The Error of Universalism

Editorial
July/September, 1973
Volume 8, Number 3

In this issue of the Witness, we are dealing with the theme of universalism. Universalism teaches the ultimate well-being of every person. Some believe that all will ultimately be happy because all are by nature the children of God. Others believe that a good God will restore men to a position of well-being after some kind of future punishment. But the Bible repeatedly distinguishes between the two roads, the two gates, and the two destinies (heaven and hell). We may not like the concept that some are God’s children (through faith in His Son) while others are children of the devil (through disobedience and unbelief) – but this is the plain teaching of the Scriptures. We may find it hard to accept the teaching of eternal torment for those who reject Jesus Christ, but the Bible states it clearly.

Harold O. J. Brown expresses a truth about future punishment. He says: “In a strange way, hell is necessary for human significance. If no man no matter what he did could finally rebel against God, but all men were ultimately to be brought back into harmony with God through a kind of irresistible grace – then all the moral and spiritual struggles of men would have no more meaning than the wrigglings of hamsters in a laboratory cage” (Page 110, The Protest of a Troubled Protestant).

The matter of universalism is not simply one of elevating human reason above the clear witness of the Scriptures. The whole mission of the church is affected. Because of a belief in universalism, the nerve of evangelism and of world missions is often cut. The universalist rejects the Bible’s teaching that men outside of Christ are lost. He rejects the teaching that the Christian faith alone is truth, and that other religions are pagan end false. The universalist reasons that since people are not lost, the aim of the evangelist is merely to cause people who think negatively, to see that in the ultimate victory of the love of God, they are all included. But the Bible does say, “Knowing, therefore, the terror of the Lord, we persuade men” (2 Corinthians 5:11).

–H.S.M.

The Error of Universalism

By Harold S. Martin

The basic doctrine of universalism is that all men will finally be saved, and that ultimately none will be lost. Universalism is the teaching that, because Christ died for all, He will sovereignly and out of love bring all men eventually to salvation. The universalist believes that men cannot be eternally lost.

The doctrine that all men will ultimately be saved, had its advocates ever since the time of Origen of Alexandria in the Third Century. His allegorical interpretation of the Scriptures led to the theory that all men (even fallen angels) would finally be redeemed. This early universalism however, was resisted and repudiated by the Church. The Church vigorously taught the biblical doctrines of the lostness of man, the need for salvation based upon the shed blood of Jesus Christ, and the everlasting damnation of those who refused His offer of salvation. The Church stood firmly for the doctrines of eternal salvation and eternal damnation.

In our day, universalism is becoming acceptable to some leading Protestant and Roman Catholic theologians. The late D. T. Niles, for example, said that Christ had already redeemed the whole world, and one day He will gather the whole world to Himself. But until He does, there are some living in rebellion, not knowing that they belong to Him or that He has redeemed them. Dr. Niles said that everybody is within the ministry of Jesus Christ whether or not he accepts it. The work of the evangelist then is not so much to win men to Christ, but to inform them that they are redeemed and should start living accordingly. The old idea that the Christian’s task is to bring Christ to the nations, is no longer valid – since He is the universal Saviour. The Christian’s responsibility is to announce the universal Lordship of Christ.

This same teaching is found in Church of the Brethren literature (and occasionally in statements from some of the Brethren):

Bethany Seminary Professor (and recent Annual Conference moderator), Dale Brown, says: “Yet, while Christianity does focus on a Person as the clue to the nature of reality, it is significant that the New Testament references to Christ as Savior point to his Saviorhood of all men and of the world rather than support the widespread notion of a personal Savior” (page 134, The Christian Revolutionary, Eerdmans, 1971).

Agenda (resource for Church of the Brethren ministers) quoted favorably materials from a report on ‘Worship in the Round”: “Since Christ is the Lord of all life, everyone already has a relationship with Him, although people have no awareness of His presence. Our task is to make Christ visible” (Agenda, January 10, 1971).

The Encounter Series (literature used in Church of the Brethren Sunday Schools) acknowledges that Pierre Chardin’s views of the development of the universe may be open to question, but after quoting part of Colossians 1:15-19, the writers of our Sunday School literature say: “in the future, man will evolve toward this likeness of God made known in Jesus Christ. The next stage in evolution will be a ‘growth in love.’ Not without pain and agony, but in groaning and travail, life nevertheless moves toward its final, trandcendant goal when the love of God will be all in 411” (page 124, The Man Who Responds, Church of the Brethren General Offices, 1969).

The idea that Jesus is Lord both of the church and the world (in the same sense) is not biblical. His lordship over the nations is not of the same order as His lordship over the church. His lordship over the nations is associated with discipline; His lordship over the church is associated with fellowship. According to the Scriptures, the kingdoms of this world are not yet become the kingdom of our Lord (Revelation 11:15). Jesus is Lord only of those who voluntarily submit to His lordship. Those who have not submitted to His lordship are at enmity with Him (John 3:36).

Universalism teaches that Christ is Lord over all, and that all men are evolving toward the likeness of God as made known in Jesus Christ, and thus all will ultimately be included within the scope of Christ’s mercy and salvation. We reject the doctrine of universalism for several reasons.

1.THE BIBLE DOES NOT CONTRADICT ITSELF

There are a number of Scripture passages to which the universalists appeal, and some of the Scriptures when treated alone seem to give support to the universalists’ claims. The teaching of universalism however is based upon a fragmented interpretation of the Scripture, and not upon an exposition of the Bible in its totality.

We readily accept the universal character of the claims of Scripture: God loves the world (John 3:16); Christ is the propitiation for the sins of the whole world (1 John 2:2) God desires all to be saved (1 Timothy 2:4): etc. On the other hand, the Bible must be taken in its totality. Jesus taught eternal punishment as well as eternal life (Matthew 25:46); He spoke of the cursed as well as the blessed (Matthew 25:34, 41); He said there is a Heaven and a Hell (Luke 10:20; Matthew 10:28); He talked about the saved and the lost (John 10:9; Luke 19:10). We affirm the universality of the Gospel, and that all will believe in the end, but that does not mean that every individual will be saved. Some will believe when it is too late (at the Judgment to come), and will hear the words, “Depart from me.”

2.GOD IS MORE THAN A JOY-LOVING FATHER

Some have taken the biblical phrase “God is love” to be a definite statement concerning the essential nature of God. But to say that love and God are identical is a major mistake. If God is love, that love is God – and then it is our duty to worship love as the only God there is. Love is an attribute of God (it is something true of God), but it is not God. It is not true that this one attribute (love), will triumph over all other attributes (justice and holiness).

Leslie Weatherhead explains the common one-sided view of the love of God when he says, “The Good Shepherd at last will bring every soul into the fold, for he himself gave men the picture of the Good Shepherd not content with 99 percent of successes, but seeking the lost sheep until he find it” (The Christian Agnostic, pages 285-286). The thing Mr. Weatherhead overlooks is that not all people are among the sheep. Jesus, in John 10, spoke of those who are already a part of the legitimate sheepfold; but in Matthew 25, Jesus indicates that there are some goats who will not be saved.

3. JESUS SPEAKS CLEARLY ABOUT HELL

The New Testament message is clearly against universalism. Jesus says in Matthew 7, “Not everyone who saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven.” In Matthew 10, Jesus exhorts us to “fear him who is able to destroy both soul and body in hell.” In the parable of the wheat and tares (Matthew 13), Jesus says that the tares will be committed into the furnace of fire where there will be wailing and gnashing of teeth.

Jesus Christ is the Person who is responsible for the doctrine of eternal perdition. Jesus makes frequent specific references to Hell and eternal damnation. Jesus, who is the Lord of love, spoke more about Hell than He did about Heaven. He said that Hell is a place where “the fire is not quenched and the worm dieth not” (Mark 9:48). Just as Heaven is more wonderful than symbols can picture it, so Hell is more terrible than its symbols can describe it. If Hell is not fire, it is something far worse. No wonder Jesus warned against it so often and so emphatically! Therefore whether or not I like it or understand it, I believe it. If all men will be universally saved, what is the significance of Jesus statement, “Narrow is the way which leadeth unto Life, and few there be that find it” (Matthew 7:14)?

It is true that some of the earlier Brethren held the doctrine of universal restoration, but it is also true that those who taught universalism were “cut off from the fellowship of the church” (page 327, The Brethren in Colonial America, Durnbaugh, 1967). The teaching of the Brethren nearly two centuries ago, is expressed clearly in the minutes of the 1794 Annual Meeting: “But we believe, as it is written in many places, that there is a lake of fire or place of torment, which according to … Matthew 25:41 says: ‘Depart from me, you cursed into the eternal fire, prepared for the devil and his angels’”(page 329, The Brethren in Colonial America, Durnbaugh).

Since the biblical mission of the church commits us to proclaim the Gospel which offers men the forgiveness of sine only through faith in Jesus Christ – we are obligated to preach the Gospel to all men before they die in their sins. We must be forthright in our teaching that there is an awful eternity awaiting those who through sin and unbelief reject Jesus Christ.

 

Post

Register Now

BBI Registration Now Open!

Come explore God’s Word with us!. “So then faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God. – Romans 10:17”
Sign up today!

THE BOOK OF DANIEL

Captivity… Dreams… Rulers… Fire… Lions… Prayers… Kingdoms. From a dedicated youth to a faithful sage, Daniel’s life stands as an example to follow.  Yet beyond his personal life, God gifted Daniel with a message of future events.  Though difficult to grasp, these events would shape the world for the coming Messiah and the Second Coming of Christ as King.

STUDIES IN LUKE

Luke presents a warmly personal and historically accurate account of Jesus as “the Son of Man.” This course will survey the Third Gospel, with emphasis on the unique events, miracles, and parables of Jesus found in it.

HISTORY OF THE CHRISTIAN CHURCH

This class will provide a broad overview of general church history. We will then focus on the Anabaptist and Pietist movements, especially as they relate to the formation and development of the Brethren groups. This is a two-part class. Plan to take both parts.

ONE FOUNDATION

This course is intended to lay down a measure in a world where truth is slippery and often subject to interpretation. Where “Christian Values” become a political slogan, and “good people” are our allies despite their faulty core beliefs. Where Facebook “friends” post memes about the power of God, despite a lifestyle that is anything but Godly. In the process we often fight among ourselves, doing Satan’s work for him. The purpose of this course is to lay the measure of Jesus Christ against the cults, religions, and worship in our contemporary world.

THE APOCRYPHA

While Protestant translations of the Bible contain 66 books, the Roman Catholic and Eastern Orthodox Churches recognize additional canonical books as well.  Where did these books, collectively known as the Apocrypha, come from and why aren’t they part of our Bible?  How reliable are they, and what value is there in studying them?

STUDIES IN 1 AND 2 PETER

The goal of this class is to acquire a firm grasp of the teachings and themes of these two general epistles. Peter covers topics from salvation and suffering to spiritual deception and the return of Christ. These letters are packed with warnings and encouragements for Christian living.

THE GREAT I AM’S OF CHRIST

A detailed study of Jesus Christ and His relationship to the “I Am” metaphors in John’s gospel. Why did Jesus describe himself in these terms? How do they relate to each other? We will look at spiritual and practical applications to further our Christian growth.

JEHOVAH’S WITNESSES: AN AMERICAN CULT

Have you ever been visited by someone who said they wanted to study the Bible with you so that you might discover the truth together?  Jehovah’s Witnesses claim to have much in common with evangelical Christians, and they seem to be well versed in the scriptures.  But what do they really believe and how can we effectively witness to those who have been ensnared by this false religion?

THE BOOK OF HOSEA

While we may consider Hosea as one of the minor prophets, his message vividly illustrates the major doctrine in all Scriptures.  The theme of God’s unconditional love is magnified and extended beyond those deserving it.  God expresses tender words towards His erring people inviting them to turn from sin to reconciliation with Him.

CHURCH LEADERSHIP AND ADMINISTRATION

This course will look at basic principles and polity of leading the local church. We will examine the balance between upholding a spiritually focused organism of ministry and cultivating proper order for effective organization. Practical applications will be emphasized. This is a two-part class. Plan to take both parts.

STATEMENT OF CONDUCT

The Brethren Bible Institute believes in the discipline of the whole person (spirit, soul, and body). We will aim to train students not only about how to study the Bible in a systematic way (2 Timothy 2:15), but also how to live soberly and righteously and godly in this present world (Titus 2:12). God calls Christians to the highest of character when He commands us to be holy (1 Peter 1:15), and holiness requires discipline.

Indulgence in the use of tobacco, alcoholic beverages, drugs, profanity, and gambling are forbidden at BBI. Objectionable literature will be prohibited. Students are asked not to use the college pool during the Institute. Each student must be thoughtful, and respect the rights of others at all times, especially during study and rest periods.

A friendly social group intermingling of students between class periods, and at general school activities is encouraged. Each student should enjoy the friendship of the entire group. At all times, highest standards of social conduct between men and women must be maintained. This means that all forms of unbecoming behavior and unseemly familiarities will be forbidden.

Personal appearance and grooming tell much about one's character. Students are expected to be dressed in good taste. In an attempt to maintain Scriptural expressions of simplicity, modesty, and nonconformity, the following regulations shall be observed while attending BBI.

MEN should be neatly attired and groomed at all times. Fashion extremes and the wearing of jewelry should be avoided on campus. The hair should not fall over the shirt-collar when standing, nor should it cover the ears.

WOMEN should wear skirts cut full enough and of sufficient length to at least come to the knees when standing and sitting. Form-fitting, transparent, low-neckline, or sleeveless clothing will not be acceptable. Slacks and culottes are permitted only for recreation and then only when worn under a skirt of sufficient length. Wearing jewelry should be avoided on campus. Long hair for women is encouraged and all Church of the Brethren girls (and others with like convictions) shall be veiled on campus.

The Institute reserves the right to dismiss any student whose attitude and behavior is not in harmony with the ideals of the School, or whose presence undermines the general welfare of the School, even if there is no specific breach of conduct.

The Brethren Bible Institute is intended to provide sound Bible teaching and wholesome Christian fellowship for all who desire it. The Bible School Committee worked hard and long at the task of arriving at standards, which will be pleasing to the Lord. It is not always easy to know just where the line should be drawn and we do not claim perfection. No doubt certain standards seem too strict for some and too loose for others. If you are one who does not share all these convictions, we hope you will agree to adjust to them for the School period, for the sake of those who do. We are confident that the blessings received will far outweigh any sacrifice you may have to make. If you have a special problem or question, please write to us about it. To be accepted as a student at BBI, you will need to sign a statement indicating that you will cooperate with the standards of the School.