Post by Ben on Jul 9, 2014 22:52:32 GMT
Verse 23: "But when they persecute you in this city, flee ye into another: for verily I say unto you, Ye shall not have gone over the cities of Israel, till the Son of man be come."
Here is a section from Eureka Volume 2, where Bro. Thomas is explaining the persecutions against the "christians" during the second seal period. In particular, he draws attention to the fact that these "christians" did not heed Christ's warning in verse 23 to flee persecution.
"From all I can see in the history of those times, the executions seem to have been chiefly of professors who coveted martyrdom, which was contrary to the teachings of Christ who told them that "when persecuted in one city they should flee to another." But, the reverse of this, they rushed into the mouth of the dragon, and provoked him to devour them with his "great iron teeth," and to rend them with his "brazen claws." After the death of John this practice soon began to prevail. Multitudes in Asia presented themselves to Arrius Antoninus for execution in Trajan's reign. He ordered a few of them to execution, and said to the rest, "Miserable people, if you choose death, you may find precipices and halters enow." As time rolled on, this folly increased to mania; and in A.D. 167, we find the ecclesia in Smyrna saying, in its letter about the execution of Polycarp, "we do not approve of those who offer themselves for martyrdom, for we have not so learned Christ." Among the Alexandrians, several were burned and destroyed in various ways. Of these Heraclides is mentioned, who had not been baptized, and was therefore certainly not a Christian. Basilides, a soldier who had assisted at the execution of a professor, was converted by her appearing to him three days after her death; and on declaring that he was Christian, he also was put to death. Such spurious conversions as these abounded; and Christians (!) of this sort had an idea that "by one hour's torment they redeemed themselves from eternal punishment." Such "miserable sinners," styling themselves "Christians," abound in our time; multitudes of whom, tired of the troubles of life, would joyfully suffer death under the delusion that by giving their worthless bodies to be burned, they would by a brief torment acquire posthumous notoriety, and hide a multitude of sins. All this voluntary martyrdom was the result of ignorance and misdirected zeal. It was no proof of the sufferers being Christ's Brethren. We may admit the piety and sincerity of many of them; but Paul has taught us that giving the body to be burned is no equivalent for the want of that "love," which he, after the teaching of the Christ, says is "the fulfilling of the law" — hoping and believing all the things testified in the truth — 1 Cor. 13. Martyrdom, then, is no
proof of a man's being in Christ; and without being in him, he cannot be a christadelphian. The most it proves is the sincerity and devotion of the martyr to his profession, whatever that may be. Hence, the martyrdom of Huss, Jerome, Cranmer, Servetus, and such like, proved the sincerity of their anti-romish and anti-calvinistic opinions; it did not alter the fact of their being eminently pious members of the Apostasy; the stain of which cannot be obliterated by body-burning, but only by an intelligent belief and obedience of the truth."
(Eureka, Volume 2, pages 179-180).
Here is a section from Eureka Volume 2, where Bro. Thomas is explaining the persecutions against the "christians" during the second seal period. In particular, he draws attention to the fact that these "christians" did not heed Christ's warning in verse 23 to flee persecution.
"From all I can see in the history of those times, the executions seem to have been chiefly of professors who coveted martyrdom, which was contrary to the teachings of Christ who told them that "when persecuted in one city they should flee to another." But, the reverse of this, they rushed into the mouth of the dragon, and provoked him to devour them with his "great iron teeth," and to rend them with his "brazen claws." After the death of John this practice soon began to prevail. Multitudes in Asia presented themselves to Arrius Antoninus for execution in Trajan's reign. He ordered a few of them to execution, and said to the rest, "Miserable people, if you choose death, you may find precipices and halters enow." As time rolled on, this folly increased to mania; and in A.D. 167, we find the ecclesia in Smyrna saying, in its letter about the execution of Polycarp, "we do not approve of those who offer themselves for martyrdom, for we have not so learned Christ." Among the Alexandrians, several were burned and destroyed in various ways. Of these Heraclides is mentioned, who had not been baptized, and was therefore certainly not a Christian. Basilides, a soldier who had assisted at the execution of a professor, was converted by her appearing to him three days after her death; and on declaring that he was Christian, he also was put to death. Such spurious conversions as these abounded; and Christians (!) of this sort had an idea that "by one hour's torment they redeemed themselves from eternal punishment." Such "miserable sinners," styling themselves "Christians," abound in our time; multitudes of whom, tired of the troubles of life, would joyfully suffer death under the delusion that by giving their worthless bodies to be burned, they would by a brief torment acquire posthumous notoriety, and hide a multitude of sins. All this voluntary martyrdom was the result of ignorance and misdirected zeal. It was no proof of the sufferers being Christ's Brethren. We may admit the piety and sincerity of many of them; but Paul has taught us that giving the body to be burned is no equivalent for the want of that "love," which he, after the teaching of the Christ, says is "the fulfilling of the law" — hoping and believing all the things testified in the truth — 1 Cor. 13. Martyrdom, then, is no
proof of a man's being in Christ; and without being in him, he cannot be a christadelphian. The most it proves is the sincerity and devotion of the martyr to his profession, whatever that may be. Hence, the martyrdom of Huss, Jerome, Cranmer, Servetus, and such like, proved the sincerity of their anti-romish and anti-calvinistic opinions; it did not alter the fact of their being eminently pious members of the Apostasy; the stain of which cannot be obliterated by body-burning, but only by an intelligent belief and obedience of the truth."
(Eureka, Volume 2, pages 179-180).