Outside of Professor Edward Odlum, and the possible exception of J.W. Parker, Reverend Goard was the most important influence in the early development of this organization. On a world scene, his contribution to the movement was unequalled. Born in 1863 in England, he came to Canada as a young man and engaged in missionary work in the Methodist Church. When our good friend Reverend Merton Smith, also a believer in the Israel Truth, went overseas, Reverend Goard came to Vancouver to preach in his Congregationalist Church. He met Professor Odlum and the two of them worked closely together to strengthen and expand the work both here and abroad.

The Bible is gripping the minds of the Celto Saxon race anew at this time.

Not in the same way that it gripped men at the time of the nineteenth century revival. At that time the attention of men was turned to introspection in the light of Bible teaching. Men learned to know themselves in the light of the Bible.

Now that the message of the earlier revival is very largely taken for granted, it is interesting to turn to the journals of Wesley and his coadjutors, and to those of his opponents, and to see over what phases of truth controversy waged. For controversy there was, heated to such an extent that houses were broken and looted, men and women were driven from their homes, the persons of men and women were endangered as though it were a time of war.

All this took place over the pro and con as to whether it was possible for men to KNOW THAT THEY WERE ACCEPTED AND JUSTIFIED BY GOD.

The Bible is gripping the minds of men now in regard to its message for the nation in the tremendous days through which we are living. Has prophecy anything to say regarding the great war that is past, and future wars which may come? Has prophecy anything to say regarding the perpetuation or fall of the British Empire, and as to the rise and fall of other nations? These are questions which are on the lips of men and women everywhere in Anglo Saxondom.

The body of believers, the Church, or the person, who desires to receive a hearing and to make an impression on the minds of men at this time, must be ready with an answer to this question.

In spite of the many voices to the contrary, we answer, Yes, the Bible has a distinct message concerning and to the British Empire, as it is wrongly called. Its message covers the present time with wonderful richness of detail.

First, the Bible makes it very clear that, whereas the nation Israel forfeited its place as the leading nation of the world twenty five centuries ago, at the end of that period it should be restored to its position as the premier nation of the earth.

Next, the Bible declared that during the period of seven times, which equals twenty five centuries in which Israel should occupy a secondary position among the nations, the Babylon succession of Empires should occupy the premier position among the nations, and exercise rule in the earth with the exception generally of the Israel peoples. This succession should be made up of four Empires or Kingdoms, namely, Babylon, Medo Persia, Greece and Rome.

At the end of this period of twenty five centuries, the Bible declares that the nation Israel should reassert its power; and, destroying all these Kingdoms, it should, after a desperate time of struggle, assume the Kingship over all the earth.

That these things are told most graphically in the prophetic Scriptures cannot be denied. It is a fact patent to every student of the Bible.

Now it was very easy for prophets to make predictions in that olden day. It seemed also a safe thing to do. For were there not twenty five centuries between the prophecies and the completion of fulfillment? Who would have thought that little religious tracts, such as the books of the prophets were, should have continued in being, perfect in form and presentation for all the intervening ages. Who would have thought it possible that Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel, Daniel, & writers of that long ago age, should be called to the bar of the judgment of modern men at the long distant time when these prophecies must be proved to be true or false according to fulfillment or failure?

This is the position of the prophets and their sacred books to day.

Here the books are perfect in form and preservation. Here are the nations spoken of in the books. And here are the days which are demonstrating the truth or falsehood of the predictions.

That the books have been preserved through all these ages, and that they form an important part of the "best seller" of all the books, ancient or modern, in this the end of the ages, goes far to suggest that they are very far from being ordinary books.

There were the nations of which they wrote. They have taken the predicted path through all the intervening ages. Israel was scattered through the wilderness of the nations and gathered again in the appointed place, as the prophets declared she should do. Babylon arose. It was superseded by Medo-Persia, according to the Scriptures. This in turn fell before the power of the Greek Alexander. The Empire of Alexander was broken into four, according to the prediction of the prophets. These fragments fell under the power of Rome. Finally, the last semblance of the Roman Empire went down in the great defeat of the Central Powers; and all the chapters of the prophecies which dealt with that great sequence of events have had fulfillment.