62
The Fundamentals gathereth her chickens under her wings, andjpe would not” (verse 37). Similarly, in Mark 3:29, R. V., the “eternafsin” spoken of can only be that of continued rejection of the offers of mercy; and in John 8:24, our Lord plainly de clares: “If ye believe not that I am He, ye shall die in your sins.” Finally, in Mark 16:16, we find the words: “He that befieveth and is baptized shall be saved; but he that disbe lieved shall be condemned.” A careful consideration of these passages, and especially of the last, will help to remove one great difficulty with regard to the whole subject, namely, the future state of those who have never had the Gospel so plainly presented to them as to enable them to deliberately accept or reject Christ, to willingly believe the good news or wilfully disbelieve it. Another difficulty is removed when we realize that our Lord taught that there would be different degrees in hell as in heaven. Thus, in Matt. 11:20-24 He taught that it would be “more tolerable in the day of judgment” for Tyre and Sidon than for Chorazin and Bethsaida, and for Sodom than for Capernaum; and in Mark 12:40 He speaks of “greater damnation.” It is clear that future retribution will be proportioned to the amount of guilt committed and of grace rejected. (See also Luke 12:47, 48; John 19:11.) We have so far examined, as thoroughly as possible within this limited space, all the recorded words of our Lord which bear on this important subject. It only remains, in con clusion, very briefly to point out that the whole drift of Christ’s teaching confirms what we learn from these isolated passages, and that future retribution is not merely an inci dental but a fundamental part of the Gospel message. It is the dark background on which its loving invitations and tender expostulations are presented, and the Gospel message loses much of its force when the doctrine is left out. But, worst of all, the earnest exhortations to immediate repentance and
Made with FlippingBook flipbook maker