Ancient Landmarks: Guarding Spiritual Inheritance

In ancient Israel, every man held his own land—a radical provision of the Mosaic code ensuring universal property ownership. Boundaries were marked by corner-stones placed at the edges of fields. An envious neighbor could easily remove these landmarks and claim additional ground, so Elohim forbade the practice under severe penalty.

Proverbs 20:28 speaks to spiritual inheritance. Our fathers handed down a rich bequest of truth and virtue—landmarks we must not remove. Four boundaries stand threatened in modern thought:

First, belief in the supernatural. Agnosticism reaches forth to erase this boundary.

Second, Revelation—the Holy Scriptures themselves. Rationalism denies their trustworthiness, resulting in loss of reverence and faith.

Third, belief in Christ. Various forms of humanitarianism seek to diminish His deity and the necessity of salvation by atonement.

Fourth, tradition itself. Modern "progress" has come to mean reckless abandonment of everything age has sanctified. Yet dogma—formulated truth bearing the marks of long trial and venerable authority—provides the Church's ramparts.

The men who most faithfully stood by these landmarks and humbly paid homage to them became the Church's greatest glory. Loyalty to Yahweh as King and affection toward Him as Father both demand we respect and preserve these ancient boundaries. They are the foundations of true happiness and the safety of souls.