River Falls journal. [volume] (River Falls, Pierce County, Wis.) 1872-2019, 1914-03-12


Lord are in the earth. the inhabitants
of the world will learn righteousness.
isaiah 26:9D Then wilful evil doors
will be cut off in the Second Death.
without hope of further redemption.
while the Obedient will attain human
| perfection.
Beecher and Abbott Evoiutionists
Rev Lyman Abbott euIogiZed Mr.
Beecher as one of the first ministers
to accept Darwins theory of Evolu
ton. No doubt this is So A good
man, broad and generous. but misled
by the creedS. thought that be found
in Evolution something more rational
than the Bible taught He endeavored
to link the two together, as others have
endeavOred to do. only to fall for the
Bible throughout is In direct opposi
ton to the Evolution theory 1t dis
tinctly teaches the fall of man
Jesus declared that He came to re
cover that which was lost God sent
His Only Begotten Son that whose
ever beIieveth on Him should not per
ISL St Peter tells of tue Restitution
j of fallen man TO his former glorious
estate in the likeness of his Creator
If Darwins theory be correct, then
Jesus, His Apostles. and all the Proph
cts, were astray.
But what is the Evolution hope!
Briefly stated this: That some dis
lance back our forefathers were mon
keys; that we have progressed in a
measure, but are still perishing as did
our monkey forefathers. Under Oar
wins law of the Survival of the Fit
test, disease and death will gradually
weed out the more stupid and vicious
(as it is not doing, so far as any one
can see) that in the far-off future our
| children may attain such perfection as
| to know how to live forever and right
| ly enjoy the blessings of earthly life.
| Perhaps the Evolution hope is bet
| ter than none. Surely it is better than
the eternal torment hope of the Dark
Ages. but it must be far from soul-sat-
tsfying to all who think deeply But
the Bible hope proposes that Messiah's
Kingdom shall take in the entire race
of Adam, and by disciplinary instruc-
tons and encOuragements shall help
all the willing and Obedient to human
perfection This hope for the world
is beyond the special hope which is the
exclusive portion of the fully cOnSe
Grated disciples of Jesus.
| DR. Abbott sympathized with us In
advance, saying. There are still some
| belated preachers who endeavor to per
suade their congregations that Evolu
ton is perilOus to the soul, and who
| found their religious teaching on the
old doctrines of a finished creation, an
absentee God, and pestilence-stricken
| world"
We confess that we belong to this
class There can be no doubt that we
are living in pestilence-stricken
world, and that conditions here are
not such as a gracious and loving Be
| ing would provide for His intelligent
creatures. Rather, as st. Paul de,
clares, the world is under reign of
Sin and Death, which has prevailed
since the time Father Adam was cut
off from fellowship with His Heavenly
Father, under the sentence of DEATH
Romans 5:1221.
The condition of the pestilence-s trick
en- world is permitted in order to carry
out the penalty upon our convict race
The Bible declares that God is allow
ing mankind to learn great lesson
of their own incompetence and help
lessness, which will be valuable to all
eternity to both men and angels; that
present trials and difficulties and death
| will no InI for MANS cnn6 For
six thousand years men have been
learning the bitter results of disobedi
ence to the laws of righteousness, and
their need of help Divine. Only a few
yet know that God is Love-"
But such as see the true light of
Gods Word as to the fall, the Redemp-
ton price, the call Of the Church to be
joint heirs in Messiah's Kingdom, and
the eventual Reign Of Righteousness,
have a great joy and blessing. As for
others, we begrudge them not whatev
er JOY or peace they can get out of any
theory that will liberate from the hOr-
rible nightmare of the Dark Ages.
Was Your Grandfather an Ape7
Continuing his eulogy of Mr.. Beech
er, DR. Abbott said: But no one any
longer asks sarcasticaly. so you think
your grandfather was an apeY And
few are they who still venture to de-
nounce as atheists those who believe
in life as a process of Divine growth,
and redemption as process of spirit
ual development" We fear DR.. Abb
bott is right-that the learned in pulpit
and pew have SO thoroughly lost their
faith in the God of the Bible that they
no longer reproach one another with
the fact.
But is the fact any the less true for
this reason? Suppose all the great
minds accept the Evolution theory
that Adam was the son of an ape
and oppose the Bible teaching that be
was special and direct creation OF
God, the moral image of his Creator
Suppose all those decide that man