The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1910-06-16
PEOPLES
Sermon by
CHARLES 7.
RUSSELL.
Pastor Brooklyn
Tabernaclc.

attentive audiences. We report his
thy God am jealous God, visiting the
1niquities of the fathers upon the chill
dren unto the third and fourth genera
ton of them that hate me; and show
ing mercy unto thousands of them that
love me and keep my commandments"
deuteronomy V. o. 10). A report of
the discourse fOllOws:-
No one of experience can question
the fact that our text is corrOborated
by all our experiences in life How
ever unjust some may claim it to be
that the children should inherit the
weaknesses resulting from parental
designations and violations of the Di-
vine law, the fact remains that how
ever atheism may question the exist
ence of a God or infidelity doubt the
inspiration of his Word. no one can
question the two facts of this text, a,
that sin and its penalty can be inherit
ed and (2) the fact that GOdIs merci-
full to such as renounce sin and turn
to him and seek to walk according to
his direction. However these bless
ings upon evil doors and their children
and these blessings upon well doors
and their posterity may be termed
natural laws and laws of heredity, it
does not alter the fact, because the Al
mighty is the one who made these
laws of heredity.
Under the delusiOn handed down to
us from the dark ages"-that God
had condemned to eternal torment all
the children of Adam because of his
sin-we are all inclined properly
enough to feel rebellious against any
such matter and to assert that from
the standpoint of human reasoning
it would be entirely unjust to torture
the posterity of Adam eternally for
his sgression-"original sin" But
as we get the eyes of our understand
ing opened to see what is the real
penalty for sin, that it is death. eX
tinction, and that our perfect parents.
fully Informed respecting the divine
will, were culpable, worthy of death,
and when we learn further that what
ever is enjoyed by Adams posterity
in the way of life, however disad-
vantageous the conditions. is so
much of divine leniency and mercy
and comes 50 much short of being
the full penalty, death, extinction
then we begin to see that life under
any conditions and disadvantages is
still a boon, better than extinction.
Recognizing the wrath of God as
manifested in the death penalty mot
in an eternity of torturel we can see
that the Scriptures everywhere de-
clare that the wrath of God is resting
upon our race; that every member Of
it is subject to this very penalty which
came upon father Adam and has been
entailed upon all of his posterity.
The Almighty Creator did not wait
for US to cry out for his pity and
compassion. but from the very be-
ginning, foreknowing our fall into sin,
he had the plan arranged for our re
demption and ultimate recovery from
this condition of wrath, curse, death.
We are informed that our Lord Jesus
was the Lamb of God slain from the
foundation of the world-in the Divine
purpose and arrangement-though only
now being made manifest to the
Church and shortly to the world. Thus
viewed there has been no injustice
practised against our race in permit
ting the children to share with their
father Adam in his penalty. Rather
they had esteemed 1t and do esteem 1t
better than the sentence itself, and
furthermore in the Lords providences
the worlds present experiences in the
fall and later on in the recovery from
the fall in the hands of the great Re
deemer during the Millennial Age, is
to prove a lesson, a schooling. in the
exceeding sinfulness of sin, which the
race as whole will never forget and
out of which many now the Church.
later on the world) will draw lessons
of wisdom and grace.
Looking still more deeply into the
Divine Plan as it is revealed in the
Lords Word for those who are his
psalm XIV. IA, we find a particular
reason why it was not only advisable
but necessary that this law of heredity
should operate in our race, even though
it brought in its train a terrible list of
experiences to our race. The reason
for this is based upon one element of
the Divine character-Justice-t very
element which at one time we sup
posed was violated by this law of
heredity. As our eyes open to the
teaching of the Scriptures we perceive
that if God had not permitted his law
of heredity to operate, but had per-
mitted each individual Of the race to
come forth to perfection and to stand
an individual trial such as father Adam
was subject to, 1t would doubtless
have meant that at least one-half of
the race. possibly more, would have
deliberately chosen a course of sin as
father Adam chose 1t. To expect more
than one-half to be obedient would be
unreasonable Rather. from what we
see about us in the experiences Of life.
we would have been liable to conclude
that only very small majority. per
haps one-tenth. would have been ODE
dent to God, while the remaining nine
tenths would have been disobedient.