People's Pilot, Volume 4, Number 35, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 23 February 1895 — Why Had Christ to Die. [ARTICLE]

Why Had Christ to Die.

|. , First, that the purpose of God should be* fulfilled, man to have eternal life and reign over all the earth, to have dominion over the fish of the sea, the birds of the air, the beasts of the field, and over everything that creepeth on the earth and over all the earth. [Titus, Ist ch., 2d v.] Read it. Second. Now God’s command to multiply and replenish the fearth and subdue it, and have dominion over all the earth, was made to Adam. So God gave Adam u law, and the violation of it was death. And Adam broke the law and God passed Adam under the sentence of death, and gave his word to Mother Eve, that her seed should crush the serpant’s head. Now’4ooo years afterwards Christ was born, the one that is to destroy the devil and his works, or in other words to undo what the first Adam had done, aud to do the things God commanded Adam to do, that is to subdue the earth and reign from the rivers unto the end of the earth as God said to the first Adam, have dominion over all the earth.

Why has Chist to die in order to accomplish that work? First, to undo what the trans gression of God's command had brought on the family of Adam by throwing them all in the death state, therefore Christ has to satisfy God which is death, or all will have to remain in death. Now Christ gave himself a ransom for all. What is a ransom? It means a price paid to redeem from captivity or punish ment; something which has been paid for something which has been forfeited; and the one is considered to be the equivalent of the other. Here another question arises, what is forfeited? To answer this question, we revert to the cradle of our race. Adam, we are told, was the son of God. He had no human father. He derived his life direct from its source. He was made in the image of God, and to him was given dominion over all the earth and all that it contained. Head of the human 1 ace and lord of its home, he was pronounced by the highest authority very good. He was placed under law. It was plain and positive. He broke that law and immediately came under its penalty, death. The life thus forfeited was not his own individual life only, but being the head of the race, the life of the entire race was forfeited in him. Human life then being the forfeit and its extent universal, what of the ransom? It was equal to the forfeit. Human life, and its extent universal, every particular in which Adam was different from his progeny. Jesus was his equal. He was born to tlie virgin, son of God, image of God, lord of earth, federal head, and holy from his mother’s womb. Here analogy between the two Adams seems to end. When tempted the first Adam fell, and involved all mankind in his degradation and punishment. When tempted the last Adam resisted unto death, even the death of the cross, and involved all mankind in righteousness and self sacrifice.

The most unimpeachable testimony was given to his sonlessness. He was holy, harmless, undefiled and separate from sinners, and without spot, he offer eel himself to Gop. This was given life for life, human life for human life. This was paying an equivalent price. Justice demanded this. It demanded no more. It could accept no less. For this purpose he took part ot flesh and blood and the demands of j ustice w cu. 1 mil y in t> t wil e n the no as ted i eatli. Sotin have s ■ <i, hew cun tin death o one i tie equivalent to tin deat 1 every mat,? Wo ma\ ?sk a i n r question, how cat the si .me man lie cquivalen* to the ; o'' every man? The answer > ene quest'on will lx the ans ■■ to tie other. W< know of opo wav in which these qui ■ <'r»can be answered These tw ) men. Adam and Jesus were equa 1 They were fed cal heads, and the only two men who ever held th it position. Through the sin of one death fell upon the entire race, and through the death of the other that dread penalty was exhausted. By the one act the old Adamic account was opened, and by the other that account was closed. The account now stands square, the engagement on the one side being equal to the liabilities on the other. As the ransom of man has been paid, why do the living continue to die, and the dead remain dead? Because the resurrection hour has not come yet. Look at the sth chapter of John, 28-29 verses. Jesus said. Marvel rot at this, for the hour cometh

when all that are in the tombs shall hear his voice and shall come forth, they that have done good unto the resurrection of life, and they that have done ill unto the resurrection of judgment. Christ says, I will ransom them from the power of the grave; I will redeem them from death; 0, death I will be thy plague; O, grave I will be thy destruction. Seeing that Christ | died a ransom for man, how was it he did not retnain dead? Because God had said by the profit David that his soul should not be left in hell or the grave, nor his body to see corruption. God’s word, which is spirit and is life. The life forfeited was human life, the life given in ransom was the same.

You see if man was not redeemed and brought out of the death state, death would be the end of the human race. Now, in order to open the door and bring them out of death the penalty must be paid which is death. That is the reason Christ had to die to bring out his bride. He must of necessity go into the death state in order to open the door and bring all out with life. There is no other way to get out of death than by Christ the life giver. He only can open the door of death and bring out his own bride. For this reason we are baptized in his name and rise out of our watery graves and live a new life. Then w’e can claim Christ’s promise that he will raise us up the last day and give us eternal life, that which God promised before the world began. They that are not in Christ will get only their mortal or Adamic life. That is what was forfeited in Adam. So Christ did not redeem eternal life, but adamic life, Christ’s gift to all rfien. But eternal life is the gift of God through the Lord Jesus Christ So Christ redeems all both good and bad. Oh, hear Christ when he comes to 1 1 is sin cursed earth. Jesus said in the volume of the book it is written of me to do thy will, O God. God’s will given to Mother Eve that her seed should crush the serpent’s head or in other words destroy the devil and his works. It is God s will for Christ to suffer, and to pour out his life or soul unto death, that his soul should be made an offering for sin. Then said he, “Lo, I come to do thy will, oh God.” Hear Christ when he prays to his father and asks if it be possible, let this cup pass. Then says, ’•Thy will, not mine be done.” Then is Christ overcome, and '•at down on his father’s throne, by submission to God’s will, and doing his will as God commanded him to do, and said, “I know thy will is everlasting life.” Therefore, Christ must die in order to do God's will, and says he Knows God’s will is everlasting ife, so it is God’s will that all ? ‘y. in or^er to have everlastiig life. God says, “He that oelieveth and is baptized shall e saved. H. M. Babb.

E. Bice of Remington was Iran acting some business at the ■’"'inly seat, Wednesday, and dropped in at the pilot office a few minutes. Ciias. Crosscup is looking for the person who found a roll of bills that he lost Wednesday. A. Et.tlinger of Joliet, 111., is buying c title hereabout. P. W. Liston was thrown from his horse Tuesday and injured in the hip. Will A. Mossier Manager of The Model will go again to Chic ago next Monday to add another large invoice to the immense order placed last week sos new spring goods. Several large dray loads have been received each day this week and a large number of cases have yet to arrive. Truly it is queer where all the purchasers are coining from to buy all these goods, but the exquisit beauty and uneaqualed prices will easily crowd the contents of .he big store. D. M. Yeoman, has been on the sick roll of honor this week The lecture of Prof. Everman on “Alaska add the fur seal,” given at the opera house Tuesday evening ‘was one of the really good things, instructive and interesting. It was well attended.

Walk ok Tp., Feb. 20.—The F. B. protracted meetings, now running' about three weeks, are work ng up quite an interest. Mrs. Booth who. is conducting the meetings will close them this week and go to Brushwood, her next appointment. Mrs. Mari ah Hershman, wife of John L. Hershraau who has been sick a month with para-

lysis is no better with small hope of recovery. The schools of this township are running nicely, and will close the school year of months the last of April. L. H. Hamilton is conducting an excellent school at Kniman and giving the most perfect satisfaction. In fact it is an open secret that he is bne of the very foreifiost educators in the county, Old Billy Myers who has been quite sick is better. He is 80 years old and one of the early settlers. G. W. Hershman who died Feb. 3d. had been a resident on the same homestead for forty years. He was born in Ohio and was 74 years, 1 month and 9 days old.