Page:Studies in the Scriptures - Series I - The Plan of the Ages (1909).djvu/97

 Our LorcFs Return. \

be introduced. They claim that when the world has been converted, and Satan bound, and the knowledge of the Lord caused to fill the whole earth, and when the nations learn war no more, then the work of the Church in her present condition will be ended ; and that when she has accom- plished this great and difficult task, the Lord will come to wind up earthly affairs, reward believers and condemn sinners.

Some scriptures, taken disconnectedly, seem to favor this view ; but when God's Word and plan are viewed as a whole, those will all be found to favor the opposite view, viz.: that Christ comes before the conversion of the world, and reigns for the purpose of converting the world ; that the Church is now being tried, and that the reward promised the over- comers is that after being glorified they shall share with the Lord Jesus in that reign, which is God's appointed means of blessing the world and causing the knowledge of the Lord to come to every creature. Such are the Lord's special promises: "To him that overcometh will I grant to sit with me in my throne." (Rev. 3: 21.) "And they lived and reigned with Christ a thousand years." Rev. 20:4.

There are two texts chiefly relied upon by those who claim that the Lord will not come until after the Millennium, to which we would here call attention. One is, " This gospel of the Kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a wit- ness unto all nations ; and then shall the end come. ' ' (Matt. 24: 14.) They claim this as having reference to the conver- sion of the world before the end of the Gospel age. But witnessing to the world does not imply the conversion of the world. The text says nothing about how the testimony will be received. This witness has already been given. In 1 86 1 the reports of the Bible Societies showed that the Gospel had been published in every language of earth, though not all of earth's millions had received it. No, not one half of the fourteen hundred millions living have

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