Part 2 (2/2)

Now, you behold the apple tree, and all the trees, when they begin to shoot forth their leaves, ye know of your own selves that summer is nigh at hand; and so likewise when ye shall see great earthquakes, famines, pestilence, and plagues of every kind; the sea breaking beyond its bounds, and all things in commotion; the nations distressed with perplexity; men's hearts failing them for fear, and for looking for the things which are coming on the earth; when you see signs in the heaven above, and in the earth beneath, blood, and fire, and vapor of smoke, the sun turned to darkness, the moon to blood, and stars hurled from their courses; when you see the Jews gathering to Jerusalem, and the armies of the nations gathering against them to battle, you may know, with a perfect knowledge, that Christ's coming is near, even at the doors. ”_Verily, I say_ unto you, _this_ generation shall not pa.s.s till all these things be fulfilled.” Heaven and earth shall pa.s.s away, but not one word of all that the Lord has spoken by the mouth of His holy Prophets and Apostles shall fail.

Whoever will look to the word of the Prophets, and to the sayings of Jesus Christ, on this subject, the same will be convinced that all the signs of which I have spoken are clearly pointed out as the signs of His coming. But, notwithstanding all these things are written, His coming will overtake the world unawares, as the flood did the people in the days of Noah. The reason is, they will not understand the Prophets. They will not endure sound doctrine; their ears are turned away from the truth, and turned to fables, because of false teachers, and the precepts of men; and what is still worse, when G.o.d sends men with the New and Everlasting Covenant, and clothes them with boldness to testify to the truth, they will be treated as the servants of G.o.d have been before them by the fallen churches; every church will cleave to its own way, and will unite in saying: ”There is no need of these new things, the good old way is right;” while at the same time they are walking in as many different ways as there are sects, and only agree in persecuting and speaking all manner of evil against the fishers and hunters whom G.o.d shall send. But, thank heaven, there are individuals in every sect who are humbly seeking the truth, and who will know the voice of truth, and be gathered out, and planted in the New and Everlasting Covenant; and they will be adopted into the family of Israel, and will be gathered with them, and be partakers of the same covenant of promise. Yea, as Jeremiah says, in the sixteenth chapter of his Prophecies: ”The Gentiles shall come unto thee from the ends of the earth, and shall say, surely our fathers have inherited lies, vanities, and things wherein there is no profit.” But as the Jews overlooked Christ's first coming, by not understanding the Prophets, and fastening their whole expectations on His glorious coming in the last days, to restore the kingdom to Israel, and avenge them of their enemies, and, by this mistake, were broken and scattered; so the Gentiles will overlook the prophecies concerning His second coming, by confounding them with the last judgment, which is to take place more than a thousand years afterward. But this fatal mistake, instead of causing the Gentiles to be broken and scattered, will cause them to be ground to powder.

O my brethren, according to the flesh, my soul mourns over you, and had I a voice like a trumpet, I would cry, Awake, awake and arouse from your slumber, for the time is fulfilled, your destruction is at the door, ”for I have heard from the Lord G.o.d of Hosts, a consumption, even determined upon the whole earth!” Prepare to meet your G.o.d I And again, Awake, O house of Israel, and lift up your heads, for your redemption draweth nigh: yea, depart ye, depart ye, go ye out from hence, gather home from your long dispersion, rebuild your cities; yea, go ye out from the nations, from one end of heaven to the other; but let not your flight be in haste, for the Lord shall go before you, and the G.o.d of Israel shall be your rearward! And finally, I would say to all, both Jew and Gentile, Repent ye, repent ye, for the great day of the Lord is at hand; for if I, who am a man, do lift up my voice, and call upon you to repent, and ye hate me, what will ye say when the day cometh, when the thunders shall utter their voices to the ends of the earth, speaking to the ears of all that live, saying: ”Repent, and prepare for the great day of the Lord?” Yea, again, when the lightnings shall streak from the east unto the west, and shall utter forth their voices unto all that live, and make the ears of all that hear to tingle, saying these words: ”Repent ye, for the great day of the Lord is come?” And again, the Lord shall utter His voice out of heaven, saying: ”Hearken, O ye nations of the earth, and hear the words of that G.o.d who made you: O ye nations of the earth, how oft would I have gathered you together as a hen gathereth her chickens under her wings, but ye would not! How often have I called upon you by the mouth of my servants, and by the ministering of angels, and by mine own voice, and by the voice of thunderings, and by the voice of lightnings, and by the voice of tempests, and by the voice of earthquakes and great hailstorms, and by the voice of famine and pestilences of every kind, and by the great sound of a trumpet, and by the voice of judgments, and by the voice of mercy, all the day long, and by the voice of glory and honor, and the riches of eternal life, and would have saved you with an everlasting salvation, but you would not! Behold, the day has come, when the cup of the wrath of mine indignation is full.”

CHAPTER III.

THE KINGDOM OF G.o.d.

”Seek first the Kingdom of G.o.d.”

This was the command of the Savior, while on the earth, teaching the children of men.

Having taken a general view of the prophecies, past and future, we shall now proceed to fulfil this command, and search out the kingdom of G.o.d. But, before we advance, I would again caution the reader not to accompany me in this research, unless he is prepared to sacrifice everything, even to his good name, and life itself, if necessary, for the truth; for if he should once get a view of the kingdom of G.o.d, he will be so delighted that he never will rest satisfied short of becoming a subject of the same. And yet it will be so unlike every other system of religion now on earth, that he will be astonished that any person, with the Bible in his hand, should ever have mistaken any of the systems of men for the kingdom of G.o.d. There are certain powers, privileges, and blessings, pertaining to the kingdom of G.o.d, which are found in no other kingdom, nor enjoyed by any other people.

By these it was over distinguished from all other kingdoms and systems, insomuch that the inquiring mind, seeking the kingdom of G.o.d, and being once acquainted with these peculiarities concerning it, need never mistake it, or be at a loss to know when he has found it. But, before we proceed any further in our research, let us agree upon the meaning of the term, the Kingdom of G.o.d, or the sense in which we will use it; for some apply this term to the kingdom of glory above, and some to the individual enjoyment of their own souls, while others apply it to His organized government on the earth. Now, when We speak of the kingdom of G.o.d, we wish it to be understood that we mean His organized government on the earth.

Now, reader, we launch forth into the wide field before us in search of a kingdom. But stop, let us consider--what is a kingdom? I reply, that four things are required in order to const.i.tute any kingdom in heaven or on earth; namely, first, a king; secondly, commissioned officers duly qualified to execute his ordinances and laws; thirdly, a code of laws by which the subjects are governed; and fourthly, subjects who are governed. Where these exist in their proper order and regular authority, there is a kingdom, but where either of these ceases to exist, there is a disorganization of the kingdom; consequently an end of it, until reorganized after the same manner as before. It this respect the kingdom of G.o.d is like all other kingdoms; wherever we find officers duly commissioned and qualified by the Lord Jesus, together with His ordinances and laws existing in purity, unmixed with any precepts or commandments of men, there the kingdom of G.o.d exists, and there His power is manifest, and His blessings are enjoyed as in days of old.

We shall now take a view of the setting up of the kingdom of G.o.d in the days of the Apostles. The first intimation of its near approach was by an angel to Zachariah, promising him a son, who should go before the King to prepare his way. The next manifestation was to Mary, and finally to Joseph, by a holy angel, promising the birth of the Messiah: while at the same time, the Holy Ghost manifested unto Simeon, in the temple, that he should not die until he had seen the Savior. Thus, all these, together with the shepherds and the wise men from the east, began to rejoice with a joy unspeakable and full of glory, while the world around them knew not the occasion of their joy.

After these things, all seemed to rest in silent expectation, until John had grown to manhood, when he came bounding from the wilderness of Judea, with a proclamation strange and new, crying: ”Repent ye, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand,” baptizing unto repentance, telling them plainly that their King was already standing among them, on the point of setting up His kingdom. And while he yet ministered, the Messiah came, and was baptized, and sealed with the Spirit of G.o.d, which rested on Him in the form of a dove; and soon after began the same proclamation as John, saying--”Repent ye, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.” Then, after choosing twelve disciples, He sent them forth into all the cities of Judea, with the same proclamation-- ”The kingdom of heaven is at hand;” and after them He sent seventy, and then another seventy, with the same news, so that all might be well warned and prepared for a kingdom which was soon to be organized amongst them.

But when these things had produced the desired effect, in causing a general expectation, more especially in the hearts of His disciples, who daily expected to triumph over their persecutors, by the coronation of this glorious personage, while they themselves were hoping for a reward for all their toil and sacrifices for His sake, by being exalted to dignity near His person, what must have been their disappointment, when they saw their King taken and crucified, having been mocked, derided, ridiculed, and finally overcome, and triumphed over, both by Jew and Gentile? They would gladly have died in battle to have placed Him upon the throne; but tamely to submit without a struggle, to give up all their expectations, and sink in despair from the highest pitch of enthusiasm to the lowest degradation, was more than they could well endure. They shrank back in sorrow, and returned every man to his own net, or to their several occupations, supposing all was over; probably with reflections like these: ”Is this the result of all our labors? was it for this we forsook all worldly objects, our friends, our houses and lands, suffering persecution, hunger, fatigue and disgrace? And we trust it should have been He who would have delivered Israel; but alas, they have killed Him, and all is over. For three years we have awakened a general expectation through all Judea, by telling them that the kingdom of heaven was at hand, but now our King is dead, how shall we dare to look the people in the face?”

With these reflections, each pursuing his own course, all was again turned to silence, and the voice had ceased to be heard in Judea, crying: ”Repent ye, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.” Jesus slept in the arms of death; a great stone with the seal of of state, secured the tomb where he lay, while the Roman guard stood in watchful silence, to see that all was kept secure; when suddenly, from the regions of glory, a mighty angel descended, at whoso presence the soldiers fell back as dead men, while he rolled the stone from the door of the sepulchre, and the Son of G.o.d awoke from His slumbers, burst the bonds of death, and soon after appearing to Mary, He sent her to the disciples with the joyful news of His resurrection, and appointed a place to meet them. When, after seeing Him, all their sorrow was turned into joy, and all their former hopes were suddenly revived, they had no longer to cry--”The kingdom of heaven is at hand,” but were to tarry at Jerusalem until the kingdom was established; and they prepared to unlock the door of the kingdom, and to adopt strangers and foreigners into it as legal citizens, by administering certain laws and ordinances, which were invariably the laws of adoption, and without which no man could ever become a citizen.

Having ascended up on high, and having been crowned with all power in heaven and on earth, He again comes to His disciples, and gives them their authority, saying unto them: ”Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature. He that believeth, and is baptized, shall be saved; but he that believeth not shall be d.a.m.ned.

And these signs shall follow them that believe: In my name shall they cast out devils; they shall speak with new tongues; they shall take up serpents; and if they drink any deadly thing it shall not hurt them; they shall lay hands on the sick, and they shall recover.” Mark, xvi, 15-18. Now I wish the reader not to pa.s.s over this commission until he understands it, because when once understood, he never need mistake the kingdom of G.o.d, but will at once discover those peculiarities which were forever to distinguish it from all other kingdoms or religious systems on earth. Lest he should misunderstand, we will a.n.a.lyze it, and look at each part carefully in its own proper light; first, they were to preach the Gospel, or in other words, the glad tidings of a crucified and risen Redeemer, to all the world; secondly, he that believed, and was baptized, should be saved; thirdly, he that did not believe what they preached should be d.a.m.ned; and fourthly, these signs should follow them that believed: first, they were to cast out devils; second, to speak with new tongues; third, to take up serpents; fourth, if they drank any deadly thing, it should not hurt them; fifth, they were to lay hands on the sick, and they should recover.

Now, it is wilful blindness, or ignorance of the English language, that has ever caused any misunderstanding here. For some tell us that those signs were only to follow the Apostles; and others, that they were only to follow believers in that age. But Christ places the preaching, believing, salvation, and the signs that were to follow, all on an equal footing; where one was limited, the other must be; where one ceased, the other did. If the language limits these signs to the Apostles, it limits faith and salvation also to them. If no others were to have these signs follow them, then no others were to believe, and no others were to be saved. Again, if the language limits these signs to the first age or ages of Christianity, then it limits salvation to the first ages of Christianity, for one is precisely as much limited as the other; and where one is in force, the other is; and where one ends, the other must stop. And as well might we say, preaching of the Gospel is no longer needed; neither faith nor salvation; these were only given at first to establish the Gospel; as to say, the signs are no longer necessary, they were only given at first to establish the Gospel. But, says the astonished reader: ”Have not these signs ceased from among men?” I reply, prove that they have ceased, and it will prove that the Gospel has ceased to be preached, that men have ceased to believe and be saved, and that the world is without the kingdom of G.o.d; or else it will prove that Jesus Christ was an impostor, and His promises of no effect.

Now, having a.n.a.lyzed and understood this commission, let us still pursue the subject of the organization of the kingdom of G.o.d in the days of the Apostles. The Savior, having given them their authority, commands them to tarry, and not undertake their mission, until they were endowed with power from on high. But why this delay? Because no man was ever qualified, or ever will be, to preach the Gospel, and teach all things whatsoever Jesus commanded him, without the Holy Ghost; and a very different Holy Ghost, too, from the one enjoyed by men who are not inspired, for the Holy Ghost of which Jesus spake would guide into all truth, bring all things to remembrance, whatsoever He had said unto them, and show them things to come--not to mention that it would enable them to speak in all the languages of the earth. Now, a man who preaches needs that Holy Ghost very much; first, to guide into all truth, that he may know what to teach; second, to strengthen his memory, lest he might neglect to teach some of the things which were commanded him; and, third, he needs to know things to come, that he may forewarn his hearers of approaching danger, and that would const.i.tute him a prophet. From this, the reader may see how careful Jesus was that none should preach His Gospel without the Holy Ghost. He may also learn how different the Spirit of Truth is from the spirit now abroad in the earth, deceiving the world, under the name of the Holy Ghost. If the churches of the present day have the Holy Ghost, why are they so much at a loss to understand truth? Why do they walk in so many different ways and doctrines? Why do they need whole libraries of sermons, tracts, divinities, debates, arguments, and opinions, all written by the wisdom of men, without even professing to be inspired? Well doth the Lord complain, saying: ”Their fear toward me is taught by the precepts of men.” But to return; the Apostles tarried at Jerusalem until endowed with power, and then they commenced to proclaim the Gospel.

Here we have discovered several things towards a kingdom: first, we have found a King, crowned at the right hand of G.o.d, to whom is committed all power in heaven and on earth; second, commissioned officers, duly appointed to administer the affairs of government; third, the laws by which they were to be governed were ALL THINGS WHATSOEVER JESUS HAD COMMANDED HIS DISCIPLES TO TEACH THEM.

And now, if we can find how men became citizens of that kingdom, I mean as to the rules of adoption, then we have found the kingdom of G.o.d in that age, and shall be very much dissatisfied with every thing in our own age, professing to be the kingdom of G.o.d, which is not according to the pattern.

It happened that there were no natural born subjects of that kingdom, for both Jew and Gentile were included in sin and unbelief; and none could be citizens without the law of adoption. All that believed on the name of the King had power to be adopted, but there was but one invariable rule or plan by which they were adopted; and all that undertook to claim citizens.h.i.+p, in any other way whatever, were counted thieves and robbers, and could never obtain the seal of adoption. This rule was laid down in the Savior's teaching to Nicodemus, namely: ”Except a man be born of water (that is, baptized in water), and of the Spirit (that is, baptized with the Spirit), he cannot enter into the kingdom of G.o.d.”

Now, to Peter were given the keys of the kingdom; therefore it was his duty to open the kingdom to Jew and also to Gentile. We will therefore carefully examine the manner in which he did adopt the Jews into the kingdom on the day of Pentecost.

Now, when the mult.i.tude came running together on the day of Pentecost, the Apostle Peter, standing up with the eleven, lifted up his voice and reasoned with them from the Scriptures, testifying of Jesus Christ, and His resurrection and ascension on high--insomuch that many became convinced of the truth, and inquired what they should do. These were not Christians, but they were people who were that moment convinced that Jesus was the Christ; and because they were convinced of this fact, they inquired--”What shall we do?” Then Peter said unto them: ”Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ, for the remission of sins, and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost: for the promise is unto you, and your children, and to all that are afar of, even as many as the Lord our G.o.d shall call.” My reader, do you understand this proclamation? If you do, you will see that this Gospel is not generally preached in modern times. Let us therefore a.n.a.lyze and examine it, sentence by sentence. You recollect they already believed, and the next thing was for them to repent; first, faith; second, repentance; third, baptism; fourth, remission of sins; and fifth, the Holy Ghost. This was the order of the Gospel.

Faith gave the power to become sons, or citizens; repentance, and baptism in His name, was the obedience through which they were adopted; and the Holy Spirit of promise was the seal of their adoption, and this they were sure to receive if they would obey.

Now, reader, where do you hear such preaching in our day? Who teaches that those who believe and repent, should be baptized, and none others? Perhaps the reader may say the Baptists do; but do they call upon men to be baptized as soon as they believe and repent? And moreover, do they promise the remission of sins, with the gift of the Holy Ghost? Recollect, now, what effect the Holy Ghost has upon people who receive it. It will guide them into all truth, strengthen the memory, and show them things to come. And Joel has said, it would cause them to dream dreams, to see visions, and to prophesy. O! my reader, where do you find a Gospel like this preached among men? Would men go mourning for weeks upon weeks, without the forgiveness of sins, or the comfort of the Holy Spirit, if Peter stood among us to tell precisely how to get such blessings? Now, what would you think of a camp meeting, where three thousand men should come forward to be prayed for, and one of the ministers should (Peter like) command them every one to repent, and be baptized for the remission of sins, promising that all who obeyed should receive the remission of sins and the gift of the Holy Ghost, which should cause them to dream dreams and prophesy; and then should arise with his brethren of the same calling, and the same hour commence baptizing, and continue until they had baptized them all; and the Holy Ghost should fall upon them, and they begin to see visions, speak in other tongues, and prophecy? Would not the news go abroad, far and wide, that a new doctrine had made its appearance, quite different from any thing now practised among men? O yes, says the reader, this, to be sure, would be something new, and very strange to all of us. Well, strange as it may seem, it is the Gospel, as preached by Peter on the day of Pentecost; and Paul declares that he preached the same Gospel that Peter did; and he has also said: ”Though we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel, let him be accursed.” Now, the reader need no longer be astonished to see that these signs do not follow them that believe some other gospel, or doctrine, different from that preached by the Apostles.

But now let us return to the kingdom of G.o.d organized in the days of the Apostles; you discover that three thousand persons were adopted into the kingdom the first day the door was opened. These, together with the numerous additions which were afterwards made, were the subjects of this kingdom; which, being fitly framed together, grew into a holy temple in the Lord. Thus, we have cleared away the rubbish of sectarian tradition and superst.i.tion, which arose in heaps around us; and having searched carefully, we have at length discovered the kingdom of G.o.d, as it existed at its first organization in the days of the Apostles; and we have seen that it differs widely from all modern systems of religion, both in its offices, ordinances, powers, and privileges, insomuch that no man need ever mistake the one for the other.

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