The Lutheran Pioneer St. Louis — 1900, Page 22

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Bs The future God has wisely hidden from our

The Lutheran Pioneer.

to see is a sacrilege. The only proper thing
would be to make due preparation for the
journey and ask the Lord to prosper your
undertaking.

Deut. 18, 10—12 the Lord says: ‘‘There
shall not be found among you any one that

A Lutheran Mission School.

Our picture represents some of the pupils
of a Lutheran mission school, which our city
missionary has opened in the City Hospital
at St. Louis. When he last summer began
Dis work in that large city, he sound pone maketh his son or his daughter to pass through
aoe well taken care of as to GE bodily the fire, or that wseth divination, or an ob-
necessities; but there was no one to instruct server of times, or an enchanter, or a witch, or
and educate them. They were children of very | , charmer, or 8 consulter with familiar spirits,
noorjparentsmandesome Gs on had never ria wizard, or a necromancer. For all that
attended a school. The missionary gathered | do these things are an abomination unto the
them about him, and with great interest they | < 1
listened to his teaching. Thus a school was
opened, in which the little ones can learn to
know Him who has said, ‘‘Suffer the little
children to come unto me, and forbid them
not; for of such is the kingdom of God.”

conjurer who drives away sickness by abus-

to divine the future, or the man who consults
spirits and the dead to ascertain hidden things
are an abomination to Him; if these people
ae are, therefore, successful in their arts, it is
(For the LUTHERAN PIONEER.)

The Second Commandment.

( Concluded.)

3. We shall not take God’s
name in vain by using witchcraft.
Outside of the ordinary, natural
means which God has ordained
for the purpose of giving us re-
lief, we are forbidden to use any
other means when we are in
trouble but prayer; for He says:
‘Call upon me in the day of
trouble.’? To make use of His
holy name or word, therefore, to
gain relief is plainly an abuse of
_ Hisname or word. For example:
Suppose you aresick. The proper
thing in such a case would be to
send for a doctor and take the
medicine he prescribes for you,
* the meanwhile, however, not for-
getting to ask God for His help ~-
and blessing. It would in such a case be al-
together sinful for you to send for a person
who, instead of giving you medicine, would,
I will say, make the sign of the cross over you
and in the name of the Holy Trinity bid the
sickness be gone. God gives us no command
‘or promise for such a use of His name.

Or suppose you have lost a valuable ring.
The proper thing for you to do in such 2 case
is to search for the lost article and ask God
to bless your search. It would be sinful on
your part to look up a so-called ‘wise man’’
and ask him to help you find your lost prop-
erty by ‘‘laying cards,’’ ‘‘consulting spirits,”’
and the like; for God has strictly forbidden
us to consult spirits or use divination to as-
certain that which is hidden.

Another example: You wish to-make a
journey, and would like to know if it will be
‘@ prosperous undertaking. You go to a so-
called ‘‘fortune-teller’’ and have her ‘‘look
into the future’? for you. ‘That is sinful.

A Lutheran Mission School.

apparent that it is not by God’s help that
they are so. By whose then? Why, by the
help of the devil. We know that the devil can
do wonderful things. We read, Exod. 7. 8,
how his servants, the Egyptian sorcerers, suc-
ceeded in imitating the divine miracles of
Moses, and 1 Sam. 28 it is related how the
witch of Endor was able by the help of Satan
to bring up before King Saul a figure which
resembled the deceased Prophet Samuel in
appearance. And when, therefore, in our
days extraordinary things are done by men
using God’s name or word without His com-
mand or promise, we may be certain that
such things are done ‘after the working of
Satan.’ (2 Thess. 2, 9.)

4, We shall not lie or deceive by God’s
name. Not all lying and deceiving is here
referred to, but only such as is done by
God’s name. This may be done in two ways;
namely, by preaching false doctrine as though
it were God’s Word or by claiming to be a
child of God and yet be a servant of the
devil. Every preacher of doctrine contrary
to God’s Word lies and deceives by God’s

eyes and for us to try to lift the curtain in
order to see that which only God’s eyes are

Lord.’? Were God plainly declares that the}

ing His name, the fortune-teller who pretends |

name. He gains the ear of his hearers by
claiming to have a message from God ‘for
them, and yet what he tells them is not God's
Word. Of such false prophets God says:
‘‘Behold, Iam against the prophets, saith the
Lord, that use their tongues and say, He
saith.’’ (Jer. 23, 31.) Likewise the hypocrite
lies and deceives by God’s name. While
clothing himself in Christian works and imi-
tating the Christian in his speech, the hypo-
crite’s heart is far from God. He uses his
Christianity as a cloak of maliciousness. Re-
ferring to such hypocrites the Lord says:
‘This people draweth nigh unto me with their
mouth, and honoreth me with their lips; but
their heart is far from me.’’ But also those
lie and deceive by God’s name who endeavor
to adorn an ungodly life with the Word of
God. The man who professes to be a Chris-
tian, but leads an ungodly life
profanes God’s name. While his
lips bring homage unto God as
his Lord, his life shows that he
is a servant of the devil. Con-
cerning these Jesus declares:
“Not everyone that saith unto
me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into
the kingdom of heaven; but he
that docth the will of my Father
which is in heaven.’’ (Matt.
7, 21.)

We shall now briefly learn what
God enjoins in the Second Com-
mandment. Our Small Catechism
tells us, we should call upon it in
every trouble, pray, praise, and
give thanks. God has given us
His Word and therein revealed
Himself unto us as our Lord, our

trouble. As such we should there-

fore acknowledge and accept
Him, go to Him in our need and praise and
thank Him for His help and succor. In thus
looking to God for all help and acknowledg-
ing His benefits we humbly confess our own
helplessness and glorify His great name. In
every trouble we should call upon God’s name.
‘‘Call upon me in the day of trouble;’’ says
the Lord, ‘I will deliver thee, and thou shalt
glorify me.’? But not only in times of special
trouble are we to turn to God; nay, our whole
life shall be passed in praying to Him, our
heart and soul shall be fixed upon Him as
the One from whom cometh our help. And
the more importunate our prayer, the more
urgent our solicitations, the better pleased is
our God; for He declares: ‘‘Ask, and it shall
be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock,
and it shall be opened unto you.’? (Matt. 7, 7.)
Finally, we should praise and thank God: We
should glorify Him, proclaim His wonderful
qualities and works, and acknowledge His good
gifts and blessings. —May God in His grace
preserve us against all profanation of His holy
name and grant us strength to keep it holy to
His honor and glory. F. J. L.

God, our Helper in all need and .