THE mind that men naturally have, the carnal, which is not subject to the law of God, is the mind of Satan. You said that that mind has to be annihilated before we can be brought into right relation to God, and stand subject to the law of God. All right, then. Here is the word that says it: “Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus; who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery [a thing to be seized upon, and held fast] to be equal with God; but made himself of no reputation [“emptied himself,” R.V.; “annihilated himself,” the French Version].” And that is precisely correct. He emptied himself, he annihilated himself, “and took upon him the form of a servant, ... and being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross.”ARSH May 20, 1902, page 8.1

Then you see the only way to self-government is annihilation of self. Jesus Christ set the example; he showed the way. Divinity can empty self, and still abide. Divinity can do it; infinity can do it; the finite cannot do it. We cannot comprehend it, because we are finite; but the Infinite can comprehend it, and can accomplish it. Yea, he has accomplished it.ARSH May 20, 1902, page 8.2

Well then, let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus, who annihilated himself. Then what does that say to you and me?—Let this mind be in you, which was in Christ Jesus, who annihilated himself. Very good. And when he emptied himself, when he annihilated himself, who appeared?—God—man on one side, and God on the other side, in the man. Then when you and I to-day choose the mind of Jesus Christ, which annihilates self, who will appear?—God, God manifest in the flesh—God on the one side, and the man, clothed and in his right mind, on the other side; and these two, God and the man, made one in Christ Jesus the Lord. As it is written, “He is our peace, who hath made both one, and hath broken down the middle wall of partition, ... having abolished [annihilated] in his flesh the enmity, ... for to make in himself of twain [God and man] one new man, so making peace.” Glory to God: that is true, and that is the only true self-government; and this is the only way to it.ARSH May 20, 1902, page 8.3

God on the one side, and a man on the other, made one in Christ Jesus,—that is the ideal man, the divine-ideal man, the man of God, the God-man. This is accomplished through letting in the mind that is in Christ, which empties, annihilates self. When that mind is in us, self is emptied, self is annihilated, and the man, the true man, whom God created and set in this world to be better than he has always been, to be the expression of the mind of God,—that true man will appear. In man there is a true self, and there is the false self. The true self always empties self; the false self always exalts self. Think! when the prodigal son was off there herding the swine, and was so hungry that he was wiling to pick up the husks from which the swine had sucked the juice, and see if he could not wring out some more, he “came to himself.” Aha! The divine word is, “He came to himself.” Always there is the true man in a man. There is a true self in a man,—the personality, the individuality, that God has created every man to be, to glorify him; for every soul that ever came into this world is in the design of God. And the divine destiny that God has set for every soul that ever comes into this universe, is that he shall be conformed to the image of God’s Son. There is a divine design in and for each soul. And in that lies man’s better self, the true self. But this other, the false, the selfish self, has taken the precedence. This other, the false, the selfish self, which is of Satan, has usurped the throne in man, and is reigning there against the man’s better self always, compelling the better self to drag along in the bondage and slavery of the evil self.ARSH May 20, 1902, page 8.4

But, thank the Lord, men can be brought to the point where they will come to themselves, to their real, their better selves. Do not forget that when that man, sitting there watching the swine, “came to himself,” the first thing that he said was, “I will arise and go to my father.” Do not forget that the Father is the One whom the true man, that better self in man, will always recognize instantly as soon as ever he awakes, and opens his eyes, and comes “to himself.” So God sends you and me with the message of the glorious gospel of Jesus Christ to bring men to themselves. And in the doing of this, by whatever means of ministration it may be that we can bring a man face to face with himself, and get him to come to himself,—O, we can always be sure that when that blessed moment comes, there is in his heart that blessed word, “I will arise and go to my Father.” So then, let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus, who is the manifestation of that true self that annihilates that other selfish self.ARSH May 20, 1902, page 8.5

Now I want you to see the end of all this: that annihilation is what must come anyway for that which is evil. As we were studying a while ago that subject of this so-called government which is not government at all, but only lawlessness, one brother spoke of it as anarchy. There is much professional anarchy abroad nowadays. Men are boasting of anarchy. What is it?—Opposition to government; destruction of government. And so they start out to destroy government by killing the man in position, the president, or the king, or whoever he may be. But all nations have made provision for another one to take the position of ruler as soon as one ruler has passed away.ARSH May 20, 1902, page 9.1

Well; then, this man starting out to destroy government, begins by killing the head man of the government. Another one instantly succeeds, and there is government still. Then the anarchist must kill him. But another one instantly succeeds. Where will it stop?—He must kill the whole of mankind. Then he himself is left. Here he is, himself, alone. And he is opposed to government. Then, in order to be logical, he must repudiate government of himself; and to carry our his “principle” he must destroy himself. And he is the last one. He destroys himself. And that is annihilation. And that is what anarchy means. And that is just what opposition to government means. And by this it is perfectly plain that opposition to government is simply, and in the last analysis, opposition to self-government. And so the whole story is simply self-government or annihilation. And that is the story for the whole universe. I want you to see that.ARSH May 20, 1902, page 9.2

Look: go back to the beginning. It was Lucifer who started this scheme of government by himself, without God. Just think of this. Lucifer started on that tack. What he intended is shown on the cross; for on the cross it was demonstrated that in his purpose in the beginning there was wrapped up the thought that he must be in the place of God, with God out of existence. We all know that he was to be like the Most High. “I will sit also upon the mount of the congregation, in the sides of the north; ... I will be like the Most High.” But he intended to be like the Most High, not by sitting there alongside of the Most High; but he would be like the Most High, in the place of the Most High. And it was not intended either that the Most High should step down and occupy an inferior place; but that the Most High should simply be set aside utterly, be put out of existence. The cross of Christ demonstrates this; for this is what Satan did on the cross. Thus the cross was in the depths of eternity, as well as on Calvary.ARSH May 20, 1902, page 9.3

Now, suppose that Lucifer had had his way yonder in the beginning of this course of his. Conceive God out of existence, and Lucifer reigning supreme in the place of God. How would he exist? He is not self-existent; he argues it, of course; but it is not so. God is the sole source of his existence. Then when he had put God out of existence to exalt himself, he would have simply put himself out of existence. And that would have been annihilation, the annihilation of the universe.ARSH May 20, 1902, page 9.4

Then don’t you see that self—the self that chooses self and exalts self—means nothing at all but annihilation. Then the question is, for you and me and everybody else in this world, Shall we choose that self shall be annihilated, and we find our true selves, and our true place, and true self-government, in God? or shall we refuse to have self-annihilated and then be ourselves annihilated? Which shall we choose? Since we are wrapped up in evil, it is annihilation anyhow. If we do not choose it, we get it anyway. Ah, it is more than that; if we do not choose annihilation of self, we do choose annihilation of ourselves; for not to choose, is to choose. No man can get away from choice as long as his intelligence abides. And to refuse to choose is to choose to refuse to choose; and that is to choose. You see you cannot escape it. Then here we are.ARSH May 20, 1902, page 9.5

What is your choice—self annihilation, or annihilation of self? That is the thing. Ah, we know the way: Let this mind be in you that was in Christ, who annihilated himself, and took upon him the form of a servant. And do not forget that that is in it, brethren. To-day as you and I choose the mind of Christ that annihilates self, bear in mind that each of us takes upon him “the form of a servant.” Let us thus humble ourselves, become obedient unto death, the death of Christ; crucified with Christ, nevertheless living, yet not we, but Christ living in us, and the life which we now live, live by the faith of him who loved us, and gave himself for us. He upon the throne, he in his rightful place, we in our right mind, come to our right self, choosing that the rightful One shall be upon his throne, and be the governor in our government, at our own free choice, constantly, freely chosen,—that is self-government, self-government with God—the choice ours, the power his; and the only governor, God, all and in all everywhere and forever.ARSH May 20, 1902, page 9.6

May 13, 1902

May 27, 1902