Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1893-05-29

ture ITSELF" for it does not interpret Scripture
by ''other places of Scripture which speak more
plainly but by the evolutionary principles OF
the conjectural theory. If we allow Scripture
to interpret itself We find confirmed the author
ship of the Pentateuch and Isaiah by Moses and
Isaiah. respectively.
WHAT THE STANDARDS ASSERT.
| But our standards assert that the entire writ
ten Bible is to believed, received and obeyed,
| for the reason that it is the Word of God, the
God of truth being the author thereof, and that
the Christian shows his faith by believing ITO
be true whatsoever IS revealed in the Word, for
the authority of God himself speaking therein
1t is impossible to require such faith in a
Scripture which is not only erroneous, bnt
also tainted with fraud.
The verdict Of acquittal by the inferior
judicatory on these two charges is therefore
contrary to the law and evidence in this case
and should not be allowed to stand as the
judgment of our church.
THE REJECTED CHARGES.
The rejected charges may be considered at
this point.
We claim that the inferior judicatory erred
in ordering these two charges to be stricken
| ont 1t was an error, for the reason that they
allege valid offenses as We will now show
1. PREDICTIvE PROPHECY.
In the fourth of the amended charges DIR.
Briggs is charged with teaching that many of
the Old Testament predictions have been re-
versed by history. and that the great body of
Messianic prediction cannot be fulfilled"
He complains that he is misquoted, and that
invalid differences are drawn from his state
ment, but the complaint is not well founded
The entire statement is given in the specifica-
| ton, and it sustains the charge. The qualify
ing clause concerning 1.-THE details Of productive
prophecy of ''tle Old Testament in no wise
modifes the statement that many of these
predictions have been reversed by history"
The statement was originally made by
Kuenen. and when DIR. Briggs adopted il as his
own he failed to state that he did not use it
with Kuonen's meaning. Kuenen sustained his
position by denial of the reality o. protective
| prophecy, the inspiration of the prophet and
the presence of the supernatural in the Bible.
"These utterances OF DIR. Briggs" said DR..
Lampe. have caused alarm and justly. The
! leaders of the higher criticism school are, for
the most part, avowedly hostile to that super
natural element in Scripture which predictiye
prophecy calls for; consistently, therefore, they
deny the existence of such prophecy, and hold
that the prophets of Scripture were nothing
more than men OF extraordinary genius and illu-
mnation, whose utterances concerning the fu-
| ture were based on far-seoing foresight of the
providential drift of things in their historical
situation"
! These statements of DIR. briggs being in con-
/ UlCt Win the CeclafauOns OF scripture ana the
citations from the Standards should be con-
demned by this cour. and be disavowed by
him.
/ The other rejected charge is the seventh of
! the amended form. in which DR.. Briggs Is
charged with teaching that the processes OF
redemption extend TO the world to come i'll the
| case of many who die in sin.
! 1t is claimed that he disavowed this doctrine
/ by cateSorcally answering question pro-
! pounded to him III private by directors OF
| Union Seminary. But such categorical an
/ swer under such circumstances proves nothing
and disavows nothing; the more so, because
since that time DR.. Briggs has affirmed his ad-
herence to everything which he has stated in
! the inaugural both as to matter and form"
We therefore ask this venerable body to con-
slider whether the facts pointed out in the sreci-
fication do not in the light of the evidence SUBJ
mitted prove the charge.
He accuses Protestants of the fault Of not
| extending the process of redemption TO the
vast periods of time in the middle state between
| death and the resurrection.
Tho processes of redemption" he states.
sever keep the race in mind. The Bible tells
MS of race origin. race ideal. race Re
deemer and n race redemption. (p. 5o)
| According to DR.. Briggs. redemption is not
limited by election. He says. The Bible does
not teach universal salvation but it does teach
the salvation of the world OF the race of man,
and that cannot be accomplished by the selec-
4 q
the mass. The salvation OF the world
can only mean the world a whole, conn barred
with which the upredeemed will be so few and
insignificant and evidently beyond the reach of
redemption BY their own act Of rejecting itaud
hardening themselves against it. and by de-
scending into such depths Of demoniacal de-
pravitv In the middle state. that they will
vanish from the sight of the redeemed as alto
Cether and irredecmably evil and never more dis
turb the harmonies of the saints" opp So. So.
Ii Dr. Briggs does not teach in this passage
| that some men who die im1enitent might have
been redeemed in the middle state but for their
descending into such depths of demoniacal
/ depravity in the middle state" then certainly
when he tried to clothe his concept with lam
guage, he puts its clothes on upside down. The
'unmistakable drift of the entire passage is that
/ the redemption of the world. of the race OF
/ man. is largely to be accomplished by means OF
the opportunities which will be given them in
/ the middle state.
| And this agrees with what DIR. Briggs has
stated concerning "a Judgment Immediately
after death" (p.. 54.) He calls il ''hurtfu
unchristian error" "bugbear." which makes
death terror to the best of men, This points
Enthusiastically to another chance after death,
since the issues of life not to be regarded as
| final at death. 1t is a hurtful error which he
renounces.
| DANGEROUS UTTERANCEs.
These are dangerous utterances, all the more
SO because they come from a professor of Il
| prominent theological seminary. They are
calculated to make men careless about their
eternal welfare and lead them to presume on
the mercy Of God. The Scriptures and the
standards of our church. as shown by the cita-
| tons annexed to this church. confine the work
Of redemption to this life under the dispensa-
ton of the Gospel. Both Scripture and stand
ards agree in declaring that now Is the ac-
| CcDtpl behold Is n
tion;' that lit Is appointed unto men once to
die, but after this judgment" and that there is
nm ImrassabIe gulf fixed Immediately after
death between the righteous and the wicked.
! q Cor. 6:2: Heb. 9:27; Luke 1920
| This teaching of DR.. Briggs should be con-
demned by this court and be retracted by him.
| Progressive Sanctification After Death.
| The last eighth charge OF the amended
form refers to the subject of progressive sancti-
fcation after death, in which DIR. Briggs is