WOOD HILL.

Kaipara and Waitemata Echo, 14 August 1912, Page 3

WOOD HILL.

An address was given by Mr Milner at Woodhill last week on the subject of ''Immortality.'" He paid the churches weie «o far astray on this subject that man's natural immortality had become the basis of modern theology, and yet this teaching is not only unscriptural but anti»scriptural. The bible record of man's origin, nature, and destiny is clear and definite: "God formed man out of the dust," and the scriptures from beginning to end emphasise the fact that man is ' of the

earth earthly.' Then God ' breathed into his nostrils the breath of life,' this breath, or spirit of life is in all flesh (Gon, 7, 15), the preacher has put this very plain ' for what befalleth the sons of men befalleth the beasts, yea they all have one spirit.' (Ecc. 3. 19J. Further, notice the result of the withdrawal of tins spirit ' If God should take unto himself his spirit, all flesh should peiish together, and man would turn into dust apain ' (Job. 34,1-]). Nowhere in the scriptures does that word spirit, imply personality, it is the life principle that animates all flesh. Thus quickened, we are told man became a living soul and here again he has no pre.eminpiico over the beasts, for this phrase ' living soul' is twice used of animals in Genesis 1, in fact in the first nine ohapters it is found ten times and only this once (Gen 2-7) refers to man. Then we are 'iinforme 1 (Gen. 3-23) that man was cut off from the tree of life Jest he should eat and live for ever, so it is plain he had uot immortal life. Mr Milner then contended that no man had immortality, and it could bo received only as a gift of God through Jesus Christ, by thos<> who complied with the conditions laid down in the scriptures. To those who fulfill the conditions it is written " Your life is with Christ in. God, and when Christ, who is our lite, shall appear then shall we also appear Avith him in glory," (Col. 3-3\