Seventh-day Adventist Missionary Society · Oakland, California · Feb 10, 1881
General Articles.
By Mrs. E. G. White
SEARCH THE SCRIPTURES.
BY MRS. E. G. WHITE.
THE word of God has not been appreciated, but sadly neglected. This book, revealing the will of God to man, deserves to be held in the highest esteem, not only by the rich, but by the common people. Instruction of the highest value is given to the working class. The apostle enjoins upon slaves under masters to adorn the doctrine of God their Saviour. Those in the humblest employment can, through connection with God, so order their conversation and be so circumspect in deportment as to bring no dishonor or reproach upon the cause of their Redeemer. They will not by inconsistencies furnish occasion to bring the truth into disrepute, when it should be a savor of life unto life.
In a special manner, those who are blessed with a connection with God, should, by close application to his sacred word, imitate the great Pattern in doing good, thus exemplifying the life of Christ in their daily conversation, in pure and virtuous characters. By being courteous and beneficent they adorn his doctrine, and show that the truth of heavenly origin beautifies the character and ennobles the life. Christ's followers are "living epistles, known and read of all men." Their daily words and noble actions recommend the truth to those who have been prejudiced against it by nominal professors, who have a form of godliness, while their lives testify that they know nothing of its sanctifying power.
No man, woman, or youth can attain to Christian perfection and neglect the word of God. By carefully and closely searching his word we shall obey the injunction of Christ, "Search the Scriptures; for in them ye think ye have eternal life: and they are they which testify of me." This search enables the student to closely observe the divine Model, for they testify of Christ. The Pattern must be inspected often and closely in order to imitate it. As one becomes acquainted with the history of the Redeemer, he discovers in himself defects of character; his unlikeness to Christ is so great that he sees he cannot be a follower without a very great change in his life. Still he studies, with a desire to be like his great Exemplar; he catches the looks, the spirit, of his beloved Master; by beholding he becomes changed. "Looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith." It is not in looking away from him, and in losing sight of him, that we imitate the life of Jesus; but in dwelling upon and talking of him, and seeking to refine the taste and elevate the character; seeking to approach through earnest, persevering effort, through faith and love, the perfect Pattern. The attention being fixed upon Christ, his image, pure and spotless, becomes enshrined in the heart as "the chief among ten thousand and the one altogether lovely." Even unconsciously we imitate that with which we are familiar. By having a knowledge of Christ, his words, his habits, his lessons of instruction, and by borrowing the virtues of the character which we have so closely studied, we become imbued with the spirit of the Master which we have so much admired.
After the resurrection, two disciples traveling to Emmaus were talking over the disappointed hopes occasioned by the death of the beloved Master. Christ himself drew near, unrecognized by the sorrowing disciples. Their faith had died with the Lord, and their eyes, blinded by unbelief, did not discern the risen Saviour. Jesus, walking by their side, longed to reveal himself to them, but he did not choose to do so abruptly; he accosted them merely as fellow-travelers, and asked them in regard to the communication which they were having one with another, and why they were so sad. They were astonished at the question, and asked if he were indeed a stranger in Jerusalem and had not heard that a prophet mighty in word and in deed had been taken by wicked hands and crucified. And now it was the third day, and strange reports had been brought to their ears that Jesus had risen, and had been seen by Mary and certain of the disciples. Jesus said to them, "O fools, and slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have spoken; ought not Christ to have suffered these things, and to have entered into his glory?" And beginning at Moses and the prophets, he opened to them the scriptures concerning himself.
When they arrived at Emmaus, Jesus made as though he would have gone farther; but the disciples constrained him to tarry with them, for the day was far spent and the night was at hand. The evening meal was quickly prepared, and while Jesus was offering devotional thanks, the disciples looked at one another with astonished glances. His words, his manner, and then his wounded hands were revealed, and they exclaimed, "My Lord and my God." Had the disciples been indifferent in regard to their fellow-traveler, they would have lost the precious opportunity of recognizing their companion who had reasoned so ably from the Scriptures regarding his life, his suffering, and his death and resurrection. He reproved them for not being acquainted with the scriptures in reference to himself. Had they been familiar with the Scriptures, their faith would have been sustained, their hopes unshaken; for prophecy plainly stated the treatment Christ would receive from those he came to save. The disciples were astonished that they could not discover Christ at once, as soon as he spoke with them by the way, and that they had failed to bring to their support the scriptures which Jesus had brought to their remembrance. They had lost sight of the precious promises; but when the words spoken by the prophets were brought to their remembrance, faith revived, and after Christ revealed himself they exclaimed, "Did not our heart burn within us, while he talked with us by the way, and while he opened to us the Scriptures?"
The word of God, spoken to the heart, has an animating power, and those who will frame any excuse for neglecting to become acquainted with it will neglect the claims of God in many respects. The character will be deformed, the words and acts a reproach to the truth. The apostle tells us, "All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, that the man of God may be perfect, thoroughly62furnished unto all good works." One of the prophets of God exclaims, "While I was musing, the fire burned." If Christians would earnestly search the Scriptures, more hearts would burn with the vivid truths therein revealed. Their hopes would brighten with the precious promises strewn like pearls through the sacred writings. In contemplating the history of the patriarchs, the prophets, the men who loved and feared God and walked with him, hearts will glow with the spirit which animated these worthies. As the mind dwells upon the virtue and piety of holy men of old, the spirit which inspired them will kindle a flame of love and holy fervor in the hearts of those who would be like them in character.
The student of the Sabbath-school should feel as thoroughly in earnest to become intelligent in the knowledge of the Scriptures as to excel in the study of the sciences. If either is neglected, it should be the lessons of the six days. The injunction of our Saviour should be religiously regarded by every man, woman, and child who professes his name. Teachers in the Sabbath-school have a missionary field given them to teach the Scriptures, not, parrot like, to repeat over that which they have taken no pains to understand. "They are they which testify of me"—the Redeemer, him in whom our hopes of eternal life are centered. If teachers are not imbued with a spirit of truth, and care not for the knowledge of what is revealed in the word of God, how can they present the truth in an attractive light to those under their charge? The prayer of Christ for his disciples was, Sanctify them through thy truth; thy word is truth. If we are to be sanctified through a knowledge of the truth found in the word of God, we must have an intelligent knowledge of his will therein revealed. We must search the Scriptures, not merely rush through a chapter and repeat it, taking no pains to understand it, but we must dig for the jewels of truth which will enrich the mind, and fortify the soul against the wiles and temptations of the arch-deceiver.
Parents plead trifling excuses for not interesting themselves in the lessons with their children, and they fail to become conversant with the Scriptures. Fathers as well as mothers excuse themselves from disciplining their own minds. They do not seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, but exalt the temporal above the spiritual and eternal. This forgetfulness of God and his word is the example they give their children, which molds their minds after the worldly standard and not after the exalted standard erected by Christ. Some fathers will while away hours in their own amusement, in conversation upon worldly things, and put God out of their thoughts and hearts. How much more profitable to be faithful disciples of Christ, engaged in searching the Scriptures that they may be thoroughly furnished to all good works, and be able to give an intelligent explanation of the word given of God to guide our footsteps to the eternal shores.
Mothers are heard to deplore that they have no time to teach their children, no time to instruct them in the word of God. But these same mothers find time for outward adorning, time to ornament with tucks and ruffles and needless stitching. Needless trimming is seen upon their own dresses and their children's. The inward adorning of the mind and the culture of the soul are neglected as though inferior to the adornment of the apparel. The minds of mothers and children are starved in order to follow custom and fashion.
Fathers and mothers, we entreat you to take up your long neglected duties. Search the Scriptures yourselves; assist your children in the study of the sacred word. Make diligent work because of past neglect. Do not send the children away by themselves to study the Bible, but read it with them, teach them in a simple manner what you know, and keep in the school of Christ as diligent students yourselves. Be determined that this work shall not be neglected. Mothers, dress yourselves and your children in modest apparel, clean and neat, but without needless adornment. When you learn to do this, to dress with conscientious plainness, then you will have no excuse for being novices in the Scriptures. Follow Christ's injunction, "Search the Scriptures," then you will advance in spiritual strength yourselves, and be able to instruct your children.
Many of the youth say, I have no time to study my lesson. But what are they doing? Some are crowding in every moment to earn a few cents more, when this time pressed into work, if given to the study of the Bible, would, if they practiced its lessons, save them more than the amount gained by overwork. It would save much that is expended in needless ornaments, and preserve vigor of mind to understand the mystery of godliness. "The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom." But these very youth who profess to be Christians gratify the desires of the carnal heart in following their own inclinations; and God-given, probationary time, granted them to become acquainted with the precious truths of the Bible, is devoted to the reading of fictitious tales. This habit once formed is difficult to overcome; but it can be done, it must be done by all who are candidates for the heavenly world. That mind is ruined which is allowed to be absorbed in story-reading. The imagination becomes diseased, sentimentalism takes possession of the mind, and there is a vague unrest, a strange appetite for unwholesome mental food, which is constantly unbalancing the mind. Thousands are to-day in the insane asylum whose minds became unbalanced by novel reading, which results in air-castle building, and love-sick sentimentalism. The Bible is the book of books. It will give you life and health. It is a soother of the nerves, and imparts solidity of mind and firm principle.
HE IS RISEN.
If from death Christ were not risen,
None could break the bonds of sin.
As if helplessly in prison
Heaven could not enter in.
But He glorious
Arose victorious,
That free pardon we might win.
If from death Christ were not risen,
Filled with sorrow and dismay,
To salvation none could listen,—
All must ever go astray.
But He glorious
Arose victorious,
Lord of Life, the Truth, the Way.
Thou art risen, mighty Saviour!
'Tis glad tidings evermore;
Risen with Thee to God's favor,
We will sing Thy praises o'er.
Thou, all-glorious
Didst rise victorious,
In thine own immortal power!
When the gospel of Thy rising
Shall illume earth's shadows far,
Waked from sleep by light surprising—
By the bright and Morning Star,
Thy saints glorious
Shall rise victorious,
Rise to meet thee in the air!
—Messiah's Herald.
"THIS GENERATION."
By William Penniman
BY WM. PENNIMAN.
"Verily I say unto you, This generation shall not pass, till all these things be fulfilled." Matt. 24 : 34.
As noticed in our last, the objector to the doctrine of Christ's soon coming says that "this generation" refers exclusively to the one living before the destruction of Jerusalem. But that this cannot be the case, we will find upon further investigation.
Our Lord says in the 9th verse of this memorable chapter: "Then shall they deliver you up to be afflicted, and shall kill you; and ye shall be hated of all nations for my name's sake." It is true that the persecution under Nero took place before the destruction of Jerusalem. In this persecution, Peter and Paul and others were put to death. But during the long time of papal persecution, it is estimated that from fifty to one hundred million were slain. Is it true that Christians were hated of all nations before the fall of Jerusalem? Those at all acquainted with church history know that Christians have been persecuted more since that time than they were before. "And then shall many be offended, and shall betray one another, and shall hate one another. And many false prophets shall arise, and shall deceive many. And because iniquity shall abound, the love of many shall wax cold." We will not deny the partial fulfillment of a part of this prophecy previous to the destruction of Jerusalem. But those conversant with the history of the church, know that it has been fulfilled to the letter, both in the pagan and papal persecutions.
The word prophet, in the Bible, sometimes means a teacher. Taking it in that sense, have we not a striking fulfillment of the prophecy (at the present time) that "many false prophets shall arise, and shall deceive many?" See Eze. 13 : 9, 10; Jer. 6 : 13, 14; 14 : 13, 14. What would these false teachers, or prophets, be the most likely to teach, and to predict? Certainly they will teach false doctrines; and we read that "the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but after their own lusts shall they heap to themselves teachers, having itching ears; and shall turn away their ears from the truth, and shall be turned unto fables." 2 Tim. 4 : 3, 4. We will not take time to enumerate the false doctrines of which the "many prophets" or heaps of false teachers proclaim to the world. Christ probably had reference partly to their contradiction of what he had told his disciples.
The great point which our Lord wished to bring before his disciples, was his second coming; and secondly, what would be the signs of it, and of the end of the world. It would seem quite natural that he should refer to those who denied his teachings, and predicted the contrary. There were many false prophets at the time of Noah, who said there would not be any flood. No doubt there were many who said Jerusalem would not be destroyed. So now there are many who teach the fabulous doctrine of the world's conversion, and prophesy that "there is a good time coming, and that Christ will not come in thousands of years."
The facts of history prove that the great apostasy did not arise in the first century of the Christian era. The abundance of iniquity did not, in this century, cause the love of many ("the many") to wax cold. The present age has been called "the age of crime," or the age of iniquity. It is difficult to tell whether the professors of Christianity have most contaminated the world, or whether the world has most corrupted them. It is thought that this prevalence of iniquity is in the church; if so, Christ must have reference to these times. In "Exposition of Matthew Twenty-four," we read: "The prevalence of iniquity in the unconverted world alone, would stimulate the church to greater diligence, and more godliness, instead of being a cause of apostasy. Hence the iniquity here mentioned is in the very heart of the professed church, diffusing its chilly influence through the whole body. As the result, the love of many shall wax cold."
The apostle says: "This know also, that in the last days perilous times shall come. For men shall be lovers of their own selves, covetous, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy, false accusers, incontinent, fierce, despisers of those that are good, traitors, heady, highminded, lovers of pleasures more than lovers of God; having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof; from such turn away." 2 Tim. 3 : 1-5. These sixteen sins characterize the professed followers of Jesus Christ, in this, the last generation.
Again, the word many in the phrase, "the love of many shall wax cold," has the article, and that gives it the signification of totality, or at least an approach to it. (See Robinson's Greek and English Lexicon on the word polus.) Then, according to this rendering, there must be an almost total apostasy implied in this passage, and not merely a want of zeal in the Christian faith. Campbell also renders the word as meaning the "greater part." We read of no such apostasy before the destruction of Jerusalem, nor in the life-time of the apostles. History gives no record of it. We must, therefore, look to some other period for the fulfillment of this prophecy, and that period must be included in the days of the generation "that should not pass till all these things be fulfilled."
"But," says one, "Did not Christ mean the destruction of Jerusalem when he said, 'But that shall endure unto the end, the same shall be saved?'" It is evident that he meant the word end just what he meant in the next verse, which reads: "And this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a witness unto all nations, and then shall the end come." It will not do to substitute death or the destruction of Jerusalem, either in the text last quoted, or in the 6th verse, "but the end is not yet." Where, then, does this text bring us? It brings us down in the last part of the last days.
As the 14th verse is so closely connected with the subject, it demands considerable attention. It is of no avail to say that this prediction was not fulfilled before the destruction of the city, even if there is no evidence that the gospel had not been before that event preached in America, Oceanica, or in all the habitable islands of the globe, for the objector can easily prove that there may be nothing more meant by the passage than the then known world. And to prove this, he will ask you if all the then known world was not taxed in the days of Augustus Cæsar, and if it is probable that Satan showed our Saviour anything more than the then known world? The word aion not only means world, but also age. Here the objector may have a show of argument, as this word is used in the question of the 3d verse, "What shall be the sign of thy coming, and of the end of the world?" This may be interpreted Jewish age or economy. But mark, Christ does not say, Then shall the end of the age or of the world come, but then shall the end come. Had the closing words of the question of the 3d verse read as follows: end of the world, (sunteleias tou kosmou) then there could have been no mistake as to what the disciples wished to know, for the word kosmos is not defined to mean age, but the word aion may mean both; we therefore see the wisdom of our Saviour in not using either of these in his answer, but instead, "then shall the end come." This shows plainly that the disciples wished to know not only some signs of Jerusalem's overthrow, but also, what was far more important, the signs of the end of the world.
We therefore see the "fullness of signification" in Christ's answer, and also a miniature exhibition of what took place then, and the largest and most comprehensive view of what would take place before the end of the world.
Paul declares that the gospel was preached to every creature under heaven. Col. 1 : 23. That the faith of the Romans was spoken of throughout the whole world. Rom. 1 : 8. And again (Rom. 10 : 18), "Have they not heard? Yes verily, their sound went into all the earth, and their words unto the ends of the world." It is quite probable that Paul spoke of the Roman world, or all the world then known; and for aught we know, all then inhabited. There is proof that within thirty years after the prediction, churches were established throughout the length and breadth of the Roman empire; but the end of Jerusalem did not then come, and did not come till about ten years afterward. Hence we cannot see a complete fulfillment of this prophecy till since the beginning of the first signs of the end; for we read, "when these things begin to come to pass, then lift up your heads, for your redemption draweth nigh." Now we know the gospel has been proclaimed (and the soon coming of Christ is included in it) not to Asia, Africa, and Europe only, but also to America, Oceanica, and to all parts of the world.63What was the object of disseminating this gospel of the kingdom, or the good news that the Lord had come, that salvation was free to all who would accept the plan and obey, and that he was coming again (not personally), not only to destroy Jerusalem, but would come visibly in the end of the world? The twofold, and perhaps threefold, answer to this question is found in this 14th verse: "And this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world [what for?] for a witness to all nations, and then shall the end come." The Greek word marturion may also be rendered testimony or proof, also information. The question may arise, proof of what? Certainly not merely a proof that he had come, for that is evident; but further that he is coming again, and that his coming is near. The last clause of the verse shows that it has reference to time; and then shall the end come. It also stands as a witness or testimony against those who do not embrace it. It witnesses against them since they have the information, or light, and do not receive it. There are some events which were to precede the coming of Christ, which are not special signs that his coming is near; but in this event, we have a prominent sign that the end is near at hand.
This text does not teach the conversion of the world, nor the thousand years' reign of the saints, as many suppose, as it does not imply that every one will hear the proclamation. It is evident that the gospel which has been preached throughout the Christian age, is not so much a sign that Christ's coming is near, as that which is now preached, having direct reference to his soon coming. Campbell's translation favors the idea that we can look upon the proclamation of this gospel as one of the latter day signs: "And this good tidings of the reign shall be published through all the world for the information of all the nations, and then shall come the end." Whiting's version also, gives the same thought: "And this good news of the kingdom will be preached in all the world, for a testimony to all nations, and then will the end come."
Taking the view generally held in regard to this text, is not the work of spreading the gospel already accomplished, or nearly so? In William Miller's lectures, p. 288, we read: "Is not this sign already accomplished? The Bible has been translated into more than two hundred different languages, and missionaries sent among all nations known to us on the globe." "Rev. J. O. Chould, author of a voluminous work, a history of missions, from the apostolic age down to the present day, being asked last May (1842) if he knew of any nation which never had received the gospel, replied that he did not." (See "Prophetic Expositions," pp. 1, 4, 7, by J. Litch.) Rev. Mr. Janes, and Dr. Nathan Bangs, have given a similar testimony. We notice in Life and Light for Woman, published monthly by the Woman's Board of Missions (October, 1880), the following: "The word of God is printed in two hundred and fifty languages and dialects, and widely diffused, read, and studied. The nations that sway the scepter of the world in wealth, in letters, in science, and in art, are both Christian and Protestant. Every land has been thrown open to the soldiers of Christ." If, on the other hand, we take the position that this gospel of the kingdom has reference to Christ's second coming, and the end of the world, we have just as good evidence of its fulfillment. E. R. Pinney, in his "Exposition of Matthew Twenty-four," says: "As early as 1842, second advent publications had been sent to every missionary station in Europe, Asia, Africa, and America, both sides of the Rocky Mountains. Joseph Wolf, the Jewish missionary, we find from the journal of his labors, visited most of the missionary stations in the East from 1831 to 1834, and preached this doctrine. The commanders of our vessels and the sailors tell us they touch at no port where they find this proclamation has not preceded them." For further and abundant evidence in regard to the extent of this proclamation and the numbers engaged in it, the reader is referred to "Exposition of Matthew Twenty-four," by Eld. James White.
We have endeavored to show that the signs spoken of indicate the occurrence of certain events. We will next consider the question, When shall these things be?
DOES MAN POSSESS INHERENT IMMORTALITY?
A CAREFUL, prayerful, and scriptural investigation of the subject, has compelled us to renounce the popular theory—which we once believed and preached—of man's inherent immortality. We will give a few reasons for rejecting this doctrine:—
1. It has an unfavorable origin. Satan—the great falsifier—first announced it in the garden of Eden. God had assured man that disobedience would certainly eventuate in death. The serpent flatly contradicted this by saying, "ye shall not surely die." If God told the truth, Satan told a lie; for the two statements are antagonisms. For ages after this first satanic victory, the doctrine of man's immortality slumbered in silence. At length it was imbibed by certain heathen philosophers, who coupled with it the pre-existence of souls, and the transmigration of souls. The Egyptians, according to Herodotus, first advocated the immortality of the soul. It became, at length, quite common among heathen nations. The Jewish people, during their seventy years' captivity in Babylon, became somewhat corrupted by this and other heathen dogmas. Some of the heathen, who were converted to Christianity, retained their old belief in man's essential immortality. Thus the leaven continued to work, until the church of Christ, degenerating into the Romish church of the dark ages, became thoroughly saturated with a sentiment which mystifies the Bible and dishonors Jesus.
2. It is inconsistent with the Bible account of man's creation. "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." Not a single word—not the faintest intimation about an invisible, intangible, imponderable, immaterial, indivisible, indestructible, immortal, conscious entity, called "the soul," without length, breadth, or thickness, and capable of living forever independent of the body.
3. It clashes with the scriptural record of man's fall. The penalty for transgression was first announced in these words: "In the day thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die." Hebrew: "Dying: thou shalt die." Arabic: "Thou shalt deserve to die." Targum of Jonathan: "Thou shalt be subject to death." Greek of Symmachus and also the Syriac: "Thou shalt be mortal"—that is, liable to die. Did Adam understand the penalty to include eternal misery? And yet, if there was any possibility of such a doom, was not every attribute of God pledged to make it known? What was the fact? God drove fallen man from the garden, and guarded the "tree of life" with cherubim and a flaming sword, "lest he put forth his hand and take also of the tree of life, and eat, and live forever." The hand of love pushed him away, and thus cut off all possibility of his becoming immortal in misery. Adam lived 930 years in toil and sorrow, and died.
4. The penalty of sin, to be executed upon every impenitent sinner, forbids the supposition of his immortality. Every child of Adam has a distinct probation, and is accountable to God for his probationary career. The Adamic death comes to all as a common calamity; but the "second death" will be visited upon man for his personal sins. Whoever accepts Christ, escapes the distinctive penalty; but whoever rejects him, must bare his own bosom to the stroke which fell upon the innocent Jesus. That penalty stroke will involve "indignation and wrath, tribulation and anguish," terminating in utter destruction. About two hundred passages teach that sinners will be ultimately exterminated—"burnt up root and branch." This could not be, if they were inherently immortal.
5. The Bible doctrine of death disproves the theory of natural immortality. According to the Scriptures, life and death are the exact opposites. If life means continued conscious existence, death means the cessation of it. "The living know that they shall die, but the dead know not any thing." Death is called a land of "darkness" and "forgetfulness," where there is "no remembrance" and even the "thoughts perish." It is such a state of blank unconsciousness that there is "no work nor device" performed, and "no knowledge nor wisdom" possessed, by its quiet sleepers. Without a resurrection, even they that are "fallen asleep in Christ are perished." See Job 14:7-21; Ps. 115:17; 146:4; Eccl. 3:19, 20; 9:4-10; 1 Cor. 15:12-22; Rev. 20:13. With this Bible statement of unconsciousness in death, philosophy and fact perfectly agree. Surgery and Scripture unite in proving that the brain is just as really the organ of thought as the eye is the organ of vision. Hence, when the brain loses its vitality the tide of conscious life ceases to flow.
6. Immortality is nowhere in the Scriptures ascribed to man. In our common version the term "immortal" occurs only once, and is there ascribed to God. 1 Tim. 1:17. The term "immortality" occurs five times, but is not once applied to man in his present condition. See Rom. 2:7; 1 Tim. 6:16; 1 Tim. 1:10; 1 Cor. 15:53, 54. We learn here that "God only hath immortality," and hence no other being ever received it as a natural birthright. But "as the Father hath life in himself, so hath he given to the Son to have life in himself." Being thus constituted the "Resurrection and the Life," Jesus Christ has "brought immortality to light," by showing how and when it can be obtained. We are to "seek" for this priceless boon. If we secure a right to it by a vital connection with Christ, we shall "put on immortality" in the resurrection morning. We are mortal now, as all human experience testifies. Whether we shall ever be anything more, depends upon our compliance with gospel conditions.
7. The doctrine of inherent immortality supersedes the necessity of a resurrection. The Bible attaches great importance to the resurrection of the dead, for upon this alone it predicates a future life. Current theology largely ignores this glorious doctrine of inspiration. If the "real man" is more fully alive after death than before, there is no need of a resurrection. If the body is only a clog to the spirit, why have any more to do with this cumbrous clay, when once the prison doors are open and the fetters fairly broken? Many see the point and are giving up all faith in any resurrection except what takes place at death, when "the spirit assumes a spirit body" and soars away to the spirit land!
8. It reduces the scenes of the Judgment day to a solemn farce. Why send men to a heaven of happiness or a hell of misery at death, and then rally them from their respective abodes, and judge them, thousands of years afterwards? Is not this like trying a man after he is hung? Does the Bible sanction any such procedure? Never! Jesus declares that rewards and punishments are meted out when he comes to judge the world. "Then shall he reward every man according to his works." The wicked are "reserved until the day of Judgment, to be punished." If the destinies of men can be adjusted at death, there is no need of a solemn Judgment day, such as the word of God so fully reveals. No part of retribution takes place before the great day of destiny, when Jesus ascends his majestic throne!
9. It is subversive of the doctrine of Christ's personal coming. If the Scriptures teach anything plainly and positively, they teach that Jesus Christ is coming literally and personally the second time, to raise the dead, judge the world, destroy the wicked, crown the saints, purify the earth, and establish an everlasting kingdom. And yet the doctrine of immortalsoulism renders the second advent of Christ entirely unnecessary. If men are rewarded and punished at death, there is no need of Christ's coming as Judge. If the saints are to live forever in Heaven, there is no necessity for Christ to fit up a "new earth wherein dwelleth righteousness." The reason why there is no more stress laid on the personal coming of Christ, is the fact that popular theology is constructed on such a basis, that the second appearing of the Son of God can be entirely dispensed with. Is it not time to pause and see whether Theology and Scripture have not parted company?
10. It is the fruitful source of error. The doctrine of inherent immortality is the foundation of the worst religious developments that have ever cursed the world. Swedenborgianism, Shakerism, Spiritualism, Mohamedism, Mormonism, Purgatory, and Mariolatry, are based upon this doctrine as a fundamental plank in their platform. This statement will hardly be questioned by those who have taken any pains to investigate the matter. Spiritualism lays great stress on inherent immortality. In this growing system we see the ripened fruits of the very seed which current theology has scattered with so liberal a hand; and we shall see more of it, as time rolls on. Eternal torment is another result of the doctrine; for if man is immortal, the sinner must be eternally miserable, unless the doctrine of universal salvation is true. The latter is often a rebound from the former. If the doctrine in question is false, then all these systems are proved to be without foundation. "The wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life, through Jesus Christ, our Lord." All who accept Jesus as their Lifegiver will live forever in Paradise restored. All who reject him will be accounted as useless rubbish, fit only to be "burned up" and cleared out of the way. Thus God's universe will one day be divested of every unholy element, and purity, harmony, and love will be the grand consummation! May we be among those who shall swell the everlasting song of victory through the blood of the Lamb!—A. A. PHELPS, A. M., in Bible Banner.
Christian Honesty in Paying Debts
THERE is one great evil in this country which we think the pulpit and the press ought to denounce more frequently than they do—that is the habit of getting into debt and making no effort to pay. Can a man be a consistent Christian and not strive to pay all his debts? Can a man be a Christian and not be honest? Is a man who does not try to live within his means and pay his debts an honest man? If so, we do not understand the Bible. Should men who habitually disregard their financial obligations be allowed to remain in the church? We think not, and think that a man's being a member of the church ought to be a letter of credit in any part of the globe where the Christian religion prevails. But it is not the case. Far from it; and there are even some ministers whose sermons do no good because they are preached by men who are not considered honest even by the men of the world.
Whisky is pronounced the great evil of this country, and it is a great curse; but we doubt whether it does more harm to the cause of the church than the lying and dishonesty of sober church-members, whose promise to pay is not worth the paper it is written on. The church is not the place for fraud and dishonesty.—Christian Observer.
The Cumulative Argument of a Holy Life
The argument of a holy life ought to be cumulative—increasing and strengthening every day. Whatever it may prove at the first, it ought to prove infinitely more after years of work, trial, temptation and battling with the storms.—United Presbyterian.