The Fairmont West Virginian. (Fairmont, W. Va.) 1904-1914, 1913-03-29

NS-sS- Z nc u a ~ . lhV
speaker pointed
out TINT his text meant nothing less
than 1t said; namely. that the resurrec-
ton Of Jesus was the very first reSur-
rection-tlat no one had previously
been raised from the dead. He led bis
hearers back 10 Eden md let them hear
the Divine words respecting the pen
atty for sln-"Dying, thou shalt die"
He gave them the further formula Of
Jehovab's curse, or sentence, In the
words addressed to Adam after he had
been cast out Of Eden: "In the sweat
of thy face shalt thou eat bread, till
thou return unto the ground; for out Of
1t thou vast taken; for dust thou art;
and unto dust shalt thou return
Genesis 3:17-19.
The Pastor showed that this dying
process operated In Father Adam for
nine hundred and thirty years before
its action was completed; that Adams
children, the human family, never
were in the same perfection as Adam
lin the image Of God-that they were
born on lower plane, and were fallen
at the time OF birth. He quoted from
the Psalms: behold, was sbapen 10
intquity, and In sin did my mother con.
ceive me-" psalm 51:5) This, no
said. agreed exactly with the New
Testament statement Death passed
upon all men because all are sinners;
aud again. There Is none righteous
[perfectl, no, not one"-all come short
of the glory of God."-Romans 5:19;
S:12. 90.
Next, the Pastor pointed out the
meaning of the word resurrection.
which III the Greek is GnGStdstS. 1t
means, he said, not merely an awaken
ing from the sleep Of death, but a
raising up again. The word again sig
nlfies n raising to former standard
the one from which they fell-the i'm.
age and likeness of God, which none
of Adams children have fully possess
ed, because be lost It While Jesus
was Of Adamic stock, through His
mother, His life and perfection came
to Him from His prehuman state; and
hence He was perfect, Son OF God,
"holy, harmless, undeiled. separate
from sinners"
"Not Possible For Him to Be Holden"
st. Peter declares that 1t was not
possible for Jesus to be holden Of death.
(Acts 224.l No cause Of death was
found In Him. He delighted to do
the Heavenly Fathers will. 1t was
the Fathers will that Jesus should
demonstrate His loyalty and obedience
unto death, "even the death OF the
cross" But this did not interfere with
the original promise Of life everlasting
to the Obedient. Hence 1t was not
possible for Jesus to remain under the
power Of death, as It is not possible
for God to change His great purpose
or to Violate His agreement. Hence
the Apostle says that God raised Jesus
from the dead on the third day.
Jesus was perfect on the spirit plane
before He humbled Himself to eX'
change the spirit nature for the hu'
man. to become mans Releemer. he
never forfeited His right to life. lie
merely laid 1t down in loyalty to the
Fathers will. Since He was unfallenr
His resurrection would mean His re-
suscItatlOn in perfection. But it was
not Gods will that He should come
back to perfection in human nature
He had already used that nature for
the purpose intended. he was brought
fully back from the power of death to
the very highest plane Of spirit being;
namely, the Divine nature.
Contrast this resurrection, or bring
ing back to perfection from death
with tue experiences that occurred In
any awakenlngs of the SIeepers preced'
ing. Jairus' daughter was member
OF the fallen race. imperfect; and the
awakening Of her and bringing her
back to what she was before did not
rcsurrect or bring her again to the con
ditlon Of perfection in which Eve was
before sin had detepiorated the race
Consider from the same standpoint,
the widow Of Mains son and his 9wak'
enlng, the awakening Of Lazarus. the
brother Of Martha and Mary, and the
awakening Of the dead mentioned In
the Old Testament.
TO have rcSmrected any OF these
sleeping ones would have meant much
more than was accomplished in them
1t would have meant to bring them un
to full perfection in the image OF God
as it WINS possessed by Father Adam
AS It was. the awakened ones merely
had few more years In the present
. .,a"Iifa