I quote
from Alexander Campbell, "If the
Bible be not true … there is no God … nature ends in ruin … there is no reason
for anything—man lives for no purpose—no kind intimation has been given him of
any great and good first cause; which is but equivalent to saying there is no
good being above man." (Christian Baptism, page 11)
If it be
true there is no God then worldly people have cause for rejoicing, at least for
the short run. It would mean there is no
ultimate accountability; it means one can indulge every lust and desire without
fear of eternal retribution. Man can
live just to please himself with the only restrictions on his conduct being the
law of the land and perhaps the disapprobation of his family (if he cares). And, of course, it means one man's opinion is
as good as another's and the only thing that determines right is who has the
power to enforce his will over the other.
It would
mean other things as well. Death is
inevitable and one can only be unconcerned about it for so long. All there would be to look forward to after a
certain number of years, as the clock winds down on you, would be gloom and
doom—the grave. It would be life without
hope.
Man has
some natural fear of death. The Hebrew
writer speaks about this in Hebrews 2:14-15, "Inasmuch then as the children have
partaken of flesh and blood, He Himself likewise shared in the same, that
through death He might destroy him who had the power of death, that is, the
devil, and release those who through fear of death were all their lifetime
subject to bondage." (underlining by me—DS)
The
Bible gives a man hope. Take away the
Bible and there is no hope, just a grave awaiting. As for me I want a Bible. I want hope.
I do not want to despair which is where you are at without a Bible deny
it if you will.
P.S. I am 66 years old and this is the first book
I have ever read by Campbell and I have just started it.
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