The Democratic banner. (Mt. Vernon, Ohio) 1898-192?, 1910-07-26

some extent, has nentralized the effect
Of our errors.
| Starting from their misunderstand-
Ing of Bible teachings respecting the
wages of sin, Brother Luther and his
noble companions buttled bravely for
many truths. but made one great blum
der. When they concluded that Pur-
gatory was contrary to the Scriptures
and threw it away, not seeing the
| Bible hell, the tomb, they adopted an
other hell and thereby went from bad
! to worse on this subject. They said,
The heather and the masses of the
civilized are surely not saints-surely
they do not follow in the footsteps of
Jesus-surely, therefore, they cannot
be Of his spiritual flock. Concluding
that these could not be taken to heav-
en-, they said, We must take them out
of Purgatory anyway, wherever we put
them, because we have found out that
there is no such place as Purgatory.
After Conferences, seriously dislik-
ing to make out Gods character worse
than they formerly supposed, they
said under their breaths, We must
take them out of Purgatory and quick
ly put them into hell of eternal tor
ture and say as little about the mat
ter as possible. They were greatly
relieved when long-headed Brother
John Calvin explained to them about
the mere handful going to heaven and
the great mass going to eternal tor
ture. He explained that God had fore
ordained and predestinated these aw-
ful results-that he might show his
wisdom and his power. AS to
Love divine all love excelling,"
Brother Calvin seems never to have
thought of that. Brother Wesley and
others since. though less logical and
theological did stand up for and de-
clare the Love of God, even though
rather absurdly they claimed that he
was neither wise enough nor powerful
enough to do more than rescue mere
handful of Adams race from the eter-
nal torture to which they thought God
damned them all because of the DISC
bedience in Eden
"All In Adam-AlI In Christ"
In the light of our better Bibles and
Bible Study Helps and minds freed
from the ignorance and superstitions
Of the past we may understand the
Apostles words and find in them, not
only justice and love, but harmony and
beauty. Instead of all mankind going
to eternal torment for Adams sin, all
90 into the Bible hell, the grave, on
account of his sin-and all Of the men,
tai, moral and physical blemishes of
our race are part of this heredity.
There would have been no hope of
future life, good or bad, had not God
in his mercy provided the Savior-the
Life Giver," as the Syriac renders the
word. In Gods due time he set before
his Son the opportunity of becoming
mans Redeemer The Logos was made
flesh (John /, 14 and obediently gave
himself in death-"tasted death for
every man" AS by one mans disobedi-
ence the sentence Of death passed upon
all of the race, even so by the obedience
of the man Christ Jesus unto death
justification to life passed for all Of
that race. Now we see the wise rea-
son for permitting the sentence to pass
through one mans disobedience to
: all OF his posterity. 1t was In or
der that one sacrifice for sin might
make possible the reconciliation of the
entire race.
Now read our text and drink In Its
depths and beauty and force. The
resurrection of mankind from the sin
and death and tomb condition to the
full perfection and image of God from
which the race fell Is the salvation
which God has provided for all Who.
ever will fail to Nattain the full recov'
cry from sin and death conditions will
have himself to blame because Of re-
lection OF the glorious arrangement
which God made In and through Christ
"The First Resurrection"
God divides the salvation Of man.
kind into two parts-the Church to
spirit nature and the world to perfect
ed human nature. The first he Is ac'
complishing during this Gospel Age
, Christ and the Church during Mes
siahs reign of II thousand years.
The Church, the little flock" OF
saints, called. tried, tested. in the mar
row way during this Age, are to con
= stltute the "First Resurrection" class
/. and to become the Bride of Christ.
: "the Church of the First-Borns.
Y These are to be associated with tn,
= great Redeemer in his future work
0 These shall be like him, changed from
, earthly to heavenly nature and made
: sharers of his glory, honor and i'm
+ mortality. The Kingdom of God un
der the whole heavens will be inaugu
n rated after the gloriilcatlon of thu
4 Church and then will begin the bless
Ing, the salvation, the uplifting, tn
a resurrectlng, of mankind in general
from sin and death conditions--not t.
:, spiritual conditions, but to perfec