THE LORD GOD, having arranged the foundation of
the world, in the sentences pronounced upon the transgressors; and commenced
the preparation of the kingdom in the stipulations of the New Law: decreed their
expulsion from the garden eastward in Eden. As the Serpent had said, the man
had become "as the gods", or Elohim,
"to know good and evil", in consequence of eating the forbidden
fruit. He had known good only in his novitiate; but,
being lifted up with pride, he had fallen into the condemnation of the devil,
(1 Tim 3:6) and had come to know also by experience both sorrow and pain. This
was a great calamity; but not so great as that a
greater might not befall him, even in
But the repetition of the scenes of the
pre-Adamic drama was not designed, although men were afterwards permitted to
imitate it with a similar result; with this difference, however, that the race
of the angels was one generation, while that of men was composed of many. To
prevent, then, the replenishment of the earth with undying sinners, the Lord
God said to Elohim, "Behold, the man has
become as one of us, to know good and evil: and now lest he put forth his
hand and take also of the Tree of the Lives, and eat, and live for ever:
therefore the Lord God sent him forth from the garden of Eden, to till the
ground from whence he was taken. So he drove out the man".
This is a very remarkable passage of scripture.
It contains much in a few words. The points which stand out, shining like two
stars, are the acknowledgement that man had become as the gods by his
offence; and, secondly, that he was expelled from
The creed that inculcates this is God-dishonouring, and expresses the foolish thoughts of sinful
flesh, unenlightened by His law and testimony. It is the vapouring
of the pagan mind, adopted by the Apostasy, and transfused into the symbols of
its credulity. As it knows not how to display the divine character in any other
light than the propensities, the faintly-illumined intellect, and the perverted
sentiments of the flesh exhibit; it presents God to the sons of men as more
like the Saturn, or Moloch, of the heathens, who devoured their own offspring,
in shrieks and groans, than as one who so loves the world that He beseeches it
to he reconciled to Him: (2 Cor. 5:19,20) and to
accept, without money or price, the exceeding great and precious things He has
in store. Thus the "religious world" is ruled by terror. The
little faith it professes, works not by love (Gal. 5:6) to the purification of
its heart; (Acts 15:9) but by the unceasing apprehension of burning in molten
lava through endless ages. It works by "fear, which hath torment",
and debases the soul; so that were it not for its fears, it would be honest and
confess that it cared neither for God nor for His religion. But there is no
fear in love; for perfect love casteth out fear. The
world of professors, therefore, deceives itself in supposing that it loves God.
"He that feareth is not made perfect in
love." (1 John 4:17,18) It loves Him not, for its
conscience is defiled. "Love is the fulfilling of the law." Its
"doubts and fears" demonstrate its consciousness of sin uncovered;
and that it either knows not what the truth is, or knowing it, neglects, or
refuses, to obey it. It is an egregious contradiction to confess with the same
breath that we love God and are yet afraid of Him! Was Adam afraid of God so
long as he continued obedient? As soon, however, as he sinned, fear seized upon
him, and he fled from the sound of His voice, and hid himself. The righteous
man's fear of God is the fear of offending one he loves. God is terrible only
to His enemies. His sons and daughters confide in Him with the affection of
children; and He protects them with all the love and jealousy of His holy and
blessed name.
Being ignorant of "the exceeding great and
precious promises" relating to the kingdom of God, the leaders of the people
know not in what other way to move them to "get religion", as their
phrase is. Hence, they pretend to preach "the terrors of the law".
But "religion" got by such a process is worth nothing. Nay; I will
retract this. It is worth something. A religion of terror, so long as it is
believed, is useful as a system of ecclesiastical police; which,
associated with the civil and military forces, assists materially in keeping
the world in awe. But for the fear of what may be hereafter, professors would
be as lawless as the antediluvian giants; and thus, by the ecclesiastical
antagonism of society being destroyed, the earth would be filled with violence
as before the flood. Superstition is useful in maintaining order until the
period shall arrive to supersede it by "wisdom and knowledge", which
will be the stability of the times pertaining to the
But the "pure and undefiled religion"
of God has no present temporalities or worldly interests. It has no
"lands, tenements, and hereditaments"; nor
"states", colleges, or "sacred edifices". It is like the
Son of God in the days of his flesh; homeless, houseless, and poverty-stricken
among the sons of men. It has great riches, and good things in store for the
poor in this world who are rich in faith; (James 2:5) it promises them
the possession of the world (1 Cor 3:22) with all the
honour, and glory, and riches of it, with endless life for the enjoyment of
them; but it requires faith in God with filial obedience to His law, in a time
of tribulation, (Acts 14:22; 2 Tim. 3:12) as the condition of the inheritance.
It is perfectly absurd to imagine that men who
are revelling in all the luxuries, conveniences, and
comforts of life; enjoying the honour, glory, and friendship of the world, as
do the ecclesiastics of antichristendom in their
several ranks, orders, and degrees; to suppose, I say, that such can inherit
the Kingdom of God with Jesus, and that "cloud of witnesses", of whom
Paul says "the world was not worthy", is preposterous. If men would
reign with Christ they must believe his doctrine, and suffer with him, (2 Tim.
When man was expelled from
From this arrangement, they either saw the tree
of life no more; or, saw it only in the distance. The latter is the more
probable. The sight of it from time to time would remind them of what they had
lost; and, from what they had learned of the effect producible upon the eater
of its fruit, it suggested the possibility of mortal man putting on
immortality. This was a thing to be desired. But they could not get at the
tree; how could they then attain it? There were but two of them,
and neither of them could answer the question. There were no scriptures
testifying to them as to us, "This is the way, walk ye in it". They
were ignorant of "the way leading unto life"; (Matt.
We have an illustration of this in the endeavour of the heathen philosophers to solve the problem.
Being ignorant of God's knowledge they ran into the most absurd speculations.
They thought that immortality was a sort of ghost inside of a man that went to
the fields of Elysium when death dissolved its union with the body. They
regarded this innate principle as a particle of the divine essence from which proceeded all virtuous actions; while vice was the natural
result of the operation of the matter of the body, which was essentially
malignant. The apostle refers to this in part when he says, "Professing
themselves to be wise, they became fools" (Rom.
They had no idea of immortality being conferred
only upon men who might be accounted worthy of a certain kingdom. This was a
doctrine which the flesh, with all its thinking, and with all its logic, had no
conception of. It never thought of the
Immortality, then, and the way to it,
are things about which man must have remained for ever
ignorant, so long as their discovery depended upon the thinking of the flesh.
In other words, they are matters purely of divine testimony; and as faith is
the belief of testimony, men can have no faith in them beyond what is
stated in the written word of God. The carnal mind, by reflecting upon its own
consciousness, may be "of opinion" that what it terms "I
myself" is immaterial because it thinks, and "therefore
immortal"; but beyond that it can never go. Opinion implies doubt; for if
a matter be beyond doubt, it is no longer opinion, but faith or knowledge.
Where, then, is the man, be he philosopher or theologist,
who can demonstrate the existence of an "immortal soul" in the animal
man, by a "thus it is written", or a "thus saith the Lord"?
A few phrases in scripture may be twisted, and tortured into an inference
-- which, however, becomes lighter than vanity before the direct testimonies of
the word to the contrary. With these words, then, by way of preface, I shall
proceed to offer a few remarks upon
THE CHERUBIM.
But little is said about the Cherubim in the
Mosaic narrative. The word is a plural noun, and represents, therefore, more
objects than one, But, in what did this plurality
consist? I should say, judging from a text in the next chapter, that it had
especial regard to a plurality of faces; for when the Lord God sentenced Cain
to a fugitive and vagabond life, the fratricide answered, "Behold, then,
from THY FACES (plural in the Hebrew)* shall I be hid"; (Gen 4:14) that
is, "I shall no more be permitted to come before the Cherubic faces, which
thou hast placed at the east of the garden, to present an offering for my
sin". As he truly observed, "Mine iniquity is greater than that it
may be forgiven". He was exiled from the Faces of God still further to the
east as a murderer doomed to eternal death at the end of his career.
* The word is plural only in the Hebrew: even in
the case of Jacob and the angel (Gen. 32:30 -- Compare also Ezek.
That the faces were connected with the Cherubim seems
unquestionable from other passages of scripture where cherubim are described.
The Lord spoke of them to Moses in the Mount. Having commanded him to make an
ark, or open chest, overlaid with gold, with a crown along its upper margin, he
said, "Thou shalt make a mercy-seat of pure gold. And thou shalt
make two cherubim of beaten gold in the two ends of the
mercy-seat". In another place, this is explained thus -- "Out of the
mercy-seat made he the cherubim on the two ends
thereof". Then it is continued, "And the cherubim shall stretch forth
wings on high, covering the mercy-seat with their wings, and their faces
one to another, toward the mercy-seat shall the faces of the cherubim be. And
thou shalt put the mercy-seat above upon the ark, and in the ark thou
shalt put the testimony that I shall give thee ". (Exod.
25:10-21)
It is probable that the reason why Moses gave no
description of them in Genesis was because he intended to speak more
particularly when he came to record their introduction into the most holy place
of the tabernacle. In the text above recited they are described as having wings
and faces; and being made out of the same piece of gold as the mercy-seat, upon
which they looked down, beholding, as it were, the blood sprinkled upon it; it
is evident, they were symbols connected with the institution of atonement for
sin through the shedding of blood. But they were still more significative.
They were God's throne in
But, though Moses informs us of two cherubim with
a plurality of faces and wings each,* he does not tell us what kind of faces or
how many wings they had. This deficiency, however, seems to be supplied by
Ezekiel. Those he saw had each of them four faces and four wings;
a human body with feet like a calf's, and the hands of a man under their wings.
Of their faces, one was like a man's; a second, like a lion's; a third, like
that of an ox; and a fourth, like an eagle's. The things of his first chapter,
taken collectively, evidently represent the Messiah upon his throne,
surrounded by his saints, and all energized and made glorious by the Spirit of
God. The rings of Ezekiel's wheels were full of eyes but in the cherubim
which John saw, the wheels were not introduced, but two more wings were added,
and the eyes were transferred to the six wings." (Rev. 4:8) In this place,
the cherubim are styled "beasts", more properly, living creatures
(ta zoa); and
are associated with "twenty-four elders".
* They would of
necessity have two wings each; but the scripture does not here specify a
plurality of faces each (Ex. 25, 37). We read of "the face of a
cherub" (Ezek. 10). "The cherubim" of Eden (Gen 3:24 -- R.V.)
appear to be the angels (compare the incident of Balaam, Num.22 : 31); those of
Moses and Solomon were manufactured figures of divine specification, that
ritually represented men of God made one in Christ and "equal unto the
angels". The cherubim and living creatures of Ezekiel and John represent
this "one body" in the relations here graphically described by Dr.
Thomas.
Now, by attending to what is affirmed of them in
another place, we shall see who are represented by the four cherubim of Ezekiel
with four faces each, and their wheels; and the four of John with one different
face each, and twenty-four typical elders. It is written, that "they fell
down before the Lamb, having every one of them harps, and golden vials full of odours, which are (or represent) the prayers of the saints.
And they sung a new song, saying, Thou art worthy to take the book, and
to open the seals thereof; for thou wast slain, and
hast redeemed us to God by thy blood out of every kindred, and tongue,
and people, and nation; and hast made us unto our God kings and priests; and WE
shall reign on earth". (Rev. 5:8-10) From this it is evident
that the cherubim, etc., represent the aggregate of those redeemed from the
nations in their resurrection state. The Lamb, the four cherubs, and the
twenty-four elders are a symbolical representation of what is expressed by the
phrase, "them that are sanctified in Christ Jesus, called saints;
that is, those who have been constituted the righteousness of God in Christ in
a glorified state.
The cherubim are the federal symbol; and the
eyes, representative of the individuals constituted in him
who is signified by the Cherubim. The Lamb is introduced to represent the
relationship between the holy eyes, or saints, and the Cherubic Faces; that is,
between them and the Lord Jesus; while "the twenty-four elders"
are indicative of their constitution as "the Israel of God". There
are twenty-four, because the Kingdom of God, being an Israelitish
Commonwealth, is arranged with the twelve sons of Jacob as its gates ;
and with the twelve apostles of the Lamb as its foundations; (Rev.
21:14; Eph. 2:20) the former being the entrance into present life of the fleshly
tribes, or subjects; and the latter, the foundations of the adopted
tribes, or HEIRS of the kingdom; so that twenty-four is the representative
constitutional number of the spiritual Israel of God; for without the natural
the spiritual could not be; any more than there could be adopted Americans, if
there were no American nation.
But the Mosaic Cherubim were deficient of several
of the characteristics which distinguish those of Ezekiel and John. They had
simply the wings and the faces. His cherubim were not only of beaten gold
continuous with the substance of the mercy-seat; but they were embroidered into
the Veil, made of blue, purple, and scarlet, and fine twined linen, which
divided the holy and the holiest places of the tabernacle. Now, when
"Jesus cried with a loud voice, he expired (exepneuse);
and the Veil of the
We have arrived then at this, that the Mosaic
Cherubim were symbolical of "God manifest in the flesh". We wish now
to ascertain upon what principles His incarnate manifestation was represented
by the Cherubim? First, then, in the solution of this interesting problem, I
remark, that the scriptures speak of God after the following manner: "God
is light, and in him is no darkness at all"; (1 John 1:5) again,
"God is a Spirit; and they that worship him, must worship him in
spirit and in truth"; (1 John 4:24) and thirdly, "Our God is a
consuming fire." (Deut 4:24) In these three texts, which are only a
sample of many others, we perceive that God is represented by light, spirit,
and fire; when, therefore, He is symbolized as manifest in flesh,
it becomes necessary to select certain signs representative of light, spirit,
and fire, derived from the animal kingdom. Now, the ancients selected
the lion, the ox, and the eagle for this purpose, probably from tradition of
the signification of these animals, or the faces of them, in the original
Cherubim. They are called God's Faces because His omniscience, purity, and
jealousy are expressed in them. But the omniscient, jealous, and incorruptible
God was to be manifested in a particular kind of flesh. Hence, it was necessary
to add a fourth face to show in what nature He would show
Himself. For this reason, the human face was associated with the lion,
the ox, and the eagle.
These four faces united in one human shape,
formed out of beaten gold; and two such, not separate and distinct symbols, but
standing one on each end of the mercy-seat, and the same in continuity and
substance with it; -- taken as a whole, represented Jesus, the true
blood-sprinkled mercy-seat, or propitiatory, "in whom dwelleth the fulness of the Godhead bodily". (Rom
It will be seen from this view of things, how
important a place the Cherubim occupied in the worship of God connected with
"the representation of the truth ". They were not objects of
adoration; but symbols representing to the mind of an intelligent believer the
Seed of the woman as God manifested in the likeness of sinful flesh. This I
take it was the significance of the Cherubim which the Lord God placed at the
east of the garden; and which became the germ, as it were, of the shadowy
observances of the patriarchal and Mosaic institutions; whose substance was of
Christ.
THE FLAMING SWORD.
"A Flaming Sword which turned every
way."
The things represented by the lion, ox, and eagle
faces were visibly manifested in the sword of flame. This was light, spirit,
and fire flaming around the cherubim as the glory of God. It turned every way
to keep the way of the tree of life. This is all Moses says about it; and were
it not for other testimonies, we should be at a loss to understand its allegorical
signification. The cherubim set up in the tabernacle and first temple were enveloped in a cloud of thick darkness. (2 Chron 5:14;6:1) At night, the
cloud, which was visible without the former, appeared like a blaze of fire; (Exod 40:35-38) but in the day, it towered aloft as a pillar
of cloud. Darkness and fire were frequent accompaniments of the divine
presence; indeed, always so upon great occasions. The presence, of the Lord
upon
With the exception of the thunder, the
earthquake, the tempest, and the flashing lightning, God's communings
with Moses, and after him with the High Priests, were conducted from between
the Cherubim, as upon Sinai -- "The Lord descended upon it in fire; and
the smoke thereof ascended as the smoke of a furnace; and God answered him by a
voice"; (Exod 19:18) so that the thick darkness
became luminous and indicated His presence. The illumination of the darkness
without the voice would be sufficient to give assurance of acceptance. The
Priest having witnessed this on the great day of atonement, when he came out to
the people, looking for him with anxiety to know the result, would be enabled to
report to them that the Lord had shined forth. This was the sign to them of a
typical salvation. Hence, Asaph prays, "Give
ear, 0 Shepherd of
But the flaming sword in
It was customary for the Lord to answer men by
fire, when any great principle, or new institution was
to be established. Thus, the covenant with Abraham was confirmed by fire; (Gen
15:17) there also came out a fire from before the Lord, and consumed the
offering on Aaron's induction as high priest; (Lev 9:24) when the plague was
stayed at the intercession of David, the Lord answered him by fire from heaven
upon the altar of burnt offering, and thus indicated the place He had chosen to
place His name there; (1 Chron 21:16,18,26; 22:1) and
also at the dedication of the temple, fire consumed the sacrifices in the same
way. (2 Chron 7:1) From these examples, I think it is
a fair inference, that the flaming sword in
The fire described by Ezekiel represented the
spirit of God in its cherubic relations; for as the fire flashed its lightning
so they moved to and fro. It also represented the glory, or brightness, of the
Messiah as he will appear upon his throne. "I saw", saith he,
"as the appearance of a man above upon the throne: as the colour of amber, as the appearance of fire round about
within it, from the appearance of his loins even upward, and from thence
downwards, as it were the appearance of fire, and it had brightness round
about. As the appearance of the bow that is in the cloud in the day of rain, so
was the appearance of the brightness round about. This was the appearance of
the likeness of the glory of the Lord".' The apocalyptic representation of
the Lord's glory when seated on the throne of David is a repetition of
Ezekiel's, though under some modification, so as to adapt it to circumstances
which had arisen out of the things concerning Jesus. "I beheld", says
John, "a throne was set in the heaven, and one sat on the throne. And he
that sat was to look upon like a jasper and sardine
stone: and there was a rainbow round about the throne, in sight like unto an
emerald. And out of the throne proceeded lightnings and thunderings, and
voices: and there were seven lamps of fire burning before the throne,
which are the seven spirits of God". (Rev. 4:2-5)
From these passages, it is evident, that fire
which is also light , is in symbolic
representation significative of the spirit of
God. If more proof were necessary, the outpouring of the spirit on Pentecost
and at the house of Cornelius, would be sufficient to
settle the matter. (Acts 2:2-4;
From the whole, then, I conclude that the
cherubim and flaming sword at the east of Eden's garden were representative, first,
of God manifest in the woman's nature as "the word made flesh"; and
by being bruised in the heel, set forth as the blood-sprinkled mercy-seat, or
propitiation for sin; and secondly , of God
manifested in the spiritual nature, clothed with dazzling brightness,
surpassing the sun and moon in splendour. The
cherubim were the throne of the Lord in relation to the antediluvian world.
There He communed with men. His presence was there, and the altar He had set
up. When men went to sacrifice before Him, there they presented their
offerings. If these were according to His appointment, He accepted the
worshipper; and, probably, answered him by fire flashing forth from the
cherubic glory, and consuming the sacrifice upon the altar. If the worshipper
were faithless and disobedient, the faces were hid by thick darkness,
and the offering remained unconsumed. This was the case with Cain. His
countenance fell, and he expressed himself with anger. Then the Lord God
"answered him with a voice", and the
conversation ensued which is recorded in the Mosaic narrative. Having, then,
ascertained the signification of the cherubim and flaming sword, I shall
proceed now to speak of the principles of religion.
"THE WAY OF THE TREE OF
LIFE"
Strait is the gate, and narrow is the way which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it."
Religion is not coeval with the formation of man;
neither had it any existence during his novitiate. Though it was instituted in
the paradise, it was not for his observance there; for while he continued the
sinless tenant of the garden, he stood in no need of the healing
consolations it affords. Until he ate of the forbidden fruit, there was no breach
of friendship, no misunderstanding, no alienation, between him and the Lord
God; there needed not, therefore, any means, or system of means, for the
reconciliation of estranged parties. But, as soon as the good understanding was
interrupted by disobedience to the Eden law, sentence of condemnation to the
dust was pronounced upon the offenders; and means were instituted to put
them at one again with the Lord, that He might bring them back from the ground,
no longer naked and ashamed of their condition; but clothed with glory and
honour, incorruptibility and life, as a crown of righteousness that should
never fade away. These instituted means made up the Way of life, which
Moses terms "God's way". (Gen 6:12) David styles it "the path of
life"; (Psalm 16:11) which the apostle, in quoting, renders "the ways
of life"; that is, the way leading to life in which a man must walk now;
and the way into the kingdom from the house of death.
In the beginning, God's way was styled "the
Way of the Tree of Life"; which in the passage where it occurs, must
be taken literally, and then allegorically. In its literal sense, it was the path
leading to the Tree in the midst of the garden; but allegorically, it signified
the things to be believed and practised by those
who desired to live for ever. To believe and do, is to walk in "the
Way which leadeth unto life"; because
immortality will be a part of the recompense of reward for so doing. Until the
crucifixion, the Way was marked out, first by the patriarchal arrangement of
things; and secondly, by the Mosaic law; all of which
pointed to the
The things of the Way of Life constitute
RELIGION. As a word, it is derived from the Latin religio,
from religare, which signifies to bind again;
hence, religion is the act of binding again, or that which heals
a breach previously existing between two parties. This traditional idea the
Romans expressed by religion. They believed as the foundation of their
mythology that mankind and the gods were at enmity; but how it originated they
had lost the knowledge of. Their impression was that they were angry, but not
implacable; nevertheless, so estranged from men that there could be no direct
communication with them. Mediatorial converse with
the gods was an idea universally prevalent in the world. The pagans had derived
it by tradition from the family of Noah; with whom
were deposited the revealed principles of the Way of God instituted in the
beginning. The idea of mediate communication for the appeasement of divine
wrath was incorporated in all the domestic and temple worship which
constituted their religion. They poured out abundantly the blood of victims;
and, from the tradition of Abraham's sacrifice of Isaac in obedience to the
divine mandate, the Carthaginians, who migrated from Palestine, probably
concluded that the most acceptable offering for sin was that of human life. Be
this as it may, the principle that "without the shedding of blood there is
no remission", which is an axiom of God's truth, took deep root among all
the descendants of the sons of Noah. Their system was a corruption of God's
Way. They were without faith, and erred, not knowing "His thoughts".
The word used by the Greeks for religion
was "threscheia", from "threscheuo", to worship. This may be
derived from "scheuoz", taken
metonymically for a minister; and "threo",
to shout or make a clamour; because, in
that worship which results from the thinking of sinful flesh, the performers
rend the air with their shouts; and if idolaters, they "call upon
the name of their gods" with frantic cries, "cutting themselves with
knives and lancets till the blood gushes out upon them". (Kings
How different was the prayer of Elijah. From him
ascended the "still small voice" of fervent, but tranquil
supplication. He knew that God was neither deaf nor asleep; but a God
everywhere present by the universality of His spirit. His words were few.
(Eccles 5:1,2) He did not expect to be heard for his
much speaking; knowing that God is not to be moved by "vain
repetitions", or volubility of speech; but by the love He has for His
children, and for the glory of His name.
While men consider that there is a want of
harmony between them and divine wisdom and power, and admit that they are
deserving of divine wrath; they do not understand, that as offenders they
have no right to institute the means of reconciliation. They act upon the
principle, that God has left it to them to worship Him according to the
dictates of their own reason. Hence the world is full of modes of worship as
diversified as the thoughts of sinful flesh. The notions that men may invent
religious services; and that the divine displeasure can be appeased by human
contrivances are fallacies which are characteristic of false religion wherever
they are found. Men have no right to invent religions, or modes of worship.
Even reason dictates this when the question is viewed as a breach between
friends. When a misunderstanding occurs between such, the initiatory of a
reconciliation of right appertains to the party offended; and he only has the
privilege of dictating the terms of agreement. Hence, in the breach between God
and man, it is God's prerogative alone to prescribe; and all that men have
liberty to do is to accept, or reject, the conditions of amity and peace.
This view of the case precludes entirely the idea
of appeasing the wrath of God by human ingenuity. God needs not to be appeased
by man; and every system, therefore, which is predicated upon the notion that
it is necessary, is not only unscriptural, but essentially false. He is already
reconciled to the world, which He has always loved; although it acts the part
of, and therefore is, the enemy of God. "He so loved the world that he
gave his only begotten Son that whosoever believeth in him should not perish,
but have everlasting life," (John
The case is exactly the reverse of the pulpit
theory. This represents the world as reconciled, while God is unreconciled and hard to be persuaded. Hence, the world is
full of religions, all of which have been invented, and continue to be observed
for the purpose of appeasing His wrath, and disposing Him to peace. He is
represented by pulpit orators as in a rage; as ready to launch mankind into the
flames of hell, and only prevented from hurling His thunderbolts at them by
Christ seizing Him by His arm, as it were, and pointing to his wounds! But this
is purely mythological. God stands in no such attitude to the world, nor Christ to Him. The Lord Jesus is not contending with the
Father upon any such principle. There is no antagonism between them. They agree
in one; and what God conceived is committed to the Son to execute. The world is
not reconciled to God; nor has it the least disposition for reconciliation upon
any other principles than it has itself decreed. These principles are
subversive of His supremacy in the universe; they are annihilative of His
truth; they demoralize His character -- therefore He will accept no homage
predicated upon them.
He has long since proclaimed the conditions of
peace, which He is waiting to ratify in every case where they are accepted.
This proclamation is styled "the Word of Reconciliation",
which, saith the apostle, "God hath committed unto us". Not, be it
most distinctly understood, to me; nor to the
ecclesiastics of any sect, party, or denomination, extant. The Word of
Reconciliation hath been committed to no man, or set of men now living. It was
committed to the apostles and their divinely inspired co-labourers, and to them only. So that they could say
in the words of one of them, "We are of God: he that knoweth
God heareth us: he that is not of God heareth not us. Hereby know we the
spirit of truth, and the spirit of error". (1 John 4:6) And they were
perfectly justified in saying so. For Jesus said to them, "It is not ye
that speak, but the Spirit of your Father which speaketh
in you"; (Matt
The word of reconciliation, then, was committed
to the apostles, whom God appointed as His ambassadors to the world. And, be it
observed, that their ambassadorial character did not rest upon assumption, like
that of their pretended successors. God attested them, as He had done His Son
before them. Their credentials were in the miracles which accompanied their
word. They produced the signs of their apostleship; and multitudes acknowledged
them, as Nicodemus did their Lord, saying, "We know thou art a teacher
come from God: for no man can do these miracles that thou doest, except God be
with him". (John 3:2) They would not have been received as ambassadors of
heaven if God had not attested them by His power; but being so attested, they
were prepared, and did present themselves at Satan's court -- that is, before
Caesar -- to invite the world to be at peace with Him.
The pulpit orators of this age are either greatly
deceived, or, if their eyes be open, most egregiously impose upon the credulity
of the public, in pretending to be Christ's ambassadors to the world. Why, they
are the world's allies ; the friends and supporters of
the institutions of Satan's kingdom; whose subjects pay them their wages on
condition of preaching such doctrine as suits them! Talk of being
ministers and ambassadors of Jesus Christ, how perverted must their own minds
be to imagine it; and how spoiled by "philosophy and vain deceit" the
people, who can acquiesce in so unfounded a pretension. "Have they seen
Jesus?" or what special message have they to the
world from God, that men cannot read for themselves in the scriptures of truth?
If they have any new light from Him, He will attest it as He has always done by
a display of power. Men will then be justified in receiving them as
plenipotentiaries of the Divine Majesty, provided always that what they speak
be in strict accordance with what Paul preached; otherwise not. (Gal 1:8)
"God hath given to us", say the apostles, "the ministry
of reconciliation." Now then we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God
did beseech by us; we pray in Christ's stead, be reconciled to God." These
are the men whom He appointed, who sought not to please the public, but to
enlighten them ; " for", saith one of them,
"if I yet pleased men, I should not be the servant of Christ ".
The church was associated with the apostles in
the ministry of reconciliation. By "the church", I mean, not that
multiform thing called "the church" by the world in these times; but
that one, undivided body of disciples, collected together by the personal labours of the apostles and evangelists; and all through
subsequent generations, who should believe and practise
the same truth. To this "one body", (Eph 4:4) energized by the
"one spirit", (Eph 4:4) and "perfectly joined together in
the same mind and in the same judgment", (1 Cor.
1:10; Acts 4:32) and styled "THE BRIDE" -- is committed the work of
making known "the manifold wisdom of God", (Eph. 3:10) as contained
in the word; and of inviting the world to be reconciled to God. (Rev. 22:17) No
member of this body is exempt from the obligation of co-operating in this work.
It is the duty and privilege of every one in his own sphere to endeavour to turn men to righteousness; for there is no
distinction of "clergy" and "laity" in the
family of God.
In the days of the apostles, things were very
different to what they are now. There were many congregations, or churches, but
they were all one flock, or "denomination", and men endowed
with spiritual gifts were their rulers. But even these were not distinguished
from their brethren as " clergy", or
priests; but as ministers, or servants. Well knowing the presumption,
pride, and arrogance of the flesh, the Spirit commanded them especially to feed
the flock, and not to fleece it; to oversee it willingly and of a ready mind,
but not for the sake of compensation; and to be examples to the flock, and not
to lord it over the heritages. (1 Pet 5:2,3)
The word "clergy," as the title of an
order, is assumed by men who have no right to it. It is a word which comes from
the Greek -----, a lot or portion ; and is applied by the apostle in the
text quoted to a single congregation of disciples; so that when he speaks of
all the congregations of the flock, he styles them "the
heritages", -----. But, in after years, the ministers of the
heritages, or clergies, disregarded the commandment, and set themselves up as
lords of the heritages, which they fleeced, and oppressed for lucre's sake.
They even made the clergies of God believe that they were nothing more than
mere commoners; while they themselves, the usurpers of the believers' rights,
were God's peculiar lot, or portion, as the tribe of Levi
were among the Israelites; and the distinction was then set up of "clergy"
and "laity", from ----- the multitude! But the
distinction belongs to the apostasy, and not to God's oppressed and scattered
sheep. When "clergy" get in among them, it is "as grievous
wolves, not sparing the flock, but speaking perverse things to draw away
disciples after them" for their own worldly gain. (Acts
The principles of the apostasy, and indeed of all
false religion, are such as result from the thinking of the flesh when left to
its own communings. This is illustrated in the case
of Adam and Eve. They sought to cover their sin by a device of their own. They
sewed fig-leaves together, and made themselves aprons. Their shame was covered,
indeed; but their consciences were not healed. But it was the best they could
do in their ignorance. They were as yet unacquainted with the great principle
that without the shedding of blood there could be no remission of sin. (Heb
9:22) They were not aware of this necessity; for it had not been revealed:
neither did they understand that as offenders they would not be permitted to
devise a covering for themselves. They had everything to learn as to the ground
of reconciliation with God. They had no idea of religion; for hitherto they had
needed none. It yet remained to be revealed as the divinely appointed means
of healing the breach which sin had made between God and men.
Man having been made subject to evil, and consigned
to the bondage of a perishing state, the Lord God repudiated their fig-leaf
invention, and "appointed coats of skins" for their covering. In this
testimony there is much expressed in few words. To appoint coats of skins
implies a command for the sacrifice of animals whose skins were converted to
this purpose. It also implies that Adam was the priest on the occasion. who presented himself before the Lord with the mediatorial blood. When the sacrifice was accepted, the
offence was provisionally remitted ; for the
scripture saith, that it is not possible for the blood of animals to take away
sins. (Heb 10:4) It was impossible, because sin was to be condemned in sinful
flesh. This required the death of a man ; for the
animals had not sinned: so that, if the whole animal world, save man, had been
made an offering for sin, sin would still have been uncondemned
in his nature. Besides the necessity of a human sacrifice, God deemed it
equally necessary that the victim should be free from personal transgressions;
and that when he had suffered, he should rise from the dead so as to be "a
living sacrifice".
If the death of a transgressor would have
sufficed, then, Adam and Eve might have been put to death at once, and raised
to life again. But this was not according to the divine wisdom. The great
principle to be compassed was the condemnation of sin in sinful flesh,
innocent of actual transgression. This principle necessitated the
manifestation of one, who should be born of a woman, but not of the will of
man. Such a one would be the Seed of the Woman, made of her substance, with Him
for his Father who by His overshadowing spirit should cause her to conceive. He
would be Son of God by origination; and Son of Mary by descent, or birth of
sinful flesh. Now, it is not to be supposed that Adam and Eve did not
understand this: God doubtless explained it to them ;
for they had none to teach them but Him; and without His instruction, they
would not have known what they should believe. It was from them that Abel
derived the knowledge which was the foundation of his faith, to which God
testified in the acceptance of the firstling of his flock and the fat thereof.
Adam and his wife had faith, or God would not
have accepted the sacrifices with whose skins they were clothed; for it was as
true then as it is now, that "without faith it is impossible to please
God". Faith, then, in the Seed of the Woman, first as a sacrifice for sin,
wounded to death by his enemies; and afterwards the destroyer of the sin-power;
in connexion with the sacrifice of animals as
representative of the bruising of his heel -- was the ground of their
acceptance with the Lord God. It was the Way of Life, If
they walked with God in this way, they would be as pleasing to Him as Enoch
afterwards was, who was translated about 57 years after Adam's death. It was
the way which was corrupted by the antediluvians; and although the sacrifices
have been interrupted, the faith and hope which gained celebrity and
commendation to Abel, Enoch, Noah, Abraham, Moses, and a cloud of other
witnesses, comprehended substantially the same things, but less in detail than
in that faith which was preached by the apostles as the gospel of the kingdom
and name of Christ, for the justification of all who should believe. The things
believed by Abel as compared with the faith preached on Pentecost, were as the
acorn to the oak. The gospel of the kingdom in the name of Jesus was the
revelation in full of the things communicated in the beginning; and afterwards
more considerably amplified in the promises made to the fathers of the people
of
There is no true religion without faith; nor any true faith without the belief of the truth. Now,
although a scriptural faith is the scarcest thing among men, it is exceedingly
simple, and by no means difficult to acquire, when it is sought for aright.
Paul gives the best definition of faith extant. He says, "Faith is a
confident anticipation (-----) of things hoped for, a full persuasion
(-----) of things not seen." (Heb 11:1) This is the faith without which,
he tells us afterwards, God is not, and cannot by any possibility be, pleased.
It is a faith which lays hold of the past and the future. The person who
possesses it knows what is testified concerning Jesus by the apostles, and is
fully persuaded of its truth; he also knows the exceeding great and precious
promises which God has made concerning things to come, and he confidently
anticipates the literal fulfilment of them. Laying
hold of these things with a firm faith, he acquires a mode of thinking and a
disposition which are estimable in the sight of God; and being like Abraham in
these particulars, he is prepared, by induction into Christ, to become a son,
of the father of the faithful, and of the friend of God.
This faith comes by studying the scriptures; as
it is written, "Faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of
God", (Rom
But, one may say, there are multitudes who
believe in Christ who are very ignorant of the scriptures. Yes, they believe in
Christ as Turks believe in Mohammed. But this is not the faith defined by Paul.
The mere belief that Jesus is the Son of God is not believing
in him. To believe in him is to believe what God testifies concerning him. The
faith of the "religious world" is like a stool with only one leg. It professes
to believe in Jesus; but it is ignorant, and therefore faithless, of the message
he was sent to deliver to
"Love is the fulfilling of the law."
(Rom
I cannot too earnestly commend the words of
Samuel to the attention of the reader in this place. "Hath the Lord",
saith he, "as great delight in burnt- offerings and sacrifices as in
obeying the voice of the Lord? Behold, to obey is better than a sacrifice, and
to hearken than the fat of rams. For rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft, and
stubbornness is as iniquity and idolatry." (1 Sam 15:22,23)
A great principle is set forth in these words. It is that which can alone place
men in harmony with the religion of God. Without it a man may indeed know the
truth; but he must believe and do if he would inherit the kingdom which has
been preparing from the foundation of the world.
Religion is of two kind -- that, namely, which is
invented by the thinking of sinful flesh; and that which is revealed of God.
The former is superstition, and leads men to do a vast deal more than God
requires of them, or less than He has appointed. In what is called
"Christendom" most improperly (for instead of being Christ's
dominion, as the word implies, it is the arena of his sufferings in the persons
of his disciples, and in the suppression of his truth), these extremes of
superstition in its plus and minus exhibitions, are illustrated in all their
diversity from popery, which is superstition in excess, down to Quakerism,
which is superstition in its homoeopathic proportion.
The religion of God, on the contrary, is the juste milieu, occupying a commanding and
dignified position between the two extremes. It does not require men to abase
themselves in the dust, and to afflict their bodies for their sins; nor to
plant themselves as so many statues of clay, with downcast or upturned visage
in the silence of the sepulchre, under pretence of
waiting for Him to move them to preach or pray. There is no
fanaticism nor pietism in His religion. When in the exercise of it men
are moved to action, they are acted upon by an intelligent and earnest
conviction of the truth. This is the instrumentality by which He rouses men to
religious exercise -- by the spirit which is the truth . (1 John 5:6)
When, therefore, they are really "moved by
the spirit" they are moved by the truth, and do not talk nonsense. They
speak according to "the law and the testimony"; and thus evince to
all who understand the scriptures. that they have
"light within". Everything spoken not according to the word is
nonsense; and the spirit never moves men to speak nonsense: nor doth the light
of truth within ever teach men to undervalue the institutions of religion; or
to live in neglect of them under pretence of a refined spirituality, or
superior sanctity. "By their fruits ye may know them." This is an excellent
rule by which to discern the spirits. Men pray for the Holy Spirit; profess to
preach under its guidance; and often in a very bad spirit, protest that they
received it when converted. But the spirit dwells only with those who
understand, believe, and obey the gospel of the kingdom; and who walk according
to its precepts. No man, be he preacher or "layman", has the spirit,
or anything else to do with it than as resisting it, who
does not preach and believe the gospel Paul preached. The "religious
world" is utterly destitute of the spirit which belongs to God's religion;
because it is ignorant of the gospel, and understands not "the voices of
the prophets".
If, therefore, it be sincerely desirous of the
spirit of God, let it renounce the traditions of "the fathers" and
"mothers" of the apostasy, from Origen to
Joanna Southcott, Jemima Wilkinson, and Ann Lee; let
it shake off the thrall of Rome, Oxford, Wittenburg,
Geneva, and Nauvoo; all of which make of none effect the word of the living
God: and let it "search the scriptures" according to the
divine command, "proving all things and holding fast that which is
good", that it may believe the truth and obey it in the love of it. Christ
will then dwell in its heart by faith; (Eph 3:17) it will be rooted and grounded
in love, having attained to the obedience of faith, which is the sole criterion
of love to God; and the well-intentioned and conscientious, though
unenlightened members of its community, will have no longer ground of
lamentation on account of "the decay of spirituality, and the prevalence
of formality and worldliness in the churches". All the Most High requires
of men is just to believe what He has done, what He teaches, and what He
promises: to obey the law of faith; to take care of the poor of His flock, and
keep themselves unspotted from the world. This is pure and undefiled religion.
(Titus 2:11-14; James 1:27) But, alas where is it to be found?
Religion being the divine remedy for sin, it is
evident that when the sin of the world is taken away, religion will be
abolished. So long as sin exists in the earth, so long will there be separation
between God and men; for it is sin, and that only, which interrupts man's
fellowship with God and His angels, as it obtained before the fall. When sin is
eradicated from the world there will be no more death; for death and sin are
boon companions; as it is written, "The wages of sin is death". The
abolition of death presupposes the extinction of sin in the flesh; and
consequently that the animal nature of man has been transformed (not
evaporated, but changed) into the spiritual nature of the Elohim. Man will then be no longer subject to evil, His
race will have passed through its 7,000 years of probation; and all of its
individuals, who have been the faithful subjects of God's religion, will become
the incorruptible and perpetual inhabitants of the earth, emancipated from
every curse; God will then dwell in men by His Spirit as He now fills the Lord
Jesus Christ. All distinction of church and world, saints and sinners, righteous
and wicked, shall cease for ever; for there will be none of the Serpent's seed
alive. They for ever; for there will be none of the Serpent's seed alive. They
will have been utterly destroyed; for only "the meek shall inherit the
earth, and delight themselves with abundance of peace". (Psalm 37:11)
Religion begins in the third chapter of Genesis,
and finds the record of its end in the last two chapters of the Revelation. Its
abolition is expressed in these words: "Behold, the tabernacle of God is
with men, and he will dwell with them, and they shall be his people, and God
himself shall be with them as their God. And he shall wipe away all tears from
their eyes: and there shall be NO MORE DEATH,
neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain for the former
things are passed away. And he that sat upon the throne said, Behold, I make
all things new. And there shall be NO MORE CURSE". (Rev. 21:3-5;
22:3) Then will the victory be complete. The Sin-power and all its works will be finally abolished; and an eternal
jubilee gladden the hearts of men, in whom God will be all and in all. (1 Cor. 15:28)
As it is highly important that the reader should
have a distinct understanding of the religion of God, if he would profit by it,
it may not be amiss, in order to facilitate its comprehension, to present the
following
SUMMARY OF
PRINCIPLES.
a.
No sinner can by any means redeem his brother, nor give
to God a ransom for him, that he should still live for ever, and not see
corruption. (Psa 49:7,9)
b.
Sin cannot be covered, or remitted, without the
shedding of blood.
c.
The blood of animals cannot take away sin.
d.
Sin must be condemned in sinful flesh innocent of
transgression.
e.
Sins must he covered by a garment derived from the
purification-sacrifice made living by a resurrection.