The Republican journal., 1915-03-11


which we are considering in Luke, CIV
ing the same idea but adding one more
prediction, not recorded in Luke, viz,
"And this gospel of the Kingdom shall
be preached in all the world for witness
unto all nations and then shall the end
come"
To me this last text is positive proof
that we are correct, especially when we
consider the great missionary movements
for the past fifty years. Few people are
aware of the extent of the missionary
work done all over the world. We can
say, on good authority. that the gospel
of Christ has already been literally
preached to every nation in this whole
wide world
And then what did Christ answer?
"And then shall the end come"
Some might ask, the end of what? the
end of the Jewish age, suppose.
Some will say, "Ah! no, not at all, for
we have no records of any such mission
airy work as the present since the world
began"
Turn back to the disciples question;
that will settle it: '"Tell us when shall
these things be, and what shall be the
sign of Thy coming and the end of the
world"
When Christ used the phrase "Ihe
end of the world" as he did several
times, He did not mean the end of our
physical globe, but the end of the Cen
tile Age, or the Gospel Age, the age in
which the gospel was to be preached to
all nations.
know many claim that this was full
filled in Paul's day, Rom, 1918, but at a
glance one can see that it is not so, for
Paul's preaching had nothing to do with
the preaching before the end; not even
the end of the Jewish dspensation, for
that had closed before Paul entered up
on the ministry.
We all should be very careful how we
apply the Scripture, for misapplica ton
will bring defeat every time. We have
a striking example with US now. For
some years recently the pulpit and press
have believed and taught that we had
entered upon Golden Age; that wars
had ceased, and that everybody was be-
coming Christians. And this idea has
been put forth so strongly and talked of
so much that nearly everyone believed it,
altho ughlit was diametrically opposed to
the teachings of the Bible.
Now that this present great calamity
has come on the world these false teach
ers are COMPOUNDED, and many people are
turning back, saying that there is moth
ing in Christianity, which is all caused
by not believing what is written in the
Bible, or by misapplying its words.
While our lesson teaches that wars
will continue to be until the end of time
and that the gospel will be preached as
witness to all nations, the people have
been taught the contrary; that there
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pei was converting everybody. People
persist in interpreting the Scriptures to
please their own ideas, trying to construe
them as they would like them to be rather
than as they are. But the Bible teaches
that there is time coming when this
earth will be inhabited by the people of
God, when there will be no wars, when
every man will be at pence with his
neighbor, and sin shall be no more.
People looked around them, thought
things were looking pretty well, and con-
cluded that the world was at present
gradually entering into this most desir-
able state. Consequently wherever they
found the word peace mentioned in the
Bible they applied it to the support of
their own theory. Which theory. to
most people, seemed very good when no
trouble was in sight, but it must seem
to them now as sounding brass, or a
tinkling symbol. H.