Crawford (1972) The Eternal Spirit - His Person and Powers PDF

BIBLE STUDY TEXTBOOK SERIES
THE ETERNAL SPIRIT:

HIS PERSON
AND POWERS
..
'R, how much more shall the blood of Christ, who through the eternal
Spirit offered himself without blemish unto God, cleanse your conscience
from dead works to serve the living God?"
-Hebrews 9: 14
". . . the Spirit ,and the bride say, Come. And he that heareth. let him
say, Come. And he that is athirst, let hiin come: he that will, ler him
take the water of life freely."
-Revelation 22: 17
C. C. CRAWFORD, Ph.D.
College Press, J o p h , Missouri

i
Copyright, 1972
COLLEGE PRESS
ii
BIBLE STUDY TEXTBOOK SERIES
0 ACTS MADE ACTUAL
0 T H E CHURCH I N T H E BIBLE
0 ROMANS REALIZED
0 HELPS FROM HEBREWS
0 THE GOSPEL O F JOHN VOLS, I & I1
0 GUIDANCE FROM GALATIAN$
0 THE GREATEST WORK IN THE WORLD
0 PAUL’S LETTER TO TIMOTIlY AND TITUS
0 SURVEY COURSE IN CHRISTIAN DOCTRINE VOL, I
0 XURVEY COURSE I N CHRISTIAN DOCTRINE VOL. I1
0 SURVEY COURSE I N CHRISTIAN DOCTRINE VOLS, 111 & IV
0 LETTERS FROM PETER
0 THINKING THROUGH THESSAZONIANS
0 STUDIES I N FIRST CORINTHIANS
0 STUDIES I N SECOND CORINTHIANS
0 THE SEER, THE SAVIOUR, AND THE SAVED I N T H E BOOK
O F REVELATION
0 STUDIES I N LUKE
0 JAMES AND JUDE
0 THE GOSPEL O F MARK
0 GENESIS VOLS. I & I1
0 HEREBY WE KNOW - THE EPISTLES OF JOHN
0 STUDIES IN SAMUEL
0 OLD TESTAMENT HISTORY
Other Books by C. C. Crawford

Published by DeHoff Publicatiow, Murfreesboro, Tennessee
0 SERMON OUTLINES ON ACTS
0 SERMON OUTLINES ON THE RESTORATION PLEA
0 SERMON OUTLINES ON THE CROSS O F CHRIST
0 SERMON OUTLINES ON FIRST PRINCIPLES
Published by Tho College Press, Joplin, Missouri

0 SURVEY COURSE I N CHRISTIAN DOCTRINE (in four vols.)
0 GENESIS: THE BOOK O F THE BEGINNINGS (in four vols.)
0 THE PASSION O F OUR LORD
To be re-issued in the near future

0 COMMONSENSE ETHICS
Projected for future publication

0 , THE ETERNAL SPIRIT: HIS WORD AND WORKS
iii
CONTENTS
Foreword 1
Part One
GENERAL INTRODUCTION
1.
. ..
Definitions, Sources, Methods 6
2.
3.
..
Christianity’s Great Dynamic
The Book of the Spilrt ____________
~
6
___.___.__________..----
9
~
4.
. . .
Man’s Ultimate Ends __________.._______
~ _________ 16
5. Difficulties of Our Subject 26
6. The Proper Approach to the Subject 29
7. The Language of the Spirit 40
8. Questions for Review of P a r t One 64
Part Two
MATTER AND SPIRIT
1. The Mystery of Mqtter ___
___._ ____ 68
’c____ __ _______________ _______________________
~ ~
2. The Mystery of Sensation ~ 94

3. The Mystery of Consciousness 102
4. The Mystery of Life 111
5. The Mystery of Thought ~ ~ 129
6’.The Mysteries of the Subconscious 143
7. The Mystery of t h e Person 186
8. Questions f o r Review of P a r t Two ~ ____ 262
Part Three
THE HIERARCHY OF BEING
1. Recap : Man’s Ultimate Ends 210
2. The Hierarchy of Being 219
3.
. .
God’s Ministermg Spirits 239
4. Questions for Review of P a r t Three 264
Part Four
SPIRIT IN GOD
1. Man the Image of God ..._ ~ 268
2. The Triune Personality of God 278
3. The Personality of the Holy Spirit __ ~ _________ ~ 298
4. The Deity of the Holy Spirit 307
iv
Part Five
THE NOMENCLATURE OF THE SPIRIT
1. Names and Titles of the Spirit ___ _________________________________ ___ ______ ________.__
~ 364
2. Significance of Certain Names of the Spirit ________________- 366
3, Symbols and Metaphors of the Spirit _________________________ __L____________._._
373
4. The Holy Spirit Distinguished Irom His Gifts _____._ .--433
_--.___.__-_-__.
5. ____ __ _____
Modes of Dispensing the Spirit ___________________ _______________ ____ ____ ___._448
6. Questions for Review of P a r t Five _______________.____ 463
Part Six
THE SPIRIT AND THE WORD
1. The Logos 468
2. The Spirit and the Word ___ _____---__.---.----------_-- 494
___ _____________._..___________ ~ _.----
3. Operations of the Godhead in General _______ ______ _______

~ _.____
__.__
_.--- _._--- 617 ~
4. The First Principle of All Things _____

__.________.._
_____. .____.-_____
._._--_____
~ ~ 523
5. Questions for Review of Part Six 634
Addendum': Evolution and Evolutionism ~ 638
Bibliography ~ ______ ____.__.____
69 3
~
Index ______ _____

~ ~ ____.___
~:--*-- ~ .____
____._
~
J
b
FOREWORD
The first draft of this rather elaborate study of the Biblical
doctrine OI the Holy Spirit and His works was completed some
twenty years ago-to be exact, in 1950. 1 am now presenting it
in book form for the first time, after a thoroughgoing review of
its content. I have intentionally allowed the material to have
time to “jell,” so to speak, to see whether on more mature re-
examination I might find myself having made statements which
I now have reason to restate or to reject altogether. 1have found
very little that needs to be omitted or even revamped. I have
simply stated herein my personal convictions with respect to
this fascinating, rewarding, and exceedingly important Biblical
subject.
I have deliberately chosen to treat the subject before us
from the point of view of the Bible as a whole, as a unity. This
I have done simply because the Bible is a unity. It is a whole,
complete, perfect, in content and in design, and therefore suf-
ficient to furnish the man of God “completely unto every good
work” (2 Tim. 3: 17). This means, of course, that I have chosen
to disregard the conjectures of much of modern Biblical criti-
cism. For I am convinced that for the most part they are con-
jectures pure and simple, more often than not the products of
prejudices and presuppositions which have no foundation in fact.
They are the offspring of the ultra-analytical tendencies of the
Teutonic mentality in which most of them had their origin, a
mentality which for some two hundred years seems to have been \
incapable of seeing the forest for the trees, and which as a con-
sequence has proved itself destructive in the extreme to both
faith and morals. Incidentally, what is true of Biblical criticism
in this respect is equally true of the critical theories of the texts
of Homer, Plato, Aristotle and the other ancient writers. It is
high time for pundits the world over, and the smaller fry as well,
to return t o sanity in this particular field as elsewhere. Besides,
were these critical theories to be proven true beyond any rea-
sonable doubt, the fact would still remain that the Bible is a
unity, Regardless of the number of men who, theoretically, may
have contributed to the writing of its component parts, the Bible
is still one book, still The Book, the Book of the Spirit. Though
a library o€ some sixty-six books, it is still a book with one theme
from beginning to end. It begins with a picture of Paradise lost;
it terminates with a picture of Paradise regained. It is not,
never was designed to be, a textbook of science (even though it
has often anticipated the findings of science). It makes no at-
1
THE ETERNAL SPIRIT -HIS PERSON AND POWERS
tempt to present a system of philosophy, nor does it presume
to give us a history of the human race. The Bible is simply the
history of Redemption, and therefore of the Messianic Line
through which the divine Plan of Redemption for man was
worked out. It is this, and nothing more. It has one motif run-
ning throughout-the redemption of fallen man as effectuated
through the offices and work of Messiah, Christ, the Son of God,
and as achieved and realized by the continuing ministry of the
Holy Spirit, If men would only accept the Bible and treat it as
the one book which it really is, most of their false conclusions
would disappear as chaff before the wind.
So-called “intellectualism,” “secular learning,” academic
“scholarship,” etc., has absolutely nothing to suggest that would
discredit the Christian revelation of the living and true God,
the Personal Absolute, the God and Father of our Lord Jesus
Christ, The source of most of the antagonism to Biblical faith is
clearly stated by the Apostle Paul when he tells us that the
Gentiles-the pagan world-knew not God simply becuuse their
senseless hearts were darkened. “For,”h e writes, “the invisible
things of him since the creation of the world are clearly seen,
being perceived through the things that are made, even his ever-
lasting power and divinity; that they may be without excuse:
because that, knowing God, they glorified him not as God, neither
gave thanks; but became vain in their reasonings, and their
senseless heart was darkened. Professing themselves to be wise,
they became fools, and changed the glory of the incorruptible
God for the likeness of an image of corruptible man, and of birds,
and of four-footed beasts, and creeping things.” Hence, the
Apostle adds, that “even as they refused to have God in their
knowledge, God gave them up unto a reprobate mind,’’ etc.
(Rom. 1:20-23,28). Is it not true in all ages that even when the
Light shines in the darkness, “the darkness apprehends it not”
(John 1:5 ) ? It has always been true that men will not accept
the Light simply because they choose not to accept it. They ac-
tually prefer to live in darkness, that is, especially in moral and
spiritual darkness. They voluntarily choose sin and reject right-
eousness.
Why, for example, do the pseudo-pundits of this world attack
the integrity and reliability only of the Scriptures? They make
no such vicious attacks on the Vedas, the Avesta, the Koran,
The Key to the Scriptures, the Book of Mormon, or other alleged
“sacred” books of the cults and so-called “religions.” No! It is
2
FOREWORD
the Bible, and the Bible only, that is the butt of their supercilious
attacks.
Again, why do the nit-picking “analytical critics” attack onIy
the Genesis account of the Creation? They never attack the
mythological Egyptian, Babylonian, Hindu, Greek, Roman,
Amerindian, etc., cosmogonies. Why not? Because these are
obviously mythological; their gods and goddesses are not per-
sonalities, but personifications of forces of nature. But the Gene-
sis cosmogony patently is not mythological; it has not a single
characteristic of the myth-form (mythos). The only way by
which it might possibly be downgraded would have to be by
efforts to show that it is not in harmony with human science,
that is, not necessarily mythological, but unscientific. But the
content of this Creation narrative in Genesis is so “sententiously
sumblime” that it defies all human efforts to destroy its integrity.
Again, I have included in this work a few rather brief refer-
ences to the correlations that exist between the more refined
idealistic philosophical thinking, which, of course, is the product
of man’s reasoning powers alone, and the presentation of the
doctrine of the Holy Spirit that we find in the Bible. These cor-
relations (harmonies) do exist, and are also in accord with
human experience itself. As a matter of fact, I know of no time
in the entire history of human thought when scientific theory
was in greater harmony with Biblical teaching than it is today.
This, I think, is most significant.
Finally, it is my conviction that the church of the present
day is relatively powerless, largely because professing Christians
have lost their sense of the companionship of the Spirit of God.
It is hoped that what is presented herein may serve in some
measure to focus the attention of God’s people upon this dire
loss, and so awaken in them aspiration for a spiritual infilling of
which they now seem to be pitifully unaware. May we all-we
who profess to be Christians-open our hearts to the overtures
of God’s Spirit, that He may come freely into the interior life
and abide there as a gracious Guest, Companion, Advocate, and
Guide; filling us with that measure of His grace and power
which He has freely promised to all obedient believers. For
only by the continuing ministry of the Spirit can the Church,
as the Temple of God, be kept strong and stedfast; as the House-
hold of Faith, affectionate and tender; as the Body of Christ,
harmonious and vitally active; as the Bride of Christ, chaste and
devoted; and as the Army of the Great King, powerful and vic-
torious. May we not so much seek to possess the Holy Spirit as
3
THE ETERNAL SPIRIT-HIS PERSON AND POWERS
to be possessed b y Him,that He may use us freely in the ac-
complishment of the task to which He has set Himself in this
Dispensation as the true Vicegerent of Christ upon earth, viz.,
the preaching of the Gospel for a testimony unto all nations
(Matt. 24:14). For not until this task shall have been accom-
plished will His work-and ours-have been gloriously consum-
mated.
C. C. Crawford
Dallas Christian College
January 1, 1972
4
PART ONE
GENERAL
INTRODUCTION
1. Definitions, Sources, Methods

By the term “Spirit,” in the title which I have selected for
this series of studies, I mean the Spirit of God, the Holy Spirit,
of the Bible (except, of course, in instances in which I deal
with the “spirit” that is in man: e.g., Job 32: 8, Eccl. 12:7, Gen.
2:7). By the term “cosmos” I mean the entire “natural” world,
including what is designated in Scripture the “natural” man.
1 Cor. 2 :14-Now the natural [psychikos, literally “soulish,” ren-
dered “natural,” “sensuous,” as distinguished from pneumatikos, “spirit-
ual,”] man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God. 1 Cor. 16:44-
It is sown a natural body; it is raised a spiritual body. If there 1s a
natural body, there is also a spiritual body, Gen. 2:’T-And Jehovah Gpd
formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils
the breath of life; and man became a living soul!l
”I
“Man,” writes Lecomte du Nouy, “is part of an immense
cosmos and is capable, alone amongst the animals, of observing
nature, of experimenting and of establishing relationships and
laws between facts.”’ A scientist is reported to have said, “From
the point of view of astronomy, man is just a speck upon a speck
of the totality of being.” To which reply was made, “Yes, but
from the viewpoint of astronomy, man is still t h e astronomer.”
Man is, in fact, the only “frame of reference” to whom the fact
of being-in-general could have any meaning.
I c h o w to treat man, as he is presently constituted, as an
integral part of the cosmic environment generally designated
as “nature,” even though he does transcend it in many of his
activities. (We should always keep in mind the fact that “nature”
i s not an entity, but only the name we give to observed phe-
nomena.)
2. Christianity’s Great Dynamic

Christianity is the world’s unique religion in many respects.
Its finality cannot successfully be contradicted. Both etymo-
logically and literally it is the only system truly worthy of being
designated a reZigion (from religo, reZignre, “to bind back,” or
“bind anew”): as Christians we are ready to defend the thesis
at any time that the Christian Faith is the only true system of
1. F o r the sake of uniformity and clarity I am not enclosing in
quotes, in the material in smaller type and extending from margin t o
margin, either passages from the Scripture or excerpts from the works
of human authors. Personal comments I p u t in brackets, C.C.
2. Human Destiny, 12.
G
GBNBRAL INTRODUCTION
Divine-human reconciliation kown to man (cf, 2 Cor, 5:18-21,
John 14:6).
It is unique in that it has at its heart and center the world’s
unique Personage, Jesus the Christ, the Son of the living God;
Immanuel, the God-Man, Theunthropos; the Incarnate Word;
the Mystery of Godliness; our Prophet and Priest and King.
There are just two things to consider in Christianity: first, the
Person; then, the System; and the System stands or falls with
the Person. For Christ is Christianity, and Christianity is Christ.
Again, Christianity is unique in that it provides an adequate
Atonement (Covering) for sin (John 1:29) ; an Atonement
sufficient to vindicate the Absolute Justice of the Author of the
moral order and to sustain the majesty of the divine law vio-
lated by human transgression (1 John 3: 4). “To reconcile the
forgiving goodness of God with His absolute justice,” writes W.
Robertson Smith, “is one of the highest problems of spiritual
religion, which in Christianity is solved by the doctrine of the
atonement.”‘
In the third place, Christianity is unique in that it displays
before the world the challenge of the empty tomb. It is the
only religion which claims an ever-living Person as its Founder,
Head and Lord. The Lord Jesus Christ is as truly alive today
as when He trod the storied hills of old Judea two thousand
years ago. Buddha, Confucius, Mohammed, Zoroaster, and all
the others, died-and death terminated their careers. But the
Lord Jesus was raised up from the dead and is seated at the
right hand of God the Father, alive forevermore (Rom. 8:34, 1
Pet. 3:22). This is the fundamental claim of the Christian re-
ligion, as stated by the Apostle Peter in his great sermon on the
day of Pentecost: “This Jesus did God raise up, whereof we all
K e a , the Apostles1 are witnesses” (Acts 2: 32). And this is the
claim affirmed by the risen Christ Himself: “I am the first and
the last, and the Living One; and I was dead, and behold, I am
alive for evermore, and I have the keys of death and of Hades”
(Rev, 1:17, 18). The living Creed of the living Church of the
living God is the ever-living Christ.
We Christians make no pilgrimages to any shrine wherein
moIder the bones of the Founder of our faith. We worship a
living Christ, who was raised u p the third day from Joseph’s
new tomb, and made to sit at God’s right hand in the heavenly
places, “far above all rule, and authority, and power, and do-
l, W, Robertson Smith, The Religio?a of the Semites: Fundamental
Institutions, 62.
7
minion, and every name that is named, not only in this worIc$
but also in that which is to come” (Eph. 1:20, 21). We have an
Intercessor there, at G s right hand; and we have also an
Intercessor here, withi r hearts, who “maketh intercession
gs which cannot be uttered” (Rorn. 8: 26).
e is the Holy Spirit “0 the depth of the
isdom and knowledge of God! How un-
searchable are his judgments, and his ways past tracing out!”
(Rom. 11:33).
Finally then, in this connection, Christianity is unique in
that it provides for all obedient believers a spiritual Dynamic
who is precious beyond compare. That Dynamic is the Spirit
of God, the Holy Spirit. The Spirit of God it is who energizes
the Word, who vitalizes the Church, who indwells and strength-
ens the Christian with a spiritual might far transcending his
own (Eph. 3:16). There is no Holy Spirit in Hinduism, Brah-
manism, Buddhism, Confucianism, Taoism, Mohammedanism, or
in any of the falsely so-called “world religions.” True it is that
in some of these esoteric cults we encounter the concept of
“spirit” as what might be called a metaphysical influence or force
of, some kind-a strictly pantheistic notion; but in none of them
do we find even an intimation of the Holy Spirit, that is, any
suggestion of ethic a1 import attaching to the term.
The Bible, howeve ‘&e Book of the Spirit: from first
to last it bears of the Spirit of God. Had the
Bible never been written, without doubt we should be in the
same blind condition as those disciples whom Paul found at
Ephesus, who confessed that they had never so much as heard
“if a Holy Spirit is” (Acts 19: 2).
The presence and power of the Holy Spirit in the Bible
distinguishes it, sets it apart, from all other books. Scripture is
God-breathed literature. The pr ce and power of the Holy
Spirit in the Gospel sets it apart all human messages, and
makes it in truth “the power of God unto salvation to every one
that believeth” (Rom.1:16). The presence and power of the
Holy Spirit in the Church of Christ sets it apart from all human
institutions. The Holy Spirit does not indwell the club, the
fraternal order, the ethical society, or any other community of
human beings associated for human ends. The Spirit indwells
the Church and the Church only. “he Church alone is the
“habitation of God in the Spirit, being built upon the foundation
oE the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus himself being the chief
corner stone” (Eph. 2:19-21). Because the Spirit comes to
8
indwell every obedient believer (1 Cor, 3: 16-17, 6 : 19-20; Acts
2: 38; Gal, 3: 2-3), these obedient believers are said to be “living
stones, built up into a spiritual house, to be a holy priesthood,
to offer up spiritual sacrifices, acceptable to God through Jesus
Christ” (1Pet. 2: 1-5).
The Holy Spirit is not a derivation from philosophical specu-
lation nor from scientific theory. All branches of purely human
wisdom are as silent as the grave with respect to His existence,
His being, His presence and power. What.we know of the Holy
Spirit and His work we must learn from one, and only one Book
-the Bible, The Bible is the Book which He Himself has given
US, It is pre-eminently the Book of the Spirit.
Little wonder, then, in view of all these superlative excel-
lences of the Christian faith, that Christianity is pre-eminently
the religion of joy, At the background of its realism (it declares
unequivocally that man is in sin, and in need of salvation, with-
out which he is perishing in this world and in the world to come;
never does it deceive him one whit) there is always the final
optimistic note: “after the tribulation , , . then shall appear the
sign of the Son of man in heaven . . . and they shall see the Son
of man coming on the clouds of heaven with power and great
glory” (Matt, 24: 30) , Whereas philosophical cults and Oriental
mysticisms uniformly reek with pessimism, Christianity declares
that faith is the victory “that hath overcome the world” (1 John
5: 4).
Cf, Luke 2:10 [the words of the angel of the Lord t o the shepherds],
Behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy which shall be to all the
people, John 15:ll-These things have I spoken unto you, t h a t my joy
may be in you, and that your joy may be made full. John 16:24-Hitherto
have ye asked nothing in my name; ask, and ye shall receive, t h a t your
joy may be made full. Acts 8:8--And there was much joy in t h a t city
[Samaria], Acts 15:3-They passed through Phoenicia and Samaria,
declaring the conversion of the Gentiles, and they caused great joy t o
all the brethren. 2 Cor. 7:4--I overflow with joy in all our affliction.
Col, 1 :ll-strengthened with all power, according. to the might of his
glory, unto all patience and longsuffering with JOY. 1 Thess. 1.6-
having received the word in much affliction, with joy of the Holy Spirit.
1 Pet. 4:13-but inasmuch as ye are partakers of Christ’s sufferings,
reJolce; that at the revelation of his glory also ye may rejoice with
exceeding joy. 1 John 1:4--And these things we write t h a t your joy may
be made full, [Cf. Acts 2:46, 41; Rev. 12:lO-12; 19:6-8.1
3. The Book of the Spirit

God has written two Books-the Book of Nature, in which
He has recorded the evidences of “his everlasting power and
9
divinity” (Rom. 1:20), and the Book of Scripture in which He
has unfolded the story of His gracious plan for the redemption
of fallen man. There may be disagreements between Science,
which is man’s interpretation of the Book of Nature, and “heol-
ogy, which is man’s interpretation of the Book of Scripture; for
where there is human effort, there is always imperfection and
liability to error. Between God’s two Books themselves, how-
ever, there are no disagreements, for the simple reason that
Truth never contradicts itself.
The Bible is the Book of the Spirit. As. H. Wheeler Robinson
writes:
On i t s f i r s t page there is painted the impressive picture of ch:ros,
when darkness was upon the face of the deep; but the Spirit of God
was brooding, like a mother-bird, upon the face of the waters. From the
last page there rings out the evangelical challenge of the Church t o the
world, “The Spirit and the bride say, Come.” Between them there is the
story of a divine evolution, which is from God’s side, revelation, and
from man’s side, discovery.’
The presence and power of the Spirit in the Bible gives it a
uniqueness all its own. Other great literary works may be the
productions of human genius in its moments of loftiest flight,
but Scripture is literature that is actually God-breathed.
God’s revelation of His grace to man was wrought out, not
in heaven, but on earth, in successive events in time, beginning
with the creation of the Kingdom of Nature, and culminating in
the Incarnation, Atoning Death, and Resurrection of Jesus
Christ, and in the descent of the Holy Spirit and the incorpora-
tion of the Church of Christ on the great Day of Pentecost,
A.D. 30. The accounts of these successive events, together with
their significance for man, was made a matter of record in the
sacred Scriptures, through the agency of the Spirit, for all sub-
sequent generations to read and profit withal. In this work of
revelation the Holy Spirit operated, as He seems to do invari-
ably, through the instrumentality of inspired men. Thus did
God take men into partnership with Himself in the unfolding
of the divine Plan of Redemption. Both the revelation and the
recording thereof were begun by the Spirit through “holy men
of old” (“patriarchs,” Acts 2: 29, 7:9; Heb. 7: 4), continued
through the Hebrew prophets (2 Pet. 1:21, 1 Pet. 1:10-12), and
concluded in the teaching of Jesus and the Apostles (2 Pet. 1:2-5) ,
:7-12,But we speak God’s wisdom in a mystery, even the
hath been hidden, which God foreordained before the
our glory, . . , as it is written,, Things which the eye saw
1. The Christian Experience o f the Holy Spirit, 6
10
not, and e a r heard not, and which entered not into the heart of man,
whatsoever things God prepared €or them that love him. But unto US
God revealed them through the Spirit: €or the Spirit searcheth all
things, yea, the deep things o€ God. For who among men ltnoweth the
things of a man, save the spirit of the man, which is i n him? even SO
the things of God none ltnoweth save the Spirit of God, B u t we re-
ceived, not the spirit o€ the world, but the spirit which is from God;
that we might know the things that were freely given to us o€ God.
Which things also we speak, not in words which man’s wisdom teachetb,
but which the Spirit teacheth; combining spiritual things with spiritual
words, Eph. 3:3-ll-how that by revelation was made known unto me
the mystery, as I wrote before in few words, whereby, when ye read,
ye can perceive my understanding in t h e mystery of Christ; which in
other generations was not made known unto the sons of men, as i t
hath now been revealed unto his holy apostles and prophets in the
Spirit; to wit, that the Gentiles are fellow-heirs, and fellow-members
of the body, and fellow-partalters of the promise in Christ Jesus through
the gospel, whereof I was made a minister, according to the gi€t of t h a t
grace of God which was given me according to the working of his power.
Unto me who a m less than the least of all saints, was this grace given,
to preacii unto the Gentiles the unsearchable riches of Christ; and to
make all men see what is the dispensation of the mystery which f o r
ages hath been hid in God who created all things; to the intent t h a t now
unto the principalities and powers in the heavenly places might be made
known through the church the manifold wisdom of God, according to
the eternal purpose which he purposed in Christ Jesus our Lord: in
whom we have boldness and access in confidence through our faith in
him. 1 pet. 1:lo-12, Concerning which salvation the prophets sought
and searched diligently, who prophesied of the grace t h a t should come
unto you: searching what time or what manner of time the Spirit of
Christ which was in them did point unto, when i t testified beforehand
the sufferings of Christ, and the glories t h a t should follow them. To
whom i t was revealed, that not unto themselves, but unto you did they
minister these things, which now have been announced unto you through
them that preached the gospel unto you by the Holy Spirit sent forth
from heaven; which things angels desire to look into. [Cf. John 3:34,
Heb. 1:l-3; John 14:lG-17, 14:26, 15:26-27. 16:7-15, 20:21-23; Acts
1:1-8; 1 Thess. 2:13, 2 Tim. 3:16, 2 Pet. 1:21, etc.]
What the Apostle Paul designates in his writings “the eternal
purpose of God,” “the mystery of Christ,’’ “the mystery which
for ages hath been hid in God,” “the mystery of God’s will,”
etc., was His purpose from eternity to send His Only Begotten
Son “when the fulness of the time came” (Gal. 4:4) to make
Atonement for sin and to conquer death, to establish the Church
and publish the Gospel for a testimony unto all the nations
(Matt. 24: 14), and to unite both Jews and Gentiles in the one
Body or Church of Christ; His ultimate end being that of pre-
paring a holy, redeemed race or order of creatures sanctified by
the Spirit and thus fitted to have fellowship with our holy God,
and inhabiting a “new heaven and a new earth, wherein dwelleth
righteousness,” a state in which all that is mortal shall be
“swallowed up of life.”
11
See again Eph. 3:l-12. Cf. Eph. 1:3-11, Blessed be the God and
Father of our Lord Jesus Cnrist, who hath blessed us with every
spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ: even a s he chose
us in him before the Ioundation 01 the world, t h a t we should be holy
and without blemish beiore him in love: having foreordained US unto
adoption a s sons through Jesus Christ unto himself, according t o the
good pleasure of his will, t o the praise of the glory of his grace, which
he freeIy bestowed on us in the Beloved: in whom we have our redemp-
tion through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to
the riches of his grace, which he made t o abound toward us in all wisdom
and prudence, making known unto us the mystery of his will, according
t o the good pleasure which he purposed in him unto a dispensation 01
the fulness of the times, to sum u p all things in Christ, the things in the
heavens, and the thingb upon the.earth; in him, I say, in whom also we
were made a heritage, having been foreordained according t o the pur-
pose of him who worketh all things after t h e counsel of his will.
Gal. 4:4, 5-when the fulness of the time came, God sent forth his
Son, born of a woman, born under the law, t h a t he might redeem them
t h a t were under t h e law, that we might receive the adoption of sons.
Matt. 24;14-And this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in the
whole world f o r a testimony unto all the nations; and then shall the
end come. Matt. 5:48-Ye therefore shall be perfect, as your heavenly
Father is perfect. Col. 1:22-now hath he reconciled in the body o f
his flesh through death, t o present you holy and without blemish and
unreprovable before him. Eph. l:&that we should be holy and without
blemish before him in love. Heb. 12:14--Follow after peace with all
men, and the sanctification without which no man shall see the Lord.
1 Pet. l:15-be ye yourselves also holy in all manner of living. 1 Pet.
2:S-Ye also, as living stones, are built up a spiritual house, to be a
holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices, acceptable to God,
through Jesus Christ. €€eb, 12:23-the spirits of just men made perfect.
2 Thess. 2:13-for that God chose you from the beginning unto salvation
in sanctification of the Spirit, and belief of the truth. Rom. 8:28-30,
And we know t h a t t o them t h a t love God all things work together for
good, even to them t h a t are called according to his purpose. F o r whom
he foreknew, he also foreordained to be conformed t o the image of his
Son t h a t he might be the the firstborn among many brethren; and whom
he Soreordained, them he also called: and whom he called, them he also
justified: and whom he justified, them he also glorified. 1 Cor. 3:16, 17
-Know ye not t h a t ye are a temple of God, and t h a t the Spirit of
God dwelleth in you? If any man destroy the temple of God, him
shall God destroy; for the temple of God is holy, and such are ye.
1 Cor. 6:19, 20-Or know ye not that your body is a temple of the
Holy Spirit which is in you, which ye have from God? and ye are not
your own; for ye were bought with a price: $lorify God therefore in
your body. 1 Tim. 6:14-16, until the appearing of our Lord Jesus
Christ .. . who is the blessed and only Potentate, the King of kings
and Lord of lords. who onlu hath immortalitu. dwellina in lirlht un-
approachable; whom no manlhath seen nor cai'see: to Ghom bye honor
and power eternal. (Cf. 1 Thess. 5:23, Rev. 19:16; Rom. 2:7, 2 Tim.
l : l O , 1 Cor. 15:50-56, 1 Thess. 4:7-8. Phil. 3:20-213. 2 Cor. 5:l-4,
F o r we know t h a t if the earthly house' of ous tabernacle be dissolved;
we have a building from God, a house not made with hands, eternal,
in the heavens. F o r verily in this we groan, longing to be clothed
upon with our habitation which is from heaven: if so be t h a t being
clothed we shall not be found naked. For indeed we t h a t a r e in this
t a b e r n q l e do groan, being burdened: not for t h a t we would be un-
clothed, but t h a t we would be clothed upon, that what i s m o & d mag
be swallowed u p of life. Rev. 22:10.11-Seal not up the words of *'-
12
prophecy of this book; for the time is at hand. He t h a t is unrighteous,
let him do unrighteousness still; and he t h a t is filthy, let him be made
filthy still; and he t h a t i s righteous, let him do righteousness still;
and he l h a t is holy, let him be made holy still.
Finally, in this connection, is it not in accord with the
very nature of things that revelation should be, in a special
sense, a work of the Spirit of God? How indeed could it be
otherwise if our Heavenly Father is a personal God? “For,”
as the Apostle Paul puts it, “who among men knoweth the
things of a man, save the spirit of the man, which is in him?
even so the things of God none knoweth, save the Spirit of God”
(1Cor. 2: 11). “For the Spirit searcheth all things, yea, the deep
things of God” (1 Cor. 2:lO). To the Spirit of God we are
immediately indebted for all that is known, or knowable, of
God, of the unseen world, or of the ultimate destinies of men.
All that ancient or modern pagans pretend to have known or
to know of these sublime topics, has either been borrowed from
the oracles of the Revealer of secrets, or else is more conceit or
conjecture of their own. The simple fact of the matter is, that
the truth to be believed by man respecting his own origin, con-
stitution, and proper end, could never have been known but by
revelation of the Spirit, How profoundly thankful we should
be, then, that our God has not left us in darkness, in that gross
darkness in which heathen nations are still struggling and suf-
fering; but has, by His Spirit, revealed His plan for our salvation
so clearly that the wayfaring man, though a fool, need not err
therein. “Now to him that is able to establish you according
to my gospel and the preaching of Jesus Christ, according to
the revelation of the mystery which hath been kept in silence
through times eternal, but now is manifested, and by the scrip-
tures of the prophets, according to the commandment of the
eternal God, is made known unto all the nations unto obedience
of faith: to the only wise God, through Jesus Christ [to whom?]
be the glory for ever. Amen.” (Rom. 16: 25-27).
It is obvious that the revelation of this mystery in pertinent
historical events, together with the account of the revelation
as embodied in Scripture, has been in a special sense the work
of the Holy Spirit, the One who “searcheth all things, yea, the
deep things of God” (1 Cor. 2:lO). Moreover, both the revela-
tion and the record were vouchsafed progressively, that is,
“precept upon precept, precept upon precept, line upon line,
line upon line, here a little, there a little” (Isa. 28: 10) , embracing
such events under the old Dispensations as the Call of Abraham,
13
and the Abrahamic Promise; the organization of the Hebrew
Theocracy under Moses; and the work of the Hebrew Prophets,
and especially that of John the Baptizer, in whom that illustrious
line of “men of the Spirit’’ flowered and terminated (Luke 1:80).
In a word, God spent four thousand years-and probably a great
many more-preparing the world for the advent of Messiah,
and building up a system of type, symbol, and prophecy, all
designed to identify Him, beyond any possibility of doubt, upon
His appearing in the world. Then “when the fulness of the
time came, God sent forth his Son, born of a woman, born
under the law, that he might redeem them that were under the
law, that we might receive the adoption of sons” (Gal. 4:4-5,
Rom. 8: 14-17). Finally, when the Redeemer had accomplished
the work for which the Father had sent Him into the world,
both the revelation and the record thereof were brought to
completion ‘ in the labors and writings of the Apostles, who
served as the executors of His Last Will and Testament. Revela-
tion, inspiration, and demonstration then came t o a n end with
the termination of the Apostolic ministry: “all things that per-
tain unto life and godliness” were given (2 Pet. 1:3, Jude 3 ) .
No man has ever added, no man could ever add, one jot or
tittle to the body of truth, moral and spiritual, set forth in the
apostolic writings. “hey are in themselves sufficient to furnish
the man of God “completely unto every good work” (2 Tim.
3:16-17), To every spiritually-minded person the finality of
the New Testament revelation and record is self-evident. All
subsequent alleged “special revelations”-all of whicli, inci-
dentally, contradict one another-must therefore be rejected.
The Bible, from the first chapter of Genesis to the last
chapter of Revelation, bears on every page the imprimdtur of
the Spirit of God. It is the account of God’s progressive revela-
tion to His rational creatures. This record has been given to
mankind by the Holy Spirit through the instrumentality of in-
spired men. The revelation itself having been one, though
progressive, revelation with one foreordained end or goal, it
naturally follows that the record of the revelation is one. Hence,
although some forty men, and possibly more, participated in the
writing of the sixty-six component parts (books) of the Bible,
nevertheless the finished product is one. The Bible is the history
of redemption: it has one theme running throughout its length
and breadth, namely, redemption in and through Christ Jesus.
The Bible is one Book, even though it is a veritable library of
14
books. It is a unity because basically it is the work of one
Author-the Spirit of God.
4. Man’s Ultimate Ends

Man is a creature. Individually or as a race he has nothing
to do with his being in the world and very little to do with
the time o r manner of his going out of it (unless, of course, he
resorts to suicide, the ultimate in sheer selfishness); and while
he is in it, he is absolutely dependent on nature and on nature’s
God for the food that he eats, the water he drinks, the air
he breathes, and even the very ground he walks on. No amount
of self-pride or self-assertiveness on his part can alter these facts,
now or ever.
Man is a creature. Neither as an individual nor as a race
is he self-sufficient. Moreover, the unfailing criterion of a truly
wise man is his own constant recognition of his creaturehood
in a11 his dealings with his God and with his fellows. Humility,
as Augustine was wont to reiterate, is the most essential condi-
tion to the acquirement of wisdom, wisdom being the construc-
tive application of knowledge to the realization of man’s natural
and proper ultimate ends,
Hence, as a creature, man, every man, every human being,
has his o w n natural and proper intrinsic and extrinsic ends.
(Intrinsic ends are those realized within himself, the fulfilment
of his natural potentialities; extrinsic ends are those served by
him outside himself, in relation to the totality of being, specific-
ally, in relations with his fellows and with his God.) (An abso-
lutely ultimate end is defined a priori as that which leaves
nothing further to be desired, that which is desired and sought
for itself alone, and that which perfects (actualizes the potenti-
alities of) his personal nature. In this last-named sense it is
man’s Highest Good, in Latin, the Summum Bonum.
What, then, must be the natural and proper absolutely ulti-
mate intrinsic and extrinsic ends of man, the ends to which he
is ordered by the Creator Himself, that is to say, the purposes
for which He put him in the world? (Cf. Gen. 1:26-31). There
can be only one truly satisfactory answer to each of these ques-
tions, as follows: man’s naturaZ and proper absolutely ultimate
intrinsic end is perfect happiness (as designated by Aristotle,
eudaimonia, and in Latin, beatitudo) , Perfect happiness, heav&n-
ly joy, “exalted happiness,” genuine bliss, obviously, is to be
15
realized on13 in ultimate union with God. variously designated
Seeing God Face to Face, Blessedness, The Beatific Vision, Life
Everlasting. (Note the following comment with respect to the
Beatitudes, (Matt. 5: 3-10) : “Beware of preaching the gospel
of temperament instead of the Gospel of God. Numbers of
people today preach the gospel of temperament, the gospel of
‘cheer up.’ “he word ‘blessed’ is sometimes translated ‘happy,’
but is a much deeper word; it includes all that we mean by joy in
its full fruition.”‘ It strikes this writer that a more realistic
definition would be “bliss,” “heavenly bliss,” “rapture,” etc.
T h e natural and proper absolutely ultimate extrinsic end
of m a n is, of course, the glory of God.
Isa. 46:9-11, Remember the former things of old: for I 8m God,
and there is none else. I am God, and there i s none like me; declaring
the end from the beghning, and from ancient times things that are
not yet done; saying, My counsel shall stand, and I will do all my
pleasure. Isa. 45:25-1n Jehovah shall all the seed of Israel be justi-
fied, and shall glory. Isa. 33:ll-The counsel o f Jehovah standeth fast
for ever, The thoughts of his heart t o all generations. Phil, 2:9-11,
Wherefore also God highly exalted him, and gave unto him the name
which is above every name; that in the name of Jesus every knee
should bow, of things in heaven and things o n earth and things under
the earth, and t h a t every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is
Lord, to t h e glory of God the Father. 1 Cor. ,15:24-28, Then cometh
the end, when he shall deliver up the kingdom to.God, even the Father;
when he shall have abolished all rule and all authority and power.
For he must reign, till he hath put all his enemies. pndenahiszfeetll.The
last enemy t h a t shall be abolished is death. . . , And when all things
have been subjected unto him, then shall the Son also be subjected t o
him t h a t did suject all things to him, t h a t God may be all in all. Rev. 7:12
-[The song of the redeemed before the Great White Throne], Blessing,
and glory, and wisdom, and thanksgiving, and honor, and power, and
might, be unto our God for ever and ever. Amen, Rev, 21:23-And
the city hath no need of the sun, neither of the moon, to shine upon it:
for the glory of God did lighten it, and the lamp thereof is the Lamb.
1 Tim. 6:14-16, until the appearing of our Lord Jesus Christ, which in
its own times he shall show, who is the blessed and only Potentate,
the King of kings, and Lord of lords; who only hath immortality,
dwelling in light unapproachable; whom no man hath seen, nor can
see; to whom be power eternal. Amen.
In the Glorious Consummation of all things, the glory of
God will be seen to include redeemed humanity. Indeed Jesus
makes love for our fellows (mankind) an integral part of our
love for God.
Matt. 22:36-40, And one of them, a lawyer, asked him a question,
trying him: Teacher, which i s the great commandment in the law?
And he said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy
heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. This is the great
and first commandment. And a second like unto it is this, Thou shalt
1. Oswald Chambers, Biblical Psychology, 116.
16
love thy neighbor as thyself, On these two commandments the whole
law hangeth, and the prophets. [Cf. also Matt, 25:31-4G, Deut. G:S,
Lev. 19:18,1John 4:7-113.
This cosmos in which man has his abode is neither he‘lio-
centric, geocentric, nor anthropocentric: it is theocentric. God
Himself is the source and end of all things. His glory is the
proper extrinsic end of His whole creation; any other end would
be unworthy both of the Creator and of His creatures, But the
ultimate intrinsic end of every human being-the end for which
he has been put on the earth as its lord tenant-is union with God.
This is evident from the fact that by his natural impulses he
seeks happiness, or, specifically, that which he seeks as the ful-
filment of a desire and which he considers to be a form of happi-
ness. Never does a human being seek to be permanently miser-
able: such an objective seems to be contrary to the very nature
of man. The fact is not to be wondered at, therefore, that in all
the higher systems of faith and practice (“religion”) which have
appeared in the course of human history, the concept of some
kind of union with the Divine is envisioned as man’s ultimate
destiny. In Oriental systems this union is said to be reabsorption
into Brahma, Tao, Unity, described by some as “the ocean of
undifferentiated energy,”-after many reincarnations, of course;
life is said to be “illusion” (maya), and “salvation” is escape
fromdt .byidhe complete suppression of every aspect of individ-
uality, Certainly, Nirvana is not thought of as a state of personal
continuance beyond the grave. Someone has said rightly that
reincarnationism is not a hope, but a nightmare. In Biblical re-
ligion, however, this ultimate union is revealed as a never-ending
fellowship with the personal living God who is the divine Other
to all persons (others), and life is declared to be a divine gift
and man’s greatest good, This does not mean the suppression
of individuality, but rather the enhancement of it, the self-
realization of each person’s potentialities by his sharing of the
mind of Christ and the indwelling Spirit of God.
Phil, 2:S-Have this mind in you, which was also in Christ Jesus.
1 Cor. 2:lG-But we have the mind of Christ. Rom. 5:S-the love of
God hath been shed abroad in our hearts through the Holy Spirit which
was given unto us. 1 Cor. 3:16--Know ye not t h a t ye are a temple of
God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you? 1 Cor, 6:9-0r know
ye not that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit, which is in YOU,
which ye have from God? and ye are not your own. 2 Cor. 6:lG-And
what agreement hath a temple of God with idols? for we are a temple of
the living God, etc. Gal. 3:2--This only would I learn from you,
Received ye the Spirit by the works of the law, or by the hearing o f
faith. Gal. S:BS-If we live by the Spirit, by the Spirit let US also
walk, nom. 8:ll-But if the Spirit of him that raised up Jesus from
17
THE ETERNAL SPIRIT - HIS PERSON AND POWERS
the dead dwelleth i n you, he that raised up Christ Jesus from the dead
shall give life also to your mortal bodies through his Spirit that
dwelleth in you.
Obviously, any syncretism of such antithetical-Oriental versus
Biblical-concepts, is not only not desirable, but actually im-
possible.
In Scripture this ultimate union with God is described as
seeing Him “face to face.”
Matt. 5:8-Blessed are the pure in heart; for they shall see God.
I Cor. 13:12--For now we see in a mirror, darkly; but then face to
face: now I know in part; but then shall I know fully, even as also
I was fully known. 2 Cor. 3:17, 18-Now the Lord is the Spirit: and
where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty. But we all, with un-
veiled face beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are trans-
formed into the same image from glory to glory, even as from the Lord
the Spirit. 1 John 3 :2, 3-Beloved, now are we children of God, and it is
not yet made manifest what we shall be. We know that, if he shall
be manifested, we shall be like him; for we shall see him even as he is.
2 Pet, 1:3, 4-seeing that his divine power hath granted unto US all
things t h a t pertain unto life and godliness, through the knowledge of
him t h a t called us by his own glory and virtue; that through these ye
may become partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the cor-
ruption t h a t is in the world by lust. 2 Pet. 3:18--But grow in the grace
and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.
(It should be noted that “seeing God face to face” connotes not
what we call physical “vision,” but rather spiritual knowledge,
illumination, by means of which we shall continue i o grow. as
we are “transformed into the same image,” that is, the image,
of Christ, “from glory to glory” (2 Cor. 3:18), and so become
partakers of the divine nature. We must not lose sight of the
fact that the essential principle of life is growth. Surely this
growth will continue spiritually even in the experience of eternal
life, in the Kingdom of Glory!)
In Scripture this ultimate Union with God, as we have noted,
is described as seeing God “face to face” (Matt. 5 : 8, 1Cor. 13:12,
1 John 3: 2-3, 2 Cor. 3: 18, Rev. 22: 1-5). Such an ultimate one-
ness will surely consist of the complete union of the human
mind with the mind of God in knowledge and the complete
union of the human will with the Will of God in love, together
with the accompanying illumination that such union can never
be broken, that is, with the sense of its everlastingness. Again,
since this occurs in God’s realm, this experience-the Beatific
Vision-is not just stretched-out time, but timelessness, and is
therefore to our poor human minds inconceivable. Indeed, eye
hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither has it entered into the
imaginatio? of man, to conceive of the things which God has
18
GENBRAL INTRODUCTION
prepared €or those who love Him (1 Cor. 2 : 9 ) . This is-we
repeat-the Vision of God, Beatitude, Blessedness, Perlection,
Wholeness (Holiness), Life Everlasting (Matt. 5: 48, John 5: 48,
John 3:16, Psa. 116:15, 1 John 5:18-20, Rev. 14:13, 21:l-4,
22: 1-5). This final illumination surely will vouchsafe to God’s
saints the certainty of their own unalienable possession of God;
not that they will be as gods-deity and humanity are necessarily
of different rank, not just matters of degree-but that they
will be partakers of the divine nature to the degree that they
have made themselves partakers of the benefits of His grace
(2 Pet. 1:4, Matt. 5: 48, Eph. 5: 1, Col, 1:28, Jas. 1:4, 1 Pet. 1:15,
Rom. 1: 4; Heb. 12: 10, 14; 1John 2: 5, 4: 12). In the final analysis,
Heaven is where God is, and Hell is where God is not (2 Thess.
1:7-10). To these ultimate ends every human being is ordained
by the Creator Himself. The only alternative view is that of
the utter purposelessness and consequent futility of all existence,
the view that
The world rolls round for ever like a mill,
It grinds out death and life and good and ill;
It has no purpose, heart, or mind or wi1l.l
To such an ultimate end, moreover, man has been disposed
by the Divine implanting within him of a will that seeks only
a good (in the broad sense, that which fulfils a desire) in its
every activity. The human will was never known deliberately
to seek ultimate and permanent evil (unhappiness). Even
when it pursues an evil, it does so for the purpose of gaining
what the person believes to be an ultimate good: the saint gives
his body to be burned because he regards the temporary evil
as a stepping-stone to ultimate bliss. Man errs when he mis-
takes and misuses apparent goods for real goods. Spiritual dis-
cernment is the wisdom to put first things first. Ignorance of
his proper ends in life, and of the proper means of attaining
them, is undoubtedly the prime source of man’s faults and follies.
(Cf, Matt. 6: 33-34, John 8: 31-32, Gal, 5: 16-25).
Herein, too, consists the real meaning of good and evil, or
right and wrong, Those human acts are good which perfect the
character in virtue; those are bad which fail to do so (2 Pet.
1:5-9). Similarly, those acts of a man are right which tend to
lead him toward the attainment of his proper ultimate ends, and
those are wrong which lead him in the opposite direction or
1. James Thomson, “The City of Dreadful Night.”
19
T H E ETERNAL SPIRIT -HIS PERSON AND POWERS
which keep him from attaining his proper ultimate ends (Matt.
7: 13-14). Goodness has reference to suitability to the perfection
of a person, to his growth in holiness; rightness, to the direction
in which he is going motally and spiritually (Heb. 12: 14, 2 Thess.
2: 1 3 , l Pet. 1:2) , in relation to his ultimate ends.
Now it follows that, since man’s ultimate end is union with
God, in preparation for such an end*hemust be justified, puri-
fied, and sanctified, for the simple reason that a holy God (John
17: 11) can have no concord with impurity of heart (Matt. 5:8).
Indeed, in the very nature of things, only the pure in heart could
ever hope to apprehend, to know, to realize the possession of,
God. This, I repeat, is true because it is in accord with the
very nature of things (Matt. 6:24, 1 Cor, 10:21, 2 Cor, 6:14-18).
The (‘nature of things,” moreover, is determined by the Will of
God who is all-consistent, whose Will is the constitution of the
universe-the cosmos-both physical and moral. Hence, it fol-
lows unquestionably that the God who, in Creation, determined
man’s ultimate ends and ordered him to the attainment of them,
must have, by the same edict of His divine Will, and in the light
of His omniscience, determined and ordered the necessary means
to his attainment of these ends. For our God, the God of the
Bible, is a purposeful God; and being omniscient, He knows
perfectly how to adapt proper means to their respective ends.
The whole cosmos is characterized throughout by this perfect
adaptation of means and ends, even as it is characterized by
mathematical exactness in all of its processes: or in the words
of Pythagoras of old, “Things are numbers.” (Cf. Isa. 46: 9-11,
Acts 17:24-31; Psa. 33: 6-9,148:5-6).
Therefore, on the principle of the perfect adaptation of means
to ends, characteristic always of the activities of our living and
true God, it follows that the one essential prerequisite of the
individual man’s attainment of his proper ultimate ends is the
life with the Holy Spirit. Such a life is indispensable to the
acquirement of that holiness or wholeness (‘without which no
man shall see the Lord” (Heb. 12:14; cf. Eph. 4:24, 2 Pet. 1:4,
Col. 1:12, Rom. 14:17). The same principle holds good in the
present natural life: to be able to appreciate poetry one must
cultivate this appreciation, to be able to enjoy a great symphonic
production, one must cultivate the appreciation of this kind of
music, etc. Similarly, to be able to appreciate ultimate Union
with God, one must cultivate the Spiritual Life in the here and
now. And, because appreciation in any area of human experience
is necessarily based on knowledge, so appreciation of God, and
20
of Union with God, must be based on a person’s cultivation of
the Mind of Christ who is the revelation of God (Phil. 2:5, 1
Cor. 2:15-16; John 1:14, 14:6-9), No truer statement was ever
uttered than the well-known saying that “heaven is a prepared
place for a prepared people.”
Now this Spiritual Life-the life that is “hid with Christ in
God”-embraces three phases, as follows:
1. The purgative phase, as designated in its various aspects
as conversion, remission, forgiveness, justification, regeneration,
reconciliation, etc., the cleansing of the inner man from the body
of the guilt of sin (which is spiritual circumcision, Col. 2:11-12,
Rom. 6:1-14),
Acts 2:38--Repent ye, and be baptized every one of you in the
name of Jesus Christ unto the remission of your sins; and ye shall
receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. John 3:S-Except one be born of
water and the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God. John
5 : 2 P H e t h a t heareth my word, and believeth him t h a t sent me, hath
eternal life, and cometh not into judgment, but hath passed from death
into life. Rom. 6:4-We were buried therefore with him through
baptism into death; that like as Christ was raised from the dead
through the glory of the Father, so we also might walk in newness of
life, 1 Cor. 6:ll-but ye were washed, but ye were sanctified, but ye
were justjfied in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, and in the Spirit
of our God. Eph, 2:8-for by grace have ye been saved through f a i t h ;
and that [salvation] not of yourselves, it is the gift of God. Gal. 2:20-
I have been crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I t h a t live, but
Christ livetli in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live
by faith, the faith which is in the Son of God, who loved me, and gave
himself up for me. Gal. 3:27-’For a s many of you as were baptized
into Christ did p u t on Christ. 1 John 5:12--He t h a t hath the Son hath
the life; he that hath not the Son of God hath n o t the life. Heb. 9:14-
how much more shall the blood of Christ, who through the eternal
Spirit offered himself without blemish unto God, cleanse [A.V,, purge]
your conscience from dead works to serve the living God? 1 Cor. 5:”-
Purge out the old leaven, that ye may be a new lump, even as ye a r e
unleavened.
2. The illuminative phase: on the human side, this is per-
severance, and on the divine side sanctification.
Rom. 12:2-Be not fashioned according to this world; but be ye
transformed by the renewing of your mind, t h a t ye may prove what is
the good and acceptable and perfect will of God. Phil. 2:12-work out
your own salvation with fear and trembling. 2 Pet. 1:lO-give the
more diligence t o make your calling and election sure. 2 Pet. 3:18-
But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus
Christ. 2 Pet. 1:ll-for thus shall be richly supplied unto you the
entrance into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ,
2 Cor. 3:18-But we all, with unveiled face beholding as in a mirror
the glory of the Lord, are transformed into the same image from glory
to glory, even as from the Lord the Spirit. [Each human being-each
person-is the image of God personally; the Lord Jesus, however, while
in the flesh, was the “the very image of God’s substance” (Heb. l : S ) ,
21
t h a t is, not only the personal, but the moral image of God as well, t h a t
19, “one t h a t hath been tempted in all points like as we are, yet without
sfn,” Heb. 4:15]. 1 John 1:9--If we [as God’s redeemed] confess our
sins, he is faithful and righteous t o firgive us our sins, and t o cleanse
US from all unrighteousness. [All Christians are sinners saved by grace.]
1 Cor. 15:68--Wherefore, my beloved brethren, be ye stedfast, un-
movable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, forasmuch as ye
know t h a t your labor is not vain in the Lord. 2 Pet. 1:6--For this
very cause adding on your p a r t all diligence, in your faith supply
virtue; and in your virtue, knowledge; a n 8 in your knowledge, self-
control; and in your self-control, patience; and in your patience, godli-
ness; and in your godliness, brotherly kindness; and in your brotherly
kindness, love, etc. (Note t h a t the eternal rewards are promised only
t o the Overcomers, Rev. 1:7,11,17,26; 2:5, 12,21.)
3. Finally, the unitive: as the final phase of redemption, the
putting on of immortality (resurrection, transfiguration, glorifi-
cation). This will surely include the union of the mind of the
redeemed person with the mind of God in knowledge, and the
union of his will with the will of God in love.
1 Thess. 5:23--And the God of peace himself sanctify you wholly;
and may your spirit and soul and body be preserved entire, without.
blame a t the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. Rom. 8:28-30, We know
t h a t to them t h a t love God all things work together for good, to them
t h a t are called according to his purpose. For whom he foreknew, he
also foreordained to the conformed t o the image of his Son.
whom he foreordained, them he also called; and whom he called, them
I .
. and
he also justified; and whom he justified, them he also glorified. 1
15 :54-But when this corruptible shall have put on incorruption,
this mortal shall have put on immortality, then shall be brought t o pass
the saying t h a t is written, Death is swallowed up in victory. Rom. 8:23,
-And not only so, but ourselves also, who have the firstfruits of the
Spirit even we ourselves groan within ourselves, waiting f o r our
adoption, to wit, the redemption of our body. 2 Cor. 5:4-For indeed
we t h a t are in this tabernacle do groan being burdened; not for that
we would be unclothed, but that we would be clothed upon, that what
is mortal may be swallowed up of life. [Cf. 1 John: 3:2-3; Rev. 3:5,
3 ~ 1 23, :21, 21 :1-7, 22 :1-5.1
Finally, the beginning of this life with the Holy Spirit must
be, in accordance with Scripture and again with the very “nature
of things,” in the change that is described as unisonwith Christ,
a change which is variously designated, in Scripture, from as
many different points of view, conversion, regeneration, remis-
sion, justification, salvation, reconciliation, etc. Moreover, the
New Testament teaches clearly that this change, this union with
Christ, is consummated, for the repentant believer, in the in-
stitution of Christian baptism. Note the following: Rom. 10: 10-
(‘with the heart man believeth unto righteousness” (justifica-
tion) ; 2 Cor. 7:10--“godly sorrow worketh repentance unto
salvation”; Rom. 10: IO--“with the mouth confession is made
unto salvation”; Gal. 3:27--“for as many of you as were bap-
22
tized into Christ did put on Christ,” Ijence, baptism-the baptism
of the Great Commission (Matt, 28: 19-20) is Scripturally desig-
nated explicitly, “the washing of regeneration” (Tit. 3: 5-6; cf.
John 3: 5, Eph, 5: 26, Acts 22: 16). In the sixth chapter of Romans,
the Apostle malres this fundamental truth too clear for any pos-
sible misunderstanding by any person who is intellectually hon-
est with God and with himself. “Are ye ignorant,” says he,
“that all we who were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized
into his death? We were buried therefore with him through
baptism into death: that like as Christ was raised from the dead
through the glory of the Father, so we also might walk in new-
ness of life. For if we have become united with him in the
likeness of his death, we shall be also in the likeness of his
resurrection,” etc. (Rom. 6: 4-7)- It is in the likeness of Christ’s
death, that is, in baptism, which m o s t certainly is a burial in
water followed by a raising up therefrom-and not anything less
than this-that the penitent believer is betrothed to Him, later
to be literally married to Him, the Bridegroom, whose Bride
the Church is (Rev. 19: 6-9).
2 Cor, ll:2-For I am jealous over you with a godly jealousy: for
I espoused you t o one husband, that I might present you as a pure virgin
unto Christ. John 3:29--He that hath the bride is the bridegroom.
Gal. 4:2G--But the Jerusalem that is above is free, which is our mother.
Eph. 6:22ff.-Wives, be in subjection unto your own husbands, as unto
the Lord. For the husband is tlie head of the wife, a s Christ also IS
head of the church, being himself the savior of the body, But a s tl?e
church is subject t o Christ, so let wives also be t o their husbands in
everything. Husbands, love your wives, even a s Christ also loved the
church and gave himself up for it, that he might sanctify it, having
cleansed i t by tlie washing of water with the word, t h a t he might
present the church to himself a glorious church, not having spot or
wrinkle or any such thing; but that i t should be holy and without
blemish. Even so ought husbands also to love their wives a s their own
bodies, He t h a t loveth his own wife loveth himself; for no man ever
yet hated his own flesh, but nourisheth and cherisheth it, even as Christ
also the church; because we are members of his body. F o r this cause
shall a man leave his father and mother. and shall cleave t o his wife;
and the two shall become one flesh, This mystery is great: but I
speak in regard of Christ and of the church.
There has been a tendency in all ages for unbelief to rail
at the church, But the church, although made up of human
beings, many of whom are at times decidedly human, still and
all is a divine institution per se, with a divine foundation, a
divine head, a divine fellowship, and a divine destiny: these
are facts that nothing can change. It was not until Saul of Tarsus
lay blinded and prostrate on the ground before the gates of
Damascus that he realized for the first time that in persecuting
23
the church he had been persecuting Christ (Acts 9: 3-7, 22: 6-16,
26:12-19). The simple fact is that, as Augustine has put it
precisely, “He cannot have God for his Father who refuses to have
the chqrch for his mother.”
Heb. 12:22-but ye are come unto mount Zion, and unto the city
of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, etc. Also tr. 23-40 the
general assembly and church of the firstborn who are enrolled in
heaven, and to God the Judge of all, and to the spirits of just men made
perfect, and t o Jesus the mediator of a new covenant, etc. Rev. 3:12-
I will write upon him [the Overcomer] the name of my God, and the
name of the city of my God, the new Jerusalem, which cometh down
out of heaven from my God, and mine own new name. Rev. 21:2-And
I saw the holy city, new Jerasalem, coming down out of heaven from
God made ready as a bride adorned for her husband. Also w. 9, 10-
A n d he [the angel] spake with me saying, Come hither, I will show
thee the bride, the wife of the Lamb. And he carried me away in the
Spirit to a mountain great and high, and showed me the holy city
Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, etc. (Cf. Gen. 2:20-24,
Hos. 2:19. Heb. 11:8-10, 1 Thess. 4:13-17, 2 Thess. 2:13-15; Rev. 21:
11-27, 22:l-5). 2 Pet. 3:lO-13, But the day of the Lord will come as
a thief; in the which the heavens shall pass away with a great noise,
and the elements shall be dissolved with fervent heat, and the earth
and the works t h a t are therein shall be burned up. Seeing t h a t these
things are thus all t o be dissolved, what manner of persons ought ye
to be in all holy living and godliness, looking for and earnestly desiring
the coming of the day of God, by reason of which the heavens being on
fire shall be dissolved, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat?
But, according to his promise, we look f o r new heavens and a new
earth, wherein dwelleth righteousness. [Cf. also Acts 3 :19-21, Rev. 21 :1,
Rom. 8:21; Isa. 60:15-22, 65:17-25; also the entire Song of Solomon.]
Obviously, Christian baptism must embody a death and
resurrection in order to serve as a complete testimony (witness)
to the facts of the Gospel: cf. again Rom. 6: 17 and 1 Cor. 15: 1-4).
Not that the water of baptism itself washes away sin-of courqe
not; but that in baptism, as in every ordinance af God of a
visible character, human faith meets Divine Grace in the ap-
pointment divinely designated; and where such a meeting t
place, the blessing connected by the word of God with the par-
ticular appointment is always conferred upon the obedient be-
liever. This is always the case, for the simple reason that God
keeps His promises. Now the divine blessing expressly con-
nected by the word of God with Christian baptism, for the
penitent believer, is remission of sins (Acts 2:38); and when
sin is remitted-the pardon takes place, of course, in the Mind
of God-then the union of the believer with Christ is the per-
fectly natural consequence. It is the blood of Christ, as the all-
sufficient Atonement (Covering) that cleanseth from sin (1
John 1:7,Tit. 2: 14,Neb. 9: 14, Rev. 7:14,Rom. 3: 26, John 1:29) ;
the place divinely appointed for the believer to meet the ef-
24
1
I
I GENERAL INTRODUCTION
I
ficacy of the Blood is the grave of water (John 3:5, 19:34;

Tit. 3: 5),
We therefore summarize here, as follows: 1. Man’s ultimate
intrinsic end, the end io which he is ordained by his Creator,
is Union with God, Beatitude, Life Everlasting. 2. His ultimate
extrinsic end is the glory of God (Matt. 25:34-40, Isa. 43:7,
Rev. 4:11), 3. The one essential prerequisite or means to the
attainment of these euds is the life with the Holy Spirit. 4, The
beginning of this life with the Holy Spirit-the Spiritual Life-
‘is in Union with Christ on the basis of the terms of pardon,
namely, faith in Christ, repentance toward Christ, confession of
Christ, and baptism into Christ, 5. The Spiritual Life embodies
the three phases as described above-the purgative, the illumina-
tive, and finally the unitive; and the end product is the fully
redeemed person, redeemed in spirit and soul and body (1 Thess.
5: 23). These five fundamental propositions, on which the Scrip-
tures speak with uniform consistency and clarity, constitute the
framework of the present series of studies of the Holy Spirit
and His operations.
j. Difficulties of Our Subject

I Certainly if the truth regarding the person and work of
’the Holy Spirit is to be preserved and disseminated at all, it
will have to be done by the Church. The “world,” said Jesus,
cannot receive the Holy Spirit, “for it beholdeth him not, neither
knoweth him” (John 14:17). The “world” simply is not inter-
ested in the Holy Spirit, in fact, the “world” cannot be expected
to be interested in Him, Speculative theologians, analytical
critics, demythologizers, and all their kind, like the disciples
whom Paul found at Ephesus (Acts 19:2), seem not to realize
that there is a Holy Spirit, or at least choose deliberately to ig-
nore the claims He makes for Himself in Scripture. In the very
nature of things, the Church alone-the true evangelical Church
-can be looked to, to keep alive in the hearts of men whatever
knowledge they may possess of the Spirit’s being and activity
(1 Tim. 3:15). Why, then, is the doctrine of the Holy Spirit
so generally neglected by the Church of our time?
Undoubtedly one reason for this neglect is the press ~j
secularism on the spiritual. life of t h e Church. We are living in
an age of things: gadgets of all kinds, visible and tangible things,
physical things, mechanical things, things shaken up, pressed
25
down, running over. The circumstances of our mechanical and
highly artificial civilization are surely anything but conducive
to thinking in spiritual terms. The human race is so dominated
at the present moment by the sheer tyranny of things that it
stands in grave danger of losing its sense of the higher values of
life, and hence the very music and dream of living. Somehow-
perhaps through great suffering?-we shall have to learn anew
the fundamental truth stated by our Lord, that “a man’s life
consisteth not in the abundance of the things which he possesseth”
(Luke 12: 15).
Another explanation, perhaps, of the Church’s neglect of
the doctrine of the Holy Spirit is in the adverse reaction occa-
sioned b y the extravagances of those who carry the doctrine t o
such fanatical extremes. The tendency on the part of certain
sectists and cultists to ascribe to an operation of the Holy Spirit
almost every impulse, emotion, and passion of the human soul,
is derogatory to religion in general and most of all to the Spirit
Himself. Such travesties on religion result not only in alienating
thoughtful people from the Church, but also in discouraging in-
telligent churchmen from attempting to expound the doctrine
of the Spirit lest they, too, fall into some grievous error. The
ecstatic and orgiastic extravagances of so-called “Holiness”
sects and mystic cults are anything but helpful to the spread of
the Christian faith.
Then, again, the obvious centrality of Christ in the Christian
System, and in fact of the entire revelation of God t o man, as
recorded in the Bible, may be cited as another reason for the
prevailing tendency to overlook the Holy Spirit and I-Iis role
in human redemption. The principal task of the Spirit in all
ages, and especially in the present Dispensation, has been to
testify concerning the Messiah. As Jesus Himself put it, in con-
versation with His disciples (the eleven) on the night of His
betrayal, “Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he
shall guide you into all the truth. . , , He shall glorify m e : for
he shall take of Mine, and shall declare it unto you” (John
16:13-15). The Bible itself is the record of God’s progressive
revelation to man through the agency of the Spirit. This entire
revelation centers in the person and work of the Messiah: in
the Old Testament, the Messiah who is to come; in the New
Testament, the same Messiah, who has come, who has died for
our sins, been buried, and raised up from the dead, and exalted
to the right hand of God the Father. The revelation, however,
is the work of the Spirit of God. In the words of an eminent
26
I
writer on the subject, this-the glorification of Christ-is “the
temporal mission of the Holy Ghost.” In Scripture, we have the
, complete testimony of the Spirit regarding the mission and work
of Messiah, the Great Demonstration that Jesus is the Christ,
the Son of the living God (Matt, 16:16; John 20:30-31; Rom.
10: 9-10), With becoming modesty, therefore, the Holy Spirit
has kept Himself in the background, Nor has He indicated any-
where on the sacred pages that He would have men exalt and
glorify Him; rather, He would have them honor, exalt, and
glorify the Christ, the Anointed One, For in serving and glorify-
ing Christ, they also exalt and glorify the Spirit who bears
witness to Him, “He shall glorify me,” said Jesus explicitly,
of the Spirit.
Again, it seems evident that another prime reason for the
l
neglect of the doctrine of the Spirit in our time lies in the diffi-
culties inherent in the nature of the subject itself.
In the first place, in this connection, there is the great diffi-
culty of trving t o apprehend, much more to comprehend, t h e
being and nature of a Reality of whom it i s impossible f o r U S t o
get a mental image. Human thought is carried on largely in terms
I of images in the mind and of the language (symbolism) by
which the meaning of these images may be communicated; in-
deed it is doubtful that, without the power of receiving and
retaining images, man in his present state would be able to
think at all. By its very nature the human mind, unaided by
divine revelation, is prone to conceive of God only in those
forms of which mental images can be derived: hence the wor-
ship of the sun, moon, earth, and stars; of animals, plants, and
even insects; and the worship of gross and gruesome idols, These
are all things that can be seen, and men adhere instinctively to
the things they can see. But the Spirit of God is not to be appre-
hended through the physical senses: His order of being lies
beyond the physical (John 1:18, Exo. 33:20, Col, 1:15, 1 Tim.
6:16, 1 John 4:12, 2 Cor. 4:18). H e is to be apprehended only
through the intellect, affection, and will: that is to say, only
through the “inner man” (2 Cor, 4:16). And even this appre-
hension has to be intelligently examined and kept within proper
bounds by what He has revealed about Himself in \Scripture;
otherwise, untold confusion i s the result. “he difficulty here
is precisely the difficulty involved in propagating a religion
whose God is pure Spirit (John 4~24).This probably accounts
for the fact that so many people-professing Christians though
they may be-scarcely know that there is a Holy Spirit. They
27
THE ETBRNAL SPIRIT -HIS PERSON AND POWERS
seem incapable mentally of grasping the concept of an incorporeal
Reality. This problem will always confront those who are trying
to spread abroad in men’s hearts a spiritual faith and life.
In the second place, there is the equally great difficult
the inadequacy of human language t o communicate Di
thought and to bring Divine Realities down to the level of human
comprehension. This must have been the most profound problem
encountered by our God Himself in His efforts to make known,
through the Spirit, His Plan for the redemption of mankind.
It accounts fully for the anthropomorphisms, types, symbols,
metaphors, allegories, and parables of the Bible: to adapt His
thoughts to our comprehension such devices are indispensable.
The inadequacy of human language is the source of a great
many of the problems which arise in our study of the Holy Spirit
and His work. The profound mysteries of the subject, which are
the mysteries of the very Being of God, and the mysteries of all
other forms of being as well, appear to be shut out entirely from
our human view: they are truths which simply lie too deep for
words (Deut. 29:29). There are intimations in Scripture that
the Spirit Himself labored under considerable , difficulty in at-
tempting to portray in words for future generations to read,
some of the more profound events in the life of Christ and even
some of the mysteries of His own operations in the created world.
Perhaps, as Raymond Calkins has pointed out,’ this difficulty
is indicated by such words and phrases which occur not infre-
quently in the New Testament, as “like,” “like as,” “as if,” “as it
were,” etc. Take, for instance, the scene a t the baptism of Jesus:
the opening of the heavens, the voice of the Father
His Only Begotten, and the descent of the Spirit up0
:‘I have beheld,” said John the Baptizer later, “the Spirit de-
scending as a dove out of heaven; and it abode upon him” (John
1332) .:This very simile shows that John found it difficult to
describe. the experience adequately ifi human language. Luke,
who aqserts in the prologue to his biography of Jesus, that he
had obtained the information recorded therein from “ e y e
witnesses and ministers of the word” (Luke 1:2), clarifies the
scene at >he Jordan to some extent, but retains the simile. He
says: “Jesus also having been baptized, and praying, the heaven
ened and the Holy Spirit descended in a bodily form, as
him” (Luke 3:21-22). Again, of the suffering of
Gethsemane, Luke writes: “And being in agony
28
he prayed more earnestly; and his sweat became as it were great
drops of blood falling down upon the ground’’ (Luke 22: 44).
Luke is always precise in the use of language. Especially is this
tiwe of his description of the demonstrations which accompanied
the descent of the Spirit upon the Apostles on the day of Pente-
cost, Luke was not there, of course, when it happened. He is
relating what he has been told by others who were present on
the occasion. “Suddenly there came from heaven,” he tells us,
“a sound as of the rushing of a mighty wind, and it filled all the
house where they were sitting. And there appeared unto them
tongues parting asunder, like as of fire; and it sat upon each of
them” (Acts 21-3). Not a real wind, but the sound as of a
mighty wind; not actual fire, but tongues parting asunder which
had the appearance of flames of fire. These similes-and there
are many others of like import throughout the Bible-all indi-
cate how difficult it must have been for the Spirit, in preparing
the permanent record of these earth-shaking spiritual experi-
ences, to describe them adequately in human language. Of
course, there is nothing surprising about this fact. The mysteries
of the Being of God (the “ultimates”) are facts which in them-
selves lie beyond the pale of human experience and are therefore
aIways in some measure incommunicable to us; hence, they must
be apprehended by faith (Heb. 11:6 ) . We shall have to be content,
therefore, with only partial knowledge, such knowledge as the
Holy Spirit has seen fit to vouchsafe us, through the instru-
mentality of inspired men, in the Word of Life. For the fact
remains that in this earthly life we do “see in a mirror, darkly.”
Our physical senses, instead of opening the real world to our
view, actually shut it out, This of course is in adaptation to our
present terrestrial environment, Only when we shall have laid
aside the veil of this flesh shall we be able to discern Reality
“face to face.” This, moreover, will surely be a psychical rather
than a physical vision. (Cf. 1 Cor. 13: 12, 1 John 3: 2, 2 Cor. 5: 7,
James 1:23, Phil. 3: 12, Matt. 5: 8). Hence, insofar as this present
life is concerned we shall have to be content with what has been
revealed (cf. again Deut. 29: 29).
6 . The Proper Approach to the Subject

How shall we approach the study of the Holy Spirit and
His work? This is a matter of utmost importance.
In the first place, we must come t o our task in profound
29
humility and with profound reverence. Jesus said on one oc-
casion: “Every sin and blasphemy shall be forgiven unto men;
but the blasphemy against the Spirit shall not be forgiven. And
whosoever shall speak a word against the son of man, it shall be
forgiven him; but whosoever shall speak against the Holy Spirit,
it shall not be forgiven him, neither in this world, nor in that
which is to come” (Matt. 12:31, 32). Certainly these words
should be sufficient to impress upon our minds the deep serious-
ness of our subject. Let my right arm be withered, let my body
be made impotent, let my tongue be siIenced forever, ere I
should speak o r write a single word derogatory of the Spirit of
God. I might in a moment of despair deny the deity of &Jesus,
but if I experience a change of heart, about face, and accept
Him as the Son of the living God, I may enjoy the salvation
which He offers on the terms of the Gospel. I as a member
of His body, neglect His ordinances; I may fo the assembly
of the saints; I may turn my back upon Him in neglect and in-
difference; but if I come to myself and return to the fold in
penitence and contrition, the Father will receive me back with
outstretched arms (Luke 15:20). But if I as an alien blaspheme
the Spirit, or as professing Christian do despite unto the Spirit
of grace (Heb. 10326-29), I am in grave danger of alienating
myself forever from God’s mercy. In view of these facts, there-
fore, one dare not approac4 the study of the Holy Spirit in a
flippant or frivolous state of mind; the very gravity of the sub-
ject forbids such an attitude.
In the second place, we shall have to decide at the very
outset what sources of information we shall accept as reliable,
and what sources we shall reject as unreliable, with respect to
the Holy Spirit and His operations. This is perhaps the most
important decision we shall be, called upon to make: in fact
everything depends upon it. Now, as far as I know, there are
only two sources to which we can appeal: 1.To human impulses,
emotions and experiences. 2. To the Bible itself, which is the
Book of the Spirit.
Are we justified in accepting human emotions and experi-
ences as trustworthy sources of information regarding the Holy
Spirit and His work? Time was, not so long ago, when prevail-
ing systems of theology were prone to explain almost every
emotiopal experience, within a “religious” setting, as an opera-
tion of the Holy Spirit. People were told that they could not
come to God for salvation, but must work, watch and pray for
God to come to them in some “extraordinary” manner. They
30
were told that they were as dead spiritually as Lazarus was
physically, and that as a special miracle was required to bring
Lazarus forth from the grave, so a special “miraculous” mani-
festatioii of the Spirit was necessary t o lift them out of the grave
of moral corruption into which they, with all mankind, had
fallen. The dogma of “miraculous conversion” was but the
natural corollary of those of “total depravity,” “original sin,” and
“baptismal regeneration” (as exemplified in so-called infant
“baptism,”). Hence they must hear the anthem of a choir in-
visible; they must see a ball of heavenly fire; they must be
visited by an angel; or they must be caught and held in the grip
of a mysterious and overpowering ecstacy, before they could be
considered “elected” to receive the benefits of God’s grace,
Every conversion was looked upon as a “miracle”-a special act
of Divine mercy, by which the sinful (“totally depraved”) hu-
man heart was “fertilized,” so to speak, by this special opera-
tion of the Spirit and thus made capable of attending to, and
receiving, the Gospel call (2 Thess. 2:14, Rom. 1:16). Under
this view, grace was defined as “a supernatural gift infused in
tlie soul, making it pleasing to God,” Thus conversion was
described as mystical, and not psychologicnl as presented in
Scripture (Isa. 6 : 9-10, Matt. 13: 14-15, Acts 28: 25-27). “He
that will, let him take the water of life freely” (Rev. 22:17) was
a forgotten text.
Under this teaching alien sinners were exhorted to pray
for the spirit to come upon them “with saving power.” Some
would pray for days at a stretch without receiving any unusual
“experience,” and failing to do so would give up in despair feel-
ing themselves hopelessly lost. Others would become ecstatic:
some going into trances, some even into a state of catalepsy.
Others would roll on straw conveniently provided for the pur-
pose, whence they were dubbed “Holy Rollers.” And there were
those who, though unable to attain to a state of emotional frenzy,
would nevertheless experience an inward glow which they ac-
cepted as evidence of their divine “call.” In some cases, on re-
lating their “experiences,” they were accepted as candidates for
baptism by the vote of the local congregation; in others, the
congregation, while not taking any formal vote, would accept
them into fellowship according to the “rules of the church.”
Eminent revivalists would report some “converted”; others,
“hopefully converted”; others, “joyously converted”; and still
others, “gloriously converted.”
31
I recall two cases in my own personal experierice. A good
woman told me on one occasion, in .the course of a meeting I
was holding for a church in Kentucky, that she was waiting to
be “knocked down” like Saul of Tarsus was; short of that, she
said, she could never consider herself genuinely converted. (To
be sure, there was no likelihood of her ever being called to the
apostleship; cf. 1 Cor. 9:l.) At another time I was holding a
series of meetings in a’ small town in Indiana. A certain gentle-
man attended tKe meetings quite regularly, who had been born
and reared a Quaker. One day he went home, became involved
in an argument with his wife, which he finally settled by giving
her a good trouncing. Later he told his neighbors that the
“Spirit” had “moved” him to administer the “thrashing” as a
corrective measu This of course was one of the many cases
in which individuals twist their theology” to support their
deeds instead of conforming their deeds to Bible teaching. ..
The Friends (Quakers), though dignified in their religious
practice, and sane and honorable in their living, and for whose
piety we have the highest regard, are nevertheless proponents
of this type of theology. They meet for public worship, but
fieither say nor do anything until “the Spirit moves” someone
to sing, pray or exhort. They reject water baptism altogether
and claim Holy Spirit baptism. In this respect they are con-
sistent, to say the least, The Apostle tells us expressly that there
is “one Lord, one faith, one baptism” (Eph. 4: 5 ) . In the light of
this assertion, obviously there cannot be two baptisms connected
with Christian faith and practice: there must be only one. If
therefore we are to experience Holy Spirit baptism, we should
abandon baptism in water; conversely, if we are to be baptized
in water, we should not expect to receive Holy Spirit baptism.
This certainly is one point on which there can be no disagreement
on the part of all who profess to follow the New Testament. What,
then, did Jesus mean when He said: “Go ye therefore, and make
disciples of all the nations, baptizing them into the name Of the
Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit”? (Matt. 28:19).
Surely, the records of the conversions given us in the Book of
Acts provide the correct answer to this question beyond possi-
bility of reasonable doubt!
The question before us here is this: Are we justified in ac-
I cepting human emotions and experiences as .reliable sources of
information concerning the Holy Spirit and His work? I answer
emphatically, No: for the following reasons:
32
1. There is no support for this type of “theology” in the New
Testament. There is not the slightest ground anywhere in Scrip-
ture for the assumption that the human mind itsel€ is incapable “
of responding to the Gospel message; that is to say, that a special
operation o€ the Spirit is required, in addition to the preaching
of the Gospel, to quicken the mind into receptivity. On the con-
trary, we are told explicitly that “the gospel is the power of
God unto salvation to every one that believeth” (Rom. 1: 16) ;
not just a power, mind you, nor one of t h e powers, but THE
power of God unto salvation. Similarly we are told that “belief
cometh of hearing, and hearing by the word of Christ” (Rom,
10:17). The whole Christian missionary enterprise has, from
the very beginning, been predicated on the fact that where there
is no Gospel message, no Bible to be read, no Gospel to be
preached and heard, there can be no faith, no conversion to
Christ. (1 Cor. l:Zl, Rom. 10:14-15, 1 Thess. 2:13, etc.). Cf.
Rom. 10: 6-10: here we are told expressly that “the righteousness
which is of faith” asks not for a special manifestation of Christ,
either from heaven above or by a return from the dead, but
trusts in the word of faith, which is always near at hand for
reception into the heart (Cf. 1 Cor, 15:l-8, Luke 16:29-31).
There is no evidence anywhere in Scripture to indicate that any
faculties are imparted to the human mind in conversion, or any
old ones annihilated. The renovation of the human intellect,
or purification of the human heart, is not effected by the creation
of new faculties or affections. What does happen in conversion
is that a new Object (a Person, the Lord Jesus Christ Himself,
the One Altogether Lovely) is presented to the faculties, affec-
tions, and volitions of men; this new Object apprehends and
engages the powers of the human understanding, captivates the
affection of the human being, and consequently directs or draws
the whole man into new aims, endeavors, and pursuits. (Cf,
John 12: 32, Rom. 2:4,2 Cor, 7:10). Whatever quickening of the
mind or heart that may take place at the beginning of conversion
is accomplished by the entrance of the Word, because the Spirit
is in the Word and His Spirit-power is exercised through the
Word, (Cf. Psa. 119:130, 119:105; John 6:63). There is not one
iota of Scripture evidence that the Holy Spirit ever effected the
conversion of a single soul independeittly of the preaching or
hearing (or reading) of the Word; nor is there any evidence
that, in conversion, the Holy Spirit is compelled t o operate in
addition to the Word. On the contrary, throughout the New
Testament, the Gospel is presented as a great amnesty proclama-
33
’ \
I tion to all people on specific terms. These terms are belief in
Christ, repentance from sin, confession of Christ, and baptism
into Christ (Matt. 16: 16, John 20: 30-31, Acts 16:31, Rom.
10: 9-10, Luke 13: 3, 2 Cor. 7: 10, Matt. 10:32-33, Acts 2:38, Gal.
3: 26-27, Rev. 22: 17).
2. In the second place, observation proves that this type of
“theology” thrives largely among the more emotionally con-
trolled persons. The more ignorant a man is, the more super-
stitious he is; and the more superstitious, the more susceptible
he is to all forms of religious fanaticism. Orgiastic and ecstatic
cults have flourished in all ages, and particularly in the ancient
pagan world (as in the Dionysiac, Orphic, and Mithraic “mystery
religions”) . So-called “Holiness” cults of modern times follow
the same general psychological patterns of emotional intensity
and frenzy.
3. In the third place, modern psychic resenrch has proved
that the extremes of emotion oftentimes brought on b y a un-
disciplined revivalism can be induced in a setting that i s wholly
non-religious in character. The facts of hypnosis and auto-
hypnosis are too well-known today to be questioned. Men do
have the power to hypnotize other persons, even to reduce them
to a state of catalepsy; and men do under certain psychological
conditions hypnotize themselves. Such phenomena have been
demonstrated independently of any religious setting. The simple
fact is that the person who goes into a trance is self-hypnotized.
As a matter of fact all the phenomena of emotional revivalism
can be explained an purely psychic grounds.
4. In the fourth place, persons who follow the leading of
their emotions exclusively, in the matter of religious experience,
soon become fanatics. They become proud and puffed u p in their
own conceits, and utterly blind to their own faults. I knew a
man one time who was a master at inducing trances in revival
meetings, and who prayed at home so long and loudly that he
kept his neighbors awake into the wee small hours of the morn-
ing. It was discovered later that he was responsible for the dis-
appearance of a number of luscious hams from his neighbors’
smokehouses. As a pioneer evangelist once put it: There are
two classes of church members to be watched,-the petrified
who are dried up and ready to be blown away, and the sanctified
(that is, the “perfectionists”), who have quit worshiping God
and gdne to worshiping themselves.
5. In the fifth place, there can be n o reason for thinking
that the Ho1.y’Spirit is the author of all the conflicting experi-
34
GENBRAI, INTRODUCTION
ences and “revelations” which men have claimed for themselves,
Practically all the isms and cults abroad in the world to-day
are justified by their protagonists on the ground that they had
their origin in “religious experience,” that is, in some special
“revelation” or “illumination” from the Spirit of God, If this
be true why in the name oi reason are they so contradictory?
Surely the Holy Spirit does not “inspire” or “illumine” one man
to preach up Lutheranism for example, and another at the same
time to preach it down. Men who uphold the isms of denomina-
tional Christianity certainly are not prompted to do so by the
Holy Spirit, The Holy Spirit is the Author of order, not of dis-
cord o r disunity. It is sheer blasphemy to attribute all the con-
iusion and denominationalism oi present-day Christianity to the
Spirit of God, The same argument holds good with respect to the
religious delusions and cults which are abroad in the earth; the
great majority of them have had their origin in alleged special
revelation3 from God. Joseph Smith, “the Prophet,’‘ claimed a
special revelation from God as a result of which we have the
Mormon hierarchy, Mrs. Ellen G. White claimed to have had a
special revelation in which she saw an angel pointing to the
Fourth Commandment; and on the strength of this alleged reve-
lation she founded Seventh-day Adventism. Mrs. Eddy was
forever hearing “voices,” which, together with the manuscripts
of the professional mesmerist, Phineas P. Quimby, gave her in-
spiration to establish the system which she labeled “Christian
Science,’’ and provided her as well with the content, substantial-
ly, of her textbook, Science and Health. (It is very doubtful
that Mrs. Eddy was sufficiently educated to have known that the
basic propositions of her system are Berkeleian and Hegeliaa.)
Emanuel Swedenborg claimed that when he was about 46 years
old (in the year 1744, to be exact) the perceptive powers of his
spirit were suddenly energized, and that from that time on until
his death in 1772 he enjoyed habitual intercourse with the spirit-
ual world and its inhabitants. In his various works he has
given us elaborate descriptions of heaven, hell, and what he
calls the intermediate “world of spirits.” All this, of course, is
in striking contrast to the reticence of Jesus respecting the
character and conditions of the after-life. As a matter of fact,
neither Jesus nor the Apostles had much to say about heaven
or hell, except to assert the fact of their existence; the former
they describe as a condition of union with God, and the latter
a state of complete separation from-or loss of-God (2 Thess,
1:7-10). No doubt the reason for this reticence is the fact that
35
THE ETERNAL SFIRIT -HIS’ PERSON AND POWERS
w a g e is utterly inadequate to depict either the re-
11 or the bliss o€ heaven; hence in the rare instances
in which the $NewTestament writers do attempt to portray either
state, the Spirit resorts to “pictorializing”: heaven is desc as
the holy city, the city that lieth four-square, whose walls, a-
tions and gates are constructed of all manner of precious stones,
etc.; and hell, on the other hand, is pictured as “the lake that
burneth with fire and brimstone, which is the second death,’’ etc.
(Rev. 21: 8, 21: 9-27, 22: 1-5). (Of course, if this is “figurative,”
may our good Lord deliver us from the real thing!)
Mohammed, the camel driver of Mecca, was another who
claimed to have been the recipient of special revelations, the
first of which occurred in the year 610; he heard (so his disciples
were persuaded to believe), a heavenly voice commanding him
to convey a message. From that time on to his death, Mohammed,
we are told, never doubted that he was in immediate contact
with God, and whenever circumstances called for an authorita-
tive word, revelations were forthcoming. Hence the Koran
(principal form of the verb, “recite thou,” and meaning “that
which is recited”), the sacred book of Islam, is literally the col-
lection of the “inspired” utterances of the “Prophet,” which he
was ordered by Allah to “recite” to his people. Dowieism, Spirit-
ualism, “Pentecostal Missions,” “Truth Centers,” “Foursquare
Gobpels,” and like impostures are invariably founded on claims
of special operations of the Holy Spirit, special “inspiration,”
“illumination,” or “revelation,” It is sheer nonsence, I repeat,
if not actual blasphemy, to attribute all this ’ eonfusion to the
Holy Spirit, who is the Author of peace and concord only. Be-
sides, we are told explicitly, in the New Testament, that revela-
tion ended with the Apostles, and that demonstration came to
an end along with it; that in the New Testament revelation, and
canoq “all things that pertain until life and godliness’’ (2 Pet.
have been given. The New Testament presents to our
s and hearts “the faith which was once for all delivered
unto. the saints” (Jude 3). All this being true, we may be cer-
tain, it seems to, me, that any one who has come before the
world since the days of the Apostles, claiming to have been the
recipient of a special revelation from God, is an impostor on
the face of it.
For all these reasons, therefore, and others to which I shall
omit calling attention here, I reject human experience as a
proper source of information regarding the Holy Spirit and His
36
work. As the proper means to such an end human experience
~ is simply unreliable,
We might ask, in this connection, What is a genuine Chris-
1 tian experience? To this question, 1 reply (1) that the funda-
mental criterion of such an experience is that it be in harmony
with the teaching of the Word of God, and (2) that the essence
of such an experience is in the joint testimony of the Divine
I Spirit and the human spirit. As the Apostle Paul puts it: “For
as many as are led by the Spirit of God, these are the sons of
God. For ye received not the spirit of bondage again unto fear;
but ye received the spirit of adoption, whereby we cry, Abba,
Father, The Sprit himself beareth witness with our spirit, that
we are children of God: and if children, then heirs; heirs of God,
and joint-heirs with Christ” (Rom. 8:14-17). Note well that
the Spirit of God does not testify to the human spirit, but that
the Divine Spirit testifies with the human spirit, to one and the
same fact, viz,, that the human individual is a child of God.
This, again, is in harmony with the nature of things: “For who
among men knoweth the things of a man, save the spirit of the
man, which is in him? even so the things of God none knoweth,
save the Spirit of God” (1 Cor, 2 : l l ) . The Holy Spirit testi-
fies, as always, by means of the Word of God; in the Word,
He makes overtures to us and states the terms whereby we may
be received into covenant relationship with God the Father.
T h e human spirit, that is, the human being, knows beyond per-
adventure, and testifies, as to whether or not he has complied
with the terms. The Holy Spirit tells us to believe; man’s spirit
tells him whether he does believe. The Holy Spirit tells us t o
repent of our sins; man’s spirit tells him whether he has re-
pented, Vie Holy Spirit tells us to confess Christ and to be
baptized into Christ; man’s spirit tells him whether he has made
the Good Confession, whether he has been obedient from the
heart unto the pattern of teaching (Rom. 6:17, 1 Cor. 15:l-4),
i.e., baptism, which exemplifies before the world the facts of
the death, burial, and resurrection of Christ. In the Word, the
Scripture, the Holy Spirit tells man what to do to lead the
Spiritual Life, and man’s spirit tells him whether he is following
{he leading of the Spiyit and the Word; that is, his spirit tells
him this, on condition that he studies to show himself approved
unto God, and so cultivates in himself the mind which was in
Christ Jesus (Phil. 2:5, 2 Tim. 2:15, I Pet. 2:2, 2 Pet., 3:18).
Studies what? The Word, of course. KnowIedge of the Word
as communicated by the Spirit will inform him as to the es-
37
sentials of Christian worship and the fruit of the Spiritual Life
(cf. Acts 2: 42, Gal. 5: 22-25, 1 Cor. 16: 1-4) What more need he
ask for?
For example, the Holy Spirit tells us, through the apostolic
testimony, what t o do to receive pardon, namely, to believe on
the Lord Jesus, t o repent, to confess Him before witnesses, to
be baptized into Him for remission of sins. Acts 16: 31-“Believe
on the Lord Jesus, and thou shalt be saved,” etc. On the great
Day of Pentecost, some three thousand persons cried out unto
Peter and the rest of the Apostles, asking what they should do
to be saved. What was the answer? Acts 2:38-‘(Repent ye, and
be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ unto
the remission of your sins,” etc. On condition of their meeting
these terms they were also promised the indwelling Spirit Him-
self. This, f o r t h e present writer, is sufficient: it is the Word,
authorized by the Spirit of God. Do I need, then, that the Lord
send me a special telegram to convince me that the letter is
genuine and that the promise of God will be fulfilled? I think
not. Faith takes God at His Word. The sin of the church in all
ages has been that of belittling, downgrading, even ignoring
the Word of God. What a shame!
No man can deny the testimony of his own spirit. He may
deceive his fellows, but he cannot deceive either the Spirit of
God or the spirit that is within himself. Hence a genuinely
Christian experience consists in the joint testimony of these
two witnesses. And the joy which attends such an experience,
and one’s subsequent growth in grace and in the knowledge of
our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, rests upon a sure foundation.
An experience contrary to the Word of God cannot be a true
Christian experience.
W h a t , then, i s the only reliable source of information for
us respecting t h e Holy Spirit and His work? My answer is:
T h e Bible and the Bible alone.
The Bible is the Book of the Spirit. It is the only Book of
the Spirit. In the Bible we find, not what men have written
about the Holy Spirit and His work, but what the Holy Spirit
Himself has seen fit to reveal to us respecting His being and His
operations, “But we received,” s’ays Paul, ‘hot the spirit of the
world, but the spirit which is from God; that we might know the
things that were freely given to us of God. Which things also
we speak, not in words which man’s wisdom teacheth, but which
the Spirit teacheth: combining spiritual things with spiritual
words” (1 Cor. 2: 12, 13) ; that is, revealing spiritual realities
38
in spiritual language, The Bible claims to be the record of a
revelation from God, vouchsafed us by the agency of the Spirit
through the instrumentality of men qualified (by inspiration of
the Spirit) for the task thus set before them, This revelation,
and the record of it, was begun through holy men of old, inspired
by the Spirit; it was perfected in Jesus, the Incarnate Word,
who possessed the Spirit without measure; and it was completed
by the Apostles, who were guided into all the truth by the same
Spirit “sent forth from heaven” (1 Pet. l:lZ), As the Bible is
the only book known to mankind claiming the Holy Spirit for
its Author, we must certainly go to the Bible and the Bible alone
for whatever knowledge we may have, or may hope to have, of
the Spirit and His work, In fact, without the Bible, we should
scarcely know that there is a Holy Spirit.
For the sake of emphasis, we repeat, is it not in accordance
with the very nature of things as we know them that revelation
should be, in a special sense, a work of the Spirit of God? How
indeed could it be otherwise if our Heavenly Father is a per-
sonal God? “For,” as Paul puts it,
who ainoiig men lrnoweth the things of a man, save the spirit of the
man, which is in him? even s9 the things of God none lmoweth, save
the Spirit of God (1Cor. 2:11).
Again: (‘For the Spirit searcheth all things, yea, the deep,
things of God” (1 Cor. 2:lO). To the Spirit of God we are im-
mediately indebted for all that is known, or knowable, of God,
of the unseen world, or of the ultimate destinies of men. All
that ancient or modern pagans pretend to have known or to
know of these sublime topics, has either been borrowed from the
oracles of the Revealer of secrets, or else is mere conceit or
conjecture of their own making. The simple fact is, that the
truth to be believed by man respecting his own origin, constitu-
tion, and proper ends, could never have been known but by
revelation oi‘ the Sprit. How profoundly thankful we should be,
then, that our God has not left us in darkness, in that gross
darkness in which heathen nations are still struggling and suf-
fering, but has, by His Spirit, revealed His plan for our salvation
so clearly that the wayfaring man, though a fool, need not err
the rein!
Now to him t h a t is able to establish you according to m y gospel
and the preaching o€ Jesus Christ, according to the revelation of t h e
mystery which hath been kept in silence through times eternal, but
now is manifested, and by the scriptures of the prophets, according
to the commandment of the eternal God, is made known unto all t h e
39
nations unto obedience of faith: t o the only wise God, through Jesus
Christ, to whom be the glory for ever. Amen. (Rom. 16325-27).
A final word here, in passing, regarding the significance of
feeling in Christian faith and practice. Christianity is pre-
eminently the religion of joy that comes from love and service
toward God and toward our fellows. H e who puts feeling before
the doing puts the cart before the horse. We are reminded of
the story of the farmer who, one wintry day, was passing his
neighbor’s stretch of timberland afoot, and seeing the latter
standing knee deep in the snow at the base of a tree with an
axe in his hand, shouted ‘(Isthere anything the matter, neighbor?”
“nothing at all,” was the reply. “Then why do you stand there
in the snow doing nothing?” “Oh,” replied the other, “I am
waiting to get warm. When I do get warm, I’ll cut down this
tree.” “Silly fellow,’’ said the passer-by, after a pause, “Why
don’t you light in and start chopping, and you’ll soon get warm!”
The point is that both Scripture and experience confirm the fact
that feeling good follows the doing good. Christianity, again we
say, is par excellence the religion of joy; the Christian faith is
the truly triumphant faith. “This is the victory that hath over-
come the world, even our faith” (1 John 5:4). I do not find
‘in Scripture any statement to the effect that “he that believeth
and feeleth alright shall be saved.” The question always asked
is, “What must I do?” (Acts 2: 38, 11:14, 16:30, 22: 10). More-
over, in all these cases of conversion reported to us in Acts, in
which special mention is made of rejoicing, it should be noted
that the rejoicing is, without exception, said to have followed
baptism (Acts 2: 41ff.; 8: 18, 12; 8: 39; 16: 14-15; 16: 30-34; cf.
9:17, 18). Why so? Obviously, because it was made clear in
apostolic preaching that pardon, remission, justification, etc.,
follows, but does not precede, baptism. Hence, in accord with
John 3: 3-7 and Matt. 28: 19-20, Christian baptism is Scripturally
designated the “washing of regeneration’’ (Tit. 3: 5 ) .
7. The Language of the Spirit

In the Book of Nature, as it has already been stated, we
may find revealed God’s “everlasting power and divinity.”
Psa. 19:1, 2-The heavens declare the glory of God; And the
firmament showeth his handiwork. Day unto day uttereth speech, and
night‘ unto night showeth knowledge. Fsa. 8:3, 4-When I consider
thy heavens, the work of thy fingers, The moon and the stars, which
thou hast ordained; What is man, t h a t thou a r t mindful of him? And
40
the son of man, that thou visitest him? Psa. 89:S-And the heavens
shall praise thy wonders, 0 Jehovah, Rom. 1 :20--Bor the invisible
things o f him since the creation of the world are clearly seen, being
perceived through the things that are made, even his everlasting power
and divinity,
This natural revelation, however, is insufficient to meet all the
needs of man’s nature, Neither human reason nor intuition
can throw much light on certain matters the knowledge of which
i s indispensable to man’s quest for salvation and to his attain-
ment of his natural and proper end, which is ultimate union
with God in knowledge and love, Beatitude, the Life Everlasting.
Among such matters are the following: the tripersonality of
God, atonement, pardon or remission of sin, the proper means
and modes of worship, survival after death, and personal im-
mortality. Man is a creature. He has nothing to do with his
being in the world, and very little to do with his going out of it;
and while he is in the world, he is completely dependent upon
Nature and Nature’s God for the food that he eats, the water
that he drinks, the air that he breathes, and even the very
ground on which he walks, Moreover, man is imperfect; he is
in sin, and he knows it; no honest person would ever think of
denying the fact. Man is in sin, and natural religion is power-
less to point the way out. The tenets of natural religion are
at best but guesses at the riddles of the universe.
Natural revelation fails utterly to make known to us the
higher attributes of Spirit. Professor Wm. James has well said:
If there be a divine Spirit of the universe, nature, such as we
know her, can not possibly be its ultimate word to man. Either there
is no Spirit revealed in nature, or else it is inadequately revealed there;
and, as a11 the higher religions have assumed, what we call visible
nature, or this world, must be a veil or surface-show whose full meaning
resides in a supplementary unseen or other wor1d.l
In view, therefore, of the inadequacy of natural revelation,
the special revelation of God’s love and mercy, in the unfolding
of the divine Plan of Redemption for man, became a necessity.
This revelation complements, confirms, and enlarges the knowl-
edge of God that is to be derived from nature. It remedies the
defects of, and throws light upon, the problems of natural re-
ligion, The character of this final revelation was that of a con-
tinuous historical development; that is to say, it was-and is-
progressive: “first the blade, then the ear, then the full grain
1. Wm. James, art., “Is Life Worth Living?” in I~ztenzat~oiza~
Jourizal of Etlzics, Oct., 1895. Quoted by A. H. Strong, Systernntic Tlieol-
ogy, One-Volume Edition, p. 111.
41
in the ear” (Mark 428), In early ages, it was given only in
germ, then was more fully unfolded as the race became better
prepared to receive it. It will be consummated in the ultimate
production of a holy redeemed race-the final phase of the
whole Creative Process.
This revelation was wrought out first in the arena of human
history. It embraced such events as the following: (1) the
mysterious oracle that the Seed of the Woman should bruise
the Serpent’s head (Gen. 3:15),’ (2) the lives and experiences
of the antediluvians, especially those of the line of Seth, (3)
the Call of Abraham and the Abrahamic Promise, (4) the or-
ganization of the Hebrew Theocracy under Moses, ( 5 ) the work
of the Hebrew Prophets culminating in the ministry of John
the Baptizer, (6) the sequence of typical and allegorical events
and institutions of the entire Old Covenant which had only “a
shadow of the good things to come, not the very image of the
things’’ themselves (Heb. 10: 1) , (7) the Incarnation, Ministry,
Miracles, Atoning Death, Resurrection, and Ascension of the
Messiah, (8) the descent of the Holy Spirit on Pentecost and
the incorporation of the Body of Christ, ahd (9) the subsequent
preaching of the Gospel for a testimony unto all the nations
(Matt. 24:14). Whereas the record of this revelation came to an
end with the apostolic writings, the revelation itself goes on,
in the lives of the saints. As the personal Christ was the in-
carnation of God in the world, so, throughout the present
Dispensation, the Church is the incarnation of Christ. As Paul,
writing of all Christians, puts it: “Ye are our epistle, written
in our hearts, known and read of all men.” To this he adds:
being made manifest that ye are an epistle of Christ, ministered by us,
written not with ink, but with the Spirit of the living God; not in
tables of stone, but in tables that a r e hearts of flesh ( 2 Cor. 3:2, 3).
Or,as some have stated the same fundamental truths, from Adam
to Abraham we have the Gospel in the purpose of God, at best
only in intimation; from Abraham to Isaiah, we have the Gospel
in promise, that is, in the Abrahamic Promise; from Isaiah to
Malachi, we have the Gospel in prophecy; throughout the per-
sonal ministry of Jesus, we have it in preparation; but since
Pentecost A.D. 30, we have the Gospel in fact. The facts of the
we are told expressly, are the death, burial and resur-
of Christ (1 Cor. 15:l-4). These facts were proclaimed
1. Jesus of Nazareth is the only Person who ever came before the
world claiming t o be the Seed of a Woman exclusively. Never in all
His teaching does he refer to anyone but God Himself as His Father.
42
for the first time as !acts on the Day of Pentecost, at the inaugu-
ration of the New Institution, the Christian System (Acts 2:22-
36) The truth to be rcmembered especially is that all the events
in this divine unfolding have been, or are being, wrought in the
fields of human activity and history.
Now in coilsidering this progressive revelation, there is also
the record of it to be considered. “Revelation” is a term which
as we use it, may have reference either (1) to the series of
pertinent events in themselves, that is, the events in the unfold-
ing of ihe divine Plan of Redemption throughout human history;
or (2) to the record which embraces the description of those
events and the disclosure of their significance for man, This
record, as it has already been made clear, has been embodied
by the agency of the Spirit of God, through the instrumentality
of inspired men, in written and accessible documents. These
documents, some sixty-six in all, constitute our Bible. This we
may properly designate the secondary or documentary, as dis-
tinguished from the historical, revelation,
This documentary revelation is, moreover, the product of
inspiration. Inspiration is the name given to that activity of
the Spirit whereby He has communicated to us the Thought of
God (which is the expression of the Will of God) essential to
our salvation and to the attainment of our ultimate end, and has
in addition supervised the embodiment of that Thought in the
written documents which make up our Bible, thereby guaran-
teeing the trustworthiness of those documents, The ’word “in-
spire” itself derives from the Latin verb, inspiro, the infinitive
form of which is i n s p i m w , meaning “to breathe into.” The great-
est literary works of all time are, despite their excellence, but
the products of human genius. Scripture, on the other hand, is
unique: it is God-breathed literature.
2 Tim. 3:16, 17-Every scripture inspired of God is also profitable
f o r teaching, f o r reproof, f o r correction, f o r instruction wliich is i n
righteousness ; t h a t t l x nian of God may be complete, furnished com-
pletely unto every good work 1 Thess. 2:13--And €or this cause we
also thank God without ceasing, ihat, wlieii ye received froin US the
word o i the message, even the word of God, ye accepted it not as the
word of men, but, as i t is in truth, the word of God, which also worketh
in you t h a t believe.
It is not my intention to put forward here any particular
theory of inspiration, That subject hardly comes within the
scope of the present treatise. Suffice it so say, however, in this
connection, that inspiration may, in the first place, have issued
forth in the revelation of new truth to mankind. It may, in the
43
second place, have brought about, the quic
minds to recall and to properly interpret t r
municated. This latter phenomenon we call i
of these functions are clearly indicated in the words of Jesus
to the Apostles:
But the Comforter, even the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send
in my name, he shall teach you all things, and bring to ,your remem-
brance all t h a t I said unto you (John 14:261).
Again:
Howbeit when he, t h e Spirit of truth, is come, he shall guide you into
all the t r u t h ; f o r he shall not speak from himself; but what things
soever he shall hear, these shall he speak; and he shall declare unto
you the things t h a t a r e to come. He shall slorify me: for he shall take
of mine, and shall declare it unto you (John 16:13,14).
Or again, inspiration may, in the third place, signify only a
supervisory activity sufficient to guarantee the inspired writer
against error. In Luke’s Gospel, for example, we have an in-
stance of supervisory inspiration. Luke states expressly that
his work is essentially a history; that he has obtained the mate-
rial which he presents from those “who from the beginning were
eyewitnesses and ministers of the word.” And at the close of
his Preface he vouches in no uncertain terms for the trust-
worthiness of what he writes. He says:
It seemed good t o me also, having traced the course of all things
accurately from the first, to write unto thee in order, most excellent
Theophilus ; t h a t thou rnightest lcnow the certainty concerning the things
wherein thou wast instmeted (Luke 1 :1-4).
In any case, inspiration is fundamentally the guarantee of trust-
worthiness, and is to be evaluated not so much from the view-
point of method as from that of r It. It is the warrant
infallibility of the inspired writer of the trustworthi
his writings.
Obviously, then, it is in accord with the nature of things
that both revelation, especially in its documentary form, and the
inspirution whereby that revelation was handed down to man,
should have been distinctively the work of the Spirit of God.
Again, as the Apostle Paul puts it, “For who among men knoweth
the things of a man, save the spirit of the man, which is in him?
even so the things of God none knoweth, save the Spirit of God”
(1 Cor. 2:ll). Moreover, in the very nature of the case, the
communication of God’s Thought to man must have been ac-
complished through the medium of words, which, in their proper
and meaningful arrangements, constitute language, Indeed, lan-
44
GENERAL JNTROI~UCTION
guage is the only known means of cominunication among persons,
exclusive of course of such inferior and spatially limited means
as facial expressions, gestures, etc. (It naturally follows that the
Spirit o i God, who is pure Person, Le., incorporeal, would not
employ such means, because they are essentially of a corporeal
character.) Even communication i n the form of suggestion, from
one subconscious mind to another, as, e.g., from a hypnotist t o
his subject, has to be in words, The words or commands may be
expressed vocally or sub-vocally: in any case the suggestion
must be formulated in words. Hence, if Scripture was com-
municated t o man by inspiration of the Spirit, that communica-
lion must have been made through the medium of words, and
it follows that the language in which the revelation was given
originally must have been the language of the Spirit. By the
same token, it is the Word of God. This, precisely, is the claim
which the Holy Spirit Himself makes for His own Book.
It is well and good to assert that by inspiration only the
Thought of God was imparted, I am utterly at a loss, however,
to understand how thought-on any level of being-can be com-
municated except by means of words. This is precisely what the
Apostle Paul affirms:
We rise., the Apostles] yeceived, not tlie spirit of the world, but
the spirit which is froin God: that we might Itnow the things t h a t were
freely given to us of God. Which things also we speak, not in words
wliich man’s wisdom teacheth, but which the Spirit teacheth ; coinbining
spiritual things with spiritual words (1 Cor. 2:12, 13).
That is to say, spiritual realities are made known to man, insofar
as they can be made known in human language, by means of
the proper words or symbols chosen by the Revealer, the Spirit
of God. And is not this equally true of the converse operation
of the Spirit? Are we not told that the Spirit of God, who in-
dwells the Christian, takes the unutterable longings and petitions
of the latter’s spirit, bears them up to the Throne of Grace, and
presents them to the Heavenly Father in the language appro-
priate to heavenly communication?
Rom. 8:26, 27-And in like nianner the Spirit also helpetli our
infirmity: for we know not Iiow to pray a s we ought; but the Spirit
1iimselP malteth intercession for us with groanings which cannot be
uttered; and he that searcheth the hearts ltnoweth what is the mind of
the Spirit, because he malceth iiitercessjon for the saints according to
the will of God.
In view of these facts, it must be concluded that tlie language
in which God’s revelation was embodied originally is the language
of the Spirit and therefore the word of God. “No prophecy,” we
45
are told, “ever came by will of man: but men spake from God,
being moved by the Holy Spirit” (2 Pet. 1:21), And in this
epistle addressed to the young preacher, Timothy, Paul affirms
that “every scripture inspired of God is also profitable for teach-
ing, f o r reproof, for correction, for instruction which is in right-
eousness, that the man of God may be complete, furnished com-
pletely unto every good work” (2 Tim. 3:16, 17). And to the
Thessalonian Christians, the Apostle writes: “We thank God
without ceasing that, when ye received from us the word of the
message, even the word of God, ye accepted it not as the word
of men, but, as it is in truth, the word of God, which also
worketh in you that believe” (1Thess. 2: 13).
In view of all these Scripture passages, how important it is
that Christians of both pulpit and pew should under all circurn-
stances “hold the pattern of sound words,” that is, call Bible
things by Bible names, as the Apostle expressly charges them
to do. “Hold the pattern of sound words,” he says, “which thou
hast heard from me, in faith and love which is in Christ Jesus”
(2 Tim. 1:13). But-sad to say!-the Church on earth, though
divinely obligated to be “the salt of the earth,” “the light of
the world,” the “city set on a hill” (Matt. 5:13, 14), and “the
pillar and ground of the truth” (1 Tim. 3:15), has failed to
heed this apostolic injuction. For her history shows that in all
ages she has been guilty of tampering with the language of
the Spirit. The church has, in many instances, substituted trans-
literation for translation, thus obscuring the content of the
original revelation; and she has repeatedly adulterated that
content by “interpreting” it in terms and phrases of Greek
philosophical thought, The net results are the creeds and di-
visions of modern Christendom.
Anyone familiar with the “gobbledygook” resulting from
the early development of Christian “theology” knows that the
favorite pastime of Latin writers, and of Latin ecclesiastical
writers especially, was that of taking over words bodily, so to
speak, from the Greek language into the Latin; whence by the
same process these words ultimately made their way into Eng-
lish versions of the Bible. Take the Greek word presbyteros,
for example. Anyone who has a smattering of Greek knows that
this word never meant anything in that language but “an older
man” or “elder.” This is true of the word in both classical and
ecclesiastical Greek. And it is so translated correctly, in Acts
11:30, Acts 20:17, 1 Tim. 5:19, and elsewhere. But for some
strange reason, in 1 Tim. 4:14, the kindred word presbyterion
46
GBNDRAL INTRODUCTION
is rendered “presbytery.” Here, obviously, the word is trans-
literated and not translated at all (probably as a concession to
Ilie Latin transliterated word, pnxbyterium) , Had the word
been translated it would read, as it should, the “eldership,”
There is really no justification f o r tlie appearance of the word
“presbytery” in tlie New Testament. Another example ol the
case in point is the Greek word epislcopos. This word derives
from the verb epislcopeo, which means literally, “I look out
upon,” or “oversee.” Hence, episkopos, if translated, would
simply mean “overseer,” and nothing else. It was transliterated,
however, into the Latin as espiscopus, then vulgarized into
ebiscopus, whence in the course of time, and solely by the
process of transliteration, by way of the Anglo-Saxon bisceop,
arose our English word “bishop.” A third and probably the
most outstanding example of the substitution of transliteration
for translation is in the case of the Greek verb, bnptizo. It
never means anything in Greek but “dip,” “immerse,” or
metonymically, “overwhelm,” and should be translated wherever
it occurs. But, unfortunately, it was not translated, either into
the Latin or into the English. In every case it has been trans-
literated, the Greek baptizo becoming the Latin baptixo (which
appears frequently in Tertullian, Augustine, Hieronymus, and
others) , and ultimately our English word “baptize.” The result
has been untold, and wholly unnecessary, confusion and contro-
versy.
Language is of course the only means of communication
among persons. At the same time, however, the improper use
of language is often a source of great confusion. And nowhere
is this more obvious than in Christian theology. Take, for ex-
ample, the Greek word ekkZ5sia. In the original it means “an
assembly of citizens summoned [called out] by the crier,” It
is the word used invariably in classical Greek for the so-called
popular assembly of the Greek city-state, of which the New
England town meeting might be cited as the modern counterpart.
It should therefore be translated the “assembly,” “community,”
“society,” etc. that is, of Christians. HOW,then, did the word
“church” come to be used for the Greek ekklPsia? Evidently
the word “church” came into our language from Teutonic
sources (Old Teutonic, kirika; Old English, cirice; Modern High
German, Icirche) . With the conversion of the Teutonic nations
the word “church” was assumed as the proper equivalent of
the Greek ekklEsia and Latin ecclesia, and therefore appears in
all English versions of the New Testament. Fortunately, this
47
happens to be a case in which the substitute word is not alto-
gether unsatisfactory, although it must be admitted that the
original ekklzsia had not the faintest connotation of hierarchical
institutionalisa which has come to be associated in denomina-
tional Christianity with the English word “church.” A case may
be cited, however, in which the appropriated word is v.ery un-
satisfactory, namely, that of the word “ghost,” as in the “Holy
Ghost” of the Authorized version. Now our English word
“spirit” comes directly from the Latin spiTitus, which the Latin
writers used for the rendering of the Hebrew rziach and Greek
p n e u m a . The word “ghost” is, however, from Teutonic sources
(Old Frisian, gast; Old English, gaest; Old Dutch, geest; modern
High German, geist.) The word was rarely used prior to the
middle of the sixteenth century, but after that time came to be
used in English versions as the conventional equivalent for the
Latin spii‘itus, especially in passages in which the sense is that
of a “blast” or “breath.” But “Holy Ghost’’ is misleading as a
name for the Spirit of God; hence the superiority of the Ameri-
can Revised Version with its rendering, “Holy Spirit.”’
But perhaps the greatest iniquity committed by churchmen
against the language of the Spirit has been that of corrupting
it with terms and phrases borrowed from the ancient Greek
philosophical systems, chiefly Platonism, Aristotelianism and
Neoplatonism. Th‘g ’%usiW,% began with Origen, who seems
to have been as ‘much of a Neoplatonist as a Christian. It was
zealously pursued by Augustine, who was so enamored of
Neoplatonism that he insisted upon “interpreting” Scripture
passages in terms of the Neoplatonic nomenclature. The busi-
ness reached its climax, however, in the Scholastic philosophy
and theology of the Middle Ages, which was basically Ayistotelian,
even though clothed in the outer garments of Christian thought.
The net result of all this intermingling of pagan and Christian
thought was speculative ‘theology, creed-making, apostasy, divi-
sion and denominationalism, much of which survives to our own
day. I am convinced that had the theologians heeded the in-
junction of the Apostle Paul to “hold the pattern of sound words,”
much of this confusion would have been avoided, and that to
the unifying of the Church and to the glory of God.
Attention has already been called to the fact of the inade-
quacy of human language as a vehicle for divine revelation.
1. F o r the etymology of these words, see A New Et/glislc Dictioirtr?y:
071Histovied Przkciples, edited by Sir James Murray. Clarendon Press,
Oxford, 1888-1028. Commonly called “The Oxford English Dictiorlary.”
48
GBNORAL INTRODUCTION
And especially in the realm of pure Spirit, which is that of the
very being of God, there must inhere a great many mysteries
which lie too deep for words. How great, then, must have been
the difficulties which the Holy Spirit faced when first He essayed
to reveal to men something of the nature of His own being and
activity! Obviously the communication had to be made, in the
first place, in the language of the people to whom it was to be
addressed. And in the second place it had to be made in words
and terms sufficiently simple for them to comprehend, that is,
if the revelation was to be of any value to them. Certainly there
was one thing-be it said in all reverence-which the Holy Spirit
could not do: He could not find a word in any language that
would convey to their minds a mental image of Himself. For a
mental image of a purely spiritual ( i e . , noncorporeal or non-
physical) entity would be a contradiction, both in terms and
in fact. In view of this fact there seems to have been one course,
and only one, open to Him: and that was to resort to metaphors,
to metaphors that would have meaning, in the light of their
own experience, for those receiving the revelation. This is
precisely what the Spirit did. He selected words that would
convey to their minds, in a metaphor, some conception, however
inadequate, of the nature of His own being and activity. He
selected the Hebrew word ruach, and later the Greek word
pneuma, both of which in their crude meaning signify “wind”
and “breath.” These metaphors have no allusion of course to the
Divine essence; they are but the imagery by which the Holy
Spirit has seen fit to represent to us the character of His presence
and approach to men.
By means of the metaphor, Wind, the Holy Spirit teaches us
that His activity on occasion takes the character of an invasive
energy sweeping in upon men from the supernatural realm. This
was the character of His activity in the Creation, when He
“moved upon the face of the waters.” That is to say, by a
“brooding” and “stirring,” just like that of a great mother-bird,
He energized and impregnated the hitherto lifeless primordial
matter and brought it from chaos to cosmos. This was not in-
frequently the character of His activity when He “moved” or
“came mightily upon” *tribal and national leaders in ancient
times, to qualify them with superhuman powers needed to meet
emergencies.
E.g., Judg. 13:26-And the Spirit of Jehovah began t o move him
[Samson] in Mahaneh-dan. Judg. 14:B-And the Spirit of Jehovah
came mightily upon him [Samson], and he rent him [a young lion] as
49
he would have rent a kid; and he had nothing in his hand. Judg. 14:19--
And the Spirit of Jehovah came mightily upon him [Samson], and he
went down to Ashkelon, and smote thirty men of them, etc. Judg.
15:14, 15-When he came unto Lehi, the Philistines shouted as they
met him [Samson] ; and the Spirit of Jehovah came mightily upon
him, and the ropes that were upon his arms became as flax that was
burnt with fire, and his bands dropped from off his hands. And he
found a fresh jawbone of an ass, and put forth his hand, and took it,
and smote a thousand men therewith. 1 Sam. 10:6-And the Spirit of
Jehovah will come mightily upon thee [Saul], and thou shalt prophesy
with them, and shalt be turned into another man. 1 Sam. 10:lO-And
when they came thither to the hill, behold, a band of prophets met him
[Saul]; and the Spirit of God came mightily upon him, and he proph-
esied among them. 1 Sam. 1l:G-And the Spirit of God came mightily
upon Saul when he heard these words, and his anger was kindled
greatly. 1 Sam. 16:13--Then Samuel took the horn of oil, and anointed
him [David] in the midst of his brethren: and the Spirit of Jehovah
came mightily upon David from t h a t day forward.
This was likewise the character of His activity at the beginning
of the Regeneration, on the Day of Pentecost. The Apostles
“were all together in one place” somewhere in Jrusalem, prob-
ably in the Temple.
And suddenly there came from heaven a sound a s of the rushing
of a mighty wind, and it filled all the house where thev were sitting.
And there appeared unto them tongues parting asunder, like as of
f i r e ; and i t sat upon each of them. And they were all filled with the
Holy Spirit, and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave
them utterance (Acts 2 :1-4).
This was the fulfi of the promise of Jesus: “Ye shall re-
ceive power, when the Holy Spirit is come upon you, and ye
shall be my witnesses both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and
Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth” (Acts 3 : 8).
For the immediate result of this type of the Spirit’s activity
was invariably an energizing, either physical or mental or both.
And under this metaphor the Spirit is to be apprehended as the
Spirit of Power.
The metaphor, Breath, is especially meaningful. “The Holy
Spirit,” writes W. E. Biederwolf, ‘lis called ‘the breath of God’
with reference to His mode of subsistence, proceeding from God
as the breath from the mouth.”‘ By this metaphor, too, the
Holy Spirit makes it known to us that His activity is the source
of life-of all life, natural, spiritual, eternal. As long as one
continues to breathe, one is alive; but when breathing ceases,
one dies. Although the breath is not the source of natural life,
it is the manifestation or assurance thereof. Rut the activity
of the Spirit, as the Breath of God, is the source, as well as the
1. A Help t o the Stiiclu of tlic Holg Spigit. 18.
50
proof and pledge, of life on every level of being-in the Kingdom
of Nature, in the Kingdom of Grace, and in the Kingdom of
GIory. As EIihu said to Job: “The Spirit of God hath made me,
and the breath of the Almighty giveth me life” (Job 33: 4). The
“life” alluded to here, of course, is the natural life which man
enjoys in this present state. “He that hath the Son,” writes John,
“hath the life; he that hath not the Son of God hath not the life”
(1 John 5:12). Jesus Himself said: “Verily, verily, I say unto
you, He that heareth my word, and believeth him that sent me,
hath eternal life, and cometh not into judgment, but hath passed
out of death into life” (John 5:24). The “life” described in these
texts is that divine gift yhich is possessed by the Regeneration,
by those who have been “born again” into the Kingdom of Grace
(John 3: 3-5). This spiritual life, if properly cultivated and al-
lowed to fructify, will ultimately bud and blossom into the life
eternal. “He that soweth unto the Spirit,” says Paul, “shall of
the Spirit reap eternal life” (Gal. 6:8). Hence it is said of all
the saints that they are “sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise,”
which is the “earnest” of their inheritance, that inheritance
being the Life Everlasting (Eph. 1:13, 14). Thus the activity
of the indwelling Spirit is the pledge or surety of man’s attain-
ment of his proper ultimate ends.
Now, in Acts 9:1, we read that Saul of Tarsus, prior to his
conversion, was “breathing threatening and slaughter against
the disciples of the Lord” in Jerusalem. Just how was Saul thus
“breathing threatening and slaughter”? In words, most assuredly.
Breathing necessarily accompanies the propulsion of words from
the mouth; in fact the very breathing signifies that they are the
living words of a living person. In like manner, the Breath of
God issues forth with, and in, the living and life-giving Word
that proceeds out of the mouth of God. The Spirit and the Word
go forth together. It is the Spirit-power in the Word that makes
it the living and life-giving Word. Hence, said Jesus: “The
words that I have spoken unto you are spirit, and are life” (John
6:63). And to Satan, on the Mount of Temptation, He said,
quoting Deuteronomy 8:3, “It is written, Man shall not live by
bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth
of God” (Matt. 4:4). And the writer of Hebrews tells us that
“the word of God is living, and active, and sharper than any
iwo-edged sword, and piercing even to the dividing of soul and
spirit, of both joints and marrow, and quick to descern the
thoughts and intents of the heart” (Heb. 4:12). In view of
these Scripture affirmations, how meaningful becomes the act
51
of Jesus that is narrated in the twentieth chapter of John’s
Gospel. Here we read that on the evening of that memorable
first day of the week, the day of the Resurrection, Jesus ap-
peared to the Eleven who, because of their fear of the Jews,
were meeting behind closed doors. We read that
Jesus came and stood in the midst, and said, Peace be unto you. And
when he had said this, he showed unto them his hand and his side.
The disciples therefore were glad, when they saw the Lord, Jesus there-
fore said to them again, Peace be unto you: as the Father hath sent me,
even so send I you. And when he had said this, he hyeathed on them,
and saith unto them, Receive ye the Holy Spim’t; whose soever sins ye
forgive, they a r e forgiven unto them; whose soever sins ye retain, they
are retained (John 20 :19-23).
In this manner Jesus symbolically pointed forward to, and
authorized, the subsequent descent of the Spirit on the Apostles
to clothe them with authority and infallibility. Thus He sigaified:
(e.g., sign-ified) that the Spirit at His coming on Pentecost
would bring to them, and through them to all mankind, the
living and life-giving Word that was designed to be imcribed
upon the fleshly tables of the human heart (2 Cor. 3:3)-that
Gospel which “is the power of God unto salvation to every one
that believeth” (Rom. 1:16). Again we are reminded of certain
fundamental truths, namely, that the Thought-power, Spirit-
power, and Word-power of God are one; that the Spirit and the
Word go forth together from the mouth of God; and that the
Word of God is living and active and powerful because of the
presence and power of the Spirit in it. The Word of God ik
the Seed of Spiritual Life; and the life principle in that Seed
is the presence and power of the Spirit of God (Luke 8 : l l ) .
AI1 this is implied in the meaningful metaphor, the Breath of
God. Under this metaphor, the Spirit is apprehended as the
Spil’it of Life and the Spirit of Truth.
Finally, in Ezekiel’s famous Vision of the Valley of Dry
Bones, we find these metaphors of the Spirit combined and
intermingled in a manner that is most illuminating. Says the
prophet:
The hand of Jehovah was upon me, and he brought me out in the
Spirit of Jehovah, and set me down in the midst of the valley; and it
was full of bones. And he caused me to pass by them round about:
and behold, there were very many in the open valley; and lo, they were
very dry. And he said unto me, Son of man, can these bones live?
And I answered, 0 Lord Jehovah, thou knowest. Again he said unto
me, Prophesy over these bones, and say unto them, 0 ye dry bones,
hear the word of Jehovah. Thus saith the Lord Jehovah unto these
bones: Behold, I will cause breath to enter into you, and pe shall live.
And I will lay sinews upon you, and will bring up flesh.upon you,
52
and cover you with sltin, and put breath in you, and ye shall live;
and e shall know t h a t I am Jehovah. So I prophesied a s I was com-
manfed: and as I prophesied, there was a noise, and, behold, an earth-
quake; and the bones came together, bone t o its bone. And I beheld,
and, lo, there were sinews upon them, and flesh came up, and skin
covered them above; but there was no breath in them. Then said be
unto me, Prophesy unto the wind, prophesy, son of man, and say t o
the wind, Thus saith the Lord Jehovah: Come from the four winds, 0
breath, and breathe upon these slain, t h a t they may live. So I proph-
esied as he commanded me, and the breath came into them, and they
lived, and stood up upon their feet, a n exceeding great army (Ezek,
37: 1-10).
Fortunately, we are not left in any uncertainty as to the meaning
of this vision, For the prophet goes on to interpret it for us:
Then said he unto me, Son of man, these bones are the whole house
of Israel; behold, they say, Our bones are dried up, and our hope 1s
lost; we are clean cut off, Therefore prophesy, and say unto them
Thus said the Lord Jehovah: Behold, I will open your graves, and
cause you t o come up out of your graves, 0 my people; and I will bring
you into the land of Israel. And ye shall know t h a t I am Jehovah,
when I have opened your graves, and caused you t o come up out of your
graves, 0 my people, And I will p u t my Spirit in you, and ye shall live,
and I will place you in your own land; and ye shall know t h a t I,
Jehovah, have spoken it and performed it, saith Jehovah (Ezek. 37:ll-
14)I
H. Wheeler Robinson comments on this famous passage of

Scripture most eloquently, as follows:
I To the prophet of the exile there came a grim vision-a valley t h a t
,was a charnel-house, full of the bones of the dead, from which the very
flesh had long since rotted away. Then, at the prophetic word, a
strange scene enacted itself before h i s horrified eyes-those ancient
bones jarred and rattled from disorder into order, bone t o his bone,
and they became articulated, though unstrung, skeletons, The sinews
were stretched upon them, the flesh was packed around these, and
the skin drawn over each inanimate figure, but it remained a figure of
death. Once more, at the word, a blast of wind swept through the
valley and filled the bodies of the dead men and they lived and sprang
t o their feet, a n exceeding great army, on an ancient battlefield which
had once been the scene of their overthrow. The difference between death
and life, the secret of vitality, was that ‘wind’ of God which in its Old
Testament name cannot be distinguished from the ‘Bpirit’ of God. To
those men whose fathers had been desert-dwellers, the wind t h a t swept
the sand resistlessly before it was the very breath of God, and the
power that so strangely moved men beyond their own power was the
‘wind’ of God. Whatever else the Spirit of God may mean in the Old
Testament, it means the difference between death and life, i t means
vitality:
A wind of God, an invasive energy having the sweep and
onrush of a hurricane! The Breath of God, issuing forth in the
Word-source, proof, and pledge of Life! Such is the activity
of the Spirit. He is the Spirit of Power, the Spirit of Life, and
the Spirit of Truth.
1. Op. cit., 5 , 6.
53
THE ETERNAL SPIRIT- HIS PERSON AND POWERS
QUESTIONS FOR REVIEW OF PART ONE

1. I n what sense is the Bible o m Book, and The Book?
2. What is the Apostle Paul’s explanation of the sins of the pagan
world?
3. Are we right in affirming that the United States is now a pagan
nation, and t h a t our secular educational system is pagan? Explain
your answer.
4. Why do men attaclc the integrity of the Bible, but do not attack
the “sacred” books of other so-called “religions”?
5. Why do men attack the Genesis cosmogony, but do not attack the
heathen narratives of the Creation?
6. What is no doubt one of the main reasons why the church of ous
day is so spiritually powerless?
7. Define the terms “spirit,” “Spirit,” “cosmos,” and “nature,” as
used in this text.
8. I n what four respects especially is Christianity unique? Explain.
9. I n what additional respect is Christianity especially unique?
10. What is Christianity’s “Great Dynamic”?
11. What fact especially sets the Bible a p a r t from all other books?
That sets the Gospel apart from all messages? That sets the church
a p a r t from all other institutions?
12. I n what sense is the church a “spiritual house”?
13. What is the only reliable source of our lmowledge of the Holy
Spirit and His worlts?
14. What distinguishes the Holy Spirit from a metaphysical concept
of “spirit”?
15. Cite the Scriptures which assert Christianity t o be a joyous faith.
What facts serve t o make it a religion of joy?
16. What two Boolrs has God written for us and what is the principal
aspect of God and His work that is revealed in each respectively?
17. What names to do we give t o the human iriterpretations of these
two Boolrs respectively?
18. Why do we say that apparent discrepancies may exist between the
interpretations, but cannot exist between the Boolts themselves?
19. I n what way was God’s revelation to man first given?
20. What is the essential character of the subject-matter of the Bible?
21. What, according t o the New Testament, is the Eternal Purpose of
God? What is the end ultimately to be realized by this Eternal
Purpose?
22. What is meant by the revelation that the goal of the Eternal
Purpose, insofar as the individual saints are concerned, is that
each shall be “conformed t o the image of God’s Son”?
23. What is meant by the statement that God’s over-all purpose is that
“what is mortal may he swallowed up of life”?
24. Why is i t in accord with “the nature of things” t h a t revelation
should be in a special sense a worl? of the Holy Spirit?
25. Distinguish between rcvelnfioi?, ii?spfr&oJi, and deniomtrntioir in
reference t o the progressive actualization of God’s Eternal Furpose.
26. What is the over-all theme of the Bible from beqinning to end?
27. How do we know that man is a cq*entirre? List the evidences of his
creaturehood.
28. Explain what is meant by the natural and Proper ends of man, by
his ultimate ends, and by his intrinsic and extrinsic ends.
29. What would be the characteristics of an absolutely ultimate end?
30. Explain what i s meant by the statement that the cosmos is not
f 11r o p o c e v tn’c, but t h eo ceii tn’c ?
h e /iocev t r i c , not g e oc entric , not (TI?
31. Why do we sag that man’s ultimate intrinsic end is happiness?
54
GENDRAL INTRODUCTION
Why do we s a y that i t is perfect happiizess? What does experience,
as well as Scripture, teach us about this?
32. What is the designation given i n Scripture to the experience of
man’s final union with God?
33. What does seeing God “face to face” essentially mean?
34. What significance does this phrase have with the respect to the
character o€ t h e life aiter death?
36. What is the antithesis of this Biblical presentation of the char-
acter of the future Me? What do we meaii by pessimism, in this
connection 1
36. What is the necessary preparation for this ultimate union with God?
37. Explain the three phases of the Spiritual Life, and give the names
of the divine operations associated respectively with these three
phases.
38. How is redemption in all its phases described in Scripture? (See
1 Thess. ti : 2 3 ) .
39. What is the beginning of this life with the Holy Spirit? What a r e
the Scriptural requirements €or entrance upon the Spiritual Life?
40. What is the design of Christian baptism in relation to the beginning
of union with Christ?
41. When does tlTe Marriage Supper of the Lamb take place? (Cf,
Rev. 19 :6-9).
42. What is t h e testimonial aspect of baptism? Why does any a c t
but immersion vitiate this testimonial aspect?
43, What great lesson did Saul of Tarsus learn, with respect to the
church, by tlie Lord’s brief conversation with him near the gates
of Damascus?
44. Summarize our presentation of the t r u t h with respect to man’s ulti-
mate intrinsic and extrinsic ends.
46. State the reasons why the doctrine of the Holy Spirit is so generally
neglected by the modern church.
46. Explain the basic difficulties inherent in the nature of tlie subject
itself,
47. What must be our proper approach to the doctrine subjectively,
that is, in our attitude within ouwelves? What warning did Jesus
Himself give us respecting the sublimity of this subject?
43. What two sources do men appeal to, f o r information on this subject?
49. Why do we reject human emotions and alleged personal experiences
as not sufficiently trustworthy in t h i s area of Christian faith and
practice?
60. What Light has psychic research (parapsychology) thrown on t h e
problem of the special phenomena of emotional revivalism?
51. On what grounds do we reject the claims of “special revelations”?
List the more prominent of these alleged “special revelations.”
52. What especially has God revealed, in the Book of Nature, about
Himself and His works?
52. In what respect does so-called “natural religion” fail to meet t h e
more profound needs of humanltindl
63. In what sense does God’s special revelation, of which the account
is recorded in Scripture, the Book of Redemption, complement t h e
geneyal revelation t h a t is given us in the Book of Nature?
54. List the events of human history through which this complementary
progressive revelation has been worked out.
55. What is the relation between this revelation in history and t h a t
which i s given us in Scripture.
5G. Name the various Dispensations of divine revelation and state t h e
essential character of each,
57. When and in whom was this progressive revelation brought to
combletion ?
55
58. Distinguish between the historical and the documentary phases of
revelation.
59. Distinguish between revelation, inspiration, and illurrhmtion.
60. Explain what is meant by God-breathed literature. What does the
Breath of God allude to in Scripture?
61. What is meant by the phrase, I‘the language of the Spirit”?
62. What does the language of the Spirit express.?
63. What is the common method of communication among persons?
What light does this throw on the work of the Holy Spirit in
revelation?
64. What does the injunction t o “hold f a s t the pattern of sound words”
mean?
65. Explain the difference between trunsliteration and translation.
Cite the three instances specifically mentioned in our text as il-
lustrations of the confusion caused by the substitution of trans-
literation for translation.
65. Explain the importance of “calling Bible things by Bible names.”
66. Show how the improper,use of language can cause great confusion.
67. Differentiate between uriivocal and eqirivocnl uses of language.
68. Show how the language of the Spirit was corrupted by the attempts
1 of churchmen t o “interpret” Christian doctrine through the medium
of Greek philosophical thought.
69. What Authorship does the Bible as a whole claim for itself?
70. What must have been the linguistic problem which the Divine
Spirit encountered in communicating the thought of God to man?
71. What devices were often used by Him in making God’s truth in-
telligible to m a n ?
72. What must have been the Spirit’s problem in attempting t o convey
to man any mental image of Himself or His work?
73. What does the term, Wind, signify a s related to the Spirit and His
work?
74. What does the term, Breath of God, signify metaphorically?
75. What is indicated by the truth t h a t Spirit-power, Thought-power,
and Word-power in God are essentially the same?
76. What according to the Scriptures is the essence of a genuine Chris-
tian experience?
77. What, therefore, do we accept (and why do we accept it) ap the
only reliable source of information concerning the Holy Spirit and
His operations?
56
PART T W 0
MATTER
AND
SPIRIT
57
1. The Mystery of Matter
Approaching our general theme from the points of view of
human experience, science, and language, it is necessary, first
of all, to inquire what is meant by “spirit.” Does the word signify
anything real; that is, for anything existing in fact, or not just
as an idea in the mind?
In all ages there have been thinkers who have answered
this question in the negative. Matter, they say, is the sole reality;
everything in the universe is reducuble ultimately to matter
and motion, or rather matter-in-motion. All such persons are
commonly designated “materialists.”
Obviously, the primary connotation of “spirit” is a negative
one, in essence, namely, that of, immateriality. Perhaps the best
approach, therefore, to a satisfactory definition of “spirit” is by
way of an understanding of what is meant by “matter.”
Ordinarily, we define matter as anything that occupies
space. Spirit, then, in the light of this definition, must be re-
garded as a something that transcends space altogether. Or, if
matter is defined as something that affects one or more of our
physical senses, then spirit becomes a something that transcends
the physical senses, or that is not apprehensible by means of
the physical senses. Cf. 2 Cor. 4:18, “the things which are seen
are temporal; but the things which are not seen are eternal.”
As A. Clutton-Brock has written: “We are aware of matter with
our senses; and, if we are aware of spirit at all, it is not with
our senses.”’ Therefore there need be nothing surprising in
the fact that, as the same writer puts it, “spirit is a name given
to something the very existence of which is often denied, and
those who believe in its existence often give an incredible account
of it.”’
What, then, do we mean by “matter”?
In common parlance we mean the stuff of things around US
and in a sense, that of ourselves, or at least of our bodies. Hyle,
the Greek word far “matter,” used in that signification first by
Aristotle, meant originally and primarily, “wood,” that is, (1)
a real wood, or forest; and also ( 2 ) wood cut down, firewood,
etc.a Why Aristotle selected this particular word to signify the
ultimate stuff of things is a mystery. The German word, Stoff,
1. Art., “Spirit and Matter,” in a work entitled The Spiht, 309,
edited by B. H. Streeter.
2. Ibid., 309.
3. Liddell and Scott, Geeek-English Lexicon, New Edition, by Stuart
Jones and McKenzie, S.V.
58
MATTER AND SPIRIT
is far more expressive than even our word, ‘(matter,” which de-
rives €rom the Latin mnteriu.’ For matter is in lad. the stuff of
things, This, of course, is merely a substitution of one word for
another; it does not tell us what the stu€f o€ things is.
Now Irom ordinary observation we are led to classify the
stuff of things in two general categories, namely, that of living
(animate) stuff or matter, and that of nodiving (inanimate)
stuff or matter, Classification, however, gives little or no insight
into the real essence of matter, Is matter ultimately homogene-
ous? If so, then what is it per se, that is, in its ultimate con-
stitution? The answer to this question has been sought by
scientists and philosophers in all ages and the quest is still
going on.
Speculation regarding the ultimate constitution of all things
physical-the ultimate (“irreducible”) cosmic “substance”-had
its beginning with the ancient Ionian “natural” philosophers,
the first of whom was Thales of Miletos (c. 640-548 B.C.).
Thales is alleged to have contended that water is the ultimate or
primal substance. Just what Thales meant by (‘water,” how-
ever, or whether he had reference to water (HSO) as we know it,
is problematical; he may have meant only that the primal stuff
was of a fluid or plastic character. Again, Anaximander of
Miletos (c. 610-547 B.C.),an associate of Thales, posited an
ultimate matter undetermined in quality and scattered through-
out infinite space, which he designated To Apeiron, that is, the
Indeterminate o r Undifferentiated, generally translated “The
Boundless.” Anaximenes (c, 598-524 B.C.) , also of Miletos, put
forward the view that the ultimate principle of all physical
existence is air, by the thinning and thickening of which, fire,
wind, clouds, water, and earth are formed. According to Hera-
kleiios of Ephesus (c. 534-475B.C.), the whole cosmos is a con-
tinuous flux, having for its mobile element fire. From the testi-
mony of Aristotle it is evident that the Fire of Herakleitos was
a very subtle substance of much the same character as the Air
of Anaximenes. Indeed, fire, as we know it, is a process rather
than an entity; and this may have been the meaning Herakleitos
intended to convey by his use oi the term. For reality was, for
him, an ever-flowing stream, a ceaseless process of change, of
becoming and ceasing to be-a view revived in recent years by
the French philosopher, Henri Bergson. Empedokles of Alrragas
in Sicily (c. 495-435 B.C.) synthesized these earlier views into
I. The Latin word having the same original signification as the
Greek hyle, was silva. Havpev’s Latin Dictio?inry, Lewis and Short, S.V.
59
y of the “four elements.” The four bodies-
water, air, earth, and fire-were named together by him as the
elements constitutive of all things, the movements-dissociation
and re-combination- of these elements being governed by the
two forces of attraction and repulsion, which Empedokhs poetic-
ally termed Love and Hate respectively. This theory of the
“four elements’’ was preserved by science as a sacred deposit
down to the time of Lavoisier (c. 1790).
Demokritos of Abdera (c. 460 B.C.), or probably Leukippos
of Miletos before him, was the first to put forward the so-called
((
atomic” theory. Demokritos proclaimed the homogeneous char-
acter of all matter. According to his theory, corporeal things are
made up of infinitely small, physically indivisible particles
(atomos means literally ‘(incapable of being cut,” ie., indivisible),
full and solid, and eternally in motion. These atoms were con-
ceived as differing in shape, size, weight, order and position, the
soul being made up of fire-atoms of a more refined character
than the atoms of gross matter. In reality, said Demokritos,
nothing exists but atoms and the void, ie., empty space. In his
theory, the birth and death of all material things is sufficiently
explained by the association and dissociation of these atoms in
the process of their whirling in all directions throughout space
in response to the blind forces of impulse and reaction. The
theory of Demokritos was subsequently championed by Epikouros
(341-270 B.C.) , with one important difference: whereas in the
former theory the cause of all motion was assumed to be in the
external movemefit of matter, in that of Epikouros the atom was
conceived to be self-moving and self-determining. In later years
this early materialistic theory was elaborately presented by the
Roman philosopher-poet, Lucretius (98-51 B.C.) in his famed
didactic poem, On the Nature of Things. This theory was so
overshadowed, however, by the metaphysical systems
d Aristotle that it made little headway among ancient
thinkers.
Plato (427-347 B.C.) appears never to have given much
thought, if any, to the problem of the constitution of matter.
Indeed, as far as I am able to determine, he does not even use
any Greek equivalent for our word (‘matter,” but puts the main
emphasis rather on the opposition between body (soma) and soul
(psyche), a dualism which he seems to have inherited from
Pythagoreanism. This dualism stemmed also from his basic
conception of the universe as a Living Being, a World-Body
animated by a World-Soul; a conception which he carried down
60
MATIER AND SPIRIT
and applied to all subordinate beings including even the heavenly
bodies and man himself, In the Timaeus, a cosmological treatise
in which it is impossible to determine whether Plato is pre-
senting his own views or merely echoing those of contemporary
Pythagoreanism, he describes the cosmos and its constituent
creatures as having been carved out of empty Space-the Re-
ceptacle-by the Demiourgos, after the respective patterns pro-
vided by the eternally-existent Forms and according to strict
mathematical relations. The Forms alone are declared to have
real existence. Material things are but images, empty shadows,
so to speak, of the eternal and immutable Forms. In fact,
throughout his writings Plato denies any real existence to the
material world; at best it is but the transitory, everchanging copy
of the eternal pattern, the world of Forms; its sole reality in-
hering in the determinate geometrical configurations which the
Demiourgos caused its four primary bodies-earth, water, air,
and fire-to conform to, in the process of generating it. In Plato’s
thought, matter is relegated to the realm of non-being, or at
best to that of pure becoming. In another dialogue, for instance,
the Theaetetm, he tells us that the physical objects which give
rise to our sensations and perceptions have no permanent qual-
ities residing in them.’ They are described as being actually
“slow changes,’’ that is, qualitative changes, or motions which
produce sensations in a recipient. About the only thing we know,
or can know, about them is that they have the power of acting
on our sense organs and on one anothera2
(Incidentally, John Locke, the English philosopher (1632-
1704), showed that, after all, we do not know what the material
substratum is in itself, but rather we know only our sensations
of it; hence, he defined matter as “permanent possibility of
sensation,’’ as “something-I-know not what.” This, as a matter
of fact, is about as close as anyone has ever come to a “definition”
of matter per se.)
Again, “soul,” for Plato, was the source and cause of all
motion. Hence, in the Timaeus, the World-Soul is pictured as
the prime mover of the World-Body, the energizing and vitaliz-
ing principle of the cosmic Living Being. In this remarkable
treatise, which is presented in the form of a “likely story,” a
typical Platonic mythos and nothing more, the Demiourgos ap-
parently stands for the Divine Reason which is probably to be
identified with the World-Soul itself and which is portrayed
1. Theaet., 156 D f f .
2. Vide F.M.Cornford, Plato’s Cosmology, 204.
61
as working only for ends that are ultimately good. For Plato
the physical world was not a reality but only an “image” of the
real.
This conception of matter as essentially non-being was en-
larged upon subsequently by Plotinus (c. A.D. 204-270) and
became one of the principal tenets of Neoplatonism, the system
sired by him. For Plotinus, matter was the principle of evil;
he is said by tradition to have been ashamed that he had a body;
he would never name his parents or remember his birthday.
Moreover, in the theory of Creation by Emanation which he
originated, matter was regarded as at the farthest remove from
the One, the source of all being; and gross matter was identi-
fied with non-being wherein there is no reality at all. Incident-
ally, in this connection, the fact should not be overlooked that
Neoplatonism was the system which exerted such a profound
influence on the thinking of some of the Church Fathers, notably
Origen and Augustine.
To Aristotle (384-322 B.C.), a pupil of Plato, must go the
credit for having originated the first thoroughgoing metaphysical
theory of matter, and by “metaphysical” I mean a conception
arrived at primarily by inductive reasoning. Aristotle evolved
what is known as the theory of Prime Matter, a theory which
was incorporated and made basic in the Scholastic metaphysics
of medieval times and which remains basic in the Neo-Scholas-
ticism of our time. According to the Stagirite, two principles
combine to give being to all things. The one, prime matter, is
the passive principle; it is indeterminate, homogeneous in all
bodies, and the permanent subject of all the changes effected in
the physical world; obviously akin, by the way, to the Apeiron
of Anaximander. The other, substantial foym, is the active prin-
ciple which resolves being into its different species of objects.
All contingent things are, according to Aristotle, the product of
the union of these two principles, matter and form; hence the
theory is technically designated the hylomorphic, that is, matter-
f o r m theory. The reasoning which gives rise to this theory is,
in my opinion, quite valid, It may be stated in a sentence o r
two as follows: In any substantial change as, e . g . , the change of
a stick of wood into ashes by burning, there must be something
which retains its identity throughout the change; otherwise
there would be no change at all, but rather in every case of
so-called change actually an annihilation followed by a creation.
Hence there must be something that is ultimate and that persists
throughout all change. That something, said Aristotle, is prime
62
MATTBR AND SPIRIT
matter. Prime matter plus substantial form: this is the lormula
by which every contingent thing is to be accounted for, Perhaps
it should be made clear too that the prime matter of this theory
is not to be identified with gross matter, nor in fact with anything
palpable to the senses, not even with the atom or any o l its
constituent payts. Prime matter lies altogether beyond the realm
of sensible apprehension: it is the priiiciple of pure passivity in
things, but is always found in combination with substantial form.
Jacques Mayitain, one of the foremost living Neo-Scholastic
philosophers, states the Aristotelian view as follows:
The Aristotelian philosopliy recognises in corporeal substance two
substantial principles: (1) rtrtrftci+ (jimf, w / ( i f t e ~ ) qretrtwin
-, ~ w ~ ) I ( L )\vIiich,
,
however, in no way represents, as in the coliception of the niechaiiists,
the imaginable notion of rxteiisio~i, but t h e idea of iiiatter (that of
\vliich something else is made) in its irtiiiost purity-it i s what Plgto
called a sort o € 11on-entity, sinilily that of r c i l / r c ~ l r things are made, w l i ~ l i
iii itsell is nothing actual, a principle wholly indrtei*ininate, iiicapable
of separate existence, but capable o i existing in conjunction with sonie-
thing else (the f o r m ) ; (ii) an active principle, which is, so t o speak,
the living idea o r soul o i the thing, and ~vliiclidctrrniines the purely
passive i i r s t mattel-, soiiiewliat as the forin imposed upon it by the
sculptor detenniries the clay, co~istituting with i t one single t h i ~ i g
actually existent, one single corporeal sulistance, which on es t o it both
that i t is this or that kind of thing, that is t o say, its specific nature,
and its existence, somewhat as tlie foriii imposed by tlie sculptor nialtes
a statue what it is. On account of this analogy with the external form
of a statue (its accidental form) Aristotle gave the iianie of f o ~ r
(sitbstniitinl f o m 1 ) , which inust be understood in a sense altogether
special and technical, t o this internal principle of which we are spealting,
\vliicli dete~minestlie very being of corporeal su1,stance. The Aris-
totelian doctrine, vhicli regards a body as a compound of nlntfer (Iiille)
and f o w t (iuo?.pl~f?),is known as h ! / / o i ) t o ~ p ~ f ~ s ? i f . ’
Thus it will be seen that whereas for Plato the Forms existed
and functioned in a world apart, and material things only “par-
ticipated” in them, an expression which Plato uses frequently
but nowhere clarifies satisfactorily, in Aristotle’s thought the
Forms existed, it is true, but they existed only in combination
with prime matter in things. According to Aristotle, says Nys,
the t ~ v o constitutive eleineiits of t h e corporeal rssriice are i w l and
intyiiisically inteidrprndent. According t o Plato, mater is non-bring
and t h e foimis alone have real euistrwe. P1:itoiiic f o ~ n i sare ideal, self-
subsistent types which, without inipairing tliciy cliarnctrr of univer-
sality, can project themsrlves into space a n d assume tlie ap~)enrnncc
of srnsible, niutal)le, and perishable tliings. Hence l)rt\vrcn these t ~ v o
C O I ~ C ‘ P I I ~ ~ Oo€ mattel’, ti great and nctunl diffei*eiier exists.2
I~S
Although PIato apparently never so states explicitly, he clearly

intimates in the Timne7is that the Forms exist as eternal ideas
or patterns in the Mind of Deity; hence' they are the archetypes
according to which the Demiourgos, or Divine Reason, created
the various species of contingent things which gd to make up our
physical world. The concept is not far removed from the doc-
trine of the conjoint activity of the Spirit and the Logos in Crea-
tion, as that doctrine is presented in Scripture.
Gen. 1:1-3-In the beginning God created the. heavens and the
earth. And the earth was waste and void; and darkness was upon tlie
face of the deep: and the Spirit of God was brooding upon the face of
the waters. And God said, Let there be light: and there was light. Psa.
33:6, 9-By the word of Jehovah were the heavens made, And all the
host of them by the breath of his mouth. . . . For he spake, and it
was done; He commanded, and it stood fast. John 1:1-3-In the be-
ginning was the Word [Logos], and the Word was with God, and the
Word was God. The same was in the beginning with God. All things
were made through him; and without him was not anything made that
hath been made. Heb. 11:3--By faith we understand that the worlds
have beed framed by the word of God, so that what is seen hath not
been made out of things which appear.
This theory of Prime Matter, as described in the foregoing
paragraphs, was taken over by the Scholastic philosophers in
medieval times and made basic in their metaphysic. It continues
to be basic in the Neo-Scholastic philosophy of our own day.
To quote again from Nys, a contemporary exponent of Neo-
Scholasticism:
Whatever falls within the range of sense-perception is concrete
and determined; and these phenomena of material substances, or, to
be more exact, these compounds of substance and accident, a r e called
bodies. . , . Prime matter exhibits none of these properties natural
to bodies, hence it cannot be known by any one of our organic faculties.
We know the existence of prime matter through reason alone, but even
this faaulty never affords us an exact and immediate conception of it.
Since the intelligibility, of a being is measured by the degree of actuality
it possesses, it is evident t h a t the purely potential eludes all direct
perception. Consequently, it is by the route of reason and the analysis
of substantial change alone that the intelligence of man, arrives at
some idea, partly positive, partly negative, of this principle of pasgivity,
and is able to conceive it as the incomplete subject o r permanent sub-
stratum of the specific types existing in the material world.'
It is a well-known historical fact, of course, that both Neo-
platonism and Aristotelianism provided the foundations for
the Jewish, Arabian, and Christian philosophical systems in
vogue in the Middle Ages. Generally speaking, the Neoplatonist
metaphysics was championed in Christian circles by the followers
of Augustine, and the Aristotelian by Thomas Aquinas and his
school. The medieval Arab philosophers followed Aristotle, as
did also the Jewish philosophers down to the time of Spinoza.
1. Op. cit., 11, 18, 19.
64
M A P E R AND SPIRIT
Perhaps attention should be called here to a strangely up-to-date
theory which sprang up in the thirteenth century, one of the
most intellectually brilliant and prolific periods, by the way,
in the history of human thought. The theory in question, which
has been designated the “light metaphysics,” was offered as
supplementary to hylomorphism, which was in vogue every-
where. It was suggested, no doubt, by certain passages in the
writings of Augustine, particularly by some of those in his
treatise on the book of Genesis, The theory was developed by
ihe English philosophers, Robert Grosseteste (died 1252) and
Roger Bacon (1214-1294)) and by the Italian mystic, Bonaven-
tura (1221-1274). According to this theory, along with the
creation ex nihilo of unformed matter, God brought into existence
the first form, lux spiritualis. This Zux, conceived, it would
seem, as an extraordinarily rarefied form of corporeal light,
something in fact which approximated spirit, originated space;
and, as the form of corporeity in primordial matter, was the
primary source and cause of all created things, As McKeon puts
it:
The characteristic of all light is t o engender itself perpetually,
and diffuse itself spherically about a point in a n instantaneous man-
ner. Originally, tlie luminous form and matter were equally unex-
tended, but the f i r s t form created by God in the f i r s t matter, multiplies
itself infinitely, and spreads equally in all directions, distending thus
the mat$r t o which i t is united and constituting thus the mass of the
universe.
Moreover, according to this theory, just as light is the power
by which Pure Spirit produces the corporeal world, so too it is
the instrument by which the soul comes into contact with the
body and the things of sense; hence, viewed in this aspect, the
lux becomes lumen. Commenting on Grosseteste’s theory of
lux,D. E. Sharp writes as follows:
It appears t h a t Grosseteste experienced the same difficulties as
.
modern physicists. The functions he assigns to light . . show t h a t he
regards i t as a n energy; but his desire t o speak of i t as resembli1ig
body is strikingly like tlie present-day application of such terms as
“wave lengtha” and “rays” to the ether, which in itself is admitted
to be imperceptible to the senses and i s thought of only as the subject
of activity OP as that which is conserved throughout change. As a prin-
ciple of unity in the universe, this light is comparable to the modern
ether, which fills all space from the most distant stars to the inter-
spaces of the atom, Again, Grossrteste’s theory IS not unlilce the modern
hypothesis of the convertibility of matter and energy. Lastly, we find
soinetliing iwrmbling the modern ethereal attributes of electricity,
I, 2G1.
1, Richard McICeon, Selrctioiis f w w i Madietin2 PI~ilosoplie~s,
In the Modern Student’s Library series.
65
magnetism, and chemical activities in his view of lux a s the source of
all movement and life and as the basis of s0und.l [The concept of the
ether has, of course, passed out of the most up-to-date physics. What
this author has to say, however, about Grosseteste’s difficulty in con-
ceiving lux as energy and “body” at one and the same time, certainly
reminds us of the difficulties encountered by modern physicists in
attempting t o describe the ultimate constitution of matter: they are
a t a loss whether to describe it in terms of “fields,” “waves,” “particles,”
"corpuscles," o r what not.]
Two other pertinent facts should, I think, be pointed out in
this connection, namely: (1) that Grosseteste’s theory of ZUX,
and its creative functian is strikingly parallel to the tendency
among present-day physicists to regard radiant energy as the
ultimate form of matter,2 and (2) that this “light metaphysics’’
is strikingly adaptable to the Biblical doctrine of the ultimate
glorification of the bodies of the redeemed, and it was used by
its formulators, especially by Bonaventura, to elucidate that
doctrine. Grosseteste evidently thought of visible light as the
primary phenomenon of Zux.
Dan. 12:3-They that are wise shall shine as the brightness of
the firmament; and they that turn many t o righteousness as the stars
f o r ever and ever. John 14:2-[Jesus speaking]: In my Father’s house
a r e many mansions; if it were not so, I would have told you; for I go
to prepare a place for you. 2 Cor. 5:l-For we know t h a t if the earthly
house of our tabernacle be dissolved, we have a building from God, a
house npt made with hands, eternal, in the heavens. Rom. 8:22, 23-
For we know t h a t the whole creation groaneth and travaileth in pain
together until now. And not only so, but ourselves also, who have
the first-fruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves,
waiting for our adoption, t o wit, the redemption o f our body. Rom. 8:ll-
But if the Spirit of him that raised up Jesus from the dead dwelleth
in you, he t h a t raised up Christ Jesus from the dead shall give life
also to your mortal bodies through his Spirit that dwelleth in YOU.
Phil. 3:20, 21-the Lord Jesus Christ, who shall fashion anew the
body of our himiliation, t h a t it may be conformed to the body of hls
glory, according to the working whereby he is able even t o subject all
things unto himself, Rom. 8:29, 30-For whom he [God] foreknew, he
also foreordained t o be conformed t o the image of his Son . .. and
whom he foreordained, them he also called; and whom he called, them
he also justified; and whom he justified, then he also glorified [i.e.,
in His eternal purpose]. 1 Cor. 15:42-49: So also is the resurrection
of the dead. It is sown in corruption; it is raised in incorruption: it
is sown in dishonor; it is raised in glory; it is sown in weakness; it
is raised in power: it is sown a natural body; i t is raised a spiritual
body. If there is a natural body, there is also a spiritual body. .
The first man is of the earth, earthy: the second man is of heaven.
. .
As is the earthy, such are they also that are earthy; and as is the
heavenly, such are they also that are heavenly. And a s we have borne
the image of the earthy, we shall also bear the image of the heavenly,
etc. [Cf. also the glorified body in which Jesus was presented t o the
$Apostles Peter, James, and John, on the Mount of Transfiguration
1. D. E. Sharp, Franciscan Ph2Zosophv at Oxford in the Thirteenth
Centuqj, 23.
66
MA’ITER AND SPIRIT
(Matt, 17:1-8); also the glorified body (whicli outshone the brig%tness
of the noonday sun) in which the risen Lord appeared to Saul of
Tarsus before the gates of Damascus (Acts 26:12-15), Immortalization,
according to Christian doctrine, seems to embrace the three processes
of resurrection, revivification, and glorification.]
Modern philosophy is generally regarded as having had its
beginning with Descartes (1596-1650) . Gifted with an essentially
mathematical mind, this French thinker attempted to construct
a cosmology along strictly goemetrical lines. Hence, since
geometry proceeds from the simplest propositions by a process
of deductive reasoning to the most complex, Descartes sought
among the attributes of bodies for the single attribute that is at
once the most fundamental, most evident and most universal,
This search led him to the conclusion that the essential property
of material substance is extension, Now by extension is meant,
according to Descartes, that property whereby (1) matter has
parts, (2) the parts exist outside one another, (3) only one
part can be in a given place at a given time, and (4) the whole
is equal to the sum of the parts. Having established it to his
own satisfaction that extension is the essence of matter, Des-
cartes then denied to matter all properties which can not be
deduced logically from an analysis of extension. One can see
at a glance, of course, that the Cartesian theory of matter is at
variance with the atomic hypothesis. For if rnathematical ex-
tension is the essence of matter, then matter is divisible ad in-
finitum, and there simply can not be such a thing as an in-
divisible ultimate or atom. The theory, however, exerted con-
siderable influence on subsequent scientific thinking about ma-
terial substance, and was indirectly responsible for the “building-
block” concept of the atom which came into vogue in the nine-
teenth century.
It was Robert Boyle, an English chemist, who introduced
the modern period of the concept of matter by discrediting for-
ever the long-standing theory of the “four elements.” In his
book, The Sceptical Ckglnaist, published in 1661, Boyle formu-
lated an entirely new definition of an element, describing it as a
substance which cannot be decomposed into anything more ulti-
mate. This was revolutionary. Over one hundred years later, in
1773 and 1774 to be exact, the independent experiments of
Scheele in Sweden and Priestley in England resulted in the dis-
covery of oxygen. Not long afterward, about 1790, the French
chemist, Lavoisier, introduced the balance as a n instrument of
precision in the study of chemical processes, and as a result of
67
his experiments vered that in all chemical operations, it is

only the kind of matter that is changed, the quantity remaining
the same. Byfthis discovery of the principle of the conservation
of matter, Lavoisier not only laid the foundation on which mod-
ern chemistry has grown to be an exact science, but also pre-
pared the ground for the formulation of the scientific atomic
theory. For, whereas the early Greek philosophers, Leukippos,
Demokritos, and Epikouros developed the philosophic concept of
the atom, it remained for the chemists of the nineteenth century
to discover, by the scientific method, the scientific-or shall we
say, real?-atom.
The modern atomic theory of the constitution of matter
was first formulated, as a result of laboratory experimentatibn,
by the great English chemist, John Dalton, of Manchester, be-
tween the years 1803 and 1808. In its simplest form, the theory
is as follows: 1. Each element of matter is reducible to “ultimate
particles” which can not be further subdivided. 2. The “ulti-
mate particles” of the same element are all alike and of equal
weight, while those of different elements are unlike. 3. Chemical
combination takes place by the union of atoms of different ele-
ments in simple numerical proportions. Dalton pictured his
“ultimate particles” or atoms as definite, concrete “grains” of
matter, indivisible, and unaffected by the most violent chemical
change. Dalton’s work revolutionized the current conception of
the constitution of matter and inaugurated the search for the
chemical elements as we know them today. It was not until the
year 1869, however, that the Russian scientist, Mendeleeff, first
formulated with great completeness and gave to the world the
Periodic Table of the elements, some ninety-two in all, of which
all the myriad forms of matter in the world around us are com-
posed.
The scientific world, however, inherited from Dalton what
we now call the old “building block” or “billiard ball” concept
of the atom. That is to say, atoms were conceived to be solid,
inert, indivisible bits of matter, the bricks, so to speak, of which
the whole material world is constructed. As Will Durant puts it:
The “matter” of Tyndall and Huxl&y was indesfructible; it rested
and slept, like the fat boy in Pickwick Papers, wherever it was put;
and it resisted, with all the dignity of its volume and weight, every
effort to set it moving, or t o change the direction of its motion once
it had condescended to m0ve.l
“his view prevailed throughout the greater part of the nine-
1. The Mansions of Philosophy, 61.
68
MA’ITDR AND SPIRIT
teenth century. Then came the more recent discoveries in the
fields of electricity, magnetism, and radiation, realms so vast
and so full of wonders that physicists now readily admit they
have only begun to penetrate the mysteries of their amazing
phenomena. The net result is that the old inert matter of the
nineteenth-century physics is gone, We are now being told that
the atom must no longer be regarded as a “substance” at all,
that it is, rather, just a “field” in which “units,” or perhaps only
“waves,” of energy are constantly playing; and that these units
or waves of energy seem to be unrestricted by any of the condi-
tions of distance or space. We are now told that an electric
current is capable of traveling around the earth several times in
a second; and that electrons can, like angels, move in all di-
rections at once, and from one point to another without being
found at any intermediate point, As a matter of fact, electrons
seem to manifest some of the attributes which men have hitherto
ascribed only to spirit.
We may summarize the conclusion of the latest physical
science regarding the ultimate constitution of matter as follows:
1. “he atom itself is no longer regarded as a compact some-
thing, a kind of building-block, but more properly as a “field”
of energy, In the center of this field is a concentration of
protons and neutrons (and interlocking mesons, according to
the most recent pronouncements), the number of protons in
each case specifying the particular element to which the atom
belongs. Surrounding this concentration, which is designated
the nucleus, is a kind of orbit in which electrons play (from
1 electron in the hydrogen atom up to 92 in the uranium atom),
the number of electrons-which are negatively charged-corr-
sponding, in each atom, to the number of protons in the nu-
cleus. Physicists generally speak of these ultimates of the stuff
of things as “particles” of energy, although conceding that per-
haps it would be just as correct to call them “waves” o r “charges.”
The paradoxical nature of these particles consists in the fact
that they can hardly be described as having spatial magnitude,
and yet obviously they do have magnitude of a sort. For this
reason physicists are at a loss to determine which of these desig-
nations-“particle,” “wave,” “charge,” etc.-is precisely the prop-
er one to indicate their essential nature. 2. In the general field
of electromagnetic radiations, which includes all forms of radiant
energy, such as light, heat, x-rays, gamma rays, cosmic rays, etc.,
the ultimates are pictured as discontinuous or discrete bits or
“grains” of energy. In this field the waves of energy, we are
69
THE ETERNAL’ SPIRIT -HIS PERSON AND POWERS
told, travel throughout the cosmos, and frequently impinge upon
the sense organs of percipients, in the form of what are usually
designated “quanta” or “corpuscles.” In a word, these radia-
tions are essentially “corpuscular” as to nature. 3. In no sense
ltimate bits of energy, either in the structure
the electromagnetic field, be thought of as
‘(substances” within the scope of the philosophical definitiori of
that term. In a word, the Clltimate co ution of matter has
been found to be receding into the (5 erial.” 4. Mass and
energy’are now shown to be equivalent. The property which
hitherto has been called mass is now demon
centrated energy. That is to say, matter is e
is matter; the distinction is simply one of temporary state. As
Lincoln Barnett puts it; gross or solid matter is in reality only
temporarily “frozen” energy.’ And in addition to all this,. we
are told, the dissolution of matter into radiation and the dis-
sipation of energy into empty space appears to be a fundamental
cosmic process which now goes on without cessation. This means,
of course, that the universe is slowly but surely moving toward
a state of “maximum entropy,” a state that may rightly be de-
scribed as one of (‘perpetual and irrevocable stagnation” in
which time shall be no more.* To offset this gloomy picture
somewhat, there is a very great possibility, say some physicists,
that somewhere out in the incalculable vastness of space-
((somewhere beyond the blue”-matter is in the process of being
formed anew. This notion, be it simply wishful thinking or not,
gives us a faint ray of hope at least that the space-time con-
tinuum in which we now live and move and have our being may
never actually become an unoccupied void.
Cf. in this connection 2 Pet. 3 :1-13 : This is now, beloved, the second
epistle t h a t I write unto you; and in both of them I stir up your
sincere mind by putting you in remembrance; that ye should remember
the words which were spoken before by the holy prophets, and the
commandment of the Lord and Savior through your apostles : knowing
this first, t h a t in the last days mockers shall come with mockery,
walking after their own lusts, and saying, Where is the promise of hls
coming? for, from the day that the fathers fell asleep, all things con-
tinue as they were from the beginning of the creation. For this they
wilfully forget, t h a t there were heavens from of old, and an earth
compacted out of water, and amidst water, by the word of God; by
which means the world that then was, being overflowed with water,
perished; but the heavens t h a t now are, and the earth, by the same
word have been stored up for fire, being reserved against the day of
judgment and destruction of ungodly men. But forget not this one
1. The Universe and Dr. Einstein, 69.
2. Barnett, ibid., 100.
70
MATTER AND SPIRIT
thing, beloved, t h a t one day is with the Lord as a thousand years,
and a thousand years as one day. The Lord is not slack concerning
his promise, as some count slaclcness; b u t is longsufiering t o youward,
n o t wishing that any should perish, b u t that all should come to re-
pentance. B u t the day of the Lord will come a s a thief; in the wliich
the heavens shall pass away with a great noise, and the elementfi shall
be dissolved \vith fervent heat, and tlie earth and tlie worlrs that are
therein shall be burned up. Seeing t h a t these things are thus all t o
be dissolved, what inanner of persons ought ye t o be in all holy
living and godliness, loolring for and earnestly desiring the coming of
the day of God, by reason of which tlie heavens being 011 Pire shall be
dissolved, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat? B u t , accoyding
l o his pro?iaise, we look foy a qaew heavens awl a new earth, wherein
clwslleth yigkteousizess. [Certainly the fiery destruction portrayed here
could have reference to, and be fulfilled by, global atomic warfare.]
Cf. Isa, GS:17--Behold, I creak new heavens and a new earth; and the
former things shall not be remembered, nor come into mind. Isa. GG :22-
For as the new heavens and tlie new earth, wliich I will make, shall
remajn before me, saitli Jehovah, so shall your seed and your name
remain. Cf. Rev. 21:1, 2-And I saw a new heaven and a new earth:
f o r the first heaven and the first earth are passed away; and the sea
is no more. And I saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coining down out
of Iieaven from God, made ready as a bride adorned €or her husband.
Cf. also v. 3-And I heard a great voice out of the throne, saying,
Behold, t h e taberiaacle of God i s with men, aizd lac shall dwell with
thein, aqad they shall be his l m q i l e s , and God himself shall be with
thein, aqtd be t h e b God.
I
Some commentators have suggested that there may have
been a “pre-Adamic” cosmos, which suffered a tremendous
cataclysm of some kind; hence they describe the cosmogony that
is given in Genesis as the “Adamic Renovation.’” The ex-
cerpts from the Prophets and Apostles, quoted above, seem to
indicate that the present cosmic age will terminate in a similar
cataclysm, after which the Golden Age will be ushered in,
with the banishment of sin and its consequences from the
whole creation. There is absolutely nothing in the Bible that
can be construed as teaching tlte ultimate annihilation of matter.
I contend, moreover, that if matter is not to be annihilated, it
is inconceivable that intelligent spirits or persons should suffer
such an ultimate destiny. Indeed the Scriptures teach clearly
that they are destined to live forever, either in eternal union
with God, and clothed in immortal or ethereal bodies, which
state is designated Heaven,-or in eternal separation from “the
face of the Lord and from the glory of his might” (2 Thess. 1:8,
9 ) , which is Hell, the penitentiary of the moral universe, origin-
alIy “prepared for the devil and his angels” (Matt. 25:41).
This is all in accord with the scientific laws of the conservation
of matter and energy.
1. Vide R. Milligan, Sckeine of Rsdentption, 23-30.
71
With regard to modern views of the ultimate constitution
bf matter, C. C. Furnas writes as follows:
om which was once the very smallest bit of matter that
has now become a menagerie. It first resolved itself into a
nucleus and a surrounding swarm of electrical charges, Now, t h e
nucleus is too large a unit t o be final, so the greeting between physlclsts
is: What's new in the nucleus? To explain the atom requires seven
distinct fundamental physical entities : electron, positron, neutron,
photon, proton, deutron, and alpha particles. Either that is not enough
o r it is too much, for the explanations of the atom are only a s clear
as a thick fog. Perhaps the atom is unexplainable but one hates to
admit it.'
Again:
Today the pure physicist seems t o be reverting t o metaphysics. He
is always dabbling on the, borderland of the unknowable apd incon-
ceivable. His idea of the atom is something that cannot be pictured.
It is expressible a s formulae, but i t is something which our minds can-
not visualize because it is not the kind of thing t h a t can be visualized.
Physicists have space that bends back on itself and universes that in
some way expand without end. Energy sometimes acts like matter and
matter is sometimes like energy. If it could be broken down it would
release an enormous amount of energy for our own use, if we could
catch it?
To this we might add: Since these words were written, matter,
that is, the atom, has been broken down. And what the future
holds in store for man as a consequence, God alone knows!
The following excerpts from a volume entitled The Advance
of Science, edited by Watson Davis, set forth clearly present-
day conceptions of the constitution of matter:
The atom has evolved from a little hard ball which was cohsidered
the ultimate particle of matter, into a n entity so complex and multiplex
t h a t the best advice i s not t o t r y t o visualize it. The components of
atoms a r e a t some times considered particles of matter and a t other
times, waves of energy. The picture of an atom as a heavy but minute
kernel surrounded by circling bits of negative electricity-a nucleus
of tightly packed protons and neutrons surrounded by orbital electrons,
forming a miniature solar system with nucleus as'sun and electrons as
planets-has given way to a dim and indistinct mathematical entity
that may best be visualized, if a t all, a s a n equation.'
Ernest Rutherford, now, as Lord kutherford of Nelson, the pre-
siding genius of the famous Cavendish Laboratory a t Cambridge Uni-
.
versity in England . . decisively blasted the idea t h a t the atom was
solid stuff. Some of the alpha particles flung at atoms bounced back,
and from a study of the speeds of their recoil he showed that the atom
is mostly space with its weight concentrated in an almost infinitesimal
bit, with its diameter about one-one-hundred-thousandth of that of the
atom itself .4
1. The N e z t Hundred Years, 187.
2. Ibid., 186.
3. o p . cit., 35.
4. Zbid., 40.
72
MATTER AND SPIRIT
Electrons have proved t o be nearly omnipresent.’
Matter and energy are merely diieerent aspects o€ the same thing,
The iainous principle o€ relativity, eormulated by Professor Albert
Einstein in 1905, included the idea o l the equivalence OP matter and
energy. Lose mass and gain energy, or lose energy and gain mass,
There is a very simple equation that allows the computation of j u s t
how much energy is equivalent t o so much mass.’
Just because we may be practically interested in the obtaining of
energy a t the expense of matter, we must not overloolc the importance
of experiments that show the reverse process, the conversion of energy
into the mass of matter. The discovery of what seems t o be the creation
of matter o u t of energy came in the train of research that followed upon
the discovery of the positron. In many respects the malting of matter
out of energy ‘s f a r more amazing and thrilling than the atom smash-
ings that h a v e h e r a t e d energy. The theory, well supported by experi-
mental facts, is that the positive electron i s boirz out of i a d i a n t eiaeygy
or “light” pkotoizs. It is supposed that a highly energetic photon can
transmute itself into a pair of electrons, one positive and one negative.
Two particles of matter come into existence where only a bundle of
energy existed before. That tested and famous Einsteinian equivalence
of mass and energy tells us that the mass of two electrons a t rest is
equal t o about one million electron volts. When this is put t o t h e m t e s t
by studying what happens in the formation of +lip electron pairs, it is
found that the energy with a pair of electrons is moving after its forma-
tion is never within a million volts of the energy contained in the
creating photon. This gives strong support t o the idea t h a t “light” is
changing into matter.’
Attention has already been called to the striking correspondence
between the “light metaphysics’’ of the thirteenth century
philosophers, Grosseteste, Bacon, and Bonaventura, and the view
rr
expressed in the foregoing excerpt. I 1 7 .
Physicists are now telling us that “cosmic rays bombard

the earth from outer space every second of the day and night,”
that they “penetrate everything including our own bodies,”
that they “carry the mightiest packets of energy yet known to
science,’’ and that they “give rise to bursts of material particle^."^
The first scholar to put forward the view that these rays emanate
from the depths of interstellar space was Madame Curie, who
announced herself as suspecting the existence of a penetrating
radiation disseminated throughout the universe. Some physicists
have held that these rays are the super-radioactive outpourings
of a primordial atom which Abbe Lemaitre considered to have
formed the whole universe some ten thousand million years ago
before it began to expand. The British physicists, Eddington
and Jeans, think that cosmic rays result from the transforma-
tion of matter into radiation, Millikan, to the contrary, be-
l, o p . cit., 53,
2. Ibid., 71.
3. Ibid.. 73. Italics mine-C.
4. Ibid.; 26.
73
lieves that these strange rays are the “wailing cries” that at-
tend the birth of matter from radiation. Harvey Brace Lemon
writes:
It is with mixed emotions t h a t we find ourselves getting f a r be-
yond our depth in t h e contemplation of the vast horizons t o which we
have been led by our simple curiosity about a leaking electroscope. . .
What story is further going to be decoded by the human mind as it
.
goes on seeking €urther into these hidden matters, no man can now
te1l.l
Again, what is an electron? “Is it a bit of ‘matter’ mani-
festing energy,” asks Will Durant, “or is it a measure of energy
quite dissociated from any material substance? The latter is
inconceivable to US."^ It would no doubt be possible, writes
Le Bon,
for a higher intelligence t o conceive energy without substance , . . but
such a conception cannot be conceived by us. We can only understand
things by fitting them into the common frame o f our thoughts. The
essence of energy being unknown, we are compelled t o materialize it
in order t o reason about it?
Le Bon asserts, however, that “matter is a variety of energy.”4
“Some of the ablest men in the world at present,” writes J. B. S.
Haldane, “regard matter as merely a special type of undulatory
disturbance.”6 Matter, says Eddington, is composed of protons
and electrons, Le., positive and negative charges of electricity.
What we call a solid body, he explains, is really empty space
containing sparsely scattered electric charges. Concerning the
“porosity” of the atom, he says:
The atom is as porous a s the solar system. If we eliminated all
the unfilled space i n a man’s body and collected his protons and elec-
trons into one mas$, the man would be reduced to a speck just visible
with a magnifying glass.“
Whitehead writes:
The notion of mass is losing its unique pre-eminence a s being the
.
one final permanent quantity. . . Mass now becomes the name for a
quantity of energy in relation t o some of its dynamicd effects.’
John Dewey rightly concludes that “the notion of matter ac-
tually found in the practice of science has nothing in common
with the matter of the materialists.”’
1. Cosmic Rays Thus Far, 124,125.
2. The Mansions of Philosophy, 62.
3. G . Le Bon, The Evolution of Matter, 13. Italics mine.
4. 00. cit.. 10.
5. Possibl;? Worlds, 296.
6. The Nature of the Physical World, 1-3.
7. Science and the Modern World. 149.
8. Hxperience and Nature, 74. ‘
74
MATTER AND SPIRIT
In a word, “matter,” in the sense of spatial or extended
substance, has ceased to exist, The matter of the twentieth-
century physicist bas become at least metaphysical, if not ulti-
mately immaterial. Sir James Jeans puts it as follows:
Physicists who are trying to understand nature may wqrk in inany
different fields and by many different methods: one may dlg, one may
sow one may reap. But the final harvest will always be a sheaf of
mathematical formulae. These will never describe nature itself, but
only our observations on nature. Our studies can never put us into
contact with reality; we can iiever penetrate beyond the impressions
that reality implants in our minds.’
And Eddington seems to intimate that what we call (‘material
things” are in reality only symbols by means of which intelli-
gent beings or spirits communicate with on another. He says:
That environment of space and time, of light and color and concrete
things, wliicli seems so vividly real t o us is probed deeply by every
device of physical science and a t t,he bottom we reach symbols. Its
substance has melted into shadow.*
Le Bon writes:
The elements of atoms which are dissociated . . . a r e irrevocably
destroyed. They lose every quality of matter-including the most funda-
mental of them all, weight. The balance n o longer detects them. Nothing
can recall them to the state of matter. They have vanished in the im-
mensity of the ether. , . . Heat, electricity, light, etc., , . . represent
the last stages of matter before its disappearance into the ether. . . ,
Matter which dissociates deoizatekJixes itself by passing through suc-
cessive phases which gradually deprive i t of its material qualities, until
i t finally returns to the imponderable ether whence i t seems to have
issued.8
It should be noted, in this connection, that physicists are now
prone to write about what they call the dematerialization of
electrons. De Broglie, for instance, says:
It has become tempting to imagine the photon a s consisting of a
corpuscle of negligible inass and charge obeying Dirac’s equations,
and associated with an anti-corpuscle of the same character. It is a n
attractive hypothesis, and from the mathematical point of view i t can
be completely worked out. It i s easy t o understand how a photon con-
structed in this way could be annihilated in the presence of matter by
transferring to it the whole if its energy, a process analogous to the
annihilation of a pair o f electrons in the phenomenon of dematerializa-
tion, This annhilation-a quantum transition-would then constitute
the photo-electric effect , , , and it ought then to be possible to define
the electro-magnetic field as a function of this transition,‘
Here, again, we have a clear intimation that light itself may be
the primal energy.
1. Phgsics a d P M l o ~ o p h y 15.
,
2. op. cit., 37.
3, The Evolution o f Mattel., 14, 12, 7.
4. Louis de Broglie, Matter aid Lzglit, 159-160.
75
“Ether?-but what is this ether?” asks Will Durant, and
goes on to say:
The ftther, said Lord Salisbury, is only a noun for the verb, t o
undulate; it is a fiction created t o conceal the learned ignorance of
modern science; it is 9s mystical a s a ghost or a soul. Einstein, by re-
interpreting gravitation, deposed the ether; latterly he has decided .to
restore it for a while, with a limited sovereignty; whenever a physicist
is puzzled, he answers, “Ether.” The ether, says the latest authority,
Professor Eddington, “is not a kind of matter”; i t is r‘non-nlaterial.’’a
T h a t is to say, a non-material something, by certain mysterious con-
tractions (vortices, as Lord Kelvin called them), transforms itself into
matter; t h a t which is without dimension or weight becomes, by adding
bits of it together, spatial and ponderable matter. Is this theologx
restored, o r a new Christian Science, or a form of psychical research?
At the very moment when psychology is attempting‘ by every presti-
digitation to get rid of consciousness in ocder to reduce mind t o matter,
physics regrets to report that matter does not exist?
Perhaps the latest word on the present-day view of the
ultimate constitution of matter is contained in a little book, pub-
lished several years ago, written by Lincoln Barnett, entitled
T h e Universe and Dr. Einstein. This work is of special impor-
tance to us in view of the fact that its content bears the stamp of
approval-the imprimatur, so to speak-of Dr. Einstein himself,
(Barnett’s book, published in 1948, contains a “Foreword” by
Dr. Einstein himself, in which the latter expresses his pers
approbation of the content of the book. This fact alone is
ficient to show that the volume contains the conclusions of
most up-to-date physics. This is the reason, of course, why I
quote from the book rather freely in the present treatise. Its
authoritative character can not be questioned.-C.) Concerning
the subject before us- the ultimate constitution of matter,
Barnett writes as follows:
atter is made up of atoms which in
t u r n a r e co of even smaller building blocks called electrons,
neutrons, ,and protons. But Einstein’s notion t h a t light too may consist.
of discontinuous particles clashed with a f a r more venerable theory that
light is made up of waves. There are indeed certain phenomena in-
volving light t h a t can only be explained by the wave theory. . . . The
phenomena-diffraction and interference-are str‘ictly wave charac-
teristics and would not occur if light were made up of individual
corpuscles. More than two centuries of experiment afid theoyy assert
t h a t light m u s t consist of waves. Yet Einstein’s Photoe
shows t h a t light must consist of photons [Le., “particles”
of energy, discrete quanta, according to Planck’s Quantum Theory].
This fundamental question-is light waves or is it particles?-has never
1. I n William James, The Meaning o f Truth, 19.
2. Eddington, The Nature of the Ph&cal World, 32.
3. T h e Mansions of Philosophy, 63, 64.
76
MAITER AND SPIRIT
been answered, The dual character of light is, however, only one aspect
of a deeper and more remarkable duality which pervades all nature.x
The “duality” alluded to here is that of the apparent “particle”
and “wave” structures which seem at o n e and the same time to
characterize the ultimate stuff of things, b o t h in the electro-
m a g n e t i c field and in the basic structure of the atom. Hence
Barnett goes on to say:
The first hint of this strange dualism came in 1925, when a young
French physicist named Louis de Broglie suggested t h a t phenomena in-
volving the interplay of matter and radiation could best be understood
by regarding electrons not as individual particles but as systems of
waves. This audacious concept flouted two decades of quantum research
i n which physicists had built up rather specific ideas about the ele-
mentary particles of matter. The atom had come t o be pictured a s a
kind of miniature solar system composed of a central nucleus sur-
rounded by varying numbers of electrons (1 for hydrogen, 92 for
uranium) revolving in circular or elliptical orbits. The electron was
less vivid. Experiments had shown t h a t all electrons had exactly the
same mass and the same electrical charge, so it was natural t o regard
them as the ultimate foundation stones of the universe, It also seemed
logical a t first t o picture them as hard elastic spheres. But little by
little, as investigation progressed, they became more capricious, defiant
of observation and measurement. I n many ways their behavior appeared
too complex for any material particle, . .. Shortly after De Broglie
had his vision of “matter waves,” a Viennese physicist named Schro-
dinger developed the same idea in coherent mathematical form, evolving
a system that explained quantum phenomena by attributing specific
wave functions t o protons and electrons. This system, known as “wave
mechanics,” was corroborated in 1927, when two American scientists,
Davisson and Germer, proved by experiment t h a t electrons do exhibit
.
wave characteristics, . , But further surprises were in store. F o r
subsequent experiments showed that not only the electrons but whole
atoms and even molecules produce wave patterns when diffracted by a
crystal surface, and that their wave lengths are exactly what De Broglie
and Schrodinger forecast. Aiad so all the basic units of matter-what
J . Clerk Maxwell called “the imperishable foundation stones of the
universe”-gradually shed their substance. The old-fashioned spherical
electron was reduced to an uizdulu&zg charge of electvical energy, the
atom to a system of superimposed waves. One could only conclude that
all matter is made u p of waves aid we live in a world of waves.’
Barnett then continues:
The paradox presented by waves of matter on the one hand and
particles of light on the other was resolved by several developments in
the decade before World War 11. The German physicists, Heisenberg
and Born, bridged the gap by developing a new mathematical apparatus
t h a t permitted accurate description of quantum phenomena either in
terms of waves or in terms of particles a s one wished. The idea behind
their system had a profound influence on the philosophy of science.
They maintained i t is pointless for a physicist t o worry about the
properties of a single electron; in the laboratory he works with beams
o r showers of electrons, each containing billions of individual particles
1, Op. Cit., 19-21.
2. Zbid, 21-23. (Italics mine.-C.)
77
THR ETERNAL SPIRIT - HIS PERSON AND POWERS
( o r waves) ; h e is concerned therefore only with mass behavior, with
statistics and the laws of: probability and chance. So it makes no prac-
tical difference whether individual electrons are particles or systems
of waves-in aggregate they can be pictured either way. ...
took the mathematical expression used by Schrodinger in his equations
Born
t o denote wave function and interpreted it as a “probability” in a
statistical sense. That is t o say, he regarded the intensity of any part
of a wave a s a measure of the probable distribution a t t h a t point. Thus
he dealt with the phenomena of clilfraction, which hitherto only the
wave theory could explain, in terms of the probability of certain cor-
puscles-light quanta or electrons-following certain paths and arriving
a t certain places. And so “waves of matter” were reduced to “waves
of probability.”l
The same author then concludes:
It no longer matters how we visualize an electron o r an atom o r a
probability wave. The equations of Heisenberg and Born f i t any picture.
And we can, if we choose, imagine ourselves living in a universe of
waves, a universe of particles, or as one facetious scientist has phrased
it, a universe of “wavicles.”2
Again, concerning the reciprocal transmutation of matter
and energy, as described by the Einsteinian principle of the
equivalence of mass and energy, Barnett writes:
I n the light of this broad principle, many puzzles of nature are
resolved. The baffling interplay of matter and radiation which appears
sometimes to be a concourse of particles and sometimes a meeting of
waves, becomes more understandable. The dual role of the electroh as a
unit of matter and unit of electricity, the wave electron, the photon,
waves of matter, waves of probability, a universe of waves-all these
seem less paradoxical. For all these concepts simply describe different
manifestations of the same underlying reality, and it no longer makes
sense t o ask what any one of them “really” is. M a t t e r and energy are in-
terchangeable. I f matter sheds i t s mass and travels w i t h the speed of
light, w e call it radiation o r energy. A n d conversely if energy congeals
and becomes i n e r t and W E can ascesatain i t s nanss, w e call it matter.
Heretofore science could only note their ephemeral properties and re-
lations a s they touched the perceptions of earth-bound man. But since
July 16, 1945, man has been able t o transform one into the other. For
on t h a t night a t Alamogordo, New Mexico, man for the first time
transmuted a substantial quantity of matter into the light, heat, sound,
and motion, which we call energy.’
The “conclusion of the whole matter” is given by the same
author in the following paragraph:
Yet the fundamental mystery remains. The whole march of science
toward the unification of concepts-the reduction of all matter t o ele-
ments and then t o a few types of particles, the reduction of “forces”
t o the single concept “energy,” and then the reduction of matter and
energy t o a single basic quantity-leads still t o the unknown. The
many questions merge into one, t o which there may never be an an-
1. O p . &., 23-24.
2. Ibid., 24.
3. Ibid., 59. (Italic mine-C)
78
MATTER AND SPIRIT
swer: what is the essence of this mass-energy substance, what i s the
unde~lyingstratum of physical reality which science seeks to explore?’
Again, one of tlie most amazing facts about these discov-
eries of modern physics i.s that they were arrived at by the
human mind, and not by the human eye or any other physical
sense organ, by the way of mathematical formulae, many years
before they were actually confirmed experimentally. To any
thinking person, this mathematical accuracy points unmistakably
t o the Universal Intelligence and Will, to whom men in all ages
have reverently given the name “God”-that Will which is the
constitution of the cosmos, Moreover, with each succeeding dis-
covery of modern physics, our world of the physical senses has
lost more and more oi its traditional character as the “real”
world, and has become correspondingly a world of appearance,
the phenomenal world. The real world has come to be more and
more, in fact, that “region above the heaven” described by
Plato as “the colorless, formless, and intangible truly existing
essence, with which all true knowledge is concerned,’’ which
“is visible only to the mind, the pilot of the In short, it
is the world of the Eternal Spirit, from whose very Being, per-
haps, the phenomenal world has been projected and has taken
shape before the eyes of created living beings. In this connec-
tion, I shall take the liberty of indulging another lengthy quota-
tion or two from Barnett:
But the irony of man’s quest for reality is t h a t as nature is
stripped of its disguises, as order emerges from chaos and unity from
diversity, as concepts merge and fundamental laws assume increasingly
simpler form, the evolving picture becomes ever more abstract and
remote from experience-far stranger indeed and less recognizable
than the bone structure behind a familiar face. For where the geometry
of a sltull predestines the outlines of the tissue i t supports, there is no
likeness between the image of a tree transcribed by our senses and that
propounded by wave mechanics, o r between a glimpse of the s t a r r y
sky on a summer night and the four-dimensional continuum that has
replaced our perceptual Euclidean space.
In trying to distinguish appearance from reality and lay bare the
fundamental structure of the universe, science has had to transcend the
“rabble of tlie senses.” But its highest edifices, Einstein ha5 pointed
out, have been “purchased at the price of emptiness of content.” A
theoretical concept is emptied of content to the very degree t h a t i t is
divorced from sensory esperience. For the only world man can truly
know is the world created for him by his senses. If he expunges all
the impressions which they translate and memory stores, nothing is
1. Op. cit., 69-130, Vide in a subsequent part of the present treatise
a final word on the First Principle, the Principle of the Unity and
Generation of all things.
2. Phasdrus, 247 C-E. ‘Translation by H. N. Fowler, Loeb Classical
Library Edition.
79
left. T h a t is what the philosopher Hegel meant by his cryptic remark:
‘‘Pure Being and Nothing are the same,” A.state of existence devoid
of associations has no meaning. So paradoxically what the scientist
and the philosopher call the world of appearance- the world of light
lue skies and green leaves, of sigh and mur-
the world designed by the physiolo man sense
organs is the’ world in which finite man is incarcerated by his essential
nature. And what the scientist and the philosopher call the world of
reality-the colorless, soundless, impalpable cosmos which lies like an
iceberg beneath the plane of man’s perceptions-is a skeleton structure
of symbo1s.l
Again:
In the evolution of scientific thought, one fact has become im-
pressively clear: there is nQ m y s t e r y of the physical world which does
not point t o a m y s t e r y beyond itself. All highroads of the intellect, all by-
ways of theory and conjecture lead ultimately to a n abyss t h a t human
ingenuity can never span. For man is enchained by the very condition
of his being, his finiteness and involvement in nature. The farther he
extends his horizons, the more vividly he recognizes the fact that as
the physicist Niels Bohr pdts it, “we are both spectators and actors
in the great drama of existence.” Man is thus his own greatest mystery.
He does not understand the vast veiled universe into which he has
been cast for the reason t h a t he does not understand himself. He
comprehends but little of his organic processes and even less of his
unique capacity to perceive the world about him, to reason and to
dream. Least of all does he tinderstand his noblest and most mysterious
faculty: the ability to transcend himself and perceive himself in the
act of perception.
Man’s inescapable impasse is that he himself is a p a r t of the
world he seeks t o explore; his body and8Toud braip are mosaics of
the same elemental particles t h a t cob$ %e ‘m6 ’ dark, drifting dust
clouds of interstellar space; he is, in the final analysis, merely an
ephemeral conformation of the primordial space-time field. Standing
midway between macrocosm and microcosm he finds barriers on every
side and can perhaps but marvel, as St. Paul did nineteen hundred
years ago, t h a t “the world was created by the word of God so that
what is seep was made out of things which do not appear.”2
But is it necessarily true that man-a living, conscious
spirit himself, created in the Divine image, we are told in
Scripture, the noblest product of the Divine handiwork-is
“merely an ephemeral conformation of the primordial space-
time field”? Perhaps, after all, he, who has the power himself of
transcending both space and time in his experience, has the
possibility of a higher destiny than this world has to offer, by
conforming his will to the will of the Divine, as he is urged
again and again to do in the Word of God. Moreover, is it nec-
essarily true, as this author seems to affirm, that the real world
as envisioned by the present-day physicist, has no meaning for
man? Certainly it has all the meaning which the human imag-
1. o p . cit., 109-110.
2. Zbid., 113-114. (Italic mine--C.)
80
MATTER AND SPIRIT
ination is capable of grasping, for the man of the Spirit, who
sees beyond the realm of flesh and sense. In €act, to him alone,
it is the only world that can have fulness of meaning-simply
because it is the abode of his God, and his God is Love (I John
4:7, 8). It is sheer presumption, sheer “earthboundness,” to
assert that sensory experience is the noblest and most satisiying
of which man is capable. Such a view is derogatory of the
very dignity and worth of the human individual; it is a view
which spiritually-minded of all ages would repudiate and hurl
back with scorn, To the man of the Spirit, the very hope of
some day “seeing God face to face,” of apprehending Him,
that is, with the understanding and with the affections, is an
infinitely greater source of pleasure even than the sensory ap-
prehension of this present “world of light and color, of blue
skies and green leaves, of sighing wind and murmuring water.”
Beautiful as this world is in many of its aspects, it can be
only a shadow of that world which is filled with the presence
of God, and is therefore filled with joy and thanksgiving
and praise. And if the hope of such a state of spiritual satis-
faction and peace is a source of great joy to the man of the
Spirit, what indeed will the fruition be! It simply cannot be
described in human language! Eye has not seen, nor ear heard,
nor has it entered into the imagination of man to conceive
the things which God has ‘prepared for those who love Him.
This Beatific Vision, Jesus tells us, is reserved only for the
“pure in heart” (Matt. 5 : 8 ) , for the obvious reason that it
can be appreciated only by the pure in heart, by those who
prepare themselves, by cultivating the fruit of the Spirit in
themselves (Gal. 5:22-24), to apprehend and to appreciate it,
Man’s natural and proper end is the union of the individual mind
with the Mind of God in knowledge, and the union of the indi-
vidual will with the Will of God in love. In that heavenly state,
what Spinoza has termed “intellectual love of God”‘ will indeed
be realized to the full, but it will be supplemented by the bliss-
ful affection of Love which shall bind God and all His re-
deemed creatures in that everlasting holy fellowship which
shall mark the consummation of the entire Creative Process.
Small wonder that St. Paul was prompted to cry out at times,
“For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain” (Phil. 1:21),
and again, “I am in a strait betwixt the two, having the desire
to depart and be with Christ; for it is very far better; yet to
1. Spinoza, Etlvics, Propositions XXV-XLII.
81
abide in the flesh is more needful for your sake” (Phil. 1:23,
24). No wonder he was prompted to shout, as his valedictory,
“I have fought the good fight, I have finished the course, I
have kept the faith; henceforth there is laid up for me the
crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge,
shall give to me at that day; and not to me only, but also to
all them that have loved his appearing” (2 Tim. 4: 7, 8 ) !
Then, again, there is the mystery of Space, and the equally
profound mystery of Time. The suggestion has been made in
recent years that Matter might be an emanation from Space.
Einstein predicted some years ago that the next forward step
in science would be the attempt to solve the mystery of Space.
He is reported to have said something to this effect: It appears
that Space will have to be regarded as a primary thing with
matter only derived from it, so to speak, as a secondary result.
But-we may reasonably ask-what is Space to our minds but
a possible location for matter in motion? This, however, is not
in any sense a definition. The word “space” seems to convey
the idea of an intangible something (or nothing?), let US say
an expanse, that is everywhere, in whatever direction one might
go and no matter how far in any direction one might go; a
something that one could never leave behind, never get away
from or out of; something akin, in its intangibility and every-
whereness, to our notion of Spirit. One might wel1,recall in
in this context Pascal’s statement: “The eternal silence of in-
finite space is terrifying.” Or the cry of the Psalmist:
0 Jehovah, thou hast searched me, and know me.
Thou knowest my downsitting and mine uprising;
Thou understandest my thoughts afar off. . . .
Whither shall I go from thy Spirit?
Or whither shall I flee from thy presence?
If I ascend up into heaven, thou art there;
If I make my bed in Sheol, behold, thou art there.
If I take the wings of the morning,
And dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea,
Even there shall thy hand lead me,
And thy right hand shall hold me.
(Psa. 139: 1,2,7-10).
Is Space, then, a sui generis being, capable of indefinite exten-
sion in all directions, and, although completely independent of
matter, yet the container-Plato, in the Timaelm, calls .it the
“Receptacle”-of the finite world of material objects? Are these
82
MAlTER AND SPIRIT
so-called “material” objects, after all, in a state of continuous
flux, and hence only illusory changes? Newton, Clarke, and
Fenelon, for example, identified absolute Space with the Divine
immensity or ubiquity; and Spinoza regarded Space as the ex-
tension of the Divine Substance, and essential attribute of the
Divine Being, Or, on the other hand, is Space merely an ideal
being, a concept of the human mind, purely subjective in char-
acter? Kant, the German philosopher, for example, explained
both Space and Time as “forms of perception” inherent in the
perceiving mind, forms which the mind itself brings to bear
upon the raw material of sensation. Leibniz, while rejecting
the innateness of the idea, nevertheless regarded Space as a
subjective representation formed in the presence of, or under
the impact of, external objects. And Bergson held that Space
is “an ideal scheme or a symbol appended to matter to render
the latter divisible and subject to our conscious actions,’” Berg-
son says:
The glance which falls a t any moment on the things about us only
takes in the effects of a multiplicity of inner repetitions and evolutions,
effects which are, for that very reason, discontinuous, and into which
we bring back continuity by the relative movements t h a t we attribute
t o “objects” in space. The change is everywhere, but inward; we 10-
calize it here and there, but outwardly; and thus we constitute bodies
which are both stable as t o their qualities and mobile as to their posi-
tions, a mere change of place summing up in itself, t o our eyes, the
universal transformation.s
For Hegel, Space was the exteriorization of the Absolute (what-
ever this phrase may mean!) ; and for Herbert Spencer it was an
abstract concept of all the relations between co-existents, real
space itself being unknowable. And so the problems attached to
the term persist in persisting: Is Space one? Is it absolute or
relative? Is it mobile or immobile? Is it finite or infinite? Is
it a vacuum or a plenum (and if the latter, is it filled with
ether?)? Are there intervals in the cosmos that are empty of
all matter? Is Space homogeneous or heterogeneous? And the
basic problem of all: Does Space exist objectively, or is it mere-
ly an idea in the human mind? About all that can be said in
answer to any of these questions is: Who knows?
(It is interesting to note at this point how many of our
“modern” pundits have been indulging the pastime of poking
fun at the medieval scholars who are said to have spent much
1. Vide, D. Nys., Cosnaology, 11, 34’1-432.
2. Henri Bergson, Matter and Memory, trans. by Paul and Palmer,
277.
83
time in discussing the problem as to how w a n y angels could
dance o n t h e point of a needle. The modern theologian might
reply in kind by asking the scholars of our day, How m a n y
atoms can dance on t h e point of a needle? We must remember,
of course, that the medievals were dealing with the problem as
to how a spiritual (non-corporeal) entity could be thought of
as occupying space. In our time, such questions as, In what
sense does an atom occupy space, or, Does it occupy space in
any sense of the term? are apparently as insoluble.)
Or, take the mystery of Time: what is it? “Time,” said
Plato, “is the moving image of eternity.” That is .to say, the
things of sense-perception, the “objects” of our phenomenal
world of Becoming, are but copies, and copies in a state of
continuous flux, of the fixed, unchangeable, and eternal Forms
of the world of true Being. Says Plato, by the mouth of his
Pythagorean spokesman, in the Timaescs:
Time came into existence along with the Heaven, t o the end that
having been generated together they might also be dissolved together,
if ever a dissolution of them should take place; and it was made after
the pattern of the Eternal Nature, to the end that it might be a s like
thereto as possible ; for whereas the pattern is existent throughout all
eternity, the copy, on the other hapd, is through all time, continually
having existed, existing, and being about t o exist.‘
Time, therefore, being cotemporaneous, so to speak, with the
Creation itself, God the Creator must transcend all Time and
indeed all Space as well. Or, as Scripture puts it: “One day
is with the Lord as a thousand years, d a thousand years as
one day” (2 Pet. 3 : 8 ) . But what is Time per
Augustine who wrote, centuries ago: “What is time? If nobody
asks me, I know; but if I were desirous to explain it to one
that should ask me, plainly I know not.’’2 Is Time simply dura-
tion, a duration that i s feZt rather than measured, as Bergson
contended?” Is it merely the measure of the relative imper-
fections of human beings? Is Time strictly identical with move-
ment o r change? Is it reversible or irreversible? Is it abso-
lute, or relative? Did it have a beginning? Will it come to an
end? Is such a distinction as that of real time and and mnthe-
matical time legitimate? Is time an objective element in the
scheme of things, or again is it merely subjective, an idea that
the human mind imposes upon the facts of experience? Again,
1. Tim. 37 D ff. Trans. by R. G. Bury, Loeb Classical Library Edition.
2. Augustine, Confessioits, XI, ch. 17. Pusey translation, Everyman’s
Library Edition, 262.
3 . Bergson, Time mid Fyec Will.
84
MAlTER AND SPIRIT
about the only honest answer we can give to any of these ques-
tions is: Who but God knows?
Suffice it to say that the tendency among physicists at
present i s to unite Space and Time in theoretical wedlock, SO
to speak; that is to say, to regard Space-Time as one, as fourth
dimensional. As Lincoln Barnett puts it:
Since time is an impalpable quantity it is not possible t? draw a
picture or construct a model of a four-dimensional space-time con-
tinuum. But it can be imagined and it can be represented mathematical-
ly. And in order t o describe the stupendous reaches of the universe
beyond our solar system beyond the clusters and s t a r clouds of the
Milky Way, beyond the ionely outer galaxies burning in the void, the
scientist must visualize it all as a continuum in three dimensions of
space and one of time. I n our minds we tend t o separate these dimen-
sions; we have a n awareness of space and an awareness of time.
But the separation is purely subjective; and as the Special Theory
of Relativity showed, space and time separately are relative quantities
which vary with individual observers, I n any objective description
of the universe, such as science demands, the time dimension can no
more be detached from the space dimension that length can be de-
tached from breadth and thickness in a n accurate representation of
a house, a tree or Betty Grable. According t o the great German
mathematician, Herman Minkowski, who developed the mathematics
of the space-time continuum as a convenient medium for expressing
the principles of Relativity, “space and time separately have vanished
into the merest shadows, and only a sort of combination of the two
preserves any reality.”l
This author continues:
It must not be thought, however, t h a t the space-time continuum is
simply a mathematical construction, The world is a space-time con-
tinuum; all reality exists both in space and in time, and the two a r e
indivisible. All measurements of time are really measurements in space,
and conversely measurements in space depend on measurements of time.
Seconds, minutes, hours, days, weelis, months, seasons, years, are
measurements of the earth’s position in space relative to the sun,
moon, and stars. Similarly latitude and longitude, the terms whereby
man defines his spatial position on the earth, a r e measured in minutes
and seconds, and t o compute them accurately one must know the time
of day and tlie day of the year. Such “landmarks” as the Equator,
the Tropic of Cancer, o r the Arctic Circle are simply sundials which
clock the changing seasons; the Prime Meridian is a co-ordinate of daily
time; and “noon” is nothing more than a n angle of the sun.
Even so, the equivalence of space and time becomes really clear
only when one contemplates the stars. Among the familiar constellations,
some are “real” in that their component stars comprise true gravita-
tional systems, moving in a n orderly fashion relative to one another;
others are only apparent-their patterns a r e accidents of perspective,
created by a seeming adjacency of unrelated stars along the line of
sight. Within such optical constellations one may observe two stars of
equal brightness and assert that they a r e “side by side” in tlie firma-
ment, whereas in actuality one may be 40 light years and the other 400
light years away.
1. Op. &E., 64.
85
Obviously tlie astronomer has to think of the universe as a space-
time continuum. When lie peers through his telescope he looks not
only outward in space but b a ~ l i ~ in ~ ~time.
r d His sciisitive cameras
can detect tlie glimmer of island universes 600 inillion light years
away-faint gleams that began their journey a t :L pri,iotl o t‘ terrestrial
time when the f i r s t vertebrates \Yere startiiic to csi:i\i 1 I‘rom warni
Paleozoic seas onto the young continents of Earth. Isis s l w t iwscope tells
him, moreover, t h a t these huge outer systcms are hurtliiiq iiito limbo,
away from our own galaxy, a t incredible velocities ixiigiiiq ut) to 35.000
miles a second. Or, more precisely,, they W C ~ Brecedinfi 1’1.oni 11s ,500
million years ago. Where they are “now,” 01‘ wlietliiv they PI eii exist
“now,” no one can say. If we break d o \ ~ uo u i ’ ~iictuix!ol‘ tlw uni\rciw
into three subjective dimensions of space : ~ n dotic ol‘ low1 tinit., thrii
these galaxies have no objective esistcnce s a v e :is l‘:>iiit siniidgw of
ancient enfeebled light on a photographic plalc. Tlwy attain physical
reality only in their proper frame of i~cfrlrnce,wliivli is tlih four-
dimensional space-time continuum.’
After all, is there not an obvious kinship between this
Space-Time continuum of the twentieth-century physicist and
the connotations of the term “Spirit”? Not only with Yespect to
the eveqwheyeness, but also with respect to the inexhnustible-
ness, of both. And would it be too far-fetched to regard Matter,
that is, in its ultimate character of, perhaps, radiant energy, as
a projection of Space-Time or Spirit? Bergson certainly ap-
proximates this view in his presentation of the Elnn Vital as a
Cosmic Consciousness-in one or two instances he speaks of it
as “Spirit”-ever pushing its way upward like a ‘fountain that
gushes higher and higher, and of which the particles that fall
back toward the source of the movement constitute what we call
“matter.”’
Mr. Walter Russell, then President of the Society of Arts
and Sciences, was quoted in the daily press a few years ago
as saying, in an address delivered in New Yosk City:
The question arises, Is there any line of demarcation between a
spiritual and a physical liniverse’? And have \ve not been calling the
invisible universe “spiritual” just because \ve could not see i t ? We
have begun t o see something tangible and inspiring beyond place,
mass, and dimension. There must be a limitless source of static energy
somewhere back of all this dynamic expression.
Speaking with reference to the ultimate particles of which
matter is composed, which seem to constitute light, and which
carry energy, scientists, said Mr. Russell, find them all acting
suspiciously like some of the processes of human thought. He
then added:
Tomorrow physics \vi11 undoubtedly divorce energy from matter
and give it to space, . . . What we call the spiritual universe inay
1. Op. cit., 65, 66.
2. H. Bergson, Cmntiue Evolirtioiz. Trans. by Arthur Mitchell.
SG
MATTER AND SPIRIT
prove to be t h e static source in space of electric energy. If Einsteiii’s
prophecy is fulfilled it would cause a f a r greater upheaval in science
Ihan Co]iernicus caused in the colicept of Ptoleaiy. Basic coiic~usions
of today would be either reversed or discarded entirely, for if energy
belongs t o space as the new cosinogony suggests, light would I~clong
to space, as Jesus infewed, Wlien energy is found t o belong t o space,
light will be understood t o be ail emergence from space, and God will
be €ouiid t o be what Jesus said Ile ~vas--Light. A s we study Jesus’
teaching from the point of view of science, we 1)ecome convinced t h a t
Ile understood light, eiiei-gy, motion, mid space, and knrw wliat filled
space. Jesus txuglit that life is eternal, that there is n o death. Scirnce
may pi’ove this t o be literally true, and t h a t tlie body, like all other
material ~~Iirnomeiia, merely registers t h e intrnsity of the thinlting of a
Supreme Intelligelice, IC scieiice proves this, it wjll give menning to
the words of Sii* Jaines Jeans that “matter may evrntually br pi’oved
to be pure
As we read these excerpts in which are set forth the views
of the most distinguished physicists of our day, the words of
the first three verses of the Bible come to mind:
In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. And the
earth was v7astc and void; and darlmess was upon t h r face of the
deep; aid the Spirit of God was hrooding upon the lace of t h e wateis.
And God said, Let thew he light; and tliere vas light.
In the light, therefore, of the most yecent scientific view of
the essential coiistitutioii of matter, are we not justified in
believing that creative activil y bcgaii with the initial putting
forth of radiant energy as a result of the activity of the Divine
Spirit? And that this projection of primal energy resulted in
the vast accumulation of matter: tlie stuf-f of which the Spirit of
God, through the instrumentality of successive fiats of the
Divine Word, subsequently moulded, arranged and constituted
our cosmos? We may well ask then: Was this primal energy in-
herent in the Being of God? Or was it a p i ’ i v z c ~ ~creation,
l~
what theologians have termed a creation ex itikilo? Science
has no answer for this question, and probably never will have
one. Faith, however, answers that it was, in some sense, a pri-
mary creation. “By faith we understand that the worlds have
been framed by the word of God, so that what is seen hath not
been made out of things which appear” (Heb. 11:3). “By the
word of Jehovah were the heavens made, and all the host of them
by the breath [spirit] of his mouth. . . , For he spake, and it
was done; he commanded, and it stood fast” (Psa. 33:6, 9 ) .
All of which boils dounz to the fact that pure Spiyit-Power, which
is pure Thought-Power, is cnpable of geizemtiizg what we call
rr
physical” power: a fact of which, as w e skall see later, w e have
1. I have inisplaced the ol-iginal of this press story. However, I
vouch f o r the accuracy of the excerpt presented here.
87
an imperfect analogy in the powers of the pure spirit of man.
As Dr. Michael I. Pupin has said:
Sixty years ago, Clerk-Maxwell, the great electrical mathematician,
spoke like a prophet when he made the startling announcement that
radiation of light is a manifestation of moving electricity, The most
...
precious among the fruits of this discovery of Maxwell is that the
origin of all light radiation is in the motion of the tiny electrons,
which are, a s f a r as we know, the unchangeable, primordial building
stones of the material universe. Everything that moves seems to be
deriving its breath of existence from the electrical forces which have
their origin in these tiny electrons. These little workers, infinitely
small, but infinitely numerous, by their combined activities make up
the larger activities of that stupendous thing which we call the uni-
verse. And this busy little worker, the electron, is the most law-abiding
creature in the universe. It loves, honors and obeys the laws, and its
eternal mission is t o serve. God employed the heavenly host of elec-
tronic workers to build the atoms, the molecules, and the galaxies of
burning stars. These celestial furnaces, throbbing with the blazing
energy of the electronic host, are moulding all kinds of planetary
castings, and tempering them so as to be just right for organic life.
One of these planetary castings is our Mother Earth. It is a mere
dust speck in the universe, but this dust speck is the home of the
soul of man, and this lifts our tiny earth t o a place of honor near
the throne of God, The soul’s very breath of life is the beautiful elec-
tronic music, and to be thrilled by the melody of that cosmic song is
t h e highest aim in our study of electrical science.
Again:
What is the only mystery today in electrical science? It is this:
Where, when and how did the electron come into existence? The
sensible man will answer; God created the electron, and therefore
only God knows where, when and how, This eliminates the mystery
at once. The rest we can see f o r ourselves. God created a host of
electrons t o be His assistants in building. the universe. And when
science discovered the electrons and learned t o use them in man’s
service, it was our first glimpse of the method of creative operation?
There are those “unbelieving” scientists, of course,
the name of God, and who choose to begin with el
atoms (or some other kind of particles of primal energy), hold-
ing these to be the unoriginated First Principle (or Principles)
of all things. Under such a view, of course, it becom
to conclude that these primal particles-whatever n
given to them-have always contained, and still contain, within
themselves the potentialities of all the higher phenomena of
human experience, such as life, consciousness, thought, con-
science, personality, and the like. Is it not obvious, therefore,
that such a Primal Energy as the First Principle, that is, one
embracing the potentialities of life, consciousness, and thought,
certainly approximates what is designated “God” in the vocabu-
1. Quoted by A. E. Wiggam, Exploring Your Mind, 385-407.
88
MATTER AND SPIRIT
lary of tlie Christian? Obviously, there must be an unorigiiiated
or self-existent First Principle of all things-a Someone or
Something that has always been and will always be, that i s
without beginning or end; tlie human mind revolts against the
notion that Something could ever have been generated by an
(‘eternal Nothing.” It is to just such a First Principle that re-
ligion applies the name “God.” And no matter how zealously
the scientist tries to avoid this designation, the fact remains
that his Primal Energy bears the same relation t o the Cosmos
and its processes as does the believer’s God. I therefore affirm
that there are no actual atheists in the world; those who profess
to be “atheists” are simply hiding behind a mass of verbiage.
Every thinking person is compelled by both logic and common
sense to accept the fact of a First Principle, either monistic,
dualistic, or pluralistic in character. Therefore, the question
primarily is not, Where did God come from?-but, Why is
there Something instead of Nothing? And, secondarily, What
is the nature of this Someone or Something that is without be-
ginning or end, which is the Source of Cause of the whole
Creation? Now if the First Principle be Primal Energy of
some kind-radiant, electronic, atomic, or what not-that Primal
Energy is God. This is the long of it, the short of it, and the
all of it. There is simply no getting away from an eternal
Something.
The difference, then, between the “non-believer” and the
believer is that, whereas the former holds the First Principle of
all things t o be the nature of matter or energy (materialism),
the believer holds that the First Principle is of the nature of
Spirit or Person (theism). The “noli-believer” bows in adoration
before electrons, atoms, and molecules; the believer worships the
Eternal Spirit, the Eternal Spirit of the Bible. For Jesus Him-
self tells us that “God is a Spirit, and they that worship him must
worship in spirit and truth” (John 4:24). The whole issue boils
down, therefore, to this: Which view-laying aside the claim of
revelation altogether, for the moment-is the more reasonable,
and which is more in accord with human experience?
I choose, for strictly experiential reasons, to take my stand
for the Eternal Spirit of the Bible-the Spirit of God or Holy
Spirit. In the first place, science has not one iota of evidence
to offer in support of the hypothesis that pure energy or matter
has within itself the powers of producing life, consciousness, or
thought. The gaps between these successively higher phenomena
are just as great as they ever were: not one of them has even
89
been begun to be bridged. Neither life, consciousness, or thought
has ever been reduced to purely physiochemical or even cellu-
lar activity; all assertions to the contrary that one may read oc-
casionally in textbooks are sheer bravado. In the second place,
the essentially mathematical structure, and the obviously theo-
logical aspects (in the form of adaptation of means to ends), of
the Cosmos and its processes, both point unmistakably to Spirit,
that is, to Universal Intelligence and Will, rather than to un-
thinking, purely chance-operative particles of energy. Besides
all this, the application of energy, in the form of force, to any
particular end, as occurs constantly throughout Nature, pre-
supposes the exercise of a Sovereign Wil1,-that Will which is
the constitution of the universe. There is no accounting for
the framework of Order which Nature presents to our view, and
without which there never could have been a science, without a
Sovereign Orderer. As the ‘Psalmist puts it: “God spake, and
it was done; He commanded, and it stood fast” (Psa. 33:9). I
cohtend, therefore, that it is far more reasonable, and more in
accord with human experience, to begin with Pure Spirit as the
First Principle, as the One who embraces within Himself both
potentially and actually all these higher phenomena, and who
has infused them, one by one, progressively, into the Creative
Process. It is far more reasonable to begin with the all-pervading
Spirit as the Source of all orders of Being-electronic, atomic,
vital, conscious, rational, moraI, and spiritual-than it is to begin
with nothing but irrational “waves” or “particles” of “brute”
force. The former view accounts for all known phenomena of
experience; the latter, one might well say, for none. If called
upon to make the choice between the Eternal Spirit, on the
one hand, and purely chance-operative particles of non-thinking,
amoral particles of primal energy on the other hand, as the
First Cause of all things, it seems to me that any intelligent
person would take his stand on the side of Spirit. For man
knows-if he will but look into himself-that he is infinitely
more than an aggregate of physiochemical processes; that he
is, in a word, a being who has been created “in the image of
God” (Gen. 1:27). ’
To summarize: It must have become perfectly apparent by
this time that is speaking of “matter” we may have, primarily,
either of two referents in mind: (1) gross matter, the matter of
everyday experience, palpable to the senses; or (2) ultimate
matter, that of the present-day physicist, which is essentially
energy rather than extension, and which, though none the less
90
MATrER AND SPIRIT
real, is intelligible only in terms of mathematical formulae,
There is a third sense too in which we may speak, secondarily,
of “matter,” namely, as designating the imperceptible, unlmow-
able cause of our sensations: a universal substratum, a support
“wc know not what” which “is the same everywhere,” to use
John Locke’s phraseology. This is a view which has prevailed
quite generally throughout the history of philosophic thought,
the Apeiron of Anaximander oft repeated. And finally, we may
use the word “matter” merely to signify a something that is
the opposite of “mind” or “spirit.” It is with this signification,
perhaps, that the word is most commonly used in everyday speech.
What practical conclusions are to be drawn, from this
excursus into the history of the concept of matter, for our pres-
sent purpose? I suggest the following lines of thought:
In the first place, At what point is the line of demarcation
between matter and spirit to be drawn, or perhaps it would be
more correct t o say, between the ontological referents designated
by the words “matter” and “spirit”? Where shall we find-
or locate-the line that divides the “material” from the “non-
material” or “immaterial”? Does such a line of demarcation
actually exist? Or, is this an antithesis, like that perhaps of
“natural” and “supernatural,” probably formulated and arbi-
trarily imposed upon reality by the human mind itself? Perhaps
the Totality of Things is, after all, a continuum, with the “mate-
rial” shading into the “non-material,” and vice versa, at certain
points and under certain conditions. We might, for instance,
approach the solution to this problem by asking, What is the
essential property of matter? That is, what is the characteristic
of matter lacking which it would not be matter? A great many
thinkers, following Descartes, have contended that the essential
property of matter is extension; others, the Neo-Scholastics, for
example, say that it is divisibility. Now these conclusions may
I
be true of gross matter, the matter common to our everyday
experience. But they simply cannot be true of the ultimate mat-
ter as it is described by our present-day physicists. The ultimate
“particles” which go to make up the atom can hardly be said
to have spatial magnitude at all, and yet, paradoxically, they
must have spatial magnitude of a sort. Moreover, as previously
stated, the word atomos means “indivisible”; hence, the mo-
ment the atom is postulated as the ultimate unit of matter, the
bridge has been crossed from the realm of the divisible and
“material” into that of the indivisible and hence by definition
“immaterial.” The same reasoning applies to the proton, neutron,
91
electron, and like icles of the atom. The issue
is not resolved in an y conceiving the atom as a
“particle,” “wave,” or “field” of energy, As a matter of fact,
the atoms of the new physics are not in the strictest sen
divisible; rather, they are found to be composite a
ally to lose or gain their “parts,” and even to
nature. But in view of the fact that these “parts” (“particles”
or “charges”? 1 are themselves indivisible, our argument still
stands. If the essential property of matter is divisibility, there
can be no ultimate indivisible unit at all, for the obvious reason
that any indivisible unit would be not-matter or “non-material.”
We must therefore conclude that matter is not indidsible ad
infinitum: that there is a point at which, by definition, the
“material” becomes “immaterial.”
Are we not justified in concluding, therefore, that matter,
in its ultimate form has to be, in that form at least, “immaterial,”
that is, qualitative rather than quantitative? To put the same
proposition in another form: In the realm of matter, we say,
the whole is equal to the sum of the parts. But in the realm of
spirit, any “part,” speaxing by way of analogy, is “equal” to
the “whole.” Why is this true? Because in the realm of spirit
we are in the qualitative again rather than in the quantitative.
The life that pervades a human organism, for eiample, is
equally and qualitatively present in all parts of that organism.
It simply can not be divided into “parts” as we divide a mate-
rial object, nor can it be analyzed or measured quantitatively.
More than this, it is an inexhaustible something. We are safe
in saying then, it seems to me, that if the essential property of
matter be divisibility, the essential property of spirit is inex-
haustibleness. No matter how much of spirit-power is expended,
the source of supply is never exhausted, nor even diminished.
But here again we are speaking qualitatively rather than in
terms of quantity.
izn the second place, if by this process of regression we
actually pass from the “material” into the “immaterial” or “non-
material”-not only logically, but ontologically as, well-it natur-
ally follows that the opposite may well be true, namely, that
matter, in its ultimate form, perhaps that of radiant energy, is
either a creation of, or an emergence from, the “non-material,”
that is, from the activity of Pure Thought or Spirit. And cer-
tainly the tendency among physicists of the present day is
toward the adoption of this view. As Sir James Jeans says:
92
MATTER AND SPIRIT
Today there is a widespread measure of agreement which on the
physical side approaches almost t o unanimity, t h a t the stream of h o w l -
edge is heading toward a non-mechanical reality; the universe begins
to look more like a great thought than like a great mac1iine.l
Again, the same author says elsewhere:
To my mind, the laws which nature obeys a r e less suggestive of
those which a machine obeys in its action than of those which a musician
obeys in writing a fugue, or a poet in composing a sonnet. The mo-
tions of electrons and atoms do not resemble those of the parts of a
locomotive so much as those of the dancers in a cotillion. And if the
true “essence of substances” i s for ever unknowable, it does not matter
whether the cotillion i s danced a t a ball in real life, or on a cinema-
tograph screen, o r in a story of Boccaccio. If all this is so, then the
universe can best be pictured, although still very imperfectly and in-
adequately as consisting of pure thought, the thought of what, for
want of a better word, we must describe a s a mathematical thinker.
Creations of an individual mind may reasonably be called less sub-
...
stantial than creations of a universal mind. A similar distinction must
be made between the space we see in a dream and the space of everyday
life; the latter, which is the same for us all, is the space of the uni-
versal mind. Again we may think of the laws to which phenomena
conform in our waking hours, the laws of nature, a s the laws of
thought of a universal mind. The uniformity of nature proclaims the
.
self-consistency of this mind. , . If the universe is a universe of
thought, then its creation must have been a n act of thought. Indeed
the finiteness of time and space almost compel us, of themselves, to
picture the creation as a n act of thought; the determination of the
constants such as the radius of the universe and the number of elec-
trons i t contained imply thought, whose richness is measured by the
immensity of these quantities. Time and space, which form the setting
for the thought, must have come into being a s a p a r t of this act.
Primitive cosmologies pictured a creator working in space and time,
forging sun, moon and stars out of already existent raw materiaI.
Modern scientific theory compels us to think of the creator .as working
outside time and space, which are part of his creation, j u s t as the
artist is outside his canvas. It accords with the conjecture of Augustine,
“Non in tempore, sed cum tempore, finmit Deus macndum.”2 Indeed, the
doctrine dates back as f a r as Plato: “Time and the heavens came into
being at the same instant, in order that, if they were ever to dissolve,
they might be dissolved together. Such was the mind and thought of
God in the creation of time.”’ And yet, so little do we understand time
that perhaps we ought t o compare the whole of time to the act of crea-
tion, the materialization of the thought.‘
Obviously, the Biblical presentation of the Spirit of God
as the energizing and vitalizing Agent in the Creation-in a
word, as the Spirit of Power-is in harmony with these con-
clusions of the latest physics. We need not be surprised, there-
fore, to read in Scripture of instances, as we have already seen,
1. Tho New Bnokgroziwd of Science, 158.
2. “Not in time, but with time, God fashioned the world.”
3. V i d e Timaem, 37 D ff.
4. Sir James Jeans, The Mysterious Universe (New Revised Edition,
1943), 167-168,176,181-182.
93
in which the Spirit of Jehovah “came mightily upon” certain
divinely appointed individuals (e.g., Samson, Saul, David, etc.) ,
to clothe them with extraordinary physical and mental powers
for special divine ends. Nor is there anything incredible about
this, for it is a well-known fact that psychic power is capable
of greatly intensifying the physical powers of the human or-
ganism under certain conditions. This is true even in cases of
insanity: the abnormal physical strength of frenzied persons
is a well-known fact, and has been known for ages. (Vide espe-
cially the Bacchae of Euripides. Phenomena of this kind have
always characterized orgiastic “religions.”) Hence we may
reasonably conclude that the operation of the Divine Spirit at
the very lowest level of being, produces energy (shall we call
it “physical”?), which has the inherent power to build itself
up into the gross matter, with its manifold representations, of
our present physical world. The transmutations of energy into
matter and of matter into energy are now known to be ontolog-
ical facts.
Dr. Harold Paul Sloan seems to have given us the “conclu-
sion of the whole matter” quite forcefully, in these words:
The new science itself is now pointing us to philosophy. It is
now affirming t h a t the ultimate ground of objective things is spirit.
Matter, these leaders say, is not stuff;it is force; it is a complex of
interacting forces; and these forces seem to resohe into mental valuFs-
into the “mathematical formulae’’ of Jeans-into ideas of a n Infieite
Mind.l
2. The Mystery of Sensation

Some further light is thrawn upon the problem of the ulti-
mate constitution of matter by a study of the phenomenon of
sensation as experienced by sentient beings.
Alexander Polyhistor, a writer of the first century B.C.,
has put posterity everlastingly in his debt by his formulation
of a brief account of the metaphysical cosmogony of the ancient
Pythagoreans, in a treatise no longer extant, entitled Succes-
sions of Philosophers. Fortunately, however, this account has
been preserved b y another writer, Diogenes Laertiu
written in the early part of the third century of
era, a work entitled Lives and Opinions of Eminent Philosophers.‘
1. H e Is Risen, 127.
2. This work in two volumes, may be found in the Loeb Classical
Library, Harvard University Press. Translation by R. D. Hicks.
94
The first paragraph of Alexander’s account, as reproduced by
Laertius, tells us that the Pythagorean cosmogony went as €01-
lows:
The first principle o l all things is t h e One. From the One came
an Indefinite Two, as matter for the One, which is cause. From the
One and the Indefinite Two came numbers; and from numbers, points;
from points, lines; from lines, plane figures; from plane figures, I
solid figures; from solid figures, sensible bodies. The elements of
these are four: lire, water, earth, a i r ; these change and are wholly
transloi*med, and o u t of them comes t o be a cosmos, animate, intelli-
gent, spherical, embracing the central earth, which is itsell spherical
and inhabited round ab0ut.l
In this connection, it should be explained, perhaps, that the
Pythagoreans appear to have conceived the cosmos as being
constructed ultimately of primary entities, a kind of atoms,
to which they applied the term “numbers”; the celebrated dictum,
“Things are numbers,” is quite generally attributed to Pythagoras
himself. According to the clear testimony of Aristotle, these
“numbers” were conceived as having spatial magnitude, Le., as
extended unit-points-the ultimate stuff of the whole physical
universe.’ The arithmetical or numerical process seems to have
been regarded by the Pythagoreans, at least by those of the
fourth century B.C., especially Philolaus and his contemporaries,
as having been paralleled by the cosmogonical process; they
attempted to describe at one and the same time both the forma-
tion of the number system (as symbols) and that of the physical
universe (as made up of the entities thus symbolized); the L
construction was a parallel one, in terms of the ideal and the
concrete, of symbol and reality. It appears too that they con-
ceived the whole cosmogonical process as partaking of the char-
acter of the growth and development of seeds; that is to say,
as some sort of an essentially dynamic, generative, or life pro-
cess.8 This, of course, was in strict harmony with the Pythagorean
conception of the Cosmos as a Living Being. According to other
ancient writers, notably Sextus Empiricus and Proclus, they
were wont to describe their extended unit-points as “flowing”
into lines, the lines as “flowing” into plane figures, the plane
figures as “flowing” into solid figures, and the soIid figures as
1. Diogenes Laertius, op. ait., VIII, 25. Translation by F. M.
Cornford ; wide Corniord, Pluto m i d Pnriiieisidc~s,!,. i
2. Aristotle, Metaphysics, I, v, 98Ga Pf.; I, viii, tB9b 3 ff.; XIII,
vi, 1080b 1 fi.; XIII, viii, 1083b 8 if.; XIV, ii, iQ90a 22 ff.; XIV, iii,
1090a 32 ff.; also PlLjjsics, 111, iv, 203a 6.
3. Aristotle, Mcfnphl/sics, XIV, iii, 1091a 15 f l . ; also Dn Airhia,
409,a 4.
95
“flowing” into sensible bodies.’ All this suggests the concept
of an essentially dynamic or generative process.
Now the one aspect of this cosmogonical theory which pro-
voked the criticism of Aristotle more than any other,a and the
one which has been a subject of great difficulty to all subse-
quent thinkers, was that which had to do with “sensible objects”
and the phenomenon of sensation. The problem may be stated
thus: How did the Pythagoredns effecttheoretically, that is
-the transition from geometrical solid to sensible body? Or,
to put it in another form: How did these geometrical magnitudes
ontologically transform themselves (“flow”) into the objects of
sense-perception?
Obviously, .any attempt to answer this question necessarily
plunges I& into one of the profound mysteries of being-the
mystery of sensation or sense-perception-which, up to the
present time, has refused to yield up its secrets either to the
physicist or to the psychologist. We know but little more today
about the process of sensation in a sentient being than did the
Pythagoreans of twenty-six centuries ago. Again I shall ’quote
at some length from Barnett, who states the problem so clearly
that it would be impossible to improve upon his presentation.
He writes as follows: ,
atical description of nature, physicists have
ordinary world of our experience, the world
of sense-perception.. To understand the significance of the this retreat
it is necessary to step across the thin line that divides physics from
metaphysics. Questions involving the relationship between observer
and reality, subject and object, have haunted philoso$hiaal thinkers
since the dawri of reason. Twenty-three centuries ago the, Greek phil-
osopher Democritus wrote: “Sweet and bitter, cold and warm as well
a s #allthe colors, a ese things exist but in opinion and not in reality;
what really exists unchangeable particles, atoms, and their motions
in empty space.”? Qalileo also was aware of the purely subjective char-
acter of sense qualities like color, taste, smell, and sound, and pointed
out t h a t “they can no more be ascribed to the external objects than
can the tickling or the pain claused sometimes by touching mch,objects.”
The English philosopher, John Locke, tried t o penetrate to the
“real esgence of substances” by drawing a distinction between what
he termed the primary and secohdary qualities of matter. Thus he
considered t h a t shape, motion, solidity and all geometrical properties
were real o r primary qualities, inherent i n the object itself; while
secondary qualities, like colors, sounds, tastes, were simply projections
upon the organs of sense. The artificiality of this distinction was
obvious to later thinkers.
“I am able t o prove,” wrote the great German mathematician,
LeibnitB, “that not only light, color, heat, and the like, but motion,
1. Vide F. M. Cornford, Pluto an.d Parmenides, 10-20.
2. Vide Aristotle, Metaphysics, XIII, vi, 1080b 18 ff., also XIV,
iii, 1091a 12 ff.
96
MATIER AND SPIRIT
shape, and extension too are mere apparent qualities.” J u s t as our
visual sense, for example, tells us that a golf ball is white, so vision
abetted by our sense of touch tells us that i t is also round, smooth, and
small-qualities t h a t have no more reality, independent of our senses,
tllan the quality which we define by convention as white,
Thus gradually philosophers and scientists arrived at the startling
conclusion t h a t since every object is simply the sum of its qualities,
and since qualities exist only in the mind, the whole objective universe
of matter and energy, atoms and stars, does not exist except as a con-
struction of the consciousness, an edifice of conventional symbols shaped
by the senses of man. As Berkeley, the ,archenemy of materialism,
phrased it: “All the choir of heaven and furniture of earth, in a word,
all those bodies which compose the mighty frame of the world, have
not any substance without the mind. , , So long as they are not iactually
perceived by me, or do not exist in my mind, or t h a t of any other
created spirit, they must either have no existence at all, o r else subsist
in the mind of some Eternal Spirit.” Einstein carried this train of
logic to its ultimate limits by showing t h a t even space and time are
forms of intuition, which can no more be divorced from consciousness
than can our concepts of color, shape, and size. Space has no objective
reality except as an order or arrangement of the objects we perceive
in it, and time has no independent existence apart from the order
of events by which we measure it?
Certainly it cannot be doubted that sensation, of whatever
kind it may be, is physiologically subjective. On the other hand,
common sense tells us that our sensations must have their
causes; that if there were not something in the world around us
or within our own bodies-forces of some kind impinging upon
our neural system-we simply would not experience sensations
at all. It was this reasoning, no doubt, or to be more exact, this
fact of experience, which led John Locke to define matter as
“permanent possibility of sensation” and as “something-l-know- \
not-what.” This is, of course, no definition at all. However, it is
about as near as anyone has ever come to a “definition” of mat-
ter p e r se; for the simple fact is that we do not “know” objects
in themselves, we ‘(know” onIy our sensations of those objects.
And even if matter be defined as energy, we still have the prob-
lem, What is energy? The undeniable truth is that we cannot
apprehend o r know matter per se through the avenue of the
physical senses; we h o w , I repeat, only our sensations of mate-
rial objects, This is the reason why the physicists of the present
day resort to mathematical symbols and formulae in order to
apprehend and to describe the ultimate stuff of the Cosmos,
and in most cases the intuition of the formula has preceded
bv several gears the empirical verification. It must not be
supposed, of course, that these formulas are mere abstractions:
they are not; they have been experimentally demonstrated to
1. o p . cit., 10-12.
77
be accurate interpretations of natural processes; they bespeak
the mathematical orthodoxy of the Cosmos itself. As Barnett
puts it: “In physics and equation is never a pure abstraction;
it is simply a kind of shorthand expression which the scientist
finds convenient to describe the phenomena of nature.’’ The
fact must not be overlooked that these “shorthand expressions”
do actually describe natural @e., physical) phenomena. And in
virtue of the very fact that they lead us at last to “a final fea-
tureless unity of space-time, mass-energy, matter-field-an ulti-
mate, undiversified, and eternal ground beyond which there ap-
pears to be no progress,” they simply serve to prove that the
world of the physical senses is a prison-house-to use Plato’s
own term-in which man finds himself incarcerated for the
tenure of his existence in this present state of being. This is
designated “the egocentric predicament.”
Now, as previously stated, sensations in living beings cer-
tainly must have their causes. What, then, are the physical
forces or forms of physical energy which, by impinging upon the
neural system, give rise to sensations in human beings and in
the lower animals as well? Suppose we take, for example, sensa-
tions of the configurations of objects, of the relations of such
configurations in space, and the sensations of color. All such
sensations depend upon the human sense-and sense-organs-of
vision. The sense organ for vision is, of course, the eye with
its various parts plus the optic nerve; and the stimulus for
vision is radiant energy, which is in turn one of the forms of
electromagnetic energy. The electromagnetic spectrum, we are
told, includes cosmic rays, radio waves, infra-red rays, visible
light, ultra-violet rays, x-rays, and gamma rays. All of these
are differentiated one from another by respective wave Zengths.
The human organism has no sense organs, however, which are
sensitive to any except those radiant vibrations within the
range of sensual vision; that is, between the wave lengths that
produce the sensation red at one end of the visible spectrum and
those which produce the sensation violet at the other end. Radia-
tion of various wave lengths between these two extremes produce
our sensations of all other colors. And just above this range are
the wave lengths which produce the ultra-violet, and just below
it are the infra-red wave lengths. As Barnett puts it, “From the
standpoint of physics, the only difference between radio waves,
‘visible light, and such high-frequency forms of radiation as x-rays
1. o p . cit., 49, 111
98
MATJ’ER AND SPIRIT
and gamma rays lies in their wave length.” (Again): “It is evi-
dent .. that the human eye suppresses most of the ‘lights’ in
the world, and that what man can perceive of the reality around
him is distorted and enfeebled by the limitations of his organs
of vision. The world would appear far different to him if his
eye were sensitive, for example, to x-rays.’” All of which goes
to show that man’s “physical” senses are specifically adapted to ,
his needs in this present world only, As the Apostle puts it:
“The things which are seen are temporal, but the things which
are not seen are eternal” (2 Cor. 4:18). Moreover, the physical
senses, in thus adapting man to his present environment, actualIy
shut off from his perception the vaster area which extends il-
limitably throughout the vast reaches of this phenomenal worId.
Thus it becomes obvious, in the light of modern physics, that
man’s visions of all “objects” in space, of their shapes, relations
as to distance, colors, etc., are produced by these “wave lengths”
of energy as they impinge upon his organs of vision. But what
this process of sensation is in itself remains inscrutable. Space
is “simply a possible order of material objects,” and time is
“simply a possible order of events.” “What we call an hour is
actually a measurement in space-an arc of fifteen degrees in
the apparent daily rotation of the celestial sphere. And what
we call a year is simply a measure of the earth’s progress in its
orbit around the sun.”’ Light waves, we are told, have maximum
velocity of 186,000 miles plus, per second; nothing in the universe
moves faster. Radio waves travel at the same speed as light
waves. These and all other phenomena of electromagnetic ra-
diation are measured by the modern physicist in terms of wave
lengths and frequencies. Wave lengths of what? Of something?
Or of nothing? The physicist answers: Wave lengths of quanta
(“corpuscles,” like bullets from a machine gun), that is, quanta
of energy. Yet this energy in its ultimate form can hardly be
said to have spatial magnitude, in the strict sense of that phrase.
As one author puts it: “Electromagnetic energy is radiated or
absorbed in discrete quanta , . . and the size of one quantum is
directly proporiional to the frequency with which it is associ-
a t ~ d . ”Thus
~ the “quantum” takes the place of “spatial magni-
tude,’’ “extension,” and “divisibility,” in modern physics.
“Radiant energy,” writes Rarnett, “is emitted not in an
unbroken ,stream but in discontinuous bits or portions” called
1. Op. cit., 13.
2. Barnett, o p vir‘., 40, 41.
3. William H. Michcner, Ph?pics f o r Sciavcr a i d Eiigiirccviwg, 632.
99
(first by Planck) quanta. Again: “Einstein postulated that all
forms of radiant energy-light, heat, x-rays-actually travel
through space in separate and discontinuous quanta.”‘ Inci-
dentally, the sensation of sound is the effect of the same wave-
/
like kind of movement, with the difference of course that sound
waves are transmitted by the air or some other medium, whereas
electromagnetic waves are conceived as traveling through empty
space. The sensation of sound is produced by the impact of
these wavelike movements upon man’s organs of hearing. And
finally, in this connection, sensations of touch, taste, and smell-
indeed all other kinds of sensations-are produced by the im-
pact upon various parts of our neuro-sensory system of those
basic atomic and molecular movements by which matter is
described as differentiated into its three fundamental forms,
namely, gases, liquids, and solids, all of which now pictured as
forms of more or less “congealed” energy.
Thus, according to the picture which is given us by the
most up-to-date physics, the ultimate dynamic “building stones”
of the Cosmos are these “particles” of energy which go to make
up the structure of the atom, and the quanta or “corpuscles”
of wavelike energy which, similarly, go to make up all the
forms of electromagnetic radiation. The effort has been made
by Dr. Einstein, we ‘are told, to bring all these ultimate “bits” or
“portions” of energy into a unity, that is, to interpret them as
being ultimately of the same essential stuff, as “parts” or ‘(as-
pects” or manifestations of a Primal Dynamic Unity.
The thing that is of special significance to us here, how-
ever, is the fact that it is by the co-operation, that is to say, by
the action and reaction of these particles or corpuscles of primal
energy on the one hand, and the human sense organs on the
other hand, themselves apparently corporeal and hence no doubt
the products of same primal forces, that sensible objects are
thus brought i phenomenal existence, or at teast into the
range of human experience; or, to put the same fact in ancient
Pythagorean terminology, that geometrical’ magnitudes-mere
configurations-‘cflow” into the objects of sense-perception. This
does not mean, of course, that the quantum of the present-day
physicist is to be conceived as a geometrical magnitude; on the
contrary, it seems to be something essentially qualitative, an
entity characterized by the property of inexhaustibleness rather
than by that of extension; it is the entity which, in modern
1. Op. cit., 16, 17.
100
MATTER AND SPIRIT
physics, replaces the geometrical magnitudes of ancient and
medieval philosophers, as the ultimate of “material” stuff, Nor
does this mean that the ancient Pythagoreans attained to any
of these concepts of modern physics. It means simply that the
Pythagoreans, by a sort of intuition, hit upon one of the secrets
of the Cosmos, a secret which is made just a little less mysterious
by the light shed upon it by the discoveries of our modern
physicists. We are justified, I should say, at least in pointing
out the correspondences between those “flowing” unit-points
postulated by the Pythagoreans, and the “particles” or “cor-
puscles” of primal energy known to us today as sensa, which
by impressing themselves upon our sense organs actualize for
us all sensible objects,
To summarize: What is sensation? In modern terms, it is
the effect of an impingement upon the neuro-sensory system of
a percipient, a living creature, of forces external to that sys-
tem, forces operating both outside and inside the particular
organism. How can these various forms of energy which un-
doubtedly provoke the phenomena commonly designated “sensa-
tions,” be reduced to quantities of any kind? Obviously, we our-
selves, the percipients, know only the sensations. We can “know”
the causes of these sensations only in terms of atomic changes,
molecular movements, chemical affinities, vibrations, intensities,
frequencies, etc., most of whcih a r e reducible, apparently, to
mathematical formulae, just as Pythagoras himself discovered
with reference to the perfect consonances in music. Hence, it
seems to be in these mathematical terms alone that we can ever
know what “things-in-themselves” are, Yet these very forces,
interpretable only mathematically, just as the atom is inter-
pretable only in mathematical terms, “fill in” the geometrical
configurations, so to speak, and by their impingement upon the
sense organs of the living organism, actualize sensible objects.
Indeed all the sensations known to psychology-visual, auditory,
gustatory, cutaneous, olfactory, organic, visceral, kinesthetic,
static, or what not- may properly be said to be the effect of
the impact of such primal forms of energy-emanating from out-
side or from within the organism-upon the neuro-sensory
system of the living recipient,
All this emphasizes one fact, however. namely, that even
though we do have a partial understanding at least of the how
of sensation, certainly we are as much in the dark as ever re-
garding the whnt of the phenomenon. What sensation is in itself,
no one knows, For sensation involves, in some inscrutable man-
101
ner, the additional and accompanying phenomena of perception,
of consciousness of the sensation and of the sense-perceived ob-
ject, and of the meaning which thought, by the aid of memory,
may attach to the sensation, and even the utilization of the word
or symbol which linguistic convention has associated with that
particular meaning. Not one of these attendant phenomena can
be identified strictly with the sensation itself, yet all of
them are, in some unexplainable manner, bound up with it.
This is especially true in the experience of a person or spirit.
We shall therefore look into these accompanying phenomena
further, in a subsequent examination of the processes of thofight.
For sensation undoubtedly provides the raw material for thought.
3. The Mystery of Consciousness

The phenomenon of sensation is inextricably interwoven
with those of perception and consciousness, and all three are
related to the greater and over-all phenomenon of meaning.
A sensation is an event in the neurosensory system. It is a
physiological event. Undoubtedly the raw material of knowledge
is provided by sense-perception. Faith itself, we are told by the
Apostle, “cometh of hearing, and hearing by the word of Christ’’
(Rom. 10:17). “It was God’s good pleasure through the fool-
ishness of the preaching to Save them that believe” (1 Cor. 1:21) ,
The psychological sequence is clearly stated in Scripture in dif-
ferent places, first in Isa. 6:9-10,as seeing with the eyes, hearing
with the ears, understanding with the heart, and turning again:
that is, seeing and/or hearing the Gospel message leads to under-
standing, understanding leads to believing, and believing in turn
leads to turning again (repentance), and the entire process cul-
minates in remission, justification, forgiveness, etc,, (“turn again,
and be healed”). Scripturally speaking, conversion is not mys-
tical-it is definitely psychological. (Cf. Matt. 13:14-15, John
12:40, Acts 28:25-27, Rorn. 11:8, etc.). Direct contact with the
Word of the testimony, by seeing, hearing, etc., is the first step
in conversion. The Gospel is not a power, nor one of the powers,
but it is “the power of God unto salvation to every one that be-
lieveth” (Rom. l:16). Hence it follows that “whosoever shall
call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.” “How then shall
they call on him in whom they have not believed? and how
shall they believe in him whom they have not heard? and how
shall they hear without a preacher? and how shall they preach,
102
MATTER AND SPIRIT
except they be sent?” (Rom. 10: 13-15), The whole missionary
and evangelistic enterprise of the church is predicated upon
the fact that the raw material €or thought, and hence in the
spirituaI realm €or faith, is provided by sense-perception (Le.,
sensations) : as Aristotle put it long ago (in substance), Nothing
is in the intellect that was not first in the sense, that is, that
did not have its beginnings in sense-perception. This view was
maintained by Thomas Aquinas in medieval philosophy, and in
modern philosophy by John Locke and Immanuel Kant, This
view was again reaffirmed by Alexander Campbell in his debate
with the Communist, Robert Owen, held in Cincinnati, in April,
1829. In this debate, Campbell spoke as follows:
Now it is only necessary to name these five senses, and their re-
spective uses, i n order t o discover in them all that beneficence, wisdom,
and design which suggest the idea of a supremely intelligent F i r s t
C1ause,manifesting its wisdom and benevolence in the animal organi-
zation of man, to discover t h a t man has been endowed by his Creator
with a n organization which enables him t o elicit every valuable prop-
erty of matter, [The five senses indioated here, as specifically named
by Mr. Campbell, were the traditional ones, viz., sight, hearing, smell,
taste, and touch.] We discover an admirable adaptation of these senses
t o the conception of #all ideas of colors, sounds, odors, tastes, and tacts;
and that all our intelligence on these subjects is derived through these
five channels. The conclusion, therefore, from these premises, is, t h a t
a man born without any one of these senses, must ever remain desti-
tute of all ideas derivable through i t ; that ,a man born deaf, dumb,
blind, and without tactability, bas all these avenues t o intelligence
closed up, and must therefore remain an idiot all his lifetime.
After developing this conclusion specifically with reference to
each sense named, Campbell concludes:
The mind forms ideas in accordance with the sensations impressed
upon the brain. The mind is perfectly conscious of the existence of
these impressions; they are communicated directly t o the seizsorium;
and liere begins the intellect process of reflecting upon, comparing, and
recalling them; then presenting them in different views, separating,
abstracting, combining, and generalizing them. All this is in the
natural operation of the intellect on the objects presented t o it by
sensation. Thus i t is that we derive our ideas of sensible objects, and
thus we begin t o reason upon them?
It was Mr. Campbell’s thesis in this debate that man has no
power per se to originate the basic ideas of religion. It was his
twofold task, he affirmed, in this debate, t o demonstrate “phil-
osophically” two propositions: Brsi, “that it is impossible for man
to originate any of those supernatural ideas which are developed
1. Cawpbell-Oweiz Debate, 149, 151. Published by McQuiddy Printing
Co., Nashville, 1957. First published by Standard Publishing Co., Cin-
cinnati, under the title, Ewideizces of Christiaicity.
103
Christian religion,” and,
issue is, “whether we have ‘re
truth and certainty of the apo
was that man could never have
Spirit, a future state, or of a
religion . . . the ideas insep
priest, altar, sacrific etc. . . . ergo, that these ideas and the
words used to express them are derivable only from an immedi-
ate and direct ievelation, man having no power, according to
any philosophic analysis of his intellectual powers, to originate
any such ideas.”
It will thus be seen that the Restoration movement definite-
ly has a philosophical backgrou , Having previously taken the
position that’ sense-perception, means of which men may
apprehend the truth communicated in the “apostolic testimony,”
and by obedience to which, as the Last Will and Testament of
Our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, we obtain justification, sancti-
fication, and immortalization-redemption of “spirit and soul
and body” (1 Thess. 5: 21) -it follows that sensdry experience
originally could not have been the source of divine revelation as
communicated by inspiration of the Spirit through patriarchs,
prophets, and Christ and His Apostles; however, this revelation,
or rather the record of it, having been made cornplefe in the
apostolic testimony (2 Pet. 1:3, Jude. 3) ,-therefore “to the law
and the testimony” we must go for our knowledge of God’s
will for our lives, The Word of God, therefore, as read (seen)
or preached (heard), hence as presented to our minds through
the senses, must be the source and basis of Christian faith and
practice. This all points up the fact that the Restoration Move-
m e n t does have a philosophical background. In its positive em-
phasis on the all-sufficiency of the Word, negati
at& all the vagaries and excesses of mysticism.
that it repudiates feeling states as evidences of regeneration and
sanctfication and urges fidelity to “the living oracles” as ap-
prehended by sense-perception, it may truly be designated an
empirical movement, that is, a movement belonging, like the
political philosophy of Declaration of Independence, in the
empirical .tradition ‘set Aristotle and repeated in modern
times especially by John Locke. The present writer is in com-
plete agreement with this emphasis. Why, in the name of reason,
in view of God’s having provided us, by inspiration of the Spirit,
a “letter,” so to speak, to tell us what to do and how to live,
should we call on the same Spirit for additional evidence in the
104
MATTER AND SPIRIT
form of a telegram, to support the content of the letter? I Pet.
4:ll--"if any man speaketh, speaking as it were oracles of God,"
Acts 7:338--"our fathers who received living oracles to give unto
us." (Cf, Rom. 3: 2, Heb. 5: 12). 2 Tim. 1:13--"Hold the pattern of
sound words." 1 or, 2: 13--"combining spiritual things with spirit-
ual words." Luke 16: 29--"They have Moses and the prophets; let
them hear them." Rom. 10:8--"The word is nigh thee, in thy
mouth, and in thy heart: that is, the word of faith, which we
preach." (Cf. Rom. 10: 17, 1 Cor. 1:21, Rom, 1: 16, Matt. 7: 24-27,
John 6: 63, Luke 21: 33, Heb. 4:12, etc., etc.) ,
We are now ready to inquire: What is the relation between
sensation and perception in man? A very significant series of
statements, again from Alexander Campbell, is illuminating, at
this point:
Objects of senses are presented t o the infant mind, i t perceives
them, begins to reflect upon them, and after exercising its power of
discrimination, it arrives a t certain conclusions about them. Ai?d this
leads us t o notice the intellectual powers of man. 1. Perceptzoiz, by
which we become acquainted with all things external. 2, Memory, by
which we ,are enabled t o recall things past. 3. Cowciousiaess, which
acquaints us with all things internal. Perception has present sensible
objects for its province. Memory is the record which we have of the
past. But consciousness has respect only t o things present. I perceive
a numerous assemblage now before me, land I am conscious of my own
tliouglits at the time, I reiizeiiaber that there were such and such persons
here yesterday. These three powers of perception, memory, and con-
sciousness, are th8 priMary' powers of the mind.'
But-how is sensation related to perception? A sensation,
we repeat, is a physiological event, in the neurosensory system,
Sensations, moreover, are atomistic, that is, each originates
through its own channel of excitation. (One does not hear by
way of the optic nerve, nor does one see by way of the auditory
nerve.) Vision is effected by means of the optic nerve; sound,
by way of the auditory nerve endings; touch, by means of the
thousands of nerve endings (receptors) scattered over the sur-
face of the skin; smell, by means of receptors in the nasal cavity;
taste, by means of taste buds on the tongue. In addition to these,
there are innumerable kinesthetic receptors, pain receptors,
cold and warmth receptors, and millions of internal sense re-
ceptors scattered throughout the inner linings of the body.
What, then, is the mysterious power in man which gathers up
these different excitations of the nervous system and unifies
them into the perception of a thing as an object, preserves the
perception in the form of an image, and in addition to all this,
1. Op. cit., 163
105
vests the whole process with meaning? It would seem to be a
process, like the vital process, designed to be experienced only
but never to be defined. (Who can define the infinitive “to be”?
“To exist,” do you say? But this is only a synonym, not a
definition.) Aristotle called this power, “active intellect.” The
process, however named, is conclusive proof of the unceasing
activity of mind.
Sensations provide the raw material for this elementary
kind of “knowledge,” which is to conceive (form in the mind)
an idea in which one preceives or apprehends (“seizes,” “takes
hold of”) something. It is to think, e.g., “apple, ‘ I mun,” “chair,”
“red,” “soft,” etc. Our mental powers are awakened, directly
or indirectly; by sensations; our first acquired ideas thus have
reference to sensible objects; these primary ideas become the
occasions for, and the antecedents of, other ideas and emotions
which derive from our higher rational and moral nature. But,
it must be remembered, sensations are in themselves operations
of the individual neurosensory system, separate impressions of
different aspects (qualities) of the thing producing them. (Ob-
viously, then, there must be an external something-which be-
comes the object of cognition-to produce these sensations, or
they would not occur. Therefore, we must accept the fact of
the existence of the external (physical) world, as a matter of
necessary inference; negatively, we must deny the notion that
it is illusion.) (Even an illusion must be an illusion of something,
as a figure, a symbol, an emblem, must be, in any case, a figure
or symbol or emblem of something. An illusion of nothing is in-
conceivable,) Physicists would describe these motions in matter
which cause sensations in the percipient, by their impact on the
nervous system, as sense data, or sensa: vision, for example,
is produced by the refraction of quanta of radiant energy, sound
by vibrations in a medium, etc. It seems to lie beyond the pos-
sibility of man to determine what the nature of the contact is,
between the impinging sensum (stimulus) and the responsive
nerve-endings of the recipient, in instances of touch, taste, and
smell. This is the mystery of the relation between the psychical
and the physical (or physiological), a mystery which no doubt
will always remain a mystery.
For example, let us imagine an apple lying on the table be-
fore us. On looking at it, we experience a sensation of color
(“redness”) , another of configuration (“roundness”) ; if we
touch the apple, we experience another sensation( that of a
106
MATTER AND SPIRIT
certain quality of “hardness” or “softness,” depending on how
“ripe” the apple is) ; and if we bite into the apple, we experience
another kind of sensation, that of a certain quality of pleasant-
ness or unpleasantness to the taste (“sweet,” “sour,” “bitter,”
and the like). But, obviously, in order t o perceive the thing
(the apple) as an object, some activity within each of us must-
and indeed does-unite these sensations into the perception of
the object as a whole. As Gestalt psychologists contend, no
analysis of separate percepts can account for the total experience.
This internal activity of weaving into a whole the sensations
produced by a thing in becoming an object of cognition is prop-
erly designated one’s perception of the object. Now the sensa-
tions themselves may be explained as activities, or at least as
the result of the activities, of brain and nerve cells. But cer-
tainly the perception of the object, the process in which these
sensations are unified, cannot be explained solely in terms of
cellular processes.
Again, on perceiving an object, one immediately attaches
the proper word-symbol (in this case, “apple”) to it, the symbol
attached by social usage. This, of course, is a phase of the actual
perception of the apple, or other object, whatever it may be.
This attachment of a word-symbol becomes an elaboration of
the perception by a phenomenon known as consciousness. This
attachment of the conventional word-symbol that serves as
identification, simply cannot be explained on the ground of any
cellular or other physiological process, for the use of language
involves memory and memory images, and in addition gives
meaning to the perception, It is utterly inconceivable that
cells should remain in juxtaposition themselves over a period of
years in such a manner as repeatedly to produce the same mem-
ory images. Hence, we must conclude that neither the retention
of memory images nor their recall can be identified with any cel-
lular process exclusively, and that the phenomena of perception,
retention and recall, and the more significant fact of meaning, are
properly described as “mental” rather than “physical.” As
the psychologist McDougall has expressed it: “There is no cor-
relate in the brain for meaning in thought.”
The jump from sensation to consciousness is the great
mystery involved here. D. Elton Trueblood calls it “the leap
of faith.” It is the leap from the physiological stimulus to the
mental interpretation or response. In terms of the sciences in-
volved, it is the leap from physiology to psychology. We affirm,
107
in this connection, that there is no way, that
be found a way, by which psychology can be
sheer physiology. Brain and mind are correlated, of course, but
they cannot be identified as one and the same thing, no matter
how. desperate may become the efforts of materialists the world
over to effect this identification, or to conjure up a name which
they ban find usable in dec g mankind into thinking that
the human being is unimul when as a matter of fact he
may be animal as pertaining to his body (“earthly tabernacle”)
but he is surely animal plus as pertaining to his higher thought
processes. Sensation is not consciousness. The relation between
sensation and consciousness is an inscrutable mystery. And this
being true, surely the relation between sensation and meaning
is one of the most amazing of all the phenomena of human
existence!
A distinguished writer in the field of psychology has pre-
sented this problem clearly as follows:
Psychologically, a fine discrimination is made between the processes
of sensation and perception, Sensation, we have said, is the act of
receiving a stimulus by a sense organ. Perception is the act of inter-
preting a stimulus registered in the brain by one or more sensations.
,.. To illustrate the difference between sensation and perception, a
common ,analyogy compares a photogr.aph of a scene with an artist’s
painting of the scene. The photograph would record the scene as the
sense organ receives it, whereas the painting depicts the scene as the
artist perceivs it. Succintly stated, we might say, the eye “receives”
while. the mind “perceives.” Instances of pure sensation in human
experiences #are rare. If you hear a strange noise, no matter how un-
usual, you immediately associate it with something familiar. If you
see a completely strange and foreign object, you unconsciodsly attempt t o
Telate it t o some form o r shape you have seen before. The nearest
circumstance to a pure sensation might be the instant in which a color
is presented for the first time t o a person who has been blind from
birth and suddenly gained the power t o see. No one of us can lo6k
a t an object, hear a voice or taste food, and receive these sensations
without projecting into them some facet of past experience. At what-
ever age, the accumulations of a lifetime of all sensory experiences go
into our perceptions. An orange might be perceived by an infant as
just another colored ball with which to play. To an adult in the United
States a t this time, it represents a commonplace breakfast fruit served
usually in the form of juice. To some youngster in Great Britain
during World W a r I1 when were very scarce, it would bave
represented a curiosity and a t o be enjoyed in it$ entirety as a
rare treat. Thus, in describing the phenomena of perception, we come
to the psychoIogica1 truism aptly stated by the philosopher Immanuel
K a n t ; “We see things not as they are but as we are.” Stated differ-
ently, perception represents our apprehension of a present situation in
t e r m s of o u r past experiences:
1. Abraham P. Sperling, Ps&zoZogg Made Simple, 38.
108
MA'ITDR AND SPIRIT
Obviously, this author is thinking of perception as having mean-
ing, in whatever situation it may occur, of a junctional rather
than essential (ontological) character. In this respect his analy-
sis is acceptable. However, existentially considered, an orange,
or any other entity, as such, in whatever part of the world it
may be perceived as an existent and to the extent it is perceived
as an existent, will have the same meaning, no matter by what
linguistic symbol it may be designated. In any case whatever,
perception involves meaning. Perception as apprehension of a
present object, therefore, has meaning in terms of our past per-
ceptions of the same object; moreover, in any case whatever, the
fact of meaning certainly brings in activity that is beyond the
physiological, activity that can truly be defined only as mental.
All this accounts for the fact that the mind-body problem is just
as pertinent today as it has ever been in the history of human
thought. It is the acceptance of this fact which accounts for
the rise of psychosomatic treatment, in recent years, of many
human afflictions. As the late C. E. M. Joad, onetime professor
of philosophy, the University of London, has written:
Common sense holds t h a t ia human being is not exclusively a body.
He has a body, but he is, it would normally be said, more than his
body; and he is more, in virtue of the existence of a n immaterial prin-
ciple which, whether it be called mind, soul, consciousness, o r person-
ality, constitutes the reality of his being. This immaterial principle,
most people hold, is in some way associated with the body-it is fre-
quently said t o reside in it-and animates and controls it. . . . Mind
and body continually interact in ian infinite number of ways: in fact,
mind influences body and body mind a t every moment of waking life.
If I am drunk, I see two lamp-posts instead of one; if I fail to digest
my supper, I have a nightmare land see blue devils; if I smoke opium
o r inhale nitrous oxide gas, I experience celestial visions, pass into a
state OP beatitude, and discourse with the Almighty and His angels.
These iare instances of the influence of the body upon the mind. If 1
see a ghost, my hair stands on end; if I am moved t o anger, my face
becomes red; if I receive a sudden s1ioclc, I turn pale; if I am in dread
of a coming ordeal, my moutrli becomes dry and the palms of my hand
moist. These are instances of the influence of the mind upon the body.
The examples just quoted are only extreme and rather obvious cases
of what is going on all the time, Many psychologists, indeed, ,assert
that there can be no event in the mind which is not accompanied by
some corresponding event in the body, xiid vice versa, although the
corresponding event in the body may be too small t o be perceptible by
such recording instruments as we ,at present possess. The apparent
interaction between mind and body is, a t any rate, a fact beyond dispute.'
The interaction is beyond dispute, even though the method of
this interaction eludes man's ability to apprehend and explain
it, No matter that psychologists take the organismic approach
1. Chide t o Plzdosoplay, 499-500.
109
(treating the human being as an integrated whole), they then
proceed to classify his motives and acts as “viscerogenic” and
“psychogenic.” But what do these high-sounding terms designate
but physiological and psychological respectively. Apparently,
science has yet to learn that naming an event is not explaining it.
(Theologians seem to be very prone to commit the same fallacy
also.)
‘This interaction, as pointed out in the foregoing excerpt,
takes place in other most significant ways. The student, for
example, does not leave the room after class until he “makes
up his mind” to propel his feet toward the door; the baseball
pitcher throws the ball if and when and how he “makes up his
mind” to throw it in relation to the body of the man at bat.
One’s feet do not per se move one’s body across the floor; they
something within-call it soul, mind, will, or
self, as you will-moves them. As Dr. Rudolph Otto has written:
For a manifestation of the influence exerted by the psychical upon
the physical we need in fact go no farther than the power of our will
to move our body-the power, that is, of a spiritual cause to bring
about a mechanical effect, This assuredly is a n absolutely insoluble
riddle, and it is only the f,act that we have grown so used to it that
prevents it from seeming a “miracle” to us?
Gen, 2: 7-“Jehovah God formed man of the dust of the ground,
and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became
a living soul.’’ Here we have it-the organismic approach to
the study and understanding of man (the vogue in psychology
everywhere today) : we find that this organismic approach is
in harmony with the Scripture. Yet as man he is a n integrated
unity of matter, the dust of the ground (the same elements of
which all things material are constituted) and spirit, the Breath
of God); moreover, as a unity, a body-spirit unity, he is to be
known as a living soul; the saints, moreover, will be individual
body-spirit unities in heaven, the only difference being that
they will be clothed in “spiritual” bodies as a result of resur-
rection, revivification and glorification (cf. 1 Cor. 15: 35-56, 2
Cor. 5:1-10;Rom. 2: 7; 8: 11, 8: 23; Phil. 3: 20-21, etc.). Rev. 20: 4
-“I saw the souls of them that had been beheaded for the
testimony of Jesus, and for the word of God,” etc. Note that,
at the Marriage Supper of the Lamb, the redeemed shall be
clothed in “fine linen, bright and pure; for the fine linen is
the righteous acts of the saints” (Rev. 19: 8,14).
In a word, to recap this phase of our subject, it is absurd
1. The Idea of the Ho@, 214.
110
MATTER AND SPIRIT
to insist that sensation and consciousness are identical. Our per-
sonal experience makes it obvious that this cannot be true: to
the contrary, sensation is physiological, whereas consciousness is
psychological; sensation is event A, but consciousness is event B,
And in some inscrutable manner, sensation, consciousness, and
meaning, are all interwoven in perception. No amount of wish-
ful thinking will-or can-reduce consciousness or meaning to
sheer sensation.
4. The Mystery of Life

“And he showed me,” writes John the Revelator, “a river
of water of life, bright as crystal, proceeding out of the throne
of God and of the Lamb” (Rev. 22:l). From what primary
Source indeed can the River of Water of Life emanate, but
from the one self-existent Living Being, - God?
According to AristotlqL the Totality of Things constitutes
a hierarchy of being; our world is a terraced world, so to speak,
and not a continuum. At the lowest level is the inanimate crea-
tion, the physiochemical foundation of things, At the next level
is the plant world, which has this physiochemical basis, plus
vegetation, Le., the cellular processes or processes of growth.
At the third level is the animal creation, which has the same
physiochemical basis and cellular processes, plus sensitivity and
locomotion. At the highest level is the rational creature, man,
characterized by the same physiochemical basis (which he
shares with all physical existents), the same cellular processes
(which he shares with plants and animals), sensitivity and loco-
motion (which he shares with the animal orders only),
pZus rationality or reason, which specifies him as man. In
Aristotle’s own terms, the plant is characterized by “vegetative
psyche” (“soul”), the animal by “sensitive psyche,)) and man by
“rational psyche.” And above the whole is God who, says
Aristotle, must be defined probably as pure Self-thinking
Thought.2 General observation and experience would seem to
confirm, in its bold outlines at least, this’ Aristotelian picture of
the Cosmos.
The first step upward in the scale of created being is the
step from the level of “non-living” (inanimate, inorganic) sub-
stance to the level of “living” (animate, organic) substance.
1. De Anima.
2. Metaphysics, XII, vii, 1072b 15 ff.
111
Here we encounter the greates all-the Mystery of
Life itself, and in some inscrutable manner this mystery is em-
bodied,-or perhaps it would be more corre
in the living cell.
The cell is the ultimate or basic unit of
“True,” Writes No
ultra-microscopical technics have given us some insi
position of the living substance over and above wh
has been able to provide, but no one has succeeded in isolating any
vital unit in this way, and up till now the cell, with all its complications,
remains the smallest form under which the living substance bas been
found t o exist by itself and independently of other living entities.‘
“The fundamental substance of the cell,” adds this author, “has
remained in its innermost essence undiscovered.”
“To metabolize, to move, to grow, to reproduce, to adapt
to the environnient, and to have organization,” writes a con-
temporary biologist, “is to be alive.”‘ The same author tells
us that the secret of life itself-and indeed all scientists would
agree-is contained within the protoplasm of cells. He writes
as follows:
The bodies of human beings, as well as those of other animals and
of plants, are composed of a substance called protoplasm. This basic,
living material is not homogeneous, but va+ies among organisms and
among the different organs of a single animal or plant. From time t o
time, even a single organ may change in composition. All the many
kinds of protoplasm share certain physical and chemical character-
istics, however, and whatever the secret of life may bei i t is well hidden
in this exceedingly complex substance.“
Again,
The protoplagm of the man body, and of all plants and animals,
is nowhere present in a single large mass, but exists in tiny discrete
portions cgalled cells. These qre the units of structure of the body, just
a s bricks may b e , the units of structure of ouse. But they a r e
more than mere building blocks; each is an ependent, functional
unit, and the processes of the body are the sum of the coordinated
functions of its cells. The units vary considerably in size, shape, and
function. Some plants and animals have bodies made of just a single
cell; others, such as man o r an oak tree, tare made of countless billions
fitted together?
1. Erik Nordenskiold, T h e Histor?/ of Biolog2/, 539. Trans. from
the Swedish by Leonard Bucknall Eyre.
2. Claude A. Villee, Biology: The H u m a n Approaah, 28.
3. Ibid., 21.
4. Ibid., 34. Protoplasm, from the Greek protos, “first,” and plasma,
“anything formed o r moulded”-the latter derived in t u r n from plnsssiii,
“to form” or “to mould”-is obviously just a name for this ultimate
living aubstance, which is itself largely unknown. Certainly the secret
of life itself has never been fathomed.
112
MAlTBR AND SPIRIT
All cells, we are told, both plant and animal, although
varying in many aspects, have several features in common, as
follows: (1) All are completely enclosed by a plasma membrane
which is made of protoplasm and which functions importantly
in regulating the content of the cell; (2) Each contains a small,
usually spherical, body, which is known as the nucleus, which
functions to direct cellular activity and which contains the
hereditary factors in both plants and animals; (3) In each cell,
the nucleoplasm or protoplasm of the nucleus is separated from
the surrounding protoplasm by a nuclear membrane; (4) Run-
ning through the nucleus of each cell are strands of a deeply
staining protoplasmic material, which i s known as chromatin,
and when cell division takes place, these strands form chromo-
somes, rod-shaped bodies which in turn bear the hereditary units,
lmown as genes; ( 5 ) In each cell, the protoplasm outside the
nucleus is known as cyptoplasm, which contains other specialized
structures to perform specific functions, that is, in relation to
the biochemistry of the cell as a whole.
Plant cells differ from animal cells chiefly in three respects,
as follows: (1) Plant cells, excepting those of higher plants
lack the centriole, a dark-staining structure which is found in
the cytoplasm of all animal cells; (2) Plant cells, but not those
of animals, have plastids in the cytoplasm. These plastids are
small protein bodies. One type of plastid, called a chloroplast,
contains the pigment chlorophyll, which is responsible for the
green color of plants, and which is best known for its mysterious
action in photosynthesis. This is the complicated and subtle
process in which green plants convert the energy of the sun's
rays into stored food energy. Science has never been able to
break the process down and to discern exactly how it works,
but it has long been known that without chlorophyll, neither
plants nor animals (including human beings) could live. Thus
it becomes obvious that solar energy is a prerequisite of plant
life, just as plant life is a prerequisite of the various forms of
animal life. Were it not for the constant transformation of light
energy into potential chemical energy, and the constant replen-
ishing of the supply of oxygen in the atmosphere, by this process
of photosynthesis in plants, no living thing could exist. These,
as we shall see later, are important facts to be considered in re-
lation to the order of Creation that is given in the first chapter
of Genesis, (3) In the third place, a plant cell has a stiff cell
wall of cellulose which prevents its changing shape or position,
whereas animal cells usually have only the thin plasma mem-
113
brane on the outside and thus are able to move and to alter in
shape.'
There are fundamental differences too in the atomic bases
af plant and animal life. On this rather important aspect of the
subject, De Nouy writes as follows:
It is very likely that evolution had a n extremely elementary point
of departure common to $all living beings animals and vegetables. But
from the very beginning we observe at the same time a relationship
and a profound difference between the two. The active base, the nutri-
tive liquid of the animals, is the blood, and that of the superior animals
contains a iundamental substance, the red pigment called hemoglobin,
which transports oxygen to the cells so as to oxydize, or burn, the
refuse, The molecule o f hemoglobin is very large and highly compli-
cated; its structure varies from one species t o another (mean mole-
cular weight: 69,000).
Chemically, this hemoglobin is fairly close to the circulatory pig-
ment of plants and algae, chlorophyll (molecuLar weight: 904). There
is, therefore, a relationship, but whereas hemoglobin is characterized by
the presence of one atom of iron in its molecule, chlorophyll, which is
much simpler, is built around a n ,atom o f magnesium. To complicate
the problem furthei, the blood of certain arthropods and mollusks,
inferior animals which preceded superior animals, contains a pigment
with a molecubar weight varying, according to the species, between
400,000 and 6,700,000, and containing an atom of copper instead of
iron 01- magnesium. [Certain snails, for instance.]
BOWwas the chemical transition from one t o the other accom-
plished? Honestly speaking, i t is impossible to conceive it, and yet the
hypothesis of a sudden appearance i s not satisfactory. Some kind of
transition must have taken place. We may never know how.a
Indeed, many of the secrets of the life process seem to be utterly
impenetrable. (May I state, at this point, that I myself do not
accept evolutionism either as being proved or even as provable
scientifically. My position is clearly stated in the Addendum
on the subject to be found at the end of this volume. C.C.C.)
Now the ultimate unit of the human organism, as of every
other living thing, is the cell. Every individual, writes Dr.
Jesse F. Williams,
is a mass of cells, microscopic units too small to be seen by the unaided
eye, It is estimated that the body is composed of a total o f 26,500,000,-
000,000 cells. This enormous number, too large to be comprehended easily,
grew from one cell, the ovum which was produced by the ovary of the
mother a n d fertilized by the spermatozoon of the father. The statement
that a new individual derives from a single cell is almost as nnbeliev-
able as the number of cells of which he is composed. The facts, how-
ever, a r e well established, and students of anatomy and physiology
accept them, They remain, none the less, sources of wonder and even
awe."
1. Vide Villee, o p cif., 34-38, 54-58.
2. Lecomte De Nouy, Rumnn Dcsthlj, 58-59.
3. A Textbook of AmxtornU arid Plvjsiology, Seventh Edition, 1.
114
MAlTIIR AND SPIRIT
H. G. Wells, Julian Huxley, and G. P. Wells in a collaborated
work, write as follows:
We may compare the body t o a community, and the cells t o the
individuals of which this vast organized population is composed. . . ..
Single cells can be isolated from the rest of the body, and kept alive.. ,
The size of this object is such that about 2,500 laid side by side would
measure a n inch. And it is itself separately and independently alive.
Such is the stuff that man and all his life is made of. [I feel obliged
t o object to this statement: as f a r as w e know, it is man’s corporeal
life only, and not his higher thought processes, t h a t is the direct result
of cellular activity, ‘This, however, may be what these authors mean,]
In our bodies there are millions of such individual cells, inherent
and necessary parts of us. They are not dead like the bricks in a
wall; they can be persuaded by the arts of Dr. Strangeways t o desert!
Then they will move by themselves, take nourishment, absorb oxygen,
exude waste matters. They can be starved o r suffocated. Not only
will they move about as free individuals, but they will reproduce
.
themselves, , . The number of cells in t h e reader’s body is staggering.
In the blood of an average man there ,are over fifteen million million
cells in the blood alone; his brain system contains nearly two thousand
million; and the total number in the human body is over 1,000,000,000,-
000,000-a thousand billions (and English billions, not American ones).
They serve the body community in various ways and have various
appropriately specialized forms. Some are of service because they
can actively change their shape-such as muscle-cells ; others, the
nerve-cells, are drawn out into enormously long, thin threads, and a r e
like living telephone wires ; others, more cubical, serve by exuding
special chemical substances-such as the cells of the salivary or
thyroid glands. We need not catalogue all the possible varieties, but
can content ourselves with stating that there lare well over fifty dis-
tinct kinds of cells t o be found in every man’s b0dy.l
Again, from the same authors:
From the green scum on a dank garden path t o Solomon in all
his glory, from the tree t o the tiger, from the swarming millions of
germs in a poisoned finger t o the tame elephant in the Zoologiaal
Gardens, from intestinal worm t o rosebud, and from lichen t o whale,
life plays in endless variations that drama of movement, metabolism,
and reproduction which marks it off from the mineral kingdom and
from all the interplay of inanimate Nature. And, perhaps, in endless
variations it plays also upon the themes of conscious and sub-conscious
life, it dreams and slumbers in the plant or in the motionless fish, o r
drinks deep of contentment or flashes into frenzies of desire and de-
light and terror in hunter and hunted, in basking snake or playing
cub or singing bird. And the writing and reading of this book and
the thought-process behind these things are life also.’
The basic cellular processes of the human organism, start-
ing with the fertilized ovum, are those of segmentation (or mul-
tiplication, and hence growth, for where there is life, there is
growth) , differentiation (of structure) , and specialization (or
alteration of function, which accompanies differentiation). (In-
1. The Science o f Life,I, 40, 43, 46.
2. Wells, Huxley, and Wells, o p cit., I, 16.
115
cidentally, when roup of cells multiply only, and tlius- “run
wild,” so to speak, but fail to differentiate and to specialize,
a cancer is formed in the given area.) Williams writes:
This development of different functions by different groups of
cells is not the sudden acquisition of a new powei nor an unusual
capacity only possible in certain ’ cellular elements, but rather an
emphasis of one of several functional ’abilities common t o all embryonic
cells. This change, called specialization, means that certain cells take
over and lift to a higher level of performance a particular function
which all cells at one timt possessed. Specidization of cells in the
human organism has the same meaning that it has in human society.
The more exquisitely a cell is adapted t o one function, the less capable
.
it is of performing all functions which it exercised formerly. . . These
changes, segmentation, differentjation, and specialization go on to
some extent a t t h e same time. I n a precise rnlanner of speaking there
is probably no differentiation without specialization, and vice versa.
Whether structure makes function or function makes structure is not
determined by t h e above facts. I n the embryo, function is a t a mini-
mum, and yet structure increases rapidly; on the other hand, after
birth, function frequently determines structure. It should be rernem-
bered t h a t structure and function are two aspects of the same thing-
organi~ationof protoplasm. Those who see in structure o r in function
a greater importance fail t o recognize the essential unity of the whole
organism.’
Thus the human organism is composed of differentiated
and highly specialized aggregations of cells-each of which is
(‘living” per se-built up hierarchically into tissues, organs, and
systems, in the order named, and finally into the unity or whole,
the organism itself. Science tells us, moreover, that these billions
of living cells of various kinds and functions which constitute
,the organism as a whole, are in a state of constant flux; that, in
fact, the human body undergoes a complete cellular transforma-
tion every four years or so. That is to say, the cells which go
to make up my body at this moment, will have sloughed off and
been replaced by, an entirely new aggregation of cells some four
years from this date. Through all this flux of cellular change,
however, the life of the organism goes on undisturbed. Memory
also, and self-consciousness, and personal identity, persist through
all this flux: I am the same I, basically, at ten, twenty-five,
fifty or seventy years of age, The memories I cherish are my
memories-they can belong to no other; the images I retain in
my (‘mind” are my images-I can not transfer them to anyone
else; the essential self that I know is the self of me. I am the
same person throughout the span of my earthly life, and I know
that I am the same person. No getting around this fact!-that
is, if I am a normal human being. Does not this persistence of
1. Dr. Jesse F. Williams, o p cit., 14-16.
116
MAlTER AND SPIRIT
personal identity through some fifteen or twenty complete cellu-
lar transformations in the course of a lifetime, point forward un-
mistakably to my personal survival of the last great change-
the change which occurs in connection with the “death” of
the body?
In the light of all these facts, one can only cry out with the
Psalmist, in wonder and awe:
I will give thanks unto thee; for I am fearfully
and wonderfully made:
Wonderful are thy works;
And that my soul knoweth right well.
(Psa. 139: 14)
The evidence seems to be quite conclusive that the Mystery
of Life resides in the protoplasm of the living cell. Protoplasm
is described as a semifluid, jellylike substance possessing not
only physical and chemical characteristics, but also such defi-
nitely physiological functions as growth and repair, liberation
of energy from food, sensibility or irritability, and reproduction.
These are all characteristics of what we call organic or “living”
substance, But what is this force-or process-this phenomenon
itself that we call “life”? Obviously, it is something essentially
qualitative rather than quantitative-but what is it? Whence
,came it? What is that elusive something within the living cell
that causes it to be “alive,” and distinguishes it from the non-
living atom? Is the secret of life inherent in the physiochemistry,
perhaps in the juxtaposition of the atoms, within the cell?
Biologists as a rule think so. Villee, for example, writes:
The unique property of protoplasm, its aliveness, does not depend
upon the presence of some rare o r unique element. Four elements,
carbon, oxygen, hydrogen and nitrogen, make up about 96 per cent of
tlie material of tlie human body. Another four, calcium,, phosphorus,
potassium and sulfur, constitute 3 per cent of the body weight, Minute
amounts of iodine, iron, sodium, chlorine, magnesium, copper and per-
haps other elements complete the list. All these elements, and especilally
the first four, are abundant in the atmosphere, tlie earth’s crust, ?lid
the sea, Life depends upon the coyplexity of the interrelationships
of these common, abundant elements.
This last statement, however, is purely gratuitous; certainly
it has never been proved experimentally, that life has its ex-
planation in the complexity of the interrelqtionships of the ele-
ments, nor even of the atoms within the elements, here enum-
erated. Consequently there have been thinkers in all ages who
1. o p . Cit., 21-22.
117
have held that Life is a force superposed upon, or added to,
the physiochemical bases of living organisms. Again I quote
from Villee:
Most present-day biologists ,agree that vital phenomena, though
more complex, a r e reducible to the same basis as nonliving phenomena,
that both a r e explaifiable in terms of ’chemistry and physics. This is
called the mechanistic theory. A corolbry of this view is that if we
knew everything about the chemistry and physics of vital phenomena,
we would be able to synthesize life, An opposing school of thought,
vitalism, states t h a t some unique force, not reducible to the terms
of chemistry and physics, controls the activities of life ,and differentiates
living from nonliving things. Vitalists believe that no matter how
great our knowledge of the physics and chemistry of protoplasm may
be, we shall never understand life or be able to create it artificially.’
One thing is sure, however, with reference to the issue stated
here, and that is, that science does not as yet have the answer.
Up to the present moment no one has penetrated the Mystery
of Life itself. As one of the most distinguished of modern
biologists puts it:
We do not know what life is. No one has yet observed a transition
from inanimate to animate nature, nor has any theory been proposed
which successfully explains the origin of life on the earth. We must
remain satisfied with the fact of life’s existence, without being able
to explain it or even describe it clearly.’
The Mystery of Life per se remains as inscrutable as
teries of matter, consciousness, and personality. It is but one
of the many mysteries which seem to remain impenetrable to
human science-in spite of its boasted self-sufficiency-in a
world that is full of mysteries, and of mysteries that become
more mysterious and more numerous as the horizon of human
knowledge is extended.
Is there any evidence anywhere in Nature, as we know it,
that inanimate matter has the inherent power to produce life?
Modern science answers this question firmly in the negat
“spontaneous generation,’’ it says, does not occur. But, strange
as it may seem, the theory of spontaneous generation was held
quite generally, by non-churchmen and churchmen alike, through-
out ancient and early medieval times. Several of the early
Church Fathers, notably Ephrem, Basil, Gregory of Nyssa, and
John Chrysostom, in the East, and Ambrose and Augustine in
the West, clearly interpreted the Genesis account of Creation
as teaching that originally-created inorganic matter was really
1. O p cit., 28-29.
2. Fritz Kahn, M.D., M a n in Strzicturcs and F?tnctiolz, I, 6. Trans.
from the German and edited by George Rosen, M.D.
118
MATTER AND SPIRIT
endowed by the Creator, from the moment of its creation, with
the power of producing living beings, This view was fully de-
veloped by St. Augustine, Bishop of Hippo, in his celebrated
theory of ”seminal reasons,” namely, that the inorganic elements,
God’s primary creation, contained in themselves, from the be-
ginning, the “seminal reasons” of all living things, Le., the powers
necessary to the generation of living things. He states expressly
that, at the proper moment in the Creative Process, the earth
(not seeds in the earth, mind you!) was given the impetus to
produce life.’ According to Augustine’s interpretation, all species
of plants and animals were created potentially from the very
beginning, in that their causes or principles were implanted
in matter when it was created; therefore, the account’of the
Creation which appears in the first chapter of Genesis is but the
record of the progressive actualizing, b y t h e Word of God, of
those powers which hitherto had existed potentially in the in-
organic elements, In a word, according to this theory, the crea-
tion of inorganic matter by the Deity was a primary creation
(that is, no secondary causes, or what we call “laws of nature,’’
were involved), whereas that which followed in the successive
epochs (“days”) of Creation was the result of the cooperation of
the Creator with secondary causes-causes proceeding from the
waters, the earth, etc.
Cf. Gen. 1:ll-And God said, Let the earth put forth grass, herbs
yielding seed, and fruit trees bearing f r u i t after their kind, wherein
is the seed thereof, upon the earth: and i t was so. Also v. 20-
And God said, Let the waters swarm with swarms of living creatures,
and let birds fly above the earth in the open firmament of heaven, etc.
Also v. 24-And God said, Let the earth bring forth living creatures
after their kind, cattle, and creeping things, a n d beasts of the earth,
after their kind: and it was so. [Incidentally, does not modern science
hold t h a t animal life existed fimt in the water, then in the air, and
finally on the land?]
I might add here that a plausible argument certainly can be made
at any time in support of this Augustinian interpretation.2
But present-day science, on the whole, rejects the theory
of spontaneous generation. The modern view seems to be that
Pasteur, by proving conclusively that “microbes have parents,”
demonstrates once and for all that the generation of life by
inanimate matter does not take place in nature. C. C. Furnas
declares that “Pasteur effectively silenced all spontaneous gen-
1. D e Geiaesi ad litlerain, Lib. V, 4. Vide Migne’s Edition.
2. For an excellent presentation of the tenching of the Church
Fathers on this subject, wide Ernest C. Messenger, Evolution and
Theology.
119
eration advocates with an air-tight set of data.”’ Wells, Huxley,
and Wells testify as follows:
Life seems always to be produced by pre-existing life. It presents
itself as a multitude of individuals which have been produced by di-
vision or the detachment of parts from other individuals, and most
.
of which will in their time give rise to another generation. . . It is
accepted now by all biologists of repute that life arises from life land
in no other way-omne vivwrn, 61! vivo. Life as we know i t flows i n a
strictly defined stream from its remote and unknown origin’s, it, dis-
solves and assimilates food, but it receives no living tributaries.
All living things take their origin in pieces of living substance
detached from the bodies of other living thngs. ,
arises from a pre-existing cell.3
..
Every living cell
One fact remains, that all the life we know is one continuing sort
of life, that all t h e life which exists a t this moment derives, so fa: as
human knowledge goes, in unbroken succession from life in past time,
and t h a t the unindividualized non-living world is separated from it
531 a definite gap.4
It seems that life must once have begun, but no properly informed
man can say with absolute conviction that it will ever end.s
So, generally speaking, conclude the scientists of our day. The
mysteries of life, o origin of life, of the living cell, remain
impenetrable to scie
There i s an occasional exception, however, in so
origin of life by spontaneous generation is conce
example, Dr. George W. Beadle of Sta+ord University, in an
address before the George Westinghouse Centennial Forum, held
in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, in May, 1946, explicitly defended
the possibility of spontaneous generation. Among
he said;
It is a fascinating diversion to speculate on the manner of the
origin of the first living thing on earth and t o wonder what its nature
could have been. Although the complete answers Clzln never be know,
it is nevertheless of interest to see how plausible a hypothesis can be
built up in terms of our present knowledge. One of the questiods that
one soon faces in any attempt of this kind is the simple one: what con-
stitutes a living system compared with a non-living one? Not everyone
will give the same ianswer; indeed, in giving any at, all one runs the
risk of stimulating violent argument, Let us assume for purposes of
our particular kind of speculation that the decisive step was taken
when the first chemical combination capable of self-duplication came
into Eeing. By self-duplication I mean that process of replica forma-
tion t h a t occurs regularly only in the presence of a model. To state
it differently, once the first living unit appeared by chance, then and
1. The Next Hundred Years, 23.
2. o p . @it.,4-5,
3. Zbid., 459.
4. Ib{d., 6.
5. Zbzd., 13.
120
MATTER AND SPIRIT
only then could more units of the same kind appear with regularity.
In the present state of this world, organic molecules are-as the term
itself implies-almost invariably synthesized by living beings. It is
often supposed, therefore, that they were not present before life larose,
If this were true, life must have come about by some luclcy chance
combination of inorganic molecules that possessed tlie property of
catalyzing further combinations of tlie same sort. While the prob-
ability of such a combination would be exceedingly small, t h a t is not a
valid objection to assuming its occurrence since i t need have happened
only once. But this theory can be disposed of on logical grounds by
a simple argument. The fact that life arose a t all is itself sufficient
grounds for concluding t h a t it did not happen i n one step from in-
organic molecules. This follows from the consideration t h a t if any-
thing as complex a s ia self-duplicating organic molecule could arise
in a single step, then it is infinitely more probable t h a t simpler
organic molecules without the power of self-duplication would haye
arisen. If these arose spontaneously, then they, rather than inorganic
molecules, certainly would have served as the precursors of the more
complex combination that was the f i r s t living unit. The thesis that
organic molecules were present in great variety in the pre-life world
is defended in a book entitled T k s OYigi72 of Life by tlie Russian bio-
chemist Oparin. His assumption t h a t organic molecules could be
formed spontaneously in a lifeless world is one against which the
average person tends to rebel violently iat first. On second thought,
however, one is inclined to concede t h a t with the infinite variety of
combinations of molecules and reaction conditions t h a t must have
existed on earth before life was present, organic molecules would have
hsd a slight but real probability of being formed by chance.
Assuming, then, the existence of endless kinds of organic molecules
., .
of varying complexities, i t becomes possible to imagine tlie spontaneous
origin of a combination, like a present-day protein molecule, which
possessed the power of directing t h e formation of more molecules
like itself from precursors like those from which i t first arose. In
the absence of competition for its components, such a simple being
could have enjoyed la quite peaceful existence, forming descendants
like itself whenever and wherever it found the right combination of
xwmaterials. It would have mattered little if the happy opportunity
of making a replica occurred only once in a thousand or million years.
Actually we know of the present-day existence of molecules with tlie
essential properties that we have ascribed t o the protogene. A s f i r s t
shown by Stanley, many viruses are crystallivlable nueleoproteins t h a t
have the property of automultiplication in a n environment in which
all tlie component parts are present under tlie proper conditions. The
principal difference between the present-day virus and tlie postulated
protogene is that tlie protogene was free-living while the virus is
parasitic on a living cell. Considering t h a t the environment in which
the protogene is assumed to have arisen was like the interior of ia
living cell in containing a vast array of organic molecules, this cer-
tainly is not a profound difference.’
Dr. Beadle then goes on to suggest the possibility that “reaction
chains” of protogenes were “built up through mutation and
natural selection in a way in which every single step would
1. George W. Beadle, “High-Frequency Radiation and the Gene,”
Scioiaca and Life in t l k Woyld, Vol. 11, The George Westinghouse
Ce~~teiinial
Forum Series, in three volumes, 1946. McGraw-Hill.
12 1
have conferred a selective advantage over the previous condi-
tion,” the ultimate result being, of course, life in its various
forms and degrees of complexity.
Now the eminent doctor of biology, self-admittedly, is
“speculating,” “assuming,” “imagining”-in a word, guessing-
throughout this entire presentation. The argument itself, how-
ever, proves that the ghost of spontaneous generation stalks the
halls of science once more, and is remindful of the age-old creed
of materialism:
Once nothing arrived on this earth out of space;
It rode in on nothing; it came from no place;
It landed on nothing-the earth was not here-
It worked hard on nothing for year after year.
It sweat over nothing with mighty resolve;
But just about then things began to evolve.
The heavens appeared, and the sea and the sod;
This Almighty Nothing worked much like a god.
It started unwinding without any plan,
It made every creature, and ended with man.
No God here was needed-there was no Creation;
Man grew like a mushroom and needs no salvation.
Some savants say this should be called evolution,
And ignorance only rejects t h a t solution2
And no doubt there are some scientists who would shout with
ill-concealed glee, “Exeunt the spirits!’’ (Dr. L. T. Hogben,
for example, writes of carbon compounds as “the last resting
place of spirits,”a) All this, however, is only wishful thinking,
no matter if it should turn out to be “scientific.” All that the
revival of the spontaneous generation theory accomplishes is to
push “spirit” back a step or two in the developmental scale of
total being. All self-styled naturalistic scientists should famil-
iarize themselves with the writings of the Church Fathers cited
in a foregoing paragraph, For, in the final analysis of the case,
whether the life principle was incorporated in matter from the
beginning (or, to speak more precisely, in certain relations
existing within matter itself), or whether it was superimposed
upon matter from without, is not a matter of too great signifi-
cance after all, The author of a recently-published textbook on
geology has summarized the point at issue very sensibly, as
follows:
Two views t h a t a r e a t least partially opposed t o one another may
be advanced concerning the origin of life. (1) Life is the result of
special creation; the existence of plants and animals on the earth
1. I have never succeeded in identifying the author of these lines.
-C.
2. L. T . Bogben, Science for the Citixen.
122
MATTER AND SPIRIT
depends on the creative act of ia Deity. (2) Life is the result of certain
physiochemical conditions ; the introduction of these conditions and
the properties of matter that are involved depend on “laws” of nature,
which in turn are an expression of inherent charmters of the universe.
All of these a r e conceivably the result of a n initial divinely established
order; otherwise there is no underfitandable beginning o r end.’
And one of the most ardent of contemporary evolutionists,
Earnest A. Hooton, writes in a similarly restrained vein:
One cannot conclude a volume of facts, reflections, and specula-
tions concerning the course of human evolution without asking himself
if there is any place for a guiding intelligence in this marvelous pro-
gression of organic events. However you look at him, man is a miracle,
whether he be a miracle of cbance, of nature, or of God. Further
the whole sequence of evolutionary development is such a n astounding
and incomprehensible concept that it baffles explanation. That evolu-
tion has occurred I have not the slightest doubt. That it is iStn acci-
dental or chance occurrence I do n o t believe, although chance prob-
ably has often intervened and is a n important contributing factor.
But i€ evolution is not mainly a chance process it must be an intelli-
gent or purposeful process. [“Chance,” of course, is best defined a s
essentially a non-purposeful something or event.] It seems t o me
quite immaterial whether we believe that the postulated source of
the inteIligence or purposeful causation is a divine being or a set of
natunal “laws.” [“Laws,” however, presuppose a Lawgiver, a Sovereign
Will, for all law is essentially the expression of will. Science, there-
fore, by its use of the term, “laws” of nature, either wittingly or un-
wittingly recognizes the Will of God as the Constitution of the uni-
verse.] What difference does it make whether God is Nature or
Nature is God.? [The Scriptures clearly teach thoat God is the Author
and Creator of Nature.] The pursuit of natural causes either leads
to the deification of Nature, or t o the recognition of the supernaturd,
or t o a simple admission of ignorance, bewilderment, and awe. It
should arouse the feeling of reverence in any one who attempts t o
grasp the central phenomenon which emerges from the vast assemblage
of organic facts. I venture t o assert t h a t the concept of organic
evolution is one of the grandest and most sublime which can engage
the attention of man. Whether man arose from the apes or was made
from mud, he is in a sense a divine product, Organic evolution is an
achievement not unworthy of any God and not incompatible with the
Ioftiest conception of religion. But if i t were conclusively demonstrated
tomorrow t h a t man has not evolved from anthropoid ancestors, if it
were finally proven t h a t the species had not been derived one from
the other, but had been separately created, the anthropologist would
still face the dawn with equanimity land with eager anticipation of
new scientific visits. Theories of origin and causation are often
transient and evanescent; life itself can never fail to command the
interest and evoke the inquiry of human minds.8
Again 1 quote from Lincoln Barnett’s book, in this connection:
Cosmologists for the most part maintain silence on the question
of ultimate origins, leaving that issue t o the philosophers and theology.
Yet only the purest empiricists among modern scientists turn their
1. Dr. Raymond C. Moore Historion1 Geologg, 102.
2. E. A. Hooton, U p from t h e Ape. 604-605.
123
backs on the mystery that underlies physical reality. Einstein, whose
philosophy of science has sometimes been criticized ,as materialistic,
once said:
“ T h most beautiful and most profound emotion we can ex-
perience is the sensation of the mystical. It is the sower of all
true science. He t o whom this emotion is a stranger, who can no
longer wonder and stand aapt in awe, is as good as dead. To
know that what is impenetrable t o us really exists, manifesting
itself a s the highest wisdom and the most radiant beauty which
our dull faculties oan comprehend only in their most primitive
forms-this knowledge, this feeling is a t the center of true
religiousness.”
And on another occasion he declared, “The cosmic religious expe-
rience is the strongest and noblest mainspring of scientific research.”
Most scientists, when referring t o the mysteries of the universe, its
vast forces, its origins, and its rationality and harmony, tend to avoid
using the word God. Yet Einstein, who has been called an atheist, has
no such inhibitions. “My religion,” he says, “consists of a humble ad-
mination of the illimitable superior spirit who reveals himself in the
slight details we a r e able t o perceive with our frail and feeble minds.
That deeply emotional conviction of the presence of a superior rea-
soning power, which is revealed in the incomprehensible universe,
forms my idea of God.”l
And so, again, we are back to the only possible logical
startingpoint: Either intelligent Spirit or unintelligent atoms (or
energy) must be the unoriginated First Principle of all things.
He who holds the former view is a theist; he who, holds the latter
view, a materialist. There is, of course, an alternative position,
namely, that of the dualist, who holds that both Spirit and Matter
are eternal or unoriginated. But, would it not be unphilosophical
to postulate two self-existent First Principles when one alone
is sufficient? And this is precisely the claim that is made for
the Eternal Spirit throughout this treatise.
Getting back to the theory of spontaneous generation, Dr.
A. H. Strong has written-to my mind-conclusively on this
subject, as follows:
If such instances [for spontaneous generation] could be authenti-
cated, they would prove nothing as against a proper doctrine of crea-
tion-for there would still exist an impossibility of accounting for
vivific properties of matter, except upon the Scriptural view of an
intelligent Contriver #and Originator of matter and its laws. In short,
evolution implies previous involution-if anything comes out of matter,
it, must first have been put in. , . , This theory, if true, only supple-
ments the doctrine of original, absolute, immediate creation, with an-
other doctrine of mediate and derivative creation, o r the development
of the materials and forces originated at the begihning. This develop-
ment, however, cannot proceed t o any valuable end without guidance
of the same intelligence which initiated it. The Scriptures, although
they do not sanction the doctrine of spontaneous generation, do recog-
1. Op. dt., 105-106.
124
MATTER AND SPIRIT
nize processes of development as supplementing the divine fiat which
first called the elements into being.l
It must be remembered that whether God operates primarily
and directly, or through secondary causes (“natural laws”), it is
He who, as the First Cause or Principle, is back of, and re-
sponsible for, the whole life process. The same measure of
creative power is required equally for a creation by emanation,
or a creation by evolution, or a direct and instantaneous crea-
tion. The problem involved here is not that of method, but that
of power-it is the problem of the Elan Vital-to use Bergson’s
well-known designation. As a matter of fact, it was Bergson
himself who first called attention to the inadequacy of the tra-
ditional theories of evolution; they postulated methods only,
said he, but failed to take into consideration the Life Force itself,
the Vital Impetus which has ever surged onward and upward
in the myriads of living species, the Force which actualizes all
methods which may be involved in the ongoing of the life
process; methods are, in fact, but evidences of the operation of
this basic Life Force. The universe and its creatures, said
Bergson, are the embodiment of this immanent principle of
living change and creativity; it is one continuous flow, evolution
being only the movement of the flow, Underneath the conflict
of the Elan with the Iiving forms in which it is compelled to
concrete itself in order to find proper expression,-for the very
impetus of Life consists in the need for creation-there is a
fundamental spiritual unity which is the rhythm of the mobility
of Life itself. This mobility, moreover, is essentially the stuff
of duration, which is real time (Le., time, as experienced by a
spirit or spiritual being), as distinguished from mathematical
time, which is a form of measurement arbitrarily imposed upon
reality by the human intellecta2
It is to the Elan, therefore, according to Bergson, that we
must look for the answer to the problem of the origin of species.
It is useless to look to mere physiochemical forces for this solu-
tion; we shall not find it there. Something more is needed to
explain the Mystery of Life and of living forms than the opera-
tion of either physical or chemical forces or even of both together.
The ultimate source of the evolution of life must be Something
of the nature of consciousness, of duration,-in a word, of Spirit.
As a matter of fact, Bergson’s Elan Vital is a conscious Life
1. Sgstemntic Theologg, One-Volume Edition, 390.
2. Vide Henri Bergson, Creative Evolution. authorized translation
by Arthur Mitchell.
125
Force. It is a universal principle or power which transcends
the Present moment, and must needs transcend any factual
embodiment of itself at any time. It is infinite in the sense of
being inexhaustibly creative. And, paradoxical as it may seem,
the self-manifestations of the Infinite must needs be first, simply
because it is infinite in the sense of being inexhaustibly creative.
It is because of the inexhaustible richness of life itself, that it
is alway developing in the direction of such great variety and
multiplicity. Thus it must be obvious to any thinking person
that Bergon’s EEan has practically all the properties traditionally
rit of God. In fact, the property most char-
is inexhaustibleness. This is always true,
whether the Spirit be regarded as operating in the realm of
power, or in that life, or in that of thought.
The Mystery of Life is still a mystery-as great a mystery
as it ever was. Dr. Alexis Carrel, formerly of the Rockefeller
Institute, kept a piece of the heart-muscle of a chicken alive
and pulsing and growing for more than twenty years. Cutting
off a bit of the heart of a live, unhatched chicken, he placed the
fragment in a glass tube in which it was supplied a constant
bath of liquid food which included blood. The bit of “flesh”
grew, and from time to time it had to be trimmed down to fit
the receptacle in which it was contained. Remarkable 3s this
experiment was, it served only to accentuate three great “un-
knowns”: (1) What was the something in that particle of living
tissues that caused it to continue to be “alive”? (2) What is it
that keeps the heart, or any other organ, of a live chicken from
growing beyond proper bounds, as this piece did? (3) What is
the mystery in blood that endows it with power to sustain life,
power that obviously cannot be created from pure chemicals?
N o chemist has ever synthesized a Ziving cell in the laboratory.
No man has ever created a seed.
Cf. Lev. 17:ll-For the life of the flesh is in the blood; and I
have given it to you upon the altar to make atonement for your souls:
for it is the blood that maketh atonement by reason of the life. Cf.
also Luke 24:39--[the words of Jesus, after His resurrection]: See my
hands and my feet, that it is I myself: handle me, and see; for a
spirit hath not flesh and bones, as ye behold me having. [Evidently
the blood-the principle of animal life-was gone from Hls resurrection
body.]
Then, again, what is the secret of the mystery of the propa-
gation of life? Scientific experiment has proved the fact beyond
any possibility of doubt that the mystery of the life process is
126
MATTIR AND SPIRIT
bound up, in some inscrutable manner, with the chromosomes
and genes of the reproductive cells. Not only are physical char-
acteristics, but temperamental and intellectual endowments as
well, transmitted through such media from one generation to
another. But precisely what this relation is, continues to be a
secret apparently as impenetrable as the comparable mystery
of the relationship existing between brain and “mind.” These
mysteries, of course, are to be expected, if life is essentially a
metaphysical or spiritual force-a conclusion which, in the view
of thinkers who are not predisposed to an absolutely material-
istic interpretation of the universe, can hardly be avoided.
That life i s more than a mere physiochemical phenomenon
seems to me too obvious to be questioned, I can see no alterna-
tive, either from the viewpoint of reason or from that of ordinary
common sense, but to accept the fact of a basic, essentially non-
material Pure Activity or Creative Spirit, which contains within
itself (or, speaking precisely, who contains within Himself) all
the actualities of energy, life, consciousness, personality, and
holiness, Le., wholeness. Such are the actualities of the Spirit
of God as He is presented in Scriptures. He is revealed as the
Source of Power, Life, Light, Truth, Law, Love, and Wholeness;
apart from Him there is only impotence, death, darkness, error,
license, hate and disunity.
Just as at the lowest level of the Totality of Being, the
inorganic level, the Spirit operates to produce energy and is
therefore the Spirit of Power, so at the next level of being, the
organic level, He operates to generate life and is the Spirit of
Life. Life in all its forms is a Divine Gift-the gift of the Spirit
of God.
In the first place, the Spirit is the Giver of the natural or
physical life which we enjoy here and now.
Acts 17:24-25: The God that made the world and all things thereiii,
he, being Lord of heaven and earth, dwelleth not in the temples made
with hands; neither is he served by men’s hands, as though he needed
anything, seeing lie Iiiinself giveth to ,all life, and breath, and all _,
things. Job 33:4--The Spirit of God hatli made me, and the breath
of the Almighty giveth me life. Job 27:3--For my life is yet wliole
in me, and t h e spirit of God is in my nostrils. John G:G3--It is the
spirit that giveth life ; the flesh profiteth nothing. Geii. 2 :7--JehovaIi
God formed inan of the dust of the g ~ o u n d ; and brentlied into his
nostrils the breath of life; and m4an became a living soiil.
In the second place, the Spirit is the Giver of the spiritual
life which we may enjoy here and now, in the Kingdom of Grace,
through Christ the Word.
127
John 1:1-4-In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was
with’God, and the Word Was God. . . I n Him was life; and the life
was the light of men. John 6:35-Jesus said unto them, I am the
bread of life: he th<at cometh t o me shall not hunger, and he that be-
lieveth on me shall never thirst. John 14:,6-Jesus saith unto him, I
a m the way, and the truth, and the life. 1 John 6;12--He that hath
the Son hath the life; he that hath not the Son of God hath not the
life. Eph. 2:8-For by grace have ye been saved through faith; and
t h a t [Le., t h a t salvation] not of yourselves, it is the gift of God. Eph.
2:4, 5--God, being rich in mercy . . , made us alive together with Christ
(by grace have ye been saved). John 3:5, 6 - J e s u s answered‘, Verily,
verily, I say unto thee, Except one be born of water and the Spirit,
he cannot enter into the kingdom of God, That which is born of the
flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit.
In the third place, the Spirit is the Giver of eternal life,
that life which the saints shall enjoy in the Kingdom of Glory,
which is mediated through Christ the Word, and which shall con-
sist in ultimate union with God in knowledge and love. One of
the concomitants of that life, moreover, shall be a redeemed or
spiritual body.
John 3:M-For God so loved the world, that he gave his only
begotten Son, that whosoever believeth on him should not perish, but
have eternal life. John 11:2Ei, 26-Jesus saith unto her, I am the
resurrection end the life. , , . whosoever liveth and believeth 04 me
shall never die. 2 Cor, 3:6-the letter killeth, but the spirit giveth life.
Rom. 6:23--For the wages of sin is death; but the free gift of God
is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord. Rom. 8:ll-But if the Spirit
o f him t h a t raised up Jesus from the dead dwelleth in you; he that
raised up Christ Jesus from the dead shall give life also to your
mortal bodies through his Spirit thlat dwelleth in you.
Every year, in the springtime, noiselessly and without ef-
fort, the earth blossoms into beauty and melts into fragrance.
As the poet has written,
Whether we look or whether we listen,
We hear life murmur, or see it glisten;
Every clod feels a stir of might,-
An instinct within that reaches and towers -
And, groping blindly above it for light,
Climbs t o a soul in grass and flowers.
What is this never-failing awakening of life, year after year,
but a gracious providential operation of the Spirit of God? In
the words of the Psalmist, referring to all living creatures:
“Thou sendest forth thy Spirit, they are created; and thou re-
newest the face of the ground” (Psa. 104: 30).
Life is not a creation-it is a Divine Gift. We ourselves
were born, not made; our parents were born of their parents;
and so on, back to the beginningless Fountain of Life. That
Fountain, the Scriptures tell us, was the very Being of God
128
MAlTBR AND SPIRIT
Himself; first life was enjoyed by man as the result of a Divine
Inbreathing. Gen. 2:7 again: “Jehovah God formed man of the
dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath
of life; and man became a living soul.” How fitting that the
very Name of our God is I AM, HE WHO IS, the Ever-Living
One! Exo. 3: 14--“And God said unto Moses, I AM THAT I AM:
and he said, Thus shalt thou say unto the children of Israel,
I AM hath sent me unto you,” John 4:24, the words of Jesus:
“God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship in
spirit and truth.”
The Breath of God is the outgoing of the Spirit of God,
and it is the Spirit that giveth life, Our God IS a Spirit, and
they who worship Him must worship Him in spirit and accord-
ing to the Truth.
The Stream of Life flows ever onward and upward in this
present world, from the lowliest plant form to the highest,
thence upward through all creatures of water, air, and land,
finally to attain its highest manifestation in human personality,
The red River of Life has flown o u t from Someone, Somewhere,
for ever! And it will continue to flow-even beyond the grave-
where in the redeemed and immortalized saints, its red shall
have been transformed into crystal purity and brightness. “And
he [the angel] showed me,” writes the Seer of the Apocalypse,
enraptured, “a river of water of life, bright as crystal, pro-
ceeding out of the throne of God and of the Lamb” (Rev. 22: 1),
“Out of the throne of God and of the Lamb”-note it well! __
Ah, sweet Mystery of Life, precious gift of the Spirit of
my God. As Tennyson has expressed it, so exquisitely:
Flower in the crannied wall,
I pluclc you out of the cnannies,
I hold you hese, root and all, in my hand,
Little flower-but if I could understand
What you are, root and all, and all in all,
I should lcnow what God and man is.
5. The Mystery of Thought

Is there anything in the u n i v e r s e a n y entity or activity-
that is not matter or not material? Can everything that exists
be reduced ultimately to matter in motion? Is thought, for
example, but a manifestation of electronic, atomic, or some
other-possibly as yet unlmown-form of “physical” energy?
There have been those in all ages who have stubbornly insisted
129
that our universe is ultimately a universe of matter and of mat-
ter only; there are those today who would so affirm; we call
them “materialists.” They insist that we have no knowledge of
anything except by means of the senses, and that even we our-
selves are constitutionally material; hence, that all our knowl-
edge is simply knowledge of matter by matter. Obviously, how-
ever, in stating their position, materialists overlook the fact
that they are talking about two separate things, namely, (1)
about everything, including themselves, all of which they affirm
to be matter, and ( 2 ) about their belief that everything is mat-
ter, which they affirm to be the truth about the world we live in.
But any person of ordinary common sense should be able to
see that by no stretch of the imagination can any belief or
theory or alleged truth about matter be identified with matter
itself. The arrangement of cells in the brain is one thing; a be-
lief, theory, or alleged truth is quite another thing. It has been
rightly said that the materialist can explain everything but his
own theory: that, obviously, is not “material.”
We recall the theory of the “conditioned reflex” developed
by the Russian school and especially by Pavlov, soon after the
turn of the present century. This came t o be the basis of what
was called “the dog-and-drool” psychology, and finally of what
came to be elaborated as “behaviorism,” first by Dr. John B.
Watson of the University of Chicago and later of Johns Hopkins
University. Watson repudiated the traditional conception of the
mental processes and interpreted “thinking” as subvocal “con-
ditioning.” This caused Dr. Will Durant to quip that “Dr.Watson
had made up his larynx that he did not have a mind.” “Be-
haviorism” in its various forms ran rampant for half a century,
until a measure of sanity began to assert itself in psychology de-
partments of our universities. Behaviorism of our day and age
is not that which was advocated by Watson. At any rate these
facts serve to show how desperately men in psychology have
tried to downgrade the human race into an animal species, dis-
regarding altogether the essential facts of person and personality,
and thus relieve themselves of all moral responsibility or at
least to reduce what has been called morality to sheer meaning-
less relativism. Naturally this kind of propaganda became a
bulwark of materialism. It is being kept alive to some extent
in our day b y the psychologist B. F. Skinner. Materialism, how-
ever, is so absurd, so contrary to the higher outreaches of man,
that about all it is doing now is to drive them into the opposite
extremes of orgiastic and ecstatic emotional outbursts, into vari-
13Q
MATTER AND SPIRIT
ous diabolical cults such as fatalism, spiritualism, divination,
witchcraft, black magic, libidinism, homosexuality, and even
devil-worship itself, The following clear statement of fact i s
pertinent here (from Claude Tresmontant, French Professor of
the Philosophy of Science in the Sorbonne, Paris) :
The discoveries of modern science have made it easier to prove
the existence of God than it used t o be. Those who find no place for
God in their philosophy must be prepared to affirm t h a t mindless,
inanimate matter has been able to organize itself, to become animated,
.
land to endow itself with consciousness and thought. , . If the material
universe is to be regarded as the only reality, matter must be credited
with all the attributes t h a t theologians specify as belonging to God,
including supreme intelligence, creative power, and eternal autonomous
existence. [When asked if the emergence of life could not be attributed
purely to the laws of chance over a very long period of time, this
scientist said] : It may be theoretically possible, but mathematically
i t is so extremely improbable that only a very few scientists now seri-
ously think that pure cliance can be put forward as a n explanation of
the emergence of even the simplest living organism. [In Shar Slalom
Publication tract entitled “So You Are a n Agnostic!” by H a r r y Bucal-
stein, 236 West 72nd Street, New York, N. Y., 100231.
These words remind us of the notion put forward in the heydey

of Darwinism that if a monkey were placed at the keys of a
typewriter, given a sufficient time, by just pounding the keys
at random it could hammer out one of Plato’s dialogues. Frankly,
it takes more faith to accept this argument than to believe in a
Creator-God.
The case against materialism is stated so clearly by Mr.
A. Clutton-Brock that I feel justified in re-presenting his argu-
ment here at some length. He writes as follows:
We are aware of matter with our senses; iand, if we a r e aware
of spirit at all, it is not with our senses, The f i r s t question is, then,
Are we aware of anything not with our senses? Of ourselves, perhaps;
but those who believe t h a t matter is the sole reality must believe also
that self-consciousness is an illusion. For them there is no self but
merely matter in certain formal arrangements functioning, they say ;
and self-consciousness is but an effect of tbat functioning. They insist
t h a t we have no knowledge of anything except with our senses, and
that this knowledge is all knowledge by matter of matter.
Yet all the senses in combination applied to some one particular
object could not produce any conclusion about t h a t object, could not
even tell us that it was a n object. Smell by itself does not tell me
t h a t what I smell is also that which I touch land see; nor do simul-
taneous smell, sight, and touch tell me that. A creature with only
sense-perceptions could not go beyond them ; there would be nothing
in it to conclude that i t was smelling, touching and seeing the same
object. It would in fact consist only of sense-perceptions rand would
have no notion of external reality at all; and it may be t h a t there a r e
creatures which do consist only of sense-perceptions and have no notion
of external reality. But man is not one of them; he i s aware of a n
131
object over and above his sense-perceptions of i t ; and he calls that
which is aware the self.
But still the question remains whether this self can be aware of
anvthing but matter. Assuming. ,as we must, t h a t the self is not merely
a 'cornbynation of sense-perceFtions, is it still only matter, by some
means which we cannot yet understand, aware of the existence of
other matter? Now the man who believes this believes also something
more, namely, t h a t it is the truth about matter, For him, therefore,
besides matter there exists the truth about matter, which itself clearly
is not matter and is not perceived with the senses. He may say that
the truth about matter is a product of that matter which is his own
mind, and exists only in his mind. But, if the truth is that and merely
that, it is not the truth t o him, and he cannot believe it. Truth means
t o us, not a product of our minds, but that which exists independently
of them, thtat which would exist if we were not. The very word truth
implies its independent existence; the value for truth, t o which we all
appeal when we use the word, implies its independent existence. If
we could believe t h a t we had made truth ourselves, we should no longer
value it, and it would not he truth to us. [That. is to say, Truth is
discovered, not formulated, by man. It is essenttally being, and the
relations within t h e Totality of Being. The truth of electricity is
cotemporaneous with the universe itself; i t existed long, long before
Benjamin Franklin flew his kite. The truth of the ingredients of the
atom bomb has existed in the cosmos from the beginning, yet only re-
cently has it been discovered and utilized by man. The quest of science
is essentially the quest f o r truth-the truth of the rehations which
obtain within the cosmos]. When we speak of a bitter truth, an un-
welcome truth, we imply that it exists independently of us and com-
pels our recognition of its existence. If it did not, why should we not
make for ourselves truths only comforting to ourselves? The answer
is that we could not believe them. Belief implies that what we believe
in exists indepesde'lltly of our minds. So the truth about external
reality exists independently of our minds; it is not matter, though i t
be about matter, nor is it perceived by the senses. . ..
So, to one who says that he believes only in the existence of
matter, one may put it that that belief is inconsistent with his other
belief t h a t he has iattained t o the truth about matter, is indeed incon-
sistent with belief of any kind, and so even with itself. For if only
matter exists, the truth about matter does not exist for us; it is merely
an effect prodtwed by matter upon matter; belief is an effect produced
by matter upon matter. But he who believes that cannot believe any-
thing else, or even that.
Mr. Clutton-Brock goes on to show that the same reasoning
applies to our perceptions of beauty and goodness:
Turn now from truth to something which can be much more easily
confused with matter; something which most people suppose they per-
ceive with their senses, namely beauty. To us the truth about objects is
not the objects themselves; but we may suppose that the beauty of an
object is the object itself, s n d that we perceive it with our sense of
sight o r hearing. The beauty of a tune is the tune; and we hear that
beauty. Yet it is possible to hear the notes without hearing the tune
and so the beauty. The beauty of the tune does not consist merely
of the pleasant sound of the individual notes. Play the same notes in
another order and there is no tune and no beauty of the tune. The
tune is something we cannot perceive without the sense of hearing; but
that which uerceives it, and the beauty of it, is not the sense of hearing.
132
MAlTIIR AND SPIRIT
And, though the notes themselves are merely sounds, and material,
the tune is not material; it is something beyond matter and informing
it. It is that relation of material things which we call beauty, and
which, tliougli i t consists of material things, is itself not matter nor
perceived with tho senses,
And the perception of truth and beauty is a perception of-what?
not particular objects perceived with t h e senses, but universal relations
not perceived with the senses, althougli we can be aware of them only
through the medium of the senses. And spirit is the name given to
+at in us which is aware of these universals; and they themselves,
since they are not matter, though always perceived in or to matter, are
said to be spiritual. The word spirit is a n acknowledgment of their
existence, and of the existence of something in ourselves, not sense,
which perceives and values them,
And there is 4anotheruniversal, another relation, i n our own actions,
which is spiritual and perceived by spirit, not by sense-that relation
which is called righteousness. We are aware of i t only in men and in
their conduct; yet i t is also t o us a universal relation like truth ,and
beauty. It does not consist merely in particular thoughts of our own
as we are aware of them. It consists in the relation of action, speech,
or thouglits to circumstance. Righteousness, in fact, is a certain ar-
rangement of actions, speech, or tlinught, though we cannot be aware
of i t apart from these. So we say t h a t righteousness also is spiritual,
and that spirit is taware of it, There is this difference between i t
and beauty o r truth, that i t is a universal we are aware of only in
human beings, and perhaps sometimes in ,animals. We are not aware
of i t in mere phenomena o r in inanimate objects. . . . So there seems
to US to be two kinds of reality, a reality of matter, of particulars,
perceived by the senses; and a reality of spirit, of universals, per-
ceived through the senses but by spirit.’
“his author goes on to attribute this seeming duality,of the Real
to our inability to attain to any fulness of perception of it. He
concludes:
So this fulness of perception is always a matter of degree for US,
and always we fall short of completeness. T h a t is why we make our
division of spirit and matter, a division not in reality itself, but only
in our fragmentary perception of it.9
That is to say, could we but look upon the Totality of Being
sub specie neternitntis-to use Spinoza’s well-known phrase-
no doubt it would manifest itself to us as one, as basically
monistic. From such a point of view, however, finite beings are
excluded, in their present state of existence.
That the individual human being as presently constituted
is partly matter or “flesh,” no sane person doubts. Correlation
of brain and mind has never been seriously questioned, as far
as we know. However, correlation is not identity, and the mind-
body problem is still with us, despite the efforts of materialistic
1. A. Clutton-Brock, “Spirit and Matter,” in a work entitled Tirc
Spiyif, 309-316, edited by B. H. Streeter.
2. O p . cit., 310.
133
psychologists to ignore or to deny the fact. The following state-
ment, by W. R. Hess, of the University of Zurich, Nobel Prize-
winner in Medicine in 1949,is pertinent:
From clinical experience a s well bas experiments on animals, we
know t h a t certain behavior patterns are associated with well-defined
areas in the brain. Through electrical stimulation of the brainstem
and contiguous areas we can elicit the reactions of defense, flight and
hunger ; through stimulation of higher levels, a compulsion to laugh ;
through stimulation of the cortex, visual and auditory raactions, among
others. The results of this kind of research on the brain .(., are
fascinating but we must realize t h a t they are hardly even a beginning.
The great g a p to be bridged in our knowledge of the mind remains
this: how ‘are the actions of the nervous system translated into con-
sciousness ?>
It can hardly be doubted that there is some subtle and im-
penetrable interaction of body and brain on the one hand, and
of the mental processes on the other, taking place all the time
in the human individual, It can hardly be doubted, moreover,
that the penetration and description of this interaction lies for-
ever beyond the ability of the intellect to fully comprehend it.
Nor again-let me say parenthetically-does this obvious inter-
action of body and mind militate in any way against the belief
that the mind or spirit of a human being will survive the death
of his body. For the Christian doctrine is, clearly, in the words
of St. Paul, that “if there is a natural body, there is also a
spiritual body,” and that as we4.e.: the saints of God-“have
borne the image of the earthy’’ here, “we shall also bear the
image of the heavenly’’ hereafter (1 Cor. 15:44, 49). It is an
undeniable fact of human experience that when the breath or
spirit of life departs from the human body, the body dissolves,
that is to say, it is resolved into its original elements. Undoubted-
ly this proves that spirit is the unifying principle of the organism,
even in his present life; in other words, that the body is simply
the tabernacle in which the real person, self, or spirit dwells
for a brief time upon this earth. Hence if spirit can attract to
itself -and unify the constituent elements of the natural body,
the body which is adapted to man’s needs in his present en-
vironment-much in the same manner, let us say, that a magnet
attracts to itself and binds together a quantity of iron filings-
certainly it follows logically that the same spirit, endowed ad-
ditionally, as the spirit of every saint will be, with the regenerat-
ing and sanctifying graces of the Holy Spirit which are imparted
in the Kingdom of Grace, will have abundant power to attract
1. From The Mind, A Life Science Library book, Introduction,
1964, 1971.
134
NA’MER AND SPIRIT
to itself and to bind together the constituent elements of a
spiritual (ethereal?) body, a body constituted of a kind of mat-
ter more refined or attenuated in texture, a body that will be
adapted to the needs of the redeemed person in the ages to come
and on the next higher level of being, the Kingdom of Glory.
“For we know,” writes Paul, “that if the earthly house of our
tabernacle be dissolved, we have a building from God, a house
not made with hands, eternal, in the heavens’’ (2 Cor. 5 : 1). It
may well be that the constituent elements of the spiritual body
are even now present in the natural body, and that they will
need only to be sifted out and re-assembled in the processes of
resurrection and glorification-that is, in the putting on of im-
mortality. Certainly there is no indication in Scripture that
the saints will be bodiless in eternity; the notion of “disembodied
spirits” is an inheritance from Oriental and Platonic philosophies.
Every human being in this present earthly state is, according
to Scripture, a body-spirit unity, a living soul (Gen. 2 : 7 ) ,
There is every reason for believing that every redeemed person
will continue to be, in the heavenly state, a body-spirit unity,
and a living soul, but of course with a body constituted of a
more attenuated form of matter, “And I saw thrones,” writes
the Revelator, “and they sat upon them: and I saw the s o d s of
them that had been beheaded for the testimony of Jesus, and
for the word of God” (Rev. 20: 4 ) . It must be clearly under-
stood, in this connection, however, that interaction does not
indicate identity of body and mind, either in the here or in the
hereafter. Man’s higher thought processes simply cannot be re-
duced to purely physiochemical or physiological phenomena.
Therefore, while it can not be doubted that man, as he is
presently constituted, is partly matter or “flesh,” neither can it
be doubted by any thinking person that he is more than matter
or “flesh.” Man is more than a brute animal; he is a rational
animal, He is specified as man, that is, set apart from the lower
orders as a separate and distinct species, as homo sapiens (to
use a strictly scientific term), by his power of reason. His
higher thought processes embrace (1) the power of thinking in
abstract terms-in letters, words, and figures, all of which
serve as symbols, and even in explicit terms that symbolize, not
things, but relations, such as justice, love, freedom, and the like;
(2) the power of creative imagination, which is the mainspring,
not only of human art, but of all human science as well; and
(3) the power of evaluation, or a sense of values, which lies at
the root of all human society, morality, and law, There is no
135
evidence whatever th uch exalted powers e
among the lower ani Biologists who insist
man as a mere animal are largely responsible for the present-day
confusion in the realm of morals. For, even granting that ere&-
tion was by a process of evolution of which man is the end
product thus far, the fact still remains that, being man, he has
evolved f r o m or beyond the mere animal level: he is, to say
the least, animal plus. And the plus is identical with his power
of reasoning, the power which specifies him as man. This fact
is proved every time a scientist theorizes about human nature
and its origin; no matter how strenuously he may insist that
man is animal and nothing more, he cannot presume to affirm
that the process by which he has arrived at this cohclusion is E.
process characteristic of a brute. The brute follows its instincts,
but it gives no evidence of inherent power to think connectedly,
from this to that, and so on. No man on earth would be so
foolish as to try to teach his old dog Rover the Ten Command-
ments. Scientists would contribute greatly to general clarity of
thought if they would eschew the use of such terms as “mind,”
“personality,” “psychology,” and the like, with reference to brute
animals. These terms have legitimate reference only to human
capacities and powers.
Every human being in this present earthly state is a body-
spirit unity-a living soul. This is the teaching of the Bible.
“And Jehovah God formed man of the dust of the ground, and
breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a
living soul’’ (Gen. 2:7). According to this Scripture, a living
soul is a material body informed by the Breath of God. That is
to say, the Breath of God infused into the material formed of
the dust of the ground (the chemical elements, we would say)
the added increment of personal life, or, strictly speaking, all
the potentialities of a person. And the Breath of God, we must
remember, is the outgoing of the Spirit of God. This is not only
the teaching of the Bible; it is the conclusion as well of sound
thinking and of plain common sense. Every sane man knows
that he is infinitely more than mere physiochemical elements
and processes.
“Man consists of all his actual and potential activities,”
writes Dr. Alexis Carrel.’ This is a truism all too frequently
ignored in our age of ultra-specialization in the physical and
biological sciences. Man’s history upon the earth shows that
1. Alexis Carrel, Man the Unknown, 119.
136
MATTER AND SPIRIT
from the remotest times, simultaneously with the physio-
chemical, biochemical, and general physiological activities car-
ried on more or less automatically by the organism, he has mani-
fested other and higher activities which are commonly designated
mental and spiritual, These are essentially activities of the spirit
which is in him, which was breathed into him in creation. These
higher reaches-or perhaps it would be more correct to say out-
reaches-of the human being are directed toward the attainment
of the supreme values in life. These supreme values are generally
conceded to be Truth, Beauty, Goodness, and Holiness; and the
higher mental activities by which the quest for these values is
pursued are designated, respectively, intellectual, esthetic, moral,
and religious. The object of intellectual activity is Truth; that
of esthetic activity is Beauty; that of moral activity, Goodness
or Righteousness; and that of religious activity is Holiness.
Holiness is, in essence, Wholeness (from the Greek holm, mean-
ing “whole,” “entire,” “perfect,” “complete,”) and is to be
equated therefore with Being, or fulness of Being, The ultimate
intrinsic natural and proper end to which man is ordered by his
Creator is Wholeness or real Being (entire sanctification) to
be achieved ultimately in the putting on of immortality. Reality,
in any case, is IS-ness; that which IS, and to the extent that
IT IS, is real.
“There is a spirit in man, and the breath of the Almighty
giveth them understanding,” said Elihu to Job (Job 32: 8). Man’s
intellectual activity-thought-is empirical proof of this passage
of Scripture. Thinking, according to John Dewey, is problem-
solving. This is true no doubt, in so far as the function of
thought is concerned,-but what is thought itself? What is this
activity designated “thinking,” the activity by which man is
specified as man? I quote again from Dr. Carrel:
What; is thought, that strange being, which lives in the depth of
ourselves without consuming a measurable quantity of chemical en-
ergy? Is it related t o the known forms of e n e r m ? Could i t be a
constituent of our universe, ignored by the physicists, but infinitely
more important than light? The mind is hidden within living matter,
completely ignored by physiologists and economists, almost unnoticed
by physicians, And yet it is the most colossal power of this world.
1s it produced by the cerebral cells, like insulin by the pancreas and
bile by the liver? From what substance is it elaborated? Does it come
from a preexisting element, as glucose from glycogen, o r fibrin from
fibrinogen? Does i t consist of a kind of energy differing from t h a t
studied by physics, expressing itself by other laws, and genertated by
the cells of the cerebral cortex? O r should i t be considered as a n im-
material being, located outside space and time, outside the dimensions
of the cosmic universe, and inserting itself by a n unknown procedure
137
into our brain, which would be the indispensable condition of its mani-
festations and the determining agent of its characteristics? At all
times, and in all countries, great hilosophers have devoted their lives
to the investigation of these pro$lerns. They have not found their
solution. We cannot refrain from asking the same questions. But
those questions will remain unanswered until new methods for pene-
trating more deeply into the consciousness are discovered?
The basic thought processes-operations of the intellect-

are three in number. The first is simple apprehension-the
act by which the mind grasps or perceives something without
affirming or denying anything about it. It is to conceive or
form in the mind an idea in which one perceives or “apprehends”
something. As explained heretofore in the present text, it is to
think, e.g., “apple,” “man,” “chair,” “red,” “soft,” etc. Sensations,
of course, provide the raw material for this kind of knowledge.
It must be conceded, I think, that in the vast majority of in-
stances our mental powers are awakened and excited, directly
or indirectly, by sensation; and that our first acquired ideas
have reference to sensible objects; and that, further, these pri-
mary ideas become the occasion for, and antecedents of, other
ideas and emotions which derive from our higher rational and
moral nature.’ (By these statements I do not mean to deny in
toto the possibility of intuition as a mode of receiving knowledge.
It has been rightly said that suddenly seen facts are but dis-
coveries of what has been there all the time. Man discovers
truth; he does not create it or formulate it: physical truth is
written into the structure of the cosmos, moral truth into the
structure of human nature and human natural relationships.
Intuition, in this sense, is not mysticism.) But sensations are,
in themselves, distinct operations of the individual neurosensory
system, separate impressions of different qualities in the thing
producing them. For example, there is an apple on my deskss
On looking at it, I experience a sensation of color (“redness”),
another of configuration (“roundness”); if I touch the apple, I
experience a third sensation, that of a certain quality of “hard-
ness” or “softness”; and if I bite into the apple, I experience a
fourth sensation, that of a certain pleasantness to the taste, a
sensation probably difficult to name. But, obviously, in order
object us an object, some activity of my mind
e sensations into a whole. Aristotle called this
power the active intellect; Kant called it the synthetic unity of
\I> .\.
E C i t . , 118-119.
2. Vide R. Milligan, Scheme of Redemption, 31.
3 . I repeat here for emphasis.-C.
138
MAWER AND SPIRIT
apperception, which i s practically the same thing. At any rate,

the result of this activity of some power within me, which from
want of a better word must be designated “mental,” in weaving
these sensations into a unity, is my perception of the object-
the apple-as a whole, Now the sensations of themselves may
be explained as activities, or at least as the result of the ac-
tivities of brain and nerve cells, But certainly the perception of
the object, the perception in which these sensations are unified,
cannot be explained, at least not exclusively, in terms of cellular
processes. Nor can my attachment of the conventional word-
symbol-in this case, “apple”-to the perceived object, the
symbol established by social usage, be explained on the ground
of any cellular or other physiological process, for the use of
language involves memory and memory images, and in addition
gives “meaning” to my perception. It is utterly inconceivable
that cells should remain in juxtaposition over a period of years
in such a manner as to reproduce memory image. As a matter
of fact, as it has been stated heretofore, scientists now tell US
that all the cells of the human body are replaced by new cells
every four years or so. Hence, neither the retention of memory
images nor their recall can be identified with any cellular
process.
The second operation of the inteIlect is a judgment. A judg-
ment is an act of the mind by which it unites two concepts by
affirming or separates them by denying, In forming a judgment,
as, e.g., The apple is red, or, Man is mortal, I give assent mentally
to what ‘I believe to be an ontological relationship and thus de-
clare myself in possession of the truth on this or that point. A
judgment logically expressed is a proposition, and grammatically
expressed, is a sentence.
The third operation of the intellect is reasoning, or thinking
connectedly, that is, from this to that, and so on. Formal rea-
soning involves the syllogism, the classic example of which is
the following:
All men are mortal, (Major Premise)
Socrates is a man. (Minor Premise)
Therefore, Socrates is mortal. (Conclusion).
Maritain writes:
Reasoning is the most complex operation of our mind; it is by
reasoning that we go from what we know already t o what we do not
yet know, thoatwe discover, t h a t We demonstrate, t h a t we make progress
i n knowledge?
1. Jacques Maritain, An Introduction t o Logic, 2.
139
In inductive reasoning, the mind moves from the sensible to the
intelligible level. In deductive reasoning, the mind moves purely
on the intelligible plane. Incidentally, these mental processes
are all implicit in the words of Jesus, quoted by Him from the
prophet Isaiah (6:’9-10) :
By hearing ye shall hear, and shall in no wise
understand ;
And seeing ye shall see, and shall in no wise
perceive ;
For this people’s heart is waxed gross,
And their ears are dull of hearing,
And their eyes they have closed ;
Lest haply they should perceive with their eyes,
And hear with their ears.
And understand with their heart,
And should turn again,
And I should heal them.
(Matt. 13 :14-15).
Sensations, I repeat, may be mere cellular processes. They
may, and undoubtedly do, serve to awaken consciousness. But
what is “consciousness”? Should anyone answer, Consciousness
is awareness, I should reply that “awareness” is merely a syn-
onym for, not a definition of, consciousness. What consciousnesg
is in itself, no one knows, and there is no indication at present
that any man will ever know. Sensations, however, do not pro-
vide meaning, understanding, belief or truth. - These are facts
and values characteristic of a higher level of being than the
mere physiochemical or biological. By no stretch of the imagi:
nation is any unbiased person able to identify these higher
thought processes-simple apprehension, judgment, retention
and recall of memory images, and inductive and deductive rea-
soning-with the shuffling and re-shuffling of brain cells. These
are activities of the spirit that is in man, powers that were
originally imparted to him by the Breath of God.
Moral activity in man is also a historical fact. The fact
that individuals and peoples, no matter how primitive their cul-
ture, have always been known to make distinctions of some
sort between right and wrong, good and bad, in human conduct,
can hardly be refuted. Even though anthropologists may desig-
nate such distinctions, in their most elementary form, as “cus-
tomary” law, the fact remains nevertheless that the distinctions
are made, and made universally. Moreover, although different
reasons have been assigned for these distinctions, in diverse
social structures, and by different syvtems of ethics, the fact
-f the universality of the distinction is historically established.
140
MATTER AND SI’TRIT
The distinction between right and wrong is a universal judg-
ment of the race; as one author has put it: “The feeling of
obligation is an ineradicable element of our being.”’ This funda-
mental distinction between right and wrong, good and bad, has
been found to be so general that by many philosophers it is
designated the Ethical Fact. Moral activity-the quest for
Goodness, for the answer to the question, What is the Good Man?
-is another manifestation, obviously, of the spivit that is in man.
The same is true of the esthetic and religious activities
which have characterized the life of man upon earth from the
very earliest times. Esthetic activity manifests itself in the
quest for Beauty, and in the creation and contemplation of
Beauty; and the crude, but graphic, paintings on cave walls,
uncovered by the archaeologists, prove that the esthetic sense
existed in the most primitive human beings as well as in the
most civilized, Religious activity too is just as real in human
history as esthetic activity. The religious consciousness of man
has manifested itself, in all ages, and among all tribes and peoples,
in a great variety of forms, depending of course upon the
standard of reyelation, by which it was guided, from the crudest
animistic beliefs and the ritualistic worship of gods who were
but personifications of the forces of Nature, up to that pure
Love for God and man which fills the heart of the spiritually-
minded person for whom true religion is the constant communion
of the human spirit with the Divine Spirit. It is doubtful indeed
that any people ever existed without some consciousness of
their human frailty and need of strength to be gotten from a
source or sources higher than themselves, and without a sense
of sin, a sense of the need of salvation and of prayer, and a dim
longing for an expectation of survival beyond the grave. It has
been rightly said that man learns to pray before he learns to
reason; that he feels the need of supplication long before he
begins to argue from effects to causes. I am reminded here of
Bergson’s thrilling words:
1. George P. Fisher, The Groimds of Theistic aitd Clwistiait Belief,
19.
141
Beings have been called into existence who were destined t o love
and be loved, since creative energy is t o be defined as love, Distinct
from God, Who is this energy itself, they could spring into being only
in a universe, and therefore the universe sprang into being. In. that
portion of the universe which is our planet-probably in our planetary
system-such beings, in order t o appear, have had t o be wrought into
a species, and this species involved a multitude of other species, which
led up t o it, or sustained it, or else formed a residue. It may be that
in other systems there are only individuals radically differentiated-
assuming them to be multifarious land moral-and maybe these crea-
tures too were shaped a t a single stroke, so as to be complete from the
first.’ On Earth, in any case, the species which accounts for the exis-
tence of all the others is only partially itself. It would never for ‘an
instant have thought of becoming completely itself, if certain repre-
sentatives of it had not succeeded, by an individual effort added t o the
general work of life, in breaking through tho resisttance put up by the
instrument, in triumphing over materiality-.in a ,word in getting back
t o God. These men are the mystics. They have blazed a trail along
which other men may pjass. They have, by this very act, shown t o the
philosopher the whence and whither of lifean
The mystics see, says Bergson, that “the very essence of divinity
can be both a person and a creative power.” That power is Love.
“God is love, and the object of love: herein lies the whole con-
tribution of mysticism.”’ (This does not mean, however, that
feeling is an acceptable substitute for an intelligent faith.)
Let it never be forgotten that intellectual, moral, esthetic,
and religious activities are facts of human experience and of
human history from the most remote times. They are proofs
conclusive that man is not all matter-that there is a spirit in
him and that the Breath of the Almighty-the outgoing of the
Divine Spirit-has given him understanding. They are proofs
conclusive that man was created in the image of God.
Materialism is a faithless, hopeless, lifeless creed. To sum-
marize in the words of C. E. M. Joad:
Inconsistent with ethics and esthetics, and owning an inadequate
basis in physics, materialism is indefensible in logic. More precisely,
in so f a r as it establishes the conclusions which it asserts, it robs these
conclusions of any possibility of being true?
In a purely material world there can never be such a thing as
oughtness or value. Truth, Beauty, and Goodness simply do not
exist for anyone in a world that is nothing more than an aggre-
gation of atoms and cells.
1. Does Bergson have any reference here to angels?
2. Henri Bergson, The Two Sources of Morality and Religion, 246-
246; translated by Audra and Brereton.
3. Op. oit., 240: 241-242.
4. Guide to Philosophy, 539.
142
6. The Mysteries of the Subconscious

Spirit in man, however, embraces many activities, many
phenomena, many mysteries even more profound than the
mysteries of the operations of the intellect, It embraces not only
the phenomena of the conscious mind, as outlined in the pre-
ceding chapter, but the phenomena of the Subconscious as well
-those which lie far below sense-perception, hence beyond any
necessarily permanent relationship with matter.
The Subconscious i s an aspect of the human individual which
has been quite generally ignored by scientists until recent years,
This neglect may be attributed chiefly; (1) to the concentration
of scientific attention and effort upon the study of the external
world and its phenomena-the investigation of matter and its
combinations, the analysis of the atom, and especially of late the
exploration of the whole field of electrical energy; and (2) to
the similar concentration of science upon the study of the purely
biological aspects of the human organism, a concentration ac-
tivated largely by the rise and spread of the evolution hypoth-
esis. As a matter of fact, every branch of orthodox science was
so thoroughly impregnated with crass materialism, throughout
the post-Victorian era, that it was prone to ignore and even to
scorn any alleged phenomenon to which the label “physical”
could not be attached. As Dr. J. B. Rhine puts it:
The mechanistic biology of Dr. Jacques Loeb iand the behavioristic
psychology of Dr. John B. Watson, set against the backdrop of a sim-
plified mechanistic universe popularized in such works as Professor
Ernest Haeckel’s The Riddle of the Uniwerse, were typical of common
scientific thought through the early decades of the present century,
For a psychologist t o have published evidence of telepathy in those
days would would have taken exceptional c0urage.l
Then too, in addition to the skepticism of science, there has
been a popular notion abroad in the world for a long time, that
all so-called psychic phenomena are but the offspring of an un-
holy alliance of trickery, fraud and “magic” with human ignor-
ance and superstition. And so the man on the street, susceptible
to suggestion at all times, and especially to the voice of authority
with which “experts” are assumed to speak, pooh-poohed the
possibility of telepathy, clairvoyance, prescience, and like phe-
nomena, as emphatically-and as dogmatically-as did the in-
telligentsia.
During all this time, however, a small group of courageous
scientists, men of high standing in their respective fields, per-
1. J. B. Rhine, T h e Reach of the Mind, 20.
143
the skeptical. at f their,fellows, in a
estigation and an the subliminal self.
The result has been the accumulation of a ’body of
far-reaching .significance. New reaches and vistas of th
person have, been brought to light, The Subconscious has been
explored and has been found to be a vast laboratory incwhich
all sorts of elements are gathered, compounded, and stored
away. And in the light of this additional information, we are
now able to comprehend, to a greater extent than ever before
possible, the mighty sweep of the trdth stated in the book of
Genesis that man was created “in the image of God” (Gen.
1:26-27).
The British Society for Psychical Research was founded
in London in 1882, under the presidency of Henry Sidgwick,
then Professor of Moral Philosophy at the University of Cam-
bridge. In the announcement mdde by the Society at the time
of its organization, it was explained that its work would be “to
make an organized and systematic attempt to investigate that
large group of debatable phenomena designated by such terms
as mesmeric, psychical and spiritualistic.” “The task of ex-
amining residual phenomena,” the announcement went on to say,
“has often been undertaken by individual effort, but never
hitherto by a scientific society organized on a sufficiently broad
basis.” The membership of the British Society has included,
in addition to that of Henry Sidgwick, its first president, ,the
names of such distinguished scientists as A. J. Balfour, W. F.
Barrett, William Crookes, Lord Rayleigh, and Alfred Russel
Wallace. Canon A. W. Robinson writes:
For many years this body, which was founded in 1882, was not
regarded very seriously by the orthodox exponents of science. I t s
business was more or less privately to collect and siCt evidence re-
lating to spiritualism, and t o ghostly apparitions, in tlie hope of dis-
covering what 1,ay behiiid it and o f reducing i t to some order. This, the
original purpose, has been rewarded with a fair measure of success,
but in the course of the search more important discoveries lpve been
made. A strict examination into the phenomena of hypnotism, clair-
voyance, clairaudience, and suggestion, with the accompanying condi-
tions of abnormal apprehension, the heightening of ordinary powers,
,and tlie sometimes alarming evidences of what loolrs like a disintegration
o f personality, has disclosed what may prove to be new reaches and
vistas of the mind and soul.’ [“Metapsychic” means, literally, “along
with,” “after” or “beyond” the “mind.” The corresponding term in use
genenally today is “parapsychology.”]
In 1884 the American Society for Psychical Research was
formed. It was incorporated with the British Society in 1890,
1. The Holy Spirit wad the Iizdividiial, 36-37.
144
I MA?TER AND SPIRIT
but became separated from the latter again in 1906, Similar
societies were formed in Germany and in other countries. In
1919 an International Institute of Melapsychics was established
in Paris with the approval of the French Government, and under
the auspices of the distinguished physiologist, Charles Richet,
the discoverer of anaphylaxis, and of the learned physician,
Joseph Teissier, Professor of Medicine at the University of
Lyons. Among the members of the Committee of Administration
were a professor at the Medical School of the University of
Paris, and several physicians. Its president, Charles Richet,
has written a comprehensive treatise on metapsychics,’ en-
titled Thirty Years of Psychical Research, and the Institute
itself publishes the Revue Metapsychique. Records of the work
and findings of these various Societies are sufficient to fill sev-
eral volumes of “Proceedings” and “Journals,”
Interest in the investigation of psychic phenomena was
greatly stimulated by the tragic experiences of the first World
War. Research in this field, especially in that of telepathy, was
carried on by different individuals in different parts of the
world-by the German physician, Dr. Karl Bruck, and science
teacher, Professor Rudolf Tischner; by the French engineer,
Rene Warcollier; and by the distinguished American novelist,
Upton Sinclair. Both William McDougall, the psychologist, and
Albert Einstein, the physicist, were sufficiently impressed by
the results of Sinclair’s experiments to appeal to the scientific
world to give his book, Mental Radio, an unprejudiced hearing.
Hans Driesch was enthusiastic in his praise of Tischner’s work,
and Gardner Murphy introduced to American readers a trans-
lation of Warcollier’s book, Experiments in Telepathy. Then,
during the nineteen-twenties, two significant series of experi-
ments in telepathy, in which new techniques were employed,
were carried out in two psychology laboratories, one in Europe
at the University of Groningen in Holland, the other in the
United States at Harvard University. The European work was
done by Dr. H. J. F. W. Brugmans, under the sponsorship of
the eminent Professor G. Heymans; the American research work
was done by Dr. G. H. Estabrooks, under the supervision of
Professor William McDougall, who had just transferred to
Rarvard from Oxford University.’ Both series of experiments
undoubtedly yielded positive results. Yet, although very little
criticism was leveled at the techniques employed, or even at the
results announced, practically nothing was heard of them; they
1. Vide J. B. Rhine, The Reach o f the Mind, 13-24,
145
were simply ignored by the “scientific” world in general. Com-
menting on this fact, Dr. J. B. Rhine says:
In looking back over these experiments today, i t is difficult t o see
how a properly scientific mind could have been indifferent t o the chal-
lenge which the work of Estabrooks and Brugmans presented, One can
only conclude that Science, too, can be functionally blind when it would
shock her complacency t o see. Science can be very human?
How true!
As a matter of fact, the prejudice of “orthodox” scientists
has been the greatest obstacle, perhaps, which experimenters in
the field of the Subconscious have been compelled to overcome.
Not only did the “straight line” scientists for many long years
persistently refuse to acknowledge that such phenomena as
telepathy, clairvoyance and the like, occur, or even could occur,
but they actually closed the pages of standard scientific journals
to the reports of experiments in these fields. Indeed, many able
research workers in what is called “metapsychics,” or more
recently “parapsychology,” have been reluctant to announce their
findings or to state their convictions, lest they lose their stand-
ing in the scientific world and even become objects of ridicule.
This attitude of “conservative” scientists toward psychic experi-
mentation is reminiscent of the treatment at one time accorded
osteopaths and chiropractors by the orthodox medical men.
While physicists, generally speaking, have not been unsympa-
thetic toward psychic research, the prejudice of biologists,
psychologists and sociologists against it has been amazing. The
attitude of these “Scientists” has been almost anything but sci-
entific; they seem to have closed their minds completely ahd to
have kept them closed, One is reminded of the words of
Victor Hugo: “Some men deny the sun: they are the blind.”
Obviously this bias was, and still is, in many cases, engendered
largely by personal antipathy toward any new light that might
prove to be confirmatory of the spiritual interpretation of the
universe. It is similar to that of the Communists, the vast ma-
jority of whom are Communists, not because of any deep over-
whelming love for their fellow-men, but because of their intense
hatred of religious faith or practice in any form-hatred arising
from their own perverted wills rather than from rational con-
sideration of the nature and destiny of man. The attitude in
general toward psychic research seems to be just another case
in which the wish is father to the thought; our materialistic
scientists do not want, in fact will not admit, evidence that
1. o p . cit., 25.
146
MAlTER AND SPIRIT
would break down their cherished mechanistic picture of the
universe,-a picture which has become to them a veritable ob-
ject of worship in itself, (It must be understood, of course, that
in dealing with the phenomena of parapsychology, we are not
in the area of occultism at all. Occultism embraces such mat-
ters as witchcraft, wizardry, spiritualism, divination, sorcery,
necromancy, voodooism, etc.)
That picture has been broken down, however, if not com-
pletely shattered, in recent years. It has been shattered by
attacks from three directions: (1) from discoveries in the field
of atomic physics, which, as we have already seen, tend to point
to a reality that is of the character of pure Thought; (2) from
the “Heracleitean” philosophy of Henri Bergson, with its basic
concept of the Elan Vital or Life Force; and (3) from recent
experiments in the field of parapsychology itself. The most
significant experiments in this field were initiated at Duke
University in 1930, under the direction of four members of the
Duke department of psychology staff, namely, Professor William
McDougall, Dr. Helge Lundholm, Dr. Karl E. Zener, and Dr.
J. B. Rhine. Experiments in extra-sensory perception (telepathy,
clairvoyance, prescience, etc.) and in psychokinesis (the move-
ment of matter by pure thought) have been carried on by these
men (some of whom are now deceased) and their associates sub-
sequently added to the staff, throughout all the intervening
years, and are still in progress. The outcome was the setting
up of a Department of Parapsychology at Duke, and the launch-
ing of the Journal of Parapsychology, published by the Duke
University Press, (Two other journals are published regularly
covering the work done in the field of psychic research-the
Proceedings of the Society f o r Psychical Research, published in
London; and the Journal of the American Society for Psychical
Research, published in New York City,)
Dr. Rhine has presented to the public the methods and
findings of the Duke experiments in a series of books. The first,
published several years ago, was entitled Extra-Sensory Precep-
lion; the second, published in 1937, New Frontiers of the Mind.
In one of his latest works, The Reach of the Mind, published late
in 1947,l Dr. Rhine has summarized the results of all the research
work which had been done at Duke u p to that time. He affirms
unequivocally that the Duke experiments have proved the fol-
1. A condensation of this book appeared in Reader’s Digest, issue
of February, 1948.
147
lowing: (1) that telepathy-communication of one mind with
another without the media of the physical senses-is a fact,
(2) that clairvoyance-the power of the mind to perceive events
and to locate physical objects, ,likewise without the use of
the physical senses-is also a fact; (3) that distance has no
effect on the functioning of these powers; (4) that time like-
wise apparently has no effect upon either, at least in some
persons-hence there is such a thing as precognition or pre-
science; and ( 5 ) most remarkable of all, that there is a force
inherent in the mind, a force of a non-physical order, which can
produce a physical effect upon a physical object, and further-
more, that apparently there is no correlation between the ef-
fectiveness of this force and the ‘size or number of the objects.
Telepathy, clairvoyance, and prescience are all included by
Rhine and his co-workers under the designation, extra-sensory
perception; and the power of thought to effect the movement of
ponderable bodies is named psychokinesis. (By earlier writers
on the subject of psychic phenomena, this was called telekinesis.
The well-known phenomenon of levitation belongs, of course, in
this category.)
With reference to Dr. Rhine’s presentation, one reviewer
writes as follows:
These proofs are revolutionary. They alter the basic scientific
concepts of the world. Man has believed similar things from time im-
memorial, but he bas never known them. Science has not believed them
and has not attempted t o know them. It is now, however, evident that
there is a n active factor in man which is not controlled by physical
laws governing time, space, mass land number?
To these statements I should like to add that personal experi-
ence should convince any man of ordinary common sense that
all this is true; any normal person should be able to realize that
“mind” is something which transcends all the limitations of
space and time. Nor is there any ground whatever for assuming
that “mind” is something confined within the body.
In summarizing the implications of these findings, Dr. Rhine
himself makes two or three statements of far-reaching signifi-
cance, as follows:
The establishment of the mind as different from the brain in some
fundamental respect supports the psychocentric view of man. This
means t h a t the mind is a factor in its own right in the total scheme of
personality. The personal world of the individual is therefore not
centered completely in the organic function of the material brain.’
1. Quoted from the review appearing on the jacket of Dr. Rhine’s
book, The Reach. of th,e Mind.
2. The Reach) o f the Mind, 206-206.
148
MATTER AND SPIRIT
Now, too, psychology will have its own distinctive realm of study.
It will no longer be merely an extension of physiology. The science of
the psyche has its own peculiar principles, its own definite boun+aries,
its uniqueness. Its true domain begins where sensorimotor physiology
leaves off, though what its full extent and outer bounds may be, n o
one can at present conjecture?
Thus f a r the influence of parapsychology on religion has been
constructive, As fear as i t goes, the discovery of evidence that man is
something more than a physical being gives support to the most basic
and general of all religious doctrines, namely, that man has a spiritual
naturena
The research in parapsychology even now touches other great
issues of religion. If the mind of man is nonphysical, i t is possible
to formulate a hypothetical picture of a nonphysiaal system o r world
made up of all such minds existing in some sort of relationship to
each other. This leads to speculative views of a kind of psychiaal over-
soul, or reservoir, or continuum, o r universe, having its own system
of laws and properties and potentialities, One can conceive of this
great total pattern as having a transcendent uniqueness over and above
the nature of its parts that some might call its divinity.
I t is, however, on the problem of immortality t h a t religion and
parapsychology have most often met. . . If logic alone could be
trusted, the evidence of ESP would g o f a r to establish the survival
hypothesis on logical grounds. As will be recalled, when ESP was
found t o function without limitation from time and space, this dis-
covery was taken to mean t h a t the mind is capable of action inde-
pendent to some degree of the space-time system of nature. Now, all
that immortality means is freedom from the effects of space and time;
death seems t o be purely a matter of coming to a halt in the space-
time universe. Therefore the conclusion t h a t there is at least some
sort of technical survival would seem to follow as a logical derivation
from ASP research. . . , There is another relation of ESP-PK to
survival that is important. If there were no ESP and PK capacities
in human beings i t would be hard t o conceive of the possibility of
survival and certainly its discovery would be impossible. As it is,
nonphysical activity of the mind is demonstr@ated. The only kind of
perception that would be possible in a discarnate state would be extra-
sensory, and psychokinesis would be the only method of influencing
any paart of the physical universe. Even for an incorporeal mind to
communicate with the living would probably involve PK. Telepathy
would seem to be the only means of intercommunication discarnate
personalities would have, with either t h e living o r the non-living. . . .
The survival question must be kept open for investigation by scientific
method. We dare not neglect an issue of such consequence.*
The name most prominently associated with the investiga-
tions conducted by the British Society for Psychical Research
is that of F.W. 13. Myers, who died in 1903, leaving an elaborate
work in two volumes, entitled Human Personality and its Sur-
vival of Bodily Death, in which he set forth the mass of evi-
dence that had been obtained together with such conclusions
as he thought justified therefrom. The following is his own
1. Op cit., 208.
2. Ibid., 209.
3. Ibid., 211, 213, 214, 216.
149
statement of what is generally regarded as the most striking of
these conclusions:
The conscious self of each of us as we call i t t h e empirical, the
supra-liminal selP, a s I should prefer to say-does not compromise
the whole of the consciousness o r of the faculty within us. There
exists a more comprehensive consciousness, a profounder faculty, which
f o r the most part remains potential only so f a r as regards the life of
earth, but from which the consciousness and the faculty of earth-life
are mere selections, and which reasserts itself in its plenitude after
the liberating change of death. . . . I find it permissible and convenient
to spealr of subliminal Selves, or more briefly of a subliminal Self. . . .
I conceive t h a t no Self of which we can here have cognizance is in
reality more than a fragment of a larger Seli-revealed ia a fashion
a t once shifting and limited through a n organism not $0 framed as t o
afford it full manifestati0ns.l
Professor William James did not hesitate to speak of this
“discovery that, in certain subjects at least, there is not o
the consciousness of the ordinary field, with its usual centre
and margin, but an addition thereto in the shape of a set of
memories, thoughts, and feelings which are extra-marginal and
outside of the primary consciousness altogether, but yet . . .
able to reveal their presence by unmistakable signs,” as “the
most important step forward” that had occurred in psychology,
since he had become a student of the subject. “This discovery,’r’
he went on to say, “has revealed to us an entirely unsuspected
peculiarity in the constitutiop of human nature.”’
Canon Robinson summarizes these discoveries in the psy-
chical field as follows:
According t o the new theory, human personality, as it has de-
veloped, has become differentiated into two phases. One of them is
the self known t o the ordinary consciousness, which is easiest for us
t o observe in action, and which has been evolved mainly to correspond
with our material environment. The other id a deeper capacity or
faculty of semiconsciousness, and even of unconsciousness, which lies
below the threshold of the famili6r waking life and thought. This is
a storehouse into which is accumulated all that has evel’ passed through
the avenue of sense. What is thus stored, abides, and although it may
not always be yecoverable a t will, is never lost. Moreover, the sub-
conscious mind is a worlishop in which new combinations are effected
and new products a r e fashioned, almost as if they had been subjected
to chemical change. Through the subconscious mind the soul is kept
in touch with the spiritual region, from which messages can be received,
and out of which can be drawn the succors and f o x e s that account for
exceptional ,activities, as, for example, those of genius, which Mr. Myers
defined t o be “a capacity for utilizing forces that lie too deep for the
ordinary man’s control.” I t is in this direction that we are bidden t o
look for the explanation of much that is puzzling in connection with
1. 01,. cit., 12-15.
2. Wm. James, Vaviefics of RCIZ‘~Z’OZLY
Erpc&vcc, Modern Library
Edition, 228.
150
MATTER AND SPIRIT
mind-healing, fgaitli cures, and kindred phenomena. Already a change
can be observed in the attitude adopted by the scientific mind toward
these experiences.l
The tendency no longer exists among truly great scientists
to blindly discredit the facts which have been brought to light
in the field of psychic research. In evidence of this fact I might
cite an illuminating article by Mr. George Kent, which appeared
in a well-known monilily magazine some years ago,’ in which
the author gives an authentic description of the life, work, and
views of Dr. Alexis Carrel, then o€ the Rockefeller Institute.
The heading of the article was: “Dr. Alexis Carrel Believes
That We Can Read Each Other’s Thoughts.” The subhead:
‘‘111 the Uncharted Realm of the Human Mind Lie the Great
Discoveries of the Future, Says the Rockefeller Institute’s Miracle
Man of Science.” Among other things, the writer said:
A wizard in all things that concern the body, Dr. Carrel has now
startled the inediaal world v7ith his avowed belief in the extraordinary
powers of the human mind-mystic, immeasurable powers that, until
today, lacked the endorsement of a great man of science. He is con-
vinced that most of us possess, in some form or another, the ability
t o transfer thought from mind t o mind at a distance. He believes
t h a t there are clairvoyant men and women who can know and tell
the past and futuie, whose minds travel as easily in time as the rest
of us travel in space. Orthodox scientists do not like these views
overmuch, and have been looking slantwise a t our good genius-but
they haven’t said a lot. Once before, some years ago, they attacked him,
sneering a t his “acrobatic surgery” . . , and were forced to eat their
words, These acrobatics of the operating room are now used, in one
form 01’ another, whenever a surgeon goes t o work.
Again,:
As a student, Carrel was a t times a sober investigaior of the
ordinary subjects, and at other times a hunter for the truth t h a t lay
behind things like telepathy, clairvoyance, miracles. We do not under-
stand these things, so we consign them t o side-show promoters, carnival
touts, and other merchants of the hocus-pocus, Carrel tried t o separate
the fake from the little that was real. He came to the conclusion
then that in these things there was a n element of truth which could
be gotten at, if science would quit being high-hat about it and give
the subject honest attention. This is his conviction a f t e r thirty-five
years’ study.
As a matter of fact, Dr. Carrel confirms these statements in
his own book, Man, the Unknown, in which he frankly declares
his acceptance of psychic phenomena such as suggestion, telep-
athy, clairvoyance, and the like, as established €acts. Mi.. Hamlin
Garland testifies in similar vein, in his book, Foyty Yeam of
1. The Holy S p i T i t mad the I.r&h%ral, 39-40.
2. In The Americav ll4agaxio7e, March, 1936.
151
Psychic Research, which came from the press not so long ago,
Concerning this book and its author, one reviewer writes:
Hamlin Garland was one of the small group who fifty years ago
Pounded the American Society f o r Psychical Research. He himself was
decidedly skeptical of the apparently fantastic business, a s were several
of his associates. This group of professional men and scientists was
organized to investigate psychic phenomena. I t was Mr. Garland’s
duty to record all experiments, which were conducted under the strictest
conditions the gropp was #able. to devise. But, as seems always t o
happen as a result of systematic investigation in this particular field,
he and his co-workers soon lost all their doubts as t o the actuality of
the phenomena. The author’s intense interest has continued, and what
we have in this book is taken from his records of hundreds of experi-
ments concerned with all known phases of the subject. Those who are
more or less familiar with the records of the British Society, or with
any of the major works on the subject, of which Myers’ Human Par-
sonality is still perhaps the most impressive, will find nothing new
here. But they will find a wholly unprejudiced a n d unemotional
presentation of the phenomena. Comprehensive studies are introduced
in tWis book, of clairvoyance, clairaudience, slate-writing, direct-voice
seances, trumpet seances, and the production of ectoplasmic forms.
Ectoplasm is described by Mr. Garland as a n elementary substance
given off in varying degrees by the human body. According to his
conception, it is ideoplastic, capable of being moulded by the mind of
the psychic o r the sitter. The most sensational evidence introduced by
Garland was in regard to a n ectoplasmic band. The manifesting in-
telligence was directed t o dip the hand into hot wax, which was then
cooled, Fingerprints, differing from fingerprints of the psychic and
the sitters, were obtained. Mr. Garband will convince you that the
possibility of f r a u d did not exist! Whence the fingerprints? The
readers of this book will discover for themselves that the author is
not credulous. Nor is he a spiritualist in any sense of that term.
ThBrefore, he is proved t o be a n unusually reliable witness of supna-
normal occurrences. Fortunately, Mr. Garland has been permitted, to
work with various mediums who were willing to give their time and
energy, and who agreed to submit themselves to the most humiliating
control-conditions. Thanks to the cooperation of these singulrarly gifted
people, Hamlin Garland and his associates were . able t o gather evi-
dence which shodld challenge the biochemist just as it fascinates
layman. It is clear that the author is not moved by wishful think
..
. His only insistence is upon the actuality of the phenomena and
their fundamental importance in any attempt to extend our under-
standing of ourselves.1
Intimations of the inner aspect of the self, or perhaps it
would be proper to say, of the inner self, which has been opened
to view by psychic research, may be found in two of the most
common facts of human experience, namely, the subconscious
association of ideas and the subconscious maturing of thought,
as illustrated in the sudden, appearing, in a dream or in a dream-
like moment of waking, of the solution of a problem which has
1. I have misplaced the original of this excerpt and cannot name
the reviewer. The review itself, however, is an accurate one.
152
MATTER AND SPIRIT
occupied and vexed the mind in the hours of objective aware-
ness and reasoning. Jastrow writes:
All this points t o the fact that the large stores of accumulated
learning which we carry in our heads lie in p a r t near the focus o f
interest that occupies our immediate attention, in greater part lie in
ever widening areas-all permeated by a n intriaate network of higli-
ways and byways, along which the goods of our mind come floating,
I . . There exists in all intellectual endeavor a period of incubation,
a process i n great part subconscious, a slow, concealed maturing
through absorption of suitable pabu1urn.l
Schopenhauer called this activity “unconscious rumination.”
Ernest Dimnet writes:
Psychologists speak of the “mental stream,” and this expression
alone has meant an immense progress i n the domain of interior obser-
vation as compared with the misleading division of the soul into sep-
arate faculties. In reality, the flus in our brain carries along images-
remembered and modified-feelings, resolves, and intellectual, or partly
intellectual, conclusions, in vague o r seething confusion, And this
process never stops, not even jn our sleep, any more than a river ever
.
stops in its course. . . Our soul is an ocean. Its possibilities, its re-
ceptivity and elasticity a r e mysterious and seldom within our ken, but
they cannot be doubted. What it stores up during our life is as mys-
terious but it as undoubtedly vast. . .. Who has not been amused o r
puzzled by the reviviscence of a n utterly indifferent sentence, lie4ard
years before, caused by a few syllables bearing a faint resemblance
to it? The forgotten words fall on our ear, eerie but unmistakable.
A strtain of music, the odor of a mignonette, will unexpectedly revive
in us states of mind from which, in childhood o r adolescence, we shook
ourselves free because their vague pregnancy made them as hard to
sustain as their poignancy made them exquisite. Inspiration, the high-
strung condition in wliicli emotion, eloquence, music or merely strong
coffee cran place us, reveals to us whole regions in our souls which
have nothing in common with the sandy barrenness of our daily ex-
istence. Often, too, in our lives, but more frequently at certain inter-
vals than others, we iare conscious t h a t our intellectual vision is keener
than people, or even than we ourselves, supposed. We hear a conver-
sation and, a s the words cross one another, we register people’s motives
as if we were reading them. We go to a lecture and we appreciate or criti-
cize as i t goes on, as we seldom did before. We a r e conscious of all
that flashes through our minds. Meanwhile we know t h a t other, less
perceptible, gleams may gather light if we watch them without pre-
tending to do so, and a r a r e illumination will follow?
The unconscious, writes Ernest R. Groves, “may be the
source of energy, the origin of inspiration, and even, as comes
out so clearly in the case of genius, a means of insight so direct
and penetrating that we commonly call it intuition.”8 Sugges-
tions of this general view may be found as far back as Plato,
but Leibnitz, the German philosopher, born in 1646, seems to
1. J. Jastrow, The Subconsciou.~,
95-99.
2, The Art of Thinking, 183-184.
3. Understanding Yozwself, 172.
153
have been the first to think of: a part of the self as functioning
outside ordinary consciousness. It was another German, Von
Hartman, born two centuries later, who, in his book entitled
The Philosophy of the Unconscious, developed the notion of a
dynamic self-life outside what we now know as consciousness.
William James had glimpses of the importance of the Uncon-
scious (or Subconscious) as the source of available energy that
could be drawn upon. by the self, especially in times of stress:
the concept, in fact, lay at the root of the “stream of conscious-
ness” psychology which he originated. Freud, of course, de-
veloped the concept of the Id, and the corollary notion of the
ceaseless conflict between the Id and the Super-Ego (environ-
mental forces), at the center of which the Ego, according to his
system of psychology, finds itself throughout life, but it is dif-
ficult to determine whether Freud’s Id was psychological or
physiological. As a matter of fact, endocrinologists would be
inclined, I think, to regard it as more or less identical with
the activities of the hormones of the endocrine glands. Henri
Bergson, the distinguished French philosopher, contended that
within each of us there are “two different selves, one of which
.
is . . the external projection of the other, its spatial and,
so to speak, social representaton,” Only the inner or “funda-
mental” self, he contends, is free; the other unfolds in space,
because we live for the external world rather than ourselves.
This inner self, he affirms, is practically unlimited in it powers.
“Considered in themselves,” he says, “the deep-seated conscious
states have no relation to quantity, they are pure quality.”’
Similarly, Abbe Dimnet holds that the inner self is the seat of
pure thought. He writes:
We have an idea that thought-as diamonds a r e wrongly supposed
t o d o - c a n exist in a pure state, and is elaborated without images.
We feel sure that we are not infrequently conscious of conclusions,
practical or speculative, arrived at without the help of images.’
Aristotle, it will be recalled, defined God as Pure Thought Think-
ing Itself; and there are well-defined correspondences between
Aristotle’s “active intellect” in man and the subconscious of
modern psychology.
This subliminal ( i e . , below the threshold of consciousness)
association of ideas and maturing of thought, which may be
going on all the time regardless of the state of the body, is in
itself an unfailing evidence of a subconscious aspect of person-
1. H. Bergson, Time and Free Will, Pogson translation, 231 137.
2. Ernest Dimnet, The Art of Thinking, 11.
154
MATTER AND SPIRIT
ality which needs looking into. By some writers this subliminal
aspect of the Self is designated “the Unconscious,” by others “the
Subconscious.” Personally, 1 prefer to equate this inner, sub-
liminal, subconscious aspect of the Self with the “spirit” in
man, that is, speaking in ontological terms, and the outer or
conscious aspect of the self with “mind.” The practical con-
sideration in which we are especially interested here, is that
there is a dynamic “part” of the Self, the “inner man,” which is
always alert, which is never at rest, which never “sleeps.” This
fact alone exposes the fallacy of all such notions as those of
“soul sleeping,” “total unconsciousness,” “ultimate annihilation,”
“the oblivion of Nirvana,” and such like. Incidentally, if there
is any form of survival in store for man that will have any
meaning for him, certainly it will have to be a conscious existence
of some kind. I fail to see how “total unsconsciousness” could
be any kind of existence at all-for a person.
The conclusions of the men who have devoted their lives
to the study of the phenomena of the Subconscious may be
systematized as follows:
1. The human person is a house, so to speak, with two rooms
jn it: a front room which faces the external world and through
which impressions from that world make their entrance by way
of the “physical” senses. This room is commonly designated
the “objective” (conscious, supra-liminal) aspect of the self,
or the “objective mind,” Also a back room in which the im-
pressions which have entered by way of the front room find a
permanent abiding-place, This back room is commonly desig-
nated the “subjective” aspect of the Self, the “subliminal self,”
or the “subjective mind,” It is this back room to which we refer
when we speak of the Subconscious.
In general terms, the attributes of man’s two “minds”
or “selves” may be differentiated as follows: The objective
part takes cognizance of the externaI world; its media of ob-
servation are the physical senses; it is the outgrowth of man’s
physical necessities, his guide in his process of adaptation to
his present environment, Its highest function is that of reason-
ing. The subjective, on the other hand, takes cognizance of its
environment by means independent of the physical senses; it
perceives by intuition; it is the storehouse of memory; it per-
forms its highest functions when the objective senses are in
abeyance.
In a word, i t is that intelligence which makes itself manifest in a
hypnotic subject when he is in a state of somnambulism. In this state
155
many of the most wonderful feats of the subjective mind are per-
formed. It sees without the use of natunal organs of vision; and in
this, as in many other grades, or degrees, of the hypnotic state, it can
be made, apparently, to travel t o distant lands and bring back intelli-
gence of the most exact and truthful character. It also has the power
to read the thoughts of others, even t o the minutest details; to read
the contents of sealed envelopes and of closed books. In short, it is the
subjective mind t h a t possesses whdt is popularly designated as clair-
voyant power, and the ability to apprehend the thought of others
without the aid of the ordinary objective means of communication?
This subjective mind, of subliminal self, seems to be unlimited
by any of the objective concepts of distance, space or time.
It has all the appearance of a distinct entity, with independent
powers and functions, having a mental organization of its own,
and being capable of sustaining an existence independently of
the body. I t is, in its ultimate aspect, the ontological Self;
t h e real, essential being of the human individual. Whereas the
custom of most students of psychic phenomena is to speak of
this subliminal self as the “soul,” I think it would make for
clarity to designate it the “spirit,” and the objective or con-
scious self the “mind,” in man. [For want of more precise
language, I am compelled to speak here in dualistic terms. It
is to be understood, however, that the line of demarcation be-
tween the “objective” and the “subjective,” within the Self,
cannot be exactly determined.]
It follows quite logically from the foregoing description,
that as long as the spirit, which is the real You, the real I, the
real being, is housed in a physical body-a matter of necessity
to man’s adaptation to his present environment-it must relate
itself to the external world through the medium of the objective
faculties, chiefly through the physical senses. For, contrary to
the popular view, as indeed Bergson has pointel out in his work
entitled Mutter and Memory, the physical senses do not dis-
close the real world to our apprehension; on the contrary, they
shut it out.a They reveal to us only the phenomenal world, the
world that is ever changing, ever in a state of flux. Think, for
example, what the effect would be in man, had he the highly
developed sense of smell that a dog has; or if he had a visual
apparatus like the lens of a high-povered microscope, so that
B every time he took a drink he could see the microbes playing
around in the water; or if he had an auditory mechanism, say,
7 1. T. J. Hudson, The L a w of Psychic Phenomena, Thirty-second
Edition, 29-30. McClurg, Chicago, 1909. This book can be obtained
only at secondhand book stores.
2. V i d e supra, 104-115.
156
MATTER AND SPIRIT
of the character of a radio receiving set, so that all the sound
waves in the external world around him would beat constantly
upon his ear-drums! Life would be intolerable, if not actually
impossible! The physical senses function to adapt man to his
present or earthly environment, “Mind,”-or speaking more pre-
cisely, “spirit”-is not something to be thought of as enclosed
within a body; as a matter of fact, its activities transcend all
corporeal limitations. In an ordinary dream, for instance, while
a man’s body reposes on his bed at home, in a definite location,
he himself may be a thousand miles away, bathing in the surf
at Atlantic City, or driving an automobile up Pike’s Peak. Or,
indeed, completely unlimited by either time or space at the
given instant, he may be a child again, in his dream, picking
strawberries on the farm on which he grew up, perhaps in some
other part of the world. Who has not re-lived many of the ex-
periences of childhood in his adult dreams? Or again, in a
dream, one may re-live the experiences of an entire period of
one’s life, in the time required for a clock at one’s bedside to
tick out a few mathematical seconds. These dream experiences
of one’s sleeping hours, moreover, are just as vivid, just as
real oftentimes as the experiences of one’s waking hours. The
essential human being-the spirit which is in man-simply
knows no restrictions of distance, space or time. Hence, it
follows that once the spirit is liberated from the earthly body
in which it is temporarily housed, and is clothed upon with an
ethereal body, a body of finer texture, in adaptation to the
higher order of being, it will be completely free from all limi-
tations of time and space.
[Compare, for example, the “movements” of Jesus and Satan in
the Temptation Experience]: Then the devil talceth him into the holy
city, and he set him on the pinnacle of the temple. [Again]: The
devil taketh him unto an exceeding high mountain, and showeth him
all the kingdoms of the world, and the glory of them, etc. [Matt, 4:5; 81.
[Cf. again 2 Cor. 5:l-41 : For we know t h a t if the earthly house of
our tabernacle be dissolved, we have a building from God, a house not
made with hands, eternal, in the heavens. For verily in this we groan,
longing to be clothed upon with OUT habitation which is from heaven;
if SO be t h a t being clothed we shall not be found naked. For indeed
we that m e in this tabernacle do groan, being burdened; not for that
we would be unclothed, but that we would be clothed upon, t h a t what
is mortal may be swallowed up of life.
Again, as it has been pointed out heretofore, spirit, the
life principle which, in man, includes all the potentialities of
personal life and experience, obviously is that which unifies and
vitalizes the constituent parts of the natural or animal bo+
157
This is evident from the fact that when the life principle leaves
the body, in death, the body disintegrates, Le., it is resolved
into its original elements. Now if spirit can attract to itself
and unify the constituent parts of a body adapted to its present
terrestrial environment, is it not reasonable to conclude that the
same spirit will have power to attract to itself and to unify the
constituent parts of an ethereal body adapted to its future celes-
tial environment? This celestial body, moreover, will be es-
sentially a spiritual body, i.e., a body formed by a spirit that
will itself have been made holy by growth in holiness or sanc-
tification. Undoubtedly, too, such a body will possess and mani-
fest a certain measure of glory, in proportion no doubt to the
degree of holiness which the informing spirit itself will have
a.cquired through its being indwelt and possessed by the Spirit
of God. This, precisely, is the substance of Paul’s argument
with respect to the resurrection of the body, in the fifteenth
chapter of First Corinthians. He says:
All flesh i s not the same flesh: but there is one flesh of men, and
another flesh of beasts, and another flesh of birds, iand another of
fishes. There are also celestial bodies, and bodies terrestrial; but the
glory of the celestial is one, and the glory of the terrestrial is another.
There is one glory of the sun, and another glory of the moon, and an-
other glory of the s t a r s ; for one star differeth from another star in
glory. So also is the resurrection of the dead, It is sown in cor-
ruption; it is raised in incorruption: it is sown in dishonor; it is
raised in glory; it is sown in weakness; it is raised in power; it is sown
a natural body; it is raised la spiritual body, If there is a natural
body [literially, a psychikos or “soulish” body, Le., a flesh-and-blood
body informed by natural spirit, the principle of personal life],
there is also a spiritual body [literally, a pnsumatikos body,
a body of finer texture of matter, assembled and informed
by the spirit a s the principle of holiness, and hence in a real
sense by the Holy Spirit, and glorified to the degree that the Holy
Spirit shjall have possessed and moulded the human spirit]. So also
i t is written, The first man Adam became a living soul [i.e., a natural
body-spirit unity]. The last Adam became a life-giving spirit [in the
sense t h a t the Spirit of Christ, being essentially the Holy Spirit, will
give life to the bodies of the saints, that is, clothe them in immortalityl.
Howbeit t h a t is not first which is spiritual, but t h a t which is natural;
then t h a t which is spiritual. The first man is of the earth, earthy; the
second man is of heaven. And as is the earthy, such are they also that
a r e earthy; and a s is the heavenly, such are they also t h a t are heavenly.
And ias we have borne the image of the earthy, we shall also bear
the image of the heavenly (2 Cor. 16:39-49).
Finally, in this connection, it is obvious that if the Sub-
conscious-the spirit that is in man, the essential being-func-
tions, in its present relations with the body, independently of
the latter, as it must do in all cases of telepathy, it is only rea-
sonable to think that it can and will continue to function, in
1%
MATTER AND SPIRIT
the exercise of its higher powers and faculties, after the physical
body shall have been resolved into its original elements and all
the limitations of the flesh shall have been removed. In a word,
these facts of the Subconscious certainly provide a scientific
foundation for our confidence in the personal survival and im-
mortalization of God's saints.
2. Phenomena of the Subconscious, which go to prove the
independence, transcendence, persistence and imperishability of
the subsistent human being, are (1) telepathy, (2) perfect
memory, (3) perception of the fixed laws of nature, (4) sug?
gestion and auto-suggestion, and ( 5 ) thought energy, thought
projection, and thought materialization.
3. From the €act of telepathy we derive the truth that
inteIlectua1 converse between persons, in its purest form, is not
contingent upon the functioning of fleshy media, but is carried
on independently of body activity and without regard to such
objective concepts as position, distance, space, or time.
Telepathy is an activity of pure personal being. The fact
of telepathy, moreover, provides a scientific basis for the doc-
trines of Divine inspiration and revelation, (1) Telepathy is
defined as the transmission of thought from one person to an-
other without communication through the physical senses. Telep-
athy in its pure form is intelligible communion between the
subjective self of one person and the subjective self of another.
When any two persons are in such a state of subjective or sub-
conscious communion, they are said to be en rapport. (2) The r
facts regarding telepathy may be summarized as follows: (a)
There is inherent in man a power which enables him to com-
municate his thoughts to others, under certain conditions, in-
dependently of objective means of communication. (b) Telepathy
is primarily the communion of subconscious selves, or rather
it is the normal mode of communication between persons in
their subconscious states. (c) A state of perfect passivity on
the part ofthe recipient is the most favorable condition for the
reception of telepathic communication. The more perfectly the
objective intelligence is held in abeyance-its functions SUS-
pended-the more perfectly will the Subconscious perform its
functions, (a) This condition of passivity obtains either in in-
duced sleep (hypnosis) or in natural sleep, and more perfectly t
perhaps in the latter state than in the former. Natural sleep is
said to be the most perfectly passive condition attainable. (e)
Although suggestion does make its impression upon the objective
mind, yet the essential condition to the most successful telepathic
159
communication is that both communicator and recipient be in
their subconscious states. (f) Distance has no effect on, nor
relation to, telepathic intercourse. As has already been stated,
apparently neither Space nor Time ists for the Subconscious.
[Cf. Kant’s theory, that Space and Time are “forms of perception”
inherent in the mind, modes of objective thought, but not characteristic
of Reality], Cf. also 2 Pet. 3:8-Forget not this one thing, beloved, that
one day is with the Lord a s a thousand years, and a thousand years
as one day. [That, is to say, Time does not exist for God; or, to put
the same truth in philosophical terms, mathematical time is an arbi-
trary human concept and not a feature of Reality a t all. It follows
also that, because man was created i?z the image of God, there must be
in him powers t h a t transcend all the objective concepts of distance,
space and time.]
The only obstacle in the way of successful telepathy between
persons at a great distance from each other is our human habit of
thinking. We are accustomed to regard space as being essentially
a hindrance to long-distance communication; hence, our faith in
telepathy is in inverse proportion to the distance involved. And
so we fail in telepathic intercourse, as in many other things,
primarily through our own lack of faith. Besides, the average
ough life without ever attempting to develop
ubliminal self, in fact oftentimes in complete
ignorance of them; our Western culture prides itself chiefly on
turning out a race of “go-getters”; on the whole we of the Occi-
dent are extroverts par excellence.
Obviously, the phenomenon of telepathic communication pro-
vides a scientific basis for our acceptance of Divine revelation
and inspiration as historical facts. For, if men in their subcon-
scious states can communicate thought to each other apart from
the media of the physical senses, certainly the Divine Being, who
is pure Spirit, can in like manner communicate Divine Thought
to the spirit of man. Jesus tells us that “God is a Spirit, and
they that worship him must worship in spirit and truth’’ (John
4:24). Inspiration is the breathing of eternal Truth into the
spirit of man by the Spirit of God. This eternal Truth is the
Thought of God; naturally, then, the communication of this
Thought is the work of the Spirit of God. This is the Truth,
moreover, which makes men free-free form ignorance, super-
stition, error, prejudice, malice, hate, sin, and ultimately from
death itself. As Jesus Himself puts it: ”If ye abide in my word,
then are ye truly my disciples; and ye shall know the truth,
and the truth shall make you free” (John 8:31-32). Or, as He
testified to Pilate, the Roman governor: “To this end have I
1GO
MAWER AND SPIRIT
been born, and to this end am I come into the world, that I
should bear witness unto the truth. Every one that is of the
truth heareth my voice” (John 18: 37). Truth, moreover, to be
intelligible to man, must be communicated in words which he
can understand. Hence, even as in telephathic communication
by suggestion, that which is communicated is expressed in words
(that is, if it is an intelligible communication and not mere \
empathy or en. rapport-ness of feeling), subvocally, of course,

but in words, nevertheless, which are expressions or revela-
tions of the communicator’s thought and will; so, likewise, the
communications of eternal Truth from God are embodied in
words, that is, in a form not only intelligible to the immediate
recipients but designed as well for preservation for subsequent
gecerations. Divine Truth is the Word of God; it is the ex-
pression or revelation of the Thought and Will of God; hence
the communication of the Word is invariably attended by a
proceeding forth of the Spirit from the Divine Being. The Scrip-
tures make it clear, as we shall see later, that in the various
Divine operations the Spirit and the Word go together and act
together. Jesus said: “The words that I have spoken unto YOU
are spirit, and are life” (John 6: 63) .
Now the Bible is the record of the progressive communica-
tion or revelation of this eternal Truth or Word to man, through
the agency of the Spirit; hence, Scripture is God-breathed lit-
erature.
[Cf. again 2 Cor. 2:9-131: As it is written, Things which eye
saw not, and ear heard not, and which entered not into the heart
of man, whatsoever things God prepared for them t h a t love him: unto
u s God revealed them tlirougli the Spirit; for the Spirit searcheth
all things, yea, tlie deep things of God. For who among men knoweth
the things of a man, save the spirit of the man, which is in him?
even so the things of God none k n o ~ e t h ,save the Spirit of God. But
we received, not the spirit of the world, but the spirit which is froin
God; that we might know the things that were freely given t o US of
God. Which things also we speak, not in words which man’s wisdom
teacl~eth,but which the Spirit teacheth ; combining spiritual thiiigs
with spiritual words. [It must be understood, of course, that by tlie
pronouns “we” and “us” in this passage, Paul has reference to the
apostles, himself included.]
A specific example of the Divine mode of revelation and
inspiration may be found in Matt. 16: 15-17. Here Jesus is repre-
sented as asking the Twelve, “Who say ye that I am?” and \
Simon Peter answered immediately, “Thou art the Christ, the

Son of the living God.” To this Jesus replied as follows: “Blessed
art thou, Simon Bar-Jonah: for flesh and blood hath not re-
I61
vealed it unto thee, but my Father who is ifi heaven.” That is
to say, the sublime truth to which Simon Peter gave expression
on this occasion-the truth of the Messiahship of Jesus, the
fundamental truth of Christianity-was not a creation of Peter’s
own thought, not a figment of his own human imagination, nor
had he derived it from any other human source; on the con-
trary, it was a truth communicated, obviously not by means of
sensible media at all, but breathed into Peter’s mind, flashed
upon his consciousness, in just so many words, directly from
God the Father in Heaven. In a word, this truth, as to its nature,
was an eternal truth; as to its source, it was a direct revelation
from God; as to its mode of communication, it was God-breathed,
Le., communicated by the Divine Spirit to the human spirit
who voiced it. An even clearer case of the mode of Divine
revelation and inspiration is described in the second chapter of
Acts, in which we find the account of the events of that mem-
orable first Pentecost after our Lord’s resurrection, events be-
ginning with the descent of the Holy Spirit and closing with the
incorporation of the Church of Christ. Here we read that the
immediate effect of the Spirit’s descent in baptismal measure
upon the apostles was that “they were all filled with the Holy
Spirit, and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit
gave them utterance” (v. 4). That is, they were not delivering
a message which had its origin in their own minds, or which
they had received from any source by means of sensible media.
No,-they were delivering a God-breathed message, a message
communicated to them in words by the Spirit of God. Speaking
by way of analogy from our present understanding of the sub-
conscious and its powers, they were like men in a state of
hypnosis delivering a message that was being communicated
to them by suggestion; they were but giving voice to the words
that were being put Upon their lips by the Holy Spirit Himself.
In a word, they were acting simply as mouthpieces of the Spirit
of God. That they did not themselves comprehend the full
import of the revelation that was being communicated through
them to all mankind is evident from the context. In closing his
sermon, for instance, Peter is represented as saying: “For to
you is the promise [Le., the promise of remission of sins in the
name of Jesus Christ], and to your children, and to all that are
afar off, even as many as the Lord our God shall call unto him”
(v. 39). Obviously the phrases in this statement, “to all that
are afar off, even as many as the Lord our God shall call unto
him,” included the Gentiles as well as the Jews. Yet for many
162
MA’M’BR AND SPIRIT
years after Pentecost, neither Peter nor any other Apostle, as
far as we know, preached the Gospel to a single Gentile; and a
sequence of providential acts became necessary, some eight or
ten years later, to break down the prejudice in Peter’s heart
and teach him that “God is no respecter of persons, but in
every nation he that feareth him, and worketh righteousness, is
acceptable to him” (Acts 10: 34-35). Thus it was, on the day of
Pentecost, that the facts, commands and promises of the Gospel
were bi*eathed into the subconscious minds of the Apostles-
in words, of course-and thereafter communicated by the latter
to all mankind. The apostolic testimony is recorded in the New
Testament canon, once Try-all time, for all men to read, hear
and understand. As Jesus Himself stated expressly to the
Apostles themselves: “Ye shall receive power, when the Holy
Spirit is come upon you; and ye shall be my witnesses both in
Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and unto the utter-
most part of the earth” (Acts 1:8).
Inspiration, in the primary sense of the term, is the com-
munication of truth without the use of sensible media, by the
Divine Spirit to the human spirit; and the truth so communi-
cated is the Word of God. Inspiration has reference primarily
to the mode of communication, and to the agency of the Spirit
therein; revelation, on the other hand, has a twofold reference,
namely, (1) to the source, and (2) to the matter or content, of
the communication. The prerequisite of both operations is en
rapport-ness of the Divine Spirit, the communicator, with the
human spirit, the recipient. And the operation itself is essential-
ly a subconscious one, especially in so far as the recipient is
concerned.
4. ?%e Srtbconscious is the storehouse of all the impressions
that are received in the course of a lifetime. It is the seat of
perfect memory. Perfect memory, moreover, provides the sci-
entific basis for the doctrine of sanctions in the universal order,
Le., future rewards and punishments.
In his epoch-malriag book, The Unconscious, Dr. Morton
Prince describes case after case of perfectly normal persons in
whom the recovery of details of inconsequential experiences of
everyday life was brought about simply by inducing states of
abstraction in them. He writes:
It is often astonishing t o see with what details these experiences
a r e conserved. A person inay remember any given esperience in a
general way, such as what he does during the course of the day, but
the minute details of the day he ordinarily forgets. Now, if he allows
himself to fall into a passive state of abstraction, simply concentrating
163
his attention upon a particular past moment, and gives free rein t o all
the associative memories belonging to t h a t moment that float into
his mind, at the same time taking care to forego all critical reflection
upon them, it will be found that the number of details that will be
reoalled will be enormously greater than can be recovered by the
voluntary memory. Memories of the details of each successive moment
follow one another i n continuous succession,
To this Dr. Prince adds:
This method requires some a r t and practice t o be successfully
carried out. I n the state of abstraction, attention to the environment
must be completely excluded and concentr<ated upon the past moments
which it is desired t o recall?
This process of recovery, while one is in a state of abstraction,
itself usually involves dipping into the storehouse of the Sub-
conscious. But in both natural and induced (hypnotic) sleep,
and in the latter state especially, memory becomes far more
vivid, and recovery far more comprehensive, than is ever
possible in a mere state of abstraction. Professor E. R. Groves
affirms that free abstraction, i.e., allowing the Subconscious
to have free reign independently of the objective faculties,
brings out the fact that in the subjective self there is perfect
memory, memory even of the unpleasant things and experiences
of life. He says:
It is clear t h a t we do not aucced in driving all our unpleasant past
away, for everyone bas some memories t h a t seem constantly intruding,
although they are frowned upon and are never welcomed to conscious-
ness. Undoubtedly there are a great many more that we have thor-
oughly eliminated, so it would seem, since they do not appear in
memory, That they are not real1 out of the life is proved when at-
tempting to explore the past we dig them up and bring them again
to recollection?
Again:
Since free association has become the method of tapping the un-
conscious, the question naturally arises, Do dreams also provide chan-
nels f o r the coming out of unconscious enerm? It is the belief of
many psychologists and psychiatrists that they do?
Waldstein has written as follows, in his work entitled The Sub-
conscious Self:
One fiact it is necessary t o insist upon, that, in whatever degree
or manner .
. . perceptions may have been received, they are registered
permanently; they are never absolutely lost. We cannot, i t is true,
recall at will every impression which has been received during the
1. Vide Dr. Morton Prince, in An Outline of Abnownal WYchology,
edited by Gardner Murphy, Modern Library Edition, 193-195, 203 ff.
2. Understanding Yourself, 174.
3. Ibid., 179.
164
MA'I'TIIR AND SPIRIT
course of our own existence; but the countless instances of the reap-
pearance of the most feeble impressions, coming up again after many
years, should make further proof unnecessary, Impressions that have
been registered in early childhood, for instance, reappear involuntarily,
thus showing their original tenacity at ,a period of life when no se-
lective procesfi of reason for remembering or forgetting, can possibly
.
have been at work. , . Impressions once received have a great quality
of permanence, and when taken together constitute the elements of
what we call memory.
It is not until we begin tapping the Subconscious, however,
that we begin to realize that memory is so vast it comprehends
all the thoughts, ideas and impressions of one's total experience,
All, I repeat: all, without exception! As T. J. Hudson writes:
I n all degrees of hypnotic sleep, the exaltation of the memory is
one of the most pronounced of the attendant phenomena. This has
been observed by all hypnotists, especially by those who make their
experiments with a view of studying the mental action of the subject.
Psychologists of all shades of belief have recognized the phenomena,
and many have declared their conviction that the minutest details of
acquired knowledge are recorded upon the tablets of the mind, and
that they only require favorable conditions to reveal their treasures,
.. . All the fiacts of hypnotism show t h a t the more quiescent the ob-
jective faculties become, or, in other words, the more perfectly the
functions of the brain are suspended, the more exalted a r e the mani-
festations of the subjective mind, Indeed, the whole history of the
subjective phenomena goes to show that the nearer the body approaches
the conditions of death, the stronger become the demonstnations of the
powers of the soul [spirit?]. The irresistible inference is that when
the soul is freed entirely of its trammels of flesh, its powers will
attain perfection, its memory will be absolute.'
Sir William Hamilton has written:
The evidence on this point shows that the mind frequently con-
tains whole systems of lcnowledge which, though in our normal state
they have faded into absolute oblivion, may in certain abnormal states-
as madness, febrile delirium, somnambulism, catalepsy, etc.-flash out
into luminous consciousness, and even throw into the shade of uncon-
sciousness those other systems by which they had, for a long time,
been eclipsed, a n d even extinguished. For example, there a r e cases in
which the estinct memory of whole languages was suddenly restored ;
and, what is even still more remarkable, in which the faculty was ex-
hibited of accurately repeating, in known or unknown tongues, passages
which were never within the grasp of the conscious memory in the
normal state.2
Now it must be obvious to any intelligent person that this
perfect memory of the Subconscious provides a scientific basis
for the doctrine of future rewards and punishments. W h o knows
but that memory-by which the Self preserves the record of its
own acts, both good and evil-may prove to be the worm that
1. Op. cit., 40, 47.
2. Lactuns o n Metaphysics, 236 ff. Quoted by Hudson, op. cit., 41,
165
shall never die, and conscience the fire that shall never be
quenched? In the only glimpse into the world beyond the grave
which Jesus gives US in His teaching-in the narrative of Lazarus
and the Rich Man-the fact stands out clearly that the law of
memory operates in that world to punish transgressors of the
Divine Law. As the story is told by Jesus, Lazarus, the beggar,
died and was carried away by the angels into Abraham’s bosom.
The Master then adds (Luke 16: 22-24) :
And the rich man also died, and w,as buried. And in Hades he
lifted up his eyes, being in torments, and seeth Abraham a f a r off,
and Lazarus in his bosom. And he cried and said, Faather Abraham,
have mercy on me, and send Lazarus, that he may dip the tip of his
finger in water, and cool my tongue; for I #am in anguish in this flame.
May it not be reasonably assumed that the memories of his past
utterly selfish and irreligious life, neglected as it had been of
the better things, the higher values, stoked the fires of this
great anguish of soul which the Rich Man was now-justly
-experiencing? S o it would seem, for we read that, in response
to his petition, “Abraham said, Son, remember that thou in thy
lifetime received the good things, and Lazarus in like manner
evil things; but now here he is comforted, and thou art in
anguish” (Luke 16: 22-25). “Son, remember!” Whatever else
the Rich Man may have taken with him into the next world, one
thing is sure: he took his memory. As Alexander Maclaren has
put it: Memory will embrace all the events of the past life,
will embrace them all at the same moment, and will embrace
them continuously and continually. Memory is a process of
self-registry. As every business house keeps a copy of all letters
sent or orders issued, so every man retains in memory the record
of his sins. The mind is a palimpsest; though the original writing
has been erased, the ink has penetrated the whole thickness of
the parchment, and God’s chemistry is able to revive it.‘ It is
significant, too, that memory is individualistic. As William
James says, “Memory requires more than the mere dating of
a fact in the past. It must be dated in my past.” The law of
memory seems to be the guarantee of personal identity and of
individuality as well. I
Now of course someone may be objecting that, if this rea-
soning is true, the saints themselves will suffer in the world to
come, from the memories of sins they have committed in this
present life both before and after conversion, and suffer perhaps
1. Vide A. H. Strong, Systematic Theology, One-Volume Edition,
1026. A. Maclaren, Sermons, I, 109-122.
166
MATTER AND SPIRIT
even more poignantly by virtue of their more profound apprecia-
tion of holiness and consequent greater capacity for suffering,
even as Jesus the Holy One, in the Garden of Gethsemane, suf-
fered to the extent that drops of His blood mingled with His
sweat to sanctify the ground beneath the olive trees, suffered
more excruciatingly than a mere man could ever suffer and
continue to live. For, is it not true that we have all sinned and
fallen short of the glory of God (Rom. 3: 23) ? To this objection,
I reply that God’s grace i s sufficient to meet every need of His
saints and that the blood of Christ is an all-sufficient covering
(Atonement) for their sins. God’s clear promise, uttered in olden
times, was that under the New Covenant-after the Atonement
had been provided-He would forgive the iniquity of His people
and remember their sin no more (Jer. 31:34; Heb. 8:12). In
the words of the Psalmist:
For as the heavens are high above the earth,
So great is his loving kindness toward them t h a t fear him.
As f a r as the east is from the west;,
So f a r hath he removed 0111’ transgressions from us.
Like as a Father pitieth his children,
So Jehovah pitieth them that fear him.
For he lcnoweth our frame;
He remembereth that we are dust.
(Psa. 103:11-14).
Difficult as it may be for us poor mortals to comprehend, the
fact is, nevertheless, that when God forgives, God forgets. Hence
forgiven sins will never be brought up in the Judgment, neither
from any source external to the individual saint nor from any
law operating within his own being, Herein perhaps consists
the metaphysical aspect of the salvation in Christ; it is tied up
somehow with the process of immortalization. According to
Scripture, the redeemed will appear in the Judgment clothed in
glory and honor and immortality, in order that the infinite
goodness and mercy of God may be made manifest to all intelli-
gent creatures-both angels and men-in the greatness of the
salvation then and there to be revealed. F o r the ultimate func-
tion of the final Judgment will be the vindication not only of
God’s past dealings with His moral creatures (both angels and
men) but of His determination of their future destinies as well.
And the salvation to be made manifest on that last great Day
will be so indescribably glorious that even though o d y one hu-
man creature should be found worthy of receiving it, this one
instance, nevertheless, would be found sufficient to convince
both angels and men of the wisdom and goodness of God, and
167
sufficient also to demonstrate the successful consummation of
the Divine Plan of the Universe. For just as the value of a
life is determined not by its quantity, or length in years, but
by its quality; so the sdccess of God’s plan for. His creatures
will be determined, not by the number saved, but by the great-
ness of the salvation that will finally be revealed.
With reference again to the metaphysical aspect of the
problem under consideration here, I take it that the remembrance
of his past sins by a saint of God will be dimmed as a result of
his progressive infilling with the Spirit of God and consequent
growth in holiness, in this present life. Moreover, the saint’s
progressive sanctification in the present terrestrial order can
lead to but one outcome in the future celestial order, for which
it is indeed the necessary preparation; that outcome will be the
putting on of immortality, the redemption of the body. Thus
the saved person will not only outgrow, so to speak, the practice
of sin, in sanctification, in this life, but he will ultimately lose
even the remembrance of his sins in the final transmutation of
his physical into his spiritual body in the life to come. It could
hardly be otherwise with respect to a holy race that is to be
fitted ultimately for fellowship with our holy God. For ultimate
holiness will surely be, if anything, who‘leness-a literal whole-
ness in which all the marks, including even the vestigial ones,
of sin will have been blotted out by the chemistry of the Spirit
of God.
To the wicked, disobedient and neglectful, on the other
hand, no promise of immortality is held out in the Bible. With
what manner of body they will come, we are not told in Scrip-
ture, and hence we do not know. We are told by Jesus Himself
that “the hour cometh, in which all that are in the tombs shall
hear his voice, and shall come forth: they that have done good,
unto the resurrection of life; and they that have done evil, unto
the resurrection of judgment” (John 5: 28-29). What form this
final punishment will take, in so far as the body is involved,
we do not know. But we may be certain that the law of memory
will be functioning as it has never functioned in this present life.
We may be sure, too, that when the wicked shall come face to
face with Infinite Holiness, their own wickedness will stand out
in such e x e c d l e contrast that their anguish will be unspeak-
able; so terrible will it be that the inspired writers are com-
pelled to resort to poetic imagery to describe it. The lost, they
tell us, will cry out “to the mountains and to the rocks, Fall
on us, and hide us from the face of him that sitteth on the
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MATTER AND SPIRIT
throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb: for the great day of
their wrath is come; and who is able to stand? (Rev. 6:16-17).
No anguish experienced in this life can be comparable to the
ultimate anguish of a lost spirit, a spirit conscious of its own
“eternal destruction from the face of the Lord and from the
glory of his might” (2 Thess. 1:9 ) , For just as Heaven will be
essentially the union of the human spirit with God in knowledge
and love; so Hell, whatever else it may be, will surely be the
human spirit’s absolute loss of God f o r ever and ever. Its popu-
lation will take in all those wicked and neglectful ones whom
the Spirit will have irrevocably turned over to their own wicked-
ness. The Judgment will be the day of final reckoning; on that
great Day, Christ the Judge, we are told, “shall say unto them
on the left hand, Depart from me, ye cursed, into the eternal
fire which is prepared for the devil and his angels” (Matt. 25: 41).
As St. Chrysostom puts it: Hell was prepared for the devil
and his angels; if men go to Hell, it will be because they cast
themselves into it.
0 sinner friend, to be without God, without Christ, without
the Holy Spirit, for ever and ever!-what an awful and tragic
destiny! Turn ye, turn ye,-for why will ye die?
Thus it will be seen that related to the law of memory
is the law of conscience by which men voluntarily anticipate
punishment for their vices and sins. As Wordsworth has written:
For, like a plague will memory break out,
And, in the blank and solitude of things,
Upon his spirit, with a fever’s strength,
Will conscience prey.
The Scriptures tell us that
in the day of wrath and revellation of the righteous judgment of God,
he will render t o every man according to his works; t o them t h a t by
patience in welldoing seek for glory and honor a d incorruption, eternal
life; but unto them that are fiactious, and obey not the truth, but obey un-
righteousness, shall be wrath and indignation, tribulation and anguish,
upon every soul of man that worlceth evil, of the Jew first, and galso
of the Greek [Rom. 2:5-91.
For the wicked, the neglectful, the proud and the apostate,
there can be only “a certain fearful expectation of judgment, and
a fierceness of fire which shall devour the adversaries” (Heb.
10:27) in that final reckoning, in which every human spirit,
judged by his own works, will go to his own proper place-the
place which he shall have prepared for himself by the kind of
life he has lived on earth, Dr. A. H. Strong tells of a man who
was converted in Whitefield’s time by a vision of the Judgment,
169
in which he saw all men gathered before the Throne, and each
one coming up to the book of God’s law, tearing open his heart
before it “as one would tear open the bosom of his shirt,” com-
paring the content of his heart with the things written in the
book, and then according as that which was disclosed in his
heart agreed or disagreed with that standard, either passing
triumphantly to the company of the blest, or going with howling
to the company of the damned. Not a word was spoken; the
Judge sat silent; the judgment was strictly one of self-revela-
tion and self-condemnation.’ Just as in the well-known case
of Judas, conscience sent each man to his own place (Acts 1:25).
For all those ultra-wise persons, therefore-the wise in their
own conceits-who are inclined to scoff at the notion of a
“physical hell,” I would say by way of warning that there are
forms of punishment infinitely more terrible than physical suf-
fering. As a matter of fact, there is no form of anguish com-
parable to mental anguish, and certainly there is no conceivable
form of mental anguish that would be more terrible than mental
anguish occasioned by the loss of all good. Hence it may be
that memory is the worm that shall never die, and conscience
the fire that shall never be quenched. Moreover, the individual-
istic character of both memory and conscience would seem to
substantiate the fact of the individualistic character of the final
judgment: that is, that it will be an accounting in which every
man will be judged according to his own deeds. This is pre-
cisely what the Bible teaches.
Matt. 16:27-For the Son of man shall come in the glory of his
Father with his angels; and then shall he render unto every man ac-
cording t o his deeds. Rom. 2:6-[God] who will render t o every man
#according t o his works. Rev, 20:12-and the dead were judged out of
the things which were written in the books, according to their works.
In any case, all Nature bears out the fact that our world-the
Kingdom of Nature-is an individualistic world; we come into it
one by one, and we go out of it one by one. In like manner, ac-
cording to the teaching of Jesus, we come into the Kingdom of
Grace by being “born again” one by one, “born of water and
the Spirit” (John 3: 3-5). And so shall we be “born from the
dead” one by one, into the Kingdom of Glory, “the eternal
kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ” (2 Pet. l:ll),
after having rendered our proper accounting, each person ac-
cording to his own works. There is no such thing in the Christian
System as either salvation en maspe or salvation by proxy. In-
1. A. H. Strong, op. cit., 1026.
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MATTER AND SPIRIT
cidentally, the prime fallacy of all totalitarian systems-both
ecclesiastical and political-is their failure to take into account
the glory, dignity, and priority of the individual in the Plan of
the Universe. That priority obtains, however, and no scheme
of man will ever change it,
Finally, there is a third law which is inevitably linked up
with the laws of memory and conscience, namely, the law of
character, according to which every thought and deed in the
course of a lifetime makes an indelible impress upon the moral
nature of the individual human being. Now it is a law of nature
that a man cannot enjoy what he has not trained himself t o
appreciate; hence, it is obvious that no man could possibly enjoy
Heaven in the next world, who has not, by opening his heart
to the abiding presence of the Spirit here, by presenting his
body as a living sacrifice here, prepared himself in knowledge,
in affection, and in desire, for full participation in, and enjoy-
ment of, the fulness of fellowship with God hereafter. As one
of the older Catechisms puts it: Man’s end in life is to love
God and serve Him here, that he m a y enjoy Him hereafter.
This is literally and naturally true. Man builds in this present
life for eternity. By cultivating the Mind of Christ, by living
the life with the Holy Spirit, in a word, by growth in holiness,
he builds for a life of ultimate and complete union with God-
the Life Everlasting. On the other hand, by living here for
himself and for himself alone-the essential principle of all sin
is selfishness-he prepares himself for the awful destiny of
complete separation from God, of absolute loss of all good, in
the world to come. He had no time for God, no desire for God,
no love for God, here; hence he cannot expect to acquire that
desire and love “in the twinkling of an eye” hereafter; moral
character, including holiness, is not so acquired. And not only
will he discover that he cannot suddenly and mysteriously
acquire love for God after he shall have crossed ‘(the great
divide,” but he will find himself, no doubt, so steeped in self
that he will be wholly lacking even the desire to acquire it;
the habits he has built up through the years all tend in the
opposite direction,-away from God, As a matter of fact, he
will even find himself miserable in the presence of Infinite
Holiness, How could it be otherwise? One cannot conceive of
an environment more repugnant to the devil and his angels,
creatures who are totally depraved, nor an environment in
which they would be more miserable, than Heaven, filled as it
is with the presence of God. Undoubtedly, the same reasoning
171
holds good with respect to the destiny of all lost human spirits.
There simply can be no other proper habitation for them, none
other suited to their moral status, than Hell, the association of
their own kind. To speak in the scientific terms: every human
being has this choice to make-the choice between growth in
godliness o n the one hand, and atavism o n t h e other, reversion
to animal type. Conscience, moreover, will tell each lost spirit,
in the final adjudication, precisely where he belongs, what his
proper place is. In a word, our individual destinies hereafter
are determined by the characters, made up of thoughts, affec-
tions, habits, and dispositions, which we build up in this present
life. The most fundamental ethical and religious truth of all
time and eternity, a truth embodied in the very structure of the
universe, a truth which applies equally to all men everywhere
and in all ages, was enunciated by Jesus in these words: “He
that findeth his life shall lose it; and he that loseth his life for
my sake shall find it” (Matt. 10:39). Second only to this truth
is the corollary truth as stated by St, Paul: “Be not deceived;
God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall
he also reap. For he that soweth unto his own flesh shall of the
flesh reap corruption; but he that soweth unto the Spirit shall
of the Spirit reap eternal life” (Gal. 6:7-8).
The point is, I repeat, that a man’s ultimate destiny is
determined by the character which he builds in thiswesent li&%
As the poet has written:
Heaven is not reached at a single bound;
But we build the ladder by which we rise
From the lowly earth t o the vaulted skies,
And we mount to its summit round by round.
“Round by round”! All life is growth; the Christian life is growth
-growth “in grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior
Jesus Christ” (2 Pet. 3:18). Moreover, the individual destiny
thus determined is determined for ever; it is fixed for all
eternity. So Jesus Himself teaches, quite clearly-again in the
narrative of Lazarus and the Rich Man. Said Father Abraham
to the latter: “And besides all this, between us and you there
is a great gulf fixed, that they that would pass from hence to
you may not be able, and that none may cross over from thence
to us” (Luke 16: 26). That is to say, the gulf between these two
persons, Lazarus and Dives, in the world beyond the grave, the
gulf between Abraham’s Bosom and Hades, was impassable; it
was a great gulf fized. Why so? Because it was a gulf of char-
tcter which had been fixed by the contrary lives-lives of dia-
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MAlTDR AND SPIRIT
metrically opposite ideals, habits, and ends-which the two men
had lived; by the entirely different character-structures which
they had erected. To use Jesus’ own analogy: one, Lazarus,
had built his house upon the rock; the other, Dives, had built
his house upon sand (Matt. 7: 24-27). The one had lived a life
of humility and faith, and thus had builded for eternity; the
other had lived a life of utter selfishness, building only for time,
Dives had sought all his heaven in this world; and that being
the only heaven he desired, that was all he received. And now,
on the other side, the one was enjoying rest and peace in Abra-
ham’s bosom, but the other was in Hades, in anguish, tormented
in the flames of remorse and despair. Jesus was not drawing
upon His imagination here. He was presenting truth; hence the
portrayal is in perfect harmony with the nature of things. It
would no more have been possible for either Lazarus or the
Rich Man to have acquired the moral status of the other after
death, than it would be possible for a grain of corn in the earth
to metamorphose itself into a watermelon seed. The contrary
moral characters of the two men fixed the gulf between them
and fixed it for ever, There is not the slightest intimation here
of any possibility of post-mortem repentance or salvation, nor
is there any intimation of such a doctrine anywhere else in
Scripture. The verdict of the final judgment will be explicit
and .ir.remediable: “He that is unrighteous, let him do un-
rightousness still; and he that is filthy, let him be made filthy
still; and he that is righteous, let him do righteousness still; and
he that is holy, let him be made holy still” (Rev. 22:ll).
Here, then, are three fundamental natural moral laws-
the laws of memory, conscience, and character. These laws
operate in their own right; nothing can prevent their operation;
they belong to the very nature of things and of man. And they
all have their confirmation scientifically in the phenomena of
the Subconscious.
5 . Another power of the Subconscious is that of perception
of the fixed laws of Nature. The operation of this power indi-
cates clearly that when the SelI shall have been freed from the
limitations of its objective environment, it will be able to per-
ceive and t o know all truth intuitively.
Three sub-classes of subjective mental phenomena which
belong in this category are manifested in mathematical prodigies,
in musical prodigies, and in those rare persons who are able to
transcend all time-measurements. These phenomena do not
depend upon the raw material which comes into the mind
173
through sensation and which is retained therein, in some mys-
terious manner, in the form of images; sensation, image-ing,
and reasoning belong to the objective mind. No one can, of
course, without a n objective education, become a financier, an
orator, a statesman, or a practical man of affairs. But one can
be a mathematician or a muscian independently of any objective
education, that is, by the exercise of the powers of the subjective
mind alone. Many instances could be cited to show to what a
prodigious extent the mathematical and musical faculties-for
music is basically mathematical-manifest themselves in persons
who are not only without objective training but who in some
instances are lacking even the capacity for any considerable
objective education. Rzeszewski, for example, moved his chess-
men to a world’s championship before he was ten years old.
Mozart, at the age of four, amazed his family by going into the
garret and playing on the spinet, without having received any
instruction, and some of his compositions were written in his
childish hand at the age of five. The cases might be cited, too,
of Zerah Colburn, the mathematical “genius,” and Blind Tom,
an imbecile who, without any objective training whatever, was
able to reproduce the most difficult classical compositions with
accuracy. Blind Joe was a similar character who appeared in
vaudeville. As a matter of fact, cases of idiot-savants are rather
numerous.‘ And most of us have at some time in our lives
met up with mathematical and musical prodigies-“lightning
calculators,” musical improvisers, individuals with “perfect
pitch,’’ and the like. Undoubtedly these are all examples of the
m,anifestations of powers which inhere in the Subconscious,
power which, for aught we know, may be latent, though in
varying degrees perhaps, in all men.
Creativity, no doubt, also has its roots in the subliminal
self. Probably the “genius” of a William Shakespeare, of a
Michelangelo, or of a Louis Pasteur, for example, should be
placed in this category. Pasteur, writes R. J. Williams, the bio-
chemist,
seemed t o be able again and again to arrive a t valid conceptions long
before he had experimenbal proof. His creativeness lay in his ability
to formulate hypotheses t h a t turned out on the basis of his own hard
work and enthusiasm t o be tremendously productive.
“he same author goes on to say:
1. See R. J. Williams, The Human Frontier, 152-156. Material on
“idiot-savants” has been collected from several sources : a n important
source is D. C. Rife and L. S. Snyder, Hzcntan Biology, 3, 547, 1931.
174
MATTER AND SPIRIT
For the purposes of this discussion and avoiding all theological
disputation, we may say that Jesus’ teaching arose by intuition. . .
Even if we recognize and exaggerate the opportunities which he had
.
for learning from h i s forebears and others, his selection and enun-
ciation of the fundamental Laws of life indicate an ability t o d r a y
upon a Universal Mind, which does not fall within the abilities previ-
ously considered. The universality is the feature which makes the
ability of such outstanding importance-the fact t h a t after many cen-
turies, minds of the highest quality still pore over his words and obtain
from them ideas that are ,applicable to modern life.’
The late Gandhi, for example, admitted that he had gotten the
inspiration for his sacrificial life from the Sermon on the Mount.
We must not overlook the fact, however, that according to
Scripture, Jesus was the Incarnate Word, the expression or
yevelation of Universal Mind Himself. His own testimony is:
“Heaven and earth shall pass away, but my words shall not pass
away” (Matt. 24: 35).
The power to transcend mathematical time-and perhaps
even real time- seems also to exist in the highly-developed
Subconsciousness alone. The only means available to the ob-
jective mind for the measurement of time, are the physical
senses, in the observation of the movements of the heavenly
bodies or of some mechanical instrument, such as a clock, which
objective experience has proved to be an accurate device for
such measurement. The subjective mind, on the other hand,
possesses the inherent power of measuring time accurately, in-
dependently of objective aids or of the exercise of reason.
The subliminal self, in fact, manifests inherent power not only
to measure accurately the lapse of time, but even to transcend
all such measurements by projecting itself either into the past
or into the future. There can be little doubt, it seems to me,
that the phenomenon of prescience (literally, “to know before-
hand”) , not infrequently exhibited by historical personages, is
the result of the contact of the Subconscious within them with
the Universal Mind, the Mind of God, to whom all the events
of history are known from the beginning. (Cf. Isa. 46:9-10:
“I am God, and there is none like me, declaring the end from
the beginning, and from ancient times things that are not yet
done,”) Obviously, these “prophetically illumined” persons who
have appeared in history from time to time were persons who
were subconsciously en rapport with the Universal Mind, and
who were thus able to foreknow events, that is, to “know” those
events prior to their occurrence in time as we measure it ob-
jectively. This is true of the Biblical prophets in a special sense,
1. The Huwzan Frontier, 140.
175
for they were instrumentalities divinelzj chosen and called for
the communication of e M e n t i a l truth to mankind. However,
as stated ika’foregoing paragraph, it is now claimed that the
Duke University experiments have provided conclusive evidence
of the existence of the power of prescience, on a small scale at
least, in the ordinary run of human individuals. Be that as it
may-whether the power is common to all men or not-the very
existence of the phenomenon affords a scientific explanation
of the fact of prophecy’.
Finally, this subconscious power of intuiting the fixed laws
,of nature is a clear intimation of the method by which the
saints will apprehend eternal Truth in its fulness in their ulti-
mate union with God,-the Beatific Vision. On this point Dr.
Hudson sums up as follows:
We have seen t h a t certain phenomena depend for their perfect
development upon objective education, and that certain other phenomena
are exhibited in perfection independently of objective education. I n
other woi’dq, certain powers are inherent in the subjective intelligence.
These powers appear t o pertain t o the comprehension of the laws of
Nature. We have seen that, under certain conditions, the subjective
mind apprehends by intuition the laws of mathematics. It comprehends
the laws of harmony of sounds, independently of objective education.
By true artists the laws of the harmony of colors are also perceived
intuitively. These facts have been again and again demonstrated.
It would seem, therefore, t o be a just conclusion t h a t the subjective
mind, untrammeled by its objective environment, will be able t o com-
prehend all the laws of Nature, t o perceive, to know all truth, inde-
pendently of the slow, laborious process of induction. We are so ac-
customed t o boast of the “god-like reason” with which man is endowed,
that the proposition that the subjective mind of man is incapable of
exercising t h a t function, in what we regard as the highest form of
reasoning, seems, a t first glmce, to be a limitation of the intellectual
powers of the soul, and inconsistent with what we have been ac-
customed t o regard as the highest attributes of human intelligence.
But a moment’s reflection will devleop the fact t h a t this apparent
limitation of intellectual power is, in reality, a god-like attribute of
the mind. God himself cannot reason inductively. Inductive reasoning
presupposes a n inquiry, z search aftel. knowledge, an effort t o arrive
a t correct conclusions regarding something of which we are ignorant.
To suppose God t o be an inquirer, a seeker after knowledge, by finite
processes of reasoning, is a conception of the Deity which negatives his
omniscience, and measures Infinite Intelligence by purely finite stand-
ards. For our boasted “god-like reason” is of the earth, earthy. It
is the noblest attribute of the finite mind, it is true, but it is es-
sentially finite. It i s the outgrowth of our objective existence. It is
our safest guide in the walks of earthly life. It is our faithful monitor
and guardian in our daily struggle with our physical environment.
It is our most reliable auxiliary in our efforts t o penetrate the secrets
of Nature, and wrest from her the means of subsistence. But its
functions cease with the necessities which called it into existence ; f o r
it will be no longer useful when the physical form has perished, and
the veil is lifted which hides from mortal eyes t h a t world where all
176
MATTER AND SPIRIT
truth is revealed. Then i t is that the soul [spirit?]-the subjective
mind-will perform its normal functions, untrammeled by the physical
form which imprisons it and binds it t o earth; rand in its native realm
of truth? unimpeded by the laborious processes of finite reasoning, it
will imbibe all truth from its Eternal Source.’
In the well-known words of the Apostle Paul:
For we Itnow in part, and we prophesy in p a r t ; but when that
which is perfect is come, that which is in p a r t shall be done away. , , ,
For now we see in a mirror, darkly; but then face to face: now I know
in p a r t ; but then shall I know fully even a s also I was fully known
[l Cor. 13:9, 10, 121, [Cf. 1 John 3:2]-Beloved, now are we children
of God, and it is not yet made manifest what we shall be. We know
that, if he shall be manifested, we shall be like him; for we shall see
him even a s he is.
This ultimate apprehension will surely be that of every form of
Truth, not only of what we call “physical,” “psychological,”
and “mathematical” truth, but of all moral and spiritual truth
as well. In the presence of Absolute Holiness, all men will “see”
-that is, understalzcl-themselves exactly as they are, and each
will know as a result of this vision what his proper destiny
must be.
6. There also resides in the inner self a psychic power over
the functions of the physical body, a power which can be in-
voked, under proper conditions, to alleviate the ravages of
disease. The majority of persons, however, are unmindful of
these inherent psychic powers which the Creator has endowed
them with for their own use and benefit. The facts of suggestion
and auto-suggestion are fairly conclusive proof that the “inner
man”-the spirit-unifies and controls the physical organism.
Thus the truth of the pre-eminence of Mind over Matter is well
estabIished.
The healing power of suggestion, either from an external
source or from one’s own mind, is now recognized by all rep-
utable physicians and psychiatrists; mental therapeutics has,
in fact, become a legitimate phase of scientific medicine. It is
a matter of general agreement among scientists that nothing is
so conducive to the general health of the organism as a healthy
mental outlook on life. Indeed these general principles are now
being successfully utilized in as important a function as child-
birth.0 Moreover, a proper mental outlook on life is more often
provided by a genuine religious faith than by any other factor.
As Dr. G. W. Allport writes:
1, o p . cit., 72-74.
2. Vide, f o r example, Grantly Dick Read Childbirth Without Fear,
published in England under the title, Revelahon of Childbivth
177
Religion is the search for a value underlying all things, and as
such i s the most comprehensive of all the possible philosophies of life.
A deeply moving religious experience is not readily forgotten, but is
likely t o remain as a focus of thought and desire. Many lives haye no
such focus; for them religion is a n indifferent matter, or else a purely
formal land compartmental interest. But the authentically religious
personality unites the tangible present with some comprehensive view
of the world t h a t makes this tangible present intelligible and accept-
able to him. Psychotherapy recognizes this integrative function of
religion in personality, soundness of mind being oided by the possession
of a completely embracing theory of 1ife.l
Dr. R. J. Williams writes in like vein:
While psychologists, psychiatrists, and students of mental hygiene
could not unanimously endorse theology as a beneficient agent in human
life, they would be practimlly unanimous in their endorsement of re-
ligion if they could specify that the religion must be the kind that
engenders in human beings the triad of faith, hope, and love, of which
the greatest is love. These three are probably the most important mental
medicines, #and their opposites-fear, despair, and hate-are among
the worst mental poisons.2
From the viewpoint of psychic research, the fundamental
principles which underlie the practice of mental therapeutics
may be summarized as follows: 1. The subjective mind exer-
cises a general control over the sensations and functions of the
body. 2. The subjective mind is at all times amenable to control
by suggestions of the objective mind. 3. These two propositions
being true, the conclusion is obvious, namely, that the sensations
and functions of the bodily organs are subject to control by sug-
gestions from the objective mind. As a matter of fact, both
trances and cures often occur as a result of nzrto-suggestion. 4.
These suggestions, however, must be strongly and repeatedly
willed, and decreed, either orally or mentally, in words. 5. In
all cases, passivity on the part of the patient is necessary to
favorable results.
That bodily sensations are subject to control by suggestion
is proved by the phenomenon of catalepsy, a condition in which
the subject is immunized to physical pain of any kind. It is
further proved by the not infrequent use of hypnotism for anes-
thetic purposes in surgical operations. Again, with reference
to the bodily functions, Bernheim, Moll," and others may be
cited as authority for the fact that symptoms of disease (fever,
rapid pulse, flushed cheeks, etc.) , partial or total paralysis, pains
1. G . W. Allport, Pemonality : A Psychological Iizterpretatio~i,226.
2. T h e H?cmniz Frontier, 182.
3. V i d e H. Bernheim, Suggestive Therapcutics, translated by Chris-
tian A. Herter, recently reprinted by the London Book Company, Wood-
side, New York. Also A. Moll, Hupnotism.
178
in the body, hemorrhages, bloody stigma, and even structural
changes have been produced in various subjects by means of
suggestion. This being true, how much easier it should be to
alleviate the symptoms and ravages of disease by the same
method: it is well known that Nature per se is constitutionally
constructive and restorative. Hudson writes:
At the risk of repetition, the self-evident proposition will be re-
peated, t h a t the instinct o f self-preserv#ation is the strongest instinct
of our nature, and constitutes a most potent, ever-present, and con-
stantly operative auto-suggestion, inherent in our very nature. I t is
obvious t h a t any outside suggestion must openate with all the greater
potentiality when it is directed on lines in harmony with instinctive
auto-suggestion. It follows that normal conditions can be restored with
greater ease and certainty, other things being equal, than abnormal
conditions can be induced. And thus i t is t h a t by the practice of the
various systems of psycho-therapeutics we find t h a t the most marvelous
cures are affected, land are again reminded of the words of Paracelsus:
“Whether the objects of your faith be real o r false, you will neverthe-
less obtain the same effects.”l
Again:
The faith required for therapeutic purposes is a purely subjective
faith, and is iattainable upon the cessation of active opposition on the
part of the objective mind. And this is why i t is that, under all systems
of mental therapeutics, the perfect passivity of the patient is insisted
upon a s the first essential condition. Of course, it is desirable t o secure
the concurrent faith both of the objective and subjective minds; but
it is not essential if the patient will in good faith make the necessary
auto-suggestion, e:ther in words, or by submitting passively t o the sug-
gestions of the healer.’
Suggestion, it must be understood, supplemented by faith on the
part of the recipient is the all-potent factor in the production of
phenomena of this kind, Dr. Phineas P. Quimby, for example,
a self-styled “free-thinker,” by means of suggestion cured Mary
Baker of neurotic disorders several years before she wrote and
published her Science and Health. By means of suggestion and
auto-suggestion, so-called “miracles of healing” have been ef-
fected in all ages and in all parts of the world, and not infre-
quently apart from any kind of a religious setting. As a matter
of fact, these two phenomena have played an important role in
the science of medicine from its earliest beginnings; indeed,
they figured significantly in the art of healing developed under
Asklepios (who later became the Greek god of medicine) sev-
eral centuries before Christ. Undoubtedly, too, they play the
determining role in present-day “miracles” of the kind, such as,
1. 0 . &t., 164-165.
2. Z&L, 156.
179
T H E E T E R N A L SPIRIT -HIS PERSON AND POWERS
for example, those wrought at Lourdes, France, In a word, the
facts of suggestion and auto-suggestion account for the successes
of “faith healers,” “divine healers,” “mental healers,” “magnetic
healers,’’ “mesmerists,” and the like, in all ages of the world’s
history. Christian Science practitioners are particularly effica-
cious in the exercise of these subconscious powers, the therapeutic
values of which are available to all men. That all do not benefit
therefrom is simply due to the fact that the vast majority of
persons go through life totally unmindful of the existence of
these natural powers and functions within them; hence, through
ignorance, failing t o develop or to utilize them, they suffer un-
necessarily a multitude of ailments, both mental and physical.
It is quite probable too that Jesus Himself made use of these
powers of the Subconscious in performing many of His miracles,
especially His miracles of healing. He, being Himself the Author
of Nature-for “all things were made through him, and without
him was not anything made that hath been made” (John 1:3) -
certainly possessed complete knowledge and control of the opera-
tions of Nature’s laws. In fact, in the variety of His miracles
(miracles of healing and of exorcising demons-miracles of
benevolence; miracles of raising the dead; miracles of judgment,
as the blasting of the fig tree; miracles showing His control of
the natural elements, as the stilling of the tempest; miracles
of creation, as the feeding of the five thousand with a few
loaves and fishes, etc.) , He demonstrated His absolute control
of Nature at every point and in every phase of her workings.
One must not, however, positively identify the power by which
the miracles of the Bible were wrought, with the powers of the
Subconscious in man by which the “miracles” of strictly human
agency have been performed. The latter are, to say the most,
but feeble reflections of the former, even as man himself is-
in the potencies of his person-but the image or likeness of God.
The miracles of the Bible are to be distinguished from the
“miracles” wrought exclusively by human agency, in three re-
spects in particular: (1) in their timeliness, that is, in relation
to the unfolding of the Divine Purpose; (2) in their essentially
evidential function; and (3) in the fact that the Word of God
itself entered, either directly or indirectly (in the form of a
symbol of the Word, as, for example, Moses’ rod), into the per-
formance of them. Bible miracles are in a separate-and higher
-category from any event wrought exclusively by human agency.
Finally, all this evidence with respect to the powers of the
180
MATTER AND SPIRIT
Subconscious proves, of course, that the “inner man,” the sub-
liminal self, the spirit, unifies, dominates and controls the physical
organism in which it is temporarily domiciled, and that Mind is
superior to, and exercises sovereignty over, Matter. Indeed, it
is only through the avenue of Mind that we can even know
Matter or know that Matter exists.
7. Psychokinesis (or, as it is sometimes called, telekinesis)
is proof that the thoughts of the Subconscious are capable o f
self-transmutation into “physical” energy.
8. Ectoplasms, spirit materializations, phantasms, etc., are
evidence that the thoughts of the Subconscious are capable of
embodying themselves in visible f o r m .
9. Thoughts are entities which impress themselves upon their
surroundings. Thoughts are indeed things.
10. In the existence and exercise of these powers, man re-
veals the spark of the Infinite that is in him, and himself gives
evidence of having been created in the image of God. For, i s
not the Cosmos itself a constitution of the Divine Will, a projec-
tion of the Divine Spirit, an embodiment of the Divine Thought?
Charles Richet writes as follows:
1. There is in us a faculty of cognition t h a t differs radioally from
the usual sensorial faculties (cryptesthesia), 2. There are, even in
full light, movements of objects without contact (telekinesis). 3. Hands,
bodies, and objects seem t o take shape in their entirety from a cloud
and take all the semblance of life (ectoplasms). 4. There occur premo-
nitions than can be explained neither by chance nor by perspicacity, and
are sometimes verified in minute detail. Such are my f i r s t and explicit
conclusions. I cannot go beyond them.l
Hudson writes: “The subjective mind, or entity, possesses
physical power; that is, the power to make itself heard and
felt, and to move ponderable objects.”’
Again:
There are several ways by which the operations of the subjective
mind oan be brought above the threshold of consciousness. When this
is done by any one of the various methods, a phenomenon is produced.
, , , The leading phenomena are clairvoyance, clairaudience, telepathy,
mesmerism and hypnotism, iautomatic writing, percussive sound (spirit-
rapping), movement of pouderable bodies (table-tipping) , and phan-
tasmic appearances.*
Clairvoyance is the power of discerning objects which are not
1. Thirty Y e a r s of Psychical Research, 596-697. Translated from
the French by Stanley DeBrath.
2. Op. cit., 208.
3. Hudson, op. cit., 219.
181
present to the senses but which are regarded as having objec-
tive reality, Dr. Rhine says:
Clairvoyance perception is the awareness of objects or objective
events without the use of the senses, whereas telepathy is the aware-
ness of the thoughts of another person, similarly without sensory aid.’
Clairauclience is defined as “the‘power of hearing the spoken
words of a human soul.” It is the faculty which enables a man’s
objective mind to receive communications from his own or an-
other’s subjective mind by means of intelligible words. Auto-
matic writing consists in holding a pencil in one hand and letting
it write; the subjective mind assumes control of the nerves and
muscles of the arm and hand, and propels the pencil, the ob-
jective mind being perfectly quiescent, and often totally ob-
livious of what is being written , Levitation is not, as often de-
fined, the illusion that a heavy object is suspended in the air
without visible support: it is the actual thing. Psychokinesis
is the designation now given to any form of movement of pon-
derable objects by thought power alone; attention has already
been called to the positive results of the Duke University ex-
periments in this field.
Ectoplasm is defined by Nfr. Hamlin Garland as an ele-
mentary substance given off by the human body in varying
degrees. He conceives it to be ideoplastic, that is, capable of be-
ing moulded into various shapes by the mind of the psychic or *
that of the sitter, “Spirit maie~ializations”are said to be thought
projections of the Subconscious. As Hudson puts it:
The power resides in the subjective mind of man to create phan-
tasms perceptible to the objective senses of others. Again i t seems t o be
well established by experiment that some persons have the power not
only to create such phantasms but also to endow thein with a certain
degree of intelligence and power.’
Again:
The medium goes into a trance, or hypnotic state, and projects the
shapes of various pemons, generally of the deceased friends of some
of those present. A good medium will produce any number of visions,
of any number of persons, men and women, large and small.%
In fact it is thought that a good medium is capable of extracting
any image (that is, of a loved one or friend) that may be in the
mind of any sitter, and of projecting that image in a manner
perceptible to the latter’s physical senses.
1. The Rcaeh of tho Mirid, 27.
2. Op. cit., 289.
3. Ibid., 291.
182
MATTER AND SPIRIT
Prom these facts it i s fair t o conclude: 1. That the power t o
create phontasms resides in aiid is inherent in the subjective mind, or
personality, of man. 2. That the power becomes greater as the body
approaches nearer to the condition of death; t h a t is, the subjective, or
hypnotic, condition becomes deeper, and the subjective person~ality in
consequence becomes stronger in its sphere of activity, 3. That at the
hour of death, o r when the €unctions of the body are entirely suspended,
the power is greatest. . , , All that m7e Icnow is t h a t phantasms are
created by some power inherent in the subjective personality of man.
They may be called "embodied tliouglit~," as man may be called the
.
embodied thought of God. , , It is f a i r i o presume that t h a t p a r t of
the Infinite which is embodied in each of us must part,alre, to a limited
extent, of Ifis power to create. Experimental psychology suggests t h a t
we have that power, and that it is thus t h a t phantasms a r e produced,'
Thoughts are entities which impress themselves on their sur-

roundings. Truly, thoughts are things. All this is in perfect
harmony with Scripture, which teaches clearly that the Will of
God is the constitution of our universe both physical and moral,
that is to say, the Will of God is that which constitutes it and
constitutes it to be what it is. But the Will of God is expressed
by the Word of God (which is the revelation of the Thought of
God), and is realized through the activity of the Spirit of God.
To God the Father, we are indebted for faith; t o God the Word
or Son, we are indebted for doctrine; and to God the Holy Spirit
we are indebted for evidence or proof. The Father oyiginntes,
the Son executes, the Spirit applies and realizes. Hence, the
Cosmos is presented in Scripture as the creation or projection
of the Divine Spirit and the embodiment or materialization of
the Divine Word.
Psa. 33:6, 9-By the word of Jehovah were the heavens made,
and gall the host of them by the breath o€ his mouth. . . . F o r he spalre,
and i t was done; he commanded, and it stood fast. Heb. 11:3--By
faith we understand t h a t the worlds have been framed by the word
of God, so that what is seen hath not been made out of things which
appear. John 1:l-3: In the beginning was the Word, aiid the Word
\vas with God, and the Word was God. The same was in the beginnillg
with God, All things were made througli him; and without him WLLS not
anything made t h a t hatli been made. Cf. also v. 14-And the Word
became flesh, and dwelt among us (and we beheld his glory, glory 12s
of the only begotten iroin the Father), full of grace and truth. Acts
17:24-25: The God that made the world and all things therein, he,
being Lord o€ heaven land earth, dmelleth not in temples made with
hands; neither is he served by men's hands, as though lie needed any-
thing, seeing he himself giveth t o all li€e, and breath, and all things.
Psa. 148 :1-G : Praise ye Jehovtah. Praise ye Jehovah from the heavens ;
I'raise him in the heights. Praise ye him, all his angels; Praise y e liiln,
all his host. Praise y e him, sun and moon; Praise him, all ye sttars o€
light. Praise him, ye heavens of heavens, And ye watem t h a t are above
the heavens. Let them praise the name of Jehovah; FOY h e col/z?)?trl/d('d,
1. HUdSOIi, OP. tit., 203-294.
183
and they were created. He hath also established them f o r ever and
ever; He hath made a decree which shnll not pass away.
Students of psychic phenomena also write of what they
designate the Superconscious, Edith Lyttelton, for example, says
that the Superconscious is a term used to designate the “en-
larged faculties af intellect, perception, and intuition, of which
the ordinary conscious mind is not aware.”’ She goes on to ex-
plain that the forms of superconscious power exhibiting knowl-
edge which the conscious mind does not possess, are (1) knowl-
edge of either past OP current events or facts, which has not
been acquired normally by the individua rcipient; and (2)
knowledge of future events, Le., prescience. “Inspiration,” she
says, “is another word for a message from the superconscious
part of mind, which has coqtact with a wider world than has
the conscious mind.”’ Again:
The deduction t o be drawn , , , may be t h a t the superconscious
p a r t of a man’s mind is in conbact not only with the conscious and
superconscious p a r t s of other living minds, but also with another field
of existence where time is different from our time, and id thus enabled
now and then t o see the future as if it were past, as if it were the
inevitlable scene of a drama in which we play our already destined and
.
rehearsed role. , . In the course of evolution the unconscious elements
in our being have been largely despised and ignored, In primitiye
times men were ruled almost entirely by their instincts, passions, and
terrors, and the path of progress has lain #alongthe way of suppression
of these unreasoning rulers. Probably this was a necessary process,
for the conscious intellect of man needed time to develop. But just
as the intellect in our early primitive history whas subordinated to the
instiacts, so in our later development the instincts have been sub-
ordinated to the intellect; or, in other words, the conscious has ignored
the unconscious. Then came the work of studying the subconscious,
and the tendency was to believe that all the unconscious part of the
mind was in t h a t region. Now we are beginning to understand that
we have a superconsciousness as well, and that within the compass
of our own being we have powers of contact with a f a r greater and
wider life than we know here.’
Along the same general line is Lecomte du Nouy’s thesis, in his
recent work, Human Destiny. Biological evolution, he contends,
is giving way to higher moral and spiritual evolution, as the
enlargement of man’s powers, especially those of the brain (to
which the conscious mind seems to be closely related) produces
in him greater freedom of action and hence accelerated progress.
All future “evolution,” he holds, will be in the realm of the
moral and spiritual. Similarly, L. Ron Hubbard, in his book,
Dianetics, makes the point that men as a rule utilize only
1. Our Superconscious Mind, 5.
2. Ibid., 36.
3. Ibid., 257-258.
184
MATTER AND SPIRIT
a small fraction oi their individual brain power in their daiIy
life and activity, and hence fail l o make the advancement (by
eliminating the unconscious impressions (“engrams”) which
hang over them from the past) of which the3 are inherently
capable. One is reminded, in this connection, oi those memorable
words of St. Paul:
NOW the Lord is the Spirit: and ~ J I ( J T C t h e Spivit of t h e Lovd i s ,
tlbeve is libevty. But we all, with unveiled face beholding a s in a ~nirror
the glory o i the Lord, are traiislorined into t h e same image from
glory t o glory, even as from the Lord the Spirit (2 Cor. 3:17-18).
And the Apostle tells us elsewhere that it is God’s eternal pur-
pose that those who are called through the Gospel and justified
by the obedience of faith in Jesus Christ, shall ultiinateIy be
glorified-Le., redeemed both in spirit and in body-and thus
conformed t o the image of His Son (Rom, 8:29-30). May we
not reasanably conclude, therefore, that the “far greater and
wider life” alluded to in the foregoing excerpt, is in truth the
life of the Being of our God, the life of the Spirit of God?
11. In a word, the phenomena of the Subconscious would
seem to compel us to reject the notion that Spirit is but an
“epiphenomenon” of Matter, and to conclude, rather, that Matter
is a creation, or projection, of Spirit.
12. We conclude, in the second place, that the Subconscious
aspect of the Self is identical ontologically with what we speak
of as “spirit” in man. If so, the objective or conscious aspect
of the Self must be identical with what we speak of as “mind.”
Mind is, then, the medium through which the spirit, the real
being, relates itself to the environment in which the human
organism, as it is presently constituted, dwells and functions.
13. We necessarily conclude, in the third place, that there
is a personal life in man which is carried on even in this present
world more or less independently of the physical organism and
on a higher (metaphysical) order of being than the psycho-
biological life of the organism itself; in a word, that the body
is, in the words of the Apostle, merely “the earthly house of
our tabernacle’’ (2 Cor. 5:l) in which this real self-the onto-
logical man-is temporarily domiciIed. In view of the fact,
then, that such a personal life is carried on here to some extent
independently of the body-as we know from the phenomena of
the Subconscious that it is-who is able t o gainsay the convic-
tion that this personal life will persist, and persist for ever,
beyond the dissolution of the body; and, provided it shall have
185
been possessed and moulded by the Spirit of God in this present
world, that it will not only persist but also enlarge-everlastingly
-in knowledge and love, clothed in glory and honor and im-
mortality, in the very presence of God? This personal life is
designated in Scripture as the life of the spirit that is in man.
In the words of the “writing’’ of Hezekiah, the great reformer-
king of Judah, “0 Lord, by these things men live; and wholly
therein is the life of my spirit: wherefore recover thou me, and
make me to live” (Isa. 38:16). “By these things men live,” that
is, “the things which thou speakest and doest” (v. 15) ; “wholly
therein is the life of my spirit.” “Man shall not live by bread
alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of
God” (Matt. 4:4; Deut. 8:s). The personal life of man-the
life of the spirit that is in him-was breathed into him at crea-
tion; that is to say, it was imparted to him by the procession of
the Spirit from the Being of God. It is an endowment of the
Breath of God. God is a Spirit, and man is essentially spirit;
he is therefore the image and likeness of God. But, as Bergson
has put it, man in his present state is only “partially himself.”
He is the personal, but not yet wholly the moral, image of his
Creator. The true Food, therefore, for the spirit that is in him-
the Food by partaking of which constantly he may become god-
like, and therefore wholly himself-the Food by partaking of
which he may attain “unto a fullgrown man, unto the measure
of the stature of the fulness of Christ” (Eph. 4:13) who is
Himself “the effulgence of God’s glory, and the very image of
his substance” (Heb. 1:3)-that true Food is the living Word
of the living God. By partaking of that Food, digesting it, as-
similating it, making it the very warp and woof of his charac-
ter, he grows in grace and in the knowledge of God, he is pos-
sessed by the Spirit of God, he lives in this present world the
life of the Spirit, and ultimately attains holiness-wholeness-
in the very presence of God, This-Beatitude, the Life Everlast-
ing-is man’s natural and proper ultimate end; and the attain-
ment of this end by the saints of God will mark the culmination
and the consummation of the whole Creative Process.
7. The Mystery of the Person

At the lowest or inanimate level of being, the procession of
the Spirit from the Being of God brought into existence energy
-the first form of which was, in all probability, radiant energy
or light-which transmuted itself into matter in motion. In
186
MA’M’ER AND SPIRIT
modern physics, as we have already seen, there is no “solid
matter.” If a material object looks “solid” to us, it does so only
because the motion of its matter is too rapid or too minute to
be sensed. It is “solid” only in the sense that a rapidly rotating
color chart is “white” or a rapidly spinning top is “standing
still.”
At the second level, as we ascend in the scale of total being,
the procession of the Spirit resulted in the implanting of the life
principle in the first plant form. This remains true just the same,
whether this life principle was a something added to the basic
physiochemical processes, or whether is consisted in the ef-
fectuating of a certain arrangement between the basic physi-
ochemical units or elements.
At the third level of being, the procession of the Spirit added
to the life (vegetative) principle in the plant the powers of
sensitivity characteristic of animal life, those powers which make
consciousness possible, Thus the writer of Ecclesiastes differ-
entiates between the “spirit of man” and the “spirit of the beast.”
In a mood of depression he exclaims:
For t h a t which befalleth the sons of men befialleth beasts; even
one thing befalleth them: as t.he one dieth, so diet11 the other; yea,
they have all one breath; and man hath no preeminence above the
beasts: for all is vanity. All go unto one place; all are of the dust,
and all turn t o dust again. Who lmoweth the spirit of man, whether
it goeth upward, and the spirit of the beast, whether it goetli down-
ward t o the earth? (Eccl. 3:19-21),
In a subsequent chapter, however, in contemplation of death
the same writer’s faith emerges in a triumphant answer to his
own question: “the dust returneth unto the earth as it was,
and the spirit [of man] returneth unto God who gave it”
(Eccl. 12:7). That is to say, man is more than animal: he is
animal plus.
And so, at the fourth level of being, the procession of the
Spirit added to all previously imparted powers the attributes
and potencies of a person, The result was a human being created
“in the image of God.” Hence it is expressly asserted in Scrip-
ture (1) that there is a spirit in man, and (2) that God is, in
a strictly natural sense of course, the Father of our spirits.
Job 32:8-There is a spirit in man, ,and the breath o f the Almighty
giveth them understanding, Zech. 12 :1-Thus saith Jehovah, who
stretcheth forth the heavens, and layeth the foundation of the earth,
and formetli the spirit of man within him. Heb. 12:9-Furthermore,
we had the fathers of our flesh t o chasten us, and we gave them
reverence; shall we not much rather be in subjection unto the Father
of spirits, and live?
187
THE BTRRNAL SPIRIT -HIS PERSON AND POWERS
Now it seems quite probable that, speaking ontologically,
the spirit in man embraces essentially all the powers of the
Subconscious. In this present state, however, it embraces also
the operations of the intellect, affections, and will, by means of
which it-the ontological being-relates itself to its present
environment. This latter aspect of spirit, which I have chosen
to designate the mind, will, of course, have been left behind
for ever when the spirit per se-the true “inner man”-shall
have been freed from the limitations of time and space as a result
of the dissolution of the physical form in which it is now taber-
nacled. Again, as man is presently constituted, all his character-
istically spiritual powers or faculties are also comprehended in
the term person, the designation by which, for centuries, man
has been specified in the language of human thought. Those
natural attributes which distinguish spirit in man from spirit
in beast are (1) reason, (2) self-consciousness, (3) self-deter-
mination, (4) the subconscious powers previously described, and,
in consequence of all these ( 5 ) the potentiality of holiness. All
these may also rightly be said to be the essential attributes of
a person. Thus either the spirit, or the person, or even the self,
may be said to be the carrier, so to speak, of the personality.
That is to say, all three terms designate the same reality which
survives all change, Whether named the “spirit,” the “person,”
or the “self,” or even the “inner man,” it is the essential or
ontological human being that is designated. Therefore all these
terms shall be used interchangeably in the present treatise.
Thus every normal human being as such is from the time
of his conception, either in potency or in actuality, a person.
This is his specific designation-that which specifies his position
in the scale of total being, and which at the same time signifies
the aggregate of all those attributes heretofore mentioned which
differentiate him from the lower orders, I think that the great
majority of scientists would agree to this designation and to
the implications here stated as suggested by it.
In so far as his adaptation to his present environment is
concerned, however, man is specified, i.e., set apart as a species,
especially by his power of reason. Although he shares with the
sub-human orders the vegetative, sensory, and locomotive pow-
ers, it is the faculty of reason which sets him apart from the
rest of creation and gives him a standing and dignity all his own.
this fact is implicit in the present-day scientific use of
the term homo sapiens. Whether he makes proper use of the
power or not-and in many cases it must be admitted that he
188
MATTER AND SPIRIT
does not, but allows, rather, his reason to be controlled by his
emotions, ambitions, and prejudices-nevertheless he does pos- ’
sess the power and possess it obviously to a far greater degree
than any brute possesses or ever could possess it. The brute,
of course, is governed by instinct, but instinct is quite another
thing from intellection. As a matter of fact, no one knows what
instinct really is: someone has rightly called it “the great sphinx
of Nature.” In its qualities of adaptation and unerringness it
would seem to best explained as the providential operation of
Universal Intelligence, the means by which God cares for His
non-rational creatures, The power of reason characteristic of
man, however, is something else altogether. It is the power
(I) of thinking connectedly, or from this to that, etc., and (2)
of thinking purposefully, that is, toward foreknown and fore-
chosen ends; as Dr, John Dewey would have it, real thinking
is problem-solving. Now this power of reason is that specific
power which differentiates a person from a11 other creatures
of earth. Hence Boethius’ classic definition of a person as “an
individual substance of a rational nature” is perhaps the best,
from the metaphysical point of view, that has ever been formu-
lated. [Persona est substantia individua rationalis naturae.
Boethius was a Roman philosopher who lived about 484-520,
and who became a convert to Christianity. His philosophy was
fundamentally Aristotelian.]
Even granting the validity of the hypothesis that man is the
end-product of a long-drawn-out process of organic,* the fact
still remains that he has advanced beyond the level of the brute.
This has to be true, if biological evolution has actually taken
place; that is to say, if man has really evolved from the brute,
he is more than brute; he is, so to speak, animal plus. And the
plus would seem to consist essentially in his power of thinking
connectedly or reasoning in terms of his own experience. This
is a truth which seems to have been overlooked all too fre-
quently by the biologists; their tendency to treat man as an
animal, and as an animal only, has brought about untold con-
fusion especially in the field of morals. Man is not merely an
animal; he is, as Aristotle said many centuries ago, a rational
animal, and no amount of “scientific” casuistry will ever alter
the fact. [My personal objections to the evolution hypothesis
are stated at the end of this volume.]
I should like to take the opportunity at this point to pro-
test strenusously against the all too general tendency that has
prevaiIed in scientific circles recently to try to reduce man to
189
the status of the brute. Psychologists, p iologists, neurologists,
and especially endocrinologi have put forward the most fan-
tastic conclusions and clai in recent: years-claims based
entirely on the resu of experiments with animals. As a con-
sequence of their to eady application to human beings of the
results of such experiments, these experimenters have shown
themselves unduly prone to fall into certain very grave errors,
as, e.g., that of making an omnibus term of the word “personality,”
and that, consequently, of confusing personality with tempera-
ment. The behavior of animals may indeed show ‘a variation in
temperamental characteristics, but to speak of their having
“personality traits” is certainly an illegitimate extension of the
term “personality,” an extension that is justified neither by the
exigencies of language nor by the facts in the case. Temperament
is not personality, either in animals or in man. This error of
attributing “personality” to the brute, however, is one that
occurs in many current scientific textbooks. Even the term
“animal psychology’’ is misleading, to say the least. These facts
lead me to observe, in passing, that a great deal of confusion
could be avoided in modern education if scientists in general
would only familiarize themselves with, and follow, the Socratic
twofold injunction to all thinkers, namely, (1) first to define the
terms they propose to use in any field of scientific investigation,
and (2) having defined those terms, to use them univocally
thereafter. Words are, of course, the means of communicating
thought among persons; only persons are known to have evolved
language. But at the same time words can, and often do, be-
come prolific sources of mental confusion as a result of equivocal
usage. And through the overlapping of terms, modern scientific
“universe of discourse’’ has in many instances become a verit-
able Babel. “Personality,” for example, is a term that should
be confined strictly to human beings. Animals, of course, appear
to manifest certain forms of behavior which are commonly
thought to be characteristic of a person. This is true especially
of their “emotional” reactions (whatever the term “emotion”
may signify: it has never been clearly defined). But-I repeat-
it is an illegitimate extension of the term “personality” to speak
of any single animal-and personality is a mystery that is in-
variably tied up with individuality-as being a “personality,”
or as having “personality” or “personality traits.” By no stretch
of the imagination can a brute animal properly be designated
a person; and only a person-that is, if we are going to speak
univocally-can rightly be considered a carrier of personality.
190
MATTER AND SPIRIT
I should like to point out too that even among human beings
“personality types” become more clearly differentiated only in
the field of abnormal psychology; and, as a matter of fact,
psychologists themselves have never been able to agree upon
any such differentiation among normal persons, among whom
it seems likely that no such precise differentiation exists. More-
over, this view of man as a sort of “glorified brute” is, as previ-
ously stated, largely responsible for the current world-wide con-
fusion in ethical theory and practice. Indeed it is frequently of-
fei-ed as an alibi for looseness in morals; we should not hesitate,
we are told, to give free expression to our “natural” impulses
and desires. And thus human morality is prostituted into “barn-
yard morality,” which, if universalized, would destroy the race.
Devotion to this Cult of Self-Expression may explain why some
of our modern writers have expressed themselves in such il-
literate language, as, for example, Theodore Dreiser; it may ex-
plain, too, some of the terrible gobs hanging on the walls of our
art galleries today. They are supposed to be artistic expressions
-but one wonders, of what? I commend Oedipus’ terrific oracle
to all those who hold this brute interpretation of man: “May’st
thou ne‘er know the truth of what thou art!”
Man is characterized by self-consciousness and self-deter-
mination, and by the capacity for holiness, the properties of a
pemon. Hence no society regards the brute as a person, for the
obvious reason that no brute animal manifests these character-
istics, at least not in sufficient degree to be regarded as a person.
True, a parrot can be taught to vocalize “I” but no mere animal
was ever known to say of its own accord,meaningfully to itself,
“I am a parrot,” or “I am a pig,” etc. If it could, it would no
longer be a parrot or a pig, Moreover, no can can ever know to
what extent an animal ”thinks” o r “feels,” for the obvious rea-
son that no man can “put himself into an animal’s skin,” SO to
speak, in such a manner as to know what the experiences of an
animal are. A thoroughgoing comparison of animal and human
experience simply cannot be obtained. But every man can, by
looking into himself, know what he thinks and feels and wills,
And every man can and does know that he cannot teach his old
dog Rover, or his old horse Dobbin, either the Ten Command-
ments os the elementary theorems of plane geometry. In view
of all these facts, it must be obvious that such terms as “animal
mind,” “animal personality,” “animal psychology,” and the like,
are not only misleading but downright illegitimate.
Psychologists seem never to have awakened to the fact that
191
before there can be such a t g as “behavior” or “adaptation,”
there must be an entity capable of “behaving” and of “adapting”
itself. Hence the need of a widespread revival of what is called
“personalistic psychology” at the present time-a psychology
which returns to the fundamental concept of man as a person and
treats him as such. This is as it should be, for the simple and
obvious reason that man is a person.
Dr. Gordon W. .Allport summarizes the arguments put for-
ward by personalists in psychology to support their position, as
Iollows:
nor lead independent existences ; their arrangement always constitutes

part of a larger arrangement-the personal life. “Everything mental
is a totality or a p a r t of la totality.” 3. Such concepts as function,
adaptation, us& and adjustment, are of no significance without refer-
ence to the Person. An adaptation must be the adapting o f something
t o ssmething: so with adjustment. Use and function likewise imply
an interested personal agent. 4. Above all, it is in immediate experi-
ence that the case for a central eo-ordinating agent becomes unanswer-
able. The central position of Self is imalied in all states of conscious-
ness.. Descartes’ dictum, Cogito ergo sum, can hardly be refuted.
I This argument, though clast in metaphysical terms, Aas psychological
support in the vivid sense of the self present in experiences of strain,
conflict, and choice. 5. Another argument stresses the creative prop-
erties of the Person or Self, Every system of thought originates with
someone. The most objective of scientists, no less than philosophers,
ultimately create or “will” the canons o f their own science, Disagree-
ments result in the last analysis from the individuality of their own
minds. So too with psychologists. If they embrace a nomothetic
positivism and empty the personality of all its bothersome individuality,
they do so ultimately because they w a n t to. Thus a prior act of voli-
tion is responsible for the austere limits they place upon their own
speculation. We all build our scientific world from the symbols
taken from our own per’sonalities. Which then is the prior fact, the
creative person or the creed he creates?’
Personalistic psychologists, Allport goes on to say, agree that
PSYchology,
whose task it is t o treat the whole of mental life, cannot possibly dis-
charge its duty without relating the states and processes it studies
*to the Person who is their originator, carrier, and regulator. There can
1. G. W. Allport, Personality: A Psychological Interpretation,
550-661.
192
be no adjustment without someone to adjust, no organimtion without
an organizer, no memory without seli-continuity, no learnillg without
a change i n the person, n o knowledge without a knower, and no valuing
witliout someone possessed of desires and the capacity to evaluate.
Psycliology must take seriously dames’s dictum 1 hat every mental opera-
tion occurs i n a “personal form,” and inust t a l e i t more seriously than
James hiinsel€ did:
The Self is, of course, a mystery. Are “Self,” “Ego,” “Person,”
all synonymous terms? Is the Self made of body-mind? Is the
I real Self identical with “spirit” in man? Is it exclusively
I
1
spiritual,” and dwelling in a body? I quote again from All-
iort, whose analysis is most penetrating and difficult to improve
upon:
To be s u x , the sense of seli is a peculiarly elusive datum for intro-
spection. To catch it for direct examination i n consciousness seemed
to James lilce trying to step one’s shadow. In Brentano’s terms, the
Self thougli ever present, is a matter of “secondary” awareness. Pri-
madly I am conscious of the object t o which I attend: a tone, a land-
scape, a menacing gesture; only secondtaarily am I aware t h a t i t is [
who am apprehending, admiring, o r fearing tliese objects. The situation
becomes even more elusive when the Self is regarded not only as Knower
(reflected t o itself someliow in a “secondary awareness”), but also as
tho gvoimd €or that which is known. I not only know t h a t i t is I who
perceive a n object, but I feel that this object has some special sig-
I ni€icance for me. The intimacy of the whole conscious process is baffling,
a muse of consternation to philosophers and psychologists alike. The
point is that this very intimacy is one o€ the chief arguments in support
of pei*sonalistic psychoIogy.’
Again:
The Person, like the Self, is p e m i s f e w f ; cl/nn,qcJsas it develops; is
rcttiqcte; is t/rntrl/-sidcd; is the giwcudumdr of nll i t s ow71 erpc~vieirccs;
and is w l a f d to i t s phusicnl aiid social oiiviroi/~/wi/t/
Although personality is the one fact with which we are
most intimately acquainted, at the same time it is the most
mysterious thing we know. The following exquisite bit of litera-
ture from the pen of Ernest Dimnet is especially pertinent at
this point:
“So77icthiitg w y s f w i o u s iir bcJiirg n pevsoir ! Wl/?/,I w c i w f l r o i c g l ~ f
f \ / O j . P W ( 1 S ( l / l f / f / / i t / ’gI t / ~ S ~ c V ’ ~ O nhOt/f
/IS flltrf. 17Cf I h ( 1 I ’ c ’ hV<’’)/ (1 ~ J ( ” K 3 O I I
f o soitic’~ fiwci.
“Are you sure that you limc never felt the mystel-iousiiess of being
a persou? Didn’t you, as a cliild, ask questions which showed t h a t you
m d l y did reel it?
“Oh! Y o i / ?)1cm1 t h r s i / / l / qursfioirs whir11 i - l / f l d v ~do / ~ n s k ; Wh?/
f r t I 1 r m t l I 1 f / ( I t r r l 7 / 0 1 ~ i o i t / / / l ? / ~ - - ~ ~ /f /l t?t l/ I ?cot (r tl.c~c?-corr/r(rr9tI IWW
1. O p . c i f . , 561-552.
2. lbid,, note 2.
3. lbirl., 557.
193
been o.ne?-How c a n I be anybody with God being everywhere? All
children sag these absurd silly things.
“They a r e not silly, Heaven knows! When children sound silly,
you will always find that it is in imitation of their elders. But even
grown-ups will sometimes be conscious of the strangeness of being a
person. It may only be a few times in their lives, and it may only be
in flashes, but practically everybody has had t h a t experience, and most
people a r e awed by it. Have you never been conscious of the space
occupied by your body and how inconsiderable it is?
O h / Of displacing that little space with me, as I walk and of
being shut u p in i t ? W h y , m a n y times!
“That is the sensation I mean, You are then within a n ace of
realizing that you iare an exceedingly fragile bundle of phenomena,
supported, in some unaccountable way, by a centre, a core which you
cannot locate, your Ego.
“ W h g , I realize that very well, and it IS fhghtening. All the
strength w e maght derzve f r o m the consciousness that w e a r e ourselves
is pmalvxed b y the realieation that w h a t makes u s a person is, as you
say, so slender and impalpable. T h e more we think off it, the more it
seems t o shrink I N T O itself, till w e are afraid to see it thinning into
nothing. I know that feeling of evanescence very well.
“No doubt, for you describe it pretty well, too,
“But w h y i s it frightening like that?
“Probably because it is the foretaste of our ddath. What is death?
The completeness of the henomenon you describe, The support of our
personality vanishes, an% suddenly it is independent of its familiar
phenomena. The simile of the soap-bubble is well chosen. The more
we think of our personality, the more afnaid we are to see the bubble
dissolve into the brilliant morning.
“Yes, evidently we dread t o move f r o m the outside world which
supports u s , so f w i n w w d that w e shall be conscious o f nothing but
our ephemeral selves. I once m e t a t a gloomy boarding-house near t h e
British 2MUSSUrn, a weird old sea-captain w h o m what we are saying
causes m e to remember. He had never known, he assured me, anybody
brave enough to go to a lonely place a t night, and to call his o w n name
out loud three times. Realizing one’s own personality in that way, n o
matter how simple, h e thought w a s beyond human endwrance!l1
It should be remembered, however, that this moving from the
outside world which supports one, into the inner world of the
Self is, in fact, a moving out of the limited world of more or
less illusion into the apparently illimitable world of reality.
As stated heretofore, the physical senses limit one’s experience
to the circumstances of the external environment. Once the
person (spirit) is liberated from this objectivity, he is free to
“roam the universe,” so to speak. Intimations of the illimit-
ableness of this inner world may be found in dreams, in which
the dreamer often re-enacts, in an instant or two of mathe-
matical “time,” the experiences of a whole period of his life,
or travels from one locale to another far distant without any
sense of intervening distance or space whatsoever. Even in one’s
waking hours, one’s thoughts transcend both time arid space.
1. Ernest Dimnet, What W e Live Bg, 16-17.
194
MA’ITBR AND SPIRIT
When I look at a distant star, for example, at what point in
space does the perception take place? Does it take place within
me, or does it take place where the light from the star is, at
the moment of my seeing it? Or does it take place in space
at all? Is “mind” a something necessarily confined to body,
or is it an activity of the person that outreaches all measurements
of time, distance, and space? Obviously, there is but one an-
swer: The “inner man”-being himself the image of God-knows
none of the limitations of the physical world. And death is, in
the final analysis, but the stepping out of the limited illusory
world of the flesh, into the unlimited real world of the spirit.
1. A person is, in the jirst place, a unity, Illingworth writes:
The fundamental characteristic of personality is self-consciousness,
the quality in a subject of becoming an object t o itself, or, i n Loclte’s
language, “considering itself as itself,” land saying, “I a m I.” But as
jn the very act of becoming thus self-conscious I discover in myself
desires, and a will, the quality of self-consciousness immediately involves
that of self-determination, the power of making my desires a n object
of my will, and saying, “I will do what I desire.” But we must not
fall into the common error of regarding thought, desire, and will, as
really separable in fact, because we a r e obliged for the sake of dis-
tinctness to give them sepanate names, They are three faculties or
functions of one individual, and, though logically separable, inter-
penetrate each other, and are always more or less united in openation.
I cannot, for instance, pursue a train of thought, however abstract,
without tattention, which is an act of will, and involves a desire to
attend. I cannot desire, as distinct from merely feeling appetite, like
a n animal, without tlriiaking of what I desire, and wilZiiag to attain or
abstain from it. I cannot will without tltiiakiwg of an object or purpose,
and desiviizg its realization. There is, therefore, a synthetic unity in
my personality or self; that is t o say, not a nierely numerical oneness,
but a power of uniting opposite and talien attributes and characteristics
with a n intimacy which defies analysis.’
Cases of so-called multiple personality are probably not, after
all, what the name implies, but are, rather, instances of dis-
connected allotments of experiential data which need reintegra-
tion to effect a restoration of the original unity. About one
hundred such cases have been reported at widely separated times
and in different parts of the world, the most celebrated of
which perhaps was the case of Sally Beauchamp, reported by Dr,
Morton Prince in his book entitled The Dissociation of a Per-
sonality, published in 1920. The basic problem involved in this
phenomenon is that of how suggestion becomes so effective and
dissociation so complete in these individuals. Two contemporary
psychologists have this to say on the subject:
1. J. R. Illingwortli, Pcvsoiinlify, Hwiin17 niid D h h c , Shilling Edi-
tion, 28-29.
195
If, by way of analogy, one conceives of consciousness ias being made
up of many interlqcing streams of thought, then some of these may
meet obstacles in the form of emotional conflicts or fixations and form
whirlpools which sepanate from the main currents of thought, When
large and powerful, they may assume the form of secondary personal:
ities, any one of which may become dominant under certain conditions?
Whatever the true explanation of this phenomenon may be, the
fact remains that it belongs to the field of abnora,mZ psychology,
whereas we are considering here normal persons oslly. (It will
be remembered that Dr. Prince was himself successful in re-
integrating the personality of Sally Beauchamp.) Besides, even
in cases of “dual” or “multiple” personality, the subliminal self
may remain unified beneath the phenomena of exterior dis-
sociation. Moreover, we must not lose sight of the distinction
between the person as the ontological being, and the personality
which is constructed out of hereditary and environmental
factors and the personal reactions thereto; the former is, in the
nature of the case, one, whereas the latter may indeed exhibit
lack of integration or evidences even of disintegration. A person
is essentially a unity.
2. A person is, in the second place, a persistent unity. The
“I” persists through all changes, physical and mental. As Illing-
worth goes on to say:
This unity is further emphasized ’by my sense of personal identity,
which irresistibl compel,qA,me.to regard myself as one and the same
being through a5 my changes of time and circumstance, and thus unltes
my thoughts ,and feelings of today with those of all my bygone years.
I am thus one, in the sense of an active unifying principle, which can
not only combine a multitude of present experiences in itself, but can
also combide its present with its past?
Memory seems to be both the basis and the guarantee of
personal identity, Remembering, as William James put it, is
something more than the mere dating of an event in the past;
it is the dating of an event in my past. As St. Augustine wrote,
centuries ago:
I come to the fields and s acious palaces of my memory, where
&arethe treasures of innumerabTe images, brought in from things of
all sorts.perceived by the senses. ,.. Nor yet do the things themselves
enter in; only the images of the things perceived are there in readiness,
lor thought to recall. , , , It is I myself who remember, I the mind. +
Great is the power of memory, a fearful thing, 0 my God, a deep and
..
boundless manifoldness; and this thing is the mind, land this am I
myself. What am I then, 0 my God? What nature am I ? A life
various and manifold, and exceeding immense !*
1. Carney Iiandis and M. Marjorie Bolles, Textbook of Abnormal
Psyohology, 98.
2. Op. Cit., 29-30.
3. Confessions, Pusey translation, Everyman’s Library, 210-219.
196
MATTER AND SPIRIT
One inescapable fact of human experience is that personal
identity persists through all changes in the organism, a fact
which confirms our faith that it will survive the last great change,
the dissolution of the body.
3. A person is, in the third place, a unique unity. Says
Illingworth:
A t the same time, with all my inclusiveness, I have also an ex-
clusive aspect, “Each self,,” i t has been well said, “is a unique existence,
which is perfectly impervlous to other selves-impervious in a f,ashion
of which the impenetrability of matter is a faint analogue.” Thus a
person has at once an individual ,and a universal side. He is a unit
t h a t excludes all else, and yet a totality or whole with infinite powers
of inclusion.’
Allport writes:
The outstanding characteristic of man is his individuality. H e
is a unique creation of the forces of nature. Separated spatially from
all other men he behaves throughout his own particular span of life
in his own distinctive fashion, It is not upon the cell nor upon the
single organ, nor upon the group, nor upon the species t h a t nature has
centered her most lavish concern, but rather upon the integral organi-
zation o€ life processes into the #amazingly stable and self-contained
system of the individual living creature. , . . The perso?L who is a
unique and never-repeated phenomenon evades the traditional scientific
approach at every step. , , . Whether he [the scientist] delj,mits his
sc!ence s s the study of the mind, the soul, of behavior, purpose, con-
sciousness, 01’ human nature-the pe~sistent, indestructible fact of
organization in terms of individuality is always present.’
J. C. Smuts has this to say:
Personality i s the latest and supreme whoIe which has arisen in
tho holistic series of evolution. It is a new structure built on the prior
structures of matter, life, and mind. . . . Mind is its most important
and conspicuous constituent. But the body is also very important and
gives the intimate flavor of humanity t o Personality. , , . The ideal
Personality only arises where Mind irradiates Body and Body nourishes
Mind, and the two are one in their mutual transfigurement.n
Nature is individualistic: we come into the world one by one,
and we go out of it one by one; and while in it, each human in-
dividual is a unique one, As Emerson has said: “Nature never
rhymes her children nor makes two men alike.” My potentialities,
thoughts, memories, desires, decisions, likes and dislikes, all
belong to me; in the very nature of the case I cannot transfer
them t o anyone else. Nature’s provision, moreover, is directed
primarily toward the welfare of the individual; even the state,
in the Providence of God, exists to benefit the individual. Hence,
1. Op. it., 30.
2. 01). G i t . , 3, 5,
3. Holism dird Evoh~tion,261,262.
197
said Jesus, one human life is of infinitely greater value than
the whole material world: “For what shall a man be profited,
if he’shall gain the whole world, and forfeit his life? or what
shall a man give in exchange for his life?” (Matt, 16:26). The
reason for this high evaluation of a human soul is obvious:
every person is an image and likeness of God.
4. A person is, in the fourth place, a transcendent unity.
A person, in knowing and evaluating and utilizing material things,
however imperfectly, transcends the whole material order. De-
spite shallow and thoughtless observations to the contrary, the
fact remains that our world is, and will always be, anthropo-
centric; anthropocentric, that is, in the sense that every person
is the center of his own world, the world of his own experience.
[Actually, the Totality of Things may best be described as
theocentric.] And there is no evidence that any other creature
of earth possesses the ability to reflect upon, or to resolve the
problem-for himself at least-of his place in, or relation to, the
Totality of Things, Adaptation to environment, for man, means
infinitely more than mere adaptation to one’s immediate family,
neighborhood, state or nation: it means, for the thinking per-
son, adaptation to the Universal Order, that is, a satisfactory
philosophy of life. Man alone is capable of evolving for himself
a Weltanschauung. Again I quote from Illingworth:
Personality is the gatew+ay through which all knowledge must in-
evitably pass, Matter, force, energy, ideas, time, space, law, freedom,
cause, and the like, are absolutely meaningless phrases except in the
light of our personal experience.’
And again:
Now the significance of all this is t h a t we are spiritual beings.
The word spirit is indeed undefinable and mcay even be -called in-
definite, but it is not a merely negative term for the opposite of matter.
It has a sufficiently distinct connotation for ordinary use. It implies
a n order of existence which transcends the order of sensible experience,
the material order: yet which, so f a r from excluding the material
order includes and elevates it to higher use, precisely a s the chemical
includes and transfigures the mechanical, o r the vital the chemical
order. It is thus synonymous with supernatunal, in the strict sense
of the term. And personality ... belongs t o this spiritual order, the
only region in which self-consciousness and freedom can have place.a
Personality, that which fills the capacities and actuates the po-
tentialities of the person, is the supreme mystery of being, yet
the most real thing in human experience. Nothing can ever be
1. o p . cit., 25.
2. Ibid., 45.
198
MATTER AND SPIRIT
quite so real to me as my own thoughts, my own desires, my own
will.
Thus it will be seen that spirit in man includes at least
the following: (1) all the powers of the Subconscious, (2) the
objective power of reason, (3) self-consciousness, memory, and
personal identity, (4) self-determination, and, in consequence of
all these powers, ( 5 ) the capacity for holiness, €or man’s be-
coming entirely himself..
A word is in orcier here about the relation of the person’s
power of self-determination-freedom of will, as it is commonly
called-to his attainment of holiness. Dr. Glenn Negley says:
The individual is both a Physical Man and la gocia1 Man, and he
cannot ignore either area of his existence. It is precisely the adjust-
ment of these two factors into a harmonious unity thlat describes what
is meant by personality, and the final category of the Individual
aspect may be called Person.%
He then adds:
I suggest t h a t Liberty is the concept most *appropriate to Person.
As a value principle Liberty means, briefly, the guarantee t o individuals
of as much freedom of thought and action a s is consistent with the
exercise of a n equal freedom by other
But what, precisely, is self-determination, freedom of will,
liberty?
Freedom of will, of course, definitely is not action without
motive; on the contrary, human action invariably proceeds from
motives. Free will, moreover, is always exercised within a
framework of heredity and environment. The extent of a per-
son’s knowledge is necessarily determined by his environment;
certainly he cannot will to achieve an end which is utterly un-
known to him. An African pigmy, for example, who has never
heard of ice, who knows nothing a t all about ice, certainly would
never think, wish or plan to go skating, Alternative choices
are presented to the person by the circumstances of his en-
vironment, and the ends for which he strives necessarily lie
within the circumference of the knowledge afforded him by
that environment. Free will means, in a word, immunity from
necessity within the framework in which choice can be made;
it means that the person who chooses to pursue one course of
action could have elected either not to act at all o r to pursue
an alternative course of action, It means simply that the motive
which prevails, out of two or more alternative and pe,r.rhaps con-
1. The Oiyanixation of Knowledge, 79.
2. Ibid,, 85.
als, is the motive that is more eZose~yin. harmony
with the individual will. In every choice, three factors are
present: that of heredity, that of environment, and that if the
personal reaction. Det sts, of course, are those gentlemen
who are determined cessitated) ’to deny the operation
of the last-named factor; in short, those‘ who
be determinists.
uestion has often been a
as to endow him with
well as’of good? , Or, to put it in a si
not create man incapable of sinning?
this problem involves a basic elemen
enetrated by human intell
state-the age-old mystery of the origin of
ever, that one fact stands out as obviou
the Creator brought into existence a
ning, that creature would not have been a person. Sin, of
course, is choosing to disobey, rather than to obey, the Word of
God; it is choosing one’s own way above God’s way of doing
things. 1 John 3:”“Sin is lawlessness.” Now a creature in-
capable of making such a choice simply would not be a man, for
self-determination is specifically the property of a person, and
man is a person. Hence, we can only conclude that man was
constituted a person by the Creator for a specific Divine pur-
pose or end. That Divine end, the end which was known to
God from the beginning, the end which every human being is
ordered by the Divine Thought, Love, and Will to attain, the
only end which can fully satisfy all his capacities and potencies,
is ultimate union of the human will with the Divi
j knowledge and love. This is man’s absolutely ultima
and proper intrinsic end, and his ultimate real Good. AS his
ultimate intrinsic perfective Good, it is Wholeness or Holiness;
as his ultimate intrinsic delectable Good, it is Beatitu
Bleiwedness. In the never-to-be-forgotten words of St. Aug
“Thou awakwt us to delight in Thy praise; for Thou madest
us for Thyself, and c ) heart is restless until it repose in Thee.”
This is not only th esiimony of the most profound human
thought, but the clear teaching of the Scriptures as well.
But what is holiness, and how is man ts attain it? For
thing, boliness is not innocence. Innocence is ir wgative
condition of complete inexperience of temptation and sin, a
state of untried childhood, to speak by way of analogy. Holiness,
on the other hand, is a condition of experienced but positively
200
MATTER AND SPIRIT
repudiated temptation and sin. It is a life actively lived in con-
formity with the Word of God, motivated solely by one’s love
for God. It is the life of the Spirit-the life of the human spirit
yielded in loving obedience to the guidance of the indwelling
Holy Spirit. Holiness, in short, presupposes the power of self-
determination actively exercised in the direction of righteous-
ness, and righteousness is simply doing right, doing what God
would have us to do. Holiness is the cultivation, actively, of a
disposition to please God in all things, purely out of the love
for God in one’s heart. Hence it is obvious that a necessary
connection exists-that of means to end-between freedom of
will and holiness; furthermore, that only a person can become
or be holy in the strict sense of that term.
Plato, in his great cosmological treatise, the Timaeus, pic-
tures the Demiourgos, the Divine Reason, as having overruled
Necessity (which he designates the Errant Cause) by persuasion,
rather than by compulsion, in the process of fashioning the Cos-
mos, The Divine Reason, in other words, was confronted by a
factor which was not wholly under His control and which partly
thwarted His benevolent purpose. Indeed it is difficult to see
how it could be otherwise in any undertaking that is purposive;
purposiveness necessarily embraces the adaptation of indispens-
able means to given ends. As Dr. F. M. Cornford writes, in
commenting on this Platonic conception:
The necessity lies in the links connecting the purposing will at
the beginning of the chain with the attainment of the purpose a t the
end; we need not think of i t as extending further in either direction.
Reason and will are conditioned by this concatenation of indispensable
means. So it is with the craftsman, If I wish to cut wood, I must
make my saw of iron, not of wax. Iron has certain properties of its
own, indispensable for my purpose. On the other hand, I can take
advantage of this very fact to attain my end. I can make use of
those properties to cut wood, though the iron in itself would just as
soon cut my throat?
All this implies, of course, that even Omnipotence, in any ordered
system, is limited to some extent by purposiveness; the pre-
requisite of the achievement of a purpose is the indispensability
of specific means to the forechosen end. Now as Christians, our
conviction, justified both by reason and by Scripture teaching,
is that God created the world and man purposefully; that the
Divine end in creation is the ultimate establishment of a holy
redeemed race of immortals in the new heavens and new earth
Cowfessioizs, I, 1, Pusey Translation, Everyman’s Library.
1. Plato’s Cosmology, 174.
201
wherein dwelleth righteousness (2 Pet. 3:13)-a race fitted to
have fellowship with Infinite Holiness Himself. Granting, then,
that the glorified and immortalized saint is the end-product of
the whole Creative Process, the end-product divinely foreseen
and foreordained from the beginning, it is difficult to see how
even Omnipotence Himself could have achieved the production
of this end-product without having created the natural person
endowed with self-consciousness and self-determination, the in-
dispensable means to sainthood. In a word, the relation between
freedom of will and holiness is that of the indispensable means
to a divinely predetermined end. Hence, our God created man
first a person, in order that he might become a saint, and, in
addition, provided him with all the necessary means of achieving
sainthood, Therefore, although a person must “work out his
own salvation with fear and trembling,” at the same time “it is
God who worketh in him both to will and to work, for his good
pleasure” (Phil. 2: 12-13). The result is that man alone, of all
creatures of earth, is capable of ultimate union with God, ultimate
holiness, Everlasting Life.
QUESTIONS FOR REVIEW OF PART TWO

1.What is our approach to ,an understanding of the term “spirit”?
2. List some of the more common definitions of matter.
3.In what two categories do we classify “the stuff” of things?
4. Explain what is meant by the cosmic “substance,”
5. State some of the earliest concepts of the cosmic %ubstance.”
6. What was the ancient theory of the four “elements”?
7. State the theory of Demokritos and Epikouros.
8. State what is meant by Plato’s dualism.
9. State the main features of Plato’s story of the Creation.
10. What was the theory of matter held by Plotinus? What is meant
by Creation by Emmanation?
11.State Aristotle’s hytomorphic theory.
12. Explain (1) materia prima and (2) “substantial form.”
13.Explain the “light. metaphysics” of the early Oxford philosophers.
14. What a r e the three processes involved in immortalization? Explain.
16. What is the essential property of matter, according to Descartes?
16. What were the discoveries of Boyle and Lavoisier?
17. Explain the “building block” theory of the atom. Who originated it?
18. What is the present-day theory of the atom?
19.State the conclusions of the latest physical science in regard to the
tutioa of matter.
20. what is meant by the Einsteinitan theory of energy and
in what is meant by “maximum entropy.”
is ftr&iit by the “ether”? WKat is the present-day view about
aps
i3. %%at is the quantum theory?
24. What significance is there in the fact that our most modern con-
202
MATTER AND SPIRIT
cept of the atom is arrived at, f i r s t of all, by the way of matlie-
matical lormulas?
25. Does the Bible teach the doctrine of annihilation? Explain.
26. Explain Madame Curie’s discovery.
27.Explain how the present-day concept of the atom is more meta-
physical thoan physical.
28. Exalain: “There is no mvsterv in the ahvsical world which does
_ I
no{ point t o a mystery beyond“ itself.”

29. Is sensory experience the noblest and most satisfying of which man
is capable? Explain.
30. Explain what is meant by the “mystery of space.”
31. Explain what is meant by the “mystery of time.”
32. State the current theory of the Space-Time dimension.
33. What correspondences do we find between Spirit and $pace?
34. Discuss everywlte~~qzess and iizexlzaustibleims in relation t o both
Spirit and Space.
35. What additional phenomena must be accounted for by those who
would contend that atoms were the first forms of being?
36. I n this area of thought what distinguishes the “lion-believer” froin
the believer?
37. Why do we accept the view that P u r e Spirit is tlie First Principle
of all things?
38. Explain how t h a t in the realm of Spirit we are dealing with the
qualitative rather than the quaqztitatiwe.
39. Show how the Biblical presentation of tlie Spirit of God as the
energizing Agency of the Creation is in harmony with the latest
conclusions of physical science.
40. What significant conclusions may we draw from this excursion
into the study of the constitution of matter?
41. Explain the Pythagorean theory of the Cosmos.
42. How explain the notion of the “flowing” of a geometrical config-
uration into a sense-perceivable body?
43. What kind of phenomenon is sensation? Ry what are sensations
originated and in what media do they manifest themselves.
44. To what function especially are man’s physical senses adapted?
45. Whoat are the ultimate kinds of energy t h a t make up the structure
of the atom?
46. To what does the term sensa refer?
47.For what reasons do we say that the r a w material of knowledge
is given us through sense-perception?
48. What does the Bible teach regarding the source of our faith?
49. Show t h a t the Scriptures teach t h a t conversion is psychological
and not mystical.
50. State Alexander Campbell’s view of this problem o f the primary
source of knowledge land faith.
51. What is the philosophical background of tlie Restoration movement?
52. Can feeling states be reliable as evidences of salvation? Explain
your answer.
53. What do we mean by the statement t h a t sensations are “atomistic”?
54. What occurs in perception, in relation to the sensations which pro-
duce i;t?
56. How IS ccinsciousness related t o sensation and perception? Explain
how consciousness brings in the problem of meaviizg.
56, Why is the jump from sensation t o consciousness called “a leap
of fiaith”?
57. Where does the distinction between physiology and psychology be-
come apparent in the over-all process of cognition?
58. Is it possible in fact t o reduce psychology to sheer physiology?
Explain your answer,
203
69,Explain what is meant by the term “psychosomatic.” How does
this accord with Genesis 2 :7?
60. What is the mind-body pToblem?
61.“Scientists make the mistake of assuming that by namidg a p h 9
nomenon they explain it.” Give some examples of the truth of thls
statement.
62. What evidence do we have in daily living t h a t the psychical in man
can move, direct, and control the physical?
63. Man is a “living soul.” What does this Dhrase indicate with re-
spect to the stace of the redeemed both now *and herea€ter?
64. Is it possible t o explain consciousness in terms of pure sensation,
that is, in terms of the activity of brain cells?
65. State Aristotle’s doctrine of the hierarchy of being.
66. What is the b a s k unit of every “living thing”?
67. What a r e the over-all characteristics of living things?
68. Describe the structure of the cell. How do plant cells differ froni
’ animal cells? What is protoplasm? What is the mystery of proto-
plasm?
69. Wh’at is photosgnthesis? What great function does it serve in
nature?
70. Define the cellular processes of segmentation, differentiation, and
specialization. What causes cancer?
71. How is the persistence of personal identity t(E-be explained? What
does point to, in reltation t o human destiny?
72. What is self-consciousness?
73. Distinguish between the mechanistic and vitalistic theories of life.
74. What is meant by “spontaneous generation”? How was it regarded
in earlier times? How do scientists regard it today?
75. What is the significance of Pasteur’s research in this area?
76. Explain what is meant by theism, materialism, dualism.
77*How does Strong deal with the problem of the method of the
Creation?
78. Explain Bergson’s doctrine of the Elan Vital. ’1lT 131HI*‘ i l l 1
79. What is the mystery of the life process? Explain the signifiwnce
of the phrase, “River of Life.”
80. Why must we insist that life in svew form is a divine gift?
81. How is the Divine Spirit related to all forms of life, both temporal
and spiritual?
82. Explain the Conditioned Reflex and Wiatson’s Behaviorism.
83. ExDlain what is meant by- -Dsschological
- - materialism or material-
istic psychology.
84. What is the special signlfimnce of the swing of the pendulum in
our day away from materialism to extremes of cultism, mysticism,
and even occultism?
86. Summarize Tresmontant’s statement of the case iagainst materialism.
86. Summarize Clutton-Brock’s statement of the case against material-
ism.
87. Summarize the statement of Dr. Hess concerning the mind-body
problem.
88. Explain how we know that truth is discovered-not formulated-
by man?
89. What is the problem involved in the interaction theory of mind-
body relationship?
90. Show how interactionism is in harmony with the Christian doctrine
of immortality.
91. What mean we by affirming that man is more than body or “flesh”?
92. W h a t is meant by the Breath of God in Scripture revelation? Cf.
Gen. 2:7.
93. What does this Breath of God add t o the being of man? ’ ,
204
MA?TBR AND SPIRIT
94. State Dr. Carrel’s affirmation ,about the transcendence of man.
What a r e man’s outreaches and Prom what internal source do they
come?
96. Explain wlmt is meant by holiness in $cripture. Explain Reality
,and Real Beiwg. How may man ultimately attain Real Being?
96. Explain again the reLation between sensations and perception.
97, Explain what is meant by simple a,pprehensioiz, the first “opera-
tion” of t h e intellect.
98, Explain what is meant by a judgment, the second “operlationJ’ of
the intellect.
99, Explain what is meant by reasoning, both inductive and deductive.
100. List the higher activities of man which are not reducible to matter-
in-motion but which transcend all his physical activities.
101. State Joad’s final statement of the case against materialism.
102. What a r e the proofs that man was created in the image of God?
103. Explain: “In a purely material world there can never be such
things as values.”
104. To what may we attribute the reluctance of the academic world to
explore t h e powers of the Subconscious in man?
106. Explain what is meant by each of the following terms: parapsychol-
ogy, extrasensory perception, telepathy, clairvoyance, prescience,
telekinesis, psycholcinesis.
106. What is the correlation between discoveries in this field and (1)
the traditional conceat of the mind (or soul). #and ( 2 ) the tradi-
tional concepts in t l c area of religious thou& and life.
107. What is indicated by such phenomena as the subconscious associa-
tion of ideas and the subconscious maturing of thought?
108. Summarize Ernest Dimnet’s discussion of the powers apparently
inherent in the Subconscious.
109,Summarize Bergson’s theory of the “two selves.” Distinguish be-
tween “subliminal” and “supraliminal.”
110,State and discuss the interpretat,ion of the “two selves” suggested
herein,
111.With what may we correlate “mind” and “spirit,” respectively?
112. What is indicated to be the real s i r i t in man?
113. Discuss the powers of the szc&eclive as distinguished from the
objective in man.
114. What is the special function of t h e physical sense in man?
116. Give examples to show that the powers of the subliminal self in
man transcend space and time,
llG. What i s one of the essential functions of spirit in man? How
may it be related to the putting on of immortality?
117.How are the facts stated here, related to the Scripture doctrines
of survival and immortality?
118.What important evidence is provided by the Subconscious to prove
the essential independence and imperishability of the substantial
human being?
119.What evidence have we from the study of the Subconscious t o
authenticate each of the following: (1) the Scripture doctrines
of inspiration and revelation, (2) eternal ‘rewards and punishments,
(3) progressive sanctificiation, (4) the law of memory, ( 6 ) the
law of conscience, ( 6 ) the law of character, ( 7 ) creativity in man
(mathematical prodigies, music prodigies, “idiot-savants,” etc.),
(8) prescience in man, ( 9 ) psychotherapeutics (physical healings,
etc.) ?
120.From what we know of the ppwers of the Subconscious, what may
truly be the final state of the redeemed, known as “holiness” o r
“entire sanctification”?
121.According to one of the old Catechisms, what is man’s end in life?
205
122..Explain what is meant by man’s choice between growth in holiness
on the one hand, and atavism on the other? What is atavism?
123. What is the essential property of life? What does this mean with
respect to the Spiritual Life?
124.What a r e the lessons t o be derived from the Narrative of Lazarus
and the Rich Man?
125.What is meant by perce y the Subconsciou
laws of nature?
126. What light do these phenomena throw upon the
Beatific Vision?
127. What consequences are indicated from the healing power of sug-
gestion and auto-suggestion?
128. Summarize Allport’s evaluation of the function of re1
129. What a r e the fundamental principles which underlie
of “mental therapeutics”?
130. How are the miracles of the Bible-especially those
Christ Himself-to be distinguished from the alleged “miracles”
wrought by human agency?
131. What must be our conclusion regtardin
liminal Self?
132. Explain what is meant by psychokinesis
to be made with respect t o the various aspects of this phenomenon?
133. Explain the statement that these specific powers serve t o prove
the spark of the Infinite in man and t o authenticate the Biblical
teaching that he was created in Gad’s image.
134. What is catalepsy? What fundamental fact is inherent in this
phenomenon?
135. Explain Richet’s analysis of the phenomena which he attributes
to (‘a faculty of cognition t h a t differs radically from the usual
sensorial flaculties.”
136.How does Hudson explain what he calls the “physical power” of
the subjective mind?
137. Explain ectoplasms, phantasms, automatic writing, levitation. How
laccount for these phenomena?I
138. How does Hamlin Garland account for qctoplasms?

139. Explain the statement, “Thoughts are things.” How is this re-
Lated t o God’s method of Creation?
140. Explain Lyttelton’s analysis of the powers of the “Superconscious.”
What i s meant by the term?
141. State Hubbard’s theory of “engramst”,
142.What is the general conclusion t o be dr+awn from this particular
phase of our subject, with reference t o the Spirit of God?
143. What light does this study of the pswers of the Subconscious
throw on the relation between Matter and Spirit?
144. What conclusion can we draw with respect t o the nature of man
band the development of the Spiritual Li€e?
145. What is the type of being found at the lowest. level?
146. What kind of being do we find a t the second level and what are
the specific powers which are added at this level?
147. What kind of being do we find a t the third level land what a r e the
specific powers added at this level?
148. What kind of being do we find, and what powers are added, at
the fourth level?
149. What a r e the characteristics or powers comprehended in the term
person?
150. What attributes in man distinguish “spirit” in man from c‘spirit”
in beast?
161. Distinguish between person and personality.
162. What are the chanacteristics of the power of reason?
206
MATTER AND SPIRIT
153. Distinguish between instinct and intellection.
154. What do we mean by saying that man is animal plus? HOWdid
Aristotle distinguish man from the lower ianimals?
155. State Boethius’ definition of a person.
156. Describe the confusion t h a t i s caused by present-day attempts to
reduce man t o the animal status, t h a t is, t o treat him as a “glori-
fied brute.”
157. Why do we insist that such terms as “person” and “personality”
must be restricted t o human beings?
158. Explain what is meant by self-consciousness.
159. What was the Socratic injunction t o all thinkers?
160. Can there be any “behaving” or “adapting” apart from a being
capable of doing these things?
161. How explain the tendency in modem psychology t o ignore the
significance of the Self and selfhood?
162. What is “personalistic psychology”?
163.State Allport’s analysis of the evidences of the Person or Self.
164. What a r e the characteristics of the Person or Self, according to
Allport?
16S.In what respects does the mind of man transcend time iand space?
166. Explain how, according t o Illingworth, a person is (1) a ulzity,
(2) a persistent unity, ( 3 ) a unique unity, (4) a transcendent unity.
167. Explain what is meant by the dissociation of a personality?
168.Explain the case of Sally Beauchamp, as described by Dr. Prince.
What is, perhaps, the explanation of cases of “dual” or “multiple”
personality?
169.What is the significance of memory in the person? What did
8
William James say about remembering?
170. Why do we say that the world is anthropocentric? Why do we say
that is might better be described a s theocentric?
171. Summarize all that “spirit” in man embraces.
172. What is meant by self-determination?
173. Explain: Freedom of will is not action without motive. Is there
any such thing in man as motiveless action? What is the definition
of freedom from a negative point of view?
174. I n what “framework” is freedom of choice necessarily exercised?
175.How can we account for the fact t h a t man was created with the
potentiality of doing wrong? What might well have been the
divine purpose in this?
176.Explain: “The price t h a t man pays for his personal freedom is
the possibility of evil.”
177. What, iagain, are man’s ultimate intrinsic and extrinsic ends?
178. What is his ultimate intrinsic p e r f e c t h e good? What is his
ultimate intrinsic delectable good?
179. What is holiness? How does it differ from innocence?
180.Explain how the characteristics of the person are indispensable t o
sainthood. How does the power of love f i t into this over-all picture?
181.In what sense does the activity of the Holy Spirit play a n indis-
pensable role in God’s purpose for His saints?
182. What, according t o Scripture, is God’s Eternal Purpose for His
redeemed? (Cf. Rom. 8:29 and 2 Cor, 5:4).
207
208
PART THREE
THE HIERARCHY
OF BEING
1. Recap: Man’s Ultimate Ends

The word “hierarchy” originates from the Greek hierarches,
and this in turn from hieros, “sacred,” and archos, “leader” or
4(
ruler,” from archein, “to rule.” The term is used (1) to specify
an ascending series of orders of holy beings, as the celestial
hierarchy (“the angelic orders collectively”) ; (2) to designate
a series of ecclesiastics “disposed organically in ranks and orders,
each subordinate to the one above it,” and (3) “a series of
objects or items divided or classified in ranks or orders, as in
natural science or logic.”’ With reference to the Totality of
Being, as used here, the meaning of the word embraces especially
the first and last of these definitions, that is, it takes in all
ascending orders and ranks of being, both physical and spiritual,
including both the “natural” and “supernatural.”
We have emphasized previously, under various headings,
that man is a creature. Individually or as a race he has nothing
to do with his being in the world, and very little to do with the
time or manner of his going out of it; and while he is in it, he
is absolutely dependent on Nature and Nature’s God for the air
that he breathes, the water he drinks, the food he eats, and even
the very ground he walks on. No amount of self-pride or self-
assestiveness on his part can substantially alter these facts,
now or ever.
Man is a creature. Neither as an individual nor as a race is
he self-sufficient. Moreover, the unfailing criterion of a truly
wise man is his own constant recognition of his creaturehood,
in all his deaIings with God and with his fellow-men. Humility,
as St. Augustine was wont to reiterate, is the most essential
condition to the acquirement of wisdom. This is a lesson which
our age needs desperately to learn.
Again, as a creature, man-every man, every human being-
his his own proper ultimate end, the end to which he is ordered
by the Creator Himself, the purpose for which He put him in
the world. What is the proper ultimate end of man? There can
be but one genuinely satisfactory answer to this question, namely,
man’s ultimate intrinsic end is union with God. His ultimate
extrinsic end is, of course, God’s own glory. “his universe of
ours is neither heliocentric, geocentric, nor anthropocentric: it is
theocentric. God Himself is the source and end of all things.
His glory is the proper extrinsic end of His whole creation.
Any other end would be unworthy of both the Creator and His
1. Webster’s New Collegiate Dictionavg, Second Edition, S.V.
2 10
THE HlERARCIlY OF BEING
creatures. But the ultimate intrinsic end of every human being
is union with God. Ths fact is not to be wondered at, therefore,
that basic in all systems of faith and practice which have emerged
from the religious consciousness of humankind is the concept
and hope of ultimate union with the Divine, No matter how
divergent these systems may be as to the means and methods
by which this union is to be achieved, the fact remains that they
uniformly envision union with God as the ultimate goal of in-
dividual human attainment.
In Scripture this union with God is described as seeing
God “face to face.” “For now we see in a mirror, darkly; but
then face to face; now I know in part; but then shall I know
fully even as also I was fully known” (1 Cor. 13: 12). “Beloved,
now are we children of God, and it is not yet made manifest
what we shall be. We know that, if he shall be manifested, we
shall be like him; for we shall see him even as he is. And every
one that hath this hope set on him purifieth himself, even as
he is pure” (1 John 3: 2-3). Such an ultimate oneness with God
will surely consist of the complete union of the human mind
with the divine Mind in knowledge, and the complete union of
the human will with the divine Will in love, together with the
accompanying illumination that such union can never be broken,
that it is indeed everlasting. This is the Vision of God. This
is Beatitude. This is the Life Everlasting. I am unable to con-
ceive of eternity as merely stretched-out time, so to speak; I
must think of it rather as illumination,-illumination that em-
braces the sense of unending duration, and that will bring to
the saint the certainty of his own inalienable possession of God.
For, in the final analysis of the case, Heasen is where God is,
and Hell i s where God is not.
To such an ultimate intrinsic end every human being has
been ordered by the Creator Himself. The only alternative view
is that of the utter purposelessness and consequent €utility of
all existence; the view that
The world rolls round for ever like a mill,
It grinds out death and life and good and ill;
It has no purpose, heart, or mind or will,
Unfortunately for man this is the view which has permeated all
too generally the literature of the past half-century; this despite
the fact that it is a view which finds little support in human
observation, experience or science.
To such an ultimate end, moreover, man has been disposed
211
by the Divine implanting within him of a will that seeks only
a good in its every activity. The human will was never known
to seek complete ultimate evil. Even when it pursues an evil,
it does so for the purpose of gaining what the individual con-
ceives to be an ultimate good; the saint who gives his body
to be burned does so only because he regards the temporary
evil as a stepping-stone to ultimate bliss. Man errs only when
he mistakes and misuses apparent goods for real goods. Ig-
norance of his proper end, and of the proper means of attaining
it, has always been, is yet, and probably always will be, the
prime source of man’s faults and follies. As Jesus Himself
states expressly: “If ye abide in my word, then are ye truly
my disciples; and ye shall know the truth, and the truth shalI
make you free” (John 8:31-32). (Cf. Matt. 7:24-28; 6:19-22,
6:33; Rom. 2:4-11).
Herein, too, consists the real meaning of “good” and “evil:’
and of “right” and “wrong.” Those acts of a human being are
naturally good which perfect his character in virtue; those are
bad which tend to destroy his character and standing as a man.
Similarly, those acts of a man are right which tend t o lead him
toward the attainment of his natural and proper ultimate end;
and those are wrong which lead him in the opposite direction, or
which tend to prevent his attainment of his proper ultimate end.
Goodness has reference to the perfection of the human char-
acter in virtue; rightness, to the directionality of his activity
and life.
Now it follows that, since man’s proper ultimate end is
union with God, in preparation for such an end he must be
justified, purified, and sanctified, for the simple reason that a
holy God can have no concord with impurity of heart. “Blessed
are the pure in heart; for they shall see God” (Matt. 5 : 8 ) . In-
deed, in the very nature of things, o d y the pure in heart could
ever hope to apprehend, to know, to pealize the possession of,
God. This, I repeat, has to be true because it is in accord with
the very nature of things. The “nature of things,” moreover,
is determined by the Will of God who is all-consistent; His will
is the constitution of the universe both physical and moral.
Hence it follows inevitably that the God who, in creation, de-
termined man’s proper ultimate end and ordered him to the
attainment of it, must have, by the same edict of His Divine
Will, in the light of His Divine Intelligence, determined and
ordered the necessary means to his attainment of that end. For
our God, the God of the Bible, is a purposeful God. And being
212
omniscient, E e knows how perfectly to adapt proper means to
their respective ends. He Himself tells us: “I am God, and
there is none else; I am God, and there is none like me; declaring
the end from the beginning, and from ancient times things that
are not yet done; saying, My counsel shall stand, and I will do
all my pleasure . , . yea, I have spoken, I will also bring it to
pass; I have purposed, I will also do it” (Isa. 46:9-11).
On the principle then of the perfect adaptation of means
to ends, always characteristic of the activity of our Creator,
it follows that the one essential prerequisite of the individual
man’s attainment of his proper ultimate ends must be the life
with the Holy Spirit. Such a life is indispensable to the acquire-
ment of that holiness, which is wholeness, “without which no
man shall see the Lord” (Heb. 12:14). Only by the life with
the Holy Spirit can the creature “put on the new man, that after
God hath been created in righteousness and holiness of truth”
(Eph. 4:24). Only by the life with the Holy Spirit can men
become in fact “partakers of the divine nature, having escaped
from the corruption that is in the world by lust” (2 Pet. 1:4),
_Only by the life with the indwelling Spirit of God can men be
made “meet to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in
light” (Col. 1:12). There is no other way. “For the kingdom
.of God is not eating and drinking, but righteousness and peace
and joy in the Holy Spirit” (Rom. 14:17). How exceedingly
important, then, that we frail mortals understand what the life
with the Holy Spirit is and how it may be engendered within
us, in order that we may live it and experience its joys, and
attain its crowning recompense-Beatitude!
Finally, the beginning of this life with the Holy Spirit
must be in union with Christ, that process which in Scripture,
viewed from the standpoint of the new principle of spiritual life
which is implanted in the natural heart, is described as regen-
eration. This new increment of power implanted in the human
heart by the Spirit, in conversion, is the living Word of God,
the Seed of spiritual life, in short, the Gospel which is the power
of God unto salvation to everyone that believes. This Gospel
or Word of God is “living, and active, and sharper than any
two-edged sword” (Heb. 4:12)-a savor of life unto life to one
who accepts it, but a savor of death unto death to one who
rejects it (2 Cor, 2:16)-because the Holy Spirit is in it and
exerts His regenerative power through it.
Luke 8:ll-The seed is the word of God.-John 3:6--That which
is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is
213
spirit. John 1:12-13-But as many as received him [the Logos], t o
them gave he the right to become children of God, even t o them thiat
believe on his name: who were born, not of blood, nor of the will of
the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God, Rom. l:16-For I am
not ashamed of the gospel: for i t is r of God unto salvation
to every one t h a t believeth. 1 Cor. 4 in Christ Jesus I begat
you through 'the gospel. Jas. 1:18-0f his own will he brought us
forth by the word of truth, that we should be B kind of first-fruits
of his creatures. 1 Pet, 1:eS-Having been begotten again, not of cor-
ruptible seed, but of incorruptible, through the word of God, which
liveth and abideth. Phil. 2:5-Have this mind in you, which w&s also
in Christ Jesus. John 6:63, [the words of Jesus]: the words that I
have spoken unto you lare spirit, and are life. Col. 3;16--Let the,
word of Christ dwell in you richly. 1 John 5:12--He that Hath the
Son hath the life; he that hath not the Son of God hath not the life.
Again, the Scriptures teach clearly that the prerequisites
of union with Christ are some four or five in number, as follows:,
1. The preaching and hearing of the Gospel. This Gospel:
moreover, consists of (1) three facts to be believed (namely:
the death, burial and resurrection of Christ); (2) three com-
mands to be obeyed (the commands to believe, repent, and be
baptized); and (3) three great promises to be enjoyed (re-
mission of sins, the gift or indwelling of the Holy Spirit, and
eternal life). The whole Christian missionary and evangelist
enterprise is predicated upon the obvious fact that men mu
first hear the Word of the Gospel in order to believe; that where
there is no preaching and hearing of the Gospel, no contact with
the Gospel message .by physkal sense, certainly there is no
operation of the Spirit, and consequently no conversion.
Acts 15:'i-Brethren, ye know that a good while ago God made
choice among you, that by my mouth the Gentiles should hear the
word of the gospel, and believe. Rom. 10:14, IS, 17-How then shall
they call on him i n whom they have not believed? and how shall they
believe in him whom they have not heard? and how shall they hear
without w preacher? and how shall they preach, except they be sent?
even as it is written, How beautiful a r e the feet of them that bring
glad tidings of good things! . . . So belief cometh of hearing, and
hearing by the word of Christ. 1 Cor. 121-For seeing that in the
wisdom of God the world through its wisdom knew not God, it was
God's good pleasure through the foolishness of the preaching t o save
them that believe. Matt. 24:14-And this gospel of the kingdom shall
be preached in the whole world for a testimony unto all the nations;
and then shall the end come.
[The fundamental facts of the Gospel are that Christ died f o r our
sins, that He was buried, and that He was raised up on the third day
and crowned Lord of all, that is, both Lord and Christ: Lord of the
Universe, s n d Absolute Monarch of the Kingdom of God.] 1 Cor. 15:l-4
NOW I make known unto you, brethren, the gospel which I preached
unto you, which also ye received, wherein also ye stand, by which also
ye are saved. if ye hold fast the word which I preached unto you,
except ye believed in vain, For I delivered unto you first of all that
whiuh also I received: that Christ died €or our sins according t o the
2 14
TI-IO 1IJERARCIJY OF BEING
scriptures; and that he was buried; a n d t h a t lie 111ath been raised on
the third day according t o the scriptures, etc. Acts 2:32-Tliis Jesus
did God raise up, whereof we all are witnesses. Acts 2:3G-Let all the
house of Jsrael know (assuredly, that God liath made him both Lord
and Christ, thifi Jesus whom ye crucified. [Upon these fundainental
facts rests the fundamental tlr.ctlt of the Gospel, namely, that Jesus
is the Christ, the Son o i the living God.] Matt. 1G:lG-And Simon
Peter answered and said, Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living
God. [Jesus was His name; Christ is His title. This title, Messias in
Hebrew, Cjwistos in Greek, means literally “The Anointed One.” Three
classes o i leaders were ofiicially anointed into office in olden times :
prophets, priests, and Icings. To accept Jesus as the Christ, tliereiore,
is to accept Him as p ~ o p k e t ,to whom we go for the words of eternal
Ifie; as piniest, who intercedes for us at the Throne of Grace; and as
Icing, who has a l l authority over our thoughts and lives, Moreover,
according t o this Confession, He is not only the Christ, but the Son of
the living God as well. Not a son, as all human beings are, in a natural
sense, but the Son of God in a special sense-the Only Begotten Son of
God, begotten by the “overdindowing” o i the Holy Spirit and born of
the virgin Mary.] John 3:lG-For God so loved the world, that he gave
his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth on him should not
perish, but have eternal life. John 1:14-And the Word became flesh,
and dwelt among us. Luke 1:35-And the angel answered and said
unto her [Mary], The Holy Spirit shall come upon thee, and the power
of the Most High shall overshadow thee: wherefore also the holy thing
which is begotten shall be called the Son of God. Gal. 4:4-5-But
when the fulness of the time clame, God sent forth his Son, born of a
woman, born under the law, that he might redeem them that were
under the law, that we might receive the adoption of sons,
[The commands and promises of the Gospel are clearly set forth
in the following Scriptures] : Rom. 2:8-unto them t h a t a r e factious,
and obey not the truth, etc. 2 Thess. 7:8-at the revelation of the Lord
Jesus from heaven, with the angels of his power in flaming fire, ren-
dering vengeance t o them that know not God, and to them that obey not
the gospel of our Lord Jesus. [Avy message thdt is t o be obeyed must
liave co?n~ita??ds.]Cf.Acts 16:31--Believe on the Lord Jesus, and thou
shalt be saved, thou and thy house. Acts 2:38-Repent ye, and be
baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ unto the remission
of your sins; and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. [Here
we have the promises of remission of sins and of the indwelling of the
Spirit.] Rom, 5:6-th,e .love of God hath been shed abroad in our hearts,
through the Holy Spirit wliich was given unto us. 2 Cor. 1:22--God,
who also sealed us, and gave us the earnest of the Spirit in our hearts,
Eph. 4:30--Grieve not the Holy Spirit of God, in whom ye were sealed
unto the dey of redemption. Rom. G:23--For the wages of sin is death;
but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.
[Thus we can readily see that the precious and exceeding great promises
(2,Pet. 1:4) of the Gospel are remission of sins, the indwelling of the
Spirit, and eternal life.]
2. Faith, (belief) in Christ, or that Jesus is the Christ, the
Son of the living God. The active principle of justification, re-
generation, and sanctification in man, is faith actively exercised
in conformity to the Will of God. For faith without works of
faith is dead (James 2: 17).
John 14:l [the words of Jesus] : Believe in God, believe also in
215
RIT-HIS PERSON AND POWERS
h it is impossible to be well-pleasing unto
him [God]; for he that cometh t o God must believe that he is, and
t h a t he is a rewarder of them that him, Rom. 5:1-Being
therefore justified by faith; we have God through our Lord
Jesus Christ. John 20:30-31-Many therefore did Jesus in
the presence of the disciples, which are not written in this book: but
these a r e written, that ye may believe that Jesus is the Chridt, the
Son of God; and t h a t believing ye may have life in his name, Acts
8 :12-But when they beileved Philip preaching good tidings concerning
the kingdom of God land the name of Jesus Christ, they were baptized,
both men and women. Acts 16:31-Believe on the Lord Jesus, land thou
shalt be saved, thou and house. John 3:18--He that believeth on him
is not judged; he t h a t believeth not hath been judged already, because
he hath not believed on the name of the only begotten Son of God.
John 3:36--He t h a t believeth on the Son h a t h eternal life; but he that
obeyeth not the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God abideth
on him.
3. Repentance toward Christ, that is, “turning frqm dark-
ness to light and from the power of Satan unto God” (Acts 26: 18).
Luke 13:3 [the words of Jesus : Except ye repent, ye shall all in
like manner perish. Acts 17:30-T l? e times of ignorance therefore God
overlooked; but now he commandeth men t h a t they should all every-
where repent. Acts 2:38--Repent ye, and be baptized every one of you
in the name of Jesus Christ unto the remission of your sins. Acts
3:19--Repent ye therefore, and turn again, t h a t your sins may be
blotted out, etc. Acts 26:19-20-Whe~efore, 0 king Agrippa, I was not
disobedient unto the heavenly vision: but declared both t o them of
Damascus first, and iat Jerusalem, and throughout all the country of
Judea, and also to the Gentiles, that they should repent and turn to God,
doing works worthy of repentance. 2. Cor. 7:lO-For godly sorrow
worketh repentance unto salvation, a repentance which bringeth not re-
gret: but the sorrow of the world worketh death,
4. Confession of Christ, that is, confession‘with the mouth
that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the living God. Not the
Son of a dead god (of wood or stone), but the Son of the living
and true God. The living Creed of the living Church of the
living God is the ever-living Christ.
Matt. 16:16-Simon Peter answered and said, Thou a r t the Christ,
the Son of the living God. John 9:22-the Jews had agreed already,
t h a t if any man should confess him t o be the Christ, he should be put
out of the synagogue. Matt. 10:32-33: Every one therefore who sh,all
confess me before men, him will I also confess before my Father who is
in heaven. But whosoever shall deny me before men, him will I also
deny before my F a t h e r who is in heaven. Rom. 10:9-10-If thou shalt
confess with thy mouth Jesus as Lord, and sbalt believe in thy heart
that God raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved: for with
the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth con-
fession is made unto salvation. 1 John 4:15-Whosoever shall confess
t h a t Jesus is the Son of Gcd, God abideth in him, and he in God.
5. Baptism into Christ. The Scriptures clearly teach that
union with Christ is consummated for the penitent believer-
216
and, I should add, only for the penitent believer-in the ordi-
nance oE Christian baptism. For this reason baptism is explicitly
designated “the washing of regeneration”: “according to his
mercy he saved us, through the washing of regeneration and
renewing of the Holy Spirit, which he poured out upon us
richly, through ,Jesus Christ our Savior” (Tit. 3: 5-6). (Cf. also
John 3:5, the words of Jesus to Nicodemus: “Verily, verily, 1
say unto thee, Except one be born of water and the Spirit, he can-
not enter into the kingdom of God.”) Hence, too, the whole
Church of Christ or Christian Church-these are interchangeable
names-is said to have been cleansed “by the washing oi water
with the word” (Eph. 5: 26). The Apostle elsewhere makes this
basic truth l o o clear f o r any possible misunderstanding. “Are
ye ignorant,” says he, “that all we who were baptized into
Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? We were buried
therefore with him through baptism into death: that like as
Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father,
so we also might walk in newness of life. For if we have be-
come united with him in the likeness of his death, we shall be
also in the likeness of his resurrection” (Rom. 6: 4-5). That is
to say, in baptism, which pictorializes the facts of the Gospel-
the death, burial, and resurrection of Christ-the penitent be-
liever literally dies to sin and arises in Christ, to walk in new-
ness of life, Hence, asks the Apostle: “We who died to sin,
how shall we any longer live therein?” (v. 2 ) . (Cf. also 2 Cor.
5: 17--“Wherefore if any man is in Christ, he is a new creature:
the old things are passed away; behold, they are become new.”
Also Rom. 8:l-There is therefore now no condemnation to
them that are in Christ Jesus.”) It is in his conforming to the
likeness of Christ’s death and resurrection, in the ordinance of
baptism, that the penitent beiliever is united with Him, literally
betrothed to Him, the Bridegroom, whose Bride the Church is.
“For ye are all sons of God, through faith, in Christ Jesus. F o r
as many of you as were baptized into Christ did put on Christ”
(Gal. 3: 26-27). Language could hardly be plainer. Jesus Him-
seli envisioned this union of the believer with Christ in bap-
tism, in the giving of the Great Commission. He said: “Go ye
therefore, and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them
[i.e., those who have been made disciples, believers, followers]
into the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy
Spirit; teaching them [i.e., those who have been baptized into
Christ, and who therefore belong to Christ and are entitled to the
riaine Christian] to observe all things whatsoever I commanded
217
THE ETERNAL SPIRIT -HIS PBRSON AND POWRRS
you: and lo, I am with you always, even unto the end of the
world” (literally, unto “the consummation of the age” or dis-
pensation, Matt. 28:19-20). Not that the water of baptism
itself washes away sin: obviously it does not. But that in
baptism, as in every ordinance of God of a visible character,
human faith meets Divine Grace in the appointment divinely
designated; and where such a meeting takes place, the blessing
connected by the Word of God with that particular appointment
is always conferred upon the believer, This is always the case,
I repeat, for the simple reason that the Word of God never fails.
Now the divine blessings expressly connected by the Word of
God-which is the Word revealed by the Spirit-with the ordi-
nance of Christian baptism, for the penitent believer, are remis-
sion of sins and the indwelling presence of the Holy Spirit. “Re-
pent ye, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus
Christ unto the remission of your sins; and ye shall receive the
gift of the Holy Spirit” (Acts 2:38). Moreover, when his sins
are remitted, the beginning of the union of the penitent believer
with Christ is the perfectly natural result. Thus through faith
in Christ, repentance toward Christ, confession of Christ, and
baptism into Christ, one who has heretofore been an alien to the
commonwealth of God is betrothed to Christ and begins his life
with the Holy Spirit.
Cf. Rom. 5:S-the love of God hath been shed abroad in our hearts
through the ,Holy Spirit which was given unto us. 1 Cor. 3:16-Know
ye not t h a t ye are a temple of God, and t h a t the Spirit of God dwelleth
in you? 1 Cor. 6:19--Know ye not that your body is a temple of the
Holy Spirit which i s in you, which ye have from God?
Thereafter the Christian life is a growth: growth “in the grace
and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ” (2 Pet.
3:18). “For the kingdom of God is not eating and drinking,
but righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit” (Rom.
14:17). It is the life of the saint who “continues stedfastly,”
one whose human spirit is indwelt by the Holy Spirit; one in
whom this life with the Spirit becomes in truth the Life of the
Spirit, as the human spirit becomes possessed more and more
by the Spirit of God. The final recompense is Holiness, Beati-
tude, the Life Everlasting-man’s natural and proper ultimate
intrinsic end. (The actual consummation of the betrothal occurs
at the Marriage Feast of the Lamb (the Heavenly Bridgegroom),
at which the actual, permanent-eternadcomplete Union takes
place. (Cf. Matt, 22:2-13; Eph. 5:22-32; 2 Pet. 3:lO-13; Rev.
19:7-9, 21:1-4.)
2 18
2. The Hierarchy of Being
Attention has already been called to the fact that the inter-
pretation of the Cosmos as a Hierarchy of Being-ie., as a
Totality whose constituent forms of existence are organized
according t o rank and therefore function on separate and pro-
gressively higher levels of being-originated with Aristotle.
According to Aristotle, the various kinds of soul (psyche),
ranked according to the level of being on which each exists and
functions, are the vegetative, sensitive, and rational, respec-
tively; and over all is God, who is pure Self-thinking Thought.
This view has persisted, though in somewhat different forms,
throughout the entire history of human thought. Alfred Russel
Wallace, for example, a contemporary and close friend of Charles
Darwin, held that there were three distinct breaks in the con-
tinuity of the evolation of life upon earth, namely, (1) the ap-
pearance of life, (2) the appearance of sensation and conscious-
ness, and (3) the appearance of spirit. (It will be remembered
that Darwin himself closed his first book, The Oyigin of Species,
with the frank declaration that life, with all its potencies,
was originally breathed by the Creator into the first forms of
organic being. The last sentence of the Origin reads as follows:
There is grandeur in this view of life with its several powers,
having been originally breathed by the Creator into a few forms or
into one; land that, while this planet has gone circling on according t o
the fixed law of gravity, from so simple a beginning endless forms
most beautiful and most wonderful have been, and are being evolved.
Obviously, these breaks in the Creative Process correspond to
the beginnings of vegetable, animal, and human life, respectively.
Wallace held that while natural selection may account f o r man’s
place in nature, it cannot account for his place above nature, as a
spiritual being. The introduction of life (vegetable form), he
declared, of consciousness (animal form), and of intellection
(human form), points clearly to a world of spirit, to which the
world of matter is subordinate; man’s intellectual and moral
faculties could not have been developed from the animal, but
must have had another origin, for which we can find an adequate
cause only in the world of spirit,’ It will be recalIed that both
Wallace and Darwin, unknowingly to each other, had been
thinking along the same general lines; that in fact Wallace had
arrived at the evolution hypothesis in its broad outlines before
1. A. R. Wallace, Dcmw~iiaism,445-478. Quoted by A. H. Strong,
Systematic Theology, One-Volume Edition, 473,
219
Darwin; but that when Darwin published his Origin of Species,
Wallace hastened to make his acquaintance and became there-
after his staunch friend and supporter. Wallace may in all truth
be said to have been co-author with Darwin of the theory of
Natural Selection. (As a matter of fact, it was neither Darwin
nor Wallace, but the German, Ernst Haeckel, who tried to de-
velop the theory of evolution so as to make the postulate of a
Creator superfluous. Haeckel (in his work, The Riddle of the
Universe) was the exponent especially of what is properly called
materialistic evolution (i.e,, evolution by chance, starting from
forms of “energy”). He constructed his “Tree of Life” by adding
a superfluity of “missing links,” simply by drawing on his store-
house of fantasy. His “Tree” is generally looked upon as a joke
today, even among biologists themselves.)
The same general view of the Cosmos as a Hierarchy of
Being is implicit in the conception of evolution put forward by
Hermann Lotze in his great work, Mikrokosmus, published in
three volumes, 1856-1864. According to Lotze, new increments
of power came into the life process at different stages, by direct
impartation from the Divine Being Himself. Lotze’s position
i s summarized by Dr. A. H. Strong as follows:
That great philoso her, whose influence is more potent than any
other in present thougit, does not regard the universe a s a plenum
t o which nothing can be added in the way of force. He looks upon the
universe rather a s a plastic organism t o which new impulses can be
imparted from Him of whose thought and will i t is a n expression.
These impulses, once imparted, abide in the organism and are there-
after subject to its law. Though these impulses come from within,
they come not from the finite mechanism but from the immanent God.
Robert Browning’s phrase, “All’s love, but all’s law,” must be inter-
preted as meaning that the very movements of the planets and la11 the
operations of nature are revelations of a personal and present God,
but it must not be interpreted a s meaning that God runs in a rut, that
He is confined to mechanism, that He is incapable of unique and start-
ling manifestations of power. The idea that gives t o evolution its hold
upon thinking minds is the idea of continuity. But absolute continuity
is inconsistent with progress. If the future is not simply ia reproduction
of the past, there must be some new cause of change. In order t o
. progress there must be either a new force, or a new combination of
forces, and the new combination of forces can be explained only by
some new force that causes the combination. This new force, more-
over, must be intelligent force, if the evolution is to be toward the
I better instead of toward the worse. The contiwity must be continuity
not of forces but of plan. The forces may increase, nay, they must in-
crease, unless the new is t o be a mere repetition of the old. There
must- be additional energy imparted, the new combinations brought
about;:,and all this implies purpose and will, But through all these
runs one continuous plan, and upon this Dlan the rationalitv of evolu-
tion depends. A man builds a house, In laying the foundation he uses
stone and mortar, but he makes the walls of wood and the roof of tin.
220
THE HIERARCHY O F BEING
In the superstructure he brings into play different laws from those
which apply t o the foundation, There i s continuity, not o f vaaterial, but
of p1un. Progress from cellar t o garret requires breaks here and there,
and the bringing in of new forces; jn fact, without the bringing in of
these new forces the evolution of the house would be impossible. Now
substitute f o r the foundation and superstructure living things like
the chrysalis and the butterfly; imagine the power t,o work from within
and not from without; and you see t h a t true continuicity does not ex-
clude bict involves new beghziiags. Evolution, then depends on incye-
nzents o f f o r c e plus continuit?d of plan. New creations are possible be-
cause the immanent God has not exhausted Himself. Miracle is pos-
sible because God is not f a r away, but i s a t hand t o do wbatever the
needs of the moral universe may require. Regeneration and answers
t o prayer +are possible for the very reason t h a t these a r e the objects
f o r which the universe was built. If we were deists, believing in a
distant God and a mechanical universe, evolution and Christianity
would be irreconcilable. But since we believe in a dynamical universe,
of which the personal and living God is the inner source of energy,
evolution is but the basis, foundation, and background of Christianity,
the silent and regular working of Him who, in the fulness of time,
utters His voice in Christ and the Cross? [Italics mine-C. C.]
It will be noted that this anaIysis of the Creative Process
resembles Bergson’s portrayal of the operation of the Elan Vital
in certain respects. Bergson would say, of course, that the suc-
cessive increments of power postulated by Lotze-the sources
ontologically of the progressively advanced types of existents-
were contained within the Elan itself and put forth by it (or
Him?) at different stages in the ongoing of the life process.
Now if it were possible to identify Bergson’s Elan with the
Divine Spirit-which it is not, precisely-such a position would
be in accord with the thesis which is being suggested in this
treatise,
M y own thinking may be stated as jollows, in a nutshell:
Whereas evolution (i.e,, variation, either upward or downward)
m a y conceivably have taken place o n each of the various levels
of being themselves, the fact remains that the bridges or gaps
between those levels have never been successfully bridged, nor
do they give any evidence whatever of ever being successfully
bridged, multitudinous conjectures t o the contrary notwithstand-
ing, b y any purely naturalistic theory of evolution, T h e gaps,
for example, in the Totality of Being, between (1) t h e inanimate
and the animate, ( 2 ) the unconsckous and the conscious, and
(3) the conscious and the self-conscious or personal, have never
been accounted for, not even remotely so, b y any naturalistic
evolution hypothesis. T h e suggestion of the present treatise is,
therefore, that it was at these intervening points or gaps that
1. A. H. Strong, Clzrist in Creation, 163-166. Cf. Lotze, Milcro-
kosmus, 11, 479 ff.
22 1
new increments of power, as postulated by Lotze-that is, that
new and successively higher powers and functions, namely, those
designated in the aggregate by the terms “life,” “consciousness”
and “person”-may have been introduced into the Creative
Process at successive intervals, the introduction of each new
set of powers or functions thus marking the beginning of a new
and higher level of existence; and that these successively higher
increments of power may have been imparted to the Creative
Process by the the Divine Spirit from the very Being of God
Himself. The final result is, and will be, when the Creation
shall have been consummated, a Hierarchy of Being. Evolution,
as a matter of fact, is a faith, based entirely on inference, and
on inference that is, in many respects, very questionable.
On the other hand, should it turn out eventually that these
breaks or gaps in the scale of total being could be bridged by
any theory of natural evolution or development (ie., according
to Le Conte, continuous progressive change, according to fixed
laws, by means of resident forces), the fact would still remain
that all those potencies actuated and revealed at subsequent
stages in the Creative Process must have been inherent original-
ly in the first existing forms. “In order to progress there must
be either a new force, or a new combination of forces, and the
new combination of forces can be explained only by some new
force that causes the combination.” There is simply no getting
around the fact of an all-embracing First Principle, that is,
One who is the source and cause of all powers and functions
inherent in the Cosmos and its creatures as we know them. No
theory of evolution can dispense with Creative Power; and
when scientists and philosophers talk about Creative Power,
they simply mean that Power whom Christians reverently desig-
nate as God. All this boils down to the fact that most of the
controversy alleged to have prevailed in recent years between
scientific and religious thought has been pretty much a business
of thinking and talking in circles.
Again, it is quite generally agreed today, I think, that
mutations constitute about the only satisfactory ground on which
the arrival of a new species can be accounted for. But what
are mutations? And what causes mutations? Cosmic rays, it
may be? But who or what causes cosmic rays? And who or
what has caused the obtrusion of cosmic rays into the Creative
Process, especially in such a manner as to account for the origin
progressively of the phenomena of life, consciousness, mind,
self-consciousness, and so on? Would not such a progressive
222
!lHE HIERARCHY OF BEING
sequence of mutations, that is, a sequence resulting in such
progressively higher types of existences, necessarily presuppose
a guiding Intelligence'! Can any thinking person attribute such
an orderly procedure to mere chance? In a word, if cosmic
rays were back of the mutations, and these mutations back of
the various levels of phenomena which constitute our Cosmos,
then we must conclude that Universal Intelligence and Will
directed the application of those primal cosmic rays to the
Creative Process, in such a manner and at such well-chosen
intervals, as to build up the ordered Totality of Being with which
our human science makes us, partially at least, familiar. For,
that there has been a Creation, certainly cannot be denied
logically or experientially; that there was a time when man
did not exist, and indeed an earlier time when neither plant
nor animal existed, is implicit in the evolution hypothesis. Then
how came all these phenomenal creatures into existence?
Whether by mutations or what not, they came into existence
by the operation of the Creative Power (Efficient Causality)
which is the First Principle of all things. Creation did take
place, whether by emanation, by evolution, or instantaneously.
We Christians believe, and have every good reason to believe,
that the Creative Power is Spirit, He whom we revere and
worship and adore as God. It is impossible to rule Intelligence,
Purposiveness, and Order-in a word, G o d - o u t of the Scheme
of Things.
Again, the hierarchical conception of the Cosmos is implicit
in the current philosophy of Holism, according to which the
Creative Process concretes itself in increasingly complex wholes
which mark off the different levels in the total structure of
being. General J. C. Smuts, for example, defines Holism as
the ultimate synthetic, ordering, organizing, regulative activity in the
universe wliich accounts f o r all the structural groupings and syntheses
in it, froin the latom and the physicochemical structures, through
the cell and organisms, through Mind in animals, to Personality in
inan. . . . The all-pervading and ever-increasing character of synthetic
unity or wholeness in these structures leads to the concept of Holism
as the fundainental activity underlying and co-ordinlating all others,
and t o the view of the universe as a Holistic Universe.'
Again he says:
The New Physics has traced t h e physical universe to Action; and
relativity has led to the concept of Space-Time as the medium for this
Action. Space-Time nieans structure in the widest sense, and thus
the universe as we know i t starts as structural Action; Action which
1. Holkvi mid .&~ohctio?i, 317.
223
is, however, not confined t o its structures, but coritifiually everflows
into their “fields” and becomes the basis for the active dynamic Evolu-
tion which creatively shapes the universe. The “creativeness” of evolu-
tionary Holism and i t s procedure by way of small increments or instal-
ments of “creation” are its most fundamental characters, from which
all the particular forms and characteristics of the universe flow.’
And again:
There is a progressive grading of this holistic synthesis in Nature,
so t h a t we pass from ( a ) mere physioal mixtures, where the structure
is almost negligible, and the parts largely prederve their separable
characters and ,activities or functions, to (b) chemical compounds, where
the structure is more synthetic and the activities and functions of the
parts are strongly influenced by the new structure and can only with
difficulty be traced to the individual parts; and, again, t o ( c ) organisms,
where a still more intense synthesis of elements has been effected, which
impresses the parts or organs f a r more intimately with a unified chnr-
acter, and a system of central control, regulation, and co-ordination of
all the parts and organs arises; and from organism, again on t o (d)
Minds or psychical organs, where the Central Control acquires con-
sciousness and a freedom and creative power of the most far-reading
character; and finally to (e) Personality, which i d the highest, most
evolved whole among the structures of the universe, and becomes a new
orientative, originative centre of reality. All through this progressive
series the character of wholeness deepens; Holism is not only creative
but self-creative, and its final structures are f a r more holistic than
its initial structures. Natural wholes are always composed of parts;
in fact bhe whole is not something additional t o the parts, but is
the parts in their synthesis, which may be physio-chemical or org
or psychical or personal. As Holism is a process of creative synthesis,
the resulting wholes m e not static but dynamic, evolutionary, creative.
Hence Evolution has an ever-deepening inward spiritual holistic char-
acter; and the wholes of Evolution and the evolutionary process itself
can only be understood in reference t o this fundamental character of
wholeness. This is a universe of whole-making. The explanation of
Nature can therefore not be purely mechanical; and the mechanistic
concept of Nature has its place and justification only in the wider
setting of Holism?
“Personality,” writes Smuts, “is the latest and supreme whole
which has arisen in the holistic series of Evolution. It is a new
structure built on the prior structures of matter, life, and
mind.”* This “holistic” interpretation implies, unmistakably,
a hierarchical organization of the Cosmos.
The same general view is implicit in the following excerpts
from the pen of W. P. Montague, who writes, in summarizing
a part of his excellent treatise, The Chances of Surviving Death:
I have tried t o show (1) t h a t the phenomena of life and mind are
not susceptible of a mere mechanical interpretation; (2) that the factor
t h a t must be admitted to supplement the atoms and their motions,
though psychiclal in nature and possessed of memory, organicity, and
1. Ow. cit.. 318. Italics mine.-C. C.
2. Zb‘id., 86-87.
2. Zbid., 261.
224
TI-I’E I-IIBRARCHY OF BBING
purposiveness, is yet itself describable in physical terms as a field of
forces o r poteiitial energies; (3) tliat tliese fields or systems of the
traces of tlie past ape of four successively emergent types or grades:
tlie inorganic, the vegetative, the !animal, and tlie personal; and ( 4 )
that in the evolutionary ascent from the lower land earlier t o the later
and higher fields, the constituent forms of energy seem t o become more
and more different in quality from t h e matter and motion of tlieir
bodily matrices, and therefore more and niore liltely t o survive tlie
dissolution of those matrices. i
Again:
With the dawn of man a new level of life is achieved. Tlie traces
of the past stored up in memory attain sufficient strength to function
in and for themselves, rather than as mere guides t o bodily conduct.
Instead of the past and the future and the imagined being utilized
on!y for preseiit action, present action is utilized for them and their
enjoyment. Instoad of mind as organ of the body, body becomes a n
organ of the mind, and tlie whole material set-up is, or may be, treated
as the ineans and the occasion for personal and cultma1 ends. Fancy,
freed from the fetters of present bodily needs, presents u s with a
world of walcing dreams, with promises that f a r outrun performance
,and make u s humble and ashamed at what we are when thought o€ in
the light of what we might be. The human mind thus constitutes a
field of forms in which there is the possibility continually present,
however seldom used, of building an interpersonal community, i n which
the duties are t o help others and ourselves t o live more richly, and
to grow indefinitely in every sort of power. Nor is this all, for there
are intimations (land some would say f a r more than intimations) of
(I clrtricce of uitiow with a l ~ i g or
l ~the
~ ki(rltc& life. If we could share
in that, our own lives, finite at theii- brst, might be transfigured aiid
gain a new and different prospect of continuance.
Dr, Montague describes the forward steps in the Creative
Process as follows:
To us it does seem a moment in evolution when fields of potentiality
attain through protoplasm the power !lot only to induce or reproduce
their own p,attrrns iii neighboring matter (maglietic, electric, aiid other
inorganic fields ciin do as much as t h a t ) , but t o induce those replicas
with no diminution of intensity; so t h a t life oncr started rainifirs and
spreads over the planet, conserving the cuniulative hrritaye of its
increasing past, and by that heritage rvolviiig new forins f o r its future,
These new forms, added to the old vliich still continue, mako the
phylogeny of life n o less increasingly divrrsifird than its ontogeny. . . .
The second niomcnt oE life’s evolution conies ~vlicii pr&oplnsiii ljalcrs
t o mirroring the distant mid reiiieinl~rring tlie past and thus huilds
up within a iiervous systrni a privntr history of its own adventures
by whicli reactions t o tlir liwe and now are modifird ~ : i n dguided. The
srnsory consc~ousness and intrlligent conduct that coinr t o supcrveiie
upon tlie merely vegctativr sceni crrtainly t o I)r a definite advnnce.
, . , The third grrat moment comcs, 2nd m ~ i ncnierjies froin the Inerrly
aninial stage and gains a figurative frcrdoni froni tlw \vliole rnatri*inl
iyorld, which thrn 1)cconirs :i footstool for his spiisit aiid :L 1iic:ins rnr
realizing his ideals. , , , Tlie persoiial or rntiowil stagr or evolution
brings with i t not only incrrascd opportunitirs for life’s c n ~ k h m c i ~ t
but inci*rased rrsponsi1)ility for usiiig them. Tlir pi‘inciplr of J I O ~ I ~ ( ’ S S C
oblige, applies t o man’s status as compnrcd with that of tlir ~inininl.
And as bctwwii the liuinnn being \\.ho fails t o use his grcnt occnsioii
225
and the brute who does rise to his small occasion, the award for su-
periority in essential value must go to the latter. The love of a dog
f o r his master, surmounting the sad barrier of species and of rank
that sepanate the two, has in i t a n absolute and poignant beauty that
exceeds the value of any far-flung human plan in which the quality
of love or some equivalent or coordinate ideal, is lacking. And there
would be more point in the continmance through eternity of the poor
brute being who, despite the limitations of his mental span of com-
prehension, could go through pain and death for loyalty than there
would be in the eternal continuance of the cleverest human rogue who
ever lived. These ethical comparisons of animal and human values
may not be so irrelevant to the hard world of fact as they might seem.
For if we translate the idealistic language of evaluation which we
have just been using into the physical o r materialistic language in
terms of which our main discussion has been conducted, we can say
t h a t there well may be a chance that the moral qualities of a psychic
field would be less easily reduced t o mere material motions than would
the intellectual, and therefore more likely to survive. In short, the simple
goodness which animals and men can both aCqUiT6 (rather than the
rationality which man alone inhsm’ts) may be the main determiner of
whether life continues after death; or a t least of whether such con-
tinuance would hold that promise of unending progress lacking which
eternity would palls1
In a word, according to this author, the “fields” of existence
which, in addition to the inorganic, make up the Totality of
Being, are, in the order of their ascending complexity and cor-
responding liberation from matter and its motions, the vegeta-
tive, the animal, and the personal. Moreover, the final argu-
ment advanced by Dr. Montague, namely, that a person’s at-
tainment of the higher order of being which awaits him at the
death of his body, depends on his cultivation of such spiritual
values as faith, hope, and the greatest of all, love, - in a word,
the life of the Spirit, in Biblical terms-is precisely the view
that is being put forward in the present treatise. Lecomte du
Nouy presents the same general thesis in his work, Human
Destiny, namely, that the Creative Process-he calls it “evoh-
tion,” of course-has passed and is passing, in the main, through
some four stages: the physiochemical, and biological, the intel-
lectual, and finally the moral or spiritual. It is difficult to see
how any thinking person could come to any other conclusion.
Therefore, I should like to point out here, again, that the
“union with the highest life,” envisioned as a possibility for
man by Dr. Montague, is precisely what the Bible teaches to be
man’s natural and proper ultimate intrinsic end, the end to
which he is ordered by his Creator. This union, as we have
already stated, will consist essentially of the union of the human
1. W. P. Montague, The Chances of Surviving Death, reprinted by
permission of the publishers, Harvard University Press, in Basic Prob-
lems of PhiLosophg, edited by Bronstein, Krikorian, and Wiener, 614-627.
226
THE I-IIERARCIIY OF BEING
mind with the Mind of God in knowledge and the union of the
human will with the Will of God in love; and the necessary
preparation for such union is the life of the Spirit in the in-
dividual believer. Heaven is a prepared place f o r a prepared
people: in the very nature of things, it could not be otherwise;
only the pure in heart can hope, or expect, to see God. The
highest achievement of the Spirit of God in the Totality of
Being is the nurture of the individual person in that holiness or
sanctification “without which no man shall see the Lord” (Heb,
12: 14), that holiness necessary to fit him for “the inheritance
of the saints in light” (Col. 1:12), At t h e lowest Zevel o j Being,
the inorganic, the Spirit operates as t h e Spirit of Power; at t h e
second Zevel, the organic, He operates primarily as the Spirit
of Life; at t h e third Zevel, that of the person w h o m H e has
endowed with the capacity jor seeking and finding Truth, H e
operates as t h e Spirit of Truth; and at the highest level, that of
saintitood, H e operates as the Spirit of Holiness. Sainthood is
fulness or wholeness of individiuaz personal being. This fulness
of being begins to be achieved here, in this present life, in union
with Christ, who is the Divine Mind, and in the life with the
Holy Spirit, who is the Divine Heart of Love. It will be fully
realized in the life to come in one’s complete personal union
with the wholeness of the Divine Being. This is the Life Ever-
lasting.
Moreover, even though we may be able to discern the
activities of the Spirit as the Spirit of Power and the Spirit
of Life, from the dim light of so-called “natural religion,” not
until we open the pages of the Bible do we come to know Him
as the Spirit of Truth and the Spirit of Holiness. And especially
is our knowledge of the Spirit as the Holy Spirit mediated t o us
through the Bible. Indeed, without the Bible, it is doubtful
that we should even so much a s know that there is a Holy
Spirit.
I have shown, with some degree of conclusiveness I think,
that both scientific and philosophical thought tend toward the
hierarchical interpretation of the Totality of Being. The vast
majority of evolutionists, and the advocates of “emergent” evo-
Iution in particular, would agree, I am sure, that there are
at least four fairly well-defined levels of natural existence-
those of matter, life, consciousness, and personality, respectively.
As yet no theory of evoIution has successfully bridged the gaps
between (1) the inanimate and the animate, (2) the uncon-
scious (plant) and the conscious (animal), although the latest
227
THE ETERNAL ~ P I R I -
T HIS PERSON AND POWERS
science draws the line very thin at this point, and (3) the
conscious and the self-conscious or personal. As a matter of
fact, the evolution hypothesis as a whole, despite dogmatic as-
sertions to the contrary, is still a hypothesis; indeed it is doubt-
ful that any naturalistic view of Creation could, in the‘ very
nature of the case, ever be anything more than a hypothesis.
Of course, if these gaps should eventually be closed, that would
only prove the Cosmos to be a continuum instead of a hierarchy;
in either case it could be accounted for only on the ground of
creative Force. As Ernest Dimnet has written: “If the evolu-
tive theory, in spite of the strdng scientific objections to it, is
the most satisfactory, the elemental formless creatures in which
life was first manifested contained the germ of what we now
witness.”‘ Indeed a feeble analogy of the operation of such
primordial potencies or “seeds” might be traced in the power of
such submicroscopic “blobs” as chromosomes and genes to con-
tain and to transmit, in some manner wholly incomprehensible,
physical and temperamental characteristics, and even mental en-
dowments and aptitudes, from a parent to his offspring. The
mystery of heredity is equally as profound as the mystery of
creativity; it is, in fact, but another mysterious phase of the
total Mystery of Life.
I now call attention to the fact that the Bible not only
supports, but actually supplements and perfects, this hierarchical
interpretation of the Cosmos that is suggedted by science and
philosophy. The teaching of the Bible is that the Creation was
-or speaking more precisely, is-a progressive development,
with new increments of power-impartations from the Divine
Being, mediated by the Divine Spirit and Logos-coming into
the Creative Process at successive intervals, thus endowing the
recipient creature in each case with higher and nobler faculties
than its predecessors had possessed, and thus also clearly mark-
ing off the various grades or levels which constitute the Totulity
of Being. All this is clearly indicated by the verbs used in the
Genesis narrative of the Creation. To be explicit, the Hebrew
language has three verbs to indicate the general idea of bringing
into existence something which had not previously existed. First,
there is yatsar, which means to “form” or “fashion.” Second,
there is asah, which means to “make” o r to “ d ~ . ”Both yatsar
and asah indicate the fashioning or arranging of previously cre-
ated substances into new forms. Then, third, there is the verb
bara, which invariably conveys the idea of an absolute or pri-
1. What We Live By, 21.
228
THE NIERARCHY OF BEING
mary creation; that is, a creation witliout the use of pre-existing
materials. And in the some forty-eight instances in which bara
is found in the Hebrew Scriptures, whatever its object may be,
it always has God for its subject.’ Now the verb used in Genesis
1:1, translated “created,” is bara: “In the beginning God cre-
ated the heavens and the earth.” This points to the primary
creation of matter, in all probability the first putting forth of
primal energy from the Being of God, The subsequent trans-
mutation of this primordial energy into gross matter, and the
arrangement of the cosmic mass into our physical universe-all
as a result of the “brooding” of the Spirit of God-is described
in subsequent verses. Now the word bara occurs again just two
times in the same chapter. It occurs in verse 21, to indicate the
transition from the vegetable (unconscious) to the animal
(conscious) level: “And God created the great sea-monsters,
and every living creature that moveth, wherewith the waters
swarmed, after their kind, and every winged bird after its
kind,” etc. It occurs again in verse 27, to indicate the advance
from the animal (conscious) to the human or personal (self-
conscious) level: “And God created man in his own image, in
the image of God created he him; male and female created he
them.” It is significent, too, that the two verbs, barn and nsah,
are used together in Genesis 2:3: “And God blessed the sev-
enth day, and hallowed it; because that in it he rested from
all his work which God had creaked and made.” Does not the
use of the two verbs, side by side, in this passage clearly dif-
ferentiate primary creation from creation through secondarzj
causes? In short, “create” is the term used to describe the in-
troduction of an element or increment of power which cannot
be expIained by what had gone before. Intermediate acts may
have been of an “evolutionary” character, that is, the readjust-
ment of material already present to form new combinations;
hence the verb used to describe them is not “create” but “make.”
Thus it will be seen that at least three stages in Creation
are clearly marked out in the Biblical narrative. These are the
beginnings (1) of matter, (2) of conscious life, and (3) of self-
conscious life. For some strange reason, the transition from the
inorganic to the organic is not as clearly indicated in the Biblical
account. Does the Divine command, then, in verse 11: “Let the
earth put forth grass, herbs yielding seed, and fruit-trees bear-
1. Robert Young, Awnl?/firnl Govco~dmrc~c!
to the Biblc, Twentieth
Ainericsn Edition, Revised Throughout (Twc~lfthPrinting) bg Win. B.
Stevenson. S.V.
229
r their kind, wherein is the seed thereof, upon the
earth,” etc., indicate the cooperation of God with secondary
causes proceeding from the earth, or from matter (spo
generation), as many of the Church Fathers believed?
face of it, it would seem so. At any rate, it is quite cle
each of the three successive advances cleafly marked
beginnings of matter, of conscious life, and of self-conscious life,
respectively-new increments of power came into the Creative
Process from the Being of God, imparted as we shall see later
by the activity of the Spirit in conformity with the edict (Word)
of the Divine Reason, Thus the Spirit brooded over empty
illimitable Space at the “beginning” and the energy was pro-
duced which transmuted itself into matter in motion. (It is
significant, I think, that the Greek word Chaos meant originally
“empty, immeasurable space.” Hesiod, who personifies the con-
cept, represents Chaos as the first state of existence, the rude
and unformed mass out of which the universe was created.’
Thus did early tradition support the Biblical revelation.) At
the next forward step in the Creative Process, the Breath of
God, in conformity with the Word as always, issued forth to
implant the vital principle, the principle of vegetation, in the
first plant form. This remains true whether this vital principle
imparted by the Spirit was a new increment of power, an added
vital force, or whether it was &e result of a recombination of
atoms in such a way as to actuate potencies which had been
implanted in them originally. For “in order to progress there
must be either a new force, or a new combination of forces,
and the new combination of forces can be explained only by
some new force that causes the combination.” Besides all this,
plant life had to come before animal and human life, for the
simple reason that‘the latter forms subsist on it. This is in
accord with the very nature of things as we know them.
At the third advance, the Breath of God issued forth again,
in conformity with the .Word, the edict of the Almighty, to
implant the principle of consciousness in the primordial animal
form.
Gen. 6:17, [the words of God to Noah] : And I, behold, I do bring
the flood of waters upon the earth t o destroy all flesh, wherein is the
breath of life, from under heaven, etc. [Similarly, in Gen. 7:21-22, we
read t h a t in the Great Deluge in Noah’s time] all flesh died that moved
upon t h e earth, both birds, and oattle, and beast’s, and every creeping
thing that creepeth upon the earth, and every man; all in whose
1. Theogong, 116.
230
T H E HIERARCHY OP BEING
nostrils was the breath of the spirit of life, all t h a t was on tho dry
land, died.
Obviously, in the case of the animal, the “breath” or “spirit” of
life includes consciousness, in addition to the purely vegetative
life (the cellular processes which contain the secret of growth)
of the plant.
[Cf. Eccl. 3:21]-Who knoweth the spirit of man, whether it
goeth upward, and the spirit of the beast, whether it goeth downward
t o the earth?
And finally, at the next advance in the Creative Process, after
all things had been made ready for the new creature who was to
take his place upon the earth as lord tenant, the Breath of God
accompanied by the Word issued forth again, this time to endow
the natural man with all the potencies of person and potential-
ities of personality. ‘(And Jehovah God formed man of the dust
of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life;
and man became a living soul” (Gen. 2 : 7 ) , Thus did “God
create man in his own image, in the image of God created he him”
(Gen. 1:27). As the patriarch Job put it: “For my life is yet
whole in me, and the spirit of God is in my nostrils’’ (Job 27: 3 ) .
And the Psalmist writes in like vein, with reference to the
Creation as a whole: “By the word of Jehovah were the
heavens made, and all the host of them by the breath of his
mouth. , , . For he spake, and it was done; He commanded, and
it stood fast” (Psa. 33: 6, 9).
Now some very important questions arise at this point:
Is the human (personal) order the last and highest level in the
Totality of Being? Is the natural man the final product of the
activity of the Divine Spirit? Did the Creative Process come to
an end with the breathing of the spirit of life into the first
human form? I can see no necessity for answering these ques-
tions in the affirmative, As a matter of fact, it is at this point
especially that the Bible supplements science and brings to
completeness the true picture of the total Life Process. It is
my conviction that what is called “regeneration” in Scripture
is, after all, but the second stage-or shall we say f i f t h i n the
whole Creative Process, the stage provided for in the Plan of
God, no doubt, in conformity with the Divine foreknowledge of
man’s fall into sin; that above the level of the “natural” man is
that of the “spiritual” man-th,e order of sainthood, the highest
level attainable by any creature in the Totality of Being, and
the ultimate goal of the whole Creative Process. In a word, the
order of progression for man, as willed by the Creator, is from
231
THE ETERNAL SPIRIT- HIS PERSON AND POWERS
the Kingdom of Nature, through the kingdom of Grace, into
the Kingdom of Glory.
The thesis of this work is that. God planned from before
the “foundation” of the world the building of a holy race fitted
to have perfect‘ fellowship with Him ultimately in’ an environ-
ment purged of all evil. For it must be remembered that only
a holy being could have unhindred ac to, and fellowship
with, our holy God. “Blessed are the in heart; for they
shall see God” (Matt. 5:8). God has ordained us as persons
to ultimate union with Himself in knowledge and love, and this
union is possible of ,realization only as a result of our living
the life with the Holy Spirit, (that is, unbroken companionship
with Him as our ever-present indwelling Advocate, Guide, and
Sanctifier), and thus becoming-each of us-“partakers of the
divine nature” (2 Pet, 1:4). This life with the Spirit (or of the
Spirit, in the sense and to the extent that the Holy Spirit pos-
sesses the human spirit) begins, as we have already made clear,
in our union with Christ in faith, repentance, confession and
baptism.
Rom. 6:4-5 again: ‘‘We were buried therefore with him through
baptism into death; that like as Christ was raised from the dead
through the glory of the Father, so we also might walk in newness
of life, For if yve have become united with him in the likeness of his
death, we shall be also in the likeness of his resurrection. 1 John 5 :12-
He t h a t hath the Son hath the life; he t h a t hath not the Son of God
hath not the life. 1 John 1:3-yea, and our fellowship is with the
Father, and with his Son Jesus Christ. John 17:3-[the words of
Jesus Himself]: And this is life eternal, t h a t they should know thee,
the only t r u e God, and him whom thou didst send, even Jesus Christ.
2 Cor. ll:2-For I am jelalous over you with a godly jealousy: for I
espoused you t o one husband, that I might present you as a pure virgin
to Christ,
From baptism on to the death of the body, this Life with the
Spirit is a process of continuous growth “in the grace and
knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ” (2 Pet. 3:18),
which is equivalent to that “sanctification without which no man
shall see the Lord” (Heb. 12:14). Thus by the processes Scrip-
turally designated regeneration and sanctification, men are re-
deemed from both the guilt and the practice of sin. Then, ac-
cording to the teaching of the Scriptures, the ultimate phase
of the Creative Process will take place in the redemption of the
body from the consequences of sin, namely, physical disease,
suffering, and death, in the putting on of immortality.
Rom. 8:22-23: For we know t h a t the whole creation groaneth and
travaileth in pain together until now. And not only so, but ourselves
also, who have the first-fruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan
232
THE IiIB1IARCIJY OF BEING
within ourselves, waiting for our adoption, to wit, tlie redemption of
our body. Phil. 3:20-21: For our citizenship is in heaven‘ whence
also we wait for a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ: who shad fashion
anew the body of our humiliation, t h a t i t may be conformed to the ,
body of his glory, according to the working whereby lie is able even
to subject all things unto himself. 2 Cor. ti:1-4: For we know t h a t if
the earthly house of our tabernacle be dissolved, we have a building
from God, a house not made with hands, eternal, in the heavens. For
verily in this we gi~oaii,longing t o be clothed upon with our habitation
which is from heaven: if so be that being clothed we shall not be
found naked. Fo13 indeed we that a r e i n this tabernacle do groan,
being burdened; not for tbat we would be unclothed,, but clothed upon,
t h a t what is mortal may be swallowed u p of life. Now he t h a t wrought
us for this very thing is God, who gave unto us the earnest of the
Spirit. Rom. 8:ll-But if the Spirit of him that raised up Jesus from
the dead dwellcth in you, he t h a t raised up Christ Jesus from the dead
shall give life also t o your mortal bodies through his Spirit that
dwelleth i n you. 1 Cor. 15:44-58: If there is a natural body, there is
also a spiritual body. So also it is written, The first man Adam be-
came a living soul. The last Adam became a life-giving spirit. Howbeit
that is not first which is spiritual, but t h a t which is natural. The first- ,-
man is of the earth, earthy: the second man is of heaven. As is the
earthy, such are they also that are earthy: and as is the heavenly,
such are they also that are heavenly. And as we have borne the image
of the earthy, we shall also bear the image of the heavenly. Now this
I say, brethren, that flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of
God ; neither doth corruption inherit incorruption. Behold, I tell you
a mystery: We all shall not sleep, but we shall all be changed, in a
moment, in tlie twinkling of a n eye, rat 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. But when this corruptible sball have
put on incorruption, and this mortal shall have put on immortality,
tlien shall come to pass the saying t h a t is written, Death is swtallowed
up in victory. 0 death, where is thy victory? 0 death, where i s thy
sting? The sting of death is sin; and tlie power of sin is the law. But
thanks be t o God, who qiveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus
Christ. Wherefore, my belovcd brethren, be ye stedfast, unmov#able,
always abounding in the work of the Lord, foreasmuch as ye lrnow
that your labor is not in vain in the Lord.
The consummation of the Creative Process, indeed of the Divine
Plan of the Ages, will be realized in the ultimate conformity of
God’s saints to the image of His Son.
Rom. 8:28-30: And we know that to tihem that love God all things
work together f o r good, even t o them t h a t are called according to his
purpose. For whom he foreknew, he also foreordained to be coniormed
t o the image of his Son, that he might be the first-born among many
brethren: aiid whom he foreordained, them he also called ; aiid whom
he called, them he also justified; and whom he justified, them he also
glorified.
And thus at the end o i the age, “the spirits of just men made
perfect” (Heb. 12: 23), that is, clothed in “glory and honor and
incorruption’’ (Rom. 2: 7) -in a word, the immortalized saints
of God-will take their rightful place in “new heavens and a
233
new earth, wherein dwelleth righteousness” (2 Pet. 3: 13). Then,
the wicked also having gone to their proper place, the place of
eternal segregation “prepared for the devil and his angels”
(Matt. 25:41)-the penitentiary of the moral universe-this
renovated earth will have been purged for ever of every form
of sin and death: mortality itself will have been “swallowed up
of life” (2 Cor. 5:4). Then indeed will that glorious vision
which was vouchsafed the beloved John on the barren isle of
Patmos, be actualized.
And I saw a new heaven and a new earth: for the first heaven
and the first earth are passed away; and the sea is no more. And I
saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God,
made ready as a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a great
voice out of the throne saying, Behold, the tabernacle of God is with
men, and he shall dwell with them, and they shall be his peoples, and
God himself shall be with them, and be their God; and he shall wipe
away every tear from their eyes: and death shall be no more; neither
shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain, any more: the first
things are passed away. And he that sitteth on the throne said,
Behold, I make all things new, and he saith, Write: for these words
are faithful and t r u e (Rev. 21 :1-5).
Faith proclaims this to be, in Tennyson’s well-known words, that
. . . . one far-off divine event,
To which the whole creation moves.
This, I firmly believe, is the will and plan of our God; and
because it is His will, it will be done. “For,” says He, “I am
God, and there is none else; I am God, and there is none like me;
declaring the end from the beginning, and from ancient times
things that are not yet done; saying, My counsel shall stand,
and I will do all my pleasure. . , . Yea, I have spoken, I will
also bring it to pass; I have purposed, I will also do it” (ha.
46:9-11).
On the basis of this Weltanschauung, the fundamental facts
of the Christian religion-the Incarnation, the Atonement, and
the Resurrection-are integral parts, or events, of the total
Plan of the Universe. And Redemption is but the consummating
phase of the total Creative Process.
On this view too, just as the Bible teaches, new increments
of power come into the Life Process, by the agency of the Spirit
and through the instrumentality of the Word, the incorruptible
abideth” (1 Pet. 1:23), by which the
erated and raised to the status of the
reception of the living Word into his
heart-the Gospel which is “the power of God unto salvation
234
THE I-IIERARCI-IY OP BEING
to every one that believeth” (Rom. 1:16) , because the life-giving
power of the Spirit is in it and is exercised through it-the
natural person i s elevated to the level of sainthood, the highest
level in the total Hierarchy of Being; he is literally “the new
man, that after God hath been created in righteousness and holi-
ness of truth” (Eph. 4:24), “For we are his workmanship,
created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God afore pre-
pared that we should walk in them” (Eph. 2: l o ) , “WhereEore if
any man is in Christ, he is a new creature: the old things are
passed away; behold, they are become new” (2 Cor. 5: 17). The
natural man can no more transform himseli into the spiritual
man by merely tugging at his own bootstraps, so to speak, than
the grain of wheat can, by any power of its own, transform itseli
into a watermelon seed, As in the biological realm, wheat be-
gets wheat only, and barley begets barley, and so on; so in the
moral realm, only the Spirit of God can beget that which is
Spiritual. “Each after its own kind” (Gen. 1:11, 21, 25) is as
truly a law of the moral world as it is a law of the natural
world, As Jesus Himself put it, in His conversation with Nico-
demus: “That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which
is born of the Spirit is spirit, Marvel not that I said unto thee,
Ye must be born anew” (John 3:6-7). Thus by the process
known in Scripture as regeneration, a new life is born, a new
kind of life, spiritual life, which, if properly nurtured by the
means appointed by Divine Grace, will enlarge and deepen into
the Life Everlasting in the very presence of our God.
Thus it will be seen that the highest level in the total
Hierarchy of Being is that of sainthood. All Christians were
known as saints, in apostolic times.
Acts 9 :%--But Aaaiii,as ansivered, Lord, I have heard from many
of this man, 1 1 0 ~much
~ evil he did to t h y saints at Jerusalem. Rom. 1:7
-Paul , . to all that a re in Rome, beloved of God, called to be
saints. 1 Cor. 1:l-2: Paul, aalled to be an apostle of Jesus Christ ...
unto the church of God which is at Corinth, even them that a r e
sanctified in Christ Jesus, called to be saints, with all t h a t call up011
the name of our Lord Jesus Christ i n every liltace, their Lord and ours.
2 Cor. 1:l-Paul, a n apostle of Christ Jesus through the will of God
. ., unto the church of God which is at Corintli, with all the saints
that are in the ~ v h o l eof Achaia. Eph. 1:l-Paul, (an apostle of Jesus
Christ through the will of God, to the saints that a r e at Epliesus, and
the faithful in Christ Jesus. Phil. 1:1-Paul land Timothy, servants of
Christ Jesus, to all the saints in Christ Jesus t h a t a r e at Philippi. Eph.
1 :18-~vhat the riches of the glory of his inheritance in the saints,
Col. 1:lZ-giving thanks unto tlie Father, who m,ade US meet to be
partalters of tlie inheritance of the saints in light. 1 Cor. G : 2 , 3-
Know ye not that the saints shall judge the world? ... ICnow ye not
that we shall judge angels? 2 Thess. l:lO--~?rhen lie shall conie t o be
glorified in his saints, etc., etc,, etc.
235
The saints of God-sons and daughters of the Almighty (2 Cor.
6:18), heirs of God and joint-heirs with Christ (Rom. 8:17)-
constitute “the general assembly and church of the firstborn
who are enrolled in heaven” (Heb. 12: 23).
[Again] Phil. 3:20-21: For our citizenship i s in heaven; whence
also we wait for a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ: who shall fashion
anew the body of our humiliation, that it may be conformed t o the
body of his glory, according t o the working whereby h e is able even
t o subject all things unto himself,
And on this level of sainthood, the Spirit of God operates, in
regeneration and in sanctification, as the Spirit of Holiness.
Holiness is Wholeness. And it is the task of the Spirit of Gad
to make the world and man whole, so that in the finality of
things God may look out upon His creation, as He did at the
beginning, and pronounce it good. In the words of Paul:
For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ shall all be made alive.
But each in his own order: Christ the firstfruits; then they t h a t are
Christ’s, at his coming. Then cometh the end, when he shall deliver
up the kingdoin t o God, even the Father; when-he shall have abolished
all rule and all authority and power, For he must reign, till he hath put
all his enemies under his feet. The last enemy that shall be abolished
is death. For, He p u t all things in subjection under his feet. But
when he saith, All things are put in subjection, it is evident that he
is excepted who did subject all things unto him, And when all things
have been subjected unto him, then shaIl the Son also himself be sub-
jected to him t h a t did subject all things unto him, that God may be
ball in all [l Cor. 15:22-281.
I feel that I should comment briefly at this point on evolu-
tion and evolutionism. The former word, of course, is used to
designate the alleged process; the latter, to designate the hy-
pothesis, The chief protest by Christians with respect to evolu-
tionism is a protest against the blowing up of the theory into a
dogma. A dogma is a proposition to be accepted on the ground
that it has been proclaimed by the proper authority; in this
case, of course, the “proper authority” is human science. (We
must not forget that science becomes at time very, very kuman.)
Evolution is presented in many high school and college text-
books as an established fact; and in others, the inference that it
is factual is expressed by innuendo, with the accompanying in-
ference that persons who refuse to accept it are naive, childish,
or just plain ignoramuses. It seems to be assumed by the de-
votees of the cult that they have a monopoly of the knowledge
of this particular subject. The fact is that much of the material
appearing in these textbooks is simply “parroted” by teachers
who are so ignorant of Biblical teaching they are not even re-
236
motely qualified to pass judgment on the matter. Urdortunately
too many persons of eminence in certain highly specialized
fields are prone to break into print on various aspects of Biblical
doctrine only to prove by their statements that they are com-
pletely uninformed on the subjects on which they choose to
expatiate. Pernicious fallacies, based on the authority of a great
name, thus have a way of persisting from generation to gen-
eration even though they have been shown many times to be
fallacies. (In logic, this is known as the argumenlum ad uere-
cundiam.) I would have believed, in earlier times, almost any-
thing Henry Ford the First said about the production and mar-
keting of an automobile, But when he broke into print on matters
of politics or religion, I would not believe anything he had to
say on these subjects: by his very statements he demonstrated
his colossal ignorance of both. The theory of the “big lie” has
merit, undoubtedly, as first proclaimed by Thrasymachus in
Plato’s Republic, and by Adoph Hitler in his Mein Kampf; that
is, if you want people to accept any-even the most absurd-
proposition, state it vigorously and repeatedly, and the power
of suggestion will eventually elevate it to a matter of faith and
stamp it in, so that no one will dare to question it. This, of
course, is the danger of present-day “brainwashing” under to-
talitarian Systems. This is precisely what is being done t o the
hypothesis of evolutionism (as LeConte has put it, the notion of
(‘continuous progressive change, according to fixed laws, by
means of resident forces”). As a matter of fact, evoluton is not
a fact-it i s still a hypothesis, a kind of “sophisticated guess.”
Evidence to support it is derived not from established fact-
that is, by the testimony of eye-witnesses-but on evidence that
is inferential in character. The important questtion, therefore,
is this: Is the inference drawn from alleged phenomena in this
field necessary inference-that is, inference, the opposite of
which is inconceivable? Or does much of it savor of little more
than conjecture? Dr. James Jauncey states the case clearly
in these words:
Of course you will often hear from some enthusiastic evolutionists
that evolution is now indisputable, t h a t is has been proved beyond
doubt, and that anyone who disputes this is an ignoramus or a f8anatic.
This is jumping the gun, to say the least. The vehemence of such
statements makes one suspect that the speakers inre trying to convince
themselves. When a scientific theory crystallizes into law, such as t h a t
of relativity, it speaks for itself. All we can say at the moment is
that evolution is generally accepted, possibly because of the lack of
any scientific alternative, but with serious misgivings on the adequlacy
of some aspects of it. As for the kind of rigorous proof t h a t science
237
generally demands, it still, isn’t there, Indeed, some say t h a t because
of the philosophical (aspects of the theory, t h a t proof will never be
possible.’
A clear example of “blind spots” which seem to char-
lutionism is the title of an article
which appeared not too long ago in a well-known periodical,
(Reader’s Bigest) , viz., “Can Science Produce Life?” This title
is misleading, to say the least: life never was produced (created
by human agency. This fact, the author of the article in
tion, seems to realize, Toward the end, he writes, with reference
to microspheres (“proteinoids” formed. by the fusion of amino
acids) :
, Although these spheres are not true cells-they have no DNA genes
and they a r e simpler than any contemporary life-they do not possess
many cellular properties. They have stability; sthey keep their shlapes
indefinitely. They stain in the same way as the present-day protein
in cells, a n important chemical test, But the rela1 significance of these
microspheres is t h a t scientists do not synthesize them piece by piece,
they simply set up the right conditions--and microspheres produce
themselves,
Thus it will be noted that the eminent scientist-author of this
article flatly contradicts the import of the title, by stating that
man can only set up the conditions necessary to the production
of microspheres but cannot himself do the “producing.” The
title of the article is, in fact, an excellent example of the man-
ner in which careless use of language can spread confusion.
Man indeed sets the precondition, but only the God of nature,
as the cosmic Efficient Cause, can actualize the life process.
Nor should we overlook the practical (“pragmatic”) effect
of evolutionism. This is so clearly stated by one of my min-
isterial colleagues that I feel justified in presenting here what
he says regarding this aspect of the subject, as follows.
Why do some have so little regard f o r life? Why are the rebels
SO careless with their own lives and the lives of others? Why do some
think so little of their lives as t o ruin their health in dissipation and
drugs? One reason is fiaith in evolution. To the evolutionist life is no
more than a tiny step in a long process of happenstance. There is no
purpose for it and no plan, since there is no lanner. , One simply
exists under prevailing conditions, and has no oflipation to the past
or hope for the future. His life is an accident, an ,interval, and with
no intrinsic meaning. After millions of years perhaps a better breed
and better condition might happen, but then that is of no value t o our
present generation. No wonder that so many young people, under this
depressing conviction, space out on druge, cop out and foul up their
livee in sin. They do not love life! They may love pleasure, but have
no love for living, and the things they may do in this frame of mind
tend t o destroy chances for a good lfe.*
1. Science Returns t o God, 67.
2. Curtis Dickinson, The Witness, March, 1972, Lubbock, Texas.
238
THE BIERARCHY OF BEING
3 , God’s Ministering Spirits
The presentation here of the Totality of Things as a Hier-
archy of Being would be incomplete without the inclusion of
a word regarding angels. Although, as Strong puts it,
the scholastic subtleties which encumbered this doctrine in the Middle
Ages, and the exaggerated representations of the power o f evil spirits
which then prevailed, have led, by a natunal reaction, t o an undue de-
preciation of it in more recent timesel
the fact remains neverthless, that the activity of angels plays
a very important role in the Bible record of God’s dealings with
men. Indeed, angels figure prominently in the unfolding of the
Plan of Redemption from beginning to end, Reason, moreover,
supports this Biblical presentation in pointing to the need of
an order of creatures intermediate between God, who is pure
Spirit, and man, who in his present state is a body-spirit unity,
a living soul. Without such an intermediate order, there would
be a very noticeable gap in. the Creation. Now, according to
Scripture, it is the angelic order-an order of beings possessed
of superhuman, yet finite, intelligence and power-which fills
$thisgap, in the total structure of Reality. Thus with the angels
the hierarchical picture of the universe becomes complete,
Scripture teaching regarding the angelic order and their
function may be summarized briefly as follows:
1. Angels are created beings.
Psa. 148:2, 6 : Praise ye him, all his angels; praise ye him, all
his host. , . , For he commanded, and they were created. Col. l:16-for
in him [Christ] were all things created, in the heavens and upon the
earth things visible and things invisible, whether thrones or dominions
or p r h i p a l i t i e s or powers; all things have been created through him
and unto him.” 1 Pet. 3 : 2 2 J e s u s Christ, who is on the right hand of
God, having gone into heaven; angels and authorities and powers being
made subject unto him.
God alone is The I AM, HE WHO IS, the uncreated and eternal
One.
2. Angels are older than, and distinct from, man.
1 Cor. 6:3--Know ye not that we shall judge angels? [that is, we,
the saints of God]. Heb. l:14-Are they [angels] not all ministering
spirits, sent forth t o do service €or the sake of them t h a t shall inherit
salvation? Heb. 2:lG-For verily not t o angels doth he [Christ] give
help, but he giveth help t o the seed of Abraham, [Authorized Version]-
For verily he took not on him the nature of angels, but he took on
him the seed of Abraham. [Angels are not glorified human spirits,
Le., spirits of the righteous dead. Heb. 12 :22-23-1iere the iwaunzerable
hosts of aizgels are distinguished clearly from the general assembly
1. A. H. Strong, Systematic Theology, One-Volume Edition, 443.
239
THE ETER PIRIT - HIS PERSON AND POWERS
and church of the f an from the spirits of just men
made perfect. T h a t xist o r to man is evident from the
various passages which clearly imply that the fall of Lucifer took place
f the power of self- ,
original estate.
(1) [Angels have will.] 2 Sam. 14:20-my lord
is wise, according t o th angel of God, to know all things
re a n evil spirit-fallen angel-
What have we to do with thee, Jesus thou
to destroy us?. I know thee who thou art,
mes 2:19-Thou believest that God i s one;
s also believe and’shudder [cf.Uatt. 8:29-31;
Mark 1:24, 5:7; Acts 16:16-18, 19:15, etc.]. 2 Tim. 2:26-and they
may recoyer themselves out of the snare of the devil, having been
taken captive by him unto his will. Rev. 12:12-Woe for the earth and
for the sea; beoause the devil is gone down unto you, having great
wrath, knowing t h a t he hath but a ’short time.
(2) [Angelic power and intelligence, however, though superhuman,
have fixed limits.] Matt. 24:36-But of that day and hour knoweth
no one, not even the )angels of heaven. 1 Pet. l:12-these things, which
now have been announced unto you through them that preached the
gospel unto you- by the Holy Spirit sent forth from heaven: which
things,angels desire t o look into. Eph. 3:9-10: to make all men see
w h i t is the“’dispensation of the mystery which for ages hath been hid
in God who created all things; to the intent that now unto the prin-
cipalities and the powers in the heavenly places might be made known
through the church the manifold wisdom of God. [Here the phrase],
the principalities and the powers in the heavenly places, [evidently
alludes to the ,angelic host, whose natural habitat is heaven, the presence
of God.]
(3) [Power seems to be the outstanding attribute of the angelic
nature, rather than intelligence o r beauty.] Psa. 103 :20--Bless Jehovah,
ye his angels, that a r e mighty in strength, t h a t fulfill his word, heark-
ening unto the voice of his word. 2 Thess. 1:7-8: at the revelation
of the Lord Jesus from heaven with the angels of his power in flaming
fire,, rendering vengeance t o them that know not God, and to them
that obey not the gospel of our Lord Jesus. 2 Pet. 2:ll-whereas
angels, though greater [than men] in might and power, etc. [Power
is the attribute ascribed in Scripture to evil spirits especially, as evi-
dent from such characteristic phrases as “the prince of this world”
(John 12:31), “the god of this world” (2 Cor. 4:4), “the prince of the
powers of the air” (Eph. 2:2), “the power of darkness” (Cor. 1:13),
“tfie great dragon” (Rev, 12:9), etc.] Cf. Eph. 6:12--For our wrestling
is not against flesh and blood, but against the principalities, against
the powers, against the world-rulers of this darkness, against the
spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places. 1 Pet. 5:s-Be
sober, be watchful: your adversary, the devil, as o roaring lion,
walketh about, seeking whom he may devour. [Satan, we are told, in
trying to seduce Jesus] talceth him unto a n exceeding high mountain,
and showeth him all the kingdoms of this world, and the glory of them;
240
THE HIERARCHY O F BEING
and he said unto him, All these things will 1 give thee, if thou wilt
fall down and worship me (Matt, 4:8-9). [And Jesus Himself teaches
His disciples to p ~ a y :] Bring us not into temptation, but deliver u s
from the evil one (Matt, 6:13). [Evcn Satanic power, however, is
definitely limited by the Will o€ God, and its exercise will be com-
pletely thwarted by the power o l God in Christ.] [Thus, in the Pro-
logue t o the book of Job, Satan, always the “accuser of our brethren”
(Rev, 12:10), is represented as appearing in the presence of God t o
malm accusation that the patriarch Job was a man who served God
solely for the material benefits which he received in return for such
service; in ,a word, said Satan, Job w a s simply “€eathering his own
nest.” This was a direct-and most impudent-clialleiige of the veracity
of the Almighty, who had just spoken in praise of Job saying,] There
is none like him in the earth, a perfect and upright man, one thoat
fearetli God, and turneth away from evil (Job 1:8). [God perforce
accepted the challenge]: And Jehovah said unto Satan, Behold, he is
in thy hand; only spare his life (Job 2:G). [That is to say, the devil
was permitted t o destroy Job’s material possessions, to bring about the
death of Job’s children, and even t o afflict the patriarch himself with
a sore disease, but that was the limit to which he was allowed to go.
the exercise of his diabolical power was circumscribed by the Will 04
God. So it has always been, )and in the end Satan will suffer complete
and ignominious defeat-nothing short of eternal segregation in hell
with all his rebel host-at the hands of the Son of God, Lord and Christ,
who now has “all authority in heaven and on earth” Matt, 28 :181. Heb.
2:14-16; Since then the children are sharers in flesh and blood, he
[Christ] also himself in like manner partook of the same; that through
death he might bring to nought him that had the power of death,
that is, the devil; and might deliver all them who through fear of
death were all their lifetime subject to bondage. Eph. 1:19-22: ac-
cording to that working of the strength of his might which he wrought
in Christ, when he naised him from the dead, and made him to. sit at
his right hand in the heavenly places, f a r above all rule, and authority,
and power, and dominion, and every name t b a t is named, not only
in this world, but also in that which is to come; and be put all things
in subjection under his feet, and gave him to be the head over all
things to the church, which is his body, the fulness of him thtat filleth
all in all. Phil. 2:9-11: Wherefore also God highly exalted him, and
gave unto him the name that is above every name; that in the name
of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in hfiaven and things on
earth and things under the earth, and t h a t every tongue should confess
that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. 1 Cor. 15:25-
26: For he [Christ] must reign, till he hath put all his enemies under
his feet. The last enemy that shall be ,abolished is death. Rev. 20:lO-
And the devil that deceived them was cast into the lake of f i r e and
brimstone, where are also the beast and the f4alse prophet; and they
shall be tormented day and night for ever and ever.
(4) [Angels being personal, hence voluntary beings, we have in
Scripture the doctrine of both good and evil angels. The good angels,
we ara told, are confirmed in goodness; t h e evil angels a r e equally
confirmed in evil; that is, Satan and his rebel host, n o t the descendants
of Adam, are totally depraved.] Luke 10:18-[the words of Jesus],
I beheld Satan fallen as lightning from heaven. John 8:44. [again the
words of Jesus]: Y e are of your father t h e devil, and the lusts of
your father i t is your will t o do, He mqas a murderer from the beginning,
and standetli not in theitruth, because there is no t r u t h in him. When
he speaketh a lie, he speaketh of his own: for he is a liar, and the
father thereof. 2 Pet, 2:4--For if God spared not sngels when they
sinned, but cast them down to hell, and committed them to pits of
241
darkness, t o be reserved unto judgment, etc. Jude 6-And angels that
kept not their own principality, but left their proper habitation, he
hath kept in everlasting bonds under darkness unto the judgment of
the great day, Matt. 25:41--Then shall he say also unto them on the
left hand, Depart from me, ye cursed, into the eternal fire which is
prepared for the devil band his angels.’’ [Satan is invariably designated
“the evil one” in Scripture (Matt. 5:37; 6:13, 13:19; 1 Jahn 2:13,
5:18, 19, etc.) : t h a t is, he and his rebel host are wholly confirmed in
evil; hence, for them there can be but one end-“the lake of fire and
brimstone,” Rev. 20:10]. [The good angels, on the other hand, are
equally confirmed in good.] 2 Cor. 11:14-Even Statan fashioneth him-
self into an angel of light, [thus implying that there are angels of
light] Psa. 89:”-the council of the holy ones. Mark 8:38-For who-
soever shall be ashamed of me and of my words in this adulterous and
sinful generation, the Son of man also shall be ashamed of him when
he cometh in the glory of his Father with the holy angels. Matt. 18:lO:
[here Jesus says, concerning little children]: I say unto you, that in
heaven their angels do always behold the face of my Father who is
in heaven. [And so Jesus teaches His disciples to pray]: Thy kingdom
come, Thy will be done, a s in heaven, so on earth (Matt. 6:lO).
4. Angels are ethereal beings, that is, neither, on the one
hand, completely bodiless, nor on the other hand, clothed in
physical bodies such as human beings have. They are clothed,
rather, in bodies of a very rarefied form of matter, of a texture
perhaps approximating radiant energy or light, which may best
be described as ethereal, Here again we encounter the limita-
tions of human language: the term “ethereal” is used perforce
in lieu of a more precise designation.
Though described as “ministering spirits” (Heb. 1:14) ,
there is no evidence in Scripture that angels are completely
bodiless. Indeed, the notion of an “immaterial soul” or “dis-
embodied spirit,” in the case of created beings, is foreign tQ
the Bible; it is a Platonic concept pure and simple. According
to Scripture, as we have already seen, even the redeemed saints
themselves will be clothed in “spiritual” (ethereal?) bodies,
bodies of a finer texture of matter, in the next world.’ As
Professor Albert C. Knudson writes:
Spirit, a s we find it in the Scriptures, was a rarefied form of
matter. But this fact, while interesting from the philosophical point of
view, did not seriously affect the distinction made between the material
and the spiritual. Matter in its sublimated or spiritual form was so
different from matter in its ordinary manifestations that there was
felt t o be a virtual antithesis between them.’
An ethereal form of this kind is not localized of course;
hence, in certain Scripture passages the idea is implicit that evil
spirits-the fallen angels-are possessed of an instinct or long-
1. Vide again 1 Cor. 15:35-58.
2. The Religious TeaclLing of tlrc Old Testament, 94.
242
THE IJlERARCHY OF BEING
ing to incarcerate themselves in a physical body, even in the
body of an animal, in order t o secure a certain measure o€
respite from their ceaseless wanderings “to and fro in the earth
. . . and up and down in it.”
Job 1:’l-And Jehovah said unto Satan, Whence comest thou?
Then Satan answered Jehovah, and said, From going t o and i r o in the
earth, and from walking up and down in it. [Paul describes Satan as
‘‘the god of this world” who has “blinded the minds of the unbelieving,”
2 Coi.. 4:4; that is t o say, Satan is the “god” of the kingdom of this
world, as by way of contrast with the Kingdom of Christ.] Matt, 8:3i--
And the demons besought him [Jesus] saying, If thou cast us out,
send US away into the herd of swine [c€. Mark 5:1-17, Luke 8:26-37].
Matt. 12:43 [the words of Jesus]: But the unclean spirit, when he is
gone out of the man, passetli through waterless places, seeking rest,
and findeth it not.
Only God Himself m a y properly b e designated Pure Spirit. As
Jesus Himself stated expressly: “God is a Spirit; and they that
worship him must worship in spirit and truth” (John 4: 24). (Cf.
Heb. 9: 14--“the eternal Spirit.”)
Angels are represented in Scripture as completely lacking
the attributes or propensities that characterize a physical body
such as human beings have in their present environment. Paul
states explicitly that “flesh and blood cannot inherit the king-
dom of God, neither doth corruption inherit incorruption” (1
Cor. 15:50). That is, (1) fleshly or natural birth cannot give
one entrance into the Kingdom of Grace, for one must be born
anew, born of water and the Spirit, to enter into that kingdom
(John 3:3-6); (2) and neither can flesh and blood literally, nor
flesh and blood relationships, in the very nature of the case enter
into the Kingdom of Glory, All such natures and relationships
are of the earth, earthy; they are left behind by the saints in
the putting on of immortality, Jesus Himself made it clear that
His resurrected body was one of “flesh and bones”; that is, the
blood-the seat of animal life-was gone. “See my hands and
my feet, that it is I myself: handle me, and see; for a spirit
hath not flesh and bones, as ye behold me having” (Luke 24: 39) I
This means too that He was not a mere ghost or phantasm; He

was there in the presence of His disciples in a substantial form.
If this be true of the saints, that they will not possess the
qualities of physical life in the celestial world, how much more
so of angels, whose natural habitat is that world. Jesus makes
this crystal clear in one of His controversies with the Sadducees,
the materialists among the Jews of His day.
Matt, 22:23-30: On that day there came t o him Sadducees, they
that slay there is no resurrection; and they asked him, saying, Teacher,
243
Moses said, If a man die, having no children, his brother shall marry
his wife, and raise up seed to his brother. Now there were with us
seven brethren: and the first married and deceased, and having no
seed left his wife unto his brother; in like manner the second also,
and the third, unto the seventh. And after them all, the woman died.
In the resurrection therefore whose wife shall she be of the seven?
for they all had her. But Jesus ,answered and said unto them, Ye do
err, not knowing the scriptures, nor the power of God. F o r in the
resurrection they neither marry, nor are given in marriage, but are
as angels in heaven.
That is to say, the immortalized saints shall be, like the angels
of God, without sex distinctions, and hence without flesh and
blood relationships, in the spiritual world, the difference being
of course that whereas angels are bg nature without these fleshly
attributes and powers, the saints will have laid them aside on
the exchange of their physical for spiritual bodies; they will be
simply “sons and daughters of the Almighty” (2 Cor. 6: 18). In
a word, angels, not having physical bodies, know nothing of birth,
growth, sex, age, or death.
Being without powers of physical reproduction, angels
therefore constitute a company rather than a race.
Luke 20:34-36: And Jesus said unto them, The sons of this world
marry, a n d are given in marriage: b u t they that are accounted worthy
t o attain to that world, and the resurrection from the dead, neither
marry, nor are given in marriage: for neither can they die any more:
for they a r e equal unto the angels; and are sons of God, being sons
of the resurrection.
As Dr. A. H. Strong puts it:
We y e called “sons of men,” but angels are never called ‘‘sons
of angels, but only “sons of God.” They are not developed from one
original stock, mid no such common nature binds them together as
binds the race of men. They bave no c o m m ~ ncharacter and history.
Each was created separately, and each apostate angel fell by himself.
Humanity fell d l at once i n its f i r s t father, Cut down a tree, and you
cut down its branches. But angels were so many separate trees.
Some lapsed into sin, but some remained holy.‘
“Sons of God” is a term used in Scripture sometimes to desig-
nate angels (Job 1:6-“Now it came to pass on the day when
the sons of God came to present themselves before Jehovah,
that Satan also came among them”), sometimes to designate
righteous men (Gen. 6:2--“the sons of God [pious Sethites]
saw the daughters of men [the irreligious Cainites] that they
were very fair, and they took them wives of all that they
chose”). “Sons of God” is a common designation for the mem-
bers of God’s household, whether they be angels or righteous
1. &/stcwntic Thc~ologl~,
One-Volume Edition, 447-448.
244
THB HiBRARCHY OF BEING
men (Eph* 3:15). However, because angels are a company, as
distinguished from a race, we never read of “sons of angels”
in Scripture.
5. As to their number, angels are of t h e great multitude.
Heb. 12:22-to innumerable hosts of angels. Deut. 33 : 2 T e b o v a l i
came .. . from the ten thousands of holy ones. Psa. G8:17-The
chariots of God are twenty thousand, even thousands upon thousands.
Dan. 7 :lO-thousands of thousands ministered unto him, and ten
thousand times ten thousand stood before him: tlie judgment was &et,
and the boolts were opened. MGatt. 2G:53--Thinltest thou that I can-
not beseech my Father, and he shall even now send me more than
twelve legions of angels? Jude 14--Enoch, the seventh from Adam,
prophesied, saying, Behold tlie Lord came with ten thousands of his
holy ones. Rev. S:ll-And I saw, and heard a voice of many angels
.
round about the throne . . and the number of them was ten thousand
times ten thousand, and thousands of thousands. 1 Sam. 1:ll-Je-
hovah of hosts. Gen. 32:2-God’s host. 2 Chron. 18:18+all the host
of heaven. Luke 2:13-And suddenly there was with the angel a
multitude of the heavenly host. Rev. 19:14-tlie armies which are in
heaven,
Angels, moreover, are presented in Scripture as having an or-
ganization.
1 Kings 22:19-And Micaiah said . .
, I saw Jehovah sitting on
his throne, and all the host of heaven standing by him on his right
hand and on his left. 1 Tliess. 4:16-the voice of the archangel, Jude
9-Michael the archangel. Col. 1 :1G-thrones or dominions or prin-
cipalities or powers. Matt. 25:41-the devil and his angels. Eph. 2 2 -
the prince of the powers of the air. Rev. 19:13-14: and his name i s
called The Word of God. And the armies which a r e in heaven followed
him upon white horses, clothed in fine linene, white and pure.
6. As t o function, angels are minister’s of God’s providence.
Pm. 103:ZO-21: Bless Jehovah, ye his angels, that are mighty
in strength, t h a t fulfill his word, hearkening unto the voice of his
word. Bless Jehovah, all ye his hosts, Ye ministers of his, t h a t do his
pleasure. Heb. 1:14-Are they not all ministering spirits, sent forth
t o do service for the sake of them that shall inherit salvation?
In the presence of God, the good angels worship Him without
cessation:
Pma. 29:1, 2-Ascribe unto Jehovah, 0 ye sons of the mighty,
Ascribe unto Jehovah glory and strength. Ascribe unto Jehovah the
glory due unto his name; Worship Jehovah in holy array. Psa. 89:6,
‘I-who among tlie sons of the mighty is like unto Jehovah? A God
very terrible in the council of the holy ones. Rev, 5:ll-And I saw,
and I heard a voice of many angels round about the throne , , , saying
with a great voice, Worthy is the Lamb t h a t hath been slain t o re- ’
ceive the power, and riches, and wisdom, and might, and honor, and
glory, and blessing.
The good angels rejoice in God’s works:
245
Job 38:T-When the morning stars sang together, And all the
sons of God shouted for joy [that is, a t the Creation of the world.]
Luke 2:13, 14-And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude
of the heavenly host praising God, and slaying, Glory to God in the
earth peace among men in whom he is well pleased
t h e Christ-Child’s birth]. [Luke 15: 10-There i s joy
f the angels of God over one sinner that repenteth.]
Good angels execute God’s will, in nature and in history:
Psa. 104:4-Who maketh his #angelswinds, His ministers a flaming
fire. [Matt. 282-the descent of an angel caused the earthquake on
the morning of Christ’s resurrection,] [Acts 12 :7-an angel struch
the chains from Peter’s limbs and delivered him from prison.] Dan.
12:l-And at t h a t time shall Michael stand up, the great prince who
standeth for the children of thy people, etc. [Z Thess. 15‘4: a t the
end of our age or dispensation, the Lord Jesus shall be revealed from
heaven] with the angels of his power in flaming fire, rendering
vengeance to them t h a t know not God, and t o them that obey not the
gospel of our Lord Jesus.
Good angels minister God’s providence in a special sense to in-
dividual believers:
[I Kings 19:S-an angel ministered t o Elijah under the juniper
tree]: Behold, a n angel touched him, and said unto him, Arise and
eat. Psa. 91:11 [a Messianic prophecy] He will give his angels charge
over thee, To keep thee in all thy ways. They shall bear thee up in
their hands, Lest thou dash thy foot against a stone. [cf. Matt. 4:67~.
Dan. 6:22-My God hath sent his angel, and hath shut the lions’ mouths,
and they have not hurt me. Matt. 4 : l l : [here we read th8at following
the Temptation of Jesus1 angels Came and ministered unto him. Matt:
18:lO: [the words of Jesus concerning little children]: See that ye
despise not one of these little ones: for I say unto
their angels do always behold the face of my Fath
Luke 16:22-And it came t o pass, that the beggar died, iand that he
was carried away by the angels into Abraham’s bosom.
Good angels minister God’s providence also by punishing His
enemies:
2 Kings 19:35-And it came to pass that night, that the angel of
Jehovah went forth, and smote in the camp of the Assyrians a hundred
fourscore and five thousand. [As in several instances in the Old
Testament, the “angel of Jehovah” here may have been the Logos in one
of His pre-incarnate manifestations.] Acts 12 :23-And immediately an
angel of the Lord smote him [the wicked Herod], because he gave not
God the glory; and he wbas eaten of worms, and gave up the ghost.
These are but a few of the many instances in Scripture of
angelic ministration of Divine Providence.
The doctrine of fallen angels is linked up in Scripture
with the inspired account of the primary origin of evil (in
Satan’s pre-mundane rebellion against the Divine government) ,
a subject which does not come within the scope of the present
treatise. To me it seems too obvious even to be questioned that
246
our moral universe is essentially a struggle between the forces
of good and the forces of evil for tlie spirit of man. Let it not
be forgotten, either, that the New Testament promises tlie ulti-
mate and complete triumph of the good. I could no longer for-
bear, sent that I might know your faith, lest by any means the
tempter had tempted you, and our labor should be in vain.
Heb. 2:14-15: Since then the children are sharers in ilesh and
blood, he [Christ] also himself in like manner partook o€ the
same; that through death he might bring to nought him that
had the power of death, that is, the devil; and might deliver
them who through fear of death were all their lifetime subject
t o bondage.
[Cf. Job. 1:6-12, 2:1-7] Zech. 3:1-And he showed me Joshua the
high priest standing before the angel o i Jehovah, and Satan standing
)at his right hand to be his adversary; Matt. 13:39-and the enemy
that sowed them [tares] is the devil [John 8:44-451 1 Pet. 5:8-your
adversary, the devil, a s a roaring lion, walketli about, seeking whom
he may devour; Rev. 12:lO-the accuser OC our brethren is cast down,
who taccuseth them before our God day and night; Matt. 17:15-18;
Mark 3 :7-12 ; Mark 6 :5-20 ; Luke 8 :26-39 ; Luke 10 :17-20 ; Luke 13 :10-
17; Acts 10:38-Jesus of Nazareth , . , who went about doing good,
and healing all that were oppressed of the devil; Acts 16:lG-18; 2 Cor.
12:7-there was given me a thorn in the flesh, a messenger of Satan
to buffet me, that I should not be exalted overmuch: Eph. G : l l - l Z ,
P u t on the whole armor of God, that ye may be able to stand against
the wiles of the devil; for our wrestling is not against flesh and blood,
but against the principalities and powers . , . in the heavenly places;
1 Thess. 2:18-we fain would have come unto you . , . and Satan
hindered us. 1 Thess. 3:S-For this cause I also, when I could 110
longel- forbear, sent that I might know your faith, lest by any means
the tempter had tempted you, and our labor should be in vain. Heb.
2:14-15: Since then the children are sharers in flesh and blood, he
[Christ] also himself in like manner partook of the same; t h a t through
death he might bring to nought him that had the power of death, that
is, the devil; and might deliver them who through fear of death were
all their lifetime subject to bondage.
The Scriptures teach that evil angels, being totally depraved,
that is, wholly confirmed in evil (Matt. 25:41, 2 Pet. 2:4, Jude
6, Rev. 2O:l-3, 7-10), strive constantly to defeat the will of God,
and to hinder man’s temporal and eternal welfare. Yet in
these nefarious activities, evil angels-in spite of themselves,
and perhaps unwittingly, for angels are limited both in
Imowledge and in power-minister God’s providence by illus-
trating His unfailing justice; either directly or indirectly they
execute His plan of chastening the good and punishing the un-
godly; and they illustrate also the nature and destiny of evil.
A God who is all love would be a God unjust. This age certainly
247
needs to learn that righteousness and justice are the foundation
of His throne (Psa. 89: 14).
The role of angels in the Drama of Human Redemption
that is disclosed to mortal view on the pages of Scripture is
indeed a paramount role. To remove it from the Bible would
denude the drama, and the Biblical record as well, of a major
portion of its mystery and power. According to the teaching of
the Scriptures, at every important advance in the unfolding of
the Plan of Redemption, the activity of angels rose to a high
point. Hence, we read of their presence and activity at the
completion of the Creation (Job 38:7); at the giving of the
Law at Mount Sinai (Acts 7:53; Gal. 3:19, Heb. 2:2); at the
birth of the Anointed (Luke 2: ) ; at the Temptation of
Christ, in the Wilderness and again in Gethsemane (Matt. 4:11
Luke 22: 43) ; at the empty tomb, on the morning of the Resur-
rection (Matt. 28:l-7); at the Ascension (Acts k9-11); and
at the Last Judgment (Matt. 25: 31, 2 Thess. 1:7-10).
The angels, as has already been stated, occupy the position
in the Hierarchy of Being intermediate between God and man.
Psa. 8:3-6: “When I consider thy heavens, the work of thy
fingers, The moon and the stars, which thou hast ordained;
What is man, that thou art mindful of him? And the son of man,
that thou visitest him? For thou hast made him but little lower
than God (Hebrew Elohim: A.V. rendering, “the angels”),
And crownest him with glory and honor. Thou makest him to
have dominion over the works of thy hands.” In this passage,
writes Knudson,
EZohim is commonly rendered “angels,” land it is quite possible
t h a t the term was used in this sense; f o r in several instances it has
the general meaning of (‘a godlike being.”’ But in this particular
passage Elohim probably means neither lLangels” nor “God” excla-
sively, but both, It is divine beings generally, than whom man has
been made but a little lower?
In a word, man lives and moves and has his being on the highest
level of existence possible to a creature of earth. Though in
his present state clothed in a physical body, he is himself, in
his essential and imperishable nature; the image of God, and
he has inherently the capacity to become, by means of the knowl-
edge of Christ and the life of the Spirit, a partaker of the divine
nature.
2 Pet. 1:2-4: Grace t o you and peace be multiplied in the knowl-
1. E.g., 1 Sam. 28:13, Exo. 4:16, 7:l.
2. Op. cit., 193.
248
THE HIERARCHY OP BEING
edge of God and of Jesus our Loitd: seeing t l i t ~ lhis divine power hatli
graiitcd unto us all things that pertain unto life and godliness, through
t h o lcno\vledge of liiiii that called us by his own glory and virtue;
wlier&bg 110 Iiatli granted unto US his piwious and exceeding great
promiscs ; that th~.ouglithese yc may beccine partalccrs of the divine
iiaiure, liaving cscaped from l.he corruption t h a t is in the world by lust.
In knowledge and power, angels are superhumma beings of
course. But-are they “supernatural” beings? Obviously, the
answer to this question depends entirely on one’s definition of
the word “nature.” 1 am reminded here of the words of Stuart
Chase:
When one says-as 1 have oCteii said--“We must plan with nature
for the protection of our natural ~eso~rces’~-oiiemust be conscious
that there is no entity “nature,” aii old mothcr with w h o ~ none has in-
terviews, but the word is only a u s d u l tag €or suinining up a great
variety of natural processes : the Iiydrolcgic cycle, soil formation , wind
and storm, plant life, animal Me, and so on.’
In this statement, however, Mr. Chase, as he frequently does,
indulges in a practice which he himself severely condemns,
namely, that of talking in circles: there is no old mother “nature,”
but only an aggregate of “natural” processes which account for
our “natural” resources. But what are “natural” processes and
“natural” resources? And what does Mr. Chase mean by the
phrase, “and so on”? That is, what does the “and so on” take
in? We understand, of course, that Mr. Chase is writing here
of the resources of (‘nature,” as the term is commonly used,
namely, to include the resources of the subhuman world-
mineral, vegetable, and animal resources. Is man himself, then,
not a part of “nature”? Is thought not a “natural” process?
One thing is sure-that without human thought the resources
of the subhuman world would be of little utility. The word
‘&nature”is, in itself just a tag, of course. But, to speak in Mr.
Chase’s own semantic terms, it must have a “referent.” What
is that referent?
The question I raise is this: Where does the “natural”
leave off and the “supernatural” begin? Or, is the “super-
natural” but the rest of the ‘‘natural,” the not-yet-understood
or even apprehended “natural”? Who can answer these ques-
tions with any degree of certainty? Does “nature” include only
the sensible, the tangible, the palpable? If so, it cannot include
thinking, for the simple reason that no one has ever yet appre-
hended a thought through the media of his physical senses; and
if “nature” does not include all those higher thought processes
which are characteristic of man, that is to say, if thinking is a
“supernatural” process, then man himself belongs to a “super-
natural” order. Again, should someone object that the activity
of angels is contrary to human experience, I should reply by
asking, Contrary to whose experience? Contrary perhaps to
the experience of men and women of the present day, or indeed
men and women of several immediately past centuries, although
the are some of these, no doubt, who would affirm the contrary.
But does this fact necessarily prove that the presence of angels
is contrary to the experience of all men who have lived upon
the earth since the beginning of human history, or, to be spe-
cific, contrary to the experiences of those men, those great
servants of God, whom God used so mightily in unfolding His
Plan of Salvation for man? However we approach these prob-
lems, we merely beg the question. The fact remains that no
one can successfully refute the proposition that angels may be,
after all, just as truly a part of the order of Nature as a whole,
as man is. Under this view, Nature embraces all creatures,
and angels, let us remember, are created beings. We may there-
fore properly say that they are superhuman beings, but no man
has any right dogmatically to assert that they are “supernatural”
beings. This business of asserting unproved hypotheses is an-
other prolific source of the confusion that exists in present-day
thinking.
Let us suppose, rather, that “Natute” is the proper desig-
nation for the total Hierarchy of Being. Then let us believe-
and it is undoubtedly the most rational belief possible, far more
so indeed than the creed of the materialist-that God, the Eternal
Spirit, is all-embracing, in some manner inscrutable to us, and
that He evolves everything out of Himself by a timeless process
of Thought, at the same time remaining Himself the great, in-
finite, eternal Other. In Tennyson’s memorable words:
Only That which made us meant us to be mightier by and by,
Set the sphere of all the boundless heavens within the
human eye,
Sent the shadow of Himself, the boundless, through the
human soul;
Boundless inward in the atom, boundless outward in the
Whole.
Under such a view, our world is indeed One World-the World of
the Spirit. That is what I prefer to believe that it is.
Again, on the other hand, if the Totality of Being should
250
be, in fact, not a hierarchy, but a continuum, without any
definite brealts-or ledges, let us say-between the inorganic
and the organic, between the plant and the animal, between
the animal and man, and between man and the angelic order,
-well, what of it? After all, such words as “inorganic” and
“organic,” “material” and “spiritual,” “physical” and “mental,”
“natural” and “supernatural,” and the like, may turn out to be
dualistic impositions upon Reality-mere verbalizations and no
more-by the human intellect itself, prone as it is t o categorize
and to classifly. Indeed, such distinctions may not exist at all
in the total structure of Being. Even so, that is, should this
prove to be the case, would our world be any less the One
World, any less the World of the Spirit? We firmly believe,
however, that the overwhelming testimony of the scholarship
of the ages is that Being is a hierarchy, not a continuum, of
existents.
Indeed, it must be the World of the Spirit and the spirits,
for the simple reason that to anything less than Person it is
meaningless. As far as we know, persons and persons alone are
capable of experiencing and evaluating, in the fullest sense o€
these terms, the world in which they have their being. Persons
and persons only are capable of seeking the meaning of it all,
of pursuing the ageless quest for the Holy Grail of Truth. As
Lotze argues, in the ninth book of his great work, Mikrokosmus,
the universal is everywhere inferior to the particular, the spe-
cies to the individual, and the contents of the realm of true
reality are restricted to the living, personal Spirit of God and
the world of personal spirits, whch He has created.’
We are now ready to enter upon the second phase of our
study-that of Spirit in God.
ADDENDA: COSMOLOGICAL THEORIES

(Theories of the Origin and Organization of the Cosmos)
EMANATIONISM: Unity is prior t o plurality. Creation
is conceived as a process o i the “watering down” of perfection,
as, for example, light, in moving away from its source and thus
becoming difiused, is finally lost in darkness. Darkness is non-
being, and non-being is usually identified with gross matter.
The most thoroughgoing emailation cults were those of the
1. Vide Dr. F. Urberweg, A H i s l o ~ yof Pltilosophy, Vol. 11, 321.
Translated f ~ o mt h e Fourth Gemian Edition by George S. Morris.
251
Gnostics and especially that of Plotinus, which is known as
Neoplatonism.
PLOTINUS (A.D. 205-270).

(The Egyptian Neoplatonist, who derived his system large-
ly from his teacher, Ammonius Saccas. His writings were pub-
lished by Porphyry in six books, each consisting of nine sec-
tions, hence entitled the Enneads.) Origen and Augustine both
were greatly influenced by Neoplatonism. The following should
be read downward:
The One
one: world unity, prior to the possibility

Nous of plurality
many: “ideas” or “forms” of all possible
existents: (1) universals, (2) particulars
one: world soul, undivided
Soul many: individual souls, (1) unconscious,
(2) conscious of ideas
one: world body, as a whole
Body many: particular bodies (1) as wholes
(2) decomposed
The Void
Gross matter: non-being
Gnosticism, in its various cults, postulated a series of

emanations from the Absolute Being or Unity in the forms
of psychic iritermediaries, known as creons. According to this
early Christian heresy, Christ Himself was just such an emana-
tion or aeon. It is interesting to note, in this connection, that
the Deists of a later age were prone to regard the “laws of
nature” as emanations, hence as having a kind of independent
existence.
PHILOSOPHICAL HINDUISM
(or Hindu Mysticism. Very old, as set forth in the Upunishnds)
Again, read downward:
252
THE HIERARCHY OP BEING
Brahman (perfect unity)
Atman ( unity that pervades plurality)
Souls (plurality that is really unity)

n
Bodies (plurality that is mistaken for reality)
$
3 Castes (levels of social classes)
*g
d
Animals (levels of animal life)
Plants (levels of plant life)
Matter (levels of decomposition)
It will be noted that emanationist systems all tend toward

pantheism, the doctrine that identifies God with what we com-
monly call His Creation, The fallacies of pantheism are clearly
pointed out in the following terse statements by C. H. Toy,
Introduction to the History of Religions, p. 476: “Pantheism
has never commended itself to the masses of men , . . The de-
mand for a deity with whom one may enter into personal re-
lations-the simple concept of a God who dwells apart satisfies
the religious instincts of the majority of men. The ethical ques-
tions arising from pantheism seem to them perplexing: how
can man be morally responsible when it is the deity who thinks
and acts in him? and how can he have any sense of loyalty to a
deity whom he cannot distinguish from himself? . . , Man de-
mands a method of worship, and pantheism does not permit
organized worship.” Moreover, pantheism, by distributing the
Divine essence through all cosmic existents, inanimate or ani-
mate, amoral or moral, makes God to be the author of evil as
well as of good; to this fact the only alternative would be that
evil is illusion, and this is the corner in which Absolutists are
uniformly forced to take refuge, May I remind the student
that an illusion is necessarily an illusion of something: an illu-
sion of nothing or nothingness is inconceivable.
PLATO’S COSMOLOGY
(Plato lived 427-347 B.C. See his “likely story” of the
Creation, in the Timaeus.)
253
Being: The Forms (Ideas): The Form of the Good,
unity
Forms of all classes of existents
The Demiourgos (Craftsman, Architect)
“he World: World-Soul
Becoming: Rational Souls
Irrational Souls
Inanimate Bodies
Non-being: Indeterminate matter
-
Plato can hardly be classified as an emanationist: in fact it is
difficult to put his cosmology in any definite category. In the
Timaeus, he pictures the Creation as having been actualized by
the Demiourgos (Master Craftsman, Great Architect), as the
World-Soul, according to the archetypal Forms, out of what he
calls the Receptacle. This last term seems to have been the
word he used to designate the Void (empty space). It will be
recalled that the Greek word chaos denoted, not disorder, but
empty space; hence this was the Greek term generally used for
non-being which was conceived to be what we call “matter.”
(Cf. Plotinus, above). The Forms, in Plato’s thought, were the
Principles of classification, e.g., the “mustardness” of a mustard
seed, the “horseness” of a horse; that is, that which specifies
the individuals of each particular kind of things. Had he put
these Forms in the Mind of “The Divine”-The Form of the
Good, that is, Unity-his system would have to be regarded as
theistic; however, there seems to be no evidence in his writings
that he took this step; he apparently gave the Forms an eternally
separate existence in themselves. Hence, we must conclude
that on the whole Plato favored a view of the Deity as im-
manent, and that his system was weighted in the direction of a
“higher pantheism.” This is evident from the fact that the
World-Soul (as the “Prime Mover”) is presented as spreading
out throughout the cosmos and as directing its processes and
changes from within. As a matter of fact, Plato obviously be-
longed to the Greek philosophical tradition (Aristotelianism
alone excepted) in which the Divine Principle (“God”) is con-
ceived pantheistically as That Which Is, in striking contrast
to the Hebrew voluntarism in which God is revealed as He
Who Is (Exo. 3:14), in a word, as pure personality.
254
TIiD HIERARCHY OP BEING
ARISTOTLE’S HIERARCHY OF BEING
God
(defined as Pure ”hought TIiinlring Itself: cl, John 4:24)
rational psyche (IIsoul”)

(physiochemical processes, cellular processes, sensitivity,
locomotion, plus reason)
animal psyche
(physiochemical processes and cellular processes plus sensi-
tivity and locomotion)
vegetable psyche
(physiochemical processes, plus the cellular processes)
matter-in-motion
(or in modern terms, the physiochemical processes of the
inanimate world)
Aristotle, in his De Anima (“On the Soul”) , pictures the totality

of being as a hierarchy, that is, as organized on different levels
in an ascending scale of complexity of powers, in which each
higher order subsumes the powers of those below it, Analysis
of the nature of “movement” (change) convinced Aristotle that
in order to account for the complex of contingent causes-and-
effects which is the cosmos, there must be a First Cause, a First
or Prime Mover, who is self-existent ( s z ~ generis)
i , that is, non-
contingent and without beginning or end, the only alternative
being that somewhere, at some time, nothing must have origi-
nated the first something-a notion utterly absurd, of course;
or, as someone has put it, the “first mover” must himself be
unmoved, except from within, and different from the “first
moved.” This Prime Mover, otherwise described as Pure Thought
Thinking Itself, is Aristotle’s God, who is presented as affecting
the universe without being a part of it. Hence, it will be seen
that Aristotle’s God is transcendent, and that his system more
nearly approximates theism than that of any other Greek philos-
opher. (Aristotle lived 384-322 B.C., and was a student at
Plato’s school, the Academy, for some twenty years.)
Why does our world exist instead o l any other kind of
y,rorld? asked the German philosopher, Leibiiiz (1646-1716) .
255
THE ETERNAL SPIRIT -H ERSON AND POWERS
Simply because (Leibniz concluded) God has chosen, not to
create any kind of world at random, but to create the best of
all possible worlds, that is, the best He found it possible to
create for achieving His ends, the actualization of the greatest
possible good and the least possible evil. (Evil, Leibniz held, is
of three kinds, namely, physical evil (suffering), moral evil
(sin), and metaphysical evil: this he defined in terms of the
necessary imperfection of finite beings.) Therefore, because our
world is the handiwork of this Perfect Being (The Absolute
Monad), it must be the actualization of the fulness of created
being. In such a world (reasoning a priori, of course), all pos-
sible beings must be actualized, all possible levels ,(grades)
filled therein: there must be unbroken continuity in the form of
progressive gradation of organisms from the ry lowest living
being up to the very highest, God Himself Thus arose the
doctrine of the Great Chain of Being, a doctrine which flourished
in early modern times, and which, obviously, is largely in ac-
cord with present-day evolutionism. (For a thoroughgoing pre-
sentation of this view, see the excellent book by Arthur 0.
Lovejoy, T h e Great Chain of Being, published by the Aarvard
University Press, 1950. The concept is also clearly set forth in
the poem by Alexander Pope, “An Essay on Man.”)
EMERGENTISM
(This is the view that unity is in the process of emerging
out of plurality, The process is, and probably will always be,
an unfinished process. The following tables are to be read up-
ward.)I .
God
Mind Mind Society
Life Mind
Life
Matter Life
Matter Space-Time Matter
C. Lloyd Morgan, 3 am u e 1 Alexander, Roy Wood Sellers,

in his book, Emer- .n his book, T i m e in his book, Evolu-
g e n t E v o l u t i o n , ;end Deity, 1920. ti o n a r y Natural-
1923. ism, 1922.
256
Emergentism, though at times paying lip service to a ‘‘God,” is
strictly pantheistic in character, In all cases, it rejects the
theistic doctrine of God’s transcendence. It ignores uniformly
1he necessity of Efficient Causality in all cosmic processes.
I have presented the foregoing concepts (and diagrams)
for the purpose of demonstrating the futility of all efforts to
obtain complete lcnowledge of the origin and organization of
the cosmos through unaided human reason. The ultimate mys-
teries are inscrutable. These various philosophical theories
surely prove this t o be true; that is, they prove the inherent
incapacity of the human mind to explain (as Chesterton has
put it) how nothing could turn into something or how some-
thing could turn into something else, How refreshing to turn
away from the best that human wisdom can afford us, and to
accept by faith the Biblical teaching, on these subjects! (Cf.
Job 11:7; Isa. 55:G-11; 1 Cor. 1:18-25, 3:18-20; Rom. 11:33-36;
Heb. 11:3 ) .
The following tables will serve to point up the correspond-
ences between the empirical (commonsense) and the Biblical
accounts of the origin and organization of the created world:
self-consciousness God
(the person) (Pure Spirit: John 4:24)
consciousness Angels
(the brute) (ethereal beings, “minister-
life ing spirits”: Heb. 1:14)
(the cell)
Souls
ener gy-matt er (Gen. 2:7)
(non-living)
Bodies
Matter
T h e E M P I R I C A L AC-
COUNT of the Dimensions
of Being, based on observa- T h e B I B L I C A L AC-
tion and experience. COUNT of Being.
(Read upward) (Read upward)
257
THE ETERNAL SPIRJT -HIS PERSON AND POWERS
Day 7-rest
Day &man and woman, bara, v. 28; Gen. 2:7
land animals
Day 5-water and air species,
bara, v. 21
Day 4-chronology (measurement
of time)
GOD
Day 3-plants,
lands and seas
Day 2-atmosphere (“expanse”)
Day 1-energy, light, matter:
bara, v. 1
THE HEBREW COSMOGONY (Gen. 1:1-2: 3 )
(read upward)
Some hold that God, the Eternal Spirit, created without

the use of pre-existing materials, inserting new increments of
power into the Creative Process at successively higher levels.
Some hold that God put into Prime (First) Matter all po-
tentialities (Forms) later actualized by His Efficient Causality.
N.B.-For the diagrams presented above as illustrative of
the Emanation and Emergent Evolution theories of the origin
and organization of the cosmos, I am indebted to Dr. Archie J.
Bahm, Professor of Philosophy, University of New Mexico.
These diagrams appear in his well-known book, Philosophy:
An Introduction, published by Wiley and Sons, 1953. It is by
his permission that I reproduce them here, and for this privilege
I am deeply grateful.-C.C.C.
Dr. A. H. Strong, in his Systematic Theology, suggests that
the content of the Biblical teaching falls under the category of
what is philosophically designated Ethical Monism.
It is my conviction, however, that Dr. Bahm, in the work
cited above, presents a philosophical view which approximates
rather closely the essence of the Genesis Cosmogony. Dr. Bahm
has named his theory Organicism. Should the student wish to
pursue the subject further, he can do so by familiarizing him-
self with the argument presented in Chapter 20 of Bahrn’s book.
The late Martin Buber, the Jewish theistic existentialist,
in his book entitled The Eclipse of God develops the thesis that
258
THE I-IIERABCIIY OF BEING
whereas philosophy holds fast to an image of God, or even to a
faith in God, religion holds fast to God Himself, This is a true
contrast.
Now may I close this volume with a personal confession,
namely: I could never substitute for faith in the Biblical
Heavenly Father who has revealed Himself to us in His Son
Jesus Christ (Heb. 1: 1-4, 11: 6; John 15: 1), any coldly intellectual
philosophical theory of the origin and nature of the Mystery of
Being. I recall here the striking forcefulness of the questions
which Zophar the Naamathite addressed to Job in olden times:
“Canst thou by searching find out God? Canst thou find out
the Almighty unto perfection?” (Job 11:7), There is but one
answer to these questions-an unequivocal negative. Or, as
the Apostle Paul puts it: “The wisdom of this world is foolish-
ness with God” (1 Cor. 3: 19). Again: “For seeing that in the
wisdom of God the world through its wisdom knew not God,
it was God’s good pleasure through the foolishness of the
preaching to save them that believe” (1 Cor. 1:21). Through
the foolishness of the preaching of what? The preaching of
“Christ crucified, unto Jews a stumblingblock, and unto Gentiles
foolishness; but unto them that are called, both Jews and Greeks,
Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God” (1Cor. 1:23-24).
THE TEILHARDIAN HIERARCHY OF BEING

It will be recalled that Spinoza, the Jewish philosopher
(1632-1677), set out in his Ethicn to deal with the problems of
how an immaterial Being (God) could create a material uni-
verse, only to “explain away” the problem at the end, simply
by ideiltifyiiig God with the world, nature, the universe, etc.
(the totality of being). His system was a rigid pantheism which
“explained” little or nothing in y e the basic problem with which
he was trying l o deal. In like manner, in recent years, the late
French priest-scientist-philosopher, Pierre Teilhard de Chardin,
in his principal works, The Divine Milieu and The Phenowzenon
of Mnii, created a stir of some proportions in the academic world
by undertaking to explain the modus opemndi of evolution (as
did Bergson earlier in his work entitled Crenfive Evolution).
Teilhard envisions evolution through a gradation of forms,
from atomic particles up to human beings, in ever increasing
complexity of structure, and along with it, the development of
consciousness (Bergson uses the term “Spirit”) , The result is
a kind of pait-psychism. Man is the focal poillt in whom all
2 59
facets of the evolutionary process converge, and in man re-
flective thought finally emerges, The unique feature of Teil-
hard’s system is his concept that the ultimate reality of this
cosmic development is the Incarnate Christ (not the “Super-
man” of Nietzsch or that of Samuel Butler, nor that of
Shaw’s Man and Superman or his Back to Methuselah.), but
the God-Man, who ultimately gathers all things up into Himself
and truly becomes all i r ~all. “The only universe,” says Teilhard,
“capable of containing the human person is an irrevocably ‘per-
sonalizing‘ universe.” Again: “In one manner or the other, it
still remains true that, even in the view of the were ,biologist,
the human epic resembles nothing so much as a ‘way of the
Cross” (PM, 290, 311). Like that of Bergson, Teilhard’s system
was an honest effort to describe the modus operandi of the
evolutionary process. However, we are safe in saying that both
Bergson and Teilhard have failed to explain how a new species
emerges-indeed how novelty of any kind enters into the process
-just as Spinoza failed to explain how an immaterial God
could have created this material world. Obviously, these are
mysteries which lie beyond the scope of human comprehension
(Job 11:7, Isa. 55: 8-9). Nevertheless Teilhard’s presentation is
sufficiently intriguing to merit an analysis of it, in its main out-
lines, for whatever it may be worth to the student. One thing
can be said in its favor: it has received little but scorn, and
even sneers, from the materialistic evolutionists. The following
diagram and explanatory matter will suffice, perhaps, to place
the Teilhardian view before readers of the present text.
OMEGA: Creation and Creator Become One

Through Christ
Plerome
Socialization
Homo sapiens
NOOGENESIS
(from nous, “reason,” “mind”)
Hominisat ion
Threshold of Reflection
Primates
ANTHROPOGENESIS
(from anthropos, “man”)
260
Mammals, etc.
Animals (Consciousness)
Plants Cellular Processes
Monocellulars Bacteria
BIOGENESIS
(from bios, “life”)
Threshold of Life
Minerals
Molecules Crystals
Atoms
Granules of Energy
COSMOGENESIS
(from cosmos, “order”-of the non-living world)
ALPHA
(Read upward, according to what Teilhard
calls the Axis of Ascending Complexity and
Consciousness)
EXPLANATORY : Evolution, according to Teilhard, moves along a

kind of vertical line which he calls “the axis of ascending complexity
and consciousness,” each cosmic particle (monad) being composed of a
“within” (of psychic or radial energy, also called psychism, which is not
amenable t o physical sense), and a “witliout)’ (physical or “tangential”
which is measurable) : both form a n indivisible “spirit-matter” entity.
(Hence this must not be thought of as a dualism.) 1. Period of “Cosmo-
pmests.” The more complex the matter becomes, the more consciousness
(psyche) it gains. Evolution is simply tlie continuous intensification of
the psychical or radial energy. Cosmogenesis is the process of becomhrg,
on an evolutionary line between ia past and a future, The point of
departure from the axis is designated ALPHA, or the Alpha Point.
Through “granulation” of energy the first elementary particles took
form, and over an unimsginable stretch of time assumed tlie status of
what present-day science calls atomic nuclei, atoms, or molecules (these
are simply tools of explanation in physics). The birth of our planet
probably occurred (about five million years ago. 2. Period o f “Bio-
genesis.” When the “corpuscular number” in a particle reached a certain
level matter “came alive.” This “vitalisation” occurred when matter
crossed the threshold of life end marked tlie beginning of the age of
biogenesis. As physical niatter became more and more complex, the
psychism of tlie individual monad increased prqportionately. 3. Pwiod
of “A1LtlIro~)ogeiresis.”At the point when the brain reaches the necessary
degree of complexity, tlie threshold of reflection was crossed ~ i i dinan
was born. This power of thought made man a being distinct from all
other species. This was a matter of change of degree, but of a
change of nature, resulting from a change of state” (PM, 1GG). The
horninisation of tlie species inti-oducrd tho age of anthropogeiiesis. This
occurred probably at some point within the last million years: Concern-
261
ing i n s t i n c t in animals, Teilhard writes: “We realize better in our minds
the foact and the reason for the d i v e r s i t y of animal behavior. From the
moment we regard evolution as primarily psychical transformation, we
see there is not o n e instinct in nature, but a multitude of forms of
instincts each corresponding t o a particular solution of the problem
of life. The ‘psychioal’ make-up of an insect is not and cannot be that
of a vertebrate; nor can the instinct of a squirrel be that of a cat or a n
elephant: this is in virtue of the position of each on the tree of life’’
(PM, 167). “The individual and instantaneous leap from instinct to
thought” marked t h e beginning of “hominisation,” which then advanced
by means of “the progressive phyletic spiritualisation in human civilisa-
tion of all the forces contained in the animal world” (PM, 180). As
Julian Huxley puts it, in his Introduction : “The intensification of mind,
the raising of mental potential” is regarded “as being the necessary
consequence of complexification” (PM, 11-16). 4. T h e P e r i o d of No-
ogenesis.” (From t h e Greek noesis, from n o e i n , “to perceive,” from nous,
“mind”: hence, noesis in English, which, in philosophy, means purely
intellectual ,apprehension.) This phase began as a result of the gradual
evolytion of mental powers, with the appearance of the first h o m o
sapaens. (There are different races, Teilhard emphasizes, but only one
h o m o sapzens.) Evolution has now reached the stage at which major
physical development has lost significance, Science holds that man is
unique in nature because of his brain processes, not because his brain
is the biggest in clapacity but because it is more complex. According t o
Teilhard, “the noosphere (and more generally the world) represents a
whole t h a t is not only closed but also centred. Because it contains and
engenders consciousness, space-time is necessarily of a c o n v e r g e n t nature.
Accordingly, its enormous layers, followed in the right direction, must
somewhere ahead become involuted t o a point which we might call
O m e g a , which fuses and consumes them integrally in itself” (PM, 259).
At the present time we are in the period of soci,alisation in which, accord-
ing t o Teilhard, mankind becomes more and more united and integrated.
This will come about as a consensus of mankind will gradually replace
the growing capacity of the individual intellect because the human brain
will cease to grow. This common consciousness will lift humanity to a
higher level. Man inevitably continues t o socialize: i t is his nature t o
do so; hence all things will converge a t one center, Omega, the point
where humanity a n d the universe is bound to converge in the cosmic
Christ.
What roles are played by God and Christ in the Teilhardian system?
He puts the totality of being in the hands of the omnipresent God, He
places man in the Divine Milieu, yet in such a wtay that man is not
depersonalized in spite of ever increasing socialization. On the contrary,
it is this personal link which connects each of us t o God, who is the
center, and the motor, so t o speak, of the evolutionary process. We
become God’s partner in leading the world forward t o the Omega point.
For some persons, man is the center, the only point of adoration in the
totality of being; for others, man is little or nothing in this grandiose
universe-he is lost in it. Neither position is right. Referring t o Aaul’s
sermon on the Areopagus, Teilhard writes (DM, 25) : (‘God who has
made man in order that he may find him-God whom we t r y t o grasp
through the experiment o f our lives-this God is as tangible and present
a s the #atmosphere in which we are submerged. He surrounds us from
all sides like the world itself.” Man cannot escape the Divine Milieu.
Each right action brings him into closer communion with Christ. “What-
soever ye do,” writes the Apostle, “do all in the name of the Lord Jesus”
(Col. 3 ~17).This means we should a1w)ays act in close fellowship with
our Lord. The totality of man’s life, even in its most “natural” aspects,
is sanctifiable. From this point of beginning, the Christian life receives
262
its content and direction, how and where t o go. How does man enter
upon this path? By purifying his intrntions and acting according to the
Will o i God. As man adheres t o the creative power of God, he becomes
its instrument, or even more, its living extension. Man is thus united
with God and in God on this earth in a common love t o create. And in
spite of the individual’s failures and sins the world as a whole will
achieve victory over evil, because God is on man’s side. Mankind is
assured that the universe, all creation, will rejoin the One when all
evolution shall have converged in the point Omega. This will be the
mysterious Plerome, where Creator land Creation will be one totality,
without, however, adding anything essential to God. The active center
of the Plerome in which everything is united, :lie creative Soul in whom
everything is consummated, is Jesus Christ, Religion and science a r e
the two conjugated faces or phases of one ‘and the same act of complete
knowledge-the only one which can embrace the past and the future of
evolution so a s t o contemplate, measure, and fulfill them” (DM. 284,
286). Note well the following concluding statements (PM, 293, 294) :
“Is the Kingdom of God ,a big family? Yes, in a sense it is. But in
another sense i t is a prodigious biological operation-that of the Redeem-
ing Incarnation. As early a s in St. Paul and St. John, we read t h a t t o
create, t o fulfill and t o purify the world is, for God, t o unify i t by uniting
it organically witl? himself, How does He unify it? By partieally immers-
ing himself in things, by becomng ‘element,’ and then, from this point
of vantage i n the heart of the matter, assuming the control and leader-
ship of what we now oall evolution. Christ, principle of universal
vitality because sprung up as man among men, put himself in the
position (maintained ever since) to subdue under himself, to purify,
t o direct, and superanimate the general ascent of consciousness into
which he inserted himself. By a perennial act of communion and sub-
limation, he aggregates t o himself the total psychism of the earth.
And wlien he has gathered everything together and transformed every-
thing, he will close in upon himself and his conquests, thereby rejoining,
in a final gesture, the divine focus he 1ms never left. Then, as St. Paul
tells us, God shaZ1 be all in all. . , , The universe fulfilling itself in a
synthesis of centres in perfect conformity with the laws of union. God,
the Centre of centres. In that final vision the Christian dogma culmi-
nates.” (Cf. Eph. 1:6-12, I Cor, 15:20-28, Col. 1:9-23 Rev. 1:8, 1:17-18),
It will thus be seen that Teilhard’s God is esse6kally theistic rather
than pantheistic: He is presented as the Eternal Being, in Himself
separate from the creation, and as immersing Himself into all created
being as the “center” land “motor” of the evolutionary process. His
pdrtrayal of the Omega Point as tlie ultimate fusion of Creation and
Redemption in the Beatific Vision (Union with God) is hardly a variaa-
tion from tlie Apostle Peter’s description of the “new heavens and a
new earth, wherein dwelleth righteousness” ( 2 Pet. 3:13 ; cf. Matt. 6 :8,
1 Cor. 13:12, 1 John 3 : 2 ; Rev. 21:l-8, 2 2 : l - 6 ) . It strikes this writer t h a t
the most obvious weakness in the Teilhardian exposition is his failure
t o recognize the juridical aspect of the totalty of being, and his conse-
quent failure t o deal adequately with the fact of evil and its consequences,
including the Scripture doctrines of judgment, rewards, and punishments.
(See Psa. 89:14, J o h n 6:28-29, Matt. 25:31-46, Rom. 2:1-1$, 2 Thess.
1:7-10, Acts 17:30-31, Rev. 2O:ll-16, etc.) This, of course, i s a tragic
lacuna in all the branches of human knowledge in our day.
In summary: I t will thus be seen that in all these concep-
tions the creation is pictured in the form of a n ascending se-
quence of tee7el.s of being; that is, as essentially hierarchical in
character. T h e notion o j an ascending continuum comprehending
263
all kinds of being certainly ’lies beyond all possibility (or even
probability) of credible acceptance. As previously stated, to
assume that matter is to be regarded as the sole reality is to
attribute to atoms all the facets and powers that theologians
attribute to God, including supreme intelligence, creative power,
autonomous eternal (timeless) existence. Those who leave God
aut of their philosophy are under the necessity of sh how
(or even that) mindless, non-living matter has been le of
organizing itself, of becoming alive, and of endowing itself with
consciousnes,s, reason, and self-consciousness (personality). On
these conclusions we rest our intelligent faith upon the fact of the
self-existent living and true God of the Bible. Being is a hier-
archy, not a contirwum of existents.
[However, see my essay on “Evolution and Evolutionism’’
at the end of this volume.]
QUESTIONS FOR REVIEW OF PART THREE

,
1. How do we know that man is a, creature? What is the significance
of this fact?
2. What a r e the ultimate intrinsic and extrinsic ends of man? What
is our basis for these beliefs?
3, What is the necessary means to man’s attainment of Perfect
Happiness?
4. I n what does the life with the Holy Spirit, begin?
5. What a r e a r e prerequisites, according to Scripture, of betrothal
to Christ?
6. What a r e the essential facts of the Gospel? What is the funda-
mental truth of the Gospel message?
7. State the three commands and the three great promises of the
Gospel:
8. What IS the meaning of the title Messias or Christ?
9. When dqes the iactual marriage of Christ and His Bride take place?
Give Scripture proofs.
10. E x lain what is meant by the Hierarchy of Being. How does this
differ from a continuum?
11. Explain Lotze’s theory of the breaks in the continuity of Being?
12. What are the obvious gaps in the ascending Continuity of Being?
13. Is m y theory of Creation possible that would ignore the necessity
of a Creative Power?
14. Can Creation ever be accounted for if Efficient Causality is rejected?
16. State LeConte’s definition of evolution.
16. Why do we reason that a Creation did take place, whatever may
have been the method?
17. Explain the philosophy of Holism, a s related to the Hierarchy
of Being. Explain “This is a universe of whole-making.’’
18. State the substance of Montague’s discussion of the chances of
surviving death.
19. According to Montague’s argument what are the four “fields of
existence” which make up the Hierarchy of Being.
20. “Heaven is a prepared place for la prepared people.” What are
the reasons for this affirmation?
264
THE HIDRAI1CHY OP BBING
21. What, according t o Scripture, are the different levels on which
the Spirit operates in the Totality of Bejag? By what designation
is His activity described in each of these areas?
22, What are the evideiices jn the first chapter of Genesis t h a t support
our eml,irioal view of the Hierarchy ol‘ Being?
23. Distinguish between pviwary creation and sccoizdary creation, How
does this distinction harmonize with the distinction of geiaeral and
spoaial Providence?
24. What three stages of Creation a r e clearly marked out in the
Biblical narrative?
25. Give the substance of Hesiod’s cosmogony.
26, What did CI~aosmean in Greek thought? How does this accord
with the first t ~ 7 overses of Genesis?
27. What were the advances in the Creative Process t h a t were brought
about in a n ascending order by the Breath of God?
28. What, according t o Scripture, did God plan from before “the founda-
tion of the world’?
29, What is the ultimate phase of the Creative Process?
30, In what state of being will the Divine Cosmic Plan be realized in
the saints? I n what respects will they be “conformed to the image
of God’s Son”?
31. What two classes will appear in the Judgment and what will be
the destiny of each?
32. Why do we say that Redemption will be the second-and the last-
phase of the whole Creative Process?
33. What are the three integral parts, or events, of the Divine Plan
of the Universe?
34. What is the highest level in the total Hierarchy of Being?
35, Explain: Being is a ILierarclLy, not a CoiLtiizuum.
36. Explain spiritual progression from the Kingdom of Nature, through
the Kingdom of Grace into the Kingdom of Glory.
37. Distinguish between svq2ution and evolutionism,
38. What error is involved in presenting svobtion as a fact.
39. What do we mean by saying that the theory is built on i n f e r e w e ?
40. Is the inference necessary inference? Explain your answer.
41. What is Jauncey’s explanation of the misguided zeal of evolu-
tionists? What is his evaluation of the current state of the hy-
pothesis?
42. What fallacy is involved in the title, “Can Science Produce Life?”
43. Wh#at is one unfortunate “pragmatic” effect of evolutionism?
44. Explain why there is no adequate explanation of the cosmos without
Efficient Causality.
45. Why is the angelic host essential t o any adequate presentation of
the Hierarchy of Being?
46. What does the Bible teach regarding the origin of the angelic host?
47. How are angels differentiated from men with respect t o origin?
With respect to their essential nature?
48. What seems t o be the outstanding attribute of the angelic nature?
49. Is angelic power and intelligence limited? Explain, land give
Scriptures t o justify your answer.
50. What do we mean by saying that angels a r e “ethereal” beings?
Can you think of iany other adjective t h a t would properly describe
them?
51. What, according t o Heb. 1:14, is the work of the angelic host?
How prominently are angels presented in Sciipture? Cite cases
of their activities as reported in Scripture.
52. Are we logical in affirming that the rangelic host occupies properly
the intermediate position between man and God?
265
53. What statement of Jesus justifies our conclusion t h a t angels are
without sex distinctions?
54. How is the angelic host represented in Scripture (1) as to number,
( 2 ) as t o organization.
... What is pictured t o be the activity of the good angels?
65.
56. In what ways do the angels minister God’s providence?
67. Give instances of the ministration of angels t o individual believers.
58. I n what ways do the angels execute God’s will in nature and in
history?
59. Summarize the doctrine of fallen angels as presented in the Bible.
60. What will be the ultimate destiny of the good angels?
61. What will be the ultimate destiny of the evil angels?
62. Who was Satan originally? Summarize what is stated about him
#andhis activities as revealed in Scripture.
63. Summarize the role of angels in the Drama of Redemption.
64. What position do the angels hold in the Hierarchy of Being‘!
65. Are angels presented in Scripture as “supernatural” or as “super-
human”? Explain your answer.
66. What is meant by nature and natural processes, as distinguished
from human and superhumatz?
67. What is meant by dualistic (dichotomic) “impositions of the hu-
man mind upon reality”?
68. Certainly “nature” is a term which includes all wentad beings.
But. is there anv iustification for assuming t h a t God is a p a r t
I
of nature, or the whole of nature Himself?

69. Explain what is meant by emanation.ism.
70. Diagram the hierarchical interpretation of the cosmos as suggested
by the Neoplatonists.
71. What general theorv of emanation did the Gnostics hold?
72. E x p l a i i the hierarchical view of the cosmos as put forward by the
various cults of Hinduism.
73. Why, according t o Toy, has Pantheism never “commended itself
to the masses 03 men”? - ’
74. Diagram Plato’s concept of the Hierarchy of Being.
75. Diagram Aristotle’s description of the Hierarchy of Being.
76. Note the hierarchical implioations of self -styled Emergentism.
77. What i s the empirical account of the Dimensions of Being?
78. Diagram the Biblical account of the Hierarchy of Being. Show
the correspondence between the Biblical and empirioal accounts.
79. Diagram the hierarchical picture that is given us in the Genesis
account of the Creation.
80. Diagram the Teilhardlan account of the Hierarchy of Being.
81. What significant features are added in the Teilhardian presenta-
tion t h a t lare not t o be found in preceding philosophical descriptions?
82. Explain the theory of the Great Chain of Being.
82. What is our “conclusion of the whole matter”?
266
P A R T FOUR
SPIRIT I N G O D
267
1. Man the Image o f God
In the Biblical account of the Creation, we read the follow-
ing words with which every Bible student is familiar:
And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness:
and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the birds
of the heavens, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over
every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth. And God created
man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and
female created he them (Gen. 1:26-27).
One would be right in affirming, I think, that no other idea in
all Iiterature has so profoundly affected almost every phase of
our Western culture as the idea embodied in this Scripture, the
idea that every human being is the image or likeness of the Di-
vine Being. This, in fact, is the concept which underlies the
doctrine of the natura1 equality of men, and consequently the
democratic form of the state; if the concept does not represent
an objective fact, then human equality is only a myth and
democracy a great delusion. Moreover, the truth itself is the
foundation of the whole judicial order, that is, the order of
human rights and duties; otherwise, such an order does not
exist, and the alternative view-that Might makes Right-must
be accepted as the true one.
Mart is the image of God: so affirm the Scriptures. That is
to say, as God is essentially Spirit, so man is essentially spirit,
though in his present state clothed in a physical “tabernacle.”
Or, in equivalent terms, as God is a Person, so man is a person.
In either sense, man is the image, the reflection, although no
doubt a very feeble and imperfect one, of the Being of God.
It will be remembered, in this connection, that Jesus was Scrip-
turally declared to be “the very image of God’s substance’’
(Heb. 1:3); that is, whereas the natural man is only the per-
sonaZ image, Jesus, Himself the God-Man, was both the personal
and moral, image or likenes of God.
Now is this affirmation-that man is the image of God-
a Divine revelation of an eternal truth? or is it a mere an-
thropomorphism? That is, did God actually create man in His
own image, or did man create God in his own imagination?
The old Greek iconoclast, Xenophanes of Kolophon, the
earliest rebel, in so far as our knowledge goes, against the an-
thropomorphic mythological deities of his time, is often quoted
as having said: “Mortals seem to have begotten Gods to have
their own garb and voice and form”; also, “Now if horses o r
268
SPIRIT IN GOD
oxen or lions had hands or power to paint and make the works
of art that men make, then would horses give their Gods horse-
like forms in painting or sculpture, and oxen ox-like forms, even
each after its own kind”; and again: “The Aethiop saith that
his Gods are snub-nosed and black, the Thracian that his have
blue eyes and red hair,” etc.’ Now we must not infer from these
statements that Xenophanes was an atheist. Obviously he was
not, for among other sayings attributed to him are the follow-
ing, which clearly indicate that he was thinking in monotheistic,
or perhaps it would be nearer the truth to say pantheistic, terms:
“There’s one God greatest among Gods and men, who is like to
mortals neither in form nor mind”,’ the divine, a living thing,
“is all eye, all mind, all ear,”’ “without toil it perceiveth and
agitateth all things with its mind”;4 “it ever abideth in one
place, and never moveth, nor doth it beseem it to go now this
way and now that,” etc.‘ It is evident from these fragments
that Xenophanes was only repudiating the anthropomorphic
polytheisms of Homer and Hesiod (who, said he, “have ascribed
unto the gods all that is reproach and blame in the world of men,
stealing and adultery and deceit”’) for a more rational con-
ception of the Deity, just as did Socrates, and his pupil Plato,
some two centuries afterward. Even so, this critique of an-
thropomorphism by Xenophanes, which has been parroted by
so-called “free-thinkers” in almost every age, embraces at least
two glaring fallacies, In the first place, his introductory if is
an insurmountable barrier to the truthfulness of his statement. IF,
said the old Greek thinker, horses or oxen or lions had power
to conceive of Deity, or hands to represent Him in painting or
sculpture, they would picture Him in a horse-like, or an OX-
like, or a lion-like form, etc. But, as Shakespeare would say,
“Aye, there’s the rub!” Horses, oxen, or lions give no evidence
whatever of any capacity to conceive of God; brutes are utterly
incapable of receiving or entertaining the idea. A man might
try to “explain” God to his old dog Rover, but Rover would
be utterly unable to comprehend; Rover, in fact, could do
nothing but wag his tail and lick his master’s hand. Man alone,
1. Elegy and lambus, Loeb Classical Library, 201, 203. J. M.
Edmonds, translator. Fragments from Miscellaizies of Clement of Alex-
andria.
2. Elegy uitd Zambus, Loeb Classical Librftry, 207. J. M. Edmonds,
translator. From Clement of Alexandria, Mzsccllanaes.
3. Ibad., 207. From Sextus Enipiricus, Against the Mathoinaticiaizs.
4. Ibid., 207. From Simplicius on Aristotle, Phusios (on the All).
6. Ibid., 207. From Simplicius on Aristotle, Physics (on the +!I).
6. Ibid,, 201. From Sextus Empiricus, A g a i m t the Mathematzcaam.
2 69
of all creatures of earth, is capable of apprehending the fact
of God, capable of receiving a revelation from God, hence cap-
able of religious belief and activity. Thus at most the state-
ment of Xenophanes is only a half-truth and can never be any-
thing more. In the second place, even man himself is com-
pelled to think of God primarily in terms of his own experience;
he can hardly do otherwise. This is no doubt the reason why
so many of the presentations of the thoughts and acts of God,
especially 3in the Old Testament, are put in ’anthropomorphic
form; this form was in adaptation to man’s finite intelligence;
God was under the necessity of revealing Himself in terms of
man’s very limited experience. And particularly is this true
of revelations that were communicated in the infancy of the
race, In fact the entire Old Testament revelation gives evi-
dence of having been constructed on what might properly be
called principles of kindergarten pedagogy; the New Testament
revelation, on the other hand, couched as it is in spiritual terms,
is obviously adapted to a race that is supposed to have put
away childish things. All this hue and cry of anthropomorphism,
in so far as the content of the Old Testament is concerned, gives
evidence of shallowness rather than of profundity of thought;
in most cases it is but the outpouring of a profane spirit. As a
matter of fact, these anthropomorphisms make our God more
intelligible to us; they bring Him nearer to us; they make Him
more “human,” if indeed the use of this adjective with refer-
ence to the Deity is pardonable. The God of the Bible is far
more lovable, far more attractive to mankind, than the God
fabricated by human reason, the cold, intellectually-constructed
Demiourgos of Plato, for example, or the Substance of Spinoza,
or John Dewey’s “humanistic” non-entity.’ Besides, the an-
thropomorphic portrayals of God in the Old Testament are not
to be taken in strict literalness; obviously they were not even
intended to be so taken; undoubtedly many of them were con-
sciously metaphorical. I quote here from Dr. Knudson:
What we are, however here concerned about is not to determine
the extent of the literal and the metaphorical in the Old Testament use
of anthropomorphisms, but to point out the fact that the great pur-
pose actually served by these anthropomorphisms is t o emphasize the
personality of God. He is a living, acting Being, a Being touched with
the feeling of our infirmities. He does not stand apart from men but
enters in the most intimate way into their experiences. He counsels
them, commands them, blesses them, punishes them. In a word, He
is the great outstanding fact of their lives. This truth it is that lies
1. Vide PIato, Timaeus; Spinoza, Ethics; John Dewey, A Common
Faith.
270
SPIRIT IN GOD
back of the biblical use of anthropomorphisms and i s enforced by them,
In no other way could the personality of God a t t h a t time have been
adequately and effectively expressed, Concrete conceptions and con-
crete modes of speech, such as we find in the anthropomorphisms of
the Old Testament, were the only ones t h a t could then be fully under-
stood.’
Man was created in the image of God; so the Scriptures
declare. Every human being is a likeness of God. Certainly
this likeness is not in any sense physical; there is nothing in
Scripture that can be construed to support such an interpreta-
tion. This likeness i s comprehended, rather, in the terms of
Person and Spirit. Man is the likeness of the Divine in his
possession of the attributes and powers of Person, of Spirit.
Of course this does not mean that God is a Person in precisely
the same modes, or in precisely the same degree, with respect
to the intensity of His powers, that man is a person; hence,
some writers have chosen to write of God as “super-” or (‘supra-
personal.” Granting, however, that due allowance must be made
for the difference in rank and power between deity and hu-
manity, nevertheless, again as Knudson puts it,
personality is the highest category of which we know anything. “su-
perpersonal existence” is a phrase without any concrete content, a n
unknown quantity that means no more t o us than an algebraic X U $ .
If we are, therefore, t o think of God, it must be either under the per-
sonal o r some subpersonal form. There is no third alternative.’
C. E. M. Joad writes, God and Evil, 250-251: “NOWit may
be true that God permits Himself to be conceived as a person-
ality, but if so, His personality can be at most only one aspect
of the whole that He is.” But, because Person is the highest
category of which we have knowledge, reason forbids our con-
ceiving God as being less than Person, for in that case He
would be less than man-an unthinkable conclusion with re-
spect to the Deity. Hence we must conclude that God belongs
in the category of Person, but necessarily of Person in the full-
est and most intense degree of those r2wers characteristic of
the personal order of being. In a word, . must be Person or
Spirit in perfection, eternal in His being, infinite in His in-
exhaustibleness.
“The spiritual, as we know it,” writes Rufus Jones
is always superposed on the physical, the biological, the natural. It
does not come down from above by a Jacob’s ladder a s a purely
heavenly “emergent.” I t comes rather as a new and subtle elevation,
1. Albert C. Knudson, The Religious Teaching of the Old Tssta-
ment, 61.
2. o p . cit., 58.
271
a sublimation, of what was here before, The spiritual, in some way
not yet known, “breaks through” the natural as its organ of expresslon,
somewhat a s electricity “breaks through” into manifestation as soon
as the dynamo is sufficiently perfected, though the analogy is very
lame and halting. . . . In some unexplainable way, which remains as
mysterious as the functions of Aladdin’s lamp is the Arabian stow,
refined forms of matter-like t h a t for example which compo
brain cortexes-allows consciousness, mind, intelligent purpose, t
forth. There comes a stage in the unfolding of life when a
consciousness emerges which may quite properly be called s p d
characterized first of all by the truly amazing fact that it know
It would seem to be mystery enough t o be able t o know a n object ifi
space. How t h a t is done is and remains a fundamental mystery. But
mind of what I a m calling the spirit type not only knows an object
but knows t h a t i t knows it, and knows itself a s knowing it. The
Jacob’s ladder i s now within, and mind can climb up and overspan as
from a watchtower both subject and object, both self and others, and
.
can know that i t knows a s well as w h a t it knows. . . The mind of
man, throughout i t s experience of knowing, transcends the act of
knowing a n object, and in the same pulse of experience in which it
knows the object knows itself a s knowing it. This unique peculiarity
of self-identity and the inner grasp of itself in all its intelligent pro-
cesses belongs inherently to mind a t this stage of spirit. We shall get
nowhere with OUT theories of knowledge until we stop talking o f - t h e
mind a s though it were merely a receptacle-a birdreage to be filled
from the outside-and learn t o think of it as a living*active system
of experience, unified and controlled from within. What Kant called
“the transcendental unity of consciousness” is one of the most ma-
jestic of all our interior marvels. We need not be unduly bothered by
his beloved word “transcendental.” It does not imply something which
Comes from a mystical beyond, some vague addendum to our inherent
structural organ of consciousness. It is native to us as men. It means
here only t h a t the unity of consciousness under consideration is pre-
supposed in all our experience. This hnity is an essential condition of
knowledge. It is constitutive of knowledge, and cannot be a product
of it. It is what gives our type of experience its unlvevsal and neces-
s a t y character. It means t h a t at every sane moment of our lives
we look out upon each new fact of knowledge from a unified compre-
hensive self, which binds the new fact, with proper linkages of thought-
forms, in with a larger background and persistent self-center, with
slowly formed dispositional traits, and with the added mark and
brand t h a t this i s I that think and know this fact. All knowledge
t h a t can be called “knowledge” involves something new confronted
and apprehended by a larger apperceiving self which fuses the new
with the old, gives it its place in the comprehending system, and
weaves the new fact, with this mysterious inner shuttle of “I know it,”
into the web of persistent knowledge. There are certain well-known
phrases, such a s “psychological climate” o r “apperception’s mass,”
o r “dispositional traits” o r “meaning-mass” or “mnemonic mass,” for
the assimilation of the new experience with the old; but the current
phrases are often used too loosely and with too little stress upon the
operating dominion of a n identical self which does the apperceiving,
the assimilating of the new with the old. The structural unity of
which I am speaking and the self-identity of our knowing self need t o
have signal emphasis if we a r e ever to arrive a t the true significance
of the life of the spirit. The dominion of meaning from within, all
the time, dominates our perceptions>
1. Spivit in Man, 6-10.
272
SPIRIT IN GOD
Dr. Jones then goes on to say:
Mind, when i t reaches the stage of spirit in beings like us-the
only beings in whom we see it manifested_-is nq longer completely de-
pendent on objects perceived, objects “given” in space. It can now
attend t o objects of its own order, to t h a t which is mental, spi$ud)
ideal. It can produce and attend t o what are well called “free ideas.
Free ideas become detached from the experiences and the settings and
the occasions in which they arose. Free ideas a r e explicit thoughts
which are independent of what is given a t the time in sense. They
are our universals, our working concepts, our ideas of connection and
relationship. These free ideas are the basic unities, the linkages, and
the forms through which we interpret all o u r experiences. They a r e
the patterns and forms for our axperiences of beauty and goodness,
They are the controlling ideals in our forecasts of life. . . . These
“free ideas” become the instruments of new ranges of thought, and
they enable us t o anticipate and handle situations not yet experienced.
The mind rolls up and accumulates a body of experience which not
only conserves the past but which outruns its stocks of income and
creates values of its own. It can perceive with a n inward eye--“an
eye made quiet by the power of harmony”--and can behold what
never was before on sea or land. It can, through its accumulated
powers, deal with those intangibles and impalpables, which crude
senses are bound t o miss, a s they also miss the vibrations which ap-
parently make sensations possible. It is thus that we become creative
beings.‘
This power, Dr. Janes continues, “to save the past by memory
and to anticipate the future by creative imagination makes
ideal forecasts possible and gives us a prophetic faith that
the gates of the future are open to US."^ It creates “a beyond
within us.”
The characteristic of a beyond within us belongs essentially t o
spirit in man, and is one of our most momentous characteristics. An
immanent ideal, operating in all our life aims, is essential to our nature
a s persons. There is always a “more yet” which carries our minds
.
over and beyond the margins of any given situation. . . This feature
of a beyond within us, this capacity of before and after, this power
t o see our deed in the light of an ideal forecast, furnishes us,with a
fundamental form of distinction between what was, o r is, and
what might have been-between a good and a possible better. Then
we slowly roll up and accumulate through life-experience with others
a concrete o r dispositional conscience which becomes, o r may become,
a perennial nucleus of inward moral wisdom and guidance. This be-
comes, or may become, t o us the deep self which we really are, the
self we propose t o be, the self which we would even die t o preserve.
This deep-lying nuclear moral guardian in us is one of the most
amazing features of a rightly fashioned life, but one must have it
in order t o appreciate it?
Finally, in this connection:
First, last, and all the time, i e . , in our sanity, we possess a n
integral, self-identical self, which knows what i t knows and does what
1. Ru€us M. Jones, op. cit., 10-11.
2. Ibid., 11-12.
3. Ibid., 12-13.
273
i t does. I t is, or at least can become, a highly complex spiritual reality,
with a sphere and range of its own. We are in large measure the
makers of ourselves; but fortunately we start with a precious im-
partation, of birth-gift, which is big with its potentiality of spirit-
otheiwise we might have ended a s a hop-toad,
A creature predestined to move
In a well-defined groove,
with no power t o build a self from within, such a s we now possess.
And tli,at self of ours, whatever its ultimate qestiny may be, is utterly
LL)I‘LQLLC.
It is only by the cultivation of the “nuclear moral guardian”

within him, Dr. Jones points out, that a man attains ultimately
to the status of a Teal person; by failing to to cultivate it, he
simply drops back to the biological level. Where there is life,
there is growth, in the moral as in the biological realm; the
only alternative to growth, to advancement, is atavism. One
is reminded here of the words of Jesus: “Enter ye in by the
narrow gate: for wide is the gate, and broad is the wayI that
leadeth to destruction, and many are they that enter in thereby.
For narrow is the gate, and straitened the way, that leadeth
unto life, and iew are they that find it” (Matt. 7: 13-14). The
attainment of the status of a real person, moreover, is contingent
upon a man’s cultivation of the Mind of Christ within himself,
upon his living the life with the Holy Spirit. Obviously, then,
in the light of both reason and Scripture teaching, this attain-
ment o€ the status of a real person cc(n be realized only by the
saints of God, and will be realized by them only in their ultimate
union with God in knowledge and love. And the necessary
concomitant of this union, as we have already seen, will be the
putting on of immortality-the saint’s exchange of his physical
for his spiritual body. This spiritual life, moreover, emerges
from within a person only as a result of the fructifying of
spiritual seed, the Word of God, implanted from without. For
it is a law of the moral as well as of the biological realm that
each living thing shall reproduce after its own kind; hence
“that which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born
of the Spirit is spirit” (John 3: 6 ) . There is no reversing of
the orderly processes of Nature.
I quote again:
We 81-8so wedded by habit to the forms and moulds which the sub-
stantial matter of our bodies supplies here in this sphere of mutability
that we are helpless to imagine n realm of real and actual life in
which t h e enswathement of personality is of wholly different and f a r
more subtle stuff. But a “spiritual body” is by no means a n impossi-
1. Jones, ap. cit., 21-22.
274
SPIRIT IN GOD
bility, and i t would be no niorc of a mutation than t h a t of the buttc.r-
fly that rmerges from the chrysalis. What we rcally cai-r f o r and
must have, if innnortality is to bc n desirable gain, i s real c o v s c w u -
tiow of persowtlitil and the possibility of progressive pei*sonal Iife-
of going on, , , , And, furthermore, i t is not just “going on” that
we are thinking about. It is not enough t o attain Ihe status of a n
infinitely extended Methuselah-type of life, with the mere dimension
of length. What we mean when we talk of eternal life is life that opens
expansively into the Life of God-the Over-World of Spirit-that taltes
on amplitude and that shares with God in the spiritual tasks of His
expanding creation.’
I trust that I shall be pardoned for quoting at such length
from Dr. Jones’ excellent-and stylistically exquisite-little
book, Spirit in Man. I have done so because I consider it the
clearest presentation of the subject that can be found anywhere
in secular literature, and because, too, the presentation parallels
so closely the argument I am trying to present here, namely,
that spirit in man i s the sole ground for the attainment o f real
personality, through the life with t h e Holy Spirit here and ulti-
mate perfect union with God hereafter. There is a spirit in man;
spirit in man is, in its attributes and powers, a likeness of
Spirit in God; and in this likeness lies the potentiality of final
union with God, Beatitude, Everlasting Life.
I think, therefore, that I may be permitted one more ex-
cerpt, in this connection. Dr. Jones writes:
There is a stage in this upward climb of our strange Jacob’s
ladder of spirit when we can see and can enjoy realities which t o a
certain degree are spiritual in their own sovereign right. I mean o f
course the intrinsic values of Beauty, Truth, Goodness, and Love . . ,
A mind which can see and appreciate those realities has already trans-
.
cended the realm of time and space and matter and sensa and the blo-
logical order, and belongs already to a n intrinsic, t h a t is, eternal order.
These ideal values a r e the unmoved movers which shape our destiny;
and in the realm of the spirit they a r e eternal, Le., they a r e time-
transcending realities’
This “eternal order” is, of course, what we mean here by the
order of sainthood.
The power of the mind to transcend the realm of space
and time and sense and biological life, and consequently (1)
to generate “free ideas,” and (2) to apprehend values, evinces
unmistakably the metaphysical likeness of the human spirit
to the Divine Spirit. By metaphysical likeness is meant of
course similarity of attributes and powers, that is, beyond the
merely physical and biological. What is yet necessary for man,
that is, for him to attain his natural and proper end as a
1. Oq. &t., 69-70.
2. Ibzd., 14.
275
spiritual being, is for this metaphysical likeness to grow into
a genuine moral likeness as well, through man’s own voluntary
choice of, and devotion to, the life of the Spirit; in n word, for
the human spirit to become possessed, guided, filled and moulded
by the Spirit of God. Such moral likeness existed as it has
been pointed out already, in the person of Christ, our perfect
Exemplar; He possessed the Holy Spirit without measure (John
3:34); whereas ordinary mortal man is the personal image qf
God, Christ the Son is the very image, that is, moral as well as
personal, of the Divine Substance (Heb. 1:3), His supreme in-
terest in life was to do the Will of the Father in all things;
He is “Christ the power of God, and the wisdom of God” (1Cor.
1:24). He could say in all truth, “I and the Father are one”
(John 10: 30), and, “He that hath seen me hath seen the Father”
(John 14: 9) ; and in’all truth He could pray to the Father, with
reference to all believers, “that they may all be one; even as
thou, Father, are in me, and I in thee, that they a150 may be
in us: that the world may believe that thou didst send me”
(John 17:21). And, although the saint cannot ever, either in
this world or in the world to come, attain to the ontological
status of deity-any more than a rock can transform itself into
a living thing, or a plant into an animal, or a brute into a man-
he can, nevertheless, become more and more like Christ morally,
and the more he attains ‘’unto the measure of the stature of tlie
fulness of Christ” (Eph. 4:13), the more he becomes like God
or godlike, and in this manner comes to be in truth a partaker
(sharer) of the Divine Nature morally and spiritually (2 Pet.
1:4). This attainment of moral perfection is the attainment of
Wholeness or Holiness. In our use of the terms “spirit” and
“spiritual,” however, we must always be careful to distinguish
between their metaphysical and their moral content. Every man
is now, in his present state, the metaphysical likeness of God,
that is, personallg spiritual (in the sense that
of our spirits” by creation, Heb. 12:9) ; only t
of the Gospel of Christ and the life of the Spirit, however, can
he hope to become the moral likeness of God, that is truly or
fdlg spiritual. And to be fully spiritual is to be whole or holy.
Again, one readily sees the benevolence of God in His
endowment of the human spirit with free will, that is, the power
of self-determination and self-direction. That conation-pur-
posive striving toward a goal, striving that is not itself reducible
to mechanism-is characteristic of man, can hardly be denied.
Man’s activity always has directionality. This fact was clearly
276
SPIRIT IN GOD
brought out by the investigations of Dr. C. Buhler and her as-
sociates.
In their study of approximately two hundred life histories, the
most definite conclusion was that each life seemed definitely ordered
and steered toward some selected goal; each person had something
quite special to live for. Each had a characteristic Bestimmung and
intention. The style, of course, varied; some staked everything upon
one single great objective; others varied their goals from time to time,
but goals there always were. A supplementary study of would-be
suicides showed that life becomes intolerable to those who can find
nothing t o aim at, no goal to seek.l
Human nature is purposive; God constituted it so, as an indis-
pensable condition of man’s attainment of holiness. In order
to attain God as his natural and proper ultimate end, man must
deliberately choose to attain God, out of the pure love in his
heart for God. He must purposively direct his life in the path
of right-the path that leads to ultimate union with God. Al-
though God has indeed provided him with the indispensable
means to his attainment of union with the Divine as his ultimate
end, nevertheless, it is man’s part to willingly and purposefully
utilize those necessary means; otherwise, he will fall short of
attainment. Man cannot travel in two directions at the same
time; he cannot serve both God and Mammon. God has gracious-
ly provided the means whereby man may preserve himself in
existence physically, and the means also whereby he may be
reconciled to his heavenly Father, enter into covenant relation-
ship with Him, and grow thereafter in the grace and knowledge
of Christ (2 Pet. 3: 18) -the means whereby he may become a
partaker of the Divine Nature by living the life of the Spirit.
But man must, in turn, accept those gracious provisions and
utilize them to his own growth in holiness and ultimate attain-
ment of the Life Everlasting. Thus God and man, grace and
faith, working together in covenant relationship, in holy fel-
lowship, effect the latter’s redemption from the guilt, and ulti-
mately from the consequences, of sin, that is, from mortality
itself (2 Cor.5: 4). Hence the Apostle admonishes us as follows:
“Work out your own salvation with fear and trembling; for it
is God who worketh in you both to will and to work, for his
good pleasure” (Phil. 2:12-13). “God so loved the world, that
he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth on him
should not perish, but have eternal life” (John 3:16). But of
what value is this priceless Gift to man, if man refuses to accept
1. G. W. Allport, Personality : A Psychological Interpretation, 219.
V i d e C. Buhler, D e r mensohliohe Lebenslauf als psychologisches Problem,
1933.
277
Him? Not even Omnipotence can compel men to love Him;
that must come freely from their own hearts. As Lecomte du
Nouy says:
ft is clear t h a t God abdicated a portion of his omnipotence when
he gave man liberty of choice. Man-according t o the second chapter
of Genesis, and t o our hypothesis-possesses a real independence, willed
by God, and which becomes, in the human species, the tool of selection.
It is no longer the, strongest, the most agile, the fittest physically who
must survive, but the best, the most evolved morally. The new supremacy
can only manifest itself in man if man is free t o choose his path. This-
is, therefore, an apparent limitation of the omnipotence of the Creator,
consented t o by Him in order to bestow freedom upon the chosen
species, so as to impose a final test. Having been endowed with con-
science, man has acquired a n independence of which he must show
himself to be worthy, under pain of regressing toward the beast.’
As, we shall see later, this self-determination, self-direction,
purposiveness, characteristic of spirit in man, is also charac-
teristic of Spirit in God,
Finally, the power of the human spirit, evident in every
people in every age of human history, to apprehend and to enjoy
such intrinsic realities as Truth, Beauty, Goodness and Love,
points unmistakably to the Spirit of God, in whom such realities,
such values, if they exist at all-and they surely do, otherwise
the human race would have destroyed itself long ago-must
have their source and being. The Eternal Spirit Himself is in
the fullest sense of all these terms Truth, Beauty, Goodness and
Love. Our God is Himself Love, and He is Spirit.
John 4:24 [the words of Jesus]: God is a Spirit, and they that
worship him must worship in spirit and truth, John 14:6 [again the
words of Jesus]: I am the way, and the truth, and the life: no one
cometh unto the Father, but by me, 1 John 4:8--He that loveth not
knoweth not God; for God is love.
In this manner do we reason from the human spirit, the
image of God, to the Divine Spirit, very God. The attributes
and powers of the human spirit become clear intimations to us
of the attributes and powers of the Divine Spirit. And the
Divine Spirit becomes knowable to us in terms of the potencies
of the human spirit. Then, turning to the Scriptures, we find
the voice of reason and experience corroborated, as is always
the case, by the testimony of revelation. Nature and revelation
are never contradictory.
2. T h e Triune Personality of God

Our approach to the study of Spirit in God, as that subject
1. Human DestirLy, 197.
278
SPIRIT IN GOD
is revealed in Scripture, is necessarily by way of the doctrine
of the triune personality of God, Hence it becomes necessary
at this time to summarize the teaching of the Scriptures on this
latter subject-by correlating the various passages in which
the doctrine is set forth-in as brief a manner as possible.
This doctrine is commonly designated the doctrine of the
“Trinity.” The word “Trinity,” however, does not occur in the
Bible.
The doctrine may be stated summarily as follows: Our God,
as to essence, is one and unique; this unity of essence, however,
embraces a “trinity” of Persons. That is to say, speaking by
way of analogy from human experience, this “trinity” is-I
take it-to be conceived as an “organic” rather than as mathe-
matical unity. Nor is this statement to be dismissed as an ab-
surdity, for, as Leonard Hodgson says:
We have no actual experience of a n y existing unity in this world
of space and time which is not of the organic type. ..
. If either of the
two types of unity is to be called a figment of the human imagination,
the absolutely simple and undifferentiated unity of the mathematician
has the greater claim to t h a t status.’
And again:
The difference between the two ideas of unity is this. The niathe-
matical is so simple that one instance is enough to establish the fact t h a t
i t cannot exist in mutually differing varieties of itself, as triangularity
can exist in three and only three. In contrast with both these mathe-
matical ideas, the idea of internally constitutive unity is so complex
t h a t we have t o be continually revising our opinion of what content i t
will admit of in different instances of itself. Only by studying the
empirical evidence in various instances can we determine the possible
range of contents of a n atom, a crystal, an animal, a man, a nation
or a work of art.‘l
The same author concludes:
This world is the world wherein the ultimate unities of reality
are made ltnown t o us not in tlieii. unity but in their multiplicity. Why,
then, should we be surprised that in His revelation of Himself to man
on earth God malces BimselP ltnown in His multipllcity, t h a t He should
be revealed to. us as Father, as Son, and a s Spirit, but t h a t clear under-
standing of His unity fihould be beyond our ken?.’
As Professor James B. Green has written:
When we say t h a t there are three pei’sons in the Godhead, we
mean to deny Unitarianism. Unitarianism is the belief thah God is
one essence o r being without distinction in the mode of His being; that
He is a monad in every sense-a unit and not a unity. Again, when
1. Tho Doctrine of t h o Tvini+u, 94.
2. Hodgson, op. c k , 108. 7,
3. Ibid., 108.
2 79
we affirm t h a t there are three persons in the Godhead we mean t o
deny Sabellianism. Sabellianism is the doctrine that Father, Son and
Spirit a r e names not of three persons, but of three relations or func-
tions of one ahd the same person. We are not tritheists, as the Uni-
tarians affirm and the Sabellians fear. We are monontheists. We are
as monotheistic a s the Unitarians or the Sabellians. We believe in
oie of being is such that He can say
’ “He.” The Father can say,
Thee, the Son.” This IS the
n doctrine of G;d. No man,
stian means by God,” unles;
the separate terms “Fathers,
In this connection, one might cite the triune liturgical ascrip-

tion before the Throne of God in Heaven: “Holy, holy, holy, is
Jehovah of hosts; the whole earth is full of his glory” (Isa. 6: 3).
Again, “Holy, holy, holy, is the Lord God, the Almighty, who
was and who is and who i o come” (Rev. 4:8).
In Old Testament tim God sought constantly to impress
upon the minds of His chosen people the fact of His uniqueness.
“Hear, 0 Israel: Jehovah our God is one Jehovah: and thou shalt
love Jehovah thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul,
and with all thy might” (Deut. 6: 4-5). There is nothing, however,
in this affirmation of monotheism to exclude the fact of God’s
triune personality. Obviously this Old Testament pronounce-
ment, that our God is one God is essentially the affirmation of
His uniqueness as the one living and true God. Cf. Jerusalem
Bible on Deut. 6: 4-
Another translation sometimes adopted, “Listen, Israel : Yahweh
is o u r God, Yahweh alone,” but it is more likely that we havezhere a
declaration of monotheistic faith. This verse was later t o be used
a s the opening words of the Shema, a prayer still central to Jewish piety.
This idea of uniqueness (that is, “I am Yahweh, and there is
none else,” etc.) is emphasized through both the Old and New
Testament Scriptures.
Cf. Deut. 4:35--Unto thee it was showed, that thou mightest know
t h a t Jehovah he is God; there is none else besides him. Deut. 4:39
-Know therefore this day, and lay it t o thy heart t h a t Jehovah
he is God in heaven above and upon the earth beneath; there IS
none else. Isa. 43:lO-Before me there was no God formed, neither
shall there be a f t e r me. Isa. 46:5-6: I am Jehovah, and there IS
none else; besides me there is no God. I will gird thee, though thou
hast not known me; that they may know from the rising of the sun,
and from the west, that there is none besides me; I am Jehovah, and
there is none else. Isa. 46:9-11: I am God, and there is none else; I
a m God, and there is none like me; declaring the end from the beginning,
.
and from ancient times things that are not yet done. , . yea, I have
spoken, I will also bring it t o pass; I have purposed, I will also do it.
1. Studies in the Holy &vi&, 35-36.
280
SPIRIT IN GOD
And i n the New Testament, we read that when one of the
scribes on occasion questioned Jesus as to the grealest com-
mandment in the Law, Jesus answered: “The first is, Hear, 0
Israel; the Lord our God, the Lord is one: and thou shalt love
the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and
with all thy mind, and with all thy strength,” Whereupon the
scribe answered: “Of a t ~ u f h ,Teacher, thou hast well said
that lie is one; and t h e i ~is nolie other but he” (Mark 12: 28-34),
Language could hardly be more explicit. Hence the signi€icance
of such phrases as the “true God,” the “living God,” found
throughout the Bible:
Jer. lO:lO-,Jehovah is the true God; he is the living God. John
1’7:a-This is life eternal, that they should Icnow thee, the only true
God, and him whom thou didst send, rven Jesus Christ [the words o€
Jesus]. 1 Thess. 1:B-how ye turned unto God from idols, t o serve a
living and true God. dosli. 3:lO-Hereby ye shall know t h a t the living
God is among you, etc. Psa. 84:Z-My heart and my flesh cry out
unto the living God. Matt. 1G:lG [the Good Conirssion wquired of all
who become Ch~istians]: Thou art t h e Christ, the Son of the living
God. Acts 14:lS-that. ye should turn from these vein things unto a
living God, who made the hcaven and the earth and the sea, and all
t h a t in thrin is. 2 Cor. 3:3-the Spirit of the living God.
These are just a few of the many pasages in which these phrases
are used in Scripture. Their significance is obvious, Our God,
the living and true God, is the o d y God; there is no other.
The fact remains, however, that the iriune personality of
the Divine Being was not clearly revealed in Old Testament
times; it was only intimated. In the Old Testament, we have
God, the Spirit of God, and the Word (or Wisdom) of God,
as, e.g., in the first chapter of G e n e s i s ; but nowhere in the
Hebrew Scriptures are they revealed as distinct subsistences.
The reason is evident: God’s elect were not yet prepared for
such a disclosure. Had the revelation been made to the children
of Israel, surrounded on all sides as they were by heathen
polytheisnis, undoubtedly they would have prostituted their
religion into a tritheism, that is, a worship of three Gods.
Hence it is not, until we come into the clear light of the New
Testament revelation that God, the Word of God, and the Spirit
of God of the Old Testament, become the Father, Son, and
Holy Spirit. It is significant, too, that it was Jesus Himself
who first revealed this truth in its fulness. In giving the Great
Commission, He said to His Apostles: “All authority hath been
given unto me in heaven and on earth. Go ye therefore, and
make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them into the name
of the Father and of the Son and the Holy Spirit,” etc. (Matt.
281.
28: 18-20). In other words, one immersion brings the penitent
believer irito the name, ie., into or under the authority, of the
Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Why the singular-“name”?
Obviously, because the Three are in essence One; they have but
one name, one rule, one authority. Incidentally, this very fact-
the use of the singular “name,” rather. than “names”-invali-
dates so-called “trine immersion” or three dippings, which is
erroneously practiced by certain sects of Christendom.
The Scripture doctrine of the triune personality of God
may be summarized in the following propositions:
1. I n the Scriptures there are Three, each of whom i s recog-
nized as God.
(1) The Father is recognized as God. For example:
John 6:27-for him the Father, even God, hath sealed. Matt. 6:9-
After this manner therefore pray ye: O u r Father who a r t in heaven,
etc. Eph. 1:S-Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Chri,st.
1 Pet. 1:Z-according t o the foreknowledge of God the Father. [Scrip-
ture passages in which the Father i s recognized as God are numerous.]
(2)The Son, whose eternal name is the Word (Logos),
is also recognized as God.
(a) John 1:1, 2, 14-In the beginning was the Word, and the
Word was with God, and the Word was God. The same was in the be-
.
ginning with God. , . And the Word became flesh, and dwelt among
us (and we beheld his glory, glory as oi“ the only begotten from the
F a t h e r ) , full of grace and truth. [Here the inspired writer is explicit:
In the beginning, h e says, the Word was with God, t h a t is, there were
two; then, lest anyone get the notion t h a t the Word was inferior to
God, he adds, and the W o r d was God.] [That is, a s to essence, the Wprd
is deity a s truly as God is deity. Note also the omission of the article
here: the Word was not a God, but God, for there is only one God.]
Now the Word of God, the inspired writer goes on t o tell us, became
the Son of God through the mystery of the Incarnation: l’h’e Word
became flesh, and dwelt among us. [This doctrine of the Logos’is fully
treated in a subsequent section.] (b) John 1:18--No man. hath seen
God at any time; the only begotten Son, who i s in the bosom of the
Father, h e hath declared him, [that is, declared His will, revealed Him
t o mankind; this’was the specific mission of Logos who Himself said]:
H e that hath seen me hath seen the Father (John 14:9). [In the fore-
going passage, many ancient authorities read], “God only begotten,”
instead of “the only begotten Son.” [Cf. the words of Jesus in His great
intercessory prayer]: “And now, Father, glorify thou me with thine
own self with the glory which I had with thee before the world was
(John 17:5). ( c ) John 20:28-Thomas answered and said unto him,
My Lord and my God. [The fact that Jesus accepted this ascription
of deity to Himself, without a word of reproof, is p i i m a facie evidence
of His inherent right t o it.] (d) Rom. 9:5-whose are the fathers,
and of whom is Christ as concerning the flesh, who is over all, God
blessed for ever. [That is, although Jesus received His human nature
from the seed of Abraham through Mary, who was the passive instru-
mentality of His incarnation; yet in His eternal nature He is God
blessed f o r ever.] (e) Heb, 1:8-9: But of the Son he saith, Thy throne,
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SPIRIT IN GOD
0 God, is for ever and ever; And the sceptre of thy uprightness is
the sceptre of thy kingdom. Thou hast loved righteousness, and hated
iniquity; Therefore God, thy God, hath anointed the! With t h e . oil
of gladness above thy fellows, [In thls passage the inspired writer
quotes Psalm 4 5 : W as referring expressly t o the Son of God. This
is a clear declaration of the deity of Jesus which can hardly be chal-
lenged from any point of view] ( f ) John 8:68--Jesus said unto them,
Verily, verily, I say unto you, Before Abraham was born, I .am. [Here
Jesus is represented a s taking unto Himself the great and incommun-
icable Name of the Deity, cf. Exo. 3:13-15. No wonder His Jewish
contemporaries charged Him with blasphemy ! Jesus was either every-
thing He claimed t o be, or He was the greatest impostor who ever ap-
peared before the world!]
Again, there are many Scriptures in which the attributes of
Deity are ascribed to the Son, such as, for example:
[ ( a ) Infiizite Life.] John 1:4-In him was life, and the life was
the light of men. John 14:G-I am the way, and the truth, and the life;
no one cometh unto the Father, but by me. John 6:2G--For a s the
Father hath life in himself, even so gave he to the Son also t o have
life in himself. John 1l:ZS-Jesus said unto her, I a m the resurrection
and the life. Rev. 1:17-18:I am the f i r s t and the last, and the Living
One. [ (b) Eternify.]John 17:6-Father, glorify thou me with thine
own self with the glory which I had with thee before the world was.
Col. l:17-and he is before all things, and in him all things consist.
Rev. 21:G-I am the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end,;
I (c) SeZf-Existence.] John 8:58-Before Abraham was born, I am.
John 5:2G--For as the Father hath life in himself, even so gave he
to the Son also t o have life in himself. John 10:17-18: Therefore doth
the.Father love me, because I lay down my life, t h a t I may take it
again. No one talteth it away from me, but I lay it down of myself.
I have power t o lay it down, and I have power t o take it again. Heb.
7:1G--[here we are told that after the likeness of Melchizedek there
ariseth another priest, who hath been made, not after the law of a
carnal commandment, but after the power of an endless life, The refer-
ence is t o the priesthood of Christ.] [ ( d ) ZmmutabiZitg.l Heb. 13:8-
Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today, yea and f o r ever. [ ( e )
Onznipreseizce.] Matt. 28:20-L0, I a m with you always, even unto
the end of the world. Eph. 1:23-the church, which is his body, the
fulness of him t h a t filleth all in all. [ ( f ) Omnipoteizce.] Matt. 28:18-
All authority hath been given unto me in heaven and on earth. Rev.
1:8-I am the Alpha and the Omega , . . who is and who was and who
is t o come, the Almighty. [The context shows that it. was the sovereign
Christ who was speaking here. t o John.] [ (g) Omizisczeizce.] John 2:26-
for he himself knew what was in man. Acts 1:24-And they prayed,
and said, Thou, Lord, who knowest the hearts of all men, etc. [ ( h )
Zizfiizite truth.] John 14:G-I am the way, and the truth, and the life.
John G:G3--The words t h a t I have spoken unto you are spirit, and a r e
life. Matt. 24:36--Heaven and earth shall pass away, b u t my words
shall not pass away, John 18:37-To this end have I been born, and
t o this end a m I come into the world, that I should bear witness unto
the truth. Every one that is of the truth heareth my voice, [ ( i ) Infinite
love.] John 15:13-Greater love hath no man than this, t h a t a man
lay down his life for his friends. 1 John 3:lG-Hereby know we love,
because he laid down his life for us. [ ( j ) Infinite holiness.] Luke 1:36
-Where€ore also the holy thing which is begotten shall be called the
Son of God. John G:G9-And we have believed and know t h a t thou
a r t the Holy One of God. Acts 2:27--Neither wilt thou give t h y Holv
283
One t o see corruptiim” [a quotation of Psa. 16:10]. Heb. 7:26--For
such a high priest became us, holy, guileless, undefiled, separated from
sinners, and made higher than the heavens.
In the third place, the Scriptures ascribe to the Son the works of
Deity, such as the following:
[ ( a ) Creation.] John 1:13-A11 things were made through him;
and without him was not anything made that hath been made. Col.
1:16-1‘7: For in him were all things created, in the heavens and upon
the earth, things visible and things invisible, whether thrones or
dominions o r principalities o r powers; all things have been created
through him, and unto him; and he is before all things, and in him
all things consist. 1 Cor. 8:B-Yet t o us there is one God, the Father,
of whom are all things, and we unto him; and one Lord, Jesus Christ,
through whom are all things, and we through him. Heb. 1:8-lO-But
of the Son he saith , , . Thou, Lord, in the beginning didst lay the
foundation of the earth And the heavens are works of thy hands.
[(b) Conservation of the physical creation.] Col. 1:17-in him all
things consist) [i.e., are constituted, or hold together.] Heb. 1:3--up-
holding all things by the word of his power. [(e) Raasing the dead t o
life, und ( d ) Judging the world.] John 5:25-27: Verily, verily, I say
unto you, The hour cometh, and now is, when the dead shall hear the
voice of the Son of God; and they that hear shall live, For as the Father
h a t h life in himself, even so gave he to the Son also t o have life in
himself; and he gave him authority t o execute judgment, because he
is a son of man, John Il:26-Whosoever liveth and believeth on me
shall never die. Matt, 25:31 ff.-But when the Son of man shall come
in his glory, and all the angels,with him, then shall he sit on the
throne of his glory; and before him shall be gathered all the nations:
and he shall separate them one from another, as the shepherd sep-
arateth the sheep from the goats, 2 Thess. 1:7-8: a t the revelation of the
Lord Jesus from heaven with the angels of his power in flaming fire,
rendering vengeance to them that know not God, and to them that obey
not the gospel of our Lord Jesus.
In the fourth place, there are Scriptures which represent
the Son as receiving honor and worship which should be given
only to the Deity. For example:
John 5:22-23: For neither doth the Father judge any man, but
he hath given all judgment unto the Son; t h a t all may honor the Son,
even a s they honor the Father. Phil. 2:9-11: Wherefore also God highly
exalted him, and gave unto him the name which is above every name;
t h a t in the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven
and things on earth and things under the earth, and that every tongue
should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, t o the glory o f God the Father.
Eph. 1:22-23: God put all things in subjection under his feet, and gave
him to be head over all things t o the church, which is his body, the
fulness of him t h a t filleth all in all. 1 Pet. 3:22-Jesus Christ, who
is on the right hand of God, having gone into heaven; angels and
authorities and powers being made subject unto him. Rev. 5:12-13:
. . , saying with a great voice, Worthy is the Lamb that hath been slain
to receive the power, and riches, and wisdom, and might, and honor,
and glory, and blessing. And every created thing which is in the
heaven, and on the earth, and under the earth, and on the sea, and all
things t h a t are in them, heard I saying, Unto him that sitteth on the
throne, and unto the Lamb, be the blessing, and the honor, and the
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SPIRIT IN GOD
glory, and the dominion, for ever and ever. [Many passages of like
character may be found throughout the New Testament.]
In the fifth place, there are Scriptures in which the Son’s
equality with the Father is explicitly declared, Jesus declared
it Himself.
John 5:17-18: But Jesus answered them, My F a t h e r worketh even
until now, and I work. For this cause therefore the Jews sought the
more t o kill him, because he not only brake the sabbath, but also called
God his own Father, making himself equal with God.
And the Apostle Paul testifies, by inspiration of the Spirit:
Phil. 2:5-8: Have this mind in you, which was also in Christ
Jesus: who, existing in the form of God, counted not the being on a n
equality with God a thing t o be grasped, but emptied himself, taking
the form of a servant, being made in the likeness of men; and being
found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself; becoming obedient
even unto death, yea, the death of the cross.
That is to say, the Logos, the Son of God, did not count His
“being on an equality with God a thing to be grasped, %e., to be
taken hold of and clung to-simply because it was His by nature
and by right. For He was not only with God “in the beginning,’’
but He was God. He “emptied himself,” we are told, “taking
the form of a servant, being made in the likeness of man; and
being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, becoming
obedient even unto death, yea, the death of the cross.” Perhaps
it should be explained at this point that the doctrine of the Kenosis
or Humiliation of the pre-incarnate Logos during the period
of His incarnation clarifies certain other Scriptures which
might seem to militate against the fact of His equality with the
Father, The passages in question indicate that He was sub-
ject to certain limitations throughout His public ministry. It
should be understood, however, that these limitations were not
concomitants of His original and eternal nature; nor were they
forced upon Him, but rather were self-imposed in adaptation
to His incarnate nature, For instance, He limited Himself with
the frailties of the flesh, such as hunger, fatigue, exhaustion and
the like, E.g., John 4:6--“Jesus, therefore, being wearied with
his journey, sat thus by the well.” There are numerous Scrip-
tures of like import. He also limited Himself with our human
emotions, thus making Himself subject to the mental depression
and anguish such as He experienced in Gethsemane, when he
prayed, “My Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass away
from me” (Matt. 26.39). OI like import was His great mental
anguish, occasioned by an overwhelming sense of alone-ness,
when He hung on the Cross: “My God, my God, why hast thou
285
forsaken me?” (Matt. 27: 46). His mental anguish, however,
was not sin. Sin is transgression of the law of God (1John 3: 4),
and at no time during those terrible hours in the Garden and
on the Cross did Jesus manifest the slightest inclination to dis-
obey the Will of the Father. His prayers invariably ended on
the note of complete submission: “Nevertheless, not as I will,
but as thou wilt” (Matt. 26:39). Again, He limited Himself
in certain items of knowledge. For instance, He said on one
occasion, concerning His second advent: “But of that day or that
hour knoweth no one, not even the angels in heaven, neither
the Son, but the Father” (Mark 13:32). It should be under-
stood of course that any manifestation of ignorance on Jesus’
part did not involve error; while at times His teaching may
have been incomplete, it was never false. He never stated an
untruth. Moreover, He always answered His opponents with
finality and His answers admitted of no further controversy.
The whole stage of human history was before His mind con-
stantly like a vast panorama; He could look back to the dawn
of Creation, or forward to the events connected with His second
coming and the end of our age. And He could discern in-
fallibly the thoughts and intents of the hearts of all those with
whom He conversed. Finally, He limited Himself offioinlly,
during His three years in the flesh, subordinating Himself to
both the Father and the Holy Spirit:
John 1 4 : 2 8 t h e Father is greater than I. John 5:43-I am come
in my Father’s name, John 6:38-For I am come down from heaven,
not to do mine own will, but the will of him t h a t sent me. Acts 1:2-
after t h a t he had given commandment through the Holy Spirit, unto
the apostles whom he had chosen. Heb. 9:14--Christ, who through the
eternal Spirit offered himself without blemish unto God.
, /
All these self-imposed limitations were in adaptation to His

earthly mission as the God-Man; it was essential that He ident-
ify Himself with us mortals in order that He might qualify
Himself for the High Priesthood which He was to assume after
His resurrection from the dead. He became a partaker of our
fleshly nature in order to enable us to become partakers of
the Divine Nature, through the efficacy of the Atonement
which He provided for us. And while we are on the subject
of the Humiliation of the Logos, let us not overlook the fact
that there is a like Humiliation of the Holy Spirit in each in-
stance that He condescends to indwell a penitent believer. In
€act, the Spirit’s indwelling of the Body of Christ is a universal
Condescension which should move our hearts to profound
2%
SPIRIT IN GOD
thankfulness and cause us to keep our bodies pure, that they
may serve as fit receptacles for His abiding presence.
Know ye not, says Paul, that your body i s a temple of the Holy
Spirit which is in you, which ye have from God? and ye a r e not your
Qwn; for ye were bought with a price: glorify God therefore in your
body (1 Cor. 6:19-20), Cf. 1 Cor. 3:16-17; Know ve not t h a t ye
are a temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you?
I€ any man destroyeth the temple of God, him shall God destroy; f o r
the temple of God is holy, and such are ye. Cf. also 1 Pet. 2:5-
ye also, as living stones, are built up a spiritual house, to be a holy
priesthood to offer up spiritual sacrifices, acceptable to God through
Jesus C h r h . [And finally], Eph. 2:19-22: So then ye a r e no more
strangers and sojourners, but ye a r e fellow-citizens with the saints,
and of the household of God, being built upon the foundation of the
apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus himself being t h e chief corner
stone; in whom each several building, fitly framed together, groweth
into a hoIy temple in the Lord; in whom ye also are builded together
for a habitation.of God i n the Spirit. [The fact mu+ not be overlooked
that these promases are addressed only to God's saants.]
(3) In the New Testament, the Holy Spirit is also recog-
nized as God. (This phase of the subject is fully treated in a
subsequent section.)
2. These Three-Father, Son, and Spirit-are so presented
in Scripture that w e are compelled to think of them as three
distinct Persons.
(1) The Son distinguishes the Father from Himself. John
5:37-"And the Father that sent me, he hath borne witness
of me." The New Testament abounds in passages of like import.
(2) The Son prays to the Father. The entire seventeenth
chapter of the Fourth Gospel is the "intercessory" prayer of
the Son addressed to the Father.
(3) The Son is distinguished from the Father as the Be-
gotten and the Begetter. John 1 : l A " a n d we beheId his
glory, glory as of the only begotten from the Father." John
I 3:16--"For God so loved the world, that he gave his only be-
gotten Son," etc. Heb. 1:5-"Thou art my Son, This day have
I begotten thee"; a quotation of Psa. 2:7, applied explicitly
to Jesus Christ.
(4)The Father i s distinguished from the Son as the Sender
from the One Sent.
John 10:36 [the words of Jesus]: Say ye of him, whom the Father
sanctified and sent into the world, Thou blasphemest; because I said,
I a m the Son of God? John S:30-1 seek not mine own will, but the
will of him t h a t sent me. John 20:21-[Jesus speaking t o the Apostles]:
As the Father hath sent me, even so send I you. Gal. 4:4--But when
the fulness of the time came, God sent forth his Son, born of a woman,
born under the law.
287
(5) The Son distinguishes the Spirit both from the Father
and from Himself.
John 14:16-17: And I will pray the Father, and he shall give
you another Comforter that he may be with you for ever, even the
Spirit of truth, etc. john 16:26-But when the Comforter is come,
whom I will send unto you from the Father, even the Spirit of truth,
which proceedeth from the Father, he shall bear witness of me. John
16:7, 13-It i s expedient for you t h a t I go away; for if I go not away,
the Comforter will not come unto you; but if I go, I will send him unto
you. ... Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he shall guide
you into all the truth.
(6) The Spirit is said to proceed from the Father.
John 16:26-But when the Comforter i s come, whom I will send
unto you from the Father even the Spirit of truth, which proceedeth
from the Father, he shall bear witness of me.
(7) The Spirit is said to be sent both by the Father and
by the Son.
John 16:26-But when the Comforter is come, whom I will send
unto you from the Father, even the Spirit of truth, etc. John 1426-
But the Comforter, even the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send
in my name, etc. [And in Acts 1:4, we read that the risen Christ,
being assembled together with His Apostles], charged them not to de-
p a r t from Jerusalem but to wait for the promise of the Father. [The
promise of the Father was the promise t h a t Holy Spirit
sent t o them t o guide them into all the truth.] Cf. Gal. 4:
cause ye a r e sons, God sent forth the Spirit of hi$ Son into our hearts,
etc. [Now is the Holy Spirit is a Person, as we shall see later t h a t
He is, then He must be a Person in some sense distinct from either
the Father or the Son.]
Thus in the conversation between Jesus and the Eleven in
the Upper Room, after the Last Supper, as recorded in the
fourteenth, fifteenth and sixteenth chapters of John, the Son,
one Person, is represented as praying to the Father, another
Person, to send the Holy Spirit, a third Person, upon the
Apostles to guide them into all the truth, that is, to qualify
with authority and irifallibility as ambassadors of Christ.
(8) The same differentiation is made by the Spirit Himself,
speaking through the Apostle Peter, on the Day of Pentecost.
Acts 2:32-33: This Jesus did God raise up, whereof we all are
witnesses. Being therefore by the right hand of God exalted, and
having received of the Father the promise of the Holy Spirit, he hath
poured f o r t h this, which ye see and hear.
That is, the Father raised the Son, and the Son, having been
exalted, poured forth the Spirit; the Three exist simultaneously,
and each sustains His own peculiar relation to man.
(9) The distinctness of the three Persons appears also in
the account of the Annunciation to Mary.
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SPIRIT IN GOD
Luke 1:30-35: And the angel said unto her, Fear not, Mary:
for thou hast found favor with God, And behold, thou, shalt conceive
in thy womb, and bring forth a son, and shalt call his name Jesus,
I-Ie shall be great, and shall be called the Son of the Most High:
and the Lord God shall give unto him the throne of his father David,
, . . And Mary said unto the angel, How shall this be, seeing I know
not a man? And the angel answered and said unto her, The Holy
Spirit shall come upon thee, and the power of the Most High shall
overshadow thee: Wherefore also the holy thing which i s begotten shall
be called the Son of God.
The same distinctions appear also in the account of Christ’s
conversatioti with Nicodemus:
John 3:l-15: Now there was a man of the Pharisees, named Nico-
demus, a ruler of the Jews: the same came unto him by night, and
said to him, Rabbi, we know that thou art a teacher come from God;
for no one can do these signs that thou doest, except God be with him,
Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto thee,
Except one be born anew, he cannot see the kingdom of God. Nico-
demus saith unto him, How can a man be born when he is old? can
he enter a second time into his mother’s womb, and be born? Jesus
answered, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except one be born of water
and the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God. That which
is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is
spirit. . . , And no one hath ascended into heaven, but he t h a t descended
out of heaven, even the Son of man, who i s in heaven, etc.
(10) Finally, these Three-Father, Son, and Holy Spirit-
are represented as capable of dissociating themselves in such a
way as to be in separate places at one and the same time. Fol-
lowing the baptism of Jesus, for example, the Son is pictured
as standing on the bank of the Jordan River, while at the same
time the Spirit is descending through the air “as a dove, and
coming upon him,” and the Father is speaking from heaven to
say, “This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased”
(Matt. 3: 16-17).
Despite these obvious distinctions of person, however, the
fact should not be lost sight of that this doctrine of the triune
personality of God is not a tritlieism. There are not three Gods:
there is but one God as to essence, but this essence comprises,
in some inscrutable manner, three Persons, The Father is not
God as such, because God is also Son and Holy Spirit. The
Son is not God as such, because God is also Father and Holy
Spirit. The Spirit is not God as such, because God is also Father
and Son. That is to say, there are three Persons, each of whom
as to essence is God, but no one of whom is the fulness of the
Godhead without the other Two. “No man means all that a
Christian means by ‘God,’ unless he puts into ‘God’ all that is
meant by the separate terms ‘Father,’ ‘Son,’ Spirit’.”
3. The Three Persons-Father, Son, and Spirit-must be re-
289
garcled as equal. They are associated on a footing of equality
in Scripture:
(1) [In the baptismal formula, the words of Jesus Himself], Matt.
29:19-baptizing them into the name of the Father and of the Son
and of the Holy Spirit. (2) [In the apostolic benediction], 2 Cor. 13:14-
The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the Com-
munion of the Holy Spirit, be with you all, (3) [In the address and
salutatory of First Peter, 1:2]-according to the foreknowledge of God
the Father, in sanctification of the Spirit, unto obedience and sprinkling
of the blood of Jesus Christ. (4) [In other passages in the apostolic
writings.] 1 Cor. 12:4-6: Now there are diversities of gifts, but the
same Spirit. And there are diversities of ministrations, and the same
Lord. And there a r e diversities of workings, but the same God, who
worketh all things in all, Eph. 4:4-6: There is one body, and one Spirit,
even a s also ye were called in one hope of your calling; one Lord, one
faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all. Rev. 1:4-6: John t o the
seven churches t h a t are in Asia: Grace to you and peace, from him who
is and who was and who is t o come; and from the seven Spirits that are
before his throne; and from Jesus Christ, who is the faithful witness,
the firstborn of the dead, and the ruler of the kings of the earth.
Again, the three Persons are represented as being distinct in
their subsistences to such an extent that distinct operations are
ascribed to each in relation to the others. For example:
(1) The Father is said to know and to love the Son, and
the Son is said to “see,” to know, and to love the Father.
Matt. 11:27-n0 one knoweth the Son, save the Father; neither
doth any know the Father, save the Son, and he to whomsoever the
Son willeth to reveal him. John 3:3S--The Father loveth the Son,
and hath given all things into his hand. John 6:ZO-For the Father
loveth the Son, and showeth him all things that himself doeth. John
6:46--Not t h a t any man hath seen the Father, save he that is from
God, he hath seen the Father. John 7:28-29 [the words of Jesus again]:
I am not come of myself, but he that sent me is true, whom ye know
not. I know him; because I am from him, and he sent me. John 14:31-
t h a t the world may know that I love the Father, and as the Father
gave me commandment, even so I do. John l:l&No man hath seen God
at any time; the only begotten Son, who is in the bosom of the Father,
he hath declared him.
(2) The Spirit is said to search and to reveal the “deep
things of God.”
1 Cor. 2:lO-13: For the Spirit searcheth all things, yea, the deep
things of God. For who among men knoweth the things of a man,
save the spirit of the man, which is in him? even so the things of God
none knoweth, save the Spirit of God. But we received, not the spirit
of the world, but the spirit which is from God: t h a t we might know
the things t h a t were freely given to us of God. Which things also we
speak, not in words which man’s wisdom teacheth, but which the
Spirit teacheth; combining spiritual things with spiritual words.
(3) The Father is said to give, to send, and to command the
Son in the latter’s capacity as Redemer and Mediator.
SPIRIT IN GOD
John 3:1G-17; F o r God so loved the world t h a t he gave his only
begotten Son , ..for God sent not his Son into the world to judge
the world, etc. John 3:34-For he whom God hath sent speaketh the
words of God. John 3:35--The Father loveth the Son, and hath given
all things int? his hand. John 6:37-And the Father that sent me, he
hath borne witness of me. John 5:36-for the worlrs which the Father
hath given me to accomplish, the very works t h a t I do, bear witness
of me, that the Father hath sent me, John 8:28-29: When ye have
lifted up the Son of man, then shall ye know t h a t I am he, and that
I do nothing of myself, but as the F a t h e r taught me, I speak these
things. And he that sent me is with me; he hath not left me alone:
for I do always the things t h a t are pleasing unto him. John 15:lO-
If ye keep my commandments, ye shall abide in my love; even as I have
kept my Father's commandments, and abide in his love. Gal, 4:I-but
when the fulness of the time came, God sent forth his Son, born of a
woman, born under t h e law, 1 John 4:B-Herein was the love of God
manifested in us, that God hath sent his only begotten Son into the
world'that we might live through him.
(4) And both the Father and the Son are said to have
actuated the Spirit's activities as Organizer, Administrator, and
Sanctifier of the Body of Christ.
John 14:16-17: And I will pray t h e Father, and he shall give you
another Comforter, t h a t he may be with you for ever, even the Spirit
of truth. John 14:26--But the Comforter, even the Holy Spirit, whom
the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things, and
bring to your remembrance all that I said unto you. John 16:2G-
But when the Comforter is come, whom I will send unto you from the
Father, even the Spirit o i truth, which proceedeth from the Father,
he shall bear witness of me. John 16:7, 13, 14-It is expedient f o r
you that I go away; for if I go not away, the Comforter will not come
.
unto you; but if I go, 1 will send him unto you. . . when he, the
Spirit of truth, is come, he shall guide you into all the t r u t h ; for he
shall not speak from himself; but what things so ever he shall hear,
these shall he speak; and he shall declare unto you the things t h a t a r e
t o come. He shall glorify me: for he shall take of mine, and shall
declare i t unto you. John 20:22-23: And when he had said this, he
breathed on them [the Eleven], and saith unto them, Receive ye the
Holy Spirit: whose soever sins ye forgive, they a r e iorgiven unto them;
whose soever sins ye retain, they are retained, Acts 1:4-6: and being
assembled together with them [the Eleven], he charged them not to
depart from Jerusalem, but to wait for the promise of the Father,
which, said he, ye heard from me: for John indeed baatized with water;
but ye shall be baptized in the Holy Spirit not many days hence, [Cf.
the fulfilment of all this, in Acts 2: 32-33]: This Jesus did God raise
'up, whereof we all a r e witnesses, Being therefore by the right hand of
God exalted, and having received of the Father the promise of the
Holy Spirit, he hath poured forth this, which ye see and hear. [The
Holy Spirit entered upon His official duties, with the incorporation
of the Church o r Body of Christ on the Day of Pentecost. The present
Dispensation i s that of the Spirit.]
In these numerous Scriptures an inter-relation and inter-
communion of the three Persons of the Godhead is clearly indi-
cated. Furthermore, the Holy Spirit in His capacity of Admin-
istrator of the Christian Church is said to have called certain
291
persons to do each a certain work, to have furnished them with
the proper credentials for their task, and to have sent them to
perform it.
E.g., Acts 13:l-4: Now there were at Antioch, in the church t h a t
was there, prophets and teachers ... and as they ministered t o the
Lord, and fasted, the Holy Spirit said, Separate me Barnabas and
Saul for the work whereunto I have called them. Then, when they had
fasted and prayed and laid their hands on them, they sent them away.
So they, being sent forth by the Holy Spirit, went down t o Seleucia,
etc. Acts 8:29-And the Spirit said unto Philip, Go near, and join
thyself to this chariot. Acts 10:19-20; And while Peter thought on
the vision, the Spirit said unto him Behold, three men seek thee.
Arise, and get thee down, a n d . g o with them, nothing doubting: for
I have sent them.
This fact alone is conclusive evidence of the Spirit’s own per-
sonal nature.
Finally, if each of the three Persons is, as to essence, God,
it follows that they must be equal; from our human viewpoint
at least, there can be no degrees in deity.
4. This tripersonality of God is inherent and eternal, even
though it was not fully revealed in Old Testament times. This
is evident from the following Scriptures:
(1) Those Old Testament passages in which the plural
form Elohim is used, with a singular verb, for the Deity.
Gen. 1:l-In the beginning Elohim created the heavens and the
earth. Gen. 1:3-And Elohim said, Let there be light. Gen. 1:27-And
Elohirn created man in his own image. [And so on, in many, many
passages throughout t h e entire Old Testament.]
(2) Those Old Testament passages in which inter-com-
munioa within the Godhead is intimated.
Gen. 1:26-And God said, Let u s make man in our image, after
our likeness. Gen. 3:22-And Jehovah God said, Behold, the man is
become as one of us, to know good and evil, etc. Gen. 11:6-7: And
Jehovah said . . ,
language. Isa. 6:8-And
Come, let us go down, and there confound their
I heard the voice of the Lord, saying, Whom
shall I send, and who will go f o r us?
(3) Those passages which assert the eternal pre-existence
of the Word (or Wisdom) of God, the Word who became flesh
and dwelt among us.
Prov. 1:20-Wisdom crieth aloud in the street. Prov. 8:1-Doth
not wisdom cry, and Understanding put forth her voice? [So throughout
the book of Proverbs.] John 1:l-3, 14-In the beginning was the Word,
and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. The same was in
the beginning with God. All things were made through him; and with-
out him was not anything made t h a t hath been made. .. , And the
Word became flesh and dwelt among us (and we beheld his glory,
glory as of the only begotten from the Father), full of grace and
292
SPIRIT IN GOD
truth. John 1:18-No man hath seen God a t any time; the only be-
gotten Son, who is in the bosom of the Father, he hath declared him.
John 8:68-Jesus said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you,
Before Abraham was born, I am. 1 Cor. 1:24-Christ the power o f
God, and the wisdom of God. Gal, 4:4--But when the fulness of the
time came, God sent forth his Son, born of a woman, born under the
law, etc, John 17:6 [the words of Jesus Himself]: And now, Father,
gloriiy thou me with thine own self with t h e glory which I had with
thee before the world was. Col. 1:16-17-1n him were all things created,
in the heavens and upon the earth ..
. all things have been created
through him, and unto him; and he is before all things, and in him
all things consist. Phil, 2:6-8: Christ Jesus, who, existing in the
form of God, counted not the being on an equality with God a thing
to be grasped, but emptied himself, taking the form of a servant, being
made in the likeness of men; and being found in fashion a s a man,
he humbled himself, becoming obedient even unto death, yea, the
death of the cross. [Here we have the fact of the Word's Kenosis
clearly affirmed.] Heb. 2:14-15; Since then the children a r e sharers
in flesh and blood, he also himself in like manner partook of the same:
that through death he might bring to nought him t h a t had the power
of death, that is, the devil; and might deliver all them who through
fear of death were all their lifetime subject to bondage. [In this pas-
sage the function o r p u r p o s e of our Lord's Kenosis i s stated.] Heb.
1:l-3: God, having of old time spoken unto the fathers in the prophets
by divers portions and in divers manners, hath a t the end of these
days, spoken unto us in his Son, whom he appointed heir of all things,
through whom also he made the worlds; who being the effulgence
o f his glory, and the yery image of his substance, and upholding all
things by the word of his power, when he had made purification of sins,
sat down on the right hand of the Majesty on high. 1 Tim. 3:16-
And without controversy great is the mystery of godliness: He who
was manifested in the flesh, Justified in the spirit, Seen of angels,
Preached among the nations, Believed on in the world, Received up
in glory. [The Mystery of Godliness is, of colirse, the God-Man, Im-
manuel, the Eternal Logos who became flesh and dwelt among men.]
. (4) Those passages which identify the Spirit of God of the
Old Testament with the Holy Spirit of the New Testament.
2 Sam. 23:l-2: Now these are the last words of David. David
the son of Jesse saith , .. The Spirit of Jehovah spake by me, And
his word was 'upon my tongue. [Cf. Matt. 22:43-441: He saith unto
them, How then doth David in the Spirit call him Lord, saying, The
Lord said unto my Lord, Sit thou on my right hand, Till I put thine
enemies underneath thy feet? [a quotation of David's Psalm 110:ll.
Acts l : l G , 17, SO--"Brethren, i t was needful t h a t the scripture should
.be fulfilled," which the Holy Spirit spake before by the mouth of
David concerning Judas, who was guide t o them t h a t took Jesus. For
he was numbered among us, and received his portion in this ministry.
, . . F o r i t i s written in the book of Psalms, Let his habitation be
made desolate, And let no man dwell therein, and, Hls office let
another take [quotations of Psalm 69:26 and Psalm 109:8.] Heb. 3:7 f f .
-Wherefore, a s the Holy Spirit saith, Today if ye shall hear his
voice, Harden not your hearts, as in the provocation, Like a s in the
days of the trial in the wilderness, Where your fathers tried me by
proving me, And saw my works forty years, etc. [This is a quotation,
in substance, of Psalm 95:7-11.1 1 Sam. lG:13-and the Spirit of
Jehovah came mightily upon David from t h a t day forward,
[Again] Heb. 9:14-the eternal Spirit. 2 Pet. 1:2l-For no prophecy
293
ever came by the will of man; but men spake from God, being moved
by the Holy Spirit. 1 Pet. 1:lO-12: Concerning which salvation the
prophets sought and searched diligently, who prophesied of the grace
t h a t should come unto you: searching what time or what manner of
time the Spirit bf Christ which was in them did point unto, when it
testified beforehand the sufferings of Christ, and the glories that should
follow them, To whom i t was revealed, t h a t not unto themselves, but
unto you, did they minister these thing‘$, which now have been an-
nounced unto you through them that preached the gospel unto you by
the Holy Spirit sent forth from heaven; which things angels desire
to look into.
These various passages show conclusively that the Spirit of
God, Spirit of Jehovah, Spirit of Christ, and Holy Spirit are all
one and the same Eternal Spirit. The Spirit of God who in-
spired the Old Testament prophets, beginning with Enoch,
“the seventh from Adam” (Jude 14), and terminating with
Malachi, is the Holy Spirit who inspired the apostles and proph-
ets of the New Testament revelation. There is but one Spirit
(Eph. 4: 4).
5. This triune personality of God is inscrutable. Numerous
suggestions of “trinities” in nature have been made by church-
men in all ages. And while it is apparent that these analogies
are inadequate, and often far-fetched, yet it has to be admitted
that the triune principle does prevail quite generally. In logic,
for example, we have thesis, antithesis, and synthesis; in meta-
physics we have a trinity of subject, object, and subject-object;
in the family we have the sociaI trinity of father, mother, and
child. As Raymond Calkins writes:
All through the fabric of the world and of human life there has
been a threeness. In the physical world there are three dimensions;
in human life, three functions-mind, will, and feeling. Just so in the
Godhead, the sum of all existence, Christian thinking has found per-
manent place for Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.l
Tripersonality in God, however, is to a large extent inscrut-
able to human reason; the doctrine is, and must continue to be,
essentially an article of faith, that is to say, a product of Divine
revelation. Such a conception of the Deity could hardly have
arisen in finite mind per se.
6. The fact of the triune personality of God underlies both
Divine revelation and human redemption.
It is essential t o a correct understanding of God. The God
who loves must make common cause with the object of His
love. It has been rightly said that “love is an impossible exer-
cise in a solitary being.” We need not only a God who is eternal
1. The Holy S p X t , 125.
2%
SPIRIT IN GOD
and sovereign, but a God as well who “so loved the world,
that He gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth
on him should not perish, but have eternal life” (John 3:16),
The fundamental fact of the Old Testament revelation is that
God created man in His own likeness; the fundamental fact
of the New Testament revelation is that God Himself, in the
person of the Son, entered into human flesh and became the
likeness of man, that “God was in Christ reconciling the world
unto himself” (2 Cor. 5 : 19).
It is essential to a proper revelation of God. If there are
not three Persons, then there is no Son who can adequately
reveal the Father, Herein lies the emptiness of Unitarianism:
it has no perfect revelation of God, Certainly no mere man
could ever say, in truth: “He that hath seen me hath seen the
Father” (John 14:9). And if there is no Holy Spirit, the self-
communication of the Divine Being to a human being is im-
possible. (Cf. again Gen. 2:7 and 1 Cor. 2:6-15).
The doctrine of the triune personality of God is essential
to the Scheme of Redemption. If God is one, solitary and alone,
then there can be no mediation, no atonement, no intercession, I
no redemption. The gulf between God and man is not one of

degree, but one of kind; it is infinite. Only One who is God
can bridge that gulf and effect a reconciliation (1) by the
vicarious sacrifice of Himself (for only a Divine offering can
satisfy the claims of Eternal Justice upon the Divine Govern-
ment, thus sustaining the majesty of the Divine law which was
violated by man, and thus providing an atonement for man’s
sins) ; and (2) by the vicarious sacrifice of Himself as a demon-
stration of God’s immeasurable love for man, an offering of
love sufficient to overcome the rebellion in man’s heart and to
woo him back into covenant relationship with his Creator,
This is precisely what the Son of God has done for us by His
voluntary offering of Himself upon the Cross. He “humbled
himself, becoming obedient even unto death, yea, the death of
the cross” (Phil, 2:8). “His own self bare our sins in his
body upon the tree, that we, having died unto sins, might live
unto righteousness” (1 Pet. 2: 24). Without a Redeemer, re-
demption and reconciliation are meaningless terms, and re-
ligion is a vain exercise.
The doctrine of the triune personality of God is essential
to all true worship of God. Worship, says Jesus, is the com-
munion of the human spirit with the Divine Spirit, on the
terms and conditions as revealed by the Spirit in the Word
295
(John 4:24). Therefore, without both Spirit and Word there
can be no true worship.
The doctrine is also essential to any adequate Christology.
Rejection of this doctrine suffices to explain the inadequacy
of all Unitarian and so-called “modernistic” views of Jesus. If
Jesus was just a man, and not the Word who became flesh and
dwelt among us, not Immanuel, the God-Man, then He cannot
be the Savior of mankind. If He was just a teacher, a “divinely
illumined” philosopher and ethical teacher, and no more, then
His teaching, like all philosophy, is just another guess at the
riddle of the universe, and the world is back where it was two
‘thousand years ago, floundering in the muck and mire of pagan
superstition.
The doctrine of the tripersonality of God is essential to
any perfect pattern of human life and conduct. We believe that
Jesus was truly “God with us” (Matt. 1:23). Therefore His
teaching and conduct are the perfect norms for us to follow if
we would be like God or godlike. Without the Son to reveal
and to live the perfect life, the life that God would live and
have us live, then we are without an Exemplar; there is no
Way, no Truth, no Life.
In fact, every fundamental doctrine of the Christian System
is rooted deeply in the fact of the triune personality of God.
Moreover, to speak of so-called heathen “trinities” in the
I same breath with the Biblical triune God is to manifest a mind
blinded by prejudice and a perverted will, In the first place,
what are commonly called “trinities” in heathen mythologies
are not trinities at all; that is, not three k one, but three sep-
arate ones for whom no unity of essence was ever conceived
or claimed. In the second place, these so-called “trinities” of
paganism are, in most cases, vague and unidentifiable; they
are invariably surrounded by other “gods” regarded as equal-
ly powerful. In the Vedas, there were Dyaus, Indra, and Agni.
In Brahmanism, there were Brahma, Vishnu, and Siva, the
last-named being the principle of evil and destruotion. These,
among the oldest of the deities of “natural religion,” more nearly
approximated a trinity than any similar groups; yet in either
case the three were regarded as separate deities. In Egyptian
mythology, there were Osiris, Isis his consort, and Horus their
son. But there were many other great gods in Egypt, in addi-
tion to these three, who were a comparatively late development
in Egyptian history. Nor is there any well-defined triad in
Greek mythology. Was it Zeus, Poseidon, and Hades, who were
296
and for man’s redemption. These relations are signified by the
the imagination can any resemblance be found between the
variously associated deities of heathen myth and legend and
the triune personality of the God of the Bible. For our God
is a Spirit, and “they that worship him must worship in spirit
and truth” (John 4:24). This means, of course, that in their
eternal and unoriginated being, all three Persons-Father, Son,
and Holy Spirit-are essentially spiritual: that is, no corporeal
relations are sustained among the Three. In the words of an
old Catechism: “We call God a Spirit because He has under-
standing and free will, but no body.”
3. The Personality of the Holy Spirit

The only proper method of ascertaining the essential nature
of the Holy Spirit is to find out from the teaching of the Bible,
and of the New Testament in particular, what the Holy Spirit
does. The man who presides in a classroom is a schoolteacher;
one who practices law is a lawyer; one who tills the soil is a
farmer; and so on. We can ascertain what a man is by what
he does, And so, although the analogy is far from precise, we
can ascertain the nature of the Holy Spirit by finding out what
the Holy Spirit does. On looking through the Scriptures we
find that the Holy Spirit is represented as doing certain things,
as follows:
1. [He hears.] John 16:13--Howbeit when he, the Spirit o f truth,
i s come, he shall guide you into all the truth; f o r he shall not speak
from himself; but what things soever he shall hear, these shall he
speak.
2. [He speaks, Le., communicates thought by words.] 1 Tim. 4:l-
But the Spirit saith expressly, that in later times some shall fall
away from the faith, etc. [Here the Spirit i s said to speak through
the inspired writer, the Apostle Paul.] Acts 8:29-And the Spirit
said unto Philip Go near, and join thyself t o this chariot. Acts 10:19-
20: And while )Peter thought on the vision, the Spirit said unto him,
Behold, three men seek thee. But arise, and get thee down, and go wibh
them, nothing doubting: for I have sent them. [I take it t h a t in these
two instances the Spirit spoke in audible tones, or a t least in words
addressed t o the subconsciousness of the recipient. Now a speaker,
one who uses language intelligibly, must be a person. No mere per-
sonification o r impersonal influence can speak.]
3. [He teaches.] Luke 12:12--For the Holy Spirit shall teach you
what ye ought t o say. 1 Cor. 2:13-which things
in words which man’s wisdom teacheth, but which
herno&.] John 14:26--But the Comforter,
m the Father will send in my name, he shall
bring to your remembrance all that I said
unto you.
6 . [He bears witness, testifies.] John 1 5 : 2 6 4 3 u t when the Com-
- 298
SPIRIT IN GOD
forter is come, whom I will send unto you from the Father, even the
Spirit of tiwth , .. he shall bear witness of me.
6 . [He ~ e v e a l s , ] 1 Cor. 2:9-10: Whatsoever things God prepared
for them t h a t love him . , , unto us God revealed them through the
Spirit. John 16:13-14; Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come,
.
he shall guide you into all the truth . , and he shall declare unto
you the things that are to come. He shall glorify me, for he shall
take of mine, and shall declare i t unto you.
7. [Re leads and forbids.] Matt, 4:l-Then was Jesus led up O €
the Spirit into the wilderness t o be tempted o€ the devil. Acts 16:G-7:
And they [Paul and Timothy] went through the region of Phrygia
and Galatia, having been forbidden of the Holy Spirit t o spealc the
word in Asia. and when they were come over against Mysia, they
assayed t o g o jnto Bithynia; and the Spirit of Jesus suffered them not.
8. [He oomforts.] Acts 9:31-S0 the church throughout all Judea
and Galilee and Samaria had peace, being edified; and, walking in
the fear of the Lord and in the comfort of the Holy Spirit, was multi-.
plied.
9. [He searches.] 1 Cor. 2:lO-the Spirit searcheth all things, yea,
the deep things of God.
10. [He strives with men.] Gen. 6:3-And Jehovah.said, My Spirit
shall not strive with man for ever. John 16:7-8: It is expedieiit for
you that I g o away; for if I go not away, the Comforter will not come
unto you; but if I go, I will send him unto you. And he, when he is
come, will convict the world in respect of sin, and of righteousness, and
of judgment.
In these passages the Holy Spirit is said to hear, to speak, to
testify, to quicken the memory, to reveal, to guide, to lead, to
forbid, to comfort, to search the mind and heart, to strive with
men, etc. These are things that can be done only by a person.
Having ascertained what the Holy Spirit does, let us now
seek out the attributes, powers, o r faculties, which the Holy
Spirit has, In this connection, He is said to have the following:
1. [Miml.] Rom. 8:27--He that searcheth the hearts knoweth what
is the mind of the Spirit.
2. [KmwZedge.] 1 Cor. 2:il-even so the things of God none
knoweth, save the Spirit of God.
3. [Affection.] nom. 15:30--Now I beseech you, brethren, by our
Lord Jesus Christ, and by the love of the Spirit, t h a t ye strive to-
gether with me in your prayers t o God for me.
4. [ViZZ.] 1 Cor. 12:ll-but all these worlceth the one and the same
Spirit, dividing t o each one severally as he will.
6. [Goodness.] Neh. 9:20-Thou gavest also thy good Spirit to
instruct them.
6. [Holiness.] Psa. 6l:ll-Tale not thy holy Spirit from me.
Isa. 63:lO--But the rebelled, and grieved his holy Spirit. Luke 11:13-
How much more slall your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit t o
them that ask him? Eph. 4:30--And grieve not the Holy Spirit of
God, in whom ye were sealed unto the day of redemption.
These several endowments-mind, knowledge, affection, will,
and goodness or holiness-all are essential attributes of per-
sonality. By no stretch of the imagination can they be ascribed
to a mere impersonal energy or influence. Someoiie has rightly
299
said that “these five characteristics form the fingers of the
hand of certainty by which we grasp the fact of the personality
of the Holy Spirit.”
Again, we find that the Holy Spirit is said to suffer slights
and injuries such as can be suffered only by a person:
1. [He can be grieved.] Isa. 63:lO-But they rebelled, and grieved
his holy Spirit; therefore he was turned t o be their enemy and him-
self fought against them. Here the prophet describes the sins of
ancient Israel against the Spirit of God. [Eph. 4:30 again]: And
grieve not the Holy Spirit of God, in whom ye were sealed unto the
day of redemption.
2. [He can be despited.] Heb. 10:29-of how much sorer punish-
ment, think ye, shall he be judged worthy, who ha5 trodden under foot
the Son of God and hath counted the blood of the covenant wherewith
he was sanetided an unholy thing, and hath done despite unto the
Spirit of grace? [To do despite is to act with malice, contempt, or scorn.]
3. [He can be blasphemed.] Matt. 12 :3l--Every sin. and blasphtm,y
shall be forgiven unto men; but the blasphemy against the Spirit
shall not be forgiven. [To blaspheme, as the word is used in this con-
text, is to ascribe an exercise of the Spirit’s power to the agency of
Satan, thus manifested spiritual blindness t h a t can arise only from a
hopelessly perverted will; hence to treat the Holy Spirit in an impious
and irreverent manner.]
4. [He can be lied to.] Acts 5:3-4: But Peter said, Ananias, why
hath Satan filled thy heart t o lie t o the Holy Spirit, and to keep back
part of the price of the land? . , . Thou hast not lied unto men, but
unto God, [To lie t o an inspired man, who is a man of the ,Spirit (as
Peter was in this instance), is made equivalent here t o lymg t o the
Holy Spirit.]
5. ’[He % a n IldJ1resisted.] Acts 7:Sl-Ye stiffnecked and uncir-
cumcised in heart and ears, ye do always resist the Holy Spirit.
6 . [Men can speak agaanst the Spirit sin against Him, and r e b e l
against Him.] Matt. 12 :32-whosoever shall speak against the Holy
Spirit, it shall not be forgiven him, neither in this world, nor in t h a t
which is to come. Mark 3:29-whosoever shall blaspheme against the
Holy Spirit hath never forgiveness, but is puilty of an eternal sin.
Isa. 63:lO-But they rebelled, and grieved his holy Spirit.
Obviously it is impossible to lie to a mere personification. It
is impossible to grieve or vex, or to wound in any way, an
impersonal energy or influence. These are slights that can be
experienced only by a person.
Again, the various offices and works ascribed to the Holy
Spirit in Scripture clearly indicate His personality. He is
presented as acting in the following capacities:
1. [As Revealer.] John 14:26-But the Comforter, even the Holy
Spirit. .. he shall teach you all things, and bring t o your remembrance
all that I said unto you. John 16:13-14 again: Howbeit when he, the
.
Spirit of truth, is come, he shall guide you into all the truth . . and
he shall declare unto you the things that a r e to come. He shall
glorify me: f o r he shall take of mine, and shall declare it unto you.
Luke 12:12-for the Holy Spirit shall teach you in that very hour
what ye ought t o say. [These a r e a11 sayings addressed by Jesus
Himself t o the men who were t o become His Apostles.] I Pet. 1:10-12:
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SPIRIT IN GOD
Concerning which salvation the prophets sought and searched dili-
gently, who prophesied of the grace t h a t should come unto you;
searching what time pr what manner of time the Spirit o€ Christ
which was in them did point unto, when i t testified beforehand the
sufferings of Christ and the glories that should follow them. To whom
i t was revealed, that not unto themselves, but unto youI did they
them that preached the gospel unto you by the Holy Spirit sent forth
from heaven. 2 Pet. 1:21-For no prophecy ever came by the will
of man; but men spalce from God, being moved by the Holy Spirit.
1 Cor. 2110-12: But unto us God revealed them [Le., the things God ?re-
pared for them that love him] through the Spirit: for the Spirit
searcheth all things, yea, the deep things of God. F o r who among men
lcnoweth the things of a man, save the spirit of the man, which is in
him? even s o the things of God none lcnoweth, save the Spirit of God.
But we received, not the spirit of the world, but the spirit which is
from God; t h a t we might know the things t h a t were freely given to
us of God.” [The “we” in this passage has reference, of course, t o
the Apostles.]
2. [As Teaci~er.]Luke 12:12-for the Holy Spirit shall teach you
in t h a t very hour what ye ought to say. John 14:2G-But t h e Com-
forter, even the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name,
he shall teach you all things, etc. 1 Cor. 2:13. Which things also we
speak, not in words which man’s wisdom teacheth, but which the Spirit
teacheth, combining spiritual things with spiritual words.
3. [As Witness.] John 15:2G-27: B u t when the Comforter is come
I . . even the Spirit of truth, which proceedeth from the Father, he
shall bear witness of me. John 1 G : l P H e shall glorify me; f o r he
shall take of mine, and shall declare it unto you. Rom. 8:lG-The
Spirit himself beareth witness with our spirit, t h a t we are children of
God, etc. 1 Pet. 1:ll-searching what time o r what manner of time
the Spirit of Christ which was in them did point unto, when i t testified
beforehand the sufferings of Christ and the glories that should follow
them.
4. [As Guide.] John 16:13-when he, the Spirit of truth, i s come,
he shall guide you into all the truth,
5. [As Comforter, literally, Paraclete. This is t h e New Testament
name for the Spirit, which signifies in a special sense His relations
with the Apostles. It is a name that is difficult to translate; i t seems
t o connote such meanings as Advocate, Counselor, Helper, etc.] John
14:16-17: I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Com-
.
forter , , even the Spirit of truth. John 14:2G--But the Comforter,
even the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, he shall
teach you all things, etc. John 16:2G--But when the Comforter is come,
whom I will send unto you from the Father, even the Spirit of truth, etc.
John 16:7-for if I go not away, the Comforter will not come unto you,
etc. [It must be always kept in mind t h a t these promises incorporated in
the fourteenth, fifteenth and sixteenth chapters of the Fourth Gospel,
were promises made by our Lord to the Eleven only, that is, to the
men who were to become His Apostles. Recognition of this f a c t by
Bible exegetes in the past would have prevented a great deal of the
confusion which exists today in regard to the office and work of the
Holy Spirit.]
6. [As Intewessor.1 Rom. 8:2G-27: And in like manner the Spirit
also helpeth our infirmity: €or we know not how to pray as we ought;
but the Spirit himself maketh intercession f o r us with groanings which
cannot be uttered; and he that searcheth the hearts knoweth what is
the mind of the Spirit, because he malceth intercession f o r the saints
301
according to the will of God, Eph, 6:18-with all prayer and sup-
plication praying at all seasons in the Spirit, etc.
7. [As Demonstrator, or Worker of Miracles.] IThe Father is p d -
marily the Source of faith; the Son, of doctrine; the Spirit, of evidence.
Revelation has always been attested by demonstrataon or miracles.]
Matt. 12:28-But if I by the Spirit of God cast out demons, then is the
kingdom of God come upon you. 1 Cor. 12:4-11: Now there .aye dl-
versities of gifts, but the same Spirit. And there a r e diversities of
ministrations, and the same Lord. And there are diversities of work-
ings, but the same God, who worketh all things in all. But to each one
is given the manifestation of the Spirit to profit withal. For to one
is given through the Spirit the word of wisdom. and to another the
word of knowledge, according to the same Spirk: to another faith,
in the same Spirit; and to another gifts of healings, in one Spirit;
and to another workings of miracles; and to another prophecy; and
t o another discernings of spirits; to another divers kinds of tongues;
and t o another the interpretation of tongues: b u t all these worketh
the on0 and the same Spirit, dividing to each one severally even as
he will. Heb. 2:4--God a!so bearing witness with them, both by si.ps
and wonders, and by manifold powers, and by gifts of the Holy Spirit,
according to his own will. [The reference here is, primarily, to the
miracle-working powers of the Apostles.] [Cf. 1 Cor. 2:4-6, the words
of Paul]: And my speech and my preaching were not in persuasive
words of wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power:
t h a t your f a i t h should not stand in the wisdom of men, but in the
power of God.
8. [As Administrator of the Church.] The Holy Spirit came on the
day of Pentecost, to act as the Vicegerent of Christ, to abide with the
Church throughout the present Dispensation. His activity is paramount
throughout the history of the Church in apostolic times as recorded
in t h e book of Acts. So many instances of His direct leadership are
given - t h a t it would protract this section t o undue length to record
all of them here. A few examples, therefore, will suffice.] Acts 8:29-
And the Spirit said unto Philip, Go near, and join thyself to this
chariot. Acts 8:39-the Spirit of the Lord caught away Philip. Acts
10:19-20: And while Peter thought on the vision, the Spirit said unto
him, Behold, three men seek thee. But arise, and get thee down, and
go with them, nothing doubting; for I have sent them. Acts 13:l-4:
Now there were at Antioch, in the church that was there, prophets
and teachers. , , . And as they ministered t o the Lord, and fasted,
the Holy Spirit said, Separate me Barnabas and Saul for the work
whereunto I have called them. Then, when they had fasted and
prayed, and laid their hands on them, they sent them away. So they,
being sent forth by the Holy Spirit, went down t o Seleucia, etc. Acts
1528-[the decisions of the first general church council of apostles
and elders held a t Jerusalem, as set forth in a letter dispatched t o
the surrounding congregations]: For it seemed good to the Holy Spirit,
and t o us, to lay upon you no greater burden than these necessary
things, etc. [Note t h a t the authority of the Holy Spirit was claimed
for these decisions.] Acts 16:6-7: [here we are told khat Paul and
Timothy] went through the region of Phrygia and Galatia, having
been forbidden of the Holy Spirit to speak the word in Asia; and when
they were come over against Mysia, they assayed to go into Bithynia;
and the Spirit of Jesus suffered them not, etc. Acts 20:28-[the words
of Paul to the elders of the church a t Ephesus]: Take heed unto your-
selves, and t o all the flock, in which the Holy Spirit hath made yoa
overseers, t o feed the church of the Lord which he purchased with his
own blood, Acts 21:4-And having found the disciples we tarried
there seven days: and these said to Paul through the Spirit, that he
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SPIRIT IN GOD
should not set foot in Jerusalem [cf. vv. 10-111. (Cf.also Acts 1:8,
2 : l - 4 , 4:8, 4:(31, 5:3, 5:9, 5:32 6:3, 6 : 5 , 6:10, 8:14-24, 9:17, 9:31,
10:44-47, 11:12-18, 11:24, 11:28, 13:9-10, 13:52, 15:6-9, 19:l-7, 20:22-23,
etc.).
Thus it will be seen that, in His capacity as Administrator of
the Church, the Spirit is said to have called certain persons
t o perform certain tasks, to have qualified them with proper
credentials for their respective tasks, and to have sent them
forth to accomplish the tasks which He had commissioned them
to perform, and even to have accompanied them personally and
in many instances to have given them the added powers neces-
sary to accomplish the tasks which He had assigned them. All
these offices and works clearly indicate His personality.
Dr. Strong summarizes clearIy as follows:
That which searches, knows, speaks, testifies, reveals, convinces,
commands, strives, moves, helps, guides, creates, recreates, sanctifies,
inspires, makes intercession, orders the affairs of the church, performs
miracles, raises the dead-cannot be a mere power, influence, efflux,
or attribute of God, but must be a person.
I Again:
That which can be resisted, grieved, vexed, blasphemed, must be
a person; f o r only a person can perceive insult and be offended. The
blasphemy against the Holy Ghost cannot be merely blasphemy against
a power or attribute of God, since in that case blasphemy against God
would be a less crime than blasphemy against his power. That against
which the unpardonable sin can be committed must be a person.’
Again, the Holy Spirit is invariably presented in Scripture
’ in association with some other person or persons in such a way
as to imply His own personality.
[E.g., Acts 15:28 again]: For it seemed good to the Holy Spirit,
and to us, t o say lay upon you no greater burden than these necessary
things, etc. [As already pointed out, these words occurred in the letter
dispatched to the churches following the council of apostles and elders
at Jerusalem.] [Acts 8:29 again]: And the Spirit said unto Philip,
Go near, and join thyself t o this chariot. [In this case Philip was
one of the seven “deacons” of the Jerusalem congregation (Acts 6 : l - 6 )
who had now turned evangelist (Acts 21:8).] Acts 10:lg-And whlle
Peter thought on the vision, the Spirit said unto him, Behold, three
men seek thee, etc. [Passages in the book of Acts in which the Holy
Spirit is described as having been a companion and guide t o the leaders
of the early church are numerous, as we have already seen. The Holy
Spirit is presented as having been in a special sense a Companion and
Guide t o the Apostles. This special relationship, moreover, i s indicated
by a special name, Paraclate, translated-imperf ectly-Comforter.]
[See again Luke 24:44-49; John 14:lG-17, 14:26, 15:26, 16:7-14, 20:21-
23; Acts 1:l-8, 2 : l - 4 , etc,]
1. A. H. Strong, Sgstematic Theology, One-VoIume Edition, 324.
303
The Spirit is also presented as being in association with
the Father, and the Son, and on a footing of equality with them.
2 Cor. 1 3 : l L T h e grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of
God, and the communion of the Spirit, be with you all. 1 Pet.
1:2-according to the foreknowle f God the Father, in sanctifica-
tion of the Spirit, unto obedience sprinkling of the blood of Jesus
Christ. Jude 20-21: But ye, beloved, building up yourselves on your
most holy faith, praying in the Holy Spirit, keep yodrselves in the
love of God, looking for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ;,unto
eternal life, [And especially the baptismal formula], Matt. 28 :19-
baptizing them into the name of the Father and of the Son and of the
Holy Spirit.
According to the Great Commission, as given by our Lord Him-
self “through the Holy Spirit” (Acts 1:2 e are, first, to make
rners, believers, follow from among all na-
re to baptize these believers (Le., those who
have been made disciples) “into the name of the Father and
of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.” B m is transitional:
by means of it, as a Divine appointmen change of state is
effected: the believing penitent is translated, out of the kingdom
of darkness (John 8: 44, Acts 26: 18) into the kingdom of God’s
son (Col. 1:13). This change of state is essentially a change 6f
?*elationship. Baptism i s the ordinance Divinely appointed as
the means wherein the penitent believer formally yields him-
self in body, soul, and spirit, to the authority of the Father, Son,
and Holy Spirit. Now it is admitted by all Bible students that
the Father and Son are distinct persons. True it is, of course,
that some will deny the deity of Jesus, but no intelligent person
would think of questioning His personality. It follows, there-
fore, that if the Father and the Son are distinct Persons, this
baptismal formula clearly indicates that tlie Holy Spirit is also
a Person distinct from both the Father and the Son. If the
\
Iloly Spirit be merely a force, virtue<,attribute, or *impersonal
emanation of some sort, these words iiy meaningless. More-
over, “name,” in this text as elsewhere in-,the Scriptures, sig-
nifies authority: hence to be baptized into the name of the
Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, is to own the
authority of all three Persons, the fulness of the Godhead. If
in baptism we yield to the authority of the Father and of the
Son as Persons-and authority inheres only in personality; an
impersonal power or influence could not possibly have or exer-
cise authority-it follows that in the sanie qct of faith we also
yield to the authority of the Holy Spirit as a Person. Apart
from the fact of the tripersonality of God the baptismal formula
is unintelligible.
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SPIRIT IN GOD
Moreover, the Holy Spirit is said to have been sent, ac-
cording to promise, by the Father and by the Son (ci. again
Luke 24: 45-49; John 14: 26; 15: 26; 16: 7; Acts 1:1-5), To think
that either the Father or the Son sent Himself, in fulfilling this
Promise, is simply out of the question. The Holy Spirit is said
to have proceeded, Le., gone forth in time, from God (John
15:26). And Jesus told the Eleven explicitly that the Father
would give them another Paraclete (John 14:16-17), that is,
one distinct from Jesus Himself (John 16: 7)- Again, in Romans
8:26-27, as we have seen, the Spirit is said to make intercession
for the saints: certainly this cannot mean that the Spirit inter-
cedes with Himself. Finally, the pronouns used in reference
to the Holy Spirit clearly indicate His personality, E . g . , John
14:17--“ye know him, for he abideth with you.” John 14:26-
“he shall teach you all things.” John 15:26-“he shall bear
witness of me.” John 16:8--”and he, when he i s come,’’ etc,
As a matter of fact, the evidence respecting the Spirit’s per-
sonality is piled so high in Scripture that “wayfaring men, yea
fools, shall not err therein’’ (Isa. 35:8). It is doubtful that the
doctrine could have been set forth more clearly than it is in
the teaching of Jesus and the Apostles.
We can only conclude t.hat the Holy Spirit is presented in
+he Scriptures, not as an impersonal force, influence, efflux,
or emanation, but as a Person. He is said to do things that only
a person can do. He is said to possess faculties and endow-
ments that only a person can possess. He is presented as suf-
fering slights and injuries such as only a person can suffer.
Men are described as sustaining attitudes and relations toward
Him such as are possible only toward a person. He is given
only such designations as imply personality, and He is repre-
sented as being associated with other persons in such terms as
to indicate His own personality. Therefore the Holy Spirit must
be a Person.
This conclusion is further corroborated by Scripture teach-
ing regarding the Spirit’s work in connection with the Church
of Christ. He is represented as being the Agent of Christ in
administering the affairs of the Church, that is, of the true
Church, which takes in all of God’s elect in the present Dis-
pensation. As such He is said to indwell the Church and to
govern it. As John Owen has written:
If a wise and honest man should come and tell you, t h a t i n a
certain country where he has been, there is a n excellent governor who
wisely discharges the duties of his office; who hears causes, discerns
right, distributes justice, relieves the poor, and comforts the distressed;
305
. THE ETERNAL SPIRIT - HIS PERSON AND POWERS
would you not believe that he intended by this description, a righteous,
wise,. diligent, intelligent person? What else could any living man
imagine? But now suppose that a stranger, a person of suspicious
character and credit, should come and say t h a t the former information
which you had received was indeed true, but that no mal? or person
was intended, but merely the sun, or the wind, which by their benign
influences, rendered the country fruitful and temperate, and disposed
the inhabitants to mutual kindness and benignity; and therefore that
the whole description of a governor and his actions, was merely figura-
tive, though no such intimation had been given you. Must you not
conclude, either t h a t the first person was a notorious trifler, and de-
signed your ruin, if your affairs depended on his report; or t h a t your
latter informer, whose veracity you had reason t o suspect, had en-
deavored t o abuse both him and you? It is exactly thus in the case
before us. The Scriptures tell us t h a t the Holy Ghost governs the
church, appoints overseers of i t ; discerns and judges all things; com-
forts the f a i n t ; strengthens the weak; is grieved and provoked by sin;
and t h a t in these and many other affairs, he works, orders, and disposes
all things, according to the counsel of his will. Can any man discredit
this testimony, and conceive otherwise of the Spirit, than as a holy,
wise, and intelligent person?’
In conclusion, the personality of the Holy Spirit is a truth
which must of necessity be apprehended by faith. Because of
this fact, men have found it difficult not to hold the idea in
question; or possibly more convenient, let us say, to substitute
therefore more materialistic notions of the Spirit as an imper-
sonal efflux, influence, or energy. The doctrine itself is so
profoundly spiritual that the human intellect experiences dif-
ficulty in taking hold of it. We do not find it difficult to con-
ceive of the Son of God as a Person, for the simple reason that
we are able to view Him objectively, so t o speak, that is, as a
historical personage, Jesus of Nazareth, the Word who became
flesh and dwelt among men. Nor do we find it such a strain on
the imagination to conceive of our Heavenly Father in terms
of personality, as One who thinks and feels and wills, in some
manner even as we do these things; as One whom we approach
in our petitions with the familiar words. (‘Our Father who art
in heaven” (Matt. 6: 9). Indeed the notion of the brotherhood
of m a n is predicated upon the fact of the Fatherhood of God,
and the Fatherhood of God, in turn, upon the personailty of God.
How could there be Fatherhood apart from Personality? But
to grasp the idea of the Holy Spirit’s personality necessitates
a mode of thinking so far transcending ordinary processes of
thought that many have been inclined to reject the doctrine
altogether. As H. Wheeler Robinson has written:
We have no single historical figure with which t o identify the
1. A Discoume Concerning the Holy Spirit, abridged by George
Burder, 43-44.
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SPIRIT IN GOD
I-Ioly Spirit, no complete and perfect example ( a p a r t from Jesus
Christ) of what He is in Himself. But, instead, we have a wealth of
revelation that overwhelms us by its immensity. Through the cen-
turies, from countless lives of the most varied type, He has been re-
flecting Himself, as if in the myriad flashing jewels on the wavelets
of a sunlit sea.... God Who is present with men is present a s Spirit,
and the Holy Spirit Who i s God’s presence active with the fulness of
Christ’s personality cannot Himself be less than personal.’
Let us be content, therefore, to accept the fact of the
Spirit’s personality as a matter of faith and a sublime reality;
as one of those “things that were freely given to us of God.”
For in the final analysis of the case, God the Eternal is Spirit,
and they that worship Him must worship in spirit and truth.
God Who is present with men as Spirit, and the Holy Spirit Who
is God’s presence active with the fulness of Christ’s personality cannot
Himself be less than personal. Our metaphors of a quasi-personal energy
break down utterly when we t r y t o conceive a n “ether” itself endowed
with the love whose expression i t serves t o transmit. If the Spirit were
but a means of transmission, o r a mediating “energy,” then the cardinal
assumption or conviction of the real presence of God with US would
be denied, and we should be left, with a distant and inaccessible God.‘
How profoundly encouraging, then, to the faith of the saints
is this conviction of the Spirit’s personality! How thrilling
becomes Paul’s declaration that the Christian’s body is a temple
for the Spirit’s indwelling (1 Cor, 6:19)! How vital this to
the growth of the saints in righteousness and holiness! In the
light of this sublime truth, the life with the Holy Spirit becomes
truly a life of fellowship with God and with Christ, through the
abiding presence in the souls of the redeemed, of this Divine
Counselor, Companion, Guide, and Advocate. In Tennyson’s
well-known words,
Speak t o Him thou, for He hears, and Spirit with
Spirit can meet -
Closer IS He than breathing, and nearer than hands
and feet.8
4. The Deity of the Holy Spirit

It will be agreed by all Bible students, I think, that in so
far as we are informed by revelation and by experience, there
are three, and only three, orders of persons, namely: (1) those
Persons who constitute the Godhead, to whom alone the term
1. The Christian Eoperience of the Holy Spivit, 277-278.
2. Ibid,, 278-279.
3. “The Higher Pantheism.”
307
“deity” is applicable; (2) the angels, who are described in
Scripture as “ministering spirits” (Heb. 1:14), an order of
ethereal creatures; and (3) human beings-each a body-spirit
unity-who are described as “living souls” (Gen. 2: 7 ) .
Now, if the Holy Spirit is a Person, as indeed we have
learned that He is, the question that arises in this connection is
this: To what rank or order of persons does He belong?
This question has already been answered inferentially.
We have already learned that our God is a Unity of three Per-
sons-Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. God is one as to essence;
but this oneness embraces a triple personality, The Holy Spirit
is one of the three Persons of the Godhead.
Hence, the term “deity” in reference to the Spirit, is prefer-
able to “divinity.” Divinity may be a matter of quality or of
degree: in fact the word is often used equivocally, as, for
example, of Christ, in describing Him, as the Unitarian does, as
a “divinely illumined man,’’ but a man withal. But deity is 9
matter of rank: it signifies a distinct order of being. Hence,
this i s a word that can be used only univocally. There are no
degrees in deity.
The following facts are offered as additional evidence
the deity of the Holy Spirit:
1. In Scripture, the Holy Spirit is explicitly recognized as
God, By correlating various Scriptures we find that what is
spoken of God absolutely in one place, is elsewhere ascribed to
the Holy Spirit.
(1) E.g., in Isaiah 6:8 [the prophet says], I heard the voice of
the Lord, saying, etc. [By comparing v. 3 of the same chapter we find
t h a t the Lord here is Jehovah of hosts.] [In Acts 28:25-27, the Apostle
Paul, quoting this passage from Isaiah, writes] Well spalce the Holy
Spirit through Isaiah the prophet unto your fathers, saying, etc.
[Again, in Jeremiah 31:31, it is written], Behold, the days come, saith
Jehovah, t h a t I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel, and
with the house of Judah, etc. Heb. 10:lSff. [it is written], And the
Holy Spirit also beareth witness t o us, for after he hsth said, etc.,
[and the actual words of the passage from Jeremiah are then
Lev. 26:ll-12: And I will set my tabernacle among you. . . . An??%
walk among you, and will be your God, and ye shall be my people.
1 Cor. 3:16-17: Know ye not that ye are a temple of God, and that
the Spirit of God dwelleth in you? If any man destroyeth the temple
of God, him shall God destroy; for the temple of God is holy, and such
a r e ye. 1 Cor. 6:19--Know ye not t h a t your body is a temple of the
J 3 l y Spirit which is in yon, which ye have from God? Deut. 32:12,
Jehovah alone did lead him &e., the children of Israel]. Isa. 63:11, 14-
Where is he t h a t put his holy Spirit in the midst of them? . . . AS
308
SPIRIT IN GOD
the cattle that go down into the valley, the Spirit of Jehovah caused them
to rest. [Here we have a positive identification, even in Old Testament
times, of the Holy Spirit with the Spirit of Jehovah]. [Also, in this
connection, Psa. 78:17-191: Yet they went on still to sin against him,
To rebel against the Most High in the desert. And they tempted God
Cn their heart, By asking food according to their desire; Yea, they
spalce against God, etc.
( 2 ) Acts 5:3, 4--[Here the Apostle is represented as saying to
Ananias] Why hath Satan filled thy heart t o lie to the Holy Spirit?
[To this he adds in the very next breath], Thou bast not lied unto men,
but unto God. [To lie t o a Spirit-filled man is t o lie t o the Holy Spirit,
and to lie t o the Holy Spirit is t o lie to God.] [Cf. again 1 Cor. 3:16-17
and 1 Cor. 6:19: Here the words are addressed t o Christians. If they
mean anything, they surely mean t h a t the Holy Spirit indwells the
body of every true saint. If our bodies a r e temples of God because the
Spirit of God indwells them, it follows t h a t the Holy Spirit, must be,
in essence, God.]
( 3 ) Eph. 6:21, 22-Christ Jesus, in whom each several building,
fitly framed together, groweth into a holy temple in the Lord; in whom
ye also are builded together f o r a habitation of God in the Spirit. [Here
the Apostle is writing of the church a s a whole, the church catholic,
consisting of all the elect of God under the New Covenant. This body,
or church, he says, is the habitation of God in the Spirit.] 1 Pet. 2:6-
ye also as living stones, are built up a spiritual house, t o be a holy
priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices, acceptable t o God through
Jesus Christ. [Now if God indwells the whole Church of Christ in the
person of €Lis Spirit, again it follows t h a t the Holy Spirit, a s to es-
sence and rank, is God.]
(4) John 4:24-God is a Spirit, and they t h a t worship him must
worship in spirit and truth. [These a r e the words of Jesus Himself.]
Heb. 9:14-the etenzal Spirit: [God is a Spirit, the eternal Spirit;
i t follows, therefore, that the Holy Spirit is God.]
2. In Scripture, the attributes and perfections o f God are
&ascribedto the Holy Spirit.
[ ( l ) Eternity or SeZf-Ezktence.] Heb. 9 :14-the eternal Spirit.
[(2) Omniscience.] 1 Cor. 2:9-11: But as i t is written, Things
which eye saw not, and ear heard not, and which entered not into the
heart of man, Whatsoever things God prepared for them t h a t love him.
But unto us God revealed them through the Spirit; for the Spirit
searcheth all things, yea, the deep things of God. Isa. 40:13-Who hath
directed the Spirit of Jehovah, or being his counsellor hath taught him?
[(3) Omnipotence.] Micah 3:8-I am full of power by the Spirit
of Jehovah, and of judgment, and of might. 1 Cor. 2:4-in demonstra-
tion of the Spirit and of power. 1 Cor. 1 2 : l l b u t all these worketli
the one and the same Spirit, dividing to each one severally even as
he will.
[(4) Omnipresence.] Psa. 139:7-10: Whither shall I go from thy
Spirit? Or whither shall I flee from thy presence? If I ascend up
into heaven, thou a r t there; if I make my bed in Sheol, behold, thou
art there, If I take the wings of the morning, And dwell in the utter-
most parts of the sea, Even there shall thy hand lead me, And thy
right hand shall hold me. Jer. 23:23-24: Am I a God a t hand, saith
Jehovah, and not a God a f a r off? Can any hide himself in secret places
so t h a t I shall not see him? saith Jehovah, Do not I fill heaven and
earth? saith Jehovah.
309
[(5) P~escience.] Acts 1:16--Brethren, i t was needful that the
scripture should be fulfilled, which the Holy Spirit spake before by
the mouth of David concerning Judas, etc. Matt. 22:43--How then
doth David in the Spirit call him Lord? etc. [All prophecy is evidence
of the prescience of the Spirit.]
[ ( 6 ) I n f i n i t e Life.] Rom. 8:Z-the Spirit of life.
[ ( 7 ) Infinite Love.] Rom. 6:5-the love of God hath been shed
abroad in our hearts through the Holy Spirit which was given unto us.
Rom. 16 :30-by the love of the Spirit.
[ (8) Infinite Holiness.] Neh. 9:20-thy good Spirit. Isa. 63:ll-
his holy Spirit. Matt. 2 8 : 1 9 t h e Holy Spirit [and SO in many in-
stances in the New Testament].
3. I n Scripture, the Holy Spirit is represented as having
shared in, or Himself performed, the works of Deity.
[(i) Greation.] Gen. 1:l-3: In the beginning God created the
heavens and the earth. And the earth was waste and void; and darkness
was upon the face of the deep: and the Spirit of God moved upon the
face of the waters. And God said, "Let there be light; and there was
light. Job 26:13--By his Spirit the heavens are garnished. Job 33:4-
The Spirit of God bath made me, And the breath of the Almighty
giveth me life. Psa. 33:6-By the word of Jehovah were the heavens
made, And all the host of them by the breath of his mouth. [Cf. Gen.
2:7].
[ ( 2 ) Prcservation.] Psa. 104:30--Thou sendest forth thy Spirit,
they a r e created; And thou renewest the face of the ground. -
[ (3) I m p i r a t i o u and Revelation.] Acts 2 :4-[Here we read t h a t
the Apostles were all filled with the Holy Spirit, and began to speak
with other tongues, 8s .the Spirit gave them utterance. [Inspiration'
and revelation are, in a special sense, works of the Spirit of God. See
again 2, Pet. 1:21, 1 Pet. 1:lO-12, 1 Cor. 2:9-16, etc.].
[ (4) Demoiastratiou or Miracles.] [This again is distinctively a
work of the Spirit. The Father is primarily the Source of faith;
the Son, of doctrine; the Spirit, of evidence1 or proof.] Matt, 12:28-
B u t if I by the Spirit of God cast out demons, then is the kingdom of
God come upon you. Also 1 Cor. 2:4-in demonstration of the Spirit
and of power; and Heb. 2:4, 1 Cor. 12:4-11, etc.
[ ( 6 ) Regeneration.] John 3:5-Except one be born of water and
the Spirit, he cannot snter into the kingdom of God. Titus 3:6-ac-
cording to his mercy he saved us, through the washing of regeneration
and renewing of the Holy Spirit.
!( 6 ) Rmslwrectio?z and htinrortnliantz'oii.1 Rom. 8 :ll-But if the
Spirit of him t h a t raised up Jesus from the dead dwelleth in you, he
t h a t raised up Christ Jesus Prom the dead shall give life also t o your
mortal bodies through his Spirit that dwelleth in you.
4. I n Scripture, the Holy Spirit is represented as receiving
obedience and worship that is due only t o the Deity.
(1) Matt. 28 :19-[According to the Great Commission, all believers
are to be baptized into the name of the Father and of the Son and of
the Holy Spirit. It should be noted, in this connection, that baptism
is the only act recorded in Scripture as having the 77ame of the Fnt?tei*
and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit connected with it. The modern
church is inclined to make too little of baptism rather than too much.
Baptism is-cannot be, if real baptism-a mere form or ceremony;
3 10
SPIRIT IN GOD
it is not a mere ceremonial putting away of the filth of the flesh, but
dhe appeal of a good coizscieizce toward God ( 1 Pet. 3:21) ; to be
baptism, it must be an act of faith, a profoundly spiritual, heart act,]
[As Paul puts it, writing of baptism], Rom. G:lT-But thanks be to
God that, whereas ye were servants of sin, ye became obedient f r o m
the heart t o t h a t pattern of teaching whereunto ye were delivered, etc.
[Now the teaching was the Gospel which consisted of three €acts,
namely, the death, burial, and resurrection o€ Christ (1 Cor. 15:1-4) ;
the pattern of t h a t teaching is baptism, which pictorializes tlie death,
burial, and resurrection of Christ. To tlie pattern of t h a t teaching, Le.,
baptism, the Roman Christians, says Paul, had been obedient f r o m
the heart. Baptism is a heart act, a spiritual act, a n act of faith, and
cannot be anything else.]
(2) 2 Cor. 13:ll-the communion of the Holy Spirit be with you
all. [Here the commuiaioiz of t h o HoZg S p i ~ i tis invoked for all the
sants, along with the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ and the love of God.]
(3) Rev. 1:4-the seven Spirits t h a t are before his throne. [The
seweiz Spzrits here stand for the Holy Spirit; in Scripture the number
seven is indicative of completeness, perfection.] Cf. Isa. 11:2--and
the Spirit of Jehovah shall rest upon him, the spirit of wisdom and
understanding, the spirit of counsel and might, the spirit of knowledge
and of the fear of Jehovah.
(4) Matt. 12:31-32: Every sin and blasphemy shall be forgiven
unto men; but the blasphemy against the Spirit shall not be forgiven.
And whosoever shall speak a word against the Son of man, it shall be
forgiven him; but whosoever shall speak against the Holy Spirit, i t
,shall not be forgiven him, neither in this world, nor in t h a t which is
t o come, [Here Jesus tells us that the only remediless sin is the sin
against the Holy Spirit. In view of this statement, the deity of the
Holy Spirit must be accepted as a necessary inforence.]
5. Finally, the Holy Spirit is represented in Scripture as .
being associated on a footing of equality with both the Father
and the Son.
(1) [In the baptismal formula], Matt, 28 :Ig-baptizing them into
the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.
(2) [In the apostolic benediction], 2 Cor. 13:14--The grace of the
Lord Jesus Christ, the love of God, and the coinmunion of the Holy
Spirit, be with you all.
(3) [In 1 Pet. 1:2]-according to the foreknowledge of God the
Father, in sanctification of the Spirit, unto obedience and sprinltliiig
of the blood of Jesus Christ.
( 4 ) [In Jude 20-211: praying in the Holy Spirit, keep yourselves
in the love of God, loolting for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ
unto eternal life.
( 5 ) [In 1 Cor. 12:4-ti]: Now there a r e diversities of gifts, but
the same Spirit. And there are diversities of ministrations, and the
same Lord. And there are diversities of workings, but the same God,
who worlteth all things in all.
(6) [In Eph. 2:19-221: ye are fellow-citizens with the saints, and
of the household of God, being built upon the foundation of the apostles
and prophets, Christ Jesus himself being the chief corner stone; in
whom each several building, fitly framed together, growetli into a holy
temple in the Lord; in whom ye also are builded together for a habi-
tation of God in the Spirit.
311
(7) [In Eph, 4:4-61: There is one body, and one Spirit, even as
also ye were called in one hope of your calling; one Lord, one faith, one
baptism, one God and Father of all, who is over all, and through all,
and in all.
In view of this array of evidence, we must accept the deity
of the Holy Spirit as a divinely-revealed truth, as one of the
fundamentals of our Christian.faith. As a matter of fact, the
fundamental truths of the deity of the Spirit (Heb. 9 : l k ‘ ‘ t h e
eternal Spirit”) and the Spirithood of the Deity (John 4:24-
“God is a Spirit”) are in a sense identical,
But what is the practical significance of these truths? Of
what value are they to Christians? What use are we to make
in our everyday thinking and living?
“Know ye not,” exclaims the Apostle, writing to Christians,
“that ye are a temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth
in J ~ O U ? ” (1 Cor. 3: 16). Beloved, we are, individually, temples
of the Holy Spirit “which is in us and which we have from God”
(1 Cor. 6:19). We are, collectively, that is,, as the Church or
Body of Christ, “living stones, built up a spiritual house” (1
Pet. 2 : 5 ) , “builded together for a sanctuary of God in the
Spirit” (Eph. 2: 22). As Andrew Murray has written:
There is a Presence in the Church of Christ a s Omnipotent and
Divine as was Christ Himself when on earth; yea, rather, as He is
now on the Throne of Power. As the Church wakes up t o believe
this, and rises out of the dust to put on her beautiful garments ...
her witness for Christ will be in living power. She will prove t h a t
her Almighty Lord is in her?
If we as Christians could in some way come to believe and to
realize this truth of the God’s personal indwelling of us through
the agency of His Holy Spirit, to such an extent that we should
actually live the conviction in all that we say and think and do,
what would be the result? Our attitudes would be changed,
our hearts would be warmed with new spiritual fires, our unused
powers would be utilized, and our lives would be transformed
“into the same image from glory to glory” (2 Cor. 3: 18). Cares,
anxieties, fears, and countless accompanying physical afflictions
would be cast out of our lives, and a spiritual revival would
be generated that would sweep Satan from his throne as god of
this world! This is the kind of revival that the modern church
needs, and must have, if she is to do the work of Christ in this
1. The Spirit of Christ, 143.
312
SPIRIT IN GOD
present world, if she is to be in deed and in truth His Bride,
His Counterpart, His Spouse,
May I close this section, tlierefore, with Andrew Murray’s
eloquent prayer:
Most Holy God! In adoring wonder I bow before Thee in presence
of this wondrous mystery of grace; my spirit, soul, and body Thy
temple.
In deep silence and worship I accept the blessed revelation, t h a t in
?e too there is a Holiest of all, and t h a t there Thy hidden Glory has
its abode.
0 my God, forgive me that I have so little known it.
I do now tremblingly accept the blessed t m t h : God the Spirit, the
Holy Spirit, who is God Almighty, dwells in me.
0 my Father, reveal within what it means, lest I sin against Thee
by saying it and not living it.
Blessed Jesus! to Thee, who sittest upon the throne, I yield my
whole being. In Thee I trust t o rise up in power and have dominion
within me.
In Thee I believe for the full streaming forth of the living waters,
Blessed Spirit! Holy Teacher! Mighty Sanctifier! Thou a r t
within me. On Thee do I wait all the day. I belong t o Thee. Take
entire possession of me for the Father and the Son. Amen.’
In the words of the old hymn,
Holy Spirit, all divine,
Dwell within this heart o f mine;
Cast down every idol throne,
Reign supreme, and reign alone.
5 . Spirit in the Godhead

“There is a spirit in man,” said Elihu to Job, “and the
breath of the Almighty giveth them understanding” (Job 32: 8) .
This “spirit” in man is, as we have learned, personal life with
all its potentialities, But man is the image or likeness of God:
so there is Spirit in God, Spirit in God, however, is personal
life in all its actuality, in all its metaphysical and moral whok-
ness, that is, Holy Spirit. “God is a Spirit” (John 4:24), and
the Spirit of God is the Eternal Spirit (Heb. 9:14).
Speaking in strictly metaphysical terms, of course, the
Father is also, as to essence, Spirit; hence He is said to be
the “Father of spirits” (Heb. 12:9). And the Son likewise is,
in His eternal nature, as t o essence, Spirit: “the Lord is the
Spirit” (2 Cor. 3: 17). That is to say, they are both incorporeal
and of the same metaphysical essence as the Holy Spirit, who is
Himself the Eternal Spirit. We must keep in mind always that
1. Op. &t., 240-241.
313
it takes Father, Son, and Spirit, to make up the Being of our
God who is essentially Spirit, The term “Spirit” with reference
to the Godhead in general (“God is a Spirit,” John 4:24) seems
to mean simply that no physical or corporeal-but exclusively
psychical and moral-relations are sustained among the three
Persons who constitute our God.
Certainly our God, if He is to meet the deepest aspirations
of the human heart, must be a holy Spirit, Human outreaching
could hardly be satisfied with anything less in deity. Indeed,
it was the prophet Isaiah, writing several centuries before the
advent of the Messiah, harking back to the rebelliousness of
God’s ancient people under Moses, gave expression to the fol-
lowing exquisite bit of literature:
But they rebelled, and grieved his holy Spirit: therefore he [Je-
hovah] was turned to be their enemy, and himself fought against
them. Then he remembered the days of old, Moses and his people,
saying, Where is he that brought them up out of the sea with the
shepherds of his flock? where is he that put his holy Spirit in the
midst of them? t h a t caused his glorious a r m t o go at the right hand
of Moses? t h a t divided the waters before them, to make himself Zfn
everlasting name? that led them through the depths, as, a horse in
the wilderness, so t h a t they stumbled not? A s the cattle that go down
into the valley, the Spirit of Jehovah caused them to rest: so didst
thou lead thy people, t o make thyself a glorious name (Isa. 63:10:14).
And it was Isaiah who, at least seven centuries before Christ,
was privileged to behold, in a wondrous Vision, “the Lord sitting
upon a throne, high and lifted up, and his train filled the temple”;
and to hear the words of the heavenly anthem to which John
the Beloved was also privileged to listen, some eight hundred
years afterward, on the barren isle of Patmos: “Holy, holy,
holy, is Jehovah of hosts” (Isa. 6: 3, Rev. 4: 8). In similar vein,
the Psalmist cried out unto God saying, “Teach me to do thy
will; For thou art my God: Thy Spirit is good; Lead me in the
land of uprightness’’ (Psa. 143:10), and again, “Cast me not
away from thy presence, and take not thy holy Spirit from me”
(Psa. 51:ll). And in the great day of national rejuvenation
under Nehemiah the prince and Ezra the priest-scribe, the inter-
cessory prayer of the Levites for the people, contained these words
with reference to the experience of their fathers under Moses:
“Thou gavest also thy good Spirit to instruct them, and with-
heldest not thy manna from their mouth, and gavest them water
for their thirst” (Neh. 9:20). Indeed, I am convinced that
God’s saints, from the earliest dawn of human history, have
known full well that God is essentially holy Spirit.
According to Scripture, the relation of the Spirit to the
3 14
SPIRIT IN GOD
Godhead may be stated in three basic propositions, as follows:
1. God IS Spirit, or a Spirit (John 4:24), That is to say,
God is, as to essence, Spirit or spiritual (pure thought, will,
love, being) ; hence, n o t physical or corporeal. This is equally
true of all three Persons of the Godhead in their eternal and
unoriginated nature. Ordinarily we describe God, therefore, as
Pure Spirit, that is, “without body or parts, but having in-
telligence and free will,” I might point out, however, that this
designation does not necessarily exclude the idea of His existing
in some form of what has been called “psychical ether,” far
subtler than matter. Coinprehension of the essence of God is,
of course, completely beyond our ken, As Knudson writes:
The word “spirituality” as applied to God has at least three
distinct meanings. It means that God i s a spirit as distinguished from
material or physical existence. It means t h a t he is free from the
wealtness of flesh, and is a supramundane power, superior t o the
f o x e s of nature. It means also that there is an inner side to his, per-
sonality, a rational and ethioal side, and t h a t i t is here t h a t hls es-
sential nature is to be found. He is not primarily substance o r force,
but a rational and ethical Being, who seeks t o control men.not by t h e
sheer exercise of power but by appeal t o their reason and intelligence,
and who consequently, when worshiped, must be worshiped in spirit
and in truth.’
Since our God is a Spirit, any move to conceive Him, to repre-
sent Him, or to worship Him, in the form of a material object,
or even in the form of a natural object-such as a tree, river,
plant, or animal, or the sun, moon, earth, or any other heavenly
body, o r even Nature as a whoIe-is manifestly unspiritual and
false. Hence, the Second Commandment of the Decalogue:
“Thou shalt not make unto thee a graven image, nor any like-
ness of any thing that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth
beneath, or that is in the water under the earth; thou shalt not
bow down thyself unto them, nor serve them: for I Jehovah thy
God am a jealous God,” etc., and there follows here the Biblical
statement of the law of heredity (Exo. 20:4-6). Idolatry, anim-
ism, or nature-worship of any kind- all are derogatory of our
God. There is but one Eternal Being-God-and He is a Spirit,
or, to put it conversely, the Spirit who is Eternal is God.
2. God HAS Spirit. To have Spirit, of course, is to have
the attributes and powers of Spirit. (In studying the nature and
work of the Holy Spirit, one must always be careful to distinguish
between the Spirit Himself, a Person, o n the one hand, and His
attributes, powers, giits, influences, etc., on the other hand.
Failure to make such a distinction has been a prolofic source of
1. A. C . Knudson, The Religious Teachiiag of the Old Testamelit, 93.
315
THE ETERNAL SPIRIT - HIS PERSON AND F’OWBRS
confusion in the past.) Such designations as “My Spirit” (“The
Spirit of Me”), “Thy Spirit” (“The Spirit of Thee”), “His
Spirit” (“The Spirit of Him”), “The Spirit of God,” “The Spirit
of Jehovah,” etc.-all imply the same thing, namely, the Spirit
belonging t o God, the Spirit belonging t o Jehovah, etc. As man
has spirit “in him,” so God has Spirit in Him. Job 32:8--”There
is a spirit in man.” 1Cor. 2: 11-12: “For who among men knoweth
the things of a man, save the spirit of the mad, which is in him?
even so the things of God none knoweth, save the Spirit of
God. But we received, not the spirit of the world, but the
spirit which is from God; that we might know the things that
were freely given t o us of God.”
3. God GIVES S p i r i t . That is to say, God gives to men
the gifts (influences, powers, endowments) that ensue from the
procession, presence, and power of the Spirit.
Matt. 7:ll-If ye then, being evil, know how t o give good gifts
unto your children, how much more shall your Father who is in heaven
give good things to them that ask him? Luke ll:13--How much more
shall your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to them t h a t ask hi,m?
Eph. 4:8--When he [Christ] ascended on high, he led captivity capttve,
And gave gifts unto men [cf. Psa. 68:18; Neh. 9:201; Acts 5:32, 16:8;
Rom. 5:5; 2 Cor. 1:22, 5:6; 1 Thess. 4 : 8 ; 1 John 3:24, 4:13.1
Obviously, no man knows, indeed no man is capable of
knowing, all that Spirit in God comprehends. In this present
life at least, this knowledge is beyond the range of the human
intellect. The most we can do, therefore, in this connection, is
to summarize the teaching of the Scriptures on this phase of our
subject, keeping in mind at all times that the Bible is the Book
of the Spirit, This we shall now undertake to do, as follows:
1. Spirit in God means Power.
Indeed one of the Scriptural names of the Spirit is “The
Power of the Most High.” From the words of the Annunciating
Angel to the virgin Mary we read the following: “The Holy
Spirit shall come upon thee, and the power of the Most High
shall overshadow thee: wherefore also the holy thing which is
begotten shall be called the Son of God” (Luke 1:35).
Spirit is the dynamis (“power”), the energeia (“activity”)
of God. Spirit-power is the ultimate source of both “physical”
and “psychical” energy; and, as we have already noted, the line
separating these two kinds of energy has been drawn so fine
in recent years, in scientific thought, as to become almost non-
existent. Hence, the activity of the Spirit is said, in Scripture,
to restllt in the heightening, in some instances of the physical, in
others of the psychical, powers of men. Such activity is always
316
SPIRIT IN GOD
exerted, of course, for the realization o€ some Divine purpose.
Thus the Spirit o€ Jehovah “came mightiIy upon” Samson, to
endow him with extraordinary physical strength €or the deliver-
ance of his people irom their enemies (Judg. 14:6, 15:14).
And thus their infilling by the Spirit qualiiied Bezalel and
Oholiab with extraordinary artistic talent to construct and to
adorn the furnishings of the Tabernacle (Exo. 31: 1-11, 35: 30-
35) ; and thus the coming OS the Spirit upon them qualiiied other
divinely-chosen leaders of God’s ancient people with special
abilities for civil and military direction (e.g,, Othniel, Judg.
3:lO; Gideon, Judg. 6:34; Jephthah, Judg. 11:29; Saul, 1 Sam.
1O:lO; David, 1 Sam. 16:13, 2 Sam. 23:l-2). Again, David, we
are told, received from the Spirit the plans and specifications
€or the Temple (I Chron. 28:12), which plans he handed down
to his son Solomon for execution, And thus the inspiration of
the Spirit endowed men of God, from beginning to end of the
unfolding of the Plan of Redemption, with foreknowledge of
subsequent events, especially of the circumstances of the life
and work of the Messiah and of the future trials and triumphs
of the Church. (Cf. 2 Sam. 23:,2, 2 Pet. 1:21, 1 Pet. 1:lO-11;
Rev. 1:lO.) Needless to say, too, that the presence of the Spirit
in a human individual is the source of great moral power. NO
wonder then that the Apostles, filled as they were with the
Spirit of God, “with great power . . , gave their witness of the
resurrection of the Lord Jesus” (Acts 4:33). Had not Jesus
told them, before His return to the Father: “Behold, I send forth
the promise of my Father upon you: but tarry ye in the city,
until ye be clothed with power from on high” (Luke 24:49)?
And again: “Ye shall receive power, when the Holy Spirit is
come upon you: and ye shall be my witnesses both in Jeru-
salem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and unto the uttermost
part of the earth” (Acts 1 : 8 ) ? Whether in these various cases
additional physical, psychical or moral power was imparted to
those persons who were being utilized as special instruments
of the Spirit’s activity, or whether that Divine activity only
heightened the powers already inherent in those persons, we
have no means of knowing; in any case, the results were the
same. Where the Spirit is, God is; and where God is, there is
Power-inexhaustible Power-physical, psychical and moral.
There is no such thing as “entropy” in the Spirit of our God.
As a matter o€ €act, the Scriptures clearly teach that Spirit-
power is the ultimate Source of the energy which, by self-
transmutation into gross matter, goes to make up our physical
3 17
universe and all its parts. Gen. 1:1-2: “In the beginfiing God
created the heavens and the earth. And the earth was waste
and void; and darkness was upon the face of the deep; and the
Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters.” Atomic power
itself, of which we hear so much in these days, is but the mani-
festation of the power of God; the same is true of all forms of
electromagnetic radiation. All forms of so-called “physical” en-
ergy have their primary source in the activity of the Divine
Spirit, who is Pure Being, Pure Actuality. They are His “crea-
tions” or “projections”-which, we do not know, nor does it
make a great deal of difference whether or not we do know.
As H. Wheeler Robinson writes:
Analogies are perilous, but perhaps we should get near t o the
shifting lights and colors of the New Testament use of “Spirit” and
“spirit” if we thought of it a s the “spiritual” counterpart of an en-
compassing and penetrating psychical ether, f a r subtler than “matter,”
yet quasi-material, and nucleated, as it were, into specialized centres
of enepgy, both in men, angels and God, t o all of whom in such vary-
ing degrees belong those qualities we call “spiritual.” In many ways
modern theories of physics approximate t o ancient theories of “spirit”
though this does not justify us in the unguarded use of physical
analogies €or the formation of a modern theory of Spirit:
In a word, all individuals and individual objects are but media
of the Divine Energy which created and which sustains our one
world. So-called “material” objects are, as centers of this en-
ergy, but evanescent indeed, ever-changing symbols whereby
spirits or persons-who constitute that aspect of the Cosmos
which alone may properly be designated reality-preserve them-
selves in being and communicate with one another, to the
achievement of their natural and proper ultimate ends. Our
one world is, at its roots, so to speak, that is, stripped of its
externality or sensible aspects, the World of the Spirit. Truly,
in the Eternal Spirit of God-in His activity, in His actualiza-
tion of all being, we, as persons, and indeed all sub-personal
things as well, “live, and move, and have our being” (Acts
17:28); that is, in a purely natural sense. In a moral sense, of
course, persons-and persons only-can and do live in neglect
of God and in open rebellion against His Will. Hence, but in a
moral sense only, persons and persons alone are capable of
living outside God, that is, outside covenant relationship, out-
side fellowship with Him. Moreover, to live in God morally,
which is to live the life of the Spirit, is to live natzwally, to live
as God orders us to live in order to attain our natural and
1. Op. cit., 229.
3 18
SPIRIT IN GOD
proper ultimate ends as human beings. For the Will of God is
the constitution-that which constitutes-all Nature. On the
other hand, to live outside God morally, outside covenant rela-
tionship or fellowship with Him, is to live unnaturally. Sin is
acting and Iiving contrary to God’s Will; all sin, therefore, is
unnatural. The whole kingdom of darkness, in its every aspect,
is unnatural; it lies wholly outside Nature, the Realm of the
Good, It is the kingdom which has been thrust into the natural
order of things by Satanic and human rebellion. We read that
at the conclusion of the physical creation, “God saw everything
that he had made, and, behold, it was very good” (Gen. 1:31).
It became bad subsequently, only when sin entered into the
moral order, when man allowed himself to be seduced by Satan.
Satan’s throne is the throne of the arch-rebel, the prince of
darkness; and all his duped satellites from among angels and
men, all of whom seek to prostitute liberty into license, make
up the constituency of his rebel rule. This rebel kingdom will
ultimately, and quite naturally, gravitate to its proper place,
the place of its eternal segregation-to Hell, the penitentiary
of the moral universe. And, as the Scriptures assure US, the
Kingdom of Heaven ‘under the reign of the Anointed, will, in
the finality of temporal events, become co-extensive with the
New Heavens and New Earth wherein dwelleth righteousness.
Cf. Matt. 28:18 [the words of the risen Christ]: All authority
hath been given unto me in heaven and on earth. 1 Cor. 15:25-26:
F o r he must reign, till he hath put all his enemies under his feet.
The last enemy that shall be abolished is death. [Cf. Isa. 65:17, 6 6 : 2 ; 2
Pet. 3 :13 ; Rev. 21 :1-3.1
Note the marvelous unity of Bible teaching that is presented
in these Scripture. Hence, the only perfectly natural life f o r a
human individual to live is not the life of gratification of animal
impulses and desires, but the life with the Holy Spirit, which
is the lije of righteousness, j o y and peace. “For the kingdom
of God is not eating and drinking, but righteousness and peace
and joy in the Holy Spirit” (Rom. 14:17). “Man,” Jesus tells
us, “shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that pro-
ceedeth out of the mouth of God” (Matt. 4:4, cf. Deut. 8:3).
It follows, therefore, since the Son was the incarnate Logos,
that “he that hath the $on hath the life; he that hath not the Son
of God hath not the life” (1 John 5:12). True life is the life of \
the Spirit in the human heart, the life of fellowship “with the
Father and with his Son Jesus Christ” (1 John 1:3).
Spirit-power, again, is ihe power which actuates and SUS-
319
tains all the processes of nature. It is the unchanging Reality
which persists through all outward appearance and change.
The problem of change is one of the most profound problems
confronting human experience and thought. That, in order t o
make change possible, there must be something that persists
throughout the continuous, never-ending flux of this world of
time and space and place, is obvious. To repeat an illustration
used previously: A log, for example, is thrown ihta the fire-
place; in a short time it has “changed” into ashes and gases.
But there must be something that remains itself throughout
this process of change; otherwise, there is not change .at all,
but an annihilation follawed by a creation. So it is with respect
to all change. If something does not persist as the same through-
out all change, then our world is simply a sequence of annihila-
tions and creations. But such an interpretation violates our
reason: it implies a continuous process, if indeed it could be
called a process, of passing into nothing and becoming out of
nothing; instead of an original, creation commonly described as
ex nihilo, we have an infinitely repeated creation ex nihilo.
The only reasonable conclusion we can reach, therefore, is that
there is an abiding, timeless, never-changing Something which
is the source and cause of all things, the Principle of Unity and
of Generation, and which persists throughout all their chang-
ing appearances. That Something, moreover, must be dynamic;
it would be utterly absurd to conceive it as static. That Some-
thing, we Christians contend, is the Activity, the Energeia of
God- Spirit-power, which actualizes every form of energy in
the Totality of Being. In the words of the old hymn:
Swift to its close ebbs out life’s little day;
Earth’s joys grow dim, its glories pass away;
Change and decay in all around I see;
0 Thou who changest not, Abide with me!
Spirit-power is the power which effectuates, i.e., makes
operative, all natural physical and moral law. “The law,” ?aid
Aristotle, “is reason unaffected by desire.” Said Abraham Lin-
coln: “Law is the expression of the will of the lawgiver.”
Thomas Aquinas defined moral law as “an ordination of reason
for the common good, by him who has the care of the com-
munity, and promulgated.” The essential elements of law are
(1) a lawgiver, or authoritative will (authority being the moral
right to use force); (2) a prior exercise of reason, for law is
essentially purposive; (3) subjects, or beings toward whom the
authoritative will is directed; (4) a general command or edict,
320
SPIRIT IN GOD
the expression o l the authoritative will; (5) the power of en-
forcing the command; and (6) a penalty €or the violation of
the law, for law would not be law, but merely counsel or wish,
without a penalty for its violation, Law, because it is without
exception a n expression of reason and will, presupposes an in-
telligent lawgiver, one who has the power not only to promul-
gate the law but to enforce it as well. (That is, just law is the ex-
pression of reason and will. Law that is the expression of ar-
bitrary will alone, is apt to be unjust. Law that is the expression
essentially of reason, uninfluenced by ambition, prejudice, or
emotion, is most apt to be constructive and just.) This is as
equally true o i physical as of moral law. Force of any kind,
in fact, that operates in a uniform manner, presupposes an
authoritative intelligence and will. Now our world, in its gen-
eral iramework at least, is not a Chaos, but a Cosmos. Kosmos,
in Greek, means “order.” It signifies that ours is a world of order,
hence that it is an ordered world, that is, a world ordered by
a Supreme Intelligence and Will, If our world were not a
Cosmos, there never could have been, nor could there ever be,
a science, for science is simply man’s knowledge-or interpre-
tation, to be precise-oi the order that prevails in the various
departments of Nature. In fact, if our world were not a world
of order, human beings-or any other living creature, for that
matter-could not live in it. If men were not reasonably sure
that day and night, seedtime and harvest, summer and winter,
would come and go in orderly sequence, tomorrow as in the
maimer of yesterday, they could not plan to live or even live .
at all. Life would be utterly impossible in a chaotic, unpredict-
able world. Hence, in its very use of such terms as “cosmos,”
“cosmology,” “laws of nature,” “natural laws,” “science,” and
the like, human science, consciously or unconsciously (it makes
no diifereiice with respect to the fact itself) recognizes the
existence and operation of a Sovereign Intelligence and Will,-
God. As Strong has put it: “Physical science, in her very use
of the word ‘law’ implicitly confesses that a supreme Will has
set genera1 rules which control the processes of the universe.”*
To use a simple illustration: According to the law of chemical
ailinity, two atoms-and two only- of hydrogen invariably
unite with one atom--and one only-of oxygen, to form a mole-
cule oi water. Obviously, this “law,” expressed in the formula <
H1O, merely describes how, or in what proportions, these atoms
unite to form water; any variation from this formula, in the
1. A. H. Strong, op. cif., 633.
32 I
number of the respective kinds of atoms uniting, would result
not in water but in some other substance. But the significant
question is, Why do they so unite without exception? What
causes the atoms to unite in such fixed proportions? To assume
the positivistic position and blithely assert that they do so act
and that ends the matter in so far as our knowledge extends
or can extend, is simply burying one’s head, ostrich-like, in
the sands of ignorance. It is simply to ignore efficient causality
altogether. The assumption of such an attitude is nothing but
a will-act whereby a canon is set up arbitrarily to restrict any
further attempt to know the answer to the why. Had science
always followed this technique, throwing away altogether “the
music and the dream” of life, we should still be living in the
environment of the Stone Age; for science, as truly as art, is
the product of man’s creative imagination. Not even science
can afford to imprison itself by such a method; in so doing it
would destroy itself. In the final analysis of the case, positivism
is sheer wilful ignorance, ignorance that is stifling-and nothing
more can be made of it. Besides, the human spirit will never
be content to remain imprisoned in a positivistic cage; its natural
habitat is the great intellectual out-of-doors. We are all Colum-
buses, and the pull of the horizon beckoning us into the mys-
teries of uncharted seas, is a force which human nature has
ever found to be irresistible; indeed this instinct for pene-
trating the secrets of the “more beyond” is of the very essence
of progress. And so the human mind will go on asking, why?-
nor will all the self-styled “positivists” under the sun ever be
able to change it. Indeed most psychologists will agree, I think,
that the exploratory tendency in man is instinctive, Le., innate.
Why, then, do two atoms of hydrogen invariably unite with one
atom of oxygen to form a molecule of water? What causes
Nature, in her various aspects as known to science, always to
act thus, uniformly? What causes Nature to operate according
to well-defined “laws”? What is the Power back of all the
operations of Nature? What activates these operations? The
answer is clear: The ultimate Cause is the intelligently self-
determined Will of God; the proximate Cause is Spirit-power.
No other intelligent answer to the question of the WHY of
things is conceivable. And to attribute such uniformity to mere
chance-whatever Chat term may signify-is about the most
unintelligent answer imaginable.
To ignore efficient causality with reference t o the Cosmos
is t o be blinded b y wilful ignorance-the worst form of ignorance
322
SPIRIT IN GOD
conceivable. Thnt there has to be a Creative Power sufficient
to account jor the natural, worlcl and a21 its parts and creatures
is too obvious to be open to question, And both Reason and
Revelation agree in afjirming that Creative Power or Efficient
Cause lo be the Spirit-power of God.
Now Spirit-power being the Power which sustains the
processes of Nature, it follows quite logically that Spirit-power
is the only Power which can, in a particular time and place
and for a special Divine purpose, supersede the ordinary pro-
cesses of Nature in the specific instance, and thus effect what is
described in Scripture as a miracle. And, inasmuch as right
human reason and Divine revelation are always in accord, the
Bible, throughout, witnesses to the truth of this statement.
Luke 1:35, 37-[the words of the angel Gabriel t o Mary]: The
Holy Spirit shall come upon thee, and the power of the Most High
shall overshadow thee: wherefore also the holy thing which is begotten
shall be called the Soil of God. . , . For no word from God shall be void
of power. Matt. 12:28-[the words of Jesus]: But if I by the Spirit
of God cast out demons, then is the kingdom o€ God come upon you.
Luke 24:49-[here the risen Jesus says t o the Eleven]; And behold, I
send forth t h e promise of my Father upon you: but tarry ye in the
city, until ye be clothed with power from on high. Acts 1:8-[the risen
Christ again speaking to the Eleven]: Ye shall receive power, when
the Holy Spirit is come upon you, ctc. Acts 2:22--[froin Peter's sermon
o n the Day of Pentecost]: Jesus of Nazareth, a man approved of God
unto you by mighty works and wonders and signs which God did by
him in the niidst of you, even as ye yourselves know. [That is, mighty
works-miracles-which God, by the agency of the Spirit, wrought in
I
and through the Son, Jesus Christ, who possessed the Spirit without
ineasure [John 3:34]; indeed the personal spirit oE Jesus was so pos-
I sessed by the Holy Spirit that, in Scripture, Spirit of CIwist (1 Pet.
I 1:11),Spivit of J ~ L (ActsS 1 G : 7 ) , ntid Hal!/ Spirit a r e interchangeable
terms.] Acts 10:38-Jesus of Nazareth, how God anointed him with
the Holy Spirit and with power. Acts 8:18-19: Now when Simon saw
that t1iToug.h the laying on the apostles' hands the Holy Spirit was
I given, he offered them moncy, saying, Give !ne also this power, t h a t
on whomsoever I lay 111y hands, h~ may receive the Holy Spirit. [The
allusion here is to the miracle-wol.king power by which the early
church was st~*engtlienrd in the faith; cf. 1 Cor. 12:4-11.1 Rom. 15:18-19
[Paul wi+iting]:For I will not darc to speak of any things save those
which Christ wrought through me, f o r the obedience of the Gcntiles,
by word and d w d , in the power of signs and wondci-s, in the powei.
o€ the .Holy Spirit. 1 Cor. 2:4-5,.[Pnulcigaiii]: And my sprecli and my
prcaching were not in pcmuasivc woyds of wisdom, but in dcmon-
stration of the Spirit a n d of iiower: that your faith should not stand
in the wisdom of nicn, but in the power OC God. Hcb. 2:3-4: HOWshall
we escalir, if we neglect so g w a t a salv~itioii?which having at f i r s t
been spoltcn through the Loid, was confirmed unto u s by them t h a t
Iietird; God also brtii*iiig witness with tlirin, both by signs m d wonders,
and by m:mifold powers, a n d by gifts of thr. Holy Spirit, :iccordiiig
to his own will. 1 Cor, 12:ll-but all thrsc [mirnclcs] workrth the one
and the saiiie Spirit, dividing t o each onc severally even as hr will.
323
Thus it will be seen that Spirit-power is, according to Scripture,
the power that necessarily enters into the working of a miracle,
an event which is Scripturally designated, as to rank, a “mighty
work”; as to its effect upon spectators, a “wonder”; and as to
its purpose in the economy of God, a “sign” (Acts 2: 22). Mir-
acles cease to be a problem once it is realized that the Will of
God is the constitution of the universe and that Spirit-power is
the Efficient Cause of every form of being.
A fundamental truth needs to be stated, in this connection,
as follows: Spirit-power cannot be dissociated from either
Thought-power o r Word-power in God. Thought-power i s the ex-
pression of Spirit-power, and Spirit-power i s the actuation or
realization of Thought-power. Descartes’ celebrated dictum, “I
think, therefore I am,” the beginning-point of all philosophy,
is equally true stated conversely, “I am, therefore I think.”
Being and thought cannot be dissociated in a person. Worcl-
power, moreover, is equivalent either to Spirit-power or to
Thought-power. The power of the Spirit i s in the Word, and
both Spirit and Word actuate the Divine Thought and Will with
respect to created things. Hence, Christ the Incarnate Logos is
said to be “the power of God and the wisdom of God” (1Cor.
1:24). God’s Spirit and His Word go together. All of which
adds u p to the mighty truth that, in God, Spirit-power, Thought-
power, Word-power, and Will-power are essentially one. For
this reason, we often find the terms used interchangeably in
Scripture: what is said to be effected by one is said also to be
effected by the others, and so on. In studying the nature and work
of the Spirit, and especially $he relationship between the Spirit
and the Word, it is exceedingly important to keep these facts
in mind.
2. Spirit in God means Vitality. Where the Spirit is, there
is life, for He is the Spirit of Life. This is the great truth made
crystal clear in Ezekiel’s VisiQn. of the Valley of Dry Bones
(Ezek. 37:l-14): whatever d s e the coming of the Spirit of
God into this charnel-house meant, it certainly meant the dif-
ference between death and life. Spirit-power it is that actu-
ates every form of life in the to,tal Hierarchy of Being. Thus
the Spirit of God, at the beginning, brooded like a great Mother-
Bird over the “deep” of infinite Space, generating the primal
forms of energy, actuating and cherishing incipient life, and
the universe with its myriads of species of living things marched
into ,being ‘(Gen. 1:2). Thus the Spirit brooded over the first
corporeal human form and implanted therein the attributes and
324
SPIRIT IN GOD
powers of a person, and the first creature Divinely fore-deter-
mined to be a likeness of God was constituted, by the Breath
of God, “a living soul” (Gen. 2: 7), Thus the Holy Spirit, the
Power of the Most High, “came upon” and “overshadowed”-
brooded over again, as at the Creation-the pure Virgin Mary,
and the holy thing that was begotten in her womb was the
Son of God, Divine Life Incarnate (Luke 1:26-38). As the
Son Himself said, later: “I am the Way, and the Truth, and the
Life” (John 14:6), and again, “I am the resurrection and the
life , . . whosoever liveth and believeth on me shall never
die” (John 11:25-26). In like manner, the Hily Spirit super-
poses the richness of His Divine Life upon the mental processes
of the receptive human individual in regeneration-upon the
(‘honest and good heart” (Luke 8: 15) ,-and literally begets
in him a new life, a new spiritual life (John 3:3-6), the life
that “is hid with Christ in God” (Col. 3:3); literally recreates
him, makes him over, into a new creature in Christ Jesus.
“Wherefore if any man is in Christ, he is a new creature: the
old things are passed away; behold, they are become new”
(2 Cor. 5: 17). “For we are his workmenship, created in Christ
Jesus for good works, which God afore prepared that we should
walk in them” (Eph. 2:lO). Thus does the Spirit transform
the one-time alien to God’s commonwealth and covenant, into a
fellow-citizen with the saints and a member of the household
of God (Eph. 2:19); thus does He transform the old natural
personal life, into the new spiritual personal life of unhindered
access to, and fellowship with, God.
1 John 1 :3-our fcllowship is with the Father, and with his Son
Jesus C h ~ i s t . 1 J o h n 4:12-1S-If we love one another, God abideth
in US, a n d his love is prrfccted in us: hereby we know that we abide
in him, and he in us, bccnuse he hath given us of his Spirit. 1 John
3:24--licrrby wr Itnow that he abideth in us, by the Spirit which he
gave us. 1 John 5:12--He that h d h thc Son hath the life; he t h a t
hath not the Son of God hath not thr life.
Regeneration, however, is only the beginning of the Spirit’s
activity in relationship with the saints: He talres up His abode
in their hearts, and continues His work of sanctification through-
out their earthly lives, thus fitting them for their proper in-
heritance of which His very indwelling is the earnest or pledge-
the inheritance “incorruptible and undefiled, and that fadeth not
away, reserved in heaven” for them (1 Pet. 1 : 4 ) . (Cf. Eph.
1:13-14, also 2 Cor. I:21-22.) And not only does the Spirit thus
make the saints ‘hieet”--ili holy habits, disposition and char-
acter-“ to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in light”
325
THE ETBRNAL SPIRIT - HIS PERSON AND POWERS
(Col. 1:12), but at the end of their earthly lives He actually
leads them into the possession of this eternal inheritance, into
glory and honor and immortality-the Life Everlasting. “But
if the Spirit of him that raised up Jesus from the dead dwelleth
in you, he that raised up Christ Jesus from the dead shall give
life also to your mortal bodies throagh his Spiyit that dwelleth
in you” (Rom. 8 : l l ) . And so in this manner, line upon line,
precept upon precept, here a little, there a little-for the Chris-
tion life is a process of cdntinuous ‘growth in the grace and
knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ ’(2 Pet. 3:lS)-
the Holy Spirit transforms the spiritual personal lives of the
saints on earth into their eternal personal lives in the Bosom
of God-the Life Everlasting. The natural progression for hu-
man beings (persons), under the aegis of the Spirit, is from
natural to spiritual to eternal life; from the Kingdom of Nature,
through the Kingdom of Grace, into the Kingdom of Glory,
there to be conformed to the immortalized image of God’s Soh
(Rom. 8:29).
Life is activity, and activity presupposes an actor and the
power to act. The Spirit-power of God is God in action, and
the ultimate source of the Life Force which preserves and per-
petuates the race in its present or “natural” mode of being.
As the Seer of the Apocalypse puts it: “And he showed me
a river of water of life, bright as crystal, proceeding out of
the throne of God and of the Lamb” (Rev. 22:l).
Every form of life in the total Hierarchy of Being-from
the lowest to the highest, from’ that of the lowly cell to that
of the immortalized sai s actualized by the Spirit-power
of God, and hence is a e gift. The Holy Spirit of God is
the Spirit of Life, because He is the Spirit of the living God.
2 Cor. 3:3-“ye are an epistle of Christ, ministered by us,
written not with ink, but with the Spirit of the living God.”
Our God is not a thing carved out of wood, stone or marble.
He is not any of the things df the Nature which surrounds u s -
not sun, moob, earth, star, lilant, tree, bird or beast. Nor is
He identical with the whole of Nature, as the pantheist would
have it; on the contrary, Nature is His handiwork. And even
though His Spirit-power is back of, and pervades and sustains,
all Nature, yet He Himself is the Almighty Other than Nature
and all her creatures including man. He is the living and true
Go eternal Spirit who is the Source and Cause of all things,
. r
in , i.e., through whose power and activity, we live and
move and have our being. (Cf. Acts 17:24-31, 14:15-17.)
326
SPIRIT IN GOD
The Second Commandment of the Decalogue is specifically
a prohibition of all forms of idolatry and nature-worship. “Thou
shalt not make unto thee a graven image, nor any likeness of
any thing that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth be-
neath, or that is in the water under the earth; thou shalt not
bow down thyself unto them, nor serve them” (Exo. 20:4-5),
This prohibition was designed to preserve the knowledge of the
living God in the world, as distinguished from the dead gods of
so-called “natural religion,” gods worshiped in the form of
images or as personifications of the forces of Nature. The same
fundamental truth is made explicit in the Christian creedal
formula: “Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God”
(Matt. 16:lG). Our God is alive, vitally active; H e gets things
done; He accomplishes whatever He purposes to do (Isa. 46:9-
11). He is the true and living God; hence Jesus Christ, His
Son, is the Son of the living God; and the Holy Spirit, the Spirit
of Life, is the Spirit of the living God.
Where the Spirit of God is, there is Vitality, Life. And
Vitality is activity, actuality, creativity. Every kind of life in
the universe is the gift of the Spirit of God.
3. Spirit in God means Personality.
The great and incommunicable Name of our God the eternal
I Spirit is The I AM, NE WHO IS.
Exo. 3:13-16: And Moses said unto God, Behold, when I come
I unto the children of Israel, and shall say unto them, The God of your
fathers hath sent me unto you; and they shall say to me, What is his
name? what shall I say unto them? And God said unto Moses, I AM
THAT I AM: and he said, Thus shalt thou say unto the children of
Israel, T AM hath sent me unto you. And God said moreover unto
Moses, Thus shalt thou say unto the children of Israel, Jehovah, the
God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the
God of Jacob, hath sent me unto you: this is my name for ever, and
this is my memorial unto all generations.
I . ,
Let us compare, in this connection, the words of Jesus to the
I
unbelieving Jews: “Verily, verily, I say unto you, Before
Abraham was born, I am” (John 8:58). Thus did Jesus ap-
propriate unto Himself the great and incommunicable Name
I
of the Deity. No wonder the Jews, regarding Him to be a
blasphemer, toolr up stones and cast them at Him. Obviously, He
was either all that He claimed to be, or else He was a blasph-
emer, and not only that, but the greatest impostor who ever ap-
peared in the world, But this latter conclusion is impossible,
in the light of His unimpeachable life and character.
“I AM THAT I AM . . , Thus shalt thou say unto the
children of Israel, I AM hath sent me unto you.” The Name of
327
THE ETERNAL SPIRIT - HIS PERSON AND1 POWERS
our God-the God of Abraham aac, and Jacob, and the God
and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ: (Eph. I:3, 1 Pet. 1:3, etc.)
-is I AM, HE WHO IS. I AM THAT I AM signifies I AM,
BECAUSE I AM; that is, self-existence, a Being whose ground
of subsistence i ithin Himself, a Being unoriginated and
eternal, without nning or end. I AM signifies timeless Be-
ing: with our God, it is always NOW: “Behold, ITOW is the
acceptable time; behold, now is the day of salvation’’ (2 Cor.
6: 2). I AM THAT I AM signifies P AM WHO I AM, that is,
self-conscious Being, I AM THAT I AM’signifies I WILL BE
THAT I WILL BE, that is, self-determining, self-directing Be-
ing. To sum Up: The Name I AM signifies all the attributes
and powers of a person, of a unique, eternal, solitary Divine
Person. (Cf. Deut. 4:35, 39; Isa. 43:lO-11, 45; 5-6, 46:9-11.)
It is utterly inconceivable that such a profoundly spiritual
conception of deity, or such as exclusively spiritual Name for
the Deity, could have arisen spontaneously in the mind of a
people or an individual, living at such an early age of human
history and surrounded on all sides by the grossest forms of
idolatry, polytheism, and nature-worship, as the Jews were
throughout their entire national existence from the time of
Moses to that of Ezra or even to that of John the Baptizer.
Human reason itself proclaims that this great and incommunic-
able Name could never have sprurig“froiif‘th6 ’unaided human
intelligence or imagination alone; that indeed it must have
been a direct revelation from God Himself to His great servant
and lawgiver, Moses, as the Scriptures affirm. This very Name,
in and of itself, accounts for %hepreservation by the Hebrew
People of the concepts of the uniqueness, personality and spirit-
uality of God throughout their entire national history, although
the Name was never given its full signification until Jesus Him-
self interpreted it in these meaningful words: “God is a Spirit;
and they that worship him must worship in spirit and truth”
(John 4: 24).
Herein, too, lies the fundamental superiority of the God
of the Judaeo-Christian revelation over the God of Greek
philosophy and indeed of all philosophical thought. Whereas
the latter, the God of human philosophical speculation, is
usually conceived in pantheistic terms, as That Which Is, the
God of the Bible is Pure Spirit or Person, I AM, HE WHO IS.
Our God is not a scientific probability,-He is indeed a meta-
physical fiecessity.
Now Person is the highest category of being of which we
328
SPIRIT IN GOD
have knowledge; certainly, then, it would be the height of
unreason to assign God to a category inferior to that o€ Person.
This does not mean, of course, that He is Person in the limited
sense that human beings are persons, or, as Gilson puts it, that
He is an anthropomorphic God; on the contrary, it is to be
taken for granted that Person in God embraces iniinitely greater
attributes and powers than it embraces in man. But if God
were less than Person, less than what that term signifies to US,
then certainly He would be inferior to man in attributes and
powers. And this is unthinkable, in Deity. Hence revelation,
which invariably supplements the voice of reason, presents our
God to us as a Spirit, as the eternal Spirit, as The I AM, HE
WHO IS, Spirit implies personality in some form; therefore
our God is a personal God. And because our God is a Spirit
or Person, He can enter into fellowship with us, and we with
Him, because we too are persons created in His image. 1 John
1:3--“0ur fellowship is with the Father, and with his Son Jesus
Christ.” Whatever more Person may be in God than in US,
and surely it is infinitely more, the fact remains that if God
were less than Person, our fellowship with Him would be im-
possible. “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are
your ways my ways, saith Jehovah. For as the heavens are
higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways,
and my thoughts than your thoughts” (Isa. 55: 8-9) Therefore
I
we come to Him in faith, the only avenue indeed by which we

can approach God; we “believe that he is, and that he is a
rewarder of them that seek after him” (Heb. 11:6 ) .
4. Spirit in God means Everywhereness.
As vital force permeates every part of a living organism,
so Spirit-power permeates and pervades the Cosmos and its
parts and creatures.
Psa. 139:7-10: Whither shall I g o from thy Spirit? Or whither
shall I flee from thy presence? If I ascend up into heaven, thou a r t
there; If I make my bed in Sheol, behold, thou a r e there. If I take
the wings of the morning, And dwell in the uttermost parts of the
sea, Even there shall thy hand lead me, And thy right hand shall
hold me. Jer. 23:23-24: Am I a God a t hand, saith Jehovah, and not
a God a f a r off? Can any hide himself in secret places SO t h a t I
shall not see him? saith Jehovah, Do not I fill heaven and earth?
saith Jehovah, Acts 17:27-28: that they should seek God, if haply
they might feel after him and find him, though he is not ,far from
each one of us; for in him we live, and move, and have our being. Rom.
11:3G-For of him, and through him, and unto him, are all things.
Eph. 4:G-one God and Father of all, who is over all, and through all,
and in all.
329
Perhaps this doctrine of the immanence of God can best be
presented by resort to Aristotle’s well-known Four Causes.
According to Aristotle, every entity in the universe has four
causes or grounds of “explanation,” namely: (1) a material
cause-the matter or stuff of which the thing is made: (2) a
formal cause-that which gives to the matter the specific form
it assumes in the object; (3) an efficient cause-that which unites
the form and the matter, thus giving the object concrete exist-
ence; and (4) a final cause-the function or end the object is
designed to serve in the scheme of nature. For example, the
material cause of a given desk is the wood of which it is made;
the forma2 cause is the idea of the desk in the mind of the
builder, the idea (pattern) which gives to the matter the precise
form (a desk) which it has; the efficient cause is the cabinet-
maker who joins the form to the matter, thus giving the desk
concrete existence as a desk; and the final cause is the purpose
which the desk serves, in an office, store, classroom, e$., the
use to which it is put. Now when we say that Spirit-power
(God) is everywhere, actualizing all things that exist, we do
not mean that Spirit-power (God) is either the formal or ma-
terial cause of the Cosmos: that would be pantheism, in that
it would identify God with either matter or form (idea), or
both, as indeed Spinoza does in his pantheistic doctrine of Sub-
stance. We mean, rather, that God is the efficient, hence ex-
trinsic, cause of all things. Many modern philosophers have
striven desperately to eliminate efficient causality from the
universe (scientists ignore it) -but in vain. Without it there
is no adequate explanation of anything. It is regrettable indeed
that with most of these “thinkers” the wish seems to have been
father to the thought.) Although Himself extrinsic to, other than,
all things and the world as a whole, nevertheless His Spirit-
power actualizes all things. As Thomas Aquinas has put it:
“Created being is the proper effect of God, just as to ignite is
the proper effect of fire.’’ “The reason is,” writes Garrigou-
LaGrange, elucidating Thomas’ arguments on this point.
t h a t God is essentially being. Thus He i s the cause of participated
being. F o r the proper effect is that which necessarily and immedi-
cause. The proper effect is like a property
s related to its proper cause, as a property
t i t is external to its cause. Thus the killer
o one killed without a killer) ; so also the
paints, the singer sings. Thus God brings
preserves them in being. Indeed, as St.
y, the more universal effects must be re-
1 and prior causes. But among all effects
330
SPIRIT IN GOD
the most univrrsal js being itself. Hence it must be the effect oE the
first and most univrrsal cause, and t h a t is God.‘
To quote Aquiiias again: “God is in all things, neither as part
of their essence (matter or form) nor as accident, but as an
agent is present to that upon which it works.”2 These statements
remind us of the words of the Psalmist: “0 Jehovah, how mani-
fold are thy works! In wisdom hast thou made them all; The
earth is full of thy riches. . , , Thou sendest forth thy Spirit,
they are created; And thou renewest the face of the ground’’
(Psa. 104: 24, 30), The Spirit-power which proceeds from the
Being of God is the ultimate cause of every €orm of energy
and life which permeates the stmcture of our universe. Hence
Spirit-power is everywhere, actualizing, supporting, renewing
every created thing. (What better proof of this statement could be
offered than science’s own laws of the conservation of energy
and of matter?)
The Spirit is everywliere, too, in the sense of being wholly
unrestricted by time or space. Even lesser spirits, including
men, as we have already seen, are not themselves necessarily
limited to any locale; their thought soars out beyond all the
limits of distance, space o r time, both in their dreams and in
their waking hours; and subcoiiscious communication-telepathy
-is wholly independent of the distance separating the com-
municator and the recipient. Persons ns such, that is, as spirits,
are capable of roaming the universe, so to speak, even though
their bodies are coilfilled to a definite location. And if this
attribute of “everywhereness” is characteristic of created per-
sons, how much more so of the Persoiis of the Godhead.
Cf. Matt. 4:5, 8-[in the account of the Temptation of Jesus]: Then
the devil talreth him into the holy city; and he set him o n the pinnacle
of the teniple, . . . Again, the devil talteth him unto a n cxcerding
high mouiitain, and showeth hiin all the Iringdoms of the world, and
the glory of them. [In like manner, the Spirit of God is frequently
represented in Scripture as transporting God’s servants Prom onc placo
to another, seemingly without regard to the distance involve?.] 1 Kiiigs
18:12-[here Obadiah, meeting Elijah, says t o him]: It will come t o
pass, as soon as I am gone from thee, that the Spirit of Jehovah will
carry thee whither I know not. [Also 2 Kings 2:lG; Ezek. 3:12, 3:14-15,
8 ~ 3 ,11:1, 37:1, 43.5; 2 Cor. 12:2-4 (Cf. Acts 14:19); Acts 8 ~ 3 9 - 4 0
8 :29, 0 :19-20, 16 :6-7.1 The passages in Ezekiel, however, obviously
iinply a great deal mow: they iinply inoveinent of persons independently
of corporeal relalions o r relations of time and space. They iinply that
the Spirit of God can, at any one time, be at any place, o r in all
1. Reginald Garrigou-LaGrange, O.P.,Tka Oize God, trans. by Dom.
Bede Rose, 255-256, Cf. St. Thomas Aquinas, Summa tkcologica, 1 a,
q 45, art. 5.
2, Quoted by Garriguu-LaGrange, ibid., 254.
33 1
places, where He may will t o be. It should be noted, however, t h a t
here again, in attempting to expound the doctrine of His everywhere-
ness, we are greatly handicapped by the inadequacy of human language.
Finally, the fact of the everywhereness of the Divine Spirit
is implicit in the of affirmations of Scripture
that the Thought-po antly penetrates the most
secret places Qf the heart. (Cf. 1 Sam. 16:7;
Luke 16:15; Heb. 4 2 Cor, 5:lO; Rev. 20:12-
13.) No man can possibly escape the everywhereness of the
Spirit of God.
5 . Spirit in God means Inexhaustibleness.
This attribute is closely related to that of the Spirit’s every-
whereness. Spirit-power not only operates at will everywhere
throughout the Cosmos, but also operates everywhere in what-
ewer measure may be necessary to the accomplishment of the
Divine purposes. Whereas in the realm of Matter, the whole
is equal to the sum of its parts, in the realm of Spirit quite the
reverse is true; in Spirit any “part”-to speak by way of analogy
-is equivalent qualitatively to the “whole.” The life, for ex-
.ample, that pervades my organism is present in equal measure
in every part of it; there is as much of total organic life in my
little finger as in my stomach or in my big toe or in any other
part of my body. Similarly, life is present, in whatever qualita-
tive measure each species may require for its own specific mode
of being, in the myriads of organisms which go to make up the
totality of the animate creation. And what is true in the realm
of “natural” life is equally true in that of spiritual life. The
Scriptures inform us-and every sincere Christian knows it to
be true-that the Church, the Body of Christ, is the habitation
of God in the Spirit (Eph. 2:22). That is to say, God in the
Person of His Holy Spirit indwells every obedient believer in
Christ, every member of the Body; and thus by indwelling and
infilling the individual members, the Spirit indwells, unifies and
vitalizes the whole “organism.”
The love of God hath been shed abroad in our hearts through the
Holy Spirit which was given unto us (Rom. 5 : 5 ) . Know ye not that
your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit which is in you, which ye haye
from God? (1 Cor. 6:19), Know ye not that ye are a temple of God,
and t h a t the Spirit of God dwelleth in you? (1 Cor. 3:16). Eph.
122-23: He gave him t o be head over all things to the church, which
i s his body, the fulness of him t h a t filleth all in all. Eph. 4:4-There
i s one body, and one Spirit, even as also ye were called in one hope of
your calling.
Individual saints are, so to speak, the cells who go to make up
the Mystic Person, of which they constitute the Body, and of
332
SPIRIT JN GOD
which Christ Himself is the Head, the whole mystic organism
being unified and vitalized by the Holy Spirit-Liie of God. And
the wonder of it all is that this universal and timeless expendi-
ture o i Spirit-power in so many di€fereiit forms of energy and
life never results in the decrease, much less in the depletion,
of the original total supply. The Reservoir which is the source
of this Power remains undisturbed by any or all expenditures
of it in any form, The River of the Water of Life which proceeds
“out of the throne of God and the Lamb” (Rev. 22:l) never
runs dry; quite the contrary, it is always at flood tide. This
River proceeds from a bottomless Spring-the Being of God.
Cf. John 4:14 [the words of Jesus to the Woman of Samaria, at
Jacob’s well]: Whosoever drjnlreth of the water t h a t I shall give him
shall never thirst: but the water t h a t I shall givr hiin shall become
i n him a well of water springing up unto eternal li€e. John 7:37-39:
Now on the last day, the great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried,
saying, If any man thirst, let him come unto me and drink. He t h a t
believeth on me, as the scripturr hat11 said, from within him shall flow
rivers of living water. But this spalte he of the Spirit, which they t h a t
believed on him were t o receive: for the Spirit was not yet given;
because Jesus was not yet glorified. [Also Psa. 42:l-2, 6 3 : l ; Isa. 55:l;
Rev. 22 :17.1
Whatever else our God may be, whatever else Infinity may be,
one thing He is, we may be sure: inexhnustibreizess, richness of
power, of spiritual nourishment and refreshment.
6. Spirit in God means Creativity.
Whether creativity is simply the re-combination of elements
which constitute the Cosmos a plen71n1, in which case the “new” is
simply the offspring, so to speak, of the potencies of “seeds’)
pre-existing or already given, or whether it is the oft-repeated
addition, or emergence, of new elements in a dynamic and rap-
idly expanding Cosmic Process, is purely an academic question,
a question indeed which philosophers have argued pro and con
from time immemorial. To speak truthfully, this is just another
one ol those circular ai3guments which have harassed philosophic
thought from the time of its inception. The fact of I h e matter
is that insofar as the Spirit of God is involved the solution is
irrelevant. That is to say, whether Spirit-power created e x nihilo,
or eifected re-combinations of potencies already given, the point
l o be remembcred is that it was the Spirit-power of God which
engendered lhe original potencies and which effected the ultimate
results, namely, the creation and preservation of the Cosmos
and its creatures.
In the present treatise, the entire Cosmic Process is viewed
as a progressive development, with new increments of power
333
coming in from the Creator at the different stages which mark
off the various levels in the Hierarchy of Being, (This is true,
whatever yom may mean in the Creation Narrative.) The com-
ing in of these new increments of power, each progressively
higher in qualitative characteristics than its predecessor, result-
ing first in successive forms of energy and matter, then in plant
life, animal life, and personal life, in the order named, was, in
each case, the result of the procession of Spirit-power from the
Being of God. This genepal view of the Creative Process is, as
we shall see later, fully corroborated by the Scriptural account
of the physical or natural Creation as given in the first and
second chapters of the book of Genesis.
Dr. Louis Beman, a distinguished physician as well as an
author, writes of the universe as a “psychocontinuum,” in cer-
tain respects an apt phrase. Calling attention to the fact that the
purely inanimate part of the Cosmos is characterized, apparently
at least, by a process of entropy, he advances the thesis that the
Life Process itself is, however, the anti-entropic phase of the
total structure.
Energy is like a n electric bulb slowly dimming its light, because
i t is discharging its power without replenishment. In fact light is the
very prototype of all energy and of its fate. All cosmic energy moves
at the same speed as light and has the Same vibratory constitution.
Radiation is a form of energy and the melodic rhythms of the different
wave lengths, o r frequencies, of radioactivity a r e its spectrum. There
is a great continuous range of radiating frequencies comprising all
.
its known forms. . , Energy, whether liberated from the embrace of
matter, radiating a s light waves, heat waves, electrical waves, or as
chained in the bonds of repulsion and attractions which a r e organized
a s the ultimate units of the atoms and molecules of matter, is the
primeval essence of the cosmos, out of which all things are made and
to which all things return. It appears in all the manifestations and
transformations of the universe. It may appear a s solid or liquid par-
ticles, as the incandescent gas of the stars and nebulae, as beams
of light, as a consuming fire, as the purposeful mind of man, or as the
profoundly brooding psychoactivity of the universe. But f o r all and
equally alike the inexorable law is the law of entropy. It can be pre-
dicted t h a t the time will come when there will be no more energy to
waste. All energy will then exist a t the same level, so t o speak, from
which nothing can be lifted and nothing can fall. Such will be the
end of the world: a universe in which nothing will. happen because
there will be no energy left for happenings. After its eons of stormy
activities, the cosmos will be for a long while viscous and slow, like a
tired oldlman, and then there will come an eternal stillness, the rest
of death.
Is this what will happen eventually? Probably so, according to
the physicists-unless there is some sort of a counter-process.
1. Behind the Universe, 219-221.
334
SPIRIT IN GOD
Dr, Berman believes that there is such a process, namely the
Life Process itself, He writes:
A universal cosmic consciousness begetting a continuing life-person-
ality is embedded in the roots of the universe. It is growing and driv-
ing through the eons of time toward some apparently entirely ineffable
and incomprehensible goal. And it embraces within itself all the vast
extent and range of time and space, matter and energy.’
This is all reminiscent, of course, of Bergson’s Elan Vital.
What is this “universal cosmic consciousness,” after all, but
the living God, the eternal Spirit? And what is this force, which
grows and drives through the eons of time toward some “in-
effable and incomprehensible goal,” but the Spirit-power of God?
(Why are scientists so afraid of the word, “God”?-for their
writings prove that, in spite of their reluctance to use the desig-
nation, they do have a “God.”) All this points clearly to the fact
that the Life Force is creative, that it is constantly ushering in
new and higher forms of being. There seems to be a side of the
Divine Being which is never satisfied short of reaching outside
Him, short of the constant expenditure of Spirit-power in crea-
tive effort; otherwise there would be no accounting for the
,universe and its myriad forms of life. Creativity is of the very
essence of the Spirit of God. Therefore, we may conclude that
the Life Process is driving “toward some apparently entirely
, ineffable and incomprehensible goal.”
That the Life Process is driving toward an ineffable goal,
we heartily agree. But with Dr. Berman’s assertion that the
goal is entirely incomprehensible, we cannot agree. That it is
incomprehensible to unaided human reason, of course, may be
admitted. But revelation, in this as in every like instance, sup-
plies what reason, because of its natural limitations, lacks of as-
certainment. “The only goal of man,” says LeComte DU Nouy,
“should be the attainment of human dignity with all its impli-
cations.”a This goal, according t,o the Scriptures, is ultimate
Wholeness or Holiness: the creation of a holy, redeemed race to
inhabit a wholly renovated or, so to speak, redeemed Cosmos-
an environment purged both of the guilt and of the consequences
of sin, an environment that is all Good, Nothing short of this
could effectuate fully the attainment of human dignity, that of
a creature created in the image of God.
Rev, 21:l-4: And I saw a new heaven and a new earth: f o r the
first heaven and the f i r s t earth are passed away; and the sea is no more.
1. Ope Cit., 226-227.
2. Huinan Uestany, 244.
335
And I saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven
from God, made ready as a bride adorned for2 her husband. And I
heard a great voice out of the throne saying, Behold, the tabernacle of
God is with men, and he shall dwell be his
peoples, a n d God himself shall be wit and ,he
shall wipe away every tear from their more ;
neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain, any more; the
f i r s t things are passed away, [Also Matt. 5:8; Rev. 3:5; 7:14-17, 22:l-5.1
Thus it will be that a new creation has taken place, as
a result of the pro on of Spirit-power from God. at every
forward step in the onward a rd’ surge of the Life
Process. At every forward step ements of power have
come in from the Being of God. mal advance, in so far as
this earth is concerned, occurs eation of the Body of
Christ, consisting of redeemed-recreated-persons, new crea-
tures in Jesus Christ.
Rom. 8:l-2: There is therefore now no condemnation to them that
a r e in Christ Jesus. For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus
made me free from the law of sin and death. Eph. 2:lO-For we are
his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God
afore prepared t h a t we should walk in them. 2 Cor. 5:17-Wherefore
if a n y man is in Christ, he is a new creature: the old things a r e passed
away; behold, they a r e become new. [(Also John 3:3, Gal. 6:15, Rorn.
6:4, Col. 3:9-10,Eph. 4:23-24, Tit. 3;5.] I
The final phase of the Creative Process occurs in the creation,

by the Spirit-power of God, of spiritual bodies for ihe redeemed
saints, bodies adapted to their celestial environment in the ulti-
mately renovated Cos
John 14:2-3: In m her’s house are many abidin
were not so, I would have told you; for I go to prepare a place for you.
And if I go and prepare a place for you, I come again, and will receive
you unto myself; t h a t where I am, there ye may be also. [Undoubtedly
the “many abiding-places” alluded to here a r e those spiritual bodies
which await the saints at the moment of their resurrection.] Rom. 8:23
-Ourselves also, who have the first-fruits of the Spirit, even we our-
selves .groan within ourselves, waiting. for our tion, to wit, the re-
demption of our body. [Also Phil. 3:20-21; 2 5:l-4, not that we
would hope to become disembodied spirits, but er become “clothed
upon” with spiritual (ethereal?) bodies. Cf. esp. Rom. 8:11, 1 COY.
15:20 ff.]
How important, in view af all these considerations, is the Chris-
tian doctrine of immortality-that of the resurrection and glori-
fication of the bodies of God’s saints that “they may be con-
formed to the image of his Son” (Rom. 8:29)! How essential
the doctrine is, to a proper understanding of the Plan of the
Universe! Regeneration, sanctification, and immortalization are
the supreme manifestations of that creativity which is of the
essence of the Spirit-power of our God.
336
SPIRIT IN GOD
7. Spirit in God means Sociality, Fellowship, Service.
This truth becomes clear especially in the light of the New
Testament revelation,
“Spirit” surely signifies sociality in man, Although psy-
chologists, for the most part, reject the view that gregariousness
is an instinct in man, the fact remains, nevertheless, that normal
persons do constantly seek the fellowship of their kind. Expe-
rience teaches them early in life, though perhaps unconsciously,
that they cannot satisfy even their basic organic drives, much
less their intellectual outreachings, in a word, that they cannot
realize their potentialities and thus attain fulness of being, as
persons, short of association with kindred spirits in the various
fields of human endeavor. Otherwise, how account for the vast
number of clubs, lodges, guilds, unions, societies and associa-
tions which characterize the history of man upon earth? Profes-
sor Goldhamer of Stanford University, for example, who has
collected voluminous statistics on voluntary associations in the
United States, estimated that there are some 15,000 such different
associations in Chicago alone, Think what a vast number there
must be, then in the world at large! Associations there are of
every kind and description-athletic, recreational, educational,
literary, professional, occupational, social, political, agricultural,
military, youth, ethical, missionary, religious, and so on, almost
ad infinitum. And besides all these more or less casual or im-
permanent groupings, there are also the basic social institutions of
human history to be taken into account, those which have been
defined as “organized, established ways of satisfying certain basic
human needs,”’ and which, therefore, are found in some form
or other practically among all peoples in all ages. These are the
family (biological), the state (political), the corporation (eco-
nomic), and the church (religious) or its equivalent With the
development of private property, of course, and the increase of
abundance of material goods generally, the business corporation,
with all its ramifications, has superseded the older family and
feudal economic organizations, and has become the paramount
economic institution of modern commerce and finance. Eco-
nomic organization there has been, however, of one kind or an-
other, from the very dawn of human history, and even extending
back into prehistory.
From these facts it is evident that sociality in man is a
part of the natural order of things, an ordination of Nature’s
God for man’s general well-being. This is true whether or not
1, Ogburn and Nimltoff, Sooiology, 565.
337
gregariousness is an instinct in man. Sociality must be regarded
as a necessary and natural fact of the order of personal beings,
for persons (or spirits) alone are capable of proper personality
integration and development only through association with other
persons. There is no getting around the fact that spirit in man
includes the attribute of sociality. Therefore, since man is the
image of God, we may reasonably conclude that Spirit includes
sociality in God also. Perhaps this attribute of Spirit in God
accounts for the Creative Process itself; perhaps that process is
the inevitable outlet for that side of the Divine Nature which
craves holy fellowship with kindred creature-spirits, that side
of the Divine Nature which is Love, As a matter of fact, it is
difficult for us to see how Divine Love could have found ade-
quate expression except in fellowship with creatures made in
His own image, and more particularly in such acts as atoning
for, redeeming, forgiving, and sanctifying one-time lost sinners.
And it is equally difficult to see how Divine Love could have
wooed and won rebellious man back into covenant fellowship
with Himself by any means other than a supreme sacrifice-
the Supreme Sacrifice, in fact-intelligible to man in terms of
human experience; in a word, by dying as an innocent man,
would die, willingly and freely, for the salvation of the guilty.
“Greater love that no man than this, that a man lay down his
life for his friends” (John 15: 13), but the love of God for man is
greater than the love of man f o r man ever could be, for God
willingly gave His Son, and the Son willingly gave His life, not
only for His friends, but for His enemies as well. And Jesus,
dying on the Cross, prayed for those who were putting Him to
death: “Father, forgive them; €or they know not what they do”
(Luke 23:34). Be that as it may, vicarious sacrifice is still the
noblest manifestation of love within the scope of human expe-
rience. That the accomplishment of such an end as reconcilia-
tion required in turn that Divine Love condescend to share our
human nature with its frailties, temptations, and needs, is ob-
vious. Thus it will be seen that the mysteries of the Trinity,
the Incarnation, the Atonement, and the Resurrection-the fund-
amental doctrines of Christianity-are all closely bound up with
the activity of -the Holy Spirit in the regeneration, sanctification,
and immortalization of the saints. Not one of these doctrines can
be omitted without destroying the whole Christian System.
Moreover, under the view presented here, the Christian System
is the final phase of the Plan of the Universe, that is, of the
whole Creative Process itself. Under this view, too, the physical
338
SPIRIT IN GOD
world becomes God’s medium for the shaping of human souls
to be meet for the inheritance of the saints in light, an end that
can be achieved only by the superposition of the life of the
Spirit upon the natural personal life of man, As the writer of
the Epistle t o the Hebrews puts is so clearly:
But we behold him who hath been made a little lower than the angels,
even Jesus, because of the suffering of death crowned with glory
aiid honor, that by the grace of God he should taste death for every
man. F o r i t became him, for whom a r e all things, and through whom
are all things, in briiiging many sons unto glory, t o make the author of
their salvation perfect through sufferings. For both he that sanctifieth
and they t h a t are sanctified ape all of one: for which cause he is not
ashamed t o call them brethren, saying, I will declare thy name unto
my brethren, In the midst of the congregation will I sing thy praise
(Heb. 2 :9-12).
Human redemption, effected by the death and resurrection of
our Christ, is realized and applied by the work of the Holy
Spirit.
Throughout the Old Testament Dispensations, the Patri-
archal and the Jewish-the period of preparation- the activity
of the Spirit was exerted exclusively through indivduals, men
chosen by God to be special instruments for the execution of
His eternal purpose. These holy men of old, men of great faith,
enjoyed conscious fellowship with God through the immediacy
of Spirit-power in them and exerted through them. Such a man
especially was Enoch, “the seventh from Adam” (Jude 14),
who “walked with God; and he was not; for God took him”
(Gen. 5: 24). Such also were Noah, “a preacher of righteousness”
to his generation (1 Pet. 3:18-22, 2 Pet. 2 : 5 ) ; Abraham, called
“the friend of God” (Jas. 2: 23, 2 Chron. 20: 7, Isa. 41: 8) ; Isaac,
Jacob, and Joseph; Moses, the mediator of the Old Covenant,
and his successor, Joshua (Heb. 3:l-6, Num. 11:16-17, Num.
27: 18-25, Deut. 34: 9-12) ; and the Judges, civil and military dic-
tators, chosen and used by God for the leadership of His people,
at successive intervals throughout the long chaotic period of the
Conquest (Judg. 3:10, 4:4, 6:34, 11:29, 13:25, 14:6, 15:14, 1
Sam. 3: 19-21, 1 Sam. 9: 6, etc.) , Of the kings, David especially,
the sweet singer of Israel, enjoyed intimacy of personal com-
munion with God (1 Sam. 16:13); among David’s last words
were these: “The Spirit of Jehovah spake by me, And his word
was upon my tongue” (2 Sam. 23: 2 ) . And the Hebrew Proph-
ets-that illustrious line which began with Samuel and terminated
with John the Baptizer-were in a very special sense “men of
that Spirit,’’ men who walked with God and who spoke for Him
(1 Ki. 20:28; 2 Kings 4:25, 5:14; Isa. 6:l-5; Ezek. 2:2, 3:12;
339
Luke 1:15; 2 Pet. 1:21, 1 Pet. 1:lO-12, etc.). To all these great
men of faith, the immediacy of the Spirit meant personal fel-
lowship, sweet and holy fellowship, with God.
Under the present Dispensation, the Church or Body of
Christ is in a special mystical sense a holy fellowship with God
the Father and with his Son Jesus Christ (1 John 1:3), through
the mutual sharing by its members of the presence, gifts and
powers of the Holy Spirit. No longer is the immediacy of Spirit-
power confined exclusively to chosen leaders; it is shared, in
various measures corresponding to respective ends, by all mem-
bers of the Body. The Church is “the communion of the Holy
Spirit’’ (2 Cor. 13:14). Hence, each member’s physical body is
described in Scripture as a temple that is indwelt by the Spirit
(1 Cor. 3: 16, 6:19), and all members of. the Body collectively are
said to be “as living stones, built u p a spiritual house, to be a
holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices, acceptable to
God through Jesus Christ’’ (1 Pet. 2:5), “builded together for
a habitation of God in the Spirit” (Eph. 2:22), that is, in the
Person of the Spirit who indwells them. The Christian Church
is described as “the elect . . . according to the foreknowledge of
God the Father, in sanctification of the Spirit, unto obedience and
sprinkling of the blood of Jesus Christ” (1 Pet. 1:2 ) . It is the
one Body vitalized and unified by the one Spirit (Eph. 4:4);
hence its members are bound together in Christ by the com-
munion-the mutual sharing-of the Spirit (2 Cor. 13:14). Both
the love of God and the efficacy of Christ’s Atonement are medi-
ated to the members of the Body through the Holy Spirit which
is given unto them, Rom. 5:5). In the one Spirit are they all
baptized (ie., incorporated) into one body, and are all made
to drink of’ one Spirit (1 Cor. 12: 13). They are sealed by the
Spirit, the Holy Spirit of promise, which is the earnest of their
final inheritance, Life Everlasting (Eph. 1:13-14, 2 Cor. 1:22).
By the help of the Spirit they put to death the deeds of the
body, and live spiritually (Rom. 8:13). They are led by the
Spirit, they walk by the Spirit, they live by the Spirit, and they
bring forth the fruit of the Spirit which is “love, joy, peace, long-
suffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, meekness, self-control”
(Gal. 5:16-25). The Spirit in them is the ever-present agent of
their sanctification, and, at the end of their pilgrimage through
this present world, because the Spirit of Him that raised up
Jesus from the dead dwelleth in them, He that raised Christ
Jesus from the dead shall give life also to their mortal bodies
through His Spirit that dwelleth in them (Rom. B:ll), And in
340
SPIRIT IN GOD
this manner their fellowship with God the Father and with the
Lord Jesus Christ and with one another, mediated in this life
through the Holy Spirit dwelling in them, will become full and
complete- an ineffable fellowship-around the very Throne
of God and of the Lamb. George MacDonald’s exquisite lines
might well serve as the prayer of God’s saints from day to day:
Leave me not, God, until; nay, until when?
Not till I am with Thee, one heart, one mind,
Not till Thy life is light in me, and then
Leaving is left behind.
The consciousness of a new and joyous fellowship, a one-
ness with the Father and with the $on and with one another,
through their mutual sharing of the Divine Presence in the
Person of the Holy Spirit, was certainly most intense in the
hearts of those men and women who constituted the first Chris-
tion ekklesia at Jerusalem, on and immediately following the
Day of Pentecost. At the heart and center of that fellowship
were, of course, the Apostles themselves, who had received the
Holy Spirit in baptismal (overwhelming) measure. To them
were added on that first day of Gospel preaching, by the Lord
‘Himself as the Head of the Body (Acts 2:41, 47)) some three
thousand souls (Acts 2:41), who too were vitalized by the
.regenerative measure of the Holy Spirit’s pawer. Thus the
Body of Christ was created, incorporated, and vitalized by the
Presence who had come down from heaven, as the Agent of
both the Father and the Son, for the very purpose of incorporat-
ing the Body and taking up His abode therein. To those first
Christians, this Presence brought the realization of a rich and
joyous fellowship. And anyone who reads the early history of
the Church as recorded in the book of Acts cannot fail to realize
that this sense of the Divine Presence with them and in them
was especially characteristic of the saints throughout the apostolic
age. As H. Wheeler Robinson writes:
To the men whom Jesus had trained i n the ways of the Spirit there
came at Pentecost a new discovery, the discovery of a fellowship with
one another and with Him, that made Him still present with power in
their midst. They spoke of the Presence in their fellowship a s an
unquestioned reality: It seemed good to the Holy Spirit and t o us (Acts
15 :28), Their discovery (which was God’s revelation) created a n epoch.
The new fellowship had the distinctive marks of its new creation, f o r
i t was marked by reverence, mutual helpfulness, joy, and a gracious-
ness that won men by i t s life more than by its speech. Thus to the
love of God t h a t had issued in the grace of Christ there was added
the fellowship created by the Holy Spirit.’
1. T h e Christian Experience of the Holg Spirit, 7.
341
That this early Christian fellowship expressed itself char-
acteristically in joyous service is evident from Luke’s account of
it in the book of Acts. The inspired historian tells us, for ex-
ample, that on the Day of Pentecost, following Peter’s sermon
and exhortation, “they then that received his word were baptized;
and there were added unto them” (literally “put together’’ or
“added together”) “in that day about three thousand souls.”
“And,” he goes on to say, “they continued steadfastly in the
apostles’ teaching and fellowship, in the breaking of bread and
the prayers” (Acts 2:41-42). It is interesting to note that the
Greek word koinonia, here rendered “fellowship,” in certain
other New Testament passages is translated “contribution.” (E.g.,
Rom. 15: 26, 2 Cor. 9: 12-13, 2 Cor. 8: 4.) Obviously, in these vari-
ous passages the word has reference specifically to the contri-
butions of tithes and offerings for the relief of poor and dis-
tressed brethren. That this is one of the primary connotations
of the word in the second chapter of Acts also, is clear from the
verses that immediately follow verse 42, in which it is first
used with reference to the Jerusalem ekklesia. Vv. 43-47 read
as follows:
And fear came upon every soul: and many wonders and signs“
were done through the apostles. And all that believed were together,
and had all things common; and they sold their possessions and goodsI,
and parted them t o all, according as any man had need. And day
by d?y, continuing stedfastly with one accord in the temple, and’
breaking bread at home, they took their food with gladness and single-
ness of heart, praising God, and having favor with all the people.,
And the Lord added together day by day those t h a t were saved.
In a word, this first Christian fellowship manifested itself pri-
marily in unity and in liberality: it was essentially a fellowship
of jogous service. And so we read in Acts 4i32-35;
And the multitude of them that believed were of one heart and soul;
and not one them said that aught of the things which he possessed
was his own; but they had all things common. And with great power
gave the apostles their witness of the resurrection of the Lord Jesus:
and great grace was upon them all, F o r neither was there among them
any t h a t lacked: f o r as many a s were possessors of lands or houses
sold them, and brought the prices of the things that were sold, and
laid them at the apostles’ feet: and distribution was made unto each,
according as any one had need.
Thus it becomes quite clear that this first Christian fellowship,
that of the Church of Christ in Jerusalem, manifested itself in
a voluntary, spontaneous outpouring of love (there is not one
iota of evidence that it was done in obedience to any command
of the Apostles or of anyone else), a spontaneous outpouring of
342
SPIRIT IN GOD
love in the form of joyful service, We have been told repeatedly
in recent years, by self-styled “forward-loolting breathren,” that
we must look to the future for the ideal church, never to the past,
It strikes me, however, that it would be difficult for any con-
gregation of Christians to excel the standard set by that first
ekklesia in Jerusalem, in unity, in liberality, and in service. As
a matter o l fact, I am convinced that if any local church, as large
numerically as was that Jerusalem church, could be found any-
where in the world today, of which it could be reported truth-
fully, as it was of that church, that the multitude of them that
believe are of one heart and soul, and that not one of the mem-
bers considers aught that he possesses as his own, but they have
all things common; and of which it could be reported further
that the members have actually sold their possessions and goods
and made distribution unto each, according as every man had
need-I am quite sure, I repeat, that if such a church could be
found today, it would make the front page, and in bold head-
lines, of every metropolitan daily in the world. I am equally
sure that I myself would go a long way to visit such a church
in order to share its fellowship, if only temporarily, if indeed
such a church could be found. That Jerusalem church stood at
the very fountain-head of Christianity. By its spontaneous
manifestations, in joyful service, of the fellowship which it en-
joyed as a result of its consciousness of the Divine Presence in
its midst, that church, I contend-a thesis I stand ready to defend
at any time, anywhere-made itself a pattern-a noT.m, if you
please-of Christian ecclesiastical fellowship for all time to come.
Moreover, judging from the record given us in the book of
Acts, we must conclude that joyful service continued to be the
outstanding characteristic of Christian fellowship throughout the
entire apostolic age. Those early Christians were never content
short of sharing their spiritual joy with others. In many in-
stances, as in those indicated in the foregoing paragraph, this
service took the form of voluntary contribution of tithes and
offerings for the relief of the poor and distressed saints. In
others, it took the form of personal evangelism. For example,
when the members of the Jerusalem church “were all scattered
abroad throughout the regions of Judea and Samaria,” by per-
secutions instigated by Saul of Tarsus, (‘they therefore that
were scattered abroad,” we are told, “went about preaching the
word.” Now it must be remembered that these very first
Christians were all Jews: thus did love, engendered by the Di-
vine Presence in their hearts, break down the age-old “middle
343
wall of partition” between Jew and, Samaritan. And so we find
Philip, who had previously been set apart as a “deacon” of the
Jerusalem church (Acts 6:l-6), down in the city of Samaria
proclaiming unto the once-despised Samaritans, the Christ. And
when the people of that city, we are told, “believed Philip preach-
ing good tidings concerning the kingdom of God and the name
of Jesus Christ, they were baptized, both men and women”
(Acts 8:1-12). “And there was much joy in that city” (v. 8).
The fact is that whatever form this joyous service of the Koi-
nonia took in apostolic times, it was invariably a service of love.
Hence, in later years, when the saints at Corinth began to give
too much weight to religious excitement and enthusiasm, in the
form of public displays of “spiritual gifts” (tongues, prophesies,
superhuman knowledge, healings, etc.) , it became necessary for
the Apostle Paul to reprove them and to set them back on the
right track. This he did his first Epistle to the Corinthians. Al-
though he does not disparage spiritual gifts, and indeed urges
them to “desire earnestly the greater gifts” (1Cor. 12:31), yet
he goes on to say:
And moreover a most excellent way show I unto you. If I speak
with the tongues of m8n and of angels, but have not love, I am become
sounding, brass, o r a clanging cymbal. And if I have the gift of
prophecy, and know all mysteries and all knowledge; and I have all
faith, so a s to remove mountains, but have not love, I am nothing.
And he concludes with the well-known words, “But now abideth
faith, hope, love, these three; and the greatest of these is love”
(1 Cor. 12:31, 13:l-13). The most excellent way the
Christian way, is the way of love. Thus did the Apostle rebuke
them for their spiritual exclusiveness, fo narrow horizon
and littleness of spirit, in their exploitati their miraculous
powers as evidence of their high standing with God. Thus did
he call their attention sharply to the fact that those gifts of the
Spirit are superior which issue in Service, tha
Spirit is essentially the way of loving service, n
the household of the faith but to all mankind. “To Paul it was
given to know and preach the nobler realities of spiritual expe-
rience, and to call men from the debauch of religious emotion
to the inspiration of duty.’”
In like manner, the fellowship of the saints in all ages, with
God the Father and with his Son Jesus Christ and with one
another, mediated by the consciousness of the Divine Presence-
the Holy Spirit-in their hearts, issues forth in pure worship,
1. H. W. Robinson, op. cit., 8.
344
SPIRIT IN GOD
in Spirit and truth, including the proper observance of
the Christian ordinances; and in joyous service, the service of
love. Thus, through the avenues of pure worship and loving
service, do God’s people always iind within themselves reser-
voirs o€ spiritual power upon which they can draw constantly
for moral, spiritual, and even physical strength; and thus are
they “strengthened with power through his Spirit in the inward
man” (Eph. 3: 16).
For, to the saints in all ages the Communion of the Spirit
has always meant strength-moral, psychical, and even physical.
AS a result of their sense of the Spirit’s indwelling, they have
ever found within themselves reservoirs of power, of hitherto
unused power, wells of living water. They have discovered
themselves to be but channels through which the Divine Energy
courses, and issues forth in joyful service. These facts are
evident from their many recorded testimonies (Zech. 4:6; Psa.
23:l-2; Isa, 30:15, 35:4-10; John 14:1, 16:33; Phil. 4:13; Eph.
6:lO; 1 Pet. 1:5, 8; Rom. 14:17; 1 John 1:4, 5:4). The Com-
munion of the Spirit is the life of joyous service, which is joy
unspeakable and full of glory.
’
The impulsion of Spirit-power does not send great spiritual
leaders into seclusion behind monastic walls, but rather urges
them out into the highways and byways of pulsating everyday
life, there to seek and to save the lost. This was the lesson
which our God sought to impress upon the minds of the Apostles
Peter, James, and John in the course of the Transfiguration of
Christ. It will be remembered that frail impulsive Simon Peter,
moved to rapture by the sublimity of that mountain-top expe-
rience, burst forth into speech, saying to Jesus: “Lord, it is
good for us to be here: if thou wilt, I will make here three
tabernacles; one for thee, and one for Moses, and one for
Elijah.” We read, however, that “while he was yet speaking,
behold, a bright cloud overshadowed them: and behold, a voice
out of the cloud, saying, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am
well pleased; hear y e him” (Matt. 17:l-6). What was this but
a kindly rebuke to Peter, a patient reminder that this work of
Jesus and His disciples was not to be done on the mountain-top
but down in the valley where dwelt the hungering and thirsting
-and lost-souls of men? And so we read (v. 9) that “as they
were coming down from the mountain, Jesus commanded them,
saying, Tell the vision to no man, until the Son of man be risen
from the dead.” Yes, they came down from t h e mountain, down
to the fields that were white unto the harvest, into the regions
345
’THE ETERNAL SPIRIT - HIS PERSON AND POWERS
inhabited by the toiling sons of men whom Jesus came to seek
and to save. In a word, the fellowship of the Spirit means
superabundant energy, activity, loving service, all tempered
with profoundly practical rationality.
8. Spirit in God means Holiness.
This sublime truth was apprehended by individual saints
in olden times. Psa. 51:11, “Take not thy holy Spirit from me.”
Isa. 63: 10-11: “his holy Spirit.” Neh. 9:20--“thy good Spirit.”
It is in a special sense, however, a New Testament revelation.
Holiness means Wholeness, i.e., completeness, perfection, of
being. Negatively, it is the absence of lack; there is no power,
virtue or excellence lacking to the Being of our God. He is in-
finite (inexhaustible) Truth, Beauty, Goodness, Love, and
Justice. Moreover, because Wholeness embraces the orderly re-
lationship of all parts or powers, Holiness means Order, and the
love of Order. In God there is perfect order, perfect equilibrium
of all powers, perfect ordering of all things to their proper ends.
In Him there is no conflict, but only perfect harmony, of intellect
and will, of thought and purpose, of love and justice, of goodness
and power. In God “mercy and truth are met together; righteous-
ness and peace have kissed each other” (Psa. 85:lO). ”Holy,
holy, holy, is Jehovah of hosts: the whole earth is full of his
glory” (Isa. 6:3). “Holy, holy, holy, is the Lord God, the Al-
mighty, who was and who is and who is to come” (Rev. 4:8) :
this is the celestial anthem which is continuously lifted up by
voices of praise before the Throne of God.
The New Testament Scriptures especially make it very
clear that Spirit-power is the dynamic which effects miracles,
including miracles of healing of the physical body. This power
of God was manifested through holy men of old (e.g., Elisha
and the Shunammite woman’s son, 2 Kings 4:32-37) ; and through
Jesus especially, who possessed the Holy Spirit without measure,
Le., in the fulness of His powers and influences (John 3:34);
and finally through the Apostles, who possessed the Spirit’s
power in baptismal measure (Acts 1:4, 5 , 8; 2: 1-4) : that is to
say, the power to make men and women whole physically.
(Vide Matt. 9: 12, 9: 20-22; Luke 7: 2-10; John 5: 6, 14,John 7: 23;
Acts 4:8-10;9:34, 20; 7-12, 28:l-6, etc.).
The fact should be kept in mind, of course, that the Spirit-
power which effected these miracles of healing was essentially
psychical. If subconscious thought (suggestion) in man has
control over the bodily functions, as we have seen that it does,
who can successfully gainsay the fact that this power in the
346
SPIRIT IN GOD
Divine Spirit has absolute power over corporeal things and
functions?
Again, the Spirit makes men whole personally by writing
in their inward parts, by inscribing in their hearts, the Word
of Christ, which is the expression of the Mind and Thought of
Christ. (Vide Jer. 31:33, Heb. 8:6-13; 2 Cor. 3:2-3, Phil. 2 : 5 ,
1 Cor. 2:16; Col, 3:16; Rom. 8:2, note that the Word of Christ
is designated here, “the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus.”
God’s people have “the mind of Christ” as mediated by the
Spirit.
Commenting on the phrase, “the mind of Christ,” Cruden
says:
We who are endued with the Spirit, have a n experimental knowl-
edge of God’s will, and OS spiritual divine things, revealed t o us by the
Spirit, y h o i s our teacher, and knows the mind of Christ, and reveals
It t o us.
Jesus Himself says: “The words that I have spoken unto you
are spirit, and are life” (John 6: 63). And it will be remembered
that Jesus said to the men who were to become His Apostles:
“But the Comforter, even the Holy Spirit, whom the Father
will send in my name, he shall teach you all things, and bring
to your remembrance all that I said unto you” (John 14:26).
Again: “When he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he shall guide
you into all the truth; for he shall not speak from himself; but
what things soever he shall hear, these shall he speak: and he
shall declare unto you the things that are to come. He shall
glorify me: for he shall take of mine, and shall declare it unto
you” (John 16:13-14). And Paul testifies: “But we [the
Apostles] received, not the spirit of the world, but the spirit
which is from God: that we might know the things that were
freely given to us of God. Which things also we speak, not in
words which man’s wisdom teacheth, but which the Spirit
teacheth; combining spiritual things with spiritual words” (1
Cor. 2: 12-13) ; that is, communicating or revealing spiritual re-
alities in spiritual terms. Thus the Word of Christ is that Word
which is revealed in the New Testament by the Spirit, and to
receive that Word into the heart, to digest it and assimilate it,
to turn it into one’s spiritual blood, so to speak, is to acquire
the Mind of Christ. And so b y implanting within the saints t h e
Mind of Chyist, the Spirit integrates their personalities around
the Person of Christ, and makes t h e m whole personally.
1. A. Cruden, Concordance, S.V.
347
The Apostle is envisioning, in this passage, the integration, not

only of the individual personality, but also of the entire Mystic
Personality (the Church), around and into the Person of Christ.
Cf. Heb. 1 2 : l - 2 : Let us , . , lay aside every weight, and the sin
which doth so easily beset us, and let us run with patience the race
t h a t is set before us, looking unto Jesus the author and perfecter of
our faith, 2 Pet. 3:18-But grow in the grace and knowledge of our
Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.
Jesus Christ is the focal point or object around whom the
spiritual life is integrated.
The vast majority of psychologists will agree, I think, that
the unfailing criterion of a mature personality is a unifying
philosophy of life. Dr. Gordon W. Allport, for exam2le, writes
as follows:
Religion is the search for a value underlying all things, a n d . a s
such is the most comprehensive of all the possible philosophies of life.
A deeply moving religious experience is not readily forgotten, but is
likely t o remain a s a focus of thought and desire. Many lives have no
such focus; f o r them religion is an indifferent matter, or less a purely
formal and compartmental interest. But the authentically religious
personality unites the tangible present. with some comprehensive view
of the world that makes this tangible present intelligible and accept-
able to him. Psychotherapy recognizes this integrative function of
religion in personality, soundness of mind being aided by the possession
of a completely embracing theory of life?
Or, to put the same fundamental truth in another form: Bio-
logical science of recent years has had a great deal to say about
“adaptation to environment.” But what does it mean by “en-
vironment”? What does “environment’ 7 Just the im-
mediate family in which one grows up? mediate family
plus the community in which one is reared? Or does “environ-
ment” take in both these factors, and, in addition, the national
is a citizen and for the preservation of which
upon to give his life? As a matter of fact, it
1. Personality: A Psychological Interpretation, 226.
348
SPIRIT IN GOD
takes in all of these-family, community, and state-and in-
finitely more. The total environment in which a personality is
integrated is the whole wide world: every human being is an
inhabitant of the Cosmos itself. And no man is fully adapted
t o his environment until he has satisfied himseIf with respect
to the whence and whither of his own being; that is to say,
with respect to his relations to the Totality of Being of which
he is himself an integral part. In the sense that every person
is the center of his own world, that world which he constructs
for himself by his formulation of a unifying philosophy of life,
the world may rightly be said to be anthropocentric. Further-
more, any unifying philosophy of life must be, in the nature
of the case, essentially a Faith. Even though it may, and indeed
should, be based on necessary inferences drawn from rational
observation and experience, still it remains a Faith, for it is
bound to embrace elements which lie beyond all possibility of
experimental proof or disproof. Such a unifying philosophy of
life is, however, the principal criterion of a mature personality.
I am reminded here of the concluding paragraph of H. A.
Overstreet’s excellent little book, The Mature Mind. The para-
graph reads as follows:
Where there i s no vision, we are told, the people perish. Where
there is no maturity, there is no vision, We now begin t o know this.
We realize t h a t the evils of our life come not from deep evil within
us but from ungrown-up responses to life, Our obligation, then, is t o
grow up. This is what our time requires of us. This i s what may yet
be the saving of us?
I There is a world of truth in these lines. Truly we need to grow
up! But most of all do we need to grow up, to integrate our
personalities, around the proper Object, the proper Focus. NOW
the Focus of the Christian life-the life of the Spirit-is a Person,
Jesus Christ of Nazareth, the Incarnate Word, the Son of the
I living God, and The One Altogether Lovely (Song of Sol. 5:16).
Christ is Christianity, and Christianity is Christ. And the true
I Unifier of the human personality, around Christ as the FOCUS,
’
1 is the Spirit of God. The specific mission of the Spirit on earth;
in the present Dispensation, is to bear witness of Christ, His life,
I death, resurrection, glorification, and sovereignty. Said Jesus
Himself with respect to the Spirit’s mission: “He shall glorify
me; for he shall take of mine, and shall declare it unto you”
(Jolin 16: 14). Now the testimony concerning Christ, the testi-
mony necessary to beget faith in Christ-for “belief cometh of
1. op. oit., 292.
349
hearing, and hearing by the word of Christ” (Rom. 10:1‘7)-
and to effect the integration of the human personality in Christ,
is presented by the Spirit, through the prophets, apostles, and
other inspired writers, in the Scriptures-and nowhere else, I
might add-and particularly in the New Testament which is the
Word of Christ-His Last Will and Testament-communicated to
men by the agency of the Spirit, (See again John 15:26-27,
16: 7-14; 1 Cor. 2: 6-13; 2 Pet. 1:21; 1 Pet. 1:10-12; 1f i e s s . 2: 13,
etc.). This testimony was begun through holy men of old, who
were moved by the Spirit; it was continued through the Hebrew
Prophets, who were in a <specialsense “men of the Spirit”; it
was brought to completeness through Jesus, who possessed the
Holy Spirit without measure (John 3:34), and through His
Apostles, who were guided int he truth by the same S
(John 16: 13). This testimony
municated orally to men, in
d early evangelists; before the death of the latter,
however, it was embodied by in permanent form in the
New Testament canon. The N stament canon, revealed by
the Spirit through the inspir stles and ‘evangelists, is in
a special sense the Word of Christ. By means of this written
Word, the Apostles are themselves witnessing for Christ~“unto
the uttermost part of the earth” (Acts 1:8), just as Jesus told
them that they would do while He was yet wi
Moreover, to the extent that this Word is
“through the foolishness of preaching”-by means of which it
is God’s good pleasure to save them that believe (1Cor. 1:21)-
and accepted into their hearts and assimilated into their thoughts
and lives, they, too acquire the Mind of Christ. and to the ex-
tent that they acquire the nd of Christ, their
come integrated around H and in Him, and they become per-
sonally whole. This consummation is said to be realized, of
course, by the agency of the Spirit, for the Spirit is in the Word
and exercises His powers of regeneration and
through the Word. God’s Spirit-power and Word-power always
go together.
T h e temporal mission of the Holy Spirit in all ages has
been, andl is, t o glorify Christ (John 16: 14).
Again, through this same process of integrating the per-
sonalities of men around and in Christ, and making them whole
personally, the activity of the Spirit effects also their moral
wholeness, that is, their oneness with God. Regeneration and
sanctification are in a special sense works of the Holy Spirit,
350
SPIRIT JN GOD
works by which He actualizes the efficacy of the love of God
and the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ in the lives of the saints.
In regeneration, the Spirit Segets in them-through the instru-
mentality of the Word-a new life, a new moral and spiritual
life of covenant relationship with God, As Jesus said to Nico-
demus: ‘Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except one be born of
water and the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God.
That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born
of the Spirit is spirit, Marvel not that I said unto thee, Ye must
be born anew” (John 3: 5-7). Again, in progressive sanctifica-
tion, the Spirit nurtures this new moral and spiritual life in the
saints-again through the instrumentality of the Word-and
thus effects their moral and spiritual growth, growth in the grace
and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ (2 Pet. 3: 18).
Now to grow in the grace and knowledge of Christ is to grow
like God or godlike; for it was an important part of the mission
of Christ to reveal God the Father to mankind. “NO man hath
seen God at any time; the only begotten Son, who is in the
bosom of the Father, he hath declared him” (John 1:18), And
Jesus Himself said: “He that hath seen me hath seen the Father”
(John 14:9). And the writer of Hebrews tells us that Christ
the Son is the effulgence of the Father’s glory and the very image
of the Father’s substance (Heb. 1:3). In this manner, that is,
by this continuous process of nurture on the Divine side and
0
growth on the human side, the Spirit brings the minds of the
, saints into oneness with the Mind of God in knowledge and their
wills into oneness with the Will of God in love. The ultimate \
I result is their complete oneness with the Divine. The man whose
mind and will are one with the Mind and Will of God is morally
whole or holy. He is fully prepared for the inheritance of the
saints in light; prepared tQsee God “face to face,” to enter into
Everlasting Life.
There is yet one work, however, for the Spirit to do as the
vicegerent of Christ, in order to make complete His activity in
behalf of the saint, in order to make the latter perfectly whole.
That work is to make him spiritually (metaphysically?) whole,
by clothing him in his spiritual body (1Cor. 15: 35-58) ; by fashion-
ing anew this body of our humiliation, that it may be conformed
to the glorified body of Christ-the body, for example, in which
our Lord appeared in the Transfiguration scene (Matt. 17:2),
and in which He appeared later to Saul of Tarsus on the Damas-
cus road, Acts 9: 1-9, 26: 12-15), For God, we are told expressly,
will thus give life to our mortal bodies through His Spirit that
351
....
clwelleth in us (Rom. 8: 11). Redemption begins in the redemp-
tion of the spirit from the guilt of sin; it becomes complete in the
ultimate redemption of the body from the consequences of sin
(Rom. 8: 20-23). When the redeemed saint shall”appear in the
Judgment purified in spirit and clothed in glory and honor and
immortality, he will then be spiritually, metaphysically, abso-
lutely whole. He will lack nothing of wholeness, nothing of per-
fection, in body, soul, and spirit. As the Apostle puts it: “And
the God of peace himself sanctify you wholly; and may your
spirit and soul and body be preserved entire, without blame at
the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ” (1 Thess. 5:23).
The Spirit-power of God makes men whole-physically, per-
sonally, morally and spiritually. Spirit in God means Holiness,
Where the Spirit of God is, there is order, unity, wholeness,
perfection. Where the Spirit of God is not, there is disorder,
disunity, disintegration, and imperfection or lack.
“The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God,
and the communion of the Holy Spirit, be with you all.”
6. Personality in God
On the subject of personality in God and in man, Dr.-Edgar
Sheffield Brightman summarizes as follows:
God and man both enjoy complex self-experience, qualia (including
ideal norms) which low grade selves are not conscious of, a wide range
of temporal and spatial consciousness, time-transcendence and space-
transcendence, f r e e purposive self-control, ratioaal awareness of mean-
ing, free response to environment, and privacy of consciousness. All
these t r a i t s belong ts the essence of persona1itp.l
The essentials of person enumerated here may-it seems to
me-be reduced to th r traditionally given, namely, (1)
self-consciousness, (2) self-determination (purposiveness) , (3)
individuality (uniqueness, otherness, “privacy,” i.e., separate and
distinct existence), and (4) transcendence (of time and space).
Personality in God embraces all these characteristics.
1. Personality in God, as in man, includes self-consciousness.
Self-consciousness is the ability to become subject and object,
er and known, at one and the same time. It is the ability
to say, I am, with rational awareness of the meaning of the
saying. Personality, therefore, is explicit in the very Name of
our God, I AM. “And God said unto Moses, I AM THAT I AM;
and he said, Thus shalt thou say unto the children of Israel,
1. A Philosophy of Religion, 363.
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SPIRIT IN GOD
I AM hath sent me unto you” (Exo. 3: 14). Only a person can
say, meaningfully to himself, I am.
2. Personality in God, as in man, includes self-determination,
self-direction, purposiveness. Our God is Pure Act. He acts,
moreover, toward specific ends. And he accomplishes His pur-
poses: He gets things done. As He Himself has said, through
the prophet Isaiah:
I am God, and there is none else; I a m God, and there is none like
me; declaring the end from the beginning, and from ancient times
things that are not yet done; saying, My counsel shall stand, and I will
.
do all my pleasure , , Yea, I have spoken, I will also bring i t to pass;
I have purposed, I will also do it, (Isa. 46 :9-11).
Because our God is purposive, we have in Scripture what is
designated “the eternal purpose” of God, the “mystery of his
will,” etc. That eternal purpose was, proximately, to send Jesus
Christ, His Son, in the fulness of the time, to make atonement
for sin and to conquer death, thereupon to publish the Gospel,
establish the Church, and unite both Jews and Gentiles in the
one Body of Christ. That eternal purpose is, ultimutely, to create
a holy redeemed race of saints, conformed to the image of His
Son in both spirit and body; to present this race in the Judg-
ment, clothed in glory and honor and immortality: and thus to
vindicate Himself in the minds of all intelligent creatures of the
false charges hurled against Him by Satan and his rebel host
before the foundation of the world. (We suggest the following
Scriptures, in this connection, to be read in the order given here.)
(1) Rom. 16:26-26: Now t o him t h a t is abIe to establish you ac-
cording to my gospel and the preaching of Jesus Christ, according to
the revelation of the mystery which hath been kept in silence through
times eternal, but now is manifested, and by the scriptures of the
prophets, according to the commandment of the eternal God, is made
known unto all the nations unto obedience of faith, etc.
(2) Fph. 1;3-12: Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord
Jesus Christ, who hath blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the
heavenly places in Christ: even as he chose us in him before the foun-
dation of the world, that we should be holy and without blemish before
him in love; having foreordained us unto adoption as sons through
Jesus Christ unto himself, according to the good pleasure o l his will,
to the praise of the glory of his grace, which he freely bestowed on us
in the Beloved: in whom we have our redemption through his blood,
the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of his grace,
which he made to abound toward us in all wisdom .and prudence;
making ltnown unto us the naptory of his will, accordwig t o his good
pleasure whiclt~he purposed in him unto a dispc?asartion o f the f u h c s s
of the times, to sum u p all tlvings in Christ, t k e thivgs iia the heavens,
aiid the t l ~i ngsupon the earth; in him, I say, in @om also w e were
made a heritage, haviiag been foreordaincd acco?dai?g to the purpose
of hiin w h o worlceth all thiiags a f t e r t h e counsel of ILZS will; to the end
that we should be unto the praise of his glory, we who had before hoped
in Christ.
353
“HE ETERNAL SPIRIT - HIS PERSON AND POWERS
(3) Eph. 3:l-12: For this cause I Paul, the prisoner of Christ
Jesus in behalf of you Gentiles,-if so be t h a t ye have heard of the
dispensation of t h a t grace of God which was given me t o you-ward;
how that b y revelation w a s m a d s k n o w n u n t o m e the mystery, as I wrote
beforq in few words, whereby, when ye read, ye can perceive m y uqder-
standzng zn the m y s t e r y of Civrisf; which in other generation8 was not
made known unto the sons of men, as it hath now been revealed unto
his holy apostles and prophets in the Spirit- to wit, t h a t the Gentales
are fellow-heirs and fellow-members of the body and fellow-partakers
of the promise b Christ Jesus through the gospel, whereof I was made
a minister, according to the gift of that grace of God which was given
me according t o the working of his power. Unto me, who a m less than
the least of all saints, was this grace given, to preach unto the Gen-
tiles the unsearchable riches of Christ; and to make all m e n see w h a t
is the dispensation of the mystery which f o r ages hath been hid in God
who created all things; t o the intent t h a t n o w unto the principalities
and the powers in the heavenly places m i g h t be made known through
t h e church the manifold wisdom of God,’ according t o the eternal pur-
pose which he purposed in Christ JESUSour Lord; in whom we have
boldness and access in confidence through our faith in him.
(4) 1 Pet. 1:lo-12 : Concerning which salvation the prophets sought
and searched diligently who prophesied of the grace t h a t should come
unta you: searching what time 9r what manner of time the Spirit of
Christ which was in them did point unto, when it testified beforehand
the sufferings of Christ, and the glories t h a t should follow them. To
whom it was revealed that not unto themselves, but unto you, did they
them that preached the gospel unto you by t h e Holy Spirit sent forth
from heaven; which things angels desire t o look into.
(5). Gal. 4:4-5: But when the fulness of the time came, God sent
forth his Son, born of a woman, born under the law, t h a t he might
redeem them t h a t were under the law, t h a t we might receive the
adoption of sons,
(6) Rom. 8:28-30: And we know t h a t to them t h a t love God all
things work together for good, even to m t h a t are called according
to his purpose. For w h o m he forekfiew , in His eternal purpose] h e
also foreordained t o be conformed to image of ‘his Son, that he
might be the first born among many brethren: and whom he fore-
ordained, them he also called [Le., in His eternal purpose]; and whom
he called, them he also justified [Le., in His eternal purpose] and whom
he justified, them he also glorified [i.e., in His eternal purpose]. This
eternal purpose will be fully realized in the immortalization of the
saints, in which process they will be conformed t o the image of the
glorified Christ, [Also Phil. 3:20-21; Rom. 8:18-25; 1 Cor. 6:2-3, 15:24-
28; 2 Pet. 3:lO-13; Rev. 2O:lO-15, 21:l-8, 22:l-5; Rom. 2:7; 1 Tim.
1:17, 6:13-16; 2 Tim. 1:lO.l
“That God may be all in all”-such will be the glorious Con-
summation. Thus it will be seen that the Bible teaches clearly
that our world is, after all, neither geocentric nor anthropo-
centric, but theocentric. All things begin and end with God.
3. Personality in God, as in man, includes individuality,
uniqueness, otherness. Dr. Berman writes:
The discontinuity of the personal self with all other selves is the
essential f a c t of every human existence. The human individual con-
tinually perceives himself as a concentrated entity, a consciousness
354
SPIRIT IN GOD
bounded by the limitations of his o w n personality, segregated from
every other human being. Even in the most intimate fellowshin there
is a consciousness of those invisible and intangible barriers which
permanently divide one individuality from another. Because he lives
alone in his consciousness, every man lives aIone in the cosmos. This
ultimate solitude of every human being is the central fact of all his
experience and all his knowledge?
To quote Dr. Rufus Jones:
First, last, and all the time, Le., in our sanity, we possess an
integral, self-identical self, which lcnows what i t knows and does what
i t does. It is, or a t least can become, a highly complex spiritual reality,
with a sphere and range of its own, We a r e in large measure the
makers o f ourselves; but fortunately we s t a r t with a precious im-
partation, o r birth-gift, which is big with the potentiality of s p i r i t
otherwise we might have ended a s a hop-toad,
A creature predestined to move
In a well-defined groove,
with no power to build a self from within, such a s we possess now.
And that self of ours, whatever its ultimate destiny may be, is utterly
unique.g
A person is a unique being, a being with thoughts, images, mem-
ories, experiences, all of which are, in the very nature of the
case, exclusively his own. He is inevitably characterized by
what Brightman calls “privacy of consciousness.” Hence he is
never duplicated. To quote Emerson again: “Nature never
rhymes her children nor makes two men alike.”
Personality, therefore, in relation to all other persons, is
otherness: a person is an other to all other persons, and all other
persons are other to one another and to him. To some extent
every person is indeed, in Leibniz’s phrase, a “windowless
monad.” Hence Karl Barth’s emphasis on the otherness of God
is in perfect harmony with the fact of the personality of God.
H. WheeIer Robinson writes:
In both man and God there is a principle of self-consciousness,
unshared by any other, t h a t exclusive principle of individual per-
sonality which gives the peculiaT quality to “my’ experience, as distinct
from another’s. The name “Spirit” i s given to this principle in God,
just as “spirit” denotes i t in man. The gift of the Spirit of God means
that this exclusive consciousness of his is exceptionally shared with
man, or, a s a Hebrew prophet would have put it, t h a t man is admitted into
the council of Yahweh, t o think His thoughts (Jer. 23:18, 2 2 ) . A t
present, however, we have no more than the “earnest” of the condi-
tion of full knowledge (1 Cor. 8 : 2 ; 13:12; Gal. 4:,9), the condition
itself being full transformation by the Spirit ( 2 Cor. 3:18).”
1. Louis Berman, Belbind tho Universe, 13.
2. Spiyit i n M m , 21-22.
3. The Chvislian Ecvpcriencr of tlte Ilollj Spirit, 227- 228.
355
embrace the evil as well as the
only alternative, of course, is to t
“illusion of mortal mindi” This is precisely what most pantheists
-and Absolutists-dd. But Lpeksonality in Go
not mean that the Mind of God is identical w
creaturely minds. I , in fact, just the opposite-that the
Mind of God is the e’ Other to’ any or all human minds.
I thank God that e case, for it means that we frail
human beings can pray to God nter into communion with
God, as person in relation to Pers
I 4. Personality in God, as in includes transcendence of
time and space. God is absolutely free from all temporal and
spatial limitations. “But forget not this one thing, beloved, that
one day is with the Lord as a thousand years, and a thousand
years as one day” (2 Pet. 3: 8). This is,,of course, but a poetic
way of saying that time means nothing to God. The same is
true of space.
As the Psalmist cries out:
Whither shall I go from thy Spirit?
Or whither shall I flee from thy presence?
If I ascend up + iilto
If I make my bed i Id, thau art, there.
If 1-take the wings o
And dwell in the
Even there shall thy hand lead me,
And thy right hand shall hold me.
This great truth of God’s transcendence of time’and space rela-
tions, however, has been fully pres
and needs not to be elaborated here.
Finally, should we be speaking
to designate God a “Superperson)’
thought so, on the ground that to call God personal is to make
Him fiEihite, or speakihg more precisely perhaps, anthropomorphic.
On this point I quote again fr
If God be a perfion, it is self-evident t h a t h
comparably vaster than man’s. It is certain t h a t
known t o man, and goodness utterly transcending
probable t h a t he has indefinitely many types of
to us, which are barely hinted at by such facts as ltraviolet and
infrared rays, invisible t o man. But it is one thing to say that per-
356
SPIRIT IN GOD
sonality which is in p a r t known includes kinds of experience of which
we do not yet know; and i t is quite another thing t o say t h a t there
is a n entity of some sort which is lacking in all consciousness and
experience and rational personal identity, and yet is higher than per-
sonality. In the former sense we may say t h a t God i s superpersonal,
meaning superhumanly personal. In the latter sense, since we cannot
define our hypothesis except wishfully, we cannot know whether an un-
conscious “superpersonality” would be better or worse than personality,
and we cannot use the concept to explain any aspect of actual conscious
entities such as ourselves, As f a r a s we can know, the unconscious
and impersonal, if such there be in the universe, i s below and not above
the level of conscious personality. A t best the unconscious super-
personal is but a label for the unknown, and not a definable hypothesis?
Let us conclude, therefore, with Dr. Brightman, that it
would be legitimate, undoubtedly, to speak of God as a super-
human Person, for that He is indeed, especially in the fact that,
in the light of His own revelation of Himself, His personality
embraces, in some inscrutable manner, a triplicity of Persons-
Father, Son, and Holy Spirit-each of whom is a Personality in
His own right, so to speak. But to describe God as a “Super-
person” means nothing, in the light of our human experience.
Moreover, in response to the hue and cry of “anthropomorphism,”
we are on solid ground in affirming that man can hardly think
of God as less than a Person, because Person is the highest
category of being of which man has knowledge. And since man
is a person, and knows that he is a person, he cannot properly
think of God as less than, or inferior to, himself. Therefore, we
are content to accept the revealed Name of our God, with all its
implications-I AM THAT I AM, HE WHO IS. The Person of
God thus authenticates our love for Him, the prayers we lift
up to Him, and the fellowship we enjoy with Him. None of these
privileges would be possible, if God is less than person!
QUESTIONS ON REVIEW OF PART FOUR

1. In what sense is a human being “the image of God”?
2. What fallacies are involved in t h e writing of Xenophanes about
anthropomorphism? Why is anthropomorphic representation ap-
parently necessary t o make God congenial t o us?
3. Why do we say that much of the Old Testament is constructed on
principles of “kindergarten pedagogy”?
4. Explain what is meant by the cold, intellectually-constructed con-
cepts of God. Cite examples.
5, Explain what i s implied in the word person a s descriptive of God.
6. What does Dr. Jones mean by “mind when it reaches the stage
of spirit in beings like us”?
7. How does a man ultimately attain the stature of a rea2 person,
according t o New Testament teaching?
1. E. S.Brightman, op. cit., 237.
357
8. Explain what is meant by the power of the mind to generate
‘Yree ideas.” What bearing does this have on the teaching t h a t
every man is God’s “image”?
9. What follows from the possession of the human spirit by the Divine
Spirit?
10. In what special sense, according to Heb. 1:3, was Christ the image
of God?
11. How is the benevclence of God manifested in the constitution of
man?
12. Explain what is meant by self-determination in man. What power
in a special sense enables him to attain his own divinely deter-
mined ends?
13. How a r e means and ends related in the constitution of the human
being?
14. How do these reflect the similar powers characteristic of Spirit
in God?
15. What i s clearly intimated by the attributes and powers of the
human spirit?
16. Discuss : “Nature and revelation a r e never contradictory.”
17. Why do we not make use of the word “Trinity” with referenc,e
to God?
18. Explain a s best you can what is meant by the tripersonality of God?
19. Distinguish the “unitarian” from the “trinitarian” concept of God.
20. What i s the uniqueness of the Old Testament revelation of God?
How is this corroborated in the New Testament?
21. How i s the tripersonality of God intimated in the Old Testament?
22. Why, in all likelihood, was this not fully revealed in Old Testa-
ment times?
23. How is it fully revealed in the New Testament?
24. Cite Scriptures in which the Father is fully recognized a s God,
25. Cite Scriptures in which the Son is fully recognized os God.
26. Cite Scriptures in which the attributes of deity a r e ascribed to
the Son. List these attributes.
27. What works of deity a r e ascribed to the Son? Cite Scriptures.
28. Cite Scriptures which represent the Son a s receiving honor and
worship which should be given only to the Deity.
29. Cite Scriptures in which the equality of the Father and the Son
a r e declared.
30. Explain what is meant by the Kenosis (“Humiliation”) of the
Son. W h a t did this include?
31. Explain what is meant by the Condescension (“Humiliation”) of
the Holy Spirit.
32. Cite Scriptures in which the T h r e e w e go presented t h a t we must
think of them as distinct personalities.
33. Cite Scriptures in which the Son distinguishes the Father from
Himself.
34. Cite Scriptures in which the Son distinguishes the Spirit from
both the Father and the Son.
35. How is the Spirit said t o come from the Father?
36. Cite Scriptures in which ,the Spirit is said to be sent by both the
F a t h e r and the Son.
37. Show how the distinction between the Three appears in the An-
nunciation.
38. Show how the same distinctions appear in the Son’s conversation
with Nicodemus.
39. Show how these distinctions are specifically revealed in the scene
following the baptism of Jesus.
40. Summarize this revealed doctrine of the triune personality of our
God.
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SPIRIT IN GOD
41, Cite evidences to support the doctrine t h a t the Three must be
regarded as co-equal.
42. Cite Scriptures which indicate the affective relations among the
Three.
43. Cite Scriptures which show that the Spirit searches and reveals
the “deep things of God.”
44. Cite Scriptures in which the Father i s said to command the Son
In the latter’s capacity as Mediator and Redeemer.
45, Cite Scriptures affirming that both the Father and the SOB
actuate the Spirit’s activities with respect to the Body of Christ.
46, What are these fundamental activities of the Spirit with respect
t o the Church?
47. What does the Bible tell us about the work of the Spirit in His
capacity of Administrator of the church of the apostolic age?
48. Cite Old Testament passages in which inter-communion among the
Three is intimated.
49, Cite Scriptures in which the plural form Elohim is used, with a
singular verb, t o designate the Deity. What does this teach US?
60, Cite passages which assert the eternal pre-existence of the Word
(Logos), What i s the special significance of the words of Jesus in
John 17:6 and in John 8:58.
51. Cite passages in which the Spirit of God of the Old Testament is
identified with the Holy Spirit of the New Testament.
52. Why do we say t h a t this triune personality of God is inscrutable?
Therefore, on what basis do we accept it?
53. How may this doctrine be said t o underlie divine inspiration?
54. How is i t essential t o the Scheme of Redemption?
56. I n what respect is i t essential t o the true worship of the living
and true God?
56. How i s it essential to any adequate Christology?
57. How i s it essential to any perfect pattern of human life and
conduct?
58. How is it related to the Christian doctrine of the Atonement?
59. List some of the so-called pagan “trinities.” Distinguish between
“trinities” and ‘%theisms’, or “triads.”
60. How do the inter-relationships among the Father, Son, and Holy
Spirit, of the Bible differ from the inter-relationships among the
heathen gods?
61. What does the term “begetting” of the Son, and t h a t of the “pro-
cession” of the Spirit, signify especially?
62. How shall we approach the question of the personality of the Spirit?
63. What activities are attributed t o the Spirit which indicate His
personality?
64. V h a t attributes and powers are attributed t o the Spirit that indi-
cate His personality?
66. What slights and injuries a r e said t o be suffered by the Spirit
which indicate His personality?
66. What various offices and works a r e attributed t o the Spirit which
indicate His personality?
67. Cite Scriptures in which the Holy Spirit is invariably pictured in
association with other persons in such a way as to imply His
personality.
68. How are the Three associated in the Great Commission (cf. Matt.
28:19 and Acts 1:2).
69. What must be our conclusion, in view of this a r r a y of evidence,
about the nature or being of the Holy Spirit?
70. Cite Scripture passages in which the Holy Spirit i s explicitly
recognized as God.
359
ERSON AND POWERS
erfections of God a t e ascribed t o
Holy Spirit. List these works.

73. Cite Scriptures in which the Spirit
obedience and worship that is due only t
74. Cite Scriptures in which .the Holy s p
associated on a fo
76. What is the prac
value a r e they t o
in our everyday th
76. What does “Spirit
77. In what y a y s doe
the human h e a r t ?
78. How does Jesus describe God in John 4:24?
79. Cite. Old Testament passages in which God is designated holy
Spirit.
80. What three meanings does “spirituality” have as applied t o God?
81. What de we mean by,saying that God has Spirit?
82. What do we mean by saying t h a t God giges Spirit?
83. What is included in the affirmation that Spirit in God means
Power? What kinds of power (energy) are attributed t o Him?
84. Explain as clearly a s possible what Acts 17:28 means.
86. What is meant by the phrase “living naturally”?
86. What sustains all the processes we discover in nature?
87. Explain the statement: only that which is perdanent can ckange.
88. To what fact do such terms a s “law,” “order,” “cosmos, etc.,
apply ?
89. What is meant by material, formal, efficient, and final causes?
90. Who, according t o Bible teaching, is the Efficient Cause of all
aspects of the Cosmos? (cf. Psa. 3:6, 9; also Psa. 148:6-6.)
91. How are the Spirit-power, Thought-power, and Ward-power of
God inter-related?
order? What must the fact
o all foems of life.
96. Relate Spirit in God t o regeneration, sanctification, and im-
mortalization.
96. What is the significance of the divine prohibition of idqlatry?
97. What is implicit in the Biblical revelation of God a s the Zzvzng God?
98. What is the significance of the Biblical NAME of God (Exo.3 :14) ?
99. What is the significance of the Old Testament teaching, “The
Lord our God is one Lord”?
100. Explain Aristotle’s Four Causes. How related t o the Biblical
revelation of God?
101. Is is possible to eliminate Efficient Causality from any study of
the origin and preservation of the Cosmos? Explain your answer.
102. What according t o Aquinas, i s the “proper effect” of God? Explain.
103. Explain what is meant by the “everywhereness” of the Spirit.
Cite Scriptures which affirm it.
104. I n what sense is everywhereness a characteristic of personality?
106. I n what sense does the Thought-power of the Spirit evince His
everywhereness ?
106. Explain how Spirit in God includes His inexhaustibleness. Relate
John 7 :37-39 t o this truth.
107. I n what respect does Spirit in God signify creativity? How is this
t r u t h related t o regeneration, sanctification and immortalization?
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SPIRIT IN GOD
108, Explain how Spirit in God is related to the natural sociality of
man, and especially to the fellowship of the redeemed.
109. How did the early Christian fellowship of the saints find expression?
110. What i s the full significance of the phrase, "the communion of
the Spirit"?
111. Explain how Spirit in God signifies Itoliwess. What does this
word mean?
112. Around whom does the spirit of God integrate the personality
of each of His saints?
113. In what final change does the Christian personality become a
whole?
114. What powers does personalit@in God, as well as in man, include?
115, What i s revealed t o be God's Eternal Purpose for the redeemed?
Cite Scriptures,
116. In what sense does personality in God mean uniqueness?
117. In what sense does it mean otherness? What significance does
this truth have for the prayer life and personal worship of the
Christian?
118. Is there any point in regarding God as "superpersonal"? Explain.
119. Can the notion of impersonality as related t o God have any mean-
ing for us?
120. Summarize all that Spirit in God in God includes.
361
PART FIVE
THE
NOMENCLATURE
OF T H E SPIRIT
363
1. Names and Titles of the Spirit

There are some eighty-eight passages in the Old Testament,
and two hundred and sixty-two in the New, in which the Spirit
is directly mentioned. (Vide James Elder Cumming, Through the
Et‘ernal Spirit, 36, 44. A few of these passages are doubtful, but
the doubtful ones are of no great consequence.) It would be
well to note at this point the names and titles which the Spirit,
the Author of Scripture, applies to Himself in these various
passages, bearing in mind of course that all Biblical names are
especially meaningful.
In the Old Testament, the Spirit designates Himself (1)
“The Spirit of God” (Gen. 1:2, 41:38; Exo. 31:3, 35; 31; Num.
24:2; 1 Sam. 10:10, 19:20, 25; 2 Chron. 15:1, 24:20; Job 33:4;
Ezek. 11:24). (2) “The Spi t of Jehovah” (Judg. 3:lO; 6:34,
11:29,13:25; 14:6, 19; 15:14; SAm. 10:6, 16:13, 14; 2 Sam. 23:2;
1 Ki. 18:12, 22:24; 2 Ki. 11:16; 2 Chron. 18:23, 20:14; Isa. 11:2,
63: 14; Ezek. 11:5; 37: 1; Micah 2: 7, 3: 8). (3) “The Spirit of the
Lord Jehovah” (ha. 6 1 : l ) . (4) “Good Spirit” (Neh. 9:20).
(5) “Holy Spirit” (Psa. 5 1 : l l ; Isa. 63:10, 11). (6) “Spirit of
wisdom” (Exo. 28:3, Deut. 34:9). Cf. Isa. ll:2-‘‘The Spirit of
.
Jehovah . . the spirit-of wisdom and understanding, the spirit
of counsel and might, the spirit of knowledge and of the fear
of Jehovah” (the sevenfold or perfect Spirit).
The designations given by the Spirit to Himself in the Ne*
Testament are classified by Cumming as follows:
1. Those which express His relationship to the Father: (1)
“The Spirit of God” (Matt. 3:16). (2) ‘(TheSpirit of the Lord”
(Luke 4: 18; here evidently of the Father, Acts 5: 9, 8: 39; in these
passages the term “Lord” probably has reference to Christ).
(3) “The Spirit of our God” (1 Cor. 6 : l l ) . (4) “The Spirit of
the living God” (2 Cor. 3:3). (5) “The Spirit of your Father’’
(Matt. 10: 20). (6) “The Spirit of Glory and the Spirit of God”
( 1 Pet. 4: 1 4 ) . (7) “The Promise of the Father” (Acts 1:4 ) .
2. Those which express His relationship to the Son: (1)
“The Spirit of Christ” (Rom. 8:9, 1Pet. 1:ll). (2) “The Spirit
of Jesus Christ” (Phil. 1: 19). (3) “The Spirit of Jesus” (Acts
16:7). (4) “The Spirit of His [God’s] Son” (Gal. 4:6). (5)
“Paraclete” or “Comforter” (John 14: 16). This last designa-
tion describes the special relationship of the Holy Spirit to the
Apostles of Christ.
3. “hose signifying His o w n essentiaI deity: (1) “One Spirit”
1. Cumming, op. Cit., 48-60.
364
(Eph. 4: 4). (2) “Seven Spirits’’ (the PerEect Spirit, Rev, 1:4;
3 : l ) . (3) “The Lord the Spirit” (2 Cor. 3:18). (4) “The
Eternal Spirit” (Heb. 9: 14).
4. Those which express His spiritual attributes: (1) “Holy
Spirit” (Matt. 1:18, 28:19, etc.). (2) “The Holy One” (1 John
2: 20),
5 , Those which express the gifts that He bestows: (1) “The
Spirit of Life” (Rom. 8: 2 ) . (2) “The Spirit of I-Ioliness” (Rom.
1 : 4 ) , (3) “Spirit of Wisdom” (Eph. 1 : 4 ) , (Cf. Isa. 11:2.) (4)
“The Spirit of Faith” (2 Cor, 4: 13). (5) “The Spirit of Truth”
(John 14:17, 16:13). (6) “The Spirit of Grace” (Heb. 10:29;
cf. Zech. 12:lO: “the Spirit of Grace and of Supplication”). (7)
“The Spirit of Adoption” (Rom. 8:15). (8) “Spirit of Glory”
(1Pet. 4: 14).
There are numerous Scriptures which identify the Holy
Spirit of the New Testament with the Spirit of God of the Old.
For instance, in Luke 4:18-19, Jesus is represented as quoting
a prominent Old Testament prophecy as follows: “The Spirit of
the Lord is upon me, because he anointed me to preach good
tidings to the poor: He hath sent me to proclaim release to the
captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty
them that are bruised, to proclaim the acceptable year of the
Lord.” This is the passage from Isa. 61: 1-2, in which practically
the same words are attributed to “the Spirit of the Lord Je-
hovah.” Again, by correlating Acts 2: 17-21. and the second
chapter of Joel, we find that the Spirit who inspired Joel’s
prophecy and the Spirit who inspired Peter’s sermon on the
day of Pentecost were one and the same Spirit. Again, in Matt.
22:43, Jesus says, “How then doth David in the Spirit call him
Lord, saying, The Lord said unto my Lord,” etc., quoting from
Psalm llO:l, where David, under the inspiration of the Spirit,
said: “Jehovah saith unto my Lord, Sit thou at my right hand
until I make thine enemies thy footstool.” Also, in Acts 4:25,
we read (the words of the apostolic “company” in Jerusalem
uttered in prayer) . , , who by the Holy Spirit, by the mouth
of our father David thy servant, didst say,” etc., and the quo-
tation that immediately follows is from Psalm 2:l-2. Again, in
Acts 1: 16, the Apostle Peter is represented as saying, “Brethren,
it was needful that the scripture should be fulfilled, which the
Holy Spirit spake before by the mouth of David concerning
Judas,” etc. The passages immediately quoted are from the
Psalms of David 69: 25 and 109: 8) And in Heb. 3: 7 ff., we read:
I
“Wherefore, even as the Holy Spirit saith, Today if ye shall

365
heaF his voice, harden not your hearts,” etc. The passage quoted
here is from Psalm 95: 7 ff. Referring back to the Old Testament
regarding David’s inspiration, we read in 1 Sam. 16:13: “Then
Samuel took the horn of oil, and anointed him in the midst of
his brethren; and the Spirit of Jehovah came mightily upon David
from that day forward.” And we find David himself saying, 2
Sam. 23:2, “The Spirit of Jehovah spake by me, and his word
ngue,” These various passages definitely identify
of the New Testament$with the Spirit of Jehovah
of the Old. Finally, in this connection, we read, 2 Pet. k21,
“For no prophecy ever came by the will of man; but men spake
from God, being moved by the Holy Spirit.’’ But in 1 Pet.
1:lO-11, we are told that the Spirit who inspired the Hebrew
prophets was the Spirit of Christ: “Concerning which salva-
tion the prophets sought and searched diligently, who prophesied
of the grace that should come unto you: searching what time
or what manner of time the Spirit of Christ which was in them
did point unto, when it testified beforehand the s
Christ, and the glories that should follow them.”
correlation of pertinent Scriptures we hade positive proof that
the Spirit of Jehovah, the Spirit of Christ, and the Holy Spirit,
are designations of one and the same Spirit, the Eternal Spirit
(Heb. 9: 14).
2. Significance of Certain Names of the Spirit

Undoubtedly the Holy Spirit, as the Author of Revelation,
encountered difficulties in making His ways, and the ways of
the Godhead in general, intelligible to men. We may reasonably
suppose, it seems to me, that this revelation necssitated (1)
that spiritual concepts, concepts denoting spiritual realities, be
communicated in spiritual terms (cf. 1 Cor. 2: 13-“combining
spiritual things with. spiritual words”) ; and (2) that they be
communicated in the language or languages extant at the time
the revelation was given. Now the paucity of ancient languages
as vehicles of such spiritual communication must have been a
formidable barrier to the Spirit’s accomplishment of His task. A
word was needed, for example, to signify the metaphysical as-
pect of the Spirit. But there was none. Today of course we have
the terms “person” and “personality.” Another word was needed
to signify the ethical aspect of the Spirit’s being and activity.
But again, no such word was available, at least no such word
hat was clean of the taint of ceremonial connotation. Is it to
366
be wondered at, then, that the Spirit resorted to symbol, meta-
phor, poetic imagery, and even anthropomorphism, to embody
His revelation in terms of human comprehension?
Despite these facts, however, the nomenclature employed
by the Spirit in the Bible to describe His being and His opera-
tions, and the operations of the Godhead in general, is both in-
teresting and revealing, A brief survey of this nomenclature, at
this point in our study, will be helpful to our understanding of
the Biblical doctrine of the Spirit as a whole. Such a survey
begins logically with an examination of the import of the names
and titles which the Holy Spirit gives to Himself, as follows:
1. “The Spirit.” The Hebrew word ruach occurs 400 times
in the Old Testament, and is rendered “spirit” 240 times, “breath”
28 times, ‘(wind” 95 times, “mind” 6 times, and in eighteen dif-
ferent ways in the remaining instances of its occurrence. The
Greek word pneuma is used by the inspired writers of the New
Testament as the equivalent in meaning of the Hebrew ruach.
Pneuma occurs 385 times in the New Testament, and is the only
word rendered “spirit.” (These figures are given by Benjamin
Wilson, in Alphabetical Index to The Emphatic Diaglott, under
“Spirit.”) (Anemos is the word commonly used for “wind” in
the New Testament; pnoE is used in Acts 2: &--“the rushing of a
mighty wind.”) Both ruach and pneuma signify wind (air in
motion) or breath; that is, something that moves (energizes,
vitalizes) and is not seen. Because air is a most powerful, though
subtle and invisible agent, it is used in Scripture, metaphorically,
for a variety of things which cannot be sense-perceived. Ruach
rendered “spirit,” is also used (but rather loosely) to indicate
(1) the life principle-“animal soul’’-of a brute, referring of
course to a brute’s conscious life (Eccl. 3: 21) ; (2) any incorporeal
(but probably ethereal) substance, as opposed to flesh or
corporeal substance (Isa. 31:3, 1 Ki. 22:21-23); (3) most fre-
quently the life principle-“rational soul”-in man (Psa. 31: 5 ,
Job 32:8, etc.); (4) a passion, or motion, of the inner man (Mal.
2: 15-16,’ Isa. 19: 14). The metaphorical significance of wind and
breath in relation to the essence, nature and operations of the
Spirit of God will be fully discussed in the succeeding section.
The name “Spirit” is peculiarly and constantly ascribed in
Scripture to the Third Person of the Trinity. As Dr. John
Owen writes:
It declares his special Manner and Order of existence, so t h a t
wherever the Holy Spirit is mentioned, his relation t o the Father and
Son is included; f o r he is the Spirit of God. And herein is an allusion
to the breath of man; for as the vital breath o l man h a s a continual
367
emanation from him, and yet is never so utterly separated from his
person a s t o forsake, him; so the Spirit of the Father and the Son
proceedeth from them by a continual divine emanation, still abiding
one with them. Hence our Savior signified the communication of the
Spirit t o his disciples by breathing on them (John 20:22) ?
2. “The Spirit of Clod,” “The Spirit of Jehovah.” Ruach
Elohim: Spirit of God. Spirit of Jehovah: literally, Spirit of
Yahweh. These two names are characteristic of the Old Testa-
ment especially, although their equivalent occurs in the New
(e.g., Matt. 3:16, to pneuma t o u theou, theos being the Greek
equivalent for “God”; also 1 Cor. 6: 11, 2 Cor. 3:3, 1 Pet. 4: 14).
Elohim is the plural form intHebrew; hence, this name is prob-
ably used, as, for example, in designating the God of the Crea-
tion (Gen. l:l), to intimate the triune personality of God. As
Delitzsch puts it: “The Trinitas is the plurality of Elohim which
becomes manifest in the New Testament.”a The name Jehovah
( Y a h w e h ) , on the other hand, would seem t o designate God in
His unity or uniqueness. In fact, the name Elohim seems to be
used generally throughout the Old Testament to designate God
as the Creator and Sovereign of the universe, whereas Jehovah
is the name employed to indicate His Uniqueness, Personality,
Benevolence, Saviorhood. Commenting on this use of the two
Divine Names in the Old Testament, on the basis of which some
very fantastic critical theories of the Old Testament text have
been evolved, J. P. Lange says
Although there is much in s in favor of the distinction of
Elohistic and Jehovistic record the f a c t made prominent by
Hengstenberg and others cannot be depied, viz., that the names Elohim
and Jehovah are throughout so distinguished, t h a t the one prevails ih
those passages which speak of the general relation of God t o the
world, the other in those# in which the theocratic relation of God to
his people and kingdom rises into prominence. This contrast, embraced
by the unity of the consciousness of faith in revelatiod, not only runs
through the Pentateuch, but appears in a marked form in the opposition
between the general docCrine of wisdom a s viewed by Solomon, and the
Davidic theocratic doctrine of the Messiah. I t pervades the Old ’I’esta-
ment Apocrypha, in the New Testament celebrates its transfiguration
in the contrast b-tween the Gospel of John, his doctrine of the Logos
on the one side, and the synoptical and Petrino-Pauline view on the
other; and finally, in the opposition between the Christian and ecclesi-
astical doginatism, and the Christian and social humanitarianism, runs
through the history of the church, manifesting itself in the Reformation
through the twin forms, Luther and Melanchthon, Calvin and Zwingli.:’
1. John Owen, A Discourse Concerning the Holy Spi.ri6, abridged by
George Burder, 34-35.
2. Vide Delitzsch, Genesis, 66 ff.
3. John Peter Lange, Introduction to the Old Testament Gonesis, 33.
Translated by Lewis and Gosman. Critical, Doctrinal and Homiletical
Commentary on the Holy Scriptures, Vol. 1 o f the Old Testament. Fifth
Edition Revised.
368
Again:
We assume t h a t Elohim relates to the circum€erential revelation
of God in the world and its powers (Isa. 40:28), as Jehovah relates
.
t o the central revelation of God in Christ. , , We repeat it: The pure
and harmonious contrast of Elohim and Jehovah will be recognized
only in the contrast of the universalistic and the theocratic revelation
of God and idea of religion,-only in the combination of Melchisedek
and Abraham of human culture and theocracy, civilization and church-
dom (not civhzation and Christianity, because Christianity embrace:
both, just as the religious ConscioufineSs of faith in the Old Covcnant.)
On the same point, Delitzsch comments:
The creation is the beginning and the completion of everything
created, according to its idea, is the end, The kingdom of power is t o
become the kingdom of glory. In the midst lies the kingdom of grace,
whose essential content is the redemption. Jehovah is the God who
mediates between middle and end in the course of this history, in one
word, the Redeemer.
Thus the name Jehovah is commonly employed by the in-
spired writers in those passages in which God is represented as
dealing with His creatures in acts of goodness, mercy or judg-
ment; indeed some scholars are inclined to think that the name
signifies in particular the Second Person of the Trinity. In some
Old Testament passages the two names are combined, as Y a h w e h
Elohim, (as in Gen. 2:7, the more detailed account of the crea-
tion of man); the combined name probably signifies the joint
exercise of omnipotence and benevolence. In any case, how-
ever, that is, regardless of the name used for the Deity, the
Spirit is the Spirit of the living God (2 Cor. 3 : 3 ) . Moreover,
as we have seen already, the Scriptures explicitly identify the
Spirit of God of the Old Testament with the Holy Spirit of the
New.
3. The “Good Spirit” of God. Neh. 9:2O--“Thou gavest also
thy good Spirit to instruct them.” Psa. 143:lO--“Teach me to
do thy will; For thou art my God: Thy Spirit is good” (marginal
rendering: “Let thy good Spirit lead me”). The Spirit is so
called because He is essentially good, and because His operations
are all good as to design and productive only of good effects in
believers.
4. “The Spirit of God’s Son,” “The Spirit of Christ,” “The
Spirit of Jesus: “The Spirit of Jesus Christ,” By correlating
such passages as Gal. 4:6, Rom. 8:9-11,1 Pet. 1:lO-12, Acts
16:6-8, Phil. 1:19, etc., we find that the Holy Spirit and the
Spirit of Christ are one and the same Spirit. (1) He is not
1. o p . oit., 112.
2. Delitzsch, Genesis, 66 ff.
called the Spirit of Christ, however, because God the Father
anointed Jesus of Nazareth “with the Holy Spirit and with
power’’ (Acts 10:38) on the occasion of the baptismal scene at
the Jordan River (Matt. 3: 16-17, Luke 3:21-22). On the con-
trary, He was antecedently, in fact from all eternity, the Spirit
of Christ. In 1 Pet. 1:lO-12, we are told that it was the Spirit
of Christ who inspired the Hebrew Prophets to utter their
Messianic predictions. But Christ’s human nature did not yet
exist, Le., in the time of the Prophets. We must conclude, there-
fore, that it was only the human nature of Christ which re-
ceived the Divine anointing with the Holy Spirit at the Jordan
River. The Holy Spirit is eternally the Spirit of the Son (Logos)
as well as of the Father. (2) He is called the Spirit of Christ
because, since the return of the Son ,to the “Father,.He,the
Spirit, proceeds from the Son also.
John 14:16, 17-1 will pray the Father, and he shall give you
another Comforter . .. even the Spirit of truth, etc. John 14:26-But
the Comforter, even the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my
name, etc. John 15:26--But when the Comforter is come, whom I wlll
send unto you from the Father, even the Spirit of truth, which pro-
ceedeth from the Father, etc. Luke 24:49-Behold, I send the promise
of my F a t h e r upon you,
These statements were all addressed by Jesus to those men
who were to be qualified for the apostleship. Hence we read in
John 20:22, that just before His a&&ision the Father, “he
breathed on them, and saith unto them, Receive ye the Holy
Spirit,”-a symbolic act which received its fulfilment on the
Day of Pentecost following (Acts 2:l-4). This breathing upon
them by Jesus certainly signified that the Spirit, in coming upon
them to clothe them with infallibility and authority, was to
proceed from the Son as well as from the Father. The Promise
of the Father was of course the Holy Spirit Himself. (3) He is
called the Spirit of Christ, because He was sent by the Son to
effectuate, in the hearts and lives of the saints, the latter’s
work of mediation.
John 1 6 : l P H e shall glorify me; for he shall take of mine, and
shall ,declare it unto you. Acts 1:8-Ye shall receive power, when the
Holy Spirit is come upon you; and ye shall be my witnesses both in
Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and unto the uttermost part
of the earth. John 16:7, 8-It is expedient for you that I go away;
for if I go not away, the Comforter will not come unto you; but if
I go, I will send him unto you. And he, when he is come, will convict
the world bf sin, and of righteousness, and of ‘udgment. 1 Cor. 6:ll-
But ye were washed, but ye were sanctified, gut ye were ustified in
the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, and in the Spirit of our hod. 2 Cor.
3:17, 18-Now t h e Lord is the Spirit: and where the Spirit of the
370
Lord is, there is liberty. But We all, with unveiled face beholding
as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, a r e transformed into the same
image from glory to glory, even a s from the Lord the Spirit. 2 Thess,
2:13-God chose you from the beginning unto salvation, in sanctifica-
. .
tion of the Spirit and belief of the t r u t h , 1 Pet. 1:Z-elect . ac-
cording to the foreknowledge of God the Father, in sanctification o f
the Spirit, unto obedience and sprinkling of the blood of Jesus Christ,
[Cf. the w?Sds of Jesus] John 6:63-the words t h a t I have spoken unto
you are spirit, and are life.
(4) He is called the Spirit of Christ, because He acts as
the Agent of Christ, the Head of the Church, throughout the
present dispensation. This is the Dispensation of the Spirit.
God dwells in the Church, His sanctuary, in the Person of the
Spirit (Eph. 2:22); and Christ, as Head of the Church, adminis-
ters its affairs through the agency of the Spirit. The Communion
of the Spirit (2 Cor. 13:14) is the bond of our fellowship with
both the Father and the Son (1 John 1:3), The Spirit who
indwells every member of the Body is the Holy Spirit (1 Cor.
6: 19),the Spirit of Christ (Rom. 8: 9).
5 , “The Power of the Most High.” The Spirit is so called to
denote His efficacy as the Agent of the Godhead; He exerts the
power of the Most High as His own power; He is the Spirit of
Power.
Luke 1:36 [the words of the Angel Gabriel to the Virgin]: The
shall overshadow thee; wherefore also the holy thing which is begotten
shall be called the Son of God. [This power is exerted, however, through
means, and the means is the Word. Hence the Angel’s closing statement] :
For no word from God shall be void of power. Cf. Rom. 15:13, 18-
Now the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, that
.
ye may abound in hope, in the power of the Holy Spirit . . For I
will not dare to speak of any things save those which Christ wrought
through me, for the obedience of the Gentiles, by word and deed, in
the power of signs and wonders, in the power of the Holy Spirit.
6. “Paraclete.” This name is used only four times in the
New Testament (never in the Old), and all four times to desig-
nate the Holy Spirit; and it is used all four times by Jesus Him-
self in His discourses to the Eleven as recorded in the four-
teenth, fifteenth and sixteenth chapters of John’s Gospel. The
name designates-and describes-only the relationships sus-
tained by the Spirit to the Apostles. To the Apostles He was
Advocate, Companion, Comforter, Monitor, Guide, etc.; the term
Paraclete seems to embrace all these meanings.
7. “The Holy Spirit.” This designation, occurring rarely in
the Old Testament, prevails throughout the New Testament.
(1) There are some actions wrought upon men, by God’s suf-
ferance, by evil spirits whose personalities and acts are opposed
_- 371
to the Spirit of God. 1 Samuel 16:14, 15--“Now the Spirit of
Jehovah departed from Saul, and an evil spirit from Jehovah
troubled him, And Saul’s servants said unto him, Behold now,
an evil spirit from God troubleth thee;” etc. (cf. 1 Sam. 16:23,
18:10, 19:9, etc.). This does not mean that the evil spirit
emanated from God, but that it was commissioned by Him to
punish and terrify Saul, and thus perchance ta lead him to
repentance. The Spirit of Jehovah having withdrawn from him
those influences whereby he was commissioned for his kingly
office, and as a reg& of which he had been temporarily a changed
man (cf. 1 Sam, 10:6-9), the evil spirit came upon him out of
his o w n meIancholy and out of his distempered mind and body,
to. excite discontent, a sense of guilt, and terrifying apprehension.
This, however, was but an execution of the righteous judgment
of God; it was an example of the manner in which God can
make use of evil agents to His own glory, In similar manner,
a Watcher and a Holy One from heaven smote King Nebuchad-
nezzar with madness (Dan, 4:13-18, 28-33). (2) The Spirit of
God is the antithesis of every unclean or unholy spirit. Mark
3: 29, 30-Jesus, to the scribes: “But whosoever shall blaspheme
against the Holy Spirit hath never forgiveness, but is guilty of
an eternal sin: because they [the scribes] said, He hath an un-
clean spirit.” (3) God is described, in virtue of the glorious
perfection or wholeness of His nature, as “The Holy One” (Isa.
40: 25, 43: 15) ; “The Holy One of Israel” (2 Ki. 19:22) ; “Glorious
in Holiness’’ (Exo. 15: 11); “Holy, Holy, Holy” (Isa. 6: 3) ; “The
High and Lofty One that inhabiteth eternity, whose name is
Holy” (ha. 57:15)’. Cf. Lev. 19:2-“I Jehovah your God am
holy.” In like manner, the Spirit is called Holy, to describe the
eternal glorious Holiness of His nature, (4) The Spirit is so
designated also with reference to His operations, all of which
are holy (that is, directed toward the perfection and wholeness
of the creature), and especially with refere to His works of
regeneration, sanctification, and immortaliz n. The designa-
tion points directly to the purifying and sanctifying powers of
the Spirit. He is the Holy Spirit (Psa. 51:11, Isa. 63:lO-11, and
in many passages in the New Testament) ; the Spirit of Holiness
(Rom. 1:4); The Holy One (1 John 2:20). And the Way of
the Spirit is called The Way of Holiness (Isa. 35:8).
The name Holy Spirit is used by way of eminence. No
higher revelation, no nobler conception, of God is possible. This
designation occurs chiefly, therefore, in the fulness of the light
of divinely revealed truth, that is, in the New Testament Scrip-
372
tures. Moreover, it embraces all the other names by which the
Spirit is designated in relation to His various gifts and endue-
ments, viz., “The Spirit of Truth,” “The Spirit of Wisdom,”
“The Spirit of Faith,” (‘TheSpirit of Grace,” “The Spirit of Life,”
“The Spirit of Adoption,” “The Spirit of Power,” and “The
Spirit of Glory.” These various names and titles will be elabor-
ated, in their proper contexts, in our subsequent work. They
designate the activities of the Spirit in connection with the
New, rather than with the Old, Creation.
3. Symbols and Metaphors of the Spirit

Scripture types, symbols, and metaphors of the Spirit are
especially meaningful. They give us deeper insight into His
nature and operations than mere language alone could possibly
convey. Moreover, we must remember that these symbols and
metaphors were selected by the Spirit Himself, largely because
of the inadequacy of words, to make as intelligible to us as
possible the nature of the Divine Being and the modes of His
activities. Among the more significant of these symbols and
metaphors of the Spirit, descriptive of His nature and operations,
are the following:
1. Breath. (1) The metaphor of breath suggests primarily
the Spirit’s mode of subsistence. He is the Breath of God in the
sense that, as the breath has a continual emanation from man
yet is never organically separated from him, so the Spirit pro-
ceeds from God by a continual Divine emanation and yet still
abides one with God. (2) This metaphor also designates the
Spirit as the Author and Source of Life. Among the ancients,
breath denoted the life principle in man; as long as a man
breathes, he is alive; when he ceases to breathe, he dies. In
like manner, the entrance of the Spirit, as the Breath of God,
signifies life o r union with God, and the departure of the Spirit
signifies death or loss of God, Cf. Gen. 7:22-“a11 in whose
nostrils was the breath [i.e., neshnmah, the bodily breath] of the
spirit [ruach] of life, of all that was on the dry land, died.”
Also Isa. 42: 5-“Thus saith God Jehovah, he that created the
heavens, and stretched them forth; he that spread abroad the
earth and that which cometh out of it; he that giveth breath
[neshamah] unto the people upon it, and spirit [ruach] to them
that walk therein.” In these passages, the bodily breath is ex-
plicitly connected with the “spirit of life,” and the “spirit of
life” is the Spirit of the living God, or at least an emanation
373
from the Spirit of the living God, (3) Thus it will be seen that
this metaphor of breath suggests also the effects of the Spirit’s
operations, in His giving of life and breath to all creatures (Acts
17:25); every form of life is, as we have seen, a gift of the
Divine Spirit. Thus the original impartation of all the potential-
ities of personal life to man is described in Scripture as a Divine
inbreathing. Gen. 2 : L “ A n d Jehovah God formed man of the
dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of
life; and man became a living soul.” Here we have a graphic
picture of the Almighty stooping down and placing His lips
and nostrils upon the lips and nostrils of the lifeless body He had
just created, and expelling into it life-personal life-from His
own Being. Anthropomorphic, of course. But where in all
ancient literature can be found such an exalted conception,-
i
indeed it must have been a revelation, n mely, that the River
of Life, of the personal life which we oyrselves enjoy, has its
source in the Being of our God, from who? and by whose Spirit
first life was breathed into man at his creation?
Cf. Rev. 22:l-And he showed me a river of water of life, bright
a s crystal, proceeding out of the throne of God and of the Lamb. Gen.
1:27--And God created man in his own image, in the image of God
created he him; male and female created he them. Job 27:3-For my
life is yet whole in me, and the spirit of God is in my nostrils. Job
32:8--But there i s a spirit in .man, and the breath of the Almighty
giveth them understanding. [As the entrance of the Spirit brings life,
so the departure of the Spirit means death.] Gen. 6:3--My Spirit
shall not strive with man for ever, f a r t h a t he also is flesh. 1 Sam.
16:14--Now the Spirit of Jehovah departed from Saul, and an evil
spirit from Jehovah troubled him. [The departure of the Spirit marked
the beginning of Saul’s downward plunge, ending in suicide.] (4) John
20:21-23: The disciples therefore were glad when they saw the Lord.
Jesus therefore said t o them again, Peace be unto you; a s the Father
hath sent me, even so send I you. And when he had said this, he
breathed on them, and saith unto them, Receive ye the Holy Spirit:
whose soever sins ye forgive, they are forgiven unto them; whose
soever sins ye retain, they are retained.
In this manner, Jesus, just before His ascension to the
Father, symbolically indicated the coming of the Holy Spirit
upon the Apostles to qualify them with His own infallibility
and authority. “he actual advent of the Spirit took place of
course a few days later, on the Day of Pentecost (Acts 2:l-4).
Moreover, this advent of the Spirit upon the Apostles on the
Day of Pentecost marked the beginning of the New Creation,
the new spiritual life in Christ enjoyed by all the saints of, God.
The Church, the Body of Christ, vitalized by the indwelling
Spirit, is God’s sanctuary throughout the present dispensation
(Eph. 2: 22). And finally, the communion or “sharing together”
374
of the enduements of the Spirit,, by the saints, is the bond of
their union with God through Christ, hence the earnest of their
enjoyment of spiritual life,
1 John 6:12--He that hath the Son hath the life; he t h a t hath not
the Son of God hath not the life, Rom. 8:2-For the law of the Spirit
of life in Christ Jesus made me free from the law of sin and of death.
Eph. 1:20-22: Christ Jesus Himself being the chief corner stone, in
whom each several building, fitly framed together, groweth into a
holy temple in the Lord; in whom ye also a r e builded together for a
habitation of God in the Spirit. 2 Cor. 1:22-God, who also sealed us,
and gave us the earnest of the Spirit in our hearts. 2 Cor. 6:S-Now
he that wrought us for this very thing [immortality] is God, who gave
us the earnest of the Spirit. Eph. 1:13, 14-in whom [Christ], having
also believed, ye were sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise, which
i s an earnest of our inheritance, unto the redemption of God’s own
possession, unto the praise of his glory.
The Breath of God is the source of every form of life in the
universe-corporeal, personal, spiritual, etevnal. ( 5 ) Finally,
this metaphor of breath suggests the intimate union existing be-
tween the activity of the Spirit and that of the Word: as words
accompany the breath from the mouth of man, so the Word ac-
companies the Spirit from the Being of God. His Spirit and His
Word go together; or, to speak more precisely, the Spirit oper-
ates through the instrumentality of the Word.
Acts 9 :1-Saul, yet breathing threatening and slaughter against
the disciples of the Lord, went unto the high priest, etc. [How did
Saul breathe threatening and slaughter against the disciples? Through
words, of course. Thought is communicated by persons through the
medium of words.] Psa. 33:6, 9-By t h e word of Jehovah were the
heavens made, and all the host of them by the breath of his mouth. .
For he spake, and i t was done; he commanded, and i t stood fast. Heb.
..
11:3-By faith we understand that the worlds have been framed by
the word of God, so t h a t what i s seen hath not been made out of things
which appear.
Spirit-power of God is in the Word. The expulsion of the
Divine Word, revealing the Divine Will, resulted in the physical
creation. Thoughts are indeed things. Moreover, as it was with
respect to the Old or Physical Creation, so it is with respect
to the New Spiritual Creation: the Spirit operates (breathes)
through the Word in the begetting of spiritual life. The Gospel
is “the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth”
(Rom. 1:16), because the Spirit is in it and operates through it.
Luke 8:ll-The seed [of the Kingdom] is the word of God. 1 Pet.
1:23-having been begotten again, not of corruptible seed, but of in-
corruptible, through the word of God, which liveth and abideth. Jas.
1:lE-Of his own will he brought us forth by the word of truth. Cf.
the words of Jesus, John G:G3--It is the spirit t h a t giveth life; the
flesh profiteth nothing: the words t h a t I have spolcen unto you a r e
375
NAL SPIRIT - HIS PERSON AND POWERS
spirit, and are life. Jas. 1:21-receive with meekness the implanted
word, which is able to save your souls.
Finally, the communication by the Spirit of Divine t
and words to chosen instrumentalities, and through the
mankind, is described under the same general metaphor. In-
spired literature is God-breathed,literature. Inspiration and con-
sequent revelation are primarily works of the Spirit of God
(cf. 1 Cor. 2: 9-15).
2. Wind. (1) This metaphor of wind or air in motion is
descriptive primarily of the Spirit’s nature or essence as a pure
spiritual or immaterial being. So it is said of God, John 4:24,
that He is a Spirit, i e . , of a pure spiritual o r immaterial nature,
not confined to place, nor regarding any one person or people
more than another in His worship, the truth which Jesus espe-
cially designs to evince to us in this particular text. (2) This
metaphor is also descriptive of the operations of the Spirit which
in so many respects resemble those of the wind in*thephysical
world. Wind may come in an onrush, with the impact of a tor-
nado, or it may come in a gentle breeze; so the activity of the
Spirit may take the form of an invasive energy (as in Ezek.
37:1-10, Acts 2: 1-4),‘or it may take the form of a gentle vivifying
and purifying influence. This general idea may be what’Jesus
designs to teach in John 3: 8 (granting of course
is correctly translated in the re
very much) : “The wind blowet e it will, and thou hearest
the voice thereof, but knowe whence it cometh, and
whither it goeth:‘ so is every one that is born of the Spirit.”
Here we have a parallelism, if this rendering be correct, between
the unknown ways of the wind and the unknown points of ap-
plication to the human spirit of the mighty energy of the living
God. The sound of wind in the trees or against barriers, and
other effects that the rapid motions of the air produces, provides
a lively. metaphor of the mysterious working, bre the
Divine Spirit, whose “voice” or “word” may be ose
effects are present to our sense and consciousness, but the be-
ginnings and endings of which are always lost in God. That is to
say, the mode of the Spirit’s operation in the spiritual world-
upon the minds and hearts of men-is best represented by that
of the air or wind in the physical world, the principal point of
resemblance being that both operations are manifest primarily,
not in themselves (tliat is, not in the corning and going of either
Spirit or wind), but in their effects. (3) The Spirit’s advent on
the Day of Pentecost was manifested outwardly by “a sound
376
as of the rushing of a mighty wind” and by “tongues parting
asunder, like as of fire” (Acts 2:l-4). These were evidential
manifestations which could be seen and heard by the people of
Jerusalem, as Peter explicitly stated in his sermon on that oc-
casion (Acts 2: 33)- This entire divine demonstration was meta-
phorical, of course, of the coming of the Spirit and the Word-
or rather, of the Spirit with the Word-upon the Apostles in
baptismal or overwhelming measure: they were all “filled with
the Holy Spirit” @e., completely overwhelmed, or to speak by
way of analogy, hypnotized, by Him), and “began to speak with
other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance” (Acts 2 : 4 ) .
They were completely under the power of the Spirit, even as a
subject is under the mental power of a hypnotist; and they spake
only the words suggested to them by the Spirit. This coming
of the Spirit on Pentecost in invasive power IS reminiscent of
the coming of the wind in a great onrush into the Valley of Dry
Bones, in Ezekiel’s Vision (Ezek. 37: 1-10), Generally speaking,
however, the Spirit operates, as in regeneration and in sanctifi-
cation, with the quietness, yet all-pervasiveness of the atmos-
phere by which we are surrounded all the time, and which we
inbreathe as essential to our physical life. Cf. Zech. 4:6-“Not
by might, nor by power, but by my Spirit, saith Jehovah of hosts.”
Cf. also the experience of Elijah, 1 Ki. 19:9-14: Jehovah was
neither in the strong wind nor in the earthquake nor in the fire,
but in “a still small voice.” (4) To carry on the metaphor, As
the air around us is necessary to our physical life, so the Spirit
is necessary to our life spiritually. We cannot grow physically
without air, nor can we grow spiritually without the Spirit.
When we cease to breathe, we die; and when we yield up the
(natural) spirit within us, the body dies (cf. Luke 23:46, John
19:30). And when we quench the Spirit, our spirits die; we
separate ourselves from God; this is the second death (1 Thess.
5: 19, Rev. 21: 8). Nicodemus was inclined to look upon spiritual
birth as something unexplainable, even inconceivable. Not so,
said Jesus in substance; the Spirit’s workings are no more
mysterious than the operations of the wind in the world of
nature around us. The wind of course is not under our direc-
tion nor at our disposal; neither is the Spirit. There is scarcely
any limit to the application of this remarkable metaphor. In
the light of these truths, what infinite wisdom the Spirit Himself
manifested in representing Himself and His operations to us
under the Hebrew and Greek words, ruach and pneuma re-
spectively! (See special note on John 3: 8 at the end of this part)
377
3. The Dove. (1) Matt. 3:16, 17-”And Jesus, when he was
baptized, went up straightway from the water: and lo, the
heavens were opened unto him, and he saw the Spirit of God
descending as a dove, and coming upon him; and lo, a voice
out of the heavens, saying, This is rny beloved Son, in whom I
am well pleased.” The language here (and in Mark’s account
also, Mark 1:lO-11, which parallels that of Matthew) is some-
what ambiguous. The phrase, “the Spirit of God descending as
a dove and coming upon him” (Mark 1:lO-“the Spirit as a
dove descending upon him”) may have reference to the f o ~ m
in which the Spirit made His appearance, or it may have refer-
ence to the munner of the Spirit’s descending, that is, as a dove
descends gently upon her nest. Fortunately, Luke throws some
additional light on this problem in his account of the incident:
“The Holy Spirit,” he says, “descended in a bodily form, as a
dove, upon him.” (Vide Luke 3: 21, 22). Thus, in the light of
this additional bit of ihformation, the language of the Synoptic
biographers in describing this incident would seem to have a
double meaning, namely, (1) that the Spirit descended, not in
the form of a real dove, but in a luminous (shall we say ecto-
plasmic?) configuration resembling the form of a dove: and
(2) that He descended not only in this dove-like form but also in
the gentle manner in which a dove descends upon her nest.
Moreover, in the Fourth Gospel, we have the further testimony
of John the Baptizer, that the Spirit not only descended upon
Jesus, but also abode upon, Him, John 1:32-34: .“And John
bare witness, saying, I have beheld the Spirit descending as a
dove out of heaven; and it abode upon him. And I knew him
not: but he that sent me to baptize in water, he said unto me,
Upon whomsoever. thou shalt see the Spirit descending, and
abiding upon him, the same is he that baptizeth in the Holy
Spirit. And I have seen, and have borne witness that this is the
Son of God.” (Cf. Luke 3:2-“In the high priesthood of Annas
and Caiaphas, the word of God came unto John the son of
Zacharias in the wilderness.”) In any case, this radiant glorious
Form both Jesus and John saw descending out of heaven, then,
bird-like, sinking, hovering, brooding over the Head of the Sin-
less One, and then alighting, as it were, upon Him and abiding
there. In all probability, in likening to a dove this cloud of
glory descending through the clear heaven and abiding upon
the head of the baptized Jesus, John was recalling the rab-
binical comment (in the Talmud) on Gen. 1:2, “The Spirit of
God like a dove brooded over the waters.” “It was not a real
378
THE NOMENCLATURE OF THB SPIRIT
dove,” writes John Owen, “that appeared, but some ethereal
substance, something of a fiery nature, I conceive, in the form of
a dove; and this rendered the appearance more visible, heavenly
and glorious.”‘ Moreover, the motions of a dove-those of
whirling, hovering, fluttering, settling down-make the sym-
bolism of this incident all the more vivid.
(2) It should be noted, too, that the New Testament writers
are unanimous in affirming expressly that the heavens were
opened to make way for the descent of this dove-like Form,
the visible symbol of the procession of the Spirit from the
Being of God. Cf. John 15:26-“But when the Comforter is
come, whom I will send unto you from the Father, even the
Spirit of truth, which proceedeth from the Father,” etc.
(3) This manifestation of the Spirit, under the emblem of
a dove or dove-like form, was the anointing of Jesus to His
holy offices of Prophet, Priest, and King. (Only His human
nature was thus anointed, however,) This was an official act
of the government of Heaven: it was God Himself who thus
anointed His Son “with the Holy Spirit and with power” (Acts
10:38). Hence, we read that, immediately following the Bap-
tism and Temptation, Jesus inaugurated His earthly ministry in
Galilee.
And Jesus returned in the power of the Spirit into Galilee; and a
fame went out concerning him through all the region round about.
And he taught in their synagogues, being glorified of all. And he
came to Nazareth, where he had been brought u p ; and he entered, as
his custom was, into the synagogue on the sabbath day, and stood up
to read, And there was delivered unto him the book of the prophet
Isaiah. And he opened the book, and found the place where i t was
written, The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, Because he anointed me
to preach good tidings t o the poor; He hath sent me to proclaim re-
lease t o the captives, And recovering of sight to the blind, To set at
liberty them that are bhised, To proclaim the acceptable year of the
Lord. And he closed the book, and gave it back t o the attendant, and
sat down: and the eyes of all in the synagogue were fastened on him.
And he began t o say unto them, To-day hath this scripture been ful-
filled in your ears. [Luke 4:14-21;cf. Isa. 61:l ff.].
Thus it will be seen that Jesus explicitly interpreted the language
of Isaiah as having reference to Himself, the Messiah.
(4) This descent of the Spirit in a dove-like form upon
Jesus at His baptism points back (a) to the Spirit’s “over-
shadowing” of the Virgin at His Incarnation (Luke 1:35), and
(2) to the Spirit’s brooding over the primordial Chaos at the
beginning of the Creation. Cf. Gen. 1:2-“And the earth was
waste and void; and darkness was upon the face of the deep;
1. John Owen, op. oit., 46.
379
and the Spirit of God was brooding upon the face of the waters.”
As Milton has put it so vividly:
And chiefly Thou, 0 Spirit, that dost prefer
Before all temples the upright heart and pure,
Instruct me, for Thou knowest; Thou from the first
Wast present, and with mighty wings outspread,
Dove-like, sat‘st brooding on the vast abyss,
And mad’st it pregnant.’
“As at the beginning of the old creation,” writes Johh Owen,
“the Spirit of God moved on the waters, cherishing and com-
municating a prolific, vivifying quality to the whole, as a dove
gently moves upon its eggs, communicating vital heat; so at
the new creation, he comes as a dove upon him who was the
immediate author of it.”’
( 5 ) In the descent of the Holy Spirit in a dove-like form
upon Jesus at His baptism, there may be an allusion also to
Noah’s dove. Two times the patriarch sent forth the dove from
the Ark, and two times she returned, thus signifying that the
earth was not yet fully renovated for the habitation of the
righteous (Gen. 8:s-11). But the third time the dove was
sent forth, she did not return. Gen. 8:12-“And he [Noah]
stayed yet other seven days, and sent forth the dove; and she
returned not again qnto him any more.” Does not this incident
teach us that as the dove, the emblem of purity, found her
proper habitat only in the renovated earth, an earth purged of
all vice and sin, so the Holy Spirit can find His proper habitat
only in the pure in heart? Matt. 5:8-“Blessed are the pure in
y shall see God.”
is a messenger, especially the homing pigeon. In fact,
the ability of the dove to return a s a messenger t o his home from
f a r distant places is one of the marvels of nature. Thus the dove
symbolizes to us the Spirit of God a s His messenger, bringing first
to our hearts the message of eternal peace. The second time Noah
loosed the dove from the window of the ark, it returned with an olive
leaf in its beak. The olive leaf is the symbol of peace; and Noah knew
by this t h a t the waters of judgment had abated and the dry land had
appeared. It was only after the waters of baptism had fallen from the
body of Jesus a s He rose from the watery grave t h a t the Spirit
descended as the messenger upon Him who is the Prince of Peace.
I n Him, as it is symbolized by His coming forth from the waters in
Jordan, the waters of judgment have abated f o r all who will believe.’
[Again] As John describes the descent of the Spirit in the form of
dove, he distinctly says t h a t the Spirit is to remain as an abiding
,I /
1
1. John Milton, Paradise Lost, I.
2. John Owen, op. cit 46.
3. C. Gordon B r o w n h e , Sgrnbols of the Holg Spirit, 22, 23.
380
THE NOMBNCLATURE OF THE SPIRIT
presence in Him. Referring back to the experience of Noah, we re-
member t h a t when the window of the a r k was opened for the third
time and the dove sent forth, it did not return but went t o its abiding
place on the cleansed earth, Thus the Holy Spirit did not go back
into heaven, but abode in Jesus in all His fulness. This fulness of the
Spirit was His not only a t all times in the Incarnation, b u t eternally;
we cannot divide the Trinity or the Godhead. But here i t i s manifest,
that we might believe and understand?
Again, on Noah’s dove as an emblem of the Holy Spirit,
F. E. Marsh writes as follows:
Noah’s dove came forth from the ark. God’s Dove came from
heaven. There are two thoughts suggested by this. As the dove came
forth from the ark the ark being a t pe of Christ, so the Holy Spirit
because of what Christ is and has &ne, comes forth t o the earth of!
man’s iniquity; and t o teli him of the only ark of salvation, where he
can find safety and peace. The lighting of the Holy Spirit on Christ
a s the Dove proclaims two things, first, He could come a s the Dove
on the Lamb of God, f o r there was a correspondence between the spot-
lessness of God’s Lamb and the gentleness of God’s Dove. Second, He
came upon Christ a s the Dove t o qualify Him f o r His ministry, and
.
t o act through Him in blessing to others. , . The dove which came
from the a r k came to the earth to find a resting place. The Spirit came
upon Christ as the Son 04Man, for He Himself, in speaking of Himself
a s the Son of Man says: Him hath God the Father sealed’ (John 6 : 2 7 ) .
I t is not without significance that the manhood of Christ is specially
mentioned when reference is made to the Spirit’s coming upon Him.
Earth has no sorrow that Heaven cannot cure, because Heaven has
come down in the Person of Christ and the Holy Spirit t o cure the
sorrows of earth, The fact t h a t the Son of God and the Holy Spirit
have come into the world, proves beyond all demonstration t h a t the
Lord alone can meet the deep necessity of man. Man cannot meet the
need of his fellow. Mere morality cannot satisfy the human heart.
Ritualism with its gaudy trappings does not remove the ache from the
heart, nor the sting from the conscience. . .. The Spirit of God comes
to reveal the Christ of God, Who makes known the love of God, Who
secures by His blood the forgiveness of love, the peace of Heaven and
the joy unspeakable. God’s Dove imparts His nature to the believer in
Christ, infuses the life which ennobles and the love which inspires.
None but Jesus can do helpless sinners good, and none but the Spirit
can enable the sinner t o trust the Christ Who can meet this need. It is
His work to do this, and He delights t o do it. [Again]: What were
the results from the sending forth of the dove from the ark, and the
coming of the Spirit upon Christ? There were three sendings forth
of the dove from the ark. The first time i t found no rest f o r the sole
of its foot, and returned t o the ark. Josephus says t h a t ‘the dove
came back t o Noah with her wings and feet all wet and muddy.’ May
we not take this as illustrative of the fact t h a t in all the missions of
the Spirit, from the Fall to the coming of Christ, He always had t o
bear testimony to man’s sin and iniquity? . .. The second time the
dove came back to the ark i t came with an olive leaf i n i t s mouth,
which i s significantly said t o be ‘pluckt off.’ The word means, t o be
freshly torn from the tree. The Hebrew word taraph comes from a root
which means t o tear in pieces, and is generally used t o describe the
action of wild beasts in rending their prey t o pieces. It is rendered
‘rent in pieces’ in Gen. 37:33, where Jacob takes it f o r granted t h a t
1. o p . eit., 23.
381
Joseph has been killed by a wild beast when he sees the blood-stained
garments of Joseph. The same root is given ‘ravening’ in Psalms 22:13,
where Christ speaks of the wicked who were surroynding Him like a
lot of wild beasts. Rotherham translates the verse: They have opened
wide their mouth, a lion rending and roaring.’ Putting these Scrip-
tures together, do they not suggest t o us the thought, that a s the olive
leaf was torn off, and the dove bore in its mouth this emblem of peace,
so the Holy Spirit bears testimony t o the death of Christ, Who was
‘cut off’ out of the land of the living for our transgressions, and now
proclaims t h a t Christ has made peace by the blood of His cross? The
third time the dove came forth from the a r k it did not return. It had
found a resting place. So with the Holy Spirit. He had go?e t o and
f r o from the presence of the Lord, in Old Testament times, finding no
resting place, but when He beheld the One in Whom God delighted,
then He rested upon Him. The first three gospels mention t h a t the
Spirit descended o r lighted upon Christ; but John adds, the Spirit
‘abode’ upon Him. The Greek word meno means t o dwell, and is so
rendered again and again. God rested after His creative work; Christ
in figure having accomplished His redemptive work, rests in the
satisfaction of God (Heb. 4:lO) ; and now the Spirit rests uppn Christ,
henceforth to find His permanent abode in Him. All His mission
emanates from Christ, all His blessings are found in Him, all His
instructions a r e from Him, all His ministry is toward Him, all His
unfolding are about Him all His aim is to enhance His glory, and all
.
His working in the believer is t o reproduce Him. , , Why is the
Holy Spirit given t o believers? For the same reason that the dove
came t o Noah, and the Spirit came upon Christ. First, t o assure us
t h a t for us the judgment of sin is past, for the storm has burst upon
Christ and has exhausted itself upon Him. Second, t o take up His
abode in the mystical body of Christ through our union with the Head,
and to impart His nature and infuse His grace in every part. Tennyso?,
in speaking of the change which comes to the dragon-fly when It
emerges from its grub state, says :
“To-day I saw the dragon-fly
Come from the wells where he did lie.
An inner impulse rent the veil
Of his old husk; from head t o tail
Came out clear plates of sapphire mail.
He dried his wings; like gauze they grew;
Through crofts and pastures, wet with dew,
A living flash of light, he flew.”
Mark how Tennyson makes ‘the inner impulse’ to rend the old husk. It
was the life within which brought it into the liberty and sunshine
without. The same is true in the Divine life. We can only rise to the
dove-like character as we have the fulness of the Dove-like Indweller.’
(6) Again, the dove is the symbol of purity above all things
else, and in this characteristic it is especially emblematic of the
Holy Spirit; for wherever the Holy Spirit operates upon, and
abides in, an intelligent being, the result is always uprightness
and purity of heart. The one characteristic which, above all
others, the Holy Spirit produces in Christ and in all those who
are united with Him, is purity. Hence the Church, which is made
1. F. E.Marsh, Emblems of the H O C SpMt, 9-14.
382
THE NOMENCLATURE O F THE SPIRIT
up of the elect of God under the new covenant, those who have
been redeemed by the blood of Christ and sanctified or purified
by the Holy Spirit, is €requently described in Scripture as the
Bride of Christ (Eph. 5:22-33; John 3:29; Rev. 21:2, 9; Rev.
22: 17), a metaphor suggesting affinity, constancy, and in par-
ticular, purity. And in a11 likelihood, it was for this very pur-
pose of impressing this truth upon our minds, the sublime truth
of the essential purity of the Bride of the Redeemer, that the
Spirit inspired the Old Testament poet to speak of Her in such
rapturous terms as “My dove, my undefiled!”
Song of Solomon 2:14-0 my dove, that art in the clefts of the
rock, In the covert of the steep place, L e t me see thy countenance, Let
me hear thy voice; For sweet is thy voice, and thy countenance i s
comely. Song of Sol. 5:2-Open t o me, my sister, my love, my dove,
my undefiled; For my head is filled with dew, My locks with the
drops of the night. Son of Sol. 6:8, 9-There are threescore queens,
and fourscore concubines, And virgins without number. My dove, my
undefiled, is but one; She is the only one of her mother; She is the
choice one of her that bare her. The daughters saw her, and called
her blessed; Yea, the queens and the concubines, and they praised her.
There is indeed but one Bride of Christ, one Body of Christ,
one Temple of God, one Household of the Faith. Eph. 4:4-
There is one body, and one Spirit, etc. The Church, moreover,
is the chaste Bride of Christ, She who has been purified by the
indwelling Spirit and thus made ready to meet the Bridegroom
at His coming.
[Hence Paul writes to the Christians at Corinth]: I am jealous
over you with a godly jealousy; for I espoused you to one husband,
t h a t I might present you as a pure virgin to Christ (2 Cor. 11:2).
Rev. 21:Z-And I saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out
of heaven from God, made ready a s a bride adorned for her husband.
[Purity, of course, is equivalent to wholeness or holiness.] 1 Pet. 2 : 5 -
Ye also, as living stones, a r e built up a spiritual house, to be a holy
priesthood, t o offer up spiritual sacrifices, acceptable t o God through
Jesus Christ. CoI. 3:lZ-Put on therefore, as God’s elect, holy and
beloved, a heart of compassion, kindness, lowliness, meekness, long-
suffering, etc.
(7) There are other characteristics of the dove, in addition
to that of purity, which make her a fit emblem of the Holy Spirit.
One of these characteristics, for example, is cleanness.
The very €act that the dove could be offered in sacrifice is proof
that i t was a clean bird, Two of the characteristics of a clean bird were
that i t could fly and that i t did not feed upon flesh. All grain feed-
ing birds t h a t did not feed upon flesh were clean. The difference be-
tween the raven and the dove is plainly seen in the two which were
sent out of the ark. The raven did not come back into the a r k ; i t un-
doubtedly found carrion upon which t o feed outside, therefore was con-
tent t o remain outside; but the dove was forced by the necessity of
383
hunger to come back t o Noah. The Holy Spirit ia very particular in
the food upon which He feeds. His one aim and ministry is associated
with the Word of God. He finds His satisfaction in making known
the message God has given Him to reveal. He is the Inditer of the
Word, and He i s also the Explainer of it?
Another characteristic of the dove is gentleness of manner.
This is clearly indicated by the words of Christ in commissioning
the Twelve. “Behold,” He said, “I send you forth as sheep in
the midst of wolves: be ye therefore wise as serpents, and harm-
less as doves” (Matt. 10: 16). Matt. 5 : 3, 5, 9-“Blessed are the
poor in spirit: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. . . . Blessed
are the meek: for they shall inherit the earth. . . . Blessed are
the peacemakers: for they shall be called sons of God.” The
Spirit of Christ is that of humility, harmlessness, lack of bitter-
ness, compassion: in a word, geBtleness. And we are told in
Rom. 8:9, that “if any man hath not the Spirit of Christ, he is
none of his.”
A third characteristic of the dove is constancg: it lives, we
are told, in the strictest monogamy. And so it is only by yielding
up our hearts completely to the indwelling Spirit that we can
hope to be constant in our love for Christ.
Rom. 12:1, 2-1 beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies
of God, to present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable t o
God, which is your spiritual service. And be not fashioned according
to this world; but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind,
t h a t ye may prove what is the good and acceptable and perfect will
of God, 1 Cor. 16:5&Wherefore, my beloved brethren, be ye stedfast,
unmovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, foreasmuch as
ye know t h a t your labor i s not vain in the Lord. Rev. 2:7-To him
t h a t overcometh, to him will I give to eat of the tree of life, which is
in the Paradise of God (Cf. Rev. 2:11, 17; 3:5, 12, 21). [Think (writes
Biederwolf) of the many beautiful characteristics of a dove. How
lovely was the character of Jesus because of these dove-like traits,
sweet-tempered and gentle, .yet j u s t like Him may we be. There is
gentleness, tenderness, loveliness, innocence, mildness) peace, purity,
patience-all this and more for him in whose heart is made a place
for the dove-like Spirit to nestle.’] [Cf. Gal. 5:22-261: But the fruit
of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faith-
fulness, meekness, and self-control: against such there is no law. And
they t h a t are of Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with the passions
and the lusts thereof. If we live by the Spirit, by the Spirit let us
also walk.
(8) Possessing such qualities as purity, gentleness, harmless-
ness (lack of guile), the dove appears throughout the Old Testa-
as a term of affection (Psa. 74:19; Song of Sol. 2:14,
9). The eyes of the beloved are compared to doves (Song
1. F. E. Marsh, op. cit., 18.
2. W. E. Biederwolf, A Help to- the Study of the Holy Spirit, 178.
384
of Sol. 1:15, 4: 1, 5: 12). Because of its innocence and gentleness,
the dove, like the lamb, was irequently offered in sacrifice: in
the burnt-offering (Lev. 1:14) ; in the trespass-offering (Lev,
5: 7, 11) ; in the ceremonial cleansing of the leper (Lev, 14: 22,
30); and on other occasions. It was commanded of the mother
after childbirth, when the days of her purifying were fulfilled,
that she should offer a lamb for a burnt offering, and a young
pigeon, or a turtle-dove, for a sin-offering. Lev. 12:6-8, esp.
v. 8--“And if her means suffice not for a lamb, then she shall
take two turtle-doves, or two young pigeons; the one for a burnt-
offering, and the other for a sin-offering; and the priest shall
make atonement for her, and she shall be clean.” Joseph and
Mary took advantage of this provision of the law and offered
according to their poverty (Luke 2:22-24). According to the
Law of Moses the only birds allowed in sacrifice were the
pigeon and the dove. At the Passover these birds were offered
for sale in the courts of the Temple; and Jesus drove out those
who sold them at the beginning (John 2: 14-16) and again the
close of His ministry (Matt. 21: 12)
(9) J. W. McGarvey writes:
The dove suggests purity, gentleness, peace, etc. I n fact the
nature of this bird makes i t a fit emblem of the Spirit, f o r i t comports
well with the fruits of the Spirit (Gal. 5:22-23). The nations of the
earth emblazon eagles upon their banners and lions upon their shields,
but He who shall gather all nations into his kingdom appeared a s a
Lamb, and his Spirit appeared under the symbol of a dove. Verily his
kingdom i s not of this world. I t is a kingdom of peace and love, not
of bloodshed and ambition. Noah’s dove bore the olive branch, the .3
symbol of peace, and the Holy Spirit manifested Jesus, God’s olive branch
of peacelsent into this world (Psa. 72:7, Luke 2:14, John 14:27, Eph.
2 :1148).
4. The Oil of Anointing. (1) To anoint, in Scripture, means
basically to pour oil upon a person or thing, i.e., as a religious
act. !The oil used in anointing was pure olive oil, E.g., Psa.
92: 10,104: 15,141: 5; also Gen. 28: 18-22:
And Jacob rose up early in the morning, and took the stone t h a t
he had put under his head, and set i t up for a piller, and poured oil
upon the top of it. And he called the name of that place Beth-el: but
the name of the city was Luz a t the first. And Jacob vowed a VOW,
saying, If God will be with me, and will keep me in this way t h a t I go,
and will give me bread t o eat and raiment to put on, so t h a t I come
again t o my Father’s house in peace, and Jehovah will be my God,
then this stone which I have set up for a pillar, shall be God’s house; \
and of all t h a t thou shalt give me I will surely give the tenth unto thee.
[Cf, Gen. 31:13--lhe words of the Angel of God (probably the Second
Person of the Trinity) to Jacob in a dream, a s reported by the latter]:
1. J. W, McGarvey and P. Y. Pendleton, The Fouvfold Gospel, 86.
385
I am the God of Beth-el, where thou anointed a pillar, where thou
vowedst a vow unto me, etc. Oil throughout both the Old and the New
Testament symbolizes the richness and perfections of the gifts and graces
o f the Holy Spirit.
(2) Anointing was a Jewish ceremony employed for various
purposes, as follows: (a) Anointing of the guest, as a part of
the ritual of hospitality (Psa. 23: 5, 92: 10; Prov. 27:9; Eccl. 7:1,
9:8; Luke 7:46); (b) Anointing in connection with mourning
and fasting (2 Sam. 12:20, 14:Z; Dan. 10:3; Matt. 6:17); (c)
Anointing for burial (Matt. 26: 6-13; John 12: 1-8, 19: 39-40) ;
(d) Anointing for healing (Isa. 1:6, Jer. 8:22, Luke 10:33-34,
Mark 6: 13, Jas. 5:14-15). It is apparent, however, as indicated
by the Scriptures cited, that in some of these types of anointing
precious ointments, rather than oil, were used; and in cases of
anointing for healing purposes, oil seems to have been used
primarily for its medicinal value. Thus the passage from the
Epistle of James certainly authorizes the use of medicine by
Christians along with “the prayer of faith.”
(3) The principal Jewish ceremony of anointing, however,
that in which olive oil was invariably used, and that which has
special religious significance, was the ceremony by which per-
sons and things under the Mosaic Institution were consecrated
or set apart for the service of God. The significance of the use
of pure olive oil in this connection is apparent. The rich medicinal
qualities of pure olive oil are well known even to this day;
hence, olive oil was a most fitting symbol of the healing efficacy
of the Divine Spirit and of the richness of the new spiritual life
which He engenders in the human heart.
(4) The Holy Anointing Oil of the Old Institution was com-
pounded of five ingredients, namely, flowing myrrh, sweet cin-
namon, sweet calamus, and cassia (all of which contributed
richness and fragrance), with pure olive oil as the base of the
compound (Exo. 30:22-25). At Sinai, the Tabernacle proper and
all its separate furnishings and vessels were consecrated to God,
and Aaron and his sons were consecrated to the priesthood, with
the Holy Anointing Oil (Exo. 29: 4-9, 19-21, 29; 30:26-33; 40: 9-16;
Lev. 8:10-12, 30). Moreover, according to Divine command,
the Holy Anointing Oil was to be used thereafter in the ceremony
of consecration to the priesthood (Exo. 30:31: the phrase,
“throughout your generations,’’ means here, as it invariably
means wherever used in the Old Testament, throughout the
Jewish dispensation, or as long as that dispensation lasted; cf.
Exo. 40: 15). This Holy Anointing Oil, compounded as it was of
386
fragrant spices and pure olive oil, is especially significant as a
symbol of the fragrant richness of the life of the Spirit.
(5) The Divine restrictions placed upon the composition
and use of the Holy Anointing Oil are likewise significant. In
the first place, it was not t o he poured upon man’s flesh, but only
upon the person qualified to be so nnointed (Exo. 30: 32).
Is not this a very definite warning that an unregenerate nature
.
cannot be reformed? , . Man’s nature is sinful. Paul said: ‘I know that
in me, that is, i n my flesh, dwelleth no good thing’ (Ro,m. 7:18). God
does not t r y t o reform, nor t o pour the oil of His Spirit upon the old
nature. He creates anew. ‘If any man be in Christ, he is a new creature;
old things have passed away’ ( 2 Cor. 6 : 1 7 ) . And we know that this
new creation is possible only by the regenerating work of the Holy
Spirit. Let us be guarded, then, lest we attempt t o apply the Spirit’s
ministry to those who have not been born again.’
Cf. John 14:16, l7-‘‘And I will pray the Father, and he
shall give you another Comforter, that he may be with you for
ever, even the Spirit of truth: w h o m the world cannot receive;
for it beholdeth him not, neither knoweth him.” 1 Cor. 2 : l G
“NOWthe natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of
God; for they are foolishness unto him; and he cannot know
them, because they are spiritually judged.” In the second place,
no imitations of the Holy Anointing Oil were t o be made (Exo.
30: 32-33).
So many today are following substitutes and imitations, but a r e
getting none of the Spirit Himself. Oh, t h a t men would see t h a t
only.that which qualifies itself within the formula of God can be the
genuine! As in all days, people today a r e suffering under false delu-
sions and seem not to be able to discern the mind o r Person of the
.
Spirit. . . It was impossible for the formula to be fulfilled, and the
oil given, which was its main ingredient, until the olive had been
crushed. So also there cannot be a transformation of nature, without
co-crucifixion by faith with and in Jesus Christ. [Again): The last
ingredient [of the Holy Anointing Oil], and the one which was the
foundation f o r the others, was olive oil. This, we lmow, is obtained
by crushing the fleshly part of the olive. How symbolical this is of
the giving of the Holy Spirit through the crushing or bruising of the
Heavenly One. Not until Jesus Christ had been glorified-and He
could not be glorified until He was crucified-could the oil of the Holy
Spirit be given. Thus the oil of the Spirit has become the base or foun-
dation f o r all of our blessings in Christ. Surely, when God gave the
divine formula, naming the ingredients, H e chose them not only be-
cause of their costliness and fragrance and purifying powers; but also
because they would be so symbolical and typical and emblematical of
Himself in the Person and ministry of His Holy Spirit.?
Substitutes for the Holy Anointing Oil were expressly pro-
hibited by Divine command. In like manner, because the Bible
1. C. Gordon Brownville, o p . oit., 26-27.
2. C. Gordon Brownville, op. off,, 27, 32.
387
is the Book, and the Book, of the Holy Spirit; because the
Gospel is the message, and the only message, of the Holy Spirit;
because the Church is the dwelling-place, and the only dwelling-
place, of the Holy Spirit: there can be no substitute& for the
Bible, the Gospel, or the Church. The pattern for religious faith,
worship and practice is laid down in the Word of God revealed
and delivered unto men by the Holy Spirit. The Spirit of God
and the Word of God go together. And t e is no evidence any-
where in Scripture that regdnerating an ctifying enduements
of the Spirit are ever to be enjoyed by med outside the pale of
conformity to the Divine pattern laid down-in the Word (cf.
EXO.25:40; Acts 1:1-3,7:38; , 31-2; 1 Pet. 4 : l l ; 2 Pet.
1:3; Jude 5).
( 6 ) The theocratic cerem anointing (that is, theo-
cratic in the sense of having been authorized by God HimsClf,
and hence an official act of the Divine government) was for’a
twofold purpose: (a) To signify that the person so anointed was
divinely set apart to a certain high and holy calling; (b) To
signify that this person was endued with the gifts and graces of
the Spirit necessary to the proper execution of the specific
ministry to which he had been called. This official ceremony of
anointing was closely related to all the important offices of the
servant! .of Jehyyqh under the Old Covenant. Three classes of
ministers were officially set apart to eir respective offices
by this ceremony, namely, prophets, pr riests
were thus anointed that the people might know t were
holy unto Jehovah (Exo. 28:36) to minister unto Him in the
priest’s office.
Vide Exo. 28:41, 30:30, 40:16; Lev. 8:lO-12; Lev. 8:30, 16:32; also
Leu. 4:3 [the anointed priest]; Lev, 6:20 [the oblation of Aaron and his
sons, t o be offered in the day when he is anointed]; Lev. 8:12, 30
[the anointing of Aaron and his sons, by Moses]; Lev. 7:35-36 [the
anointing portions of the prescribed offerings were the priests’ portions] ;
Lev. 1 Q : 7 [the words of Moses t o Aaron and his two sons, Eleazar and
Ithamar: t h e anointing oil of Jehovah is upon you]; Ley. 21:lO [he
4hat is the high priest among his brethren, upon whose head the
anqinting oil i s poured]; Num. 3 : l - 3 [the names of Aaron’s sons, NEtdab,
Abihu, Eleazar, and Ithamar, the priests that were anointed, whom he
(Moses, by the authority of Jehovah) consecrated t o minister in the
priest’s office]; Nurn. 4:16 [Eleazar appointed to have charge of the
anointing oil]. Scripture makes it clear that this ceremony of Con-
secration to the priesthood by official anointing was to continue through-
out .the Jewish Dispensation. Exo. 30: 31, 40: 15 : throughout your
Kings were also anointed under the Old Institution.

[The ceremony of the anointing of a king signified ( a ) that he
388
THE NOMENCLATURE OP THB SPIRIT
had been divinely selected for the office, and (b) t h a t the Spirit of
Jehovah was upon him. Judg. 9:8, the fable of Jothan]: The treee
went forth on a time t o anoint a king over them; and they said unto
the olive-tree Reign thou over us. [Cf. the anointing of Saul, by Samuel,
a s the first king of Israel]: 1 Sam. 9:16-17, 1O:l-13, 16:1, 17; 1 Sam.
12:l-6 [here Saul is referred to as Jehovah’s anointed]. [Cf. also the
anointing of David: 1 Sam. 16:3, 11-13 (the anointing by Samuel
2 Sam. 2:4, 7 (anointed by the men of Judah as king over their house
2 Sam. 6:3, 17 (anointed by the elders as king over Israel, a t Hebron) ;
2 Sam. 12:7 (the words. of Nathan .the prophet: Thus saith Jehovah,
the God of Israel, I anointed thee king over I s r a e l ) ; 2 Sam. 23:1, 2:
.
Now these are the last words of David . , the anointed of the God
of Jacob, And the sweet psalmist of Israel: The Spirit of Jehovah spake
by me, And his word was upon my tongue; Psa. 89:20, I have found
David my servant, With my holy oil have I anointed him]. [Cf. also the
anojnting of Solomon: 1 Kings 1:28-40. Cf. also Solomon’s prayer at the
dedication of the Temple, 2 Chron. 6:42-0 Jehovah God, t u r n not
away the face of thine anointed, etc.] [Again, 1 Ki. 19:16, 1 6 : the
words of Jehovah t o Elijah]: Go, return on thy way t o the wilderness
of Damascus; and when thou comest, thou shalt anoint Hazael t o be
king over Syria; and Jehu the son of Nimshi shalt thou anoint t o be
king over Israel. [The actual anointing of Jehu is narrated in 2 Ki.
9:l-13; Elijah had evidently delegated the task t o Elisha, who in t u r n
delegated i t to one of the sons of the prophets. The allusions to each
of the three m e a t kines of Israel-Saul. David. and Solomon. remective-
ly-as JehoGh’s anohted are too numerous to be listed here. (E.g., 1
Sam. 24:6,10; 2 Sam. 23:1, etc.)]
Prophets were also anointed under the Old Institution, to
signify that they were set apart as oracles of God to the people.
[Cf. 1 Ki. 19:16, the words of Jehovah t o Elijah]: And Elisha
the son of Shaphat of Abel-meholah shalt thou anoint to be prophet in
thy room. Cf. v. 19-And Elijah departed thence, and found Elisha
the son of Shaphat, who was plowing, with twelve yoke of oxen before
him, and he with the twelfth; and Elijah passed over unto him, and
cast his mantle upon him.
A. J. Gordon writes:
No servant of Jehovah was deemed qualified for his ministry
without this holy sanctifying touch laid upon him. Even in the cleansing
of the leper this ceremony was not wanting. The priest was required
t o dip his right finger in the oil that was in his left hand and to put it
upon the tip of the right ear, upon the thumb of the right hand, and
upon the great toe of the right foot of him t h a t was to be cleansed,
the oil ‘upon tlte blood of the trespass-offering’ (Lev. 14:17). Thus with
divine accuracy did even the types foretell the twofold provision for the
Christian life, cleansing by the blood and hallowing by the oil-justifi-
cation in Christ, sanctification in the Spirit.l
(7) Throughout the Patriarchal Dispensation, which extend-
ed from Adam to Moses, each of the patriarchs in turn combined
in his own person the offices of prophet, priest and king, in
relation to his own household. As prophet, he communicated the
1. A. J. Jordan, T h e Ministry of the Spirit, 88-89.
389
will of God to his household; as king, he ruled over it; and as
priest, he offered sacrifices and in general acted as mediator
between his household and Jehovah. Hence, the patriarch in
his threefold capacity of prophet, priest and king was fully
qualified to be designated one of God’s “anointed ones.”
Psa. 105:4-15: Seek ye Jehovah and his strength; Seek his face
evermore. Remember his marvelous works t h a t he hath done, His
wonders, and the judgments of his mouth. 0 ye seed of Abraham his
servant, Ye children of Jacob, his chosen ones. He is Jehovah our God:
His judgments a r e in all the earth. He hath remembered his covenant
f o r ever, The word which he commanded t o a thousand generations.
The covenant which he made with Abraham, And his oath unto Isaac,
And confirmed the same unto Jacob for a statute, To Israel f o r a n
everlasting covenant, Saying, Unto thee will I give the land of Canaan,
The lot of your inheritance; When they were but a few men in number,
Yea, very few, and sojourners in it. And they went about from
nation to nation, From one kingdom t o another people. He suffered
no man t o do them wrong: Yea, he reproved kings for their sakes,
Saying, Touch n o t mine anointed ones, And do my prophets no harm
(cf. Gen. 12:17; 20:3,7; 26:11, etc.).
In this passage, as the context clearly shows, the phrase
“mine anointed ones” alludes to the patriarchs of old as persons
who were consecrated to God through their possession of the
enduements of His Spirit. (Cf. 1Chron. 16: 8-22; Heb. 3: 7ff.). In
a word, then, to be an anointed one of God was to be set apart,
by Divine authority, and qualified for a high and holy office
under the Divine government. Cf. Ezek. 28:14-“Thou wast
the anointed cherub that covereth; and I set thee, so that thou
wast upon the holy mountain of God,” etc. In this passage, the
direct reference was to the king of Tyre; the indirect reference,
however, was to Satan, as is evident from the reading of the
chapter as a whole. That is to say, Satan, prior to his fall, was an
anointed cherub, Le., one of the angels of God who served the
Divine government in an official capacity, probably as an arch-
angel. The fact must not be lost sight o f , that anointing, although
it usually signified also enduement with the proper gifts and
graces of the Spirit, was the official designation o f a person,
b y God Himself, t o a specific f o r m of ministry.
(8) Now there are -frequent references in the Old Testa-
ment to the ultimate appearance in the world of One who was
to be the Servant and the Anointed One of Jehovah in a special
sense. It should be explained here that the Hebrew Messias
and .its Greek equivalent Christos both mean “The Anointed
One.” These are not names, but titles-a fact which Biblical
exegetes have been all too prone to overlook. The title Christos
derives from the Greek verb chrio, which means “I touch gently”
390
(the surface of a body), hence “I rub over,” “I anoint” (with
oil). Messias, Christ, The Anointed One (of God) was, in line
with Old Testament prediction, the expected king of Israel, to
be appointed by God as His vicegerent, By the New Testament
writers these Old Testament prophetic allusions to Jehovah’s
Anointed are shown to have their fulfilment in Jesus of Nazareth;
hence, the burden of the New Testament message, as embodied
in the Christian creedal formula (Matt. 16:16), is that Jesus
is Messiah long expected by the Jews, Christ, the Son of the
living God, Prophet, Priest and King of His people gathered
from both Jews and Gentiles,-the King, not of an earthly king-
dom, but of the heavenly kingdom whose locale is in the hearts
of men (John 18: 36), Cf. Acts 2: 36-the words of the Apostle
Peter, in concluding the first Gospel sermon: “Let all the
house of Israel therefore know assuredly that God hath made
him both Lord and Christ, this Jesus whom ye crucified.’’
These truths are all made explicit in the following correlations
of Scripture passages from the Old and New Testaments re-
spectively:
( a ) Psa, 2:1, 2-Why do the nations rage, And the peoples meditate
a vain thing? The kings of the earth set themselves, ,And !lie rulers
take counsel together, Against Jehovah, and against his anointed, etc.
[Turning t o the New Testament, we find these words repeated ver-
batim by the apostolic company in Jerusalem, in their prayer t o God
f o r boldness t o proclaim the Word of t r u t h in the face of persecution,
Acts 4:23-28.1 [As a matter of fact, this entire second Psalm is Mes-
sianic, and is so interpreted in the New Testament, cf. v. 6 and Heb.
1:5, 5:5; also v. 7 and Acts 13:32-331 (b) Isa. 11:1, 2-And there
shal! come forth a shoot out of the stock of Jesse, and a branch out
of his roots shall bear Iruit. And the Spirit of Jehovah shall rest upon
him, the spirit of wisdom and understanding, the spirit of counsel
and might, the spirit of knowledge and of the f e a r of Jehovah. Isa.
42:l-Behold, my servant, whom I uphold; my chosen, in whom my
soul delighteth: I have put my Spirit upon him; he will bring forth
justice to the Gentiles. Isa. 62:13--Behold, my servant shall deal
wisely, he shall be exalted and lifted up, and shall be very high. [Cf.
also the entire fifty-third chapter of Isaiah, the vivid picture of the
Suffering Servant. of Jehovah; aIso Isa. 48:12, 13, 16; Matt. 12:15-18.
These verses definitely zdpatzfg the Serirawt watk Jesus Chmst. Cf. Rev.
1:17-18, 22:13, also Psa. 102:25-27 and Heb. 1:8, 10-12, with John
1:l-3, Col. 1:15-17, Rom. 11:36, 1 Cor. 8:6, etc. These verses identify
the Servant of Jehovah with God: indeed, there is very good reason
f o r thinking that the Servant of Jehovah of the Old Testament is the
Second Person of the Trinity (Isa. 41:4, 44:6, 48:12; 1 Cor. 1O:l-4,
Heb. 11:26, etc.) See also Isa. 61:l-2, Luke 4:lG-21. These various
Scriptures Icave no room f o r doubt: the New Testament expressly af-
firms Jesus of Nazareth to be the Suffering Servant and the Anointed
One of God, t h a t is t o say, God’s Christ.]
( 9 ) These prophetic references to the Anointed One were
391
all fulfilled in the Divine Anointing of Jesus immediately fol-
lowing His baptism in the Jordan,
Luke 3:21, 22-Now it came t o pass, when all the people were
baptized, that, Jesus also having been baptized, and praying, the
heaven was opened, and the Holy Spirit descended in a bodily form,
a s a dove, upon him, and a voice came out of heaven, Thou a r t my
beloved Son; in thee I am well pleased (cf. Matt. 3:16, 17; Mark
1:9-11; John 1:29-34).
As in the theocratic ceremony of anointing in olden times,
oil was poured upon those servants of God who were divinely
ordained to be His prophets, priests and kings-oil being typical
of the Holy Spirit, that is, of the anointed person’s enduement
with the gifts and graces of the Spirit-so the Holy Spirit
descended out of heaven, in a dove-like form, upon Jesus at
His baptism. Thus did God anoint His only begotten Son-
that is, His human nature specifically--”with the Holy Spirit
and with power” (Acts 10:38); thus did He avouch His Son’s
qualification with the gifts and graces of the Spirit without
measure (John 3:34, 35); and thus did He signify to the world
His Son’s official ordination to His threefold office of Prophet,
Priest and King under the New Covenant. Acts 4:27 again:
“For a truth in this city against thy holy Servant Jesus, whom
thou didst anoint, both Herod and Pontius Pilate, with the
Gentiles and the peoples of Israel, were gathered together,” etc.
In this connection, it should be noted well that all four Gospel
writers are careful to inform us that it was not an actual dove
that descended upon Jesus at His anointing; that, on the con-
trary, the Holy Spirit descended as a clove upon Him. Luke is
the most explicit of all: he tells us that the Holy Spirit descended
upon Him “in a bodily form, as a dove.” It has been suggested,
with plausibility, that the Spirit descended from Heaven thus-
in a visible configuration-that He might make a sensible dem-
onstration to men of His own proper place in the Trinity, that
is to say, that He might reveal to the world His true being as a
personal substance and not a mere operation of the Godhead.
Certainly we do have here a specific instance in which the
Three Persons of the Godhead were, at one and the same time,
completely dissociated: the Son was standing on the bank of
the Jordan, while at the same time the Spirit was descending
through the air ih a dove-like form and the Father was speaking
from Heaven to say, “This is my beloved Son, in whom I am
well pleased.” It should be noted, too, that we have in this in-
cident the two elements of the Good Confession, the creedal
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T H E NOMENCLATURE OF THB SPIRIT
formuIa of the Church of Christ (Matt. 16:16), clearly set forth
by Divine authority: (1) Our Lord’s anointing with the Spirit
( “ ~ o uart the Christ”); (2) His avouchjng by the Father
(“the Son of the living God”), As J. Ritchie Smith writes:
“The baptism designates Jesus as a man, made under the law;
the anointing of the Spirit proclaims him the Messiah; the voice
from heaven declares him to be the Son of God.”’ It would
seem, moreover, that the anointing of our Lord’s human nature
on this occasion was not His enduement with the Spirit at this
particular time, for the Simple reason that the Spirit of God
and the Spirit of Christ, as it has been pointed out previously,
are eternally one and the same Spirit; the anointing, rather,
was an act of an official character; it was to signify to the world
that the Anointed One was God’s Prophet, Priest and King,
who, as such, actually possessed the fulness of powers of the
Divine Spirit and who was now, by this act, authorized to
utilize those powers henceforth in the execution of His mission
upon earth . Vide again, in this connection, Luke 4: 16-21.) We
must never lose sight of the fact, in studying the Spirit of God,
that the essential property of His Being is inexhaustibleness.
(IO) One more Scripture remains to be investigated, in this
connection, viz., Psa. 45:6, 7-“Thy throne, 0 God, is for ever
and ever; A sceptre of equity is the sceptre of thy kingdom.
Thou hast loved righteousness, and hated wickedness: There-
fore God, thy God, hath anointed thee With the oil of gladness
above thy fellows.” The question arises here: Does the Oil
of Gladness specified in this text have any metaphorical refer-
ence to the Holy Spirit? Some commentators have maintained
that no such reference is intended, on the ground that “Oil of
Gladness’’ is a figurative expression deriving its significance
solely from the well-known Jewish custom of festive anointings
at entertainments and on occasions of great rejoicing (cf. Psa.
23:5, 104:15; Prov. 27:9; Luke 7:46, etc.). It is difficult to see,
however, how this position can be maintained legitimately, in
view of the fact that the writer of the Epistle to the Hebrews
quotes this passage, Psa. 45:6-7, verbatim, with the express
declaration that it is Messianic in import and has reference to
the Son of God Himself. Heb. 1:8, 9--“But of the Son he saith,
Thy throne, 0 God, is for ever and ever; And the sceptre of
uprightness is the sceptre of thy kingdom. Thou hast loved
righteousness, and hated iniquity; Therefore God, thy God,
hath anointed thee With the oil of gladness above thy fellows.”
1. J, Ritchie Smith, The Holg Spirit in the Gospels, 156-157.
393
Language could not be more explicit; the words of the Psalmist
definitely do have reference to the Messiah. But-do they have
reference to the Anointing of the Messiah with the Holy Spirit?
Crbden suggests alternative interpretations as follows: either, “God
hath raised and advanced thee f a r above all men and angels, to. a
state of joy and endless glory a t his right hand; thus anoihting s!g-
nifies the designation or inauguration of a person t o some high dignity
or employment (Ezek. 28: 14) ))’ or, “God hath endowed thee with a l l
the gifts and graces of the Holy Spirit in an eminent and peculiar
manner, t o the comfort and refreshment of thine own, and all thy
people’s hearts; and hath solemnly called thee t o be the Priest, Prophet,
and King of his church?
It is impossible to determine which of these interpretations
is the correct one. Cf. Isa. 61:1, 3-“The Spirit of the Lord
Jehovah is upon me; because Jehovah hath anointed me . . . to
appoint unto them that mourn in Zion, to give unto them a
garland for ashes, the oil of joy for mourning, the garment of
praise for the spirit of heaviness.” This passage is certainly
Messianic and is expressly interpreted by Jesus as having refer-
ence to Himself and His ministry on earth (Luke 4:16-21). Ob-
viously it indicates that it is a part ’of the ministry of Jesus
to bring joy to sin-cursed human beings through their obedience
to the Gospel and consequent enduement with the sanctifying
measure (it is called a “gift,” Acts 2:38) of the Spirit’s power.
In a word, the passage is descriptive of the transforming power
of the Gospel of Christ. 2 Cor. 3:18-But we all, with unveiled face
beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are transformed into
t h e same image from glory to glory, even as from the Lord the Spirit.
[Moreover, the Mew Testament teaches that the Holy Spirit is the
Spirit of joy.] Gal. 6:22-The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace,
etc. Eph. 5:18, 19-Be not drunken with wine, wherein is riot, but
be filled with the Spirit: speaking one t o another in psalms and hymns
and spiritual songs, singing and making melody with your heart t o
the Lord. 1 Thew. 1 : G A n d ye became imitators of us and of the
Lord, having received the word in much affliction, with the
Holy Spirit. [And the Christian life i s pre-eminently the 1 joy;
there is no joy, a s saints in all ages have testified, comparable t o the
joy of conscious fellowship with God the Father and with the Lord
Jesus Christ in the Spirit.] 1 Pet. l:8-Jesus Christ, whom not having
seen ye love; on whom, though now ye see him not, yet believing, ye
rejoice greatly with joy upspeakable and full of glory. 1 John 1:4-
and these things we write, that our joy may be made full. [The Holy
Spirit is the Author and Realizer of all spiritual gladness in the
human heart, and no more appropriate metaphor could be found of
the delectable effect of His sanctifvinP: influence than the Oil of
I -
Gladness.]
Finally, i n this connectionj the New Testament teaches
1. A. Cruden, Concordance, under “Oil.”
394
clearly that all obedient believers in Christ, all the saints of
God, have received an anointing with the Holy Spirit.
2 Cor. 1:21, 22-Now he t h a t establisheth us with you in Christ,
and anointed us, is God; who also sealed us, and gave us the earnest
of the Spirit in our hearts. 1 John 2:20, 27-And ye have a n anointing
.
from the Holy One, and ye know all things. , . And as f o r you, t h e
anointing which ye received of him abideth in you, and ye need not
that any one teach you; but as his anointing teacheth you concerning
all things, and i s true, and is no lie, and even as it taught you, ye
abide in him. Rom. 5:S-the love of God hath been shed abroad in our
hearts through the Holy Spirit which W a s given unto us. 1 Cor. 3:lG-
Know ye not t h a t ye are a temple of God, and t h a t the Spirit of God
dwelleth in you? 1 Cor. G:19-20: Know ye not t h a t your body is a
temple of the Holy Spirit which is in you, which ye have from God?
and ye a r e not your own; for ye were bought with a price: glorify God
therefore in your body.
As we shall see later, there are many passages of like im-
port in the apostolic writings. Now it will be recalled that the
anointing of Jesus with the Holy Spirit immediately followed
His baptism by John in the Jordan. In like manner, the anointing
of the obedient believer with the sanctifying presence and in-
fluence of the Spirit is directly connected with his baptism into
Christ. This is the Spirit’s own testimony, as enunciated through
the Apostle Peter, at the conclusion of the first Gospel sermon
on the Day of Pentecost, We read that some three thousand
persons cried out unto Peter and the rest of the apostles, saying,
What shall we do? Le., What shall we do to be saved? Acts
2:38, 39-“And Peter [who was speaking as the Spirit gave
him utterance, Acts 2:4] said unto them, Repent ye, and be
baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ unto
the remission of your sins; and ye shall receive the gift of the
Holy Spirit. For to you is the promise, and to your children,
and to all that are afar off, even a s many as the Lord our God
shall call unto him,” As will be made clear later in our study,
the “gift” of the Holy Spirit promised in this text, on the con-
ditions of prior repentance and baptism, is undoubtedly the
permanent sanctifying measure of the Spirit’s influence which
results from His taking up His abode in the regenerated human
heart. The reception of this measure of the Spirit accompanies
Christian baptism, that is, the baptism of the penitent believer
in water for the remission of his sins. Cf. Gal. 3: 1, 2--“O foolish
Galatians . . , This only would I learn from you, Received ye
the Spirit by the works of the law [i.e., the Law of Moses] or
by the hearing of faith?” This entrance of the Spirit into a human
heart effects spiritual circuntcision, which is the cutting off of
the body of the guilt of sin from the soul and the subsequent
395
sealing of it by the Holy Spirit. The Apostle >Paulmakes it
crystal clear that such spiritual circumcision takes place in con-,
nection with baptism and accompanying remission of sins, the
specific grace or blessing connected by Divine authority with
that particular ordinance. That is to say, baptism is not itself
spiritual circumcision (and hence has not taken the place of
fleshly circumcision of the Old Covenant, as it has often been
erroneously contended) ; on the contrary, spiritual circumcision
is that act of the Spirit Himself which is performed by Him at
His entrance into the obedient believer’s heart in connection
with the latter’s baptism. I t is the cutting off of the body of the
guilt of sin, effected by the entrance of the Spirit into the
obedient believer’s heart (Rom. 6: 6).
Col. 2:ll-14: in whom [Christ] ye were also circumcised with a
Circumcision not made with hands, in the putting off of the body pf
the flesh, in the circumcision of Christ; having been buried with him in
baptism, wherein ye were also raised with him through faith in the
workirig of God, who raised him from the dead. And you, being dead
through your trespasses and the uncircumcision of your flesh, you,
I say, did he make alive together with him, having forgiven us all our
trespasses; having blotted out the bond written in ordinances that
was against us, which was contrary t o us: and he hath taken it out
of the way, ngiling it to the cross. Gal. 3:27-For a s many of YOU a s
were baptized into Christ did put on Christ. Rom. 6 2 - 7 : We who
died t o sin, how s h d l we any longer live therein? O r are ye ignorant
t h a t all we who were baptized into Christ J e
his death? We were buried therefore wiltlm
death: t h a t like as Christ was raised fr
and of death.
This entrance of the Holy Spirit into the regenerated heart
in connection with baptism is God’s anointing bf the obedient
believer with the Holy Spirit; from that moment, the saint,
unless of course he should grieve, despite, and eventually
quench the Spirit, is sealed with “the Holy Spirit of promise”
(Eph. kl3). Moreover, this antire process is typified in the
procedure by which priests were consecrated under the Old
Covenant. The following points of resemblance between the
washing of consecration of priests ’under the Old Institution and
the washing of regenerutim (Tit. 3:5). of saints under the New
Institution, are indeed significant: (a) In the former, the whole
body was washed with water (Exo. 29:4, Lev. 8:6), and in the
396
latter the whole body is immersed in water (Acts 8:36-39, Rom.
6:3-4, Col. 2:12). (b) The former was to be performed but
once; so also is the latter. (c) The former was a part of the
ceremony of consecration to the priest’s office, and the latter
i s for a similar purpose. All baptized believers are made kings
and priests unto God (Isa. 61:6; Rom. 12:l; 1 Pet. 2:5, 9; Rev.
1:6, 5:10, 20:6; cf. Exo. 19:6). (d) The former was followed
by the donning of priestly garments by, and by the sprinkling
of sacrificial blood and of the holy anointing oil upon, the persons
so washed and purified (Exo. 29:5-9, Exo. 29:21; Lev. 8:6-9,
Lev. 8: 30). And it is in and through the latter that believers
are brought under the efficacy of the atoning blood of Christ,
receive the anointing with the Holy Spirit, and thus put on
their priestly garment, the fine linen of righteousness.
Tit. 3:S-Not by works done in righteousness, which we did our-
selves, but according t o his mercy he saved us, through the washing
of regeneration and renewing of the Holy Spirit, Eph. 5:2S, 26-As
Christ also loved the church, and gave himself for it; t h a t he might
sanctify it, having cleansed it by the washing of water with the word.
Heb. 10:21, 22-Having a great priest [Christ] over the house .of God,
let us draw near with a true heart in fulness of faith,. having our
hearts sprinkled [by the application of the blood of Christ] from a n
evil conscience, and having our body washed with pure water [in bap-
tism]. Rev. 1:9-14: After these things I saw, and behold, a great
multitude, ‘which no man could number, out of every nation and of all
tribes and peoples and tongues, standing before the throne and before
.
the Lamb, arrayed i n white Tobes, and palms in their hands . . And
one of the eldeys answered, saying unto me, These t h a t are arrayed
in the white robes, who are they, and whence came they? And I say
unto him, My lord, thou knowest. And he said unto me, These are they
t h a t come out of the great tribulation, and they washed their robes,
and made them white in the blood of the Lamb, etc. Rev. 19:8-And
it was iven unto her [the Lamb’s wife] that she should a r r a y herself
in fineyinen, bright and pure: for the fine linen i s the righteous acts
of the saints. (Cf. Rev. 3:5, 4:4, 16:4, 19:14, etc.)
For all the saints of God, the life which begins with their anoint-
ing with the indwelling Spirit in baptism is the life with the
Spirit, the continuously enlarging, intensifying and enriching life
which leads ultimately to the Beatific Vision. They are them-
selves (as anointed ones) kings and priests unto God (1 Pet.
2: 5, Rev. 1:6,5: 9), and their great High Priest is the Lord Jesus
Christ Himself, “named of God a high priest after the order
of Molchizedek” (Heb. 4:14, 5: l o ) , who “now once at the end
of the ages hath been manifested to put away sin by the sac-
rifice of himself’’ (Heb. 9:27). “Wherefore also he is able to
save to the uttermost them that draw near unto God through
him, seeing he ever liveth to make intercession for them” (Heb.
7:25).
397
5. Oil as the Source of Light. (1) There are numerous pas-
sages in the Old Testament in which oil is described as the
source of light. The majority of these are statements concerning
oil for the Golden Candlestick by which the Holy Place of the
Tabernacle (and later, the Temple) was illumined.
Lev. 24:l-4: And Jehovah spake unto Moses, saying, Command the
children of Israel, that they bring unto thee pure olive oil beaten for
the light, to cause a lamp t o burn continual1 , Without the veil of
the testimony, in the tent of meeting, shall l a r o n keep it in order
from evening to morning before Jehovah continually; it shall be a
statute f o r ever throughout your generations. He shall keep in order
the lamps upon the pure candlestick before Jehovah continually. (Cf.
also Exo. 25:6, 27:20-21, 36:8, 14; Exo. 39:37; Num. 4:9, 16.). Cf.
Exo. 35:28-And the spice, and the oil: far the light, and for the
anointing oil, and for the sweet incense [here the oil for tha light is
clearly distinguished from the holy anointing oil ( a s also in Exo. 39:37-
38 and in Num. 4:16].
The Candelabrum stood on the south side of the Holy Place
of the Tabernacle, over against the Table of Showbread (literal-
ly, Presence-bread) on the north side (Exo. 25:23-30,37:10-16).
It was wrought or beaten out of a talent of pure gold, and con-
sisted of one upright shaft and six branches, all ornamented
with “cups,” “knops,” and “flowers” (Exo. 25:31-40, 37:17-24).
In these lamps pure olive oil burned “continually” (Exo. 27:20-
21, Lev. 24:l-4). The Candelabrum was, of course, a dispenser
of light, and was therefore a type or symbol of the Word of God
by which the Church of Christ, the antitype of the Holy Place,
is illumined. This living Word, moreover, shines out into the
dark places of earth, and into unregenerated human hearts,
through the testimony and the lives of all the saints. The two-
fold mission of the Church is to preserve this eternal Word and
to spread it abroad throughout the earth “for a testimony unto
all the nations” (Matt. 24:14) for this Word of God, this Word
of Christ alone is the Truth that makes men free.
John 8:31, 32--[the words of Jesus]: If ye abide in my word,
then a r e ve truly my disciples; and ye shall know the truth, and the
truth shall make you free. Psalm 119:lOS-Thy word is a lamp unto
my feet, And light unto my path, Psa. 119:130-The opening of thy
words giveth light. 2 Pet. 1:lS-And we have the word of prophecy
made more sure; whereunto ye do well t h a t ye take heed, as unto a
lamp shining in a dark place, until the day dawn, and the day-star
arise in your hearts [cf. Rev, 22:16]. John 6:63 [Jesus speaking]: The
words t h a t I have spoken unto you are spirit, and are life. Matt. 24:35-
[Jesus speaking again]-Heaven and earth shall pass away, but my
words shall not pass away. [Hence, Jesus as the incarnate Logos is
the Light of the World, the fountain and author of all knowledge both
natural and spiritual. He Himself declaredl : I am the light of the
world; he t h a t followeth me shall not walk in the darkness, but shall
have the light of life. (Isa. 42:6, 49:6; Luke 2:32; John 1:7-9; Acts
398
THE NOMBNCLATURB OF TI33 SPIRIT
13:47, 26:23; 1 John 2:8, etc.). [And as Christ W a s the incarnation 04
God, so the Church, (both a s a whole, and every true Christian in-
dividually as well) is the incarnation OS Christ.] Matt. 6114-1G: Ye
are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hid. Neither
do men light a lamp, and put i t under the bushel, but on the stand;
and it shineth unto a11 that are in the house, Even so let your light
shine before men; t h a t they may see your good works, and glorify
your Father who is in heaven.
I t should be observed, however, that the Candelabrum of
the Tabernacle was only a dispenser of light; it was the oil in
the lamps that produced the light. And, as we have already
seen, oil, throughout the whole Bible, is used as a common and
appropriate symbol of the Holy Spirit. In like manner, the
spiritual light which is dispensed through the Word of God, is
produced by the Spirit of God, who is invariably the Author and
Revealer of Divine Truth, the Truth. thut makes men f r e e (1 Cor.
2: 6-15, 1 Pet. 1: 10-12, 2 Pet. 1:21), Hence, Jesus, the Incarnate
Word, the Light of the World, possessed the Holy Spirit without
measure (John 3:34); that is, He always spoke and acted under
the guidance of the Spirit. The whole Church of Christ, more-
over, the Temple of God under the New Covenant (Eph. 2:19-
22), is illumined by the light of the Word as revealed by the
Holy Spirit. And, carrying the analogy to its proper conclusion,
the saints themselves are said to be epistles of Christ “known
and read of all men . , , written not with ink but with the
Spirit of the living God; not in tables of stone, but in tables
that are hearts of flesh’’ (2 Cor. 3:2-4). All true Christians are
called “sons of the light” (Luke 16:8), “children of the light”
(Eph. 5 : 8 ) . Cf. Phil, 2:15, 16-“That ye may become blameless
and harmless, children of God without blemish in the midst of
a crooked and perverse generation, among whom ye are seen
as lights in the world, holding forth the word of life.” And in
Rev, 21:lO-11, we are told that the light of “the holy city
Jerusalem [the Bride, the wife of the Lamb] coming down out
of heaven from God, having the glory of God” was “like unto a
stone most precious, as it were a jasper stone, clear as crystal.’’
That is to say, all true Christians having been brought to the
saving knowledge of God and of Jesus Christ (that knowledge
which is life eternal, John 17:3) and being enlightened by the
Holy Spirit, their lives reflect {,hefruit of the Spirit-the living
Truth-as exemplified in the incarnate life of their Divine
Exemplar and Elder Brother, Jesus Christ. The Holy Spirit as
the Spirit of Truth (John 14:17, 16:13) is at the same time the
Spirit of Light. Finally, it is well worth noting also that the
399
seven lamps of the Candelabrum of the Tabernacle symbolized
perfect light, the number seven being the Biblical symbol of
completeness or perfection.
Cf. Rev. 1:4-the seven Spirits t h a t a r e before his throne; Rev. 3:l-
he t h a t hath the seven Spirits of God; Rev, 4:s-And there were
seven lamps of fire burning before the throne, which are the seven
Spirits of God; Rev. 5:6-And I saw in the midst of the throne and
of the four living creatures, and in the midst of the elders, a Lamb
standing, as though it had been slain, having seven horns, and seven
eyes, which are the seven Spirits of God, sent forth into all the earth.
When we correlate these passages with the description of
the sevenfold Spirit of Jehovah in Isa. 11:1-2 (here described as
66
resting upon” Jehovah’s Anointed) , their meaning becomes
obvious, viz., that Jesus, Messiah, should possess the fulness of
the powers of the Holy Spirit.
And there shall come forth a shoot out of the stock of Jesse, and
a branch out of his roots shall bear fruit. And the Spirit of Jehovah
shall rest upon him, the spirit of wisdom and understanding, the spirit
of counsel and might, the spirit of knowledge and of the fear of
Jehovah. Iga, 9:6-9: For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is
given; and the government shall be upon his shoulder; and his name
shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father,
Prince of Peace. Of the increase of his government and of peace there
shall be no end, upon the throne of David, and upon his kingdom, to
,establish it, and t o uphold it with justice and with righteousness from
henceforth even f o r ever. The zeal of Jehovah of hosts will perform this.
Where the Spirit dwells in the fulness of His powers, there
is Wholeness or Holiness. I n a word, Being is Truth; that i s to
say, that which is, to the extent that it is, is Truth. The Divine
Spirit is wholeness of Being; hence He is properly named Holy
Spirit. And as wholeness of Being, He is wholeness of Truth,
Beauty, and Goodness; and this wholeness He contributes to
God’s moral creatures who open their hearts to receive His
Divine presence and power. ( 2 ) Oil is again portrayed as the
source of light in Zechariah’s Vision of the Golden Candlestick
(Zech. 4:1-12). The prophet’s vision was that of a Golden
Candlestick fed by two inexhaustible streams of oil supplied by
two living olive-trees growing on either side of the bowl of the
Candelabrum. The import of the vision was for Zerubbabel; it
was to signify to him that the work of rebuilding the Temple
and thus preparing the way for the Church of spiritual Israel,
was to be accomplished by relying, not on human resources,
however potent, but on Divine grace and power, that is, on the
power of the Spirit of Jehovah. Zech. 4:G“This is the word
of Jehovah to Zerubbabel, saying, Not by might, nor by power,
but by my Spirit, saith Jehavah of hosts+” The symbolic im-
400
THB NOMENCLATURB OF THE SPIRIT
port of Zechariah’s vision is very clear. In like manner, the
Church, as the preserver and proclaimer of the Word of God,
the function of which is spiritual illumination, for the accomplish-
ment of her twofold divine task must depend wholly upon her
supply of oil from God, which is the Holy Spirit. When the
Church neglects this Divine Source of supply of spiritual il-
lumination and power, and thus vexes, grieves or perhaps
quenches the Holy Spirit, she becomes impotent, as indeed the
Church has become in many parts of the world today, When she
resorts to the wisdom of men, which is mere foolishness with
I
God, and substitutes human philosophy, tradition and ritual
for the Truth revealed by the Spirit; when she becomes pre-
I
1
sumptuous o r indifferent to the plain teaching of the Word of
God, the Spirit’s Word which is the sole dispenser of spiritual
light; then she loses her candlestick, even as the Spirit Himself
forewarned the church in Ephesus: “But I have this against
thee, that thou didst leave thy first love. Remember therefore
whence thou art fallen, and repent and do the first works; or
else I come t o thee, and will remove thy candlestick out of its
place, except thou repent.’’ Returning again for a moment to
Zechariah’s Vision, we read, Zech. 4:11-14:
Then answered I, and said unto him [the Angel], What are these
two olive-trees upon the right side of t h e candlestick and upon the
left side thereof? And I answered the second time, and said unto him,
What are these two olive-branches, which a r e beside the two golden
spouts, t h a t empty the golden oil out of themselves? And he answered
me and said, Knowest thou not what these a r e ? And I said, No, my
lord. Then said he, These are the two anointed ones, t h a t stand by
the Lord of the whole earth.
The following exposition, by the W. J. Deane, of this re-
markable passage is clear and to the point:
The oil t h a t supplies the lamps is t h e grace of God, the influence
of the Holy Spirit, .which alone enables the Church t o shine and to
accomplish its appointed work. The two olive trees a r e the two au-
thorities [the two anointed ones], viz., the civil and the sacerdotal
[the former represented by Zerubbabel, the latter by Joshua the high
priest], through which God communicates his grace to the Church;
these stand by the Lord because, instituted by him, they carry out his
will in the ordering, guiding, extending, and purifying the kingdom
among men, The two olive branches remit their oil into one receptacle,
because the two authorities, the regal and priestly, are intimately con-
nected and united and their action tends t o one end, the promotion of
God’s glory in the salvation of men. I n Messiah these offices a r e
united; he i! the channel of Divine grace, the source of light to the
whole world.
1. W. J. Deane, The Pulpit Commentarg (The Book of Zechariah) ,
Vol. 32, p. 42. New Edition.
40 1
It should be noted, in this connection, that our Lord Jesus
Christ was declared to be a high priest after the order of
Melchizedek; that is, as the Lord’s Anointed, He combines in
His own Person, as Melchizedek did, the offices of both King
and High Priest (Gen, 14:18; Psa. 110:4; Heb. 6:20, 7:l-28).
(3) In the New Testament, oil is presented as the source of
light (symbolic of the Spirit as the Source of spiritual light),
in our Lord’s Parable of the Wise and Foolish Virgins, Matt.
25: 1-13:
Then shall t h e kingdom of heaven be likened unto ten virgins, who
took their lamps, and went forth to meet the bridegroom. And five
of them were foolish, and five were wise. For the foolish, when they
took their lamps,,took no oil with them; but the wise took oil in their
vessels with their lamps. Now while the bridegroom tarried, they all
slumbered and slept. But a t midnight there is a cry, Behold, the bride-
groom! Come ye forth to meet him! Then all those virgins arose,
and trimmed their lamps. And the foolish said unto the wise, Give US>
of your oil; for our lamps are going out. But the wise answered, saying,
Peradventure there will not be enough for us and you: go ye rather
to them t h a t sell, and buy for yourselves. And while they went away
to buy, the bridegroom came; and they that were ready went in wlth
him to the marriage feast; and the door was shut. Afterward came
also the other virgins, saying, Lord, Lord, open to us. But he answered
and said, Verily, I say unto you, I know you not. Watch therefore,
f o r ye know not t h e day nor the hour.
Surely the import of this parable is clear: The necessary pre-
requisite of a man’s attainment of his natural and proper end,
which is union with God (The Vision of God, Beatitude, Life
Everlasting, described here as the Marriage Feast of the Lamb)
is his living, in this world, the life with the Holy Spirit (in the
language of the parable, his keeping oil in the lamp of his life),
the life whereby he acquires the Mind of Christ, which is the
Will of God and the Litring Word as revealed to him by the
Spirit. Just as it is, in the very nature of the case, utterly im-
possible for one to appreciate a great symp y who has never
cultivated music appreciation in his own soul; just as it is
utterly impossible for one to stand entranced before a great
painting who has never personally cultivated the appreciation
of art; just as it is utterly impossible for one to enjoy a great
poem who has never cultivated within himself the understanding
and appreciation of poetry; so it is equally impossible for one
who never reads or feeds upon the Word of God, one who has
never received the indwelling Spirit through his union with
Christ, who consequently has never experienced the joy of
the Spirit’s,presence and companionship, never cultivated in his
own soul love for God and for the things of the Spirit, never
402
brought forth in his life the fruit of the Spirit (Gal. 5:22-23)-
it is equally impossible, I repeat, for such a one to experience
union with God, to se God “face to face,” at the end of his
earthly pilgrimage. Paul’s affirmation that “the natural man
receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God” (1 Cor. 2:14), is
just as true today as it was when the Apostle indited these
words on parchment. Only that person who receives into his
heart the Word of God revealed by the Spirit, who feels upon
that Word, assimilates it into his own being, and thus grows
in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ
(2 Pet. 3: 18), one whose personality is integrated around Christ
the Living Word and whose life is spiritually illumined (en-
lightened) thereby, and who in this manner prepares himself
to experience Beatitude at the end of his life on earth, can hope
to enter into the Marriage Feast when the Bridegroom shall
appear. This is true for the simple reason that only such a person
will be found to have made the necessary preparation for the
Vision of God by his cultivation, in the present life,of his own
mind and will in appreciation of, and in response to, spiritual
realities. In a word, only that person who comes to the Mar-
riage Feast with a sufficient supply of oil in his lamp-that is,
of the enlightening and sanctifying gifts of the Spirit in his
soul-can expect to enjoy union of his mind with the mind of
God in knowledge and union of his will with the will of God
in love. This is the long of it, the short of it, and the all of it.
As Jesus Himself puts it: “By their fruits ye shall know them.
Do men gather grapes of thorns, or figs of thistles? Even so
every good tree bringeth forth good fruit; but the corrupt tree
bringeth forth evil fruit. A good tree cannot bring forth evil
fruit, neither can a corrupt tree bring forth good fruit. Every
tree that bringeth not forth good fruit is hewn down, and cast
into the fire. Therefore, by their fruits ye shall know them”
(Matt. 7:16-20). The Divine law, each after its kind (Gen. 1:11,
21, 25), prevails in the moral just as truly as in the biological
realm. Those who come to the Marriage Feast without oil in
their lamps will find themselves, by their very lack of spiritual
discernment, excluded therefrom, And when once such persons
stand in the presence of Infinite Holiness and thus fully realize
what they have lost by failing to live the life with the Holy
Spirit, they will indeed, in their overwhelming remorse and
despair, cry out “to the mountains and to the rocks, Fall on
us, and hide us from the face of him that sitteth on the
throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb: for the great
403
day of their wrath is come; and who is le to stand?” (Rev,
6:16~17). There is but one natural progression in the Creative
Process, and that is from the Kingdom of Nature through the
Kingdom of Grace into the Kingdom of Glory, “the eternal
kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ” (2 Pet. 1:ll).
Gal. 6:8-“For he that soweth unto his own flesh shall of the
flesh reap corruptioq but he that soweth unto the Spirit shall
of the Spirit reap eternal life.”
Another fundamental truth, which deserves attention here,
stands out in this ParabIe of the Virgins. It should be noted
that the wise virgins did not share their supply of oil with the
foolish ones. Why not? For the obvious reason that, if the
symbolism of the parable is to remain logically sound, the?
could not do so. Oil is symbolic of ,the Holy Spirit, and the
holiness which the enlightening and sanctifying influences of
the Spirit engenders in the individual human heart is not some-
thing that can be transferred willy-nilly from one person to
another. Holiness is an individual attainment. There is no such
thing in Christianity as justification, regeneration or sanctifica-
tion by proxy. Holiness is a qualitative excellence which can be
acquired only by the individual as such, by his opening of his
own heart to t h e Spirit’s presence and guidance. No person can
attain holiness for another person, nor can any one person
transfer his holiness to one of his fellows. Hence, we are told
that in the final Judgment, every man will be judged according
to his own deeds (Matt. 16:27; Rom. 2:6, 14:12; 2 Cor. 5:lO;
Eph. 6: 8; Col. 3: 25; Rev, 2: 23, 20: 12; cf. 1Cor. 3: 13). The King-
dom of Grace is basically as individualistic as the Kingdom of
Nature.
We may now sum up the import of this entire section on oil
as the source of light, in a single statement, as follows: AS oil
was the source of artificially-produced physical illumination, so
the Holy Spirit is the Source of divinely-produced spiritual i2-
lumination (knowledge) with respect t o the things of both
Spirit in God and spirit in man; moreover, this spiritual knowl-
edge of which the Holy Spirit is the Soicrce, is dispensed through-
out the Church, and by the Church, through her apostles, proph-
ets and evangelists, throughout the world, through the living
Word of God, personal (Christ), oral, written or printed. To
the extent that the Word of God is spread abroad in the hearts
of men, there is always freedom-freedom from error, from
superstition, from anxiety, from lust, from fear; because the
404
living Word of God, the Word revealed by the Spirit, is the
Truth that makes men free.
6. Water. In several instances in Scripture, water is made
symbolic of the graces and comforts of the Holy Spirit. (1)
John 7:37-39: “Now on the last day, the great day of the feast,
Jesus stood and cried, saying, If any man thirst, let him come
unto me and drink. He that believeth on me, as the scripture
hath said, from within him shall flow rivers of living water.”
“But this,’’ the inspired writer himself goes on to say, “spake
he of the Spirit, which they that believed on him were to re-
ceive; for the Spirit was not yet given, because Jesus was not
yet glorified.’’ That is, prior to the Messiah’s coronation and
assumption of universal sovereignty at the right hand of God-
in a word, under the Old Covenant-the gifts and comforts of
the Holy Spirit were not bestowed upon believers generally,
but only certain special gifts were bestowed, and these only
upon chosen individuals to qualify them for various types of
service in the unfolding of the divine Plan of Redemption. Cf.
John 17:7, the words of Jesus to the Eleven: “It is expedient
for you that I go away; for if I go not away, the Comforter will
not come unto you; but if I go, I will send him unto you.” Now
“living water” is water that engenders life, that is necessary to
the generation and sustenance of life; as such it is a fitting
emblem of the life-giving and life-sustaining graces and powers
of the Holy Spirit. Hence, says John the Revelator, in con-
cluding the account of his vision of the Holy City, New Jeru-
salem: “And he showed me a river of water of life, bright as
crystal, proceeding out of the throne of God and of the Lamb,
in the midst of the street thereof. And on this side of the river
and on that was the tree of life, bearing twelve manner of
fruits, yielding its fruit every month; and the leaves of the
tree were for the healing of the nations” (Rev. 22:l-2). Ob-
viously, we have described here in poetic imagery, under the
symbol of the River of Water of Life, the continuous processior
of the Spirit as life-giving Power from the Being of God, that
is, of the one Holy Spirit who is the ultimate Source of every
form of life in the universe. Undoubtedly, too, the Tree of
Life is Christ Himself, the Living and Sovereign Word of God,
the bond of union between creature and Creator. Hence, as
the Tree of Life, in John’s vision, was fed by life-giving streams
from the River of Life upon whose banks it grew, so the Living
Word was generated and fed by the inner presence and power
of the Eternal Spirit, Indeed the Spirit of Christ is, as we have
405
already shown, the Holy Spirit of God. Moreover, as the leaves
of the Tree were, in John’s vision, for the healing of the na-
tions, so the sin-cursed human soul is healed, that is, restored
to fellowship with God, by receiving into itself the living Word,
by feeding upon it, and, so to speak, by digesting and assimilating
it into its very being. For the reception of the Word into the
human heart is the reception also of the transforming and life-
giving powers and comforts of thsSpirit. God’s Word and God’s
Spirit go together. Hence, we hear Jesus Himself saying to
the woman of Samaria at Jacob’s well: “Every one that drinketh
of this water shall thirst again; but whosoever drinketh of the
water that I shall give him shall never thirst; but the water
that I shall give him shall become in him a well of water
springing up unto eternal life” (John 4: 13-14). Language could
hardly be more explicit. (2) Hence, exclaimed Isaiah, alluding
undoubtedly to the graces and comforts of the Spirit mediated
to man through the Gospel: “Ho, every one that thirsteth, come
ye to the waters” (Isa. 55:l). Again, picturing Zion’s happy
future, the joys of fellowship with God under the New Covenant,
he says:
Then the eyes of the blind shall be opened, and the ears of the
deaf shall be unstopped. Then shall the lame man leap a s a hart,
and the tongue of the dumb shall sing; f o r in the wilderness shall
waters break out, and streams in the desert. And the gIowing sand
shall become a pool, and the thirsty ground springs of water; in the
habitation of jackals, where they lay, shall be grass with reeds and
rushes. And a highway shall be there, and a way, and it shall be
called, The way of holiness; the unclean shall not pass over it; but
i t shall be for t h e redeemed; the wayfaring men, yea fools, shall not
err therein. No lion shall be there, nor shall any ravenous beast go up
thereon; they shall not be found there: but the redeemed shall walk
there; and the ransomed of Jehovah shall return, and come with
singing unto Zion; and everlasting joy shall be upon their heads:
they shall obtain gladness and joy, and sorrow and singing shall flee
away (Isa. 35:5-10). Again: Behold, God is my salvation; I will
trust, and will not be afraid; for Jehovah, even Jehovah is my strength
and song; and h e is become my salvation. Therefore with joy shall ye
draw water out of the wells of salvation. And in that day shall ye
say, Give thanks unto Jehovah, call upon his name, declare his doings
among the peoples, make mention t h a t his name is exalted. Sing unto
Jehovah; for he hath done excellent things; let this be known in all
the earth (Isa. 12 :1-5)
These exquisite passages are all in harmony with the
prophecy of Joel: “And it shall come to pass afterward, that I
will pour out my Spirit upon all flesh; and your sons and your
daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dgeams, your
young men shall see visions; and also upon the servants and
upon the handmaids in those days will I pour out my Spirit”
406
(Joel 2: 28-29; cf. Acts 2: 16-21). And the New Testament comes
to a close sounding out the Lord’s precious invitation: “And the
Spirit and the bride say, Come, And he that heareth, let him
say, Come, And he that is athirst, let him come; he that will,
let him take the water of life freely” (Rev. 22: 1 7 ) . In all these
passages, water is emblematic o i the graces, satisfactions and
joys bestowed upon men by the Holy Spirit, (3) In Exo. 17:6,
we see Moses, at the command of Jehovah, smiting (wifh his
rod) a rock in the wilderness, And out of the rock flowed a
stream of water pure and fresh, of which the children of Israel
drank and were satisfied. That rock, says the Apostle Paul,
was Christ: “For I would not, brethren, have you ignorant,
that our fathers were all under the cloud, and all passed through
the sea, and were all baptized unto Moses in the cloud and in
the sea; and did all eat the same spiritual food; and did all
drink the same spiritual drink; for they drank of a spiritual
rock that followed them; and the rock was Christ” (1 Cor. 10: 1-
4)- That is, the rock smitten by Moses was a symbol of Christ,
who was smitten for us (Isa. 53: 4-5). Hence the water which
flowed from the rock, life-giving and refreshing, becomes a
symbol of the graces and comforts bestowed by the Holy Spirit.
And so the Apostle, writing to Christians, goes on to say, in a
subsequent chapter: “For in one Spirit were we all baptized
into one body, whether Jews or Greeks, whether bond or free;
and were all made t o drink of one Spirit” (1 Cor. 12: 13). (4)
In the forty-seventh chapter of Ezekiel, the prophet describes
his Vision of Healing Waters flowing out from the Temple on
Mount Moriah, swelling into a great river as they flow, carryi&
life and healing wherever they spread, and finally pouring their
healing properties into the waters of the Dead Sea itself. “And
he brought me back unto the door of the house; and, behold,
waters issued out from under the threshold of the house east-
ward (for the forefront of the house was toward the east) ; and
the waters came down from under, from the right side of the
house, on the south of the altar. Then he brought me out by
the way of the gate northward, and led me round by the way
without unto the outer gate, by the way of the gate that
looketh toward the east; and, behold, there ran out waters on
the right side” (vv. 1-2). This vision is prophetic of course. No
river ever flowed from the actual Temple on Mount Moriah.
Obviously, the Temple of Ezekiel’s vision is the spiritual temple
of God, the Church of redeemed Israel, which was set up in
Jerusalem on the Day of Pentecost, A.D. 30 (cf. Isa. 2:2-4).
407
Hence the healing waters flowing forth from the Temple sym-
bolize the spreading abroad of spiritual light and influence
throughout the world, through the world-wide proclamation of
the Gospel; the stream of spiritual healing that flowed first in
Jerusalem, then in all Judea and Samaria, and finally unto the
uttermost parts of the earth (Acts 1:8) , causing the wilderness
and the solitary parts of the Earth to be made glad and the very
desert to rejoice and blossom as the rose. It should be noted,
in the first place, that these healing waters, greatly increasing
both in depth and in breadth as they flowed eastward, swelled
into a veritable River of Water of Life.
When the man went forth eastward with the line i n his hand, he
measured a thousand cubits, and he caused me to pass through the
waters,^ waters t h a t were to the ankles. Again he measured a thousand,
and caused me to pass through the waters, waters t h a t were t o the
knees. Again he measured a thousand, and caused me t o pass through
the waters, waters that were t o the loins. Afterward he measured a
thousand; and it was a river t h a t I could not pass through; for the
waters were risen, waters to swim in, a river that could not be passed
through (vv. 3-6).
In like manner, the stream of spiritual (the Holy Sgirit’s)
influence and life was small at first, but it has become wider
and wider, and deeper and deeper, throughout the centuries,
and eventually it shall fill the world, and the knowledge of the
Lord shall cover the earth as the waters cover the sea. The
Scriptures leave n9 room for doubt that the Gospel of Christ
will eventually prevail throughout the earth, if not in the
present Dispensation then certainly in that which shall follow
the Second Advent. In the second place, the healing virtues of
the waters of Ezekiel’s vision are described as very remarkable.
And he said unto me, Son of man, hast thou seen this? Then
he brought me, and caused me to return to the bank of the river.
Now when I had returned, behold, upon the bank of the river were
very many trees on the one side and on the other. Then said he unto
me, These waters issue forth toward the eastern region, and shall go
down into the Arabah [desert]; and they shall go toward the sea [the
Dead Seal; into the sea shall the waters g o which were made to issue
forth; and the waters shall be healed. And it shall come to pass,.that
every living creature which swarmeth, in every place whither the rivers
come, shall live; and there shall be a very great multitude of fish;
f o r these waters are come thither, and the waters of the sea shall be
healed, and everything shall live whithersoever the river cometh.
And it shall come t o pass, that fishers shall stand b i t ; from En-gedi
even unto Eneglaim shall be a place for the sprea&ng of nets; their
fish shalt be a f t e r their kinds, as the fish of the great sea [the Medi-
terranean], exceeding many (vv. 6-10).
This [writes Milligan] is a beautiful illustration of the sanctifying
and soul-redeeming influences of the Gospel. The world is a sea-
a Dead Sea. Mankind are all dead in trespasses and in sins. But a
408
THE NOMENCLATURE OP THE SPIRIT
fountain has been opened in the house of David; a living stream h a s
gone forth from the side of our Redeemer, It has purified the Sanctu-
a r y ; it has cleansed the temple of God. But i t can not be confined
within the narrow limits of any one town, city, or continent. It is the
remedy which God has provided t o supply the wants of a fallen world,
and hence he has made it as free as the air or the sunlight of heaven.‘
Only the enlightening, regenerating and sanctifying activ-
ities of the Holy Spirit can transform the Dead Sea of this
present evil world into a garden blossoming with flowers; and
this transformation can become universal only when the knowl-
edge of the Lord, brought to men everywhere by the Spirit
through the Word, shall cover the whole earth as the waters
cover the sea. It cannot be emphasized too strongly that the
chief characteristic of these waters of Ezekiel’s vision was their
power to give life; and in this respect especially are they sym-
bolic of the Holy Spirit, In the third place, lest in our optimiw
we become unrealistic, Ezekiel’s Vision forewarns us that the
life of the Spirit, mediated through the Gospel, will not be
accepted and enjoyed by all men; on the contrary, many will
reject it. “But the miry places thereof, and the marshes thereof,
shall not be healed; they shall be given up to salt” (v. 11).
The meaning of these words is very obvious from the context.
The influence of the Gospel will be felt and enjoyed under the whole
heavens; i t will cover the whole Earth as the waters cover the sea. But
all parts of the Earth will not enjoy i t equally. I n some places the
water will be so shallow and so mixed with clay t h a t they will only
produce mire. These localities will still, like the banks of the Dead
Sea, remain unproductive. That is, some persons, and probably even
some communities, will not receive the Gospel in the love of it. Like
the ancient Pharisees and some modern professors of Christianity,
they will still continue t o make void the law of God by their traditions
.
and their own inventions, . . And while the world will be a temple
filled with sweet incense from a thousand altars, the moral miasma
of the sin-polluted Earth will ever continue t o rise from a few re-
maining bogs and quagmires. The saint and the sinner will, therefore,
live together during even the Golden Age of Christianity. The tares
and the wheat will grow together in t h e same field till the time of
the world’s great harvest.’ (cf. Luke 8 :4-3 5, Matt. 13 :24-30).
Finally, according to Ezekiel’s vision, many perennial and
jruitful trees, whose fruit shall be for food and whose leaves
shall be for healing, will line the banks of this River of Life.
“And by the river upon the bank thereof, on this side and on
that side, shall grow every tree for food, whose leaf shall not
wither, neither shall the fruit thereof fail; it shall bring forth
new fruit every month, because the waters thereof issue out of
the sanctuary; and the fruit thereof shall be for food, and the
1. R. Milligan, Scl~omeof Redemption, 563.
2. R. Milligan, op. cit., 564-565.
409
leaf thereof for healing” (v. 12). The figure harks back of
course to the Tree of Life in Eden (symbolic of the Word),
which was watered by the river of Eden (symbolic of the
Spirit), the fruit of which was designed to counteract man’s
natural mortality and thus to preserve his physical youth and
vigor; that Tree was for a time Heaven’s antidote for physical
decay, and those who ate of it had no need of any other panacea
(cf. Gen. 2:s-10,3:22-24). That is to say, in the account of
the Tree of Life given in Genesis, the symbolism has reference
to the operation of the Spirit and the Word in the Kingdom of
Nature. This symbolism is repeated on the metaphysical level
(that is, having reference to the operation of the Spirit and the
Word in the Kingdom of Glory) in John’s vision of the Tree
of Life growing along the banks of the River of Water of life,
and fed by life-giving streams from that celestial river, in the
New Jerusalem (Rev. 22:1-2). Evidently, in Ezekiel’s vision
we have the same symbolism, but with reference to the operation
of the Spirit and the Word in the Kingdom of Grace; that is,
as pertaining to the spiritual life engendered and nourished in
God’s saints in this present world or prior to their assumption
of glory and honor and immortality. As the Trees which lined
the banks of the River of Life in Ezekiel’s vision were fed by
Waters issuing out of the Sanctuary, so the means and appoint-
ments by which the life of the Spirit is generated and nurtured
in men derive their life-giving properties from the Divine Spirit
Himself. The food ,provided by these trees is spiritual food,
the Bread of Life provided by the living Word of God; and the
].eaves of these trees which are for spiritual healing are the
gifts and graces and consolations of the Spirit. Hence the fruit
of these trees never fail-they are described as bringing forth
new fruit every month-because the life-giving resources of
the Spirit of God are inexhaustible. The symbolism is exceed-
ingly vivid, spiritual, and fruitful: indeed it “combines spiritual
things with spiritual words” (1 Cor. 2:13) ; it is difficult to ex-
press in human language. Suffice it to say, in summing up, that
we have here, in Ezekiel’s Vision of the Healing Waters, a
symbolic representation of the gifts and graces of the Spirit,
mediated primarily through the Word and secondarily through
the appointments of that Word, viz., the ordinances of the
Christian faith, the exercises of Christian worship, and acts of
Christian love and service to those of the Household of Faith
and to our fellow-men generally. The entire vision is a graphic
portrayal of the universal spread-through the proclamation
410
and acceptance of the Gospel-of the enlightening and sanctify-
ing gifts and influences of the Spirit of God. (5) There are a
few Scripture passages in which water, although not itself
made a symbol of the gifts and graces of the Spirit, is never-
theless, as a symbol of cleansing, directly associated with the re-
ception of the regenerating and sanctifying operations of the
Spirit. The first of these passages occurs in Ezek. 36:24-28:
For I will take you from among the nations, and gather you out
of all the countries, and will bring you into your own land. And I will
sprinkle clean water upon you, and ye shall be clean; from all your
filthiness, arid from all your idols will I cleanse you. A new heart also
will I give you, and a new spirit will I put within you; and I will take
away the stony heart out of your flesh, and I will give you a heart
of flesh. And I will put my Spirit within you, and cause you t o walk
in my statutes, and ye shall keep mine ordinances, and do them,
And ye shall dwell in the land that I gave t o your fathers; and ye
shall be my people, and I will be your God. [Cf. Jeremiah’s promise
of the New Covenant, Jer. 81:31-34; also Ezekiel’s Vision of the
Valley of Dry Bones, Ezek. 37:l-14, especially w. 12-14]. Thus saith
the Lord Jehovah: Behold, I will open your graves and cause you to
come up out of your graves, 0 my people; and I will bring you into
.
the land of Israel. . , And I will put my Spirit in you, and ye shall
live; and I will place you in your own land; and ye shall know t h a t
I, Jehovah, have spoken it, saith Jehovah.
Undoubtedly the cleansing alluded to in the first of the
texts cited, as is evident from the context, in which cleansing
from the pollution of idolatry is clearly indicated, had reference
to the ceremonial cleansing, and the term “clean water” to the
water of Purification, prescribed by the Law of Moses in Num.
19: 17-19. This water was compounded by mixing the ashes of the
sin offering (a red or earth-colored heifer “without spot, wherein
is no blemish, and upon which never came yoke,” Num. 19:3)
in running or spring water (v. 17). The preparation was to be
sprinkled upon polluted persons o r things, with a bunch of
hyssop (v. 18), by a clean person, on the third day and again
on the seventh day following the occurrence of the pollution,
after which the one who sprinkled the water was himself thereby
made unclean, and was required to wash his clothes and remain
outside the camp until evening (vv. 19, 21). It should be noted
that this mixture is specifically named “the water for impurity”
(vv. 13, 21), that is, for symbolic pollution of any kind. Cf.
Psa. 51: ?-“Purify me with hyssop, and I shall be clean: Wash
me, and I shall be whiter than snow, And it was further specified
that any person who wilfully neglected this ordinance, and thus
by his presence defiled the Sanctuary, was io be cut off from
the congregation as a presumptuous sinner (Num. 19:13, 19:20-
411
22; cf. Num. 15:22-31, also 1 Cor. 3:17, 2 Cor. 3:7). Now the
significant point in the passage from Ezekiel is that this general
ceremonial cleansing of tbe nation, whenever it was to occur,
was to be accompanied by a general outpouring of the Spirit
upon all the people, the “putting” of‘the Spirit .within them.
This makes it difficult for us to interpret the passage (and the
Vision of the Valley of Dry Bones as well) as having reference
to the restoration of the Theocracy some half-century and more
later, under Ezra and Zerubbabel. For the Scriptures certainly
make it clear that there was no general outpouring of the Spirit
(Le., upon all obedient believers) under the Old Covenant or
prior to the advent of the Spirit on the Day of Pentecost to
incorporate, indwell and vitalize the Church (cf. Joel 2: 28-32;
John 7:37-39, 20:21-23; Acts 1:6-8, 2:l-33, 19:l-2, etc.). Do
these two passages froin Ezekiel, then, in harmony with Jere-
miah’s promise of the New Covenant, point forward to the
establishment of the Church of Christ, spiritual Israel, and the
reception of the Jews into the New and spiritual covenant of
faith? If so, the Water of Purification of the Old Covenant must
be interpreted as having been a type of .Christian Baptism of
the New. It is difficult to accept such an interpretation, how-
ever, for the following reasons: (a) The’water of baptism is
simply water in its natural form-not “clean water” or the
Water of Purification at all. As a matter of fact, there is no
specification in the New Testament even that baptism shall be
performed in running water. All that is required for baptism
is a sufficient quantity of water for an immersion (John 3:23,
Acts 8:36-38). (b) Baptism has no ceremonial or ritualistic
import whatever. This truth is made crystal clear in 1 Pet.
3:20-21. Here the Apostle expressly declares that baptism is
“not the putting away of the filth of the flesh” (i.e., not a cere-
monial cleansing, not a mere ritualistic observance) , “but the
interrogation of a good conscience toward God, through the
resurrection of Jesus Christ” (that is to say, a n act of f a i t h ) .
In other words, by his dying with Christ in the likeness of
Christ’s death, in the water of baptism, and then being raised
with Christ in the likeness of His resurrection (Rom. 6:3-ll),
the penitent believer declares to the world his belief in the
death,, burial and resurrection of Christ-the facts of the Gospel
(1 Cor. 15:1-4)-and his belief as well in his own ultimate
resuzrrection. Baptism is essentially an act of faith; otherwise,
it is. not a baptism at all, but a mere dipping in water. If a
candidate does not submit to baptism solely out of his love for
412
God and for the Lord Jesus Christ who died for him, and out
of his desire to submit his own will and life to the Divine Will,
he goes down into the water a dry sinner and comes up a wet
one. The Apostle Paul corroborates this fundamental truth
explicitly, in Rom. 6:17-18. “But thanks be to God,” he says,
“that, whereas ye were servants of sin, ye became obedient f r o m
the heart to that form [pattern or mould] of teaching whereunto
ye were delivered; and being made free from sin, ye became
servants of righteousness.” Here, the teaching alluded to is, of
course, the Gospel with its three facts, viz., the death, burial
and resurrection of Christ (1 Cor. 15:l-4), and the pattern or
mould of the teaching is baptism (the subject under discussion
throughout the chapter), the ordinance in which the death,
burial and resurrection of Christ are set forth pictorially to
the world. The Apostle is simply expressing his gratitude at
knowing that those to whom he is addressing the Epistle have
been obedient f r o m the heart to the divine ordinance of bap-
tism. Obedience to baptism, as to any ordinance of the Lord,
to be genuine must flow out of a heart motivated by faith, hope
and love. Hence, throughout the apostolic writings it is made
very clear that the necessary pre-conditions of baptism are
individual faith and repentance (Acts 2:38, 8: 34-39, 16:14-15,
16:31-34; Rom. 10: 9-10, etc.) . It is a sign of spiritual ignorance
to speak of Christian baptism as a “mere rite,’’ “mere outward
act,” “mere external performance,” etc. It is a perversion of
Scripture to speak of it even as a rite; it is a sacred, solemn,
spiritual act of faith, or it is nothing. I am convinced that in-
stead of too much having been made of baptism throughout the
centuries, by the Church and her Ministry, not enough has been
made of it, that is, as an essentially spiritual heart act. (c)
Again, the sprinkling of the Water of Purification under the
Old Covenant can hardly typify the act of baptizing under the
New, for the simple reason that the act of baptizing, in apostolic
times, was that of dipping or immersing the believer in, and
then lifting him out of, the water as the element. I know of no
practice in connection with the .faith and worship of the early
Church that is more generally authenticated, by both the
apostolic and the post-apostolic writings, than this fact. (Cf.
Matt. 3:13-17; Mark 1:9-11; Acts 8:36-39; Rom. 6:3-4; Col. 2:12,
etc.) Therefore, in view of all these considerations, I find it
difficult to accept the interpretation of the passages quoted
from Ezekiel as pointing forward to spiritual Israel, the Church
of the New Covenant, Obviously, it is a national restoration
413
that i s prophetically indicated in both of these texts, a national
restoration t o a national homeland. If the particular national
restoration indicated was that which occurred under Ezra and
Zerubbabel, then the promise, “I will put my Spirit withia you,”
can mean only, “I will put my Spirit in your midst,” that is,
in the heart of your nation, in your civil and ecclesiastical
leaders, to give them wisdom and strength to lead the nation
in the paths of righteousness, I am very much inclined, how-
ever, to think that the third interpretation of these texts from
Ezekiel is the correct one, namely, that they constitute a
prophecy, couched in general terms; of a yet future restoration
of the nation of Israel t o the Holy Land, a restoration t o be con-
summated with. appropriate ceremonial cleansings of a national
character, and to be followed, it would seem, b y the conversion
o f the nation as a whole to Christ, and their reception-as in-
dividuals-of the Holy Spirit,’on the terms of the New Covenant
of course, viz., faith, repentance, confession, and baptism. (Cf.
Deut., ch. 28; Ezek., chs. 38, 39; Dan., ch. 12; Luke 21:24; Rom.,
ch. 11;Rev. 16: 12-21, etc.)
In the New Testament, however, the water of baptism is
clearly indicated to be the visible symbol of the real cleansing
of the penitent believer’s soul from the guilt sin, and as such
is directly connected with the regenerati and sanctifying
operation of the Spirit through the Word John 3:3-5, in the
conversation between Nicodemus and Jesus: (‘Jesus answered
and said unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except one
be born anew, he cannot see the kingdom of God. Nicodemus
saith unto him, How can a man be born when he is old? can he
enter a second time into his mother’s womb, and be born?
Jesus answered, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except one be
born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom
of God.” The subject of conversation here is the new birth,
which, says Jesus explicitly, is one birth, a birth of water and
the Spirit at one and the same time. Now, since the only point
at which a believer comes into contact with’water, in the process
of becoming a Christian, is in the ordinance of Christian baptism,
it seems too evident to admit of any question that ‘(water,” in
this great affirmation of Jesus, has reference to baptism. The
text itself teaches clearly that the new birth, which is accom-
in the human heart by the agency of the Spirit (by
of the Word, of course, the spiritual and incorruptible
Sekd of the Kingdom, Matt. 13:23, Luke 8:ll-15, 1 Pet. 1:23,
Rom. 10:17, etc.) actually takes place in baptism, in which the
414
penitent believer actually dies to the old life of sin and rises
to walk in the new life of righteousness (Rom. 6:4-11), Water
is the element in which the birth takes place; however, because
the Spirit is the active Agent of both the Father and the Son
in the whole transaction (Scripturally designated regeneration,
that is, the begetting and bringing forth of a new creature in
Jesus Christ, 2 Cor. 5: 17, Eph. 2: 10, Eph. 4: 24, Col. 3: 10, etc.) ,
the new birth is described as a birth of water and the Spirit.
All this is in exact harmony with the first public statement of
the terms of pardon (“the keys of the kingdom,” Matt. 16:19)
under the New Covenant, in Acts 2:38. Here we find the Spirit
Himself (Acts 2 : 4 ) , speaking through the Apostle Peter in
answer to some three thousand persons who, convicted of their
sins, were asking what to do to be saved, and saying: “Repent
ye, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus
Christ unto the remission of your sins; and ye shall receive
the gift of the Holy Spirit.” These words teach clearly that
the gifts of God specifically connected by Divine authority with
the baptism of the penitent believer, are remission of sin and
the indwelling of the Spirit of God. Now remission is can-
cellation, full pardon; it is complete remove1 of the burden of
sin’s guilt. This pardon, moreover, takes place, not in the
penitent believer’s mind or heart, but in Heaven itself, at the
seat of, the Divine government; in a word, the pardon takes
place in the Mind of God; He forgives us our trespasses, and
when He forgives them, we are told, He forgets them-0
wondrous thought! Moreover, this pardon, this removal of the
burden of guilt from the penitent’s heart, opens the way for
the entrance of the Spirit in sanctifying measure into that heart
which is purified by faith. Hence, we find Ananias saying to
the penitent Saul of Tarsus, “Arise, and be baptized, and wash
away thy sins, calling on His name” (Acts 22:16), that is, on
the name of Christ. Not that water itself washes away sin;
obviously it does not; there is no magical efficacy in any mate-
rial element to rid the soul of the burden of the guilt of sin.
But that when the Word of God connects, by promise, a certain
Divine blessing with obedience on man’s part to a specific
Divine ordinance, then the man who takes God at His Word
and joyfulIy obeys the ordinance is certain, and knows that he
is certain, to receive the blessing which the Divine promise has
attached to that act of loving obedience. And in this manner
Divine grace, by specific appointment, meets human faith. NOW,
as we have seen, remission of sin and the indwelling Spirit
415
are the Divine promises specifically attached to the ordinance
of baptism. That settles the matter-for the man of faith.’
Therefore says Paul: “For as many of your as were baptized
into Christ did put on Christ” (Gal. 3:27). Again: “There is
therefore now no condemnation to them that are in Christ
Jesus” (Rom. 8: 1). And on the same4 grounds Christian bap-
tism is designated “the washing of ‘regeneration” and is spe-
cifically connected, in the same passage, with the “renewing of
rit” (Tit. 3: 5 ) . All this adds up to the fundamental
e water of baptism, as the ’visible symbol of the
actual cleansing of the from the guilt of sin, is ,invariably
connected with the re ating and sanctifying operation of
the Holy Spirit in the human heart.
To sum up, under this caption: Water is life-giving, growth-
producing, cleansing, refreshing, reviving, and satisfying; so also
is the Holy Spirit whenever and wherever He operates in the
human heart und life.
7 . The Seal. A seal (sphragis), in Scripture, is either (1)
an instrument (signet, signet-ping) for sealing, i.e., for imprinting
a design upon something; or ( 2 ) the ihpression made b y such an
instrument. The ancient Hebrews, like many other more ad-
vanced early peoples, wore their seals or signets in rings on
their fingers or in bracelets on their arms. E,g., Judah, Jacob’s
son, left his seal, his bracelet and his staff, as a pledge with
Tamar, whom he did not know (Gen. 38:18, 25). Sealing,
Scripturally spdaking, may be for any one or more of various
purposes: (1) It may be the setting of a mark upon letters,
books, and other things for purposes of secrecy and security.
‘Is not this laid up in store with me, Sealed up
asures?” Job 14:17-“My transgression is sealed
UP in a bag, And thou fastenest up mine iniquity.” Isa. 8: 16-
.”Bind t h up the testimony, seal the law among my disciples.”
Dan. 1 2 : s “ B u t thou, 0 Daniel, shut u p the words, and seal
the book, even to the time of the end.” Cf. also Rev, 5:1ff., the
Book sealed with seven seals. This was the Book of God’s
decrees respecting the remarkable things that would happen
to His Church throughout the present Dispensation, that is,
end of the present age; its being sealed signified that the
contained it was locked up and hence unknown to His
. Cf. also Rev. 2O:l-3: Here we have John’s vision
gel binding the Old Serpent, the Devil, casting him into
the bottomless pit, and then closing and sealing the pit, ‘(that he
[Satan] should deceive the nations no more, until the thousand
416
THE NOMENCLATURB OF THE SPIRIT
years should be finished.” This teaches us that the time is
coming when the Divine Government will impose a restraint
upon Satan, segregate him, and make him absolutely incapabIe
of doing any considerable amount of mischief to the Church
throughout the period of one thousand years described in the
context. (2) Sealing may also be for the purpose of signifying
ownership, Job 9:7-“Him that commandeth the sun, and it
riseth not, and sealeth up the stars.” That is, God has put the
stars under His seal, as their owner and governor, and allows
them to appear whenever he deems it proper. (3) Again, seal-
ing may be for the purpose of authenticating the genuineness of
a person or thing, as, e.g., the Divine sealing of the Messiah
Himself (John 6: 27). (4) A seal may also have the character
of a pledge. Fleshly circumcision, for instance, is described by
Paul as “a seal of the righteousness of the faith which he
[Abraham] had while he was in uncircumcision” (Rom. 4: 11);
that is, it was a pledge on God’s part, both to Abraham and to
his spiritual seed (Gal. 3: 29), that He would give them Messias,
the Promised Seed, out of the loins of Abraham, and in Him
(Christ) accept them as His own people, pardon their sins on
the ground of their faith and obedience, cleanse them from their
natural corruption, etc., all of which was signified by their
cutting off of their foreskins; in a word, fleshly circumcision
was a pledge of the Covenant of Grace. ( 5 ) A seal may also be
the evidence of a contract that has been entered into. Jeremiah,
for instance, bought a field in his own country of Anathoth, of
a man named Hanamel; he wrote the deed of purchase in dup-
licate, called witnesses to attest it, sealed one copy of the deed
and left the other unsealed; then he put both copies in the
hands of his disciple Baruch, and said to him, after invoking
the authority of Jehovah in support of the transaction: “Take
these deeds, this deed of the purchase which is sealed, and this
deed which is open, and put them in an earthen vessel; that they
may continue many days” (der. 32:6-15), (6) Sealing may also
be confirmatory in character. For example, the Apostle Paul,
writing to the Christians at Corinth, says: “The seal of mine
apostleship are ye in the Lord” (1 Cor. 9:2). That is, Ye are
yourselves the evidence of my divine call to the apostleship:
my apostolic office has confirmation in you who are the effect
of my preaching, as the writing is confirmed by the seal; for
how could anyone think that the blessing of God should ac-
company the Gospel preached by me, to such an extent as to
turn you from your pagan idolatry and lewd manner of life,
417
to the true Christian religion, and to a holy life and conversation,
if God had not sent me and been with me? (7) A n official
seal, such as every government has, signifies that the sealing,
and the seal as well, has back of it the authority and power
of the particular government. Thus Jezebel wrote letters to the
elders of Israel authorizing them to bring about the death of
Naboth, and sealed the letters with King Ahab’s seal (1 Ki.
21:8-10). And Haman sealed the decrees of King Ahasuerus
against the Jews with the king’s seal (Esth. 3:12). A state
seal impressed upon a contract or other legal document is an
official guarantee that the authority and power of government
will be invoked to make sure that the provisions of the contract
shall be carried out by the contracting parties. In a word, an
official seal signifies authority (the moral right to use force)
and power (the actual use of force) to render inviolate con-
tracts, agreements, edicts, etc., officially decreed or sanctioned.
(8) In some cases, sealing is for a combination of two or more
of these purposes. Thus Nebuchadnezzar sealed the stone placed
across the opening to the den of lions into which Daniel had
been cast, “that nothing might be changed concerning Daniel”
(Dan. 6: 17). And in like manner the stone rolled across the
entrance to the sepulchre of Christ, at the instigation of the
Jewish leaders, was sealed with a Roman seal, in order that
the disciples might not be able to steal the corpse, as the rabbis
feared they would attempt to do (Matt. 27: 62-66). In both of
these cases, the sealing was not only for purposes of security,
but was also a pledge that the authority and power of govern-
ment supported the act and would be invoked to punish anyone
who might dare to tamper with the official seal. Moreover, the
Divine sealing of the Messiah, and the Divine sealing of all
the saints of God, with the Holy Spirit of promise, combines,
as we shall now see, practically all these various significations.
Now the universe in which we live is a moral government
under the sovereign rule of God the Creator and Preserver of
all things. Hence, just as every human government has its
seal of state (for, because of the divinely-implanted power of
reason in man, all human things of value are patterned after
the Divine), so God the Sovereign of the universe and Head
of the Rivine government has Hiwofficial act of sealing and
His official or royal seal. Rev, 7:2/--“And I saw another angel
rom the sunrising, having the seal of the living God’’
. 9: 4). This Divine seal, -moFe- has the authority
and power of the Divine government back of it. And even
418
though heaven and earth should pass away, “the firm foundation
of God standeth, having this seal, The Lord knoweth them that
are his; and, Let every one that nameth the name of the Lord
depart from unrighteousness” (2 Tim. 2: 19).
I t should be made unequivocally clear at this point that
Divine sealing is not some mysterious emotion or ecstasy or ex-
perience in the heart of the believer, O n the contrary, it is an
official act of the government of Heaven. T h e Scriptures state
expressly that Christ Himself was sealed; and that all obedient
believers in Christ are likewise sealed, with the Seal of God.
In the case of the saints, God’s official act of sealing accompanies
such other Divine acts as pardon, justification, remission of sin,
etc. I t must be understood of course that, because God is a
Spirit, these acts are, speaking by analogy from human experi-
ence, mental; that is, they occur in t h e Mind or Thought of God.
The Divine Sealer in every case is God the Father. This
is our Lord’s explicit testimony with regard to His own sealing,
John 6:27: “Work not for the food which perisheth, but for
the food which abideth unto eternal life, which the Son of man
shall give unto you: for him the Father, even God, hath sealed.”
The saints also are said to be sealed by God the Father. In
Ephesians I:3-14, the Apostle Paul enumerates the Father’s
loving acts toward all obedient believers in Christ, as follows:
He has blessed them with all spiritual blessings in the heavenly
places in Christ (v. 3); He has chosen them in Christ before
the foundation of the world, that they “should be holy and
without blemish before him in love” (v. 4); in His good pleasure
He predestinated them to the position of His children (v. 5);
He has bestowed His grace freely upon them, in His Beloved
Son (v. 6) ; in the name of His Son, He has enriched them with
abundant spiritual endowments (vv. 7-8) ; He has redeemed
them through the blood of Christ and freely forgiven their
trespasses (v, 7 ) ; He has revealed to them the mystery of
His will, His eternal purpose “to Sum up all things in Christ”
(vv. 9-10); He has displayed His glory in them, through these
acts of His love (vv. 11, 12); and He has marked t h e m for His
o w n possession (as His own property) by sealing t h e m “with
the Holy Spirit of promise” ( v . 13). All these acts are clearly
set forth as acts of the Heavenly Father. It is well for us to
remember, at this point, that the Father is the Source, the
Son the Channel, and the Spirit the Power, of every Divine
blessing. Father originates, the Son executes, the Spirit applies
and realizes.
419
God is the Divine Sealer. The Sealed, as it has been stated
already, are Christ Himself, and all obedient believers in Christ,
Christ was sealed in virtue of what He was in Himself, and
obedient believers in Christ are sealed in virtue of what they
are in Him. 2 Cor, 1:21, 22-“Now he that establisheth us with
you in Christ, and anointed us, is God; who also sealed us, and
gave us the earnest of the Spirit in our hearts.’’
The Sealing of Christ evidently occurred in connection with
His baptism in the Jordan (Matt. 3:13-17, Mark k9-11’Luke
3:21-22, John 1:29-34). We hear Jesus Himself saying, to the
multitude who were thronging Him for the loaves and fishes
with which He was supplying them: “Work not for the food
which perisheth, but for the food which abideth unto the
eternal life, which the Son of man shall give unto you: for
him the Father, even God, hath sealed” (John 6: 27). Obviously
the sealing of Christ alluded to here was connected with the
descent of the Moly Spirit upon Him “in a bodily form, as a
dove” (Luke 3: 22) immediately following His baptism.
One of the most instructive writers on the Hebrew worship and
ritual tells us t h a t it was the custom for the priest t o whom the service
pertained, having selected a lamb from the flock, .to inspect it, with
the most minute scrutiny, in order to discover if it was w!thout
physical defect, and then to seal i t with the temple Real, thus certifying
t h a t it was f i t for sacrifice and for food. Behold the Lamb of God
presenting Himself f o r inspection at the Jordan! Under the Father’s
omniscient scrutiny he is found to be ‘‘a. lamb without blemish and
without spot.” From the opening heaven God gives witness t o the
f a c t in,,the words: “This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well
pleased, and then he puts the Holy Ghost upon him, the testimony
to his sonship, the seal of his separation unto sacrifice and service?
The Sealing of Christ (1) authenticated Him as the true
Anointed One of Jehovah; (2) marked Him as possessing the
‘of the Spirit’s presence and power (John 3:34); (3)
Him as God’s own possession (1Cor. 3:20-23: “For all
urs . . , and ye are Christ’s; and Christ’s is God’s’’) ;
His separation unto His divine task of obtaining
eternal redemption for His people, through the shedding of His
od (Eph. 1:6, 7); and (5) was the Father’s
that He would raise Him from the dead (Rom.
at His own right hand in the heavenly places,
e, and auothority, and power, and dominion,
a t is named, not only in this world, but also
in thal which is to come” (Eph. 1: 20-21).
As in the sealing of Christ Himself, so also the Divine seal-
1. A. J. Gordan, The Milzistry 07 the Spirit, 77.
420
ine: of all believers in Christ occurs in connection with their
I
baptism. Gal. 3:27--"For as many of you as were baptized into

Christ did put on Christ." Having been baptized into Christ
and having thereby put on Christ, they are sealed in virtue of
their being in Christ. Their formal translation, by the Father,
"out of the power of darkness , , , into the kingdom of the Son
of his love" (Col. 1:12-13) occurs in connection with their bap-
tism; in baptism they literally die to the old life of sin, and
arise, as new creatures in Christ Jesus (2 Cor. 5:17), to walk
in the new life of righteousness (Rom. 6:3-11). Rom. 8:l-
"There is therefore now no condemnation to them that are in
Christ Jesus." The fact must be kept in mind also that this
formal translation or transfer, along with pardon, justification,
remission of sin, etc., takes place in the Mind or Thought of God.
The Sealing, on the other hand, although indeed it takes
place officially in the Thought of God, takes place actually in
the mind and heart of the obedient believer. In this connection,
the following observations may help to clarify this rather dif-
ficult subject: (1) All true Christians are Scripturally described
as living epistles of Christ, known and read of all men (2 Cor.
3:2), and as vessels or cabinets filled with spiritual treasure
(2 Cor. 4: 7 ) . (2) Hence, the wax, so to speak, upon which the
Divine inscription is stamped, in the Divine process of sealing,
is the impressionable human heart, which is apt to take any
impression. Psa. 22:14-"My heart is like wax; It is melted
within me." Cf. 2 Cor. 3:3-"written not with ink, but with
the Spirit of the living God; not in tables of stone, but in tables
that are hearts of flesh." Heb. 10:16-"This is the covenant
that I will make with them after those days, saith the Lord:
I will put my laws on their heart, and upon their mind also will
I write them" (cf. Jer. 31:31-34). (3) The design which is
stamped upon the wax is the Mind of Christ, the living Thought
and Word of God; this living Word is impressed upon the mind
and heart of the believer by the Spirit of God Himself, but in-
variably through the preaching and acceptance of the facts,
commands and promises of the Gospel. There is no more thor-
oughly established fact in the history of Christianity than the
fact that where there is no preaching of the Gospel, no dissemi-
nation of the Word written or spoken, there is no operation of
the Spirit and no conversion to Christ. The whole missionary
enterprise of the Church is predicated upon this basic fact.
Jas. 1:21--Receive with meeltness the implanted word, which is
able t o save your souls. John 16:13, 14--Howbeit, when he, the Spirit
42 1
and shall
. . He shall glorify me; for he shall take of mine,
declare it unto you [the words of Jesus]. Phil. 2:s-Have
this mind in you, which was also in Christ Jesus, etc. 1 Cor. 2:16-
But we have the mind of Christ, 1 Cor. 1:21-it was God’s good
pleasure through the foolishness of the preaching t o save them that
believe. Rom. 10:17--So belief cometh of hearing, and hearing by
the word of Christ.
As there can be no harvest in the natural world without
the sowing of seed, so there can be no harvest in the spiritual
world without the sowing of the Seed of the Kingdom, which is
the Word of Cod (Luke 8:11)$ The Word of God is “living,
and active, and sharper than any two-edged sword” (Heb. 4:12),
because the power of the Holy Spirit is embodied in it. The
Gospel is not a power, nor one of the powers, but “the power
of God unto salvation to every one that believeth” (Rorn. 1:16),
because the Holy Spirit is in it and His power is exercised
through it upon the human heart. (4) Hence, the design being
the Living Word of God, the Divine Seal which carries the
design is the Holy Spirit Himself. Eph. 1;13-“in whom [Christ] ,
having also believed, ye were sealed with the Holy Spirit of
promise.” Eph. 4:30-“And grieve not the Holy Spirit of God,
in whom ye were sealed unto the day of redemption.” Now
the Holy Spirit, as we have learned, is a Person. Obviously,
one person can dwell in or inhabit another person only by means
of influences that are essentially psychical; that is to say, pri-
marily by means of thought. Hence, because Christ was in
Ilimself the Thought and Word of God (the Logos), the Divine
Seal in His case was the presence of the Spirit in all the ful-
ness of His power. In the sealing of believers, however, the
Divine Seal is the presence of the Spirit-in the living Word,
accepted by faith-in regenerating and sanctifying power. There-
fore, to say that the Divine Seal is the presence of the Holy
Spirit in regenerating and sanctifying power (as Cruden calls
it, “the grace of sanctification wrought in the soul by the Holy
Ghost”’), and to say that the Divine Seal is the Spirit Himself,
is practically to say one and the same thing. For the Spirit of
God is the Power of the Most High, and, the Spirit being a
Person, the Power must be essentially psychicaZ. Hence, in
whatever measure, or for whatever purpose, the Spirit indwells
the human heart, He does so as the Power of Divine Thought
and Divine Love.
Now, as in the ordinary process of sealing, the wax receives
the image, impressed upon it, of the design which is carried by
1. A. Cruden, Concoydance, under “Seal.”
422
the stamp o r seal, so in the Divine sealing of the saints, they
receive in their hearts the Living Word, Christ (who is the
very image of the Divine substance, Heb. .1:3), which is the
design carried and impressed upon them by the Holy Spirit,
the Divine Seal. That is t o say, by faith they receive in their
haarts the mind of Christ, in the process of regeneration, and in
so doing, become like Christ, Christlike and hence Godlike,
This spiritual resemblance of the believer to Christ, realized
by the agency of the Spirit through the Gospel, is the sign of
the believer’s sanctification. Moreover, the visible evidence of
this sanctification is the fruit of the Spirit with which the every-
day life of the true Christian abounds. Cf. Matt. 7:20, 21-“By
their fruits ye shall know them. Not every one that saith unto
me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but
he that doeth the will of my Father who is in heaven.” And
undoubtedly to do the will of the Heavenly Father is to bring
forth the fruit of the Spirit in one’s life. Gal. 5:22-“But the
fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness,
goodness, faithfulness, meekness, self-control; against such there
is no law.’’ Now there is a somewhat mysterious passage in 2
Tim. 2: 19 which, despite its obscurity, certainly corroborates
this teaching. Here the Apostle affirms that, despite the de-
fection and unbelief of some one-time professing Christians of
his day, “howbeit, the firm foundation of God standeth, having
this seal, The Lord knoweth them that are his; and, Let every
one that nameth the name of the Lord depart from unrighteous-
ness.” Whatever else this passage implies, it certainly teaches
us that Divine Sealing, which has for its sure foundation the
authority and power of the Almighty, signifies two facts: (1)
ownership, on God’s part-“The Lord knoweth them that are
his”; and (2) holiness, on man’s part--“Let every one that
nameth the name of the Lord depart from unrighteousness.”
These two facts are here set forth symboIically as inscriptions
included in the design impressed upon the human heart by the
Divine Seal. That is, the two inscriptions, taken together, show
forth the two sides of the saint’s standing with his God. Those
who are sealed are themselves holy, Le., in the sense that it i s
their disposition to depart from unrighteousness; and, being
holy, God marks them as His own possession. The Sealing is,
therefore, a ratification of the covenant relationship existing
between God and His people. Let us now examine the inscrip-
tions themselves in some detail: (1) “The Lord knoweth them
that are his.” (This sentence is taken verbatim from the LXX.
423
THH ETERNAL SPIRIT - HIS PERSON AND POWERS
of Num. 16:5). That is, the Lord marks the true saints as be-
longing in thought, motive and disposition to Him, marks them
for His own possession, as His very own property. As a matter
of fact, only God Himself can know those who are really His,
for the simple reason that He alone is capable of discerning the
thoughts and intents of the human heart. He and He alone is
capable of knowing whether or bot the person who presents
himself to the Christian evangelist for baptism is truly a
penitent believer coming to the baptismal pool from pure motives.
Hence ohly the Lord Christ Himself has the proper knowledge,
and hence the proper authority, to add believers to His own
Body, the Church, and to excommunicate persons therefrom
(Acts 2: 47,5 : 14),
John 10:14--[the words of Jesus]: I am the good shepherd; and
I know mine own, and mine own know me. John 10:27 [again the
words of Jesus]: My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and
they follow me. 1 Cor. 6:19, 20-Or know ye not t h a t your body i s a
temple of the Holy Spirit which i s in you, which ,ye have-from Gqd?
and ye a r e not your own; for ye were bought with a price: glorify
God therefore in your body. 1 Pet, 2:9-But ye a r e an elect race, a
royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for God’s own possession, etc.
Tit. 2:14-the great God and our Savior Jesus Christ, who gave
himself for us, that he might redeem us from all iniquity, and purify
unto himself a people for his own possession zealous of good works.
1 Cor. 3:9--Ye are God’s husbandry, God’s building. 1 Cor. 3:20, 23-
.
For all things are yours, , , And ye a r e Christ’s, and Christ i s God’s.
“When we receive the gift of the Holy Spirit,” writes A, J.
Gordon,
it i s t h a t we may count ourselves henceforth and altogether Christ’s.
If any shrink from this devotement, how can he have the fullness of
the Spirit? God cannot put His signature upon what is not his? Hence,
if under the sway of a wordly spirit we withhold ourselves from God
and insist on self-ownership, we need not count i t strange if God
withholds himself from us and denies us the seal of divine ownership.
God is very jealous of his signet. He graciously bestows i t upon
those who a r e ready to devote themselves utterly and irrevocably
to his service, b u t he strenously withholds i t from those who, while
professing- his name, are yet “serving divers lusts and pleasures.”
There is a suggestive passage in the Gospel of John which, translated
so as to bring out the antitheses which it contains, reads thus: “Many
trusted in his name, beholding the signs which he did; but Jesus did
‘not t r u s t himself t o them” (John 2:23, 24). Here is the great essential
$0 our having t h e seal of the Spirit. Can the Lord trust us? Nay;
the question i s more serious. Can he trust himself t o us? The Holy
Spirit, which is his signet ring, can he commit i t t o our use f o r
signing our, prayers and for certifying ourselves, and his honor not
be compromised?l
< i
(8) The other inscription is: “Let every one that nameth
1. A. J. Gordon, op. Cit., 79.
424
THB NOMENCLATURE OF THE SPIRIT
the name of the Lord depart from unrighteousness.” It should
be noted that this is substantially the same as that upon the
mitre of the Jewish High Priest: “HOLY TO JEHOVAH” (Exo.
39:30). The possession of the Spirit commits the possessor ir-
revocably to a life of separation from sin. Holiness, therefore,
the life of the Spirit which is manifested in the fruit of the
Spirit, is both the badge of sanctification and the ground on
which the sanctified are officially marked as God’s own pos-
session. 1 John 1:6--“If we say that we have fellowship with
him [God] and walk in the darkness, we lie, and do not the
truth.” 1John 3: 7, 8--“He that doeth righteousness is righteous,
even as he is righteous: he that doeth sin is of the devil, for
the devil sinneth from the beginning.”
The great office of the Spirit in the present economy i s to com-
municate Christ t o his church which is his body. And what is so truly
essential of Christ as hoIiness? “In him is no sin; whosoever abideth
in him sinneth not.” The body can only be sinless by uninterrupted
cqrnmunion with the Head; the Head will not maintain communion
with the body except it be holy.%
As sinners, men are quickened by the Holy Spirit; as saints,
they receive His grace of sanctification,
Finally, the Seal of God in the saints is not only the attesta-
tion of His ownership of them, and not only the badge of their
own sanctification or separation unto a life of holiness, but also
a pledge or earnest on the part of the Heavenly Father that He
will lead them into their eternal inheritance “incorruptible, and
undefiled, and that fadeth not away, reserved in heaven” for
them (1Pet. 1:4). It is the earnest of their ultimate attainment
of heavenly glory and honor and immortality (Rom. 2:7). 2
Cor. 1:22-“God, who also sealed us, and gave us the earnest
of the Spirit in our hearts.” Eph. 1:13, 1 A Y n whom [Christ],
having also believed, ye were sealed with the Holy Spirit of
promise, which is an earnest of our inheritance, unto the re-
demption of God’s own possession, unto the praise of his glory.”
Cf. also Eph. 4:3O--“Grieve not the Holy Spirit of God, in
whom ye were sealed unto the day of redemption.” The “day
of redemption” alluded to here, the day “of the redemption of
God’s own possession,” is obviously the day of the Lord’s re-
turn in glory with his holy angels (Matt. 25:31), when He shall
raise the dead and translate the living (1 Cor. 15: 51-54). For
the present, however, His own people, those whom He has pur-
chased with His own precious blood (Acts 20:28) are in this
1. A. J. Gordon, op. OiC., 80.
425
world, and, although the world knows them not (John l : l O ,
15: 19; 1 John 3: 1), He has put His mark upon them, the mark
whereby they shall be recognized at His coming.
Cf. Rev. 7:3--Hurt not the earth, neither the sea, nor the trees,
till we shall have sealed the servants of our God on their forehead.
Rev. 14:l-And I saw, and behold, the Lamb standing on the mount
Zion, and with him a hundred and forty and four thousand, having
his name, and the name of his Father, written on their foreheads.
Rev. 22:3, 4-And there shJl be no curse any more; and the throne
of God and of the Lamb shall be therein; and his servants shall serve
him; and they shall see his face; and his name shall be on their fore-
heads,
(Is not this poetic imagery designed to signify the Mind
of Christ, the impression stamped upon the believer’s heart by
the Divine Seal, the Holy Spirit of promise, whose special mis-
sion it is, in the present Dispensation, to communicate Christ
the Word to His Church)? And in that great quickening, at
the Redeemer’s Second Advent, the indwelling Spirit (the
presence of the Spirit in sanctifying power, whereby the saints
are little by little transformed into the image of Christ from
glory to glory, 2 Cor. 3:18) will be the Seal by which Christ’s
own will be recognized, and not only that, but the Power also
by which they shall be taken up to meet the Bridegroom (1
Thess. 4:13-17). This-the personal life with the Spirit-is the
essential condition of final quickening, which shall include the
redemption of the body, that great change for which God’s
people now wait in hope (Rom. 8:22-25). Rom. 8:ll--“But if
the Spirit of him that raised up Jesus from the dead dwelleth
in you, he that raised up Christ Jesus from the dead shall give
life also to your martal bodies through his Spirit that dwelleth
in you.” “As the magnet attracts the particles of iron and at-
irst imparting its own magnetism to
iven his Spirit to his own, will draw
the Spirit.”’ How vitally important
tiahs take heed lest they grieve the
m they are sealed, lest they mar the
ey have been stamped as God’s own possession,
or obscure the signature by which they are
in the Day of Redemption. For they certainly
turn aside into unbelief, worldliness,
ousness, as the dog turns again to his own
2: 22), and thereby obliterate the
em; in which case, the Righteous
i. A. J. Gordon, op. cit., 81.
426
Judge will be compelled to say to them in the Day of Reckoning,
according to the dispensation of Divine Justice: “I never knew
you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity” (Matt. 7:23; cf,
Matt, 25: 41).
To sum up: The Divine Sealing of the saints of God with
the Holy Spirit of promise (1) confirms the covenant relation-
ship existing between God and His own people, (2) signifies
God’s ownership of them, (3) signifies their own separation
unto a life of holiness, and (4) is God’s pledge that He will
bring them into heavenly glory and honor and incorruption,
eternal life (Rom. 2: 5-7),
8. The Fingel. of God. This metaphor occurs occasionally
in Scripture and signifies an operation of the Spirit-power of
God. Pharaoh’s magicians, for example, discerned the power
of God in the miracles which Moses wrought at the Egyptian
court, and exclaimed, “This is the finger of God” (Exo. 8:”).
In affirming such a judgment, these superstitious pagans no
doubt gave expression to a truth more profound than they
themselves realized. For demonstration, the work of miracles
for evidential purposes, is essentially a work of the Spirit of
God, Again, the Decalogue delivered by Moses to the children
of Israel is said to have been indited by the finger of God upon
“the two tables of the testimony, tables of stone” (Exo. 31:18;
cf. Exo. 32:16, Deut. 9:lO). This means, obviously, that the
Decalogue wad communicated to Moses by inspiration of the
Spirit. This must be true, for the simple reason that the Spirit
is invariably the Revealer of Divine truth, for it is He alone,
we are told, who searches and knows “the deep things of God”
(1 Cor. 2:lO-13). Moreover, since an operation of this kind,
that is, one of the character of a revelation, is customarily
wrought by the Spirit through the instrumentality of an in-
spired man, we may reasonably conclude that, whereas the
Spirit did the inspiring and the revealing, it was Moses himself
who actually did the work of inditing or engraving the words
of the Decalogue upon the stone tablets, although he-just as
the Apostles on the Day of Pentecost hardly realized, if indeed
they realized at all, what they were saying (Acts 2: 4) -prob-
ably at the time of performing the task was unaware that he
was doing so. This conclusion is in harmony with Exo. 34:27-28,
which reads as follows: “And Jehovah said unto Moses, Write
thou these words: for after the tenor of these words I have
made a covenant with thee and with Israel. And he was there
with Jehovah forty days and forty nights; he did neither eat
427
bread, nor drink water. And he wrote upon the tables the
words of the covenant, the ten commandments.” Again, Jesus
Himself, according to Luke, made use of this metaphor in con-
nection with His exorcism of demons. Said He to the Pharisees:
“If I by the finger of God cast out demons, then is the kingdom
of God come upon you” (Luke 11:20). Matthew, however,
quotes Him as saying: “But if I by the Spirit of God cast out
demons, then is the kingdom of God come upon you” (Matt,
12:28) Thus it is evident that here again the finger of God
is a metaphor of the operation of the Spirit-power of God
exercised for the purpose of demonstration. That is to say,
when God points His finger at a demon, and says, “GO,” it
must go. The metaphor is indeed expressive.
9. The L a y i n g on of Hands. This act, throughout the Scrip-
tures, is a visible symbol (1) of the communication by the
Spirit of special gifts and powers for special Divine purposes,
or (2) of the approval by the Spirit of the appointment of a
person to some form of ministry in the Church, which is under
the administration of the Spirit, or of both enduement of a
person with special powers and his nation to a ministry at
one and the same time. The outward sign indicated the transfer
of inward spiritual power or authority or both. (1) Num.
27: 18-23:
. , f ( <,A,$#
.VI,%
And Jehovah said unto Moses, Take thee Joshua the son of Nun,
a man in whom i s the Spirit, and’lag thy hand upon him; and set
him before Eleazar the priest, and before all the congregation; and
give him a charge in their sight. And thou shalt put of thine
honor upon him, t h a t all the congregation of the children of Israel
may obey. And h e shall stand before Eleazar the priest, who shall
inquire €or him by the judgment bf the Urim before Jehovah: a t his
word shall they go out, and a t his word shall they come in, both he,
and all the children of Israel with him, even all the congregation.
And Moses did as Jehovah commanded him; and he took Joshua, and
set him before Eleazar the priest, and before all the congregation:
and he laid his hands upon him, and gave him a charge, as Jehovah
spake by Moses.
Here, evidently, the imposition of hands upon Joshua was
for a twofold purpose: to ratify outwardly, in the eyes of all
the people, his Divine call to be the successor to Moses; and
to signify the Spirit’s communication to him of such special
inward gifts as might be needed by him in discharging the
duties of the office to which he was divinely called (cf. Deut.
34:9). (C€, Jehovah’s “taking of the Spirit that was upon
Moses” and “putting it upon” the Seventy elders, Num. 11:16-30.)
(2) Acts 6:l-6. Here we are told that there arose within the
428
THB NOMnNCLATLJRE OF THE SPIRIT
church in Jerusalem, not long after its establishment, a “mur-
muring” of the Hellenistic Jews against the Palestinian or native
Jews, that the widows of the former were being neglected in
the daily ministration of charity. Whereupon the Twelve
(Apostles) “called the multitude of the disciples unto them,
and said, It is not fit that we should forsake the word of God,
and serve tables. Look ye out therefore, brethren, from among
you seven men of good report, full of the Spirit and of wisdom,
whom we may appoint over this business. But we will continue
stedfastly in prayer, and in the ministry of the word.” This
apostolic counsel, we are told, pleased the congregation, and
forthwith they selected seven men, “whom they set before the
apostles; and when they had prayed, they [the apostles] laid
their hands upon them.” It is worthy of note that the seven
“deacons” in this case were first selected (no doubt elected)
by the members of the congregation themselves; then the
Apostles laid their hands upon them. It has been contended
by some that the imposition of hands here was merely a part
of the ceremony of ordination, a symbol of the Spirit’s authori-
zation of their appointment as special servants of the local
church. That the act had this symbolic import is no doubt true.
But, in my opinion, it signified a great deal more, namely, the
communication to these seven men of the charismatic measure
of the Spirit’s power, the measure responsible for the extra-
ordinary (commonly called miraculous) gifts of the Spirit which
characterized the Church generally throughout the apostolic age.
That one of these seven men, namely, Philip, who came to be
known as Philip the evangelist (Acts 21: 8), possessed these
charismata, the Scriptures leave no room for doubt. For, in
Acts 8:5-8, we find this same man down in Samaria preaching
the Gospel to the people of that city. “And Philip went down
to the city of Samaria, and proclaimed unto them the Christ.
And the multitudes gave heed with one accord unto the things
that were spoken by Philip, when they heard, and saw the signs
which he did. For from many of those that had unclean spirits,
they came out, crying with a loud voice; and many that were
lame, were healed. And there was much joy in that city.”
Now, as the inspired historian goes on to inform us, there was
a certain magician or sorcerer in that city by the name of
Simon, who had acquired a considerable reputation with the
superstitious populace for his apparently extraordinary powers.
we read that when the people “believed Philip preaching good
tidings concerning the kingdom of God and the name of Jesus
429
Christ, they were baptized, both men and women. And Simon
also himself believed, and being baptized, he continued with
Philip; and beholding signs and great miracles wrought, he
was amazed” (Acts 8:12-13). The question that arises here is
this: Whence had Philip, who was not an apostle, obtained this
charismatic measure, these extraordinary gifts, of the, Spirit?
There can be but one answer: At the time the Apostles laid
their hands upon him, when he was ordained a deacon of the
Jerusalem coegregation; the imposition of apostolic hands at
that time was the visible symbol of the Spirit’s communication
of these special gifts to those upon whom hands were laid. That
this charismatic measure of the Spirit could conferred onZy
by an apostle (the Twelve having themselve st received the
baptismal or overwhelming measure of the Spirit on the Day
of Pentecost, Acts 2:l-4) is evident from the remainder of the
narrative in the eighth chapter of Acts. Here we read, w. 14-20,
as follows:
Now when the apostles that were a t Jerusalem heard that Samaria
had received the word of God, they sent unto them Peter and John:
who, when they were come down, prayed for them, t h a t they might
receive the Holy Spirit: for as yet it was fallen upon none of them;
only they had been baptized into the name of the Lord Jesus Christ.
Then laid they their hands on them, and they received the Holy
Spirit [that is, the charismatic measure of the Spirit]. Now when
Sam0.n saw that through the laying on of the apostles’ hands the Holy
Spirzt was give%, he offered them money, saying, Give me also this
power, t h a t on whomsoever I lay my hands, he may receive the Holy
Spirit. But Peter said unto him, Thy silver perish with thee, because
thou hast thought t o obtain the gift of God with money, etc.
In this account, the facts regarding the bestowal of the
charismatic measure of Spirit-power are made so plain that mis-
understanding is impossible. These facts are (a) that this
measure of the Spirit could be confekred upon another person
only by an apostle, and (b) that the outward sign of the con-
ferring of it was the laying on of an apostle’s hand. This explains
why Philip, who had received this measure of the Spirit from
the Apostles themselves in Jerusalem, as signified outwardly
by their laying of their hands upon him, could not himself im-
part the gift to those converted under his preaching-Philip
was not an apostle. Hence it was necessary for the Apostles
Peter and John to come down to Samaria from Jerusalem, and
lay their hands upon Philip’s converts, that the latter might,
in common with the saints generally throughout the apostolic
age, be endued with this measure of the Spirit, for evidential
purposes in relation to the unconverted world and for their
430
THE NOMENCLATURE OP T H E SPIRIT
own strengthening in the most holy faith. The same facts are
brought out in the account of Paul’s meeting with certain dis-
ciples at Ephesus several years later.
Acts 19:1-’7: Paul having passed through the upper country came
t o Ephesus, and found certain disciples: and he said unto them, Did
ye receive the Holy Spirit when ye believed? And they said unto him,
Nay, we did not so much as hear whether the Holy Spirit was given.
And he said, Into what then were ye baptized? And they said, Into
John’s baptism. And Paul said, John baptized with the baptism of
repentance, saying unto the people that they should believe on him
that should come after him, that is, on Jesus. And when they heard
this, they were baptized into the name of the Lord Jesus. And w h e n
Paul had laid his hands upon them, the H o l y Spirit came on t h e m ; and
they spalce with tongues, and prophesied. And they were in all about
twelve men.
Here again it was the charismatic measure of the Spirit
which was imparted to new converts, and the outward sign
of the communication of the spiritual gift was the laying on of
an apostle’s hand. That the actual presence of an apostle was
necessary to the communication of this gift goes without saying,
for only by being present in person could he lay his hands upon
another person; the gift was not communicable in. absentia.
Hence says Paul, writing to the Christians in Rome: “For I
long to see you, that I may impart unto you some spiritual gift,
to the end that ye may be established,’’ that is, confirmed in the
faith (Rom. 1:11). All this adds up to one basic incontrovertible
fact, namely, that the imposition of an apostle’s hand signified
at times, whatever secondary import the act may have had,
the inward communication of the charismatic measure of Spirit-
power, (3) There are instances in the New Testament, how-
evela, in which the imposition of hands, accompanied by fasting
and prayer, seems to have signified only the Spirit’s authoriza-
tion, as Administrator of the Church of Christ, of the appoint-
ment of some person or persons to a special ministry in the
Church. A notable instance of this occurs in Acts 13:l-4. Here
was read as follows:
Now there were a t Antioch, in the church t h a t was there, prophets
and teachers, Barnabas, and Symeon that was called Niger, and Lucius
of Cyrene, and Manaen the foster-brother of Herod the tetrarch, and
Saul. And a s they ministered t o the Lord, and fasted, the Holy Spirit
said, Separate me Barnabas and Saul for the work whereunto I have
called them. Then, when they had fasted and prayed and laid their hands
on them, they sent them away. So they, being sent fo+h by the Holy
Spirit, went down t o Seleucia; and from thence they sailed t o Cyprus.
It should be observed that in this entire passage not one
word is said about charismatic gifts, and that there is absolutely
431
nothing in the context to warrant the conclusion that any such
gifts were imparted. On the contrary, the command of the
Holy Spirit in this case, to the prophets and teachers in the
Antioch church, was not that they should. qualify Paul and
Barnabas for the work to which they were being called, - b u t
simply that they should formally set them apart to this work.
Moreover, since the impartation of such extraordinary gifts of
the Spirit was one of the peculiar functioqs of the Apostolic
office, it goes without saying that these prophets and teachers
lacked both the authority and the power to impart such gifts.
Moreover, even if it could be proved, which it cannot, that
these prophets and teachers did have the power to confer oh
others this special gift of working miracles, it would, never-
theless, be sufficient for our present purpose to point to the fact
that Paul at least stood in need of no such gifts. He was not
dependent on these gifts, nor on ordination by any group of
men, for his divine commission and attendant qualifications to
preach the Gospel and to exercise the prerogatives and powers
of an apostle (cf. Galatians, chs. 1 and 2 ) . We are therefore
compelled to conclude that the imposition of hands, by the
prophets and teachers of the Antioch church, was simply the
Spirit’s outward and formal authorization of these two evan-
gelists, Paul and Barnabas, to the assumption of the special
task to which He, the Spirit, had called them. (4) One other
passage needs to be considered in this connection, viz., the words
of the Apostle Paul to the young preacher, Timothy, 1Tim. 4;14-
“Neglect not the gift that is in thee, which was given thee by
prophecy, with the laying on of the hands of the presbytery.”
The “presbytery,” in this passage, is literally the eldership, and
should be so translated; there is ng excuse for using the trans-
literated word here, in this one isolated case in the entire New
Testament. Correlating this passage with Acts 16:l-3, it be-
comes evident that the elders at Lystra had laid, their hands on
this young preacher for some purpose. It is also clear that
Timothy received the same or some other gift by the laying
on of Paul’s hands. In 2 Tim. 1:6, the Apostle himself says to
his protege: “For which cause I put thee in remembrance that
thou stir up the gift of God, which is in thee through the laying
on of my hands.” We may safely conclude, therefore, that
whatever the miraculous gift was that Timothy received, he
received it from Paul, and that from the elders at Lystra he
received the gift of his office as an evangelist. There is no evi-
dence in the New Testament that prophets, teachers or elders
432
THE NOMENCLATURB OF THE SPIRIT
had the authority or power to impart to another the charismatic
measure of the Spirit; that was a function only of the Apostolic
office. Thus the laying on of hands may be the outward symbol
of the Spirit’s communication of special spiritual gifts, or it
may be the outward symbol of His commission to a special min-
istry in the Church of Christ.
Fire is regarded by some commentators as a symbol of the
Holy Spirit. This view is based almost exclusively on the cor-
relation of John the Baptizer’s statement regarding the mission
of Jesus, “He shall baptize you in the Holy Spirit and in fire”
(Matt. 3:11), with the description in the second chapter of Acts
of the external signs which accompanied the advent of the
Spirit on the Day of Pentecost. These signs were “a sound as
of the rushing of a mighty wind” and “tongues, parting asunder,
like as of fire” (Acts 2: 1-4). I am convinced, however, that the
Scriptures generally speaking do not support this interpretation.
Fire, in Scripture, is a symbol of the Word rather than of the
Spirit. Hence the sound as of a rushing mighty wind and the
tongues parting asunder resembling fire, on the Day of Pentecost,
symbolized the joint operation of the Spirit and the Word,
namely, the advent of the Spirit to incorporate and indwell the
Church of Christ and the first proclamation of the facts, com-
mands and promises of the Gospel as revealed by the Spirit
(Acts 2:l-47). God’s Spirit and God’s Word go together. Isa.
59:21--“This is my covenant with them, saith Jehovah, my
Spirit that is upon thee, and my words which I have put in thy
mouth, shall not depart out of thy mouth,’’ etc. Hence, as the
Word of God is a savor from life unto life to the saved,
being the Divine standard by which they are purified and
acquitted, and a savor from death unto death to the lost, being
the standard by which they are condemned (2 Cor. 2:16-17, 1
Cor. 3:13), so Fire, which destroys dross, and purges only by
destroying, is quite properly a symbol of the moral judgment
executed by the Word upon sin and upon the unforgiven sinner
(Matt, 25:41, Rev. 20:10, 14). (Matt. 3:ll-12, 25:41; 2 Thess.
1: 7-10; Rev. 20: 10, 14).
4. The Holy Spirit as Distinguished from His Gifits

I t is absolutely necessary for anyone who desires to obtain
anything like a clear understanding of the Holy Spirit and His
work, t o keep in mind always the distinction existing between
the Spirit Himself on the one hand, and His powers, influences,
433
and gifts, o n t h e other. As we have already seen, the Scriptures
make it clear that the Holy Spirit is Himself, that is, as to es-
sence or being, a Person. He is not a mere impersonal energy
or force, something like electricity, for example; nor is He a
mere personification of some physical or mental force; He is
essentially a Person. As such He is not ontologically one with the
powers and influences which He exerts in the physical and moral
worlds, but the Source of those powers and influences. As a
matter of fact, before there can be activity of any kind, there
must of necessity be a being capable of acting. Before there can
be thought, there must of necessity be a thinker; before there
can be love, there must be a lover; before there can be a sin,
there must be a sinner. Metaphysically speaking, being is the
first of all categories, upon which all activity, either physical or
mental, is necessarily predicated. The failure to recognize this
fundamental truth, or perhaps it would be more correct to say,
the deliberate will to ignore it, on the part of a great many
thinkers of modern times, has been the cause of much of the
confusion which has prevailed in philosophical thought since
the time of Descartes. And if we are going to avoid confusion,
in our attempt to understand, even partially, the nature and
activities of the Spirit of God, we must never lose sight of this
ontological distinction between the Spirit Himself and the gifts
of the Spirit.
To illustrate, although the illustrations are perforce inade-
quate: Jennie Lind, for instance, was a person. But she had
a gift of song, which we call an art, which enabled her to hold
her audience enraptured when she sang “Home, Sweet Home”
in Madison Square Garden. But the person, Jennie Lind, was
one thing, and the gift or art was another. Leonard0 De Vinci
was one of the great painters of all time. His talent enabled
him to produce the immortal masterpiece, “The Last Supper,”
a painting which will bless and adorn humanity as long as time
lasts, But the person was one thing, and the painting-the
person’s gift to humanity-was another thing. Thomas A. Edison
was a person. But his gifts to humanity were the electric light,
the phonograph, and others of like character. Marconi was a
person, but his gift to humanity was wireless telegraphy. Sim-
ilarly, St. Augustine was a great theologian and philosopher.
His books have influenced Christian thought and doctrine for
centuries. But the man himself, the author, was one thing; his
books, and the influences he exerted through them, were another
thing. Harriet Beecher Stowe wrote a great novel entitled
434
Uncle Tom’s Cabin. The influence of this book was far-reaching;
in fact it was one of the direct causes of the American Civil War,
By no stretch of the imagination, however, can we regard the
book and its author as having been ontologically identical. The
same reasoning may be applied to Tom Paine and his A g e of
Reason: Paine himself was a person, one thing; his book, which
has influenced thousands of uninformed persons into infidelity,
is quite another thing. The author himself has died, but his
book and its influence lives on; as a matter of fact, the influence
of the book itself will live forever, and in its disastrous effects
upon the souls of men will be felt throughout eternity. Every
person exerts individual energies and influences of various
kinds; however, the person and his influences are distinct things.
So it is with the Holy Spirit: His Person is one thing ontological-
ly, but His powers, influences, and gifts are another thing.
Moreover, the Holy Spirit being a Person, and incorporeal
(that is, in the physical sense of the term), we may reasonably
conclude that His powers, influences and gifts are essentially
psychical. Perhaps some would say that they are “superpsychi-
cal.” Obviously, however, in the light of our human experience,
the adjective “superpsychical,” like “superpersonal,” is mean-
ingless. The most we can say, with any degree of comprehension,
is that the powers of the Spirit are essentially psychical. As such,
of course, they may transmute themselves into physical mani-
festations; for thoughts, as we have learned, may indeed become
things. Now, because both the being and the activity of the
Spirit are characteristically psychical (and incorporeal) , it is
practically impossible for the human intellect, unless it is trained
acutely in logical and in ontological discernment, to be able to
differentiate between these two aspects of existence. As a matter
of fact, with respect to man himself as a person, it is very dif-
ficult to grasp the distinction between a human being as a being
(person), on the one hand, and that person’s thought o r char-
acteristic activity as a person, on the other hand. What indeed
is the ontological difference between a human being and his
own thought? About all we can say is that, logically, thinking
presupposes being, that is, a thinker. Beyond this we cannot go,
because science has no instruments, no means of any kind what-
soever, for ascertaining experimentally the real nature of either
being or thinking, or of the difference ontologically between
being and thinking, in man. If this be true with respect to
being and activity in man, and we know that it is, how infinitely
more true it is with respect to the Being and Activity of the
435
Holy Spirit. Hence, in the nomenclature of the Spirit Himself,
as found in Scripture, no such distinction is explicitly asserted:
the Bible, it must be remembered, is not a text on metaphysics.
The Spirit reveals Himself to us in Scripture in terms adapted
to our comprehension, that is, as possessing the faculties or
powers that only a person is known by us to possess, as doing
the things that only a person is known by us to do, and as ex-
periencing the slights that only a person is known by us to
experience. By the revelation of these truths in the simplest
form possible, the Spirit impresses upon our minds the fact
that He is, in Himself, in His essential being, a Person. On
the other hand, because the Holy Spirit, is made known to us
(imparted to us, it may be truly said) only through Eis psychical
powers and influences, the nomenclature of the Spirit, for a11
practical purposes and in adaptation especially to the limitations
of the human intellect, treats the being of the Spirit 3s funda-
mentally identical with His psychical activity. However, in
order that we may not become confused, we must never lose
sight of the fact that the Spirit Himself is a Person, and that
as a Person He Himself is to be kept distinct from His activity,
in our thinking about Him.
For example, we are told by Jesus Himself (John 4:24)
that God IS a Spirit (or Spirit), “hat is to say, He is a spiritqal
or incorporeal Being: in the words of one of the older catechisms,
a Being “without body or parts, yet possessing understanding
and free will.” Then again the Scriptures make it clear that
God HAS Spirit (1 Cor. 2:lO-14). That is to say, God HAS
Spirit in that He includes in the totality of His Being the being
of the Spirit and therefore the powers and influences of the
being of the Spirit. In the third place, it is frequently asserted
in Scripture that God GIVES Spirit, or the Spirit, to human in-
dividuals under certain conditions and for specific purposes
(Neh. 9:20, John 3:34, John 7:39, Acts 5:32, Acts 15:8, Rom.
5: 5, 1 “hess. 4: 8, 1 John 3: 24, etc.) , How, then, does God give
the Spirit, Himself a Person, to another person? Obviously, it
is only by giving to men-imparting to them-the psychical
powers and influences of the Spirit, that God can impart to
them in any sense the being of the Spirit. Strictly speaking, one
person as such could hardly give himself, or be given by some-
one else, to another person, because every person is a distinct
individual and therefore an absolute other to all other persons;
rather, it is only the psychical powers and influences of one
person that can be given or imparted to another person. Hence,
436
when God is said to give the Spirit to men, it is really the
psychical powers and influences which are given; it is only in
this sense that the Spirit Himself can be said to be given. It
is worthy of note, too, as confirmed by human experience, that
psychical powers and influences can in a very real sense be
transferred from one person to another; as a matter of fact,
practically all human learning is of the character of such a
transfer. And it can be said also that in such a transfer the
being of one person is, in a certain sense, communicated to the
other; that is, in the sense that the communicated influences
become an integral part of the personality receiving them. This
indeed is the perfectly natural and inevitable result of living the
life with the Holy Spirit. Hence, men are said in Scripture,
that is, in the nomenclature of the Spirit Himself, to receive the
Spirit (Acts 8:15, 17, 19; Acts 10:47, 19:2; Gal. 3:2), to have
the Spirit (Rom. 8:9, 1 Cor. 7:40, Jude 19), to be filled with
the Spirit (Exo. 31:3, 35:31; Luke 1:15, 41, 67; Acts 2:4, 4:8,
4:31, 9:17, 13:9, 13:52; Eph. 5:18), to be full of the Spirit, etc,
(cf. especially Luke 4:l-here it is said that “Jesus, full of the
Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan”; cf. also Deut. 34:9;
Acts 6:3, 5; Acts 7:55, 11:24, etc.); that is to say, they receive,
they have, they are filled with, or full of, the powers and graces
of the Spirit (in various measures, of course, for various ends,
as we shall see later). And, conversely, the Spirit is said to be-
through His various powers and influences-upon men (Isa.
42:1, 59:21; Isa. 61:l; Luke 2:25, 4:18, etc.), in men (Gen.
41:38; Num. 27:18; Psa. 51:ll; Ezek. 36:26; Rom. 8 : l l ; 1 Cor.
6: 19; Jas. 4: 5; cf. Jer. 3: 14, Hos. 2: 19 ff., with marginal rendering
of Jas. 4:5: “That Spirit which he made to dwell in us yearneth
for us even unto jealous envy”); to come upon men (Num. 24:2;
Judg. 3: 10, 11: 29; 1 Sam. 19: 20, 23; 2 Chron. 15: 1; Luke 1: 35;
Acts 1:8); to come mightily upon them (Judg. 14:6; 14:19,
15:14; 1 Sam, 10:6, 10:10, 11:6, 16:13); to come unto them
(John 16:7, 8, 13); to fall upon them (Ezek. 11:5; Acts 10:44,
11:15); to rest upon them (Num. 11:25, 26; Isa. 11:2); to enter
into them (Ezek. 2: 2, 3: 24) ; to clothe Himself with them (Judg.
6:34, 1 Chron. 12:18, 2 Chron. 24:20); to dwell in them (Rom.
8: 9, 11; 1 Cor. 3: 16, 6: 19; Jas. 4: 5) ; to abide in, upon or among
them (John 1:33; Isa. 63:ll; 2 Chron. 20:14; Hag. 2:5); and
to depart from them (Psa. 51:11, 1 Sam. 16:14, 1 Ki. 22:24).
The Spirit accomplishes all these operations through the media
of His powers, influences and graces. With the same signification,
God Himself is said to give the Spirit to men, as we have seen
437
already; to p u t His Spirit upon them (Num. 11:17, 25, 29; Isa.
42: 1; Matt. 12: 18) ; to put His Spirit within them (Ezek. 11:19,
36:26, 37:14); to pour out His Spirit upon them (Prov. 1:23;
Isa. 32:15, 44:3; Ezek. 39:29; Joel 2:28-29; Zech. 12:lO; Acts
2:17, 18, 33; Acts 10: 45) ; to fill t h e m with His Spirit (Exo. 28: 3,
31:3, 35:31; Acts 2 : 4 ) ; and to take His Spirit from them (Psa.
51:ll). Obviously, the reference in all these passages is to the
powers, influences and graces of the *Spirit. To give these
powers and influences to men is equivalent to giving the Spirit
to them; to pour out these powers and influences upon men is
equivalent to pouring out the Spirit upon them; to put these
powers and influences upon or in men is equivalent to putting
the Spirit upon or in them; to fill men with these powers and
influences of the Spirit is equivalent to filling them with the
Spirit; and to take these powers and influences from men is
equivalent to taking the Spirit from them. However, as previ-
ously stated, in studying the Holy Spirit and His activity, it is
exceedingly important, if we. would avoid confusion in our
thinking, to keep in mind at all times the distinction that exists
ontologically between the Spirit Himself and the gifts and graces
which He bestows upon men. -
It seems to me that the key to a proper understanding gf
this whole subject of the enduements of the Spirit is to be
found in the testimony of John the Baptizer respecting Jesus
the Messiah, in John 3:27-36. Among other things, the Bap-
tizer says, v. 34: “For he whom God hath sent speaketh the
words of God: for he giveth not the Spirit by measure’’ (the
rendering of the American Revised Version). There is a textual
difficulty here, however; namely, as to whether the ho theos,
which appears in some ancient sources as the subject of dicldsin
(“giveth”), in the second sentence, is genuine. Those who do
not regard it as genuine (it is marked doubtful by Lachmann,
and is deleted by Tischendorf (8th edition), Westcott and Hort,
and others) usually give some such rendering as that of the
American Revised Version: “for he giveth not the Spirit by
measure.” Obviously this rendering tends ta obscure the mean-
ing of the passage; it makes it impossible to determine whether
it is God, Christ (“he whom God hath sent”), or even the Spirit
Himself, “who giveth the Spirit without measure.” As a matter
of fact, three interpretations have been suggested, viz., (1) For
God giveth n o t the Spirit by measure, (2) For he, i.e., the
Messiah, giveth not the Spirit by measure (preferred by West-
cott, and those who see in the entire passage the reflections of
438
the author oi the Gospel, rather than the testimony of the Bap-
tizer), and (3) For the Spirit givetlt not by measure, the object
to be supplied being “the words of God.” Granting that the ho
theos i s genuine, the passage would read, of course: “For God
giveth not the Spirit by measure.” It is so translated in the
Authorized Version, the King James translators having added
the phrase “unto him,” to complete the meaning, rendering the
entire passage as follows: “For he whom God hath sent speaketh
the words of God; €or God giveth not the Spirit by measure unto
him.” This seems to me to be the correct rendering of the
passage. For, regardless of the difficulties of text, its meaning is
made crystal clear by the context. Throughout this entire passage
(namely, vv. 27-36), the Baptizer is testifying regarding the
Messiah: “he that cometh from above,” “he that cometh from
heaven” (v, 31), “he whom God hath sent” (v. 34). And even
though John is speaking here in general terms, the reference
in v. 34 is plainly to Jesus, the Son of God, the One whom God
hath sent,-He who alone was capable of receiving the fulness
of the Spirit, and upon whom alone, as the Scriptures expressly
assert, the fulness of the Spirit was bestowed. “The Spirit of
God, even in the inspired prophets, was but a partial and in-
termittent gift (1 Cor. 7:25, 13:9; 1 Pet. 1:H; Heb. 1:1, etc.),
but in Jesus, the Messiah and the Son of God, the Spirit of
God dwelt fully and uninterruptedly.”’ “The God-man, in his
servant-form, knew and taught and performed only what the
Spirit permitted and directed.”a
Cf. Col. 1:19--For i t was the good pleasure of the Father t h a t
in him should all the fulness dwell. Heb, 1:1-3: God . . . hath at the
end of these days spoken unto us in his Son , .. who being the ef-
fulgence of his glory, and the very image of his substance, etc. 2 Cor.
3:l’l-Now the Lord is the Spirit. Heb. 9:14: How much more, shall
the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself
without blemish unto God, etc. Matt. 4:i-Then was Jesus led up of
the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted of the devil. Luke 4 : l -
And Jesus, full of the Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan, and was
led in the Spirit in the wilderness, etc. Matt. 12:28---[the words of
Jesus Himself]: But if I by the Spirit of God cast out demons, then
is the kingdom of God come upon you. From these Scriptures, and
many others of like import, i t is evident t h a t Jesus, the Messiah, the
One whom God sent into the world to spealc the words of God, aZw.ays
spoke and acted under the inspiration and guidance of the.Holy Sp;rit.
Hence, tl;e Baptizer, who was himse1.f inspired b the Spirit, was right
in declaring t h a t Jesus, God’s Son, possessed t l e Holy Spirit without
measure. And t h a t this is precisely what John did declare in the text
in question, John 3:34, is crystal clear. In the f i r s t place, i t is the
1. J. W. McGarvey and Philip Y . Pendleton, T h e Foupfold Gospsl,
137.
2, A. H. Strong, Systematic Theology, One-volume Edition, 696.
439
only interpretation that is in harmony with the context, both with the
verses which immediately precede it, a s we have already seen, and also
those which immediately follow, in which John concludes his testimony
with these words: The Father loveth t h e Son, and hath given all
things into his hand. He that believeth on the Son hath eternal life;
but he t h a t obeyeth not the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God
abideth on him (vv. 35-36). In the second place, it is the only inter-
pretation t h a t i s in harmony with Scripture teaching as a whole.
Hence Dr. Goodspeed’s excellent rendering of the passage: “For he
whom God has sent speaks God’s words, for God gives him his Spirit
without measure? I t was a common observation among the Jews that
the Holy Spirit was given only in certain measures t o the prophets,
some writing only one book, some two, and so on. But Jesus, the per-
fect Teacher, possessed the Holy Spirit without measure, not f o r any
particular time, purpose, or people, but f o r all time and from all eternity.
Moreover, it should be noted t h a t the present tense, “giveth,” in this
text,. points to a continuous communication (or possession) of the
Spirit; in other words, if Christ had received the Spirit “by measure,”
then His gift of the Spirit might conceivably have been exhausted.
And of course We know t h a t this did not happen, f o r we read that a t
the end of His earthly ministry He through the eternal Spirit offered
himself without blemish unto God (Heb. 9:14),
The significance of this text, however, for our present pur-
pose is in the truth which it asserts implicitly. Explicitly it af-
firms that Jesus, the God-man, possessed the Holy Spirit without
measure. Implicitly it asserts, therefore, t uman beings can
possess the Spirit only by measure; that
various measures of the Spirit-actually
and influences-for various Divine ends,
being in adaptation to the Divine purpose to be accomplished
in the bestowing of it. This is a truth of the utmost importance.
It is my conviction that the failure of churchmen to differentiate
between these different measures of Spirit-power, and the cor-
responding purposes respectively for which they were conferred,
has been the source of much of the confusion which has always
prevailed in Christian doctrine regarding the operations of the
Holy Spirit in general. This subject will be dealt with later,
in some detail, in separate chapters on these various measures
of Spirit-power and the respective ends served by the con-
ferring of them. For the present purpose, however, it will suf-
fice to present the bare facts, with the Scripture references to
support them, as follows:
1. God gives the Spirit by measure unto men, as clearly im-
plied in the words of John the Baptizer, in John 3:34. Jesus
Christ alone possessed the powers and influences of the Spirit
without measure, Le., in their fulness (Col. 1:19,2:9).
1. Edgar J. Goodspeed, The New Testament: An Awterioan Trans-
lation, 179.
440
2. The baptismal or overwhelming measure of Spirit-power
(designated in Scripture the baptism of the Holy Spirit), the
greatest measure of the Spirit ever conferred upon men, was
administered by Christ Himself, and was conferred directly from
Heaven in hlfilment of Divine promise (Luke 24:45-49; John
14: 16-17, 14: 26, 15: 26, 16: 7; Acts 1:1-8). In so far as the facts
are revealed in the book of Acts, in which the history of the
Church in apostolic times is given, this measure of Spirit-power
was conferred only twice: it was conferred first upon the
Apostles in Jerusalem on the Day of Pentecost (Acts 1:26-
2: 4, 2: 32-33), and the second time upon Cornelius and his house-
hold at Caesarea some years afterward (Acts 10:44-48, 11:15-
18, 15: 7-9),
[Note Peter’s words], Acts 1l:lS-17-And as I began t o speak, the
Holy Spirit fell on them [Cornelius and his house], even as on US a t
the beginning [i.e., on the Apostles, on the Day of Pentecost, the day
of the beginning of the New Institution, the Church of Christ].
And I remembered the word of the Lord, how he said, John indeed
...
baptized with water, but ye shall be baptized in the Holy Spirit. If
then God gave unto them [Gentiles] the like gift a s he did also unto
us [Jews], when we believed on the Lord Jesus Christ, who was I, t h a t
I could withstand God? [Note also Peter’s words in Acts 15:8, 9-
referring again t o the conversion of Cornelius]: And God, who knoweth
the heart, bare them [Gentiles] witness, giving them the Holy Spirit,
even as he did unto us [Jews]; and he made no distinction between US
and them, cleansing their hearts by faith.
The Apostle’s language in both of these passages makes it very
clear that no similar outpouring of Spirit-power in baptismal
measure had taken place in the interim between the Day of
Pentecost and the conversion of the first Gentiles in the persons
of Cornelius and the members of his household. Nor is there
the slightest intimation in the book of Acts that any similar out-
pouring occurred after this first admission of Gentiles into
the Body of Christ. Moreover, in both of these instances Holy
Spirit baptism was a special miracle for a special Divine pur-
pose, This baptismal measure of the Spirit’s powers and influ-
ences was conferred upon the Apostles on Pentecost (1) to
clothe them with infallibility in presenting the Christian System
-the Gospel, with its facts, commands and promises-to men,
thus bringing to completion the progressive revelation of God
to His moral creatures (cf. again Luke 24:45-49; John 14:26,
15:26-27, 16: 7-14, 20:21-23; Acts 1:8, 2:32-36, 10:39; 1 Cor.
2:lO-13, etc.), and (2) to endue them with the power to work
miracIes to demonstrate the divine origin and authority of this
message which they were to give to the world (1 Cor. 2:l-5,
441
Heb. 2:3-4, etc.). The same measure of the Spirit conferred
upon Cornelius and his household at Caesarea some years later,
for the purpose of breaking down “the middle wall of partition”
between Jews and Gentiles (Eph. 2:ll-18); in a word, it was
to sigklify to the Jews in unmistakable terms that the Gentiles
were to be admitted to the blessings of the New Covenant along
with them and on the same conditions (cf. again Acts 10:44-48,
11:15-18, 15:7-9; 1 Cor. 12:13). Finally, it should be noted, for
our present purpose, that to receive the baptismal measure of
the Spirit’s powers and influences was, in the words of the in-
spired Apostle himself, to receive the Holy Spirit. Cf. again the
two passages having reference to Holy Spirit baptism, viz., Acts
10:46, 47-“Then answered Peter, Can any man forbid the
water, that these should not be baptized, who have received
the Holy Spirit as well as we?” And Acts 15:&-“And God,
who knoweth the heart, bare them witness, giving them the
Holy Spirit, even as he did unto us.”
3. The evidential or confirmatory measure of Spirit-power
was conferred only by the Apostles themselves and only upon
obedient believers, that is, upon Christians. This measure of
the Spirit was conferred upon the saints generally, and upon
Christian prophets and teachers in particular, throughout the
apostolic age and prior to the writing and formation of the
Canon. The visible symbol of the communication of this measure
of spiritual power was the laying on of an Apostle’s hands
(Acts 6:3-6, 8:14-29, 19:l-7; Rom. 1:ll-12; 2 Tim. 1:6, etc.),
and the saints who received this transfer of spiritual power were
qualified with certain abnormal (usually called miraculous) en-
dowments which are Scripturally designated “spiritual gifts”
(1 Cor. 12:1, 4, 31; 14:l). The Greek word for such a “gift”
is charisma (plural, charismata) ; hence this measure of Spirit-
power may properly be called the charismatic measure. This
measure of the Spirit was conferred upon the early Christians
for a twofold purpose: (1) to evince to the outside world the
Divine origin and authority of the Gospel message, and (2) to
confirm the saints themselves in the most holy faith (Mark
16: 19-20; Acts 8: 4-8; Rom. 1:11, 12; 1 Cor. 2: 1-5; Rom. 1:11-12;
Heb. 2: 2-4). In view of the fact that the presence of an Apostle
was necessary to the communication of this measure of Spirit-
power, the transfer of it obviously terminated with the death
of the last of the Apostles. Hence there is no evidence that
these charismata extended beyond the apostolic age; as a matter
of fact, Paul himself clearly asserts that they were to be “done
442
away” (1Cor. 13:8-13) and to be superseded by “the most ex-
cellent way” of Love (1 Cor. 12;31, 13:1 ff,) . “In the primitive
churches,” writes Moses E. Lard,
these gifts took the place, and answered the purpose of the present
written word. By them the churches were built up and kept in order.
In a word, every thing Was done by them-the gospel was preached,
the disciples instructed, and the churches ruled. They were then in-
dispensable; but now they are not, the New Testament supplying
their place,l
Finally, it should be noted again that, as in the receiving
of Holy Spirit baptism, the receiving o f the charismatic measure
of Spirit-power is described, in the nomenclature of the Spirit
Himself, as the receiving of the Spirit. We read, for example,
in Acts 8: 14-19, that
when the apostles that were at Jerusalem heard t h a t Samaria had
received the word of God [from Philip the evangelist], they sent unto
them [Le., Philip’s converts] Peter and John: who, when they were
come down [to Samaria], prayed f o r them, t h a t they might receive
the Holy Spirit: f o r as yet it was fallen upon none of them: only they
had been baptized into the name of the Lord Jesus, Then laid they
[i.e., Peter and John] their hands upon them, and ifhey received the
Holy Spirit. [We g o on t o read that when Simon the sorcerer, himself
a baptized believer] saw t h a t through the laying on of the apostles’
hands the Holy Spirit was given, he offered them money, saying, Give
me also this power, that o n whomsoever I lay m y hands, h e m a y receive
the Holy Spirit, etc.
In other words, to receive the charismatic measure of Spirit-
power was to receive the Holy Spirit. The same truth is clearly
set forth in Acts 19: 1-7.
[Here we read that] Paul having passed through the ypper country
came t o Ephesus, and found certain disci les: and he said unto them,
Did y e receive the Holy Spirit when ge &lieved? And they said unto
him, Nay, we did not so much as hear whether the Holy Spirit was
given. And he said, Into what then were ye baptized? And they said,
Into John’s baptism. And Paul said, John baptized with the baptism
o f repentance, saying unto the people t h a t they should believe on him
that should come after him, t h a t is, on Jesus. And when they heard
this, they were baptized into the name o f the Lord Jesus. And when
Paul had laid his hands upon them, the Holy Spirit came on them;
and they spake with tongues, and prophesied. And they were in all
about twelve men.
In this instance again it is quite clear that in receiving the
charismatic measure of Spirit-power, these baptized believers
are said to have received the Holy Spirit, and, conversely, they
are said to have received the Spirit i n the sense that, through
the laying o n of the Apostle’s hands, they received the charis-
matic measure of the Spirit’s powers and influences. T h e point t o
1. Moses E. Lard, Commentary on Romans, 384.
443
ed, ’however, is that proper distinction must be
made in our thinking between the Spirit Himself an
measures of His powers and injluences which were,
bestowed upon the saints.
4. Finally, there is the regenerating and. sanctif
of Spirit-power which is given to every baptized believer in
Christ. This measure of the Spirit is received “by the h
of faith” (Gal. 3:2); that is, by the reception of the living
into one’s heart and assimilation of that Word into one’s life.
usness which is of faith with thus,
a s Lord, and shalt believe in thy heart that God raised him from the
dead, thou shalt be saved: f o r with the heart man believeth unto
righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.
,This measure of Spirit-power is received, then, to the degree
that one walks in the light of the Word (which is to walk by
the Spirit, Gal. 5:16, 25), lives by the Word, and triumphs by
means of the’ Word over all the obstacles of this present world
which would hinder his growth in holiness. 1 John 5:4--“This
is the victory that hath overcome the world, even our faith.”
This is the measure of the Spirit which is promised to men on
the conditions of their repentance and baptism (in water) into
Christ (Gal. 3: 26-27), Both the promise itself and the necessary
conditions to its fulfilment are clearly stated at the conclusion
of the first Gospel sermon ever preached to men, Acts 2:38-
u
Repent ye, and be baptized every m e of you in the name of
ion of your sins; and ye shall re-
irit.” The phrase, ‘(
nt to (‘the Holy S
t the Holy Spirit comes to take
every obedient believer at the
time of his baptism into Christ, and continues to dwell in ,him
thereafter according to the measure of his faith, which in turn
i s determined by the degree of his own yielding of his mind and
affection and will to the revealed Mind (the Word) of Christ.
0: 17-‘‘so belief cometh of hearing, and hearing by the
of Christ.” Hence the Church, the Body of, Christ, con-
of all the elect of God under the New C
the “habitation of God in the Spirit” (Eph.
all individual members of the Body are indwelt by the one and
444
THE NOMENCLATURE OF THB SPIRIT
the same Spirit (Rom. 5 : 5 ; 1 Cor. 3:16,6:19; 2 Cor. 1:22; Eph,
1:13; Gal. 4:6, etc.) . Now one can be filled with the sanctify-
ing measure of the Spirit only by being filled with the Thought
and Love of the Spirit, which are the Thought and Love of God,
And one can be filled with the Spirit’s Thought and Love only
by feeding upon, digesting, and assimilating the Word, Le., into
the structure of his personality and life; for it is in the Word
that the Thought and Love of the Spirit are embodied, and it
is by the Word that the Thought and Love of the Spirit are
mediated to men. To possess the Word in great measure is,
therefore, to possess the sanctifying power of the Spirit in great
measure. Not that the Spirit is the Word, but that the power of
the Spirit is in the Word and is exercised through the Word
in the regeneration and sanctification of sinners. Certainly where
there is no hearing, no reading, of the Gospel, no contact what-
ever of the alien sinner with the facts, commands and promises
of the Gospel, there is no conversion to Christ, no subsequent
growth in the grace and knowledge of Christ; that is to say,
no growth in holiness, The whole missionary enterprise of the
Church is predicated upon this fundamental fact. God’s Spirit
and God’s Word go together (Isa. 59:21). Hence the implanted
Word (Jas. 1:21) is the mode of the Spirit’s indwelling, and
the evidence of this Divine indwelling is the fruit of the Spirit
manifested in the indivdual Christian life (Gal. 5: 22-25) And
finally, as with the baptismal and charismatic measures of
Spirit-power, baptized believers are said in Scripture to receive
the Spirit in the sense that they receive, through the obedience
of faith on their part, the regenerating and sanctifying measure
of the Spirit’s powers and influences. But once more this word
of caution: W e must keep in mind the ontological distinction
between the Spirit Himself and the various measures of Spirit-
power dispensed by the Spirit.
Again, it is significant, I think, that each of these measures
of the Spirit’s powers and influences, viz., the baptismal, char-
ismatic, and sanctifying measures, respectively, is described in
Scripture as a gift. And it is equally significant that the Greek
word for “gift,” as signifying a bestowal of any one of these
three general measures of Spirit-power, is the word d6rea, as
distinguished from the word charisma, which is used generally
to signify the abnormal endowments which ensued, in apostolic
times, from the reception of the evidentia2 measure of the Spirit.
For example, in Acts 10:45, the baptismal measure of the Spirit
is designated a gift. Here we read as follows, with reference to
445
THE ETERNAL SPIRIT - HIS PBRSON AND POWRRS
the coming of the Spirit in baptismal measure upon Cornelius
and his household: “And they of the circumcision that believed
were amazed, as many as came with Peter, because that on the
Gentiles also was poured out the gift of the Holy Spirit.” And
Peter himself, later, defending his action in preaching the Gospel
to Gentiles, said with reference to the same event: “If then
God gave unto them [Gentiles] the like gift as he did also
unto us [Jews], when we believed on the Lord Jesus Christ,
who was I, that I could withstand God?” (Acts 11:17), Again,
in Acts 8:20, in the reply of the Apostle Peter to Simon the
sorcerer, the charismatic measure of the Spirit is designated
“the gift of God”: “Peter said unto him, Thy silver perish with
thee, because thou hast thought to obtain the gift of God with
money.” And in Acts 2:38, th.e text in which Peter first stated
the terms of pardon under the New Covenant, that sanctifying
measure of the Spirit is also designated a gift: “And Peter
said unto them, Repent ye, and be baptized every one of you
in the name of Jesus Christ unto the remission of your sins;
and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.’’ Now in all
of these texts the Greek word ddrea is used for “gift”; and in
two of them, Acts 10:45 and Acts 2:38, ddrea is used with the
genitive of that of which the gift consists, namely, the Holy
Spirit, that is to say, His indwelling presence and power. Thus
in the nomenclature of the Spirit Himself, a clear distinction is
made between those general gifts from above, on the one hand,
which were in the form of various measures of Spirit-power,
and the special distributions of Spirit-power, on the other hand,
which were granted to the saints generally throughout the
apostolic age (Le., the charismata), which took the form of
special abnormal endowments for evidential purposes.
A word or two becomes necessary at this poifit regarding
the charismata themselves.
[In Mark 16:15-18, we read that Jesus, just before His ascension
to the Father, said to the Eleven] Go ye into all the world, and preach
the gospel t o the whole creation. He t h a t believeth and is baptized
shall be saved; but he that disbelieveth shall be condemned. And these
signs shall accompany them that believe: in my name shall they cast
out demons; they shall speak with new tongues; they shall take up
~serpents,and if they drink any deadly thing, i t shall in no wise hurt
them; they shall lay hands on the sick, and they shall recover. [To
these statements the writer of the Gospel himself adds these words]:
Lord Jesus, after he had spoken unto them, was received
en, and sat down a t the right hand of God. And they went
forth, and preached everywhere, the Lord working with them, and
confirming the word by the signs t h a t followed (w. 19-20).
446
I realize oi course that this entire Section, Mark 16: 9-20, does
not appear in the two oldest Greek manuscripis, and that its
genuineness is therefore in question. Be that as it may, how-
ever, the €act remains that tlie content of the entire passage is
in strict harmony with what iollows in Luke’s account of the
early Church, in Acts, and in the various New Testament
Epistles. Thus, in Ileb. 2:2-4, we read the following:
For if the word spolten through angels proved stedfast, and every
transgression and disobedience received a just recompense of reward ;
how shall we escape, if we neglect so great a salvation? which having
at the first been spoken through tlie Lord, was confirmed unto us by
them that heard; God also bearing witness with them, both by signs
and wonders, and by manifold powera, and by gifts of the Holy Spirit,
according t o his own will.
Now the word in this text which is translated “gifts” in the
American Revised Version (Greek, merismos; dative plural,
merisnzois) , literally rendered is “distributions”; hence the en-
tire phrase should be given, “distributions of the Holy Spirit.”
Thus the meaning of the passage is clear: These special dis-
tributions of Spirit-power, or rather the miracles performed as a
result of them, were the means by which God Himself attested
the Gospel message as proclaimed by the Apostles, Prophets,
Teachers and Evangelists of the early Church. These extra-
ordinary powers are designated, in this text and elsewhere in the
New Testament, (1) signs, with reference to their design; (2)
wonders, with respect to their nature as abnormal manifestations
calculated to excite amazement in the minds of those who wit-
nessed them; (3) manifold powers, with respect to their origin
from the being of God; and finally, in their specifically Christian
aspect, gifts or distributions of the Holy Spirit, imparted to the
original witnesses and proclaimers of the truth, according to the
will of God. These abnormal powers are designated elsewhere in
the New Testament, in the Greek, clznrismatn, which, rendered in
English, is “gracious gifts.” The general New Testament name for
them is “spiritual gifts.” Paul enumerates these charismata in
1Cor. 12: 4-11:
Now thew are diversities of gifts [cltac‘isa7atow] [he writes] but
tlie same Spirit. And there are diversities of ministrations, and the
saine Lord. And there are diversities of workings, but the same God
wlio worlteth all things in all. But t o each one is given the manifestation
of the Spirit t o profit withal. For to one is given through the Spirit
the word of wisdom; and to another the word of Itnowledge, according
to the same Spirit; to another faith, in the same Spirit: and to an-
other gifts of healings, in the one Spirit; and t o another workings of
miracles; and to another prophecy; and to another discernings of
spirits; to another divers kinds of tongues; and t o another the inter-
447
pretation of tongues. [Then the Apostle concludes by saying]: But
all these worketh the one and the same Spirit, dividing to each one
severally even as he will.
These various “manisfestations” of the Spirit ensued from
the reception of the charismatic measure of Spirit-power. And
this measure, as it has already been made clear, (1) was con-
ferred upon the early Christians generally, prior to the inditing
of the Word, and (2) was conferred for a twofold purpose, viz.,
to attest the Divine origin and content of the Gospel message,
and to confirm the saints in “the faith which was once for all
delivered” (Jude 6). (Revelation is thus, as always, attested by
demonstration,) Moreover, the outward symbol of the com-
munication of this inward spiritual power was, as has also been
shown, the laying on of an Apostle’s hands. I cannot emphasize
the fact too strongly that failure to recognize the purpose served
by the charismata, and hence their temporary significance only,
has always been a prime source of error regarding the opera-
tions of the Spirit in general.
To sum up: “There is one body, and one Spirit” (Eph. 4:4).
“There are diversities of gifts[charismata] , but the same Spirit”
(1Cor. 12: 4). Again: “But all these [charismata] worketh the
one and the same Spirit, dividing to each one severally even as
he will” (1 Cor. 12:ll). In a word, there is but one Spirit;
the distributions of His powers and influences, however, are
many and varied, These. distributions-all of which are called
gifts, in Scripture-are distributions both according to measure
and according to kind; in the former category, the gift is desig-
nated a d6rea; in the latter, a charisma. There is but one Spirit,
and He Himself must be kept distinct in our thinking, both (1)
from the general gifts (singular, dbrea), in the form of distinct
measures of Spirit-power conferred upon various classes of
persons for as many different ends; and (2) from the charismata,
those special gifts, varying as to kind, conferred upon the early
Christians in general as a result of their enduement with the
charismatic measure of Spirit-power, and conferred upon them
for the twofold purpose as explained in the foregoing paragraphs.
The Holy Spirit is one, His gifts are something else, ontologically.
5. Modes of Dispensing the Spirit

By this caption, “modes of dispensing the Spirit,” is meant,
of course, modes of dispensing the powers, graces and gifts of
the Spirit. On the basis of the nomenclature of the Spirit, these
448
various modes may be classified in two categories, namely, (1)
the modes by which God disposes the powers and influences of
the Spirit to the three great works of Creation, Providence and
Redemption - those three Divine works which embrace all other
activities of Deity; and (2) the modes by which the Spirit Him-
self voluntarily applies His powers and influences to the works
which He condescends to perform.
In the nomenclature of the Spirit, as found in Scripture,
God is said to do the following:
1. To give the Spirit, i.e., the powers, gifts and graces of
the Spirit. Thus, as we have already noted, God gave the Spirit
without measure to His Only Begotten Son, Messiah (John 3: 34) ;
He gave the Spirit, in the capacity of Comforter (Revealer,
Strengthener, Advocate, Guide), in baptismal measure to the
Apostles (John 14:16-17, 14:26, 15:26; Acts 1:l-5, 2:l-4); He
gave the Spirit in evidential measure to the saints generally
throughout the apostolic age (Acts 8:14-20, 19:l-7; 1 Cor.
12:4-11; Heb. 2:3-4); and He gives the Spirit in sanctifying
measure to all obedient believers in all ages (Luke 11:13; John
7: 39; Acts 2: 38, 5: 32; Rom. 5: 5; 1 Cor. 3: 16, 6: 19; 1 Thess. 4: 8;
1 John 3:24, etc.). Hence, throughout Scripture, the Holy Spirit
is graciously and significantly designated the gift of God (e.g.,
Acts 2:38, 8:20); and those different classes upon whom the
various powers and influences of the Spirit were bestowed are
said to have received the Spirit as a Divine gift. Only chosen
leaders received Him in Old Testament times, and that not for
the salvation of their souls, but for the working of various
needful works in the unfolding of God's Plan of Redemption
for man. Under the present Dispensation, all true members of
the New Covenant receive Him, in various measures adapted
to corresponding Divine ends (Joel 2: 28-29, John 7: 37-39; Acts
2: 15-21, etc.) . The Apostles received Him in overwhelming
measure, to vest them with authority to act as ambassadors of
Christ to men (John 20: 21-23; Luke 24: 45-49; Acts 1: 8; 2 Cor.
5: 20; Eph. 6: 20), and to clothe them with infallibility to reveal
all truth pertaining to the Kingdom of God (John 14:26, 16:13-
15; 1 Cor. 2:9-13; Eph. 3:3-12; 1 Pet. 1:lO-12) and to embody
this final revelation in permanent form in the New Testament
canon (2 Pet. 1:3 ) . And Cornelius and his household, the first
converts to Christianity from among the Gentiles, also received .'
Holy Spirit baptism, to establish the fact once for all that the
blessings of the Gospel are for both Gentiles and Jews and on
the same conditions (Acts 10: 47, 11:17, 15: 7-9). Moreover,
449
THE BTERNAL SPIRIT - HIS PERSON AND POWERS
Christians generally throughout the apostolic age received the
Spirit’s powers and influences in extraordinary measure, and
for evidential purposes; that is, to evince to the outside world,
by these signs, the divine origin of the Gospel message and to
confirm the saints themselves in the most holy faith (1 Cor.
12:4-11, Rom. 1:11-12, Heb. 2:3-4). And all true Christians
in all ages receive His indwelling presence-the sanctifying
measure of His power-by opening their hearts to Him through
the obedience of faith (Gal, 3:2, Acts 2:38, etc.). As to the
question whether the giving and receiving of the regenerating
and sanctifying measure of Spirit-power involves some sort
of a mystical communication from ’the Spirit Himself to the
converted person, as a result of the latter’s faith, obedience and
pardon, I am prepared to say only that I find no intimation, in
Scripture, of such an impartation. However, I certainly am
not so presumptuous as to attempt myself to impose limitations
upon the Spirit’s power or activity. Moreover, this question is
not one of power, but of fact; that is, of the facts revealed in the
Scriptures regarding the Divine mode of dispensing this measure
of the Spirit. And to my way of thinking the Scriptures make
it very clear that, in so far as the generality of Christians is
concerned, God gives the Spirit to them in regenerating and
sanctifying measure through the Word which they receive
into their hearts (Jas. 1:21, 1Pet. 1:22-25, Eph. 1:13), and upon
which they feed thereafter as spiritual bread (1Pet. 2:2, 1 Cor.
3:2, Heb. 5:ll-14) and by feeding upon which they become
partakers of the divine nature (2 Fet. 1:4, Eph. 4:13-24, Heb.
12:10, 1 John 3:2) and thus “meet to be partakers of the in-
heritance of the saints in light” (Col. 1:12).
2. To send the Spirit. John 14:26--‘‘But the Comforter,
even the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name,”
etc. “In the name of Christ” is a phrase that is used in Scrip-
ture to signify by the uuthority of Christ (cf. Matt. 28:18).
Tdence to be sent by the Father in the name of Christ is equivalent
to being sent by Christ Himself, for the Father and the Son
are one (John 10: 30).
Cf. Luke 24:49--Behold, I send the promise my Father upon
you; but tarry ye in the city, until ye be clothed m t h power from on
high. John 16:26--But when the Comforter is come, whom I will
s m d unto you from the Father, even the Spirit of truth, which pro-
ceedeth from the Father, etc. John 16:7--It is expedient for you
that I go away; for if I go not away, the Comforter will not come unto
ybd; but if I go, I will send him unto you, [All these statements were
made by Jesus Himself, to the men who were to be qualified subse-
quently for the apostleship.]
450
This term, send, or send fortli, implies a local motion; a
person who is sent usually moves from one place to another.
But we are told in Scripture that the Spirit is omnipresent
(Psa. 139: 7-10) ; hence this expression must be a metaphor
signifying special manifestations of the Spirit’s grace and power
to those to whom He is said to be sent, It implies, of course,
that the Spirit was not previously in or with that person, or
those persons; it indicates a communication of the Spirit’s pres-
ence and power to be in, and to guide, the recipient. Cf. Gal,
4:4-G: “But when the fulness of the time came, God sent forth
his Son, born of a woman, born under the law, that he might
redeem them that were under the law, that we might receive
the adoption of sons. And because ye are his sons, God sent
iorth the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, crying, Abba, Father.”
The reference here, of course, is to all the saints of God under
the New Covenant, to whom the indwelling Spirit is the Spirit
of adoption (cf. Rom. 8:14-17). Ci. also Psa. 104:30, here the
Psalmist says, with reference to the things of the physical crea-
tion: “Thou sendest forth thy Spirit, they are created; And
thou renewest the face of the ground.’’ This is an affirmation
of the fact of the creative and conservative operations of the
Divine Spirit in the Kingdom of Nature.
3. To p u t His Spirit upon men, Thus God is said to have
taken of the Spirit that was upon Moses and to have put it
upon the seventy elders of Israel (Num. 11:17, 25). And con-
cerning His Anointed, God said through the prophet Isaiah:
“Behold, my servant, whom I uphold; my chosen, in whom my
soul delighteth; I have put my Spirit upon him; he will bring
forth justice to the Gentiles.” Cf. Isa. Gl:l--“The Spirit of the
Lord Jehovah is upon me, because Jehovah hath anointed me
to preach good tidings to the meek,” etc. Cf. Matt. 12:15ff. and
Luke 4:17ff.: in these passages Jesus quotes the two passages
from Isaiah as having their fulfilment in Himself and in His
ministry. This expression signifies primarily the Divine in-
vestiture of those upon whom the Spirit is put, with the proper
authority, together with the credentials necessary to support
that authority, for the execution of some divine task of special
significance.
4. To pour out or pour forth His Spirit. Inasmuch as it
would be impossible to pour out or pour forth one person upon
another person, this expression again obviously has reference,
not to the Person, but to the powers, gifts and graces of the
Spirit, It signifies an eminent act of Divine bounty, a pouring
45 1
THE ETERNAL SPIRIT - HIS P h O N AND POWERS
e powers and graces of the Spirit in abundance. The
expression refers directly, wherever used, to Gospel times. Al-
God’did give His Spirit in some measure to His chosen
in Old Testament times, there was no general pouring
forth of the Spirit’s gifts and graces prior to the ratification of
the New Covenant and the inauguration of the New Institution-
the Christian System. Cf. Joel’s prophecy, quoted verbatim by
the Apostle Peter as having the beginning of its fulfilment with
the advent of the Spirit on the Day of Pentecost: “And it
shall come to pass afterward, that I will pour out my Spirit
upon all flesh; and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy,
your old men shall dream dreams, your’ young men shall see
visions; and also upon the servants and upon the handmaids
in those days will I pour out my Spirit” (Joel 2:28-29; cf. Acts
2:16-21). This prophecy has reference primarily of course to
the two outpourings of the Spirit in baptismal measure, upon
Jews and Gentiles respectively, that is, upon the Apostles on
the Day of Pentecost in Jerusalem, and upon Cornelius and
his household some years later at Caesarea, both of which were
attended by extraordinary outward manifestations, namely, “a
sound as of the rushing of a mighty wind” and “tongues part-
ing asunder, like as of fire” (Acts 2: 2-3). With reference to the
first of these two instances of Holy Spirit baptism, that which
introduced the events of that memorable first Pentecost after
the Resurrection, Peter himself said, in the course of his sermon
on that occasion: “This Jesus did God raise up, whereof we
all are witnesses, Being therefore by the right hand of God
exalted, and having received of the Father the promise of the
Holy Spirit, he hath poured forth this, which ye see and hear”
(Acts 2:32-33). And with reference to the second instance of
Holy Spirit baptism, that which marked the first reception of
Gentiles into the Church of Christ, Luke, the inspired his-
nd they of the circumcision that believed were
as came with Peter, because that on the Gentiles
, was poured out the gift of the Holg Spirit” (Acts 10: 45).
That these outpourings were of the same general character,
that is, attended by the same outward signs, on both occasions,
evident from Peter’s own statement later to the brethren
the Jerusalem church. “As I began to speak,” he said, “the
Holy Spirit fell upon them,” that is, upon the Gentile Cornelius
agd his household, “even as on us -at the beginning,” that is to
say, in the same manner that he fell upon us Jews (in the
person of the Apostles themselves) on the Day of Pentecost,
452
the day of the beginning of the Gospel Dispensation, To this,
the Apostle adds: “And I remembered the word of the Lord,
how he said, John indeed baptized with water, but ye shall
be baptized in the Holy Spirit, If then God gave unto them
[Gentiles] the like gift as he did also unto us [Jews], when
we believed on the Lord Jesus Christ, who was I, that I could
withstand God?” (Acts 11:15-17). This phrase, the pouring out
or pouring forth of the Spirit, has reference, however, not only
to the conferring of Holy Spirit baptism and to that of the
charismata as well, but also relates to the Spirit’s purifying and
sanctifying powers and influences; in fact, it is a general expres-
sion taking in all the gifts and graces of the Spirit bestowed by
God upon His elect throughout the entire Gospel Dispensation.
The present Dispensation is, in fact, the Dispensation of the
Holy Spirit, It is the age of the outpouring of His own gracious
gifts through His indwelling of all the saints of God. For He
came on the Day of Pentecost to take up His abode in the Body
of Christ and to dwell therein until the end of the age. Hence,
in Scripture the effects of the presence and power of the Spirit
in the hearts of all true believers are often compared to the
effects of the outpouring of water.
Isa. 3 2 : l - 2 : “Behold, a king shall reign in righteousness, and
princes shall rule in justice. And a man shall be as a hiding-place
from the wind, and a covert from the tempest, a s streams of water
in a dry place, etc. Isa. 44:3, &For I will pour water upon him
that is thirsty, and streams upon the dry ground; I will pour my
Spirit upon thy seed, and my blessing upon thine offspring. John
4 : 1 4 [the words of Jesus t o the woman of $amaria]: But whosoever
drinketh of the water that I shall give him shall never thirst; but
the water t h a t I shall give him shall become in him a well of water
springing up unto eternal life. John 7:37-39: Now on the last day,
the great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried, saying, If any man
thirst, let him come ynto me and drink. He t h a t believeth on me,. a s
the scripture has said, from within him shall flow rivers of living
water. But this spalre he of the Spirit, which they t h a t believed on
him were to receive; for the Spirit was not yet given; because Jesus
was not yet glorified.
When the fountains of the great deep are opened, the rain
is poured down in abundance; hence, “through the washing of
regeneration and renewing of the Holy Spirit’‘ (in regeneration
and in sanctification), God is said in Scripture to “pour out
upon us richly, through Jesus Christ our Savior” the gifts and
graces of His Spirit (Tit. 3: 4-6)-
He [the Spirit] comes on the dry, barren, parched ground of men’s
hearts, causing them to spring, and produce fruits of holiness and
righteousness, Heb. 6:7. And thus Christ, by His Spirit, ‘comes down
453
like rain upon t h e sown grass; as showers that water the earth,’
Psalm 72:6.’
5. To supply the Spirit. Gal. 3:5--“He therefore that sup-
plieth to you the Spirit, and worketh miracles among you [or,
powers in you], doeth he it by the works of the law, or by the
hearing of faith?” This text clearly indicates that the measure
of Spirit-power within a Christian is in proportion to his faith.
Cf. Phil. 1:19--“For I know that this shall turn out to my sal-
vation, through your supplication and the supply of the Spirit
of Jesus Christ.” The Greek verb, epichorEge6, (noun, epicho-
rEgia) , means literally to “supply further,’’ “furnish besides,”
etc. It signifies the adding of one thing to another, add hence
indicates the further conferring and renewing of the Spirit’s
powers and graces from day to day. The essential property of
Spirit-power, as we have already learned, is inexhaustibleness.
6. To fill m e n with His Spirit. Exo. 31:l ff.-“And Jehovah
spake unto Moses, saying, See, I have called by name Bezalel
the son of Uri, the son of Hur, of the tribe of Judah: and I have
filled him with the Spirit of God, in Wisdom, and in understand-
ing, and in knowledge, and in all manner of workmanship,” etc.
(cf. Exo. 35:31). The reference here is to an endowment with
special artistic ability to construct and adorn the furnishings
of the Tabernacle. Cf. Acts 2:4-“And they [the Apostles]
were all filled withe the Holy Spirit, and began to speak with
other [unacquired] tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance.’’
Here again the reference is to an infilling with Divine knowledge
and wisdom (revelation), for the proclamation of the Truth
that makes men free, the communication of Divine thought
having been attended no doubt by the heightening of the natural
psychical powers of the men who were thus qualified to go
into all the world as ambassadors of the Lord Jesus Christ.
Again, in the nomenclature of the Spirit, the Spirit Himself
is said to do the following:
1. To proceed from the Father.
John 15:26--But when the Comforter is come, whom I will send
unto you from the Father, even the Spirit of truth, which proceedeth
from the Father, he shall bear witness of me. [The Spirit proceeds from
the Father; however, in view of the fact t h a t He acts as the Vicegerent
of Christ throughout the present Dispensation, He i s said to be sent
by the Father in the name of (Le., b y the authority of) the Son; and
in this sense He is said t o be sent by the Son also.] John 14:16-I will
pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter , even . .
tTie Spirit of truth, etc. John 14:26--But the Comforter, even the
Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, etc. Luke 24:49-
1. John Owen, A Discourse Concerning the Holy Spirit, 63.
454
And behold, I fiend f o r the promise of my Father upon you, etc. Acts
2:32, 33-This Jesus did .God raise up, whereof we all are witnesses.
Being therefore by the right hand of God exalted, and have received
of the Father the promise of the I-Ioly Spirit, ,he hath poured f o r t h
this which ye see aiid hear.
(1) There is a procession o i the Spirit which is natural or
personal. This term expresses the eternal relation between the
Spirit and both the Father and the Word; the Spirit is of both
by eternal procession, Le., emaimtion. Evidently the mode of
this procession is essentially psychical; over-speculation regard-
ing this matter, however, is both foolish and hurtful. (2) There
is also a procession of the Spirit which is dispensatory or admin-
istrative. This term has reference to the egress of the Spirit
from the Godhead in His own voluntary application of His
powers and influences to the work which He has undertaken to
perform in the realization of God’s general Plan for His Creation.
Thus, under the old Dispensations, the Spirit condescended to
act as God’s agent in qualifying certain leaders-men of great
faith-for the divers special works which they were divinely
elected to per€orm in the course of the unfolding of the Eternal
Purpose (Eph. 3:l-13, Heb. 1:l-2, 1 Pet. 1:lO-12, 2 Pet. 1:.21),
These great Old Covenant leaders are all designated “prophets”
in Scripture. It must be remembered that the primary function
of a prophet, in the Biblical sense of that term, is to reveal-
through the Spirit- the will and word of God to men, and that
only secondarily he is a foreteller of future events. Under the
present Dispensation, however, the Holy Spirit acts as the agent
both of the Father, and in a special sense of the Son, the Head of
the Church, in administering the affairs of the Body of Christ
and in perfecting and realizing the work of salvation in the saints
(Eph. 2: 22; John 16: 12-15), In this latter sense, then, the pro-
cession of the Spirit has reference to, and results in, the endue-
ment of believers with various measures of His powers and in-
fluences as adapted to corresponding divine ends. In some cases,
the end is revelation; in others, demonstration; in still others,
regeneration and sanctification. “There are diversities of gifts,
but the same Spirit’’ (1Cor. 12: 4).
2. To come unto or upon men. God sends the Spirit; hence
the Spirit Himself comes, voluntarily of course. This term sig-
nifies motion, action; that is, motion or action of a psychical kind.
In other words, the Holy Spirit, by His own will and consent,
begins to work where He has not worked before, always of
course to effectuate the purposes of the Heavenly Father. Thus
455
the Spirit is said to have come upon Balaam (Num. 24: 2), Othniel
(Judg. 3:10), Jephthah (Judg. 11:29), the messengers of Saul
(1 Sam. 19: 20), Saul himself (1Sam. 19: 23), Azariah (2 Chron.
15:1), Jahaziel (2 Chron. 20:14). Again, He is said to have
come upon, in the sense of having “clothed himself with,” Gideon
(Judg. 6: 34), Amasai (1Chron. 12: 18), and Zechariah (2 Chron.
24: 20).
Cf. Luke 1:35 [the words of Annunciating Angel to Mary]: The
shall overshadow thee, [Cf. ‘also the following statements of Jesus to
the men who were t o become His Apostles]: John 15:26--But when
the Comforter is come, whom I will send unto you from the Father, etc.
John 16:7, 8, 13-For if I go not away, the Comforter will not come
.
unto you , . and he, when he is come, will convict the world in re-
.
spect of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment . , when he, the
Spirit of truth i s come, he shall guide you into all the truth, etc. Acts
1:8--But ye shall receive power, when the Holy Spirit is come upon
you, etc. [And concerning the disciples whom Paul found at Ephesus,
we read]: And when Paul had laid his hands upon them, the Holy
Spirit came on them; and they spake with tongues, and prophesied
(Acts 19:6).
Again, the Spirit is said to have come mightily upon certain
persons, that is, in extraordinary measure producing some out-
ward manifestation of an unusual kind. Thus He is said to have
come mightily upon Samson( Judg. 14:6, 14:19, 15:14), and
,upon King Saul (1 Sam. 10:6, 10; 11:6), and upon King David
(1 Sam. 16:13). These expressions, wherever used, mean ap-
parently that the Spirit began to operate where He had not
operated before.
3. To fall on men. (1) That which makes Heaven to be
Heaven is the presence of God, and where God is, if course, is
the eternal “home” of the Spirit. Hence this phrase, to fall on
men, expresses the idea of the Spirit’s descending from above,
from Heaven, His natural habitat; as, e.g., He is said to have
descended out of the opened “heaven”-“in a bodily form, as a
dove”-to anoint Jesus of Nazareth as the Messiah, our Prophet,
Priest, and King (Matt. 3:16, Mark l : l O , Luke 3:21-22, John
1:32). (2) The phrase expresses also the idea of a sudden and
unexpected operation, and one that produced visible effects
which startled and amazed spectators, even as, for example, the
fire of Jehovah fell suddenly upon Elijah’s offering on Mount
Carmel, and the spectators were amazed and cried out, “Je-
hovah, he is God” (I Ki. 18:38-39). Cf. Acts 10:44-46, the nar-
ve of the conversion of Cornelius, as told by Luke: “While
Peter yet spake these words, the Holy Spirit fell on all them
456
THE NOMBNCLATURE OF THB SPIRIT
that heard the word, And they ol the circumcision that believed
were amazed, as many as came with Peter, because that on the
Gentiles also was poured out the gift of the Holy Spirit. For
they heard them speak with tongues, and magnify God.” Cf.
also Peter’s account, of the same occurrence, Acts 11:15: “And
as I began to speak, the Holy Spirit fell on them, even as on us
at the beginning.” This is to say, the Holy Spirit fell on Cor-
nelius and his house, Gentiles, in the same manner that He fell
on the Apostles, Jews, at the beginning of the Gospel Dispensa-
tion. This points back to the advent of the Spirit on the Day of
Pentecost. Although Luke, in his narrative (Acts 2: 1-13), does
not state explicitly that the Spirit fell on the Apostles, on that
occasion, he makes it very clear that His advent was precisely
of that character, His coming was sudden (“suddenly there came
from heaven,” v. 2 ) , and as to its character quite unexpected.
It was attended, moreover, by outward manifestations (“a sound
as of the rushing of a mighty wind” and “tongues parting asunder,
like as of fire,’’ vv. 2, 3) and evinced by visible effects upon
and in the Apostles, the recipients (they “were all filled with
the Holy Spirit, and began to speak with other tongues, as the
Spirit gave them utterance,” v. 4), all of which startled and
amazed the entire populace of Jerusalem. Cf. vv. 6-8, 12--“And
when this sound was heard, the multitude came together, and
were confounded, because that every man heard them [the
Apostles] speaking in his own language, And they were all
amazed and marvelled, saying, Behold, are not all these that
speak Galileans? And how hear we, every man in our language
wherein we were born? . , . And they were all amazed, and
were perplexed, saying one to another What meaneth this?”
Thus it will be seen that the Holy Spirit fell on the recipients,
in these two instances, in the sense of having conferred upon
them the baptismal measure of His powers and influences. (3)
This expression is used also, in Acts 8:16, to indicate the com-
munication of the evidential measure of the Spirit. Here we read
with reference to the Samaritans who had been converted by
the preaching of Philip the evangelist, Acts 8:14-17: “Now
when the apostles that were at Jerusalem heard that Samaria
had received the word of God, they sent unto them Peter and
John: who, when they were come down, prayed for them, that
they might receive the Holy Spirit; for as yet it was fallen upon
none of them: only they had been baptized into the name of
the Lord Jesus. Then laid they their hands upon them, and
they received the Holy Spirit.” In this instance, the reception
457
of the Spirit by baptized believers resulted in their enduement
with the charismata characteristic of the Church generally
throughout the apostolic age. (4) This phrase, to fall upon men,
however, is never used in Scripture to describe the communica-
tion of the sanctifying measure of the Spirit’s powers and influ-
ences. On the contrary it is used only to describe those oper-
tions of the Spirit which were for the special purpose of edtab-
lishing some divine truth or purpose; that is to say, for purposes
of revelation and demonstration only. This is a fact of the
utmost significance. ( 5 ) The expression is used only once in
the Old Testament. The prophet Ezekiel says, ch. 11, v. 5-
“And the Spirit of Jehovah fell upon me, and he said unto me,
Speak, Thus saith Jehovah,” etc. Cf. Ezek. 8:1, 3--“And it
came to pass in the sixth year, in the sixth month, in the fifth
day of the month, as I sat in my house, and the elders of JudaE
sat before me, that the hand of the Lord Jehovah fell there upon
me. . . . And he put forth the form of a hand, and took me by a
lock of my head; and the Spirit lifted me up between earth and
heaven, and brought me in the visions of God to Jerusalem,”
etc. Here again the phrase is used to describe the beginning
of an operation of the Spirit for purposes of revelation only. The
series of visions thus vouchsafed Ezekiel are written down in
his great book for all men to read and to profit withal.
4. To rest upon men, that is, upon persons to whom He is
given or sent.
Num. 11:25, 26-And Jehovah came down in the cloud, and spake
unto him [Moses], and took of the Spirit t h a t was upon him, and put
it upon the seventy elders: and it came t o pass that, when the Spirit
rested upon them, they prophesied, but they did so no more. But there
remained two men in the camp, the name of the one was Eldad, and
the name of the other Medad: and the Spirit rested upon them; and
they were of them t h a t were written, but had not gone out unto the
Tent; and they prophesied in the camp, [We continue to read that
when this latter incident was reported to Moses, he exclaimed]: Would
that all Jehovah’s people were prophets, that Jehovah would put his
Spirit upon them! (v. 29).
Thus whereas and when God is said to put His Spirit upon men,
the Spirit Himself is said to rest upon them. The idea suggested
by these terms is that of a continued brooding over, or over-
shadowing, which in turn implies an abiding interest in, over-
communication of spiritual powers to, the per-
who are thus objects of the Divine solicitude and
for the realization of Divine ends. Cf. John
stimony of John the Baptizer respecting the
anointing of Jesus with the Holy Spirit: “I have beheld the
458
THR NOMENCLATURE OF THE SPIIU’K’
Spirit descending as a dove out of heaven; and it abode upon him,
And I knew him not; but he that sent me to baptize in water,
he said unto me, Upon whomsoever thou shalt see the Spirit
descending, and abiding upon him, the same is he that baptized
in ihe Holy Spirit.” From the moment of His conception in the
womb of the Virgin, by the overshadowing of the Holy Spirit
(Luke 1:35), to the time when, “through the eternal Spirit,”
He “offered himseIf without blemish unto God” (Heb. 9: 14),
as an all-sufficient Atonement for the sins of the world, Jesus,
Messiah, received the fulness of the abiding presence and power
of the Spirit, both upon Him and in Him (John 3: 34). In like
manner, the Spirit is said to rest upon all who are truly saints
of God under the New Covenant. 1 Pet. 4:14--”If ye are re-
proached for the name of Christ, blessed are ye, because the
Spirit of glory and the Spirit of God resteth upon you.” Where
the Spirit rests, in works of sanctification, there He abides in
complacence and in delight. And because the ultimate effect of
such an abiding will be, for the recipient, the putting on of
glory and honor and immortality, through the working of the
power of the same Spirit, the Spirit Himself is designated the
Spirit of Glory.
5. To enter into men, and to dwell in them. Ezek. 2:2-
“And the Spirit entered into me when he spake unto me, and
set me upon my feet,” Ezek. 3: 24-(‘Then the Spirit entered into
me, and set me upon my feet, and he spake with me,” etc.
Ilere, the phrase, enter in, signifies an entrance primarily
for the purposes of inspiration and revelation. The phrase, dwell
in, however, occurs only in the New Testament. It is the ex-
pression uniformly used in the New Testament to describe the
Holy Spirit’s indwelling of the saints in sanctifying measure, and
it occurs, either explicitly or implicitly, in many different pas-
sages.
Rom. 8:9-But ye a r e not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if so be
that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you. Rom. 8:ll-But if the Spirit
of him that raised up Jesus from the dead dwelleth in you, etc. 1 Cor.
3:lB-Know ye not t h a t ye are a temple of God, and that the Spirit
of God dwelleth in you? (cf. Eph. 2:22, 1 Cor. 6:19). Jas. 4:S-That
Spirit which he made to dwell in us yearneth f o r us even unto jealous
envy.
The Spirit is said to dwell in the saints as the Spirit of their
adoption (Rom. 8: 14-17, Gal. 4: 4-6), as the seal of their election
(Eph. 1:13, 4:30), and as the earnest (pledge) of their eternal
inheritance (2 Cor. 1:21-22, 5: 5; cf. Rom. 8: 18-25). This spiritual
indwelling is, of course, by means of, and in proportion to, the
459
THE ETERNAL SPIRIT - HIS PERSON AND POWERS ~
continuous reception of the Word into their hearts. For it is

only by feeding upon the Word and assimilating it, in the form-
ing of their thoughts and attitudes, and the moulding of their
personalities, that Christians caq possibly bring forth the fruit
of the Spirit in their lives (Gal. 5: 22-25).
6. To depart from men. Gen. 6:3--“And Jehovah said, My
Spirit shall not strive with man for ever,” Psa. 51: ll--“Take not
thy holy Spirit from me.” 1 Sam. 16:14--“Now the Spirit, of
Jehovah departed from Saul,” etc. The fact cannot be empha-
sized too strongly that any abiding or indwelling of the Spirit
in the human heart presupposes our keeping our hearts open to
His presence, hence open and receptive t o the Word which is the
means of His indwelling. In the very nature of the case, only
“they that hunger and thirst after righteousness” can expect to be
“filled” (Matt. 5: 6). “The natural man receiveth not the things
of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto him: and
he cannot know them, because they are Spiritually examined”
(1 Cor. 2:14). In every generation, there are a great many
persons who profess their faith in Christ, but thereafter become
entangled in temptations, and conquered by their lusts, and
turn again into the ways of disobedience and sin. The gifts
imparted to them by the Spirit dry up and wither; their light
goes out, and darkness settles down upon their minds and ob-
scures their vision, Thus they quench the Spirit (1Thess. 5 : 19).
And if to this general neglect and indifference, they add positive
despite unto the Spirit of Grace, their case is, in general, ir-
remediable. 1
Heb. 6:4-8: “For a s touching those who were once enlightened

and tasted of the heavenly gift, and were made partakers of the Holy
Spirit, and tasted, the good word .of God, and the powers age to
come, and then fell Sway, it possible t o renew t h n unto
repentance; seeing they cruti themselves the Son afresh,
and put him to an open shame, For the land which hath drunk the
rain that cometh oft upon it, and bringeth forth herbs meet for them
for whose sake it it also tilled, receiveth blessing from God; but if it
beareth thoyns and thistles, it is rejected and nigh unto a curse;
whose end is to be burned, Heb. 101:26-31: For if we sin wilfully after
that we have received the knowledge of the truth, there remaineth
ho more a sacrifice for sins, but a certain fearful expectation of judg-
ment, and a fierceness, of first which shall devour the adversaries. A
man t h a t hath set at nought Moses’ law dieth without compassion
on t h e word of two o r three witnesses: of how much sorer punishment,
think ye shall he be judged worthy, who hath trodden under foot the
Son of hod, and hath counted the blood of the covenant wherewith he
was sanctified an unholy thing, and hath done despite unto the Spirit
of grace? F o r we know him t h a t said, Vengeance belongeth unto me,
I will recompense. And again, The Lord shall judge his people. It is
a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God.
460
THB NOMENCLATURE OF THE SPIRIT
I am convinced that Christians generally speaking do not com-
prehend the enormity of the sin of backsliding.
The abiding attributes of the Spirit are seven in number:
“And the Spirit of Jehovah shall rest upon him, the spirit of
wisdom and understanding, the spirit of counsel and might, the
spirit of knowledge and of the fear of Jehovah” (Isa. 11:2),
Jesus possessed these attributes perfectly. And all saints possess
them in the measure that they keep their hearts open and recep-
tive to the Spirit’s presence and power. Hence, John the Reve-
lator, saluting the seven churches of Asia, prays for grace and
peace for them, from the Father and “from the seven Spirits
that are before his throne’’ (Rev, 1:4). In this passage, the term
“seven Spirits”-the number seven being, in Scripture, the
symbol of perfection-has reference to the seven attributes or
graces of the one Spirit of God. Therefore, in view of the fact
that our Lord Jesus Christ, as the Foundation of the Church
(Psa. 118:20-24, Acts 4:10-12), was anointed with all these graces
in their perfection, it was said of the Stone, in Zechariah’s
vision-the Stone which symbolized the Branch, the Suffering
Servant of Jehovah-that upon that one Stone should be “seven
eyes” (Zech. 3:8-10); that is, the seven graces of the one Spirit
of God.
* * *
SPECIAL NOTE ON JOHN 3:5
I have presented above, in its fullness, the interpretation of
John 3: 8 which has prevailed generally in the past as a result of
the influence of the Authorized Versi,on. However, there is
another view of this passage which seems to me to have been
neglected, and which presents some aspects of the subject that
surely need to be given serious consideration. I therefore present
this alternative interpretation, as stated by A. J. Gordon, in
his excellent book, The Ministry of the Spirit (p. 166, fn.) as
folIows:
(John 3:8) : .The wind bloweth where it listeth, etc. .Without pro-
nouncing dogmatically, it must be said t h a t the translatlon of Bengel
and some others-The Spirit breatheth where he wzlls, a d thou hoarcst
his voice-has reasons in its favor which a r e weI1-nigh irresistible;
e.g., if to pneuma here is the wind, it has one meaning in the first p a r t
of the sentence and another meaning in the second; and that meaning
too, one which i t bears in no other instance of the more than two
hundred and seventy uses of the word in the New Testament, It is
not the word used in Acts 2:2, as might be expected if it signified wind.
Then i t seems unnatural $0 ascribe volition t o the wind, thelei. On the
contrary, if the words apply t o the Spirit, the saying i s in entire har-
mony with other Scriptures, which affirm the sovereignty of the Holy
461
Ghost in regeneration (John 1:13), and in the control and direction
of those who are the subjects of the new birth ( 1 Cor. 12:4-11).
With this McGarvey agrees (although Pendleton dissents),
as follows:
In this sentence we have the word pneuma translated by the two
words “wind” and “spirit.” There can be no justification in rendering
pneuma “wind,” when the last clause of the same sentence, and three
times in the immediate context, it IS rendered ‘‘spirit.” There can be
no doubt t h a t it means the same in both clauses of this verse, and if
we render it “wind” is the first clause, we must say “born of the wind”
in the last clause. Whatever is the meaning of this verse, it must be
extracted from the rendering which the Revisers [American Standard
Revision] have strangely placed in the margin, viz., ‘(The Spirit breathes
where i t will, and thou hearest,” etc. It teaches that R man is born.of
the Spirit by hearing the voice of the Spirit, breathing as He w$ls
through inspired men. It is equivalent to Paul’s maxim that faith
comes by hearing and hearing by the word of God. [McGarvey and
Pendleton, The Fourfold Gospel, 128.1
But Pendleton would accept the rendering of the Authorized
Version:
From this (Bro. McCarvey’s) construction of verse 8 I dissent,
and hold t h a t the Revisers have given u s the true reading in the text.
... I take the passage t o mean that the process by which a man i s
regenerated by the Spirit of God is no more mysterious than other
operations in the natural world, of which operations the blowing of
the wind is taken as an example [ibid., 129, fn.].
It is interesting to note that the Douay (Roman Catholic)
Version, following the Vulgate, gives this verse as follows:
The Spirit breatheth where he will and thou hearest his voice:
but thou knowest not whence he cometh and wither he goeth. So i s
every one t h a t is born of the Spirit. [This is accompanied by the fol-
lowing footnote]: By these words our Savior hath declared the necessity
of baptism; and by the word water it is evident t h a t the application
of it is necessary with the words, Matt. 28:19.) [Here the reference
is to the meaning of w. 1-5.1
“The Spirit breathes where he pleases,” etc. So does Rother-
ham give it (Emphasized N e w Testament, 94). So reads the
currently popular King James I1 Version, with a slight change:
“The Spirit breathes where He desires, and you hear His voice,
but you do not know from where He comes and where He
goes,’’ etc. So reads T h e Emphatic Diaglott, with the sole ex-
ception of using “it” for “he,” with reference to the Spirit.
As a mater of fact, this rendering seems to be more in
harmony with the meaning of the text. Whoever heard of the
wind (unless personified, of course) “listing” (Le., voluntarily
pleasing) to do something? How can the wind be said to will
to do anything? How could anyone be “born of the wind”
462
in any sense whatever? Then, why translate the word pneuma
“wind” in the first clause, but render it “Spirit” in the last?
To dismiss the whole question with the bland statement, as
does the Revised Standard Version in a footnote, that “the same
Greek word means both wind and spirit” is simply begging the
question. The Greek word used for wind in the New Testament
is anemos; pnoB is used once, in Acts 2:2, as previously noted,
In the first clause of John 3:8, we have the only instance in the
New Testament in which pneuma is rendered “wind.” These
facts ought surely to settle this controversy-if indeed it i s a
controversial matter per se.
* * *
QUESTIONS FOR REVIEW OF PART FIVE
1. List the names by which the Spirit designates Himself in the
Old Testament Scriptures.
2. Explain what is meant by the sevenfold or perfect Spirit. I n what
Scripture passage is this designation found?
3. List the names by which the Spirit designates His relationship
to the Father.
4. List those by which the Spirit designates His relationship to the
Son.
6. List the Scripture terms which designate the Spirit’s deity.
6. List the names by which the Spirit designates His spiritual at-
tributes.
7. List the names by which the Spirit designates His own spiritual
attributes.
8. Correlate the Scriptures which identify the Spirit of Yahweh,
the Spirit of Christ, and the Holy Spirit a s the one Eternal Spirit.
9. What problem must have been involved in the communication of
God’s word t o man?
10. Through what divine agency was this revelation delivered?
11. What is meant by the nomenclature of the Spirit?
12. What various meanings do the terms w a c h and pneuma convey
t o us?
13. What does the term “Spirit” signify with reference to God?
14. What distinctive meanings are suggested by the names of God,
Elohim and Yalzwelz?
15. What is the significance of the name, “The Good Spirit of God”?
16. From what four points of view may we regard t h e Spirit of
Christ as the Holy Spirit?
17. I n what sense is the Holy Spirit “The Power of the Most High”?
I n what Scripture passage de we find this name? What relation
t o the Word is indicated in this passage?
18. Explain-as best one can-the full significane of the name “Holy
Spirit.”
19. What is suggested by the term Breath as a metaphor of the
Spirit?
20 * Explain Gen. 2:7 and John 20:21-23.
21, What; does the metaphor Wiizd suggest with reference to the
Spirit?
463
22. What outward manifestations of the Spirit took .place on Pente-
cost and what did they signify?
23. What does the Dove suggest as a metaphor of the Spirit?
24. What importance is indicated by this term in connection with the
baptism of Jesus 1
25. For what purposes was anointing used as a Jewish ceremony?
26. What does anointing signify, specifically, in Scripture?
27. What were the ingredients of the “holy anointing oil,” and what
did they signify?
28. What was the theocratic ceremony of anointing and what was
its import with reference to the Messiahship?
29. What classes of public leaders were officially inducted into their
respective offices by the ceremony of anointing?
30. Where do we find prophetic references in the Old Testament t o
the advent and ministry of God’s Anointed?
31. Explain fully the meaning of the title, Messiah or Christ.
32. What are the suggested interpretations of the term, “The Oil of
Gladness”? What seems to be the interpretation justified by
the Scriptures themselves?
33. What i s spiritual circumcision and when does it take place? What
is the nature of it?
34. How does the Spiritual Life begin and what is the essential
nature of i t ?
35. What is meant by references t o oil as the source of light? From
what feature. of the Tabernacle and Temple does this truth have
its origin?
36. What is the correlation between this metaphor and Christ Him-
self, the Gospel, the Church, and the Spiritual Life?
37, In what sense are the redeemed themselves epistles of Chyrist?
38. What. was symbolized by the seven lamps of the Candelabrum of
the Tabernacle?_
35. What is designate8’by’thb terms wholeness and holiness? How is
the designation Holg Spiyit related t o these terms?
40. Explain the significance of Zechariah’s Vision.
41. Explain the import of the Parable of the Wise and Foolish
Virgins with respect to oil as the source of light.
42. How is the meaning of this parable suggestive of man’s ultimate
ends and the attainment of them?
43. What do we mean by saying t h a t holiness is a qualitative ex-
cellence? How is holiness t o be actualized?
44. What is the significance of W a t e r a s a metaphor of the Holy
Spirit?
45. Explain the meaning of “living water,” in this connection; also
t h a t of the “river of water of life” (Rev. 22:l).
46. How does Isaiah describe the joys of fellowship with God under
the New Covenant?
47. Explain the spiritual significance of the Smitten Rock (Exo. 17:6).
48. Explain the significance of the Ezekiel’s Vision of the Healing
Waters.
49. Cite the Scriptures in which water is described as a symbol of
deansing. How related metaphorically t o operations of the Holy
Swirit?
50. What was the Water of Purification under the Old Testament
Dispensations? What difficulties do we meet in trying t o cor-
relate the Water of Purification of the Old Testament with the
water of baptism of the New Testament?
61. What is designated in Scripture by the term Seal?
464
THE NOMENCLATURE On THE SPIRIT
62. Scripturally speaking, f o r what purposes was sealiiag employed?
62. Relate the term sealing t o the divine sealing of Messiah and the
divine sealing of the saints.
63. What was the import of the use of the Roman seal impressed
on the stone t h a t was rolled across the entrance t o the Sepulchre
of Christ?
64. I n what special sense does sealing have a n authoritarian char-
acter?
6 6 . Where did the sealing of Christ take place? What did it imply?
66. Where does the aea2ing of God’s saints take place? What does it
imply?
57. How does the sealing of the saints take place officially, and where
does it take place actuallg?
68. In the sealing of the saints, what may we understand to be the
wax,and what the design?
59. What is the relation between the Spirit and the Word in this
divine sealing?
60. I n what sense is the Holy Spirit Himself the divine Seal? Cite
Scriptures t o prove this.
61. What is the sign of the believer’s sanctification?
62. Explain, a s best one can, the meaning of 2 Tim, 2:19.
63. I n what sense is sealing the ratification of the New Covenant
relationship ?
64. Explain the statement: “The Holy Spirit is the saint’s signet-
ring.”
65. Explain: “Holiness is the life of the Spirit which is manifested
in the f r u i t of the Spirit.” Correlate Gal. 5:22-24.
66. I n what sense is the sealing of the saints a pledge or earnest
on God’s part?
67. What four facts are signified by the Divine Sealing of the saints
with “the Holy Spirit of promise”?
68. What is the import of “the Finger of God” as a metaphor of the
Spirit? Cf. Luke 11:20 with Matt. 12:28.
69. I n what sense in Scripture is the ceremony of “the Laying on
of Hands” related t o the operations of the Spirit?
70. What instances do we have in the New Testament of the cere-
mony of the laying on of hands as indicative of ordination to a
special ministry in the Church?
71. What was signified by the joint appearing, on the Day of Pente-
cost, of the sound of “the rushing of a mighty wind” and the
‘(tongues like a s of fire”?
72. On what grounds do we take the position t h a t Fk.3 was a meta-
phor of the Word? ,( Cf. Isa. 59 :21),
73. What was the joint symbolism of the Wind and the Fire as
mentioned in this instance?
74. What is the importance of distinguishing between the Holy Spirit
Himself and His gifts and powers?
75. Explain what is meant by the doctrines t h a t God IS Spirit, that
God HAS Spirit, and that God GIVES Spirit.
76. What are the terms used in Scripture t o indicate the various
ways in which men receive the Spirit?
77. What terms a r e used to designate t h e ways in which the Spirit
is said t o be in men, t o come upon men, etc.?
78, What terms are used to indicate the ways by which God gives
the Spirit t o men?
79. What Scripture establishes the truth that God gives the Spirit
to men in various measures?
465
80. I n whom did the Spirit of God dwell constantly and fully? Cite
Scriptures t o support this truth.
81. Upon whom, under what circumstances, and for what purposes,
was the baptismal measure of Spirit-power conferred, a s related
in the New Testament?
82. What was the evidential measure of Spirit-power, upon whom
conferred, and for what purposes, a s revealed in the New Testa-
ment?
83. To whom i s the regenerating and sanctfying power of the Holy
Spirit promised in the New Testament? What determines the
measure of Spirit-power that the saints receive?
84. Cite Scriptures in which all three measures of Spirit-power a r e
’ designated a g i f t .
85. What speciiically were the chnrism,ata? What purpose were they
to serve especially?
86. What different words apparently are used to distinguish the
“distributions” of the Spirit according t o measure, from those
according to kind?
87. Explain, as fully as possible, what is implied in the doctrine
t h a t God gives the Spirit.
88. What is generally implied in the teaching that God sends Spirit?
89. What is signified in particular by the teaching t h a t God paits H i s
Spirit tipon men?
90. W h a t is signified especially by the teaching t h a t God pozirs out
His Spirit on men?
91. What is signified by the doctrine t h a t God s u p p l i ~ sthe Spirit?
92. W h a t is signified by the doctrine t h a t God fills men with His
Spirit?
93. I n what sense is the Spirit said to pmceed f r o m the Father?
94. In what sense is the Spirit said t o co?vie wito o r come zipon men?
95. In what sense is the Spirit said t o fnZl 071 men?
96. I n what sense i s tlfe SpWt said to rest zcpon men?
97. I n what sense is the Spirit said t o enter Gito and to dwell in men?
98. I n what sense is the Spirit said t o depart f i . 0 ~men?
~
99. What i s the meaning of the term, “the seven spirits”?
100. How was this truth related to Christ in Zechariah’s vision?
466
PART SIX
T H E SP IRIT A N D
THE WORD
467
1. The Logos
It becomes necessary at this point to make a brief study of
the relations between the Spirit of God and the Word of God
in the various operations of the Godhead. Now the Word of God
may be considered in two general aspects: (1) as impersonal or
stereotyped, as in the Scriptures, and (2) personal, as the Logos.
The impersonal or stereotyped Word, as embodied in Scrip-
ture, is of course, a revelation by the Son of God through the
agency of the Spirit. Jesus Himself said, with respect to the
Spirit’s mission: “He shall teach y ~ uall things, and bring to
your remembrance all that I said unto you” (John 14:26) -words
addressed to the men who were to become His Apostles; again,
“He shall bear witness of me” (John 15:26); and again: “He
shall guide you into all the truth, for he shall not speak from
himself, but what things soever he ‘shall heak, these shall he
speak; and he shall declare unto you the things that are to
come. He shall glorify me, for he shall take of mine, and shall
declare it unto you” (John 16: 13-14). To these words He added
the following explicit statement: “All things whatsoever the
Father hath are mine: therefoye said I, that he taketh of mine,
and shall declare it unto you” (John 16: 15). From the very
beginning the temporal mission of the Holy Spirit has been that
of glorifying Christ, Gocl‘s Son. It was the Logos who declnred
the Will of God and the Spirit who communicated it, through
the instrumentality of inspired men. To the Father we look,
therefore, for faith; to the Son, for doctrine; and to the Spirit,
for evidence or proof.
In view of these truths, the proper point of beginning of
a study of the relations between the Word of God and the Spirit
of God, is with what the Scriptures reveal concerning the being
and function of the personal Word, the Word who became flesh
and dwelt among us, the Logos.
In one of His numerous brushes with the Pharisees, Jesus
put to them the two most important questions-that is, the most
far-reaching in their implications-of all questions that ever
come before the human mind for consideration. These two ques-
tions were: “What think ye of the Christ? whose Son is he?”
(Matt. 22:42). Of these two questions, however, the second is
the more important; one’s answer to the first question is neces-
sarily determined by the answer one gives to the second. If
Jesus, Messiah, was only the natural son of Joseph and Mary,
conceived and born as all human beings are conceived and born,
4G8
THE SPIRIT AND TIin WORD
then He was only a man, a great Teacher of course, and perhaps
more “divinely illumined” than other teachers who have arisen in
the course of human history, but withal a man, Under this view,
moreover, the teaching of Jesus, like that o i all other philoso-
phers, is just another guess at the riddle of the universe. But,
on the other hand, if Jesus was the Son of God, begotten by the
overshadowing by the Holy Spirit of the womb of the Virgin; in a
word, if He was, as Scripture expressly declares, the Eternal
Word who became flesh and dwelt among us; then He was eqery-
thing that He claimed to be, both Son of God and Son of man;
Immanuel, Theanthropos, the Divine-Human Person; The Way,
the Truth, and the Life; Savior, Redeemer, Prophet, Priest and
King of His people, the elect of God of both Covenants. Every-
thing in Christianity hinges upon the answer to the question:
“Whose Son is He?”
Let us approach this question from the only viewpoint from
which we can approach it to get at the truth as revealed in Scrip-
ture. The crux of the problem may be stated thus: Did the
Person whom we know historically as Jesus of Nazareth have
His beginning in the Bethlehem manger? Fortunately for us,
both the Old and New Testament writers leave us in no doubt
as to the true answer to this question; they uniformly and ex-
plicitly assert that the One whom we know historically as Jesus
and whom we accept wholeheartedly as Christ and our Savior,
is co-eternal and co-equal with the Father, that His goings forth
are from of old, from everlasting. The following Scriptures,
just as a few of the several texts throughout the Bible all of
which assert the same truth, will suffice to establish the point:
Phil. 2:6-7: Christ Jesus, who, misting in the f o r m of God, counted
not the being on an equality w i t h God a thing t o be grasped, b u t
emptied himself, taking the form of a servant, being made in the like-
ne88 o f men; and being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself,
becoming obedient even unto death,.yea, the death of the cross. [That
is t o say! the Messiah did not consider His own original equality m t h
God a thing t o be striven for, because it was His inherently, a s He was
Deity by nature and rank; hence He could subordinate His Deity and
resume it again a s He pleased.] John 10:17-18: Therefore doth the
Father love me, because I lay down my life, t h a t I may take it again.
No one talteth it away from me, but I l a y it down of myself. I have
power t o lay it down, and I have power to take it again. Heb. 2:14-
Since then the children are sharers in flesh and blood, he also himself
in like manner partook of the same; that through death he might bring
t o nought him that had the power of death, t h a t is, the devil. [Whereas
in the passage quoted above from Philzppians the f a c t o€ the Son’s
Humiliation i s asserted, the purpose of t h a t Humiliation is here set
forth: i t was for the purpose o l expelling ultimately from our universe
all sin, both its guilt and its consequences, the chief of which is death.]
Col. 1:17-He is before all things, and in him all things consist. John
469
8:58 [the words of Jesus Himself]: Before Abraham was born, I am.
[Here we find Jesus assuming for Himself the “great and incommunic-
able” Name of the Deity, and in so doing asserting His own self-
existence from eternity.] John 17:5, [from the prayer of Jesus on the
night of His betrayal]:_ Father, glorify thou me with thine own self
with the glory which Z had with thee before the world was. [Language
could hardly be more explicit.] Rev. 1:17-18 [the words of the risen
and glorified Christ]: Fear not; a m the first and the last, and the
Living One. Rev. 21:G-I am the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning
and the end [that is, I am without beginning or end.]
[Cf. from t h e Old Testament]: Isa. 9:6-His name shall be called
Wonderful, Counsellor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.
[This is clearly in allusion to the Messiah.] Micah 5:Z-But thou,
Bethlehem Ephrathah, which are little to be among the thousands of
Jtidah, out of thee shall one come forth unto me t h a t is t o be ruler in
Israel; whose goings forth are frowh of old, from everlastiwg. [The state-
ments of Jesus t o the Apostles]: John 6:62--What then if ye should
behold the Son of man ascending where he was before? John 14:Z-In
my Father’s house are many mansions; if i t were not so, I would have
told you; f o r I g o to prepare a place for you. [Also His statements to
the Pharisees, John 7:33-341: Yet a little while a m I with you, and I
go unto him t h a t sent me. Ye shall seek me, and shall not find me: and
where I am, ye cannot come.
These passages and others numerous to be quoted here-
clearly set forth the fact pre-existence of Christ, not to
mention of course the numerous other Scriptures in which His
work of creating and upholding all things is explicitly affirmed:
E.g., John 1:3--All things were made through him; and without him
was not anything made that hath been made. Col. l:16-for in him
were all things created, in the heavens and upon the earth, things
visible and things invisible, whether thrones or dominions or princi-
palities o r powers; all things have been created through him, and unto
him. Col, 3. :17-He is befgre all things, and in him all things consist.
1 Cor. 8:6-There is one God, the Father, of whom are all things,
and we unto him; and one Lord, Jesus Christ, through whom are all
things, and we through him. Heb. 1:1-3: God, having of old time
spoken unto the fathers in the prophets by divers portions and in divers
manners, hath a t the end of these days spoken unto us in his SOT), whom
he appointed heir of all things, through whom also he made the worlds;
who being the effulgence of his glory, and the very image of his sub-
stance, and upholding all things by the word of his power, when he had
made purification of sins, s a t down on the right hand of the Majesty
on high. Heb. 1:lO-Thou, Lord, in the beginning didst lay the foun-
dation of the earth, And the heavens are the works of thy hands [this
quotation from Psa. 102 :25 ff. is explicitly affirmed here t o have refer-
ence to the Messiah, v. 8-but of thc Son he saith, etc.] Heb. 11:3-
By faith we understand that the worlds have been framed by the word
of God, so t h a t what is seen hath not been made out of things which
appear.
These and many other Scriptures make it equally clear, too, that
His was a personal, and not merely an ideal, pre-existence. Take
his own words, for example, in John 17:24: “Father , , . thou
lovedst me before the foundation of the world.” This statement
470
THE SPJRIT AND THE WORD
expresses infinitely more than the niere fact of God’s foreknowl-
edge oi‘ a nzan’s appearance in the world. Cf. also Gal. 4:4-
Y3ut when the fulness of the time came, God sent forth his Son,
born of a woman, born under the law,” etc. In the light o€ all
these Scriptures it is impossible to reduce Jesus to the status
merely of a “divinely illumined” man.
What, then, was the ?iaCure of Ihe relation that existed be-
iween God the Father and t h e One whom w e know as Jesus, the
Christ, t h e Son, of the living God, prior lo fhe Zalter’s incarna-
tion in the womb of the Virgin? And by what ?lame does the
Holy Spirit designate that relation in Scriplure? In considering
these two questions, I suggest the following postulata which to
me appear to be incontrovertible. [For the position stated here
regarding the eternal Name of the Person whom we know his-
torically as Jesus of Nazareth, I am indebted to Alexander
Campbell. The substance of the material presented below ap-
peared in an issue of the Christian Bapiist, May 7, 1827. This
journal was edited by Mi.. Campbell, and the article on Jesus
as the Word of God was written by him. I have never found
any clearer presentation of the doctrine of the Logos in our
literature. CC.]
1. No relation existing among human beings can pGfectly
exhibit the relation which the Savior sustained, anterior to His
birth in the flesh, to the God and Father of all. The reason is,
that relation is not homogeneous, i.e., not of the same kind, with
relations originating from creation and subsequent natural re-
production. All relations of which we have any knowledge have
resulted from creation and natural reproduction. Now I object
just as much to a created relation as I object t o a creature as
properly signifying the original relation of God and the One
who came to earth to be our Savior and King. That was an un-
created and unoriginated relation. And in the nature of the
case no relation existing among created beings could literally
or fully express a relation existing between unoriginated or self-
existent beings.
2. Hence, this relation between God and the pre-existent
Savior being eternal, that is, independent o€ time or the tem-
poral process, obviously it could not have been designated by
the term Son of God, because, where there are father and son,
the father of necessity antedates the son. The relation of father
and son is a temporal, creaturely relation, and therefore could
not properly express an unoriginated or eternal relation. Such
a prophetic affirmation, for example, as that which appears in
47 1
Psalm 2:7, “I will tell of the decree: Jehovah said unto me,
Thou art my son; This day have I begotten thee” (quoted in
Acts 13:33, and in Heb. 1:5 and 5 : 5 , as having reference ex-
plicitly. to the Messiah) obviously has reference to an eternal
decree, that is, a decree existing in the eternal purpose of God
(cf. again Eph. 1:3-4, 3:3-12, etc.) Just as it is said, for instance,
in Rom. 8:29-30, that the particular class whom God foreknew
as a class ( i e . , the saints) in His eternal purpose, He fore-
ordained to be called (through the Gospel, 2 Thess. 2:14), to
be justified (through their own obedience of faith, Rom. 10:16,
2 Thess. 1:8), and eventually to be glorified (Le,, raised up from
the dead and clothed in “glory and honor and incorruption,”
Rom. 2: 7), and thus finally to be conformed to the image of His
glorified Son, The calling, justifying and glorifying described
here was in the eternal purpose of God; this eternal purpose
shall be fully realized when the immortalized saints shall stand
in God’s presence fully redeemed in spirit and soul and body
(1 Thess, 5:23). In like manner, the Savior was from eternity,
that is, in God’s eternal purpose, the Only Begotten Son of God.
I
The actual begetting, however, took place in time, in the womb

of the Virgin Mary.
: [Similarly, Jesus is said to have been the Lamb slain, that is, in
the purpose of God, from the foundation of the world ,(kosmos), and
the saints are said t o have been chosen in Him, again in the purppse
of God, from the foundation of the world.] Acts 2:23-him, being
delivered up by the determination counsel and foreknowledge of God,
ye by the hand of lawless men did crucify and slay. 1 Pet. 1:18-20-
ye were redeemed ... with precious blood, as of a lamb without
blelnish and without spot, even the blood of Christ: who was fore-
known indeed before the foundation of the world, but was manifested
a t the end of the times for your sake, etc. Matt. 25:34--Then shall
the King say unto them on his right hand, Come, ye blessed of my
Father, inherit the kingdom prepared f o r you from the foundation of
the world. Eph. 1:3-4: in Christ, even a s he chose us’ in him before the
foundation of t h e world, that we should be holy and without blemish
before him in love. Rev. 1 3 : 8 - e v e r y one whose name hath not been
written from the foundation of the world in the book of life of the
Lamb t h a t hath been slain. Rev. 17:8-they whose name hath not
been written in the book of life, from the foundation of the world, etc.
3. When in the fulness of the time it became necessary in
the wisdom of God to exhibit the Savior to the world, it became
expedient to present some view of the original and eternal dig-
nity of this Divine Visitant to the human race. And since this
view, in the very nature of the case, had to be communicated
in human language, we can only conclude that the whole vo-
cabulary of human speech was examined for a suitable term
or name.
472
THB SPIRIT AND THE WORD
4. Of all the terms to be found in human language expres-
sive of the eternal relation io be disclosed, the most suitable
had to be, and unquestionably was, selected, Moreover, as the
relation to be designated was not carnal, but spiritual or of the
nature of mind or spirit, such terms only were eligible which
had respect to purely spiritual relations. Of this category of
terms, there was only one in all the archives of human knowl-
edge and speech, which could be selected. And this precisely
was the term which was selected.
5. The Holy Spirit selected the Name Logos or Word. We
may therefore safely assert that this is the best, if not actually
the only term in the whole vocabulary of human speech which
is at all adapted to express properly the relation which existed
“in the beginning,’’ that is, anterior to Time iteself, between God
the Father, and the One whom we know as Savior.
[Cf. in this connection Rev, 19:ll-161: And I saw the heaven
opened; and behold, a white horse, a n d he t h a t s a t thereon called
Faithful and True; and in righteousness he doth judge and make war.
And his eyes a r e a flame of fire, and upon his head a r e many diadems:
and he hath a name written which no one knoweth but he himself.
And he is arrayed in a garment sprinkled with blood: and his name is
called The Word of God. And the armies which are in heaven followed
him upon white horses, clothed in fine linen, white and pure. And out
of his mouth proceedeth a sharp sword, t h a t with it he should smite
the nations: and he shall rule them with a rod of iron: and he treadeth
the winepress of the fierceness of the wrath of God, the Almighty. And
he hath on his garment and on his thighs a name written, KING O F
KINGS, A N D LORD OF LORDS.
The foregoing postulata having been stated, we now proceed
to inquire as follows: What sort of a relation does this term
Logos or Word designate? What is included in it? Here we are
dealing with matters that are relatively easy of comprehension.
The following would, I think, be admitted by all who are capable
of intelligent reflection:
1. A word is a sign or symbol of an idea; in a sense it is
the idea; it is the idea in an audible or visible form. Perhaps
it should be made clear at this point that we are accustomed to
use the term word today in two senses: a fact which, unfortu-
nately, is overlooked by present-day enthusiasts on the subject
of semantics. We use the term, first, in its primary or epistemo-
logical sense, that is, as embodying t h e essence of a n idea that
is being communicated. But we use the term also in an exclu-
sively symbolic sense, that is, to describe a given letter-formation
or combination of letters. Now letter-formations may differ, as
indeed they do, in different languages, but the word as em-
473
bodying the essential meaning of the idea communicated remains
the same ih all languages, Incidentally, this is precisely what
translation is, as distinguished from transliteration: it is the
transfer of the same meaning from the letter-formation which
expresses that meaning in one language to the letter-formation
which expresses that same meaning in another language (Trans-
literation is merely the transfer of the letters themselves). Thus,
for example, a n image of the same object-a man-flashes into
the mind of one who is versed in several languages, whether the
letter-formation (spoken or written) that is used be “man,”
homme,” “Mann,” %ombre,” or indeed the letter-formation in
any language which conveys the same meaning. Word as an
elerrient of language is symbolical, but word as meaning con-
veyed by the symbol is epistemological. Now I am using the
term word here in its epistemological sense. In this sense it may
properly be called the image of the invisible thought which it
conveys from one mind to another-that thought which re-
mains a complete secret to all the world until it is expressed
in the word.
2. All men think, that is, form ideas, and communicate those
ideas, by means of images and words. Whether “imageless
thinking” ever takes place in the human mind is,
moot question.
3. Hence it follows that, in this sense, epistemologically,
the idea and the word which represents it are coetaneous, that is,
of the same age o r antiquity. It is true of course that the sym-
bolic word may not be uttered or “born” for yews, even ages,
after the idea exists; nevertheless, the word, as the essence of
the idea, is just as old as the idea itself.
4. The idea and the word are, nevertheless, distinct from
each other, even though the relation between them is the most
intimate relation that is known on earth. It might be said to
be comparable to the relation existing between a being and his
own thought.
5. Moreover, the person who is acquainted with-that is,
who “understands”-the word, is acquainted also with the idea,
for the idea is wholly in the word.
6. Finally, this relation between the word and the idea
which it represents is wholly a mental or spiritual relation; it
is more closely akin to the spiritual order of being than any
other relation of which we have any knowledge. It is a rela-
tion of the most sublime order, for which reason no doubt it was
selected by the Holy Spirit as the one relation known to man
474
THE SPIRIT AND THE WON)
which most closely approximates an analogy of the eternal rela-
tion of the Person whom we know as our Savior to the God
and Father of all. Searching the whole vocabulary of human
speech, the Spirit could find no Name more appropriate to the
designation of this relation than the name Logos, W o d , of God.
And so we read, in one of the most profound passages to be
found in Scripture: “In the beginning was the Word [Logos],
and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. The same
was in the beginning with God. All things were made through
him; and without him was not anything made that hath been
made” (John 1:1-3).
By putting together the foregoing remarks on the signifi-
cance, epistemologically, of the term word, we have a full view
of the truth which the inspired writer designs to communicate
in this sublime text. As a word, in its epistemological sense, is
an exact image of the idea which it represents, so The Word is
an exact image of the invisible God. He is “the effulgence of
God’s glory and the very image of God’s substance” (Heb. 1:3).
He Himself said: (‘He that hath seen me hath seen the Father”
(John 14:9). Again, as a word cannot exist without its idea,
nor the idea without its word, so God was never without The
Word, nor The Word without God. Or, as a word is coetaneous
or of equal age with its idea, so The Word and God are co-
eternal. And as an idea does not create its word, nor the word
its idea, so God did not create The Word nor did The Word
create God. “In the beginning,” writes the author of the Fourth
Gospel (whom I still believe to have been John the Beloved,
despite critical attempts to prove the contrary), “was the Logos.”
That is, anterior to Time, before Time began, The Word was:
He existed. “And the Word was with God,” that is, there were
Two-God and The Word. Obviously when I am with you, there
are two of us present. Then lest anyone-contemporary Greek
Stoic or Alexandrian Jew, or later-day Arian, or present-day
Unitarian-should get the erroneous notion that The Word is
inferior in rank to God, the inspired writer adds: “And the
Word was God” (John 1:l).That is to say, The Word was just
as truly deity as God is deity.Then again, as if to give added
emphasis to the facts of the co-eternity and co-equality of God
and The Word, he adds: “The same was in the beginning with
God” (John 1:2). Whatever the phrase, “in the beginning,”
means here, it applies equally to The Word and to God. Both
participated in the Creation, which marked the beginning of
the temporal process. For in the very next verse we are told
475
THE ETERNAL SPIRIT IS PERSON AND POWERS
that The Word was the instrumentality through whom .all
things were created: “All things were made through him;
and without him was not anything made that hath been made”
(John 1:3).
Such a general view does the language used here by the
inspired writer suggest, and to this view the Scriptures agree
throughout. Then in verse 14 of the same chapter, the matter
is further clarified: “And ‘the Word became flesh, and dwelt
g US (and we beheld his glory, glory as of the only be-
gotten from the Father), full of grace and truth.” Hence the
final affirmation of this Prologue, in verse 18: “NO man hath
seen God at any time: the only begotten Son, who is in the
bosom of the Father, he hath declared him.” Certainly the
language here is too plain for misconception. The Word was
made flesh, we are told, and dwelt among us, that is, among men;
and in consequence of His becoming incarnate, He is designated
The Son of God, The Only Begotten from the Father. As from
eternity God was manifest in and by The Word, so now God is
manifest in the flesh-and in Time-by the incarnate Word,
His Only Begotten Son. As Paul puts it: “And without con-
troversy great is the mystery of godliness; He who was mani-
fested in the flesh, Justified in the Spirit, Seen of angels,
Preached among the nations, Believed on in the world, Re-
ceived up into glory” (1 Tim. 3:16), He who was manifested
in the dlesh is, of course, the incarnate Word, Again, as God
is always with The Word, so when The Word became flesh,
He was Immanuel, God with us (Matt. 1:23), As God was
never manifest but by the agency of the Spirit in conformity to
the edicts (decrees) of The Word, so “the heavens and the earth
and all the host of them” were brought into existence by the
Spirit (Spirit-power) at the ediction of The Word. (decrees,
Psa. 148:6) And as The Word is ever the effulgence of the
and the very image of the substance, of the invisible
He will ever be known and.adored as The Word of God.
1 Ye return in judgment at the last great day, leading
the armies of Heaven, Himself arrayed in a garment sprinkled
with blood, and having on His garment and on His thigh a name
written, King of Kings and Lord of Lords (Rev. 19:ll-16).
Surely this is the interpretation of the relation-the uncreated
and unariginated relation existing between God and the Person
know as our Savior-which the inspired language
of the Prologue to the Fourth Gospel, and indeed of
the Scriptures throughout, inculcates: The substance of this
476
thee before the world was” (John 17: 5 ) .
In the archives of secular history, the Savior of men is
known as Jesus of Nazareth: Jesus is His historical name,
477
THE ETERNAL SPIRIT - HIS PERSON AND POWHRS
angel of the Lord unto Joseph in a dream: “Joseph, thou son
of David, fear not to take unto thee Mary thy wife: for that
which is conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit. And she shall
bring forth a son; and thou shalt call his name JESUS; for it
is he that shall save his people from their sins.” (Matt. 1:20-21).
Luke’s account is substantially the same; Luke tells us that
the Annunciating Angel said to Mary: “And behold, thou shalt
conceive in thy womb, and bring forth a son, and shalt call
his name JESUS; He shall be great, and shall be called the Son
of the Most High; and the Lord God shall give unto him the
throne of his father David” (Luke 1:31-32). According to the
Old Testament prophet, His name was to be called Immanuel
(Isa. 7: 14, Matt. 1:23) : this is His incarnate name, God With
Us; this designates Him as the Divine-human Person. The
designation applies to Him as the Head of the New or Spiritual
Creation, the Elect of God.
1 Cor. 16:46-49: So also it is written, The first man Adam became
a living soul. The last Adam became a life-giving spirit. Howbeit
that is not f i r s t which is spiritual, but t h a t which is natural; then
t h a t which is spiritual, The first man is of the earth, earthy: the
second man is of heaven, As is the earthy, such a r e they also that
a r e earthy; and a s is the heavenly, such are they also t h a t are heavenly.
And a s we have borne the image of the earthy, we shall also bear
the image of the heavenly, Col, 1:18-And he is the head of the body,
the church: who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead: that in
all things he might have the pre-eminence. Eph. 1:22-23: God put all
things in subjection under his feet, and gave him to be the head over
all things t o the church, which i s his body, the fulness of him that
filleth all in all. Eph. 6:23-as Christ also is the head of the church,
being himself the savior of the body.
The name Son of God expresses His relation to the Heavenly
Father which began in time; as the Son of God He is God’s
Only Begotten (John 3:16-“God so loved the world that He
gave his only begotten Son”) by the agency of the Holy Spirit
(Matt. 1:20, Luke 1:35). But the risen Christ’s affirmation to
John on the isle of Patmos, “I am the first and the last” (Rev.
1:17, also v. 8), means, literally, “I am without beginning or
end.” The name Logos or Word, therefore, designates His
eternal o r unoriginated relation with God the Creator and
Preserver of all things. In the Old Testament, the Holy Three
are God, The Word of God, and The Spirit of God; in the New
Testament, they are Fpther, Son, and Holy Spirit.
On the other hand, the term Messias (in Hebrew), Christos
(in Greek) or Christ (as transliterated into English), meaning
‘‘The’Anointed One,” as applied to Jesus, is not a name at all,
but a title. It is our Savior’s official designation as Frophet,
478
Priest and King of His people, God’s elect. Edward King, for
example, is the name of a man, but Edward the King is the name
of a ruler. In like manner, Jesus is the name of a historical
personage, whereas Jesus the Christ is the name and title of a
sovereign. Cf. in this connection the words of Jesus Himself,
after His conquest of death: “All authority hath been given
unto me in heaven and on earth” (Matt. 28: 18) ; also the Apos-
tle Peter’s great affirmation, in concluding the first Gospel
sermon, on the Day of Pentecost: “Let all the house of Israel
therefore know assuredly that God hath made him both Lord and
Christ, this Jesus whom ye crucified’’ (Acts 2: 36). Jesus was
christed (Le., anointed) with the Holy Spirit following His
baptism in the Jordan (Matt. 3:16-17); this act signified His
formal setting apart to His threefold office of Prophet, Priest
and King (Acts 10:38-“even Jesus of Nazareth, how God
anointed him with the Holy Spirit and with power”). He was
crowned King of kings and Lord of lords (Rev. 19:16) im-
mediately following His conquest of death and subsequent as-
cension to the Father (Acts 1:9-11) . Evidently the coronation
ceremonies were taking place in Heaven throughout the period
of ten days between His ascension and the advent of the Spirit
on the Day of Pentecost.
1 Pet. 3:22--Jesus Christ, who is on the right hand of God, having
gone into heaven; angels and authorities and powers being made
subject to him. Phil. 2:9-11: God highly exalted him, and gave unto
him the name which is above every name; that in the name of Jesus
every knee should bow, of things in heaven and things on earth and
things under the earth, and t h a t every tongue should confess t h a t
Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. 1 Cor. 15:24-26:
Then cometh the end, when he shall deliver up the kingdom to God,
even the Father; when he shall have abolished all rule and all authority
and power. F o r he must reign, till he hath p u t all his enemies under
his feet. The last enemy that shalI be abolished is death. [In all prob-
ability we have a prophetic picture of the antiphonal strains of the
coronation ceremonies, in Psalm 24:7-lo]: Lift up your heads, 0 ye
gates: And be ye lifted up, ye everlasting doors: And the King of
glory will conie in. Who is the King of glory? Jehovah strong and
mighty, Jehovah mighty in battle. Lift up your heads, 0 ye gates;
Yea, Iift them up, ye everlasting doors: and the King of glory will
come in. Who is this King of glory? Jehovah of hosts, He i s the
King of glory.
The Eternal Word, whom we know historically as Jesus of
Nazareth, is now seated at the right hand of God, as both Lord
and Christ: that is (1) Lord of all things, or Acting Ruler of the
universe, and (2) Absolute Monarch of the Kingdom of God.
It is worth noting too that the facts of His Sonship, Priesthood
and Kingship, and His office as R.evealer of God (Prophet) as
479
well, are all embodied in the formula by which the Christian
Creed-Christ Himself-is confessed by men unto their salua-
tion: “Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God” (Matt.
16: 16).
[As Paul puts it]: “If thou shalt confess with thy mouth Jesus
a s Lord, and shalt believe in thy heart t h a t God raised him from the
dead, thou shalt be saved; for with the heart man believeth unto
righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation
(Rom.10 :9-10).
Now to confess Jesus as Lord is to confess Him as the Christ,
the Son of the living God; and to confess Him as Christ-as God’s
Anointed-is to confess him as our Prophet, the One to whom
we go fox the words of eternal life; as our Priest, who intercedeth
for US at the right hand of God the Father; and as our King who
has all authority over our hearts and lives, To the Jews this
confession was especially meaningful; every Jew knew full well
that in the times of his fathers, prophets, priests and kings were
formally inducted into their respective offices by the ceremony
of anainting with pure olive oil. Hence’to confess Jesus today
as the Christ, the Son of the living God, is to yield to Him in
all those relationships which He sustains with the individual
members of His Body, the Church.
It is exceedingly important to a proper understanding of
the Scriptures, and of the fundamental truths of the Christian
religion as a whole, that one differentiate clearly the import
of the various names and titles which are applied, in the no-
menclature of the Spirit, to the Savior of the world. These names
and titles are especially meaningful.
1 In what sense, then, is our Savior eternally the Word of
God? In a twofold sense, I should say. In the first place, He
is the Word of God inwardly, that is, within the triune person-
ality of the Godhead. “In the beginning was the Word, and the
Word was with God, and the Word was God. The same was in
the beginning with God.” (Note the repetition, for emphasis,
of the “with.”) Note also the present tense of John 1:18, “No
man hath seen God at any time; the only begotten Son, who is
in the bosom of the Father, he hath declared him.” The Eternal
Word is-always-in the bosom of the Father: without regard
to space or time, the Father and He are one. This truth He ex-
pressly asserts Himself: “I and the Father are’ one” (John
10:30). As Jesus Himself prayed, John 17:20-21: “Neither for
these [the Apostles] only do I pray, but for them also that believe
on me through their word; that they may all be one; even as
480
TI33 SPIRIT AND THR WORD
thou, Father, art in me, and I in thee, that they also may be in
us: that the world may believe that thou didst send me.” As
God is Pure Spirit, and hence Pure Thought, so The Word is
the image of Pure Thought, “the very image” of the Divine
Substance (Heb. k 3 ) , personally, morally, and in every way;
and as there is nothing quite so close to a thought as the image
of that thought-that is to say, its meaning-so there is no more
intimate relation than that which exists eternally between God
and The Word. As the image, moreover, is in the idea, so the
Word is eternally in the bosom of the Father. In the second
place, our Savior is The Word of God outwardly: Be is God’s
final and perfect revelation of Himself to mankind. “No man
hath seen God at any time; the only begotten Son, who is in
the bosom of the Father, he halh declared him.” God’s last and
perfect revelation to the human race is a Person, the eternal
Person who became flesh and dwelt among us, and in whom
“dwelt all the fulness of the Godhead bodily” (Col. 2:9).
In him was life; and the life was the light of men (John 1:4).
[He is the Light of the world (Jphn 8:12, 9:5), the Way, the Truth,
.
and the Life (John 14:6)]. [He is] the Word of life . , the eternal
life which was with the Fatlrcr, and was manifested u?zlo us (1 John
1:2). [He is] “the image of the invisible God” (Col. 1:16), “the ef-
fulgence of God’s glory” (Heb. 1: 3 ) .
[Cf. the words of Jesus Himself] John 14:g-Have I been so long
time with you, and dost thou not know me, Philip? he t h a t hath seen
me hath seen the Father: how sayest thou, Show us the Father? Again,
John 12:44-46: H e t h a t believeth on me, believeth not on me, but on
him t h a t sent me. And he that beholdeth me beholdeth him that sent me.
While The Word was in the flesh, He lived as God would live, He
taught as God would teach, He wrought such mighty works as
only God Himself could work, and He died as God would die,
out of sheer love giving Himself freely for sinful men, the Divine
f o r the human, the innocent for the guilty. If anyone would
receive the wisdom of God, let him listen to Jesus proclaiming
in gentle accents the Beatitudes of the Sermon on the Mount.
Tf anyone would look upon the working of the mighty power of
God, let him look upon Jesus casting out demons, healing the
sick and the blind and the maimed, stilling the winds and waves,
feeding a multitude with a few loaves and fishes, and even
raising the dead to life, in each case by a spoken word. If any-
one would be acquainted with the holiness of God, let him look -,
upon Jesus, not only proclaiming, but living every day and hour
the life of complete moral purity before all men, infinitely com-
passionate toward the weak and helpless, but flashing forth
righteous indignation upon every form of sell-pride, irreverence,
48 1
injustice, and hypocrisy. And if anyone would desire a demon-
stration of the immeasurable love of God, let him gaze upon
that awful scene on a lonely hill back of Jerusalem, let him
take a look at that Holy Form hanging suspended between earth
and sky on the middle cross, let him see the blood dripping from
the lacerated head and hands and feet of the Son of God, and
let him realize that that blood was being shed for the remission
of his sins and the sins of the whole world. Let all men realize
that “God so loved the world, that He gave his only begotten
Son, that whosoever believeth on him should not perish, but
have eternal life” (John 3:16). The Mystery of Godliness is a
Person: “He who was manifested in the flesh, justified in the
spirit, seen of angels, preached among the nations, believed on
in the world, received up into glory” (1Tim, 3:16). The Creed
of Christendom is this Person: the Christ, the Son of the living
God. We repeat: Christ is Christianity, and Christianity is
Christ. The work of the Holy Spirit throughout the present
Dispensation is to bear witness of, and to glorify, this Person
(John 15: 26, 16: 14)-the Person, both Son of God and Son of
man, the image of the invisible God, the central Figure of all
history, and the only Savior of men. Lebreton writes:
I n Christian theology, this conception of the Son a s the image of
God derives a new significance for the f a c t of the Incarnation; for, by
taking flesh and manifesting himself t o men, the Son reveals them t o
the Father. (Again) human speculation flattered itself in vain that
it could sound the depths of the life of God, its proud efforts resulted
in nothing but barren and deceptive dreams; it is in the humility of
the Incarnation t h a t the mystery of God has been revealed: for the
Jews, a scandal; folly t o the Greeks; the strength and wisdom of
God. for the elect. [Cf. Paul, 1 Cor. 1:22-24: Seeing that Jew? ask
for signs, and Greeks seek after wisdom; but we preach Christ crucified,
unto Jews a stumbling block, and unto Gentiles foolishness; but unto
them t h a t a r e called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God
and the wisdom of God.]
Another question arises in this connection: namely, Are
we to understand that the Logos existed as a Person prior to
His incarnation? A few observations will suffice to answer this
question, as follows: Thinking is the act of a person; my think-
ing, moreover, is my own activity and in the very nature of
the case cannot be someone’s else’s; the meaning of my thought
also, being what it means to me, cannot be identical with the
meaning of another person’s thought to him. A person is, as
we have learned, an individual; he is unique, he is an other
1. Jules Lebreton, S.J., History of the Dogma of the Trinity, I, 299,
414. Translated by Algar Thorold from the Eighth Edition.
482
to all other persons. “he mental processes and accummulations
of one person are never exactly duplicated in any other person,
Hence, as God Himself is, in His essential Being, Pure Thought
and therefore personal, it follows that The Word as the image
of the Divine Mind or Thought is likewise personal. This is
true of Him both as the pre-incarnate and as the incarnate
Word. His mode of existence, whether He be non-incarnate or
temporarily tabernacled in an angelic or in a human form, i s
essentially psychical, hence personal, This conclusion, more-
over, to which even our limited human reason points, is cer-
tainly corroborated by the Scriptures as a whole, and by those
of the New Testament in particular; it is only in the New Testa-
ment of course that the tripersonality of God is fully revealed.
For example, it is most significant that throughout the New
Testament, the masculine personal pronoun is invariably used
with reference to His pre-incarnate mode of being. “For in him
were all things created . , . all things have been created through
him and unto him; and he i.s before all things, and in him all
things consist’’ (Col. 1:16-17), “Christ Jesus, who, existing in
the form of God, counted not the being on an equality with
God a thing t o be grasped, but emptied himself, taking the form
of a servant,” etc. (Phil. 2:5-7). If the pre-incarnate Logos
existed in the form ( m o r p h ) of God and was on a footing of
equality with God, certainly then since God is personal, He
too was a Person, “Since then the children are sharers in flesh
and blood, he also himself in like manner partook of the same,”
that is, He-obviously as a pre-incarnate Person-voluntarily
1 took upon Himself a human body with its infirmities, “that
1 through death he might bring to nought him that had the power
of death, that is, the devil” (Heb. 2:14). Moreover, in the
Prologue to the Fourth Gospel, the personal identity so strongly
1 affirmed of the pre-existing Logos and Christ, admits of no
I doubt whatever as to the personality of the Logos prior to His
I
incarnation.
Verse 3-All things were made through hi^^; and without him
was not anything made that hath been made. Verse 10-He was in
in the world, and tho w o ~ l dw a s waadc tlwough him, and the world knew
l~imnot. Verse 11-Hs cnmc unto his own, [that is, to His own people]
and they that wew liis own received him not. V. 12-But as many as
received l ~ i i i z , to them gave he the right t o become children of God,
evcn t o them t h a t believe on Ibis name. V. 14-And the Word became
~
flesh, and dwelt among us, etc. V. 18-No man hath seen God at any
time; the only begotten Son, who i s iir the bosont of tho Fathev, he hath
declared him. [And Paul gives testimony thus]: Yet to us there is one
God, the Father, of whom a r e all things, and we unto him; and one
483
to the Messiah-is obvious; cf. Matt. 2! e Spirit expressly

asserts, through the prophet Micah, th on's goings forth
from the Godhead a r e from of old, from ev
That is to say, to quote Adam Clarke:
There is no t h e in wh!& 88" 'not been going forth, corning in
various ways to save man. And He t h a t came forth the moment, t h a t
time had its birth, was before that time in which He began t p come
forth to save the souls which He had created. He was before all things.
As He is the Creator of all things, so He is the Eternal, and no part
of what was created. All being but God has been created. Whatever
has not been created is God. But Jesus is the Creator of all things;
therefore, He is God: for He cannot be a p a r t of His own work2 This
text teaches clearly that His birth in the Bethlehem manger as the
Only Begotten Son of God was not His f i r s t appearance, t h a t it was
in f a c t but one of His many appearances, in the world, t o declare and
execute God's will toward men. We must conclude that, being of the
rank of God who is personal, and Himself a member of the Godhead,
the Logos can never be anything less than personal.
W e need not be surprised to know, therefore, that even
though the fact of the triune personality of the Godhead is not
clearly set forth in the Old Testament, still there are many Old
Testament passages in which manifestations of the pre-incarnate
Logos in the world are clearly implied. These passages may be
classified generally in three categories, as follows:
Those describing the appearance and activities of the
'of Jehovah:
1. Adam Clarke, Commentarg, in loc.
484
[In certain texts, for instance, the Angel of Jehovah identifies
Himself with Jehovah.] Gen. 22:11, 15, 16-And the angel of Jehovah
called unto him out of heaven, and said, Abraham, Abraham. .
the angel of Jehovah called unto Abraham a second time out of heaven,
..
And
and said, By myself have I sworn, saith Jehovah, etc. [We must re-
member, in,‘ this connection, that the primary meaning of the word
mzgelos is messenger,” a “messenger” who conveys news and behests
from God to men.] Gen. 31:ll-13: And the angel of God said unto me
in the dream, Jacob; and I said, Here am I. And he said . . I am .
the God of Bethel, where thou anointedst a pillar, etc. Cf. Gen. 1 8 : l - 2 :
And Jehovah appeared unto him [Abraham] by the oaks of Mamre,
as he sat in the tent door in the heat of the day. Cf. vv. 13, 17, 20
following: And Jehovah said unto Abraham, etc; also v. 33-And
Jehovah went his way, as soon a s he had left off communing with
Abraham.
[Note that the visitation in this instance was t h a t of three “men”]-
and lo, three men stood over against him; and when he saw them, he
ran t o meet them from the tent door, and bowed himself t o the earth,
etc. (v. 2 ) . Exo. 14:19-And the angel of God, who went before the
camp of Israel, removed and went behind them. [In this instance, the
Angel’s presence was indicated by the pillar of cloud by day and the
pillar of fire by night, symbols of the presence of the Spirit and the
Word, who g o together (Isa. 59:21).] Cf. Exo. 13:21-22: And Jehovah
went before them by day in a pillar of cloud, to lead them the way, and
by night in a pillar of fire, to give them light; t h a t they might go by
day and by night: the pillar of cloud by day, and the pillar of f i r e
by night, drparted not from before the people. [Correlate with these
pasages Paul’s testimony, 1 Cor. 10:l-41: For I would not, brethren,
have you ignorant, that our fathers were all under the cloud, and all
passed through the sea; and were all baptized unto Moses in the cloud
and in the sea; and did all eat the same spiritual food; and did all
drink the same spiritual drink: for they drank of a spiritual rock that
followed them: and t h e rock was Christ. [Hence, in Heb. 11:26-27,
Moses, their great leader, is said to have endured as seeing him who
is invisible, accounting the reproach of Christ greater riches than the
treasures of Egypt.]
[Again, in other Old Testament texts the Angel of Jehovah is rep-
resented as having been identified with Jehovah by other persons.]
Gen. 16:7, 9, 13-And the angel of Jehovah found her [Ragar] by a
fountain of water in the wilderness . , . and the angel of Jehovah said
unto her, Return to thy mistress, and submit thyself under her hands.
. . . And she called the name of Jehovah that spalte unto her, Thou
art a God that seeth, etc. Cf. Gen. 32:30-[here we a r e told t h a t Jacob,
after wrestling with the Messenger of God, at the ford of the Jabbok,
until break of day] called the name of the place Peniel: for, said he,
I have seen God face to face, and my life is preserved. [Cf. Gen. 48:15-
16: the words of Israel, with iespect to Joseph’s two sons]: The God
who hath fed me all my life long unto this day, the angel who hath
redeemed me from all evil, bless the lads, etc.
[Again, in certain other texts the Angel of Jehovah i s represented
as accepting worship t h a t is due only to God.] Exo. 3:2, 4-5: And
the angel of Jehovah appeared unto him [Moses] in a flame of f i r e out
.
of the inidst of a bush. . . And when Jehovah saw t h a t he turned
aside to sre, God called unto him o u t of the midst of the bush . ..
and he said, Draw not nigh hither: put off thy shoes from off thy
feet, f o r the place whereon thou standest is holy ground. Judg. 13:20-22:
The angel of Jehovah ascended in the flame of the altar, and Manoah
and his wiCe , . . fell on their faces t o the ground. . . , And Manoah
said unto his wife, We shal1 surely die, because we have seen God.
485
Josh. 6 :13-16: And i t came to pass, when Joshua was by Jericho, t h a t he
lifted up his eyes and looked, and, behold, there stood a man over
against him with his sword drawn in his hand: and Joshua went unto
him, and said unto him, Art thou for us, o r for our adversaries? And
he said, Nay; but as p r i m & of t h e host of Jehovah am I now come.
And Joshua fell on his face to the earth, and did worship, and said
m t o him, What saith my lord unto his servant? And the prince of
Jehovah’s host said unto Joshua, P u t off thy shoe from off thy foot;
for the place whereon thou standest is holy. And Joshua did so. Dan.
3:26, 28-He [Nebuchadnezzar] answered and said, Lo, I see four
men loose, walking in the mid$ of the fire, and they have no h u r t ;
.
and t h e aspect of the fourth is lake a s o n of the gods. , .Nebuchadnezzar
spake and said, Blessed be the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego,
who hath s e n t his angel, and delivered his servants that trusted in him,
etc. Although the phrase, “angel of the Lord” is used in later Scriptures
t o denote a created angel (Matt. 1:20, Luke 1:11,Luke 1:26, Acts 8:26,
Acts 10:3, Heb. 1:14, etc.), there is every reason for believing that
the Angel of Jehovah of the Old Testament revelation was the pre-
incarnate Logos, whose manifestations in angelic o r in human form
foreshadowed His final advent in the flesh a s the Messiah. [Fihally
who was the King-Priest Melchizedek?]
2. Those passages in which Wisdom is represented as existing
eternally with God, though apparently distinct from God.
Job 28:20-23: Whence then cometh wisdom? And where is the
place of understanding? Seeing i t is hid from the eyes of all living,
And kept close from the birds of the heavens. .. . God understandeth
the way thereof, and he knoweth the place thereof. Prov. 8:l-Doth
not wisdom cry, And understanding put forth her voice? Prav. 8:2-6:
[here Wisdom is represented as pressing upon men her invitation to
matriculate in her S C ~ O O ~ ] :On the top of high places by the way,
Where the paths meet, she standeth; Beside the gates, a t the entry of
the city, A t the coming in at the doors, she crieth aloud: Unto you,
0 men, I call; And my voice is to the sons of men, 0 ye simple, under-
stand prudence; And, ye fools, be of a n understanding heart. Hear,
for I will speak excellent things; And the opening of my lips shall
be right things. Prov. 8:36-36 [Here we are told that the good things
t h a t Wisdom promises, including life, a r e the same things which God
gives]: For whoso findeth me findeth life, And shall obtain favor of
Jehovah, But he t h a t sinneth against me wrongeth his own soul. All
they t h a t hate me love death. Prov. 9:l-6: Wisdom hath builded her
house; She hath hewn out her seven pillars: She hath killed her
beasts; She hath mingled her wine: She hath also furnished .her
table: She hath sent forth her maidens; She crieth upon the high-
est places of the city: Whoso is simple, let him turn in hither:
As f o r him t h a t is void of understanding, she saith t o him, Come,
eat ye of my bread, etc. Cf. Matt. 11:19-Wisdom is justified by
her works (or by her children). Luke ll:49-Therefore also said
the wisdom of God, I will send unto them prophets and apostles,
etc. Luke 7:36-And wisdom is justified of all her children. Again,
Prov. 3 :19-Jehovah by wisdom founded the earth; By understanding
.
he established the heavens. Cf. Heb. l:2-his Son , , through whom
also he made the worlds. Heb. 1:8, 10-but of the Son h e saith, , ..
Thou, Lord, in the beginning didst lay the foundation of the earth, etc.
See especially Prov. 8:2231: Jehovah possessed me IWisdom] in
the beginning of his way, Before his works of old. I was set up from
. .
everlasting, from the begining, Before the earth was. . While a s yet
he had not made the earth, nor the fields, Nor the beginning of the
486
THn SPIRIT AND TIJB WORD
dust of the world. When he established the heavens, I was there:
When he set a circle upon the face of the deep. When he made firni
the skies above, When the fountains of the deep became strong, When
he gave t o the sea its bound, That the waters 8hould not transgress
his commandment, When he marked out the foundations of the earth;
Than Z was bg hiin, as a master worknzaiz; And I was daily his clelight,
Rejoicing always before him, Rejoicing in his habitable earth; And my
delight was with the sons of men. [It is difficult t o see in this passage
nothing more than personification; in fact, most commentators are in
agreement t h a t Wisdom is here presented a s distinguished from God,
or a t least t h a t the tendency in this text is in that direction.]
Again [in the Apocryphal book of Wisdom, 7:24-26, Wisdom is
described as] a breath of the power of God, a clear effluence of the
glory o f the Almighty, a n effulgence from everlasting light, a n un-
spotted mirror of the working of God, And an image of his goodness,
[Heb. 1:3, in which the Son of God is described as] Zhe effulgence o f hzs
glory, and tka very image of his substance. [Also in W i s d o m 9:9-10,
Wisdom is represented as having been present with God when He made
the world, and the author of the book prays t h a t Wisdom may be sent
to him o u t of God's holy heavens and from the throne of his glory].
[And in Z Esdras 4:36-38, Truth in a similar manner is spoken of a s
personal]: Great is truth, and stronger than all things. All the earth
calleth upon truth, and the heaven blesseth her; all works shake and
tremble, but with her is no unrighteous thing, , , . But truth abideth,
and is strong f o r ever; she liveth and conquereth for evermore. [Cf.
the words of Jesus, John 14:6]-I am ... the Truth. And John 18:37-
To this end have I been born, and t o this end am I come into the world,
that I should bear witness unto the truth. Every one that is of the
truth heareth my voice.
[Again, in the Apocryphal book of Ecclesiasticus, 24 :1-22, Wisdom
is represented a s speaking in the assembly of the angels, a s declaring
her eternal subsistence, and as constantly exercising her ministry in
the holy tabernacle of Zion (Le., in the Temple in Jerusalem). In v.
23 of the same chapter, Wisdom is identified with the Law.] [And in
the book of W i s d o m again, Wisdom is expressly affirmed to be a spirit
(l:6-for wisdom is a spirit that loveth man; 9:17-who ever gained
knowledge of thy counsel, except thou gavest wisdom, And sentest thy
holy spirit from on high?); is said t o order all things and t o do all
things (8:1, 7:27); i s said t o choose out for him the works o l God
( 8 : 4 ) ; and is described as the guide of men and the leader of the
chosen people in particular (cf. 1 0 f f . ) . Wisdom is presented here,
moreover, as the artificer of things t h a t a r e (8:6, 7:21); in a word,
Wisdom plays precisely the same role as the Logos or Word of God.]
[The significance of these texts becomes clear in the light of New
Testament teaching.] 1 Cor. 1:22-24: Seeing t h a t Jews ask f o r signs,
and Greeks seek after wisdom: but we preach Christ crucified, unto
Jews a stumblingblock, and unto Gentiles foolishness; but unto them
that a r e called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God, and
the wisdom of God. 1 Cor. 1:30--But of him are ye in Christ Jesus,
who was made unto u s wisdom f r o m God, ato. [Cf. also from the Old
Testament, Jer. 10:10-12]: Jehovah i s the true God; he is the living
God, and a n everlasting King. . . . He hath made the earth by his
power, he hath established the world by his wisdom, and by his under-
standing hath he stretched out the heavens. Jas. 3:17--But the wis-
doin that is from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, easy t o be
entreated, full of mercy and good fruits, without variance, without
hypocrisy.
487
3. Those passages in which the Word, as distinguished f ~ o m
God, is presented as the executor of God’s Will from everlasting.
[Note again the formula, And God said, which is used in the first
chapter of Genesis to introduce the account of what happened on each
successive “day” of Creation,] Psa. 33:6, 9-By the word of Jehovah
were the heavens made, And all the host of them by the breath of his
mouth. .. , F o r h e spake, and i t was done; He commanded, and i t
stood fast. Psa. 148:5-6: For he commanded, and they were created.
He hath also established them [all created things] for ever and ever;
He hath made a decree which shall not pass away, Psa. 119:89-F’or
ever, 0 Jehovah, Thy word is settled in heaven, Psa. 147:16, 18-20:
He sendeth out his commandment upon earth; His word runneth very
.
swiftly. . . . He sendeth out of his word. . . He showeth his word unto
Jacob, His statutes and his ordinances unto Israel. He hath not dealt
so with any nation, etc. Psa. 107:20-He sendeth his word, and
healeth them [sinners], And delivereth them from their destructions.
Heb. 11:3-By f a i t h we understand t h a t the worlds have been framed
by the word of God, so that what is seen hath not been made out of
things which appear, 2 Pet. 3:5-For this they wilfully forget, that
there were heavens from of old, and an earth compacted out of water
and amidst water, by the word of God. Cf. v. 7-but the heavens that
now are, and the earth, by the same word have been stored up for fire,
being reserved against the day of judgment and destruction of ungodly
men.
It must be admitted, of course, that in none of these Old
Testament passages descriptive of the Divine Wisdom and Word
is the idea of personality clearly developed; nor ind
of the personality of the Spirit developed in the Old
These developments came later, in the Christian revelation. As
a matter of fact, the doctrine of the triune personality of God
is set forth in the Old Testament only by intimation,-as we
have noted previously-never explicitly. In the Old Testament,
we meet God, the Word of God, and the Spirit of God. These
Three become, in the fulness of the light of the Christian reve-
lation, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, respectively. As St. Epi-
phanius has put it, the Divine unity was first proclaimed by
Moses (Deut. 6:G“Jehovah our God is one Jehovah”); the
Divine duality, that is, the distinction between the Father and
the Son, as the Messiah, by the prophets (Isa. 9:6-“For unto
us a child is born, unto us a son is given . . . and his name shall
be called Wonderful, Counsellor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father,
Prince of Peace”) ; but the Divine tripersonality was first clearly
set forth in the teaching of Christ and the Apostles (Matt. 29: 19-
“baptizing them into the name of the Father and of the Son
and of the Holy Spirit”). The reason f o r this progressive reve-
latiop is evident: Had such a revelation as that of the triune
personality of the Godhead been made in Old Testament times,
there is little doubt that it would have been perverted into a
488
tritheism by the children of Israel, surrounded on all sides as
they were by pagan polytheistic systems. Hence the fulness of
the revelation waited for the appearance of*the Logos Himself
in human flesh and the inauguration of the Gospel Dispensation.
“In the beginning was the Logos, and the Logos was with
God, and the Logos was God. The same was in the beginning
with God. All things were made through him; and without him
was not anything made that hath been made.” (It is interesting
to note how closely this is paralleled by the concept which per-
vaded all Greek philosophical thought, and especially that of
Plato and Aristotle, that psyche (soul or mind) is the archB or
first principle of motion, ie., of activity or change. This in fact
seems to have been the most widespread of all ancient philo-
sophical doctrines. May we not reasonably conclude, therefore,
that it had its true source in the fact of the Logos?) Cf. Rev.
3:14--“And to the angel of the church in Laodicea write: These
things saith the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the be-
ginning of the creation of God.” And Rev, l:5--“Jesus Christ,
who is the faithful witness, the firstborn of the dead, and the
ruler of the kings of the earth.” He, the eternal Logos, became
flesh and dwelt among us as God’s Only Begotten Son. Through
the Eternal Spirit He offered Himself up for us, as a Lamb
without blemish and without spot (Heb. 9:14). Whereupon
God the Father, again through the agency of the Spirit (Rom.
8 : l l ) ) raised Him up from the dead and set Him at His own
right hand in the heavenly places (Eph. 1:20). There H e shall
reign until He hath put all His enemies under His feet, in-
cluding the last and greatest enemy, death (1 Cor. 15:25-26),
for it is the immutable Will of God the Father Almighty that
ultimately “in the name of Jesus’) every knee shall bow, and
every tongue shall confess “that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the
glory of God the Father” (Phil. 2:9-11). Men may be assured
that if they do not make that Confession here-in this present
life-in faith, they shall make it in the Judgment to their ever-
lasting remorse and despair.
Finally, not only did the Holy Spirit select the only name
in the whole vocabulary of human speech-the name Logos-
that adequately describes the relation which exists eternally
between the Heavenly Father and our Savior, but He also
selected the most appropriate, most opportune moment in all
human history to reveal this name to the world. Logos doc-
trines of both Greek and Hebrew origin, and notions of inter-
mediaries of various kinds between God and men, were rife
489
throughout the Roman world at the time the Fourth Gospel
was written. Perhaps the oldest and most widespread Logos
doctrine extant in the apostolic age was that of the Stoics. It
will be recalled that in the Timaeus, Plato had pictured the
Divine Reason or Demiourgos as creating the world according
to archetypal Forms or Ideas which would seem to have sub-
sisted, in Plato’s view, in a transcendent, exclusively intelligible
world. In the same work, however, Plato, implicitly at least,
identifies the Demiourgos with the Soul of the World, which he
distinguishes from the World-Body, and thereby seemingly be-
comes involved in a self-contradiction. Be that as it may, it
was inevitable that the Platonic World-Soul should become in-
corporated by later thinkers into a Logos doctrine. This de-
velopment .was furthered of course by the metaphysics of
Aristotle. Throughout his writings Aristotle, in common with
Plato, repeatedly affirms that Psyche (Soul or Mind) is the
First Principle of motion, but insists, in opposition to the Pla-
tonic view, that this First Principle, rather than subsisting in
a transcendent intelligible world, exists in the partic
themselves of the present visible world; Psyche wa
totle essentially the Principle of Form. Hence, from these
sources arose the Stoic doctrine of the Logos as the material
principle of energy and determination, the immanent force and
law of the world which moves everything to the fatefully im-
posed goal of its destiny, but which moves things nevertheless,
in virtue of its immanence, spontaneously and naturally. Soul,
for the Stoics, was a sort of burning air (a vestige of the
ancient Herakleitean doctrine) which permeates the world and
each individual man, a rarefied form of fire which will consume
all things in the final conflagration which was envisioned by the
Stoics as the predetermined end of the whole temporal process.
ed that the Stoic Logos was es-
nt; in the main, the
telian foundation.
occurred, however, which was
11 be recalled that in his mythos
the Timaeus, Plato had pictured the Demi-
d by Necessity in his operations
. This evidently was a doctrine
and savored of dualism. Hence,
followed Plato seized upon this doctrine of
it as a basis, tried to work out a solu-
imperfection and evil. The inevitable
490
%’HE SPIRIT AND THE WORD
result was the gross, in some instances fantastic, exaggeration
of existing evil, and alongside this development the theoretical
removal of God from this evil as far as possible, even to the
point of complete inaccessibility. And between such an inac-
cessible God and such an evil world, religio-philosophical specu-
lation originating with, and developed by, Jewish, Greek, and
later nominally Christian Gnostic sects, multiplied intermediary
powers to the point of absurdity: the Logos, aeons, powers,
angels, demons, and what not. In all these systems the Logos
was reduced to the status of a created power, inferior to God
both in nature and in rank. Philosophically, this view flowered
in the third century in Neoplatonism. Theologically, it flowered
in the first two centuries in the various forms of so-called
Gnosticism which sought a haven under the aegis of the Chris-
tian religion; in the fourth century, in Arianism; and in modern
times, it expresses itself in the Christology-if such it properly
can be called-of Unitarianism, This theosophy presented a
great temptation to the early Christians, in the fact that it
seemed quite ready and anxious to make room for their Christ.
But the Apostles would have none of it, The Epistle to the
Colossians, for example, was devoted for the most part to dis-
suading the saints from the worship of angels; and the author,
in the first chapter of the epistle, declares unequivocally the
facts of the self-existence and creatorhood of the Messiah. The
Epistle to the Hebrews reminded them insistently of the infinite
distance separating Christ, who is the Son of God, from angels,
who are merely “ministering spirits” or servants of God. And
the pastoral Epistles continued to denounce the superstitions,
fables, and interminable genealogies which were extant in the
religious world in the first two centuries of the Christian era.
The essence of this post-Platonic development was the reduction
of the Logos to the status of a created impersonal intermediary
between God and man. In some cases, the Logos was con-
ceived as essentially material, in others as quasi-psychical, ac-
cording to the extent, of course, that Christian teaching had im-
pinged upon the thinking of the protagonists of the doctrine.
The third development of the Logos doctrine occurred at
Alexandria, culminating in the writings of the learned Alexan-
drian Jew, Philo Judaeus. His system might properly be called
a Platonized interpretation of the Old Testament doctrines of
the Divine Wisdom and Word. Philo seems to have approached
recognition at times of the personality of the Logos, but at other
times his monotheistic scruples seem to have led him to contra-
491
THE ETERNAL SPIRIT S PERSON 'AND POWERS
dict all such intimations. Hence, throughout his writings the
Logos remained essentially impersonal, an intermediary power-
either the thought of God or its expression in .the world-be-
tween the creature and the Creator. Lebreton writes:
I n order better t o under
h g o s as a n intermediary bei
compare it t o the belief of n the mediatory Word: the
problem t o be solved is the same, namely, to bring the infinitely
God near to his weak and guilty creatures, but the tw6 soluti
entirely different. The Incarnate Word united in his person these StWd
extremes, God and the flesh, being a t the same time truly God and
truly man; on the contrary, Philo's Logos does not unite in himselB
the two terms, he is half way between them; a s Philo makes him say
in the [following] passage : being neither without beginning like God,
nor created like you, but intermediary bqtween these two extremes,
I am, a s it were, a hostage for both parties.1
(One might well ask: If the Logos was neither unoriginated nor
created, just how did He come into existence or exist?) Lebre-
ton concludes thus, rightly:
The Messianic belief is a s foreign
the Philonian theory of the Logos, a
Christianity. A s the Messias, prepared
awaited and predicted by the prophets,
the Kingdom of God and redeem the elect, and due, later on, t o return
to judge the whole world, Jesus fills the whole of history. The Philoniaq
Logos is foreign to history; 'he may be the object of the speculatiofi
of philosophers, he has no contact with the life of man.a 1" . J
Into this welter of human speculation, at t

such speculation was rhost rife, came the re
Logos by the Spirit of God. The true Logos, said He, is, in the
first place, a Person-the Persorl who became flesh and dwelt
among us as God's Only Begotten Son, the Christ. In the second
place, this Person was not a mere created power; quite the con-
trary, anterior to time or before time began, this Person: the
true Logos, was. From eternity He not only wus, but He was
with God: that is, there were T w o who were unoriginated and
eternal-God and the Logos. In the third place, this Person,
the true Logos, was not inferior in nature or rank to God; on
the contrary, He was not only with God from eternity but He
was God: that is to say, the Two were not only co-eternal but
also co-equal. In the fourth place, this Person, the true Logos,
is not a mere intermediary- between God and the world; on the
contrary, He is infinitely more than that-He is the one and
only Mediator between God and man. He became our Mediator,
1. Op. Cit., 117-178.
2. Ibid, 187.
492
the Mediator of the New Covenant established upon better prom-
ises, through the Incarnation, the Atonement, and the Resur-
rection: by His uniting in His own Person the two natures,
Divine and human, He qualified Himself as the Head of the
Spiritual Creation, and as Prophet, Priest and King of His
people. “For there is one God, one mediator also between God
and men, himself man, Christ Jesus” (1 Tim. 2 : 5 ) . I n the fifth
place, this Person, the true Logos, is not creature-neither an
emanation from God, nor a creation of God-but Creator: “all
things were made through him; and without him was not any-
thing made that hath been made” (John 1:3). “In him were
all things created, in the heavens and upon the earth, things
visible and things invisible, whether thrones or dominions or
principalities or powers; all things have been created through
him, and unto him; and he is before all things, and in him all
things consist” (Col. 1:16-17). In Him, the Incarnate Logos,
dwelt “all the fulness of the Godhead bodily” (Col. 2: 9) ; He is
“the effulgence of God’s glory, and the very image of his sub-
stance” (Heb. 1:3); “wherefore also he is able to save to the
uttermost them that draw near unto God through him, seeing
he ever liveth to make intercession for them” (Heb. 7: 25). The
living Creed. of the living Church of the living God is the ever-
living CJwist. He Himself tells US: “I am the first and the last,
and the Living One; and I was dead, and behold, I am alive
for evermore, and I have the keys of death and of Hades” (Rev.
1:17-18).
All hail the power of Jesus’ name!
Let angels prostrate fall!
Bring forth the royal diadem,
And crown Him Lord of all!
The foregoing exposition is certainly sufficient to prove
that the Christian doctrine of the Logos definitely was not, as
it has not infrequently been alleged, the point of insertion of
Hellenism into Christianity. On the contrary, it was the point
at which primitive Christianity began positively to resist and
to repudiate the speculations both of Hellenism and of Hellen-
istic (Alexandrine) Judaism. And whereas, even for us today,
Greek speculation and Jewish theology must be considered and
evaluated as doctrines, the coming of the Son of God into the
world must be considered, and accepted or rejected, as a fact,
that is to say, as an event that took place in space and time.
In Christimity, two things are to be considered, namely, the
493
Person and the System; and of these the Person is first, for the
simple reason that the System depends in toto upon the Person.
The point of departure for doctrine in the New Testament is
the Person rather than a teaching. To his disciples Plato, for
example, was master; to the Jews, Moses was lawgiver; but
to Christians, Christ is the very Object of their faith, the Power
of God and the Wisdom of God. The essential thing in primitive
and pure Christianity as it came directly from the ’Holy Spirit
was not an organization, institution or hierarchy; not an elaborate
creedal statement; but the personal Christ. Jesus said Himself,
with respect to the work of the Spirit: “He shall glorify me”
(John 16: 14)‘ Christianity in its pure form is not a speculation
imagined by a philosopher, but the religion born of a person
who actually lived on earth and finding in Him its only sig-
nificance for mankind. Christianity is therefore essentially au-
thoritarian. Its Founder makes this claim: “All authority hath
been given unto me in heaven and on earth” (Matt. 28: 18). To
this authoritarian aspect, all other aspects of the Christian re-
ligion, including even the ethical, must be regarded as sub-
ordinate. The whole Christian System stands or falls with the
Person-Jesus of Nazareth, the Christ, the Son of the living
God, “What think ye of the Christ? whose Son is he?”
2. The Spirit and the Word

The Word of God is presented to us in Scripture in two
general forms, namely, as personal and as impersonal.
The personal Word is, of course, the Eternal Logos, the one
who became flesh and dwelt among us as The Only Begotten
Son of God.
The impersonal Word also exists in two general forms,
namely, (1) as oral or spoken, and (2) as stereotyped, i.e.,
written, printed, etc. Incidentally, in this particular connection,
the argument has often been heard that “the Church existed
before the Book,” thus implying that Scripture is secondary in
authority to ecclesiastical leadership or that churchmen are
vested with authority to “interpret,” and even to supplement,
Scripture teaching. Protagonists of this view- to whom the
wish is father to the thought-presume to find their norm of
Christian faith and practice in the Church, and this means, of
course, in Church “officials,” rather than in the Scriptures.
But a mere babe in Christ should be able to detect the glaring
fallacy in this position. True it is that the Church existed for
494
some time prior to the formation of the New Testament canon,
But the Church certainly did not exist prior to the Word of
Christ; indeed it came into existence as a result of the preaching
of that Word, the Gospel of our salvation, As Paul wrote to
the Thessalonians: “We thank God without seasing that, when
ye received from us the word of the message, even the word
of God, ye accepted it not as the word of men, but, as it is in
truth, the word of God, which also worketh in you that believe”
(1 Thess. 2:13). The Apostles’ teaching, which is the Word of
Christ communicated to them by the Holy Spirit and by them
to the rest of mankind, existed cotemporaneously with the first
proclamation of the facts of the Gospel (the death, burial and
resurrection of Christ) and the incorporation of the Church on
the great Day of Pentecost, On that day the Spirit descended
from Heaven, according to the promise of Christ, and clothed
the Apostles with proper infallibility for their message and
proper authority for their mission and work (Luke 24:45-49,
John 20:21-23, Acts 1:1-8, 2:l-4, etc.), and on that day the
Gospel Dispensation was ushered in. (If there was a Church
in existence prior to Pentecost, certainly it lacked the presence
and power of the Spirit, because it was on that day that He
came to earth to assume His work of incorporating and admin-
istering the Body of Christ.) The Apostles’ teaching had its
inception from that day and hour that the Spirit descended to
qualify them as ambassadors of Christ, as infallible witnesses
of His death, burial and resurrection.
Cf. Acts 1:8--But ye shall receive power, when the Holy Spirit
is come upon you: and ye shall be my witnesses both in Jerusalem,
and in all Judea and Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the
earth. Acts 2:32--This Jesus did God raise up, whereof we all are
witnesses. Acts 10:40-41: Him God raised up the third day, and gave
him to be made manifest not t o all the people, but unto witnesses that
were chosen before of dod, even t o us, who ate and drank with him
after he rose from the dead. 1 Pet. 1:12--To whom [the prophets]
it was revealed, that not unto themselves, but unto you, did they
minister these things, which now have been announced unto you
through them t h a t preached the gospel unto you by the Holy Spirit
sent forth from heaven. Acts 4:33-And with great power gave the
apostles their witness of the resurrection of the Lord Jesus, 2 Cor.
5 :20-We are ambassadors therefore on behalf of Christ, as though
God were entreating by us: we beseech you on behalf of Christ, be ye
rxonciled to God,
Hence we read that the members of the newly-formed congre-
gation at Jerusalem, the first Church of Christ in all the world,
the first-fruits of the spiritual harvest, “continued stedfasRy in
the apostles’ teaching and fellowship, in the breaking of bread
495
and the prayers” (Acts 2: 42). Now the Apostles’ teaching was,
at that time and for about a century following, communicated
orally; later it was embodied in permanent form in the New
Testament canon. And through this stereotyped Word the
original (and only) Apostles themselves have witnessed, and
to this day continue to witness, for Jesus, “unto the uttermost
part of the earth,” just as He told them that they should do.
Hence it follows that this Word of Christ communicated to the
Apostles by the Spirit sent down from Heaven, and delivered
by them to the rest of mankind, is the all-sufficient guide in
faith and practice for all Clhristians in all ages and in all parts
of the world. It embraces all truth essential to the regeneration
of sinners and to the growth of saints in that holiness without
which no man shall see the Lord. With this body of truth-
the Apostles’ teaching-Divine revelation was perfected and
consummated. Both revelation and demonstration came to an
end with the Apostles; in the truth communicated by them to
mankind “all things that pertain unto life and godliness’’ are
given (2 Pet. 1:3) ; the final revelation made through them con-
stitutes “the faith which was once for all delivered unto the
saints’’ (Jude 3 ) . The Apostles’ teaching, therefore, the Last
Will and Testament of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, at
first communicated orally, now existing in canonized or stereo-
typed form, is the all-sufficient authority-the norm of religious
faith and practice-for all, anywhere and in any age, who pro-
fess to be Christians. As Paul puts it: “Every scripture inspired
of God is also profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correc-
tion, for instruction which is in righteousness: that the man of
God may be complete, furnished completely unto every good
work” (2 Tim. 3: 16-17). If the Scriptures ‘‘cmplete’’ the m a n
of God and furnish him completely unto every good work, what
more is needed? As a matter of fact, nothing that has been
written by men, either in the established creeds and “confes-
sions” of Christendom or in ordinarily published literature, since
the last of the Apostles and primitive evangelists died, has
added one iota of moral and spiritual truth to the body of truth
which they themselves delivered to mankind in the New Testa-
ment Scriptures.
Now, as previously stated, the Word of God is presented
to us in Scripture as existent in two generic forms, namely, as
personal (The Logos, Son of God, Jesus, Messiah), and as im-
personal (spoken, and written or stereotyped, as in Scripture) p
The Scriptures make it clear, moreover, that the impersonal

496
Word, either spoken or written, invariably emanates from the
personal Word, the Logos. He it is who has ever edicted or
decreed the Thought and Will of God outwardly, in the form
of the spoken or written Word, as communicated in turn by
the Spirit “by divers portions and in divers manners” both to
inanimate and animate Nature and to men, and as permanently
embodied in Scripture. Furthermore, His very life-the Divine
Life-energizes this impersonal Word; and His Spirit, who is
the Holy Spirit, impregnates, vitalizes, this same impersonal
Word. Ile Himself says: ‘(The words that I have spoken unto
you are spirit, and are life” (John 6:63). Again, “Heaven and
earth shall pass away, but my words shall not pass away” (Matt,
24:35). Being Himself the embodiment of Divine Truth, it has
ever been His work to declare that Truth, for communication
in turn by the Spirit to those creatures ordained to receive it.
Ediction, decree, declaration, promulgation-this has ever been
eminently the work of the Logos, He who became flesh and
dwelt among us as The Only Begotten Son of God.
Cf. John 14:6-I am the way, and the truth, and the life. John
8:31-32: If ye abide in my word, then a r e ye truly my disciples; and
ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free. John 18:37-
To this end have I been born, and to this end am I come into the world,
that I should bear witness unto the t r u t h , Every one t h a t is of the
truth heareth my voice. John 14:23-24: If a man love, me, he will
keep my word: and the Father will love him, and we wlll come unto
him, and make our abode with him, He t h a t loveth me not keepeth
not my words: and the word which ye hear is not mine, but the Father’s
who sent me. John 3:34-For he whom God hath sent speaketh the
words of God: for he giveth not the Spirit by measure unto him. [As
in the Authorized Version, the words, “unto him,”. must be supplied
in this passage, t o give i t meaning, the only meaning it can have i n
relation t o its context; it i s Jesus Himself who is referred t o here as
possessing the Spirit without measure.]
Even in Old Testament times, from the dawn of Creation in fact,
the Thought and Will of God was edicted or decreed by the
Logos in the form of words or language, and then effectuated
by the Spirit.
Cf. Gen. 1:1-3: In the beginning God created the heavens and the
. .
earth . and the Spirit of God moved upon t h e face of the waters.
And God said Let there be light; and there was light. [The formula,
and God scud, occurs at the beginning of each successive epoch of
Creation, and, we are told, whatever God said or decreed, in each in-
stance, was 60, that is, it was done.] Psa. 33:6, 9-By the word of
Jehovah were the heavens made, and all the host of them by the breath
of his mouth. ... For he spake, and it was done; He commanded, and it
stood fast. Psa. 148;b-6: Let them [all created things] praise the
name of Jehovah; For he commanded, and they were created. He
hath also established them for ever and ever: He hath made a decree
which shall not pass away. Cf. Heb. 11:3-By f a i t h we understand
497
that the worlds have been framed by the word of God, so that what
is seen hath not been made out of things which appear. Also John 1:3
again: All things were made through him; and without him was not
anything made that hath been made. Col. 1:16-17-a11 things have
been created through him, and unto him; and he is before. all things,
and in him all things consist. Heb. l:2-his Son . . . through whom
he made the worlds, etc. [By correlating these passages, we must con-
clude that, in the Creation and Preservation of the physical universe
and i t s creatures, it was the personal Logos who edicted o r decreed,
and that the ediction took the form of the impersonal Word, that is,
the Will of God as communicated in the language of men.
[See again 1 Pet. 1:lO-121: Concerning which salvation the prophets
sought and searched diligently, who prophesied of the grace which
should come unto you: searching what time or what manner of time
the Spirit of Christ which was in them did point unto, when i t testified
beforehand the sufferings of Christ, and the glories t h a t should follow
them. To whom i t was revealed, that not unto themselves, but unto
you, did they minister these things, which now have been announced
unto you through them that preached the gospel unto you by the
Holy Spirit sent forth from heaven; which things angels desire t o
look into. [Here it is explicitly stated t h a t the Spirit who inspired the
Old Testament prophets was the Spirit of Christ; moreover, in this
passage of Scripture, the Spirit of Christ is positively identified with
the Holy Spirit: they are one and the same Spirit.] 2 Pet. 1:Zl-For
no. prophecy ever came by the will of man; but men spake from God,
being moved by t h e Holy Spirit. [Does not Paul state expressly that
the children of Israel, in olden times, drank of a spiritual rock that
followed them: and the rock was Christ ( 1 Cor. 10:4)? From eternity,
the Will of God h a s been edicted eminently by the personal Word,
the Logos.]
And the New Testament Scripture, as everyone knows, is the
edictecl Last Will and Testament of our Lord and Savior Jesus’
Christ, communicated to mankind by the Spirit, in the form of
words or human language, as revealed through the instrumen-
tality of the inspired Apostles, prophets and evangelists of the
first century.
[To the men who were to be qualified as His Apostles, Jesus, the
incarnate Logos, said]: The Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send
in my name, he shall teach you all things, and bring to your remem-
brance all t h a t I said unto you (John 14:26). Again, the Spirit of
truth, which proceedeth from the Father, he shall bear witness of me
(John 15:26). Still again: When he, the Spirit of truth is come, he
shall guide you into all the truth: for he shall not speak from himself,
but w h a t things soever he shall hear, these shall he speak; and ho shall
declare unto you the things that are to cohe. H e shall glorify me: f o r
he shall t a k e of mine, and shall declare it unto you (John 16:13-14)
[Hence says the Apostle Paul]: But we received, not the Spirit of the
world, but the s p i r i t which is from God; that we might know the
things t h a t were freely given to us of God. Which things also we speak,
not in words which man’s wisdom teacheth, but which the Spirit
.
teacheth; combining spiritual things with spiritual words. . . For who
hath known the mind of the Lord, t h a t he should instruct him? B u t we
have the mind of Christ (2 Cor. 2:12-13, 1 6 ) . [The pronoun “we” in
these statements has reference, of course, to the Apostles.] Eph. 3:4-5:
the mystery of Christ, which in other generations was not made known
unto the sons of men, as it hath now been revealed unto his holy
498
THE SPiRIT AND THE WORD
apostles and prophets in the Spirit, etc. 1 Thess. 4:1b--For this we say
unto you by the word of the Lord, etc. Acts 8:25-They therefore, when
they had testified and spoken the word of the Lord, returned to Jeru-
salem. Col. 3:lG-Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly. Rev. 3:8
[the risen Christ, through the Spirit, to the church in Philadelphia]:
I know thy works . . that thou hast a little power, and didst keep
I
my .word, and didst not deny my name. [Scriptures of like import can
be cited from every book of the New Testament.]
From all these passages of Scripture it becomes evident that
ediction has ever been eminently the work of the personal Word,
the Logos; and that communication-that is, inspiration and
revelation-has ever been eminently the work of the Spirit.
Now one of the fundamental truths impressed upon us by
the Scriptures repeatedly, is that God’s Spirit and His Word-
both personal and impersonal, for let it not be forgotten that
the former indwells, vitalizes and energizes the latter-go to-
gether, and act together, in the various Divine operations that
are performed in relation to the Cosmos and its creatures. This
truth is nowhere more clearly reveaIed than in one of the
familiar passages of the Old Testament:
And as f o r me, this is my covenant with them, saith Jehovah: my
Spirit that is upon thee, and my words which I have put in thy mouth,
shall not depart out of thy mouth, nor out of the mouth of thy seed,
nor out of the mouth of thy seed’s seed, saith Jehovah, from hence-
forth and for ever [Isa. 69 :21].
In the verse immediately preceding, v. 20, it is said: “And a
Redeemer will come to Zion, and unto them that turn from trans-
gression in Jacob, saith Jehovah,” Obviously this entire pas-
sage is of prophetic import: that is to say, it has reference to
the gifts and blessings of the New Covenant. This New Covenant
is t o be marked by the giving of God’s Spirit to His people, the
Church; and this Spirit, it is here promised, shall not depart
from them, Spiritual Israel, as long as time endures. Moreover,
according to the promise here given, the Spirit is to be accom-
panied with “words” which will be put in His people’s (the
Church’s) mouth; and these words are to remain unchanged,
and to be passed on by faithful men from mouth to mouth, from
generation to generation, until time shall be no more. What are
the “words” alluded to here? Obviously all of God’s communi-
cations to men-the entire impersonal Word as embodied in the
Scriptures-which the Church will maintain as inspired truth
through all the ages. The details of this specific promise of the
New Covenant are given in the book of Jeremiah and agree pre-
cisely with this prophetic passage from Isaiah:
499
Behold, the days come, sa% Jehovah, t h a t I will make a new
covenant with the house of Israel, and with the house of Judah: not
according to the covenant that I made with their fathers in the day
t h a t I took them by the hand t o bring them out of the land of Egypt;
which my covenant they brake, although I was a husband unto them,
saith Jehovah. But this is the covenant t h a t I will make with the house
of Israel after those days, saith Jehovah: Z will put m y law W L t h e w
inward parts, and in their heart wall Z write i t ; and I will be their
God, and they shall be my people. And they shall teach no more every
man his neighbor, and every man his brother, saying, Know Jehovah;
f o r thew shall all kwow me, from the least of them z m t o the greatest
of them, saith Jehqvah; f o r I will forgive their iniquity, and their
sin will I remember no more (Jer. 31 :31-34).
In view of these prophetic passages from the Old Testament, we
are not surprised that the Apostle#Paul should designate the
Church-in a metaphor of course-“the pillar and ground of
the truth” (1 Tim. 3;15), that is, the support of its preserva-
tion and of its proclamation throughout the world; or that he
should have exhorted his son in the Gospel, the young evangelist
Timothy, in these words: “And the things which thou hast
heard from me among many witnesses, the same commit thou
to faithful men, who shall be able to teach others also” (2 Tim.
2:2). Nor are we surprised to read the anathemas which the
Apostle pronounces upon any or all who would pervert the
Word, the Gospel, of Christ:
But though we, or an angel from heaven, should preach unto you
any gospel other than that which we preached unto you, let him be
anathema. As we have said before, so say I now again, If any ma8
preacheth unto you any gospel other than that which ye received, let
him be anathema (Gal. 1:s-9). .
This Gospel of Christ is the Word of Christ, the personal Logos,

as revealed by the Spirit. And these and many other Scriptures
teach, both explicitly and implicitly, that God’s Spirit and His
Word-personal and impersonal, the former in the latter, and
mediating the Divine Life through it-go together and act to-
gether in all the operations of the Godhead.
Now the relation between the Spirit and the peqsonal Logos
in the latter’s eternal (pre-incarnate) mode of being, is of the
nature of that which is sustained among the members of the
Godhead themselves, and as such remains essentially inscrutable
to our human understanding. The most we can know, it seems,
is that-speaking in metaphysical terms-it is a personal ( i e , ,
mental and spiritual) relationship, and one of such intimacy as
completely transcends our limited human experience. We can
know, too, from Divine revelation alone, that it has ever been
the work eminently of the eternal Logos to edict or decree what
500
the Father wills, and that of the Spirit eminently to communi-
cate and to effecutate outwardly the edicts of the Divine Will
as decreed by the Logos. Beyond this we cannot go. As for the
relationship, however, between the Holy Spirit and the in-
carnate Logos, Jesus of Nazareth, the Son of the living God,
the essential facts of that relationship are revealed in the Scrip-
tures. In the first place, it is made clear that Jesus, by virtue
of His human nature, possessed a human “spirit,” in the sense
probably of possessing personal human life; in some unfathomable
manner He was man as well as God, the God-man; and as a man
He possessed, naturally, the spirit that is in man,
Luke 2:52-And Jesus advanced in wisdom and stature, and in
favor with God and men. [This passage shows that His growth was a s
t h a t of a normal child.] Mark 8:le-And he sighed deeply in his spirit,
etc. John 11:33--When Jesus therefore saw her weeping, and the Jews
also weeping who came with her, he groaned in the spirit, and was
troubled, etc. Luke 23:4G-[the final Word from the Cross]: And
Jesus, crying with a loud voice, said, Father, into thy hands I commend
my spirit: and having said this, he gave up the ghost. 1 Cor. 15:45-
The f i r s t man Adam became a living soul. The last Adam became a
life-giving spirit.
In the second place, it is made equally clear in Scripture that
the human spirit of Jesus was so fully possessed by the Spirit
of God as to leave no ground for any distinction of being be-
tween them. We are told expressly that God gave not the Spirit
by measure unto Him (John 3:34); that is to say, Jesus pos-
sessed the gifts and powers of the Spirit without measure or in
an unlimited manner; in all that He said and did He acted under
the guidance and inspiration of the Spirit of God.
Matt. 1:20--Joseph, thou son of David, f e a r not t o take unto thee
Mary thy wife: for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit.
Luke 1:35-And the angel answered and said unto her [Mary], the
shall overshadow thee: wherefore also the holy thing which is be-
gotten shall be called the Son of God. Matt, l:18-Now the birth of
Jesus Christ was on this wise: When his mother Mary had been be-
trothed t o Joseph, before they came together she was found with child
of the Holy Spirit. Matt. 3:1G-17: And Jesus, when he was baptized,
went up straightway from the water: and lo, the heavens were opened
unto him, and he saw the Spirit of God descending a s a dove, and
coming upon him; and lo, a voice out of the heavens, saying, This is my
I beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased. Matt. 4:l-Then was Jesus
led up of the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted of the devil.
Luke 4:l-And Jesus, full of the Holy Spirit, returned from the
! Jordan, and was led in the Spirit in the wilderness, etc. Luke 4:lG ff.-
And he came t o Nazareth , , , and he entered into the synagogue on
the sabbath day, and stood up t o read. And there was delivered unto
him the book of the prophet Isaiah. And he opened the book, and
found the place where it was written, The Spirit of the Lord is upon
me, Because he anointed me to preach good tidings t o the poor; He
I 501
hath sent me t o proclaim release to the captives, And recovering of
sight to the blind, To set at liberty them that are bruised, To proclaim
the acceptable year of the Lord. . . , And he began to say unto them,
Today hath this scripture been fulfilled in your ears, [The quotation
is from Isa. 61:l ff.] Matt. 12:28--If I by the Spirit of God cast out
demons, then is the kingdom of God come upon you. Luke 10:21--In
t h a t same hour he rejoiced in the Holy Spirit, and said, etc. Acts
10:38-Jesus of Nazareth, how God anointed him with the Holy Spirit
and with power. Heb. 9:14-how much more shall the blood of Christ,
who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without blemish unto
God, cleanse your conscience from dead works to serve the living God?
.
Rom. 1:3-4: Concerning his Son . . who was declared t o be the Son
of God with power, according to the Spirit of holiness, by the resur-
rection from the dead. Acts l:l2--until the day in which he was re-
ceived up, after that he had given commandment through the Holy.
Spirit unto the apostles whom he had chosen. [The “commandment”
alluded to here w a s the Great Commission (Matt. 28:18-20).] John
3:34-For he whom God hath sent speaketh the words of ,God: for he
giveth not the Spirit by measure unto him.
To s u m up: Jesus was begotten by the agency of the Spirit;
He was anointed with the Spirit; at all times He was led by the
Spirit; He preached by inspiration of the Spirit; He performed
miracles by the power of the Spirit; through the eternal Spirit
HE offered Himself up to God as the Lamb without blemish and
without spot; by Spirit-power He was raised up from the dead;
and even after His resurrection He gave*the Great Commission
“through the Holy Spirit unto the apostles whom he had chosen.”
These numerous Scriptures clearly indicate the intimacy of
the relationship that existed between the Holy Spirit and Jesus
of Nazareth, the incarnate Logos. Jesus was so possessed, in-
spired and guided by the Holy Spirit that what He is said to
have done by o r in His own spirit may also rightly be said to
have been done by or in the Spirit of God. Indeed the relation
was so intimate that throughout the Scriptures the terms “Spirit
of Jesus,” “Spirit of Christ,” “Spirit of God,’’ and “Holy Spirit,”
are all used interchangeably.
[See again 1 Pet. 1:lO-121: Concerning which salvation the prophets
sought and searched diligently, who prophesied of the grace that should
come unto you: searching what time o r what manner of time the Spirit
o f Christ which w a s in t h e m did point unto, when it testified beforehand
the sufferings of Christ, and the glories that should follow them. To
whom it was revealed, that not unto themselves, but unto you, did they
them that preached the gospel unto you by the Holy Spirit sent f o r t h
f r o m heaven. 2 Pet. 1:Sl-For no prophecy ever came by the will of
man; but men spake from God, being moved by the Holy Spirit. [These
passages clearly teach that the Spirit of Christ who inspired the Old
Testament prophets is the Holy Spirit.] Acts 16:6-7: And they went
through the region of Phrygia and Galatia, having been forbidden of
the Holg Spirit to speak the word in Asia; and when they were come
over against Mysia, they assayed to go into Rithynia; and the Spirit
502
of Josus suffered them not. [Here again the Holy Spirit and the Spirit
of Jesus are identified a s the one and the same Spirit.] Roin. 8:9-
But ye are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if go be t h a t the Spirit
of God dwelleth in you. But if any man hath not, the Splrlt qf Christ,
he is none of his. Roin. 8:2-the law of the Spirit of life in Christ
Jesus made me free from the law of sin and. death. Gal. 4:G-And
because ye a r e sons, God sent forth the Spirlt of his Son into our
hearts, crying, Abba, Father. Cf. Rom. 5:G-the love of God hath
been shed abroad in our hearts through the Holy Spirit which was
given unto us. Rom. 8:14-15:For as many as are led by the Spirit
of God, these are the sons of God. For ye received not the Spirit of
bondage again unto fear; but ye received the spirit of ad?pti,on, whereby
we cry, Abba, Father. Phil, 1:lg-through your supplication and the
supply of the Spirit of Jesus Christ. Eph, 4:SO-And grieve not the
Holy Spirit of God, in whom ye were sealed unto the day of redemption.
As for the relation between the Spirit and the impersonal
Word-that is, the Word spoken or written, which is itself the
teaching of the Logos as communicated by the Spirit-again
the Scriptures make it clear that they go together in the various
operations of the Godhead.
The relations existing in God between Thought-power, Will-
power, Spirit-power and Word-power, are inscrutable to us, of
course, and it would be useless, if not actually presumptuous,
for us to speculate regarding them. Suffice it to say that the
Word of God-either as Personal or as impersonal-is the
revelation or expression of the Thought and Will, and therefore
of the Spirit, of God; and conversely the Spirit realizes or
effectuates the decrees of the Word. Now the decrees-the
statutes, commandments, doctrine or teaching-of God are said
in Scripture to be uttered or edicted by the personal Logos.
But they are necessarily edicted in the forms of human language,
the language of those human individuals through whom they are
communicated to men by the inspiration of the Spirit. These
decrees (laws, statutes and commandments)-this doctrine or
teaching as a whole-constitute the impersonal Word, that is,
~ the Word orally communicated or the Word as embodied in per-
I manent (stereotyped) form in Scripture. Furthermore, the
1 Scriptures make it clear that in practically all operations of the
1 Deity, Spirit-power is exercised either along with, or, in most
1 cases, through the instrumentality of, the spoken or written
I (impersonal) Word. I do not mean to affirm by this statement
that Spirit-power is in all cases necessarily confined to the Word;
I far be it from me-a mere man-to impose limitations upon the
power of the Divine Spirit or upon the extent of His operations.
But the operations of the Godhead are orderly: our God is a
God of order. “God is not a God of confusion, but of peace”
503
(1 Cor. 14:33). As stated heretofore, and as perfectly obvious
to any ‘intelligent being, the whole framework of the physical
creation is one of order, otherwise there could never have been
a human science. It is perfectly reasonable to conclude, there-
fore, that the operations of the Deity, both in the kingdom of
Nature, and in the Kingdoms of Grace and of Glory, are ac-
cording to definite arrangement or ordering among the three
Persons; that is to say, orderly, This conclusion, moreover, is
fully corroborated by the Scriptures. Hence, this is not a
question of what the Spirit can do, in relation to the Word,
but of what He actually does, how He operates in fact. Order
is the effect of intelligence and purposiveness. It must be char-
e, of the operations of the Spirit, because He
pecific ends and He adapts means to ends
perfectly. ,Now in the very nature of the case, persons com-
municate with one another through the media of words or
language; hence it is perfectly reasonable to conclude, just as
the Scriptures teach, that the Holy Spirit, a Divine Person,
communicates with human persons through the same media.
As a matter of fact, according to the Scri re, in all opera:
tions of the Godhead, God’s Spirit and His Word go together
in effectuating and realizin Divine purposes within and for
the whole of the Creation s is equally true of
sonal Word as of the personal Word’ or Logos. Thi
mean that the Spirit is the spoken or written Word: indeed the
Spirit is, as we have seen, a Person. This means simply that
the Spirit operates together with, or in most cases through the
instrumentality of, the spoken or written Word.
1. God’s Spirit and His Word acted together in the Creation
of the physical universe and its living creatures.’ Hence we find
that God said (ordered, decreed) something, at the beginning
of each epoch of the Creation, and that whatever God said, was
done (Gen. 1:2, 3, 6, 9, 11, 14, 20, 24, 26, 29; Cf. Psa. 33: 6, 9; Heb.
11:3, etc.). In the first chapter of the book of Genesis, of
course, we have the Word in its indited or stereotyped form;
in the actual Creation, however, the Word was personal, the
Logos Himself, and the Spirit operated to effectuate His decrees
(Cf. again John 1:1-3, Col. 1:16-17, 1 Cor. 8:6, Heb. 1:l-3, etc.).
In Creation, the Spirit and the Word acted together, the Logos
as the Executor of the Father’s Will and Purpose, and the
Spirit as the Realizer or Effectuator of the Word’s decrees.
2. God’s Spirit and God’s Word act together in sustaining
the physical Creation and all commonly designated “natural”
504
processes. The ultimate Source of every form of life in the uni-
verse is the Divine Spirit: He is ihe Spirit of Life-natural or
physical, spiritual, and eternal (Gen. 2: 7; Job 27: 3, 32: 8, 34: 14-
15; Psa. 104:27-30; John 6:63, 3:3-6; Acts 17:24-25; Rom. 8:2,
8: 11, etc.) , But again, in general Providence as in Creation, the
Spirit effectuates or realizes the decrees of the Word.
Psa. 33:9-l?or he spalte, and it was done; He oomnmaiaded, and it
stood fast. Psa. 148:G-7: He hath also established them [all created
things] for ever and ever [i.e., as long as Time lasts]; He ltath mnndq a
decvee which shall izot pass awau, [that is, until He shall rescind it,]
Job 38:33--Knowest thou the ordinances of the heavens? Jer. 31:36-36 :
Thus sayeth Jehovah, who giveth the sun f o r a light by day and the
ordinances of the moon and of the stars f o r a light by night, who
stirreth up the sea, so that the waves thereof roar; Jehovah of hosts
is his name: If these ordinances depart from before me, saith Jehovah,
then the seed of Israel also shall cease from being a nation before me
f o r ever. 2 Pet. 3:6-7: there were heavens from of old, and an earth
compacted out of water and amidst water, by the word of God; by
which means the world that then was, being overflowed with water,
perished: but the heavens that now are, and the earth, by the same
word have been stored up for fire, being reserved against the day
of judgment and destruction of ungodly men.
The Will of God as expressed by the Word is the constitution
(that which constitutes) both of the physical and of the moral
universe, the authority and power back of all laws of nature and
all moral law as well, “He [the Logos] is before all things,
and in him all things consist,” literally, “hold together” (Gol.
1:17). The Son, we are told, is the effulgence of the Father’s
glory and the very image of His substance, and it is He who
“upholds all things b y the word of his power” (Heb. 1 : 3 ) . So-
called “natural law” is the Word decreed, that, is, spoken for
all time-the Word as the source of all secondary causation in
Nature. When the Word acts or is spoken, however, f o r a
special purpose of God, for the working of a unique event in
’’
~
space and time, an event not to be repeated in all its attendant
circumstances,-then a miracle or “mighty work” (Acts 2: 22)
is performed. Natural events (secondary causes) are regular
and recurring; miracles (primary causes) are particular events
i for particular Divine purposes; but all have their constitution in
I the Will and Word of God. Hence, when in the finality of tem-
,
poral events, the Word shall be spoken (1 Cor. 15:52-“the
trumpet shall sound”), then the earth and the heavens- the
I whole Cosmos-shall be rolled up as a vesture and “shall be
changed” (Psa. 102:25-27, Heb. 1:10-12), and Time shall be
no more.
3. Both inspiration and yevelation, though eminently works
505
of the Spirit of God, are effectuated, nevertheless, through the
instrumentalitg of the Word.
Both inspiration and revelation are in a special sense works
of the Spirit of God; that is, though concurred in by both the
Father and the Son, and sometimes ascribed to the Father and
sometimes to the Son, they are ascribed eminently to the Holy
Spirit. This is, of course, according to the nature of things.
For, as Paul puts it, “who among men knoweth the things of
a man save the spirit of the man, which is in him? even so the
things of God none knoweth, save the Spirit of God.” To
which he adds, speaking with respect t o the inspiration of the
Apostles:
But we received, not the spirit of the world, but the spirit which
is from God; that we might know the things that were freely given
to us of God. Which things also we speak, not in words which man’s
wipdom teacheth, but which the Spirit teacheth; combining spiritual
things with spiritual words (1Cor. 2 : l l - 1 3 ) .
What the Apostle has to say here with respect to his own in-
spiration and that of the Apostles in general, is equally true
with respect to the inspiration of the Prophets, holy men of old,
from Enoch, “the seventh from Adam” (Jude 14), down to
John the Baptizer, the last of that illustrious line. “For no
prophecy ever came by the will of man; but men spake from
God, being moved by the Holy Spirit” (2 Pet. 1:21). For the
purely “natural” man.-that is, “natural” in the sense of being
uninspired-“receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for
they are foolishness unto him; and he cannot know them, be-
cause they are spiritually examined’’ (1 Cor. 2:14). Divine
Truth is, and in the nature of the case has to be, communicated
to man by the Spirit Himself. To the Spirit of God we are
indebted for all that is known or knowable of God and of His
Plan for the human race. Furthermore, to the Spirit of God
we are indebted also for whatever individual capacity we may
have for understanding the Truth of God and thus knowing
God. For even reason itself was implanted in man at his crea-
tion by the Breath of God, that is, by the procession of the
Spirit from the Being of God.
Now revelation is twofold, as to mode; that is, it is of two
kinds. Primarily, revelation is historical; that is, it has taken
the form of those successive historical events which occurred
in the execution of the Plan of Redemption.
[Among those events were the following: (1) the universal ap-
plication of the penalty of sin, following man’s first disobedience (Gen.
506
3’1-111 SPIRIT AND THE WORD
3:14-19); ( 2 ) the institution of sacrifice, to point forward t o the
Atonenlent made once for all “at the end of the ages” (Heb. 9:26);
(3). the inoral purification of the world by the Deluge, and the preser-
vation of the race through Noah and his sons. (4) the Call of Abraham,
the Abrahamic Promise, and the inauguration of the Old Covenant.;
(5) the forination of the Hebrew Theocracy under, Moses a t Sinai,
with its ordinances, institutions, and rites, all of whlch were designed
t o be typical of Christ and the Christian System; ( 6 ) the ministry
o r the Hebrew Prophets, accounting the details of the life and work
of the Messiah t o come; ( 7 ) the special ministry of John the Baptizer
to the Jewish nation, heralding the immediate advent of the Mcssiah ;
(8) the incarnation, ministry, death, resurrection, and exaItation to
universal sovereignty, of the Messiah Himself, the Son of .God; ( 9 )
the advent of the Holy Spirit on the Day of Pentecost, the incorpora-
tion of the Church of Christ, and the institution of the New Covenant;
(10) the special ministry of the Apostles as witnesses and ambassadors
of Christ; and (11) the subsequent preaching of the Gospel f o r a
testimony unto all the nations.]
All these were historical events; that is, events occurring in
time and space. They are presented to us in Scripture as a
chain ol historical events, all linked together in the Divine Pur-
pose, and all leading eventually to one final and supreme end,
namely, the Second Coming of Christ and the Day of the Con-
summation of all things (Acts 3: 20-21).
Revelation is, in the second place, documentary. The events
came first; after them, the recording and the interpretation.
This was wrought by the agency of the Spirit (1) in the medium
o€ words or language, (2) through the instrumentality of in-
spired-God-breathed-men, That is, the Spirit moved, im-
pelled, and inspired certain men to set down in permanent form
’
~
I the account of these successive historical events by which the

Divine Plan was progressively effectuated on earth, and to re-
cord also the correct interpretation of the significance of those
events for man. Thus Moses is said to have written a book, at
Jehovah’s command, containing the account of “the journeys of
1 the children of Israel, when they went forth out of the land of
Egypt” (Exo. 17: 14, 24: 4; Num. 33: 1-2, etc.) . Sometimes these
I revelations of Divine Truth were first communicated to the
people orally, and were put in written form afterward. This
was especially true of the Apostles’ teaching. Throughout the
I
first century, the local congregations of Christians were under
the personal supervision of the Apostles, and the Spirit’s reve-
lation, with accompanying instruction, was communicated to
I them orally by the Apostles and by the early evangelists who
were personally taught by the Apostles themselves. Thus the
church in Jerusalem is said to have “continued stedfastly in the
apostles‘ teaching and fellowship, in ‘the breaking of bread and
507
the prayers” (Acts 2: 42). It is evident that the Apostles’ teach-
ing was at that time communicated vocally to the saints. Little
by little, however, this teaching was reduced to permanent form
in the Gospels, histories, epistles, and prophetic books of the
New Testament canon, as indited by inspired or Spirit-taught
men. The fact to be remembered is that, whether oral or writ-
ten, it was the Apostles’ teaching, and, because the Apostles
were guided into all the truth by the Holy Spirit, the Vicegerent
of Christ on earth throughout the Gospel Dispensation, it was,
and is, the teaching or Word of Christ. We today have the
Apostles’ teaching in permanent form in the New Testament
Scriptures.
In a word, revelation is the term which has reference to
the disclosure of God‘s Plan of Redemption for man, both as
a historical development, and as the documentary record of
that development. Inspiration, on the other hand, is the term
which has reference to the actual comrnunicatioli, or to be more
precise, to the mode of communication of this Divine revelation.
Inspiration, in Scripture, is invariably connected with the reali-
zation of the Divine Plan in the world, or with the communica-
tion of Divine Truth respecting that Plan, its origin, execution
and ends, For this reason, purely human psychical “inspira-
tion,” which may account for the great productions of human
genius, is, nevertheless, of an order inferior to Divine inspira-
tion, which invariably has for its end Divine revelation in one
or both of its forms, i.e., either as historical or as documentry.
Now both inspiration and revelation (oral or written),
though eminently works of the Spirit of God, are wrought,
nevertheless, through the instrumentality of words. To inspire
is, literally, to breathe into; and in this connection, it means,
literally, to breathe words into. Saul the persecutor, we are
told, “yet breathing threatening and slaughter against the dis-
ciples of the Lord,” sought authority from the Jewish high priest
at Jerusalem to journey to Damascus and to destroy the church
at that place (Acts 9: 1). How did Saul “breathe” threatening
and slaughter against the Christians? Obviously, in words. When
a man enounces words, he literally breathes t h e w out of his
mouth. So when the Holy Spirit enounces Divine Truth, He
too, just as literally, breathes that Truth into the mind of the
recipient in the form of words. “Man shall not live by bread
alone, but by every word that proceecleth out of the mouth of
God” (Matt. 4:4). The Breath of God is, as we have already
learned, a metaphor of the Spirit, particularly of the procession
508
of the Spirit from the Being of God. When God breathes-that
is, acts through His Spirit-power-He may move to extraordi-
nary deeds, or He may communicate Truth to them, in which
case He does so in words. It i s well and good to contend, as
some churchmen do, that only the Thought of God is com-
municated by inspiration. But I should like to ask, How can
that thought be made intelligible to men, or by them in turn
to other men, if it is not communicated in words-that is to say,
in language-which they can understand; and which in fact,
by translation, can be made intelligible to all men? The fact
remains, therefore, that inspiration, especially inspiration which
has revelation for its end, the communication of Divine Truth,
is effectuated by means of words. Moreover, the words so com-
municated constitute what we mean here by the impersonal
Word. As Jesus Himself says: “The words that I have spoken
unto are spirit, and are life” (John 6: 6 3 ) - And as Simon Peter
said to Jesus: “Lord, io whom shall we go? thou hast the words
of eternal life” (John 6:68). Paul gives us “the conclusion of
the whole matter’’ as follows: “But we received, not the spirit
of the world, but the spirit which is from God; that we might
know the things that were freely given to us of God. Which
things also we speak, not in words which man’s wisdom teacheth,
but which the Spirit teacheth; combining spiritual things with
spiritual wordsJJ (1 Cor, 2:12-13). Thus it will be seen that all
of God’s revelations by His Spirit have been preserved for
us in words, in the indited or stereotyped Word, the Scriptures.
4. God’s Spirit and His Word act together in the work of
demonstration or miracles. Inspiration and revelation have ever
been attested, in the economy of God, by miracles; moreover,
when inspiration and revelation came to an end with the Apostles,
demonstration or miracles ceased also.
The Will of God, as expressed by the Word and realized
by the Spirit, being the constitution of the physical universe,
it follows that the Will of God, again as expressed by the Word
and realized by the Spirit, or as effectuated by the Spirit
through the instrumentality of the Word, is the Divine factor
that must enter into the working of what is known in Scripture
as a miracle, Hence we find that in the performing of miracles,
as described in the Scriptures, the usual procedure was that
the Word was spoken (either vocally, or subvocally, i.e., by
suggestion) and the miracle was wrought immediately. Some-
times, of course, an emblem of the Word, instead of the spoken
Word itself, was employed to work miracles; a symbol such as,
509
for example, the rod of Moses or that of Aaron, by the use of
which wonders and signs were wrought by these great men of
God, in Egypt, at the Red Sea, and in the Wilderness (Exo.
4:l-5, 7:8-13, 14:16; Acts 7:36). However, as the subject of
Miracles is to be fully elaborated in a complementary work, I shall
not attempt to discuss it here.
5. God’s Spirit and His Word go together i n the work of
regeneration or recreation.
Regeneration is ascribed, in Scripture, to God the Father
as the source, to the Spirit of God as the agent, to the Word
(spoken or written) as the means, and to the preacher as the
instrument.
1 Pet. 1:S-Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus
Christ, who according to his great mercy bagat us again unto a living
hope by the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead. Jas. 1:1‘7-18;
the Father of lights . . . of his own will he brought us forth by the
word of truth, t h a t we should be a kind of firstfruits of his creatures.
John 3 :5-7 : Jesus answered, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except
one be born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter into the ktngdom
of God. That which is born of the flesh is flesh; that which is born
of the Spirit is spirit, Marvel not that I said unto thee, Ye must be
born anew. Tit. 3:5-according to his mercy he saved us, through
the washing of regeneration and fenewing of the Holy Spirit.
Heb. 8:lO-For this is the covenant t h a t I will make with the
house of Israel, After those days, saith the Lord: I will put my laws
into their mind, And on their heart also I will write them: And I will
be to them a God, And they shall be t o me a people [cf. Jer. 31:31-341.
2 Cor. 3:2-3: Ye a r e our epistle , .. known and read of all men; being
made manifest t h a t ye are a n epistle of Christ, ministered by us,
written not with ink, but with the Spirit of the living God; not in
tables of stone, but in tables t h a t are hearts of flesh. Rom. 1:16-
F o r I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ; for it is the power
of God unto salvation to every one t h a t believeth: t o the Jew first,
and also to the Greek, Rom. 10:14-17: How then shall they call on him
in whom they have not believed- and how shall they believe in him
whom they have not heard? and how shall they hear without a preacher?
... So belief cometh of hearing, and hearing by the word of Christ.
1 Cor. 1:21-it was God’s good pleasure through the foolishness of the
preaching to save them that believe. John 1:12-13: But a s many a s
received him, to them gave he the right t o become children of God,
even to them t h a t believe on his name; who were born, not of blood,
nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God. Luke
8:ll-[from the Parable of the Sower]: The [spiritual] seed is the
word of God. 1 Pet. 1:23-having been begotten again, not of cor-
ruptible seed, but of incorruptible, through the word of God, which
liveth and abideth. V. 25, following: And this is the word of good
tidings which was preached unto you. 1 Cor. 16:l-4: Now I make
known unto you, brethren, the gospel which Z preached untq you, which
also ye received, wherein also ye stand, by which also y e are saved,
if ye hold f a s t the word which 1 preached unto you, except ye believed
in vain. For I delivered unto you f i r s t of all that which also I received:
that Christ died f o r our sins according to the scriptures; and t h a t
he was buried; and that he hath been raised on the third day according
to the scriptures, etc. [The whole Christian missionary enterprise is
5 10
predicated on the fact that where there is no promulgation of the
Gospel, there is no operation of the Spirit, no conversion to Christ,
The matter is hardly debatable that the Spirit operates through the
Word, spoken or written, in the conversion and regeneration of sinners.]
[l Cor. 4:15, here Paul says]: In Christ Jesus I begat you through
the gospel. Philemon 10 [Paul to Philemon]: I beseech thee f o r my
child, whom I have begotten in my bonds, Onesimus. 1 Tim. 1:2-
Timothy, my true child in faith. Tit. 1:4-to Titus, my true child
after a common faith. [In the sense t h a t a man is begotten spiritually
by means of the Word as proclaimed by a given evangelist, he is
said in Scripture to have been “begotten” by t h a t evangelist.]
6 , God’s Spirit and His Word act together in the work of
sanctification of the saints.
1 Cor. G:ll-but ye were washed, b u t ye were sanctified, but ye were
justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, and in the Spirit of
our God, Rorn. 1S:lG-that the offering up of the Gentiles might be
made acceptable, being sanctified by the Holy Spirit. 2 Thess. 2:13-
t h a t God chose you from the beginning unto salvation in sanctification
of the Spirit and belief of the truth. 1 Pet. 1:e-according t o the fore-
knowledge of God the Father, in sanctification of the Spirit, unto
obedience and sprinkling of the blood of Jesus Christ. Gal, 5:16-
Walk by the Spirit, and ye shall not fulfil the lust of the flesh. Gal.
5:25-1f we live by the Spirit, by the Spirit let u s also walk. Rom.
14:lY-for the kingdom of God is not eating and drinking, but
righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit.
Sanctification is not a work wrought instantaneously by the Spirit
of God in the human heart. It is, rather, the result of continuous
activity of the Spirit, through the instrumentality of the Divine
Word and its ordinances; and is equivalent, on the human side,
t o Christian growth or growth in holiness. All life is growth;
the essential property of life is growth; and the new spiritual
life begotten in the human heart in regeneration is no exception
to this rule; that life indeed is a continuous growth in “the
grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ” (2
Pet. 3: 18), Sanctification, therefore, though wrought by the
agency of the Spirit, is effectuated through the instrumentality
of the Word. It is only by receiving the Word into their hearts,
by feeding upon it as spiritual food, by digesting it, by assimilat-
ing it, by turning it, so to speak, into their own spiritual blood,
that regenerated persons can live the life of the Spirit, and thus
become in fact partakers of the Divine Nature themselves (2
Pet. 1:4), and grow in that hoIiness “without- which no man
shall see the Lord” (Heb. 12:14). In sanctification, as in re-
generation, the Spirit is the agent, and the Word the means.
1 Thess. 2:13--And for this cause we also thank God without
ceasing, that, when ye received from us the word of the message,
even the word of God, ye accepted it not a s the word of men, but, as
it is in truth, the word of God, which also wovlceth i n you that believe.
511
John 8:31--If ye abide in my word, then a r e ye truly my disciples.
John 15:lO-If ye keep my commandments, ye shall abide in my love.
John 17:17-Sanctify them in the truth: thy word is .truth. 1 John
3:24_And he t h a t keepeth his commandments abideth in him, and he
in him. Matt. 7:24-27: Every one therefore that heareth these words
of mine, and doeth them, shall be likened unto a wise man, who built
his house upon the rock; and the rain descended, and the floods came,
and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell not: f o r i t
was founded upon the rock. And every one that heareth these words
of mine, and doeth them not, shall be likened unto a foolish man, who
built his house upon the sand: and the rain descended, and the floods
came, and the winds blew, and smote upon that house; a n it fell;
and great WAS the fall thereof. Col. 3:16-Let the word of Christ
dwell in you richly. 2 Tim. 2:16-17: Every scripture inspired of God
i s also profitable f o r teaching, f o r reproof, for correction, for instruc-
tion which i s in righteousness: t h a t the man of God may be complete,
furnished completely unto every goad work. 1 Pet. 2:2-as newborn
babes, long for the spiritual milk which i s without guile, that ye may
grow thereby unto salvation. Heb. 5:12-14: For when by reason of
the time ye ought t o be teachers, ye have need again that some one
teach you the rudiments of the first principles of the oracles of God;
and a r e become such as have need of milk, and not of polid food. For
every one that partaketh of milk is without experience of the word of
righteousness; for h e is a babe. But solid food is for fullgrown men,
even those who by reasoli of use have their senses exercised t o discern
good and evil, Matt. 2890-teaching them to observe all things what-
soever I commanded you. Tit. 2:2--Speak thou the things which befit
the sound doctrine. 2 Tim. l:13-Hold the pattern of sound words
which thou hast heard from me, in faith and love which i s in Christ
Jesus.
The life of sanctification is the expanding and deepening life
that is lived personally with the Holy Spirit, as mediated by the
Word and its appointments; the life which becomes, little by
little, as the saint becomes transformed into the image of Christ
“from glory to glory” (2 Cor. 3: 18), the life of the Spirit Hirn-
self within him. The Holy Spirit, through the Word of Truth,
instructs, guides, and leads the Christian; and the latter, “hunger-
ing and thirsting after righteousness” (Matt. 5: 6), responds
to this Divine instruction, guidance and leadership, by feeding
upon, digesting, and assimilating the Word, by keeping .the
Divine appointments that are authorized by the Word, and by
conforming his life to the standard af righteousness that is
ordained by the impersonal Word and that was exemplified in
the incarnate life of the personal Word. (Rather than praying
to possess the Holy Spirit, should we not ask help to “open our
hearts” so that He may possess us?) In this manner are God’s
children from day to day “strengthened with power through his
Spirit in the inward man” (Eph. 3:16); in this manner do
they add to their faith, virtue; and to virtue, knowledge; and
to knowledge, self-control; and to self-control, patience; and
5 12
to patience, godliness; and to godliness, brotherly kindness; and
to brotherly Irindness, love (2 Pet. 1:5-7), And in the end
there shall be richly supplied unto them “the entrance into the
eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ” (2 Pet.
1:11), where they shall be clothed in glory and honor and incor-
ruption, and where they shall see God “face t o face.” There-
fore, my iellow Christians, “be ye stedfast, unmovable, always
abounding in the work of the Lord, forasmuch as ye know that
your labor is not in vain in the Lord (1 Cor. 15: 58).
The late Z. T. Sweeney, in his excellent little treatise en-
titled The Spirit and the Word, points out sixteen different
effects which the Holy Spirit might-and indeed does-work
by indwelling the saint of God, and shows that the same effects
are said in Scripture to be accomplished by the Word, as follows:
(1. Tlic S p W might give U S faith. But the Word is said to give
Eaith.] nom. 10:17-S0 belief cometh of hearing, and hearing by t h e
word of Chyist. Rom. 1Q:S-The word is nigh thee, in thy mouth,
and in thy heart: that is, the word of faith, which we preach. Acts 15:7
-Brethren, ye lrnow that a good while ago God made choice among
you, that by my mouth the Gentiles should hear the word of the gospel,
and believe.
[2. T k c S p i y i t ?night eiiable u s t o C 7 7 j O U a izew birth. But He dqes
this also through the Word.] 1 Pet. 1:23-having been begotten again,
not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible, through the word of God,
which liveth and abideth.
[3. The Spii*it might give U S light. But He does this likewise
through the Word.] Psa. 119:130--The opening of thy words giveth
light. Psa. 119:lOS-Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, And llght unto
my path. Prov. 6:23-For the commandment is a lamp; and the law
is light. 2 Cor. 4:4-in whom the god of this world hath blinded the
minds o€ the unbelieving, that the light of the gospel of the glory of
Christ, who is the image of .God, should not dawn upon them.
[4. The Spiv? might gave us wisdom. But He does I t through the
Word.] Psa. 19:7--The testimony of Jehovah is sure, making wise the
simple. 1 Cor. 1:24--Christ the power of God, and the wisdom o f God.
2 Tim. 3:14-15: But abide thou in the things which thou hast learned
and hast been assured of, knowing of whom thou hast learned them;
and that from a babe thou hast known the sacred writings which a r e
able to make thee wise unto salvation through faith which is in Christ
Jesus,
[5. Tlie Spirit ?night c o w c ~ fus. He does it, however, by means
of the Word.] Psa. 19:7--The law of Jehovah .is perfect, converting
the soul. [The Revised Version gives it: vestovriig fltc s o d , which is
equivalent o€ course.] Acts 28:27--For this people’s heart is waxed
gross, And their ears are dull of hearing, And their eyes they have
closed; Lest haply they should perceive with their eyes, And hear wi;th
their ears, And undrrstand with their heart, And s l ~ o u l d tuwf a g n l i f ,
And I should heal them [cf. Isa. 6:0-10,Matt. 13:14-151.
[G. Thr Spi& ~ i t i g l i topew OUT c ~ / r s .But this He does also through
the Word.] Psa. 19:8-The precepts of Jehovah a r e i*iglit, rejoicing
the heart; The commandment of Jehovah is pure, enlightening the eyes.
Acts 26:17-18: Delivering thee from the people, and from the Gentiles,
unto whom I send thee, t o opcii tliciv eyes, t h a t they may turn from
513
darknes t o light and from the power of Satan unto God. [Paul opened
the eyes of the Gentiles, of course, by preaching the Gospel to them.]
[7. T h e Spirit might give us understanding. But He does it through
the Word.] Psa. 1 1 9 :104-Through thy precepts I get understanding.
Acts 28:27 again: lest haply they should perceive with their eyes,
and hear with their ears, and understand with their heart, etc.
18. T h e Spirit might quicken us. But again He does it through
the Word.] Psa. 119:5O--For thy word hath quickened me, Psa. 119:93
-1 will never forget thy precepts; For with them thou hast quickened
me. John 6:63-the words that I have spoken unto you are spirit,
and a r e life. Matt. 4:4--Man shall not live by bread alone, but by
every word that procqedeth out of the mouth of God (cf. Deut. 8:3).
[9. T h e Spirit mzght save us. But He does it through the instru-
mentality of the Word.] Jas. 1:21-receive with meekness the implanted
word, which is able to save your souls. Eph. 1:13--in whom ye also,
having heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation. Rom.
l:16-For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the
power of God unto salvation t o every one t h a t believeth.
[lo. T h e Spirit might sanctify us. But this He is said to do through
the Word.] John 17:17-Sanctify them in the truth: thy word is truth.
2 Thess. 2:13-for t h a t God chose you from the beginning unto salva-
tion in sanctification of the Spirit and belief of the truth.
[ll. T h e Spirit might purify u s , This H e does also through the
Word.] 1 Pet. 1:22-Seeing ye have purified your souls in your obedience
t o the truth unto unfeigned love of the brethren, love one another from
the heart fervently.
[12. T h e Spirit might cleanse us. But He does it through the Word.]
John 15:3-Already ye are clean because of the word which I have
spoken unto you. Acts 15:9-and he made no distinction between US
and them, cleansing their hearts by faith.
[13. T h e Spirit might make us free f r o m sin. This freedom, how-
ever, is mediated through the Word of Truth.] John 8:31-32: If ye
abide in my word, then are ye truly my disciples; and ye shall know
the truth, and the truth shall make you free. Rom. 6:17-18: But thanks
be t o God, that, whereas ye were servants of sin, ye became obedient
from the heart t o t h a t form of teaching whereunto ye were delivered;
and being made free from sin, ye became servants of righteousness.
[14. T h e Spirit m i g h t impart a divine nature to us. But He does
i t through the Word.] 2 Pet. 1:4-whereby h e hath granted unto us
his precious and exceeding great promises; t h a t through these ye may
become partakers of the divine nature, having escaped from the cor-
ruption t h a t is in the world by lust.
[E. T h e Spirit might fit u s f o r glory and immortality. But He does
i t through the Word.] Acts 20:32-And now I commend you to God,
ayd t o the word of his grace, which is able to build you up, and to
glve you the inheritance among all them t h a t a r e sanctified. Acts 26:18
-that they may receive remission of sins and an inheritance among
them that a r e sanctified by faith in me.
[16. T h e Spirit might strengthen us. But this, too, He does through
the Word.] Psa. 119:28--Strengthen thou me according unto thy word.
We have enumerated here about all the conceivable things that
the Holy Spirit could do for a Christian by dwelling in him.
These works, moreover, undoubtedly the Spirit does effect in
the saint, acting in His capacity as the Agent of the Godhead.
But the numerous Scriptures quoted above make it evident
that the Spirit effects these works of conversion, regeneration,
5 14
THE SPJRIT AND THE WORD
and sanctification, through the instrumentality of the Word
spoken or indited. God’s Spirit and ‘His Word act together in
the New or Spiritual Creation just as in the Old Physical or
Natural Creation,
7. Finally, the Scriptures clearly intimate that God’s Spirit
and His Word will act together in the immortalization of the
saints,
The same Spirit who seals us, who indwells us, who is in
us as the earnest of our inheritance, who transforms us from
glory unto glory, who intercedes for us with groanings which
cannot be utlered, will never leave us-provided, of course, that
we do not quench the Spirit-until He shall have raised our
bodies from the dead and transformed them into spiritual bodies,
like unto the glorified body of our Redeemer: that is, “con-
formed” them unto the image of God’s Son, in body as well as
in spirit (Rom. 8:29). This work of the Spirit is known in
Scripture as glorification; glorification-to speak more precisely
-is the final phase of the entire process of immortalization.
As we read in Rom. 8:30, those whom God foreordained t o be
conformed ultimately to the image of His Son (Le., in His
Eternal Purpose), “them he also called; and whom he called,
them he also justified; and whom he justified, them he also
glorified” (all this in His Eternal Purpose, of course). NOW
this Eternal Purpose will be fully realized when the saints are
raised from the dead and clothed in glory and honor and incor-
ruption (Rom. 2: 7 ) . This final work of immortalization, further-
more, we are told in Scripture, will be effectuated by the agency
of the Spirit of God, “But if the Spirit of him that raised up
Jesus from the dead dwelleth in you, he that raised up Christ
,Jesus from the dead shall give life also to your mortal bodies
through his Spirit that dwelleth in youJJ (Rom. 8: 11). As the
Jewish Dispensation came to an end with the Ascension of the
Soil of God, so the present or Gospel Dispensation will terminate
with the Ascension of the Spirit and the Bride of Christ, the
Church.
But again we have clear intimations in Scripture that the
Spirit-even in the quickening and immortalization of the bodies
of the saints-will act only in conformity to the edictions or
decrees of the Word. (In this last operation, the redemption of
the body, even mortality itself shall be swallowed up of life,
Rom. 8: 23, 2 Cor. 5: 4 . )
1 Thsss. 4:1G-17: For this we say unto you by the word of the
Lord, that we that are alive, that are left unio ihe corning of the Lord,
515
shall in no wise precede them that are fallen asleep. For the Lord
himself shall descend from heaven, with a shout, with the voice of the
archangel and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall
rise f i r s t ; then we that are alive, that are left, shall together with them
be caught up in the clouds, t o meet the Lord in the air: and so shall
we ever be with the Lord. 1 Cor. 15:51-54: Behold, I tell you a mystery:
We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed, in a moment, in the
twinkling of a n eye, a t 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. B u t when this corruptible shall have put on incor-
ruption, and this mortal shall have put on immortality, then shall
come t o pass the saying that is written, Death is swallowed up in
victory.
In these passages such expressions as “the Lord shall descend
from heaven with a shout,’’ “the voice of the archangel,” “the
trump of God,” “at the last trump,” “the trumpet shall sound,”
etc., are metaphorical: they teach us simply that the decree of
the Logos shall issue forth, that the Word of God will be edicted
by the Messiah, the reigning King and Judge, that the time of
“the restoration of all things whereof God spake by the mouth
of his holy prophets that were from of old” (Acts 3:21) is at
hand. He-The Messiah-will speak the Word, proclaiming
that the temporal process is at an end, and, by the power of
the Spirit, it will be done, just as it was done in the physical
Creation at the beginning. The Word of God will be spoken and
the miracle will be wrought: “in a moment, in the twinkling
of an eye,” death will be swallowed up in victory. “0 death,
where is thy victory? 0 death, where is thy sting?” (1 Cor.
15: 5 5 ) . What profound meditation this teaching should en-
gender in the minds and hearts of all the saints! God’s Spirit
and His Word will act together-and the Consummation of
the Eternal Purpose of God will take place!
God’s Spirit and God’s Word go together, act together, and
together effectuate the Divine purposes in the world of things
and in the world of men. This we have seen to be true in the
Divine works of Creation, Conservation, Inspiration, Revelation,
and Demonstration. It is likewise true in the Divine works of
Regeneration, Sanctification, and Immortalization.
Man walks by the Spirit to the extent that he walks in the
light provided by the Word spoken or indited; he lives by the
Spirit to the extent that he lives by the Word, the oracles of God.
Indeed no man can even confess that Jesus is Lord, but in the
Holy Spirit (1 Cor. 12:3); that is, by having been convinced
by the testimony recorded in Scripture, the Word as revealed
5 16
by the Spirit, that Jesus is in truth the Christ, the Son of the
living God,
[The summarization of the design of the Fourth Gospel applies
equally to the entire Bible, and to the New Testament in particular]:
Many other signs therefore did Jesus in the presence of the disciples,
which are not written in this book: but these are written, t h a t ye
may believe t h a t Jesufi is the Christ, the Son of God; and t h a t be-
lieving ye may have life in his name (John 20:30-31). [Finally, in
the Last Judgment, all men will be judged individually according to
their fidelity to the light provided by the Word under which they
shall have lived]: And books were opened; and another book was
opened, which is the book of life: and the dead were judged out of the
things which were written in the books, according to their works (Rev.
20:12). [As Jesus himself says]: For whosoever shall be ashamed of
me and of my words in this adulterous and sinful generation, the Son
of man also shall be ashamed of him, when he cometh in the glory
of his Father with the holy angels (Mark 8:58). For the word of God
is living, and active, and sharper than any two-edged sword, and
piercing even to the dividing of soul and spirit, of both joints and
marrow, and quick t o discern the thoughts and intents of the heart
(Heb. 4:12). [Paul sumrnarmes the whole matter as follows]: For as
many as have sinned without the law shall also perish without the law:
and as many a s have sinned under the law shall be judged by the law.
. . , (For when Gentiles that have not the law do by nature the things
of the law, these, not having the law, are the law unto themseIves:
in that they show the work of the law written in their hearts, their
conscience bearing witness therewith, and their thoughts one with an-
other accusing or else excusing them); in the day when God shaIl
judge the secrets of men, according to my gospel, by Jesus Christ
( R o ~2:12-16).
.
In view of all these truths, we must admit that no man is
led by the Spirit to reject or to neglect the teaching of the
Word. And it becomes equally clear that no man who disregards
o r disobeys the teaching of the Word can truthfully claim to
be led by the Spirit. No man was ever led by the Spirit to act
contrary to the Word. God’s Spirit and His Word go together,
act together, and together effectuate the Divine purposes in
every realm of the Totality of Being.
3. Operations of the Godhead in General

In the nomenclature of the Spirit, Divine operations are
ascribed sometimes to God absolutely, and sometimes to each
Person of the Godhead distinctly.
All Divine operations, whether in the Kingdom of Nature
or in the Kingdom of Grace, are usually ascribed to God abso-
lutely. As John Owen has written:
I All divine operations, whether in nature o r in grace, a r e usually
I
ascribed to God absolutely; because the several persons are undivided
517
in their operations; acting by the same will, the same wisdom, the same
power. Each person therefore i s the author of every work of God,
because each person i s God; and the divine nature is the same un-
divided principle of all divine operations'
However, even though the Divine Persons are one in es-
sence, yet in their manner of subsistence they are Three, and
among the Three there is distinction, relation, and order. Hence,
in Scripture, every Divine work is assigned distinctly to each
Person, but at the same time eminently to one.
[The work of Creation, for example, is distinctly ascribed to the
Father, and again to the Son, and still again to the Holy Spirit.] Acts
4:24-And .
they , . lifted up their voice t o God with one accord, and
said, 0 Lord, thou that didst make the heaven and the earth and the
sea, and all that in them is, eto. Acts 17:24-26: The God t h a t made
.
the world and all things therein, he . , giveth t o all life, and breath,
and all things. Heb. 12:9-the Father of spirits. John 1:l-3, 14-In
the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the
Word was God. The same was in. the beginning with God, All things
were made through him; and without him was not anything made
t h a t hath been made, ... And the Word became flesh,. and dwelt
.
among us, etc. Col. 1:13, 16-the Son of his love , , in him were all
things created, etc. Psa. 104:30-Thou sendest forth thy Spirit, they are
created. Job 33:4-The Spirit of God hath made me, And the breath
of the Almighty giveth me life.
[However, the work of Creation is ascribed by way of eminence
to .the Father; and absolutely t o God, who i s Father, Son, and Holy
Spirit.] Acts 14:16-that ye should t u r n from these vain things
unto a living God, who made the heaven and the earth and the sea,
and all t h a t in them is. Acts 17:24-The God that made the world
and all things therein, etc. Gen. 1;l-3: In the beginning God created
the heavens and the earth. And the earth was waste and void; and
darkness was upon the face of the deep; and the Spirit of God was
brooding upon the face of the waters. And God said, Let there be
light; and there was light. Psa. 33:6, 9-By the word of Jehovah were
the heavens made, And all the host of them by the breath of his mouth.
..
. For he spake, and it was done; He commanded, and it stood fast.
Again, Divine works are ascribed eminently to one of the
three Persons in particular, when the distinguishing attribute of
that Person is especially impressed upon the work itself. For
example, Creation is ascribed eminently to the Father, because
His authority and power especially are impressed upon the old
or physical Creation.
Psa. 19:l-2: The heavens declare the glory of God; And the
firmament showeth his handiwork. Day unto day uttereth speech, And
night unto night showeth knowledge, Psa. 89:S-And the heavens
shall praise thy wonders, 0 Jehovah. Psa. 8:3-4: When I consider thy
heavens, the work of thy fingers, The moon and the stars, which thou
hast ordained; What is man, that thou art mindful of him? Rom. 1:20-
F o r the invisible things of him [God] since the creation of the world
1. Owen A Discourse Concerning the Holy Spirit, abridged by
George Burder, 64, 56.
518
a r e clearly seen, being perceived through the things t h a t are made,
even his everlasting power and divinity.
In like manner, because the grace and wisdom of the Son, and
the love of the Spirit, are especially impressed upon the new
or spiritual Creation, redemption is ascribed eminently to the
former, and regeneration and sanctification to the latter.
Eph. 1:G-7: the Beloved, in whom we have redemption through
his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of
his grace. Col. 1:13-14: the $on of his love, in whom we have our re-
demption, the forgiveness of our sins. Heb. 9:11-!2: B u t Christ
through his own blood, entered in once for all into the holy place,
.. .
having obtained eternal redemption, 1 Pet. 1:18-19: knowing t h a t ye
were redeemed , I .
with precious blood, as of a lamb without blemish
and without spot, even the blood of Christ.
John 3:5-7: Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except one be born
of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God.
That which, is born of the flesh is flesh; and t h a t which i s born of the
Spirit is spirit. Marvel not that I said unto thee, Ye must be born anew.
Titus 3:5-according t o his mercy he saved usI through the washing
of regeneration and renewing of the Holy Spirit. Rom. 5:5-the love
of God hath been shed abroad in our hearts through the Holy Spirit
which was given unto 11s. Rom. 16:30--Now I beseech you, brethren,
by our Lord Jesus Christ, and by the love of the Spirit, that ye strive
together with me in your prayers t o God f o r me. Rom. 15:ld-that
the offering up of the Gentiles might be made acceptable, being sancti-
fied by, th? Holy Spirit, 2 Thess. 2:137fo~ t h a t God chose you from
the beginning unto salvation in sanctiflcatlon of the Spirit and belief
of the truth. 1 Pet. 1:2-according t o the foreknowledge of God the
Father, in sanctification of the Spirit, unto obedience and sprinkling
of the blood of Jesus Christ. Rom. 14:17-for the kingdom of God is
not eating and drinking, but righteousness and peace and joy in the
Holy Spirit.
Again, a Divine work is eminently ascribed to one of the
three Persons of the Godhead when the performance of that
work involves the peculiar condescension of that Person, and
t o the doing of which the other Persons give their approval
and consent. For exampIe again, redemption is eminently
ascribed to the Son because it involved His condescension to
assume our human nature, in order to make Atonement for our
sins and to qualify Himself to act as our Mediator and High
Priest.
Phil. 2:5-8: Have this mind in you, which was also in Christ Jesus:
who, existing in the form of God, counted not the being on an equality
with God a thing t o be grasped, but emptied himself, taking the form
of a servant, being made in the likeness of men; and being found in
fashion as a man, he humbled himself, becoming obedient even unto
death, yea, the death of the cross. Heb. 2:14-15: Since then the children
a r e sharers in flesh and blood, he also himself in like manner partook
of the same; that through death he might bring t o nought him t h a t
had the power of death, that is, the devil; and might deliver all them
who through f e a r of death were all their li€etime subject t o bondage:
5 19
THB ETERNAL SPIRIT - HIS PERSON AND POWERS
[It was a part of the mission of the Son t o redeem His people from
the bondage of both sin and death.] Heb. 2:17-18:Wherefore it be-
hooved him in all things to be made like unto his brethren, t h a t h e
might become a merciful and faithful high priest in things pertaining
to God, t o make propitiation for the sins of the people. For in that he
himself hath suffered being tempted, he is able to succor them t h a t a r e
tempted. Heb. 4:15-16: For we have not a high priest t h a t cannot be
touched with the feeling of our infirmities; but one that hath been
in all points tempted like as we are, yet without sin. Let us there-
fore draw near with boldness unto the throne of grace, that we may
receive mercy, and may find grace t o help us in time of need.
Similarly, sanctification is ascribed eminently to the Holy
Spirit, because it involves His condescension to His particular
office and work in the Body of Christ. The fact must not be
overlooked that the Spirit’s coming to earth to incorporate and
to indwell the Church, to suffer inevitably vexings and grievings
at the hands of weak-willed saints and nominal professors of
religion, to say nothing of the insults heaped upon Him by
reprobate sinners, involved a condescension on the Spirit’s part
comparable to that ihvolved in the Incarnation and human life
and death of the eternal Word, the Son, the Messiah.
Finally, the order of operation among the three Persons of
the Godhead seems to depend upon the order of their subsistence
in the totality of the Divine Being.
1. T h u s the beginning of Divine operations is assigned, in
Scripture, t o the Father.
Gen. 1:26-And God said, Let us make man in our image, after
our likeness, etc. Rom. 11:33-36: 0 the depth of the riches both of
the wisdom and the knowledge of God! how unsearchable are his judg-
ments, and his ways past tracing out! For who hath known the mind
of the Lord? or who hath been his counsellor? or who hath first given
to him, and it shall be recompensed unto him again? For of him, and
through him, and unto him, are all things. To him be the glory for
ever. Amen. Job 1l:T-Canst thou by searching find out God? Canst
thou find out the Almighty unto perfection? Matt. 24:36-But of that
day and hour knoweth no one, not even the angels of heaven, neither
the Son, but the Father only. Acts 1:T-It is not for you t o know
times o r seasons, which the Father hath set within his own authority.
Eph. 1:3-4: Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ,
who hath blessed u s with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly
places in Christ, even as he chose us in him before the foundation of
the world, etc. Eph. 3:8-11: Unto me, who am less than the least of
all saints, was this grace given, to preach unto the Gentiles the un-
searchable riches of Christ: and to make all men see what is the dis-
pensation of the mystery which for ages hath been hid in God who
created all things; t o the intent that now unto the principalities and
the powers in the heavenly places might be made known through the
church the manifold wisdom of God, according t o the eternal purpose
which he purposed in Christ Jesus our Lord.
2. But whereas the beginning of Divine operations is ascribed
520
THR SPIRIT AND TI33 WORD
in Scripture to the Father, the establishing and upholding of
all things is ascribed to the Son.
Psa. 33:G, 9-By the word of Jehovah wel'e the heavens made,
And all the host of them by the breath of his mouth. , .. For he spalre,
and it was done; He commanded, and i t stood fast. Psa. 148:5-G: Let
them [all created things] praise the name of Jehovah; For he com-
manded, and they were created, He hath also established them for
ever and ever: He hath made a decree which shall not pass away.
[Decweing, or edicting, is in a special sense the work of the Logos o r
Son: ,to the Father we,are indebted primarily f o r faatk, t o the Son for
doctmne, and t o the Spirit for evidence or proof.] John 1:3-All things
were made through him [the Logos]; and without him was not anything
made that hath been made. Col. l : l G - l ' 7 : For in him were all things
created. . , all things have been created through him, and unto him;
and he is before all things, and in him all things consist, Heb. 1:1-3:
God, having of old time spoken unto the fathers in the prophets
hath a t the end of these days spoken unto us in his Son, whom he
...
appointed heir of all things, througlL whom wlso he made t h e worlds;
who being the effulgence of his glory, and the very image of his sub-
stance, and upl~olclingall things by the w o r d of his power, when he. had
made purification of sins, sat down on the right hand of the MaJesty
on high. 1 Cor. 15:24-28: Then cometh the end, when he shall dFliver
up the kingdom t o God, even the Father; when he shall have abolished
all rule and all authority and power. For he must reign, tlll he hath
put all his enemies under his feet. The last enemy t h a t shall be abolished
i s death. For, He put all things in subjection under his feet. But when
he saith, All things are put in subjection, it is evident that he is ex-
cepted who did subject all things unto him, And when all things have
been subjected unto him, then shall the Son also himself be subjected
t o him t h a t did subject all things unto him, that God may be all in all.
3. Finally, t h e consummation or realization of all these
Divine works is ascribed t o the Spirit:
[Hence the works of the Spirit are, eminently: Inspiration and
reuelatioTa; demonstration or miracles; regeneration; sanctification; and
immortalization,] 1 Pet. l:21-For no prophecy ever came by the will
of man: but men spake from God, being moved by the Holy Spirit.
2 Sam. 23:l-2: David the son of Jesus saith . , , The Spirit of Jehovah
spake by me, And his word was upon my tongue. 1 Pet. 1 : l O - 1 1 : Con-
cerning which salvation the prophets sought and searched diligently,
who prophesied of the grace that should come unto you: searching
what time o r what manner of time the Spirit of Christ which was in
them did point unto, when it testified beforehand the sufferings of
Christ, and the glories that should follow them, 1 Cor. 2:9-13: What-
soever things God prepared for them that love him, Unto us God re-
vealed them through the Spirit: for the Spirit searcheth all things,
yea, the deep things of God. For who among men knoweth the things
of a man, save the spirit of the man, whjch is in him? even so the
things of God none knoweth, save the Spirit of God. But we received,
not the spirit of the world, but the spirit which IS from God; t h a t we
might know the things that were freely given t o us of God. Which things
also we speak, not in words which man's wisdom teacheth, but whlch
the Spirit teacheth ; combining spiritual things with spiritual words.
Matt. 12:28--But if I by the Spirlt of God cast out demons, then is
the kingdom of God come upon you, Luke 24:49-but t a r r y ye i n the
city, until ye be clothed with power from on high. Acts l:8--But ye
52 1
THE ETERNAL SPIRLT - HIS PERSON AND POWERS
shall receive power, when the Holy Spirit is come upon you, etc. 1 Cor.
2:4-in demonstration of the Spirit and of power. Heb. 2:4--God bear-
ing witness with them, both by signs and wonders, and by manifold
powers, and by gifts of the Holy Spirit, according t o his own will.
[Thus it will be seen t h a t evidence provided by the Spirit, of the work-
ings of the Godhead in the old o r physical Creation, has taken the two-
fold form (1) of recorded revelation or Scripture, which is God-breathed
literature, and (2) of d e m o n s t r a t i o n or miracles designed to attest the
revelation.]
[As for the works of regeneration, sanctification, and immortaliza-
tion, cf. John 3:5 again]: Except one be born of water and the Spirit,
h e cannot enter into the kingdom of God. Tit, 3:5-according t o his
mercy he saved us, through the washing of regeneration and renewing
of the Holy Spirit. Rom. 15:30-by the love of the Spirit. Rom. 15:16-
t h a t the offering up of the Gentiles might be made acceptable, being
sanctified by the Holy Spirit. 2 Thess. 2:13-for that God chose you
from the beginning unto salvation in sanctification of the Spirit, etc.
1 Pet. 1:2-in sanctification of the Spirit. Gal. 5:26--If we live by
the Spirit, by the Spirit let us also walk. Gal. 5 : 16-walk by the Spirit,
and ye shall not fulfil the lust of the flesh. Rom. 8:ll-But if the
Spirit of him t h a t raised up Jesus from the dead dwelleth i n you,
he that raised up Christ Jesus from the dead shall give life also t o
your mortal bodies through his Spirit that dwelleth in you.
To sum up: The Father is said to be the originating Cause
of the Plan of the Universe (cf. again Isa. 46:9-11: “I am God,
and there is none like me; declaring the end from the beginning,
and from ancient times things that are not yet done; saying, My
counsel shall stand, and I will do all my pleasure. . . . yea, I
have spoken, I will also bring it to pass; I have purposed, I
will also do it”), and of all Divine operations pursuant thereto;
The Word or Son is said to be the executing Cause; and the
Holy Spirit the realizing or consummating Cause; the ultimate
end being a holy universe, a universe in which mortality itself
shall have been swallowed up of life (2 Cor. 5:4). Hence,
whereas the Patriarchal Dispensation was essentially the age
of the Father, and the Jewish Dispensation the age of the Son,
the present or Christian Dispensation is the age of the Holy
Spirit. The Spirit came on the Day of Pentecost to abide with
the Church throughout “the times of the Gentiles’’ (Luke 21: 24).
When, however, the time shall come for the Gospel Dispensa-
tion to be terminated, the Spirit will then return to the Father,
even as the Son ascended to the Father at the end of the Jewish
Dispensation (Acts 1:9-11), having accomplished the work
which the Father had given had given Him to do (John 17:4 ) .
But the Spirit will not return to the Father unaccompanied.
He will take with Him the Bride of Christ, who shall have been
purified and made whole by His presence and power, and He
will present her as a chaste virgin unto the Bridegroom, that
522
‘I?JI! SI’I1111’ AND T I In W( )111)
the iwo-ilic Bridegroom a n d the Bride---may dwell together
i n sweet converse, in heavenly glory, for ever and ever. (1
Thess. 4:13-18, 2 Cor. 31:2; Rev. 21:l-4, 22:17).
4. The Firsr Principle of All Things

In the ancient, Pythagorean metaphysic, The One or the
Monad, conceived as quasi-material yei essentially dynamic, was
regarded as the efficient cause of the cosmogonical process, as
ihe First Principle, the Principle of Unity and Generation, of
all things. As such the Monad was thought of as being repre-
sented or symbolized, in the numerical process, by Ihe unit or 1.
The Monad, moreover, was regarded as embodying within its
own nature the elements of Limit and Unlimited, or what were
later designated Form and Matter respectively; and by the
agency of these elements as diffusing itsel€ throughout, and ex-
hibiting itself in, the number-atoms which were considered to
be the ultimate stu€f of the whole Cosmos. To quote Alexander
Polyhistor again, as describing the Pythagorean theory:
The f i r s t principle of all things i s the One. From the One came
a n Indefinite Two, as matter €or the One, which is cause. F r o m the
O n e and the Indefinite Two came numbers; and from numbers, points;
from points, lines; from lines, plane figures; from plane figures,
solid figures; from solid figures, sensible bodies, The elements of these
are four: fire, water, earth, air; these change and a r e wholly trans-
formed, and out of them comes t o be a casnaos, animate, intelligent,
spherical, embracing the central earth, which is itsel€ spherical and
inhabited round about.’
Now, as far as we are able to ascertain from ancient sources,
this concept of The One as the First Principle of all things
originated with the Pythagoreans and in all probability with
Pythagoras himself, The concept underwent many developments
and ramifications, however, in the thinking of later philosophers.
By Plato and his school, who were greatly influenced by Pytha-
gorean concepts, it was developed into the concept of the Form
or Idea of the Good, and given a distinctly ethical connotation.
Indeed the germ of the notion lingered in Aristotle’s Self-thinking
Thought, which seems to have been conceived by him as es-
sentially immaterial, like Plato’s Form of the Good. But the
original concept appears to have been taken over directly by
Plotinus and his successors, and amplified into the Neoplatonic
One, likewise conceived as the First Principle of a?l things, and
1. Diogenes Laertius, Livas aiid Opivioiis of Eminent Philosophem,
VIII, 25. Translation by F. M.Cornford, i n his Pluto aid Pm.i?zcnides, 3.
523
THE ETERNAL SPIRIT - HIS PERSON AND POWBRS
as existing at the farthest remove from the gross matter of our
physical universe, just as, conversely, matter was conceived as
the most distant emanation from The One. However, the con-
cept had to wait, for its better elaboration, for the appearance
of the Italian philosopher, Giordano Bruno, in the sixteenth
century; it was he who gave to it much richer content in his
celebrated doctrine of the World-Soul. That Bruno, himself
originally a Dominican monk, was influenced greatly by the
Biblical revelation of God as eternal Spirit, there can be no
doubt. Hence said Bruno, from The One, as the World-Soul, as
Divine Potency, all being flows. The World-Soul, God, is indeed
a Unity, a Whole, but He is a Whole who is present in His com-
pleteness in every part. Whereas contingent things are never
the same but always in a state of flux, The One, the World-Soul,
alone remains eternally the Same. Bruno’s doctrine was panthe-
istic, of course, but it was a pantheism of a more refined type.
Incidentally, this concept of The One emerged-with variations
-in later years in Spinoza’s Substance, and in more recent
times in doctrines of The Absolute (Le., the one all-pervading
substance, of which all finite things would be only accidental
manifestations), such as those of Spencer, Hegel, Bradley, Royce
and others. So much for the history of the concept in philosophic
thought.
The questions we are especially interested in here is this:
What is the attitude of present-day science with regard to such
a First Principle? Does modern science hold to the concept
of a single Principle of Unity and Generation of all things? It
certainly does: it is compelled to do so by the facts in the case.
As it has been made clear already, human thought in whatever
time or place is logically compelled, in trying to account for the
Cosmos, to start with something, that is, with a First Principle.
Not only is science compelled to hold to the concept of a First
Principle from logical considerations-even if that Principle be
nothing more than some form of impersonal energy-but from
empirical considerations as well. Everything in science points
unmistakably to the existence of some kind of Creative Energy
or Life Force as operating in the space-time continuum. I doubt
that any scientist would ever question this statement.
In this particular connection, the following story which ap-
peared some years ago in the columns of the metropolitan press
becomes most illuminating:
Albert Einstein has developed, after thirty years of arduous labor,
a mathematical concept that is expected to lead t o new and much
524
deeper insights in the cosmos. The new theory, described by Einstein
a s a “generalized theory of gravitation,’> attempts to inter-relate all
known physical phenomena into one all-embracing intellectual concept,
thus providing one major key to all the lnultiple phenomena and forces
in which the material universe manifests itself to man.
I n his special theory, of relativity, published in 1905, pinstein
proved by ~nathematicsthat space and time, rather than being two
separate entities, were actually united in one four-dimensional con-
tinuum. Out of this intellectual synthesis emerged the discovery that
matter and energy were both interchangeable, matter being “frozen”
energy, while energy was matter in a fluid state.
I n his general theory of relativity, published in ,1916, Einstein
proved, again by mathematics, that gravitation and inertia were equiva-
lent, thus bringing space, time, matter, energy, gravitation and inertia
into one all-embracing intellectual concept.
However, there still remained one of the great cosmic forces that
could not be brought into the unified structure, the all-pervading force
of electro-magnetism, which permeates the cosmos at large and the
atoms of which the cosmos is constituted. It is this force which Einstein
believes he has at last succeeded in bringing into a a!l-embracing cosmic
concept, known among scientists as a “Universal Field Theory.” This
means that the gravitational field and the electro-magnetic field, the
two major “fields” in which the material universe manifests itself,
can a t last be viewed as being two manifestations of one united cosmic
..
entity. .
Einstein’s latest work now promises to bridge ,the gap t h a t now
separates the infinite universe of the stars and galaxies and the equally
infinite universe of the atom, which a r e at present widely separated,
one being explained by relativity while our knowledge of the other
rests on the quantum theory, of which Einstein was also one of the
major architects.
He intends t o bring the relativity and the quantum theories, the
two major pillars on which man’s basic understanding of the universe
rests, into one all-embracing system. His present work is regarded
as a major step in t h a t direction.’
Commenting on the latest Einsteinian synthesis, Lincoln Barnett,
writing in a later issue of Life magazine, says that
the major and immediate triumph of the Unified Field Theory i s im-
plicit in the f i r s t word of its title, It unifies man’s concepts of the
universe i n which he dwells. Within its vast perspective the distinctions
between gravitational and electromagnetic force, matter and energy,
electric charge and field, space and time, all fade and disljolve in the
light of their revealed relationships; and t h e deep underlyang unity of
the tiwiveme is laid baw.’
In a word, the primal energy will have been demonstrated to be
o j one kind, and the cosmos a mathematical construction of that
same Primal Unity, the chief property of which, mani€estly, is
inexh,austib1eness.
Another very significant Associated Press dispatch appeared
1. From the New York Times,issue of December 21, 1949.
2. Art., “The Meaning of Einstein’s New Theory,” L i f e , issue o€
Jan. 9, 1950. (Italics mine.)
525
just a month later, under the date-line, “Princeton, N.J., Feb.
13,” which reads in part as follows:
Professor Albert Einstein’s new unified field theory-the unity
of gravitation and electromagnetism-will be published here within a
few days. . . . The new unified theory may have human and spiritual
values because it may explain certain mysteries about matter and energy
which go t o form man and life. Einstein has adopted a new viewpoint
differing from the thinking of most physical scientists. He thinks that
the forces, gravitation and electro-magnetism, which together govern
matter, such a s your body, a r e more important for understanding ,these
mysteries than f o r understanding merely the material stuff itself.
Recently scientific work has concentrated on understanding the mate-
rial side, by the study of atoms. Biologists have shown that electro-
magnetic fields of force appear t o shape and t o guide the formation
of living things. These fields are one of the things that make the dif-
ference between a man and a mouse. When either a human or a n
animal is a t the s t a r t of life, that is, made only of two newly-joined
tissue cells, an electromagnetic field is present. This field of force
comes from the little cells and is part of them. As the embryo forms,
this field guides t h e course. The little personal field is also part of
the greater electromagnetic fields which seem t o surround everything.
Gravitation i s p a r t of all these fields.’
As stated heretofore, it is a matter of common knowledge that
the mystery of life has thus far remained inscrutable to the
human mind. What there is in the protoplasm of the living
cell which endows it with properties of a higher order than
those of the energy of the non-living atom, no one knows.
Since the time of Pasteur, it has been universally agreed by
scientists that life comes only from antecedent life; spontaneous
generation has never been discovered anywhere in Nature.
Living things appear to exist and function on a higher level of
being than non-living things, with properties and ends that are
exclusively their own. If, however, the relation between the
energy-principle of the atom and the life-principle of the cell
could once be determined, and if both should be found to be
functions of the same Primal Energy and Unity, a tremendous
step would be taken toward the unification of our understanding
of the Cosmos. Truly, despite the potentialities of tragedy
which the present atomic age holds for man, it is still the most
challenging age in his history on earth!
But even so, that is, even were it possible to prove the
energy-principle of the atom and the life-principle of the cell
to be manifestations of the same ultimate Principle of Unity,
there would still remain even greater mysteries than these
to be brought into that Unity, namely, the mysteries of con-
1. This A. P. dispatch appeared in the Albuquerque, N.M.Journal,
Feb. 13, 1950.
526
THE SPlRlT AND T H E WORD
sciousness, memory, the subconscious, and all the thought pro-
cesses in man; the mysteries of his power of abstract thinking,
of his creative imagination, of his sense of values, and the very
mystery of meaning itself. And above all, there would remain
the supreme mystery of Love. By no stretch of the imagination
can these higher phenomena-the most vital facts of our per-
sonal experience and the phenomena by which even matter
itself is apprehended and “understood”-be reduced to electro-
magnetic energy alone or identified with mere concatenations
of cells.
This leads me to observe, in conclusion, that the only pre-
sentation, in the literature known to man, o€ the First Principle
as all-comprehensive, that is, as the Source and Cause of all
the varied phenomena characteristic of all levels of being in the
Totality of Being, is the presentation given us, in the Judaeo-
Christian Scriptures, of God as the Eternal Spirit. Jesus Himself
tells us explicitly: “God is a Spirit; and they that worship him
must worship in spirit and truth” (John 4:24). God in His
Nature as The Absolute is Spirit. And here I am using the
term “Absolute” in its proper sense-as derived from the Latin
absolutum, absolvere, se-luo, originally from the Greek, luo,
that is, “self-loosed,” “unfettered,” or “free from bonds.” In
this sense, God is the One who is not necessarily bound up with
anything else, One who is independent, self-sufficing, etc. In
His absoluteness, God is a Spirit, even though, as such essentially,
He is differentiated into three Persons, His absolute Nature,
moreover, expresses itself actively, effectually (to get things
done) through one of these Persons eminently, namely, the
Spirit of God. In the Old Testament this Person is designated
the Spirit of God (Ruach Elohim) , or, metaphorically, the Breath
of God. In the New Testament, He is designated Spirit of God,
Spirit of Christ, and in a majority of instances, the Holy Spirit.
The following facts should be noted again, therefore, by
way of a final review and summary:
1. The Spirit of God is presented in the Bible as the Source
and Cause of energy, matter, motion, and all forms of life. In
the opening verses of the Old Testament we read:
In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. And the
earth was waste and void; and darkness was upon the face of the deep;
and the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters. And God
said, Let there be light; and there was light.
We have here the picture of an illimitable Space or Void filled
with, and enshrouded in, impenetrable darkness; the most per-
527
fect picture of absolute nothingness in literature. Into this
Void came the Spirit of God, brooding, stirring, energizing,
creating, that is, bringing into existence, probably projecting
from His infinite Being, primal energy which had never before
that moment, itself the beginning of Time, been in actuation at
least for such a purpose as the creation of a universe in a space-
time continuum. Nor is there any reason to doubt any longer
that this primal energy was capable of self-transmutation into
the various kinds of matter known to us today. The intimation
is, moreover, that one of the first forms of energy manifested
in this Creative Process was radiant energy or light, again a
disclosure that is in harmony with the conclusion of the latest
physics. Furthermore, whether this primal energy projected
by the agency of the Divine Spirit contained within itself the
“seeds” of living things, that is, the pqtentialities of the vital
processes (as indeed many of the early Church Fathers held),
o r whether vital energy-Life Force-was a subsequent projec-
tion from the Divine Spirit into the world of matter in motion-
this is not a matter of any great significance-or so it seems to
me at least. It must be admitted, however, that the original
language of the first chapter of Genesis seems to point to the
latter interpretation as the correct one. Here, as we continue
to read, we find, morever, that in the process of physical crea-
tion, the brooding of the Spirit did not cease with the bringing
into existence of such primary physical phenomena as energy,
motion, light, atmosphere-in short, the ingredient of the physio-
chemical world; on the contrary the Spirit’s brooding was con-
tinuous throughout the entire process; indeed it is continuous
throughout the entire Time process. There is every reason for
thinking that the Creation is still going on; that, in fact, it will
be consummated only when the saints stand in the Divine Pres-
ence clothed in glory and honor and immortality. In a word,
according to the account given in Genesis, its was a result of
the brooding (energizing and vitalizing) of the Eternal Spirit
that the cosmos and its myriads of forms of natural life marched
slowly but surely into being. And it is likewise as a result of
the Spirit’s continuous “brooding” that the Cosmos is preserved
(or conserved, to speak in the language of science) from gen-
eration to generation, and from age to age, as long as the tem-
poral process shall endure. It is the Divine Spirit who is the
actuating Source and Cause of the whole Physical Creation.
As Marcus Dods puts it, commenting on Gen. 1:2-
528
THE SPIIUT AND TI33 WORD
This, then, is the first lesson of the Bible: t h a t a t the root and
origin of all this vast material universe, before whose laws we are
crushed as the moth, there abides a living, conscious Spirit, who wills
and knows and fashions all thiups.’
and Cause of personal or rational life in man, with all its char-
acteristic powers: self-consciousness, self-determination, power
of abstract thinking, creative imaginations, sense of values, and
the powers of the subconscious in man as well. “Yahweh Elohim
formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his
nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul” (Gen.
2:7). This teaches us that the life principle in man derived
originally by the inbreathing of the Divine Spirit from the very
Life of God Himself. That is to say, the life principle in man is
essentially spiritual (rather than biological) in nature; or, to
put it more precisely, the breath of life in man subsumes the
vital principle (previously implanted in the lower orders) plus
the rational principle; it is by the latter alone that man is spe-
cified as man (homo sapiens). In other words, God made the
human body to live by imparting to it, by causing to be breathed
into it, His own mode of life (with all the moral implications
pursuant thereto); and thus the creature, man, became the
image or likeness of his Creator. The body-spirit unity thus ef-
fectuated was designated “a living soul,” Into the formed “dust
of the world” (Prov. 8:26) or material elements, God infused
something, not of any antecedent matter, but immediately of
His own essence. This entrance of the Divine Breath was the
entrance of personal or rational life into the human corporeal
form, as a result of which man became a living soul. This Divine
inbreathing was, of course, an operation of the eternal Spirit.
The Spirit of God and the Breath of God are one, the former
expression being proper whereas the latter is only metaphorical,
describing the procession of the Spirit from the Divine Being.
and Cause of every order of life in the Totality of Being. He is,
as we have just seen, the Principle of natural life in all created
organisms, “The God that made the world and all things there-
in . , , He himself giveth to all life, and breath, and all things”
(Acts 17:24-25). He is, in the second place, the Source of
spiritual life which the saints enjoy in the Kingdom of Grace.
As Jesus Himself said to Nicodemus: “Verily, verily, I say
unto thee, Except one be born of water and the Spirit, he can-
1, The Expositor’s Bible; Genesis, in loco.
529
not enter into the kingdom of God. That which is born of the
flesh is flesh; that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. Marvel
not that I said unto thee, Ye must be born anew” (John 3: 5-7).
The Spirit is, in the third place, the effectuating Source of
eternal life which the redeemed shall enjoy in the Kingdom of
Glory. As it has been made abundantly clear on preceding pages
of this treatise, the one essential condition of the attainment of
ultimate complete Union with God, Beatitude, Life Everlasting,
is the submergence of the human spirit in the Life of the Divine
Spirit, in the here and now; hence the Holy Spirit is said to be
the Source and Agent of wholeness or holiness. As Jesus Him-
self said: “Blessed are the pure in heart; for they shall see
@.e., apprehend, understand, know] God” (Matt. 5: 8). And
finally, because immortality is an essential property of the Life
Everlasting, the Holy Spirit is declared to be the Agent of the
Godhead in the immortalization of the saints. “But if the Spirit
of him that raised up Jesus from the dead dwellet,h in you,
he that raised up Christ Jesus from the dead shall give life
also to your mortal bodies through his Spirit that dwelleth
in you” (Rom. 8: 11).
When the saints shall stand before God in the Final Day,-
the Day of the Consummation of All Things,--clothed in glory
and honor and immortality, their minds united with the Mind
of God in knowledge and their wills united with the Will of‘
God in love, then, but not until then, will the Creative Process-
the Divine Plan of the Ages-be fully realized. And this en-
tire Process is described in Scripture as having been planned
and ordained by the Father, executed by the Son, but effectuated
by the Divine Spirit, The Spirit is the effectuating Agent of
every form of life characteristic of the different levels of being
which make up the Totality of Being-of natural life, in the
Kingdom of Nature; of spiritual life, in the Kingdom of Grace;
and of eternal life, in the Kingdom of Glory.
“If materialism is true,, writes W. P. Montague,
then, as William James declared, ‘the thmgs we cherish most are a t
the mercy of the things we cherish least. I do not think this is true.
Chaos and Old Night could hardly have been lucky enough to have a
world like ours. Yet if we turn from Chaos to Zeus the chances against
his reign are just as great. Sweat and blood and tears are not confined
to Churchill’s land. Nature is stained throughout with ugly, cruel
failure. If a n y god who had omnipotence to draw upon had made this
world with all i t s woe, he would be a god deserving anything but love.
Not only f a r more probable, but f a r more congenial to our better
nature, would be a god who, like Prometheus of old, will not yield
right to might, no matter what the pain imposed by the tyrant Zeus.
530
THE SPiRIT AND T H E WORD
What we want is such a god as that, a tm.dy holg spi?.il, omnipresent
but not omnipotent, pervading the chaos of nature and slowly leavening
it with higher beings and higher goods, May faith in Iliin be justified!
[From art., “Philosophy in a World at War,,’ F o y t ~ m e ,March, 1942,
Italics mine-C.C. The concept expressed here by Montague is implicit
in the doctrine of the Incarnation, as stated in Scripture: ‘though he
was a Son, yet learned obedience by the things which he suffered,’
etc,, Heb. 6 : 8 . ]
Surely, Dr. Montague exaggerates nature’s “cruelty” unduly,
like many modern writers since Tennyson, from whom they seem
to have taken their cue (Tennyson, “In Memoriam,” 56: “Nature,
red in tooth and claw with ravine,” etc.). Some truths we must
recall in this connection are these: (1) God is Love, that is,
He is the God of Love; (2) Love is unfailingly creative and must
constantly be shared with all creatures; (3) Creation was, and
is the outpouring and sharing of divine Love; (4) but Love is
not to be coerced, because that would not be love; love must be
given willingly; ( 5 ) man was predestined to be free; ( 6 ) the
price that he must pay for this freedom is the possibility of evil;
(7) God will do whatever He wills to do that is consistent with
His nature as God; (He could not tell a lie, and be our God);
(8) He has already made full provision for the spiritual recovery
of all men who will come to Him in faith and obedience; (9)
hell is prepared for the devil and his angels; if men go there it
will be the consequence of their following their own way instead
of God’s way. There is a measure of truth in the saying that
in every Paradise there lurks a snake.
Thus it will be seen that the Pythagorean Monad, the
Neoplatonic One, Bruno’s World-Soul, indeed every purely
philosophical concept of the First Principle of all things, falls
short of the Spirit of God of the Bible. Indeed the fundamental
difference between the Greek concept of Deity and the Hebrew-
Christian presentation of God is that in the former God is im-
plicitly That Which Is, whereas in the latter He is explicitly
HE WHO IS; that is, He includes within His own nature not
only energy-principle and life-principle, but mind-principle as
well. He is essentially Intelligence and Will,-The Intelligence
and Will that is the First Cause of all created things. “And
God said unto Moses, I AM THAT I AM. . . . Thus shalt thou
say unto the children of Israel, I AM hath sent me unto you”
(Exo. 3: 14). “God is a Spirit; and they that worship him must
worship in spirit and truth’’ (John 4:24). As the philosopher,
W. S. Hocking, writes:
For the author of Geizesis, mentality is original. It does not enter
a physical world already running on its own. On the contrary, it is
531
the physical world which enters the realm of mind. I t is the Eternal
Mind who in the beginning created the raw materials of the world,
and whose word evoked order from chaos.‘
It should be re-emphasized here, of course, that in all the
operations of the Eternal Spirit, He is represented in Scripture
as acting in conjunction with, or through the instrumentality
of, the Eternal Word.
We must, however, recognize Professor Montague’s general
conclusion, namely, that our God, if He is to meet the deepest
aspirations of the human heart, must indeed be Holy Spirit.
Human outreaching could hardly be satisfied with anything
less in the Deity. But I should like to poifit out, tdo, that the
distinguished professor of philosophy who wrote these lines is
many, many centuries behind times. For it was well known
to the saints of the Old Testament dispensatio
hundreds of years before Christ, that the living and true God is
essentially €101~Spirit. The prophet Isaiah, writing several
centuries before the advent of the Messiah, harking back to
the rebelliousness of God’s ancient people under ‘Moses, gave
expression to the following exquisite bit of literature:
But they rebelled, and grieved his holy Spirit: therefore he [Je-
hovah] was turned to be their enemy, and himself fought against them.
Then he remembered the days of old, Moses and his people, saying, Where
is he that brought them up out of the sea with the shepherds of his flock?
where is he that put his holy Spirit in t h e midst of them? that caused
his glorious arm t o go at the right hand of Moses? that divided the
waters before them, to make himself an everlasting name? that led
them through the depths, as a horse in the wilderness, so that they
stumbled not? A s the cattle that go down into the valley, the Spirit
of Jehovah caused them to rest: so didst thou lead thy people, to make
thyself a glorious name [Isa. 63 :lo-141.
And it was the prophet Isaiah who, at least seven centuries be-
fore Christ, was privileged to behold, in a wondrous Vision,
“the Lord sitting upon a throne, high and lifted up, and his
train filled the temple”; and to hear the words of the heavenly
anthem to which John the Beloved was also privileged to listen,
some eight hundred years afterward, on the barren isle of Pat-
mos: “Holy, holy, holy, is Jehovah of hosts” (Isa. 6:3, Rev.
4 : 8 ) . In similar vein the Psalmist cried out unto God saying,
“Teach me to do thy will; For thou art my God: Thy Spirit is
good; Lead me in the land of uprightness’’ (Psa. 143:10), and
again, (‘Cast me not away from thy presence, and take not thy
holy Spirit from me” (Psa. 51:ll). And in the great day of
1. Art., (‘A World-View,” in Pwface to Philosophv: A Textbook,
by Hocking, Blanshard, Hendel, and Randall, 436.
532
national rejuvenation under Nehemiah the prince and Ezra
the priest-scribe, the intercessory prayer of the Levites €or
the people, contained these words with reference to the experi-
ence of their fathers under Moses: “Thou gavest also thy good
Spirit to instruct them, and withheldest not thy manna from
their mouth, and gavest them water for their thirst” (Neh.
9: 20). Indeed, I am convinced that God’s elect, from the earliest
times, have known full well that their God is essentially Holy
Spirit,
Let us recall, in this connection, the following statements
from the pen of Lincoln Barnett:
Man’s inescapable impasse is that he himself is p a r t of the world
he seeks to explore; his body and proud brain are mosaics of the same
elemental particles that compose the dark drifting dust clouds of inter-
stellar space; he is, in the final analylis merely an ephemeral con-
formation of the primordial space-time iield. Standing midway be-
tween macrocosm and microcosm he finds barriers on every side and
can perhaps but marvel, as St. Paul did nineteen hundred years ago,
that the world was created by the word of God so t h a t what is seen
was made out of things which do not appear.’
that is to say, out of the Will-power, Thought-power, Spirit-
power, Word-power of God.
But let it never be forgotten that saving hope-the “hope
both sure and stedfast” which is “an anchor of the soul” (Heb.
6: 19)-is held out to man by that same Word of God, the Bible,
in which the truth is revealed to him that he is not “merely an
ephemeral conformation of the primordial space-time field,”
but an imperishable person, one who is made in the image and
likeness of God and who is therefore the object of God’s infinite
love and compassion; and that he may become, through the life
of the Spirit of God within him, a son of the Almighty (2 Cor.
6:18), an heir of God and joint-heir with Christ of all things
(Rom. 8:17, Heb. 1 : 2 ) . This is the hope that gives meaning to
human life, meaning which no system of philosophy ever gave
to it. But man, in order to enjoy the fruition of this hope, must
yield himself in body, soul, and spirit, to the Spirit of God.
The Fountain of Life must spring up, and the Stream flow,
within him; silence, unresponsiveness, brutishness, on his part
can mean only death: not just the death of the body, which is a
Divine appointment to which every man must yield (Heb. 9: 27),
but the second death (Rev, 21:8), spiritual death, which is
total death, “even eternal destruction from the face of the Lord
and from the glory of his might” (2 Thess. 1:9).
1. Barnett, The Universe and Dr. Einsteha, 114.
533
May I therefore bring this treatise to a proper end with
another of Andrew Murray’s exquisite prayers?-
Blessed Father! I thank Thee that the Holy Spirit is to US the
bearer of the Fulness of Jesus, and t h a t in being filled with the Spirit
we are made full with that Fulness. I thank thee that there have
been men on earth since Pentecost, not a few, of whom Thou hast seen
t h a t they were full of the Holy Ghost. 0 my God! make me full. Let
the Holy Spirit take and keep possession of my deepest, inmost life.
Let Thy Spirit fill my the fountain flow through
all the soul’s affections i t flow over and flow out
through my lips, speaki d love. Let the very body,
by the quickening and sanctifying energy of the Spirit, be Thy temple,
full of the Life Divine. Lord my God! I believe Thou hearest ,me.
Thou hast given it me; I accept i t as mine.
Oh, grant t h a t throughout Thy Church the Fulness of the Spirit
may be sought and found, may be known and proved. Lord Jesus!
our glorified King, oh, let Thy Church be full of the Holy Ghost. Amen.
QUESTIONS FOR REVIEW OF PART SIX

1. I n what two aspects may we consider the Word of.God?
2. What has always been the temporal mission of the Holy Spirit?
3. What is the basic issue with respect to the Person of Jesus? How
is this related t o the doctrine of the Virgin Birth?
4. What is meant by the Humiliation of Jesus (the doctrine of
Kenosis) ?
5. Cite important Scriptures which affiTm the pre-existence of Jesus.
6. Cite Scriptures in which Jesus Himself affirmed His pre-existence.
7. How best describe the nature of the pre-existent Savior’s relation-
ship with the Heavenly Father?
8. What Name best describes this relationship?
9. Why could not the term “Son of God” fully designate this rela-
tionship ?
10. What is specifically implied in the Apostle John’s statement that
in the beginning the Word was with God?
11. What i s specifically implied in his accompanying statement that
the Word was God?
12. What does the phrase “in the beginning” signify in John 1 : 1 ?
13. What, according t o Rom. 8:29-30, is God’s Eternal Purpose with
respect to His saints?
14. What is implied in the risen Lord’s declaration that He i s The
First and the Last (Rev, 1 :17) ?
15. Differentiate the historical, eternal, and incarnate Names of the
Messiah.
16. What is the full significance of the name, The Logos?
17. Summarize Alexander Campbell’s presentation of the doctrine of
the Logos.
18. What does the Apostle Paul mean by the Phrase, “The Mystery of
Godliness”?
19. Explain what i s meant by the decrees of God.
20. What were the relations between the Father and Messiah that
began in time? What is the Name that signifies these relations?
21. What is the full significance of the title Messiah or Christ? How
is this related to the Good Confession?
1. The Spirit of C h G t , 310-311.
534
THE SPIRIT AND THE WOID
22. How is the word clt?$ste?z misapplied in what is called “infant
baptism”?
23. When was Jesus olwisted? How may we know this?
24. Why is this referred to as His aizoiiztiiag? By whom was He
anointed, and for what purpose?
25. When did the coronation ceremonies take place in Heaven? Explain,
in this connection, Psalm 24 :7-10.
26. What is included under the present Sovereignty of Christ?
27. I n what twofold sense is the Savior eternally the Word of God?
28. By what various means did our Christ reveal to us the Ileavenly
Father?
29. Explain PulIy the truths expressed in 1 Cor. 1:22-24.
30. On what grounds do we insist that the Logos existed as a I’evson
prior to His incarnation?
31. List the categories of Scripture evidences in the Old Testament in
which manifestations of the pre-incarnate Logos are implied.
32. List and explain thos; passages which describe the activities of
the “Angel of Yahweh.
33. List the important passages in which Wisdom is represented as
existing eternally with God, even though apparently distinct from
Him.
34. List important passages i n which the Word, as distinguished from
God is presented a s the Executor of God’s will from everlasting.
35. List passages in which our Christ is presented as the Creator of
the world.
36. When was the triune personality of God fully revealed? Why, in
all likelihood, was this revelation not given to God’s elect in the
Old Testament dispensations?
37. Explain fully the import of Phil. 2:9-11.
38. What is the probable significance of the following Scriptures:
Gen. 14:17-20 and Heb. 7 : l - 3 ; also Josh, 5:14, Dan. 3:25? Cor-
relate these passages with Micah 5:2.
39. What facts show that the Spirit selected the most appropriate and
most opportune moments in history to reveal the true Logos to
the world?
40. What parallels, though imperfect ones, do we find in the Platonic
Logos, the Stoic Logos, and the Philonian Logos?
41. In the light of these parallels, what significance was there in the
fact that John gave us the doctrine of the true Logos?
42. What facts did John emphasize with regard to the t r u e Logos t h a t
sets Him high above the pagan concepts?
43. Why must we conclude that the Christian doctrine of the Logos
was not the point at which “Hellenism” was inserted into Christian
doctrine?
44. In what two forms does the impersonal Word exist?
45. What fallacy is involved in the claim t h a t ‘‘the church existed
before the Book,” and that, therefore, Scripture is secondary in
authority to churchly ecclesiasticism? What is the error involved
in the quoted cliche?
46. When and under what circumstances was the Gospel Dispensation
ushered in? Explain why this was the birthday of the Church?
What part did the Spirit play in the events of t h a t great day?
47. Who has always edicted the Will and Thought of God outwavdlv,
and who has always served as the infallible Communicator of this
Thought t o mankind?
48. What evidence have we that God’s Spirit and God’s Word always
‘‘go together”?
49. Explain the significant truths revealed in Jeremiah’s prediction
of the nature and terms of the New Covenant.
535
50. What was the relationship between the personal Logos and the
Spirit of God?
51. What evidence have we t h a t Jesus had a human “spirit”? What,
then, was t h e relation between this human spirit and the divine
Spirit?
52. What is the general relationship sustaining to each other by the
Spirit and the Word?
53. Explain how God’s Spirit and His Word acted together in the
Creation.
54. How do God’s Spirit and His Word qct together in preserving the
physical Creation?
55. How does the Spirit and the Word operate in inspiration and
revelation?
56. In what respect was revelation primarily historical? State what
was progressively revealcd.
57. Explain the relation between the Spirit and the Word in the pro-
duction of the documentary revelation.
68. Distinguish between inspiration and revelation. Distinguish be-
tween the products of human inspiration and those of Divine in-
spiration? What makes the difference?
59. Explain the operation of the Spirit and the Word in the working
of miracles.
60. By what agency did Jesus perform miracles? Cite instances.
61. Explain the operation of the Spirit and the Word in regeneration.
62. Explain the operation of the Spirit and the Word in sanctification.
63. According t o Sweeney, what sixteen works are said in Scripture
to be effected by the Spirit t h a t are said also in Scripture to be
effected by the Word?
64. What is said in Scripture of the operation of the Spirit and the
Word in the immortalization o f the saints?
65. What will be the glorious result of this final operation of the
Spirit and the Word in the Plan of Redemption?
66. Recapitulate t h e teaching of Scripture regarding the relationship
between the Spirit and the Word in the totality of God’s Cosmic
Plan.
67. What works of the Godhead are assigned eminently to the Father?
68. What works of the Godhead are ascribed eminently t o the Son?
69. What works of the Godhead are ascribed eminentlg to the Spirit?
70. What a r e the norms by which ascription eminently is distinguished
from ascription distinctly?
71. On what do t h e operations among the Three Persons seem t o de-
pend? Explain.
72. To which of the Three is the planning (origination) o f the opera-
tions of the Godhead ascribed? Cite Scriptures.
73. To which of the Three is the establishing and upholding of all
things ascribed? Cite Scriptures.
74. To which of the Three is the actualizing of all operations of the
Godhead ascribed? Cite Scriptures.
75. How are these distinctions explained in terms of Causes?
76. What is meant by The First Principle of all things?
77. State some of the philosophical conceptions of the First Principle.
78. What is meant by Barnett’s phrase, “the deep underlying unity of
the universe”?
79. Why do we claim that the only presentation in literature of the
First Principle a s all-comprehensive is that given us, in the Bible,
of the Eternal Spirit?
80. What mean we when we sa that God, a s the Absolute, is Spirit?
What do we mean by the &solute? I
536
81, Of what various phenomena of the Totality of Being i s the Eternal
Spirit presented in Scripture as the actualizing Cause?
82. Does not the view that matter js the actualizing cause oE all things
seem utterly incredible?
83. State the substance of the excerpt from the writing of Marcus Dods.
84. State the substance of the excerpt from the writing of Dr. Montague,
85, the writing of W. S, Hocldng.
State the substance of the excerpt f ~ o m
86. Coniment on Ihc final “word” from the prii oE Lincoln Baynett.
537
538
ADDENDUM: ON EVOLUTION AND EVOLUTIONIblvi
1. The first fact to be recognized, in this connection, is that
evolution must not be confused with evolutionism. The word
“evolution” designates only the alleged process itself, the process
defined as continuous progressive change; the word “evolution-
ism,” however, designates the theory which purports to explain
how the process “proceeds,” that is, the phenomena that are
said to actualize it.
2. A second fact that must be recognized, by way of intro-
duction, is the distinction between science and scientism. While
I have all the respect possible f o r pure science, I have none
whatever for what has come to be called “scientism.” By “scient-
ism” we mean the deification of science, and, naturally, of man
himself as the author of science. (Devotees of science are prone
to forget that their science is purely descriptive of what lies
“out there”; of that truth which is written into the structure of
the universe; and that all they can do is to discover it, and state
it in terms of what they designate “hypotheses,” “theories,” and
“laws.” “H-2-0,” for example, is simply a description (formula)
of how hydrogen and oxygen unite to form a molecule of water.
As far as human knowledge goes, there has never been an ex-
ception to this “law,” but no one is qualified to say that there
never will be an exception; for any man to make such an asser-
tion would be for him to claim omniscience, and omniscience is
a power that man does not have, Hence, what science calls a
“law” is simply a statement of very, very great probability.
Science has changed its interpretations of the cosmos, both physi-
cal and moral, too frequently to justify the ascription of infalli-
bility to the human intellect. Whether they will admit it o r not,
men live for the most part by faith, not by a knowledge which has
the quality of absoluteness. In a word, just as true religion is
not to be identified with religiosity, nor true piety with piosity,
so true science is not scientism.
D. Elton Trueblood’s statements are certainly in order here,
as foIlows:
...
Scientism is so naive a s t o be almost unbelievable. God is a
fiction because He cannot be discovered by laboratory technique. Prayer
is futile because i t cannot be proved by scientific method. Religion is
unworthy of serious attention because it arose in the prescientific age.
What we have here of course, is not merely science, but a particularly
unsophisticated phifosophy of science, which deserves the epithet SCZ-
entism.’
Scientism is, of course, the product of a closed mind, or, in the

1. Trueblood, Philosophy of Religion, 168
539
THb ETERNAL SPIRIT - HIS PERSON AND POWERS
rm. of willful ignorance. It feeds on assump-
not be proved ,to be valid.
blown up into a dogma in recent
be accepted on t
persons who re
plain ignoramuses.
this cult that they
into print on various aspects of Biblical doctrine, not realizing

that by their own statements they prove the
norant of the subjects on which they ch6
nicious fallacies, based on the authority of
have a way of persisting from generation
though they have been shown to be fallacio
tionable-many times. It is the prestige of the ''
names with which they are associated
of deathlessness. It is the conviction of
dence brought forward to justify eVOlUti6
frequently, not on established fact-that
of eye-witnesses-but on inference alone. "he important ques-
tion, therefore, is this: Is the inference drawn from alleged
phenomena in this field necessary inference, that is, inference
h is inconceivable? or does much of it savor
conjecture? Dr. James Jauncey states the
case clearly in these words:
Of course you will qften hear from some enthusiastic evolutionists
540
ADDENDUM: ON EVOLUTION AND EVOLUTIONISM
erally demands, it still isn’t there. Indeed, some say t h a t because of
the philosophical aspects of the theory, proof will never be possible.”’
It has been rightly said that a hypothesis in science is to be ac-
cepted simply as “a fairly good guess.’’
A clear example of blind spots that occur in the presentation
of the theory of evolution-either in published accounts or in
the original manuscripts-is the title of an article which appeared
in Reader’s Digest not so long ago, “Can Science Produce Life?”
Any honest person can see that this title is misleading, to say
the least: life was never produced by human agency. ( N o man
ever created a seed.) This fact, the author of the article in ques-
tion, seems to realize. Toward the end he writes, with reference
to microspheres (proteinoids formed by the fusion of amino
acids) :
“Although these spheres are not true cells- they have no DNA
genes and they are simpler than any contemporary life- they do pos-
sess many cellular properties. They have stability; they keep their
shapes indefinitely. They stain in the same way a s the present-day
protein in cells, an important chemical test, But the real significance
of these microspheres is that scientists do not sunthesize them piece by
piece; they simply set up the right conditions-and microspheres pro-
duce themselves.
Thus it will be noted that the eminent scientist-author of this
article flatly contradicts the import of the title, by stating that
man can only set up the conditions necessary to the production
of microspheres but cannot himself do the producing. (The
title is an excellent example of the manner in which confusion
can be spread by the careless use of language.) Man indeed
sets the stage, but only the God of nature (there is no such thing
as nature per se, an entity), as the cosmic Efficient Causality,
can actualize the life process.
4. While one “school” of scientists will resort to the ac-
ceptance of evolutionism because there is no other scientifically
acceptable accounting for the existence of the totality of being;
that is to say, no other explanation that would not involve the
supernatural, or at least the superhuman, and in their thinking
this indeed would compel them to range beyond the canons of
the scientific method; still and all, there are many so-called
scientists who at heart reject in toto the basic concepts of re-
ligion in general, and especially those which are presented in
the Scriptures, simply because it is their will to do this and
therefore they set out deliberately to oppose, and if possible to
destroy, every religious belief known to man. These are the
1. Jauncey, Soienco Returns t o God, li7.
541
materialists, the self-styled naturalists, the humanists, the Marx-
ists, the Leninists, and all their ilk. They seek to destroy re-
ligious conviction because they hute it. “Religion” is to them
“the opium of the people.” Hence they look upon it as a bounden
duty to eliminate it from this world if there can be found any way
of doing it. Unfortunately for them, however, it still seems to be
true, as was affirmed early in human thinking, that “man is in-
curably religious,” in the sense that he recognizes the existence
of the higher Powers and seeks in whatever way possible to be
reconciled to them or at least to receive their approbation.
Among all nihilists it is a case in which the wish is father to the
thought.
5. On the other hand, there are many eminent scientists who
either accept reluctantly (and provisionally, let us say) or re-
ject altogether the claims of the evolutionists. For a concrete
example, we can cite the Preface to the latest issue of Everyman’s
Library Edition of Darwin’s Origin of Species, from the mind
and hand of W. R. Thompson, F.R.S., Director of the Common-
wealth Institute of Biologicril Control, Ottawa, Canada. Thomp-
son states expressly in his Preface that the content thereof will
not follow the tenor of previous Introductions to Darwin’s work,
those written by other scientists, in particular that by Sir Arthur
Keith. Thompson writes:
I could not content myself with mere variations on the hymn t o
Darwin and Darwinism that introduce so many textbooks on biology
.
and evolution. . . I am of course well aware t h a t my views will be
regarded by biologists as heretical and reactionary. However, I happen
to believe that in science heresy is a virtue and reaction often a neces-
sity, and t h a t in no field of science are heresy and reaction more de-
sirable than in evolutionary theory.’
After stating in no uncertain terms what he considers to be
weaknesses of the Darwinian theory (which he describes as a
theory of the “origin of living forms by descent with rnodifica-
tion”), Thompson goes on to point out the fallacies involved in
the argumentation used by the evolutionists. This, he declares,
“makes the discussion of their ideas extremely difficult.” In
what way? Because “personal convictions, simple possibilities,
are presented as if they were proofs, or at least valid arguments
in favor of the theory” (repeating an evaluation made by De
es) . Thompson adds:
example De Quatref ages cited Darwin’s explanation of the
which the titmouse might become transformed into the nut-
1. Op. &., viii.
542
cracker, by the accumulation of small changes in structure and instinct
owing t o the effect of natural selection; and then proceeded t o show
t h a t is is just as easy t o transform the nutcracker into the titmouse.
The demonstration can be modified without difficulty to f i t any con-
ceivable case, It is without scientific value since i t cannot be verified,
but since the imagination has free rein, it is easy t o convey the im-
pression that a concrete example of real transmutation has been given.
This is the more appealing because of the extreme fundamental simplicity
.
of the Darwinian explanation. , , This was certainly a major reason
f o r the success of the O ~ i g i v ~Another
. is thc elusive character of the ,’
Darwinian argument. Every characteristic of organisms i s maintained
in existence because it has survival value. But this value relates to
the struggle for existence. Therefore we are not obliged t o commit our-
selves in regard t o the meaning o€ differences between individuals or
species since the possessor of a particular modification may be, in the
race for Iife, moving up o r falling behind, On the other hand, we can
commit ourselves if we like, since it is impossible to disprove our state-
ment. The plausibility of the argument eliminates the need for proof
and its very nature gives it B kind of immunity t o disproof. Darwin did
not show in the O h g i n t h a t species had originated by natural selection;
he merely showed, on the basis of certain facts and assumptions, how
this might havel happened, and as he convinced himself he was able to
convince others.
One is reminded, in this connection, of a similar begging of
the question, namely, as paleontologists use the alleged ascending
levels of the geological map of earth to validate their theory of
the alleged ascending levels of fossil remains, so the geologists
profess to establish their alleged ascending levels, as given in
the geological map, by the time clock provided by the paleon-
tologists. Surely this is a case of backscratching pur excellence!
One is reminded of Mark Twain’s whimsical remark that “there
is something so fascinating about science: one gets such whole- I
sale returns of conjecture out of such trifling investments of fact.’’

6. On the subject of mutations, Thompson writes as follows:
“As Emile Guyenot has said, mutations are powerless to explain
the general adaptation which is the basis of organization. ‘It is
impossible to produce the world of life where the dominant note
is functional organization, correlated variation and progression,
from a series of random events.’ ’”
I should like to interpolate here a few personal statements
as follows: An outstanding example of the downright fanatical
zeal with which early exponents seized upon Darwin’s theory
and blowed it up to such fanatastic extremes (notably, by means
of the intellectual vacillations of the erratic T. H. Huxley, the
I
semantic pomposity of the agnostic Herbert Spencer, etc.) is
the “tree of life’’ as hypothesized by the arrogant German,
1. Op. Cit., xi.
2. IbicE., xiii.
543
Haeckel). Haeckel presumed to arrange existing forms in an
ascending scale from the simple to the complex, by arbitrarily
inserting imaginary names to identify all the necessarily nu-
merous “missing links.” Today, Haeckel’s famous “tree” is
largely famous, even in the scientific world, for its absurdities.
7. Dr. Thompson concludes his Preface with what is ob-
viously the most telling of all criticisms of the theary of evolu-
tion, as follows:
A long-enduring and regrettable effect of the Origin was the ad-
diction of biologists t o unverifiable speculation [the net result of which
was that] .the success of Darwinism was accompanied by a decline in
sczentzfic zntegrztg. This is already evident in the reckless statements
of Haeckel, and in the shifting, devious, and histrionic argumentaton
of T. H. Huxley. A striking example, which has only recently come to
light, is the alteration of the Piltdown skull SO that it could be used
a s evidence of the descent of man from the apes; but even before this
a similar instance of tinkering with the evidence was finally revealed
by the discoverer of Pithecanthropus, who admitted many years after
his sensational report, that he had found in the same deposits bones
t h a t a r e definitely human. Though these facts are now well known,
a work published in 1943 still accepts the diagnosis of Pithecanthropus
given by Dubois, a s a creature with a femur of human form permitting
a n erect posture. Not long ago (1947), an exhibit in London, designed
for public instruction, presented human development in such a way
a s to insinuate the truth of the “biogenetic law”; and in the same
exhibit were problematic reconstructions indicating the descent of man
and including the Piltdown type,l
Finally, Dr. Thompson’s conclusions, as follows:
It may be said, and the most orthodox theologians indeed hold,
t h a t God controls and guides even the events due to chance; but this
proposition the Darwinians emphatically reject, and it is clear t h a t in the
Origin evolution is resented as a n essentially undirected process. For
the majority of reafers, therefore, the Origin effectively dissipated the
evidence of providential control. It might be said that this was their
own fault. Nevertheless, the failure of Darwin and his successors to
attempt an equitable assessment of the religious issues at stake indicates
a regrettable obtuseness and lack of responsibility. Furthermore, on the
purely philosophical plane, the Darwinian doctrine of evolution in-
volves some difficulties which Darwin and Huxley were unable to ap-
preciate. [I might well add that their devoted disciples in our’ day seem
to have closed minds on the same matters.] Between the organism that
sfmplg lives, the organism that lives and feels, and the organism that
hues, feels, and reasons, there are, in the o p h i o n of respectable philoso-
phers, abrupt transitions corresponding to an ascent in the scale o f being,
and they hold that the agencies of the material world cannot pvoduce
. .
transitions of this kind. , Biologists still agree on the separation of
plants and animals, but the idea that man and animals differ only in
degree is now so general among them, t h a t even psychologists no longer
attempt to use words like “reason” o r “intelligence” in a n exact sense.
This tendency to eliminate, by means of unverifiable speculations, the
1. Op. cit., xii.
544
limits o f the categories Nature presents t o us, is an inheritance of
biology from the O i i g i i i of 5’pecies.l
One is reminded here of the argument put forward (by Huxley,
I think it was) in earlier days, when evolutionism was filling the
mental and spiritual atmosphere of our world with paeans to
Darwin and Darwinism, that if six monkeys were set to strum at
random on typewriters for millions of millions of years they
would be bound in time to write all the books in the British
Museum.’ Surely it requires a greater exercise of faith to give
credence to this supposition, than is required for belief in God.
Of similar grandiose character is Herbert Spencer’s definition
of evolution as “an integration of matter and concomitant dis-
sipation of motion; during which the matter passes from an in-
definite, incoherent, homogeneity to a definite, coherent, hetero-
geneity; and during which the retained motion undergoes a
parallel transformation.” (One is reminded of Oliver Goldsmith’s
statement to the eminent Dr. Johnson, “You make your fishes
talk like whales.”)
8. There are scientists, as we have noted above, who, even
though adhering to the concept of what they call “pure science,’’
according to which “supernatural creation is the denial of sci-
entific intelligibility,’’ still reject, or at least hold questionable,
the claims of evolutionism. However, there are many scientists
who reject evolutionism outright for the Biblical doctrine of
creation, commonly known as meatio7tisnz. Many of these men
are active in the work of the Creation Research Society (Ann
Arbor, Michigan), others in the Bible-Science Association (Cald-
well, Idaho). (One of the outstanding publications of the latter
is the book (320 pages) by Dr. A. E. Wilder Smith, Man’s Origin,
Man’s Destiny.) Those who would try to underscore the impres-
sion that all the brains of mankind are on the side of the evolu-
tionists are simply begging the question: that is to say, the burden
of proof is on them, not on those who oppose them.
9. The words “evolution” and “evolutionism” are two of the
most ambiguous words in our language. “Evolution” means
literally “unrolling,” “unfolding,” etc. As used originally, the
term had reference only to the origin of species: its use was
confined to biological science. Since Darwin’s time, however,
it has become a yardstick for analyzing and tracing chronological- I
ly every cosmical, biological, sociological, and even theological,
1. Op. cit., xxiii, xxiv.
2. Sir Jamcs Jeans, The M?~steriousU??iversc,4.
545
THE ETBRNAL SPIRIT - HIS PERSON AND POWERS
development in the history of humankind. As G. T.W. Patrick
puts it-
The fact is t h a t evolution is a very much overworked word. At the
close of the last century and in the beginning of this one, the idea of
evolution held almost undisputed sway. It was extended f a r beyond its
original application and applied quite universally. We began t o hear of
inorganic, cosmic, astral, geologic and atomic evolution, Even the “de-
, lirious electrons’’ evolved into atoms, and matter itself was a process
of development. Social evolution had already made its appearance, and
we learned t h a t the new law applied also to the development of language,
ideas, beliefs, the family, the church and the state, and to social and
political institutions. In fact, in those days of f i r s t enthusiasms it oc-
curred to no one t h a t there is any realm of reality at all excluded from
the field of evolution. Nothing is fixed or fihal; nothing is created;
everything just grew and is growing.’
Hence, in recent years we have books with such titles as Stellar
Evolution, From Atoms to Stars, Biography of the Earth, and
numerous published articles of the same general trend of thought.
Nowhere, perhaps, is this attempted universalization of the term
made more obvious than in the title of the boo
lished (and made a required textbook in biology in various
public school systems), From Molecules to Man. In all such
evolution is presented as a fact, and dogmatically presented as
a fact.
In this connection, we recall Herbert Spencer’s “cultural
evolution”. theory, namely, that all cultures have moved “for-
ward” or “upward” from suvugerv through barbarism to civili-
zation. This idea has long been abandoned by anthropologists
and sociologists alike. Hegel came forward with his theory of the
course of history, namely, that it is not just the process by which
man comes to a consciousness of God and of the world around
him, but that it is the process as well by which Spirit (Universal
Reason, God) the Absolute comes to a consciousness of Himself;
all this by means of reported sequences of thesis, antithesis, and
synthesis, each synthesis becoming in turn a sort of progressive
thesis. This means, in short, that the space-time continuum is
God in the process of fully.realizing Himself; and as this process
of Self-realization becomes incorporated into rational human
experience, it becomes known in the physical world as Nature
and in the moral world as History. Again, the evolution yard-
stick has been, for a long time, applied to the history of religion.
It was contended that animism (the belief that everything is
“ensouled,” that is, characterized by an inherent vitalizing power,
generally known as %pirit”) was the first form of “religion”;
1. Patrick, Introduction t o Philosophy, Reviaed Edition, 144.
546
ADDENDUM : ON EVOLUTION AND EVOLUTIONISM
that, in time, animism gave way generally to polytheism (char-
acterized by pantheons of anthropomorphic gods and goddesses,
essentially personifications of natural forces) ; that polytheism
was succeeded by henotheism (a pantheon with a single sov-
ereign deity), which in turn gave way to monotheism (belief in
one God who alone is deity). In other words, rather than God
having created man in His own image, man has really created his
gods or God in his own imagination. It is held further that
monotheism will ultimately give way to pantheism, in which God
is identified with Nature, the World, the Universe, the Cosmos,
the Totality of Being. Thus any distinction between Creator
and what is designated the Creation is eliminated. Pantheism is
conceived to be, and presented as, a sophisticated “religion,”
hence the only system acceptable to the “intelligentsia” (whoever
they may be), However, it is doubtful that this general theory is
widely entertained in our day: there is too much evidence that
monotheism has existed along with these other views, somewhere
and in some form, from earliest times. Moreover, a dry-as-dust
intellectualized cult, such as pure pantheism, or any other cult
which ignores the personal “living” God, will never appeal gen-
erally to the aspirations, or satisfy the deeper needs, of the
human spirit. (Some wag has remarked that if he were a
pantheist, his first act of worship, on awaking from sleep each
morning, would be that of turning to his pillow and kissing it
fervently, We see here the folly of talking about worshiping
“nature,” when as a matter of fact nature as an entity does not
even exist. We do not worship nature; rather, we worship the
God of nature, for the fact remains that “the heavens declare
the glory of God, and the firmament showeth his handiwork”
(Ps. 19: 1,cf. Rom. 1:20).
10. Implicit in the meaning of the word “evolution” as gen-
erally used is the idea of progression or “progressive develop- z
ment.” The basis of this idea is the a priori concept that the
historical order must coincide with a certain logical order in each
case; that is to say, as applied by evolutionists, all change neces-
sariIy takes place from the simple to the more complex. In logic
textbooks, this idea is now designated “the genetic fallacy.” As
stated in one such textbook:
Our previous discussions ought to make it clear now t h a t the facts
of history cannot be deduced from logic alone, t h a t factual data are
needed to confirm or verify any speculation as to the past. This truth
condemns all attempts current in the eighteenth century, and still widely
popular, to reconstruct the history of mankind prior to any reliable
records, on the basis of nothing but speculations as to what must have
547
suggested than the well-knom-and archaeologically disproved
-Documentary (Graf-Wellhausen) Theory of the Pentateuch?
The a priori ,assumed correlation, chronologically, between the
cultural background of the Abrahamic era and that of the Fxilic
and Post-Exilic periods has certainly been exploded by evidence
from the diggings at Mari, Nuzi, Ugarit, etc.
establish fully the fact that the cultural backgro
trayed in the book of Genesis is historically accurate.
Qaoting again from the source immediately cited above, we
read as follows:
It is an inexcusable error t o identify the temporal order in which
events have actually occurred with the logical order in which elements
may be put together to constitute existing utions. Actual recorded
knowledge or ignorance is seen to be more complex after increased

knowledge or on closer examination. And many things bewilderingly
complex at first become simpler t o US after systematic study. Genetic
accounts o r theories which attract us by their a priori plausibility thus
cease to do so when we discriminate between the intelligible and the
temporal order, when we subject theories of what actually happened t o the
test of verifiability, The converse error is the supposition that an actual
history of any science, art, or social institution can take the place of a
logical analysis of its structure. When anything grsws by additions
1. Cohen and Nagel, An Introduction to Logic and Scientific Method,
389.
548
ADDENDUM: ON BVOINTION AND EVOLUTIONISM
or accretions, a Itnowledge of the order of such successive additions is a
c~luc?to the constitution of‘ the final result. But not all growth is of that
form. Science, f o r instance, as well as art and certain social or& janiea-
Lions, is sometimes deliberately changed according to some idea o r
pattepn to which previous existence is not relevant.’
3 1. Again, evolutionists-and scientists generally-are prone
t o commit the fallacy of ovel.-simp2ificntion. This is a fallacy
which usually attends the inductive (scientific) method. It is also
known as the “nothing but” fallacy. For example, “Thought is
nothing but the activity of brain cells.” “Thinking is nothing but
sub-vocal conditioning” (according to John B. Watson) “Man I
is nothing but a biological entity.” Evolutionists commit this

fallacy in making no effort to account for the modus operandi
of the many leaps occurring in the alleged evolutionary process
(as Thompson states it, leaps from “the organism that simply
lives” to “the organism that lives and feels” to “the organism
that lives and feels and reasons”), They simply take for granted
that these are matters of degree, although they have no evidence
beyond the realm of inference to prove it. These gaps which
serve to put in bold outlines the ascending levels in the total
hierarchy of being, at which, according to some philosophers, new
increments of power are infused into the ongoing (upward-
moving) total process, D. Elton Trueblood speaks of this hier-
archical character, which Aristotle envisioned in his De Anima,
as that of “radical discontinuity.” This characteristic is surely
emphasized in the Genesis narrative of the Creation. (We have
taken note of this hierarchical character of the totality of being
already, in Part Three above.)
12. Evolutionists, we repeat for the sake of emphasis, simply
take it for granted that these “radical discontinuities” in the as-
cending scale of being are matters of degree, and not matters of
kind. (The notion of the totality of being as a continuum was
put forward in early modern times in the famous doctrine of
the Great Chain of Being. According to this view our world
being the handiwork of a perfect Creator must be “the best of
all possible worlds”; hence, again reasoning n priori, all possible
entities must be actualized, all possible places filled, therein:
there must be an unbroken continuity-a progressive gradation
-of organisms, from the very lowest living being up to the very
highest, God Himself. As stated by Alexander Pope (“Essay on
Man”) :
Of systems possible if ’tis confest
That wisdom infinitr must form thr bcst,
1. op Cit., 389, 390.
549
then
. ..
all must full or not coherent be,
And all t h a t rises, rise in due degree.
The complete picture is as follows:
Vast chain of being! which from God began,
Natures aethereal, human angel, man,
Beast, bird, fish, insect, what no eye can see,
No glass can reach; from Infinite to thee,
From thee to nothing.-On superior pow’rs
Were we to press, inferior might on ours;
Or in the full creation leave a void,
Where, one step broken, the great scale’s destroyed;
For Nature’s chain whatever link you strike,
Tenth, o r ten thousandth, breaks the chain alike.
Thus it will be seen that this imaginative, poetic portrayal of the
Weltanschauung parallels the evolutionary picture, but in so
doing points up the utter futility of any human effort to search
out and specify the almost innumerable links in the so-called
“Great Chain.” Far more sensible it is to accept the hierarchical
picture which, obviously, is in accord with Scripture, experience
the fact.)
In simple truth, evolutionists have no explanation of the
leab from an existing species to a new species, except-to a
certain extent, possibly-by mutations, and these, of course,
themselves need to be explained. As Chesterton writes:
Far away in some strange constellation, in skies infinitely remote,
there is a small star, which astronomers may some day discover.
is a star which brings forth out of itself very strange plants and very
... It
strange animals and none stranger than the men of science. . Most
modern histories of mankind begin with the word evolution, and with
. .
a rather wordy exposition of evolution. ... , There is something slow
and soothing and gradual about the word and even about the idea.
As a matter of fact, it is not, touching primary things, a vepy practical
word o r a very profitable idea. Nobody can imagine how nothing could
t u r n into something else. It i s really f a r more logical to start by saying,
“In the beginning God created heaven and earth” even if you only mean
“In the beginning SOP- unthinkable power began some unthinkable
process.’’ For God is by s nature a name of mystery, and nobody ever
supposed t h a t a man COI imagine how a world was created any more
than he could create one. Gut evolution really is mistaken f o r explana-
tion. It h a s the f a t a l quality of leaving on many minds the impression
t h a t they do understand it and everything else; just a s many of them
live under a s o r t of illusion that they have read the Origin of Species.
B u t this notion of something smooth and slow, like the ascent of a
slope, is a great part of the illusion. It is illogicality as well as an
illusion; for slowness has nothing to do with the question. An event i s
not any more intrinsically intelligible or unintelligible because of the
pace at which it moves. For a man who does not believe in a miracle, a
slow miracle would be just a s incredible a s a swift one. The Greek witch
may have turned sailors to swine with a stroke of the wand. But to see
550
a naval gentleman of our acquaintance looking a little more like a pig
every day, till he ended with four trotters and a curly tail, would not
be any more soothing. It might be rather more creepy and uncanny. The
medieval wizard may have flown through the air from the top of a
tower, but to see an old gentleman walking through the air, in a leisurely
and lounging manner, would sCill seem t o call f o r some explanation.
Yet there runs through all the rationalistic treatment of history this
curious and confused idea that difficulty is avoided, or even mystery
eliminated, by dwelling on mere delay or on something dilatory in the
processes of things. , , the question here is the false atmosphere o€
I
facility and ease given by the mere suggestion of going slow; the sort
of comfort th?t might be given t o a nervous old woman traveling for
the first time in a motor car. ..
. What we know, in a sense which we
know nothing else, is that the trees and grass [of our world] did grow
and that a number of extraordinary things do in fact happen; t h a t
queer creatures support themselves in the empty air by beating I t with
fans of various fantastic shapes; t h a t other queer creatures steer them-
selves about alive under a load of mighty waters; t h a t other queer
creatures walk about on four legs, and t h a t the queerest creature of
all walks about on two. These are things and not theories; and compared
with them evolution and the atom and even the solar system are merely
theories. The matter here is one of history and not of philosophy; so
that it need only be noted t h a t no philosopher denies t h a t a mystery
still attaches t o the two great transitions: the origin of the universe
itself and the origin of the principle of life itsel€. Most philosophers
have the enlightenment to add that a third mystery attaches t o the
origin of man himself. I n other words a third bridge was built across
a third abyas of the unthinkable when there came into the world what
we call reason and what we call will. M a n is not merely an evolution
but rather a revolutaon. That he has a backbone or other parts upon a
similar pattern t o birds and fishes is a n obvious fact, whatever be the
meaning of the fact. But if we attempt t o regard him, as it were, a s a
quadruped standing on his hind legs, we shall find what follows f a r
more fantastic and subversive than if he were standing on his head.
, . . Above all, this illustrates what I mean by saying t h a t the more
we really look a t man a s an animal, the less he will look like one?
13. The foregoing excerpt brings out in bold relief another
common fallacy of “the scientific method,” namely, the sub rosa
assumption that t o name something i s t o explain it. Take muta-
tions, for example: what are they? Etymologically, the word,
from the Latin, muto, mutare, means simply t o change, ie., in
form, characteristics, powers, etc. In evolutionism, mutations are
sudden variations, “long jumps” in the alIeged lile process, from
species to species. Still and all, the name does not give us any
t h o r o u g h explanation of the process itself. Dr. Tsanoff writes:
“The theory of mutations, as developed and interpreted by care-
ful geneticists, has reached specific conclusions regarding the
evolutionary results of changes in the germ plasm. But the
larger pattern of evolutionary cosmology can scarcely be re-
garded as ascertained.”a Take the term protoplasm; what is
1. Chesterton, The E w e d a t i n g M a n , 21-25.
2. Tsanoff, T h e Great Pkilosoplws, 567.
551
THE ETERNAL SPIRIT - HIS PERSON AND POWRRS
protoplasm? First living substance, of course. But what is this
first living substance, literally, first matter to be moulded?
Who knows? Has protoplasm ever been “broken down” in the
laboratory? And what is protoplasmic irritability?. In all these
cases one is reminded of John Locke’s definition of matter as
“something-I-know-not-what.” All these words are names which
serve f o r identification, but as for explanation they certainly
fall short. A great need of scientists in our day and age are t h e
disciplines of logic and metaphysics.
14. Evolutionism requires an almost unlimited stretch of time
to account for all the developments envisioned by the theory.
Apparently, its advocates expect us to accept without question
the necessity of such an extent o f time to any adequate explana-
tion o f the process, and, at the same time they arbitrarily use
this hypothetical extent ’of time to support their theory of the
process. Is not this a form of begging the question, another case
of theoretical backscratching? Is it not true that the stretch of
time required by the theory puts it beyond any likelihood of clear
proof-and even disproof-empirically, that is, by the testimony
of eye-witnesses? One is reminded here of Hilaire Belloc’s “Ode
to a Microbe”-
The Microbe is so very small
You cannot make him out a t all, .
But many’sanguine people hope
To see him through a microscope,
His jointed tongue that lies beneath
A hundred curious rows of teeth;
His seven tufted tails with lots
Of lovely pink and purple spots,
On each of which a pattern stands,
Composed of forty separate bands;
His eyebrows of a tender green;
All these have never yet been seen-
But Scientists, who ought t o know,
..
Assure us t h a t they must be so.
Oh ! let us never, never doubt
What nobody is sure about!l
I t must be realized, in this connection, that Time is riot a
Creator. In evolutionism, time becomes a factotum to be used in
whateser way possible to give substance to the general hypothesis.
15. As stated heretofore, the term “evolution” in common
parlance means simply development, progression, etc., in terms
of a sequence. Progression, however, is not always easy to define.
I might line up a wheelbarrow, a gig, a buggy, i! wagon, an
1. Belloc, More Beasts for Worse Childyen, in Cautionarg Verses.
(Knopf, 1951).
552
automobile, and even an airplane, in a single row side by side.
There would be some structural resemblance, of course. But
we know, in this case, that one of these vehjcles is not the out-
growth (“emergent”) of that type which preceded it; we know,
rather, that all of them were products alike of human technology,
inventions of the human intelligence. We know also that as a
sequence they spell progression; this progression, obviously, is
distinct from that kind of progression which is brought about
by the operation of resident forces characteristic of the different
levels of being. However, “evolution” is often used to signify
a going forward, a development, a progression, that is not
“emergent” in any sense of the term, Hence, we speak of the
evolution of political systems, of social organization, of the sci-
ence of medicine, of technology, of ethics and law, etc. But the
evolution that has been in vogue from the beginning in biological
science is that which is defined by LeConte as “continuous
progressive change, according to fixed laws, by means of resi-
dent forces.)’ This is the evolution which we are considering here.
(Note the full import here of the word, “resident.”) As a
matter of fact the “time” element works against “progressiveism,”
that is to say, “increased time spans in biological systems will
merely increase the probability of equilibrium being set up and
not the probability of improbable reaction products being
formed.” “As infinite time is approgche&,cinfinite randomness
will be achieved, namely, complete lack of order.’’ In a word,
time does not provide the possibility for the occurrence of the
highly improbable. (Vide Harold F. Blum, Time’s Arrows and
Evolution, 178A).
16. Obviously, theories of this type, that is, as related to the
traditional LeContian definition, are based on the assumption
that all so-called progressive change (by means of resident
forces) is fortuitous, that is occurring by “accident” or by
“chance” (purposelessness) ; hence, they are commonly designated
“materialistic” or “mechanistic” theories. This writer finds it
difficult to accept the notion that a movement can be repeatedly
“progressive” and at the same time “fortuitous.” Surely, we
have here a semantic paradox, to say the least! (The same is
true of the phrase “natural selection.” Selectivity surely con-
notes, presupposes, deliberation and choice; how, then, can im-
persona1 “nature” rightly be said to “select” anything?) How-
ever, it is a characteristic of the devotees of evolutionism to in-
dulge “double talk,” perhaps unwittingly at times, in their use
of terminology. (Again, we call attention to the great need for
553
the disciplines of logic and metaphysics in the formulation of
scientific theory,)
17. Theories of what is called “emergent evolution” tend
to the organismic, rather than the mechunistic, explanation of
the various facets of the life process. (We have presented the
claims of emergentim, holism, etc., in preceding sections of this
work; however, we shall briefly restate a few of the facts about
this view.) Emergentism is the theory that, in general, evolution
is a naturalistic process proceeding from the operation of resi-
dent, yet essmtially vitalistic, force or forces; that each “emer-
gent” has a different structure with additional properties, and
its own behavior patterns; that each “emergent” not only has
subsistence per se (that is, after “emerging”), but also acts as a
causal agency, a transmitter of effects. Moreover, it is said to be
beyond the ability of human intelligence to know how many
levels of “emergence” there may be or may yet come to be.
If one should ask what it is that causes these “emergents” to
<<
emerge,’’ the answer is that a nisus or pull does it. The theory
of some members of this school is that the pull is exerted by
‘‘whatever lies ahead.” But it is difficult to understand just how
“whatever lies ahead” actually exists in order to exert a pull,
when according to the theory it is in the process of being ac-
tualized (or should we say, of actualizing itself?). If “God”
is envisioned as the ‘Ultimate “Emergent”-the Goal of the
Process-as seems to be implicit in the Hegelian theory of the
Absolute-then God is, in terms of the theory, in the indeter-
minable and indeed interminable process of becoming God.
Hence, other advocates of the theory indentify the nisus with a
push-an impulsion-from within. Be that as it may, in either
case, God is presented to us as engaged in the age-long cosmic
business of Becoming, not Himself, but Itself. Emergentism is
c: its “God” is either “nature” as a whole, or an im-
process operating in “nature.” (Cf. the philosophical
system known as “Holism.” According to this system, the Crea-
tive Process-that is, Evolution-stabilizes being in successively
more‘ complex wholes (the atom, the cell, etc.,), of which the
most advanced and most complex is the person or personality.‘
Eolism is a form of Emergentism.)
basis of the inclusion of human intelligence in evolu-
ying, perhaps, the most important role in the process,
of the theory in our day take the position generally
1. J . C . Smuts,Holism and Evolution, 261-262.
554
that societal (or psychological) evolution has superseded in large
measure what has heretofore been known as organic (biological)
evolution. (For a clear presentation of this view, see the book,
Human Destiny, by Lecomte du Nouy; also the concluding chap-
ters of the Mentor books, The Meaning of Evolution, by George
G. Simpson, and Evolution in Action, by Julian Huxley; and
especially the books by Pierre Teilhard de Chardin, The Phe-
nomenon o f M a n and The Future of Man. See Bibliography
infra,) Teifiard envisions evolution through a gradation of forms
from atomic particles to human beings, in ever increasing com-
plexity of structure, and along with it, development of conscious-
ness (a kind of panpsychism). Man is the focal point in whom
all facets of the evolutionary process converge, and in man re-
flective thought finally emerges. The unique idea in Teilhard’s
system is his view that the ultimate reality of this cosmic de-
velopment (that is, of evolution) is the incarnate Christ (not the
“superman” of Nietzche, nor that of Samuel Butler, nor that
of G. B. Shaw’s Man and Superman or his Back to Methuselah,
but the God-Man.) Two quotations from this writer are pertinent:
“The only universe capable of containing the human person is
an irrevocably ‘personalizing’ universe.” Again, “In one manner
or the other, it still remains true that, even in the view of the
mere biologist, the human epic resembles nothing so much as a
way of the Cross.”’ This, to be sure, is another-and more pro-
found-theory of emergentism. Like that of Bergson’s creative
evolution (described below), this is an honest effort to describe
the modus operandi of the alleged evolutionary process, which in
the last analysis becomes an effort to describe the indescribable
-the ineffable. T h e mystery of t h e life movement itself is too
profound to yield its secrets t o the mere human intellect.
18. T h e Mystery o f the Life Movement. Evolution is de-
sribed as continuous progressive change, nccording t o jixed laws,
b y means of resident forces. The word “evolution” designates
the process; “evolutionism,” however, designates how the process
proceeds, that is, the phenomena that are said to actualize it,
in Aristotelian terms, the efficient causality of it. These are
usually listed as follows: (1) Lamarck (1744-1829) : the trans-
mission of characteristics (modifications) acquired through the
interaction of the organism and its environment. This theory is
now generally rejected, except by the Russian biologist, Lysenko,
who has been all but canonized by the Kremlin oligarchy for his
1. Teilhard de Chardin, The Phenomenon of Man, 290-311.
555
THE ETQRNAL SPIRIT - HIS PERSON AND POWERS
revival of it. (2) Charles Darwin (1809-1882),getting his cue
from Malthus’s Essay on Population (the thesis of which was
lation Increases in geometrical .proportion,
th’s resources multiply only in arithmetical pro-$
portion, the time will come when the earth will not be able to
provide food for its population, unless some selective process
removes the surplus), proposed the theory of evolution by
natural Selection. The process of struggle for existence, Darwin
held, selects out and preserves only those organisms which prove
to be the most capable of adapting to environment (the doctrine
of the survival of the fittest, that is, the fittest to demonstrate
survival quality by adaptation) , Incidentally, Darwin’s con-
temporary, Alfred Russel Wallace (1823-1913) had arrived at
the natura1 selection theory even before Darwin, but Darwin
happened to beat him into print. (They were always good friends,
however.) Wallace pointed out the fact to Darwin that while
natural selection might account for the survival of an existing
species, it did not account for the arrival of new species. (3)
August Weismann (1844-1914) contended that the explanation of
evolution lies in t h e continuity of the germ-plasm. It seems ob-
vious, however, that only process and form (the form being, e.g.,
in man’s case, that which specifies man as man) can be trans-
mitted from generation to generation through the germ-plasm:
Germ-cells are affected, it seems, only by variations of mutations
in themselves, and not by what goes on in the life of the parent.
(&ill and all, it seems incontrovertible that any modification in
the parent organism is transmissible only through the chromo-
somes and genes. Moreover, genes are but hypothetical “deterl
miners’’ of heredity operating beyond the world of sense-percep-
tion. (4) Mutations, discovered by the Dutch botanist De Vries
(1848-1935) are sudden big leaps to new species which are said
to breed true per se. It is commonly held that evolution might
have proceeded by these abrupt and relatively permanent ger-
minal changes rather than by slight variations. (There are
some, however, who contend that mutations might have come
about through slowly accumulating changes in the genes. To
this writer’s thinking mutations are indispensable to any pos-
sible validation of the evolution theory. Moreover, mutations
have all the appearance of special creations. (This brings us
back to the discussion of the “radical dis
make themselves manifest in the hierarchical i
totality of being, and the-view that at different stages in the
Creative Process, God infused into it new increments of force,
556
that is, new and distinct powers, by direct action, thus bringing
into existence the successively higher levels characterized by
energy-matter, life, consciousness, and self-consciousness, in the
order named. According to this view, Creation involved n e w
increnzents of power plus continuity of plan, (See again mate-
rial presented in Part Three of the present work. Cf. also the
title of the well-known book by Hoernle, Matter, Life, Mind
and God.) ( 5 ) The “laws” of heredity as first formulated by
the Austrian monk and botanist, Gregor Mendel (1824-1884) are
believed to play a significant role also in the alleged evolutionary
process. (6) Protagonists of the theory in our day are inclined
to agree that evolution may have proceeded in all these ways,
with the sole exception of the Lamarckian notion of the in-
heritance of acquired characteristics, However, tlte phenomena
characterizing this life movement leave t h e very essence of the
movement, the power that produces it and causes it t o surge for-
ward, as the theory demands, still unaccounted for.
19. Under the evolution hypothesis thcre are two rather
significant views of the movement of the process. as follows:
(1) What is called orthogenesis, that is, “straight line” evolution
(of which the poetic version is that of the “Great Chain of
Being”). This is the view that variation in successive generations
of a succession of parents and offspring follows a specific line of
development, finally undeviatingly evolving a new type. The
classic example is that of the very ancient and small “eohippus”
which by gradual, step-by-step change is said t o have evolved
in the horse that we know today. This is also known as the
theory of “determinate variation.” (2) There is also the view
of what might properly be called fountainlike evolution. This
is the doctrine of the late French philosopher, Henri Bergson
(1859-1941). Bergson’s thesis is that the phenomena envisoned
by evolutionism do not explain evolution, that is, the life move-
ment itself; that this surge upward of the what might be called
the core of the Creative Process is explainable only as the Elan
Vital (Life Force). In Bergson’s thought the Elan Vita1 is the
primordia1 cosmic principle, the ground of all being, that is at
the very root of evolution, a vital push or impulsion “pervading
matter, insinuating itself into it, overcoming its inertia and re-
sistance, determining the direction of evolution as well as evolu-
tion itself.”‘ This never-ceasing free activity is Life itself. Indeed
Bergsori speaks of it as “Spirit,” as a directing Consciousness as
1. Bergson, Creative Evolution.
557
well as an actualizing Power. The unique aspect of this view
is Bergson’s picture of Life Force operating like a fountain,
so to speak, with a center “from which worlds shoot out like
rockets in a fireworks display,” “as a series of jets gushing out
from the immense reservoir of life.” We must be careful, how-
ever, not to think of this center as a “thing”-we must think of it
only as a process. Moreover, as the core-movement pushes up-
ward, according to Bergson’s theory, the push encounters re-
sistance by the matter on which it works; hence, there is a falling
back toward gross matter by the residue that is left behind by
the progressive push of Life toward fulness of being. According
to this theory, the Elan Vital manifests itself in the lower animals
in the form of instinct; it manifests itself in man in the form of
intelligence (intellection), the power that enables him to surge
upward through learning by trial-and-error; it will ultimately
push on to what Bergson calls intuition. in man, which will be
immediacy in man’s apprehension of truth, corresponding in a
way, but on a much higher level, to the immediacy of the brute’s
response to sensory stimuli. Bergson envisions nothing beyond
this power of intuition. (It would seem indeed that what we
have learned in recent years about the phenomena of the sub-
conscious in man constitutes a genuine prognosis of Bergson’s
theory of human intuition. See s u p ~ a Part
, Two, Section 6.) Of
course this fountainlike description of the movement, of evolution,
allowing for both progression and retrogression, is another theory
of emergentism. (One of my science professors remarked to me
once that to him evolution simply meant variation, and variation
either upward or downward. This is approximately Bergson’s
view.)
20. Alleged Evidence for Evolzitionism. The evidence gen-
erally cited by evolutionists to support their theory may be sum-
marized an follows: (1) Comparative anatomy, or structural re-
semblance among species. (But to what extent does structural
resemblance necessarily prove emergence? Could it not be
interpreted as supporting the view that a Creative Intelligence
simply used the same general pattern in creating living species?)
(1) Embryology: the embryos of different animal species tend
to similar development in early stages. Those of lower animals
are said to cease developing at certain points; those of higher
animals move upward through additional stages of development.
Ontogeny is said to recapitulate phybgeny; that is, each indi-
vidual organism of a certain phylum tends to recapitulate stages
through which its ancestors have passed in their racial history.
558
ADDENDUM: ON DVOLUTION AND EVOI.IJTJONISM
(The idea is seriously questioned today by many biologists.)
(3) Serologv: the blood composition of higher animals is the
same. Samples of blood from closely related higher animals can
be mixed, whereas an antagonistic reaction sets in ii there is
wide separation between the species. (4) Vestigial remains:
the presence of unused organs, Usually cited in this category are
the appendix in man, degenerate eyes in cave animals, wings
of the female gypsy moth, etc, (5) Geographical distribution of
animals: arrested development of flora and fauna in areas cut
off in prehistoric times from continental land masses. The classic
example of this are the marsupials of Australia. (Yet the opos-
sum, whose only natural habitat is America, is a marsupial.)
(6) Paleontology: correlation of the ascending scale of the
simple to the more complex of fossil forms with successively
earlier to later geological strata. (Thus geologists rely on the
evidence of paleontology to support historical geology, and the
paleontologists cite the evidence of geology to support their
chronology of fossil remains, This, some wag has remarked,
borrowing from the comic strips of the nineteen-twenties, is a
kind of Alphonse-and-Gaston stunt.) (7) Artificial selection.
That is, changes brought about by selective breeding, by the
application of human intelligence; for example, by Mendel, Bur-
bank, and others. This, it is claimed, adds momentum to the
whole process. (8) Classification of animals in phyla, classes,
genera, species, orders, families, etc., in ascending order of com-
plexity, from unicellular organisms up to man.
21. Materialistic Evolutionism. “his is the world-view that
all things have “evolved” by accident or chance (that is, pur-
poselessness) . Devotees of this cult simply refuse to recognize Ef-
ficient Causality of any kind in the origin and preservation of the
cosmos (with the sole exception of some form or forms of primal
physical energy) ; they rest their case on the eternity of matter-
in-motion. (Obviously, then, this primal physical energy is
their “god.”) With disarming simplicity they proceed to describe
all phenomena of the cosmos, including those of the life processes
and of the thought processes, in terms of a “fortuitous concourse
of atoms” (or sub-atomic forces), The credo of the materialistic
evolutionists is bluntly stated in what rightly may be designated
their “Bible,” namely, the book by George Gaylord Simpson,
The Meaning of Evolution. Simpson writes!
In preceding pages evidence was given, thoroughly concIusive, as
I believe, that organic evolution is a process entirely materialistic in
.
its origin and operation. . , It lias also been shown that purpose and
559
THE I?TEltNAL SPIRIT - HIS PERSON AND POWERS
plan are not characteristic of organic evolution and aye not a key to
any of its operations. , . . Man was certainly not the goal of evolution,
which had no goal. [He goes on to say, however, that with tlie entrance
of the human mind into the process, purpose and plan did come into
operation : this he designates “the new evolution”]
[ H e continues]: But puppose and plan a r e characteristic in the new
evolution, because man has purposes, and he makes plans. Here pur-
pose xiid plan do definitely enter into evolution, ils a result and not
as LI. cause of the processes seen in the long Iiistory of life. Tlie puipst’s
and plans a r e ours, not those of the universe, which displays convincing
evidence of their absence.’
It is difficult to see how an intelligent man could make such a
fatuous statement, especially in view of the fact of the mnthe-
maticnl preciseness that characterizes the processes of that which
we call “nature,” and without which 110 science could ever be
fownidnted. Any ma% who denies efficient causality destroys
science, end even the possibilitg of science. We are reminded
here of a statement by the late British philosopher, C . D. Broad,
to the effect that the theory of determinism (denial of any free-
dom of choice) is so absurd that only a very learned man could
ever have cojured it up. (Small wonder that materialists prefer
to be known by a more felicitous name, such as “haturalist” or
“humanist”!)
As stated hei*etofore, materialistic evolution is usually de-
scribed as “mechanistic.” The word “mechanism,” however, has
a question-begging aspect. Machines are contrivances, but as
far as human experience goes, they are contrivances of some
intelligent agent to serve some function, to gain some end.
Moreover, anyone who insists that the cosmos is just a great
machine, is simply reading into his understanding of it the prop-
erties and powers that he himself sees in a machine. (Is not
this another case of anthropomorphism?) Now it seems obvious
that in an organization of any kind an organizing agency is re-
quired: some power by which elements are organized into wholes
of being; some power to marshal them into a cosmos or world
order. This, moreover, would have to be some kind of power
that is entirely different from mechanical forces, and the op-
posite of gravitational force; gravitational force tends to drag
the physical world down to a “heat-death.” which is technically
defined as a state 0% “maximum entropy.” (The physicists tell
us that the cosmic clock, so to speak, is running down as matter
continues to dissolve into radiation and energy continues to be
dissipated into empty space.) However, the basic thesis of
evolutionism is progression or progressive development; and
1. Simpson, o p cit., 143.
560
progression is precisely the aspect that is of importance to it.
But progression implies a goal to which the movement is di-
rected, toward which someone or something is striving, and thus
the idea of progression belies the concept of mechanism. Ob-
viously, “mechanism” and “evolution” are irreconcilable terms,
As Bishop Butler has written, in his famous AnaEogy:
The only distinct meaning of the word “natural” is stated, f i s e d , or
settled: since what is natural as much requires and presupposes a n
intelligent agent t o render it so, i e . , t o effect it continually or at stated
times, as what is supernatural o r miraculous does t o effect i t for once?
In a word, with respect to what are called “the laws of nature,’’
we should not say, “the more law, the less God,” but we should
say, “the more law, the more God.” Laplace once declared that
he had swept the heavens with his telescope and could not find
a God anywhere, One of his contemporaries remarked that “he
might just as well have swept his kitchen with a broom.” Be-
cause God is not corporeal in any sense (Exo. 3: 14, John 4:24) ;
He is not t o be apprehended by any physical or corporeal means
(John 1:18). Hence the stupidity of the Russian astronaut who
is reported to have said that in all his travels throughout the
celestial realm he had seearched the stratosphere in every di-
rection to find God but had failed to do so. Of course he failed-
the humblest, most secularly-uneducated student of the Bible
ltnows why.
Of course, the Christian cannot possibly accept materialistic
evolutionism, because it directly contradicts the Biblical doc-
trines of the eternal purpose and sovereignty of God. (Cf. Isa.
46:-11; Acts 15:8, 17:30-31; 1 Cor. 15:20-28; Eph. 3:B-12). Nor
is there any good reason why any Christian, or any other in-
telligent person, should accept it, for several reasons. In the
first place, any unbiased person can readily see that the phe-
nomena of personality (perception, consciousness, and especially
meaning) are not entirely reducible, if reducible at all, to
“matter-in-motion” (brain cell activity) . As the noted physicist,
Sir Arthur Eddington, has written:
Force, energy, dimensions belong to the world of symbols: it is
out of such conceptions t h a t we have built up the external world of
.
physics. . , We have t o build the spiritual world out of symbols taken
from our own personality, as we build the scientific world out of the
symbols of the mathematician.8
1. Butler, (Bishop) Joseph, Tlze Atzalogy of Religion Natuval and
Revealed, Everyman’s edition, 20-21.
2. Eddington, Science and the Unsesn World, 82.
561
We recall here also the words of Professor Claude Tresmontant,
who teaches the Philosophy of Science at the Sorbonne:
The discoveries of modern science have made i t easier to prove the
existence of God than it used to t o be. Those who find no place for Gad
in their philosophy must be prepared to affirm that mindlew, inanimate
matter has been able t o organize itself, t o become animated, and to endow
.
itself with consciousness and thought. , , If the material universe is
to be regarded as the only reality, matter must be credited with all the
attributes t h a t theologiahs specify a s belonging to God, including su-
preme intelligence, creative power, and eternal, autonomous existence.
When asked if the emergence of life could not be attributed pure-
ly to the laws of chance over a very long period of time, he
replied:
It may be theoretically possible, but mathematically it is so ex-
tremely improbable t h a t only a few scientists now seriously think that
pure chance can be put forward a s an explanation of the emergence
of even the simplest living 0rganism.l
As Fred Emerson Brooks has written in his poem ““he Grave
Digger”-
“If chance could fashion but one little flower
With perfume for each tiny leaf,
And furnish it with sunshine and with shower-
Then chance would be Creator with the power
To build a world for unbelief.”
Materialistic evolution simpZzJ cannot be harmonized with
the empirical fact of cosmic order. This order is clearly evident
(1) from the mathematical relations characteristic of the proc-
esses of the physical world and the mathematical formulae by
which they are amenable to precise description; (2) from the
manifold interrelationships of ends and means, as empirically
discerned, prevailing throughout the totality of being; (3) from
the predetermined (planned) life cycles of all living species,
and (4) from the over-all adaptation of nature to human life
and its needs. Old Pythagoras was right when he declared that
“things are numbers,” that is tq say, mathematical preciseness
is the prime reality of the cosmos. When an astronomer, for
instance, predicts the time of an eclipse and it fails to come off
as predicted, he does not charge the failure to the movements
of the heavenly bodies; no, indeed, he immediately turns to his
figures to see where he has made a mistake in his calculations.
Again, the atoms of one element are differentiated from those
of the other elements by the number of protons in the nucleus
1. From “So You Are an Agnostic,” Sar Shalbm Publications, 236
W. 72nd St., New York, N. Y. 10023
562
and the corresponding number of electrons in the orbit (from
one and one in the hydrogen atom up to 92 and 92 in the uranium
.
atom) Similarly, the differentiation o i living species is deter-
mined by the number of chromosomes in the reproductive male
and female cells. Even the physical phenomenon of color is
now found to be reducible to numerical terms, and that of sound
as well, and the result is television video and audio. As stated
often herein, the word cosmos means order; lacking this order,
human science would be impossible, for the simple reason that
science is man’s discovery and description of the order prevail-
ing in the various segments of the physical world. Surely this
architectonic order presupposes a Supreme Orderer, a directing
Mind and Will. I t is inconceivable that sheer chance could have
produced the order w e find all around us. (The student is urged
to read the little book (107 pages) by the eminent scientist, A.
Cressy Morrison, Man Does Not Stand Alone.) The Morrison
book, according to its author, is written to “challenge the con-
clusion of Julian Huxley in his book, Man Stands Alone.” Con-
trary to the usual and much over-worked theme of man’s
adaptation to nature, Morrison’s thesis is that of t h e amazing
adaptation of nature to man. His conclusions are as follows:
My purpose in this discussion of chance is to bring forcibly t o the
attention of the reader the fact that the purpose of this book is to point
out clearly and scientifically the narrow limits within which a n y life
can exist on earth, and prove by real evidence t h a t all the nearly exact
requirements of life could not be brought about on one planet at one
time by chance. The size of the earth, the distance from the sun, the
temperature and the life-giving rays of the sun, the thickness of the
earth’s crust, the quantity of water, the amount of carbon dioxide, the
volume of nitrogen, the emergence of man and his survival-all point
t o order out of chaos, t o design and purpose, and to the fact that, acord-
ing t o the inexorable laws of mathematics, all these could not occur by
chance simultaneously on one planet once in a billion times. It could
so occur but it did not 80 occul‘. When the facts are so overwhelming,
and when we recognize, a s we must, the attributes of our minds which
are not material, is it possible to flaunt the evidence and take the one
chance in a billion t h a t we and all else are the result of chance? We
have found that there are 999,999,999 chances to one against a belief
that all things happen by chance. Science will not deny the facts as
stated; the mathematicians will agree that the figures a r e correct.
Now we encounter the stubborn resistance of the human mind, which
is reluctant t o give up fixed ideas. The early Greeks knew the earth
was a sphere, but it took two thousand years to convince men t h a t this
fact is true. New ideas encounter opposition, ridicule, and abuse, but
truth survives and is verified,l
To be sure, in our day, evolutionists admit the introduction
of purpose now that-as they contend-psychological evolution
1. o p , cit., 99, 100.
563
TH,E ETERNAL SPIRIT - HIS PERSON AND POWERS
has taken over from the biological. (We have noted this in the
excerpt quoted ab,ove from Simpson’s book.) Purpose entered
re, we are told, along with the human intellect
seful selection and striving. It strikes
us, however, that relating purpose with human mental
activity, by analog re bound to conclude that the design
which prevails throughout the subhuman world points irrefut-
ably to another and perior kind of mental activity, that o j
the Creative intellig e and. Will. Man, obviously, does not
create; he simply uses the material which he finds at hand to be
used for his own purposes.
This is precisely the argument presented by the distinguiihed
Professor of Philosophy at Earlham College, D. Elton Trueblood,
who writes as follows, after first pointing up the fact of the
kinship between mind and nature, and showing that this fact
lies at the root of the very success of scientific achievement.
He writes as follows:
Whatever our explanation of this correspondence, and it may be
said in passing t h a t the hypothesis of the existence of God, who is at
once the Creator of the natural order, and the Creator of man’s mind,
is a fully adequate explanation, there is no avoiding the fact t h a t the
kinship between mind
of whatever success
a f f j w n the existence
not now fully intellig
mentally irrational elements, b
elimination of many supposed ch have finally beed
understood. The meaning of th comes more appareht
when we consider the significanc
Trueblood goes on to discuss the role of purpose in explanation:
A situation is never understood until we have some intimation of
why it has occurred, and we never have a n intimation of “why” until
we come into contact with purpose. Purpose, in turn, is meaningless
a p a r t from a mind which entertains the purpose. Not only is purpose
a self-explanatory priliciple; there is, so f a r as we are aware, no other.
All other types of explanation leave fundamental qUeStiOhS unanswered.
We go on asking, “Why?” in exactly th,e same w a y as b e f o m . . . I f a
nail is being driven, we discover a set of secondary causes reaching all
the way from the purpose of the carpenter to the completed process.
The nail goes in because the hammer hits it. The hammer head moves
because i t is moved by the muscles of a man’s arm. The a r m muscles
move became they a r e dir$xted, by nerve impulses. But the whole enter-
prise takes place became a man has a reasod for driving a nail in a
board. Perhaps he wants to build a house for his friend. Our language
obscures the true situation in that we use the same word “because” in
each case, but reflection shows t h a t the word in its fourth use means
something very different from what it means in the first three uses.
The f i r s t three do not really explain, but the fourth does explain. This
remains true even when we ask why the man wants to build the house.
564
ADDENDUM: ON llVOLUTION AND BVOLUTIONISM
We, then, have solved our f k s t problem and have turned to another.
When we t r y to explain a purpose we find t h a t our only recourse is t o
refer to olher and more inclusive purposes. Tlius, Purpose is really
a n ultimate principle of explanation, and tlie only adequate explanation
of tlie world would be the Purpose wliich includes the whole process.
If the woyld is understandable, such a Purpose must exist. But the
belie€ in the existence of such a Purpose is tlieism. Because science
shows the world to be intelligible, a t least to a considerable degree,
science becomes a witness t o intelligent Purpose in nature and conse-
quently it bears testimony t o the credibility of t1ieism.l
At this point Dr. Trueblood quotes from Baron von Hugel as
follows:
Already Mathematics and Mechanics absolutely depend, f o r the
success of their applications t o actual Nature, upon a spontaneous cor-
respondence between the human reason and the Rationality of Nature.
The immensity of this success is a n unanswerable proof that this ra-
tionality is not imposed but found there by man. But Thought without
a Thinker is a n absurd proposition. Thus faith in Science is faith in God.'
Incidentally, this final statement supports the firm conviction
of the present writer, that Biblical students need not fear
science. In a word, God has written two books: one is the Book
of Nature (Psa. 19:1, Rom. 1:20-21, Heb. 11:3), in which He
reveals His everlasting power and divinity; the other is the
Book of Scripture (2 Tim. 3:16), in which He reveals His Plan
of Redemption for mankind. Science is, of course, man's attempt
to interpret the former of these Books, and what is called Sys-
tematic Theology is man's attempt to interpret the latter. Ob-
viously there may be apparent discrepancies between these inter-
pretations, for the simple reason that man is liable to error.
But, in the very nature of the case, there can be no discrepancies
between the content of the two books, because both are from
God from whom all Truth comes to man, and Truth does not
contradict itself. (Cf. John 8:31-32, 14:6, 17:17, 18:37.) In this
connection, we quote again from Trueblood:
When we are told that gas pressure is explained by movement of
molecules, we ask why the molecules move, and we a r e asking precisely
the same kind of question again. When we trace a n occurrence to the
purpose of a n intelligent being, however, tlie situation is completely
altered. We may, indeed, ask why such a purpose is entertained, but
when we do so we are asking a uestion of a different order. We have
come t o the end of one road an! are starting on another. The causes
which produce a purpose are entirely different from the set of secondary
causes which result from a 'purpose.8
1. Trueblood, PhiZosophy of Religion, 96, 97.
2. Baron Friedrich yon Hugel, Essays and Addresses o n the Philoso-
phy of Religion, 71.
3. Trueblood, op cit., 97.
565
TVE ETERNAL SPIRIT - HIS PERSON AND POWERS
The process of explaining may come somewhere to a n end, and it
comes to a n end only when we reach “principles deducible from nothing
prior to themselves.” In explanation we seek a connection between
what is to be explained and what we already understand, at least in
some measure. “The business of philosophy is not so much to explain
things as t o find the things that explain themselves.”’
Due to the correlation of the mind and the natural order which
it apprehends, Trueblood contends, ours is the kind of a world
in which science is possible. Hence, he affirms, the very existence
of science supports what he calls the “fact” of evolution. (He is,
of course, like A. Cressy Morrison, what is designated a theistic
evolutionist.) He finds a conclusive support for this kind of
evolutionism in the rationality of the objective order arid its
discovery by the human mind. Note the following statements:
“Thinking is grounded in the process of adjustment between organism
.
and environment” [quoted from Temple, op. cit., 1281. . . The highest
point in creation, so f a r as we know, is the capacity t o comprehend the
world, but this capacity has arisen by degrees in the natural order:
A t one end of the evolutionary series is unconscious life, and at the
other is self-conscious life, but it is all orre sem’es. . . . The fact that
a process is rational does not mean that the ground of that rationality
is necessarily revealed in the beginning. I n fact the ground of the
rationality need not appear until the end of the series of events, but
when i t appears i t illuminates the entire process. This is well illus-
trated in dramatic poetry and in the lives of good men. Seen in retro-
spect, such lives are thoroughly rationalized wholes becadse of what,,
.
all along, they were becorriiiig. . . If the general evolutionary theory
is t r u e and if man’s life be included in the theory, we cannot escape the
conclusion, once more, that mind and nature are akin. . . . The relation,
“akin to” is a symmetrical relation. If mind i s akin to nature, nature
likewise is akin to mind. . . . ’‘The more completely we include Mind
within Nature, the more inexplicable must Nature become except by
reference t o Mind” [again quoted from Temple, o p cit., 1331. A boldly
accepted naturalism leads directly t o supernaturalism! How can nature
include mind as an iiitegral part unless it is grounded in mind? If
mind were seen as something alien o r accidental, the case would be
different, but the further we go in modern science, the clearer it be-
comes t h a t mental experience is no strange offshoot. Rather it is
something which is deeply rooted in the entire structure. Scieiice knows
?iothing of the e?itiraly fortititous?
Dr. Trueblood cites the Second Law of Thermodynamics
as additional evidence for what he calls the “fact” of evolution.
The Second Law must, of course, be understood in connection
with the First Law, that of the conservation of energy.
The Second Law holds that the amount of energy in the world is
constant though i t changes in form. The fact t h a t the amount of energy
is constant does not mean that energy is always available. I n so f a r as
we can see, the time will come when energy is not available for work.
1. Quote is from William Temple, Nature, Man arid God, 129.
2. Trueblood, op cit., 100, 101.
566
ADDENDUM: ON EVOLUTION AND BVOI,Ul’IONISM
Because there is constant diffusion and because tliere is no addition
to the total energy, we must contemplate a final condition of absolute
stagnation. And i t is precisely this to which the Second Law points.
In all physical systems we note a leveling process. A fitone thrown
into a pool raises waves, but these slowly dissipate until they a r e no
longer observable. The hot stove radiates its heat into tlie closed room
until a uniform temperature is reached. J u s t as nature ma9 be said
figuratively t o abhor a vacuum, so nature ahliors differentiation and
concentration of energy, Thus, the stars radiate their energy, and this
energy, so f a r as we know, 97eve~iizalres a ret7rr77 tyip. It is a one-way
process. This increase of leveling is caIled the “increase o f entropy.”l
The following very clear definition of this phenomenon is quoted
by Trueblood as follows:
“As tlie useless energy increases, the useful decreases by the same
amount. The ratio of useless to useful energy is called entropy. The
law of entropy states t h a t the ratio is constantly increasing. This means
that, tlie amount of energy available f o r tlie energizing process of tlie
world is ever growing less.”n
Dr. Trueblood goes on to say:
It is always posible for some new force, now unknown, to enter, but,
on the basis of present observations,. there seems to be no rational escape
from the prospect of a n ultimate dissipation of all energy. This means
not only tlie ‘Ldeatli’Jof our particular solar system, but of any pliysical
system, Tlie paradox is that the Second Law, depressing as it seems
to be, actually supports the theistic claim in a remarkable way. We
are driven to tlie conclusion that the physical world is something which
not only will have an end, but also something which had a beginning.
“If tlie universe is running down like a ~Iock,”says Dr. Inge, “the clock
must have been wound up at a date which we could name if we knew it.
’Iflie world, if i t is to have a n ending in time, must have had a be-
ginning in time.”’ The chief metapliysical significance of the law of
entropy consists not in tlie evidence of a beginning in time, important as
that is, but rather in t h e evidence t h a t the 17atmral world is n o t self-
explanatorg. According to natural law, energy loses its efficacy. B u t
without the operation of a totally different principle there would be
n o energy t o lose its eficacy. Nature points beyond nature f o r a n
explanation of 17ature. The Second Law of Thermodynamics thus points
directly to theism as a n explanation of the world, and the reasoning
based upon it provides a modern counterpart to the cosmological argu-
pent. . , , The chief strength of atheistic naturalism has lain in the
notion that the material world needs no explanation extemzal to itself,
t h a t it is, indeed, a perpetual motion machine, which had 110 beginning
and will have no end. But when we take tlie Second Law of Thermo-
dynamics seriously we can n o longer hold to this doctyine. Tlie universe
as we know it, by tlie aid of modern science, could not have originated
without the action of a creative Source of energy outside itself, and it
cannot be maintained without it. The more we delve, by tlie aid of
natural science, into the secrets of nature tlie more i t becomes clear
t h a t nature cannot account for itself in a n y of its parts or in its
entirety. The stone which the builders rejected has become tlie head
1. Op. cit., 102,103
2. J. A. MeWilliams, Cosniology, 42.
3. W. R. Inge, God aizd the Astronomers, 10.
567
of the corner. Science, instead of undermining belief in God, today
becomes the first witness. Science means knowledge, and what we have
to explain about the world is that knowledge has appeared. How, in a
nontheistic world, would knowledge of its nontheism be possible? A. E.
Taylor is extremely disturbing when h e says we must ask of every
theory about the world, “Would the truth of the theory be compatible
with knowing the theory to be true?’! . T h a t is a question on which a
person may meditate profitably for a long time.>
To recapitulate: Trueblood bases his acceptance of theistic evolu-
tion on three grounds, namely, (1) that of the very fact of the
existence of science as the obvious product of the kinship of
nature and mind; (2) that of the evident truth that progressive
creation necessarily presupposes direction by Creative Intelli-
gence and Power; and (3) that of the evidence provided by
the Second Law of Thermodynamics, to the effect that the uni-
verse could not have originated, and indeed cannot be main-
tained, without the action of a Creative Source of energy. (Cf.
Psa. 148:l-6) As a matter of fact, if our universe were the
product of sheer chance, it could not be a universe (a word
which means literally “turned into one whole”), nor could there
be such a thing as a science. “Science knows nothing of the
wholly fortuitous.”
The credo, or perhaps it would be more in accord with fact
to say, the creedlessness, of “materialistic evolution” with its
doctrine of “chance-creationism,” is fairly well expressed, and
literally so, in the following lines (author unknown to this
writer) :
Once nothing arrived on this earth out of space;
It rode in on nothing; i t came from no place;
It landed on nothing-the earth was not here-
It worked hard on nothing for year after year;
It sweat over nothing with mighty resolve-
But just about then things began to evolve :
The heavens appeared, and the sea and the sod;
This Almighty Nothing worked much like a god,
It started unwinding without any plan,
It made every creature and ended with man.
No god here was needed-there was no creation;
Man grew like a mushroom and needs no salvation.
Some savants say this should be called evolution
And t h a t ignorance only rejects t h a t solution.
Another wag, has contributed a few lines on the subject before
us, which read as follows:
1. Trueblood, op cit., 103-1Q5.
568
Oh, the rising generation
Has lost its veneration
For the fables and the fantasies of old
In the science of geology
And the study of biology
Their hearts and heads alike a r e growing cold,
Since this terrible evolution
Has caused this revolution
And geology has given us such shocks,
We shall have our legislature
Now repeal the laws of nature,
And pass a law abolishing the rocks.
(identity likewise unknown)
It surely is profitable for “instruction in righteousness”
(Le., God’s way of doing things) to consider the language o i
the Spirit as recorded in Peter’s second epistle, chapter 3,
verses 1-13, and note carefully its intimations with respect to
the subject:
This is now, beloved, the second epistle t h a t I write unto you; and
in both of them I stir up your sincere mind by putting you in re-
membrance; that ye should remember tlie words which were spoken
before by tlie holy prophets, and tlie commandment of the Lord and
Savior through your apostles; knowing this first, t h a t in the last days
mockers shall corne with mockery, walkiiag a f t e r their owit titsts, and
sayiizg, W126re is the promise of his corning? f o r , f r o m t h e dag t h a t the
fafilters fell ~ ~ ~ l e all
e p thiiigs
, coiatiiiiie as they were f r o m tlie b e g i w i n g
of tlao creatioia. For this they willfully forget, t h a t there were heavens
from of old, and a n earth compacted out of water and amidst water,
by the word of God; by which means the world that then was, being
overflowed with water, perished; but the heavens t h a t now are, and
the earth, by the same word have been stored up for fire, being reserved
against the day of judgment and destruction of ungodly men. But
forget not this one thing, beloved, that oi?e day is with t h e Lord as a
thousand y e a m , aiad a thoinsand yeam as oiae day. The Lord i s not slack
concerning his promise, as some count slackness; but is longsuffering
t o you-ward, not wishing that any should perish, but t h a t all should
come to repentance, But the day of the Lord will come as a thief; in
the which the heavens shall pass away with a great noise, and the
elements shall be dissolved with fervent beat, and the earth and the
works t h a t are therein shall be burned up. Seeing t h a t these things a r e
thus all t o be dissolved, what manner of persons ought ye to be in all
holy living and godliness, looking for and earnestly desiring the coming
of tlie day of God, by reason of which the heavens being on fire shall
be dissolved, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat? But ac-
coyding to Ids pronaise, W E took fop a n e w lzeaveias and a n e w earth,
wlaereiia dwelletlL rigliteous~zess. (Italics mine-C.C.)
We are surrounded on all sides by the Mysterg of Being.
Certainly that which impresses itself upon our consciousness
a11 the time requires some accounting for, some explanation.
There can be only two views: neither logic nor experience allows
for a third. Either there is a Power in this universe, t h e Creator
and Preserver of it, who is without beginning or end, whose
569
ground of existence is within HimseZf; or the onZg alternative is
that the Something which w e experience constantly, originally
came f r o m nothing. There i s no middle ground; no way out of
the horns of this dilemma. To ask, Where did God come from?
is to state the question improperly. Our God, the living and true
God, has always been and will always be; He is without be-
ginning or end (cf. Rev. 1:1‘7-18, Isa. 46:8-ll, etc.). Just this
timeless sovereign Power is what we mean when we use the
word “God.” The real questions for consideration should be:
Why is there Something instead of nothing? What is this Some-
thing? Whence came it into existence, and for what purpose?
The three most far-reaching questions faced by every human
being are these: What am I? Whence came I? Whither am I
bound? One’s answer to these questions, if he ever gives them
any great measure of thought, will be his WeZtunschauung. It
follows, of course, that a man’s World-View will determine the
course and character of his life,
22. The tragically ill effects of the spread of materialistic
evolution, ‘ with its creed of chance-purposeless-creation are
to be seen everywhere today, and probably most of all in the
world-wide deterioration of morale and morality. Relativity is
the norm which man has blown up into an Absolute. Authority,
if indeed there is suoh a thing, is vested, not in the church, nor
in the state (civil society), but in the autonomous reason.
Everything is relative to the individual. Truth, beauty, and
goodness-again, if these words have any meaning-are what
each person thinks them to be. There is no authority (i.e., moral
power) beyond that of the individual human being and the
Social milieu which he, with others of his kind, sets up for him-
self in the form of custom or “law.” There is no Absolute. (It
is passing strange that the man who makes such a statement
does not have sense enough to see that he is himself affirming
an Absolute.) “Glory to man in the highest,” shouts Swinburne,
“for man is the master of things.” And Henley, in true Walt
Whitman style, thumps his chest as he cries out,
It matters not how sbrait the gate,
How charged with punishments the scroll,
I a m the master of my fate
I a m the captain of my s o d !
Even Shakespeare is moved to protest this humanistic arrogance:
B u t man, proud man,
Drest i n a little brief authority,
Most ignorant of what he’s most assured,
570
ADDENDUM: ON EVOLUTION AND BVOLUTIONISM
H i s glassy essence, like an angry ape,
Plays such fantastic tricks before high heaven
As make the angels weep,
Or, in the words of Alexander Pope:
Some are bewilder’d in the maze of schools,
And some made coxcombs Nature meant but fools.
The creedlessness of materialistic evolution is largely re-
sponsible €or the theme of the sheer futility of living which has
dominated both fiction and drama for many decades. Undoubted-
ly it accounts for the fact that contemporary literature has very
little humor in it, Both writers and their writings are so pon-
derously earthy, so deadly serious (shall we admit, “realistic”?)
Beginning with Ibsen, we find the Cult of Futility-of the
meaninglessness of life-either explicit or implicit in the dramas
of Eugene O’Neill, Arthur Miller, Edw. Albee, Tennessee Wil-
liams, and other lesser lights, the playwrights who have dpmi-
nated Broadway for over half a century. (Williams has done as
good a job of outFreuding Freud as Euripides did twenty-four
hundred years ago,) Saturated with the same motif are the
novels of Thomas Hardy, Dreiser, Maugham, Lewis, Steinbeck,
Faulkner, Hemingway, Caldwell, Farrell, James Jones, Salinger,
Mailer, and others of like outlook: these are the men who have
produced most of the fiction with which the literary markets of
the world have been deluged in recent years. (It will be re-
called that Cronshaw’s carpet, in Maugham’s Of Hzman Bondoge,
i s offered as an explicit analogy of the purposelessness of Me.)
I suppose, however, that the last word in pessimism has been
spoken by the self-proclaimed atheistic existentialist, Jean Paul
Sartre, in his terrible confession that life is only a vacuum with
not exit signs, What a really terrible world this would be if
this view were to prevail everywhere! (Cf. O’Neill’s Long Day’s
Journey into Night.) No wonder that the faith and moral out-
look of thousands of young men and women have been stultified,
if not actually destroyed by the literary output to which they
have been subjected in our secondary schools and higher insti-
tutions of learning!
This cult of chance-creationism has insisted on our treating
man as a kind of glorified brute, an aggregate of protons and
electrons, a creature of earth only, destined to pass through
this “vale of tears” robbed entirely of what was once called
“the music and the dream” of living. It would identify mind
with perishable brain and so rob mankind of any hope of a
57 1
better “beyond.” It w make death mean only the absorption
of the whole person into the “ocean of undifferentiated energy”
from which all things emerge and to which they return, accord-
ing to pre-determined life cycles. For faith, hope and love, it
substitutes their opposites, fear and despair and hate, as already
evidenced by a whole world at war within itself, a world that
is beginning to actualize Thomas Hobbed notion of man’s first
state as “a warfare of all against all.”
The effects of chance-creationism, with its inseparable corol-
lary of the utter meaninglessness of life, become evident in many
areas of human culture today, as, for example, in the supersedure
of permissiveness for discipline in the ,home, of sociological
statistics for legal precedent in the juridical order, of gross
hedonism for the self-discipline of the moral life, of all kinds of
cultism for true Biblical faith, of anarchy for the reign of order
and law throughout the world, of universal chaos in man’s
interrelationships with his fellows and with his God. It is one
of the main factors in filling our streets and highw
herdes of *youngmen and women who, in trying to e
fully the “Playboy” philosophy of life, have been seduced by the
appeal of pseudo-values into rebellion against society in gen-
eral, becoming even violent revolutionaries, and into a life of
parasitism on what they, in their gross ignorance, superciliously
call the “Establishment.” How many thousands of these pitifully
tragic figures are wasting precious time and destroying them-
selves by doing little or nothing more than what Satan told God
he was doing, just “going to and fro in the earth, and walking
up and down in it” (Job 1:7). Insatiable restlessness is an un-
failing characteristic of diabolism.
My good friend and ministerial colleague, Curtis Dickinson,
has so well stated what we are ing to say here that I feel
justified in excerpting his rem from his excellent little
periodical, The Witness (March, 1972, Lubbock, Texas), as
follows:
Why do some have so little regard for life? Why a r e the rebels
so careless with their own lives and the lives of others? Why do some
think so little of their lives a s to ruin their health in dissipation and
drugs? One reason is faith in evolution. To the evolutionist life is no
more than a tiny step in a long process of happenstance. There i s no
purpose f o r it and no plan, since there is no planner. One simply exists
under prevailing conditions, and has no obligation t o the past or hope
f o r the future. His life is a n accident, an interval, and with no intrinsic
meaning. After millions of years perhaps a better breed and better
conditiod might happen, but then t h a t is of n o value to our present
generation. No wonder that so many young people, under this depressing
572
ADDENDUM ; ON EVOLUTION AND EVOLUTIONISM
conviction, space out on drugs, cop out and foul up their lives in sin,
They do not love life! They may love pleasure, but have no love for
living, and the things they may do i n this frame of mind tend t o
destroy chances f o r a good life.
Live for the pleasure of the moment, for the indulgence of the
lusts of the flesh, “eat and drink and be merry, for tomorrow
ye die,” has been the cry of sinful man even from the ages before
the Deluge. The truth lies in the parody, “Eat, drink, and be
merry, and tomorrow you will have locomotor ataxia, cirrhosis
of the liver, or delirium tremens,’’ The overpowering sin of the
antediluvian age was preoccupation with the things of this
world, sheer secularism, and it is the universal sin of our age
and time, (Cf. Mat. 24: 37-39;Gen. 6:3-7,11-12.)
Materialistic evolution, if put into practice universally in
daily living, will eventually pressure man, through his insatiable
thirst for power, into slavery to one or more of the lusts of the
flesh (Gal. 5:19-21) and into ultimate eternal separation “from
the face of the Lord and from the glory of his might” (2 Thess.
1:7-10).
23. Let us now take a brief look at some of the ‘inadequacies
of the theory of evolution, as follows:
(1) Evolutionism has no adequate explanation of the pTocess
by which a variation in the parent organism becomes embodied
in the parental reproductive cells (as in the fertilized ovum of
the human male-female), obviously a change necessary to the
transmission of the “acquired characteristic” to the offspring.
(2) Evolutionism does not give u s any satisfactory account
of the origin of the life process. Spontaneous generation (abio-
genesis) is now theoretically considered to have been a possi-
bility, but as yet no direct evidence of its actual occurrence in
nature has been brought to light. As Wilder Smith puts it:
We have no evidence t o date t h a t the simple molecules postulated
(that is, the f i r s t molecules alleged t o have been formed by chance)
could autoduplicate themselves. To propose this is t o pose a problem
as difficult as that of life itself. , , . For energy would be needed to
operate such a duplicative process, which the heat or light of the sun
could not supply without mediation of a complex metabolic motor. A
complex association of matter would be indispensable t o arrive at auto-
duplication, yet Dr, Cedrangolo is postulating simple molecules as car-
rying on this process. We have no evidence for such a n hypothesis.
Viruses, in duplicating themselves, use the metabolic support of their
complex host cells but the host cells a r e lacking under the conditions
on earth before biogenesis, [This author goes on t o say t h a t some
573
scientists a r e convinced that proteins did not arise spontaneoudy from
non-living matter.] If one cannot explain the spontaneous formation of
proteins, a large percentage of scientists would believe t h a t the origin
of life was not explicable either?
The truth seems to be that it is not likely that a molecule can
increase in complexity spontaneously and suddenly “like a man
falling in one fell swoop up a ladder from bottom to top”! Up
to the present time, credit must go to Louis Pasteur for dem-
onstrating, as Spallanzani put it, that “even microbes have
parents.”
(3) Evolutionism does not afford any explanation of the
life process itself, that is, of the mysterious movement of life;
rather, it starts with this movement as an accepted fact, ap-
parently indifferent to the importance of the how and w h y of it.
One may watch the division of a single cell into two cells (as,
again, in .the fertilized ovum) , but no one understands why the
cell divides and the process continues in geometrical proportion
(one into two, two into four, four into eight, etc.), or how the
daughter cell inherits the particular forms and functions of
the parent cell. Why does this movement of life push upward,
by differentiation of structure and specialization of function,
into vastly more and more complex forms and finally into the
most complex form of all,-man? There i s no evidence that a
potency can actualize itself: it must have some help from out-
side itsel€. What, then, is the Efficient Causality which actualizes
all these changes that are supposed to become stabilized into
the multifarious forms that make up the living world? Is it
“protoplasmic irritability”? But what is “protoplasmic irrit-
ability”? Who knows? Perhaps little more than a factotum
brought in to support the unprovable hypotheses of the evolu-
tionist.
(3) As stated heretofore, evolutionism requires an almost
unlimited extent of time to make room for all the changes en-
visioned by its advocates. Apparently, they expect us to accept
without question the indispensability of such an extent of time
to any adequate explanation of the process, and at the same
time they arbitrarily use this hypothetical stretch of time to
support their theory. Is not this question-begging par excellence?
In substance the argument is as follows: A fossil is dated by the
age of the rock in which it is found but the age of the rock is
determined by the fossil it contains. “Yet the geologic column
(obtained by dating fossils on the assumption of evolution) is
1. A. E. Wilder Smith, Man’s Origin, Man’s Destiny, 17ff.
574
used as the chief evidence for evolution.” Surely this supports
our view that many scientists of our day and age need the
discipline of courses in logic and metaphysics!
(4) Evolutionism cannot account satisfactorily for the gap
that exists between the intelligence potential o j m a n and that o j
of any known animal species existent or extinct. That this gap
is inconceivably vast is conceded by the evolutionists of our
time. Indeed, there are eminent men in biological science who
are prone to accept the view that man’s appearance on the
scene is explainable only in terms of a mutation, or series of
mutations. Incidentally, it should be stated here that evolu-
tionists do not take the view that man is “nothing but” an
animal. On the contrary, they hold that he has “evolved” be-
yond the brute stage; that, in a word, he is animal plus. HOW-
ever, they insist that the difference is only one of degree, not
one of kind. We hold, however, that such powers inherent in
man as (a) abstract thinking, that is, in terms of symbols, (b)
creative imagination, (c) the sense of values, and the sense of
Itumor, accompanied as often it is by the power of laughter, set
man apart from the brute creation as far different in kind.
Hence, man alone has been vested with those powers which
qualify him for his God-given responsibilities as lord tenant
of the earth (Gen. 1:26-31, Psa. 8: 3-9).
(5) The theory of mutations is that new forms come into
being as wholes, as the result of sudden jumps in the process,
and continue to “breed true” from the time of their “emergence.”
Do biologists have any explanation of the mysterious process
by which a mutation is brought about? Obviously, they do not.
They take it for granted, it seems, that resident forces of some
kind, or of different kinds, either singly or collectively, work
effectively in the genes to produce the mutation. Why this
process occurs, or just how it occurs, no one knows. (Cosmic
rays, we are told, have been Irown to produce mutations in
fruit flies.) Yet it is inconceivable that evolution could ever
have taken pIace unless the fact of mutations is granted. Many
bioIogists, however, frown on the theory of mutations because
they find it difficult to harmonize this theory with the mechanics
of natural selection which they seek to establish. It it obvious
that mutations have all the appearance of special crentions.
The theory of mutations is treated very clearly, under the
heading, “Neutral Observation of the Modern Basis for Evolu-
tioii,” printed in the Bible-Science Newslelf er, May, 1972. The
575
author is Marinus W. Verbrugge of San, Jose, California, and
he writes as follows:
The search for gen-:ic change
to produce any concrete results, L
teristics a r e passed on to the next
do not produce sex cells. Darwin
animals have variable descendant
genetic change. He was wrong.
previously existing genes in hybrid plants. DtVries mietook the phases
of a heterozygous s ecies for genetic change. Sports” in hybrid plants,
which are observe2 occasionally by commercial growers, are generally
caused by the weakening of a precariously dominant gene, resulting in
the switch of dominance to the opposite gene in the affected pair, The
demand f o r positive proof of genetic change became strong a f t e r DeVries’
observation of mutations in Oeonothem (evening primrose) appeared
to be unfounded. Leading evolutionists prodded the Rockefeller Founda-
tion to dig into its coffers. Morgan received the go-ahead and began
breeding Drosophila (the genus containing the common f r u i t fly). This
would settle once and for all the truth about mutations. After millions
of normal flies, a different one was finally discovered which bred true.
Hallelujah! Evolytion was a fact, The happy news made headlines in
the world press, But the ampered little mutant was not very healthy
and homozygotes were letia1. It was the same story with later dis-
coveries of mutants in Drosophila. Radiation experiments greatly in-
creased the frequency of mutations but the results were the same:
sickly, unbalanced weak, unproductive individuals which never could
become a new species. Sequence photography with the recently developed
electron microscope revealed the cause: broken chromosomes. There was
a definite relationship between the severity of the damage to the
chromosomes and the resulting individual. Some mildly affected in-
dividuals did not show visible damage to the chromosomes. Individual
genes a r e so small t h a t they cannot be detected with the most powerful
magnification available t o science. If all other mutants in the same
culture are caused by ehromosome damage, it is a logical conclusion
t h a t a minor mutation is caused by the same factor. This is a very
important point in this discussion as will be explained. Later evolution
is a process of change in stpges. From a brand new heterozygous
mutant to a homozygote, to a new species, genera, family, etc., etc. The
goal of all laboratory experiments with fruitflies, molds, mice, etc.,
has been to detect the start of this process, to demonstrate a true first-
generation mutant. This goal has been reached by Morgan, resdlting
in exuberant rejoicing in certain circles. But the second phase, con-
tinication, did not materialize. On the contrary, all abnormalities in
the f i r s t discovered mutants which have only one affected chromosome,
a r e very much inckeased if both chromosomes a r e so affected. Those
with more eerious damage a r e unable tu reproduce at all if paired
with an identical mate. The very few which had the ability to reach
the homozygote stage (with much loving care) were a t best a de-
generated form of an old type, not a healthy new type.
Even the prominent evolutionist, Prof. Theodosius Dobzhansky of
Columbia University, states in his book, Evolution, Genetics, and Man;
“AI1 positively demonstrated genetic changes up to this day have only
led to races within prevailing existing species.’’
Seven decades of extensive experiments in laboratories have con-
firmed what was known for a long time. Variations observed in species,
a r e in degree only, not in kind. This type of variation does not lead
to new types ever I I !
576
DDENDUM: ON EVOLUTION AND EVOLUTIONISM
Only differeiit, geiaes can cause the emergence of a new species.
Geneticists are well aware of this, And the changing of genes has n o t
been demonstrated. All claims of gene changes a r e unpoven assumptions,
Modern evolutionists want to see gene changes; many changes are
caused by something else. Tlie n e v version of evolution is : (1) changing
genes, (2) recombination of genes, (3) increased volume of genes by
polyploidy, Technology in its present state is unable to resolve whetlier
this is Iiappening. The w s d l s of demonstrated facts a r e the only thing
to go by. Plans, drawings and calculations of a n airplane mag seem
perfect, Tlie final test comes when it zooms u p into the blue yqnder.
I€ its prototypes continue to crasli, something i s amiss, The persistent
failure of all linown mutants to perform according to expectation is the
best proof of the type of change which has taken place. All evidence
points in one direction: recombination of old material and loss of
genetic material. “There is nothing new under the sun,” said Solomon.
That is still true today.
We recall that in the first chapter of Genesis it is revealed that
God created both plants and animals according to “kinds”: note
the phrase, “aiter their kind,’’ in verses 11, 12, 21, 24, 25. What
particular categories of biological science, then, are to be identi-
iied with this Biblical speciation as to “kind”? Speciation in
biology designates the process by which species are formed,
“the process by which variations become fixed.” Classification
(in biology) is usually described as proceeding according to the
following sequencei: phyla, classes, genera, species, orders,
families. On this subject Simpson writes as follows:
Most zoologists classify animals into about twenty major groups,
called phyla (singular, phylum), each representing a fundamental
anatomical plan, Some students recognize more than twenty phyla and
some fewer, but the differences of opinion relate almost entirely to a
small nuinber of peculiar, soft-bodied living animals of uncertain
origin, of no real importance in the modern fauna and practically
without fossil remains. Aitir)rctls of real inrportawce today 01’ ill the
historg of l i f c wrny all be w f e r w d to oii13~fifteen basic phyla. Five of
these are collectively called “worms” and have poor fossil records. The
other ten have, by and large, good fossil records and their histories
since the Cambrian 01- Ordovician can be followed satisfactorily in
broad outline, altlro/rglr it /rn?dlg rrceds sayiiig that i?rir?crrre?*nbkdetails
w e d t o be filled hi. [Italics mine-C]. [Again]: Several striking facts
fundamental for the history of life appear. . . . F i r s t , all the phyla
are of great antiquity. All date from the Cambrian or Ordovician. . .
Since somctime in the Ordovician, around 400,000,000 years ago, no
.
ne\y r)ru;oy type OP animal has appeared 011 earth. It would appear that
the fund:~mental possibilities of animal structure had then all been
devcloped, although truly profound chnnges and progressive develop-
inelits \\‘ere yet to occur ~ i t h i neach type. [Note well this phrase, witlii)t
w r / / f / / p o , ] Note, second, that none of the basic types has become extinct.
. . . The t1iil.d major generalization is that 011 the whole life has tended
to illcrease in varicty. The usual pattern for any phylum, 01’ €or life as
a \\,hole, is to appear in relatively few forms and later to become \lastly
illore diversified. [How account for this diversification ?] [Simpson
\ \ ~ i t c s:] The siiine sorts of events have occurred within each class,
and here inay be seen still more clearly how a new type, once i t was
577
originated, tends to spread and to become diversified in adaptation
to a variety of environmental conditions and of ways of life. This
process i s known as “adaptive radiation.”*
It would seem entirely reasonable to identify the biological
phyla with the Biblical “kinds.” At any rate, science thus admits
the persistence of original basic categories of animal life, from
which (as biology would have it) diversification followed, p o b -
ably, in genera and species. Of course science attempts to fathom
the modus operandi of this diversification, not with any great
degree of success; that is, with nothing better, it would seeni,
than suggestions based solely on inference, and inference that
lacks the quality of strictness considered necessary to proof.
And even this leaves the problem of all problems still up in the
air, namely, the problem of the origin of the basic “kinds” from
which the diversification takes place. On this subject, Simpson
writes as follows:
How did life arise? Again, the honest answer is t h a t we do not
know but t h a t we have some good clues. This ultimate mystery is more
and more nearly approached by recent studies on the chemical activity
of living particles, of viruses and of genes, the submicroscopic deter-
miners of heredity and growth. The most fundamental properties of
life a r e reproduction and change (or mutation). Particles with these
properties would be, in essence, alive, and from them all more and more
complex forms of life could really arise. [This would mean, of course,
a s stated heretofore, that these “submicroscopic” particles must be
credited with all the attributes that theologians specify as belonging to
God, including a t least the potentiality of) supreme intelligence, crea-
d
tive power, a n eternal, autonomous existence. On the metaphysical
principle t h a t being exists either potentially or actually, these primitive
particles of “First Matter” would have in them all the potentialities of
the actualized cosmos and its manifoldness. But we are still in the
dark a s to the origin of these “particle#.” If they are unoriginated,
then they must be regarded as timeless (Le., eternal) without beginnin
or ending. This of course would require more faith than is require3
t o believe in the God of the Bible.]
We again quote Simpson:
Current studies suggest t h a t it would be no miracle, not even a great
statistical improbability, if living molecules appeared spontaneously
under special conditions of surface waters rich in the carbon compounds
t h a t a r e the food and substance of life, And the occurrence of such
waters at early stages of the planet’s evolution is more probable than not.
[Now we a r e back, first, to surface waters, then to carbon compounds,
and finally to the planet itself. J u s t where is this regress going to
reach an end? Or will i t ? Are we faced with infinite regress? Would
this be a n y logical solution of the Mystery of being?]’
Note well Simpson’s conclusion:
1. Simpson, op eit., 13-21. (My comments in brackets-C.)
2. Ibid., 13, 14.
578
ADDENDUM: ON BVOLUTION AND EVOLUTIONISM
This is not to say that the origin of life was by chance or by super-
natwal intervention, b u t that it was in accordance with the grand,
eternal physical laws of the univeme, It need not have been miraculous,
except as the existence of the physical universe may be considered a
miracle.’
What sophistry! Did man create himself or was he brought into
existence by Power that antedated him? Obviously, if he created
himself, he existed before he existed, But this is nonsence. Did
the physical universe create itself or was it created by a Power
that antedated it? If it created itself, then it, too, existed before
it existed. This is arrant nonsence. We base our case on the
Power who was beiore all things, and is in all things. The God
of the Bible who is transcendent in His being (as opposed to
pantheism) and who is immanent through His power (as op-
posed to deism) is our all-sufficient answer for these ultimate
questions. There is no satisfactory answer but that of theism!
(We refer the student here to the great Preservation Hymn,
(Psa. 104; cf. Psa. 33:6, 9; Heb. 11:3, Col. 1:16-17, Psa. 148:l-6,
2 Pet. : 1-7.)
22. Despite positive assertions to the contrary, in which, as
a rule, the theory to be proved is taken for granted, t h e simple
truth i s t h a t as y e t no one knows just how a n e w species emerges
or could emerge. As Alfred Russel Wallace is reported to have
said to Darwin: “Your theory may account for the survival of
a species, but it cannot account for the arrival of a new species.”
This statement is just as true today as when it was first made.
23. Evolutionism is unable as y e t to give u s a satisfactory
account of the origin of sex differences. It is interesting to note
here that the Genesis cosmogony is silent about the origin of
females among subhuman orders, with the sole exception of
the implication in Gen. 1:22. It is the human female, Woman,
to whom our attention is especially directed in Scripture: Gen.
1:27-31.
24. Evolutionism has no adequate explanation of t h e fact
of instinct, of the almost inconceivable manifoldness of instinc-
tive responses among subhuman creatures. Instinct has rightly
been called “The Great Sphinx of Nature.” If complexity of
instinct were to be made the criterion of the classification of
living forms in ascending order, it is obvious that the lowely
Insecta would stand at the head of the list and man, poor man,
homo sapiens, would be somewhere near the bottom. Are not
1. Op. cit., 13, 14.
579
instinctive responses the media by which Divine Intelligence
ensures the preservation of non-intelligent species?
25. It is doubtful that evolutionism could ever account ade-
quately for the great variety of special organs in dijferent species
(charaoteristic of the entire complex of nature’s adaptation to the
needs of living creatures) ; organs such as wings, feathers, eyes,
ears, fins and electric organs of fishes, poison glands and fangs
of snakes, migratory powers of homing pigeons, and many others
too numerous to mention. Perhaps the most amazing phenomenon
of the subhuman world is the “radar” system of bats, which,
whether it is instinct or not, certainly points up the mathematical
precision which characterizes all nature. For example, the fol-
lowing facts about this phenomenon, as given in the Bible-
Science Daily Reading Magazine, May-June, 1972:
A 1951 Moody Bible Institute filmstrip titled Flying Wo%de*
describes the remarkable radar of the bat, This radar enables the bat
to feed a t night without eyesight. Tests were made in an area with
bars placed at intervals closer than a wingspread, yet their wings never
touched the bars. The sound frequency of the bat’s direction system is
about 50,000 cycles, more effective than any man-made radar systems.
Of the 1000 species of bats, 39 are found ifi the United States. The bat’s
wide gaping mouth enables it to catch flying insects. Bats hibernate
in winter and may live up t o 20 years. Bats are designated as unclean in
the Bible. Few mammals are more odorous than the bat, They sleep
while in a hanging position and like t o roost in caves, old buildings,
and hollow trees. They quickly build up large deposits of highly smelly
guano which is often used as manure. Their unusual appearance and
habits have long made them the subject of strange beliefs, sometimes
with evil association, says G. S. Cansdale. Bats are a n example of the
wonders of God’s creation. Bats are not necessarily harmful pests, and
there i s much we can learn from them t o aid in scientific research.
T h a t Scripture considers them unclean is another example of a sin-
contaminated nature. Only in the life to come will nature be free from
this influence of sin and we will enjoy perfection forever.
For one of the most thoroughgoing treatments of the char-
acteristics and varieties of instinctive behavior in subhuman
orders, the reader is referred to the book by Ruth Crosby Noble,
titled The Nature of the Beast. Mrs. Noble was the widow of
the late Dr. G. Kingsley Noble, noted biologist of the American
Museum of Natural History, and her book, published in 1945,
is said to be based largely on his scientific publications and
lecture notes. Mrs. Noble shared in her husband’s work, we
are told, and was herself an expert in the natural sciences. (See
Bibliography.) This book develops the theme that animals are
creatures of instinct in a world of sensations. She presents the
following significant conclusions: (1) What often appears to
us to be reasoned behavior in animals with insight as to the
580
outcome, is really a long line of instinctive behavior. In this
connection, she wrjtes as follows:
In 1824, Emerson at the age of twenty wrote in his Jozmaal, “Man is
a n animal that looks before and aiter.’ We haye noted the limited
capacity of most animals f o r recalling past experiences. Planning for
the future is even more difficult. Foresight, like insight, is lar ely
restricted to humans, though we find in animals much t h a t resemfles
it-usually falsely. It is doubtful that the squirrel hoarding nuts is
able to picture the coming winter with its blanket of snow. Burying
objects and hiding them in craclts a r e activities so natural to these
animals than even pets in captivity will t r y t o hide nuts and small
articles about the house or in the folds of a bedcover. Even the mother
squirrel building her nest probably has no conception of the family
soon to arrive, Both hoarding and nesting a r e primarily instinctive.
. . , Though there are many highly talented artisans even among insects
and lower invertebrates it is in general only the most intelligent verte-
brates who a r e capable of using tools in their trade. The very few who
iizweizt tools are rodigies indeed, .. . While man shares insight and
ability to use t o o i with the apes, he alone communicates with his fel-
lows by means of language. No other living creature has learned t o
use words a s symbols of objects, situations, o r acts. By means of these
symbols he projects his ideas into the minds of others. Through them
he is able to profit from the experience of others, both in the past and
in the present, With the aid of language, written a s well as spoken,
he has entered into the realm of ideas, a realm probably closed t o
.
most animals . , animals communicate with one another t o some extent
by means of expressive gestures and sounds, but this is quite different
from having a language. . . . So we see t h a t man has a priceless treasure
in his highly developed thinking cap.”‘
(2) The sense impressions of animals are quite different from
those of man. The bat, for example, flies by sound instead of
sight. The wood tick uses its skin to “see” with. Few animals
have color vision. But the bee can detect ultraviolet colors
and the ant senses infrared. How do we know these things?
Over the space of years science has devised many ways to dis-
cover the secrets of animal behavior. (The author takes us be-
hind one ingenious test after another: mazes, colored doors,
ringing bells, etc.) The variability, selectivity, and specialization
of instincts in the subhuman orders is too vast for any adequate
explanation in terms of inheritance of acquired characters,
natural selection, continuity of germ plasm, mutations, or all of
these acting together. It defies human imagination and at the
same time proves the universal adaptability of nature to the
needs of all her creatures. We do well to recall here Pope’s
famous lines:
“Slave to no sect, who takes no private road,
But looks through Nature up to Nature’s God.”
1. Op. tit., 53-64.
58 1
THh ETERNAL SPIRIT - HIS PERSON AND POWERS
26. StrQctural resemblance does not necessarily prove emer-
gence of the higher form from the lower. It could well be the
product of the activity of the Divine Mind creating according to
an archetypal pattern (as in the instance of man’s invention
of the wheelbarrow, buggy, chariot, wagon, automobile, airplane,
all of which manifest a basic structural resemblance) .
27. Ordinarily, nature, when Zeft to inherent resources alone,
seems to deteriorate rather than to advance. Any gardener
knows that tomatoes produced by properly cultivated plants are
always superior to those which are produced by seed or plant
in what is called “volunteer” fashion.
28. The apparent non-fertility of hybrids would seem to
militate against the evolution theory.
29. Apparently useless organs are not necessarily reduced
or rudimentary, in many instances. Ignorance of the use or
purpose of an organ is not in itself a proof that the organ has
no necessary function at all.
30. Neither similarity nor gradation (nor both. together)
can prove emergence, that is, “continuous progressive change,
according to fixed laws, by means of resident forces” (LeConte) .
31. Man has no known existing animal ancestors: those
alleged humanoidal forms which are supposed to have existed
prehistorically are now extinct, hence hypothetically identifiable
only by isolated sparse skeletal remains which have been found
in different parts of the world. These remains of prehistoric
man-prior to Cro-Magnon-are too fragmentary to allow for
any reliable reconstruction of man’s ancestory from the so-called
hominidae. Nor do these widely scattered skeletal remains
necessarily indicate that there were “centers” of the origin of
homo sapiens. What Dr. Broom has said about such finds in
Southern Africa is equally applicable to all other such discov-
eries: “When we speak of Plesianthropus as a found ‘missing
link,’ this does not mean that man came from even that species.
We mean only that we have a member of the family from one of
whom man arose.”’ As far as the present writer knows, no evi-
dence has ever been found that would discredit the generally
accepted view that the cradle of the human race was where the
Bible pictures it to have been, that is, in Southwest Asia. More-
over, evolutionists must accept the fact that there had to be
a space-time locus at which the transition from hominidae tr,
homo sapiens actually occurred; and that with the appearance
1. Quoted by Douglas Dewar, The Transformkt Illusion, 125.
582
of homo sapiens, reason also appeared (as indicated by the Latin
supiens or sapientia, “wise” or “having reason”), and along with
reason, conscience, which is the voice of practical reason (cf.
Gen. 3: 9-11), In view of these facts, it must also be recognized
that all humanoidal forms existing prior to the transition were
not lorms of homo sapiens. The tendency of so many scientists
to pontificate about these humanoidal “finds” makes it necessary
for us to put their significance in proper perspective in order
that we may not be led astray by guesses and gross exaggerations.
32. The Mendelian laws of heredity have been generally
accepted in biological science. However, it must be kept in
mind that these “laws” are simply descriptions of what evidently
takes place in transmission through the media of the genes;
they do not tell us why these transmissions take place as they
do, nor do they give us any information as to the modus operandi
of the transmissions themselves. Even the genes themselves are
only hypothetical “determiners”-we are told-of heredity. This
is true, of course, of practically all facets of the evolution theory:
nearly all that the advocates have to tell us is descriptive in
character, of what occurs, not of why, nor specifically of how,
it occurs. Perhaps these are mysteries that lie beyond the scope
of human comprehension? The fact is that almost every argu-
ment put forward to support evolutionism is based on inference,
and not on concrete evidence, and practically every one of these
arguments leaves the big question open, namely, is the inference
necessary, that is, unavoidable, or is it academic guess-work?
(According to the Herald and Presbyter, the phrase, “we may
well suppose,” occurs over eight hundred times in Darwin’s
two principal works, not to mention, of course, such expressions,
“apparently,” “probably,” and the like, all of which express un-
certainty: the eminent scientist, like his successors, was simply
guessing.) (See Bryan, In His Image, 90,91.)
33. In the final analysis, the arrival of a new species is to
be accounted for only on the basis of variations transmitted
through the chromosomes and genes: as far as we know, in-
heritance in man takes place in no other way. If mutations be
the final “explanation” of these genetic changes, then the mu-
tations must have occurred in chronological sequence to have
produced the continuous progressive changes (demanded by the
theory) into more and more neurally complex organisms, cul-
minating in the human organism. It is only a mark of sanity to
conclude that there is reasdn and order bark of this entire pro-
cess, actualizing all such changes, and that the Cosmos is the
583
handiwork of the Universal Mind and Will whom we call God
(Psa. 19: 1-6).
34. In the areas of the as mical, geological, and geo-
graphical sciences the theory of rmituriunism plays a domi-
nant role. This theory is stated in one geology textbook as
follows:
To the uprooting of such fantastic beliefs [“supernatural explana-
tions”] came the Scottish geologist Hutton, whose Theory of the Earth,
presented in 1785, marked a turning oint in thought on this subject.
Hutton argued t h a t the present is the Eey to t h e past and that, if given
time, the processes now a t work could have produced all the geologic
features of the globe, This philosophy, which came to be known as
u n i f o r m i t w i a n i s m , is now universally accepted by learned men. It de-
mands a n immensity of time.l
As another writer states it:
According t o these modern ideas, the laws of nature have always
been the same as they are today, so that the present state of nature is
the explanation of its past state and of its future state too. Thus, geo-
logical formations, fossils, etc., arise today in j u s t the same manner as
they did millions of year8 ago. Hence the name “uniformitarianism” for
this type of philosophy, And thus the concept arose that catastrophes
and acts of God have nothing or little t o do with the formation of the
geological strata we observe today?
It seems that the Holy Spirit warned against the rise of this
kind of thinking “in .the. las$ days.” H&predicts for our benefit
that in the last days mockers, who e only to satisfy their own
lusts, will jeer at the notion of a cond Coming of Christ to
save the redeemed and to judge the world. They will cry, “Where
is the promise of his coming? for, from the day that the fathers
fell asleep, all things continue as they were from the beginning
of the creation” (2 Pet. 3:3-7). It strikes us that so-called
I6
learned men” are not intelligent enough to realize that the
process of creation itself lies entirely outside the possibility of
a continuous uniformitarian origin of the world as we know it
and of the myriad forms of life that inhabit it. Evolutionists
themselves will certainly agree that there was a time when man
did not exist; that, farther back, there was a time when life had
not come into being; that back beyond that, there was only the
astronomical (celestial) world in process of being formed (ac-
cording to their theory). We are now back to our original
dilemma: We must accept the existence of Power that is without
beginning or end, or the “Almighty Nothing” as the First Prin-
ciple. On the basis of the metaphysical prificiple that there must
1. Schuchert and Dunbar, Outlines of Histol-ical Geology, 36.
2. A. E. Wilder Smith, Man’s Origin, Man’s Desting, 49.
584
he as m u c h reality in the cause as in the effect-a principle which
evolutionists are not aware oj, or else ignore or even ridicule-
only t h e God of the Bible, the tkeistic God, can be t h e First
Principle o f all things. Again, o n t h e basis of t h e metaphysical
principles (1) that being exists either potentially o r actually
(the jull-grown oalc tree i s potentially in t h e acorn), ( 2 ) and
that a potency cannot actualize itself, we m u s t conclude that t h e
God o j the Bible is t h e Efficient Cause (the Power that unites
the matter and the form--the form being the plan which, e.g.,
puts each tree in its specific kind or species-to bring the tree
into actual existence) of the Totality of created beings. Again,
we affirm that both science and theology need the disciplines of
logic and metaphysics. No better example of this could be cited
than the closing statement of the first of the quotations immedi-
ately above: “It [their theory] demands an immensity of time.”
But as w e have noted already, claims of t h e immensity o f time
become little more than question-begging devices. If more time
is needed to establish any phase of their theory, evolutionists
simply hypothesize-that is, assume-it.
35. The doctrine of biopoiesis (the creation or making of
life from non-living material) completely overlooks the fact
that the necessary power-possibly in the arrangement of the
atoms in the “parent” molecule--had to be there, before life
could have been generated “spontaneouslj’.’’ Is not this a matter
of pushing the problem of origin a notch farther back? HOW
did the necessary conditions come to exist in the first place to
bring into existence the first living form? What Power equipped
the “parent” molecule with these necessary conditions? W h o
indeed, but the living and true God? Creation, we are told in
Genesis, was decreed (executed) by the Logos and actualized
(consummated) by the Eternal Spirit (Gen. 1:1-31; Psa. 33: 6, 9;
Gen. 148: 1-6, Heb. 11:3).
Man cannot have created himself or any of his kind. Man
cannot even make a seed. Man cannot add to, o r take away
from, the total energy of the cosmos. M a n cannot bring into
being any creature greater than himself. Man cannot per se
bring about racial distinctions. Man’s role in life i s t o love and
serve God here, that he m a y enjoy H i m hereafter.
36. Let us consider for a moment the probIem of dating in
relation to the mystery of time. T i m e is indeed a mystery. On
this point Wilder Smith’s excellent analysis is helpful, as
follows:
585
I’
I n the beginning God is reported as having taken the “dust of the
earth” and a s having formed Adam from it. He then breathed the
breath of life into him and Adam became a living soul. The Bible does
not report Adam a s having arisen as a newborn babe. According t o
the scriptural record, no parents were there to take care of him. So
h e must have been adult at his creation and have possessed immediately
his five senses in full state of development so a s t o have been able t o
fend for himself from the start. Let us now consider some consequences
of this creative act. Adam is standing there in all the beauty of new
creation, straight from the Creator’s hand. Shall we say, for the sake
of argument. that he is just two breaths, or some five seconds old?
His lungs have just filled themselves with the ure a i r of Eden. But
just how old does Adam look, judging his age %y our time-measuring
experience? He is adult, perhaps handsome, mature. It takes, according
to our way of reckoning time, some twenty to thirty years t o allow a
man t o come to maturity, and Adam is obviously a mature man. Ac-
cordingly, we would guess Adam’s age t o be some twenty to thirty years.
But in reality, we know he is j u s t two breaths, or about five seconds
old. This example makes it clear that where creation is concerned the
laws of thermodynamics, as we know them, a r e turned upside down.
Here the laws governing time do not function either. Adam is just five
seconds old and yet looks as though he were twenty to thirty years old.
What is more, at every act of creation there must be the same illusion
of age. Dr. Karl Barth, the famous Swiss theologian and founder of
neo-orthodoxy, maintains a similar idea of creation in his well-known
saying t h a t when God created, He created with a past. There must be
this built-in illusion of the passage of time. This must be the case,
for our copcept of entropy-and thus of the passage of time-cannot
be valid during a n y creative act. I n a rimitive sort of way, the same
applies t o any t r u e synthetic act, even tofay. If, for instance, we measure
time by the natural half life of a biologically active compound, then
any synthetic act involving cancellation of the natural decay o f biological
activity would be in a way a reversal of “time” and decrease of entropy
a s f a r a s t h a t system is concerned. This must also be the case with
respect to the creation of the cosmos and the earth. Here too, an act
of creation must bring with it a n i!lusion of age and this illusion lies
in the very nature of creation e$ nahilo. That this illusion is a built-in
one may be seen from the followiag example: If a mixture of lead and
uranium in an ore was created a t the beginning, i t would automatically
give an illusion of age, For we know t h a t certain isomers of lead
arise at the end stage during the radioactive decay of uranium. By
measuring the amount of lead in a uranium ore we can determine the
ore’s age. Since it takes X years t o form so many milligrams of lead
from a given amount of uranium, by measuring the amount of lead in
the ore we can determine the ore’s age, for this decay rate remains
constant. But after a n act of creation in which a n ore is made con-
taining, f o r example, five grams of lead and five grams of uranium,
later calculations must g o awry for the following reasons: the five
grams of lead will automatically produce the illusion of having been
derived from the uranium over millions of years. But it was actually
not derived, but created de novo. I n reality the mixture of lead and
uranium has been created as such, but after creation i t cannot avoid
producing the illusion that it is millions of years old. . , . An act of
present-day knowledge that we do
w how to calculate t o take it truly into account, even
s a n active creation t o explain the very
ms and of the subatomic world of particles,
reason of an act of creation a t the
ple impossible to arrive at an abso-
586
AUDENDIJM: ON EVOLUTION AND EVOLUTIONTSM
lutcly definitive and meaningful date €or creation. Sciencr demands an
act of creation a s an explanation of being, but this act of creation must
produce an illusion of age and time, We must reinember too, in addition
t o all this, that before matter and space existed, no time existed either.
So, l o be scicnticially sound, we m i s t be very cautious in matters con-
cerning lime in general and dating in particular. , , . If there are, in
fact, no fundamental reasons why time should not stop o r even r u n
backward, it is obviously going to be very difficult f o r us to fix a date
for creation, o r indeed for any other event in the very distant past.
So that dogmatism on dating and methods can usually be attributed to
a n ignorance of fundamental issues at stake in this area of thought,
This also applies t o statements on t h e historicity, o r lack of it, in
biblical chronology.] [ V i d c , in this connection, Sir James Jeans, The
.Mgsterious Uvivcrsc, New Revised Edition, pp. 36, 37.1
The fact is that the dating of fossils, or of anything in the early
historic o r in the prehistoric past, is a very precarious business.
Man has always been prone t o mulitply problems for himself un-
necessarily b y obtruding Itis notions of measured (mathematical,
temporal) time into the realm of God’s timelessness, that is,
eternity.
37. Theistic evolutionism. This is the view, stated in simplest
terms, that evolution was, and is, God’s method of creation. The
problem involved in thinking of evolution from this point of
view is, primarily, whether theistic evolution can be harmonized
with the Genesis narrative of the Creation. There are educated
and sincerely religious persons who hold that this view if “prop-
erly stated” (that is, within certain limitations) is not necessarily
in conflict with the teaching of Genesis, if the latter is also
“constructively interpreted.”
(1) F o r example, there is a clear correspondence between
the Genesis cosmogony and present-day scientific thinking, espe-
cially with reference to the order of creation: first, energy,
matter, light; then, atmosphere; then, lands and seas and plant
life; next, measurement of time (chronology); then, the air
and water species, the beasts of the field, and €inally man and
woman, in the order named.
(2) It must always be kept in mind that the major aim of
the Genesis Cosmogony, and indeed of the Bible as a whole, is
to tell us who made the Cosmos, and not how it was made. It
was what God said, that “was so,” that is, “was done.” (Gen.
1:3, 7, 11, 15, 21, 25; Psa. 33:6, 9; Psa. 148:G). However, the
inspired writer makes no attempt whatsoever to inform us as
to how it was done. It is crystal clear that the narrative is in-
tended to be a religious, and not a scieittific, account o€ the
Creation.
1. A, E. Wilder Smith, o p cit., 150-153.
587
(3) In relation to theistic evolutionism, very much depends
on the meaning of the word “day” (yom) as used in the Genesis
account of the Creation. Substantial evidence can be adduced
to support either of the two views of the seven “days” involved,
namely, the solar or twenty-four hour day, or the aeonic day, a
long period of time. Certainly, there is nothing in the Genesis
account that constrains us to accept the ultra-literal view that
God spoke all living species into existence at one and the same
time. On the contrary, according to the narrative itself, the
activity of Creation was extended over six “days” and a fraction
of the seventh. This is true, however, we may see fit to interpret
the woBd yom.
(4) The language of the Genesis Narrative itself seems to
allow for a divinely progressive development, through the media
of secondary causes, throughout the Creation. This is implicit
surely in God’s decrees, “Let the earth put forth grass,” etc.,
“Let the waters swarm with swarms of living creatures,” “Let
the earth bring forth living creatures,” etc.; and even in the
earlier decrees with reference to non-living forms of being,
“Let there be a firmament in the midst of the waters,” “Let the
waters under the heavens be gathered together into one place,”
“let the dry land appear,” etc. The idea implicit in the original
here is that of causation, as if to say, “let the earth cause, let
the seas cause, it to be done,” etc. We see no reason for rejecting
the view that God whose Will is the constitution of the universe
and its processes, should operate through the majesty and
sovereign power of His own established decrees. After all,
what science calls “laws of nature” are really the laws of God.
Law is alwqys the expression of the will of the lawgiver; hence,
laws of “nature” are really the expression of the Will of the
God of nature; His will is the constitution of the cosmos: “He
hath made a decree which shall not pass away:’ (Psa. 148:l-6)
until the “times of restoration of all things” (Acts‘3:21) (Cf.
Heb. 1:10-13,2 Pet. 3: 8-13, Rev., ch. 21).
( 5 ) As we have noted heretofore, there are philosophers
and theologians who take the position that at certain stages in
the Creation, God, by direct action (that is, primary, as dis-
tinguished from secondayy, causation) inserted (“stepwise,” as
it is sometimes put) new and higher powers into the Cosmic
Process, the first above the inanimate world (matter-in-motion)
588
being the life process (cellular activity), then consciousness (the

product of sensitivity), and finally self-consciousness (person
and personality) Obviously, these are phenomena which mark
off, and set apart, the successively more complex levels of being,
as we know these levels empirically. On the basis of this theory,
j t is held that even though variations-both upward (progressive)
and downward (retrogressive) -by means of resident forces,
may have occurred on the level of plant life and that of animal
life, the actualization of the first form of energy-matter, first
life, first consciousness, and first personality (homo sapiens) must
surely have been of the character of special creations. It is in-
teresting to recall the fact here that Wallace, the author with
Darwin of the theory of natural selection, held that there were
three breaks in the progressive continuity, namely with the
appearance of life, with the appearance of sensation and con-
sciousness, and finally with the appearance of spirit. These
breaks Seem to correspond, in a general way, to vegetable,
animal, and rational (human) life, in the order named. (Wallace,
Darwinism 445-478. Quoted by A. H. Strong, Systematic Theol-
ogy, 473.).
(6) Finally, it must be admitted that one of man’s most
common fallacies is that of trying to project his own puny con-
cepts of time into the sphere of God’s timelessness. God does
not hurry; His timelessness is Eternity, (2 Pet. 3: 8, 2 Cor. 4: 18).
(Obviously, theistic evolutionism must be studied particu-
larly in relation to the meaning of the word “day” as it occurs
in the Genesis account of the Creation, and in relation to creation
and constitution of man as given in Genesis 2:7. According
to present plans, a complementary treatment of the Biblical
doctrine of the HoIy Spirit will be presented in a second book,
to be entitled The Eternal Spirit: His Word and His Works, to
be published in the near future.)
38. The following summarizations of the status of the theory
of evolution at present writing will suffice to conclude our study
here. The first is from G. T. W. Patrick, as follows:
On the whole, all the theories of organic evolution, including Dar-
winism, are somewhat disappointing t o the student of philosophy, who
is trying t o understand the world of living things. There a r e more gaps
and unexplained factors than we supposed-and they a r e found in very
critical places. Most disappointing of all i s the complete failure of any
accepted theory t o determine the causes of evolution itself. The fact is
that evolution is a very much over-worked word. , . Evolution means
I
unwrapping, unrolling, o r unfolding. It indicates a process in which the

implicit is becoming explicit, the potential, actual. There is no evidence
t h a t evolution i s in any sense an unwrapping process. On the contrary,
589
it is distinctly of a n epigenetic or upbuilding character. Even the
simplest Darwinian variation, much more a mutation, is a real incre-
ment, a novelty, a new creation, a veritable plus. Neither is evolution
a process in which the potential is becoming actual. We speak of the
evolution of the automobile-but the latest skilled product of this a r t
was not potential in the first crude machine. Every improverrient has
.
been a new creation, a new thought. , . Since we do not know the
causes of evolution, we do not know of any developmental potency in
matter. The only way t o support this proposition, would be t o argue
t h a t since all life h a s come out of matter, i t must have been contained
potentially in it, where the only authority for the major premise i s the
etymological meaning of the word ewolvtion. One might as well say
t h a t one sees in oxygen and hydrogen the promise and potency of water
and all its forms, o r in the behavior of apes the promise and potency
of the infinitestimal calculus. Water satisfies thirst, and revives the
drooping plant, and freezes a t zero Centigrade. But certainly there i s
no promise of any of these qualities in oxygen and hydrogen. There is
something more than oxygen and hydrogen in a molecule of water,
namely, a certain peculiar organization with the accompanying char-
acteristic qualities of water, Briefly, then, the meaning of evolution is
that i t is a creative process, something new appearing a t every step of
the ‘ developmental history, Every change is a transformation. The
French word transformisme is a happier word than the English evolution,
.
or the German Entwickelung. . , Evolution is a history of new farms
and functions. Every new form is a plus-a new creation. . . . Creation
does not mean the production of something out of nothing. The architect
creates a Gothis cathedral, but not the stone and mortar. The pi-omoter
creates a new organization, but he does not create the men that compose
it. Creation means j u s t this-the production of something distinctly new
and unique. Reality is found, a s Aristotle told u s long ago, in structure,
form, organization, and function-not in the mere stuff which happens
.
to compose the material. , , Thus Darwinism has nothing t o teach us
concerning either the origin o r the nature of life and mind. It records
only the unexplained appearance of an unending series of new events,
one of which is the great event of mind. If we seek t o know the,origin
of life and mind, we must go beyond Darwin in some deeper analysis
of the process called evolution. It i s not a movement from the potential
to the actual. It cannot be defined as a series of orderly changes, f o r
a s f a r a s the changes are evolutionary, they are disorderly. , . It
seems like the work of a creative imagination. It reminds ever of the
.
work of a n artist?
Why should not Creation remind us of the work‘ of an artist?
Is not our God the God of Love? 1John 4:16--‘
he that abideth in love, abideth in God,-and,?
him.” And is not Love always sacrificial, always
creative? Back of all the “scientific” aspects of our Cosmos
are the aesthetic. The God of the Bible is the superb Aesthete!
His very outgoingness, as Divine Love, is, in all likelihood, the
very why of the whole Creative Process!
The following is from the pen of Dr. Radoslav A. Tsanoff:
The philosophical interpretation of evolutionism has been compli-
cated by the fact t h a t Darwinism explained the survival results of f i t
1. Introduction t o Philosophy, 144-147.
590
ADDENDUM: ON EVOLUTION AND EVOLUTION ISM
variations, but did not provide an explanation of the causes of varia-
tions o r proceed t o ultimate cosmological inferences. Regarding the
heritability of variations, opinions di€fer. The Lamai*cltians have defi-
nitely lost ground, though they have never been without allies. The
theory of mutations, as developed and interpreted by careful geneticists,
has reached specific conclusions regarding the evolutionary results of
changes in the germ plasm. But the longer pattern of evolutionary
cosmology can scarcely be regarded a s ascertained. Is i t a pattern of
strictly mechanical determination? Or does biological evolution produce
results that cannot be reduced t o merely antecedent causal determinants,
t h a t indicate a certain natural creative activity? Or does the stream of
existence, unlike water, somehow rise higher than its source; do lower
processes produce their self-transcendence, in higher types of being?
Philosophy since Darwin has explored these and other theories. Many
evolutionists have taken a basically materialistic position; the initial
oppostion t o the theory of evolution Was led by those who regarded it
a s undermining the recognition of spiritual values. Writers like John
Fiske (1842-1901) advanced a reinterpretation of evolution as God’s
cosmic design, the progressive realization of intelligence and spiritual
powers in nature.*
Arthur Kenyon Rogers writes:
The importance of natural selection as a n agency is now indeed
generally admitted, but also it is widely believed t h a t i t does not
explain all the facts. For one thing, it is plain t h a t selection does not
cause advance in the first place. Selection can only take place on the
basis of an advance already made; and so we now have t o ask the further
question: What is the cause and nature of the original variations t h a t
are afterwards selected as well as of the factor of heredity which Darwin
also took for granted. Evolution is therefore not necessarily identical
with Darwinism? [This author, however, subscribes t o t h e “principle”
’which, as he puts it, has been applied with resuIts t h a t “have p u t a
new face on all our knowledge.”].
Evidently, infinity in God has no reference to any kind of
magnitude because God is Spirit (John 4:24). Rather, the term
designates the inexhaustible Source of Power by which the
cosmos was created and is sustained in its processes. Therefore,
we must always keep in mind that the basic problem before us
here is not one of power, but of method. Whatever the method,
the Efficient Causality in operation was that of Power. And we
are surely thinking “straight” when we declare our conviction
that all Power is of God.
I think it fitting to conclude at this point with another
excerpt from The Witness, written by my colleague Curtis
Dickinson:
Modern education has undermined today’s children by denying
them the knowledge of this basic fact, t h a t they are created by a loving,
wise, just and merciful God. What kind of character is t o be expected
of the person who sees himself as the chance product of “nature”?
What purpose can exist for something t h a t is a mere step in the
1. The Great Philosophers, 667-668.
2. A Student’s Histoay of Philosophy, 451.
591
T H E ETERNAL SPIRIT - HIS PERSON AND POWERS
purposeless ladder of evolutionary development? Who am I? The ten-
billionth stage of the growth of a cell t h a t began in primordial opze
60 billion years ago? Even the thought of such meaninglessness chills
the mind! A n d f t o think that today’s children a r e compelled to sit under
such teaching practically one-third of the time, many of them continuing
in public class rooms through college until they are past the twenty-
second birthday, The official doctrine of the state school system is
atheistic evolution, with the truth of God’s creation attempted only by
a small Minority of brave teachers who are generally ignored, Thus
the very system t h a t is supported f o r the purpose of education leaves
the young people without purpose and direction, and apt t o follow
whatever voice is the loudest.
Is it possible that the facts stated in this excerpt account for
the tragic consequential fact that the United States of America
is now a pagan nation? Is’it too late now to pray-
“Lord God of hosta, be with us yet,
Lest we forget, lest we forget”?
# * * * # * *
I would again call special attention to the book by A. E.

Wilder Smith, Man’s Origin, Man’s Destiny, for a genuinely
critical treatment of evolutionism and Christianity. The book
may be secured from Harold Shaw, Publishers, Wheaton, Illinois,
60187, or from the Bible-Science Association, Ir~c.!~ I3gim, $016,
Caldwell, Idaho, 83605. Any of the publications by this group
of scientists is well worth reading. I am grateful for the privilege
of quoting from some of these publications.
I would also call attention here to a recent publication of
the National Geography Society, Washington, D.C., 20036 entitled
T h e Marvels of Animal Behavior. This is an eye-opener about
the manifoldness of instinct in the subhuman life-world. C.C.C.
592
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__ , Metaphysics. Loeb Classical Library, in 2 vols. Harvard Uni-
= _ _ _ _ _ ______._
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______.._ , Physics. Trans, by Philip H. Dicltstead and F. W. Cornford,
.--...
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__
-.---.--.--..., De Genesi ad Litteram. Migne Editions: Patrologia Latina,
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-------.-------., “The Meaning of Einstein‘s New Theory,” L i f e , Jan.
_..._____.______
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, Matter and Memory. Translated by Nancy Margaret
.___...._____...
Paul and W. Scott Palmer. Allen and Unwin, London; Macmillan,
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__ _______ __.__ ----....-.--,
__. Creative Evolution. Authorized translation by Arthur
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____.._______.__ --..-------.----,
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593
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tist, May 7, 1827.
--.....__ , . -....... , The Ca?~iphell-Owe~~Debate. Published first under
the title, T h e Evidences of Christiaiiity, by the Standard Publishing
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Carrel, Alexis, Max. the Uiikiiotiiii. Harper, New Yorlr, 1935.
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Chase, Stuart, T h e Tyraiiiry o f Words. Harcourt, New York, 1938.
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York, 1955.
Clarke, Adam, T h e Holy Spirit, w i t h Comt~eirtaryaiid Cvitical Notes,
in 6 vols. Royal Octavo Stereotyped Edition. Published by Waugh
and Mason, f o r the Methodist Episcopal Church, a t the Conference
Office, 13 Crosby St., New York, 1933.
Clutton-Brock, A., “Spirit and Matter,” in Tlre Spirit, edited by B. H.
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...___.._
--.
_ ,
..~
..
.
...
_
. -
. . ...-..
. .. , Pluto and Pwtrieizides, Kegan, Paul, Trench,
Trubner ; London, 1939.
..__..___ ,
-... ._...___._ ....-
.-... ..
_ , Plnto’s Theory of Kriolulcdge, Harcourt,
...-
.
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Winston, Philadelphia, 1949.
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1960[ ....- T h e Divine Milieu, Harper, and Row, New York,
_..._.....
- . , .... ... , T h e Firtiire of Ma?/, trans. by Denny; Harper and

Row, New York, 1964.
--- --., .... ..... , Hyrror of the U?iiverse, Trans. by Bartholomew,
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___ __________ -.-,___ A Co?nnzoii Faitlb. Yale University Press, New Haven,
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___._ *.-.--------.-..,
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~ , __._..._______..
.______._.._.__ T h e Mansions o f Plzilosophy. Simon and Schuster,
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---------.-.---.,
_________ ------,
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____ -.-------..,
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. .. , _.__....,
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.-.___ _._.__ , The M?jsteviorrs Universe. New Revised Edition, Ma&
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._-.- . .-., ....... , Physics nird Philosophy. Macmillan, New York, 1943.
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~1936[
._______.-._.... .. , Grtide to PWilosoplry. Random House, New York,
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_____ , ---------------.,
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Cincinnati.
.-------.-.-.-.,
~ , (Standard Bible Commentary) : Thessalonians, Cor-
_____.______.._.
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Michener, Wm. H., Physics for Students of ,Science and Engineering,
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- ... TIM?Holy Spi?-it: H i s Gifts and Power. Kregel,
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.
.. .... , Heb+eicrs: T h e Epistle of Waming. Kregel, Grand
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Robinson, A. W., The Holy Spirit w d the Zwdividitnl.
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Smith, J. Ritchie, T h e HolU Spirit iiz t h e Gospels. Macmillan, New Yorlr,
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_______ -.---., __ --,T h e Holy Spirit i7/ t h e Awieirt Cliiwch. Macmillan,
____.__.
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.__
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Williams, R. J,, Tlre Hiritiniz Froirtiey. Harcourt, New York, 1946.
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N.B. Some books are listed in the foregoing bibliography as “out of
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599

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BIBLE STUDY TEXTBOOK SERIES

THE ETERNAL SPIRIT:

College Press, J o p h , Missouri

Other Books by C. C. Crawford

Published by Tho College Press, Joplin, Missouri

To be re-issued in the near future

Projected for future publication

2. The Mystery of Sensation ~ 94

3. Operations of the Godhead in General _______ ______ _______

4. The First Principle of All Things _____

Index ______ _____

1. Definitions, Sources, Methods

2. Christianity’s Great Dynamic

3. The Book of the Spirit

4. Man’s Ultimate Ends

ficacy of the Blood is the grave of water (John 3:5, 19:34;

j. Difficulties of Our Subject

6 . The Proper Approach to the Subject

7. The Language of the Spirit

H. Wheeler Robinson comments on this famous passage of

QUESTIONS FOR REVIEW OF PART ONE

Although PIato apparently never so states explicitly, he clearly

his experiments vered that in all chemical operations, it is

Physicists are now telling us that “cosmic rays bombard

2. The Mystery of Sensation

3. The Mystery of Consciousness

4. The Mystery of Life

5. The Mystery of Thought

These words remind us of the notion put forward in the heydey

The basic thought processes-operations of the intellect-

apperception, which i s practically the same thing. At any rate,

6. The Mysteries of the Subconscious

empathy or en. rapport-ness of feeling), subvocally, of course,

Simon Peter answered immediately, “Thou art the Christ, the

Thoughts are entities which impress themselves on their sur-

7. The Mystery of the Person

nor lead independent existences ; their arrangement always constitutes

QUESTIONS FOR REVIEW OF PART TWO

no{ point t o a mystery beyond“ itself.”

138. How does Hamlin Garland account for qctoplasms?

1. Recap: Man’s Ultimate Ends

f the power of self- ,

This means too that He was not a mere ghost or phantasm; He

ADDENDA: COSMOLOGICAL THEORIES

PLOTINUS (A.D. 205-270).

one: world unity, prior to the possibility

Gross matter: non-being

Gnosticism, in its various cults, postulated a series of

Atman ( unity that pervades plurality)

Souls (plurality that is really unity)

Plants (levels of plant life)

Matter (levels of decomposition)

It will be noted that emanationist systems all tend toward

rational psyche (IIsoul”)

Aristotle, in his De Anima (“On the Soul”) , pictures the totality

C. Lloyd Morgan, 3 am u e 1 Alexander, Roy Wood Sellers,

Some hold that God, the Eternal Spirit, created without

THE TEILHARDIAN HIERARCHY OF BEING

OMEGA: Creation and Creator Become One

3. Operations of the Godhead in General _ ___

Index __ _