WE regret that owing to the limited time at our disposal since the meeting of Synod, it is impossible to give a full Report in this issue. We hope (God willing) to do so in the July issue, with the same measure of detail as has been the practice in the past. For the present, our readers must be satisfied with a brief outline of the principal items of business.
The Synod of the Free Presbyterian Church met in the Hall of St. Jude’s Church, Glasgow, on Tuesday evening, the 22nd day of May. Public worship was conducted by the Moderator, the Rev. Alexander Mackay, Oban, who preached from Hebrews x. 23. Thereafter he constituted the Synod with prayer. The roll was called, and there were present: From the Western Presbytery—Revs. Neil Macintyre, D. Graham, and A. Sutherland, C.F., ministers; with Messrs. A. Mackenzie, Stornoway; John Macdonald, Gairloch; and F. Macdonald, Shieldaig, elders. From the Northern Presbytery—Rev. D. Macfarlane, Dingwall, minister; with Messrs. Charles Maclean, Inverness, and M. Urquhart, Dingwall, elders. From the Southern Presbytery—Revs. Neil Cameron, James S. Sinclair, Ewen Macqueen, and Alexander Mackay, ministers; with Messrs. D. Fraser, St. Jude’s, and M. Campbell, Oban, elders. Apologies for absence were intimated from the Revs. M. Morrison, Lochinver; N. Matheson, Halkirk; D. M. Macdonald, North Uist (presently in London); D. M’Kenzie, Gairloch; and D. N. Macleod, Tarbat, Harris. Mr. Neil Mackinnon, elder, Portree, also sent an apology. At the Second Sederunt (next day), there were present the Revs. A. Macrae, Portree; J. R. Mackay, Inverness; D. Beaton, Wick; and D. A. Macfarlane, Lairg. After the Minutes of last Synod were read, Rev. A. Mackay, Moderator, intimated that his term of office had expired, and thanked the Synod for their kindness during his term. The Rev. D. Macfarlane, Dingwall, was then unanimously
appointed Moderator, and took the Chair. At this Meeting, the Committee on Bills and Overtures, and some other Committees were appointed, and the sederunt was closed with praise and prayer between 9 and 10 p.m.
The Synod met next day at 2 p.m. At this, the Second Sederunt, there was taken up an appeal by an elder and member in Sutherlandshire against a decision of the Northern Presbytery on the subject of the new Summer Time Regulation in its relation to the Sabbath. The Clerk intimated that he had received word from the appellants to the effect that they did not find it possible to come to the Synod. It was then unanimously decided that in view of their non-appearance, the appeal had fallen through, according to regular procedure. It was, however, decided in response to a request from the members of the Northern Presbytery that the Synod would take steps at a later sederunt to make a pronouncement on the general subject of “the new time.” The usual Church Committees were next appointed. Rev. J. R. Mackay delivered his Theological Report, and Rev. D. Beaton gave in a Report by the Canadian Mission Committee. In the absence of Mr. A. MacGillivray, the General Treasurer, the Rev. J. R. Mackay, Inverness, delivered the Annual Financial Report, which was considered satisfactory in respect of the Sustentation and other Funds. A proposal to add, in view of a recent legacy, the sum of £20 to the ministers’ salaries during the incoming year, as well as a proportionate increase to the salaries of missionaries, was agreed to. The usual Church Collections were also appointed.
At the Third Sederunt, which met at 6.30 p.m., Rev. Neil Cameron delivered the Foreign Mission Report, which was adopted. He read an interesting report from Rev. J. B. Radasi, Matabeleland. It was agreed also to send a donation of £20 to the Trinitarian Bible Society for the spread of God’s Word among the Jews. Rev. D. Beaton read his report as Deputy last year to the Canadian Mission, which was adopted and ordered to be published in the Magazine. Rev. E. Macqueen, who completed a year’s work as an Official Chaplain to the Forces, last November, gave some account of his labours, and Rev. A. Sutherland, Ullapool, who has been acting in this capacity for a year up to the present at Ripon, also gave an account of his work.
The Clerk next read a communication which he had received last August from the Rev. Prof. J. K. Cameron as Clerk to the Free Church Commission. It consisted of an Extract Minute in which it was stated that a Petition from certain members of the Commission was granted by said Court, to the effect that “the Commission initiate procedure with a view to negotiations being entered upon with the Free Presbyterian Church of Scotland in order to secure, if possible, co-operation or union between that Church and the Free Church.” The Minute bore that one member (Mr. D. M. Smith) dissented for the reason “that it was
not competent for the Commission to deal with the Petition in accordance with the terms of the Commission’s appointment.” The Minute further stated that the Commission agreed to “appoint a Committee to confer with any Committee which may be appointed by the Free Presbyterian Church on all matters that may at present be regarded as obstacles to co-operation or union between these Churches, and to report from time to time to the General Assembly or its Commission.” The conclusion of the Minute consisted in the names of ministers and elders appointed to form the Committee:—Rev. E. Macleod, Dornoch; Rev. F. Macrae, Plockton; Rev. J. Macdonald, Rosskeen; Rev. D. Munro, Ferintosh; Rev. D. Maclean, Edinburgh; Major R. Greig, Edinburgh; and Mr. A. Macneillage, Glasgow; Rev. D. Maclean to be Convener.
Rev. Neil Cameron rose and moved the following resolution on the subject:—
“The Synod of the Free Presbyterian Church of Scotland respectfully acknowledges receipt of a communication from the Free Church Commission of August, 1916, intimating that a Committee had been appointed to confer with representatives of the Free Presbyterian Church as to the removal of obstacles which may stand in the way of union between the two Churches.
“The Synod, while not definitely committing itself to the opinion that the Free Church Commission acted wholly within its powers in originating this movement, desires to draw the attention of all concerned to the following statement of the Synod’s position and of some of the outstanding differences between the two bodies.
“The Synod, while recognising the obligation that lies on Christian denominations to seek union in the truth, considers that meanwhile it would be futile to appoint a Committee to meet with the Free Church Committee, and is of opinion that the interests of the case are best served by a statement of differences as follows:—
“(1) The Free Church has never explicitly condemned the views advocated by Dr. W. M. Alexander, one of her professors, in a book named ‘Demonic Possession,’ views destructive of the inspiration and inerrancy of the holy Scriptures, nor has she called upon Dr. Alexander to state publicly in distinct and unequivocal terms that he repudiates the book and sincerely regrets the anti-scriptural opinions expressed therein, and by her unfaithfulness in this respect, has called in question her own loyalty to the doctrine of the Scriptures as the infallible Word of God. (2) The Free Church, in an Act of 1905, rescinding the Declaratory Act of 1892, inserted a clause in the preamble of the said rescinding Act, namely, ‘as she has always adhered,’ which bears the construction that the Free Church in her corporate capacity had always adhered to the Confession of Faith and other subordinate standards as adopted by the Free Church in 1846, and which clause may be reasonably construed as a censure of the
position of the Free Presbyterian Church relative to the Declaratory Act of 1892, the said Act having been the overt ground of its taking up a separate position in 1893. The representatives of the Free Presbyterian Church have always maintained that the adoption by the Free Church in 1892 of this Declaratory Act was a serious departure by said Church from the Confession of Faith and other subordinate standards. The present Free Church, by the clause referred to, has raised a standing barrier between her and the Free Presbyterian Church. (3) The Free Church, since 1900, has thrown open the door of admission to her ministry very indiscriminately to men out of a great variety of Churches, and this latitudinarianism has also raised a barrier between her and the Free Presbyterian Church. (4) The Free Church has been lax in her general discipline and practice, and differs from the Free Presbyterian Church in such matters as Church Bazaars and Sales of Work, Church Soirees and Social Meetings, Prayers at the Grave, and to mention a particular case of discipline, the failure on the part of her Assembly to remove a Popish symbol from one of her Church Buildings.
“The Synod, in adopting this statement, declares that it does so with a sincere desire for the glory of Christ the Head of the Church, the integrity of His Word both in profession and practice, a clear testimony for the truth as embodied in the Confession of Faith and other subordinate standards, and the general welfare of Christ’s cause in Scotland and throughout the world.
“The Synod instructs its Clerk to forward a copy of this statement to the Clerk of the General Assembly of the Free Church.”
Mr. Cameron then spoke to the several points of the Resolution, and moved its adoption. Rev. D. Macfarlane, Dingwall (who left the chair for the purpose), seconded the motion in a short speech.
Thereafter, Rev. J. R. Mackay, Inverness, moved the adoption of another motion, which was as follows:—
“The Synod acknowledge receipt of Resolution of the Free Church Commission of General Assembly, intimating the appointment of a Committee by said Commission to confer with any Committee which may be appointed by the Free Presbyterian Church on all matters that may at present be regarded as obstacles to co-operation or union between the two Churches.
“The Synod, while recognising the obligation that lies on Christian denominations, occupying the same field, and owning the same scriptural creed, to endeavour to walk in the utmost Christian amity, conclude, in no spirit of prejudice and in no opposition to the end desiderated in the said Resolution on a clearly defined scriptural basis, that meanwhile it would be futile to appoint a Committee to meet, with the Free Church Committee, until:
“(1) The Free Church owns that Dr. Alexander’s book, ‘Demonic Possession,’ is heretical, and calls upon Dr. Alexander to state in distinct and unequivocal terms that he both repudiates
the book, and genuinely regrets the unscriptural sentiments expressed therein. (2) The Free Church acknowledges that the Declaratory Act of 1892 was de facto law in 1893, and deletes the words, ‘as she has always adhered,’ occurring in the preamble to the Act rescinding the Declaratory Act, for the reason that the said words are open to an indefinite interpretation, and they are capable of being construed as a censure of the position of this Church, relative to said Act; or otherwise take means to perfectly neutralise the effect of the said words by what may be accepted as the equivalent of their deletion, in so far as the words in question may constructively amount to a condemnation of the Free Presbyterian action in 1893. (3) The Free Church expresses her willingness to homologate Deliverances passed by this Synod on such matters as, The Bible and the Higher Criticism; Creed Subscription; Prayers at the Grave; Church Bazaars; and Church Soirees, copies of which are herewith supplied.
“The Synod, in agreeing to the terms of the foregoing Reply, supremely view the glory of the ever-living Head of the Church, the integrity of His Word, both in profession and practice, the necessity of maintaining a clear testimony for the truth as embodied in the Confession of Faith, and other subordinate standards, and the general welfare of Christ’s cause at home and abroad; and they forward it in the most respectful and courteous spirit.”
After Mr. Mackay had spoken in support of his motion, Rev. Alexander Macrae, Portree, seconded the same. (The speeches of movers and seconders will (d.v.) be published in next issue.) Revs. D. Beaton, Neil Macintyre, Ewen Macqueen, and A. Mackay spoken in favour of the first motion, while Rev. A. Sutherland, and Mr. D. Fraser, elder, spoke in favour of the second. The Moderator (Rev. D. Macfarlane) then put the motions to the Synod, with the following results:—For Rev. Neil Cameron’s motion—Revs. Neil Macintyre, Ewen Macqueen, D. Beaton, Donald Graham, Alexander Mackay, D. A. Macfarlane, Neil Cameron, and J. S. Sinclair, ministers; with Messrs. J. Macdonald, Gairloch; M. Urquhart, Dingwall; Charles Maclean, Inverness; M. Campbell, Oban; A. Mackenzie, Stornoway, elders—13. For Rev. J. R. Mackay’s motion—Revs. Alexander Macrae, Andrew Sutherland, and J. R. Mackay, ministers; with Mr. D. Fraser, St. Jude’s, elder—4. Mr. F. Macdonald, elder, Shieldaig, did not vote for either motion. The Moderator, Rev. D. Macfarlane (who was precluded from voting by his position as Moderator), declared that Mr. Cameron’s resolution was the finding of the Synod. After the decision was announced, Rev. J. R. Mackay said he had neither the intention of leaving the Church, nor recording his dissent. He had simply taken the best way he had thought fit of expressing his mind. The sederunt was closed about 12 a.m., with praise in the 122nd Psalm, and prayer.
The fourth and last sederunt was held on Thursday the 24th
May, at 10.30 a.m. At this sitting, the Church Magazine Report was read and adopted. Several “Remits from Presbyteries” were considered, and Committees were appointed to deal with various subjects which came under the head of “Competent Business.”
It was agreed, on the motion of the Rev. J. R. Mackay, to meet again (God willing) in Inverness, on Tuesday after the third Sabbath of May, 1918. The Synod was closed with singing the last three verses of the 72nd Psalm, and prayer.
The Fourth Commandment.
A SERMON PREACHED BY THE REV. D. MACFARLANE IN THE
FREE PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH, DINGWALL.*
“Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy. Six days shalt thou labour and do all thy work. But the seventh day is the Sabbath of the Lord thy God: in it thou shalt not do any work, thou, nor thy son, nor thy daughter, thy manservant, nor thy maidservant, nor thy cattle, nor thy stranger that is within thy gates. For in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is, and rested the seventh day: wherefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day, and hallowed it.”—EXODUS xx. 8-11.
IN this chapter we have an account of the giving of the law by God at Mount Sinai. The thunderings and the lightnings, and the noise of the trumpet, and the mountain on fire, which attended the giving of the law, indicated the holiness of God and the dreadful judgments that would befall the transgressors of the law. Although the ceremonial law was abolished at the death of Christ, the moral law is of perpetual obligation—binding on men to the end of time. The moral law was not given as a covenant of works but as a rule of life.
The Fourth Commandment is in the very heart of the moral law, and is as binding as the other commandments. God knew that men would be apt to forget to keep the Sabbath day holy, and therefore He says, “Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy.” There were two ordinances instituted by God at the creation of man—the Sabbath and marriage—to be continued to the end of time. It would be as unreasonable to abolish the ordinance of the Sabbath as to abolish the ordinance of marriage. The question concerning observing the sanctity of the Sabbath is not to be decided by the opinions of men, but by the Word of God. When the people of Israel were in Egypt it is not likely that the Sabbath was generally observed by them, but we think that the Lord’s people among them observed it as much as they could; but when they were brought out of Egypt the Sabbath was
* This discourse is reprinted from a Dingwall paper, the North Star.
revived, and the keeping of it holy was inculcated by the Lord of the Sabbath. This was done when the manna was given to the people in the wilderness. God forbade the people to go out to gather the manna on the Sabbath day; but there were rebels then as now who went out to gather it, but they found none, and God expressed His displeasure at them for their disobedience to His command. There was no excuse for their going out on Sabbath to gather the manna, for the Giver of it gave them a double supply on Saturday.
The Sabbath is the day of rest from our worldly employments and recreations that are lawful on other days. By “recreations” is meant not sinful recreations, but such as are necessary for the body. How is the Sabbath to be sanctified? The Shorter Catechism, which is founded upon the Word of God, supplies the answer—”The Sabbath is to be sanctified by a holy resting all that day, even from such worldly employments and recreations as are lawful on other days; and spending the whole time in the public and private exercises of God’s worship, except so much as is to be taken up in the works of necessity and mercy.” The whole of the Sabbath day, from beginning to end, is to be spent in the exercise of public and private worship of God. The only works allowable on that day are works of necessity and mercy. If your house were on fire, it would be a work of necessity and a duty to do your utmost to extinguish the fire; and as for works of mercy, Christ healed the sick on the Sabbath day, and it is a work of mercy for doctors to attend the sick on that day. But many make a work of necessity of many things they do on the Lord’s Day which are not works of necessity at all. There was a young girl from the West Highlands on service in a family in the South. Her work was to nurse the children. On a Sabbath, when putting on the boots on one of the children, a button on the boot came off. Her mistress asked her to sew on the button, and she asked her mistress—”Have you the Fourth Commandment?” and refused to sew the button on the Lord’s Day. The master of the house heard the conversation, and clapped the girl on the shoulder for the stand she had made for the Sabbath. It would be a good thing if there were in our day many servant girls like that. With the exception of works of necessity and mercy, the only work that is lawful on the Sabbath is the worshipping of God in public and private. If you were to examine the conduct of those who advocate ploughing on Sabbath, it is very likely that you would find that they do not worship God in their families daily. It is to be borne in mind that there are two classes of people in every age—God’s friends and His enemies—and while the former obey His commandments, the latter manifest their enmity by trampling upon His commandments, and are excusing themselves in their rebellion against divine authority. In the Fourth Commandment there are reasons given for keeping the Sabbath day holy.
(1) God gives us six days for our own work, but the seventh is not ours, but His; and to do our own work on the day that is not ours, but His, is a stealing—a sacrilege. So that it may be said that Sabbath-breakers are spiritual thieves. There was a godly catechist in Skye, named Donald Macqueen, who on his way to church on a certain Sabbath met boys playing. The catechist was a wise man, and took a wise way of rebuking the Sabbath-breakers. When he came where they were he sat down and said to the boys that he would tell them a story. The boys, as all boys are, were delighted to listen to the story. The catechist said that there was once a man on a journey who had £7 in his pocket. Robbers met him on the way and demanded his purse. He said to them—”I have seven pounds in my purse, and I will give you six, but I need the seventh myself.” But the robbers would not be satisfied with the six pounds, and demanded the seventh also, or they would have his life. The catechist asked the boys—”What do you think of the robbers?” They answered that they were most cruel and wicked. The catechist said to them—”You are the robbers. God gave you six days for your worldly work, and you may play on these days, but you rob God of the seventh.” The boys went home and henceforth gave up playing on the Lord’s Day.
(2) The second reason is that God rested on the seventh day, and hallowed it, or set it apart for His own worship. The seventh day was to be kept holy, in commemoration of His finishing the work of creation, as the Christian Sabbath is to be kept holy in commemoration of the finishing of a greater work—that of redemption by Christ; so that we have a greater reason for keeping the Christian Sabbath holy than there was for keeping holy the seventh-day Sabbath. Those who desecrate the Christian Sabbath despise and hate Christ our Redeemer. The keeping of His commandments is a mark given by Himself of those who love Him. He said, “If ye love Me, keep My commandments.”
There are many forms of Sabbath-breaking in our day, such as the running of trains on the Lord’s Day; but railway companies who are guilty of this sin lose by accidents and disasters what they gain on the day that is not theirs, and it is clear to any unbiased observer that God manifests His displeasure at them in this way. It has been observed by some that Sabbath-breakers do not prosper in their business in the world as those who observe the sanctity of that day. Another form of Sabbath-breaking, which is very common in this age, is the taking of long walks on the Sabbath after having been at church, and in this way bidding defiance to God. Members, and even office-bearers, in some churches are guilty of this sin, and in this way show that their profession of religion is a mere sham.
There is a new form of Sabbath-breaking threatening to appear in our midst which was not heard of in the past, at least in Scotland, and especially in the Highlands. I mean the proposal to
begin ploughing on the Lord’s Day, but this proposal is made by the enemies of God, His people, and cause in the world. This is lamentable when we are in the midst of a terrible war, which is evidently a judgment by the Most High on our nation and other nations for our sins, and among other sins that of Sabbath-breaking. It would be expected that when God’s judgments are abroad in the earth, the inhabitants of the world would learn righteousness; but instead of that we as a nation are getting more hardened and more wicked. It is not by sinning against God that we can expect victory over our enemies, for so long as we continue in that evil course, it is not only the Germans and their allies that fight against us, but God Himself is fighting against us, and will continue to do so till we are brought to repentance and reformation. It is not by sinning against God that we are to get plenty of the fruits of the earth, but by obeying Him. God brought famine upon people in the past for their iniquities, and especially for their Sabbath-breaking. He punished the Israelites for Sabbath-desecration by giving them over to the hands of their enemies, who brought them into captivity, and during their long absence from their own land, the land enjoyed her Sabbaths. God is the same holy God still, and as He punished the Israelites for their sins, He is now punishing us as a nation. Some quote Scripture in support of Sabbath-breaking—”The Sabbath was made for man, and not man for the Sabbath.” It was not to break the Sabbath, but to keep it holy that the Sabbath was made for man. The Eighth Commandment, which forbids stealing, was made for man, not to give him licence to steal, but to prevent him from that sin. The law of our country was made for its subjects, but anyone that transgresses that law shall be punished according to the degree of his offence.
Who are addressed in the Fourth Commandment?
(1) The individual—”Thou.” The individual is bound to keep the Sabbath day holy, and shall be responsible at the day of judgment for his conduct on that holy day.
(2) The family.—”Thou and thy son and thy daughter.” The head of the family is bound by this commandment to see to it, not only that he himself keeps the Sabbath day holy, but also that all the members of his family keep it holy too.
(3) The master who has servants in his employment is also addressed—”Thy manservant and thy maidservant.” There are many masters who do not keep the Sabbath day holy, and who never command their servants to keep it holy. Not only are servants not to be employed in doing their own worldly work, but their cattle are not to work on that day. Horses are not to be used in ploughing on the Sabbath, nor is an instrument propelled by motor power to be used either.
(4) The magistrate of a town or city is addressed. This we infer from the mention of “gates.” The Town Council are bound to see to it, so far as they can, that those whom they represent
should keep the Sabbath day holy. It is deplorable that there are Provosts in Scotland who advocate ploughing on the Lord’s Day, but we are thankful that the Provost of the town of Dingwall is strongly opposed to this innovation.
(5) The King is addressed. He is bound by this Commandment, not only to keep the Sabbath day holy himself, but to do his utmost, by precept and example, to see that his subjects keep it holy too. This was done by godly kings in the past, and if there were godly kings now, it would be done in our day. As we mentioned magistrates, we may refer to the godly Nehemiah, who was a magistrate, and who put a stop to Sabbath-breaking within his gates, as we have recorded in his book at the 13th chapter, 19, 21—”And it came to pass that when the gates of Jerusalem began to be dark before the Sabbath, I commanded that the gates should be shut, and charged that they should not be opened till after the Sabbath, and some of my servants set I at the gates, that there should be no burden brought in on the Sabbath day. So the merchants and sellers of all kinds of ware lodged without Jerusalem once or twice. Then I testified against them, and said unto them, Why lodge ye about the wall? If ye do so again I will lay hands on you. From that time forth came they no more on the Sabbath.”
In the 56th chapter of Isaiah there are promises of blessings given to those who keep the Sabbath day holy—”Blessed is the man that doeth this and the son of man that layeth hold on it; that keepeth the Sabbath from polluting it, and keepeth his hand from doing any evil.” “If thou turn away thy foot from the Sabbath, from doing thy pleasure on my holy day; and call the Sabbath a delight, the holy of the Lord, honourable; and shalt honour him, not doing thine own ways, nor finding thine own pleasure, nor speaking thine own words; then shalt thou delight thyself in the Lord; and I will cause thee to ride upon the high places of the earth, and feed thee with the heritage of Jacob thy father; for the mouth of the Lord hath spoken it.” Again, anyone who reads the twenty-sixth chapter of Leviticus, where promises of blessing for obedience and curses and penalties for disobedience are most plainly stated in reference to the Sabbath law as well as other commandments, will find the most solemn encouragements and warnings that should make the stouthearted to consider and turn.
Let us take to heart what has been said on this important subject, as individuals, families, communities, and nation, and act up to the command given in our text. This is the way to prosper spiritually and temporally. Then we shall be like the blessed man spoken of in the First Psalm—”He shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that bringeth forth his fruit in his season; his leaf also shall not wither; and whatsoever he doeth shall prosper. The ungodly are not so: but are like the chaff which the wind driveth away” (verses 3, 4). Sabbath-breakers are like
the chaff, and shall be burnt in the fire of God’s wrath unless they repent of their evil ways. It is the duty of ministers who profess to seek the welfare of immortal souls to keep the Sabbath holy themselves and to warn their congregations to do this also. Christ’s ministers do this, but Satan’s ministers neglect to do their duty in this respect. Some are asking when will this war in which we are involved come to an end. I am not a prophet, but I can tell from God’s Word that it shall not come to an end till we begin to hearken to and obey the Word of the Lord. “Oh, that my people had hearkened unto me, and Israel had walked in my ways! I should soon have subdued their enemies, and turned my hand against their adversaries. The haters of the Lord should have submitted themselves unto him: but their time should have endured for ever. He should have fed them also with the finest of the wheat: and with honey out of the rock should I have satisfied thee” (Psalm lxxxi., 13, 16). If we were brought to obedience to the Word of the Lord, not only would the war come to an end but He would give us the victory over our enemies and supply us with all good things, spiritually and temporally. Those who advocate ploughing on Sabbath think that it is by disobeying the Word of the Lord they shall have plenty of the fruits of the earth, but they shall be sorely disappointed, as they deserve. There were some men who were hanged for murder, and they confessed before their death that their wicked career began by Sabbath-breaking. This should be a warning to others who are transgressing God’s Commandments. Every sin you commit without repentance hardens your heart and blunts your conscience, so that at last it is seared, so that you can sin more easily. But your conscience will awaken at death and assert its power as a witness for God within you, and without repentance you will find it as a worm that dieth not in condemning you for ever and ever. Ah, Sabbath-breaker, take warning, turn from your evil ways in a day of mercy and all your sins shall be forgiven. “Let the wicked forsake his ways and the unrighteous man his thoughts: and let him return unto the Lord, and he will have mercy upon him, and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon” (Isaiah lv. 7.) Amen.
DEATH is, as I may call it, the feller, the cutter down. Death is that that puts a stop to a further living here, and that which lays man where judgment finds him. If he is in the faith in Jesus, it lays him down there to sleep till the Lord comes; if he be not in the faith, it lays him down in his sins till the Lord comes. Death is God’s sergeant, God’s bailiff, and he arrests in God’s name when he comes, but seldom gives warning before he clappeth us on the shoulder; and when he arrests us, though he may stay a little while and give us leave to pant, and tumble, and toss ourselves for a while upon a bed of languishing, yet at last he will prick our bladder and let out our life and then our soul will be poured upon the ground, yea, into hell, if we are not ready and prepared for the life everlasting.—J. Bunyan.
Report from Rev. J. B. Radasi,
FREE PRESBYTERIAN MISSION, MATABELELAND.
THE following Report was read by the Rev. Neil Cameron, Convener of the Foreign Mission Committee, at the third sederunt of the Meeting of Synod, on 23rd May, 1917:—
C/O NATIVE COMMISSIONER, BEMBESI,
MATABELELAND, SOUTH AFRICA, 19th March, 1917.
MY DEAR MR. CAMERON,—I was very glad to get your kind letter, and was very pleased to hear that you and the people at home are always remembering us in your prayers. We greatly need the prayers of the Lord’s people. May the Lord hasten the time when Ethiopia will stretch out her hands to God!
I am sorry to say that Kiwa Mhlahlo is not able to return to Lovedale; his chest trouble has not left him. He is sometimes better; then his trouble returns again, and he is laid up. I understand from his people that this chest trouble is an old trouble of his, and has grown up with him. I fear that, if that be the case, the climate of the Cape Colony will not agree with him, as it is much colder there than what it is here. I would suggest that another boy be appointed to go to Lovedale in his stead. We have here a promising youth, named Paul Hlazo, who is in the 4th Standard, whom I think could go at the beginning of next year, if the Synod is willing, and we are still spared to see that time. We are only allowed to teach as far as the 4th Standard here. Those who wish to qualify as teachers must go to one of these native institutions in the Cape Colony to be trained. Kiwa is still teaching at his home, Chief Mhlahlo’s Kraal, at Induba. The native language only is taught in these outside schools, and he is well qualified to teach it.
It is only here where English, as well as Kafir is taught, as students would not be accepted in these native institutions, like Lovedale and others, unless they had some little knowledge of English. That is why here we have to teach them English, as well as the native language. We prepare those who would like to carry their studies further to these institutions to be trained as teachers. But many of the older boys and girls only qualify for the Kafir language, as they do not stay long enough so as to be able to learn the English language. They only stay long enough so as to be able to receive their Kafir Bibles, and then leave school, and so a great number have received their Kafir Bibles, and have left from time to time. To those who have not yet been able to read their Bibles, I give Bible lessons. Bibles are only given to those scholars who can read correctly and fluently. Standard I. scholars have also qualified for the Bible since the Inspector was here last year, and they also have been given passages of Scripture to commit to memory for recitation. Some
of the Psalms and some of the chapters in the New Testament, the Ten Commandments, they had learnt before they could read.
We hear every now and then from our people who are in German East Africa. I am sorry to say that I saw in the papers that some of them were wounded—some severely, others slightly. I have not noticed in the papers any killed yet belonging to our different congregations, besides those wounded. They wish us to remember them in our prayers. I also saw a very good report of them in the papers by their European officers. They are still recruiting here to go and fill up the places of those who are dead and wounded. We miss some of our men who are gone to the front, and others who have been forced to seek employment out of this district, on account of the drought, and the failure of the crops this year too. The rains that we have had have come too late to save most of the crops, and the prices of things have gone up so high on account of the War in this already expensive country. Some of these men were a great help to us in preaching to these outside stations, offering their services free of charge. Whenever I have an opportunity I visit these outstations and preach to the people. There is usually a very good attendance when I am there, as I usually notify them beforehand when I am to be there, and they seem to listen very attentively to everything said. May the Lord by His Spirit apply the Word with power to their hearts and consciences!
We have recently lost through death a very old man in our congregation at Sibindwana’s Kraal. He used to say he knew Mzilikazi, King Lobengula’s father, very well, and that he was a young man during Mzilikazi’s reign. He and his wife were converted about two years ago, and attended regularly our church at Sibindwana’s Kraal. He used to say, “I am sorry I have no little boy to look after the goats that I have. My children are all grown up and married, and I am only living with my wife alone, or else we would be going together to church every Sabbath. We like to listen to the Word of God. But this is what we do. I mind the goats one Sabbath and she goes to church, and then she minds the goats the next Sabbath, and I go to church. And so we change about like that.” His wife was telling me that she had never seen such a peculiar death-bed scene as her husband’s. She said that the day that he died he seemed to have been fighting with enemies which nobody could see. She said these enemies would appear and then you would see his face turn, looking sad, and then you would see him driving them away with his hand. Then others again would appear, and you would see a happy smile on his face, and then he would be beckoning them to come with his hand. These would disappear again, and the others return, and then you would see his face turning sad again, and he would be driving them away with his hand. Then those others would appear again, and then you would see the joy and smile on his face, and he would beckon them to come with his hand.
She said, “This went on nearly the whole day. At last he cried out to the enemies, ‘I do not belong to you any more; I belong to the Lord.’ As soon as he had said that, they went away, and never returned again, and then the others came, and I saw the happy smile on his face again, and after that he never spoke again until he died. He had already lost the power of speech, and I was surprised when he spoke those words.”
This aged woman now related to me how she first became anxious about her soul. She said: “I was a very careless and godless woman, and hated going to church and the people who went there. But one night when I was asleep I dreamed as if I saw a white cloud reaching from heaven to earth, and one stood inside the cloud, wrapped with a beautiful white gown. This person spoke to me, and told me everything that I had committed and what a wicked woman I was, and asked me where did I expect to go when I died, as I had never opened my mouth in prayer, and said that though there was a big tree not very far from my house, yet I never went under it to pray. This dream,” she went on, “alarmed me greatly. I realised that what the man said was true, as he knew all about my sins, and also secret sins that nobody else knew but myself. But I only wondered how ‘the man’ knew so well about my sins. After that dream I felt very miserable. My sins troubled me. I could not rest, day and night. I tried to forsake my sins, but found it hard to do so. I prayed under that tree ‘the man’ showed me, but still I felt miserable. I decided to go to church now, but my going to church made me feel more miserable than ever; yet I made up my mind to go, and used to listen very attentively to the Word read and to the preaching, but I found no peace. I despaired now, and saw that there was no hope for me—nothing but hell for my sins—and I felt I deserved it, as I could not deny my sins, as they stood before me night and day. I fully realised that I was guilty and lost, and could do nothing to change my condition. I remained for a long time in that awful and miserable condition. Whilst in that terrible state of fear, these words, read from the Word of God, gave me relief: ‘This is a faithful saying, and worthy of all acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, of whom I am chief.’ I reasoned thus in my mind: if Christ came to save even the chief of sinners, I am that, and there is hope for me too. And then I felt glad and happy.”
These natives, who cannot read, have a very good memory. I must now conclude.—With kindest regards, yours sincerely,
J. B. RADASI.
THE eminent John Newton, when his memory was nearly gone, used to say, that, forget what he might, he never forgot two things—”1. That he was a great sinner. 2. That Jesus Christ was a great Saviour.”