The Secret of Salvation.

SALVATION.

MID all the spiritual confusion and darkness of this world sin abounds on every hand. Misery and woe are depicted in the careworn faces of mankind, and the nations of the earth seem to have forgotten God, or never to have known him and the blessed ways of his truth. Darkness covers the face of the earth and gross darkness the people, and they pursue the ways of sin and travel in forbidden paths, and in the road that leads to destruction of both soul and body.

But is there no way out of this darkness of sin and confusion, where the sin-sick soul can find rest and peace? Did God make man to be lost? Or what are the chances for the future of mankind? These, with an endless number of questions, seem to be coming from every side from anxious inquirers after truth, who are groping along in the darkness of this world.

God did not make man to be lost. It is his will that all should be saved with an everlasting salvation.

Man was not placed here in this world in a sinful state, but was created in the likeness of God (Gen. 1:26), pure and holy, on a plane with his Maker, and couldwalk and talk with him. This was indeed a blessed privilege. Not only was this the case, but he had the promise that he could remain in that relation as long as he did not disobey God. He was, however, told the penalty of disobedience, nevertheless he yielded to the voice of the serpent, through whose subtlety and cunning devices, plans were laid to cause the curse of sin to be brought upon mankind through disobedience to God.

This enemy of souls began his evil work by telling Eve a falsehood, and persuaded her to disbelieve what God had said; then it was only an easy matter to accomplish his desires and get her to disobey by partaking of that which was forbidden by the Lord. But now would Adam yield also? Alas! he, too, yielded to the temptation, which resulted in his fall from a state of purity and holiness into the depths of sin and disobedience, causing him to die a spiritual death, and he was driven from the presence of God, and the curse of sin passed upon all men. Rom. 5:12.

After he had disobeyed, Adam was ashamed to meet the Lord, and when he heard his voice in the cool of the day he went and hid himself; for he keenly felt the reproach of his disobedience, and tried to make the Lord believe that he hid himself because he was naked. Before this, however, he was not ashamed, but now his

guilty conscience smote him on account of his sin, and he was ashamed to meet the Lord, or be brought into the presence of his holiness. But God said, "Who told thee that thou wast naked?" Then he asked him a straightforward question, "Hast thou eaten of the tree whereof I commanded thee that thou shouldst not eat?" God knew what he had done, but Adam, like backsliders of to-day, thought to justify himself somewhat and perhaps lessen his penalty by putting the blame upon some one else. So he told the Lord that the woman who had been given him as his wife had caused him to disobey. And when the woman was spoken to regarding the matter, she charged the serpent as being the cause of the whole affair. The poor serpent had no one to accuse, or he, doubtless, would have tried to justify himself in like manner.

The seed of sin having been planted in their hearts by the enemy of souls, now came the awful sentence from the mouth of the Lord, and they were driven from his presence, away from Eden's holy ground, and there shut out into the dark world to prolong their life of sin and eat their bread by the sweat of their face. A sad, sad sentence it was indeed, for the gates of Eden were guarded against them, lest they should return and eat from the tree of life and live forever, and thus be restored without repentance of their disobedience.

Now began their life under the curse of sin. While they had been created in the likeness of God, now

since their fall their children inherited the same fallen nature as themselves (Gen. 5:3), and this is the inbred, sinful nature that has passed upon all men since that time. The seed of sin having been planted in the hearts of our foreparents is our inheritance from them. The first one born under the curse of sin was a murderer, and took the life of his brother, and the record of mankind since that time has been one of disobedience and the shedding of blood. Even good old David said, "Behold, I was shapen in iniquity, and in sin did my mother conceive me;" which shows the continuation of the curse of sin as an inheritance, and his knowledge of the same. Yea, we read in Rom. 5: 12 that "by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned." Sin was not imputed unto the people until the law was given by Moses; however, death reigned over them that did not sin in the same manner of Adam's transgression.

God has had ways of dealing with the people, both the just and the unjust, down through all ages from the beginning to the present time. Cain was told that if he did well he would be accepted of the Lord; and if he did not, that "sin lieth at the door." But, "by faith Abel offered unto God a more excellent sacrifice than Cain, by which he obtained witness that he was righteous." It was for that cause that Cain became wroth and slew him, thus becoming a servant of sin.

Noah faithfully preached to the wicked generations,

who only scoffed at his words of warning, until the flood came and destroyed all but himself and family. Faithful Abraham plead earnestly for the people of Sodom and Gomorrah, but behold, the wickedness was so great that only Lot and his family could be found. numbered among the righteous. Not even his sons-in

law would heed the advice and before its burning.

flee out of the city

When the law was given, the people were brought under greater obligations to God, and sin was imputed against transgressors because of their greater knowledge of him through his servants whom he had chosen to deliver the same. Before this time the people offered sacrifices, which were acceptable unto the Lord, but now since the law was given, a strict observance of offerings was required. And when sins were committed there was to be offered a sacrifice as a sin offering, besides many others which the law set forth.

As time passed on the people were ruled by judges, and by kings, and they seemed to wax worse and worse until the ushering in of the gospel dispensation, in which full salvation was offered freely unto all men.

WHAT IT MEANS.

To have full salvation is to be redeemed from all sin, and to be redeemed is to be brought back into the first state. Before the fall of man he was pure and holy,