The Conditionalist Faith of Our Fathers, vol. 2

VII. Ham—Bible Excludes Notion of Independent Immortality

Shortly before this came JAMES PANTON HAM (1819-1902), Congregationalist, who was trained at Cheshunt College, Cambridge, then ministered at Maidenhead and then Bristol. Beginning in 1847, he was for a time minister of the Lodge Street Congregational Chapel, Bristol. But his adoption of differing doctrinal views led him to accept the pastorate of the Cooper’s Hall Congregational Free church, ⁶⁶ likewise of Bristol (1855-1859). Ham was author of Life and Death; or, the Theology of the Bible, in Relation to Human Immortality (1849); and Generations Gathered and Gathering; or The,Scripture Doctrine Concerning Man in Death (1850). In this he “maintains that man has no conscious existence between death and resurrection. ⁶⁷ Because he ran into heavy opposition, it is said that he finally became a Unitarian. CFF2 425.1

1. IMMORTALITY SOLELY FOR BELIEVER IN CHRIST

Ham appeals to the Scriptures as the sole criteria in the matter of human immortality and future retribution. The following extract from Life and Death presents his position clearly:
“The doctrine which I have been endeavoring to inculcate in this lecture, and which appears to me to be the plain, unequivocal voice of the Bible, is, that life, eternal life, literally understood, is the privilege of NO MAN but the believer in Jesus Christ, through whom it is bestowed as the sovereign gift of God. Now, the popular view of the theory of redemption excludes this cardinal doctrine of immortality alone in Christ; it builds its theory upon a philosophic conceit, it erroneously assuming that we have eternal life as a proper attribute of our human nature.” ⁶⁸ CFF2 425.2

2. INNATE IMMORTALITY COUNTER TO INSPIRATION

Striking at the popular philosophical concept of independent immortality, derived from Plato, Ham continues:
“He, then, who teaches that man is immortal, independently of Jesus Christ, introduces a distracting element into the system of the Christian religion. It is to render its plain and obvious teachings obscure and inappreciable, except upon a system of interpretation, which affixes to words ideas which they have nowhere else in the writings and commerce of mankind. It is to flatter human pride, by unduly exalting human nature. It is to commingle with the teaching of God the doctrines and commandments of men, and eminently to deprive the Christian redemption of its chief lustre, and Christ himself of his mediatorial dignity as the Life-Giver. ‘This is the record, that God hath given to us eternal life, and this life is in His Son.’ ‘He that hath the Son hath life, and he that hath not the San of God hath not life.’ ‘The gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.’” ⁶⁹ CFF2 426.1

Ham’s was but one voice of many speaking similarly in the mid-century period. (Photo on page 416.) CFF2 426.2