Western Kansas world. [volume] (WaKeeney, Kan.) 1885-current, 1912-06-15


In the flesh. but
quickened IN the spirit, by which two
experiences-death and reSurrectionD
He preached unto the spirits in prison
q Peter iii. IS. 19l.
This text has been made the basis for
some very peculiar presentations The
difficulty in every case seems to be the
failure to remember that the Bible al
ways and everywhere teaches that the
dead are really dead. that they know
nothing. and that, therefore. it would
be impossible to preach to the dead.
Spirits Once Disobedient.
The spirits to whom the message was
given had proven themselves disobe
dent. says St Peter He even tells US
The time of their disobedience-'.in the
days of Noah. while the ark was pre-
pairing"
Turning TO Genesis vi. Is. we find
there the cause of the disobedience of
these angels who for a time had been
permitted to see what they could do for
the uplift of humanity, or. rather, per
mitted to demonstrate that the down
ward tendency of sin is incurable ex
cept in the manner which God has al
ready arranged for through Messiah
and His glorious reign of 1000 years.
Instead of those angels helping man
kind out of sin. they helped themselves
into sin; and by so doing they increased
the depravity amongst humanity until
the astounding record is that 1.-The
wickednesS of man was great in the
earth. and that every imagination of
the thought of his heart was only evil
continually" The particular sin of
those angels was that when they were
granted the privileges of Undertaking.
of taking human bodies-for the sake
of helping and instructing mankind
they n:isused this power and took to
themselves wives.
We are particularly told that the off
spring of this improper union were
giants. both physically and mentally
superior to the fallen human family
"men of renown." The race thus in
sew ral centuries became so corrupt
that apparently only Noah and his
family were left uncontaminated.
1t was then and there that God i'm
prisoned these spirits t''angels. who
kept not their first estate'0. and are
therefore called fallen angels. devils.
demons. They were not imprisoned in
some far-off world called hell. nor are
they engaged there in stocking fires
The record is that God cast them
down. that they might not longer asso-
ciate with the holy angels. but must be
reserved in tdrfdruS-our earths atmos-
phere.-Jude 6; IL Peter ii. 4. 3.
When imprisoned or cut off from the
privilege of naturalization, many of
the fallen spirits continued their active
opposition to God. after the manner of
Satan. Hence they are spoken of as
his angels, his messengers. and he is
| spoken of as Beelzebub. their Prince.
How Jesus Preached In Death.
Here arises another question:: If
| Jesus was really dead. as the Scrip
lures declare; if He poured out His
soul unto death" and made His soul
an offering for sim and His soul was
not raised from the dead until the third
| day after His crucifixion. how could
He in the meantime preach to spirits
in prison. or to anybody else? We re-
ply that He could preach in the same
way that the Apostle refers to- saying
Abel. being dead. yet speaketh" Gle
brews XII. ~; and again, in the same
way that the blood of Abel is said to
have cried to God-fguratively. OF one
thing we are sure. namely. that Jesus
gave no oral address while He was
dead He preached in the way we
sometimes refer to when we say, "Ac-
tons speak louder than words
1t was the great object lesson which
the fallen angels saw that constituted
to them the great sermon that gave
them a ground for hope They admir-
ed Jesus loyalty and faithfulness to
God. but doubtless believed Him to be
foolish; they never expected Him to
arise from the dead
But when they perceived His resur-
rection on the third day TO glory. hon.
or and Immortality c.far above angels.
principalities and powers'-s. His ser
mon to them was complete. namely.
that the wages of sin is DEATH" but
~the gift of God is eternal life
tRomans vi 23-p And as they realized
thus the Power of God and the Love
of God for His human creatures. the
Apostles words imply that this con-
sdtuted to them message of hope
Doubtless there is much significance
also in St Paurs remarks. Know We
not that the saints shall judge an
gels?" Il Corinthians vi. 81 We do
know thar the holy angels need no
judging. no trial: hence the Apostle
must refer to trial. or Judgment or
testing of these spirits in prison who
were disobedient. in the days of Noah.