The Seventy's Course in Theology, Fifth Year: Divine Immanence and the Holy GhostRoberts, B. H. (Brigham Henry)
Religion
The Seventy's Course in Theology, Fifth Year: Divine Immanence and the Holy Ghost
Roberts, B. H. (Brigham Henry)
Latter Day Saint churches -- Doctrines
"The difference then between the spiritual man and the natural man
is not a difference of development, but of generation. It is a
distinction of quality, not of quantity. A man cannot rise by any
natural development from "morality touched by emotion," to "morality
touched by life." Were we to construct a scientific classification,
science would compel us to arrange all natural men, moral or immoral,
educated or vulgar, as one family. One might be high in the family
group, another low; yet, practically, they are marked by the same set
of characteristics--they eat, sleep, work, think, live, die. But the
spiritual man is removed from this family so utterly by the possession
of an additional characteristic that a biologist, fully informed of
the whole circumstances, would not hesitate a moment to classify him
elsewhere. And if he really entered into these circumstances it would
not be in another family but in another kingdom. It is an old fashioned
theology which divides the world in this way--which speaks of men as
Living and Dead, lost and saved--a stern theology all but fallen into
disuse. This difference between the living and the dead in souls is so
unproved by casual observation, so impalpable in itself, so startling
as a doctrine, that schools of culture have ridiculed or denied the
grim distinction. Nevertheless the grim distinction must be retained.
It is a scientific distinction. "He that hath not the Son hath not
Life."[A]
[Footnote A: He that has not spiritually been born is not spiritually
alive.]
"Now it is this great law which finally distinguishes Christianity from
all other religions. It places the religion of Christ upon a footing
altogether unique. There is no analogy between the Christian religion
and, say, Buddhism or the Mohammedan religion. There is no true sense
in which a man can say. He that hath Buddha hath life. Buddha has
nothing to do with life. He may have something to do with morality.
He may stimulate, impress, teach, guide, but there is no distinct
new thing added to the souls of those who profess Buddhism. These
religions may be developments of the natural, mental, or moral man. But
Christianity professes to be more. It is the mental or moral man plus
something else or some One else. It is the infusion into the spiritual
man of a new life, of a quality unlike anything else in nature. This
constitutes the separate Kingdom of Christ, and gives to Christianity
alone of all the religions of mankind the strange mark of divinity.
CHAPTER XXI.
(Scripture Reading Exercise.)
"LIFE FROM LIFE"--SPIRITUAL LIFE FROM SPIRIT (Continued).
ANALYSIS.
VI. Fundamental Elements in the Spiritual Man that are Absent in the
Natural Man.
VII. Terms Used to Express Elements in Spiritual Man.
VIII. Process of Regeneration in the Individual Man.
IX. Insignificance of the Time Element.
REFERENCES.
The works and Scripture cited in the body of this lesson.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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