The Mount Holly news. [volume] (Mount Holly, Burlington Co., N.J.) 1891-1942, 1912-07-30

tell us that our friends do not go to |
Heaven Immediately when they die?
That is exactly what we are endeav-
oring to demonstrate to be the teach
ing of the Bible The Bible alone, of
all religious books, teaches that dead
man is dead, and knows nothing, and
that his only hope is in the Divine ar
rangement through Christ, by resur
rection Of the dead-"both Of the Just
and of the unjust"-Acts xiv, 10.
When we remember that. according
to nearly all the religious creeds and
theories Of the world, 800 out Of every
thousand pass Immediately at death
into most horrible sufferings, one would
think that all would be glad to prompt
ly accept the Bible testimony, that
death is q dreamless sleep until the
resurrection awakening. Why anyone
should prefer to think of his friends
and neighbors and the heather millions
as suffering torture, rather than to
think Of them as being asleep, Is be-
yond our comprehension. The fact
probably Is that selfishnsss has such
hold upon the masses that they care
and think little respecting others than
their near relatives and friends; and
the same selfishness inclines them,
with infatuation, to believe that they
and their relatives. though no better
than the rest of mankind, are special
favorites Of Heaven, and will be grant
ed the reward of the saints, however
insanity their lives may have been
Some one has suggested that the ideal
prayer for such is:
God bless me and my wife,
My son John and his wife;
Us four, and no more"
In harmony with this we find that
when death invades a family circle
this selfish egousm assumes that the
deceased is acceptable to God as a
saint. and waited Immediately to heav-
emily bliss-regardless of how insanity
had been the life and how little Of the
The deception Is reinforced by the
Christian minister called to conduct
the funeral service Whatever he may
read from the Bible to the effect that,
IL there be no resurrection, they that
have fallen asleep have persisted, his
sermon is sure to give the inference
that the deceased needs no resurrec
ton, because he has not died, but has
merely been transferred from lower
plane Of life to higher one
Proof Of this is not given and not
asked. The proof Is not given because
there is no Scriptural proof to give
It Is not asked because the people are
not sufficiently intelligent on religious
subjects to demand Il reason and a proof
for what is presented to them. The
remedy for all this will come when we
become more intelligent, more reason
ing. No minister Of Christ should be
abashed to be asked the reason for his
faith. St. Peter exhorted that every
Christian should be so thoroughly in
formed respecting the Divine Message
as to be able to give a reason to who
ever would ask concerning his own
faith and his presentations TO others.
Here note our text. In it the Master
says not word about our going to
Him, but quite the contrary that He
would come again and receive US unto
Himself. This Is in full accord with
the teachings Of the Apostles. Do they
| not tell that at the second coming OF
! Christ the resurrection of the Church
| will be the first item In order: that
then that which was sown in weakness
will be raised in power: that sown in
dishonor will be raised in glory; that
sown an animal body will be raised
spirit body: and that so we shall ever
be with the Lord? Do they not tell US
that this Will be an instantaneous
change? Is it not styled an awaken
| ing from the sleep Of death2
| Hearken to St. Paul: Behold, | show
you a mystery; we shall not all Sleep
but we shall all be changed, in a mo-
ment, In the twinkling Of an eye, at
the last trump Seventh trumpet; for
the trumpet shall sound" "and the
dead In Christ shall rise first; then we
which are alive and remain shall be
caught away together to a meeting Of
the Lord In the air." q Corinthians
Nv, 81, %; Thessalonians iv, 10, 17.)
How plain, how simplel That win be
the first meeting of the Church with
her Lord. All Of her members dying
before that time win sleep" while
those dying since that time will not
need to sleep and wait for the glorious
change But, says one, does not the
second coming Of Christ take place
whenever His holy ones diet Does He
not Immediately come to receive them
unto HIMSELF
Surely only a very lame theory could
seek to bolster itself up by such per
version of the Scriptures. If Christ
were to come every time one Of His
sanity ones die, would 1t not mean
many copsiH0s instead Of merely eco
ond comiS9f And even If His faithful
were very few indeed, would 1t not
seem that this would keep the Redeem
or busy coming and departing every
few minutes?
Only Grass ignorance Of the Bible
could excuse any such misapplicatton
of its teachings. Not merely one state
ment of the Scriptures bears upon this
subject, but hundreds Of statements Of
Scripture, by Jesus and the Apostles;
and all contradict any such thought.
"No Man Hath Assembled to Heaven"
Hearken to Jesus words, mo man
hath assembled up to Heaven" Only
the Son of Man has ever been In heav-
en-. He has assembled up where He was
before, with additional glory and hon
or. He is now preparing place for
His Bride class and preparing the
Bride class for the place-the place Of
honor at His own right hand. He Is
overseeing her experiences and causing
all things to work together for her
good, that she at His Second Coming
may be prepared and be accepted as
His Bride and granted share In His
glory, honor and Immortality.
1t is In full harmony with this that
clared that all the dead are in the
grave, and that at His second advent
he VIII first call forth His faithful
ones to the perfection of life; and later
will call forth the remainder Of man
kind, not as yet found worthy OF life,
that they may have an opportunity, a
testing as respects their worthiRess or
unworthiness of everlasting life on the
human plane.
Hear His assurance again respecting
His faithful ones-that they shall share
In His resurrection. the Chief Resurrec-
ton, to glory, honor, Immortality, on
the spirit plane. He said, blessed and
holy are all they that have part in the
First Resurrection; they shall be
priests unto God and Christ, and shall
reign with Him q Thousand years