The future life

Preface

The subject of the following pages is fraught with the most thrilling interest; and is acknowledged by all, whether believer or unbeliever, to be of the most solemn importance, worthy of the profoundest attention of every individual ; and involving, as it does, the destiny of man and the hope of immortality, it requires and has commanded the minds and pens of the ablest philosophers and most learned divines. Yet, after all, much labor is required to extract the true from among the false, and to place it in a tangible form before the popular mind. Though in most cases it requires great minds to discover truth, yet after it has been discovered, minds, claiming but few of the elements of greatness, may perhaps do the world as great a service, by gathering it up and arranging it in a popular form, as they who first discovered it.

It is usual, however, for those who write or prepare books for publication, feeling that they have advanced but little that was unknown to the public before, to offer apologies for presenting the world with their speculations ; but the reason 1 am disposed to give for publishing my views of the Future Life is, that such a work is needed. The experience of every preacher tells him that something more than has been given is demanded, to satisfy a great many minds on that subject; and by supplying this demand, 1 hope to do something fox truth and human happiness, Much, indeed, has been written, but no one book

IV PREFACE.

contains what seems to be required. I have gathered from all within my search what would subserve my purpose, and have employed it as best I could.

During the period of my ministry, I have been questioned more in relation to the Resurrection of the dead, than any other subject within the whole range of theology ; and nothing has been more difficult to answer, than some of the questions which have been put to me. At first I was greatly perplexed and embarrassed. I sought assistance from others, and received but little. But, believing that there was truth in the Bible, on the subject, I went to work in good earnest to find it, and in due time I obtained that which was satisfactory to my own mind. I presented it to others and it satisfied them. And as the church and society with which I am now connected, were somewhat disturbed by conflicting sentiments on the Doctrine of the Resurrection of the dead, when I commenced my labors with them, I collected a variety of materials, with the determination to digest and arrange them, and at some future day, publish them in the form of a book. But the cares and duties of a clergyman, settled over a society scattered over considerable territory, and other labors which may not now be mentioned, have prevented the accomplishment of the work according to the first design. I have not been able to digest and dispose of all the materials collected as I could wish; but as there is really a great demand for a work on the Resurrection of the dead, and as my views seem to meet the wants of those who have examined them, I have concluded to publish them without ilirther delay.

1 have selected from the Universalist Quarterly, and from Professor Bush's work on the Resurrection, the matter which

PREFACE. V

composes chapters III., V. and VI. of this book. The articles in the Quarterly, from which this matter was taken, were originally written by Dr. Ballou and Rev. R. O. Williams. The truths of these articles are worthy of a wider circulation than they could possibly have as first published, and I know not as they could be better presented were they clothed in different language.

In the following pages, the different theories of the Resurrection of the dead, which have been broached, are carefully considered ; the passages of Scripture, which have been usually adduced as proof of a bodily and simultaneous resurrection, are examined and explained ; and I have aimed to render every sentence perspicuous and level to the understanding of the attentive reader. I have not attempted to make any rhetorical displays ; and, as far as possible, have avoided referring to the Greek language, and using foreign terms and phrases. I am fully confident that the leading sentiments advanced in this work are true ; yet, doubtless, there are many errors in style and arrangement. But if it shall be instrumental in dispelling darkness, even from a few minds, and in giving them clear views of the Future Life, I shall feel that some good has been

done, and be satisfied.

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CONTENTS,

Chapter I. Death The King Of Terrors

Our feelings in relation to it — Death the king of terrors — The pain of dying not the reason why it is thus called — The thought of annihilation terrible — A strong love of life makes men strive to banish the thoughts of death from their minds — Very difficult to impress them with its reality — Love of life a proof of immortality — But what saith the Bible — To that the appeal must be made — The language of dying believers — To learn all the sentiments of the Bible not a light task. p. 13

Chapter II. Examination Of The Emanation Theory

The souls of men are emanations from God — They enter human bodies pure, and are never contaminated by sin — The body is the source of iniquity — When the body dies, the spirit returns to God and is absorbed in Him — If this theory be true, then is annihilation true also — Sin has no existence in fact — Christ no Saviour — Death all the Saviour men need — The Bible does not teach that the spirit of man is an emanation from God — It was created as were the heavens and the earth — Neither does the Bible teach that it will be finally submerged in the bosom of the Eternal Spirit — The soul has a higher destiny than this. p. 27

Vlll CONTENTS.

CHAPTER III. FLESH, BLOOD, &c, AS THE CAUSE OF SIN

"Flesh and blood" sometimes denote men living in this world — They are often used metaphorically and denote sinful affections — Their meaning frequently misunderstood — They occupy a large place in the writings of St. Paul — His mode of expressing his views of them probably grew out of some philosophical formula — He does not mean that sin is confined to the body alone — He regards the spirit of man as the seat of sin also — The representations of phrenological writers — The body or the flesh not necessarily sinful — It would have no connection with sin, did not the mind yield to its impulses and suggestions — Every species of sin not necessarily connected with the material body. p. 36

Chapter IV. Materialism

The tendency of many minds towards materialism — The theory of materialists unphilosophical — Consciousness precludes the necessity of argument — We are conscious that what we call the self ox me, is no part of our material organization — The fact that the mind seems to grow and decline with the body does not prove the materiality of the former — The difference between the brute mind and human mind. p. 55

Chapter V. Resurrection Of The Body Unreasonable

The body constantly undergoing change — A man at seventy has had ten different bodies — Which of them will be raised from the dead ? — Pearson on the creed — The body falls into the earth and enriches it, out of which vegetables grow — If it is ever gathered and reconstructed, it will be needful that the decomposition of the whole vegetable and animal world take

CONTENTS. IX

place — Poets sometimes speak of the resurrection of the body, but it is unscriptural and unphilosopical — Not a particle of matter, that composed bodies which were laid in their graves thousands of years since, can be found there now — What propriety is there in saying that they will come out of their graves at the resurrection ? — Not expected that all the body will be raised — enough of its dust will be found in the grave for a nucleus of the reconstructed fabric — The vegetable world analogically considered — So also the animal kingdom — There are a great variety of shades of belief on the subject — The general impression is that the last body, or the body which is consigned to the grave, is the one that will be raised — This supposition is beset with insuperable difficulties. p. 64

Chapter VI. The Immortality Of The Soul

Some deny the immortality of the soul but believe that all men will be raised to immortality after they have slept ages in unconsciousness — The records of antiquity bear plainly upon their face the doctrine of the soul's immortality — No nation, ancient or modern, civilized or savage, has ever existed without some fhith in the future life — Whence was it derived ? — Some say from impostors — This not the fact — The Bible takes some things for granted — The writings of Moses do not assert in so many words that there is a God — The fact is assumed as though all would admit it — The existence of angels is assumed in the same way — Moses and the prophets hold out the idea that there is something in man that does live beyond the death of the body — It is inculcated in all those passages which speak of the dead as sleeping with their fathers — The Jewish views of Sheol, and the Scriptural references to that subject, afford farther evidence that the sacred writers recognized the existence of the soul after leaving the body — Another evidence of the same truth in the Old Testament, is derived from the use of the words which are rendered life, breath, soul, and spirit — We must go to the Christian records to obtain a full and clear view of the future life. p. 95

X CONTENTS.

Chapter VII

AJN EXAMINATION OF THE OLD TESTAMENT SCRIPTURES. Job 19 : 25, 26, 27 — Isaiah 26 : 19 — Daniel 12 : 2. p. 137

Chapter VIII. The Second Advent Of Christ

Nothing is plainer taught in the New Testament than this event — The time of its taking place was plainly pointed out — The coming of Christ a progressive event — It is called by the inspired writers the last day — The Old Covenant was to be destroyed near or at the commencement of the last day — This event was called the end of the world — The last day is spoken of by the New Testament writers as a resurrection day — The last day in the Scriptures to be a judgment day. p. 159

Chapter IX. Examination Of The New Testament Scriptures

p. 184 CHAPTER X.

The denial of the resurrection of Christ's body unreasonable and unscriptural — Christ's material body not the pattern of the resurrection bodies of other men, admitting it was raised from the dead — Not necessary to suppose it went into immortality — It could be dispersed into primary elements at his ascension — The resurrection of Christ's body not designed to prove the resurrection of any other bodies — The object of Christ's resurrection was to prove the divinity of his mission,

CONTENTS. XI

and consequently of all the truth he taught — The New Testament writers testify to this fact — It has had a powerful influence in the moral elevation of the world. p. 221

Chapter XI

AN EXAMINATION OF I. COR1JMTHIAJNS XV;

Some of the Corinthian Church denied the resurrection of the dead — Paul's object in this chapter was, to correct this error — He adduces the resurrection of Christ as evidence of the resurrection of all men — Christ stood before the world as a pre-eminent proof of this — During his mediatorial reign, his disciples who had proved faithful unto death should stand aext in rank, as evidence of the same fact — The reign of Christ and the result — The question, how are the dead raised up, answered — The phrase, "we shall not all sleep 3 ' examined — The word resurrection means future life — Objections considered — I. Thessalonians 4 : 13 — 18, explained in connection with this chapter. p. 233

Conclusion

Men die sinners — Death works no moral change — Why then, believe in the salvation of all men ? — The promises of God which embrace the mission of Christ, the foundation of our faith — All men desire happiness — It is promised them — Moral and intellectual excellence constitutes all true happiness — Though death cannot confer these, yet the change of circumstances and condition, which is effected by death, will induce the individual to choose them — The body does not go into the immortal state — The principles of the Gospel of Christ do go there — And they can never cease to operate as long as there is a sinner in existence — Consequently all men must finally be brought to the knowledge of the truth and be saved. p. 270

THE FUTURE LIFE;

OR, IMMORTALITY AS REVEALED IN THE BIBLE.

Chapter I. Death The King Of Terrors

As the habits, sentiments, circumstances, and education of men are various, their feelings must vary in intenseness on any given subject ; and, hence, the thoughts of death must excite very different feelings in different individuals. The patriarch Jacob, when his days were nearly numbered, and he felt the icy fingers of death upon his vitals, and realized that he must speedily go from all the scenes of mortal conflict, said to his most beloved son, " Behold I die," What his feelings were, at that period of thrilling interest, none can know but himself and that Great Being, who seeth and knoweth all. What are the emotions and thoughts, which gather around the last point of human existence, none can fully know till they arrive there.

Nevertheless, we are all somewhat acquainted with the sad circumstances which usually attend the last hours of the dying ; and we have all felt the fearful sensations, roused by the grim shadows that linger

14 DEATH THE KiiNG OF TERRORS.

around the bed of death. We are, necessarily, familiar with the dread accompaniments of sickness and death ; for they are on all sides of us. Now, we hear deep groans and suppressed sighs ; we see gasps and struggles, and dark shades go over emaciated features, and sunken eyes suddenly glared and fixed in darkness. The limbs are now gradually becoming cold, stiff, and motionless ; and insensibility has crept over the whole frame, and the pallid corpse hears not the wailings of sorrow that fill the air around it. Now the scene shifts, and we behold the shroud, the coffin, the open grave, and hear the gravel rattle in the narrow dwelling, and then see the green sods placed upon that gravel, and, after a few ceremonies are performed, the agitating occurrences of death seem to be forgotten by the multitude. But they are not ; they are so momentous in their import, they cannot fail to impress us, for a short season, at least, with awe — to terrify even the most giddy and reckless, and make them shudder at the thought that they must soon meet the iron embrace of the pale king.

Death has always had power to fill the unregenerate heart with fear. He has long been termed the king of terrors. But why has he been thus denominated ? Did the pains, which usually attend the hour of dissolution, induce the world to crown him king of terrors ? No ; we have reason to believe, from many and various considerations, that these pains are slight and of short duration, and that many a one has suffered more from injuries done their systems and recovered their health, than is ever inflicted by the hand of death.

DEATH THE KllNG OF TERRORS. 15

Dr. William Hunter, who had seen as much of death's doings as almost any other man, said to a friend in his last, moments, "Would that I were able, and I would write how easy and pleasant a thing it is to die." We are told by those who have had the best means of knowing something about this matter, that all the exhibitions of mortal ajony are not real ; they only seem to be such ; and even the convulsive agitations, so often manifest, give no real evidence that the subject thereof is experiencing much physical pain ; they are similar in character to epileptic spasms, which, as is well known, are produced in total insensibility ; and, therefore, are not to be taken as proof of suffering in the least degree. The mere pain of dying, then, is not of all things the most terrible ; and this is not what makes death the king of terrors. The thought of being deal — the thought of utter destruction — is indeed terrible. The idea of being swept into eternal oblivion is painful in the extreme. To feel that when a few more years, at most, shall have passed away, our whole being will be extinguished, totally extinguished, is chilling to the soul, and is enough to tear r rom us every pleasure, which present blessings are calculated to afford.

"A long, long, silent, dark, oblivious sleep, A sleep which no propitious Pow r er dispels, Nor changing seasons, nor revolving years."

Thoughts like these few can endure. They are enough to make us plead with all possible earnestness for a continuance of existence, though it should be perplexed with many sore evils, and tormented by many severe pains,

In most cases, the man of affliction, broken down by disease and poverty, dreads less the evils of his condition than the extinction of his being; and he will cling to life, till crushed and tormented beyond endurance. He finally yields to an overpowering providence, but not willingly. He dies, but is not reconciled to his fate. Nothing but the thought that his (existence will be continued and his condition improved will carry resignation and consolation to his soul. There is that in man, which makes him shrink with horror from the idea or annihilation ; yet it is difficult to make him fully sensible of the stupendous fact that all must die. How shall we account for this, except on the ground that he cannot er.dure the thought of death ? Is it not a strong love of life, which makes him listen with a degree of indifference to the most moving and pathetic descriptions of the shortness of life and the certainty of death?

It is not a hard task to persuade a man, who is fast sinking to the tomb under the weight of an incurable disease, that many years intervene between him and death. How easy is it to flatter the victim of consumption, — that most fatal of all maladies, — even when the hectic flush is on his cheek, that he will recover his heahh! And how anxious are those who are past cure, to try every medicine that may be recommended to them ! they are not willing to give up, even when every supposed remedy within their reach has been applied without success. Still, life is sweet to them, and death is bitter, and they will cling to the former, though it bite like a serpent.

We have numerous illustrations of our mortality before our eyes continually. Yet we act as if they were all illusive and void of significance. The philosopher has been puzzled and the preacher pained at the seeming indifference of men on this subject. When there is so much transpiring every day to show us what our end must be — when every movement of time witnesses the departure of some spirit — when death-groans are constantly ringing in our ears, and friends and foes are rapidly retiring from life's busy stage, to make room for the multitudes that are ever rising to act their parts in the great drama of human existence, it would seem that we might be fully sensible of the shortness of life and the certainty of death. But it is not so. To-day a crowd is gathered around the grave of a departed fellow being ; and there the preacher exhausts his store of eloquence, in portraying the frailty of man and the briefness of his stay upon earth ; a few tears are shed, perhaps, and a few groans go forth from burdened souls ; but the time for dis pemon comes, and when to-morrow's sun looks down upon those that composed that throig. they are. to all human appearance, as thoughtless as though nothing had happened to warn them of the fleetness of their earthly career. The fact is, we can dwell with pleasure upon thoughts of lift* and enjoyment, but we are not disposed to meditate upon death. It is not congenial with our nature to look with complacency upon the darkness of the tomb ; for to feel that we must sooner or later die, and lay down in the cold and silent grave, is unpleasant ; indeed, as we have already said, it is fearful, specially if our faith in immortality be weak ; and, therefore, when the thought of our dissolution intrudes itself upon us, we labor to get rid of it as soon as possible. And, doubtless, this love of life or desire for a continued existence, and weak faith, is the reason why men seern to think so little about dying. While in prosperity, they wish to live, and they put the evil day far from them, and act as though it would never come. In adversity, or old age, they are no more willing to die ; and most, though standing upon the last verge of mortal being, strive to banish every thought of death from their minds, because it is chilling to the aspirations of the soul.

It is obvious, from the foregoing remarks, that out

of the love of life has grown the dread of death ;

and so far as we believe that our existence terminates

at the dissolution of the body, just so far is death

terrible to us. Is death, then, a reality — that is, death

in its broadest sense ? Is it really true that the present

life is all the life we have to live, and that, when it

terminates, our existence comes to a close ? Were

God's providence so ordered that every natural desire

of man must be disappointed, there would be more

evidence than there is, that the grave is the last scene

of human existence. Did I see man thirsting for

knowledge, and laboring from childhood to old age

without finding it ; did I see that the Author of his

being had created him with an appetite for food and

drink, and placed him in a world where it could never

be gratified ; did I see nowhere in this great realm of

life a supply for the demands of his social nature ; in

DEATH THE KIJSG OF TERRORS. 19

short, did I see that God had created him with a variety of wants, and had given him no means of supplying them, I might be more induced than I am to believe that the grave would be the end of human existence. But when I discover that there is bread for the hungry, water for the thirsty, light for the eye, sound for the ear, society for the lonely, and sympathy for the yearning heart ; and when I behold nature unfolding the vast volume of her works, and exposing the secret recesses, where her jewels of truth are stored, to him who seeks for knowledge as for hidden treasures, I am constrained to believe that the universal desire for immortal life will be gratified.

But what saith the Bible about this matter ? Its voice is yea and amen. It confirms, and throws a halo of light around the teachings of nature and reason ; and this confirmation and light are the very things demanded to perfect our faith in the future life. Without them darkness would rest on all our theories. We might appeal to the constitution of the human mind, and array the teachings of nature and the deductions of reason against the doctrine of annihilation, and farther argue that the aspirations of the soul prove, beyond refutation, that man is destined to live after the death of the body ; still, without the testimony of the Bible, our faith in immortality will be weak, and will soar heavenward on a trembling wing. On the contrary, that faith which is firmly based on the teachings of the Bible is strong and immovable. Who ever met death with a more confident hope than he who placed unwavering reliance on the doctrines of the

20 DEATH THE KIlNG OF TERRORS.

New Testament, and lived as they direct? and who ever had fewer doubts of the future life than he ? Show me a man who receives the Bible as a sure guide to religious truth, and I will show you one who has strong faith in immortality. But it is, and always has been the case, that the man who has no confidence in the Bible has very little, if any, faith in the future life, though he may understand well the teachings of nature and reason on that subject. For example, turn back to the writings of the sages and philosophers of ancient times, who disregarded the Bible or had no knowledge of it, and see how they discoursed upon immortality. Cicero, after an extended examination of the subject, and presenting a variety of strong and lucid arguments on the nature and in favor of the future existence of the soul, says, " Which of these is true God alone knows, and which is most probable is a very great question/' After examining all the speculations of antiquity, Seneca makes the following just remarks : " Immortality, however desirable, was rather promised than proved by those great men." Socrates remarked, a short time previous to his death, "I shall die, and you will continue to live; but which of us will be in the better state is known only to God. I hope I am going to good men, but this I would not confidently assert." Dr. Good, in speaking of the ancient theories concerning the future state, says, they were mere philosophical speculations, leaving the mind in "utter doubt and indecision ; hope perpetually neutralized by fear." The like may be said of the theories of all, in every age, who have rejected the Bible ? or known nothing of its sentiments ; their spec-

DEATH THE KlflG OF TERRORS. 21

illations have only tended to fill the mind with doubt, hope and fear. And we may repeat, that weak is that faith which is not based on the Revealed Word, whatever may be said about philosophy. " Philosophy," says one, whose name I do not remember, "philosophy can only heave a sigh, a longing sigh, after immortality. Eternity is to her an unknown vast, in which she soars on conjecture's trembling wing. Above — beneath — around, is an unfathomed void ; and doubt, uncertainty, or despair, are the result of all her inquiries.

Now look at the Bible, and see the difference. Those, in whose hearts its doctrines and precepts have sunk deep, and operated extensively, are not tossed about on the waves of doubt and fear. They stand firm amid the conflicting doctrines of men. They live the future life now, by faith ; and death to them is only a stepping-stone to immortality. How confident are they of living after the body is dead ! and with what joy do they speak of their destiny ! And one, by turning to the writings of the apostles, can see, at once, the difference between their faith and the faith of those, who in their day knew nothing of the Gospel. But they do not stand alone. There is ample testimony in the language of Christians, who have lived since, to prove that the Gospel has power to inspire a joyful faith as nothing else can. To substantiate this, we might quote volumes from the dying remarks of believers, but the following must suffice.

The case of the aged Polycarp, bishop of the church in Smyrna, is known to every one. When at the place

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22 DEATH THE KIJMG OF TERRORS.

of execution, life was offered him if he would renounce Christ; he steadfastly refused, saying, "Eighty and six years have I served him, and he has done me nothing but good ; why should I forsake him now?" Mr. Saunders, who was burnt at Coventry, on coming to the stake where he was to suffer, embraced it with apparent joy, exclaiming, " Welcome, cross of Christ ! Welcome, everlasting life ! " When Ridley and Latimer were bound together to the stake, the former said to his companion, " Be of good heart, brother ; for God will either assuage the fury of the flame, or enable us to abide it." The latter replied, " Be of good comfort, for we shall this day light such a candle in England as, I trust, by God's grace, never shall be put out." The dying words of Bede, who departed this life A. D. 735, are very impressive. He said to one of his pupils, " I have some valuables in rny little chest. Run quickly and bring all the priests of the monastery to me." When they came he distributed his small presents to them, and exhorted each of them to attend to their masses and prayers. They all wept when he told them they would see him no more ; but rejoiced to hear him say, " It is now time for me to return to him who made me. The time of my dissolution draws near. I desire to be dissolved, and be with Christ. Yes, my soul desires to see Christ, my king, in his beauty." In this manner he continued to converse cheerfully till the evening, when a pupil said to him, " Dear master, one sentence is still wanting." He replied, " Write quickly." The young man said, "It is finished." He answered, "Thou hast well said, all is now finished. Hold my head with thy hands, for I shall delight to sit on the opposite side of the room, on the holy spot at which I have been accustomed to pray, and where, while sitting, I can invoke my Father." When he was placed on the pavement of his little place, he sung, " Glory be to the Father and to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost ; " and expired as he uttered the last words. Such was the happy, the glorious conclusion of life to this first of scholars.*