West Virginia argus. [volume] (Kingwood, W. Va.) 1877-1946, 1904-12-22
NdIC1TlQn! Hh0f0f The NIl1I /?
The Morning aud a Night Cometh
lisa. XXI. II.12.

For thirty centuries the world, led by the
hopes OF the Jews, has been looking for and
hoping for and thinking about the coming
golden age, In which all the families of the
earth will be blessed with every conceivable
prosperity. Nor did the thought originate
in the Jewish nation. II came to them
through the divine promise, the oath-bound
covenant Of God to Abraham, that In his
seed all the families Of the earth should be
blessed. The hope set before the nation of
Israel vas that they, MS the seed OF Abraham
would be Gods agency In connection with
Messiah for the communication Of this
blessing TO every nation, kindred aud
tongue Under the stimulus of this hope
their nation held together as no other nation
has ever done.
Those who accepted Christ, both of the
Jews and Gentiles, lay claim to all those
promises which center in Christ, and which
the Jewish nation In rejecting Him, cut
loose from. Christendom claims to he
Spiritual Israel, and, as such, heirs OF all the
wonderful Spiritual promises OF God, as the
apostle declares, eff ye be Christ's then arc
ye AbrNham's seed, and heirs according to
the promise" ;" This hope inspired the
apostles and all the early Church. They
looked forward to the second coming OF
Christ as the time when the Church MS Ills
Bride would be glorified with her Lord. and
associated with Him in the work of the
kingdom-the work of restraining and de-
s'roying evil and exal,ing righteousness
the work of rolling back the curse from
every people and Of uplifting mankind from
snand death. The work Of raising up the
dead world from lis fallen condition TO all
that was lost IN Adam and redeemed by the
precious blood of Christ. This glorious
time was at once referred to at Pentecost,
the Apostle Peter saying. "Times of refresh
ing shall come from the presence of the
Lord, and lie shall send Jesus Christ. which
before was preached unto you; whom the
: heavens must receive until the time OF the
restitution of all things spoken by the mouth
OF all the Holy prophets since the world
began"
No Bible student Of honest mind will for
one moment question that the hope Of union
with Christ at Ills second Advent was the
hope OF the early Church. Ii was in view
of this glorious sxaltation that the apostles
and all the faithful brethren we're so willing
to suffer persecution for the truths sake.
The apostle links together most positively
present fathiulneSss TO the Lord and future
association with Him in the Kingdom. saw.
ing ~ reckon that the suGerings Of this
present time are not worthy to be compared
with the glory which shall be revealed in
US. We are the children of God, and II
children, then heirs, heirs OF God, ioint
heirs with Chnst--if so be thul we suffer
with Him, that We may he also gori6ed To-
geiher with Him." Again he says, "The
earnest expectation of the creature waiteth
Tor the manifestation of the sons Of Cod"
No iheologian Of any denomination will
question the fact that so.caIled Chiliasm-
hope In the second Advent Of Chris, and the
Kingdom which he will then eaablish--was
the dominating thought Of the Church Of
Chris. IN the days Of the Apostles during the
time when the New Testament was written.
The followers Of Christ underslood them.
selves TO be entirely separate and distinct
from the world, to have different hopes and
aims from the remainder Of the race. because
they were children Of the highest "begolten
again OF The SpTit" New Creatures in
Christ Jesus to whom old things have passed
away and ell things become new through
ihis hope inspired BY the Iord's word aud
appreciated through Ills Spirit. But very
soon after the death Of the Apostles grevous
errors erept In amongst the Lord's followers
and new theory or philosophy on the sub.
jeot ot The Kingdom was started. namely.
that instead Of waiting for the Lord from
Heaven TO eSslt Ills Church with glorious
change from mortal to immortal conditions
and to eiothe her with glory, honor and i'm
mortality and equip her with power and
Authority to execute judgement upon the
earth, the program ives 20 be a different one
that the Apostles bad not quite grasped
the ihoughi--ihat The Church should under
tsiand that her mission is TO convert the
world without her Lord. end that when she
has accomplished this Tie will come and in
spee' and approve her work
The results Of this serious mistake have
been far reaching. The theory that the
Apostles had made mistake in the teach
ing that the Church was TO continue losufer
until the Second Advent Of Christ-thst Il
was 10 continued 70 be despised and rejected
Of men, and that whos0eyer would live
godiy in this present life would suffer perse-
eution, we've only partial truths, applicable
to the Apostles day and not subsequently.
The thought thst the Apos,les' testimony
needed to be supplemented led to theory
tbat prevails to day in the Roman Catholic
and al the Episcopal churches, namely,
that the testimonies % The apostles are not
the fsal messages Of Cod but that the Iiy.
iag Chnreh hts Of equal power aud authority
With The aPossles-ths, The clergy through
apostolic succession have the same right and
the same au,hodty that The apostles had to
express the divine plan, snd thus came the
.cesfisseR ~ fki,d fagSl