Wausau pilot. [volume] (Wausau, Wis.) 1896-1940, 1911-06-13
Jesus every knee shall bow and every
tongue confess, to the glory of God"
"Slept With His Fathers

All through the Scriptures natural
sleep is used as figure for death, as
the present time of the reign of sin Is
represented as a night time, and the
coming reign of Messiah is prophet
cally described as The morning of a
New Day. a New Epoch. weeping
may endure for night, but joy com
eth in the morning" wrote David. The
night has lasted for six thousand
years; the New Day is the seventh
thousand. the Sabbath of the great
week. 1t will be the awakening time,
as the six thousand years of the reign
of sin and sorrow are the time in
which our race has been going down
into death-into the deep sleep from
which none will come forth except by
the call of Messiah.
The penalty of death upon our race
would have blotted US out of existence
like the brute beasts had not Gods
mercy from the beginning made pr D.
vision for a Reueemer and for His
Church ard joint-heir; and for the
Messianic Kingdom; and for the respf-
rection, the awakening of all mankind,
through this Kingdom. 1t was in view
of that hope of a resurrection of the
dead that believers spoke of their
deceased friends as falling asleep.
This expression is used frequently in
the New Testament. ST. stephen fell
asleep in death; ST Paul, having in
mind the great work of Christ on be-
half of the world and the eventual
awakening Of all, declared that be-
levers need not sorrow as others over
the death of their friends and neigh
bors, but might realize that all ''sleep
in Jesus" and that eventually God,
through Him, will bring to pass the
general awakening of the dead, all of
whom are yet to be brought to a
knowledge of the truth that they may
be saved from sin and death and OBJ
tain Restitution (Acts i'll, 1929.
Pastor Russell quoted the Scripture,
abraham slept with his. fathers, .
and declared that Abraham's fathers
were heather men. He called atten-
ton to the fact that good and bad,
kings and princes ard others, are, in
the Scriptures, declared to have fallen
asleep. SO it was with David. These
all slept IN the Bible HELM the tomb.
They are all unconscious; as the Scrip
lures declare, "The dead know not
anything; their sons come 10 honor
and they know it not; they come to
dishonor and they perceive it not OF
them; "There is neither wisdom nor
knowledge nor device in sheot lhell,
the gravel, whittier thou goest'-
whittier all go Dob xiv. 81; Ecclesias-
ties tx, 10).
"Thou Will Not Leave My Soul In
SheoI"
The Prophet David declared his faith
in a resurrection Of the dead when he
wrote, 'Thou wilt not leave My Soul
in hell (sheol, the grave, nor suffer
Thine Holy One to see corruption
psalm xvi, 10). st. Peter (Acts ii,
25-3D calls our attention to the fact
that the Prophet David did see corrup-
ton, and hence that this statement
was MT in regard to himself but Jesus
that the soul of Jesus was not left
in sheoE Greek, hddes);; and, additional
Iy, the flesh of Jesus was not allowed
to corrupt.
st. Peter was pointing out the full
filment of this prophecy of the resur
rection of Jesus from the dead on the
third day, when he made use of ouI
text, "David is not assembled into the
heavens; his sepulchre is with
us unto this day." st. Peters argu
ment is that David was in his sep
ulchre and was still dead, but that
his words were a prophetic reference
to Jesus resurrection.
Many Christian people repeat every
Sunday what, is styled the Apostles
Greed, which declares the crucifXioI
and death of Jesus and His descen
into hell-into hGdeS-and that goo
raised Him from the dead on the third
day." All intelligent Christians under
stand that the hell to which Jesus wen
was not Purgatory nor a place of eter
nal suffering, but the grave, sheol, thu
tomb, the state of death. This i:
proved to be the Apostles thought b!
the words, "God raised Him from tn,
dead, for it was not possible that HI
should be holden" of death.
David VIII Not Go to Heaven.
King David will not go to heaven
said Pastor Russell, and he will no
desire to go to heaven, for the same
reason that a fish has no desire t
bird to make its home under the water
AS these animals have natures distinc
and are adapted to the conditions which
God has provided. so the nature o
man, even when brought TO human per
lection, will enjoy and appreciate NOR
the earthly blessings which God ha
provided for him than he would enjo.
the heavenly blessings which God ha
provided for the Elect little flock"-
''the Church of the First Borns" Gle
brews xii, 23).
The reason for this is plain when W,
remember the Apostles words. H
declares, "The natural man receivetl
not the things of the Spirit of God
neither can be know appreciated them
for they are spiritually discerned" {
Corinthians H. IA. Only those VIII,
have been begotten of the Holy Spiri
are enabled to understand the deel
| things, the spiritual things of the hi
vine promise, and to rejoice therein, a
the Apostle explains q Corinthians ii
Q, 10l.
And even when thus spirit-begottel
and with their affections set on thing
above. the Lords conSecrated ''littl'
flock" experience difficulty in keepin:
their affections on the Heavenly thing
and of of the earthly things. becauS,
the latter appeal to them continually
through all of their earthly senses
They are therefore exhorted to Tool
not at the things that are seen. but a