The Lutheran Pioneer St. Louis — 1886, Page 14

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14

The Lutheran Pioneer.

Paul’s Testimony on the Resurrection of
the Dead.

In the fifteenth chapter of his first epistle to
the Corinthians St. Paul says, ‘‘Now if Christ
be preached that he rose from the dead, how
say some among you that there is no resurrec-
tion of the dead? But if there be no resurrec-
tion of the dead, then is Christ not risen. And
if Christ is not risen, then is our preaching vain,
and your faith is also vain. Yea, and we are
found false witnesses of God, because we have
testified of God that he raised up Christ, whom
he raised not up, if so be that the dead rise not.
For if the dead rise not, then is not Christ raised.
And if Christ be not raised, your faith is vain,
ye are yet in your sins. Then they also which
are fallen asleep in Christ are perished. If in
this life only we have hope in Christ, we are
of all men most miserable. But now is Christ
risen from the dead, and become the first-fruits
of them that slept.”’

There were some in the Corinthian church
who were weak enough to deny the resurrection
of their bodies. To these the apostle addresses
himself in terms of earnest admonition, as he
sets forth the tremendous consequences of re-
jecting the truth which they had foolishly been
led to doubt. First, if there be no resurrection
of the dead, then is Christ not risen. Second,
if Christ be not risen, then is our preaching
vain, and it is utterly useless to go forward
with the work of proclaiming the glad tidings
of salvation. ‘Third, if Christ be not risen,
your faith is also vain, for there is no divine
person on whom it can rest. Fourth, yea, and
we are found false witnesses of God, not only

false witnesses, but false witnesses concerning
God, and therefore the greatest liars that have
ever lived. J ifth, ye are yet in your sins, and
must remain in them under a righteous con-
demnation while eternity endures. Sixth, the
dear ones from whom you parted on their dy-
ing bed, and whose departure made your heart
strings strain as if they would break, have per-
ished forever. Seventh, we are of all men most
miserable, because we are forced to endure the
loss of all things for the present, and have no
hope for the future.

Then recoiling from the horrible results of
denying the resurrection of the dead, as in-
volving the denial of the resurrection of Jesus,
the apostle exclaims in a Jofty burst of praise
and triumph, “Now 1s Christ risen from the
dead, and become the first-fruits of them that
slept.” His resurrection is the pledge of our
own, it is the sure forerunner of a mighty host
that shall come forth out of the grave, as the
apostle writes, “‘Every man in his own order;
Christ the first-fruits; afterward they that are
Christ's at his coming.’’ Then shall be brought
to pass the saying that is written, Death is
swallowed up in victory. Death where is thy
sting? Grave where is thy victory?’’ Well

might an old commentator say, ‘This is the

sharpest and shrillest note, the boldest and
ravest challenge, that man ever rang in the

ears of death. Death is here out-braved, called
craven to his face, and bidden do his worst.’’
The apostle, however, is not yet done: ‘The
sting of death is sin, and the strength of sin is
the law. But thanks be to God, which giveth
us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.’’
The battle has been fought, and the victory
gained by the crucified One, who rose again
from the dead as the complete Conqueror of
death and the grave. The believer, therefore,
in the firm assurance of the resurrection of the
dead, looks upon the grave as the quiet resting
place, in which the body rests from the strife
and toil of earth until the Lord cometh. And
as he stands at the grave of some loved one
that has fallen asleep in Jesus, he lifts the
hymn of praise and victory,

“Thou hast been here, Lord Jesus!
But thou art here no more;
The terror and the darkness,
The night of death are o’er.
Great Captain of salvation!
Thy triumphs now we sing;
O Grave, where is thy victory?
O Death, where is thy sting?”’

Our Sin-Bearer.

A Weighty Confession.

Many a skeptic has commenced his inquiries
with the one thought, Did Jesus rise? This
has been pursued with the firm purpose to
arrive at the facts, and it has been followed up
to the fixed conviction that the gospels contain
a narrative of an event that actually occurred,
and this, by the grace of God, was followed by
the fullest persuasion that the book of which
these gospels form a part is from God, the only
safe rule of faith and practice for this life, asit is
the only foundation of hope when we are called
to face the tremendous realities of oternity.

One of the strongest men of the present cen-
tury was the historian, and profound thinker,
Arnold of Rughy. No one questions his ability
or his honesty. He, like many others, was some-
times cast into the tempestuous sea of- doubt.
But hear him in one of his lectures to the

students under his care. These are his weighty
words: ‘‘The evidence of our Lord’s life and
death and resurrection may be, and often has
been, shown to be satisfactory; it is good
according to the common rules for distinguish-
ing good evidence from bad. ‘Thousands and
tens of thousands of persons have gone through

‘it piece by piece as carefully as ever judge

summed up on a most important cause. I have
myself done it many times over, not to persuade
others, but to satisfy myself. I have been used
for many years to study the history of other
times, and to examine and weigh the evidence '
of those who have written about them, and
I know of no one fact in the history of mankind
which is proved by belter and fuller evidence of
every sort, to the understanding of « fair inquirer,
than the great sign which God has given us, that
Christ died and rose again from the dead.”

—J. H. B.

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Hindu Homes.

Mrs. L. C. Griffin, a missionary returned
from India, thus describes the lot of women
in that great empire:

“The government of the house of the Brah-
min is strictly in the hands of the man; of the
father during the youth of the family, and of
the eldest son after he marries. The son al-
ways takes his wife home to the parental roof,
and as the sons marry, additions are built to
the house, until it often becomes a village in
itself. In this place the women are imprisoned
—literally buried alive. Irom the day of their
marriage, which is at a very early age, they
never see more of the outer world than the
narrow expanse of sky and cloud that looks
down ,upon them between the walls of their
prison home. No men are allowed to enter the
house but the members of the family and the
priest, except on very rare occasions, and then
unseen by the women. Married at ten years—
for spinsterhood is abominable—mothers at
twelve, they die of sheer old age at about
thirty.”

—> + o-<o > oe

Care of the Young.

I passed a florist so absorbed with his ‘‘cut-
tings,”’ that he did not hear my ‘“ Good-morn-
ing”’ till twice spoken. ‘‘I beg your pardon,
sir,” said he, ‘‘but you see one must put his
whole mind on these young things, if he would
have them do well; and I cannot bear that
one should die on my hands, for I should al-

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most feel as if I had murdered it by neglect. 7

Young plants need .a great deal more care’
than old ones that are used to storms and
blight.”’

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“I WOULD not give one moment of heaven for
all the joy and riches of the world—even if it
lasted for thousands and thousands of. years.’”

Taither.