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Some Interesting Letters
EVIL SPIRITS
AND THE EDITOR'S COMMENT
DEAR BROTHER IN CHRIST:--
Greetings in the name of our dear Redeemer and
King. I take this opportunity of reporting to you what, to my mind, is a most
remarkable manifestation of the fallen angels.
Some six weeks ago I started to do some
Extension work in a private way, there being no class here.
Much interest was aroused, and four symbolized
their consecration. Among these was a young man, Brother J. He grew rapidly,
and gave all the evidences of begetting of the Holy Spirit.
One day he asked Brother B. if he had ever been
bothered by the fallen angels. Brother B. said no; he never gave them an
occasion, and asked Brother J. if he had ever been troubled. [R5354 : page 350] He said no; but thought he
had seen something at his window, remarking that he had not been to the Lord
with the matter.
That evening the friends were to have a
testimony meeting at Brother B.'s house. Brother B. invited Brother J. to have
supper with him. He did so. In the meantime they went out to do some chores,
and while they were out Brother J.'s father came in and told those in the house
that his son was going crazy. Brother J. went in and soon after was told what
his father had said. He went back to Brother B. and told him about it. Then he
stepped away out of sight to pray. When he came back he said it was all right.
The two then returned to the house, and Brother
J. asked them if they thought they had ever had a trial. They said, Yes. He
told them they had had no trial. He stepped away and lifted his hand as if to
pray and said, "Listen!" Then he came back to them and said that they
should not worry, everything was all right.
They then went to supper and Brother J. was
asked to invoke the blessing. He had no more than finished when he jumped from
the table and began to bounce over the room and scatter the furniture and to
talk in an unknown tongue. This lasted about two minutes and then it
left him. He said, "Isn't this awful? they are trying to break down the
Truth." All suggested that they pray, and did so, Brother J. joining in.
But he broke right out again.
When he is rational he says that it is the fallen
angels; but his people think him crazy. He warned his wife against the evil
spirits and said that they were very cunning, and he could not resist doing the
things they told him to do. He remembers all he has done, but is in a stupor
much of the time.
The whole country is worked up, and people have
suddenly become very bitter against the Truth. Do you think this might be
permitted more extensively, thus bringing reproach upon the Truth and the
Lord's people?
Should you have any suggestions to make, we
would be very pleased to hear from you.
Your brother by His grace, BEN H. BOYD.
THE EDITOR'S
REPLY
DEAR BROTHER:--
Your letter is before me. The case you relate is
a sad one. I fully agree with you that Satan and all the fallen angels would be
specially desirous of gaining an influence over those who espouse the cause of
Present Truth. In proportion as we have the Truth and present it, we are their
enemies, even as they are the enemies of the Lord and of the Truth. The only
safe course for anybody, and especially anybody accepting Present Truth, is to
follow the suggestions of the Vow. Whoever recognizes that there are only two
masters--Christ and Satan--should resolve to have nothing whatever to do with
anything that is of Satan.
Such should be as speedily as possible informed
respecting the fallen angels and their constant endeavor to misrepresent the
Truth and to injure humanity--especially the "children of [R5355 : page 350] the light." They should
be shown that all occult, spiritual influences are evil; that the holy angels
indeed have a charge concerning the saints, but not to give them instruction of any kind. The Bible most explicitly declares that the Word of God is
sufficient that the man of God may be thoroughly furnished. (2 Tim. 3:16,17.) We are not therefore to expect
visions or revelations or any kind of communications from the Lord or the holy
angels. We are to conclude that all such attempts to communicate with us are of
the Adversary and to shun them accordingly.
In the instance you mention, Brother J.
evidently yielded his will to some extent; else he would not have been
entrapped. While obedient to the Lord, we are entirely safe--then the evil
spirits cannot do us injury. "The wicked one toucheth him not." But
the slightest yielding of the will, as through curiosity, is dangerous,
as those in insane asylums demonstrate. It is estimated that fully one-half of
all those in insane asylums have no functional brain disorder, but are merely
possessed of evil spirits.
In a case like that of Brother J. no time should
be lost in doing everything possible for him. A brother who is in close
fellowship with the Lord should be for a time his constant companion,
continually stimulating him to courage in the exercise of his will in resisting
the evil angels and in joining with him in prayer. If in spite of all these
assistances the evil spirits still get him under their control, we advise that
said companion exorcise the evil spirit in the name of the Lord--saying,
"In the name of the Lord Jesus Christ I command the evil spirit to depart
from him and to enter him no more."
Please read this letter to the brother and
assure him of my sympathy.
"THE
TOWER" GROWS DEEPER AND SWEETER
DEARLY BELOVED BROTHER RUSSELL:--
The July 15th issue of THE WATCH TOWER has come
to hand, and as usual it is full of helpfulness. I am unceasingly and
increasingly thankful to the dear Father in heaven for the wonderful manner in
which He has put His blessing upon you as you have sought to serve His flock
through the pages of that precious journal. I count it a privilege to confess
both privately and publicly that if I am one of those so favored as to be a
sharer in the glory of the Kingdom, as I hope to be, the grace of God will have
brought me there in large measure through the edifying influence of the
articles in THE TOWER.
THE TOWER grows grander and its messages deeper
and sweeter. As the Lord makes me to grow in grace in spite of all those
infirmities in my flesh which would hold me back, the uplift each succeeding
number of THE TOWER gives me becomes more and more apparent, and my prayers are
multiplied for you in your labor of love. We appreciate it, dear Brother, and
better still the Lord appreciates it, too.
In the current number of THE WATCH TOWER you
quote some views which Prof. Flinders Petrie has given expression to, and I
feared that some might infer that you wished to give emphatic endorsement to
the Professor's ideas. My first impression was that this was a wonderful truth,
but when I went to compare it with the Bible the erroneousness of it was
readily apparent. However, I know that you are too busily engaged to find time
to look thoroughly into the many matters of secondary importance brought
to your attention, and in addition it would be natural that in a thing of this
kind we would suppose that Prof. Petrie would have gone carefully over it
before putting forth such a theory. But I fear that he gave his views without
sufficient study.
The extract from the July TOWER,
page 216, is as follows:
"Prof. Flinders Petrie calls attention to
the fact that the Hebrew word alaf is used in the Scriptures sometimes
to mean a thousand, and at other times to signify a group, families, or tents,
very much in the same way that we use the word regiment, as signifying a group
of a thousand men, yet often far less in number, especially after a battle.
Thus understood, the record, 'Judah
74,600,' would read, 'Judah,
seventy-four families, or tents, with six hundred men in all'; 'so they set
forward, every one after their families, according to the house of their
fathers.'--Num. 2:34."
Now it is true that the Hebrew word for a
thousand is also sometimes used to signify a family or tribe, but it would be
impossible to give it that application in the Pentateuch for the following
reasons:
In the second chapter of Numbers we have the
number of each of the twelve tribes given, but there is also given the sum of
the numbers of the three tribes on each side of the tabernacle. If you figure
up these statements it will be found that they are figured on the basis of
thousands. The following table will illustrate it:
Tribe.
Thousands. Hundreds.
Numbers 2:18,19. Ephraim.................. 40
500
Numbers 2:20,21. Manasseh................. 32
200
Numbers 2:22,23. Benjamin................. 35
400
-------
Numbers 2:24.
Total........................108,100
But according to Professor Petrie the total
ought to be 107 families of 1,100 persons.
Another passage will serve to further illustrate
it, viz., Num. 3:42-51. Here we are told that
the number of the first-born are twenty-two thousand two hundred and
seventy-three. Now it seems incredible that all the first-born were gathered
together into twenty-two families; they must have been scattered all through
the host of Israel.
Then verses 46-50indicate that there were 273 more first-born
than Levites, but according to the interpretation of Prof. Flinders Petrie, 273
would be the whole number of the Israelites.
Other examples of this inconsistency are
plentiful in the book of Numbers, but I believe these will suffice.
Please consider this not in the nature of an
attempt at criticism, but merely as an humble effort to present facts which
your busy life may have prevented you from following up.
The Lord continues very good to me in assisting
me each day to glorify Him in the Pilgrim service. I realize that my efforts
are very imperfect, but they are nothing like what they would be if I attempted
this work in my own strength. Every day He is proving to me the faithfulness
with which He keeps the promise that all things will be supervised by Him to
our good, and that His grace will be sufficient.
With much Christian love, and wishing you many
spiritual joys even in the midst of your earthly trials, I remain,
Yours by His favor, BENJ. H. BARTON.
[page 351]
TIME SHORT
FOR CULTIVATION OF FRUITS
DEARLY BELOVED BROTHER RUSSELL:--
On my arrival here last evening, THE WATCH TOWER
for October 15, was received. A little later I read, with much interest, the
leading article: "Resume of the Ending of the Times of the
Gentiles."
The writer is very much interested in this
matter: (1) Because we are sure that we are right at the end of that period;
and (2) because so many of the friends are now, more than ever, discussing that
wonderful event--the termination of the "Times of the Gentiles."
It is only natural and reasonable that the
brethren should now be particularly interested in this question; for we are
very close to the fulfilment of the prophecies which relate to the ending of
that period and to the winding up of the present order of things.
Dear Brother, I wish to state here that your
advice to WATCH TOWER
readers in WATCH TOWER articles during the past two or
three years, not to lay too much stress on any particular date, but to give
special attention to character building, has had an excellent effect. Evidently
the friends are coming to realize more and more that to cultivate the fruits of
the Spirit is the principal thing; and that we need all the time
remaining for that purpose--whether it shall prove to be one year, or two
years, or less, or more.
And in the event of the Lord's having permitted
a slight mistake to be made, relative to the ending of the Gentile Times, or
even the time when the last member of the Church shall be glorified, I do not
think it would prove a stumbling-block to very many, if any, of the dear
friends who are in Present Truth; for like you and myself, they are laying
stress on their consecration to God for all Eternity--not to 1914 or to 1915.
Yours in His love, FRANK DRAPER.
----------
RESTITUTION
SOLDIER BUGS
DEAR BROTHER RUSSELL:--
We have some of the beginnings of Restitution on
our farm; and I thought that you might like to know about them.
We have a bug which destroys the potato bug, which has been such a pest of late years. This bug is called the soldier
bug, and is really a kind of beetle. I am sending you in this same mail a
specimen in a small box.
This "soldier bug" has red markings
about the head, and a red shield-shaped mark on its back. It has a sword-like
proboscis which it runs out, spears the potato bugs with, and sucks the juice
out of them. It comes to the house to winter. There were several of these bugs
on our potatoes this year. We had only a small patch, and we did not have to
put a bit of Paris-green on them.
We overheard, when traveling one day, a
conversation between two commercial travelers concerning this bug. The one said
that the other day he was in a store and a farmer came in. The store-keeper
asked him how many pounds of Paris-green he should need this year. "Oh,
not a pound," replied the farmer, "I have the soldier bugs at
my place." This same farmer, so the store-keeper said, had other years
taken several pounds of Paris-green. Surely, this is Restitution!
This soldier bug is found here and there
all through the country. It attacks the potato bug in both the larvae and the
full-grown state.
Your sister in Christ, BESSIE TATE.
----------
GARDEN
PEA-BEANS
DEAR BROTHER RUSSELL:--
Last spring a brother in the West sent me a
supply of pea-beans, assuring me "they are very good." I planted them
in rows similar to pea-planting and find they bloom and bear continuously from
early summer until cut by frost in the fall. We are still picking them for
table use at this date, October 14.
We have more seed than we need. Am sending you a
supply for such of THE TOWER readers as have garden space and may desire some
to plant next spring. Should they wish to pay the postage on as many as you
could apportion, that would, of course, be their privilege; I donate them.
I might state, the stalk resembles a bean stalk,
but within the long pods are peas, and suitable for cooking in the pods green,
or, after ripening, shelled. They are tender and taste unlike beans or peas. We
all like them. Until nearly ripe the pods are stringless or nearly so.
In Christian love, your brother and servant in
the Lord,
J. A. BOHNET.
W.T. R-5354a
: page 349 - 1913r