The Gospel Day; Or, the Light of Christianity

by Charles Ebert Orr

1. The dead will first be raised. “But I would not have you to be ignorant, brethren, concerning them which are asleep, that ye sorrow not, even as others [pg 329] which have no hope. For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so them also which sleep in Jesus will God bring with him. For this we say unto you by the word of the Lord, that we which are alive and remain unto the coming of the Lord shall not prevent them which are asleep. For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, and with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first.” 1 Thes. 4:13-16.

2. Living saints will be caught up. “Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord. Wherefore comfort one another with these words.” 1 Thes. 4:17, 18.

The Glory Of The Consummation.

“Behold, I shew you a mystery; we shall not all sleep, but we all shall be changed, in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump: for the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed. For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality.... Then shall be brought to pass the saying that is written, Death is swallowed up in victory. O death, where is thy sting? O grave, where is thy victory? The sting of death is sin; and the strength of sin is the law.” 1 Cor. 15:51-56.

The Mosaic Law.

There is recorded in the Old Testament the account of God giving a law to govern his people Israel. This is called a covenant, and was to serve as a schoolmaster to lead its subjects to Christ. This law was a shadow of good things to come; that is, it contained types and shadows of something real in the blessed day of gospel grace. The blood of the animals that was shed could not take away sins, but is typical of the blood of Jesus, who in the end of the world appeared to put away sin by the sacrifice of himself. There is no power in the blood of animals to redeem man from sin, but we are redeemed with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot. The unblemished lamb offered in sacrifice under the Jewish economy was typical or a shadow of the spotless Christ, slain for the sins of the world. The types and shadows of the law all center in Christ. When he the substance is come the shadow of necessity vanishes away. When the shadow meets the substance the shadow has an end. The redemption which we have in Jesus not only redeems us from sin, but also from the bondage of the Sinaitic law. “But when the fulness of the time was come, God sent forth his Son, made of a woman, made under the law, to redeem them that were under the law, that we might receive the adoption of sons.” Gal. 4:4, 5. “Christ hath redeemed us from the curse of the law, being made a curse for us.” Gal. 3:13.

There is no salvation to be obtained by the observance of any part or the whole of the law of Moses including the ten commandments. Salvation or redemption is only found in Christ and the gospel. “Neither by the blood of goats and calves, but by his own blood he entered in once into the holy place, having obtained eternal redemption for us.” Heb. 9:12. “For what the law could not do, in that it was weak through the flesh, God sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, and for sin, condemned sin in the flesh.” Rom. 8:3. It is not through the law we obtain salvation, but through the gospel. “For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek.” Rom. 1:16. “Wherefore lay apart all filthiness and superfluity of naughtiness, and receive with meekness the engrafted word, which is able to save your souls.” Jas. 1:21. “Being born again, not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible, by the word of God, which liveth and abideth forever.” 1 Pet. 1:23. In Rom. 1:16, Gal. 3:26, Rev. 5:9, and many other texts, we learn that all are accepted by God unto salvation through Christ. This necessitates an end of the law, since the law is given to the Jew only. There is no shift or revision made of the law in Christ to include both Jew and Gentile; it is simply done, and the gospel succeeds.

The apostles very clearly and decidedly teach an [pg 332] abolition of the ancient faulty Sinaitic law. Paul says, “Having abolished [destroyed—Webster] in his flesh the enmity, even the law of commandments contained in ordinances; for to make in himself of twain one new man so making peace.” Eph. 2:15. The enmity here spoken of is the enmity or separation made between the Jew and Gentile by the Mosaic law. This law of the Jews stood as a partition wall between the Israelite and the Gentile world. In Jesus this wall was torn down, and the Gentile as well as the Jew was offered salvation. In verse fourteen Paul says, “For he is our peace, who hath made both one [Jew and Gentile], and hath broken down the middle wall of partition between us.” The Jewish ordinances and laws that stood as a mighty wall between the Gentile and the Jew were broken down and all the world of every kindred, nation and tongue was given equal rights under an entirely new order of things.

The coming of Christ was the fulfilling of the law. The law was only given to serve until Jesus came. When he came its object or purpose was fulfilled and had an end. “But before faith came, we were kept under the law, shut up unto the faith which should afterwards be revealed. Wherefore the law was our schoolmaster to bring us unto Christ, that we might be justified by faith. But after that faith is come, we are no longer under a schoolmaster.” Gal. 3:23-25. This is plain, positive language. After faith or Christ has come we are no longer under a schoolmaster, [pg 333] which is the law. This accords with Rom. 6:14: “For sin shall not have dominion over you: for ye are not under the law, but under grace.”

As we have before mentioned, the law did not deliver us from the power of sin; but after grace came by Jesus Christ we are not under the law, but under grace, and where sin once abounded, that is, had power or dominion, grace now much more abounds; therefore sin has no dominion over us. In Rom. 7:4 the apostle tells us we have become dead to the law by the body of Christ.