La Grande evening observer., June 23, 1917, Image 5

LA GRANDE EVENING OBSERVER.
PAGE FIVE
iTHE FORUMi!
t ................
Theme
SCRIPTURAL INTERPRETATION
SATURDAY, JtJNE 23, 1917.
7
BY C. H. FINN
'(Written for Observer by Request)
One of the best examples of the
symbolical and parabolic nature of
Bibical language is found in the Di
vine (commission, which reads: "Go
ye into all the World and preach the
Gospel to every creature. He that
bclieveth and is baptized shall be
saved. And thcy signs shall follow
them that believe: In my NAME
shall they cast out devils j they shall
speak vfith new tongues; they shall
take up serpents: and if they drink
any deadly thing It shall not hurt
them, they shall lay hands on the sick
and they shall recover." (Mark XVI
16). The occasion of this remarkable
command was that the crucified and
risen Savior appeared to His Disciples
and announced His withdrawal from
their natural presence, and He bade
them to continue the great work
which He began in the World. It
Is quite remarkable that many clergy
men of the orthodox faith should claim
and rely upon this commandment as
their absolute authority for their min
istry, while invariably discrediting
that part which is the veritable evi
dence of the Divinity of ther work:
the signs which the true believers
must possess and exhibit upon their
actual conversion to the Christian
faith. Yet the .promise that these
signs must be possessed by the believ
ers as the testimony of their living
faith is so interwoven in the command
itself that they are inseparable; that
without these plenary powers all
preaching is in vain.
If it be conceded that these signs
were confined to apostolic ministra
tions, then the Divine commission was
limited, transitory and ceased with the
passing of the Disciples to whom per
sonally delivered. This view would
conclude' apostolic succession, hence,
"all the World" ceased with "the an
cient days". But, if, on the other
hand, the commandment was and is
continuous, and "all the World" ex
tends to the end of time and embraces
the entire human family, past, pres
ent, and prospective, then, the same'
evidence of a valid conversion to a
saving faith and practice must have
been actually perpetuated, so as to
embrace the living present.
In connection with this important
subject these questions naturally arise:
Where is the testimony that the prom
ise of Jesus has been kept? Does the
history of the militant church fur
nish it? Can Christian men and wom
en cast out devils? Can their belief
give power to speak with , new
tongues? Can they take up serpents
without harm? And would anyone be
willing to drink any deadly poison to
show the sincerity and power of his
faith? The conclusion is inevitable
that believers in the Divine gospel
have never been able to accomnlish
these things LITERALLY. Faith
hath no power to charm a serpent,
and poison will kill, literally, a sin
cere Christian as surely as a pesky
infidel. It is true that a few iso
lated cases are quoted in which some
of these things seem to have been
done, yet they do not fulfill the prom
ise, which is not limited to time or
place. Observe the positiveness of the
scriptural language and the univers
ality of the application SHALL.
The reader is therefore forced to
the conclusion that one of three things
must be true: either the promise has
not been kept; or Christians have not
really believed in the Gospel; or, the
nnt,,w nf the nromise has not been,
and is, not understood. For, it is not
... t it. T -J -1,1J foil tJF1
possmie inai me uiiu miumu
keep His promise; it is equaiiy uue
that multitudes have a living faith in
the Gospel; and, the conclusion is in
evitable that the promise has been and
still is misunderstood. Hence, this
article insists in argument that the in
tention of the Divine Master that
these signs as natural siims should
not and do not follow the belief of the
But, the nromise in question, it will
be observed, is a good illustration of j
the difficulty which even theologians I
have always found in the interprets-
tion of the Bible, literally, as any book j
of human composition is interpreted;!
as well as a bright example of the
richness, force, beauty and persona ,
application of the most enigmatical,
passages, when the great truth that.
the Lord's words are spirit, un. vv,
are spoken from a Divine and Spirit-, j
ual point of view; that they were ad
dressed by the Divine Master to man
as a spiritual being, and that all that
is naturnl and temporary is merely ,
the rough vessel whxh contains their j
real meaning an arcanum of heavenly
doctrine and revelations.
The trouble is that ecclesiastics too
often assume the same view oi tnese
Divine savings as did the Jews or the
Scriptures, when Christ said to them:
"Except ye eat of the flesh cf the Son
of Man and drink his blood, ye have
-no life in you." They interpreted
these words literally and naturally.
when they renlied with surprise and
contempt: "Can this man k.v - m
flesh to eat?"' But the Master said;
"in explanation" of His hard saying:,
"The words that I speak unto you.
they are spirit and they are life. ,
Hence they do not refer to things m
a natural way and liVht.
Tt mint he conceded, therefore, tnnt
a knowledge of the true nature o' th ,
(Continued on Page Six)
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