The Universalist. [volume] (Chicago [Ill.]) 1884-1897, 1897-08-21
THE HIGHEST EVIDENCES OF THE
TRUTH OF CHRISTIANITY.
BY REV. J. b. SAKE.
II.

ourselves learn nothing. The most
prying eye and listening ear can make
no discoveries of what is beyond
death, or whether there is anything
beyond And yet it interests us more
than anything else. What is few
years of the earthly life, with all it's
possessions and enjoyments, COM
pared with the question whether we
shall live beyond, and how we shall
live? Men have from the beginning
specialized more on this subject than
any other. And what terrible dreams
Every pagan scheme of Immortality
has sat like an incubus upon the
minds and hearts of its believers.
Even Buddhism, the best of all heath
en- religions, has to offer as it's high
est reward only perpetual
unconsciousness-for its most faith
full disciples. One of the highest
evidences of the inspiration .~of the
Old Testament is the fact that--it is
free from all these human dreams.
1t does not attempt to teach us any
scheme of Immortality. 1t only
pointed to the coming of Messiah,
who would teach the world all that
was necessary for it to know. Had
it's writer's been only uninspired men,
it would have been sure to have
taught some of the denominations of
paganism.
But Moses and the prophets,
guided by the spirit, judiciously and
wisely abstained from writing what
was not revealed to them. In the
fullness of times the revelation was
given, the truth was made known.
Paul, as chosen apostle of the Lord
Jesus Christ, treats this subject more
fully than any other sacred writer.
After demonstrating the resurrection
of the Saviour by the testimony of
more than five hundred eye witnesses,
most of whom were still alive, and of
whom he himself was one, he declares
that this fact implies the resurrection
Of all. Christ was the first fruits
that is, the specimen and the pledge
of the general harvest, as the first
| offered sheaves were of the wheat
harvest. "For as in Adam all die,
even so in Christ shall all be made
alive" He then proceeds to explain
the manner of the resurrection, and
the nature and conditions of the flu
ture life. 1t was like the growing of
wheat. The body like the wheat kerr
mel died and decayed in the earth,
but the soul, in spiritual body, lived
and fourished in perennial beauty
above the grave of the seed, like the
glorious wheat plant, nourished by
the winds and sun of heaven.
As man was above the beasts and
birds, as the glory of the celestial
bodies transcribed that of the ter
restrial ones, as the sun was brighter
than the moon and stars, and one
star was brighter than another, SO is
the resurrection of the dead, he de-
clares. Sown in corruption, it is
raised in interruption, sown in dis
honor, it is raised in glory, sown in
weakness it is raised in power, sown
a natural body, it is raised spirit
ual body. "The first man is of the
earth earthly; the second man is the
Lord from heaven. AS we have borne
the image of the earthly, we shall
also bear the image of the heavenly"
Behold. he says. l shew you mys-
tery-the mystery of the ages. He
tells them the great secret that had
been hid from the foundation of the
world. ave shall not all sleep, but
we shall all be changed, in a mo-
ment, in the twinkling of an eye, at
the last trump: for the trumpet
shall sound, and the dead shall be
raised incorruptible, and we shall be
changed. For this corruptible must
put on interruption, and this mortal
must put on Immortality. Death
shall be swallowed up in victory"
The last enemy shall be destroyed
death. This is the climax of di-
vine revelation, the chief glory of the
gospel-the good news which the
great apostle began by saying he
was going to declare to them, as he
had preached it before. 1t was the
burden Of his inspired message. He
preached it in season and out of sea
son to these skeptics who were prob
ably in despair at the thought, in the
belief that death is an eternal sleep.
Glorious old hero. he found persecu-
tion and death to proclaim this gospel
to despairing and dying world.
But what concerns us now, is the
evidence it furnishes of the truth of
the heavenly message. 1t is simply