The Mount Holly news. [volume] (Mount Holly, Burlington Co., N.J.) 1891-1942, 1912-05-07
membersY This is the Same argu-

the London Missionary Society" truly
says, but means and Is understood to
mean into Christless eternal tortured
Now. how different! Now we see
that faithful, elect Church is being
selected during this Age; that in the
next Age they with Jesus may assist,
bless, uplift all the non-elect to an
earthly salvation to human perfection,
In the new Paradise-Earth,- which
Messiah's Kingdom will usher in.
Thus, only the toilfMIly picked will
ever be annihilated
But our old errors die hard; because
we have twisted the Bible to fit them
For instance, let us consider st. Pc
ters Words
Christ also hath once suffered for
sins, the Just for the unjust, that He
death in the flesh. but quickened in
the spirit, by which 1.-TWO experiences
death and resurrection He preach
ed unto the spirits in PRISON. Pc
ter Iii, Is, 10.
This text, said Pastor Russell, has
been made the basis for some peculiar
presentations. From 1t some have de-
duced an intermediate state lasting
between death and the resurrection.
Others have claimed 1t as an authority
tor the doctrine of Purgatory The
difficulty in every case seems to be
the failure to remember that the Bible
always and everywhere teaches that
the dead are really dead, that they
know nothing, and that, therefore, it
would be impossible to do any preach
ing to the dead humans. Undoubted-
ly the theory that people are more
alive after they die than when they
were alive Is responsible for nearly all
Of the foolish things which we have
all at some time protested to believe.
Before Diminishing the thought that
these spirits In prison are human
spirits, let us note the fact that to
say, human spirits" is an absurdity
Of itself, because human beings are
not spirits and spirit beings are not
humans. "Who maketh His angels
Spirits is the Scriptural proposition.
True, we do sometimes speak of hu-
mans as possessing a spirit of life, but
by this we merely mean that he pos
sesses the power or energy Of life, and
the same would be equally true of the
lower orders of creation, beasts, fish,
fowl, etc
Again, we sometimes speak Of the
Church as spirit beings-begotten of
the Holy Spirit. Thus the Apostle
speaks Of the natural man in contrast
with the New Creature, a spirit being.
To appreciate this statement we must
remember that the Church class re-
cedves the begetting of the Holy Spirit
to the end that. if faithful, they may
attain unto a spirit resurrection and
become spirit beings, like unto the an
gels and like to the Redeemer. But we
are not spirits yet, except by faith-by
hope. However, the context shows
that the Apostle had no reference to
the Church, either. we were not in
prison; we received the Message of sal
walton through the Apostles.
Spirits Once Disobedient.
The spirits to whom the message
was given had proven themselves dis
obedient, says st. Peter. He even
tells us the time of their disobedience,
namely, that 1t was sin the days Of
Noah, while the ark was preparing"
Surely, If noticing these particulars
mentioned in the context, no one would
be excusable for misunderstanding this
| in
way applicable to humanity of our day
or to humanity In general. However,
it is helpful to us to learn the full par
ticulars of the matter. What was their
disobedience, and when and how were
they imprisoned?
Turning to Genesis vi, Is, we find
there the cause of the disobedience of
those angels. who for a time had been
permitted to see what they could do
for the uplift Of humanity, or, rather
permitted to demonstrate that the
downward tendency of sin is incurablt
except in the manner which God has
already arranged for through Messiah
and His glorious reign Of Thousand
years
Instead of those angels helping man
kind out of sin they helped themselve;
into sin, and by so doing they increased
the depravity amongst humanity unit
the astounding record is that 1.-THE wick
edness of man was great in the earth
and that every imagination of the
thought of his heart was only evil con
tinually." The particular sin of those
angels was that when they were grant
ed the privileges of Undertaking. Of
taking human bodies for the sake OF
helping and instructing mankind-they
misused this power and took to them
selves the daughters of men for wives
Thus these angels came gradually tC
prefer to live as men amongst men and
to rear earthly families rather than tC
abide in the condition in which they
were created--spirit beings, higher
than humans. Not only was this
wrong In the sense that 1t was taking
a course in opposition to the Divine
arrangement, but it was wrong also
because the thing was done for the cul'
tivation and qualification of lust, and
1t led to their own moral defilement as
well as having a baneful influence
upon humanity: for we can readily see
that for the angels, OF superior powers
and intelligence, to become leaders In
lustful practices would mean a great
influence upon mankind toward sin.
We are particularly told that the OF.
spring of this improper union between
the angels and the daughters Of men
were giants, both physically and men.
tally superior to the fallen human fam
ily-"men Of renown." And this state
ment that they were men OF re.
nown," was at time when manhood
estate was reached at hundred years,
and implies that God did not interfere
to hinder or stop the progress OF sin
for perhaps several centuries. In the
meantime the race had become so cor.
rupt that apparently only Noah and
his family were uucontaminated all
others had more or less come under
the influence, directly or indirectly. OF
I these fallen angels or their giant sons,
| Hence, of Noah II was written not
that he was perfect man. butt, "Now
Noah was perfect In his generation
(uncontaminated) and his family appar.
emily the same. Hence these alone
were saved in the ark, while NIL the re
mainder more or less contaminated,
were destroyed by the rood.
an Chains Of Darkness"
1t was then and there that God i'm
prisoned those spirits. angels, who kept