The Watchtower, November 1, 1890

VOL. XI. ALLEGHENY, PA., NOVEMBER, 1890. NO. 12.

Zion's Watch Tower

AND

HERALD OF CHRIST'S PRESENCE.

PUBLISHED MONTHLY.

TOWER PUBLISHING COMPANY.

"BIBLE HOUSE:" Arch Street, Allegheny, Pa., U.S.A. C. T. RUSSELL, EDITOR.

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VIEW FROM THE TOWER.

THE RANSOM STILL THE TEST.--MORE ARE FALLING AND YET MANY MORE TO FALL IN THIS "EVIL DAY."--DR. LYMAN ABBOTT'S REJECTION OF THE TRUE GOSPEL. --DR. EDWARD ABBOTT'S DEFENSE OF THE TRUTH.--THE PRESBYTERIAN BANNER'S FAITHFULNESS.--THE LESSONS OF THE HOUR.--THE QUESTION CANNOT BE AVOIDED.--WHO IS ON THE LORD'S SIDE?

For the past eleven years, faithfulness to the Lord and his Word and the welfare of his sheep has necessitated an almost constant contention for the ransom, as the very center and foundation principle of true Christian doctrine.

During this time we have seen and faithfully proclaimed that it is upon this point of doctrine that the great test of the close of this age is to come. It is written, "He shall be for a stone of stumbling and for a rock of offence to both the [nominal] houses of Israel." (`Isa. 8:14`.) To the Jews, Christ crucified for our redemption was, as Paul testifies, a cause of offence-- "They stumbled at that stumbling-stone." (`Rom. 9:32,33`.) And so also the nominal spiritual Israel is likewise stumbling. Every year, we might almost say every day, gives increasing evidence of this stumbling. Any one whose attention has been drawn to this subject of the present falling away of Christian people from the true foundation of Christianity must observe that, one after another, ministers and religious journals of all denominations and shades of belief are abandoning this foundation. They claim that the death of Christ was either for himself, or as an exemplification of fidelity to principle which would benefit his disciples and the world, not as a sacrifice for their sins, but as an example of how each must save himself--salvation by works, observe, and not by faith in the precious blood of Christ shed for our redemption.

Thank God for the privilege of being traduced and misrepresented by the world and by "false brethren" for the sake of this cause. All have our witness on the subject. We are not surprised at the sweeping strides the error is making. The Scriptures indicate, too, that the great stumbling and falling away from this all-important doctrine is only beginning. Before the sifting ends a thousand will fall to one who will stand. (`Psa. 91:7`; `Eph. 6:11-13`.) Christian people generally hold the doctrine of the ransom, but only in a blind way. They have no clear, definite views as to how or what it was. They are all, therefore, very susceptible to this latter-day snare of the Adversary.

As an evidence of the spread of this false doctrine, which, as another gospel, seeks to displace the true, we cite the case of Dr. Lyman Abbott, from whose gifted pen we have heretofore made quotations. It seems that he, too, has denied the faith. The new views are known as the "New Theology," while ours is the Apostolic, or Old Theology.

We clip the following from the Presbyterian Banner, and must compliment its editor upon his courage as a champion of the now waning cause of the cross of Christ, which is yet to the "orthodox" a stumbling-block, and to the worldly-wise foolishness. The Banner article runs as follows:--

SETTING ASIDE THE SACRIFICE OF CHRIST.

"Dr. Lyman Abbott, successor of the late Rev. Henry Ward Beecher in the pastorate of Plymouth church, Brooklyn, and editor of the Christian Union, has for a time been somewhat noted, as a commentator, preacher and editor, for announcing sentiments and doctrines contrary to what are generally held by orthodox evangelical Christians. His most noted departure appeared in an article in the Andover Review, last November, which has been the occasion of a fraternal correspondence between him and his brother, Dr. Edward Abbott, published in the Christian Union, July 3d. The article in the Andover Review was an effort to set forth that the historic interpretation by the Church that the sacrifice of Christ was an atonement for the sins of his people has been an entire mistake; that we are to be saved, not by what Christ did or suffered eighteen hundred years ago, but by the nature of God transmitted to us and entering into us through Christ; and that the main object of Christ's sacrifice is to keep us from committing sin now, not to save us from the guilt and punishment of sin.

"In his correspondence with his brother, in defense of his position, he says: 'The New Testament does not seem to me to afford ground for the opinion that Christ died either to induce God to pardon, or to enable him to pardon.' 'The question is, How can the suffering of the innocent one avail, not to purchase a pardon for the guilty, but to purify and perfect him?' This is simply to set aside the expiatory character of the sufferings and death of the Lord Jesus Christ, and to deny the plain teachings of the Word of God with respect to it. He appears to go even so far as to admit that parts of the Scriptures must be blotted out in order to meet the view he has presented. And he does not shrink from advising this. For he says that his interpretation of the sacrifice of Christ makes it necessary 'to erase a great deal from the New Testament,' and to 'blot out a great deal from the consciousness of the Christian Church,' and he is confident that this should be done. Surely the wildest latitudinarianism could ask nothing more. This robs the Gospel at once of that which the prophets, the apostles and the saints of all ages have most undoubtedly believed, upon which they have most firmly rested, and which Christ himself most certainly taught.

"The reply of Dr. Edward Abbott is conclusive. He calls attention to the fact that Christ said that he laid down his life for his sheep; that Paul and Peter and John had clearly taught the doctrine of the expiation of sin by the death of Christ; and that it has been the belief of the Church from the beginning, 'that in some way an atonement, an expiatory atonement, a vicarious atonement, was operative,' whatever may have been the difference as to its philosophy. He asks these and other equally pertinent questions:

"'Is, or is not, this plainly the doctrine of Scripture, whatever may be our own opinion about it?' 'Has not the substance of this truth been the very fiber of the Church universal?' 'Can it be possible, if there be a holy Spirit, that the Church should have been so deceived and deceiving?' 'Is it safe to erase as much from the New Testament as it is necessary to erase, and to blot out as much from the consciousness of the Christian Church as it is necessary to blot out, before your theory of the blood of Christ can be accepted?'

"The teachings of the Old and New Testaments, in many forms, that Christ gave himself a sacrifice to save us from the guilt and penalty of sin, are the most precious words God has spoken to us. If Christ did not die for us, then are we indeed without God and without hope in the world. No present obedience and righteousness, even if they were possible, as taught by Dr. Lyman Abbott, could by any means remove the sin that previously had separated us from God and brought us under condemnation. Christ 'hath borne our griefs and carried our sorrows;' 'was wounded for our transgressions, bruised for our iniquities;' 'was delivered for our offences, and was raised again for our justification;' and 'being justified by his blood, we shall be saved from wrath

through him.' 'There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus.' Dr. Lyman Abbott's gospel is 'another gospel, which is not another,' but is a perversion of the Gospel."

Let no one suppose that we take pleasure in the announcement of the falling from the faith of Dr. Abbott, or any other man. On the contrary, it is a source of painful disappointment to us, that such a one should be lost to the cause of the cross, and become an opponent of the Lamb of God which taketh away the sin of the world. Nor would the exercise of that loving sympathy which would hide his fall from public notice be proper; for he is more than a brother fallen from grace--he is a teacher exercising an influence which will affect others and cause them to stumble, also. Our love must be exercised first toward God, in fidelity to his Word, and second, toward those still in harmony with God and his truth, to guard them against the erroneous view. Let God be true, though it show every man to be in error. Let God's character and plan be upheld, no matter who must be shown up as proclaimers of another gospel. This is what is signified by the injunction to "contend earnestly for the faith once delivered to the saints."

We are the more disappointed in Dr. Abbott because his influence heretofore has been growingly in harmony with the Truth. And yet, while we can no longer recognize him as a brother in Christ, because he has abandoned the only foundation upon which Christian brotherhood can stand, we can and do recognize his honest, manly statement of his position, and honor him for it. He is too candid to attempt to quibble and to deny the true and only meaning of the words (ransom, etc.) of our Lord and the apostles, and to continue the use of the word ransom as a blind, merely to deceive people and seek to be in favor with all classes. He comes out honestly and plainly and admits that his theory requires him "to erase a great deal from the New Testament."

Because few are so candid as Mr. Abbott, the Truth has the severer battle, and the deception is the greater. During the past ten years, in discussing this subject and combating the error as the snare of the enemy, we have had the underhanded ones to oppose, who use the words ransom and redeem, and yet deny their true and only meaning, in order to deceive some of the sheep. In `Mark 10:45` and `Matt. 20:28` the Greek term rendered ransom is lutron anti (a price to offset or to correspond), and in `1 Tim. 2:6` it is the same expression reversed, anti-lutron (a corresponding price).

Those who deny that our Lord Jesus gave himself a ransom (a corresponding price, a substitute) for all deny the gospel of Christ and the apostles, whatever else they may believe. And the clearer it is presented, and the sooner they realize it, the better for such as are being blindly led into the error. The sooner the line of division is clearly drawn, the better it will be for the Lord's sheep. It is a good sign, however, of the real loyalty of the deceived ones, that the false shepherds are obliged to use words (ransom, redeem, etc.) which do not represent their views, in order to deceive and to hold the sheep.

We need not expect that such will confess that they are deniers of the ransom any more than we need expect a staunch Romanist to admit that the Papal system is Antichrist. By their doctrines, and not by their professions, both show their real position.

It is time, dearly beloved, that each for himself shall definitely settle this one question which lies at the foundation of Christian faith: Do you accept the Bible teaching that the death of "the man Christ Jesus" was our ransom, or corresponding price, by which a "propitiation" (satisfaction) of the divine law was effected (`1 John 2:2`; `4:10`; `1 Tim. 2:5,6`), or do you not believe it? Be honest

with yourself and with others. Be not ashamed of your honest convictions. If honestly in doubt as to God's teaching on the subject and meekly desirous of being shown the path of life, you are of the sort he is ready and willing to lead into the truth. Such may truly and confidently look to God and say, "Thou wilt show me the path of life," remembering the promises, "The meek will he guide in judgment, and the meek will he teach his way." (`Psa. 16:11`; `25:9`.) "All the paths of the Lord are mercy and truth unto such as keep his covenant and his testimonies." --`Psa. 25:10`.

It will not answer to say, Yes, of course I believe in Christ as the ransom--and yet indifferently neglect to give consideration and weight to the meaning of the word ransom. You do not believe, in the true sense, anything of which you are wholly ignorant. We exhort all, therefore, to awake to the importance of the subject, so as to study this foundation doctrine of true Christianity.

To acknowledge the Scripture teaching, that the death of the man Christ Jesus was the corresponding price which sufficed to meet and to cancel the first Adam's sin and penalty, is to acknowledge the following clear line of reasoning from the Scriptures:--

(1) When the beloved Son of God left the glory which he had with the Father before the world was, to become our Savior, he was "made flesh," became "a man," "a little lower than the angels," for the very purpose of tasting death for every man, as the ransom or corresponding price for the first man through whom the loss and condemnation had come. (`Heb. 2:9`.) Since he was the corresponding price, it proves that the man Christ Jesus corresponded exactly with the first man.

(2) It proves then, that the first man was all that God declares that he made him--a man, an earthly being in the image and likeness of his Creator.--`Gen. 1:27`.

(3) It proves that a fall occurred, from that perfect manhood, into sin and death, as witnessed by the degradation and dying under which the world in general is groaning and travailing to-day, longing for deliverance. This is also witnessed by the grand superiority of "the man Christ Jesus who gave himself a ransom" or corresponding price; for as he (aside from the special divine power imparted to him at his baptism) corresponded to Adam, it shows how greatly Adam's race has fallen from that real human perfection.

(4) It shows distinctly what is implied in the promise of a restitution or restoration to that which was lost in Adam and redeemed for all in the ransom-sacrifice given by "the man Christ Jesus."-- `Acts 3:21`; `Matt. 18:11`; `1 Tim. 2:5,6`.

(5) It distinguishes clearly between restitution to the world of the lost earthly possessions and those human perfections which the first Adam possessed but lost by sin, and which the Lord took for a time for the purpose of giving himself as man's ransom (`Heb. 10:4-10`), and the high calling of the Gospel Church to the divine nature, to which our Lord was exalted at his resurrection, because of his obedience to the Father's plan for our redemption.

(6) It shows, too, how the Gospel Church, the Bride of Christ, though belonging to the condemned race and requiring and receiving a share in the ransom, has been invited to share with the Redeemer in sacrifices which shall fully test her love and devotion and fitness, under God's conditions, to share her Lord's nature and glory; and how she can do no needful work, such as her Lord's, in the way of ransoming others, since his work was the full, complete ransom for the one man in whom all had been sentenced, and hence was, as stated, a "ransom for all."

(7) It shows at once the error of the opposing claim of "another gospel," which affirms that our Lord Jesus never gave himself as a corresponding price (a ransom) for all; that death is not a penalty to be ransomed from, but a step of progress in a plan of evolution, by which the divine nature is to be attained by all; that the fall of man is myth--that "if he fell at all he fell upward;" that man never was perfected as man, but that he began to exist in a very crude and imperfect state; that he never had God's image, and could not, therefore, have lost that or any other good quality, nor in any sense have lost himself, and hence needed no corresponding price, no saving from a lost estate, no redemption from a fall, no restitution to an original perfection and image of God.

The ransom may thus be seen to be the very center of the Word and plan of God, and the most thorough test that can be applied to any theory, to prove at once whether it is of God or of men. Whatever is found out of harmony with this foundation principle of the Gospel, preached by Jesus and the Apostles, should be let severely alone. To tamper with that which you perceive to be off the only foundation for faith, laid in God's Word, is dangerous. To allow either yourself or others for you to devise and arrange another plan of salvation than that which God reveals, is to trust to your own or their blind reasonings and to abandon the lines and points which God has marked for our guidance in his revelation. You cannot trust your own reasoning faculties or those of others outside those lines and points which God has furnished. To go outside them is to get lost in a mental maze in which all is speculation and uncertainty, because outside of the fixed lines provided for our restraint by our loving Creator.

The Lord's invitation, "Come, let us reason together," implies that we are to reason with Him, inside these lines which he has erected for our preservation from error, and not that we should abandon his Word to reason for ourselves. And the subject upon which we reason and the lines which must limit our reasonings are indicated in the words which follow the invitation to reason--"Though your sins be as scarlet they shall be white as wool." Here is an acknowledgement of sin, and of a fall, and of a just condemnation. It is also an admission that the sins are scarlet--

of a deep dyed and fast color--that we cannot wash them away ourselves, and that God proposes to cleanse them away for us through the blood of the Lamb slain for our redemption.

The difficulty with Eve was just this which is now to test the Church, the second Eve. (`2 Cor. 11:3`.) Eve knew the lines which God had placed, she knew the liberty which the gracious Creator had bestowed, and she knew the limit of that liberty--that she must not partake of the forbidden tree; but she chafed under any restriction. The restrictions would probably have been removed in time, but Eve was not submissive to the Lord's plan, and lent an ear to the suggestion of the tempter that she should assert and use her liberty, and not recognize God's superior wisdom and yield willing obedience. As she forsook all the other trees of the garden, so beautiful and so good, to partake of the forbidden one, so now the Church is tempted to forsake all the exceeding great and precious and harmonious truths of God's Word, our garden of delights, and to seek other wisdom which will as surely carry them away from the true gospel as Eve's disobedience led out of Eden.

If our first parents, with perfect reasoning faculties, needed the Lord's direction, because of their inexperience, how much more necessary it is for us, who not only lack experience, but also lack perfection of mental capacity and balance, to stay close to the Word of the Lord and carefully avoid even an attempt to reason outside of its defined lines, or in opposition to its clearly expressed doctrine on this subject of the ransom, which, like a finger-board, distinguishes the way the Lord planned and directs from all other ways.

WHO IS ON THE LORD'S SIDE?

A passive interest in this question is not sufficient: an active interest is what the importance of the question, fidelity to God's Word and interest in the saints in the trial now in progress demands. This is no time to shirk the question or half-heartedly to watch the battle between truth and error, content to know that you yourself see the truth clearly and favor it in your heart. This is no time to fear to own the cross, lest its growing unpopularity should rupture some earthly ties and bring you the disapprobation of those you have loved and esteemed. It is a time, on the contrary, to be esteemed and used as a precious occasion for showing our dear Redeemer our loyalty to him and his Word, and our willingness, if need be, to break every tender tie, except that which binds us to him. The present is such an emergency as develops strength and courage in the true soldier of the cross, who appreciates the opportunity of enduring scoffs and misrepresentations for Christ's sake.

In the history of the nation of Israel, which typified the Church of Christ, we find that when a battle raged between Israel and those who typified errorists now, those who "went not up to the help of the Lord against the mighty" were cursed or condemned instead of praised and blessed after the victory had been won (`Judges 5:23`), even though they took no active part in opposition to God's cause. So in the present conflict: those who fail to lift up heart and pen and voice and every talent possessed, on the Lord's side of the question, will not be reckoned among the overcomers who get the victory under the Lord's direction.

Awake! Put on the whole armor of God and follow the Lamb whithersoever he goeth.--`Rev. 14:4`.

TRUTH IS STRANGER THAN FICTION.

This old proverb seems to find illustration in the subject before us. To those who disregard the Bible account of man's origin and destiny, the Bible doctrine of a fall from an original perfection seems less in harmony with existing conditions in comparison with the past than does the theory of evolution, or gradual progression from a very low beginning.

One cause of this seeming discount of truth, to some minds, lies in the fact that though man has been gradually deteriorating from the original perfection, his surrounding conditions have been gradually improving, the gain of experience compensating to some extent for the loss of native ability. Besides, we should remember that we are considering and comparing the achievements of a comparatively few men in earlier times with those of today, which are the results of the combined experiences of millions of men based upon the record of the experiences and experiments of many more millions now dead, all working together in the same general cause--to overcome surrounding obstacles and disadvantages. Thus considered, we see that it is only reasonable to expect what we do find, that circumstances are so much more favorable to-day, that men of small capacity and greatly fallen from the original image of God can, under present advantageous circumstances, accomplish much more than Adam, who had that image, or than any of his more immediate posterity. To contrast properly the individual ability of to-day with that of the remote past, imagine yourself and wife wrecked upon a desert island, out of reach and out of hope of reaching or communicating with others; imagine every article of commerce lost, and your memory of the past, of your own experiences and reading, etc., all blotted out; and then think how long it would probably take you and your wife and children to formulate language, to establish the arts and sciences and to invent telegraphs, railroads and all the machinery of the present day. The strong probabilities are that, instead of thus rising, you would gradually become more and more degraded, and instead of handing down such a race as Adam's your children within two hundred years would be savages. Had God started our race in such a pair, the earth never would have had the civilization of to-day--aside from some direct interposition of providence. And this brings us to--

A SECOND REASON

why the truth--the Bible declaration of a fall--seems to the worldly mind stranger, or less credible, than the fiction of evolution, or gradual progression. It is because the fall of Adam's posterity was so rapid that the world speedily became degraded to semi-barbarism, except that family (Seth, Enoch, Methuselah, Noah and Shem) which alone continued to have any particular degree of divine likeness, and which sought to retain God and his will in their hearts. After the flood the same degeneracy continued among Noah's posterity --except in the one line of Abraham's family (Israel, God's covenant people); and even in this family the tendency to forget God and to follow witchcraft, idolatry, etc., like the nations around them, was continual, and was only prevented in a measure by the Lord's bringing upon them famines, pestilences, etc., according to the provisions of their covenant, to turn them back from the tendencies of their fallen natures.

The effect of the Lord's restraints upon that nation, Israel, are manifest from the fact that in the zenith of their national existence, in the days of David and Solomon, they excelled all other nations. That people shed a light, and by example arrested to a large degree the downward tendency in the surrounding nations. They set them an example in literature, in the Psalms of David and the Proverbs of Solomon, which the poets and wise men of other nations afterward copied but very imperfectly. From the promises made by the Lord to Israel through the prophets, of future blessings, in which peace and plenty and beauty for ashes should fill the earth, sprang the songs and legends among other nations of a coming golden age, which helped to lift their minds from sensuality. And from a promise that this blessing should come through a great deliverer, Messiah, we can trace the ambition of a Cyrus, an Alexander, the Caesars and others to acquire universal dominion, fulfil the prophecy and organize the strong government promised.

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TRUTH STRANGER THAN FICTION.

(CONTINUED FROM SECOND PAGE.)

Thus to the light of God's people, and of God's promises to them, is attributable the fact that all the adjacent nations were superior to those farther away from that influence, who were at that time in barbarism and savagery.

And so, too, since the Gospel began, the light of God's promises and the teachings and example of our Lord and his apostles have exerted an influence in favor of purity, enlightenment and freedom, notwithstanding the gross counterfeit (Papacy) which sprang up and usurped the name and influence of the true Church, endeavoring to throttle freedom, and substituting for it superstition, almost choking the light of truth under forms and ceremonies.

Meanwhile God permitted Antichrist to hinder the influence of the doctrines and example of the true Christ and his true followers, and to becloud the true light for a time, ushering in "the dark ages" from which the reformation movements of the past three centuries have only in part released men. This view of the matter, and no other, is in harmony with the Apostle Paul's explanation of how the Gentile nations came to be so degraded as we find them in various quarters of the heathen world. He says it is "Because that, when they knew God, they glorified him not as God, neither were thankful, but became vain in their imaginations, and their foolish heart was darkened. Professing themselves to be wise they became fools.... Wherefore God gave them up....And

even as they did not care to retain God in their knowledge, God gave them over to a reprobate mind to do those things which are improper; being filled with all unrighteousness, wickedness, covetousness, maliciousness; full of envy, murder, debate, deceit, malignity; whisperers, backbiters, haters of God, despiteful, proud, boasters, inventors of evil things, disobedient to parents, etc." (`Rom. 1:21,22,25,28-31`.) Thus the Apostle sums up the degradation from the image of God, which more or less we see all about us in civilized as well as in heathen lands. And this brings us to--

THE THIRD REASON WHY

the error seems better supported than the truth by existing facts. It is because recent discoveries and inventions cast so brilliant a light upon our day that all the centuries past seem grossly dark in comparison. Yet many forget that there are lost arts, such as the making of elastic glass, the tempering of copper, the making of Damascus steel, etc., which have not yet been re-discovered, with present light. And let us not forget that with all the scientific instruments and mechanical skill known to-day, it would be a monster undertaking to construct such a building as the Great Pyramid of Egypt. The bringing of its immense stones long distances would tax the ingenuity of the skilled engineers of our day, and the placing of such immense stones in such a building would be considered a marvelous feat with all of our present day's powerful machinery. The exactness of the fitting of such immense stones probably could not be equaled by our best stone-cutters of to-day with every help of modern instruments; and the exactness of the orientation of the building could with difficulty be equaled to-day by our learned astronomers with their exact and delicate instruments. And remember that this is only with present skill and machinery, and that fifty years ago, with all the skill known, that Pyramid could not have been duplicated; and it is doubtful if it could be to-day. So, too, with the immense stones of Solomon's aqueduct at Jerusalem, recently unearthed: though they represent the masonry and genius of twenty-five centuries ago, their trueness and size and durability excite the wonder of modern architects and masons, who doubt if we have to-day machinery capable of handling stones so immense. Then tell us not of the inferiority of the ancients who could do and did do, without the machinery, etc., of our late day, what we can only now do with it all.

The solution of the riddle that is puzzling men to-day--why our day has produced so much more of invention and discovery than the past--is found only in the Bible. It announced the present period of invention over two thousand years ago. (`Dan. 12:4`.) It pointed out, that far in advance, that with the year A.D. 1799 "The Time of the End" would begin, and that the present "Time of the End" would be the "Day of God's Preparation" (`Nahum 2:3`) for the incoming Millennium of blessing. It is, therefore, to the fact that God is now lifting the veil of ignorance and letting in the light, which is of him, and not by human evolution, that present progress is attributable. Those who hold to God's version of the fall and the ransom and the restitution may be laughed to scorn now by the worldly-wise and heady, but they will be kept by the power of God--by the power of his truth-- from many injurious errors which will stumble thousands on every hand. Abide in him, and let his Word abide in you.

LOOKING FOR HOME.

I am looking beyond this abode of strife,

With its burden of tears and sighs,

To the radiant realms of eternal life

Where the summits of glory rise;

Where the fields of Paradise open to view

As humanity's lasting home,

And the higher bliss of a faithful few

Assuredly shall have come.

I am looking away to mansions fair,

Prepared for the bride of the Lamb;

For those who the cross now faithfully bear

Shall soon share the crown and the palm.

O! the rapturous bliss of Bridegroom and bride,

When the long waiting season is o'er,

When hearts so faithful and loyal and tried

Are united to sever no more.

I am looking away, for the day-star brings

Its promise of glory rare--

Till the rose-tipped finger of morning flings

Her banner upon the air.

I heed not the scourge of the tempests breath,

I reck not the surges foam,

For beyond the sad vistas of sin and death

I am looking for home--sweet home!

Selected.

ANASTASIS--RESURRECTION.

No subject occupies a more important place in God's Word than the resurrection, except those two other doctrines so closely identified with it--the ransom, which is the basis of all hope in a resurrection, and the second coming of the Lord to establish his kingdom, under which the fruit of the ransom (resurrection) shall be extended to Adam and his race in general. Yet, while these doctrines are given such prominence in the divine plan, how strange it seems that Christian people generally almost ignore these topics which the spirit of God indicates to be of greatest importance. The cause of this neglect lies in the fact that in the period from the third to the sixth centuries the idea of a coming kingdom for the blessing of the world, with Christ and his glorified spiritual church at its head, was dropped and exchanged for the idea that it would be a kingdom composed of the notables of the earthly church in earthly glory and honor, and with one of their number as chief or pope to represent Christ on earth. This thought tended to undermine and make void the apostles' doctrine of glory and blessing and a crown of life to the church at Christ's appearing and kingdom. (`1 Pet. 1:5`; `2 Tim. 4:8`.) And gradually the idea was introduced, which is totally foreign to the Scriptures, that the resurrection is really a matter of no necessity --that the dying saints pass immediately into the fullest of life and glory and blessing, irrespective of Christ's second advent and a resurrection. And surely if this were the case, if fulness of life and blessing can be obtained without a resurrection, the term would represent nothing of value to be hoped for or expected; and the doctrine of the resurrection, like the doctrine of the Lord's coming, would be gradually lost sight of and at last cease to be specially cherished and hoped for. And so we find it.

As we have already seen that the study of the subject of the ransom and of the second coming of the Lord, and the kingdom then to be established and to bless all the families of the earth, reveals much valuable truth that was previously unseen, so the study of the subject of resurrection gives clearer views of the divine plan.

It was not until the year 1881 that our attention was drawn critically to the subject of resurrection; and shortly after, under the same caption as above we presented the subject in the TOWER of June 1882. Further study, aided by increasing light shining from other features of the divine plan, has served to confirm the views there expressed and to amplify them, so that the entire subject of the resurrection is now very clear, and harmonious with itself, as well as with other features of the plan.

We find that while men use the word resurrection in a very general way, the Bible uses the Greek word anastasis, represented by our English word resurrection, in a very particular manner. The common view of the doctrine of resurrection is shown by Webster's definition of the term, as follows: "Resurrection. (1) A rising again; the resumption of vigor. (2) Especially, the rising again from the dead; the resumption of life."

As examples of resurrection, our Lord's notable miracles, in the case of Lazarus, and of the son of the widow of Nain, of Jairus' daughter, etc., are often cited; the idea being that the restoration of any degree of vigor or life to one who has passed into the unconsciousness of

death is a resurrection.

The Scriptural use of the original Greek word anastasis is, however, quite different from this. The Scriptures never speak of the above cases of the awakening of the dead as a resurrection. Anastasis means much more than merely awakening out of death; it signifies to raise again, and this means all that the word restitution means, and all that the word saved means, to the lost and ruined race of Adam. As restitution means full restitution to all that was lost by Adam, and as saved means full salvation from all the penalty and loss incurred under God's sentence by Adam's disobedience, so resurrection (anastasis) signifies a full and complete raising up again to all that was lost; not a partial raising to a part of what was lost, but a full raising again, clear up to the position and condition of perfect manhood, mentally, morally and physically, whence the fall hurled father Adam and all in him--his posterity. This is the blessed fulness implied in the word resurrection as God uses it. Let us rejoice in it hereafter, and use the word resurrection as God uses it. Hereafter let us not speak of such cases as the awakening of Lazarus as resurrection; for Lazarus neither came perfect from the tomb, nor did he from that time begin to progress to perfection. He was merely awakened, as our Lord said: "I go that I may awake him." And when Lazarus died again, that could not be considered his second death, for he never was fully freed from the Adamic death. If one were awakened a dozen times from Adamic death, he would still be in it, and could not die the Second Death (the wages of individual, wilful sin) until some how released from the first or Adamic death-sentence.

Writing particularly on this subject (`1 Cor. 15`), the Apostle tells us several important things:

(1) That the doctrine of a resurrection is an all-important one, because if there be no resurrection, those who have already fallen asleep in death are perished, and we who are hoping and seeking for a future life are deceived and will be sadly disappointed (`verses 18,19`); but he assures us that there is the best of ground for faith in God's power and purpose to have a resurrection, and that the resurrection of our Lord Jesus is the proof of this.--`Verse 20`.

(2) He further declares our Lord to be the first one ever resurrected; thus showing that Lazarus and others were not resurrected in the sense that God uses that word--Christ was "the first-fruits of them that slept."--`Verse 20` and `Acts 26:23`.

(3) Building upon the foundation he had already laid down (`chap. 1:18,23,24,30`) --that Christ's death as our ransom is the basis of our hope of the resurrection to life, which he thus redeemed for us and for all, the Apostle proceeds to declare (`verses 21,22`) that as death came as a result of something done by man (Adam) so the resurrection comes as a result of something done by another man ("the man Christ Jesus, who gave himself a ransom for all"); and that as all who were in Adam shared his sentence and as a consequence die, even so, all who are in Christ will be made alive--made to share the blessing which the man Christ Jesus merited, but which he laid down in death on behalf of all those who will obey him when brought to a full knowledge of the truth.--`Heb. 5:9`.

(4) But even among those made alive in Christ there will be a difference: there will be two orders, or classes, or grades; and all brought to perfection by resurrection, all lifted completely out of death, will belong to one or the other of these orders. They will either belong to the spiritual order of which the "body of Christ" under Jesus its head, represented in Israel's priesthood, is the first-fruits unto God of his creatures (`verse 23` and `James 1:18`), and of which the second company, represented in the Levites, will be the blessed servants or assistants, or else they will come up in the human order to human perfection as members of the great restitution class to be developed during the Lord's presence--during the Millennial reign.

(5) But, says the Apostle (`verse 35`), some will unthinkingly ask, How can the dead be raised up? Where are their bodies? O thoughtless person, to suppose that the decay of the body to dust could hinder the fulfilment of God's promise! Do you not see that in nature God teaches this very lesson? that though the seed planted does not come up, another seed of the same sort comes forth--a new grain of the same nature as that planted. (`Verses 35-37`.) And so it will be in the resurrection: it will not be the same body, composed of the same solids and liquids as the one which was buried, but it will be the same being who died that will be resurrected.

(6) Is it asked, What sort of a body will the resurrection body be? We answer, There will be different kinds of resurrection bodies--just as with the different sorts of grain when planted, the new grain which springs up is of the same kind, or nature, as that which is sown; so it will be in the resurrection. What kind of a perfect body one will have in the resurrection depends upon what nature he belongs to. But are not all who died in Adam of the same nature as Adam-- human nature? No; the vast majority are, and all were such at one time; but a few, a "little flock," have changed their nature and are human no longer. (These, and the method by which their change of nature was effected, are specially pointed out in the August TOWER.) From the time they consecrated their justified human natures as sacrifices, they were reckoned of God as "new creatures in Christ," "partakers of the divine nature." In the resurrection, God, according to his plan, will give to each one such a body as it hath pleased him to provide--namely, to each kind of seed his own appropriate body. Concerning mankind in general, we know the kind of bodies they will have, for we all have imperfect human bodies now, and can form fairly good conceptions of what will be the grandeur and powers of such bodies when perfected, when fully raised up to the perfection lost in Adam. But of the bodies which God hath prepared for the little flock of his chosen saints, the "royal priesthood," who are to be changed to the divine nature, we can now know but little. We can merely know that they will have divine bodies when they are perfected. And so the Apostle declares, "It doth not yet appear what we shall be, but we shall be like Him" who is "the express image of the Father's person."

And this fact is in accord with what we see of God's general plan. If we look beyond the earth we see variety in God's creation, and if we look about us on earth we see great variety in plant and animal life.--`Verses 38-41`.

(7) We will be specially interested in the resurrection bodies of the saints, because (a) that is the prize for which we are running, and (b) because we have a tolerably clear idea of what a restitution body will be. And while it doth not yet appear what we shall be, I can suggest some contrasts between what we now are and what we shall be then, though it will afford but a meager view. "Thus is * THE RESURRECTION of THE DEAD [the chief resurrection or the resurrection of the chief class, the sacrificing overcomers]. It is sown in corruption, it is raised in incorruption; it is sown in dishonor, it is raised in glory; it is sown in weakness, it is raised in power; it is sown a natural [human] body, it is raised a spiritual body." As surely as there are natural, human or earthly bodies, so surely also there is such a thing as a heavenly or spirit body.

In harmony with this is the statement --The first man, Adam, became a living soul (i.e., an animal or earthly being), the last Adam (became--by resurrection) a life-giving spirit. The spiritual, however, was not first, but the natural, afterwards the spiritual, so that the race in general inherited not the divine nature, but the earthly or human nature; hence it is only the few, only such as now experience the change of nature, that in the resurrection or revivifying out of death will have the divine bodies.

(8) If we would think of the two orders of beings, we should consider the change that took place in one of those who became divine and how the change was effected. For "the first man was from the ground, earthly; the second man from heaven." Of the kind or nature of the earthly one, in his highest attainment, will be the kind or nature of all the earthly ones who by resurrection attain fulness of life and perfection; and of the kind or nature attained by the one from heaven is to be the kind and nature of the heavenly ones. Yes, even as we have borne the likeness of the earthly we shall also bear the likeness of the heavenly. We shall be like him and shall see him as he is. And this I say, brethren, because I would have you understand that such a change from human to divine nature and organism is necessary, because flesh and blood [human nature] cannot inherit the kingdom of God; nor can we so long as corruptible inherit that incorruptible glory and kingdom promised us. Therefore, such a resurrection, such a perfecting, completing us as divine beings, is absolutely necessary.--`Vs. 47-50`.

But I will reveal a mystery to you, a point not clearly seen heretofore (`verse 51`) --We shall not all need to sleep; for when the time for the establishment of God's kingdom has come it will no longer be necessary to wait in the unconscious sleep of death. Yet, though we will not need to wait in sleep, the same change from flesh and blood [the earthly, human nature]

*The Greek here particularizes the resurrection and the dead as we have indicated by putting these words in small capitals.

to the divine nature will be as needful to such as to those who are required to sleep and to wait for the kingdom. The change to such will be of the same sort, but instantaneous; the moment of death will be to them the moment of change,

and hence no sleep will intervene. The change will be instantaneous to all these, to those who sleep and to those who shall not sleep, but it will be at the instant of dying to those only who are alive when the Lord is present a second time establishing his kingdom. It will be a full resurrection change, to all of these, a full, complete lifting out of death into perfection and fulness of life--the perfecting in each of the divine nature.

This resurrection to divine existence is the First Resurrection--the chief or most important and most wonderful. It is most wonderful in that it fulfils the most wonderful promises of God--exceeding great and precious promises. It is most important, as well as first in order of time, in that all other promises of restitution or resurrection are dependent upon it--because this resurrection completes the Christ, the "Seed," in and through whom all the families of the earth shall be blessed; because they [the restitution class] without us [the Church of the First Resurrection] shall not be made perfect.--`Heb. 11:40`.

And be it noted that our Lord Jesus shared in this first resurrection; or rather, this first resurrection is his resurrection, in which we, by the grace of God, are privileged to share. He alone was sinless, he alone gave the legal ransom for man, he trod the winepress alone, and of the people there was none with him; and as a result THE resurrection, to the divine nature, came to him alone as the full reward of service. Our share with him in this chief resurrection (his resurrection) comes indirectly through him; for his work first justified us, and made it possible for us not only to receive this "high-calling," but also to attain it by helping our infirmities and strengthening and encouraging us on the way with grace and help in every time of need.

Thus the Apostle understood the matter and wrote: "That I might know him and the power of his resurrection, [by] being made conformable unto his death," and "attain unto the [chief] resurrection of the dead" (`Phil. 3:10,11`); and again, "If we be dead with him, we shall also live with him," be with him where he is and behold his glory and be like him, which can be only by the same resurrection change which he experienced. (`2 Tim. 2:11`; `Rom. 6:8`.) And again he says, "For if we have been planted together in the likeness of his death, we shall be also [sharers] in the likeness of his resurrection."--`Rom. 6:5`.

This "change" or resurrection from flesh to spirit, from human to divine nature, which must come to all who will inherit the Kingdom, will be in a moment, an instantaneous change to each; it will not be a protracted or gradual changing from a little life to an abundant fulness, but in an instant they shall be "like him" and see him as he is. This change will not be at the same instant to all, however. A long period of over eighteen hundred years elapsed between the instantaneous resurrection change of our Lord and the change of those who have slept and waited for the Kingdom to come that they might be changed and granted a share in it. Though possibly the moment of change may be the same for all who slept less, it is not God's plan that those who will be changed without sleep should be changed at the same moment; for it is written, "The dead in Christ shall rise first, then we, the remainder [or ones left over of the same class] appointed unto life, shall be caught away in clouds [into obscurity] to meet the Lord in the air."*

This change, or resurrection, or perfecting, will take place in the end or close of the Gospel age, at or during the sounding of the last trumpet--the seventh trumpet. (`Rev. 11:15,18`; `1 Thes. 4:16,17`.) For the trumpet will sound and THE dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we [of the same order or class who remain] shall be changed. Because that [part of the body of Christ] which is corrupted shall put on incorruption, and that which is now dying shall put on immortality.

And (`verses 54,55`) when this mortal [or dying part of the "body of Christ" which is not to be changed until the dead members of the same body have first been made incorruptible] shall have put on immortality, then shall be brought to fulfilment that saying [prophecy] which is written:

"Death is swallowed up victoriously.

"O death, where is thy victory?

"O death, where is thy sting?"+

Our Lord's resurrection was a step toward this victory: it was the all-important foundation for it. The resurrection change of his Church--the corruptible and mortal to incorruptible and immortal conditions --will be a further step toward the victory over death, but still only preparatory, because when Christ and the Church are glorified, death's dominion will be nearly as extensive as ever, the Church being in all only a "little flock."

The thought of the passage is that after the change of the Church, then the destruction of Adamic death, by the release of all mankind from its control, will begin --the long promised release (`Gen. 3:15`; `Jer. 31:29-34`), when the children shall no longer be held in the bondage of Adamic death for their fathers' transgressions, but, released from condemnation under it, may live forever, unless they come individually under sentence again through wilful, individual sin.

The sting which caused death is sin: had sin not entered the world human death would not have been known.

And the strength of sin is the law. It was God's law behind sin that determined what should constitute sin and what its sting or penalty should be. But, thank God! while he was just in his law, and while the terrible penalty of that law, the sting of death, was merited by the race, he has graciously arranged for our victory over death and our escape from his just sentence through Christ Jesus, our Lord.

*Air here seems to signify spiritual authority or power, as in `Eph. 2:2`.

+Thus read the oldest Greek MSS.

THE GENERAL RESURRECTION.

In the light of the foregoing statement of the true significance of the word resurrection, as indicated by the Greek word anastasis which it translates, we need not stop to show particularly again that by the term general resurrection, we do not mean merely a general awakening of the sleeping billions of earth, but much more; namely, a general bringing of all mankind to perfection of being--to full freedom from the Adamic death penalty and all its hindering weaknesses.

This delivering of men out of Adamic death to full perfection and restitution of being, and into all the rights and privileges lost through Adam, may be done in either one of two ways: namely, (1) by actual restitution to physical, mental and moral perfection of manhood, to full harmony and communion with God and to the actual dominion of the earth and all the lower animals, as Adam possessed all these in the beginning, before sin entered, and then testing each to see whether worthy or not to retain those favors everlastingly; or (2) by granting to each individual a release by faith from Adamic death and condemnation, and a restitution by faith to divine favor and communion, and an actual restitution to all the earthly advantages of Adam, so far and so soon as, by obedience under testing, they shall be found worthy of those blessings. Let us notice carefully and particularly the fact that such a release from Adamic death by faith (through a full knowledge of the ransom that was given and the forgiveness and reconciliation and restitution thus provided for all who will accept these favors) is not only as good and as favorable for men, during their trial, but that it is better and more favorable than would be the actual restitution first and a trial afterward.

Let us suppose it both ways, and note the advantages of God's plan of justifying by faith. Suppose that the hour had come in the divine arrangement for the restitution work to begin. Imagine all the millions of earth changed instantly to perfect human beings--perfect mentally, morally and physically. How strange it would all be: no man would know his neighbor, either by appearance, or by speech, or by manner, or by former weaknesses. Worse yet, few would know their own fathers and mothers, or their own children, for the same reason. Still worse, but few could recognize themselves, for the same reason. And the few who could in any degree appreciate such a radical change would be those few only who in the present life have by faith, to some extent, from communion with God, learned as justified persons to think and will from the perfect standpoint, even though not always able because of inherited weaknesses to do as perfect men. The few overcomers of the past--Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, and all the holy prophets--can and will as justified ones carry over their identity when instantly perfected as men; and the little flock of overcomers of this Gospel age, for a similar reason (because already living the new resurrection life by faith), will also carry their identity, notwithstanding their great and instantaneous change to the perfection of the divine nature. But these two classes are exceptions to the generality of the race--not only as to their instantaneous resurrections or perfectings, but also as to their experiences in the present life.

But let us for a moment imagine the resurrection of the billions who have died, coming forth actually perfect in mind and in body. Imagine Nero coming forth perfect --free from his terrible passions, great depravity, love of rapine and cruelty, a pure, simple-hearted, benevolent man. He would neither be known by any, nor would he know himself. Imagine wild, ignorant cannibals, who had never had any but the most debased sentiments and experiences, coming forth with every power of mind and body perfect. Imagine all the billions past and present thus perfected, and then think over the following points carefully:

How would their experiences with sin benefit them, since by their sudden change they could not even identify themselves with the degraded, sin-polluted creatures they once were?

If such were God's plan, how could the permission of the trouble and sorrowful experiences of the past six thousand years be accounted for? Surely it is only because present woes of earth have served as lessons, as beneficial experiences to prepare men for the future trial, that God has at all permitted them.

Consider, too, that if men were thus perfected instantly, so that present experiences would not be appreciated, they would all be as liable to fail as was Adam, and for the same reason--namely, from lack of experience. The distinction between perfection of being and perfection of experience should ever be kept in mind: Adam had the perfection of being implied in the declaration that he was made in the image of God; but at the time of his trial he had far less experience than his fallen, imperfect sons of to-day. But he knew enough for his trial upon the simple test of obedience applied: he knew that God was his Creator and benefactor who had done everything for him; and he knew, when he wilfully disobeyed, that implicit obedience was his duty.

Remember, too, that as in Adam's case so in the case of any perfect man on trial before God's law: one violation of one point would bring upon such the full wages of sin--death, extinction.

So, then, if it were God's plan to instantly raise the world of mankind up out of death to full perfection and trial, as Adam enjoyed these before the fall, it would be a very doubtful blessing--with the strong probability that many, if not all, would make some mistake and fall under the just sentence of God's perfect law. Nor would it do to suppose that after being made perfect by an instantaneous anastasis, they might be kept for a time free from trial until they had acquired experience and knowledge; for perfection of being implies responsibility to God's law from the moment it begins.

Thus, too, Adam was not given an uncounted experience with sin, but for his first transgression was sentenced so completely that nothing short of a ransom could release him from his sin and its penalty, death. So it will be with the world of mankind: when perfected by the Mediator, Christ Jesus, his work for them will be at an end--they will then be in the hands of God and subject to that law of his which shows no mercy. For imperfect beings to be exposed to the test of that perfect law would mean failure, sure; and hence, as the Apostle declares, it would be a fearful thing for us if we should reject Christ from being our Mediator and attempt to stand trial before God in the filthy rags of our own righteousness (`Isa. 64:6`; `Heb. 10:31`); and for perfect beings lacking in experience to be tried by that same law would be almost as certain of failure.

God's gracious provision in Christ is, however, abundant. His arrangement is that the whole race, having been purchased by our Lord Jesus, shall be fully in his hands: "The Father judgeth no man, but hath committed all judgment unto the Son" (`John 5:22`); and he hath appointed the Millennial day for that work of trial or judgment. (`Acts 17:31`.) He who redeemed or purchased back Adam and his race from the sentence of death will offer to each one full restitution to all that Adam possessed and lost, upon conditions which even in their fallen condition they will be fully able to accept. Obedience of will or intent shall be the first requirement; and as this is obeyed restitution will commence. As gradually, during the Millennium, imperfection and weakness shall give place to strength and perfection, correspondingly less allowance will be made for transgressions by the Mediator-Judge; his chastisements and corrections proportioned to the ability and wilfulness of the transgressors being meanwhile most valuable experience to those upon trial.

Starting upon the highway of holiness (toward full restitution to the perfection

and all the blessings lost in Adam) at a point corresponding to their present state of imperfection, their own identity and the identity of each other will be maintained, and all the experiences in sin and degradation will be fresh and vivid, and will carry with them the full weight and value, in contrast with the experiences with righteousness in active operation, to which they will then be subjected. The difference at first will be not in the hearts of men, nor in their bodies (except that the sleeping ones will be awakened), but in the outward conditions of men, under the rule of the Kingdom of God. The earthly representatives of that kingdom will be Abraham and the prophets, whose trials are already passed and who will then be perfect men and samples of what all the race may become by hearty obedience to the kingdom and laws then, and for that very purpose, in control. The outward changes of that age will be very distasteful to many. Men will have less liberty than at present--they will have liberty to do right and to do good, but no license whatever to do evil, or to pursue any vocation which would in any degree injure or demoralize others morally, or financially, or physically. Thus (by the binding of Satan) more than one-half of the temptations of the present will be cut off, and only those which belong to the weakness of man's fallen flesh will be upon him. And these, as we have seen, he is to be permitted to outgrow and overcome by the great Mediator's assistance and discipline, and in consequence of having been redeemed by him from the sentence of death, of which those weaknesses are a part. This plan of restoring men and testing them at the same time, and giving them the blessings only as they shall learn to appreciate them, is for man's benefit, that he may then have the fullest knowledge and experience, so as to be fully able to make his choice between sin and its penalty and righteousness and its reward.

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