God created gold and silver with intrinsic value. By "intrinsic

value" I mean that for thousands of years, people the world over have acknowledged that it is by Divine ordination these metals are precious.

In order to avoid the arbitrary fixing of values, God placed banking under Law. He told Israel, "Thou shalt have a perfect and just weight, a perfect and just measure shalt thou have," and America early experienced the oppressive inflation by paper "money." (Deuteronomy 25:15)

In August 16, 1787, the Constitutional Convention squared off in heated debate over Article I, Section 8 which read, "The Legislature shall have power to coin money and emit bills on credit of the United States." According to Peletiah Webster, colonial currency and later continental currency produced more suffering "than from every other cause of calamity. It has killed more men, pervaded and corrupted the choicest interests of our country more, and done more injustice than even the arms and artifices of our enemies." Convention members amended the section deleting those pernicious words "emit bills on credit of the United States." (Horace White, Money and Banking, p. 135)

Article I, Section 10 drew another heated debate. The early draft read, "No state shall coin money." On August 28, 1787, Roger Sherman rose to his feet declaring the words should read "No state shall make anything but gold and silver a tender in payment of debts." His words were adopted.

Then followed the Coinage Act of 1792. It did six things. 1.) It reaffirmed gold and silver to be the "money of account", i.e. the "money" in which the people of the United States would transact their business. 2.) It fixed the "dollar" as a weight of gold or silver. 3.) It provided the death penalty for any official of the mint who debased the coinage. 5.) It authorized any person to carry gold or silver to the mint to be coined. And, 6.) It established a mint in Philadelphia.

When in 1913 the United States renounced the Law of a just and perfect weight which God has ordained, in favor of her own man-made system, that action constituted rebellion against Almighty God. America has been a nation in rebellion ever since.

Adolph Hitler said, "Gold in the hands of the people is the enemy of the state." And, Thomas Jefferson wrote, "There is scarcely a king (or would-be king) in a hundred who would not, if he could, follow the example of Pharaoh—first get all the people’s money, then all their lands, and then make them and their children servants forever."

It is not by accident America’s gold and silver has been confiscated from her coinage, even thought the Coinage Act of 1792 has never been repealed! Nor is it by accident that this nation has experienced years of ruinous inflation and debt. Still America has not repented.

The present appearance of prosperity is but a shimmering phantom that will vanish in the coming months. God will not prosper this nation until as a people Americans "cease to do evil and learn to do well."

______________________________________

"If there is a place under high Heaven more holy than another, it is the pulpit whence the Gospel is preached. This is the Thermopylae of Christendom: here must the great battle be fought between Christ’s church and the invading hosts of a wicked world.

"This is the last vestige of anything that is sacred left to us. We have no altars now; Christ is our altar: but we have a pulpit still left, a place, which when a man entereth, he might well put off his shoes from his feet, for the place whereon he standeth is holy." –Charles Spurgeon

______________________________________________

"Salvation belongeth unto the Lord," declares the Psalmist, and from the belly of the whale, Jonah cried, "Salvation is of the Lord." He is the Author and the Finisher of it. "It is God which worketh in you both to will and to do of His good pleasure." Therefore, a "salvation" that originates with man, or that is completed by him is not the salvation that is of God. (Psalm 3:8; Jonah 2:9; Hebrews 12:2; Philippians 2:13)

Salvation that is of God is predicated upon grace --God giving to man what he does not deserve, i.e. forgiveness; and mercy--His not giving to man what he does deserve, i.e. eternal torment in the abode of the damned. The salvation of God is necessarily all of grace on account of total depravity of man.

Man is guilty before God because he is a son of the sinner, Adam. "Death passed upon all men for that all have sinned." He is guilty of deliberately breaking His law by the commission of sin, as well as by omitting to do that which is his duty to do. His obedience is marred by imperfection, and this renders him guilty before God. Man is guilty of evil thoughts, evil words, and evil deeds. He is guilty of calculated disobedience and of innumerable secret sins --"sins that never tell the conscience they are sins," wrote John Donne. They are sins that we are not even conscious of having committed. Thomas Cranmer wrote "We have done those things we ought not to have done, and we have left undone the things we ought to have done, and there is not health within us." (Romans 5:12)

"If thou, Lord, shouldest mark iniquities, O Lord, who shall stand?" "From the sole of the foot even unto the head there is no soundness in it, but wounds and bruises and putrifying sores: they have not been closed, neither bound up, neither mollified with ointment," "Who can bring a clean thing out of an unclean? Not one." "What is man that he should be clean? And he that is born of a woman, that he should be righteous?" (Psalm 130:5; Isaiah 1:6; Job 14:4; 15:14)

"Now we know that whatsoever things the law saith, it saith to them who are under the law: that every mouth may be stopped and all the world may become guilty before God. Therefore by the deeds of the law there shall no flesh be justified in His sight: for by the law is the knowledge of sin." "For I had not known sin but by the law, for I had not known lust except the law had said, ‘Thou shalt not covet.’" "The law entereth that the offence might abound." "Wherefore, the law was our schoolmaster to bring us unto Christ, that we might be justified by faith." (Romans 3:19,20; 7:7; 5:20; Galatians 3:24)

"As many as are of the works of the law are under the curse," "for whosoever shall keep the whole law, and yet offend in one point, he is guilty of all." "But we are all as an unclean thing, and all our righteousnesses are as filthy rags." "Even the plowing of the wicked is sin." (Galatians 3:10; James 2:10; Isaiah 64:6; Proverbs 21:4)

"Christ hath redeemed us from the curse of the law, being made a curse for us: for it is written, ‘Cursed is everyone that hangeth on a tree.’" "For when we were yet without strength, in due time Christ died for the ungodly. For scarcely for a righteous man will one die: yet, peradventure for a good man some would even dare to die. But God commendeth His love toward us in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us." (Galatians 3:13; Romans 5:6-8)

Salvation that is of God is based upon God’s grace. He is "the only wise God our Saviour" therefore to Him belongs "glory and majesty, dominion and power, both now and ever. Amen." "For what the law could not do, in that it was weak through the flesh, God sending His own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, and for sin, condemned sin in the flesh." (Jude 25; Romans 8:5)

God demanded obedience of Adam, but when the man sinned, God demanded the shedding of blood, "and without the shedding of blood is no remission." "Surely He hath borne our griefs and carried our sorrows: yet we did esteem Him stricken, smitten of God and afflicted. But He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon Him; and with His stripes we are healed. All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned everyone to His own way; and the Lord hath laid on Him the iniquity of us all." (Hebrews 9:22 Isaiah 53:4-6)

"Christ pleased not Himself; but, as it is written, ’The reproaches of them that reproached thee fell on me.’" "Who His own self bare our sins in His own body on the tree, that we, being dead to sins, should live unto righteousness: by whose stripes Ye were healed." (Romans 15:5; I Peter 2:24)

"I do not frustrate the grace of God: for if righteousness come by the law, then Christ is dead in vain." "I am persuaded that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor height, nor depth nor any other creature shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord." (Galatians 2:21; Romans 8:38,39)

The salvation that is of God is based upon the righteousness of faith. Thomas Watson expressed it well: "Faith", he said, "is the beggar’s hand " and it is faith that God counts as "righteousness."

If Abraham were justified by works, he hath whereof to glory; but not before God. For what saith the Scripture? ‘Abraham believed God, and it was counted unto him for righteousness.’ Now to him that worketh is the reward not reckoned of grace, but of debt. But to him that worketh not, but believeth on Him that justifieth the ungodly, his faith is counted for righteousness." (Romans 4:2-5)

"Now to Abraham and his seed were the promises made. He saith not, ‘and to seeds,’ as of many; but as of one, ‘and to thy seed,’ which is Christ.... If the inheritance be of the law, it is no more of promise: hut God gave it to Abraham by promise. Wherefore then serveth the law? It was added because of transgressions, till the seed should come to whom the promise was made; and it was ordained by angels in the hand of a Mediator." "Therefore it is of faith, that it might be by grace; to the end the promise might be sure to all the seed; not to that only which is of the law, but to that also which is of the faith of Abraham who is the father of us all." (Galatians 3:17,18,19; Romans 4:16)

"Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ by whom also we have access by faith into the grace wherein we stand." "Therefore we conclude that a man is justified by faith without the deeds of the law." "Do we then make void the law through faith? God forbid: yea, we establish the law." (Romans 5:1,2; 3:18,31)

The law is not abolished: it is just put in its proper place. It is not man, but Christ. Not what man has done, but what Christ has done. "0 foolish Galatians, who hath bewitched you that ye should not obey the truth before whose eyes Jesus Christ hath been evidently set forth crucified among you? This only would I learn of you, ‘Received ye the Spirit by the works of the law, or by the hearing of faith?’ Are ye so foolish having begun in the Spirit, are ye now made perfect by the flesh?" (Galatians 3:1-3)

"Know ye not, brethren, (for I speak to them that know the law,) how that the law hath dominion over a man as long as he liveth? For the woman which hath an husband is bound by the law to her husband so long as he liveth; but if the husband be dead, she is loosed from the law of her husband. So then if while her husband liveth she be married to another man, she shall be called an adulteress: but if her husband he dead, she is free from that law so that she is no adulteress, though she be married to another man. Wherefore, my brethren, ye also are become dead to the law by the body of Christ; that ye should be married to another, even to Him who is raised from the dead that we should bring forth fruit unto God." "But that no man is justified by the law in the sight of God, it is evident: for ‘The just shall live by faith.’" (Romans 7:1-4; Galatians 3:11)

"What shall we say then? That the Gentiles which followed not after righteousness have attained to righteousness, even the righteousness which is of faith, but Israel, which followed after the law of righteousness hath not attained to the law of righteousness. Wherefore? Because they sought it not by faith, but as it were by the works of the law." "For they being ignorant of God’s righteousness and going about to establish their own righteousness, have not submitted themselves unto the righteousness of God. For Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to every one that believeth." "Even so then at this present time also there is a remnant according to the election of grace. And if by grace, then is it no more of works: otherwise grace is no more grace. But if it be of works, then is it no more of grace: otherwise work is no more work." (Romans 9:30-32; 10:3,4; 11:5,6)

What then is the purpose of the law? The law is designed 1.) to reveal the nature of God, 2.) to reveal the nature sin, 3.) to reveal what nature a man must be for his continued happiness --in short, it is designed to bring men to Christ. The Holy Spirit uses the law to convict of sin, of righteousness and of judgment, for the law is designed to bring glory to its Author who as Creator, is also the Author of man’s happiness. The law is designed to point men in the way they should go, and to command them to walk therein. It judges men’s words and their works that they might discern their way. It affords them a steady and constant teacher for it is their "Schoolmaster to bring (them) to Christ!"

_______________________________________________________________________

An opportunity is open for a godly couple to assume the ministry at Chapel Library in Venice, Florida. In addition to an extensive lending library, Mr. and Mrs. Lawrence Nelson have a gospel tract ministry that extends to every state and nearly to every country.

Among the qualifications are first, that the couple are circumspect in their lives, and second, that they embrace the doctrines of grace.

All interested should write --

Chapel Library

Mr. and Mrs. Lawrence Nelson

P.O. Box 1335

Venice, Florida 33595

Telephone: 488-2622 (Area Code 813?)

_______________________________________________________________________

"Political rights, however broadly framed, will not elevate a people individually depraved. Even freedom, exercised by a debased people, would come to be regarded as a nuisance, and liberty of the press but a vent for licentiousness and moral abomination." --Samuel Smiles, Character, 1872

COMMENTS

"I enjoy the ‘Angelus’ --It offers a serious challenge in these careless times." --Bill James

"I am going to send two dollars to you to help with the cost of the blessed Angelus." --Daniel Voss

"I cannot tell you how much your paper has meant to me." --Ruby Dyal

"I’m very sorry I was unable to send my dollar last month; but my employment has been rather spasmodic. To make it up, I enclose $2 this time. I would miss your paper very much if you were to cease publishing." --Daniel Tapio

"I like your article on ‘A Word of Knowledge’ in Vol. 13,No. 2. Keep me on your list. Here is $5 to help. --Paul Levin

"In spite of appearances, this note was not delayed for months --years--for lack of blessing or interest! I read each ‘Angelus’ sometimes with joy, and at times with great conviction, but each time it moves me to ask our Father’s touch upon you." --Jan Langford

"I am enclosing a small contribution to help defray the expense of your paper. I have enjoyed reading it for some time and sorry that I have not contributed sooner." --Stanley Borders

______________________________-

THE MARRIAGE RING by John Angell James IS HERE!

"It is an unquestionable truth, that if a man be not happy at home, he cannot be happy anywhere; and he who is happy there need be miserable nowhere."

"It is obvious that no decision of our whole earthly existence requires more of the exercise of a calm judgment than this: and yet observation proves how rarely the judgment is allowed to give counsel, and how generally the imagination and the passions settle the business."

"In the ardor of passion, few are disposed to listen to counsels of prudence; and perhaps there is no advice, generally speaking, more thrown away, than that which is offered on subject of marriage.... Upon such individuals, reasoning is wasted, and they must be left to gain wisdom in the only way by which some will acquire it --painful experience."

Excellent as a young people’s study

A must for the conscientious counselor

Send $2.50. Postage will be paid.