'Great
Controversy- Chapter XXXIII- The First
Great Deception - continued….
The great deceiver
endeavors to shift his own horrible cruelty of character upon our heavenly
Father, that he may cause himself to appear as one greatly wronged by his
expulsion from Heaven because he would not submit to so unjust a governor.
He presents before
the world the liberty which they may enjoy under his mild sway, in contrast
with the bondage imposed by the stern decrees of Jehovah. Thus he succeeds in
luring souls away from their allegiance to God. How repugnant to every emotion
of love and mercy, and even to our sense of justice, is the doctrine that the
wicked dead are tormented with fire and brimstone in an eternally burning hell;
that for the sins of a brief, earthly life they are to suffer torture as long
as God shall live.
Yet this doctrine
has been widely taught, and is still embodied in many of the creeds of
Christendom. Said a learned doctor of divinity: “The sight of hell-torments
will exalt the happiness of the saints forever. When they see others who are of
the same nature and born under the same circumstances, plunged in such misery,
and they so distinguished, it will make them sensible of how happy they are.”
Another used these words: “While the decree of reprobation is eternally
executing on the vessels of wrath, the smoke of their torment will be eternally
ascending in view of the vessels of mercy, who, instead of taking the part of
these miserable objects, will say, Amen, Alleluia! praise ye the Lord!”
Where, in the pages
of God’s Word, is such teaching to be found? Will the redeemed in Heaven be
lost to all emotions of pity and compassion, and even to feelings of common
humanity? Are these to be exchanged for the indifference of the stoic, or the
cruelty of the savage?—No, no; such is not the teaching of the Book of God.
Those who present
the views expressed in the quotations given above may be learned and even
honest men; but they are deluded by the sophistry of Satan. He leads them to
misconstrue strong expressions of Scripture, giving to the language the
coloring of bitterness and malignity which pertains to himself, but not to our
Creator. “As I live, saith the Lord God, I have no pleasure in the death of the
wicked; but that the wicked turn from his way and live; turn ye, turn ye from
your evil ways; for why will ye die?” [Ezekiel 33:11.]
What would be gained
to God should we admit that he delights in witnessing unceasing tortures; that
he is regaled with the groans and shrieks and imprecations of the suffering
creatures whom he holds in the flames of hell? Can these horrid sounds be music
in the ear of Infinite Love? It is urged that the infliction of endless misery
upon the wicked would show God’s hatred of sin as an evil which is ruinous to
the peace and order of the universe. Oh, dreadful blasphemy! As if God’s hatred
of sin is the reason why he perpetuates sin. For, according to the teachings of
these theologians, continued torture without hope of mercy maddens its wretched
victims, and as they pour out their rage in curses and blasphemy, they are
forever augmenting their load of guilt. God’s glory is not enhanced by thus
perpetuating continually increasing sin through ceaseless ages.
It is beyond the
power of the human mind to estimate the evil which has been wrought by the
heresy of eternal torment.
The religion of the
Bible, full of love and goodness, and abounding in compassion, is darkened by
superstition and clothed with terror. When we consider in what false colors
Satan has painted the character of God, can we wonder that our merciful Creator
is feared, dreaded, and even hated? The appalling views of God which have
spread over the world from the teachings of the pulpit have made thousands,
yes, millions, of skeptics and infidels. The theory of eternal torment is one of
the false doctrines that constitute the wine of the abominations of Babylon, of
which she makes all nations drink. [Revelation 14:8; 17:2.] That ministers of
Christ should have accepted this heresy and proclaimed it from the sacred desk,
is indeed a mystery. They received it from Rome, as they received the false
sabbath. True, it has been taught by great and good men; but the light on this
subject had not come to them as it has come to us. They were responsible only
for the light which shone in their time; we are accountable for that which
shines in our day. If we turn from the testimony of God’s Word, and accept
false doctrines because our fathers taught them, we fall under the condemnation
pronounced upon Babylon; we are drinking of the wine of her abominations.
A large class to
whom the doctrine of eternal torment is revolting, are driven to the opposite
error. They see that the Scriptures represent God as a being of love and
compassion, and they cannot believe that he will consign his creatures to the
fires of an eternally burning hell. But, holding that the soul is naturally
immortal, they see no alternative but to conclude that all mankind will finally
be saved.
Many regard the
threatening's of the Bible as designed merely to frighten men into obedience,
and not to be literally fulfilled. Thus the sinner can live in selfish pleasure,
disregarding the requirements of God, and yet expect to be finally received into
his favor. Such a doctrine, presuming upon God’s mercy, but ignoring his
justice, pleases the carnal heart, and emboldens the wicked in their iniquity.
To show how believers in universal salvation wrest the Scriptures to sustain
their soul-destroying dogmas, it is needful only to cite their own utterances.
At the funeral of an irreligious young man, who had been killed instantly by an
accident, a Universalist minister selected as his text the Scripture statement
concerning David, “He was comforted concerning Amnon, seeing he was dead.” [2
Samuel 13:39.] “ I am frequently asked
,”said the speaker, “what will be the
fate of those who leave the world in sin, die, perhaps, in a state of
inebriation, die with the scarlet stains of crime unwashed from their robes, or
die as this young man died, having never made a profession or enjoyed an
experience of religion. We are content with the Scriptures; their answer shall
solve the awful problem. Amnon was exceedingly
sinful; he was unrepentant, he was made drunk, and while
drunk was killed. David was a prophet of God; he must have known whether it
would be ill or well for Amnon in the world to come. What were the expressions
of his heart?—‘The soul of King David longed to go forth unto Absalom; for he
was comforted concerning Amnon, seeing he was dead.’ “And what is the inference
to be deduced from this language? Is it not that endless suffering formed no
part of his religious belief?—So we conceive; and here we discover a triumphant
argument in support of the more
pleasing, more enlightened, more benevolent hypothesis of ultimate universal
purity and peace. He was comforted, seeing his son was dead. And why
so?—Because by the eye of prophecy he could
look forward into the glorious future, and see that son far removed from
all temptations, released from the bondage and purified from the corruptions of
sin, and after being made sufficiently holy and enlightened, admitted to the
assembly of ascended and rejoicing spirits. His only comfort was, that in being
removed from the present state of sin and suffering, his beloved son had gone
where the loftiest breathings of the Holy Spirit would be shed upon his
darkened soul; where his mind would be unfolded to the wisdom of Heaven and the
sweet raptures of immortal love, and thus prepared with a sanctified nature to
enjoy the rest and society of the heavenly inheritance. “In these thoughts we
would be understood to believe that the salvation of Heaven depends upon
nothing which we can do in this life; neither upon a present change of heart,
nor upon present belief, or a present profession of religion.” Thus does the
professed minister of Christ reiterate the falsehood uttered by the serpent in
Eden,—“Ye shall not surely die.” “In the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes
shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods.” He declares that the vilest of
sinners,—the murderer, the thief, and the adulterer,—will after death be
prepared to enter into immortal bliss. And from what does this perverter of the
Scriptures draw his conclusions?—From a single sentence expressing David’s
submission to the dispensation of Providence. His soul “longed to go forth unto
Absalom; for he was comforted concerning Amnon, seeing he was dead.”
The poignancy of his
grief having been softened by time, his thoughts turned from the dead to the
living son, self-banished through fear of the just punishment of his crime. And
this is the evidence that the incestuous, drunken Amnon was at death immediately
transported to the abodes of bliss,
there to be purified and prepared for the companionship of sinless
angels! A pleasing fable indeed, well suited to gratify the carnal heart! This
is Satan’s own doctrine, and it does his work effectually. Should we be
surprised that, with such instruction, wickedness abounds? The course pursued
by this one false teacher illustrates that of many others. A few words of
Scripture are separated from the context, which would, in many cases, show
their meaning to be exactly opposite to the interpretation put upon them; and
such disjointed passages are perverted and used in proof of doctrines that have
no foundation in the Word of God. The testimony cited as evidence that the
drunken Amnon is in Heaven, is a mere inference, directly contradicted by the
plain and positive statement of the Scriptures, that no drunkard shall inherit
the kingdom of God. [1 Corinthians 6:10.]
It is thus that doubters, unbelievers, and
skeptics turn the truth into a lie. And multitudes have been deceived by their
sophistry, and rocked to sleep in the cradle of carnal security. If it were
true that the souls of all men passed directly to Heaven at the hour of
dissolution, then we might well covet death rather than life. Many have been
led by this belief to put an end to their existence. When overwhelmed with
trouble, perplexity, and disappointment, it seems an easy thing to break the
brittle thread of life, and soar away into the bliss of the eternal world. God
has given in his Word decisive evidence that he will punish the transgressors
of his law. Those who flatter themselves that he is too merciful to execute
justice upon the sinner, have only to look to the cross of Calvary.
The death of the
spotless Son of God testifies that “the wages of sin is death,” that every
violation of God’s law must receive its just retribution. Christ the sinless
became sin for man. He bore the guilt of transgression, and the hiding of his
Father’s face, until his heart was broken and his life crushed out. All this
sacrifice was made that sinners might be redeemed. In no other way could man be
freed from the penalty of sin. And every soul that refuses to become a partaker
of the atonement provided at such a cost, must bear, in his own person, the
guilt and punishment of transgression.
To be continued….
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