Daily capital journal. (Salem, Oregon) 1903-1919, 1912-11-02
Pastor RusselI's Sermon

Its equivalent in the New Testament
Greek-Hades.
True, there Is a reference to the
Second Death, where we read Of those
who shall be brought to a knowledge
Of God during Messiah's Kingdom and
who then shall deliberately and in.
te%lllgently refuse the way of righteous
ness. We read: THE wicked shall
be returned to Sheol, and all the ma
tlons that forget God" psalm tx, ~
These are not the ignorant and weak,
but the intelligently wicked. They
are not those who have never known
God, but those who, after knowing
Him, forget Him and willfully choose
the way Of sin. For such God has no
blessing of life everlasting. They
shall be destroyed from amongst the
peoplc."-Acts iii, %.
In the New Testament, the word
Gehenna represents the Second Death
the utter destruction Of the class
consigned to it. AS every scholar
knows, Gehenna is the Greek form of
the Hebrew word Geh-hinnon. 1t was
the name OF a valley outside the wall
Of Jerusalem, long used as a garbage
furnace for the destruction Of the
offal. But 1t was never recognized by
God as a place for torture or suffer
ings, or for any living creature.
Although the capital punishment of
the Divine Law is death, humiliation,
God has subordinate punishments, all
Of which are for reformation, or we
might properly say, all Of which are
designed to be %purgatOrial, purifying.
Amongst the Scriptures referring to
these we might include st. Peters
words, "Think 1t not strange concern
ing the fiery trial which shall try
you'-purify you and test your char.
acter, to demonstrate your falthfulness
as the people Of God and your WORTH
ness Of association with Messiah in
His glorious Kingdom to be set up at
His Second Advent.-I Peter ", -.
st. Paul, writing along the same lines,
calls these eight Affections, which are
but for a moment" and designed to
work out for us a far more exceed
ing and eternal weight Of glory"
III Corinthians ", ~ They thus work
out blessings for the Church by puri-
flying them as New Creatures, ellminat-
ing the dross from the gold.
In Malachi's prophecy 1t is foretold
that Jesus would institute pu%rgatorial
experiences amongst the consecrated
people of God, the a~ntitypical Levites.
He does this to purify them Of dross
and to enable those who have Of
fered their lives to God SCIENTIFICALLY,
to be acceptable as His members. We
read; "He shall sit as n ReGner and
Purifier Of silver, to purify the sons
Of Levi, that they may offer unto the
Lord an acceptable sacrifice"
Jesus has thus been sitting as the
Rehner and Purifier Of His Church
for more than eighteen centuries. The
fires of persecution, tribulatlon, which
He has permitted to come upon them
are all OBSERVATION-DISCLOSURES to purify,
to purge, to make them white. His
people have the assurance that He
will not suffer them to be tempted
above that they are able, but will
with every temptation provide a way
of escape.
1.-THE Whole World Lieth In tho Wick.
ed One"
All are children of WRATH and still
under Divine sentence of condemna-
ton, except the Church of the First
borns-the antityplcal Leyites, Spirit.
begotten, We who have thus been
called out from the world have the
settlement Of our prospects for life
everlasting or the Second Death in
this Age, before the blessing Of the
Lord comes to mankind in general.
The Church's trial and purgatorial ex-
periences must all take place during
this Age, before the New Age opens,
which in the Divine arrangement is
provided for the worlds Judgment
GOD has appointed a Day 1.-THE Day
OF Christ, a thousand yearsl in the
which He will Judge the world in
righteousness tgiye to each a fair, full,
righteous opportunity for %reconcilla-
ton by that Man whom He hath or.
dained THE Christ, of which Jesus Is
the Head and His faithful followers
the members l'-Acts xvii, 81.
The Worlds Puraatory Future.
The Church Of Christ constitute the
Elect, the spiritual Seed of Abraham,
through which all the families Of the
earth, the non-elect, are to be blessed
according to Gods promise. The
foundation for the worlds blessing
was laid in the same sacrifice Of Jesus
by which the Church's reconciliation
was made possible, Nevertheless, the
prospects for the Church and the
world are quite different The Church,
through following her Redeemer vol.
UNFAIRLY and specifically, in suffering
for righteousness sake, is to be crown,
ed with glory, honor and immortality
beyond the veil, with the spirit ma.
ture.
by this, the glorious resurrection
change, the Church will be prepared
for association with her Lord in His
great work OF blessing Adam and his
race-regenerating them. A thousand
years have been set apart for the
work by the great Life-Giver. The
life to be given to the willing and
obedient Of mankind will be earthly
life, human life, human perfection, in
Paradise restored, worldwide.
A. ,,,yv,t,rt,l ,v,,vt,,,,,s % ,,,is,