The Wilmingtonian., 1885-11-28
ssImmOrtaIfty"

Was it the gift of God through Adam, Or,
is it the gift of God through CHRISTI Was
the natural, physical life of Adam, designed
by his creator, to be perpetual everlasting,
or eternalp Or is eternal life, "the gift OF
God through Jesus Christ our Lord ?" 1t
God was mistaken, in the failure Of the first
Adam, how do we know, but he may be mis-
taken in the second Adam Christi Do not
as yet, ''all things continue as they were
from the beginning" at least, SO far as the
knowledge of man is concerned. They may
think or guess or speculate about it as they
do, but what do they knoW about itP just
nothing at all. Was the first man spiritual2
Paul says he was not, and if not then he
could not lose what he did not possess, nor,
could he die spiritual death he could, and
did die natural death, was Christ quick
ening spirit Paul says he was, SO Jesus
"was put to death in the flesh' and quick
ened by the spirit' which dwelt in him from
his baptism, until it left him on the cross.
"He was declared to be the son of God with
power, according to the spirit of holiness,
by the resurrection of the dead" Rom. /, 4.
Hence he could say, II am He that iveth and
was dead, and behold l am alive forever
more, Amen, and have the keys of Hades
and of DEATH" Rev. /, 1S. And that "being-
raised from the dead dieth no more, death
hath no more dominion over him." Rom
vi. 0. If then Jesus was declared to be the
son of God with power, according to the
spirit of holiness by the resurrection from
the dead" how can those who sleep in Jesus,
and are as yet under the dominion OF
death, be where he is, without resurrection
from the dead also? Does death end ou'
natural lifep Most assuredy it does, as ii
did in the case of Jesus, was there necessi-
ty for his resurrection? If lie had not risen,
then he would have been dead still, and the
hopes of his people, would have ended III
disappointment and despair, death is pris-
on house, in it are confined the prisoners OF
hope. For three days, and nights in its do
mnion, Jesus was held prisoner But his
soul was not left there, nor did Gods Holy
one see corruption" Act II, 81. There wa'
no "sloughing off," of his incorfuptibl,
body from his soul in his case. "He wa
put to death in the flesh." "The life of Ch,
flesh, is in the blood" Gen. TX, 4. This
life he laid down, as an eternal forfeit. ''H'
was quiokened by the spirit" This esprit
life quickened the incorruptible body o
Jesus and rendered him deathless, immortal
possessing within himself, the power anc
principle ''of an endless life." Now, "as tn
Father hath life in himself, so hath he Civ
en- to the Son to have life in himself" JohI
V, 20. Did Jesus possess this life befor
his death and resurrection? If SO how coul,
death have had dominion over him, OF, VIII.
should he need resurrection from death
This fact, of the death and resurrection O
Jesus Christ from the dead, as necessit
in the divine purpose and plan of God
strikes its deadly blow at every form an
phase of spiritualism, whether it be orthc
dox, or hetrodox. IL remains fixed, unal
terable, or primal truth. Thou shalt surel
die. And well nigh six thousand years o
human observation, experience and know
ledge attest its solemn truth. "The livn
know that they shall die, bat the dead
/ know not anything" Eccle. TX, 8. Anotl
Gr fact 80 badly overlooked, is this: tn
- order is first, that which is natura
1nuuShSt which is spiritual.
not ana no.ird by ears tna1 near not. Ut
Jesus die to keep US from dying? Or, di
he rise from the dead to assure us that ''th
gates Of She'll" hades, or 'death" and th
''grave," should not prevail against us,
but that we too, ''should come again frol
the land of the enemy" by the same might
. power which his Father wrought in hin
when he raised him from the dead. Epl
/, 10 20 Why does the new testament max
the resurrection so prominent, and say not
syllable about tgoing to Heaven at death
Was Jesus, and his Apostles in error on tn
point, or has there been new revelation
Or, has spiritualism snatched the thing {
from the night track? That there is som
thing wrong somewhere, is as certain as th'
the sun shines, that the scripture makes
resurrection necessary to a future life,
clearly demonstrated by the resurrection
the Lord Jesus. That they nowhere teat
that christians go to heaven at death, l
man can successfully deny, nor can thu
find any scriptures, teaching that the 'spil
when it returns to the God who gave it,
possesses any knowledge whatever. Any SUI
assumption, has no scriptural basis wha
ever, and is only "old wives fables" Jes
said to his deciples, "because live, ye shi
live also" John XIV. 30. But Jesus hil
self died after saying this so that this rt
Aa., Aha
which he alluded. That "the 6
of God is eternal life through Jesus Chr
our Lord" Rom. vi. 23--is made sure by t
resurrection of Jesus from the dead A
by this fact, all christians have been beg
ten again unto ''hope of the eternal Ii
which God that cannot lie, had promised
before the world began" that this life, eN
was in the physical Adam, and he transm
ted it to his posterity, no biblical stud6
will affirm. 1t follows then, as logic
scriptural, and rational conclusion, Il
death is just what we see and know it to
state or condition of unconsciousness, CT
sequently inactive, represented in bible Il
guage, as profound 'sleep." 'They kn
not anything" but saints have been beg
ten again unto hope of life by the resurr
tion of Jesus Christ from the dead, LIST Pet
1,9. And as he was ''the first born fr,
the dead, that in all things he might hi
the preemnence," Col. l, 1s. Even SO tt
must come to the same birth, by the sa
resurrection power, or, 'they also, are I
ished," 1st Cor. XIV. is. There was not
Adam, the natural man, this principle