1506. This Cosmos Cannot Grow Better

This Cosmos Cannot Grow Better

"Ye shall know them by their fruits. Do men gather grapes of thorns, or figs of thistles? * * a corrupt tree bringeth forth evil fruit" (Mat_7:16-17).

We often hear the statement that "the world is growing better." Just now a noted Frenchman, Coue, is going over the land urging upon one and all to repeat the words, "Day by day in every way, I am getting better and better." This sounds very well, and we do not doubt that it may have a salubrious effect upon both mind and body, but certainly it cannot change morals.

The fact is, the world is not growing better.

1. Some Scriptural statements:

"Evil men and seducers shall wax worse and worse, deceiving, and being deceived" (2Ti_3:13).

"Because iniquity shall abound, the love of many shall wax cold" (Mat_24:12).

There is nothing in the Bible to show that the cosmos will grow better; the opposite is true; the age is hastening rapidly toward a ripened harvest of iniquity.

2. Some Scriptural deductions:

Our key verse says that "an evil tree cannot bring forth good fruit." We have before shown that this cosmos is evil, how then can it bring forth good?

Until men gather grapes of thorns and figs of thistles, we will never be able to gather a harvest of righteousness from a cosmos of evil.

Until the corrupt tree can bring forth good fruit, a corrupt cosmos cannot bring forth good fruit.

Until those who are accustomed to do evil, can of themselves do well, shall this cosmos do well?

How can a world that is bad, grow better? Is better the comparative of bad? Is it possible to say: "bad, better, best"? Can the cosmos enter upon an ascending scale of righteousness when it is builded upon a descending scale of degeneracy?

3. "Good" and "better" are words which have to do with man's relationship to God. They bring before us a question of attitude–"Is thy heart right with God?"

God has said, "There is none that doeth good, no, not one," "they are all gone out of the way, they are together become unprofitable" (Rom_3:12).

This being true, it is an impossibility for the world to grow better.

4. There are two spirits which dominate among men: the one is the Spirit of Truth, this Spirit guides the children who are of God; the other is the spirit of error, and it dominates the children of this cosmos.

How striking is the passage: "We are of God: He that knoweth God heareth us; he that is not of God heareth not us. Hereby know we the Spirit of Truth, and the spirit of error" (1Jn_4:6)!

The men who are of the cosmos, can never enter into the realm of truth, because they are dominated by the spirit of error.

"The cosmos by wisdom knew not God" (1Co_1:20).

God hath "made foolish the wisdom of this cosmos" (1Co_1:20).

The Spirit of error which rules the age of this cosmos crucified the Lord of Glory. We have shown that the world is corrupt at heart and corrupt at head, and therefore it cannot of itself become good.

Autor: R.E. NEIGHBOUR