Famous Infidels Who
Found Christ
Famous Infidels Who Found Christ
A Narrative
of Their Experiences, Together With Portions of Their Published Works
Vindicating
the Truth of Christianity
BY LEE S.
WHEELER
1931
REVIEW AND
HERALD PUBLISHING ASSOCIATION
Printed in
the
Famous
Infidels Who Found Christ
2
CONTENTS
PREFACE
1. THE
PALACE AT STOWE
2. THE
CONVERSION OF
3. THE
HISTORY AND EVIDENCE OF THE RESURRECTION OF JESUS CHRIST
4. THE
LIGHT OF THE WORLD
5. HOW AN
EXPLORER BECAME CONVINCED
6. A
RUSSIAN BARON’S CONVERSION
7. DR.
NELSON’S STRUGGLE
8. THE
BIBLE PROPHECIES
9.
MODERN MIRACLES
10.
WILLIAM MILLER
11.
CONCLUDING THOUGHTS
Famous
Infidels Who Found Christ
3
PREFACE
THE author
wishes to acknowledge the providence of God in a succession of apparently
related
incidents
which put into his hands unsought much of the material used in this book, and
prepared the way
for its
publication at this time.
Some years
ago, when living near
interested
in an account of two eminent deists in
believed
that the Bible was an imposture and undertook to overthrow it. They, with other
unbelievers, were
accustomed
to meet and discuss literary and religious subjects in those days when
infidelity was much in
vogue in
that all
efforts to overthrow the Christian religion would avail nothing so long as
people generally believed
in the
resurrection of Christ and the conversion of the apostle Paul, and it was
agreed that West, who was a
prominent
lawyer, should publish an, attack upon the alleged resurrection of Jesus
Christ, while Lyttleton
was to
write a book showing that the New Testament account of Paul’s conversion was a
myth.
The Day of Miracles Not
Past
The very
brief mention of the matter there given, said that some time later West
inquired of
Lyttleton
whether or not he had yet written that book; and that Lyttleton
replied that he had, but that in
examining
the evidence in order to refute it, he had himself become satisfied of Paul’s
conversion and the
truthfulness
of Christianity. He then asked West if he had written his book about the
resurrection, and
strange as
it might seem, West said that he had, but that in examining the testimony and
weighing all the
evidence
according to the recognized rules of judicial procedure, he also had, become
convinced that Jesus
Christ did
really rise from the dead, and so had changed his plan and written his book in
support of the
resurrection
and in defense of Christianity.
Guided to Lyttleton’s Book
The story
seemed rather incredible, and the writer decided when in
city
library and see what could be learned about these men, and if they really did
have such an experience,
and had
written such books; for if true, their experience seemed to be remarkable. But
soon afterward,
while
rummaging over some material in an old bookstore looking for something, he
incidentally picked up
a little
dusty volume and found it contained an account of these men, together with Lyttleton’s pamphlet,
and a few
pages of West’s book. It confirmed what had been read before, and from this
originated the idea
of
combining in one small volume for popular reading, the best features of these
books, with sketches of
other famous infidels who found Christ. This was made
possible later by finding in the
library a
full copy of the original edition of West’s work.
It is the
sincere hope of the author that this book may give a new and fuller vision of
the way, the
truth, and
the life, to all who read it. AUTHOR.
1. The
Palace at Stowe
NEAR the
sleepy little town of
elms three
miles in length, stands the
West, Esq.,
patron of art and literature in the time of which we write.
“Sic
transit gloria mundi” (So
passes away earthly glory). These are the words which naturally
occur to
one’s mind while wandering through those beautiful gardens dominated by the
statue of their
designer.
Lord Cobham, or the galleries of this stately palace,
once the favorite resort of the most
distinguished
poets and literati of a bygone century. “Here.” says a writer in the Pall Mall
Gazette, “with
lavish
hospitality brave Cobham entertained the witty
Hammond,
the eloquent Lyttleton, the ingenious Pitt, and the
acute West.”
The Century of Eclipse
The
eighteenth century has been described as a period of religious eclipse in
modern civilization.
The
abolition of Christianity was at this time one of the principal themes of
discussion in both
Famous
Infidels Who Found Christ
4
is almost
past comprehension. The zeal of Puritanism had waned, the spirit of the
Reformation had
subsided,
and the church seemed as one dead insomuch that many thought it was dead.
Morality, ‘however
much
exalted in the pulpit, was trampled underfoot in the streets.
Causes of the Apostasy
There were
apparent, however, two manifest causes of this prevailing spiritual and moral
decline.
which
affected
the
classical culture of
literature,
and philosophy, which was morally corrupt, anti Christian in spirit, and
imparted weakness rather
than
strength to the cause of religion. Second, the medieval church, by its
notorious intolerance of all
progressive
thought, its protracted persecutions, crusades, inquisitions, autos da fe, and massacres,
especially
those waged against the Protestants of the
a bitter
prejudice in the minds of men against all forms of Christianity, and brought a
reaction favorable to
the growth
of infidelity and atheism. Education was limited, and among those who read at
all, the
sentiments
of such writers as Bolingbroke and Voltaire were much in vogue.
Infidelity Epidemic
The
literature of the age lies drenched with infidelity. It profanes the dictionary
and the
encyclopedia,
smuts the poetry taints the works of philosophy and science, and has left its
acrid stain across
the page of
history. An evil genius of unbelief insinuated itself everywhere, in the
vulgarity of the tavern.
the
entertainment of the lecture, and the levity of the banquet. It lured the
patriot, disturbed the solemnity of
the
conclave, and presided at the assemblages of the revolutionists. “It brooded
with Volney amid the
ancient
ruins of the East, and shed a false light over Gibbon’s magnificent pageant of
a past world from the
moonlight
solitude of the moldering Colosseum.”
The Origin of West’s Book
Lord Cobham shared the spirit of the age in which he lived, and
from his palace at Stowe, as from
the royal
court of Potsdam and the picture galleries of
deceive.
The magnificent surroundings, literary atmosphere, round of social
entertainment, and the frequent
and
distinguished guests, all made it easy for men like Pitt, Lyttleton,
and West to listen here, as they have
indicated
to the blandishments of infidelity. West, who was now in the prime of life, a
recognized scholar,
educated at
Eaton and
of State,
with whom he attended the king to
readily
understood men-and saw into things. It appears to have been the hope of Cobham and other
unbelievers
that West, already a leading spirit in infidel circles, should write a book
against Christianity,
which would
cause the ears of the church to tingle.
Under such
circumstances early in 1747 he came to Stowe, where the great library of the
palace
afforded
unusual opportunity for research and writing, to formulate his arguments
against the resurrection
of Christ.
In this connection there came under his observation an infidel book upon the
subject, entitled,
“The Trial
of the Witness,” in which the author sought to make it appear that the New
Testament writers in
their
accounts of the resurrection contradict each other, and appear incredible. This
was just what West
wanted to
prove, but in reading the book he became dissatisfied with the arguments
presented. They
seemed
unfair and misleading, full of transparent inconsistencies, and open to much
criticism. In his
disappointment
over the book, he began to question the soundness of the infidel position and
to feel that he
must
examine these witnesses and weigh their testimony for himself. He says of this
experience:
“Having
perceived the light breaking in upon me still more and more, the farther I
advanced [that
is in
reading the New Testament accounts] I was induced to go into a consideration of
the evidences of this
great and
important article,” and an exact and rigorous examination of the proofs. I have
thought proper to
subjoin.”
The result
was his celebrated work of 445 pages, “Observations on the History and Evidence
of
Famous
Infidels Who Found Christ
5
the
Resurrection of Jesus Christ,” in which the testimony of the gospel writers on
this subject, attested by
many
infallible proofs, is subjected to that searching and rigorous inquiry which
lawyers are skilled in
using when
cross-examining witnesses. Yet these witnesses stood the test without breaking
down in a
single
particular. We are told by West’s biographers, that when his book was
published, it was bought by
some who
did not know his change of opinion, in expectation of finding some new
objections against
Christianity;
and as infidels are not wanting in malignity, they revenged their
disappointment on reading the
book by
calling him a “Methodist,” a name at that time used in derision.
After his
conversion to Christianity, West continued at his pleasant home in Wickham to devote
himself
much to study and writing upon literary and religious subjects, and at the time
of his death was
engaged in
writing a work upon the evidences of Christianity. He was accustomed it is
said, to read
morning
prayers with his family, and on Sundays assembled his servants in the parlor
and read to them
from
sermons and prayers. Most prominent among his poetical works is his translation
of Pindar. (For this
and his poems,
see Johnson’s “Poets of Great Britain,” Volume 103.) He was one of the most
influential
friends of Lyttleton and Pitt, who often visited him at Wickham, and he is said to have been one of the few
poets to
whom the grave might be without its terrors.”
But the
conversion of West was not the only outcome of the conversations at the
Cobham,
for while West was writing upon the subject of the resurrection of Christ, his
friend, Lord
Lyttleton,
was preparing a pamphlet in which he set out to show that the account of Paul’s
conversion was a
myth. His
careful study of the subject led him to change his views, however, even as West
had done, and to
write a
treatise in support of Christianity rather than infidelity.
In an
account of the matter it is said that West afterward inquired of Lyttleton whether he had
written
that book; and Lyttleton replied that he had, but
that in carefully examining the evidence upon
which
Christians based their belief in Paul’s conversion, in order that he might
refute it, he had himself
become
convinced, and had decided to write in support of Christianity. “Have you
finished your work on
the
resurrection?” Lyttleton then asked. “Yes,” said
West, “but strange to relate, I had a similar experience.
In
examining all the evidence available, and weighing it according to the
recognized laws of legal evidence,
-I have
become satisfied that Jesus Christ really rose from the dead, and I have
written my book on that
side.”
In the
“Chronicles of the Eighteenth Century” (Volume I, page 212-214) it is said that
the
experiences
of these men created “a great sensation” at the time. As here related, about
the middle of this
century,
the home of the Wests at Wickham
in
Lyttleton
among others often repaired; where they found “books and quiet, a decent table,
and literary
conversation.
The writings of West and Lyttleton made such an
impression that the
this author
says, conferred upon Gilbert West the title of LLD for his treatise, and
offered a similar degree
to Lyttleton, which honor, however, he declined on the ground
that if he were to write more upon such
subjects,
it might be thought that he did so for the praise of men.
Testimony of the Earl of Egmont
In the
“Diary of the First Earl of Egmont (Viscount
Percival),” published by a Historical
Manuscripts’
Commission, His Majesty’s Stationery Office,
found the
following entry:
“May, 1747.
This month appeared two highly commended tracts in defense of revealed
religion.
written by
two notorious unbelievers who were of a club who associated themselves this,
year, and went to
Stowe, in
Buckinghamshire, the scat of Lord Cobbam, there to
examine critically the Scriptures at their
leisure,
and put together all the contradictions and impossibilities they fancied they
should find, in order to
hurt
Christianity the more; but behold, the result was that the two men I speak of
returned, convinced of
errors and
resolved to do their best to undeceive others. The first is Gilbert West,
Esquire, son of Dr. West,
who married
a sister of this Lord Cobham. This Mr. West, his
nephew, is esteemed an exceeding good
scholar;
his book is entitled, ‘Observations on the History and Evidences of the
Resurrection of Jesus
Christ.’
The other is George Lyttleton, Esquire, son of Sir
Thomas Lyttleton, Bt., of Worcestershire. His
book is
entitled, ‘Observations on the Conversion and Apostleship of St. Paul.’ Volume
III, 1739-1747.
Famous
Infidels Who Found Christ
6
A Rift in the Darkness
The
influence of this extraordinary religious incident, which spread especially
through political
and
literary circles, made a rift in the clouds of intellectual darkness which
overspread
middle of
the eighteenth century, when it was said that “all men of rank were thought to
be infidels.” The
publication
of these two sensational books brought a new revelation of Christian evidence,
especially
Lyttleton’s
work on “The Conversion of St. Paul” the effect of which may be judged from the
statement of
Dr.
Johnson, “Infidelity never was able to fabricate a specious answer to the
treatise.” The book passed
rapidly
through nine editions, and rekindled among the higher classes that religious
faith which the
preaching
of Whitefield and Wesley was reviving among the common people. The reaction
which followed
saved
Lyttleton
was at the time a very active member of the House of Commons, and his name
appeared
in most of
the debates. He was also Lord Commissioner of the Treasury, and was rising in
political
influence.
In 1755 he became Chancellor of the Exchequer, and was also elevated the
following year to the
House of
Lords. As an intimate friend of Pitt, the famous Prime Minister, of Lord
Chesterfield and
Bolingbroke
in Parliament, and of literary men like Dr. Johnson, Pope the poet, and others,
the influence of
his life
and writings gained wide publicity. He wrote various works of prose, and was a
poet of some
recognition.
Dr. Johnson has given us his biography in his “Lives of the Poets,- and Pope at
one time wrote
of him as
“Still true to virtue, and as warm as true.”
In his Christian
life he was a close friend of Philip Doddridge,
and
scholar, who called Lyttleton’s book one of the
“masterly” productions of the age. He has left among
his verses
the oft-quoted lines: “Not one immoral, one corrupted thought, One line, which,
dying, he could
wish to
blot.”
While
West’s work, as we have shown, made a great impression among the religious and
literary
people of
the time, and is generally mentioned in published accounts of Lyttleton’s book on the
“Conversion
of
teachings.
The technical character of the arguments arising from the legal style of the
author, together with
frequent
repetitions of thought, and the size of the work, have somewhat unfitted it for
popular reading, and
prevented
its attaining the eminence which it so richly deserved, and which has attended
the publication of
its
companion. volume of less than one hundred pages.
In giving
to the reading public the substance of the two books united in one small
volume, I have
sought to
reduce greatly the contents of both, the works without sacrificing any
important sections, and
have tried
also to preserve the integrity and force of the arguments, eliminating the less
interesting and less
essential
features, and supplying some helpful introductory and connective parts over my
own name.
2. The
Conversion of
BY LORD
LYTTLETON
Addressed
to Gilbert West, Esquire
(Abridged
by Lee S. Wheeler)
SIR, in a
late conversation we had upon the subject of the Christian religion, I told you
that
besides all
the proofs of it which may he drawn from the prophecies of the Old, Testament,
from the
necessary
connection it has with the whole system of the Jewish religion, from the
miracles of Christ, and
from the
evidence given of His resurrection by all the other apostles, I thought the
conversion and the
apostle
ship of
to be a
divine revelation.
As you
seemed to think that so compendious a proof might be of use to convince those
unbelievers
that will
not attend to a longer series of arguments, I have thrown together the reasons
upon which I support
that
proposition.
In the
twenty-sixth chapter of the Acts of the Apostles, written by a contemporary
author, and a
companion
of
etc.),
and Festus,
the Roman governor:
“My manner
of life from my youth, which was at the first among mine own nation at
Famous
Infidels Who Found Christ
7
know all
the Jews; which knew me from the beginning, if they would testify, that after
the most strait sect
of our
religion I lived a Pharisee. And now I stand and am judged for the hope of the
promise made of God
unto our
fathers: unto which promise our twelve tribes, instantly serving God day and
night, hope to come.
For which
hope’s sake, King Agrippa, I am accused of the Jews.
“Why should
it be thought a thing incredible with you, that God should raise the dead? I
verily
thought
with myself, that I ought to do many things contrary to the name of Jesus of
Nazareth. Which thing
I also did
in
chief
priests; and when they were put to death, I gave my voice against them. And I
punished them oft in
every
synagogue, and compelled them to blaspheme; and being exceedingly mad against
them, I persecuted
them even
unto strange cities.
“Whereupon
as I went to
midday, 0
king, I saw in the way a light from heaven, above the brightness of the sun,
shining round about
me and them
which journeyed with me. And when we were all fallen to the earth, I heard a
voice speaking
unto me,
and saying in the Hebrew tongue, Saul, Saul, why persecutes thou Me? it is hard
for thee to kick
against the
pricks. And I said. Who art Thou, Lord?
“And He
said, I am Jesus whom thou persecutes. But rise, and stand upon thy feet: for I
have
appeared
unto thee for this purpose, to make thee a minister and a witness both of these
things which thou
has seen,
and of those things in the which I will appear unto thee. Delivering thee from
the people, and
from the
Gentiles, unto whom now I send thee, to open their eyes, and to turn them from
darkness to light,
and from
the power of Satan unto God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins, and
inheritance among
them which
are sanctified by faith that is in Me.
“Whereupon,
0 King Agrippa, I was not disobedient unto the heavenly vision: but showed’
first
unto them
of
that they
should repent and turn to God, and do works meet for repentance.
“For these
causes the Jews caught me in the temple, and went about to kill me. Having
therefore
obtained
help of God, I continue unto this day, witnessing both to small and great,
saying none other things
than those
which the prophets and Moses did say should come: That Christ should suffer,
and that He
should be
the first that should rise from the dead, and should show light unto the
people, and to the
Gentiles.
“And as he
thus spoke for himself, Festus said with a loud voice, Paul, thou art beside
thyself;
much
learning does make thee mad. But he said, I am not mad, most noble Festus; but
speak forth the
words of
truth and soberness. For the king knows of these things, before whom also I
speak freely: for I am
persuaded
that none of these things are hidden from him., for this thing was not done in
a corner.
“King
Agrippa, believes thou the prophets? I know that thou believes. Then Agrippa
said unto
Paul,
Almost thou persuaded me to be a Christian. And Paul said, I would to God, that
not only thou, but
also all
that hear me this day, were both almost and altogether such as I am, except
these bonds.”
In another
chapter of the same book, he gives in substance the same account to the Jews,
adding
these
further particulars:
“And I
said, What shall I do, Lord? And the Lord said unto me, Arise, and go into
there it
shall be told you of all things which are appointed for thee to do.
“And when I
could not see for the glory of that light being led by the hand of them that
were with
me, I came
into
“And one Ananias, a devout man according to the law, having a good
report of all the Jews which
dwelt
there, came unto me, and stood, and said unto me, Brother Saul, receive thy
sight. And the same hour
I looked up
upon him. And he said, The God of our fathers hath chosen thee, that thou
should know His
will, and
see that Just One, and should hear the voice of His mouth. For thou shall be
His witness unto all
men of what
thou has seen and heard. And now why tarry thou? arise, and be baptized, and
wash away thy
sins,
calling on the name of the Lord.” Acts 22:10-16.
In the ninth
chapter of the same book, the author of it relates the same story with some
other
circumstances
not mentioned in these accounts. As, that Saul in a vision saw Ananias, before he came to
him,
“coming in, and putting his hand on him, that he might receive his sight;” and
that when Ananias had
spoken to
him, “immediately there fell from his eyes as it had been scales.” Acts 9:12,
18.
And
agreeably to all these accounts, St.. Paul thus speaks of himself in the
epistles he wrote to the
several
churches he planted. the authenticity of which cannot he doubted without
overturning all rules by
which the
authority and genuineness of any writings can be proved or confirmed.
To the
Galatians he says: “I certify you, brethren that the gospel which was preached
of me is not
Famous
Infidels Who Found Christ
8
after man.
For I neither received it of man, neither was I taught it but by the revelation
of Jesus Christ. For
you have
heard of my conversation in time past in the Jews’ religion, how that beyond
measure I
persecuted
the
mine own
nation, being more exceedingly zealous of the traditions of my fathers. But
when it pleased God,
who
separated me from my mother’s womb, and called me by His grace, to reveal His
Son in me, that I
might
preach Him among the heathen; immediately I conferred not with flesh and
blood.” etc. Galatians
1:11- 16.
To the
Philippians he says: “If any other man thinks that he hath whereof he might
trust in the
flesh, I
more: Circumcised the eighth day, of the stock of
Hebrews. As
touching the law, a Pharisee; concerning zeal, persecuting the church. Touching
the
righteousness
which is in the law, blameless. But what things were gain to me, those I
counted loss for
Christ. Yea
doubtless, and I count all things but loss for the excellency
of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my
Lord: for
whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and do count them but dung, that I
may win Christ.”
Philippians
3:4-8.
And in his
epistle to Timothy he writes thus: “I thank Christ Jesus our Lord, who hath
enabled me
for that He
counted me faithful, putting me into the ministry; who was before a blasphemer,
and a
persecutor,
and injurious: but I obtained mercy, because I did it ignorantly in unbelief.”
1 Timothy 1:12,13.
In other
epistles he calls himself “an apostle of Jesus Christ by the will of God,” “by
the
commandment
of God our Savior, and Lord Jesus Christ,” “an apostle, (not of men, neither by
man, but by
Jesus
Christ and God the Father, who raised Him from the dead.) “ 2, Corinthians 1:1;
Colossians 1:1; 1
Timothy
1:1; Galatians 1:1. All of which implies some miraculous call that made him an
apostle. And to
the
Corinthians he says after enumerating many appearances of Jesus after His
resurrection, “And last of all
He was seen
of me also, as of one born out of due time.” 1 Corinthians 15:8.
Now, it
must of necessity be that the person attesting these things of himself, and of
whom they
are related
in so authentic a manner, either was an impostor, who said what he knew to be
false, with an
intent to
deceive. Or he was an enthusiast, who, by the force of an overheated
imagination, imposed on
himself. Or
he was deceived by the fraud of others, and all that he said must he imputed to
the power of that
deceit; or
what he declared to have been, the cause of his conversion, and to have
happened in consequence
of it did
all really happen, and therefore the Christian religion is a divine revelation.
Paul Not an Impostor
Now, that
he was not an impostor, who said what he knew to be false, with an intent to
deceive, I
shall
endeavor to prove, by showing that he could have no rational motives to
undertake such an imposture,
nor could
have possibly carried it on with any success by the means we know he employed.
First,
then, the inducement to such an imposture must have been one of these two:
either the hope
of
advancing himself by it in his temporal interest, credit, or power; or by the
gratification of some of his
passions
under the authority of it, and by the means it afforded.
What could
be his motive to take such a part? ‘Was it the hope of increasing his wealth?
The
certain
consequence of his taking that part was not only the loss of all that he had,
but of all hopes of
acquiring
more. Those whom he left were the disposers of wealth, of dignity of power, in
whom he
went to, were indigent men, oppressed and kept down from all means of improving
their fortunes,
they, among
them, who had more than the rest, sharing what they had with their brethren.
But with this
assistance
the whole community was hardly supplied with the necessaries of life. And even
in churches he
afterward
planted himself, which were much more wealthy than that of
availing
himself of their charity, or the veneration they had for him, in order to draw
that wealth to himself,
that he
often refused to take any part of it for the necessaries of life.
Paul’s Letters Bear
Witness to His Unselfish Labors
Thus he
tells the Corinthians: “Even unto this present hour we both hunger, and thirst,
and are
naked, and
are buffeted, and have no certain dwelling place; and labor, working with our
own hands.” 1
Corinthians
4:11.
In another
epistle he writes to them: “Behold, the third time I am ready to come to you;
and I will
not be
burdensome to you: for I seek not yours, but you: for the children ought not to
lay up for the parents,
Famous
Infidels Who Found Christ
9
but the
parents for the children.” 2 Corinthians 12:14.
To the
Thessalonians he says: “As we were allowed of God to be, put in trust with the
gospel, even
so we
speak. Not as pleasing men, but God, which tries our hearts. For neither at any
time used we
flattering
words, as you know, nor a cloak of covetousness; God is witness: nor of men
sought we glory,
neither of
you, nor yet of others, when we might have been burdensome, as the apostles of
Christ.... For you
remember,
brethren, our labor and travail: for laboring night and day, because we would
not be chargeable
unto any of
you, we preached unto you the gospel of God.” 1 Thessalonians 2:44.
And again
in another letter to them he repeats the same testimony of his disinterestedness:
-Neither
did we eat
any man’s bread for naught; but wrought with labor and travail night and day,
that we might not
be
chargeable to any of you.” 2 Thessalonians 3:8.
And when he
took his farewell of the
him no
more, he gives this testimony of himself, and appeals to them for the truth of
it: I have coveted no
man’s
silver, or gold or apparel. Yea, you yourselves know, that these hands have
ministered unto my
necessities,
and to them that were with me.” Acts 20:33, 34.
It is
evident then, both from the state of the church when
behavior
afterward, that he had no thoughts of increasing his wealth by becoming a
Christian. Whereas, by
continuing
to he their enemy, he had almost certain hopes of making his fortune by the
favor of those who
were at the
head of the Jewish state, to whom nothing could more recommend him than the
zeal that he
showed in
that persecution.
As to
credit or reputation, that, too, lay all on the side he forsook. The sect he
embraced was under
the
greatest and most universal contempt of any then in the world. “We are made,”
says he to the
Corinthians,
“as the filth of the world, the off scouring of all things unto this day.” 1
Corinthians 4:13. Yet
he went on
as zealously as he set out, and was not ashamed of the gospel of Christ.
Certainly, then the
desire of
glory, the ambition of making to himself a great name was not his motive in
embracing
Christianity.
Sought to Serve, Not to
Rule
Was it,
then, the love of power? Power! Over whom? Over a flock of sheep driven to the
slaughter,
whose Shepherd Himself had been murdered a little before! All he could hope
from that power
was to be
marked out in a particular manner for the same knife which he had seen so
bloodily drawn
against
them. Could he expect more mercy from the chief priests and the rulers than
they had shown to
Jesus
Himself? Would not their anger be probably fiercer against the deserter and
betrayer of their cause,
than
against any other of the apostles? Was power over so despised a set of men
worth encountering so
much
danger?
Let us see,
then, what power
superiority
over the other apostles? No; he declared himself “the least” of them, and 1ess
than the least of
all
saints.” 1 Corinthians 15:9; Ephesians 3:8. Even in the churches he planted
himself, he never pretended
to any
primacy or power above the other apostles. Nor would he be regarded any
otherwise by them, than
as the
instrument to them of the grace of God, and preacher of the gospel, not as the
head of a sect. To the
Corinthians
he writes in these words:
“Now this I
say, that every one of you said, I am of Paul; and I of Apollos;
and I of Cephas; and I
of Christ.
Is Christ divided? Was Paul crucified for you? Or were you baptized in the name
of Paul?” 1
Corinthians
1: 12. 13. And in another place, “Who then is Paul, and who is Apollos, but ministers by whom
you
believed, even as the Lord gave to every man?” 1 Corinthians 3:5. “For we
preach not ourselves, but
Christ
Jesus the Lord; and ourselves your servants for Jesus’ sake.” 2 Corinthians
4:5.
All the
authority he exercised over them was purely of a spiritual nature, tending to
their
instruction
and edification, without any mixture of that civil dominion in which an
impostor can find his
account.
As a Father to His
Children
This is the
manner in which he writes to the Philippians: “Wherefore, my beloved, as you
have
always
obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out
your own
salvation
with fear and trembling.” Philippians 2:12. And a little after, he adds the
cause why he interested
Famous
Infidels Who Found Christ
10
himself so
much in their conduct: “That you may be blameless and harmless, the sons of
God, without
rebuke, in
the midst of a crooked and perverse nation, among whom you shine as lights in
the world.
Holding
forth the word of life. That I may rejoice in the day of Christ, that I have not
run in vain, neither
labored in
vain. Yea, and if I be offered upon the sacrifice and service of your faith, I
joy, and rejoice with
you all.”
Philippians 2:15-17.
Are those
the words of an impostor desiring nothing but temporal power? No; they are evidently
written by
one who looked beyond the bounds of this life. But it may be said that he
affected at least an
absolute
spiritual power over the churches he formed. I answer, He preached Christ
Jesus, and not himself.
Christ was
the head, he only the minister., and for such only he gave himself to them. He
called those who
assisted
him in preaching the gospel, his fellow laborers and fellow servants.
Not Exalted by Learning
So far was
he from taking any advantage of a higher education, superior learning, and more
use of
the world,
to claim to himself any supremacy above the other apostles, that he made light
of all these
attainments,
and declared that he “came not with excellency of
speech or of wisdom.” but determined to
know
nothing among those he converted “save Jesus Christ, and Him crucified.” And
the reason he gave
for it was,
that their “faith should not stand in the wisdom of men, but in the power of
God.” 1 Corinthians
2:1, 2, 5.
Now this
conduct put him quite on a level with the other apostles, who knew Jesus Christ
as well
as he, and
had the power of God going along with their preaching in an equal degree of
virtue and grace.
But an
impostor, whose aim had been power, would have acted a contrary part; he would
have availed
himself of
all those advantages; he would have extolled them as highly as possible; he
would have set up
himself by
virtue of them as head of that sect to which he acceded, or at least of the
proselytes made by
himself.
This is no more than what was done by every philosopher who formed a school;
much more was it
natural in
one who propagated a new religion.
We see that
the Bishops of Rome have claimed to themselves a primacy, or rather a monarchy,
over the
whole Christian church. If
easier for
him to have succeeded in such an attempt. It was much easier to make himself
head of a few poor
mechanics
and fishermen, ‘whose superior he had always been in the eyes of the world,
than for the
Bishops of
Rome to reduce those of
Besides the
opposition they met with from such potent antagonists, they were obliged to
support their
pretensions
in direct contradiction to those very Scriptures which they were forced to
ground them upon.
and to the
indisputable practice of the whole Christian church for many centuries. These
were such
difficulties
as required the utmost abilities and skill to surmount.
But the
first preachers of the gospel had easier means to corrupt a faith not yet fully
known, and
which in
many places could only be known by what they severally published themselves. It
was necessary,
indeed,
while they continued together and taught the same people, that they should
agree, otherwise the
credit of
their sect would have been overthrown; but when they separated. and formed
different churches in
distant
countries, the same necessity no longer remained.
It. was in
the power of
ambition.
For he preached the gospel in parts of the world where no other, apostles had
been, where Christ
was not
named till he brought the knowledge of Him, avoiding to build “upon another
man’s foundation.”
Romans
15:20. Now had he been an impostor, would he have confined himself to just the
same gospel as
was
delivered by the other apostles, where he had such a latitude to preach what he
pleased without
contradiction?
Would he not have twisted and warped the doctrines of Christ to his own ends,
to the
particular
use and expediency of his own followers and to the peculiar support and
increase of his own
power?
That this
was not done by
world as
they traveled into, and in churches absolutely under their own direction. That
the gospel preached
by them all
should be one and the same, the doctrines agreeing in every particular, without
any one of them
attributing
more to himself than he did to the others, or establishing anything even in
point of order or
discipline
different from the rest, or more advantageous to his own interest, credit, or
power, is a most
strong and
convincing proof of their not being impostors, but acting entirely by divine
inspiration.
Famous
Infidels Who Found Christ
11
What Paul Gave Up
If, then,
it appears that
hand, what
he gave up and what he had reason to fear. He gave up a fortune, which he was
then in a fair
way of
advancing; he gave up that reputation which he had acquired by the labors and
studies of his whole
life, and
by a behavior which had been blameless, “touching the righteousness which is in
the law”
(Philippians
3:6). He gave up his, friends, his relations, and family, from whom he
estranged and banished
himself for
life; he gave up that religion which he had profited in, above many his equals
in his own nation,
and those
traditions of his fathers, which he had been more exceedingly zealous of.
Galatians 1:14. How
hard this
sacrifice was to a man of his warm temper, and above all men, to a Jew, is,
worth consideration.
Marks of Moral Excellence
It only
remains to be inquired, whether the gratification of any other passion under
the authority of
that
religion, or by the means it afforded, could be his inducement. That there have
been some impostors
who have
pretended to revelations from God merely to give loose rein to irregular
passions, and set
themselves
free from all restraints of government, law, or morality, both ancient and
modern history shows.
But the
doctrine preached by
nothing but
the strictest morality, obedience to magistrates, order, and government, with
the utmost
abhorrence
of all licentiousness, idleness, or loose behavior under the cloak of religion.
(See Romans 11
and 13, and
Colossians 3.)
Nor does
any part of his life, either before or after his conversion to Christianity.
bear any mark of
a libertine
disposition. As among the Jews, so among the Christians, his conversation and
manners were
blameless.
Hear the appeal that he makes to the Thessalonians upon his doctrine and
behavior among them:
“Our
exhortation was not of deceit, nor of uncleanness, nor in guile.” “You are
witnesses, and God also,
how holly,
and justly, and unblamably we behaved ourselves among
you that believe.” 1 Thessalonians 2:3,
10. And to
the Corinthians he says, “We have wronged no man, we have corrupted no man, we
have
defrauded
no man.” 2 Corinthians 7:2. (See also 2 Corinthians 1: 12 and 4:2).
As,
therefore, no rational motive appears for
having been
really convinced of the truth of it, but on the contrary, everything concurred
to deter him from
acting that
part, one might very justly conclude that when a man of his understanding
embraced that faith,
he was in
reality convinced of the truth of it. And that, by consequence, he was not an
impostor, who said
what he
knew to be false with an intent to deceive.
Paul Not a Mere
Enthusiast
I come next
to consider whether he was an enthusiast who, by the force of an overheated
imagination,
imposed upon himself through ignorance, credulity, or self-conceit. That the
first of these
qualities
was in
Christian,
in maintaining that which he thought to be right. And hence, I suppose, as well
as from the
impossibility
of his having been an impostor, some unbelievers have chosen to consider him as
an
enthusiast.
But this quality alone will not be sufficient to prove him to have been so in
the opinion of any
reasonable
man. His zeal was eager and warm, but tempered with prudence, and even with the
civilities and
decorums
of life, as appears by his behavior to Agrippa, Festus, and Felix; not the
blind, inconsiderate,
indecent
zeal of an enthusiast.
As to
ignorance, which is another ground of enthusiasm,
to have
been master, not of the Jewish learning alone, but of the Greek. And this is
one reason why he is
less liable
to the imputation of having been an enthusiast than the other apostles, though
none of them were
such any
more than he, as may by other arguments be invincibly proved.
I have
mentioned credulity as a characteristic and cause of enthusiasm, which, that it
was not in St.
Paul, the
history of his life undeniably shows. For on the contrary, he seems to have
been slow and hard of
belief in
the extreme degree, having paid no regard to all the miracles done by our
Savior, the fame of
which lie
could not be a stranger to, as he lived in
resurrection,
and in. His name, by Peter and John, upon the lame man at the Beautiful gate of
the temple;
nor to the
evidence given in consequence of it by Peter, in the presence of the high
priest, the rulers, elders,
Famous
Infidels Who Found Christ
12
and
scribes, that Christ was “raised from the dead.” (See Acts 3)
He must
also have known that when all the apostles had been shut up in the common
prison, and
the high
priest, the council, and all the senate of the children of
before
them, the officers came and found them not in prison, but returned and made
this report: “The prison
truly found
we shut with all safety, and the keepers standing without before the doors. But
when we had
opened, we
found no man within.” And that the council was immediately told that the men
they had put in
prison were
standing in the temple and teaching the people; and that being brought from
thence before the
council,
they had spoken these memorable words: “We ought to obey God rather than men.
The God of our
fathers raised
up Jesus, whom you slew and hanged on a tree. Him hath God exalted with His
right hand to
be a Prince
and a Savior, for to give repentance to
of these
things; and so is also the Holy Ghost, whom God hath given to them that obey
Him.” Acts 5:18-32.
All this he
resisted, and was consenting to the murder of Stephen, who preached the same
thing,
and evinced
it by miracles. Acts 8:1. So that his mind, far from being disposed to a
credulous faith, or a too
easy
reception of any miracle worked in proof of the Christian religion, appears to
have been barred against
it by the
most obstinate prejudices, as much as any man’s could possibly be. And from
hence we may fairly
conclude
that nothing less than the irresistible evidence of his own senses, clear from
all possibility of
doubt,
could have overcome his unbelief.
Self
conceit is another circumstance that, for the most part, prevails in the
character of an
enthusiast.
It leads men of a warm temper, and religious turn, to think themselves worthy
of the special
regard and
extraordinary favors of God; and the breath of that inspiration to which they
pretend is often no
more than
the wind of this vanity, which puffs them up to such extravagant imaginations. That
as free
from it as any man, I think may be gathered from all that we see in his
writings or know of his life.
Throughout
his epistles there is not one word that savors of vanity, nor is any action
recorded of him in
which the
least mark of it appears.
In his
epistle to the Ephesians, he calls himself “less than the least of all saints.”
Ephesians 3:8.
And to the
Corinthians he says he is “the least of the apostles,” and “not meet to be
called an apostle,”
because he
had “persecuted the
“This is a
faithful saying, and worthy of all acceptation, that Christ Jesus came into the
world to save
sinners: of
whom I am chief. Howbeit for this cause I obtained mercy, that in me first
Jesus Christ might
show forth
all longsuffering, for a pattern to them which should hereafter believe on Him
to life
everlasting.”
1 Timothy 1: 15, 16.
Takes No Praise to
Himself
Nor does he
take any merit to himself, even from the success of those apostolic labors
which he
principally
boasts of in his epistle. For in a former one to the same church he writes
thus: “Who then is
Paul, and
who is Apollos, but ministers by whom you believed,
even as the Lord gave to every man? I have
planted, Apollos Watered; but God gave the increase. So then neither
is he that planted anything, neither he
that
watered; but God that given the increase.” 1 Corinthians 3:5-7. And in another
place of the same epistle
he says,
“By the grace of God I am what I am: and His grace which was bestowed upon me
was not in vain,
but I
labored more abundantly than they all. Yet not I, but the grace of God which
was with me.” 1
Corinthians
15:10.
I think it
needless to give more instances of the modesty of
given that
bears any color of vanity, or that vanity in particular which so strongly
appears in all enthusiasts,
of setting
their imaginary gifts above those virtues which make the essence of true
religion, and the real
excellency
of a good man, or in the Scripture phrase, of a “saint.”
Love Exalted as the
Greatest Thing in Life
In his
first epistle to the Corinthians he has these words: “Though I speak with the
tongues of men
and of
angels, and have not charity, I am become as sounding brass, or a tinkling
cymbal. And though I
have the
gift of prophecy, and understand all mysteries, and all knowledge; and though I
have all faith, so
that I
could remove mountains, and have not charity, I am nothing. And though I bestow
all my goods to
feed the
poor, and though I give my body to be burned, and have not charity, it profits
me nothing.” 1
Corinthians
13:1-3.
Famous
Infidels Who Found Christ
13
Is this the
language of enthusiasm? Did ever enthusiast prefer that universal benevolence
which
comprehends
all moral virtues, and which (as appears by the following verses) is meant by
charity here; did
ever
enthusiast, I say, prefer that benevolence to faith and to miracles, to those
religious opinions which he
had
embraced, and to those supernatural graces and gifts which he imagined he had
acquired, nay, even to
the merit
of martyrdom? Is it not the genius of enthusiasm to set moral virtues
infinitely below the merit of
faith; and
of all moral virtues, to value that least which is most particularly enforced
by
candor,
moderation, and peace? Certainly neither the temper nor, the opinions of a man
subject to fanatical
delusions,
are to be found in this passage; but it may be justly concluded, that he who
could esteem the
value of
charity so much above miraculous gifts, could not have pretended to any such
gifts if he had them
not in
reality.
Paul’s Vision of Christ
Nothing can
be more certain than that when Saul set out for
chief
priests to bring the Christians who were there “bound unto
solicited
by himself, and granted to him at his own earnest desire, his mind was strongly
possessed with
opinions
against Christ and His followers. To give those opinions a more active force,
his passions at that
time
concurred, being inflamed in the highest degree by the irritating consciousness
of his past conduct
toward
them, the pride of supporting a part he had voluntarily engaged in, and the
credit he found it
procured
him among the chief priests and rulers, whose commission he bore.
If in such
a state and temper of mind, an enthusiastic man had imagined he saw a vision
from
heaven
denouncing the anger of God against the Christians, and commanding him to
persecute them
without any
mercy, it might be accounted for by the natural power of enthusiasm. But that,
in the very
instant of
his being engaged in the fiercest and hottest persecution against them, no
circumstance having
happened to
change his opinions or alter the bent of his disposition, he should at once
imagine himself
called by a
heavenly vision to be the apostle of Christ, whom but a moment before he deemed
an impostor
and a
blasphemer. that had been justly put to death on the cross, is in itself wholly
incredible.
This is so
clear a proposition that I might rest the whole argument entirely upon it; but
still further
to show
that this vision could not he a phantom of
was not
alone when he saw it. There were many others in company, whose minds were no
better disposed
than his to
the Christian faith. Could it be possible that the imaginations of all these
men should at the same
time be so
strangely affected as to make them believe that they saw “a great light”
shining about them,
“above the
brightness of the sun” at noonday and heard the sound of a voice from heaven,
though not the
words which
it spoke (Acts 9:3; 22:9) when in reality they neither saw nor heard any such
thing? Could
they be so
infatuated with this conceit of their fancy, as to fall down together with
Saul, and be -speechless-
through
fear (Acts 26:14; 9:7), when nothing had happened extraordinary either to them
or to him? This
supposition
is so contrary to nature and all possibility. that unbelief must find some
other solution, or give
up the
point.
Paul’s Blindness and
Conversion
Saul was
struck blind, and continued so for three days. Now, had this blindness been
natural from
the effects
of a meteor or lightning upon him, it would not have been possible for Ananias to heal it, as we
find that
he did, merely by putting his hands on him and speaking a few words. Acts 9:17,
18; 22:13. This
undoubtedly
surpassed the power of nature; and if this was a miracle, it proves the other
to have been a
miracle
too, and a miracle done by the same Jesus Christ. For Ananias,
when he healed Saul, spoke to him
thus:
-Brother Saul, the Lord, even Jesus, that appeared unto thee in the way as thou
camest, hath sent me,
that thou
might receive thy sight, and be filled with the Holy Ghost.” Acts 9:17.
And that he
saw Christ both now and after this time, appears not only by what he relates
(Acts
22:17, 18),
but by other passages in his epistles. (See 1 Corinthians 9:1; 15:8.) For Him
as he asserts in
many places
of his epistles, he learned the gospel by immediate revelation, and by Him he
was sent to the
Gentiles.
Acts 9:21; 22:11. Among those Gentiles “from
preached
the gospel of Christ” with “mighty signs and wonders,” wrought “by the power of
the Spirit of
God,” to
make them obedient to his preaching, as he himself testifies in his epistle to
the Romans (Romans
15:19). And
of which a particular account is given to us in the Acts of the Apostles, signs
and wonders,
Famous
Infidels Who Found Christ
14
indeed,
above any power of nature to work or of imposture to counterfeit or of
enthusiasm to imagine.
Now, does
not such a series of miraculous acts, all consequential and dependent upon the
first
revelation,
put the truth of that revelation beyond all possibility of doubt or deceit?
Paul Not Deceived by
Others
Having
thus, I flatter myself, satisfactorily shown that
the force
of an overheated imagination, imposed on him self, I am next to inquire whether
he was deceived
by the
fraud of others, and whether all that he said of himself can be imputed to the
power of that deceit?
But I need
say little to show the absurdity of this supposition. It was morally impossible
for the disciples of
Christ to
conceive such a thought as that of turning His persecutor into His apostle, and
to do this by fraud,
in the very
instant of his greatest fury against them and their Lord.
But could
they have been so extravagant as to conceive such a thought, it was physically
impossible
for them to execute it in the manner we find his conversion to have been
effected. Could they
produce a
light in the air, which at midday was brighter than that of the sun? Could they
make Saul bear
words from
out of, that light (Acts 22:9) which were not heard by the rest of the company?
Could they
make him
blind for three days after that vision, and then make scales fall from off his
eyes, and restore to
him his
sight by a word? Beyond dispute, no fraud could do these things; but much less
still could the fraud
of others
produce those miracles, subsequent to his conversion, in which he was not
passive, but active;
which he
did himself, and appeals to in his epistles as proofs of his divine mission.
Conclusion
I shall
then take it for granted that he was not deceived by the fraud of others, and
that what he
said of
himself can no more be imputed to the power of that deceit, than to willful
imposture or to
enthusiasm;
and then it follows that what he related to have been the cause of his
conversion, and to have
happened in
consequence of it, did all really happen; and that therefore the Christian
religion is a divine
revelation.
That this
conclusion is fairly and undeniably drawn from the premises, I think must be
owned,
unless some
probable cause can be assigned to account for those facts so authentically
related in the Acts of
the
Apostles, and attested in his epistles by
establishment
of a most holy religion, which from the insuperable difficulties that stood in
the way of it,
could not
have established itself without such assistance, is no way repugnant to human
reason.
Miracles and Mysteries of
Christianity Not Incredible
Those who
reject Christianity as a divine revelation, acknowledge the morals delivered by
Christ
and by His
apostles to be worthy of God. Is it then on account of the mysteries in the
gospel that the facts
are denied,
though supported by evidence which in all other cases would be allowed to
contain the clearest
conviction,
and cannot in this be rejected without reducing the mind to a state of absolute
skepticism, and
overturning
those rules by which we judge of all evidence, and of the truth or credibility
of all other facts?
But this is
plainly to give up the use of our understanding where we are able to use it
most properly, in
order to
apply it to things of which it is not a competent judge. The motives and
reasons upon which divine
wisdom may
think proper to act, as well as the manner in which it acts, must often lie out
of the reach of
our
understanding; but the motives and reasons of human actions, and the manner in
which they are
performed,
are all in the sphere of human knowledge, and upon them we may judge with a
well-grounded
confidence
when they are fairly proposed to our consideration.
God’s Ways Above Man’s
Conception
It is
incomparably more probable that a revelation from God concerning the ways of
His
providence,
should contain in it matters above the capacity of our minds to comprehend,
than that
or indeed
any of the other apostles, should have acted, as we know that they did, upon
any other
foundations
than certain knowledge of Christ’s being risen from the, dead; or should have
succeeded in the
Famous
Infidels Who Found Christ
15
work they
undertook, without the aid of miraculous powers.
Nor do they
who reject the Christian religion because of the difficulties which occur in
its
mysteries.
consider how far that objection will go against other systems, both of religion
and of philosophy,
which they
themselves profess to admit. There are in deism itself, the most simple of all
religious opinions,
several
difficulties, for which human reason can but ill account; which may therefore
be not improperly
styled
“articles of faith.”
Reason Embraces Faith
No wise man
will deny the being of God, or His infinite wisdom, goodness, and power, which
are
proved by
such evidence as carries the clearest and strongest conviction, and cannot be
refused without
involving
the mind in far greater difficulties, even in downright absurdities and
impossibilities. The only
part,
therefore, that can be taken, is to account in the best manner that our weak
reason is able to do, for
seeming
objections. And where that fails, to acknowledge its weakness, and acquiesce
under the certainty
that our
very imperfect knowledge or judgment cannot be the measure of the divine
wisdom, or the
universal
standard of truth. So likewise it is with respect to the Christian religion.
Some difficulties occur in
that
revelation which human reason can hardly clear. But as the truth of it stands
upon evidence so strong
and
convincing that it cannot be denied without much greater difficulties than
those that attend the belief of
it, as I
have before endeavored to prove, we ought not to reject it upon such
objections, however mortifying
they may be
to our pride. All that concerns our duty is clear; and as to other points,
either of natural or
revealed
religion, if He has left some obscurities in them, is that any reasonable cause
of complaint? Not to
rejoice in
the benefit of what He has graciously allowed us to know, from a presumptuous
disgust at our
incapacity
of knowing more, is as absurd as it would be to refuse to walk because we
cannot fly.
From the
arrogant ignorance of metaphysical reasoning, aiming at matters above our
knowledge,
arose all
the speculative impiety and many of the worst superstitions of the old heathen
world, before the
gospel was
preached to bring men back again to the primitive faith.
If the
glorious light of the gospel be sometimes overcast with clouds of doubt, so is
the light of our
reason,
too. But shall we deprive ourselves of the advantages of either, because those
clouds cannot,
perhaps, be
entirely removed while we remain in this mortal life? Shall we obstinately and frowardly shut
our eyes
against that Dayspring from on high that has visited us, because we are not, as
yet, able to bear the
full blaze
of His beams? True philosophy, as well as true Christianity, would teach us a
wiser and more
modest
part. It would teach us to be content within those bounds which God has
assigned to us, “casting
down
imaginations, and every high thing that exalted itself against the knowledge of
God, and bringing into
captivity
every thought to the obedience of Christ.” 2 Corinthians 10:5.
3. The
History and Evidence of the Resurrection of Jesus Christ
Harmony of
the Gospel Narratives
BY GILBERT
WEST, ESQ.
(Condensed
and Arranged by Lee S. Wheeler)
Introduction
WEST
apparently was the first among English writers to correlate the incidents of
the morning of
Christ’s
resurrection into a harmonious and satisfactory order. Having a mind trained to
perceive the
circumstantial
evidence of a case, he saw the connection between the various reports as
related by the
different
writers of the New Testament, and was able to resolve them into a harmonious
narrative, which
the
American Tract Society described as unanswered and unanswerable, adding that in
this treatise on the
resurrection
of Christ, “all seeming contradictions in the records of the evangelists are so
fully explained,
and the
whole subject of the resurrection so amply and ably presented, that it forms
one of the most
convincing
proofs of the truth of Christianity.”
Famous
Infidels Who Found Christ
16
West’s work
is based upon the following observations:
1. That the
women who first visited Christ’s tomb on the morning of the resurrection,
evidently
came from
different directions and in different companies, and as they did not all arrive
at the same time,
they
consequently did not all see the same sights or relate exactly the same
incidents.
2. That
Mary Magdalene was twice at the sepulcher, reporting, first, only that the body
of Christ
had been
removed from the tomb, leaving it open and empty (John 20:1, 2); while in the
second instance
she
reported having seen Jesus in the garden. Verse 18.
3. That
there were different appearances of the angels to the different visitors at the
tomb,
followed by
manifestations of Christ to certain persons.
4. That
these several facts were reported to the apostles at different times, by
various women.
(Compare
the accounts in Matthew 28, Mark 16, Luke 24, and The Resurrection of Jesus
Christ
Our Savior
was crucified on Friday (“the preparation,” or day before the Sabbath). He
expired
about three
o’clock in the afternoon of that day, and was buried that evening. before the
commencement of
the
Sabbath. Sometime, and most probably toward the close of the Sabbath-after the
religious duties of the
day were
over, the chief priests obtained of Pilate, the Roman governor, a guard to
watch the sepulcher
until the
third day was past, pretending to apprehend that the disciples might come by
night and steal away
the body,
and then give out that He was risen, according to what He Himself had predicted
while yet alive.
They
accordingly made sure the sepulcher, and to prevent any possible conspiracy of
the soldiers with the
disciples,
put a seal upon the stone which closed up the entrance to the sepulcher.
The Resurrection Morning
Very early
on the first day of the week (the day immediately following the Sabbath. and
the third
from the
death of Christ), Mary Magdalene, and the other Mary, in pursuance of the
design of embalming
the Lord’s
body, which they had arranged for with the other women who attended Him from
view of the
sepulcher. just as the day began to break. About that time “there was a great
earthquake: for the
angel of
the Lord descended from heaven, and came and rolled back the stone from the
door, and sat upon
it. His
countenance was like lightning, and his raiment white as snow: and for fear of
him the keepers did
shake, and
became as dead men.” Matthew 28:2-4. During their amazement and terror, Christ
came out of
the
sepulcher; and the keepers, on recovering from their trance, arose and fled to
the city.
Mary
Magdalene and the other Mary, in the meantime, were still on their way to the
sepulcher,
where,
together with Salome, who appears to have joined them on the way, they arrived
about sunrise.
Mark
16:1-4. As they drew near, discoursing about embalming the body of their
Master, “they said among
themselves,
Who shall roll us away the stone from the door of the sepulcher? ... for it was
very great,” as
the two Marys at least knew, who had seen it placed there, two days
before, and noticed with what
difficulty
it was done. Matthew 27:60, 61. But in the midst of their deliberations about
removing this great
and sole
obstacle (for it does not appear that they knew anything about the guard),
lifting up their eyes
while yet
at some distance, they perceived that it had already been rolled away, at which
Mary, evidently
leaving the
other women, hastened on ahead, as it appears that she was first at the tomb.
Mary First Spreads the
Report
Alarmed at
finding the sepulcher standing open and empty, and supposing that some unknown
men had
removed the stone and taken away the body, she did not wait for the other
women, but hurried off
to find the
apostles and acquaint them with what had happened. John 20:1, 2.
The Vision of the Angels
While Mary
Magdalene was going on this errand, the other Mary and Salome reached the tomb,
and as they
entered in they saw an angel sitting on the-right side, clothed in a long white
garment, and were
affrighted.
“And he said unto them, Be not affrighted: you seek Jesus of Nazareth, which
was crucified: He
is risen;
He is not here: behold the place where they laid Him. But go your way, tell His
disciples and Peter
that He
goes before you into
Famous
Infidels Who Found Christ
17
quickly,
and fled from the sepulcher; for they trembled and were amazed: neither said
they anything to any
man, for
they were afraid.” Mark 16:6-8.
Peter and John Run to the
Tomb
After the
departure of Mary and Salome, came John and Peter, who, having been informed by
Mary
Magdalene that the body of the Lord had been removed from the sepulcher, and
that she knew not
where they
had laid Him, ran both together to the sepulcher, and John outran Peter, and
came first to the
sepulcher.
“And he stooping down, and looking in, saw the linen clothes lying; yet went he
not in. Then
comes Simon
Peter following him, and went into the sepulcher, and sees the, linen clothes
lie, and the
napkin,
that was about His head, not lying with the linen clothes, but wrapped together
in a place by itself.
Then went
in also that other disciple [John], which came first to the sepulcher, and he
saw, and believed.
For as yet
they knew not the scripture, that He must rise again from the dead.” John
20:54.
[NOTE. As
there were no evidences of violence or disorder apparent within the tomb, and
the
wrappings
which had been removed from the body of Jesus were laid aside, John was led to
believe that
Jesus had
risen, as He had before told them, although he was still ignorant of the
Scripture prophecies
relating to
the resurrection. L. S. W.]
Jesus First Shows Himself
Alive
Then the
disciples went away again unto their own home. But Mary, having returned,
-stood
without at
the sepulcher weeping: and as she wept, she stooped down, and looked into the
sepulcher, and
sees two
angels in white sitting, the one at the head, and the other at the feet, where
the body of Jesus had
lain. And
they say unto her, Woman, why weeps thou? She said unto them, Because they have
taken away
my Lord,
and I know not where they have laid Him.
“And when
she had thus said, she turned herself back, and saw Jesus standing, and knew
not that it
was Jesus.
Jesus said unto her, Woman. why weeps thou? whom seeks thou? She, supposing him
to he the
gardener,
said unto him, Sir, if thou have borne Him hence, tell me where thou has laid
Him, and I will take
Him away.
Jesus said unto her, Mary. She turned herself, and said unto Him, Rabboni; which is to say,
Master.
Jesus said unto her, Touch Me not; for I am not yet ascended to My Father: but
go to My brethren,
and say
unto them, I ascend unto My Father, and your Father; and to My God, and your
God.” John 20:10-
17. Mary
now left the garden again to carry the glad news of Christ’s resurrection to
the disciples.
Jesus Appears Also to
Salome and the Other Mary
After this
appearance to Mary Magdalene, to whom, as St. Mark expressly states, He
appeared
first, the
other Mary and Salome, who had fled from the sepulcher in such terror and
amazement that they
said not
anything to any one, were met on their way by Jesus Himself, who said to them,
“All hail. And
they came
and held Him by the feet, and worshiped Him. Then said Jesus unto them, Be not
afraid: go tell
My brethren
that they go into
16:8.)
The Arrival of John and
the Women With Spices
These
several women and the two apostles being now gone from the sepulcher, Joanna
with the
rest of the
Galilean women came, and others with them, bringing the spites which they had
prepared for
embalming
the body of Jesus. And finding the stone rolled away from the sepulcher, they
entered in. Not
finding the
body of the Lord Jesus, they were much perplexed thereabout; and “behold, two
men stood by
them in
shining garments: and as they were afraid, and bowed down their faces to the
earth, they said unto
them, Why
seek you the living among the dead? He is not here, but is risen: remember how
He spoke unto
you when He
was yet in
and be
crucified and the third day rise again. And they remembered His words, and
returned from the
sepulcher,
and told all these things unto the eleven, and to all the rest. And their words
seemed to them as
idle tales,
and they believed them not.” Luke 24:4-11.
Famous
Infidels Who Found Christ
18
Incident on the Road to
Emmaus
The same
day two of the disciples went “to a village called Emmaus, which was from
about
threescore furlongs. And they talked together of all these things which had
happened. And it came to
pass, that,
while they communed together and reasoned, Jesus Himself drew near, and went
with them. But
their eyes
were held that they should not know Him. And He said unto them, What manner of
communications
are these that you have one to another, as you walk, and are sad? And the one
of them,
whose name
was Cleopas, answering said unto Him, Art Thou only a
stranger in
known the
things which are come to pass there in these days?
“And He
said unto them, What things? And they said unto Him, Concerning Jesus of
Nazareth,
which was a
prophet mighty in deed and word before God and all the people: and how the
chief priests and
our rulers
delivered Him to be condemned to death, and have crucified Him. But we trusted
that it had been
He which
should have redeemed
done.
“Yea, and
certain women also of our company made us astonished, which were early at the
sepulcher;
and when they found not His body, they came, saying, that they had also seen a
vision of angels,
which said
that He was alive. And certain of them which were with us went to the
sepulcher, and found it
even so as
the women had said: but Him they saw not.
“Then He
said unto them, O fools, and slow of heart to believe all that the prophets
have spoken:
ought not
Christ to have suffered these things, and to enter into His glory? And
beginning at Moses and all
the prophets,
He expounded unto them in all the Scriptures the things concerning Himself.
“And they
drew nigh unto the village, whither they went: and He made as though He would
have
gone
farther. But they constrained Him, saying, Abide with us: for it is toward
evening, and the day is far
spent. And
He went in to tarry with them.
Jesus Makes Himself Known
“And it
came to pass, as He sat at meat with them, He took bread, and blessed it and
brake, and
gave to
them. And their eyes were opened, and they knew Him; and He vanished out of
their sight. And
they said
one to another, Did not our heart burn within us, while He talked with us by
the way, and while
He opened
to us the Scriptures? And they rose up the same hour, and returned to
eleven
gathered together, and them that were with them, saying, The Lord is risen
indeed, and hath
appeared to
Simon. And they told what things were done in the way, and how He was known of
them in
breaking of
bread.” Luke 24:13-35.
No Discrepancy in the
Accounts
The order
of events being thus understood, all the objections against this part of the
gospel history
as
contradictory and inconsistent, entirely vanish and come to naught. Unless
authors who relate different
and
independent parts of the same history may for that reason be said to contradict
each other, the
evangelists,
I will be bold to say, stand as clear of that charge as any of the most
accurate historians, either
ancient or
modern.
No Expectation of
Christ’s Resurrection
That the
minds of those who first came to the sepulcher were far from any illusion that
Christ had
risen, is
evident from the fact that they came to perform the last offices usually paid
to the dead, and by
embalming
the body to complete the interment of their deceased Master. And when, entering
into the tomb,
they found
not the body, it was more natural for them to think with Mary Magdalene that
some persons had
taken it
away and laid it elsewhere, than to consider that it was risen from the dead.
And it is plain that
Joanna and
those with her were in this way of thinking, for when they entered in and found
not the body of
the Lord
Jesus, Luke says, “They were much perplexed there about.” Luke 24:4. .
Famous
Infidels Who Found Christ
19
Many and Infallible Proofs
All were
thrown into amazement and confusion by what was happening. The miraculous
events of
the morning
overwhelmed their understanding. It was all so different from the way they had
hoped. It was
absolutely
necessary for the resurrection of Christ to become a well-established fact with
the apostles, for
as one of
them afterward wrote, “If Christ be not risen, then is our preaching vain, and
your faith is also
vain. Yea,
and we are found false witnesses of God; because we have testified of God that
He raised up
Christ:
whom He raised not up, if so he that the dead rise not. For if the dead rise
not, then is not Christ
raised: and
if Christ he not raised, your faith is vain. Then they also which are fallen
asleep in Christ are
perished.”
1 Corinthians 15:14-18. In His resurrection were to appear “the first fruits of
them that slept.”
Verse 20.
The
effectiveness of their labors depended upon the evidence of the resurrection,
of which they
were called
to be witnesses to the world, and which they were to proclaim by their own
testimony, and by
the
testimony of others who had seen Jesus alive after His resurrection. They were,
therefore, left for a time
after the
startling incidents that morning, to consider the empty sepulcher, and the
reports of the women, the
vision of
the angels, and the testimony of Mary and others, that Christ had appeared to
them, which, even
when
declared to them, seemed incredible.
It was
necessary for them, also, to remember the words which Jesus Himself, at times,
before had
spoken to
them, when He so repeatedly told them that He was to be taken and put to death,
and the third
day rise
again. Matthew 16:21; 20:18, 19. While they were in this state of mind, Christ
began to manifest
Himself to
them. First to Peter, and also to two of the disciples while on their way to
Emmaus late that day.
and in an
unrecognized form, opening to their minds the scriptures in which His death and
resurrection had
been
foretold (Luke 24:13-27), and afterward revealing Himself to them as they sat
at their evening meal.
Finally He
showed Himself openly to the whole company of eleven apostles, that evening at
24:36-47.
By this progressive order of revelation, and the increasing force of evidence,
the followers of
Jesus were
enabled to recover from the shock of disappointed hopes and the minds of the
apostles were
prepared to
ace through the mystery of the rent sepulcher, and grasp the reality of Christ
in His risen and
glorified
life.
A Great Cloud of
Witnesses
There is
seen a train of witnesses, a succession of miraculous events, followed by
others in
of larger
magnitude. He being seen of above five hundred persons at one time, meeting
with His apostles
frequently
for forty days eating with them, and publicly instructing them concerning the
evangelization of
the world
and the
cumulous
form, in what Luke refers to as “many and infallible proofs” (Acts 1:3),
mutually strengthening
and
illustrating each other, and all concurring to prove one and the same fact,
which as it was in its nature
most
astonishing, and in its consequences of the utmost importance to mankind,
required the fullest and
most
exceptional evidence.
And I
venture to say, never was a fact more fully proved, as must appear to any one
who considers
with me,
(1) the matter of the evidence, its extraordinary nature, and various forms.
(2) The character and
dispositions
of those whom it was intended to convince, their apparent honesty,
intelligence, and adherence
to former
opinions, which made them slow to accept reports, etc. (3) The personal
testimony of multitudes
of both men
and women, based upon the evidence of their senses in the case, forming a great
cloud of
witnesses.
(4) The witness of Christianity itself: its agreement with Old Testament
predictions and types of
the mission
of the Messiah, or world’s Redeemer. The consequences of His national rejection
by the Jews,
and the
acceptance of Christianity by Gentiles, viewed in the light of Christ’s own
prophetic declarations,
and the
events of history.
The Apostles Slow to
Believe
The
apostles relate to us in the Gospels how their own minds were blinded by Jewish
interpretations
of the prophecies respecting Christ, so that they were not expecting Him to die
and rise
again, but
to establish a kingdom over
Famous
Infidels Who Found Christ
20
This erroneous
view of the Savior’s mission unfitted them to understand many of His sayings
while He
was yet with them, and led them to forsake Him when He was taken prisoner and
crucified. They
were
disappointed, and lost their faith, and thus were led to desert Him and deny
that they were His
disciples.
They were contemplating going back to their old occupations, and were therefore
themselves
surprised
at the reports of the women who were first at the sepulcher. This frank
confession of such
ignorance
and disloyalty on their part, however, is good evidence of their sincerity and
truthfulness. Mark
16:11-13.
[NOTES. It
was important, in view of their misunderstanding of the prophecies regarding
the
Messiah,
that in connection with the manifest resurrection of Christ, the views held by
the disciples should
be
corrected by receiving a true exposition of the Scriptures relating to that
event. And this, it will be noted,
is just
what Jesus began to impart to them without delay on the day of His
resurrection, thus revealing to
them the
cause of their disappointment, and restoring their faith, by making clear to
their minds that what
had now
transpired was exactly what the Scriptures had pointed out was to be.
The Revival Among
Christ’s Followers
The blow
which had fallen upon the disciples in the sudden seizure and crucifixion of
Him with
whom they
expected soon to reign, His resurrection upon the third day, the revival which
followed, healing
their
wounded and sorrowing hearts, restoring unity to the scattered flock, and
leading them to return unto
their Lord,
had been vividly portrayed in the mysterious words of the prophet Hosea
centuries before, when
he said:
“Come, and let us return unto the Lord: for He hath torn, and He will heal us.
He hath smitten, and
He will
bind us up. After two days will He revive us: in the third day He will raise us
up, and we shall live
in His
sight.” Hosea 6:1, 2.
The First to Rise Frown
Death
“Now is
Christ risen from the dead, and become the first fruits of them that slept....
Christ the first
fruits;
afterward they that are Christ’s at His coming.” 1 Corinthians 15:20-23.
The
resurrection of Christ upon the third day, as the forerunner and surety of the
whole body of
Christians
finally to be raised at His return, was beautifully and marvelously symbolized
in the ceremonial
of the
temple service among the Jews, by the presentation before God of the first
sheaf of the spring’s
harvest,
which, because it was to typify the resurrection of Christ, was always offered
on the third day
following
the sacrifice of the Passover lamb. As that sheaf was the first sheaf of the
harvest, so Christ was
to be the
first sheaf of the heavenly harvest, the harvest unto life eternal. Jesus seems
to have been thinking
of this
just before His death, when He said to His disciples: “The hour is come, that
the Son of man should
be
glorified. Verily, verily, I say unto you, Except a corn of wheat fall into the
ground and die, it abides
alone: but
if it die, it brings forth much fruit.” John 12:23, 24.
It is in
the church that the body of Christ’s humanity is completed, and His
resurrection is the
pledge of
the resurrection of His children. L. S. W.]
Messianic Prophecy In a
New Light
The fourth
evidence appealed to by our Savior in proof of His resurrection, and to enable
His
followers
to see more clearly into the work of the new dispensation now opening before
them, was that of
the
scriptures in which are contained not only the promises of a Messiah and Savior
of the world, but the
marks and
descriptions by which He was to be known. Of these there are so many, and those
so various, so
seemingly
incompatible in one and the same person, and exhibiting Him under such a
multitude of types
and
figures, that as it was absurd for a mere mortal to pretend to answer this
character of the Messiah in all
points, so
it was difficult for those who by some expressions of the prophets were filled
with the idea of a
glorious,
powerful, and triumphant Deliverer, to understand the intimation given in
others of His sufferings
and death.
But this
difficulty proceeds rather from the prejudices and blindness of the
interpreters, than from
any degree
of obscurity in the latter class of scriptures (those relating to His death),
more than the former
(which
describe His glorious reign). His sufferings and death. .and His offering
Himself up as a sacrifice
Famous
Infidels Who Found Christ
21
for sin,
are as plainly set forth in the writings of the prophets and in the types of
the Mosaic ceremonies as
His power
and ,His priesthood; and if the Jews, and even His disciples, turned their
expectations to the one
and
overlooked the other, it was owing to their mistaking the nature of His
kingdom, and the end and
design of
His priestly office.
[NOTE. The
dispensational order of events which provided for Christ’s mediatorial
work in the
heavens
before His reign upon earth, was among the subjects to which Christ referred,
no doubt, when
shortly
before His death He said to the apostles: “I have yet many things to say unto you,
but you cannot
bear them
now. Howbeit when He, the Spirit of truth, is come, He will guide you into all
truth: and He will
show you
things to come.” John 16:12, 13. L. S. W.]
Prophecies of Redemption
Besides the
expressed word of prophecy there were numerous predictions of another kind, of
the
sufferings,
death, and resurrection of Christ, held forth in the types and figures of the
Jewish ceremonial
service, as
before noted, such as the slaying of the paschal lamb, the offering of the wave
sheaf the third
day after,
etc.
That the
Jewish rabbis and the fathers of the Christian church, as well as our Savior
and the
apostles,
understood many things in the law of Moses and in the prophets and Psalms to be
types and
shadows of
the things to come in Christ, is very certain. And if the existence of such
types be once
admitted,
it is not difficult to show that they met their fulfillment in Christ as the
great antitype to which
they all
referred. Whoever takes an attentive view of the predictions relating to the
Messiah in the writings
of Moses,
the prophets, and the Psalms, will perceive the great scheme of
deliverance
of mankind from sin and death, opening in a succession of prophecies through
several ages of
the world,
and becoming more and more explicit as the times of accomplishment drew near.
Thus, the
promise made to Adam and Eve of the Seed of the woman who was to bruise the
serpent’s
head, was renewed to Abraham in clearer terms, and limited to his descendants
in Isaac, through
whom all
nations were to be blessed. Genesis 12. Afterward it was confined to the tribe
of
particular
division of Jacob’s race which was to maintain the government of
Promised
One (Genesis 49:10); and finally, it was affixed to the family of David, from
whom the Branch of
righteousness
and immortality was to. spring. His virgin motherhood, the place of His birth,
the universal
character
of His mission, the purity of His teaching, the divine likeness of His life,
His vicarious death, and
the
heavenly nature of His reign, all are matters of description in such portions
of the Scriptures.
The Beginning of
Messianic Prophecy
The first
prophecy relating to this subject in the books of Moses, and the first indeed
that was ever
given to
man, is that recorded in the third chapter of Genesis and the fifteenth verse,
which was addressed
to the
serpent, following the temptation and fall of man: “I will put enmity between
thee and the woman,
and between
thy seed and her seed; it shall bruise thy head, and thou shall bruise His
heel.”
Christian
writers apply this to our blessed Savior, emphatically styled here the Seed of
the woman,
who came in
the fullness of time to bruise the serpent’s head by destroying the work of the
devil, and
restoring
to the liberty of the sons of God those who were held in the bondage and
captivity of sin. “Known
unto God
are all His works from the beginning of the world.”
The Portrait of Christ in
Isaiah - Isaiah 53, BC 700
It is
impossible for any one who is the least acquainted with the history of Christ,
not to perceive
many
circumstances of His life, His sufferings, and His death plainly pointed out in
this prophecy. And
indeed so
apparently and so completely was it fulfilled in Christ, that the later rabbis,
to avoid the
conclusion
which might be drawn from this and other prophecies in favor of the gospel,
have invented the
distinction
of a double Messiah: one who was to redeem us (restoring the national glory,
and reigning like
Solomon),
and another who was to suffer for us (see Pearson on “The Creed”). “If we look
upon this fifty-
third
chapter of Isaiah,” says Bishop Pearson, “we must acknowledge it fulfilled to
the highest degree
imaginable
in Jesus.”
Famous
Infidels Who Found Christ
22
Rejected Love
“He is
despised and rejected of men; a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief: and
we hid as it
were our
faces from Him; He was despised, and we esteemed Him not.” (Compare this with
the treatment
of Christ
related in Mark 14: 27-36; Luke 19: 41; Matthew 23:37, 38.)
The Man of Sorrows
“Surely He
hath borne our grief, and carried, our sorrows: yet we did esteem Him stricken,
smitten
of God, and
afflicted. But He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our
iniquities: the
chastisement
of our peace was upon Him; and with His stripes we are healed.” (Compare John
19:1-17;
1:34-36.)
His Suffering for Others
“All we
like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the Lord
hath
laid on Him
the iniquity of us all. He was oppressed, and He was afflicted, yet He opened
not His mouth:
He is
brought as a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is dumb,
so He opened not His
mouth.”
(Compare John 19:9-11; Matthew 27:19-50.)
His Extraordinary Death
“He was
taken from prison and from judgment: and who shall declare His generation? for
He was
cut off out
of the land of the living: for the transgression of my people was He stricken.”
(Compare Daniel
9: 26;
Matthew 27:1, 2; Luke 23:7.)
Classed with Convicts,
Buried With the Noble
“He made
His grave with the wicked, and with the rich in His death; because He had done
no
violence,
neither was, any deceit in His mouth. Yet it pleased the Lord to bruise Him; He
hath put Him to
grief.”
(Compare Mark 15:33-39; Daniel 9:26, 27.)
Foresaw His Triumph Over
Death
“When Thou
shall make His soul an offering for sin, He shall see His seed, He shall
prolong His
days, and
the pleasure of the Lord shall prosper in His hand. He shall see of the travail
of His soul, and
shall be
satisfied.” (Compare Matthew 26:32; Mark 14:28; John 11:25.)
His Mediation Work
Outlined
“By His
knowledge shall My righteous servant justify many; for He shall bear their
iniquities.
Therefore
will I divide Him a portion with the great, and He shall divide the spoil with
the strong; because
He hath
poured out His soul unto death: and He was numbered with the transgressors; and
He bare the sin
of many,
and made intercession for the transgressors. (Compare Colossians 2:15;
Ephesians 4:8-10.)
The Character of Jesus as
Portrayed In the Gospel
If we join
the prophets and evangelists together, it becomes still more manifest that the
one
foreshadowed
in Old Testament predictions is identical with the Man of sorrows described in
the New
Testament.
What the prophets foretold that the Messiah would suffer, that the Gospels
record of the
sufferings
of Christ.
Famous
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23
Scene An
Isaiah
speaks of His visage being marred more than any man, and His form more than the
sons of
men. Isaiah
52:14. The evangelists describe in the life of Jesus a strange and deathly
agony which passed
over Him in
the
repeatedly
so prostrated that an angel came to strengthen Him, that He might drink the
mysterious cup
which ‘ was
held out to Him. Luke 22:39-44. The description, no doubt, relates also to the
effect of the
brutalities
upon His person described in Matthew 26:67, 68; and 27:27-30.
Scene on
Isaiah saw
Him wounded for our transgressions, and Zechariah adds, “They shall look upon-
Him
“whom they
have pierced.” Chapter 12:10. The evangelists tell us that this was the manner
of His death. He
was nailed
to a cross, piercing His hands and His feet, and His side was pierced by a
spear. John 19:16-37.
Zechariah
says they weighed for His price “thirty pieces of silver”, Chapter 11:12.
Matthew relates
that the
priests covenanted with Judas to betray Jesus into their hands for exactly that
sum. Matthew 26:15.
Isaiah says
“He was numbered with the transgressors.” Chapter 53:12. Matthew relates that
He
was
executed with two thieves, one on the right and the other on the left, and that
He was put to death in
place of a
notorious criminal named Barabbas, who in Christ’s
stead was set free, as it was a custom in
connection
with the celebration of the Passover to release some such condemned person.
(See Matthew
27:15-30.)
Isaiah in
this chapter (verse 9) speaks of His burial in these words, “He made His grave
with the
wicked, and
with the rich in His death,” the circumstantial accomplishment of which is too
remarkable not
to be taken
notice of.
Remarkable Coincident in
the Burial of Jesus
The power
of life and death had been taken from the Jews and lodged in the hands of the
Roman
governor
from the time that Augustus annexed Judea to the
Christ. The
chief priests, therefore, the rulers of the Jews, were obliged to apply to
Pontius Pilate to put
Jesus to
death, and for leave to take down the bodies from the crosses after the
crucifixion.
It was
under these peculiar circumstances that Joseph, a rich man of Arimathea, not wishing to
have the
body of Jesus cast into the common fields of
and
evidently deriving its name from the skulls of malefactors found there asked
Pilate for the privilege of
removing
the body of Jesus, and placed it in his own new tomb, in a garden near the
place. Matthew
27:57,58.
While,
therefore, His burial was officially provided for only like the wicked
companions of His
death,
under the general leave granted to the Jews for the burial of such bodies near
the place of execution
where they
were taken down from the cross, by an extraordinary coincidence the strange
distinction,
foreseen
and foretold many centuries before, now took place in favor of the body of
Jesus, who, though
numbered
with the transgressors, was given burial among the rich, His body wrapped in
fine linen with a
mixture of
myrrh and aloes, a hundred pounds’ weight, and laid in the new, costly
sepulcher of a Jewish
nobleman’s
private burial place.
King David Foresees an
Immortal Offering
“David
speaks concerning Him [the Messiah] Thou wilt not leave My soul in hell [the
gravel,
neither
wilt Thou suffer Your Holy One to see corruption.” Acts 2:25-27. These words
can by no means be
applied to
David, who it was never pretended arose from the dead or ascended to heaven,
while his tomb
was well
known when these things were written. But by divine illumination he foresaw
that the Messiah,
who,
according to the flesh, was to descend from him, should be raised up from the
dead to sit upon his
throne; and
thus, truly, it was his own flesh that would not be left in the grave, but
raised up to sit upon his
throne and
reign over the people of God.
Famous
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24
Thus he
foretold the resurrection of Christ in words that were literally and exactly
fulfilled when
Jesus arose
from the dead without seeing corruption. As it is explained in the New
Testament: “Being a
prophet,
and knowing that God had sworn with an oath to him, that of the fruit of his
loins, according to the
flesh, He
would raise up Christ to sit on his throne; he seeing this before spoke of the
resurrection of Christ,
that His
soul was not left in hell [the grave], neither His flesh did see corruption.”
Acts 2:30, 31.
[NOTE.
Similarly, inspiration, anticipating the birth of Christ, broke forth in
prophetic exultation
over the
event six centuries before it occurred, giving expression to the joy of the
house of David at the
birth of
Messiah, the Prince: “Thou has multiplied the nation: they joy before Thee. For
unto us a child is
born, unto
us a Son is given: and the government shall be upon His shoulder: and His name
shall be called
Wonderful,
Counselor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace. Of the
increase of
His
government and peace there shall be no end, upon the throne of David, and upon
his kingdom, to order
it, and to
establish it with judgment and with justice from henceforth even forever. The
zeal of the Lord of
hosts will
perform this.” Isaiah 9:3-7. L. S. W.]
The Reliability of
Christian Evidence
What has
hitherto been said relates chiefly to the proofs of the resurrection of Jesus
Christ, as
related
before the apostles, those chosen witnesses of that great and astonishing
event. And I hope upon a
close,
serious, and attentive view of the number and certainty of the facts upon which
those proofs were
grounded,
and the fair and imposing manner in which they were offered for our
consideration, that every
judicious
and candid inquirer after truth will allow that to the apostles, at least, the
resurrection of Jesus was
most fully
and most exceptionally proved.
I shall now
proceed to lay before the reader some arguments that induce us, who live at so
remote
a distance
from that age of evidence and miracles, to believe also that Christ arose from
the dead.
The
positive proof of the veracity of the sacred writers is founded on the exact
accomplishment of
what they
foretold of our Savior and His apostles, as recorded in the New Testament.
Instances of this may
be cited
from many New Testament passages, embodying the fulfillment of Old Testament
anticipations.
Infidels
will perhaps say that they were written after the events described had
occurred, and that
the
predictions were, therefore, adapted to the events; but they who make this
objection will gain little from
it since if
the events themselves be admitted, it is no difficult matter to demonstrate
from them the truth of
Christianity.
The
prophecies I shall produce relate to different states of the Jews and Gentiles,
different not only
from each
other, but very different from the conditions in which both these classes were
at the time when
the,
prophecies were written.
1. The
Hebrew Scriptures had announced that the Messiah would institute a new
covenant, which
would be
first offered to the Jews, with whom the old covenant was mediated by Moses,
and with whom it
was still
in force.
2. The
Gentiles, i.e., all other nations, were to be admitted into its relations, and
invited to
participate
in its blessings, so that they, too, might become the people of God.
3. The
ceremonial law of the old covenant ritual, which was local and typical of
Christ, was to
cease in
His mission, and, therefore not to be binding upon Gentiles. But the moral law
of the ten
commandments,
the basis of the former covenant, was to become also the basis of the new
covenant. To
this both
the Gentiles and the Jews were to pay obedience, as well as to other terms of
the new covenant,
such as
acknowledging the Messiah, and receiving baptism as an outward sign of their
acceptance of the
covenant.
Condition of the Jews at
the Time
At the time
when Jesus was upon earth, as is well, known, the Jewish nation occupied a
highly
favored
position in the religious world, and the blessings which they then enjoyed of
spiritual favor,
religious
knowledge, and moral culture, stood out in marked and vivid contrast with the
moral depravity,
heathen
darkness, superstitious bondage, and wretchedness which prevailed among other
nations. These
superior
blessings came largely from the light imparted to that nation in the Sacred
Scriptures, the Oracles
of God
which had from the earliest times been committed to them, teaching them more
excellent forms of
government,
with just laws, and a holy priesthood to instruct the people in divine truth and
ways of
Famous
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25
righteousness.
They were God’s chosen people, and heirs of His covenants of promise in a
special degree.
From a
human viewpoint, there was in Christ’s time every reason to suppose that this
condition of
favor to
the Jews, which had been developing through fourteen hundred years, would
continue still, with
increasing
prosperity through the unlimited future of coming ages.
Christ’s Prophetic
Declarations
Had not
Christ been indeed the Son of God, and the very person whose rejection was
portrayed to
the Jews in
the parable of the vineyard, it is unaccountable that the national calamities
there so strikingly
pointed out
to them should have so quickly overtaken that nation following the rejection
and crucifixion of
Jesus.
The Parable of the
Vineyard - Matthew 21:33-45
“There was
a certain householder, which planted a vineyard, and hedged it round about, and
dug a
wine press
in it, and built a tower, and let it out to husbandmen, and went into a far country:
and when the
time of the
fruit drew near, he sent his servants to the husbandmen, that they might
receive the fruits of it.
And the
husbandmen took his servants, and beat one. and killed another, and stoned
another. Again, he sent
other
servants more than the first: and they did unto them likewise. But last of all
he sent unto them his son,
saying,
They will reverence my son. But when the husbandmen saw the son, they said
among themselves.
This is the
heir; come, let us kill him, and let us seize on his inheritance. And they
caught him and cast him
out of the
vineyard, and slew him.
“When the
lord therefore of the vineyard comes, what will he do unto those husbandmen?
They
say unto
Him, He shall miserably destroy those wicked men, and will let out his vineyard
unto other
husbandmen,
which shall render him the fruits in their seasons.
“Jesus said
unto them, Did you never read in the Scriptures, The stone which the builders
rejected.
the same is
become the head of the corner: this is the Lord’s doing, and it is marvelous in
our eyes?
Therefore
say I unto you, The
the fruits
thereof. And whosoever shall fall on this stone shall be broken: but on
whomsoever it shall fall, it
will grind
him to powder. And when the chief priests and Pharisees had heard His parables,
they perceived
that He
spoke of them.”
By these
words is plainly indicated the transference of the kingdom’s blessings from the
Jews to
the
Gentiles. And that the Jews did persist in rejecting the gospel till the
destruction of the
temple, and
that Gentile nations embraced it and have since inherited these blessings of
God, is too evident
to require
demonstration. The Jews were cast out and scattered among all nations, and
their land was
desolated;
and all that was prefigured in the parable was exactly fulfilled.
The Desolation of
“When He
was come near, He beheld the city, and wept over it, saying, If thou had known,
even
thou, at
least in this thy day, the things which belong unto thy peace I but now they
are hid from your eyes.
For the
days shall come upon thee, that your enemies shall cast a trench about thee,
and compass thee
round, and
keep thee in on every side, and shall lay thee even with the ground, and thy
children within thee.
And they
shall not leave in thee one stone upon another; because thou knew not the time
of thy visitation.”
Luke
19:41-44.
And as some
spoke of the temple, how it was adorned with goodly stones and gifts, He said,
“As
for these
things which you behold, the days will come in the which there shall not be
left one stone upon
another,
that shall not be thrown down.” And they asked Him saying, “Master, but when
shall these things
be?” And He
said, “Take heed that you be not deceived: for many shall come in My name,
saying, I am
Christ; and
the time draws near: go you not therefore after them. But when you shall hear
of wars and
commotion,
be not terrified: for these things must first come to pass.”
“When you
shall see
spoken of
by Daniel the prophet, stand in the holy place,” -where it ought not,” “then
let them which are in
Famous
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26
vengeance.
For there shall he great distress in the land, and wrath upon this people. And
they shall fall by
the edge of
the sword, and shall be led away captive into all nations: and
of the
Gentiles, until the times of the Gentiles be fulfilled.” Matthew 24; Mark 13;
Luke 21.
Daniel’s Wonderful
Prediction of the Time of the Messiah
[NOTE.
Among the wonders of the Bible, nothing seems more remarkable than that the
Hebrew
Scriptures
should have predicted that the Hebrews themselves, God’s chosen people, would
fill up the cup
of their
iniquity in rejecting the Messiah, the heavenly Prince, and that this would be
the immediate cause
of their
national ruin. Yet nothing in all the Sacred Writings is more boldly announced
than this fact. It was
to Daniel,
while a captive in
therefore
understand the matter, and consider the vision.
“Seventy
weeks are determined upon thy people and upon thy holy city, to finish the
transgression,
and to make
an end of sins, and to make reconciliation for iniquity, and to bring in
everlasting
righteousness,
and to seal up the vision and prophecy, and to anoint the most holy.” Daniel
9:23, 24.
Here is a
definite period called “seventy weeks- assigned to that nation, in which, as
particularly
stipulated,
they were to -finish the transgression.”
Now the
Jews were given two kinds of weeks, weeks of days for reckoning short periods,
and
weeks of
years for computing periods of longer duration. In this scale every seventh
year was a Sabbath
year, or
year of rest from labor, just as each seventh day was a day of rest. These years
they were strictly
commanded
to hallow. (See Leviticus 25.) The longer scale was always understood to be
meant in such
cases as
this, just as in reckoning the jubilee years. After every seven weeks of years,
or seven times seven
years then
came the national jubilee. So all Jews well understood this prediction of
“seventy weeks” to
mean
seventy times seven years.
The Time of the Messiah
Announced
The
messenger continues: “Know therefore and understand, that from the going forth
of the
commandment
to restore and to build
(Anointed
One) shall be seven weeks, and threescore and two weeks.” Daniel 9:25.
The first
seven weeks (forty-nine years) was allotted to the restoration, for it adds,
“The street
shall be
built again, and the wall, even in troublous times.”
The second
division of the time, sixty-two weeks (434 years), which, added to the seven
weeks,
was to
reach to the Messiah, reckoned from the decree (457 BC) would expire in 27 AD,
the very year that
Jesus was
anointed with the Spirit at His baptism, and entered upon His public ministry
as the Messiah,
announcing
the gospel of righteousness, and introducing the new covenant of salvation.
(Compare Acts
10:36-38
with marginal dates of Matthew 4, 5, and Luke 4, 5.) *
The
seventieth week would reach to 34 AD, which, according to this prophecy, would
end the
dispensation
of the Jews as a favored nation. This agrees with the evidence found in the
Acts of the
Apostles,
which shows that at that time the Sanhedrin, the supreme court of the Jews,
took final action
against
Christianity, stoned Stephen to death, and raised a general persecution against
the church, scattering
the
followers of Christ among the Gentiles. Acts 7, 8. It was the signal for the
work to begin among Gentile
peoples and
was quickly followed by the outpouring of the Spirit upon the Gentiles as at
the first it had
come upon
the Jews; the conversion of Saul, and the beginning of world-wide evangelism-a
new
dispensation.
Acts 9, 11.
*
That the period from 457 BC to 27 AD to exactly 483 years In length In apparent
when It to
understood
that the decree of Artaxerzes was delivered In the
autumn of the year 457 BC, and that Jesus
was
baptized and began His public ministry In the spring of 27 AD. While,
therefore, the 483 years
began
In 457 BC and ended in 27 AD we can reckon In actual time only 456.50 years BC
and 26.50
years
AD, which total exactly 483 years.
The
“cutting off” of the Messiah, foretold by Daniel, was fulfilled at the crucifixion,
and the
typical
system of sacrifices terminated with the Redeemer’s death on the cross, when
the veil of the temple
was rent
asunder by unseen hands. This was noted in Daniel 9:26,27. It had occurred in
the midst of the last
Famous
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27
prophetic:
week, at the Passover in the spring of 31 AD and from that time, as the
prophecy declared, the
withdrawal
of the divine presence, on account of transgression, left them desolate until
the consummation,
and “that
determined” should be poured upon them. Verse 2 7.
“Desolation” and
“Consummation”
And that
“consummation” was swift in coming. Josephus, the Jewish historian, has left us
the
description
of the coming of the Roman armies, laying waste their land and cities. And of
the siege of
temple, and
the carrying away of the Jews into captivity among all nations, as Christ
declared.
The
Triumphal Arch of Titus at
of
the Roman
legions and chariots of war, still stands as a monumental evidence of the fulfillment
of the sure
word of
God. And there, chiseled in the enduring stone, may still be seen the figures
of the stalwart Roman
soldiers,
bearing on their shoulders the historic golden candlestick and other trophies,
all that was left of
what was
most famed and most holy from the temple at
son of the
Roman emperor Vespasian, was the “prince” long
foretold in Jewish prophecy, whose armies in
70 A. D.
demolished both “the city and the sanctuary, sweeping away in a flood of war
the fated nation that
had filled
up the measure of its iniquity in putting to death the only One who could save
them, crying. “His
blood be on
us, and on our children. Matthew 27:25.
Since that
time
Persians,
Saracens, Mamelukes, Turks, and Arabs have all had
their turn in treading it down. But the poor
Jews,
though they perform their devotions with their faces toward its ruins, as
though it were the object of
their
worship as well as their affections, have been barred out. For a long time
imperial edicts even forbade
their
entering the city, and it is only in comparatively recent times that their
lives have been safe in the
country of
their forefathers, their
to return,
no power has been able to reverse for them the judgment of God: -Behold, your
house is left unto
you
desolate.” Matthew 23:38.
Attempt of the Emperor
Julian to Prove the Words of Jesus Untrue
The heathen
Roman emperor Julian, three centuries after the dispersion of the Jews, in his
bitterness
against the Christians, declared that he would rebuild
Jews, to
their own land. In this way he hoped to destroy the credibility of the gospel,
and restore the waning
confidence
of the Romans, many of whom were deserting their pagan temples and going over
to
Christianity.
The zeal of
the Jews was equal to his own in such an enterprise, and the great work was
begun.
What could
hinder an emperor from rebuilding
not again?
Julian dared to make the test. The foundations of the temple were begun, but
the work was left
uncompleted.
Why was such an apparently noble project abandoned? Why was the magnificent
work of
reconstruction
left to decay? Why could not the forces of two nations co-operating complete
the
restoration?
Then would teeming multitudes have been seen wending their way up to
the emperor
of
Julian may
have sought to draw the mantle of silence over his shattered plans, but
historians made
account of
the matter. Ammianus Marcellinus,
the celebrated Roman historian of that time, though himself
a pagan,
relates that terrifying siesmic disturbances so
threatened the lives of the workmen whom the
emperor
engaged to rebuild the city, that they were compelled to discontinue their
operations. That balls of
fire
bursting from the earth sometimes burned the men as they labored, and even
rendered the place
inaccessible.
(Ammian. Marcell., Book 23,
Chapter 1, Paragraph 2, 3.) The account is confirmed by others
of that
age, Sozomen, Cassiodorus,
and Socrates. Chrysostom was a witness of the
deserted walls of
Julian’s
infamous undertaking, as they existed in his day.
Famous
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28
How We Know That the
Apostles Wrote the Gospels
The
principal argument in proof that Christ rose from the dead is the testimony of
His chosen
witnesses,
transmitted down in writings, either penned by themselves, or authorized under
their inspection
and
approbation, viz., the Gospels, Acts, Epistles, and Apocalypse. It may be
proper to consider what
reasons
there are for believing their testimony to be genuine. To, prove the apostles
and evangelists to be
the authors
of those Scriptures which are now received under their names, we have the
concurrent
attestation
of all the earlier writers of the church, deduced by an uninterrupted and
uncontrolled tradition
from the
very time of the apostles themselves. This is such an authentication of these
sacred records, as is
not to be
overturned by bare presumption and a surmised and unproved charge of forgery.
Many Wrote of Christ
It is
highly probable that the same spirit which actuated the apostles to preach the
gospel and bear
witness of
the resurrection of Jesus Christ in every nation of the then known world,
should likewise incite
them to
deliver down to posterity in writing that testimony and those precepts upon
which the faith and
practice of
aftertimes were to be established. And indeed, it is evident from Luke’s
preface to his Gospel,
that many
writings of this kind were current among the Christians of those times. (See
Luke 1: 1-4.) But the
apostles
alone could prove what they knew, and they were the only authentic sources of
those doctrines
which they
alone received from Christ.
The Testimony of Irenaeus,
Irenaus,
well-known Christian Father, who lived but fifty years later than the apostles,
says that
having
first preached the gospel, the apostles delivered it afterward to us in the
Scriptures. The New
Testament
Scriptures, containing the whole system of facts and doctrines which it was
necessary for
Christians
to know and believe, it appears were thus committed to writing for the use of
the churches that
they had
founded, to serve thenceforward, as he expresses it, for the foundation of
their faith in Christ.
Churches Monumental
Evidence of Apostolic Labors
Those
churches, therefore, were the proper evidences to prove the apostles to be the
authors of
those
writings which they received from them. And as the testimony they gave to the
facts does not appear
to have
been liable to suspicion of fraud, so on the other hand it seems equally free
from any probability of
error or
misinformation, for they must have had certain knowledge of the character and
credit of the
persons who
delivered those writings to them in the name of the apostles, and many other undoubtable
proofs to
convince them of their being genuine, or to discover the falsehood if they were
not. There are in
all of
Paul’s epistles, for instance, many circumstances by which they might certainly
have known him to
be the
author, which any reader can easily discover upon perusing these epistles.
Gospels in Use From
Earliest Times
It is
evident from the testimony of the oldest Christian writers, some of whom lived
very near the
time of the
apostles themselves, that these Scriptures (the epistles) were cited, read, and
generally received
by the
Christians of their age, and even before. If they were forged writings, as
infidels claim, they must
have been
forged in the lifetime of the apostles, or very soon after their deaths. That
they were forged and
yet generally
received as authentic while the apostles were yet living, nobody will, I
imagine, venture to
assert, who
considers the many circumstances and facts therein related concerning the
apostles themselves
and
numberless other people then living.
All Claims of Forgery
Absurd
If they
were forged and published soon after the death of the apostles, there was still
great danger
of the
fraud being detected by many living witnesses who knew the truth. For can it be
imagined that the
Famous
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29
Corinthians,
for example, would have received as genuine, an epistle addressed to them, but
not delivered
to them
until after the death of the apostle whose name it bore. And yet appearing from
many
circumstances
therein mentioned, to have been written several years before, unless such an
extraordinary
delay was
very satisfactorily accounted for? Would they not have demanded of the person
who first
produced
it, how he came by it? How he knew it was written by
was
written, especially as it was evident upon the face of the epistle that it was
written upon the occasion of
some
disturbances and irregularities which had crept into the church, and in answer
to some questions
proposed to
that apostle, which required a speedy reply? These questions and many more
arising from the
content of
the epistle itself would have led to the exposure, had the epistle not been, as
it indicates, a
personal
letter, treasured by the church from the author and apostle himself, in
connection with the origin
and
organization of their church.
Unselfish Character of
the Witnesses
It remains
that we inquire into the character of the witnesses. If Christ did not rise
from the dead,
most
assuredly He did not appear to the disciples and apostles and preach to them
after His resurrection.
But if
Christ did rise from the dead, and did after His resurrection converse with His
apostles, it will be
granted
that they had sufficient reason for believing in Him, and for acting in
obedience to His command to
preach the
gospel throughout the world.
They not
only quitted their houses, their lands, their friends, kindred, and every
endearment of life,
in order to
propagate with infinite labor through innumerable difficulties and with utmost
danger in every
corner of
the known world, the news of salvation to mankind, certain of meeting in every
region with new
enemies and
opponents. But labored with their own hands to support the weak, disclaiming
for themselves
all
authority, pre-eminence, and power, and were willing to be counted as the off
scouring of the world.
Doctrines of Christians
Evidence of Truthfulness
The belief
of a judgment to come when God will judge the world by Jesus Christ, the
renunciation
of all
hypocrisy and falsehood, and the obligation to speak the, truth, are necessary
articles of the Christian
faith, and
as such are strongly inculcated in all the teachings of Christ, and writings of
the evangelists and
apostles.
Ephesians 4:25; Romans 3:7, 8. Now that any men who believed God would punish
them for
speaking an
untruth, even though for the advancement of a good cause, should hazard
themselves, and
without
prospect of gain, falsely affirm that they saw and conversed with Jesus Christ
after His
resurrection,
knowing that they must hereafter be judged and punished by Christ for so doing,
is too
improbable
to gain credit with any but those great believers of absurdities, the infidels
and skeptics.
Facts Indicated by
Exactness of Description
Another
mark of veracity in the evangelists appears in their naming the time, the scene
of action,
the actors,
and the witnesses of most of the events mentioned by them; of which I have
given a remarkable
instance in
relating the subject of the resurrection; viz., the time was that of the
celebration of the Passover.
the solemn
annual festival of the Jews; the scene was Jerusalem, the metropolis of Judea,
at that time
crowded
with Jews; the actors and witnesses were the chief priests and elders, Pontius
Pilate, the Roman
governor,
the Roman soldiers, the guard which was set over the tomb, the disciples, and
others.
[NOTE. It
is said also that the apostolic Fathers quoted to such an extent from the
writings now
known as
the New Testament, that if all the books of the New Testament were blotted out
of existence, they
could he
quite largely reproduced from the writing of the Fathers, which proves that the
books of the New
Testament
were in existence during the first and second centuries of the Christian era.
Here is
indisputable, monumental evidence that from the very first those who accepted
the gospel
from the
lips of the apostles received it, as Paul himself affirms, “not as the word of
men, but as it is in
truth, the
word of God” (1 Thessalonians 2:13). And that the same was also committed to
the apostolic
churches in
written form, as it has since existed.
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30
Apologists and the New
Testament
The other
testimony which we adduce in proof of the fact that the apostles wrote the Gospels
and
the
Epistles of the New Testament, and that these writings were held as inspired
Scripture by the Christian
churches
from the first, is collected from the Apologists, the name of a galaxy of
learned men,
philosophers,
and others of literary ability, who arose early in the second century, and
distinguished
themselves
by writing in defense of Christianity in times of persecution. Their
productions form an
important
chain of Christian evidence, reaching from the reign of Adrian, 117 AD, within
two decades of
the
apostles. into the middle of the third century.
Among the
earliest and most noted Apologists were Quadratus, Aristides, Justin Martyr,
Athenagoras,
Tatian, and Tertullian. As
a class the Apologists were educated men of the world before they
became
Christians, and they were influenced to accept Christianity by the love and
virtue which they
witnessed
among the followers of Christ and by the superiority of His teaching as they
found it set forth in
the
Scriptures. They are, therefore, most competent and important witnesses to New
Testament
Christianity.
Aristides,
an eloquent Christian philosopher of Athens, who addressed an Apology to the
emperor
Adrian
about 125 AD, has left us a picture of -primitive Christian life:
“They do
good to their enemies; and their women, 0 King, are pure as virgins, and their
daughters
are modest;
and their men keep themselves from every Unlawful union and from all
uncleanness, in the
hope of a
recompense to come in the other world. Further, if one or other of them have
bondmen and
bondwomen
or children, through love toward them they persuade them to become Christians,
and when
they have
done so, they call them brethren without distinction. They do not worship
strange gods, and they
go their
way in all modesty and cheerfulness. Falsehood is not found among them; and
they love one
another,
and from widows they do not turn away their esteem; and they deliver the orphan
from him who
treats him
harshly. And he who has, gives to him who has not, without boasting.
“And when
they see a stranger, they take him into their homes and rejoice over him as a
very
brother;
for they do not call them brethren after the flesh, but brethren after the
spirit, and in God. And
whenever
one of their poor passes from the world, each one of them according to his
ability gives heed to
him and
carefully sees to his burial. And if they hear that one of their number is
imprisoned or afflicted on
account of
the name of their Messiah, all of them anxiously minister to his necessity, and
if it is possible to
redeem him,
they set him free. And if there is among them any that is poor and needy, and
if they have no
spare food,
they fast two or three days in order to supply to the needy their lack of food.
“They
observe the precepts of their Messiah with much care, living justly and soberly
as the Lord
their God
commanded them. Every morning and every hour they give thanks and praise to God
for His
loving-kindness
toward them; and for their food and their drink they offer thanksgiving to Him.
“And if any
righteous man among them passes from the world, they rejoice and offer thanks
to
God; and
they escort his body as if he were setting out from one place to another near.
And when a child
has been
born to one of them, they give thanks to God; and if moreover it happen to die
in childhood, they
give thanks
to God the more, as for one who has passed through the world without sins. And
further if they
see that
any one of them dies in his ungodliness-or in his sins, for him they grieve
bitterly, and sorrow as
for one who
goes to meet his doom.
“Such, O
King, is the commandment of the law of the Christians, and such is their manner
of life.”
Justin
Martyr, the converted Platonist philosopher, addressed his first Apology to the
emperor
Antoninus
Pius, within fifty years after the death of the apostle John, and in this
defense of the Christians it
is
distinctly stated that in the Christian assemblies, “the Gospels (Memoirs of
the Apostles), or, the writings
of the
prophets, are read as long as time permits.” (Chapters 6 7.)
Athenagoras,
also an Athenian philosopher, studied the Christian Scriptures for the purpose
of
refuting
them, but was thus led into the faith. He sent to the emperor Marcus Aurelius a
most able and
elegant
defense of Christianity, which abounds also in quotations from classical
authorities. This work has
been
preserved, also his treatise on the resurrection.
Tatian, a
learned east Syrian rhetorician and teacher of Greek literature, who was born
but eight or
ten years
after St. John wrote his Gospel and the book ‘Of Revelation, was perhaps the
first to collect and
compile in
canonical form any of the New Testament writings. He prepared a work called the
“Diatessaron,” a harmony of the Gospels, in which Matthew,
Mark, Luke, and John were woven together
into one
life of Christ.
The “Diatessaron” made a deep impression on the church life of
the time, and, the work was
Famous
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31
popularly
read in some churches of the East about the third and fourth centuries, and
influenced the Peshito
and the Old
Syriac New Testament. The original was long lost, but
in 1888 an old Arabic copy made from
an earlier Syriac text was recovered. “Only a short time before this
discovery, a celebrated foreign critic
had
declared that if this lost work were ever recovered, it would be seen that Tatian’s Gospels were not at
all our
Gospels, but very different records, since at that early date (AD 160-170) our
Gospels as we now
have them,
with their accounts of miracles and assertion of our Lord’s deity, and other
supernaturalisms,
were
probably not received as authoritative, even if they were then in existence.”
There are
now several English translations of the book, and the fact is that they in no
way differ
from our
own New Testament accounts, except as one translation of any work differs from
another in its
forms of
expression. Now, therefore, as Professor Cobern, of
the Egyptian Exploration Committee, says,
“The
scientific discovery of what is essentially the ancient form of this ‘oldest
life of Christ,’ compiled
from the
four Gospels, has sufficiently answered such skepticism.” (See “The New
Archeological
Discoveries
and Their Bearing Upon the New Testament,” pp. 200-204.)
Tatian,
in relating an account of how he was converted from pagan philosophy to
Christianity,
says:
“While I was giving my most earnest attention to the matter [the discovery of
truth], I happened to
meet with
certain barbaric writings [the Old Testament Scriptures], too old to be
compared with the
opinions of
the Greeks, and too divine to he compared with their errors. And I was led to
put faith in these
by the
unpretending cast of the language, the artificial character of the writers, the
foreknowledge displayed
of future
events, the excellent quality of the precepts, and the declaration of the
government of the universe
as centered
in one Being.” “Address to the Greeks,” Chapter 29.
In
connection with this experience, he became acquainted-with Justin Martyr, from
whom he
learned,
also, of the New Testament and the teachings of Christianity, which later led
him to compile the
“Diatessaron.” It was about this time also that Marcion, a teacher of Gnostic philosophy at Rome, whose
father was
bishop of Pontus, compiled a work for his followers, which included the Gospel
of Luke and ten
epistles of
Paul.
This all
goes to show how early the books of our New Testament, on account of a popular
need,
began to be
compiled and issued in canonical form for religious use. At that time the
original epistles of the
apostles
were accessible, and could be consulted for this purpose by the compilers, as
appears from the
statement
of Tertullian, who before his conversion attained
celebrity as a Roman lawyer of Carthage, and
who in his
work against heresy, speaking of the apostolic writings about 200 AD says that
the authentic
letters
were still in the custody of the churches at Corinth, Philippi, Thessalonica,
Ephesus, and Rome,
where they
might be seen and their contents learned. (See Tertullian,
“On Prescription Against Heretics,”
chap. 36.)
Christian Monotheism
The rise of
a pure and spiritual faith out of the Hebrew economy which would supersede the
religion of
the Egyptians, Greeks, and Romans, and be adapted to the needs of all nations,
had been clearly
announced
in the earliest promises of Scripture records, and had become a desire and hope
of the ages
which
followed. For thus it is written, “The Scripture, foreseeing that God would
justify the heathen
through
faith, preached before the gospel unto Abraham, saying, In thee shall all
nations be blessed.”
Galatians
3:8. “That the blessing of Abraham might come on the Gentiles through Jesus
Christ; that we
might
receive the promise of the Spirit through faith.” Verse 14. It was thus clearly
defined in the ancient
predictions
that it would be through the Messiah that these blessings would be extended to
Genesis tile
nations.
Numerous quotations from the Hebrew prophets to this effect may be cited, which
are
unmistakable
in their application. Thus:
“The scepter
shall not depart from Judah, nor a lawgiver from between his feet, until Shiloh
come;
and unto
Him shall the gathering of the people be.” Genesis 49:10.
“In that
day there shall be a root of Jesse, which shall stand for an ensign of the
people; to it shall
the
Gentiles seek: and His rest shall be glorious.” Isaiah 11:10.
“The
Gentiles shall come to Thy light, and kings to the brightness of Thy rising.”
Isaiah 60: 3
“There
shall come a Star out of Jacob, and a Scepter shall rise out of Israel.” Numbers
24:17.
“From the
rising of the sun even unto the going down of the same My name shall be great
among
the
Gentiles; and in every place [of prayer, Revelation 8:31 incense shall be
offered unto My name, and a
pure
offering.” Mal. 1:11.
Famous
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32
This
remarkable expectation of a Messianic Priest and Prince to rise from among the
Jews, the
influence
of whose name and worship was to become universal, was well known among the
nations of the
East at the
time of Christ’s birth, and naturally created much apprehension and prejudice
against Christian
teaching,
as an innovation calculated to unsettle the thrones of kings and weaken the
prestige of pagan
worship
among the nations. All the power, learning, wealth, pride, artifice, and
ambition of the world
powers was,
therefore, against the probability of such a hope ever being realized. And we
know how from
the first,
these forces arrayed themselves in a vain and hostile attempt to arrest the
progress of the gospel,
even as the
inspired psalmist prophetically exclaimed centuries before:
“Why do the
heathen rage, and the people meditate [margin] a vain thing? The kings of the
earth
set
themselves and the rulers take counsel together, against the Lord, and against
His anointed, saying, Let
us break
their bands asunder, and cast away their cords from us.
“He that
sits in the heavens shall laugh: the Lord shall have them in derision. Then
shall He speak
unto them
in His wrath, and vex them in His sore displeasure. . . . The Lord hath said: .
. . Thou art My Son;
this day
have I begotten Thee [i. e., from the dead]. Ask of
Me, and I shall give Thee the heathen for Your
inheritance,
and the uttermost parts of the earth for Thy possession.... Be wise now
therefore, O you kings:
be
instructed, you judges of the earth . . . . Kiss the Son, lest He be angry, and
you perish . . . . Blessed are
all they
that put their trust in Him.” Psalms 2.
The Spread of
Christianity
Jesus
Christ came of a despised race, of a poor family, from an ignoble town, all of
which, in an
age of
slavery, caste, and intolerance, was a great handicap. He had no political
influence, no social
standing,
no wealth, no learning. His claims were therefore reviled, His teachings
opposed, and His life
exposed to
persecution, until at last, maligned, condemned, and outraged, He was executed
among
malefactors,
leaving but few followers, and they among the common people, who, like Him,
were ignored
and
rejected of men.
He had
predicted that His teachings would become established among all peoples, but
appearances
were
altogether against the probability of such a thing ever being realized, for it
proved to be a stumbling
block to
the Jews, and foolishness to the Gentiles, so that it was literally true that
not many great, not many
noble, not
many mighty, embraced Christianity. But all history and our own experience
assure us that the
ignorant,
the weak, the contemptible, gained the victory from the wise, the mighty, and
the noble.
To what
cause, then, can we attribute a success so contrary to all the laws by which
the events of
the world
am governed, except to the interposition of God, manifested in the resurrection
and ascension of
Jesus
Christ, and the miraculous powers conferred upon His apostles and disciples?
This power they
exercised
in delivering men from superstition, disease, and idolatry, and preaching
repentance and
remission
of sins in His name. History bears abundant evidence of the manifestation of
extraordinary gifts
and
operations of the divine Spirit among those who received and preached the
gospel in primitive
Christian
times.
Supposing
that Christ did not rise from the dead, it is certain, according to all human
probability,
that there
could have been no such thing as Christianity; or, had there been, it must have
been stifled soon.
But we know
to the contrary, that Christianity has already existed seventeen hundred years.
[West’s book
was
written in 1747. The quotations from his work end with this paragraph.] The great argument of
infidels
against the resurrection is founded upon its miraculous character, because it
is above the ordinary
course of
nature. This, however, can be of no service to them, since they will still find
a miracle in their
way,
namely, the amazing birth, growth, and increase of Christianity in the world.
4. The
Light of the World
THE life of
Jesus was in marked contrast with the life of the world around Him. Coming from
above, He
revealed those principles which are the foundation of the government of
heaven-unselfish love.
righteousness,
and truth. So He was “the way, the truth, and the life.” “In Him was life; and
the life was the
light of
men.” John 1:4.
Jesus
showed His love by His attitude toward the poor, the unfortunate, and the
afflicted masses of
society
about Him. This was unlike the great men and philosophers before Him, who had
held the common
Famous
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33
people in
contempt, and had not regarded them as any part of society, but only the
conveniences and
drudges,
appendages of luxury and state, tools of ambition and material to be used in
war.
“No man who
had taken up the idea of some great change or reform in society, no philosopher
who had
conceived the notion of building up an ideal state, or republic, ever thought
of beginning with the
poor.
Influence was seen to reside in the higher classes, and the only hope of
reaching the world with any
scheme of
social regeneration, was to begin with them, and through them operate its
results.”
But the
loving Savior had “compassion on the multitude,” who were like sheep without a
shepherd;
and He made them the special object of His ministry. He found in them a simple
and unaffected
sincerity
which was wanting in the higher classes. Therefore Christ loved the poor; and
without any
semblance
of being partisan, and without descending to their level, He was able to lift
them up into larger
hope. He
went about from city to city and from village to village to help them, teaching
them, healing their
sick, and
encouraging and comforting all who were in sorrow and trouble.
From a
worldly viewpoint this might seem a waste of time, and like throwing His life
away; but
Christ saw
in them “the poor of this world rich in faith and heirs of the kingdom;” and
beginning with
fishermen
and publicans and sinners, He laid the foundations of His kingdom upon the
solid rock of truth,
and not
upon the shifting sand of human philosophy.
The Lift More Abundant.
Jesus had
explained to His disciples that after His resurrection and glorification, He
would send
the Paraclete, an invisible and unconfined personality-the Holy
Spirit. John 14:16. Through the Spirit, not
only His
doctrine, but His life, His nature, His virtues, His character, were to be
communicated to them, so
that they
would stand related to Him as branches to the vine.
The great
mission of the Spirit was to convict the world of sin, to impart righteousness,
and to
convince of
judgment, thus inaugurating a world-wide evangelizing movement. John 16:8. For
this
heavenly
inducement they were to tarry at Jerusalem. Luke 24:49.
Beginning at Jerusalem
The
supernatural events which took place upon the day of Pentecost indicated that
the dispensation
of the
Spirit had begun. In that one day, in the very city which a few weeks before
had witnessed His
crucifixion,
three thousand Jews accepted Jesus as their Messiah. The apostle Peter, in
declaring to the
people the
source of the demonstration of power they were witnessing said:
“This Jesus
bath God raised up, whereof we all are witnesses. Therefore being by the right
hand
off God
exalted, and having received of the Father the promise of the Holy Ghost. He
bath shed forth this,
which you
now see and hear.” Acts 2:32, 33.
The
unparalleled spread of the gospel from that day onward, notwithstanding all efforts
on the part
of both
Jews and Romans to arrest its progress, is one of the most remarkable facts of
history.
The Transfusion of
Character
The life
seen among the Christians was a new life, so that they were called by the
pagans “a new
race of
men,” “a peculiar people,” whose utter unworldliness
was a rebuke to the wicked. The cry in the
circus at
Carthage was: “How long must we endure this third race?” As the world had hated
Christ, it now
hated them,
and the rapidity with which they multiplied was a mystery to darkened minds.
Christianity was
as much
different from other systems of thought and life, as Christ was different from
other men. A
quickening
flow of His own life was imparted to them through the Spirit, resulting in a
transfusion of
character,
so that the church could now take up and carry forward the work which He had
begun.
Testimony
of Eyewitnesses
Some who
lived in those times of primitive Christianity have borne witness to the great
change
which came
to men through faith in Christ. Thus Justin the Martyr, a convert from Greek
philosophy and
one of the
first to appeal to the Roman emperor against the persecution of the Christians,
wrote:
“We who
once were slaves to lust, now delight in purity of morals; . . . we who once
prized riches
and
possessions above all things, now contribute what we have to the common use. We
who once hated and
Famous
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34
murdered
one another, and on account of our differences would not have a common hearth
with those who
were not of
the same tribe, now, since Christ has appeared, live in common with them, and
pray for our
enemies,
and endeavor to persuade those who hate us unjustly, that living according to
the admirable
counsels of
Christ, they may enjoy a good hope of obtaining the same blessings with
ourselves from God,
the ruler
of all.” Neander’s -Memorials of Christian Life,” p.
61.
Caesar Loses the Battle
Against Christ
That the
Christians must have become very numerous throughout the Roman Empire while the
apostles
were yet living, is evident from the testimony of Tacitus,
who says that Nero, in 614 AD, put to
death “a
vast multitude,” but not withstanding this, that “the pernicious superstition
broke out again, and
spread not
only over Judea, where the evil originated, but through Rome also.” It will be
remembered that
Paul, who
was imprisoned and put to death about this time by Nero at Rome, in writing
from the Roman
prison to
the Philippians, speaks of Christians “of Caesar’s household.” Philippians
4:22.
The emperor
appears to have become greatly alarmed over the progress of this teaching, to
take
the
measures which he did to restrain it; for Tacitus
goes on to say of those who suffered in this
persecution:
“Mockery of
every sort was added to their deaths. Covered with the skins of beasts, they
were torn
by dogs,
and perished, or were nailed to crosses, or were doomed to the flames and
burnt, to serve as a
nightly
illumination, when daylight had expired. Nero offered his gardens for the
spectacle and was
exhibiting
a show in the circus, while he mingled with the people in the dress of a
charioteer or stood aloft
on a car.”-Tacitus, “Annales,” Book XV, 44.
But those
who had tasted the heavenly power of Christ’s resurrection and had risen to a
newness
of life
through His Spirit, triumphed over abuse and death. Neither the promises of
rewards on condition of
retraction,
nor the threats of cruel torture, moved them from their steadfastness, or
restrained them from
confessing
themselves to be His followers. They were willing rather to sacrifice every
worldly enjoyment
and sever
every earthly tie.
Pliny the
Younger, governor of Bithynia, in a letter to the emperor Trajan
within twenty years of
the death
of the last of the apostles, said that so many of every age and every rank and
of either sex had
become
Christians that the “temples” were “already almost deserted.” He was perplexed
to know what
course to
pursue, as the “superstition” was spreading not only through cities, but
extended to the villages
and also to
the country.
Justin, the
martyr philosopher, who wrote about fifty years after the time of the apostles,
said that
there was
no race or wandering tribe of barbarians where prayers and thanksgivings were
not offered up in
the name of
Christ. And Tertullian, the Roman lawyer and
Apologist, who wrote to the emperor about the
middle of
the second century in behalf of the Christians, declared:
“We are but
of yesterday, and we have filled every place among you,” cities,, islands,
fortresses,
towns,
market places, the very camp, tribes, companies, palace, senate, forum, we have
left nothing to you
but the
temples of your gods. For what wars should we not be fit, not eager, even with
unequal forces, we
who so
willingly yield ourselves to the sword, if in our religion it were not counted
better to be slain than to
slay?
Without arms even, and raising no insurrectionary banner, but simply in enmity
to you, we could
carry on
the contest with you by an ill-willed severance alone. For if such multitudes
of men were to break
away from
you, and betake themselves to some remote corner of the world, why, the very
loss of so many
citizens,
whatever sort they were, would cover the empire with shame; nay, in the very
forsaking,
vengeance
would be inflicted.” “Apology,” chapter XXXVII, edition 1885.
By the time
of the emperor Valerian, 250 AD, during a bloody persecution, the Christians
were
estimated
as one half ‘of the population of Rome. (See Rawlinson’s
“Evidences,” p. 218.)
The Roman Catacombs
Witness to the Supreme Sacrifice of the Christians
Between the
time of the apostles and the conversion of the emperor Constantine, 313 AD, a
period
of two
hundred sixty-five years, there were ten notable periods -of pagan persecution,
covering in all about
one third
of the whole time. In those times Christians in and about Rome took refuge in
the catacombs
underneath
the city. Here a vast network of tunnels and galleries, in the wonderful
providence of God,
afforded
them chapels and cemeteries in which to worship and bury their dead. There
appear to have been
Famous
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35
no less
than sixty of these different catacombs opening around the city upon the
fifteen great consular
roads.
Altogether they are estimated to contain about a thousand miles of subterranean
streets, or tunnels,
along
which, hewn in the soft stone, are found innumerable successions of Christian
tombs of that primitive
period, the
total number being estimated as high as seven million.
“Seven
millions of deaths in (say) four hundred years would, under ordinary
circumstances, imply
an average
population of from five hundred thousand to seven hundred thousand-an amount
immensely
beyond any
estimate that has hitherto been made of the number of Roman Christians at any
portion of the
period.
Perhaps the calculation of the number of graves may be exaggerated, and
probably the proportion of
deaths to
population was, under the peculiar circumstances, unusually large. But still
the evidence of vast
numbers
which the catacombs furnish cannot wholly mislead; and we may regard it as
established beyond
all
reasonable doubt, that in spite of the general contempt and hatred, in spite of
the constant ill usage to
which they
were exposed, and the occasional ‘fiery trials’ which proved them, the
Christians, as early as the
second
century, formed one of the chief elements in the population of Rome.” –
“Historical Evidences,”
George Rawlinson, Pages 218, edition 1883.
“Further
the word ‘martyr’ is frequent upon the tombs; and often where it is absent, the
inscription
otherwise
shows that the deceased lost his life on account of his religion. Sometimes the
view opens on us,
and we see,
besides the individual buried, a long vista of similar sufferers, as when one
of Aurelius’ victims
exclaims:
“O unhappy
times, in which amid our sacred rites and prayers,-in the very caverns,-we are
not
safe! What
is more wretched than our life? What is more wretched than a death when it is
impossible to
obtain
burial at the hands of friends or relatives? Still at the end they shine like
stars in heaven.”-Id., p. 219.
The Hope of the
Resurrection Imperishably Inscribed in the Catacombs
The most
impressive events in the life of Christ, and some of His most precious lessons
have been
embodied in
the symbols and paintings of the catacombs, a favorite subject being Christ in
the character of
the Good
Shepherd. It is also said that the doctrine of, the resurrection is implied or
expressed on almost
every tomb
that has been discovered. “It must be remembered that the prospect of his own
resurrection was
all that
the new convert had to sustain him. . . . And the prospect of his own
resurrection was bound up
inseparably
with the fact of Christ’s having risen. If Christ were not risen, preaching was
vain, and faith
was vain.
Then all who fell asleep in Christ perished. The Christian was taught to base
his hope of a happy
future
solely and entirely upon the resurrection and ascent to heaven of Jesus. Surely
the evidence for these
facts must
have been thousands of times closely sifted.” - Id., pp. 222, 223.
Eventually
the Christ for whom they died will come to judge the world; the day for which
they
looked will
dawn. Amid the rocking of the earth,
“Rome’s
martyrs, numberless, wake, and rise;
A shining
host, emerging from the tombs
Of the Campagna and the catacombs,
Mid rush of
hallelujahs crowd the skies.”
“City of
the Seven Hills,” by Guinness.
Nor is the
religion of Christ unique only in that it holds out a hope of the resurrection
from the
dead.
Indeed, its great strength lies in the fact that it teaches how to live.
In lands
where Christ is known, the laboring classes have been raised from bondage to
freedom.
womanhood
has been emancipated from degradation and thralldom, and childhood from neglect
and
oppression.
Captives taken in war, debtors, and foundlings are no longer doomed to inhuman
servitude.
There are
hospitals, asylums, and orphanages for the sick, the widow, and the fatherless.
To the extent that
the
teachings of Jesus Christ have found lodgment in human hearts, they have
exerted their benign
influence
toward the abolishment of slavery, polygamy, torture, dueling, child marriage,
infanticide, caste
distinctions,
and other relics of barbarism, and have led to mercy, justice, and protection.
This does not
mean, however, the ultimate conversion of all men. The gospel is to take out of
the
world “a
people for His name.” It is true today as when Jesus taught His disciples, that
the sincere, earnest
followers
of Christ are the salt of the earth. And the promise of Jesus is that “this
gospel of the kingdom
shall be
preached in all the world for a witness unto all nations; and then shall the
end come.” Matthew
Famous
Infidels Who Found Christ
36
24:14.
Those who respond to Christ’s gracious invitation and open their hearts to His
holy Spirit will find a
place in
His eternal kingdom. While the road to destruction is the broad way of the
multitudes, and the way
of life
narrow; while “evil men and seducers shall wax worse and worse, deceiving, and
being deceived;”
and while
the great masses of earth’s last day inhabitants are by the Savior compared to
the wicked
antediluvian
world, yet “a remnant shall be saved.” All who will may have the light of life.
Soon “He that
shall come
will come, and will not tarry.” “Behold, He comes with clouds, and every eye
shall see Him.”
5. How
an Explorer Became Convinced
Sir William
Ramsay’s Story
THE story
of Sir William Ramsay, whose discoveries in Asia Minor not only led to his own
conversion
from modern unbelief, but have revolutionized the views of the New Testament
critics
regarding
the authorship of the book of Acts and the historical certitude of St. Luke’s
Gospel, has been
called
“fascinating beyond description- by a prominent writer on archaeology.
Romance and Providence
In his
childhood Sir William’s mind had been influenced by his mother’s love for the
life and
teachings
of St. Paul. The romance of that land of Bible story seems always to have left
its lure over his
mind,
drawing it toward Asia Minor. The study of its history, its peoples, and its
languages was a dream
which came
and went and came again during his university years at Oxford. It seemed a
dream, however,
never to be
realized, owing to his limited resources and failing health.
A physician
ordered him to go abroad, and for some years he traveled in European countries,
writing for
the Encyclopedia Britannica to cover expenses. His literary associations
attached him to brilliant
scholars
who regarded the Bible as a book of myths. He says that he became “a worshiper
of Wellhausen,”
and
accepted without question the verdict of such modern critics as claim that the
1ife of Christ and the
Acts of the
Apostles are forgeries of later times.
He
therefore largely lost faith in God and interest in the study of the New
Testament. But that light
which shone
so brightly on Paul upon the Damascus road was evidently guiding him for a
strange
concurrence
of circumstances called him in 1880 to study archaeology in the British Museum,
preparatory
to a three
years’ expedition for travel and exploration in Greek lands in connection with
Oxford University.
Back to the Bible
The work
which Ramsay was occupied with in Asiatic Greece was the study of antiquities
relating
to
Greek-Roman institutions, explorations among the ruins of earliest historic
times, the discovery of
monuments,
inscriptions, and remains of art. At that time as he tells us, the book of
Acts, as distorted by the
critics,
was regarded as the weakest part of the New Testament, and “no one that had any
regard for his
reputation
as a scholar cared to say a word in its defense.” So he felt that it would be
time lost for him to
bother with
the translation of Christian inscriptions.
Still,
nearly all travelers and explorers find the Bible among their most
indispensable guides in
those
lands, in locating ancient cities, following old landmarks, and settling
disputed points of history.
Therefore,
“without expecting to find any information of value regarding Asia Minor.” he
found it
convenient,
in becoming acquainted with the country, to refer to Luke’s record of the
journeys of Paul in
the book of
Acts.
Geography Proves the
Bible True
He was in
Phrygia, now called Anatolia, -weird with fable,” the enchanted land of old
king Midas,
trying to
discover if possible, the boundary of that province which in ancient times
separated it from
Lycaonia,
much of which is now a wilderness of desolation, with here and there a village,
some of them the
remains of
important cities where Paul and Luke once traveled and preached the gospel. It
was purely a
geographical
question with him. But as he relates:
Famous
Infidels Who Found Christ
37
“The first
thing that made me begin to doubt the judgment which I had formed, or rather,
had
accepted
from others, about the late origin of the Acts of the Apostles, was a discovery
regarding the
geographical
statement in [Acts] 14:6: “They fled [from Iconium]
unto, Lystra and Derbe,
cities of
Lycaonia,
and unto the region that lies round about.” In these words it is implied that
Paul and Barnabas
fled over a
frontier into Lycaonia.” Iconium,
from which they fled, was not, therefore, it appears, according
to Luke’s
account here, in Lycaonia.
Here he
thought was an instance of geographical ignorance and error on the part of the
writer of
the Acts,
for any one who will look up the outlines of these provinces as charted on the
maps of that time,
1880-90,
will notice that according to the knowledge which they then had, they placed Iconium also in
Lycaonia,
following an old Roman authority. Cicero, instead of the Bible. Even Christian
works, influenced
by higher
criticism, accepted this arrangement, and had set aside the statement in Acts
as incorrect. Smith’s
Bible
Dictionary, for instance, Peloubet’s revision, Teacher’s
edition (1884), speaks of Iconium as the
capital of Lycaonia. Who was most likely to be correct, Cicero, or
Luke who claimed to know fully
whereof he
wrote?
Discovers the Old
Boundary Stone
Sir William
Ramsay was there to find out. For although he then believed the skeptics right,
he says
he “always
aimed at the truth, and lived for the truth.” And God declares, “You shall know
the truth, and
the truth
shall make you free.” One day, as Providence would have it, as he was tramping
over that country,
on the top
of a lofty slope he passed a conspicuous landmark, a stone monument five feet
in height, fallen
over by the
wayside. It bore an official inscription placed there by order of the Roman
Senate and the
people of
the province, to mark the boundary line between Lycaonia
and Phrygia, and it was dedicated to
the
frontier gods. It bore a date corresponding to 135 AD).
The
emotions of the great scholar were stirred within him as he read the
inscription. It told the
whole
history. Luke was right. Iconium (the modern Konieh) was where he had described it to be a city
across the
boundary from Lycaonia. The whole modern world was
wrong.
Other
remarkable discoveries followed. The stones cried out more and more that the
Scriptures are
God’s
witness. Ramsay’s faith began to come back to him, and now for years he has
been writing in
defense of
the faith which Paul preached and which he first learned at his mother’s lips.
Sir William Ramsay’s
Testimony
The
evidence of, Ramsay’s discoveries has been accepted by the whole world of
scholarship. His
books stand
among the greatest works of archeological literature. He is considered an
authority. Even the
critics
have reversed their decisions as to the accuracy of Luke’s narratives and the
date of the Acts, since
the
publication of his books. He says:
“The more I
have studied the narrative of the Acts and the more I have learned year after
year, the
more I
admire and the better I understand. I set out to look for truth on the
borderland where Greece and
Asia meet,
and found it here. You may press the words of Luke in a degree beyond any other
historian’s,
and they
stand the keenest scrutiny and the hardest treatment.” He says he found the
narrative in Acts
“marvelously
concise, yet marvelously lucid,” and that as the light came to him through
these discoveries
the
reversal of his own judgment became complete.
6. A
Russian Baron’s Conversion From Atheism to Christianity
SOME Years
ago I beard Baron Uxkull, of Estonia, Russia, while
visiting America in the interests
of mission
work in Russia. following an edict of the czar granting religious liberty to
the people of that
country in
1905. Hit experience, as told by himself and published at the time, is a
marvelous instance of the
operation
of the Holy Spirit in the lives of men, and may be classed among modern
miracles!
After being
educated according to the customs of Russian aristocracy, this young nobleman
served
in the
imperial guard of the czar, and many times it was his duty and privilege to sit
at the door of his
bedchamber.
When he left the military service, he traveled through many European countries,
giving his
Famous
Infidels Who Found Christ
38
life up to
social pleasures and sin, until he returned to his large estate upon the
Baltic, restless and unhappy,
disgusted
with the world and with life, an unbeliever and an atheist.
Revival Among the
Peasants
At this
time a great religious awakening, which came like a wave from Sweden, was
spreading
among the
peasants in that province. The poor had the gospel of repentance and the new
birth preached to
them. Their
meetings continued far into the night. The people prayed, and confessed their
sins, and claimed
to be
converted. But the nobility did not go to these meetings. Generally they made
light of the spirit which
was
stirring the hearts of the common people, and attributed the unusual
manifestation of religious fervor to
their
ignorance and their emotions. Yet it was noticeable that those most affected by
these meetings
reformed
their habits, gave up their habitual drunkenness, profanity, stealing, and
quarreling. So when his
servants
wished to have some of these meetings, Baron Uxkull
gave his consent, and built them a hall for
their
services.
This
pleased them very much, and they wanted him to attend the opening service in
the new
chapel. He
thought it would do no harm, and concluded under the circumstances to go, and
so he heard
them sing
and pray and testify of the goodness and blessing of God. But he felt no
interest in, such things
himself,
and when they talked to him about religion, he explained that when one had
education, that was
sufficient.
They reasoned with him some, however, that all must be converted and experience
a change of
heart in
order to be fitted for heaven. Sometimes they wrote him kind letters, telling
him that they were
praying for
him, that he might become a child of God; but without any signatures, as they
were afraid to
have their
names appear. He burned or otherwise destroyed the letters.
Troubled by His Thoughts
Meanwhile,
God’s good Spirit was at work, and the baron became more and more uneasy. Once
he
thought:
“Well, I ought to speak to some one about my feelings.” He remembered a
Lutheran pastor about
twelve
miles away, who was a university man, and thought that perhaps this man would
talk to him from an
educational
viewpoint, and give him some helpful philosophy, so he decided to visit him.
When he
told the minister of his doubts, and wanted to know why temptation should seem
to have
such
control over people, and why the world was so full of sorrow, the minister
said: “Go to God. He alone
can answer
you.” “But,” he said, “how can I pray? I don’t believe in God or prayer. I
thought you could
give me
some philosophy.” The minister replied, “I haven’t anything else to offer.” So
he went away more
unsatisfied
than before.
God Knows How to Guide
“And now,”
says the baron, “God in His marvelous grace found a way to bring me in touch
with
Jesus. I
did not go to church; I did not go to meetings; I did not read the Bible. From
the city a merchant, a
bookseller,
sent me a box of books, philosophic books, and among those books was one by the
great
Russian
writer, Count Tolstoy, and the title was, ‘Why Do We Live?’ I thought that was
a good book, and I
would like
to see what it said. In the first pages it said: ‘0, we are so dissatisfied and
disgusted with life
many times!
I said, ‘That is just my case,’ and we cannot be satisfied until we begin to
love. We must love
each other.
Then we are satisfied.’ He did not say, ‘We must love God.’ He was not a
Christian. Then he
said, ‘All
great teachers, all great philosophers, have said so. Confucius, Buddha, Jesus
Christ, have all
taught that
we must love each other, and when we love each other, then we are happy and satisfied
with
life. Then
our life is filled.’ He spoke about those old heathen teachers, but he spoke
much more about the
teachings
of Jesus of Nazareth, and what Count Tolstoy said of Jesus of Nazareth was just
the thing I
needed to
become interested in,-the personality and the teachings of the Lord Jesus.”
Getting Acquainted With
Jesus
“I remember
it was in January, 1890, and I was so interested that I read this book the
whole night
through
until I had finished it; and in this night I can say I began to love Jesus. I
was attracted to Jesus. I did
Famous
Infidels Who Found Christ
39
not know
that He was the Son of God, but I liked Him as a noble and great Teacher, as
you love Lincoln or
Garfield.
The next morning I thought I should like to read more about His teaching-I did
not know enough
about Him.
In my library there were many novels. I burned them all; several hundred I put
into the stove.
“But there
was no book about Jesus in my library, and I did not know what to do. Then I
remembered,
‘Well, you have your Bible from the school.’ (In the school every pupil was
obliged to have a
Bible.) For
many years I had not touched it. I thought, ‘There will be the story and the
teachings of Jesus.’
It was
quite new to me. His teachings were so interesting and deep, and became always
more interesting, so
different
from books of philosophy. His words were so attractive, so full of love, so
full of life, and I liked
Him very
much. And sometimes the idea came, ‘Perhaps He is really more than human, perhaps
He is
divine, as
the pastors say,’ and I was troubled in my heart. I did not, know what to
believe.
“And then I
thought, ‘Well, I will look back into history. I will see what the great men of
history
have said.
Frederick II of Prussia, Napoleon of France. Voltaire, did not believe in the
divinity of Christ.
Men of
great influence, the emperor Alexander I of Russia, Luther of Germany, Wesley
in -England, men
who had a
great name in history, they believed in Jesus. What shall I do? On one side are
great men, on the
other side
are great men. What shall I do? Where can I find the truth?”
Spiritual Things
Spiritually Revealed
“And there
came a deep answer, ‘You will find it here: try to pray.’ But I said, ‘I cannot
pray. I
don’t
believe.’ Then the Holy Spirit said, ‘Try; perhaps there is a God. If there is
a God who answers
prayer, He
will hear you. Try. Perhaps you will find Him.’ Then I said, ‘I will try,’ and
I said: ‘0 God, if
you are
there above, and if you hear the prayer of a man on earth, then show me the
truth. I do not know
what I
shall believe about Jesus.’
He That Asked Received
Light
“After this
prayer there was no special answer, but when I read the Bible (I was just
reading the
Gospel of
John), and while I was reading the story of the life of Jesus, and His words
and His teaching, 0,
there was
new light, just like electric light, in the Bible! In this light I saw that He
was very great, that He
was more
than a man. I saw that He was divine, that He was really the Son of God, that
He was Cod. Now
it was a
great and a new thing to sit before Jesus and to see that He was the Son of
God. Then the whole
world
changed, His whole teachings changed, His whole life changed, it was all in a
new light. All His
words were
much more important, all His love was much more divine, much more touching,
that He, the
Son of God,
loved such people as we.
“And then
what a terrible thing that they have killed Him who was so noble, who was so
wise,
who was so
good, and they have killed Him, killed Him! Why did not God prevent this unjust
thing? Why
did God
leave His Son to die on the cross? And then the Holy Spirit, like a voice in my
heart, told me, ‘It
was for
you. It was for you He was crucified. You have sinned; . . . you are cursed,
and He took your curse
upon His
shoulders, He took your punishment upon Himself. Now look at Him as He is there
on the cross.
Look how
His holy blood is flowing. It is that your soul may be purified and clean.”
“Then I
broke down, and could say only, ‘My Lord and my God!’ Then eternal life began
for me. I
was
unspeakably happy. Before that I was disgusted with life. I did not understand
life. Now I understood
it. Now I
was glad.
Confessing Christ Before
Men
“Then I
thought, ‘You must be honest, and go to those persons and tell them they were
right and
you were
wrong when the chapel was opened, and when you were speaking against them. Go
up and say
they were
right. So on Thursday evening, when they had their little prayer meeting, when
they were all
gathered
there, I came in and said to them, ‘I have something to say to you. I am also
now such a converted
man as you,
and your Jesus is also my Jesus, and your Bible is also now my Bible.’ They
said, ‘Praise the
Lord! We
have prayed for you. Now we will thank Him. That is the story of how I became a
child of God.”
Famous
Infidels Who Found Christ
40
7. Dr.
Nelson’s Struggle With Infidelity
IN the
early years of the nineteenth century, the social and religious life of America
was much
affected by
the backwash of French philosophy and skepticism which flowed in from the Old
World. The
common
practice of men to idle away their evenings in little circles about the tavern
fires, talking politics
and passing
infidel remarks about religion, was one of the demoralizing customs of the
time.
There lived
at the time, in this country, a talented young physician, Dr. David Nelson, who
later
became
widely known as the author of a famous religious work entitled, “The Cause and
Cure of
Infidelity.”
It was published in both America and England.
The story
of this remarkable book and the experience of its author is very interesting,
and the main
features of
it may be told with profit. We will let Dr. Nelson open the narrative in his
own words.
The Story of Dr. David
Nelson
“My parents
were professors of religion, with a plain education, but well informed in holy
things.
Firm,
ardent, and unassuming, infidelity came not before their thoughts. It seemed to
he their impression
that entire
unbelief very rarely existed; and that where it was avowed, it could scarcely
be sincere. I never
remember to
have heard the truth of inspiration questioned by mortal lips until the age of
sixteen, when,
having
passed through the usual college course too hastily. I went to read medicine in
Danville, Kentucky.
“As soon as
I mixed with society, I, of course, entered the company of some who were
admirers of
the French
philosophy. I was not as much with the world as others, but I heard them speak
occasionally.
When
talking of religion, their feelings were always awake. They seemed to believe
that in disregarding
inspiration
there was something peculiarly original and lofty. The sparkle of the eye, the
curl of the lip, and
the tone of
the voice, if interpreted, seemed to say that the rest of mankind were
contemptible fools, but I
we are
not.”
“Their
remarks impressed me, but not deeply. That their sarcasm and jeers influenced
me toward
infidelity
was because men love darkness more than light; for their arguments were so
destitute of fact for
foundation
that, ignorant as I was, I could sometimes see that they in reality favored the
other side.
“I had some
longing after the character of singular intellectual independence, and some
leaning
toward the
dignified mien; but I did not assume either as yet, for my habits of morality
remained, and my
reverence
for superior age and deeper research. It was necessary that I should receive
praise from some
source
before all diffidence and modesty should be swallowed up in self esteem. And
this intoxicating
poison was
not wanting.
“After the
expiration of three years I became surgeon’s mate, or second physician, to a
regiment of
Kentucky
militia, which wintered near the Northern lakes. The approbation of many around
me there led
me to feel
as though I was one of the actors on life’s wide stage. After this, as I
frequented the wine club or
the card
party, reverence for the Bible diminished; and as my respect for holy precepts
diminished, my
sinful
habits increased. Infidelity inclines us toward pride, festivity, and
dissipation, while these engender
infidelity.
Like two ponderous metallic globes hung together on the side of a declivity,
they mutually assist
each other
down the steep, and the farther they proceed, the greater is their momentum.
“After
this, I became first surgeon to a regiment of Tennessee troops which served at
Mobile.
There I
became acquainted with many officers of the regular Army, whose intimacy was
not calculated to
lead me
toward God or heaven. During this time, and after this, all worldly success
only injured me. It
increased
my haughtiness, or added to my means of profuse pecuniary expenditure. Revelry
darkened the
cloud that
enveloped my soul, and of course I advanced rapidly in unbelief.
“In my race
of infidelity I never reached entire atheism. I was what was called a deist.
After a time
I began to
have moments of doubt, whether or not God existed; and moving still onward, it
was not long
before
those short seasons of atheism began to lengthen and to blacken-when I was
mercifully arrested. The
means of my
escape employ our next attention.” – “The Cause and Cure of Infidelity,” pp.
220-223.
How His Eyes Were Opened
At this
time Dr. Nelson had not yet read the infidel books himself, but while in this
state of mind,
on having a
volume of Voltaire’s works given him, he read it, expecting, as he says, to
find there
Famous
Infidels Who Found Christ
41
satisfactory
evidence in support of his views. Being of a candid and discriminating mind,
however, he was
not
favorably impressed with the character of the arguments presented. “In the
entire volume,” he says,
“there was
not one solitary article which was not a kind of ridicule, which proved nothing
for our side; or a
little
castle erected on historic falsehoods, but of such a shape that those who had
never read a tolerable
course of
history could not tell but they were truths.”
Dr. Nelson
gives various examples of such quibbles “built on falsehood,” which met his
glance
every time
he opened this “Philosophical Dictionary,” as the work was called. One instance
was the attempt
to
misconstrue the statement of Solomon so as to make it appear untrue, quoting
the author of, Proverbs as
speaking of
wine sparkling in “the glass.” This he avowed could not have been written by
Solomon, for -
there was
no glass in Solomon’s days.” “My blood ran somewhat cold on reading this,” says
the doctor,
“but I had
then read some history. I knew that Archimedes was said to have burned the
Roman fleet with
burning
glasses, which no one thinks of disputing, and we have no more account of glass
in the days of
Archimedes
than we have in the days of Solomon. I knew that Voltaire knew this, and it was
not through
ignorance
that he penned his assertions. I knew that the author knew that ten thousands .
. . would read who
would know
nothing of the facts, and of course the statement of the dictionary would
appear to them plain
and
conclusive. I was aware that if I had known nothing of ancient history, this
false position would have
appeared to
me an incontrovertible argument.”
His
impressions of the unfairness and dishonesty of Voltaire were afterward
strikingly confirmed
by the
discovery that Solomon is not represented in the Bible as saying anything about
“glass,” but only of
the wine
giving its “color in the cup!” (Proverbs 23:31) a common drinking cup.
“I read
again, ‘Among the Jews a man might marry his sister.’ All I could say to this
was, ‘Among
the Jews a
man was forbidden to marry his sister.” [Leviticus 18:6-9] I began, to feel
startled for my creed
and for my
religious views,” the doctor wrote. And he began to ask, “Why resort to lies as
weapons, if ours
is the
right side in this controversy?” “It seemed strange that in a book written by
one so able and so
famous,
there should not be one fair argument one truth unmixed with a lie,” thought
he. “I could have felt
more like
retaining my infidelity if there had been only a few positions based on
historic fact; a few fair,
truthful
objections to the Bible, amid the chapters of misrepresentation; but I could
not find one. I looked
over it
again, and I could not find one.” – “Cause and Cure of Infidelity,” pp.
224-230.
Thoroughly Tested
Infidelity
Although he
began to feel ashamed of the company he found himself in, yet Dr. Nelson did
not at
once renounce
his unbelief, but remained an infidel still. As he later confessed: “The heart
of man in these
cases
receives error readily, and relinquishes it slowly and reluctantly.” He thought
that other infidel books
might be
different, so he decided to try the most celebrated and learned production of a
historic character
which
skepticism had put out, and procured a copy of Volney’s
“Ruins of Empire.”
Volney
had traveled in the Bible lands with the object of overthrowing Christianity.
Still he
thought
that one so informed should be reliable authority. He was at first captivated
by the literary style of
the work,
and more apparent regard for accuracy in the text, but the notes he found
pernicious, and finished
this author
in a more dissatisfied state than before.
In the
reading of this artful and boasted work, he says, “I there found again
falsehoods unalloyed
with other
material, and these untruths were of the most notorious kind, and of the most
malignant texture. I
was indeed
discouraged as these facts thus influenced me.”
Tired of
the inveterate enmity and recklessness of those writers who had wasted their
genius in the
cause of
the French Revolution, which aimed to destroy both the church and the Bible, he
now concluded to
try an
American author, the notorious Thomas Paine, whose “Age of Reason” was then
quite the rage
among the
skeptics of the country. It must be, he reasoned, that a better spirit of
sincerity and truthfulness
will be
found in this book, which is reputed to have turned thousands from Christianity.
But it was the same
sort of
arguments, a rehash in part of what the French wits had already put together.
“I read
it,” he says, “and I could not say that I found in it either suavity or
philanthropy, dignity or
sublimity,
honesty or truth, but the opposite of them all: the opposite, although the
writer was a man of
talents.”
“The
writings of Paine drove me farther from his belief than I had ever been. I was
ready to
exclaim, If
this moves the multitude, then what may not move them? If this pleases them,
then they surely
must love
the side they advocate.”
Famous
Infidels Who Found Christ
42
Investigates the Other
Side
After this
experience with Paine, Dr. Nelson says: “I determined that I would read some on
the
opposite
side, and that I would also at the same time take a more thinking review of my
own objections to
the
religion of Christ.”
He was at
this time in the State of Tennessee, where he was engaged as military surgeon.
Having
no copy of
the Scriptures then in his possession, he borrowed one. As he relates: “I
inquired after a Bible
which
-might have Christian notes in it. An old lady lent me hers, which I had often
seen her poring over,
hours at a
time. From her cast of mind I knew that in the work there must be thought, or she
could not be
thus
engaged. It was Scott’s Family Bible. In the year 1818 some of them had found
their way to the forests
of
Tennessee.
“I read the
Bible with Scott’s notes. My objections to the Holy Book, which were based upon
my
ignorance,
disappeared as soon as I was informed. After I had read Scott’s Family. Bible,
I felt like reading
it again.
It is true that I was half driven from infidelity by the infidel authors. To
find no aid, and no truth or
loveliness
where I had looked for it, inclined me to listen with more calmness and
impartiality to the other
side.
The Great Transition
“In Scott I
found no controversy tinctured with smutty, indecent filth. I found no
self-complacent
ridicule;
no silly jeering; no truth twisted or mixed up with nine tenths of actual
untruth. The difference
between the
two styles and the two modes is known only to those who have felt the sudden
transition from
one to the
other.”
Dr. Nelson
was deeply impressed with the spirit of Scott’s writings, especially when referring
to
those who
opposed the Christian faith. “It seemed from the way he wrote,” he says, that
their salvation in
heaven
-would give him more exultation than it would to have the world believe a
thousand slanders about
them.” He
saw no disposition to malign the character or misjudge the motives of his
enemies. All this
seemed like
breathing a new atmosphere. “This difference of temper,” says he, “between the
advocates and
opponents
of Christianity, made me more willing to read on.”
What he
found in Scott, awakened in him a desire to study other Christian authors, and
he at once
procured
and read several others of the best works obtainable upon the evidence of
Christianity. “I was
pleased and
astonished,” he afterward wrote, “to see them all evince the meekness and
modesty and
benevolent
forbearance which struck me in the author first named. They all instructed me.
This
investigation
went on for many months.”
Light Shining in Darkness
“But it was
what I afterward discovered which settled me as on the rock of truth.” In his
unbelief
many
passages of Scripture had appeared darkness itself to his mind. But as he read
and informed himself,
he marveled
to see this darkness dissolve away, and as his mind cleared up, these parts of
the Bible were
seen to be
full of meaning and harmony, beauty and glory. Then, as he says, “I discovered
that my
infidelity
had been based upon my ignorance, encircled with the love of sin, whilst its
practice had
beclouded
and deformed my soul.”
His
experience also in attending the sick and the dying, the contrast between the
hopeful and
cheerful
death of Christians and the indifferent,’ stolid, or terrified actions of the
ungodly and unbelieving,
convinced
him more and more of the certainty of the Christian teaching.
His Deep Conversion
Like Saul
of Tarsus, when Dr. Nelson saw the enormity of his sin in rejecting Christ, who
gave
His life to
save us, he felt himself “the chief of sinners,” and, like Peter after he had
denied his Lord, he
“went out
and wept bitterly.” In words of strong emotion and manifest penitence he humbly
says in his
confession
of faith:
Famous
Infidels Who Found Christ
43
“With my
face in the dust, while a joy inexpressible fills my soul, I can say: I know
that my
Redeemer
lives, and that He shall stand at the latter day upon the earth: and though
after my skin worms
destroy
this body, yet in my flesh shall I see God: whom I shall see for myself, and
mine eyes shall behold,
and not
another.” [Job 19:25-27] “Cause and Cure of Infidelity,” Page 263.
Gives Up His Profession
To win
others from the darkness of unbelief to faith and hope in Christ, soon became
the ruling
passion of
Dr. Nelson’s life. He left his lucrative professional career in 1825 to enter
the Presbyterian
ministry.
He set his slaves free, and became an ardent advocate of emancipation. He
became pastor of the
Presbyterian
ministry of Danville, Kentucky, but afterward removing to Missouri, he
established Marion
College,
near Palmyra, and became its first president. As the antislavery agitation
increased in intensity, he
went to
Quincy, Illinois, where he established an institute for the missionary
education of young men. He
died in
1844.
8. The
Bible Prophecies
ONE thing
which made a deep impression upon the mind of Dr. Nelson as he investigated the
evidences
of Christianity and read history with an open mind, was the fulfilled
prophecies of the Bible. In
fact, the
editor of the Christian Herald once stated that Nelson was converted by
observing the fate of Tyre
and
Babylon, which were among the most famous cities of antiquity and were in their
splendor at the time
when the
Bible was written, so that what is there foretold of them cannot be explained
as having been
written
after the events occurred. The Old Testament containing these accounts had been
translated into the
Greek
language for the kings of Egypt, and was read throughout the world nearly three
centuries before the
birth of
Christ, and therefore long before what it predicted of the wicked cities and
nations of old came true.
In his
book, Dr. Nelson relates his astonishment at the discovery of these facts, of
which, though
an educated
man, he was so long in ignorance; and devotes several chapters to interesting
accounts of his
findings in
this field of observation, because, as he states, many others, like himself,
are unacquainted with
these
divine predictions, and the striking manner in which their fulfillment has come
about and been
recorded.
Any review of Nelson’s “Cause and Cure of Infidelity” would be incomplete
without noticing
what he
says of the prophecies and their fulfillment, especially those of Tyre, Nineveh, Babylon, and
Egypt.
These accounts are arranged from his notes, with some more recent matter.
The Doomed City of Tyre
Tyre from
the earliest ages was the great seaport of the ancient world, the mart of all
the
Mediterranean
commerce, carried on by the famous “ships of Tarshish.”
Situated on the coast of Phoenicia,
it
connected the inland traffic of Asia with the ports of Egypt, Carthage, Greece,
Italy, and the isles of the
West.
Distant countries traded in its fairs, and its merchants were the honorable of
the earth. The king of
Tyre had
supplied King Solomon with building materials for the great temple at
Jerusalem, and at one time
maintained
very friendly relations with the Jews, their near neighbors.
About seven
centuries before Christ, because the Tyrians engaged
in slave traffic, dealing unjustly
and
shipping many of the children of Israel for slaves into foreign countries,
Isaiah, Amos, and other
prophets of
God were given divine warnings of the punishment to be visited upon the wicked
city. (See
Isaiah 23;
Amos 1; Joel 3; Ezekiel 26 to 28.) Thus the Lord said:
“Behold,
the Lord will cast her out, and He will smite her power in the sea.” “They
shall lay thy
stones and
thy timbers and thy dust ‘in the midst of the water.” “I will also scrape her
dust from her,” and
she shall
“be no more.” Zechariah 9:4; Ezekiel 26:12, 4, 21.
All this
strange judgment came upon Tyre in a most remarkable
way when Alexander the Great
destroyed
the ancient city. And then in order to take the most newly fortified section,
which was on an
island he
had the ruins of old Tyre cast into the sea, making a
mole from the mainland -to the island, half a
mile away.
The site of the city was thus left utterly bare and desolate.
Still Tyre was built again, and became a great city. It was
populous and flourishing at the
Famous
Infidels Who Found Christ
44
beginning
of the Christian era, and continued to be a place of some importance down into
the dark Middle
Ages, when
it began to decline and pass into oblivion. Finally the old sunken causeway, or
mole, silted up
by
earthquakes, again united the island with the shore, making a harbor for
fishing boats, and thus a strange
coincidence
of nature prepared the way for the accomplishment of the last part of this
remarkable prophecy:
“I will
make her like the top of a rock. It shall be a place for the spreading of nets
in the midst of
the tea:
for I have spoken it, said the Lord God.” Ezekiel 26:4, 5.
Nelson says
that Volney, the noted French infidel, in his book of
travels, “Ruins of Empire,” about
the close
of the eighteenth century, wrote: “The whole village of Tyre
contains only about fifty or sixty
poor
families, who live obscurely on the produce of their little ground and a
trifling fishery.” (See Nelson,
p. 43.)
In 1868
Coffin, a Civil War correspondent of the Boston Journal, in making a trip
around the
world,
visited Tyre. He said the sun was just going down,
and he had the guide pitch his tent right over the
ruins,
where the rocks had been scraped bare, and he took out his Bible and read this
chapter. He said that
the
fishermen were just then spreading their nets to dry on the rocks of Tyre, exactly as “the sure word of
prophecy”
had foretold more than two thousand years before.
The Debasement of Egypt’s
Glory
In Bible
times Egypt was one of the most powerful nations of the world. Nature and art
had from
the
earliest ages combined to make the country productive, prosperous, and secure.
The number of its cities,
their
popularity and wealth, according to ancient historians, almost surpass
credibility. It was called the
granary of
the world, so great were its exports of corn and other foods. Its resources seemed
unlimited and
unfailing.
The wisdom
and learning of the Egyptians was proverbial, and their military strength and
success
extended
their conquests over many surrounding countries. The imposing dynasties of
their kings reach into
millenniums
of time, and their monuments, obelisks, tombs, temples, palaces, and pyramids,
which have
withstood
the wasting of ages and the ravages of war and are still visible at a distance
of thirty miles, are
among the
most massive and impressive works of man to be found upon the earth.
Such being
the case, it is the more remarkable that a prophet of the Bible should give
utterance to
the
declaration that the period of Egypt’s glory and prosperity was about to close
forever, and the country
sink
permanently out of the class of great nations, yet that is what was predicted.
And improbable as it then
seemed,
that is just what has happened. Egypt’s destiny was to be unusual, unlike that
pronounced upon
any other
people. It was not said that the Egyptians would become extinct, like the
Babylonians and the
Assyrians,
nor scattered into all the world, like the Jews, but this is what God said:
“The sword
shall come upon Egypt and the pride of her power shall come down. I will make
the
land waste,
and all that is therein, by the hand of strangers: and there shall be no more a
prince of the land
of Egypt.”
“I the Lord have spoken it.” Ezekiel 30:4-13
Notice, by
a reading of the entire reference, that the rule was to be taken from them and
placed in
other
hands, and that no prince of Egyptian blood was ever again to govern there; but
that the land was to
he given
over to foreigners to lay waste.
“They shall
be there a base kingdom. It shall be the basest of the kingdoms; neither shall
it exalt
itself any
more above the nations: for I will diminish them that they shall no more rule
over the nations.”
Ezekiel
29:14-15.
Soon after
this time, the last Egyptian prince of the thirtieth dynasty was driven from
his throne,
and has
never had a successor. Two thousand years have passed over Egypt, and it
remains under the rule
of
strangers.* Still, though much diminished, it is there, “the basest of the
kingdoms,” a land of ancient
ruins,
filth, dogs, and Arabs. Persians, Greeks, Romans, Sar
acens, and Turks have in turn ruled over the
Egyptians,
and now the British control them. Now manifestly a power higher than that of
man controls the
destiny of
nations.
*
King Fuad 1, the present king of Egypt, Is not by
birth an Egyptian but an Albanian. He In
one
of the sons of the late Khedive Ismail Pasha, who In
turn was the second of three sons of Ibrahim, a
grandson
of Mehemet All. Mchemet Ali
is thus the founder of the present royal house of Egypt. He was
born
at Kavala, a small seaport on the frontier of Thrace
and Macedonia. His father, an Albanian, was
an aga, a small yoeman farmer, and
he himself began life as a petty official and trader In tobacco. By a
Famous
Infidels Who Found Christ
45
compromise
between the powers of Europe, Mehemet All was made a
hereditary ruler of Egypt. So Egypt
Is In
reality under foreign rule, and to this day, as the word of God foretold, has
been without a prince.
There is
one other feature of this prophecy which deserves notice. It is this: “I will
also destroy the
idols, and
I will cause their images to cease.” “Thus will I execute judgments in Egypt
and they shall know
that I am
the Lord.” Ezekiel 30:13, 19.
As Nelson
says, when Ezekiel lived, nothing could have been more improbable than to
suppose
that the
idols and images should cease out of Egypt, where the people were so strangely
prone to worship
crocodiles,
serpents, birds, beetles-anything but God. Idols and images were to be seen
everywhere, and no
matter what
it was, they kneeled before it. It was a strange prediction to speak of causing
images or idols to
cease out
of a land where, too, continued baseness was to prevail; because we associate
idolatry and images
with
ignorance and degradation.
Such a
prospect was not even in sight when Ezekiel lived. It was a thousand years
before this came
to pass.
And who could have dreamed of how it would be brought about? Only God could
then foresee that
there would
arise such a fiercely fanatical people as the Mohammedans, who, when they
overran and ruled
Egypt,
would break in pieces and destroy all the images and idols in the country. Yet
that was the way God
caused it
to be done; so that for centuries there has been no idol worship among the
people of Egypt. Even
the
colossal statue of Memnon, about sixty feet in height
(representing Amenophis III, a Pharaoh of the
eighteenth
dynasty), seated on a throne of stone and watching over the plain of Thebes and
the ancient
tombs of
its kings, as the Statue of Liberty overlooks New York harbor, has been
mutilated by the
destructive
hands of strangers, so that one of the arms is broken off. Yet there it still
stands, in its stony
silence,
the symbol of Egypt’s sovereignty, witnessing to the fulfillment of God’s
prophetic word: “Behold,
I am
against Pharaoh king of Egypt, and will break his . . . strong arm; . . . and I
will cause the sword to fall
out of his
hand.” Ezekiel 30:22, A. R. V.
The Judgments Upon
Babylon
From the
revolt of Babel the Assyro-Babylonians had been
foremost among the races of the Old
World in
idolatry, war, and oppression, until during the dynasty from Nabopolassar to Belshazzar they
held
the
dominion of the world. It was at this period that they overthrew the Jews,
destroyed Jerusalem, which
then
contained the famous temple of Solomon, and carried the people into exile and
servitude.
Babylon was
in those days the hub of the world. Its fortifications were well-nigh
impregnable. and
its mighty
kings were emboldened to defy the powers of both heaven and earth. It was then
that God made
known to
His people through the prophets that at the end of seventy years He would
overthrow Babylon,
and give
the dominion to Cyrus, king of Persia, who would restore them to their own
land. Strong and
assuring
were the words which the prophets were told to write:
“Though
Babylon should mount up to heaven, and though she should fortify the height of
her
strength,
yet from Me shall spoilers come unto her, said the Lord. . . . And I will make
drunk her princes, an
her wise
men, her captains, and her rulers, and her mighty men: and they shall sleep a
perpetual sleep, and
not wake,
said the King, whose name is the Lord of hosts.
“Thus said
the Lord of hosts: The broad walls of Babylon shall be utterly broken, and her
high
gates shall
be burned with fire; and the people shall labor in vain, and the folk in the
fire, and they shall be
weary.”
Jeremiah 51:53-58.
“Babylon
shall become heaps, a dwelling place for dragons, an astonishment, and a
hissing,
without an
inhabitant!” Verse 37.
“The wild
beasts of the desert with the wild beasts of the islands shall dwell there, and
the owls
shall dwell
therein: and it shall be no more inhabited forever; neither shall it be dwelt
in from generation to
generation.”
Jeremiah 50:39.
Nelson
points out how improbable it was from any human viewpoint that Babylon should
ever
come to
such an end. It had already stood for nearly two thousand years, and was
growing in greatness all
the time;
and it was situated on the important river Euphrates, in the midst of one of
the most fruitful plains
of the
whole East, where grain grew to prodigious size, and according to ancient
authorities produced from
two to
three hundred fold, the whole region being intersected by numerous canals,
affording unfailing
irrigation,
and where the climate was mild and fruits were abundant.
Century
after century rolled away before the curse of God came upon Babylon to the full
extent of
Famous
Infidels Who Found Christ
46
the
prophecy. Overthrow followed overthrow. Its walls were thrown down, its palaces
dismantled, its
treasures plundered,
its armies destroyed, yet its streets were not deserted all at once. Even after
five
hundred
years it contained 600,000 inhabitants. But the building of Ctesiphon
on the Tigris as the new
capital of
the Parthian kings, and later the building of Bagdad
by the Arabs, was a fatal turn in the fortunes
of Babylon.
Slowly but
surely the city became deserted and desolate. and thorns and thickets of the
wilderness
obstructed
its untrodden streets and vacant courts. The ruins
became the haunt of all kinds of wild life, and
the Sassanian kings and nobles of the land made the place a
hunting ground, even taking animals there from
far-off
islands to be used in the chase, thus in an unforeseen way bringing about the
accomplishment of
those
strange words of the prophecy: “The wild beasts of the islands shall cry in
their desolate houses, and
dragons in
their pleasant palaces.” Isaiah 13:22.
As the Dark
Ages came on, those Bible lands were lost sight of for about a thousand years.
.
Savage
hordes of Arabs, Tartars, and Turks swept them again and again with pillage and
devastation, and
when in
modern times travelers visited the country, only vast “heaps” and pits and
-pools of water” were
found.
Since
Nelson wrote, the spade of the explorer has opened some of these great mounds
of Babylon,
discovered
the long buried remains of the royal palace where Nebuchadnezzar and Belshazzar held forth.
unearthed
some of the principal streets and temple courts, with numerous monuments,
inscriptions, and
records
preserved in tablets of clay.
There the
sculptures of the dead
Witness to
their words and deeds,
And confirm
what God has said
Of the Chaldees and the Medes.
Among those
who have recently published accounts of what they saw at Babylon, is Sir E. A.
Wallis
Budge, Kt., M. A., and Litt. W of Cambridge and
Oxford, and keeper of the Egyptian and Assyrian
antiquities
of the British Museum, who may be quoted in this connection. This archaeologist
and traveler
says:
“We rode
over the mound of Araran, and pulled up our horses on
a small hill of debris which
stood close
by the huge mass of brickwork which marks the site of the great fortress of
Babylon, or the
‘Kasr.’
“At this
point we stood well above every other part of the ruins, and we had a clear,
good view of
them and of
the surrounding country. In the west, south, and east we saw large sheets of
flood water, with
wisps of
mist clinging to their surfaces, and over the land round about them there was
the shimmer of heat
which
foretold that the day would be hot. We agreed that Babylon must have been
surrounded by gardens
and groves
of date palms, and that the region round the city must have been very fertile
and pretty; but
when I saw
it that morning, it was a howling wilderness, said by the natives to be bleak
and terrible by
night, and
scorching and equally terrible by day. I saw no flocks and herds, and no
people, and there
seemed to
me to be nothing but desert everywhere, and it was almost impossible to say
where the desert
ended and
the ruins of the city began. . . .
“As for the
ruins themselves, they were indescribable. At the Kasr
were huge masses of
brickwork,
and near them lay the famous basalt lion mentioned by so many travelers, but
everywhere else
there was
nothing except broken bricks and pottery, and sand, dust, and filth of all
kinds, mixed together
and piled
up in heaps and ridges. . . . Fortresses, palaces, hanging gardens, walls,
gates, bazaars, houses, all
had
disappeared, leaving. as far as I could see, no trace; and I could not help thinking
what every traveler
must have
thought as he looked over the ruins of Babylon, how literally have been
fulfilled the prophecies
of Isaiah
and Jeremiah concerning the complete and utter destruction which was to come
upon Babylon.
“Babylon,
which her founders arrogantly called ‘Tintira,’ i. e., ‘The Grove of Life,’ and ‘Ka-
Dingira,’
i. e., the ‘Gate of God,’ is a ‘desolation, a dry
land, and a wilderness.’ Babylon, the ‘glory of
kingdoms,
the beauty of the Chaldees’ excellency,’
is overthrown, even as were Sodom and Gomorrah. It
has been
swept with ‘the besom of destruction,’ and . . . become literally ‘heaps.’ No
Arab pitches his tent
there, and
shepherds do not ‘make their fold there.’ . . . The wild beasts of the desert
lie down there;
creatures
that shriek fill their houses; creatures that wail dwell therein; and devils in
the forms of hairy
goats dance
there. Jackals screech in its strongholds (or citadels), and serpents [hiss] in
its palaces of
delight.
(See Isaiah 13:19-22.) Babylon has become a ‘horror, a thing to hiss at in
derision, and a place
Famous
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47
without an
inhabitant,’ and the god Bel has been visited even as
Jeremiah prophesied (Jeremiah 51:37-44),
and his
ziggurat destroyed, and even its ruins have been removed to another place.
“The broad
walls of Babylon have been utterly broken, and her high gates burned with fire
(Jeremiah
51:58), and their ruins ‘have become a possession for. the porcupine,’ and
‘sheets of water’
(Isaiah
14:23) surround the city. In the pits among the heaps and among the broken
brickwork we saw
many
hollows in which the wild animals of the desert (foxes, jackals, wild dogs and
wild cats, hyenas, and
wolves) had
evidently sheltered, and in many places we saw lizards, and serpents, and slim
snakes two feet
in length,
and scorpions. Wherever we turned there was ruin and desolation. It was easy to
believe that no
one would
willingly cross the ruins after sunset, for apart from the pitfalls in the
shape of holes in the
ground, the
wild beasts that lived in them made the ruins most unsafe for travelers.” – “By
Nile and Tigris,”
Volume I,
Pages 275-277.
The
journalist and traveler, William T. Ellis, has just published a work entitled,
“Bible Lands
Today,” and
under the heading, “By the Waters of Babylon,” says:
“Something
like a feeling of awe toward the old Hebrew prophets, whose utterances were so
largely
devoted to Assyria and Babylon, fills the mind of the traveler in Mesopotamia
who knows his Bible.
Contrary to
all human probability, and to the reasonableness of history and geography,
these Old Testament
prophets
predicted that the glory and might of the ancient world empires of Mesopotamia
would disappear.
They
specified the. complete destruction of Nineveh and Asshur
and Babylon; and all three of these
capitals
are today mere heaps of uninhabited ruins.
“There is a
mellowing mood of devotion which ensues upon a leisurely visit to Bethlehem and
Nazareth,
and Olivet and Jerusalem; but a thrill and glow of the consciousness of the
awful sovereignty of
Jehovah is
imparted to the devout person who stands on the heaps of dirt that once were
the capitals of
Assyria and
Babylon and Persia. ‘It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living
God.’ The prophets
have been
vindicated. The proud peoples who oppressed Israel and defied Jehovah have been
humbled
literally
into the dust.” - Pages 405, 406.
“Old
Euphrates still flows on,
Though its
course is choked with sand;
But the
walls of Babylon
And its
towers no longer stand.
There the
jackal stops and glares
At the
graven demigod;
And the
bats doze on the stairs
Where the
queens and nobles trod.
Where was
once a city great.
With its
moving multitude,
Now the owl
calls to its mate
In the
moonlight solitude.
Let the
world behold, and say
That it
proves what God has said,
That there
is a judgment day
For the
living and the dead.”
The Burial and
Resurrection of Nineveh
“Woe to the
bloody city! It is all full of lies and rapine; the prey departed not. Hark! The
noise of
the whip,
and the noise of the rattling of wheels, and prancing horses, and bounding
chariots. The horseman
mounting,
and the flashing sword, and the glittering spear, and a multitude of slain, and
a great heap of
corpses; .
. . they stumble upon their bodies,” selling the nations by lewd deeds and
families by her sorcery.
Nahum
3:1-4, A. R. V.
This is a
picture of Nineveh, the great capital of Assyria and metropolis of the world,
as God
beheld it
when He moved His prophets in the days of Nahum and Zephaniah, seven hundred
years before
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48
Christ,’ to
publish to the world its fate, for its persistent iniquity and
oppressions-Nineveh, that “exceeding
great
city,” noted for its wonderful palaces, its gardens of natural history, and its
works of art.
Fire and
water were the forces by which God had declared He would destroy the city, and
according
to the ancient heathen historian Diodorus Siculus, the king of Nineveh knew of the prophecy that
fate had
appointed the river to destroy them, and so gave up in despair and fired his
own palace, when the
calamity
came. This was the prophecy:
“The gates
of thy land shall be set wide open unto your enemies: the fire shall devour thy
bars.”
Nahum 3:13.
“The gates of the river shall be opened, and the palace shall be dissolved
[melted].” Nahum
2.6, Noyes’
translation. This is a wonderful part of the prophecy:
“I will
cast abominable filth upon thee, and make thee vile, and will set thee as a
gazing stock.”
Nahum 3:6.
“I will show the nations thy nakedness, and the kingdoms thy shame.” Verse 5.
“When He hath
uncovered
the cedar work.” Zephaniah 2:14, margin. “The cedar wainscoting shall be torn
away.” It now
remains for
us to describe the strange manner in which these last statements of the
prediction met their
fulfillment.
How Nineveh Was
Discovered
It was not
until the middle of the nineteenth century that explorers turned their
attention toward the
site of
Nineveh: In 1840 Austin Layard, a wandering English
scholar, after surveying the ruins of Asia
Minor where
the fallen columns of Christ’s day lie hidden in thickets of myrtle and
oleander, passed on,
with his
companion, to the banks of the Euphrates and the Tigris. While they looked for
some landmarks by
which to
locate the site of Nineveh, traveling along the river, and then back into the
plain among some
mounds
which seemed to be the vestiges of an ancient city, they rested for the night
at a small Arab village.
Layard’s Dream
That night Layard dreamed of palaces underground, of gigantic
monsters, of sculptured figures,
and endless
inscriptions, and fancied himself wandering in a maze of chambers from which
there was no
outlet. At
dawn with some Arab workmen he began his excavations, and on the first day they
removed
many slabs
of stone, and following down a wall, they struck the entrance of a great square
chamber in
which were
many inscriptions in arrow headed characters. The name “Nineveh” read in the
ruins, and the
extent of
the walls, leave no doubt about the identification.
The work
which was done on the site of Nineveh by Layard and
M. Botta, the French consul at
Mosul,
was continued for some years and attended with remarkable results. Nearly one
hundred halls and
chambers,
with walls paneled with slabs of stone and pictorially decorated with scenes of
Assyrian history,
customs,
and traditions, covering at least two miles of base reliefs,
were unearthed. The pavements of some
of the
halls were from twenty to thirty feet below the surface of the mounds.
Uncovering the Cedar Work
The royal
palaces showed traces of having been destroyed by fire, great quantities of calcined
alabaster
and charred cedar wood being removed. Some of the cedar still gave off its
early fragrance when
used by the
workmen for making fires. There, guarding the entrances, they saw great
man-headed lions
with eagle
wings, the symbols of might and dominion, and halls adorned with giant human
figures and
winged
monsters. There were libraries with books of stone and clay, preserving
accounts of creation and
the flood;
sculptures of Paradise, the divine Presence, and the tree of life, with
cherubim, man-headed and
eagle-headed,
and in the form of griffins, guarding the entrance. There were kings and
priests worshiping,
and fierce
demons being driven before human-headed cherubim, illustrating the conflict
between the good
and evil
powers.
The Palace Library of Sardanapalus
In one of
these palaces Layard found the royal throne, and near
it, beneath fragments of beautiful
blue and
opaque glass, was discovered a rock-crystal lens or magnifying glass, for
reading, many of the
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49
inscribed
tablets being so finely engraved that such glasses must have been required both
to make and to
read them.
This throne and reading glass are probably the oldest remains of the kind upon
earth, and like
the
architecture, the sculpture, the paintings in colors of blue, red, black,
white, yellow, and green, the
beautifully
enameled bricks, the elegantly woven fabrics, the pottery, the vases, and
vessels of gold, of
silver, of
bronze, of copper, and alabaster, the ivory ornaments, and jewels found in
tombs, with other
objects too
numerous to mention, all gave evidence of the high degree of culture in
literature, art, and
science
which prevailed in these first cities built by the children of men after the
great flood.
Awed by the Man Headed
Lions
The Arab
inhabitants of the plain were astonished and much excited at the sight of the
great,
majestic,
man headed lions and giant monsters with massive wings, and were afraid that
Nimrod himself
might come
to life. So for a time they could scarcely be prevailed upon to go on with the
work or allow it to
proceed.
“Ourfathers.” said they, “have for hundreds of years pitched
our tents in these places, but without
knowing
that there was anything remarkable buried there; and now you Franks [and
English] have no
sooner
arrived with your measuring sticks than you have traced the plan of the
country, and brought to light
magnificent
temples and numerous treasures. Is it your books or your prophets that have
revealed these
secrets to
you?” But ultimately they were persuaded to go on with the excavation.
The God of Asshur Depart for Other Lands
At last,
when all this collection of gods, and genies, and kings, and priests, and
warriors of old,
preserved
in sculptured stone and painted frieze, had been raised up from their graves
and assembled once
more on the
banks of their native Tigris, they were floated away overseas, to London and
Paris, there to
grace the
halls of the great museums and be unveiled as a gazing stock to nations.
“With an
overrunning flood He will make an utter end of the place thereof.” Nahum 1:8.
It was
indeed a supernatural coincidence when Nineveh, by means of river gates and
walls, had
been able
to control the torrents of the Tigris for nearly two thousand years, that now,
after God had
declared
it, when an army was besieging the city, the waters should suddenly rise to
such an unprecedented
height as
to break open for the space of twenty furlongs that great wall upon the top of
which three chariots
could drive
abreast, so that the troops could rush in and capture and burr! the city. Yet
this was what
happened.
(See Diod. Sic., lib. 11, pp. 81-84. Also Nelson’s
“Cause and Cure of Infidelity,” p. 63.)
The Grave of Nineveh
“The Lord
hath given commandment concerning thee, that no more of thy name be sown: out
of
the house
of thy gods will I cut off the graven image and the molten image: I will make
thy grave; for thou
art tile.”
Nahum 1:14. “Thou shall be hid.” Nahum 3:11.
The burning
of the city, and continued floods from the overflowing of the river through the
broken
walls, soon
filled the streets with mire, and buried in a marsh what was not consumed. The
effect was fatal
and final.
The city never rose again. Royal palaces, temples, gods, the plunder, and the
slain, were all
mingled in
a common grave. Twice twelve hundred years passed away, and Nineveh was
forgotten. Only
ridges of
green hills where flocks grazed marked the place of its burial-the overgrown
remains of walls.
And no one
knew except from the Bible what might be buried there.
The Stones Now Crying Out
When Nelson
wrote in the early part of the nineteenth century, the last part of this
prophecy
concerning
Nineveh had not yet been fulfilled. It was still covered with abominable filth.
But God had
declared
that it should be raised up and made a gazing stock to the world in the latter,
days.
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50
Nineveh Becomes a Gazing
stock
And there
Nineveh stands today, holding forth in her hands the old stone books which the
Master
had need
of, to tell the world her story, and which were kept covered until this time;
for when they will no’
longer hear
Moses and the prophets, it is time for Nineveh to rise up against this
generation and condemn it
because of
unbelief.
In giving
an account of the discoveries of Layard and Botta, before an audience of the learned men
of Europe,
M. Paulin Paris, president of the French Institute,
paid solemn homage to the Bible, saying: “It
is true
that our Books and our prophets have made us acquainted with these cities, so
long buried but
which, now
rediscovered, bear testimony to the truth of their accounts and their
predictions.” – “Stones
Crying
Out,” p. 447.
Nations Behold Her
“Shame”
Day after
day the throngs who wander through the Nineveh galleries of the British Museum
in
London. now
gaze upon those great man-lions of the heathen, and cherubim figures with massive
wings,
and wonder
over the meaning of those giant forms which guarded the portals of palaces and
temples, and
awed the
races of three thousand years ago. There, too, fixed in enduring stone, and
portrayed upon the
broken
walls, are seen their kings and princes upon thrones, and riding in war
chariots and upon horses, in
blue and
vermilion. leading armies, storming cities, receiving processions of captives
in fetters of iron, and
pronouncing
judgment of servitude, torture, and death upon their enemies, just as when
Daniel and Ezekiel
and other
Jewish captives saw them and described them. Ezekiel 23:5-15.
9.
Modern Miracles
How George Muller
Demonstrated the Fatherhood of God
ONE of the
most positive proofs of the truth of Christianity and its supernatural reality
known to
modern
times, was given to the world in the life and experiences of the late George
Muller, founder of the
Ashley Down
Orphanages of Bristol, England, who demonstrated that what Christ said is true:
“If any one
has the
will to do God’s will, he will find out whether My teaching is from God, or
whether I speak on My
own
authority.” John 7:17, Twentieth Century trans.
“Born in
the town of Kroppenstedt, Prussia, on September 27,
1805, George Muller had very early
given
himself up to a course of sin. His father, who was collector of the excise,
seems to have made the
mistake of,
allowing the boy top much money to spend, considering his age, not in order
that he might
spend it,
but to accustom him to possess money without spending it. The principle had an
opposite effect
altogether.
It led him into many sins.”
He
frequently sought to deceive his father as to what became of the means given
him, and
although
found out and punished, he was not reformed. He often stole the government money
in his father’s
keeping. He
also, when sent by his father to church to be confirmed one Easter, defrauded
the minister out
of most of
the offering which his father gave him for the clergyman, so void did. he seem
to be of either
honesty or
honor.
At the
classical school of Halberstadt, where he was sent to
prepare for the university, it being his
father’s
desire that he become a clergyman, much of his time was spent in novel reading
and sinful
practices,
frequenting taverns, and wasting time and substance in dissipating pleasures,
and while, unknown
to him, his
mother lay dying, he was playing cards till 2 AM and roaming the streets the
next day half
intoxicated.
Alas!
bereavement made no lasting impression upon his conduct, for he continued to
steal from his
father, to
contract debts, to make excursions where he could put up at expensive hotels
and live
extravagantly
for several days or a week at a time, and then leave without paying his bills.
Once he was
compelled
to leave his best clothes as security.
Finally he
was arrested and imprisoned for three weeks. While at the jail, finding a thief
occupying
the
adjoining cell, he befriended him, and afterward, by Mullet’s request, the
governor of the jail permitted
the thief
to share his cell. Sinful habits began to affect his health, and later on while
in school at
Nordhausen,
he, as a consequence, became ill and was confined to his room for more than
three months. In
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51
those days,
though possessing many books, Muller had no Bible.
Even after
entering Halle University, he kept on in his reckless
course. On one occasion he drove
about the
country with three companions in pleasure, for four days, defraying expenses by
pledging their
belongings.
At another time, restless for travel and adventure, he, with a former school
fellow named Beta,
whom he met
in a tavern (but had known at Halberstadt), and two
other students, after again securing
money by
pledging various articles, including books, slipped away from the university,
and made an
extended
tour through Switzerland, forging letters from their parents, at Muller’s
suggestion, to secure their
passports.
Such was the miscreant character of young Muller during the first twenty years
of his life, and he
was thus
apparently well on the road to a career of crime when an event happened which
miraculously
influenced
his spirit and turned him into another man.
George Miller Transformed
One
Saturday night at the university, learning that his friend Beta was going to a
cottage prayer
meeting at
the house of a tradesman named Wagner, George Muller asked if he might go
along, and Beta
consented,
although he had misgivings about introducing him to such a gathering. Upon
entering, however,
Mr. Muller
apologized to the master of the house for coming uninvited, and was put at ease
by the kindly
reply,
“Come as often as you please; house and heart are open to you.”
The small
company sang a hymn, and then one of the number knelt down and asked the
blessing
of God upon
the meeting. Mr. Muller had often attended religious services at church, and
the university was
a Lutheran
institution, yet up to this time he had never seen any one on his knees in
prayer, nor had he ever
so prayed
himself. After the prayer, a chapter from the Bible was read and a printed
sermon; and then after
another
hymn and prayer the service closed. It was a simple, quiet gathering, yet
revolutionary in the heart
of George
Muller.
From that
prayer meeting the gay and godless young man went forth a Christian, saying to
his
friend,
“All my former pleasures are as nothing in comparison with this evening.” It
was the scene of
humble
prayer which seemed to affect him. The Spirit of God must have made in that
hour a deep
impression
upon his sinful heart, for prayer was ever after to be the helm and sheet
anchor of his life.
From the
very beginning of his new life Mr. Muller was graciously given a measure of
simplicity
and of
childlike disposition in spiritual things so that while he was exceedingly ignorant
of the Scriptures,
he was
enabled to carry the most minute matters to the Lord in prayer. And thus very
early in his
experience
the great central habit of his life was formed, that of simple, earnest, and
believing prayer, a
source of
strength and grace which never failed him.
Struggle With Sin and
Agnosticism
Now
although his former associates and fellow students made light of his sudden
change and new
manner of
life, he was able to bear it gracefully. He read the Scriptures, loved the
society of Christian
people,-
went to church from right motives, and stood openly and decidedly on the side
of Christ. Still he
was not yet
rooted in the new life, and now began a hard battle, with his old practices and
selfish instincts
pressing
upon him and buffeting him with the weakness of the flesh and the insinuations
of doubt.
The German
universities were at that time becoming hotbeds of rationalism, or skeptical
philosophy.
Spirituality in religion was dying out, leaving a dead formalism to survive it,
so that the public
means of
grace to which George Muller had access were few.
“Though I
went to church regularly,” he tells us, “when I did not preach myself [as a
divinity
student],
yet I scarcely ever heard the truth for there was no enlightened clergyman in
the town. And then it
so happened
that I could hear Dr. Tholuck, or any other godly
minister the prospect of it beforehand, and
the looking
back upon it afterward, served to fill me with joy. Now and then I walked ten
or fifteen miles to
enjoy this
privilege.”
As might be
feared, however, we are told that he fell deeply, about that time more than
once, in
forgetfulness
of his Savior. So he bought a crucifix and hung it up in his room, thinking
that being thus
frequently
reminded of the sufferings of Christ, he would he restrained from yielding to
temptation. But
instead, as
he relates, “the crucifix was as nothing,” and he felt himself going down and
losing sight of
God.
Had it not
been for the little weekly devotional meetings at the Wagners’,
and the light which
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52
shone out
from the large Orphan Asylum at Halle, founded by the
noted Christian philanthropist, Francke,
and
supported by faith and prayer, his spirit might have sunk at last under the
waves of agnosticism, and -
Muller’s
Life of Trust” would never have been written. The everlasting arms were
underneath him,
however,
and “in self-humiliation,” it is said that “after a season of doubt he was
constrained to fall upon
his knees
behind a hedge, though the snow was a foot deep, to surrender himself anew to
the Lord, to pray
for future
strength, and to thank Him for His mercy.” These experiences purified his life,
and taught him to
know the
Lord as his personal Savior, and to place no confidence in the flesh.
The Evidence of True
Conversion
Young
Muller was now as ardent in Christian work as he had before been in the
pleasures of sin.
He wrote
letters of affectionate appeal to some of his former worldly companions, often
spoke to the
people, and
distributed religious tracts and missionary papers. A strong desire arose
within him to devote
himself to
the missionary cause, and this desire he communicated to his father with every
reason to expect
that he
would be pleased. In this hope, however, he was to meet with disappointment and
sorrow, and had
to bear
reproach for not consenting to pursue his father’s ambition that he become “a
clergyman with a
good
living.” Yet he remained steadfast, knowing that it would be wrong to go
against his own convictions
of duty for
the sake of worldly advantages and reputation.
All efforts
to conciliate his father were unavailing, whose spirit of opposition finally
led him to
declare
that he would no longer consider George as his son. He was led by this,
however, to cast himself
wholly upon
his heavenly Father for material assistance to finish his education. The event
thus proved a
steppingstone
to those great achievements of faith which so distinguished his after life, and
for which God
was now
evidently preparing him.
“Only those
are crowned and sainted
Who with
grief have been acquainted.”
Early Sacrifices and
Adventures of Faith
From the
beginning of his public ministry, Mr. Muller’s life was characterized by a
spirit of
charity and
unselfish benevolence toward all who were poor, unfortunate, and neglected. At
Berlin, after
leaving the
University of Halle, he preached several times a week
in the wards of the poorhouse, and on
Sundays
visited one of the prisons, working for the inmates while locked with them in their
cells.
Going to
London upon the advice of Dr. Tholuck of Halle, he entered the service of the Society for
the
Promotion of Christianity among the Jews. But owing to their restrictions
against the missionaries in
their
employ working for other classes, he finally felt impressed that he should
separate from them, as they
were
unwilling to grant him this freedom, even after he offered to serve them
without the salary they were
paying him,
if they would only leave him free to preach the gospel alto to others. The same
conscientiousness
and unselfishness were afterward shown in his church connections as a pastor.
At Tiegnmouth, when the church in Devonshire was appreciative
of his ministry and his
congregation
was paying him a good salary, he developed that prominent characteristic of
depending on
God, which
led him to decline a salary made up from the customary pew rents and willingly
made himself
dependent
upon a freewill-offering box placed in the chapel, and what God provided
otherwise in answer to
prayer,
explaining to the people his convictions that the pew-rent system was contrary
to the mind of the
Lord. He
believed that in God’s house the pews should be open freely to all alike, and
that tithes and
offerings
are God’s appointed means of supporting the work of the gospel.
Mrs.
Muller, then a bride of only a few weeks whose brother had recently given up a
salary of £
1,500 a
year to go and labor as a missionary in Persia, trusting solely in the Lord to
supply the necessary
support,
was in full sympathy with her husband in walking out by faith in this new
method of Christian
living. And
they were never disappointed in trusting God, for that year their income so far
exceeded their
regular
salary that they gave one third of it to the work of the Lord as a surplus.
The
following year their income was about four times their regular salary, the
third year, five
times; and
the fifth year, nearly six times that amount; and they continued to enlarge
their gifts to God
proportionately,
dispensing annually one third of their total income. This custom of giving back
into the
work of God
all that was over and above their personal expenses, became an established
principle with Mr.
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53
and Mrs.
Muller, even when it multiplied to thousands of pounds a year.
The Scriptural Knowledge
Institution
Mr. Muller
was not a man of “one idea,” and as he saw means multiply in his hands in
answer to
prayer,
there arose in his heart new plans for using it to the glory of the Giver,
plans projecting always
beyond the
visible means of their realization, so that the increase was constantly
required to meet the
current
expenses, and the upkeep of the work rested wholly on continued help from God.
While in
Devonshire, Mr. Muller became intimately associated with a young minister of
kindred
spirit
named Henry Craik, and in 1832 together they accepted
calls from two congregations of Bristol to
come there
and labor together in evangelistic and pastoral work, with the result that a
general revival of
religion
followed, and Bristol became thereafter the center of Mr. Muller’s
extraordinary missionary
activities.
Here in
1834 Messrs. Muller and Craik founded the Scriptural
Knowledge Institution, an
organization
formed for the establishment of Christian schools; to teach the Scriptures to
the people at
home and
abroad; to circulate the Bible and other religious books, especially among the
poor; and to aid
and extend
missionary operations in all lands. The work was to depend for its support
wholly upon the
providence
of God through prayer and faith, without ever seeking the patronage of the
world. So entirely
without
material means for undertaking such a work were these trusting servants of God,
that within two
days after
the organization of the work one of the founders wrote: “Today we have only one
shilling left.”
And yet
that work flourished and is still flourishing after nearly a century of
success, operating
schools in
England, Italy, Spain, Czechoslovakia, China, India, Africa, South America,
Mexico, the West
Indies, and
among the Jews, besides aiding various other missionary undertakings, including
medical work
for lepers.
Reports show that nearly 150 laborers are employed, and are operating in more
than twenty-five
different
fields of the world in many languages, Italy alone having five schools.
Before Mr.
Mullet’s death, he was able to report that since this work started from
nothing,
$7,500,000
had been received and expended in the work of the institution. With this,
121,683 persons had
up to that
time (1897) received training in the schools, and 281,652 Bibles, 1,448,662 New
Testaments.
243,539
other portions of God’s word, and 111,489,067 Scripture books, pamphlets, etc.,
had been
distributed.
Along with
these items include the feeding, clothing, and educating of 9,844 orphans, and
we have
before us a
work of such magnitude that it would have bankrupted almost any of the
nobility, performed by
a penniless
man. And all without ever asking any one in this world for a single cent to
assist him in his
efforts. It
was a practical demonstration of the teachings, of Christianity, whose Author
said, “He that
believed on
Me, from within him shall flow rivers of living water.” John 7:38, A. R. V. It
shows what the
love of God
when received into the heart may accomplish through the weakest of men, and
that there is no
limit to
the good which such a one may do in the world.
Providing Homes for the
Fatherless
The work
for orphans was a gradual development, but became the central body of the
Scriptural
Knowledge
Institution. As early as 1833 Mr. Muller’s sympathetic interest in homeless
children began to
manifest
itself in a small way by giving to a few children gathered out of the streets,
a bit of bread for
breakfast,
and then teaching them for about an hour and a half to read the Scriptures. At
that time in
England,
Poor children, bereaved of their parents, were left to fall into irresponsible
hands, or be sheltered
by the
poorhouse or the jail. Moved with compassion toward this large and scattered
flock of God’s little
waifs, Mr.
Muller soon began to have an intense longing to do something more definite and
extensive for
their
relief and instruction.
At length,
after much prayer for suitable buildings and £1,000 to open a home for the orphans,
with proper
help to care for them, and without solicitation, the necessary means were
accumulated. The
first money
was a gift of 1 shilling from a poor missionary; the second, 1 shilling, and
the third, a legacy of
6 shillings
and 6V2 pence from a little boy. Then came a gift of £100 from a poor
seamstress, and still more
and larger
donations, until a house was rented and an orphanage opened for thirty girls.
As Mr.
Muller read his Bible, he was much impressed with passages which speak of our
God as
the “Father
of the fatherless” (Psalm 68:5), and “the Helper of the fatherless” (Psalm
10:14). The Lord also
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54
comforts
His people in bereavement, saying, “Leave thy fatherless children, I will
preserve them alive; and
let thy
widows trust in Me.” Jeremiah 49:11. Such promises led George Muller to believe
that God would
manifestly
provide for the orphans if some one would be a faithful and fatherly steward
for Him, to
administer
the funds in their behalf.
And so he
offered himself for service, covenanting with God that he would accept all the
orphans
who came to
him and provide proper care for them, if only God would furnish the needed
means. He saw in
such an
undertaking not only the assistance of the orphans, but an outstanding
demonstration to the whole
world of
the existence of God and His loving care for the children of earth. It was a
noble aspiration.
“I judged
myself bound,” he says, “to be the servant of the church of Christ in the
particular point
on which I
had obtained mercy; namely, in being able to take God by His word, and to rely
upon it. This
seemed to
me best done by the establishing and carrying on of an orphan house. It needed
to be something
which
could, be seen even by the natural eye. Now if I, a poor man. simply by prayer
and faith, obtained
without
asking any individual, the means for establishing and carrying on an orphan
house, there would be
something
which, with the Lord’s blessing, might be instrumental in strengthening the faith
of the children
of God,
besides being a testimony to the conscience of the unconverted of the reality
of the things of God.
This, then,
was the primary reason for establishing the orphan houses.
“I
certainly did from my heart desire to be used by God to benefit the bodies of
poor children
bereaved of
both, parents, and seek in other respects, with the help of God, to do them
good for this life. I
also
particularly longed to he used by God in getting the dear orphans trained up in
the fear of God. But still
the first
and primary object of the institution was, and still is, that God might be
magnified by the fact that
the orphans
under my care were, and are, provided with all they need only by prayer and
faith, without any
one being
asked by me or my fellow laborers, whereby it might be seen that God is
faithful still and hears
prayer
still.”
Rapid Growth of the Work
As it
became known that there was a good man prepared to take charge of the
fatherless and
motherless,
providing for them a comfortable home, with board clothing, and Christian
teachers, without
money and
without price (the only requirements being that they must be children born in
wedlock, and
deprived by
death of both their parents, and destitute), the small family and the
increasing needs became
larger and
larger. At the end of only eight months another house had to be rented to
accommodate thirty-six
infants;
and nine months later a third house was opened for thirty boys. Subsequently a
fourth house had to
be secured,
capable of accommodating thirty more children.
In Mr.
Muller’s straitened circumstances the wants of this large and helpless family
of little ones
drew upon
his faith and prayers constantly. Repeatedly their wants bad to be met only
from hour to hour
and from
meal to meal by the Father of the fatherless, in response to urgent
supplication. To carry such
responsibility
was no romance, but a tremendous care and test for any man. As he himself
relates, “The last
penny was
reached over and over again, but it was merely for the trial of faith, and in
the end Clod
invariably
appeared, and the orphans lacked nothing.”
“Long
before the trial came,” observes Mr. Muller, “I had more than once stated
publicly that
answers to
prayer in time of need the manifestation of the hand of God stretched out for
our help-were just
the very
ends for which the institution was established.”
And so the
man of God did not become weary in his well doing, but sometimes in plenty and
sometimes
in poverty the work went on, and grew, and somehow continually, without asking
the help of
man or
going into debt, the needs were supplied. And yet, though the funds in hand
were often not
sufficient
for more than two or three days together, the advisability of admitting more
orphans, providing
there was
room for them, was never questioned, and he turned none away. What he did was
to pray that
more food
and clothes might be sent in.
Sometimes
the day started without a penny; sometimes with just one penny in hand; once
with two
and
three-fourths cents; and again with only one fourth of a cent. On one occasion
the supplies were so
reduced
that at four o’clock in the afternoon it as not known where food for supper
would come from; but
along came
a visitor, and after looking over the place, dropped a sovereign, into each of
the offering boxes.
Had the
gentleman not been pressed for time, however, and so hastened to leave his gift
and depart. it
would have
been too late to provide for supper that evening.
Famous
Infidels Who Found Christ
55
Food All Gone
On another
occasion, when the food was all gone, and neither Mr. Muller nor the matrons of
the
homes had a
few pennies left with which to buy bread, the situation indeed looked dark. But
the workers
met
together, and after earnest supplication, Mr. Muller, feeling the need of
exercise on the way home, took
a longer
route than usual, and in so doing, met a Christian man who had twice called at
his house that
morning to
leave £20 for the work, but had, it appears, not found any one in. Had Mr.
Muller not taken this
road, or
had he been but a moment later, the money would probably have failed to reach
them in the hour of
greatest
anxiety.
One day
when Mr. Muller and his helpers had just risen from their knees in presenting
their needs
before the
Lord, he exclaimed, “God will surely send us help.” He looked, and perceiving a
letter lying on
the table
which some one had just brought in, opened it to find £10 a wonderful and
timely assistance!
“The funds
are exhausted,” said this steward of God to his helpers one day; but he was
mistaken,
for a lady
rooming next door to one of the homes had a sum of money in hand for the
institution which she
had brought
from London four or five days previously. “That the money had been so near the
orphan
houses for
several days without being given,” said Mr. Muller in his notes, “is a plain
proof that it was from
the
beginning in the heart of God to help us; but because He delights in the
prayers of His children, He had
allowed us
to pray so long; also to try our faith, and to make the answer so much the
sweeter.”
Being in
sore need of money one time, Mr. Muller wrote: “If the Lord were not to send
means
before nine
o’clock tomorrow morning, His name would be dishonored. But I am fully assured
that He will
not leave
us.” That day only a few shillings came in, but before eight o’clock the next
morning deliverance
had arisen
in a remarkable way: A gentleman in going to his business that morning, had
proceeded about
half a mile
on the way, when he felt constrained to stop and remember the orphans.
“I cannot
well return now,” he said, “but will take something this evening,” and so
walked on.
Nevertheless
his mind was so agitated over it that he turned back. He had gone only a short
distance when
he began to
think of the important matters awaiting him at the office, and so turned his
face once more
toward his
place of business. But again the voice said within him so strongly: “Go at
once; go at once, and
not wait
till the evening.” And so he returned and handed in three sovereigns, which Mr.
Muller found
awaiting
him when, before breakfast that morning, he came to the orphans’ house to learn
if any help had
come.
Instances
of this kind might be multiplied indefinitely, but through all the years, it
can be said to
the wonderful
praise of His name, “the God of the orphans never suffered His little ones to
hunger or thirst;
His help
was always sure.”
The Buildings at Ashley
Down; Fathering 2,000 Orphans
The
continually increasing applications for admission and the unsuitability of the
rented buildings
in Bristol
for such home schools for the orphans, next compelled Mr. Muller to consider
the necessity of
building on
a commodious scale. The houses which they were now occupying accommodated only
150
children,
and he saw that a building was needed which would house double that number.
From
£10,000 to £15,000 was required to erect such a structure, and the man, as we
are told, “bad
not a penny
to call his own.” He had, however, become acquainted with the One who “hangs
the earth upon
nothing”
(Job 26:7), and began to apply to Him for the needed help. He gave himself to
prayer for thirty six
days before
he received the first donation. It was for £1,000, the largest amount ever
given to his work up
to this
time. After sixty-five days. more offerings flowed in, in varying sums from a
farthing up to £2,000,
and by the
end of 607 days of prayer, sufficient means had come in so that work on the
building was begun,
for Mr.
Muller operated on a cash basis, and would not contract debts.
The land
upon which the institution stands at Ashley Down, near Bristol, was held by the
owner at
a certain
price, and Mr. Muller called twice in one day to buy it, but as he did not find
the owner at home
either
time, he thought perhaps the Lord might be arranging otherwise, and so did not
go again that day. as
he might
have done. The next time he called, after earnest prayer, he found the
landowner, and learned that
he had had
a very restless night, and while lying awake thinking upon his business
affairs, had decided to
sell the
land at a reduced price, so it was purchased for £560 less than it would have
cost the day before.
Surely the
Lord works in a mysterious way His wonders to perform. Thus House No. 1, upon
this rolling,
spacious
green, was opened in June, 1849.
The next
year it became necessary to plan an enlargement of the institution, and the
proposition of
Famous
Infidels Who Found Christ
56
another
building was considered, and made the subject of much prayer for many months.
Almost the first
gift toward
the new undertaking was a sixpence from one of the orphans. All the early
contributions were
small.
Finally, however came a gift of £8,100, the joint contribution of several
Christians. Then along with
smaller
ones from factory girls and other poor persons came another large donation of
£5,207 in one day;
and still
further sums, large and small, so that the work went on until 1857, when House
No. 2 was opened;
and only a
few years later, in 1862, a third, building was added, the two together costing
nearly £50,000.
Even before
No. 3 had been completed, Mr. Muller had come to feel the importance of still
further
expansion
of this work of God. Applications for the admission of more orphans came almost
daily, and
sometimes
several times a day. The prosperity of the undertaking made it seem more and
more apparent
that God
meant to make this orphan colony on the breezy heights of Ashley Down an object
lesson to the
world of
His unfailing mercy and providence.
And George
Muller’s eye was still single in his conviction that the great purpose in
operating the
institution
was for the evidence which it afforded that the living God of four thousand
years ago is still the
living God,
and will now, as then, respond to all who truly serve and obey Him. Thousands
of sinners had
already
been converted; and multitudes of Christians had been greatly strengthened in
their faith and holy
purpose.
The attention of hundreds of thousands of people in England and other lands was
being drawn to
this extraordinary
work, and tens of thousands were coming to see it. And so the desire of Mr.
Muller’s
heart was
being realized in seeing the needy cared for, souls saved, and God glorified.
Now the
time came when more land adjoining the institution was needed. Hundreds of
prayers had
been going
up to heaven that the land might be obtained. To use one of Mr. Muller’s own
expressions, , this
ground had
been bedewed with prayers. Still, when the time came to negotiate for it, their
expectations
failed, and
they were staggered for a time by what seemed a deathblow to their hopes. While
they waited
upon God
however, with patience and renewed entreaty, the obstacles vanished, and the
land was obtained
for £1,500
less than the owner had originally asked for it.
In addition
to the cost of the land, £58,000 had to he received before this fourth building
could be
erected,
yet through prayer so much money came in that by 1868 House No. 4 was opened,
and in 1870
House No.
5.
Altogether
these five houses had cost £115,000 and were capable of accommodating 2,050
children,
with the large staff of helpers. Each house is a complete institution in
itself, that is, besides being
the home of
some hundreds of orphans, and those caring for them it has its own school,
laundry, infirmary,
and other
appointments. Large gardens surround all the buildings. All are simply and
strongly constructed,
with light
and lofty rooms, containing a total of 1,700 windows.
The schools
of the institution provide for the education of the children from kindergarten
age to
the
completion of grammar grades, the system being much like that of the public
schools, except that
special
attention is given to the moral and religious features of their training with
instruction from the Holy
Scriptures.
All the
teaching is under inspectors, who lay down the courses of study and supervise
the.
examinations.
At the age of fourteen the boys are apprenticed in various trades, outside, but
the girls as a
rule are
retained under the care of the institution until seventeen, or until they are
qualified for situations,
and an
entrance is found for them in Christian homes or some suitable occupation. And
all, both boys and
girls, when
they leave the orphanage, are given an outfit of clothing, etc. and their
expenses are temporarily
met from
the funds of the institution. A parental care is thus extended over them until
they can get a start in
life.
A Perpetual Miracle
Think,
reader for a moment of one poor man building up and maintaining such a work for
half a
century,
with never any means except that coming in from unknown sources from day to
day. Imagine the
responsibility
of having two thousand little ones daily to feed and clothe and educate. With
outfits and
premiums
continually to be provided for those going out to apprenticeship or domestic
service or special
training;
with thousands of articles of furniture, etc., frequently to be bought,
repaired, or replaced. With
children
occasionally ill; and the large stag of overseers of one kind and another, such
as school inspectors,
matrons,
masters, teachers, medical officers, nurses, laundresses. cooks, etc., to be
paid.
Realize if
you can what even the milk bill for hundreds of infants would amount to from
week to
week. And
what it would mean not simply to shelter and feed, but actually to take the
place of the fathers
Famous
Infidels Who Found Christ
57
and mothers
of all these waifs from babyhood to youthful maturity, and then only can you
begin to
understand
that a miracle is continually being wrought before the eyes of the whole world
in the life of this
institution,
and a personal testimony borne to the truth of Christianity, the authenticity
of the Bible and the
power of
genuine prayer.
The Teaching of Jeans
About Prayer
Some one
has said. “Prayer is the soul’s sincere desire, uttered or unexpressed,” and
while in its
broadest
sense this is so, since God understands even the secret workings of the heart,
yet praying must go
beyond
“wishing” if much is to be expected of it. Prayer has direction and form, and
in the New Testament
usage
implies “request,” “intercessions,” “supplications.” to God. Philippians 1:4; 1
Timothy 2:1. The
words of
some of Jesus’ prayers have been recorded for us in the Gospels. John 17;
Matthew 26:36-44;
John
11:41-44; 12:27. 28; Luke 23:34, 46. Sometimes they were offered up “with
strong crying and tears.”
Hebrews
5:7. He also taught Hit, disciples to pray, not always the same words, nor in
“vain repetitions, as
the
heathen,” but “after this manner.” (See Matthew 6:9-13.) He is our example. He
is also our mediator, or
the medium
through whom our prayers reach God and are granted. “No man comes unto the
Father, but by
Me.” “I am
the way.” ‘Whatsoever you shall ask in My name, that w ill I do, that the
Father may he
glorified
in the Son,” said He. John 14:6, 13.
Winds Obey the Voice of
Prayer
In his
prayers, as in other things, George Muller followed the Bible literally as
God’s book of
promises
and instructions. He fervently entreated the heavenly Father in simple faith and
in the name of
Jesus,
asking only for such things as appeared to be according to the mind of the
Lord.
A
remarkable instance of such prevailing prayer occurred when at one time the
boiler of the
heating
apparatus was discovered to be leaking so that the fires had to be put out for
three days to enable
the workmen
to take out and repair the brickwork in which it was embedded. A bitter cold
north wind was
blowing and
all the orphans in the building were in danger. Christ who quieted the winds
and the sea of old,
was
appealed to now to change the wind to the south and give warm weather, and that
the workmen might
hurry the
repairs. That very day the wind veered strongly to the south, and continued
there until the work
was done so
that the children did not suffer from the cold, and this men called Mr. Muller
that evening and
asked to be
allowed to work all night to take advantage of the favorable weather.
Mr. Muller
found by many experiences that his connection with God manifestly affected the
success of the
work, and the measure of assistance which came from men. Unless this fellowship
was kept
up, things
went wrong and back; but the more absolutely he relied upon his heavenly
Father, the more help
came and
the work succeeded. “It is better to walk by faith than sight, And the
pitch-black night with no
outer
light, Is the time for faith to shine.”
Christianity a
Supernatural Force
The mission
of the Son of God to this world was to re-establish here the divine laws of the
kingdom of
heaven among men. The effect of the operation of these higher laws of life upon
the elements
of the
natural world was witnessed in the miracles which attended His earthly
ministry. The entrance of the
supernatural
agency of the Spirit into the world for the purpose of redemption began a new
dispensation-a
new
administration in the order of the ages. Christianity was thus a supernatural
force acting upon the
world, and
we read that the disciples “went forth, and preached everywhere, the Lord
working with them,
and
confirming the word with signs following.” Mark 16:20. This offers an
explanation of the work of
George
Muller the Lord was working with him, confirming His word before a
rationalistic and materialistic
generation.
The Secret of Muller’s
Success
The work of
George Muller all grew out of faith in the Bible as the word of the living God,
and in
the
efficacy of fervent prayer. Several hours of each busy day, burdened with the
cares of so many of God’s
Famous
Infidels Who Found Christ
58
little
ones, were spent in Bible study and prayer for light and understanding and
guidance in handling the
work. When
Moses committed the leadership of the children of Israel to Joshua, he said to
him: “This book
of the law
shall not depart out of thy mouth; but thou shall meditate therein day and
night, that thou may
observe to
do according to all that is written therein: for then thou shall make thy way
prosperous, and then
thou shall
have good success.” Joshua 1:8.
George
Muller did this. He made the test, and he had “good success.” He was a great
lover of the
Bible,
which he read through from cover to cover four times every year. At the time of
his death he had
read the
Good Book through between one and two hundred times. This means that he daily
gave about four
hours time
to reading the Holy Book.
Translating the Bible
Into Practical Lift
In the life
of Christ it is said that “the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us.” so
perfectly did
He fulfill
and express in His daily life all the teachings of God’s written word. In this,
Jesus was man’s
divine
example. He said: “Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that
proceeded out of the
mouth of
God.
George
Muller sought thus to live, and to, translate the written promises of the Bible
into actual
and visible
facts, that the world might see it fulfilled in deeds and in truth, and be led
to believe.
Favorite Texts
Among the
Scripture texts which most influenced and guided Mr. Muller’s life, was Luke
6:38:
“Give, and
it shall be given unto you; good measure, pressed down, and shaken together,
and running over,
shall men
give into your bosom.” Many times he saw this verified. He gave, and God caused
men to give
bountifully
to him in return. Again he found it written that Jesus said: “It is more
blessed to give than to
receive.”
He tells us that he believed this to be true, and sought to act accordingly.
Mr. Muller’s own words
are: “My
aim never was, how much I could obtain, but rather how much I could give.” His
manner of life
confirmed
this, for while as the steward of God he handled much money he was careful not
to consume it
for his own
comfort and convenience.
During the
later years of his life, Mr. Muller declined to accept the offer of a fund for
his support,
preferring
to live with his orphan children, sharing their simple life. He had his own
private room very
plainly
furnished. He provided a home for so many of God’s children, yet he never had
time or means to
think of
building one for himself. It can be said of him as of the apostle Paul, He was
“poor, yet making
many rich.”
And he died as he had lived, with no earthly possession, save a few books, a
little furniture,
and about
£60 in money on hand awaiting disbursement, little more than was needed for his
funeral
expenses.
“We lose what on ourselves we spend: We have as treasure without end Whatever,
Lord, to Thee
we lend.”
Since Mr.
Muller’s death in 1898, the work which he fathered for sixty-two years has been
carried
on by or
Wright, his son-in-law, who was long associated. Mr. Muller in the directorship
of the institution,
together
with others of his staff of management, on the same principle of faith and
prayer, and with the
same
results, showing plainly that not the personality of man, but the providence of
God is the strength and
support of
the work. The world has changed. Times have changed. There have been wars,
financial panics,
famines,
and epidemics, but God has not changed, and this work has not ceased to
prosper. Since Mr.
Muller’s
death more than £1,016,000 has been received for the support of the
institution, so that every want
has been
supplied, and in the report of 1925-1926, the management states that “to us the
work seems today
greater
proof than ever of God’s power and willingness to answer believing prayer.”
A Challenge to Unbelief’
Arthur T.
Pierson, D. D., in an article entitled, “Proof of the Living God,” says: “No
one can
understand
this work who does not see in it the supernatural power of God, without that,
it is an enigma,
defying
solution; with that, all the mystery is an open mystery.” Mr. Muller himself
felt that. He often
compared
his work for God to “the burning bush in the wilderness,” always aflame and
threatened with
destruction,
yet not consumed. Look at the outlay a yearly expenditure which rose as high as
£25,000 for
Famous
Infidels Who Found Christ
59
the orphans
alone, irrespective of other outlays.
“Here is a
burning bush indeed, always in seeming danger of being consumed, yet still
standing on
Ashley
Down, and still preserved because the same presence of Jehovah burns in it. Not
a branch of this
many-sided
work [the Scriptural Knowledge Institution] has utterly perished, while the
whole work still
challenges
unbelievers to turn aside and see the great sight, and take off their shoes
from their feet, for is
not all
ground holy where God abides and manifests Himself?”
Let those
who doubt the evidence of a, living God and who think that the facts can be
accounted
for by
natural causes, test the matter for themselves. The field is still open, and
the constituency is large.
Unbelievers
outnumber Christians. Let us have the experiment conducted, not on the faith
basis, but in
strictly
scientific method.
“When we
see an infidel carrying on such a work, building five great orphan houses and
sustaining
over 2.000
orphans from day to day without any direct appeal to human help, yet finding
all supplies
coming in
without even a failure in sixty years, we shall be ready to reconsider our
present conviction that
it was
because the living God heard and helped George Muller. that he who began with a
capital of one
shilling,
took care of more than ten thousand orphans, aided hundreds of missionaries,
scattered millions of
Bibles and
tracts, and in the course of his long life expended about $7,500,000 for God
and humanity; and
then died
with all his possessions valued at less than $800.”
Man the Steward of God
George
Muller regarded himself as really a steward of God, and kept a strict account
of the
institution’s
business. He also published an annual statement of all receipts and
expenditures connected
with the
work, recognizing it as a duty which he owed the patrons of the institution and
the public. His
books and
the accounts of the work published by others were also means used of God to make
the world
acquainted
with what the Lord was doing through His servant, and to stimulate a greater
interest in such
holy and
benevolent enterprises throughout all lands.
A Vast Field of
Opportunity Opened Before the Church
While
George Muller refrained from making any direct appeal to the people for means
to carry
forward his
work for orphans, it was that the interposition of God in their behalf through
prayer might be
the more
manifest, not that it would be wrong to do so under different circumstances,
for it is a recognized
principle
of ethics that society should support the weak and dependent. There has been,
however, a
manifest
awakening of the public conscience over this matter since it became evident
that such are the
special
objects of God’s care. For the spirit of compassion, not only for its own but
for the multitude, has
always been
a distinguishing characteristic of the Christian religion and life.
It thus
belongs to the church and its ministry to lead the world in works of charity
and to urge
upon those
who have means the duty of doing good unto all men as they have opportunity. In
this they have
the example
of the prophets (Daniel 4:27); and of Christ who called upon the young nobleman
to sell that
he had and
give to the poor, and to come and follow Him (Matthew 19:21); and last, the
commandment of
the
apostles (1 Timothy 6:17).
God’s
answers to George Muller’s prayers show the unlimited possibilities open to the
Lord’s
people and
they indicate in miniature, perhaps, something of how God may be expected to
work in coming
times as
darkness more and more covers the earth and all lands are enveloped in
distress. The glory of the
Lord will
then be upon the people who know God and are filled with His Spirit. They will
have a vision of
His work
and through their connection with heaven, new and undiscovered channels of
blessing will be
opened to
suffering humanity, and streams of benevolence will break forth among all
nations. For so it is
promised:
“Thy heart shall thrill and be enlarged; because the wealth of the nations
shall come unto thee.
They shall
bring gold and frankincense, and shall proclaim the praises of Jehovah.” “Kings
shall be thy
nursing
fathers, and their queens thy nursing mothers; and thou shall know that I am
Jehovah; and they that
wait for Me
shall not be put to shame.” Isaiah 60:5, 6; 49:23. A. R. V.
Famous
Infidels Who Found Christ
60
10.
William Miller
The Great Prophetic
Movement
IN the
first part of the past century there began throughout the world a great
religious awakening,
affecting
not only all churches, but the world in general, the first wave of which
culminated about 1843-44.
It was not
emotional in its nature, but in demonstration of the harmony and truth of the
Bible as a divine
revelation,
and was attended with the Spirit and power of God. Infidel circles everywhere,
which had
resisted
the influence of the gospel, were broken up, and in fact that form of unbelief
known as deism,
which
prevailed after the French Revolution, was practically wiped out, and
disappeared like snow banks
before the
warmth of spring, opening the way for a succession of spiritual revivals and
the far-reaching
missionary
operations of later times.
It was a
singular thing that the work started in many parts of the world about the same
time, and.
with the
same characteristics, although the leaders were unknown to one another. It took
form from rays of
light which
seemed to come at that time from the fulfillment of Bible prophecies,
particularly those of
Daniel and
the book of Revelation, giving clearer views of the coming and kingdom of
Christ, as indicated
in 2 Peter
1: 19, where it is promised that the study of the “sure word of prophecy” would
lead to the “day
dawn,” when
a bright light, called “the day-star,” would rise in the hearts of those who
were looking for the
return of
Christ.
In America
the movement began from the conversion of William Miller, a prominent infidel
of
Low
Hampton, New York, who later became the most widely known evangelist and
exponent of the Bible
prophecies,
more than a thousand infidels being turned to faith in Christ within a few
years through his
preaching.
William Miller’s
Conversion
Miller had
been an admirer of Ethan Allen and other patriots of Revolutionary days, who
held
infidel
views, and was active in civic and military affairs. When the War of 1812 broke
out between Great
Britain and
this country, he was commissioned as a captain, and was with the American
forces operating
along Lake
Champlain. And after peace came and Lafayette visited America, Captain Miller
was among
the
military men who gave him a reception and dined with him as he passed through
the State of New
York.
It was
during his military life that Mr. Miller received some impressions which were
calculated to
lessen his
confidence in deism, and cause him to realize that there is an overruling Power
in human affairs.
He says:
“I was
particularly impressed with this view when I was in the battle of Plattsburg,
when with
about 1,500
regulars and about 4,000 volunteers, we defeated the British, who were 15,000
strong, we
being also
successful at the same time in an engagement with the British fleet on the
lake. At the
commencement
of the battle, we looked upon our own defeat as almost certain, and yet we were
victorious.
So
surprising a result against such odds did seem to me like the work of a
mightier power than man.”
He
remembered that according to Bible history. Jehovah many times thus delivered
the children of
Israel from
their oppressors, and was led to compare the American colonies in their
struggle for liberty with
the history
of the Jews. “It seemed to me,” he said, “that the Supreme Being must have
watched over the
interests
of this country in an especial manner, and delivered us-from the hands of our
enemies.”
Such
impressions gave him an interest to know more about the Bible, and to acquaint
himself with
the history
of nations, and so when he retired from the army after the war, he gave more
time to such
studies. He
found that his former views gave him no assurance of happiness beyond the
present life.
Beyond the
grave all was dark and gloomy. To use his own words:
“Annihilation
was a cold and chilling thought, and accountability was sure destruction to
all. The
heavens
were as brass over my head, and the earth as iron under my feet. Eternity! What
was it? And death
why was it?
The more I reasoned, the further I was from demonstration. The more I thought,
the more
scattered
were my conclusions. I tried to stop thinking, but my thoughts would not be
controlled. I was
truly
wretched, but did not understand the cause.”
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Infidels Who Found Christ
61
Spiritual Vision of the
Savior
He
continued in this state of mind for some months, feeling that eternal
consequences might hang
on the character
of his belief; and during this time his deistic principles seemed an almost
insurmountable
obstacle
before him. Soon after this, he says “suddenly the, character of a Savior was
vividly impressed
upon my
mind.
It seemed
that there might he a Being so good and cornpassionate
as to Himself atone for our
transgressions,
and they save us from suffering the penalty of sin. I immediately felt how
lovely such a
Being must
be; and imagined that I could cast myself into the arms of, and trust in the
mercy of, such a one.
But the
question arose, How can it be proved that such a Being does exist? Aside from
the Bible, I found
that I
could get no evidence of the existence of such a Savior or even of a future
state. I felt that to believe
in such a
Savior without evidence would he visionary in the extreme.
Christ the Key to the
Bible
“I saw that
the Bible did bring to view just such a Savior As I needed; and I was perplexed
to find
how an
uninspired book should develop principles so perfectly adapted to the wants of
a fallen world. I was
constrained
to admit that the Scriptures must be a revelation from God. They became my
delight: and in
Jesus I
found a friend.” Jesus Christ became to me the chief among ten thousand; and
the Scriptures, which
before were
dark and contradictory now became the lamp to my feet and light to my path. My
mind became
settled and
satisfied,
“The Bible
now became my chief study, and I can truly say I searched it with great
delight. I found
that the
half was never told me. I wondered why I had not seen its beauty and glory
before, and marveled
that I
could ever have rejected it. I found everything revealed that my heart could
desire, and a remedy for
every
disease of the soul. I lost all taste for other reading, and applied my heart
to get wisdom from God.”
Captain
Miller immediately erected the family altar, and publicly professed his
acceptance of
Christianity,
which he had formerly ridiculed, and called “a blind faith.” He united with the
little Baptist
church at
Low Hampton, of which one of his uncles was pastor, the church of his mother
and sisters,
opened his
house for prayer meetings, and did everything which he could do to redeem the
past. He had
always been
a good citizen, a kind neighbor, a friend of the poor, and an affectionate
husband and father
and he now
became a sincere and devoted Christian, and an ornament and pillar of the
church.
Miller’s System of Bible
Study
After
Captain Miller’s renunciation of infidelity he was perplexed to know how to
answer his deist
friends who
brought up the old objections and supposed contradictions which he had formerly
used against
the Bible
and Christianity. He asked them to give him time, and he would harmonize
everything. He then
set him
self prayerfully and devotedly to reading the Scriptures. Laying aside all
preconceived opinions. he
resolved to
receive with childlike simplicity the most natural and obvious meaning of the
word. He says:
“I
commenced with Genesis, and read verse by verse, proceeding no faster than the
meaning of the
several
passages should be so unfolded as to leave me free from embarrassment
respecting any mysticism
or
contradictions. Whenever I found anything obscure, my practice was to compare
it with all collateral
passages.”
“In this
way I pursued the study of the Bible, in my first perusal of it, for about two
years, and was
fully
satisfies that it is its own interpreter, I found that by comparison of
scripture with history, all the
prophecies,
at far as they had been fulfilled, had been fulfilled literally; that all the
various figures,
metaphors,
parables, similitudes, etc., of the Bible, were
either explained in their immediate connection, or
the terms
in which they were expressed were defined in other portions of the word; and
when thus
explained,
are to be literally understood in accordance with such explanation. I was thus
satisfied that the
Bible is a
system of revealed truths, so clearly and simply given that the ‘wayfaring man,
though a fool,
need not
err therein.’ “But Scripture must be its own expositor.”
Sometimes
therefore whole nights as well as days were spent in searching the Scriptures,
that he
might know
the truth as it is in Jesus; and the beautiful grove near his comfortable home,
overlooking the
landscape
between the upper Hudson River and the southern extremity of Lake Champlain,
now became his
temple for
meditation and prayer.
Famous
Infidels Who Found Christ
62
It was
while engaged thus in seeking light from God that he came upon those great
prophetic
outlines of
Daniel’s visions which explain the history of the Bible, and give one a clear
view into the
glorious
kingdom of Christ. That not “far-off divine event. Toward which the whole
creation moves.”
There he
saw the light which made the Bible a new book to him, a light which was then
dawning on the
world and
which was to shine brighter and brighter until the perfect day. 2 Peter 1:19.
“Rightly Dividing the
Word of Truth”
Many good
men had written of the wonders of Daniel’s prophecies, but in their teaching
the truth
had been so
mixed with error that the light could not shine clearly through it. Only those
whose minds have
been
illuminated by the Spirit of God can discern clearly the dispensational order
of the plan of salvation,
and rightly
divide the word of truth. It was here that the Jews stumbled, and the Christian
church has been
in danger
of a similar error in interpreting the prophecies relating to the second advent
of our Lord.
“Father
Miller,” as he came to be called, saw clearly that as Christ came once literally
and
personally
to die for the sins of the world so He is to come again the second time to
judge the world and to
establish
the everlasting kingdom of God on earth. He saw that the gospel age is clearly
distinguished from
the kingdom
age; and that the second coming of the Lord is the crowning event of the
Christian
dispensation,
the -blessed hope” of the church. Titus 2:11-13.
The Call to Preach
As
Providence designed, no doubt. Mr. Miller’s views were not derived from
academic training,
but from personal
and devotional searching of the Scriptures and consequently were little
influenced by the
sectarian
theology of the times. His studies were pursued, not with the intention of
becoming a clergyman,
but rather
as a layman to prepare himself for successful Christian work among his large
circle of
unbelieving
friends.
In fact,
for nine years he struggled against the conviction that he must give to the
world the truths
which God
had revealed to him. And though he sometimes officiated in his home church in
the absence of a
regular
minister, he modestly hoped that he would never he called to preach,
notwithstanding he tells us the
words kept
ringing in his ears, “Go and tell the world of its danger.” It was in the
autumn of 1831 in
response to
the urgent request of a near-by Baptist church which applied to him in an
emergency, that he
first
publicly presented his views regarding the second coming of Christ. And from
that time the churches
of various
denominations were thrown open to him on all sides, till he was unable to
answer the calls which
came to him
to hold protracted meetings from city to city and from State to State. The
Baptist Church
licensed
him to, the ministry, and a wave of religious revivals spread before him far
and wide as he traveled
and
preached. He was a man mighty in the Scriptures, and his heart was full of
yearning for the unbelieving
and the
unsaved.
So great
was the public interest in his prophetic teaching that Mr. Miller was urged to
publish his
lectures in
newspapers and books, and when he did so, it seemed to open the gates of light,
and awaken the
country.
Many publishers became interested in the work, and multiplied and extended the
new movement.
Religions
journals sprang up in the United States and Canada to proclaim the fulfillment
of prophecy
though out
the world.
Many strong
and able leaders also were now arising in different lands and among other
religious
bodies, and
directing the work, and from this time it is the message rather thin the
leaders which engages
our
attention.
The Beginning of a
World-Wide Movement
As might be
expected, the prophetic movement was not confined to any one religious sect or
body,
but broke
out simultaneously among nearly all religious denominations and in all quarters
of the globe; in
America, as
mentioned, first among Baptist churches under the leadership of Miller; then
among
Methodists,
Presbyterians. Congregationalists, and others, until about three hundred
ministers were
engaged in
its proclamation. In the Church of England it manifested itself so powerfully
that seven hundred
clergymen
preached it. In Sweden, among the Lutherans, it appeared in the same character,
but was tarried
Famous
Infidels Who Found Christ
63
by the “Rapare,” or child evangelists, and youth, who seemed wholly
moved by the Spirit of God in their
preaching.
At the same
time it appeared in many other countries and languages widely separated. In
Holland
it. was
headed by the eminent Dutch revivalist, Hentzepeter:
in Germany, by Bengel. and others; in
Switzerland,
by the learned Gaussen; in Palestine and the Near
East, by Joseph Wolff, the great missionary;
also among
the Moravians of south Germany, the Russians on the Baltic, Molokaners
on the ‘shores of the
Caspian
Sea. Jews of Yemen, priests of Tartary. followers of
St. Thomas in India, and others. In fact. it
seemed the
beginning of the latter rain of the Spirit which was to be poured out in the
last days. Joel 2:23-
32.
The
influence of this awakening throughout the Christian world has been felt more
and more as
time has
gone on, and the light of the prophecies as then seen has served to guide the
minds of this
generation,
and to unify them in their spiritual faith and hope.
11.
Concluding Thoughts
THE great
Master once said of those who believed in Him, that from them would flow
streams of
living
water, a beautiful simile of the spiritual blessings that issue from the lives
of those who have the love
of God in
their hearts.
Yet even
the wise and prudent in their unconverted state are often insensible to
spiritual realities.
The natural
man is incapable of lifting himself from the thralldom of sin, and only as the
human heart is
quickened
by the Spirit of God can it discern the things of God.
But for one
to deny the existence of a higher Power because one has not yet felt His
quickening
touch, is
most unreasonable. The mineral kingdom, lying in darkness is utterly oblivious
of the light and
life which
prevail above it in the vegetable kingdom, and the vegetable world is equally
unconscious of the
still
higher life of the animal kingdom on the plane above it. The fact therefore,
that man cannot by his
physical
senses penetrate the veil that hides from him the kingdom of God, and explore
the mysteries of the
supernatural
world, is no evidence against their reality.
“The ant
that hurries over the wall Of Rome’s St. Peter’s or St. Paul, Though wise in
instinct of its own.
What can it
know of sculptured stone, Of altars, organs, incense cloud,
Of thoughts
of saints in worship bowed?
“What can thou
know of things above. Of God, His universe, His love; What can Icelandic beings
know Of
Florida, or
Eskimo, Who never saw but snow and ice. Of fields of bloom, of fruits, and
spice?”
“Even so
the things of God knows no man, but the Spirit of God,” although through
revelation the
knowledge
of these things is “freely given to us” by the Holy Spirit. 1 Corinthians
2:11,12. Otherwise such
knowledge
is too high for human understanding, as it is written: “My thoughts are not
your thoughts,
neither are
your ways My ways, said the Lord. For as the heavens are higher than the earth,
so are My ways
higher than
your ways, and My thoughts than your thoughts.” Isaiah 55: 8-9.
Man’s Need of God
Man, the
crowning work of mundane creation, stands at the head of the kingdom of nature,
as
known to
mankind. Not only has he physical senses of perception which put him in touch
with the material
things of
the natural world, but he has also moral and spiritual senses enabling him to
distinguish good
from evil,
to appreciate the beautiful, the pure, the sublime, and the holy and opening to
him a universe
unknown to
mere animal intelligence.
Nature
teaches us that where there is an instinct, there is always something to match
it. The
instinct of
the bee, the beaver, and the bird raise no false expectations. They all have
their correlatives; and
that
marvelous impulse that impels and guides the migrating bird to its distant
winter paradise in the
tropics, is
only exceeded by the impulse to worship which is found in the human heart but
which has
become
perverted by sin until millions bow down to idols of wood and stone. How far
human nature has
fallen from
the perfection enjoyed by Adam and Eve before they sinned, can be seen when we
consider the
Famous
Infidels Who Found Christ
64
well-nigh
universal wickedness of the world. As the Scripture says, “The heart is
deceitful above all things,
and
desperately wicked,” and again, “The natural man received not the things of
God: for they are
foolishness
unto him.”
Said the
Savior, “You must be born again.” And when a man is thus born a second time, a
new life
of purity
and beauty and power springs up in the heart and is manifested in the life.
Scoffing at the things of
religion is
due to a sort of moral color blindness. The sinful, unregenerated
human heart is unconscious of
spiritual
realities, just as those physically color blind are unconscious of certain
colors of the spectrum. But
in either
case, it is unreasonable for them to deny what is so universally evident to the
quickened senses of
those whom
God has converted. Where blind eyes are opened, joy and gratitude All the soul,
and the
certainty
of the new experience is as evident as that of the man in the Gospel whose eyes
had been
anointed,
when he declared to those who disputed with him over Jesus, “One thing I know,
that, whereas I
was blind,
now I see.” John 9:25.
It is said
that the fish which live in the waters of Mammoth Cave have only vestiges of
eyes, their
organs ,of
vision having so shrunken away in that underworld of darkness that they have
lost their sense of
sight.
Mankind has become much like that in this world of spiritual darkness and moral
depravity, “Having
the
understanding darkened, being alienated from the life of God through the ignorance
that is in them,
because of
the blindness of their heart.” Ephesians 4:18. But Jesus came into the world to
open the eyes of
the
spiritually blind. And when the spiritual eyesight, is restored, the spiritual
perceptions quickened, then
God is able
to open up to the human mind the wonders of the spiritual universe.
Notable
instances of this awakening are seen in the cases of West, Uxkull,
Muller, and Miller, to
whom there
was opened up an extraordinary comprehension of the great spiritual truths of
salvation. The
divine
Spirit revealed to them the love of God, the divinity of Christ, the
inspiration of the Scriptures, the
communion
of prayer, the forgiveness of sins, the operations of the Holy Spirit, the
overruling providence
of God in
human affairs, the fulfillment of sacred prophecy, the resurrection, and the
future life.
“In the
beauty of the lilies Christ was born across the sea,
With a
glory in His bosom that, transfigure you and me.”
“We all,
with open face beholding as in a glass the glory of the Lord, are changed into
the same
image from
glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of the Lord.” 2 Corinthians 3:18. In
conclusion we quote
the words
of the apostle Paul’s the beloved Ephesian believers:
“Making
mention of you in my prayers; that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father
of glory,
may give
unto you the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of Him: the eyes
of your
understanding
being enlightened that you may know what is the hope of His calling, and what
the riches of
the glory
of His inheritance in the saints, and what is the exceeding greatness of His
power to us ward who
believe,
according to the working of His mighty power, which He wrought in Christ, when
He raised Him
from the
dead, and set Him at His own right hand in the heavenly places: ... and hath
put all things under
His feet.
and gave Him to he the head over all things to the church.” Ephesians 1: 16-22.
Such a view
of Christ is for all who believe in Him, and whose faith reaches within the
veil that
hides Him
from mortal sight.
“Jesus,
these eyes have never seen
That
radiant form of Yours;
The veil of
sense hangs dark between
Thy blessed
face and mine.
“Yet though
I have not seen, and still
Must rest
in faith alone,
I love
Thee, dearest Lord, and will,
Unseen, but
not unknown.
“Like some
bright dream that comes unsought,
When
slumbers o’er me roll,
Your image
ever fills my thought.
And charms
my ravished soul.”
Famous
Infidels Who Found Christ
65
Ray Palmer.