
the Jewish nation, and in the soul that receives His
fullness.

All this has come to pass in the ages since Isaiah's
time. We are living in the noontide light and glory of
the Holy Ghost. Have these ancient promises and proph-
esies been fulfilled to us? Has the vision been translated
into our life? Have we proved this part of God's holy-
Scriptures ?

Let us come to Him as did Isaiah, in deep spiritual
hunger, self-renunciation, and consecration. Let us re-
ceive the living seal which the hand of Jesus is ready to
put upon our lips and leave upon the altar of our hearts ;
then let us go forth like Isaiah, in the power of the
Spirit to proclaim His grace and fullness, and to become
spiritual conductors, passing the blessing on to the souls
that are hungering and perishing around us; let our
lives, like Isaiah's signify "the Salvation of Jehovah."

;ry, in
ory of
ea His

»uiah's
lory of
proph-
iislated
'a holy

piritual
; US re-
eady to
hearts ;
of the
become
lie souls
let our
lovah. ' '

CIIAl'TEK XIX.

THE HOLY SPIRIT IN LIFE AND TESTIMONY OP

JEREMIAH.

JEREMIAH, although occupying in comparison with
Isaiah the second place in our Old Testament canons,
really occupied the highest place in the mind of his
people, and in the estimation of the rabbis and religious
k*aders of the eJews. So supremely was he regarded as
the guardian spirit of Judah and Jerusalem that they
expected him to come back from the dead and to usher
in some new bright era of national hope and i)rosperity.
Therefore, when Jesus of Nazareth was performing Ilis
wondrous miracles upon earth, and was attracting the
attention of all the people, we find that many of them
supposed that He was no other than Jeremiah who had
risen from the dead.

The life of Jeremiah is inseparably linked with the
last days of ancient Judaism and the fall of Jerusalem.
The period of his ministry, occupying as it did about
forty years, was singularly parallel to the forty years of
the ministry of Moses in the beginning of Israel's history.
It was parallel, also, to the forty years of trial and pro-
bation which preceded the fall of Jerusalem in later
centuries, after the testimony of Christ and His apostles
had been at length rejected.

These three periods of forty years were all times of
probation, and, alas ! of provocation, on the part of Israel.
Just as Moses was the divine messenger under the first,
so Jeremiah stood under the second with loving loyalty
to his country and supreme fidelity to His God. He strove
to avert the awful catastrophe which he saw so swiftly
and surely coming upon his people. When at last he

217

218

POWER FROM ON HIGH

could not prevent it, he shared it with his people; and
finally, it seems probable, perished at their cruel hands.

The story of his lift and the record of his testimony
are full of the most touching and beautiful manifesta-
tions of the divine character and love and of the working
of the Holy Ghost.

The New Testament has borne most distinct witness
to his inspired messages, and recognized his words as
the messages of the Holy Ghost. We shall glance first,
at his personal call ; next, at the relation of his life and
ministry to his own people and times ; and, finally, at his
messages for later ages and for us through the Spirit.

I' I

i|!

JEREMIAH ^S CALL AND COMMISSION.

Jeremiah has given an -account of his call and com-
mission in the first chapter of his prophetic book. It is
not unlike the story of Isaiah's consecration in the sixth
chapter of his prophecy. God came to him and announced
to him before his birth he had been called to be a
prophet unto the nations.

His commission is a very glorious one. '^I have this
day set thee," He says, ''over the nations, and over the
kingdoms, to root out, and to pull down, . . . and to
plant, ' ' Not only did his commission extend to his own
people, but at his prophetic word the mightiest nations
of his time rose and fell. The mighty armies that trav-
ersed the whole earth and made the nations to tremble,
moved at the word of Jeremiah through the Holy Ghost.
Alone in his quiet home at Anathoth, or suffering in
his lone dungeon in Jerusalem, he was really the mightiest
force of his time. It was his prophetic word that de-
cided the fate of dynasties and kingdoms.

There is nothing more sublime than the simple power
which the Holy Ghost gives to the humblest saint ; and
the ministrj^ of prayer which He enables the lowliest

thj: holy spirit in jeremiah

219

e; and
hands,
timotiy
iiifesta-
t^orking

witness
ords as
ee first,
ife and
% at his
)irit.

id com-
c. It is
he sixth
lounced
;o be a

ave this
)ver the
and to
his own
nations
at trav-
tremble,
' Ghost,
ring in
lightiest
that dfc-

e power
nt; and
lowliest

child of God to exercise. Is there a spectacle more
glorious than the picture given us nearly a century later
of that mighty sovereign of the east, the all victoriDus
Cyrus, after he had subdued the nations, after proud
Babylon had fallen beneath hiS feet, after the whole
world had become his empire, compelled by an influence
that he could not understand, to fulfill the very words of
Jeremiah's prophecy?

His was a peculiar prophetic ministry, no doubt ; but
frod will give a similar power to every true saint who
is willing in the name of Lord Jesus to accept the high
commission and the holy ministry of prayer, and to
grasp the sceptre of faith through which He can touch
the world with the power and blessing of the eternal
God.

The commission of Jeremiah was a very remarkable
one. Naturally he seemed wholly unfitted for it. Every-
thing is his nature recoiled from the task to which he
was called. He was sensitive, shrinking and loving.
It was a fearful sacrifice of all his feelings to be com-
pelled to stand in constant antagonism and to utter
God's rebukes against the people that he loved, against
princes, priests, and prophets.

Far sweeter would it have been for him to weep for
Israel's sorrows and even to suffer for her sins; but
God called that gentle nature to be the messenger of
His most fearful warnings and judgments, and to pass
through an ordeal of suffering from which the bravest
heart might shrink. He did shrink. **I am a child,"
he said, but God would not allow him to plead his
weakness. It was not Jeremiah's strength that was to
prevail, but God's mighty enduement of power from on
high. So the hand of God stretched out and touched
his li])s. The power of God was communicated to his
shrinking weakness, and ho was commanded to stand
forth without a doubt or a fear, and to speak the words
that God should inspire, and to be like a wall of adamant

220

POWER FROM ON HIGH

and a fortress of fire against the priests, the princes, the
prophets, and the people of the land.

In like manner God often calls us to ministries for
which we are naturally unfitted; but if He calls and
enables, what need have we to fear? Indeed, the only
thing we have cause to fear is the spirit of fear; and
when we step forth at the divine command to fulfill
such sacred trusts, we must stand in fearless courage
and absolute obedience. Yes, we might almost say, au-
dacity is the only safe position. "Be not dismayed at
their faces, lest I confound thee before them" is still
as true for us as it was for Jeremiah of old.

II.
Jeremiah's relation to his own people and times.

Jeremiah lived and testified through the reign of four
of Judah's kings. He was called to his ministry early
in the reign of young Josiah, who, having inherited a
corrupt throne, found himself, while yet but a child,
the sovereign of a people who hnd been stereotyped in
idolatry and sin. The long reign of IManassah, which
covered half a century, was paralleled only by the days
of Ahab and Jezebel; and, although the last days of his
life led him, through divine judgment, to sincere re-
pentance, yet they were too short to undo the fearful
crimes of a long reign. After the short reign of a son
as wicked as himself, Josiah ascended the throne.

He was destined to be one of the best of Judah's
kings, and to take his place beside Jehoshaphat and
Hezekiah among the true successors of David. Begin-
ning early to struggle against evil, he labored courage-
ously and consistently till the close of his reign for the
reformation of his kingdom. In these efforts he was
seconded by the faithful Jeremiah. Indeed, there is no
doubt that the reformation was due, under God, chiefly
to the labors of Jeremiah himself.

THE HOLV SPIRIT IN JEREMIAH

221

lor

liefli

Day by day he stood in the streets of Jerusalem,
littering his tender and solemn messages. His earlier
addresses have been preserved to us in the beginning
of his prophecy. Reminding the people of God's ancient
covenant and their former faithfulness and blessing, he
appealed with tender solemn pathos to their hearts.
**Thus saith the Lord," he would cry, **I remember
thee, the kindness of uiy youth, the love of thy espousals,
when thou wentest after me in the wilderness." And
that he would renew the appeal, and cry, * * Have I been
a wilderness unto Israel? a land of darkness?" ''My
people have committed two evils. They have forsaken
me the fountain of living waters, and hewed them
out cisterns, broken cisterns, that can hold no water."

Then as he saw, perhaps, their cold indifference or
scornful unbelief, there would follow some solemn mes-
sage, the vision of coming calamity, the dramatic picture
of the invader and the besieging army from the north
and the impending fall of Jerusalem. Or sometimes his
heart would break out in a wail of despair and anguish,
"Oh, that mine head were waters, and mine eyes a
fountain of tears, that T might weep day and night for
the slain of the daughter of my people!" "Is there
no balm in Gilead? Is there no physician there? Why
then is not the hoalth of the daughter of my people
recovered?" "The harvest is past, the summer is ended,
and we are not saved."

Thus he preached and pleaded and warned and waited,
year after year. Gradually some improvement appeared,
until after a while it seemed as though the clouds were
passing, and the nation were returning to their God.

At this time a strange and important incident oc-
curred. It was the finding of a lost copy of the law
amid the rubbish of the temple. The house of God
had become like a filthy stable, and had been given up
to the rites of idolatry for generations. But, as they
were cleansing it at the commandment of Josiah. they

222

POWER FROM ON HIGH

found amid the wreck and debris an old copy of the law
of Moses. Perhaps it was the book of Deuteronomy;
perhaps it was a larger scroll containing the entire law.
It made the deepest impression upon the prophet and
the king.

It was like the finding of Luther's Bible in the six-
teenth century. It was solemnly brought to the king, and
then the priests and the people were gathered together
in public convocation and the sacred book was read. As
thy listened to the voice of God, and learned His precepts
and commandments, which for ages they had neglected
and disobeyed, there began to fall upon them something
like the spirit of a true humiliation and reformation.

Following up the movement, Josiah summoned the
whole nation to Jerusalem, and sent out a universal call
for a great Passover. They came from north and south
and east and west ; and some even of the remnant of Is-
rael gathered with them ; and there they kept the Pass-
over as it had not been kept for (generations.

One would have thought that all this must have filled
the heart of Jeremiah with joy and confidence. Doubt-
less he did appreciate fully even the transient awakening.
But it brought to him one of those crises which are most
trying to a faithful minister. H© saw the shallowness
of the movement. He saw the deep insincerity on the part
of the leaders. He saw that the heart of the people was
wedded to idolatry and sin, and that all this was but
superficial and would soon pass away. They were willing
to go so far; but a radical revival that would separate
them from all idolatry and sin, and from the gross vices
and unrighteousness which pervaded the whole national
life, for this they were unwilling. He saw with the
vision of divine discernment that nothing short of this
revival would avert the impending stroke.

So be pleaded moi*e solemnly that evei*. He sum-
moned the princes, the priests, the prophets, and the
people to righteousness and holiness ; to circumcise their

THE HOLY SPIRIT IN JEREMIAH

223

hearts and not merely rest in a ceremonial worship or
an outward reformation.

But his messages found little response. The transient
reformation passed by; the hearts of the people were
still unsanctified; the prophet was sure that the day
of judgment for Judah was only delayed but not averted.

It was not long before clouds began to gather more
dark and hopeless than before. In an evil hour Josiah
was led into a foolish and hasty campaign against the
king of Egypt. Neglecting the warning which God sent
to him through the lips of that heathen king, he rashly
ventured into the forbidden conflict, and left his life
upon the bloody field of Megiddo.

With Josiah 's death the last hope of Judah died,
and Jeremiah utter over him a lamentation which was
the very cry of despair. Then began that chain of crimes
and calamites which culminated in the fall of Jeru-
salem and the cp^tivity of Judah.

Jehoiakim, the immediate successor of Josiah, was
a counterpart of Ahab and Jeroboam in the worst
days of Israel. He set at naught all the counsels and
warnings of the pronhet. When, at last, Jeremiah had
Barak to read to him from his prophetic scroll the
solemn judgment which God had pronounced against
him, instead of the least show of repentance, he took
his penknife, cut the objectionable words out of the
scroll, and threw them into the fire.

The prophet returned to his house, rewrote the threat-
enings of Jehovah with many terrible additions, and
sent them back to the king. Again and again was Jehoia-
kim warned of his impending ruin ; but his heart seemed
given up to an utter infatuation of willfulness and
wickedness, until, at last, after an infamous reign of
eleven years, he was slain in a night attack by the
Babylonian army upon Jerusalem, and his lifeless body
was exposed in the open fields. Men said in after ages
that on the withered forehead could be read in awful

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224

POWER FROM ON HIGH

characters the name of the evil spirit whom he had
followed all his life.

Jeremiah had predicted long before that the wicked
king should be, "buried with the burial of an ass,"
and his wretched life ended in shame and ruin. His
reputation was so desperate that he was not even buried
in the sepulchres of the kings.

H^ was followed by Jehoiachin, who was really the
puppet and creature of the Babylonian monarch. After
a short and uneventful reign, he in turn was succeeded
by Zedekiah, the last of Judah's kings.

Zedekiah was weak and irresolute rather than obsti-
nately wicked. His whole reign was marked by vacilla-
tion and cowardice. He had a certain measure of re-
spect for the messages of Jeremiah, sometimes sending
for him, and seeming to listen to his counsels and to
desire to carry them out ; but he feared the princes and
the people, and had not the courage to obey his own
convictions.

Again and again did Jeremiah assure him that, if he
would but obey the voice of God, even yet he and his
kingdom would be spared; but as surely as he per-
sisted in the counsels of the people and the princes, and
depended upon the alliances of the neighboring nations,
both he and his kingdom should perish.

Many were the vicissitudes and trials of the faithful
prophet during these last years. Again and again was
he exposed to the charge of disloyalty and treated ;is
an enemy of his country. Again and again did the
false prophets testify against him and try to bolster
up the hopes of the people by deceiving visions of com-
ing prosperity. Sometimes he was pursued for his life.
Often he was exposed to imprisonment and the severest
hardships, and left even for days to sink in the mire
of his dungeon, and was saved from death only by the
interposition of compassionate strangers.

THE HOLY SPIRIT IN JEREMIAH

225

iful

And so the years rolled by, until at last the cup of
iniquity was full and the divine judgment could wait
no longer. The Babylonian { invaded the land. The
cordon of destruction tightened around Jerusalem, and,
at last, the walls were broken up and the Chaldeans
entered. Zedekiah sought for safety in cowardly flight,
and succeeded in reaching the plains of Jericho with a
small retinue; but he was pursued by the Babylonians
and captured. He and his sons were taken into the
presence of Nebuchadnezzar. His sons were murdered
before his eyes; and, as if to stereotype this last and
hideous vision forever on his memory, his eyes were
then cruelly put out, and he was taken in blindness
and bondage to Babylon, and 'left to end his days as a
royal captive.

"What was the fate of Jeremiah? He had been true
to God, and God had not failed him in this dark and
dreadful hour. The Babylonian king having heard of
his high and heroic character, gave orders to his officers
that Jeremiah should be carefully sought out and guard-
ed from all harm. Not a hair of his head was touched,
but he was treated with honor and every consideration.
He was given his choice of going to Babylon, with
liberty and ample provision for his every need, or of
remaining among his own people. Of course, he chose
the latter. He had lived for them, and he was ready
to die with them; and so he remained among the rem-
nant that were left after the deportation of most of the
leading citizens of Jerusalem as captives to Babylon.

It is said that he went down with those who went to
Egypt and dwelt among them, still counseling them and
teaching them the messages of God; but they refused
his warnings and counsels, and ultimately, tradition has
reported, they even took the prophet's life. He became
one of the glorious list of martyrs of truth who sealed
their testimony with their blood.

Humanly speaking, his life was not a success; but

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when the books shall be opened and the rewards shall
be given, it will be found that Jeremiah's life outweighed
the most successful and brilliant career. Ilis was the;
high honor of remaining true to God and faithful to
his trust, even in the fact of seeming failure and the
martyr's death.

This is true success, and this was the glorious testi-
mony of Jeremiah's life.

III.

HIS MESSAGE TO OUR TIMES.

Let US look finally at his message to us in later ages.
His prophetic writings are full of messages for future
times. The very failure of the kingdom of Judah was
but a back-ground for the vision of the true kingdom
which the future was to bring.

He saw, as no other had ever seen, how powerless
was the highest teaching or the severest suffering to lead
to virtue and faithfulness. Alas ! the secret of failure was
found in the wretched material of poor, fallen human
nature and the need of a strength higher than human
purpose, or even the light of truth and example. He
looked forw'ard with deep longing to the bright day of
the New Testament, the coming Saviour, and the Holy
Ghost.

As a result, Jeremiah has given to us out of the dark-
ness and failure of his own time, the inspired vision
of the new covenant, the Gospel, and the work of the
Spirit. The writer of the epistle to the Hobrows has
repeatedly quoted from this ancient prophet the most
comprehensive statement of the new covenant which has
ever been given to the Church of God.

It is found in the thirty-first chapter of Joreraiah,
from the thirty-first verse to the thirty-fourth. ** Be-
hold the days come, saith the Lord, that I will make a
new covenant with the house of Israel and with the
house of Judah;

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227

"Not aot'ording to the covenant that I made with
their i'atliers, in the day that 1 took them by the hand,
to bring them out of the land of Egypt; which my
covenant they brake, although 1 was an husband unto
them, saith the Lord;

"But this shall be the covenant that I shall make
with the house of Israel; After these days, saith the
Lord, I will put my law in their inward parts, and
write it in their hearts; and will be their God, and
they shall be luy people.

"And they shall teach no more every man his neigh-
bor, and every man his brother, saying, Know the Lord ;
for they shall all know me, from the least of them unto
the greatest of them, saith the Lord : for I will forgive
their iniquity and I will remember their sin no more."

The distinguishing feature of this new covenant which
Jeremiah announced lies in the fact that God promises
to write His law upon our hearts, and to "put it in our
inward parts." The old covenant gave light and law,
but it did not give the power and disposition to obey it.
But the new covenant writes it in our inmost being;
makes it part of our very nature; incorporates it into
our will, our choice, our desires, our very intuitions,
so that it becomes second nature to us, our spontaneous
desire, and our deepest life.

This is the work of the Holy Ghost. This is the
meaning of sanctification. This is the great purpose
of Christ's redemption and His indwelling in the heart
of the believer through the Spirit.

It is God who undertakes to keep this covenant. It
is not dependent upon what we do ; but He becomes our
God first and makes us His people. He undertakes to
teach us and to reveal to us by the Holy Spirit the mean-
ing of His will, the nature of His covenant, and the
purposes of His grace and love.

We are not dependent upon outward instruction mere-

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POWER FROM ON HIGH

\y ; but each of us has access to ITim, and may f n.joy the
personal teaching of the Holy (J host.

Tt will be noticed that the forgiveness of sins is not
the primary promise of this chapter. It is secondary,
and follows as a matter of course; but the primary
feature of the great promise is the power of divine
grace to keep from sin, and to lead us into righteousness
and holiness.

This is the glorious Gospel which Jesus has come to
bring in its fullness, and of which the Holy Ghost is
at once the Revealer and the Enabler. It brings not
merely the message of repentance and forgiveness with
the dreary prospect of continued sin. It comes not
only to forgive the past, but to assure us of a power that
will keep us for the future, and put into us a nature
that is in its tendency holy and divine, and that leads
us to choose the will of God and the life of holy obedi-
ence.

Beloved, have we learned this blessed message of the
Holy Ghost through Jeremiah ? Have we come into this
new covenant ? Have we proved the fullness of salvation
through the indwelling of the Holy Ghost, and the law
written upon our inmost hearts?

Another message which Jeremiah has left for later
times is the lesson of faith which he has given in the
thirty-second chapter of his prophecy. It was a very
striking object lesson. In the days when the future was
as dark as calamity could make it, when the whole land
was in the possession of the Chaldeans, and the city was
about to fall; at a time when real estate in Judah was
practically worthless, Jeremiah was commanded to invest
his means in his patrimonial estate in the village of
Anathoth. It would seem like throwing money away;
but instead of hesitating, he immediately obeyed the
divine command, and, publicly, before all the people,
completed the purchase, subscribed the papers, had the
transaction duly attested and sealed, and put his little

THE ITOLY SPIRIT IN .TJ^RKMIAII

229

fortune into the piece of property which he knew for
two generations would be under the blight of the long
captivity of Judah.

What did it all mean? It was a practical expression
of his faith in the future of his country, and of the
fact that a day was eoming when that inheritance would
be worth all its cost, when that estate would come back
to his family again, and when his own glorious promise
of Israel's restoration would be fulfilled.

It was stepping out in the dark hour and committing
himself to the promise of God. It was counting upon
the things that are not ius though they were. It was the
faith that anticipates the future, and in the midnight
hour lifts up its song of praise, and puts its foot upon
the seeming void "and finds the rock beneath."

This is the spirit of true faith in every age. We
too, like Jeremiah, must count upon God's Word when
there is nothing else to count upon, and must exercise
that faith that is ''the substance of things hoped for,
and the evidence of things not seen." We must step
out in the dark and empty void, and know that God
is underneath us, and that the vision of faith and the
promise of the future are as certain and real as His
eternal throne.

There is yet another message for future times which
Jeremiah has left us, and on which for a moment we
linger, It is found in the eighteenth chapter of his
prophecy. It is the figure of the potter and his vessel.
The prophet, having gone down to the potter's house,
saw him working a vessel upon a wheel; but, through
some cause, the vessel was marred in the hand of the
potter. Perhaps the clay did not yield to his touch,
and would not lie plastic in his hands. He had to throw
it aside, and it seemed as if his work had failed, and
that even the material was rejected. Oh. how solemnly
it speaks to us of our past failures ! Perhaps God took
lis in hand, and began to work gut in our life some

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POWEIl FROM ON HIGH

f^raeiouH purpose; but we slirank from the ordeal; we
refused to s'libmit to His will. Wc askrd jjii vasirr way,
we held back from the cross; and (jod siieiniiijj: unable
to accomplish His high and holy purpose, had to put
us aside and let His gracious plan seem, for the time, to
fail. Oh, how sad and solemn the wrecks that lie behind
us through our willfulness, our unbelief, and our un-
willingness to trust our Father's wisdom and love in the
testing hour!

But there is a beautiful sequel to Jeremiah's parable.
The clay was not thrown away; but the potter took
it up again and fiishioned it again, another vessel,
"as it pleastnl the potter to make it." There wa.s a
time when 1 think I interpreted this vision wrongly,
and thought it meant that God took up our broken
lives and made the best of them that He could; but
that it was not all that He had at first intended. I
believe that the grace of God loves to triumph even
over our self-will, and 1 cannot but think that even in
the very terms of Jeremiah's object lesson, there are
lines of hope and divine encouragement, and that we
may dare to believe that the vessel which the potter
made the second time was even a better vessel than
he had tried to make before, because, we are told, **He
made it again another vessel, as it seemed good to the
potter to make it." This time it was not our pleasure
but His that was accomplished. Perhaps he gave us
grace to yield our stubborn will and to submit with
confidence to his hand. Perhaps, in His wondrous and
over-niling mercy, He ])rought us to full surrender and
subdued our willfulness. At least. His mighty love
triumphed over all hindrances. His will was accomplish-
ed, and His high purpose was fulfilled. Yes, the grace
of God is able, not only for Satan and for sin, but for
Belf too, and strong enough to overcome the opposition
of our w^eak and willful hearts.

Thank God for One whose sovereign grace saved us

f ■

THE TIOLY SPIRIT IN JEREMIAH

231

when we wero dead in sin, and whoso all-sufficient power
is able to save us to the uttermost, to bring us to the
piaco. where, some day, we shall say, "Not unto us,
God, not unto us, but unto Thy name be all th«»
glory."

"Grace all the work shall crown,
To everlasting days,
It lays in heaven that topmost stone
And well deserves the praiM."

CHAPTER XX.
THE HOLr SPIRIT IN EZEKIEL.

**The word of the Lord <:anie expressly unto Ezekiel the
priest, the son of Buzi, in the land of the Chaldeans by the river
Ohehar; and the liand of the Lord was there upon him," — F^zekiel
1:3.

THE ministry of Ezekiel was dramatic and pathetic.
Like Jeremiah's, it was connected with the fall of
Judah, but it differed in this, that wliile Jeremiah
was present amid the scenes of sorrow connected with
that awful tragedy. Ezekiel was far removed and saw
it in vision only, from the distant banks of the river
Chebar. God showed it all to him, and day by day
the painful panorama passed before his eyes and was
reproduced to his countiymen around him in his in-
spired visions; so that, the very day the city fell, he
knew it in his spirit, although the tidings did not reach
him until years afterward.

Indeed, in his own personal life he became a sort of
object lesson of the events which he described, and in
which he was so deeply interested as a prophet and
a patriot. In his own person he suffered in type and
figTire what his country and people were enduring. He
went through the days of famine, eating unclean food,
and setting forth in his own sufferings the horrors of the
approaching calamities.

The day that Jerusalem fell, his own wife died, and he
knew that she was made in God's mysterious providence
an awful picture of the blow that had fallen upon
Jerusalem. Thus he both lived and taught the lessons
of his time, and left the wondrous record for the in-
struction of later ages.

The events that were transpiring around him formed

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THE HOLY SPIRIT IN EZEKIEL

233

a fitting framework for the message of faith and hope
which he was sent to unveil for the future. Through
the wreck of Israel's national histoi-y, he was able to see,
as through the broken walls of a ruined building, the
light of the coming dispensation and the promise of a
better hope.

His pages shine with the light of the Gospel, un-
folding with a clearness, that even Isaiah does not sur-
pass, the times of the Messiali, and especially the person
and work of the blessed Holy Spirit. Nowhere are there
more sublime heights of holy vision, and nowhere more
clear, spiritual and practical unfoldings of truth re-
specting the spiritual life and the dispensation of the
Holy Ghost. Let us look at three remarkable visions
of his prophecy.

THE VISION OF THE GLORY.

The prophecy opened with an extraordinary vision
of peculiar sublimity and majesty, revealing the glory
of the Lord in the mighty working of His Spirit and
providence.

First, he saw a whirlwind coming from the north,
the direction from which the enemies of Israel came,
and where the great world empires had their seat.

In the midst of this whirlwind there was a fire m-
folding itself; a sort of whirlwind fire, turning upon
it own axis, and sweeping on in majesty and glory. The
whirlwind and the fire have already been made familiar
as the symbols of God and His manifested presence and
glory.

Next, he beheld in the midst of the fiery whirlwind
four living creatures. These were the cherubim. We
have already seen them at the gate of Eden and in the
Tabernacle and the Temple, and they reappear in the
vision of the Apocalypse.

They are .special symbols of the Lord Jesus Christ,
and God's infinite attributes and mighty workings

POWER FROM ON HIGH

through Ilim. The faces of the lion, the ox, the eagle,
and the man represent the sovereignty, the power, the
iutciligenec, and the love which guide all the government
of God and the whole plan of redemption which He
is working out through the Lord Jesus Christ.

These cherub forms were robed in fire, and they
moved like the lightning and the living flame. As in
the other representations of the cherubic figures, they
had six wings, denoting the swiftness and celerity of
their movements. To still heighten the figure, there
were, next, four mighty wheels, so vast in the sweep
of their circumference that, to the prophet's eye, they
seemed terrible in their majesty. Their tires were full
of eyes, all around their vast (.ircr "ference.

These wheels kept time i L.c movement of the
wings of the cherubim, and bore the cherubic forms
wherever the Spirit directed: for "the Spirit of the
living creatures was in the wheels."

This wonderful vision represented the majesty, the
grandeur, the power, and the celerity of the operations
of God's mighty Spirit and imiversal providence. It
was the sublime figure of the omnipresence and infinite
activity of the living God and the Holy Spirit, who, as
the divine Executive, is ever carrying out His purposes
and plans.

All this sublime imagery was but the ' 'iiiidation for
something still grander. For the prorh. tr't beheld,
above the cherubim, the wings, and the wht 'a mighty
firmament, shining in its transparent brightness like
the terrible crystal; and on this firmament a glorious
throne like a flaming jasper; on this throne, as the
centre of the whole vision and the sublime climax of the
whole picture, was "the likeness as the appearance of a
man above upon it."

This was the glorious mediatorial thione of the Lord
Jes^is Christ, and around about it w^.; ihe rainbow of
covenant promise, softening all the awful brightness,

THE HOLY SPIRIT IN EZEKIEL

235

and proclaiming to His people that He was their cov-
enant King.

What a majestic vision of the glory of God, of the
Son of Man, and of the Holy Spirit, through whom He
works out His mighty plans, and whose swiftness,
strength, omnipresence and omniscience are so majesti-
cally represented in the consuming fire, the gleaming
lightning, the awful whirlwind, the cherub forms, the
manifold wings, the living wheels full of eyes around
their whole circumference, the crystal firmament, the
sapphire throne, the Son of man ; above it all, the rain-
bow of covenant promise, and the Holy Spirit working
out all the purposes of God's infinite love and grace!

Such was the vision with which Ezekiel's ministry
began. Such was the mighty One whose messenger he
was called to be. Soon after, the personal call came,
God commanded him to take the roll containing his
message and eat it ; and, as he did so, it became as honey
in his mouth and in his bowels. Then the vision re-
turned once more, and the glory again appeared before
his sight, and God sent him forth to repeat the message,
and to be a watchman unto His people, and to warn
them from Him; and he went forth to his lifework,
armed with the consciousness of that glorious presence,
in view of which the power and the persecutions of
his enemies were as naught.

To us, beloved, may not come the majestic vision
which Ezekiel saw; but faith can' clothe the gentle
Presence that whispers to our hearts with all the majesty
of those ancient garments. We can know that He who
speaks to us so gently and v;orks so patiently in our
lives is the same majestic Presence that filled the heav-
ens with His glory, whose mighty wheels of providence
sweep with the celerity of the lightning around the vast
circumference of the universe.

The vision has passed away, but the glory still remains.
Though that glory is veiled today, yet it is none the

ifs^

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POWER FROM ON HIGH

less real; and some day we shall behold it, too, as
Ezekiel saw it of old by the river Chebar.

THE DEPARTING VISION.

This glorious vision which Ezekiel saw was yet in
the midst of Israel. It was the Presence which had led
them through all their history. It was the same God
who had marched before them and hovered above them
in the pillar of cloud and flame, dividing the Red Sea
and the Jordan, conquering the Canaanites, establishing
the throne of David, exalting Solomon to all his glory,
and manifesting Himself in the miracles of Elijah and
Elisha, and in the wonders of divine love and power
through all the centuries of Israel's history. Now,
however, the incorrigible sins of the nation had worn
out His patience and almost grieved Him away.

That glorious Presence was about to leave the tempk*.
that He had loved. Judah was ready to fall, desolate
and forsaken, into the hands of her cruel fOe.

There is nothing more tender and sublime than the
vision of this departing glory. Like a mother bird, it
seems to hover, unwilling to depart, lingering with flut-
tering wing above the cherubim and above the threshold
of the house, and last upon the brow of Olivet, before
it can bear to take its long, sad flight, and leave their
house unto them desolate.

In the third verse of the ninth chapter, we see it
beginning to depart, "The glory of the God of Israel
was gone up from the chenib, whereupon he was. to the
threshold of the house." Again, in the fourth vorse
of the tenth chapter it would seem that He had gone
back and once more poised His wings and attempted the
same flight. "The glory of the Lord went up from the
cherub, and stood over the threshold of the house ; and
the house was filled with the cloud, and the court was

THE HOLY SPIRIT IN EZEKIEL

237

was

full of the brightness of the Lord's glory. And the
sound of the cherubim's wings was heard, as the voice
of the Almighty God when He speaketh."

Then again, in the eighteenth verse of the tenth chap-
ter we see His flight begun. "Then the glory of the
Lord departed from off the threshold of the house, and
sood over the cherubims, and the cherubims lifted up
their wings, and mounted up from the earth in my sight ;
when they went out, the wheels also were beside them ; and
every one stood at the door of the east gate of the Lord 's
hou>se. ' '

But not yet did the vision take its final flight, for,
in the twenty-second verse of the eleventh chapter, we
see the glory lingering yet on Mount Olivet. ''Then
did the cherubims lift up their wings, and the wheels
beside them; and the glory of the God of Israel was
over them above. And the glory of the Lord went up
from the midst of the city, and stood upon the moun-
tian which is on the east side of the city."

Still God's patience waited and pleaded, and His
judgment sought to awaken and change their stubborn
hearts of sin; but all in vain. At length we hear the
mournful conclusion, "Son of man, say unto her. Thou
art the land that is not cleansed, nor rained upon in
the day of indignation. . . . Her priests have violated

my law, and profaned mine holy things Her

princes in the midst thereof are like wolves ravening
the prey, to shed blood, and to destroy souls, and to get
dishonest gain. And her prophets have daubed them
with untempered mortar, seeing vanity, and divining
lies unto them, saying, Thus saith the Lord, when the
Lord hath not spoken. The people of the land have
used oppression, and exercised robbery, and have vexed
the poor and needy. . . . And I sought for a man among
them, that should make up the hedge, and stand in the
gap before me for the land, that I should not destroy
it; but T found none. Therefore, have T poured out

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I if

mine indignation upon them; I have consumed them
with the fire of my wrath : their own way have I recom-
pensed upon their heads."

It was like that later vision, when the same Son of
man stood upon the same Olivet, looking down upon the
city that had refused His warnings and miracle of love,
and said: **How often would I have gathered thy
children together, as a hen doth gather her brood under
her wings, and ye would not. Behold, your house is
left unto you desolate: ... ye shall not see me, until
the time cometh when ye shall say. Blessed is He that
Cometh in the name of the Lord."

So the Spirit left them, and the next chapter begins
the vision of judgment and destruction. Beloved, the
same story has often been re-enacted. It w^as re-enacted
when Jesus left the temple. The Roman legions fol-
lowed,, and Jerusalem fell again. It was re-enacted
when the Church of the Holy Apostles became corrupt
and sank to mediaeval darkness because the Holy Spirit
was grieved away.

The same calamity is threatening the Church again.
The blessed Spirit is being grieved from her sanctuary
and from her altars by compromises with worldliness
and sin, and He is seeking a home in humble hearts
and lowly missions and little companies of those who
will obey Him and fully trust Him. It may be enacted
in your life ; for you, too, can vex the Holy Ghost and
grieve Him away. The temple of your heart may be
left desolate and forsaken, and your life become ex-
posed to the judgments of God and the calamities of
sorrow.

Many a sad life and many a sad death is but the
story of Israel repeated once more. Oh, let us not
grieve Him ! Oh, let us not permit Him to pass away !
Oh, let us cherish Him, honor Him, obey Him, make
our heart His home, and Him our Holy Guest!

THE HOLY SPIRIT IN EZEKIEL

239

ex-
1 of

in.

THE PROMISE OF THE SPIRIT 's RETURN.

"Then will I sprinkle clean water upon you, and
ye shall be clean ; from all your filthiness and all your
idols will I cleanse you. A new heart also will I give
you, and a new spirit will I put within you; and
I will take away the stony heart out of your flesh,
and I will give you an heart of flesh. And I will put
my spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my
statutes, and ye shall keep my judgments, and do
them. And ye shall dwell in the land that I gave to
your fathers; and ye shall bo my people, and I will
be your God. I also will save you from all your un-
cleannesses; and I will call for the corn, and will in-
crease it, and lay no famine upon you. And I will
multiply the fruit of the tree, and the increase of the
field, that ye shall receive no more reproach of famine
among the heathen. Then shall ye remember your own
evil ways, and your doings that were not good, and
shall loathe yourselves in. your owti sight, for your
iniquities, and for your abominations. Not for your
sakes do I this, saith the Lord God, be it known unto
you: be ashamed and confounded for your own ways,

house of Israel. Thus saith the Lord God, In the day
that I shall have cleansed you from all your iniquities,

1 will also cause you to dwell in the cities, and the
wastes shall be builded. And the desolate land shall be
tilled, whereas it lay desolate in the sight of all that
passed by. And they shall say, This land that was
desolate is become like the Garden of Eden; and the
waste and desolate and ruined cities are become fenced,
and are inhabited. Then the heathen, that are left
round about you, shall know that I the Lord build the
ruined places, and plant that that was desolate: I the
Lord have spoken it, and I will do it" (Ezk. 36:25-
36).

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Of course this promise has a primary reference to
Israel as a nation, and will yet be graciously fulfilled
in their restoration from the captivity of ages and in
the outpouring of the Holy Spirit upon the nation;
but it has also a distinct reference to the New T<^stam('nt
times, and shines with the light of the Gospel of full
and free salvation through the Lord Jesus Christ.

There are three v<3ry distinct stages in the promised
blessing. The first includes forgiveness and conver-
sion ; that is the sprinkling of the clean water upon
them, the forgiveness of their sins, and the taking away
of the hard and stony heart, and the giving of the
heart of flesh, the work of justification and regeneration.

There is no need to say more respecting these earlier
verses. The teaching is as simple and clear as the
third chapter of the Gospel of John or the epistles of
St. Paul. But there is a second stage of blessing which
is distinct and important. It is the indwelling of the
Holy Spirit and the incoming of His cleansing and
sanctifying power in the heart of the believer.

''I will put my Spirit within you. and cause you to
walk in my statutes, and ye shall keep my judgments,
and do them.'* This is something different from the
new spirit and the new heart. It is God Himself com-
ing to dwell in the new spirit by His Holy Spirit, and
bringing a constraining and efficient power that causes
the soul to walk in holiness and enables him to keej)
His commandments.

Could we ])ut on canvas the picture it would be some-
thing like this ; first, we would paint the natural heart
black and sinful ; then, second, in the centre of this
black heart we would place a little white heart, denoting
the regenerated spirit, the new heart that comes at
conversion, but which is still in the midst of darkness
and sin, and has to maintain a painful and often un-
equal struggle with the surrounding and encompassing
evil.

THE HOLY SPIRIT IN EZEKIEL

241

In the third place, we would paint a ray of heavenly
light, or a living coal of celestial lire, which we would
put in the centre of this new heart; and from it the
effulgent rays of life and light would reach out into
all the darkness round about, filling the new heart and
the old, until the darkness and sin are (crowded out,
and God Himself possesses the whole being, enabled
it to think and feel, to trust and love, to obey and
persevere, even as Christ Himself would walk.

This is the Spirit that sanctifies; this is the cleans-
ing power that our poor w(^ak lieart needs. This
is the efficient strength which the Holy Ghost wants
to give to every heart that will surrender fully to His
power and receive Him in His all-sufficiency. Beloved,
have we done so? Have we received not only the new
Spirit but the divine Spirit, nnd learned to know the
mystery which is *' Christ in you, the hope of glory"?

There is still another stage in the promised blessing
to be found in the outworking of this indwelling Spirit
and the influence of the sanctified and victorious life
upon our circumstances and external life. **Ye shall
dwell in the land that I gave to your fathers." We
become established, and get settled in (lod's will and
blessing. "I will call for the corn, and will increase
it and lay no famine upon you." We become nourished,
joyful, happy Christians, and every one beholds in us
the satisfied and benignant rest and glory of a victori-
ous life.

"I will multiply the fruit of the tree and the in-
crease of the field." Our work is blessed, our fruit
is abundant, and our blessing extends even to **the
heathen." This is contemporaneous with our spiritual
blessing. *'In the day that I shall have cleansed you
from all your iniquities, I will also cause yf»u to dwell
in the cities, and the wastes shall be builded." The
barren wastes of life shall blossom as the rose. The
things that have been sad and fruitless will become

242

POWER FROM ON HIGH

1 i

h 1

blessed and beautiful. The years that have been lost
will be restored, and all wa do shall prosper.

Nay, He says, "The dosolate land shall be tilled, . . .
and they shall say, This land that was desolate is be-
come like the Garden of Eden; and the waste and
desolate and ruined cities are become fenced and are
inhabited. Then the heathen that are left round about"
it shall know that God has done it.

Of course, this is yet to be fulfilled to Israel as a
people. Already we begin to see the foretokening of
that Millennial spring that is opening for the long
down-trodden land and people. Bnt it has a beautiful
meaning to each individual Christian life. For God
is "able to do for us exceeding abundantly above all
that we ask or think, according to the power that
worketh in us."

The soul that receives the Holy Spirit in all His
fullness will find the providence of God keeping pace
with His inward blessing, and the grace that we have
experienced in our heart will reflect itself in all our
outward life. The King that reigns supreme upon the
throne of the heart will sway His sceptre around the
whole circle of our life, and bring into subjection every-
thing that hurts or hinders us.

He will heal our bodies ; He will answer our prayers ;
He will bless our homes; He will prosper our business;
He will remove our difficulties; He will open our way;
He will "cause the desert to rejoice and blossom as
the rose," and "instead of the thorn shall come up
the fir tree, and instead of the brier, shall come up
the myrtle tree: and it shall be to the Lord for a
name, for an everlasting sign that shall not be cut off."

The blessings of God's providence are inseparably
connected with the indwelling of His Spirit and the
experience of His sanctifying grace. It is only to those
**who love God and are the called according to His
purpose" that "all things work together for good.

»>

THE HOLY SPIRIT IN EZEKIEL

24n

They know that they work together for good. It is
not a struggle to bt3lieve it. It is not a desperate effort,
to count it. When we walk with Tlim in holy trust
and obedience, th(? inmost consciousness of our spiritual
being bears witness to the promise, and we know without
doubt or fear that all things are ours, for we are Christ's
and Christ is God's.

ClIAPTKH XXI.

THE SPIRIT OF THE KKSURKl!:CTION.

Ezekiel 37 : 8.

"For the law of the Spirit of life in Clirist Josus hath made
me free from the law of sin and death." — Horn. 8: L'.

"But if the Spirit of him that raised up Jesus from the dead
dwell in you, he that hath raised up Christ from the dead shall
also quicken your mortal bodies by his Spirit that dwelleth in
you." — Rom. 8: 11.

THE thirty-seventh chapter of Ezekiel is one of the
most remarkable exhibitions of the work of the
Holy Spirit in the Old Testment, because it in-
troduces with great clearness and definiteness the doc-
trine of the ret-' action.

This truth, I . ^d all others, is characteristic of the
system of redemption. It might be called the patent
sign of the Gospel. Far more than the Cross, the sym-
bol of baptism expresses the fimdamental idea of the
Christian religion; for, while the Cross speaks only
of death, baptism tells also of resurrection and life.

This truth, foreshadowed in many Old Testnmcnt pas-
sages, and doubtless underlying the teaching of ull the
prophets, is brought out here with great distinctness.
and makes the passage one of the marked ones of Old
Testament revelation.

THE VALLEY OF DRY BONIS.

First, we have the vision in the valley of dry bones.
This is not a vision of the resurrection proper, but
rather of a special resurrection. The prophet is taken
in the spirit into the valley of dry bones. It is the
scene of some ancient battle, where he beholds around

244

THE aPTTUT OF THE RESURRECTION

24.T

him the skeletons of the rallen army, and. l<>! iIh'v are
very many, an<i, lo! tliey are very dry.

A generation has passed sinee th«\v IVll. The Uesh
ha« loug ago withered from the vskeletims, and the bones
lie bleached and withered under the open nun. Sud-
denly the question comes to him, "Can these bones
live?" And his wise answer is "Lord Thou knowest."
Then there comes o him ; first, the command to prophesy
unto the bones, proclaiming to them the Word of the
Lord, and announcing to them that they shall live.
And, lo! there comes a noise and a shaking; and bone
cleaves to his bone, and they assume the forms of men ;
but still there is no breath in them.

Then a second time the Word of the Lord comes to
him, commanding him to prophesy unto the breath of
life to come from the four winds and breathe upon
these slain that they may live; and, lo! as he prophesies
and commands, the spirit of life to come into these life-
less forms, there is a quivering moment, as the life
passes into every frame, and they spring to their feet
and stand before him a mass of living men, an ex-
ceeding great army.

THE APPLICATION OF THIS TO ISRAEL AS A NATION

God does not leave the prophet in doubt as to the mean-
ing of the vision. Its first and immediate application is
to his people. They were mourning over their national
ruin and saying, "Our bones are dried, and our hope
is lost; we are cut off for our parts." But he tells
them that the voice of God is yet to come to them;
that the power of His Spirit is yet to breathe upon
them; that even shattered and hopeless Israel shall
revive; and that the nation shall spring to life once
more and return to their own land to resume their
place in God's great plan, while their divisions and
disunions shall cease forever, and God shall dwell among

246

POWER FROM ON HIGH

them and restore His ancient sanctuary and renew His
covenant with them forevermore.

There could scarcely be a more appropriate figure
of Israel's depressed condition than the vision of the
dry bones. For eighteen centuries their hope has been
dead in a far more terrible sense than was true even
under the Babylonian captivity. It is not a century
ago since the children of Israel were disfranchised out-
casts of every nation. Even in Great Britain itself the
voice of the pulpit and of the whole Christian press was
raised against the first proposal to give the right of
franchise to Hebrew citizens and to allow the children
of Abraham a place and a name among the Gentiles.

For centuries they have been truly "outcasts of earth
and reprobates of heaven," and the idea of their reotora-
tion to their own land, and to their ancient blessing,
mig-ht well be deemed the most hopeless prospect that
language could express. But, lo! already the vision of
the prophet begins to be fulfilled. The Word of God
respecting Israel has been recovered and reissued. God 's
people have begun to understand His purpose conce /ning
Israel and have begun to preach the Gospel, even to the
unbelieving sons of Abraham, and to proclaim to them,
like the ancient prophet, the word of hope and promise,
and to call them from their graves to their true
Messiah and their only hope. And, lo ! already there is
a noise and a shaking; and bone is beginning to come
to his bone, and a national revival of Judaism is one of
the most marked signs of the day.

A spirit of reunion and reorganization is everywhere
abroad among them. National societies are being formed.
The rich and the poor are coming together. Great
leaders of the nation are lending their financial strength
to the cause of the helpless and the outcast. While as
yet it is not a spiritual movement, but merely a reorgani-
zation of national life and hope, it is just what the
prophet predicted would 5f st come to pass ; iJid he must

THE SPIKIT OF THE RESURRECTION

247

be blind iuO'^ed, who does not see the ancient vision
being fulfilled today among the children of Israel in
every nation under heaven.

But there is a deeper spiritual movement. The Holy
Ghost is also beginning His saving work. The deeper
heart of the nation is beginning to be touched; and
some of her sons are recognizing their long rejected
Messiah, and beginning to accept Him as their Saviour
and their King.

These are but precursors of that latter rain which is
to fall, when the Spirit of grace and of supplication
shall be poured out upon the house of David and the
inhabitants of Jerusalem, and they shall look upon Him
whom they pierced and shall mourn for Him as one
that mourneth for an only son. And then shall a foun-
tian be opened for the house of David and the inhabit-
ants of Jerusalem, for sin and uncleanness, and all the
blessed promises for Israel shall receive their spiritual
fulfillment.

Then shall Israel and Judah be united. Then shall
the severances of ages be forever healed. Then shall
they be cleansed from their defilements and uncleanness
and idolatries, to sin no more. Then shall they take
the the place of God 's chosen people ; and, as the Queen
of nations and the special witnesses of Jesus, the sons
of Abraham shall fulfill their high calling, and their
restoration shall be complete.

Then shall God'.a sanctuary be amjong them once
more. Neither shall He hide His face from them any
more, but they shall dwell forever in His covenant ^^ve,
the Light of the world, and the Leader of the nations.

THE APPLICATION OF THE VISION TO THE SPIRITUAL LIFE
OP THE SOUL AND THE CHURCH.

There is something worse than the death of a nation,
something worse than the death of the body. It is the

248

POWER FROM ON HIGH

spiritual dcatli of tlio.so who lie sunk in trespasses and
sins. The condition of human souls is like iho bones in
the valley of vision, very many and very dry. There
is no human probability of restoration or life. But
there is hope in God and in resurrection life.

There is the same twofold agency which we see in
the nation. First is the Word of God. This is the
divine instrument in the conversion of souls and the
quickening of the spiritually dead. ** Being born again
not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible, by the
Word of God, which livetb and abideth forever."

Although souls are lost and dead, God commands us
to proclaim to them the Word of God, and to tell them
that He has sent them life, and is waiting to quicken
them and bring them out of their graves.

This very word which they are unable to understand
or feel or believe is the power through which they are
to be awakened and brought to life. There is a strange
potency in the Gospel to awaken the human conscience
and to quicken the human spirit by the power of the
Holy Ghost.

But the Word of God alone can bring about only
an outward reformation like the baptism of John, which
changed the lives of men and the forms and habits
of their conversation; but it cannot put breath in
them. And so the first effect is the abandonment of
sin, the reformation of life, the assuming of the forms
of righteousness, but there is no breath in them. The
great agent in the real and vital transfiguration is the
Spirit of the Living God, **the breath of life from the
four winds of heaven."

There is something very significant about the way in
which the prophet was commanded to address the Spirit.
It was not the language of entreaty, but of command.
Just as he was commanded to prophesy to the dry bones
and to bid them live, so he is commanded to prophesy

THE SPIRIT OP THE RESURRECTION

249

only

which

labits

:h in

nt of

orms

The,

is the

m the

pirit.
mand.
bones
phesy

unto the Holy Ghost and to bid the Spirit come and
quicken those lifeless stones.

Is there not for us the significant suggestion and a
solemn lesson that we are to speak the Gospel to men
in the authority of God, and with the expectation of its
power, and that we are to claim the Holy Ghost to
accompany the words and to give efficacy to our testi-
mony and work with the same authority? That we
are not only to ask Him and invoke Him, but to com-
mand Him and to use K ;i, and fully to expect His
almighty efficiency to acccivnlish the work for which
He sent us?

Just as the laws of electricity, when properly under-
stood, place at our command the forces of electricity,
so, when we yield to the laws of the Spirit's operation,
we may command the Spirit's operation and fully count
upon His ahnighty working and infinite power. Is not
this the real meaning of faith and the real province of
prayer in the ministry of the Gospel? Is not this the
secret of many of our fni lures? Do we command Him
as we migl""* ? Do we use these infinite forces whicli God
has placed at our service for the accomplishment of the
work for which H( has sent us?

The effect of the; Holy Spirit's work is not a mere
reformation, but a transformaTJon. The forms of life
are quickened into real life, and tl men spring to their
feet and stand before him, "an exceeding great army.'*
They do not now need to i»(» carried. They are them-
selves self-supporting; nay. thev become an army of
mighty power, and go forth " aggressive conflict to
fight against the enemies of ( a and to impart to others
the blessing which they themselves have received.

This mighty Holy Spirit is recognized as present in
the world. The four winds indicate the four quarters
of the earth, and they suggest the omnipresence and
the ever-presence of that blessed Spirit who is with the

ii<

250

POWER FROM ON HIGH

Church, through the Christian dispensation, as the en-
(lueraent of power for every commission on which the
iMaster has sent lier. Shall we claim our high and
divine resources? Shall we utilize the intinile and all-
sufficient supplies "hich our Master has committed to
us? And shall we, with a simpler, bolder confidence,
give forth the authoritative Worr', and call down the
Almighty Spirit to quicken the dry bones of a lifeless
Church and to awaken the spiritually dead, that Christ
may give them life?

IV.

THE FUTURE RESURRECTION.

While this passage is not a literal vision of the re-
surrection from the dead, at the same time it assumes
it and takes it for granted. That glorious doctrine
is more fully unfolded and differentiated in the teachv
ings of the New Testament. We see it first in its great
pledge and first fruit, the resurrection of the Lord Jesus
Christ. We see it next in the resurrection of His peo-
ple at His coming, and we see the vision of it in its
final and glorious age at the consummation of all faith.

In every instance it will be, in some measure, at
least, the work of the Holy Spirit. He who is working
out the spiritual resurrection now, will accomplish it
at the glorious appearing of our Lord, and will change
the body of our humiliation, that it may be fashioned
like unto the body of His glory, according to the work-
ing whereby He is able to subdue all things unto Him-
self.

We shaU not dwell on this glorious doctrine now.
It will be much more fully unfolded in later Scriptures.
It is cur b' ^ssed hope, and already we have its divine
pattern and pledge in the first begotten from the dead,
the glorious Prince of Life, the Lord Jesus Christ.

THE 8P11UT OF THE KESUKllECTlOxN

251

the en-

ich the
;h and
ud all-
ttcd to
fidence,
wu the
lifeh^ss
; Christ

the re-
assumes
doctrine
e teachv
ts great
rd Jesus
[lis peo-
t in its
11 faith.

sure, at
working
plish it
change
ishioned
le work-
to Him-

le now.
'iptures.
s divine

e dead,

rist.

THE APPLICATION OP THE VISION TO THE WHOLE REALM
OP FAITH AND SPIRITUAL POWER.

There is a greater truth presented than even the literal
resurrection. The thought lying back of the prophet's
vision, and the profound truth which it throws forward
upon the prospective of faith is that the resurrection is
the pattern and the guarantee of all that God is able
and willing to do in response to the faith of His peo-
ple.

Expressed in a single sentence, the thought is that
we have a resurrection God, and we ought to have a
resurrection faith. Is not this the sublime thought which
the Apostle Paul has presented in the magnificent climax
of the first chapter of the Epistle to the Ephesians,
where he prays that the **eyes of your imderstanding
being enlighten; that ye may know what is the hope
of his calling and what the riches of the glory of His
inheritance in the saints, and what is the exceeding
greatness of his power to usward who believe!"

Now comes the measure and standard of that power,
** According to the working of his mighty power, which
he wrought in Christ, when he raised him from the
dead, and set him at his own right hand in the heav-
enly places, far above all principality, and y^ower, and
might, and dominion, and every name that is named,
not only in this world, but also in that which is to
come." Henceforth, the standard of faith and the
measure of God's working for His people is the resur-
rection of the Lord Jesus Christ.

When any trj^ng situation presents itself, when any
hard question is asked, and unbelief seems to say, "Can
these bones live?" we have the simple answer, "It is
Christ that died, yea rather, that is risen again, who
is even at the right hand of God.'

252

POWER FROM ON HIGH

There are things that are darker than the grave and
sadder than death. There are spiritual situations ; there
are family troubles; there are business difficulties;
there are catastrophes and calamities; there are needs
and trials compared with which the tears of bereave-
ment are sweet, and the darkness of the sepulchre is
bright indeed. But, thank God, we can meet these
difficulties, these trials, these situations, these seeming
impossibilities, and say, "Our trust is not in ourselves,
but in God, who raiseth the dead. Who delivered us
from so great a death, who doth deliver, in whom we
trust that He will yet deliver us. " This is our hope for the
hour of fierce temptation, for the time of sorrow and trial,
for the contiict with sickness and pain, for the desperate
campaign with the powers of the darkness as we go forth
to save men and evangelize the world and bring the
coming of our Lord.

All these are situations too hard for us ; but, thank
God, we can meet them every one with the God of the
resurrection, with the hope of the resurrection, with
the faith of the resurrection, with the life of the resur-
rection, with the pledge of the resurrection, and say,
* ' Yes, it is all true. With men it is impossible — but
God — who raiseth the dead."

Break from your fears, ye saints, and tell
How high your great Deliverer reigns;

Sing how Ho spoiled the hosts of hell,
And led the monster Death in chains.

Say, "Live forever, Wondrous King,
Born to redeem and strong to save ; ' '

Then ask the Monster, "Where's thy sting,
And Where's thy victory, boasting gravel"

CHAPTER XXII.
THE RIVER OF BLESSING.

"Afterward lie brought me again unto the door of the house;
and, behold, waters issued out from under the threshold of the
house ea.stward : for the forefront of the house stood toward
the cast, and the waters came down from under, from tlie right
side of the house, at the south side of the altar.

"Then brouglit he me out of the way of the gate northward,
and led me about the way without unto the outer gate by the
way that looketh eastward; and, behold, there ran out the
waters on the right side.

"And when the man that had the line in his hand went forth
eastward, he measured a thousand cubits, aud He brought me
through the waters; the waters were to the ankles.

• ' Again he measured a thousand, and brought me through
the waters; tho waters were to the knees. Again he measured
a thousand, and brought me through; the Avaters were to the
loins.

"Afterward he measured a thousand; and it was a river that
I could not pass over: for the waters were risen, waters to swim
in, a river that could not be passed over.

"And he said unto me, Son of man, hast thou seen this?
Then he brought me, and caused me to return to the brink of the
river.

"Now when I had returned, behold, at the bank of the river
"were very many trees on the one side and on the other.

"Then said he unto me. These waters issue out toward the
east con.try, and go down into the desert, and go into the sea:
whicii being brought forth into the sea, the waters shall be
healed.

"And it shall come to pass, that every thing that liveth,
A\hich moveth, whithersoever the rivers shall come, shall live:
and there shall be a very great multitude of fish, because Iheac
waters shall come thither: for they shall be healed; and every
thing shall live whither the river cometh.

"And it shall come to pass, that the fishers shall stand upon
it from En-gedi even unto En-eglaim: they shall be a place to
spread forth nets; their fish shall be according to their kinds as
the fish of the great sea, exceeding many.

"But the miry places thereof and the marshes thereof shall
not be healed ; they shall be given to salt.

253

254

POWElt FKOiVr ON UIGII

'*And by the river upon the bank thereof, on this side and on
that side, shall grow all trees for meat, whose leaf shall not fade,
neither shall the fruit thereof be consumed: it shall bring forth
new fruit according to his months, because their waters they
issued out of the sanctuary; and the fruit thereof shall be for
meat, and the leaf thereof for medicine." — Ezekiel 47: 1-12.

THIS magnificent prophetic vision is doubtless a
picture of the literal restoration of Israel's temple
and Israel's race in the future days of millennial
promise. Conceding this, it is quite legitimate for us
to apply it also to the present working of the Holy
Spirit in the hearts of His people, and in the midst
of His Church, which is the temple of the living God.

Our Lord Jesus has Himself identified the living
water in His beautiful words in the seventh chapcer
of the Gospel of John. There, amid the sacred solemni-
ties of that ancient temple and the Feast of Tabernacles,
He applied to Himself the beautiful figure of the water
that was being poured out before their eyes, and cried
and said, **If any man thirst, let him come unto me,
and drink. He that believeth on me, as the Scripture
hath said, out of His inmost being shall flow rivers of
living water. (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)."

This is an exact paraphravse of the meaning of the
vision of Ezekiel. It represents the Holy Spirit as a
river of water flowing from the inmost being of a conse-
crted heart, and becoming rivers of blessing to others.

There is something about the entire imagery of this
picture so oriental, so sublime, so rich, that, like a beauti-
ful flower, we cannot analyze it too much without de-
stroying some of its symmetry and sweetness. It s[)eak.s
of something a.s glorious as the rich symbolism of the
picture.

It speaks of the crystal stream and the deepening,

' tho

THE RIVER OF BLESSING

255

;;

broadening? rivers flowing through desert lands, and
transform inj^ .hoin into gardens of luxuriant beauty and
verdure. It speaks of perennial fruits and leaves of
healing and even the Dead Sea itself reclaimed by its
healing waters, until it becomes a place of fishermen
who stand upon its shores from end to end gathering
their shoals of fishes. Finally, the Temple itself becomes
the abode of God, and is named "Jehovah Shammah,'*
the Lord is there.

There is something about such figures that cannot be
analyzed. There is a freedom, a glow, a vague but real
splendor, a something which is unutterable and full of
glory, which truly describes a certain elevated phrase
of our spiritual experience. There are things in our
Christian life which, if you translate into coarse speech,
become like the petals of a dissected flower, withered
and dead; but let them alone, and they are full of life
and joy. You cannot translate them, you cannot always
understand them. It is the voice of the Spirit within
you crying with unutterable groanings or unutterable
joy. It is as full as the magnificent river, as pure as
the crystal water, as fresh as the morning dew, as healing
as the leaves of the tree of life, and as full of power
and blessing as that river that made everything live
where it came.

Our hymnology is not exaggerated when we sing:

"I am dwelling on the mountain,

Where the golden sunlight gleams,
O'er a land whose fadeless beauty

Far exceeds my fondest dreams.
Where the air is pure, ethereal.

Laden with breath of flowers.
They are blooming on the mountain,

'Neath the amaranthine bowers."

But let us, notwithstanding, interpret as much as we
may the rich and suggestive imagery of the picture.
The first thing that strikes a thoughtful reader is the

256

POWER FROM ON HiaH

direction of this river. We know it represents the Holy
Spirit, the blessed Person whose ministry is to cleanse,
satisfy, comfort, help, and heal the disciples of Christ.
But why is it flowing out and not in? Are we not
always trying to get this river to run into us? Are we
not always seeking a blessing and a baptism? But here
the sanctuary seems to have only one business, to give
out the water; and this river only one thing to do, to
go forth on its ministry of unselfish mercy. That is
the true life of the Holy Ghost. The true purpose of
the Spirit in coming to us is to make us workers to-
gether with God, whose one business is ever loving, ever
blessing, ever giving.

It was not after this river became deep and full that
it began to flow out; but from the first little trickling
drop it was at the same business. The Temple might
have said, when the first two or three droplets began
to ooze from beneath the threshold, **I can never spare
you; you must remain in my n'servoir. " But no; it
simply sent them forth, and away they went on their
ministry of love; and so on to the end it was ever
flowing, and, when it reached the Dead Sea, its living
power was so great that the sea became transformed into
life and freshness.

The real secret of the Dead Sea was that it had no
outlet; it was just a great reservoir through the ages.
But as it begins to overflow, it lives. Beloved, this is
the secret of spiritual weakness and disappointment.
You want a blessing for yourself. Begin to live for
God and others, and He will give it back tenfold to
you again.

The second thing we learn about this river is that
it flows from a sanctuary. What is a sanctuarj'^ '? It is
a sacred, separated, holy, and divine place. First, it
must be separated from sinful and common uses. Sec-
ondly, it must be dedicated to God and belong exclusive-
ly to Him. Thirdly, it must be occupied by God and be

THE lU VKK OF BLESSING

257

that
It is
rst, it
Sec-
■lusive-
nd be

filled with II im as its Possessor, its Guest, and the Ob-
ject of its worship.

Ill this sense the truly consecrated believer is God's
sanctuary when he separates himself from all evil unto
God, dedicates himself to be the property of the Most
Holy, and receives the Holy Ghost to dwell in him, and
to ivprcscnt the Trinity .as the occupant and owner of
his heart and life. This is the sanctuary. This is
holiness. This is the true Christian life, and from such
a soul as this the river will always flow.

But you cannot be a blessing to others beyond your
personal experience. You cannot give what you have
not got. You cannot bring pure water out of an un-
clean fountain. Why are we not greater blessings?
Because our hearts ai'e not sanctuaries. We try to do
a little for God and then find the whole hindered by a
thousand forbidden uses; and God will have no partner-
ship with evil, and will accept no service which is mixed
or compromised.

Beloved, let us consecrate ourselves. Let Him sanctify
us. fill us, and then flow from us in all the fullness of
the Holy Ghost.

The third thing about this river is that it flowed
from under the threshold of the sanctuary. It did not
come from the roof, or from some hill behind it, or
from the fountain in the holy court; but it came from
the lowest place, from under the stairs, where pooph^
trod as they passed by. And so the Holy Ghost comes
from the lowly heart, consecrates the humble spirit,
uses the man who is most dead and who has become
so lost to himself and all his graces that God can have
all the glory, and can fill him without measure.

The fourth thing about the river is its direction.
It is flowing toward the east. It is the river of the
morning, not the river of the night. It does not repre-
sent the old life, whose sun is going down; but it
represents the new life which has risen with the resur-

258

POWER FROM ON HIGH

rection of Christ, and is looking out into the everlast-
ing morning. It is a new and resurrection life, and it
Hows ever toward the rising sun.

This river begins in a few little trickling drops. It is
scarcely a rivulet for the first half mile. It is so small
that it just oozes from under the threshold, a few drops
of moisture, but it becomes a mighty stream before it
reaches the sea. So the Holy Ghost loves to begin in
"the day of small things." He loves to speak to us
in "the still, small voice," to show us that we are not
very far off. If He shouted in our ear, it would be
an intimation that He was at a great distance or that
we were very stupid. There is no sweeter expression
of confidence than a whispered secret. The blessed Holy
Ghost comes to us with the faintest touches of His
breath ; and if we do not recognize Him in these small
beginnings, we shall not see their growth and develop-
ment, and we shall wonder all our days why we did
not get the blessing. We are looking for wind and rain,
for a cyclone of power, for electric storms, when the
air is full of divine electric fire. We have only to
make the connection, to take it as we need it, and to
turn it on to all the machinery of our life.

Beloved, if you will recognize the first touches of
God, the faintest whispers of His answering voice, the
little finger of His touch, behind which stands all His
omnipotence, He will prove to you that it is not by
might nor by power, but by the Spirit of the Lord of
Hosts.

The first stage of the river's course was about half
a mile from the source. There the prophet was halted
by his attendant and caused to pass over the little
brook, and, lo! it had increased until it was "water to
the ankles." The Hebrew word is much more expres-
sive. It means literally water to the soles of the feet.
There was very little water there, perhaps not quarter
of an inch deep, and if the prophet had despised it,

THE RIVER OF HLE8SING

or.

■

it,

he would havt' b<!ou kopi out of ali Ihc t^lor.v of tlie
vision. Hut he put his feet in the littlr wiiter that he
found. There was enough for the soU's of his feet,
and that was enough for him.

Is not this just what is said to us, "Every place the
soles of your feet shall tread upon, that have 1 given
you"?

What shall we call this putting down of our feet in
the waters? Is it, perhaps, the act of stepping out on
God's Spirit, o€ venturing on Him, of standing on Ilis
promises, of coimting upon Ilim, of putting our weight
upon Him. of trusting Him for everything, and public-
ly recognizing and confessing Him as our life and
strength? Or does it mean obedience? Do the feet
represent the steppings of duty? Is this not also one
of the earliest stages of the Spirit's work? lie comes to
teach us faith and obedience, and He always requires
us to do something very early in our spiritual career,
something that often costs sacrifice, something that
proves the sincerity of our motive, something that means
everything to us; but as we obey Him and go on, we
find Him coming to us in fuller measure, and giving us
deeper revelations and leading us on to a larger full-
ness.

Beloved, shall we take both steps, and put our feet
in the flood, and walk in the Spirit, and accept boldly
and lovingly all the good and acceptable and perfect
will of God?

"Waters to the kness." This is the ministry of
prayer in the Spirit that follows a life of obedience and
faithfulness to God. He will take us into the secret
place of the Most High, and will permit us to bear the
burdens of others and to share with Him the priesthood
which He ever fulfills before the throne. This is more
than our words and works. This is a place of real
power, but it must be baptized in the Spirit or it will
be fruitless and vain.

260

POWER PROM ON HIGH

Next, W(' hyve "tlir waters to the loins."' This is
the girding of power, the baptism of the Spirit for
service. The girding of the loins is the symbol of serv-
ice and strength. God gives power to His servants to
speak in His name with effectiveness and to accomplish
the glorious results for which He has commissioned them.
Without this power we have no business to attempt any
service for God. Jesus did not begin His ministry imtil
he received the baptism of the Holy Ghost, and it is
presumption for us to dare to do so.

Next, we have the waters overhead, "a river to swim
in." The waters had grow^n so deep now that the
prophet is himself powerless even to cross them. His
own movements are impossi])le, and all he can do is to
lie upon the bosom of the current and let it carry him.

This speaks of a time where we come to the end of
our own effort and fall into the fullness of God. Hence-
forth our work is God working in us, and we are just
like the swimmer on the bosom of the river carried by the
tide, but far stronger than if he were fording it, for he
has all the strength of the river on his side. Of course,
there had to be a surrender of his own work.

There must, of course, be a surrender t)f our own life
before we can fall into the strength of God. Then shall
we inherit all the fullness of the divine omnipotence;
so far as we are in union with God's help, we shall have
God's powor. This power is spontaneous. "Without
a struggle, it springs from a source beyond ourselves,
and it flows like the ever changing river.

Next, we notice the fruits upon the bank of this glo-
rious river. There are fruits for the food of the saints,
perennial fruits, fruits of infinite variety; all the trees
of paradise are restored, renewing their harvest every
month ; each joy is a new joy, fresh as the fruits and
flowers of paradise. Even the very leaves are for heal-
ing They are not the most important part of the tree,
but they have their place; and so the Lord's healing

THE RIVER OF BLESSING

26r

through the Holy Ghost is one of the ministries o£ the
Spirit, but not His highest ministry, corresponding to
the leaf of the tree while the fruit corresponds to the
deeper spiritual life.

Then there are other fruits, especially the fruit of
precious souls. The fishermen are standing on the
shores of the Dead Sea gathering in their precious
slioals.

What a solemn picture the Dead Sea was, hard by
Jerusalem's gate, continually reminding the world of the
hell that lies near the gate of heaven! Yonder was
Zion and the Temple, but yonder also was the sea of
death and the gate of hell.

Ah, still it is ever so! While we are rejoicing in
the blessed fullness of the Spirit, hard by our gates
are the masses of wretchedness and sin, the depths of
danger and sorrow that crowd our mighty and sinful
city and our poor lost world. But as we are filled with
the power of the Spirit, we, too, shall go forth as fishers
of men to gather precious souls for Christ in the power
of the Spirit, and to turn the deserts of life into places
of blessing, so that * * everything wherever the river comes
shall live."

There is one more picture. It is in the last chapter
of the book. ''The name of the city from that day
shall be called Jehovah Shammah, the Lord is there."

This blessed river brings the Lord. This blessed Holy
Spirit brings the abiding presence of God, and He is
better than all His gifts, graces, and operations. He
is seeking a home in some of our hearts. The Holy
Spirit is knocking at the door to find entrance for the
King of Glory. If we will let Him in, He will make it
His palace and His home and dwell with us forever.
To be the dwelling place of God, is the highest and
sublimest glory of the Spirit's indwelling in the saint.

Like the ancient architect, who, when asked to build
a temple for the sun, after others had constructed their

262

POWER FROM ON HIGH

beautiful models of granite and polished marble and
resplendent gold, brought a design made of simple trans-
parent glass, and said, ''This is the true temple for the
sun, for the sun himself can dwell within it and pass
out and in without restraint."

God is wanting temples for Himself as transparent
as the colorless glass, reflecting not their own glory but
His; receiving Him without the necessity of opening
a single door, but with every channel and capacity
of ours so free, so open, and so in touch, that we live
and move and have our being in Him, and He can
find in us that congenial abode for which He searches
the mighty universe and the highest heaven in vain;
for are not we also "the fullness of Him who fiUeth
all in all"?

CHAPTER XXIII.

THE HOLY SPIRIT IN THE DAYS OP THE

RESTORATION.

"Not by might, nor by power, but by my Spirit, saith the
Lord of hosts. ' ' — Zechariah 4 : 6.

THE restoration was a period of Jewish history as
distinctly marked as the Patriarchal or the Mosaic
age, the times of the JudgeS; or the Kingdoms of
Judah and Israel. It followed the captivity, and was
intended to prepare the way for a yet greater event,
the coming of the Lord Jesus Christ.

It was one of the most marked periods of divine
working in the Old Testament, and it is full of the
manifestations of the Holy Spirit. This little message
which Zechariah gave to his people as the motto of that
Restoration, more fitly than any other word expresses
its entire history. It was a movement, not of human
power, but of the Holy Ghost.

It was unaccompanied by the miraculous signs which
attended almost every other important period of Old
Testament history; but its providential miracles and
its manifestations of the power of the Holy Spirit were
even more si<?nal and wonderful than the miracles of
the wilderness and the land of promise.

Let us trace the workings of the Holy Spirit through
this wonderful period.

The first stage might be described as the ministry of
prayer. We have an account of it in the ninth chapter
of the Book of Daniel. "In the first year of Darius,
the son of Ahasuerus, of the seed of the Medes. which
was made king over the realm of the Chaldeans; in

263
17

264

POWER FROM ON HIGH

the lirsl year oi" liis reign, 1 Daniel understood by the
books the number of the years, whereof the word of the
Lord came to Jeremiah the prophet, that he would
accomplish seventy years in the desolations of Jeru-
salem. And 1 set my face upon the Lord God, to seek
by prayer and supplications, with fasting, and sackcloth,
and ashes."

When God is about to work out any great purpose,
He usually lays it as a burden of prayer upon the
heart of some of Ilis saints whom He can fully trust.
So He called Daniel, His tried servant in Babylon,
to this high ministry of prayer.

"We cannot fail to notice the connection of Daniel's
prayer with Jeremiah's prophecy. Seventy years be-
fore, the prophet of God had announced, not only the
fact, but the duration of Judah 's captivity ; and Daniel
had been carefully studying the sacred scroll and marked
the period of his people's affliction. Now that the time
seemed ro have run its course, he was encouraged to
go to God in intercessions and plead for the fulfillment of
His promise and the accomplishment of the inspired
prophecy.

Some would have said that, because God was going
to do it, they should not be troubled about it. Why not
wait and let Him work out His own counsel? But to
true faith the promise of God is a direct incentive to
prayer.

True faith always finds its warrant in the Word of
God, and because it has pleased Him to commit Him-
self to us in the Word of Promise, we feel encouraged
to present our petition, and to believe for its answer.

Not lightly did Daniel pray, but for three full weeks
he humbled himself in fasting and prayer before hig
God. He was not praying for himself. He was not
borne down bv the weight of his own trial and care.
His prayer was wholly disinterested and altogether for
his country and his people and th« glory of his God.

IN THJS DAYS OF THE RESTORATION

265

1 by the
d of the
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3f Jeru-
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purpose,
ipon the
ly trust.
Babylon,

Daniel's
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ouraged

answer.
11 weeks
fore his
was not
id care,
ther for

is God.

This is true prayer, and this is divine partnership with
God Himself. This is the highest and holiest ministry
given to mortal, and brings us into direct fellowship
with our ascended and interceding Lord.

Not in vain did Daniel thus cry to heaven. In due
time a messenger came to him from the sky, and directly
announced to him; first, that he was greatly beloved;
and, next, that his prayer was heard and answered,
and that from the very first day that he had set himself
to ask it of God, God had recorded the answer in the
decrees of the throne, and had set in motion all the
forces of His power to accomplish it.

Indeed, this mighty angel had been three weeks on
his way, hindered by the powers of darkness, and the
principalities that rule over the governments of this
world.

What a vision this gives us of the living forces of
the world unseen, and of the power of prayer to press
through all those labyrinths of evil to reach the heart
and hand of God and the sceptre of the universe!

Dear saint of God, you may be humble and unknown,
you may have little talent and little wealth; but alone
in your closet, you can touch the confines of the world,
and set in motion forces which will influence the destiny
of nations.

Yonder in Babylon we see a lowly suppliant on his
face before God, in sackcloth and ashes and deep earnest-
ness of heart. It looks to us like a spectacle of impotence.
But wait; look a little further. Stretch your vision
to the far circumference of yonder circle, and you shall
see a mighty conqueror pausing in his career of triumph,
issuing a decree from his throne, recognizing the power
of Jehovah, and bringing all the forces of his govern-
ment to carry out the prayer of that saint of God.

You shall see a long train of captives "hastening
from their exile to their distant home, and centuries
on centuries of national prosperity reaching away down

ii:

266

POWER FKOM ON HIGH

to Messianic times, aud far beyond to millennial ages,
All is the result of the prayer of Daniel, the beloved
of the Lord.

The angel that came to him told liim of the years that
should intervene until the close < f the Old Testament
dispensation. He told him of the coming of the great
Messiah. He told Him of His sacrifice and its blessed
efficacy. He told him of the trials and troubles that
should come to his people afterwards, and he reached out
to the most distant ages, down even to the coming of
the Lord Jesus Christ in His glory. friends, when
you talk to God and rise out of your own troubles, and
stand with Him in the high and holy ministry of prayer,
you get a much larger answer than you expect. God
not only gives you what you ask, but He gives you
an eternity beyond. "Lord, teach us to pray.

The next stage of the working of the Holy Spirit is
seen in the providential movements which introduce
the Restoration.

The first and most remarkable of these was the career
of Cyrus. More than a century before, the prophet
Isaiah had described this extraordinary man. He had
e^■en called him by his name and pointed him out as
the special instrument of the divine purpose in the
restoration of Israel. "Thus saith the Lord to his an-
ointed, to Cyrus, whose right hand I have holden, to
subdue nations before him; and I will loose the loins
of kings, to open before him two-leaved gates; and the
gates shall not be shut : I will go before thee, and make
the crooked places straight; T will break in pieces the
gates of brass, and cut in sunder the bars of iron : and
I will give thee treasures of darkness, and hidden riches
of secret places, that thou mayest know that I, the Lord,
which call thee by thy name, am the God of Israel.

IN THE DAYS OF THE RESTORATION

267

al ages,
beloved

ars that
stament
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blessed
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his an-
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le loins
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in: and
n riches
le Lord,

Israel.

For Jacob my servant's sake, and Israel, mine elect,
I have even called thee by thy name ; I have surnamed
thee, though thou hast not known me."

What a wonderful picture! What marvelous proph-
ecy, and how literally it was fulfilled in the romautic
story of Cyrus, his rapid career of conquCvSt, his capture
of Babylon, the establishment of his universal empire,
and then his remarkable part in the restoration of Israel
and the rebuilding of the temple!

The next chapter in this extraordinary series of events
is the proclamation of Cyrus in the first verses of the
book of Ezra. "Now in the first year of Cyrus, king
of Persia, that the word of the Lord by the mouth of
Jeremiah might be fulfilled, the Lord stirred up the
spirit of Cyrus king of Persia, that he made a proclama-
tion throughout all his kingdom, and put it also in writ-
ing, saying. Thus saith Cyrus king of Persia, the Lord
God of heaven hath given me all the kingdoms of the
earth; and he hath charged me to build him an house in
Jerusalem, which is in Judah. Who is there among you of
all his people? his God be with him, and let him go
up to Jerusalem, which is in Judah, and build the house
of the Lord God of Israel (he is the God) which is in
Jerusalem. And whosoever remaiueth in any place where
he sojourneth, let the men of his place help him with
silver, and with gold, and with goods, and with beasts,
besides the free will offering for the house of God that is
in Jerusalem.

''Then rose up the chief of the fathers of Judah and
Benjamin, and the priests, and the Levites, with all
them whose spirit God had raised, to go up to build the
house of the Lord which is in Jerusalem."

**Also Cynis the king, brought forth the vessels
of the house of the Lord, which Nebuchadnezzar had
brought forth out of Jerusalem, and had put them in
the house of his gods; even those did Cyrus bring
forth by the hand of Mithredath the treasurer."

268

POWER FROM ON HIGH

Here we see the conqueror of the world, in the very-
flush of his renown, turned aside by a divine impulse,
and constrained to carry out the very purpose and will
of God.

Oh, how wonderful the power of the Holy Ghost ! He
is able to deal with the hearts and minds of men, the
highest as well as the lowest, and to overrule even their
selfish ambitions and plans for the carrying out of His
own purposes and the building up of His own kingdom.

Pie who has sent us His ambassadors to the nations
has declared, "All power is given unto me, in heaven
and in earth." "The king's heart is in the hand of
the Lord, as the rivers of water; He tumeth it with-
soever he will."

Could w" but believe more definitely in the power and
providence of God, how much larger would our plans
of service be, and how much less would we fear the
oppositions of men !

We are living in the days when we may especially
claim the overruling providence of God in the affairs of
men, and when we may call upon the Holy Ghost to
co-operate with the Church of Christ in sending the
Gospel to the world, and hastening the coming of the
Lord Jesus Christ.

In the history of missions there have been some very
wonderful instances of God's interposing power through
the affairs of nations.

The story of Japan, the story of Siam, the story of
Madagascar, the Indian Mutiny, and the history of
China for half a century are full of romances of provi-
dence as significant as the story of Cyrus. God has many
such things in store for the hearts that can trust Him.

Oh, let us understand the immensity of our God and
the far-reaching scope of His providence and His power,
and enter into partnership with Him in His great de-
sign to give the Kingdom to His Son. The Ancient
of Days has come and is judging among the nations,

IN THE DAYS OP THK ItESTORATTON

269

the very
impulse,
and will

)st! He
nen, the
en their
t of His
ingdom.
nations
heaven
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wer and
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st Him.
Jod and
! power,
"cat de-
Aneient
nations,

to give the Son of Man His Kingdom, dominion, and
glory. Let us recognize His Presence, and let us claim,
as in the days old, the operation of His mighty power.

How sublime and solemn the spectacle ui)on which
the eyes of the Church are gazing today ! The mighty
Colossus of China, so long opposed to foreign influence
and the Gospel of Christ, is being broken to pieces like
a potter's vessel, and plowed up as with the plowshare
of God to prepare the way of the Lord. Doubtless it
is in answer to some prayer of faith. Doubtless it in
preparatory to some glorious aggressive movement of
faith and evangelistic zeal. God help us to understand
our times and to understand our God, and to be worthy
of our high calling as workers together with Him!

Another extraordinary providential working of the
Holy Ghost during these days is found in thi; stor>' of
Esther. It was another miracle of Providence, although
on a different plane, and in a simpler sphere. This
time a nation was to be delivered from extermination.
The very race of Israel was to be preserved so as to
form a line through which Christ could come. The devil
had determined to blot out their existence, but God raised
up a little maiden to be His instrument for their de-
liverance.

He had given Esther a beautiful face and a fair and
attractive form; and these were trusts which He meant
her to use for Him. He gave her favor in the eyes
of the king, and He introduced her to his palace and
his throne. Dear young friend, your face, your form,
your place in society, these are mighty trusts to use
for God. Take heed how you use them. There came
a time when Esther must stand forth and fulfill hjr
high commission, and even risk her life for th? uake
of her country. She hesitated; and had she faltered
it would have involved, perhaps, not only the ruin of
her people, but the destruction of herself and her father's

270

POWER FROM ON HIGH

house. God gave her grace to be tnie, and through
her true, brave stand, her peoi)le wore delivered.

The euemies of God were caught in the snare which
they had prepared. So God today is working through
individuals as well as nations. May He enable us,
like Esther of old, to understand His solemn message,
"Who knoweth whether thou art come to the kingdom
for such a time as this?"

Qinte as remarkable is the story of Zerubbabel, Ezra,
Nehemiah, and the returning captives.

It was no small undertaking to conduct a band of
50,000 unarmed men and women and children across
that vast desert, but Ezra so fully trusted God that
he would not even ask an escort. How touching his
language! "Then I proclaimed a fast there, at the
river of Ahava, that we might afflict ourselves before
our God, to seek of him a right way for us, and for
our little ones, and for all of our substance. For I
was ashamed to require of the king a band of soldiers
and horsemen to help us against the enemy in the way:
because we had spoken unto the king, saying, The hand
of our God is upon all of them for good that seek him:
but his power and his wrath is against all that forsake
him. So we fasted, and besought our God for this;
and he was entreated of us" (Ezra 8:21). "Then
we departed from the river of Ahava, on the twelfth
day of the first month, to go unto Jerusalem; and the
hand of our God was upon us, and he delivered us from
the hand of the enemy, and of such as lay in w^ait by the
way. And we came to Jerusalem."

This was the work of the Holy Spirit, and thus He
loves to guard and guide those who trust in Him.
Their task was a most diffieut one. First, they attempted
to build the temple without restoring the walls. Their
primary object was to set up the worship of their God,
and they trusted Him to be a wall of fire round about
and the glorv in the midst.

IN THE DAYS OF THE RESTORATION

271

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They were surrounded by jealous foes who tried in
every way to defeat their plan, and sometimes succeeded
in delaying their work; but through innumerable vicis-
situdes and deliverances God safely brought them, until
the temple was renewed, and the walls arose under
Nehemiah, and the social and political foundations of
their national life were once more restored.

This is the tru-e secret of success in every work for
God. This is the true meaning of the Church of Christ
today. God is her Living Head, and the Holy Ghost is
her all-sufficient Defender, her All-sufficiency and Guide;
and those who fully trust Him never fail to find Him
true and equal to all their exigencies and needs.

ra.

THE HOLY SPIRIT IN THE MESSAGES OF HIS INSPIRED

SERVANTS.

While God raised up Cyrus, Zerubbabel, Joshua,
Esther, Ezra, and Nehemiah to lead this great restora-
tion, He also sent His prophetic messenger to aid them
by his counsel. By their divine messages, there were
three special prophets connected with the work of the
restoration, Haggai, Zechariah, and Malachi. Malachi's
work belongs properly to a later period, and closes the
Old Testament dispensation. Haggai and Zechariah were
contemporaries. The one was an old man, the other
was a young man. God has need of both classes in
the ministry of His Church. We have time at present
to refer to Haggai 's messages only.

There were several. The first was one of stern rebuke.
The people had begun to forget their great trust, and,
instead of rebuilding the house of God in Jerusalem,
were erecting for themselves costly homes and becoming
absorbed in selfish comfort and ambition. The prophet
comes with a very solemn rebuke.

"Is it time for you, ye, to dwell in ceiled houses,

272

POWER FKOM ON HTOn

and this house lie waste?" His heart-searchmp cry-
is, "Go up to the mountain, and bring wood, and build
the house; and T will take pleasure in it, and 1 will
be glorified, saith the Lord."

His message was not in vain. The officers and the
people rose up and went to work with fidelity and zeal.

Seven weeks later Haggai is authorized to deliver
to the people a very different message full of divine
encouragement and glorious promis<^ "Yet now be
strong, Zerubbabel, saith the Lord; and be strong,
Joshua, the son of Josedecli, the high priest; and be
strong, all ye people of the land, saith the Lord, and
work: for I am with you, saith the Lord of hosts:
according to the word that I covenanted with you when
ye came out of Egypt, so my Spirit remaineth among
you: fear ye not."

The Holy Spirit was to be their guide and strength.
Again and again the phrase is repeated, "Saith the
Lord." It was the word of God, the presence of God,
the Spirit of God, that was to be their dependence and
their divine resource through all this great undertaking.
And then the promise reaches out into all the grandeur
of a millennial vision.

"For thus saith the Lord of hosts. Yet once, it is a little
while, and I will shake the heavens, and the earth, and
the sea, and the dry land; and I will shake all nations
and the desire of all nations shall come: and I will
fill this house with glory, saith the Lord of hosts.

"The silver is mine, and the gold is mine, saith the
Lord of hosts. The glory of this latter house shall
be greater than of the former, saith the Lord of hosts:
and in this place will T give peace saith the Lord of
hosts."

They were building a house that was to be visited in
the coming centuries by the Son of God Himself, and
that was to be glorified by His miracles of love and
words of grace. Little did they realize the glory, the

IN THE DAYS OF THE KE8TOKAT10N

273

ip cry

build

I will

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rongth.
ith the
if God,
ice and
'taking,
andeur

a little
h, and
lations
I will

th the
shall
hosts :
jord of

ited in
f. and
ve and
ry, the

latter glory for which they were laying foundations.
In a still later vision the prophet looks forward to
the overthrow of nations and kingdoms, and the coming
of the Lord Jesus Himself, and the recompense which
then will await Zerubbabel and his faithful laborers
when the Lord shall make them like a signet of glory
and honor.

This may be the glory of our work. This is the
glory of all work done in the power of the Spirit. It
is done for the coming of the Lord, and it will receive
its recompense in that day of manifestations. Oh, let
this be our high ambition !

Perhaps the house we build for Ilim will yet be trod-
den by the feet of the Son of man. The souls we bring
to Him shall be presented in that day as our crown
of rejoicing and His. The world that we win for
Him shall be our kingdom as well as IIis in the day
of His millennial reign. Yes, if we may but haste that
coming and prepare the way l)y the evangelization of the
nations, it may be our blessed hope and transcendent
privilege, ourselves to live to meet Ilim in His glorious
advent, and to welcome Him back to the world for
which He died, then to share with Him the days, the
ages of blessing and glory, which fill the vision of the
prophetic age.

Oh, let our work take h'»'d upon His coming, and be
dignified and glorified by xe same promise that cheered
the heart of the restorali m workers, "The glory of this
latter house shall be greater than of the former, and in
this place will I give peace, saith the Lord of hosts."

The prophetic messages of Zechariah were still more
rich and full, but we must defer to another chapter
the unfolding of his sublime and instructive images of
the Holy Ghost.

CHAPTER XXIV.

THE OLIVE TREES AND THE GOLDEN LAMPS.

"Not by might, nor by power, but by My Spirit, saith the
Lord of hosts. ' '— Zech. 4 : 6.

WE have already looked at these words in con-
nection with the history of the Restoration and
the mighty movements of God's providence in
bringing about that glorious result. We also referred
to the prophetic ministrj^ of Ilaggai, the elder of the
two prophets who were God's messengers of counsel and
encouragement to the leaders and people at this crisis

Still more remarkable was the ministry of Zcehariah,
the younger prophet. His wondrous visions were all
calculated to meet some special need and trial in their
situation at this time.

The first vision was that of the man among the mul-
berry trees. The prophet saw in a vision a great plain
of low, flat land covered \\ith mulberry trees, and among
them were horses moving to aiid fro. This represented
the lowly condition <if God's peopli!; and the horses,
God's ministers of power, who were moving in the
midst of His people's trials and working for their
deliverance. This was followed by a message of special
encouragement, announcing that these low and desolate
regions should yet be filled with multitudes of people,
that the cities, through prosperity, should yet be spread
abroad; and that the Lord should comfort Zion, and
would choose Jerusalem.

Next came the vision of th(> horns and the carpenters.
Four horns appeared before the prophet's view, rep-
resenting the enemies that were scattering Judah and
pushing to the v/all God's suffering pt^ople. But com-
ing up behind them, were four carpenters, sent to fray

274

OLIVE TREES AND GOLDEN LAMPS

275

nith the

n con-
311 and
nCxj in
eferred
of the
sel and
s crisis
hariah,
^ere all
n their

le miil-
Lt plain
among
esented
horses,
in the
r their
special
lesolate
people,
spread
n. and

>enters.
rep-
fih and
it com-
to fray

the piercing hoi-ns of tbp enemy, and blunt their points,
BO that they would not be abl to touch or harm God's
suffering children. There were just as many carpenters
as there were horns, and GodV people in every age
may know that wherever there is a foe to strike there
is a force to counteract f(»r those who trust Him.

Next came the vision of the man with the moasunng
line, going forth to mejtsure the walls of Jerusalem,
its length and its breadth, and proclaiming: "Jerusalem
shall yet be inhabited as towns without walls for the
multitudes of men and cattle therein." This was in-
tended to encourage them amid the paucity of the popu-
lation. A little handful of returned captives, they were
trying to occupy the desolate land, and they seemed
HO few and contemptible that their enemies turned them
to ridicule; but God declared tliat they would yet
spread abroad and cover all the land. And as they
looked at their unwalled city and the defenceless temple
they were rearing in its midst, and thought of their
exposure to all the surrounding enemies, God reassured
them, through the prophet, with the precious promise,
"I will be mito her a wall of fire round about, and
will be the glory in the midst of her."

Next there came a still more encouraging vision. All
the power of their enemies outside could not hurt them
half so much as their own weakness and un worthiness
within. They were consciou., of their sinfulness, and
they knew that they had already suffered for their
fathers' unfaithfulnes^s. They might fear that they,
too, should forfeit the blessing of Jehovah. And so the
prophet was sent with another vision. He beheld Joshua,
tht' liigh priest, repi'esenting the people, standing before
the Lord clothed with filthy garments, suggesting their
guilt and ^5iu, and Satan standing at his right hand, to
resist him.

But as he gazed, lo! the command is given from the
throne, "Take away the filthy garments from him, . . .

276

POWER FROM ON HIGH

and 1 will clothe him with a change of raiment, . . . and
aet a fair mitre on his head," and, turning to the accuser,
Jehovah answered all his reproaches, and said: "The
Lord rebuke thee, Satan; even the Lord that hath
chosen Jerusalem rebuke thee; is not this a brand
plucked out of the fire?"

Then the vision was followed by a gracious promise;
of cleansing and blessing summed up in the glorious
promise, "I will remove the iniquity of that land in
one day." God stood not only between them and their
enemies, but also between them and themselves, ami
all their own unworthiness and sinfulness. lie thus
stands between us and our guilt, our shield from the
accusing of our conscience and the charges of our cruel
adversary, so that we can cry, "Who is he that con-
demneth? It is Christ that died, yea, rather, that is
risen again, who is even at the right hand of God, who
also maketh intercession for us."

But now we come to the vision of our text, the most
beautiful and significant of all, and unequalled by any
other portion of the Holy Scriptures for delicacy and
depth of sacred meaning.

It was intended to reveal to them the sources of their
strength. They were weak, and their foes were strong.
At this very time, through the intrigues of their enemies,
a decree had come from the king of Persia, ariv3sting
for a time the progress of the work. We are told by
Ezra that an army came and "with force and power"
caused the work to cease. But, like the echo of man's
impotent rage answering back from the throne, God
S3nds Zechariah to say in the very same phrase turned
back again, "Not by force, nor by power, but by ray
Spirit, saith the Lord of hosts."

Man had sent his force and power, his army and
his might; but he had left God out of his calculations,
and this work and this conflict was "not by might,
nor by power, but by my Spirit, saith t>e Lord of

OLIVE TREES AND GOLDEN LAMPS

277

and

ICC user

it hath
brand

promise
glorious
land in
id their
es, ami
le thus
*om the
ir cruel
lat con-
that is
od, who

he most

by any

icy and

of their
strong,
nemies,
rusting
told by
power ' '
man's
e, God
turned
by ray

ly and

tions,

might,

l/ord of

hosts. Who art thou, O great mountain? before Zerub-
babel thou shalt become a plain : and he shall bring
forth the headstone thereof with shoutings, crying, Grace,
grace, unto it!"

The vision itself was a very beautiful one. As he
wakened out of sleep with all his powers quickened
to take in its meaning, he saw before him a golden
candlestick like that which stood in the holy place,
with its seven branches of polished gold, surmounted by
a vessel of oil and a glowing flame. Then above this
candlestick there was a large bowl or reservoir con-
nected by pipes with all the lamps, and containing the
supply of oil. But how was this reservoir filled?

Look again at the wondrous and exquisite mechanism.
There were no oil cans, no ministering hands, no clumsy
machinery of human attendants or conveying tubes,
but two living olive trees ripening their fruit continual-
ly and pouring it in through two olive branches into the
reservoir, from which it flowed down into each of the
lamps. How simple, how beautiful, how perfect, and
how full of holy meaning ! What is its profound spirit-
ual meaning?

THE CANDLESTICK.

The golden candlestick represents the Church of God
and the people of God. "Ye are the light of the world."
"Let your light so shine before men that they shall
see your good works and glorify your Father which is
in heaven."

Israel of old was to that generation what the Church
is meant to be today, the depository of divine truth and
life and light, the true light of the world. As the
candlestick was all of gold, so the true Church of Christ
consists only of those who are partakers of the divine
nature. Gold is the type of the divine, and only as

278

PmrER FROM ON HIGH

we are re!*tore<J Uf the image of God and filled with
His light and pKufmce. <'Hij we he hghtbearers for the i
world. j

The candlestick was the only light of the temple. It ■
had no windows. All its light came from God. And the
" v^rJd has no light apart from the Church of God. This
holy book, illuminated by the Spirit, contains all that we
know of God, redemption, and the future life.

He is a foolish man who tries to deceive himself and
his people by the torchlight of his own eloquence, phil-
osophy, and sensationalism.

The candlestick was one, yet manifold; and so the
Church of God has infinite variety, and yet but one
ligttt and one body. God does not level every soul down
to the a&me pattern, but He lets Isaiah and James and
«/ohn to be each himself; and yet He fills all with God,
Mtui makes their life divine, yet perfectlv natural,
sinif/^, free, anc. liuman.

Vjvery part of oar nature has to pass through the new
'-creation, but every part is preserved, HuncUitled, and
iiiieAl with God. So the whole spirit and soul and body
is preserved blameless unto the coming of the Lord Jesus
Christ.

The candlestick was not luminous. It was simply
« light-bearer. It could make no light. It could re-
flexii light from its polished and brilliant surface, but 8
the lij<ht must come from another source. So we have
no light in ourselves; we can simply receive the light
and ht»ld it. V^e are not ourselves tiu' light of the
world, but we are to so shine thai men shall see our
good v^'orks aiid glorify our Father which is in heaven,

"Wo are to reveal not our goodness and our grHce, but
Christ in us. Let all me*i see how helpless and in-
sufficient we are in ourselves, but what an all-suflRcient
a,v\ mighty Saviour we have, and One available for
them as well as for v^s. This is the light that the world
needs, that the Holy Ghost and the person and grace

OLIVE TREES AND GOLDEN LAMPS

279

filled with
(3rs for the

temple. It

l. And the

God. This

all that we

limself and
lence, phil-

and so the
et but one
soul down
James and
L with God,
y natural,

prli llic new
lilied, and
and body
ord Jesus

^as simply
could re-
rfaco. but
o we have
the light
I of the
i see our
n heaven,
prHce, liut
s and in-
sufficient
ilable for
the world
ind grace

of Jesus be held forth for their darkness and misery,
and sin.

The business of the candlestick was not to hoard the
oil, but to consume it, to use it up, and to keep it ever
burning in those glowing tongues of flame. If the lamps
and pipes had tried to absorb and retain the oil, they
would have lost it. They gave it up, they used it up.
They consumed it in ceaseless burning. Men some-
times say to us: ** Don't expend all your vitality; don't
use all your strength; save yourself." Ah, that is the
way to lose yourself. Only that which we give we have.
That which we keep we lose.

Try to hold on to one of God's gifts, and "t will go.
Try to economize and keep for yourself your blossing,
and it will disappear. Pass it on and it will burn for-
ever. k& those lamps exhausted the oil in their little
cups, the residue of the oil poured in from above; and
they were alwa,^ full, and always fresh, and always
burning, and ah.-ys shining.

So let us be ** burning and shining lights," and, as
we give out wh^^ He has given. He will replenisii the
supply, and we shall have enough and to spare; and
we. too. shall "shine in the midst of a crooked and
perverse generation."

II.

THE Olli IS THE EMBI.EM OP THE HOLY GHOST.

It is He who gives us all our light and life. It is He
who produces in us all our gra ies, and works through us
all our service for God and men.

Beloved, this is the test, and this is the difference
between man and God. Five of the virgins were wise
and five were foolish. They that were foolish took their
vessels, but they took no oil in their vessels with their
lamps; but they that were wise tool' ' ^u their veasels

280

POWER FROM ON HIGH

with their lamps, and wiien the Bridegroom came this
was the point of separation.

The foolish virgins were virgins, too. Tliey were
pure; they were waiting and longing for the eoming
of the i3ridegroom; they had a little light, and they
had oil enough to light the lamp and keep it burning
for a time; but they had not the residue of the oil,
they had not the fullness of the Spirit, they had not
the indwelling of the personal Holy Ghost. And so
their lamps went out in their hour of need. They were
unable to go in with the marriage procession.

The one point which settled the happy fate of the
others was simply this, that they had "oil in their
vessels with their lamps." They had the Holy Ghost
personally indwelling. They had the source of grace
within their hearts. They did not need to go and re-
plenish. They were always ready.

Beloved, let a word be sufficient for the wise, and,
oh! let us be filled with the Spirit, so that we shall be
found of Him in peace.

in.

THE SOURCES OP THE OIL.

We come to the most beautiful and significant part
of the picture, the sources of the oil. These were not
the same human mechanism of ministering priests and
great reservoirs from which the oil was carried and re-
plenished day by day, but two living trees whose ripening
fruit was continually pressed out by hands unseen, and
flowed through two olive branches and two golden pipes
\do\vn into the reservoir and into the lamps. It was all
perfectly spontaneous, simple, silent, and divine. The oil
was always flowing; the reservoir was always full; the
lamps were always burning.

This is the source of our divine supply. Who were
these two olive trees? Certainly they can represent

OLTVE TREES AND GOLDEN LAMPS

281

le this

' were
•oming
il they
urning
he oil,
ad not
^nd so
y were

of the
1 their
Ghost
" grace
iiid re-

e, and,
hall be

t part
re not
ts and
md re-
pening
n, and
pipes
tvas all
The oil
11; the

9 were
)resent

nothing human, but the divine source of our litV in
Christ. They represent the Lord Jesus Christ and
the blesscfl Holy Ghost; the one on the divine sidf, the
other on the earthly side ot' our spiritual Hie. lioth
are called by the same uame. The apostle John speaks
of Jesus as our Advocate or Paraclete with the Father,
and ht3 speaks of the Holy Ghost as our Paraclete from
the Father. The one is the Advocate yonder, the otht'r
is the Advocate within.

One is on each side of us, and between two such
Advocates how caii a child of God be lost? From these
two blessed Persons of the Godhead, distinct in their
personality, yet one in their nature, we draw our spirit-
ual life. We draw it as the olivt3 trees gave forth their
oil, spontaneously, silently, constantly, instinctively, just
as we breathe the air in which we live, just as the blood
circulates through our system, so quietly, so naturally,
so simply, that we are unconscious of the process.

Thus we may abide in Him and live upon Him, and
draw our strength from God alone. Beloved, have we
learned the secret of the olive trees, the secret of abiding
in Him?

But, what are these two olive branches that connect
the olive trees with the reservoir and run into two
golden pipes?

These are '*the two anointed ones, or, the two sons
of oil, that stand before the Lord of the whole earth."
Ah ! this is the ministry of believing and united prayer.
This is the highest service given to saints on earth, a
counterpart of the priestly service of Jesus Himself
upon the throne.

Beloved, if we will let Him, God will teach us this
high and holy service. First, these branches must come
out of the trees and be so closely in touch with them
that they can communicate directly and draw their
very life ; and so he that ministers at the altar of prayer
must be in perfect touch with God on the heaven-side.

282

POWER FROM ON HIGH

But on the other sidt^, he must be in perfect touch with
man. The branches must run into the reservoir and
connect with the lamps.

So if we would know this ministry of prayer, we
must be sensitive to the needs of others. We must be
lost to our selrishness. We must be in touch with our
fellow-men. We must have a heart full of sympathy
and love, and readiness to suffer for others and for
God.

God give us this glorious ministry and teach us to
know the meaning of that mighty promise, "If two
of you shall agree on earth as touching anything that
they shall ask, it shall be done for them of my Father
which is in heaven."

IV.

1. The effects of the Holy Spirit's working will appear
first in the overturning of obstacles. "Who art thou,
O great mountain?" There is always a mountain of
difficulty in the way of faith. The best evidence of
God's presence and power is the activity of the ad-
versary. Faith does not fear the highest mountain when
the Holy Ghost is in charge, but trustingly and quietly
stands, and says, "Who art thou, great mountain?
Be a plain." The Holy Ghost will give the faith as
well as remove the mountains. One cannot but be
struck with the similarity of this passage to our Sav-
iour's wonderful teaching regarding faith, where He
says, that if we have faith as a grain of mustard seed,
we shall say to the mountain, "Be thou removed, and
be thou cast into the sea"; it shall be done

Faith does not ask the mountain to be removed. Faith
does not even climb the mountain; but it simply com-
mands it to disappear, and uses the authority and power
of God. This is the way the Holy Spirit works in the
hearts of those who trust and obey Him and are led
by the Spirit of God

OLIVK TREES AND GOLDEN LAMPS

283

ch with
oir and

yer, we
[nust be
nth our
mpathy
ind for

h us to

'If two

ng that

Father

appear
rt thou,
tain of
ence of
the ad-
n when
quietly
untain?
'aith as
but be
ir Sav-
ere He
•d seed,
3d, and

. Faith
y corn-
power
in the
are led

2. The "»vork of the Holy Ghost gives all the glory
to God. "He shall bring forth the headstone with
shouting, crying Grace, grace imto it!"

Man's work refiocts its honor upon man; but when
we become possessed of God, and recognize His all-
sufficiency, we can speak of His work without conscious-
ness of ourselves, and say with the apostle, ''Not I,
but the grace of Christ in me."

3. The work of the Holy Ghost is a finished work.
He does not leave the broken column and the uiiroofed
walls; but He accomplishes His purpose, and He leads
us to see our expectation and finish our work. The hands
of Zerubbabel have laid the foundation of this house;
his hands also shall finish it, and "Thou shalt know that
the Lord of hosts hath sent me unto you."

The work of human ambition and impulse is weak,
unstable, and spasmodic; but the work that God in-
spires is carried through.

4. The work of the Holy Ghost is straight work, and
perfectly plumb. *'They shall rejoice, and shall see
the plummet in the hand of Zerubbabel." The plum-
met is the symbol of righteousness. A plumb wall is
a straight wall, a perpendicular wall; and so the work
that God has is a straight work, pure work, and right
work. The work that He inspires and carries forward
has no compromises about it, and does not need to
try to please men; but it rises on Scriptural founda-
tions, and its walls are righteousness, and its gates,
praise.

5. Finally, the work of the Holy Ghost is accom-
plished through feeble instrumentalities. "Who hath
despised the day of small things?" This is the way
it begins. "God hath cho^;en the weak things of the
world to confound the things which are mighty, and
base things of the world, and things which are despised,
hath God chosen, yea, and the things which are not, to

284

I'OWKli FROM ON 11 10 11

bring to nought things that are: that no llcsh shoulrl
glory in His presence."

I never read this text without remembering ;i cold
November afternoon, in the year 1881, when a little
company of seven p(!rsons met in an upi)er room in
this city to confer and pray about giving the Gospel in
its fullness to the neglected and churchless people of
this great city. We were all poor, and there were but
a few of us at that. We had come together in answer
to a public call for a meeting of all who were interested
in this subject.

As we sat down in the cheerless hall and gathered
round the fire to keep ourselves from freezing, we looked
at each other; and, certainly, it was the day of small
things. Then we asked God to speak to us. As we
opened our Bible that afternoon, the leaves parted at
the fourth chapter of Zechariah, and, without thinking,
our eye feel on this very verse, "This is the word oP
the Lord unto Zerubbabel, saying, Not by might, nor
by power, but by My Spirit, saith the Lord of hosts. . . .
For who hath despised the day of small things?"

Never, perhaps, did a message come to human hearts
with more strange and thrilling power than that mes-
sage that afternoon. Kneeling down together, we let
God pray His own prayer in our hearts; and the years
that have followed have brought the blessed answer.

Do not be afraid of small beginnings. We may well
fear large and pretentious resources, but God added tc
seven ciphers will amount to millions every time.

CHAPTER XXV.

THE LAST MESSAGE OF THE HOLY GHOST TO
THE OLD DISPENSATION.

But who may abide the day of his comingf and who shall
stand when he appcaroth? for he is like a refiner's fire, and Jikf
fullers' Hoap: and he shjill sit as a refiner and jnirifier of silver;
and he shall purify the sons of Levi, and purjje fliein as >?old and
silver, that they may offer unto the Lord an offering in righteous-
ness. ' '—Mai. 3 : 2, 3.

THK Hook of Malaehi contains the last message of
the Holy Gho.st to the old dispensation. It was
his high honor to close the prophetic s(to11 2,300
years ago, before the silence of 400 years, which was to
he broken once more, when "God, who at sundry times
and in divt^rs manners spake in time past to the fathers
by the prophets," shovdd at length speak unto us by
His Son.

While he is recognized as one of the prophets of the
Restoration, strictly speaking, he came just after the
Restoration had been accomplished, so far, at least,
as the ecclesiastical and political reorganization of the
nation was concerned ; and his part was rather to be
the spiritual reformer of his times, and to rouse his
countrymen from the reaction into which their religious
life was falling, and summon them to righteousness and
faithfulness to God.

His name signifies "My messenger," and he was in-
deed the mouthpiece and the messenger of the Holy
Ghost to his own age and to ours nlso, in the very
special sense in whieh these times were typical of our
own.

The closing years of the Old Testament dispensation
might, very naturally, be expected to correspond to the

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POWER FROM OX HIGH

closing years of the New Testament age. The state of
the people in Malachi's day bore a striking correspond-
ence to the age we live in, and his messages to his own
generation have a solemn significance to us "on whom
the ends of the world are come."

MALACHI*S MESSAGES TO HIS OWN TIMES.

The Restoration had been followed by a period of
prosperity, and, as usually happens, this had brought
spiritual declension and, indeed, a very mournful con-
dition of a religious life.

The moral condition of the people was indicated, as
is usually the case, by the prevalence of divorce and the
decay of domestic and social purity and righteouness.
The wives of their youth were put away without cause,
"the daughters of a strange god" were taken into un-
holy alliances, and the altar of Jehovah was "covered
with teal's." This was done, not only by the people,
but the very priests were foremost in this laxity of
morals. Malachi was sent to rebuke their wickedness
and to tell them that God hated their ''putting away"
and their unholy lives, and to call them swiftly and
solemnly to righteousness and repentance. Then, along
with this, there had grown up a spirit of mercenary
selfishness. The very service of the sanctuary had be-
come tainted with it so that the priesthood was a s^lf-
interested profession. No man would even shut the doors
of the temple without a salary. The old spirit of sacri-
fice, love, and disinterested devotion was dead; and a
lot of time-serving parasites had sprung up, and begun
to use the very house of God for their selfish aggrandize-
ment and gain.

Growing out of this mercenary spirit on the part of
the priesthood there was on the part of the people
corresponding selfishness and stinginess. They with-

LAST MESSAGE TO OLD DISPENSATION

287

held the tithes and even tried to cheat the Lord by-
unworthy and dishonest offerings. "Ye offer polluted
bread upon mine altar; and ye say, Wherein have we

polluted Thee ? And if ye offer the blind for

sacrifice, is it not evil? and if ye offer the lame and
sick, is it not evil? . . . Who is there among you
that would shut the doors for nought? neither do
you kindle a fire on mine altar for nought. I have
no pleasure in you, saith the Lord, neither will I accept
an offering at your hand. ... Ye said also. Behold,
what a weariness is it ! and ye have snuffed at it, saith
the Lord of hosts ; and ye brought that which was torn,
and the lame, and the sick; thus ye broaght an offer-
ing: should I accept this out of your hand? saith the
Lord." **Will a man rob God? Yet ye have robbed
me. But ye say, Wherein have we robbed thee ? In tithes
and offerings. Ye are cursed with a curse: for ye
have robbed me, even this whole nation. Bring ye all
the tithes into the storehouse, that there may be meat
in mine house, and prove me now herewith, saith the
Lord of hosts, if I will not open you the windows of
heaven, and pour you out a blessing, that there shall
not be room enough to receive it."

Thus IVIalachi, spoke to the last generation of the
Old Testament, and thus he might speak with equal
fitness to the last generation of the Christian age. There
is the same laxity of morals, the same obliteration of
God's sharp distinctions, the same breaking down of
the sanctities of home, the same avarice and love of
money, the same mercenary spirit in the very work of
God with its hired preachers, hired choirs, hired prayers.
The very pulpit is an arena for intellectual gymnasts
and a field for ministerial ambition. There is the same
worldliness and niggardliness in the Church of God,
with millions for our luxuries and pleasures, but pit-
tances for God; splendid frescoed ceilings and costly
spires, pointing in proud profession to heaven, but less

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POWER FROM ON mGH

per head from the peoph? of God to send the Gospel to
the world than we pay for our table salt or the egg shell
in our coffee. Is not this as truly the portrait of our
times, as it was of the days of Malachi? And is not
this the same picture which the Holy Ghost in the New
Testament has left, as of the last days of the present
dispensation: "This know also that in the last days
perilous times shall come. For men shall be lovers
of their own selves, covetous, . . . lovers of plffj^^re
more than lovers of God; having a form of goali* ess
but denymg the power thereof."

Already these times have begun to come, and the
messages of Malachi and Paul speak to the compromis-
ing Christians of today with a terrible aptness and fideli-
ty. It would, indeed, seem as if the professed followers of
God in every dispensation had to be tried and found
wanting. Adam first failed in Eden; then the Antedilu-
vian age went out in judgment. The patriarchal family
sank into Egyptian slavery. The conquest of Canaan end-
ed in the long captivity of the Judges. The kingdom of
David terminated in the fall of Israel and the captivity
of Judah. And now the glorious Restoration under
Zerubbabel, Ezra, and Nehemiah had fallen back into
the worldlinoss and ungodliness of Malachi 's day. Even
so shall it be with the closing days of the Christian
dispensation. As the pure church of Paul and John
became the apostasy of Romanism, even so the church
of the Reformation is yet to develop into the Laodicea
of the last days; and the signs of Laodicea are not
so far to seek already in the spirit of our own times.

But in the days of Malachi there was a faithful
remnant, a little Church within the Church, a band of
whom the prophet could say: "Then they that feared
the Lord spake often one to another; and the Lord
hearkened, and heard it, and a book of remembrance
was written before him for them that feared the Lord,
and that thought upon his name. And they shall be

LAST MESSAGE TO OLD DISPENSATION

280

mine, saith the Lord of hosts, in that clay when I make
up my jewels; and I will spare them as a man spareth
his own son that serveth him. Then shall ye return
and discern between the righteous and the wicked; be-
tween him that serveth God and him that serveth him
not."

And so in our own days there is still "the little
flock," the church of Philadelphia side by side
with Laodicea, waiting for the coming of the Lord.
There is a larger remnant than we dream in every dark
and sinful generation who have not bowed the knee
to the image of Baal. There is today in every church of
Christ on earth the strange spectacle of a great, broad
mass of professing Christians who know or want to know
little of the power of the Holy Ghost, and, within that
wider circle, a hidden few, like Enoch, who are walking
with God, who are filled with the Holy Ghost, who are
watching for the coming of the Lord, and who are the
preserving salt of the whole body and the real impelling
force of all the Christian activities of the entire church
of Christ today.

Thus the age of Malachi touches our own with a won-
derful correspondence, and the closing messages of the
Old Testament ring like a trumpet call to the last age
of the New Testament church. Let us receive their solemn
warnings. Let us rejoice in their bright and blessed
promises. Let us be found among the little remnant of
holy and waiting ones.

THE SPECIAL PROMISE OP THE SPIRIT IN MALACHI.

Ther*? are two special promises in this prophetic book.
The firsr is the coming of John the Baptist. "Behold,
I will fend my messenger, who shall prepare the way
before me." The second is the coming of the Lord
Him; '.elf in His first advent. "And the Lord, whom

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POWER FROM ON HIGH

ye seek, shall suddenly come to His temple, even th«
Messenger of the covenant whom y ' delight in: behold,
He shall come, saith the Lord o " hosts." This, of course,
has reference to the coming of the Lord Jesus Christ
in His incarnation and earthly ministry. But the prom-
ise immediately unfolds into a fullness of meaning whicth
takes in also the ministry of the Holy Ghost. Indeed,
the ministry of Christ and of the Holy Ghost are here
so linked together that it is impossible to tell where one
begins and the other ends. **But who may abide the
day of his coming? and who shall stand when he ap-
peareth? for he is likft a refiner's ftre, and like fullers'
soap: and he shall sit as a refiner and purifier of
silver; and shall purify the sons of Levi, and purge
them as gold and silver, that they may offer unto the
Lord an offering in righteousness." Then, later, there
comes a third promise in the next chapter, of the other
day that is coming, the other fire that is to consume
and burn to ashes all the dross which the fire of the
Holy Ghost has not burned away. This, of course, is the
day of the Lord's second coming, to be preceded by the
ministry of Elijah in some sense, and to bring to Israel's
returning sons the rising of the Sun of Righteousness
and to the waiting saints of God the day of millennial
glory.

It is especially to the second of these promises that
our subject holds us, the promise of the Holy Ghost.

1. It is, as we have seen, connected directly with the
personal ministry of the Lord Jesus Himself. It is
spoken of as if it were all Christ's own work. But we
know who it was that brought the refiner's fire and
the fullers' soap, the blessed Holy Ghost. Yet it is
Christ who ''baptizeth with the Holy Ghost"; and
when He comes it is Christ He brings, so that it is
the one life, the one work, through the two persons
of the one God.

LAST MESSAGE TO OLD DISPENSATION

291

even the
: behold,
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IS Christ
he proin-
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Indeed,
are here
here one
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a he ap-
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eousness
illennial

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It is
But we
ire and
et it is
; and
it it is
persons

2. The work He comes to do is to cleanse and purify,
lie is the Spirit of holiness. But there arc two stages
of holiness suggested. The first is cleansing from sin;
the second is refining the gold and bringing it to a
higher measure of purity and beauty. The Spirit comes
to do both these works in the believer's heart. It is one
thing to be cleansed from all known sin, but it is quite
another to be refined, polished, and transformed into
all the fullness of all the <^ood and acceptable and per-
fect will of God. There is a good, but there is also
an acceptable; and then there is the perfect will of
God, and the Spirit is longing to bring us up to the
highest. The wedding robe of the Bride of the Lamb
is represented as not only clean, but bright ; that is,
glorious and beautiful, like Christ's own transfiguration
robes. Iron can be refined until it is more precious
than gold. So our hearts can be not only purified but
glorified, even here.

3. Corresponding to this double work is the double
figure, the refiner's fire and the fullers' soap. The
soap is for outward cleansing, the fire is for inward and
intrinsic transformation. Fire can penetrate where
water cannot reach, and can be used where water and
soap are of no avail. Fire can be used to cleanse only
that which in its nature is indestructible. The silver
and the gold can stand the fire, because they are incom-
bustible. The more you burn them the more you im-
prove them. So the fire of the Holy Ghost can come to
us only when we become united with God, and partakers
of His divine nature. Th-en we do not fear the fire.
It cannot hurt, but only refines. Beloved, some of us
have only passed through soap and water. God wants
our garments fire-touched. Then "the King's daughter"
shall be "all glorious within, her clothing of wrought
gold," w^hich no flame can deface or destroy.

4. "He shall sit." This is very striking. He does not
hurry His work; that is, the work of the fire, the

292

POWER FKOM ON HIGH

deeper, iutcuser in working of the Holy Ghost. There is
a baptism of the Spirit, a receiving of the Spirit, a
cleansing work of the Spirit which is instantaneous and
complete. But there is a later work, the following up,
the filling out, the burning in of the Refiner which must
take time. God is willing to take the time. Let us he,
too. The figure suggests the most thoughtful care. He
sits down at the crucible. He does not for a moment
leave His precious work. Ho does not let the fire get
too hot, or burn too long. And the moment He can
see His face on the molten gold. He knows the work
is complete, and the fire is withdrawn. It is a great
thing to understand rightly the immediate and instan-
taneous work of the Holy Spirit in converting the soul,
and then in entering it and taking up His eternal dwell-
ing there through our obedience and faith, as our Sancti-
fier and Keeper ; and His more gradual and subsequent
work, in developing and filling our spiritual capacity,
searching and enlarging us, and leading us on and out
and up into all the fullness of the mature manhood of
Christ.

How wonderful, how gracious, how kind that He will
take such trouble with us, and, with love that will not tire,
work out in us to the end "all the good pleasure of
His goodness," and make us perfect in every good work
to do His will, working in us that which is well pleasing
in His sight through Jesus Christ to whom be glory,
both now and forever. Amen. Oh, that we might let
Him have right of way, and ever cry,

"Refining fire go through my heart,
Illuminate my soul;
Scatter Thy life in every part,
And purify the whole."

5. Finally, all this is for service. "He will purify
the sons of Levi, that they may offer unto Him an of-
fering in righteousness." This is God's great end in all

LAST MESSAGE TO OLD DISPENSATION

293

There ia
spirit, a
ious anf!
vin^' up,
ich must
;t us be,
in'. He
inonient
iii'e j^et
llo can
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instan-
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glory,
ight let

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I in all

His work of grace. He will not give us the Holy Ghost
to terminate upon ourselves; and if He sees that our
object in seeking even spiritual blessing and power is
our own delight, aggrandizement, or self-importance, we
shall be disappointed. But if our purpose is to be like
God Himself, channels of blessing to others, and instru-
ments for His use. He will fill us and use us to the
^iUest measure of our heart's desire. The more we
give the more wo shall receive, until, like God, our only
occupation will be to be a blessing. This is the secret
of barren hearts and lifeless churches. They are Dead
Seas, that have received without an outlet, until they
could hold no more, until even what they had has become
a stagnant and unwholesome pool.

Side by side, the blessing and service must ever go
hand in hand, according to the ancient promise, '*Ye
shall receive the power of the Holy Ghost coming upon
you, and ye shall be witnesses unto me."

The Old Testament closes with the glorious promise
of the Holy Ghost. How wonderfully the New Testament
has fulfilled it! Let our lives fulfill it. Let our words
and works pass it on until the yet greater promise of
His Second Coming shall come to pass, and we shall
rise to a richer indwelling of the Holy Ghost and a
nobler service in the ages to come than we have ever
here been able to ask or think.

We have closed these unfoldings of the Holy Spirit
in the Old Testament. We shall next turn, if the Lord
will, to the fuller light of the New Testament midday
and the dispensation of the Holy Ghost, Oh, if, amid
the imperfect light of that ancient dispensation, the
Spirit accomplished such glorious results and left such
illustrious examples of His grace and power, how much
more must He not expect of us, the children of the
morning, and the heirs of all His truth and grace!
God help us to be worthy of our inheritance and tnie
to our trust.