New-York tribune., 1907-09-15
LITERAL VS.. METAPHORICAL.

V. P Jeffrey, speaking for the clergy Of the
Bible School and Workers Training Alliance OF
the Christian and Missionary Alliance. said:
In theology people are divided into tw0
schoOIs-the Observation-Disclosures. who believe that
Christ has already come spiritually in regen-
Grafton. and the pre-millennialists. who take lit
eraIIv the words Of Scripture about the second
coming of the Saviour We belong to the pre-
millennial school One of the main things Tor
hich we stand is the coming back of the Lord
Jesus to gather his eIect-bOth living and dead
and believe that this coming will be very.
very soon. OF the many references 70 II IN tina
Bible here is one from St Paufs Eplstle 10 the
Thessa IOnians:
For the Lord himself shall descend from
heaven with a shout. with the voice or the arch
angel and with the trump of God: and the dead
in Christ shall rise first Then we which are
alive and remain shall be caught UP together
with them in the clouds, 10 meet the Lord IN tina
air: and so shall we be with the Lord
AT this event it is said that We shall he
changed in the twinklIng Of an eye- This mortal
shall put on immortality and this corruDrfois
(he deadD shall put on tncorruptlon
In Revelations 81. John says: And ! saw
the souls of them and they lived and
reigned with Christ a thousand years
But the rest Of the dead lived not again
until the thousand years were finished This -
the first resurrection
Blessed and holy is he that hath part IN tns
first resurrection: on such the second death has
no power, but they shall be priests OF God ard
of Christ, and shall reign with him a thousand'
years
we p1ornentariIy expect this second coming
of Christ. when Christians are to be caught Up
in the air with Him upon which VIII follow
those fearful days Of tribulatiOn upon the earCh
of which so much is written in the BloAs
The duration Of this awful period Is not spec
ified except that those days will be shorren5d;
for the elects sake God has reserved for Him
self seven thousand men'-a remnant-of rnei
Jews. but He SAYS they shall not see Him again
until they willing TO say. Blessed is he that
COmeth in the name Of the Lord
1T is prOpheSied that Christ was bOrH for 'thSi
fall and rise of Israel We have witnessed tho
kall: about TO witness the days OF tr1Ou-
NatiOn in Palestine. and VIII witness the rise
of the Jews, with Christ their king Then
will be fulfilled the prophecy. "A nation shall Be-
born in day. and they will take hold OF the
skirts OF the Jew and say, Lead US to thy
Cod Also. He will take out OF every nation
a people for his names sake, and the righteous
shall inherit the earth
For a thousand years Satan will be bound
and the Lord reign upon earth. Scripture tells
us. and then Satan is 10 be lOOsed; a great final
conflict is TO take place between the forces OF
God and SataR, and then viii follow the Judg-
ment Day and the final eternal punishment OF
the wicked and reward Of the good. The curse
shall be removed from earth and there will be
a new heaven and a new earth
We are upon the very threshold Of this trans
lation of Christians This is the longest dispen-
sation we have ever had. and IL is called the
age of grace because in it 'whOsOever win may
be saved
1.-The first dispensation was from Adam TO
Noah, the second from Noah to Abraham. tire
third from Abraham to Moses and the fourth
from Moses to Christ Since Christ the day o.
grace has heightened 70 nearly two thousand
gears. making six thousand in all IL Is writ
ten, ON the seventh day We shall rest We are
about TO have one thousand years of rest from
struggle with Satan, but first must take place
the ParOusia. or second coming OF Christ TO
catch up his followers from the awful days OF
That Is why ministers of the alliance go OUT
preaching, The time is at hand