The Stourbridge Observer, Cradley Heath, Halesowen & District Chronicle.
Stourbridge, West Midlands, England, 1875-11-06 00:00:00

Xocal anb Pistrut Setias.
LECTURE ON "THE SPEEDY COMING OF

OUR LORD."

A second lecture on the above subject, was deli-
vered in the Corn Exchange, on Wednesday even-
ing last, by Mr. John Sarjeant, of Birmingham.
There was a large number of persons present.
The lecturer was accompanied on the platform by
Mr. Hales, Mr. Doman, and Mr. Lees; whilst Mr.
J. Hill, as before, presided at the harmonium.

The Lecturer, previous to commencing his dis-
°cause, asked if anyone present had any questions
to ask, as he should be happy to answer them.
Receiving no reply, he commenced his lecture by
reminding his hearers that last week he pointed
out to them that the coming of the Lord—his
second advent—would be as truly personal as was
his first advent. As truly personal and bodily as
was his ascent into heaven. He farther showed
them that the popular notion about a converted
world had no place in the oracles of God, but
iniquity was, to abound /La it did in the days of
Noah and Lot. Besides this it was not only to be
a time of abounding iniquity when the Lord should
come, but it was to be a time of great apostacy
from the faith delivered to the saints. St. Paul in
his second epistle to the Thessalonians wrote thus
"Let no man deceive you by any means: for that
day shall not come, except there come a falling
away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the
son of perdition." Again, in his epistles to Timothy
he taught precisely the same thing. In the first
epistle, and the 4th chapter, he said, "Now the
Spirit speaketh expressly, that in the latter times
some shall depart from the faith, giving heed to
seducing spirits, and doctrines of devils." Again
he said (2nd Timothy, 3rd ch., 1-5 v.) "That in
the last days perilous times shall come," and then
he gave the characteristics of the perilous times—
" For men shall be lovers of their own selves,
covetous, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedi-
ent to parents, unthankful, unholy." And so he
went on with a long list—a long black catalogue
of evils, which were to characterise those last days
of this dispensation, and in his second epistle to
Timothy he says, "I charge thee, therefore,
before God, and the Lord Jesus Christ, who shall
judge the quick and the dead at his appearing and
his kingdom; preach the word; he instant in sea-
son, out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort with
all-long-suffering and doctrine. For the time ;will
come when they will not endure sound doctrine;
but after their own lusts shall they heap to them-
selves teachers having itching ears. And they
shall turn away their ears from the truth, and
shall be turned unto fables." An so again the
Apostle Peter, in his second epistle, 2nd ch. and
Ist v., "But there were false prophets also among
the people, even as there shall be false teachers
among you, who privily shall bring in damnable
heresies, even denying.t49 Lord that bought them,
and bring upon themselves swift destruction. And
many shall follow their pernicious ways; by reason
of whom the way of truth shall be evil spoken of."
No language could be more express or clear than
the language he had just read to them from the
writings of St. Paul and St. Peter; the one the
chief apostle to the circumcision land the other t
the uncircumcision. It was marvellous how Chris-
tian men with common-sense could ever have been
betrayed into the delusion that there was to be a
converted world before the Lordcame. Had those
predictions any verification at the present time.
Was it true that there was an apostacy from the
faith. Was it true that there were false teachers
bringing in damnable horesies ; thus denying the
Lord who bought them. Was it true or was it
not. What had been the favourite text of the
French Atheists during the last 50 years. What
was the doctrine they had promulgated. They
said that death was an eternal sleep. They utterly
denied the Lord having bought them; and so they
said death was an eternal sleep fromwhich there was
no awaking. What did the Seeulariststeach but the
very same thing. He would read a few passages
from their burial service. A. Holyoake, who wrote
this says, "The bereaved ones know but too
well the treasure that is lost to them for ever.
Our friend has entered upon that eternal rest which
is the heritage of us all. Death comes as the
soothing anodyne to all our woes and struggles,
and we inherit the earth as a reward for the toils
of life." The meek shall yet inherit the earth,
but not in the sense of the Secularists.
"The conviction that our memory will be
cherished by those who come after us,
as we revere the memories of the great
and good who have gone before. This is the only
immortality of which we know." Those were the
doctrines that were permeating society at the pre-
sent day. There was also a new society which had
sprung up lately which was daily adding to its
numbers. Their doctrine was the same as that of
the French Atheists. He would quote them one
passage from one of their books. It stated that
"Jesus did not die to save mankind, but lived to
save himself." That was the blasphemous kind
of teaching—that was the blasphemous kind of
doctrine that was becoming popular and very gene-
ral. Here they saw the verification of the prophecy
that false teachers should come denying the Lord
Who bought them, and every man who stood as a
watchman upon the walls of Christendom, should
warn all ofthe coming torrent of those blasphemous
doctrines; but they knew not where to turn for
help to stem the overwhelming flood. Let them
look at the truth of God in this matter, with regard
to the resurrection of the dead. They. had just now
passed a period when the whole church through-
out the world had been expressing her faith in the
resurrection of the dead. But what was the hope
of the resurrection of the dead grounded upon. It
was grounded upon that marvellous—that truly
glorious work of God in Christ—the redemption of
all mankind; and that work was co-extensive with
the fall of man. Wherever there was a child of
Adam there that work of redemption reached and
laid hold of, every member of the
human race; for it would not be a finished work
if any member of the human race were excluded
therefrom. What was redemption after all. Could
man, clever as he was, tell his own origin, or his
own destiny? He might boast as much
as he pleased about being an atom of creation—au
atom of society. It only displayed the prejudice
and the ignorance of the man who said it. No man
knew his common descent. One of he ancient
heathen philosophers expressed in one
short sentence the result of his life-long
labours. He said, "Man, know thyself."• The
wisest of them all said that nothing but the des-
cent of a God could give certainty to man. But
this very certainty we as Christians were privileged
to know and believe. They had the sacred record and
in that they were told that when God made man he
made him to his own image and likeness so that
there was no one equalling man. They might look
up to the angels—to tie cuerubim, seraphim, and
all the other members of the heavenly host. They
might think those were glorious creatures in com-
parison with what they were, but no cherubim nor
archangel bore the noble impress that man hose,
for nowhere did it state that they were made in the
likeness of God. Of man, and of man only was
it said that he was made in the image of God.
It was quite true that they saw that image very
much marred and defaced. It was quite true they
saw man oppressing man, and iniquity abounding.
. That only proved that man had by some means or
other gone down from the glorious image in
which he was created. Tim 'she was marred in souse
way or other—that some mischief was wrought in
that great work—man. How was that. Why,
the sacred record told them. Man sinned and the
consequence was that the image and likeness of God
was defaced. How was that done. An enemy had
done that in the same way that the tares had been
mixed with the wheat in the parable in the Gos-
pel. He was a very arch enemy of God and of
man who had wrought the ruin and defaced the
image of God which they were all bound to de-
plore in their daily experience. Why did he do it.
With the hope of frustrating the intentions of
God with regard to man. Satan, when he saw
Adam in the Garden of Eden said, " Ah, well, here
is the great thing on which God has centred all his
skill and wisdom, and I will show how much wiser
lam than he is. And if I can only get hold of
man I will mar that figure." And so he came with
the ho that betrayed our first parents in the Gar-
den of Eden. He said God was very selfish, and
wished to keep the knowledge of good and evil to
himself. That lie succeeded but too well. They
did what God had bade them not to do. The one
solitary law which he had imposed upon them they
broke, and-their eyes were opened ssad they then
knew what evil was, and the guLty conscience
which to this hour makes cowards os us all made
cowards of them too, and they conk: as's face God
and commune with him in the fres-ion: of privilege
which they had hitherto enjoyed. I;That did God
do. He ionnediately set to wcik to :sscover what
had been marred and damaged. He 695 to work to
restore it and put it into a position in which it
would be impossible for the arah fend ere- again
to touch it. The honour of God as concerned in
this, because to outwit God erase is to saaileifiy him
for ever. He would not make Lno;:lier likeness of
himself. He would not let the one he hatlzzade out
of his grasp; but he at (mese proceeded to recover
the man he had made in his own image; whowas
now the representative of sickness ar.cl sorrow and
death. In the fulness of time, therefore, be sent
his own beloved Son, and in order that he =tight
redeem man he became a man like ongitzlvs.
Ho fulfilled the law of God, ar.dhavinr.etj he
laid down his life a ransom for all marliiael: And
so he rescued us and bought us 'sack again (Nat of
the hands of the devil; hav;ng shed his prepainus
blood—not for one part of mankind, but Utz the
whole world—awl the remit ig tat all 0" Ob'al`