The Mankato free press. [volume] (Mankato, Blue Earth County, Minn.) 1879-1924, 1912-08-23

Caivinistic, ana strictly unscriptural
has been the cause of unreliable diff.
culties in the theology of Christendom
from Calvin's day until now.
The Key to the Problem.
The key which solves the problem is
so simple that we wonder that we have
all SO long overlooked it. The key il
found in the promise made to Abra ha n
that his Seed was to be the Elect
Jesus the Head and the Church His
Memberships the Bridegroom typi
fed by Isaac, and the Church His
Bride. typified by Rebecca. Isaac's
wife. And this Seed of Abraham when
completed, according to Divine prom
Use, is to be the channel for blessing
all the families of the earth-the living
and the dead. The blessing that Is to
come to all is clearly stipulated by st.
all men to he saved from the condem-
nation that came on them through
ADAM and to come unto the knowledge
Of the Truth Timothy ii. SO.
The basis of the Apostles argument
is set forth in Romans V, II. He there
shows that Adam. and not his race,
was put on trial in Eden-that Adam
and not his race was directly condemn.
ed-but that Adams race were invOlv-
ed through heredity. by inheriting the
weaknesses and dying conditions of
their parent. st. Paul then shows forth
in the same argument that as condem-
nation and death thus passed from
Adam to all Of his race, so Christ Jesus.
having become Adams Redeemer, Di-
vine mercy through Him extends be-
yond Adam to all the members of his
race who were involved with him in
the death sentence by laws of heredity.
The argument is plain. To see it is to
be convinced, because it is so logical.
And it could not be supposable for a
moment that God would provide the
ransom price for all mankind and fail
to make it operative. because the great
mass Of mankind went down to death
without a knowledge Of it-many of
them during the four thousand years
before Christ came into the world to
give His life Ransom.
The explanation is that all went
down into the Bite hell-down to the
tomb, the death state. in harmony with
the sentence. dying thou shalt die"
Provision is made for the redemption
of all from sheol. (Hosea xiii. l4)
Christ died for all and, as a result,
there is to be a resurrection of the
dead, both the just and the unjust.
(Acts xiv, 49, The just are the justi-
fed. and are the comparatively few who
have heard of Gods grace and have re-
sponded and come into fellowship with
the Father and being approved Of Him
are to have share in the better or First
Resurrection. The remainder of the
world, equally redeemed with the pre-
cious blood from the power Of the
tomb, are all to come forth unto res
direction of the dead, For as all In
Adam die, even so all in Christ shall
be made alive. each in his own order"
II COrlntnlanS XIV, ~.
The church's Sin-ths Worlds Sin.
How clearly our text defines the fact
that the Church is separate and dis
tnct class from the world-a class call
ed out from the world. As Jesus said.
"Ye are not of the world, even as / am
not of the world for have chosen
WI Of hn NIL 0n1t
ton Of the Church Is to association
with the Redeemer in His great work
of witnessing now for the Truth, show
ing faithfulness even unto death and
sacrificing all the earthly interests. to
the intent that they with the Redeem
er may later on be associated in the
work of blessing the world as the anti
typical. the spiritual, Seed Of the Abra-
hamic promise. Galatians iii, 29.) All
along we read in our Bibles that "Je-
sus Christ, by the grace Of God, tasted
death for every man." Hebrews ii, 81
But other texts misunderstood, be-
clouded our judgment and led us to
think that this text meant every man
III SullSt. we all huOW tudl the
declares that God so loved the world
that He gave His only-begotten Son,
that whosoever believeth on Him
might not perish but have eternal life."
John Iii. 16) We found it difficult to
limit this text to the Church when it
specifically declares the world. We see
now that it applies to the Church first
and to the remainder of the world aft
erward.
Those who in the present life, dur
ing this Gospel Age. hear of Christ
and have their eyes and understanding
open to recognize Him as the Son Of
God and the Savior of men-these
shall not perish in the Second Death.
but pass Immediately by faith to
reckoned everlasting life, which will
be completely theirs when they shall
have experienced the glorious change"
of the First Resurrection We are
glad now to see that the Divine pur-
pose still holds on with respect to the
world that was lost and redeemed.