230 THE LAST JUDGMENT. AND
Doctrines that are mysterious cannot teach.—The difficulty of a corrupted Church seeing its corruptions.—The inquiry. How is such a Church to be informed of its condition? replied to.—The external continuance of such a Church no proof that it possesses spiritual light and vitality.—Illustrations.—The continuance of the Jewish Church.—Divisions, characteristics of a fallen Church. —None of those divisions acquainted with the true nature of the inspiration of the Word.—The animosities which exist between the two great divisions of the Church.—The mysterious doctrines which are taught by both.—The occasion of the second coming of the Lord to be sought for in the corruption of those doctrines which He taught at His first advent.—Judgment upon a fallen Church requisite to prepare the way for the excellences of its successor.— Hlustrations.—The professing Christian Church, as to light and purity, atan end.—The second coming of the Lord begun.—Resumé and conclusion.
Seeing that the doctrines concerning the destruction of the earth, the cessation of the human race, and the resurrection of the material body are not founded in the teachings of the Divine Word, nor countenanced by any known principles of natural philosophy; seeing, also, that there is a region in the spiritual world which is the first common receptacle for the souls of all who die, and, that that region is the scene in which the Lord executes His final judgments upon them,—we are prepared to enter more directly upon the consideration of the subject of the Lord's second coming than we should have been without such information. If those several doctrines had not been considered with a view to a new explanation of them, the popular opinions respecting them would have been continually rising up in the minds of orthodox(?) readers, and interposing obstacles to the right understanding of our views and arguments, by suggesting some seeming evidences against them. These having been anticipated and removed, the way is now open for a freer exposition of our subject. We, therefore, proceed to
