The writer tells us that “the first great judgment” was “in Eden, when the whole human race, as represented in its head, Adam, stood on trial before God. The result of that trial was the verdict — guilty, disobedient, unworthy of life; and the penalty inflicted was death.” This “was the world’s first judgment day” (Page 140).
On the same page, he tells us that “mankind has been redeemed from the sentence of that first trial by the sacrifice for all, which the great Redeemer gave. All are redeemed from the grave and from the sentence of death — destruction — which in view of this redemption is no longer to be considered in the full, everlasting sense of the word, but rather a temporary sleep; because in the Millennial morning all will be awakened by the Life-giver who redeemed all.”
It is easy to see that this is a theory brought into Scripture, instead of truth drawn from it. It is not Scripture.
There is not a word of Scripture to support the theory that Christ by His death redeemed the whole Adamic race, or that He “canceled the sins of all,” as he tells us on page 142. It is simply unproven assertion. Christ did indeed die for all (2 Cor. 5:1818And all things are of God, who hath reconciled us to himself by Jesus Christ, and hath given to us the ministry of reconciliation; (2 Corinthians 5:18)), but that death avails efficaciously only for those that believe. “He that believeth not shall be damned” (Mark 16:1616He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved; but he that believeth not shall be damned. (Mark 16:16)).
According to this book, the millennium is the world’s second great judgment day, pp. 140-145; and “a period of about six thousand years intervenes between the world’s first and second judgment days,” during which God has been selecting “two special classes of men” who are to be “honored instruments during the period or day of the world’s judgment.” These two classes are the Old Testament saints, and those of “the Christian dispensation,” or those found “faithful” in these two periods. All the rest of mankind are to be put on trial for life during the world’s second judgment day, or the millennium; but there is “nothing to dread.” “The character of the Judge is a sufficient guarantee that the judgment will be just and merciful, and with due consideration for the infirmities of all, until they are brought back to the original perfection lost in Eden.” (Page 142).
At the beginning of the millennium the resurrection of all the dead is to take place. Of these there are different classes. 1. The faithful of Old Testament times, who “will at once receive the reward of their faithfulness an instantaneous resurrection to perfection as men.” (Page 290). 2. There “are four distinct classes which unitedly represent the nominal gospel church as a whole, claiming to be the body of Christ.” Two of these classes are said to be “spirit-begotten”; a third class, “justified but not sanctified”; and a fourth class, “wolves in sheep’s clothing.” (Pages 235-237).
The first two classes of these four are those who have “covenanted with God to become living sacrifices.” In one of these classes they are faithful to their covenant; in the second they “shrink back from the performance of their covenant.” The faithful class is called the “little flock,” and are to have the kingdom, and be “the bride of Christ,” etc. (Page 235).
The second class are not “overcomers,” and will never reach the position of the first class, but will be led through adversity to the perfection of spirit beings. (Pages 235, 236).
“The majority of the nominal church” are in the third class — “justified but not sanctified.” After the resurrection, “if they continue in faith and fully submit to the righteous laws of Christ’s kingdom, in the times of restitution, they will finally attain the likeness of the perfect earthly man, Adam.” (Page 236).
The “wolves in sheep’s clothing” class are to be destroyed. (Pages 141, 237).
At the beginning of the millennium all the dead are to be raised up, and these different classes (except the last, which is to be destroyed) will come into their respective places of blessing, or further testing, as the case may be. But besides these, there are the vast multitudes of men who have died in unbelief. These, we are told, have all been “ransomed” by the death of Christ, and their sins all “canceled,” and they will be given a fresh trial for life during the millennium. This is the world’s “second trial.” (Page 142).
Under this trial the great mass will be restored to perfection. “Some, however, will be destroyed from among the people; first, all who, under full light and opportunity, for one hundred years, refuse to make progress towards righteousness and perfection”; “and second, those who, having progressed to perfection, in a final testing at the close of the millennium prove unfaithful.” “Such die the second death, from which there is no resurrection or restitution promised.” (Page 242).
We may add in connection with this theory, that the writer speaks of “two phases of the kingdom of God,” “a spiritual or heavenly phase, and an earthly or human phase. The spiritual will always be invisible to men, as those composing it will be of the divine, spiritual nature, which no man hath seen nor can see... yet its presence and power will be mightily manifested, chiefly through its human representatives, who will constitute the earthly phase of the kingdom of God.” “The overcoming saints of the gospel age — the Christ, head and body — glorified,” “constitute the spiritual phase of the kingdom.” (Page 288). Those of this class cease to be human beings, and become purely spiritual beings, “exalted to the divine nature” and to “divine power,” in order to accomplish the work they will have to perform “in heaven and earth among spiritual as well as among human beings.” (Page 289).
The faithful of Old Testament times, raised to life, and restored to Adamic perfection, are to be the chief instruments in the work of the earthly phase of the kingdom, and “will be the most exalted and honored of God among men.” (Pages 289-290). Others besides these and those changed from human to spirit beings are to be “gradually raised to perfection during the millennial age.”
Such is a brief outline of some of the main features of this man’s theory. The very statement of it is sufficient, without comment, to show to any intelligent Christian its absurd and unscriptural character. Scripture is indeed referred to for support of un-scriptural statements; but it is used in a most dishonest way, altogether without reference to its context, in many instances, and also according to the wildest and most fanciful reveries of the human mind.
The thought that in Eden, and during the millennium, we get two great judgment days for the world, is without Scripture basis. It is true that in Eden man fell through sin, and brought upon himself death as the wages of sin (“by one man sin entered into the world and death by sin”) and it is true that in this way “death passed upon all men,” but when this is said, it is at once added, “for that all have sinned” (Rom. 5:1212Wherefore, as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned: (Romans 5:12)). It is not only that Adam sinned, but each one of us has added his own sins, so that if judgment overtake us, it is not merely because Adam sinned, but because we have sinned ourselves.
It is also true that the millennium will be a day characterized by the judgment of evil, as well as the blessing of the righteous in the earth, in connection with the presence and glory of the Lord Jesus. But this is not what the writer means when he speaks of the millennium being the world’s second great judgment day. He means that the resurrected millions of the human race, who have died in sin and unbelief, are going to be put on trial again, as Adam was in Eden, and a chance given to them to inherit eternal life by obedience to the laws of Christ’s kingdom, their sins having all been canceled by the atonement. In every way it is a falsification of Scripture, falsifying alike the truth as to atonement, judgment and the kingdom.
He would have us believe also that these countless millions of resurrected wicked are to be restored to Adamic perfection, except a few incorrigible ones who will be annihilated. Now, in Scripture there is not only no word to intimate that any who die unsaved will ever be saved at all, but there is no word teaching that any one will ever be restored to Adamic perfection. It is all false, and contrary to Scripture, which teaches that Christ, not Adam, is the Head of the new race, and that those who believe are predestined of God to be “conformed to the image of His Son, that He might be the firstborn among many brethren” (Rom. 8:2929For whom he did foreknow, he also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brethren. (Romans 8:29)). In 1 Corinthians 15:4949And as we have borne the image of the earthy, we shall also bear the image of the heavenly. (1 Corinthians 15:49) we are also told that “as we have borne the image of the earthy we shall also bear the image of the heavenly.” Here we get the two heads, Adam and Christ. We bear the image of Adam now, but in the resurrection we shall bear the image of a heavenly, glorified Christ. “Flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God; neither cloth corruption inherit incorruption.” So “the dead shall be raised incorruptible,” and those who are alive when the Lord comes “shall be changed.” The bodies of the raised righteous dead, and of the changed living, will be “fashioned like unto His glorious body” (Phil. 3:2121Who shall change our vile body, that it may be fashioned like unto his glorious body, according to the working whereby he is able even to subdue all things unto himself. (Philippians 3:21)). “It Both not yet appear what we shall be, but we know that when He shall appear we shall be like Him, for we shall see Him as He is” (1 John 3:22Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be: but we know that, when he shall appear, we shall be like him; for we shall see him as he is. (1 John 3:2)). Being like Christ in glory is vastly different from being like Adam in Eden.
Then, the writer’s division of professing Christians into four classes is also without Scripture warrant, and is done simply to establish a theory. It nowhere speaks of a class who have “covenanted with God to become a living sacrifice,” or to sacrifice their humanity, in order to experience a change of nature; nor does it speak of a class justified, but not sanctified. In the epistle to the Corinthians, the Apostle addresses the assembly of God at Corinth as “them that are sanctified in Christ Jesus, called to, be saints, with all that in every place call upon the name of Jesus Christ our Lord.” And in 1 Corinthians 6:1111And such were some of you: but ye are washed, but ye are sanctified, but ye are justified in the name of the Lord Jesus, and by the Spirit of our God. (1 Corinthians 6:11), after speaking of the character of the unrighteous who shall not inherit the kingdom of God, he says, “And such were some of you; but ye are washed, but ye are sanctified, but ye are justified, in the name of the Lord Jesus, and by the Spirit of our God.” Here washing, sanctification and justification are alike ascribed to all who believe.
I do not, however, dwell on these points, but pass on to notice, in the second place, what is far more serious, and what characterizes his whole system.