Modern Spiritualism: Briefily Tested by Scripture

Modern Spiritualism, like all systems of error, works to a large extent underground. Ample testimony makes it plain that it does not present itself at first in its true colors to the uninitiated. Once a dupe is caught in its toils, he is drawn farther and farther away from God.

Some are attracted to it through sheer curiosity. The love of the unknown allures them. believing it to be mere trickery, think they can detect the fraud, and inquire into it from mere curiosity, and so get entangled in the real thing. That there is trickery in it is certain; it is part of the skilful deceit of the system. To throw people off their guard is half the battle. Without this ability Modern Spiritualism would make slow progress.

Seeing that neither Satan nor his agents are omnipotent, omniscient or omnipresent, I believe trickery is necessary to cover lack of knowledge and other deficiencies. Hence darkened rooms, luminous material secreted within the tips of the medium's nails, grown long for the purpose, so that a shadowy appearance of materialization may be effected. It is well known that the innocent looking cabinets of the mediums often contain very clever devices for purposes of deception. But with full allowance for all this there are effects produced, which are beyond the power of trickery, and which can be attributed only to the influence of personating demons. Their powers, as those of their prince and lord, Satan, are limited. Hence the necessity for trickery-the necessity their limitations impose upon them. Added to this I would draw attention to the vagueness of replies given, which is only a cover for lack of knowledge.

Others again-and for this class we have genuine sympathy and pity-are drawn into it by the deep desire to fill the aching void the death of a loved one has made. Their hearts are bowed with grief, their cry is:- " Oh! for the touch of a vanished hand, And the sound of a voice that is still." Such are in a frame of mind too susceptible, alas! to the suggestion made by some friend (?) that it is possible for them to have intercourse with the spirit of their departed relative.

"Can I bring him back again?"

When David, after agonizing prayer to God for the life of Bathsheba's child, heard of his death, he asked the above question in the rhetorical sense of affirming a strong negative. "Now he is dead, wherefore should I fast? can I bring him back again? I shall go to him, BUT HE SHALL NOT RETURN TO ME " (2 Sam. 12:23). David evidently knew nothing of intercourse with the spirits of the departed.

Bible teaching is plain on this point. The spirit of the believer-a person is always identified with his spirit-goes at once to be forever with the Lord. "Absent from the body... present with the Lord" (2 Cor. 5:8), is the statement of Scripture. The spirit of the unbeliever is in hades, in torment awaiting the resurrection of the body and I the judgment at the great white throne, and the doom of the lake of fire for eternity (see Luke 16:19-23, and Rev. 20 I 1-15). Terrible prospect for every unsaved man and woman.

Scripture teaches no " larger hope "-no change in the intermediate state:-

" As the tree falls, so shall it be

All through the years of eternity."

Modern Spiritualism and the Bible

Modern Spiritualism utterly refuses the test of Scripture. Its antagonistic attitude towards the Bible is notorious.

A well-known spiritualistic author, writing under the nom de plume, "Oxford M.A.," says:- " So long as you reply to our arguments with a text, we cannot teach you. Any one who can so reply is beyond reach of reasonable teaching."

Evidently this writer, recognizing that the Bible condemns his position, would fight on the mock-heroic ground of first disarming his opponent of his only true weapon-the sword of the Spirit. Undermining faith in the Scriptures is a favorite tactic of Satan.

Another writer on Spiritualism says:- " To assert that it [the Bible] is a holy and divine book, that God inspired the writers to make known His divine will, is a gross outrage on, and misleading to, the public.... The truth is the Old Testament is neither more nor less than Jewish history.... The New Testament is made up of traditions and theological speculations by unknown persons. A book so full of errors... requires to be read with care." " Outlines," pp. 13, 14.

Language could not be plainer. The old Testament, only history; the New Testament, made up of traditions and theological speculations by unknown persons. Refusal of the Bible could not be more explicit.

The reader will scarce credit it, that immediately following the quotation just given, the Author of "Outlines" has a sub-heading, " The Bible not Opposed to Spiritualism." The effrontery of first condemning the Bible as unreliable and then quoting it for support is amazing.

Either the Bible is what it claims to be; inspired of God, or it is the wickedest book in the world. It is the pure truth of God, or the darkest error. It is either " worthy of all acceptation," or to be utterly and absolutely refused.

Modern Spiritualism Foretold

The rise and progress of Modern Spiritualism is clearly indicated in Holy Scripture:- " Now the Spirit speaketh expressly, that in the latter times some shall depart from the faith, giving heed to seducing spirits and doctrines of devils [lit. demons] speaking lies in hypocrisy; having their conscience seared with a hot iron: forbidding to marry, and commanding to abstain from meats, which God bath created to be received with thanksgiving of them which believe and know the truth" (1 Tim. 4:1-3) The gravity of the warning is emphasized by the way it is introduced, "Now the Spirit speaketh expressly."

Seducing Spirits

And yet, so crafty is the enemy, that the demons often advise the uninitiated to pray and to read, the Bible. While the immediate purpose of such advice is to gain the victims confidence for themselves, the ultimate object is to undermine faith in the Scripures. The demons giving such advice are well described as " seducing spirits," and their doctrines as "the doctrines of devils."

A gentleman, after much persuasion, attended a spiritualistic seance. The spirit through the medium advised him to give up smoking and drinking, to read his Bible, and pray. The advice was good, but the object in giving it was as wicked as could be. Thrown off his guard, it had its hoped-for effect. The gentleman put confidence in Spiritualism, and he became a regular attender. Little by little he was ensnared, until, under its advanced teaching, he was led to give up belief in the Bible. He became a confirmed infidel.

A lady, a Christian worker, was persuaded to attend a Spiritualistic meeting. She, too, was advised to read the Bible and pray. This led her to believe that the spirit of a Christian was speaking to her. When "the seducing spirits" had thus gained her confidence, they led her to question certain parts of the Bible as true. The result was that she became a complete infidel, going absolutely to the bad, not only spiritually but morally. "By their fruits ye shall know them."

In the temptation in the wilderness we see how Satan, the prince of the demons, quoted Scripture, leaving out an essential part of the quotation for his own evil purpose; and we see how a text of Scripture sufficed for his defeat. Scripture clearly indicates deceitfulness as his chief characteristic.

"We are not ignorant of his [Satan's] devices" (2 Cor. 2:11). " Satan himself is transformed into an angel of light... his ministers also... transformed as the ministers of righteousness; whose end shall be according to their works " (2 Cor. 11:14, 25).

The Bible Is Opposed to Spiritualism

Before quoting a few texts, so dreaded by "Oxford M.A." and his confreres, it would be well to clear the ground by stating that Spiritualists affirm their belief in God as Creator and Sustainer; deny that the Lord Jesus was and is divine; deny that His death was an atoning death: deny the existence of the Devil and demons.

They affirm their belief in the existence of an impersonal God, and of human beings, either incarnate-that is, in their human bodies in this world; or discarnate that is, disembodied in the spirit-world, as they term it. The system is simplicity itself. If there be no Devil, Spiritualism cannot be Satanic. If there be no demons, there can be no truth in the charge that the spirits that communicate with the living, claimed by them to be the spirits of departed friends, are in reality personating demons, or " seducing spirits." In short, if we are visited by discarnate friends, whom we did not fear when in their bodies, why should we fear them when they are without their bodies? Thus the way is cleared for Modern Spiritualism.

Under the heading of Biblical Spiritualism, if you please, the author of "Outlines " quotes a number of passages of Scripture in the vain endeavor to prove that the Bible is not opposed to Spiritualism. In every passage he quotes but one, we are given instances of angelic visitation. Mark well: in no instance does he quote the plain condemnations of Spiritualism the Bible contains. He completely ignores them. Is this honest? As he appeals to the Bible, to the Bible we are well content to turn. Let us quote a few scriptures for his benefit.

Old Testament Condemnation of Spiritualism

" They shall no more offer their sacrifices unto devils" (Lev. 17:7).

" And the soul that turneth after such as have familiar spirits, and after wizards, to go a whoring after them, I will even set My face against that soul, and will cut him off from among his people" (Lev. 20:6).

"Regard not them that have familiar spirits, neither seek after wizards, to be defiled by them" (Lev. 19:31).

"A man also, or woman that hath a familiar spirit, or that is a wizard, shall surely be put to death; they shall stone them with stores; their blood shall be upon them " (Lev. 20:27).

" There shall not be found among you any one that maketh his son or his daughter to pass through the fire, or that useth divination, or an observer of times, or an enchanter, or a witch, or a charmer, or a consulter with familiar spirits, or a wizard, or a necromancer" (Deut. 18:10),

" They sacrificed unto devils, not to God" (Deut. 32:17).

" Yea, they sacrificed... unto devils " (Psa. 106:37).

"And when they shall say unto you, Seek unto them that have familiar spirits, and unto wizards that peep and that mutter; should not a people seek unto their God? for the living to the dead? To the law and the testimony: if they speak not according to this word, it is because there is no light in them " (Isa. 8:19, 20).

From the foregoing we see in the Old Testament, that

1. Spiritualism is sternly forbidden by God.

2. It is defiling.

3. Its followers God would destroy.

4. Its mediums The People were commanded to stone to death.

5. It is no new thing. The serpent's form was assumed by Satan in the garden of Eden, and his myriads of demons have been busy at their work of deception ever since.

6. It is not an advance on Christianity, as some affirm, but a backward movement to the worst features of heathendom.

Isa. 8:19, 20, is especially conclusive and interesting, as plainly showing it is wrong for the living to seek the dead, rather than God Himself. Spiritualism is the setting aside of God Himself; hence morality, uprightness and every true principle.

New Testament Condemnation of Spiritualism

Let us now see what the New Testament says on the subject, weighing over the evidences as we proceed. " Then was Jesus led up of the Spirit in the wilderness to be tempted of the Devil" (Matt. 4:1).

This proves that there is a personal Devil. Indeed, only one person is called in Scripture the Devil, the Greek word meaning the accuser. Demon is really the correct description of the myriad fallen spirits who own Satan as their prince (see Matt. 12:24). The perusal of Matt. 4 I-II further proves Satan's knowledge of Scripture, and his use, or rather misuse, of it, even for his own evil ends. So we may not be surprised if his agents, the demons, exhort their dupes to read the Bible, or if Spiritualistic books craftily quote from the Bible, when it suits their purpose. " They brought unto Him all sick people that were taken with divers diseases and torments, and those which were possessed with devils, and those which were lunatick, and those that had the palsy; and He healed them " (Matt. 4:24).

This passage is most important, as from it and other scriptures it is plain that demon-possession is distinct from disease, though the two are often, and naturally, present together; for disease is the product of sin. It has been contended that demon-possession and lunacy are the same, but this scripture shatters that contention, as it differentiates between them.

"There met Him two possessed with devils... and, behold, they cried out, saying, What have we to do with Thee, Jesus, Thou Son of God? Art Thou come hither to torment us before the time?... So the devils besought Him, saying, If Thou cast us out, suffer us to go away into the herd of swine. And He said unto them, Go. And when they were come out, they went into the herd of swine; and, behold, the whole herd of swine ran violently down into a steep place into the sea, and perished in the waters " (Matt. 8:28-32). "And there was in their synagogue a man with an unclean spirit; and he cried out, saying Let us alone; what have we to do with Thee, Thou. Jesus of Nazareth? art Thou come to destroy us? I know Thee who Thou art, the Holy One of God" (Mark 1:23, 24).

These passages prove that demons know and recognize the authority of the Lord Jesus as the Son of God-a Divine Person-that they are aware of their future, and dread it. Yet they seduce their victims into a belief that Jesus was and is not divine, and that there is no hell to dread.

In The Banner of Life (Nov. 4th, 1865) it was reported that at a seance, the controlling spirit through the medium Mrs. Connant, was asked, " Do you know of any such spirit as a person we call the Devil? " "We certainly do," was the reply, "and yet this same Devil is our God, our Father." The truth slips out in spite of themselves. "Ye are of your father the Devil " (John 8:44). "Jesus... rebuked the foul spirit saying unto him, Thou dumb and deaf spirit, I charge thee, come out of him, and enter no more into him. And the spirit cried, and rent him sure, and came out of him " (Mark 9:25. 26). Babylon... is become the habitation of devils, and the hold of every foul spirit, and a cage of every unclean and hateful bird " (Rev. 18:2).

From these scriptures and the preceding one (Mark 1:23,24, we learn the unclean character of these seducing spirits. Further, that they are strong and sullen and vicious, and can hurt their victims physically to a dangerous degree. This is corroborated by the testimony of those who have tampered with Spiritualism. Often such began by having exalted and beautiful thoughts, and ended with unclean and foul thoughts and language being pressed upon them,. and by experiencing rough treatment at the hands of the demons.

The case is cited of a Nonconformist minister, who took up automatic writing. At first the communications were pure, and expressed in beautiful language. After a time they became mixed with obscene language. Then he heard voices, and things so preyed upon his mind that he became insane, and died in three months, raving mad, on the very day, or thereabouts, that he was to lay the stone of a certain building.

The following well-known passage from Spiritualistic literature is very significant:-

"They come, THE DOOR ONCE OPEN, in crowds, in riotous invasion. They run, they leap, they fly, they gesticulate, they sing, they whoop, and they curse ... Mind, body, soul, memory and imagination- nay the very heart-are polluted by the ghostly CANAILLE."

May God preserve writer and reader from ever opening the door to such diabolical wickedness; or if opened already in the case of any reader of these lines, may he or she seek the power of Him Who is stronger than the strong man armed, even of the Lord Jesus Christ, Who alone is able to deliver. "Mary called Magdalene, out of whom went seven devils" (Luke 8:2). " And Jesus asked him, saying, What is thy name? And he said, Legion: because many devils were entered into him" (Luke 8:30).

Here is evidence that more than one demon may take possession of the human body. Mediums admit that at times several spirits control them, and hence the incoherency of the messages. They describe how one spirit, more impudent and masterful than the rest, will often assert full control, and, as it were, switch off the others. "A certain damsel possessed with a spirit of divination met us... the same followed Paul and us, and cried, saying, These men are the servants of the most high God, which show unto us the way of salvation.... But Paul being grieved, turned and said to the spirit, I command thee in the name of the Lord Jesus [Jesus Christ, N.T.] to come out of her. And he came out the same hour " (Acts 16:16-18).

" Then certain of the vagabond Jews, exorcists, took upon them to call over them which had evil spirits the name of the Lord Jesus, saying, We adjure you by Jesus, whom Paul preacheth. And there were seven sons of one Sceva, a Jew, and chief of the priests, which did so. And the evil spirit answered and said, Jesus, I know, and Paul I know; but who are ye? And the man, in whom the evil spirit was, leaped on them, and overcame them, and prevailed against them, so that they fled out of the house naked and wounded" (Acts 19:13-16).

The contrast between these scriptures is deeply instructive. The damsel, possessed by the evil spirit, advertises Paul and his companions as "servants of the most high God, which show unto us the way of salvation." Her conduct very like that of modern mediums, who advise the reading of the Bible and prayer, did not deceive the Apostle. Observe how the Apostle uses the name of One Whom he knew, and about Whose lordship he had no question; whereas the exorcists, mere imitators, said, "We adjure thee by Jesus Whom Paul preacheth," that is, One of Whom they knew nothing for themselves. The consequences were disastrous; for instead of resisting the demon, and the evil spirit fleeing, as in Paul's case of exorcism, the demon urged his victim to deeds of violence. The would-be exorcists, seven of them, were roughly handled, their clothes torn off their backs, their bodies wounded, and they scarce escaped with their lives. " The things which the Gentiles [heathen] sacrifice, they sacrifice to devils, and not to God; and I would not that ye should have fellowship with devils... ye cannot be partakers of the Lord's table and of the table of devils" (1 Cor. 10:20, 21).

This passage proves that behind heathendom, idol worship, sun worship, etc., there is demon-power; that really heathendom, with its frightfully wicked, base, and voluptuous customs, is a vast system of Spiritualism. When the shrieking babe is cast by the frenzied mother under the wheels of Juggernaut and crushed to death, it is a form of Spiritualism, where the Devil can come out more boldly in his true and hideous ways. We can easily trace common features between ancient and modern Spiritualism.- it is one cult, protean in form, suiting itself to its environments. Missionaries in India and heathen lands are in a position to confirm to the full what I here so briefly allude to.

Heathendom-idolatry- "the table of demons "-is a system of Satan whereby his victims are ensnared by pandering to their lusts on the one hand, and taking advantage of their ignorance and superstitions to keep them in the bondage of fear on the other. The reading of "Pastor Hsi," a book'' describing the labors for the Lord of a learned converted Chinaman, well illustrates the above. Incidents in his life make luminous the expression "table of demons," and show that demon-possession is well known and understood in heathen lands.

In these lands it is necessary for Satan to act less grossly and to adopt specious disguises. So we have fiances, planchettes, palmistry, hypnotism, mesmerism, astrology, horoscope reading, etc., etc. Some palmists simply trick the public; but I am convinced they often serve as "decoy ducks" for Spiritualism. They thrive in big cities and at seaside places and pleasure resorts, where they trap the unwary, and relieve the foolish of their money. In hypnotism, mesmerism, etc., it is necessary to yield yourself to the hypnotizer or mesmerizer, as resistance renders you proof against their powers. Does this not remind the reader of "Resist the Devil, and he will flee from you "?

We will conclude with two quotations taken from the last book of the Bible. They are specially applicable to Modern Spiritualism, which, by the way, claims its birthday as being March 31St, 1848, and the place of its birth, Hydesville, Wayne County, N.Y., U.S.A., but is in reality only another form of that which is almost as old as the world's history, and will go on to its close. "And the rest of the men which were not killed by these plagues, yet repented not of the works of their hands, that they should not worship devils, and idols of gold, and silver, and brass, and stone and of wood:... neither repented they of their murders, nor of their sorceries, nor of their fornication, nor of their thefts" (Rev. 9:20, 21). "They are the spirits of devils, working miracles" (Rev. 16:14)

Rev. 9:20, 21 clearly identifies the worship of demons with that of idols of gold, etc., and shows how violence and immorality are its accompaniments; whilst Rev. 16:14 adds the power of working miracles.

The reader has now before him most ample testimony from Scripture as to the source of Spiritualism, its wickedness and powers, and of the utter condemnation meted out to it by God.

We have seen how the blessed Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, when on earth, went about " healing all that were oppressed of the Devil," showing what He thought of Spiritualism, and how He acted towards it. Yet, spite of such plain testimony, Dr. Wisse, a noted Spiritualist, said "All testimony received from advanced spirits only shows that Christ was a medium or reformer in Judea, that He is now an advanced spirit in the sixth sphere, but that He never claimed to be God, and does not at present."

Evidently the Pharisees clearly understood that the Lord Jesus claimed to be God, when they said, "For a good work we stone Thee not; but for blasphemy; and because that Thou, being a man, makest Thyself God" (John 10:33).

Dr. Hare, a scientist and Spiritualist, says: "The spirits of Washington and Franklin had brought Jesus Christ to him, with whom he had communicated, and had learned from that high and holy spirit that He was not the character Christendom represented Him to be, but that He was while on earth a medium of high and extraordinary powers, and that it was solely through His mediumistic capabilities that He attained so great knowledge and was enabled to practice such apparent wonders."

Could profanity go further? It may be asked what utility can there be in reproducing such blasphemy? If, thereby, people are warned and saved from tampering with such evil, it will be ample compensation for the pain of wading through a mass of defiling stuff, and transcribing some of it.

The late Gerald Massey, poet, and Spiritualist, wrote:- "I do not find that Christ claimed for Himself more than He held out as possible for others. When He identified Himself with the Father, it was in the oneness of mediumship. He was the great Medium or Mediator." Then all I can say is, if Gerald Massey ever read the Bible, he read it with culpable carelessness, or else made an utterly dishonest use of his reading. The Lord Jesus again and again claimed for Himself that which He could share with none other. "For there is one God, and ONE MEDIATOR between God and men, the Man Christ Jesus; Who gave Himself a ransom for all, to be testified in due time" (1 Tim. 2:5, 6), shatters the whole of his contention. The daring profanity of confounding Medium and Mediator is awful. A blow against redemption is thus aimed. It is not scholarship or philosophy, but profanity and knavery.

Nor is the late Gerald Massey alone in this attempt. Among many, we bring forward what Dr. J. M. Peebles, 4 noted Spiritualist, has written:- "As God is Spirit, that is the Infinite Spirit's presence acting by the law of mediation, the Apostle [Paul] with a singular clearness of perception pronounced the Nazarene a Mediator i.e. a Medium-between God and man."

We may well ask, Why cannot Spiritualists leave Christ's name alone? They are bound to write about Him. They seem impelled to endeavor to get His support for their system. They treat the New Testament as tradition and speculative theology, and yet speak of its principal Character in terms of highest respect and awe. It only proves most conclusively to my mind that Spiritualists feel the reality of Christianity and of Christ, and are forced to these attentions. They are not continually fighting against Mahommedanism and Brahminism and the like. For either the Lord Jesus was what He said He was, or words fail to describe the blasphemy of His claims. Spiritualists deny these claims, and yet describe. Him as the most wonderful medium the world has ever seen. It is all childish chatter. That such nonsense should deceive so largely only proves what Scripture states again and again, the awful power of Satan and his legions.

The One Exception

There is one solitary instance in Scripture in which God permitted one departed to revisit the earth for a specific purpose. This exception proves conclusively the rule; being an only exception, the proof of the rule is most complete.

King Saul, after a long course of evil, was in sore straits. The Philistines were threatening him, and in his dilemma he inquired of the Lord, but He did not answer him, "neither by dreams, nor by Urim nor by prophets." Though he had purged the land of those who had familiar spirits, he now sought such aid. Disguised, with two companions, Saul asked the witch of Endor to bring up Samuel. God then intervened. He restrained the personating demon from appearing at the medium's behest, and allowed the spirit of Samuel to appear. The medium was astonished beyond measure. When the woman saw Samuel, she cried with a loud voice," charging Saul with deception, that having threatened with death all those with familiar spirits, and destroying all he could find, he had sought her aid.

This is the only case on record in the Scriptures where one departed has been permitted to revisit the earth for a specific purpose, whereas Spiritualism claims that there is continual intercourse between living persons and departed spirits.

And note, Samuel did not come at the call of the medium of Endor. God will not allow the spirits of the departed to be at the beck and call of any medium, who may be, and often is, of questionable character.

1 Chron. 10:13 specifically tells us that Saul died for his transgressions, including his invoking the demon's aid.

" So Saul died for his transgressions which he committed against the Lord, even against the word of the Lord, which he kept not, and also for asking counsel of one that had a familiar spirit, to inquire of it; and inquired not of the Lord: Therefore He slew him, and turned the kingdom unto David the son of Jesse" (1 Chron. 10:13, 14.).

Modern Spiritualism Denies

1. The inspiration of the Bible.

2. The fall of man.

3. The deity of the Lord Jesus.

4. The atoning value of His death.

5. The existence of a personal Devil.

6. The existence of demons.

7. The existence of angels.

8. The existence of heaven.

9. The existence of hell.

Enough has been written to prove the above statement, but it is as well to place it in clear tabulated form, so that the reader may see that Spiritualism is the absolute negation of Christianity.

And yet Spiritualists continue in many cases to be members and ministers of churches and chapels, and call themselves Christian Spiritualists. Is this honest?

For instance, the late Rev. H. R. Haweis, M. A., Incumbent of St. James', Marylebone, a special preacher in Westminster Abbey, and Royal Institution lecturer, said in 1900, in an address, which was published and had a wide circulation,- " Spiritualism fitted very nicely on to Christianity; it seemed to be a legitimate development, not a contradiction, not an antagonist.... Spiritualism had rehabilitated the Bible.... They [spiritualistic phenomena] occur every day in London as well as in the Acts of the Apostles."

At any rate, on this head the author of Outlines is honest, and is more deserving of our respect than Mr. Haweis. He says:- "There is a class of individuals within the Spiritualistic body, who ... wish to retain their theology in one hand, and spirit communion in the other, and give the world an amalgamation of the two in the form of 'Christian Spiritualism.' It is the old story over again, that of striving to put new wine into old bottles. But all such efforts are futile, and only end in disaster."

Please note, the writer is constrained to use the beautiful imagery of the Bible in his attempt to dislodge every trace of its teaching from the minds of the young. Yet again, Dr. Child uses the striking imagery of Scripture in order to deny its truth:- " Spiritualism has bridged the distance between Abraham's bosom and the rich man's hell "

How? By a mixture of trickery and demonology. Honest people will ask for proof, of which Spiritualism furnishes none in reality.

The above statement was made by Dr. Child in 1866 at a Spiritualistic Conference held at Providence, Rhode Island, U. S. A., at which eighteen States and Territories were represented, when the following daring resolutions were passed:-

1. To abandon all Christian ordinances and worship.

2. To discontinue all Sunday Schools.

3. To denounce sexual tyranny.

4. To affirm that animal food should not be used.

We have so far had ample Biblical proof that 1 Tim. 4:1-4 applies to Spiritualism in its prediction that in the latter times some would pay heed to seducing spirits and doctrines of demons, speaking lies in hypocrisy with conscience seared as with a hot iron. Added to this, Nos. 3 and 4 resolutions carry us on to "forbidding to marry" and "commanding to abstain from meats."

"Forbidding to marry" is not to be confounded with the practice of celibacy as practiced by the Roman Catholic clergy, but refers to the Spiritualistic teaching of spiritual affinity, by which the marriage tie is derided, and in its practical working men and women are seduced from their lawful partners. to form unholy and unlawful links with their so-called spiritual affinities.

"By their fruits ye shall know them." Modern Spiritualism is the enemy of truthfulness, morality, law and order, and is the poisoner of men's minds and hearts, and destroyer of their bodies. The late Rev. Frank Swainson in his addresses on Spiritualism speaks of its "three black I's"-Infidelity, Insanity and Immorality.

Infidelity

In a Spiritualistic book, "Whatever is, is Right," circulating among a certain section of advanced spiritualists, we read the following:-

"What is evil?"

"Evil does not exist, evil is good."

"A lie is the truth intrinsically it holds a lawful place in creation; it is a necessity."

"What is vice?"

"Vice and virtue, too, are beautiful in the eyes of the soul."

"What is virtue?"

"Virtue is good and sin is good. The woman who came to the well of Sychar was just as pure in spirit before she met Christ, even though she was a harlot, as she was afterward when she went to live a different life. There's no difference between Herod the murderer of the babies in Bethlehem, and Christ the Savior of men."

" What is murder? "

"Murder' is good. Murder is a perfectly natural act."

" What are evil spirits?"

"There are no evil spirits. There is no Devil and no Christ. Christ and the Devil are both alike.

'For not a path on earth is trod

That does not lead the soul to God.'

"No matter how bad that path may be, whether it be the path of the liar, the murderer; it is the path of Divine Ordination and Divine Destiny."

Is not the general likeness between this abominable immoral catechism and the teaching of Rev. R. J. Campbell's New Theology staggering. The enemy is very busy. The likeness between Spiritualistic teaching and New Theology proclaims their common origin. They are alike gross infidelity, and both come from the bottomless pit.

Insanity

Dr. Forbes Winslow, Oxford Lecturer on Mental Diseases, of Charing Cross Hospital, said the prevalence of madness owing to Spiritualism was on the increase. The late Reader Harris, K.C., wrote:- " The most remarkable case of mediumship I have met with was that of a lady, who commenced with a little seemingly innocent table-turning at a children's party, and finished up by death in a madhouse

Dr.——, once a noted medium, who was afterward converted, said,- " I believe Spiritualism to be the greatest enemy of religion and morality that has ever found foothold in this world. I have been a medium for eight years, and during that time my health of mind and body suffered tremendous consequences, and I have only regained both since I abandoned Spiritualism, and to-day I would rather have the cholera in my house than be a Spiritist medium. During those eight years the demoniacal side of Spiritism deprived me for a time altogether of my reason, during which time a terrible madness overtook me, and during that time, with suicidal intent, I cut my arms in four places, and was only saved by superhuman efforts." Sir William Crookes, claimed by the Spiritualists as an adherent, wrote,- "After witnessing the painful state of nervous and bodily prostration in which many of the exp-riments have left the medium,- after seeing the medium lying on the floor in almost a fainting condition, pale and breathless,-I cannot doubt but that the violence of psychic forces means a corresponding drain on the vital forces."

Surely the above is ample testimony under this head. Sir W. Crookes' description of the condition of a medium does not attract one to such a revolting spectacle. Is this the high and holy substitute for Christianity? Is this the glorious effect of truth?

Immorality

Mr. T. L. Harris, once a Spiritualistic medium, testifies that the marriage vow imposes no obligation on the Spiritualistic husband. They have been known to abandon their own wives and prefer the company of those whom the spirits told them had a closer spiritual affinity to them.

Mrs. Woodhull, elected three years in succession as president of the Spiritist Societies in America, often lectured in favor of free love, and advocated the abolition of marriage (" forbidding to marry "), stigmatizing virtue and responsibility as the two thieves on the cross. She said:- " It was the sublime mission of Spiritism to deliver humanity from the thralldom of matrimony, and to establish sexual emancipation."

Sublime mission forsooth! What sort of pandemonium would this world become if Mrs. Woodhull succeeded.

The late Rev. F. Swainson, writing of a lady of his acquaintance, says:- " Up to the time that her husband came into contact with Spiritism he was all that could be desired. When he took to Spiritism he came in touch with a certain Spiritist woman who claimed affinity The result was this-that the man cruelly deserted his wife, and left her to die, as she is dying to-day, of a broken heart. That man to-day is passing as a leading official of a Spiritist circle in England."

J- C- writes:- " My wife was first induced to attend seances without my knowledge; then, decoyed from me by a so-called 'spiritual affinity,' ruined, and finally died away from me in dire straits."

The charge against the "three black I's" of Modern Spiritualism is well proved.

What Spiritualism Offers

In a few words I shall now describe what Spiritualism offers the believer in the Lord Jesus in place of the Bible, in place of a Savior, in place of God as our Father, in place of the prospect of God's dwelling-place being our home.

According to the author of Outlines, man is made up of a soul, a spiritual body, and a physical body.

"There is something more than the nerves which we cannot see, because it is as fine in its nature as the perfume of flowers. This fine something is called nerve-aura.'... All above what is required for daily use is thrown off like perfume from flowers, which may be made to do much good, as you will see when I speak of healing by laying on of hands.... Our spiritual bodies are formed of this fine nerve-aura, which is spiritualized matter..... When our spiritual friends and guardians visit us, they ... look ... at our spiritual bodies, and by their purity or otherwise, they can see at a glance what kind of lives we live... People who indulge in evil habits, such as opium or tobacco smoking, and laudanum and intoxicating drink, carry the appetite with them at death; it is because some of the narcotic and alcohol from these things help to compose the spiritual body, that they crave or hunger for their kind. So that these spirit people seek those in the body who still indulge in these bad habits, and get their craving satisfied through other people."-Outlines, pp. 30, 31, 32.

And people who are too clever to believe the Bible, with its majesty and truth, proved to be God's Word by so "many infallible proofs," such as the fulfillment of prophecy, and its marvelous moral effects on mankind, are so foolish as to believe such bombastic nonsense put forward without one atom of proof, to be taken without question because we are told it is so, or at best because departed spirits (personating demons) tell us so; or that those endowed, as they say, by high mediumistic powers, take mysterious journeys in their astral bodies, and manage to remember in rare cases what they have seen. I confess, I am not credulous enough to become a Spiritualist. If the Bible had offered no better proof of its verity, it would not have been accepted by any sane person for one moment. They are most incredulous where Christianity is concerned, most credulous otherwise. " Blind guides, who strain out the gnat, but drink down the camel " (Matt. 23:24, N. T.). So we read on:- " I have explained to you how the spirit-body is formed-that it is the spiritualized or refined particles of our physical body: so that you will understand me when I tell you that the spirit world is made up of refined or spiritualized particles given off by the earth. Every blade of grass, every tiny flower, shrub and tree, insect and animal, by their lives cause matter to become refined and spiritualized, which then ascends high above the clouds, and there spreads out in a broad belt, and surrounds the earth, like the rings of Saturn surround that planet. There are a great number of these rings or zones, one beyond the other, which may be called spirit worlds." Outlines, p. 33.

Then we read on that after death, if the spiritual life is kind, and gentle, and good, the grosser elements of the spiritual body are eliminated, leaving the body more refined and spiritual, so that it can rise into a higher zone, which, in its turn, is composed of the more refined and spiritualized elements eliminated from this higher zone, and the third zone is composed of the still more refined and spiritualized elements from the second, and so on.

Then follows a description of the spiritual worlds, which is conspicuous for its utter lack of imagination and originality. Beautiful grass, decked with flowers, lofty trees, rippling streams, silver and golden sands, crystal rocks, birds singing, real homes built of beautiful stones, vines climbing, sending forth white, pink, violet and amber-colored flowers, rose-embowered avenues, alcoves, grottoes, fountains in full play showing all the colors of the rainbow, is the description given.

And where is the proof of all this? It is stated that a Mr. Andrew Jackson Davis, of America, called the Poughkeepsie Seer, described by the author of Outlines as a "well-known sensitive," can remember his "spiritual wanderings or experience." He claims to have made several journeys to the spirit world under the guidance of one of his guardian angels. _ His experiences were such, the author of Outlines tells us, " As to fill people's hearts with joy, and cause mourning parents to dry their tears."

Yet, I for one have lived the larger half of my life without ever having heard of this wonderful Mr. Davis, or his wonderful wanderings (were they mental?) Nor should I have heard of him to this hour if I had not diligently inquired into Modern Spiritualism. I have lived in England and traveled in America, and no Spiritualist has ever spoken to me of his light and joy, no Spiritualist book or tract have I been offered, or seen for sale in the shop windows; I have seen no evangelist of this wonderful cult standing in the open air, endeavoring to enlighten poor, benighted Christians. Others may have, but I have not. I can only come to the conclusion that Modern Spiritualism works largely in a secret crafty way.

We have now had ample proof from Scripture that Spiritualism is in reality Demonism. Nay, more; in some way or other every form of evil has its origin, I believe in this cult. Heathendom in its nameless horrors is Spiritualism. The New Theology, Christadelphianism, Seventh Day Adventism, Millennial Dawnism, Mormonism, and Christian Science-all bear features of their common parent. They may vary as to details, and contradict each other, as for instance, Millennial Dawnism repudiates Modern Spiritualism (for Satan must have many baits for many minds), but the essence of all evil teaching is Satanic, and therefore Spiritualism in its essence.

Spiritual Gifts

Under this heading, the author of Outlines, tells us that the spiritual body has the senses of seeing, hearing, tasting, smelling, and feeling; in addition, he describes the means taken by their spirit friends, in reality personating demons, to convince people of the reality of the spirit-world. He enumerates clairvoyance, that is, seeing spiritual beings and things; clairvoyance, that is, hearing spiritual voices and music; trance-speaking, in which the mediums are quite unconscious of what is being said through them (if they were conscious they might object to the utter nonsense often put into their mouths); speaking in unknown tongues (this is rapidly spreading in other connections, and is a sign of the last times); the power to describe the identity of the spirit-world; the gift of inspiration, which enables people to deliver discourses on almost any subject; the gift of writing, where the hand writes long messages, without the medium paying the least attention to what they are writing (we can understand that claim when we see the meaningless nonsense ascribed to the supposed spirits of clever men); the gift of drawing with bandaged eyes in a dark room; the gift of physical manifestations, that is, the moving of tables, chairs, etc., about the room when no one is near them, the carrying of instruments about the room and playing on them by invisible fingers, the bringing of flowers and fruit into the room, when the doors are securely locked; levitation, that is, the medium is able to rise and float in the air with no one touching him; the writing between closed slates; fire taken into the naked hand without injury, placed on people's heads, and muslin dresses; materializing, when spirit friends (drop out the letter " r " in " friends " for accuracy) can be seen with the naked eye; spirit photography, when spirit people appear on the picture by the side of the sitter; gift of healing by laying on of hands.

Mr. Home was a very leading medium, who is said to have done very wonderful things. Yet the late Mr. Reader Harris, K.C., narrates how he went with his father, who was summoned to Dr. Cully's house in Malvern, where Home lay dying, in order to make his will. He testifies that the rapping of spirits and general turmoil among the furniture rendered the task impossible. The demons were already claiming their victim with noisy exultation.

Is there anything uplifting or helpful in all this? Anything spiritual or ennobling? Is there anything to redeem the whole thing from sordidness, anything to proclaim a celestial source? Absolutely nothing. It carries its own condemnation on its face.

Then we are told in Outlines that in the spirit-world souls may do wrong there, as they do here. When they do, they reap what they sow, and are punished, and thus they are gradually purified and blessed-they become their own saviors, though why they should need to be saved seems a mystery.

The Problem Shirked.

In Outlines, while there is a stout refusal of the doctrine of total depravity, and the fall of man is denied, there is no attempt whatever to adequately explain the awful sorrow and suffering in this world, and the still more awful sorrow of death. We are told God is too good to allow man's fall or the existence of what is malevolent, like Satan and his demons; but the present awful state of things, which God has allowed for His own wise and inscrutable purpose, the Author of Outlines shirks and must shirk. He throws away the only lamp of truth-the Word of God. Can we wonder that he walks in darkness, and that his wisdom is folly indeed, fraught with awful consequences?

Dr. P. B. Randolph, a celebrated medium, during the time that he seceded from this awful system, said with terrible sarcasm and biting truth in an address given in New York, speaking of Spiritualistic beliefs, that- " God, nature, love, panthea, rarefied gas, sublimated oxygen, and ether by this lexicon are convertible terms and essences."

Recent Bold Efforts

Bold efforts have lately been made to bring the teaching of Modern Spiritualism to the front. Things happen to-day, which would have been impossible a quarter of a century ago.

In that recently published and remarkable book, The Number of Man, by Philip Mauro, an American counsellorat-law, we read the following highly significant incident: "A meeting was lately held in London to celebrate the 'union' of several Methodist societies, which previously had maintained a separate existence. At this meeting the Rev. W. B. Lark asked permission to read one of a number of extraordinary communications which he had received. The letter, as read and reported in the public press, was as follows:-

'Mansion No. 4, New Jerusalem, 1709 to 1907.

Congratulations on the union of free and progressive Methodism. We are in hearty sympathy with your best aspirations. Be sure to be true to the inner light, the larger hope, the higher criticism, and universal redemption-and victory is assured.

John And Charles Wesley.

P.S.-

Oh! that the world might taste and see

The riches of His grace!

The arms of love that bind them

Would all mankind embrace.

Further, the conference may be glad to know we have learned a great deal since our translation to a higher life.'

"It is not to be supposed that this communication was received by the assemblage to whom it was read with any degree of favor or credulity. But the astonishing thing is that it should have been received and read at all. Such an occurrence would not have been possible a few years ago."

The honored names of John and Charles Wesley are here invoked to give weight to the "inner light," that is, the doctrine of the immanence of God; " the larger hope," " universal redemption," and " the higher criticism," which reduces the Bible below the level of an ordinary book; for the higher criticism tears the Bible to pieces, as being full of mistakes, and treats the chief doctrines as being untrue. That such a letter could be read under such circumstances shows to what lengths things have gone, and at what a terrific pace things are traveling.

A few years ago this country was startled by a leading London Daily printing a letter, which purported to come from the late Mr. W. E. Gladstone, giving his judgment on a political measure engaging just then the attention of the House of Commons. That Mr. W. T. Stead should have dared to put Mr. Gladstone's name to such a purpose, and that a leading London Daily should allow him the use of its columns in this connection, caused general astonishment.

The Daily Mirror, in closing a correspondence on "Is there a Spirit World?" recently said:- "There can be no doubt in the minds of those who have followed our correspondence, that a vast number of people believe they have found this rock [solid rock of certainty as to a future life] in Spiritualism-A MUCH VASTER NUMBER THAN IS GENERALLY SUPPOSED." This is terribly significant.

The Power of Christ's Name

Whilst it is well that we should be aware, especially at this present time, of the awful power of Satan, of his crafty, insidious, and ceaseless activity in this world, the believer has no need to be personally afraid, if only he keeps near to the Lord and cleaves to His word.

" Resist the Devil, and he will flee from you " (James 4:7).

" Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the Devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour; whom resist, steadfast in the faith " (1 Pet. 5:8, 9).

" Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord, and in the power of His might.—Put on the whole armor of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the Devil. For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places. Wherefore take unto you the whole armor of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand" (Eph. 6:10-13).

"Ye are of God, little children, and have overcome them [that is, spirits that confess not that Jesus Christ is come in flesh]; because greater is He that is in you [that is a Divine Person, God, the Holy Spirit], than he that is in the world [that is the Devil]" (1 John 4:4).

How interesting and encouraging to peruse these and kindred passages. There is need for sobriety, for vigilance, for being strong in the Lord, for having on the breastplate of righteousness, and being girt about by the truth, but none for alarm and dread. We may walk serenely through this evil world, conscious of the Lord's protecting hand, and of the impotence of the enemy, just as Elisha was calm, conscious that, unseen by mortal eyes, he was protected by the mountain being surrounded by horses and chariots of fire. Another illustration of this will readily occur to the reader's mind. With all the glittering rewards of divination within the reach of the covetous Balaam, if only he would curse God's people, he was obliged to cry out, "Surely there is no enchantment against Jacob, neither is there any divination against Israel" (Num. 23:23).

A friend has just given me an authentic instance of the power of Christ's name. A Spiritualist in Bradford invited a Christian neighbor to one of their meetings. The Christian declined the invitation again and again; but finally, wearied by her neighbor's importunity, and wishing by any means to get rid of her influence, made a compact with her, that if she attended once she would leave her alone, and never again invite her. The Spiritualist agreed. They went to the meeting. After a little time the medium, who had no previous knowledge of her declared there was a Christian present, and until that Christian left the room they could not proceed. The Christian kept her seat. After a few minutes the medium again said there was a Christian present, and insisted that the person should leave the meeting. The Christian lady thereupon retired. When her neighbor returned home, she informed her that the meeting proceeded after she left without any further difficulty. Such is the power of Christ's name. "A thousand shall fall at thy side, and ten thousand at thy right hand; but it shall not come nigh thee" (Psa. 91:7). Even the presence of one Christian woman was sufficient to arrest the power of evil.

The Mystery of Iniquity

"For the mystery of iniquity doth already work: only He [God, the Holy Spirit] Who letteth [old English, meaning hindereth] will let [hinder] until He be taken out of the way" (2 Thess. 2:7).

We may not be surprised at the way evil abounds. Scripture predicts it. The world is getting worse. Soon Antichrist-the man of sin-will be revealed, and then shall be seen the apotheosis of evil, when man shall be worshipped as God. But the more widespread the evil, and the darker the night, the nearer is the triumph of Christ, the nearer is the day of glory, when He shall reign as King of kings and Lord of lords. His foes shall be, indeed, made His footstool.

All evil in this world is like one great tree, whose roots are struck deep in the bottomless pit, and whose poisonous sap springs from the abyss. One branch of evil may strike over to the right, another to the left, and to the superficial observer they may seem to have no connection; but although they seem to travel in different directions, they spring from the same root, and are sustained from the same source; and when the tree is cut down, they will fall together into the same place.

But a careful observer will find all phases of evil, traveling in different directions in detail, unite in their essence in their refusal of the deity of the Lord Jesus and of His atoning work as Man upon the cross.

At present it is not the bold denial of Christianity we have to beware of, but its secret, underhand denial. Craft and deceit characterize evil systems and evil teaching. "Every spirit that CONFESSETH NOT that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh, is not of God; and this is that spirit of antichrist " (1 John 4:3).

The way now so largely prepared, the time is not far distant when open denial will succeed non-confession of the vital truth of Christ's person. "He is antichrist, that DENIETH the Father and the Son " (1 John 2:22).

A Scriptural Test

Amidst all the abounding and increasing evil, the uninstructed believer might well be bewildered. But Scripture furnishes a simple but thorough test of every system of teaching. It will be seen that the Person of Christ is the test. As showing more clearly than the Authorized Version the sense of the text, I venture to quote from a New Translation, much prized and valued for its literal renderings:- " But concerning spiritual [manifestations], brethren, I do not wish you to be ignorant. Ye know that when ye were [of the] nations [ye were] led away to dumb idols, in whatever way ye might be led. I give you therefore to know, that no one, speaking in [the power of the] Spirit of God, says, Curse [on] Jesus; and no one can say, Lord Jesus, unless in [the power of the] Holy Spirit " (1 Cor. 12:1-3).

A friend, writing of this very passage, says, " I have known the test applied to such [Spiritualistic] manifestations for the deliverance of one attracted, which was complete when the demon denied that Jesus was Lord."

It is well to have such a test.

Statistics of Modern Spiritualism

That the number of adherents of Modern Spiritualism is amazingly large is borne out by Dr. F. Maack, of Hamburg, writing so recently as 1910. As an antagonist of Spiritualism, he is not likely to overstate the numbers. In Berlin alone, he says, there are said to be 10,000 Spiritualists, among them to be found exalted and court personages, 400 mediums, and from 15 to 20 societies. In North America there are said to be 16,000,000 adherents; while in the whole world it was computed that in 1894 there were 60,000,000 Modern Spiritualists, with 200 journals exclusively devoted to the propaganda of this awful system. The number has grown considerably since.

Add to these the vast races of the heathen world; the millions of China, Japan, and India; the countless tribes of the Continent of Africa—Africa, with its unspeakable darkness and intolerable superstition begotten of fear; the savage hordes of the Sudan, now the victims of aggressive Mahommedan missionary enterprise; the cannibal inhabitants of the South Sea Islands- and you complete roughly the picture of how Spiritualism has covered the land with darkness-Ancient Spiritualism in the East, Modern Spiritualism in the West, bringing in its train wickedness and evil of every hideous kind.

Our task is done. Tested by Scripture Modern Spiritualism is proved to be satanic in its origin, evil in its real teaching, destructive of common morality, poisonous to both soul and body, and fatal in its issues in eternity. May God preserve writer and reader from its wiles.

And now, reader, I turn to ask you, How do you stand in relation to Christ? The question is all-important. It may be met by indifference, but in the end each soul will wake up to the tremendous importance of it.

"What think ye of Christ? is the test,

To try both your state and your scheme,

You cannot be right in the vest,

Unless you think rightly of Him."

He is the Eternal Word-" God over all, blessed forever "-uncreated, yet creating all things, self-sustained, and sustaining all things by the word of His power, never less than God. Mystery of mysteries, " The Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us' (John 1:14); that is to say, this Divine and glorious Person stooped down and became a Man in order that He might die on the cross of Calvary to perform a Savior's part.

The angel of the Lord announced His name before His birth into this world-" Thou shalt call His name JESUS; for He shall save His people from their sins." What does the name JESUS mean? Jehovah-Savior-Jehovah, the name of a covenant-keeping God as revealed in the Old Testament: Savior, the name indicating the purpose for which He stooped to manhood, viz., that He might by His death upon the cross perform the work of redemption. This work He has accomplished to God's satisfaction, enabling God to express His love, grace, and mercy RIGHTEOUSLY, so that "He might be just, and the Justifier of Him which believeth in Jesus" (Rom. 3:26). "What think ye of CHRIST?" (Matt. 22:42).

"He that believeth on HIM is not condemned; but the that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God" (John 3:18).

This is plain. There is no mistaking its significance. Multitudes believe about Christ; few believe on Him. Multitudes give an intellectual assent to the great facts concerning the Deity, manhood, death, resurrection and ascension of our Lord Jesus Christ; few " believe to the saving of the soul." Religion was never so abundant as now. But Christianity is another and vital thing. Many are Christians by profession, and their religion consists of formalism and outward observances, and they are, alas f religiously going to hell. Such are as much in the world as the infidel and irreligionist.

But to belong to Christ, to be forgiven, saved, justified, is quite another thing. Some one has well said there is a top and bottom to the verse just quoted but no middle. Reader, are you in the top -" NOT CONDEMNED "; or in the bottom-" CONDEMNED ALREADY "? The top means heaven, the bottom will mean hell, if you do not turn to the Lord. Thank God, you may pass from the bottom to the top by coming to the Lord Jesus Christ as a poor, lost, hell-deserving sinner, and trusting Him as your own personal Savior. "Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved" (Acts 16:31). "Behold, NOW is the accepted time; behold, NOW is the day of salvation" (2 Cor. 6:2).

One of the saddest and most sinister effects of the late great European war is the great revival of Spiritualism that has followed in its wake. Hearts, sore, and torn and bleeding, parents and wives yearning for their lost ones, have yielded in many cases to this terrible snare, believing that they are thus getting into touch with their separated ones. Never were more terrible delusions and more appalling results.

Amongst those who openly advocate Spiritualism, are Sir Oliver Lodge, ex-principal of the Birmingham University, and Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, the novelist. The influence of the names of these men in the cause of Spiritualism has been great, though the more their statements are examined the less convincing to many they appear.

We feel sure enough has been pointed out in this pamphlet to convince any, who receive the testimony of Scripture, of the true character of this Satanic system of deceit.

Courtesy of BibleTruthPublishers.com. Most likely this text has not been proofread. Any suggestions for spelling or punctuation corrections would be warmly received. Please email them to: BTPmail@bibletruthpublishers.com.