The Kingdom of Promise and Prophecy

by Robertson L. Whiteside

One of the great evils of the future-kingdom advocates is their idea as to the Christ. When I first read Pastor Russell’s idea of the Christ, I was astonished, but later I found that others had adopted his idea. Mr. Russell says: “Thus the saints of the gospel age are an anointed company—anointed to be kings and priests unto God (2 Cor. 1:21; 1 Pet. 2:9); and together with Jesus, their chief and Lord, they constitute Jehovah’s Anointed—the Christ.” (“The Divine Plan of the Ages,” pages 81, 82.) Also “The Christ includes all anointed of the Spirit.” Now note the following from “The Book of Revelation,” by R. H. Boll: “That the man-child of chapter 12:5 is none other than the Christ; but not the individual Christ alone, but his body, the church, also, seen as connected with him.” Page 44: “This mystic man-child is not simply the Child that was born at Bethlehem, but the Christ as including both himself, the head, and the church, his spiritual body, which is one with him.” In the estimation of these writers the Christ is composed of Jesus and the church. If a person espouses that theory, he should make his confession as comprehensive and extensive as his faith. If he says, “I believe that Jesus is the Christ,” his confession is not full. To fully confess his faith in the Christ, he must say: “I believe that Jesus and his church is the Christ.” That is evident to any one who will read carefully what these writers say. Read the quotation again. Now, shall we revise our confession to make it fit this future-kingdom idea?

IS SALVATION NOW OFFERED TO ALL?

A man does not always realize fully the consequences of his doctrine. It seems to me that a person cannot believe the future-kingdom theory as now advocated and also believe that God now seeks the salvation of all men. If I understand this theory, and I think I do, the faithful Christians are to be rulers with Christ, and that to each one will be given territory commensurate with his development as a servant of God. Some, at least, seem to take the parable of the pounds (Luke 19:13-27) in a very literal sense. “Have thou authority over ten cities”; “Be thou also over five cities.” As there will be a limit to the number of cities, there will, of necessity, be a limit to the number of rulers needed. Mr. Russell was consistent and bold enough to plainly and openly declare that God is not now seeking to convert the mass of mankind, but is only getting a ruling class ready. His position on this point is so well known that I shall not here take space to quote from him. Some do not speak so plainly on this point as Mr. Russell, and yet they speak plainly enough to be understood, as the following from Brother R. H. Boll will show: “That the ‘new song’ of Rev. 5:9, 10 views the work of purchasing unto God with his own blood men out of every nation as finished. The selection is seen as completed; the full number of the chosen ones seen as constituting a kingdom of priests unto God, as reigning on earth. This then prophetically foreviews the time when God shall have done visiting ‘the Gentiles’ (the nations) to take out of them a people for his name. (Acts 15:14.) The church is an election, called out.” Again: “He has a mystery—that is, a secret—to tell us: to wit, that Israel’s hardening is limited as to extent and as to time: as to extent, for it is ‘in part;’ as to time, for it is ‘until’ something is accomplished—namely, until the full count of the elect Gentiles shall have come in. Then Israel’s tide shall turn.” So it seems that the Lord has a certain number of Gentiles to be called, and the present order must continue till the “full count of the elect Gentiles shall have come in.” But all such teaching is essential to the future-kingdom theory as now advocated. The theory necessitates the doctrine that now is the time of salvation for only the needed number of rulers.

Pointed Paragraphs:

That the gospel succeeded so well in superstitious Ephesus need not surprise anyone. In superstition there is reverence for supernatural things. In fact, superstition is ignorant reverence. By teaching these people the gospel, Paul guided their reverence to the right objectives. Superstition is reverence without reason; rationalism is reason without reverence. It is easier to enlighten ignorant reverence than it is to reestablish reverence in a heart from which it has been banished.

With some religionists of today custom and tradition have greater weight than the plain word of God. Assail baptism, a thing positively commanded, and they applaud; assail their unscriptural teachings and practices, and they become greatly offended. Some churches of Christ have had troubles over customs and traditions.

THE COMING OF THE LORD

In the Christian Standard of March 19, 1932, Brother H. H. Peters, secretary of the Illinois Christian Missionary Society, says: “As already intimated, the plan of the Millenial Harbinger was different from that of its predecessor. It was unique in the journalism of America, religious or otherwise. Its very name indicates that its editor partook somewhat of the spirit that was abroad in the land, which expected the immediate return of the Lord and the establishment of his millenial reign. Mr. Campbell never became a dogmatist on this point, nor did the brotherhood ever take up any of the fantastic views of Miller and others, but it was impossible in that day to do any kind of religious work without partaking somewhat of the spirit that expected the immediate return of the Lord.” It would be hard to crowd into fewer words more historic errors than the foregoing extract contains. Mr. Campbell did not believe that Jesus would return to earth and then reign a thousand years. He did believe that, before the coming of the Lord, there would be a thousand years of universal peace and righteousness. Mr. Campbell was not a premillennialist; neither did he believe the Lord would return immediately. On these matters he wrote extensively. He cited a number of prophecies which he believed had not been fulfilled, but must be fulfilled before the coming of the Lord. One wonders where Mr. Peters got authority for his statements. However, when a person gets intoxicated with the future-kingdom idea, he can see authority for statements that no sober-minded person can discover. They even tell us that the apostles taught the early Christians to expect the immediate return of the Lord.

Because some do not hold to the theories propagated by the premillennialists, they are charged with not believing in the second coming of the Lord at all. From one writer we have the following: “The thought of his coming has faded out of the minds of men.” Again: “In the eighteenth century, however, there came a man named ‘Daniel Whitby.’... He taught that the gospel would spread and spread until the whole world would be converted; then would follow a thousand years of blessedness and peace, and after all this Jesus would come and wind things up. Then the hope of his coming died again everywhere as this doctrine became the general teaching.” That is such a manifest misrepresentation of the great body of Christians that I shall make no attempt to disprove it. As Mr. Campbell was accused of holding the same views as Whitby, it will be seen that Mr. Peters misrepresents him in the quotation at the beginning of this article.

We are told that “they were hoping for him, and they were looking for his return in the days of the apostles.” We are asked to believe that the Christians began to expect his return any moment after he went away, and that they were taught by the apostles to do so. They think they find such teaching in what the apostles said about looking for his coming and hoping for his coming; but the theory discredits the inspiration of the apostles. Jesus did not come again during that period. If the apostles were mistaken on that point, how can we be sure they taught the truth on anything? If the infidel were to point to this as evidence that the apostles were not infallible in their teaching, how would these men meet the argument? On this point the learned commentator, James McKnight, says: “Grotius, Locke, and others, have affirmed that the apostles of Christ believed the end of the world was to happen in their time, and that they have declared this to be their belief, in various passages of their epistles. But these learned men and all who join them in that opinion have fallen into a most pernicious error. For thereby they destroy the authority of the gospel revelation, at least so far as it is contained in the discourses and writings of the apostles; because, if they have erred in a matter of such importance, and which they affirm was revealed to them by Christ, they may have been mistaken in other matters also, where their inspiration is not more strongly asserted by them than in this instance. In imputing this mistake to the apostles, the deists have heartily joined the learned men above mentioned, because a mistake of this sort effectually overthrows the apostle’s pretensions to inspiration. It is therefore necessary to clear them from so injurious an imputation.”