The San Juan islander. [volume] (Friday Harbor, Wash.) 1898-1914, 1912-08-30
/" What is Man? :


PARIS, Aug. 12.-One of Pastor
Russell's addresses yesterday was
from Psalm viii, A, 'What Is Man?'
He remarked that although he had
been several times in Paris this was
his first public address thereon
invitation of the local class of Bible
Students association. He had heard
that Bible students were scarce in
France, but already he had found
some very alert for clearer light up
on the word Of God now due because
we are in the dawning of the New
Dispensation.
Once he and other Bible students,
confused with the errors of the Dark
ages, thought of man as a spirit in
habiting a body of flesh. coming in
to it at death, Bible study is rap
idly driving away that error. The
Bible clearly tells that the genus
homo is an animal being, of the
earth earthly-not a heavenly or
spirit being. This is in harmony
with what science has been telling
us-that which we could not receive
until we found it to be the message
of Gcd. The Bible does not place
man upon an equality with the
brute, but far above. His superb
ority is that Of form and specie.
His larger brain and its better shape
than that of the brutes indicates his
knowledge and intellectual superb
ority over them. He is to them
Gods representative their king,
created in the moral image and like
ness of his Creator.
The fact that man dies has led
some to the conclusion that he is a
spirit being and at death merely
finds release from his body of flesh
and scars back again to spirit con-
dition in which he once was. How
inconsistent! How illogical! The
Bible tells on the contrary, that God
made man as He desired to have
him adapted exactly to the condi-
lions provided for him an earthly
Eden, Paradise. The Bible tells
that God proposed to him everlast-
ing life as a man on condition of
continued obedience. 1t explains
| that dying is not going home, nor
going to eternal torment. but SIM
| ply ceasing to be.
| This penalty passed upon Father
Adam he lost the right to live and
fell under the sentence. "Dying
thou shalt de- "In the sweat of
thy face shalt thou eat bread until
thou return unto the ground from
which thou was taken" Genesis
iii, 49, The fallen, death-sentenced
Adam could not give to his children
rights which he had lost. Hence
we are all sinners by inheritance.
We are all dying. By one mans
disobedience sin entered into the
world, and death as result of sin,
and thus death passed upon all men,
because all are sinners. (Romans
Nv, 12.)
| The multiplication of the race un-
der these conditions meant a reign
of riot-twin monrachs. under
whose reign the whole creation has
groaned and Travelled in pain.
| Undoubtedly God would have
made short work Of the race. blot
ting us out Of existence had it not
been for the glorious purpose in
tended in our text, namely, that
God was mindful Of His creatures
fallen in sin. In the very beginning
He intimated to them that although
He had justly condemned them He
did not hate them. 1t was their
disobedience that was being punish
ed. They were to learn lesson
from those experiences in sin.
But since that lesson could not
profit them without some provision
for a future life, the Creator hint
ed futuTe--a recovery from sin
and death by resurrection.
The scriptures speak of the past
and present. as night time of sor-
row and pain and trouble. but tell
Of the New Dispensation. when the
Course shall be removed. and style
that Glorious day, in which the
son of Rig hteousness shall shine
forth and drive sins CLOUDS away.
God through the prophet declares,
Weeping may endure for the night,
but joy cometh in the morning. "
The signs that we are in the morn
ing, the gray light of the New day,
are already manifest to those who
are awake. The wonderful bless
ings that have come to mankind dur
ing the last century and particularly
during the last fifty years. are fore
CLEANS Of the great day Of Messiah,