THE K I N G ’ S B U S I N E S S
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They have circulated all over this city a sheet in which they say, “more than twenty years ago Pastor Russell pointed out from the Bible that God had granted to the Gentiles a lease of power which would legally end in 1914 and that then the nations would become angry and God’s wrath would come; that a great international war would begin at tha t ' tim e and would be followed by greater trouble and that the trouble would usher in Messiah’s Kingdom of righteousness, which would be ‘the desire of all nations.’ ” “Pastor” Russell prophesied nothing of the -kind. This statement is a bold and unblushing lie. What “Pastor” Russell prophesied for 1914 was some thing entirely different. Look up his lit erature written years before 1914 and you will see what he predicted was just the opposite of this war. For example,. “Pas tor” Russell begins the second volume, Volume II of “Studies in the Scriptures,” with these words “In this chapter we present the Bible evidence which indi cates that six thousand years from the creation of Adam were complete with A. D. 1872;' and hence that, since 1872 A. D., we are chronologically entered upon the seventh thousand, or the Millennium —the fore-part of which, the ‘Day of the Lord,’ the ‘day of trouble,’ is to' witness the breaking into pieces of the kingdoms of this world and the establishment of the Kingdom of God under the whole heav ens.” Furthermore, “Pastor” Russell makes out this “fore-part” of the Millen nium to be a period of forty years, extend ing until 1914 A. D. and winding up “the time of the Gentiles.” He says (P. 79): “The Bible evidence is clear and strong that ‘the times of the Gentiles’ is a period of 2520 years, from the year 606 B. C. to and including 1914, A. D. And he says further (P. 99): “In view of this strong Bible evidence concerning the times of the Gentiles, we consider it an established truth that the final end of the kingdom of this world, and th e full establishment of the Kingdom of God,
of human society, was not merely the coming of the Kingdom, hut the coming of the King, Jesus Himself. Some people might be satisfied with the coming of the Kingdom, a “universal league of peace,” or something of that kind. I would not be. I want the King. I want Jesus Himself. And by His own promise it is Jesus Himself that I am going to get. 2. In the second place J esu s is com ing back bodily and visibly . The verse just quoted, Acts 1:11, makes this plain. Listen to it again: “This Jesus, which was received up from you into heaven, shall so come in like manner AS YE BEHELD HIM going into heaven.” Cer tainly it was bodily and visibly they “ beheld H im going into heaven .” Y ou cannot behold anything in any other way, and He is not merely coming back but He is coming back as they “beheld Him going,” bodily and visibly. Heb. 9:28 also makes this plain. Here we read “Christ also, having been once offered to bear the sins of many, SHALL APPEAR a second time apart from sin, to them that wait for Him, unto salvation.”,;. The word here translated “ appeab ” means “be seen,” and it is used, and can he used, only of an oculab , bodily visibility . Rev. 1:7 is equally plain: “Behold, He cometh with the clouds; and EVERY EYE SHALL SEE HIM, and they which pierced Him." In these words God has antici pated 'the vagaries of “Pastor” Russell and the vagaries of Shailer Matthews and the rest. Right here is where the Word of God differs especially from Pastor Rus sell. Russell denied a bodily and visible coming of Jesus Christ. He taught that Jesus Christ had already come in Octo- her, 1874, but of course not bodily and visibly. Russell predicted furthermore the outward manifestation of His king dom and end of war and discord," to occur in 1914, which predictions were not realized. Russell’s followers are now try ing to make out that what Russell pre dicted for 1914 was this present war.
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