The Mankato free press. [volume] (Mankato, Blue Earth County, Minn.) 1879-1924, 1912-08-16


dressing you publicly, on the invitation
of your local class of the international
Bible Students Association. Indeed, if
l am rightly informed, Bible students
have not been very numerous in your
gay capital. Splendors and pleasures
you have undoubtedly had or sought
to have, but the great pleasure, the
great JOY and inspiration which come
from an intimate knowledge of the Di-
vine Word. the masses of your people
evidently have never fully experienced.
The present Pope, l understand, is
not so highly appreciated amongst you
as were some Of his predecessors, but
let me speak one good word for him,
namely. that more than any Of his pred
ecessors he has sought to uphold the
Bible, and in America at least he has
urged upon the people Bible study.
am sure that he is right in this and
that the greater knowledge we have of
the true teachings of the Bible the
greater will be our blessing and joy.
both individually and nationally.
l have chosen for my topic on this
occasion what 1 believe is an impor-
tant, yea, a vital question Of deep in
terest to all humanity: what is MANI
This great question the Bible alone an
swers distinctly and satisfactorily. as
l hope l shall be able to demonstrate.
The answer of Science to our query is
at least in one respect right and in full
accord with the Bible. Science tells us
that man is an animal of the highest
order-genus homo. The Bible agrees
with this and declares man distinctly
different from the lower animals, and
also distinctly separate from angels
and spirit beings. He is terrestrial. "of
the earth earthy"-he is not spiritual.
not celestial or heavenly. The earth.
not heaven. was made for his home.
The Bible does tell of mans fall from
Divine favOran Of his Divine condem-
nation. but his fall was not from a
heavenly condition to an earthly con-
dition, but from an earthly condition
of perfection to a dying condition Of
imperfection. The Bible teaches that
If man had not sinned his life would
have been everlasting, in earthly per-
lection. and that his home would have
been an earthly Paradise in which he
would have enjoyed the blessing and
fellowship of his Maker.
The death sentence did not alter or
change his nature, but merely forfeited
his life and all of his blessings and
rights which were dependent upon his
life. The penalty was not. ITO eternal
torment shalt thou go. to suffer eternal
ly at the hands Of demons" but. by
ing. thou shalt de- ''Thorns and this
ties shall the earth bring forth unto
thee;" "In the sweat of thy face shalt
thou eat bread until thou return unto
the ground; for out of it vast thou
taken, for dust thou art, and unto dust
shalt thou return" And of the faith
full execution of this Divine penalty
against the sinner we are all witnesses.
And Yet How Grand Is Man!
As / stood by the ruins of ancient
Memphis, where Joseph rose from be-
ing a slave to being the Governor, next
to King Pharaoh, was impressed with
some of the mighty monuments which
persist despite the ravaging hand Of
time. | said to myself, What is man?
What a king of earth he is, and has
been, Notwithstanding his deteriora-
ton through sin and the fall! AS l
noted the sculptures of thirty-five hun
dred years ago 1 said, Truly the Bible
is right when it declares that. God