Is Man Immortal? by R. F. Cottrell

The Seventh-day Adventist Publishing Association · Battle Creek, Mich. · Oct 20, 1863

Is Man Immortal?

By R. F. Cottrell

It has been very justly observed, that whether the doctrine of man's natural immortality is true or false, it lies at the foundation and is the chief corner stone of three great and monstrous systems of error, namely, Paganism, Popery and Spiritualism.

A multitude of the gods of the Pagans were emperors, conquerors and heroes, who after their death became gods as a reward of their brilliant exploits. Take away the idea of man's natural immortality from the system of the Pagans, and their gods are dead—merely dead men—and the system is overthrown.

Remove this stone from the Papal building, and it falls to the ground; for all those prayers to the dead saints become vain and nonsensical, and that place of torment called purgatory, which, in the language of Luther, serves "to make the pope's pot boil," has no existence.

And modern Spiritualism, the last device of Satan to overthrow the word of God, rests upon the same foundation—the immortality of the soul and consequent consciousness in that state which is, according to this theory, falsely called death.

All these systems of falsehood promise man life without a resurrection, while the Bible holds forth the hope of a future life through the resurrection of the dead. And since it is a well known fact that Spiritualism is at war with the Bible, it becomes a matter of the highest interest to inquire whether its leading doctrine—the doctrine without which it could have no existence—be true or false. If we never had a doubt of the soul's immortality before, since it is so evident that the great adversary of God and the Bible has now become its special advocate, it certainly becomes us seriously and earnestly to inquire whether this doctrine be true or false, and to search the Scriptures diligently, not to force them to teach what we have believed heretofore to be truth, but to ascertain what they do teach on this important subject. Both sides of this question cannot be true. One or the other must be false—a lie, a doctrine of the Devil—and it certainly is a matter of the deepest interest to us, whether we believe the truth of God, or a lie that Satan has forged.

Every one who desires the favor of God and would be found safe upon the rock of truth, amid the perils of these last days—who would be saved from the strong delusions through which those who love not the truth, but have pleasure in unrighteousness, will be caused to believe a lie that will prove their condemnation; those who would be "kept from the hour of temptation, which shall come upon all the world, to try them that dwell upon the earth," should settle this question by the word of God.

And that word is not yea and nay—it does not teach both sides of the question, but will be found harmonious in all its teachings upon this, as well as every other subject contained in it.

R. F. COTTRELL.