The First Great Deception
<< Previous Chapter << >> Next Chapter >>
[Return to the Table of Contents]
[Return to Online Books Menu]
[Return to the Homepage]
With the earliest history of man, Satan began his efforts to deceive our
race. He who had incited rebellion in heaven desired to bring the
inhabitants of the earth to unite with him in his warfare against the
government of God. Adam and Eve had been perfectly happy in obedience to
the
law of God, and this fact was a constant testimony against the claim which
Satan had urged in heaven, that God's law was oppressive and opposed to
the
good of His creatures. And furthermore, Satan's envy was excited as he
looked upon the beautiful home prepared for the sinless pair. He
determined
to cause their fall, that, having separated them from God and brought them
under his own power, he might gain possession of the earth and here
establish his kingdom in opposition to the Most High.
Had Satan revealed himself in his real character, he would have been
repulsed at once, for Adam and Eve had been warned against this dangerous
foe; but he worked in the dark, concealing his purpose, that he might more
effectually accomplish his object. Employing as his medium the serpent,
then
a creature of fascinating appearance, he addressed himself to Eve: "Hath
God
said, Ye shall not eat of every tree of the garden?" Genesis 3:1. Had Eve
refrained from entering into argument with the tempter, she would have
been
safe; but she ventured to parley with him and fell a victim to his
532
wiles. It is thus that many are still overcome. They doubt and argue
concerning the requirements of God; and instead of obeying the divine
commands, they accept human theories, which but disguise the devices of
Satan.
"The woman said unto the serpent, We may eat of the fruit of the trees of
the garden: but of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the
garden, God hath said, Ye shall not eat of it, neither shall ye touch it,
lest ye die. And the serpent said unto the woman, Ye shall not surely die:
for God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be
opened, and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil." Verses 2-5. He
declared that they would become like God, possessing greater wisdom than
before and being capable of a higher state of existence. Eve yielded to
temptation; and through her influence, Adam was led into sin. They
accepted
the words of the serpent, that God did not mean what He said; they
distrusted their Creator and imagined that He was restricting their
liberty
and that they might obtain great wisdom and exaltation by transgressing
His
law.
But what did Adam, after his sin, find to be the meaning of the words, "In
the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die"? Did he find them
to
mean, as Satan had led him to believe, that he was to be ushered into a
more
exalted state of existence? Then indeed there was great good to be gained
by
transgression, and Satan was proved to be a benefactor of the race. But
Adam
did not find this to be the meaning of the divine sentence. God declared
that as a penalty for his sin, man should return to the ground whence he
was
taken: "Dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return." Verse 19. The
words
of Satan, "Your eyes shall be opened," proved to be true in this sense
only:
After Adam and Eve had disobeyed God, their eyes were opened to discern
their folly; they did know evil, and they tasted the bitter fruit of
transgression.
In the midst of Eden grew the tree of life, whose fruit had the power of
perpetuating life. Had Adam remained
533
obedient to God, he would have continued to enjoy free access to this tree
and would have lived forever. But when he sinned he was cut off from
partaking of the tree of life, and he became subject to death. The divine
sentence, "Dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return," points to the
utter extinction of life.
Immortality, promised to man on condition of obedience, had been forfeited
by transgression. Adam could not transmit to his posterity that which he
did
not possess; and there could have been no hope for the fallen race had not
God, by the sacrifice of His Son, brought immortality within their reach.
While "death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned," Christ "hath
brought life and immortality to light through the gospel." Romans 5:12; 2
Timothy 1:10. And only through Christ can immortality be obtained. Said
Jesus: "He that believeth on the Son hath everlasting life: and he that
believeth not the Son shall not see life." John 3:36. Every man may come
into possession of this priceless blessing if he will comply with the
conditions. All "who by patient continuance in well-doing seek for glory
and
honor and immortality," will receive "eternal life." Romans 2:7.
The only one who promised Adam life in disobedience was the great
deceiver.
And the declaration of the serpent to Eve in Eden--"Ye shall not surely
die"--was the first sermon ever preached upon the immortality of the soul.
Yet this declaration, resting solely upon the authority of Satan, is
echoed
from the pulpits of Christendom and is received by the majority of mankind
as readily as it was received by our first parents. The divine sentence,
"The soul that sinneth, it shall die" (Ezekiel 18:20), is made to mean:
The
soul that sinneth, it shall not die, but live eternally. We cannot but
wonder at the strange infatuation which renders men so credulous
concerning
the words of Satan and so unbelieving in regard to the words of God.
Had man after his fall been allowed free access to the tree
534
of life, he would have lived forever, and thus sin would have been
immortalized. But cherubim and a flaming sword kept "the way of the tree
of
life" (Genesis 3:24), and not one of the family of Adam has been permitted
to pass that barrier and partake of the life-giving fruit. Therefore there
is not an immortal sinner.
But after the Fall, Satan bade his angels make a special effort to
inculcate
the belief in man's natural immortality; and having induced the people to
receive this error, they were to lead them on to conclude that the sinner
would live in eternal misery. Now the prince of darkness, working through
his agents, represents God as a revengeful tyrant, declaring that He
plunges
into hell all those who do not please Him, and causes them ever to feel
His
wrath; and that while they suffer unutterable anguish and writhe in the
eternal flames, their Creator looks down upon them with satisfaction.
Thus the archfiend clothes with his own attributes the Creator and
Benefactor of mankind. Cruelty is satanic. God is love; and all that He
created was pure, holy, and lovely, until sin was brought in by the first
great rebel. Satan himself is the enemy who tempts man to sin, and then
destroys him if he can; and when he has made sure of his victim, then he
exults in the ruin he has wrought. If permitted, he would sweep the entire
race into his net. Were it not for the interposition of divine power, not
one son or daughter of Adam would escape.
Satan is seeking to overcome men today, as he overcame our first parents,
by
shaking their confidence in their Creator and leading them to doubt the
wisdom of His government and the justice of His laws. Satan and his
emissaries represent God as even worse than themselves, in order to
justify
their own malignity and rebellion. The great deceiver endeavors to shift
his
own horrible cruelty of character upon our heavenly Father, that he may
cause himself to appear as one greatly wronged by his expulsion from
heaven
because he would not submit to so unjust a governor. He presents before
535
the world the liberty which they may enjoy under his mild sway, in
contrast
with the bondage imposed by the stern decrees of Jehovah. Thus he succeeds
in luring souls away from their allegiance to God.
How repugnant to every emotion of love and mercy, and even to our sense of
justice, is the doctrine that the wicked dead are tormented with fire and
brimstone in an eternally burning hell; that for the sins of a brief
earthly
life they are to suffer torture as long as God shall live. Yet this
doctrine
has been widely taught and is still embodied in many of the creeds of
Christendom. Said a learned doctor of divinity: "The sight of hell
torments
will exalt the happiness of the saints forever. When they see others who
are
of the same nature and born under the same circumstances, plunged in such
misery, and they so distinguished, it will make them sensible of how happy
they are." Another used these words: "While the decree of reprobation is
eternally executing on the vessels of wrath, the smoke of their torment
will
be eternally ascending in view of the vessels of mercy, who, instead of
taking the part of these miserable objects, will say, Amen, Alleluia!
praise
ye the Lord!"
Where, in the pages of God's word, is such teaching to be found? Will the
redeemed in heaven be lost to all emotions of pity and compassion, and
even
to feelings of common humanity? Are these to be exchanged for the
indifference of the stoic or the cruelty of the savage? No, no; such is
not
the teaching of the Book of God. Those who present the views expressed in
the quotations given above may be learned and even honest men, but they
are
deluded by the sophistry of Satan. He leads them to misconstrue strong
expressions of Scripture, giving to the language the coloring of
bitterness
and malignity which pertains to himself, but not to our Creator. "As I
live,
saith the Lord God, I have no pleasure in the death of the wicked; but
that
the wicked turn from his way and live: turn ye, turn ye from your evil
ways;
for why will ye die?" Ezekiel 33:11.
536
What would be gained to God should we admit that He delights in witnessing
unceasing tortures; that He is regaled with the groans and shrieks and
imprecations of the suffering creatures whom He holds in the flames of
hell?
Can these horrid sounds be music in the ear of Infinite Love? It is urged
that the infliction of endless misery upon the wicked would show God's
hatred of sin as an evil which is ruinous to the peace and order of the
universe. Oh, dreadful blasphemy! As if God's hatred of sin is the reason
why it is perpetuated. For, according to the teachings of these
theologians,
continued torture without hope of mercy maddens its wretched victims, and
as
they pour out their rage in curses and blasphemy, they are forever
augmenting their load of guilt. God's glory is not enhanced by thus
perpetuating continually increasing sin through ceaseless ages.
It is beyond the power of the human mind to estimate the evil which has
been
wrought by the heresy of eternal torment. The religion of the Bible, full
of
love and goodness, and abounding in compassion, is darkened by
superstition
and clothed with terror. When we consider in what false colors Satan has
painted the character of God, can we wonder that our merciful Creator is
feared, dreaded, and even hated? The appalling views of God which have
spread over the world from the teachings of the pulpit have made
thousands,
yes, millions, of skeptics and infidels.
The theory of eternal torment is one of the false doctrines that
constitute
the wine of the abomination of Babylon, of which she makes all nations
drink. Revelation 14:8; 17:2. That ministers of Christ should have
accepted
this heresy and proclaimed it from the sacred desk is indeed a mystery.
They
received it from Rome, as they received the false sabbath. True, it has
been
taught by great and good men; but the light on this subject had not come
to
them as it has come to us. They were responsible only for the light which
shone in their time; we are accountable for that which shines in our day.
If
we turn from the testimony of God's word, and accept
537
false doctrines because our fathers taught them, we fall under the
condemnation pronounced upon Babylon; we are drinking of the wine of her
abomination.
A large class to whom the doctrine of eternal torment is revolting are
driven to the opposite error. They see that the Scriptures represent God
as
a being of love and compassion, and they cannot believe that He will
consign
His creatures to the fires of an eternally burning hell. But holding that
the soul is naturally immortal, they see no alternative but to conclude
that
all mankind will finally be saved. Many regard the threatenings of the
Bible
as designed merely to frighten men into obedience, and not to be literally
fulfilled. Thus the sinner can live in selfish pleasure, disregarding the
requirements of God, and yet expect to be finally received into His favor.
Such a doctrine, presuming upon God's mercy, but ignoring His justice,
pleases the carnal heart and emboldens the wicked in their iniquity.
To show how believers in universal salvation wrest the Scriptures to
sustain
their soul-destroying dogmas, it is needful only to cite their own
utterances. At the funeral of an irreligious young man, who had been
killed
instantly by an accident, a Universalist minister selected as his text the
Scripture statement concerning David: "He was comforted concerning Amnon,
seeing he was dead." 2 Samuel 13:39.
"I am frequently asked," said the speaker, "what will be the fate of those
who leave the world in sin, die, perhaps, in a state of inebriation, die
with the scarlet stains of crime unwashed from their robes, or die as this
young man died, having never made a profession or enjoyed an experience of
religion. We are content with the Scriptures; their answer shall solve the
awful problem. Amnon was exceedingly sinful; he was unrepentant, he was
made
drunk, and while drunk was killed. David was a prophet of God; he must
have
known whether it would be ill or well for Amnon in the world to come. What
were the expressions of his heart?
538
`The soul of King David longed to go forth unto Absalom: for he was
comforted concerning Amnon, seeing he was dead.' Verse 39.
"And what is the inference to be deduced from this language? Is it not
that
endless suffering formed no part of his religious belief? So we conceive;
and here we discover a triumphant argument in support of the more
pleasing,
more enlightened, more benevolent hypothesis of ultimate universal purity
and peace. He was comforted, seeing his son was dead. And why so? Because
by
the eye of prophecy he could look forward into the glorious future and see
that son far removed from all temptations, released from the bondage and
purified from the corruptions of sin, and after being made sufficiently
holy
and enlightened, admitted to the assembly of ascended and rejoicing
spirits.
His only comfort was that, in being removed from the present state of sin
and suffering, his beloved son had gone where the loftiest breathings of
the
Holy Spirit would be shed upon his darkened soul, where his mind would be
unfolded to the wisdom of heaven and the sweet raptures of immortal love,
and thus prepared with a sanctified nature to enjoy the rest and society
of
the heavenly inheritance.
"In these thoughts we would be understood to believe that the salvation of
heaven depends upon nothing which we can do in this life; neither upon a
present change of heart, nor upon present belief, or a present profession
of
religion."
Thus does the professed minister of Christ reiterate the falsehood uttered
by the serpent in Eden: "Ye shall not surely die." "In the day ye eat
thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods." He
declares that the vilest of sinners--the murderer, the thief, and the
adulterer--will after death be prepared to enter into immortal bliss.
And from what does this perverter of the Scriptures draw his conclusions?
From a single sentence expressing David's submission to the dispensation
of
Providence. His
539
soul "longed to go forth unto Absalom; for he was comforted concerning
Amnon, seeing he was dead." The poignancy of his grief having been
softened
by time, his thoughts turned from the dead to the living son,
self-banished
through fear of the just punishment of his crime. And this is the evidence
that the incestuous, drunken Amnon was at death immediately transported to
the abodes of bliss, there to be purified and prepared for the
companionship
of sinless angels! A pleasing fable indeed, well suited to gratify the
carnal heart! This is Satan's own doctrine, and it does his work
effectually. Should we be surprised that, with such instruction,
wickedness
abounds?
The course pursued by this one false teacher illustrates that of many
others. A few words of Scripture are separated from the context, which
would
in many cases show their meaning to be exactly opposite to the
interpretation put upon them; and such disjointed passages are perverted
and
used in proof of doctrines that have no foundation in the word of God. The
testimony cited as evidence that the drunken Amnon is in heaven is a mere
inference directly contradicted by the plain and positive statement of the
Scriptures that no drunkard shall inherit the kingdom of God. 1
Corinthians
6:10. It is thus that doubters, unbelievers, and skeptics turn the truth
into a lie. And multitudes have been deceived by their sophistry and
rocked
to sleep in the cradle of carnal security.
If it were true that the souls of all men passed directly to heaven at the
hour of dissolution, then we might well covet death rather than life. Many
have been led by this belief to put an end to their existence. When
overwhelmed with trouble, perplexity, and disappointment, it seems an easy
thing to break the brittle thread of life and soar away into the bliss of
the eternal world.
God has given in His word decisive evidence that He will punish the
transgressors of His law. Those who flatter
540
themselves that He is too merciful to execute justice upon the sinner,
have
only to look to the cross of Calvary. The death of the spotless Son of God
testifies that "the wages of sin is death," that every violation of God's
law must receive its just retribution. Christ the sinless became sin for
man. He bore the guilt of transgression, and the hiding of His Father's
face, until His heart was broken and His life crushed out. All this
sacrifice was made that sinners might be redeemed. In no other way could
man
be freed from the penalty of sin. And every soul that refuses to become a
partaker of the atonement provided at such a cost must bear in his own
person the guilt and punishment of transgression.
Let us consider what the Bible teaches further concerning the ungodly and
unrepentant, whom the Universalist places in heaven as holy, happy angels.
"I will give unto him that is athirst of the fountain of the water of life
freely." Revelation 21:6. This promise is only to those that thirst. None
but those who feel their need of the water of life, and seek it at the
loss
of all things else, will be supplied. "He that overcometh shall inherit
all
things; and I will be his God, and he shall be My son." Verse 7. Here,
also,
conditions are specified. In order to inherit all things, we must resist
and
overcome sin.
The Lord declares by the prophet Isaiah: "Say ye to the righteous, that it
shall be well with him." "Woe unto the wicked! it shall be ill with him:
for
the reward of his hands shall be given him." Isaiah 3:10, 11. "Though a
sinner do evil an hundred times," says the wise man, "and his days be
prolonged, yet surely I know that it shall be well with them that fear
God,
which fear before Him: but it shall not be well with the wicked."
Ecclesiastes 8:12, 13. And Paul testifies that the sinner is treasuring up
unto himself "wrath against the day of wrath and revelation of the
righteous
judgment of God; who will render to every man according to his deeds;"
"tribulation and anguish upon every soul of man that doeth evil." Romans
2:5, 6,9.
541
"No fornicator, nor unclean person, nor covetous man, who is an idolater,
hath any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and God." Ephesians 5:5,
A.R.V. "Follow peace with all men, and holiness, without which no man
shall
see the Lord." Hebrews 12:14. "Blessed are they that do His commandments,
that they may have right to the tree of life, and may enter in through the
gates into the city. For without are dogs, and sorcerers, and
whoremongers,
and murderers, and idolaters, and whosoever loveth and maketh a lie."
Revelation 22:14, 15.
God has given to men a declaration of His character and of His method of
dealing with sin. "The Lord God, merciful and gracious, long-suffering and
abundant in goodness and truth, keeping mercy for thousands, forgiving
iniquity and transgression and sin, and that will by no means clear the
guilty." Exodus 34:6, 7. "All the wicked will He destroy." "The
transgressors shall be destroyed together: the end of the wicked shall be
cut off." Psalms 145:20; 37:38. The power and authority of the divine
government will be employed to put down rebellion; yet all the
manifestations of retributive justice will be perfectly consistent with
the
character of God as a merciful, long-suffering, benevolent being.
God does not force the will or judgment of any. He takes no pleasure in a
slavish obedience. He desires that the creatures of His hands shall love
Him
because He is worthy of love. He would have them obey Him because they
have
an intelligent appreciation of His wisdom, justice, and benevolence. And
all
who have a just conception of these qualities will love Him because they
are
drawn toward Him in admiration of His attributes.
The principles of kindness, mercy, and love, taught and exemplified by our
Saviour, are a transcript of the will and character of God. Christ
declared
that He taught nothing except that which He had received from His Father.
The principles of the divine government are in perfect harmony with the
Saviour's precept, "Love your enemies." God
542
executes justice upon the wicked, for the good of the universe, and even
for
the good of those upon whom His judgments are visited. He would make them
happy if He could do so in accordance with the laws of His government and
the justice of His character. He surrounds them with the tokens of His
love,
He grants them a knowledge of His law, and follows them with the offers of
His mercy; but they despise His love, make void His law, and reject His
mercy. While constantly receiving His gifts, they dishonor the Giver; they
hate God because they know that He abhors their sins. The Lord bears long
with their perversity; but the decisive hour will come at last, when their
destiny is to be decided. Will He then chain these rebels to His side?
Will
He force them to do His will?
Those who have chosen Satan as their leader and have been controlled by
his
power are not prepared to enter the presence of God. Pride, deception,
licentiousness, cruelty, have become fixed in their characters. Can they
enter heaven to dwell forever with those whom they despised and hated on
earth? Truth will never be agreeable to a liar; meekness will not satisfy
self-esteem and pride; purity is not acceptable to the corrupt;
disinterested love does not appear attractive to the selfish. What source
of
enjoyment could heaven offer to those who are wholly absorbed in earthly
and
selfish interests?
Could those whose lives have been spent in rebellion against God be
suddenly
transported to heaven and witness the high, the holy state of perfection
that ever exists there,-- every soul filled with love, every countenance
beaming with joy, enrapturing music in melodious strains rising in honor
of
God and the Lamb, and ceaseless streams of light flowing upon the redeemed
from the face of Him who sitteth upon the throne,--could those whose
hearts
are filled with hatred of God, of truth and holiness, mingle with the
heavenly throng and join their songs of praise? Could they endure the
glory
of God and the Lamb? No, no; years of probation
543
were granted them, that they might form characters for heaven; but they
have
never trained the mind to love purity; they have never learned the
language
of heaven, and now it is too late. A life of rebellion against God has
unfitted them for heaven. Its purity, holiness, and peace would be torture
to them; the glory of God would be a consuming fire. They would long to
flee
from that holy place. They would welcome destruction, that they might be
hidden from the face of Him who died to redeem them. The destiny of the
wicked is fixed by their own choice. Their exclusion from heaven is
voluntary with themselves, and just and merciful on the part of God.
Like the waters of the Flood the fires of the great day declare God's
verdict that the wicked are incurable. They have no disposition to submit
to
divine authority. Their will has been exercised in revolt; and when life
is
ended, it is too late to turn the current of their thoughts in the
opposite
direction, too late to turn from transgression to obedience, from hatred
to
love.
In sparing the life of Cain the murderer, God gave the world an example of
what would be the result of permitting the sinner to live to continue a
course of unbridled iniquity. Through the influence of Cain's teaching and
example, multitudes of his descendants were led into sin, until "the
wickedness of man was great in the earth" and "every imagination of the
thoughts of his heart was only evil continually." "The earth also was
corrupt before God, and the earth was filled with violence." Genesis 6:5,
11.
In mercy to the world, God blotted out its wicked inhabitants in Noah's
time. In mercy He destroyed the corrupt dwellers in Sodom. Through the
deceptive power of Satan the workers of iniquity obtain sympathy and
admiration, and are thus constantly leading others to rebellion. It was so
in Cain's and in Noah's day, and in the time of Abraham and Lot; it is so
in
our time. It is in mercy to the universe that God will finally destroy the
rejecters of His grace.
544
"The wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through
Jesus Christ our Lord." Romans 6:23. While life is the inheritance of the
righteous, death is the portion of the wicked. Moses declared to Israel:
"I
have set before thee this day life and good, and death and evil."
Deuteronomy 30:15. The death referred to in these scriptures is not that
pronounced upon Adam, for all mankind suffer the penalty of his
transgression. It is "the second death" that is placed in contrast with
everlasting life.
In consequence of Adam's sin, death passed upon the whole human race. All
alike go down into the grave. And through the provisions of the plan of
salvation, all are to be brought forth from their graves. "There shall be
a
resurrection of the dead, both of the just and unjust;" "for as in Adam
all
die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive." Acts 24:15; I Corinthians
15:22. But a distinction is made between the two classes that are brought
forth. "All that are in the graves shall hear His voice, and shall come
forth; they that have done good, unto the resurrection of life; and they
that have done evil, unto the resurrection of damnation." John 5:28, 29.
They who have been "accounted worthy" of the resurrection of life are
"blessed and holy." "On such the second death hath no power." Revelation
20:6. But those who have not, through repentance and faith, secured
pardon,
must receive the penalty of transgression--"the wages of sin." They suffer
punishment varying in duration and intensity, "according to their works,"
but finally ending in the second death. Since it is impossible for God,
consistently with His justice and mercy, to save the sinner in his sins,
He
deprives him of the existence which his transgressions have forfeited and
of
which he has proved himself unworthy. Says an inspired writer: "Yet a
little
while, and the wicked shall not be: yea, thou shalt diligently consider
his
place, and it shall not be." And another declares: "They shall be as
though
545
they had not been." Psalm 37:10; Obadiah 16. Covered with infamy, they
sink
into hopeless, eternal oblivion.
Thus will be made an end of sin, with all the woe and ruin which have
resulted from it. Says the psalmist: "Thou hast destroyed the wicked, Thou
hast put out their name forever and ever. O thou enemy, destructions are
come to a perpetual end." Psalm 9:5, 6. John, in the Revelation, looking
forward to the eternal state, hears a universal anthem of praise
undisturbed
by one note of discord. Every creature in heaven and earth was heard
ascribing glory to God. Revelation 5:13. There will then be no lost souls
to
blaspheme God as they writhe in never-ending torment; no wretched beings
in
hell will mingle their shrieks with the songs of the saved.
Upon the fundamental error of natural immortality rests the doctrine of
consciousness in death--a doctrine, like eternal torment, opposed to the
teachings of the Scriptures, to the dictates of reason, and to our
feelings
of humanity. According to the popular belief, the redeemed in heaven are
acquainted with all that takes place on the earth and especially with the
lives of the friends whom they have left behind. But how could it be a
source of happiness to the dead to know the troubles of the living, to
witness the sins committed by their own loved ones, and to see them
enduring
all the sorrows, disappointments, and anguish of life? How much of
heaven's
bliss would be enjoyed by those who were hovering over their friends on
earth? And how utterly revolting is the belief that as soon as the breath
leaves the body the soul of the impenitent is consigned to the flames of
hell! To what depths of anguish must those be plunged who see their
friends
passing to the grave unprepared, to enter upon an eternity of woe and sin!
Many have been driven to insanity by this harrowing thought.
What say the Scriptures concerning these things? David declares that man
is
not conscious in death. "His breath goeth forth, he returneth to his
earth;
in that very day his
546
thoughts perish." Psalm 146:4. Solomon bears the same testimony: "The
living
know that they shall die: but the dead know not anything." "Their love,
and
their hatred, and their envy, is now perished; neither have they any more
a
portion forever in anything that is done under the sun." "There is no
work,
nor device, nor knowledge, nor wisdom, in the grave, whither thou goest."
Ecclesiastes 9:5, 6, 10.
When, in answer to his prayer, Hezekiah's life was prolonged fifteen
years,
the grateful king rendered to God a tribute of praise for His great mercy.
In this song he tells the reason why he thus rejoices: "The grave cannot
praise Thee, death cannot celebrate Thee: they that go down into the pit
cannot hope for Thy truth. The living, the living, he shall praise Thee,
as
I do this day." Isaiah 38:18, 19. Popular theology represents the
righteous
dead as in heaven, entered into bliss and praising God with an immortal
tongue; but Hezekiah could see no such glorious prospect in death. With
his
words agrees the testimony of the psalmist: "In death there is no
remembrance of Thee: in the grave who shall give Thee thanks?" "The dead
praise not the Lord, neither any that go down into silence." Psalms 6:5;
115:17.
Peter on the Day of Pentecost declared that the patriarch David "is both
dead and buried, and his sepulcher is with us unto this day." "For David
is
not ascended into the heavens." Acts 2:29, 34. The fact that David remains
in the grave until the resurrection proves that the righteous do not go to
heaven at death. It is only through the resurrection, and by virtue of the
fact that Christ has risen, that David can at last sit at the right hand
of
God.
And said Paul: "If the dead rise not, then is not Christ raised: and if
Christ be not raised, your faith is vain; ye are yet in your sins. Then
they
also which are fallen asleep in Christ are perished." I Corinthians
15:16-18. If for four thousand years the righteous had gone directly to
heaven at death, how could Paul have said that if there is no
resurrection,
547
"they also which are fallen asleep in Christ are perished"? No
resurrection
would be necessary.
The martyr Tyndale, referring to the state of the dead, declared: "I
confess
openly, that I am not persuaded that they be already in the full glory
that
Christ is in, or the elect angels of God are in. Neither is it any article
of my faith; for if it were so, I see not but then the preaching of the
resurrection of the flesh were a thing in vain."--William Tyndale, Preface
to New Testament (ed. 1534). Reprinted in British Reformers--Tindal,
Frith,
Barnes, page 349.
It is an undeniable fact that the hope of immortal blessedness at death
has
led to a widespread neglect of the Bible doctrine of the resurrection.
This
tendency was remarked by Dr. Adam Clarke, who said: "The doctrine of the
resurrection appears to have been thought of much more consequence among
the
primitive Christians than it is now! How is this? The apostles were
continually insisting on it, and exciting the followers of God to
diligence,
obedience, and cheerfulness through it. And their successors in the
present
day seldom mention it! So apostles preached, and so primitive Christians
believed; so we preach, and so our hearers believe. There is not a
doctrine
in the gospel on which more stress is laid; and there is not a doctrine in
the present system of preaching which is treated with more
neglect!"--Commentary, remarks on I Corinthians 15, paragraph 3.
This has continued until the glorious truth of the resurrection has been
almost wholly obscured and lost sight of by the Christian world. Thus a
leading religious writer, commenting on the words of Paul in I
Thessalonians
4:13-18, says: "For all practical purposes of comfort the doctrine of the
blessed immortality of the righteous takes the place for us of any
doubtful
doctrine of the Lord's second coming. At our death the Lord comes for us.
That is what we are to wait and watch for. The dead are already passed
into
glory. They do not wait for the trump for their judgment and blessedness."
548
But when about to leave His disciples, Jesus did not tell them that they
would soon come to Him. "I go to prepare a place for you," He said. "And
if
I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto
Myself." John 14:2, 3. And Paul tells us, further, that "the Lord Himself
shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the Archangel,
and
with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first: then we
which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the
clou
ds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord."
And
he adds: "Comfort one another with these words." I Thessalonians 4:16-18.
How wide the contrast between these words of comfort and those of the
Universalist minister previously quoted! The latter consoled the bereaved
friends with the assurance that, however sinful the dead might have been,
when he breathed out his life here he was to be received among the angels.
Paul points his brethren to the future coming of the Lord, when the
fetters
of the tomb shall be broken, and the "dead in Christ" shall be raised to
eternal life.
Before any can enter the mansions of the blessed, their cases must be
investigated, and their characters and their deeds must pass in review
before God. All are to be judged according to the things written in the
books and to be rewarded as their works have been. This judgment does not
take place at death. Mark the words of Paul: "He hath appointed a day, in
the which He will judge the world in righteousness by that Man whom He
hath
ordained; whereof He hath given assurance unto all men, in that He hath
raised Him from the dead." Acts 17:31. Here the apostle plainly stated
that
a specified time, then future, had been fixed upon for the judgment of the
world.
Jude refers to the same period: "The angels which kept not their first
estate, but left their own habitation, He hath reserved in everlasting
chains under darkness unto the judgment of the great day." And, again, he
quotes the words of Enoch: "Behold, the Lord cometh with ten thousands of
His
549
saints, to execute judgment upon all." Jude 6, 14, 15. John declares that
he
"saw the dead, small and great, stand before God; and the books were
opened:
.. . . and the dead were judged out of those things which were written in
the
books." Revelation 20:12.
But if the dead are already enjoying the bliss of heaven or writhing in
the
flames of hell, what need of a future judgment? The teachings of God's
word
on these important points are neither obscure nor contradictory; they may
be
understood by common minds. But what candid mind can see either wisdom or
justice in the current theory? Will the righteous, after the investigation
of their cases at the judgment, receive the commendation, "Well done, thou
good and faithful servant: . . . enter thou into the joy of thy Lord,"
when
they have been dwelling in His presence, perhaps for long ages? Are the
wicked summoned from the place of torment to receive sentence from the
Judge
of all the earth: "Depart from Me, ye cursed, into everlasting fire"?
Matthew 25:21, 41. Oh, solemn mockery! shameful impeachment of the wisdom
and justice of God!
The theory of the immortality of the soul was one of those false doctrines
that Rome, borrowing from paganism, incorporated into the religion of
Christendom. Martin Luther classed it with the "monstrous fables that form
part of the Roman dunghill of decretals."--E. Petavel, The Problem of
Immortality, page 255. Commenting on the words of Solomon in Ecclesiastes,
that the dead know not anything, the Reformer says: "Another place proving
that the dead have no . . . feeling. There is, saith he, no duty, no
science, no knowledge, no wisdom there. Solomon judgeth that the dead are
asleep, and feel nothing at all. For the dead lie there, accounting
neither
days nor years, but when they are awaked, they shall seem to have slept
scarce one minute."-- Martin Luther, Exposition of Solomon's Booke Called
Ecclesiastes, page 152.
Nowhere in the Sacred Scriptures is found the statement
550
that the righteous go to their reward or the wicked to their punishment at
death. The patriarchs and prophets have left no such assurance. Christ and
His apostles have given no hint of it. The Bible clearly teaches that the
dead do not go immediately to heaven. They are represented as sleeping
until
the resurrection. I Thessalonians 4:14; Job 14:10-12. In the very day when
the silver cord is loosed and the golden bowl broken (Ecclesiastes 12:6),
man's thoughts perish. They that go down to the grave are in silence. They
know no more of anything that is done under the sun. Job 14:21. Blessed
rest
for the weary righteous! Time, be it long or short, is but a moment to
them.
They sleep; they are awakened by the trump of God to a glorious
immortality.
"For the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible.
.
.. . So when this corruptible shall have put on incorruption, and this
mortal
shall have put on immortality, then shall be brought to pass the saying
that
is written, Death is swallowed up in victory." I Corinthians 15:52-54. As
they are called forth from their deep slumber they begin to think just
where
they ceased. The last sensation was the pang of death; the last thought,
that they were falling beneath the power of the grave. When they arise
from
the tomb, their first glad thought will be echoed in the triumphal shout:
"O
death, where is thy sting? O grave, where is thy victory?" Verse 55.
|
