VOL.
LIII. July/August 1970 No. 4 The Truth Shall Make You Free"If ye
continue in My Word, then are ye My disciples indeed; and ye shall know
the truth, and the truth shall make you free." - John 8:31, 32. IT
WAS a maxim of the Jews, that no man was free, but he who exercised
himself in the meditation of the law.' " By the simple process of
inventing this maxim the bondage of the great mass of the Jews to the law
was assured. There was no reason to seek freedom from the law as long as
they were convinced that liberty was to be gained by mere meditation on
it. It is true that "whatsoever things were written aforetime
[including the law] were written for our learning, that we through
patience and comfort of the Scriptures might have hope," but this
fact does not make true their maxim, for the sacred writings bring their
blessing only to those who use them as they were intended to be used. It
is just as false a maxim today to say, "I have the truth, therefore I
am free." Every slave knows some truth. The better translation which
Rotherham gives of our text makes clear why the Jews of Jesus' day, who
thought they were faithful followers of Moses, as well as the majority of
those down to our present day who have thought of themselves as followers
of Jesus, have never attained liberty. His version reads: "If ye
abide in My Word of a truth My disciples ye are; and ye shall know the
truth, and the truth shall make you free." Liberty Attained by "Dwelling" in His WordDeliverance
from the slavery to which Jesus alluded was promised only to true
disciples; and true discipleship, He said, could be attained only by
abiding, dwelling, in His word. "Continue" is too mild a word to
describe the state of a genuine disciple. He will dwell in that Word,
daily, hourly, moment by moment. This means a devotion to that Word that
makes it, or strives to make it, the guide of every moment-of every
thought, of every act. The result is not just a knowledge of truth, but,
as the Greek clearly shows, a personal, intimate, practical, living
knowledge of truth. Of the four Greek words meaning "to know"
that are used in the New Testament, Jesus here uses the one giving this
deepest meaning. This is not something acquired the day we hear a discourse
or read a book, but it is attained by the long process indicated in the
Greek and shown by Rotherham's marginal reading, "Ye shall get to know
the truth." It
is safe to assume that contact with truth always has an effect; but, the
effect varies so that "to the one we are the savor of death unto
death. and to the other the savor of life unto life." "The
general effect . . . is to break the shackles of superstition and to make
people independent, but these effects are of questionable profit to those
who are not disciples in the school of Christ. To others, freedom and
light of knowledge are apt to bring nearly as much bane as blessing,
leading often to arrogance, self-conceit, unkindness, boastfulness,
combativeness, dissatisfaction, and general unhappiness. These evil
results come upon those who are made free in some respects only, and left
bound in other respects; and this is the general and growing condition
of the civilized world today, including the majority in the nominal
church. Sin's BondageOur
Lord's explanation that follows our text, that "whosoever committeth
sin is the servant of sin" (John 8:34), is used by the Apostle Paul
as the basis of his discussion in the sixth to the eighth chapters of
Romans, culminating in the glorious prospect of every creature in the
universe having the opportunity of deliverance from, every form of bondage
into the glorious liberty of the sons of God. (Rom. 8:21.) The One who has
planned this transfer from the kingdom of darkness into His Kingdom of
Light determined that every one in it should first have an adequate
acquaintance with bondage before having freedom offered to him. The little
handful comprising the Church are granted in advance of the rest what
amounts to a complete liberation, but without depriving them of the advantages
of contact with sin and its ravages. The fact that they are left in the
midst of an evil world under the rulership of the most guilty of all
sinners, the hardest of all taskmasters, does not lessen their freedom of
heart; no, not even the fact that the new creature must be content to find
its present expression through a body the members of which are distorted
and contaminated by sin. The new creature's own sinful body has no more
effect on its freedom from sin than have the other sinful bodies that
surround it. The new mind is entirely devoted to righteousness, and
therefore, while patiently accepting and profiting by the imperfecions of
its temporary body, and the imperfections of its neighbors and brethren,
it holds a steady reign on every tendency of that natural body. The mind
of Christ can never be a slave to the human appetites and propensities but
must be the master of them. It can never hide behind the excuse,
"That is just my way. For the Christian, however, to take over the
responsibility of regulating the lives of others would be a sin comparable
to that of neglecting to regulate his own life in conformity with the
mind of Christ, thus failing to "dwell" in His Word, to
"walk in the light." The
"Jerusalem which is above is free. . . We, brethren, as Isaac was,
are the children of promise, . . . not children of the bondwoman but of
the free. Stand fast therefore in the liberty wherewith Christ hath made
us free, and be not entangled again with the yoke of bondage." (Gal.
4:26 5:1.) Paul's reference in this passage is evidently to freedom from
the law. For those Jews, as both Jesus and Paul imply, the thing greater
even than being made free from the law, is the freedom offered in common
to Jew and Gentile, freedom from sin and the curse which it brought
death. This deliverance is not merely as regards the final stage of death,
but the death that reigns in our mortal bodies, manifesting itself in
depraved affections, unworthy ambitions, selfish purposes, petty
aversions, prejudices, superstitions, willfulness, fault-finding,
touchiness, impatience, foolish anxieties, fears, avarice, envy, strife,
and a multitude of other little demon qualities that haunt the lives of
all who in any degree seek their own will. What a changed universe it will
be when "the creation itself [R.V.] also shall be delivered from
the bondage of corruption into the glorious liberty of the children of
God." (Rom. 8:21.) This "Declaration of Independence" will
eventually have the signature of every creature in the universe who is
willing to "dwell" in His Word. Already, by various testings,
a little Gideon's band is being found of those who are devoted not only to
the knowing but also to a doing of His will in such fashion that it
pervades every moment of every day. They alone can now truly say,
"The law of the spirit of life
in Christ Jesus has made me free from the law of sin and death."
- Rom. 8:2. Liberty in ChristThe
spirit of life in Christ Jesus must of necessity be in every respect
counter to the spirit of Satan and of the world that he governs. The one '
therefore who s in Christ is a new creature in the most absolute sense,
though it is the will only and not the body that is new. This new creature
is liberated from all blame as to the sinful tendencies of the old body,
for he not only takes no pleasure in its evil ways and desires, but
vigorously opposes them by every effort and strategy he can invent.
Additionally, that his liberation may be complete, he has an imputation of
the merit of Christ's righteousness covering the imperfections -of his
body, and balancing all that is charged to his account in God's records.
"There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ
Jesus" (Rom. 8:1), but instead, freedom "from the law of sin and
death " The situation is paradoxical in that to gain liberty
one must become a bond-servant
of Jesus Christ. This he cannot be and be a man-pleaser. "The fear of
man bringeth a snare," and any one who is in bondage to man or to the
opinion of others cannot serve the Lord with a "single eye." If
he is a slave to himself or to any other creature he must first gain his
freedom to become the bond servant of Jesus Christ. (Gal. 1:10; 4:3, 9.)
"No man can serve two masters." (Matt. 6:24.) The first step of
Christian discipleship, Jesus said, is to "deny self." Thus
having gotten rid of the old master, one is ready to "follow"
the great Burden-bearer. The Christian's Defensive WarfareHaving
attained the liberty that is the result of a personal knowledge of the
truth, there is then a life-long struggle to retain it. In this also our
opponents are the world, the flesh, and the Adversary. These do not
represent merely individuals, but each is a supreme commander of a host
more varied in its methods of attacks than any earthly army with its
numerous divisions. Strangely enough it seems usually to take longer to
learn to know the many devices of the flesh than those of either Satan or
the world. This is largely because its warfare is in the main of the
guerrilla type. Many of its tactics are, however, undoubtedly suggested
by its wily ally. Who else but Satan would have thought of employing such
deceitful phrases as "free-thinker," "I have a mind of my
own," etc., to assure the perpetuance of our slavery to our own
imperfect reasonings. Rare indeed is the Christian who has learned in the
early years of his discipleship that he is not "sufficient of himself
to think [reason, Greek] anything of himself; but our sufficiency is of
God." (2 Cor. 3:5.) What a happy and blessed day it is when that fact
is actually learned and we begin to enjoy the liberty that this truth
gives. The exercising of this liberty consists in following slavishly, but
joyfully, the will of God. Since all in the universe that are not devoted
to the doing of God's will are in "the bondage of corruption,"
His truth alone can make "free indeed." All else is slavery.
When finally Satan's lying labels are torn from all these bondages, which
all but those who "personally know the truth" have been induced
to believe are forms of liberty, the "creation itself" can
"be delivered from the bondage of corruption into the glorious
liberty of the sons of God." The
names of the shackles the world, the flesh, and the Devil have placed upon
us are legion. Time therefore would not permit our even listing them all.
It will, nevertheless, well reward us to briefly glance at a few of the
more common ones, for among them are many that it is possible for one to
wear while boasting of his liberty. Yield Your Members Servants unto HolinessOne
would suppose that surely the lower appetites would be instantly brought
under control of the divine will as soon as the truth is understood that
"Ye are not your own, ye are bought with a price"-with our
gracious heavenly Father's chiefest treasure. (1 Cor. 6:19, 20.) But how
few can claim that "whether we eat or whether we drink, or whatsoever we do, we do all to the glory of God"? (1 Cor.
10:31.) Death even to these lower appetites is a long, a tedious process
for most disciples, for it means that the habits of years must be broken
that the dictates of the flesh may be forsaken and no, human functions be
used "except so far as they operate to fulfill the original and wise
intentions of the Being who implanted them. Still
more subtle are the deceptions of those appetites we speak of as the
higher ones -- desire for knowledge, fellowship, the esteem of others, and
the like. As eating and drinking are essential in our present existence,
so also are these higher propensities. But even though they are less base
than the others, their abuse is none the less to be reprehended. To
acquire knowledge merely that one may argue more effectively, is to
cultivate pride, an inveterate and merciless foe of the new creature. To
seek fellowship merely to gratify the social instinct, is to give
complacence to a starving spirit. Pride is served if the esteem of others
is sought for any purpose other than the glory of God. We are "a
spectacle for men and for angels" not that they might admire us, but
that they might see God in us, as He was manifest in Christ because of His
never varying love for the Father's will. This love for God's will can
mean only that love for righteousness and hatred for evil will always be
active, always in operation. Bondage to WhimsIn
cultivating an aversion to evil one can become so enamored with his
self-righteousness as to be entirely unconscious of the fact that instead
of using this aversion as God intended, he is becoming a slave to it. As
for instance, one might, in his aversion to evil, be continually fretting
and fuming about it; thus making himself and every one else miserable. The
purpose of our experience with evil is that we may learn to set our hearts
on things above. An aversion to evil is inevitable, essential, and proper,
and must in some degree include all imperfections of which we are
conscious. Evil will eventually be banished from' the universe, but the
one who endeavors the impossible task of eradicating it before the time
by attempting a complete reformation of his brethren and neighbors, in
accordance with his own imperfect ideals of perfection, is not only
inevitably doomed to disappointment, but what is more important, he is
using time and energy that could have been, should
have been used in bringing his own body into subjection. But
while aversions to evil are essential and proper for the Christian, there
are other aversions that are improper and should not be encouraged, as
they may deprive one of spiritual blessings. Sometimes, perhaps because
one's mind is in a degree carnal, some little personal trait of a speaker
is made to be of greater importance than the beautiful truths he is
declaring; or the listener, not agreeing with the speaker on every point,
is so engrossed with his disagreements that he fails to discover the many
sanctifying truths on which he could have agreed and received much
benefit. Similarly many privileges of service are missed by those who
choose to perform only those for which their flesh has no aversion, And in
a multitude of other ways uncontrolled aversions rob the life of its joys;
but for the one who has attained emancipation through the power of the
spirit, new beauties unfold every day as he centers his heart, his affection,
his vision on things above and beyond this sin-cursed earth. This is the
walk of faith. Manifestations of Bondage to SelfIn
ways too numerous to mention, bondage to self is manifested: confirmed
fault-finding -- an effort to conform every one to our imperfect judgment;
easily disturbed feelings -- because things are not going our way;
impatience-because our ideal of perfection is not attained by others;
excitement-because others have not agreed with us, etc. He who possesses
true liberty of spirit is not easily excited by opposition. By the power
of grace he has inward strength, and the nature of strength is to be
deliberate. When his views are opposed, therefore, he is not hasty to
reply. While not indifferent, he replies calmly and thoughtfully.
Confidence in God gives confidence in the truth, and we are assured that
God can have no fellowship with that which is opposed to truth. If our own
sentiments or beliefs are not correct, they will pass away in due time;
because "everything which is false necessarily carries in itself the
element of its own destruction." Therefore if the teachings of those
who oppose are false, they bear no stamp of durability. They must sooner
or later fall. Our strong faith in God and in His truth, of which He is
the protector, should destroy all our over-eagerness of nature. We should
therefore be calm amid opposition, patient under rebuke. Again,
he who enjoys this true liberty of spirit, when he has submissively and
conscientiously performed a duty, following the leadings of the Lord,
will not be troubled or unduly anxious with regard to the result. He who
asserts that he has left all in the hands of God, and at the same time
manifests a troubled and agitated spirit about the results, gives
evidence that he has not made the complete surrender which he professes:
Entire surrender and undue anxiety cannot exist at the same time. As
another has remarked, the true spirit of liberty is found only in those
who "keep the heart totally disengaged from [free from enslavement
to] every created thing, in order that they may follow the known will of
God"; or only in those who, in the words of St. Paul, are "dead,
and their life is hid with Christ in God." The supremacy of the
divine will in our life, the reign of God in our heart, must necessarily
have a direct and powerful operation in our mortal body, bringing all
into subjection and subordination to that will. True liberty consists in
being free from self; liberated from the dominion of the world -- a heart
where the Spirit of God rules. From
all forms of bondage there may be temporary liberation by human means,
and there will be moments of peace and happiness resulting; but there is
only the one means by which permanent deliverance may be accomplished.
This blessing is for those who "get to personally know the
truth" by the process of "dwelling" in His
"Word." One simple and glorious truth, if made a transforming
power in the life, is sufficient to emancipate one from nearly all the
enslavements of self that have been mentioned. That truth, "In thee
and in thy seed shall all the families of the earth be blessed," reveals
the "Kingdom of heaven" and its divine King. "If we hope
for that we see not, then do we with patience wait for it." (Rom.
8:25.) "God be thanked, that [though] ye were the servants of sin, ye
have obeyed from the heart that form of doctrine which was delivered you.
Being then made free from sin, ye became the servants of
righteousness." (Rom. 6:17, 18.) "Like as Christ was raised up
from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also [who claim to
have been made free by the truth] should walk in newness of life." -
Rom. 6:4. -
P. E. Thomson (Condensed
from July, 1942 Herald) "Even at the Doors""What
will be the sign of
thy
presence, and of
the
consummation of
the age?" IN
the May-June issue of the Herald we expressed the belief that the
very fact that the disciples asked the Lord what the sign of his presence
would be, indicated a recognition on their part that it might be possible
for them to reach the end of the Age, and be actually living in the days
of his second presence, and not know it. As corroborating this view we
noted that that very condition had obtained at his first advent. Signs,
plain and eloquent enough to those who had eyes to see and ears to hear,
failed altogether of recognition by the great majority of "his
own to whom he came (John 1:11). Again,
dear brethren, we urge the utmost consideration of others who may not be
able to reach our conclusions. In his own mind it is, and not in that of
another, that the Apostle urges every man to be fully persuaded (Rom.
14:5). No matter how sure we may be that we have the truth on this or on
any other subject, we know not anything yet as we ought to know it (1 Cor.
8:2). When we know even as we are known, we shall realize how dim even our
clearest vision here has been (1 Cor. 13:12). Meantime let us think and
let think. And as we test the teachings which come to us (1 John 4:1), let
us observe carefully the effect which such teachings have had in the lives
of those who introduce them to us (1 Pet. 1:22; Heb. 13:7). PAROUSIASince
these views depend to some extent on our understanding of the word parousia,
it will be appropriate at this juncture to consider objections which
have been urged against its translation by the word presence. One brother
whose Christian character and sincerity we do not for a moment question,
but with whose conclusions we cannot agree, writes as follows: "The
teaching that our Lord has already come and is invisibly present is based
largely upon the understanding that the Greek word parousia is
fully and solely represented by the English word presence, whilst not a
few appear to be under the impression that the Greek word connotes unseen
presence. A few remarks concerning this word, therefore, may not be out of
place here. This word occurs 24 times in the That
the word parousia is frequently used without any reference to our
Lord's return is undoubtedly true, as anyone may see for himself by
reference to the twenty-four places in the New Testament in which it
appears. Furthermore, the impression, if any hold it, that the word
denotes an unseen presence is doubtless erroneous. Nothing in the word parousia
indicates whether the presence of the person or thing under discussion
is seen or unseen. That must be determined by the context in every
case. But that the literal meaning of parousia is presence no
scholar disputes. In the two instances in which it is thus translated in
the Authorized Version it is evident that the translators realized neither
coming nor arrival would do. "For his [Paul's] letters, say they, are
weighty and powerful; but his bodily presence is weak, and his speech contemptible"
(2 Cor. 10:10). To say that his bodily coming or his bodily arrival is
weak would not make sense. Yet it is the same Greek word parousia translated
coming in the other twentytwo places. Again "Wherefore, my beloved,
as ye have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in
my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling"
(Phil. 2:12). Manifestly the Apostle is not contrasting his coming with
his going or his arrival with his departure, but, as the translators
themselves recognized, his presence with his absence, and the obedience of
the Church not at the moment of his arrival or departure, but during the
period of both his presence and his absence. The
translators of the R.S.V., while retaining the word coming in the text of
many passages, disclose in the margin that the literal meaning of the
Greek is presence. This is confirmed by the word-for-word translation of
the Diaglott,* although the version given in its margin frequently
deviates therefrom. ------------------------------ *Except
in two instances (1 Thess. 3:13 and 4:15) where, for some reason not
apparent, coming is given. ROTHERHAM'S EXPERIENCE WITH PAROUSIASome
of our readers may recall the series of articles on "Signs of the Master's
Presence" which appeared in this journal thirty-four years ago. They
may remember that in the issue for October 1936 we examined the word parousia
and were not a little perplexed that so able a scholar as Rotherham
did not translate it uniformly by the word presence in the twenty-four
places in which it occurs. At that time we said: "Rotherham,
who does not deny, but affirms, the correctness of presence, uses
arrival twenty times and presence only four times. When so learned a
scholar as Rotherham selects arrival rather than presence for his
translation, although admitting presence to be the literal meaning, we are
naturally interested in learning his reasons. But when we ascertain them,
they prove singularly unconvincing. In an elaborate footnote to 1
Thessalonians 2:19 he labors (unsuccessfully, we think) to vindicate his
position. We quote: 'The
sense of presence is so plainly shown by the contrast with absence,
implied in 2 Cor. 10:10, and expressed in Phil. 2:12, that the question
may be asked, Why not always so render it?' [Yes, Brother Rotherham,
we do ask this very question.] 'The answer is,' he continues, 'because parousia,
in some cases, plainly marks an event rather than a condition, a
transitional point, rather than a continuous line. Take for example, 1 Cor.
15:23. Here the three points: first, Christ's resurrection; second, his parousia;
third, his delivering up the Kingdom, etc. The parousia will
not fall into series, will not file off a rank in the resurrection, except
as a point. Hence, for this place, presence, a state, is not the word;
coming or arrival may be.' "But
what if it should appear that in 1 Cor. 15:23 the resurrection, the parousia,
and the delivering up of the Kingdom are not three points, three
events, but are three states, three periods of time? In that case this
argument of Rotherham's would fall to the ground, and he himself would
then, presumably, always translate parousia by
presence." Just
after The Herald for October, 1936 had gone to press we learned
that the second edition of Rotherham's New Testament, which was the one in
our library, had been followed some years later, by a third edition,* in
which parousia is consistently translated presence. Note the
following, from the Appendix of his third edition, given in his own words,
under the caption, "Presence." -------------------------- *
This valuable third edition was reprinted in 1959, and is supplied by our
Institute at $12.95 postpaid. "In
this edition the word parousia is uniformly rendered presence
(coming as a representative of this word, being set aside). The
original term occurs twenty-four times in the New Testament. The sense
of presence is so plainly shown by the contrast with absence (implied in 2
Cor. 10:10, and expressed in Phil. 2:12) that the question naturally
arises, Why not always so render it? The more so, inasmuch as there is in
2 Pet. 1:16 also, a peculiar fitness in our English word presence. This
passage, it will be remembered, relates to our Lord's transformation upon
the Mount. The wonderful manifestation there made was a display and sample
of presence rather than of coming. The Lord was already there; and,
being there, he was transformed and the majesty of his glorified person
was then disclosed. His bodily presence was one which implied and exerted
power; so that power and presence go excellently well together--the power
befitting such a presence; and the three favored disciples were at one
and the same moment witnesses of both. The difficulty expressed in the
notes to the second edition of this New Testament in the way of so
yielding to this weight of evidence as to render parousia always by
presence, lay in the seeming incongruity of regarding presence as an event
which would happen at a particular time and which would fall into rank
as one of a series of events, as 1 Cor. 15:23 especially appeared to require.
The translator still feels the force of this objection, but is withdrawn
from taking his stand upon it any longer by the reflection that, after
all, the difficulty may be imaginary. The parousia in any case is
still in the future, and may therefore be enshrouded in a measure of
obscurity which only fulfilment can clear away: it may, in fine, be both a
period - more or less extended, during which certain things shall
happen and an event, coming on and passing away as one of a series
of divine interpositions. Christ is raised as a first-fruit - that is one
event; he returns and vouchsafes his presence, during which he raises his
own -- that is another event, however large and prolonged; and finally
comes another cluster of events constituting the end. Hence, after all,
presence may be the most widely and permanently satisfying translation of
the looked-for parousia of the Son of Man." OUR LORD'S PAROUSIA OCCUPIES A PERIOD OF TIMEOther
scholars of note have written in a similar vein. Amongst those we have
consulted may be mentioned G. H. Pember, The Great Prophecies (1881);
J. A. Beet, The Last Things (1898); George Milligan, St. Paul's
Epistles to the Thessalonians (1908); and J. A. Seiss, The Last
Time (1878). From the last named we submit the following extracts: "It
is now clear to the writer, that what the Scriptures call the Coming of
Christ, at the end of this Age, is not a single, but a complex event,
stretching through various periods and administrations, each being
sometimes referred to as the Coming, though in reality only a part, stage,
or section of it. In this respect, the Second Advent is a counterpart of
the First, and presents the same characteristic distributiveness. If any
one will be at the pains to examine, it will be found that the prophecies
which foretold Christ's first coming can, by no possibility, be all
referred to one precise day, hour, year, scene, or event, but spread
themselves over a period of more than thirty years. Christ came when
he was born at Bethlehem; he came when called out of Egypt; he came
when John presented him to the people as the Messiah; he came when
he announced himself at Nazareth; he came when he rode into
Jerusalem on the ass; he came when he reappeared after his death.
And yet there were not a half dozen advents, but one advent. All these
separate presentations, at different dates and places, are comprehended
under what the Prophets, and we still, denote, both separate and together,
by the general and comprehensive expression of his coming, or
First Advent. Thus, Micah had said that he should 'come' out of
Bethlehem - Ephratah; and Hosea had said that he should come 'out
of Egypt'; Malachi had said that he should 'suddenly come to his
temple'; Zechariah had said that he should come to Zion 'riding
upon an ass, and upon a colt the foal of an ass'; Isaiah had said that he
would come 'in the land of Zebulun, and the land of Naphtali,' as
'a great light'; while other Prophets had said that he would come out
of Nazareth. Each of these predictions had its literal fulfillment, and
each fulfillment was his Coming; but they were after all so many
different scenes, stages, or manifestations in the one Coming, which
is called the first, in contradistinction to the second. In
other words, the Advent was complex, consisting of many diverse facts
and presentations, in different localities, and successively running
through the course of thirty-three years. These several prophecies could
not possibly be fulfilled, except by the intervention of time to give the
place for them. And, as a matter of fact, a succession of years was
covered in the fulfillment. "This,
then, is the key by which to explain and reconcile the equally
numerous and diverse predictions concerning the Second Coming. It
is not a singular and simple thing, all accomplished in the same moment of
time, or in one isolated event or scene; but it is a succession and
variety of scenes, events, and manifestations, each of which is called the
Coming, but all of which together make up the complex of the one Second
Advent. "If
any will look up the various passages which describe the Second Advent, it
will be seen that no man can do justice to the language of inspiration,
and yet construe them all with reference to one and the same thing,
occurring in one and the same point of time. In the nature of things,
Christ cannot come 'as a thief in the night,' and at the same time be
openly displayed in the clouds of heaven with 'every eye' gazing upon him.
It is impossible that his coming for his saints - the gathering
of them up from their graves, avocations, fields, and beds (1 Cor. 15:22,
23, 51, 52; 1 Thess. 4:15-17; Luke 17:34-37) should be identical in time
and character with his coming 'with his saints' (Jude 14, 15; Zech.
14:4, 5; Rev. 19:11-14). It is simply out of the question, that the
precise coming spoken of in the Apocalyptic Epistles to the Seven
Churches, or that referred to in Rev. 16:15, should be the same with that
portrayed in Rev. 19:11-16. The Scriptures also distinguish between a
simple parousia or presence, and the epiphaneia, or appearing.
Where there is an epiphaneia, there is, of course, a presence, but
a manifest, apparent, discernible presence; whilst parousia denotes simply
presence, without the implication of manifestation or visibility. Epiphaneia
is used six times in the New Testament, and is in five instances
rendered appearing, and in the other instance brightness, in the sense of
manifestation; parousia is used about fifteen times, and is uniformly
translated coming, in the general sense of presence, or personal and
local nearness, whether openly and visibly or not. In 2 Thess. 2:8, both
words are used together in reference to the final overthrow or
annihilation of the great anti-Christian confederation, which is said to
be by the epiphaneia of his parousia; that is, by the appearing of
his presence; which involves the implication that the presence,
'coming,' is not manifested or discernible until then, thus showing
that the Advent involves different phases, stages and times." For
those who have not recently done so, we suggest a review of the
twenty-four places in which parousia occurs in the New Testament.
The references are given as a footnote to page 159 of Scripture Studies,
Volume II, and are therefore omitted here. Such a review we have made
ourselves, and find that Brother Russell's position is sustained; parousia
never has the thought of coming, of being on the way but always, in
the New Testament, has the sense of presence, and the context need never
be understood as out of harmony with this sense. However, on this, as on
all matters, we exhort: "Let every man be fully persuaded in his
own mind" (Rom. 14:5). "Let brotherly love continue"
(Heb. 13:1). And even if we think a brother holding a different view from
ours is incompetent to teach us on this particular subject (he may not be
incompetent, but even supposing he is), let us not hastily conclude that
he is, therefore, incompetent to teach us anything. He may have rich
stores of knowledge and wisdom on other lines of Christian doctrine and
experience in which we ourselves may sadly lack, and of which it would be
foolish, to say the least, for us to say we have no need (1 Cor. 12:21). (Continued
in next issue) -
P. L. Read Rest in the Lord"For
we which have believed do enter into rest." - Hebrews 4:3. IN
THE fourth chapter, St. Paul outlines to the Hebrews that the Jewish rest
days and years pointed forward to the Christian's rest in God. Natural
Israel had a seventh day of rest for man and beast; a seventh year of rest
for the land; the forty-ninth year was a specially marked year of rest:
and the fiftieth - the jubilee year - was also a Sabbath or rest year. The
forty-ninth year was typical of the Millennium, which is the seventh onethousand-year
period of the last seven thousand-year-day of the Creative week. The
Jubilee, which followed the forty-ninth year, was the time of beginning
again. Each family went back to the old homestead that had been
apportioned to it when Israel entered the promised land. If misfortune, improvidence,
or sickness had caused the sale of the land, it was returned in fee simple
to the original possessors, debts were canceled, and truly Israel began
living over again. This fiftieth jubilee year typified the Grand Jubilee
period following the Millennial reign of Jesus. Above, we said that the
Jew had these rest periods, but history shows that actually very
few of the Sabbaths were kept in accord with the Law's requirements. One
would think that the Jew, promised that God would look out for him and
told that, "You only have I known of all the families of the
earth," would have been glad to let God work out his purposes in
Judah. One
would think that after they had slipped away from him, only a little
reminder by way of chastisement would be needed to bring them back into
cooperation with God, to the restful condition of trusting in and obeying
him. Each of us, no doubt, has marveled that the Jews were so stiff-necked
as not to heed the Prophets; and after the repeated punishments in the
form of captivities, plagues, crop failures, and troubles untold, not to
heed Jesus, sent to, them by the Heavenly Father. Evidently, similar
thoughts were going through Jesus' mind when he spoke the parable of the
householder (Matt. 21:3341). The immediate meaning was that Israel was
the vineyard, set up with great demonstrations of divine power in Canaan.
The former inhabitants were dispossessed and nothing left undone to
enable Israel to keep the Law, to faithfully perform the typical
sacrifices, and other features of the ceremonial law, and to bring forth
the fruits of Rest in God. But those who sat in Moses' seat in charge of
Israel, used their positions for their own gain and aggrandizement. It was
they who persecuted Jeremiah, and it was they who killed Jesus by their
conspiracies. The
Jew was not content to be a small nation ruled over by prophets, but
demanded a king. The Jew could not bring himself to let the land lie idle
each seventh year. Their greed would not let them pay the tithe or tenth
of their increase to God. The sacrifices of the temple were considered
wasteful. To have to give back the land and cancel all accounts receivable
each fiftieth year was too much for the Jew's acquisitiveness; they just
could not do it. St.
Paul says in the fourth chapter, "Some must enter into God's
rest," and since the Jews would not, "then we which have
believed do enter into rest." In Genesis 2:2, 3, it is recorded that
after the creation of the earth, the animals, and finally Adam and Eve,
God rested from all his work which he had created and made. Scripture
Studies, Vol. VI, Chapter I, has shown good reason to believe that the
first six days of the Creative Week were each seven thousand years long,
and that the seventh is also seven thousand years in duration. This
seventh day started after the creation of Adam and Eve, and will continue
until the end of the Millennial reign of Christ. God has been resting
"from all his works" during the reign of sin and death. This,
therefore, is the "Rest of God" to which the saints are invited. THE REST OF FAITH IS BLISSIn
Romans, chapter eleven, St. Paul says that if the natural tame olive
branches-the Jews-were broken off through unbelief, it would also be easy
for the wild olive branches -- the Gentiles (who were grafted in to take
the place of the cast-off Jew) to, be broken off. Again in Hebrews (4:11),
he says: "Let us labor therefore to enter into that rest, lest any
man fall after the same example of unbelief." God's rest has not been
a rest of inactivity, and neither is our rest in God to be a lazy man's
rest. It takes vigilance, careful planning and agonizing labor to
enter into God's rest. It is not easy and effortless for the Christian to
deny himself, to stop doing his own work, destroy his natural ambitions,
and instead to work the works of Him that called us out of darkness into
his marvelous light. And Satan is always at hand to aid and abet our flesh
and the world in ensnaring us into denial of our consecration. In
all things, the Jew was an ensample--a type. In his falling away, his
unbelief, his willfulness, he typed the Gospel Church. Even in the casting
away of the Jewish nation they are typical of the casting off of the
Nominal Church (1 Cor. 10:1-14). Here
we are in a world that is on fire; the winds of war are breaking up what
remains of the Gentile beastly governments. When wars have weakened the
old governments, the earthquakes finish the work, and social revolutionary
governments replace the antitypical Ahab and Jezebel governments. But
revolutionary governments are unstable, and already we see evidence of the
swift approach of the fire of anarchy. Men's hearts are "failing them
for fear, and for looking after those things ... coming on the
earth," even as with those at our Lord's first advent. The still
small voice of Millennial peace, happiness, and goodwill to men has not
yet been heard (Luke 21:26; 1 Kings 19:11-13). And in the Church is
mirrored the same hectic conditions as prevail in the world. Are the
sparks of the worldly conflagration falling in our backyards? Are we being
forced into quarrelsomeness toward one another by worldly-mindedness, and
are these conditions causing us to lose our Rest in the Lord? If so, let
us heed Psalm 116:7: "Return unto thy rest, 0 my soul; for the Lord
hath dealt bountifully with thee. For Thou hast delivered my soul from
death, mine eyes from tears, and my feet from falling." Today
we hear in the Church demands for more and greater works. Is this our
inheritance of Jewish longings for power and bigness? Have we forgotten
Jesus' words, "Fear not little flock, it is the Father's good
pleasure to give you the Kingdom." We
need no feverish excitement of work. Let us do with our might what
our hands find to do, but still rest in faith. If all the servants
are not sealed in their foreheads, the winds of trouble will be held back
until this has been accomplished (Rev. 7:1-4). As New Creatures we have
ceased from our works as God did from his. The Church is not our church
or yours, nor any one's but God's. This preaching of the Gospel is
God's work. So we should lay down our lives for the brethren, and leave
the results with God. We should "preach the word. Be instant in
season and out of season," and yet be in that peaceful, restful, and
hopeful attitude of heart - resting in faith. Rest
implies dependence. When we rest physically, we relax all our muscles and
rely upon something or someone. Standing erect illustrates
self-sufficiency and the opposite of rest. Standing is accomplished by
sets of muscles pulling the bony framework of the body. One set in the
frontal portion pulls the body forward. Opposed to this, another set of
muscles in the posterior portion pulls the bony structure backward. By
the tension of the two the body is from within balanced from front to
back. Similar muscles on the right and left side keep the body from
falling sidewise from the erect. A portion of the brain is devoted to
keeping us in balance, and so perfect is the organism, that no thought
is required. We usually lie horizontally when we rest. We depend on a bed,
spring, and mattress to keep us from falling. So it is with the Christian,
we must depend upon God to fight our battles: to work his great work in
us: to bring order out of chaos in the world and in the Church. HOLDING FAST THE CONFIDENCE
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