Newspapers / Zion’s Landmarks (Wilson, N.C.) / June 15, 1876, edition 1 / Page 3
Part of Zion’s Landmarks (Wilson, N.C.) / About this page
This page has errors
The date, title, or page description is wrong
This page has harmful content
This page contains sensitive or offensive material
Zion’s Landmark: Wilson, N. C. 115 ails; and the prophet says, when Zion travails she brings forth. Hence, the words, quicken, regenerate, born oi God, (fee., in a scriptural sense are synonymous. The scriptures rep resent that if one is born of God he is regenerated, &c.; and when the term quicken is used, the new birth is understood to have been accom plished. Agiin. If the creature has to travail, to bring forth the new birth, how does an idiot, or an infant travail ? But suppose that it is a cliild of God thar cries, seeks or calls upon God: it seripturally follows that this is the legitimate fruit.— ■“Seek and ye shall find,” and in all like scriptures the ability to do, the desire to do, life, light, and suscepti bility, are all understood to be in the one addressed. Love is warmed, faith is inspired, and life is brought to light. Dear mourner, you are in a blessed state; Jesus declares it, but you are »ot comforted; but Jesus declares that you shall be. You are raised from the dead, but you have a nap kin about your head. You feel that jour sins are the cause of the absence of your Savior, your Husband, &c.; Sind O! how you do hate your sins, and that you ever sinned. You think JOS can fulfill the law, and try to keep it, and you fail The law is weak through the flesh, but Christ or grace, is fulfilling it in you. The taifh that is in you will overcome the world. You are heavy-laden be cause you are born for another •eJime, and you have a wilderness .to pans through. You feel the effects of and gi-aoe has given you a ♦ouch •of, “Peter, feed my sheep and lambs.” Jesus says, “My sheep follow me, and I give unto them eternal life.” Dear penitent, you think that you' are not born of God, you feel so bad ly. You are-weary, and your cry is, Jesus, come unto me. If you were not a child of God, you would not be distressed about your sins, but would love them. You are hungering and tiiirsting after righteousness. Jesus says, hi eased are they. You are drink ing of the water of life. There is a well in you, and its water is spring ing up into everlasting life. Dear jjenitent, I would not tell you, like the arniinian does, that if you do not jM-ofess at this meeting, the Spirit of God may leave you and never return. I would prefer the gospel promises, and say to you, “Blessed ai-e the poor in spirit, for theirs is the king dom of heaven.” The text says, “There is none that seeketh after God ;” that is, those not born of God. Now, yon know that you seek after God ; hence, you know that you have pa^ed from death unto life. Now, dear brethren, the difference between natural Israel and spiritual Israe], the covenant of works and the covenant of grace, and the people of God under the law and his people under grace is, that the law was ex ternal, and commanded obedience of sinful nature. The law was holy, just and good, but it was weak through the flesh. Under the gospel or grace, the law of God is put in their minds, and written in their liearts, so that the righteousness of the law is fulfilled ki them, because the law that b put -in them is now their nature, and the fruit is walking after the Spirit. Dear mourner, you are walking after the Spirit, and not af ter the flesh. Peter was not any better than Cor nelius, but Cornelius needed the light that the gospel reveals, that he might not fall down and worship man.— Cornelius fell down before Peter.— Peter would not have done this. Pe ter’s preaching was to save, and not to bring forth a new birth. God has a law to create anew in Chri-st Jesus, and has a law to save what is created. Jerusalem above is the first law, but under the gospel dispensation the gospel saves; saves from following the false ways. Jesus gives gifts un to men, and gives the preacher to his church, to edify and perfect the saints, and to bring in the children of God to feed them by the gospel; to say to the mourner to fear not, and to comfort all that mourn in Zion. He is to invite all who thirst after Jesus, and is not to cast the childrens’ bread to dogs. Invitation is made to the thirsty only. No one thirsts but those quickened for the bread and wa ter of life. Where is any invitation to the carnal man ? God overcomes the world anel makes all things work together for good to his people. The carnal mind obeys the power of God, but not willingly. They are not con sidered subjects of God’s" kingdom, but of the kingdom of satan, but God rules both satan and his subjects, not as heirs of his kingdom though.— Now the law of faith is counted for righteousness to the creature, and the law of love is counted to the creature as his. Still it is imputed. Adam is found to be a dead soul until the breath of life is in him ; then he is a living soul, but subject to vanity and change; hence was not immortal., Man did change, and in that change died, became possessed of the spirit of satan, n-ot immortal, but everlasting death. This death is not immortal, that is, the soul that is possessed of it is not immortal, because God may change its state, and quicken it for immortality. Now, when God casts tliis death out of the soul, and im plants the Spirit of his Son in it, it is then immortalized, and will never undergo any more change in essence, but only changes locality atthe death of the body. Now, we find a prin ciple in man that can not sin, because it is born of God. Now, we"*find a desire in man to call upon his Fath er. Now, we'fiud a faith, a living faith in man, through which the bless ings of God flow. Now, we find love in man that loves God and hates sin, and the thorn in the flesh. We have now found Adam good in creation, the first state, corrupt or bad in the second state; and in both subject to change. But we now find God’s sheep in the third element or state, his soul immortal and not to change again; an humble, penitent child of God. Paul says, “ If the Spirit of him that raised up Christ from the dead dwell in you, he shall also quicken your mortal bodies by his Spirit that dwells in you. If you will notice, Paul us(i« th« word mortal in speak- of the body, plainly showing that there is an immortal principle or soul belonging to man. Ho does separate the components of man.— By the text we find man not seeking after God, then we find His children calling upon God. We learn by Paul, that by nature all of Adam’s family are under sin, and hence are controled by sin. Sin is agreeable to them. We learn that there is a peo ple called his sheep, and that these sheep have eternal life, and were pre destinated to the adoptionof children or sheep; born for a heavenly clime, and are pilgrims on the earth, sorrowing when they think their Be loved is gone. This little text finds no one seek ing after God. Then, dear mourner, listen to the invitation to you : Ho ! every one that thirsts, Come ye to the waters ; Freely drink and quench your thirst, With heaven-born, sons and daughters. The woman of Samaria ivasdrink ing of the water of life all the while Jesus was talking with her. She had been, and was now, thirsting for the water of life, and was at Jacob’s well with her pitcher, and meets Jesus there. Now, penitent, you have gone to the law to draw w'ater to satis fy you, but you thirst again. Jesus sits there, or is the end of the law for righteousness to every one tlial believeth. The law was the school master to the people of God, under the law of Moses, and so it is now to every hungry and thirsty soul: Dark and thorny is the desert, Through which pilgrims make their way. You are a pilgri'u in the wilder- nes.s, and you had rather not have these feelings, but if you did not, you would not be a pilgrim, and hence, you could not be a child journeying for another and better world. I will not tell you as the arminian would, that you may be lost, but will sav that Canaan’s land is just before you ; ' You will land oh that happy shore, Whej-e your Mate will never be absent— Will never leave you any more ! Farewell. S, M. Charles. Adams County, 111., Feb. 10, 1875. Gear Brother Gold:— Yesterday I received the sixth number of volume eight of your val uable paper, Zion’s Lan.t>mark, and soon fonnd the editorial page and read, “Do the Scriptures Teach?” &c. Then come three interogations or declarations which, I think, you justly resolved into one; and then went on to answer, in a clear, and, as I understand, in a scriptural light, especially when you spoke in the words of Jesus, “ For 1 came down from heaven, not to do mine own will, but the will of him that sent me; and this is the Father’.s will which hath .sent me, that of all which he hath given me I should lose nothing, but should raise it up again at the last day. And this is the will of him that sent me, that every one that seeth the Son, and believeth on him, may have everlasting life : and I will raise him up at the last day.”—John 6 : 38, 39, 40. “' His name shall be called Jesus, for he shall save (not has saved) his people from their sins.” And you might have said, Jesus did not come to make a way possible to save his people, but lie is the way, the truth and the life; and that he (Jesus) has saved his people from their sins, by bearing their sins (or the punishment, and their sins) in his own body, on the Tree.—(See Isa. 63: 10.) “ Then .saith he unto them, My .soul is exceeding sorrowful, even unto death.”—-Matt. 26: 38. Then hear him, “ he said. It is finished : and he bowed his head, and gave up the ghost.”—John 19: 30. Yes, he finished the transgression and made an end of sin. By the oae oShring he (Jesus) has perfected forever them that are sanclified,—(Heb. 10: 14,) that is set apart to a holy use: “ Having predestinated us unto the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to himself, according to the good pleasure of his will.—“ Eph. 1: 5.— And, again: “I have finished the work which thou gavestme to do.”-— John 17 : 4. So, by the meritorious life, and vi carious death of Je.sus, the Lamb of God—the body prepared for him by the Eternal Father—all the sins of each and every one of his people he came to bear and they were acquitted by Divine ju.stice, and looked upon as clothed ill the imputed righteousness of Christ, which eventually, eacli and every one of the heirs of Promise af- •ter being born again, shall participate ill, when they “ believe, according to the working of his mighty power, which he wr light in Christ, when he raised him from the dead.”—Eph. 1 : 16, 20. The redeemed sons and daughters of thispeople which Jesus came to seek and to save, are born of God before they “ believe on liim that sent me.”—John 5 : 24. Also : “ W hosoever believeth that Jesus is the Christ is born of God.”—1 John, 5: 1. Again: Jesus said, “Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that be- lievetli on me hath everlasting life.’’ —John 6 : 47. Now, brother Gold, I cannot see any difference between being born of God, and having everlasting life; or, to u.se your own mode of expression to convey the same idea, “ We must be born again by the washing of re generation and renewing of the Holy Ghost: or there must be a believing on Jesus Christ before one has ever lasting life.” I do not hold that the language you quoted from Jesus’ lan guage in tlie sixth chapter and forti eth verse of John, will justify the declaration, “ There must be a be lieving on Jesus Christ before one has everlasting life.” Wliat would be the difference, to say, One must believe on Jesus, that he may be born of God (or born again) ? This is the belief of a very fine religieus denomination in this State, with whom I am well acquainted. Now the language of Jesus, as found in the sixth chapter and fortieth verse of St. John, reads, “ And this is the will of him that sent me, that every one which seeth the Son, and believeth on him, may liave everlasting life.” I know that this form of the verb “ may have,” in the estimation of many, leaves the thing to be done or complied with, optionary and conditional ; of course, the man may or may not have ever lasting life—owing entirely to his be lief or unbelief. This is the reason that the general-atoneraent-foiks give for their believing and saying, Unbe lief is the condemnation of ail who go to hell; for, say they, if we do believe, we may have everlasting life, and will be born again. While I must honestly differ, in believing tliat di vine life has to be'imparted to the dead in trespasses and .sins; spiritu ality implanted (in the soul is but be ing quickened, and is equivalent to being born of God, born of the Spirit. Je.sus says, “That which is born of the Spirit is Spirit.” Has not this man or woman thus born ever lasting life, although be or she may not have heard the name—Je.sus ? The apostles desired of the Church at Corinth, that the brethren all' speak; the same things, and that they be perfectly joined together, of the same mind and in the same judgment. I want us to speak the same things or expression,s as tlrese, that we “ may have everlasting life.” Again: “to them gave be power to become the sons of God, even to them that be lieve on his name: which were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.”—John 1 : 12, 13. I. G. Williams.
Zion’s Landmarks (Wilson, N.C.)
Standardized title groups preceding, succeeding, and alternate titles together.
June 15, 1876, edition 1
3
Click "Submit" to request a review of this page. NCDHC staff will check .
0 / 75