Basic HTML Version
The Portion of the Wicked, June 20
Behold, all souls are mine; as the soul of the father, so also the soul
of the son is mine: the soul that sinneth, it shall die.
Ezekiel 18:4
.
While life is the inheritance of the righteous, death is the portion of
the wicked.
The soul that sinneth it shall die an everlasting death—a death that
will last forever, from which there will be no hope of a resurrection; and
then the wrath of God will be appeased.
It was a marvel to me that Satan could succeed so well in making
men believe that the words of God, “The soul that sinneth, it shall die,”
mean that the soul that sinneth it shall not die, but live eternally in
misery. Said the angel, “Life is life, whether it is in pain or happiness.
Death is without pain, without joy, without hatred.
Christ endured an agonizing death under the most humiliating cir-
cumstances that we might have life. He gave up His precious life that He
might vanquish death. But He rose from the tomb, and the myriads of
angels who came to behold Him take up the life He had laid down heard
His words of triumphant joy as He stood above Joseph’s rent sepulcher
proclaiming: “I am the resurrection, and the life.”
John 11:25
.
The question, “If a man die, shall he live again?” has been answered.
By bearing the penalty of sin, by going down into the grave, Christ has
brightened the tomb for all who die in faith. God in human form has
brought life and immortality to light through the gospel. In dying, Christ
secured eternal life for all who believe in Him. In dying, He condemned
the originator of sin and disloyalty to suffer the penalty of sin—eternal
death.
The possessor and giver of eternal life, Christ was the only one who
could conquer death. He is our Redeemer.
Christ is life itself. He who passed through death to destroy him that
had the power of death is the Source of all vitality. There is balm in
Gilead, and a Physician there.
[178]
183