regard to the kingdom of God contained partly instruction as to the existence of the kingdom, its nature, its realization, its development, and partly exhortations to the fulfilment of the conditions of membership." At the outset of the discussion we are brought face to face with some difficult problems. Dr. Wendt holds, as indeed most people do, that Jesus was conscious of His Messiahship, if not from the time of the visit to Jerusalem at the age of twelve, at least since His baptism. Now the fourth Gospel plainly teaches that Jesus was proclaimed by the Baptist as the Messiah from the very first; and that He Himself accepted the loyalty of His disciples because He owned Himself to be the Messiah. On the other hand, Dr. Wendt holds that, "according to Mark, Jesus, at the beginning of His ministry, was recognized neither by the Baptist nor by His own disciples as the Messiah, nor did He refer to Himself as such. He suppressed the premature announcement of His Messiahship by the demons." The issue is important. Not that there can be any dispute as to the fact that the demand by Him for the due recognition of His Messiahship on the part of His disciples occurred somewhat late in the ministry; nor as to the other important fact that He had manifested Himself to them in deed and doctrine before He called for the profession of their faith in Him as the Messiah ; but the question is, Was He recognized by John as the Messiah at the time of the baptism? What then is the meaning of John's preaching, "There cometh after me, He that is mightier than I, the latchet of whose shoes I am not worthy to stoop down and unloose. I baptized you with water, but He shall baptize you with the Holy Ghost?" These words are from Mark's Gospel. and it is difficult to interpret them as Dr. Wendt has done.

Apart from this, we follow with interest and delight the exposition of Dr. Wendt as he unfolds to us the teaching of Jesus as to the Fatherhood of God. What the Old Testament had established as to the nature and character of God is taken up by Jesus, and invested with a new significance. "The significant point with Jesus is the conception of the character of God, taken as a whole, which He regarded as the standard of all religious knowledge and of all religious life. He has not defined the sum of the attributes of God otherwise than before His time, but He has apprehended in a peculiar way their relation to each other in the character of God. He has not sought to give a precise exposition of this general conception of God by means of theological notions, but He has made it generally intelligible by usually employing the name of Father to designate God. He has used this name as a foundation whence to base weighty teaching in regard to God's gracious action, and the right mood of piety on the part of man." Then follows an exposition of the sense in which Jesus viewed God as the Father, a description of the holiness and universal activity of God, and an estimate of the advance in the religious mode of view implied in Jesus' ideas of God. We have, next, chapters on the saving benefits of the kingdom of God and on the righteousness of the members of the kingdom of God. This last is marked out in detail under the heads: (1) righteousness as seated in the heart; (2) righteous conduct towards God; and (3) right conduct towards men, which prove a worthy contribution to the science of Christian ethics. The volume concludes with a chapter on the nature and advent of the kingdom of God.

Looking back over the volume, we are impressed with the value of the comparison' which Dr. Wendt institutes between the teaching of the Synoptic Gospels and that of the Fourth Gospel. In every chapter of the third section we have such a comparison. When he speaks of God as the Father, Dr. Wendt is careful to tell us what is the conception of God in the Johannine discourses; when he speaks of the saving benefits of the kingdom of God, he sets forth what is meant by eternal life in the Johantine

discourses, and describes the relation of the Johannine idea of salvation to that of the synoptists. Dr. Wendt's method is to set forth the teaching of Jesus as it can be found in the Synoptic Gospels, and then he shows that the teaching of Jesus as set forth in the Fourth Gospel is in entire agreement with the former. These sections are by no means the least valuable parts of his thoughtful book.

We had intended to have called attention to many instances of happy exegesis, and to many tokens of Dr. Wendt's clear insight into truth, and to his power of combining opposite aspects of truth into one clear and harmonious view. Every section opens out for us fresh views of the great and wondrous depths of the teaching of Jesus, and gives us the persuasion that there is in that teaching fresh worlds yet to be discovered. We are grateful to Dr. Wendt for the great work he has done; still more grateful are we for what he has suggested. We are grateful also to Mr. Wilson, who has done his work in a competent and workmanlike manner. The translation is well done, in a manner worthy of the greatness of the work.

JAMES IVERACH, D.D.

Kóλavis Alórios OR FUTURE RETRIBUTION. By G. W. KING, Pastor of the Broadway Methodist Episcopal Church, Providence, R. I. Eaton & Hunt, New York.

THE purpose of this book is to prove from Scripture the doctrine of the endless future punishment of the wicked, and to confute the theory of universal restoration, and that of annihilation. The author bases his argument upon an examination of a number of passages in the New Testament, which, if taken in their full and literal import, as he takes them, most distinctly refer to eternal condemnation. These are Matt. xxv. 46, xii. 31, 32; Rev. xx. 10, 15; Mark ix. 43, 48, &c. This method seems to him quite conclusive. But an advocate of universal restoration might in like manner establish his position by directing his attention to a number of passages which seem to favour his views, and by ignoring all others. For there can be no doubt that there are passages in the New Testament which we cannot reconcile with the doctrine of eternal punishment, such as that in which St. Paul speaks of the time "when God shall be all in all" (1 Cor. xv. 26-28); that in which he says that "all things shall be gathered together in Christ" (Eph. i. 10); and that “as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive” (1 Cor. xv. 22). It would not be quite fair to Mr. King to say that he in his turn ignores these passages, but he treats them as affording insufficient arguments for his opponents, and not as supplying material out of which to construct a full statement of the teaching of Scripture on this great question. One cannot, of course, blame him for not offering a solution of this apparent contradiction, since that is probably an impossible task in our present state of knowledge, but it is obviously unsatisfactory for him to offer as a statement of Scriptural teaching the conclusions drawn from a number of isolated texts selected by himself. While he warns others against making assertions which they cannot justify by reference to the Word of God, he himself frequently transgresses the wholesome rule. As e.g., in the following passage, "It is said that God cannot suffer a soul to perish for ever; that His infinite love will cause Him to follow the last lost sheep into the wilderness until He find it. To this we reply that it is in God not a matter of disposition, but a matter of ability. We have no hesitancy in saying that if God could He would save the last lost soul in the universe, and that He would spare no cost to do so. But we have all reason for believing that all His Divine resources for the salvation of men are exhausted in the infinite sacrifice of the cross; that when God gave His Son for the world's redemption He exhausted the infinite treasury of grace and power, and that

no other terms of salvation could be proposed than those given in the Scriptures' (p. 58). In spite of the general tone of piety which pervades the book, we can scarcely excuse the irreverence, unconscious though it may be, which distinguishes this paragraph. And then, too, what can be meant by "exhausting an infinite treasury"?

There can be no doubt that the Scriptures contain the very strongest warnings addressed to those who deliberately reject the forgiveness offered in the Gospel, and persistently cleave to sin, but it is equally clear that it is unsafe for us to construct out of these warnings a final dogmatic statement as to the nature and duration of future punishment. It is not for us to limit the Divine mercy, and to decide what God can do or cannot do. To one argument we must take entire exception. It is that "the apparent need of the doctrine confirms the other evidence of its reality, that the familiar saying, the fear of hell peoples heaven' has some force, if not as much as is sometimes claimed for it " (p. 49). We prefer to give our adhesion to the statement on this point by Sir Thos. Browne: "I thank God, and with joy I mention it, I was never afraid of hell, nor ever grew pale at the description of that place. I have so fixed my contemplations on heaven, that I have almost forgot the idea of hell, and am afraid rather to lose the joys of the one than endure the misery of the other. I can hardly think there was ever any scared into heaven; they go the fairest way to heaven that would serve God without a hell; other mercenaries, that crouch unto Him in fear of hell, though they term themselves the servants, are, indeed, but the slaves of the Almighty." JOHN WILLCOCK, B.D.

CURRENT

AMERICAN

THOUGHT.

THE CHURCH AND THE TIMES. By Rev. G. M. MATHEWS, B.S. (Quarterly Review of the United Brethren in Christ).—In all the conceptions respecting the Church of Christ there is the underlying idea of organization, society, fellowship. Hence the word "church," in its original sense, means a society of professed believers worshipping in the name of Christ, united together, by virtue of a common relation to Him, in an organization for common purposes and ends. The only differentiation to be marked is between the Church as a whole and its distribution into denominational divisions or particular societies. For the purposes of this discussion, the term "Church" is restricted to a representative society of believers, bearing common relationship to Christ and worshipping in His name, whether it consist of one or more organized congregations. What are the demands made by the present generation upon the Church?

1. The times call for simplicity and candour in the enunciation of Christian doctrine. The Church has two distinguishing features, universality and flexibility. Its work is to spread the worship of God throughout human society, under all forms of civil government, in all stages of national life and development, over the entire world. Hence arises the demand for flexibility of form. Our Lord gave no detailed organization for His Church, and prescribed no elaborate forms of worship. The universal adaptation of the Church to meet the demands of the race lies in its flexibility of form, as well as in its divine energy and vitality.

The present crusade against creeds, confessions, and systems of theology is a reaction from the undue regard which had long been paid to symbols of faith. But it should ever be borne in mind that definite standards of doctrine are essential to

the existence and efficiency of the Church as an organization. It may be absolutely true that no doctrinal truth can be stated in final terms; but there are certain colossal truths touching the person, character, and redemptive work of Jesus Christ that, through the aid of the Holy Spirit, have been ascertained and accepted by the best and most reliable scholarship of Christendom. What is needed is, not the surrender of all symbols of faith, but simplicity and candour in formal statements of Biblical truth. For men will not suffer long an attempt at the crucifixion of the intellect, under the mere human authority of an ecclesiastical council. They will chafe under the shackles put upon honest research and investigation. They will follow the Church which, in the light of a clearer and more faithful interpretation of the word, exhibits candour and fidelity in allowing such alteration and revision of its standards as shall best serve the truth by helping the multitudes to its acceptance and obedience.

2. The times demand that the Church develop and exhibit more generally the power and testimony of Christian life. Christianity is put to its severest test in the lives of its devotees. The Gospel which a Christian believes is estimated by his spirit and behaviour. The great need of the times is revision of lives-possibly, more than revision of creeds. And, to meet this need, the Church must give itself to the task of better discipline, and to the task of upbuilding and training. The present wonderful young people's movement throughout Christendom is not only phenomenal, but also providential. But it needs to be guided and guarded by the thought and conscience of the Church concerning social enjoyments and amusements. There should be proper appreciation of the social element in the Church; but its culture should be along lines clearly supported by God's Word, and justified by ripe Christian experience. Dr. Washington Gladden gives excellent rules for testing the Christian healthiness of amusements. "(1) Amusement is not an end, but a means of refreshing the mind and replacing the strength of the body; when it begins to be the principal thing for which one lives, or when in pursuing it the mental powers are enfeebled and the bodily health impaired, it falls under censure. (2) Amusements that consume the hours which ought to be sacred to sleep are censurable. (3) Amusements that call us away from work which we are bound to do are pernicious just to the extent to which they cause us to be neglectful or unfaithful. (4) Amusements that rouse or stimulate morbid appetites or unlawful passions, or that cause us to be restless or discontented, are always to be avoided." If the Church would gather to itself a most powerful agency for righteousness and truth, it must seek to culture fellowship of the young, and direct their social nature into channels of religious life and activity; and the legitimate forces of the Church-Christian character, Christian education, and Christian beneficence-must be converted into powerful agencies that shall increase the Master's glory in the earth.

3. The times demand that the Church assume and maintain a wise and positive attitude toward the cause of moral reform. The Church stands in aggressive antagonism with vice in all its forms. The reformatory movements of the times involve moral questions and issues concerning which the Church dare not remain silent and passive. It is a question of serious delicacy how far the Church should participate in the discussion of questions touching party politics; but its relation to social iniquities, such as slavery, intemperance, gambling, and immorality cannot possibly be disputed. "The Church that has become so tyrannized and dominated by wealth, social prestige, or political influence that it dare not 'cry aloud and spare not' against all forms of lawlessness and unrighteousness, may well doubt as to its qualifications to fulfil its mission as the 'light of the world,' and the salt of the earth.'"

4. The times call for important changes in the methods and spirit of evangelization. Old methods will no longer suffice. No new Gospel is needed: but new con ditions require new methods and additional agencies to meet adequately the present demands. If there be any occasion for finding fault with the pulpit, it is the meagre presentation and enforcement of practical Christianity upon the people. The laity hunger for plain, practical, Gospel truth, proclaimed by men whose lips are touched with Divine fire, and whose hearts burn with passionate love for souls. Lay evangelism is an important and comparatively new movement. And the Church of to-day must return to the Apostolic hospitality and fellowship.

And 5, the times demand that the Church more widely cultivate and emphasize a profound spirituality in its membership. There is the supreme need for life, not form; for living Christianity, not dead orthodoxy; for the power of godliness, not the beauty of ritualism; for the descent of the Divine upon the human.

THE TRANSFIGURATION : THE SUPERNATURAL IN THE KINGDOM OF GOD. By W. M. LEFTWICH (The Methodist Episcopal Quarterly Review.)—Christianity, in its best sense, is the philosophy of the supernatural, and the kingdom of God is its highest organized form. The soul, in its divinest meaning, is a vast capacity for God, and spiritual life must have its beginning and development in the soul. The sacred affinities of spiritual life in the Divinely cleansed and filled souls of men, organized into the visible Church of Christ, form the kingdom of God, and constitute the body of Christ. This is, therefore, the supernatural life in its highest organized form. Christ startled His disciples as he turned His steps towards Jerusalem by prophesying His rejection and death. Those disciples understood His coming in His kingdom to mean the restoration of Jewish nationality. How then could he be rejected and killed? Jesus must correct their mistake. The scene of the transfiguration was the manifestation of His glory by which the supernatural in the kingdom of God was more than symbolized to their faith. It was a demonstration of the fundamental doctrines of the Christian system upon which all the claims of the kingdom of God are accredited to our faith. (1) A demonstration of the Divinity of Christ. The supernatural signs at the advent and the baptism were all temporary and external, and had to disciples only the authority of a commission from God. But think of the effect of such a vision as the Transfiguration upon the minds of men whose faith was so dependent upon the senses that it could not sustain a spiritual perception above the natural and material. They were compelled either to accept the whole scene as an illusion, or to believe that the inner glory that shone so resplendently through all of the outward globe of His flesh was the manifestation of His deity, the fulness of the Godhead that dwelt in Him. The presence of the Godhead, expressed through the flesh of the Son of Man, and made visible and audible to their bodily senses, overwhelmed them. (2) A demonstration of the future state. The Jewish Scriptures do not reveal a future state with sufficient clearness to keep some Jews from becoming Sadducees, and some Pharisees from tincturing their faith with the myth of Metempsychosis. The Transfiguration not only demonstrates to the senses the doctrine of a future state, but in the presence of the still living Moses and Elias materialism perishes, agnosticism is settled, and all sceptical speculations are silenced. "The scenes of the holy mount tell me that I have entered upon a career that shall never end; that I have commenced a history that shall never be finished; and have a conscious life that can never be destroyed." (3) A demonstration of the resurrection from the dead. Two facts of the Transfiguration teach the resurrection as it had never been taught before. One is the presence of Moses with Elias. The