No; our Lord does a much wiser and kinder thing. By one simple sentence
he opens the door of everlasting hope. He says He will draw all men to
Himself; but He does not tell us how or when. Those are matters for
faith, not for revelation. We can take no smaller meaning from this
glorious promise, distort it as men will, to make it fit into some
preconceived theory.
Again, we would enquire, apart from all theories to be sustained, what
is the meaning of those wonderful words:
"All Israel shall be saved." I know there is a roundabout way of
explaining that statement, apart from the idea of Restoration. But it
seems far-fetched and strained. When once we grasp the theory of
Restoration, the words seem natural and harmonious with the
whole argument.
We see that such promises cannot refer to the present life. If they do,
what about the Jews of the olden time who lapsed so often into the
grossest sin? What about the tears of Christ over the apostate city?
What about the present condition of that race? Are they saved? No! they
still repudiate the name of Christ. Do they become extinct when they
die? Or do they go into everlasting torment? In either event they could
not be saved as promised. Or will they be restored in due time? On no
other supposition can we conceive of the words coming true.
To this theory I can conceive of an objection, which at the first glance
may seem a formidable one. It is this: If the theory is true, why did
it not dawn on the world sooner? Especially when we consider what a boon
it would have been to the race, and what a dark mantle of gloom it would
have lifted from the heart of the world, why did God withhold the light
so long? Surely there were saints and seers of the olden time who were
worthy to be media of such a communication. And surely the generations
of the past needed such a spiritual uplift as much as we do to-day. Yet
for ages and ages the revelation was not given. Men had to grope in the
twilight for centuries, until at length the illumination dawned on a few
souls. But the reputed wise men of the world did not hail with joy the
new illumination, but generally treated it as a new presumption. And
however agreeable with reason and with Scripture it may be shown to be,
it will likely not be universally accepted for ages to come. If the
theory is really true, and if it comes from God, the Source of all
light, why was this poor world not blessed with it sooner?
I say, that objection may appear a formidable one at the first glance.
Let us examine it with all fairness and candor.
In the first place, I would say that it is not God's way to give us His
revelations all at once. No, not even when He inspires men to write
them. Those revelations have a primitive meaning, suited for men of a
primitive age. But as the ages go on, and men become more developed,
there breaks on them more light from the Word. And that light is
brighter very often than even the original writers apprehended. They
built better than they knew, for they were writing, not for their own
age alone, but for all time. This unique character of the revelation
shows that it is divine. And thus there still "breaks more light from
God's holy Word" as the ages move on. Whether or not, then, we see the
reason of it, we note the fact that it is not God's method to pour the
full flood of His light on the minds and hearts of men all at once. If
we could see no farther than that, we might be content, and reverently
say, "Even so, Father; for so it seemed good in thy sight."
As an instance of this growing illumination, take the fact that in the
primitive ages there was no clear revelation of immortality. I have no
doubt that men of high spiritual calibre believed it; but the revelation
came to them more directly from the movement of the Spirit, than from
any intimation in the Word. Yea, when men had no Word at all, I believe
there were devout souls who had glimpses, more or less clear, of a
future world. But the mass of mankind, even the religious people of
mankind, had in most instances no such revelation.
Now if that is true, it becomes less surprising that the most devout
souls have had for so long no conception of Restoration. The analogy of
revelation shows beyond all doubt that Restoration may be true, though
for ages and ages men had no conception of it. Nay, they may have been
students of the Word through all those ages, and yet have been blind to
its higher revelations. That is no disparagement. There is a time for
everything; and there is a time for brighter divine light to break on
the minds and hearts of men.
Then it may be supposed that if further divine light were to be given,
God would have chosen more worthy mediums for communicating it. But as a
rule, it is not through the great and the learned that revelations
generally have come; but rather through the humble and comparatively
obscure. This is God's way. He may choose what media He will as well as
what time He will. We read that "God hath chosen the foolish things of
the world to confound the wise; and God hath chosen the weak things of
the world to confound the things that are mighty." And He did the same
thing long ago in giving a written revelation to the world. Some of the
writers were noble and learned, while others were illiterate and
obscure. So it is no disparagement to this larger view if it does not
come to us through what the world calls respectable channels.
Then it may be noted that truth was given to men as they could receive
it. To reveal the whole truth in an obscure age would dazzle more than
it would enlighten. God knows men's capacity for receiving truth; and He
adapts His communications accordingly. Jesus could say to His disciples,
"I have yet many things to say unto you; but you cannot bear them now."
And, by His Spirit He has been saying those "many things" ever since, as
men could receive them. It was a great thing for His disciples to have,
for instance, such a clear vision of immortality as they certainly had
when Christ ascended on high. That was enough along that line for the
time; but now there is breaking on our hearts the larger view of
Restoration.
Yes, and we might have had that glorious truth much sooner, if we had
not grossly lapsed into sin, and so obscured heaven's light. The fact
is, that in the early centuries of the Christian era the larger view was
accepted freely. But by and by the church of Rome invented the dogma of
eternal torment for its own gain; and that is how we came by our evil
heritage. So that in this matter we have lapsed from our early faith;
and a sad, sad lapse it was, entailing untold mourning, lamentation,
and woe.
* * * * *
But it is a glorious truth that men with the utmost limitation can be
used of God for the highest ends. Elsewhere I cite the case of the
Apostle Peter in this regard. He could be used for the conversion of
three thousand men by means of one sermon; and later the conversion of
five thousand men; and yet he did not believe that the Gospel was
intended for the Gentiles as well as the Jews. It is a marvel of divine
wisdom and grace that such a poor instrument could be used for such a
glorious work. And we have seen the same principle at work in our own
time. If Restoration is true, yet men who believed in endless torment,
and counted it a prime article of the orthodox faith, were,
notwithstanding, the very salt of the earth, and were used of God in
conserving and disseminating the limited truth which they knew. I say,
that is a marvel of divine grace and condescension.
* * * * *
We see the same principle also in the domain of Science. Let us not
forget that all truth--whether spiritual or scientific--is a revelation
of God. When we make a discovery in either realm--or perhaps I should
say when a revelation is made to us in either realm--like Kepler we are
really "thinking God's thoughts after Him." These very thoughts were in
God's mind, else they could not be in ours. What we do know is often
associated with a vast field of the unknown.
And how slow we are to learn. Just think of a few of the discoveries--or
revelations--of late years. And for ages and ages past, men were in
total ignorance of these things, though they were close to their hand.
Is it not very suggestive of how little we know yet of the truth in the
spiritual domain, to be unfolded to us in due time?
I say, just think of a few of the scientific discoveries we have made of
late years. I need not stay to note the wonderful developments in
surgery and medicine. They may be regarded as commonplace now; but every
one of them was a discovery. Think of the discovery of how to use steam,
and all that the discovery has led to. Allied with that, think of the
immense quantities of coal we burn, and only extract a small percentage
of its heat as yet. One of these days there will likely dawn on some
mind the correct way of using it, and then what a revelation. Think of
the tar evolved in the process of making gas, that lately went to loss,
and that is now used in dyeing. Think of the telephone wire, and more
lately the telephone without wire. Think of the heat, light and power
evolved from electricity. Think of the inventions and discoveries that
we read of almost every day. The by-products that are now a source of so
much wealth and comfort, were not dreamed of a few years ago. Do we not
see here how little we know, even in the domain of Science?
And is it to be supposed that in the spiritual realm there is not much
more to learn? Our special affinity is for things material; yet in this
domain we are only in our infancy. How much more is it so in things
spiritual. Surely it does not become us to balk at a new revelation.
In justice, however, to our backwardness in receiving any new spiritual
truth, there are some explanations. I have referred to our special
affinity for truth that relates to things physical. We have a
corresponding slowness to apprehend spiritual truth. But in addition to
this, we have to note that the truth in reference to material things is
usually subject to demonstration. We can see the thing actually done. It
is an absolute certainty; there is no room for doubt. In regard to
spiritual truth it is different. "The kingdom of heaven cometh not with
observation." There is no demonstration. The truth is apprehended by
faith, sometimes aided by revelation, or reason, or intuition, or spirit
revelation. This is where sin has obscured our spiritual vision; and
often we are still made more blind by our material employments
and pursuits.
It is not surprising then that we are slow to take up a new spiritual
idea. And we ought to be slow, lest we imbibe error in the guise of
truth. But at the same time we ought to keep an open and receptive mind,
believing that there are vast and high domains of truth yet unrevealed.
In this regard how sad it is that some of the brightest lights that
ever illuminated the world were clouded all their days by inherited
errors. Take Luther as an example. For years and years he was haunted by
the dread of eternal reprobation. And so it has been with thousands and
thousands more of the devoutest and sincerest souls. Oh, if they had
only known that there is no such thing as eternal reprobation!