The Democratic banner. (Mt. Vernon, Ohio) 1898-192?, 1911-05-02

some or the race, III granted the oppor-
tunity. would gladly return to Loyalty
to His laws. He has. therefore, made
provision through Jesus for every
member of the race, great and small,
rich and poor. Worldwide redemp'
tion will he provided and worldwide
opportunity for the coming TO knowl-
edge of the Truth and for being up
lifted or resurrected will be afforded.
The right or power to release mankind
from the power of death and from the
prison-house of the tomb. sheoi. hddes,
the grave. is represented by the key In
the hands Of Messiah He gained that
key. that rightfui authority to set us
free from the grave, by the redemption
which He accomplished for us at Cal
vary.
This figure Of the prlson-house was
used also by the Lord through Isaiah
the Prophet. Is 1t not written that the
Lord was anointed to preach mes
sage of good tidlngs to the meek, to
bind up the broken-hearted, to pro
claim liberty 10 the captireS of Sin and
Death and the opening Of the prison
house of death to those that are bound?
And did not Jesus apply this very
prophecy to Himself? isaiah lxl, /;
Luke iv, 1S). Surely our Lord opened
no earthly prison-doors at His first
advent. But just as surely He fore
told that He would open the prison
doors and set all the captives free. His
death, "the Just for the unjust" was
in order that He might have the right
full authority to release the prisoners =
by His death He secured the key.
Eventually this glorious work will be
consummated, and in the consumma-
tlon of IL the elect Church of this Cos
pei Age is invited to have a share.
Hence the Church il called out from
the world first under special Cove
nant Of sacrifice that she may with her
Lord, the Redeemer, become part of
the Seed of Abraham on the spirit
plane Galatians iii, 29).
Hades Cast Into Gehenna.
"And death and hell (hades) were
cast into the lake Of fire. This is the
Second Death" (Revelation Xxx, IA.
In the symbolic language of Reve-
lation, Messiah's reign is described as
a glorious opportunity for all man
kind to come back into harmony with
the Almighty and to attain everlast-
ing life through the great Mediatorial
Kingdom. The symbolic picture of
which this text is part, describes
the establishment of Messiah's King
dom, the saints of this Gospel Age be-
ing with Him in His throne, in His
Kingdom, reigning with Him-a Royal
Priesthood Revelation Xxx, 40.
The context further describes that
period. In which all mankind shall
be brought to knowledge of the
Truth, when all will ''stand before the
great White Throne" Messiah's Judg-
ment Throne, to be tried, to be tested,
to be proven whether they will ac-
cept or refuse the perfection and etcr-
nal life which Divine mercy will then
make possible for them. During that
thousand years of Messiah's reign. as
we have seen, death will be gradually
swallowed up in victory And as the
prisoners of the tomb are gradually re-
leased, the grave will be destroyed.
will be no more.
The statement, death and hndes were
cast into the lake of fire. which Is the
Second Death. Is merely another way
Of explaining to us that Adamic death,
and the grave connected Herewith,
will be superseded by the Second
Death. Any of the race who. by the
close of the Medatoria reign, will not
have come up to perfection and will
not have gotten entirely free from the
power OF sin and the tomb, will them
selves be responsible for their wrong
condition, their imperfection. The
great Mediator will have done every
thing right, proper and necessary for
all. Whoever then will come short of
eternal life will himself only be to
blame, And the trial time over, any
not fully delivered, any still held by
sfn and death, will be willingly held
and all such will he turned over to
the Second Death, destruction, symbol.
lied by fire. from which there will be
no recovery.
Let 1t be remembered that the Vat.
Icy OF IIinnom, outside of Jerusalem
the earthly, where only the vile refuse
was destroyed, will find its antitype
In the Second Death. symbolically rep.
resented as n lake of fire outside the
New Jerusalem. In II will be con.
sumed utterly, completely, everything
out OF harmony with the Divine will.
The Wicked Returned to SheoI.
In the New Testament, as we have
seen, hddes stands for the grave or
state Of death, which results from
Adams transgresslon; while GehennG
represents the Second Death. which
will come only upon those who shall
first have been delivered from the
Adamlc sentence, or shall have had
at least full opportunity for dellv-
erance and who viii manifest their
love Tor sin more than for righteous.
ness and who, therefore. win be SEN
fenced to the Second Death.