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Natural Immortality A Lie, June 21
The getting of treasures by a lying tongue is a vanity tossed to and
fro of them that seek death.
Proverbs 21:6
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The great original lie which he [Satan] told to Eve in Eden, “Ye shall
not surely die,” was the first sermon ever preached on the immortality
of the soul. That sermon was crowned with success, and terrible results
followed. He has brought minds to receive that sermon as truth, and
ministers preach it, sing it, and pray it.
After the Fall, Satan bade his angels make a special effort to inculcate
the belief in man’s natural immortality; and having induced the people to
receive this error, they were to lead them on to conclude that the sinner
would live in eternal misery. Now the prince of darkness, working
through his agents, represents God as a revengeful tyrant, declaring that
He plunges into hell all those who do not please Him, and causes them
ever to feel His wrath....
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 threatenings 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....
God has given to men a declaration of His character, and of
His method of dealing with sin.... “All the wicked will he destroy.”
Psalm 145:20
.... Yet all the manifestations of retributive justice will
be perfectly consistent with the character of God as a merciful, long-
suffering, benevolent being....
And all who have a just conception of these qualities will love Him
because they are drawn toward Him in admiration of His attributes.
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