THE GOSPEL PROGRESSIVE IN DEVELOPMENT.
By R. F. Cotterill.
Ever since the fall of man the gospel has been the good news to him that a remedy had been provided, and that he might be saved. And in order to avail himself of this remedy, it has ever been necessary for him to “believe the gospel.” The gospel was revealed to our first parents, and their family. Deliverance was promised through the seed of the woman—an atoning sacrifice was promised, and they were to show their faith in the promise by the offering of a typical sacrifice. Hence Cain and Abel brought their offerings to the Lord. Cain’s offering, being only of the fruit of the ground, “without the shedding of blood,” could not prefigure the atoning sacrifice of the promised Messiah, and was rejected; while that of Abel showed his faith in the atoning blood of Christ, and was accepted. Without true repentance and humility, and faith in the promised Saviour, they could not be saved. As we come down to the days of Abraham, the promise of the Messiah is renewed. The Saviour was to be of Abraham’s posterity. The promise was renewed to Isaac, and to Jacob; and among the sons of Jacob, Judah was selected. The Saviour was to be “the Lion of the tribe of Judah.” After this David was chosen. The Christ was to be the Son of David. His birth-place was pointed out in prophecy—Bethlehem, in the land of Judea. “Shall Christ come out of Galilee? Hath not the Scripture said, That Christ cometh of the seed of David, and out of the town of Bethlehem where David was?” But when Christ came in exact fulfillment of all the Scripture predictions, the chief priests, the rulers, and the scribes, did not believe in him. Consequently, though they professed implicit faith in Moses, and the prophets, they proved themselves infidels or unbelievers by rejecting him. “For they that dwell at Jerusalem, and their rulers, because they knew him not, nor yet the voices of the prophets which are read every Sabbath day, have fulfilled them in rejecting him.” Thus the chief among the Jews rejected Christ, and did not believe the gospel; and, in so doing, they rejected Moses and the prophets, in whom they professed faith. “We know,” they said, “that God spake to Moses, but as for this fellow, we know not whence he is.” But the language of Jesus to them was, “There is one that accuseth you, even Moses, in whom ye trust. For had ye believed Moses, ye would have believed me; for he wrote of me.” They proved themselves faithless in the promises of the gospel, by rejecting their fulfillment. When God fulfils his promises, he wants men to believe; and their rejection of the advancing light of prophecy fulfilled, or, in other words, of the progressive development of the gospel, is a rejection of the gospel and its Author; and this must result in his rejection of them. The light of the gospel is still advancing—the progressive plan, as laid down in the Scriptures, is still being developed. The closing messages of the “everlasting gospel,” as promised in prophecy, near eighteen hundred years ago (Rev. xiv, 6–12), have been announced, and are doing their work—preparing the believing for the second advent of the Messiah. The Lord demands of us faith in the gospel plan as developed in the fulfillment of these advent messages. God is fulfilling his promises in these. Shall we believe? Or will we reject the good news of the second advent at hand? If the Jews fell by their unbelief in rejecting the fulfillment of God’s promises in their day, so it will be with those who reject the fulfillment of his promises by rejecting the closing messages of the gospel. They rejected Moses, and the prophets, and the Spirit by which they spoke, when they rejected the fulfillment of the promises to them. We also shall reject Christ and the gospel, if we reject the promised messages of his word, which proclaim his second advent at hand.