The Knoxville independent. [volume] (Knoxville, Tenn.) 1894-current, 1918-03-30

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- dom has been In
dulging itself with the notion that the
law Of retribution has been held In
allegiance, when suddenly the war
clouds burst and now three-fourths Of
the population of the world are direct
ly involved In war. The sowing Of
all the past, particularly Of the last
half century, began to show above the
surface, and all efforts to stop the
growing into the ripeness Of retribu-
ton were fruitless. But In these days,
mot only are 100000 men under
arms, directly obeying the commands
Of those who are over them, even to
going to certain death, but the manu-
featuring and commercial interests OF
half the world must not only cease to
relinquish the profits Of business, but
must pay billions besides. Moreover,
the peoples of the nations concerned
are compelled to eat less. to eat what
they do not like, and In hundred
other ways contribute to the great
war budgets that are offered. AL.
whether they will or not, have reached
the stage Of retribution. The nations
Of the world have sown; they are now
reaping.
In somewhat recent times kind OF
camouflage of excessive mirth, hilarity
and reckless living has been thrown
over some of the serious things Of
life, and they have been forgotten or
ignored; retributlon is one Of them.
Possibly some Of the more thoughtful
people will hunt up Buffers Analogy
of Religion to the Constitution and
Course Of Nature" and read his words
which have present pertinence and
should have present application. He
says: ut has been observed that strtE
and such miseries naturally follow
such and such actions of impudence
and wilfulness, as well as actions more
commonly and more distinctly consid.
cred as vicious; that these conse-
quences, when they have been fore
seen, are properly the natural punish.
ment annexed to such actions" These
consequences are quite uniform even
to the poor vision of man. If you cir
Gle tree, it will die; If you do not
don warm clothing when there Is q
low temperature, you will take cold; II
you swallow poison, you will die;
If you decline to eat proper food you
will starve. Possibly the practice Of
forgetting that we are all under law
Ia the reason why so many are indifer-
ent to retribution; and this forgetful-
ness is possibly due, as Prof. Austin
Phelps Of Andover once said to the
fact that even the children in the home
are not taught the consequences OF
broken law.
But this great truth Of retribution
not obliterated withdrawn or mod.
flied by the Spirit of God still prevails
everywhere in the physical world, In
ethics and In religion. Never in the
history Of the world was there greater
need than now for the plalnest, but
most loving preaching of the whole
truth, not only the Gospel that Jesus
Christ died for the sins of the world,
but the self-evident law that "the soul
that sinneth, 1t shall die"
Retrlbution after death is not do
MED by intelligent universalists nova
days. Indeed, 1t Is clearly and fore
IDLY proclaimed by them, sometimes
with more seriousness than by some
evangelical preachers. AS men looh
into the future, not one In scores Il
troubled about retribution. The life
Of the departed may have been thor
oughly bad, vicious and cruel, and ht
died as he lived. With many retribu-
ton only lies In the fact that life II
extinct; the man is dead, he has met
his desert. Is that true?
The men who have been guilty Of
the present condition In Armenia, Bel
GUM, and elsewhere, cannot receive
proper retribution by simply being put
| to death. With men that would seen
| to be a ripe retribution, but there II
a settlement in the future, and VIZ
may leave such cries to an Infinitely
merciful, as well as an infinitely hol,
God.
In view Of future retribution, what
is the duty of the hour? Give proper
thought to the sowing for retributior
and escape the fearful reaping In thu
future. Remember that sin is malig
nant; that 1t brings death here and
hereafter. AS to the sins that crJ
out for retribution hereafter, lift III
the eyes to the one who has born II
his own body oil the penalty. How
ever that may reach into the othel
world and If the sin by the simple &C
Of faith may be laid upon him, the RET
ributlon OF the future, as far as aat
u concerned, will not be visited.