Extract of a Letter from Capt. II—, in India, with a few alterations and additions.
I CANNOT enter fully on the subject now, nor indeed do I desire to do so. All I wish is, to bring it to your consideration, and to induce you to study Holy Writ; begging of you, as you value the glory of God, to seek the blessed Spirit in prayer, that an understanding heart may be given you to see and receive this most glorious truth. I speak not in doubt or uncertainly as to this being truth. These are not mere opinions; but, the grand outline of what I may be enabled to state on this point, I know to be truth, I know to be the mind of God, and as plainly revealed in the Bible as that Christ died for sinners. The general doctrine then is this, that Christ is to come again, that the dead in Christ are to be raised from their graves, and the living saints are to be changed (1 Thess. 4:13-17; 1 Cor. 15:23, 51, 52,) and to meet the Lord in the air; that the man of sin (2 Thess. 2:3) shall subsequently be destroyed by the brightness of His coming; (2 Thess. 2:8;) that all living in apostasy and infidelity, having received the mark of the beast upon their hands or their foreheads, (Rev. 13:16, 17; 14:9, 10, 11; 19:19, 20, 21,) shall be slain, and the beast and the false prophet shall be cast into the lake burning with fire and brimstone; that there shall be a judgment of the nations then alive on the earth; (Matt. 25:31, 46; compare Joel 3.) that in that day, without defining the hour of it, so to speak, the heavens which are shall pass away, (2 Peter 3:10, 12,) the earth and the works that are therein shall be burned up, and there shall be a new heavens and a new earth wherein dwelleth righteousness; (2 Peter 3:13; Is. 65:17; Rev. 21:1;) that the living saints and the dead in Christ, already gathered to the Lord, are to reign with Him one thousand years over the earth; (Rev. 20:48; 5:10;) that, during this period, Satan is to be bound, (Rev. 20:1, 2,) universal peace and righteousness shall prevail, every knee shall bow to Jesus, "for the earth shall be filled with the knowledge of the Lord as the waters cover the sea; " (Hab. 2:14; Is. 11:9;) that, after these thousand years are passed, Satan shall be loosed, (Rev. 20:3, 7,) and shall go up to deceive the nations, (Rev. 20: 8,) who, being tempted and led away, shall compass the camp of the saints about, (Rev. 20:9,) and they shall be destroyed by God; (verse 9;) the devil, death and hell, shall be cast into the lake of fire; (verses 10 and 14; ) the great white-throne judgment shall take place; (Rev. 20:12, 13;) then cornea the end, when Christ shall have delivered up the kingdom to God, even the Father, that GOD may be all in all. (1 Cor. 15:21-28.)
Now, this is the outline of the doctrine of Christ's second coming and the most striking features which mark this blessed truth. There are many minute points which I have not touched upon, but which perhaps I may be enabled to do at some future day. Now, I implore you, my dear friend, to study this subject is prayer and dependence on the Holy Spirit. Look for yourself; examine all the passages of Scripture with their context. Read all the parallel passages; for it is a most glorious truth, and one which is more calculated to raise the soul, fix the affections, prepare the heart, and make Christians watchful over their lives and ways, than any other doctrine perhaps of the Word of God: Christian's, I say, for to all others the cross is the one first need. If you have read the New Testament with care, you cannot have failed to perceive that the hope of Christ's speedy return was the consolation, joy, and comfort of the apostles, and all the primitive Church. For an example of this, first look at 1 John 3:2. John is rejoicing at himself and all Christians, being sons of God; yet his and their chief joy consists in looking forward to that time when Christ shall be manifested, because then they would see Him and be like Him. Now, mark, John does not say that this is death, nor a going to rest, but the hope and joy is "when He" shall appear." John says again, in chapter 2:28: “Abide in Christ, that we may have confidence at his coming," not at death, but at Christ's coming. Paul says, in Col. 3:4: "When Christ, who is our life, shall appear, then we shall also appear with, Him in glory." Paul knew that, when he died, he should be with Christ, for he says, in Phil. 1:23, he desires "to depart and be with Christ, which is far better;” and, in 2 Cor. 5:8, he is desirous of being " absent from the body and present with the Lord." This refers to his death, which, to a Christian, must indeed be an object of joy and comfort; but death is not the object to which the Bible directs a Christian's hopes and joys. Paul's hope expressed to Timothy is, that he shall receive a crown of righteousness at that day. At what day? not the day of his death, but the day of Christ's appearing, when He (Christ) shall come to be glorified in His saints, and to be admired in all them that believe in that day. (2 Thess. 1:10.) Passages to prove this might be adduced in numbers, but I will leave it for you to seek them in prayer and study on this point.
I wish you to understand that the event expressed by the coming of, the Lord occupied that precise place in expectation of the first Christians which the event of death, the prospect of going to heaven, occupies in the thoughts of Christians in the present day. How this delusion has taken place I cannot explain, but, doubtless, Satan, taking advantage of man's departure from the simple truth as it is in Jesus, has sown this error and darkness. To prove to you that death cannot be the object, the chief hope and object of the Christian, I may say that, if it were so, there could be nothing further to look for after that event was fulfilled. Once dead and with Christ, the Christian hope would have been fully accomplished. But, just turn to Heb. 11:39, 40: there you see that Abraham, Isaac and Moses, and all the godly array of holy men, although dead and with Christ, had not received the promise, God having provided some better thing for us, that they without us should not be made perfect. Until Christ comes again, the saints will not receive their glorified bodies; their spirits are in heaven, but their bodies will not be raised incorruptible and glorious till the coming of Christ; for St. Paul says: " In a moment,' at the last trump, the dead shall be raised incorruptible." (1 Cor. 15:51-54.) This can only refer to the saints, as the bodies of the wicked cannot be raised incorruptible, nor bear the image of the heavenly. Neither can death to the wicked be swallowed up in victory.
You will perceive that there are two distinct resurrections mentioned in the Word of God. (See Rev. 20:4, to end.) It is plain, in the fourth verse, that there is a judgment, which, as I before stated, is of the nations then alive. When Christ comes, all the saints who had died in Christ, and the saints living on the earth at His return, receive their glorified bodies, and reign with Christ a thousand years; now, mark, " but the rest of the dead lived not again until the thousand years were finished. This is the first resurrection." The sixth verse states, that those who are partakers of the first resurrection cannot be affected by the second death. The seventh verse says, that, after the thousand years, Satan is loosed and goes out to deceive the nations then on the earth; and, observe, it is not the saints, but the nations, for it says afterwards that the nations, headed by Satan, go up to fight against the holy city. They (the nations who are tempted) are destroyed, Satan is cast into hell, and then (verse 11) is seen the great white throne of judgment; there stand all the dead, great and small; the sea, death and hell, give up their dead, and every man, i.e. who is then judged, is judged according to his works, and whosoever was not found written in the book of life was east into the lake of fire, which is the second death. This is the judgment of the dead, and is followed by the end, when Jesus shall have delivered up the kingdom to God, even His Father; when He shall have put down all authority and power: for He must reign till He hath put down all enemies under His feet: the last enemy that shall be destroyed is death. (1 Cor. 15:24-26.) Now, death is not destroyed till after the millennium. (Rev. 20:14.)
The doctrine of the first resurrection is very important, and you ought to study it. It is clearly laid down in the following passages. (1 Thess. 4:15-18.) You will observe that there is no mention there of the resurrection of the wicked; but the consolation given to the Church is, that they which sleep in Jesus will God bring with him, and that when the Lord cometh, then we who are alive and remain shall be caught up together with the now risen saints, and meet the Lord in the air. Now, this exclusively refers to the saints. It cannot be said that the wicked sleep in Jesus. In 2 Thess. 1:5, where allusion is made to the sufferings of the saints, it is said that it is a manifest token of the righteous judgment of God, that ye may be counted worthy of the kingdom of God, for which ye suffer. Now, connect this passage with Luke 20:35, 36. Therefore, see that when the Sadducees come to our Lord with the question concerning the woman who had had seven husbands, and they, not believing in the resurrection, asked whose wife she should be. Observe the answer of our Lord: “The children of this world (or age) marry and are given in marriage, but they which shall be accounted worthy to obtain that world and the resurrection of the dead do not marry." Now, the world or age of which they were to be accounted worthy, is connected with the resurrection of the dead, and also with the kingdom of God, for which the suffering saints are to be accounted worthy; (2 Thess. 1:5;) it is clear that the kingdom of God and that world, of which they are to be accounted worthy, are intimately blended. Now, as the resurrection here alluded to is only of those who were accounted worthy, it is plain that there are two resurrections; one which is here referred to, where the wicked rise not at all, and another in which they are raised: for we know that the wicked shall be raised, and that to damnation or judgment; consequently, the resurrection of which the righteous are accounted worthy must be a distinct resurrection. You will find the same doctrine in Luke 24:14, where it is taught that those who imbibed the spirit of God's grace shall be recompensed in the resurrection of the just: the clear inference here is, that there will be also a resurrection of the unjust, as indeed is taught in Acts 24:15. I might quote other passages, but I conceive the doctrine to be so clear that it is unnecessary to say more.
I find there is not sufficient space in one letter to enter fully on this glorious and engrossing subject, but, God enabling me, I will write more another time. Before concluding, I would beg you to observe one point, which, if seen, will much facilitate your reception of this truth. You cannot but have remarked throughout the Scriptures, that God promised to raise up One from the seed of David who should reign over Israel for ever. The following are some of the texts, but there are many more which I need not repeat now: 2 Sam. 7:14, 16. 1 Chron. 17:11, 14. Ps. 89:29, 34, 37. Is. 9:5, 7. Luke 33:17, 20. Ezek. 21:26, 27; 34:23, 24; 37:24. Luke 1:32, 33. Now, Christ never yet has sat upon the throne of David. The angel's promise to Mary was, that she should have a son who should sit upon the throne of David, and reign over the house of Jacob forever. This has not been fulfilled. It could not have been at our Lord's first coming, for the Jews rejected Him, and after His death, when the apostles asked (Acts 1:6) whether at this time He would restore the kingdom to Israel, Jesus did not tell them that they were wrong in expecting a kingdom, but merely said that it was not for them to know the times and seasons of the Lord. They are however assured, very soon after, that "this same Jesus, which is taken up into heaven, shall so come in like manner as ye have seen Him go into heaven." We see afterwards, in Acts 3:19-21, that the Holy Ghost., speaking by Peter, says that the heavens must receive Jesus until the times of the restitution of all things, at which time God shall send Jesus, which before was preached unto us. Christ is not now sitting on the throne of David; for what throne can David have in heaven? and the Jews up to this moment have the veil upon their hearts, which veil is not to be removed till they turn to the Lord. (2 Cor. 3:15, 16.) And in Is. 25:7-9, we find that the veil is to be destroyed from off all nations, when Christ shall come for them, and not till then shall the rebuke of his people be taken away, and all tears shall be wiped from their eyes, and then shall this glorious cry ascend: "Lo! this is our God; we have waited for him, and he will save us; we will be glad and rejoice in his salvation."
You are aware that the Jews were looking for a King who should deliver them from all their enemies. They were all expecting a glorious reign of splendor, for all the prophecies dwell upon this point in the most glowing language; and their sin was not in their expecting and looking for a King who should reign over them and raise them far above all nations, but their sin consisted in not seeing that this King was first to pass through sufferings to enter into glory, (Luke 24:26,) which had been clearly revealed in Moses, the Psalms, and the prophets. They rejected the many prophecies referring to Christ's death and suffering, and only received those that bore reference to His reign and glory. The consequence was, that when Christ came in humility, poverty and sorrow, their pride and arrogance caused them to deny Him. They could not brook the idea of their King and Deliverer being a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief—a carpenter's son, and the companion of publicans and sinners. An attentive perusal of the New Testament will convince you that the Jews were not wrong in expecting a King to reign over them, and our Savior, in many instances which refer to this subject in the Gospels, never rebuked the Jews or exposed their error, by showing them that they misinterpreted prophecy by looking for a King, but in all His allusions to this point, the Savior merely corrected them as to the period of this glorious event. (or prepared the way for another purpose of God in the Church, undisclosed in the Old Testament.)
The Jews expected it immediately. Our Savior labored to point out and show that this could not be till certain events had been fulfilled. To substantiate this, I will refer to one or two passages, for I have not room for more. If you turn to Luke 19:12, you will observe that the Lord speaks a parable to disabuse the Jews concerning the immediate setting up of the kingdom. “He spake a parable, because he was nigh to Jerusalem, and because they thought that the kingdom of God should immediately appear." You know that before this, in John 6:15, the people desired to take Jesus by force and make Him King; and more, when they saw Him approaching Jerusalem, which He was going to enter in triumph, surrounded by multitudes, crying out, "Blessed be the King that cometh in the name of the Lord," they fully anticipated that at this time Jesus was coming to restore the kingdom to Israel. If they had been wrong in looking for a King and kingdom, surely Jesus, the God of truth and light, would have undeceived them, checked their ardor and exclamations, and warned them of their error in looking for any further demonstrations of a kingdom than that which was thus spiritually represented; but I put it to you and to every candid mind, was the parable then spoken fitted to make the Jewish disciples say to themselves, We are altogether mistaken in looking for any different state of things from what we have just now? Does He teach us that the kingdom of God has come in every sense in which it is to come? Nay, does not the parable in question distinctly recognize this expectation that the kingdom was yet to appear, as a right expectation? Thus, the only thing in which they were wrong, and which the parable was intended to correct, was regarding the time of its appearing. The Jews thought the kingdom would immediately appear: the Lord says not a word to undeceive them as to the reality of His coming, but merely endeavors to put them right as to the time of it. He says: “A certain nobleman went into a far country to receive for himself a kingdom and to return." Now, in this nobleman, our Lord is represented to us. Thus, He goes, as we see in Acts 1:9, into the far country, which is heaven, where He is now waiting until the fullness of the Gentiles be come in; and in Dan. 7., you have the installation into His kingdom; there you see the Son of man invested with dominion, and glory, and a kingdom, &c. So, in Rev. 5., we see the Lamb opening the book to reveal the dealings of God which usher Him into the purchased possession. No one except Jesus had redeemed the world, or had a right to reign over it; none but the Root of David prevailed to open the book. Then there is joy in heaven and the anticipative song of all on earth, for then are all the prophecies to be accomplished and all the promises abundantly recovered. Then it is that the saints in heaven shout for joy and sing: Thou hast made us kings and priests unto God, and we shall reign over the earth.—If it were not to reign with Hint, what possible delight or wish could they have to quit heaven and the presence of their God, and return again to earth? But Christ does come with them; (Dan. 7:13. Zech. 24:5. Matt. 24:30; 25:31; 26:64. Acts 1:11. Col. 3:4. 1 These. 4:16; 2 Thess. 1:10; Jude 14; Rev. 1:7;) and then, and not till then, do " the kingdoms of this world become the kingdoms of our God and of His Christ, and He shall reign for ever and ever." And then: does the shout arise: "We give thee thanks, O Lord God Almighty, because thou hast taken to thee thy great power and hast reigned." (Rev. 11:15, 17.) See also Luke 19:15, and there you read that it came to pass when he was returned, having recovered the kingdom, He commanded His servants to be called unto Him, &c. Now, the great thing the Lord desires to teach us in this parable is, that, instead of entering immediately upon the kingdom, he was going away into a far country first, and then to return. Whilst He is absent, the parable is given for the instruction of His servants, who trade with his gifts.
Again, observe Matt. 20:1. When the mother of Zebedee's children asked Christ if He would grant that her two sons might sit, one on His right hand and the other on His left, in His kingdom, this strongly denotes the expectation of a kingdom among the followers of Jesus. James and John came with their mother and worshipped him, asking the high favor. Now, had they been wrong in looking for any further manifestations of a kingdom than were then displayed, think you that their loving Master would not have pointed out their error? Undoubtedly, he would; but is His answer any way calculated to impress them with the idea that they were wrong? The Lord says: " To sit on my right hand and on my left is not mine to give, save to them for whom it is prepared of my Father;" evidently and unequivocally implying that there is a kingdom, and that those for whom it is prepared would sit there. Compare chap. 19:28, and connect it with Rev. 3:4, where the throne of Jesus is clearly stated to be a distinct thing from the throne of the Father. "'To him that overcometh will I grant to sit with me on my throne, even as I also overcame and am sat down with my Father on His throne." Now, Christ is God, and His throne as God is in the heavens, and was so from all eternity; but His throne as man is and must be a distinct thing. He gained this throne by a victory, and as there was nothing to gain or to overcome in heaven, it must be the earth, which is called in Eph. 1:14 the purchased possession. In Luke 1:32, it is declared that Jesus is to sit upon the throne of His Father David; and in Acts30 it is written, that of the fruit of David's loins God would raise up Christ to sit upon His throne. In Matt. 19:28, Jesus most forcibly impresses upon his disciples the certainty of a king-dons, and teaches them to look forward to it as the climax of their desires. He tells the twelve, that they who had taken up their cross and followed Him shall, when the Son of man sits on the throne of his glory, sit also upon twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel. It is not His throne as God, but as the Son of man, which is emphatically called the throne of His glory. It is the peculiar hope and privilege of the Gospel, that those who suffer with Christ are also to reign with Him. (See Rom. 8:17, 18; 2 Tim. 2:12; 2 Cor. 4:8. Luke 21:28, 30. Rev. 2:26; 3:21; 5:10; 20:4, and many other passages.)
I will not press this point further, but will conclude by just pointing out to you that the thief on the cross, though he saw the Savior of the world expiring at his side, yet expressed his firm conviction that there was to be a future kingdom, and asked the Lord to remember him when he came into his kingdom. Observe also at His birth, that Jesus was, by the wise men of the east, hailed King of the Jews, and that at the judgment-seat of Pilate, when asked if he was King of the Jews, He answered him and said, Thou sayest it. Lastly, mark the overruling providence of God, who, notwithstanding the opposition of the Jews, ordained that Jesus should die with this inscription over his head: "Jesus of Nazareth, King of the Jews," which, though essentially true, has not yet been accomplished. But the day is at hand when the Lord of glory shall [not only be crowned on high with the Church of the heavenly places, but] appear and be recognized as sovereign King by His grateful subjects on earth, and then shall He enter into Jerusalem, the city of the great King and angels, and all the choir of saints below, as well as above, shall sing the inspired song: " Lift up your heads, O ye gates, and be ye lift up, ye everlasting doors, and the King of glory shall come in." (Ps. 24:7, 9.) O that every child of God would pray for this blessed consummation! This is our duty and our interest, our joy and our obedience. Hear what the Holy Ghost, speaking by Isaiah, says: " Ye that make mention of the Lord, keep not silence, and give him no rest till he establish and till he make Jerusalem a praise in the earth." O that glorious period, when, instead of sin, there will be holiness; instead of ignorance, knowledge; instead of rebellion, submission; instead of selfishness, love; instead of discord and war, harmony and peace; for then all shall know the Lord, from the least to the greatest, and holiness shall be written upon the bells of the horses. (Zech. 14:20.)
I will now conclude this long letter with one remark, and that because some, in the blindness of their hearts, have stumbled at it. The Lord says, in one or two places, that the kingdom of God is within you; that my kingdom is not of this world, as, in the sermon I have requested you to get, this subject is largely dwelt upon. I do not mean to dilate upon it, but merely to say that now, at this time, is the secret and spiritual kingdom of God. The Lord Jesus has now a kingdom in the world, which is not of it, but it is a spiritual invisible kingdom, set up, if you will, in the hearts of His people, and preserved there through the sanctifying influence of His Spirit; and it is only by having this kingdom of God in our hearts during this dispensation, that can enable us to indicate our claims to the glories of that kingdom, when it shall be fully revealed and manifested. Oh! my dear friend, let us serve the Lord with our hearts and souls. Let Jesus reign within us, and when He comes He shall confess us before His Father and the holy angels. It is, my friend, the will of God that we should look for and haste the coming of the day of God, (2 Peter 3:12,) and we should daily pray, "Even so, Lord Jesus, come quickly." Oh! let us respond to it in our hearts and souls: "Amen, Even so, come quickly, Lord Jesus." Let the intervening space of time that may elapse before that blessed hope comes, be swallowed up in the anticipated appearance of the great God and our Savior Jesus Christ. (Titus 2:2-14.) Let us think, speak, live and act, as those who have that event continually before them-as those, not only believing it, but expecting and desiring it, Oh! what Christians should we be if this hope were ever before our eyes! The pressure of our earthly troubles would be lightened, and the fear of death totally extinguished. What Christians would there be on earth if all realized this! All their differences would vanish, all sects and parties would be united, and every selfish, earthly, carnal feeling would be swallowed up in the expectation of the appearing of the great God and our Savior Jesus Christ. Oh! let us pray for it, and ask the guidance of the Holy Spirit to add fervor and efficacy to our prayers. Let us be very jealous over ourselves, and watch continually. The Lord admonished His own disciples, and surely we need it, He says, in Luke 21:34: "Take heed to yourselves, lest at any time your hearts be overcharged with surfeiting, and drunkenness, and cares of this life, and so 'that day come upon you unawares; for as a snare shall it come on all the earth. Watch ye, therefore, and pray always, that ye may be accounted worthy to escape all the things that shall come to pass and to stand before the Son of man."—Oh! I pray you, stand fast in the Lord, and be not moved away from the hope of the Gospel. The day of the Lord shall be as a thief in the night, and as a snare to the careless and worldly; but, glory be to God, that day shall not overtake us as a thief; for we are not of the night, nor of darkness, but the children of the light and the day. (1 Thes.5:1-11.)
Space now fails me, though I have much to say, and often wish we might talk over these things, for it is almost impossible in a letter to enter into the vastness of the subject, for I do not hesitate to say that the whole tenor of Scripture leads more or less to this blessed truth, and every book of the Bible, 'from Genesis to Revelation, bears reference to it. I have not arranged my argument in the best order, but I have written just what came first into my mind, and I leave you, through the grace of God, to study the subject, and arrange and settle the various heads. May the God of peace bless this letter to both of us! Into His hands I commit it, for I have written in prayer and dependence on His Spirit. I have sought the Lord's blessing therein; and, as I firmly believe what I have written is truth, so do I trust God will bless it to both your soul and mine.