The Coming of the Lord by L. A. Phippeny

Pacific Press Publishing Company · Oakland, California · Aug 13, 1902

FromSigns of the Times, Vol. 28, No. 33.

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The Coming of the Lord

By L. A. Phippeny

THE SECOND ADVENT.

(Continued.)

The Resurrection.

LONG ago, even in Eden, there were sown by the devil the seeds of an error that took root and grew into a doctrine, and waxed exceeding great, and spread forth into every nation of the earth. This was the doctrine that proposed that man should not die; that even tho the body might perish and the man seem to die, yet the soul, the spirit, the real man, lived on,—the doctrine of the inherent immortality of the soul.

The devil said, “Thou shalt not surely die;” and this doctrine has been popular throughout the ages, because men did not want to die, and at the same time did not wish to believe God’s revealed truth which condemned sin, and foretold a day of judgment and a day of punishment for evil deeds. And so the greater portion of mankind, wittingly or unwittingly, has accepted the devil’s assertion as truth, with the result that the scriptural teaching concerning the state of the dead and the resurrection and future rewards, has been interpreted in this way and that, and the Bible has come to be regarded as a book hard to understand, or else extremely contradictory in its statements, and unreliable on many points.

This is precisely what the devil designed should be the result. And he has elaborated his first deception, and followed it up and propped it up with signs and wonders, and apparent and perhaps real miracles, and pretended communications from the dead. Now it is fair to ask, If individuals receive their rewards at death, and go to heaven or hell or to any other place as disembodied spirits at that time, what need is there of a resurrection afterwards of the body? No answer can be given that is a substantial reason whatever for the resurrection of the body, if the real man—the ego—passes on at death into conscious existence. If the commonly accepted doctrine of the conscious state of the dead be true, the Bible teaching on the question of the resurrection and the judgment is absolute folly.

It is undoubtedly true that a great many good people have died expecting to receive a glad reward at death. They will receive their reward, but it will be received at the time indicated in the Scriptures, and at no other time. On the other hand, righteous ones in all ages have been cheered by the hope of a resurrection from the dead as they have passed to their last earthly rest. “Thou shalt be recompensed at the resurrection of the just,” said Jesus concerning the well-doer. “I know that he shall rise again in the resurrection, at the last day,” were the words of faith uttered by the sister of Lazarus.

Nothing is plainer than the Bible teaching that the dead are unconscious, quietly resting until the coming of the Life-giver. The subject can not be discussed here at length, but a few texts will suffice to demonstrate this positive truth:—

“The living know that they shall die; but the dead know not anything. . . . Also their love, and their hatred, and their envy is now perished; neither have they any more a portion forever in anything that is done under the sun.” Eccl. 9:5, 6.

“Put not your trust in princes, nor in the son of man, in whom there is no help. His breath goeth forth, he returneth to his earth; in that very day his thoughts perish.” Ps. 146:3, 4.

“But man dieth and wasteth away; yea, man giveth up the ghost, and where is he? As the waters fail from the sea, and the flood decayeth and drieth up; so man lieth down, and riseth not; till the heavens be no more, they shall not awake, nor be raised out of their sleep.” “His sons come to honor, and he knoweth it not; and they are brought low, but he perceiveth it not of them.” “If a man die, shall he live again? all the days of my appointed time will I wait, till my change come. Thou shalt call, and I will answer Thee; Thou wilt have a desire to the work of Thine hands.” Job 14:10-12, 21, 14, 15.

The inspired psalmist of old, looking forward to that time of calling and answering, gives expression to the following sublime words:—

“Our God shall come, and shall not keep silence; a fire shall devour before Him, and it shall be very tempestuous round about Him. He shall call to the heavens from above, and to the earth, that He may judge His people. Gather My saints together unto Me; those that have made a covenant with Me by sacrifice.” Ps. 50:3-5.

To the same time apply the words of the Saviour Himself:—

“Then shall appear the sign of the Son of Man in heaven; and then shall all the tribes of the earth mourn, and they shall see the Son of Man coming in the clouds of heaven with power and great glory. And He shall send His angels with a great sound of a trumpet, and they shall gather together His elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other.” Matt. 24:30, 31.

This locates definitely the time of the gathering together,—the end of the age, and the second coming of Christ.

It is to this time that the righteous must look for recompenses—immortality with all its blessings, eternal life. A mighty and glorious change it will be, from mortality to immortality. The prevailing theory that the soul is immortal and lives on with a spiritual body after the death of the body of flesh leaves no place for the teaching of the Word respecting the change referred to: “Behold, I shew you a mystery: We shall not all sleep [die], but we shall all be changed, in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump; for the trumpet shall sound, and the [righteous] dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we [the righteous living at that time] shall be changed. For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality.” 1 Cor. 15:51-53. Mortals do not have immortality before that time.

Why will this change be so felicitous?—“For our conversation is in heaven; from whence also we look for the Saviour, the Lord Jesus; who shall change our vile body, that it may be fashioned like unto His glorious body.” Phil. 3:20, 21. “Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be; but we know that, when He shall appear, we shall be like Him; for we shall see Him as He is.” 1 John 3:2. “The Lord Himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God; and the dead in Christ shall rise first. Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air; and so shall we ever be with the Lord.” 1 Thess. 4:16, 17. No language could be clearer, that the change from mortality to immortality embraces the body of the individual as well as the soul.

This resurrection is the resurrection of the righteous dead, and is called the resurrection of life. Nothing is said concerning the wicked dead in these scriptures, because they will not be raised from their graves until a thousand years later. Theirs is the second resurrection, and is called the resurrection of damnation. See Acts 24:15; John 5:29; Rev. 20:5. Their rewards will be given them. But the righteous dead and the righteous living enter into their reward at the same time, at the “appearing” and “kingdom” of the Lord Jesus Christ. 2 Tim. 4:1; also Heb. 11:39, 40.

And this time is near,—from every prophetic and fulfilling indication, even at the door.

This phase of the subject will be continued next week under the subdivision, “The Forth-shining of His Presence.”