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Life and Death

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Pacific Seventh-day Adventist Publishing Association · Oakland, California · Jan 11, 1877

FromSigns of the Times, Vol. 3, No. 3.

Read the full edition

Life and Death.

By Dudley Marvin Canright

BY ELD. D. M. CANRIGHT.
TEXT: Rom. 6:23. “For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.”
I understand this text to present the real facts in the case with regard to our hope in the future,—that life is the gift of God to the obedient, and that death is the penalty for disobedience. God has given all his intelligent creatures life here, and the continuance of this life hereafter depends upon our obedience to him; while this life spent in disobedience to God brings death. It is not happiness and misery that is contrasted in my text, but life and death,—existence or non-existence.
By turning back to the account where God first made man, you will see that the first thing stated is, that God gave him life. “And the Lord God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and man became a living soul.” Gen. 2:7. The emphasis is not on soul, but living soul. From the following verses we learn that this life was to be continued to man only on conditions of obedience.
“And the Lord God planted a garden eastward in Eden; and there he put the man whom he had formed. And out of the ground made the Lord God to grow every tree that is pleasant to the sight, and good for food; the tree of life also in the midst of the garden, and the tree of knowledge of good and evil.”
“And the Lord God commanded the man, saying, Of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat; but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it; for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die.” Gen. 2:8, 9, 16, 17.
The Lord says in the 16th verse, “Of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat.” The tree of life was there and he was to freely eat of it with the rest of the fruit; and I believe he did eat of it many times. But, said God, In the day you eat of the forbidden fruit, you shall die, or “dying thou shalt die” (margin), i. e., you shall be shut away from the tree of life, in which was life, and hence you must perish. As God made man, life was to be a gift, and that on conditions. As long as man obeyed God, just so long he was to live, and when he disobeyed he was to give up his life.
In the third chapter of Genesis we learn that Adam did just what God told him not to do; and the Lord speaks to him thus:—“Because thou hast hearkened unto the voice of thy wife, and hast eaten of the tree, of which I commanded thee, saying, Thou shalt not eat of it: cursed is the ground for thy sake; in sorrow shalt thou eat of it all the days of thy life.” “In the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread, till thou return unto the ground; for out of it wast thou taken; for dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return.” Gen. 3:17, 19. Here God says to Adam, you have disobeyed me and you must turn back to dust. And now lest he take of the tree of life and eat and live forever, “Therefore the Lord God sent him forth from the garden of Eden, to till the ground from whence he was taken. So he drove out the man; and he placed at the east of the garden of Eden cherubim, and a flaming sword which turned every way to keep the way of the tree of life.” Verses 22–24. Here the Lord reasons the case thus: Man has become a sinner, and lest he take of the tree of life and eat and live forever, and thus become an immortal sinner, and sin be eternally perpetuated, I will drive him from the garden and shut him away from the tree of life. This he did, and so Adam finally died. Notice this fact: God says, Lest he take of the tree of life and eat and live forever, and consequently perpetuate a life of sin. Our opponents argue that when we have eternal life we have eternal happiness; but this text teaches the opposite of this. It states that Adam could live forever in sin. This shows that mere existence is meant by life, in this case, that is, eternal existence.
Paul says: “Wherefore as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned.” Rom. 5:12. Adam could not give to his descendants what he did not have himself. To illustrate: My father owned a farm once, but he lost it before he died, and hence I cannot inherit it,—he could not give me what he did not himself possess. So says Paul, “For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive.” 1 Cor. 15:22. By virtue of the resurrection of Christ we shall all be raised from the dead. But our friends believing in the immortality of the soul say, The death that Adam died was a spiritual death, that is to say, that he then entered upon a state of sin and separation from God. Our Universalist friends say, We like that interpretation, that is just what we believe. To take this position you must accept the universal salvation of all men, for all who die in Adam are made alive in Christ. But what shall we understand it to mean? Is it life or death, in the common acceptation of the term. It is not a guilty conscience, eternal misery, or banishment from God, but actual death that is meant.
I turn back to Gen. 9:6, and read, “Whoso sheddeth man's blood, by man shall his blood be shed; for in the image of God made he man.” It will be remembered that Paul says, “And almost all things are by the law purged with blood; and without shedding of blood is no remission.” Heb. 9:22. Put these facts together. If a man did a mortal sin, that man must shed his blood. Why was there no remission without the shedding of blood? Because when a man sins that sin forfeits his life,—he forfeits his right to live. This life is in a man's blood. “For the life of the flesh is in the blood; and I have given it to you upon the altar to make an atonement for your souls; for it is the blood that maketh an atonement for the soul.” Lev. 17:11. When a man sins he forfeits his life. For this reason our Lord Jesus Christ laid down his life. Said he, “I lay down my life for the sheep.” John 10:15. What did Christ do? He laid down his life. The word of God tells us that Christ died, the just for the unjust; that our sins are laid upon him; that by his stripes we are healed, &c. He suffered that which was due the sinner—died in the sinner's stead. That is the faith of all. I ask, Did Christ suffer eternal torment? If he did he ought to be suffering that now. What did he do? Christ died. So he says, “I lay down my life for the sheep.” It shows what the penalty of God's law is. Hence Christ took the sinner's place, as we read: “For I delivered unto you first of all that which I also received, how that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures.” 1 Cor. 15:3. Then Christ died, really died; this is the point every time. Said he, “My soul is exceeding sorrowful, even unto death.” Matt. 26:38.
What was it about the death of Christ that brings us salvation? Is it the suffering of Christ? No; he might have suffered on the cross till to-day and it would never have saved a soul, because without the shedding ofblood there is no remission. He did give up his life and he poured out his blood for guilty man. This is everywhere taught in the Bible. “In whom we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of his grace.” Eph. 1:7. And again: “Whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation through faith in his blood, to declare his righteousness for the remission of sins that are past, through the forbearance of God.” Rom. 3:25. It is faith in Christ's blood then, that saves a man. I will here read several scriptures upon this point. And I call your attention to the fact that in these quotations it is stated in every conceivable manner that the object of Christ's mission upon earth was to give life to his people. I quote from John, and I wish you might read the chapters through many times.
Jesus says, “I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly.” John 10:10. There it is. What was the object of Christ's mission among men? Answer: “That they might have life.” “For the bread of God is he which cometh down from heaven, and giveth life unto the world.” John 6:33. The basis of all is life. When we lose our lives we have lost everything. What would I do without life? If a man should offer to give me the city of Rome, and I had to die the next day, I would not thank him for it. The devil said truly, “All that a man hath will he give for his life.”
Once more: “And this is the will of him that sent me, that every one that seeth the Son and believeth on him, may have everlasting life, and I will raise him up at the last day.” John 6:40. I have life to-day, but I may lose it soon; but Christ will give us life everlasting. That is the kind of life I want. Says Christ, “No man can come to me except the Father which hath sent me draw him, and I will raise him up at the last day.” Verse 44. “This is the bread which cometh down from heaven, that a man may eat thereof and not die.” Verse 50. Says Christ: “I am the living bread which came down from heaven; if any man eat of this bread, he shall live forever, and the bread that I will give is my flesh which I will give for the life of the world.” Verse 51. “Except ye eat the flesh of the Son of man, and drink his blood, ye have no life in you.” Verse 53. Mark, you have no life in you unless you become connected with Christ. Christ says, “I have come that every one that seeth me and believeth on me may have eternal life.”
Notice this fact all the way through, that life, eternal life, is a gift of God through Christ.
It is commonly believed and taught that every one of us has an immortal principle within which cannot die, and that no man, however much he desired to die, could kill himself. Now if that be a fact, that every man has an undying principle in himself, I maintain that Christ never gave life to anybody. If we have immortality it is not life we want to gain. But the Bible does not so teach us. Without Christ we have no life; and the doctrine of the natural immortality of the soul, a doctrine which virtually exalts puny man to God himself, degrades Christ, and takes away nine-tenths of his glory, for in such a case we need not depend upon Christ for life nor immortality. All we ask or expect of him is to save us from sin and from pain. Life we have without him.
In Gen. 3:4, 5 we find recorded the very first lie that was ever told our race; and who was its author? God said if man sinned he should die and turn back to dust. The devil said, “Ye shall not surely die; for God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods.” Gen. 3:4, 5. Here the serpent, or Satan, says, You shall not really or actually die, but ye shall be as gods. This, then, is the very doctrine our orthodox friends are preaching to-day, is it not? and they have for its foundation the language of Satan just quoted in contradiction to God's declaration, that man should surely die.
With this sentence pronounced upon man for his disobedience, should he not feel his weakness and frailty rather than that he possesses attributes belonging only to God, his Creator? I think, with Abraham, we should feel that we are “but dust and ashes.” Gen. 18:27. I believe that I myself am a poor, mortal, dying, corruptible worm of the dust, that I have no life or immortality in myself, and that my only hope is in Jesus Christ. This view of the nature of man acknowledges our reliance upon Christ. It honors Christ, and makes him all in all.
I read again, what to me is a beautiful thought, one which is conveyed throughout the Bible. Speaking of the King of kings and Lord of lords, Paul says, “Who only hath immortality, dwelling in the light, which no man can approach unto.” 1 Tim. 6:16. What is the idea? It is this, that God, the Father, is the only source of life—he is the only fountain from which it springs. It comes through Christ, but God is the only fountain of life. Hence, Christ says, “For as the Father hath life in himself, so hath he given to the Son to have life in himself.” John 5:26.
There are two beings, then, who are said to have life in themselves—the Father and the Son,—the Father who only hath immortality, and the Son to whom was given life that he might have life in himself. Is it so, then, that every man has life in himself? Has God given the same to everybody else? The very statement of the text shows that it is not so. But by what means we are to obtain this life is clearly stated in our text. “The wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.” Rom. 6:23. Life, then, must come through Jesus Christ.
Speaking of the murderers of Christ we read, “Ye have killed the Prince [author, margin] of life, whom God hath raised from the dead.” Acts 3:15. You have killed the author of life, the one that shall give us life. John says of Christ that: “In him was life.” John 1:4. Paul says: “When Christ who is our life shall appear.”
Again 2 Tim. 1:10: “But is now made manifest by the appearing of our Saviour Jesus Christ, who hath abolished death, and hath brought life and immortality to light through the gospel.” If the gospel had not been proclaimed, or the plan of salvation perfected, immortality would not have been bestowed upon man.
“For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.” John 3:16. Everlasting life, then, is given only to the believer in Christ, consequently the sinner has no life or promise of life out of Christ. Paul says: “In hope of eternal life.” Titus 1:2. That is our hope. I look upon my brethren before me who have reached the age of fifty or sixty, and I know, and they know, that they may die any day. Yet they want life, everlasting life. This is what they are hoping for and this is what is promised them.
Paul says again: “Who will render to every man according to his deeds, to them who by patient continuance in well doing seek for glory and honor and immortality, eternal life.” Rom. 2:6, 7. In the first place we are to seek for immortality. Why seek for it if we already have it? It would be like an old lady looking for her spectacles when she has them on her face. So we do not need to seek for immortality if we already have it. We are to seek for it, and God will give us life, eternal life.
“Neither can they die any more.” Luke 20:36. If the Bible had simply said the righteous shall live forever, or eternally, we might question the meaning of the terms, or limit their duration.
Notice particularly in how many ways life is promised to the righteous. They shall have life. John 6:33. They shall have life abundantly. John 10:10. They shall live forever. John 6:51. They shall have everlasting life. John 6:40. They shall have eternal life. Titus 1:2. They shall have an endless life. Heb. 7:16. They shall not die. John 6:50. Neither can they die any more. Luke 20:36.
But this life is only to be obtained through the resurrection. “That I may know him and the power of his resurrection, and the fellowship of his sufferings, being made conformable unto his death, if by any means I might attain unto the resurrection of the dead.” Phil. 3:10, 11. This expression in Paul is very strong. He understood that this was the only way to get life. Again he speaks of his hope, as the redemption of his body from the grave. “And not only they but ourselves also, which have the first-fruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves, groan within ourselves, waiting for the adoption, to wit, the redemption of our body.” Rom. 8:23.
Again: “If after the manner of men I have fought with beasts at Ephesus, what advantage is it me, if the dead rise not? let us eat and drink; for to-morrow we die.” 1 Cor. 15:32. If there is no resurrection, if the dead are not raised, what profit is it for us to suffer persecution and hardship? for to-morrow we die, and that will be the end of us all; then let us eat and drink and enjoy this life. Such I understand Paul's meaning to be. He did not say, If the soul is not immortal let us do all this, but if there be no resurrection. He predicates all upon the resurrection. “Then Jesus said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Except ye eat the flesh of the Son of man, and drink his blood, ye have no life in you.” John 6:53.
Take another text: “Whosoever hateth his brother is a murderer, and ye know that no murderer hath eternal life abiding in him.” 1 John 3:15. Take Cain, for instance, who was the first murderer. According to the belief of the present day, he is down in hell, actually living, though suffering, and thus he will live to all eternity. If this be true, it is simply an evasion for a man to say that Cain has not eternal life. If he lives eternally then he has eternal life whether he is in Heaven or hell; in pleasure or pain. I do not care how much he may suffer, for so long as he suffers he is not dead. Says my text: “The wages of sin is death:”—not misery, but death.
Take this text: “For he that soweth to his flesh shall of the flesh reap corruption; but he that soweth to the Spirit shall of the Spirit reap life everlasting.” Gal. 6:8. What is corruption? Take a dead rotten carcass, and there you will see corruption. It is a loathsome, putrid mass. Life has departed. So it will be of the wicked, or those who sow to the flesh.
Again: “But these as natural brute beasts made to be taken and destroyed, speak evil of the things that they understand not, and shall utterly perish in their own corruption.” 2 Pet. 2:12. The meaning is evident, that for the wicked only death and destruction awaits them.
Some say it is not literal death, but it is a guilty conscience, and that they do not believe in a lake of fire. Does the Bible say so? Does it say that a guilty conscience is the penalty of the law? No; it is unscriptural and unreasonable. Here is a boy ten or twelve years of age. He goes to a neighbor's melon patch and takes for the first time in his life what he knows he ought not to take. How bad he feels. He feels guilty, fearing he will be found out. He dreads to meet the man, for he feels that he has done wrong, and that he will find him out. Why does he feel thus about what he has done? His conscience is tender. But supposing that same boy takes from a person twenty-five cents soon after. He will suffer less than for his first crime; and so he might go on till he could murder or steal without feeling so much as when taking the melons. Of certain sinners Paul says, “Having the understanding darkened, being alienated from the life of God through the ignorance that is in them, because of the blindness of their heart; who being past feeling have given themselves over unto lasciviousness, to work all uncleanness with greediness.” Eph. 4:18, 19. Paul says they have got so hard that they are past feeling, their conscience seared. “Speaking lies in hypocrisy; having their conscience seared with a hot iron.” 1 Tim. 4:2. If the remorse of conscience is all the hell these men have, it will not hurt them much. No, it is a second literal death which the sinner must suffer. “Blessed and holy is he that hath part in the first resurrection; on such the second death hath no power, but they shall be priests of God and of Christ, and shall reign with him a thousand years.” Rev. 20:6.
Here are two deaths spoken of. We have the first death in consequence of Adam's transgression; but on account of our own transgression the second death. The scripture says, “The wages of sin is death,”—the second death.
We are placed here upon probation, and if we live wicked, ungodly lives, God takes that life from us. There is only one way we can gain eternal life, that is through our Lord Jesus Christ. If we fail to secure it through him, we shall perish. How simple and plain this is, because we have no life in us. How important it is that we value our salvation aright. I thank God that while we are mortal, corruptible worms of the dust, there is a fountain of life from which we may drink, and have life forever, in a world without end.