Conditional Immortality.

Thames Star, Volume XIII, Issue 4297, 9 October 1882, Page 2

Conditional Immortality.

At the Oddfellows' Hall last night Mr E. H. Taylor replied to the Rev. H. Bull's sermon on " The state of the soul between death and the resurrection." He read for the lesson part of the 6th chapter of St. John's Gospel, iv which Christ confutes the Pharisees and Sadiucees, and drew attention to- tbo great stress laid by Christ on the fact that it- was through Him alone that eternal life—the power to lire for ever— could be obtained. In this chapter Christ also says four times, speaking of believers, "I will raise him up at the last day." The text was in Job 14th, the 10th, 12th, and 14th verses—" But man dieth and wasteth away; yea, man giveth up the ghost, and where is he ? So man lieth down and riseth not; till the heavens be no more, they shall not awake, nor be raised out of their' sleep. If a man die, shall he lire again P All the days of my appointed time will I wait, till my change come," Notice in the 10th v

verse that man dietii and wasteth away. Orthodoxy said the soul was the man, bat if so, it must die ; if the spirit, the same tiling would befall it; but if the body,, then the text would be fulfilled. Id the Scriptures "soul" and "spirit" were never con* founded ;. they mean separate things. The spirit was an emanation from God, Iby which all things existed; take it away, or even make it impure, and all things would die. Mr Bull said because , s mjo wji^not called..an '; immorUljßOuT' in the Bible, it was denied that his soul is 1 umnfrfal, and people might jqttas well, deny' 'that Christ was divine; became <&4eU|hof Christ" is not meafci*ned. -„ Mr jTaylor contended that there was no [parallel in these two cases/because Christ jicame down from Heaven, but man never 'did. Mr Bull said Scriptow affirmed that there was an intermediate stateMfoth for the good and the bad, and that both were alive in that state. In a little hand-, book issued by the revisers 6f the New Testament called, '.'Help to, . Bible Students," a list was given of all the words in the Testament that had ambiguous meanings, and there was not one that referied to the punishment of the wicked in this list. If the souls of all good men went to Heaven when their bodies died, what need was there for the blood of Abel to cry unto God (Gen. 4—8.", 10.) Would it not be more reasonable to expect, if orthodox teaching be tru¥, tfut nis-BOi|l would go to God- and tell him that Cain had slain his body. In the llth chapter of Hebrews, 4th verse, Paul said that Abel was at that time dead. In Psalms 49—15 v. it was said " Thou wilt redeem ray aoul from the power of' the grave." Mr Bull said the doctrine of the immortality of the soul had been upheld by the learning of both Prostestants and Catholics ;. but all the great men Were not on their side. Pope .John the 12th was deposed in 1319.. for rejecting the belief in the immortality, of the soul, and John Wesley said in the 235 th page of volume 3- of bis sermons, that the general belief that the souls of good and bad men went to heaven or hell at death had no foundation in the oracles of God, for Christ said,' after he had risen from the grave,—" Touch me not,'for I have not yet ascended' unto my Father." Both Tyridall and Martin Luther, who were-shining lights in earlier days, upheld the belief that all men slept between death and the resurrection. - Mr Bull quoted the passage to the effect that Dives, the rich man, was sent, to torment, but he (Mr Taylor) contended that none could say which was the good or bad man of the two men spoken of in the parable, for 0 tire Bible did not say; and rit itdTtScfiilent about the soul or spirit of ''eTtWr $ih.:- The 2nd chapter of Coriri» thiansTjW-tt'&f bP $tipyto**i "*OT also quoted ra'rop^Swt^ We^coiiiious state of the dead. «hrt;'lf J*» 10th verse was read'ifclteu«ri*W**» that Paul was referring to tht vMurrcotion state when he desired to.he^bjent f?om the body and present with the'^ordr Martin Luther said that when all awoke at the resurrection; itTwoutobseen* tothem m iff they had hardly slept a minute. The dying thief on the cross asked to b Te remembered by Christ'when He camera' His kingdom, and when he was promised that^he would that day be with Christ in pa*adi«e,ao doubt, Jesus referred"tro the same dajr'va the thief spoke" of~fcb!e resurrection day. If it was'riot: understood st© mean this, Christ only rewarded'the thief t bjr^gta|iff him three days of his eompaoionslti^ |n Hades —a poor recompense., for^ j^he wondrous faith shown., No, when the thief awoke on the last day, it would still be to him the same day as when he died, for those in the grave know nqt anything. With reference to the * resurrection of children, be would point ihent to J^pmiah. 31—15 to 17 verses. The subject of Paul's being caught up into the third, beaten, also quoted' by Mr Bull, will be. dealt-with on Thursday evening in the Bible class. In conclusion, Mr Taylor said it was only when the second coming of Christ began to be lost sight of that the belief in the immortality of the soul gained ground, and exhorted all his hearers to search the Scriptures, thaUhey might be found worthy to take.'partt ljtitle first resurrection.