J LIBRARY OF CONGRESS. J # • i J7/ t * UNITED STATES OF AMERICA ! ELEMENTS or Medium Theology. BY REV. J. L. DILLARD, &- OF GRANVILLE, TENNESSEE. m L&*-^. Nashville, Tenn. : PUBLISHED FOR THE AUTHOR BY THE Cumberland Presbyterian Board of Publication, 41 Union Street. 1874. BTT1 .US Entered, according to Act of Congress, in the year 1874, by J. L. DILLAED, in the office of the Librarian of Congress, at Washington. STEREOTYPED AT THE SOUTHERN METHODIST PUBLISHING HOUSE, NASHVILLE, TENN. PREFACE The title of this book is suggestive of both its nature and design. To what extent the author has succeeded must be determined by the unprejudiced and candid reader. In the prosecution of the work the author was fully aware that he was occupying disputed ground. It has long been thought, and indeed declared by many, that such medium ground does not exist, and therefore can- not be shown. Through the whole course of the present work it has been a paramount object to exhibit the character of Deity in its true and most amiable light ; to vindi- cate his jurisprudence against all aspersions, from whatever erroneous opinions they may arise ; to show that his ways are just and equal ; and to throw all the responsibility upon the sinner in regard to his eternal destiny. The author has made but few references to the writ- ings of theologians with whom he agrees or disagrees, as lengthy quotations would have enlarged the book to double its present size, and would have imposed an amount of labor unsuitable either to his taste or time (3) 4 PREFACE. of life. He would fain hope that he is not so egotistic as to suppose his humble production above criticism. So far as truth is concerned, he would exceedingly re- gret that there should be airy just ground for criticism; in minor matters, he will feel but little solicitude. He most sincerely hopes and prays that nothing written in this book may be construed into a spirit of unkind- ness or a want of Christian charity. CONTENTS. PAET I.— EXISTENCE OF GOD. PAGE Belief in the Existence of God Universal 9 Sources of Evidence besides Common Consent of Man- kind 10 Does the Light of Nature Afford all Necessary Knowl- edge Concerning God? 12 Nature Teaches Nothing Antagonistic to the Teach- ings of the Bible 13 Does the Light of Nature Teach us All that is Nec- essary to our Happiness? 16 May we Learn from the Book of Nature any other of God's Attributes? 18 Amount of Knowledge Derived from the Light of Nature concerning the Supreme Creator 20 Does Nature Teach also the Goodness of God? 20 The Divine Perfections Designated as God's Moral At- tributes 23 The Justice of God 23 Is Mercy an Essential Attribute of Deity? 25 Evidence in Proof of the Unity of the Godhead 27 Trinity of the Godhead 29 Christ's Method of Teaching the Knowledge of God.... 33 God is a Spirit 35 God is a Father 42 (5) 6 CONTENTS. PAET II.— NECESSITY AND TEUTH OF DIYINE EEVELATION. PAGE A Farther Eevelation than what has been Made in the Volume of Nature 55 PAET III.— THE PEOVIDENCE OF GOD GENEEAL AND SPECIAL. The General Providence oe God 76 The Special Providence oe God 80 PAET IV.— THE PEEE AGENCY OF MAN. Man a Moral Free Agent 94 PAET V. — FOEEKNOWLEDGE AND DECEEES OF GOD. The Foreknowledge oe God « 105 The Decrees oe God 106 PAET VI.— MAN APPOINTED TO A NEW STATE OF TEIAL. The Power op Choice in Man 123 The Fall of Man 125 CONTENTS. 7 PAET YI.— (Continued.) PAGE Kemedy for Man's Sin 130 Character of Christ 132 Christ as Man 133 Christ God as well as Man 136 The Atonement by Christ... 150 The Atonement — Its Value 153 Calvinistic View of the Atonement 161 Atonement of Christ General 182 Benefits of the Atonement 213 Covenant of Grace 217 Christ a Prophet 223 Christ a Priest 228 Christ a King 230 Eepentance and Faith 232 Faith the Condition of Saltation 240 Of Justification 242 Kegeneration and Adoption 252 Of Sanctification 261 Of Good Works 267 Final Victory of all True Christians 273 Medium Ground 298 PAET TIL— THE OFFICES OF THE HOLY SPIEIT. Their Connection with Human Eedemption 305 PAET VIII.— THE CHUECH OF CHEIST. Its True Character 344 8 CONTENTS. PAET YIIL— (Continued.) PAGE The Gospel Ministry and its Divine Appointment 365 Baptism and the Lord's-supper 382 Infant Church-membership 402 Mode op Baptism 415 Cause of Bigotry and Exclusiveness 435 PAET IX.-/THE END OF THE WOELD. How Shall it Be? 451 The Besurrection 462 All Men to be Baised Up 464 Final Judgment 466 PAET X.— MISCELLANEOUS. Church Music 475 Geology and the Bible 483 Church Discipline 494 ELEMENTS OF MEDIUM THEOLOGY. PART L— EXISTENCE OF GOD. Belief in the Existence of God Universal. MEN of all ages and of all nations seem to agree, with common consent, to the great radical truth that there is a God, a great first Cause of all things. This conviction appears to be interwoven with their very existence, and ex- emplifies itself in a stronger or weaker light in different ages and nations, in proportion as they have improved or neglected the talent committed to their trust. With some the light has become very much obscured, so that at times we are almost ready to conclude that it had entirely vanished. Navigators of the high seas, and tourists upon the continent of Africa, report some tribes who seem 1* (9) 10 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. to possess no ideas of a supreme presiding Power; but this may be accounted for upon the ground of their temporary stay amongst them and their total unacquaintance with their language and customs. A more intimate knowledge of these might have led to a different conclusion; and we are induced to conclude that however debased and degraded by vice and superstition, and though dwelling in the shadow of death, yet there are some scattered rays of light (though feeble they may be) and some traces of God's handwriting in their hearts. And thus God has " not left himself without wit- ness, in that he did good and gave them rain from heaven and fruitful seasons, filling their hearts with food and gladness." Hence, it is not reason- able to suppose that not to be true which has re- ceived the concurrent testimony of mankind at large of all nations and all ages of the world. Sources of Evidence besides Common Consent of Mankind. The evidence springs from two sources— nature and revelation. Both of these are the offspring of the same Divine Parent. God is the author of nature as well as of divine revelation; and since both have God, the fountain of wisdom and truth, for their author, we expect the most perfect agree- ment and harmony in their evidence. In this we are not disappointed, for both of these witnesses EXISTENCE OF GOD. 11 bear the most indubitable testimony to the exist- ence of God. When we look abroad upon the widespread volume of nature, we are met upon every hand with testimony to this great primary fundamental truth: "The heavens declare the glory of God, and the firmament showeth his handiwork." The elephant and the insect, the mote in the sunbeam and the gold that glitters in the mine, the noiseless vapor and the rushing hur- ricane, the gentle zephyr and the roaring wind, the pattering rain and the storm of hail, the star twinkling in the heavens and the mellow fire of the glow-worm, the ignis-fatuus and the lightning's flash, the countless worlds above and the world below, all proclaim there is a God. Wherever we turn our eyes, we have an idea of time and space. Actual time and actual space are inseparably con- nected with things that did not once exist, and therefore had a beginning. Now, as actual time and space belong exclusively to things that did not once exist, or to things that are finite, such things must be dependent for their existence upon some infinite antecedent force or power, as the great first Cause; and this great first Cause is God. To say that the physical and intellectual universe, or that matter and mind, are self-created is palpably absurd, and simply ridiculous. Again, when we contemplate the heavens above and the earth upon which we dwell, and our own wonderful 12 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. structure, we are met with evidences of manifest design. Is there design exemplified in the con- struction of the sun-dial, the clock, the steam-ship ? No less is there design exhibited in all the objects of our contemplation, so far as those objects are understood. Man himself is a world in miniature, consisting of mind and matter in mystic union. He has eyes to see, ears to hear, hands to handle, and feet to walk, with an exquisite adaptation to his whole physical organism, and all controlled and directed by the governing mind. In man, around him, above him, below him, he is struck with manifestations of design; and if design, then there is a designer, and that designer is God. Does the Light of Nature Afford all Neces- sary Knowledge Concerning God? It might possibly have done so had not a foul hand swept over and dimmed some of the fair pages of the volume of nature, and our intellectual vision become clouded with ignorance by reason of sin ; although, the light of nature may go far in instructing us in the knowledge of Deity, es- pecially under the emancipating power and invig- orating influence of the "surer word of prophecy" and the "light that shineth in a dark place" — for it must be conceded by all that although the Holy Scriptures were never designed to teach men nat- ural science, yet, since the "Sun of righteousness" EXISTENCE OF GOD. 13 has arisen "that lighteth every man that cometh into the world," the student of nature goes forth to his studies with his mind in a measure emanci- pated from moral ignorance and debasing super- stition, and with bolder wing can take loftier flights into the heavens, and, descending to earth, can dig deeper into the hidden mines of knowledge con- cerning the great Architect of the universe. Not that this light that lighteth every man proves effectual to all in their personal salvation — no — for the "light shineth upon the darkness, and the darkness comprehendeth it not;" but still, it is reasonable to conclude that under its genial influ- ence the minds of men, in a measure freed from the bonds of superstition and the shackles of big- otry, are made capable of a wider scope and of more vigorous excursions. We freely admit that the honest student who sits down at the feet of Dame Nature may learn many valuable lessons of wisdom and knowledge concerning nature's God, but not all that is desirable, or that is indispensa- ble to our happiness. Nature Teaches Nothing Antagonistic to the Teachings of the Bible. Although the light of nature does not teach us all the indispensable knowledge of God, yet what it does teach is not antagonistic to the teachings of the Scriptures, but in perfect harmony with 14 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. them. It is true that men in all ages, by reason of their depraved natures, have been opposed to the Bible, and not a few have employed all their skill and talents to disprove its credibility; and to this end they have invoked the developments of natural science, and allege that these develop- ments prove, beyond a doubt, the falsity of the Scriptures. But these supposed developments of science are by no means always reliable; for how often has it happened among philosophers that the doctrines taught as developments of the natural sciences, received in one age and relied upon as true, have been exploded by the teachings of phi- losophers of the age succeeding? We cheerfully grant that many of the conclusions deduced from the natural sciences are correct; but it must, at the same time, be admitted that there are many errors mixed up with what is true. This alloy of false philosophy may after awhile, under the test of enlightened criticism, and from farther devel- opments, be separated from the pure gold. These errors are not hard to account for. The most laborious and scientific minds have never as yet been able to penetrate but a little way into the crust, whilst the center and all between lie in un- pierced darkness. Speculation must now supply the place of actual research and discovery, and adding to this the erroneous conclusions from false premises to which the greatest minds are liable EXISTENCE OP GOD. 15 (for none are infallible), we may from this stand- point safely conclude that some of the so-called doctrines of natural science, which are now by the opposers of divine revelation wielded as weap- ons against our Christian system, will after awhile be found to be but chaff, to be winnowed away from the wheat. Nature and divine revelation are God's two witnesses; they stand side by side, and the most perfect harmony pervades their tes- timony. Both of these witnesses have been ex- amined by men of the highest order of talent and of the deepest research, honestly desiring to arrive at the knowledge of the truth, whilst others less honest have, with all their ingenuity and skill, cross-examined, hoping that one of these witnesses might be found to contradict the other, or that revelation might be shown to contradict itself. The class of men last mentioned have signally failed, while the former class have settled down under the fullest and deepest conviction that these witnesses perfectly agree, and mutually strengthen and confirm each other's testimony. Hence, the student of the Bible has little to fear from the pretended and boasted antagonisms between the results of scientific investigations and the Bible; and if any seeming contradictions should at any time arise between them, let him attribute them to erroneous conclusions based upon mere specula- tion, instead of the real teachings of science; let 16 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. him rest securely in the citadel of divine revela- tion, one jot or tittle of which shall never fail; let him also rejoice in all true developments, the results of scientific research, being confident that there never has been, nor by possibility can be, any conflict between such developments and the facts of the divine writings. Does the Light of Nature Teach us All that is Necessary to our Happiness? It is admitted, from what has already been said, that the existence of God is taught in the volume of nature; and from the same source we may learn some of the attributes of his nature. Throughout the visible universe we discover the most unmistakable evidence of the displays of omnipotent power in the creation and preservation of all things. This work we are bound to attrib- ute to the great first Cause, who inhabits his own eternity, unconfined by actual time and space, which are inseparable from created, finite beings. This great first Cause — God Eternal — by a pure force within himself, power omnipotent, brought at his bidding all things exterior of himself into existence, whether physical or spiritual, men or angels, thrones or dominions, principalities or powers, things in heaven or things in earth — all were created by him. Hence, from this stand- point, we discover that God, the creator, must EXISTENCE OP GOD. 17 possess within himself power omnipotent, as de- clared by the Apostle Paul: "For the invisible things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even his eternal power and Godhead." But the apostle here speaks in the plural — he says the "things of him," from which we may infer that something else may be known of God, from "the things that are made," besides his eternal power; and, accordingly, do we not behold, with equal clearness, manifestations of an Intelligence possessed of infinite wisdom? For what but in- finite wisdom could have laid the plan of universal creation, from the smallest insects, even such as are not visible to the unaided eye, up to the loftiest angels dwelling in the glories of heaven — from an atom of earth up to the unnumbered millions of worlds that float in space and revolve around one common center; and when we reflect upon the exquisite harmony pervading the whole, are we not constrained to exclaim, in the language of Israel's king, "In wisdom thou hast founded them all"? This universal harmony reigning in crea- tion's wide domain has, so far as is known to mor- tals, but one disturbing cause, and that is sin. This may retard in some measure, for a season, the full development of this mundane world; but the same infinite wisdom that drew the plan of creation's frame-work is no less visible in the 18 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. device of means for the entire eradication of this disturbing element ; hence " We, according to his promise, look for new heavens and a new earth wherein dwelleth righteousness." And when this glorious consummation is realized, "the morning stars " may again " sing together, and all the sons of God shout for joy," and earth and heaven hold an eternal jubilee. Thus, from the foregoing con- siderations, we are taught in the volume of nature not only the omnipotent power of the great Cre- ator, but also his infinite wisdom. May We Learn prom the Book of Nature any other of God's Attributes? We might no doubt come to the knowledge of other perfections of the divine nature, but for the fact, as one observes, that "Nature is an obelisk whose hieroglyphic, or picture-writing, has been passed over by a rough hand. Much of it has been marred ; some so illegible that it is impossi- ble to decipher and read it correctly, and some not at all." We may, perhaps, from the light of nature, dis- cover some traces of God's ubiquity or omnipres- ence ; as, under one view, it would seem reasona- ble that a universe so inconceivably vast, and of so complicated a character, is constantly in need of the superintendence of a being everywhere present at the same time. Otherwise, how could EXISTENCE OF GOD. 19 the regularity and order of creation be main- tained ? We might conclude that the continual presence of him who first attuned to music the rolling spheres, and whose hand supplied the wants of every living creature in all his vast do- minions, is indispensably necessary still, as the great presiding, active agent, to uphold, direct, supply, and govern all. Indeed, it would seem that if we discard the doctrine of the divine omni- presence from the light of nature, that we must also give up the doctrine of an active, infinite in- telligence, or of a personal Godhead, since the doctrine of the infinity of the Godhead contains that of his ubiquity or omnipresence. But after all that is said, "the foolish hearts of men are prone to be darkened through the vanity of their minds," so that they are disposed to con- sider God as such an "one as themselves," giving him a local habitation, as did the most enlightened pagans ; for it is well known that they assigned to Jupiter, the father of all their gods, the island of Crete as the place of his birth and education — Neptune in ocean, and Pluto in hell. Still, it may be granted that, under an enlightened view of the teachings of nature, may be deduced a knowledge of Deity's omnipresence. The same may be said of his omniscience. For surely he who created all things, giving to each part, from the greatest to the most minute, the nicest adap- 20 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. tation to its destined end, and who formed all these parts, with the most perfect order, into one harmonious whole, must be all-seeing, or omnis- cient, as well as omnipresent. And from all we have said, we may fairly conclude that the God of nature is also unchangeable. For if God is in- finite in the unity of his nature, so he must be infinite in all the qualities or perfections of his nature ; and as immutability is one of his perfec- tions, he is therefore subject to no change. " I am the Lord; I change not." Amount of Knowledge Derived from the Light of Nature concerning the Supreme Creator. The sum of knowledge concerning God, ob- tained by a careful study of the volume of nature, consists, first, of his eternal Godhead and omnipo- tence ; second, his infinite wisdom ; third, his om- nipresence; fourth, his omniscience; fifth, his immutability; sixth, his self-existence or inde- pendence. These may be termed his natural perfections. Does Nature Teach also the Goodness of God? Much has been said and written upon this sub- ject. On the one hand, we have daily and hourly manifestations of benefits and blessings which we are bound to acknowledge as the gifts of his hands. We have seed-time and harvest, the alternation EXISTENCE OF GOD. 21 of day and night, genial sunshine and fruitful showers, indeed unnumbered things in every de- partment of nature — -in the animal, vegetable, and mineral kingdoms, stand ready to meet the wants and minister to the comfort and happiness of man. The many objects around us so well calculated to afford us pleasure through the medium of our bodily senses, and thousands of other manifesta- tions, seem well calculated to convince us of tne boundless goodness of the great Parent of all. But on the other hand, if we have seed-time, we sometimes fail of harvest, and whole districts are cursed with famine. If we have genial suns, we have biting and destructive frosts; if we have fructifying showers, we have brazen skies, refusing moisture, or roaring tempests with their sweep of destruction. In a word, the history of men's lives seems to be an exhibition of elements of opposi- tion ; pain confronts pleasure, disappointment suc- cess, pestiferous vapors surcharged with noxious effluvia rise up against the healthful breeze, the destructive bolt against the purifying lightning- flash, the fire that warms us consumes our prop- erty, sweet has its corresponding bitter, the rose its thorn, sickness stands hard by health, and death stares life in the face until life submits to death and man is swept from the stage. What shall we say to these things? Heathens, whose minds are shrouded in darkness, in the absence 22 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. of the light of revelation, will say, as they have said, " There are two coexistent principles, or powers, the one good, dispensing happiness to mortals, the other malevolent, inflicting misery. Both have been held as objects of worship; and from a desire to propitiate the favor of the former, or deprecate the wrath of the latter, has probably sprung the cruel and revolting practice of human sacrifices. But if, from the volume of nature, we are una- ble to learn the goodness of God to an extent suf- ficient to warrant an unshaken confidence and trust in him, divine revelation, coming forth with its "surer word of prophecy" and brighter light, solves the problem and dispels all doubt. Here- by we are informed that "God is good to all," and that " his goodness endureth forever." We are herein also taught that, if there are evils in the world attending this life, they are occasioned by sin, and that our beneficent Creator takes no pleasure in sin or its consequent calamities. This is most clearly evinced in the means he has insti- tuted, in the economy of grace, for the final ex- tirpation of both. If the light of nature has grown dim in regard to any of the attributes of Deity, a knowledge of which would be essential to our happiness, the clearer light revealed in the Scriptures shines forth and satisfies the anxious and inquiring mind. existence of god. 23 The Divine Perfections Designated as God's Moral Attributes. These are justice, goodness, and truth. Those perfections of the divine nature, termed natural, are such as are supposed to be taught by the light of nature without the immediate aid of revelation. Those that are called moral, are such as are not thus taught, but are revealed only in the Script- ures. The Justice of God. By the justice of God, we understand that quality of his nature which disposes him to give to all their dues, or to observe in the administra- tion of his government the strictest regard to equity in the distribution of rewards and punish- ments. This attribute of Deity is not clearly made known to us in the book of nature; for, although we may find in men a disposition to act justly, in the absence of the light of revela- tion, yet we also find a disposition to the con- trary. It is contended by those who profess to take, in matters of religion, the light of nature as their only guide, that inasmuch as men find in themselves a disposition to carry into effect the principles of justice, that they are thereby warranted to attribute this quality to Deity ; but upon the other hand, we find mankind, in all ages, full of theft, robbery, oppression, and injustice. 24 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. Now, since mankind find these opposing elements woven together in the very web of their moral nature, which of these dispositions, or qualities, we ask, will they attribute to the Author of their being ? To show the pertinency of this question, we need only advert to what a great portion of the pagan world has done upon this subject. Even in the palmiest days of Greece and Rome, they endowed their gods with all the debasing propensities and passions of their own depraved and sinful nature, and made them altogether such as themselves, and to them, as such, they paid their devotions. From these considerations it is quite manifest that the light of nature is insufficient in itself to illumine our minds and afford us satisfactory knowledge of the moral character of God. But if we are at a loss satisfactorily to determine as to the moral nature of God, from a study of the volume of nature, the Book of divine inspiration, with its superior light, dispels the doubt and solves the problem. " Is God unjust ? " God forbid. " The Judge of all the earth will do right." The same, or similar considerations, might be pre- sented in regard to truth : "As God is true ; " "Just and true are the ways of the King of saints." Here is the testimony of the inspired record : " Let God be true and every man a liar." The attributes goodness, justice, and truth, in EXISTENCE OF GOD. 25 their aggregate constitute the Deity's holiness, and make up the rule which directs and governs the divine conduct in the entire administration of his laws in every department of his rational king- dom. He cannot but reign in righteousness. "He cannot deny himself." From what we have advanced, we think it plain that, for a satisfactory knowledge of the moral attributes of Deity, we are entirely dependent upon the divine Scriptures. These are a lamp to our feet and a light to our pathway. Were this light extinguished, our world would be shrouded in thick moral darkness. The steps of mortals would be uncertain — ignorant of any definite good to which they would be tending. But since we are assured by the infallible testimony of the in- spired word that the supreme Governor of the universe is infinitely just, good, and true, and therefore infinitely holy, and that by consequence he takes delight in the happiness of his creatures, we have in him a sure foundation, an eternal rock upon which to build our faith, our hope, our ever- lasting trust. Is Mercy an Essential Attribute of Deity ? We do not so consider it. It is the outgoing of goodness toward offenders or the undeserving. It is closely allied to compassion, if it is not iden- tical with it. They both spring from the same 2 26 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. source, and embrace the same objects. Hence the apostle says, quoting the words of God spoken to Moses, " Therefore I will have mercy on whom I will have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I will have compassion." Here, mercy and compassion are used to convey to the mind the same idea, and the repetition of the idea is de- signed to make a deeper impression, while the change of verbiage is for the sake of variety. It cannot be said that God is merciful to up- right, holy angels, or that he was merciful to a holy Adam, because neither holy angels nor a holy Adam were the proper objects which it em- braces; but when man became a transgressor, and fell into a state of moral ruin, that moment he be- came a fit object of mercy or compassion. And accordingly, we find in his lost and helpless condi- tion the outflowing of the infinite goodness of God toward him. This exercise or outflowing of goodness is mercy, because its object was guilty and undeserving. We suppose it will be conceded by all that the declarative glory of God is displayed to his intel- ligent creation in the manifestations of the essen- tial attributes of his nature, and that such mani- festations are necessary in order to his glory. Now, then, if mercy is an essential attribute of God's moral nature, and has as its sole object the guilty and undeserving, it will follow as a se- EXISTENCE OF GOD. 27 quence that, for the glory of God, it was necessary that sin and guilt should be brought into God's moral government, that mercy, as one of his es- sential attributes, might make its manifestation. Hence, adopting the idea that mercy is one of the essential attributes of the divine nature, and that it is necessary for the glory of God that this at- tribute be displayed, it makes the glory of God dependent upon the existence of sin, and sin nec- essary for the glory of God. This, it will be said, is bad theology ; but bad as it is, it has by some been adopted. The error, we presume, lies in the incorrectness of the premise — namely, that mercy is an essential perfection of the divine nature — from which we are unavoidably conducted to the above erroneous conclusion. But setting aside the proposition that mercy is an essential attribute of God, and giving it the foregoing definition, as the offspring of God's infinite goodness, embracing the helpless and the undeserving, the whole diffi- culty vanishes. Indeed, to make sin a necessity in the divine government in order to the display of any of Deity's perfections, instead of unveiling and increasing his glory, would cast over it a dark shadow — a profound gloom. Evidence in Proof of the Unity of the Godhead. Much might be said upon this question — more than would accord with the proposed plan of this 28 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. "work. The right exercise of reason should teach us that there cannot, by possibility, be more than one supreme and independent Being, and that this being is God. The idea of two infinities, if, indeed, such an idea can be formed, is simply suicidal or self-destructive. Two or any number of Unities may exist, and infinite space is not full. These Unities may exist comprehended in the infinite; but two infinities cannot exist in the same infinite space any more than two material bodies or spiritual bodies can occupy the same actual or finite space at the same time. Neither can there be more than one supreme Governor of the universe. The same may be said of two or more supremes that we have said of two infinities — that, if such an idea can be formed, it amounts to a mere abnegation, and is self-destructive. Many subordinates may be comprehended within the dominions of one, two, or more coordinates. And many subordinates or coordinates may be compre- hended within the dominions of a supreme ; but two supremes can no more occupy and reign in the same dominion, at the same time, than two or more subordinates can occupy the same actual space at one and the same time. Hence it is not possible that there can be more than one infinite, supreme Jehovah. This doctrine is taught at large in the sacred Scriptures. In Deut. vi. 4, God says by Moses, " Hear, Israel : the Lord EXISTENCE OF GOD. 29 our God is one Lord ;" 1 Cor. viii. 6, " To us there is but one God ; " 1 Tim. ii. 5, " There is one God and one mediator;" Eph. iv. 6, "One God and Father of all;" and 1 Cor. viii. 4, "There is none other God but one." Trinity of the Godhead. By the trinity of God, we are to understand that there are three persons in one God — the Father, the Word, and the Holy Ghost — and that these three are one — one in all the essential attri- butes of the divine nature — one in essence, in power, and glory. This great truth is taught only in divine revelation, although some faint traces of it are supposed to be seen, mixed up with some of the superstitious religions of the heathens, upon which, however, we place but little reliance. It is a point entirely beyond the dominions of natu- ral science, and is simply an object of faith. Natural science has nothing to do with it ; yet it cannot discard it any more than it can discard many of the facts revealed in the volume of nature. If there is an inscrutable mystery involved in the trinity of the Godhead, so there is also in the being of a God — self-existent, independent, the great first Cause — a doctrine involving a mystery as far beyond the province of human reason as is the doctrine of the trinity of the Godhead. If, indeed, the professed devotees of natural religion 30 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. would discard every thing they meet with in di- vine revelation because it is mysterious and be- yond their comprehension, then, to be consistent, they are bound to discard also the religion of nat- ure, which would leave the world without any religion at all. If the doctrine of an eternally self-existent, independent, first Cause, though it involves a mystery, deep, profound, is admitted by them to be taught in the religion of nature, let not vain men object to the doctrines of divine revelation because the feeble light of their reason cannot comprehend them. But let them first go and solve all the mysteries of the book of nature — the attraction of gravity, of the magnet, of elec- tricity — yea, their own complex being, consisting of soul, body, and spirit, constituting the person- ality of man. We say, Let them first elucidate all the mysteries of nature before they assume the prerogative of ignoring the mysteries of the Bible. But every mystery is not an absurdity. The natural magnet exhibits the phenomenon of attraction at one pole and repulsion at the other. This is a fact of nature; but this fact contains within itself a mystery so deeply hidden that the eye of philosophy has never unveiled it — perhaps never can. But the fact in the case must not be denied because it is a mystery. So in regard to the doctrine of the trinity of the Godhead ; though mysterious, it is not absurd. And if we find in EXISTENCE OP GOD. 31 man a triplicate in his one personality, and, a duality of forces put forth by the same magnet, should we longer wonder that the supreme God- head should exist trinity in unity? This, though a mystery of a far higher order, is yet but a mys- tery. To affirm that the soul and the body are one and the same thing, would be an absurdity; so to affirm that the three persons of the Godhead are one person, would also be an absurdity. But the doctrine of three persons in one God is not absurd, though it is highly mysterious. The doctrine of a triune God of the universe is abundantly taught in the divine Scriptures. The plurality of persons in the Godhead is indicated anterior to the creation of man. " Let us make man in our own image," was the divine proposition. The personality of the Father is not disputed by any. The personality of the Son is fully taught in the Christian Scriptures. He is expressly called a person, 2 Cor. ii. 10, " Forgave I it in the person of Christ." The attributes, works, and worship ascribed to God, are also ascribed to the Son, which proves his Deity; but that he is a distinct person from the Father is shown by his being " from of old, from everlasting ; " and Paul, quoting the language of the Psalmist, says that God, in addressing the Son, saith, " Thy throne, God, is forever and ever;" also, he is said to be begotten, and sent on the mission of human 32 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. redemption, which things are never said of the Father. The distinct personality and Deity of the Holy Ghost is also clearly taught in the sacred Records. He took a conspicuous part in the creation. The Spirit moved upon the face of the waters while yet a deep of profound darkness, and prepared it for the separation of light from the darkness. "And God said, Let there be light ; and there was light." Perhaps, too, we are to understand that it was by his inspiration that man became a living soul ; at any rate, when man is created anew, he is born of the Spirit. He is said to "proceed from the Father," and to be sent by the Son, to bring to the minds of his disciples all things which he had spoken; also to "reprove the world of sin;" ail which prove his distinct personality. His equality in the Godhead is established by the ascription to him of the essential attributes of God (as is the case in relation to the Son), and from the declaration of Peter with regard to Ana- nias and Sapphira, that had "lied to the Holy Ghost," "had lied to God." Also the association of the Holy Ghost with the Father and the Son, in the administration of Christian baptism. And, according to the Apostle John, he is one of the three that bare record in heaven, and that "these three are one." We are apprised that some have denied the genuineness of this passage. But it is EXISTENCE OF GOD. 33 more reasonable that those who deny the doctrine of the trinity should wish to suppress it, than that those who believe it should wish to introduce it, if it is not genuine, since, aside from this text, the trinity of God is clearly taught in the Script- ures. The doctrine of the divine trinity is de- ducible only from divine revelation. In support of it, no reliance whatever is to be placed upon any supposed traces of it, interwoven with some of the false religions of the heathen. It is a point entirely beyond the range of natural science : it is simply an object of faith. Christ's Method of Teaching the Knowledge of God. Heretofore mankind, for the knowledge of God and his attributes, had been left dependent, for its attainment, upon the first rays of divine revela- tion, and upon inductions from the light of nature. The inspired word not only confirms the knowl- edge derived from the light of nature — it does more — it extends that knowledge, and carries it to completeness. The revelation God made to man, before Christ came, is contained in the He- brew Scriptures. This was made, not suddenly, but gradually, as man was able to bear or under- stand it. This is in perfect keeping with the divine proceedings in every department of his dominions, so far as his proceedings are known. 2* 34 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. The germ is not yet the "full corn in the ear," nor the acorn the stately oak ; the man of perfect stature was once the babe in its mother's arms, and from twilight, like the opening bud, has been unfolded the full bloom of meridian glory. The working of God, in the department of divine reve- lation, is also in harmony with man's every-day life. The child of two summers is first taught the names of things he sees in the little circle around him, then something of their uses, and then their nature; and by so much as he learns their nature, he becomes a little philosopher. The little boy, when first entering the school-room, is not placed at the problems of mathematics. These would confound him ; but he is set down at the low be- ginning — the first letter of the alphabet. And the master, adapting his instructions to him as he can comprehend them, by degrees conducts him up to the higher branches of literary knowl- edge. So with regard to God's revelations to man. After the fall, the very beginning of light and hope was contained in the revealed phrase: "The seed of the woman shall bruise the serpent's head." To this first lesson man was set. It was the alphabet of revealed religion. It underlaid all future moral development, and contained in em- bryo all spiritual knowledge. As man advanced from the first lesson to a state of readiness for another ; another was given him, and so on through EXISTENCE OF GOD. 35 all succeeding dispensations down to Christ, the great expounder of the past and teacher of the future. He was the light of the world ; he spake as never man before had spoken. His method of teaching mankind the knowledge of God was new. It was so different from what human reason might have conjectured, that both reason and conjecture were completely baffled. And yet, without the semblance of effort, and in the briefest manner, he laid down two propo- sitions which set forth the character of God in a more amiable light than had ever been done before. First, God is a Spirit. Second, God is a Father. In these propositions is embodied all that is need- ful for man, in his present state, to know concern- ing God ; and from them may be evolved all the essential doctrines of religion. Christ said, "God is a Spirit," and Paul says, "whom no man hath seen nor can see, and whom no man can approach unto." This at once establishes the spiritual nat- ure of God ; also that he is not confined within any boundaries of space. If he was, he might be approached in that direction; but God is unap- proachable because he fills immensity, and is eve- rywhere, and is as unapproachable as if he was nowhere. There is only one w T ay in which God can be approached, and that is in spirit. That is what James meant when he said, " Draw nigh to God and he will draw nigh to you." God, a spirit, 36 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. can be approached only by spirit. We are said to approach him by prayer — but what is prayer but the outgoings of the sincere desires of the soul? Mere words are only talk — not prayer. There are two ways in which God is unapproach- able. First, physically. In this sense, we cannot properly be said to approach the atmosphere. True, physically, we live, and move, and have our being in it ; and yet we cannot be said to approach it, because it surrounds us, and is, during life, ever present with us. Here, mark the difference between God a spirit, and the gods of idolatry. The Egyptian can approach his apis, his crocodile, or his cat ; the Hindoo, his Ganges, his jugger- naut ; the Catholic, his images and crucifix ; the devotee at the toilet, her picture in the mirror; or the worshiper of mammon, his fields, and farms, and heaps of gold : all these are approached in a physical sense. In this sense, no man can ap- proach to God. Second. We cannot approach the immanent or intrinsic presence of God, since " He only hath [inherent] immortality dwelling in the light." The blazing splendors of infinite majesty could not be borne by finite man; and this probably was the chief meaning of Paul. The scriptural sense in which God, a spirit, may be approached, is a spiritual one ; it is by heart- penitence, faith and soul desires, gratitude, and love. In this way the spirit of man may hold EXISTENCE OF. GOD. 37 intercommunion with God, a spirit — invisible and unapproachable in any other than this only way, and that made possible to men through the Son, the way to the Father. Again, as God is a pure spirit, and is everywhere present, he holds the universe under his immediate and constant inspec- tion. Here is his omniscience. On a few occasions, Christ alluded to the om- nipotent power of God; for instance, when he ad- monished all to fear him which hath power to kill both soul and body and cast them into hell-fire. And when the Sadducees, desiring to entrap him in his language, came with a knotty question (as they supposed) in regard to the resurrection, he said to them, " Ye do err, not knowing the Script- ures and the power of God ; for in the resurrection they neither marry nor are given in marriage ; but are as the angels of God in heaven." And again, "With God all things are possible." He had another method of teaching the character of God besides that of his sayings. He claimed to be the only "re vela tor of the Father, when he said, "No man knoweth the Father but the Son, and he to whom the Son shall reveal him." His other method of making known to men the character of God was by his works. " I am in the Father and the Father in me." " I and my Father are one." The same doctrine is repeated by Paul, " The fullness of the Godhead dwelt in him bodily." 38 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. And he said himself, "All power in heaven and in earth " was in his hands. This great fact was attested by his works. His power in heaven was such that he could have called legions of angels to put to flight the powers of darkness. Moses and Elias came thence at his mandate, and appeared with him at his transfiguration. Every miracle he performed preached the omnipotence of God. The sick restored to health, the lame healed, the blind with restored sight, the deaf to their hear- ing, lepers cleansed, the dead raised up to life — these, with all that were cured of lunacy, and freed from vexing devils, and the thousands fed with a few loaves and fishes, all stand up as mon- uments of God's omnipotence. And this is not all — the withered fig-tree, the winds, and the seas, and the fishes of the sea, became great preachers of the almighty power of God. Thus Christ made known to men the power of God by his works. He also revealed to men by the same intensely impressive method, the infinite wisdom of God. Foolishness, indeed, was the w 7 isdom of the world in comparison with the wisdom with which he spoke and acted. When attacked by his shrewd- est and sharpest enemies, with studied and subtle questions, the superhuman wisdom of his answers was absolutely irresistible. Without any previ- ous preparation, and without hesitation, he so con- EXISTENCE OF GOD. 39 founded them upon the spot that, silent and abashed, they retired from the field. One or two instances, out of many, may be given. The woman taken in adultery, who, by the law of Moses, was subject to be stoned to death was brought before him. They said, "Master, this woman was taken in adultery, and by the law of Moses she shall be stoned to death: what sayest thou?" If he said, Stone her, he assumed the • authority of a judge in civil affairs; if he should say, Set her at liberty, the law is sanguinary and ought not to be observed, then he would speak against Moses, their revered legislator. They urge him. Then said he, "Let him that is with- out sin cast the first stone." This was a home- thrust, directed by infinite wisdom straight to the conscience. Overmastered and struck dumb, they all, one by one, retired from the contest. Take the case, also, of paying tribute to Cesar. " Then went the Pharisees and took counsel how they might entangle him in his talk. And they sent out to him their disciples, with the Herodians, saying, Master, we know that thou art true, and teachest the way of God in truth, neither carest thou for any man, for thou regardest not the per- son of men. Tell us, therefore, what thinkest thou, Is it lawful to give tribute to Cesar or not?" If he shall say, Give it, he is a friend to Cesar, 40 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. and a foe to Jewish freedom ; if not give it, he sets himself up against Cesar. A nice trap, art- fully made, well set, and plentifully baited with flattery. " But Jesus perceived their wickedness and said, Why tempt ye me, ye hypocrites ? Show me the tribute-money, and they brought unto him a penny. And he saith, Whose is this image and superscription? They say unto him, Cesar's. Then saith he unto them, Render, there- fore, unto Cesar the things that are Cesar's, and to God the things that are God's. When they heard these words they marveled," and left him master of the field. What an immeasurable dis- tance lies between Christ and his short-sighted enemies, when the scene is shifted, and he be- comes the questioner! For instance, he asked them, "The baptism of John, was it from heaven or of men?" If they should say, From heaven, he will say, Why, then, did ye not believe him ? If, Of men, they feared the people, for the people took John for a prophet. And shamefully beaten, "they answered, they could not tell." Again, w T hen the Pharisees were gathered together, he asked them, "What think ye of Christ? whose son is he? They say unto him, The son of David. He saith unto them, How then doth David in spirit call him Lord ? If David then called him Lord, how is he his son ? And no man was able to answer him a word, neither durst any man EXISTENCE OF GOD. 41 from that day forth ask him any more questions." When Christ quits the defensive, and takes up the aggressive side, he achieves a final victory in this mode of warfare. With what divine luster did the wisdom of the Godhead, dwelling in Christ, shine forth in all his conflicts of mind against mind, and spirit against spirit ! From the proposition that God is a Spirit, may also be evolved the doctrine of the new birth. That pure, infinite Spirit, everywhere present, must necessarily come in contact with man's im- pure, finite spirit, and as there can be no harmony between opposites in spirit and moral quality, the necessity of a change, in order to harmonize these antagonistic natures, is at once indicated * and as the pure delights in purifying, and as the in- finite, pure Spirit is greater than the impure, finite spirit, it is manifest that, if a change of the moral quality of the impure spirit is effected, it must be done by God, the pure, infinite Spirit, who delights to purify, and is ever ready for the work, with the concurrent consent of the impure, depraved spirits. Thus we have worked our way from Christ's doctrine that God is a Spirit, round to his teaching, " That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit;" "Ye must be born again." And when this great change is effected, harmony that moment springs up between God, the pure, infinite 42 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. Spirit, and the purified finite spirit of man. What a glorious change of moral nature and of state! From the same proposition, Christ deduced the manner in which God must be worshiped. He said, " God is a Spirit, and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth," for such the Father seeketh to worship him. Without pur- suing farther the subject-matter involved in the proposition that God is a Spirit, we will here in- troduce Christ's second proposition, that God is a Father. Fatherhood is a relationship well understood among men. The idea of a father, in the true sense of the term, carries with it whatsoever is honest, pure, just, lovely, and of good report. To call a man a father, who is destitute of the feel- ings and natural instincts of a father, would be a palpable misnomer. Such a so-called father would be an anomaly in the world of humanity; and, if capable of shame, would be shamed by the brutes. We take first the revelation, then, that God is a Father, to mean that God is possessed of the properties or attributes of a father, in the true and proper sense of the term, only with this difference, that by so much as he is higher and more perfect than the best of human fathers, are his attributes as a divine Father higher and more perfect than those of the best of human fathers. EXISTENCE OF GOD. 43 When we think of a father, the first quality that strikes the mind is that of love of his offspring. The human race are the offspring of God. This Paul attested in his discourse at Athens, and used it as an argument against the worship of idols. By connecting love with the character of God as a father, we have the key by which to interpret a large portion of the Scriptures. "God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son;" " Behold what manner of love the Father hath be- stowed upon us ;" "Not that we first loved God, but that he first loved us." All these passages, and many others, find their true interpretation in the great truth revealed by the Son, that God is a Father. Christ says, " If ye, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more shall your Heavenly Father give the Spirit to them that ask him?" God then is a Father— "the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ," "the God and Father of us all," " the Father of mercies," and "Our Father which art in heaven," whose name be eternally hallowed. What treasures of light, and hope, and joy, are contained in the rev- elation that God is a Father! All the moral qual- ities and sympathies of a father are aggregated in one great principle, and that principle is expressed by one word, and that word is love. Hence John says, "God is love." Justice, goodness, truth, uprightness, forbearance, impartiality, all meet 44 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. and unite in love. "God is love." His law is the law of love. " Love is the fulfilling of the law." " Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, . . . and thy neighbor as thyself." "The end of the commandment is charity (love) out of a pure heart." " He that loveth dwelleth in God and God in him." And " See that ye love one another with a pure heart fervently." What concord, what glorious harmony prevails in these divine teachings ! and all springs from the great doctrine revealed by the Son, that God is a Fath- er, and therefore a God of love. "Greater love hath no man than that he will lay down his life for his friends ; but God commendeth his love to- ward us in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us t " There is but one, in the known uni- verse, who has measured the length and breadth, the height and depth of that love, and that one is Jesus Christ. He has stepped it all off, and com- pleted its measurement on the cross when he cried, "It is finished," and gave up the ghost. The revealed fact that God is a Father, at once explodes and scatters to the winds the dogma of the eternal election to life of a part of the human race and reprobation of the rest to eternal death ; and more especially, when this election is given a range so wide "as to embrace the infantile depart- ment of the world. What would you think of a human father who would act a similar part ? A EXISTENCE OF GOD. 45 father who would discriminate between his infant children, before they had done either good or evil, and say, This one shall inherit a part of my estate, but that shall not have a penny, and so on through all his family of children — would not the neigh- bors stare and shake their heads ? Ask this father his reason for this strange procedure ; he gives you none, save only it is his ivill and good pleasure to do so, and that he has a right to do as he pleases with his own. Would this satisfy the very least intelligent man of the neighbor- hood ? Far from it. Would such a father rise or fall in the estimation of the community? Com- mon instinct, concurring with common sense, gives the answer. Is God such a father? Justice, goodness, impartiality, all, with one consent and one voice, reply in the negative. The instincts and honor of fatherhood cry out, No. Man, as he is, is a father, but he is not "love." Place two of his children (suppose them infant twins) upon the same plane. They are so alike in size, form, and features, that they cannot be distinguished the one from the other. Can the father of these little ones, without some radical defect in his natural fatherly attributes, or in- stincts, hate the one and love the other? You say, No. Then God is a Father, and " God is love" Can God the Father of us all (all his children being alike fallen), ere they have done good or 46 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. evil, love, or elect to life one and hate, or reprobate to death, another? The No must be given, and from the No there is no appeal. Again: put the case thus : Suppose God should summon to ap- pear before him the entire infant world. They all assemble — they are all equal — all stand upon one common level — one is neither better nor worse than another — and none of them have done either good or evil. Now, not forgetting that God is a Father of infinite love and compassion, would it be possible for him, as a just, good, compassionate, impartial father, to ordain to life eternal a part only of these infants, and, passing by the rest, or- dain them to suffer his wrath forever? We an- swer that it would be morally (if not naturally) impossible for God, who "is love" to do so. To admit that God has acted such a part with the entire race of his creature man, without any fore- sight of good works or faith in any of them, or of evil works or unbelief of any, shocks common sense, shocks not only the instincts and feelings of fatherhood, but the common instincts and rea- son of even fallen humanity. It represents God as being all sovereign, and nothing moral ; or, if he possesses moral qualities, he can of his good pleasure override and ignore them whenever his sovereign will may dictate to do so. Admitting that such a God is the God of the Bible, what kind of a Father is he? The God who is love EXISTENCE OP GOD. 47 cannot deny himself — he cannot act contrary to the nature of the moral qualities of his fatherhood. He declares that he has no pleas- ure in the death of the wicked; and Peter de- clares that God is no respecter of persons. A God who can, by a volition of his sovereign will, set aside the moral attributes of his nature, and eternally ordain millions of his intelligent creatures, equal in all respects, a part to eternal life, and the rest to eternal death, may be the ideal father of eternal election and reprobation, but not the Father revealed by the Son, who is the God of love. And while the great lamps of eternal truth, that God is a Father, and that God is love, standing side by side, throw off their divine and broad illu- minations upon this dark world, men of rational thought can never be satisfied that the ways of such a God are unequal, or that he is partial in arbitrarily settling unequal destines among his created equal offspring. When "whosoever" can be sanely interpreted to mean a partial discrimi- nation, and the "whole" to mean a part, or when the qualities and nature of fathers are reversed so that they will give their starving children — to some bread and fishes, but to others stones and scorpions, then, and not till then, may the world be satisfied that God, the Father of us all, has, of his own sovereign will and good pleasure, decreed unconditionally to give to a part of his intelligent 48 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. offspring the bread and fishes of eternal election, and to the rest the stones and scorpions of eternal reprobation. We now gladly emerge from these dreary re- gions into the genial and life-inspiring light of God a Father. Christ revealed this primal truth, not only by his words, but also by his works. His plan was to approach men at their salient points. He extended aid where it was most needed. The sick and dying man wanted not bread, but to be cured. So Christ cured him. But the five thou- sand hungry persons wanted bread. He gave them enough, and twelve basketsful over, out of a few loaves and little fishes. The blind man by the wayside was not just then in a proper mood to hear from Christ a set discourse on the doctrine of God's Fatherhood. He wanted his sight re- stored. Jesus restored his sight. And thus, by his works, he told the blind man, the sick man, and the hungry multitude that God was a Father, full of fatherly tenderness and sympathy, nursing the "smoking flax" and propping up his "bruised reeds." And so Christ went on making of all his mighty works mighty preachers of what he alone was able to reveal, that God was a Father; for "no man knoweth the Father but the Son and he to whom the Son shall reveal him." In this twofold method did Christ clearly re- veal to men that God is a Father. From this EXISTENCE OF GOD. 49 divine disclosure we hear and see Christ teaching the doctrine of God's special providence. Hear him: "The very hairs of your head are all num- bered." "Not a sparrow falls to the ground with- out your Heavenly Father." "If God so clothed the grass of the field, will he not clothe you, ye of little faith?" "And if ye, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more shall your Heavenly Father give good things to them that ask him?" Eternal praise to God for this, u hoiv much more." It is worthy of being stamped in letters of gold upon the tablet of every heart. With immeasurably greater freedom will your Heavenly Father bestow the richest possible gifts in the universe to them that ask him than a tender-hearted human parent will give a piece of bread to his hungry child. The heart overwhelmed here seeks an outlet. It finds two — the tongue and the eye; and while praise employs the tongue, the eye overflows with grateful tears. But Christ brings to view the providence of God when, in sending out his disciples, he instructs them to take neither staves, nor scrip, nor purse, for their journey. How, then, are they to be sus- tained? That is the business of their Heavenly Father; it is theirs to look to their duty. This required faith and trust. These Christ also taught in connection with his teaching of a special provi- dence. What did he mean when he said : "Take 3 50 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. no thought for the morrow what ye shall eat, or drink, or wear." "Your Heavenly Father know- eth that ye have need of these things." As though he had said : It is possible for you to act as if you thought your wants are unknown to God, or if known, he may fail to supply them, and thus doubting his divine providence, you may so burden yourselves as to be weighed down with a great load of worldly cares. To obviate all this, he made a preacher of the lily. He calls upon them to consider this great beauty, and while they are considering that it neither toils nor spins, he is declaring that "Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these." And now he brings out the moral: "If God so clothed the grass of the field, shall he not clothe you, ye of little faith?" Consider the lily. There it stands, a blooming, eloquent preacher of faith in God and trust in his providence. Did not the called-up fish of the sea, when taken with money in its mouth, silently proclaim the providence of God? This was an important lesson, teaching the disci- ples that in all emergencies they should trustingly believe in the care of their Heavenly Father. This case shows how poor and penniless were Christ and his disciples. In this one work, which perhaps has not been over-duly considered, there is much valuable instruction. The main point was the providence of God. Next in importance was, EXISTENCE OP GOD. 51 according to Peter's answer, that they were not- obliged to pay tribute, but rather than give offense, they had better pay — better sacrifice something, yea, a great deal, than to give grounds for evil re- port. But they had no money : what shall they do ? God will provide. This is the practical side of the doctrine he had just been teaching by the lily: "Let the morrow provide for itself." Your Heav- enly Father knows what things ye need — and just now they need a little tax-money. Peter is sent to the sea with a hook — he is successful — he catches a fish, and lo! there in its mouth is the money. This relief came from a quarter Peter never had dreamed of. This is another point in the lesson. But how is this? The fish brings no more money than is just enough to pay the tribute. That was all they needed for to-day. "Let the morrow provide for itself." Take no thought (or great burden of care) for the future. " Sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof." If the Master had desired to make his followers rich, there were fish in the sea of sufficient size and strength to have freighted to the shore from the same mine millions of silver — enough to have enriched them all. But they were following Christ, and so much money would have been a great burden — it would have subjected them to too many cares and anxie- ties, and would have impeded their progress, and perhaps destroyed their usefulness, niches are 52 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. deceitful, and not to be trusted; especially is it dangerous to greatly desire them; for they that will be rich fall into temptation and a snare, and into many foolish and hurtful lusts, which drown men in perdition. All this makes up a great les- son to Christians, especially to the ministry. The resources of Christ were ample — inexhaustible. He dreAV upon earth, and sea, -and sky. He taught the doctrine of providence not only by the lily and the fish, but also by the fowls of the air. " Behold," said he, "the fowls of the air; for they^sow not, neither do they reap, nor gather into barns; yet your Heavenly Father feedeth them. Are ye not much better than they?" Having attempted a brief analysis of the two gen- eral propositions, that God is a Spirit and God is a Father, as containing substantially all the knowl- edge of God indispensable to the happiness of man, and, by consequence, all the radical doctrines of religion, we would here remark that Christ's twofold method was not only new and striking, but displayed the most consummate wisdom and discernment. Would he teach them God's attri- bute of almighty power? In his words he simply declares that God has power to kill the soul as well as the body, and cast both into hell together. And in his working, which is his other method, he brings that power before them, visibly dis- EXISTENCE OE GOD. 53 played, and that in cases of unspeakable benefit to those who were the immediate occasions of such display; the sick were cured, the lame healed, the blind received sight, devils were cast out, and the dead were raised. In all such working the power of God was as manifest to the mind as a flash of lightning is to the eye. And it was thus by meet- ing men at the points at which they needed him most, he extended his aid, supplied their wants, and conferred upon them great blessings, and thus, by benefiting their bodies, prepared the way to save their souls. Hear the young man blind from his birth : " Whether he be a sinner or no, I know not; one thing I know, whereas I was blind, I now see." This man was now at the saving point, and shortly after, we hear him say to Jesus : " Lord, I believe, and he worshiped him." The Phari- sees cast him out of the synagogue — Christ re- ceived and took him into his fold. In no character could the God of the universe, with whom we have to do, be represented so amia- ble and trustworthy as that of a Father, and while his pure spirituality absolutely excludes the wor- ship of idols, and as God is a Spirit, everywhere and at all times present as a Father, it inspires the belief that he may, at all times, and under all cir- cumstances, be worshiped and trusted. God is in one sense the Father of all mankind, because he is the creator of all. But in the highest and 54 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. most endearing sense of the term, is he the Father of those who believe in the Son — "For ye are all the children of God by faith in Christ Jesus." The children of God are "born again" — "born of the Spirit" — "born of God." They are adopted into his spiritual family — are the heirs of God, and joint-heirs with his son Jesus Christ. He knows his children; they bear the seal of his image, and, "having this seal, the Lord knoweth them that are his." He is their Heavenly Father; the Father loves them ; he gave his Son to re- deem them ; they have washed their robes white in his blood, and "they shall walk with him in white." What more can they desire than to have God for their Father? This is the great spiritual magnet ; and to those who believe on the Son, he reveals it in all its spiritual power. But in the full and spiritual sense of God's Fatherhood, this revelation is not made to the unbelievers. Though they are told that God is a Father, they have not the Spirit to witness with their spirit that they are his children ; and not having the Spirit of his Son, they cannot " cry, Abba, Father," and do not sustain the same peculiar relation that believers do. PART II.— NECESSITY AND TRUTH OF DIVINE REVELATION. A Farther Revelation than what has been Made in the Volume of Nature. IT most undoubtedly was necessary that God should make a farther revelation; for although, as before stated, the volume of nature might, pre- vious to the fall, and the moral blindness conse- quent upon it, have taught all that was necessary, yet, since mankind are now in a fallen and blind condition, the state of the case is entirely changed. It is evident, we think, that there are many things not only necessary, but truly desirable to be known, which could not be learned from the book of nature. It is granted, as before seen, that the student of nature learns from the works of creation that there is a self-existent Supreme Being, and it might be farther conceded that he might also arrive at the conclusion that this Supreme Being ought to be worshiped. But as to the kind of worship, and in what way or manner it should be rendered, he is in total darkness. Here the farther revelation (55) 56 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. comes in to his aid, and informs him that prayer and praise — the broken heart and contrite spirit — is a sacrifice acceptable to God. Again: We find in the world thousands of evils, natural and moral — earthquakes, famines, wars, pestilences, sickness, and death. We find, also, lying, cheat- ing, theft, defrauding, oppression, envy, hatred, malice, murder, and ruin. But then, in the ab- sence of a farther revelation, he is totally at a loss as to how this sad and deplorable state of things was brought about. Here the farther revelation furnishes him with the desired knowledge. He is informed that all these evils which he sees and feels are the offspring of sin ; that our first pro- genitor transgressed against God — rose up in re- bellion against his authority — and by this means his nature became corrupt, his mind clouded, his intellect obtuse, the earth cursed, and himself doomed to labor and toil, disappointments, afflic- tions, pain, and death ; and that the corruption of his moral nature has been, by the law of the rela- tion of effects to their causes, transmitted to his posterity, with all its direful consequences. Read, in the book of Genesis, the account of the fall; also, Paul to the Romans : "By one man sin en- tered into the world, and death by sin." There are also other points of knowledge, of the highest and gravest importance, desirable to be known, in regard to which the volume of nature DIVINE REVELATION. 57 is profoundly silent; such as, first, the ground upon which God can pardon sin and yet maintain his justice; second, how man can be purified from the corruption of his moral nature and be brought into conformity to the nature and will of his Maker, and to a cheerful obedience to his authority. The immortality of the soul, the resurrection of the body, eternal judgment, and the just and equita- ble distribution of rewards and punishments — all these things, and perhaps others of the greatest magnitude, in the absence of the farther revela- tion, being untaught by the light of nature, would have remained hidden from the eye of the most penetrating and diligent student. Thus, we clearly discover the infinite wisdom and goodness of Deity in the farther revelation he has made to the human race, and which is con- tained in the sacred Scriptures. This revelation clears our sky, meets our moral wants, and satis- fies the soul thirsting for knowledge, especially for that knowledge which pertains to his reconciliation to God and his destiny after death. Truly, "His word is a lamp to our feet, and a light to our path." We think it is sufficiently apparent that man- kind greatly needed a revelation superadded to that contained in the volume of nature, and this necessity furnishes at least presumptive evidence that such revelation would be given. What is called a revelation from God, contained 3* 58 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. in the Scriptures, is certainly true. We feel assured of its truthfulness, because it has the signature and bears the impress of its Author. The evi- dences of its truth are derived, principally, from two sources. For the sake of distinction, they are generally called the external and internal evi- dences. The external evidences, for the most part, arise from the fulfillment of prophecy and the performance of miracles. When men profess to be teachers sent of God, to reveal truths before unknown, it is but* reasonable and natural that mankind should require of them a proof of their divine mission. The prophets and apostles, as well as Christ our Saviour, professed thus to be sent of God upon this mission, and were fully en- dowed with the gift of prophecy and power to work miracles. Now, if the predictions of future events uttered by the prophets, in different ages of the world, and under circumstances widely dif- ferent, of which events they by possibility could have no previous knowledge, except by divine in- spiration, should be fulfilled to the letter, should not this be received and relied upon as indubitable testimony of the truth of their divine mission? This testimony sustains the claims of the prophets to their divine mission, as well as that resulting from miracles. The same testimony sealed the truth of the mission of Christ and his apostles. The predictions of the prophets abound through- DIVINE REVELATION. 59 out the Hebrew scriptures, as well as many of their fulfillments : witness the destruction of Nin- eveh, the overthrow of the City of Babylon and the Babylonian Empire by the Medo-Persians, led by Cyrus, the downfall of the Medo-Persians by the Grecians, and the subversion of the Grecian Empire by the Romans. Besides these, there are a great many fulfillments of other prophecies chronicled in these scriptures, such as the inva- sions of the kingdom of Israel by heathen nations, its overthrow, the captivity of the Jews, and their return to their own country, and, finally, the ad- vent, offices, works, sufferings, death, resurrection, and ascension of the glorious Mediator, the fulfill- ment of which we have on record in the scriptures of the New Testament. Nor were Christ and his apostles wanting in testimonials to the truth of their heavenly mission. "And Jesus said to the disciples of John," sent by him to inquire whether he was the one who was to come, or should they look for another, " Go and tell John the things ye see and hear: the blind receive their sight, the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the poor have the gospel preached unto them." And Nicodemus, who came to Jesus by night, bore witness to the convincing power of his miracles when he said to him, " Thou art a teacher come from God, for no man can do the miracles that thou doest except God be with 60 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. him." These miracles of Christ were, with few exceptions, performed in open daylight — not be-, fore a chosen few of his friends, but in the presence of large concourses, consisting mostly of his ene- mies; and to these astounding works he often ap- pealed, in the presence of his adversaries, as his credentials from heaven. And wonderful to relate, these miracles were not attempted to be disproved by his most inveterate enemies, but, compelled to confess the fact, they resorted to the miserable subterfuge of attributing the power by which he performed them to Beelzebub, the prince of devils. The apostles also gave plenary evidence of their divine mission. They, too, were endowed with power from on high to attest their heavenly call- ing by similar miracles, and showed by supernat- ural signs and wonders that the faith they preached "stood not in the wisdom of men, but in the power of God." The miracles wrought by the apostles were also done in the presence of enemies, who wanted not opportunities nor the disposition to disprove them had they been false; and how often were the churches the apostles had planted ap- pealed to, as the very eye-witnesses of these won- derful miracles, for the truth of their performance among them ? It is altogether incredible that the apostles should make such appeals, knowing that they were based upon a false assumption which DIVINE REVELATION. 61 they did know, provided no such miracles had been wrought among them. The limits prescribed to this work forbid our entering more at large upon this branch of the evidence of the truth of divine revelation, and we would point the student in theology to some of the authors who have fully examined this subject, met the cavils and exposed the fallacy of all the pretended and specious arguments brought for- ward to disprove the credibility of the truths of the Bible. See Newton on the Prophecies, Paley's Evidences, Horn's Introduction to Christianity, Fletcher's Appeal to Matter-of-fact and Common Sense, Watson's Reply to '• Paine, and Nelson's Cause and Cure of Infidelity. We have now (briefly, indeed) presented some of the external evidences of the truth of divine revelation, and proceed, in a very summary way, to notice some of its internal evidences ; and first, it bears the impress of God, its reputed author. The moral purity of the Scriptures shows that God is their author. The morality therein taught and inculcated has no equal. None of the sages of antiquity taught as did Moses and the prophets, Christ and his apostles. Socrates, Seneca, Aris- totle, Plato, and Cicero are all placed far off in the background. If they inculcated any thing that bore the semblance of scriptural morality, it should be attributed to some scattered rays of light ema- 62 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. nating from the Scriptures, and had reached them through the medium of tradition, or to a partial acquaintance with the Scriptures themselves. They never could rise higher in the scale of mor- als than, Love your friends; and the few moral precepts they did profess to teach were neutralized and rendered inefficient by their admixture with impurities and superstitious practices, which were allowed and encouraged by the preceptors them- selves. If God has shed forth the light of his natural perfections upon the pages of nature, he has caused the transcendent light of both his natural and moral attributes to shine upon the pages of divine revelation. The teachings of nature and the teach- ings of the Bible are in perfect harmony so far as nature goes, and where nature ceases to give les- sons the Scriptures continue on, leading the honest and anxious student in paths hitherto untrodden, and into still brighter regions of wisdom and knowl- edge. It is from this stand-point he beholds "whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, and whatsoever things are of good report." The morality of divine revelation is summarily comprehended in the Ten Commandments, com- monly called the Decalogue. This divine code contains, first., our duty to God, and, second, our DIVINE REVELATION. 63 duty to our fellow-men. All we have to do in order to obtain an enlightened and impressive view of the morals taught in the Bible is to imagine, if we can, the widespread misery and ruin which would result from the constant and universal vio- lation of these ten precepts. Gross idolatry would overspread the earth, profanity would dwell upon every tongue, the sanctity of the Sabbath would be everywhere disregarded, children would show no reverence for and yield no obedience to their parents; in short, in addition to the preceding, murder, adultery, theft, and covetousness would deluge the world, and men would destroy one an- other from the face of the earth. But now, in order to a correct view of the purity and conservative power of Bible morality, let us fancy that all mankind strictly observe these di- vine precepts. Then, of course, the state of the world would be precisely the reverse. Our whole race would bow in devout worship and adoration before the great Creator and Upholder of the uni- verse; no tongue would pronounce a word profane; the Sabbath would be sanctified as a day of rest, emblematic of the rest of heaven; children dutiful to their parents; murder no more heard of, but peace and good- will everywhere abounding; the sanctity of the marriage-bed no more invaded; locks arid bars no more needed as security against thieves and robbers; and the demon of covetous- 64 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. ness would no more stalk up and down through the earth, seeking whom it might devour. What moral purity and grandeur does such a picture present ! A world conformed to the law of God ! and that law the law of love. Deserts would bud and blossom as the rose, solitary places grow glad with joy, and the whole earth become vocal with songs of praise. But all the laws, precepts, and obligations contained in the Bible are resolved into two great principles: supreme love to God, and love to man. "On these hang all the law and the prophets." Thus taught our Saviour, and St. Paul says "the end of the commandment is charity out of a pure heart," and " love is the fulfilling of the law." ' From this view of the subject may be deduced the sublime and God-like injunction, first uttered by the great Teacher of the Christian system, " I say unto you, Love your enemies." To love them that love you is man-like, but to love them that hate you is God-like. The Christian system contained in the sacred volume inculcates all the duties growing out of every relation of life. The governor bears the sword not to oppress his subjects, but "for the punishment of evil-doers, and for the praise of them that do well." This clearly sets forth the pre- rogative and duty of rulers. The subjects are re- quired to render obedience to the civil magistrate DIVINE REVELATION. 65 as holding his authority from God. " The powers that be are ordained of God." "Render unto Cesar the things that are Cesar's/' is the divine injunction. The duties also of the marriage state are laid down. The husband is enjoined to love his wife, and the wife to reverence and obey her husband. We also find enjoined the obligations of parents and children : " Parents, love your children, and be not bitter against them." " Children, obey your parents." "Honor thy father and thy mother." Nor are the duties of masters and serv- ants overlooked. " Masters, give that which is just and equal unto your servants." " Servants, obey in all things your masters in the flesh." The Christian revelation enjoins also the duties and kind offices of the social life — such as the for- giveness of injuries, forbearance, condescension to men of low estate, hospitality, kindness, and char- ity. It places its seal of condemnation upon all ostentatious parade, foolish pride, selfishness, back- biting, tattling, evil-speaking and injustice ; and it does not forget even the courtesies and amenities of life, which contribute so largely to the happi- ness and enjoyment of the social state. Now if all these duties and teachings were strictly observed, and carried into practice, man- kind would be conducted to the culminating point of civilization, and of social and moral refinement. 66 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. Who can fail to see the impress of a nature im- maculately pure stamped upon the system of mor- als taught in the Christian writings ? None hut the willfully blind. And although infidels have labored hard to set aside the Bible, they have always been constrained to pay an unwilling trib- ute to the purity of Bible morals. And if this purity immeasurably transcends, as it does, that of the teachings of all the philosophers and sages in all ages of the world, we are forced to the con- clusion that this perfect purity finds its source in a nature of infinitely higher perfection than that which we find in fallen man. But again : when we add to these considera- tions the fact that the inspired writings afford the most powerful incentives to virtue, while at the same time they deal out in unmeasured terms their denunciations of vice, are we not doubly assured that the hand that traced these fair pages of Scripture morals was divine ? And have we not as good reason to believe that this pure system of morals, taught in the Christian Scriptures, is the offspring of infinite goodness and wisdom, as we have that the created universe, with its endless variety symmetrically united in one harmonious whole, is the offspring of infinite power and wis- dom? If so — and who dare deny it? — it will fol- low as a sequence that God is the author of Bible morals, and by consequence that the Scriptures DIVINE REVELATION. 67 were divinely inspired, and, therefore, true. If it is philosophically true that water, by a natural law, seeks its level, so is it morally true that hu- man nature also seeks its level ; and if it is natu- rally true that water cannot, without physical aid, raise itself above its level, so is it morally true that human nature, as found to exist, could not, without divine aid, rise above its own low level up to the pure and sublime heights of Bible morality. If the teachings of divine revelation are true, they could no more be the production of bad men than that a pure stream could flow from a corrupt fountain; and if false, they could no more be the production of good men than that a corrupt stream could issue from a pure fountain. Hence it fol- lows that the pure teachings of divine revelation are the production of good men, and that they were what they professed to be — divinely inspired — and spoke as they were moved by the Holy Ghost, and, therefore, what they taught was true. Again : it is altogether incredible that the apos- tles of Christ would band together to palm off on mankind a religion which they themselves knew was a cheat, especially when its profession sub- jected them to the loss of all things which men in this world hold dear — the loss of property, of worldly enjoyments, and of reputation ; and more, when the very name of Christian was odious, and 68 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. subjected those who bore it not only to the male- dictions of the populace at large — Jews and Gen- tiles — but also to bonds, imprisonment, and death. The course pursued by the apostles and early Christians upon the supposition that they knew that the religion of Christ was a cheat, is anoma- lous, and stands in direct opposition to the princi- ples of human nature, and to all the laws by which it is governed. Is it alleged by any that the apostles were hon- est men, but were themselves deluded ? This is also altogether incredible, for they had the testi- mony of their natural senses for several years, during which period they were eye-witnesses of the mighty signs and wonders wrought by their divine Master in confirmation of the truth of his mission. Could they have been deluded for so long a time, when the performance of miracles by him was almost of daily occurrence ? Could they have been deluded when they looked on and be- held, in hundreds of instances, his supernatural performances? Water, at his bidding, turns to wine ; maniacs are restored to reason, fevers de- part, lepers are cleansed, the eyes of the blind are opened, and the dead are raised. To admit that the apostles could have been deluded under such circumstances, would be to admit that no confi- dence whatever is to be placed in the testimony of our senses, which would put an end to all tes- DIVINE REVELATION. 69 timony, both human and divine ; from all which we arrive at the inevitable conclusion that the apostles of our Lord were sincere and honest men, and that they were not themselves deluded, but actually saw and heard the supernatural works and wonders which they reported. Without shame they took on themselves their Master's name — led a life of self-denial, of toil, reproach, and suffering, counting all things but loss for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus their Lord, and many of them meeting death in its most appalling forms, sealed with the blood of martyrs their testimony to the truth of their mis- sion and teaching. And finally, they lived, la- bored, suffered, and died, under the fullest and deepest conviction of the truth of the doctrines they taught, with the happy assurance of a glo- rious immortality beyond the grave. It is declared in the Scriptures that the " weap- ons of our warfare are not carnal, but are mighty through God to the pulling down of strongholds," and that "the kingdom of God is not in word, but in power." The truth of these declarations has been clearly exemplified in the great achieve- ments of the gospel. The strongholds of Satan, in the hearts of the vilest of sinners, have been broken down. The strongholds of Jewish legal- ism and deep-rooted prejudices fell before the pow- ers of the kingdom of the despised Nazarene. 70 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. The strongholds of the prince of darkness, of pagan superstition and idolatry, were breached and demolished with the un carnal weapons of the Christian warfare. These weapons, indeed, were very simple — the preaching of the cross of one Jesus, crucified between two thieves in the days of Pontius Pilate ; which Jesus, his disciples affirmed, arose from the dead the third day after his crucifixion. These weapons of war would have proved as inefficient as they were simple, had it not been for the fact that they received their mightiness and potency through God. And with the inspiration of the divine energy alid power of the Holy Spirit, what is too hard for them to ac- complish ? The whole superstructure of Judaism in a short time crumbled to dust under their vig- orous assaults. The idolatry and superstition so deeply ingrained in the very heart of the pagan world, fell before the powers of the kingdom of the crucified Jesus. The victories of his cross were so rapid and extensive that the temples of heathen worship were so deserted that complaint was made by Pliny, a Roman Governor, to Cesar, that there were but very few that brought offer- ings to sacrifice to the gods. Nor did the gospel cease its conquests until it could boast of trophies in the household or court of Cesar ; and finally, Christianity, supplanting paganism, became the established religion of the Roman Empire. DIVINE REVELATION. 71 When we consider the means employed simply within themselves, apart from any supernatural agency, namely — the preaching of the shameful cross of a crucified Jesus, and that through his name alone was to be obtained the forgiveness of sins — together with the character of the first men to whom was committed the charge of spreading these tidings for the world's conversion, we are utterly astonished that any sane mind can come to the conclusion that Christianity could have been set up at any place other than some obscure abode, whose inmates were more suitable subjects for a lunatic asylum than for enlightened, civilized society. The means employed were, in the light of human prudence, the most unlikely to accom- plish the proposed end — the conversion of the world to the discipleship of Jesus. And who was this Jesus ? A man of Jewish extraction — grew up to manhood with little notoriety, and, entering upon his public career, and assuming the office of a teacher, with no pretensions to human learning, and thus circumstanced, he set out upon the as- tounding enterprise of establishing a new religion, and of converting the world. And what were the doctrines he taught ? He taught both Jews and Gentiles, rich and poor, noble and ignoble, with- out exception, that they must repent of their sins and believe on him as the Son of God and Saviour of the world, or they could not be saved. He 72 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. taught them also other doctrines directly opposed to their prejudices and preconceived opinions, and equally distasteful to their carnal appetites and propensities. Nor was he — viewed from a human stand-point — more fortunate in offering induce- ments to gain followers. He informed them that they must renounce the world with all its sinful pleasures, wealth, power, pride, and popularity; that they would, for his sake, be hated by all men; that they would be treated as the offscouring of all things, and subject themselves to bonds, im- prisonment, and death. And, viewed from the same stand-point, it would seem that he was not more happy in the selection of his first heralds to proclaim abroad the terms of discipleship. Con- trary to all human policy, he passed by the re- ceipts of custom and called tax-gatherers. He visited the sea-side, and took fishermen. These were simple-minded men, without wealth, power, or popularity, and made no pretensions to human learning, the consequence of all which was, that, as looked upon by the world, he himself, and his chosen followers, were not only unpopular, but contemptible. This is the light in which the case is viewed by infidels, for they will not allow of supernatural agency in establishing and spreading the cause of Christianity. Taking it, then, as they will have it — as a mere human contrivance, with its most unpromising machinery — would it DIVINE REVELATION. 73 not be the least likely to succeed, and the most impolitic of any scheme that was ever concocted in the brain of a half-crazed fanatic? And yet this scheme, with every conceivable human prob- ability against it, has, in a great measure, com- passed the end proposed by its author, and is in a fair way to accomplish the whole. What ! Ju- daism overturned — the colossal superstructure of pagan superstition and idolatry torn down and supplanted by the miserable, unseemly scheme of this crucified Jesus ? What ! and these stupen- dous achievements, won by his cross, in spite of all the pride and prejudice of the Pharisee and Sanhedrim, and in spite of all the interests of the pagan priesthood, the learning, the wealth, the eloquence, and power, of Greece and Rome — the all-subduing power of the religion of the Man of Calvary triumphs and prevails, until it is estab- lished by law as the religion of Rome's universal empire ! Any man who can believe that these mighty conquests were gained by this hated and cruci- fied Jesus, with his unpopular doctrines and re- volting terms of discipleship by him laid down, together with the kind of men he chose as his standard-bearers, without the intervention of su- pernatural agency, is prepared to believe any thing. If he wished, he could believe that the Father of Waters could be dammed with a straw, or 74 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. that the ramparts of Gibraltar could be " battered down with snow-balls." Is -it consistent with laws, either physical, men- tal, or moral, that ignorance can battle successfully against learning, poverty against wealth, impotence against power? When these contradictions are reconciled, and these anomalies take place and be- come of common occurrence, then may we believe that Jesus Christ and his followers have, by a simple, unpopular, impolitic human scheme, accom- plished all that they have done without the aid of superhuman influence and power. But what are the facts in the case? Jesus Christ and his apos- tles gave plenary proof of their divine mission. The truths they taught were fully attested by the mighty signs and wonders which attended their ministry. The word of God fell from their lips as burning coals; sharper was it than a two-edged sword; it pierced to the hearts of thousands in a day. The power of God was often visibly dis- played before the eyes of the multitude. The faith of those who believed stood not in the " wis- dom of men, but in the power of God;" and this was the secret of their success — this was the mighty force which shook to their foundations principalities and powers, and will continue to shake until not only earth, but also heaven, shall be shaken, "that those things which cannot be shaken may remain." "Wherefore we receiving DIVINE REVELATION. 75 a kingdom which cannot be moved, let us have grace whereby we may serve God with reverence and godly fear." For other confirmative evidence of the truth of divine revelation, we might advert to the nature and effects of the religion it teaches, its consola- tions and hopes, its denunciations of vice and en- couragements of virtue, its civilizing and refining influences upon all nations wherever it obtains, and, finally, its magnificent conception and avowed object of redeeming the world from sin and its consequent evils and calamities, and of restoring mankind to the image and favor of God, and of making them happy forever. From all these sources, besides others, are derived evidences con- firmative of the truth of the religion taught in. the Christian revelation, and, by so much, the truth of the revelation itself. PART III. — THE PROVIDENCE OF GOD, GENERAL AND SPECIAL. The General Providence of God. BY the providence of God we understand the wise, constant, and consistent superintend- ence which he exercises in every department of his universal dominion; and the object of such superintendence is the regularity, order, and har- mony of the whole, together with the happiness of all his creatures capable of its enjoyment, and all for his declarative glory. We shall briefly consider this subject under two heads: first, the general providence of God, and second, the special providence of God. By the general providence of God we under- stand the administration of those laws he has or- dained and established for the government of all and every part of the created universe. Those laws are absolute, and spring from the divine sov- ereignty, which may be considered as the aggre- gate of his natural perfections. These, as we have already seen, are his self-existence, infinite power, wisdom, omniscience, omnipresence, un- PROVIDENCE OP GOD. 77 changeableness, and independence; to abstract any one of which would be destructive ' of the divine sovereignty. Those laws called natural may, with equal propriety, be termed sovereign laws, and, as a whole, or in aggregate, may be considered a transcript of God's natural perfections. These natural, or sovereign, laws are so styled in contra- distinction to his laws called moral, which are a transcript of his moral attributes. Absolute sov- ereignty and immaculate holiness may be consid- ered the aggregate of the entire character of God, as revealed to us in the book of nature and of the sacred Scriptures. His sovereignty is abundantly taught in the Bible; so, likewise, is Iris holiness. Now, to deprive Deity of any one of his moral attributes would destroy his holiness; so, to take from him any one of his natural attributes would be destructive of his sovereignty. If these things be so — and, at present, we perceive no error — we arrive at the conclusion that all the laws emanat- ing from God find their origin in his divine nature, and are a transcript of either his natural or moral perfections; and we see no reason why beings in a higher department of creation should bear the impress of his moral attributes, and beings of a lower department should not bear the impress of his natural attributes. From the above view taken of this subject, we are warranted, we think, to take it as true 78 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. that the laws appointed for the government of the entire created universe spring from either the supreme sovereignty or infinite holiness of God, and that the rational and irrational bear their impress, respectively. The sovereign laws which God has imposed upon the material creation are by moralists and philosophers termed the laws of nature; such as the attraction of gravity, of magnetism, of cohesion, and motion, together with those laws which govern animal life — locomotion, involuntary action; em- bracing, also, all the instincts of animated nature, the infinite variety of affinities, repulsions, and aggregations, the laws that pervade incipient con- ception, germination, growth, perfection, decay, and reproduction. All these, and others of like character, are by naturalists termed the laws of nature. These laws have their origin in the su- preme sovereignty of God, and are designed to maintain the diversity and variety abounding in every department of his works, and their complete union in one harmonious whole. Now, all these so-called laws of nature are em- bodied in the will of God, and they exist and op- erate as much now according to the action of his present will as they did when that will was first impressed upon the. works of creation ; for we are bound to conceive of Deity as being present, at the same time, in every part of his dominions, un- PROVIDENCE OF GOD. 79 less we give him a local habitation, which would destroy his omnipresence and, by consequence, his supreme sovereignty. If, therefore, we consider the Supreme Being as an infinite, living, active intelligence, as we are bound to do, we must admit that he is the administrator of his own government and laws, and the supervisor over all things, great and small, throughout all his dominions. From these considerations we may fairly con- clude that God — always present everywhere throughout the universe, never dormant or passive, but always active and efficient — exercises a con- stant control and direction of all the works of his hands, and that not only we ourselves, but all things else, have being and live and move in him. And not only the first creation, but continuance of being, life, and motion of all things, constantly depend upon that infinite source of being, life, and motion; so that should his will and power for a single moment cease to act, all being would cease to be, and, by consequence, all life and motion would become extinct. Thus, it may be seen that we stand opposed to the notion, which is but too prevalent, that Deity has brought into existence the great frame-work of creation and imposed upon every part laws which are called natural, which laws involve cer- tain causes, and those causes always producing their legitimate effects, and that he has left those 80 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. laws of nature to move on in their operations without any direct supervision or oversight, or without paying to them any farther attention whatever. Such notions represent God as riot being everywhere present in his own dominions, where these laws prevail, or, if present, that he is inactive or passive. Such ideas are opposed to the infinity of the Godhead, derogatory and dis- honoring to his character; whereas, the doctrine that the self-living, independent life and action of the great I Am pervades all nature and, unconfined, fills infinity, gives us the most exalted conceptions of the adorable character of him who "is God over all." Having now offered some thoughts upon the general providence of God, we proceed, secondly, to treat briefly of his special, or particular, provi- dence. The Special Providence of God consists, in part, of the appointment of laws which are in their nature positive, though morally binding until the Lawgiver may, in his wisdom, see proper to annul them. This he may, of his good pleasure, at any time do, without any in- fringement of the fixed laws of his general gov- ernment; and his special providence farther con- sists of all those acts whereby he overrules the pain and suffering incident upon the violation of his general laws, as well as the bestowment of PROVIDENCE OF GOD. 81 special blessings when and where he may see proper, and, still farther, in the performance of acts supernatural, or above the laws called the laws of nature. These latter acts have for their object the inspiration of men to teach, and to fore- tell events of the future, and for the performance of miracles. To illustrate the case in regard to God's special providence, we would introduce the family, or patriarchal, government as practiced among men, which will be conceded by all to be a striking type of the government of God, who is the great Father of us all. The head of every well-regulated family has his general rules, by which he regulates his affairs and governs his household ; one may be that his family shall retire to rest at an early hour of the night, another that none of his family shall use intoxicating drinks, another that all shall be temperate in eating, and another that his younger children shall not play with fire nor meddle with edged tools. Now, all these general and standing rules answer to the es- tablished general laws of God called the laws of nature ; and some of those laws, like some of these, inflict penal punishment upon their violators — for instance, the child that plays with fire, or that meddles with the forbidden tools, or indulges in excessive eating : in one case the child gets burned, in another he is wounded, and still in another he 4* 82 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. is caused to be sick. Now, in all these cases of violation of the general laws of the parent the "violator suffers the penalty, but the parent, being compassionate as well as just, applies the proper remedies and cures the burn, heals the wound, and relieves the pain and suffering of the immoderate eater. All these special acts of the parent are performed inside the circle of his general laws, nor do they abrogate or annul them; and still far- ther, the parent may, if he in his wisdom see proper, inflict some other and special punishment upon his erring child, as an additional lesson, warn- ing him against a repetition of disobedience. All these special acts of the parent are performed not in opposition to his general laws, but in perfect harmony with them. Here, then, we have a form of government anal- ogous to the government of the great Parent of all, and highly typical of it. The general laws established by the earthly parent as the outlines of his paternal government, in which he himself presides and acts in their administration, answer to the established laws of God st}ded the laws of nature ; and the special acts of the earthly parent answer to the special acts of the Father of all, performed by him inside the great outlines of his government, consisting of the laws of nature. Nor do His inside special acts abrogate or make void his general laws any more than the inside PROVIDENCE OF GOD. 83 special acts of the earthly parent annul his general laws. In the family government we have an ex- hibition of both a general and a special providence, which we think is a fair interpretation of the gen- eral and special providence of God. Now, in the exercise of right reason, who can find fault with the earthly parent for the kind acts and offices by him performed toward his erring and suffering children, especially when all these acts are done inside the laws of the wider circle, and not in con- travention of them ? What kind of a family gov- ernment would that be where the parent would attend alone to the administration of his general laws, totally neglecting all those special acts of paternal kindness in mitigating or relieving the sorrows, distresses, and sufferings of his wayward children ? and what ground of hope of relief could the suffering children have in the skill or sympa- thy of such an inattentive parent ? None what- ever. The children would see naught else in such a parent than a stern ruler, executing a few gen- eral laws ; whose face was seldom, if ever, lighted up with a smile; who showed them no signs of compassion, while, at the same time, he could do so without any disturbance whatever of his gen- eral laws. In farther consideration of this subject — as we conceive, one of the gravest and of the highest concern — we solicit patient attention until we con- 84 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. template the Father of the universe transcending the boundaries of the earthly parent in performing special acts of his providence, not only within the range of his general laws, but outside of and above them, in reference to those works called supernat- ural, or miraculous. Such works were performed by Jesus Christ, his prophets and apostles. Works supernatural do not necessarily convey the idea that such works are in all cases antagonistic to the laws of nature, but, in some cases, above them, and outside of the province in which these laws operate. Who can say that turning water into wine, or restoring sight to the blind, was a sus- pension of the laws of nature, or subversive of them ? It is true, natural laws knew of no power or agencies by which such phenomena could be effected, yet a power omnipotent could, for special ends, perform a special work above the ordinary operations of natural laws without encroaching upon their destined or allotted province. Did these miracles of our Saviour suspend the law of gravity, or that of magnetism? Many miracles of this character were wrought by Jesus Christ by supernatural agency, and also by his prophets and apostles. This power, or agency, was above and extra of the power and agencies of natural laws. But it may be replied that there are cases re- corded in the Old Testament scriptures, in giving PROVIDENCE OP GOD. 85 credence to which Ave must admit the suspension of physical or natural law, at least for a time, in order to accomplish a special object. We are in- formed that Joshua, the successor of Moses, com- manded the sun to stand still, and that luminary obeyed him. The command that the sun should stop his course, instead of the earth, was issued in accordance with the doctrine then prevalent that the sun made a revolution once in twenty- four hours around the earth, instead of the earth revolving on its axis producing the phenomenon of day and night. Had he addressed the command to the earth, instead of the sun, the entire Hebrew nation would, it is probable, have looked upon him as one bereaved of his reason, and refused to fol- low him. But however this might have been, we are assured by the record that the desired effect was produced. Now, if we admit that at the command of Joshua omnipotent power arrested the rotary motion of the earj^twe are compelled to admit that the natural laws which govern mo- tion were actually suspended ; and the friends of this hypothesis plead that nature's Grod, the Al- mighty Sovereign of the universe, could, if he saw proper, as easily arrest the earth's motion as to impart to it the first impulse of power which gave it motion, and that he could, and did, prevent any disturbance in the harmony of the heavenly bodies. 86 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. Another hypothesis is, that the appearance of the sun for so long a time beyond his Avonted stay above the horizon was owing to the great density of the atmosphere, miraculously produced, causing so great a refraction of the solar rays that the sun was visible above the horizon for a considerable time after he had actually sunk below it. It is a well-known fact that the rays of the sun are re- fracted in proportion to the density of the medium through which they pass ; and this, say they, ac- counts for the appearance of the sun above ihe horizon before his actual rising, on the island of Nova Zembla, to some philosophers who had re- paired to that place to make astronomical observa- tions. But, irrespective of all that is said, and of all speculative opinions, it cannot be reasonably doubted that the God and Author of nature could, if he saw proper, to accomplish a certain end, sus- pend for a time any of the laws of nature which he had imposed, ap-^at the same time prevent any confusion or the least irregularity from accruing in the harmonious order of his creation. His great living will is the balance-center of the created universe. In that living will are embodied all the mighty forces which men call natural laws ; they are all of that will, and under its supreme control. That will can say to any of these forces, Be still, and they are still, Move on, and they move ; and all this he could do, because he is omnipotent. PROVIDENCE OF GOD. 87 We have seen that God, the infinite source of light, life, and motion — ever and everywhere pres- ent through all, in all, and over all ; in whom all have life, live, and move — must, of necessity, be ever and essentially active in the administration of his general laws ; and attributing to him the essential attributes of his Godhead, all we have to do to come to a right conception of the part he takes in the operations of natural laws is to always view him as the present God, and the present active will or sovereignty of God as the great embodi- ment of all the natural laws imposed upon the material creation. In reference also to his special providence, we have offered remarks involving as well its necessity as its propriety, together with an illustration which, for aught we see to the con- trary, is altogether relevant and conclusive. In concluding our remarks upon this part of the subject, we would present some of the manifesta- tions of God's special providence recorded in the Scriptures ; and here we scarcely know where to begin or where to end. The historical portions of both the Old and New Testaments consist, in a great measure, of rehearsals of the special acts and interpositions of the Supreme Being. These divine exhibitions were almost coeval with man's existence; they began ere yet man was banished from Eden. The promise of victory in the seed of the woman was 88 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. an act of God's special providence ; so also wat* the curse upon Cain for the murder of his brother, The translation of the Prophet Enoch, the warn- ing of Noah to build an ark, the world-destroying flood, and the salvation of Noah and his famity, with pairs of beasts and birds and creeping things, to reinhabit the earth, are all but so many acts of special providence. The prophetic dream of young Joseph, his captivity, release, and exaltation in Egypt; the removal of Jacob and his family to that country; the wonderful preservation of Moses, and his appointment to conduct, as their leader, the Israelites to the promised land ; the wonders performed in Egypt by him and Aaron ; the su- pernatural destruction of Egypt's first-born ; the passage of the Israelites across the Red Sea, to- gether with the destruction of the hosts of Pha- raoh — and what shall we more say? for the time would fail us to speak of the quails, the manna, the waters of the rock, the opening of the earth to destroy Korah and his company, the giving of the law, the passage over Jordan, and the over- throw and destruction of the idolatrous inhabitants of Canaan. All these, and many other things, might be mentioned, which make up a consecutive chain of divine special manifestations and inter- positions. And besides all this, the New Testa- ment is replete with examples of similar interpo- sitions of Deity in proof of the doctrine of a PROVIDENCE OF GOD. 89 special providence. This doctrine is taught in the declarations of Christ : " The very hairs of your head are all numbered ; " " One sparrow shall not fall on the ground without your Father;" and James says, " Go to now, ye that say we will go into such a city and continue there a year and buy and sell and make gain ... ye ought to say, If the Lord will, we will do thus or so." This clearly shows that even our temporal pros- perity does not depend exclusively upon our own feeble arm, or upon human prudence, and that our efforts are vain unless we are blessed in them with the divine cooperation. Furthermore, when we consider the attributes of the adorable Creator — his power, his presence, his all-seeing, together with his infinite goodness, upon the one hand, and upon the other the weakness, temptations, afflic- tions, distresses, and necessities of erring mortals — does it not appear not only desirable, but indis- pensable to their happiness, that they should be under the vigilance of an unsleeping eye, the guid- ance of a counsel wiser than their own, the pro- tection of a more powerful arm than theirs, and in reach of a hand ever ready to supply their every want? Well, then, all these things, so desirable and indispensable, are abundantly supplied in the administration of God's special providence. With the Bible in our hands, together with ex- perience and observation, is it not passing strange 90 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. that any well-balanced mind can disbelieve a divine special providence- — especially that any one claim- ing to be a Christian can be thus led away with the error of the wicked? To deny this doctrine is a denial of God ; it makes his promises of aid and comfort of no effect; it saps the foundation of trust in God, destroys the utility of prayer, and makes it a nullity. Can there be found a skeptic in all the land who does not deny the special providence of God ? and Christians, if you deny it, you are in company with infidels ; you cannot believe the Bible, for the Bible is full to overflowing of this doctrine. To what effect does God admonish you to " lean not to your own un- derstanding, but to trust at all times in the Lord?" Why does he say they that trust in the Lord shall never be brought to confusion, if there is no such thing as a special providence ? In what conceiva- ble sense can you understand his promises of de- liverance out of your troubles and afflictions other than by his divine interpositions ? or how other- wise can he make good his promise to you that in the hour of temptation he will make a way for your escape ? And if there is no special provi- dence, the promise of Christ to the gospel ministry that he will be with them " alway, even to the end of the world," contains but poor consolation. Christians are admonished to pray and believe; but why pray? Simply because they are needy, PROVIDENCE OF GOD. 91 and God has promised to answer. "Ask, and ye shall receive." But how receive, if no hand is stretched out to bestow? Now, if God bestows blessings upon his people in answer to the prayer of faith, this demonstrates the doctrine of a special providence; but if there is no divine special in- terposition, then prayer is ineffectual and useless, and the Scripture account of Elijah's prayer of faith, and its answer in the descending showers of an abundant rain, turns out to be a mere fable with no foundation in fact ; and so also in scores of other recorded cases. Thus, it is plain to be seen that this infidel denial of the special providence of God is fraught with the direst evils ; indeed, there is but one short step between this and downright atheism. And Christian professor, whoever you are, you ought to be ashamed and abashed to know that you have suffered yourself to be hoodwinked and cheated by the devil and his coadjutors into this sin — aye, this hell-born skepticism. We have enlarged more upon this subject than we should have done, because, with pain, we have seen for years past a wide-prevailing tendency to ignore the doctrine of a special providence. Nor is this confined to the outside world ; it has found its way into the Church. Should such infidelity gain upon the Church, trust in self will supplant trust in God : faith, if any, would be weak and 92 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. inefficient ; the altar of prayer deserted ; but lit- tle reliance on the divine promises ; and religion, losing its power, would gradually dwindle into cold and lifeless formalism. The mighty signs and wonders wrought in Egypt were designed of God to accomplish two objects : first, to make his power known in all the earth ; second, to induce Pharaoh and his people to let the children of Israel go free. And how was his almighty power to be made known but through his special interpositions ? In these special acts his power was revealed in the terrible judgments inflicted upon that nation of idolatrous infidels. Take also the case of Nebuchadnezzar, King of Babylon, and behold in his vision of the heaven- high tree, " whose sight reached to the ends of the earth," the hand of God specially revealed, not only in the interpretation by Daniel, but also its fulfillment in him who had the vision ; for it is stated that at the end of twelve months he walked in the palace of his kingdom and proudly solilo- quized, thus: "Is not this great Babylon that I have built for the house of the kingdom, by the might of my power, and for the honor of my majesty?" Here it is plain to be seen that he sets aside the providence of God, and attributes all to the " might of his own power ; " and we are in- formed that while the word was in his mouth there fell a voice from heaven, saying : " Thy king- PROVIDENCE OF GOD. 93 dom is departed from thee, and they shall drive thee from men, and thy dwelling shall be with the beasts of the field." But the prophet told him that though he should be ejected and punished, on account of his pride and infidelity, his kingdom should be restored when he should be convinced that the " heavens do rule." Thus it appears that the heavy judgments of God have fallen upon not only individuals, but also upon whole nations, for rejecting the doctrine of his special providence. PART IV.— THE FREE AGENCY OP MAN. . Man a Moral Free Agent. MUCH may be advanced upon this important subject. To acquire a clear apprehension of it, it is necessary that we should first know what kind of a creature man is. On this question the sacred Scriptures shall be our guide. Therein we are informed that the Lord God formed man of the dust of the ground, and "breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and man became a liv- ing soul." According to this account he is not a simple, but a complex, being, compounded of the dust of the earth, of animal life or spirit, and of a soul rational and immortal. These components are mysteriously united in man, and constitute his personal being ; and such is his physical organism that, in order to the sustenance of his animal life, he eats, digests, and assimilates vegetable and animal food, while the rational, immortal soul must find its proper aliment in a higher source, even in the great uncreated Spirit, in whom all (94) THE FREE AGENCY OF MAN. 95 fullness dwells. Thus in man we see the embodi- ment of the mere material, the animal, and the rational departments of God's created beings, the representative of earth and heaven. We are far- ther informed that he was made in the image of God, and after his likeness. Is it inquired, In what did that likeness consist? We answer, Principally in righteousness and true holiness; but still we might go farther, and say that he was not only impressed with God's moral image or holiness of nature, but that he also bore, in some measure, the lineaments or image of God's natural attributes ; for, to say nothing of his physical power, he was endued with power to subdue and govern this earthly province, as lord and king of all. So also was he inspired with knowledge in- volving his wisdom to direct him in the exercise of his power. And although he possesses neither omniscience, omnipresence, nor immutability, still he can hold under his inspection and supervision a great variety of parts comprehended within the range of scientific developments. He can convey himself in thought many millions of miles in a moment; and although he cannot be everywhere present at the same time, yet he can, in thought, be present at this moment in Europe, the next in Asia or Africa, and the next at the sun, or on the outer verge of the very confines of the solar sys- tem. And though he is subject to many muta- 96 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. tions, yet we find him in some respects adhering to certain matters and principles with great reso- lution and constancy. Now it must be conceded that although man does not possess any of the above-named natural attributes of Deity to an unlimited extent, yet there must be a relation existing between those natural properties in man, in the finite degree in which he possesses them, and the natural attri- butes of God possessed by him in an unlimited or infinite degree. Now, as the adorable Creator is infinite in all the attributes of his nature, so are they all, whether natural or moral, in this sense, incommu- nicable ; but relatively and in degree, they were impressed upon the first pair of human kind, and they were thus made in the likeness of God. Hence we may clearly discover in this image of God impressed upon man, both the relative purity of God's nature and the subordinate sovereignty of his character; and so fashioned, he shone forth in the full image of God, and was made lord and governor of this lower world. Having now con- sidered what kind of a being man is, we shall pro- ceed to remark next upon his moral freedom. As Deity is an infinite, intelligent, independent free agent, so we might conclude that man, created in his divine image, was, in a finite and subordi- nate sense, an intelligent, dependent free agent; THE FREE AGENCY OF MAN. 97 otherwise, how could he bear the image of God ? And as God, uncreated and self-existent, possessed within himself all the antecedents necessary to independent free agency, so man, bearing his like- ness, was endowed with all the antecedents neces- sary to dependent free agency. God is self-exist- ent and independent, and is, therefore, absolutely free. Man being his creature, and dependent upon him, is, therefore, relatively and subordi- nate^ free. God is absolutely free in the exer- cise of his sovereign will in the infinite sphere of its action. Man in God's image was, in the exer- cise of his will, relatively and subordinately free, in the finite sphere of his action. Man, then, as a created, dependent, intelligent being, though en- dowed with a free will, yet not absolutely, but subordinately, was accountable to his Creator for the exercise of his freedom. Fatalists of all past ages, and of all descriptions, have either brought the will of man under some constitutional necessity of his nature, or under the absolute control of the great first Cause, both of which theories, however variously modified at dif- ferent periods, by different sects, are alike de- structive of man's moral freedom. When this is destroyed, his accountability ceases, and the doc- trine of rewards and punishments becomes unmean- ing and powerless. Conscience w^ould swing from her mooring, and moral law would lose its appli- 5 98 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. cation. When a man says, I am as I am from a fatal necessity of my nature, or I am as I am from an inexorable destiny, or just as my Maker secretly designs and controls me to be, there is but little chance, and if possible, less hope, in his case. Hence any religious creed embodying doc- trines which, from their nature, would lead to an approximation to fatalism, must, in its tendencies, be dangerous to the souls of men. That men are free agents, is a truth established not only by the Scriptures, but is sustained by almost universal consent, and is the reason of moral obligation. Agency which acts without an alternative, or the power of a contrary action, is no free agency at all. Such an agent acts from necessity, and only as it is acted upon by some force exterior to itself. Such agency is found in the motion of the clouds, of ships upon the sea, and water-wheels, and all kinds of machinery. The action of such agents bears the relation to its producing power that effects bear to their causes. It is plain to inspection that such agents cannot be held accountable, nor are their actions either laudable or blameworthy, for the reason that they are pot free voluntary agents, having the power of choice. An agent, then, to be held accountable, must be endowed with the power of will, to choose freely this or that, without any coercive influence THE FREE AGENCY OF MAN. 99 exterior to himself. He must have the ability to choose, with the ability to choose differently. Hence it is perfectly plain that such an agent is free, and should be held accountable for his ac- tions ; and equally plain that he is a proper sub- ject of law, of rewards and punishments. This is the kind of agency with which men are en- dowed, and, no doubt, angels too. The simple fact that man was made a subject of law, is evi- dence that he had the power of choice. Who would ever think of imposing laws upon his water- mill, or steam-engine, especially penal laws, to pun- ish them, should they not answer his purposes ? Such a man would be thought in need of medical aid, instead of friendly remonstrances. The fact, then, that Deity made man a subject of law, pre- supposes his power of free volition. That man had the power to obey, is clearly proven by the imposition of the law. If there was no power to obedience, there was no justice in requiring it. Something cannot be justly required where there is nothing to give. An effect cannot be produced without an adequate cause. The effect, obedience, could not, by possibility, be produced, unless the cause, power, to obey existed. We have evidence of the truth of this doctrine upon almost every page of the Bible. The guilt and condemnation of Cain, resulting from the mur- der of his brother, Abel, were based upon the 100 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. ground that the act was voluntary. Could he have pleaded, " I had no power to do otherwise ; I was forced to the act by a power I could not re- sist," the Almighty, who is infinitely just, would have excused him. The punishment due to crime is everywhere, in the moral, ecclesiastical, and civil world, inflicted upon the ground of voluntary transgression. That man is morally free is a truth of which we are conscious ; and consciousness is the end of all controversy. Where consciousness begins reason and argument end. We are as con- scious that we are capable of voluntary action as we are that we think or feel. It is this conscious- ness which superinduces regret, or remorse of con- science, when we perpetrate a sinful act. The after-thought is, " I could have avoided it; I might have done otherwise." Here is the ground, and the only ground, of remorse. Convince a man that he is not a free agent, that he does not pos- sess the power of voluntary choice, with the power to choose differently from that which he does choose, and you rob him of his conscience, or ren- der that monitor powerless ; you degrade him down to a level with the brutes, which uniformly act under the fatality of their natural instincts; you at once make him a fatalist; he is prepared for any of the heathenish, atheistical fatalisms. But men cannot be convinced that they are not free agents. Many have labored hard to do this THE FKEE AGENCY OF MAN. 101 to get clear of accountability, and to silence the clamors of conscience ; but their efforts have proved abortive. The professed skeptic dies un- der remorse of conscience, and this will be his undying worm and unquenchable fire ; the reflec- tion, " I was morally free, capable of a different choice from the one I made, and I voluntarily chose the ways of sin," will sting and torment him forever. It will be in full view of man's moral freedom that the judgment of God will proceed in the great day of retribution. " I was hungry and ye gave me no meat ; naked and ye clothed me not." Now, if they could plead they had nothing to give, they would in their destitution or impotence find a lawful excuse with Him who deigns not to re- quire something of those to whom He has given nothing, or to require that of a man which he hath not nor ever had. But because they had both food and raiment, and voluntarily refused to give, they are condemned for their willful neglect. We are apprised that some have made meta- physical distinctions upon the subject of man's ability in regard to the performance of what God requires. They have divided this ability into what they are pleased to term natural and moral. They maintain that man has natural ability to good, but no moral. They hold that his account- ability to God is based upon his natural power to 102 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. obey him, though he possesses no moral power to do so, and yet that men are held accountable for not obeying, and are justly punishable for disobe- dience. But this metaphysical distinction made in man's ability resulted no doubt from a convic- tion, in the minds of some who had adopted the Calvinistic creed, that some kind of ability in man was necessary as a ground of his accountability, in order to render him a fit subject of law. Such subtle hair-splitting distinctions and curious specu- lations are quite beyond the ken of the common people, and are adapted only to a lecture-room, and hardly that. Preach to the " common people " that they have natural ability to believe and be saved, and that therefore they are required forthwith to believe, but in the next breath tell them that they have no moral poiver to believe, and without it to be- lieve is morally impossible, and what would you effect by it? Possibty some might give you a va- cant stare, some go to sleep, and others eulogize you as a "deep man" and a "great preacher" be- cause they did not understand a word you said. Such preaching would be calculated to bewilder the sinner rather than enlighten him, and to set his mind adrift upon the ocean of speculation and uncertainty. The plain word of God, in its common-sense and most obvious meaning, is the rule of our faith. THE FREE AGENCY OF MAN. 103 It is written, " Behold, this day have I set life and death before you," " choose life that you may live." Here the doctrine of man's ability to either good or evil is set forth as in open daylight. Life is set before them upon the one hand, and death upon the other. Why set both before them if they had the power of choosing but one ? Again, "Choose ye this day whom ye will serve; if the Lord be God, follow him, but if Baal then follow him." Nothing could be clearer. If they had the power to choose upon one side only, why call upon them to choose between them both ? If they had no power of choice on either side, the prophet was either ignorant or a dissembler, to attribute either of which to him would be presumption. All the injunctions to repentance, invitations of the gospel, promises of rewards upon obedience, and the threatenings of punishment upon disobe- dience, proceed upon the hypothesis that man is morally free. Christ says, "Except ye repent, ye shall all likewise perish." " Seek, and ye shall find ; ask, and ye shall receive." " Come unto me." Again, he says, "Ye will not come unto me that ye might have life." If they had no power to come, why prefer such a charge against them ? If they had no power to obey, would he have made such a requisition? would he — could he — punish them for disobedience ? How often would he have gathered together the backsliding Jews, 104 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. as under his wing, but they "would not?" Christ tvould, but they would not. We might multiply quotations and arguments from the Bible indefi- nitely to sustain this doctrine ; but, as before re- marked, it is a truth of which we are conscious, and consciousness is the end of all controversy. PART V. — FOREKNOWLEDGE AND DECREES OF GOD. The Foreknowledge of God. KNOWLEDGE may be said to be a certain perception of things and facts that now ex- ist, or that have existed heretofore. And fore- knowledge signifies a knowledge of such things and facts before they did exist. Some have com- mitted the error of confounding the foreknowledge of God with his absolute, immutable decrees, than which nothing is more improper. God's decrees are the determinations of his will, and his sovereign will is his absolute law. But no such thing can be said of his foreknowledge. What God decrees must, of necessity, come to pass, and the universe of intelligent beings could not prevent it. And if God's absolute decrees involve necessity ', that necessity is the prime cause of bringing to pass what he decrees. Whereas, foreknowledge is abstract from all causality, and possesses within itself no force of will or law in bringing into existence the things foreknown. Moreover, if any should suppose that God's fore- st (105) 106 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. knowledge necessitates the coming to pass of all that he foreknows, then it is asked, Why should God have any decrees, since his foreknowledge would exclude their necessity and answer in their stead ? u Known to God are all his works from the beginning," but widely different is his fore- knowledge from his decrees or absolute laws. . The Decrees of God. By the decrees of God we are to understand his wise, independent, and holy purposes which he has purposed within himself for his own glory, and for the happiness of his creatures. The decrees of Deity spring from his sover- eignty. Of infinite right, he rules in the armies of heaven and earth, and none dare say, "What doest thou?" Of one thing, however, we may be assured, "The Judge of all the earth will do right.''' His decrees, though springing from his sover- eignty, must of necessity be, and always are, in perfect harmony with his justice, goodness, and truth. For were we to conceive of him as the author of a decree, of a nature contrary to either of these attributes, we should find in such decree a denial of himself, which is impossible. " He cannot deny himself." To decree to bring into existence one, or myriads of intelligent beings, and then deny them the necessary means of hap- FOREKNOWLEDGE AND DECREES. 107 piness for no other reason than that he had sov- ereign power to do so, would be contrary to his moral attributes. For him to create one or more in- telligent free agents, holding them accountable for their acts, while at the same time he had decreed the acts they should perforin, and to execute his decree he interposes his sovereignty, either di- rectly or indirectly, so as to cause or occasion the acts thus decreed to come to pass, would be sheer mockery of his creatures, and destructive of their moral freedom. The execution of such decree by its author would degrade the agent, and let him down upon a level with the beasts of the field ; and farther, the Creator, in a case of this kind, would be acting contrary to the infinite rectitude of his moral nature, especially should he proceed to punish such creatures for their actions. God, who is " love," can never act such a part — can never be the author of such decrees. From these conclusions there come up now two important re- flections : first, that Deity, as a sovereign, has de- creed nothing but what is in perfect harmony with the rectitude of his moral character ; and, secondly, he has decreed nothing that would, in its execu- tion by him, in the slightest degree, infringe upon man's moral freedom in regard to his obedience or disobedience to moral law, or in reference to his personal salvation. For the moment the supreme Creator would interpose his sovereignty so as to 108 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. give man's choice a decided bias, that moment his freedom is struck down, and he is brought under the law of necessity, and is no more a free, but a necessary, agent. His intelligence disregarded, his accountability destroyed, he is then a subject of neither reward nor punishment. Some have endeavored, for reasons known to themselves, to make a distinction in God's decrees, calling some positive, or absolute, and others per- missive. We suppose that this distinction gener- ally obtains with all those who still cling to the old doctrine of "the foreordination of all things whatsoever come to pass." But why such a distinction should be made, we are at a loss to conceive, unless it be to avoid the revolting idea that a God of infinite moral rectitude has abso- lutely decreed sin, because such absolute decree would involve the doctrine of fatal necessity, which would bear rather hard upon man's moral freedom, and make Deity himself the author of sin. If this is the true reason of that distinction in the eternal decrees of Jehovah (and we can perceive no other), we must confess that we do not see either its propriety or relevancy. Now those who distinguish between the decrees of God as absolute and permissive, hold that the fore- knowledge of God is dependent upon his decrees; for, say they, God could foreknow nothing as cer- tain, only such things as he had decreed. Now, FOREKNOWLEDGE AND DECREES. 109 Deity either foreknew that man would sin, or he did not. If he did foreknow it as certain, it was (according to this doctrine) because he had de- creed it. But if he did not foreknow it as a thing certain, it was because he had not decreed it, and was, therefore, ignorant of the fact that man would sin. But God was not ignorant that man would certainly sin, and, therefore, he decreed it. This is a fair deduction from the doctrine of fore- ordination. Viewing from this stand-point the tenet of the foreordination of all things whatsoever come to pass, and the dependence of God's foreknowl- edge upon his decrees, we are forced to the inevita- ble conclusion that God was either ignorant that sin would certainly exist because he did not de- cree it, or that he foreknew it, as he certainly did, and, therefore, he decreed it. This conclusion, it will be said by the advocates of permissive de- crees, is based upon the doctrine of decrees abso- lute, and does not lie against decrees permissive. This we will now briefly examine. And what is a permissive decree ? It is a decree to permit the actor or doer to perform a certain act, or do a cer- tain thing. Now suppose the act or thing to be done was the sin perpetrated by Adam. Did the Creator foreknow, or did he not foreknow, that this sin would be committed ? Answer, He cer- tainly did foreknow it. Was this foreknowledge 110 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. of Adam's sin dependent upon an absolute, or upon a permissive decree ? They answer, Upon a per- missive decree. Hence it follows that Deity did not know that Adam would sin until he permis- sively decreed it. But how could Deity decree to permit a certain thing, of which certain thing he had no previous knowledge ? It is absurd even to suppose it. The decree of permission presup- poses a previous knowledge of the thing permitted. And the permissive decree being subsequent to his foreknowledge of Adam's sin, it follows as a sequence that this foreknowledge was not depend- ent upon the decree. Now, if the advocates of the eternal foreordi- nation of all things will not allow that God did, from all eternity, absolutely decree the sin of Adam, and all other sins in the universe, for the obvious reason that such absolute decree would be fatal to moral freedom, and fix intelligent beings under the laws of necessity, they gain nothing ; for what is supposed to be gained on the one hand is more than lost on the other. For while some of the revolting features of the doctrine that God, out of his own mere good pleasure, did absolutely decree all sin, may be somewhat kept out of view by connecting with the decree the modifying term permissive, it is found that the permissive decree # is at war with the doctrine of the dependence of God's foreknowledge upon his decrees. Indeed, FOREKNOWLEDGE AND DECREES. Ill we think that in adopting the idea of permissive decrees much more is lost by its partisans than is gained ; for permission to do a certain thing car- ries with it the idea of an approval of the thing permitted. Should a king give permission to one of his subjects to perform a certain act, does he not license him to perform it? and is not the license evidence of the fact of the king's approval? This was certainly not the case with Deity in regard to the sin of Adam, or that of the fallen angels ; for God hates sin with perfect hatred. And so far as the so-styled permissive decrees of God are concerned, we think it a misnomer to call any of his decrees permissive in reference to the commis- sion of sin. In this regard there can be no such decrees. That the Creator of intelligent free agents leaves them to their own free volitions — that is, he does not interpose his sovereign power so as to coerce them — is what we most sincerely believe; and if God has decreed things concern- ing his rational creatures, this was one: that he would neither permit them to sin, in the above sense, nor forcibly prevent them. That God has divinely decreed, or foreordained, some, and perhaps many, things, we cheerfully grant. We also admit the great mystery in which the doctrine is involved (this we shall presently notice); that God decreed to place the sun in the firmament, to give light by 112 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. day — the moon, also, to give light by night; that the earth should have a rotary and an annual mo- tion; that he would make man a rational being, and stamp upon him his own image, endowing him with the power of free volition, or choice, and hold him accountable; that upon all the animated creation below rational and accountable man, and upon the vegetable and merely material world, he would impress his absolute law, or decree, and make it the law of their nature, and that this ab- solute decree, or law, should be developed in their various instincts by which they should be neces- sarily controlled or governed. All such parts of creation come within the range of the absolute decrees, or laws, of necessity, and which laws of necessity consign them to their respective desti- nies. All such parts of creation are below the elevated plane of moral freedom, because below that of rationality; and as they are controlled by the absolute laws of necessity, they are not held accountable for their actions. God has given vast and ample range for the exercise of his sover- eignty, or absolute laws, but he has himself fixed his own boundary, and that boundary is the clearly- marked line of moral freedom and accountability. By an unhappy mistake, some have forced the ab- solute decrees of God across this line, invading the territories of moral froodom, creating inharmony and confusion. This, doubtless, is the cause of the FOREKNOWLEDGE AND DECREES. 113 great mystery in which the absolute decrees of God are involved. We have already seen that man, in his physical nature, is the subject of involuntary motion, and of passions, propensities, and instincts in common with beings devoid of reason, and thus bears the impress of natural, or absolute, laws. These char- acteristics of his earthly nature were divinely in- grafted in him, and sustain the relation which he bears to earth; but that part of his nature which is intellectual and spiritual, sustaining his relation to heaven, and which exalts him to the loftv sta- tion of moral freedom, is not, nor is it by any means congruous or even possible that it should be, under the law of an absolute decree. The law designed to govern man as a personal free agent is in its nature moral. Now, this law was not, by an arbitrary act of Deity, superimposed upon man, but is founded in God's moral character, and its obligation upon man naturally arises from the re- lation which he sustains to him as an accountable being; and although it was the duty of the creat- ure to yield obedience to this law, yet, being left to his own free choice, he had power to disobey, of which he gave a fatal demonstration. This, however, he could not have avoided had his act of disobedience been predetermined by the absolute will or decree of God, no more than inert matter can stop its motion or put itself in motion when at rest. 114 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. The absolute decrees, or sovereign laws, of God involve within themselves necessity. The truth of this proposition will appear from the following considerations: 1. All mere matter is governed by the absolute decrees, or sovereign laws, of God, which are the same. This none will deny. And does not mere matter act from sheer necessity? What, then, imposes this necessity? It is the controlling force or power of these absolute sov- ereign laws. The earth cannot by possibility stop its annual and daily motions; the stone of itself cannot take wings and fly; the magnet cannot cease its attraction; nor can the dead corpse raise itself again to life. And wherefore? Simply be- cause they are under the controlling power of necessity contained in absolute sovereign decrees, or laws. 2. The same holds good in regard to vegetable life. The grass cannot prevent itself from growing, nor the trees the ascent of sap, the display of their foliage, the tints of their blossoms, nor their production of fruits — because they are controlled by the same absolute laws of necessity. 3. Rising still higher in the scale of existence, we come to the mere animal devoid of rationality. He cannot control his heart-beatings, his lung- breathings; and, true to his instincts and appetites, without the ability to control them, he hungers for food, thirsts for drink, and is satisfied when these wants are supplied.. His acts are controlled FOREKNOWLEDGE AND DECREES. 115 by necessity imposed by the absolute law, or de- cree, of God — which circumstances and acts he cannot by any possibility prevent. Another step higher in the scale of being, and we reach man, the crowning masterpiece of the six days' work of God. If he, too, is a mere animal, devoid of a rational soul, and, like the beasts that perish, is not accountable, and therefore neither rewardable nor punishable for his actions, then let him be gov- erned like them, and his destiny be unchangeably fixed like theirs, by an absolute necessity imposed upon him by the unchangeable decrees, or sover- eign laws, of God ; and if the eternal destinies of man are unalterably fixed, for weal or woe, he is governed by the same absolute decrees, or laws, by which the lowest grades of life and inert mat- ter are governed; and as the latter are governed by the absolute decrees, or laws, of God which impose upon them necessity, and which necessity shapes and fixes their destiny, which it is impos- sible for them to avoid, so also if the destinies of men are determined and fixed by the decrees of God, man, like them, is fatally bound by necessity, and can no more avoid his decreed destiny than inert matter or the beasts that perish ; and if Deity foreordained and decreed whatsoever comes to pass, then all things that come to pass are brought about under the all-controlling sway of necessity, or fatality. The angels that sinned and 116 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. fell, Adam who sinned and fell, could no more pre- vent their sin and fall than dead matter can move itself or stop itself when in motion, or than veg- etables can prevent their blooming and bearing, or than the mere animal can prevent the control of his natural instincts. Let us now examine a little into the nature of decrees. 1. What is a decree? Mentally, it is a determination of the will ; when made public, it is the expression of the will's determination. 2. Do not decrees possess within them the nature of laws? Most certainly, they do. Hence the com- mon saying concerning an absolute monarch, "His will is the law." Indeed, all laws are but the ex- pressions of the will. There are different modes in which God expresses Ms will. Concerning mat- ter simply, it is expressed in its attractions, affin- ities, and combinations ; respecting vegetation, his will is expressed in its germination, growth, and production ; regarding the mere animals, it is ex- pressed in their appetites and instincts. All these parts of creation, as before remarked, are con- trolled and governed by the absolute decree, will, or law, of God ; it is the law of their nature, nor can they by possibility counteract it. We next approach the being called man, placed by Deity in a still higher sphere, uniting within himself the animal and the rational, having en- stamped upon him the full image of God — of God FOREKNOWLEDGE AND DECREES. 117 as a sovereign, and of God as a moral being. God as a sovereign impressed upon man's animal, or physical, nature his absolute will, or law, and made it the law of his animal nature — and that law de- velops itself in all man's varied natural appetites and instincts ; but upon his rational soul he im- pressed the image of his moral nature, which is the law of man's righteousness — "the law of the mind," "the law of the spirit of life," "the law of love;" all w 7 hich mean the same thing, and is the law of man's rational nature. Man, then, in his dual nature, exhibits the impress of two laws — the one, in his animal nature, developing itself in his natural instincts; the other, in his rational nature, developing itself in supreme love to God. This is the law to which Paul alludes when he says, " Love is the fulfilling of the law ; " this was the "law of the mind" so strongly opposed by the "law in his members," or the law of his animal nature. While man continued in his right condi- tion, the law of the mind chastened all his instinct- ive desires, and directed and kept them within their purely legitimate channels ; but when he sinned and fell, the moral image of God was lost, the law of his mind, or moral nature, dethroned, and the law of his animal nature, poisoned by sin, usurped the complete dominion over the soul as well as the body, and, to gratify its fleshly, sen- sual desires, and these desires transcending their 118 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. legitimate boundaries, hurried man into the viola- tion of every precept growing out of God's moral law. When the apostle says "the carnal mind is enmity to God ; it is not subject to the law of God," he means the mind that is under the fleshly or corrupted and misdirected natural appetites and instincts of man's fallen nature ; the same is meant by "the body" which he said he "kept under" — not, however, that we are to understand that the mind, or soul, is an unwilling, though helpless, subject brought under the tyrannical control of the sin-polluted passions and desires of man's physical nature. His first sin was not negative, respecting his soul, but positive ; it consisted not merely in the loss of the divine image and leaving the soul, as it were, a blank, but the soul was morally de- praved in all its parts and powers, which disposed the soul to become the willing slave to the law of man's lower nature. The original impress of the absolute decree, will, or law, of God upon man's animal nature, and the impress of his moral image, or law, upon his rational and accountable nature, answer, re- spectively, to the absolute sovereignty and moral rectitude of God ; and since God, as an independ- ent free being, has set his own boundary, beyond which he will not carry his absolute decrees, or laws, he will bring under their control all those parts of his created universe which are in the FOREKNOWLEDGE AND DECREES. 119 scale of existence below rationality and moral freedom. That Deity has limited his absolute decrees, or sovereignty, within this boundary is clearly evi- dent from the volume of nature as well as from divine revelation. When we look for proof of this fact in nature, we see from mere animals down to the inert stone governed by an absolute decree, or law, which we have before shown to be the law of necessity, or that of their nature; and when we look into the sacred Scriptures, we find rational, accountable man treated by Deity not as a beast or a stone, but as a rational free being, accounta- ble for his actions ; and as such God addresses him through the whole tenor of divine revelation. Reverently speaking (though with thorough con- viction), God himself could not merely by an ab- solute decree, or sovereign act of his will, save a sinner. Could he do so, what an awful mistake, and how palpably unnecessary, was it to give his only Son ! Why not have cut the matter short by publishing an absolute decree of universal am- nesty for the first sinner and his whole rebellious progeny, and so have avoided the sufferings and death of the Son of God ? In answer to this in- quiry, we say that God could not do so, simply because such absolute decree, or act of his will, would transcend the limits he has set to himself, beyond which he cannot carry such decrees, or 120 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. sovereign acts of his will, since to do so would invade the territory of moral freedom which he has set apart and established in his own universe; and, as before remarked, the great mystery in which the decrees of God are involved is not the fault of God nor of his decrees, but of scholastic theologians who have ideally forced such decrees across the line of moral freedom and accountability, fixing, under those decrees, the eternal destiny of both angels and men — some to everlasting happi- ness, others to unending perdition. This doctrine being admitted, the mystery thence arises which we shall presently see. Is it not mysterious that God should create rational, morally free beings, holding them account- able to him, and at the same time govern them by the same absolute decrees, or laws, by which he governs the beasts that have no souls, or insensate matter, neither of which he holds accountable? Is it not mysterious that he should by a sovereign decree elect to life everlasting a part of the human race "without any foresight of faith or good works in them," and reprobate the rest to eternal death "for their sin," which he also decreed? Is it not mysterious how God in the great day, proceeding upon the principle of justice and moral propriety, shall reward the elect and punish the reprobate? Is it not shockingly mysterious that the absolute decree of election should invade the infantile part FOREKNOWLEDGE AND DECREES. 121 of the world, dying in infancy, saving those of them that were eternally elected under that de- cree, and consign the non-elect to eternal misery? Here is the mystery, dark as midnight, in which men, by a false application of God's absolute de- crees, have enveloped them. In human governments it appears to be the common sense and the common instinct of man- kind to represent the two species of government by which Deity governs his universe. It is some- what remarkable that man controls by his absolute will the very same class of creation that God does by his absolute will — namely, animals, devoid of the reasoning faculty, vegetables, and mere mat- ter; but the moment the human ruler intrudes his sovereign will upon rational men, and by it under- takes to shape and fix their destiny, without their consent, that moment he becomes a despot, and "is unworthy to be the ruler of a free people;" disorder and confusion ensue; the common sense and moral instincts of men cry out against the despotism. In such circumstances not only re- monstrance, but rebellion, is thought justifiable. Among many others, take, for example, the Brit- ish Colonies of North America. Men sometimes must, but they seldom will, endure longer than the}' can avoid it the despot who makes his abso- lute decrees, or will, the law by which he governs; because he is then governing men in the same way 6 122 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. and by the same absolute laws by which he gov- erns his cattle, his dogs, his fruit-trees, and his farm; his subjects cry out, Oppression, injustice ! From this stand-point we clearly discover that the type of God's absolute government, upon the one hand, and that of his moral government, upon the other, adapted, respectively, to his irrational and rational parts of creation, are found among men, and are vindicated by the universal sense of justice and moral propriety. Note. — In endeavoring to discuss the much-per- plexed question of the divine decrees, we have been forced into repetitions and the use of many words, which all who have had experience know to be una- voidable in treating upon subjects of much intricacy. PAET VI.— MAN APPOINTED TO A NEW STATE OF TRIAL. The Power of Choice in Man. THE idea of a being endowed with the power of freely choosing whether to obey or disobey naturally suggests the farther idea that he be placed in a state of trial; or why is he endowed with the power of choice? Such choice may be made by a morally free being definitively, embrac- ing in it all futurity, or eternity, or it may be made without such definitiveness. Had man, in the exercise of his moral freedom, made a defini- tive and final choice of eternal allegiance to God, eternal life would doubtless have been secured to him, and he would have passed from his state of trial into a state of confirmation, of which the tree of life was no doubt a standing symbol; or, upon the other hand, had he made choice defini- tively and finally, embracing all futurity, or eter- nity, to renounce his allegiance to God and become a subject of the fallen prince of darkness, he would in like manner have passed from his probationary state into a confirmed one of sin and death, and (123) 124 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. would have thus placed himself beyond the possi- bility of redemption. And we offer it only as a conjecture that such may have been the definitive and awful choice made by the fallen angels. But the choice of rebellion made by man may not have been of the same definitive final character, involv- ing all futurity. His volition, or choice, may have come short of this definitive finality, and which may have been owing to some heed he gave to the glittering sword, the symbol of justice, portending eternal death in case of such final choice ; and thus restrained from an unpardonable sin, a margin is left for redemption through a mediator. Was not the flaming sword a symbol of justice in the hand of the angel guarding the approaches to the tree of life —the symbol of a confirmed estate? and was it not the threatening thus symbolized before man's eyes that restrained his choice within such bounds as left his case, though wretched, not entirely des- perate and beyond the possibility of relief? If these suggestions are apposite, and spring from the subject under consideration, and from the circumstances connected with the fall as set forth in Genesis, we have gained a stand-point from which we may see an intelligent being endowed with moral freedom who, in the exercise of it, may make a choice comprehending endless dura- tion, and so place himself in a state of confirma- tion ; while another morally free being, from cer- man's new state of trial. 125 tain considerations, or in view of danger, may make a free choice not so comprehensive and final, and which choice does not place him in a state of endless confirmation. Such may have been the choice of man, though, being morally free, he might have made that finally desperate choice, in spite of the previous warning of God and its glit- tering sanction, held in the hand of the sentinel- angel, flashing around the tree of life, the symbol of endless confirmation. The Fall of Man. Having in Part IV. endeavored to show the kind of government under which man was placed by his Creator, we shall not introduce a separate section on that subject. Created in the image of God, with the high prerogatives of free- dom of choice and full authority to govern the world of which he was now the ruler, he stood forth to the gaze of perhaps the whole intelligent universe as witnesses of the part he would act in regard to his allegiance to his adorable Creator. They had already witnessed one dire rebellion, and it may be it was transacted upon the same stage cursed on that account into profound chaos and darkness ; and what now will be the issue of this new being, created in the image of God? Will he, in the voluntary exercise of his moral freedom, make the definitive choice of eternal 126 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. allegiance to the law of God, and so have access to the tree of life? or will he follow in the foot- steps of the rebel angels, who kept not their first estate? Alas! under the temptation of the wily serpent, he puts forth his hand, partakes of "the fruit whose mortal taste brought death into the world and all our woes." " By one man, sin en- tered into the world, and death by sin." He now lies in a state of moral ruin; a sinner, a trans- gressor of God's righteous law, he stands con- demned, guilty, and helpless ; the image of God effaced, his moral purity is gone, and his whole nature has become deeply, totally corrupted, so that " every thought of the imagination of his heart is only evil, and that continually." The sin of man consisted not only in disregard- ing the interdict which God placed upon the tree of knowledge, but also in setting aside the divine authority and becoming recreant to all moral ob- ligation. The declaration of the Apostle James is a fair exponent of the sin of man and its con- sequence : " When lust is conceived it bringeth forth sin, and when sin is finished it bringeth forth death." When the lust, or unlawful desire, was conceived in the heart of the first transgressor, his sin began, and was finished, in eating of the interdicted fruit, and brought forth death — death spiritual, death temporal, and, in the absence of some hand to deliver, death eternal. man's new state of trial. 127 Having lost his purity, he lost his power; true, he retained his intellectual faculties, though much dwarfed and weakened. In this respect, he is represented as having eyes and seeing not, and as being blind and cannot see afar off. As a visible token of his degradation, he is stripped of his royal investiture, ejected from his palace-garden, and driven out as an exile upon the earth, cursed on his account, to toil and labor and subsist by the " sweat of his face." But this is not all ; he lost also his ability to good. Being altogether de- praved, considered in himself, apart from divine aid, he has no ability to will or to do any thing acceptable to God. Altogether averse to good, he is under an evil bias swaying him into a course of sin and rebellion. In this condition he is morally prostrate, prone to evil as matter is to the center of gravity. Viewing man from this stand-point, he cannot be considered, in the full sense of the term, a morally free agent. True, he is free to evil, be- cause he chooses it freely; but he is not free to good, because he does not, nor can he, choose it without aid outside of himself. In this respect he is dead — " dead in trespasses and sins." In this deplorable condition he was exposed to the infliction of the penalty of God's violated law, and but for the interposition of the Mediator, this penalty, in all its length and breadth, would have 128 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. fallen upon him, "and so have ended the mortal story." We have said that man's choice in yielding to the tempter, in violation of the law of God, may have fallen short of a final decision of eternal hos- tility to the divine government. The choice he did make, however, obliterated from his soul the divine image, corrupted his moral nature, rendered him helpless, and laid him obnoxious to the fear- ful penalty due to his transgression. It must also have placed him in imminent danger, under farther Satanic influence, of taking another step, and of consummating his rebellion in the highest degree — Satan, perhaps, having left him only for a sea- son, as he did the second Adam in the "wilder- ness," to return again and renew his hellish seduc- tions. It is probable the tempter did not as yet know the precise nature of man's determination, or choice, which was not so definitive and final as he might have supposed; meanwhile, measures of the most impressive character were adopted by the Deity to warn him of the danger of carrying out his fatal choice into a final decision of eternal hostility to the government of God, and so placing himself in a state of endless confirmation in sin, and beyond the pale of redemption. The symbol of this awfully wretched condition may be found in the "tree of life," and of his terrible danger in the sentinel cherubim with flaming sword, warning man's new state op trial. 129 him of the fatal consequence of such final decision, and threatening him with the execution of eternal justice should he obstinately persist and carry his choice to its awful finality, which, as a morally free being, he was fully capable of doing. May we not conclude that the above suggestions are sustained not only by the probabilities natu- rally arising out of the case, but also by their har- mony with the account in Gen. iii. 24: "So he drove out the man, and he placed at the east of the garden of Eden cherubims and a flaming sword which turned every way to keep the way of the tree of life." This was done, as we see in a pre- ceding verse, "lest man should put forth his hand, take also and eat and live forever," or pass into a state of eternal confirmation in sin and rebellion. From these passages may we not justly conclude that in order to carry to completeness man's trans- gression, and to place him in a state of irredeem- able confirmation, two things were necessary : first, his free choice in violating the positive interdict of the "tree of knowledge;" second, extending that choice to completeness in determining to throw off forever his allegiance to the government of God, and so doing, he could have taken and eaten of the " tree of life," or have been confirmed in sin "and lived forever " in that state of confirma- tion. The analogy of all this is found among men in the new probation granted through Christ, the 6* 130 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. second Adam — confirmation in the favor of God, through faith in his Son, answering to confirmation in a state of holiness and happiness upon the part of Adam through a final choice of allegiance to God ; the " sin unto death," through unbelief in finally rejecting Christ, for which sin " there re- maineth no more sacrifice," answering to man's confirmed estate in sin and rebellion, had he finally renounced his fidelity to God ; and for this sin there could not have been any sacrifice offered or atonement made. It might be well here to remark that if it was then said to man, Do, and thou shalt live, it is noiv said, Believe, and thou shalt live ; if it was then said, If thou do not, thou shalt die, it is now said, If thou believe not, thou' shalt be damned ; if then the warning sword glittered in the hand of the guarding angel, " lest man should pass into a con- firmed estate of dire rebellion against God," there is now a sword — the word of God — of equal warn- ing, and of no less terrible flash and glitter in the hands of his messengers, which threatens the final rejecters of the Son of God with " a certain look- ing for of judgment and fiery indignation which shall devour the adversary." Remedy for Man's Sin. The remedy provided was ample and complete. Sometimes it is represented in the Scriptures as a man's new state of trial. 131 feast — " a feast of fat things full of marrow, of wines on the lees well refined." Again, it is likened to a fountain — " a fountain opened in the house of King David for the washing of sin and uncleanness." And again, it is called the bread of life, the water of life — " Ho ! every one that thirsteth, come ye to the waters," and " Whosoever will, let him take the water of life freely." This remedy is completely adapted to the moral condition of man, fully and finally to relieve him of all his moral wants and woes. Is he a sinner against God? it offers him pardon; is his heart corrupt and unholy? it presents the means of purification ; is he beset with deadly foes on every hand ? it pledges final victory over them all ; has sin so degraded, sunk, and ruined his nature as to make him the very wreck of what once he was ? it proposes to restore to him the image of God, to raise him up to his lost dignity and honor and high prerogative as lord and governor of the world, and to exalt him to the full fruition of bliss forever. The medium through which this remedy was provided is the atonement made by Jesus Christ, the Mediator. This is the only medium; "there is no other name given under heaven among men by which we must be saved." This is the plan devel- oped and executed in the boundless love and mercy of God. God so loved the world that he gave his only Son. " He sent not his Son into 132 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. the world to condemn the world, but that the world through him might be saved." The first note of joy that broke across the moral wastes of earth was struck out from the promised seed of the woman. The first ray of light that shot athwart the regions of moral darkness and despair emanated from the light of that promise ; that is the light which lighteth every man that cometh into the world. Character of Christ. What think ye of Christ? A transcendently important interrogation; and no less an answer than that given by Peter will satisfy the question : " Thou art the Son of the living God." He is called the Christ as the anointed of God, and set apart to the great work of human redemption — " I have anointed thee with the oil of joy, above thy fellows." He is also called the Messiah, which signifies the sent of God. He is likewise styled the Son of man with special reference to his human nature — "He took not on him the nat- ure of angels, but the seed of Abraham." And he is designated the Son of God in regard to his miraculous conception as well as to the filial and perfect obedience that he should render in work- ing out redemption for man. God said of him, " Thou art my Son, this day have I begotten thee ; " and " as a Son " he learned obedience. And lastly, MAN'S NEW STA1E OF TRIAL. 133 he is called the Word with respect to his eternal preexistence and the great work of universal cre- ation which he performed — "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God." "All things were made hy him, and without him there was not any thing made that was made." Christ as Man. The evidence that Christ possessed human nat- ure arises from several sources. 1. This was ne- cessitated by man's moral condition. As Christ had undertaken the great work of human salva- tion, and as this could not be accomplished by only substitutionally obeying and suffering in man's stead, it was indispensable that Christ should possess the same nature in which God's law was violated, in order to make an atonement ; for it -was not angels he came to redeem, or he would have taken on him their nature ; but this, we are told, he did not do, as Paul says, " For he took not on him the nature of angels, but the seed of Abraham." This was necessary, that satisfac- tion might be made in the same nature in which the divine law was violated ; and as it was human nature in which the law was transgressed, and was thereby become obnoxious to punishment, it was therefore necessary that if the claims of jus- tice be met they be met in the nature in which 134: MEDIUM THEOLOGY. those claims were disregarded and dishonored — - for in no other way could satisfaction be made ; hence, the necessity of the case required that Jesus Christ, in order to become a proper substi- tute in the eye of the violated law, should possess human nature. 2. The numerous developments made by Christ himself furnish evidence of his humanity. He was born of a virgin, was a child, a lad, a man. He wept, he rejoiced, he hungered and thirsted, ate and drank, he slept and awoke. He possessed all the passions, propensities, and appetites of our common humanity, but all in complete harmony with the moral rectitude of his holy nature. Hence, he could be tempted in all points, like as we are. In these characteristics of human nature may be found the great fountain of his tender sympathies, the deep yearnings of his bowels, the gushings of his tears and sorrows, the enduring solicitude of his heart for the rescue of the lost, the mountain-waves of affliction rolling over his soul in the blood-stained garden, and, finally, the embodiment of all in one pathetic prayer, when expiring on the cross, " Father, for- give them." Thus it becomes clearly evident that Jesus Christ possessed human nature. 3. The Scriptures also abound with positive testimony upon this subject. A very few out of many pas- sages may suffice. He is called by himself the " Son of man." " The Son of man came eating and man's new state of trial. 135 drinking." " The Son of man must be betrayed." "A spirit hath not flesh and bones as ye see me have." " He that denieth that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is antichrist." The Redeemer of mankind possessed also a rational soul. In David's prophetic vision it is declared of him, ' ; Thou wilt not leave my soul in hell, nor suifer thy Holy One to see corruption;" and Jesus said of himself, " My soul is exceeding sorrowful." Nor need we, in order to sustain the moral purity of his nature, adopt the Romish dogma of the immaculate purity of his mother; for the scion may possess entirely different prop- erties and produce very different fruit from that of the stock upon which it is grafted. The orig- inal stock may in its original nature be bad, while the fruit of the scion grafted and grown upon it may be good. So in regard to Mary, the mother of Jesus : though depraved, in common with the race of man, she possessed all the properties and qualities necessary to constitute her a human be- ing; and as the mysterious, bad nature of the original stock ascends not into the noble scion grafted upon it, so as to corrupt its nature, so the moral corruption of the Virgin Mother entered not into the human nature of Christ so as in the slightest degree to corrupt it. Hence, Jesus Christ, though born of a depraved mother, was pure and holy, and therefore harmless and separate from sinners. 136 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. We have now presented arguments sufficient to establish the doctrine of Christ's humanity, to which, however, we might add the facts of his tragical death, and the burial of his dead body in the tomb. Christ God as well as Man. In order to man's redemption, his moral condi- tion as fallen and helpless necessitated that the Redeemer should be divine as well as human. The question, "What think ye of Christ?" is of vast magnitude. An incorrect view of his char- acter would vitiate the whole scheme of human redemption. Ever since he appeared in the flesh, in infancy as well as in manhood, discrepant opin- ions have been entertained concerning him. Herod looked upon him as nothing more than a human being, and he concerted measures to take his life. So with a large majority of the Jews. The "mys- tery of godliness" was a great stumbling-block. The doctrine that Christ was God was highly dis- tasteful, and upon his setting up this claim, "they took up stones to stone him." There were some who acknowledged his Godhead, and as God adored and worshiped him. When he came to "his own," they received him not. The infidel, self-sufficient scribe and Pharisee rejected him as an impostor, while the wise men of the East, and Saul of Tar- sus, with many converted publicans and sinners, laid down at his feet their tribute of adoring hon- man's new state of trial. 137 ors. Infidels in every age have derided him and scoffed at him as a deceiver, while the true Chris- tian Church have always, in every part of the world, adored him as God. And that Christ is God is what w T e now propose to establish. 1. As above remarked, in order to man's re- demption, it was necessary that the Redeemer should be divine as well as human, and that this necessity arises from man's fallen and morally helpless condition. The law of God which he had violated was a just and holy law, and required satisfaction ; this man was totally unable to make for himself. The imprisoned insolvent debtor can- not meet the claims that are against him. What if the penalty of the violated law was death ? How, in that case, could the transgressor make satisfaction and redeem his life? He could die, and must die, but in dying life is gone. How, then, shall lie live who has forfeited his life by willful transgression? The Supreme Governor of all has one government for the w 7 hole intelligent universe : " Thou shalt love the Lord thy God." Against this government man set up rebellion. By that act he not only ruined himself, but dis- honored God. Contempt and dishonor are cast upon God's righteous law ; the justice of the law, emanating from the infinite justice of God, de- mands satisfaction. And besides this, as this di- vine rule of government is the delight of all the 138 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. upright intelligent creation, and is therefore ac- knowledged by them to be most righteous and honorable, the universal sense of justice through- out God's moral dominions demands that the trans- gression shall be punished, and the dishonor cleared away from the law. This is illustrated among men in civil life. All law-abiding citizens, for the maintenance of law and order, peace and happi- ness, demand that the murderer and robber, as well as all violators of the law, shall make satis- faction. Could man satisfy the demands of the infinitely righteous law of God, take off the dishonor he had cast upon it, and thereby reinstate himself in life and in the favor of God ? To say that he could would be to say that the insolvent debtor could pay himself out of prison by liquidating the claims against him, or the murderer under sentence of death could meet and suffer the sentence and yet live. Hence, it is evident that man had no alternative within himself, and, left to himself, he must die, and die forever. He could not atone for himself. 2. No created being could take man's place in law, die in his stead and satisfy injured justice, and give back to the law its due and sacred hon- ors. The sin of man, although it was perpetrated by a finite being, was a violation of the infinitely just and holy law of the infinite God ; and that sin, passed by with impunity and left to w T ork out MAN'S NEW STATE OF TRIAL. 139 its final results, looked to the entire destruction of God's universal moral government. Hence, man's sin had in it a turpitude of infinite enor- mity. This being the case, the violated law re- quired a satisfaction of infinite value. Such sat- isfaction no created finite being could render without suffering to an infinite duration, or to all eternity. 3. No created being is lord of his life ; he has no right to dispose it, and therefore, upon that ground, would be debarred from sacrificing it for another. "Ye are not your own." "Whether we live or die, we are the Lord's." From these considerations it becomes evident that in order to the redemption of man it was in- dispensable that the Redeemer should be divine as well as human, God as well as man, since nothing short of a satisfaction of infinite value could meet the claims of injured justice, restore the honors of the divine government, and open to man a way of reconciliation to God. The fallen and morally helpless condition of man, then, necessitated, in order to his redemption, that the Redeemer should be God as well as man. Answering to this necessity, we find his Godhead declared most decisively, by the prophets, by the evangelists, by himself, and by the apostles. 1. The names, or appellatives, given to the Eternal Majesty of Heaven are also given to Jesus 140 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. Christ. The inspired prophet says, "Unto us a child is horn, a son is given ; and his name shall he called Wonderful, Counselor, the Mighty God, the everlasting Father, and the Prince of Peace." "Philip saith unto him, Shew us the Father and it suffice th us. He saith unto Philip, He that hath seen me, hath seen the Father also." " I and the Father are one." He is called " Emman- uel — God with us." John says, " In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God, and the Word was made flesh and dwelt among us." And, speaking of Christ, it is declared, " This is the true God and Eternal Life." He is also called "God our Saviour." These, with numerous other passages of the Script- ures which might be adduced, show with what readiness the inspired writers attached to Christ the names and appellatives by which is understood and known the God of the universe. 2. We find also that all the attributes and qual- ities essential to the nature of God are attributed to Christ. Is God self-existent? Christ declares himself to be the " I Am." He said to the Jews, " Before Abraham was, I am," which excludes all idea of dependence; and self-existence compre- hends eternity, for that which is self-existent could never have had a beginning. Hence, he is declared to have been " from of old, from ever- lasting." " I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning man's new state of trial. 141 and the ending" — from eternity to eternity. Is God omnipotent? "All power in heaven and in earth " resides in Jesus Christ. No created finite being could sway the arm of omnipotence; but Christ did this. The angels of heaven came at his call — so did Moses and Elias at his transfigura- tion. The winds and the seas calmed at his bid- ding, and devils saw, believed (in his power), and " trembled." He once said, " Let there be light, and there was light." On the cross he said, Let there be darkness, and there was darkness ; the earth shook, the rocks were rent, the graves were opened, and Satan fell as lightning from heaven. He had power of life and death, power to lay down his life and power to take it again. This he did : he laid down his life at the cross, he took it again at the grave. Will any say that the power of the Son of man and Son of God was delegated? What need or room for delegation, when the "full- ness of the Godhead dwelt in him bodily?" Is God infinite in wisdom and knowledge? Peter answers the question: "Yea, Lord, thou knotvest all things." Is God omnipresent ? Christ said to his standard-bearers, " Lo I am with you alway, even to the end of the world." And if he is not omnipresent, how could he " be in the midst " of the tivos or threes gathered together at the same hour in all quarters of the earth, according to his promise ? Does God alone possess in himself the 142 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. plenitude of independent life ? and is he the only being that can dispense life ? Christ says, " I am the way, the truth, and the lifer John says, "In him was life" Christ says, " I am the resurrec- tion and the life" He also dispenses life — life everlasting : " I give unto them eternal life, and they shall never perish." 3. The works ascribed to God are also ascribed to Jesus Christ. In the first chapter of Genesis it is said, " In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth ; " and in a very great num- ber of other passages of the sacred writings God is declared to be the Creator of all things. But Paul, speaking of Christ, says, " For by him all things were created that are in heaven or that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones or dominions, principalities or powers : all things were created by him and for him." The work of providence belongs to God, who is de- clared to " rule in the armies of heaven and among the inhabitants of the earth ; " but Jesus Christ upholds and governs by his universal providence, for the apostle says, " By him all things consist." 4. Is God to judge the world? The apostle declares it : " Ye are come unto God the Judge of^ all" Yet, the same apostle affirms that " all must appear before the judgment-seat of Christ." 5. The worship due only to God is due to Christ. "Unto him every knee shall bow, and every tongue man's new state of trial. 143 confess," even angels that excel in strength : "And let all the angels of God worship him." But Christ said, " It is written, Thou shalt worship the Lord thy GW, and him only shalt thou serve." Now, nothing of all we have said concerning the supreme divinity of Jesus Christ can be predi- cated of any other being, not even of the loftiest orders of created intelligence. Nothing of the adorable names and appellatives of the eternal Deity, nothing of the essential attributes possessed by him only, nothing of the works of creation and providence, nothing of divine worship and adora- tion authorized by the word of God to be ascribed to Christ, can be ascribed to any created intelli- gence, without blasphemy and idolatry. It has in all ages been the policy of the prince of darkness to traduce and, if possible, to lower the character of Christ. This will appear in no way strange when it is remembered that his mis- sion into the world was to found and build up a kingdom in the world adverse to his (Satan's), and finally to dethrone and eject him forever from the earth, and to take full possession and restore all tilings to their primeval beauty and glory — to reign as universal Lord and King forever. When these things are remembered, what wonder that Satan should rage, and vent all his spite and malice and envy upon Christ, his great rival ? And so it has come to pass, first of all, he tried upon 144 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. Christ, the second Adam, the same sinister method and brought into play the same hellish tactics by which he triumphed over the first. Meeting Christ in the wilderness, after making him two other propositions (compliance with either of which would have demolished Christ's kingdom), from the top of a high mountain he " showed him all the kingdoms of the world and the glory, of them." "All these," said he, " I will give thee, if thou w T ilt fall down and worship me." Here was an at- tempt to degrade the character of Christ and to exalt his own. For ages past there had been signs and indications in the moral heavens, and especially the omens of recent date, well calcu- lated to impress him with the fear that this Christ was destined at some future day to universal do- minion, but that if he should ever come to the throne of universal empire it should be through many sore conflicts and great expenditure of blood and treasure ; but now, to cut the matter short, and to avoid all farther difficulties, one single act will bring thee to the throne of dominion over all the world: just "fall down and worship me," and thou shalt have it all. What a devilish snare ! Had Christ worshiped him it would at once have exalted him to the supremacy, and left Christ to reign (if at all) only as Satan's vicegerent. To lower the character of Christ and exalt and make a god of something else has ever been the policy man's new state of trial. . 145 of Satan and of those under his control. This was the aim of his wily adversary when he met him in the wilderness ; and so with the infidel world. Infidelity admits many modifications, but, modified as it may be, it is still infidelity. Some cry out, " Impostor, deceiver ! " others say, " He is well-meaning, but a visionary ; " others, again, raising him a little higher, admit that he was nob only a good, sincere, and honest man, but that he was a great man, and taught most excellent morals — still, he was but a man, and was an enthusiast, fancifully, though honestly, supposing himself di- vinely inspired ; and, lastly, we come to the infi- delity of the most yielding and liberal, though of the most insidious, sinister, and dangerous, charac- ter. This species of skepticism has crossed the threshold into the visible Church, and has assumed the imposing name of Christian. They of this class affect to believe, in some sense, that Jesus Christ is the Son of God ; that in the scale of in- telligent beings he stands, in dignity and glory, next to God ; that he was endowed with great wisdom and power, and sent into the" world with a message of reconciliation to proclaim to man- kind that God was willing to receive them back, though rebels, into his favor, and yet make them happy forever — and, to this end, all that is re- quired is reformation of life, confession of Christ, and attention to the ordinances of the gospel ; but 7 146 * MEDIUM THEOLOGY. still, they hold Christ to be a created being, and, by consequence, deny his supreme divinity. From this species of infidelity you may descend in the scale down to downright atheism. Infidels of every hue — the deists of France, Germany, England, America, and everywhere else — have had a special quarrel with the doctrine of Christ's supreme divinity. Against it they have leveled their heaviest artillery; and there is no better proof of concert with Satan than the denial of this Christian tenet, for it is certainly the policy of Satan by all possible means to lessen the dig- nity and glory of Christ, his formidable rival. No wonder that he and his co-workers have opened their batteries and spent their force against this fundamental doctrine, since it underlies the whole superstructure of the Christian system. But the Lord of lords and King of kings has triumphantly maintained, and still maintains, his claims to his' glorious Godhead; and his Church, upon the im- pregnable foundation of the prophets and apostles, unmoved, stands firmly against all the assaults of the gates of hell. The leaguered hosts of devils and godless men shall rage in vain : the God-man will and " must reign." His infinite wisdom, power, and justice shall ever triumph over the consummate treachery and hell-born tactics of his adversaries. He is still with his Church, dispens- ing light and life eternal. He is that "Most man's new state of trial. - 147 Mighty" who, with girded-on " sword/' will ride forth to certain and final victory. After all, it is impossible to give a rational and satisfactory interpretation to a great portion of the inspired writings upon any other hypothesis than that which acknowledges the divine as well as the human nature of Christ. Indeed, under any other view of the subject the Scriptures cannot be rec- onciled with themselves. Jehovah said to the Son, "Thy throne, God, is forever and ever," and the next moment says to him, " Thou art my Son, this day have I begotten thee." How could he be God upon his eternal throne and yet be be- gotten of God in any other conceivable sense than that of his divine and human nature ? Is it not the union of these two natures in the person of Christ that constitutes the very " mystery of god- liness ? " For the moment you simplify the char- acter of Christ, and make of him a mere man, the " mystery " vanishes, and Paul stands convicted of using language that has no determinate meaning, and which is calculated to bewilder and mislead the minds of men. Again, how could he be the Creator and Upholder of all things, " whether things in heaven or things in earth," and yet be "made of woman, made under the law"- — born amongst men in time? or, how could the Word who, as declared by John, u was God" be made flesh ? or, how and in what acceptable sense could 148 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. he be on earth talking with men and at the same moment be " in heaven ? " These, with many- other passages of a kindred nature, are absolutely irreconcilable, except upon the ground that in the person of the Mediator were united two natures, human and divine. Here, then, is Paul's great mystery of godliness — God manifested in the flesh; not only "great," but glorious. "This is the Lord's doing, and it is marvelous in our eyes." Is not man an enigma, a mystery, to him- self? has he not for six thousand years sought in vain to solve it ? and to-day, though it may hum- ble his boasted reason, may he not confess, and say with one of old, " Such knowledge is too won- derful for me ; I cannot attain unto it." But are the wisdom, power, and goodness of God displayed in the mysterious union of the physical, mental, and moral principles in the person of man? Then, to what greater extent and in how much more striking a light are these attributes displayed in the mysterious union of the divine and human natures in the person of Christ ! This is more clearly evident when we remember that this won- derful union had for its object not only the amelio- ration of man's physical, mental, and moral con- dition in this life, but also to elevate him to eternal happiness in the life to come. The question, above all others in point of im- portance, now pertinently comes up, "What think man's new state of trial. 149 you of Christ?" We give Paul's answer: "God manifested in the flesh, justified in the spirit, seen of angels, preached unto the Gentiles, believed on in the world, received up into glory." The two natures of Christ are distinct the one from the other, mysteriously united, without mix- ture or confusion. By the union of the manho.od and Godhead in Christ is constituted the Mediator between God and men. As God, he is declared to be the " Creator of all things^ " as man, his " soul was exceeding sorrowful, even unto death." As God, "in him all fullness dwells, even the full- ness of the Godhead " — all the infinite, incommu- nicable attributes of the uncreated Jehovah ; as man, he was the " seed " of Abraham, in the form of a servant — "made himself no reputation, poor, despised, set at naught, condemned, bruised, and broken upon the cross." And as God-man, he made full atonement for the sins of the world, magnified and made honorable God's dishonored law, and ever liveth to make intercession. The great atonement meets the claims of injured jus- tice, vindicates the honor and majesty of the di- vine government, and opens the way of renewed intercommunion between earth and heaven. It also meets the moral condition of man at all its needy points, and, with man's consent, it insures him life from death and " life more abundantly." 150 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. The Atonement by Christ. Atonement means satisfaction, reconciliation. Man had rebelled against the government of God, cast indignity upon his just and righteous law, declaring by his conduct that it was unworthy of observance, and that he disregarded the conse- quences resulting from its violation. Thus a trans- gressor, he was obnoxious to the terrible death and consequent miseries, in all their breadth and depth, of which the Divine goodness had given him a sufficient forewarning; but just here the Divine compassion came to his rescue: "God so loved the world, that he gave his only-begotten Son." And the Son came to make an atonement, to effect a reconciliation, to bring man back to God. "God was in Christ reconciling the world unto himself." All the altar-sacrifices of birds and beasts offered by the Jewish priesthood shadowed forth and sig- nified the "one offering of Christ, to put away sin by the sacrifice of himself." The unblemished lamb of the passoverwas a forcible typical preacher, saying to the people, Look through me away to the cross of Calvary and "behold the Lamb of God that taketh away the sin of the world." The blood of bulls and of goats could only cleanse from sins typically, never actually and really; only the blood of Christ could. The self-offered man's new state of trial. 151 blood of the sinner himself would have been but the blood of a common man and a self-murderer. Would this atone for sin and satisfy the demands of justice — not justice in any limited or narrow sense, but in its most extended and comprehensive sense, wherever it is revered as the standard of loyalty and concord throughout the intelligent universe? The very principle, then, of universal justice has been outraged and set at naught by man, introduc- ing into God's great family of upright beings dis- order and confusion. And does not the sense of common and universal justice, as well as the jus- tice of God, demand satisfaction? But this is not all. What does human society say of the burglar who has broken into a neighbor's house and stolen his money? They say if such crimes are suffered to be perpetrated with impunity, confusion and ruin must ensue. The laws that we revere and honor he despises and tramples under foot; the bulwark of our social security and happiness he throws down. The good of society and their sense of justice demand satisfaction ; so with God's entire family of intelligent beings. The demand, then, is universal. The sin that necessitates such a demand must be of immense magnitude. The law that man violated is infinite — not in its re- quirements, but in its moral rectitude ; it requires, and the spirit of universal justice requires (and why not say it?), an in&nite satisfaction. This 152 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. demand man could not meet only by suffering eternally; to meet this demand to its full satisfac- tion in a limited time is the great problem. If the satisfaction demanded by justice was only finite, why not a finite being satisfy? why call from the throne of heaven the eternal Logos, "the Word that was with God and was God," to come down to the dark abode of sin to render satisfac- tion? So sure as the "Word was God," as "God was in Christ," as "God was manifested in the flesh," so sure is it that the satisfaction required was an infinite satisfaction; otherwise, there was no proportion between the satisfaction required and the sacrifice offered, and there was an unnec- essary expenditure of dignity, and honor, and glory, and life, in the satisfaction rendered. But it was indispensable to the atonement for man's sin, and to the vindication of the honor and ex- altation of God's righteous law, that Christ should be God as well as man. Christ was "God mani- fested in the flesh," and fully met the necessity of the case; he made full atonement, out of which comes reconciliation. The atonement made by the Son meets the divine approval of the Father. This is attested by the voice from heaven : "This is my beloved Son, in whom I am ivell pleased." Universal justice and all righteous beings are now content, and angels may prepare, with harp in man's new state of trial. 153 hand, to strike a new note of joy over repentant sinners reconciled to God. The Atonement — Its Value. Upon this subject we have already made some remarks. It is a subject, however, that is inex- haustible, because it is infinite. The violated law whose claims against man were met and satisfied in the person of the God- man Mediator was in its nature infinitely just and holy, and a no less satisfaction than one of infinite value could cancel its claims and restore its injured honors. Although the law required of man nothing more than he was able to perform — because it was infinitely good as well as just — yet, for this very reason, and because the act of violation inaugurated rebellion against the authority of the God of the universe, it contains in it a turpitude of infinite enormity. To expiate this sin, and all others re- sulting from it, violative of the same supreme au- thority, required a sacrifice in value commensurate with the enormity of man's sin and the unlimited dignity of the divine authority. And to these considerations we may add that as the atonement was designed to lay a just ground for man's eter- nal release from sin and its consequent miseries, and to secure to him happiness of eternal duration, it was indispensable that that atonement should be of immense, even of infinite, value. Such 7* 154 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. atonement is found in the sufferings and death of Jesus Christ. The transactions of the cross were of infinite magnitude. The law of God was the supreme government of the intelligent universe. Shall that be violated with impunity? shall God do nothing to vindicate the justice and honor of his law? The penal side of justice required the pun- ishment of the transgressor, and so it might have met its claims ; but this would have doomed man to eternal misery. The penalty due to the sinner was not inflicted ; it was diverted to another vic- tim. Infinite love has found an expedient, and that expedient has its full interpretation in the cross. " God so loved the world, that he gave his only-begotten Son, that whosoever believeth on him should not perish, but have eternal life." The atonement made by the Son of God comprehended two immeasurably high objects : to make the sal- vation of man possible, and the vindication of the honor of the divine government, dishonored by man. Both of these objects were absolutely ac- complished. -In reference to man's possible salva- tion, we learn that God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through him might be saved. Through the obedi- ence and death of Jesus Christ is made possible man's salvation, and through the very same means is the eternal seal of honor stamped upon the law man's new state of trial. 155 of God. As before said, these two great objects were had in view by the atonement ; and the res- toration of the honor and glory of the divine gov- ernment is the necessary result of making possible the salvation of man. These great ends were fully and absolutely attained through the atone- ment, without the concurrence of man — nay, in spite of his non-concurrence, since the entire plan was beyond the range of either his perverted rea- son or his fallen hopes. It has been suggested by some that if all are not saved for whom the Saviour died, then he shed his blood in vain. This is quite an error ; for if not a single one of Adam's race should be saved, yet the atonement by the Son of God is by no means a failure, since, as we have already seen, two high objects of the atonement have been se- cured : the possible salvation of man, and the honor and glory of the dishonored law fully vin- dicated; and all this irrespective of men's personal acceptance of the possible salvation. Just here we come to view the atonement, in regard to its personal application, under two distinct points of view — the following: 1. The Son of God was " sent into the world that the world through him might be saved," though all men should choose to reject the absolutely possible salvation which is freely offered to them. 2. God gave his only Son, that whosoever believeth on him, or receives the 156 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. possible salvation, "should" absolutely be saved. Under the first aspect, we see salvation provided for the " world " without including its personal ac- ceptance through faith in Christ ; under the second aspect, we see salvation provided for the world including its personal acceptance through faith, " that whosoever believeth on him " shoidd as abso- lutely be saved. as salvation is made absolutely possible. "Might" or possibility, is in the one aspect; "should" or absolute certainty, is in the other. Another object, of no less importance than the foregoing, was also embraced in the atonement — its personal application for the eternal deliverance from sin and all its fearful consequences. The at- tainment of this object is conditioned, on the side of men, upon faith, or their free heart-acceptance of the provided and freely offered salvation. By the obedience and death of Christ the two objects first named could be, and were, absolutely secured without man's consent or the concurrence of his will, and that without any violation of the divinely chartered rights of his manhood. But in regard to the other and third object of the atonement — namely, the personal application of the atonement for the pardon of sin and acceptance with God — the case is different. Man's moral freedom is here consulted. To force men into an acceptance of the provided salvation would break down their man's new state of trial. 157 moral constitution and destroy their moral liberty. Speaking reverently, " Omnipotence itself cannot force hearts." And it is " with the heart that man believes." But Infinite Knowledge foresaw that Christ would be heart-elected by a numerous " seed to serve him," and hence the prophet was inspired to predict it. Full and everlasting salvation of both soul and body, with all the means subordinate to that end, is amply provided for in the atonement made by the Son of God and Son of man; and as "God so loved the world, that he gave his only-begotten Son," the atonement, in its gracious provisions, is as wide as the world, deep as the lowest depths of human guilt, and as high as the immortality and joys of heaven. e When we behold so great a nature as God in- carnate w T eeping blood, and hear the deep, loud, long waitings of a suffering and dying Spirit, strug- gling with the desert of sin, we need go no farther than to the cross to find the interpretation-value of the atonement. The cross of Christ, the God- man, reckons it all up, and presents the sum in its unique value, and that value is expressed by one word, whose depth of meaning cannot be sounded by the line of human thought, and that one word is — infinite. A difficulty has been suggested as growing out of the doctrine of the vicarious sufferings and 158 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. death of Christ for all mankind. It is contended that all for whom he made vicarious satisfaction to divine justice must, necessarily, be released from punishment; and, by consequence, if Christ died and atoned for all men, all will be released from punishment, and be saved. This difficulty is more specious than solid. It will not be denied that in order to the pardon of sin atonement is indispensa- ble. This must be made by the transgressor in his own proper person, or then by a voluntary substitute. The sinner might offer up his own life a sacrifice for the sin of his soul; but this would be suicide, and suicide is not atonement. The same may be said with regard to any of his fellows. In the wide universe there is one only th#t could atone for the sins of others, and that one is the God-man, Christ Jesus. "There is no other name given under heaven." Now, since the sinner has no atonement of his own to plead as the ground of his pardon, he must in some way make the atonement of Christ, voluntarily made for the sins of the world, his own, and plead it as the ground of his pardon; otherwise, the atone- ment made by Christ for the sins of mankind would be to him, in his personal individuality, nothing more than an abstract satisfaction to the spirit of universal justice and its necessary re- quirements — indispensable, indeed, in order to man's possible salvation; but to prove effectual to MAN'S NEW STATE OP TRIAL. 159 personal* salvation, it must be personally appropri- ated. It was good news, glad tidings, circulated among the hungry and suffering Egyptians, that their king, through Joseph, a type of Christ, had made ample provision for them all — that his gran- aries were full of corn, enough for every one, and that each and all might obtain a supply. Here was their possible salvation from starving, But, to derive its saving benefits, the corn must be per- sonally appropriated; otherwise, the provision made through Joseph passes not beyond the line of the individual's possible salvation from starving. The corn must be appropriated — eaten personally, or then he must starve, though within reach of plenty. Here we get the key fully to interpret the saying of Christ, " Except ye eat his flesh and drink his blood, ye have no life in you." Eating and drink- ing is certainly a personal affair, which brings us back to the provisional atonement of Christ for the sins of the world. That atonement must be personally received and relied upon for life. And when it is received and heartily and solely relied upon, it is imputed to and made over to that per- son, and thus becomes, not in a carnal, but in a spiritual sense, his own atonement for the pardon of sin. While penning the lines of this page, we are, now and again, thinking of faith. Whatever definition men may give of faith, it is indispensa- ble to personal salvation. " He that believeth not 160 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. shall be damned." Paul says, " Faith is the sub- stance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen." What is the substance of faith, not merely of the head or mind, but of the heart? Certainly — Christ. What is the evidence of things not seen? It is the consciousness of our own spirit conjoined with the witness of the Spirit of God that we have in our heart the invisible Christ. " Blessed are they that believe and have not seen." This is the way Christ comes to be in the believer — in his heart — the very seat of spir- itual life, because it is the faith of the heart, and Christ is the substance of faith. " If Christ be in you, the body is dead." "Know ye not that Jesus Christ is in you?" If Jesus Christ is in you, he is yours; and with him you have his atonement, his righteousness. Hence, Jeremiah calls him, "The Lord our righteousness." Hence, too, Paul says, "Faith is imputed for righteousness," because Christ is its substance. Here, too, we get a clue to w T hat is meant by "the righteousness of faith," and of Christ being "formed in the heart" — a spiritual formation really in the heart of the believer. That is a substan- tive form, and is the substance of faith. That Jesus is the Saviourof all men, and, therefore, the Saviour of me, is but alogical deduction from the historical state- ment; but that he is my Saviour especially, is the lan- guage of the faith of the heart, and is a conscious reality. From Paul's interpretation of faith, we are man's hew state of trial. 161 guarded against the dangerous error of so humanizing it as to substitute faith or belief merely speculative for the faith which is a personal reception of the atone- ment of Christ in the heart, which accords with what the apostle says, speaking of Christ, " By whom we have now received the atonement!' Thus we have worked our way round to the question of difficulty, that if the atonement was made for all the world, whether all the world will not nec- essarily be saved ? We have given the negative to this question, with our reasons, which we think fully and clearly obviate the difficulty. Calvinistic View of the Atonement. Calvinists teach the doctrine of a limited atone- ment — that Christ did not die for all mankind — that he atoned for those only who, from eternity, were elected to life everlasting, and that their num- ber is so definite and certain, that it can neither be added to nor diminished; and that the rest of mankind were " passed by, and ordained to wrath." Hence, they restrict the atonement of Christ to the number of the elect, and hold that all these, through the purchase of his death, will, in God's own good time and way, be effectually called and infallibly saved. That the doctrine of election is taught in the Scriptures, all must admit ; but whether the elec- tion spoken of in the Bible is the eternal election 162 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. of a part of the human race to eternal life is the question, of which, from the deepest convictions, we are compelled to take the negative side. As the doctrine of a limited atonement is regarded by them as being founded in election, and cannot be extended beyond its boundaries, it becomes of some importance that we pay some attention to the claims of the doctrine as being supported by the Scriptures of truth. Election, as spoken of in the Bible, has several applications. Sometimes it is applied to individuals, sometimes to a set, or company of persons, and again to whole nations, and lastly, to the children of God. The great business of the student of the Bible is to under- stand and rightly apply what it teaches. To ap- ply what is said of God's choosing, or electing, some particular person, or a definite number of persons, to a whole nation, would be wresting the Scriptures. And we are persuaded that the por- tions of Scripture relied upon as favoring the tenet of the eternal foreordination, or election, of a definite number of mankind to life everlasting have been misapplied. True, God chose and raised up Pharaoh, that he might show his power in him. In a similar sense, Moses was chosen, or elected, a leader of the Hebrews out of Egypt to the borders of Canaan — the whole Hebrew nation to preserve the oracles and worship of God. The followers of Christ are also elected, and their elec- man's new state of trial. 163 tion is said to be " through sanctification of the Spirit and belief of the truth." We might also mention a number of other instances of particular cases, such as Cyrus, the Medo-Persian, chosen before he was born to deliver the Jews from their captivity in Babylon. The prophets and apostles also were divinely appointed, or elected. But none of these elections meets the case of the eter- nal election of men to their personal salvation, and thus unchangeably fixing their everlasting destiny. The election of all true believers in Christ, though unto life eternal, takes place only with their con- current consent in the exercise of their moral freedom ; whereas, those other elections which do not fix the everlasting destiny of men with re- spect to their happiness or misery may be made ivithout consulting their moral free agency. And let it be noted, this is the election which results from the free and independent sovereignty of God; but such election, decree, or predestination, does not embrace an appointment to eternal life or death of intelligent beings endowed with moral freedom without their free and uncoerced consent. In regard to this question, there are three things which we cheerfully grant : First, God is a sover- eign ; secondly, man is his creature ; thirdly, God, as a sovereign, has the right to do as he pleases with his own. But what does God plense to do with man, his own creature? Did it please him to 164 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. make man, in rank and dignity, different from all the other parts of lower creation, and yet govern and treat him as he does the lower creation ? Has God endowed him with moral capacity to choose freely his own eternal destiny either for life or death, and yet does God, as a sovereign, please to interpose his sovereign will, and, without regard to his moral capacity, with which he endowed him, unchangeably fix his destiny? To say that God, as a sovereign, so pleases to do with man, is to say that God acts inconsistently ; for doing this way with man lets man down, or rather puts him down, upon a level with the lower creation, ignor- ing at the same time his moral freedom. But God does not please to do with and treat man in this way. If he has created him with the noble fac- ulty of choosing his own destiny for either life or death, he will not, regardless of man's power of choice, step in and arbitrarily choose for him, and thus determine man's eternal destiny for happi- ness or misery; but he is pleased to leave man to choose for himself, meanwhile holding him ac- countable for the use he makes of his liberty of choice, either of good or evil. If he choose the good, which is his paramount duty, it leaves a margin for his reward ; but if the evil, he is justly punished. From this view of the subject, we come to the conclusion that Deity has not from eternity chosen, man's new state of trial. 165 decreed, or elected, to life any part of the human race, nor chosen or passed by and ordained any to death. And since it would be impossible for any of God's eternal decrees to fail, so it would be impossible for man, by any exercise of choice, to change his destiny thus bound up in an eternal decree. And the sum of the whole is this, that if man cannot possibly change his destiny by a choice of his own, he is no moral free agent ; and a state of probation or trial upon his part would be but a sham, since it would be impossible for him to choose any other destiny than the one eternally decreed. This unavoidably wipes out every stain of guilt from the soul of man, and throws the whole burden of responsibility upon man's Creator. The doctrine, then, that God has eternally de- creed to save a part only of Adam's race, and damn the rest, contradicts the doctrine of man's moral freedom; and if man is not morally free, we bid a final adieu to all hope of arriving at any just and satisfactory knowledge of either the character of God or man, and also to all justifi- able views of moral propriety in the distribution of future rewards and punishments. The Bible is henceforth a book hermetically sealed. But we bless the name of our God that there was one (and none else could), and that one prevailed, to loose the seals and open the Book. We see him upon the cross. We hear him crying from the 166 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. deepest depth of his loving, bleeding heart, "It is finished." " He tasted death for every man ;" " He gave himself a ransom for all ;" He is " the Saviour of all men" — "the propitiation for the sins of the whole world." " Look unto me, and be ye saved, all ye ends of the earth ; for I am God, and there is none else." The student of theology is necessitated to make an election between two contradictory proposi- tions : first, that Grod has, by an absolute, eternal decree, unchangeably fixed the destiny of the whole human race, electing, or ordaining, a part to eternal life, "passing by the rest, and ordaining them to wrath." Secondly, man, as an intelligent, accountable being, is morally free to choose his own destiny. We have shown, as we think, suffi- ciently clearly in the preceding argument that these propositions are contradictory ; and as two propo- sitions, contradicting each other, cannot both be true, we must adopt that as true which has in its favor the greatest weight of evidence least liable to objections ; and which, when carried to its ulti- mate results, ends in the more reasonable and happy consequences. Let us try these proposi- tions. If the doctrine of eternal election and reproba- tion is true, that of man's moral freedom is false, he having, by possibility, no power of choice to change or alter his destiny. It also follows, as a man's new state of trial. 167 sequence, that Jesus Christ atoned for a part only of the human race, and that all for whom he atoned will, when God sovereignly wills it, with- out condition upon their part, be effectually called and finally saved ; that those who were not elected to life were ordained to death, and, not having the liberty of free choice to change their destiny, they are doomed to suffer unavoidably eternal misery for the sin of their first father, im- puted to them and for their own sins, which nat- urally flow from their sinful nature, all which it was impossible for them to prevent. And farther, the doctrine of the foreordination of all things whatsoever that come to pass, teaches that Deity decreed that the fallen angels should sin — that one of the damned spirits should tempt man, and that man should sin. It teaches, farther, that it was also foreordained that even the elect, for whose salvation full provision is made, should, for a time — some for a shorter and some for a longer time — live in the practice of sin until he, in his own time and way, should, by a sovereign process, effectu- ally call and regenerate them, which process they have no more power of choice to prevent than to change their eternal destiny; and that all the sins, from the first committed by the devil and his an- gels, including the sin in Eden, and all the sins perpetrated by reprobates in time and eternity, were decreed. And this is not all, but that all 168 . MEDIUM THEOLOGY. the distress and misery, war and bloodshed, dev- astation and ruin, consequent upon sin, and the unspeakable torments of untold millions of angels and men called reprobate, "suffering the vengeance of eternal fire," were also unchangeably decreed. What an awful picture does this pre- sent of the character of God ! The God who " hates evil," but has decreed all evil ; who has " no pleasure in the death of any," but has fore- ordained the death of all who die the second death ; who says to the reprobates, "Why will ye die ? " when he knows at the same time that his unchangeable decree has rendered it impossible for them to obtain life ; who says, " Choose ye this day whom ye will serve," when he knows that their power of choosing to serve him is im- possible, unless his unchangeable decree dooming them to death should fail ; and as it is impossible for his decrees to fail, it is, therefore, impossible for them to choose to serve him, and hence they have no free choice, but must, of fatal necessity, submit to their dreadful doom. These are some of the consequences resulting from the doctrine of the election, or foreordination, of all things, in- cluding a definite number of mankind, to life ever- lasting, passing by and ordaining the rest to death eternal, for whom there was no atonement made. We might add other consequences, such as the difficulty of comprehending how God could reward man's new state of trial. 169 the elect, whose salvation and good works merely fulfilled an eternal decree, which they could not possibly avoid, and the moral propriety (not to say justice) of punishing the reprobates for not accepting salvation in Christ, since no salvation in Christ was provided for them ; or for not obeying the call of God to repentance and faith, since be- ing excluded from the limited atonement, God knew they could not, nor did he design that they should, obey when he did call them. These, and other like insurmountable difficulties, legitimately work themselves out, or are clearly deducible from the doctrine of eternal election of a part only of mankind to life, and its cognate, a limited atone- ment. But on the other hand, admitting the truth of the proposition that man is endowed with moral freedom to choose his own destiny, and the ad- mission strikes down at once the dogma that this one shall be saved because he was elected to life, or that one damned because he was reprobated to death, and the doctrine that a definite number of mankind were elected to life is proved to be false, and that of a limited atonement, which is founded upon such election, is also proved to be false. Thus far the sky begins to clear itself of those dark shadows cast upon the divine glory, dimming its luster by the awful doctrine that God did un- changeably foreordain all the sins of the universe, 8 170 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. and all their consequent miseries and torments in this world and the world to come. With the truth of the proposition that man is morally free to choose either life or death, which are declared to be set before him, we can satisfac- torily interpret the conduct of Deity in rewarding the righteous and punishing the wicked. To the former, with the utmost propriety, he can say, " Well done, thou good and faithful servant." To the latter, " I called, but ye refused." You set at naught all my counsel, and would none of my reproofs, therefore " depart from me." The doc- trine of man's moral freedom clears the divine ju- risprudence, and throws all the responsibility upon man, and if he be not saved, it lays the blame at his own door. From these considerations, it is easy to see which of these propositions the more clearly and forcibly challenges belief. That they are contra- dictory, and, therefore, cannot both be true, will appear from the following condensed statement : If man is morally free to choose either spirit- ual life or spiritual death, he has the power of choosing his own future destiny, which is the same thing. But if God has eternally chosen or decreed his future destiny for him — and God's de- cree cannot fail — this cannot destroys at once man's moral ability to choose and determine his own destiny. And although both the elect and man's new state of trial. 171 • reprobate might choose the destiny which was eternally decreed, it was not possible to do other- wise, and settle for themselves a different destiny from the one decreed, without setting aside the decree of God. Hence, their choosing the des- tiny which God had decreed, would be no free choice, since it was impossible for them to do otherwise, and it would amount to nothing more than the weaker submitting to the stronger — the impotent will of man bowing to the immutable decree of God. Hence, it is evident that the propositions are contradictory, and cannot both be true. One or the other must, therefore, be abandoned as false. If we take as true the propo- sition that all things^ whatsoever comes to pass, were foreordained, and its inseparable cognate, a lim- ited atonement, then we set aside the doctrine of man's free agency ; but if we take as true the doctrine of man's free agency, we must abandon that of the foreordination of man's future destiny and of a limited atonement as false. The moral freedom of man is conceded even by those who advocate the doctrine of eternal election and rep- robation ; but we are not apprised that they pre- tend to harmonize them. Indeed, it is what, we are convinced, can never be done. It might be well briefly to notice a few of the passages of Scripture upon which much reliance is placed as supporting the doctrine of uncondi- 172 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. • tional election, and, by consequence, a partial atone- ment. A part of the eighth chapter of Romans is appealed to with great confidence by the friends of this tenet. " For whom he did foreknow, he also did predestinate to be conformed to the im- age of his Son. . . . Moreover, whom he did predestinate, them he also called : and whom he called, them he also justified : and whom he justi- fied, them he also glorified." To a correct understanding of this passage, we must specially note, and not lose sight of, the character called foreknown, predestinated, justi- fied, and glorified. The character called is the lover of God. This is clear from the verse next preceding the passage just quoted : "And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called ac- cording to his purpose." All who love God are called according to his purpose, according to his plan of saving men — according also to his fore- knowledge, and not contrary to it; and whom he foreknew he also did predestinate — to what end ? To be conformed to the image of his Son. This, then, is the object of predestination, con- formity to the image of God's Son, which pre- cisely corresponds with Eph. i. 4 : "According as he hath chosen us in him (Christ) before the foun- dation of the world " — to what end ? " That we (the lovers of God who are in Christ) should be man's new state op trial. 173 holy and without blame before him in love." The choosing here spoken of, and the predestination as above, are, in meaning, one and the same, and are to the same end — to holiness, or conformity to the image of Christ. Both these passages har- monize with 1 Pet. i. 2 : " Elect according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, through sancti- fication of the Spirit, unto obedience." Also that other text where the apostle says : '" For God hath called us not to uncleanness, but unto holiness." From the perfect agreement of these passages that the object or end of the predestination was that all that were in Christ — that loved God — that were elected through sanctificcition of the Spirit, and "called unto holiness," "should be conformed " to Christ's image and " without blame before God in love." Those who thus loved God, and were elected to life through the sanctifying power of the Spirit, giving them, upon their reception of Christ, new hearts, were, of course, foreknown, and were now both justified and sanctified, and were, or would be, at the end of their earthly pil- grimage, " glorified." Thus we find that the calling to holiness, pre- destination, to conformity to the image of Christ, and election through sanctification of the Spirit unto obedience and unblamableness before God in love, all specially regard believers in Christ and meet together in those who love God. Hence, in 174 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. this passage so much relied upon, we find not a word of the eternal predestination of a definite number of mankind to everlasting life to the ex- clusion of the rest. But we do find in it one of the most positive proofs anywhere to be found in the Bible of the final perseverance of the saints. That this was the scope and design of the apos- tle when he penned the passage, is evident from the context as well as from the remaining part of the chapter: "If God be for us, who can be against us ? " This question shows that what the apostle had said in the preceding part of his dis- course had special reference to the divine support which God would extend to those that love him. " Who shall separate us from the love of Christ ? " This question, with what follows, struck with such force the mind of Dr. A. Clarke, that he was con- strained to acknowledge, in his Commentary upon this part of the chapter, that " while it affords a strong presumption of their perseverance, fur- nishes a most powerful argument against apos- tasy." " Who shall separate us from the love of Christ ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword ? Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him that loved us. For I am persuaded that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor prin- cipalities, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor man's new state of trial. 175 things present, nor things to come, shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord." From a view of the whole subject, it is evident that it looks to the support of the doctrine of the final triumph of all who are in the love of God, rather than the doc- trine of eternal, unconditional election and repro- bation of the souls of men. Another portion of Scripture often resorted to as one of the strongest proofs of this tenet, is found in the Epistle to the Ephesians. It might be well to quote somewhat lengthily, that the sub- ject may be more fully before us ; beginning at the fourth verse, chapter first : "According as he hath chosen us in him before the foundation of the world, that we (Jews who have believed in Christ and are in the love of God) should be holy and without blame before him in love : having predestinated us (himself with all others who were believers) unto the adoption of children by Jesus Christ unto himself (prefigured by the Isra- elites, to whom pertained, nationally, ' the adop- tion and the covenants '), according to the good pleasure of his will, to the praise of the glory of his grace, wherein he hath made us accepted in the beloved : in whom we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of his grace ; . . . having made known unto us the mystery of his will, according 176 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. to his good pleasure which he hath purposed in himself: that in the dispensation of the fullness of times he might gather together in one all things in Christ, both which are in heaven, and which are on earth ; even in him : in whom also we have obtained an inheritance, being predesti- nated according to the purpose of him who work- eth all things after the counsel of his own will : that we should be to the praise of his glory, who first trusted in Christ." The Jews, nationally, were God's adopted people. Christ, on his human side, was of the Jews ; the first gospel offers of life through him were made to them, and of them were the first-fruits, or the first that " trusted in Christ;" and all this was after the counsel of God's own will. The apostle now changes from "we" to "ye" — from "we" Jews who "first trusted in Christ," to "ye" Gentiles "also trusted, after that ye heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation : in whom also, after that ye believed, ye were sealed with that Holy Spirit of promise " — the promise made to Abraham and all his spiritual seed. We take the ground that the apostle, in this part of his epistle, embraces three points : first, the predestination to holiness and love upon the part of all who trust in Jesus Christ, which he illustrates by the appointment, or election, of the Jews as his adopted and chosen people, upon man's new state op trial. 177 whom he conferred an inheritance not only of an earthly, but also of a heavenly, nature — such as the covenants, the promises, and the giving of the law, appointing, or ordaining, and commanding them to holiness, or consecration to his service. Secondly, what he uses first as an illustration he then takes up as a principal point — viz. : the elec- tion of the Jews for special ends and purposes, which, however, he does not argue, but takes for granted, as it was not by any one disputed ; though he air along alludes to it in treating upon the third point — the calling of the Gentiles, and gathering together in one, even in Christ, both the Gentiles and Jews, constituting the fullness of the body of Christ. This was "the mystery of his will," ac- cording to his good pleasure, which he hath pur- posed in himself, "that in the fullness of the times the Gentiles should be gathered in and become fellow-citizens with the saints and of the house- hold of God." This purpose of God, here spoken of, that the Gentiles should be fellow-heirs with the Jews, is, in the third chapter, called "the eternal purpose," which God "purposed in Christ Jesus our Lord." This is clear from the preced- ing verses. Reminding the Church that he pre- viously, "in few words," brought this same subject before them, he farther says, "Whereby when ye read ye may understand what is my knowledge in the mystery of Christ .... that the Gentiles 8* 178 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. should be fellow-heirs and of the same body, and partakers of his promise in Christ by the gospel." "Unto me ... is this grace given that I should preach among the Gentiles the unsearchable riches of Christ; and to make all men see what is the fellowship of the mystery which from the begin- ning of the world hath been hid in God ... to the intent that now unto the principalities and powers in heavenly places might be known by the Church the manifold wisdom of God, according to the eternal purpose which he purposed in Christ Jesus our Lord." We now have a condensed view of the " predes- tination," " the counsel of God's will," " the mys- tery of his will," "his purpose," his "eternal purpose," all meaning substantially the same, and referring, first, to the preappointment by the will of God that his children should be hoi?/, or con- formed to the image of his Son ; secondly, it was the counsel of his will, or purpose, before the world began, that he would elect, or set apart, the Jews as the repository of his oracles, covenants of promise, worship, and Church privileges, and in these respects to reject the ■ Gentiles ; also, thirdly, that "in the fullness of the times" he would break down the wall of separation, and bring in the Gentiles through faith in the Messiah, by which they would become the children of Abra- ham and heirs of the promise ; and thus making man's new state of trial. 179 up the full complement of Christ — the fullness of his body who filleth all in all. We are fully persuaded that the predestinations, elections, and purposes of God, spoken of in the Scriptures, find their proper application to the ob- jects which we have specified, and some others, altogether aside from the eternal election to life of a part of mankind, to the exclusion of the rest. It is certainly evident that the purpose of God, spoken of in Ephesians, teaches no such doctrine. The ninth chapter of Romans is also relied upon as sustaining this tenet. What is said in this chapter about the twin-brothers Jacob and Esau, before they were born, or had done either good or evil, was said to their mother (prophetically) : "the elder shall serve the younger," indicating the purpose of God in electing the Jews, in Jacob, their national head, to the ends specified in the fourth and fifth verses of the chapter. This elec- tion took place in the mind, or counsel, of God before Jacob was born, and, of course, it was ac- cording to God's sovereign purpose, and not accord- ing to Jacob's good works. But the election of Jacob as the representative of the Jewish nation was, in fact, the election of that nation, which was then potentially in Jacob. In like manner, the rejection of Esau was the rejection of the nation of the Gentiles, who were then, in the same sense, in Esau. To be fully satisfied upon this point, we 180 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. need only turn to what the Lord said to Rebecca, their mother, just previous to the birth of her twin children — Gen. xxv. 23: "And the Lord said unto her, Two nations are in thy womb, and tivo manner of people and the one people shall be stronger than the other people, and the elder shall serve the younger." Hence, when God elected Jacob he elected the whole Jewish nation; and so the rejection of Esau was the rejection of the Gentile nation. But to what end was the election of Jacob and the Hebrew nation? -Cer- tainly not to eternal life ; for on many occasions they forsook God, and many turned to the worship of idols, and sometimes thousands were destroyed for their sins. And besides, Peter declares that " God is no respecter of persons, but in every na- tion he that feareth him and worketh righteousness is accepted with him." Neither could the rejec- tion of Esau mean eternal reprobation ; if it did, Paul was wofully mistaken in being called of God to preach Christ to the Gentiles, and so was Peter in supposing that Cornelius and his friends were converted. The ends, or objects, of the election of the nation of Israel are specified in Rom. ix. 4, 5, which we have had occasion elsewhere to mention. So also with respect to the potter and the clay — the vessels of honor and dishonor. That the apostle's idea was national when he wrote these words is made certain from the words of the MANS NEW STATE OP TRIAL 181 prophet, quoted by the apostle — Jer. xviii. 1-10. Is it not strange that wise and good men, with the Scriptures before their eyes, can adduce any thing said of the election of Jacob and the rejection of Esau, or of the potter and the clay, as proof of the eternal individual election to life, or of like repro- bation to death? And yet, strange as it is, such is the case. God, as a sovereign ruler, may justly dispose of nations or of individuals to carry out the ends of his divine providence, leaving them, at the same time, free in regard to their spiritual and eternal interests. And just here, we would remark, a grave error has been committed. Men have pressed into service many passages of the sacred writings, which simply prove God's divine sovereignty, to prove the doctrine of his eternal decrees with respect to the everlasting happiness and misery of the souls of men. Should the question be asked, Will God simply as an absolute sovereign save a man? the answer is, No; or, Simply as a sovereign will he damn a man? No. And the reason of the no is, God has made man a morally free being, and sets life and death before him, requiring him to choose for himself; and God will not, indeed cannot, without self-denial, tran- scend the limits which he has himself set to his sovereign action. We have said more under the heading of this section upon the subject of election and reproba- 182 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. tion than upon the limited extent of the atonement, for two reasons: 1. If the former is proved to be untrue, the latter is untrue also; they stand or fall together. 2. Our attention will be more particu- larly given, in the next place, to the provisions of the atonement. Atonement of Christ General. Our first argument in proof of the truth of this proposition is founded upon the fact that the repre- sentation of the first Adam, who was a type of the Second in his original headship, was not par- tial, but universal. He contained within himself, potentially, the whole human race, and was there- fore the representative not of a part only, but of all. Had he won the victory over the tempter, closing his trial with honor to his Creator and to the divine government, and thus, as a free being, by his voluntary choice have settled his destiny in a state of holiness and happiness, so would his victory and confirmation in the same state have passed to his offspring. This is in perfect accord- ance with the law founded in the relation of effects to their causes; and that he represented his entire race is evinced by the fact that, as he fell, all fell in him; and so death passes upon all men. So Christ, the second Adam, the great Restorer, vol- untarily undertaking to redeem, represents all that were represented by the first; otherwise, Christ man's new state of trial. 183 could not with any good reason be styled, as Paul styles him, "the second Adam," since, in this rep- resentative sense, the figure applies to him with more force and clearness than in any other. And farther, if Christ is as a lamb slain from the foun- dation of the world, he, as the mediating second Adam, represented the first before he had any off- spring; and, by consequence, his offspring, while as yet they were contained in him, became his race only by actual multiplication of himself. This interprets the phrase, "Be fruitful and mul- tiply and replenish the earth." We think, from these considerations, it is quite evident that Christ, the second Adam, in his Mediatorship, represented all that were represented by his prototype, the first Adam, which was himself and his entire race, inclusive ; and upon this ground only can be main- tained the application and force of the figure. We conclude this argument with a single quota- tion: "He (Christ, the second Adam, the 'Lord from heaven') was made a little lower than the angels for the suffering of death, that he by the grace of God should taste death for every man." Our second argument is based upon the divine incarnation. This doctrine is clearly taught in the sacred Scriptures. "Unto us a child is born, a son is given, and his name shall be called Won- derful, Counselor, the Mighty God, . . the Prince of Peace;" and "In the beginning was the Word, 184 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. and the Word was with God, and the Word was God, . . and the Word was made flesh and dwelt among us." "He took not on him the nature of angels, but the seed of Abraham;" and so "God was manifested in the flesh." Our Divine Mediator, Christ, possessed two dis- tinct natures — divine and human. Their union in the Redeemer was indispensable to human re- demption. In human nature the immutable law of God was violated, and in the same nature must its claims be met and satisfied. This nature, com- plete and full, is found in Christ; not the nature of a part only, but the nature of the whole race. Human nature is an inclusive unit, embracing all mankind. Now, if he took upon himself the nat- ure of all mankind, in order to atone for sin, are we not forcibly impressed that the atonement made is made for* all whose nature he had taken into union with his divine nature? This conclu- sion, though forcible within itself, is strongly sup- ported, when we farther consider that the whole human race stood upon the same plane. All sin- ners alike ; and if a part were capable of redemp- tion, all were equally so, for all were involved in precisely the same dilemma. If the claims of jus- tice could be met and satisfied for a part, it could, upon the same grounds, be met and satisfied for all. If the Divine compassion could, in justice and with honor to the violated law, reach the case man's new state of trial. 185 of a part, so it could reach the case of all; and the Divine Mediator, in atoning for sin, could as easily and as justly atone for the sins of the whole of mankind as for a part only; and the certainty that he did so atone appears, in a striking light, from the fact that he made the atonement in the nature of man. This argument, we think, becomes conclusive by annexing that proclamation of Christ's forerunner, "Behold the Lamb of God that taketh away the sin of the world!' Jesus Christ was that Lamb, slain from the beginning, or foundation, of the world — by which we under- stand a virtual atonement, made simultaneously with man's transgression, and therefore he was permitted to live, to multiply, and was appointed to a new and second state of trial. Here stood the first man, the representative of human nature, and a sinner; there stood the Second, the Lord from heaven, the Saviour, who has taken this unity of human nature, in all its length and breadth, into union with his God-nature, and suf- fers the divine penalty due to sinners. This suf- fering he endures in the fullness and entirety of human nature, which was then potentially and in- herently in the first transgressor, in which nature Christ makes an atonement for sin, or, in the lan- guage of the harbinger, "He taketh away the sin of 'the world." We conclude this argument after inviting attention to the harmony of this text with 186 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. the human nature of the ivorld of mankind in which Christ made atonement. He suffers and dies in the nature of the human world, and there- fore atones for, or "taketh away, the sin of the world." How the advocates of a limited atone- ment can divide the unity of the human nature in which the Redeemer made the atonement, and classify the parts, respectively, under the designa- tions of elect and reprobate, is confessedly beyond our comprehension. Our third argument is founded upon the fact that the same law which condemned a part of mankind condemned all. The condemnation is universal, and the penalty incurred by transgres- sion impended alike over all. Now, if the Re- deemer interposed to suffer that penalty, in all its length and breadth, which, indeed, was indispensa- ble to the redemption of one sinner, how could he suffer it for one more than for another, or for a part and not for all ? Let it be noted that we are not to view the case in the light of many penal- ties, or one for each individual of the human race, but as one penalty impending over all mankind. The question is how this penalty could be endured by a substitute for a part, and not for all. To il- lustrate: say A., B., and C. owe the single sum of ten thousand talents, and have nothing to pay. Could a philanthropist step in, pay down the ten thousand talents, and liquidate the debt for A., man's new state of trial. 187 and not for B. and C? And although the friend satisfied the demand through partiality to A., yet B. and C. would share equally in the benefit. Under the conviction that this is a just and fair illustration, we recur to the question, Could Jesus Christ come forward and suffer and satisfy the one penalty of violated law, in all its fullness and ex- tent, for a part of mankind, and not for all? The answer is that Christ the Redeemer met and sat- isfied in full the penalty of God's violated law, and therefore all mankind may partake of the benefits resulting from the atonement; and to avail themselves of the full and final benefits, all that is wanting upon their part is their free accept- ance of them through faith in Jesus Christ, their atoning Saviour. Our fourth argument is deduced from the infin- ite benevolence, or compassionate love, of God. The Divine compassion is the great fountain-head of light and life to our ruined world. Now, in proportion to the extent of the Divine compassion will be exalted the character of God. If its ex- tent is restricted and limited where there is mani- festly no conceivably just cause, or reason, why it should be, then will follow a restricted, or limited, exaltation. For illustration : take a million of persons perishing from hunger. A certain noble- man of the country has boundless stores of pro- visions. He is able to afford relief to all this 188 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. starving multitude, without any sensible diminu- tion of his resources ; he is under no peculiar ob- ligations to any of them — they are all equally undeserving of his favor ; and such is the nature of the case that no greater sacrifice, or outlay of treasure, is required upon his part to provide for the million than for a thousand — yet this noble- man, though it costs as much to provide for one thousand of the starving million as it would to provide for them all, without any conceivable cause, or reason, restricts and confines it all to the one thousand. Which would the more. highly ex- alt his character, this limited extent of his benev- olence, or for him to have extended it alike to all? Most assuredly, the latter. The common sense and common philanthropy of mankind intuitively respond to this answer. It affords no relief in the case to say that he was under no obligations to any of the sufferers, and that as a sovereign dispenser he had a right to do as he pleased with his own. The partial discrimination he makes bears more the semblance of arbitrariness, or caprice, than of sovereignty, which, certainly, ob- scures and darkens the light of the nobleman's character as a philanthropist. Such a procedure is not in harmony with the doings of God respect- ing the temporal wants of all his creatures, even the very lowest in the scale of life, much less in regard to man. The quails were sent, and the man's new state of trial. 189 manna, to all the hungry Hebrews. Christ fed, without exception, the whole five thousand with a few loaves and fishes. This was all they had — barely enough for the Master and his few disci- ples; but it is said, "He had compassion on the multitude," which enlarged and multiplied the loaves and fishes into a provision equal to his com- passion, "and they did all eat and were filled." That was large-hearted benevolence, and may shadow forth the compassion of his bleeding heart upon the cross for the perishing multitudes of this ruined world. Shall his compassion for the bodies of men exceed his compassion for their souls ? It cannot be. "God so loved the world, . . . that the world through him (Christ) might be saved." This, alone, puts in perfect keeping the Divine benevolence, in its manifestations in every depart- ment of his universe. If he sends genial suns and showers upon the earth, and makes the grass green, and decks the lily with more than Solomon's glory, and if he opens his hand and satisfies the wants of every living creature, he also proclaims, "Look unto me and be ye saved, all ye ends of the earth; for I am God, and there is none else." Passages of like import, as the stars sown in the heavens, are profusely scattered over the firma- ment of divine revelation. Thus reigns a glorious harmony in all the works of God ; but when, in our theories, we narrow down the Divine compas- 190 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. sionate love, and make it subside within the bounds of a small circle, including but a part of the fallen race as provided for in the scheme of redemption, that moment, instead of harmony, inharmony is introduced, and the exaltation of the character of God suffers as a divine philanthropist by so much as he is stinted in his compassionate love in mak- ing provision to save the souls of men. Our fifth argument is predicated upon John iii. 16, 17: "For God so loved the world, that he gave his only-begotten Son, that whosoever be- lieveth in him should not perish, . . . For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through him might be saved." The inquiry arises, What did the Saviour mean by the term world, in both of these verses ? Let the meaning of the term in the latter verse interpret the meaning of the term in the former. " God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world." What world? This rebellious, re- volted world. What — without exception? Cer- tainly; all were alike guilty, and deserved ever- lasting condemnation. Here, then, the term world in its meaning embraces the entire human race. Having now the unequivocal meaning of the term world, we know the extent of the love of God, who gave his only Son. The extent of his love is measured by the whole lost world, which lay obnoxious to eternal condemnation. Hence, it is man's new state of trial. 191 undeniably clear that the world that "God so loved" and the world that " might be saved," was the same world that Christ came "not to con- demn," or sentence to irretrievable perdition. And since the world in the latter verse includes the entire fallen race, and was the world that " God so loved that he gave his only Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have ever- lasting life," it affords demonstrative proof that plenary provision is made in the divine economy for the salvation of all men. The sixth argument is embraced in the declara- tion of Paul, Heb. ii. 9 : " But we see Jesus who was made a little lower than the angels for the suffering of death, crowned with glory and honor that he by the grace of God should taste death for every man." This passage includes all man- kind, taken separately and singly. Plainer and less ambiguous language could not be used. Angels are not subject to physical death, they stand in a sphere above its sway; therefore Christ was, on his human side, " made a little lower " than they, that he should, "by the grace of God," taste death for every man. If by his death he made an atonement, which none will deny, it necessarily follows that he made, not a limited, but a general, atonement. The seventh argument is based upon 1 Tim. ii. 1-6 : " I exhort therefore, that, first of all, sup- 192 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. plications, prayers, intercessions, and giving of thanks, be made for all men ; for kings, and for all that are in authority; that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and honesty. For this is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Saviour; who will have all men to be saved, and to come unto the knowledge of the truth. For there is one God, and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus ; who gave himself a ransom for all, to be testified in due time." In regard to this passage we remark, first, that the apostles never enjoined Christians to make supplications, intercessions, and giving thanks for one soul for whom the Saviour did not die. What ! make it the duty of the elect to intercede at the throne of grace for reprobates ? Absurd. The thought no sooner arises in the mind than it is re- jected. Christ himself makes no intercession for such, provided there be any. The Church would have as good ground to intercede for fallen angels for whom he did not die, as for reprobates for whom he did not die ; therefore it is clear that it was never made the duty of Christians to pray and intercede with God for any but those for whom the Saviour died, and for whom he inter- cedes. But Paul exhorts Christians to make sup- plications and intercessions for all men ; therefore Christ died for all men and intercedes for all. man's new state op trial. 193 But the apostle speaks not in general terms only, but also in terms special, for he says, " For kings, and for all that are in authority." It will not be contended that all the idolatrous, deistical, and atheistical kings and rulers of Paul's day, and ever since, were of God's elect, as it is quite noto- rious that many of them lived abominable lives, and died most miserable deaths ; and yet it was made the duty of the Church to pray and inter- cede for these wicked rulers, who led the most abandoned lives, and died in their sins. For such Christ did not die, if he made only a partial atone- ment, since, according to this doctrine, all for whom he died will be infallibly saved. There is, there- fore, a palpable contradiction between the doctrine of a limited atonement and the injunction of Paul, that the Church must pray and intercede for all men, including that portion of mankind called reprobates, for whom, admitting the doc- trine true, Christ would no more intercede than he would for the fallen angels. But the passage proves, next to a demonstration, that he died to save all, and, of course, for the sinners on thrones as well as for their wicked subjects, many of whom live and die in their sins. Here we might close the argument, but that the evidence might be plenary, the apostle proceeds : " For this is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Saviour; who will have all men to be 9 194 x MEDIUM THEOLOGY. saved, and to come unto the knowledge of the truth." This language is clear and unambiguous, " Who will have all men to be saved ;" and, there- fore, I exhort you to pray for all men, including kings and all in any office of authority whatever. God wills that all should be saved, and this should also be the will of his children, and for this they should pray and intercede. " For there is one God, and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus ; who gave himself a ransom for all." Here is the full evidence of God's will that all should be saved. Christ gave himself a ransom for all. This, too, is the basis of the duty and privilege to pray and intercede for all, and the reason of Paul's exhortation. Had the apostle been required to settle, and put be}^ond all controversy, the doctrine of the general atonement, it would have been scarcely possible for him to have done it more clearly in the same number of words than he has in this passage. The eighth argument is predicated upon John xvi. 8 : "And when he is come, he will reprove the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judg- ment." This Christ said of the Holy Spirit, the Comforter whom he promised his disciples. This Divine Agent was not only to comfort the hearts of God's children, but to " reprove the world of sin " — a world of unbelievers ; for, says Christ, " Of sin, because they believe not on me." man's new state op trial. 195 The reproof of the Spirit is, we believe, under- stood by all, in the light of conviction ; at least, so we understand it, and shall so consider it. " He will reprove," or convince, the " world of sin " by his divine illuminations, producing conviction that they are sinners against God. In this sense Christ is said to be " the true light that lighteth every man that cometh into the world." The world mentioned in this passage is the dwelling-place of all men, and John says that the true light " light- eth every man that cometh into " it. The term world in John xvi. 8, means all mankind, and is equivalent to " every man." Among these we find, alas ! but too many, who are the subjects of divine convictions, that refuse to yield — choosing "darkness rather than light" — trampling under foot the Son of God, and doing despite to the Holy Spirit. Nor is this any thing new — it was doubtless always the case with many of our fallen race; it was so in the days of Solomon. God then said to such, " Because I have called and ye refused ; I have stretched out my hand, and no man regarded : but ye have set at naught all my counsel, and would none of my reproof. I also will laugh at your calamity, and mock when your fear cometh." From these passages of Scripture, and many others, it is evident that many persons are the subjects of divine enlightenment and conviction who live on in a state of unbelief, and die in their sins. 196 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. Having premised these things, we would now recur to the declaration of Christ, that the Holy Spirit should " reprove," or convince, " the world of sin," and inquire, first, Is not spiritual influence one of the great benefits of the atonement ? The answer is, of necessity, Yes ; since, if no atone- ment had been made, no such influence would have visited mankind. Such influence comes not to the fallen angels for the plain reason that for them there is no atonement. But Christ affirms that the Spirit shall "reprove the ivorld" it follows, therefore, as a sequence, that the atonement is coextensive with spiritual influence, and this influ- ence reaches the world, or all mankind. If con- viction of sin by spiritual influence is one of the benefits of Christ's sufferings and death (which none can deny), and if this benefit may be realized by those, if there be such, for whom he did not die, might they not, by parity of reason, receive all the benefits of the atonement, and so be put upon the same plane with those for whom the atonement was made, and thus do away the necessity of any atonement for them in order to their salvation? Our second inquiry is, What is the object of the divine influence upon the hearts of mankind in reproving them of sin ? is it not to bring them to "repentance toward God and faith toward Jesus Christ " ? So it would appear, since Paul affirms that God commands "all men, everywhere" (all man's new state of trial. 197 over the world), "to repent;" and all are required to believe. But could this be the object of the divine Spirit's influence upon the hearts of those for whom there was no atonement made, provided there are such ? Certainly not • for then the ob- ject of the divine Reprover would contradict the object of the atonement which was restricted to those, and only those, for whom the atonement was made. The object of the Almighty in the influences of his Spirit upon the hearts of the eternally elected is easily divined : it is to bring them to salvation in Christ in accordance with the views of the advocates of a partial atonement; but holding this doctrine, and at the same time extending these divine influences to the repro- bates, involves an insuperable difficulty in giving an answer to the question. If the design of the Holy Spirit in reproving all men is to save all men, then we subjoin, the atonement was made for all men, for salvation cannot be designed for any for whom the atonement was not made. The friends of a limited atonement will not admit that such is the design of the Spirit's operations upon the hearts of all men, but the elect only, for whom Christ died. The question is still unanswered. What, then, is the intention of the Spirit in re- proving the world — reprobates, if any, as well as elect ? Is it to raise false hopes in the bosoms of those who have no Saviour — to mock their misery 198 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. by holding to their burning lips a Tantalus-cup of salvation, with no design that they shall ever tasto a drop ? Meanwhile he is continually crying, Drink, drink, it is the water of life — " whosoever will, let him take the water of life freely." But, poor souls, how shall they drink, when it never was intended that they should ? or is the design of the Spirit in convincing and calling them to leave them without excuse ? They want none but one, and that is furnished them by the doctrine of eternal reprobation. Should they, in the day of final settlement, be asked by the Judge why they were not saved, what if they should answer, We had no Saviour, and, therefore, salvation for us was impossible, and dost thou require impossi- bilities ? Art thou going to punish us for what was impossible for us to prevent ? " Shall mortal man be more just than God ? " That this would be a valid excuse upon their part will appear, we think from the following considerations : Now, suppose some should be lost for whom Jesus Christ suffered and died, making full atonement for their sins, and whom he enlightens and invites by his Spirit and gospel to come to him and be saved, warning them, meanwhile, of their immi- nent danger ; in a word, has done, and continues to do, every thing he can do for their rescue from sin and consequent perdition; we say, suppose some of those thus favored should willfully and MANS NEW STATE OF TRIAL. 199 rebelliously reject all and be lost ; all intelligent beings would see at a glance that such persons would be deprived of all excuse. Now, as that class of mankind for whom Christ never died, and who were shut off from the possibility of salva- tion, is the exact counterpart, or opposite to that, for whom ample provision was made, so would be the ground of their inexcusablcness or excusableness respectively. And as the ground occupied by the class amply provided for through the atonement of Christ renders the willful rejectors inexcusable, so the precisely opposite ground occupied by those for whom no provision whatever was made, would constitute the ground of their excusableness, since the?/ had no Saviour, nor any means afforded, de- signed of God, to save them. As the ground oc- cupied by the favored class is in direct opposition and contrast to the ground occupied by the class not thus favored, so is in opposition and contrast their inexcusableness, or excusableness, respect- ively. This appears as evident as that black is the opposite of white, or that darkness is opposed to light; for what is true upon one hypothesis, cannot be also true upon another hypothesis pre- cisely the reverse. If it is true that those who are lost, belonging to the class for whose salvation full provision was made, are without excuse, it can- not be also true that those having no such provi- sion are likewise without excuse ; and as the re- 200 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. verse of this is true, the latter class are furnished with an excuse upon the ground that no provision was made for them in the economv of human re- demption ; but if any are lost it will be their own fault — they will have no excuse; therefore the atonement is not limited, but general, in its pro- visions. One other point we would introduce as support- ing this argument, founded upon the unlimited extent of divine influence, and it is this : If it can be shown that any are lost who were the sub- jects of this influence, then the question will come up whether or not God was in earnest, looking to the salvation of such (now lost) sinners. That there are those who were once the subjects of divine influence, who are now lost beyond redemp- tion, is clearly shown from the sacred record. In the days before the flood, God saw that the wick- edness of man was great, and the earth was filled with violence, and the Lord said, " My Spirit shall not always strive with man." The wicked- ness of those antediluvian sinners with whom his Spirit had been striving with long-suffering in the days of Noah sunk them in a deluge of water, and drowned them in a flood of perdition. In the days of Solomon, God said to men of the same character, "Turn you at my reproof: be- hold, I will pour out my Spirit unto you." . . . But then he says, " Because I have called, and MAN'S NEW STATE OF TRIAL. 201 ye refused, ... ye have set at naught all my coun- sel, and would none of my reproof: I also will laugh at your calamity; I will mock when your fear cometh ; when your fear cometh as desolation, and your destruction cometh as a whirlwind ; when distress and anguish cometh upon you. Then shall they call upon me, but I will not answer; they shall seek me early, but they shall not find me." Again, in the New Testament we read of a similar character " trampling under foot the Son of God," and of doing " despite to the Spirit of grace," for whom, the Christ and Spirit despiser, there remained " no more sacrifice for sin." The question now is, Was God in earnest with these lost sinners in regard to their soul's salvation when he was operating upon them by his spiritual influ- ence, or was he not ? If we say he was not, we charge him with false dealing, which would be at our imminent peril ; but if we say he was in earn- est, desiring to save them according to the plan of salvation, then it will certainly follow that his plan of saving embraced them all ; and if divine influence is not limited, but is coextensive with the world of mankind, as Christ said it should be, and if God is in earnest, willing to save all whom his Spirit reproves of sin, it inevitably follows that the Saviour died and made propitiation " for the sins of the whole world." And hence, the inspired declaration that God is " not willing that 9* 202 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. any should perish, but that all should be saved and come to the knowledge of the truth," and that declaration grew out of the great fact that " there is one Mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, who gave himself a ransom for all." We have little or no sympathy with the dis- tinction which some make between what they style " common calls " and " effectual calls" as it involves an enigma we cannot solve ; we, there- fore, pass it over to doctors of a sharper meta- physical vision, who will either give it a solution satisfactory at least to themselves, or give it a place in the category of men-made mysteries, gath- ered around the doctrine of eternal election and reprobation, and that of a partial limited atone- ment. The ninth argument is based upon the texts recorded respectively in Mark iii.; Heb. vi., x.; 1 John v. The passage in Mark is' concerning blasphemy against the Holy Ghost ; that in Heb. vi. relates to certain persons who cannot be re- newed to repentance; Heb. x. speaks of those who trample under foot the Son of God, doing despite to the Spirit of grace ; and that in 1 John v. alludes to the sin which is " unto death." We think it is reasonable to conclude that these several passages allude to the same character of persons. That in Mark iii. speaks of those who blaspheme against the Holy Ghost; that in Heb. man's new state op trial. 203 vi. assures us that it is impossible to renew again to repentance those who fall away, after having been enlightened and "made partakers of the Holy Ghost;" that in chapter tenth designates such persons as doing "despite to the Spirit of grace;" and the passage in 1 John v. represents some as committing the sin unto death. The sin spoken of in the first case " shall not be forgiven in this world, neither in the world to come," and is therefore the sin unto death. The sin for which it is " impossible to repent," also sins for which there is " no more sacrifice," or atonement, must be "unto death." Taking this as our stand-point, let us fancy the world of mankind divided into two general classes. For the one class Christ made full atonement, and, if the doctrine of election is true, all of that class shall be infallibly saved. For the other he made no atonement, and these are consigned to eternal death. Now, let it be inquired, To which of these classes belong those persons who do, or may, com- mit such sins? If we sav to the class for which Christ atoned, all of which will be infallibly saved, we say what is false, since none who shall be thus saved can commit the unpardonable sin, or sin unto death. Hence, it is clear that the passages of Scripture above alluded to cannot apply to any of those persons whose salvation has been infalli- bly secured. Now, let us see whether they will 204 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. apply to those for whom no atonement was made, all of whom, of course, were consigned to eternal death. Christ says "all manner of sins and blas- phemy shall be forgiven the sons of men," except blasphemy against the Holy Ghost; but this can- not apply to those for whom there was no atone- ment, since no manner of sin or blasphemy could possibly be forgiven them; and besides, why designate one of their sins as being unpardonable, since all their sins are equally unpardonable? — as though a lord should say to his servants, "I never will pardon any of your offenses; but if you abuse my cattle, for thai offense I will never pardon you." Hence, it becomes evident that the passage with reference to the unpardonable sin cannot be ap- plied to those for whom there was made no atone- ment, all whose sins are alike unpardonable; nor yet can it apply to any of the class for whom Christ died, all of whom will be infallibly saved. Therefore, what Christ said about the blasphemy against the Holy Ghost has no application to any of the human race. This conclusion is inevitable upon the hypothesis that the atonement was made for a part only of mankind, and that that part was elected to eternal salvation. Those other passages alluded to cannot be rationally interpreted upon any other hypothesis than that Jesus Christ atoned for the sins of all mankind. For instance: how can the text in Heb. vi., relating to those who sin man's new state op trial. 205 willfully after they have been enlightened, and have been made partakers of the Holy Ghost? It is said of such, It is "impossible to renew them again to repentance;" and Paul gives the reason, "Seeing they crucify the Son of God afresh and put him to an open shame." Now, this scripture does not mean the literal murderers, or crucifiers, of Christ, for they were the special objects of the prayer of the cross, "Father, forgive them." Nor could those willful sinners spoken of in the text, nor indeed any others in this sense, crucify "afresh the Son of God;" but by their sins they crucified him the first time, and by their sin of willful and final rejection of him as their Saviour they could say "afresh," "Away with him," and "give us Barabbas," and thus crucify the Son of God afresh and put him to an open shame. If their sins had not been borne by the Son of God in his body upon the cross, and had no part in his crucifixion for sin, how could they be said to "crucify him afresh?" Christ, then, died for these willful fallen aivay sinners, for whom repentance was now "im- possible." The apostle illustrates the case most beautifully by the "earth, which drinketh in the rain that cometh oft upon it, and bringeth forth herbs meet for them by whom it is dressed, receiv- eth blessing from God; but that which beareth thorns and briers is nigh unto cursing, whose end is to be burned." What is the object of him 206 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. who sends upon the earth the vivifying showers of rain ? To cause it to bring forth fruit, most assuredly. So those hopeless willful sinners were "enlightened," being made " partakers of the Holy Ghost" to save them from the Divine anathema and everlasting burnings. And if this was the object of the Almighty in regard to those sinners, it legitimately follows that the atonement was made for them, for his object is to save none out- side of the atonement. The same, in substance, may be said of those who " trample under foot the Son of God, and count the blood of the covenant wherewith they were sanctified an unholy thing, and do despite to the Spirit of grace." How could those have any thing to do with the blood of Christ? That blood was never shed for them if they were not included in the atonement, and it would be to them as though it had never been shed; and besides, in what conceivable sense the blood of Christ could be said to "sanctify" reprobate sinners, for whom he made no atonement, is beyond our comprehen- sion. But if he shed his blood for all men, that all "might through him be saved," it is easy to see how that blood, in a high and an important sense, sanctified all men. It sanctified them in the sense of setting them apart to a new trial, or probation, under a dispensation of mercy. In this condition, they might trample that blood un- man's new state of trial. 207 der foot, and treat it as though it -was unholy, or no more than the blood of a common man, un- worthy of their favorable consideration ; and this is the only sense in which the passage can receive a sound interpretation. That other passage, recorded in 1 John v., which speaks of "the sin which is unto death,'" for the forgiveness of which the Church may not pray, is equally incapable of application either to the elect or to the reprobate. The advocates of the doctrine of a limited atonement cannot admit that a single one for whom the Saviour atoned could perpetrate that sin, as such admission would destructively collide with the doctrine of eternal election. Neither can the passage with any more propriety be applied to any (if there are such) for whom no atonement was made. Why should any particular sin of theirs be singled out as the "sin unto death" since all their sins are alike unto death ? In their irredeemable condition, it would be impossible for them to commit any one sin to which a preference could be given, as being unto death, more than to another of their sins, since they can perpetrate no sins but sins unto death. This being the case, the inspired John was either spending his breath in vain, in speaking of any particular sin of reprobates as being unto death rather than any other of their sins, or, then, he was not a believer in the doctrine of eternal elec- 208 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. tion and reprobation, and, by consequence, a be- liever in that of a general atonement. In con- firmation of the latter, hear the inspired man him- self: speaking of Jesus Christ, he says, "He is the propitiation for our sins ; and not for ours only, but also for the sins of the whole tvorld." Our tenth argument is founded upon 2 Cor. v. 14, 15 : " Because we thus judge, that if one died for all, then were all dead \ and that he died for all, that they which live, should not henceforth live unto themselves, but unto him which died for them, and rose again." In this text the apostle takes it as an undisputed fact that Christ died for all, and by this proves that all are dead. Dead how? In sin, of course. He died for none, but for sinners thus dead ; but he died for all, there- fore all were dead. This was the avowed judg- ment of Paul. He proves the universal prevalence of spiritual death from the great fact that Christ died for all, measuring thus the extent of the fall by the extent of the atonement. Now, to say that Christ did not die for all would be to say. that the apostle reasoned from a false premise, and ar- rived at a false conclusion — that is, that "all were dead" But this is not all : he tells us, in the same passage, that he not only judged that all were dead, but also that Christ did die for u all, that they which live, should not henceforth live unto themselves, but unto him which died for them, and man's new state of trial. 209 rose again." Hence, the doctrine of a limited atonement destroys all agreement between the apostle's premise and conclusion, and sets aside his judgment that Christ died for all ; but the har- mony is completely restored upon the ground of a general atonement. We will close this section with a few general remarks. When the awful crisis, predicted by Christ, of Jerusalem's destruction had arrived — when the terrible prognostics pointing to her over- throw and utter desolation and ruin glared upon the vision of the doomed inhabitants — history in- forms us that the children of God escaped from the city by a way opened up for them by his di- vine providence, while his "uttermost wrath" came upon those who did not flee — those from whose "eyes," according to Christ's declaration, "the things which belonged to their peace were hidden." But now it was too late ; the last lingering ray of light had vanished ; they were given over of God ; they had trampled under foot the Son of God, and counted his blood, which they had shed, as an unclean thing, unworthy as a sin-offering, and had "done despite to the Spirit of grace," crucifying thus the Son of God afresh, and putting him to open shame. For such there remained no more sacrifice for sin ; but had not this devoted, blinded people once a day, previous to the advent of Christ, and a day when he was personally among them, 210 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. preaching to them the kingdom of heaven and do- ing mighty works before their eyes, which epoch he emphatically styles "this their day?" Yes, they had a day, a day of light, when they might have known the things pertaining to their eternal "peace," but now they were "hid from their eyes;" and the whole burden of blood, from the blood of Abel to the blood of Zecharias, whom they had slain between the temple and the altar, was come upon that generation to whom Christ had just propounded the awfully pregnant question, "How can ye escape the damnation of hell?" Now, these incorrigibly wicked, God-given-over Jews were either included in the atonement of Christ or they belonged to that portion of mankind for whom no atonement was made. If no atonement was made for them, how could Jesus, in view of their approaching "damnation," weep over them, and break forth into that deep wail of heart-rending sorrow, "0 Jerusalem! Jerusalem! how often would I have gathered thy children together as a hen gathereth her chickens under her wings, and ye would not. Behold, your house is left unto you desolate?" Could the heart of Jesus sympa- thize with and weep over the lost condition of reprobates for whom not one drop of that heart's blood should be shed to make atonement? The thing is impossible. Those Christ-rejecting Jews were therefore included in the general atonement, man's new state of trial. 211 which leaves a large margin for Christ's sorrow of heart and tears of weeping. We would farther suggest that language could not be employed more likely to create in the minds of men the belief that the atonement by Christ included all mankind than was employed by Christ and his apostles. If they intended to teach the doctrine of a limited atonement, they used terms calculated to mislead the mind and to teach men precisely the reverse of what they intended. Who would ever suppose that Christ was teaching the doctrine of a partial atonement when he declared that "God so loved the world, that he gave his only-begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish," or, in the very next breath, confirming this by declaring that "God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through him (his atonement) might be saved?" or John the Baptist, when, pointing to the Saviour, he said, "Behold the Lamb of God that taketh away the sin of the world '?" Also, if Paul's intention was to teach that, in the econ- omy of redemption, provision was made for only a part of mankind, he was equally unhappy in the selection of terms to convey his ideas. Where could be found the unprepossessed mind that could conclude that he was aiming to teach that Christ died for only a part of mankind, when he affirmed that, by the grace of God, "he tasted death for 212 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. every man?" or when he says, "He is the Saviour of all men, especially of them that believe ?" or when he declares, " There is one Mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, who gave himself a ransom for all?" Peter, likewise, fell into the same mistake, for he opened his mouth and said, "Now I perceive of a truth that God is no respecter of (not merely nations, but) persons." The Apostle John, also, was at fault in this re- spect, when he says Christ the Righteous "is the propitiation for our sins ; and not for ours only, but also for the sins of the tvhole ivorld" and declaring farther, "And we have seen and do testify that the Father sent the Son to be the Saviour of the world" After this most striking unanimity in regard to the terms used by Christ and the apostles in teach- ing the extent of the atonement, one would almost be ready to conclude either that they had banded together to mislead the minds of men by pretend- ing that the atonement was general in its provis- ions, if indeed it was only limited, or that words have no definite meaning, and that mortals have neither chart nor compass to point their course , over the perilous sea of life and guide them to the haven of truth and happiness. But only let it be granted (and it would be the height of presump- tion to deny it) that Christ and his apostles, in the use of the most appropriate terms which they all employed, intended to teach the doctrine of the man's new state of trial. 213 general atonement, and the whole difficulty at once vanishes. In complete harmony with the provision through Christ's mediation for the salvation of all men are the calls of the Spirit, injunctions to repentance and faith, invitations to the gospel-feast and waters of life, with everv assurance that " 'whosoever will" may "take the water of life freely," and none shall be turned "away empty." Benefits of the Atonement. We cannot pretend to enumerate all these bene- fits, which are numerous, and which are of vital importance. We will, however, touch upon some that, are general in their application. 1. The stroke of injured and insulted justice due to the transgressor was diverted from the guilty object to the spotless Lamb of God "who taketh away the sin of the world," and man, by consequence, is permitted still to live upon the earth, and to propagate his kind. 2. He is appointed to a sec- ond probation, or state of trial. During this pro- bation he is again called upon to choose and deter- mine his destiny, either for his eternal happiness or everlasting misery. Thus circumstanced, a new condition is presented to him, asking compliance upon his part with the assurance of life everlasting, provided he does comply. This looks very much like the covenant of grace presented to fallen man 214 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. for his acceptance, in order to his future happiness; and all that is wanting to secure that glorious boon is a free heart-acceptance of that covenant by faith in the divinely-promised Seed of the woman. The second condition laid down to man, upon the ac- ceptance or rejection of which depends his final destiny, is not like the first. The first condition was, Do; the second, Believe. The difference be- tween the first and second conditions proposed to man is measured by the difference between his original moral purity and power and his present depraved and helpless situation. From an abstract view of man in his moral depravity and impotency, it would seem impossible for him to do or to choose any thing lying in the direction of either his spir- itual welfare or the glory of his Creator. This is even so, if we consider him separate and apart from the atonement by Christ, and "the grace of God which bringeth salvation," which "hath ap- peared to all men." In such a condition, not a single ray of light would be let into the dark and dreary region of his thought, and there would be no conceivable basis upon which to build the small- est hope. His rescue from this sad and awful di- lemma necessitates two things — the interposition of a mediator, and ability to avail himself of the benefits of the mediation. Such mediation and ability, though they would not deliver and save him, would, nevertheless, place him within the man's new state op trial. 215 limits of possible salvation ; and here comes in his second probation, or trial, which is, as above said, a second general benefit of the atonement. The third general benefit is the restoration of moral freedom. Had a sufficient atonement been made for sin, and man at the same time left without ability to obtain the benefits of it, what, so far as he was concerned, would it have availed him? Would looking into a well of cool water quench the traveler's thirst, unless he had the ability to draw and drink ? The economy of human redemp- tion would be incomplete did it not meet the case of man at every needy point. Hence, we may justly conclude that man's ability to choose be- tween good and evil — between life and death — a second time is restored to him in the second Adam, the Mediator. Thus he is set up with all the requisite antecedents to a new and second proba- tion. How man's power of choice in determining his destiny under this dispensation of grace is re- stored we need not inquire. We might be satis- fied upon this question by the declaration of Christ, "He that believeth shall be saved; he that be- lieveth not shall be damned." It is enough to know that God addresses and treats man as free to choose; and upon that ground alone he holds him accountable. It is certain that he who created man and elevated him to the dignified station of moral freedom could, in his purposes of mercy and 216 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. grace toward him, restore it, if lost. Christ said, " No man cometh unto me except the Father draw him," and, " If I be lifted up, I will draw all men unto me." Man, by his sin, had destroyed the centripetal bond between himself and the central moral sun, the fountain of light and life of the universe ; he had become an erratic body under a propelling force which, if not counteracted by an opposite influence, would drive him farther and farther from God; but such counteracting influence has been brought to bear, through grace. Christ has been lifted up, and draws all men, as he said he would do. He is "the sun" — a power, an influence from him has gone forth upon "all men." When Christ said, " I will draw all men," he did not mean that he would convert and save all men. What, then? He meant (we take it) that he would so influence them as to capacitate and put them in the right direction to come to him; and this means the restoration of moral freedom. A state of moral trial means moral power to choose; in the absence of this power, moral trial would be moral mockery. We have intimated a wide difference between the conditions " do " and ".believe" belonging, re- spectively, to the covenant of works and that of grace. Compliance with the first condition would have secured justification and life by works; com- pliance with the second secures justification and life by grace. "Not to him. that ivorJeefh, but to man's new state op trial. 217 him that ivorketh not but believeth." "It is of faith that it might be by grace!' The power to do belonged to man's original moral constitution ; the power to believe, since his moral prostration by sin, is graciously bestowed upon him. We have said the scheme of human salvation would be defective if it did not meet the case of man at all its points of moral necessity. Man's total moral darkness is certainly one of those points; for how shall the blind not "fall into the ditch?" But this point of great need is fully met in the plan of God to save men. Is it asked, Hotv? The answer is given by John, referring to Christ, " That was the true light that lighteth every man that cometh into the world." And this is a fourth general benefit of the atonement. Under this head may be included the enlightening influences of the Spirit and the revelation contained in the inspired writings which God has given to men. All these make spiritual manifestations of light upon the darkness of the mind of man, promising to lead him, if he will but follow, into the region of eter- nal day. Covenant of Grace. A covenant, in its proper acceptation, is an agreement, or contract, with a promise either ex- pressed or implied. A covenant may be proposed by one party, with a certain condition to be com- plied with, in order to entitle others to a partner- 10 218 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. ship. This is common in the every-day business of life. There are several covenants spoken of in the Scriptures : the covenant commonly called the covenant of works, made between the Creator and his creature, man; the covenant of Sinai with the Israelites ; and the covenant with Abraham, styled the covenant of grace. Although it is not ex- pressly stated in the Scriptures that there was a covenant made with our first father in Eden, yet when we consider him as endowed with moral lib- erty of will, and as being put upon a state of trial, with a test of obedience set before him, together with the inevitable consequence of disobedience, which was death, we cannot but conclude that life, which is the opposite of death, was promised upon his obedience ; and it is probable that his confirmation of state was, in symbol, placed before him in the mystic tree called " the tree of life." These things considered, we think it evident that a covenant existed between the Creator and his intelligent and accountable creature. This cove- nant is called the covenant of works, because it was conditioned upon perfect obedience upon the part of man. The covenant of Sinai, between Deity and the nation of Israel, was also condi- tioned upon their obedience, which they solemnly promised. (See Ex. xix. 8.) The stipulation upon the part of Deity consisted, principally, of man's new state of trial. 219 promises of temporal blessings — the possession of the originally promised inheritance of the land of Canaan, victory over their enemies, a high state of prosperity, together with forgiveness of their sins upon their penitence and return to him from their evil ways ; but the pardon of sin was not conditioned upon their external obedience, only so far as it evinced true penitence of heart, as the fruit of faith in the promised Messiah, which is the condition of the covenant of grace. This covenant is called the covenant of grace in contra- distinction from the covenant of works, and be- cause it promises an abundance of grace to all who embrace it. We are not to suppose that the covenant made with Abraham, which contained the promise that in his seed all nations should be blessed, and that he should- be the representative spiritual heir of the world, was disannuled by the covenant of Sinai. Under this covenant was the dispensation of the law, with promises chiefly of temporal blessings ; but this covenant of the law (as perhaps it might properly be termed) did not make void the covenant of grace. This Paul fully confirms in Gal. iii. 17: for "the law which was four hundred and thirty years after (the promise in the covenant with Abraham) cannot disannul that it should make the promise of none effect." The "seed" in this promise Paul de- clares to be Christ, and that by the promise " the 220 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. gospel was preached to Abraham." So in the same way was the Christ to come preached to the Jews during the whole law dispensation, for they were no strangers to the existence of this promise. In it Christ, the promised "Seed," was held up before them, and the law of sacrifices, cleansings, and purifications was designed, typically, to in- struct and direct them to him ; and in this way the law was appointed their "schoolmaster to bring them to Christ." But the law, or schoolmaster, dispensation was to be superseded and set aside by the new covenant, or gospel dispensation, for "after that Christ is come we are no longer under a schoolmaster." The new covenant is the same with the covenant of grace, only its promises were enlarged and amplified, and it was fully confirmed by the blood of Jesus Christ, its Mediator. If a Jew, coming continually to the blood of sacrificed birds and beasts, and washings and purifyings of the ceremonial law, failed to obtain a purified heart, "the bringing in of a better hope" would prove effectual. This "better hope" in Christ, brought in in the covenant of grace and set before that troubled Jew, if by faith he embraced it, did not fail to purify his "conscience from dead works to serve the living God." There is a remarkable analogy between the promise made to Adam after the fall and the prom- ise in the covenant with Abraham. In that to man's new state of trial. 221 Adam, the "seed" of the woman ; in that to Abra- ham, "and in thy seed" — which seed Paul inter- prets to be Christ. This gives us a glance at what is no doubt a fact, that this same covenant of grace was proposed to and embraced by our fallen Dither, and was renewed from time to time through the ages down to Noah, on to Abraham, thence to Isaac, Jacob, and through the prophetic age down to Christ ; and, by a little strict atten- tion, it may be seen that its light of promise grew the brighter all along its hopeful pathway the nearer it approached its actual confirmation by the blood of its Mediator on the cross of Calvary. And there, being actually confirmed, it does not stop, But, chartered anew by Mediatorial blood, its light of promise continually inspiring " the better hope " into the hearts of all of Abraham's spirit- ual children, it will continue on until the present dispensation shall open into perfect and perpetual day. We have said that the covenant of grace has existed ever since the first promise struck up its light of hope in our fallen world. Its condition is faith. "Abraham believed God (believed his promise of Christ), and it was counted to him for righteousness." He was justified by faith, and thus by faith became a party to the covenant, and was entitled to all its stipulated blessings. Abel, too, fulfilled its condition, for by faith he offered 222 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. to God a more excellent sacrifice than Cain. Cain was an unbeliever, a faithless sinner ; he slew his "righteous" brother. Enoch, and Noah, and Abraham, with a host of ancient believers, enume- rated in Heb. xi., believed the promise. These all died in faith, and, having embraced the prom- ises, were members of the covenant and heirs of the hope of eternal life. This covenant is open for admission to mem- bership to all who comply with its condition, but unbelievers have no title to its promised blessings. It is called the new covenant, perhaps, because of the greater clearness and enlargement of the lan- guage of its promises, which are set forth in such detail as to embrace every trial and emergency of the Christian warfare ; also, because it was to su- persede the covenant of the law, or of Sinai, and with the new dispensation to be recognized only as though it, also, was new — being the only cove- nant adapted to the new economy. The covenants are also in the Scriptures called testaments ; but between the two names there is no essential difference of meaning. The covenant called new is said to be estab- lished upon " better promises." This because the promises of the old, or law, covenant embraced, mostly, temporal blessings, while those of the new embraced all spiritual blessings, for this life and the life to come — its terms of promise to its man's new state of trial. 223 children being, concisely, " I will be their God." This is every thing, and enough. Christ a Prophet. He was a prophet in the fullest sense of the term. In their visions of the distant and great future, the ancient seers saw and spake of him as a prophet. By the spirit of prophecy, Moses said, "A prophet shall the Lord our God raise up unto you of your brethren. Him shall ye hear in all things : and whosoever will not hear that prophet shall be destroyed from among the peo- ple." No condition of man, on this side of the re- gions of woe, can be more wretched than to be sunk and buried in ignorance of God and of divine things. Such a condition would necessarily exist unless mankind were divinely illuminated. This moral want of knowledge of God, and of divine things which make for man's peace and happiness here and hereafter, is fully met in the economy of human salvation. Not only did Christ, in his day of literal sojourn upon the earth, fulfill the office in its twofold sense of foreteller and teacher ■, but from the earliest ages of the world inspired holy men to speak as they were moved by his Spirit; and thus speaking, they taught mankind the knowledge of God and the duties they owed to him. This knowledge, like a star — dim indeed at first — grew brighter and brighter, and threw a 224 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. more and more expansive light all along its heav- enly pathway, until it culminated in the zenith over the Babe of Bethlehem. Christ was a self-inspired prophet; his knowl- edge was infinite ; the fullness of the Godhead dwelt in him bodily. Here is the "great mystery of godliness." By independent self-intuition he comprehended in one view the eternal past, the great (to us) tangled web of the present, and the eternal future. John was as great a prophet as any born of woman. " Behold, a greater than John is here!" What a prophet! He spake as never man before had spoken. He spoke of his betrayal, of his suffering and death, resurrection and ascension to glory. He spoke also of the coming " baptism with the Holy Ghost and with fire ; " also, of Peter's fall, and the manner of Peter's death. He foretold the destruction of the Jewish temple and the total overthrow of the Jews, and their dispersion. Lastly, he foretold his second coming and the end of the w T orld. All these things have literally come to pass, except his second coming and the end of the world, both of which are drawing nigh. He foretold, also, the afflictions and persecutions of his Church, but de- clared "the gates of hell should not prevail against it." This latter prediction has held good during eighteen hundred years, and will continue to hold good until the Church fights her last battle and Iran's new state of trial. 225 wins her final victory, when it will receive its full accomplishment. Christ was a great teacher as well as foreteller. He taught men new lessons in the knowledge of God. He said, "No man knoweth the Father, but the Son, and he to whom the Son shall reveal him." He was constantly alluding to "my Father" "your Father" and "our Father " and thus from human fatherhood he conducts the minds of men up to the great Father of the universe, and says to them, " If ye, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more shall your Heavenly Father give good things to them that ask him." Here he gave men to understand that the great Father of all possessed in perfection all the qualities and attributes of Fatherhood. From this view of the character of God he deduced an- other lesson — that since God was a loving, com- passionate, impartial, and just Father, they should, with the utmost child-like confidence, trust him for his care and protection over them ; and to enforce this lesson, he pointed them to the fowls of the air and the lily of the field. The fowls neither sowed nor gathered into barns, yet " your Father feedeth them ; are ye not better than they ? " Now, consider the lilies : they toil not, neither spin, yet even Solomon's glory faded in the presence of the lily ; and if God so clothe the grass of the field, 10* 226 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. will he not clothe you, ye of little faith ? When this lesson receives sincere heart-attention, it be- comes a mighty faith-invigorator. Thousands have set themselves down to it with weak faith, and have risen from it with strong faith ; it is as appli- cable to the men of to-day as it was to those who heard it when it first fell from the lips of Christ, the great Teacher. Thus he taught men to know that God, as the great Father of all, possessed in his nature all the qualities and attributes essential to true and perfect Fatherhood. This at once re- veals God not only as an object of the profoundest veneration and most confident trust, but also of love ; and now he teaches that " all the laiv and the prophets" converge and meet in this single point — LOVE. This is the intense focus of the moral universe ; thence is radiated the divine warmth that is ever quickening and intensifying spiritual life. " God is love." God, then, is the great cen- ter of love; all the law and the prophets hang upon this center : " Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, soul, mind, and strength, and thy neighbor as thyself." The all-pervading and life-vivifying influence emanates from " God, who is love," reaching and vitalizing all upright spiritual natures; and from them it is returned back again to its primal source. There is, then, a continual interchange, a perpetual fluent and reflu- ent wave, of love between the great Father and man's new state of trial. 227 all his loving children. " We love him, because he first loved us." Christ taught much by parable : " The kingdom of heaven is like " such and such things. In the parable the thing that is used is familiar, and has in some important point a resemblance of what he wishes to unfold concerning the kingdom of heaven. The deep spiritual meaning, or truth, lies under, but gleams through, the outside parabolic figure, or resemblance. In this way of teaching he gave full scope to the action of the mind in its anxious search for the rich treasures of truth, as well as for the exercise of the genius and fancy. The man who understood his parables was as a " scribe instructed unto the kingdom of heaven, and as a householder which bringeth forth out of his treas- ure things new and old." Christ, the great teaching Prophet, taught also doctrinally. This is the positive-absolute side of his teaching. He never said, This is my opinion. He had no opinions ; with him it was all the most dogmatical, or positive, knowledge. When he pro- nounced a doctrine, it admitted of no modifica- tions; it was a finality. "He that believeth shall be saved, and he that believeth not shall be damned " is final, and settles the world's destiny. "And he taught daily in the temple; but the chief priests and the scribes, and the chief of the people, sought to destroy him; and they could 228 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. not find what they might do, for all the people were attentive to hear him." Christ a Priest. The office of the priest, under the ceremonial law, was to offer sacrifices for the sins of the peo- ple — to intercede for and to bless them. Until the days of Moses, and the promulgation of the law by him, the priesthood was not confined to any particular family; previous to that time the first-born of every family, the fathers, the princes, and kings, were priests. Immediately after the giving of the law at Sinai, young men chosen from among the people were appointed to that office, and served until, by a divine statute, it was con- fined to the tribe of Levi. The high-priests, who alone entered once a year into the holy of holies, were set apart to their office in the same way with ordinary priests, with the exception that there was poured upon their heads a greater quantity of the oil of consecration, whence they were called " the anointed." They were eminent types and figures of Christ, who was specially ordained of God as "the High-priest of our profession." The term priest is most appropriately applied to Christ, who, by the sacrifice of himself, made full atonement for sin, and by his own blood entered into the holy of holies, even into heaven itself — there, by his intercession, " to appear in the pres- man's new state of trial. 229 ence of God for us." " Thou art a priest forever after the order of Melchisedec," was the divine appointment of Christ by the Father. He glori- fied not himself to be made a priest, but was called to that office. Christ was not a priest after the order of the sons of Aaron ; they were " made priests after the law of a carnal commandment," but he, " after the power of an endless life." Their priesthood was " weak and unprofitable," expiat- ing sin only typically; but that of Christ, really, and is effectual to the soul's eternal redemption. The priests under the typical law could not con- tinue by reason of death; but Christ "continueth ever," having "an unchangeable priesthood." The former were made priests "without an oath," but Christ "with an oath" — "The Lord sware and will not repent, Thou art a priest forever after the order of Melchisedec," who was a preeminent type of Christ. First, he had no legal successor/ nor predecessor. Secondly, he is essentially and truly the " King of righteousness and peace." Thirdly, " without father " as to his human nature, " or mother " as to his Godhead. Fourthly, no special time mentioned when his priesthood began, or when it should end — "without beginning of days or end of time." Fifthly, he is, like his bright type, both Priest and King. It is some- what remarkable that this mysterious "King of Salem and priest of the most high God " met 230 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. Abram when he was returning from his pursuit and overthrow of the Assyrian kings, with bread and wine, the very elements chosen by Christ as the proper emblems in the sacred supper to show forth his death. Nor should it be forgotten that Abram paid tithes to him and received his bless- ing, just as Christ, our great Priest-king, blesses all who bring their offerings into his store-house. See Malachi iii. 10. Christ also is an Intercessor, " He ever liveth to make intercession." Again, Paul says, " Who is even at the right hand of God, who also mak- eth intercession for us." He is likewise an advo- cate : " If any man sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ, the righteous." We are not to conceive, however, that Jesus Christ bows down, or prostrates himself before the divine Majesty after the manner of suppliants at the feet of earthly monarchs ; his presence before the throne of Heaven is all-sufficient; his infinite merit pleads, " Father, forgive." Christ a King. It is declared, " Behold, I set my King upon my holy hill of Zion." "Ask of me, and I shall give the heathen for thine inheritance, and the utter- most parts of the earth for thy possession." All earthly monarchs, even the very best, are defi- cient in essential properties to wield the scepter man's new state of trial. 231 of government, and guide unerringly the ship of State ; but Christ possesses every quality neces- sary -to the kingly office — wisdom, to direct and govern ; power, to defend his subjects ; justice, goodness, and truth, which will ever dispose him to advance and sustain their interests and happi- ness. The kingdom of Christ is a spiritual king- dom — " My kingdom is not of this world," it is from heaven ; hence, it is called the kingdom of heaven— it is set up in the hearts of his people. " Know ye not that the kingdom of God is within you ? " Christ is called in the Scriptures, " King of Zion," " King of saints," " King of peace," " King of glory," " King of kings and Lord of all;" King eternal, immortal, and invisible. Christ, as King, is infinitely above all earthly monarchs — they are mortal, he is immortal ; they temporary, he eternal. He is exalted far above all princi- pality, and power, and might, and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in the earth, but also in heaven. He is the "head over ail things to the Church, which is his body, the full- ness of him who filleth all in all." Eph. i. 22, 23. His laws are administered according to justice and truth — " Just and true are thy ways, thou King of saints." He will conduct his Church-kingdom to final victory over all opposing forces, for he " must reign till all his enemies be put under his feet ;." and " the kingdom .... and the greatness 232 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. of the kingdom under the whole heaven shall be given to the people of the saints of the Most High." Dan. vii. 27. "And they shall live and reign with him." Repentance and Faith. The doctrine of repentance is extensively taught in the Scriptures — Christ taught it ta the self- righteous Jews : " Except ye repent, ye shall per- ish." Paul, in his sermon at Athens, in the midst of Mars' Hill, proclaimed it to the people : " Now he (God) commandeth all men everywhere to re- pent ;" and Peter said, " Repent ye, and be con- verted." In order to repentance, three things are indis- pensable : First, sorrow for sin ; secondly, reform- ation; thirdly, both must have respect to God. Hence, the apostle styled it, " Repentance toward God." A man may be sorry for his misdeeds, because they have brought upon him some temporal mis- fortune or bodily affliction, and his sorrow has re- spect to nothing higher than his disappointment in trade, or his physical sufferings, which have thwarted his schemes of speculation and of mak- ing money; his carnal indulgences may have brought upon him diseases which incapacitate him for their farther enjoyment, or his bad con- duct may have injured his popularity, for all man's new state of trial. 233 which he is very sorry, but his regrets are con- fined within the narrow limits of worldly interests and enjoyments. All this may happen without any thorough reformation, and without any refer- ence to God. What is this but " the sorrow of the world, which worketh death ? " Reformation itself from motives of worldly gain, or to com- pass some selfish end, such as the applause of men, or to obtain political power and the emolu- ments of office. All such reformation has an eye single to things of this world, and no reference to God, against whose laws the offenses have been perpetrated. Such repentance can, by no means, be recognized as true repentance — such as the Apostle Paul preached. He preached "publicly and from house to house, repentance toivard God'' Hence, to be genuine, it must have special respect to God, against whom we have sinned ; and this is the reason why it is called repentance toward God. The world is full of repentance toward self and selfish ends, but comparatively very little to- ward God. True repentance is accompanied with a deep conviction of sin, and desert of punish- ment; also, with a sense of hardness of heart, a guilty and an accusing conscience, and a dread of future misery. A feeling also of utter helpless- ness and moral poverty is realized by the true penitent, and every other refuge sought for re- lief failing him, he looks to God and earnestly 234 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. prays for pardon. As repentance is "toward God" so faith is " toivard our Lord Jesus Christ" Repentance makes humble and prayerful confes- sion of sin to God ; faith obtains remission through the blood of Christ. Is it inquired, What is faith ? Many sermons have been preached; and chapters written, in an- swer to this question, and who to-day is the wiser for it ? Can a better answer be given than is con- tained in Paul's definition : " Now faith is the sub- stance of things hoped for, and the evidence of things not seen?" This shows at once that faith, as defined by Paul, is something more than a mere act of the understanding. Thousands have given their cold assent to the truth of the Bible, and in this low and lifeless sense may be said to believe on Christ, that is, they do not disbelieve ; or, going a step farther, they may believe, in the popular sense of the term, from sufficient evidence, that the Christian system is true, and yet this be- lief has no deeper effect upon them than their be- lief that there was such a Roman as Julius Cesar, or such an American as Benjamin Franklin. Such faith is, so to speak, of the head ; it is merely in- tellectual. Whereas, it is " with the heart man believeth unto righteousness." "If thou shalt believe in thy heart thou shalt be saved." Recur- ring to what Paul says, it is a divine substantiality seated in the heart. Not that this divine sub- man's new state of trial. 235 stance is, by a sovereign act of God, seated in the heart without the intellectual belief and the full and uncoerced acceptance of the heart. In this acceptance of Christ as a Saviour, he is brought into the heart, and this is what Christ means when he says, " I in them ;" and Paul, when he says, " If Christ be in you." Thus, in the be- lieving heart by faith he becomes the substance of its spiritual vitalities and realities. It stirs up and controls the deepest heart-emotions, and be- comes the ruling power of all the purposes and actions of life. "As seeing him who is invisible," it sees Jesus on the cross, suffering and dying for me; it sees him enthroned in heaven, wearing a crown of victory, a sure pledge of my victory. And this spiritual substance and sight, vitalized by and glowing with love, by which it " works," is what Paul calls faith. Another distinctive mark of saving faith is, that it purifies the heart ; it is the grand instru- ment of heart-purification. Peter, in relating to the elders and apostles, met in council, the events which occurred at the house of Cornelius, said that God "put no difference between us and them (Jews and Gentiles), purifying their hearts by faith." And as a third mark of distinction, it is victorious over the world. John says, "And this is the victory that overcometh the world, even our faith? Now, none of these character- 236 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. istics will apply to any but saving faith ; neither that species of faith called the faith of miracles, nor historical faith, nor yet the faith of devils, will admit their application; although some in Christ's day, who were healed of their infirmities, seemed to exercise saving faith as well as faith to be healed of their bodily diseases, yet we must believe there were some who did not ; if so, their mere belief that he could heal them neither " worked by love, nor purified their hearts, nor overcame the world." The same may be said of historical faith, and the faith of devils. That the above distinctive marks belong to faith unto salvation, is farther evident when we remember that there is no true religion without love ; a mere profession is but as sounding brass. The Christian faith is seated, not in the intellect merely, but deep in the heart, inclusive of the affections as well as of the intellect ; not specu- lative or ideal, but a spiritual subsistence — a liv- ing power ever drawing upon the infinite re- sources of the life and power of Christ, its au- thor and finisher. Never in any heart did this faith exist in the absence of love ; as well might animal life exist without animal heat. Faith and love are simultaneous in existence and coopera- tive in action ; hence, " faith worketh by love." Again, the heart is never purified in the absence of faith. It appeals directly to the blood of Christ, man's new state of trial. 237 " which cleanseth from all sin ; " and for this reason it is said to purify the heart. Faith, in receiving Christ for a Saviour, receives him not only as an atoning, but also as a victorious, Saviour ; and his victory is, in " substance," the victory of faith, since it is what the Christian " hopes for." Hence, faith is said to be the victory that overcometh. Numerous instances of its mighty conquests are collected, as in a bright constellation, and recorded in Heb. xi. The question whether faith is the act of the creature or the gift of God has been the subject of much speculation. The act of the creature ? The more we study in the light of the Bible the nature of faith, the less we regard it an act, in the human sense of the term. In this latter sense the assent of the understanding to propositions which may be laid before it may properly be con- sidered an act ; it is the yielding of credence, or it is belief, in the human sense, and is an intellect- ual act. Such faith is the act of the creature in regard to history — faith that Christ was a healer of the body — and is even the act of demons ; but this faith does not meet the case as it is put by Paul. He says faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. Can this substance-evidence be an act of the creature? This, certainly, is the gift of God, concurrent upon his part with the free acceptance upon the part of 238 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. the sinner ; and this free acceptance is all of the action upon the part of the creature, and, although it involves his moral freedom, it bears but little comparison to the value of the gift which is the substance of what he freely receives. In the sub- stantive evidence of faith is included Christ, who is made, to as many as receive him, "wisdom, righteousness, sanctifi cation, and redemption." In this way may Ave not come to understand the meaning of Paul, when he says that Abraham's faith "was imputed to him for righteousness?" This, we think, is plain, taking faith in the light of the apostle's definition ; also, that other passage, where it is said, "It is of faith that it might be by grace ; " and again, " Not to him that worketh, but to him that worketh not but believeth," or receives Christ in his faith, which gives it a substantive vitality. Thus Christ is in the creature's faith, which brings Christ into the heart, and brings, at the same time, the creature into Christ. Hear the intercessory prayer: "As thou, Father, art in me and I in thee, that they may be one in us" Again, he says, " I in them, and thou in me, that they may be made perfect in one;" "If any man be in Christ he is a new creature;" and "If Christ be in you the body is dead because of sin, but the spirit is life because of righteousness." Now, the carnal bond is severed ; the believer is brought out of his captivity to " the law of sin and death," man's new state of trial. 239 and comes under the "perfect law of liberty" — "the law of the spirit of life in Christ Jesus," which makes the believer free from the " law of sin and death;" all which is accomplished in faith, "and that (in its substantive life) not of your- selves: it is the gift of God." As morally free by a gracious dispensation, it was yours willingly to accept, in which there could be no more merit than in a starving man's acceptance of a loaf of bread. Hence, salvation is all of grace. The glory all be given to God. Let Jesus Christ be exalted above the heavens ; let the sinner, saved, be humbled at his footstool. From the apostle's definition of faith, and from the distinctive marks it bears — as working by love, purifying the heart, and achieving the victory over the world — it is quite evident that it not only in- cludes the free, uncoerced reception of salvation, but vastly more : it includes this, and has con- joined with the reception, the "substance," "the evidence of things not seen." What if we should call it the act of the heart? David represents his heart as talking: "When thou saidst unto me, Seek ye my face, my heart said unto thee, Thy face, Lord, will I seek." This is but expressing in words the act of his heart. Receiving Christ, then, is a heart act, including all the moral powers of the inner man — a heart-election of Christ as an all-sufficient Saviour, the spiritual substantive life 240 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. of faith. Without this there is no saving faith; all else is merely human, and comes of our natural faculties. Faith the Condition of Salvation. If it be not the condition upon which God pro- poses to save men, what is it? Some hold, and teach, that it is a consequence of regeneration ; but this is far from satisf3 r ing the question, for Christ and his apostles required faith of unregen- erate men : " Except ye believe that I am he, ye shall die in your sins;" " Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved." But if faith is a consequence of regeneration, what then? These persons might have replied, and justly, too, First give us a new heart, and then, and not till then, can we believe ; so your preaching to us to believe is labor lost — is all in vain — for it is im- possible for us to believe until our hearts are re- newed ; and besides, you are inconsistent in mak- ing such a requirement. If the salvation of men is not conditioned upon faith, upon what is it conditioned ? Here, again, we are told that it is unconditional, so far as men are personally concerned. Then, it follows that if they are saved at all they are saved without a condition with which they, as moral free agents, may or may not comply. Such a procedure upon the part of God would collide with his own work, man's new state of trial. 241 for he has endowed man with moral freedom capa- ble of choosing his own destiny; and to fix his destiny for him without consulting him, and, by consequence, without his consent, would ignore his moral freedom and let him down upon a lower plane, upon a common level with animals that have no souls and no moral liberty. But if Deity lays down a condition with which man may or may not comply, then he deals with him as an intelligent being endowed with moral freedom, and leaves a margin for calling him to an account for the use he has made of his moral liberty, and for rewarding or punishing him accordingly. But, after all, it must be acknowledged that there is in Christian, or saving, faith something somewhat difficult of solution to the believer himself, and far more dif- ficult to explain to others; but this need not startle us, since it is interlinked with the spiritual union between Christ and his Church, which Paul declares (Eph. v. 32) to be "a great mystery." The difficulty of conveying intelligibly ideas of spiritual things in human language proves its im- potence and utter poverty. The heart alone is the best interpreter of the things of the Spirit. In our remarks upon faith we have endeavored to adhere as closely as possible to Paul's definition of it ; and our object in so doing is to guard against the error of humanizing and confounding it with the common belief among men, which is merely 11 242 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. human. To mistake this for saving faith would be fatal, which, w T e have but too much reason to fear, has been done by many superficial outside Christians. Such persons, having a name to live, are dead, because they have no other than a dead faith. The most effectual guard against this de- structive error is to be found only in Paul's divine- ly-inspired definition of true faith, which, by no means, can be applied to any other species of faith, or belief, without giving his definition a forced construction. True gospel faith is also guarded by its distinct- ive scriptural marks — working by love, purifying the heart, and victory over the world. Of Justification. The terms "justification" and u justify" are of frequent occurrence in the Scriptures. There are several senses in which the term is used, and sev- eral applications, according to the character to whom applied. Justification has an allusion to law, or courts of law, and, in the strictly religious sense, it refers to the law of God. In order to a correct view of the subject, we may notice three characters: (1) as innocent, or upright and holy; (2) as a sinner, but penitent and believing; (3) as believing and regenerated. I. As our first progenitor, while maintaining his original purity, was uncondemned by the law of man's new state of trial. 243 God, he stood in a justified state, since justifica- tion is the opposite of condemnation. II. As a penitent believing sinner. Justifica- tion in this sense is an act of God, as a supreme and merciful Ruler, wherein he forgives the sins of those who repent sincerely and believe on Jesus Christ, and gives them a title to eternal life solely on account of his obedience and satisfaction. That it is a judicial act of God is evident from the fact that the term is used in the sense of to acquit one in judgment — to account him righteous in the eye of the law. In proof of this, consider the follow- ing passages of Scripture in reference to corrupt judges who are bribed to acquit those who ought in justice to be punished : " Woe unto them which justify the wicked for reward." " He that Justi- ne th the wicked and condemneth the just are both an abomination to the Lord." It is the act of God in regard to the believing penitent. " It is God that justifieth, who is he that condemneth?" In justification there is remission of sins. This God does as a merciful Governor, whose mercy, in Christ, extends free pardon to all who repent and believe, since God only can forgive sins. There is also included a title to eternal life. Par- don of sins and a title to life are joined together. " That they may receive forgiveness of sins and inheritance among them which are sanctified." A similar title would have been secured to Adam had 244 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. he successfully passed his trial and come off from the scene of his temptation victorious. His title to life, however, would not have heen predicated upon the same ground as that of the pardoned sinner — the atonement of Christ. Adam not hav- ing sinned, and having no need of an atonement, would have secured the title upon the ground of his own personal obedience ; but man, through the fall, being dead in trespasses and in sins, and hav- ing lost all ability to work, must be pardoned, if pardoned at all, and obtain his title to life through the atonement of Christ, upon the condition of faith, which stands in contrast to worJcs. Hence, the doctrine of justification by faith, as taught by Paul, "without the deeds of the law," and "by the deeds of the law there shall no flesh be justi- fied in his sight." The doctrine of justification by faith was the key which unlocked to Luther the rich treasures of gospel truth, and which he con- verted into a mighty engine to shake and breach the strongholds of the Romish hierarchy. Paul's " man of sin " trembled on his throne, while con- fusion and dismay spread through all his domin- ions. By this doctrine and its cognates he and his co-workers wrought out, under God, a mighty reformation — emancipating the minds of men for centuries held in slavery by the Romish priest- hood. The heart of true religion, inspired with fresh life-powers, began to beat in unison with the man's new state of trial. 245 truths of the gospel, and letters, long buried, awaking frdm their death-like slumbers, began to shed light upon the great subjects of religious and political freedom. Justification by faith was the great Reformer's central point, whence radiated the mighty forces which shook terribly the foun- dations of Romish superstition and idolatry. This doctrine is taught at large in the Epistle to the Romans, a considerable portion of the third and fourth chapters, with the commencement of the fifth, being devoted to that subject. The apostle treats (1) of the ground, or consideration, upon which God consistently with his justice can justify the believer, which is the propitiatory sac- rifice of Christ; (2) the merit of the offering styled "his righteousness" is declared "for the remission of sins," " that he (God) might be just and the justifier of him that believes in Jesus." (See Rom. iii. 24, 25, 26.) The principal object of Paul, in this part of his epistle, appears to have been to correct an error then prevalent, at least among the Jews, that men were justified in the sight of God by their works. This unhappy blun- der was the prolific source of boastful Pharisaical self-righteousness, which characterized the most popular and influential portion of that people, and hung as a dark veil over the nation at large. Self- reliant, they set at naught the righteousness of Christ, and Christ with it, hoping to destroy him 246 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. and, by consequence,, the only true ground of justi- fication " before God." In this is seen the culmi- nation of this ruinous error. It sets up self, and puts down Christ; it is truly dangerous; but, dangerous as it is, it is not confined to the Jews, but is to-day embraced by many, and relied upon for justification and future happiness. What a slender reed ! When support is most needed, it will break and pierce the hand of him who holds it. Imputation of Christ's righteousness for justi- fication. This appears to be the Scripture doc- trine. Here, to aid in clearing our views, we refer again to the first father of mankind. Had he resisted the tempter, and confirmed his obedi- ence to God, he would have been justified in Ms own righteousness ; but now fallen, and having none of his own, he must be justified by that of another, and that is the righteousness of Christ — not man's own, but Christ's imputed to him. The imputation of the righteousness of Christ to men beautifully corresponds to the imputation of their sins to him. Of sin, he had none of his own, but sin was imputed to him; of righteousness, men have none of their own, but righteousness is im- puted to them. And as Christ, without coercion or constraint, took upon him our sins and " bore them in his own body " to his condemnation and penal suffering and death, so we freely, without coercion, receive his righteousness for justifica- man's new state of trial. 247 tion and freedom from penal suffering and death, and for a title to life everlasting. To receive Christ is to believe on him. "As many as received him, to them gave he power to become the Sons of God, even to them that be- lieve on his name." The free acceptance of Christ, or his righteousness unto justification and life, divinely harmonizes with his unconstrained acceptance of sin to his condemnation to death. In these transactions of infinite concern Ave see upon the stage two personages : upon the one hand we see the first Adam of the earth, a condemned sinner; upon the other, the second Adam, the Lord from heaven. The first has lost life with God ; the second has come to restore it. To this end it is indispensable that the second make an atonement for the first, that he may be redeemed from the curse or penalty of the law he has violated, and for this purpose he takes on himself the nature of the first, and having no sin of his own, he assumes, in the eye of the violated law, the place of the violator. In each of these personages we also find moral freedom, the one inherently and absolutely free ; the other, subordinately free by a divine and gra- cious dispensation. The one freely and volunta- rily accepts, by imputation, the sins of the other, and suffers death, the impending penalty ; meets the demands of the law, vindicates its honor and 248 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. glory, and so working out a righteousness equiva- lent to its demands in the room of the other "de- clares " it, and offers it to him for his justification unto life upon the simple condition of his volun- tary acceptance. The other, in the right use of his moral freedom, graciously bestowed, freely and voluntarily responds to the offer, and through faith accepts or receives the unspeakable boon of righteousness which is now imputed to him for his justification, involving the full pardon of sin and an indefeasible title to eternal life ; the whole mo- mentous concern is ratified in heaven. Upon the part of the second Adam it is proclaimed, " This is my beloved Son in whom I am well pleased ;" upon the part of the first, " He that believeth on the Son hath everlasting life." What a plan ! Eternity would have been too short for human wisdom to have guessed it. In all these infinitely important transactions, upon the consummation of which hangs the eter- nal destiny of men, we see none of the inefface- able foot-prints of fate — nothing of the overpow- ering forces of secret, unchangeable decrees. How could we, since we are told they are secret? "Se- cret things belong to God," and of course are not revealed ; and to say this thing or that was se- cretly decreed, is to say we " are wise above what is written." We see nothing of sovereign, absolute interpo- man's new state of trial. 249 sition arresting the sinner in "effectual calling" and in regenerating him without his consent ; noth- ing of an unconditional surrender, as though he were a horse ; nothing of unconditional salvation, as if he were as destitute of moral freedom as things of the lowest life, or as dead matter ; but we see on both sides the enthronement of moral freedom ; we see at every step its outgoings from its beginning to its consummation. We see Jesus Christ in the exercise of his inherent, independ- ent moral freedom, receiving by imputation the sins of mankind — bearing them in his own body — making " an end " of them " by the sacrifice of himself," and bring in an everlasting righteousness to be declared for the remission of sin, that God might be just in the justification of all that be- lieve. We see a free tender of this meritorious consideration, the merits of Christ, made to the sinner to whom " it shall be imputed " if he " con- tinue not in unbelief." Lastly, we see the sinner in the right use of his moral freedom, receiving Christ who is the " end of the law for righteous- ness to every one that believes." In all this it is clear, beyond successful controversy, that faith is the condition upon which justification, or remis- sion, of sin is obtained. This point of doctrine is fully established by the Apostle Paul when speaking of the faith of Abraham, which faith, he says (meaning the substance of his faith, that 11* 250 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. is, Christ), was imputed to him for righteousness. " Now," he continues, " it was not written for his sake alone, that it was imputed ; but for ours also, to whom it shall be imputed, if we believe on him that raised up Jesus our Lord from the dead." Here it is clearly manifest that the imputation of Christ's righteousness for justification and remis- sion of sins is conditioned upon faith; for the apostle says, " To whom it shall be imputed, if ive believe." And what follows as an unavoidable con- clusion ? It is this, If we believe not, it shall not be imputed. And if those teachers in Israel, many of them learned, talented, and useful, would once admit that salvation is conditional, which, we think, in all good faith and fairness, they ought to do, they would be compelled to relinquish the doctrine of eternal election and reprobation ; for this doctrine admits of no condition whatever, but makes salvation upon the part of the elect, and perdition upon the part of the reprobate, uncondi- tional. The simple admission that human salva- tion is conditioned upon faith in Jesus Christ, clears up the mystery supposed to envelop the doctrine of eternal predestination, which has been acknowledged as "highly mysterious" Mysteri- ous, indeed, it is, when it is made to embrace and determine the everlasting happiness or misery of rational, accountable free agents ; for then it is hard to see how it can consist with man's moral man's new state of trial. 251 freedom, or how the ways of God are equal, or how he is impartial and no respecter of persons, or how Christ takes upon him the human nature, and in that whole nature suffers and dies, and makes an atonement for a part only of human kind, or with what propriety God can reward the elect and punish the reprobate, or how he could predestine a part of the infantile world " dying in infancy to be saved, and all the rest thus dying to be lost." Now all this mysteriousness has been thrown around the doctrine of predestination by giving it a wrong application — by placing within its grasp of fatality the personal eternal destiny of intelli- gent, accountable beings, endowed with moral free- dom. Let it include all creation bek>AV man in the scale of being, but coming " hitherto," let it "come no farther;" let it not fix unchangeably and unconditionally the everlasting happiness or misery of men ; and the single admission that sal- vation is conditioned upon faith, loosens its sup- posed hold upon rational man, and clears away those inscrutable mysteries which men themselves have thrown around it. If men continue in un- belief, it is at their own peril. "He that believ- eth shall be saved ; he that believeth not shall be damned." The believer shall joyfully hear, " Come, ye blessed of my Father ;" the unbeliever, " De- part from me." 252 medium theology. Regeneration and Adoption. Moral harmony is indispensable to moral hap- piness. This harmony between God and man was destroyed by sin. God is a holy being. By sin man became unholy. He assumed a nature opposed to the nature of God. Disharmony is the consequence. To restore the lost harmony between God and man, by removing or " putting away " the disturbing element, Christ died upon the cross, by virtue of which sin may not only be pardoned, but its pollution removed from the heart by the power of the Holy Spirit in regen- eration. This divine change is variously designated in the Scriptures, such as a new creation — " created anew in Christ Jesus." " If any man be in Christ he is a new creature." Also by purifying or washing — "By the washing of regeneration and the renewing of the Holy Ghost;" by passing " from death unto life ;" by being " born again," " born of God," " born of the Spirit." " Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he can- not enter into the kingdom of God." Admitting that the water of outward baptism is here meant, it is but the visible sign or symbol of the inward grace of regeneration ; just as circumcision was a sign or figure of the circumcision of the heart, as Paul teaches, that " he is not a Jew, which is one man's new state of trial. 253 outwardly; neither is that circumcision which is outward in the flesh ; but he is a Jew, which is one inwardly; and circumcision is that of the heart, in the spirit." The symbol is not unfre- quently joined to the thing symbolized, and some- times by metonomy put for it, as in John vii. 38 : " He that believeth on me, as the Scripture hath said, out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water." Here the " rivers of living w T ater," the symbol, is put for the Spirit, as is shown by the explanation immediately subjoined, " This spake he of the Spirit, which they that believe on him should receive." Also the bread and wine of the sacred supper : the bread is called the body, and the wine the blood, of Christ. Another instance occurs in 1 Pet. iii. 21, in speaking of the ark, where " eight souls were saved by water," which was a figure of spiritual salvation by Christ. Peter says, " The like figure whereunto even baptism doth also now save us ;" that is, as Noah's salvation by water literally was then a figure of salvation by Christ, so baptism is now a figure of salvation by the purifying power of the Spirit, " not the putting away of the filth of the flesh, but the answer of a good conscience." Thus, when in the just quoted passage it is said we are saved by baptism, which Peter says is a figure, we are to understand by it nothing more than a figure, or an outward symbol of inward purification by the Holy Spirit. 254 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. Many other texts are rightly interpreted in the same way, as when the words of Christ are said to be Spirit and life, and when the word is called " the sword." In such passages the spiritual idea is lodged in the figurative. Men whose minds are carnal, not " knowing the Scriptures and the power of God," are liable greatly to err. Taking hold of the figurative idea, they perceive not the spir- itual one, like the image of the sun cradled in the dew-drop. Hence the overweening importance that many are disposed to attach to external rites and ordinances. This was the great error of the carnal Jews ; and being blind to the deeper mean- ing or spiritual significance of the types and fig- ures, they mistook the sign for the thing signified — the shadow for the substance ; and, trusting in their performance of outward ceremonies for right- eousness, they rejected the Messiah and lost their souls. The pure religion of the Bible has been greatly imposed upon in every age by being diluted, or rather corrupted, with an admixture of human tra- ditions and speculations. From this source have sprung schisms and heresies endangering the soul by false notions of radical doctrines, and none at greater hazard than erroneous views of the doc- trine of regeneration. I. The necessity of regeneration grows out of the depravity of man's fallen nature. Human MAN S NEW STATE OF TRIAL. 255 nature, pure and holy, needs no change, since that nature would then harmonize with the nature of God, which harmony is the indispensable condi- tion of communion with him — of dwelling in his presence in peace and happiness. The moral purity of God and the moral corrup- tion of man is a contradiction which cannot be reconciled. There is no moral affinity between sin and holiness. Holiness cannot love sin, nor sin holiness. God hates evil and evil hates God. " The carnal mind is enmity to God," and " the face of the Lord is against them that do evil." Heaven, a pure and holy place, can never tolerate the presence of a sin-polluted, fallen spirit — a being whose delight would be in blaspheming the name of God, slighting all overtures of goodness and mocking the divine authority. Such a being in heaven would be tenfold more hideous than the specter in the vision of Eliphaz ; the angels and the redeemed and pure would quit his neigh- borhood, and leave him, if possible, in eternal sol- itude. Like a mountain shadow, he would darken the light of heaven. Never could such a sin-pol- luted being be permitted to dwell within the pure and hallowed precincts of the paradise of God. Such is man's moral condition; his nature de- praved — unlike God — no relish for his enjoyment, and no spiritual aptitude for either the society or the employments of the holy inmates of heaven. 256 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. Hence the necessity of regeneration. "Ye must be born again." II. But what is the nature of the change called regeneration? 1. It does not respect our phys- ical organism ; neither does it respect the instincts, appetites, and passions of our animal nature, ex- cept so far as they are controlled and governed by the new moral principle implanted in the soul. 2. Regeneration does not respect our mental or- ganization. The faculties of the mind remain as they were — none are taken away, no new ones are given ; they remain as they were before regenera- tion, except so far as the new principle may shed light upon and incline the rational powers to move in their sphere more congenial to the new nature. The understanding is to the mind what the eye is to the body, and spiritual light is to the under- standing what natural light is to the eye. The subject of regeneration is, "No more darkness, but light in the Lord." The understanding en- lightened, the moral perception cleared up, he sees spiritual things in a new and captivating dress, so that the mental in religious concerns takes a direc- tion subordinate to the new moral nature. III. Regeneration has for its direct, or imme- diate, object the soul, or spirit. Christ said, " That which is born of the Spirit is spirit." The soul is the fountain of moral impurity; it must be cleansed, must be "created anew in Christ Jesus." man's new state of trial. 257 The old corrupt nature, called " the old man/' is changed, and in regeneration we are said to be re- newed in the inner man — to be "renewed after the image of him that created him." This change finds its analogy in human expe- rience. What changes have been effected by skill and culture in regard to both animals and vegeta- bles! The most ferocious animals are tamed, and seem almost to possess a new nature, and some of the wildest have been made subservient to useful ends. So also with vegetables, the fruits of which, in their wild state being quite insipid and scarcely edible, have been so changed in their qualities as to appear almost entirely new. Now, suppose a horticulturist possessed skill and power sufficient to produce at once a radical change in the nature and quality of one of his bad fruit-trees, so that ever after it shall produce good fruit. This, it may be said, would be a great and mysterious change, and beyond the skill and power of mortals. Even so; but not beyond the wisdom and power of God. He formed man of the dust, and so fash- ioned him that he is "wonderfully and fearfully made;" and he who first "breathed into man the breath of life," and raised him up a " living soul" can re-create — " create anew " — that spiritually dead soul, and raise it up to "newness of life." This is regeneration ; it is what is called the new birth. 258 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. IV. The efficient agent in regeneration is the Holy Ghost, the third person of the Godhead. John iii. 6 : " That which is born of the flesh is flesh ; and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit." John vi. 63: "The Spirit quickeneth; the flesh profiteth nothing." 2 Cor. iii. 18 : " But we all, with open face beholding as in a glass the glory of the Lord, are changed into the same image, .... even as by the Spirit of the Lord." The subjects of this change are made partakers of the Divine nature, which is holiness. The Di- vine image lost by the fall is restored. The same almighty Agent that moved upon the dark abyss and brought forth order, light, and life, and that breathed into the first man the breath of life, and raised him up a "living soul," and pronounced him "very good," is the Agent who creates anew and inspires into the dark and dead in sin the breath of spiritual life, and he becomes a living soul ; and thus men are born of God a second time, and a second time God, well pleased with his work, de- clares it "very good." If, man, in the first case, shone forth in the bright image of God, so he does in the second ; if he received light and life from God in the first, so he does in the second ; and if, upon the consummation of God's original work, the morning stars sang together and all the sons of God shouted for joy, they but repeat the paean over repenting sinners, " born again," " created anew man's new state of trial. 259 in Christ Jesus." These newly-created are nc-AV placed in the Lord's garden, and he says to them, " Dress it, and keep it." But here, too, is present the serpent, the evil spirit. How shall they escape his seductive power? "Be not afraid." He ex- hausted all his resources of power and skill upon Christ, the second Adam, and failed of success. Christ won the victory. Not in yourself, but in him, you stand ; his victory is yours through faith in him. "And this is the victory, even our faith." The regenerated, quickened into life in Christ, "are dead indeed unto sin, but alive unto God." The dominion of sin is broken down — the king- dom of Christ, the reign of grace, is set up ; sin shall not any more " have the dominion." To the regeneration, the new creation, of souls converged all the measures adopted by Infinite Wisdom and Love, and every path trodden by the Son of God, from Bethlehem to the cross, and the grave, and from the grave to Mount Olivet, and from Mount Olivet to the throne of God. In re- generation begins, in the right direction, the new development, which is to be perfected through suf- fering and sanctification of the Spirit. The fruits of regeneration by the Spirit are love, joy, peace, long-suffering, gentleness, meekness, patience, faith. "Against such there is no law." Adoption is, in a general sense, an act by which one is taken into the familv of another and owned 260 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. as a child and made an heir to the estate of the person who adopts him. Adoption was practiced by the Grecians and Romans, but we do not find any thing concerning it in the law of Moses, or that it was practiced by the ancient Hebrews. It is a doctrine clearly taught in the Christian writ- ings, and clearly implies that by sin we have for- feited our sonship, the favor of God, and oar title to the inheritance of eternal life. Adoption is the act of God by which we are received into his family and treated as children. Though heretofore aliens and enemies, yet having become reconciled, sought and obtained pardon through faith in Christ, by which we become the children of God and are made "heirs of God and joint-heirs with Christ," all who are adopted into God's spiritual family receive the "spirit of a son." "And because ye are sons, God hath sent forth the spirit of his Son into your hearts, crying, Abba Father." " The Spirit of adoption " is the Spirit that bears witness with our spirit that we are the chil- dren of God. In this divine testimony we have an assurance of our acceptance with God. This assurance is doubtless stronger in some than in others, and in the same person not always strong alike ; yet " the full assurance of faith " is the privilege of all the members of God's family. There are also other great and peculiar privileges man's new state of trial. 261 flowing from adoption and sonship. The apostle encourages believers, as the children of God, to "draw nigh" to him, their Heavenly Father. They may approach him not merely as a Friend, but as a Father, who takes infinite delight in giv- ing good gifts to his children. This divine privi- lege of access is accompanied not with servile or slavish, but filial, fear — such as is felt in the sim- plicity and confidence of childhood when approach- ing a loving parent ; and from this confidence and trust, resulting from adoption, springs the joyful expectation of the final possession of the promised inheritance in heaven. Of Sanctification. The term " sanctify," in the Old Testament, generally signifies to set apart from a common to a sacred, or holy, end ; to consecrate to God cer- tain things as belonging to him, and to be used exclusively in his worship and service. Such were the house of God, the temple at Jerusalem, the sacrificial offerings, and all the vessels and uten- sils of the ceremonial service. Sometimes it sig- nifies outward typical cleansing, or purification, as giving a legal right to the privileges of the Jewish Church and worship. In all these senses the term is used in the Old Testament Scriptures. Moses commanded the Israelites to sanctify, or duly pre- pare, themselves to witness the terrible displays 262 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. of the power and majesty of God upon Mount Sinai. God sanctified the Sabbath as a day of rest, and Christ said, " For their sakes I sanctify myself" — consecrate, set myself apart, as a sacri- fice-offering to God for the sins of the world. In the highest sense of the term, it means cleansing the soul from sin and moral pollution in regenera- tion by the power of the Holy Spirit, and an in- crease and growth in the divine life, whereby we are enabled more and more to die unto sin and live unto holiness. In this latter sense we shall con- sider the subject. I. The doctrine of sanctification, in this sense, holds a prominent place in the Scriptures. Paul says (Eph. v. 25, 26), " Even as Christ also loved the Church and gave himself for it ; that he might sanctify and cleanse it;" and Peter addresses the saints to whom he wrote (1 Pet. i. 2) as " elect according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, through sanctification of the Spirit," and belief of the truth. We are admonished to " be perfect, even as our Heavenly Father is perfect;" and Paul says, " This I wish, even your perfection." We are, however, not to consider this as absolute perfection, but only as relative and in degree. A state of impeccability, or sinless perfection, is not to be expected, on this side the grave. Until the final victory in death, which will seal the conquest, the " law in the members," or earthly carnal side man's new state of trial. 263 of our nature, continues the warfare. "He that saith he hath no sin deceiveth himself; " and where is the "just man that liveth and sinneth not?" This world, in its present moral state, would not be a suitable abode for a perfectly pure being. True, Christ was pure without the stain of sin of his own, but then " he was made sin for us," and bore the sins of the world in his own body. When the saint is fully qualified for heaven he has no other congenial residence, and to that holy place of abode he is removed. This is in keeping with every-day life : when his grain is ripe, the judicious husbandman reaps and gathers it ; while growing, the field was its suitable locality, but now it is ripe, let it be garnered. After all, there is little danger of too rapid a growth in grace or too high attainments in Christian perfection; the danger lies on the other side of the question. It is too often the case that when we ought to be teachers we ourselves have need to be taught the rudi- mental principles of religion. Babes in Christ, we continue in the cradle almost until we are laid in the coffin. The efficient labors in the Lord's vine- yard, consequent upon spiritual manhood, are lost, the talent committed not more than half improved, and the light of such Christians shines but dimly half their days. II. Sanctification is instantaneous in its begin- ning, but progressive in its completion. It begins 264 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. in regeneration, which is instantaneous. We have good reason to believe that the change which passed upon man, from holiness to sin, was instan- taneous ; so likewise the change from sin to holi- ness. There cannot be any middle ground ; at the moment, we are either converted or uncon- verted, regenerate or unregenerate. There is no middle ground between life and death. God breathed into man the breath of life, and he be- came a living soul. The darkness of sin is upon the face of the deep, the Spirit moves, and God says, "Let there be light," and there is light. Now, "ye are not darkness, but light in the Lord." Although this great moral change is alike instan- taneous in all, yet its evidences may be clearer to some than to others. One blind man has his eyes open and sees men as trees walking, yet he sees; another sees clearer and in a more satisfactory manner. Thomas was the last to credit the report of his Lord's resurrection. This report was, upon sufficient evidence, believed by the other disciples, but he must have additional testimony, or he will not be satisfied ; and as it was in the case of this doubter so it may be with some who have been regenerated — although the change has really oc- curred, the evidence of it is not yet sufficiently full and clear to settle the question beyond nil doubt. This may be all for the best, in the infinite wisdom of Him who makes all things "work for man's new state of trial. 265 good to them that love God." We should be careful, however, to discriminate between an ex- perimental knowledge of a change (and a great one, too) and the evidence that the change we have experienced is, truly, regeneration. Although the change is essentially the same in all, the evidence of it may be afforded to different persons in differ- ent degrees, "as every one has need." But the full assurance to all is attainable : draw nigh to God and he will draw nigh to you, and his Spirit will witness with your spirit that you are a child of God. III. As there must be a certain moment when regeneration takes place, so there is a time when sanctification begins. This is simultaneous with regeneration. From this time it proceeds pro- gressively. Hence the Scripture illustrations: " The babe, the young man, the man of perfect stature" — "the corn, the blade, the full corn in the ear;" the Divine admonition, also, to "grow in grace," to " abound," to " go on to perfection." All this signifies a progressive work. IV. The work of sanctification is carried on by the agency of the Holy Spirit, who dwells in the hearts of God's children. The new life-powers inspired by him in regeneration are by him kept in a state of activity and development ;*and the holy spiritual life-forces of the new nature are as capable of growth, strength, and development as 12 266 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. are the physical and mental powers of humanity. To strengthen and develop the powers of the phys- ical and mental there must be food administered adapted to their growth and enlargement ; so the new moral man must receive the aliment adapted to his new spiritual powers, in order to their growth and development. The food upon which the new man feeds is the word of God, "as it is written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God." The children of God have "bread" which the men of the world know not of. The Christian, while a babe, has need of milk ; there is the " sincere milk of the word, that he may grow thereby;" when he has grown strong, and " able to bear it," he finds in the inspired word the spiritual "strong meat" adapted to his advanced condition. Here he learns that Christ's "'sheep hear his voice," "they follow" him; that "he gives them eternal life, and they shall never perish;" that his grace is "sufficient for them;" that they shall be "delivered out of temptations;" that "tribulation worketh patience;" and that "the light afflictions" of his followers "work out for them a far more exceed- ing and eternal weight of glory." These things, to the spiritual man, the new nature, are meat and drink indeed; by such spiritual food spiritual growth is promoted. The powers of the new moral nature developed and expanded, the work man's new state of trial. 267 of sanctification progresses, until the flesh is brought into subjection to the Spirit — "the law of sin and death," to the " law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus." Of Good Works. The apostolic admonition is, " Be careful to maintain good works, for they are good and profit- able unto men." Of such importance are they considered, that no small portion of the Scriptures is taken up in elucidating their nature, inculcating their necessity, and enjoining their practice, and in this order we shall treat the subject. The nature of good works.. The word good, the qualifying term, determines at once their nat- ure. But we must distinguish between the gen- eral and latitudinous sense in which the term is used, and the religious sense according to the Scriptures. We shall consider good works in the latter sense. As good fruit cannot be produced by a bad tree, so good works, in the religious sense, cannot pro- ceed from a depraved nature, unsanctified by di- vine grace. A heart renewed and purified by the Holy Spirit is the fountain whence proceed works truly good; and faith, working by love, is the prompting, or instrumental agent. Faith and love dwell together in the divinely renewed heart; 268 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. imparts to faith its moral force, or " virtue ;" it is the mainspring of its activities. Without love, faith is powerless — "dead." In proof of this, Paul says, "Circumcision availeth not any thing, nor uncircumcision ; but faith which worketh by love." As a feeble illustration, take the sires of the American Revolution ; they ardently loved the principles of civil and religious liberty, and their faith in the practicability of their attainment being stimulated by this love of liberty, not only sustained them through the mighty struggle, but finally crowned their efforts with complete success. Another, and perhaps a stronger, illustration may be found in young Jacob who, deeply in love with the beauteous Rachel, served her father fourteen years in the belief that he would at last take to his bosom the object of his heart's delight. Surely his faith was vitalized by the inspiration of love. Thus we see faith working by love on a stage far below that of religion. Good works, in the religious sense, derive their quality from a regenerated, good heart, and are brought forth upon the religious stage by faith working with the life and power imparted to it by supreme love to God and man. As the master- wheel under the motive-power sets in motion the whole machinery, so love moves faith in prompt- ing the Christian to perform all the duties, and to endure all the toils and sufferings of the Christian man's new state of trial. 269 life. Through faith "the great cloud of witnesses," spoken of by Paul in his Epistle to the Hebrews, wrought all the wonders enumerated in the pre- ceding chapter ; and this is the faith which has nerved the souls and inspired the tongues of thou- sands with songs of joy and praise at the gate of death. From the view we have taken of the subject, it appears that good works, in the religious sense, are the fruits of faith working by love. Uncon- verted men may do many things which are hu- manly good — good in the popular acceptation of the term. They may perform all the duties of civil and social life ; they may feed the hungry and clothe the naked, and even go so far as to give all their " goods to feed the poor," and yet, being destitute of true divine charity "out of a pure heart," their works are not to be reckoned good in the religious sense. Thus it appears that acts good in the eyes of the world, and indeed are so humanly speaking, and so far as they subserve the interests of human society, and they deserve and generally receive the commendation and applause of men ; but they cannot be so considered by him who judges intrinsically both the fruit and the tree. Hence, the denunciations of Christ against the self-righteous Pharisees who, however punc- tilious in observing the outward rites of religion, were pronounced by him as but " whited sepul- 270 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. chers " and "ravening wolves." Their self-right- eous conceits led them into a most fatal error; for, relying upon their own works as their pass- port to heaven, they rejected the Messiah, and so lost all that was worth saving. The giving of a cup of cold water to a disciple of Christ "in the name of a disciple" is a good work. To feed Christ, give him drink, clothe him, and when sick or in prison to visit him in the per- sons of his afflicted and suffering disciples, are good works. All such acts are prompted by faith working by love in the heart of the actor. The secret springs of actions are scrutinized by the all-seeing eye of God. No counterfeit can be passed off upon him as genuine coin. How many, standing on trial in the great day of final settle- ment, will hear the soul-stirring words, "Inas- much as ye did not these things to my disciples, ye did them not unto me " — " Depart, I know you not," the revelations of that day alone can tell. Works good, merely in the eyes of men, may spring from sinister or mercenary motives. It is a good thing to pray; God has commanded it. The Pharisee prayed, but his prayer was not a good one, because his motive was to be heard of men. This vitiated and spoiled the act. It is a good work to give alms with a right spirit — to give of our substance to the cause of Christ; but doing so to the sound of the " trumpet " robs the man's new state of trial. 271 act of its moral purity. These and all other such like so-called good works may pass for good in the eyes of men, but not in the eyes of God. In like manner and spirit may be performed all the out- ward duties of religion for the purpose of deceiv- ing men, or to fabricate a garment of righteous- ness of our own. Nothing of this will be regarded as truly good by Him who judges the hearts and tries the ways of the children of men. Good works, then, in the religious sense, must proceed from faith working by love in a heart purified by divine grace. This is the germinal storehouse of evangelical obedience; and faith, stimulated and made potent by love, brings forth this obedience and exemplifies it in all the varied acts of the Christian life. This truly gives the cup of water to Christ's thirsty disciple; visits the fatherless and widows in their afflictions, and visits with tears of sympathy, and heart and hand full of kindness to Christ, sick and in prison in the persons of his beloved disciples. Nor is this hand partial in its Godlike distributions. The only question is, Is he a disciple of Christ, and thirsty? Yes. In that name, then, the cup is freely given. Is he sick ? whether rich or poor, I will go and see him. Is he cast into prison ? I will visit him, minister to his wants, and speak words of comfort. To what shall we liken such works ? Like pure pearls ? like apples of gold in 272 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. pictures of silver ? Rather like diamonds of the purest water, which shine in this dark world with their own inborn luster. In this way treasures imperishable are laid up in heaven. When the trial of works by fire shall come, these " works and labors of love" will stand the test. The wood, hay, and stubble shall be burnt, but good works, in the religious sense, are full fire-proof — imperishable. Good works are indispensable, first, to Chris- tian character and influence, as "the salt of the earth," " the light of the world ;" and that others seeing these good works may also glorify God. Secondly, as collateral evidence that we are truly converted and saved by grace. " If ye love me, ye will keep my commandments." Good works rewardable. This is quite evident from the sacred writings. Our Saviour says, "And whosoever shall give to one of these little ones a cup of cold water in the name of a disci- ple, verily he shall not lose his reward." Again, informing his followers of the ignominy and re- proach which should be cast upon them, he tells them to "rejoice, and leap for joy, for great is your reward in heaven." These and numerous other texts show conclusively that a rich reward awaits the faithful servants of God. The reward of the righteous is set forth under a variety of figurative representations ; sometimes man's new state of trial. 273 as an imperishable inheritance, an incorruptible treasure, a crown of unfading glory. Sometimes, again, of exaltation and honor, as to sit with Christ on his throne of power and glory, to rule and reign with him in his kingdom. But Christians are not to maintain good works, nor do they, with an eye single to their reward ; yet, like Moses, they may have " respect to the recompense," as no inconsiderable stimulus to their labors of love; but they should ever be mindful that " after they have done all, they are unprofitable servants," and if rewarded, it will be " of grace and not of debt." Final Victory of all True Christians. The doctrine indicated in the above heading is full of comfort to the hearts of all God's dear children. Whether upon the part of some this doctrine is adopted as a part of their religious creed or not, yet when they are blessed with an unclouded sky, and repose full confidence in the divine promises, they are made to rejoice with joy unspeakable. Several objections urged against this doctrine demand a brief notice. It is alleged that this tenet involves the im- possibility of final apostasy, and this impossibil- ity destroys the Christian's moral freedom ; not so, neither in this world nor in the world to come. If the impossibility of losing heaven after it has 12* 274 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. been gained does not destroy moral freedom, so neither does it destroy it in this world in the chil- dren of God upon the supposition of their infalli- ble perseverance to the end. We grant there would be great weight in the objection; perhaps it would be unanswerable upon a certain hypothesis, that is, if the sinner should be converted without his own hearty concurrence, or the exercise of his free, uncoerced choice; then and in that case his moral freedom would be ignored and trampled down ; or, as is held and taught by some, under the notion of " effectual calling" which involves the idea that regeneration precedes faith, and that faith is a consequence of regeneration. Hence, as the heart of the unrenewed is carnal, and is en- mity to God, it follows as a sequence that the sin- ner, without faith, is, by an arbitrary act of God, regenerated without his consent, and by conse- quence against it. Now, if this be true, the moral freedom of the renewed sinner was not re- spected ; indeed, it is overridden, and we would be compelled to admit the force of the objection. A man converted and taken to heaven without the exercise of his own free choice, would be no free agent ; nothing is plainer. But what is the fact ? Does Deity so deal with rational men in regard either to their eternal happiness or misery? The Bible, reason, and the nature and fitness of things teach the contrary. man's new state of trial. 275 God has endowed man with high rational power, and moral freedom is its grand correlative. In ref- erence to personal salvation the command is, " Be- lieve on the Lord Jesus Christ," and " Thou shalt be saved " is the promise. The simple heart-act of believing is undoubtedly the sinner's i the abil- ity to perform that act is of God ; and this is what constitutes him a free agent. Here we institute an inquiry : Does the believing heart, in the ex- ercise of moral freedom, choose Christ and salva- tion in him merely for the present, or for any lim- ited time, or does he choose without limitation ? If only for the present, or for some definite period, then, to confirm him in a state of grace, rendering it impossible for him ever to be lost, would be manifestly more than he chose, and this would be an infringement upon his moral freedom. Or, if in believing on Jesus Christ he freely takes him as his only Saviour for time and eternity, and his whole soul's intention and desire is to be saved forever, then not to confirm him and make heaven sure to him would be less than he chose. No man ever embraced religion under the above limi- tation. There must be a final choice between sin and righteousness, life and death, heaven and hell. In the act of believing (we say act for want of a better term) there must be, and there is, a defini- tive choice by which Christ is received as the only Saviour from sin and eternal perdition. He is re- 276 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. ceived by the sinner as such a Saviour for time and eternity ; and not to confirm to him what he thus voluntarily chooses, would fall short of what he most ardently desires, and the very thing he is seeking. And will not infinite love respond to this final free choice by confirming to him in cov- enant the object of his choice and of his whole heart's desire? Yea, verily; "he that believeth on the Son hath everlasting life." In this momentous concern the choice of the sinner and the will of God mutually agree. The sinner chooses life everlasting; God wills he shall have it. The sinner's choice was final, and em- braced unlimited duration ; so Deity infallibly se- cures to him what he chose without in the least disturbing his moral freedom. In this way the believers infallible certainty of endless life and his moral freedom are harmonized, both in this world and the world to come. We think the ob- jection is now fairly obviated. It is farther ob- jected that the doctrine of the certain salvation of Christians affords them license to sin. One might suppose that such an objector knew of no difference between the saint and the sinner — be- tween the regenerate and the unregenerate. Make heaven sure to an unrenewed sinner; he might, indeed, take license unbounded to indulge to the utmost extent his devilish passions. He would have nothing to fear, and it would be to him as man's new state of trial. 277 though the last sparks of the fires of hell were extinguished. No other law to govern him but his depraved, lustful appetites, and no other in- centive to action but their unlimited gratification, he would certainly, if made sure that after death ha would be eternally happy, take unbounded license. But not so with the Christian ; " he is a new creature." God has not only cast out the devil, but has put his own Spirit in. He is not now under the law of his carnal nature, but is governed by the law of love — love for God and the souls of men. The man who says and feels as he says that, if he believed the doctrine of final per- severance, he would give a loose rein to his fleshly appetites and passions, and live in their coveted enjoyment, gives unmistakable evidence that he is a lover of pleasure more than a lover of God, and is a total stranger to the new birth. This objection is surely founded in an entire misconception of the nature of true religion, and we deem it unnecessary to say more upon the subject. A few arguments now in support of this doctrine. It is generally conceded that there was a cove- nant between Deity and our first progenitor. This, by some, is styled the Adamic covenant ; by oth- ers, the covenant of works. The latter designa- tion is expressive of its nature ; we, therefore, adopt it. It was conditioned upon perfect obedi- 278 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. ence upon the part of Adam, which, when ren- dered, he was entitled to the stipulated blessing, which was life — life everlasting. Upon pain of death he was forbidden to eat of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. He was destined to undergo a severe trial ; an evil spirit was already present who, with all his Satanic wiles and malice, was bent, upon the first favorable opportunity, to contravene the design of God — to pervert and de- stroy the work of his hand. This he largely ac- complished in the catastrophe of the fall. But had man withstood the tempter and come off vic- torious — had he, instead of yielding, made a full, free, definitive choice of eternal allegiance to God, the blessing stipulated in the covenant, which was life eternal, would have been secured to him. Then would have closed his probationary or trial state, and he would have entered into a state of confirmation in holiness and happiness. This con- firmed estate, as elsewhere remarked, was sym- bolized by " the tree of life." Now, since man is fallen, and can neither atone for his sin, nor obtain life by any work which he can perform, Jesus Christ, the second Adam, who is the way, the truth, and the life, has made atone- ment and offered life to his fallen creature — not upon condition of works, but of faith. " He that believeth on the Son hath everlasting life." Now, as Christ the second Adam withstood the - man's new state op trial. 279 tempter and won the victory in the wilderness, in the garden, and on the cross, he has appointed us — all mankind — not to wrath, but that we may- obtain salvation through him. The object con- templated in the covenant of works was precisely the same with that of the covenant of grace — life — eternal life. The former conditioned upon works, because man had then an upright nature and could work ; the latter conditioned upon faith, because man has lost his moral uprightness, and therefore he cannot now work, but can, with the help of God, believe. Now, as life everlasting would have been se- cured to man upon his compliance with the condi- tion of the former, so the same life eternal is se- cured to those who fulfill the condition of the latter. This adequately interprets a large num- ber of Scripture texts, for instance, that " he that believeth on the Son should not perish, but have everlasting life ;" " I give unto them eternal life;" and, " He that believeth on the Son hath everlast- ing life." This life, lost in the first Adam, is found in the second; but it is secured, "not to him that worketh, but to him that worketh not, but believeth." Probation and confirmation are correlative terms. The one implies the other. Without there was such a state as confirmation,, probation or trial would be unmeaning ; and vice versa, A morally 280 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. free being must of necessity choose and determine his own destiny. This was done by man by a sin- gle volition — a wrong choice, by which he severed the bond between him and his Creator, and be- came the servant of sin and of the tempter. He did not, however, fix his destiny for eternity. He was in the infancy of manhood — ignorant, as yet, of evil — was "deceived" and perhaps his wrong choice fell somewhat short of that definitiveness and finality necessary at once to settle his eternal destiny. Be this as it may, he was in imminent danger of rendering his case irremedial. Hence, the flaming sword of God flashing in his face the threat of eternal death, lest he should reach forth his hand and consummate definitively his rebellion against God. He was fallen, but not like the devil and his angels, incapable of salvation. And the divine compassion " hastened to pour the heal- ing balm into the fresh and bleeding wound." The " seed of the woman shall bruise the head of the serpent." But in this second probation the case is differ- ent. Men know evil now as well as good. Evil, with its consequences, is continually before them. The choice they now make will be decisive ; it will fix their destiny forever. If they choose life eternal in Christ, they shall live ; but if they choose rebel- lion against God, and reject Christ, they shall die; there remaineth no more sacrifice for sin. man's new state op trial. 281 In the second probation the turning point is not works, but faith. If in faith eternal life in Christ is chosen, the destiny of a morally free being is determined, and the probationary state closes, and he enters upon a confirmed one. The choice he makes embraces in it the certainty of happiness in never-ending perpetuity; and this is pledged upon the part of God in Christ : " I give unto them eternal life, and they shall never perish." In securing to the believer this transcendent boon, God but responds to the free choice he made in the hour of his conversion. In this free choice his moral freedom is established both for time and eternity, and thenceforward he walks by faith, through which he is " kept by the power of God unto salvation," which will never end. We offer the following additional remarks : "With blasting effects the defeat of the first Adam fell upon his children. This was in accordance with the law, founded in the relation of cause and effect. It could not have been otherwise, without subverting the order of the universe. Hence, when he fell, his children all fell in him. As this is true, the converse of it is also true. Had he stood, his children would have stood in him. Had he achieved the victory over the tempter, and been confirmed in holiness and happiness, his victory and confirmation would have been the victory and confirmation of his children in the same state. 282 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. Jesus Christ, the second Adam, vanquished the tempter. The wilderness, the garden, and the cross proclaim his victory. He also conquered when he took again his life in the grave, and he subdued the grave when he burst its barriers and came forth a risen Saviour. Single-handed he met the tempter, met sin, met death, met the grave. He vanquished all. Now, let it be inquired, For whom were these battles fought and this victory won? for himself? Not so ; he was the self-happy, self-glorious, and independent God. For a right solution of this question we must find a relation existing between God and some of the fallen race answering to the relation subsisting between our first progenitor and his children ; and as we find in the world the chil- dren of Adam, so also we find in the world the children of God. Those are the children of Adam by ordinary generation, these the children of God by extraordinary regeneration. But how are men brought into this relation to God ? By faith in Christ : " For ye are all the children of God by faith in Christ Jesus." These children are regen- erated — " born again," " born of the Spirit," " born of God " — and as they bore the image of the earthy, they now bear the image of the heavenly. Jesus Christ is to all his children the second Adam in the fullest sense of the term. They are in union with him — have unity of life in him; his man's new state op trial. 283 life is their life, his victory over Satan, sin, death, and the grave their victory over all these formida- ble powers. What does he say to his children ? " My grace is sufficient for thee ; " "I will never leave thee;" "I give unto them eternal life;" " Because I live, ye shall live also." Your life is hid with Christ in God : "When Christ, who is our life, shall appear, then shall ye also appeaf with him in glory." These he sent forth as sheep among wolves. He prayed not that they should be taken out of the world, but kept from the evil. They were not to go off into deserts and live her- mits, nor shut themselves up in cells and cloisters, but to go about among men doing good, letting their light shine, and teaching them to observe all things which their Divine Master had commanded. He was not afraid for them to eat with publicans and sinners, or to -dine with Pharisees ; he did not tell them that they should not frequent theaters, ball-rooms, and gambling and drinking saloons ; he put his Spirit in them and left that to teach them that such places "lean to the side of the devil." He was not afraid they would be corrupted when he was not personally present with them, and went away from them shortly after he had finished the work of atonement ; he had given them life, and the words of his Father, and the Holy Spirit for a comforter and revelator, and this was enough ; and none of them were lost but the son of perdition. 284 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. We have endeavored to show that a state of confirmation may perfectly consist with moral free- dom; that the believer in Jesus Christ is infallibly certain of eternal life, and yet he is a free agent. We have also shown that the reason of this cer- tainty lies in facts — first, that the believer has ful- filled the condition upon which eternal life is prom- ised ; secondly, by faith he is brought into union with Christ, and possesses unity of life in him. We have farther seen that the final victory won by Christ, the second Adam, is necessarily shared by all who are in union with him ; that his life is their life, and the conquest that he achieved, as the Head, is the conquest of his members. Hence, he says to believers, "Be not afraid ; I have over- come the world " — as much as to say, The strength by which I have overcome is your strength, and by it you shall overcome. " For more and might- ier is he that is in you than he that is in the world." We have said, too, that faith in Christ conducts the subject from his probationary, or trial, state into a confirmed one, and places him beyond the danger of final perdition. And here we suggest that the afflictions, persecutions, and temptations incident to the Christian life, called trials, must not be confounded with the probation- ary, or trial, state of all men. In this state un- believers are called upon to choose between life and death. The believer has already chosen life, man's new state op trial. 285 and his afflictions are for the trial of his faith, which, "more precious than of gold that perisheth, though it be tried with fire, might be found unto praise and honor and glory." We now present a few texts of the divine record which prove beyond a reasonable doubt the doc- trine under discussion; and the passage last al- luded to is in point. Peter declares (1 Ep. i. 7) : "That the trial of your faith, being much more precious than of gold that perisheth, though it be tried with fire, might be found unto praise and honor and glory at the appearing of Jesus Christ." Here the trial of the Christian's faith is compared to the trial of gold which perishes. In this text two things are put in contrast: the preciousness of faith and the preciousness of gold — perishable gold and imperishable faith. The interpretation is this: Gold, the most precious of metals, may perish, or be dissipated, under trial by fire, if heat of possible intensity is made to attack it; but faith, which is " much more precious" under a fig- uratively similar fiery test, is imperishable. "And this is the victory, even our faith" Without far- ther comment, we submit the passage and the ar- gument based upon it to the enlightened judgment of the unbiased reader. Consider, next, the declaration of Christ, "My sheep hear my voice ; they follow me ; I give unto them eternal life, and they shall never perish." 286 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. In this text there are four distinct, unqualified announcements: 1. The flock of Christ hear his voice; in contrast to this, he says, "They hear not (or hearken to) the voice of strangers." 2. " They follow me " — " a stranger will they not follow." 3. "I give unto them eternal life." 4. "And they shall never perish." Comment upon this passage would be worse than useless; in- spection, with candor, is all that is necessary to an acknowledgment of its great weight of evi- dence. Again, in speaking of the water of life, he de- clares, " But whoso drinketh of the water that I shall give him shall never thirst ; but the water that I shall give him shall be in him, a well of water springing up into everlasting life." But if some may drink of this water, and have it a well springing up into life only for a short season, would not this falsify Christ's declaration, since the lost apostate could say (and truly), Though I drank of the water, I did thirst again, and its springing up in my soul was only temporary, not everlast- ing ? The controversy, then, on this question lies between the doctrine of apostasy and the unquali- fied declaration of Christ. The Apostle Paul puts the case in this wise : " If, when we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more being reconciled, we shall be saved by his life." The conclusion deduced from the man's new state op trial. 287 premise laid down in this text is irresistible. The position taken by the apostle, that God gave his Son to die for his enemies, is no postulate ; it is supported by the Scriptures with plenary evidence, and is admitted by all. The conclusion, then, is that if God has sacrificed so much to reconcile and save his enemies, he will, certainly, save his friends, when he can do so without any farther sacrifice whatever. But we fear that even this little com- ment may weaken, in the mind of the reader, the force of the conclusion. It is absolutely a tower of strength ; no art can improve it — singly and alone it stands upon its own broad, everlasting pedestal, and cannot be shaken. Again, Christ says, " Upon this rock I will build my Church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it." What is true in regard to the infalli- ble security of the Church, the entire body of Christ, is true also as to each particular member. It therefore follows that if the Church, the whole body, cannot be destroyed, neither can its particular members of whom it is composed. "But God coni- mendeth his love toward us in that while we were yet sinners Christ died for us ; much more, then, being now justified by his blood, we shall be saved from wrath through him." Here comment is un- necessary. A few other passages in proof of the doctrine. One is found in Rom. viii. 38, 39 : "For I am per- 288 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. suaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord." The powers specified in this text certainly cover the whole range and every species of power in the universe short of Omnipotence. These powers, separately or combined, shall never be able to sever the strong cord of the believer's love of God in Christ, and the love of God in Christ of the be- liever, as it is written, " I have loved thee with an 'everlasting love." Dr. A. Clarke, in his comment- ary upon this chapter, when he comes to the ques- tion, "Who shall separate us from the love of God?" candidly acknowledges that "while it (and its connection) affords a strong presumption of their perseverance, furnishes a most powerful argu- ment against apostasy." Indeed, Rom. viii. une- quivocally sustains one of two propositions — either the final perseverance of all who love God in Christ, in connection with their eternal election and pre- destination, or their perseverance in connection with their election upon their believing on Jesus Christ. One of these propositions is obliged to be true ; and the possibility of even a plausible evasion is absolutely excluded. Which of these propositions shall we choose as being sustained ? In this election there is free suffrage. With the man's new state oe trial. 289 lights before us we unhesitatingly accept the latter proposition as being sustained. It is also declared, "As many as were ordained to eternal life believed." This text likewise proves the eternal foreordination of believers to eternal life, or it proves their ordination to that life at some point in time ; and, in either case, the doc- trine of perseverance is proven. We discard the former with reference to personal salvation, and joyfully accept the latter, as we are fully -per- suaded that the ordination takes place at the mo- ment that faith lays hold upon Christ, especially since the ordaining and believing are represented by verbs indicating the same point of time ; but if true believers may fall away and be lost, then their ordination to eternal life amounts to nothing. Which horn of this dilemma will be chosen ? The same ordination is spoken of by Peter, who says that the saints are elect, according to the foreknowl- edge of God, through sanctification of the Spirit and belief of the truth. And if they are elected, what are they elected to but to eternal life ? These passages afford concurrent testimony in support of the doctrine of the final victory of all God's chil- dren. The fear of falling from a gracious state, and of being finally lost, is, certainly, the " fear which hath torment." " Perfect love casteth out fear." But we are persuaded, though we thus speak, that many devoted Christians who shine as 13 290 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. lights in the world, while they adopt this tenet as wwthy of a place in their religious creed, are, at the same time, actuated in their high calling by love to God, to his cause and kingdom ; and that the dread of falling and of final perdition exerts but little, if any, practical influence upon them. And while we are fully persuaded that the believer in Jesus Christ will be enabled, by Divine grace, to persevere to the end, we are free to admit that there are many passages of Scripture which seem to favor the doctrine of apostasy ; and with all due deference to the opinion of hundreds, perhaps thousands, of men of a high order of talent, of deep and ardent piety, who differ from us, we must say we are in unison with an equal array of talent and piety on the other side of the question. Hence, we may set talent against talent, name against name, and set them all aside as proving nothing. If the doctrine which we have advocated is true, we must give some other interpretation of the pas- sages supposed to favor that of apostasy. Such texts, for instance, as those which speak of Chris- tians falling we must understand to mean their falling from the ardor of their first love, from their steadfastness, into a state of spiritual weakness and doubting ; or of falling into temptation, or too much into the spirit of the world, or into erroneous heretical doctrines, such as would vitiate the man's new state of trial. 291 scheme of redemption, and so making shipwreck of the faith ; or falling into a state of apathy and lukewarmness. For all these things the Divine Father lays upon his children the rod of correction. Again, many passages are applied to persons supposed to have been converted, who, in reality, had never attained to salvation — such as Judas, Simon Magus, the foolish virgins, many of the Jews who believed Christ (not savingly), but for fear of persecution they would not confess him ; also, those who commit the unpardonable sin — trampling underfoot the Son of God, doing despite to the Spirit of grace, crucifying the Son of God afresh, and sinning unto death. All such must be classed with those who have fallen short of saving grace. And lastly, some confessedly good men, who fell, in the hour of temptation, into great sin — such as David, Solomon, and Peter, as recorded in the Scriptures. Two of these, David and Peter, sorely repented and were restored ; and from the closing words of Solomon would it be too great a stretch of charity, "which hopeth all things," to hope that he, too, was restored to the Divine favor? There have been, and are now, many who have made a profession of faith in Christ, have won our confidence, and appeared to run well for a season, but have, like the swine that was wa,shed, turned to their wallowing in the mire. All such, dying 292 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. unreclaimed, we must class with Judas, Simon the sorcerer, the foolish virgins, and stony -ground hearers. We have scriptural testimony to the fact that some of the righteous are in heaven, and some of the wicked are in hell; but no man, upon Bible authority, can say that an unconverted soul ever went to heaven, or that a converted soul ever went to perdition ; and the notion that many who have professed faith in Christ, and were truly converted, have fallen away, and are finally lost, is mere con- jecture, founded in outward appearance and not in fact, since no man can assert that such final apostates were born of God — indeed, we have evi- dence to conclude that they were not, for St. Paul declares, " They went out from us that it might be made manifest that they were not of us ; for if they had been of us, they would no doubt have continued with us." Is it thought by any that the fear of apostasy and of being finally lost may induce Christians to be more watchful and diligent in the discharge of religious duties ? This would imply deficiency of power in the true motive which prompts to all evangelical obedience, which motive is love ; and in this regard it sets back the Christian upon the ground he occupied before his conversion. While a sinner, even when an anxious seeker of salva- tion, in all the duties he essayed to perform he man's new state of trial. 293 was prompted by a slavish fear of future punish- ment. Such obedience springs not from the foun- tain whence flows evangelical service; this fountain is love. The unrenewed are slaves to sin, the re- newed are free — made free by the Son; the obe- dience of the one is constrained, that of the other is of free good-will. The slave serves from fear of punishment, the son because he loves his father, regrets to offend him, and delights to do his bid- ding. Hence, the obedience which springs from the fear of apostasy and of final punishment can- not be viewed in the light of good works, nor can such receive the reward graciously promised. We may, therefore, very reasonably conclude that this fear of falling away and of being finally lost is productive of little benefit to the truly converted, if it does not, where it is seriously indulged, trench upon the fruits of faith stimulated by love, by which faith is said to work. Such slavish fear must also be no inconsiderable drawback upon the good man's trust in the Divine promises, and the peace and joy of soul which is the privilege of all the truly-born-of-God to enjoy. The texts adduced by the advocates of the doc- trine of apostasy in its support cannot be consid- ered within the limits prescribed to this work; neither can but a very few out of the great num- ber of those in proof of the doctrine of final per- severance. 294 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. We have before said that had the first Adam maintained his original standing, and consequent power and authority with which he was divinely invested, he would have reigned as king over the earth — his sons, princes, and daughters, princesses, would have reigned with him. This prerogative of authority and power would have passed over to them by heirship, he being the root, they the branches — he the head, they the members. Re- sponsive to this are the declarations of not only the New, but also of the Old, Testament in refer- ence to the princely power and authority of Christ, the second Adam. The time came "when the kingdom and the greatness of the kingdom was given to the people of the saints;" they reign as kings and priests. "As he has overcome and is set down upon his Father's throne, so they shall overcome and sit with him on his throne." This power and dominion they derive from Christ, the second Adam, who fully vindicated and maintained this right of dominion in the day of his trial. True, they are in a state of warfare, but their vic- torious Head insures to them the final conquest. Thus much with regard to the confirmed estate and of the final victory of all who become the children of God by faith in Christ Jesus. Is it still objected that such confirmation, in- volving the impossibility of falling, is destructive of moral freedom? Far from it; otherwise, there man's new state of trial. 295 is either no moral freedom in heaven or, then, the saints in glory are not confirmed in a state of blessedness. If we say they are infallibly secure from all danger, and that such infallible security destroys moral freedom, we make them lower in the scale of being in heaven than they were on earth. This position is at once rejected. Now, try the other side. If they are free agents, and are therefore not infallibly secure, but may fall from heaven, this would place all the redeemed and glorified in a state of eternal uncertainty, which is repugnant to the teachings of the Bible, as well as to all the hallowed instincts of the Christian nature. Neither of these propositions is true. We hold that the saints in glory are en- tirely beyond the possibility of falling, and }^et they are morally free in the fullest and clearest sense of the term. Their moral freedom was es- tablished forever in their own voluntary choice of Christ and heaven, in the exercise of faith in him in the hour of their conversion, Avhen God, upon his part ratifying this free voluntary choice, se- cured to them, in perpetual covenant, what they freely chose. Here, then, is a state of absolute security consisting with perfect moral freedom. The conversion of souls is a matter of transcend- ent importance. For this the Son of God put off his robes of glory, came to earth, took the form of a servant, having not where to rest his head ; 296 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. for this he sweat blood in the garden, became the victim-man of Calvary, died on the cross, rose, ascended, and intercedes for sinners. For the conversion of souls the Holy Spirit is sent to con- vince of sin, the gospel is preached, the Church prays both day and night, and when a sinner is converted the Church on earth and angels in heaven unite in songs of joy, for there is "joy in heaven over one sinner that repenteth." Would all this be done "for a trifle?" From this point of view we may not wonder that when a soul is trans- formed — rises from death into life, passes through the narrow gate, enters into unity of life with Christ, and by experience interprets the mystery of the new birth — we say we need not wonder, when all this takes place in perfect harmony with his own free will, if something of preeminent im- portance is transacted upon the part of God with regard to the future security and eternal happiness of such converted soul. That something is con- firmation in a state of grace. The doctrine of the believer's final victory holds out to sinners the greatest inducement to forsake all and follow Christ. It also robs them of the excuse, which is often made, that if they were to let go the world and sin and embrace religion they fear they could not keep it, and say they, "Better not profess it than to disgrace it, and myself, too, by throwing it away." But the doctrine of certain man's new state of trial. 297 and eternal happiness presents the inspired war- rant, " Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved," while that of apostasy informs them that after years of toil, self-denial, and hard- fought battles, they are liable to be overcome and miss heaven, and that they are never out of danger until death closes the scene. This tenet, then, offers no encouragement to the unregenerate to turn from their evil ways, nor can it find a place in Christian motive, prompting to good works, which are the fruits of faith working by love; whereas, the doctrine which promises, upon com- pliance with the gospel condition — that is, faith in Jesus Christ — certain and eternal happiness, af- fords the sinner a strong inducement to flee to Christ as a sure and safe refuge ; and it must in- spire the hearts of all who embrace it, who have "fled for refuge and have laid hold on the hope set before them," with strong consolation, "which hope they have as anchor of the soul both sure and steadfast." And from the great weight of Bible testimony, from the nature of causes and their effects, from the encouragement it affords the Christian, and the influence it is calculated to ex- ert upon the minds of wicked men, in persuading them to be religious, we are compelled to entertain the doctrine of the final victory of all who are brought into union with Jesus Christ by faith, as a gospel doctrine. 13* 298 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. Medium Ground. It has been asserted, with much apparent con- fidence, that there is no middle ground between Calvinism and Arminianism. For centuries past men of deep thought and serious reflection have objected to some of the features of both these systems. Arminianism upon the one hand seemed to give man, in his fallen state, too much of self- ability in choosing to improve the grace afforded him so as to " render it effectual to salvation at pleasure." This appeared not well to accord with the Scripture representations of man in his fallen condition, wherein he is said to be in darkness, blindness, and death. It also appeared to lay too much stress upon man's own works as well after as before conversion, and in this way to diminish the ground of giving to God, to whom alone is due, all the glory of our salvation. The possi- bility and great danger of apostasy after conver- sion appeared to represent the state of the regen- erated and born of God quite uncertain, and the hope of final happiness to depend not altogether upon the grace given through Jesus Christ, but partly upon their own faithfulness. And while it teaches the doctrine of apostasy, it teaches also the doctrine of reconversion, and there being no limit fixed as to the number of times that such aposta- sies and reconversions may take place in the same man's new state of trial. 299 persons, the apostasies and reconversions may be extended to hundreds, and even thousands, of times during the single lifetime of the same per- son. Again, Arminianism does not define the de- gree or turpitude of the sin to be committed by which will be forfeited by the Christian his spirit- ual life in Christ Jesus, and place him back upon the ground he occupied before his conversion ; and this may have been the reason why the Romish Church have classified sins into what they are pleased to call venial sins and mortal sins, which distinction is unknown to the Bible, and is only subservient to the convenience of the priesthood. And farther still, Arminianism does not harmon- ize the doctrine of man's moral freedom with the absolute certainty of the believer's future happi- ness. And if Arminianism cannot do this, one of the two doctrines must be abandoned, and ac- cordingly the latter has been abandoned, and the former retained,. which, if extended to the saints in heaven, would make them all liable to aposta- tize and fall, and so it would place the glorified saints in a state of eternal insecurity and uncer- tainty. We propose to show, in several important points, the middle ground between Calvinism and Armin- ianism. First, upon the subject of God's fore- knowledge. Calvinism teaches that God's fore- knowledge is infinite, and is dependent upon his 300 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. decrees — that all things that come to pass were foreknown to him because he "foreordained all whatsoever comes to pass;" and that his fore- knowledge is equivalent to his decrees so far as is concerned the infallible certainty of the coming to pass of the things foreknown. Arminianism, to evade this difficulty, denies God's foreknowledge of all things, alleging that he could have fore- known all things had he chosen to do so; but there are some things not foreknown to him because he did not choose to foreknow them. Medium — to deny God's infinite foreknowledge is to degrade his character. To hold that he foreordained all that come to pass, sin included, with all its untold miseries, equally degrades him. Both these posi- tions are extremes, and meet in the degradation of the divine character. The Medium system teaches that the Calvinistic dogma that God's foreknowledge depends upon his decrees is not true; alleging such an idea stultifies itself, since to say that Deity decreed, not knowing the thing or things he decreed until after the decree was passed, would be to say that he decreed in ig- norance, or at random. And farther, the Medium system maintains that knowledge, or foreknowledge, is abstract in its nature, and sustains not the rela- tion to the things foreknown that decrees sustain to the things decreed; for decrees, in their very na- ture and design, necessarily carry with them the idea man's new state of trial. 301 of causality in bringing to pass the things decreed. Whereas, mere foreknowledge contains within itself no idea of causality at all. Hence, the Medium ground, contrary to Arminianism, accords to Deity his infinite foreknowledge, but denies the Calvin- istic doctrine that his foreknowledge is dependent upon his decrees. It also denies that God has de- creed all that he foreknew, and foreknowledge is not equivalent to decrees. Thus the Medium doctrine exalts and glorifies God as possessing infinite knowl- edge, or foreknowledge, and clears him of the odium of decreeing sin and all its unspeakable miseries. Secondly, Calvinism teaches in effect that man- kind were not, through the mediation of Christ, appointed to a new state of probation or trial, during which all may, in the exercise of their moral freedom, choose life and be saved, or reject it and be lost. Arminianism teaches a day of probation or trial, but extends that day till death, as well to the be- liever in Christ as to the unconverted. The Me- dium is, that all men have a day of probation; but with respect to the believer on Jesus Christ, that day closes, and he passes into a state of gra- cious confirmation upon his freely choosing eternal life in Christ Jesus. Thirdly, upon the subject of man's moral abil- ity. Calvinism teaches that man has no moral ability to turn from sin — embrace the overtures 302 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. of mercy made in the gospel and be saved, until, by a sovereign act of God, his will is renewed in regeneration; and this is what is meant by "ef- fectual calling." Arminianism teaches that man, since the fall, possesses an inherent, self-determining will, or power, to good, and that his self freewill cooper- ates with the grace given him " so as to dispose and prepare him to obtain the grace of justifica- tion." (See "Decrees of Council of Trent," and "Paschal's Provincial Letters.") The Medium sys- tem teaches that man's ability to good, lost in the first Adam, is restored through the second; that in this respect, all the ability he has is of grace, and not of himself, but that it is restored to him previous to regeneration. Fourthly, in regard to the doctrine of election. Calvinism holds that some men were from eternity elected to everlasting life, and that their number is so definite and certain that it can be neither added to nor diminished. Arminianism does not teach any election at all in which is infallibly se- cured eternal life to all those who with the heart believe unto salvation. The Medium system discards the doctrine of the eternal personal election of any to life ever- lasting without condition, and holds to the election (in time) of all who believe in Jesus Christ to the saving of the soul, and that in this election is se- man's new state of trial. 303 cured to all such in Christ the certainty of eternal felicity. In order to a clear and distinct view of the Medium ground between Calvinism and Armin- ianism, we submit the following condensed state- ment. Read the first and third columns, and then the middle one. Calvinism Teaches, the doctrine of the eternal, uncon- ditional election of all those who are fi- nally saved. Calvinism teaches that God from eter- nity foreknew all things, and that his foreknowledge is de- pendent upon his de- crees, and having de- creed all things, he therefore foreknew all things. Calvinism does not admit the doctrine of a state of pronation or trial in which all m en are free to choose, through faith, life in Christ and he saved, or reject it and he lost, since it teaches that all the eternally elected will be cer- tainly saved, and no others. Medium Denies the doctrine of eternal, unconditional election to life ever- lasting, hut teaches the doctrine of the election of all true believers to life eter- nal, and that this elec- tion takes place in time, and is condi- tioned upon faith in Jesus Christ. Medium teaches that God's foreknowl- edge is infinite, and therefore he foreknew all things, but denies that his foreknowl- edge is dependent upon his decrees. Medium holds to a probationary or trial state of mankind, but in regard to the time, carries it no farther than the hour of his free acceptance of Christ through faith as his everlasting por- tion when his proba- tion closes, and he passes into a state of confirmation. Arminianism Teaches there is no election, neither from eternity nor in time, which infallibly se- cures to any life ever- lasting. Arminianism teach- es that God could have foreknown all things had he chosen to do so ; but this he did not choose, and the existence of sin is one thing he did not foreknow. Arminianism teach- es the doctrine of man's probationary or trial state, and ex- tends that state dur- ing life as well to the believer as the unbe- liever, which seems to give the believer but little more cer- tainty of future hap- piness than is accord- ed to the unbeliever. 304 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. Note. — The Medium ground between Calvinism and Arminianism was set forth by the writer nearly as above presented in 1853, in his book entitled, "A Keviewof L. A. Lowry's Letters f and so far as he is aware, it was the first attempt which was ever made to define that ground. PAET VII. — THE OFFICES OF THE HOLT SPIEIT. Their Connection with Human Redemption. WE think it highly probable that many of the present day, who profess to be teachers of the Christian faith, have not given sufficient promi- nence to the important offices sustained by the third person of the Holy Trinity, as they stand connected w r ith the great work of human redemp- tion. To be enabled to appreciate the dignity and glory of the Holy Spirit, we need only view him as one of the three in one of the personal God- head, the part he took at the creation, together with that taken by him in the revealed origin and in the progress, consummation, and results of the economy of grace. It was this divine Agent that moved upon the waters of the deep, reducing to order the chaotic mass, bringing forth light from the darkness, and having given shape and form to the earth, impregnated it with life -potencies, that it might bring forth herbs, fruits, and cereals for the sustenance of its future inhabitants. It was (305) 306 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. he also that breathed into man the "breath of life" when he "became a living soul," and, as Job says, God "by his Spirit hath garnished the heav- ens." It was the same divine Agent whose power and efficiency effected that mysterious Avonder of wonders, the incarnation of God — the union of the divine and human natures in the person of the Mediator. It was announced to Mary, the Virgin Mother, "The Holy Ghost shall come upon thee, and the power of the Highest shall overshadow thee," and she was made to conceive and bring forth " the Lord's anointed." What a wonderful work is here performed by this almighty Agent ! Although this act may not be considered as belong- ing to any of his special offices, yet the incarnation alone can justify and interpret the claim of Christ to the dual character as the " Son of man " and the " Son of God," while it laid the ground-work of human redemption through his sacrificial offer- ing upon the cross ; and it requires but little aid of the fancy to recognize in this almighty opera- tion of the Spirit the pledge of new life, spiritual birth, and union with God in Christ of all true be- lievers. We might also mention the descent of the Holy Spirit upon Jesus at his baptism ; this was his anointing and consecration as the Messiah to his holy office as the great High-priest, after the order of the priest-king, Melchisedec. That the third person of the Trinity, the Holy OFFICES OF THE HOLY SPIRIT. 307 Ghost, performed an essential part in the inaugura- tion of the economy of grace, and that he ever will continue to perform such part in carrying it out to its ultimate results, is fully taught in the sacred writings. If the compassionate love of the Father was the moving cause of man's redemption, and the atonement by Christ the cause meritorious, the divine influence of the Holy Spirit is the cause efficient ; so that each of the persons of the God- head bears an essential part in this momentous concern, and here the whole Deity is known. Had Christ not suffered and died for man, the influences of the Holy Spirit could never have reached the world, since the claims of insulted justice, being unsatisfied, would have interposed an insurmountable barrier to such influence ; but the Saviour, having offered himself a sacrifice for sin, and in a short time would perform the crown- ing act of the work in ascending to the Father, told his disciples that it was expedient that he should go to the Father, for "If I go not away, the Comforter will not come unto you ; but if I depart, I will send him unto you ; and when he is come, he will reprove the world of sin." These words of Christ set forth two things : (1) that his ascension to the Father was essential to the com- pletion of the great work of redemption ; (2) that the gift of the Holy Ghost, in his divine operations, 308 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. is through the atonement. And as Christ came to redeem men and open up a way of communica- tion between earth and heaven, and having suc- cessfully conducted his work to its crowning act, in performing which he, in the presence of his gaz- ing disciples, ascends from Mount Olivet to the throne of the Father in heaven, this is the full complement of the plan of human redemption upon the part of Christ. He has passed successively through all its varying phases, from the manger to the cross, and from the cross to the throne. He has opened the way, that " neio and living way con- secrated by his blood forevermore." By it divine influence can now descend upon mankind dead in sin, and by its living light and warmth reestablish the lost sympathy between earth and heaven. It is also now practicable for fallen humanity — the body as well as the soul — to pass that way and be glorified together with Christ. It is rightly styled "the King's highway." The offices of the Holy Spirit, in the economy of man's redemption, are: I. As a revelator — to make known, through men by him divinely inspired, the character of God^and his will concerning mankind. We are informed in the New Testament Scriptures that " prophesy came not in old time by the will of man ; but holy men of old spake as they were moved by the Holy Ghost." From this declaration OFFICES OF THE HOLY SPIRIT. 309 it is evident that the world was not without that divine Agent previous to the day of Pentecost, to which John alluded when he said "the Holy Ghost was not yet given." His meaning was that his plenary power and influence had not been realized as they would be at and after that day; but still, from the testimony of the Scriptures, it is clear that he took a prominent part in the high concerns of human salvation. In all ages holy men have prophesied as they were inspired by the Holy Spirit, who is the only true " Spirit of prophecy," as no other spirit could inspire men to foretell future contingent events. By direct and independent communications he made known to mankind the knowledge of God and his will concerning them. He has unveiled the dark abyss of human depravity, the total cor- ruption of man's moral nature, and the turpitude and desert of actual transgression. He has un- folded to the world the sublime mysteries of man's redemption through the mediation of Jesus Christ, and made known the terms of reconciliation and salvation. To him the world is also indebted for the knowledge of the laws to which men must conform in order to happiness in this and the world to come. These laws — unlike human laws, which take cognizance only of outward actions — enter into the secret recesses of the heart and soul, and therein set up a tribunal of judgment. The phi- 310 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. losophy of the laws revealed by the Spirit is, " Make the tree good, and his fruit will be good also" — cleanse the fountain, and the stream will be pure. The revealed laws, looking at the thoughts and intents of the heart, strike directly at the root, while those that are human can scarcely lop off some of the branches. It would be well, per- haps, here to remark that all the moral preceptive teaching of the Holy Spirit may be, and is, resolved into two general obligations — love to God, and love to our neighbor. "And Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. This is the first and great commandment. The second is like unto it : Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thy- self. On these two commandments hang all the laiv and the prophets." And if the divine law, through the sinful "weakness of the flesh" cannot conform the souls of men to its spiritual and holy nature, the Holy Ghost has revealed himself as the al- mighty Agent who can renew their hearts, remove their moral impotency, and bring them finally to a complete conformity to all divine requirements. The Holy Spirit, as a revelator, has also fully made known to man not only that God must be worshiped, but also the principal acts we are to engage in, as well as the manner, or rather nature, of our performances, which alone can render our worship acceptable to him ; he cannot accept the OFFICES OF THE HOLY SPIRIT. 311 worship which is merely in "word and in tongue." This was the kind of worship paid by the hypo- critical Pharisees: "This people draweth nigh unto me with their mouth, and honoreth me with their lips ; but their heart is far from me." God must be worshiped "in spirit and in truth, for such the Father seeketh to worship him." Every act of obedience sincerely done is an act of worship, though many of these may be done privately; but the more special and public worship of God con- sists in prayer and praise, and the celebration of the ordinances of the gospel — baptism and the Lord's-supper, together with lawful oaths. These constitute the more public acts of divine worship. In all these we "draw nigh unto God," which we are required to do "with a true heart." Thus the Holy Ghost, as a revelator, has made known the character of God, the relation man sus- tains to him, and what he requires as indispensa- ble to salvation. Holy men, inspired by the Holy Spirit, have with minuteness of detail predicted future contin- gent events, of which predictions many have been fulfilled to the very letter. This fact is attested not only by sacred but by profane history also. The prophets were not only inspired to foretell future events, but likewise to teach the doctrines and laws revealed by the Spirit. But to accom- plish the high objects contemplated by the economy 312 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. of salvation it was indispensable that the men pro- fessing to be sent of God to teach the world the way of eternal life should give, and the world had the right to demand, evidence of that important fact. Accordingly, II. It was the office of the Holy Ghost to fur- nish that evidence. The high claims of the proph- ets and apostles to be teachers sent of God were fully authenticated by supernatural works, or mira- cles, which they were enabled to perform. The same divine testimony fully vindicated the claim of Jesus Christ to be the Son of God, the true Messiah. On the day of Pentecost the Holy Ghost conferred on the apostles plenary power to perforin miracles, and such was the evidence of their heavenly calling that, under one short sermon delivered by Peter, three thousand were converted and added to the Church the same day. In that sermon the apostle informed them that the won- ders they saw and heard on that most striking oc- casion were the fulfillment of the Prophet Joel's prediction : "And it shall come to pass in the lat- ter days (of the Jewish economy) that on my servants and on my handmaidens will I pour out of my Spirit, and they shall prophesy." "And they began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance." This, with many other passages, clearly shows that the power to perform miracles was given by the Holy Ghost. OFFICES OF THE HOLY SPIRIT. 313 III. The Holy Spirit reproves the world of sin. Christ said, "When he is come, he will reprove the world of sin . . . of sin, because they believe not on me." We take the meaning of the word " reprove " as equivalent to that of the word con- vince. To this, we suppose, none will object. The Spirit, then, will reprove, convince, the world of sin. This he certainly did before the day of Pentecost, for God said to the wicked antediluvians, " My Spirit shall not always strive with man." This plainly shows that his divine influences ope- rated upon their hearts of violence and corruption, convincing them of their sin and striving to bring them to repentance. Again, it was said to the hard-hearted unbelieving Jews, " Ye do always re- sist the Holy Ghost; as did your fathers, so do ye." The ground of conviction of sin, though great before, was yet vastly enlarged after the ministry, miracles, resurrection, and ascension of Christ. " If I had not come and spoken to them, they had not sinned ; but now they have no cloak for their sin." Previous to this they were saying, with presumptuous impatience, "Where is the promise of his coming?" but now he is come, they reject him — not for want of full and overflowing evidence of his Messiahship, but they willfully choose darkness and continue in obdurate unbelief. Thus, the leading men among the Jews, though convinced of the truth and constrained to ackno wi- ld 314 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. edge the miracles of Christ, gathered together and took counsel to kill him. Though the Spirit con- vinces all of sin, so that all are left "without ex- cuse," yet especially does he convince men of the sin of unbelief, striving to bring them to repent- ance and faith. Enigmas brought out of the dark shadows of heathendom and proposed to the Chris- tian for a solution in regard to the destiny of pa- gans, we turn over to the Apostle Paul, who says, " The Gentiles who have not the law (written) are a law unto themselves, and do by nature the things contained in the law, their conscience bearing them witness, their thoughts meanwhile accusing or else excusing one another;" and, "They that sin in the law shall be judged by the law; and they that sin without law shall be judged without law." Christ, at one time or another, has spoken to the whole world. In the early ages of Christianity, where darkness now reigns supreme, Churches were planted, the light of life was given, and men were called to the gospel-feast. What if the people of those regions by degrees became rejecters of the gospel-offers, haters of the light, choosing dark- ness rather? and what if their children voluntarily chose as their fathers did, and every succeeding generation, loving "darkness rather than light," freely made the same choice — each generation in- dorsing the course pursued by the generation next preceding, and all the course pursued by the first ? OFFICES OF THE HOLY SPIRIT. 315 In such a case would the generation farthest re- moved from the first, along the line of time, be irresponsible ? Certainly not — no more than the murderous Jews who chose Barabbas and crucified Christ were irresponsible for the blood that was shed, from the blood of Abel all along the red line down to the blood of Zechariah, son of Berechiah, whom they slew between the temple and the altar. All this burden of blood Christ said should come upon that generation; and wherefore? Plainly, because they in spirit and act indorsed and sanc- tioned the course pursued by their blood : shedding fathers ; and why not so with the heathen ? From such a stand-point we may come to see how it is that the candlestick may be removed — hoAV a man or a nation may be given up to be filled with their own delusions — for the gospel be "hid from them that believe not,' and to be "blindfolded and led cap- tive by the devil at his will." None can say with certainty that the heathen nations even now have no light. If the sun has gone down upon them a single star may yet be seen in the dark heavens, sending down its trembling rays. Let them, as "wise men" follow that; it may guide them to the city of David, to the Babe of Bethlehem. Belief, in its low human sense, is what governs the world. Men live by what they believe. This as a general rule ; and if there are some who, in the affairs of life, go contrary to their convictions, 316 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. they are only exceptions, and the exceptions prove the rule. Belief in the high religious, spiritual sense governs the Christian world. The Chris- tian's faith is what he walks, or lives, by. Belief, or disbelief, is the climacteric point upon which turns the salvation, or damnation, of men. This holds good in the common concerns of life. If a man disbelieves the things which make for his tem- poral good he is damned, or, in other words, he reaps the bitter fruits of his unbelief; but if he believes those things his acts will be governed ac- cordingly, and he is saved, or reaps the good fruits of his belief. So as to belief or disbelief in re- gard to the Son of God. Thus we come to the full meaning of the words of Christ : " He that belie veth shall be saved; he that believeth not shall be damned." This is the culminating and turning point ; here are two ever-diverging paths — the one is faith, the other unbelief. The "few" take the narrow path of faith, and are saved ; the "many" take the broad way of unbelief, and are damned. Hence, unbelief, in an emphatic sense, is the world's damning sin ; and hence, also, the Holy Spirit, in the same sense, reproves the world of sin, because they believe not in Christ. The Spirit takes the "things" of Christ and "shows" them to men, and so "a manifestation of the Spirit is given to every man." Thus by spiritual illuminations Christ becomes "the true OFFICES OF THE HOLY SPIRIT. 317 light that lighteth every man that cometh into the world." In this way Christ speaks to men, and leaves them without any cloak for their sin. The Spirit of God is not bound ; he can operate upon the souls of men either directly and inde- pendently of outward means or indirectly through means. The first* is true with respect to both matter and mind. As to matter, "he moved upon the waters " and brought form out of the formless, and order out of confusion ; he breathed into the lifeless form the breath of life, and "man became a living soul." So does the Divine Spirit operate upon mind directly when he sees good, in the ab- sence of outward means. This is attested by the calling of the prophets under his immediate in- spirations, and by his divine and direct energy in creating souls anew in Christ Jesus. Some may object to this, wishing to confine his operations to outward means. Such an idea is too narrow to embrace his unlimited freedom. David prayed, "Uphold me by \hy free Spirit." The miraculous gifts' also come under the head of his direct and independent action. It is said, too, that he sheds abroad the love of God in our hearts. That the Holy Spirit, in his divine influences, uses outward means is also true. The written word, his revealed truth, the preaching of the gos- pel, and the gospel ordinances, together with God's providences, both prosperous and adverse, are the 318 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. * ordinary means through which he works. Christ said his words were " Spirit and life." His words, simply on the letter and syllable side, were mere signs of ideas ; but on the spiritual side they were Spirit and life. "The Spirit quickeneth," "The Spirit giveth life/' "The sword of the Spirit is the word of God" — it is quick, pozverful, and sharp, made so by the Spirit. The word written and the word preached are means much employed by the Spirit to convince men of sin, with all other instru- ments which he, in his goodness and wisdom, may use. Upon the whole, we are bound to conclude that the Holy Ghost will so extend and adapt his divine operations in convincing men of sin as to leave the world without excuse. IV. It is the Holy Spirit's office to regenerate the heart and qualify it for heaven. Farther re- marks, however, upon this subject we shall for the present postpone, and notice it more fully after awhile. V. The Holy Spirit also administers the gov- ernment which Christ has established in the world, of which Christ is the regal Head. The Holy Ghost bore witness to Christ, giving unequivocal testimony that he was the true Messiah. John the Baptist says, "The same that sent me to bap- tize with water said unto me, Upon whom thou shalt see the Spirit of God descending and remain- ing on him, the same is he which baptizeth with OFFICES OF THE HOLY SPIRIT. 319 the Holy Ghost." This testimony was responded to by the Father, in the voice from heaven, "This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased." The Apostle Peter also declares, "And we (apos- tles) are his witnesses, . . . and so is the Holy Ghost, whom he hath given to all them that obey him." Ever since the day of Pentecost the Holy Spirit, with full administrative powers, has con- ducted the affairs and supervised the high interests of the Messiah's kingdom, and will continue to do so until it shall be crowned with universal victory and triumph. Pie has more clearly unfolded to the world the terms of admission into the king- dom, compliance with which terms entitles to all the rights and blessings of that kingdom. Though much knowledge had been communicated in regard to these things under former dispensations, that knowledge was vastly increased when, on the day of Pentecost, in fulfillment of Joel's prophecy, the Spirit was poured out in rich abundance upon the disciples. It was also by the authority and administration of the Holy Ghost that the middle wall of parti- tion separating the Jews from the Gentiles was broken down. By his immediate revelation was "made known (or unfolded) the mystery which was hid in God from ages and generations." (See Eph. iii. 1-11.) This, with what is said with ref- erence to the same subject in Rom. xi., fully 320 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. explains the "purpose," "predestination/' and "mystery" of God's will as spoken of in Eph. i. That mystery, according to its unfoldings by the Divine Spirit, included, first, the election of the Jews as the proper depository of the oracles of God, the covenants of promise, of whom, concern- ing the flesh, Christ should come, and to whom should first be preached a risen Saviour and remis- sion of sins through him, and that among them should be gathered the " first-fruits " of the gospel ; secondly, that the Gentiles who, in the above re- spects, had been rejected (see Rom. ix. 11, 12, with the whole connection in regard to the above ends) should "in the fullness of the times" "be made fellow-heirs and of the same body and par- takers of his promise by Christ through the gos- pel -" thirdly, that the now unbelieving rejected Jews, laying aside their obduracy, should " through the mercy of the Gentiles " be restored to the Di- vine favor, brought into the unity of the faith, fill- ing up the measure of the fullness of the body of Christ. These were the things contained in that long-hidden, but now revealed, mystery of God's will ; and this " according to his eternal purpose which he purposed in Christ Jesus our Lord." The purposes of God included in this mystery were totally unknown to the world until, as Paul declares (Eph. iii. 5), they were then "revealed to the holy apostles and prophets by the Spirit." OFFICES OF THE HOLY SPIRIT. 321 The revelation of these important matters by the Holy Spirit brought about a great change. It caused the affairs of the Church-kingdom, in sev- eral respects, to assume a new aspect; it intro- duced another important step in the Holy Spirit's administration. The Jews are stripped of their carnal boasting as the children of Abraham ; this frail reed, upon which they had so long leaned, is now broken. For their unbelief and great wick- edness, Ichabod is written upon their banners, for the glory has departed from them. Meanwhile, the divine Administrator is performing the func- tions of his holy office. With a light so brilliant that it is blinding he shines upon the bloody path of Saul of Tarsus, who, clothed with authority, is on his way to Damascus to harass and destroy the disciples of Jesus ; but here is an end to his bloody purpose. Suddenly struck blind and struck down, the startling interrogatory comes, Saul, Saul, why persecutest thou me ? and, being blind, he was led by the hand into the city, where, as the voice had informed him, it was told him what he must do. Here it was made known to him that he was "a chosen vessel" to proclaim Jesus and his salvation to the Gentiles. Not far from this time Peter, who was the apostle of the cir- cumcision — the Jews — saw in a vision at Joppa that nothing that God had cleansed should be thought " common or unclean." Meanwhile, mes- 14* 322 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. sengers from Cornelius, a devout man of Cesarea, arriving at Joppa, informed Peter that Cornelius also had seen a vision, in which he was instructed to send for Peter, who should tell him words whereby he and his house should be saved. From these things Peter gathered that duty required him to go, and being arrived at the house of Cor- nelius, he found an audience assembled to hear him ; and while he was preaching to them Jesus and the resurrection, the Holy Ghost fell upon them as upon the disciples on the day of Pente- cost. And Peter, converted from his notions of a salvation limited in its provisions, opened his mouth and said, "Now I perceive of a truth that God is no respecter of persons." In these two cases no less than six miracles were wrought by the Holy Spirit to clear the way for the gospel to the Gentiles, and for their free entrance into the Church-kingdom. Now, men are no more required to go up to Jerusalem to worship, but every one may worship "under his own vine and fig-tree." These are marvelous times. The venerated old Jewish economy is drawing to its close ; the priest will soon lay aside his miter and his robe, the blood of sacrificial beasts cease to flow, the smoke from altar-fires no longer rise, and the entire tem- ple-service is in a short time to be superseded by the simple forms of worship and service of the new institution. Men are now commissioned to OFFICES OF THE HOLY SPIRIT. 323 go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature; and, clothed with this authority, and called to this high office by the Holy Ghost, they are also by him furnished with ample creden- tials in the mighty signs and wonders which shall attend their ministry. These are steps of vast magnitude taken by the Holy Ghost, in his admin- istrative character, for the increase and enlarge- ment of the Messiah's kingdom. He also claimed and exercised the prerogative of appointing the high officials who were, by his authority and under him; to proclaim to the world the word of reconciliation to God, and to adminis- ter the laws and ordinances of the Church-kingdom. This prerogative he never has surrendered, nor will he ever do so. "Let no man take this honor to himself, but he that is called of God as was Aaron." This prerogative of the Divine Spirit is fully recognized and attested by the apostles on the occasion when one was to be appointed to fill the place of the traitor Judas. It seems that a choice was to be made between Joseph and Mat- thias, as it is likely they were the only ones, ex- cept the eleven, who had "companied with Jesus" from his baptism to his ascension, and this may explain the reason why they only were presented. "And they prayed, and said, Thou, Lord, which Jcnoivest the hearts of all men, show whether of these two thou hast chosen, that he may take part 324 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. of this ministry and apostleship." In this prayer two important points are settled — (1) God's pre- rogative to choose; (2) his exclusive qualification. His prerogative to choose is recognized by their appeal to him to show which of the two he had chosen ; his qualification to choose is established upon the ground of his all-heart knowledge — "Thou knowest the hearts of all men." Now, if the knowledge of the hearts of men is an indis- pensable qualification to choose men for the gospel ministry, it will inevitably follow that none but God is qualified, since he only knows the hearts of men. Had no other than outward and visible qualifications been necessary, the apostles might have made the selection themselves; but the om- niscient Spirit had a preference, and that prefer- ence was founded upon something in Matthias which the apostles could not know, and was known to him alone who knew the heart. Now, if a knowledge of the heart is necessary as a qualifi- cation to select men for the gospel ministry, then none but God is qualified to call men to fill that sacred office. It ever has been and ever will be the prerogative of the Holy Ghost. Men may make void the laws of God through their traditions, or assume to themselves a prerogative which be- longs, exclusively, to the Holy Spirit. This un- happy blunder may be perpetrated by fixing a high human standard of literary qualification for OFFICES OF THE HOLY SPIRIT. 325 the ministry, and then, by ecclesiastical enactments or usage, debar all who cannot meet the special requirements. When men become wise above what is written, and arrogate to themselves the authority virtually to set limits to the heart-know- ing Spirit, and undertake to conduct the important concerns of Christ's kingdom, under the leader- ship of worldly wisdom and human policy, they may expect, sooner or later, to reap the fruits of their folly in disappointed hopes and expectations, if in nothing worse. No folly is so great as the prudence which sets aside the wisdom and author- ity of God. Men are prone to forget that u faith stands not in the wisdom of men, but in the power of God." The whole life of Jesus Christ, from the manger to the cross, and from the cross to the throne, per- fectly harmonized with his incarnation, and both put together presented an enigma that the wisest doctors and lawyers were unable to solve. It was a contradiction to all the dictates of carnal reason and human prudence. For men to come to thrones and reign as kings through the blood of others, has been thought both wise and convenient ; but for a man to propose to found a kingdom and reign a universal monarch at the expense (exclusively) of his own blood, would seem an impossibility; so it tvould be with men, but not with God. In calling men to be his standard-bearers, Christ did not con- 326 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. fine himself to the unlettered menders of fishing nets, nor to men brought up at the feet of Gama- liel; but he took some of both,* and thus adopted and brought into his spiritual kingdom that diver- sity which we see everywhere prevailing in the empire of nature. Diversity in unity is the grand climacteric of divine order and harmony; it is " the wisdom of God in a mystery," and no prog- ress or civilization of man can change or improve it. It may be asked, " Is not literary knowledge a handmaid to religion ? " Certainly — an excel- lent one. But let not Hagar presumptuously as- sume the authority of Sarah ; the handmaid the place of the mistress. In the Church-kingdom the great business of literary knowledge is to know how to behave itself — to serve, not to rule. And here lies the danger, that while the Church would free herself from the reproach of an un- learned ministry, she may take station on the other extreme; and, forgetting that God alone knows the heart, may limit his prerogative by set- ting up a high standard of literary acquirements, saying to all candidates for the ministerial office, Come up to this standard, and you shall be a preacher; if not, you may go home and follow the plow. In such a condition little or no mar- gin is left for the. action of him who "knows the hearts of men." In this way the Church might rear a race of giant dwarfs; giants in human OFFICES OF THE HOLY SPIRIT. 327 learning ; dwarfs in grace, spirit, and power. The path of safety lies between the rocks and the whirlpool — between no standard of literary at- tainments and a standard high and absolute. The one leans to the side of ignorance and reproach ; the other, while it encroaches upon the preroga- tive of God, leans to the side of carnal policy, and an uncalled, self-seeking ministry. These are the two extremes — no literary standard at all on the one hand, and a standard high and absolute on the other. Between these extremes where shall we find the medium ? Neither of the extremes has the whole truth — each has a part. The no-stand- ard extreme fully recognizes the prerogative of God in calling men to the ministry. This much of truth there. The absolutism connected with the high standard comes in contact with God's pre- rogative to call whom he will; but truth is found in its recognition of the fact that literary knowl- edge is an excellent handmaid to the gospel min- istry. Now let us take what of truth we find on either side, and putting them together we have the sum which amounts to this, first, The prerog- ative of God by his Spirit to call, without being limited by human standards. Secondly, literary attainments as an excellent handmaid to the gos- pel ministry. These two truths joined together constitute the medium ; but neither side will ad- mit of coercion. God may be prayed to send 328 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. laborers, but he will not be dictated to as to how many or of what particular description of men he shall send. So also on the other side :" men may be advised and persuaded to read and study, or to enter the school-room, where literary knowledge may be obtained, but they will not be forced ; and joining prayer upon the one hand, and advice, per- suasion, and facilities upon the other, we have a system working in harmony with the wisdom of Christ; a system which, if encouraged and fos- tered, will work out in the end the happiest re- sults. But since we have separated what of truth we found at the no-standard extreme, which threat- ens the ministry and Church with ignorance and reproach, and separated what of truth we found at the other extreme, which threatens an encroach- ment upon the prerogative of God, and the evil of an uncalled, self-seeking ministry, what shall we do with the two extremes ? We respectfully bid them adieu, hoping they will erelong change their views, and in the future behave with discre- tion and prudence in the house of God. This is emphatically a fast age. Men are hur- rying all they can hurry, and every thing that can hurry is in turn hurrying men. Progress is the watchword ; and progress, too, is in a great hurry. Men are in a hurry to get riches — to obtain power, popularity, and sensual gratifications. They are in a great hurry to find amusements at the theater, OFFICES OF THE HOLY SPIRIT. 329 the circus, the ball-room, and dancing party. But now the scene reverses : although they hurry to the places of amusement, they are in no hurry to get away; in no hurry to get to church, but in a great hurry to get away. Short songs, short prayers, and short sermons, is the order of the day. Progress, the watchword, in a hurry? She is in a great race. Some would enter religion, too, and run that for the stakes. The popular cry is, u Religion must keep pace with the spirit of the age." What, let us inquire, is the spirit of the age ? The spirit of religion is the spirit of meekness, the spirit of humility, of patience, of brotherly kindness and charity. Is that the spirit of the age? What if the answer is No? Then we enter our most decided protest against " the popular cry." That popular cry contains in it a dangerous sophism, which is leading the "fast" men of the Church astray, and many of the un- wary are following in their wake. Progress is right, if in the right direction. Progress in let- ters, in mechanism, in husbandry, is all well enough ; but for improvement in these and the like, there might be in the world a mental stagna- tion. To improve is one thing, but to know what to improve is quite another. The heads of some men are so full of the ideas of improvement that they want to improve every thing, even religion. Can that be improved which is already perfect? 330 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. Some of the outside appurtenances of religion may be improved : in regard to comfort and con- venience, houses of worship may be improved ; so might the taste and manners of many who mix with the worshipers. The true worship itself is not susceptible of improvement • that has in it the "Spirit" and the "truth" and both these are per- fect. What is the meaning of candles, and pic- tures, and organs in houses of God's worship? Can they bring into the soul the inspirations of the Spirit and of truth ? If so, why not in pic- ture-galleries and at theaters ? At the risk of being set down as behind " the spirit of the age," we venture the opinion that the "Spirit and truth" are seldom farther from men than when they are at such places, especially the latter. Can such things afford any aid in the true worship of God ? If so, let those who are disposed take another step backward a little farther into Judaism and bring up more of the dead types and give them a place in Christian worship. Among these mouldered corpses they can make a large selection. In the first place they can make out a draft of Solomon's typical temple, and all who are able may rob the poor of the gospel — the blind, and the lame, and the sick of alms, and squander their money upon Christian church-houses, and make them like Sol- omon's typical temple, and decorate them inside and out with an abundance of gold and silver. OFFICES OF THE HOLY SPIRIT. 331 The Christian ministry can put on the old robe and the miter, send up the smoke of sacrificial al- tars, and get up the ephod, and the breast-plate, and the urim and thummim — if they know what they were — and thus their sacerdotals would be in keeping with their houses of worship. For the order of worship, they may introduce as wind, or stringed instruments, in addition to what they al- ready have, the psaltery and harp, the loud and high-sounding cymbal, the trumpet, and ram's-horn, and above all, the timbrel and dance. Would not all these, especially the timbrel and dance, be close up to " the spirit of the age," and make the houses, glittering with gold and the showy pageant wor- ship of God, vastly more attractive to the outside world ? * Could the Christian have and tolerate these things and not be a Jew ? A Jew denies Christ, and is an infidel. Can a man be a Jew and not be an infidel? Solomon's temple, with its entire service, was typical of Christ and the glory of his spiritual, gospel kingdom; and in so far as we in- troduce those types and shadows into the Christian worship, we have gone back to Judaism, and who- ever in these things seeks for justification is " fallen from grace." What good thing is there that may not be abused? Eating, and drinking, and sleeping, are all necessary and good in their places, but when * On page 475 will be found an article upon this impor- tant subject from the pen of Dr. A. Clarke. 332 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. excessively indulged in, the excess becomes a nui- sance, and calls for abatement. The pleasures de- rived from the beautiful, the grand, the magnifi- cent, through the sight of the eyes, are lawful and right ; but when the desire of pleasure, or of wis- dom, is carried to the excess of approaching and taking of the forbidden tree, the excess ends in death. So with literary knowledge, which is as liable to abuse as almost any thing else. Wisdom may be so prostituted as to be made subservient to the most diabolic ends. The wiser the serpent, the more harm he can do, and the deeper is his damnation. Human wisdom is never more guilty of self-abuse than when it sets itself up against the wisdom and prerogative of God. It is never so far from abuse as when it willingly subordinates itself to the prerogative of God and to the high interests of his Church. At this point it might be well to call up the extremes in regard to the literary qualifications of the gospel ministry. On the side of the high, absolute standard extreme, good men may have seen religion so humanized, or carnalized, that it had almost lost its spiritual vitality, and was nearly dead. Alarmed at this extreme, they have precipitately fled across the medium ground, never stopping until they reached the no-standard extreme, which ignores all literary acquirements upon the part of the ministry. And reversing the case — good men, alarmed at the want OFFICES OF THE HOLY SPIRIT. 333 of due qualification of the ministry as workmen that need not be ashamed, and the consequent reproach of the Church, have fled to the high, ab- solute standard extreme. How hard it is for men to find and settle upon the " happy medium " and stay there! The experience of near six thousand years has failed to teach men this wisdom. It is certainly the office of the Holy Spirit to appoint his own embassadors to negotiate the terms of peace and reconciliation with a rebellious world. This office he never will resign into the hands of short-sighted men; nor should he, because he alone " knows what is in man," and by conse- quence knows best whom to appoint. There are, it is likely, three classes of ministers in the visible Church : first, the self-appointed, who have artfully imposed themselves upon the Church, and extorted from the Church credentials of authority. Secondly, men whose call to the sacred office is exclusively confined to the Church, and who have been urged and pressed forward hj the Church, if not contrary to their convictions of duty, yet without any of a deep and weighty character, involving their conscience. Thirdly, men who have been moved by the Holy Ghost to seek the sacred office, and to whose heavenly call- ing the Church has responded in clothing them with ecclesiastical authority to proclaim to this rebellious world " the word of reconciliation " to 334 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. God. This latter class comes within the range of the divine promise — " Lo, I am with you alway." These are the men whose hearts from their lowest depths have been stirred by "the power of an endless life ;" whose bones are all afire with " the word of God." Christ has put his Spirit in them. What wonder that, like him, they should be " go- ing about doing good ? " Such men cannot stay at home without sacrificing a good conscience and spiritual enjoyments. As it is certain that the word of inspiration has said, " Study to show thy- self approved a workman that need not be ashamed," so certain is it their duty to avail themselves of every opportunity, advantage, and facility within their reach to store their minds with useful knowledge, whether scientific, classical, or theological, and it is the implied duty of the Church to bring these advantages and facilities within their reach. The day is not far distant when a preacher of the gospel without a respect- able share of literary and biblical knowledge — es- pecially the latter — will be a reproach to himself, to the cause of Christ, and to the Church to which he belongs. Meanwhile, let not human knowledge and its power think to supplant the wisdom and power of God in putting forth the hand of Uzzah to steady the ark, and dogmatically say, We have in our wisdom erected a high educational stand- ard ; it is absolute ; come up to this, and we ad- OFFICES OF THE HOLY SPIRIT. 335 mit you; fall below, and we reject you. It is enough for him who "knows the heart" to be dogmatic ; and so he was when he said, " Let no man take this honor to himself but he that is called of God as was Aaron." In the prophetic age of the Church there were many schools called the schools of the prophets. The young men in these schools were called u sons of the prophets." One of these schools was at Bethel, another at Naioth in Rama, another at Jericho, and still another at Gilgal. These proph- ets were quite numerous. Probably it was of these sons of the prophets that were cut off by Jezebel, and that to the number of a hundred were hidden by Obadiah in a cave. Over these schools pre- sided, as we suppose, the older prophets, as we learn from I Kings xix. 19, 20, that Samuel was appointed over the school at Naioth in Rama. They were the public preachers or teachers of religion, and in these schools they were instructed and qualified for their important office. But these institutions prescribed no limits to the prerogative of the Holy Ghost; or, supposing they did, he totally disregarded them in calling Amos, who de- clares himself that he was not one of the sons of prophets, but a herdsman, "yet the Lord took him as he followed the flock," and said to him, " Go prophesy unto my people, Israel." See Amos vii. 14. Other similar instances, it is prob- 336 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. able, may have occurred, and thus the Holy Ghost asserts his unrestricted freedom in calling whom he will ; and no man, or society of men, has the right, either by precedent, usage, or law, to put an interdict upon whom he calls. Diversity in unity is the divine order established by the Holy Ghost. The "foot," the "hand," the "ear," the " eye," all members of one body. So is the body of Christ. Some prophets, some teachers and pastors, some exhorters, others for helps and gov- ernments, all working together in harmony in one body to the " edifying of itself in love." As in " diversity of gifts," so also in the diversity of talent employed by the Holy Spirit in carrying out the objects contemplated in the divine polity. Paul was large-hearted — had " much learning," with a mind powerfully logical. Peter, bold and impetuous — " a plain, blunt man," that " spoke right on" — simple-minded, honest, with no pre- tensions to human learning. James, direct and sententious. The dashing Matthew — so called by an infidel — brings us to a near view of the Man of Calvary on the cross, while the thundering earthquake, the rending rocks and darkened heav- ens responding to the sobs and groans of his great loving and breaking heart, attest with an unearthly eloquence that God as well as man is there. The words of Apollos were as smooth as oil and sweet as honey; the loving heart of the beloved John OFFICES OF THE HOLY SPIRIT. 337 overflowed with love's refluent wave ; and so the diversity prevailed among the apostles and minis- ters of the formative age of Church-kingdom, and ever will prevail. The Holy Ghost saw good to interweave it with his policy in accomplishing the great objects of the atonement, the total destruc- tion of Satan's empire, and the triumphant reign of Messiah. In this diversity in the Christian ministry, we have men of different orders of talent, tempera- ment, modes of thinking, and modes of communi- cating thought. The variety also obtains in re- gard to literary and biblical knowledge ; but the attainments of the lowest in the scale should be, at the least, respectable. If not, to the shame of the delinquent and of the Church be it said. But this diversity in Christ's ministry never has been broken up ; likely, never can ; certainly best it never should ; it is a part of the infinitely wise pol- icy of the Holy Spirit in his divine administration. Unity in diversity, and diversity in unity, is the di- vine order throughout the known universe. This brings us upon what Paul says upon the subject with regard to the Church ; after speaking of the diversity of gifts bestowed by the Spirit upon the different members, he joins the members in a body thus : " From whom (Christ) the whole body fitly joined together and compacted by that which every joint supplieth, according to the effectual 15 338 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. working in the measure of every part, maketh in- crease of the body unto the edifying of itself in love." VI. It is the office of the Holy Ghost to comfort the hearts of God's children. This we learn from the word of truth — John xv. 26 : " But when the Comforter is come, whom I will send unto you from the Father, even the Spirit of truth, which proceedeth from the Father, he shall testify of me." This promise to his disciples Christ repeats, John xvi. 7 : "It is expedient for you that I go away: for if I go not away, the Comforter will not come unto you; but if I depart, I will send him unto you." This, as shown by Peter, was fulfilled on the day of Pentecost : " Therefore (Christ) being by the right hand of God exalted, and having received of the Father the promise of the Holy Ghost, he hath shed forth this which ye now see and hear." Allusion is here no doubt made to the promise in the prediction by Joel, but especially to that of the Comforter made in Pe- ter's hearing by the Saviour. We are not to suppose that the Church of God, previous to the day of Pentecost, enjoyed none of the consolations of the Holy Spirit. The lan- guage of David, wherein he petitions that God would "grant him his Spirit, and restore to him the joys of his salvation;" also the language of Elizabeth, Mary, Anna, and Simeon, clearly indi- OFFICES OF THE HOLY SPIRIT. 339 cate the comforting influences of the Holy Spirit. But we may understand that at and after the day of Pentecost there was and should be continued a more copious effusion of the Spirit than when the Church was under a symbolic or typical dispensa- tion, and more especially since a new dispensation was about to supersede the old one. A great rev- olution was now to take place ; a new order of things was to be organized; the Messiahship of Christ was to be vindicated, and the truth of the farther revelation made by Christ and his apostles was to be established, all which would meet with the most violent opposition. Under these circum- stances the Church would need an enlarged degree of spiritual comfort, lest they should weary and faint in their minds. And moreover, chains, dun- geons, and martyrdom, were not so common under the old dispensation as they would be under the new. The Church was also to be infested with grievous wolves and damnable heresies. The fear- ful " mystery of iniquity " embodied in " the man of sin " was beginning to work even in Paul's day. This, the most artful and consummate machinery which was. ever invented by the faculty of hell, was to work on with its signs and lying wonders, and with all deceivableness of unrighteousness, until the coming of the Lord, when he, " the man of sin," shall be totally destroj^ed. The condition of the Church under these circumstances would 340 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. certainly require a higher degree of spiritual com- fort and joy in the Holy Ghost. This comfort has been realized in every stage of her pilgrimage since the fulfillment of Christ's promise on the day of Pentecost. The Holy Spirit comforts the followers of Christ in bearing witness with their spirit that they are truly God's children. How wonderfully consoling must this be to their souls — to feel an assurance that God is their Heavenly Father ; and more es- pecially since their eternal happiness depends upon their sustaining this relationship to him; and being assured that they do sustain it, they "have hope toward God," which is as an anchor of the soul " both sure and steadfast." The conjoint testimony of their spirit and the Spirit of God is evidence of the highest order, and brings with it at times "joy unspeakable." They are adopted into their Heavenly Father's Church -family — have found a new brotherhood, and changed their rela- tion to the world. Entering into covenant with God in Christ, the old bond is broken which held to servitude to the world and sin. " The law of the spirit of life in Christ " has made them " free from the laws of sin and death." In God's spiritual family, into which they are adopted, they have found brethren whom they love. They love the gates of Zion. An inward spiritual force impels them toward the house of God. They can say OFFICES OF THE HOLY SPIRIT. 341 with David, "One thing have I desired, that will I seek after, that I may dwell in the house of the Lord forever to behold the beauty of the Lord, and to inquire in his temple." Turning away from the world and its delusive pleasures, their faces are set toward the hill of Zion. All these spiritual attrac- tions toward the children of God and their com- panionship — toward the courts of Zion desiring to dwell in the house of the Lord, are from the Holy Spirit, and are sources of much comfort as collateral evidence that they are the children of God. He abides with the saints forever — never for- sakes them — never leaves them comfortless. 1. He dwells in them as his " temple," that they may- keep that " good thing committed to them by the Holy Ghost which dwelleth in us." 2. To in- crease, invigorate, and confirm their faith in Christ and in the divine promises. Hence, the admoni- tion, "Add to your faith, virtue " — vigor or strength. Hence, too, the prayer, " Lord, increase our faith," — ail which is effected by the Holy Spirit's influ- ence. 3. To assist them in their terrible conflicts with the world, the flesh, and Satan. As their divine Leader won the victory in the wilderness, so shall they win it. " When the enemy comes in like a flood, the Spirit of the Lord shall lift up a standard against him." 4. To impart to them strength and deliverance in the hour of tempta- tion, he makes a way " for their escape, that they 342 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. be able to bear it ;" and " The Lord knoweth how- to deliver the godly out of temptation." 5. To aid them in the discharge of duties, whether of the pulpit or of the family, the sanctuary or the closet, he makes the word preached by his called and sent "quick and powerful." Aided by his holy in- spirations, the prayer of faith goes up from the " shut " closet, and the heart of the God-loving parent is inspired by him with Joshua's resolu- tion, "As for me and my house, we will serve the Lord." In all the uncounted varieties of life along the Christian's pathway, " He helpeth their infirmities." 6. The crowning consolation im- parted by the indwelling comforter is the " love of God shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghost which is given unto us." This, for the first time, is realized in the hour of conversion ; but is repeated to the thirsting soul as showers of rain upon the thirsty earth, renewing its face and start- ing new life and growth in its vegetable offspring. This high-born principle of love — "love unfeigned," " fervent " love, " charity out of a pure heart" — is the all-animating, prompting power which regards Christ's yoke easy and his burden light ; which bears with patient endurance the cross, with the sneers, and scoffs, and persecutions the world heaps upon it ; the privations, toils, and hardships incident to the life of a Christian soldier. It is the moral centripetal bond, uniting in Christ the OFFICES OF THE HOLY SPIRIT. 343 soul to God — -brother to brother and earth to heaven. Faith, indeed, is the mighty implement of the Christian warfare, but it lives and " works by love." Faith enters the lists and joins the battle, but love inspires the courage and nerves the arm. Faith wins the conquest, and both faith and love ascribe all the honor and glory to God. Faith and hope are great, but charity (love) is greatest of all ; it is destined to an endless dura- tion. It pervades not only the unnumbered mil- lions of the redeemed and white-robed saints, but also all upright beings in God's intelligent uni- verse. Under its perpetually rejuvenating power heaven can never grow old, and it will eternally hold the sons and heirs of glory in all the fresh- ness, bloom, and beauty of youth. "God is love." PART VIIL— THE CHURCH OF CHRIST. Its True Character. A PARTICULAR Church is a number of per- sons who believe on Jesus Christ, and have united in society to worship the one true God, and take the Holy Scriptures as the only infallible rule of faith and practice, having the gospel of Christ and its ordinances administered among them. In a more extended sense, the Church consists of all such societies, scattered over the earth, of whatever sect or denomination. But as many in every age have attached themselves to the outward, visible Church, who were not true members of Christ's spiritual body, we shall, for the sake of distinction, speak of his Church on the earth as being both invisible and visible. The invisible Church is constituted of all Chris- tians in heart as well as by profession, and are known to God only, while the visible Church is seen and known of men. Into the visible 'Church many have crept " unawares," bringing damnable heresies — "men of corrupt minds," teachers of (314) THE CHURCH OP CHRIST. 345 false doctrines, subverting the hearers and turn- ing them away from the simplicity of the truth as it is in Jesus. Such false pretenders have af- flicted the Church in every age, and still afflict it. They claim to be members of the Church, and so they are in name, and outwardly. They have ever been the disturbers of the peace of Zion, causing the way of truth to be evil spoken of. Men of the world take pleasure in holding them up as true exponents of Christianity, than which nothing is mor^ unfair and false. They are slan- ders upon the religion of Christ — the foul spittle of the enemy upon the fair face of Jesus. Hav- ing a name to live, they are dead — dead in sin — dead-weights and impediments to the cause of Christ — a curse to the Church and a disgrace to themselves. These are the tares among the wheat, grievous wolves that scatter the flock, spots in her feasts of charity, and blemishes upon her fair es- cutcheon • but the Church must suffer and bear it all. A sinful and an uncandid world ever has and ever will make the Church the scape-goat to bear the sins of her spurious membership. The wicked will not take the trouble, nor are they disposed, to discriminate between the base metal and the pure — the counterfeit and the genuine coin, the nominal and the real Christian. Well, if it must, let it be so; but the day is coming when "ye shall return and discern between the righteous and 15* - 346 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. the wicked ; between him that serves God and him that serves him not." But in the true, spiritual body, which we style the invisible Church, there are no counterfeits — no merely nominal Christians ; all are truly con- verted ; they are the children of God by faith in Christ Jesus — members of his mystical body, growing into a holy temple in the Lord. The time will come when all things will be brought to the light of day; then shall the now invisible Church be seen by an assembled world in all her bridal beauty and glory. That part of the Church in heaven and that on earth shall then unite, em- bodying the full complement of Christ, " the full- ness of him who filleth all in all." Of the Church, Christ himself is the head. Reason itself teaches this. A human head would be out of its place upon the body of Christ. If the Church, the body of Christ, was merely hu- man, a human head would do very well, but not otherwise. Again, wherever the members are, there also the head should be, and so Christ prom- ised : " Where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst." A human head, whether Gregory the Great, or Pius IX., could not say this and speak the truth. Peter himself could not have said it without blasphemy. Christ said to his standard-bearers, " Go ye into all the world, . . . and, lo, I am with you alway." THE CHURCH OF CHRIST. 347 No human being could make such a promise with- out the extremest presumption. His holiness, the Pope of Rome, who claims to be the head of the Church universal, may be present with a few at Rome, or even at an Ecumenical Council, but, poor mortal, he can be present nowhere else at the same time. Like other frail mortals, popes must die, and in that case the Church, the body of Christ, of which they claim the headship, must be headless until another pope is elected. We have abundant testimony, even from Rom- ish authority, that no little political as well as ec- clesiastical intrigue and corruption have played their part in the election of some of the popes, and that some of them have led most abominable and scandalous lives. What a monster— a re- deemed, sanctified body with a devilish head ! We know the arrogant claims of the papacy. Not only does it claim the headship of the Church of Christ, but also the power to dethrone emper- ors and kings, and to absolve their subjects from allegiance to their governments. This high-handed claim has been carried into practice, deposing some, obliging them to kiss his toe, to hold his stirrup, treading even upon the neck of a king, and kick- ing off the imperial crown with his foot. The papacy also claims to be the only true Church, and that salvation is found within its pale alone. And hence, all Protestants are vile 348 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. heretics, and are on the road to perdition. Popes greatly boast of a regular apostolic succession — that they can trace back an unbroken line of popes to Peter, whom they style the prince of the apos- tles. Perhaps they may be able to trace back a regular succession until they get to Pope Joan, who, it is said (by way of paradox), was a woman, and a very base one. Here, of course, is a miss- ing link, to say nothing of the middle ages, called the dark ages, consisting of several hundred years when the knowledge of letters and the light of science suffered an almost total eclipse, and ignor- ance and superstition reigned triumphant. How is it possible that such succession could be legiti- mately traced through centuries of deep darkness, in the midst of the political, social, and religious upheavals which mark that long period ? But even granting to the Church of Rome this coveted garment, would that hide her nakedness ? The Jews in Christ's day boasted loudly of their lineal descent from Abraham. This, though true literally, was a lie spiritually; for Christ told them that if they were the children of Abraham, they would do the works of Abraham ; and so far from being his children, they were the children of the devil. He denounced them as "whitecl sepul- chers," and " ravening wolves," and "hypocrites." And his forerunner, John, called them " serpents, a generation of vipers." So much, then, for their THE CHURCH OF CHRIST. 349 vainglorying in their Abrahamic succession. Vain was this boasting when, by their hypocrisy and wickedness, they had scandalized their noble pa- ternity; when they had made void the law through their traditions. This very boasting John struck from their lips when he told them that " God was able of these stones to raise up children unto Abraham." As John said to the Pharisees and Sadducees, so we might say to the Romish Church, Think not to say within yourselves, we have suc- ceeded apostolically from Peter, for God is able to convert stony-hearted sinners, putting in them his Spirit, by which Peter was actuated, and thus make them the true spiritual successors of Peter. Ye blind guides, can you not see this ? Was it not faith in Christ, irrespective of carnal descent, that constituted the true spiritual seed of Abra- ham, and heirs of the promise ? So all converted men, called of God, and having the faith and spirit of the apostles, are their true spiritual successors, and the legitimate heirs of the promise, "Lo, I am with your Have there not been popes and bish- ops of the Church of Rome who lived scandal- ously wicked ? Let their own historians answer. Were they the proper heirs of Christ's promise ? No more than those Jewish serpents and vipers were the true heirs of the promise made to Abra- ham and his seed. This boasted succession (even if it could be established) is of no value in the 350 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. absence of the spirit, life, and teachings of the apostles. Did the apostles possess the spirit of persecu- tion, of burning heretics to death? Did the apos- tles teach that Christ was really offered in sacri- fice every time the ordinance of the Lord's-supper is celebrated ? Did they teach the Romish dogma of praying souls out of purgatory — the dogma of the celibacy of the clergy, of the merit of works, of works of supererogation ; the doctrine of in- dulgences, or buying with money pardons of the most atrocious crimes ? Did they teach how to make and to use holy water, holy oil, holy can- dles, holy relics, holy images ? Did the apostles teach the worship of images, the praying to saints, praying to Mary, praying to Peter, to Paul, and to perhaps hundreds of others? Did they teach that Mary was the fountain of mercy, the foun- tain of joy, and the queen of heaven ? Did they teach the sprinkling of holy water upon horses, mules, asses, and cattle, to preserve them by way of charm or miracle from disease and death ? We might continue these interrogatives a great deal farther, and at last get no truthful affirmative an- swer ; for the apostles taught no such things. No wonder that the stupid hearers of the Romish priesthood are turned from the truth unto fables. Roman Catholics, to evade the charge of hav- ing persecuted to death so many thousands of so- THE CHURCH OF CHRIST. 351 called heretics, throw the responsibility of the inhuman butchery upon the secular authorities. They plead that the Church goes no farther than to condemn and anathematize and turn them over to the secular power. But this is a vain shift, since the very laws by which such heretics are put to death, are the enactments of Romish legislators, un- der the influence and control of the Catholic faith. The Romish Church claims to be the " Mother Church," the mother of all the Protestant Churches. How happens it that she bears such deadly hatred toward her children ? What an unnatural mother ! And w T ould fain have strangled them all at their birth. What a cruel mother ! Protestants are not ambitious of this maternity. They could take no pride in being considered the daughters of a drunken mother and the sisters of harlots. They have obeyed the voice of God by the mouth of the prophet, "Come out of her my people, that ye be not partakers of her sins." Though Daniel, God's prophet, and other pious Jews, dwelt awhile in Babylon, and righteous Lot and his family in Sodom, yet neither Babylon nor Sodom was the Church of God. So neither is the apostate fraternity which is "spiritually called Sodom and Babylon? the Church of God. Protestants claim to be the children, not of Agar, the bond woman, who is in bondage with her children, but the children of the free woman 352 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. and heirs of the promise made to Abraham, the father of the faithful. Thus much for the mater- nity of the scarlet-robed woman and the headship of the pope. A carnal head, however, is good enough for a carnal body. No one can seriously object to the pope's being the head of the brother- hood over which he presides, but, for the sake of common sense and the honor of Christ, let us have a spiritual head for a spiritual body, and let that head be Christ ; and so he is declared to be " the Head of all things to the Church" and, as this is true, there is neither need of nor room for any other head. Compared with the Headship of Je- sus Christ, the great Creator and glorious Saviour, the headship of popes is not only most insignificant, but utterly contemptible. The papacy also claims infallibility. With re- gard to this point Roman Catholics themselves have not been agreed. All, we believe, have ad- mitted that it exists somewhere among them, but where has been the "bone of contention." Whether it resides in the pope, or in a general council, or in a general council and the pope conjointly, has not been determined. This infallibly proves the fallibility of their Church ; otherwise, they would know where to locate the infallibility. There is no infallibility outside of the word of God, nor is it dependent upon popes, priests, or councils for its interpretation. " If any man lack THE CHURCH OF CHRIST. 353 wisdom, let him ask of God, who giveth to all lib- erally;" and " If any man will do his will, he shall know of the doctrine whether it be of God." And the citizens of Berea were said to be "more noble than those of Thessalonica, in that they received the word with all readiness of mind, and searched the Scriptures daily whether those things were so." Upon this subject Jesus Christ and the Pope of Rome are squarely at issue. Jesus says, " Search the Scriptures : in them ye think ye have eternal life." The pope says, Ye shall not search the Scriptures, as to do so might endanger your eter- nal life. And it is notorious that the popes of Rome have interdicted the reading of the Script- ures by the common people, and thus have taken from them " the key of knowledge," and shut them out in ignorance and superstition. This, however, is excellent policy, according to the ethics of Romanism, since the more ignorant the common masses the more easily they are gulled — -just as a juggler is more successful in playing off his tricks upon a stupid, illiterate crowd than upon one of intelligence. Verily, "the children of the world are wiser in their generation than the chil- dren of light." If the Romish hierarchy is symbolized by the little horn of Daniel's vision, and by Babylon and Sodom, and the woman clothed in purple and scarlet, the mother of harlots, drunk with the 354 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. blood of the saints, as seen in the vision by the prophet of Patuios, and if the Apostle Paul had his eye upon this Romish apostasy (as the most enlightened and pious Protestant theologians be- lieve) when he speaks of " the man of sin, the mystery of iniquity" we cannot conscientiously as- sign it any place within the pale of the true Church of Christ, much less as the only true Church, to the exclusion of all others. This may subject us to the charge of a want of Christian charity. Can the mantle of Christian charity be thrown over Nero, Judas, Simon Magus? Then, may it cover a woman, the mother of harlots, drunk with the blood of the saints — "the mystery of iniquity," "the man of sin whose coming is after the work- ing of Satan with all power, and signs, and lying wonders; with all deceivableness of unrighteous- ness in them that perish." We trust this will ex- onerate us from the charge. But the days of the papacy are well-nigh numbered ; shorn of his sec- ular power and straitened on every side, his holi- ness is growing restless in his seat; kings and potentates no longer tremble upon their thrones at the thunders of the Vatican — no longer can he kick their crowns from their heads with his holy foot ; neither Austria, Spain, nor Italy will now kneel to kiss his sacred slipper. His strongholds of power and influence one by one have been de- molished ; with painful anxiety he is doubtless THE CHURCH OF CHRIST. 355 now casting about him for a place of refuge. His last hope is thought to be the United States ; at this point the mystery of iniquity is hard at work. He thinks, no doubt, this is a propitious time ; the foundations of society have been disturbed and loosened, and the worst elements are floating to the surface. His vassals, by thousands, are swarm- ing throughout our country; they bring with them all the vice, superstition, ignorance, and antichris- tian intolerance of a spurious, corrupt, and debas- ing religion. Add to these the many thousands that' they educate in their schools, not only the children of their own people, but those of Protest- ants, many of whom are imprudent and silly enough to patronize them ; this is nourishing a viper in their own bosoms. And besides this, there is a ^lass — the colored race — recently thrown upon the surface of American society, which fur- nish good material for them to work upon ; igno- rant, and naturally inclined to superstition, fond of and dazzled with external parade, pomp, and show, would it not be an easy matter, under a lit- tle Jesuitical manipulation, to manufacture them into good enough Roman Catholics? and more es- pecially since that religion, so called, lays no great restraints upon the carnal appetites and passions. There is another element now being imported from China which threatens erelong to deluge the coun- try. These heathens must either remain pagan, 356 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. having their pagan temples and their idolatrous worship, or they must be' converted to Christianity; and what people under the canopy of heaven, bearing the name of Christian, so likely to perform this work, nominally, as Roman Catholics? Al- ready half pagan themselves, worshiping relics — canonized saints and images — they would be the most likely of all others to succeed in such an en- terprise, and at no very distant day, from all these resources, to swell their numbers to an ex- tent at once unexampled and alarming ; and let it not be forgotten that the almost ubiquitous and lynx-eyed Jesuits will not be slow in perceiving these advantages and seizing upon them to advance the power and interest of the Romish hierarchy in this country. If these forebodings are founded in reasons ob- vious to discerning minds, and justified by the known and long-practiced policy of the papal power, who can doubt that, now enveloped in the stifling smoke and thick darkness portending his ruin in Europe, he will make a mighty struggle to gain a permanent footing in America? This is the more evident since, if correctly informed, it is his avowed object, and since he is using all the means and prerequisites for the accomplishment of the pro- posed end. Additional testimony upon this grave subject is derived from the fact that their splendid cathedrals are shooting heavenward their lofty THE CHURCH OF CHRIST. 357 spires in almost all the cities and large towns, and their schools are springing up as by magic in all parts of the country. This fearful " man of sin" when unchecked by the civil arm, has freely used the potent arguments of the scaffold, the sword, and the fire to extermi- nate the followers of Christ, and would to-day re- peat the- same bloody tragedies had he the control of the secular powers and thought it his policy to do so ; but in this respect his power to kill is now curtailed — the enlightenment of the present age will not tolerate such sanguinary proceedings. But, ever fruitful in expedients, he may change his tactics and ply all his arts to seduce and cor- rupt; here lies the danger. This is an age when formalism is creeping upon the Church as a terri- ble nightmare, to stifle and destroy the spirit and power of godliness. This works to the interest of Rome. A showy, splendid worship also be- longs to this age. What a proud spirit of rivalry there is now abroad as to who shall have the most costly and magnificent houses of worship, in whose appendages and decorations and in the costly ap- parel of the so-called worshiping assemblies are exhibited all the representatives of wealth, of fashion, of pride, and of vainglory! External pomp and magnificence belonged to the typical age. The glory of the Jewish temple was but a type of the eclipsing spiritual glory of the gospel age. 358 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. The Church of Rome, at much disadvantage, has compromised religion with Judaism and paganism until she has hardty enough even of the form of Christianity left to maintain the name. What she lacks in spirit and in truth (and we fear she lacks it all) she makes up in outward parade, pomp, and show. The Jewish temple answered its typical purpose, and, like its entire sisterhood of types, has long since been laid in the grave ; and whoever would disinter the buried types of Judaism, and intrude them into the Christian worship, makes a step backward, and is by so much "a Jew out- wardly." It has been a long time since the wor- shipers of God had to go to Jerusalem to attend the service of the temple ; and there being no far- ther need of its typical significance, it was laid in ruins, and, if we credit history, God will not suf- fer it to be rebuilt — a lesson this, perhaps, to the advocates of an outside pompous Christian wor- ship. The vine and fig-tree have superseded Jeru- salem and its temple, and the sincere and humble Christian, under the former, sends up to God from his heart-altar an incense holier and sweeter than ever arose from that of a proud Pharisaical wor- shiper in the temple of Solomon. Compared with this, bow poor religion's pride, In all the pomp of method and of art, When men display to congregations wide Devotion's every grace, except the heart! THE CHURCH OF CHRIST. 359 The Power, incensed, the pageant will desert, The pompous strain, the sacerdotal stole; But haply, in some cottage far apart, May hear, well pleased, the language of the soul, And in his book of life the inmates poor enroll. There are three things externally necessary as accompaniments of the worship of God : decency, comfort, and convenience. All beyond this is use- less, and is not adapted to the simplicity of the Christian worship. When Christ was here upon earth he presented to the men of the world but few outside attractions ; it was his mighty works and words of spirit and life that called out the vast multitudes to see him and hear him, and to- day, if the spirit and power of Christ should fill the hearts of his ministers, and they should go forth, " in the fullness of his gospel," proclaiming pardon and life to a dying world, the places would be too strait to contain the people who would go out to see and to hear them. They would have no need of silver and gold either to give or to show, but, freely giving such as they have, the morally lame would walk, the deaf hear, the blind see, the dead in sin spring into life, and the poor, as well as the rich, would have the gospel preached unto them. " They that wear soft clothing are in kings houses." It is a poor thing to dress up Christ in purple and fine linen, in outward adorn- ments, to make him more attractive; those who 360 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. make the experiment will get no thanks from him for their pains. By so much as the spirit of pride and vanity prevails in the Church will she en- deavor to show off Christ to a worldly advantage. This has been the carnal policy of Romanism. That Church so called has dressed him in so much purple and scarlet, and bedecked him with so much gold and silver, and rich jewelry, that he is transformed into a glittering pageant or a moral coxcomb for the world to wonder at, but not to love. The Church treads on dangerous ground when she leans over to the side of conformity to the world. But when a low-down spirit, through the mistake of society, is " clothed with a little brief authority," how soon does he begin his tyr- anny! The worst tyrant, either in the Church or the world, is the love of money. The servants of mammon are slaves, the servants of Grod are " free indeed." This is eminently a money-loving age. Rome is full to repletion with " costly merchandise." How much think ye that the Protestant Churches are to-day bartering for her wares ? Are they not trading off self-sacrifice for self-satisfaction, self- denial for self-indulgence, humility for the spirit of pride, u modest apparel " for " gold and silver and costly array," the simplicity of God's worship for outside pomp and show; in a word, the power of godliness for a lifeless formalism ? But, "Lord, THE CHURCH OF CHRIST. 361 who hath believed our report, and to whom is the arm of the Lord revealed?" Rowing against wind and tide is hard work. Public sentiment and fashion are great tyrants. Suppose the ques- tion once put to the carnal Jews should, at the present day, be put to large numbers of goers to Church, " What went ye out for to see ? A reed shaken with the "wind?" "No, I went to see a man clothed in soft raiment, whose words and man- ner corresponded to his raiment." " But what went ye out for ? " " To see a grand display of pride, of wealth, and of fashion, and to display my own." " But what went ye?" . . . " To hear the 'elegant' Church-music, the choir, and the or- gan, the disentombed types of the old dispensa- tion." "And did the soft man say 6 serpents ' — 6 generation of vipers' ?" "Not he — he was afraid ; he would have lost his place and his salary." Last of all, " What went ye for ? " " To hear the word of the Lord in simplicity and power." " Did you hear it?" "No." "What, then?" "A dry, sapless, soft moral essay of thirty minutes' length, and then off to dinner." This, we suppose, is the fashion of the times, and fashion is a great tyrant, and a great sorceress. But all are not Israel that are of Israel ; neither are all members of the spir- itual body of Christ whose names are enrolled in the visible Church-records. We confess we have diverged a little from the 16 362 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. course suggested by the heading of this Part, but it was for the purpose of placing the Church of Christ in her true attitude, and to clear her from the scandal and ignominy occasioned by her spurious membership. The Church of Christ, we know, is built upon the Rock, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it ; but unless she maintain her faith and good works, she will be cast upon the bed of affliction and sorrow. The Church-kingdom is a power. It is the greatest power upon the earth. It has its own peculiar sphere in which it should ever display its activities. This sphere is spiritual, not carnal ; moral, not political ; and by so much as the Church-power is prostituted and brought to act outside of its spiritual sphere, is Christ contra- dicted when he says, " My kingdom is not of this world." Paul says, " The weapons of our war- fare are not carnal," and " we wrestle, not against flesh and blood, but against principalities and pow- ers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places." This gives a clear view of the nature of this great Church-power — of the sphere of its action, and the objects against which the forces are directed. The carnal or secular powers of earth aim to lop off the branches of evil; the power of the Church- kingdom strikes at the root, aiming at its eradica- tion. THE CHURCH OF CHRIST. 363 From this stand-point we have a distinct view of the two departments — the secular and moral, the civil and religious, the carnal and spiritual. Call them by what you will, they are separate and distinct departments. The one, by the divine permission, is an institution of man; the other, wholly of God. In the one are wielded carnal forces, in the other spiritual ; the one directs its forces to the outward man, the other to the in- ward ; the one seeks to neutralize the poison of the stream, the other to purify and cleanse the fountain. Herein is the latter immensely superior to the former, which can reach no farther than men's outward actions, to restrain and correct which is the ultimate object of all human laws. But the religion of Christ, or the spiritual forces abroad in the Church, change the heart, purify man's corrupt nature, give a new disposition and bent of mind, and thus superinduce a new course of outward life. Human governments can never supersede Christ's spiritual Church-kingdom. The utmost they can do is, through the feat of penal sanctions, to restrain the passions of men and keep them within such bounds as to prevent society from becoming altogether intolerable. And it is much to be doubted whether this could be done in the absence of the moral forces of the kingdom of Christ. Indeed, we are ready to af- firm that it could not. setting aside the power of 364 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. divine truth, the influences of the Holy Spirit. Take away the reward of virtue, and the punish- ment of crime in a future life ; blot out heaven, and extinguish the fires of hell, and the anchor- line severed, conscience would swing from its mooring, and mankind, without chart or compass, would be driven, under the fierce winds of their passions, into the whirlpool of universal destruc- tion. The type of this may be found in the doomed Cities of the Plain, and the God-forsaken world that perished by water. The powers of the Church-kingdom are des- tined, not violently by force of carnal weapons, but by moral agencies, to supersede all human governments. "When mankind in their inner heart- nature shall be renewed, when love to God and man shall reign supreme, when the prophet's vis- ion of the new heavens and the new earth shall be fulfilled, then shall the "meek inherit the earth •" " then shall the kingdom and the great- ness of the kingdom under the whole heaven be given to the people of the saints," and they shall live and reign with Christ. Then all will do unto others as they would that others should do unto them. All carnal or secular rule and authority being superseded, now cease. The thrones of human tyrants are now vacated and "cast down;" halls of legislation closed, the cumbrous libraries of law left to m older and decay, the doors and THE CHURCH OF CHRIST. 365 gates of jails and State prisons flung open, or locked up without inmates ; no crime, no punish- ment. The great Restorer, the second Adam, has now fulfilled the original destiny of the first. He has safely conducted the earth and all united to him to their happy and glorious development. The former things are passed away; the great " restitution " is come ; and in due time the earth, emerging from the purifying fires, stands forth in all its rejuvenated beauty and glory. The air, no longer the storehouse of noxious vapors, is redo- lent of healthful breezes. The harmony of earth accords with the music of heaven. Universal love reigns transcendent. " There shall be no more war;" its temple is shut, and the earth- covering wing of peace drops heavenly balm on every soul. " The tabernacle of God is with men ;" and as the sound of many waters, the ten thousand times ten thousand, and thousands of thousands of the redeemed ring out their hallelu- jahs. " Now is salvation come ;" hallelujah ! "The Lord God omnipotent reigneth." This is the Church's final triumph. May we all be there to see! The Gospel Ministry and its Divine Appoint- ment. We deem it unnecessary to enlarge upon this subject. All denominations claiming to be Chris- 366 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. tian admit the establishment of this office by Christ, the great Head of the Church. Under every dispensation we find in the Church of God this office, or its equivalent — the prophets in the patriarchal ages, and the prophets and priests of the dispensation of Judaism. Setting aside the prediction of future events upon the part of the prophets and the ceremonial services of the Jewish priesthood, the holy office of the ministry is substantially the same in all ages. And why should it not be, since human nature, and the nature of true religion, and of Christ's kingdom, has never changed. God has had his ministers in every age. A change of dispensation neither adds to the inher- ent importance of religion, nor does it diminish it. And since the beginning, Deity, in his infinite wis- dom, has seen proper to have in his Church a ministry as one of the most efficient agencies in pulling down the strongholds of Satan, and in ad- vancing the high interests of his divine kingdom. The duties and responsibilities of this ministry are great indeed. The false, uncalled prophets, who handled the word of God deceitfully, were de- nounced and awfully cursed. So were the priests who failed to discharge the duties of their office. The ministerial office, in every age and stage of the Church, is of divine appointment. No true prophet, no lawful priest, was ever self-appointed. THE CHURCH OF CHRIST. 367 The appointing power resided in God, and he only could of right exercise it. Most fearful judg- ments are threatened against the false prophets in the days of Jeremiah and Ezekiel. They prophe- sied " peace to the people when there was no peace," and said that " no evil shall come upon you." But God said of them, " I have not sent these prophets, yet they ran ; I have not spoken to them, yet they prophesied." They are de- nounced in the bitterest terms : " Wherefore their way shall be unto them as slippery ways in the darkness ;" and, " Behold, I will feed them with wormwood, and make them drink the water of gall." Are there not many of the present day who even deny the doctrine of an internal call to the work of the ministry by the Holy Spirit, who nevertheless arrogate to themselves the sacred office ? All such must of necessity be placed upon the list of the self-appointed, false prophets of old, and with the seven sons of Sceva, a Jew- ish chief priest, who took upon themselves in the name of Jesus " whom Paul preached " to cast out a devil without divine authority; but the devil, with defiant tone, replied, " Jesus I know, and Paul I know, but who are ye ? " Even the demons themselves know that such men are not called, and seem not to acknowledge their author- ity nor dread their power. None will deny that all the duties common to 368 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. all Christians are binding also upon the gospel ministry; but there are obligations resting upon the ministry not common to all Christians. It is their duty to " preach the word," to administer the ordinances, and to take the spiritual oversight of the Church; and it is their duty also to avail themselves of all the means within their reach, that they may be qualified for the proper dis- charge of the duties of the sacred office. Now, as the Church has no power or authority to create duties and impose them upon individuals extra of those enjoined in the Scriptures, and which apply in common to all Christians, she could not lay upon any particular member the important duties and weighty responsibilities of the ministerial office. Under no dispensation did the Church create the office of either priest or prophet ; God only did. He appointed in and for the Church the ministerial office ; and as the Scriptures no- where point out specially any particular persons whose duty it is to officiate as ministers of the gospel, so the Church, were she disposed to under- take it, would be utterly at a loss to know upon what particular members to impose such para- mount obligations. When Judas fell by trans- gression, the apostles did not assume the power and wisdom to appoint another in his stead, but in the most solemn manner appealed to God, who knew the hearts of all men, to make known to THE CHURCH OF CHRIST. 369 them the one whom he had selected to fill the place of Judas. In this case there are three im- portant particulars : first, a clear acknowledgment of their ignorance as to the proper person to fill the sacred office. Secondly, the necessity of a knowledge of the hearts of men as a qualification of the appointing power. Thirdly, a clear recog- nition of this as belonging to God only. Then, first, if they knew which of the two disciples, Justus and Matthias, whom they presented, was the proper person to fill the place of Judas, why appeal to God to show them? No other reason can be given than that of their ignorance upon this subject; and this was a sufficient reason to restrain them from assuming the appointing power. And as to the two brethren themselves — though both had been with Jesus all the time from the bap- tism of John, and had witnessed his resurrection — instead of arrogating to themselves the office in question, as many modern would-be-thought min- isters of the gospel do, they were entirely sub- missive and passive. But one of them must be chosen to fill the now vacant place of the fallen traitor, and they know not which. They know their persons, their outward demeanor, and what might appear to them their comparative qualifica- tions for the sacred office. Why, then, do the eleven not proceed to make the solemn election ? Ah, there is one species of knowledge they do 16* 370 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. not possess, and that is the knowledge of the heart. God only did, and therefore they appealed to him. Here, then, secondly, is a clear evidence that they believed the knowledge of the hearts of men was an indispensable qualification to make the impor- tant appointment. "And they prayed, and said, Thou, Lord, which knowest the hearts of all men, shew whether of these two thou hast chosen." God did choose Matthias. He had a preference, and that preference was founded upon something in Matthias which the apostles did not, could not, know. God only did, because he only knows the heart. This heart-knowledge, thirdly, is clearly recognized by them as necessary to the high pre- rogative of choosing men for the sacred and re- sponsible office of the gospel ministry. And if this heart-knowledge is indispensable to this pre- rogative, and none possess it but God alone, it therefore follows that he alone has the preroga- tive of choosing his ministry. This conclusion is unavoidable, unless it can be shown that the knowledge of the heart has been dispensed with as a qualification of the power of choosing or ap- pointing men to this office ; and farther, that God has laid down this prerogative since the days of the prophets and apostles, and committed it to the hands of ignorant men. This certainly cannot be done, and the more especially can it not be done in the face of the " Woe is unto me, if I preach not THE CHURCH OF CHRIST. 371 the gospel!" and "Let no man take this honor to himself but he that is called of God as was Aaron," and in spite of the great facts that God is un- changeable, religion the same in all ages, the min- isterial office as elevated and responsible now as ever, souls of men worth as much, heaven as glo- rious and hell as intolerable now as in the days of the prophets and apostles. Until these facts of supreme importance shall be negatived, and Script- ure warrant shall be produced showing that the heart-knowing God has surrendered his prerogative of making his own selections for the ministerial office, we must believe the doctrine of a divine call to the work of the ministry. It has ever been the usage of earthly potentates to select and appoint the high officials to fill the offices which they themselves have created ; so especially with regard to embassadors and minis- ters commissioned and sent to foreign nations. Those potentates would not trust the appointment of their high functionaries to any subordinate au- thority, and for the good reason that such subor- dinate authority would not be competent to make so judicious a choice as would the supreme author- ity itself. Hence, the prerogative of appointing the suitable persons to these responsibilities and duties is retained and executed by the poAvers that instituted the office. This, it must be conceded by all, is a wise and prudent course ; no one ob- 372 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. jects, or can object, to it upon reasonable grounds. Why, then, should any object to a similar course upon the part of the King and Head of Zion ? He instituted the office of the gospel ministry, and why should he not have the exclusive author- ity, as possessing all-heart knowledge, to appoint and commission the proper persons to fill that office ? or shall it be thought that he, possessing infinite knowledge, acting with less prudence and discretion than fallible monarchs of. earth, has sur- rendered this prerogative into the hands of short- sighted men ? We cannot reasonably suppose it. Now, let us hear the Apostle Paul: "Now then we are embassadors for Christ, as though God did beseech you by us: we pray you in Christ's stead, be ye reconciled to God." The case is here fully made out; Paul and others are embassadors for Christ. What is true of Paul is true also of the other apostles ; they w T ere called of God. They were commissioned by whom ? — the Church ? Nay, but by the high court of heaven. Paul, af-" ter his conversion, held no conference with flesh and blood — none with the apostles and the Church at Jerusalem — but forthwith preached Christ to the Gentiles and in the synagogues. It is easily seen where Paul received his commission to preach the gospel. All true ministers are embassadors for Christ ; they are commissioned to negotiate a peace between God and this revolted, rebellious THE CHURCH OP CHRIST. 373 world ; having received from the Supreme Author- ity the "word of reconciliation," they proclaim the terms of peace ; they pray sinners " in Christ's stead to be reconciled to God." The duties and responsibilities of this office are such that the Church dare not impose them upon any particular member, unless he himself, like Paul, feel that "necessity is laid upon him," and from a conscious sense of duty can exclaim, "Woe is unto me, if I preach not the gospel ! " In the first place, it would be a question impossible for the Church to solve whom to appoint as an embassador for Christ; or if a choice should be made, the in- dividual so chosen might not feel it his duty to accept — to do so might, in his estimation, too much conflict with his worldly interest; or he might shrink from the paramount duties of the office, or conclude that the Church had erred in selecting Mm; and in the absence of the terrible " Woe is unto me, if I preach not!" and with the awful denuncia- tions against the unsent prophets staring him in the face, perhaps nine out of ten would decline acceptance. There might, however, be found now and then a willing subject; men filled with self- conceit, having a high appreciation of their own abilities, and more especially if large salaries could be secured, might, and no doubt would, respond to the call of the Church. Such characters would the more likely be found among those who, though 374 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. wearing the name of Christian, ignore the direct and independent agency of the Holy Spirit upon the human mind, and have reduced religion to ex- ternal observances and actions; such self-styled Christians deny the doctrine of a call to the min- istry by the operations of the Spirit moving them to seek that holy office. All such preachers are, by self-confession, uncalled and unsent of God, and are arrogant intruders upon that high and sacred office, and belong to the class of false prophets, or self-appointed embassadors for Christ. In the hands and under the leadership of such a ministry the Church would soon become secular, lose her moral power, and sink into decay and dis- grace. Such men, while the loaves and fishes were abundant and religion popular with the world, might continue, after their fashion, to preach; but should times change, and the very name of Chris- tian become odious, salaries meager, with the hot breath of persecution sweeping over the Church, how long would such preachers last? Under such circumstances they would leave the walls of Zion, slink away and hide themselves, or seek employ- ment more lucrative and less dangerous ; and un- less there should be found men deeply impressed by the Holy Spirit with the "word of God as fire shut up in their bones," feeling as deep as the roots of life " Woe is unto me, if I preach not the gospel!" there would be none to warn the wicked THE CHURCH OF CHRIST. 375 or to break the bread of life to the afflicted chil- dren of God. The appointment of one of the disciples in the place of Judas to the ministry and apostleship de- serves special attention. Having put two of their fellow-disciples in nomination, the apostles did not proceed to elect one of them, as they certainly would have done had it been their prerogative to do so, and had there been no other qualification than what was tangible to them and under their own recognition. Both of these disciples had "companied with them and with Jesus from his baptism to his ascension," and were equally quali- fied as witnesses of his resurrection and of the miracles he had performed. So far they are both qualified for the apostleship. Judas has fallen, and one of these must fill his place. All things are ready: the eleven apostles are together; the two brethren are present — either of them would, so far as the apostles can see, do well to take part with them in their ministry. " Shall we make the choice? No." Why not? "It is not our busi- ness ; it is the prerogative of God to choose his ministers — he has always exercised it, and never has surrendered it. There is upon our part a rad- ical deficiency of qualification ; we do not know their hearts — God only does; and, for this reason, he only, and not we, can of his own right choose his ministers; and all we have to do is to ascertain 376 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. the choice he has already made, and for this let us devoutly pray." The prayer: "And they prayed, and said, Thou, Lord, which knowest the hearts of all men, shew whether of these two thou hast chosen, that he may take part of this ministry and apostleship, from which Judas by transgression fell, that he might go to his own place." In this highly interesting concern let it be observed that God took action first. He had already made choice ; so reads the prayer. The apostles pray to be shown which one ; the answer of God was, Mat- thias. They then numbered him with the eleven. In this transaction there is a brief, but fair, repre- sentation of the respective parts taken by Deity and by the Church in bringing men into the minis- try; and the Church would do well ever to follow the apostolic example set in their proceedings in the case just considered. In this momentous business let God be first. Has he chosen ? has he by his Spirit moved the man to seek the holy office? Here prayer by the Church is by no means out of place; and when, after sufficient trial, having " good report " and be- ing " apt to teach," the Church becomes satisfied, whatever may be the peculiar forms of induction, let him be admitted and " numbered with the min- istry." It is incontrovertible that God's ministers in all preceding dispensations were divinely called by THE CHURCH OF CHRIST. 377 him, and this authority he exercised also in the beginning of the new. This fact, together with the arguments already advanced, ought, we think, to be sufficient to satisfy any unbiased, candid mind ; but were additional proof necessary, it might be found in Christ's promise to his first standard- bearers, "Lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world." This promise certainly includes a succession of ministers to the end of time; but it is equally certain that it does not embrace any who are not called and sent of God, as were the apostles. Instead of sharing in the strength and comfort of this promise, God says of such, "I am against them," "They shall not profit the people," "Their way shall be unto them as slippery ways in the darkness," and "Behold, I will feed them with wormwood, and make them drink the water of gall." Such wood, hay, and stubble builders are doomed to witness the burning of their w T orks, if they, too, are not burned w T ith fire unquenchable. In regard to this promise of Christ to his min- isters, it may be farther observed that it would not apply to nor embrace an unconverted man who had intruded himself or had been intruded by others upon the ministerial office. This is clearly evident, and to give the promise a sound interpre- tation, we must take the apostles as the first of the series of called and accredited ministers under the new institution, and these first ministers as 378 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. the type, or representatives, of all the succeeding series of ministers, converted and in like manner called to be embassadors for Christ. To such, and to no others, does the promise apply, and to the hearts of such has it brought strength and sweet comfort in prisons, in the fires, and upon the scaf- folds of martyrdom. It is sometimes asked, by way of caviling, if a man professing to be called of God to the work of the ministry should not, like the apostles, perform miracles in proof of his mission. If we must an- swer this silly question, we say, No — first, because they were not called, primarily, to work miracles. Paul declares that Christ sent Mm to preach the gospel, and miracles were only secondary to the office ; they were superhuman signs and wonders to attest the truth of the new revelations made by Christ and his apostles. But after plenary evi- dence was given miraculous works were not farther necessary, and therefore ceased ; and as ministers thereafter called of God to preach the gospel did not, and do not now, profess to make any new revelations, but only to preach what is already re- vealed, none have the right to require of them miracles to prove their heavenly calling. A man called of God to preach is not, necessarily, endued with miraculous gifts. The forerunner, John, was called of God, but he wrought no miracles; nor was his divine calling questioned on that account. THE CHURCH OF CHRIST. 379 Thus, the objection contained in the above ques- tion is shown to be futile — groundless. Is it inquired, How does the Holy Spirit call men to the work of the ministry? It would have been enough for Nicodemus to have put this ques- tion ; but, since it has been propounded, we answer, Certainly not by visible signs or miracles — not with an audible voice — but " by my Spirit, saith the Lord," by the same Spirit of whom men "must be born again," or never see the kingdom of God. He is the prime agent in this important concern; his action is first, whatever instrumentalities may be subsequently employed. He makes an impres- sion upon the mind — infixes it in the soul, so that the impression assumes the nature of a conviction of duty and allies itself to the conscience. The Holy Spirit may, and doubtless does, make use of portions of the written word to deepen these con- victions and to bring about obedience — such pas- sages as the following : "A dispensation of the gos- pel is committed unto me ; yea, woe is unto me, if I preach not the gospel ! " this terrible woe! It seems, sometimes, to hang over him like the sword of Damocles. The providence of God may also be brought in. Upon a persistent refusal to obey, his worldly prospects may be blasted ; afflictions of body may come upon him, darkness fill his soul, the comforts of religion in a great measure depart, and he may spend days of disquietude and restless 380 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. and sleepless nights. What shall he do ? He is quite fruitful in excuses : he is too young and in- experienced, or too far advanced in life ; of all his father's house he is the least. The duties and re- sponsibilities of the sacred office are of such mag- nitude they appear overwhelming. Who is suffi- cient for these things? His eyes are sometimes so opened that he seems to see multitudes of sin- ners on the broad way to hell; the conviction comes, like the whirlwind to the patriarch of Uz, that he should lift up his voice and warn them. It is a fearful thing to see the sword coming and not give the alarm. He resolves and breaks his resolution — promises and fails to perform; often is he like a ship far out at sea, under heavy weather, without rudder or compass, or like Jonah, while the tempest of divine wrath threatens eternal ruin, he is asleep in the side of the vessel, or at the bottom of the deep, with the sea-weeds wrapped around him. But though he try to flee from the Lord, he will search him out, for he has " laid ne- cessity upon him," and in the midst of surround- ing darkness the only path of light that opens to his vision is in the discharge of this important duty; and it may be, after eating much of the bread of affliction, he surrenders, makes the trial, and God helps him. The cloud parts, light comes into his soul — in his words the flock of Christ recognize the voice of their Shepherd. The THE CHURCH OF CHRIST. 381 Church is edified and blessed with a minister of God's own choosing, and the wicked with & preacher who will faithfully warn them. The Church also takes part in bringing men into the ministry. Her action, however, should always be secondary. The transactions of the Church are all of an external nature : it is declarative or approbative, sanctioning, and, as it were, opening a door and giving full scope for the usefulness of such ministers — in a word, as did the apostles with Matthias, they are numbered outwardly or in- ducted into the sacred office. The Church, by her acts, cannot bind the con- science. The necessity and "woe" that Paul speaks of did not depend upon any act or acts of the Church. The necessity, or obligation, w T as laid upon him by the Almighty, and the "woe" the penalty to be inflicted upon disobedience. The necessity, or obligation, bound his conscience. Willing obedience secures a reward, willful neglect brings down the penalty. It is a fearful thing to disobey God. Young man, whoever you be, has God, for Christ's sake, pardoned your sins? and are you laboring under serious impressions to warn the wicked to flee the wrath to come ? be care- ful how you carry yourself in this momentous concern ; let not your skirts be stained with the blood of souls. Rather than this, forsake all earthly goods and enjoyments, the nearest and 382 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. dearest, and go into the streets and lanes,, high- ways and hedges, and call in sinners to the gospel feast. You can at least say, " Come, for all things are now ready." These are degenerate times. Formalism, pride, and vanity threaten the Church with disastrous consequences. The incalculable value of souls does not now press with the w T eight upon the hearts and souls of professed Christians as it should and as it once did. But little is now said by them to the ungodly concerning their eter- nal interests. There are of the ministry but few, perhaps, imbued " with the spirit and pow T er of Elijah," or who come and go "in the fullness of the gospel of Christ." The great masses of the people are going headlong down to perdition. If you are called of God, tarry not; swiftly time passes. The Church needs your sendees ; the awfully perilous condition of sinners loudly calls to you to raise your warning voice; and if through your instrumentality but one soul should be saved from endless ruin, you shall have a star in your crown, and cause much joy in heaven. Baptism and the Lord's-supper. These are the only divinely-appointed ordinances of the gospel Church. The rites and ceremonies of the Jewish institution were numerous and bur-, densome, which was, as the Apostle Peter de- clared to the Jew 7 s on the day of Pentecost, a THE CHURCH OF CHRIST. 383 yoke which neither they nor their fathers were able to bear. But as that entire ritual service, en- joined by the ceremonial law, was typical of "bet- ter things to come," under a new and more glori- ous dispensation, and since those types and shad- ows have met their realization in Christ and his gospel kingdom, there is no farther use for them ; they have fulfilled their mission and passed away. Such were the many sacrificial offerings of beasts and birds, together with all those ablutions and purifications Enjoined by the Mosaic law. These, with all other rites and ceremonies belonging to the Jewish economy were, by the Apostle Paul, styled " carnal," or fleshly, " ordinances imposed upon them until the times of reformation." The divine Saviour has seen proper to establish but two ordinances in his Church-kingdom, baptism and the sacred supper. This renders his worship much more simple and far less burdensome. Hence, he says, his " yoke is easy and his burden light." These two ordinances are in the place of two of the former dispensation — circumcision and the passover. In this procedure of the Saviour there may be discovered profound wisdom of design, since circumcision in the flesh was a sign of, and had special reference to, the inw T ard spiritual cir- cumcision, or change of heart, and the lamb slain for the passover pointed directly to "Christ our passover, slain for us," through whose death this 384 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. spiritual circumcision is procured. Hence, from this stand-point, it* appears that these two ordi- nances were the embodiment of the whole Jewish ritual. In the mind of the apostle, they appear to have held preeminence over all the other ordi- nances — the one as setting forth the divine spirit- ual change of the heart, the other as most forcibly directing the mind to Christ as a " Lamb slain for us from the foundation of the world." A refer- ence to the Scriptures, we think, will justify our remarks upon this subject. The prophet exhorts the rebellious Jews, Jer. iv. 4 : " Circumcise your- selves to the Lord, . . . lest my fury come forth like fire, and burn that none can quench it, be- cause of the evil of your doings." It was the token of the covenant God made with Abraham. (See Gen. xvii. 10, 11.) Also it imposed an obli- gation to comply with the law, Gal v. 3 : " For I testify again to every man that is .circumcised, that he is a debtor to do the whole law. The same apostle shows most clearly the spiritual sig- nificance of this ordinance when he says, Rom. ii. 28, 29 : " For he is not a Jew, which is one out- wardly; neither is that circumcision, which is out- ward in the flesh : but he is a Jew, which is one inwardly; and circumcision is that of the heart, in the spirit, and not in the letter." Now let it be noted that all the outward ablu- tions, cleansings, and purifications of the cere- THE CHURCH OF CHRIST. 385 monial institution were made binding by circum- cision, as is affirmed by Paul ; and they bore an allusion to the spiritual purifying of the heart which circumcision, in an eminent sense, signified ; and similar remarks may be made with regard to the passover. For the celebration of this ordinance a lamb unblemished was slain. In reference to this, Christ is* declared as a "Lamb slain from the foundation of the world." John, his harbinger, pointing to him, said, "Behold, the Lamb of God." Paul says he was offered to God as a lamb with- out spot, evidently alluding to the passover lamb which was to be " without blemish." Also John, in Revelation, heard the worshiping hosts cry, " Worthy is the Lamb," and saw the unnumbered multitude who had " Avashed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb." Here, let it be remarked, the blood of the Lamb is the procuring cause of the circumcision or purify- ing of the heart by the Holy Spirit. And as the shedding of the blood of Christ in atoning for sin and the purification of the heart by the Holy Ghost giving a qualification for heaven, summarily comprehend the whole economy of grace, so the passover and circumcision, the great prototypes of the atonement and regeneration, summarily compre- hended the entire ceremonial institution ; for all the sacrificial offerings of that institution were but an 386 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. expansion or amplification of the passover, and the outward cleansings and purifications were the same with respect to circumcision. For illustra- tion, the first and great commandment to love God with all the heart is amplified into the precepts contained in the first table of the decalogue. The second, "like unto it," enjoining love to our neigh- bor, is drawn out into the precepts of the second table. So all the precepts of the decalogue, or moral law, are embodied in the two original com- mands. In like manner were all the sacrificial offerings and typical purifications embodied in the original ordinances, the passover and circumcision ; the one instituted with Abraham, the other before the exodus from Egypt, and both belong to the patriarchal age. Now, to abolish the two first and great com- mandments, enjoining love to God and our neigh- bor, would, at the same time, abolish the ten pre- cepts of the moral law, since these precepts are potentially contained in the two original command- ments, and the abrogation of the latter would be the abolishment of the former. The foundation and the superstructure would all be demolished together. So with regard to the passover and cir- cumcision. Set these aside, and the whole Jewish typical system as a matter of course falls to the ground. From these considerations it becomes apparent THE CHURCH OF CHRIST. 387 that the institution of baptism and the Lord's- supper, the only external ordinances of the gos- pel Church, were in lieu of circumcision and the passover, superseding and making them void, and by consequence they superseded and made void the whole ceremonial system. Baptism and the supper are preeminently significant of the very same spiritual things which were so eminently signified by circumcision and the passover — the one, purification of the heart and qualification for heaven ; the other, the actual immolation of Christ upon the cross, the procuring cause of this quali- fication. But although the gospel ordinances were de- signed to supersede and abolish the old Levitical system, yet this was not to be effected suddenly, but gradually, for it was still existing in the days of the apostles. Paul himself, from deference to Jewish prejudices, was found " purified in the temple," and had Timothy circumcised. And the apostles, for the sake of peace and unity, seemed to compromise the matter in counseling the Churches to abstain from blood, from things strangled, from meats offered to idols, and from fornication. These Jewish prejudices, so hard to overcome, were, however, overruled for a wise purpose when we remember that while the ceremonial super- structure in all its parts within itself was typical, 388 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. the outward splendor of the edifice (of which the magnificent temple was a fair exponent) was spir- itually significant, shadowing forth the moral beauty and glory of the gospel kingdom. This glory became exceedingly bright before the close of the apostolic ministrations. The apostles had proclaimed the glad tidings over large portions of Europe and Asia, and perhaps in Africa. Pagan- ism fell before them as Dagon before the ark, and the new institution had won multitudes from su- perstition and idolatry to the worship of the true God in spirit and in truth. The glory of the gos- pel Church-kingdom so far excelled the external glory of the temple and temple service, that the latter " had no glory by reason of that which ex- celled in glory." It was reduced at last to a faint shadow, and the substance being fully realized, there was no farther need of the shadow, and so it passed away. About this time was wound up the old dispensation, giving place to the new. The temple at Jerusalem lies in ruins, the daily sacri- fice ceases, the Jews scattered to the four winds — types and shadows, having fulfilled their mis- sion, are fled and gone. Baptism and the sacred supper now fully set forth all that was spiritually comprehended in circumcision and the passover, viz., a new purified heart, and the sacrificial offer- ing of Christ. To these two cardinal points con- verged all the types and shadows, and in them are THE CHURCH OF CHRIST. 389 embodied all the essential principles of the Chris- tian religion. From this view of the subject, it is quite evi- dent that baptism and the Lord's-supper, by di- vine appointment, have taken the place of circum- cision and the passover ; and since the latter were adapted to a lower and less glorious dispensation, so the former are adapted to a higher and more glorious dispensation. And as these two ordi- nances, in their spiritual significance, embrace — the one the atonement, the other a purified heart and a qualification for heaven, in which two cardi- nal principles are embodied — all the essential doc- trines of the gospel, we clearly perceive the reason that Christ appointed but these two only, namely, there was absolutely neither need, nor, indeed, room, for any more. If farther proof were necessary to sustain the correctness of the position we have taken, that baptism has taken the place of circumcision, and the sacred supper that of the passover, it may be derived from several additional considerations. Here we would first premise that outward ordi- nances, having a spiritual meaning, are indispensa- ble to the proper administration of Christ's mili- tant kingdom. This is proven from the fact that such ordinances he has always appointed, and far- ther, that the spiritual nature of his kingdom is unchangeable. Then, 1. Of all the ordinances of 390 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. the Church in former dispensations, circumcision appears to have been the one used by the inspired writers, as in an eminent sense referring to an in- ward change of our moral nature. This ordinance was, therefore, indispensable to those dispensa- tions. But as a change of dispensation has taken place, so has occurred a corresponding change in ordinances. But still, as the spiritual nature of Christ's militant kingdom is unchangeable, and as circumcision was indispensable in former dispen- sations to spiritually signify an internal purifica- tion, it follows as a sequence that there must be some ordinance of the new dispensation appointed to spiritually signify the same thing. The ques- tion now is, which of the two gospel ordinances is it ? It cannot be the supper, for this commemo- rates the Saviour's death. It will follow, of course, that it is baptism. Hence, we are conducted to the inevitable conclusion that baptism was ap- pointed to take the place of circumcision. 2. The analogy which exists between baptism and cir- cumcision is farther apparent from the following considerations : Circumcision stood at the thres- hold of the Jewish Church, but within its pale, be- cause it was a Church-ordinance; so baptism stands at the threshold of the gospel Church, but within its pale, because it also is a Church-ordi- nance. 3. Circumcision imposed an obligation to perform all the duties of the Jewish institution; THE CHURCH OF CHRIST. 391 baptism lays upon its recipients an obligation to attend to all the duties of the gospel institution. 4. Circumcision was a mark of distinction and separation between the Jewish Church and the unbelieving Gentile world. So is baptism a mark of distinction and separation between the Chris- tian Church and the unbelieving world. 5. Cir- cumcision, outwardly, did not constitute a Jew "inwardly" (Rom. ii. 28, 29), or a true spiritual heir of the promise. So neither does baptism make a Christian, inwardly, or a spiritual heir of the promise. 6. Circumcision availeth not any thing (to the saving of the soul), "but faith, which worketh by love." So neither does baptism avail to the saving of the soul, for Simon the sorcerer was baptized, but Peter pronounced him to be "in the gall of bitterness and bond of iniquity." Thus, the analogy between baptism and circum- cision is shown to be most striking, if not perfect; and the former, superseding the latter, breaks down the " middle wall of partition " between Jew and Gentile, and casts from the neck that " yoke " of bondage under the ceremonial law, which was an exacting and rigid schoolmaster to bring men to Christ. Baptism, as an ordinance of the gospel Church, answers all the spiritual and administra- tive ends in the militant kingdom of Christ that circumcision did in former dispensations. Hence, it is next to a demonstration, and cannot leave in 392 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. the mind a reasonable doubt, that baptism, by di- vine appointment, has taken the place of circum- cision. A similar analogy we will trace between the Lord's-supper and the passover: 1. The victim to be slain and sacrificed in this ordinance was a lamb. From time immemorial the lamb has been considered the emblem of purity and innocence. The divine Saviour, whose death is remembered in the ordinance of the supper, was a holy and harm- less." 2. The paschal lamb was to be without blemish. Christ, in all his life and conduct, was pure "without spot" or stain. 3. With a bunch of hyssop dipped in the blood of the lamb it was struck upon the lintel and door-posts of the houses of the Hebrews in Egypt, and was to be the means of preserving them from the destruction which fell upon all the first-born of Egypt. So also is the blood of " Christ, our Passover," efficacious in de- livering all who avail themselves of its benefits from the awful destruction which awaits the wicked. 4. The paschal lamb was not to be sodden in water, but to be " roast with fire and eaten with unleavened bread." So, likewise, the bread used in the first celebration of the Lord's-supper was unleavened, being a part of that made use of in celebrating the passover. 5. The passover was instituted on the fourteenth day of the first month, and was ordered to be observed ever afterward on THE CHURCH OF CHRIST. 393 the same day throughout their generations. The sacred supper was instituted on the same day of the same month, at the close of the passover, be- fore rising from the table, and our Lord required it to be observed as an ordinance in the Church, commemorative of his death, until he come. 6. Both the passover and supper have the same significance. Both allude to the sacrificial offering of Christ ; in both the outward symbols are visi- ble to the eyes of the body, but their spiritual import is beneficially apprehended alone by faith. The one was a typical prediction of a Saviour to come, the other a symbolic announcement that it is fulfilled — the Saviour is come. Upon the analogy we have traced between the sacrament of the supper and the passover, and other considerations, the Christian world in general have founded their belief that the holy supper took the place of the passover and superseded it ; indeed, moral propriety and the fitness of things required that it should be so, since both the typi- cal and spiritual senses of the passover were, in a very short time, to be met in their full realization in the immolation of the Lamb of Calvary, which took place a few hours after the last celebration of this ordinance by Christ and his disciples. Knowing, therefore, that this ordinance had run its course and had fulfilled its appointed mission, he hastened to appoint another in its stead adapted 17* 394 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. to the new state of things in the development of a higher and more glorious dispensation. That the ordinance of the supper was substi- tuted for the passover cannot admit of a rational doubt, and that baptism was substituted for cir- cumcision is equally clear, since the evidence of the fact rests upon similar grounds and is equally- conclusive. We call up a proposition previously made — that it is indispensable to the successful administration of Christ's militant kingdom that there be in it outward ordinances having a spiritual significance. This can hardly be called a postulate^ or a propo- sition unproved, because it is proven from the fact that the Head of the Church has appointed such ordinances. We now inquire, What ordinance was there of the Jewish Church which eminently signified the atoning sacrifice of Christ ? Answer : the pass- over. What ordinance of the gospel signifies the same thing? That of the Lord's-supper. It is therefore evident that the latter took the place of the former. We also inquire, concerning the ordinance of baptism, Has it no spiritual allusion ? If it has any, what is it? Is its spiritual reference to the death of the Saviour? This is the express design of the sacred supper, for which we have Scripture warrant, which is wholly wanting in regard to bap- THE CHURCH OF CHRIST. 395 tism. Or was it designed to represent the burial and resurrection of Christ ? This would strip it of its spiritual value. In baptism there is, indeed, an emblem — that is, water. So, likewise, the bread and wine of the sacred supper are emblems; and these, simply considered, are a representation, literally, of Christ's body and blood. But this is not all : in these outward symbols there is a spir- itual allusion which embraces the benefits of the great atonement, and while the body is partaking of the outward emblems the soul of the worthy guest is, by faith, feasting upon the unsearchable riches of the atonement. In the ordinance of baptism the emblem (as all know) is water — such water, we mean, as God speaks of by the mouth of the prophet (Ezek. xxxvi. 25): "Then will I sprinkle clean water upon you, and ye shall be clean." But of what is the water emblematic ? and what is its spiritual significance ? We have already seen that baptism cannot represent the death of the Saviour, as this would make it collide with the sacrament of the supper; also, that it cannot represent Christ's burial and resurrection, since this would make bap- tism an emblem of outward circumstances, and divest it of its spiritual import. Indeed, the ordi- nance of the supper, in its spiritual comprehension, recognizes not only the simple fact of the Saviour's death, but also his resurrection and ascension to 396 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. glor}' ? since a dead Saviour is not commemorated, but a living one. "Ye do show forth the Lord's death until he come." The phrase "until he come" by clear implication, includes his resurrection and ascension. The question now recurs, Of what is water em- blematic? Simply, of cleanliness — purity; but, when applied in baptism, there is in the emblem a spiritual significance which directs the mind to the action of the Holy Spirit in cleansing the heart from moral pollution, and, as before shown, bap- tism thus completely harmonizes in its nature and design with circumcision, which also, in its spirit- ual significance, embraced a purified heart. This, with Paul, was the circumcision " of the heart ; not in the letter, but in the spirit." A few additional remarks will close this subject. A farther insight may be had into the harmonious working of the two dispensations of the Church- kingdom. The kingdom of Christ has been the same in every age ; its nature is one and unalter- able. His throne, since its first erection, has never been vacated — there has i>een no interregnum ; it was morally and spiritually the same in the Jewish age that it is in the Christian age, and ever will be : a change in the external mode of its adminis- tration implies no change of its divine essential principles. During the prophetic and Jewish ages it was administered by his word and ordinances; THE CHURCH OF CHRIST. 397 in the Christian age new ordinances are appointed to supersede their predecessors, just as the Chris- tian age superseded that of the Jewish. There is now inaugurated a new mode of administration ; new ordinances are introduced, more simple, less burdensome, and better adapted to the new and happier state of things in the new age ; but still, as the Church-kingdom advances through the sev- eral stages of knowledge and glory, from infancy to manhood, Infinite Wisdom is ever mindful in every dispensation, old or new, to keep steadily in view the two great cardinal points in the econ- omy of human redemption — viz. : the atonement made for sin by Christ, " our Passover," and the purification of the heart by the Spirit in regenera- tion. These radical and all-comprehensive doc- trines are kept prominently before the eyes of mankind in two ways: (1) by the inspired record; (2) by established outward ordinances. In the inspired record both of these great points are abun- dantly taught, and in the ordinances of both the old and new dispensations was couched in their outward symbols, respectively, a spiritual idea; and this idea was the type of either the atonement by the death of Jesus Christ or of a purified heart by the Holy Spirit. The great facility with which mankind forget, or overlook, these two un- speakably important points of the Christian theol- ogy will fully vindicate the wisdom and goodness 398 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. of the Saviour in appointing in his Church-kingdom external ordinances for the purpose of keeping them prominently in view. In regard to the ordi- nances of the new dispensation, though differing in element and mode, they are precisely the same .•is to their nature and design. The ordinances of the Old Testament Church consisted of two classes : (1) those which typically alluded to the sacrificial offering of Christ; (2) those which alluded to the purification of the heart. The first class included the altar-sacrifices, the second the outward cleansings and ceremonial pu- rifications. Those of the first class were contained potentially and in embryo in the passover; those of the second class were, in the same sense, con- tained in circumcision. These were the parent ordinances, from which issued the entire series of their typical offspring. These original ordinances were two luminous points in the Church-heavens, from which emanated the rays of the typical cere- monies directing the spiritual vision to the Victim of Calvary, and to a purified heart as a qualifica- tion for heaven. These altar-sacrifices and typical purifications are amplitudes of those two original ordinances, and by this means the light of truth and of the divine promises shines with greater brightness in the Jewish ceremonial age than it did in the patriarchal age. It is truly delightful to contemplate the harmo- THE CHURCH OF CHRIST. 399 nious working of these two ordinances. The per- formance of one opens the legal way of access to the other. The law required circumcision out- wardly as a qualification to partake of the passover, and a "Jew outwardly" might do so; but only a "Jew inwardly" who had been circumcised in "heart" could, by faith in the promised Messiah, appropriate to his soul that which was spiritually signified by the passover — namely, the atonement. So in like manner baptism, which occupies the place of circumcision, bears the same relation to the sacrament of the supper, which stands in the place of the passover. Baptism now opens the way to the sacred supper, and confers an external legal right to all who profess faith in Christ to participate in the Lord's-supper ; but none except such as not only profess faith but really possess it have an interior spiritual right at this holy com- munion, nor can any but such persons properly apprehend and realize the spiritual intent of either baptism or the sacred supper. Hence, the relation existing between circumcision and the passover finds its precise parallel in the relation existing between baptism and the sacred supper. This re- lation is of the same nature of that which subsists between cause and effect. The atonement by the death of Jesus Christ, symbolized in the sacrament of the supper, is the procuring cause of the puri- fication of the heart by the Holy Spirit ; and this 400 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. purification of heart is the spiritual idea or signifi- cation of Christian baptism. The former signifi- cantly contains the cause, the latter, in like man- ner, the effect. Their close relation is clearly evi- dent. A word now as to their mutual dependence. Worthily to communicate in the feasts of the holy supper depends upon the realization of what is spiritually signified by baptism— that is, a puri- fied heart; and this in turn depends upon what is spiritually signified in the Lord's-supper— that is, the atonement; and this mutual dependence is predicated in their close relation. The same rela- tion and mutual dependence existed between cir- cumcision and the passover. It is worthy of thought that the transition from the Jewish to the Christian age was not abrupt or violent. There was no uprooting of the Church of Christ among the Jews when the gospel Church succeeded it. There was, indeed, a terrible ex- cision of diseased and decayed branches (see Rom. xi. 19, 20), but the stock still remained ready for the grafting in of new scions, not only of converted Jews, but also of Gentiles, styled " the wild olive." As before stated, the Church- kingdom knows no interregnum ; no vacancy, gap, or chasm was made in the transition. The new dispensation was interlinked with the old; the new, rejecting the rubbish and all that was inap- propriate, retained what was pure, and good, and THE CHURCH OF CHRIST. 401 appropriate. The change from the old to the new was gradually and decently accomplished. The "glad tidings" of the gospel kingdom were spread- ing abroad, while Jewish altars were yet smoking. While the withered branches are being severed, large supplies of fresh scions are brought in and grafted. The old and " natural " stock, pruned and under new culture, develops afresh its life- powers in the healthy and vigorous growth of the new branches ; and this process is continued until the last of the rubbish is swept away as with the besom of destruction by the fall of their city and temple, when the " daily sacrifice " ceased, as fore- told by the prophet. In accordance with the foregoing, it is well to observe that the institution of the new ordinances was not delayed till after the final extinction of the old, the sacrament of the supper being ap- pointed on the night immediately preceding Christ's crucifixion, and that of baptism shortly after his resurrection, while as yet the ceremonial service still continued. What profound wisdom and de- lightful harmony are revealed in all of this divine procedure ! We think the truth of the proposi- tion that the sacrament of the supper and that of baptism were substituted in the room of the pass- over and of circumcision, is fully sustained, not only as being merely reasonable, but by evidence which assumes the attribute of demonstration. 402 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. In treating upon the subject of the nature and design of baptism and the Lord's-supper, we have thought proper, instead of considering them sep- arately, to take them along side by side together. This we have done because of their close and pe- culiar relation, not only to each other, but also to their correlatives, circumcision and the passover. Infant Church-membership. As Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, to-day, and forever, so is his religion in every age. It is unchangeable, like himself, because it is perfect. The divine principles of his Church-kingdom are also unchangeable for the same reason, and so also is the required qualification for Church-member- ship. The correctness of the two first proposi- tions being granted — which none will deny — the truth of the third must be admitted as a matter of course. God made a covenant with Abraham, and to this covenant Abraham became a party through faith. " He believed God, and it was imputed to him for righteousness." He believed the promises God made in the covenant. These promises em- braced not only temporal, but also spiritual, bless- ings. First, the land of Canaan was promised to him and his descendants as their future inherit- ance. Secondly, he promised to be their God, and that in Abraham's seed should all nations be THE CHURCH OF CHRIST. 403 blessed. This seed Paul declares to be Christ, and in this way " the gospel was preached before unto Abraham." Here we find all the true and essential elements of an organized Church of Christ. A covenant, with its stipulated blessings conditioned upon faith. Abraham, with others of his family, complying with the condition ; the gospel preached to them in the promised seed — the coming Messiah — with the ordinances of sacrificial offerings and circum- cision. The first shadowed forth the one offering to be made by Christ to atone for sin ; the second signified spiritually the circumcision or purifica- tion of the heart by the Holy Spirit. Hence, the unbelieving, rebellious Jews were denounced as " uncircumcised in heart," and Paul says " circum- cision is that of the heart." It was also a "token of the covenant " — an external " sign and seal of the righteousness of faith;" and this sign and seal was placed not only on Abraham himself, but also upon his infant offspring. The descendants of this great patriarch con- sisted of two classes — first, lineal, or natural; secondly, spiritual. We also find the Church ex- isting in two senses — first, as an outward, visible body; and secondly, an invisible, spiritual body. Answering to all this we find "Jews outwardly" and "Jews inwardly." Hence, the apostle says, "He is not a Jew, which is one outwardly; . . .. 404 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. but he is a Jew, which is one inwardly? The merely outward Jew was circumcised only in the flesh, while the Jew inwardly was circumcised in heart. Those who received circumcision only in the flesh, were members only of the outward, visi- ble body of the Church ; but those who were cir- cumcised in heart as well as in the flesh, were members of both the outward visible and also the invisible spiritual body. The natural descendants of Abraham were brought to the profits and ad- vantages of membership in the outward visible body through circumcision outwardly. The spir- itual seed of Abraham become members of Christ's spiritual, invisible body by faith. The latter are the children of Abraham, " the father of the faith- ful," in the highest and most important sense of the term. If it be inquired at what time the members of the outward organization of the Church were brought in ? the answer is, in early childhood, at eight days old, when, by a divine appointment, they were circumcised, through which medium they were, in a legal sense, recognized as members of the visible Church. The distinction we have drawn in regard to the Church as being in one sense external and visible to men, and in another sense spiritual and invisi- ble to men, and known only to God, " who know- eth the hearts of all men," is necessitated from the very facts of the case as they are presented THE CHURCH OF CHRIST. 405 in the Scriptures. For in the Church seen and known of men, there are tares mixed with the wheat, wolves in the fold in sheep's clothing, false- hearted, hypocritical professors. But who will presume to say there are any such who by the " one spirit are baptized into the one body, and are made to drink into the same spirit ? " This exhibits and justifies the distinction we have made ; and the foregoing propositions connected with it are so scripturally true that it is deemed unnecessary to adduce farther testimony. But should it be asked, "What profit was there of circumcision?" Paul shall answer, "Much every way; chiefly because that unto them — the Jews — were committed the oracles of God." The chil- dren enjoyed the light and instruction of the di- vine oracles, or word of God, along with their parents ; and when come to the years of discre- tion, they were required to believe in the promise of the covenant made to Abraham — that is, in Christ, the Saviour to come; for we are taught that the circumcision, or Jew, was justified by faith, and the uncircumcision, or Gentile, through faith. Faith was indispensable to three important things. First, without faith they could not become the true spiritual seed of Abraham and heirs of the covenant promise. Secondly, faith was neces- sary in order to the inward circumcision, or heart- 406 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. purification. Thirdly, to membership in the invisi- ble, spiritual body of Christ. In the visible Church among the Jews there were many unbelievers, as in the present day among us ; for Paul puts the question, " What if some did not believe ? " And thousands of wicked, faithless Jews fell through unbelief, and a great majority of the nation, when the promised Mes- siah came, were unbelievers ; but still, they be- longed to the ostensible body, the Church of Christ. This is plain from the parable of the vineyard, which he threatened to take from them and let it out to others more worthy. Outward circumcision was typical, signifying the inward purifying of the heart, " not in the let- ter, but in the spirit ;" and contributed nothing to the saving of the soul, as the apostle declares, u neither circumcision availeth any thing, nor un- circumcision, but a new creature;" and in another place he says, "But faith which worketh by love." The Jews loudly boasted of their Abrahamic pa- ternity, and of their Church-privileges. This, in- deed, was a vain boasting, so long as they trusted in outward rites and ceremonies, and failed to be- lieve with the heart in the promised seed, the glo- rious Messiah. Paul himself, previous to his con- version, was one of these boasters. He says, "If any other man thinketh he hath whereof to glory, I more ; circumcised the eighth day, of the stock THE CHURCH OF CHRIST. 407 of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew of the Hebrews ; as touching the law, a Pharisee." But what things he had gained he counted loss as to any saving efficacy. He had gained admission to the external privileges of the Church, and no doubt much knowledge of the Old Testament Scriptures. His mind was highly cultivated, and, as he tells us, he had profited much in the Jews' religion ; but all this he renounced as totally inca- pable of. saving him. But after it pleased God to reveal in him his Son Jesus Christ, he used the knowledge and advantages of his early instructions with telling effect, and mightily convinced the Jews that Jesus was the Christ. In Paul's case, then, we have a striking illustration of the profits and advantages of circumcision and Church-mem- bership outwardly. We have said that little children were admitted to external membership in the Church of Christ among the Jews. They were included with their parents in the covenant which God made with the Israelites. For proof of this, read Deut. xxix. 9-12: "Keep therefore the words of this cove- nant, and do them. ... Ye stand this day all of you before the Lord your God ; your captains of your tribes, your elders, and your officers, with all the men of Israel; your little ones, your wives, and thy stranger that is in thy camp ; . . . that thou shouldst enter into covenant with the Lord 408 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. thy God, and into his oath which the Lord, thy God maketh with thee this day." And xxxi. 12, 13 : " Gather the people together, men, and women, and children, and thy stranger that is within thy gates, that they may hear, and that they may learn, and fear the Lord your God, and observe to do all the words of this law; and that their chil- dren, which have not known any thing, may hear, and learn to fear the Lord your God." These, and many other passages, conclusively show that the children of the Jews were included with their par- ents in the Church visible among that pe.ople, and so regarded by Jehovah in the covenant w T hich he established with them, Circumcision, it is known and acknowledged, was the ordinance through which infant member- ship w r as legalized ; and if Christian baptism has come instead of, and superseded, circumcision, as we have previously demonstrated, it will follow, of course, that little children are not to be ex- cluded from the visible gospel Church, and so be deprived of the advantages of religious instruc- tion and training; otherwise, the Jewish dispen- sation excelled that of the gospel as affording superior light and higher privileges ; whereas, the truth is precisely the reverse of this. The pro- priety and correctness of our position will be far- ther substantiated when we consider, first, that Jesus Christ, the Head of his Church in all dis- THE CHURCH OF CHRIST. 409 pensations, is the same "yesterday, to-day, and forever." Secondly, the principles of his Church- kingdom never change. Thirdly, that the quali- fication for membership in his Church-kingdom is at all times the same. These propositions are next to self-evident, and none can, with any show of reason, deny them. What, then, is the result, or what necessarily follows ? It is this, that if little children were once divinely recognized as being qualified for membership in the Church, they are so recognized still; if they are not, then such qualification has changed, which would argue the mutability of the principles of Christ's Church- kingdom, and this would imply the mutability of Christ himself. To set aside this conclusion im- poses a task impossible for any to accomplish, namely, that little children were never, by divine authority, brought into the visible Church. The argument we have based upon the immuta- bility of the Head of the Church, the Lord Jesus Christ, the unchangeable nature of the principles of his kingdom on earth, and that the qualifica- tion for membership in his Church-kingdom must of necessity be the same in every age is, we think, conclusive that as little children were once di- vinely recognized as possessing the requisite qual- ification for membership, so they must be in every age, unless, indeed, we admit that Christ and the nature of his kingdom, and the qualifi- 18 410 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. cation for membership therein, are things that are changeable, which would be little short of blasphemy. The above conclusion was certainly indorsed by the unchangeable Christ himself when he said, " Suffer little children to come unto me, and forbid them not, for of such is the kingdom of heaven." Now, in what sense could infants "come" to Christ? Certainly not by faith; of this they were not capa- ble. In no other conceivable sense can they come to him but by being brought by their believing par- ents and solemnly dedicated to him in the ordi- nance of baptism. This ordinance has taken the place of circumcision, as we have heretofore clearly shown. From these considerations it most evidently ap- pears that the little children of those who belong to the Church ought not to be overlooked and be deprived, through the neglect of their parents, of the advantages of the religious training so highly commended by Paul as practiced in the Church among the Jews. It is notorious that their chil- dren were, by Jehovah himself, recognized as pos- sessing the proper qualification for membership in his visible family. Has Jehovah changed ? Is not his kingdom, in its nature, the same in every age? Does he require different qualifications in different ages ? And if little children were once qualified, and by divine authority were brought THE CHURCH OF CHRIST. 411 into the Church, we demand to know by what au- thority they are now rejected. Certainly not by the authority of Christ, nor that of the apostles. They are rejected, then, by human, solely by hu- man, authority. Christ himself, when an infant, was brought into the visible Church among the Jews; and after he had entered upon his public ministry he required, in spite of the rejecters, that little chil- dren be suffered to come to him, declaring that "of such is the kingdom of heaven;" and when little children die, he receives them into the tri- umphant Church-kingdom in heaven. When Paul wrote his Epistle to the Church at Corinth, he had baptized three entire households, two of which are spoken of by the writer of the Acts of the Apostles — Lydia and her family, and the jailer and his ; and that of Stephanus he speaks of himself, and that it is highly probable he would not have done had it not been for the strife in that Church. Nor is it reasonable to sup- pose these three were all the households he bap- tized during the course of his ministry. But was Paul the only one of all the apostles who baptized households ? And if the others, as well as Paul, baptized households, is it not fair to conclude that baptized households were quite numerous ? And among so many, would it not be a little strange that there were no little children? The proba- 412 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. bilities, then, are in favor of baptizing the chil- dren of believing parents. We are aware that it is alleged as an objection that the rite of circumcision by which the chil- dren of the Jews were legally admitted to exter- nal Church-membership, has been annulled and superseded by the gospel institution, and that, therefore, infant membership ceased with circum- cision. This objection would have some plausi- bility provided there had been no ordinance insti- tuted in its stead, and which was designed to an- swer a similar end ; but this, as already shown, we find in the ordinance of baptism. Thus, the objection has -no foundation, in fact. It is objected again that children thus brought into the outer court of the Church are liable to trust for future happiness in their early baptism and religious instruction without any saving knowl- edge of Christ in the pardon of their sins. And are not people now equally liable to trust in bap- tism and their own works of supposed righteous- ness, especially since baptism is by many made to assume such a high importance — an importance to which it is by no means entitled? And further- more, the same might have been said against the admission of children through circumcision, a di- vinely-appointed ordinance. From many years of observation, the writer has noticed that, as a general rule, those communities THE CHURCH OF CHRIST. 413 in which the little ones are dedicated to God by baptism, and brought more closely in contact with the light of religious instruction, are more orderly and moral; and such children, when they come to years, constitute the most reliable material for genuine revivals of religion, and when converted they make the more consistent Christians. The word of inspiration is, "Train up a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not depart from it." And, Christian parents, your prayerful instructions will not be forgotten by your children. Though you may not live to see them brought through faith to a heart-knowl- edge of Christ in the pardon of sin, yet your faith- ful admonitions, after you are dead and gone from them, will often visit them, check and restrain them from sin, and serve as a powerful influence to turn them to God. The kingdom of heaven is the same in every age. In its principles, like its divine founder, it changes not. Had the ordinance of the Church among the Jews been baptism instead of circum- cision, Christ himself, at eight days old, would have been admitted legally to its external "profit" and " advantage " by baptism. When he said, " Suffer little children to come unto me, and for- bid them not, for of such is the kingdom of heaven," he made a full recognition of their qualification, since whether he meant the Church-kingdom on 414 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. earth, or the kingdom of glory, the question is set- tled. Then let not Christian parents stop to an- swer all the silly questions which objectors may propound, such as, "What good can it do?" or to listen to the vulgar slang in the phrase of u ldby sprinkling." Turn such cavilers over to Paul, who will give them the answer, "Much every way." Since the days of the apostles, the greater por- tion of the Church has practiced infant baptism. Gainsayers there have been, and there are yet gainsay ers. But let not Christian parents be bul- lied out of the path of their duty and privilege. Let them dedicate to God their tender offspring, and take them in their company to the house of God. Let them often remind them • that their baptism with water abstractly, cannot avail to the saving of the soul; that it is only an illustrious emblem or fig- ure of the inward baptism of the Holy Spirit in cleansing the soul from sin, without which they cannot be saved. Let no trifling excuse prevent you from taking them to the house of God, and teaching them to read the Holy Scriptures. Take them to the Sabbath-school, and teach them both by precept and example reverence for the name of God, and for the holy Sabbath, and above all, impress upon their young susceptible hearts the indispensable necessity of a divine change in order to a qualification for future felicity. And that your efforts may be the more successful, discour- THE CHURCH OF CHRIST. 415 age by all means the reading of the light, trashy, corrupting literature which at this day is sown broadcast over the country, and fervently pray to Hi in with whom are the issues of life and death to aid you in the discharge of these important duties. These things done, who will say that the amount of religious knowledge and of morality, looking to the welfare of society, would not be vastly in- creased ? or that revivals of religion would not be, not to say more frequent, but more genuine and lasting ? or that the Church would not be blessed with a more orderly and consistent membership? or that there would not be fewer, thus trained, who would seek to be rebaptized, not simply for the sake of baptism itself, but for the mode? And Christian parents, having performed your part to- ward your beloved offspring, you are encouraged to trustingly hope they will, sooner or later, be brought into the spiritual fold of Christ, and that you will finally meet them in heaven, to enjoy their happy society forever. Mode of Baptism. Upon this subject we shall not be prolix. It has called forth more zealous discussion and heated debate than its intrinsic importance demands. We do not deny the importance of baptism itself as an ordinance of the Church, but by no means are we enthusiastic in regard to the mode. 416 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. What a diversity of opinion has obtained in ref- erence to this ordinance ! First, with regard to its form. The Eunomians attended to the form by bap- tizing in the name of the uncreated God, the created Son, and the sanctifying Spirit created by the Son. The Arians baptized in the name of the Father as the true God, of the Son as the Saviour and a creature, and of the Holy Ghost as the servant of both. The Roman Catholics, though they main- tain the essentials of baptism, corrupt its form and design. In its form they make an addition of clothing the candidate in white, tasting honey and milk, the sign of the cross on the forehead and breast, and exorcism, or the casting out of evil spirits. They corrupt it in its design by teaching that the water of baptism, consecrated by the priest, possesses a regenerating efficacy; all which are an unwarranted addition to the form and a prostitution of its design. The Scriptures know of no such additions, nor of the spiritual efficacy of the water used in baptism. Others practice immersing the bodies once ; others, again, three times, separately, in the name of each of the per- sons of the Trinity ; whilst others, not being sat- isfied with the mode of immersion, must repair to some water-course, and, standing or kneeling at the edge of the water, or in it, have the water sprinkled or poured upon them. Perhaps, how- ever, a large majority of the Christian Church THE CHURCH OF CHRIST. 417 has been satisfied with the latter mode, which is usually attended to at the places of public worship, without going out of the way in quest of some pool or water-course for the purpose. In regard to the mode merely, the quantity of water is not essential to the validity of the ordi- nance, no more than the size of the lamb of one year old was essential to the validity of the pass- over, or the quantity of its blood sprinkled upon the door-posts of the houses of the Hebrews in Egypt as a sign to the destroying angel. In re- gard to the mode of baptism we have not a great deal to say, and still, when we have done, we will have, it may be, spent more paper, ink, and time than the subject really merits. In anticipation of this we make our apology in advance, which is this : that the advocates, generally, of the mode of immersion have attached to it an importance which we think is warranted neither by the Bible nor by a sound, unbiased judgment. Much con- troversy (often sharp and bitter) has been indulged in by the champions on either side, and, judging from the enthusiasm and zeal they exhibit, one might almost conclude the mode to be essential to the salvation of the soul. The Bible, the Fathers, the lexicons, and the classics, with equal apparent confidence on both sides of the question, have been appealed to. From all these sources have argu- ments been sought to sustain, respectively, the 18* 418 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. modes of dipping and pouring. Hence, it might be supposed the subject has been exhausted, and that nothing new could be advanced upon it. With all due deference to the opinions of those who may differ from us, we have long since de- cided in favor of pouring as the proper mode of administering the ordinance of baptism, for the following reasons : 1. This mode best agrees with the true nature and design of the ordinance, which outwardly is emblematic of purity — innocency. Job ix. 30 : "If I wash myself with snow-water, and make my hands never so clean." Ps. xxvi. 6 : "I will wash mine hands in innocency, so will I com- pass thine altar, Lord." But inwardly and spiritually it signifies the divine influence in cleans- ing and purifying the heart from moral pollution. This divine influence is represented in the Script- ures not by immersion, but by pouring, Prov. i. 23 : God says to the scoffers and haters of knowl- edge, " Turn you at my reproof, and behold I will pour out of my Spirit unto you." Joel ii. 28 : "I will pour out my Spirit ;" and Isaiah : " Until the Spirit be poured down from on high." The same divine influence is represented as being shed abroad, shed on, etc. Rom. v. 5 : " The love of God is shed abroad by the Holy Ghost ;" also, Titus iii. 5, 6 : "And the renewing of the Holy Ghost, which he shed on us abundantly." In all this there is a THE CHURCH OF CHRIST. 419 conformity in the nature and design of baptism administered by pouring to the influence of the Spirit in purifying the heart, which influence is "poured out/' "poured on," " shed on," and " shed forth." Now, admitting the fact — which we think is quite evident- — that outward baptism, in its spiritual significance, points to the inward baptism by the Holy Spirit, in his renewing influences upon the heart, and then considering both baptisms to- gether — the outward baptism, administered by pouring, and the inward baptism, which is also by pouring — and we discover at once the agreement and harmony between them. From these consid- erations, we take pouring to be the proper mode of administering the ordinance of baptism. 2. The literal salvation of Noah and his family by water is presented by St. Peter as a figure of our salvation by Christ (1 Pet. iii. 20, 21). Speaking of the antediluvians, he says of the ark : "Wherein few, that is, eight souls were saved by water, the like figure whereunto even baptism doth now save us ; not the putting away of the filth of the flesh, but the answer of a good con- science toward God." In this text there are three prominent points : (1) the literal salvation of Noah and his household ; (2) baptism is a like figure, and " saves us," not literally and really, but figura- tively; (3) in its spiritual sense it alludes to and embraces a purified "good conscience toward God." 420 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. Baptism is a figure which resembles, or is "like," that presented in the case of Noah in regard to the mode of it. In the figure of Noah's temporal salvation there is not the slightest intimation of immersion, but all the eight souls remained dry in the ark. Indeed, for this purpose the ark. was prepared — to prevent their immersion and destruc- tion with the wicked inhabitants of the earth. Such also was the case of the children of Israel — ■ whilst being " baptized unto Moses in the sea and in the cloud," they passed through "dry shod." So, likewise, Noah rode in the ark upon the waters of. the flood without immersion. Is it not, there- fore, evident that baptism, "the like figure" in order to resemble its prototype, must be adminis- tered in some other mode than immersion ? The mode in which the Israelites were baptized while passing over the Red Sea may throw light upon this subject. And what was that mode ? It was, most evidently, sprinkling or pouring. David, in speaking of this wonderful deliverance (Ps. lxxvii. 15, 16), says : " Thou hast with thine arm redeemed thy people, the sons of Jacob and Joseph. The waters saw thee, God, the waters saw thee. They were afraid, the depths also were troubled ;" and (ver. 17), "The clouds poured out water; the skies sent out a sound;" and (ver. 19), "Thy way is in the sea, and thy path in the great waters;" and (ver. 20), "Thou leadest thy people like a THE CHURCH OF CHRIST. 421 flock by the hand of Moses and Aaron." This passage explains the mode of their baptism while they passed through the Red Sea "dry shod" " The clouds poured out water " while they were crossing, and thus they were baptized by pouring; and in this mode the figure of baptism conforms in its similitude to the original figure contained in Noah's temporal salvation, for we read (Gen. vii. 11, 12), " The fountains of the great deep were broken up, and the windows of heaven were opened, and the rain was upon the earth," etc. This shows the likeness of the two figures in relation to their mode. The figure contained in Noah's salvation had a spiritual significance ; so has baptism. The figure in Noah's literal salvation pointed spiritually to the salvation of the true Church by the blood of Christ through " sanctification of the Spirit." Baptism, as already shown, points to the very same thing— that is, "the answer of a good con- science toward God." Paul says, "Having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience" which is the same as a " good conscience." Thus the like- ness of the "figure" of baptism by pouring con- forms to the figure, in its spiritual significance, contained in the salvation of Noah and his house- hold. This cannot be done upon the hypothesis that immersion is the proper mode of baptism, which would completely destroy all likeness, or 422 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. similitude, between the two figures, since in the figure of Noah's salvation by water immersion is utterly out of the question. We have in some of the foregoing observations alluded to the spiritual mode of baptism. This, as already seen, is represented in the Scriptures as being effected by "pouring," "shed forth," " shed on," etc., which none will deny. The one baptism spoken of by Paul (Eph. iv. 5) : "One Lord, one faith, one baptism ;" and (Gal. iii. 27): "For as many of you as have been baptized into Christ have put on Christ;" also (1 Cor. xii. 13): "For by one Spirit are we all baptized into one body;" and (Acts ii. 2-4): "And suddenly there came a sound from heaven as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled all the house where they were sitting : and there appeared unto them cloven tongues like as of fire, and it sat upon each of them, and they were all rilled with the Holy Ghost." This was the fulfillment of three predic- tions of the same event — one by Joel, one by John, and one by our Saviour— which fulfillment is, by both Christ and John, expressly called bap- tism. The accomplishment of this prophecy took place on the day of Pentecost. John predicted it when he declared, " I indeed baptize you with water . . . but there cometh one after me; he shall baptize you with the Holy Ghost and with fire;" and the Saviour, addressing his disciples, THE CHURCH OF CHRIST. 423 said, "John baptized with water unto repentance, but ye shall be baptized with the Holy Ghost not many days hence." Now then, let it be remem- bered that Peter, in his sermon on the day of Pen- tecost, immediately after the outpouring of the Spirit, denying the foolish charge of drunkenness, declares that what they "saw and heard was the fulfillment of that which was spoken by the Prophet Joel : " "And it shall come to pass in the last days, saith God, I will pour out of my Spirit upon all flesh." Now, here is a divine transaction which both John and Christ predicted ; it was the bap- tism of the Holy Ghost. Both called it baptism, and Peter affirms that it was effected in the pour- ing out of the Spirit on that occasion, in fulfillment of Joel's prophecy. It is worthy of remark that both John and our Saviour make use of the preposition with to denote both the baptism of John and that of the Holy Spirit. John says, "I baptize you 'with' water," and of Christ, "He shall baptize you 'with' the Holy Ghost and '.with' fire;" Christ said, "John baptized 'with' water, but ye shall be baptized 'Mil the Holy Ghost;" and Peter declares that this baptism was accomplished by the outpouring of the Spirit on the day of Pentecost. Now, since this word 'with' is used both by Christ and his harbinger to denote the baptism by the Spirit, which was done by pouring^ is it not, therefore, 424 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. strong testimony that John baptized also by pour- ing, since the same word, with, is used to denote Ms baptism ? But, waiving all that we have said in relation to John's baptism, it is irrefragably proven that Christ, John, and Peter recognized pouring as the mode of baptism with the Holy Spirit on the day of Pentecost ; and since water- baptism is the outward type, or figure, of that of the Spirit, how dare any uninspired, weak mortal to be so presumptuous as to say that baptism ad- ministered by pouring "is no baptism at all?" Let such an one recollect that he is indirectly casting contempt upon the administration of the highest order of baptism known to mortals — the baptism of the Holy Ghost. There is also much collateral testimony in sup- port of the mode of baptism for which we contend. In reference to this species of evidence, though quite conclusive, we shall sum it up in as few words as the nature of the subject will admit. The circumstances under which baptism was sometimes administered utterly exclude the idea of immersion. The case of the three thousand on the day of Pentecost is in point : it is altogether improbable that they were baptized by plunging — there are two weighty reasons against it: 1. There was only a piece of a day to attend to that multitude of candidates, entirely too numerous to be immersed in so short a time, even though all THE CHURCH OF CHRIST. 425 the apostles had been engaged. 2. It is not rea- sonable to suppose that the apostles administered water-baptism in a mode different from that in which they themselves had but a few hours before divinely received the highest order of baptism known in the universe; and this was administered by Jesus Christ himself as God, for John declared, " He shall baptize you with the Holy Ghost," and Joel affirmed that God said he would do it. (See Acts ii. 3, 4.) The mode in which the apostles themselves had just received the baptism of the Spirit, administered by Jesus Christ as God him- self, was by "pouring out of his Spirit" upon them; and if water-baptism was designed to be a " pat- tern" of the "heavenly" baptism, it was assuredly administered to the three thousand on the day of Pentecost by pouring the water upon them — other- wise, there would be no agreement between the mode of water-baptism and that of the Spirit, which the apostles themselves had just received. Two other cases we will consider: l.That of Saul of Tarsus, baptized by Ananias. (1) On his mission of blood and slaughter, he was struck down and struck blind on his way to Damascus, and having put to him the astounding interroga- tion, " Saul, Saul, why persecutest thou me?" he cried, "Who art thou, Lord?" Reply: "I am Jesus, whom thou persecutest ; arise, and go into the city, where it shall be told thee what thou 426 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. shouldst do." "He arose, and was led by the hand into Damascus." Meanwhile, a certain de- vout disciple, named Ananias, in a vision was di- rected to " go into the street called Straight and inquire in the house of Judas for one Saul, for be- hold, he prayeth." Ananias, obeying and rinding Saul there— probably kneeling or prostrate in prayer — "put his hands upon him, and said, Brother Saul, receive thy sight and be filled with the Holy Ghost;" and "he received his sight, arose, and was baptized." Now, the question is, In what mode? that of immersion, or some other? From the narrative and the natural conclusions which may be deduced from it, there are several strong probabilities against immersion and in favor of some other mode. Whether this Judas with whom Saul was lodging was a Jew, or a Greek, we are not informed — from his name, it is likely he was a Jew; but, in either case, it is not supposable that he had in his private dwelling a baptismal font, especially since we learn nothing from the Bible of such being in use at any time for the purpose of Christian baptism. (2) It is natural to conclude that Saul was in very great agony of soul, and having commenced his three days' fast, he had no desire for food, and wishing privacy rather than company, he was shown into a private room, and that it was there Ananias found him. All these, from the narrative, are natural conclu- THE CHURCH OF CHRIST. 427 sions. (3) It is stated, "He arose and was bap- tized." The verb arose indicates merely the sim- ple act of rising up, but no motion from the spot where the rising took place ; and since the narra- tive gives not the slightest intimation that a single step was taken until he was baptized, he was bap- tized where he stood when he rose up. Here are three strong probabilities against immersion and in favor of some other mode; and what other mode but sprinkling, or pouring? 2. We now turn to the Philippian jailer. In this case, recorded in Acts xvi., we have the Apostle Paul and Silas, a Roman jail with three apart- ments — the inner and outer prison and the jailer's room, occupied by him and his household. All this seems clear from the narrative. Paul and Silas, apprehended by the civil authority, were sentenced to incarceration, with a strict charge to the jailer to "keep them safely" who, having re- ceived such a charge, " thrust them into the inner prison, and made their feet fast in the stocks." At midnight they prayed and sung praises, and, suddenly, there was a great earthquake — the pris- oners' bands all fall off, and all the prison-doors fly open. This awakes the jailer— he springs out of bed, calls for a light, and seeing the prison-doors open, and supposing the prisoners all fled, and to avoid what he probably thought an ignominious death — the penalty of the Roman law in such 428 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. case made and provided — he drew out his sword, and would have killed himself but for Paul, who cried, with a loud voice, " Do thyself no harm, for we are all here." Struck like Paul, his prisoner, when on his road to Damascus, he falls, trembling, at the feet of Paul and Silas, and brought them out (of the inner prison), and, with deep convic- tion and anguish of spirit, cried, " Sirs, what must I do to be saved?" The gospel answer is ready, " Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved." "And they spake unto him the word of the Lord, and to all that were in his house. And he took them the same hour of the night and washed their stripes, and was baptized, he and all his, straightway. And when he had brought them into his house (yet within the prison-building), he set meat before them, and rejoiced, believing in God with all his house." Now, be it remembered, there was, according to the history, but one hour for the transpiring of quite a number of circum- stances — the earthquake, the waking up of the jailer, calling for a light which had to be struck and conveyed to him, surveying the prison-doors, drawing his sword, the intervention of Paul to prevent his suicide, his falling at the feet of Paul and Silas and bringing them out (of the inner prison) and washing their stripes after divesting them of their bloody garments, their speaking to him the word of the Lord and to all of his house- THE CHURCH OP CHRIST. 429 hold, the baptism of himself and all that were in his house — in all, nine circumstances taking place during the space of a single hour. And, 1. To suppose this heathen jail to have been provided with accommodations for Christian baptism by im- mersion is to suppose what is not even supposable. This, then, is against immersion. 2. To suppose that Paul and Silas, together with the jailer and his family, stole out secretly that night in quest of some pool or water-course for the purpose of im- mersion!— a pretty "fix" this, for a heathen jailer to be caught wandering about in the dark with two of his noted prisoners, with whose safe custody he had been so strictly charged. Credulity itself shrinks from such a supposition, and opposes im- mersion, 3. But still holding on (in spite of its outrage upon common sense) to the latter supposi- tion, that Paul, Silas, the jailer and household had left the prison for the purpose of baptism, in any mode or for any other purpose, would be to sup- pose that Paul and Silas were guilty of the sin of dissimulation, since they were still in the prison at daylight, and positively refused to go out privily, but demanded that the magistrates should " come themselves and fetch them out." And besides, such barefaced deception would be but a sorry example to set before their new converts, whom they had just baptized into the Christian profession. "Nay verily," they were incapable of such hypocrisy; 430 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. they had not left the prison. Here, again, is ex- cluded the idea of immersion. 4. The shortness of the time in which so many circumstances took place sets aside immersion. The time, one hour; the circumstances recorded, at least nine. The whole of one hour was not more than sufficient time to immerse the jailer and his household — suppose from five to eight in all — especially when we add the time of the now usual discourse at the water's edge, the prayer of the officiatiDg minister, and the ceremony of baptism in regard to each of the candidates. We say -all this would have re- quired more than a single hour; but where is the time demanded by the eight remaining circum- stances? Alas (for immersion!), there is none left — none for the earthquake, none for the waking up of the jailer and getting out of bed, none for preparing a light, surveying the prison-doors, draw- ing his sword, and the interposition of Paul, none for falling down before Paul and Silas and bring- ing them out of the inner^prison, and, worse than all, no time left to strip off their bloody clothes, wash their bruised bodies, and then reclothe them, and no time left for them to speak the word of the Lord to the jailer "and all that were in his house" — it has all been consumed by the requisite ante- cedents and ceremony of baptism by dipping, upon the supposition that dipping was the mode. But can any unbiased mind believe it? Will not even THE CHURCH OF CHRIST. 431 prejudice and prepossession revolt at the idea ? That immersion was the mode practiced on this occasion is totally incredible. Concluding our re- marks in regard to the case of the jailer, we say. If immersion was by the apostles practiced at all (which we seriously doubt), it could have had no place in the baptism of Saul and of the jailer. But upon condition that they were baptized by pouring, every difficulty vanishes. It appears that nothing can be gained by the advocates of immersion by an appeal to Greek lexicons, since men of the highest order of tal- ent and learning know that the words in the origi- nal Greek, whence come baptize, baptism, signify not only to dip, to plunge, to immerse, but also to wash, to pour, to sprinkle. The same original term is used to express the application of water in a variety of ways, such as the washing of hands before meals, the ceremonial cleansings and puri- fications among the Jews, and the washing of pots and other household furniture, where dipping is out of the question. The Greek preposition translated in and into, is often in the Scriptures rendered with and by, and more than one hundred times it is rendered with, and one hundred and fifty times at; and that the Greek preposition sometimes translated out of, is also rendered from; for instance, "Who hath warned you to flee from the wrath to come." Here it is rendered from in- 432 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. stead of out of. Hence, "going down into" the" water may signify nothing more than going down at or by the water, coming up out of the water — nothing more than coming up from the water. Hence, it is impossible for the advocates of im- mersion to establish their mode by testimony de- rived either from the Bible or from any other quar- ter; and, by consequence, as the great weight of testimony preponderates on the side of pouring, we accept it as the proper mode of baptism. We now conclude our remarks upon this sub- ject with but little more than a few subjoined ob- jections to the practice of immersion; not that we think it invalidates the ordinance any more than to pour a gallon of water upon the head, but for the following reasons : 1. It is sometimes incon- venient, indeed, impracticable, on account of scarcity of water. 2. It not unfrequently has to be post- poned because of the coldness of the weather. 3. It sometimes happens that the officiating minister, or pastor, though physically able to attend to his other duties, finds himself disqualified, either from some bodily affliction, or the infirmities of age, to* administer baptism by immersion. 4. It often has to be delayed on account of delicate health, or sickness, and in some cases neglected altogether, or endanger the life of the subject. 5. We be- lieve that the ordinance of baptism should be gen- erally attended to like the Lord's-supper at the THE CHURCH OF CHRIST. 433 places of public worship, instead of traveling off from one to two and three miles to find sufficient depth of water, and when found, it is sometimes stagnant, oozy, and filthy. 6. We think it occa- sionally to be violative of the apostle's injunction, " Let all things be done with decency and good order," as it sometimes unfortunately happens that there is an indelicate, indecent exposure of person, exciting merriment, disgust, or pity. 7. There cannot be found in the Bible a single pas- sage that commands us to be immersed as the only mode of Christian baptism. Why, then, do immersionists so much insist upon young converts to obey their "Lord's command" when they only mean by it to be dipped ? It is unfair dealing, since there is no such command in the Bible. It is true there has of late appeared a new translation, so-called, in which its sapient authors have, in almost every place in the New Testament where the words baptize, baptism, are used, substi- tuted immerse, immersion, thus making Christ and his apostles say what they never intended to say ; e. g., when John the Baptist said, "He shall hap- tize you with the Holy Ghost and with fire," did he intend to say, He shall immerse, plunge, or dip you in the Holy Ghost and in fire? Or, when Paul said, "For by one Spirit are we all baptized into one body," did he intend to say, For by one Spirit are we all immersed, dipped, or plunged into one 434 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. body? And again, when he said, "As many of you as have been baptized into Christ have put on Christ," did he intend to say, As many of you as have been immersed, plunged, or dipped into Christ have put on Christ ? This would, indeed, make religion quite a watery affair. Many other pas- sages might be mentioned, showing the outrage of such dangerous perversion of the Scriptures. But what is the matter ? Did they, after years of controversy, discover that they could not sus- tain to their satisfaction the doctrine of immersion by our old, time-honored translation ? So it would seem, or why resort to a new one, the Alpha and the Omega of the design of which is to teach the doctrine of immersion? The advocates of this dogma for ages could, in regard to the mode of baptism, see nothing in our old version but im- mersion. Why, then, resort to this shameful per- version of the word of Gfod? Is it not a tacit confession that, when hard pressed, they could not sustain their favorite mode? And they must, therefore, discard the words baptize, baptism, and substitute immerse, immersion. "0 shame, where is thy blush ! " But this unmagnanimous appeal from our old translation to a new one of their own making, is likely, in its results, to react upon its authors and the cause they endeavor to establish; like the blows and wounds inflicted by Satan upon the Saviour with the infernal intent to destroy THE CHURCH OP CHRIST. 435 him and his kingdom, and set up his own; not knowing that it was "through death" Christ was to "destroy him that had the power of death" — that was himself, the devil. , Here was a terrible, unlooked-for reaction. So we think it will turn out with this so-called new version and its authors. Cause of Bigotry and Exclusiveness. Undue importance given to outward ordinances is the cause of bigotry and exclusiveness. In con- sequence of the darkness of the human mind, by reason of sin,, there is a constant tendency in mankind toward things which are natural and car- nal, instead of things that are moral and spiritual. Hence, the method adopted by Christ of convey- ing spiritual instruction by parables. Men are prone to walk by sight rather than by faith — to give to' the external ordinances of relig- ion more prominence than to religion itself. They put the sign for the thing signified, the shadow for the substance, the outward forms and ceremonies of religion for its inward reality and power. Thus did the Jews. Punctilious to the last degree in attending to all the requirements of the law of typical ceremonies, meanwhile overlooking faith in the foreshadowed and promised Messiah, they built their hopes of eternal life upon circumcision, sacrifices, outward cleansings and purifications. They made the fatal blunder of substituting works 436 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. for faith — "the law of carnal commandments" for •* the law of the spirit of life in Christ Jesus." So wedded were they to external ordinances, and such was the importance and efficacy they at- tributed to them, that it required all the logic of the Apostle Paul to persuade them that " he was not a Jew, who was one outwardly;" that saving circumcision was "that of the heart" — that it was " not possible that the blood of bulls and of goats should take away sins," and that " by the works of the law they could not be justified." But, un- fortunately for them, in spite of all his powerful arguments, the major part of them still walked on in their blindness until they stumbled over the precipice of destruction. To circumcision they had attributed a saving efficacy, since they taught that none could be saved without it. They fasted often, paid tithes, made broad phylacteries and long prayers ; but, after all, they were but " whited sepulchers," making "clean the outside of the cup and the platter," but in- wardly they were "ravening wolves." They were destitute of inward vital religion. The conse- quences resulting from this state of things were, 1. A spirit of pride and vainglory. Pride looks complacently upon self, but with contempt upon others. What but national and Church-pride caused them to regard the rest of mankind as the offscouring of the world? For example, take the THE CHURCH OF CHRIST. 437 Pharisee praying (not with the Spirit) with himself in the temple; with what supreme contempt does he regard that poor heart - stricken publican ! Pharisees "trusted in themselves that they were righteous, and despised others." They boasted of their lineal descent from Abraham, claiming him as their father. They vainly fancied them- selves to be the peculiar favorites of Heaven, and considered all others as outcasts. Now, taking a view of this state of things among the Jews from a purely religious stand- point, we are not surprised that they should grow proud and vainglorious. Blinded through unbe- lief, they had renounced faith in the promised Messiah, by which only they could be justified, and substituted in its stead the deeds of the law. They had practically deprived the Holy Spirit of his office and influence in renewing and purifying the heart, and had transferred him to external ordinances. Hence, their pride, and boasting, and vainglorious conceit of themselves, which noth* ing but the power of religion and grace in the heart could humble and subdue, and this was largely wanting. 2. Another consequence resulting from invest- ing outward ordinances with an undue importance, with virtues we have no right to ascribe to them, is bigotry, exclusiveness. And at the time at which we are now considering the Jews, all who are at 438 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. all familiar with the Scriptures know that they were, with a few exceptions, a nation of bigots and exclusionists. In their own conceit they, and they only, were the people of God. To die with- out circumcision was to die out of the Church, and to die out of the Church was to be damned. " They trusted in themselves that they were right- eous, and despised others." This trusting in their self-performance of external ordinances for right- eousness was the very reason why they set at naught and excluded others. All who did not claim to be righteous upon the same ground that they did they reprobated. The line of religious distinction between them- selves and others was clearly marked. The ques- tion of claim not only to the privileges of the Church, but also to heaven, was simple, and easily settled : " Have you been circumcised, and do you keep the law of Moses ?" The validity or the in- validity of the claim turns upon the yes, or the no, to this question. Now, if they had been, in the true spiritual sense, the children of Abraham, and were "walking in the steps of the faith of Abra- ham," they would likely have propounded a differ- ent question — perhaps something like this : Do you, with all your heart, believe on the Messiah to come, trusting in him for righteousness ? and do you believe in the outward ceremonies of the law as only shadowing forth the coming Redeemer THE CHURCH OF CHRIST. 439 and his glorious kingdom ? Now, although a true spiritual son of Abraham, and an heir of the prom- ise (see Gal. iii. 29), and though he could answer the latter question affirmatively, the bigoted Jews would have set him at naught and denounced him as disqualified for heaven. What bigots!* How exclusive were this blinded people, and all owing to a mistaken notion as to the true nature and de- sign of outward ordinances. A man who seeks to be saved by outward religion, or by compliance with certain rites and ceremonies, is, of course, a stranger to the religion of the heart, and to that charity without which, though he should bestow all his goods to feed the poor, and give his body to be burned, he would be nothing. Destitute of this charity, such a man must be exclusive and intol- erant. Such were the self-righteous Pharisees. Having now discovered the true cause of relig- ious intolerance, we would suggest that this is not confined to the Pharisees of the Jewish Church. It has found in Christendom a soil of congenial char- acter, where it has taken root and produced a large and deplorable crop of its bitter fruits. Similar causes produce similar effects. The cause which produced Pharisaic exclusiveness will produce it wherever it exists. There are thousands who daily pray for the prosperity of the Church — for the unity of the Spirit and bond of peace. To such, the subject 440 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. of which we are treating is of high interest. Look abroad over Christendom : do we not see denomi- nations, claiming the name of Christian, exhibit- ing the same sectarian bigotry and intolerance? Do we inquire for the cause ? The cause is the same that produced it in the Jewish Church, viz., giving a false position to one or both of the ordi- nances of the gospel Church, and attaching to them a false value. This was the mistake of the Pharisees which shut out all true charity from their souls, and of course they were filled with the opposite spirit of selfishness, intolerance. This false value may be attached to outward rites in two degrees, the higher and the lower. In the higher degree, the ordinances are imagined to pos- sess the power, when duly administered, of im- parting saving grace, and hence they are looked upon as being of inherent and vast importance. In the lower degree they are not supposed to pos- sess the virtue of imparting saving grace, but then they glorify and magnify baptism into an importance far beyond the design of its divine author. They make what they understand by baptism a term of membership in their Church and of communion at the Lord's-table. Those (or a part of them) of the higher degree teach that both baptism and the Lord's-supper are necessary to the pardon of sin, and must be dis- pensed by their own hands, and that they are not THE CHURCH OF CHRIST. 441 only a term of fellowship and communion in their Church, but the condition of salvation, since they teach there is no salvation without the pale of their Church; whilst others of the same class hold that immersion is essential to the remission of sins, and thus make immersion the condition of salvation, and thereby exclude from heaven all who are not immersed for remission of sins. Was ever a Phari- see more exclusive, more intolerant, than the last two denominations alluded to ? They are extrem- ists in regard to outward ordinances. The}' have exalted them as highly as ever a blinded, bigoted Jew did circumcision, and therefore they are equally exclusive. One of these denominations holds and teaches that the water of baptism, conse- crated by the priest, possesses the virtue of cleans- ing the soul from sin, and that in the sacrament of the supper the bread and wine are changed lit- erally and really into the body and blood of Christ; and this is not all— they worship this bread and wine, which they say is no longer bread and wine, but really and truly Christ. The other, as is notoriously known, teaches im- mersion for the remission of sin, and by conse- quence makes it the condition of salvation. They become quite sensitive at being called by their proper sectarian name, greatly preferring and des- ignating themselves by the appellation of The Chris- tian Church, thus clearly excluding all others. 19* 442 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. What we wish distinctly to present to your mind, reader, is this, that religious bigotry and exclusiveness grow out of an overweening im- portance attached to outward ordinances, and too much reliance upon them. Who so bigoted, who so exclusive and destitute of Christian charity to- ward others who may differ from them, as those who make most, preach most, talk most of the outward ordinances ? Many ministers, in whose conceit immersion is of vast importance, can hardly preach a sermon without either directly or indi- rectly giving water-baptism (by which they mean immersion) a prominent place ; and often, when reporting the fruits of a revival, they inform you how many were baptized instead of how many were converted. And do not these great zealots for baptism by dipping claim to be the only true Church of Jesus Christ, and exclude you from the kingdom of heaven unless you are immersed for the remission of your sins. Is not this exalt- ing immersion to an enormous pitch, as it is made the condition of your salvation? The test of your religion is immersion for remission. If you have been thus immersed for remission, you are a Chris- tian; if not, away with you — you are no Chris- tian. If you retort, "Who art thou that judgest another man's servant? to his own master he standeth or falleth ; yea, he shall be h olden up," it sets in motion no charitable feeling toward you. THE CHURCH OF CHRIST. 443 How clearly evident is it that false notions of the importance and value of outward ordinances, and the error of too great a reliance upon them, go hand in hand with religious intolerance I All this is strikingly evinced by our own ob- servation. When looking around us, does not sectarian exclusiveness stare us in the face in every quarter? And this exclusiveness is in pro- portion to the erroneous exaltation of external ordinances, and the reliance placed upon them. As before observed, in this respect there are de- grees; those who hold them erroneously in the higher sense exclude others from the kingdom of heaven. The views of those of the second, or lower degree, are somewhat modified, though still erroneous ; they do not exclude you outright from the kingdom of heaven, but they do exclude you from their fellowship and communion unless you will submit to undergo immersion at their hands. The correctness of the position which we have taken with regard to the cause of religious intol- erance, so long the fell disturber of the peace of Zion, we hope is now sufficiently apparent. It holds good in its application to the proscriptive, intolerant Pharisee, and equally so when applied to Romanism, and every other organization claim- ing the name of Christian who are exclusive and proscriptive of others. Without being again re- 444 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. minded of the fact, you have but to open your eyes and you will at once see that those who make the greatest noise and ado about outward ordinances are the very ones who approach near- est to Pharisaic Church-pride and proscriptive in- tolerance ; and this seems to be in proportion to the extent of their error in regard to baptism or the Lord's-supper, or to both. Those who belong to the worst class of exclusionists denounce you, ir- respective of all the claims to Christianity which you may present, as outside the pale of salvation, until you submit to their dictum concerning the outward ordinances, and become one of them. Those who are not quite so deep in error do not propose to carry exclusiveness to such a wild ex- treme, and only deny you fellowship and commun- ion with them at the Lord's-table, generally ad- mitting, we believe, that others besides themselves may be Christians and be saved. What thanks are due for this one mite of charity which, it would seem, is all they have to spare for any but them- selves ! But over this little charity there is cast a dark shadow, since while they make this conces- sion "in word and in tongue," they deny it "in deed and in truth;" for they refuse you their fel- lowship and a place with them at the Lord's-table, practically saying, "Stand back, we are more holy than thou." What a glaring inconsistency! For if others are not worthy of their fellowship and THE CHURCH OF CHRIST. 445 communion in the Church on earth, how can they admit them to he worthy of communion in heaven? If not worthy of even a low seat with them, with what show of consistency can they admit them worthy to be honored with a high seat in heaven? To be consistent, these people must do one of two things : they must either openly deny that any except themselves are worthy to hold com- munion in heaven, and so continue their close com- munion, or, then, they must throw down the bar- rier and hold open communion with all God's children. Either of these expedients would re- lieve them of the inconsistency. Which will they prefer? If the former, they go headlong into the extremes of proscriptive Pharisaism and Roman- ism ; but if the latter, they will show forth that noble, ever-enduring virtue of charity, which con- strains the most obdurate of men to exclaim, "Behold, how they love one another!" We are apprised of the reasons offered as ex- cuses for close communion. They are of no avail — light as chaff; none of them will find their way into heaven; the fires of the last day will con- sume them, with -all the antichristian dross of sec- tarian bigotry and intolerance. If you must have immersion, there it is — take it. If you receive it with a right view, it will neither pollute your soul nor cleanse it ; but for the love of our common Lord and Saviour, let charity, "let brotherly love, 446 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. continue." But so long as this erroneous, vitiated view of the external ordinances as to their high value prevails, the peace of Zion will be disturbed by its legitimate offspring — religious intolerance. This terrible pest, this demon fox, will ever be gnawing at the vine in the garden of God. Fox, did we say? This hellish monster — intolerance — with gory jaws and blood-dripping tongue, has, when not restrained, already destroyed millions of Christians, and would still, if permitted, riot in the work of death. But it may be said this was the result of extreme intolerance. Let it be granted. What then ? The intolerance which forbade Peter and John to preach any more in the name of Jesus, imprisoned Peter and bound him in chains ; the same that quarreled with Christ for healing on the Sabbath-day, and for eating with publicans and sinners, delivered him to his enemies and nailed him to the cross ; the same intolerance of the Church of Borne which condemned the doctrines of Jerome and Huss burnt these martyrs, with thousands of others, at the stake. So it is seen that this latent fire, though it may be possessed in a higher or lower degree, is the same in all ; like a living coal beneath the embers, it may never kindle around the martyr's stake, but let it, under favorable circumstances, be blown upon by the breath of fanaticism, and erelong it bursts into a flame. THE CHURCH OF CHRIST. 447 Again, in farther confirmation of what we have advanced upon this subject, let it be observed that those branches of the Church who hold fellowship with other denominations who are opposing vice and building up the kingdom of Christ entertain no extravagant views of the virtue and value of outward ordinances. They lay less stress upon them, and in them they put no reliance at all as to any intrinsic virtue or efficacy which, by some, they are imagined to possess ; they view them in no other light than as outward symbols, containing within them a spiritual idea : in baptism, the idea of the purifying influence of the Holy Spirit in cleansing the heart from moral pollution ; in the symbols of the bread and wine of the supper, the death of Christ, through which he made the atone- ment. These spiritual ideas, contained in the fig- ures, or emblems, respectively, are by faith trans- ferred — the one to the influence of the Holy Spirit in his cleansing the heart and qualifying for heaven, the other to the death of Christ in making atone- ment. And here is the difference between the denominations who exercise Christian charity for others and those to whom such charity seems to be an entire stranger : the latter make no transfer of the spiritual idea, but it remains in the emblem unperceived by them, or, if perceived at all, it is perforce made to apply to a wrong spiritual object. To say that the water of baptism is efficacious in 448 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. cleansing the soul from sin ignores the spiritual idea contained in the symbol of water. The same may be said of the bread and wine. In both cases the spiritual idea lies concealed in the symbol, and the symbol itself is taken for the spiritual thing symbolized. Hence the dogma of baptismal regen- eration and that of the bread and wine, the real body and blood of Christ. Or if (as above said) there is any spiritual idea at all perceived, it may, by a forced construction, be made to apply to a wrong object, as, for instance, when baptism is made to represent the burial and resurrection of Christ. As for baptism for the remission of sins, all spirituality of signification is thrown out of the question, since baptism is simply made the condi- tion of pardon. Those who teach baptismal regeneration, or bap- tism for the remission of sins, incontinently thrust themselves in between heaven and the souls of men, since none can be admitted into heaven with- out remission of sins, and remission is obtained by baptism, and baptism must be performed by a hu- man agent. It is, hence, as clear as the light of day that to secure a qualification for heaven must depend upon the will and action of the adminis- trator of water-baptism. But such presumption is fitly rebuked and falsified, when it is declared (John i. 12, 13), "But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, THE CHURCH OF CHRIST. 449 even to them that believe on his name; which were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God." This passage sets aside all such arrogant intruders and water-baptism as giving, in any essential sense, a qualification for heaven ; but here, again, is clearly seen the reason why they attribute to baptism such immense importance, and why they claim to be the only Church of Christ, to the exclusion of all others. The difference, then, between these extremists and other denominations, who place no such reli- ance upon outward ordinances, must be palpable to every reflecting mind. The one class puts great stress and trust upon external ordinances, and ex- cludes others; the other trusts in God, through faith in Christ, and does not exclude others. The one, by bigoted intolerance, ignores charity and Christian liberality ; the other extends the hand of Christian fellowship to all God's children. In a word, the one class is following in the foot- steps of the Pharisees, who preached, " Except ye be circumcised and keep the law of Moses, ye can- not be saved;" the other in the footsteps of Paul, who taught that "circumcision availeth not any thing, nor uncircumcision, but a new creature;" also, when he said, "For Christ sent me not to baptize, but to preach the gospel." The final consequence of attributing such 450 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. great virtue and importance to outward ordi- nances is — 3. Its tendency to deceive and ruin the souls of men. For when men's minds are led away from the cross of Christ and the power of the Holy Ghost, which alone can create within "a new heart/' to contemplate the external ordinances as possessing wonderful virtues, and as the channels through which eternal life is conveyed, is it any wonder that they should mistake the shadow for the substance, and fail of obtaining future happi- ness ? On this slender reed leaned the self-right- eous Pharisees, which, when they most needed support, broke in their hands and pierced them. Hopes of heaven built on such a false foundation must be swept away by the coming storm. Here lies the danger; and how many thousands of prec- ious souls have been beguiled into this dangerous pathway and finally ruined, naught but the light of the judgment-day can reveal. No blood of birds, nor blood of beasts, Nor hyssop-branch, nor sprinkling priest, Nor running brook, nor flood, nor sea, Can take the dismal stain away. The stain of sin. "Ye must be born again." PART IX.— THE END OF THE WORLD. . How Shall it Be ? TEE end of the world sometimes means the end of the age — the end of the Jewish age — as when the apostle says of Christ, " But now in the end of the world hath he appeared to put away sin." But we shall use the term in the sense in which the disciples used it when they in- quired of our Saviour when the temple should be destroyed — what should be the signs of his com- ing, and of the end of the world; also in the sense in which it is used in Christ's reply, " Then com- eth the end." The heathen seemed to believe the world would come to an end. Hence the lines of one of their poets : He calls to mind that there will come a time, Decreed by fate, when earth, and sea, and sky, Enwrapped in flames, shall burn, and the vast globe Shall sink to ruin. The Chinese also are said to believe that the earth will be consumed by fire from heaven. If the heathen, however, have any correct notions of this or any other doctrine, which is exclusively (451) 452 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. within the sphere of divine revelation, we are to attribute it to some remote knowledge of the lat- ter, handed down by tradition. Although we know neither the day nor the hour of this awful catastrophe, yet are we assured it will come. "For the Lord is not slack concern- ing his promise, as some men count slackness, but is long-suffering, not willing that any should per- ish ;" and, " One day with the Lord is as a thou- sand years, and a thousand years as one day." By the end of the world we are not to under- stand its annihilation, but its purification, and its full development in its pristine beauty, grandeur, and glory. It will be remolded by the same di- vine hand that first gave it form and beauty, and if by sin aught of natural deformity or uncomeli- ness has marred it, it will be remedied in its new creation. It will also be purged from all moral pollution, and from all its natural evils. Its old constitution will be dissolved, and a new constitu- tion will be set up, both in the earth and atmos- pheric heavens. And although the same element- ary principles in the earth and the heavens may remain, yet, by being newly arranged and differ- ently organized, they will be justly entitled to the appellation of "new heavens and a new earth." It is the opinion of some men, of great scien- tific as well as biblical knowledge, that the reno- vating and purifying power of that tremendous THE END OF THE WORLD. 453 day will be realized, not only in our earth and heavens, but in the entire heavens of the solar system, since our earth is a member of this sys- tem, and the terrestrial heavens a part of the same in which it revolves. And furthermore, since there is an articulate connection and relative dependence between the earth and all the planets of the sys- tem, it is reasonable to conclude that so great a change as was produced in the earth and its sur- rounding heavens in consequence of sin, must, in a greater or less degree, have affected the entire system as a symmetrical whole — not positively, but relatively; and the change or renewal of the planetary heavens, though real, will be peaceful, and not violent, as will be the case with our earth and heavens, which was the abode of man and the immediate theater of his dire rebellion. Be this as it may — and it may go for what it is worth — this much we know, " The heavens and the earth, which are now, . . . are . . . reserved unto fire against the day of judgment and perdition of un- godly men." (2 Pet. iii. 7.) All things created in the six days' work of God, were pronounced by him " good, very good." Every thing was perfect ; not absolutely, but relatively and in degree. The earth, "without form and void," was molded into a beautiful globe, mantled with its verdant foliage of trees and innoxious plants; the lower crea- tion, possessed of animal life, with all their varied 454 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. instincts, harmoniously moved in their respective spheres, fulfilling their destiny as God had ap- pointed them; the heavens around were redolent of healthful breezes ; and man, the last and master- piece of the work of God, shone out in the beauty and glory of the divine image, endowed with am- ple authority and power as lord and ruler of all. Without a discordant note, all moved in un- disturbed harmony. Creation was now in its in- fant purity,, just brought forth at the fiat of the adorable Creator. But all was capable of a far- ther and complete development ; and man, combin- ing in his complex nature the physical and moral — mind and matter, the material and spiritual — stood forth the personal representative of both earth and heaven. Endowed with moral freedom, the indispensable correlative of rationality, he was of necessity to determine his own destiny between good and evil — allegiance to God, or rebellion against him. Had he, in the right use of his ' moral freedom, withstood the tempter, Ms victory would have been the victory of the entire human race, which was then essentially in him; and in one (not an improper) sense he may be said to have been that race himself, since " God has made of one blood all the nations that dwell upon the earth." Now, had he in his trial vanquished Sa- tan, he and his race would have moved on with- out farther impediment to their full and final THE END OF THE WORLD. 455 development, and as lord and governor he would have conducted the earth, with all its teeming life- powers, to a similar destiny. This development was commenced in his intercourse with the Cre- ator — his giving appropriate names to the animals, and in "dressing and keeping the garden." But by one voluntary act of disobedience all this beauty is marred — all harmony disturbed, and wild disorder reigned. He lost his God, lost his purity, his power and authority. Ejected from Eden, he is cursed, and doomed to eat his bread with labor and toil. The earth, cursed on his ac- count, shall bring forth thorns and thistles. Much of its surface is covered with arid wastes and un- tenanted deserts, stagnant pools and impervious swamps and fens abounding with their disease and death-breeding miasma; also poisonous plants, unwholesome waters, venomous insects, reptiles, and ferocious animals infest the earth. The at- mospheric heavens are poisoned, so that the very air we breathe to live often produces death. Some- times floods are poured down destructive of life, labor, and future prospects ; anon, the heavens be- come as brass, causing famine. The appalling earthquake, the sweeping hurricane and destruc- tive thunderbolt — all, in a word, which we have enumerated, are but a part of the evils entailed by sin. But this is but the background of the picture; man himself occupies the foreground. 456 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. He is his own worst enemy. His bosom is the nursing cradle of the vilest passions — inordinate lustful desires, covetousness, hypocrisy, envy, malice, and revenge. The sphere of his outward activities is the theater of ambition, tyranny, op- pression, lying, cheating, defrauding, theft, rob- bery, and murder; wars, bloodshed, and devasta- tion; so that the world groans and travails in pain, and will continue to do so until the great "resti- tution;" and this is to be accomplished by Christ, the second Adam, the Lord from heaven. This he does by taking up the development of man, and all things else which were under man's con- trol, at the point at which it was dropped, and conducting it to its originally destined goal. To fulfill this grand and glorious mission, he took into union with his divine nature the nature of man (sin always excepted). Thus incarnate "God manifested in the flesh;" and taking the place of the first Adam, atoned for his sin and the sins of his race yet unborn, and when born, were still, in one sense, one with him by unity of blood. Through the atonement the first Adam, with his race, is afforded a new probation, and life is offered him conditioned upon faith. When this condition is fulfilled upon the part of the probationer, he is brought into union with Christ, the second Adam, a partaker of his divine nature, made a child of God, being born of God in regeneration by the THE END OP THE WORLD. 457 Holy Ghost, and is now an "heir of God, and joint- heir with Christ" to the victory which he won in the wilderness, in the garden, on the cross, and at the grave. Hail, thou sheet-anchor of hope, fountain of light and life, victorious Lord ! The first lord of the earth was led captive by Satan, but thou hast led captivity itself captive. Thou art the Lord from heaven, the second divinely-ap- pointed Lord of earth, and head of all thy spirit- ual seed. Thou hast overcome, and hast fairly won the palm to rule and subdue the earth, to transform it into a glorious garden, "to dress it and keep it," and raise fallen humanity from the lowest depths of moral degradation to the highest plane of perfection and glory of which man is ca- pable, when "God shall be all in all." At the portal of salvation there are two ever- diverging paths — faith and unbelief. With faith commences the new spiritual development. Here the breath of God is breathed into the soul dead in sin, and wakes it into "'newness of life." This is the passing "from death unto life." Here com- munion with God, lost in the first Adam, is re- stored in the second; the lost image of God is also restored. From this as a starting-point, the Scriptures recognize a growth, an advancement, symbolized by the growth of the corn and of the human body up to perfect development. This ad- vancement and attainment of perfection is all con- 20 458 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. ducted by Christ, the all-meritorious and triumph- ant head. We also see unmistakable signs of the right development in the mental as well as the spiritual department of Christ's dominion. Where has nat- ural science made her greatest and grandest achieve- ments? where, but under the light and genial in- fluence of Christianity? What nations have been and are to-day farthest removed from barbarous laAvs and customs — from superstition and idolatry ? Those nations which are most under the control of Christian principles. The same is true in regard to the material de- partment of Christ's kingdom. The desert is made to blossom; extensive sterile districts are clothed with green meadows and waving harvests. The rude wigwam gives place to the palatial dwell- ing, and the savage, untaught wilderness rejoices in knowledge, refinement, and civilization. The wildest elements are tamed and made to subserve useful ends; and the prime agency conducting these great changes and developments in the ma- terial world is nowhere to be sought and found but in the "Lord from heaven," the second Head, fulfilling the destined high mission of the first. But there are antagonistic powers in the world - — the powers of darkness warring against the powers of light. This great conflict will last so long as sin is in the world, and sin will remain THE END OF THE WORLD. 459 until the end, as it did until the days of Noah. Sin being the cause of all bodily and mental evils with which the world is cursed, they cannot be removed until sin is eradicated; and this will take place at the time of the earth and heaven's regen- eration by fire. "When the Lord shall be re- vealed from heaven in flaming fire, taking ven- geance on them that know not God, and that obey not the gospel ;" then shall sin be purged away, and the earth, so long the theater of abominations, be renovated, and the heavens be purified from the foul breath of sin and pollution, and from all physical contaminations tending to disease and death. Fire is the most energetic, all-pervading, and destructive element of which we have any knowledge; and this is the element to be employed in the world's consummation. Peter declares in his second Epistle, iii. 7: "But the heavens and the earth, which are now, by the same word are kept in store, reserved unto fire against the day of judgment;" and farther (ver. 10), "But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night; in the which the heavens shall pass away with a great noise, and the elements shall melt with fer- vent heat, the earth also and the works that are therein shall be burned up." This, to a skeptical mind, may appear too improbable and strange to command belief. But is the world's destruction by fire less probable to us than its destruction by 460 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. water was to the antediluvians? Was it probable to their carnal reason that the everlasting bars and gates which bound and confined the watery deeps should be unloosed and opened to the heaving flood? or that the "windows of heaven," hitherto closed, should be opened and respond in descend- ing torrents of rain from above to the surging bil- lows below? This was too improbable to gain the credence of their carnal minds ; but yet the flood came ! — of this no right mind can doubt. The earth is full of combustible material; so are the atmospheric heavens. These need only be let ioose to conflagrate both earth and air, dissolv- ing all things and reducing all to their simple ele- mentary principles. This is but preliminary to a new arrangement, and to the creation of a new earth and new heavens, according to the divine promise. Meanwhile, the great purification is com- pleted; "the restitution of all things" is come. Sin and pollution, as vile dross, are cast off; the curse is fled and gone ; wild disorder, the fruit of sin, is subdued and melted into the sweetest har- mony; sickness, sorrow, pain, and death are only known as things that ivere; nothing now to hurt or destroy in this new earth and these new heav- ens: "the tabernacle of God is with men," and the "sons of God are all shouting for joy." This will be, no doubt, a suitable abode for the glorified second Adam and all his spiritual children — his THE END OF THE WORLD. 461 regenerated sons and daughters. Here are the "new heavens and a new earth, wherein dwelleth righteousness," and where righteousness dwells there must be righteous dwellers. The Power omnipotent that has re-created the earth and heav- ens anew will make ample provision for all. What if the earth should be enlarged a thousand times its present dimensions? Would that disturb the great balance of the universe? Certainly not, un- less there was also an increase of matter. What if the new earth and heavens should be self-lumin- ous? Then, there would be no need of the light of the sun, or of the moon, or of a candle, for the Lord God and the Lamb shall be the light, and of this effulgence the new earth and new heavens will be redolent. What if the glowing imagery of the prophet of Patmos should, in the grandeur and glory of this new creation, be more than a thousand-fold realized ? Then, we shall not con- sider as overwrought his resplendent portraiture of the eternal city, with jasper walls and gates of pearl, streets of gold and sea of glass, mirroring forth the ineffable glory of God and the Lamb forever. "And I heard a voice out of heaven, saying, Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and he will dwell with them, and they shall be his people, and God himself shall be tvith them and be their God." "And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes, and there shall be no more death, 462 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. neither sorrow nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain ; for the former things are passed away." "And there shall be no more curse." " Therefore, beloved, seeing we look for such things, what manner of persons ought we to be?" The Resurrection. In the noble speech delivered by the Apostle Paul before King Agrippa, defending himself from the false charges brought against him by his per- secutors, he asked that potentate why it should be a thing incredible with him that God should raise the dead. This question may be reiterated. Why should it be thought incredible with any one, since, 1. None will deny that He who created the body has power to resurrect it. 2. The resurrection of the body has its analogy in nature. The sun sets and rises; vegetation decays and rises again. Paul, treating of the resurrection, uses the corrup- tion and reviving of the seed cast into the ground as an emblem of the resurrection of the human body. 3. It is not reasonable to suppose that Christ, the living Head, having vanquished death, risen from the dead, and ascended to heaven with his glorified body, would leave the bodies of his members under the power of death forever in the grave. 4. As the body is in mystic union with the soul, and is the soul's instrument in its out- ward activities in the service of God, it is but just THE END OF THE WORLD. 463 to conclude that the bodies of Christ's members shall live again in union with the soul, to receive, conjointly, the inheritance which awaits them in heaven. 5. The bodies of God's children are called the temples of the Holy Ghost. We may, therefore, reasonably conclude that these dwelling- places will not be suffered to lie in eternal ruins. 6. The Scriptures abound with proofs upon this subject. Christ declares that God is not the God of the dead, but of the living, because he is the God of Abraham, and of Isaac, and of Jacob ; and he uses this passage to prove the resurrection. Job xix. 25, 26, teaches most clearly this doctrine: " For I know that my Redeemer liveth, and that he shall stand at the latter day upon the earth; and though after my skin worms destroy this body, yet in my flesh shall I see God." Also, Ps. xvii. 15: "As for me, I will behold thy face in right- eousness : I shall be satisfied, when I awake, with thy likeness." And Dan. xii. 2: "Many of them that sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake, some to everlasting life, and some to shame and everlasting contempt." Also, John v. 28, 29 : "Marvel not at this; for the hour is coming, in the which all that are in the graves shall hear his voice, and shall come forth; they that have done good, unto the resurrection of life ; and they that have done evil, unto the resurrection of damna- tion." The apostles "preached through Christ the 464 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. resurrection." Paul devotes one whole chapter of 1 Cor. to this subject. See also 1 Thess. iv. 13-16, and Rev. xx. 5, 6, with numerous other passages, in confirmation of this doctrine. All Men to be Raised Up. The righteous will be raised by virtue of their union with Christ, their living Head, "by his quickening Spirit, which dwelleth in them." As he had "power to lay down his life and power to take it again," so he has power to awaken into new life the sleeping bodies of his members. "When the trumpet shall sound, the dead shall awake." This, probably, is the seventh trumpet of the Apocalypse, under the sounding of which the kingdoms of the world are given to God and to his Christ, and is the time of the dead that his servants should be rewarded and the wicked de- stroyed. The rising from the dead will be universal, of sinners as well as of saints, but the dead in Christ shall take precedence of the dead out of Christ: "Every one in his own order, Christ the flrst-fruits ? afterward they that are Christ's at his coming." The manner of the resurrection none can now comprehend, only so far as we are enlightened by sacred writ. This much is revealed : that, although the bodies of Christ's members are "sown in cor- ruption, sown natural bodies, sown in weakness, THE END OF THE WORLD. 465 sown in dishonor/' " they shall be raised in incor- ruption," " spiritual bodies," and shall be raised in " power and in glory." Those, however, who are alive at the coming of the Lord will be changed * in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye." " For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality." When they shall see the God-man " as he is," in his glorified bod}', " they shall be like him." For a manifesta- tion of this glory, let us fancy ourselves in com- pany with the three favored disciples — Peter, James, and John — on that "high mountain" with Jesus, when, suddenly, a cloud of glory overshad- ows us, and he is transfigured : his raiment shines with dazzling brightness, he is enrobed in glitter- ing glories, and now the voice of the Father, "This is my beloved Son, hear ye him." We fall prostrate with the three disciples, for how could mortals long bear up under such a display of di- vine effulgence? This we may take as a pattern of the resurrected saints, whose bodies will be fashioned Like the glorious body of their risen Saviour. They shall shine "as the stars forever; " and if the stars be so many suns, how transcendently bright and glorious must be the place called heaven ! The heathens, we believe, generally denied the doctrine of the resurrection — so did the Sadducees; but to all who have any just claims to Christianity it is, truly, a source of much consolation. 20* 466 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. The Apostle Paul was mocked and persecuted for the hope he had of this glorious change. He counted all things loss, that he might know Christ and the power of his resurrection, and the fellow- ship of his sufferings, being made conformable to his death, if by any means he might attain to the resurrection of the dead — that is (we suppose), that he might have part in the resurrection desig- nated by John, in the Apocalypse, as " the first resurrection." Happy shall he be who shall be thus honored and distinguished on this momentous occasion. Final Judgment. That there will be a day of final judgment is evident from the sacred Scriptures, which declare that " God shall bring every work into judgment," and that "the Lord cometh with thousands of his saints to execute judgment upon all." In Eccl. xii. 14, it is affirmed that " God shall bring every work into judgment, with every secret thing, whether it be good, or whether it be evil;" also, it is declared, "He hath appointed a, day in the which he will judge the world in righteousness." See also Matt. xii. 36 ; 2 Tim. iv. 1 ; Jude 15, with many other passages of the same import. The truth of this doctrine seems to be divinely impressed upon all men, whether heathen or Chris- tian. Portions of the former believed that certain of their gods would judge mankind in the shades THE END OF THE WORLD. 467 below; others that the Great Spirit would adjudge the good to a happy hunting-ground and the wicked to a place the reverse. And what is conscience, that inward witness testifying to both good and evil, other than a silent monitor referring men to a day of final reckoning ? The justice and goodness of God require that it shall be "well with the righteous and ill with the wicked." This, however, is not always the case in this world. How often is virtue oppressed and trodden down, while vice reigns triumphant! " The rich man had his good things," while " Laza- rus had his evil things" Even admitting that the laws of nature and civil laws inflict the necessary and sufficient punishment upon their violators (which we by no means do), still there are many crimes committed by men of which neither of these laws takes cognizance — such as inordinate lustful desires, covetousness, secret malice, and criminal intentions which, for want of opportunity, are not carried into practice ; nor is the one-thou- sandth part of the lying, cheating, defrauding, profanity, adultery, and murder perpetrated by men punished in this life; and, therefore, justice demands that there shall be a day when every hidden thing shall be brought to light and receive its just reward. The innocent, too, are often confounded with the guilty, and are frequently punished here, while 468 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. the guilty, by suborned witnesses, the incompe- tency, prejudice, or bribery of judges, go free. All these things loudly proclaim the moral pro- priety, and therefore the certainty, of a day of judgment. The divine goodness, as well as justice, requires that in the moral fitness of the divine procedure there should be a discriminating line drawn be- tween the virtuous and the vicious, between those who love and worship God and those who hate him; and, accordingly, we are informed, "Then shall ye return and discern between the righteous and the wicked." The former he will place upon his right hand, the latter upon his left. It is generally believed by the Christian world that the righteous, when they die, are taken to a place of rest and of unspeakable fruition of joy, and that the wicked are consigned to the abodes of everlasting misery. This conclusion is justified by the Scriptures. An intermediate state called, by the Romish Church, purgatory is but a fond inven- tion of her priesthood to subserve their pecuniary interests, and is wholly unwarranted by the Bible. The "Voice" said to the prophet, "Write, Blessed are the dead which die in the Lord from henceforth: Yea,, saith the Spirit, that they may rest from their labors, and their works do follow them;" and Paul preferred being absent from the body and to be present with the Lord — hence, if the glorified THE END OF THE WORLD. 469 Saviour is in heaven, that was the place to which he expected to go when he should be separated from the body. John, also, in his vision saw a great multitude singing before "the throne/' and was told they followed the Lamb, and that they were redeemed from among men and were " the first- fruits unto God and unto the Lamb." The con- verted malefactor, on the day of the crucifixion, went with Christ into paradise, and Abraham and Lazarus were in a place not only of rest, but also of heavenly consolation, while the " rich man " was lifting up his eyes in the torments of hell. From these and many other passages of Scripture it is clear that both the righteous and the wicked, when they die, enter immediately upon their un- changeable destiny. If this be so, does it super- sede the necessity of any particular day of future judgment ? It may be said in reply that it is in- dispensable, in order to the declarative glory of God, that the infinite rectitude of his administra- tion should be clearly and fully displayed before his intelligent universe, that all, with one acclaim, may cry, "Thou hast judged in righteousness;" "Just and true are thy ways, thou King of saints." Many in that day who in this life had won the confidence of the Church will, when the secrets of their hearts shall be disclosed, be set on the left hand, with the awful, but just, sentence, "Depart 470 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. from me, I never knew you;" and all upright in- telligences will cry, Amen! It may be farther remarked that the reason why men are not finally judged as soon as they die is that the good or evil which they have done in their life-time will bear fruit to the end of time. God, of course, knows at the moment the deed is per- formed just what all its results will be. This he knew from eternity, but neither men nor angels know. Hence, a general judgment is necessary to reveal all the good, as well as all the evil, flow- ing from men's actions. To illustrate: an infidel writes a book against the Bible and against Chris- tianity; he dies as soon as the book is printed. God knows the mischief such a book will do, men do not. The evil influence continues to the end of time. It is said that Voltaire, Frederick II., King of Prussia, D'Alembert, and Diderot headed a conspiracy, about the middle of the last century, with the infernal intent to overthrow Christianity and extirpate it from the earth. There were also many secondary agents, whom they seduced, and who joined these arch-conspirators against the Christian religion. They kept up a secret corre- spondence, spared no pains, used all means within their power; no artifice that impiety could invent, no ardor and zeal that the magnitude of their en- terprise could inspire, no ridicule, bitter invective, and false defamation which the deadliest malice THE END OF THE WORLD. 471 could suggest, were wanting in these conspirators for the destruction of the Christian religion. They wrote, they debated, they resorted to politics, to every artifice and means, however unfair and im- pious, to compass their diabolic end. And who can tell the amount of mischief that conspiracy has done and will continue to do until time shall end ? To say the least, the poison of infidelity was spread through the greater portions of Europe and America, and the virus still taints the blood and develops itself, under different .names and phases, in multiplied thousands of the present day in Christendom. Such conspirators against God and religion, though dead, yet speak for evil. From these considerations it is evident that a gen- eral judgment is necessary, that all the evil which men do, and that every hidden thing, may be brought to light, that an assembled universe may bear witness to God's righteous distribution of re- wards and punishments. Yes, every secret of my heart Must shortly be made known, And I receive my just desert For all that I have done. Similar remarks may be made in regard to the good deeds of good men. After these men are dead their good deeds live on from age to age, dis- countenancing vice, encouraging virtue, revealing 472 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. the purity and power of religion, and promoting the best interests of mankind, and glorifying the adorable Creator. What shall be said of the Luthers, the Wickliffs, the Knoxes, the Whitefields, Wesleys, Bunyans, and the McGreadys, and hosts of others, even of private Christians, whose labors of love and deeds of mercy will continue to live and bear fruit till time shall merge itself into eter- nity? These good deeds of good men, often now misinterpreted and traduced by wicked men, re- quire a general judgment to clear away the slan- der and contempt that have been heaped upon them. "Then shall the righteous shine forth as the stars of *the firmament," and the good they have done meet a gracious reward. In this grand assize who is to be the judge? Although God is the Judge, yet is that high pre- rogative settled upon the Lord Jesus Christ, "for the Father judgeth no man, but hath committed all judgment to the Son," and "we must appear be- fore the judgment-seat of Christ." All men will be judged, the wicked as well as the righteous, "that every one may receive accord- ing to that he hath done, whether it be good or bad." "Although the judgment will virtually take place in the resurrection, since the bodies of men, each individually, will bear the marks which will exemplify the results of the judgment, yet in the mind of the prophet it is seen as a judicial process THE END OF THE WORLD. 473 subsequent to the resurrection, that all may trans- pire in due form and order." The nature of the judgment may be learned from the parable of the division of the sheep from the goats. "Then shall he say to those upon his right hand, Come, ye blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world;" and to the ungodly upon his left hand, "Depart, ye cursed, into everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his angels." In the resurrection the bodies of the wicked will be immortalized, but will not be fashioned like the glorious body of Christ, seeing they are not in union* with him; but the nature of their bodies will conform to their character and the character of Satan, with whom they were in league against Christ and his kingdom. Their bodies will be not like the bright and glorious bodies of the saints, but will be conformed to the dark and wretched abode of their lost spirits, and will be to each the medium of pain and torment ; and as the reunion of the redeemed, purified souls and glorified bodies of the saints will capacitate them to enjoy the highest degree of happiness, so the reunion of the unredeemed, polluted souls and inglorious bodies of the children of Satan will capacitate them to suffer the deepest torment and misery. But the judgment is not yet closed. The devil and his angels are also to be judged; "For," as 474 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. Peter declares, "God spared not the angels that sinned, but cast them down to hell, and delivered them in chains of darkness to be reserved unto judgment." Although cast down to hell, they will be summoned thence to receive their final doom and full punishment for the part they have taken against the kingdom of Christ, the glory of God, and the happiness of mankind ; and all this will be in addition to their suffering consequent from their first transgression. It appears also that the saints will, as a token of high distinction and honor, be exalted to a par- ticipation with Christ in the judgment : " Know ye not that the saints shall judge the world?" "Know ye not that we shall judge angels?" — that is, as we suppose, fallen angels. The general resurrection and judgment, together with the re- generation of the earth and heavens by fire, will close up the world's history, which commenced at its primeval creation and ends at its regeneration, or new creation. The history of man began with the first Adam, at his formation from the dust of the ground, including his trial and fall, and ends with the triumphant victory of Christ, the second Adam, in conducting redeemed and sanctified hu- manity in spiritual union with him, together with the earth and heavens, to their originally-destined goal of perfection and glory. PART X.— MISCELLANEOUS. Church Music. THOUGH I never had a personal quarrel with the singers in any place, yet I have never known in one case, where there was a choir of singers, that they did not make disturbance in societies. And it would be much better, in every respect, to employ a precentor, or a person to raise the tunes ; and then the congregation would learn to sing, the purpose of singing would be accom- plished, every mouth would confess to God, and a horrible evil w 7 ould be prevented — the bringing together in the house of God, and making them almost the only instruments of celebrating his praises, such a company of gay, airy, giddy, and ungodly men and women as are generally grouped in such choirs ; for voice and skill must be had, let decency of behavior and morality be where they will. Every thing must be sacrificed to a good voice, in order to make the choir complete and respectable. Many scandals have been brought into the Church by choirs and their accompani- ments. Why do not the Methodist preachers lay this to heart? (475) 476 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. The singing which is recommended (Col.iii. 16) is widely different from what is commonly used in most Christian congregations ; a congeries of unmeaning sounds associated to bundles of non- sensical and often ridiculous repetitions, which at once both deprave and disgrace the Church of Christ. Melody, which is allowed to be the most proper for devotional music, is now sacrificed to an exuberant harmony, which requires not only many different kinds of voices, but different musical instruments, to support it; and by these pre- posterous means the simplicity of the Christian worship is destroyed, and all edification totally prevented. And this kind of singing is amply proved to be very injurious to the personal piety of those employed in it : even of those w T ho enter with a considerable share of humility and of Chris- tian meekness, how few continue to sing with grace in their hearts unto the Lord ! It does appear that singing psalms, or spiritual hymns, was one thing that was implied in what is termed prophesying in the Old Testament, as is evident from 1 Sam. x. 5, 6, 10, etc.; and, when this came through an immediate afflatus, or inspi- ration of God, there is no doubt that it was exceed- ingly edifying, and must have served greatly to improve and excite the devotional spirit of all that were present; but I rather suppose that their singing consisted in solemn, well-measured reci- MISCELLANEOUS. 477 tative, than in the jingling of often foolish sounds which we use when a. single monosyllable is some- times shivered into a, multitude of semiquavers! Here it may not be improper to remark that the spirit and the understanding are seldom united in our congregational singing. Those whose hearts are right with God have generally "but little skill" in music; and those who are well skilled in music have seldom a devotional spirit, but are generally proud, self-willed, contentious, and arro- gant. Do not these persons entirely overrate themselves ? . . ... A good singer among the people of God, who has not the life of God in his soul, is vox, et prceierea nihil — as Heliogabalus said of the nightingale's brains, on which he de- sired to sup, "he is nothing but a sound." Some of these persons (I mean those who sing w T ith the understanding, without the spirit) suppose them- selves of great consequence in the Church of Christ; and they find foolish, superficial people whom they persuade to be of their own mind, and soon raise parties and contentions, if they have not every thing their own way ; and that way is generally as absurd as it is unscriptural and con- trary to the spirit and simplicity of the gospel. It is very likely that the singing of the Jews was only a kind of recitative or chanting, such as we still find in synagogues. It does not appear that God had especially appointed those singers, 478 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. much less any musical instruments, the silver trumpets excepted, to be employed in his service. Musical instruments in the house of God are, at least, under the gospel, repugnant to the spirit of the gospel, and tend not a little to corrupt the worship of God. Those who are fond of music in the theater are fond of it in the house of God when they go thither; and some, professing Chris- tianity, set up such a spurious worship, in order to draw people to hear the gospel. This is doing evil that good may come of it; and by this means light and trifling people are introduced into the Church of Christ, and, when in, are generally very troublesome, hard to be pleased, and difficult to be saved. Did ever God ordain instruments of music to be used in his worship ? Can they be used in Christian assemblies according to the spirit of Christianity? Has Jesus Christ, or his apostles, even commanded or sanctioned the use of them ? Were they ever used anywhere in the Apostolic Church? Does the use of them, at present, in Christian congregations, ever increase the spirit of devotion? . . . . Is it ever found that those churches and Christian societies which have and use instruments of music in divine worship are more holy, or as holy as, those societies w T hich do not use them? and is it always found that the ministers who affect and recommend them MISCELLANEOUS. 479 to be used in the worship of Almighty God, are the most spiritual men and useful preachers ? Can mere sounds, no matter how melodious, where no word or sentiment is or can be uttered, be con- sidered as giving praise to God "any more in his house than in the ball-room or the theater?" Are not the very same character of sympathy and feeling wrought up in the house of God by instru- mental music that are wrought up by music in the ball-room and theater, and are, therefore, of no spiritual value? Has not the Roman Catholic, the most corrupt and anti- Christian Church upon the earth, been for ages and centuries past the most zealous supporter of instrumental music in her so-called Christian worship, and is she to-day more spiritual and true in the worship of God than those Christians who do not use it? If these questions cannot be answered in the affirmative, then is not the introduction of such instruments into the worship of God anti-Christian and calcu- lated to debase and ultimately ruin the spirit and influences of the gospel of Jesus Christ? And should not all who wish well to the spread and establishment of pure, spiritual, and undefiled re- ligion lift up their hand, their influence, and their voice against them? The argument from their use in the Jewish service is futile in the extreme, when applied to Christianity. In a representative system of religion, such as 480 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. the Jewish, there must, have been much outside work, all emblematical of better things — no proof that such things should be continued under the gospel dispensation, where outsides have disap- peared, shadows flown away, and the substance alone is presented to the hearts of mankind. He must be ill off for proofs in favor of instrumental music in the Church of Christ who has recourse to practices under the Jewish ritual ! Moses had not appointed any musical instruments to be used in the divine worship. There was nothing of the kind in the first tabernacle. The trumpets or horns then used were not for song, nor for praise, but as we use bells, to give notice to the congregation of what they were called to perform, etc.; but David did certainly introduce many in- struments of music into God's worship, for which, we have already seen, he was solemnly reproved by the Prophet Amos (vi. 1, 6). Here, however, the author of this book states, he had the com- mandment of the Prophet Nathan and Gad, the king's seer; and this is stated to have been the commandment of the Lord by his prophets ; but the Syriac and the Arabic give this a different turn: "Hezekiah appointed the Levites in the house of the Lord, with instruments of music, and the sound of the harps, and with the hymns of David, and the hymns of Gad, the king's prophet; for David sang the praises of the Lord his God, MISCELLANEOUS. 481 as from the mouth of the prophets." It was by the hand or commandment of the Lord and his prophets that the Levites should praise the Lord ; for so the Hebrew text may be understood ; and it was by the order of David that so many instru- ments of music should be introduced into the divine service. But were it even evident — which it is not, either from this or any other place in the sacred writings — that instruments of music were prescribed by divine authority under the law, could this be adduced, with any semblance of reason, that they ought to be used in Christian worship ? No, the whole spirit, soul, and genius of the Christian religion are against this; and those who know the Church of God best, and what constitutes its genuine spiritual state, know that these things have been introduced as a sub- stitute for the life and power of religion, and that where they prevail most there is the least of the power of Christianity. Away with such por- tentous baubles from the worship of that infinite Spirit who requires his followers to worship him in spirit and in truth ! for to no such worship are those instruments friendly. I have no doubt but the gross perversion of the simplicity of the Christian worship, by the introduction of various instruments of music into churches and chapels, if not a species of idolatry, will at least rank with evil-worship and superstitious 21 482 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. rites and ceremonies. Where the Spirit and unc- tion of God do not prevail in Christian assemblies, priests and people being destitute of both, their place, by general consent, is to be supplied by imposing ceremonies, noise, and show. The Church of Rome, in every country where it either prevails or exists, has so blended a pre- tended Christian devotion with heathen and Jewish rites and ceremonies, two parts of which are bor- rowed from pagan Rome, the third from the Jewish Ritual, ill understood and grossly misrepresented, and the fourth part from other corruptions of the Christian system. Nor is the Protestant Church yet fully freed from a variety of matters in public worship which savors little of that simplicity and spirituality which should ever designate the wor- ship of that infinitely pure Spirit, who cannot be pleased with any thing incorporated with his wor- ship that has not been prescribed by himself, and has not a direct tendency to lead the heart from earth and sensual things to heaven, and to that holiness without which none shall see the Lord. The singing, as it is practiced in several places, and the heathenish accompaniments of organs and musical instruments of various sorts, are as con- trary to the simplicity of the gospel and the spirituality of that worship which God requires, as darkness is contrary to light; and if these abuses are not corrected, I believe the time is not MISCELLANEOUS. 483 far distant when singing will cease to be a part of divine worship. It is now, in many places, such as cannot he said to be any part of that worship which is in spirit and according to truth. May God mend it! — Dr. Clarices "Christian Theology." [The deep and settled conviction of so learned and deeply pious a man as Dr. Clarke ought cer- tainly to have great weight in regard to what is hurtful or beneficial in the worship of God. He was also a man of large experience and extensive observation. From both of these, as well as from the very nature of the case, he unreservedly de- livers his sentiments, which are most decidedly against the use of instruments of music in the worship of God. — Author.] Geology and the Bible. Scientists, in their modern pretended discoveries, seem to have found out that % geology contradicts the Bible, which it never did, nor ever can ; but, taking what they call their scientific discoveries as infallibly true, the Scriptures must be judged by this rule, and may stand or fall accordingly. Now this rule might do very well, provided these so-called discoveries are infallibly correct — not otherwise. They tell us that Nature is God's book, and that Nature does not err. In all sin- cerity let this be granted ; but are we certain that 484 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. these scientists, with their very limited knowledge, have given us the true interpretation of the book? This is a grave question, and we are compelled to answer it in the negative. They inform us there are certain regular strata of rock formations, and in some of these there are fossil remains of both vegetables and animals; that these fossilized veg- etables and animals are not found in the lower or primitive rocks, and therefore they conclude that these rocks were formed anterior to the formation of those rocks which contain such fossilized veg- etables and animals, and consequently previous to the existence of either vegetables or animals upon the earth. In the upper strata of rocks, in which are found fossils of animals, it is assumed that animals existed upon the earth long, perhaps millions of years, before the existence of man; that the first indications of animal life is in its lowest development, and then in the rocks of a more recent formation are found fossils indicating a higher development of animal life, and that many or all of these animals had perhaps become extinct ages before the Mosaic account of the creation of the earth with its animal inhabitants. Thus it is evident that what is called the sci- ence of geology is made to contradict the history of the creation of the earth, with its vegetables and animals, as given by Moses in the Book of Genesis. But before we take the pretended in- MISCELLANEOUS. 4 8 5 terpretations of empirical science as the infallible standard of truth, let us first inquire how far these scientists have carried their investigations beneath the surface of the earth. Two miles is about the utmost depth to which the crust of the earth has been pierced, and even that in a very few places. Assuming the earth's diameter to be 8,000 miles, 4,000 miles, minus two to its center, yet remain in total obscurity, unapproached by human investigation. Two miles out of four thou- sand constitute the basis of geological science! Pray, what kind of rocks lie below the stratum called primitive ? Here, for an answer, they must go into the dominions of Pluto, the heathens' hell. All is guesswork beyond the two miles deep, and possibly more than half on this side of it. What if, in process of time, men should dig down into the earth several miles deeper, and find strata of fossiliferous rocks containing the impressions of vegetation, animals, and even man? Would not such a discovery contradict and overturn their present theory? What a flutter such a develop- ment would make among the scientific ivorld-makers ! And who can say to the contrary ? All beyond a few little holes in the outside crust lies in total darkness. " The path to it no fowl knoweth and the vulture's eye hath not seen." Let the Almighty speak, and answer thou him: "Where wast thou when I laid the foundations of the earth? De- 486 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. clare, if thou hast understanding. Who hath laid the measures thereof, if thou knowest? or who hath stretched the line upon it? Whereupon are the foundations thereof fastened? or who hath laid the corner-stone thereof, when the morning stars sang together, and all the sons of God shouted for joy? Or who shut up the sea with doors, when I made the cloud the garment thereof, and thick darkness a swaddling-band for it, and break up for it my decreed place, and set bars and doors, and said, Hitherto shalt thou come, but no farther, and here shalt thy proud waves be stayed? Hast thou entered into the springs of the sea ? or hast thou walked in the search of the depth?" One class of geologists have held to the aqueous origin of our earth — that is, its formation by the deposition of earthy matter from water. Another class hold the igneous theory, or its formation by the agency of fire. Now, according to the water theory, it would require a long time for the forma- tion of the different strata of rock found in the earth all around the globe from the slow process of deposition, and for the hardening of that semi- fluid deposit into solid rock, hundreds, and per- haps, in some instances, thousands of feet in thick- ness. Such a formative process must have required the lapse of ages upon ages beyond the data of biblical chronology. But can they tell us how it came to pass that water deposited for a period MISCELLANEOUS. 487 long enough to form pure granite and other strata of rock of such great thickness, in which there is no sand or silex, and then suddenly commence depositing coarse sand, forming strata of sand- stone of equal thickness ? And anon, there is a deposition of lime, in which there is no grit, form- ing immense beds of limestone. To suppose that our globe was formed in accordance with the aqueous theory, is to suppose contrary to any reasonable supposition, and involves a miracle less credible than that performed by Jehovah in creat- ing at once, by his omnipotence, the earth, with its entire frame-work of rocks which underlie its surface. The igneous theory is no less objectionable. This we believe assumes that the earth was origin- ally a globe of liquid fire, which, however, is a mere conjecture void of proof, and contradicts the biblical history, which informs us that the earth was " without form and void;" that darkness was upon the deep, and that "the Spirit of God moved upon the waters," etc., which facts could not have existed had the earth been a globe of fire. The igneous theory supposes that the outside of this fiery ball gradually cooled down, forming a hard crust, which in process of time, from the action of heat and moisture, slowly decomposed, and thus the soil was formed for the production of vegeta- tion, opening the way for the existence of animal 488 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. life upon the earth. How these Plutonists account for the fossil remains of vegetables and animals in these rocks which are said to contain them, we are at some loss to determine, but suppose it is by assuming that the rocks of our globe are partly of igneous and partly of aqueous origin, and that those in which these remains are found have been formed by the process of aqueous deposition. But, query: Whence came that wonderful inundation of water, covering the globe, or at least a great portion of it, from which such vast amounts of earthy matter settled so as to form such immense strata of solid rocks ? We are told that such were the subterranean forces generated by the internal heat that they burst the solid crust of the earth, heaved up the mountains, let loose the waters, which, seek- ing their level, rushed off to those localities since called seas and oceans. But if the globe was a mass of liquid fire, in what part of it were those vast waters contained ? Such a theory contradicts itself. But perhaps it may be said that from the humid vapor surrounding the earth, and the rains descending upon it from the clouds, its solid crust was once covered with water, and upon the up- heavals and eruptions which took place, that then the waters fled to the lower localities and formed the seas and oceans. What a cunningly devised fable to get rid of the biblical history of the earth! The whole of this theory of the formation of the MISCELLANEOUS. 489 earth is a mere figment of the fancy, and is desti- tute not only of proof, but even of plausibility. We will close our remarks upon this subject after briefly considering one other of the doctrines advocated by the modern teachers of the science of geology, namely, the formation of stone-coal. The theorv is that this substance is of vegetable origin; that in some remote age of the world the vegetable productions of the earth were much ranker and far more abundant than in this age, and that by the force of tremendous currents of water which swept over the earth, vast quantities of trees and all sorts of vegetable matter were piled up in certain localities, constituting the ex- tensive coal-fields now found in the earth, and that by a chemical process in the great laboratory of Nature, and by superincumbent pressure, all this vegetable matter has been converted into coal. Now, all this theory is based upon two unproved postulates, or mere conjectures. First, the rank growth and superabundance of vegetation; and, secondly, the wonderful currents of water sweep- ing it together. But, admitting these assertions as facts, which, however, are sadly wanting of proof, still there are insuperable objections to the theory. For how, upon this hypothesis, can they account for the purity of the coal? Currents of water of sufficient force to scoop out basins in the earth, and drift together such large quantities of 21* 490 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. trees and other woody substances to form these immense coal-beds, would have carried along with them fragments of rocks, gravels, sand, and mud, and made of all a mere conglomerated mass. But how happens it, then, that coal is free from these foreign substances ? It is pure, with the exception of some small portions, which are adulterated with sulphur and iron : no clay, no sand, mud, or gravel. The theory can never explain away this objection. But they tell us that they have caught Nature at her pranks in her own work-shop ; that some of her materials were only half made up; and they have discovered what kind of material she was at work upon — that it was actually wood — for they have seen in coal-mines sticks-, and even trees, or parts of trees, partly wood or lig- nite, and partly converted into coal! But are they certain that it was of any kind of wood that ever grew upon the surface? However closely it may resemble it, still it may not be really wood, in the common acceptation of the term. It may be lig- nite, or kind of wood of a subterraneous character, and not the kind which grows, or ever did grow, upon the surface. Things under ground, in more cases than one, resemble things above ground. Some of the metallic ores are kidney-shaped, but they are not kidneys. Some are dentritic, but they are not teeth. Others are arborescent, but they are not trees. This singularly interesting MISCELLANEOUS. 491 but grand mimicry is seen in all the departments of Nature. It is discovered in the resemblance of some of the creatures in the sea to those upon land; of those that fly in the air to those that move only upon the ground ; also between animals of the same department in the seas, in the air, and upon the land. On the latter, the ass resembles the horse, but an ass is not a horse ; and some of the monkey genus resembles man, but still a monkey is not a man. So neither may the lignite found in coal-mines be really wood. These resemblances serve to show the connection between all the mys- terious works of the great Creator of all, from dead matter up to man, the representative of both earth and heaven, and the climacteric of the six days' work of God. Scientists are welcome to their world-making theories, provided only they do not too rashly interfere with our religion. We love natural sci- ence, too, but not that empirical science which imperatively challenges our belief without sufficient testimony. By scientific research many facts of great practical utility have been developed, and doubtless others will be in process of time. But when men go off at a tangent from their destined orbit, and stray away into the interminable fields of vain speculation, growing wise above what is written, and in their visionary notions show a desire to destroy the validity of the divine records, 492 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. it is time to call them home, and require them to explain the essential nature of the several kinds of attraction, and why and how they act ; to solve the mystery of the union of soul and body; in what way the will acts upon the muscular system. Poor souls ! We cannot tell why the magnet at one pole attracts and at the other repels. We cannot tell what light or life is. and, although we have been eating all our lives, were it to save our lives we could not explain nutrition, the singular process by which dead matter taken into the stomach is transmuted into living flesh, muscle, bone, and sinew, and many other things near home which our philosophy has never dreamed of. Alas for us, how little we know ! When our visionary wiselings are able to solve the scores of mysteries which lie concealed in their own physical and spiritual being, and close around in their immediate neigh- borhood, then we may listen to their curious theo- ries of world-making. The sound men of sound science are a great blessing to mankind, but unsound men of false science are a curse to the world. Supposing the latter should succeed — which they never can — in destroying the credibility of the Bible, what then? Will they give mankind a substitute? If so, what is it? Mohammedanism? Paganism? or the philo- sophy of Voltaire, Diderot, and their associates ? ALis for the nations which are under the accursed MISCELLANEOUS. 493 sway of the two former, and for miserable France, which quaffed largely at the polluted and poison- ous fountain of Voltaire's infidelity! After all, why not take the Book of Genesis as our guide concerning the origin of our earth? Why may not the Almighty Creator have formed the great strata of rocks, the mines of silver and gold and precious stones, all the metallic ores, the soil of the earth with all its appendages and gar- nishings, and fitted it up as a suitable abode for all its living inhabitants, in accordance with the account given by Moses in Genesis ? This book is the most ancient record in the world. It informs us that, in the beginning, God created the heaven and the earth. Men may place this beginning just where they please. This is a question about which we have but little concern. We believe the words of divine inspiration, and that is a finality. We take the Bible as truly the book of books, as con- taining the only reliable history of the earlier ages of mankind — a history brief indeed, but wonder- fully minute in detail. It teaches all the necessary knowledge of God, of ourselves, of the duties we owe to God and to our fellow-men. It enlightens us in regard to the introduction of sin into the world, and unfolds the plan by which sin may be par- doned, the soul cleansed from moral pollution, and qualified for eternal happiness in heaven. And while it denounces all manner of vice, it affords 494 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. the strongest incentives to virtue. It presents the surest support under all the trials, afflictions, and ills of life, and in death it furnishes the buoy- ant hope of heaven and a happy and glorious im- mortality. The Bible first, the Bible last, the Bible forever. Amen. Church Discipline. In the first ages of the world men were gov- erned by the heads of families. This kind of gov- ernment was called patriarchal, because the father was at the head of it. This certainly was a fit type of the government of God, who is the great Father of all mankind. Every well-regulated family has its government, and its disciplinary rules or laws are carried into practical operation. A family or a nation without such laws is in a state of anarchy or confusion. Such would be the case with the Church, God's spiritual family on earth, without discipline. The rules by which the Church is to be gov- erned are laid down in the New Testament. Dur- ing the Mosaic dispensation, when the Jews were under the theocracy — the government appointed by God himself, of which he was both legislator and head — the ordinances and laws were quite numerous. This was necessarily the case, since both their ecclesiastical and civil polity were com- prehended under those laws. But since that dis- MISCELLANEOUS. 495 pensation has passed away, with all the laws per- taining to the temple-service, giving place to the gospel institution, the laws of the latter, for reg- ulating the affairs of God's spiritual household, are few and quite simple in their nature, though of the utmost importance. These rules of disci- pline embrace but few special cases, and are easily understood. If you know that your brother has aught against you, go and be reconciled with him ; or if your brother has trespassed against you, go and tell him his fault. If he repent, forgive him. If he will not hear you, take others with you. If he will not hear them, then tell it to the Church ; but, if he still remain incorrigible, he must be cast out. The rule respecting public offenders and heretics, or teachers of false doctrine, and, I think, the ad- monition of the apostle in regard to the Church assembling together for public worship, to hear the gospel and attend to its ordinances, should also be disciplinary. These rules, with, perhaps, a few others, constitute the code of laws for the good order, peace, and prosperity of the Church of God. Most of the Christian denominations have these rules drawn from the Bible, and laid down in a book, sometimes called a Discipline, which usually prescribes the method of proceeding against an offending member, how he is to be brought to 496 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. trial, and the introduction of testimony for or against him. As in the civil government, so in the Church — laws, however good, unless they are faithfully executed, are but a dead letter. Crime goes un- punished, the government, either of Church or State, is dishonored, and society suffers in all its vital interests. According to ecclesiastical history, whenever there was a decline of vital godliness, there was a corresponding decline in the administration of Church discipline; and vice versa, if discipline is neglected, there is a decline in religion. A low state of piety produces laxity in discipline, and the neglect of the latter brings about the former. In this they operate respectively, both as the cause and the effect. They go hand in hand, and if at the present day there is a manifest laxity upon the part of the Church in the enforcement of her discipline, it is an infallible sign of a decay of vital religion. Consider this a little. Do not many who have a name in the Church live in the habitual neglect of their religious duties? How many, from year's end to year's end, seldom attend Church? Are there not some who violate the Sabbath, visiting about in the neighborhood, instead of going to Church to hear the gospel and attend to its ordinances? Do not many go to theaters, dancing parties, play cards for amusement, and MISCELLANEOUS. 497 visit the dram-shops and drink to intoxication ? and are not the perpetrators of these sins suffered, in many cases, to go unrebuked, to the no little scan- dal of the cause of Christ? Where are the officers of the Church, whose business it is to watch over her spiritual interests? Where are the ministers of Christ's pure religion, the Ruling Elders, and the executors of discipline in the house of God, by whatever name they may be called ? It is their duty to exercise discipline, not as lords over God's heritage, but in tenderness and love, looking to the spiritual welfare of those of their charge, the credit and prosperity of religion, the honor and glory of their divine Lord and Master. To what a solemn account will these rulers in the Church be held in the great day ! What a terrible calam- ity befell the house of old Eli, the priest, because "he knew the sins of his sons and did not restrain them" (1 Sam.iii. 13), and upon the people of Judah for healing the hurt of the daughter of God's peo- ple slightly, saying, "Peace, peace, w T hen there was no peace." (Jer. vi. 14.) The officers of the Ohurch are the appointed guardians of the peace, purity, and prosperity of the Church of Christ, and shall they fail in the exercise of wholesome discipline, suffering the garden of the Lord to be polluted and overrun with briers and noxious weeds, and thus prove recreant to their sacred trust? When discipline is neglected virtue weeps, 498 MEDIUM THEOLOGY. religion mourns, Christ is wounded in the house of his friends, his enemies rejoice, sinners are hard- ened and grow bold in iniquity. But, upon the other hand, when the officers of the Church, in the spirit of meekness and love, perform their duty in advising, admonishing, rebuking, or sus- pending, as the case may require, wayward or unruly members of the Church, then is the body of Christ edified — then it stands forth a pillar of light, and is truly "the light of the world." The line dividing between the Church and the world is clearly marked; the scandals occasioned by un- guarded (sometimes spurious) members of the Church are wiped off, and are not left as blots upon her fair escutcheon. Those who bear rule in the Church should often meet to consult and advise respecting the spiritual condition of those who are under their charge — otherwise they will be ignorant of what is needed — and faithfully, by the help of God, discharging their duty, they shall at last joyfully hear, "Well done, good and faithful servant." THE END. *. - Deacidified using the Bookkeeper process. 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