DEATH TO CARNALITY, THE ONLY BIBLE THEORY

 OF OBTAINING HOLINESS --No. 1

     There never was a soul wholly sanctified who did not die to carnality. Death does not imply consecration, but destruction. We hope to prove this from the Bible -- its symbols, characters, and plain passages.

     Ishmael represents the carnal mind, and it is this that gets souls in a hurry and out of divine order. It seems Sarai and Abram (as they were then called) felt that God was going to make of them a great nation. See Gen. 15:S. But Sarai was old and "bore him no children," and they were anxious to see the promise fulfilled, so she said, "Behold now, the Lord hath restrained me from bearing: I pray thee, go in unto my maid (Hagar the Egyptian); it may be that I may obtain children by her. And Abram hearkened to the voice of Sarai" (Gen. 16:2). Thus Ishmael was born.

     "The slave being the absolute property of the mistress, not only her person but the fruits of her labors, with all her children, were her owner's property also. It was on this ground that Sarai gave her slave to Abram; and we find what must necessarily be the consequence in all cases of polygamy, that strife and contention took place." -- Clarke.

     It was about this time (we hope it was previous to the time) when God counted Abram's faith as "righteousness." This is the first account we have of justification by faith. It was about twelve or thirteen years after this (when Abram was ninety years old), that the Lord appeared unto him and said unto him, "I am Almighty God: walk before me, and be thou perfect. And Abram fell on his face." Henceforth his name was changed to Abraham.

     In the meantime Isaac had been born, and the time came for him to be weaned. "And Abraham made a great feast (rejoiced greatly) the same day that Isaac was weaned." This was too much for the envious Ishmael, although he was only a lad.

     "And Sarah saw the son of Hagar the Egyptian, which she had borne unto Abraham, mocking. Wherefore she said unto Abraham, Cast out this bondwoman and her son: for the son of this bondwoman shall not be heir with my son, even with Isaac. And the thing was very grievous in Abraham's sight, because of his son" (Gen. 21:9-11).

     Notice the connection: "Abraham was an hundred years old." This was about the time when God called him to perfection. Now the test or crucifixion comes -- to cast out and turn against his own flesh and blood. This was killing, but God told him to do all that Sarah had said. In like manner it will be killing to you when you turn against that which is part of you -- your carnal nature.

     It was said of Ishmael that he would be a wild man, "his hand will be against every man, and every man's hand against him; and he shall dwell in the presence of all his brethren" -- in the presence of all the graces of the Spirit, until cast out. Paul referred to him when he said, "As then he that was born after the flesh, persecuted him that was born after the Spirit, even so it is now. Nevertheless what saith the Scripture? Cast out the bondwoman and her son."

     The point is that Ishmael represented carnality, and he was not "laid upon the altar" and sacrificed as a gift, nor was he "consecrated" or blest out, but was "cast out." And this is what takes place when a soul is genuinely sanctified; there is a casting out, an emptying out, a crucifying rather than a consecration of something to God.

     Again, let us notice the Israelites' passage from Egypt to Canaan. While in bondage in Egypt they were slaves to Pharaoh. This is universally believed to represent an unregenerate soul in bondage to Satan.

     Very well. They cross the Red Sea and this is typical of justification. But we fail to see how that crossing Jordan into Canaan represents obtaining the experience of holiness. Although this is the popular idea, versed in songs, written in books, and preached all over the land, yet we fall to see how the general trend of the Scriptures upholds such an interpretation.

     In some instances an analogy will not hold good either for or against Jordan and Canaan as being typical of holiness, but there are enough plain passages to show us the true interpretation. See Lev. 18:3. This one passage is sufficient

     After they had crossed the Red Sea, which represented justification, they would have entered Canaan in less than forty days, had they gone straight ahead and not murmured by the way. As it was, they were forty years.

     They were sinning and repenting all along the way, just about as thoroughly as many do today. Of course, God proved Himself mighty in their behalf every time they forsook their sins, but the Bible teaches a regeneration that saves and keeps from going back into sin. True, some do go back, but as a rule genuine repentance reforms and saves from ever repeating the same outbreaking sins. But this can not be said of the Israelites from the time they left Egypt until they arrived at Kadesh the first time.

     They murmured, they found fault with Moses and God, they gave themselves to gluttony, adultery, and idolatry time and again. Perhaps some of the priests and leaders enjoyed the favor of God, but the people as a whole were continuously sinning and required constant pleading and sacrificing in their behalf to keep God from blotting them off the face of the earth. This does not seem like a clear type of regeneration. Be that as it may, now we find them at Kadesh. This was located on the border of Canaan. The word signifies "a call to holiness." But here is where "they rebelled" and then spent forty years wandering around in the wilderness within only a few miles of the boundary line of Canaan. After these years of "tempting Christ" the new generation arrived at Kadesh Barnea again. Kadesh was the original name, but Barnea (which means "departed from") was added after they refused to "go up at once and possess the land."

     So the new generation starting from Kadesh Barnea were about the same as when they first crossed the Red Sea. They represented a young convert eager and quick to obey. A young convert is "called to holiness." He has holiness begun.

     They continued to press on with new energy until they reached the plains of Moab by the river Jordan. Here Joshua became Moses' successor and the people "answered Joshua saying: All that thou commandest us we will do and whithersoever thou sendest us we will go." Some try to make this passage mean entire consecration as conditional before entering Canaan, but any one can see that a submission less than this would fail to justify. Now we come to the issue. Was their crossing Jordan typical of obtaining the experience of holiness? We think not. If it has anything to do with holiness at all, it simply represents a seeker putting himself upon record to go over and drive out the inhabitants of the land -- make war upon the enemies still lurking within his own breast. This is what souls do when they confess out and turn against the traits of carnality. They do not consecrate these tendencies, nor do they lay them upon an altar and sanctify them, for God will not and can not accept them; His plan is to destroy them.

     We give a few more references which represent carnality and how to get rid of it. Exod. 23:20-28; 34:12, 13, 24; Dent. 12:1-3. According to these and many other passages the Israelites did not possess the land until they had driven out the inhabitants thereof. These different nations represent some phase of carnality (Joshua 3:10), such as fear, pride, lust, covetousness, discouragement, unbelief, etc. A soul possesses the land of spiritual Canaan when he has driven all the enemies out and there is nothing left within that the Omniscient gaze sees ought to be removed.

     The command was, "Speak unto the children of Israel, and say unto them, When ye are passed over Jordan into the land of Canaan; then ye shall drive out all the inhabitants of the land from before you, and destroy all their pictures (impure imaginations) and destroy all their molten images (idolatrous love) and quite pluck down all their high places (spiritual pride). And ye shall dispossess the inhabitants of the land, and dwell therein: for I have given you the land to possess it ... But if ye will not drive out the inhabitants of the land from before you; then it shall come to pass, that those which ye let remain of them shall be pricks in your eyes, and thorns in your sides, and shall vex you in the land wherein ye dwell. Moreover it shall come to pass, that I shall do unto you, as I thought to do unto them" (Num. 33:51-56).

     This seems to be a good representation of carnality and the result of not driving it out. But because they failed to do so, and were finally taken captives themselves, is no argument against our entering and possessing the Canaan of perfect love.

     Some teach that their making a league with the Gibeonites and constantly fighting with the inhabitants of the land is typical of our continual warfare with the "weakness of the flesh." But this gives the "old man" too much rope. Clean souls do not marry and intermarry with the traits of carnality. Clean souls do not make leagues with deceptive dispositions. Clean souls do not have warrings inside. They have driven all the enemies outside the boundary lines and here is where they constantly war with the "nations round about them."

     The principal point we wish to bring out is that the death of these nations was the condition by which the Israelites should possess the land. In like manner, death to carnality must take place ere the soul can enjoy uninterrupted rest within.