The Anaconda standard. [volume] (Anaconda, Mont.) 1889-1970, 1898-01-10
To Quote the Bible, This Life
Has Two Homes"
BODY NOT THE REAL MAN
Rev. John Hosking's Sound Argument
on Matters of Vital Interest to the
Community to an NJ E.
Church Congregation.

/ eooN d. HIS teAt his lie mas TWO
homes" which he found in Second Cor
inthians, 5:1 For we know that if our
/ earthly house of this tabernacle were
I dissolved, we have a building of God.
1 house not made with hands eternal in
! the heavens" and said
I That which has inspired many Chris
| tians to battle against difficulties and
4 doubts, to war good warfare, has been
| the faith in the hereafter 1t has been
/ the longing hope of the most benighted
| condition. and one of the greatest ques-
| lions to interest the mind OF the most
! enlightened One thing has been de-
cided by pagan and Christian, Plato
| and Paul, that they all alike repudiate
the idea that this moral and intellectual
being can be extinguished by physical
death. All that ever lived still lives;
all that ever thought stiil thinks. But
what, and where is the spirit of my
loved one? All that is left me is the
cold inanimate FORM ! weep; | pray;
but there is no response: the grave
gives no satisfaction. We crave for
some information concerning the dead;
we turn to every oracle that profferS:
we intefrogate every intuition of our
| being, we inquire of the reasoning
philosopher we gather up all we can
from what God has revealed in His
word; and we surmise a thousand
things that He has not said. We stand
EdLiiiS litp ltiG IIIlSt We Gail utdtii, anu
we ask, what is beyond the mist? Is
there a beyond? or is life lost in the
dark mist of death? Men may mock
and jeer the questioner. but they can
not so easily answer the question. 1t
cannot be laughed down, or argued
out 1t is persistent. ii will not down,
though science comes to us from the
dissectins room scafpel in hand, to re-
port its failure 10 find anything in the
human organism bearing the stamp OF
immortality. But our text makes pos
tive statement. We know that if this
earthly house is dissolved we have a
building Of God. And perhaps we need
be continually reminded that the ply
steal body is not the vital principle. 1t
is not the real man. We are too apt to
think and speak of ourselves as living
men, as long as we can walk, and eat
ard talk, and as soon as these cease we
speak of man as dead. My body is the
house in which the real man lives. God
breathed into man the breath of life;
and man became a living soul
There is a spirit in man, and the
inspiration of the Almighty giveth it
understanding. Our real man thinks
knows, wishes, desires, rejoices and sor-
rows, which my body cannot do The
body is the instrument of the soul. and
the apostle says We are clothed upon
with our house. and who can tell but
that it conceals more than it reveals?
We take man then as one of the wit
nesses of his immortality. This may
be cast out by some as an unworthy ev-
idenee. Let US see. This world was
made for man, and without man it
would be a waste. and a failure. A
building having a kitchen. library and
various other apartments shows the in
telligence of the builder, and also the
intelligence of the person to occupy it,
SO the world was built for man. He is
more than all created things He is
n i4- N.Y.
terry or problem i'm this world equal to
man to whom was given dominion and
power. The argument then is that man
is the master and there is more of him
than can be satisfied by the things of
this world His desires and ambitions
are higher than this life. The spirit
comes in touch With this world only
through the mechanism of the earth
earthly.
Science tells me that | am constantly
throwing off particles of my physical
man, so that our bodies are not to-day
what they We're yesterday. and will not
be tomorrow what they are to-day.
Another natural evidence Of mans i'm
mortality is that all power is invisible.
We sometimes thought we saw power
in the mighty locomotive. but that
which we thought was power was only
the condensed steam Which generated
power. The same may be said Of cleo
tricity. Some one has said. They have
hafnessed the lightning, but not SO. God
has set in motion laws that Will never
cease. and man has brought some of
these together. and has produced what
We call electricity. because We have no
better word yet found to express our
idea. Man, like God. is a spirit. invisi-
pie. The form which we see is not man.
1t is only the instrument through which
man operates. This invisible power is
the spirit or mind producing and indi-
eating the mental possibilities. All
natural appetites find their correspond
ents. all needs find their supply: hun
ger finds food. The eye finds light: the
ear sound. intelligence problems 10
solve. So the spirit of man loves to
dwell in the presence of the Divine.
The third witness in evidence of The
life mortal we bring Jesus Christ, who
appeared in this world more than Is
centuries ago, to bring life and i'm
mortality 10 light, and il is of infinite
Importance that he be a credible wit
ness. 1t is our right. nay, our duty. to
test his claim. There Is too much in
xolyed for us 10 be Indifferent Is Je-
sus Christ true witness? II he is not.
then there is little hope of a future life.
IT he is not true witness, then God has
never spoken to man. We are orphans.
without God. and without hope in the
World. We cannot here consider how
the Christ Of the gospels has gloriously
met all the texts. His character is un-
I'LL HIS i4&E anu io1At lit II
consistent with himself. and after
1890 years of scrutiny He holds His
place in the confidence of the Christian
world as the peerless teacher and a
faultless model for all.
The fact remains. the world has
made no advance upon MS teaching.
We take our place. therefore. as disci- f
pies at His feet confident that He is f
the word of God. We follow His teach
ings and from His word we realize there +
Is no death save that separation from {
God. and there II no life. only that +
which is found III the knowledge of God +
Jesus never tries 10 prove the immor-
tality Of the soul. But says. IL that
endufeta IN the end. the same shall be
saved. And again. wnosoeYer viii +
lose his life for my sake shall find it,
and this Is life eternal. that they might
know Thee. the only true God. and Je- +
sus Christ. whom thou hast sent. E.ter-
nal life IS therefore defined ny the
Savior. as the knowledge Of God. And
again II a man keep ms word II shall