::R1192 : page 2::

“REJOICE, AND BE EXCEEDING GLAD”

—MATT. 5:11,12—

The Master warned us to expect just what we find—that men would say all manner of evil against us falsely for his sake. Ever since the subject of the ransom became the testing question among those walking in the light, and since the TOWER became the special champion of the cross, its editor has been the subject of slander, misrepresentation, slyly-put inferences and insinuations from the leaders of those who fell into the error of rejecting Christ’s death as the sin-offering substituted for the guilty race of Adam. Their object in this course is to undermine by prejudice what they fail to meet by fair reasoning and Scripture. Nor should we wonder that those who so set themselves upon a theory that they can conscientiously twist and turn the hundreds of Scripture statements relative to how our Lord Jesus bought us with his own precious blood, giving his life a ransom for ours, claiming these to mean the reverse of what they say, could just as conscientiously twist and turn and misconstrue and misrepresent our words and acts, if thereby they could hope to forward their no-ransom theories.

What shall we do about these attacks? We shall do as we have done in the past. We shall not render railing for railing, but leave the whole matter to him who saith, “Vengeance is mine, I will repay.” This is the example set us by our Lord and his most notable apostles. We shall not stoop to deal in personalities. The WATCH TOWER, thank God, has had and still has a nobler mission; it deals with Scripture

::R1193 : page 2::

and will continue to expound it, to demolish errors and false theories, showing up their inconsistencies; but it will not be drawn aside from this to petty personal quarrels, nor to honor those who bark at it in a manner, slanderously untrue, though under honeyed words.

The Lord’s promise should suffice us, dearly beloved; he says he will bring forth our righteousness as the light and our judgment as the noonday. (Psa. 37:5,6.) Let us, as instructed, rejoice, and be exceeding glad that we are counted worthy of misrepresentation for his sake—especially for loyalty to the very foundation principle of his holy religion—the ransom.

====================

— March, 1890 —