'i .o 8-. 
 
 Tjj PRINCETON, N. J. *# 
 
 Presented by e_ r\ 
 
 <£> O ^V r\ O' 
 
 Division 
 
 Section 
 
 
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THEOLOGY FOR THE 
 PEOPLE. 
 
 v 
 
 Rev. A. R. SHAW, 
 
 Pastor of the First Presbyterian Church, Portsmouth, Va. 
 
 t£ 
 
 RICHMOND, VA. : 
 
 Whittet & Shepperson, General Printers. 
 
 1902. 
 
Copyright 
 
 by 
 
 Rev. A. R. SHAW, 
 
 1902. 
 
TO 
 
 /IDs affectionate mite, 
 
 WHOSE GENTLENESS AND THOUGHTFULNESS 
 
 AND SYMPATHY 
 
 HAVE BEEN TO ME A SOURCE OF CONSTANT INSPIRATION, 
 
 AND TO 
 
 flDp Bear Cbiloren, 
 
 WHOSE MERRY YOUNG LIVES HAVE BROUGHT SO 
 MUCH SUNSHINE INTO MY HOME, 
 
 THIS VOLUME 
 
 IS LOVINGLY DEDICATED. 
 
Digitized by the Internet Archive 
 
 in 2011 with funding from 
 
 Princeton Theological Seminary Library 
 
 http://www.archive.org/details/theologyforpeoplOOshaw 
 
PREFACE. 
 
 As indicated on the title page, this volume is specially 
 •designed for the people, not for seminary students, nor 
 for ministers of the gospel. It must be admitted that 
 the need of such a work is pressing. Suppose any 
 minister of our church were asked to recommend to his 
 congregation a work on theology adapted to the capacity 
 •of the average member ; a work neither too costly nor 
 voluminous ; a work in which is found a concise, and yet 
 comprehensive, statement of our system of belief, where, 
 in the whole range of theological literature, could such a 
 work be found ? In addition, the Presbyterian Church 
 is beginning to realize the necessity of more system and 
 thoroughness in the department of Sabbath-school work. 
 In an advance order for a copy of Theology foe the 
 People, a consecrated woman said, "I need the book 
 to assist me in my work as Sabbath-school teacher." Is 
 not such a book needed for advanced classes in Sabbath- 
 schools ? This work is not designed for primary classes, 
 but for people who think, and for the purpose of stimu- 
 lating thought. The writer's observation is to the effect 
 that three subjects are frequently discussed, especially 
 by people in the country — predestination, "falling from 
 
6 Preface. 
 
 grace," and baptism. It has been deemed advisable to 
 give these subjects special consideration. Furthermore, 
 the church has never witnessed the circulation of so 
 much insidious error as at the present moment. The 
 enemy is diligently sowing tares. Under a strong 
 conviction of duty, and in humble dependence upon the 
 God of truth, the supplying of a felt need has been 
 undertaken. 
 
 In the preparation of this work, indebtedness to 
 Doctors Dabney, Peck, Hodge, Patton, Morris, Thorn- 
 well, and others, is gratefully acknowledged. 
 
 Author. 
 
CONTENTS. 
 
 CHAPTER I. 
 
 Page. 
 Definition and Sources of Theology, 9 
 
 CHAPTER II. 
 Inspiration of the Bible, 17 
 
 CHAPTER III. 
 The Word of God the Only Rule of Faith and Practice, . 25 
 
 CHAPTER IV. 
 God in his Being, Nature, Attributes, Trinity, .... 29 
 
 CHAPTER V. 
 God in his Activities: Decrees, Creation, Providence, 
 
 Redemption, 42 
 
 CHAPTER VI. 
 Man: Origin and Nature, Free Will, Probation, Cove- 
 nant of Works, Fall, Sin, Imputation, Original Sin, 
 Inability, Total Depravity, . 85 
 
 CHAPTER VII. 
 Christ the Mediator: Incarnation, Person, Mission, 
 
 Offices, Humiliation, Exaltation, .... . 101 
 
 CHAPTER VIII. 
 Plan of Salvation : Election, Covenant of Grace, Atone- 
 ment, Ill 
 
 CHAPTER IX. 
 Process of Salvation : Holy Spirit as Agent, Effectual 
 Calling, Regeneration, Justification, Adoption, 
 Sanctification, 118 
 
8 Contexts. 
 
 CHAPTER X. pAGB 
 Christian Life: Faith, Repentance, Good Works, Per- 
 severance, Assurance, 153 
 
 CHAPTER XI. 
 The Law of God, 197 
 
 CHAPTER XII. 
 Civil Relations and Duties: Christian Liberty or Lib- 
 erty of Conscience, Civil Magistracy, Lawful Oaths 
 and Vows, Marriage, Divorce, 212 
 
 CHAPTER XIII. 
 Church of God: Visible and Invisible, Headship, Mem- 
 bership, Officers, Government, Worship, Communion 
 of Saints, 222 
 
 CHAPTER XIV. 
 Sacraments: Baptism, Lord's Supper 229 
 
 CHAPTER XV. 
 The State of Man After Death, . ........ 270 
 
 CHAPTER XVI. 
 The Second Coming of Christ, 274 
 
 CHAPTER XVII. 
 The Resurrection of the Dead, 278 
 
 CHAPTER XVIII. 
 The Last Judgment, 281 
 
 CHAPTER XIX. 
 The End of the World, 288 
 
 CHAPTER XX. 
 Consummation of Christ's Kingdom, 292 
 
Theology for the People. 
 
 CHAPTER I. 
 
 Theology: Definition, Sources. 
 
 IT has been defined : "The science of religion." This 
 definition, though brief, is satisfactory if the terms 
 Definition of employed be fully grasped. What is 
 
 Theology. religion ? "It is the bond which unites 
 
 dod and man. It supposes, therefore, two factors : 1. 
 Man, the subject of religious feelings. 2. God, the 
 object of religious worship." In what relation to 
 religion is theology a science? "The truth objectively 
 considered is theology; subjectively received, under 
 divine illumination, it is religion. In relation to 
 religion, therefore, theology is a science only in the 
 objective sense ; it is a system of doctrine in its logical 
 connection and dependence, which, when spiritually 
 discerned, produces true piety." 
 
 Theology is divided into two great departments: 
 
 1. Natural Theology: That "knowledge of God and 
 
 of human duty which is acquired from 
 
 Sources of Theology. " . 
 
 the light of nature, or from the prin- 
 ciples of human reason, unassisted by a supernatural 
 revelation. 
 
 2. Revealed, or Supernatural, Theology: That 
 ^'science which comprehends as its province all that has 
 
10 Theology foe the People. 
 
 been revealed to us concerning God and his relation to 
 the universe, and especially to mankind, through super- 
 natural channels." 
 
 These terms, natural and revealed, are employed to 
 indicate the sources from which knowledge of theology 
 is derived. 
 
 Let us now consider three answers to the question, 
 What are the sources of theology ? 
 
 "There are two ways of investing reason with infalli- 
 bility. A man may say that he needs no other revelation 
 than the light of his own intellect, in 
 
 1. Reason. t ° 
 
 which case he makes reason the source 
 of knowledge; or he may say that, conceding that the 
 Bible contains divine revelations, he will receive nothing 
 which he cannot comprehend, or which conflicts with his 
 sense of right, in which case he makes reason the crite- 
 rion of truth." We deny that reason is the ultimate 
 ground of religious truth. Chapter I. of the Confession 
 of Faith says, "Although the light of nature, and the 
 works of creation and providence, do so far manifest the 
 goodness, wisdom and power of God as to leave men 
 inexcusable ; yet are they not sufficient to give that 
 knowledge of God, and of his will, which is necessary 
 unto salvation." 
 
 It must be borne in mind that reason, the faculty of 
 perceiving, comparing, judging, and inferring, has 
 suffered in sin's sad wreck. We must not conclude, 
 however, that in matters of religion reason has no proper 
 office. "Reason is necessary for the reception of a reve- 
 lation. Revelation is the communication of truth to 
 the mind; but the communication of truth supposes 
 the capacity to receive it. A revelation cannot be made 
 
Theology foe the People. 11 
 
 to brutes or to idiots. In the second place, reason must 
 judge of the credibility of a revelation. The credible is 
 that "which can be believed. In the third place, reason 
 must judge of the evidences of a revelation. Faith 
 without evidence is either irrational or impossible." 
 Now, it is obvious that in this last sphere reason must 
 pass on two questions: 1. Is the evidence "appropriate 
 to the nature of the truth believed ? Historical truth 
 requires historical evidence ; mathematical truth, math- 
 ematical evidence ; moral truth, moral evidence." 2. Is 
 the evidence "adequate, i. e., such as to command assent 
 in every well-constituted mind to which it is presented ?" 
 While we readily accord to reason its proper office in 
 matters of religion, we are not warranted in ascribing 
 to it prerogatives which it does not possess. "In recog- 
 nizing the light of nature, both as a light shining into 
 the soul from an external world, and as a capacity of 
 the soul to perceive such light and rejoice in it, the 
 Westminster Assembly did not intend to exalt this 
 capacity and opportunity as if they could lift man above 
 the need of revelation, or make him the arbiter of the 
 whole question of revelation and salvation." 
 
 This is the answer of Roman Catholicism to the 
 question, "What are the sources of theology ?" "Roman 
 
 2. An infallible Catholics regard the church as infalli- 
 onurch. ble, and her teachings as authoritative. 
 
 They believe that the Scriptures are inspired and 
 infallible, but deny that they are sufficient. They claim 
 that the church is the custodian of a body of unwritten 
 truth communicated by Christ and his apostles, and 
 preserved in the form of tradition." In her bald 
 usurpations the Church of Rome arrogates to herself a 
 
12 Theology for the People. 
 
 preeminence to which she is in no measure entitled. 
 "Her voice is heard, first, in the Scriptures, which are 
 not only received upon her testimony, but are dependent 
 upon her authority for their right to regulate the faith 
 and practice of mankind. They are absolutely nothing 
 except as she endorses them and interprets them. She 
 speaks, in the next place, through the traditions of the 
 fathers ; and, finally, through the writings of doctors, 
 the decrees of councils, and the bulls of popes. The 
 church, in this view, is the supreme oracle of God. She 
 is the final depository and infallible teacher of all the 
 truth that pertains to the salvation of a sinner. She 
 occupies precisely the place which the apostles occupied 
 in the first age of Christianity. It is needless to say 
 that her theology is a digest of aphorisms and dicta, 
 dry as a skeleton and cold as an iceberg." 
 
 We deny that the Word of God ascribes any authority 
 to oral tradition. In support of her contention the 
 Church of Rome quotes 2 Thess. ii. 15, "Therefore, 
 brethren, stand fast, and hold the traditions which ye 
 have been taught, whether by word, or our epistle •" also 
 iii. 6, "Now we command you, brethren, in the name 
 of our Lord Jesus Christ, that ye withdraw yourselves 
 from every brother that walketh disorderly, and not 
 after the tradition which he received of us." We answer, 
 "Tradition, as intended by Paul in these passages, 
 signifies all his instructions, oral and written, commu- 
 nicated to those very people themselves, not handed 
 down." In addition, "Christ rebuked this doctrine of 
 the Romanists in their predecessors, the Pharisees." 
 See Matt. xv. 3, 6, "Why do ye also transgress the 
 commandment of God by your tradition? Thus have 
 
Theology for the People. 13 
 
 ye made the commandment of God of none effect by 
 your tradition." Also Mark vii. 7, "Howbeit, in vain 
 do they worship me, teaching for doctrines the com- 
 mandments of men." The Romish church reasons in a 
 circle. She insists that the traditions are true because 
 endorsed by an infallible church. Here is the circle: 
 "An appeal to tradition to support infallibility, and to 
 infallibility to certify tradition." Such reasoning is 
 as absurd as it is pathetic. 
 
 Is the Church of Rome infallible ? ~No ! She concedes 
 that the Scriptures are infallible, and, in the same 
 breath, proclaims her own infallibility. We can easily 
 show that this arrogant church contradicts the Word of 
 God. The Scriptures teach that God alone can forgive 
 sins ; Rome says the forgiving of sins is a prerogative 
 of the priest. The Scriptures teach that there is one 
 Mediator between God and man ; Rome says every 
 priest is a mediator. The Scriptures teach that Christ 
 offered himself once for all ; "Rome pretends to repeat 
 the sacrifice in celebrating the eucharist," the mass. 
 The Scriptures say we are justified by faith; "Rome 
 says we are justified by baptism." The Scriptures 
 command us to worship God only ; Rome says we must 
 also worship the Virgin Mary. Now there is no escape 
 from the following conclusion : "If the Church of Rome 
 is infallible, and the Bible is infallible, we have two 
 infallibilities contradicting each other." Is the pope 
 infallible ? Can he justify his claims ? Let us take 
 this distinguished personage to the witness stand, and 
 propound to him a feAv direct questions relating to im- 
 portant facts of Scripture and gaps in history : 
 
 1. You claim that Peter was the vicar of Christ, and 
 
14 Theology" foe the People. 
 
 that you are Peter's successor ; does the New Testament 
 furnish any evidence that Peter had any primacy among 
 the apostles ? You insist that this primacy is taught in 
 Matt. xvi. 18, 19, "Thou art Peter, and on this rock I 
 will build my church ; and I will give unto thee the 
 keys of the kingdom of heaven; and whatsoever thou 
 shalt bind on earth shall be bound in heaven ; and what- 
 soever thou shalt loose on earth shall be loosed in 
 heaven." Will you, now, turn to Matt, xviii. 18, 
 "Verily I say unto you, Whatsoever ye shall bind on 
 earth shall be bound in heaven ; and whatsoever ye shall 
 loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven." Why is it that 
 in Matt. xvi. 10 the pronoun is in the singular number, 
 while in Matt, xviii. 18 the pronoun is plural? The 
 answer is this, Peter was addressed as a representative 
 of his associates, not of his successors. 
 
 2. Did Peter lay any claim to preeminence, or to 
 precedence ? Let 1 Peter v. 1 answer, "The elders who 
 are among you I exhort, who am also an elder." 
 
 3. Did the other apostles accord to Peter any primacy ? 
 Let Gal. ii. 11 answer, "But when Peter was come to 
 Antioch, I withstood him to the face, because he was 
 to be blamed." Paul evidently was not a Roman 
 Catholic. 
 
 4. Was Peter ever in Rome ? Give us the proof. 
 
 5. Can you furnish the evidence that you are his 
 successor? We claim that "every office implies a gift 
 of which it is the appointed organ. If, therefore, a gift 
 be permanent, the organ for its exercise must be perma- 
 nent." Do you possess the "signs of an apostle" as given 
 in the Word of God ? — 1. Are you inspired ? 2. Have 
 you seen the Lord ? 3. Can you perform miracles ? 
 
Theology for the People. 15 
 
 6. When the General Council, A. D. 680, "anathema- 
 tized Pope Honorius as a heretic," did not that produce 
 a gap in your so-called apostolic succession ? 
 
 Now, Mr. Pope, it appears from the testimony that 
 you are "not known to Scripture." Before you leave the 
 witness stand, your attention is called to 2 Cor. xi. 13, 
 "For such are false apostles, deceitful workers, trans- 
 forming themselves into the apostles of Christ." You 
 may stand aside. Call the next witness. 
 
 The Church of Rome now introduces the infallibility 
 of the Council. "Romanists do not claim that each 
 bishop is infallible, but that a majority of fallible 
 opinions in a general council amounts to an infallible 
 decision." With this thought in mind, let us advert to 
 the General Council, A. D. 680. Since this Council 
 anathematized Pope Honorius as a heretic, "the pope 
 cannot be above a general council, nor can he be infalli- 
 ble. On the other hand, if the pope is infallible, the 
 Council did wrong in anathematizing Honorius, and 
 must be fallible. Again, if a general council may be 
 fallible, of what value is the decision of the Vatican 
 Council, which declared the pope to be infallible ?" 
 
 As the Church of Rome has so signally failed to 
 support her contention, the case must pass from the 
 docket. 
 
 This is the answer that Protestants give to the ques- 
 tion, ''What are the sources of theology ?" As the 
 subject of inspiration will be consid- 
 
 The Bible. J r 
 
 ered in the following chapter, let us 
 pause here to answer the question, which naturally 
 arises, If we admit the insufficiency of natural theology, 
 whvstudvit? Answer: 
 
16 Theology for the People. 
 
 1. It teaches us that God is, and, to some extent, what 
 he is. All truth is of value. 
 
 2. In connection with revealed theology we are fur- 
 nished with "two independent lines of proof for sundry 
 great propositions." This is a source of satisfaction to 
 honest minds. 
 
 3. Revealed theology meets the very wants which 
 natural theology discovers. Thus the mind rests in the 
 persuasion that nature and revelation are two volumes 
 having the same Author. 
 
w 
 
 CHAPTER II. 
 
 Inspiration of the Bible. 
 
 E mean by the term inspiration "that the sacred 
 writers were so influenced by the Holy Spirit 
 that their writings are, as a whole and 
 
 Inspiration Defined. . , . . 
 
 in every part, an authoritative revela- 
 tion to us from God." As defined by another, "It is 
 nothing less than a movement of the Holy Spirit upon 
 the minds and wills of the men inspired, by which they 
 were led to produce a volume that is properly ascribed 
 in its totality to God as its Author." 
 
 They differ as to their subjects. "The subjects of 
 inspiration are a few selected persons; the subjects of 
 inspiration a 8 distin- spiritual illumination are all true be- 
 guisned from spir- lievers. They differ, too, as to their 
 
 itual illumination. _ . . . . 
 
 design, lhe design 01 inspiration is 
 to render certain men infallible as teachers ; the design 
 of spiritual illumination is to render men holy. Inspi- 
 ration in itself has no sanctifying influence. Saul was 
 among the prophets. Balaam was inspired." 
 
 The Confession of Faith, Chap. I., says, "It pleased 
 the Lord, at sundry times, and in divers manners, to 
 
 inspiration a9 distin- reveal himself; and afterwards, for 
 guisned from reveia- the better preserving and propagating 
 of the truth, and for the more sure 
 establishment and comfort of the church against the 
 corruption of the flesh, and the malice of Satan and of 
 the world, to commit the same wholly unto writing." 
 
18 Theology foe the People. 
 
 Revelation and inspiration differ as to their object. 
 "The object of revelation is the communication of 
 knowledge; the object or design of inspiration is to 
 secure infallibility in teaching. They differ also in 
 their effects. The effect of revelation was to render its 
 recipient wiser ; the effect of inspiration was to preserve 
 him from error in teaching." 
 
 Says another, "These two gifts were often enjoyed by 
 the same person at the same time; that is, the Spirit 
 often imparted knowledge, and controlled in its commu- 
 nication orally or in writing to others." This was, no 
 doubt, the case with the psalmists, and often with the 
 prophets and apostles. Frequently, however, the reve- 
 lations were made at one time, and were subsequently, 
 under the guidance of the Spirit, committed to writing. 
 Thus the Apostle Paul tells us that he received his 
 knowledge of the gospel, not from man, but by revelation 
 from Jesus Christ ; and this knowledge he communi- 
 cated from time to time in his discourses and epistles. 
 In many cases these gifts were separated. Many of the 
 sacred writers, although inspired, received no revela- 
 tions. This was probably the fact with the authors of 
 the historical books of the Old Testament. The Evan- 
 gelist Luke does not refer his knowledge of the events 
 which he records to revelation, but says he derived it 
 from those "which from the beginning were eye- 
 witnesses and ministers of the word." 
 
 The divine influence which accompanied the sacred 
 
 writers, and rendered them infallible as teachers, ex- 
 
 verbai inspiration, tends not only to the thoughts them- 
 
 what? selves, but also to the expression of 
 
 these thoughts in language; that in the original auto- 
 
Theology foe the People. 19 
 
 graph copies, the words, as well as the thoughts, are 
 God's revelation to us. It is not claimed that in our 
 translations the words are inspired ; but we do maintain 
 that, in the original autograph copies, inspiration 
 extends to the words as well as to the thoughts. The 
 following arguments have been adduced in support of 
 verbal inspiration : 
 
 1. From the design of inspiration, which is not to 
 secure the infallible correctness of the opinions of the 
 inspired men themselves (Paul and Peter differed, Gal. 
 ii. 11, and sometimes the prophet knew not what he 
 wrote), but to secure an infallible record of the truth. 
 
 2. Men think in words ; and infallibility of thought 
 cannot be secured or preserved independently of an 
 infallible verbal rendering. 
 
 3. The doctrine of verbal inspiration is affirmed in 
 scripture. See 1 Cor. ii. 13, "Which things also we 
 speak, not in the words which man's wisdom teacheth, 
 but which the Holy Ghost teacheth." (See also 1 Thess. 
 ii. 13.) 
 
 4. The New Testament writers, while quoting from 
 the Old Testament for purposes of argument, often base 
 their argument upon the very words used, thus ascribing 
 authority to the ivords as well as to the thoughts. (See 
 Matt. xxii. 32 and Ex. iii. 6, 16.) 
 
 "A divine influence full and sufficient to secure its 
 
 end. The end in this case secured is the perfect infalli- 
 
 " Plenary inspira- bility of the Scriptures, in every part, 
 
 tion,"wnat? ag a recor( j f f ac £ an( j cloctrine, both 
 
 in thought and verbal expression." 
 
 The doctrine of a "partial inspiration" of Scripture 
 has been held in the following: forms : 
 
20 Theology fok the People. 
 
 1. That certain books were inspired ; others not. 
 
 2. That the moral and spiritual elements of the 
 Scriptures were inspired; the scientific and historical 
 elements not. 
 
 3. Thoughts were inspired; words not. This is but 
 another way of affirming that the Scriptures "contain 
 the word of God/' but denying that they "are the word 
 of God." 
 
 We prefer to accept the teaching of 2 Tim. iii. 16, 
 "All Scripture is given by inspiration of God." 
 
 If the question be asked, What relation does inspira- 
 tion sustain to the utterances of Satan recorded in the 
 Bible, I answer, it simply gives us a full and faithful 
 record of those utterances. 
 
 A few years ago I was in the home of an intelligent 
 farmer, though not a Christian. He remarked that he 
 could not see how any just claim could be laid to 
 inspiration when Paul tells us that he himself was in 
 doubt on that subject. He quoted 1 Cor. vii. 40, "And 
 I think also that I have the Spirit of God." Of course, 
 a correct exposition of the passage was given, and the 
 farmer promptly acknowledged his error. As the mind* 
 of others may be perplexed over this and kindred pas- 
 sages, such as 1 Cor. vii. 6, 12 ; Rom. iii. 5 ; vi. 19 ; 
 Gal. iii. 15, let me quote from Hodge's Commentary 
 on First Corinthians: 
 
 " '1 speak as a man,' is a phrase occurring frequently, 
 and its sense is determined by the context. In Pom. iii. 
 5 it signifies that Paul was, for argument's sake, using 
 the language common to men ; it was the Jews' opinion, 
 not his own. In Rom. vi. 19 it signifies 'in a manner 
 adapted to human comprehension,' and in Gal. iii. 15 
 
Theology foe the People. 21 
 
 it signifies, 'I use an illustration drawn from human 
 affairs/ etc. 'I speak this by permission, not of com- 
 mandment' (1 Cor. vii. 6) refers to verse 2. Marriage 
 was always permitted, but, under certain circumstances, 
 inexpedient. 'And unto the married I command, yet 
 not I, but the Lord.' 'But to the rest speak I, not the 
 Lord.' (1 Cor. vii. 10, 12.) Reference is here made to 
 what the 'Lord,' that is, Christ, taught in person while 
 on earth. The distinction is made between what Christ 
 taught while on earth, and what Paul teaches. As 
 Paul puts his word here on an equal basis of authority 
 with Christ's word, it, of course, implies that Paul 
 claims an inspiration which makes his word equal to 
 that of Christ in infallibility and authority. 'And I 
 think also that I have the Spirit of God.' (1 Cor. vii. 
 40.) '/ think I have/ is only, agreeably to Greek usage, 
 an urbane way of saying, I have. (Compare Gal. ii. 6; 
 1 Cor. xii. 22.) Paul was in no doubt of his being an 
 organ of the Holy Ghost." We frequently hear the 
 expression, "I think I know what I am talking about," 
 which is simply another way of saying, / know what I 
 am talking about. 
 
 Let us now consider two great objections urged 
 against our doctrine of plenary inspiration: 
 
 1. That the sacred writers contradict themselves. We 
 answer : 
 
 (1) "These apparent discrepancies are, for the most 
 part, trivial, relating, in most cases, to numbers or dates. 
 
 (2) "The great majority of them are only apparent, 
 and yield to careful examination. 
 
 (3) "Many of them may fairly be ascribed to errors 
 of transcribers. 
 
22 Theology for the People. 
 
 (4) "The marvel is that there are so few of any real 
 importance." 
 
 When we reflect that the different books of the Bible 
 were written by about forty different authors, living 
 through a period of about fifteen hundred years, men of 
 different degrees of culture ; and when w y e observe the 
 golden thread of unity that runs through the entire 
 volume, the conclusion is unavoidable that, in the pro- 
 duction of this wonderful book, the writers were under 
 the guidance of the Holy Spirit. 
 
 The Confession of Faith, Chap. I., Sec. 5, says, "The 
 heavenliness of the matter, the efficacy of the doctrine, 
 the majesty of the style, the consent of all the parts, the 
 scope of the whole (which is to give all glory to God, 
 the full discovery it makes of the only w T ay of man's 
 salvation, the many other incomparable excellencies, 
 and the entire perfection thereof, are arguments 
 whereby it doth abundantly evidence itself to be the 
 Word of God." The problem of harmonizing some of 
 these discrepancies involves factors which' complicate 
 it, e. g., our lack of familiarity with customs prevailing 
 in those oriental lands at the time of the writing of the 
 Bible ; peculiarities in thought ; special characteristics 
 of various dialects, etc. When we take into account the 
 ""'concealing dimness that has fallen like dust on so much 
 of ancient civilization everywhere, we may easily infer 
 that at least some things, which, at this distance, seem to 
 us like inaccuracies or contradictions, would change into 
 beautiful harmonies, provided we could only see the 
 facts and events just as the sacred writers saw them." 
 Says another, "It is enough to impress any mind w T ith 
 awe when it contemplates the sacred Scriptures, filled 
 
Theology fob the People. 23 
 
 with the highest truths, speaking with authority in the 
 name of God, and so miraculously free from the soiling 
 touch of human fingers. jSTo sane man would deny that 
 the Parthenon was built of marble, even if here and 
 there a speck of sandstone should be detected in its 
 structure." 
 
 2. The second great objection urged against the doc- 
 trine of "plenary inspiration" is that the Bible teaches 
 what is manifestly inconsistent with the facts of history 
 and science. Let it be borne in mind that the Word of 
 God was not designed to be a text-book on science. 
 What is science? It is the "human interpretation of 
 God's works." God is the author of his Word. That 
 there should be any conflict between a just interpretation 
 of God's works and a like interpretation of God's Word 
 is an absurdity. There is a vast difference between the 
 mere theories of science and the well-established facts of 
 science. There never has been, and never will be, any 
 conflict between science and revelation; the only conflict 
 is between scientists and divines. This conflict will con- 
 tinue so long as science remains in a state of incomplete- 
 ness. Science is like a feeble child attempting to learn 
 how to walk. When fully and steadily on her feet, with 
 her head above the fog, her utterances will be in accord 
 with revelation. Let us ponder the following : 
 
 "At the time of the meeting of the British Association 
 in 1865, some six hundred and seventeen scientific men 
 signed a paper containing the following declaration : 
 We conceive that it is impossible for the Word of God, 
 as written in the book of nature, and God's Word writ- 
 ten in holy Scripture, to contradict one another, however 
 much they may appear to differ. We are not forgetful 
 
24 Theology foe the People. 
 
 that physical science is not complete, but is only in a 
 condition of progress, and that at present our finite 
 reason enables us to see as through a glass darkly; and 
 we confidently believe that a time will come when the 
 two records will be seen to agree in every particular." 
 Whatever may be affirmed of these discrepancies and 
 seeming contradictions, we rejoice to know that, on thor- 
 ough and correct examination, the Bible is found "to 
 contain no error or blemish which impairs any doctrine, 
 or lessens our sense of any duty." 
 
 
CHAPTER III. 
 
 The Word of God the Only Rule of Faith and 
 Practice. 
 
 OUR Shorter Catechism teaches that "man's, chief 
 end is to glorify God, and to enjoy him forever," 
 and also, "The Word of God, which is contained in the 
 Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments, is the only 
 rule to direct us how we may glorify and enjoy him." 
 This position stands opposed to that of rationalism and 
 Roman Catholicism. Rationalism, as we have already 
 noted, is of two forms : The first ignores Scripture, and 
 asserts that reason is the source of knowledge ; the 
 second admits that the Bible contains divine revelations, 
 yet insists that nothing is to be believed which cannot be 
 comprehended, making reason the criterion of truth. It 
 is obvious that both forms virtually repudiate Scripture 
 as the only rule of faith and practice. Our position is 
 opposed to that of Roman Catholicism in the following 
 particulars : 
 
 1. As to the books that compose the canon of Scripture. 
 The Church of Rome, in the decision of the Council of 
 Trent, claims that the apocryphal books are of equal 
 authority with the Old and iSTew Testament. Our Con- 
 fession of Faith, Chap. I., Sec. 3, says, "The books 
 commonly called Apocrypha, not being of divine inspi- 
 ration, are no part of the canon of Scripture, and 
 therefore are of no authority in the church of God, nor 
 to be otherwise approved, or made use of, than other 
 human writings." 
 
26 Theology for the People. 
 
 2. As to the completeness of Scripture, see Confession 
 of Faith, Chap. L, Sec. 6, "The whole counsel of God, 
 concerning all things necessary for his own glory, man's 
 salvation, faith and life, is either expressly set down in 
 Scripture, or, by good and necessary consequence, may 
 be deduced from Scripture, unto which nothing at any 
 time is to be added, whether by new revelations of the 
 Spirit, or traditions of men." "Romanists, on the other 
 hand, hold that some doctrines, which all Christians are 
 bound to believe, are only imperfectly revealed in the 
 Scriptures ; that others are only obscurely intimated, 
 and that others are not therein contained at all," hence 
 Scripture must be supplemented by tradition. 
 
 3. As to the right of private judgment. We claim 
 that it is the right and duty of the people to search the 
 Scriptures, and judge for themselves what is taught 
 therein. Rome teaches that, owing to the obscurity of 
 the Scriptures, the people are incompetent to understand 
 them, and, consequently, are "bound to believe whatever 
 doctrines the church, through its official organs, declares 
 to be true and divine." 
 
 The Church of Rome has no shadow of divine 
 authority for exalting tradition to a plane of equality 
 with Scripture, and then constituting herself the sole 
 judge as to what the people shall believe and do. The 
 command, "Search the Scriptures," is addressed to the 
 people, and does not depend for its authority upon the 
 perverted teaching of the Romish Church. 
 
 If the question be asked, What books are entitled to a 
 place in the canon, or rule of faith and practice ? I 
 quote in answer: 
 
 "Romanists say, All those which the church has de- 
 
Theology for the People. 27 
 
 cided to be divine in their origin, and none others, are 
 to be thus received. Protestants say, So far as the Old 
 Testament is concerned, those books, and those only, 
 which Christ and his apostles recognized as the written 
 Word of God, are entitled to be regarded as canonical. 
 This recognition was afforded in a two-fold manner: 
 First, many of the books of the Old Testament are 
 quoted as the Word of God, as being given by the Spirit ; 
 or the Spirit is said to have uttered what is therein 
 recorded. Secondly, Christ and his apostles refer to 
 the sacred writings of the Jews, the volume which they 
 regarded as divine, as being what it claimed to be, the 
 Word of God. When we refer to the Bible as of divine 
 authority, we refer to it as a volume, and recognize all 
 the writings which it contains as given by the inspiration 
 of the Spirit. In like manner, when Christ and his 
 apostles quote the "scriptures," or the "law and the 
 prophets," and speak of the volume then so-called, they 
 give their sanction to the divine authority of all the 
 books which that volume contained. All, therefore, that 
 is necessary to determine for Christians the canon of 
 the Old Testament is to ascertain what books were in- 
 cluded in the "scriptures" recognized by the Jews of 
 that period. This is a point about which there is no 
 reasonable doubt. The Jewish canon of the Old Testa- 
 ment included all the books, and no others, which 
 Protestants now recognize as constituting the Old Testa- 
 ment Scriptures. On this ground Protestants reject the 
 so-called apocryphal books. They were not written in 
 Hebrew, and were not included in the canon of the Jews. 
 They were, therefore, not recognized by Christ as the 
 Word of God. This reason is of itself sufficient. It is, 
 
28 Theology for the People. 
 
 however, confirmed by considerations drawn from the 
 character of the books themselves. They abound in 
 errors, and in statements contrary to those found in the 
 undoubtedly canonical books. 
 
 The principle on which the canon of the Xew Testa- 
 ment is determined is equally simple. Those books, and 
 those only, which can be proved to have been written by 
 the apostles, or to have received their sanction, are to 
 be recognized as of divine authority. The reason of this 
 rule is obvious. The apostles were the duly authenti- 
 cated messengers of Christ, of whom he said, "He that 
 heareth you heareth me." 
 
 Says the Confession of Faith, "The infallible rule of 
 the interpretation of Scripture is the Scripture itself." 
 Also, "We acknowledge the inward illumination of the 
 Spirit of God to be necessary for the saving understand- 
 ing of such things as are revealed in the Word." 
 
 To the Word of God all questions of faith and conduct 
 must be referred. If not so referred in time, they will 
 be at the judgment bar of God. Such a reference in 
 life would undoubtedly annul many principles of secu- 
 lar business, and many customs of worldly society. 
 
CHAPTER IV. 
 
 God ix His Being, Xature, Attributes, Trinity. 
 
 THE word being here means that which has real 
 existence. The Bible frames no elaborate argu- 
 ment for the establishment of the 
 
 God's being. . 
 
 existence of God. It begins with the 
 assumption of his existence. Sublime, indeed, is the 
 declaration contained in Gen. i. 1, "In the beginning 
 God created the heaven and the earth." 
 
 If it be admitted that, "under normal conditions of 
 consciousness," the being of God is spontaneously recog- 
 nized by all men, why do we construct formal arguments 
 to prove that existence ? We answer : 1. They con- 
 tribute "confirmatory evidence that God is." 2. They 
 furnish "complementary evidence as to what God is" ; 
 or, to answer in the language of another, these argu- 
 ments "abundantly serve to vindicate our faith, and to 
 condemn the atheist." 
 
 Facts within us and facts around us point to the 
 existence of a personal God. The following is a brief 
 statement of these arguments : 
 
 This is sometimes called the a priori argument, i. e., 
 
 a "process of reasoning from yourself to your Creator." 
 
 i. The ontoiogicai This argument is "designed to show 
 
 argument. tnat the rea ] 0D j ect i ve existence of God 
 
 is involved in the very idea of such a being." As stated 
 by another, "We have in our minds ideas of infinity, of 
 perfection, of eternity. These, unless they are wholly 
 
30 Theology for the People. 
 
 delusive, which is inconceivable, must be predicable of 
 some being. The question is, Of what being? Xot of 
 the universe, because the universe is itself an effect ; not 
 of ourselves, because we are finite and imperfect. It 
 must be of God, the great First Cause. As the eye 
 implies light, as the socket implies a tendon, so our ideas 
 of infinity, perfection, and eternity, imply a Supreme 
 Being. ^ 
 
 These two arguments, cosmological and 4heological, 
 are sometimes called a posteriori arguments, i. e., argu- 
 2. Arguments based ments front effect to cause. We look 
 on the idea of cause. arounc i nSj anc [ { u everv direction we 
 
 behold evidences of wisdom, goodness and power. We 
 ask, Who is the author and origin of these? We see 
 effects ; we ask for the cause. What is an effect ? It is 
 "an event, or product, not due to anything in itself, but 
 produced by something outside of itself." What is a 
 cause ? It is "an antecedent to whose efficiency the 
 effect is due." Xow let us state the two arguments 
 based on the principle of cause. 
 
 It has been stated in the form of a syllogism, and is 
 as follows : "Every new existence or change in anything 
 
 (a) cosmological previously existing must have had a 
 argument cause preexisting and adequate. The 
 
 universe, as a whole and in all its parts, is a system of 
 changes. Hence the universe must have a cause exterior 
 to itself, and the ultimate or absolute cause must be 
 eternal, uncaused, and unchangeable." 
 
 This is sometimes called the argument from design. 
 Its syllogistic statement is as follows : '"The adjustment 
 
 (6) Teieoiogicai of parts and the adaptation of means 
 
 argument. ^ en( j can j^ eX pl a i nec [ on ly by refer- 
 
Theology for the People. 31 
 
 ence to a designing intelligence and will. The universe 
 is full of such adjustments of parts, and of organisms 
 composed of parts conspiring to effect an end. There- 
 fore, the First Cause of the universe must be a God of 
 intelligence and will." This is but another way of 
 saving that design implies a designer. "When we be- 
 hold a well-appointed ship on the sea, we conclude that 
 she has a pilot on board ; so, from the regular course of 
 the planets, we infer the Creator.' 1 While the argument 
 from design is "as old as Job and Socrates," it is usually 
 mentioned as Paley's argument, and is substantially as 
 follows : Suppose we were walking on the seashore, and 
 should find a watch in the sand. On careful examina- 
 tion, we discover that it was designed to be a measurer 
 of time. We note that the parts of the watch are deli- 
 cately and skilfully adjusted. Is the watch, as thus 
 constructed, a matter of chance ? Are we not forced to 
 ascribe it to a watch-maker, a person of intelligent 
 design ? 
 
 When we see in nature so many evidences of design, 
 must we not conclude that the universe is an effect which 
 must be traced to an intelligent cause ? Some things 
 that are old are better than many things that are new. 
 "Paley's watch is none the worse for wear." 
 
 "Conscience demands the existence of God. Con- 
 science appears in us as the organ of an authority not 
 3. Tue moral its own. Our moral cognitions are 
 
 argument. wno ny unintelligible upon any other 
 scheme than that of a personal God. There are three 
 aspects in which these cognitions warrant the immediate 
 inference of a just and righteous God: 
 
 "1. Considered as commands, they imply an author 
 who has a right to prescribe law. 
 
32 Theology for the People. 
 
 "2. Consider these commands as giving rise to a sense 
 of duty, and there emerges the idea of a judge to whom 
 we are responsible. Obligation and superior will are 
 correlative terms ; where there is no superior will, there 
 cannot be duty. 
 
 "3. Consider conscience as giving rise to the conviction 
 of good and ill desert, of rewards and punishments justly 
 and righteously distributed, and you have first a moral 
 government directly affirmed, and then the prospect of 
 perfect happiness to the righteous unconditionally held 
 out. This connection between happiness and virtue 
 must be a sheer delusion, unless he who promises is able 
 also to perform ; but he cannot be able to perform, 
 unless he possesses unlimited dominion over all beings, 
 states and conditions, unless he be an infinitely right- 
 eous and all-powerful Ruler." 
 
 Conscience, the organ of God's law, emphasizes the 
 distinction between right and wrong. The correlative 
 expressions, ought and ought not, right and wrong, sug- 
 gest the idea of God; apart from such suggestion, they 
 are meaningless. "Our moral nature speaks in the 
 imperative mood." 
 
 The conviction of the existence of God must be lodged 
 in the mind of every person capable of weighing the 
 4. The argument from following considerations : 
 
 scripture. (-q The B i me ; s composed of sixty- 
 
 six books, written by about forty different men; the 
 time of writing extending through a period of about 
 fifteen hundred years. How does atheism account for 
 the "consent of all the parts," the unity that is observ- 
 able in the sixty-six books — their wonderful harmony ? 
 
 (2) In the Bible we have a record not only of 
 
Theology foe the People. 33 
 
 prophecy, but also of the fulfilment of prophecy, a ful- 
 filment resulting hundreds of years after the utterance 
 of prophecy. What explanation can atheism give of this 
 fact ? i 
 
 (3) The Bible contains a history of the Jews. That 
 this history is authentic can be established beyond all 
 question. If God be eliminated from this history, what 
 would be left ? If God be taken out of this history, we 
 might as well expunge the whole record. 
 
 (4) Christ claimed to be God; wrought miracles in 
 corroboration of his claim; before his death based his 
 claim on his resurrection. The resurrection of Christ 
 is abundantly certified. Says another, "The super- 
 natural revelation disclosed in the Scriptures supple- 
 ments the light of nature, explains the mysteries of 
 providence, and furnishes us with the principles of a 
 true theodice." The word theodice here means a vindi- 
 cation of God's justice in regard to the natural and 
 moral evil that exists under his government. The 
 following beautiful little gem is justly entitled to a 
 permanent place in the casket of truth : "The obscurities 
 of providence are elucidated by Scripture ; the declara- 
 tions of Scripture are verified by providence." How 
 does atheism account for this fact ? 
 
 Let me state this argument in the language of an 
 
 esteemed, scholarly instructor, Dr. Patton, "We know 
 
 that we have the wrong key when it 
 
 5. Congruity. ° J 
 
 does not fit all the wards of the lock. 
 On the other hand, it is a strong argument for the truth 
 of a theory that it explains all the facts in the case. The 
 belief in a self-existent, personal God is in harmony 
 with all the facts of our mental and moral nature, as 
 
34 Theology for the People. 
 
 well as with all the phenomena of the material 
 world." 
 
 Our catechisms, as well as the Scriptures, tell us that 
 
 "God is a Spirit." In accepting this statement some 
 
 things are affirmed: others denied. 
 
 Nature of God. ° ' 
 
 We affirm that God is a "rational 
 being, who distinguishes, with infinite precision, between 
 the true and the false; that he is a moral being, who 
 distinguishes between the right and the wrong; that 
 he is a free agent, whose action is self-determined. We 
 deny that he is subject to any of the limiting conditions 
 of material existence ; we deny that he possesses bodily 
 parts or passions, or that he is composed of material 
 elements." Passages of Scripture which speak of God as 
 having eyes, hands, feet, etc., also as possessing the in- 
 firmities of human passion, are "to be understood only as 
 metaphors. They represent the truth with respect to God 
 only analogically, and as seen from our point of view." 
 By the term attributes we mean those permanent, or 
 essential, qualities of his nature which he has revealed 
 in his Word and works. God is not 
 
 Attributes of God. 
 
 only "a Spirit, infinite, eternal, and 
 unchangeable in his being," he is also infinite, eternal, 
 and unchangeable in his "wisdom, power, holiness, 
 justice, goodness, and truth." These are his attributes. 
 "His personality stands eternally behind each mani- 
 fested quality, and supports it." These attributes 
 cannot be separated from God's nature. 
 
 "We are conscious of self as a thinking substance, i. e., 
 we are conscious that self has identity, continuance, and 
 power. We are further conscious that self thinks, wills, 
 and feels. Intelligence, will, and sensibility are attri- 
 
Theology foe the People. 35 
 
 butes of self, and, consequently, of spirit. If you take 
 from spirit intelligence, will, and sensibility, it ceases 
 to be spirit. Substance and attributes are inseparable. 
 Matter without the essential properties of matter is a 
 contradiction. The perfections of God are attributes 
 without which he would cease to be God." 
 
 Infinity, what % When we say God is infinite in his 
 being, wisdom, power, etc., "we mean that his essence 
 (i. e., his being) and the attributes thereof have no 
 limitations which involve imperfections of any kind." 
 
 Immensity, what ? God's immensity is the phrase 
 used to express the fact that God is "infinite in his 
 relation to space, *. e., that the entire, indivisible essence 
 of God is at every moment of time cotemporaneously 
 present to every point of infinite space." 
 
 Omnipresence, what ? We must not confound im- 
 mensity with omnipresence. While "immensity char- 
 acterizes the relation of God to space, viewed abstractly 
 in itself, omnipresence characterizes the relation of God 
 to his creatures as they occupy their several positions in 
 space." 
 
 Eternity, what ? When we say God is eternal in his 
 being, wisdom, power, etc., we mean that his existence 
 has no beginning, and will have no end ; also that there 
 is no succession in the mind of God — "his thoughts, 
 emotions and purposes are without succession." 
 
 Immutability, what ? When we say God is un- 
 changeable in his being, wisdom, power, etc., we mean 
 that "he cannot be changed by anything from without; 
 himself, and that he will not change from any principle 
 within himself." 
 
 I was once the guest of a farmer, a man of deep 
 
36 Theology for the People. 
 
 consecration. . Shortly after entering his home, I found 
 that for some time his mind had been greatly disturbed 
 over the statement of a preacher, that God frequently 
 changes his purpose. Well, this is but a sad illustration 
 of the fact that some preachers are more adept in incul- 
 cating error than in expounding the Word of God. The 
 farmer expressed his gratification at having "the subject 
 cleared up." 
 
 Under the head of "God's Decrees" this subject will 
 receive further consideration. 
 
 God's wisdom, what ? It is the selection of proper 
 means for the accomplishment of proper ends. This, of 
 course, implies infinite knowledge. How can God select 
 the means if he does not know the means \ How can 
 God select proper means if he does not know their fitness 
 to accomplish proper ends ? God's omnipresence implies 
 his omniscience. If he is everywhere present, then all 
 things must be transacted in his presence. Says Heb. iv. 
 13, "All things are naked and opened unto the eyes of 
 him with whom we have to do." 
 
 Knowledge has been defined, the intellectual appre- 
 hension of truth, or the simple cognition of things. 
 Wisdom means more than this ; it is the selection and 
 subordination of right means to right ends. 
 
 God's power,, what ? His ability to do what he wills 
 to do. God can do Avhat he wills to do ; he cannot will 
 to do wrong: this is his omnipotence. 
 
 God's holiness, what \ Says another, "The holiness 
 of God is not to be conceived of as one attribute among 
 others; it is rather a general term representing the 
 conception of his consummate perfection and total glory. 
 It is his infinite moral perfection crowning his infinite 
 
Theology for the People. 37 
 
 intelligence and power. It represents his moral purity 
 and glorious majesty." 
 
 God's justice, what ? This may be considered under 
 two heads — 
 
 1. Absolute justice, i. e., the infinite righteousness of 
 his own being. 
 
 2. Relative justice, i. e., his "infinitely righteous 
 nature viewed as exercised in his relation to his moral 
 creatures." This, the latter, is founded on relations ; 
 therefore, it is never said in Scripture that we are 
 justified on the ground of Christ's holiness, but of his 
 righteousness. 
 
 God's goodness, what ? It is "God's infinite will to 
 dispense well-being in accordance with his other attri- 
 butes of wisdom, righteousness, etc., and on all orders of 
 his creatures according to their natures and rights." 
 
 The term goodness "includes benevolence, i. e., the 
 disposition to promote the happiness of sensitive crea- 
 tures; love, which itself includes complacency, desire, 
 and delight, and has rational beings for its objects ; 
 mercy, i. e., kindness exercised towards the miserable, 
 and includes pity, compassion, gentleness, forbearance ; 
 grace, i. e., love exercised towards the unworthy." 
 
 God's truth, what ? "The true is the real, as op- 
 posed to the fictitious or imaginary. The true is that 
 which is what it claims to be. The true is that which 
 can be depended upon ; which does not fail or change 
 or disappoint." God is true in all three senses. 
 
 God is true to himself, true in his communications 
 to us, true in all his relations to his creatures, true to 
 his promises, and true to his threatenings. Says an- 
 other, "If our confidence in God's truth were under- 
 
38 Theology for the People. 
 
 mined, the effect would be universally ruinous. jSTot 
 only would Scripture, with all its doctrines, promises, 
 threatening^, precepts, and predictions, become worth- 
 less, but the basis of all confidence in our own faculties 
 would be undermined ; and universal skepticism would 
 arrest all action. Man could neither believe his fellow- 
 man, nor his own experience, nor senses,, nor reason, nor 
 conscience, nor consciousness, if he could not believe his 
 God." 
 
 Before leaving the subject of God's attributes let us 
 briefly and reverently consider the great doctrine of 
 divine sovereignty. 
 
 God's sovereignty, what ? It is not, strictly speak- 
 ing, an attribute of God's nature, but a "prerogative 
 arising out of the perfections of the Supreme Being." 
 Since God is a Spirit, infinite, eternal, and unchangeable 
 in his being, wisdom, power, holiness, justice, goodness, 
 and truth, we can appreciate the declaration in Matt. xx. 
 15, "He worketh all things after the counsel of his own 
 will." His sovereignty is "his right to govern and 
 dispose of all his creatures according to his own good 
 pleasure." 
 
 Is God arbitrary in the exercise of his sovereignty ? 
 Never ! Were it not for the fact that this sovereignty is 
 always exercised in perfect harmony with God's attri- 
 butes of wisdom, holiness, justice, goodness, and truth, 
 Dan. iv. 35 would strike terror to every heart — "He 
 doeth according to his will in the army of heaven, and 
 among the inhabitants of the earth ; and none can stay 
 his hand, or say unto him, What doest thou ?" We love 
 to sing; — 
 
Theology foe the People. 39 
 
 "Sovereign Ruler of the skies, 
 Ever gracious, ever wise, 
 All my times are in thy hand, 
 All events at thy command.*' 
 
 The sum of this doctrine is contained in the following 
 
 statement found in the Confession of Faith, Chap. IL, 
 
 Sec. 3 : "In the unity of the Godhead 
 
 Trinity. 
 
 there be three persons of one substance, 
 power, and eternity : God the Father, God the Son, and 
 God the Holy Ghost." In the doctrine of the Trinity 
 (tri-unity) we do not teach that three persons are one 
 person ; this would be an absurdity. We do teach, 
 however, that one Being exists in three persons. God 
 is a tri-personal Spirit. The word substance here 
 means essence or being. The following is sufficient to 
 establish the doctrine of the Trinity : Father is God, Son 
 is God, Holy Ghost is God — not three Gods, but one; 
 Father says "I," Son says "I," Holy Ghost is repre- 
 sented as "he" — three distinct persons. This doctrine 
 is clearly taught in Eph. ii. 18, "For through him [i. e., 
 Christ] we both have access by one Spirit unto the 
 Father." Also in 2 Cor. xiii. 14, "The grace of th* 
 Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the com- 
 munion of the Holy Ghost, be with you all." See Matt, 
 xxviii. 19, "'Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, bap- 
 tizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, 
 and of the Holy Ghost." 
 
 In prayer we occasionally hear the Holy Ghost ad- 
 dressed as "it." The Holy Ghost is not a mere influence ; 
 he is a person, and should be addressed as such. 
 
 Our Confession of Faith further says, "'The Father 
 is of none, neither begotten nor proceeding; the Son 
 
40 Theology foe the People. 
 
 is eternally begotten of the Father; the Holy Ghost 
 eternally proceeding from the Father and the Son." 
 
 Since Christ is God, he is co-eternal with the Father. 
 If it be asked, "How can the Son be as old as the 
 Father ?" we answer that the terms "Father" and "Son" 
 have a deeper meaning than our finite minds can fathom. 
 There is a mutual relation between the two divine 
 persons expressed by the terms "Father" and "Son" ; 
 beyond this we cannot go. We accept the doctrine of 
 the Trinity, not because we understand it, but because 
 it is taught in God's Word. There is a vast difference 
 between knowing and understanding. We know a thing 
 when we apprehend it as true; we understand a thing 
 when we fully comprehend its nature. I know many 
 things which I do not understand, e. g., I know I have a 
 mind and body, and that the two are intimately related ; 
 but I do not understand how they are related. I know 
 the doctrine of the Trinity, but I do not understand the 
 doctrine. I fully believe the doctrine because it is 
 taught in God's Word. 
 
 Opposed to the scriptural doctrine of the Trinity 13 
 that of Sabellianism, the doctrine of a modal Trinity, 
 i. e., that the same Being manifests himself in different 
 relations at different times. "As Creator, he is Father ; 
 as Redeemer, he is Son; as Sanctifier, he is Holy 
 Ghost," just as the same man may be a farmer, lawyer 
 and school teacher. This doctrine denies that there are 
 three persons in the Godhead. 
 
 Those who ridicule our doctrine of the Trinity assume 
 that we teach that Father, Son, and Holy Ghost are 
 three persons, in the same sense that Wesley, Luther, 
 and Calvin are three individuals. We teach nothing 
 
Theology for the People. 41 
 
 of the kind. We insist on presenting the doctrine jnst 
 as it is taught in Scripture — 
 
 1. There is only one God. 
 
 2. Father is God, Son is God, Holy Ghost is God. 
 
 3. Father, Son, and Holy Ghost are three distinct 
 persons. 
 
CHAPTER V. 
 
 God in His Activities: Decrees, Creation, Provi- 
 dence, Redemption. 
 
 A 
 
 S we come to study God's eternal purpose and its 
 execution, there are two preliminary remarks 
 which are worthy of careful considera- 
 
 God's decrees. 
 
 tion 
 
 1. We should bear in mind that theology is not phil- 
 osophy. "It does not assume to discover truth. Its 
 province is simply to state what God has revealed in his 
 Word, and, as far as possible, to vindicate those state- 
 ments from misconceptions and objections." Shall we 
 seek to ascertain what the Bible teaches, and honestly 
 accept the truth, or shall we come to the consideration 
 of this important subject with preconceived notions, and 
 attempt to make Scripture bolster up these pet notions ? 
 
 2. In the investigation of this subject it is essential 
 that we start at the right point of view: God, a tri- 
 personal Spirit, Father, Son, and Holy Ghost, infinite, 
 eternal, and unchangeable in his being, wisdom, power, 
 holiness, justice, goodness, and truth; self -prompted, 
 before the twinkling of a star, before the creation of the 
 world, before man had been called into existence, did 
 decree whatsoever comes to pass. 
 
 Says our Shorter Catechism, "The decrees of God are 
 his eternal purpose, according to the counsel of his will, 
 whereby, for his own glory, he hath fore-ordained what- 
 soever comes to pass." We insist that God intended in 
 
Theology fok the People. 43 
 
 eternity what he actually does in time ; or, in other 
 words, what he does is in harmony with his eternal plan. 
 God is essentially active. After completing the work of 
 creation, he did not retire, and leave the universe to run 
 on without his presence and control, while he himself, as 
 in the Brahminic fable, "Sleeps in solitary grandeur 
 among the stars." God's plan embraces three things: 
 1. The selection of an end. 2. The choice of means. 
 3. The employment of means to accomplish the end. 
 
 The decree of God is his purpose with reference to 
 all things , while predestination is his purpose "concern- 
 ing the everlasting destiny of rational creatures." 
 
 Election is his "purpose to save eternally some men 
 and angels," or, as defined by another, "It is grace 
 traced to its source." 
 
 Let us now consider the properties of God's purpose. 
 
 1. Unity. By this we deny that a part of God's plan 
 was matured at one time ; another part at a later period. 
 It is one, indivisible, eternal purpose. This necessarily 
 follows from the nature and perfections of God. It is 
 observable that the Confession of Faith speaks of God's 
 decree, singular number, while the Catechisms employ 
 the plural form, God's decrees. The unity of the pur- 
 pose, however, is stated in the Catechisms, "The decrees 
 of God are his eternal purpose." 
 
 Because of human finiteness, and the additional "fact 
 that God's purpose embraces an indefinite number of 
 events, and a mutual relation between these events," we 
 conceive of God's purpose by breaking it up into parts. 
 Since God is what he is, his plan must be a unit. Our 
 knowledge is limited and successive ; God's is not. Our 
 comprehension of details is incomplete; God's is com- 
 
44 Theology foe the People. 
 
 plete. Then, too, this unity appears in the effectuation 
 of God's plan: "Cause is linked with effect, and what 
 was effect becomes cause; and influences of events on 
 events interlace with each other, and descend in widen- 
 ing streams to subsequent events ; so that the whole 
 complex result is inter-connected through every part. 
 As the plan is thus a unit in its effectuation, so it must 
 have been in its conception. Most of the errors that 
 have arisen in this doctrine have come from the mistake 
 of imputing to God that apprehension of his purpose in 
 successive parts, to which the limitations of our minds 
 confine us in conceiving of it." 
 
 2. God's purpose is eternal. See Eph. i. 4, "Ac- 
 cording as he hath chosen us in him before the founda- 
 tion of the world." It is objected that the purpose 
 cannot be eternal, for the reason that an agent must 
 exist before he can act. This objection derives all its 
 force from the assumption that the limitations of time 
 to which man is subject apply alike to God. To God 
 there is neither past nor future. God exists before his 
 decree, not in the order of time, but only in the order of 
 production. "The sun's rays are from the sun, but, 
 measuring by duration, there were rays as early as there 
 was a sun." 
 
 It has been further objected that the decree cannot 
 be eternal because of the fact that certain parts of the 
 decree are consequent on other parts. We answer that 
 the succession is in the events decreed, not in the decree 
 itself. The decree, which is a unit, provides for succes- 
 sion in the events, i. e., that one event shall follow 
 another — be consequent on another. Let it be borne in 
 mind that the only sequence is in the events decreed, not 
 
Theology for the People. 45 
 
 in the decree of the events. A sharp discrimination be- 
 tween the two will save us from hurtful error. If God's 
 existence is eternal ; if his knowledge is perfect ; if his 
 wisdom is perfect ; if his power is infinite, and if he is 
 the same yesterday, to-day and forever, the thoughtful 
 mind cannot escape the conclusion that his decree is 
 eternal. 
 
 3. Goi/s decree is immutable. If his purpose is a 
 unit and eternal, it must be unchangeable. We argue 
 the immutability of God's purpose from his nature and 
 attributes. Change necessarily implies imperfection. 
 All change must be either from better to worse, or from 
 worse to better ; perfection excludes both. We must not 
 suffer ourselves to be betrayed into the error of main- 
 taining that, since we frequently change our purpose. 
 God must do the same. We change because we are 
 finite, sinful creatures. Change in God must imply 
 that he is wiser,, more powerful, more just, more merci- 
 ful, more holy at one time than at another. 
 
 "That which never began, and can never end, to which 
 nothing can be added, and from which nothing can be 
 taken, which knows no succession, and is dependent 
 upon nothing without, is evidently incapable of change." 
 
 God's immutability is affirmed in scripture. "I am 
 the Lord, I change not" (Mai. iii. 6). "He is in one 
 mind, and none can turn him" (Job xxiii. 13). "The 
 Father of lights, with whom is no variableness, neither 
 shadow of turning" (James i. 17). "God is not a man 
 that he should lie ; neither the son of man that he should 
 repent ; hath he said and shall he not do it ? or hath he 
 spoken, and shall he not make it good?" (Num. xxiii. 
 19). "The counsel of the Lord standeth forever; the 
 
46 Theology for the People. 
 
 thoughts of his heart to all generations" (Ps. xxxiii. 11). 
 "There are many devices in a man's heart, nevertheless, 
 the counsel of the Lord, that shall stand" (Prov. xix. 
 21). "The Lord of hosts hath sworn, saying, Surely 
 as I have thought, so shall it come to pass ; and as I 
 have purposed, so shall it stand" (Is. xiv. 24). "I am 
 God, and there is none like me, declaring the end from 
 the beginning, and from ancient times, the things that 
 are not yet done, saying, My counsel shall stand, and I 
 will do all my pleasure" (Is. xlvi. 9, 10). 
 
 The following objections have been urged against 
 God's immutability : 
 
 (1) How is the creation of the world to be reconciled 
 with God's immutable purpose % Is there not a differ- 
 ence between "a will to create and a will creating ?" I 
 answer, No more than between a will to destroy Sodom 
 and Gomorrah, and a will actually destroying these 
 cities. God's purpose to create is eternal. This purpose 
 provided that the effect should take place in the proper 
 time and order. Had not this purpose to create been 
 executed at the appointed time, then there would have 
 been the change; and at that moment the throne of God 
 would have been hurled from its base. 
 
 (2) Does not the incarnation imply a change in God ? 
 No. The second person of the Trinity was simply 
 brought into a new relation. Had the incarnation not 
 occurred, there would have been a change in God. 
 
 (3) Is there not a change in God in his reconciliation 
 with sinners upon their repentance ? The change is not 
 in God, but in the sinner. "For God to change his 
 treatment as the sinner's character changes is just what 
 his immutability dictates." 
 
 
Theology for the People. 47 
 
 (4) Do not passages of Scripture which represent God 
 as grieving, repenting, etc., imply a change in God? 
 Certainly not. These passages are to be interpreted as 
 anthropomorphisms, i. e., "phrases employed to desig- 
 nate any view of God's nature which conceives of him 
 as possessing or exercising any attributes common to 
 him with mankind." Under this head we include the 
 passages of Scripture which represent God as having 
 eyes, hands, feet, etc. 
 
 The passages which speak of God as grieving and 
 repenting "express no change in God, but a change in 
 the events of his providence ; a change analogous to that 
 which would be produced in us under the influence of 
 these feelings." Grieving and repenting in us imply 
 change. In the language of another, "These passages 
 are to be understood as spoken in accommodation to our 
 narrow capacities, i. e., the visible procedure in the 
 divine dispensations is such, as when men repent and 
 change one course for another." Num. xxiii. 19 and 
 Mai. iii. 6 should forever settle this qiTestion. 
 
 (5) It is also objected that God's purpose of election 
 cannot be immutably efficacious, because we read in 
 Scripture of saints who are warned against forfeiting it ; 
 of others who felt a wholesome fear of forfeiting it. 
 ISTote 1 Cor. ix. 27. Paul knew that he must keep his 
 body under, hold it in subjection ; this keeping under 
 was a means decreed which would prevent his becoming 
 a castaway. God's decree includes means as well as end. 
 As Dr. Peck was wont to state it : A father stands at the 
 window, holds his little boy outside of the window, not 
 for the purpose of dropping his child, but to show the 
 little fellow the danger of venturing too near the win- 
 
48 Theology foe the People. 
 
 dow. The warnings of God's Word are designed to 
 exert a restraining influence over God's children; they 
 are employed as means to an end. 
 
 (For further consideration of this subject, see what 
 is said under the head of "Perseverance of the Saints.") 
 
 In the offering of Isaac, does not Gen. xxii. 12 imply 
 a change of God's purpose ? Certainly not. In spirit, 
 Abraham had complied with the injunction contained in 
 the second verse of the chapter. His obedience was as 
 real and full as if he had driven the knife into the heart 
 of his boy. Throughout this procedure Abraham was a 
 free agent, and his free agency was exercised in line 
 with God's immutable purpose. It was foreordained 
 that when the hand of the obedient father was raised 
 "to slay his son," just at that moment the voice of the 
 "angel of the Lord" should be heard, staying the execu- 
 tion. It was also foreordained that at this supreme 
 moment a "burnt offering" should be found as a substi- 
 tute for Isaac. Hence we are told that "Abraham lifted 
 up his eyes and looked, and behold behind him a ram 
 caught in a thicket by his horns; and Abraham went 
 and took the ram, and offered him up for a burnt 
 offering in the stead of his son." Was the presence of 
 that "thicket" a matter of chance ? Was the presence 
 of that ram "caught in the thicket by his horns" a 
 matter of chance ? Away with the thought ! That the 
 ram should be held a victim in that thicket awaiting the 
 hour of execution was foreordained just as certainly as 
 the fact that Jesus, our Substitute, was found in Geth- 
 semane when the mob came and led him away. 
 
 In 2 Kings xx. 1-11 we are told that through the 
 prophet Isaiah the Lord said to Hezekiah, "Set thine 
 
Theology for the People. 49 
 
 house in order ; for thou shalt die." In answer to Heze- 
 kiah's earnest prayer, his life was prolonged fifteen 
 years. Does not this imply a change in God's purpose ? 
 Most assuredly it does not. As before stated, God's 
 decree includes means as well as end. The prayer was a 
 means to the end accomplished. That prayer was as 
 certainly embraced in God's eternal purpose as was the 
 statement, "I will add unto thy days fifteen years." 
 
 From the immutability of God's purpose let us glean 
 two practical lessons — 
 
 1. This doctrine should serve as a constant warning tu 
 the wicked. 
 
 2. It should be a source of great encouragement to the 
 children of God. 
 
 "Swift to its close ebbs out life's little day; 
 Earth's joys grow dim, its glories fade away; 
 Change and decay in all around I see; 
 O thou, who changest not, abide with me!" 
 
 4. God's puepose is sovereign. It is determined bv 
 the counsel of his own will. While this sovereignty is 
 free, it is also wise and holy. It is not arbitrary, or 
 tyrannical. Says Eph. i. 11, "In whom also we have 
 obtained an inheritance, being predestinated according 
 to the purpose of him who worketh all things after the 
 counsel of his own will." See Rom. ix. 15, 18, "For - 
 he saith to Moses, I will have mercy on whom I will 
 have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I will 
 have compassion. Therefore hath he mercy on whom 
 he will have mercy, and whom he will he hardeneth." 
 
 This sovereign purpose is unconditioned. There 13 
 no conditionality in God's decree ; there is conditionality 
 in many events decreed. A failure to observe this dis- 
 
50 Theology for the People. 
 
 tinction has led to grievous error. Kote 2 Tim. i. 9, 
 "Who hath saved us, and called us with an holy calling, 
 not according to our works, but according to his own 
 purpose and grace, which was given us in Christ Jesus 
 before the world began." Could any statement be 
 plainer ? In the parable of the laborers in the vineyard 
 (Matt. xx. 1-16) the sovereignty of God is clearly 
 taught and illustrated. With this thought in mind, 
 read the entire passage, and note particularly verses 
 14 and 15, "I will give unto this last, even as unto thee. 
 7s it not lawful for me to do what I will with mine own? 
 
 5. God's purpose is all-comprehensive. It in- 
 cludes means as well as end. Has God decreed that the 
 farmer shall reap a harvest ? He has also decreed that 
 he sow the seed ;. if he fail to sow he will fail to reap. 
 Has God decreed that a soul be saved ? He has also 
 decreed that the soul comply with the condition of salva- 
 tion ; a failure to comply means eternal death. 
 
 In 2 Thess. ii. 13 we read, "But we are bound to give 
 thanks always to God for you, brethren beloved of the 
 Lord, because God hath from the beginning chosen you 
 to salvation through so/notification of the Spirit and be- 
 lief of the truth." Here means and end are included in 
 the decree. The same is true of Eph. ii. 10, "For we are 
 his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good 
 works, which God hath before ordained that we should 
 walk in them." 
 
 God's purpose embraces all creatures, and all their 
 actions ; "he hath foreordained whatsoever comes to 
 pass." 
 
 Says Acts xvii. 26, "And hath made of one blood all 
 nations of men for to dwell on all the face of the earth, 
 
Theology for the People. 51 
 
 and hath determined the times before appointed, and 
 the bounds of their habitation." In Eph. i. 11 we are 
 taught that God "worketh all things after the counsel of 
 his own will." The good actions of men are included 
 in God's decree. It is equally true that the decree 
 embraces the wicked actions of men. See Acts iv. 27, 
 28, "For of a truth against thy holy child Jesus, whom 
 thou hast anointed, both Herod and Pontius Pilate, 
 with the Gentiles, and the people of Israel, were gath- 
 ered together, for to do whatsoever thy hand and thy 
 counsel determined before to be done." Note carefully 
 what is said in Acts ii. 23, "Him \_i. e., Christ], being 
 delivered by the determinate counsel and foreknowledge 
 of God, ye have taken, and by wicked hands have cru- 
 cified and slain." 
 
 In 1 Peter ii. 8 we read, "And a stone of stumbling, 
 and a rock of offence, even to them which stumble at the 
 word, being disobedient : whereunto also they were ap- 
 pointed." 
 
 See Jude iv., "For there are certain men crept in 
 unawares, who were before of old ordained to this con- 
 demnation, ungodly men," etc. God's decree embraces 
 fortuitous events, i. e., "events which depend on causes 
 so subtle and so rapid in their operation as to elude our 
 observation," e. g., the falling of the lot. Says Prov. 
 xvi. 33, "The lot is cast into the lap; but the whole dis- 
 posing thereof is of the Lord." 
 
 6. God's purpose is efficacious, i. e., it renders 
 certain the occurrence of what he foreordains. The 
 word decree signifies "to determine the certainty of a 
 future event, by positive agency or permission." There 
 are some things which God effects through his own 
 
52 Theology fok the People. 
 
 immediate agency or power, e. g. } creation and inspira- 
 tion. There are also many events which God permits 
 to occur through the agency of his creatures, e. g., the sin 
 of our first parents and the crucifixion of Christ. If it 
 be objected that permission is not a decree, we answer, 
 "That which is determined to be permitted is decreed 
 when there is power to prevent it; because, when it is 
 known certainly that it will be done unless prevented, 
 and there is a determination not to prevent it, it is 
 rendered as certain as if it were decreed to be done by 
 positive agency." As expressed by another, "God effects 
 good ; he j>ermits evil." 
 
 7. The end contemplated in God's pukpose is his 
 own glory. Says Rev. iv. 11, "Thou art worthy, 
 O Lord, to receive glory and honor and power : for thou 
 hast created all things, and for thy pleasure they are and 
 were created." The heavens declare the glory of God ; 
 this is the purpose for which they were made. What- 
 ever God does, or permits to be done, is for the more 
 perfect revelation of his nature and attributes. 
 
 See Rom. ix. 22, 23, "What if God, willing to show 
 his wrath, and to make his power known, endured with 
 much long-suffering the vessels of wrath fitted to de- 
 struction ; and that he might make known the riches 
 of his glory on the vessels of mercy which he had afore 
 prepared unto glory ?" 
 
 Having noted the properties of God's decree, we are 
 better prepared to consider the great doctrine of pre- 
 destination. It is of the utmost 
 
 Predestination. 
 
 importance that we reach the right 
 point of view. We know that through long ages the 
 movements of the heavenly bodies presented to the 
 
Theology for the People. 53 
 
 human mind an '"'insoluble riddle." Why? Because 
 the earth was the point of view. When Copernicus 
 transferred the point of view to the sun, a scene of 
 indescribable grandeur and symmetry burst upon the 
 human mind. Let us try to look at this doctrine from 
 God's point of view. In the light of the cross of Christ, 
 the "horribleness" of the doctrine disappears. 
 
 God's foreknowledge is clearly taught in Scripture. 
 See Heb. iv. 13, "All things are naked and opened unto 
 the eyes of him with whom we have to do." God is 
 neither constitutionally nor voluntarily ignorant. Some 
 hold that there are certain things which God determines 
 not to know. Such a position is palpably absurd. How 
 •can an infinite God choose not to know certain things 
 without first knowing the very things of which he de- 
 termines to be ignorant ? Again, if he does not know 
 what he chooses not to know, how is it possible to regard 
 his choice of ignorance as wise or righteous? Now, 
 what is God's foreknowledge ? It is knowing the certain 
 futurition of all events, i. e., that all events are certainly 
 future. What is foreordination ? It is determining the 
 certain futurition of all events, either by positive 
 agency or by permission. Foreknowledge involves fore- 
 ordination ; in fact, is founded on foreordination. I do 
 not know that I am going to Xew York until I have 
 determined to go. I may think about going for days 
 and weeks, but not until I determine to go do I know 
 I am going. It is not difficult to show that foreknow- 
 ledge is equivalent to foreordination. Suppose, for a 
 moment, we drop foreordination out of view. Back in 
 the counsels of eternity, before the existence of a single 
 human being, God foresaw that if he created a man, 
 
54 Theology for the People. 
 
 endowed him "with free agency, placed him in certain 
 relations, that he would act in a certain way, and yet, in 
 the possession of this knowledge, proceeded to create the 
 man and put him in those very relations, would he not, 
 in so doing, predetermine the certain futurition of his 
 act ? If that act is certainly future, who made it cer- 
 tain ? Not the man, because his act was certainly future 
 before his own existence. God's purpose made it 
 certainly future. As before stated, predestination is 
 God's purpose concerning the destiny of rational crea- 
 tures. Touching this doctrine there are two opposing 
 systems of belief — Arminianism and Calvinism. 
 
 For the purpose of testing the scripturalness of these 
 systems, let us apply them to some concrete case ; take, 
 for instance, the conversion of Paul. 
 
 Arminianism teaches that Paul was dead in trespasses 
 and sins; but that God gave to Paul, as to all other 
 men, "sufficient grace" ; Paul cooperated with this 
 grace, and this cooperation rendered the grace effectual 
 in his case ; a failure to cooperate would have rendered 
 divine grace ineffectual. It also teaches that God 
 elected Paul to everlasting life on the ground of fore- 
 seen repentance and faith. Calvinism maintains that 
 Paul was dead in trespasses and sins, denies the doctrine 
 of "sufficient grace to all men," and insists that Paul's 
 election to everlasting life was founded, not on foreseen 
 faith and repentance, but on God's good pleasure. Faith 
 and repentance were God's gifts to Paul. Read Eph. ii. 
 8, Paul's own statement, "By grace are ye saved 
 through faith, and that not of yourselves : it is the gift 
 of God." Note, too, what Paul says in 2 Tim. ii. 25, 
 "If God peradventure will give them repentance to the 
 
Theology foe the People. 55 
 
 acknowledging of the truth." It is undeniable that, 
 since faith and repentance are God's gifts, man's possess- 
 ing them must result from God's act ; if from God's 
 act, it must be the result of a purpose to act ; if from a 
 purpose to act, that purpose must be eternal ; if eternal, 
 "faith and repentance cannot be the conditions upon 
 which that purpose is suspended." Paul himself teaches 
 us in 2 Tim. i. 9 that his election was founded on God's 
 good pleasure, and not on foreseen faith and repentance, 
 "Who hath saved us and called us with an holy calling, 
 not according to our works, but according to his own 
 purpose and grace, which was given us in Christ Jesus 
 before the world began." Would you hear Paul again '? 
 Eead Rom. ix. 11, 13, 16, 18, "For the children [Jacob 
 and Esau] being not yet born, neither having done any 
 good or evil, that the purpose of God according to elec- 
 tion might stand, not of works, but of him that calleth. 
 As it is written, Jacob have I loved, but Esau have I 
 hated. So then it is not of him that willeth, nor of him 
 that runneth, but of God that sheweth mercy. There- 
 fore hath he mercy on whom he will have mercy, and 
 whom he will be hardeneth." When it is affirmed that 
 God hardens, it means that he withholds the gracious 
 influences of his Spirit, and judicially abandons the 
 sinner to his own wicked course; under these circum- 
 stances sin does its hardening work. 
 
 It might be interesting to note the position of the 
 Episcopal Church on the subject of predestination. In 
 the "seventeenth article" we read, "Predestination to 
 life is the everlasting purpose of God, whereby (before 
 the foundations of the world were laid) he hath con- 
 stantly decreed by his counsel, secret to us, to deliver 
 
56 Theology foe the People. 
 
 from curse and damnation those whom he hath chosen 
 in Christ out of mankind, and to bring them by Christ 
 to everlasting salvation, as vessels made to honor, where- 
 fore, they which be endued with so excellent a benefit 
 of God, be called according to God's purpose by his 
 Spirit working in due season ; they through grace obey 
 the calling ; they be justified freely ; they be made sons 
 of God by adoption ; they be made like the image of 
 his only-begotten Son Jesus Christ; they walk relig- 
 iously in good works, and at length, by God's mercy, 
 they attain to everlasting felicity. As the godly con- 
 sideration of predestination, and our election in Christ, 
 is full of sweet, pleasant, and unspeakable comfort to 
 godly persons, and such as feel in themselves the work- 
 ing of the Spirit of Christ, mortifying the works of the 
 flesh, and their earthly members, and drawing up their 
 mind to high and heavenly things, as well because it 
 doth greatly establish and confirm their faith of eternal 
 salvation to be enjoyed through Christ, as because it 
 doth fervently kindle their love towards God ; so, for 
 curious and carnal persons, lacking the Spirit of Christ, 
 to have continually before their eyes the sentence of 
 God's predestination, is a most dangerous downfall, 
 whereby the devil doth thrust them either into despera- 
 tion, or into wretchedness of most unclean living, no 
 less perilous than desperation. Furthermore, we must 
 receive God's promises in such wise, as they be generally 
 set forth to us in holy Scripture, and, in our doings, that 
 will of God is to be followed, which we have expressly 
 declared unto us in the Word of God." 
 
 While the shafts of harsh criticism are hurled at the 
 Presbyterian citadel of truth, I ask, How would the 
 
Theology fok the People. 57 
 
 Episcopal doctrine on predestination serve as a target ? 
 I ask another question, When the great doctrine of pre- 
 destination is assailed, why is the Presbyterian Church 
 singled out for the assault ? The echo whispers, Why ? 
 
 Predestination includes election and reprobation. 
 Says our Catechism: 
 
 "All mankind, by their fall, lost communion with 
 God, are under his wrath and curse, and so made liable 
 to all miseries in this life, to death itself, and to the 
 pains of hell forever. 
 
 "God, having, out of his mere good pleasure, from all 
 eternity, elected some to everlasting life, did enter into 
 a covenant of grace, to deliver them out of the estate of 
 sin and misery, and to bring them into an estate of 
 salvation by a Redeemer." 
 
 Here we have a clear, scriptural statement of the 
 doctrine of election. Our Confession of Faith, Chap. 
 III., Sec. 7, says: 
 
 "The rest of mankind, God was pleased, according 
 to the unsearchable counsel of his own will, whereby he 
 extendeth or withholdeth mercy as he pleaseth, for the 
 glory of his sovereign power over his creatures, to pass 
 by, and to ordain them to dishonor and wrath for their 
 sin, to the praise of his glorious justice." 
 
 In this declaration we have an account of God's 
 dealing with that portion of the human race who are 
 not elected to everlasting life. It embraces preterition, 
 i. e.j the passing by of this class of beings, and reproba- 
 tion, i. e., the ordaining of this class to dishonor and 
 wrath, for their sins. Notice that God's dealing with 
 this class is not irrespective of character, but on account 
 of their sin. In this view of the subject, preterition 
 
58 Theology foe the People. 
 
 stands at the beginning, and reprobation at the closing 
 of God's dealing with that portion of the human race 
 who are not embraced in God's purpose of election. 
 
 In this quotation from our Confession of Faith wo 
 have a clear, scriptural statement of truth, which some 
 people regard as "horrible !" Let us compare it with 
 2 Thess. ii. 11, 12, and see which is more "horrible": 
 "And for this cause God shall send them strong delu- 
 sion, that they should believe a lie ; that they all might 
 be damned who believe not the truth, but had pleasure 
 in unrighteousness." Take two men, A and B. We 
 are represented as teaching that if A is saved, it is be- 
 cause of God's good pleasure ; and if B is lost, it is 
 because God damns him. Here is what we teach : If A 
 is saved, it is because of God's good pleasure; if B is 
 lost, it is because he is a sinner. Is our position more 
 "horrible" than the truth stated in Rom. ix. 21-23, 
 "Hath not the potter power over the clay, of the same 
 lump to make one vessel unto honor and another unto 
 dishonor i What if God, willing to show his wrath, 
 and to make his power known, endured with much long- 
 suffering the vessels of wrath fitted to destruction ; and 
 that he might make known the riches of his glory on the 
 vessels of mercy, which he had afore prepared unto 
 glory ?" 
 
 Xote very carefully that the power of the potter is 
 over the clay of the same lump. 
 
 We are now ready to consider briefly a number of 
 objections urged against this so-called "horrible doc- 
 trine." 
 
 1. That it makes God the author of sin. We deny tho 
 charge. Says our Confession of Faith, Chap. III., Sec. 
 
Theology foe the People. 59 
 
 1, "God, from all eternity, did, by the most wise and 
 holy counsel of his own will, freely and unchangeably 
 ordain whatsoever comes to pass; yet so as thereby 
 neither is God the author of sin, nor is violence offered 
 to the will of the creatures, nor is the liberty or contin- 
 gency of second causes taken away, but rather estab- 
 lished." 
 
 God denies the charge. See James i. 13, "Let no 
 man say, when he is tempted, I am tempted of God ; 
 for God cannot be tempted with evil, neither tempteth 
 he any man." The presence of sin in the world is a 
 mystery which presses as strongly against Arminianism 
 as against Calvinism. We show, from the nature of 
 sin, that God cannot be its author. What is sin ? It is 
 "any want of conformity unto, or transgression of, the 
 law of God." We show, from God's nature, that he is 
 not the author of sin; he not only forbids sin, but 
 punishes it. God permits sin, but is not its author. 
 Says 1 John ii. 16, "All that is in the world, the lust 
 of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of 
 life, is not of the Father (i. e., as its source or author), 
 but is of the world." If God were the author of sin, it 
 would be an act of the grossest injustice to hold man 
 accountable for sin. 
 
 God's being the author of a plan does not make him 
 the author of the sin that enters into his plan. We deny 
 that an agent is responsible for all the certain conse- 
 quences of his acts. Says another, "A righteous judge, 
 in pronouncing sentence on a criminal, may be sure that 
 he will cause wicked and bitter feelings in the criminal's 
 mind, or in the hearts of his friends, and yet the judge 
 be guiltless. A father, in excluding a reprobate son 
 
60 Theology for the People. 
 
 from his family, may see that the inevitable consequence 
 of such exclusion will be his greater wickedness, and 
 yet the father may do right." 
 
 I have seen this point illustrated somewhat as follows : 
 As a minister of the gospel, I plan to do evangelistic 
 work in a certain wicked community. As soon as I 
 make known my plan, I receive a letter from saloon- 
 keepers, warning me against the execution of my plan ; 
 that if I attempt it, they will burn the church building, 
 and not only persecute me, but also any who assist me 
 in my mission work. It is my duty to preach the gospel 
 in that godless community. Am I to be held responsible 
 for the lawlessness of the saloon-keepers ? Certainly 
 not. These examples are sufficient to show that an agent 
 is not necessarily responsible for all the certain conse- 
 quences of his act. 
 
 While the Bible teaches that God creates and sustains 
 man as a being capable of putting forth sinful volitions, 
 it is equally clear that he never creates in man such 
 volitions. God permits sin, but does not approve it. 
 He wisely overrules it for his own glory. Says another, 
 "It was only through the admission of sin as an antece- 
 dent that the world could have known Christ, or tasted 
 the peculiar bliss of salvation through him." 
 
 2. That it makes God partial and unjust. What is 
 partiality ? "It is preferring one before another with- 
 out sufficient reasons, or overlooking just claims. It is 
 a capricious and unreasonable preference of one to an- 
 other." We admit that "God distinguishes, but deny 
 that he is 'partial." If, in his choice, God were in- 
 fluenced by birth, talent, fortune, social position, educa- 
 tion, or worldly distinctions of any kind, then the 
 
Theology foe the People. 61 
 
 objection would carry with it some force. The Bible 
 teaches that not many wise, not many mighty, not many 
 noble are called. If men were satisfied with God'& 
 providence, they would be satisfied with God's decree; 
 for providence is the execution of God's decrees. When 
 those who virtually impugn God's character by charging 
 him with partiality have satisfactorily answered the 
 following questions, it will be time enough to urge their 
 objections : Why did God pass by the fallen angels, and 
 provide a Saviour for fallen man ? Why did he send the 
 gospel to us, and not to the heathen ? Why is one person 
 brought up in a Christian home, while another is left 
 to the degrading, corrupting, destructive influences of 
 profligate parents ? Why does one person die in infancy 
 and go home to heaven, while another member of the 
 same family reaches old age, and is weighed down with 
 a load of shame and guilt ? 
 
 If God be unjust, then sinners are treated worse than 
 they deserve. Would the men who deliberately refused 
 to accept the invitation to the supper (Luke xiv. 15-24) 
 have beeii treated worse than they deserved if they had 
 been let alone? Certainly not. If God has not a right 
 to withhold his grace, then the sinner has a right to 
 exact it. This would make salvation a matter of debt, 
 not of grace ; it would subvert the whole gospel plan, 
 and close the door of heaven to every soul. 
 
 There were cavilers in Paul's day. See Rom. ix. 14, 
 "What shall we say then ? Is there unrighteousness 
 with God? God forbid." Here is his argument: God 
 claims the right to extend or withhold his grace. "For 
 he saith to Moses, I will have mercy on whom I will 
 have mercy, and will have compassion on whom I will 
 
62 Theology fob the People. 
 
 have compassion." Furthermore, God exercises this 
 right in his providence. "For the Scripture saith unto 
 Pharaoh, Even for this same purpose have I raised thee 
 up, that I might shew my power in thee, and that my 
 name might be declared throughout all the earth. There- 
 fore hath he mercy on whom he will have mercy, and 
 whom he will he hardeneth." Can there be the slightest 
 injustice in allowing the righteous sentence of a just law 
 to be executed upon an offender % If God saves all men, 
 the doctrine of election is false. If God saves only a 
 portion of the human race, the doctrine of election is 
 true; but let it ever be borne in mind that election has 
 absolutely nothing to do with the damnation of a single 
 sinner. Take away the doctrine of election, and it will 
 not affect, in the least, the condition of those who perish. 
 We all sinned in Adam, and fell with him in his first 
 transgression; we all were justly condemned. God's 
 purpose to save some leaves others just where they were. 
 The Judge of all the earth will do right. Let frail, 
 finite man be very guarded, lest he misrepresent God's 
 teaching and God's character. 
 
 3. That this doctrine discourages the use of means. 
 Those who urge this objection should not lose sight of 
 the fact that God's decree includes means as well as 
 end, and consequently, furnishes the strongest incentive 
 to the use of means. The question has been asked, 
 "Does not predestination make it necessary that some 
 of the human race be lost, while others must be saved ?" 
 We answer, No. It renders it certain, but not necessary, 
 that some be saved and others lost. There is no neces- 
 sity imposed upon the sinner to cause him to reject the 
 Saviour. Predestination leaves free agency unimpaired. 
 
Theology for the People. 63 
 
 Certainty and liberty are not incompatible. God's chil- 
 dren in heaven are free, and it is certain that they will 
 remain in a state of holiness. God is free, and it is 
 certain that he will always be just and holy. 
 
 The only thing that keeps a sinner in his wretched, 
 mined condition is his own stubborn, rebellious will. 
 Jesus sums it up in the following terse statement, "Ye 
 will not come to me that ye might have life." This 
 doctrine is not discouraging to the sinner ; in fact, it is 
 his only hope. Take it away, and it would be like 
 removing the heart from the human body, or the sun 
 from the solar system. In the absence of this doctrine, 
 what shadow of encouragement is afforded the sinner 
 to lift up his heart in prayer ? What is prayer ? It is 
 the means by which the fulfilment of God's promises is 
 secured. Prayer and the answer to prayer are included 
 in God's purpose; the decree ties them together. 
 Neither is this doctrine discouraging to Christians in 
 their work for the Master. When amid dangers and 
 discouragements Paul was laboring in Corinth, the 
 Lord appeared to him one night, and preached him a 
 sermon on the doctrine of predestination. See Acts 
 xviii. 9, 10, "Then spake the Lord to Paul in the night 
 by a vision, Be not afraid, but speak, and hold not thy 
 peace ; for I am with thee, and no man shall set on 
 thee to hurt thee; for I have much people in this city/' 
 As Paul continued his arduous labors in that wicked 
 city, what a source of inspiration and encouragement it 
 must have been to him to know that through his efforts 
 many would be brought into the fold of the tender 
 Shepherd ! In John vi. 37 we read, "All that the 
 Father giveth me shall come to me ; and him that cometh 
 
64 Theology fok the People. 
 
 to me I will in no wise cast out." In this passage three 
 things are clearlv taught : 
 
 (1) God's gracious purpose in giving his Son a peo- 
 ple : "All that the Father giveth me." 
 
 (2) The absolute certainty of their coming: "All that 
 the Father giveth me shall come to me." 
 
 (3) Great encouragement to come: "Him that cometh 
 to me I will in no wise cast out." 
 
 4. That f oreordination is inconsistent with free agency. 
 Foreordination is God's determining the certain futuri- 
 tion of events, either by positive agency, or by permis- 
 sion. A free agent is a rational being who acts as he 
 wills to act. We do not attempt to reconcile divine 
 sovereignty and free agency. As God sees them they 
 are in perfect harmony. We do not pursue the course 
 indicated by an objector, who said, in substance, "When 
 I read my Bible, I find that it teaches free agency; it 
 is equally clear that it teaches foreordination ; but since 
 the human mind is incapable of harmonizing the two 
 doctrines, I discard both." 
 
 What an exhibition of folly ! 
 
 Providence is the execution of God's decree; or, to 
 state it differently, it is foreordination in its process of 
 manifestation and development. We should be pro- 
 foundly grateful to God that, in his providential dealing, 
 he so clearly and beautifully illustrates this important 
 doctrine. It is God's way of saying to the honest truth- 
 seeker, If you cannot grasp this precious doctrine in the 
 abstract, let me show you the doctrine in action; see its 
 glorious out-working in the sphere of providence. 
 
 The teacher at the blackboard may make very clear a 
 problem in mental arithmetic which to the child-mind. 
 
Theology fob the People. 65 
 
 had previously appeared insoluble. The doctrine of 
 foreordination and free agency is taught in Acts ii. 23, 
 "Him, i. e., Jesus, being delivered by the determinate 
 counsel and foreknowledge of God, ye have taken, and 
 by wicked hands have crucified and slain." As free 
 agents, the Jews are charged with this atrocious crime, 
 and are told that in this crime they were executing God's 
 decree. The same is taught in Acts iv. 27, 28, "For of 
 a truth, against thy holy child Jesus, whom thou hast 
 anointed, both Herod, and Pontius Pilate, with the Gen- 
 tiles, and the people of Israel, were gathered together,, 
 for to do whatsoever thy hand and thy counsel deter- 
 mined before to be done," or, as rendered in the Revised 
 Version, "foreordained to be done." Herod, Pilate, the 
 Gentiles, and the people of Israel, were all free agents, 
 and, as such, were executing God's purpose. Now turn 
 to 1 Sam. ix. 10, "Then said Saul to his servant, Well 
 said ; come, let us go. So they went up to the city 
 where the man of God was." They went as free agents- 
 Read verses 15, 16, "Kow the Lord had told Samuel in 
 his ear a day before Saul came, saying, To-morrow about 
 this time I will send thee a man out of the land of Ben- 
 jamin, and thou shalt anoint him to be captain over 
 my people Israel." In Saul's going to the city he was 
 unconsciously executing God's purpose ; and it is obvious 
 that this purpose did not impinge upon Saul's freedom. 
 When the gardener proceeds to irrigate his garden he 
 directs the water here, and not there; yet the water 
 flows in harmony with its own laws. 
 
 There is a sense in which the compass on the ship 
 directs the ship, and at the same time is borne on by 
 the ship. 
 
66 Theology for the People. 
 
 Let us now consider with care the history of Joseph 
 as illustrative of foreordination in its relation to free 
 agency. We shall start with the declaration in Gen. 
 xy. 13, 14, "And he said unto Abram, Know of a surety 
 that thy seed shall be a stranger in a land that is not 
 theirs, and shall serve them ; and they shall afflict them 
 four hundred years ; and also that nation, whom they 
 shall serve, will I judge; and afterward shall they 
 come out with great substance." Egypt is the "land" 
 referred to in this passage. A period of about two 
 hundred years intervened between this announcement 
 to Abraham and the date at which Jacob's family went 
 down into Egypt. This announcement was also made 
 about one hundred and seventy years before the birth 
 of Joseph. In order to the fulfilment of this purpose, 
 Joseph must be born, and must work his way into favor 
 with the king of Egypt. As a free agent, Jacob showed 
 partiality to Joseph. This caused Joseph to incur the 
 hatred of his brethren, all of whom were free agents. 
 Later on, Jacob sent Joseph to Shechem to inquire after 
 his brethren. They had gone to Dothan. Why had 
 they left Shechem ? The Ishmaelites might not have 
 passed through Shechem ; at any rate, God's purpose 
 was not to be defeated. Joseph followed on, and found 
 his brethren in Dothan. When they saw him coming 
 they held a conference, and decided to kill him. Why 
 did they not slay him ? An unseen hand was directing 
 affairs. Joseph must go down into Egypt. Joseph was 
 then cast into a pit. Instead of sitting down "to eat 
 bread," why did not his brethren at once leave the pit, 
 get away from the scene of their cruelty ? Had they 
 done so, they might have missed the Ishmaelites, who 
 
Theology fob, the People. 67 
 
 were soon to appear as free agents in fulfilling God's 
 purpose. Instead of going to Egypt, why were not the 
 Ishmaelites returning from Egypt ? As free agents, they 
 bouglit Joseph and took him to Egypt. Did Joseph go 
 as a free agent? Certainly. The loss of free agency 
 would have terminated his moral accountability. Under 
 different circumstances, i. e., had he been liberated by 
 the Ishmaelites, he, no doubt, would have returned to 
 his father's home ; but, under existing circumstances, 
 he preferred to go to Egypt rather than commit suicide. 
 After reaching Egypt, Joseph was sold again. Why 
 was Potiphar, another free agent, the purchaser? This 
 brought Joseph into Potiphar' s home, and rendered pos- 
 sible the shameful conduct of Potiphar's wife. She, 
 too, was a free agent. Her wicked conduct led to 
 Joseph's imprisonment. Why must Joseph go to jail ? 
 How else could he be brought into association with the 
 king's butler and baker, who were soon to be incar- 
 cerated ? Why was Joseph imprisoned first ? In order 
 that he might have time to win ''favor in the sight of 
 the keej:>er of the prison," and thus render possible the 
 statement in Gen. xl. 4, "And the captain of the guard 
 charged Joseph with them, and he served them." In 
 consequence of this oversight, we can appreciate what is 
 said in verse 6, "And Joseph came into them in the 
 morning, and looked upon them, and behold, they were 
 sad." His presence there that morning would have been 
 an impossibility had he been chained in some dark dun- 
 geon. Who gave Joseph "favor in the sight of the keeper 
 of the prison"? Gen. xxxix. 21 answers the question; 
 it was the Lord. Link by link the chain of providence 
 
68 Theology for the People. 
 
 is lengthening; important events are approaching a 
 glorious culmination. 
 
 Joseph interpreted the dreams of the king's butler 
 and baker. The baker forfeited his life. Why was not 
 the butler executed? Had he been executed, how could 
 the king of Egypt have been informed that Joseph was 
 an interpreter of dreams ? 
 
 The king had two dreams ; and at the instance of his 
 butler, sent for Joseph. His faithful interpretation of 
 the dreams won the favor of the king. Quick promotion 
 ensued. 
 
 The work of garnering, supplies for the approaching 
 famine was diligently prosecuted. Why did the famine 
 extend to Canaan ? God's purpose in Gen. xv. 13, 11 
 must be fulfilled. Jacob sent ten of his sons "to buy 
 corn in Egypt." After a time Joseph made himself 
 known to his brethren. Later on he sent for his father 
 and family, and they all journeyed to Egypt. As they 
 did so, they might have borne aloft a banner upon whose 
 graceful folds were inscribed in golden characters — 
 
 FoREORDINATION AND F.KEE AGENCY. 
 
 Listen to Joseph's own statement (Gen. 1. 20), "But 
 as for you [brethren], ye thought evil against me; but 
 God meant it unto good, to bring to pass as it is this 
 day, to save much people alive." Now, note Gen. xlv. 
 4, 8, "And he said, I am Joseph your brother, whom 
 ye solo into Egypt. So now it was not you that sent 
 me hither, but God.'"' 
 
 This is Presbyterian doctrine. This is the eternal 
 repudiation of fatalism, with which the Presbyterian 
 Church has been falsely charged. 
 
 Says Chap. IV. of the Confession of Faith, "It 
 
Theology for the People. 69 
 
 pleased God the Father, Son and Holy Ghost, for the 
 manifestation of the glory of his eter- 
 
 Creation. . 
 
 nal power, wisdom, and goodness, in 
 the beginning, to create, or make of nothing, the world, 
 and all things therein, whether visible or invisible, in 
 the space of six days, and all very good. After God had 
 made all other creatures, he created man, male and 
 female, with reasonable and immortal souls, endued with 
 knowledge, righteousness, and true holiness, after his 
 own image, having the law of God written in their 
 hearts, and power to fulfil it; and yet under a possi- 
 bility of transgressing, being left to the liberty of their 
 own will, which was subject unto change. Beside this 
 law written in their hearts, they received a command not 
 to eat of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil; 
 which, while they kept, they were happy in their com- 
 munion with God, and had dominion over the crea- 
 tures." 
 
 In this declaration is found the great Gibraltar of 
 truth against which the waves of theory, of speculation, 
 of guess-work, have been beating for centuries. A care- 
 ful examination of this quotation discloses its clearness, 
 its comprehensiveness, and its scripturalness. It em- 
 phasizes — 
 
 1. The fact of creation. This stands opposed to 
 the theory of the eternal existence of matter; the ema- 
 nation of the world from God ; the pantheistic notion 
 that the world is the existence-form of God ; evolution, 
 and spontaneous development. God is the Creator. 
 
 2. The method of creation. "It pleased God" to 
 ereate all things. "When we meditate on what is im- 
 plied in the idea of such pleasure, pervading the divine 
 
70 Theology for the People. 
 
 mind, flowing as a vast river through the divine heart, 
 and expressing itself in the sublime edict, which at a 
 word called into existence a universe such as this, with 
 all the vast and enduring interests involved in such an 
 exercise of the divine volition, we begin to apprehend, 
 in some feeble degree, the joyous love, the immeasurable 
 happiness, the moral felicity in the breast of Deity out 
 of which the universe sprang." 
 
 The catechisms teach us that God created the world, 
 and all things therein, "by the word of his power." 
 What a word! "The onmific voice of a personal, con- 
 scious, sovereign God." What a power ! How beautiful 
 and appropriate are the following lines from Thomp- 
 son's pen : 
 
 "With what an awful world-revolving power 
 Were first the unwieldly planets launched along 
 The illimitable void! thus to remain 
 Amid the flux of many thousand years, 
 That oft has swept the toiling race of men 
 And all their labour'd monuments away, 
 Firm, unremitting, matchless, in their course." 
 
 We are told that God created "of nothing" the world 
 and its contents. This excludes the conception of the 
 eternal existence of matter. 
 
 It is also asserted that it pleased God "in the begin- 
 ning" to create, etc. 
 
 Reference here is to "that beginning which is antece- 
 dent to all organized existence outside of God, and even 
 to all matter, though it were as minute or ethereal as the 
 fabled dust of the stars ; that beginning in which God 
 personally commenced this work of creation." 
 
 The Confession further states that this creation was 
 
Theology for the People. 71 
 
 "in the space of six days." According to the commonly 
 accepted chronology, our globe has existed but a few 
 thousand years. According to geologists, the globe must 
 have existed for a much longer period, even for countless 
 ages. 
 
 In the attempt to reconcile the assumed facts of 
 geology with the Mosaic account of creation, two 
 methods have been adopted — 
 
 (1) To regard the word day in the first chapters of 
 Genesis, not as a period of twenty-four hours, but in 
 the sense of an age, a long, indefinite period of time. 
 In favor of this assumption it is urged that the word 
 day in scripture frequently means a long period of 
 time, e. g., Ps. xcv. 8 says, "As in the day of temptation 
 in the wilderness ;" that here the word day means a 
 period of forty years. "Understood in this sense, 
 Moses' days of creation correspond to the eras of 
 geology." 
 
 (2) Another attempt at reconciliation is to under- 
 stand Gen. i. 1 to refer to the original creation of the 
 matter of the universe in the indefinite past. "In the 
 beginning God created the heaven and the earth." Xow r 
 came the chaotic period mentioned in the following 
 statement (Gen. i. 2), "And the earth was without 
 form, and void ; and darkness was upon the face of the 
 deep." It is further claimed "that when God begins 
 the subsequent setting in order of the earth, whioh is 
 to fit it for the inhabitation of man, Moses resumes the 
 narrative in the words of Gen. i. 2." We now have 
 what is termed the second creation, which means "God's 
 preparation of the earth as a dwelling place for man." 
 This second creation covers the period embraced in the 
 
72 Theology fok the People. 
 
 "six days," and gives an account of the progress of 
 creation : "the production of light ; the formation of an 
 atmosphere; the separation of land and water; the 
 vegetable productions of the earth ; the animals of the 
 sea and air ; then the living creatures of the earth ; and, 
 last of all, man." To the objection that what is em- 
 braced in this second period, is not in the strict sense 
 of the term, a creation, the following answer is given: 
 "In Gen. i. 27 it is said that God created man, male and 
 female; in chapter ii. 7 it is said, 'The Lord God 
 formed man of the dust of the ground.' It thus ap- 
 pears that forming out of preexisting material comes 
 within the scriptural idea of creating." 
 
 3. The extent of creation : "The world, and all 
 things therein, whether visible or invisible." At some 
 date previous to the creation of man, God created the 
 angels. 
 
 Question 15 of the Larger Catechism says: "God 
 created all the angels, spirits, immortal, holy, excelling 
 in knowledge; to execute his commandments, and to 
 praise his name, yet subject to change." We infer from 
 the Scriptures that God entered into a covenant with 
 the angels, upon condition of personal and perfect obedi- 
 ence. The "elect angels" complied with the condition, 
 and have been confirmed in holiness and happiness. 
 
 Those now termed "evil angels" failed to comply with 
 the condition, and were banished from the favorable 
 presence of God. These wicked angels hate God ; and, 
 with the most malicious and persistent effort, are seek- 
 ing to misrepresent his character, obstruct the progress 
 of his kingdom, and destroy immortal souls. In their 
 fiendish work they are under three limitations : 
 
Theology foe the People. 73 
 
 (1) Their operations are with the divine permission 
 and under the divine control. Note Satan's dealing with 
 Job, in the first and second chapters of Job; also, the 
 request of the evil spirits to enter the swine. (Mark 
 v. 12, 13.) 
 
 (2) They must work in harmony with natural laws. 
 
 (3) They are powerless to destroy free agency. They 
 do allure, entice, tempt in sundry ways; but cannot 
 interfere with free agency. 
 
 Before leaving this subject it might be interesting 
 to observe that the election of angels differs from that 
 of men in two respects : 
 
 (1) Man was chosen as depraved; angels as inno- 
 cent. 
 
 (2) Man was chosen in a Mediator; angels were not 
 ■so elected. 
 
 In answer to the seventeenth question of the Larger 
 •Catechism, we find the following: "After God had 
 made all other creatures, he created man, male and 
 female ; formed the body of the man of the dust of 
 the ground, and the woman of the rib of the man ; 
 endued them with living, reasonable, and immortal 
 souls; made them after his own image in knowledge, 
 righteousness and holiness, having the law of God writ- 
 ten in their hearts, and power to fulfil it, with dominion 
 over the creatures ; yet subject to fall." 
 
 Was man created an infant, or with powers matured ? 
 We hold to the latter and for the following reasons : 
 
 (1) Adam's gift of language, "in its most difficult 
 and complicated relations," is incompatible with the 
 theory that he was created an infant. 
 
 (2) An infant mind in an infant body, or an infant 
 
74 Theology foe the People. 
 
 mind in a matured body, would demand a perpetual 
 miracle in order to the preservation of life. 
 
 (3) All the evidence is in favor of the belief that 
 Eve was created in the maturity of her powers. Adam 
 at once recognized her as a suitable companion. 
 
 (4) The injunction contained in Gen. i. 28, "And 
 God blessed them, and God said unto them, Be fruitful 
 and multiply, and replenish the earth, and subdue it: 
 and have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the 
 fowl of the air, and over every living thing that moveth 
 upon the earth." These words were not addressed to 
 infants. 
 
 We are also taught that man was created in the image 
 of God. In what did this likeness to God consist ? We 
 answer : 
 
 (1) In the "constitution of man's nature." He was 
 created a free, rational, moral, personal spirit. This 
 phase of the likeness was not lost in the fall of man ; 
 in fact, it is indestructible. 
 
 (2) In the "perfection and integrity of man's nature." 
 This includes knowledge, righteousness, and holiness. 
 This is the likeness to God which was lost by the fall, 
 and to which we are restored in regeneration. 
 
 (3) In the "dignity and authority delegated to man" 
 in Gen. i. 28 — dominion over the creatures. 
 
 When it is affirmed that Adam and Eve had the "law 
 of God written in their hearts," it means : 
 
 (1) That they had a clear perception of duty. 
 
 (2) A deep sense of obligation to perform duty. 
 The Confession says: "Beside this law written in 
 
 their hearts they received a command not to eat of the 
 tree of good and evil." This was a special test of obedi- 
 
Theology for the People. 75 
 
 ence to which God was pleased to subject our first 
 parents. They were endued with power to keep God's 
 law ; and yet, "under a possibility of transgressing, 
 being left to the liberty of their own will, w T hich was 
 subject unto change." 
 
 4. The quality of creation. This is stated in Gen. 
 i. 31, "And God saw everything that he had made, and, 
 behold, it was very good." All of these created objects 
 were "very good," both with reference to their respective 
 kinds, and God's design in their creation. As we to-day 
 look out over the material universe, we behold the rav- 
 ages of sin. How marred the picture ! "The agitations, 
 convulsions, apparent disasters that are sometimes seen 
 in it ; the pains and sorrows it inflicts on man ; the 
 tragic bereavements it sometimes strews in his path, 
 are explicable only in the light of the moral nature, and 
 position of man himself, viewed as a creature under 
 discipline. In other words, it is in the character of man 
 as sinful, and in the exigencies of a moral administra- 
 tion over man, and in the character of God as a moral 
 Sovereign and Judge, that such facts in the material 
 universe must find their explanation. It is a profound 
 doctrine of Paul, worthy of remembrance here, that the 
 whole creation groaneth and travaileth together in pain 
 through its relationship to human sin, and is waiting 
 for its participation in that deliverance from sin, which 
 man is yet to enjoy." 
 
 Says Eccles. vii. 29, "God hath made man upright ; 
 but they have sought out many inventions." 
 
 5. God's design in creation. It was "for the mani- 
 festation of the glory of his eternal power, wisdom, and 
 goodness." Says another, "The manifestation of his 
 
76 Theology for the People. 
 
 own glory is intrinsically the highest and worthiest end 
 that God could propose to himself. The highest attain- 
 ment of this supreme end carries with it the largest 
 possible measure of good to the creature." What is 
 glory ? It is manifested excellence. The excellence of 
 God's attributes of power, wisdom, and goodness is 
 manifested by, or through, their exercise. Let it be 
 borne in mind that in God's creative, providential, and 
 gracious dispensations, the end in view is the glory of 
 God. 
 
 Before leaving the subject of creation, I desire to 
 sound a note of warning to young men who, in our 
 secular institutions of learning, may imbibe the theories 
 of evolution. Recently a young man in one of our 
 Southern universities received instruction in the doc- 
 trine of evolution. He returned to his home, called for 
 his church letter, and put it in the fire. Says Dawson, 
 "The border-land between science and religion is one 
 which men cannot be prevented from entering; but 
 what they may find there depends very much on them- 
 selves. Under wise guidance, it may prove to us an 
 Eden, the very gate of heaven, and we may acquire in it 
 larger and more harmonious views of both the seen and 
 the unseen of science and religion. But, on the other 
 hand, it may be found to be a battle-field or a bedlam, a 
 place of confused cries, and incoherent ravings, and 
 strewn with the wrecks of human hopes and aspira- 
 tions." 
 
 The following from the pen of Huxley is worthy of 
 careful consideration : "Men of science, like young colts 
 in a fresh pasture, are apt to be exhilarated on being 
 turned into a new field of inquiry, and to go off at a 
 
Theology fob the People. 77 
 
 gallop, in total disregard of hedges and ditches, losing 
 sight of the real limitation of their inquiries, and to 
 forget the extreme imperfection of what is known." 
 Shall the young men of the day reject the scriptural 
 doctrine of man's creation, while such noted "naturalists 
 as Virchow of Germany, Wallace of England, and Dana 
 of our own country, unite with De Quatrefages and 
 Dawson in rejecting the hypothesis of evolution as ap- 
 plied to man ?" 
 
 The word providence occurs only once in scripture, 
 
 Acts xxiv. 2 ; and even in this passage the reference is 
 
 not to God's providence. The doctrine 
 
 Providence. m 
 
 of providence, however, is taught 
 throughout the Bible. The word providence, literally, 
 means foresight. Its doctrinal meaning is succinctly 
 stated in the Shorter Catechism: "God's works of 
 providence are his most holy, wise and powerful, pre- 
 serving and governing all his creatures and all their 
 actions." It is here taught that providence includes 
 1 wo departments: 1. Preservation. 2. Government. It 
 is also affirmed that preservation and government are 
 "most holy, wise and powerful/' 
 
 God executes his decrees in the works of creation 
 and providence. "God's foreordination gives us his plan. 
 Creation gives the absolute commencement of things in 
 time. Providence embraces two departments : 1. Preser- 
 vation of all things as created. 2. Government of all 
 things thus preserved, so that all the ends for which 
 they were created are infallibly accomplished." As 
 stnted in the Confession of Faith, Chap. V., "God, the 
 great Creator of all things, doth uphold, direct, dispose 
 and govern all creatures, actions and things, from the 
 
78 
 
 Theology for the People. 
 
 greatest even to the least, by his most wise and holy 
 providence, according to his infallible foreknowledge, 
 and the free and immutable counsel of his own will, to 
 the praise of the glory of his wisdom, power, justice, 
 goodness and mercy." 
 
 As we study this important subject, we note five topics 
 which are worthy of careful consideration: 
 
 1. The fact of providence. Says Heb. i. 3, "Who, 
 being the brightness of his glory, and the express image 
 of his person, and upholding all things by the word of 
 his power." See Ps. ciii. 19, "The Lord hath prepared 
 his throne in the heavens ; and his kingdom ruleih over 
 ail." Gen. xlv. 7, "And God sent me before you, to 
 preserve you a posterity in the earth, and to save your 
 lives by a great deliverance." Dan. iv. 35, "And he 
 doeth according to his will in the army of heaven, and 
 among the inhabitants of the earth ; and none can stay 
 his hand, or say unto him, What doest thou?" Col. 
 i. 17, "By him all things consist." This scriptural doc- 
 trine stands opposed to the following mischievous 
 theories : 
 
 (1) That of the Epicurean, which maintains that 
 there is intelligent deity; but that it is wholly incon- 
 sistent with his majesty to concern himself about the 
 affairs of this world. This theory fails to recognize the 
 fact that God is infinite in his perfections. 
 
 (2) Socinian view: That the relation which God sus- 
 tains to the world is like that which a clock-maker sus- 
 tains to a clock; he makes his clock, winds it up, and 
 then retires, leaving it to the operation of general laws 
 with which he originally endowed it. 
 
 (3) Pantheistic view: There is no providential rela- 
 
Theology foe the People. 79 
 
 tionship, because of the actual identity of God and the 
 universe; God is all, and all is God. 
 
 (4) Theory of continued creation, or perpetual recrea- 
 tion: "That creatures, or second causes, have no real 
 continuous existence ; but are reproduced or recreated 
 every successive moment out of nothing." This theory 
 would subvert God's moral government and render the 
 judgment day an impossibility. If this view were cor- 
 lect, we could never hang a man for murder. He would 
 deny his existence the moment before the commission 
 of the alleged murder; he would deny his identity. 
 This theory makes God the only agent in the universe. 
 What is preservation as taught in scripture? Says 
 another: "It is that continued exercise of the divine 
 energy whereby the Creator upholds all his creatures 
 in being, and in the possession of all those inherent 
 properties and qualities with which he endowed them 
 at their creation, and of those also which they may 
 subsequently have acquired by habit or development." 
 
 In governing all his creatures and all their actions, 
 God "never violates the law of their several natures." 
 He so governs that his purpose is consistently and infal- 
 libly executed. 
 
 2. The method of providence. Says the Confes- 
 sion, "Although, in the relation to the foreknowledge 
 and decree of God, the first cause, all things come to 
 pass immutably and infallibly, yet, by the same provi- 
 dence, he ordereth them to fall out according to the 
 nature of second causes, either necessarily, freely or 
 contingently. God, in his ordinary providence, maketh 
 use of means, yet is free to work without, above and 
 against them, at his pleasure." The Confession clearly 
 
80 Theology for the People. 
 
 teaches that God, the great First Cause, orders all things 
 to fall out according to the nature of second causes ; or, 
 in other words, "God ordinarily ordereth all things to 
 fall out according to the nature, and through the activity 
 of what are generieally called second causes. These 
 causes are instituted by him, receive their causal capac- 
 ity from him, work under limitations which he has 
 imposed, towards ends and issues which, in some deep 
 sense, he has chosen and predetermined." 
 
 The divine activity is described as working in and 
 through three classes of secondary agencies or causes — 
 
 (1) Those which fall out "necessarily" e. g., the laws 
 or agencies of nature. These laws operate under neces- 
 sity, i. e., they are destitute of intelligence and volition ; 
 they are alike incapable of choosing, or even knowing, 
 the results to be wrought out through their agency. By 
 the phrase, laws of nature, we mean "that known and 
 settled order of the divine agency, in which God imme- 
 diately operates, or exerts his power, on the material 
 world'." 
 
 (2) Those which fall out "freely." Here we pass 
 from the realm of natural law into that of humanity. 
 In this latter sphere things do not fall out necessarily, 
 but freely, i. e., "according to the constitution of the 
 human will viewed as a second cause." Man is a free 
 agent, and God will suffer no violence to be done to this 
 free agency. The human will is a second cause, which 
 works freely in "the region of moral life and action." 
 
 (3) Those which fall out "contingently." "The con- 
 ception of second causes working contingently is doubt- 
 less brought in to provide for an explanation of the 
 introduction and permission of sin. While nothing can 
 
Theology for the People. 81 
 
 be viewed as accidental in the divine administration; 
 while even sin is said to be on the one side permitted by 
 God, but on the other side powerfully hounded and held 
 in check by him, yet the Confession and Catechisms 
 carefully deny that God either is or can be the author 
 or approver of sin; the incoming of that dire calamity 
 being in a sense contingent in his scheme — contingent,, 
 but not fortuitous or irresistible in his sight. It is said,, 
 with justice, that there is no contingent event or issue* 
 with God ; yet in his Word he often seems to make events- 
 turn on specified contingencies. God, in his sovereignty,, 
 seems to stand aside and suffer the human will, as a 
 second cause, to work out results which he can never 
 approve, and for whose production he will hold man's, 
 will to a strict accountability." 
 
 The Confession also teaches that, while God ordi- 
 narily employs means in the sphere of providence, that 
 he is not confined to their use; but is "free to work 
 without, above and against them, at his pleasure." 
 
 This introduces us into the realm of miracles. What 
 is a miracle? Says Dr. Hodge, "It is an event in the 
 external world brought about by the immediate effi- 
 ciency, or simple volition, of God." Says Dr. Peck, "It 
 is a work done by God directly, immediately, palpable 
 to the senses." The uniformity of the laws of nature 
 will continue only so long as God wills it. When God 
 said to the winds, "Be still," the physical causes which 
 produced the storm were arrested. When Lazarus was 
 called from the grave, the chemical forces which were 
 working the dissolution of his body ceased to operate. 
 In 2 Kings vi. 5, 6 we are told that an axe was made 
 
 to swim. In causing the axe to swim God put into 
 6 
 
82 Theology for the People. 
 
 exercise a force which counteracted the law of gravita- 
 tion. Had one of the sons of the prophet put his hand 
 down in the water and lifted the axe out, the law of 
 gravitation would have been counteracted by muscular 
 force. When a man lifts a weight the law of gravitation 
 is not suspended ; it is counteracted by a stronger force. 
 Says another, "Laws of nature are the particular modes 
 in which the Deity exerts his power, which, being 
 uniform, are accounted natural ; while any deviation 
 from them is pronounced to be miraculous." 
 
 3. The extent of providence. It embraces all 
 God's creatures and all their actions. It extends to the 
 whole material universe. The fowls of the air, the beasts 
 of the field, the fish of the sea, are objects of God's 
 care. Says Ps. civ. 21, "The young lions roar after 
 their prey, and seek their meat from God." Matt. vi. 
 26 says, "Behold the fowls of the air: for they sow 
 not, neither do they reap, nor gather into barns; yet 
 your heavenly Father feedeth them." 
 
 God's providential government extends over nations. 
 Note Ps. lxvi. 7, "He ruleth by his power forever ; his 
 eyes behold the nations ; let not the rebellious exalt 
 Themselves." 
 
 The providence of God extends over individuals. We 
 read in Prov. xvi. 9, "A man's heart deviseth his way: 
 but the Lord directeth his steps." 
 
 What is the relation of God's providence to the sinful 
 acts of men ? The Bible teaches that such acts occur 
 by God's permission and in the execution of his eternal 
 purpose. In 1 Chron. x. 4 we are told that Saul slew 
 himself; in 1 Chron. x. 14 it is affirmed that the Lord 
 slew him. 
 
Theology for the People. 83 
 
 The Bible also teaches that God restrains the wicked- 
 ness of men. See Ps. lxxvi. 10, "Surely the wrath of 
 man shall praise thee: the remainder of wrath shalt 
 thou restrain." 
 
 God overrules the wicked actions of men for good. 
 This is strikingly illustrated in the treatment of Joseph 
 by his brethren, and also in the crucifixion of Christ. 
 
 The Bible, furthermore, teaches that the sinfulness 
 of wicked actions proceeds from the creature; that God 
 is not the author of sin. 
 
 Theologians teach that God's providence is both gen- 
 eral and special. Let it be borne in mind, however, 
 that the distinction between a general and special provi- 
 dence "has reference to the effects produced, and not to 
 God's agency in their production ; for this is the same 
 in all cases." Says another: "A general and a special 
 providence cannot be two different modes of divine 
 operation. A general providence is special because it 
 secures general results by the control of every event, 
 great and small, leading to that result. A special provi- 
 dence is general because it specially controls all indi- 
 vidual beings and actions in the universe. All events 
 are so related together as a concatenated system of causes 
 and effects and conditions, that a general providence 
 that is not at the same time special is as inconceivable 
 as a whole which has no parts, or a chain which has no 
 links." 
 
 We are not living in a world of chance. In Matt. 
 x. 29, 30, we read: "Are not two sparrows sold for 
 a farthing? and one of them shall not fall on the ground 
 without your Father. But the very hairs of your head 
 are all numbered." 
 
84 Theology for the People. 
 
 4. The quality of providence. The Catechism says 
 it is "most holy, wise and powerful." God's providence 
 must be exercised in perfect harmony with his own per- 
 fections. Says 2 Tim. ii. 13, "God cannot deny him- 
 self." While this fact should be a warning to the im- 
 penitent, it is a source of great comfort to the Christian. 
 Rom. viii. 28 says, "And we know that all things work 
 together for good to them that love God, to them who are 
 the called according to his purpose." When the shadows 
 of affliction gather over the Christian's heart and home, 
 he should not forget to thank God for a providence that 
 is "most holy, wise, and 'powerful." "Men grumble be- 
 cause God puts thorns on roses. Would it not be better 
 to thank God that he puts roses on thorns ?" 
 
 5. The design of providence. The Confession 
 states the design as follows : "To the praise of the glory 
 of his wisdom, power, justice, goodness and truth." 
 What is stated under the head of God's design in creation 
 is applicable here. 
 
 So far, we have considered God's activities with refer- 
 ence to his decrees, creation and providence. We have 
 now reached the great subject of redemption. As this 
 subject can be more appropriately and logically consid- 
 ered in subsequent chapters, we shall, for the present, 
 defer its consideration. 
 
CHAPTER VI. 
 
 Man : Origin, ^Nature, Free Will, Probation, Cove- 
 nant of Works, Fall, Sin, Imputation, Original 
 Sin, Inability, Total Depravity. 
 
 T 
 
 HE Confession of Faith, Chap. IV. Sec. 2, says, 
 "God created man, male and female, with reason- 
 able and immortal souls, endued with 
 
 Origin. 
 
 knowledge, righteousness, and true 
 holiness, after his own image, having the law of God 
 written in their hearts, and power to fulfill it ; and yet 
 under a possibility of transgressing, being left to the 
 liberty of their own will, which was subject unto change. 
 Beside this law written in their hearts, they received a 
 command not to eat of the tree of the knowledge of 
 good and evil ; which while they kept they were happy 
 in their communion with God, and had dominion over 
 the creatures." What is affirmed above deals a death- 
 blow to the theory that man has been evolved from a 
 lower order of creatures. Man claims a higher ancestry 
 than that of an ape. We should gladly accept the facts 
 of science; such facts must be in harmony with Scrip- 
 ture. A great deal that is spoken and written on the 
 doctrine of evolution is not science ; it is only a phil- 
 osophy. "Science is different from philosophy. Science 
 is applied to facts ; philosophy has to do with causes." 
 
 The Bible teaches that Adam was formed of the dust 
 of the ground. Says Gen. ii. 22, "And the rib which the 
 Lord God had taken from man, made he a woman, and 
 
86 Theology for the People. 
 
 brought her unto the man." The reader will observe 
 that Adam and Eve were formed out of preexisting 
 material. This subject has already been considered 
 under the head of "'Creation." Gen. ii. 7 says, "And 
 the Lord God formed man of the dust of the ground, 
 and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life ; and 
 man became a living soul." "Does this mean that God 
 breathed into man a part of his own Spirit, and that the 
 human soul, proceeding from God immediately, is a 
 part or particle of God ?" Certainly not. It is simply 
 God's way of stating that a created soul was brought into 
 union with a created body. 
 
 When Adam and Eve came into being, they "had no 
 history, had no inheritance, had no yesterday." They 
 were created in the maturity of their powers. 
 
 Man was created in the image of God; the law of 
 God was written in his heart. Note what is said on this 
 point under the head of "Creation." 
 
 Man was created in the image of God in knowledge, 
 i. e., "spiritual perception of God's beauty, excellence 
 and glory. Adam, as endowed with this knowledge, 
 looked abroad upon the creation, and saw what science, 
 with all its discoveries, so often fails to discern — the 
 traces of divine glory. He saw God in all above, be- 
 neath, around. Nature was a vast mirror, reflecting the 
 divine beauty, and, as he saw, he loved and adored. 
 God to him was everywhere present ; the whole universe 
 was full of his name. It was written upon the starry 
 vault, the extended plain, the lofty mountains, the 
 boundless sea. He knew God with a spiritual discern- 
 ment as a Being to be loved, feared, trusted, worshipped. 
 This spiritual discernment was accompanied with 
 
Theology for the People. 87 
 
 righteousness or rectitude of disposition, i. e., a state 
 of soul in conformity with the divine law. This spirit- 
 ual discernment and rectitude of disposition manifested 
 his holiness. Man was created an upright creature, with 
 reason enlightened in the spiritual knowledge of God, 
 with a will prone to obey the dictates of reason thus 
 enlightened, and, therefore, in accordance with the spirit 
 of the divine law." 
 
 The Scriptures teach that man is composed of but two 
 
 constituents, soul and body. The terms employed in 
 
 Luke x. 27 are simply an exhaustive 
 
 Nature of man. m 
 
 enumeration of the whole man. First 
 Thessalonians v. 23 gives a periphrasis of a man in his 
 entirety. By periphrasis is meant the use of several 
 words to express the meaning of one. Man is endowed 
 with reason, with which to distinguish between the true 
 and the false ; with conscience, with which to distin- 
 guish between the right and the wrong. He was also 
 endowed with free agency. After mentioning the fact 
 that Adam and Eve had the law of God written in their 
 hearts, the Confession states that they had power to 
 fulfil that law; and yet were "under a possibility of 
 transgressing, being left to the liberty of their own will, 
 which was subject unto change." Man's volition, i. e., 
 willing, choosing, is determined by his desires and affec- 
 tions ; these desires and affections are as the permanent 
 disposition or character of the man. 
 
 Chapter X. of the Confession is a wonderful treatise 
 
 on this subject : "God hath endued the will of man with 
 
 that natural libertv, that it is neither 
 
 Free-will. ^ 7 
 
 forced, nor, by any absolute necessity 
 of nature, determined, to good or evil. Man, in his state 
 
88 Theology fok the People. 
 
 of innocency, had freedom and power to will and to do 
 that which is good and well-pleasing to God ; but yet 
 mutably, so that he might fall from it. Man, by his 
 fall into a state of sin, hath wholly lost all ability of will 
 to any spiritual good accompanying salvation; so, as a 
 natural man, being altogether averse from that good, 
 and dead in sin, is not able, by his own strength, to 
 convert himself, or to prepare himself thereunto. When 
 God converts a sinner, and translates him into the state 
 of grace, he f reeth him from his natural bondage under 
 sin, and, by his grace alone, enables him freely to will 
 and to do that which is spiritually good ; yet so as that, 
 by reason of his remaining corruption, he doth not 
 perfectly, nor only, will that which is good, but doth also 
 will that which is evil. The will of man is made per- 
 fectly and immutably free to good alone, in the state 
 of glory only." 
 
 What we teach is not the self-determining power of 
 the will, but the self-determining power of the man in 
 willing. There is a vast difference between the two. 
 Says another, "It is self-originated, self-elected action, 
 with the illumination of reason and conscience, that 
 makes free will." 
 
 The word probation means a test, a trial. When God 
 
 created man, he placed him under an unmodified moral 
 
 government, i. e., a government not 
 
 Probation. ■,.« 
 
 modified by a covenant. Had man 
 been left in this relation, he might have lived for mil- 
 lions of years, and been lost at last because of a single 
 violation of law. 
 
 Beside the law written in his heart, he received a 
 command not to eat of the tree of the knowledge of good 
 
Theology for the People. 89 
 
 and evil. This prohibition was simply "an outward and 
 visible test to determine whether Adam was willing to 
 obey God in all things." 
 
 Says our Catechism: "When God had created man, 
 he entered into a covenant of life with him, upon con- 
 dition of perfect obedience ; forbidding 
 
 Covenant of life. 
 
 him to eat of the tree of knowledge 
 of good and evil, upon pain of death." A covenant is 
 a stipulation or agreement between two or more parties. 
 This "covenant of life" is also called the "covenant of 
 works," because perfect obedience was its condition. 
 In this covenant we have a statement of : 
 
 1. The parties to the covenant, God and Adam. Adam 
 acted, however, as the head and representative of his 
 whole race. 
 
 2. The promise annexed to the covenant was life. 
 This means more than eternal existence; it means an 
 eternal state of holiness and happiness. 
 
 Had Adam complied with the condition of the cove- 
 nant the mutability of his will would have been removed, 
 and instead of remaining "under the law as a servant, 
 he would have been adopted as a son." In addition to 
 this, his posterity would have been holy, not by natural 
 generation, but because of the covenant. 
 
 "The natural tie determines only who are represented ; 
 the federal tie actually causes them to be represented." 
 
 3. The condition of the covenant was perfect obedi- 
 ence. 
 
 4. The penalty of the covenant was death. It is a 
 grievous mistake to restrict the meaning of the word 
 ■death to the mere dissolution of the body. When the 
 Scriptures use the word death in reference to the con- 
 
90 Theology for the People. 
 
 sequences of violating God's law, it includes all penal 
 evil, i. e., punishment inflicted because of transgression. 
 
 In Gen. ii. 9 we are told of two trees in the midst 
 of the garden : "the tree of life" and "the tree of know- 
 ledge of good and evil." What do these represent \ 
 
 The "tree of life" was a sacramental sign and seal of 
 the promise of life ; yet no one had a right to eat of the 
 tree of life until the condition of the covenant had been 
 fulfilled. Says another : "It was the seal of the cove- 
 nant of works, because it was the outward sign and seal 
 of that life which was promised in the covenant, and 
 from which man was excluded on account of sin, and 
 to which he is restored through the second Adam 
 (Christ) in the paradise regained." What is meant by 
 the "tree of knowledge of good and evil" ? Says Dr. 
 Hodge : "It seems plain, from the whole narrative, that 
 the tree of knowledge was a tree the fruit of which 
 imparted knowledge. Not, indeed, from any inherent 
 virtue, it may be, in the tree itself; but from the ap- 
 pointment of God." Was this the design of the 
 tree? 
 
 Says Dr. Thornwell : "The tree was simply the instru- 
 ment of trying the human will ; and if, instead of the 
 knowledge of good and evil, you call it the tree of the 
 choice of good and evil, you will have what I take to be 
 the precise import of the inspired appellation." 
 
 Says Dr. Peck : "The language of the tree is this : 
 what God commands is good; what he forbids is evil; 
 this is the reason why it is called the tree of the know- 
 ledge of good and evil." In my judgment, the experi- 
 mental knowledge imparted through the eating of the 
 fruit was the effect, but not the design, of the name given 
 
Theology fok the People. 91 
 
 to the tree. As expressed by another: "The tree stood 
 in the midst of the garden, that Adam might often see 
 it, and that the sight of it might constantly lead him to 
 say, 'There is the tree which teaches me that it is good 
 to obey, and evil to disobey.' It seems to have been 
 intended to teach good and evil, without the painful 
 experience of losing the one and incurring the other." 
 
 Had man been left under an unmodified moral gov- 
 ernment, justification and imputation would have been 
 impossible. "The limitation of probation as to time, 
 and the limitation of probation as to persons, have intro- 
 duced two principles which pervade every dispensation 
 of religion to our race, — the principle of justification 
 and the principle of imputation." This fact is worthy 
 of most careful consideration. Had Adam been left 
 under an unmodified moral government, he would have 
 remained a servant; adoption would have been an im- 
 possibility. Had he complied with the condition of the 
 "covenant of works," he and his posterity would have 
 become sons. Since he failed to comply, sonship becomes 
 a possibility under the "covenant of grace" only. 
 
 Says the Shorter Catechism : "Our first parents, being 
 
 left to the freedom of their own will, fell from the 
 
 estate wherein they were created, bv 
 
 Fall. J ' J 
 
 sinning against God." They ate "the 
 forbidden fruit." "The covenant, being made with 
 Adam, not only for himself, but for his posterity, all 
 mankind, descending from him by ordinary generation, 
 sinned in him, and fell with him in his first trans- 
 gression." 
 
 "The fall brought mankind into an estate of sin and 
 misery." 
 
92 Theology for the People. 
 
 What is sin ? Says the Catechism : "Sin is any want 
 of conformity unto, or transgression of, the law of God." 
 "It is not oelng, or not doing what God 
 requires." "The sinfulness of that 
 estate whereinto man fell, consists in the guilt of Adam's 
 first sin, the want of original righteousness, and the cor- 
 ruption of his whole nature, which is commonly called 
 original sin; together with all actual transgressions 
 which proceed from it." 
 
 In Gen. iii. 1-6 we are told of the temptation of our 
 first parents. "The serpent is neither a figurative 
 designation of Satan ; nor did Satan assume the form 
 of a serpent." Satan was the tempter; but he used a 
 real serpent as his instrument, or agent. In this tragedy 
 the actors appear in the following order: Serpent, Eve, 
 Adam. In dealing with these actors, God observes the 
 same order. 
 
 The law of God cannot be violated with impunity. 
 In law there are two elements : 
 
 1. Precept — Something commanded to be done, or 
 something prohibited. 
 
 2. Penalty — Suffering exacted of the law-breaker, 
 or evil judicially inflicted in satisfaction of justice. 
 Adam failed to render obedience to the precept, and 
 incurred the penalty of God's law. When Adam failed 
 we failed ; he stood as our representative. Is it argued 
 that this covenant arrangement with Adam was unfair 
 to his posterity — that each descendant should have stood 
 his own probation ? 
 
 In speaking of Adam's representation as a human 
 arrangement, Dr. Dabney says: 
 
 "Now, a race of men, being created holy and happy, 
 
Theology for the People. 93 
 
 there were, as far as the human mind can imagine, but 
 four plans possible for them — 
 
 "1. To be left under their natural relation to God 
 forever. This plan would have resulted, sooner or later, 
 in the sin and fall of every member of the race. 
 
 "2. To have the gracious offer of a covenant of works, 
 under which each person should stand for himself, and 
 a successful probation of some limited time, say seventy 
 years, be kindly accepted by God for his justification 
 and adoption into eternal life. Would not this scheme 
 result in death ? The actual failure of the first man's 
 probation would settle the question as to him. The next 
 would have had the same chances of fall, aggravated by 
 the evil example and enticements of the first ; and soon 
 the current of evil would have become so general that 
 all would go with it. 
 
 "3. For God to enter into such a covenant of works, 
 for a limited period, with the head of the race federally, 
 for himself and his race, so that if he stood the limited 
 probation, justification and adoption should be gra- 
 ciously bestowed on him, and in him, on all the race; 
 and if he failed, all should be condemned in him. This 
 was the plan actually chosen. 
 
 "Let us compare the three plans, and see if the third 
 is not the most benevolent. Under this plan the proba- 
 bilities of a favorable issue were as great as could well 
 be imagined, compatibly with leaving the creature 
 mutable at all; for instead of having a risk repeated 
 millions of times, under circumstances increasingly un- 
 toward, only one risk was permitted ; and this was under 
 the most favorable conditions possible. The probationer 
 had no human bad company; he was in the maturity of 
 
94 Theology for the People. 
 
 his powers and knowledge ; whereas his posterity would 
 have had to begin their trial in their inexperienced boy- 
 hood. He had the noblest motives to stand, imaginable. 
 
 "4. For God to communicate himself at once to every 
 reasonable creature, so as absolutely to confirm his will 
 against sin, without proposing any covenant, or proba- 
 tion, at all. Why this was not done is answered in 
 Matt. xi. 26, 'Even so, Father; for so it seemed good in 
 thy sight.' 
 
 "This fourth plan being excluded, as stubborn fact 
 proves it was, the federal arrangement made with Adam 
 for his posterity was the most liberal one." 
 
 We are now brought face to face with the principle of 
 
 imputation. To impute is to reckon to one's account; 
 
 "to lay to one's charge as a iust ground 
 
 Imputation, what? ^ ° ° 
 
 of legal procedure." We see the prin- 
 ciple of imputation beautifully illustrated in Paul's 
 Epistle to Philemon, verse 18, "If he [i. e., Onesimus] 
 hath wronged thee, or oweth aught, put that on mine 
 account." The guilt of Adam's sin was imputed to us. 
 Our transgression of law has produced two results — 
 
 1. Guilt, i. e., just liability to punishment, or legal 
 obligation to suffer the penalty of God's violated law. 
 Says another, "Guilt is the connecting link between 
 crime and its punishment ; it is the link which connects 
 the sinner with his doom ; the bond which unites trans- 
 gression with death." 
 
 2. Pollution, i. e., man's nature is debased. This 
 has reference to the stain, the defilement of sin. 
 
 Says Dr. Dabney, "This is the amount of the sinner's 
 federal union with Adam : that the offspring shall have 
 from the beginning the same legal status and moral 
 
Theology for the People. 95 
 
 nature which his head determined for himself by his 
 acts while under probation." 
 
 What is the misery of that estate whereinto man fell % 
 "All mankind, by their fall, lost communion with God, 
 are under his wrath and curse, and so made liable to 
 all the miseries in this life, to death itself, and to the 
 pains of hell forever." 
 
 Wrath of God, what ? It is his righteous displeasure 
 manifested toward sin, and his determination to punish 
 sin. 
 
 Curse of God, what ? It is the penalty of the law. 
 
 What effect did the sin of eating the forbidden fruit 
 have on our first parents % By this sin they fell from — 
 
 1. Their original righteousness. 
 
 2. Communion with God. 
 
 In consequence of this fall they became — 
 
 1. Dead in sin. 
 
 2. Wholly defiled in all the faculties and parts of soul 
 and body. 
 
 What effect did this sin have on the posterity of 
 Adam and Eve ? They, first parents, being the root of 
 all mankind — 
 
 1. The guilt of this sin was imputed to all their pos- 
 terity descending from them by ordinary generation. 
 
 2. The "same death in sin and corrupted nature con- 
 veyed to all their posterity, descending from them by 
 ordinary generation." 
 
 From this original corruption all actual transgres- 
 sions proceed. "The instant the law was violated, its 
 penalty began to operate, although, on account of the 
 intervention of the dispensation of grace, the full effect 
 of the sentence is suspended during the present life. 
 
96 Theology for The People. 
 
 The Spirit of God was withdrawn the instant man fell, 
 and he at once became spiritually dead, physically mor- 
 tal, and under sentence of death eternal." Adam did 
 not drop dead in a moment, yet he did become physically 
 mortal. A girdled tree may retain its verdure for a 
 short while; yet the girdling has introduced into the 
 tree a principle of decay and death. Man is spiritually 
 dead. If you take your knife and cut off a branch of a 
 vine, the branch will die ; the life of the vine no longer 
 flows into the branch. The withdrawal of the Holy 
 Spirit cut us off from communion with God, and the 
 result was spiritual death. In his lost estate man has 
 physical life, intellectual life, but no spiritual life. 
 
 The phrase original sin designates hereditary moral 
 
 corruption. This sin is called original, "not because it 
 
 belongs to the original constitution of 
 
 Original sin. ° . ° 
 
 our nature as it came forth from the 
 hand of God, but because, first, it is derived by ordinary 
 generation from Adam, the original root of the human 
 race; and, second, it is the inward root or origin of all 
 the actual sins that defile our lives." Original sin is 
 the corruption of our nature. The following facts 
 prove the doctrine of original sin : 
 
 1. Teaching of the Bible. Rom. vii. 17 speaks of "sin 
 that dwelleth in me." "For I was born in iniquity ; and 
 in sin did my mother conceive me" (Ps. li. 5). "You 
 hath he quickened who were dead in trespasses and 
 sins" (Eph. ii. 1). "We were by nature the children 
 of wrath [objects of wrath], even as others" (Eph. ii. 
 3). "Do men gather grapes of thorns, or figs of this- 
 tles ? Even so every good tree bringeth forth good 
 fruit; but a corrupt tree bringeth forth evil fruit. A 
 
Theology for the People. 97 
 
 good tree cannot bring forth evil fruit, neither can a 
 corrupt tree bring forth good fruit" (Matt. vi. 16-18). 
 Now note Matt. xv. 19, "For ont of the heart proceed 
 evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, 
 false witness, blasphemies." In the light of these pas- 
 sages of Scripture, how can a man be held responsible for 
 actual transgression if he is not responsible for the cor- 
 rupt nature from which all actual transgressions pro- 
 ceed ? 
 
 2. We all know that many infants die ; they die be- 
 fore they have ever been guilty of actual transgression. 
 We also know that physical death is part of the penalty 
 of sin. These little lifeless forms bear mute testimony 
 to the doctrine of original sin. While we gaze on the 
 little casket, and behold another proof of the doctrine 
 of original sin, let us thank God that through grace the 
 tender Shepherd takes the little lamb to his own bosom. 
 
 3. The Bible teaches that sins of omission, as well 
 as of commission, are heinous in God's sight. "We 
 are responsible, not only for doing what we ought not 
 to have done, but for not doing what we ought to have 
 done. We ought to be perfectly holy, and we are not, 
 and cannot be in this life. This cannot be explained 
 without supposing that we are responsible for our cor- 
 rupt nature." 
 
 4. We prove the doctrine of original sin from what 
 the Bible teaches concerning the nature and necessity 
 of regeneration. This will be considered later. 
 
 Our Confession of Faith, Chap. VI., teaches that we 
 are responsible for original sin : "Every sin, both origi- 
 nal and actual, being a transgression of the righteous 
 law of God, and contrary thereunto, doth, in its own 
 
98 Theology for the People. 
 
 nature, bring guilt upon the sinner." How do we be- 
 come responsible for original sin ? Let the fifth chapter 
 of Romans answer: "Wherefore as by one man sin 
 entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death 
 passed upon all men, for that all have sinned." "There- 
 fore, as by the offence of one, judgment came upon all 
 men to condemnation." "For as by one man's disobedi- 
 ence many were made sinners." 
 
 By this we mean the "inability of the soul to change 
 
 its own nature, or to do anything spiritually good, in 
 
 obedience to the divine law." This 
 
 Inability. 
 
 inability is one of the consequences en- 
 tailed by the sin of Adam upon his posterity. Let us 
 observe the distinction between liberty and ability. By 
 the phrase, liberty, we mean "the property of a free 
 agent to exercise volitions as he pleases." By the term, 
 ability, we mean the power of a depraved soul to change 
 its own nature. Such ability man does not possess. Says 
 Chap. IX., Sec. 3, of the Confession: "Man, by his fall 
 into a state of sin, hath wholly lost all ability of will to 
 any spiritual good accompanying salvation ; so as a 
 natural man, being altogether averse from that good, 
 and dead in sin, is not able, by his own strength, to con- 
 vert himself, or to prepare himself thereunto." 
 
 Before the fall ability was the measure of responsi- 
 bility. Our first parents had "the law of God written in 
 their hearts, and power to fulfil it." What a change 
 sin has wrought! The Confession says: "Man, by his 
 fall into a state of sin, hath wholly lost all ability of will 
 to any spiritual good accompanying salvation." Ability 
 is not the measure of responsibility. 
 
 Since the fall man has been in the possession of all 
 
Theology for the People. 99 
 
 the constitutional faculties essential to free moral 
 agency: reason, conscience, free will. 
 
 "Man possesses the requisite faculties ; but such is the 
 state of his faculties, that apart from divine grace, right 
 action is impossible." Must God lower the bars of jus- 
 tice because man has violated his law ? 
 
 Says another: "God deals with the sinner according 
 to the measure of his responsibility, not of his sinful 
 inability." 
 
 How do we account for the power and universality of 
 sin ? Is man in his natural estate self -ruined and help- 
 less ? The following answers have been 
 
 Total depravity. 
 
 given : 
 
 Pelagianism says : Man is well ; and that responsi- 
 bility is in exact proportion to ability. 
 
 Semi-Pelagianism says: Man is sick. The human 
 will takes the initiative in right action ; but needs divine 
 assistance. 
 
 Arminianism says : Man is dead. Grace takes the 
 initiative in regeneration ; but depends upon human 
 cooperation for its effect. 
 
 Augustinianism says : Man is dead. The Holy Spirit 
 regenerates ; and that too, without human cooperation. 
 If man is dead in sin, he cannot cooperate in his own 
 regeneration ; if he is not dead, he need not cooperate. 
 When Saul was on his way to Damascus to persecute 
 God's children, did he take the initiative in his own 
 regeneration? When Lazarus was restored to life, did 
 he cooperate with Jesus in the very act of passing from 
 death to life ? 
 
 When we insist that man is totally depraved, we do 
 not mean that he has lost all amiable qualities, or that 
 
100 Theology for the People. 
 
 he is as bad as it is possible for him to be. Here is 
 what we do mean : 
 
 1. He has lost communion with God ; is cut off from 
 the source of spiritual life. 
 
 2. Positive habitus, or native disposition, of soul 
 pointing ever to sin. 
 
 3. Depravity pervades man's whole being. The mind 
 is darkened, the heart hardened, the affections vile, 
 memory treacherous, the will perverse, conscience is not 
 destroyed, but the "accuracy of its verdict is disturbed," 
 the bodily appetites are inordinate, and the members 
 of the body instruments of unrighteousness. 
 
 4. Final, so far as man is concerned. The most 
 searching, microscopic investigation fails to discover in 
 man a solitary recuperative principle. If left to self, 
 he is ruined forever. 
 
 "Sin, like a venomous disease, 
 Infects our vital blood; 
 The only balm is sovereign grace, 
 And the physician, God." 
 
 In one of John Howe's sermons, he describes "fallen 
 man as a temple in ruins, — a magnificent temple, though 
 in ruins, on whose lofty front are still legible the solemn 
 words : 
 
 'Here God Once Dwelt/ * 
 
CHAPTER VII. 
 
 Christ the Mediator: Incarnation, Person, Mis- 
 sion, Offices, Humiliation, Exaltation. 
 
 THIS means that Christ became man, assumed 
 human nature. Says the Catechism, "Christ, the 
 Son of God, became man, by taking to 
 
 Incarnation. ' u ° 
 
 himself a true body and a reasonable 
 soul, being conceived by the power of the Holy Ghost, 
 in the womb of the Virgin Mary, and born of her, yet 
 without sin." 
 
 The doctrine of the incarnation is explicitly taught 
 in the Scriptures. Note John i. 1, 14, "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." A word is the expression, revelation 
 or vehicle of thought. Christ, "the Word," is the reve- 
 lation of the Godhead. This "Word was made flesh, 
 and dwelt among us." The doctrine of the incarnation 
 is also taught in 1 John i. 1-3 ; 1 Tim. iii. 16 ; Philemon 
 ii. 6-11. 
 
 Our Confession, Chap. VIII., Sec. 2, says, "The Son 
 
 of God, the second person in the Trinity, being very and 
 
 eternal God, of one substance, and 
 
 Person of Christ. 
 
 equal with the Father, did, when the 
 fullness of time was come, take upon him man's nature, 
 with all the essential properties and common infirmities 
 thereof, yet without sin ; being conceived by the power 
 of the Holy Ghost, in the womb of the Virgin Mary, of 
 
102 Theology foe the People. 
 
 her substance. So that two whole, perfect and distinct 
 natures, the Godhead and the manhood, were insepar- 
 ably joined together in one person, without conversion, 
 composition or confusion. Which person is very God 
 and very man, yet one Christ, the only Mediator be- 
 tween God and man." This declaration is wonderfully 
 clear and comprehensive. 
 The Bible teaches — 
 
 1. That Christ had a divine nature ; he was God. 
 
 2. That Christ had a complete human nature. He 
 had a true body and a reasonable soul. "True body," 
 i. e., a material body of flesh and blood; it was not a 
 phantasm. 
 
 His body increased in stature, passing through the 
 stages of development from childhood to manhood. His 
 body was "subject to pain, pleasure, hunger, thirst, 
 fatigue, suffering and death." 
 
 Christ also had "a reasonable soul," i. e., a rational 
 soul. He thought, felt and reasoned; he increased in 
 wisdom ; consequently, he must have had a finite human 
 intelligence. 
 
 3. These two natures, divine and human, are entirely 
 distinct, without any mixture or confusion. 
 
 4. Christ is one person. 
 
 When we affirm that Christ has two natures, the 
 word nature means substance, that which is. A child is 
 apt to think of substance as something solid, e. g., a 
 piece of wood, stone, or iron. When nature, as above, is 
 employed in the sense of substance, it means the being, 
 or the "entity in which properties, attributes and quali- 
 ties inhere, and of which they are the manifestation. 
 The substance which we designate the soul is immaterial 
 
Theology for the People. 103 
 
 — that is, it has none of the properties of matter. It is 
 spiritual, i. e., it has all the properties of spirit. The 
 substance which we call the body is material, i. e., it has 
 all the properties of matter, and none of the properties 
 of mind or spirit." Christ is one person having two 
 natures. Humanitarians claim that Christ is nothing 
 more than a man. In "lavishing eulogies on Jesus, they 
 are only laying garlands on the grave of the dead." 
 Arians insist that "Christ, though a creature, was more 
 than man." The Bible teaches that he is God and man. 
 Objectors insist that Christ acknowledges his inferi- 
 ority to the Father, and, consequently, cannot be divine. 
 They quote John xiv. 28, "My Father is greater than 
 I" ; also, Mark xiii. 32, "But of that day and that hour 
 knoweth no man ; no, not the angels which are in heaven, 
 nor the Son, but the Father." 
 
 While the Bible teaches very clearly that Christ ii 
 coequal with the Father, "the same in substance, equal 
 in power and glory," it also teaches that in his media- 
 torial work Christ is officially subordinate to the Father, 
 and that this subordination is voluntary ; "he [Christ] 
 humbled himself." The following is the usual explana- 
 tion of Mark xiii. 32 : As to his divine nature, Christ 
 does know the time of the judgment; as to his human 
 nature, he does not know the appointed time. Dr. 
 Campbell gives the following interpretation of the pas- 
 sage : That while, personally, Christ does know the 
 exact date, he does not know it as one of the facts he 
 was commissioned by the Father to communicate to the 
 world. 
 
 The Bible teaches that Christ's mission was media- 
 tion. The term mediation "signifies in general any 
 
104 Theology for the People. 
 
 intervention between parties at vari- 
 
 Mission of Christ. 
 
 ance, for the purpose of adjusting 
 difficulty or effecting reconciliation." Suppose two men, 
 A and B, have a difficulty ; they refuse to speak to each 
 other, are bitter toward each other. Suppose C, a friend 
 to each, devoutly deplores this enmity, and through his 
 efforts friendly relations are restored. He becomes a 
 mediator, a "go-between." 
 
 In Christ's mission "the necessity for mediation lies, 
 not in what man is as man, but in what man is as a sin- 
 ner/' If man had not sinned, there would be no need 
 of a mediator. On God's part, there is a holy opposition 
 to the sinner; on man's part, there is a sinful opposi- 
 tion to God. How can reconciliation be effected '( The 
 mediation of Christ answers the question. 
 
 "Christ, as our Redeemer, executeth the offices of a 
 
 prophet, of a priest, and of a king, both in his estate 
 
 of humiliation and exaltation." This 
 
 Offices of Christ. . 
 
 is the language of the Shorter Cate- 
 chism. Christ's office is his mediatorial work. The 
 terms prophet, priest, and king, are not, strictly speak- 
 ing, three offices, but functions of the one great office — 
 Mediator. 
 
 1. Prophet. Says the Catechism, "Christ executeth 
 the office of a prophet, in revealing to us, by his Word 
 and Spirit, the will of God for our salvation." In the 
 scriptural sense, a prophet is one duly authorized to 
 speak to men for God. In order to our salvation, we 
 must know what is the will of God ; this will must be 
 revealed to us. Christ makes the revelation "by his 
 word and Spirit." "We must be taught outwardly by 
 the word of Christ, and inwardly by his Spirit." "The 
 
Theology for the People. 105 
 
 Holy Spirit opens the eyes of the human understanding 
 to perceive the moral glory, excellence and beauty of 
 divine truth." Christ, as a prophet, is our great 
 Teacher. 
 
 2. Priest. "Christ executeth the office of a priest, 
 in his once offering up of himself a sacrifice to satisfy 
 divine justice, and reconcile us to God, and in making 
 continual intercession for us." 
 
 A priest is one duly authorized to appear before God 
 in behalf of men. Christ's priestly work involves: 
 1. Expiation. 2. Intercession. Should we desire to 
 enlarge the horizon of view, we might say in the lan- 
 guage of another: "Expiation, propitiation, reconcilia- 
 tion and intercession are the several aspects under which 
 the work of Christ, as a priest, is presented in the Word 
 of God." As quoted above, the Shorter Catechism 
 teaches that Christ offered himself a sacrifice to satisfy 
 divine justice and reconcile us to God, and in making 
 continual intercession for us. Now, note how the same 
 truth is expressed in the Larger Catechism: "Christ 
 executeth the office of a priest, in his once offering him- 
 self a sacrifice without spot to God, to be a reconciliation 
 for the sins of his people; and in making continual 
 intercession for them." Now, we are enabled to take 
 a clear view of this important subject. Christ was made 
 under the law, i. e., he took our law-place under the 
 broken "covenant of works." His work as substitute 
 involved the suffering of the penalty which man had 
 incurred, and the rendering of perfect obedience to law; 
 mi obedience which man had so signally failed to render. 
 In offering himself as a. sacrifice, Christ satisfied the 
 justice of God, and this reconciled (}<>d to ns, rendered 
 
106 Theology foe the People. 
 
 God propitious. "Expiation and propitiation are cor- 
 relative terms." Guilt is expiated, i. e., covered (in 
 scriptural sense) by satisfaction, by vicarious punish- 
 ment. In consequence of the satisfaction rendered to 
 the demands of justice, God is propitiated. ""Propitious 
 and loving are not convertible terms." God loved us 
 while we were sinners, yea, before the Saviour ever 
 reached the cross. When we say, God is rendered pro- 
 pitious, we mean that it is now perfectly consistent with 
 his nature to extend mercy, to pardon and bless the 
 sinner. Justice is that form of moral excellence which 
 imperatively demands the punishment of sin. The sin 
 of those for whom Christ died has been punished in the 
 sinner's substitute; and, in consequence, justice is fully 
 satisfied, and God is reconciled to the sinner. So far 
 as God is concerned, every obstacle to the extending of 
 his mercy is removed. Now, as soon as the sinner, under 
 the gracious operations of the Spirit, becomes reconciled 
 to God, the twofold reconciliation is gloriously accom- 
 plished. Divine justice must be satisfied before the 
 sinner can have access to God's throne. Since God is 
 reconciled to the sinner, is rendered propitious, we can 
 appreciate in some measure the beauty, appropriateness 
 and force of the exhortation in 2 Cor. v. 20 : "Now then 
 we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God did 
 beseech you by us : we pray you in Christ's stead, be ye 
 reconciled to God." 
 
 We come now to the second part of Christ's priestly 
 work, intercession. Touching this work two widely dif- 
 ferent views have been entertained : 
 
 (1) That Christ's intercession is the exercise of a 
 subjective influence on the Father. This is unscripturaL 
 
Theology for the People. 107 
 
 (2) That it is the presentation of an objective plea. 
 This is scriptural. 
 
 Objections against the first view have been urged, as 
 follows : 
 
 (1) It destroys the scriptural idea of the divine per- 
 sons. They are of one mind. The will of Christ is the 
 will of the Father. In his work of intercession, Christ 
 is not before the throne of God to exercise a subjective 
 influence on the Father, to overcome some unwillingness 
 or reluctance on the Father's part to bestow the benefits 
 of the covenant of grace. 
 
 (2) This theory is inconsistent with Christ's appoint- 
 ment. Would the unwilling Father appoint his Son 
 to an office which would render him (the Father) willing 
 to do what he was antecedently unwilling to do ? 
 
 (3) It is derogatory to the Father's character. It 
 represents him as indisposed to all merciful designs. 
 
 (4) It is also derogatory to justice. In our courts we 
 are sure that justice has been defeated, if, in its so-called 
 administration, the judge is open to personal in- 
 fluence. 
 
 The second is the correct view, viz., that Christ is 
 before the throne presenting an objective plea, I. e., 
 basing his claim on his sacrificial work ; presenting this 
 as the reason why all the benefits of redemption should, 
 in the proper time and order, accrue to those for whom 
 he died, and for whom he ever intercedes. Christ claims 
 that in his mediatorial work, the character, law and 
 administration of God have been fully vindicated. God 
 gladly recognizes the force and justness of the claim, 
 and confers the blessings for which intercession is made. 
 Christ is no beggar. The blessings of the covenant 
 
108 Theology for the People. 
 
 flow from the Father to the Son through the channel of 
 justice; they flow from Christ to us through the channel 
 of grace. In connection with this subject, two facts 
 bring so much comfort to the Christian's heart : 
 
 (1) Christ's intercession is adapted to the varying 
 conditions and stations of his people. In Luke xxii. 32 
 the Saviour says to Peter, "I have prayed for thee that 
 thy faith fail not." Before Peter had reached the great 
 trial through which he was to pass, before he knew that 
 the prayer had been offered, Jesus had been before the 
 throne pleading for his poor, frail, vacillating, impetu- 
 ous, self-confident follower. 
 
 (2) If we are God's children, Christ must exhaust 
 his plea, and cease to exist, before we can fail to reach 
 our heavenly home. 
 
 Sacrifice and Intercession are Commensurate. 
 
 Says John xvii. 9, "I pray not for the world, but for 
 them which thou hast given me." 
 
 "Great Advocate, almighty Friend! 
 On him our humble hopes depend; 
 Our cause can never, never fail, 
 For Jesus pleads, and must prevail." 
 
 3. King. "Christ executeth the office of a king, in sub- 
 duing us to himself, in ruling and defending us, and in 
 restraining and conquering all his and our enemies." 
 
 Christ's mediatorial offices of prophet and priest 
 would have been unavailing, ineffective without the 
 "function of kingly dominion and control." I love the 
 simplicity of the Child's Catechism, "We need Christ as 
 a prophet, because we are ignorant; as priest, be- 
 
Theology for the People. 109 
 
 cause we are guilty; as king, because we are weak 
 and helpless." Says another, "The nature of our 
 salvation required that it should be revealed by 
 Christ as a prophet ; purchased by him as a priest, and 
 applied by him as a king. God's promises to his people 
 are revealed by Christ as a prophet ; confirmed by his 
 blood as a priest; effectually -applied and fulfilled by 
 his power as a king." 
 
 " Jesus, our Priest, forever lives, 
 To plead for us above; 
 Jesus, our King, forever gives 
 The blessings of his love." 
 
 In his office as Mediator, Christ discharges the three 
 
 functions of prophet, priest, and king, "both in his 
 
 estate of humiliation and exaltation." 
 
 Christ's humiliation. 
 
 Says the Catechism, "Christ's humilia- 
 tion consisted in his being born, and that in a low con- 
 dition, made under the law, undergoing the miseries of 
 this life, the wrath of God, and the cursed death of the 
 cross ; in being buried, and continuing under the power 
 of death for a time." 
 
 The phrase in the Apostles' Creed, "He descended 
 into hell," or hades, i. e., the invisible world, means that 
 he continued under the power of death till the third day. 
 The following is the common Protestant interpretation 
 of that difficult passage in 1 Peter iii. 19-21, "Christ 
 was put to death in the body, but quickened, or restored 
 to life, by the Spirit, by which Spirit, inspiring Noah 
 as a preacher of righteousness, Christ, many centuries 
 previously, had descended from heaven, and preached to 
 the men of that generation, who, in their sin and un- 
 belief, were the 'spirits in prison.' Only eight persons 
 
110 Theology for the People. 
 
 believed and were saved; therefore, Christian profes- 
 sors and teachers ought not to faint because of the 
 unbelief of mankind now." How amazing the conde- 
 scension involved in Christ's humiliation ! 
 
 "Christ's exaltation consisteth in his rising again 
 
 from the dead on the third day, in ascending up into 
 
 heaven, in sitting at the right hand of 
 
 Christ's exaltation. ° m 
 
 God the Father, and in coming to 
 judge the world at the last day." 
 
 The facts emphasized in this statement are — 
 
 1. Christ's resurrection. 
 
 2. His ascension. 
 
 3. His session at the right hand of God, where he 
 intercedes for his people, and causes all things to work 
 together for their good. 
 
 4. His coming to judge the world at the last day. 
 We are now prepared to see why it was necessary for 
 
 Christ as our Redeemer to execute the offices of a 
 prophet, of a priest, and of a king, both in his estates of 
 humiliation and exaltation ; it was in order — 
 
 1. To purchase salvation. 
 
 2. To apply salvation. 
 
CHAPTER VIII. 
 
 Plan of Salvation : Election, Covenant of Grace, 
 Atonement. 
 
 A 
 
 MOMENT'S reflection convinces us that a plan 
 supposes three things: 1. Selection of an end. 
 2. Choice of means. 3. Employment 
 
 Plan, what ? _ -_ 
 
 of means to accomplish the end. Jc or 
 the consideration of the doctrine of election, the reader 
 is referred to Chapter V., under head of "Decrees." 
 
 We have already seen that man's probation under the 
 "Covenant of Works" ended in disaster. In his natural 
 estate, man is guilty, polluted, helpless ; yea, "dead in 
 trespasses and in sins." If any jewels are to be gathered 
 for the Saviour's crown, it must be through a gracious 
 scheme of redemption. Just such a plan has been 
 devised. 
 
 This plan is exhibited under the form of a covenant, 
 called the Covenant of Grace. 
 
 Says Chapter VII. of the Confession: "The distance 
 between God and the creature is so great, that although 
 reasonable creatures do owe obedience unto him as their 
 Creator, yet they could never have any fruition of him 
 as their blessedness and reward, but by some voluntary 
 condescension on God's part, which he has been pleased 
 to express by way of covenant. The first covenant made 
 with man was a covenant of works, wherein life was 
 promised to Adam, and in him to his posterity, upon 
 condition of perfect, personal obedience. Man, by his 
 
112 Theology foe the People. 
 
 fall, having made himself incapable of life by that cove- 
 nant, the Lord was pleased to make a second, commonly 
 called the covenant of grace; wherein he freely offered 
 unto sinners, life and salvation by Jesus Christ, requir- 
 ing of them faith in him that they may be saved, and 
 promising to give unto all those that are ordained unto 
 life, his Holy Spirit, to make them able and willing to 
 believe. This covenant was differently administered in 
 the time of the law, and in the time of the gospel. Under 
 the law it was administered by promises, prophecies, 
 sacrifices, circumcision, the paschal lamb, and other 
 types and ordinances delivered to the people of the Jews, 
 all fore-signifying Christ to come, which were for that 
 time sufficient and efficacious, through the operation of 
 the Spirit to instruct and build up the elect in faith, in 
 the promised Messiah, by whom they had full remission 
 of sins, and eternal salvation; and is called the Old 
 Testament. 
 
 ''Under the gospel, when Christ, the substance, was 
 exhibited, the ordinances in which this covenant is dis- 
 pensed are the preaching of the Word, and the admin- 
 istration of the sacraments of baptism and the Lord's 
 Supper ; which, though fewer in number, and admin- 
 istered with more simplicity and less outward glory, 
 yet in them it is held forth in more fulness, evidence 
 and spiritual efficacy, to all nations, both J.ews and Gen- 
 tiles ; and is called the New Testament. 
 
 "There are not, therefore, two covenants of grace, 
 differing in substance, but one and the same under vari- 
 ous dispensations." 
 
 I^et it be observed that in the Old Testament we find 
 law and gospel; in the New Testament, gospel and law* 
 
Theology for the People. 113 
 
 Why i The fourth chapter of Galatians explains it. It 
 is the difference between a child in its minority and a 
 man in his majority. Under the Old Testament, the 
 church was in its minority, or "under age." 
 
 It is justly claimed that two things are necessary to 
 make one thing the type of another : 
 
 1. The former must resemble the latter. 
 
 2. The former must have been designed to resemble 
 the latter. 
 
 Under the Old Testament dispensation, or mode of 
 administration, the ceremonial institutions were sym- 
 bolical and typical of Christ's work. There is but one 
 Covenant of Grace. Some Calvinists hold that the 
 Bible points to a covenant which they designate the 
 Covenant of Redemption, i. e., an eternal covenant 
 between the Father and the Son as parties, the Father 
 promising to give to the Son a people, and "to grant 
 to them in him all spiritual blessings and eternal life" ; 
 the Son promising to obey and suffer for those given 
 him. Says Dr. Dabney : "I hold that this subject (cove- 
 nant relationship) cannot be treated intelligently with- 
 out distinguishing the covenant existing from eternity 
 between the Father and Son, from the gospel promise 
 of salvation on terms of true faith offered to sinners 
 through Christ." The former is called the covenant of 
 redemption ; the latter, the covenant of grace. 
 
 Dr. Dabney further says : "The covenant of redemp- 
 tion between the Father and Son, I hold to be the real 
 covenant transaction, being a free and optional compact 
 between two equals, containing a stipulation which turns 
 on a proper causative condition, and bearing no relation 
 to time, as it includes no mutable contingency or condi- 
 
114 Theology for the People. 
 
 tion dependent on the uncertain will of creatures. The 
 covenant of grace (so-called) is a dispensation of promise 
 to man, arising out of, and dependent on, the covenant 
 of redemption." 
 
 The Scriptures teach that the Father gave the Son 
 a work to do, and promised him a reward suspended 
 upon the accomplishment of the work. This transaction 
 is in the nature of a covenant. (See Ps. xl. 7, 8 ; Heb. 
 x. 9, 10; Luke ii. 49; John xvii. 18; John xvii. 4.) 
 This last verse says, "I have finished the work which 
 thou gavest me to do." These and other passages, it is 
 claimed, warrant the distinction between the covenant 
 of redemption and the covenant of grace. 
 
 The following are the parties to the covenant of grace : 
 
 1. The Father, representing the Godhead. 
 
 2. Christ, representing the elect. Says the Larger 
 Catechism, "The covenant of grace was made with 
 Christ, as the second Adam, and in him with all the elect 
 as his seed." 
 
 In this plan, or covenant, Christ agreed to "assume 
 and discharge, in behalf of his elect, all violated condi- 
 tions, and incurred liabilities of the covenant of works," 
 the very covenant which man had broken. 
 
 We failed to render obedience to the precept of God's 
 law, and also incurred its penalty. This violation of 
 law has produced two results — 
 
 1. Guilt, i. e., just liability to punishment. 
 
 2. Pollution, i. e., man's nature is debased. It is 
 obvious that any plan of salvation must provide for two 
 things — 
 
 1. Deliverance from condemnation. 
 
 2. Chanae of sinful nature. 
 
Theology foe the People. 115 
 
 Read 2 Cor. v. 21, "For he hath made him to be sin 
 for us, who knew no sin ; that we might be made the 
 righteousness of God in him." This is a wonderfully 
 comprehensive statement. Do not for a moment think 
 that our personal sins became Christ's personal sins, 
 or that Christ's personal righteousness becomes our per- 
 sonal righteousness. The transfer does not mean this. 
 What does it mean? Simply this: Christ was treated 
 as a sinner on our account, that we might be treated as 
 righteous on his account. Our guilt was imputed to 
 him. Let us not forget that to impute signifies "to set 
 to one's account, to lay to one's charge or credit as the 
 ground of judicial process." 
 
 In this plan our guilt is imputed to Christ, and his 
 righteousness imputed to us, i. e., credited to us. 
 
 What righteousness of Christ ? Certainly not his 
 personal, inherent righteousness, nor that righteousness 
 which was his before he suffered and died. In taking 
 our law-place, in discharging for us the obligations of 
 the law, his obedience and suffering in this relation con- 
 stitute the righteousness which is imputed to us ; or, to 
 state it differently, the righteousness which is imputed 
 to us means all that Christ became, did and suffered in 
 the sinner's stead. 
 
 The plan of salvation provides that the imputation 
 of Christ's righteousness to the believer shall secure — 
 
 1. The remission of the penalty. 
 
 2. "The recognition and treatment of the believer as 
 one with respect to whom 'the covenant is fulfilled, and 
 to whom all of its promises and advantages legally 
 accrue.' " Glorious doctrine ! 
 
 The Bible teaches that the death of Christ was an 
 
116 Theology foe the People. 
 
 atonement for sin; a sacrifice offered to God in satis- 
 faction of justice. Atonement is the "word used to 
 designate the nature of Christ's work of self-sacrifice on 
 the cross." The following are the four theories which 
 have been entertained concerning the nature of the 
 atonement : 
 
 1. The Mystical Theory, which states that "the recon- 
 ciliation effected by Christ was brought about by the 
 mysterious union of God and man accomplished by the 
 incarnation, rather than by his sacrificial death." 
 
 2. The Moral Influence Theory, which holds that "the 
 sole object of the life and death of Christ is to produce 
 a moral effect upon the individual sinner, subduing his 
 obdurate aversion to God, and his sullen distrust of his 
 willingness to forgive ; thus reconciling man to God 
 instead of God to man." 
 
 3. The Governmental Theory, which claims that 
 "Christ's sufferings were not punishment, but an exam- 
 ple of a determination to punish hereafter. They were 
 designed not to satisfy divine justice, but to impress the 
 public mind of the moral universe with a sin-deterring 
 motive." 
 
 4. The Satisfaction Theory, which rightly maintains 
 that the death of Christ was a propitiatory sacrifice ; a 
 necessary satisfaction rendered to the justice of God in 
 view of the pardon of sin. 
 
 We hold that the death of Christ was penal, judicial, 
 he was made a curse for ns : it was vicarious, he died 
 the just for the unjust : it was expiatory, the blood of 
 Jesus Christ cleanseth from all sin. 
 
 Complete satisfaction has been rendered to the de- 
 mands of God'; law. The deepest and sweetest emotions 
 
Theology fok the People. 117 
 
 of gratitude in the believer's heart find glad expression 
 in the familiar words : "Jesus paid it all." 
 
 From the condemning power of sin Christ delivers us 
 by his sacrifice. From the enslaving power of sin Christ 
 delivers us by bringing us within the influence of the 
 Holy Spirit. 
 
 Concerning this plan of salvation, let the following 
 facts be borne in mind : 
 
 1. The plan is of divine origin. 
 
 2. It was devised in eternity. 
 
 3. It excludes human merit. "By the grace of God 
 I am what I am." 
 
 4. It is unchangeable. Like its Author, it is the 
 same, yesterday, to-day, and forever. As finite crea- 
 tures, we frequently change our plans. Not so with 
 God. 
 
 5. The plan is complete. It effects perfect reconcilia- 
 tion between God and man. It is also complete in the 
 sense that it embraces soul and body. It is the great 
 panacea for the ills of life. In ISTorth and South 
 America, in the isles of the sea, in Europe, Asia and 
 Africa, this fact has been conclusively demonstrated. 
 
 6. The plan is available. As just stated, it is suited 
 to all nations. Its condition is faith, the gift of God, 
 the great Author of the plan. Why did John Selkirk 
 dispose of his Utica gold mines in California for the 
 small sum of fifty dollars? Because of the fact that he 
 did not have the means with which to develop those 
 valuable mines. The wealth of gold was beyond his 
 reach. Through God's gracious plan the treasures of 
 redemption are available. 
 
CHAPTER IX. 
 
 Peocess of Salvation : Holy Spirit as Agent, 
 Effectual Calling, Regeneration, Justifica- 
 tion, Adoption, Sanctification. 
 
 WE now pass from, the plan to the process of salva- 
 tion. In order to man's deliverance from the 
 guilt and power of sin ; in order to his full restoration 
 to God, the operation of the Holy Spirit upon and within 
 the soul becomes an absolute necessity. The Confession 
 of Faith and Catechisms speak of certain aspects of this 
 operation as an act; of others, as a work. When we con- 
 sider salvation in its totality, we are warranted in speak- 
 ing of it as a process. 
 
 In this gracious process the work of the Holy Spirit 
 comes prominently into view. In order to man's salva- 
 tion, it is not enough to devise the 
 
 Divine agent. m 
 
 plan ; it is not enough to purchase 
 redemption. If the work is to be complete, the pur- 
 chased redemption must be applied ; this application is 
 made by the Holy Spirit. It should also be borne in 
 mind that in this process those to whom this redemption 
 is applied are free agents, although guilty, polluted and 
 helpless. 
 
 Says the Confession, Chapter X. : "AD those whom 
 God hath predestinated unto life, and those only, he is 
 
 pleased, in his appointed and accepted 
 
 Effectual calling. . . 
 
 time, effectually to call, by his Word 
 and Spirit, out of that state of sin and death in which 
 
Theology fob the People. 119 
 
 they are by nature, to grace and salvation by Jesus 
 Christ ; enlightening their minds spiritually and sav- 
 ingly to understand the things of God, taking away 
 their heart of stone and giving unto them an heart of 
 flesh ; renewing their wills, and, by his almighty power, 
 determining them to that which is good ; and effectually 
 drawing them to Jesus Christ ; yet so as they come most 
 freely, being made willing by his grace. This effectual 
 call is of God's free and special grace alone, not from 
 anything at all foreseen in man, who is altogether pas- 
 sive therein, until, being quickened and renewed by the 
 Holy Spirit, he is thereby enabled to answer this call, 
 and to embrace the grace offered and conveyed in it." 
 
 Man is guilty; and, if ever saved, he must be deliv- 
 ered from condemnation. Man's nature is debased; if 
 ever saved, his nature must be changed. 
 
 '"This moral change is necessary in order that we may 
 avail ourselves of the remedy provided for our legal 
 liabilities. For to be justified, we must have faith. 
 But there is a barrier to the exercise of faith, viz., we 
 are spiritually dead. Xow, it is the work of the Spirit 
 to effect the moral change whereby we are persuaded 
 and enabled to embrace Jesus Christ freely offered to 
 us in the gospel. This change he accomplishes in 'effec- 
 tual calling,' and the result itself is termed regenera- 
 tion." 
 
 It might be well, just at this point, to direct attention 
 to the difference between "effectual calling" and the 
 "common operations" of the Spirit, or between the 
 special and common influences of the Spirit. 
 
 They differ : 1. As to their purpose. The former is 
 designed to save; the latter is not so designed. 2. They 
 
120 Theology foe the People. 
 
 differ in their nature. The former is a creation of 
 spiritual emotions, desires, aspirations and purposes. 
 The latter is only an increase of purely natural emotions. 
 
 It is a fundamental error to say that the difference 
 is only in degree. The former, i. e., "effectual calling," 
 changes a man's very nature. Under the common influ- 
 ences of the Spirit, a man may be deeply moved ; but it 
 is only an increase of natural emotions. 
 
 Many that are outwardly called are not effectually 
 called, are not regenerated. 
 
 The Scriptures teach that there is an internal call of 
 the Spirit, as well as an outward, external call of the 
 Word. "Many are called, but few are chosen" (Matt. 
 xxii. 14). "Whom he called, them he also justified" 
 (Rom. viii. 30). 
 
 Of persons incapable of being outwardly called by 
 the Word, the Confession, Chap. X., Sec. 3,' says, "Elect 
 infants dying in infancy are regenerated and saved by 
 Christ through the Spirit, who worketh when, and 
 where, and how he pleaseth. So also are all other elect 
 persons, who are incapable of being outwardly called by 
 the ministry of the word," e. g., idiots. 
 
 This paragraph has been the subject of a great deal 
 of controversy. Does it teach that some infants dying 
 in infancy are non-elect and are lost? I answer most 
 positively, No! This chapter in the Confession is not 
 treating the subject of election, but of effectual calling. 
 The object of the paragraph is not to teach who the elect 
 are, but how the elect are saved. The contrast is not 
 between elect infants and non-elect infants ; but be- 
 tween elect infants dying in infancy and elect infants not 
 dying in infancy. This statement derives support from 
 
Theology fok the People. 121 
 
 what is affirmed in section 4 of the same chapter in the 
 Confession. Let me repeat it : this chapter is not teach- 
 ing wlio the elect are, but lioiu the elect are saved. It 
 teaches that all of God's elect who die in infancy, and 
 all other elect persons who are incapable of being out- 
 wardly called by the ministry of the Word, are regen- 
 erated and saved by Christ through the Spirit. All 
 other elect persons are effectually called by the Word 
 and Spirit to grace and salvation by Jesus Christ. On 
 the part of the Presbyterian Church, I most emphati- 
 cally disclaim that we teach that there are infants in 
 hell. The charge that we do so teach is'ignorantly or 
 maliciously false. 
 
 The Confession teaches that those whom God calls 
 out of the state of sin and death to grace and salvation 
 are called "by his Word and Spirit." What is the 
 relation of God's Word to effectual calling? Says 
 1 Peter i. 23, "Being born again, not of corruptible 
 seed, but of incorruptible, by the Word of God, which 
 liveth and abideth forever." 
 
 Dr. Dabney says, "The Holy Ghost renovates the 
 mental vision ; the Word of God alone furnishes the 
 luminous medium through which the renovated vision 
 sees." 
 
 Says another, substantially, "The Spirit takes the 
 truth concerning God and man and salvation, and 
 presses it home upon the reason and conscience; the 
 Spirit enlightens, convicts, persuades, using the truths 
 of the gospel as his instrument ; through these truths 
 he works upon the soul from without, while he is also 
 pouring his own vitalizing energies into the soul at the 
 very centers of its moral being." 
 
122 Theology fob the People. 
 
 It is evident, from the teachings of Scripture, that in 
 the work of effectual calling the Holy Spirit employs 
 the truth as an instrument. 
 
 Says John iii. 3, "'Except a man he horn again, he 
 
 cannot see the kingdom of God." The eighth verse say.-, 
 
 "The wind bloweth where it listeth, 
 
 Regeneration. 
 
 and thou nearest the sound thereof, hut 
 canst not tell whence it cometh, and whither it goeth ; 
 so is every one that is horn of the Spirit." It is evident 
 from the Scriptures that the Holy Spirit is the agent in 
 regeneration. 
 
 Let us consider this negatively and positively. 
 
 1. Negatively: (1) It is not a change of external 
 relation. (2) It is not moral reformation. (3) It is 
 Nature of regenera- not "moral suasion," i. e,, it is not an 
 tlon# "influence exerted hy one mind over 
 
 the acts and states of another mind, hy the presentation 
 of truth and motives, by expostulations, entreaty, ap- 
 peals," etc. (-t) It is not a change of faculties. (5) It 
 is not conversion. Conversion is the fruit of regenera- 
 tion. In regeneration the soul is passive ; in conversion 
 the soul is active. The regenerated person turns to God ; 
 this turning to God is what we mean bv conversion — 
 a turning which is evinced by faith and repentance. 
 
 "The human response to the regenerative work of the 
 Holy Ghost is fitly expressed by the term conversion," 
 
 The soul is passive in regeneration ; but active in 
 conversion. In one sense, the soul is never passive ; yet 
 it is passive with respect to the act which produces the 
 change called regeneration. A man in the full posses- 
 sion of his mental and physical energies may be walking 
 beneath a tree, and suddenly be struck by a falling limb. 
 
Theology fok the People. 123 
 
 Although the man is active, we must admit that he is 
 passive with respect to the blow inflicted by the limb. 
 A great deal of error is attributable to the failure to 
 distinguish between regeneration and conversion. Re- 
 generation is God's act below consciousness. Conver- 
 sion is the first act of consciousness. If the reader will 
 not press the following illustration too far, some light 
 may be shed on this subject : A train is moving rapidly 
 toward a precipice. The engineer at once reverses the 
 valve ; and, in consequence, the wheels revolve in the 
 opposite direction. If you let the reversal of the valve 
 represent regeneration, the movement of the wheels from 
 the precipice will be conversion. 
 
 We are familiar with the conditions of seeing: (1) 
 Organ of sight. (2) Light. A blind man cannot see 
 at midday; a man with good eyes cannot see in the 
 dense darkness of midnight. If you let changing the 
 eye of a blind man so that he can see represent regenera- 
 tion, the seeing of the man will be conversion. Suppose 
 a dead child is brought back to life. The very act of 
 passing from death to life will represent regeneration. 
 The child now alive looks at its mother, and, with ex- 
 pressions of joy, trustfulness and affection, extends its 
 arms for mother's embrace and help — these acts will 
 represent conversion. 
 
 2. Positively. Regeneration is the implanting of a 
 principle of spiritual life in the soul dead in trespasses 
 ;iiid sins; it is a new birth, a new creation; it is a 
 change of character, a change which takes place below 
 consciousness. The regenerated person is conscious of 
 life, but not of the change from death to life. The 
 resurrection of the dead is an analogue of res-eneration. 
 
121 Theology fob the People. 
 
 This new birth is an instantaneous, radical change, a 
 transition from death to life. Did Lazarus bring him- 
 self from death to life ? Did he cooperate with the 
 Saviour in the very act of passing from death to life ? 
 As before stated, if men are spiritually dead, coopera- 
 tion is an impossibility. If men are not spiritually 
 dead cooperation is unnecessary. 
 
 "Ye must be born again" (John iii. 7). The follow- 
 ing facts prove the necessity of regeneration: 
 Necessity of regenera- 1- The nature of man. His nature 
 tion - is depraved, debased. Under the head 
 
 of the "'Covenant of Works,'' man's ruined condition 
 has already been considered. Man is spiritually dead. 
 The Scriptures emphasize this fact. "And you hath he 
 quickened, who were dead in trespasses and sins" (Eph. 
 ii. 1). 
 
 "Even when we were dead in sins" (Eph. ii. 5). 
 
 "Alienated from the life of God" (Eph. iv. S). 
 
 "And you, being dead in your sins" (Col. ii. 13). 
 
 "Let the dead bury their dead" (Matt. viii. 22). 
 
 "Except ye eat the flesh of the Son of man, and drink 
 his blood, ye have no life in you" (John vi. 53). (This 
 points to the reception of Christ's sacrifice in believing 
 on Christ crucified for salvation.) 
 
 "But is passed from death unto life" (John v. 21). 
 You have seen the corpse, cold and motionless ; the 
 unregenerate are as dead to spiritual life as the corpse 
 is to natural, or animal, life. 
 
 "Death implies the withdrawal of a principle which 
 once belonged to the subject of which it is affirmed. It 
 would not be correct to speak of anything as dead which 
 had never been endued with a living principle, e. g., 
 
Theology for the People. 125 
 
 a stone. We speak of plants, animals and men bereft 
 of the living principle^ as dead." 
 
 What do we mean by the word life when we speak of 
 a living creature ? Says another : "It is the act of a 
 quickening principle on a subject to be quickened by 
 virtue of their union." In natural death we note — 
 
 (1) "The separation of soul and body. 
 
 (2) "The cessation of vital actings on the part of the 
 body; the union from which such actings proceed is 
 dissolved. 
 
 (3) "The consequent inability of the body to effect 
 operations of life." 
 
 In his state of innocency, Adam had, (1) natural life; 
 (2) spiritual life. When he sinned he retained natural 
 life and became spiritually dead. Spiritual death has 
 been defined : "A privation of the life we had in Adam ; 
 a negation of the life of Christ." 
 
 It is a well-known fact that the life of the body is 
 derived from its union with the soul; when the soul 
 departs the body is dead. The spiritual life of the soul 
 is derived from its union with God; sin dissolves the 
 union and spiritual death ensues. It has been objected 
 that the resurrection of the dead is not an analogue of 
 regeneration ; that there is a vast difference between 
 natural and spiritual death ; that in natural death the 
 soul is utterly removed from the body, but in spiritual 
 death the soul remains in the body. If these objectors 
 see the truth at all they see it in shadowy outline. "In 
 natural life the sonl is the quickening principle; the 
 body is quickened. When the soul departs it leaves the 
 body with all its own natural properties, but deprived of 
 those properties which it had by reason of its union with 
 
126 Theology for the People. 
 
 the soul. In spiritual life the soul is not the quickening 
 principle, but is itself quickened. When the quickening 
 principle of spiritual life departs, the soul retains its 
 natural properties, but is deprived of that power which 
 it had by virtue of its union with the quickening prin- 
 ciple of spiritual life." 
 
 Take the soul from man's body, the result is natural 
 death. Take spiritual life from man's soul, the result 
 is spiritual death ; the man no longer lives unto God. 
 In creation man was made in the image of God. In 
 regeneration man is renewed in the image of God. How 
 great the change ! How great is the power by which 
 the change is effected ! The "outward call" alone is 
 insufficient. Take, for instance, a drowned man. His 
 body is brought to the shore. Let rubbing, warming, and 
 stimulating represent "common grace." If breath were 
 simply suspended, these measures might prove effective; 
 but since the man is dead, no amount of rubbing, etc., 
 will be of any avail. 
 
 2. The necessity of regeneration is also shown from 
 the nature of Christ's kingdom. It is not a temporal, 
 but a spiritual, kingdom. (1) "The King is a spiritual, 
 and not an earthly sovereign (Matt. xx. 28 ; John xviii. 
 36). (2) His throne is at the right hand of God (Acts 
 ii. 33). (3) His sceptre is spiritual (Is. liii. 1; Ps. 
 ex. 2). (4) The citizens of his kingdom are spiritual 
 men (Phil. iii. 20; Eph. ii. 19). (5) The mode in 
 which he administers his government is spiritual (Zech. 
 iv. 6, 7). (6) His laws are spiritual (John iv. 24). 
 (7) The blessings and the penalties of his kingdom are 
 spiritual (1 Cor. v. 4-11; 2 Cor. x. 4; Eph. i. 3-8; 
 2 Tim. iv. 2; Titus ii. 15)." This spiritual kingdom 
 
Theology for the People. 127 
 
 which Christ came to establish is antagonistic to Satan's 
 kingdom of darkness ; to be a subject of one is to be 
 excluded from the other. "He that is not for me is 
 against me." Every man is by nature excluded from 
 Christ's kingdom. In what way can a fallen being, 
 sin-defiled, spiritually dead, be transferred from the 
 kingdom of darkness to the kingdom of God ? In the 
 world around us we see adaptation, — light for the eye, 
 atmosphere for the lungs. Were it not for this wise 
 provision, this wonderful adaptation, natural life would 
 cease. This principle, or law of adaptation, holds good 
 in the spiritual as well as in the natural world. Were 
 it possible to take fallen man, and, without any change 
 of heart, translate him to the kingdom of God, the 
 transfer would but augment his misery. He would not 
 be in harmony with his environment. "Holiness is like 
 a diamond dropped from the crown of God ; it catches 
 dust here in this world, but what will the jewel be 
 when polished for heaven, reflecting the light celestial !" 
 God has many precious jewels in this world; he is 
 polishing them for eternity. How often is it the case 
 that the unregenerate are ill at ease while in the presence 
 of God's children, — of those who are but partially sanc- 
 tified ? How indescribably miserable would the unre- 
 generate be if ushered into the presence of him who 
 charges the angels with folly ! "Whafc fellowship hath 
 righteousness with unrighteousness ? and what com- 
 munion hath light with darkness ?" 
 
 Without holiness no man shall sec the Lord. Now, in 
 order to adaptation there must either be a change in 
 God or a change in the sinner. With God there is no 
 variableness, neither shadow of turning. You might as 
 
128 Theology for the People. 
 
 well attempt to snatch the sun from the solar system, 
 or stop this earth from revolving on its axis, as to 
 endeavor to induce God to lower the bars of his righteous 
 law. The change must take place in the sinner. Yes, 
 this earth on which we live has experienced great con- 
 vulsions, but "conscience still stands, like a column in 
 the midst of desolation, pointing up to God, still attest- 
 ing his holiness." God is holy; his kingdom is spirit- 
 ual. Man is a sinner, impure, unholy ; he must be born 
 again in order to see the kingdom of God. Why did 
 God bathe the sword of justice in the blood of his own 
 Son ? What tremendous emphasis this fact places on 
 God's opposition to Satan's kingdom ! "Blessed are the 
 pure in heart: for they shall see God." 
 
 3. The veracity of God is involved. Does not God 
 say, "Except a man be born again, he cannot see the 
 kingdom of God" ? Does not God say, "Ye must be born 
 again" ? Does not God say, "The soul that sinneth, it 
 shall die" ? Does not God say, "The wicked shall be 
 turned into hell, and all the nations that forget God" % 
 If God were to admit an unregenerate man into his 
 kingdom, such an act would be nothing short of an 
 impeachment of the divine veracity. 
 
 4. The admission of an unregenerate man into the 
 heavenly home would be sheer injustice to the holy 
 angels. These angels are created beings. They gladly 
 do God's bidding. Uncongenial companionship would 
 mar their pleasure forever. If their highest interests 
 are to be subserved, man must be born again before he 
 can ever be introduced into their happy circle, their 
 pure association. 
 
 5. One other consideration emphasizes the necessity 
 
Theology foe the People. 1l"-< 
 
 of regeneration: "God's own personal blessedness and 
 
 peace are involved in this issue of the purification of 
 
 man as the essential condition of his salvation. The 
 presence of sin is an offence in God's eyes ; and the 
 only circumstance which makes sin endurable in his 
 presence is his liberty to deal with it as it deserves. 
 Sin is in his presence here in this world, and in the 
 regions of the lost : but in both places he is dealing 
 with it in consistency with his own character and his 
 own claims. He is not fettered or embarrassed by it i 
 his own nature has free play in his relations to the eviL 
 But for sin to exist, and run riot in his presence under 
 a perpetual guarautee of immunity, and God himself be 
 placed under the necessity of eternally curbing the 
 natural and free action of his own character in dealing 
 with it. would ruin his peace for evermore." 
 
 We have quoted what our Saviour says of the wind. 
 S John iii. 8. ) While there is much about the wind 
 Evidences of regen- that is inexplicable, we cannot deny its 
 eranon. presence; the sound and effects of the 
 
 wind are proof of its presence. The fruits of the Spirit 
 are proof of regeneration. What are they '. "l.y}\£, joy. 
 peace, long-suffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meek- 
 ness, temperance" (Gal. v. i ) i ) . i':)). 
 
 One who knows well the necessity of regeneration 
 say-, '"A day will come when those who are not born 
 again will wish that they had never been born at all." 
 
 One who know- still better the necessity of the new 
 
 birth says, in plain, unequivocal language, "Except a 
 
 man />>■ born again, he cannot see the kingdom of 
 
 God.- 
 
 The Confession of Faith, Chap. XL. says. "Tho-e 
 
 
130 Theology for the People. 
 
 whom God effectually ealleth, lie also freely justifieth ; 
 not by infusing righteousness in them, 
 
 Justification. '' ... 
 
 but by pardoning their sins, and by 
 accounting and accepting their persons as righteous : not 
 for anything wrought in them, or done by them, but for 
 Christ's sake alone; not by imputing faith itself, the 
 act of believing, or any other evangelical obedience, to 
 them, as their righteousness ; but by imputing the 
 obedience and satisfaction of Christ unto them, they 
 receiving and resting on him and his righteousness by 
 faith ; which faith they have not of themselves, it is the 
 gift of God. Faith thus receiving and resting on Christ 
 and his righteousness, is the alone instrument of justifi- 
 cation ; yet it is not alone in the person justified, but is 
 ever accompanied with all other saving graces, and is 
 no dead faith, but worketh by love. Christ, by his 
 obedience and death, did fully discharge the debt of all 
 those that are thus justified, and did make a proper, real 
 and full satisfaction to his Father's justice in their 
 behalf. God did, from all eternity, decree to justify 
 all the elect ; and Christ did, in the fulness of time, die 
 for their sins and rise again for their justification; 
 nevertheless, they are not justified until the Holy Spirit 
 doth, in due time, actually apply Christ unto them. 
 God doth continue to forgive the sins of those that are 
 justified; and although they can never fall from the 
 state of justification, yet they may, by their sins, fall 
 under God's fatherly displeasure, and not have the light 
 of his countenance restored unto them until they humble 
 themselves, confess their sins, beg pardon, and renew 
 their faith and repentance." 
 
 Says the Shorter Catechism, "Justification is an act 
 
Theology for the People. 131 
 
 of God's free grace, wherein he pardoneth all our sins, 
 and accepteth us as righteous in his sight, only for the 
 righteousness of Christ, imputed to us, and received by 
 faith alone." 
 
 Let us consider this important subject under the four 
 following heads : 
 
 1. Its nature. Is justification a change of character 
 or a change of legal condition ? It is the latter. It is 
 not a moral change, a change within, but a change with- 
 out — a change of relation to law. We use the term in 
 the forensic sense, i. e., justification is a forensic or 
 judicial act, "an act of God as judge proceeding accord- 
 ing to law, declaring that the sinner is just, i. e., that the 
 law no longer condemns him, but acquits and pronounces 
 him to be entitled to eternal life." Justification is the 
 opposite of condemnation. See Rom. viii. 33, 34, "It is 
 God that justifieth. Who is he that condemneth ?" To 
 condemn is not to make sinful, but to pronounce guilty, 
 or worthy of punishment. To justify is not to make 
 holy, but to declare not guilty, or that the person con- 
 cerned cannot justly be condemned. The Church of 
 Rome confounds justification with sanctification. This 
 church claims two justifications. In the first, original 
 sin is removed and righteousness infused ; this takes 
 place in baptism. In the second, man receives a title to 
 eternal life on the ground of his works or character. 
 This is unscriptural. Arminianism says: Justification 
 is a change of legal condition, and means pardon. This 
 states but a part of the truth of God's Word. Calvinism 
 Bays : Justification is a change of legal condition, and 
 means pardon and acceptance. 
 
 Mere pardon is the remission of penalty in the ab- 
 
132 Theology fob the People. 
 
 sence of satisfaction to law. When God justifies, it is 
 on the ground of satisfaction rendered to law, rendered 
 by Christ in the sinner's stead ; such a justification in- 
 cludes more than pardon ; in this judicial act God 
 pardons all our sins, and accepts us as righteous in his 
 sight only for the righteousness of Christ imputed to us, 
 and received by faith - alone. It includes pardon and 
 restoration to divine favor. As stated by another, ''Jus- 
 tification is not mere pardon ; it includes pardon of sin, 
 and, in addition, the declaration that all the claims of 
 the law are satisfied with respect to the person justified, 
 and that consequently he has a right to all the immuni- 
 ties and rewards which, in the covenant of life, are 
 suspended upon perfect conformity to the demands of 
 law." 
 
 2. Its ground. Is the ground of justification sub- 
 jective or objective ? Is it based on what is within us 
 or on something outside of us \ It is the latter. The 
 ground of our justification is not our own character or 
 conduct, but the imputed righteousness of Christ. 
 Romanists erroneously claim that we are justified on 
 the ground of inherent or infused righteousness received 
 in baptism. Older Arminians assert that we are jus- 
 tified on the ground of faith, or evangelical obedience. 
 The Scriptures contradict this assertion. Wesleyan 
 Arminians claim that justification means pardon, and 
 that we are justified, or pardoned, on the ground of the 
 righteousness of Christ. They furthermore claim that 
 our title to heaven or subsequent acceptance with God 
 is based on evangelical obedience, or obedience of faith. 
 This position is untenable. The doctrine of justification 
 has been called "the corner-stone of the gospel." It is 
 
Theology foe the People. 133 
 
 •of too far-reaching, vital importance to be considered 
 in a heedless or uncandid spirit. Let me urge the reader 
 to lock up in memory the following statement and throw 
 the key away: The ground of justification is the 
 imputed righteousness of Christ. What does God's 
 Word say \ See Rom. iii. 24, 25, "Being justified freely 
 by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ 
 Jesus, whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation 
 through faith in his blood." 
 
 Bom. iv. 6, "Even as David also describeth the bless- 
 edness of the man, unto whom God imputeth righteous- 
 ness without works." 
 
 2 Cor. v. 19, 21, "To wit, that God was in Christ, 
 reconciling the world unto himself, not imputing their 
 trespasses unto them ; and hath committed unto us the 
 word of reconciliation. For he hath made him to be 
 sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made 
 the righteousness of God in him." 
 
 3. The means of justification. The Bible teaches 
 that we are justified by faith, not on account of faith. 
 We are justified by faith alone ; but not by faith which 
 is alone. Other graces accompany faith, but faith alone 
 is the means of justification. How does faith justify 
 a sinner in the sight of God ? Says the Larger Cate- 
 chism: "Faith justifies a sinner in the sight of God, 
 not because of those other graces which do always accom- 
 pany it, or of good works that are the fruits of it : nor as 
 if the grace of faith, or any act thereof, were imputed 
 to him for justification ; but only as it is an instrument, 
 by which he receiveth and applieth Christ and his 
 righteousness." 
 
 Faith is not meritorious; it is simply instrumental, 
 
134 Theology for the Peoplk. 
 
 i. e., the instrument of receiving Christ and his right- 
 eousness. 
 
 Says Rom. iii. 20, "Therefore by the deeds of the law 
 there shall no flesh be justified in his sight." 
 
 The law of God shows man to be a great and helpless 
 sinner. We recognize the fact that great offences call 
 for great penalties. By penalty we mean suffering- 
 exacted of the law-breaker. The penalty shows that man 
 is a great sinner. If man is not a great sinner, "God is 
 either unwise, and does not know how to proportion the 
 penalty to the offence ; or he is unjust, and deliberately 
 refuses to establish the right proportion." 
 
 The law provides no remedy for fallen man. The 
 mirror may show facial blemishes, but does not remove 
 them. The physician's thermometer may tell how much 
 fever the patient has, but does nothing to abate the fever. 
 The mariner's compass tells the direction the ship is 
 sailing, but does not alter the course. The steam-gauge 
 tells the engineer the amount of steam, but does nothing 
 to increase or diminish the amount. The measuring rod 
 may show the carpenter the length of a piece of timber, 
 but neither increases nor diminishes length. Man needs 
 not only acquittal at the bar of justice, but also inward 
 purity. The violated law can furnish neither. Does a 
 statute against theft produce honesty of disposition ? 
 Does a statute against adultery produce purity of heart ? 
 Certainly not. Can a law-breaker acquit himself before 
 the very law which finds him guilty ? It is too late now 
 to look to the law for salvation. If it were possible to be 
 perfect from the present moment till the close of life, 
 how about past sins I 
 
 If, like the young ruler, Mark x. 20, we say, "Master, 
 
Theology for the People. 135 
 
 all these have I observed from my youth," how about 
 original sin? The obedience demanded is perfect; it 
 must commence at the very beginning of life, and con- 
 tinue without the slightest interruption till the close of 
 life. If guilty of oxe sinful thought, word or deed, what 
 is the inevitable result '. Let James ii. 10 answer, ""Tor 
 whosoever shall keep the whole law, and yet offend in 
 oxe point, he is guilty of all." He is guilty of not keep- 
 ing the whole law; he breaks the whole law, but not the 
 whole of the law. He sins against love, which is the 
 sum of the law. His is an act of rebellion against the 
 God of all law. Reference in James ii. 10 is to the 
 certainty of condemnation ; he is as certainly condemned 
 as if guilty of a violation of all law. One broken link 
 breaks the chain. One discordant note destroys the har- 
 mony of music. One broken wheel stops the mechinery. 
 One broken rail stops the train. One inch cut out of the 
 telegraph wire stops all communication. 
 
 A man who violates one statute and is imprisoned 
 for life, is as much imprisoned as if he had violated 
 every statute in the law-book. The man who commits 
 murder and goes to the gallows, dies as surely as if guilty 
 of every capital offence. Says Gal. iii. 10, "Cursed is 
 every one that continueth not in all things which are 
 written in the book of the law to do them." 
 
 Let us briefly consider two passages of Scripture 
 which are regarded by some as teaching that we are 
 justified by works: Rom. ii. 13, "For not the hearers 
 of the law are just before God, but the doers of the law 
 shall be justified." In this passage "Paul is not speak- 
 ing of the method of justification available for sinners, 
 but of tlic principles on which all who are out of Christ 
 
13(5 Theology for the People. 
 
 arc to be judged. They are to be judged impartially, 
 according to their works, and agreeably to their know- 
 ledge of duty. On these principles no living flesh can 
 be justified in the sight of God." James ii. 24, "Ye see 
 then how that by works a man is justified, and not by 
 faith only." In this passage James is not discussing 
 the doctrine of the justification of the unbeliever ; he is 
 simply showing the relation of works to faith. Saving 
 faith is followed by good works ; if these are wanting, 
 faith is dead. ]STow we see there is no contradiction 
 between James ii. 24, "Ye see then how that by works 
 a. man is justified, and not by faith only," and Rom. 
 iii. 28, "Therefore we conclude that a man is justified 
 by faith, without the deeds of the law." Read Rom. 
 iii. 20, "Therefore by the deeds of the law there shall 
 no flesh be justified in his sight." Let the following 
 be borne in mind : "Paul uses the word justify in the 
 sense of God's justification of the sinner, to which faith, 
 and not works, is prerequisite. James uses the word 
 justify in the sense of prove true or real; in which sense 
 faith is justified or proved genuine by works." This 
 sheds light on James ii. 21, "Was not Abraham our 
 father justified by works, when he had offered Isaac 
 his son upon the altar ?" Long years before the offering 
 of Isaac, Abraham had been justified in the sight of God. 
 Faith without works is dead. The offering of Isaac 
 proved the genuineness of Abraham's faith and spirit 
 of obedience. 
 
 The same is true of James ii. 25, which asserts that 
 Rahab was "justified by works, when she had received 
 the messengers, and had sent them out another way." 
 In ITeb. xi. 31, we are told that Rahab received them 
 
Theology for the People. 137 
 
 by faith. Their reception evinced the sincerity of her 
 faith. 
 
 If you ask, How is a man justified before God? I 
 answer, By faith. If you ask, How is a man justified 
 before men, i. e., how is the genuineness of his faith 
 manifested ? I answer, By works. Both answers would 
 be correct. James and Paul do not contradict each 
 other. The position of the former is clearly stated in 
 James ii. 18, 26, "I will show thee my faith by my 
 works. For as the body without the spirit is dead, so 
 faith without works is dead also." 
 
 Can "the deeds of the law," or man's character or 
 conduct, place the crown of righteousness on the sinner's 
 head ? Never ! Grace and works are mutually exclu- 
 sive; they are antithetical. See Rom. iv. 4, "To him 
 that worketh is the reward not reckoned of grace, but of 
 debt." Eom. xi. 6, "If by grace, then it is no more of 
 works : otherwise grace is no more grace." These two 
 passages should settle this question, and settle it forever. 
 If I promise a man one dollar for a day's work, at the 
 close of the day, when the work has been faithfully 
 performed, I hand him the dollar ; is that an act of 
 grace, i. e., of unmerited favor ? Surely not. It is a 
 matter of debt, an act of sheer justice. Now, read 
 Rom. iv. 4 again. If we are justified by works, salva- 
 tion becomes a matter of debt, and Paul was in error 
 when he exclaimed, "By the grace of God I am what I 
 am." Read carefully John vi. 28, 29, "Then said they 
 unto him, What shall we do, that we might work the 
 works of God ? Jesus answered and said unto them, 
 This is the work of God, that ye believe on him whom he 
 hath sent." 
 
138 Theology foe the People. 
 
 Says Bora, v. 1, ''Therefore, being justified by faith, 
 we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ." 
 Glorious doctrine ! Glorious scheme of redemption ! 
 "By the grace of God I am what I am." The imputed 
 righteousness of Christ is received by faith alone. "It 
 is, therefore, the righteousness of Christ, his perfect 
 obedience in doing and suffering the will of God, which. 
 is imputed to the believer, and on the ground of which 
 the believer, although in himself ungodly, is pronounced 
 righteous, and, therefore, free from the curse of the law, 
 and entitled to eternal life." To explain away this 
 fundamental truth "is to absorb, as with a sponge, the 
 life-blood of the gospel." 
 
 " Xot the labor of my hands 
 Can fulfil the law's demands; 
 Could my zeal no respite know, 
 Could my tears forever flow, 
 All for sin could not atone, 
 Thou must save, and thou alone." 
 
 4. The effect of justification". The Scriptures 
 teach that justification is a permanent change of legal 
 condition. One effect of justification is peace with God. 
 Says Rom. v. 1, "Therefore, being justified by faith, we 
 have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ." 
 In addition, justification gives a title to eternal life. 
 "That as sin hath reigned unto death, even so might 
 grace reign through righteousness unto eternal life by 
 Jesus Christ our Lord" (Bom. v. 21). 
 
 The thoughtful mind asks the question, What is the 
 relation of justification to the believer's future sins ? 
 Does God pardon future sins before they are committed ? 
 
Theology fob the People. 139 
 
 Says Dr. Dabney, "Justification from future sins is 
 not so much a pardoning of them before they are com- 
 mitted as an unfailing provision by God, both of the 
 meritorious and instrumental causes of their pardon, as 
 they are committed." 
 
 Says the Confession of Faith, "All those that are 
 
 justified, God vouchsafeth, in and for his only Son Jesus 
 
 Christ, to make partakers of the grace 
 
 Adoption. , . 
 
 of adoption ; by which they are taken 
 into the number, and enjoy the liberties and privileges 
 of the children of God ; have his name put upon them ; 
 receive the Spirit of adoption ; have access to the throne 
 of grace with boldness ; are enabled to cry, Abba, 
 Father ; are pitied, protected, provided for, and chas- 
 tened by him as by a father ; yet never cast off, but 
 sealed to the day of redemption, and inherit the prom- 
 ises, as heirs of everlasting salvation." 
 
 As defined by the Shorter Catechism, "Adoption is 
 an act of God's free grace, whereby we are received into 
 the number, and have a right to all the privileges, of 
 the sons of God." 
 
 It is the humble judgment of the writer that our great 
 theological authors have not accorded this subject the 
 consideration which its importance demands ; further- 
 more, some of them, at least, have failed to grasp the 
 real nature of the change involved in adoption. Dr. 
 Charles Jlodge, in his Systematic Theology, three 
 volumes, docs not devote a separate chapter to this sub- 
 ject, and his treatment of the same is very brief. Dr. 
 Dabney, in his Theology, devotes a fraction of a page 
 to the consideration of this subject. Such able, scholarly 
 men as Turretin, Owen and others regard adoption as a 
 
140 Theology foe the People. 
 
 constituent element of justification. From this opinion 
 I respectfully dissent. Adoption is a distinct head in 
 theology. When a man exercises personal trust in the 
 Lord Jesns Christ, two changes take place; one without ; 
 the other within. The former is a change of relation 
 to God and to his law ; the latter is a change of nature. 
 Justification and adoption are the terms employed to 
 express the change of relation, while regeneration and 
 sanctification are the terms used to express the change 
 within. The logical position of adoption is between jus- 
 tification and sanctification. In order that we may 
 clearly apprehend this important subject, let us remem- 
 ber that there are two relations which are perfectly com- 
 patible: (1) Servile. (2) Filial. A failure to observe 
 this fact has begotten confusion in many minds. Before 
 the death of Queen Victoria, the Prince of Wales was 
 both her subject and her son. In his relation to her 
 kingdom he was her subject ; in his relation to her home 
 he was her son. He was a citizen of her kingdom, a son 
 in her home. 
 
 In the Scriptures, Christ himself is presented as the 
 mediatorial servant of God, and also as the well-beloved 
 Son of God. The two relations are not incompatible. 
 Through sin man was divested of his rights as a citizen, 
 and of his privileges as a son ; he became a citizen of 
 Satan's kingdom, and a child of the devil. The great 
 redemptive scheme provides for reinstatement in both 
 relationships, viz., of a citizen in God's kingdom, and 
 of a son in God's family. Justification deals with the 
 believer in his relation as subject; adoption deals with 
 him in his relation as son. What does the child of God 
 receive in regeneration % A new heart. What does he 
 
Theology for the People. 141 
 
 receive in adoption \ A legal right, i. e., a right to all 
 the privileges of the sons of God. 
 
 Justification confers the rights and privileges of 
 citizenship in the kingdom of God. Adoption confers the 
 rights and privileges of sonship in the house of God. 
 God has both a kingdom and a home ; in the former he 
 is Ruler ; in the latter he is Father. 
 
 Regeneration is related to sanctification as birth to 
 growth. This great inward change, which begins in 
 regeneration, and is carried on to completeness in sanc- 
 tification, fits the believer for the duties and benefits of 
 the two relations of citizenship and sonship. 
 
 In the act of adoption, from what family is the be- 
 liever taken ? In John viii. 44 Jesus said to the Jews, 
 "Ye are of your father, the devil." Lest we should con- 
 clude that this statement must be restricted to the Jews, 
 let us see what is affirmed in 1 John iii. 8, 10, "He that 
 committeth sin is of the devil. In this the children of 
 God are manifest, and the children of the devil ; whoso- 
 ever doeth not righteousness is not of God, neither he 
 that loveth not his brother." In Eph. ii. 2 we are told 
 that Satan is "the spirit that now worketh in the. chil- 
 dren of disobedience." The unsaved may indignantly 
 decline to admit the relation, yet their sinful thoughts 
 and actions unite with Scripture in proclaiming the 
 reality of the relation. 
 
 JSTow, into what family is the believer adopted ? Into 
 the family of God. Who are members of this happy 
 family \ 
 
 (1) Jesus Christ our "Elder Brother." He is "the 
 first-born among many brethren." In Heb. ii. 11, 12 
 we read, "For which cause he is not ashamed to call 
 
142 Theology foe the People. 
 
 them brethren, saying, I will declare thy name unto my 
 brethren." 
 
 (2) The holv angels. They are called sons of God. 
 Job xxxyiii. 7, "When the morning stars sang together, 
 and all the sons of God shouted for joy." 
 
 (3) Believers of every age and nation. "Behold what 
 manner of love the Father hath bestowed upon us, that 
 we should be called the sons of God." 
 
 There are points of resemblance between civil and 
 spiritual adoption, e. g., in each there is the transfer of 
 the adopted person from the home in which he was born 
 to the home of another. In each, too, the adopted person 
 is invested with the rights and privileges of sonship, 
 including heirship. 
 
 There are also points of difference, e. g., recourse is 
 had to ciyil adoption in order to provide for want of 
 children in the home ; and while some who adopt may 
 be actuated, to a limited degree, by a desire to help the 
 child, yet the dominant motive is frequently to con- 
 tribute to the comfort and happiness of the home. 
 
 God has a happy family, and would continue to have 
 such if not a single human being were received into the 
 heavenly home-circle. The addition of every human 
 person could not in the least augment the felicity of 
 the Father. His blessedness has ever been complete. 
 Then, too, civil adoption proceeds on the supposition of 
 good, noble qualities in the person adopted. Is it rea- 
 sonable to suppose that the daughter of Pharaoh would 
 have adopted Moses as "her son," had he not been "a 
 goodly child" ? Is it usual for parties to adopt children 
 if the little ones are frail, or diseased, or deformed? 
 Certainly not. Let us bow down in adoring wonder at 
 
Theology for the People. 143 
 
 the infinite merer and goodness of God, who "com- 
 mendeth (renders conspicuous) his love toward us, in 
 that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us" 
 (Rom. v. 8). Furthermore, civil adoption is limited in 
 its reach, — restricted to one person, or, at least, to a 
 very small number. Those adopted into God's family 
 will constitute a great multitude which no man can 
 number. Says Heb. ii. 10, "For it became him, for 
 whom are all things, and by whom are all things, in 
 bringing many sons unto glory, to make the captain of 
 their salvation perfect through suffering." 
 
 Let us note briefly some of the blessings enjoyed in 
 consequence of spiritual adoption : 
 
 (1) The children of God receive the Spirit of adop- 
 tion. Gal. iv. 6, "And because ye are sons, God hath 
 sent forth the Spirit of his Son into your hearts, crying, 
 Abba, Father." The indwelling of the Holy Spirit 
 forcns in us more and more of the filial spirit. We are 
 already invested with the rights and privileges of sons; 
 and the Holy Spirit produces in us more and more of 
 the temper or disposition of sons ; so that the inward, 
 filial spirit is developed toward the fruition of the out- 
 ward rights and privileges of sonship. A spirit of obedi- 
 ence is fostered (1 Peter i. 14). Freedom from "sense 
 of guilt, legal bondage, fear of death (Rom. viii. 15; 
 Heb. ii. 15), and elevated with a holy boldness and royal 
 dignity (Heb. x. 19, 22 ; 1 Peter ii. 9 ; iv. 11)/' 
 
 (2) The children of God have the assurance that their 
 Father provides for all their wants; he furnishes just 
 what he sees will be best for them. What we frequently 
 desire might not be promotive of our best interests. It 
 is true that God bestows temporal blessings upon the 
 
144 Theology for the People. 
 
 unsaved as well as upon his adopted children. There 
 is no question as to the fact of receiving ; but how about 
 the right of receiving them % These and all other bless- 
 ings belong to God's children by right of sonship, a right 
 purchased through the mediation of Christ. Read Gal. 
 iv. 4, 5, "God sent forth his Son, made of a woman, made 
 under the law, to redeem them that were under the law, 
 that we might receive the adoption of sons." Now, note 
 1 Cor. ^'ii. 21 _ 23, "For all things are yours; and ye are 
 Christ's," etc. Suppose a man is convicted of murder 
 and sent back to jail awaiting the day of execution. 
 What right has he to the nourishment he receives during 
 this interval % Why is the food given ? Is it not simply 
 to prolong life until the day of execution ? The unsaved 
 are already condemned. What right have they to the 
 blessings which sustain life until the day of execution I 
 
 God will provide for his children; will protect his 
 children ; will cause all things to work together for their 
 good. 
 
 (3) God's children are subject to paternal discipline. 
 The afflictions that come upon them are fatherly chas- 
 tisements. "Whom the Lord loveth he chasteneth." 
 The truth of this seemingly paradoxical statement will 
 be manifest if we would keep in mind: (1) "The end 
 proposed." (2) "The effect produced." Says another: 
 "But, as in a human family, he that spares the rod 
 hates his son, because, through mistaken tenderness, he 
 suffers him to escape with impunity when he has com- 
 mitted a fault, and thus permits his wayward inclination 
 to gather strength, and vicious habits to be formed, 
 which will entail misery upon him here and hereafter; 
 so, in the family of God, the want of discipline would 
 
Theology for the People. 145 
 
 be an evidence, not of love, but of neglect and indiffer- 
 ence to the interest of the members." 
 
 We are taught in Heb. xii. 10 that God chastens us 
 "for our profit, that we might be partakers of his 
 holiness." 
 
 Comforting indeed is the assurance in Heb. xii. 11, 
 "Now no chastening for the present seemeth to-be joyous, 
 but grievous; nevertheless, afterward it yieldeth the 
 peaceable fruit of righteousness unto them which are 
 exercised thereby." Do not forget the word, "after- 
 
 WAED.'" 
 
 (4) A glorious and eternal inheritance. Read Eom. 
 viii. 17, "And if children, then heirs; heirs of God, 
 and joint heirs with Christ ; if so be that we suffer with 
 him, that we may be also glorified together." 
 
 1 Peter i. 4 speaks of "an inheritance incorruptible,, 
 and undefiled, and that fadeth not away, reserved in 
 heaven" for the children of God. 
 
 Happy Children of God ! 
 
 " To them the privilege is given 
 To be the sons and heirs of heaven; 
 Sons of the God who reigns on high, 
 And heirs of joy beyond the sky." 
 
 " Their daily wants his hands supply, 
 Their steps he guards with watchful eye; 
 Leads them from earth to heaven above, 
 And crowns them with eternal love." 
 
 The Confession of Faith, Chap. XIII. , says : "They 
 
 who are effectually called and regenerated, having a new 
 
 heart and a new spirit created in them, 
 
 Sanctiflcation. r ' 
 
 are further sanctified, really and per- 
 sonally, through the virtue of Christ's death and resur- 
 10 
 
146 Theology for the People. 
 
 reetion by his Word and Spirit dwelling in them; the 
 dominion of the whole body of sin is destroyed, and the 
 several lusts thereof are more and more weakened and 
 mortified, and they more and more quickened and 
 strengthened, in all saving graces, to the practice of true 
 holiness, without which no man shall see the Lord. This 
 sanctification is throughout in the whole man, yet imper- 
 fect in this life ; there abideth still some remnants of 
 corruption in every part, whence ariseth a continual 
 and irreconcilable war, the flesh lusting against the 
 Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh. In which war, 
 although the remaining corruption for a time may much 
 prevail, yet, through the continual supply of strength 
 from the sanctifying Spirit of Christ, the regenerate 
 part doth overcome ; and so the saints grow in grace, 
 perfecting holiness in the fear of God." 
 
 As more briefly defined in the Shorter Catechism: 
 "Sanctification is the work of God's free grace, whereby 
 we are renewed in the whole man after the image of 
 God, and are enabled more and more to die unto sin, 
 and live unto righteousness.'' Let the reader observe 
 that while justification is an act, and adoption is an act, 
 sanctification is a work. As before stated, regeneration 
 is related to sanctification as birth to growth. The 
 spiritual life of the soul begins in regeneration ; the 
 development, of the spiritual life is what we mean by 
 sanctification. 
 
 In the eighth chapter of Luke we are told of the death 
 of the daughter of Jairus, and of her restoration to life. 
 Jesus said, "Maid, arise. And her spirit came again, 
 and she arose straightway : and he commanded to give 
 her meat.'' If we let the passing from death to life rep- 
 
Theology for the People. 
 
 147 
 
 resent regeneration, the strength imparted by the nour- 
 ishment will represent sanctifieation. If the birth of a 
 child represent regeneration, the growth of the child 
 will represent sanctifieation. The babe may be well 
 formed, or perfect in the sense that no feature or mem- 
 ber is wanting; still it is a babe in weakness, all its 
 faculties are feeble; as the child grows, its faculties 
 acquire vigor. In regeneration the new creature is 
 formed ; in sanctifieation the new creature is developed. 
 In regeneration there is no cooperation between man 
 and the Spirit ; in sanctifieation there is cooperation 
 between the two. The babe cannot assist in its own 
 production or birth ; but it can assist in its own growth. 
 Perhaps some light can be shed on the doctrine of sanc- 
 tifieation by contrasting it in parallel columns with the 
 doctrine of justification: 
 
 Justification. 
 
 1. An act. 
 
 2. Objective; change without. 
 
 3. Change of relation to law. 
 
 4. Takes away the guilt of sin. 
 
 5. Founded on what Christ has 
 
 done for us. 
 
 6. Complete. 
 
 7. Same in all believers. 
 
 Sanctification. 
 A work. 
 
 Subjective; change within. 
 Change of nature. 
 Cleanses from the stain or 
 
 pollution of sin. 
 Effect of what Christ does 
 
 in us by his Word and 
 
 Spirit. 
 Progressive. 
 More complete in some than 
 
 in others. 
 
 In every believer there are two contending principles ; 
 the one good, the other evil. As the good gains in 
 strength and masterfulness, the evil becomes weaker. 
 In 2 Sam. iii. 1 we read, "Now, there was long war 
 between the house of Saul and the house of David ; but 
 David waxed stronger and stronger, and the house of 
 
148 Theology yob. the People. 
 
 Saul waxed weaker and weaker.'' This illustrates the 
 inward process. The Spirit having commenced his work 
 in the soul, ''never pauses or rests in his holy activities 
 until his gracious task is consummated in the entire 
 eradication of sin and the complete establishment of 
 holiness as the law and habit of the renewed nature." 
 In the seventh chapter of Romans we have a faithful 
 description of the presence and power of these two con- 
 flicting principles in the life of the Apostle Paul. I am 
 aware of the fact that repeated efforts have been made 
 to show that in this chapter Paul is not detailing his 
 own experience. I am also aware of the fact that long 
 centuries ago an effort was made to erect a "tower, whose 
 top" should "reach unto heaven." 
 
 In the work of sanctification the believer is "enabled 
 more and more to die unto sin and live unto righteous- 
 ness." Says another: "To die unto anything in the 
 scriptural sense, is to lose interest in it, to cease to feel 
 its attractions, to rise above it into a sphere where it 
 no longer holds or affects either the sensibilities or the 
 will, — in a word, to give it up and abandon it as no 
 longer an end to which the life and powers are to be 
 devoted." 
 
 What is meant by more and more living unto right- 
 eousness ? It means "to have our souls so quickened 
 by the vivifying power of grace, as to love and obey the 
 commands of God, truly, heartily, prevalently and per- 
 severingly." Our Confession says: "This sanctification 
 is throughout in the whole man, yet imperfect in this 
 life." 
 
 As expressed in the Shorter Catechism, "We are 
 renewed in the whole man, after the image of God." 
 
Theology fob the People. 149 
 
 The "whole man," i. e., every faculty of man comes 
 under the sanctifying power of divine grace. 
 
 Sanctification is "imperfect in this life." The Bible 
 teaches that the inward conflict between the good and 
 evil principles continues till death ; also, that nothing 
 impure shall enter the heavenly home; consequently 
 our Shorter Catechism is correct in saying: "The souls 
 of believers are at their death made perfect in holiness, 
 and do immediately pass into glory; and their bodies, 
 being still united to Christ, do rest in their graves till 
 the resurrection." In no case is sin entirely subdued 
 in the present life. 
 
 We admit that the question is not as to the command 
 of God; not as to the duty of believers; neither does 
 it concern the promises of God nor the provisions of the 
 gospel. The real question is, Does God promise to make 
 his people perfectly holy "in this life"? It is true, God 
 commands us to be holy. It is equally true that we 
 ought to be holy. It is also true that God's children 
 will he holy ; but not in this life. "We ought to be like 
 Christ ; this is the Christian's aim. We are to be like 
 Christ; this is the Christian's hope; but perfection 
 is not attainable in this life." "No mere man, since the 
 fall, is able in this life perfectly to keep the commands 
 of God; but doth daily break them in thought, word, 
 and deed." Those who lay claim to "sinless perfection" 
 betray ignorance of themselves and of the Scriptures. 
 Are our thoughts always pure ? Are our words always 
 fitly spoken ? What does Jesus say in Matt. xii. 26 ? 
 "But I say unto you, That every idle word that men 
 shall speak, they shall give account thereof in the day 
 of judgment," What is an idle word? "One that is 
 
150 Theology for the People. 
 
 not necessary, and that does not tend to produce some 
 good result." 
 
 Are our actions always in perfect accord with the will 
 of God % Are we never guilty of sins of commission ? 
 Are we never guilty of sins of omission ? Do we fully 
 obey the divine injunction, "Whether ye eat or drink, 
 or whatsoever ye do, do all to the glory of God ?" 
 
 In 1 John i. 8 we read : "If we say we have no sin, 
 we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us." 
 
 What does the petition, "Forgive us our debts as we 
 forgive our debtors," mean in the light of so-called sin- 
 less perfection ? Says Eccl. vii. 20, "There is not a just 
 man upon earth, that doeth good, and sinneth not." 
 When the Bible says, "Behold the perfect man," the 
 perfection here "can mean nothing more than integrity 
 or sincerity. He is perfect who unfeignedly loves God, 
 and has respect to all his commands." In Gen. vi. 9, 
 I read: "Noah was a just man, and perfect in his 
 generations." Later on, in Gen. ix. 20, 21, I read: 
 "And Noah began to be an husbandman, and he planted 
 a vineyard ; and he drank of the wine, and was 
 drunken." Now I know that the word perfect must be 
 used in its proper, restricted sense. We must let Scrip- 
 ture interpret Scripture. As we read the history of 
 God's children as recorded in the Bible, we find that 
 Abraham was guilty of lying, Gen. xii. 19; Noah of 
 drunkenness, Gen. ix. 21; David of adultery and mur- 
 der. We note, too, what is said of Moses, Ps. xc. 8 ; of 
 Job, in Job xlii. 5, 6 ; of Daniel, in Dan. ix. 20 ; of 
 Zacharias, in Luke i. 6, 20 ; of Paul, in Bom. vii. 7-25 ; 
 Phil. iv. 12-14. 
 
 The term perfect, as applied to God's children, does 
 
Theology for the People. 151 
 
 i 
 
 not mean "sinless perfection." There is a sense, how- 
 ever, in which God's children are perfect in this life. A 
 few years ago, a good old woman who believed in the doc- 
 trine of perfect sanctification, called to see me to cor- 
 rect my views on this subject. After conversing with 
 her a few moments, I discovered that she was not a 
 woman of much intellectual vigor, and concluded that 
 an object-lesson might assist in correcting her views. On 
 the table near me was a plate of apples. I took one of 
 the apples, which proved to be defective, and cut it in 
 four parts. Removing one part, I held up the other 
 three parts, and said : "Madam, is this a perfect apple ?" 
 She replied, "No, sir." "Why not?" "Because one 
 part is missing." Quickly adjusting the part, I said, 
 "Madam, is this a perfect apple ?" "Yes, sir." "In 
 what sense ?" "In the sense that all the parts of the 
 apple are present." "You admit, now, that this is a 
 perfect apple ?" "I do." Then turning the defective 
 side, which she had not observed, I said, "Madam, is 
 this a perfect apple ?" She hesitated a moment, and 
 then said, "No, sir." "ISTow," said I, "perhaps this will 
 enable you to see the subject as I see it. I hold that in 
 the believer all the parts, or graces, of the Christian 
 character are present, e. g., love, joy, peace, confidence, 
 humility, etc., but they are not present in their complete- 
 ness. Thus we see that in one sense a Christian is per- 
 fect in this life ; while in another sense he is imper- 
 fect." Before parting company with my aged friend, 
 let me say, that in a few days after our interview, she 
 united with the Presbyterian Church, and, I trust, is on 
 her way to perfection. 
 
 In the great work of sanctification the Holy Spirit is 
 
152 Theology eok the People. 
 
 the agent. He employs means. The Word of God is 
 both the rule and means of our sanctification. It "is 
 the rule according to which the Spirit works, forming 
 in us those dispositions which the Word promises or 
 requires ; and also the rule according to which we should 
 work in the whole course of our Christian profession." 
 In John xvii. 17, our Saviour prays: "Sanctify them 
 through thy truth," i. e., bring the truth to bear more 
 effectively and powerfully on the minds and hearts of 
 believers, — bring them more and more under its con- 
 trolling, regulative influence. Divine ordinances are 
 means of sanctification, e. g., prayer and the Lord's Sup- 
 per. The dispensations of Providence are also means 
 of sanctification. In Ps. cxix. 67, 71, we read : "Before 
 I was afflicted I went astray ; but now have I kept thy 
 word. It is good for me that I have been afflicted ; that 
 I might learn thy statutes." 
 
 "What though my joys and comforts die? 
 
 The Lord my Saviour liveth ; 
 What though the darkness gather round? 
 
 Songs in the night he giveth ; 
 No storm can shake my inmost calm, 
 
 While to that refuge clinging; 
 Since Christ is Lord of heaven and earth, 
 
 How can T keep from singing?" 
 
CHAPTER X. 
 
 Christian Life : Faith, Repentance, Good Works, 
 Perseverance and Assurance. 
 
 CHAPTER XIV. of the Confession of Faith says : 
 "The grace of faith, whereby the elect are enabled 
 to believe to the saving of their souls, 
 is the work of the Spirit of Christ in 
 their hearts ; and is ordinarily wrought by the ministry 
 of the Word ; by which also, and by the administration 
 of the sacraments, and prayer, it is increased and 
 strengthened. By this faith, a Christian believeth to 
 be true whatsoever is revealed in the Word, for the 
 authority of God himself speaking therein ; and acteth 
 differently, upon that which each particular passage 
 thereof containeth ; yielding obedience to the commands, 
 trembling at the threatenings, and embracing the 
 promises of God for this life, and that which is to come. 
 But the principal acts of saving faith are accepting, 
 receiving and resting upon Christ alone for justification, 
 sanctification and eternal life, by virtue of the covenant 
 of grace. This faith is different in degrees, weak or 
 strong ; may be often and many ways assailed and weak- 
 ened, but gets the victory ; growing up in many to the 
 attainment of a full assurance through Christ, who is 
 both the author and finisher of our faith." 
 
 Let us consider this subject under the following heads : 
 1. Different species or kinds of faith mentioned in 
 Scripture : 
 
154 Theology for the People. 
 
 (1) Historical faith, i. e., simple assent to the truth 
 of the Christian system. 
 
 (2) Temporary faith, a faith that is without repent- 
 ance. This is the kind of faith exercised by the stony- 
 ground hearers, mentioned in the parable of the sower, 
 Matt. xiii. 18-23, "But he that receiveth the seed into 
 stony places, the same is he that heareth the Word, and 
 anon ivith joy receiveth it; yet hath he not root in him- 
 self, but dureth for awhile; but when tribulation or 
 persecution ariseth because of the Word, by and by he 
 is offended." 
 
 (3) Faith of devils. Says the Bible: "The devils also 
 believe and tremble." They are not in doubt as to God's 
 existence, wisdom, power, justice, hatred of sin. 
 
 "There is no skepticism in hell." 
 
 (4) Saving faith, i. e., the faith which receives salva- 
 tion as it is offered in the gospel. 
 
 2. Nature of faith. Faith in the generic sense is 
 assent to a proposition. Faith in the religious sense 
 is assent to a proposition plus trust in a person. Since 
 faith is the acceptance of a thing as true, it is obvious 
 that in order to its acceptance there must be something 
 to show that it is true. We now see that faith is con- 
 fidence in testimony. Saving faith is the acceptance 
 of the truth of God's Word on the testimony of God 
 himself; it is faith in the testimony and in him who 
 testifies. 
 
 3. Object of faith. While faith accepts as true the 
 whole testimony of God, the object of saving faith is 
 Christ crucified. It is assent to the proposition that 
 Christ was crucified, and also trust in Christ crucified. 
 .As stated in the Confession, "the principal acts of saving 
 
Theology for the People. 155 
 
 faith are accepting, receiving and resting upon Christ 
 alone for justification, sanctification and eternal life, hy 
 virtue of the covenant of grace." 
 
 4. Offices of faith. Says another: "The offices 
 assigned it in the economy of redemption are manifold. 
 It is absolutely necessary to give effect to the great 
 redemption for the benefit of any individual soul. It 
 is the principle that unites to Christ and secures his 
 functions as a Saviour. It is the instrument by which 
 grace is received. It is the instrument of justification. 
 It develops the power of the truth by giving evidence 
 to things unseen, and thus makes it the instrument of 
 sanctification. It animates all the graces of the renewed 
 soul. It is the principle which regulates the visible walk 
 and conversation. It gives power to prayer ; it inspires 
 zeal ; it develops comfort ; it overcomes the world ; it 
 triumphs over death; it crowns with full accomplish- 
 ment that promise of salvation which it sealed the first 
 moment of its exercise." An old, familiar illustration 
 may throw some light on the important subject of faith. 
 Suppose a man is imprisoned for a debt which he is 
 utterly unable to pay. He receives a note from a friend 
 who offers to pay the debt and thus set the prisoner free. 
 The note is as follows : 
 
 My Dear Sir and Friend : 
 
 Having heard of your imprisonment for a debt 
 of $50,000.00, I hereby gladly assume said debt, on 
 condition that you notify me of your willingness to allow 
 me to pay the same. This offer will hold good for thirty 
 days. (Signed.) 
 
 (Date.) 
 
156 Theology for the People. 
 
 There are different ways in which the note may be 
 dealt with, all involving the refusal of the offer. The 
 prisoner might claim that the note was not authentic; 
 that his friend did not write it, and, consequently, it 
 could bring no relief. Or, admitting that his friend did 
 write the note, the debtor might insist that his friend 
 was not financially able to make good his proposition. 
 Or, admitting that his friend did write the note, and was 
 amply able to pay the debt, the prisoner might insist 
 that the proposition was not made in good faith ; that 
 his friend was unwilling to assume such a responsibility. 
 The offer would still be rejected. Admitting that his 
 friend did write the note, and that he was both able and 
 willing to pay the debt, pride might prompt the prisoner 
 to decline the offer. He might maintain that his pre- 
 vious standing in society would not suffer him to submit 
 to the humiliation involved in the acceptance of his 
 friend's offer. Or, admitting the authenticity of the 
 letter, his friend's willingness and ability to pay, and, 
 in the absence of a spirit of false pride, the prisoner 
 might say : "This is indeed a generous offer, and I shall 
 accept it in a few days. For the present, I am deeply 
 interested in certain papers and books which I am read- 
 ing." Much to his surprise, the month goes by, and his 
 failure to accept the offer within the thirty days practi- 
 cally means the rejection of the offer. Now, in order to 
 the securing of the benefits of the proposition, the 
 prisoner must not only admit the authenticity of the 
 letter, the offerer's willingness and ability to pay; he 
 
 MUST ACCEPT THE OFFER, AXD DO SO WITHIN THE TIME 
 
 designated. The moment he accepts it, even before the 
 doors of the prison swing open, his heart thrills with joy 
 
Theology for the People. 157 
 
 in glad anticipation of liberty. His acceptance of the 
 offer includes faith in the note and trust in his friend. 
 Let us apply the illustration. In our natural estate we 
 are in cruel bondage ; we cannot pay the debt, and thus 
 liberate ourselves. 
 
 Our best Friend has written us a note (Bible), and 
 offers to pay the debt and set us free. We must believe 
 that he is the author of the note; that he is able and 
 willing to make good his proposition ; we must accept 
 
 THE OFFER. 
 
 This acceptance of the offer is belief of testimony and 
 trust in him who testifies. This acceptance implies the 
 concurrence of the heart and the persuasion of the under- 
 standing. The affections must be enlisted. Says Horn. 
 x. 10, "For with the heart man believeth unto righteous- 
 ness." Note 1 John v. 9, "If we receive the witness 
 of men, the witness of God is greater." In the testimony 
 of God there is no possibility of mistake ; there is no 
 possibility of deception ; there is reference to things of 
 supreme importance concerning which the testimony of 
 man can give no information. 
 
 In saving faith we must renounce all dependence upon 
 our own efforts for salvation ; we must have confidence 
 in Christ's willingness and ability to save us ; we must 
 make a free and full surrender of self to Christ, When 
 critically ill, we know how to place ourselves in the hands 
 of the faithful physician, and let him treat our case. 
 Jesus is the Great Physician. Shall we desist from 
 efforts to save ourselves and let him treat our case ?' 
 Says another: "Faith in God includes two things — 
 1. Believing what he tells us. 2. Trusting him for what 
 we need." How precious the words, "Believe on the 
 Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved." 
 
158 Theology for the People. 
 
 "J heard the voice of Jesus say, 
 
 Behold, 1 freely give 
 The living water; thirsty one, 
 
 Stoop down, and drink, and live. 
 I came to Jesus, and I drank 
 
 Of that life-giving stream; 
 My thirst was quenched, my soul revived, 
 
 And now I iive in him." 
 
 Philip Henry once said: "Some people do not like 
 
 to hear much of repentance; but I think it so necessary, 
 
 that if I should die in the pulpit, I 
 
 Repentance. ' . 
 
 should desire to die preaching repent- 
 ance; and if I should die out of the pulpit, I should 
 desire to die practicing it." Let us consider this impor- 
 tant subject under the three following heads : 
 
 1. Its nature. As defined in the Shorter Catechism: 
 "Repentance unto life is a saving grace, whereby a sin- 
 ner, out of a true sense of sin, and apprehension of the 
 mercy of God in Christ, doth with grief and hatred of 
 his sin, turn from it unto God, with full purpose of, 
 and endeavor after, new obedience." Repentance is 
 turning from sin unto God through Jesus Christ, while 
 faith is the acceptance of Christ in order to our return 
 to God. In the relation of faith to repentance, there 
 has been a diversity of opinion as to which precedes in 
 the order of production. It is probable that the majority 
 of theologians in our church maintain that "the tear of 
 repentance trickles from the eye of faith." I quote a 
 statement of the late Dr. Peck as expressive of my own 
 view: ''The discussion as to which precedes is a 
 logomachy (L e., a contention about words). It all 
 depends on what you mean by repentance. If you mean 
 incipient repentance, i. e., the sight of sin, then repent- 
 
Theology for the People. 159 
 
 ance precedes. If you mean repentance in the full sense, 
 i. e., revolution of the soul's attitude, then faith pre- 
 cede." 
 
 In 2 Cor. vii. 10, we read : "For godly Borrow worketh 
 repentance to salvation not to be repented of; but the 
 sorrow of the world worketh death." This passage shows 
 that there are two kinds of repentance: (1) "Godly sor- 
 row," which "worketh repentance to salvation not to be 
 repented of," i. e., which none will ever regret, though 
 at the time attended with sorrow. (2) "Sorrow of the 
 world," which "worketh death," i. e., such as is felt by 
 the worldly ; it worketh out. as its final result, eternal 
 death. The former is genuine repentance ; the latter is 
 spurious. 
 
 In genuine repentance there must be: (1) Conviction 
 of sin. In order to this conviction, there must be some 
 correct knowledge of God's law. Says Rom. iii. 20, "By 
 the law is the knowledge of sin." The law is the means 
 of communicating this knowledge because it is a tran- 
 script of his nature, the expression of the perfect holiness 
 of God. We must have some knowledge of the nature 
 and extent of the law. In order to determine the extent 
 of the violation, Ave must know whether the requirements 
 of the law extend to inward states, or merely to outward 
 acts. The Bible teaches that the law of God is the basis 
 of all conviction of si>i. 
 
 In law there are two elements : (1) Precept. (2) Pen- 
 alty. If the violator of law looks mainly at the precept, 
 he will be more impressed with the nature of sin ; with 
 its wrongfulness or criminality. This furnishes a basis 
 for genuine repentance. If he looks mainly at the pen- 
 alty, he will be more impressed with the consequences 
 of sin; with the danger, his liability to punishment, 
 
160 Theology for the People. 
 
 hurtful effects of sin. This furnishes a basis for spurious 
 repentance, the "sorrow of the world that worketh 
 death." 
 
 In Acts viii. 24, Simon did not entreat Peter to pray 
 that the thoughts of his wicked heart might be forgiven, 
 but only that the evils threatened might be averted. In 
 the plagues visited upon Egypt, we find that Pharaoh 
 was chiefly, or exclusively, concerned about the conse- 
 quences of sin, its hurtful effects. In genuine repent- 
 ance, we realize that the sin is against God. While to 
 some extent we are influenced by our sense of danger, 
 we are more impressed with the nature of sin, its odious- 
 ness and offensiveness in the sight of God. We feel no 
 inclination to place the blame on some one else. We do 
 not put ourselves "in the long line of apologetic succes- 
 sion/' and say, as one of old, "The woman tempted me, 
 and I did eat." If genuine, our repentance will relate 
 to sins of thought as well as of deeds. Deep humility 
 will be experienced. Conviction of sin alone would pro- 
 duce despair. The picture brightens. 
 
 (2) Apprehension of the mercy of God in Christ. In 
 the "sorrow of the world" there is not one ray of hope. 
 We see this illustrated in the case of Judas (Matt. 
 xxvii. 3). There is remorse, biting bach, like the veno- 
 mous serpent fastening its deadly fangs in its own body. 
 The moment we apprehend, or intelligently grasp, the 
 fact that through Christ the mercy of God can be ex- 
 tended, that moment despair is shorn of all power to 
 crush. 
 
 (3) Turning from sin to God. This is the very essence 
 of repentance. This turning is attended with "grief and 
 hatred of sin." In spurious repentance there may be 
 
Theology for the People. 161 
 
 turning "from one sin to another"; but it is always 
 turning from God. In genuine repentance there is turn- 
 ing to God for help and mercy. Its language is, "God 
 be merciful to me, a sinner !" 
 
 (1) Determination to live in obedience to God's com- 
 mands. There is "full purpose" of obedience; and, in 
 reliance upon divine grace, an immediate endeavor to 
 carry the purpose into execution. As stated by another, 
 this "obedience" is "new" in the following respects : 
 
 (1) As to its extent. There is the recognition of the 
 fact that God's claims are upon the heart, and not merely 
 upon the outward act. 
 
 (2) As to its motive ; filial love. 
 
 (3) As to the source of help. The soul relies upon 
 God, not upon self. 
 
 (4) As to its end : the glory of God. 
 
 2. Necessity of repentance : 
 
 (1) God's veracity is at stake. Has he not said, "Ex- 
 cept ye repent, ye shall all likewise perish" ? 
 
 (2) The fact of moral obligation. "To violate a law 
 does not abrogate it. Obligation to obedience exists 
 before, during and after the transgression." To refuse 
 to repent is to augment guilt. There is not only the 
 wrong done, but the wrong endorsed. 
 
 (3) No salvation without it, "Repent" or "perish" 
 is the "only alternative for us." Says the Confession of 
 Faith : "Although repentance be not to be rested in as 
 any satisfaction for sin, or any cause of the pardon 
 thereof, which is the act of God's free grace in Christ ; 
 yet it is of such necessity to all sinners, that none may 
 expect pardon without it." 
 
 11 
 
162 Theology lor the People. 
 
 3. Encouragements to repentance : 
 
 (1) God urges it. "Let the wicked forsake his way, 
 and the unrighteous man his thoughts ; and let him 
 return unto the Lord, and he will have mercy upon him ; 
 and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon" (Isaiah 
 lv. 7). "As I live, saith the Lord God, I have no 
 pleasure in the death of the wicked ; but that the wicked 
 turn from his way and live: turn ye, turn ye from 
 your evil ways ; for why will ye die, O house of Israel V 
 (Ezek. xxxiii. 11.) 
 
 (2) Christ has been exalted to give repentance. See 
 Acts v. 31, "Him hath God exalted with his right hand 
 to be a Prince and a Saviour, for to give repentance to 
 Israel, and forgiveness of sins." 
 
 (3) Occasions joy in the presence of the angels of 
 God. "Likewise, I say unto you, there is joy in the 
 presence of the angels of God over one sinner that 
 repenteth" (Luke xv. 10). 
 
 Concerning personal duty in the matter of repentance, 
 the Confession of Faith says : "Men ought not to content 
 themselves with a general repentance, but it is every 
 man's duty to endeavor to repent of his particular sins, 
 particularly. As every man is bound to make private 
 confession of his sins to God, praying for the pardon 
 thereof, upon which, and the forsaking of them, he shall 
 find mercy; so he that scandalizeth his brother, or the 
 church of Christ, ought to be willing, by a private or 
 public confession and sorrow for his sin, to declare his 
 repentance to those that are offended ; who are thereupon 
 to be reconciled to him, and in love to receive him." 
 
 This subject is of great practical importance. Since 
 duties spring out of doctrines, we should be diligent in 
 
Theology for the People. 163 
 
 seeking to ascertain lust what the Bible 
 
 Good works. ° 
 
 teaches touching the subject under con- 
 sideration. 
 
 1. Good works defined. In every good work there are 
 two elements — 
 
 (1) The work is "only such as God hath commanded 
 in his holy Word," and not such as is "devised by men 
 out of blind zeal, or upon any pretence of good inten- 
 tion." 
 
 (2) The motive to the deed must be right, viz., love 
 to God, regard for his authority, zeal for his glory. 
 
 2. Nature of good works. As stated in the Confession 
 of Faith, "These good works, done in obedience to God's 
 commandments, are the fruits and evidences of a true 
 and lively faith." Says James ii. 18, "Yea, a man 
 may say, Thou hast faith, and I have works : show me 
 thy faith without thy works, and I will show thee my 
 faith by my works." 
 
 3. Ability to perform good works. Says the Confes- 
 sion: "Their ability to do good works is not at all of 
 themselves, but wholly from the Spirit of Christ. And 
 that they may be enabled thereunto, besides the graces 
 they have already received, there is required an actual 
 influence of the same Holy Spirit to work in them, to 
 will and to do of his good pleasure; yet are they not 
 hereupon to grow negligent, as if they were not bound 
 to perform any duty unless upon a special motion of the 
 Spirit ; but they ought to be diligent in stirring up the 
 grace of God that is in them." Note John xv. 5, "I am 
 the vine, ye are the branches; he that abideth in me, 
 and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit : for 
 without me ye can do nothing." Phil. ii. 13, "For it 
 
1U4 Theology for the People. 
 
 is God which worketh in you, both to will and to do of his 
 good pleasure." 
 
 4. How acceptable with God? See Confession: ''Yet 
 notwithstanding, the persons of believers being accepted 
 through Christ, their good works also are accepted in 
 him, not as though they were in this life wholly un- 
 blamable and unreprovable in God's sight ; but that he, 
 looking upon them in his Son, is pleased to accept and 
 reward that which is sincere, although accompanied with 
 many weaknesses and imperfectious." (Read Eph. i. 6 ; 
 1 Peter ii. 5 ; 2 Cor. viii. 12 ; Heb. vi. 10 ; Matt. xxv. 
 21, 23.) 
 
 5. Although acceptable with God, good works can 
 never merit pardon or eternal life. Good works per- 
 formed by Christians are the fruit of regeneration. It 
 is obvious that neither the works performed before nor 
 after regeneration can constitute the ground of justifica- 
 tion. Before regeneration good works are impossible ; 
 the claims of the law are on the heart. The Bible teaches 
 that an act good in itself may become criminal by reason 
 of impure motive. See what is said in Matt. vi. 2, 5, 
 about alms-giving and prayer. A careful examination 
 of the good works which are the fruit of regeneration, 
 good works of believers, discloses three facts : 
 
 (1) These good works are mingled with those which 
 are positively evil. Xote Peter's denial of his Lord, and 
 David's conduct in 2 Sam. xi. 1-27. 
 
 (2) The good works are but imperfectly good. What 
 does the law demand ? Perfect obedience. 
 
 (3) So far as the works of believers are good, they 
 are made so by grace. "By the grace of God I am what 
 I am." 
 
Theology for the People. 165 
 
 "I labored more abundantly, yet not I, but the grace 
 of God which was with me." 
 
 Can a claim of legal reward be based on good works 
 performed by grace? Never! Rom. iii. 20 settles this 
 question : "Therefore by the deeds of the law, there 
 shall no flesh be justified in his sight." 
 
 6. Effects and uses of good works. Says the Confes- 
 sion of Faith : "By them (good works) believers — 
 
 (1) "Manifest their thankfulness (Ps. cxvi. 12 13; 
 1 Peter ii. 9). 
 
 (2) "Strengthen their assurance (1 John ii. 3, 5). 
 
 (3) "Edify their brethren (2 Cor. ix. 2 ; Matt. v. 16). 
 
 (4) "Adorn the profession of the gospel (Tit. ii. 5, 9, 
 10, 11, 12; 1 Tim. vi. 1). 
 
 (5) "Stop the mouths of the adversaries (1 Pet. ii. 
 15). 
 
 (6) "Glorify God, whose workmanship they are, cre- 
 ated in Christ Jesus thereunto, that, having their fruit 
 unto holiness, they may have the end, eternal life. John 
 xv. 8, 'Herein is my Father glorified, that ye bear much 
 fruit.' 1 Peter ii. 12, 'Having your conversation honest 
 among the Gentiles; that, whereas they speak against 
 you as evil doers, they may, by your good works, which 
 they shall behold, glorify God in the day of visita- 
 tion.' " 
 
 7. Works done by unregenerate men. Such works 
 cannot be pleaded as a ground of acceptance with God. 
 Why \ The Confession answers : "Because they proceed 
 not from a heart purified by faith ; nor are done in a 
 right manner, according to the Word ; nor to a right 
 end, the glory of God." This answer follows the state- 
 ment that "works done by unregenerate men, for the 
 
166 Theology fok the People. 
 
 matter of them may be things which God commands, 
 and of good use both to themselves and others." 
 
 The unbeliever may have performed many deeds that 
 are civilly good, i. e., good so far as man's relation to 
 man is concerned ; but he has never performed one deed 
 that is scripturally good for the reason that he has left 
 God out of the question ; he has not been actuated by 
 right motive, and the absence of right motive invariably 
 vitiates the deed. Xote 1 Cor. xiii. 3, "And though I 
 bestow all my goods to feed the poor, and though I give 
 my body to be burned, and have not charity (love), it 
 profiteth me nothing." 
 
 Kom. viii. 8, '"They that in the flesh cannot please 
 God." Heb. xi. 6, "But without faith it is impossible 
 to please him." In the consideration of justification by 
 faith, chapter ix., it is shown that the alleged conflict 
 between Paul and James has no existence in fact. 
 
 In speaking of what our Confession of Faith teaches 
 on the subject of good works, a certain writer says : "It 
 brings the Christian life before us in its proper light, 
 as a type of life in which faith and works, belief and 
 duty, piety and service, are blended together in a har- 
 mony as complete as that of a rainbow in the sky." 
 
 The Confession says : "They whom God hath accepted 
 in his Beloved, effectually called and sanctified by his 
 Perseverance of the Spirit, can neither totally nor finally 
 saints. f a ]j awa y from the state of grace ; but 
 
 shall certainly persevere therein to the end, and be eter- 
 nally saved. Xevertheless they may, through the temp- 
 tations of Satan and of the world, the prevalencv of cor- 
 ruption remaining in them, and the neglect of the means 
 of their preservation, fall into grievous sins; and for 
 
Theology foe the People. 167 
 
 a time continue therein ; whereby they incur God's dis- 
 pleasure, and grieve his Holy Spirit; come to be de- 
 prived of some measure of their graces and comforts; 
 have their hearts hardened, and their consciences 
 wounded ; hurt and scandalize others, and bring tem- 
 poral judgments upon themselves." 
 
 This is an important subject. Let us consider it in the 
 light of Scripture. 
 
 Read John x. 27, 28 : "My sheep hear my voice, and 
 I know them, and they follow me : and I give unto them 
 eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall 
 any man pluck them out of my hand. My Father which 
 gave them me is greater than all ; and no man is able to 
 pluck them out of my Father's hand." 
 
 These soul-thrilling words 1 have been arranged by 
 commentators in three couplets, "which display the 
 climacteric character of the wondrous rythm and inter- 
 change of emotion between the Divine Shepherd and the 
 sheep : 
 
 "1. 'My sheep hear my voice and I know them : mu- 
 tual recognition. 
 
 "2. 'They follow me and I give unto them eternal life' : 
 reciprocal activity. 
 
 "3. 'They shall never perish, neither shall any man 
 pluck them out of my hand' : an authoritative assurance, 
 and its pledge, or justification." 
 
 In these weighty words our attention is directed to 
 three things : 
 
 1. Christ's possession : "My sheep." Believers belong 
 to < Ihrist. 
 
 'This is a tract which I published months ago on the "Security 
 of the Believer." 
 
108 Theology for the People. 
 
 (1) By creation. "For by him were all things created" 
 (Col. i. 16). 
 
 (2) By the Father's gift. "Holy Father, keep through 
 thine own name those whom thou hast given me, that 
 they may be one, as we are" (John xvii. 11). 
 
 (3) By redemption. "I have blotted ont, as a thick 
 cloud, thy transgressions, and, as a cloud, thy sins ; 
 return unto me; for I have redeemed thee" (Is. xliv. 
 22). "The good shepherd giveth his life for the sheep" 
 (John x. 11). 
 
 (4) By calling. "Who hath saved us, and called us 
 with an holy calling" (2 Tim. i. 9). "But ye are a 
 chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a 
 peculiar people; that ye should show forth the praises 
 of him who hath called you out of darkness into his mar- 
 vellous light" (1 Peter ii. 9). 
 
 (5) By preservation. Note twenty-third Psalm. 
 
 2. Two characteristics of Christ's sheep : 
 
 (1) They "hear my voice." 
 
 (2) "They follow me." 
 
 3. Rich blessings enjoyed by Christ's sheep : 
 
 (1) "I know them," — special knowledge of love, 
 interest and approbation. 
 
 (2) Eternal life and eternal security. "I give unto 
 them eternal life, and they shall never perish." "I 
 give." This utterance is "couched in the language of 
 majestic authority." "Neither shall any man pluck them 
 out of my hand;" "and no man is able to pluck them 
 out of my Father's hand." 
 
 The word man in these two passages of Scripture does 
 not appear in the Greek. The meaning is, that no power, 
 whether of man or devil, is capable of snatching the 
 
Theology fok the People. 10!) 
 
 believer out of God's grasp. Our Saviour does not state, 
 as is claimed by objectors, that "they shall never perish 
 so long as they continue my sheep." Persons who take 
 unwarrantable liberty with God's Word would do well 
 to heed the solemn admonition in Rev. xxii. 18, 19. 
 
 Child of God think of your refuge ! In Christ's hand; 
 in the Father s hand, — in the "impregnable fortress of 
 infinite love and power." 
 
 In order to an intelligent apprehension of this pre- 
 vious doctrine, let us note : 
 
 (1) Man's relation to law under the broken covenant 
 of works. 
 
 (2) The believer's relation to Christ under the cove- 
 nant of grace. 
 
 As stated before : When God created man, he placed 
 him under an unmodified moral government, i. e., a 
 government not modified by a covenant. Had man been 
 left in this relation, he might have lived a million years, 
 and been lost at last because of a single violation of law. 
 The law of God was written in man's heart, i. e., man 
 had— 
 
 1. A clear perception of duty. 
 
 2. A deep sense of obligation to perforin duty. 
 
 God was pleased to enter into a covenant with man, 
 conditioning confirmation in holiness and happiness on 
 perfect obedience. Man failed to comply with the con- 
 dition of the covenant. How tragic the result ! "The 
 covenant being made with Adam, not only for himself, 
 but for his posterity, all mankind descending from him 
 by ordinary generation, sinned in him, and fell with 
 him in his first transgression." 
 
 "The fall brought mankind into an estate of sin ami 
 misery." 
 
170 Theology foe the People. 
 
 Sad estrangement is wrought between God and man. 
 On God's part, there is holy opposition to the sinner. 
 On man's part, there is sinful opposition to God. How 
 can reconciliation be effected \ In law there are two 
 elements : 
 
 1. Precept — something commanded to be done, or 
 something prohibited. 
 
 2. Penalty — suffering exacted of the law-breaker, 
 or evil judicially inflicted in satisfaction of justice. 
 
 We failed to render obedience to the precept, and 
 incurred the penalty of God's law. Our transgression 
 of law has produced two results : 
 
 1. Guilt, i. e., just liability to punishment. 
 
 2. Pollution, i. e., man's nature is debased. 
 
 Any scheme of salvation must provide for two things : 
 
 1. Deliverance from condemnation. 
 
 2. Change of sinful nature. 
 
 "This change of nature is necessary in order that we 
 may avail ourselves of the remedy provided for our legal 
 liabilities. To be justified, we must have faith; but 
 there is a barrier to the exercise of faith ; we are spir- 
 itually dead. Kow, it is the work of the Spirit to effect 
 the moral change whereby we are persuaded and enabled 
 to embrace Jesus Christ freely offered to us in the gospel. 
 This change he accomplishes in effectual calling, and 
 the result itself is termed regeneration." Salvation must 
 change legal condition and transform character. 
 
 "Rock of Ages, cleft for me, 
 Let me hiae myself in thee; 
 Let the water and the blood. 
 From thy wounded side which flowed, 
 Be ot sin the double cure, 
 Save me from its guilt and poicer." 
 
Theology for the People. 171 
 
 Christ, the only mediator between God and man, be- 
 came the substitute for his people. He took their law 
 place. He rendered perfect obedience to the precept 
 and suffered the penalty of the law. His perfect right- 
 eousness is imputed to them and received by faith alone. 
 They are free from the law as a rule of justification, 
 i. e., they are free from that relation to the law which 
 makes their obedience the ground of salvation ; but they 
 are not free from the law as a rule of life. In the case 
 of the sinner, the law demands the rendering of perfect 
 obedience and the suffering of the penalty. Christ's suf- 
 fering discharges the penalty, and his obedience fulfils 
 the condition of the covenant. He has satisfied the penal 
 and preceptive demands of justice. What is meant by 
 the righteousness of Christ which is imputed to the 
 believer % Not his inherent righteousness, but all that 
 he "became, did and suffered in the sinner's stead. 
 
 The imputation of Christ's righteousness to the be- 
 liever secures : 
 
 1. The remission of the penalty. 
 
 2. "The recognition and treatment of the believer as 
 one with respect to whom the covenant is fulfilled, and 
 to whom all of its promises and advantages legally 
 accrue." Now we see how reconciliation is effected. A 
 certain writer states it in clear, terse style : "Atonement 
 reconciles God to us; effectual calling reconciles us to 
 God." Believers are justified by faith. Our Confession 
 of Faith, Chap. XL, Sec. 3, says : "Christ, by his obedi- 
 ence and death, did fully discharge the debt of all those 
 that are thus justified, and did make a proper, real, and 
 full satisfaction to his Fathers justice in their be- 
 half." 
 
172 Theology for the People. 
 
 Christ tells us in his Word that he and the believer 
 are one, and leaves us in no doubt as to the nature of this 
 oneness. 
 
 Now, if it were possible for a true believer to be lost, 
 there would be two inflictions of the penalty of the law 
 for the same offence. Such a procedure would be an 
 impeacement of the justice of God. 
 
 Perish the thought! 
 
 Still, it. is maintained that there are passages of Scrip- 
 ture which seem to teach that a child of God may forfeit 
 his title to heaven and be lost. 
 
 To this contention I would answer : 
 
 When these passages are rightly interpreted in their 
 context, and when we let Scripture interpret Scripture, 
 I do not hesitate to assert that there is not a passage in 
 God's Word which cannot be interpreted in perfect har- 
 mony with the declaration that he who exercises personal 
 trust in Jesus will wear the crown of glory some day. 
 "But do we not see persons who once claimed to be happy 
 Christians now rushing recklessly in the ways of sin 
 and death ?" Yes ; but they have never been regen- 
 erated, or have temporarily backslidden. Turn to the 
 Saviour's interpretation of the parable of the sower 
 (Matt. xiii. 18-23), and note what is said concerning 
 stony-ground hearers: "But he that receiveth the seed 
 into stony places, the same is he that heareth the Word, 
 and anon with joy receiveth it; yet, hath he not root in 
 himself, but duretJi for awhile; for when tribulation 
 or persecution ariseth because of the Word, by and by he 
 is offended." The faith exercised by the stony-ground 
 hearers was without repentance ; it was not saving faith. 
 1 John ii. 19 sheds a flood of light on this subject : "They 
 
Theology for the People. 173 
 
 went out from us, but they were not of us ; for if they 
 had been of us, they would no doubt have continued with 
 us ; but they went out, that they might be made manifest 
 that they were not all of us." 
 
 "Did not Adam fall ?" Yes ; but he was on probation, 
 and had never been justified. The same may be said of 
 the fallen angels. No justified being has ever perished. 
 The phrase, "Ye are fallen from grace" (Gal. v. 4), 
 has no reference to the extinction of spiritual life. It 
 means you have "renounced the gratuitous method of 
 salvation" ; you are looking to the law, and not to Christ. 
 
 Did not Peter's faith fail % No ; his duty failed. The 
 conversion spoken of in Luke xxii. 32, was from an act, 
 not a state, of sin. In the sense in which the word is 
 used here there can be as many conversions in the Chris- 
 tian's life as there are turnings from sin to God. If 
 Peter's faith failed, the Saviour's prayer was unan- 
 swered, and if unanswered, we might as well close our 
 churches, burn our Bibles, and bury hope beneath the 
 waves of the sea. 
 
 Did not David "fall from grace ?" Never ! In the 
 fifty-first Psalm he does not say, "Restore unto me thy 
 salvation/' he had never forfeited it. What he had 
 lost was simply the joy of salvation. 
 
 In 2 Tim. ii. 17-19, the apostasy of Hymenaeus and 
 Philetus implies no uncertainty as to the character and 
 security of true Christians. God discriminates between 
 the time and the false. "Nevertheless the foundation of 
 God standeth sure, having this seal, 'The Lord hnoweth 
 than Hi at are his/ " 
 
 In Acts viii. 13 Ave are told that Simon "believed" 
 and "was baptized" ; yet, in the twenty-third verse, 
 
174 Theology foe the People. 
 
 Peter said to him : "For I perceive that thou art in the 
 gall of bitterness, and in the bond of iniquity." Simon's 
 faith was intellectual, historical, temporary, or, at least, 
 not saving. He had never been regenerated. Let it be 
 borne in mind that the passages of Scripture which seem 
 to favor the position that a true Christian may finally 
 perish are hypothetical ; in these passages the little word 
 "if," implied if not expressed, plays a very conspicuous 
 part. If I apply the incendiary's torch to your resi- 
 dence, the law will take me in hand ; but I am not going 
 ' to burn your home. 
 
 One day I lifted my little boy a few feet from the 
 ground, placed him on an object on which he could not 
 stand alone. Said he: "Father, if you were to turn 
 me loose I would fall ; but you will not turn me loose." 
 This expression of child-like confidence directed my 
 thought to our heavenly Father, who will never suffer 
 his child to be plucked out of his hand. 
 
 Now let us consider passages of Scripture which are 
 quoted in favor of the doctrine that a true Christian 
 may apostatize and be eternally lost: 
 
 Ez. xxxiii. 13, "When I shall say to the righteous that 
 he shall surely live ; if he trust to his own righteousness , 
 and commit iniquity, all his righteousness shall not be 
 remembered; but for his iniquity that he hath com- 
 mitted, he shall die for it." It is held by Arminians 
 that this passage refers to real Christians. If so, it is 
 hypothetical. Many Bible students maintain that refer- 
 ence here is to self-righteous persons. Yes, the truly 
 righteous shall live, but the self-righteous, the false pro- 
 fessor, shall perish. Notice the language, "If he trust 
 to his own righteousness/' Is not this always a char.ac- 
 
Theology for the People. 175 
 
 teristic of false professors, and never of God's own. 
 children ? 
 
 Ez. xviii. 24 admits of the same interpretation. Now, 
 let Scripture interpret Scripture. Does the prophet, 
 Ezekiel, mean to teach that a redeemed soul can be 
 brought back under the condemnation of God's law? 
 Let Ez. xxxvi. 26, 27, answer: "A new heart also will 
 I give you, and a new spirit will I put within you, and 
 I will take away the stony heart out of your flesh, and I 
 will give you an heart of flesh. And I will put my Spirit 
 within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes, and 
 ye shall Jceep my judgments and do them." Will Ezekiel 
 contradict himself? Arminians are fond of quoting 
 John xv. 2 in support of their doctrine : "Every branch 
 in me that beareth not fruit he taketh away." This pas- 
 sage, rightly interpreted, affords them no support what- 
 ever. In interpreting parables, their great purpose must 
 constantly be borne in mind ; all the details are not 
 designed to teach fundamental doctrines ; they serve "to 
 fill up or adorn the narrative" ; "drapery of the figure, 
 and not the figure itself." The clause, "taketh away" 
 cannot be interpreted literally. "As a matter of fact, 
 God does not take away all unfruitful branches, neither 
 will he do so till the great judgment day." "Branch in 
 me," is a figurative expression, and does not admit of a 
 literal interpretation. It means nothing more than "a 
 professed member of my church, a man joined to the 
 company of my people, but not joined to me." The pas- 
 sage teaches the following: "My Father will no more 
 allow any of my members to be fruitless and graceless 
 than a vine-dresser will allow barren branches to grow 
 on the vine. Fraitfulness is the great test of being one 
 
176 Theology for the People. 
 
 of my disciples ; and he that is not fruitful is not a 
 branch of the true vine." To endeavor to import any 
 other meaning into this passage shows clearly the mis- 
 takes into which persons fall who fail to observe the 
 rule that in the interpretation of a parable, "we must 
 look at the great lesson it contains, rather than at each 
 clause." The attempted extraction of a doctrine from 
 each detail of a parable, viewed apart from the main 
 lesson of the parable, means simply a gross perversion of 
 truth. 
 
 Turn now to 2 Peter ii. 20-22. Read the entire 
 chapter, and note carefully the character of the persons 
 described; they are false teachers. In the first six 
 verses the inspired writer foretells the impiety and pun- 
 ishment both of these false teachers and their followers. 
 In the next three verses he shows that as Lot was deliv- 
 ered out of Sodom, so shall the "godly" be delivered 
 "out of temptations." From the tenth verse to the close 
 of the chapter he "more fully describes the manners of 
 those profane and blasphemous seducers, whereby they 
 may be the better known and avoided." If a knowledge 
 of the truth produces temporary outward consistency, 
 which is followed by gross immorality, "the latter end 
 is worse than the beginning." "To whom much is given 
 of him shall much be required." The cleansing men- 
 tioned was simply external ; the swine nature remained 
 unchanged. 
 
 Consider now Heb. vi. 4-6, "For it is impossible for 
 those who were once enlightened, and have tasted of the 
 heavenly gift, and were made partakers of the Holy 
 Ghost, and have tasted of the good word of God, and 
 the powers of the world to come, if they shall fall away^ 
 
Theology for the People. 177 
 
 to renew thein again unto repentance." Does this refer 
 to God's children ? 
 
 Arrninianism answers affirmatively; I answer nega- 
 tively. See the ninth verse, "But, beloved, we are pur- 
 suaded better things of you, and things that accompany 
 salvation, though we thus speak." Then the apostle 
 mentions the "oath" and "promise" of God, that "we 
 might have a strong consolation, who have fled for refuge 
 to lay hold upon the hope set before us." Then follows- 
 the statement, "Which hope we have as an anchor of the 
 soul, both sure and steadfast, and which entereth into 
 that within the vail; whither the forerunner is for us 
 entered, even Jesus, made a high priest forever after 
 the order of Melchisedec." 
 
 If this portion of Scripture did refer to Christians, it 
 is hypothetical, and at the same time fatal to the doc- 
 trine of the Arminian. He holds that a person may be a 
 Christian to-day, a child of Satan to-morrow, a Christian 
 next day. In addition to the hypothesis, we find here a 
 positive declaration to the effect that it is impossible "to 
 renew them again unto repentance;" if they "fall 
 away," they fall forever. I hold that in this passage 
 there is a reference to those "who have sinned away their 
 day of grace." Everything taught here may be affirmed 
 of those who have never been regenerated by the Holy 
 Spirit. Let us consider the details of the description : 
 
 1. They are those who have been "once enlightened." 
 
 "There are three kinds of illumination spoken of in the 
 
 Scriptures: (a) That which results from the diligent 
 
 use of our natural faculties in the study of the Word of 
 
 God ; it is precisely analogous to the illumination which 
 
 results from the use of the same faculties in the study 
 12 
 
178 Theology for the People. 
 
 of any branch of secular knowledge, (b) That which 
 results from the spiritual improvement or quickening 
 of the natural faculties by the agency of the Holy 
 Ghost, without any accompanying change in the moral 
 condition of the person's heart, (c) That which results 
 from the agency of the Holy Spirit executed upon the 
 heart, as well as upon the understanding of the person, 
 creating the soul in sympathy with the truth, as well as 
 opening the understanding to perceive it." The apostle 
 must refer to the second species of illumination. But it 
 is maintained by some that there is no such operation 
 of the Spirit different from that experienced by the 
 Christian. 
 
 Read Ex. xxxi. 2, 3. The Lord filled Bezaleel "with 
 the Spirit of God, in wisdom and in understanding, and 
 in knowledge and in all manner of workmanship." 
 Balaam, too, was under some influence of the Spirit, 
 "though as destitute of true religion as the beast upon 
 which he rode." 
 
 Many persons tremble under the presentation of 
 divine truth, experience some degree of enlightenment, 
 and die in despair. 
 
 2. They are those who "have tasted of the heavenly 
 gift, and were made partakers of the Holy Ghost." An 
 eminent Bible student rightly holds that these clauses 
 mean substantially the same thing, the second is exegeti- 
 cal of the first. Most assuredly the Holy Ghost is God's 
 gift, a precious "heavenly gift." Is there not here a 
 reference to those who have committed the unpardonable 
 sin '( What is the unpardonable sin ? It is "blasphemy 
 against the Holy Ghost." The wilful, malignant rejec- 
 tion of the Spirit's testimony involves the rejection of 
 
Theology foe the People. 179 
 
 the Father and Son from whom the Spirit proceeds, and 
 results in the awful, merited doom of the contemptuous 
 rejectors. That this is the correct view seems to follow 
 from what is said concerning those who "have tasted 
 the powers of the world to come." 
 
 3. They are those who "have tasted the good Word of 
 God." It is a well-established fact that many uncon- 
 verted persons "have transient relishes of the good 
 things contained in the promises of the Bible, without 
 any relish at all for the holiness which is essential to the 
 enjoyment of them." 
 
 Matt. xiii. 20, 21 sheds light on this point, "But he 
 that receiveth the seed into stony places, the same is he 
 that heareth the word, and anon with joy receiveth it; 
 yet, hath he not root in himself, but dureth for a while ; 
 for when tribulation or persecution ariseth because of 
 the word, by and by he is offended." It is undeniable 
 that Herod was a wicked man ; yet, in Mark vi. 20 
 we are told that he heard John "gladly." 
 
 4. They are those who have "tasted the powers of the 
 world to come." Does this clause refer to those who 
 have entertained hopes of heaven ? Many have hopes 
 (false) who vail never enter mansions of rest. Does it 
 refer to those who have had a glimpse of the terrors of 
 eternity ? Many such are now experiencing the realities 
 of a world of woe. What does the clause teach ? The 
 following is the view of a consecrated Christian and 
 distinguished theologian : They have "tasted the powers 
 of the world to come," i. e., "the miraculous evidence 
 by which the mission of Jesus was authenticated. There 
 are three names for miracles — signs, wonders and 
 powers. The first refers to the design for which they 
 
180 Theology fob the People. 
 
 were performed ; the second, to the impression produced 
 upon the spectator; the third, to the efficient energy 
 by which they were performed." The third, powers, is 
 the word in the passage which we are considering. "The 
 world to come" is a phrase taken from the usage of the 
 ancient Jews, who were accustomed to call the dispensa- 
 tion of Moses the present age, or world, and the dispen- 
 sation of the Messiah, which was to follow, the world to 
 come. 
 
 The Holy Spirit bears testimony to Christ, authenti- 
 cates his mission by miraculous evidence ; this testimony 
 had been conveyed to the minds of those who had "tasted 
 the powers of the world to come." The deliberate, con- 
 temptuous, malignant rejection of this testimony is 
 indeed an awful sin, an unpardonable sin, its commis- 
 sion closes the door of heaven to the rejectors. What 
 is the nature of this "falling away?" "It is the total, 
 wilful, malignant renunciation of all the distinctive 
 doctrines of Christianity, most commonly, though not 
 necessarily, after an open profession of these doctrines." 
 One other clause, impossible "to renew them again unto 
 repentance." The word repentance is used in a two-fold 
 sense in Scripture: (1) "A saving grace, whereby a 
 sinner, out of a true sense of his sin, and apprehension 
 of the mercy of God in Christ, doth with grief and 
 hatred of his sin, turn from it unto God with full pur- 
 pose of, and endeavor after, new obedience." (2) Re- 
 formation of the conduct, or outward change, which 
 involves only the "sorrow of the world which worketh 
 death," e. g., the repentance of stony-ground hearers, a 
 spurious repentance sustaining no relation to a change 
 of heart. It is evident that the repentance spoken of 
 
Theology for the People. 181 
 
 here is of the latter kind. It is impossible to restore 
 the wilful, malignant rejectors of the Spirit's testimony 
 "to those convictions which originally produced this 
 repentance, or outward reformation." Of all such, God 
 says, "Let him alone.''' 
 
 In considering this passage of Scripture, Heb. vi. 4-6, 
 we should carefully observe the distinction between the 
 gifts and the graces of the Holy Spirit. Gifts are the 
 effects of the Spirit's operation upon men. Graces are 
 the effects of the Spirit's operation in men. In Judas 
 we find an illustration of the former ; in the remaining 
 eleven apostles, an illustration of the latter. When we 
 compare John vi. 70, "Have not I chosen you twelve ?" 
 with John xiii. 18, "I speak not of you all; I know 
 whom I have chosen," we cannot escape the conclusion 
 that while Judas was chosen to the office of apostleship, 
 he was not chosen unto eternal life. By virtue of his 
 apostleship, he, with the eleven, was endowed with gifts, 
 but, unlike the eleven, he had never been the possessor 
 of the graces of the Spirit, graces which proceed from 
 the operation of the Spirit dwelling within the believer. 
 In John xiv. IT our Saviour speaks of the "Spirit of 
 truth whom the world cannot receive." This obviously 
 means the personal indwelling of the Spirit. Can the 
 gifts of the Spirit be lost ? Yes. Can the graces of the 
 Spirit be lost 1 Xever ! I maintain that what is 
 affirmed of the persons mentioned in Heb. vi. 4-6 has 
 reference to the gifts, not to the graces, of the Holy 
 Spirit. If it be retorted that John xvii. 12, "Those that 
 thou gavest me I have kept, and none of them is lost, but 
 the son of perdition," seems to teach that Judas had 
 been a believer, and, as such, in the possession of gifts 
 
182 Theology for the People. 
 
 and graces of the Spirit, I reply, that the word "but" 
 in the passage quoted is "adversative, not exceptive." I 
 reverently suggest that the supplying of the two words is 
 lost just after the word "perdition" would bring out the 
 real meaning. John xviii. 9 supports this interpreta- 
 tion, "Of them which thou gavest me have I lost none." 
 
 In Ex. xxxii. 32 we read, "Yet now if thou wilt for- 
 give their sin . . . ; and if not, blot me, I pray thee, 
 out of thy book which thou hast written." 
 
 The expression "blotting out of thy book" is of the 
 same import with the phrases, "Blotting out one's name 
 from under heaven." jSTote Num. xi. 15, Moses said, 
 "And if thou deal thus with me, kill me, I pray thee, out 
 of hand." 
 
 In the phrase, "Blot me out of thy book," there is an 
 "allusion to the registering of the living and erasing the 
 names of those who die." (See Num. i. 1-54.) A 
 record of the people was kept, and when a man died, his 
 name was erased. The people had made the golden calf, 
 and had incurred God's righteous displeasure. If God 
 would not forgive the sin of the people, Moses prays 
 that his earthly life may close. There is no reference 
 here to the forfeiture of eternal life. 
 
 What is the correct interpretation of Rom. ix. 3, "For 
 I could wish that myself were accursed from Christ for 
 my brethren, my kinsmen according to the flesh" ? 
 
 Does it imply the possibility of eternal banishment 
 from the favor of God ? Certainly not. Paul was sorely 
 grieved because of the deplorable condition of the Jews. 
 He employs the language of deep, strong emotion. Did 
 Paul wish, to be accursed from Christ? No. Says Dr. 
 Charles Hodge, "Paul does not say that he did delib- 
 
Theology fob the People. 183 
 
 erately and actually entertain such a wish. The ex- 
 pression is evidently hypothetical and conditional : I 
 could wish, were the thing allowable, possible, or proper. 
 So far from saying- he actually desired to be thus sep- 
 arated from Christ, he impliedly says the very reverse. 
 I could wish it, were it not wrong; or did it not involve 
 my being unholy as well as miserable, but as such is the 
 case, the desire cannot be entertained." It is impossible 
 to separate Buffering in hell from sin, which is the cause 
 of the suffering. Xow, if Paul meant that he desired to 
 endure eternal suffering in the pit of despair, he must 
 also have meant that he desired to be chargeable with the 
 sin which is the cause of the suffering. What is the 
 logical and unavoidable conclusion I Simply this : Paul 
 was willing to hate God in order to evince his love to 
 the Jews. With what promptness and abhorrence would 
 Paul have repudiated such an imputation ! 
 
 In 1 Cor. ix. 27 we find these words: "But I keep 
 under my body, and bring it into subjection: lest that 
 by any means, when I have preached to others, I myself 
 should be a castaway." 
 
 In this passage of Scripture a timely and merited 
 rebuke is administered to the "reckless and listless 
 Corinthians who thought they could safely indulge them- 
 selves to the very verge of sin, while this devoted apostle 
 considered himself as engaged in a life-struggle for his 
 salvation." Was Paul in doubt as to his personal salva- 
 tion I Let Rom. viii. 38, 39 answer. The assurance 
 of salvation is given to those, and to those only, who are 
 profoundly conscious of a daily and deadly struggle with 
 sin. Paul clearly recognized the fact that God's decree 
 embraces means as well as end. The keeping under of 
 
184 Theology for the People. 
 
 his body was a means decreed which would prevent his 
 becoming a castaway. 
 
 Did not Saul "fall from grace" 1 ~No. There is not 
 the slightest evidence that he had ever been regenerated. 
 It had been foretold that he would be a cruel king 
 (1 Sam. viii. 10-18). What is the explanation of 1 Sam. 
 x. 6, a The Spirit of the Lord will come upon thee 
 (Saul), and thou shalt prophesy with them, and shalt 
 be turned into another man" ? 
 
 Saul had gifts of the Spirit, but not graces. Says 
 Dr. W. H. Green, in Prophets and Prophecy: "Though 
 the prophets were holy men, and many of them were 
 highly gifted, yet the inspiration was distinct from their 
 sanctification. Even men who were destitute of piety 
 were thus inspired." Note case of Balaam. Saul "was 
 turned into another man," i. e., endowed with a capacity 
 and disposition for leadership. In 1 Sam. x. 9 it is said : 
 "God gave him another heart." It does not mean regen- 
 eration. The word heart, in the Old Testament, has a 
 variety of meanings: (1) Soul, life; (2) seat of the 
 affections; (3) seat of the will, purpose; (4) applied 
 to the mode of thinking and acting; (5) intellect and 
 wisdom are ascribed to the heart. This emphasizes the 
 importance of studying the Word in its context, and 
 also of letting Scripture interpret Scripture. When 
 it is said, "God gave him another heart," it means that 
 he thinks no longer of his father's flocks, but of fighting 
 the Philistines, redressing the grievances of Israel, mak- 
 ing laws, administering justice, making provision for the 
 public safety. His is no longer the heart of a husband- 
 man, but of a statesman, a general, a prince. In 1 Sam. 
 xxviii. 1-25 an exceedingly pathetic scene is presented 
 
Theology foe the People. 1S5 
 
 to our view. Saul, a man highly gifted, consciously 
 deserted of God, becomes a '•victim of a fearful delu- 
 sion," and is plunged into the abyss of despair. 
 "Epliraim is joined to idols : let him alone." 
 
 "What is recorded in Heb. x. 20, 27 I ''For if we sin 
 wilfully after that we have received the knowledge of 
 the truth, there remaineth no more sacrifice for sins. 
 But a certain fearful looking for of judgment and fiery 
 indignation, which shall devour the adversaries." 
 
 For the principle of interpretation to be applied to 
 this passage of God's Word, the reader is directed to 
 the comments on Heb. vi. 4-6. 
 
 Let it be remarked here, however, that if this passage 
 refers to true Christians, the statement is hypothetical, 
 and gives no shadow of support to the advocates of final 
 apostasy. From the nature of the sin mentioned, and 
 also from the context, I maintain that there is no refer- 
 ence to persons regenerated by the Holy Spirit. 
 
 In the phrase, "if we sin," we have in the Greek the 
 present participle, "if we be found sinning, i. e., not 
 isolated acts of sin," but a state of sin." The sin- 
 ning is wilful, presumptuous, and that, too, after 
 the reception of the knowledge of the truth. It 
 is another way of saying, ''And that servant, which 
 knew his lord's will, and prepared not himself, 
 neither did according to his will, shall be beaten 
 with many stripes" ( Luke xii. 46). In Heb. x. 29, the 
 description of the sin under consideration implies the 
 total and contemptuous repudiation of Christ ; and, in 
 eonsecpience of this deliberate rejection, "there re- 
 maineth no more sacrifice for sin-." We find in the con- 
 text that Paul is not speaking of God's children. See 
 the thirty-ninth verse of this chapter: "But we are not 
 
186 Theology for the People. 
 
 of tli em who draw back unto perdition; but of them 
 that believe to the saving of the soul/ 7 
 
 See Rev. xxii. 19, "And if any man shall take away 
 from the words of the book of this prophecy, God shall 
 take away his part out of the book of life, and out of 
 the holy city, and from the things which are written in 
 this book." 
 
 The following is the rendering in the Revised Ver- 
 sion : "And if any man shall take away from the words 
 of the book of this prophecy, God shall take away his 
 part from the tree of life, and out of the holy city, which 
 are written in this book." The last clause as given in 
 the margin : "Even from the things which are written 
 in this book." 
 
 Has this any reference to the doctrine of falling from 
 grace ? Not the remotest ! The child of God has no dis- 
 position wantonly to tamper with the Scriptures. He 
 joyously exclaims with the Psalmist, "O how love I thy 
 law!" The correct rendering is not, "God shall take 
 away his part out of the book of life" ; but God shall take 
 away his part from the tree of life," i. e., "shall deprive 
 him of participation in the tree of life." 
 
 In Rev. i. 3, the beginning of the book, a blessing is 
 promised to the honest, faithful, devout student of the 
 "things written in this prophecy" ; now, at the close 
 of the book, a dreadful curse is denounced against those 
 who add to it or take from it. The true follower of the 
 Lord Jesus Christ has no desire to add to, or take from, 
 God's Word ; and, consequently, is not brought within 
 the sweep of this denunciation. 
 
 Before passing to another phase of this important sub- 
 ject, let us briefly advert to the hypothetical statements 
 
Theology for the People. 187 
 
 and warnings in God's Word. If they do not point to 
 the possibility of "falling away," why are they recorded ? 
 They serve as incentives to a diligent use of means, unre- 
 mitting watchfulness, earnest prayer. In the storm at 
 sea (Acts xxvii. 14-44), God assured Paul that none 
 of the crew would be lost ; yet, afterward, "Paul said to 
 the centurion and to the soldiers, except these abide in 
 the ship, ye cannot be saved." This exhortation was a 
 means of safety. The advocates of total and final 
 apostasy are driven to the necessity of basing their argu- 
 ment on passages of Scripture containing hypothetical 
 statements. We shall now consider passages of God's 
 Word containing positive assertions of the security of 
 the believer. 
 
 Rom. viii. 20, 30 : "For whom he did foreknow, he 
 also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of 
 his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many 
 brethren. Moreover, whom he did predestinate, them 
 he also called; and whom he called, them he also justi- 
 fied; and whom he justified, them he also glorified." 
 
 Where, in the broad universe of God, has a stronger 
 chain been forged % ^Notice the links, and do not forget 
 the Maker : 
 
 (1) Foreknown. (2) Predestinated. (3) Called. 
 (4) Justified. (5) Glorified. 
 
 Who will be so presumptuous as to endeavor to break 
 this divinely-constructed chain '( 
 
 Phil. i. 16, "Being confident of this very thing, that 
 he which hath begnn a good work in you will perform 
 it until the day of Jesus Christ." It is a useless evasion 
 to maintain, as is done, that this passage teaches perse- 
 verance of the saints, but is limited to the Philippian 
 
1SS Theology for the People. 
 
 Christians. Was Paul a Philippian ? Read what Paul 
 says in the seventh verse, "Ye all are partakers of my 
 grace," or, as is expressed in the margin, "partakers 
 with me of grace." It applies to Paul and to God's 
 children in every age and clime. 
 
 John x. 27-29, "My sheep hear my voice, and I know 
 them, and they follow me ; and I give unto them eternal 
 life, and they shall never perish, neither shall any man 
 pluck them out of my hand. My Father which gave 
 them me, is greater than all, and no man is able to pluck 
 them out of my Father's hand." Who uttered these 
 precious words ? It is simply preposterous to maintain 
 that while no external influence or force (whether man 
 or devil) can pluck the Christian out of God's hand, yet, 
 because of free agency, man can voluntarily pluck him- 
 self out of the grasp of Omnipotence. 
 
 Read Phil. ii. 12, 13. In Paul's exhortation to the 
 brethren, he says : "Work out your own salvation with 
 fear and trembling," i. e., accomplish the glorious work 
 which is begun in you, "For it is God which worketh 
 in you both to will and to do of his good pleasure." The 
 Christian's perseverance in grace does not rest on the 
 imperishable nature of the principle of spiritual life 
 implanted in the soul in regeneration; it does not rest 
 on the indestructibility of faith; it does not rest on the 
 purpose and constancy of the human will ; it is based, 
 not on what is within the soul, but on what is without. 
 It proceeds from the eternal, immutable purpose of our 
 loving, covenant-keeping God, in the execution of which 
 purpose Christ died, arose from the dead, intercedes for 
 his people, the Holy Spirit regenerates and sanctifies 
 the redeemed, constant communication of sustaining 
 
Theology fob the People. 189 
 
 grace is secured, and day by day the trustful, consecrated 
 child of God is nearing his bright, happy home. 
 
 If perseverance in grace depends on the will or pur- 
 pose of man, then his doom is not only a possibility, but 
 an awful certainty. 
 
 What is taught in Jer. xxxii. 40 ? "And I will make 
 an everlasting covenant with them, that I will not turn 
 away from them to do them good; but I will put my 
 fear in their hearts, that they shall not depart from me." 
 
 Heb. viii. 10 affords conclusive evidence that the cove- 
 nant mentioned in Jer. xxxii. 40 is the covenant of the 
 gospel, In this "everlasting covenant," what does God 
 engage to do ? Two things : ( 1 ) Not to turn away from 
 his people. (2) Not to suffer his people to turn away 
 from him. How is the latter effected ? "I will put my 
 fear in their hearts, that they shall not depart from me." 
 
 Arminians admit that some Christians will persevere, 
 and, in so doing, virtually admit that the contingency of 
 the will is no longer contingent. 
 
 A theologian of acknowledged ability says : "The only 
 way any danger can assail any soul successfully, is by 
 persuasion; that unless the adversary can get the consent 
 of the believer's free will, he can not harm him. Was 
 it not thus that Adam was ruined ? Is there any other 
 way by which a soul can be plucked away from God ?" 
 Is not the above undeniable ? Now turn to 1 Cor. x. 13 : 
 "God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted 
 above that ye are able." 
 
 Will man accuse God of unfaithfulness ? What is 
 taught in 1 Peter i. 5 ? The Christian is "kept by the 
 power of God through faith unto salvation ready to be 
 revealed in the last time." 
 
190 Theology for the People. 
 
 Rom. viii. 38, 39 : ''For I am persuaded 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 
 ns from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our 
 Lord." 
 
 John xiv. 1 9, "Because I live ye shall live also." 
 
 Heb. xiii. 5, "I will never leave thee, nor forsake 
 thee." 
 
 John v. 24, "Verily, verily, I say unto you, he that 
 heareth my Word and believeth on him that sent me, 
 haili everlasting life, and shall not come into condemna- 
 tion; but is passed from death unto life." 
 
 Is. xli. 13, "Fear thou not; for I am with thee; be 
 not dismayed ; for I am thy God : I will strengthen 
 thee ; yea, I will uphold thee with the right hand of my 
 righteousness. For I the Lord thy God will hold thy 
 right hand, saying unto thee, Fear not ; I will help thee." 
 
 Is. xliii, 1, 2, "But now T thus saith the Lord that cre- 
 ated thee, O Jacob, and he that formed thee, O Israel, 
 Fear not: for I have redeemed thee, I have called thee 
 by thy name ; thou art mine. When thou passest through 
 the waters I will be with thee; and through the rivers, 
 they shall not overflow thee; when thou walkest through 
 the fire, thou shalt not be burned; neither shall the fame 
 Tcindle upon thee." 
 
 "When through fiery trials thy pathway shall lie. 
 My grace all-sufficient shall be thy supply, 
 The flame shall not hurt thee; I only design 
 Thy dross to consume and thy gold to refine." 
 
 Are these passages hypothetical? It is needless to 
 quote further. The absurdity of the doctrine of falling 
 
Theology foe the People. 191 
 
 away appears in the attempt to interpret certain passages 
 of Scripture in the light of this doctrine. Consistency 
 forces its advocates to break the passage in 1 John iii. 2 
 just where the italics begin : "Beloved, now are we the 
 sous of God and it doth not yet appear what we shall 
 be; but we know flint when he shall appeal- we shall be 
 like him. for ire shall see him as lie is." Suppose a boy 
 becomes a Christian at the age of ten years, then leads 
 a consistent life for twenty years, at which time he ''falls 
 from grace" ? lie lives twenty years longer, but does 
 not sever his connection with the church. As a false 
 professor, he dies. On the judgment day the Lord will 
 say to those who had false hopes (Matt. vii. 23), U I never 
 knew you: depart from me, ye workers of iniquity." 
 If the doctrine of final apostasy were true, could not the 
 above-mentioned person contradict the Judge and say, 
 "You. did know me. I was once regenerated, justified, 
 partially sanctified, a child of God, a follower of thine 
 for twenty years ; you did know me!" 
 
 If the doctrine of final apostasy be true, how mil a 
 man "give account of himself to God" ? Eom. ii. 6 says 
 that God "will render to every man according to his 
 deeds." 
 
 Xow, suppose a man has been a Christian for fifty 
 years, "falls from grace," and, at the close of ten days, 
 dies and passes into a wretched eternity. How will he 
 ''give account of himself to God" ? If God punish him 
 for his whole life, must not the previous pardon of sin 
 for fifty years prove a farce ? If God punish him for 
 only ten days, would this be rendering to the man 
 "according to his deeds" ? 
 
 The foregoing are specimens of the glaring ineon- 
 
192 Theology foe the People. 
 
 sistencies and inextricable difficulties in which the advo- 
 cates of final apostasy are involved. 
 
 I am persuaded that a great deal of spiritual despon- 
 dency on the part of God's children is traceable to a 
 failure to distinguish between relationship and com- 
 munion . The difference has been illustrated somewhat 
 as follows : My little boy, bright and merry, comes into 
 my study ; he loves me and desires to be with me. After 
 a time he does something which I had commanded him 
 not to do. Correction is promptly administered. The 
 little boy instantly leaves the room, goes off alone, and 
 spends an hour in a peevish, sullen mood. At the expi- 
 ration of the hour, he begins to relent, sees how inex- 
 cusable his conduct has been, returns to the study, and, 
 in deep contrition, frankly confesses his wrong-doing. 
 The kiss of affection is at once imprinted on the little 
 tear-stained cheek; he is happy again, and now wishes 
 to remain with me. During the hour's absence, he was 
 as truly my boy as he was before the commission of the 
 offence. The relation of father and son was intact. 
 What was lost during the hour was communion, not 
 relationship. As soon as communion was restored, the 
 little fellow was happy again. This sheds light on the 
 petition of the Psalmist, "Restore unto me the joy of 
 thy salvation." Child of God, let the "joy-bells of the 
 soul be ringing" as you press on to that happy home in 
 which is found no "trace of sin's sad story." 
 
 The Confession teaches that "such as truly believe in 
 
 the Lord Jesus, and love him in sincerity, endeavoring 
 
 Assurance of grace to walk in all good conscience before 
 
 and salvation. ^^ m ^ J n ^ g ]'£ e ^ cer t a inly 
 
 assured that they are in the state of grace, and may 
 
Theology for the People. 193 
 
 rejoice in the hope of the glory of God ; which hope 
 shall never make them ashamed." 
 
 It further teaches that this infallible assurance of 
 faith rests — 
 
 1. Upon the divine truth of the promises of salvation. 
 
 2. Upon the inward evidence of those graces upon 
 which these promises are made. 
 
 3. The testimony of the Spirit of adoption, witnessing 
 with our spirits that we are the children of God. 
 
 The infallible assurance of faith in this life is 
 affirmed in Scripture. Rom. viii. 16, "The Spirit itself 
 beareth witness with our spirit that we are the children 
 of God." 1 John iii. 14, "We know that we have passed, 
 from death unto life because we love the brethren." 
 1 John ii. 3, "Hereby we know that we know him, if we 
 keep his commandments." The attainment of this assur- 
 ance is commanded as a duty. In 2 Peter i. 10 we are 
 exhorted to "give diligence to make our calling and 
 election sure." The Scriptures furnish examples of its 
 attainment. Says Paul in 2 Tim. vii. 8, "I have fought 
 a good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the 
 faith ; henceforth there is laid up for me a crown of 
 righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, shall 
 give me at that day; and not to me only, but unto all 
 them also that love his appearing." "Infallible assur- 
 ance of faith" is simply another way of saying that the 
 believer is certain that he is in a state of grace, and will 
 be saved. 
 
 Some theologians make a distinction between the 
 assurance of faith (Heb. x. 22) and the assurance of 
 hope (Heb. vi. 11). 
 
 By the former they mean the "assurance that Christ 
 13 
 
194 Theology for the People. 
 
 is all that he professes to be, and will do all that he 
 promises." 
 
 By the latter they mean the "assurance of our own 
 personal salvation ; this is a fruit of faith, and one of 
 the higher attainments of the Christian life." 
 
 The Confession of Faith also teaches that this infalli- 
 ble assurance is not of the essence of faith. I quote, 
 "This infallible assurance doth not so belong- to the 
 essence of faith, but that a true believer may wait long, 
 and conflict with many difficulties before he be partaker 
 of it ; yet being enabled by the Spirit to know the things 
 which are freely given him of God, he may, without 
 extraordinary revelation, in the right use of ordinary 
 means, attain thereunto. And, therefore, it is the duty 
 of every one to give all diligence to make his calling and 
 election sure ; that thereby his heart may be enlarged 
 in peace and joy in the Holy Ghost, in love and thank- 
 fulness to God, and in strength and cheerfulness in the 
 duties of obedience, the proper fruits of this assurance ; 
 so far it is from inclining men to looseness." 
 
 Let us note the exhortation in 2 Peter i. 10, "Where- 
 fore the rather, brethren, give diligence to make your 
 calling and election sure." Sure to whom ? Not to 
 God; for he knows already; but sure to ourselves. We 
 should realize the blessings and responsibilities involved. 
 Now if assurance be of the essence of faith, it is mani- 
 fest that this assurance can never be separated from 
 faith ; that when there is faith there will also be assur- 
 ance. Does not the Bible speak of weak faith? Is it 
 reasonable that an infallible assurance of our saved con- 
 dition can be of the essence of weak faith ? 
 
 Read again 2 Peter i. 10. Does not this exhortation 
 
Theology for the People. 195 
 
 imply that Christians may not be assured of their salva- 
 tion \ Would the apostle exhort the "brethren" to seek 
 what they already possessed? Does not this passage 
 teach that full persuasion of salvation is not found in 
 every believer '( A certain writer claims that full assur- 
 ance is a process of reasoning founded upon faith, and 
 may be reduced to the following syllogism : "Every man 
 who believes in Jesus Christ shall be saved ; but I have 
 believed in Christ, as is proved by the operations of 
 divine grace in my heart ; therefore, I shall be saved." 
 
 I quote again from the Confession of Faith, "True 
 believers may have the assurance of their salvation 
 divers ways shaken, diminished, and intermitted ; as 
 by negligence in preserving it ; by falling into some 
 special sin, which woundeth the conscience, and grieveth 
 the Spirit ; by some sudden or vehement temptation ; 
 by God's withdrawing the light of his countenance, and 
 suffering even such as fear him to walk in darkness, and 
 to have no light ; yet are they never utterly destitute of 
 that seed of God, and life of faith, that love of Christ 
 and the brethren, that sincerity of heart and conscience 
 of duty, out of which, by the operation of the Spirit, this 
 assurance may in due time be revived, and by the which, 
 in the mean time, they are supported from utter de- 
 spair." 
 
 We read in Scripture of Christians who, for a time at 
 least, lacked this assurance. Read Ps. lxxvii. 2, "In the 
 day of my trouble, I sought the Lord; my sore ran in 
 the night, and ceased not; my soul refused to be com- 
 forted." Note Isaiah 1. 10, "Who is among you that 
 feareth the Lord, that obeyeth the voice of his servant, 
 that walketh in darkness, and hath no light ? let him 
 
196 Theology foe the People. 
 
 trust in the name of the Lord, and stay upon his 
 God." 
 
 Can a gleam of hope be found in Ps. lxxxviii. ? 
 
 In addition to the reasons assigned in the Confession 
 for the lack of this assurance, I am strongly persuaded 
 that spiritual despondency is frequently traceable to 
 physical disorder. We know that the connection be- 
 tween mind and body is very intimate; and that what 
 affects one frequently affects the other. Why is intro- 
 spection, to which many Christians are unduly prone, 
 such a difficult and disappointing process ? For two 
 reasons : 1. The party conducting this process is judge, 
 witness and prisoner at the bar. 2. He is not looking 
 to the right source of help. "Thou wilt keep him in 
 perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on thee." Assur- 
 ance of hope is attainable in this life, and it is our 
 privilege and duty to seek it and find it. Says 1 John v. 
 13, "These things have I written unto you that believe 
 on the name of the Son of God ; that ye may know 
 
 THAT YE HAVE ETERNAL LIFE." 
 
CHAPTER XI. 
 
 The Law of God. 
 
 OUR system of theology, which is based on Scrip- 
 ture, consists of two parts: 1. Doctrinal. 2. 
 Practical. Since duties spring out of doctrines the 
 natural order requires that the doctrines be first con- 
 sidered. In the Bible we find facts, doctrines and 
 duties. A doctrine is the assertion of a fact. In 1 Tim. 
 i. 15, we read, "This is a faithful saying, and worthy of 
 all acceptation, that Christ Jesus came into the world 
 to save sinners." This passage of Scripture is a doc- 
 trine; this doctrine is the assertion of a fact; out of 
 this doctrine springs the duty of submission to Christ. 
 The faithful minister of the gospel seeks "to preach 
 doctrine practically, and to preach practice doctrinally." 
 The Decalogue is "called the moral law because the 
 subject of its injunctions is not ceremonial observances, 
 but moral duties ; and also to distinguish it from the 
 positive laws which were only of temporary obligation." 
 In our Larger Catechism certain rules are laid down 
 for the right interpretation of God's law. These rules 
 are substantially as follows: 
 
 "1. The law is perfect, requiring perfect obedience, 
 and condemning the least shortcoming as sin. 
 
 "2. It is spiritual, respecting thoughts, feelings, mo- 
 tives, and inward states of the heart, as well as outward 
 actions. 
 
 "3. That every command implies a corresponding pro- 
 
198 Theology for the People. 
 
 hibition, and every prohibition a corresponding com- 
 mand ; and every promise a corresponding threatening, 
 and every threatening a corresponding promise. 
 
 "4. That under one sin or duty all of the same kind 
 are forbidden or commanded, together with all that 
 directly or indirectly are the causes or occasions of 
 them. 
 
 "5. That we are not only bound to fulfil the law our- 
 selves, but also to help others to do so as far as we can." 
 
 After the fall of Adam the law which God had given 
 
 to him as a covenant of works, "continued to be a perfect 
 
 rule of righteousness, and, as such, was 
 
 Moral law. ° ' ' * . 
 
 delivered by God upon Mount Sinai 
 in ten commandments, and written on two tables ; the 
 first four commandments containing our duty towards 
 God, and the other six our duty to man." 
 
 Beside the foregoing law, "commonly called moral," 
 God was pleased to give to the people of Israel, as a 
 
 church under age, ceremonial laws con- 
 
 Ceremonial laws. m m 
 
 taining several typical ordinances, 
 partly of worship, prefiguring Christ, his graces, actions, 
 sufferings and benefits ; and partly holding forth divers 
 instructions of moral duties ; all which ceremonial laws 
 are now abrogated under the New Testament. 
 
 To the people of Israel, as a body politic, God also 
 "gave sundry judicial laws, which expired, together with 
 
 the state of that people, not obliging 
 
 Judicial laws. i i 
 
 any other, now, further than the gen- 
 eral equity thereof may require." 
 
 What is the moral law ? Says the Larger Catechism, 
 "The moral law is the declaration of the will of God to 
 mankind, directing and binding every one to personal, 
 
Theology for the People. 19D 
 
 perfect and perpetual conformity and obedience there- 
 unto, in the frame and disposition of the whole man, 
 sonl and body, and in performance of all those duties 
 of holiness and righteousness which he oweth to God 
 and man : promising life upon the fulfilling, and threat- 
 ening death upon the breach of it." 
 
 Of what particular use is the moral law to unregen- 
 erate men ? The Larger Catechism answers, "The moral 
 law is of use to unregenerate men, to awaken their con- 
 sciences, to flee from the wrath to come, and to drive 
 them to Christ; or, upon their continuance in the 
 estate and war of sin, to leave them inexcusable, and 
 under the curse thereof." 
 
 As to the special use of the" moral law with reference 
 to the regenerate, the Larger Catechism says, "Although 
 they that are regenerate and believe in Christ be deliv- 
 ered from the moral law as a covenant of works, so as 
 thereby they are neither justified nor condemned ; yet, 
 beside the general uses thereof common to them with all 
 men, it is of special use to show them how much they 
 are bound to Christ for his fulfilling it, and enduring 
 the curse thereof, in their stead and for their good ; and 
 thereby to provoke them to more thankfulness, and to 
 express the same in their greater care to conform them- 
 selves thereunto as the rule of their obedience." 
 
 These uses of God's law "are not contrary to the 
 grace of the gospel, hut do sweetly comply with it; the 
 Spirit of Christ subduing and enabling the will of man 
 to do that freely and cheerfully, which the will of God, 
 revealed in the law, requireth to be done." 
 
 God's law is not only an expression of his will ; it is a 
 transcript of his nature — the authoritative declaration 
 
200 Theology for the People. 
 
 of his character. It binds the conscience; "it imposes 
 the obligation of conformity to its demands upon all 
 rational creatures." What is moral obligation ? It is 
 obligation to conform our character and conduct to the 
 requirements of God's revealed will. In Dent. xxix. 29 
 we read, "The secret things belong unto the Lord our 
 God; but those things which are revealed belong unto 
 us and to our children forever, that we may do all the 
 words of this law." God's secret will is the "rule of his 
 own procedure" ; his revealed will is our rule of faith 
 and conduct. 
 
 It is well to remember that "our obligation to render 
 obedience to human enactments in any form, rests upon 
 our obligation to obey God; and, therefore, whenever 
 human laws are in conflict with the law of God, we are 
 bound to disobey them." 
 
 Says the Shorter Catechism, "The duty which God 
 requireth of man is obedience to his revealed will." 
 Duty is obedience to God's revealed will; it is that 
 which is due to God from his rational creatures. 
 
 The moral law is summarily comprehended in the 
 ten commandments. In Matt. xxii. 34-40 Jesus gives 
 us "a summary of this summary"; he teaches that love 
 is the principle of the moral law. Supreme love to God 
 and love to our fellow-man is the very principle of obe- 
 dience. The ten commandments present to us the vari- 
 ous ways in which this principle, love, should find 
 expression. "Love is the root ; these various duties are 
 the branches growing out of it, or the fruit which it 
 yields. On these two commandments hang all the law 
 and the prophets, i. e., the preceipts delivered in the 
 pentateuch and in the prophetical writings, are the dif- 
 
Theology for the People. 201 
 
 ferent modes in which love to God and to man is ex- 
 pressed ; and these precepts will be obeyed by every man 
 in whom this love exists." 
 
 "Love is the fulfilling of the law." 
 
 Let us now consider the first table of the law, the first 
 four commandments, containing our duty to God. It is 
 interesting to note how these four commandments sum 
 up and emphasize the duty of divine worship. The first 
 commandment relates to the object of worship; the 
 second, to the mode of worship; the third, to the right 
 disposition of mind and heart for worship; the fourth, 
 to the time for special worship. 
 
 After quoting each commandment, I shall state, in 
 the exact language of the Shorter Catechism, what is 
 ""required" and what is "forbidden" in each. 
 
 First commandment: Thou shalt have no other gods 
 before me. 
 
 "The first commandment requireth us to know and 
 acknowledge God to be the only true God, and our God ; 
 and to worship and glorify him accordingly." 
 
 "The first commandment forbiddeth the denying, or 
 not worshipping and glorifying, the true God as God, 
 and our God ; and the giving of that worship and glory 
 to any other, which is due to him alone." 
 
 This commandment enjoins an intelligent and sincere 
 recognition of God as the only true God; a recognition 
 which involves a sense of our dependence and obligation, 
 snd also of the divine presence, majesty and providence. 
 It condemns Mariolatry, i. e., the Eomish worship of 
 the Virgin Mary. It condemns the sin of agnosticism, 
 which holds that the fact of God's existence is incapable 
 of proof, and therefore can neither be affirmed nor 
 
202 Theology foe the People. 
 
 doiiied ; the sin of atheism, which denies God's exist- 
 ence ; the sin of polytheism, which holds that there are 
 many gods, all entitled to worship and service. It 
 unsparingly condemns idolatry in every form. What is 
 idclatry? It is paying to creatures the homage due to 
 God. The first commandment asserts the supremacy of 
 God's claim to love and loyalty. 
 
 The second commandment: Thou shalt not make unto 
 thee any graven image, or any likeness of any thing 
 that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, 
 or that is in the water under the earth: thou shalt not 
 bow down thyself to them, nor serve them; for I, the 
 Lord thy God, am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity 
 of the fathers upon the children unto the third and 
 fourth generation of them that hate me: and showing 
 mercy unto thousands of them that love me, and keep 
 my commandments. 
 
 "The second commandment requireth the receiving, 
 observing and keeping pure and entire all such religious 
 worship and ordinances as God hath appointed in his 
 Word." 
 
 "The second commandment forbiddeth the worship- 
 ping of God by images, or any other way not appointed 
 in his Word."' 
 
 The Bible teaches that the only true God is a Spirit, 
 and that it is sinful to conceive of him, or attempt to 
 represent him, under a visible form. The second com- 
 mandment condemns the use of images in divine wor- 
 ship. ]\Fen are guilty of idolatry when they worship 
 false gods, and also when they attempt to worship the 
 true God by images. In the latter, the Church of Rome 
 offends most grievously. The sin of worshipping a. 
 
Theology for the People. 203 
 
 visible representation, or symbol, of the unseen God has 
 been "denounced and punished as an act of apostasy 
 from God." Note the instance of the golden calf fash- 
 ioned by Aaron. The sin of the people "lay in their 
 pretending to worship a visible symbol of him whom 
 no symbol could represent." Another instance of apos- 
 tasy from God is cited in the making of two golden 
 calves by Jeroboam, and placing one in Dan and the 
 other in Bethel. The people were commanded to resort 
 to these places for worship. Read Lev. xxvi. 1 and 
 Dent, xxvii. 15. 
 
 When it is said that God "is a jealous God," we must 
 not ascribe to him any of the "imperfections or passions 
 of our nature." The meaning is, that God "has a holy 
 sensibility in regard to everything which relates to his 
 worship." The Scriptures often illustrate God's rela- 
 tion to his people by a reference to the marriage rela- 
 tion. "A people who refuse to recognize, or an indi- 
 vidual man who refuses to recognize, Jehovah as his 
 God, who transfers the allegiance and obedience due to 
 God alone to any other object, is compared to an unfaith- 
 ful wife. And as jealousy is the strongest of human 
 passions, the relation of God to those who thus forsake 
 him is illustrated by a reference to the feelings of an 
 injured and forsaken husband." 
 
 We are also taught, in the second commandment, that 
 the dire consequences of apostasy from God are not 
 restricted to those who are thus the original violators 
 of his law. The iniquity of the fathers is visited "upon 
 the children unto the third and fourth generation of 
 them that hate me." Says another: "We must be care- 
 ful to observe that the children thus visited, as well as 
 
204 Theology fob, the People. 
 
 their parents, are distinctly said to be those that hate 
 God. He never inflicts spiritual judgments on pious 
 children, for the sins of their wicked parents or pro- 
 genitors ; although temporal calamities, such as disease, 
 poverty and grief, are not unfrequently entailed on chil- 
 dren by the vices of their parents. Yet even these 
 calamities, if the children be pious, are always overruled 
 for their eternal benefit. Now, it should be observed, 
 that no hater of God ever is, or indeed can be, punished 
 in this life more severely than his own proper iniquities 
 deserve ; and if God, for wise and holy purposes, deter- 
 mines to punish wicked parents in this life less than 
 their sins deserve (reserving their full and more awful 
 retribution for a future state), and inflicts greater tem- 
 poral sufferings on their offspring than they would other- 
 wise endure, yet unspeakably less, after all, than their 
 own proper iniquities deserve, is there any injustice in 
 this ? There is not the shadoiu of it. On the contrary, 
 there is not only equity, but wisdom, and goodness too, 
 in the dispensation. A solemn warning is held forth, 
 both to parents and children, which may have, and is 
 intended to have, a salutary influence in preventing 
 entirely the threatened evils." 
 
 Bear in mind that while the threatened judgments 
 extend only to the third and fourth generations of those 
 who hate God, the promised mercy is not only to thou- 
 sands of individuals, but also to a thousand, or uncounted 
 number of generations. Bead Deut. vii. 9, "Know 
 therefore that the Lord thy God, he is God, the faithful 
 God, which keepeth covenant and mercy with them that 
 love him and keep his commandments to a thousand 
 generations." 
 
Theology foe the People. 205 
 
 Third commandment : Thou shalt not take the name 
 of the Lord thy God in vain: for the Lord will not hold 
 him guiltless that taketh his name in vain. 
 
 "The third commandment requireth the holy and 
 reverent use of God's names, titles, attributes, ordi- 
 nances, word and "works." 
 
 "The third commandment forbiddeth all profaning 
 or abusing of any thing whereby God maketh himself 
 known." 
 
 This commandment "declares the manner in which 
 the service of God should be performed, namely, with 
 reverence, as opposed to profaneness and every abuse of 
 religious institutions." God's name means God as re- 
 vealed. We must not profane or abuse anything by 
 which God makes himself known. This commandment 
 condemns false swearing, profane swearing, and for- 
 mality, carelessness, irreverence and hypocrisy in the 
 discharge of religious duties. 
 
 Fourth commandment: Remember the Sabbath day 
 to keep it holy. Six days shalt thou labor, and do all 
 thy work: but the seventh day is the Sabbath of the 
 Lord thy God: in it thou shalt not do any work, thou, 
 nor thy son, nor thy daughter, thy man-servant, nor thy 
 maid-servant, nor thy cattle, nor thy stranger that is 
 within thy gates: for in six days the Lord made heaven 
 and earth, the sea. and all that in them is, and rested 
 the seventh day: wherefore the Lord blessed the Sab- 
 bath day and hallowed it. 
 
 "The fourth commandment requireth the keeping holy 
 to God such set times as he hath appointed in his Word \ 
 expressly one whole day in seven, to be a holy Sabbath 
 to himself." 
 
206 Theology for the People. 
 
 "The fourth eommandment forbiddetk the omission 
 for careless performance of the duties required, and the 
 profaning' the day by idleness, or doing that which is 
 in itself sinful, or by unnecessary thought*, words, or 
 works, about our worldly employments or recreations." 
 
 In answer to the question, ''How is the Sabbath, or 
 Lord's day, to be sanctified \ n the Larger Catechism 
 says: "The Sabbath, or Lord's day. is to be sanctified 
 by an holy resting all that day, not only from such works 
 as are at all times sinful, but even from such worldly 
 employments and recreations as are on other days law- 
 ful : and making it our delight to spend the whole 
 time (except so much of it as is to be taken up in works 
 of necessity and mercy) in the public and private exer- 
 cises of God's worship. And, to that end, we are to 
 prepare our hearts, and with such foresight, diligence 
 and moderation, to dispose, and seasonably to dispatch 
 our worldly business, that we may be the more free and 
 fit for the duties of that day." 
 
 Says the Shorter Catechism : "From the beginning 
 of the world to the resurrection of Christ, God appointed 
 the seventh day of the week to be the weekly Sabbath ; 
 and the first day of the week ever since, to continue to 
 the end of the world, which is the Christian Sabbath.'' 
 
 There is so much important truth contained in these 
 quotations. From these, either by express statement or 
 necessary inference, we glean the following: 
 
 1. The Sabbath is an old institution ; in fact, it is one 
 of the two institutions coming down to us from the 
 garden of Eden ; marriage is the other. 
 
 2. Strictly speaking, the Sabbath formed no part of 
 the ceremonial law ; it was in it, but not of it. It existed 
 long before the ^Mosaic ritual, and, consequently, could 
 
Theology for the People. 207 
 
 not have originated with it. "It was brought into tem- 
 porary union with the Sinaitic laws ; with them formed 
 the statutory code of the land. 'When the union was 
 dissolved, it left the Sabbath just where it found it. The 
 death penalty was the only part that strictly belonged to 
 the state ; this, being no part of the original law, has 
 been repealed." 
 
 3. To-day the law of the Sabbath is of binding obliga- 
 tion. 
 
 It was not abolished with the Jewish ceremonial law, 
 and for the following reasons : 
 
 (1) Strictly speaking, it formed no part of that 
 law. 
 
 (2) It is formally incorporated in the moral law. It 
 is the fourth commandment. 
 
 (3) The only way to abolish a typical ordinance is 
 to fulfil it. The Sabbath cannot comply with the terms 
 of abolition. The Lord's day is a prophecy and pledge 
 of eternal rest ; and, consequently, can never be abol- 
 ished till it merges into that rest. 
 
 (4) Teachings of Christ and his apostles confirm the 
 day. Xowhere do they even remotely intimate that the 
 day has been abolished. 
 
 (5) Where is the necessity of abrogation ( "Law is 
 the outgrowth of necessity, and must continue through 
 the period of necessity/' Man needs this day of rest, 
 needs it physically, intellectually and spiritually. 
 
 4. The validity of the Sabbath is not affected by the 
 change of day. From the beginning of the world to the 
 resurrection of Christ the seventh day of the week was 
 the Sabbath ; now it is the first day of the week. We are 
 told that when God had finished his work of creation, 
 
208 Theology for the People. 
 
 that "he rested the seventh day: wherefore the Lord 
 blessed the Sabbath day and hallowed it." 
 
 Changing the day from the seventh to the first does 
 not change its design; does not change its uses. "A 
 new purpose has been engrafted upon the day. It sig- 
 nalizes the resurrection of Christ, a second great work/' 
 Says another, "Redemption is a more glorious work 
 than creation. It cost more to redeem us than to create 
 us. In creation there was but speaking a word ; in 
 redemption there was the shedding of blood. In creation 
 God gave us ourselves ; in redemption he gave us him- 
 self. By creation we have a life in Adam ; by redemp- 
 tion, we have a life in Christ. By creation we had a 
 right to an earthly paradise ; by redemption, we have 
 a title to a heavenly kingdom." 
 
 5. There are but two classes of works that can be 
 performed with impunity on the Lord's day : (1) Works 
 of necessity. (2) Works of mercy. 
 
 What are works of necessity ? They are works that 
 could not be done on Saturday and could not be post- 
 poned till Monday. See Matt. xii. 1. What are works 
 of mercy? Let Luke xiii. 16 answer. Works of mercy 
 are those "to which men are moved by motives not of 
 gain, but of kindness and humanity." 
 
 Any works on the Lord's day except those of necessity 
 and mercy are sinful. 
 
 6. Those in authority are not only under solemn obli- 
 gation to observe the Sabbath, but they are also under 
 obligation to use all diligence in securing its observance 
 by those under their authority. 
 
 What a tremendous and fearful responsibility this 
 imposes on parents, corporations, state and national 
 government ! 
 
Theology for the People. 20& 
 
 The woful desecration of the Sabbath in this land of 
 ours is a standing invitation of the judgments of Al- 
 mighty God. Some one has said, "The Sabbath is to 
 the nations what the i^ile is to Egypt." God must deal 
 with nations in this world. As individuals, and as a 
 nation, we should remember the Sabbath day to keep it 
 holy. It might be interesting to note that in the Bible 
 the Sabbath is a threefold commemoration: (1) Of 
 creation (Gen. ii. 3). (2) Of providence (Deut. v. 
 15), — deliverance from Egyptian bondage. (3) Of 
 salvation through Christ, — his resurrection on the first 
 day of the week. This blessed day is the "cream of 
 time/' "the smile of the Lord." If duly observed, it 
 will prove a perennial fountain of blessing to our sin- 
 scarred world. 
 
 Says another, "The soul needs the sacred stillness of 
 the Sabbath in order to hear the gentle whisperings of 
 the heavenly voices calling it to the skies." As we awake 
 from sleep on the Lord's holy day, let the following lines, 
 be a "musically-uttered prayer" : 
 
 "Welcome, delightful morn, 
 Thou day of sacred rest; 
 I hail thy kind return, — 
 
 Lord, make these moments blest." 
 
 As stated by another, in passing from the first to the 
 second table of the law, we "pass from the domain of 
 piety to the domain of equity." Love to our neighbor 
 must flow from love to God ; consequently, we can never 
 perform our duty to our fellow-men till we love them 
 as God's law requires; and we can never love them 
 thus until we have loved God supremely. It is idle to 
 think that we can observe the second table of the law 
 while we disregard the first. 
 14 
 
210 Theology for the People. 
 
 Fifth commandment: Honour thy father and thy 
 mother; that thy days may be long upon the land which 
 the Lord thy God giveth thee. 
 
 "The fifth commandment requireth the preserving the 
 honour, and performing the duties, belonging to every 
 one in their several places and relations as superiors, 
 inferiors, or equals." 
 
 "The fifth commandment forbiddeth the neglecting of, 
 or doing anything against, the honour and duty which 
 belongeth to every one in their several places and rela- 
 tions." 
 
 In answer to the question, "Who are meant by father 
 and mother in the fifth commandment ?" the Larger 
 Catechism says: "By fattier and mother, in the fifth 
 commandment, are meant not only natural parents, but 
 all superiors in age and gifts ; and especially such as by 
 God's ordinance are over us in place of authority, 
 whether in family, church, or commonwealth." 
 
 "The reason annexed to the fifth commandment in 
 these words, "that thy days may be long upon the land 
 which the Lord thy God giveth thee,'" 1 is an express 
 promise of long life and prosperity, as far as it shall 
 serve for God's glory and their own good, to all such 
 as keep this commandment." 
 
 The sixth commandment: Thou shalt not kill. 
 
 "The sixth commandment reqnireth all lawful en- 
 deavors to preserve our own life and the life of others." 
 
 "The sixth commandment forbiddeth the taking away 
 of our own life, or the life of our neighbour unjustly, 
 or whatsoever tendeth thereunto." 
 
 Seventh commandment: Thou shalt not commit 
 adult ery. 
 
Theology for the People. 211 
 
 "The seventh commandment reqnireth the preserva- 
 tion of our own and our neighbour's chastity, in heart, 
 speech, and behaviour." 
 
 "The seventh commandment forbiddeth all unchaste 
 thoughts, words, and actions." 
 
 Eighth commandment: Tliou shalt not steal. 
 
 "The eighth commandment requireth the lawful pro- 
 curing and furthering the wealth and outward estate 
 of ourselves and others." 
 
 "The eighth commandment forbiddeth whatsoever 
 doth, or may, unjustly hinder our own, or our neigh- 
 bour's wealth or outward estate." 
 
 Xinth commandment: Thou shalt not bear false wit- 
 ness against thy neighbour. 
 
 "The ninth commandment requireth the maintaining 
 and promoting of truth between man and man, and of 
 our own and our neighbour's good name, especially in 
 witness-bearing." 
 
 "The ninth commandment forbiddeth whatsoever is 
 prejudicial to truth, or injurious to our own or our neigh- 
 bour's good name." 
 
 Tenth commandment: Thou shalt not covet thy 
 neighbors house, thou shalt not covet thy neighbour's 
 wife, nor his man-servant, nor his maid-servant, nor his 
 ox, nor his ass, nor anything that is thy neighbor's. 
 
 "The tenth commandment requireth full contentment 
 with our own condition, with a right and charitable 
 frame of spirit toward our neighbour, and all that is 
 his." 
 
 "The tenth commandment forbiddeth all discontent- 
 ment with our own estate, envying or grieving at the 
 good of our neighbour, and all inordinate motions and 
 affections to anything that is his." 
 
CHAPTER XII. 
 
 Civil Relations and Duties: Christian Liberty 
 and Liberty of Conscience, Civil Magistracy, 
 Lawful Oaths and Vows, Marriage, Divorce. 
 
 THE Confession of Faith says : "The liberty which 
 Christ hath purchased for believers under the 
 gospel consists in their freedom from 
 
 Christian liberty. ° x . ' 
 
 the guilt of sin, the condemning wrath 
 of God, the curse of the moral law ; and in their being 
 delivered from this present evil world, bondage to Satan, 
 and dominion of sin, from the evil of afflictions, the 
 sting of death, the victory of the grave, and everlasting 
 damnation ; as also in their free access to God, and their 
 yielding obedience unto him, not out of slavish fear, 
 but a child-like love and a willing mind. All which were 
 common also to believers under the law ; and under the 
 ISTew Testament, the liberty of Christians is further 
 enlarged in their freedom from the yoke of ceremonial 
 law, to which the Jewish church was subjected ; and in 
 greater boldness of access to the throne of grace, and 
 in fuller communications of the free Spirit of God, than 
 believers under the law did ordinarily partake of. 
 
 "God alone is Lord of the conscience, and hath left 
 it free from the doctrines and commandments of men 
 which are in any thing contrary to his Word, or beside 
 it in matters of faith or worship. So that to believe 
 such doctrines, or to obey such commandments out of 
 conscience, is to betray true liberty of conscience ; and 
 
Theology for the People. 213 
 
 the requiring an implicit faith, and an absolute and 
 blind obedience, is to destroy liberty of conscience, and 
 reason also. 
 
 "They who, upon pretence of Christian liberty, do 
 practise any sin, or cherish any lust, do thereby destroy 
 the end of Christian liberty ; which is, that, being deliv- 
 ered out of the hands of our enemies, we might serve the 
 Lord without fear, in holiness and righteousness before 
 him, all the days of our life. 
 
 "And because the powers which God hath ordained, 
 and the liberty which Christ hath purchased, are not 
 intended by God to destroy, but mutually to uphold and 
 preserve one another ; they who, upon pretence of Chris- 
 tian liberty, shall oppose any lawful power, or the 
 lawful exercise of it, whether it be civil or ecclesiastical, 
 resist the ordinance of God. And for their publishing 
 of such opinions, or maintaining of such practices, as 
 are contrary to the light of nature, or to the known 
 principles of Christianity, whether concerning faith, 
 worship, or conversation ; or to the power of godliness ; 
 or such erroneous opinions or practices, as, either in their 
 own nature, or in the manner of publishing or maintain- 
 ing them, are destructive to the external peace and order 
 which Christ hath established in the church ; they may 
 lawfully be called to account, and proceeded against by 
 the censures of the church." 
 
 In this chapter we are taught — 
 
 1. In what Christian liberty consists, viz., freedom 
 from the guilt of sin, the condemning wrath of God, the 
 curse of the moral law; and in being delivered from 
 this present evil world, bondage to Satan, and dominion 
 of sin, from the evil of afflictions, the sting of death, 
 
214 Theology fob the People. 
 
 the victory of the grave, and everlasting damnation ; and 
 in yielding obedience to God, not out of slavish fear, but 
 in a filial, loving spirit. 
 
 2. Particulars in which Xew Testament believers 
 enjoy this liberty in a fuller measure than did the be- 
 lievers under the Old Testament: they are delivered 
 from the obligation of the ceremonial law; more bold- 
 ness in approaching the throne of grace; fuller com- 
 munications of the Holy Spirit. 
 
 3. God alone is Lord of the human conscience. There 
 rests upon man's conscience no obligation to believe any 
 doctrine or submit to any authority that is contrary to 
 the Word of God. 
 
 4. Obedience to legitimate authority of church and 
 state is enjoined by the Word of God. 
 
 5. That it is highly criminal on the part of any man, 
 or set of men, to endeavor to bind the conscience by any 
 obligation not revealed in the Scriptures. 
 
 6. That Christian liberty is not absolute. There are 
 two limitations: (1) The authority of God. (2) The 
 rights and liberties of our fellow-men. 
 
 "This liberty ceases to become liberty, and becomes 
 licentiousness, when it transcends the law of God, or 
 infringes upon the rights of our fellow-men." It is well 
 to heed the injunction in 1 Cor. viii. 9, "Take heed lest 
 by any means this liberty of yours becomes a stumbling- 
 block to them that are weak." In these human relation- 
 ships our liberty must be regulated by love. We should 
 seek more and more of the magnanimous spirit of Paul, 
 as exhibited in 1 Cor. viii. 13, "Wherefore, if meat make 
 my brother to offend, I will eat no flesh while the world 
 standeth." Let us never forget what is stated in 1 Cor. 
 
Theology for the People. 215 
 
 viii. 12, "But when ye sin so against the brethren, and 
 wound their weak conscience, ye sin against Christ." 
 If many church members realized this truth, they would 
 unhesitatingly give up the card party, the modern 
 theatre, and the ball-room. 
 
 Christian liberty must be regulated by love, 
 not by selfishness. 
 
 "God, the Supreme Lord and King of all the world, 
 
 hath ordained civil magistrates to be under him over 
 
 the people, for his own glory and the 
 
 The civil magistrate. , . , 
 
 public good, and to this end, hath 
 armed them with the power of the sword, for the defence 
 and encouragement of them that are good, and for the 
 punishment of evil-doers. 
 
 "It is lawful for Christians to accept and execute 
 the office of a magistrate, when called thereunto ; in the 
 managing whereof, as they ought especially to maintain 
 piety, justice, and peace, according to the wholesome 
 laws of each commonwealth, so, for that end, they may 
 lawfully, now under the New Testament, wage war upon 
 just and necessry occasions. 
 
 "Civil magistrates may not assume to themselves the 
 administration of the Word and sacraments ; or the 
 power of the keys of the kingdom of heaven ; or, in the 
 least, interfere in matters of faith. Yet as nursing 
 fathers, it is the duty of civil magistrates to protect the 
 church of our common Lord, without giving the prefer- 
 ence to any denomination of Christians above the rest, 
 in such a manner, that all ecclesiastical persons what- 
 ever shall enjoy the full, free, and unquestioned liberty 
 of discharging every part of their sacred functions, with- 
 out violence or danger. And, as Jesus Christ hath ap- 
 
216 Theology for the People. 
 
 pointed a regular government and discipline in his 
 church, no law of any commonwealth should interfere 
 with, let or hinder the due exercise thereof, among the 
 voluntary members of any denomination of Christians, 
 according to their own profession and belief. It is the 
 duty of civil magistrates to protect the person and good 
 name of all their people, in such an effectual manner 
 as that no person be suffered, either upon pretence of 
 religion or infidelity, to offer any indignity, violence, 
 abuse, or injury to any other person whatsoever: and 
 to take order, that all religious and ecclesiastical assem- 
 blies be held without molestation or disturbance. 
 
 "It is the duty of the people to pray for magistrates, 
 to honor their persons, to pay them tribute and other 
 dues, to obey their lawful commands, and to be subject 
 to their authority, for conscience' sake. Infidelity, or 
 difference in religion, doth not make void the magis- 
 trate's just and legal authority, nor free the people from 
 their due obedience to him : from which ecclesiastical 
 persons are not exempted ; much less hath the Pope any 
 power or jurisdiction over them in their dominions, or 
 over any of their people; and least of all to deprive 
 them of their dominions or lives, if he shall judge them 
 to be heretics, or upon any other pretence whatsoever." 
 
 In this chapter of the Confession we have the clear, 
 strong enunciation of fundamental and regulative prin- 
 ciples. 
 
 It teaches that church and state are distinct institu- 
 tions ; that since civil government is a divine institu- 
 tion, submission to rightful authority is a duty to God, 
 as well as to our fellow-men. It is the duty of civil 
 officers to seek the promotion of piety, as well as order. 
 
Theology for the People. 217 
 
 "The proximate end for which God has ordained 
 magistrates is the promotion of the public good, and the 
 ultimate end is the promotion of his own glory." 
 
 Christians have a right to hold office in the state. 
 This chapter also contains a message to the Pope, a 
 message which he should read at least once a month ; 
 in fact, he might find it a good "morning tonic." 
 
 We find in our Confession of Faith a clear and com- 
 prehensive definition : 
 
 "A lawful oath is a part of religious 
 
 Oath, what ? . r . D . 
 
 worship, wherein upon just occasion, 
 the person swearing solemnly calleth God to witness 
 what he asserteth or promiseth ; and to judge him accord- 
 ing to the truth or falsehood of what he sweareth. 
 
 "The name of God only is that by which men ought 
 to swear, and therein it is to be used with all holy fear 
 and reverence ; therefore to swear vainly or rashly by 
 that glorious and dreadful name, or to swear at all by 
 any other thing, is sinful and to be abhorred. Yet as, 
 in matters of weight and moment, an oath is warranted 
 by the Word of God, under the ]STew Testament, as well 
 as under the Old, so a lawful oath, being imposed by 
 lawful authority, in such matters ought to be taken. 
 
 "Whosoever taketh an oath ought duly to consider 
 the weightiness of so solemn an act, and therein to 
 avouch nothing but what he is fully persuaded is the 
 truth. Xeither may any man bind himself by oath to 
 any thing but what is good and just, and what he be- 
 lieveth so to be, and what he is able and resolved to 
 perform. 
 
 "An oath is to be taken in the plain and common 
 sense of the words, without equivocation or mental 
 
218 Theology for the People. 
 
 reservation. It cannot oblige to sin ; but in any thing 
 not sinful, being taken, it binds to performance, although 
 to a man's own hurt: nor is it to be violated, although 
 made to heretics or infidels." 
 
 In this chapter of the Confession we are taught — 
 
 1. The nature of a lawful oath. 
 
 2. The only name by which men should swear. 
 
 3. The duty of taking an oath upon proper occasions. 
 (See Heb. vi. 16; 2 Cor. i. 23; Is. lxv. 10; 1 Kings 
 viii. 31; Neh. xiii. 25.) 
 
 4. "The sense in which an oath is to be interpreted." 
 
 5. Extent of its binding obligation. 
 
 The command of our Saviour in Matt. v. 33-37, 
 "Swear not at all," is not designed to forbid the taking 
 of an oath in the right spirit and on proper occasions. 
 "It does forbid the calling upon his name in ordinary 
 conversation on trivial occasions, and the swearing by 
 that which is not God." 
 
 "A vow is of the like nature with a promissory oath, 
 
 and ought to be made with the like religious care, and 
 
 to be performed with the like faithful- 
 
 Vow, what? L 
 
 ness. It is not to be made to any crea- 
 ture, but to God alone : and that it may be accepted, it 
 is to be made voluntarily, out of faith and conscience 
 of duty, in way of thankfulness for mercy received, or 
 for obtaining of what we want ; whereby we more 
 strictly bind ourselves to necessary duties, or to other 
 things so far and so long as they may fitly conduce 
 thereunto. 
 
 "No man may vow to do any thing forbidden in the 
 Word of God, or what would hinder any duty therein 
 commanded, or which is not in his own power, and for 
 
Marriage. 
 
 Theology for the People. 219 
 
 the performance whereof he hath no promise or ability 
 from God. In which respects popish monastical vows 
 of perpetual single life, professed poverty, and regular 
 obedience, are so far from being degrees of higher per- 
 fection, that they are superstitious and sinful snares, 
 in which no Christian may entangle himself." Says 
 another, a A vow is a promise made to God. In the oath 
 the parties are both men ; and God is invoked as a wit- 
 ness. In the vow God is the party to whom the promise 
 is made. Lightly to vow on a trilling occasion, or having 
 vowed, to fail to keep it, is an act of profanity to God." 
 
 Marriage and the Sabbath are two divine institutions 
 coming down to us from the Garden of Eden. "Mar- 
 riage is to 'be between one man and one 
 woman: neither is it lawful for any 
 man to have more than one wife, nor for any woman 
 to have more than one husband, at the same time." 
 
 Many persons regard marriage as nothing more than 
 a civil contract. This is a great mistake. Marriage 
 is a divine institution, "involving a religious as well as 
 a civil contract." As originally ordained, marriage 
 was between one man and one woman. How, then, do 
 we account for polygamy as practiced in the Old Testa- 
 ment history ? 
 
 "Moses, as God's agent, allowed a dispensation of the 
 law of monogamy, which had been long disregarded 
 among the ancestors of the Israelites, 'but in the begin- 
 ning it was not so' (Matt. xix. 7, 8). Christ expressly 
 withdraws this dispensation, and restores the law of 
 marriage to its original basis." 
 
 The Confession also states the object of marriage: 
 "Marriage was ordained for the mutual help of husband 
 
220 Theology for the People. 
 
 and wife ; for the increase of mankind with a legitimate 
 issue, and of the church with an holy seed; and for 
 preventing of uncleanness." 
 
 As to who should enter into the marriage relation, 
 the Confession says : "It is lawful for all sorts of people 
 to marry who are able with judgment to give their con- 
 sent, yet it is the duty of Christians to marry only in 
 the Lord. And therefore, such as profess the true re- 
 formed religion should not marry with infidels, Papists, 
 or other idolaters : neither should such as are godly be 
 unequally yoked, by marrying with such as are noto- 
 riously wicked in their life, or maintain damnable 
 heresies." Does the statement that "it is the duty of 
 Christians to marry only in the Lord" mean that mar- 
 riage between the converted and unconverted is invalid ? 
 Certainly not. The question is not "as to the reality 
 of the marriage when formed, but as to the propriety 
 of forming it." 
 
 As to the degrees of lawful marriage, the Confession 
 says, "Marriage ought not to be within the degrees of 
 consanguinity or affinity forbidden in the Word; nor 
 can such incestuous marriages ever be made lawful by 
 any law of man, or consent of parties, so as those persons 
 may live together as man and wife." 
 
 "Although the corruption of man be such as is apt 
 
 to study arguments, unduly to put asunder those whom 
 
 God hath "joined together in marriage ; 
 
 Divorce. J ° ^ ' 
 
 yet nothing but adultery, or such wilful 
 desertion as can no way be remedied by the church or 
 civil magistrate, is cause sufficient of dissolving the bond 
 of marriage: wherein a public and orderly course of 
 proceeding is to be observed ; and the persons concerned 
 
Theology for the People. 221 
 
 in it, not left to their own wills and discretion in their 
 own case." (See Matt. v. 31, 32 ; xix. 9 ; 1 Cor. vii. 15.) 
 When the sacredness of the marriage relation is duly 
 regarded, when "one man and one woman dwell together 
 in sweet content amid the sanctities of domestic life," 
 the highest interests of state and church will be pro- 
 moted. 
 
CHAPTER Xlll. 
 
 Church of God: Visible and Invisible, Headship, 
 Membership, Officers, Government, Worship, 
 Communion of Saints. 
 
 " rriHE visible church before the law, under the law, 
 
 JL and now under the gospel, is one and the same, 
 
 and consists of all those who make pro- 
 
 Visible church. m 
 
 iession ol the true religion, together 
 with their children. This visible unity of the body of 
 Christ, though obscured, is not destroyed by its division 
 into different denominations of professing Christians ; 
 but all of those which maintain the Word and sacraments 
 in their fundamental integrity are to be recognized as 
 true branches of the church of Jesus Christ." 
 
 ''The catholic or universal church, which is invisible, 
 
 consists of the whole number of the elect, that have been, 
 
 are, or shall be gathered into one, 
 
 Invisible church. , 
 
 under Christ the head thereof ; and is 
 the spouse, the body, the fulness of him that filleth all 
 in all." 
 
 Remember the word "catholic" here means universal; 
 it does not mean the Roman Catholic Church. 
 
 Says Dr. Hodge, "There is but one church, and that 
 church is visible or invisible, just according to the eye 
 that is looking, just according to the point of view taken. 
 Now, the distinction I make is, the church as God sees 
 it and the church as man sees it."' 
 
 "There is no other head of the church but the Lord 
 
Theology for the People. 223 
 
 Jesus Christ." In no sense is the Pope of Rome head 
 
 Headship of the of the church. See Col. i. 18, "And 
 
 church. he [Christ] is the head of the body, 
 
 the church : who is the beginning, the firstborn from the 
 
 dead ; that in all things he might have the preeminence." 
 Eph. i. 22, '"And hath put all things under his feet, 
 
 and gave him to be the head over all things to the 
 
 church." 
 
 "The members of this visible church catholic (/. c, 
 
 universal) are all those persons in every nation, together 
 with their children, who make profes- 
 
 Membership. 
 
 sion of the holy religion of Christ, and 
 of submission to his laws." It is a mistaken notion that 
 a person must subscribe to the Confession of Faith before 
 he can become a member of the Presbyterian Church. 
 Subscription to the Confession is demanded of officers, 
 but not of private members. 
 
 "The officers of the church, by whom all its powers 
 are administered, are, according to the Scriptures, min- 
 isters of the Word, ruling elders, and 
 
 Officers. / 6 ' 
 
 deacons." The ministers of the Word 
 are "commissioned to preach the gospel, administer the 
 sacraments, and also to rule." 
 
 The "ruling elders do not labor in the Word and doc- 
 trine, but possess the same authority in the courts of the 
 church as the ministers of the Word." 
 
 The duties of the deacons relate especially "to the 
 care of the poor, and to the collection and distribution 
 of the offerings of the people for pious uses, under the 
 direction of the session. To the deacons, also, may bo 
 properly committed the management of the temporal 
 affairs of the church." 
 
224 Theology for the People. 
 
 "The scriptural form of church government is that 
 of Presbytery," a government by presbyters or elders, — 
 a representative government. 
 
 Xote carefully the following: "The 
 power which Christ has committed to his church vests 
 in the whole body, the rulers and the ruled, constituting 
 it a spiritual commonwealth. This power, as exercised 
 by the people, extends to the choice of those officers whom 
 he has appointed in his church." 
 
 "The sole functions of the church, as a kingdom and 
 government distinct from the civil commonwealth, are 
 to proclaim, to administer and to enforce the law of 
 Christ revealed in the Scriptures." 
 
 The Confession says : "Church censures are neces- 
 sary for the reclaiming and gaining of offending breth- 
 ren ; for deterring of others from like offences ; for 
 purging out of that leaven which might infect the whole 
 lump; for vindicating the honour of Christ, and the 
 holy profession of the gospel ; and for preventing the 
 wrath of God, which might justly fall upon the church, 
 if they should suffer his covenant, and the seals thereof, 
 to be profaned by notorious and obstinate offenders. 
 
 "For the better attaining of these ends, the officers 
 of the church are to proceed by admonition, suspension 
 from the sacrament of the Lord's Supper for a season,, 
 and by excommunication from the church, according to- 
 the nature of the crime and demerit of the person." 
 
 Says the Book of Church Order, "The church is gov- 
 erned by various courts, in regular gradation ; which are 
 all, nevertheless, Presbyteries, as being composed exclu- 
 sively of presbyters. These courts are, Church Sessions, 
 Presbyteries, Synods, and the General Assembly. These- 
 
Theology for the People. 225 
 
 assemblies (courts) are altogether distinct from the civil 
 magistracy, nor have they any jurisdiction in political 
 or civil affairs. They have no power to inflict temporal 
 pains and penalties, but their authority is in all respects 
 moral or spiritual." 
 
 The Bible clearly teaches that God alone is the object 
 
 of worship, and also prescribes the method of acceptable 
 
 worship. The Confession says, ''The 
 
 Religious worship. ■" 
 
 light of nature showeth that there is a 
 God, who hath lordship and sovereignty over all; is 
 good, and doeth good unto all; and is therefore to be 
 feared, loved, praised, called upon, trusted in, and served 
 with all the heart, and with all the soul, and with all the 
 might. But the acceptable way of worshipping the true 
 God is instituted by himself, and so limited by his own 
 revealed will, that he may not be worshipped according- 
 to the imaginations and devices of men, or the sugges- 
 tions of Satan, under any visible representation or any 
 other way not prescribed in the Holy Scriptures. Re- 
 ligious worship is to be given to God the Father, Son, 
 and Holy Ghost ; and to him alone : not to angels, saints, 
 or any other creature : and since the fall, not without 
 a Mediator; nor in the mediation of any other but of 
 Christ alone." 
 
 In the foregoing we are taught — 
 
 1. That the obligation to worship God is a dictate 
 of nature as well as a doctrine clearly revealed in the 
 Scriptures. 
 
 2. We are also taught in the Bible how acceptable 
 
 worship may be rendered to God, and the sinfulness of 
 
 neglecting to worship him in the manner prescribed in 
 
 his Word, or attempting to worship him in a way not 
 
 therein prescribed. 
 15 
 
226 Theology for the People. 
 
 3. That the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost are the 
 only proper objects of worship. This condemns the at- 
 tempt to render religious worship "to angels, saints, or 
 any other creature." 
 
 •1. That since the fall, God must be worshipped 
 through a Mediator, Christ alone. 
 
 It has been truthfully affirmed that "our faculties 
 find their highest exercise, and our whole being its 
 highest development and blessedness in the worship and 
 service of the true God." 
 
 After stating the object of religious worship, and the 
 source of our knowledge as to the nature and method 
 of such worship, the Confession proceeds to enumerate 
 the parts of worship : 
 
 1. Prayer. This God requires of all men, and it 
 must be made "in the name of the Son, by the help of 
 his Spirit, according to his will, with understanding 
 reverence, humility, fervency, faith, love, and persever- 
 ance ; and, if vocal, in a known tongue." Prayer is the 
 means by which the fulfilment of God's promises is 
 secured to us. As to the objects of prayer we are taught, 
 "Prayer is to be made for things lawful, and for all sorts 
 of men living, or that shall live hereafter ; but not for 
 the dead, nor for those of whom it may be known that 
 they have sinned the sin unto death. " (See what is 
 said under the head of "Perseverance of the Saints" 
 touching the unpardonable sin, or blasphemy against the 
 Holy Ghost.) The Romish Church claims that after 
 death there is a purifying fire through which the souls 
 of imperfect Christians must pass, and that these souls 
 may be greatly benefited by the prayers of their fellow- 
 Christians and the masses offered in their behalf. But 
 
Theology for the People. 221 
 
 since the Bible teaches that there is no purgatory, "there 
 can be no prayers for the dead, since those in heaven need 
 no intercession, and for those in hell none can avail." 
 
 2. "The reading of the Scriptures with Godly fear." 
 
 3. "The sound preaching and eonscionable hearing of 
 the Word, in obedience unto God, with understanding, 
 faith, and reverence." 
 
 4. "The singing of psalms with grace in the heart." 
 
 5. "The due administration and worthy receiving of 
 the sacraments instituted by Christ." These are "all 
 parts of the ordinary religious worship of God; besides 
 religious oaths and vows, solemn fastings, and thanks- 
 givings upon special occasions, which are, in their sev- 
 eral times and seasons, to be used in a holy and religious 
 manner." We should never forget that the Bible teaches 
 that it is our duty to worship God with our substance. 
 
 It might be well for the reader to commit to memory 
 the following definition found in the Confession of 
 Faith : 
 
 Communion of saints. 
 
 "All saints that are united to Jesus 
 Christ their head, by his Spirit and by faith, have fel- 
 lowship with him in his graces, sufferings, death, resur- 
 rection, and glory : and, being united to one another in 
 love, they have communion in each other's gifts and 
 graces, and are obliged to the performance of such duties, 
 public and private, as do conduce to their mutual good, 
 both in the inward and outward man. 
 
 "Saints, by profession, are bound to maintain an holy 
 fellowship and communion in the worship of God, and 
 in performing such other spiritual services as tend to 
 their mutual edification, as also in relieving each other 
 in outward things, according to their several abilities 
 
228 Theology fok the People. 
 
 and necessities. Which communion, as God offereth 
 opportunity, is to be extended unto all those who, in 
 every place, call upon the name of the Lord Jesus. 
 
 "This communion which the saints have with Christ, 
 doth not make them in anywise partakers of the sub- 
 stance of his Godhead, or to be equal with Christ in any 
 respect : either of which to affirm, is impious and blas- 
 phemous. Nor doth their communion one with another, 
 as saints, take away, or infringe the title or property 
 which each man hath in his goods and possessions." 
 
 The following is a brief definition : ''Communion is 
 a mutual interchange of offices between parties, which 
 flows from a common principle in which they are united. 
 The nature and degree of the communion will depend 
 upon the nature and intimacy of the union from which 
 it proceeds." 
 
 The definition in the Confession is given with such 
 explicitness as to render comment unnecessary. 
 
A 
 
 CHAPTER XIV. 
 
 Sackaments : Baptism, Lord's Supper. 
 
 S defined by the Confession, "Sacraments are holy 
 signs and seals of the covenant of grace, imme- 
 diately instituted bv God, to represent 
 
 Sacraments. . . n „ 
 
 Christ and his benefits, and to confirm 
 our interest in him : as also to put a visible difference 
 between those that belong unto the church, and the rest 
 of the world ; and solemnly to engage them to the service 
 of God in Christ, according to his Word. 
 
 "There is in every sacrament a spiritual relation or 
 sacramental union between the sign and the thing sig- 
 nified; whence it comes to pass, that the names and 
 effects of the one are attributed to the other. 
 
 "The grace which is exhibited in or by the sacraments, 
 rightly used, is not conferred by any power in them; 
 neither doth the efficacy of a sacrament depend upon the 
 piety or intention of him that doth administer it, but 
 upon the work of the Spirit, and the Word of institution, 
 which contains, together with a precept authorizing the 
 use thereof, a promise of benefit to worthy receivers. 
 
 "There be only two sacraments ordained by Christ our 
 Lord in the gospel, that is to say, baptism and the supper 
 of the Lord ; neither of which may be dispensed by any, 
 but by a minister of the Word, lawfully ordained. The 
 sacraments of the Old Testament, in regard of the spir- 
 itual things thereby signified and exhibited, were, for 
 substance, the same with those of the New." 
 
230 Theology for the People. 
 
 The Larger and Shorter Catechisms teach that ''a 
 sacrament is a holy ordinance instituted by Christ." A 
 sacrament consists of two elements: (1) The outward 
 sensible sign. (2) The inward spiritual grace thereby 
 signified. 
 
 The Church of Rome holds that there are seven sacra- 
 ments : Baptism, Lord's Supper, confirmation, penance, 
 extreme unction, orders, and marriage. The last five 
 are not sacraments. Our Confession rightly teaches that 
 there are "only two sacraments ordained by Christ." 
 
 "Baptism is a sacrament of the Xew Testament, 
 ordained by Jesus Christ, not only for the solemn admis- 
 sion of the party baptized into the visi- 
 
 Baptism. 
 
 ble church, but also to be unto him a 
 sign and seal of the covenant of grace, of his ingrafting 
 into Christ, of regeneration, of remission of sins, and 
 of his giving up unto God, through Jesus Christ, to 
 walk in newness of life ; which sacrament is by Christ's, 
 own appointment, to be continued in his church until 
 the end of the world. The outward element to be used in 
 this sacrament is water, wherewith the party is to be 
 baptized in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and 
 of the Holy Ghost, by a minister of the gospel lawfully 
 called thereunto. Dipping of the person into water is 
 not necessary; but baptism is rightly administered by 
 pouring or sprinkling water upon the person. 
 
 "j^ot only those that do actually profess faith in, and 
 obedience unto, Christ, but also the infants of one or 
 both believing parents are to be baptized. Although 
 it be a great sin to contemn or neglect this ordinance, 
 yet grace and salvation are not so inseparably annexed 
 unto it, as that no person can be regenerated or saved 
 
Theology foe the People. 231 
 
 without it, or that all that are baptized are undoubtedly 
 regenerated. 
 
 "The efficacy of baptism is not tied to that moment 
 of time wherein it is administered ; yet, notwithstand- 
 ing, by the right use of this ordinance the grace promised 
 is not only offered, but really exhibited and conferred 
 by the Holy Ghost, to such (whether of age or infants) 
 as that grace belongeth unto, according to the counsel 
 of God's own will, in his appointed time. 
 
 "The sacrament of baptism is but once to be admin- 
 istered to any person." 
 
 Baptism is both a sign and seal of the covenant of 
 grace. 
 
 Water applied is the sign ; spiritual regeneration is 
 the thing signified. A seal is "something applied to an 
 agreement or covenant to establish or confirm it." 
 
 Immersionists hold that the individual must be put 
 into the water ; we claim that the water must be applied 
 to the individual. For a man to argue that the lexicons 
 teach that baptidzo means to dip, and nothing more, is 
 to stultify himself. 
 
 Let us look at the word baptidzo as it appears in Scrip- 
 ture and see if it lends any support to the theory of im- 
 mersion. We shall note just a few passages. In Mark 
 vii. 4 we read, "And when they come from the market, 
 except they wash {baptize, in Greek), they eat not. And 
 many other things there be which they have received 
 to hold, as the washing (baptism) of cups, and pots, 
 brazen vessels, and of tables." 
 
 Does it not require a stretch of imagination to con- 
 clude that on returning from market the Jews immersed 
 themselves before eating; and also that they immersed 
 
232 Theology for the People. 
 
 their articles of household furniture, including tables or 
 couches ? 
 
 They simply cleansed (washed) themselves before 
 eating ; nothing more. For the manner of purification 
 read John ii. 6, "And there were set there six water-pots 
 of stone, after the manner of the purifying of the Jews, 
 containing two or three firkins apiece." 
 
 Would these six separate water-pots be sufficient for 
 purposes of immersion X 
 
 Now read Matt. xx. 22. It is evident that in the use 
 of the word baptism in this passage Jesus refers to his 
 sufferings. Was he immersed in his sufferings \ Read 
 Is. liii. 5, "The chastisement of our peace was upon 
 him." 
 
 What is recorded in John xi. 38 % "And when the 
 Pharisee saw it, he marvelled that he had not first 
 washed (baptized, in the Greek) before dinner." Read • 
 this verse in the light of Mark vii. 2, 3, and see if you 
 can discover any trace of immersion. Examine the word 
 baptism wherever it occurs in the Bible, — study it in its 
 context, do so impartially; and the fact will be discov- 
 ered that the theory of immersion has no basis in Scrip- 
 ture. 
 
 The true significance of baptism sheds light on the 
 mode. What is its significance ? The Bible teaches that 
 Baptism symbolizes the work of the Holy Spirit. 
 
 Immersionists say it symbolizes the burial and resur- 
 rection of Jesus. They quote Rom. vi. 2-4 ; Col. ii. 9, 
 11, 12. Is it not strange that we go through the thirty- 
 nine books of the Old Testament, and in the ISTew Testa- 
 ment we pass through Matthew, Mark, Luke, John, Acts 
 of the Apostles, more than half through the jSTew Testa- 
 
Theology foe the People. 233 
 
 nient, before we reach the "burial theory" in Bom. 
 vi. 2-4, the passage which immersionists claim, is so 
 conclusive in support of their doctrine that baptism is 
 commemorative of the burial and resurrection of Christ ? 
 If this doctrine is of such supreme importance, why is 
 it that it was not published to the world until about 
 thirty years after the death of Christ ? 
 
 As a so-called commemoration of the resurrection of 
 Christ, it is superfluous ; we do not need it. The Sab- 
 bath day is the commemoration of that event. Now, as 
 to the burial: What did the burial of Christ have to 
 do with the salvation of sinners ? Since it was predicted 
 that Christ's body would be placed in a sepulchre, pro- 
 phecy would have been discredited, unfulfilled, had he 
 not been buried. Had there been no prophecy concern- 
 ing his burial, what difference would it have made had 
 he remained on the cross or been placed in a private 
 residence during the period between his death and resur- 
 rection ? If it be rejoined that his burial was in order 
 to his resurrection, we answer that the essential part of 
 his resurrection was coming bach to life, not coming out 
 of the sepulchre. 
 
 How was Christ buried? "Was not his body placed 
 in a tomb hewn out of a rock, and a stone rolled against 
 the door ? What is there in immersion to symbolize 
 such a burial as this ? Absolutely nothing. Had the 
 burial of Christ been in accordance with our method 
 of burial, would not pouring or sprinkling more fitly 
 symbolize it? Do we not put the corpse in an open 
 grave and then apply the soil ? Does not the soil descend 
 upon the casket ? 
 
 With these preliminary statements, let us examine 
 
234 Theology for the People. 
 
 Rom. vi. 2-4. Says verse 3, "Know ye not, that so 
 many of us as were baptized into Jesus Christ were bap- 
 tized into his death ?" In the beginning of this chapter 
 Paul is assailing the horrible doctrine that man is jus- 
 tified in sinning because he thus increases the abound- 
 ings of grace. In verse 2, he says, "How shall we that 
 are dead [ivho died, Revised Version] to sin, live any 
 longer therein ?" In verse 3, two things are affirmed 
 of baptism — 
 
 1. We were baptized into Christ. 
 
 2. We were baptized into his death. 
 
 The first means that baptism secures our union with 
 him ; Christ becomes ours; we are one with him. 
 
 The second means that baptism brings us into such a 
 union with Christ's death that his death becomes ours. 
 If baptism here means water baptism, it teaches the 
 unscriptural doctrine of "baptismal regeneration" ; that 
 every person that is baptized is regenerated. The bap- 
 tism here mentioned is spiritual baptism. Now read 
 verse 4, "Therefore we are buried with him by baptism 
 into death : that like as Christ was raised up from the 
 dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should 
 walk in newness of life." 
 
 The word "therefore" shows that what follows is an 
 inference from the preceding statement. The words, 
 "buried with," in the Greek mean "buried together 
 with"; i. e., the burial of Jesus and the burial of his 
 people were one burial. We are here taught that Christ's 
 death is our death, that Christ's burial is our burial; 
 he is our substitute. How often do we hear the mean- 
 ingless, mutilated statement, "Buried with Christ by 
 baptism ?" We demand that the passage be quoted as it 
 
Theology fok the People. 235 
 
 is recorded in the Bible. Here it is, "Buried with him 
 by baptism into death." Is this equivalent to saying 
 that we are buried with him "by baptism into water ?" 
 Never ! We are baptized into his death, i. e., such is our 
 union with him that his death becomes ours. "Therefore 
 w T e are buried with him by baptism into death," i. e., 
 such is our union with him that his burial becomes ours. 
 It is not the mode of baptism that Paul is here emphasiz- 
 ing; he is showing the fact and result of our oneness 
 with Christ. The death of the believer here mentioned 
 is a spiritual death, "dead to sin." The burial of the 
 believer is a burial into death, therefore a spiritual 
 burial. The resurrection of the believer is such that, in 
 consequence, he walks in newness of life right here and 
 right now, — it is a spiritual resurrection. Since the 
 death, burial, and resurrection are spiritual, the baptism 
 is also spiritual. If immersionists insist that the bap- 
 tism here mentioned is literal, i. e., ritual or water bap- 
 tism, we demand that the literal interpretation be ad- 
 hered to through verses 5, 6 ; the result would be they 
 must plant their members like trees, then crucify them. 
 Let us note briefly Col. ii. 12, "Buried with him in 
 baptism, wherein also ye are risen with him through the 
 faith of the operation [energy, strong-working] of God, 
 who hath raised him from the dead." In this chapter 
 Paul is laying stress on the importance of spirituality in 
 religion. He states in verse 10 that believers are com- 
 plete in Christ. In verse 11 he speaks of "the circum- 
 cision of Christ," or Christian circumcision. He 
 illustrates the nature of "baptism" by the use of the 
 term "circumcision." "Ye are circumcised with the 
 circumcision made without hands/' i. e., spiritual cir- 
 
236 Theology for the People. 
 
 cumcision, regeneration. ISTow we gain a clear insight 
 into the meaning of Col. ii. 12, "Buried with him in 
 baptism, wherein [i. e., in your baptism] also ye are 
 risen with him through the faith," etc This does not 
 mean a resurrection out of the water, but a resurrection 
 by faith, i. e., a spiritual resurrection. Since the cir- 
 cumcision and the resurrection are spiritual, the "bap- 
 tism" must also be spiritual. 
 
 "Buried with him in baptism [i. e., completely dead 
 with him in your regeneration?^, wherein also ye are 
 risen with him, through faith in the energy of God, who 
 hath raised him from the dead." 
 
 If immersionists insist that Col. ii. 12 be interpreted 
 literally, we demand that they also interpret verse 11 
 literally, and circumcise their members. The author of 
 Col. ii. 12 is also the author of Rom. vi. 1. Both pas- 
 sages emphasize spiritual baptism, i. e., spiritual regen- 
 eration, the work of the Holy Spirit. 
 
 In Matt. iii. 11 ; Mark i. 8 ; Luke iii. 16 ; John i. 26, 
 33 ; all four gospels, John tells us he baptized with 
 water. Immersionists say he baptized in water. Which 
 will you believe ? 
 
 In Acts i. 5 Christ says, "For John truly baptized 
 with water." Immersionists say, in water. Which will 
 you believe? In Acts xi. 16 Peter says, "John indeed 
 baptized with water." Immersionists say, in water. 
 Which will you believe ? In Acts i. 5 we read, "For 
 John truly baptized with water; but ye shall be bap- 
 tized with the Holy Ghost not many days hence." In 
 studying this passage in the light of Acts xi. 15, 16, We 
 find that there is a connection between water baptism 
 and baptism with the Holy Ghost. 
 
Theology for the People. 237 
 
 In Is. xxxii. 15 ; xliv. 3 ; Ezek. xxxix. 29 ; Joel ii. 
 28 ; Mark i. 10 ; John i. 33 ; Titus iii. 5, 6, we find such 
 words as "poured upon" "poured out" "descending 
 upon" etc., used to express the gift or work of the Holy 
 Spirit. Of course, this pouring out of the Holy Ghost 
 does not refer to his spiritual essence. That which was 
 "shed forth," which "fell on" them that were baptized 
 of the Holy Ghost "was simply the sensible symbol of 
 the Spirit's presence and influences." 
 
 "Immersionists try to evade the force of this positive 
 proof for affusion or pouring by saying, This is not 
 water baptism, but baptism with the Spirit, and, there- 
 fore, is not applicable. But for that very reason it is 
 most applicable, and exactly covers the whole question 
 as to the mode of water baptism ; for the baptism with 
 the Holy Spirit is the one great baptism, while water 
 baptism is but a sign, an emblem of it, and, therefore, is 
 like unto it. John and Jesus Christ place them side by 
 side, and call them baptism." 
 
 In the New Testament we find recorded a number of 
 cases of the administration of baptism. Let us briefly 
 examine them in the light of circumstantial evidence. 
 In other words, if we had no evidence as to the mode of 
 baptism except what can be derived from the circum- 
 stances attending each case, what conclusion would be 
 reached ? 
 
 1 . The baptism of Jesus. Was he immersed ? Cer- 
 tainly not. Read Matt. iii. 13-17. What was the ob- 
 ject of John's baptism % See verse 11, "I indeed baptize 
 you with water unto repentance." The baptism of 
 Christ was not unto repentance; he was pure, had 
 nothing to repent of. Wiry was Christ baptized ? Let 
 
238 Theology for the People. 
 
 verse 15 answer: "For thus it beeonieth us to fulfil all 
 righteousness." Righteousness here means conformity 
 to law. What law \ The law of consecration to the 
 priesthood. How were the priests consecrated % Read 
 JSaim. viii. 5-7, "Thou shalt sprinkle w t ater of puri- 
 fying upon them/" 
 
 But say immersionists, conclusive evidence is found 
 in Mark i. 9, 10 : Jesus "was baptized of John in Jor- 
 dan, and straightway coining up out of the water," etc. 
 I ask, Would not precisely the same language have been 
 used had John and the Saviour stepped into the water, 
 and had John, reaching down his hand, obtained the 
 water and baptized Jesus by sprinkling or pouring? 
 
 "All the most ancient pictorial representations of the 
 baptism of Christ in Jordan, and some of them are of 
 great antiquity, represent the baptism as performed by 
 aspersion," i. e., sprinkling or pouring. A distinguished 
 immersionist asks, "What could take Jesus into the river 
 at all if he was only to be sprinkled ? What could take 
 him to the river ?" 
 
 We answer: John was preaching in "a wilderness" 
 (Matt. iii. 1) multitudes went to be baptized; "Jerusa- 
 lem, and all Judea,, and all the region round about Jor- 
 dan" (Matt. iii. 5). "John did baptize in the wilder- 
 ness" (Mark i. 4). Where could a sufficient quantity of 
 water be found unless the people went to the river ? 
 
 Furthermore, John was an Old Testament prophet; 
 the Old Testament dispensation was still in existence; 
 John's baptism was not Christian baptism, it was Jewish 
 baptism ; "it was of the nature of purifications, i. e., a 
 separation of the baptized unto God's service, as expec- 
 tants of the coming Messiah, and if these baptisms are 
 
Theology for the People. 239 
 
 to be performed in accordance with the requirements of 
 the law of Closes, no other place than such a one as the 
 river Jordan, or /Enon, will answer the purpose." 
 
 Then, too, would not immense quantities of water be 
 needed to sustain the life of the thousands that waited 
 on John's ministry ? What would have become of their 
 beasts of burden had they not assembled at the river ? 
 Says another, "It is worthy of note that after the 
 Christian dispensation was fairly introduced, we read no 
 more in the Word of God of baptisms'm rivers/ but in 
 every instance, baptisms appear to have been adminis- 
 tered just where the convert has been led to embrace the 
 truth, as in the case of the three thousand on the day of 
 Pentecost, and the cases of Paul, of Cornelius, and the 
 jailer at Philippi." Christ was not immersed. He was 
 baptized by John. The Bible teaches that John's bap- 
 tism was a right of purification in the Jewish Church, 
 designed to prepare a people for the coming of Christ. 
 (See Johniii. 25, 26.) 
 
 Christ's baptism was his consecration to the priest- 
 hood. We find in Matt. xxi. 23-27 ; Mark xi. 28-33, 
 that when Jesus was asked, "By what authority doest 
 thou these things ?" he appealed to John's baptism as his 
 authority. Jesus asked his cavillers, Did John baptize 
 by divine, or by human authority ? Jesus virtually said, 
 "I was baptized by John. I have a right to act as a 
 priest in my Father's house." If it be objected that 
 his consecration to the priesthood should have taken place 
 in the temple, we reply: This was "an extraordinary 
 case, for which special provision was made." (Read 
 Heb. vii. 11-14, and John i. 33.) Jesus did not belong 
 to the tribe of Levi, as did the Aaronic priesthood. He 
 
240 Theology foe the People. 
 
 conformed to the law prescribed for the consecration of 
 priests. (Read, again, Num. viii. 5-7.) Neither Jesus 
 nor John were violators of law. John would not have 
 immersed Jesus. Jesus would not have submitted to 
 immersion. 
 
 2. The baptism of the three thousand. (Read Acts 
 ii. 38-41.) It appears that the three thousand were 
 baptized immediately after the close of Peter's sermon, 
 and at, or near, the door of the house in which the apos- 
 tles had been baptized "with the Holy Ghost and with 
 fire." For purposes of purification, the Jews kept near 
 the entrance of their homes water-pots. (See John iii. 
 6.) These water-pots contained a sufficient quantity of 
 water to sprinkle the three thousand. Acts iii. 1 tells 
 us that the ninth hour was the hour for prayer. The 
 length of Peter's sermon is not stated. A part of his 
 sermon is recorded, and we are told in Acts ii. 40, "And 
 with many other words did he testify and exhort." Now 
 we are looking at circumstantial evidence. Let us sup- 
 pose that, beginning his service at 9 a. m., and conclud- 
 ing at 11 a. m., the period for baptizing extended to 5 
 p. m., — six hours. Suppose everything is in readiness 
 for the baptism ; no time to be taken for rest or nourish- 
 ment. On the theory of immersion, Peter and the other 
 eleven apostles had to stand in the water six hours, and 
 each one had to baptize about forty persons every hour, 
 or one person in every minute and a half. Do you say 
 that this narrative is not in line with the doctrine of 
 immersion % In so saying, you show your good judg- 
 ment. On the theory of sprinkling, the problem is 
 readily solved. An hour or two would have afforded 
 ample time. How did Moses baptize the thousands at 
 
Theology for the People. 241 
 
 Mount Sinai i See Heb. ix. 19, ''For when Moses had 
 spoken every precept to all the people according to the 
 law, he took the blood of calves and of goats, with water 
 and scarlet wool, and hyssop, and sprinkled both the 
 
 book AND ALL THE PEOPLE." 
 
 3. The baptisms in JEnon. See John iii. 23, ''And 
 John also was baptizing in ^Enon, near to Salim, because 
 there was much water there." The phrase "much water" 
 should be translated many waters. See the Greek, 
 Many waters, i. e., springs or fountains. "The word 
 iEnon is the plural of ^En, and means fountains." These 
 springs of water would secure the multitudes against 
 suffering from thirst. Says another, "John selected 
 iEnon for his later baptisms, and JEnon was a fit place 
 for those baptisms, because those baptisms were Jewish,. 
 and not Christian, baptisms. The law of Moses must 
 be complied with, and that law required that baptisms 
 such as these should be administered in running water, 
 or in a spring, or a pit wherein was plenty of water ; 
 and this, in order that the defilement which the water 
 acquired by contact with the person first baptized, might 
 not unfit it for the baptism of the second. John did not 
 go to the springs "near to Salim" for purposes of im- 
 mersion. 
 
 4. The baptism of the eunuch (Acts viii. 36-39). 
 
 Let it be borne in mind that we are still in search of 
 
 circumstantial evidence. Was the eunuch immersed ? I 
 
 answer, Xo. What suggested to the mind of the eunuch 
 
 the duty of baptism ? He was reading the seventh and 
 
 eighth verses of the fifty-third chapter of Isaiah when 
 
 Philip approached him. Remember, that at, that time 
 
 the Bible was not divided into chapters and verses as 
 lfi 
 
242 Theology for the People. 
 
 now. In the last verse of the fifty-second chapter of 
 Isaiah the eunuch had just read, "So shall he sprinkle 
 many nations." We may safely conclude that Philip 
 explained to the eunuch the significance of baptism. 
 Afterward the eunuch said, "See, here is water; what 
 doth hinder me to be baptized ?" Immersionists claim 
 that the expressions, "and they went down both into the 
 water," and "when they were come up out of the water," 
 prove that the eunuch was immersed. 
 
 The late Dr. Broadns, an eminent Baptist minister 
 and theological teacher, candidly admitted that "into 
 the water" and "up out of the water" do not prove im- 
 mersion. Any student familiar with the Greek language 
 must admit that the prepositions translated into and out 
 of may, with equal propriety, be translated to and from. 
 In certain passages of Scripture they are so rendered. 
 Was Philip immersed ? What is said of the eunuch is 
 affirmed of Philip : "And they went down both into the 
 water" ; "and when they were come up out of the 
 water." Was the eunuch baptized by immersion? If 
 so, did he not baptize half of his body, and then let 
 Philip complete the task? Read Acts viii. 26, and see 
 if it is probable that the two men came to a quantity of 
 water sufficient for immersion : "The way that goeth 
 down from Jerusalem unto Gaza, which is desert/' 
 We gather from the Old Testament that in this portion 
 of the country the water supply was limited ; a good 
 well was highly valued. The "certain water" men- 
 tinned in Acts viii. 36 may have been a "wayside well 
 or fountain." If the former, the two men "went down" 
 from the chariot to the well, and "came up" from the 
 well. If a fountain, and both men wearing sandals, as 
 
Theology for the People. 243 
 
 was done in that country, they stepped to or into the 
 water, it would have been very easy for Philip to take 
 water in his hand and sprinkle the eunuch. 
 
 Was not Philip travelling on foot? Is it probable 
 that he had a change of raiment? Is it probable that 
 he went on to Azotus with his garments soaked and 
 dripping \ Do the circumstances in this ease point to 
 immersion ? 
 
 5. The baptism of Paul. Read Acts ix. IT, IS ; xxii. 
 12-16. We are still in search of circumstantial evi- 
 dence. In Acts ix. 9. we read. "And he [Paul] was 
 three days without sight, and neither did eat nor drink." 
 This indicates a weakened physical condition. If bap- 
 tized by immersion, is it probable that he would have 
 been taken to some stream or pool before nourishment 
 had been given him \ Was he in physical condition for 
 such an ordeal \ With this thought in mind, read Acts 
 ix. 18, 19, "And immediately there fell from his eyes 
 as it had been scales : and he received sight forthwith. 
 and arose and was baptized. And when he had received 
 meat, he was strengthened." In his condition of 
 weakness and prostration, he could very easily have been 
 baptized by sprinkling. Can the same be said of im- 
 mersion '. 
 
 There is another circumstance that points to sprink- 
 ling. Acts ix. 18 says, "And he received sight forth- 
 with, and arose and was baptized." The word trans- 
 lated arose is a participle (anastas), and means rising 
 or standing up. The following is the correct rendering: 
 "And staxi>ix(. up he was baptized." He was in a 
 standing posture in the house of Judas when he was 
 baptized. In quoting Ananias I Acts xxii. Ifi) Paul 
 
244 Theology for the People. 
 
 uses these words, "And now why tarriest thou % arise 
 and be baptized, and wash away thy sins, calling on the 
 name of the Lord." A little digression. Does Paul 
 here teach the doctrine of ''baptismal regeneration" ? 
 Certainly not. The Bible nowhere countenances such a 
 doctrine. Head Acts xxii. 16 ; ii. 38, in the light of 
 Mark i. 42-44. After the leper had been cleansed 
 (verse 42) he was sent away with this command: '"Go 
 thy way, shew thyself to the priest, and offer for thy 
 cleansing those things which Moses commanded for a 
 testimony unto them" (verse 44). "Offer for thy 
 cleansing" was not in order to his cleansing; it was a 
 declarative act, a testimony to the people that he had 
 been cleansed. Paul's baptism with water was a symbol 
 of inward cleansing, a testimony that his sins had been 
 washed away. 
 
 Returning now to circumstantial evidence, do not 
 Acts ii. 28 and xxii. 16 concur in favor of the supposi- 
 tion that Paul was in the house in a standing posture 
 when baptized, and that he was baptized by sprinkling ? 
 
 6. The baptism of Cornelius and his household. Note 
 Acts x. 44-48, "While Peter yet spake these words, the 
 Holy Ghost fell on all them which heard the word. And 
 they of the circumcision which believed were astonished, 
 as many as came with Peter, because that on the Gentiles 
 also was poured out the gift of the Holy Ghost. For 
 they heard them speak with tongues, and magnify God. 
 Then answered Peter, Can any man forbid water, that 
 these should not be baptized which have received the 
 Holy Ghost as well as we? And he commanded them 
 to be baptized in the name of the Lord." 
 
 As soon as Peter saw that Cornelius and his house- 
 
Theology foe the People. 245 
 
 hold had received the Holy Ghost, he recognized the fact 
 that they were entitled to baptism with water. As to the 
 manner of their receiving the Spirit, we are told thai 
 the Holy Ghost fell on them ; was poured out on 
 
 THEM. 
 
 Since baptism with water symbolizes baptism with 
 the Holy Ghost, does not the baptism of Cornelius and 
 his household suggest sprinkling? Remember we are 
 still in quest of circumstantial evidence. The reader is 
 requested to note carefully one other circumstance : In 
 propounding the question concerning baptism, what lan- 
 guage does Peter employ in verse 47 ? "Can any man 
 forbid water that these should not be baptized, which 
 have received the Holy Ghost as well as we?" On the 
 theory of immersion, would such language have been 
 appropriate ? Does the language indicate that they 
 went to the water, or that the water was brought to 
 them? Let impartial judgment decide. 
 
 7. The baptism of the Philippian jailer and his house- 
 hold. Read Acts xvi. 33, "And he took them the same 
 hour of the night, and washed their stripes; and was 
 baptized, he and all his, straightway." When Paul and 
 Silas were placed in the custody of the jailer, he was 
 charged "to keep them safely." In line with this charge, 
 he "thrust them into the inner prison, and made their 
 feet fast in their stocks." 
 
 Says verse 30, "And brought them out." Out of what ? 
 The inner prison. Brought them into what ? Seemingly 
 into an outer apartment within the jail. When did the 
 baptism occur ? After midnight. If the baptism were 
 by immersion, did it occur in the jail? Is there any 
 probability that the jail in that heathen city had such 
 
240 Theology fok the People. 
 
 accommodations? On the theory that they were im- 
 mersed in some water-course outside of the jail, would 
 it not have been necessary for the jailer to lock up the 
 other prisoners and take Paul and Silas, and, in company 
 with his own family, go out in the darkness in search 
 of water ( Would not changes of raiment have been a 
 necessity? 11 liy did they not wait till daylight? Was 
 there any necessity for undue haste ? We are still weigh- 
 ing circumstantial evidence. Now read verses 36, 37. 
 The jailer said to Paul, "The magistrates have sent to let 
 you go : now therefore depart and go in peace. But Paul 
 said unto them, They have beaten us openly uncon- 
 demned, being Romans, and have cast us into the prison ; 
 and now do they thrust us out privily % nay verily ; but 
 let them come themselves and fetch us out." 
 
 Were not Paul and Silas truthful, upright, law-abid- 
 ing men ? 
 
 Would they so peremptorily have refused to leave 
 the prison at daylight (verse 35) if they had already 
 been outside of the jail just a few hours before, and that, 
 too, without the knowledge of the authorities that ordered 
 them to prison ? Would Paul and Silas have practiced 
 such deception? Does not the circumstantial evidence 
 point to sprinkling ? 
 
 In passing from these recorded cases of baptism, I 
 wish to direct the mind of the reader to the following 
 proposition : 
 
 Sprinkling is in keeping with the fitness of 
 things. Under the gospel the ordinances, "though 
 fewer in number, are administered with more sim- 
 plicity." This is the language of the Confession. In- 
 
Theology for the People. 247 
 
 stead of the Passover, with the paschal lamb and all the 
 attendant ceremonies, we have the Lord's Supper. A 
 morsel of bread and sip of wine are sufficient to represent 
 the great sacrificial work of Christ. 
 
 Instead of circumcision, we now have baptism. A 
 little water is sufficient to symbolize the purifying agency 
 of the Holy Spirit. This does not necessitate the con- 
 struction of baptistries under the pulpits of town and 
 city churches. It does not call for processions from 
 country churches to rivers, mill-ponds, and sometimes 
 pools arranged for the purpose, and which, now and 
 then, prove to be mud-holes. It furnishes no occasion 
 for the ridiculous spectacles which are witnessed by the 
 sight-seers on the bank of the stream, <?. g., the occasional 
 embarrassment and awkwardness of the minister ; the 
 rubbing of the water from the face of the person bap- 
 tized ; the gasping for breath, the clinging of skirts, the 
 changing of apparel under circumstances which do not 
 suggest propriety, — these unseemly accompaniments are 
 avoided in the observance of the scriptural mode of 
 sprinkling. Then, too, there are many circumstances 
 under which immersion is an inmpossibility. A few 
 days ago I baptized a young man in the last stages of 
 consumption. In his case, immersion was out of the 
 question. It does not matter how old or how sick a per- 
 son may be, he is not. debarred the privilege of baptism 
 by sprinkling. 
 
 The reader's careful attention is invited to the con- 
 sideration of a precious doctrine, which has been sneer- 
 ingly styled "baby sprinkling." Says 
 
 Infant baptism. ° J J J l ° J 
 
 the Book of Church Order, "The 
 visible church before the law, under the law, and now 
 
248 Theology for the People. 
 
 under the gospel, is one and the same, and consists of all 
 those who make profession of the true religion, together 
 with their children." The Confession of Faith says, 
 "Not only those that do actually profess faith in, and 
 obedience unto, Christ, but also the infants of one or 
 both believing parents are to be baptized." 
 Let us consider the following propositions : 
 1. Under the Old Testament economy the children of 
 believing parents were members of the church, and 
 entitled to the seal of the Abrahamic covenant, the cove- 
 nant of grace. Circumcision was then the seal. 
 They were circumcised on the faith of their pa- 
 rents. "The infant seed of believers are, through 
 the covenant and by right of birth, members of 
 the church." Infants were circumcised when eight days 
 old, not to make them members of the church, but be- 
 cause they were members, and entitled to the seal. 
 Their membership was established at birth, and duly 
 certified in the rite of circumcision. "The grand pecu- 
 liarity of humanity is that, while each individual is a 
 free, responsible moral agent, yet we constitute a race, 
 reproduced under the law of generation, and. each new- 
 born agent is educated, and his character formed under 
 social conditions. Hence results the representative 
 character of progenitors, and the inherited character 
 and destiny of all races, nations and families. The 
 family, and not the individual, is the unit embraced in 
 all covenants and dispensations." We see the wisdom of 
 this arrangement. The relation between parents and 
 child is very intimate. "The child is bone of the pa- 
 rents' bone, and flesh of their flesh. The life of the 
 parents is continued in that of the child. The child is 
 
Theology foe the People. 249 
 
 dependent on the parents, and the parents are respon- 
 sible for the child. In many cases the act of the parents 
 is also the act of the child. When parents move from 
 one State to another, the citizenship of the child 
 changes. Why ? Because the parents make the change. 
 It is one of the first laws of nature that the destiny of 
 children is, to a great extent, involved in the destiny of 
 their parents. The Bible teaches that the Christian is 
 like the consecrated temple of ancient Jerusalem. The 
 temple was holy, set apart to a sacred use; and every- 
 thing it acquired, by way of gift or offering, was also 
 holy. If parents are consecrated to God, everything 
 they have — influence, property, children, and all — are 
 consecrated to him." When does the moral education 
 of a child begin ? Dr. Dabney answers, "Just so soon 
 as the formation of habit begins." At this plastic, 
 formative period God very wisely demands of believing 
 parents the dedication of their children to him. In this 
 act they assume most solemn and sacred obligations. 
 Let it be borne in mind that in the covenants God has 
 made with man, children have been included with their 
 parents. The covenant with Adam embraced his off- 
 spring. The covenant with Noah embraced his seed. 
 Gen. ix. 9, "And I, behold, I establish my covenant with 
 you, and with your seed after you." 
 
 The same is true of the covenant with Abraham. 
 Read Gen. xvii. 7, "And I will establish my covenant 
 .between me and thee, and thy seed after thee in their 
 generations, for an eveklasting covenant, to be a God 
 unto thee and to thy seed after thee" 
 
 The covenant made at Mt. Sinai included the chil- 
 -dren. (Xote Deut. xxix. 9-12.) 
 
250 Theology for the People. 
 
 The great argument for infant church membership 
 and infant baptism is based on the perpetuity of the 
 Abrahamic covenant, the covenant of grace. See Gen. 
 xvii. 7. In the tenth verse of this chapter we are told 
 that the seal of this covenant is circumcision, "This is 
 my covenant which ye shall keep, between me and you, 
 and tliy seed after thee; every man child among you 
 shall be circumcised." It is vainly objected that cir- 
 cumcision was a seal of the national covenant, a badge 
 of citizenship in the state, and not of membership in the 
 church. We answer : 
 
 1. Circumcision was enjoined upon Abraham four 
 hundred and thirty years before the giving of the law 
 on Mount Sinai ; before the date at which the people 
 were inaugurated as a nation. (Read Gal. iii. 17, 18.) 
 
 2. Under the Old Testament theocratic government, 
 church and state were identical ; membership in one 
 was membership in the other ; exclusion from one meant 
 exclusion from the other. 
 
 3. In Rom. iv. 9-12, Paul shows that Abraham was 
 justified before he was circumcised. To any unpreju- 
 diced mind, Rom. iv. 11 proves conclusively that at its 
 institution the reference of circumcision was to mem- 
 bership in the church, "And he [Abraham] received the 
 sign of circumcision, a seal of the righteousness of the 
 faith which he had, yet being uncircumcised." 
 
 What is a seal ? "It is something applied to an agree- 
 ment, or covenant, to establish or confirm it." What is 
 meant by a seal of righteousness ? "A confirmation of 
 the fact that he [Abraham] was righteous." This 
 righteousness was secured by or through his faith. The 
 seal of circumcision was jnven in confirmation of the 
 
Theology for the People. 251 
 
 fact that God regarded Abraham as righteous, treated 
 him as righteous, because of his faith. Under the Old 
 Testament economy circumcision was the divinely-ap- 
 pointed seal of the covenant of grace. Can anything be 
 plainer ? 
 
 4. From the spiritual import of circumcision. It 
 signifies cleansing from sin. Deut. xxx. 6, "And the 
 Lord thy God will circumcise thine heart, and the heart 
 of thy seed, to love the Lord thy God with all thine heart, 
 and with all thy soul, that thou mayest live." 
 
 Rom. ii. 28, 29, "For he' is not a Jew which is one 
 outwardly; 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 ; whose praise is not of men, 
 but of God." Says another, "When a man joined the 
 Commonwealth of Israel, the benefits of the theocracy 
 ' (a government directed by God) were secured to his chil- 
 dren, unless they willingly renounced these benefits." 
 
 2. The church under the Old and New Testament 
 is the same. In considering this second proposition, 
 we must remember that the Old Testament is the pre- 
 figuration of the New, and that the New Testament is 
 the completion of the Old. The two constitute the Word 
 of God. In the seventeenth chapter of Genesis we have, 
 not the beginning of the church, but the beginning of 
 the church as an organization. As stated before, the 
 organization of the Jews as a nation did not occur till 
 four hundred and thirty years after the Abrahamic cove- 
 nant. The great Pentecost promised to the church under 
 the Old Testament was given to the church under the 
 Now. (See Acts ii. 16, 17.) We read in Acts ii. 47, 
 
252 Theology for the People. 
 
 "And the Lord added to the church daily such as should 
 be saved." Added to the church. jSTo intimation of the 
 organization of a new church. 
 
 In speaking of Moses, Stephen says in Acts vii. 38, 
 "This is he that was in the church in the wilder- 
 ness." 
 
 What is it that gives point to the parable of the 
 wicked husbandmen in Matt. xxi. 33-46 ? The iden- 
 tity of the church. Read the whole parable, and note 
 particularly verse 41, "Will let out his vineyard unto 
 other husbandmen," and verse 43, in which Jesus says, 
 "The kingdom of God shall be taken from you, and 
 given to a nation bringing forth the fruits thereof." The 
 vineyard is the kingdom of God, which, in this parable, 
 is simply another name for the church. Now read care- 
 fully Rom. xi. 16-24. The good olive tree represents 
 the church. The "branches broken off" are the Jews. 
 The Gentiles are the branches of the wild olive which 
 were "grafted into the good olive tree." Unless the 
 Jews abide in unbelief they "shall be grafted into their 
 own olive tree." It is said that the Gentiles partake 
 of the root and fatness of the olive tree, from which 
 "some of the branches," the Jews, were "broken off." 
 Was this "good olive tree/' the church uprooted ? 
 Never! It is the same church, the one church which 
 embraces Jew and Gentile. This fact must be manifest 
 to every unbiased, intelligent student of the Scriptures. 
 It is evident that unless the church is the same under 
 both dispensations a number of Old Testament prophe- 
 cies can never be fulfilled. The prophecies state that 
 the church then existing would be enlarged and strength- 
 ened by the coming of Christ, and would embrace the 
 
Theology for the People. 253 
 
 Gentiles. (See Is. xlix. 13-23; Ix. 1-14.) The cove- 
 nant with Abraham embraced many nations. Read 
 Gen. xvii. 4, "As for me, behold, my covenant is with 
 thee, and thou shalt be a father of many nations." What 
 does Paul say in Rom. iv. 16, 17 ? ''Therefore, it is of 
 faith, that it might be by grace ; to the end the promise 
 might be sure to all the seed; not to that only which is 
 of the law, but to that also which is of the faith of 
 Abraham ; who is the father of us all, as it is written, I 
 have made thee a father of many nations." Says an- 
 other, "The Abrahamic covenant, instead of having been 
 superseded by the gospel, only now begins to have its 
 just accomplishment." Observe carefully what is said 
 in Gal. iii. 7-9, "Know ye, therefore, that they which 
 are of faith, the same are the children of Abraham. 
 And the Scriptures, foreseeing that God would justify 
 the heathen through faith, preached before the gospel 
 unto Abraham, saying, In thee shall all nations be 
 blessed. So then they which be of faith are blessed 
 with faithful Abraham." 
 
 In Acts xxvi. 6, 7 Paul says, "And now I stand and 
 am judged for the hope of the promise made of God 
 unto our fathers; unto which promise our twelve tribes, 
 instantly serving God day and night, hope to come. For 
 which hope's sake, King Agrippa, I am accused of the 
 Jews." When Paul uttered these words he was living 
 under the new, the present dispensation. A covenant is 
 "a promise suspended upon a condition." The promise 
 made to Abraham and to "our fathers" was the blessing 
 of redemption through Christ. Paul argues that the 
 promise is the same under both economies. 
 
 The two dispensations have — 
 
254 Theology foe the People. 
 
 (1) The same Saviour. John viii. 56, "Abraham 
 rejoiced to see my day ; he saw it and was glad." 
 
 (2) The same gospel. Heb. iv. 2, "For unto us was 
 the gospel preached, as well as unto them," i. e., to those 
 living under the Old Testament dispensation. 
 
 (3) The same condition of salvation: faith in the 
 Lord Jesus Christ. Abraham was justified by faith ; 
 so are we. Rom. iv., 19—24 shows conclusively that the 
 plan of salvation is the same. The church is the 
 same. 
 
 3. Third proposition : The children of one or both 
 believing parents are members of the church under the 
 New Testament dispensation, and are entitled to the 
 seal which is now baptism. We apply this seal not to 
 make our children members of the church, but because 
 they are members of the church, and entitled to the seal. 
 Instead of finding anything in the New Testament that 
 justifies the exclusion of children of believers from 
 church membership, we find, as would naturally be ex- 
 pected, that their membership is assumed. 
 
 Our objectors insist on a "positive command" for 
 baptizing children of believers. I ask these opposers the 
 following questions : 
 
 (1) Can you find in Scripture one "positive com- 
 mand" for admitting females to the Lord's Supper ? 
 
 (2) Can you find in Scripture one "positive com- 
 mand" for the so-called doctrine of "close commu- 
 nion" ? 
 
 (3) Can you find in Scripture one "positive com- 
 mand" for the change of the Sabbath from the seventh 
 to the first day of the week ? 
 
 What is taught in John xx. 19, 26; 1. Cor. xvi. 2, 
 
Theology fob the People. 255 
 
 and like passages of Scripture, in connection with the 
 t'.K-i that Jesus arose from the dead on the first day of 
 the week, and that the early Christians celebrated the 
 first day of the week, constitutes our warrant for the 
 change. 
 
 Yes, we have a '"positive command" for the "essential 
 p<irl" of baptism: dedicating to God and applying the 
 seal. Says Gen. xvii. 9, 10, "And God said unto Abra- 
 ham, thou shall keep my covenant therefore, thou and 
 thy seed after thee in their generations. This is my 
 covenant which ye shall keep, between me and you, and 
 thy seed after thee : every man-child among you shall be 
 circumcised." This command, as to its essential part, 
 is not limited to the Jews. Who are Abraham's seed ? 
 Let Gal. iii. 7, 29 answer, "Know ye, therefore, that 
 they which are of faith, the same are the children of 
 Abraham. And if ye be Christ's, then are ye Abraham's 
 seed and heirs according to the promise." 
 
 What is the extent of the binding obligation of a law? 
 A law is binding "till it ceases by limitation or is re- 
 pealed." Jesus says, "Think not that I am come to 
 destroy the law or the prophets. I am not come to 
 destroy, but to fulfill. For verily I say unto you, till 
 heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle shall in nowise 
 pass from the law till all be fulfilled." 
 
 Ceremonial laws typical of Christ and his work have 
 been fulfilled by him and are no longer binding. Apply- 
 ing the seal of the covenant to Abraham and his seed 
 was not typical of Christ and his work, and is still bind- 
 ing. The rite of circumcision has ceased; but the lair 
 \> binding. ( hanging a seal does not necessarily change 
 the law. Cannot a shepherd change the ear-mark of his 
 
256 Theology for the People. 
 
 sheep, yea, of his lambs, without disturbing his right of 
 ownership? Does not the ear-mark serve to establish 
 his right of ownership ? For what other reason does he 
 use the mark? God claims the right of marking his 
 sheep, his lambs, — of applying the seal to his people. 
 He has changed the seal without, in the least, disturbing 
 covenant relationship. 
 
 The passover has ceased "by substitution." The 
 Lord's Supper has taken its place. Circumcision has 
 ceased "by substitution." Baptism has taken its place. 
 Proof— 
 
 (1) They have the "same object." Circumcision was 
 the rite of initiation into the church under the Old 
 Testament dispensation; baptism is the rite of initia- 
 tion into the church under the New. 
 
 (2) They have the "same significance." Circumcision 
 signified purity of heart. Baptism signifies the same 
 thing. (See Deut. xxx. 6; Rom. ii. 28, 29; Col. ii. 11, 
 12, 13; Acts ii. 38, 39.) Baptism, like circumcision, 
 signifies the regenerating work of the Holy Spirit. 
 
 (3) They sustain to the covenant of grace precisely 
 the same relation : a seal. 
 
 We find that the obligation of the law of infant church 
 membership and infant baptism is repeatedly assumed 
 in Scripture. Since we show that children of believing 
 parents were members of the church under the Old Testa- 
 ment economy, and that the church is the same under 
 both dispensations, the burden of proof is on those who 
 deny infant church membership, not on us who assert 
 it; but as our opposers have so signally failed to show 
 that the portion of the great church charter relating 
 to infant church membership has been revoked, we gladly 
 
Theology for the People. 257 
 
 prove to unprejudiced minds that the Word of God 
 assumes that the charter is still in force. 
 
 In Acts ii. 38, 39, Peter's sermon on the day of Pente- 
 cost, we read, "Then Peter said unto them, Kepent and 
 be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ 
 for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift 
 of the Holy Ghost. For the promise is unto you, and 
 to your children, and to all that are afar off, even as 
 many as the Lord our God shall call/' 
 
 Xote 1 Cor. vii. 14, "For the unbelieving husband is 
 sanctified by the -wife, and the unbelieving wife is sanc- 
 tified by the husband : else were your children unclean ,- 
 but now are they holy." Remember that the Presby- 
 terian Church teaches that the "infants of one or both 
 believing parents are to be baptized." What is meant 
 by "unclean" in 1 Cor. vii. 14 ', It means ceremonially, 
 unclean, not entitled to the seal of the covenant. "But 
 now are they holy," i. e., ceremonially clean, entitled to 
 the seal of the covenant. In other words, "The faith 
 of even one of the parents will so far sanctify the mar- 
 riage relation as to preserve the church membership of 
 their children." If it be retorted that Paul simply 
 teaches in 1 Cor. vii. 11, that the offspring of such 
 parents are legitimate, I ask what would be the result if 
 both were unbelievers ', No, Paul means that if one of 
 the parents is a believer, their children are members of 
 the visible church, are entitled to the seal. In Mark 
 x. 14 we read, "Suffer the little children to come unto 
 me, and forbid them not ; for of such is the kingdom of 
 God." In the narrative in Matt. xix. 13-15, they are 
 called "little children"; in Mark x. 13-16, they are 
 
 called "young children" and "little children" ; in Luke 
 
 17 " 
 
258 Theology for the People. 
 
 xviii. 15-17 they are called "little children" and 
 "infants." 
 
 What is meant by the "kingdom of heaven" and the 
 "kingdom of God" in these passages ? It means the 
 visible church. "Repent ye, for the kingdom of 
 heaven is at hand." This means the visible church. 
 
 If it did not mean the visible church, but the church 
 in glory, the argument would still be with us ; the chil- 
 dren of believing parents would be entitled to the seal. 
 
 "Of such is the kingdom of God." What is meant by 
 "of such"? Our opposers say it signifies likeness, but 
 not identity. Indeed ! 
 
 Here is what it means : The kingdom of God is "of 
 them, or of them and those like them." 
 
 Note Rom. i. 23, "They which commit such things," 
 i. e., the very crimes specified by Paul. 1 Cor. v. 11, 
 "With such an one" evidently refers to the very persons 
 specified. 
 
 In Gal. v. 21, "And such like," the word such here 
 does signify likeness, but it is a different word in the 
 Greek from that used further on in this same verse, the 
 same in the Greek with Mark x. 14, "they which do such 
 things," the very things enumerated in verses 19-21. In 
 the third epistle of John 7, 8, "We therefore ought to 
 receive such" i. e., "these very persons and others like 
 them." In connection with these infant church mem- 
 bers, we find the only instance in which we are told 
 that Jesus was "much displeased" with his disciple. Let 
 others take the warning. 
 
 Now turn to John xxi. 15, the words of our Lord to 
 Peter, "Feed my lambs." Consider this statement in 
 the light of Is. xl. 10, in which Christ is described as a 
 
Theology for tup: People. 259 
 
 shepherd, "He shall feed his flock like a shepherd: he 
 shall gather the lambs with his arm, and carry them in 
 his bosom." Read Is. xl. 10 ; Mark x. 14, and John 
 xix. 15, in the order here given, and then ask if these 
 passages give any countenance to the position that infant 
 church membership no longer exists. 
 
 Let us now consider a number of objections to our 
 doctrine : 
 
 1. We are commanded to repent, believe and be bap- 
 tized ; infants cannot repent and believe, consequently 
 they should not be baptized. The plausibility of this 
 argument disappears as soon as the bubble is punctured. 
 Listen to the confident tones of Dr. Carson, an avowed 
 Baptist, "I am willing to hang the whole controversy 
 on this passage (Mark xvi. 16). If I had not another 
 passage in the Word of God, I would engage to refute 
 my opponents from the words of this commission alone. 
 I will risk the credit of my understanding on my success 
 in showing that, according to this commission, believers 
 only are to be baptized." Is it not refreshing to read 
 this breezy, spicy, confident challenge ? What is recorded 
 in Mark xvi. 16 ? ''He that believeth and is baptized 
 shall be saved; but he that believeth not shall be 
 damned." 
 
 The Baptist position has been stated in the form of a 
 syllogism: Baptism, in Mark xvi. 16, is made conse- 
 quent upon faith. 
 
 Infants cannot exercise faith ; therefore, infants must 
 not be baptized. A certain writer calls upon the Baptist 
 brethren consistently to follow out their principles of 
 interpretation, as expressed in the two following syl- 
 logisms : 
 
260 Theology foe the People. 
 
 1. Salvation is here (Mark xvi. 16) made consequent 
 upon faith. Infants cannot exercise faith; therefore,, 
 infants cannot be saved. 
 
 II. Damnation is here made consequent upon not be- 
 lieving. Infants do not believe ; therefore, infants must 
 be damned. 
 
 Our Baptist brethren must either surrender their false 
 principles of interpretation or abide by the consequences. 
 
 When Mark xvi. 16 speaks of faith in order to bap- 
 tism, the reference is to persons capable of exercising 
 faith, not to infants. It should be remembered, how- 
 ever, that infants are baptized on the faith of their 
 parents. Do the Baptist brethren realize that the false 
 principle of interpretation for which they so zealously 
 contend, if universally applied, would ultimately close 
 their schools and churches? Such a principle of inter- 
 pretation would compel them to starve their children. 
 Read 2 Thess. iii. 10, "For even when we were with you, 
 this we commanded you, that if any would not work, 
 neither should he eat." Here is a syllogism: Any one 
 that does not work should not eat. Infants do not work; 
 therefore, infants should not eat. It is obvious that 
 2 Thess. iii. 10 refers to persons who are capable of 
 working ; not to infants. 
 
 2. It is objected that circumcision was applied only to 
 males, and that consistency demands that males only 
 should be baptized. We answer: Females were repre- 
 sented by the males. Passover, Pentecost, and Taber- 
 nacles were Jewish feasts. Now read Ex. xxiii. 17, 
 "Three times in the year all thy males shall appear 
 before the Lord thy God." Bear in mind that under 
 the theocratic government, church and state were iden- 
 
Theology for the People. 261 
 
 tical. The women of Virginia are citizens of this state. 
 Do they vote, or hold office ? ~No. They are represented 
 by the males. Many noble women are members of the 
 Presbyterian Church. They do not hold office in our 
 church ; their voice is not heard on the floor of our 
 church courts. In this capacity they are represented by 
 the males. 
 
 3. It is further objected that infants do not appreciate 
 the meaning of the ordinance, and, consequently, should 
 not be baptized. We answer: Infants are just as com- 
 petent to appreciate the meaning of baptism as was a 
 little boy eight days old to appreciate the meaning of 
 circumcision. What did the child know of circumcision ? 
 Let me pause here to ask this question, Did the reader 
 ever hear an objection against infant baptism that did 
 not apply with equal force against circumcision? 
 
 4. That infant baptism involves infant communion. 
 We answer, No. When we claim that infants are mem- 
 bers of the church we do not mean that they are mem- 
 bers enjoying all the privileges of the church. They are 
 in God's great training school. My children are now 
 citizens of Virginia; yet they do not hold office; they 
 do not vote; they have no voice in the administration 
 of the affairs of State. Are they not citizens'? When 
 our boys who are now citizens of the state reach the age 
 of twenty-one, if law-abiding, they are at once invested 
 with all the privileges of citizenship. 
 
 When baptized children furnish evidence of personal 
 faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, of consistent living, then 
 we admit them to the Lord's Supper. 
 
 Is it not highly probable that children were embraced 
 in the household baptisms recorded in the Scriptures ? 
 
262 Theology for the People. 
 
 Let it be borne in mind that the law of infant church 
 membership has been "sanctioned by the practice of 
 nearly four thousand years. And even at this present 
 day, the great body of God's people everywhere hold fast 
 to this part of the faith once delivered to the saints. 
 Presbyterians, Congregationalists, Methodists, Episco- 
 palians, Lutherans, Reformed — fully eight-tenths of the 
 Protestant world practice infant church membership. 
 No organized denomination of Christians ever opposed 
 it until after the beginning of the Reformation in the 
 sixteenth century," just a few hundred years ago. 
 
 The Anabaptists of Germany date back to about the 
 year A. D. 1522. They were called Anabaptists because 
 they rebaptized those who had been baptized in infancy, 
 and thus opposed infant baptism. At the present day 
 infant baptism is opposed by the following: Baptists, 
 Shakers, Martinites, Tunkers, Campbellites, Dunkards, 
 and Mormons. 
 
 If asked, Why does the Baptist Church continue to 
 grow? I answer: One reason is, because the practice 
 of the church is so superior to its theory. In training 
 the children it treats them as if they were members of 
 the church, and yet formally denies them the right of 
 membership. Is not this sufficient? No. It is a viola- 
 tion of God's command. It is hurtful to the parents, to 
 the children, and to the church of God. Children of 
 believing parents are members of the church. On the 
 theory that such children are excluded from church mem- 
 bership, how can we account for the significant silence of 
 the Jews '. The reply has been made, that perhaps the 
 Jews did protest, but that the Bible gives no record of it. 
 Indeed! See what a clamor the Jews raised over the 
 
Theology fob the People. 263 
 
 rite of circumcision. Were they so intensely concerned 
 about the sign as to be supremely indifferent to the bless- 
 ing sealed, viz., the church membership of their chil- 
 dren i Such a supposition is incredible. 
 
 Our Baptist brethren take delight in pointing us to 
 Rev. xxii. IS. We point them to the next verse, Rev. 
 xxii. 19. We also urge them to consider most carefully 
 Gen. xvii. 14, "And the uncircumcised man-child whose 
 flesh of his foreskin is not circumcised, that soul shall 
 be cut off from his people ; he hath broken my covenant." 
 Let the world take the warxixo. 
 
 The Confession says: "Our Lord Jesus Christ, in the 
 
 night wherein he was betrayed, instituted the sacrament 
 
 of his bodv and blood, called the Lord's 
 
 Lord'.-; Supper. 
 
 Supper, to be observed in his church, 
 unto the end of the world ; for the perpetual remem- 
 brance of the sacrifice of himself in his death, the sealing 
 all benefits thereof unto true believers, their spiritual 
 nourishment and growth in him, their further engage- 
 ment in, and to all duties which they owe unto him ; 
 and to be a bond and pledge of their communion with 
 him, and with each other, as members of his mystical 
 body. 
 
 "In this sacrament Christ is not offered up to his 
 Lather, nor any real sacrifice made at all for remission 
 of sins of the quick or dead, but only a commemoration 
 of that one offering up of himself, by himself, upon 
 the cross, once for all, and a spiritual oblation of all 
 possible praise unto God for the same; so that the 
 Popish sacrifice of the mass, as they call it, is most 
 abominably injurious to Christ's one only sacrifice, the 
 alone propitiation for all the sins of the elect. 
 
264 Theology foe the People. 
 
 "The Lord Jesus hath, in this ordinance, appointed 
 his ministers to declare his word of institution to the 
 people, to pray, and bless the elements of bread and 
 wine, and thereby to set them apart from a common 
 to an holy use ; and to take and break the bread, to take 
 the cup, and (they communicating also themselves) to 
 give both to the communicants ; but to none who are not 
 then present in the congregation. 
 
 "Private masses, or receiving this sacrament by a 
 priest, or any other, alone ; as likewise the denial of the 
 cup to the people ; worshipping the elements, the lifting 
 them up, or carrying them about for adoration, and the 
 reserving them for any pretended religious use, are all 
 contrary to the nature of this sacrament, and to the 
 institution of Christ. 
 
 "The outward elements in this sacrament, duly set 
 apart to the uses ordained by Christ, have such relation 
 to him crucified, as that truly, yet sacramentally only, 
 they are sometimes called by the name of the things 
 they represent, to-wit, the body and blood of Christ ; 
 albeit, in substance and nature they still remain truly, 
 and only, bread and wine, as they were before. 
 
 "That doctrine which maintains a change of the sub- 
 stance of bread and wine, into the substance of Christ's 
 body and blood (commonly called transubstantiation) 
 by consecration of a priest, or by any other way, is 
 repugnant, not to Scripture alone, but even to common 
 sense and reason ; overthroweth the nature of the sacra- 
 ment ; and hath been, and is the cause of manifold super- 
 stitions, yea, of gross idolatries. 
 
 "Worthy receivers, outwardly partaking of the visible 
 elements in this sacrament, do then also inwardlv bv 
 
Theology tor the People. 265 
 
 faith, really and indeed, yet not carnally and corporally, 
 but spiritually, receive and feed upon Christ crucified, 
 and all benefits of his death: the body and blood of 
 Christ being then not corporally or carnally in, with. 
 or under the bread and wine: yet as really, but spir- 
 itually, present to the faith of believers in that ordinance, 
 as the elements themselves are, to their outward senses. 
 
 "Although ignorant and wicked men receive the out- 
 ward elements in this sacrament, yet they receive not 
 the thing signified thereby; but by their unworthy 
 coming thereunto are guilty of the body and blood of 
 the Lord, to their own damnation, wherefore all ignorant 
 and ungodly persons, as they are unfit to enjoy com- 
 munion with him, so are they unworthy of the Lord's 
 table, and cannot, without great sin against Christ, while 
 they remain such, partake of these holy mysteries, or be 
 admitted thereunto." 
 
 Concerning this sacrament a number of widely dif- 
 ferent views are entertained: 
 
 1. The Zwinglian, which regards the Lord's Supper 
 - inbolical only. It is simplv another mode of pre- 
 senting truth ; in this sense only is it a means of grace. 
 
 i'. The Roman Catholic Church teaches the doctrine 
 of transubstantiation, i. e., that by the act of the officiat- 
 ing priest the elements of bread and wine are changed 
 into the body and blood of Christ. The Lord's Supper, 
 or mass, as they style it, is more than a sacrament ; it is 
 also a sacrifice. Viewed as a sacrament, it imparts 
 spiritual nourishment, and does so ex opere operato, by 
 the act performed, i. e., that the "sacramental efficacy 
 goes to every human being to whom the elements go with 
 the proper words of institution, whether the recipient 
 
266 Theology for the People. 
 
 exercise faith or not." We answer, that when Christ 
 said, "This is my body," he means this represents my 
 body. The consecration of the elements is simply the 
 setting apart of these elements from a common to a 
 sacramental use, and not their transformation into the 
 literal body and blood of the Lord. After the consecra- 
 tion the elements still look and taste like bread and 
 wine. If the reply be, "In this case we must discredit 
 the testimony of the two senses, seeing and tasting," I 
 would ask Roman Catholics this question, How do you 
 know that Jesus ever said, "This is my body ?" If they 
 say, through tradition, did not this involve the sense of 
 Inuring? If they say they read it in the Scriptures, 
 did not this involve the sense of seeing? If they are 
 going to discredit the testimony of the senses in one 
 direction, they must be consistent, and block all the 
 avenues through which the soul holds communication 
 with the outside world. 
 
 A moment's reflection will show that the dogma of 
 transubstantiation utterly destroys the nature of the 
 sacrament. The sacrament is both a sign and seal. If 
 the bread and wine are changed into the body and blood 
 of Christ, i. c., into Christ himself, there can be no sign. 
 
 The Romish Church withholds the cup from the laity 
 for the following reasons : 
 
 1. The cup is not necessary to the completeness of the 
 sacrament. Since the bread is changed into the body of 
 Christ, the blood is in the body; and he who receives 
 the body receives the blood. 
 
 2. The wine is changed into blood, and in passing the 
 cup from one communicant to another, the contents 
 might be spilled and trodden under foot of man; this 
 
Theology foe the People. 267 
 
 would be a profanation, the avoidance of which justifies 
 the withholding of the cup from the people. 
 
 The Romish Church regards the eucharist, i. e., the 
 Lord's Supper, or the mass, not only as a sacrament, but 
 also as a sacrifice, a satisfaction for sin. It erroneously 
 supposes that the work of Christ in making satisfaction 
 for sin needs to be constantly repeated. 
 
 3. The Lutheran view. This denies the Romish doc- 
 trine of transubstantiation, but asserts the doctrine of 
 consubstantiation, i. e., that Christ is corporeally present 
 in, with and under the elements ; that while there is 
 inherent virtue in the eucharist, faith on the part of the 
 communicant is essential to the receiving of grace. 
 
 4. The Reformed view. This is our doctrine, aud is 
 succinctly stated in the Shorter Catechism, "The Lord's 
 Supper is a sacrament, wherein, by giving and receiving 
 bread and wine according to Christ's appointment, his 
 death is showed forth, and the worthy receivers are, not 
 after a corporal and carnal manner, but by faith, made 
 partakers of his body and blood, with all his benefits to 
 their spiritual nourishment and growth in grace." 
 
 In this sacrament the sign is the bread and wine duly 
 consecrated, distributed and received. The inward 
 spiritual grace thereby signified includes all the benefits 
 secured by the sacrificial death of Christ. This sacra- 
 ment is also a seal of the covenant. 
 
 Says another, "In this ordinance we may distinguish 
 four loading ideas : 
 
 "1. The memorial idea. 'Do this in remembrance of 
 me.' 
 
 "2. The symbolical idea. The ordinance speaks to us 
 of guilt and of the atonement. 
 
268 Theology foe the People. 
 
 "3. The social idea. It is a communion of Christians 
 with their Lord and with one another. 
 
 "4. The sacramental idea. We use the word 'sacra- 
 mental' in this connection because it serves better than 
 any other to express the thought that this ordinance, 
 besides being a memorial service and symbolical of 
 precious truth, is really a means of grace to those who 
 receive it in faith." 
 
 In 1 Cor. xi. 29, we read, "For he that eateth and 
 drinketh unworthily, eateth and drinketh damnation to 
 himself, not discerning the Lord's body." The word 
 u damnation", is an unfortunate translation. The word 
 in the Greek means judgment, and stands without the 
 article. "It is simply judgment, not the judgment; not 
 eternal perdition. The meaning obviously is, that the 
 unworthy eater contracts guilt; he exposes himself to 
 the judgments of God." Says another, "To eat or drink 
 unworthily is in general to come to the Lord's table in a 
 careless, irreverent spirit, without the intention or de- 
 sire to commemorate the death of Christ as the sacrifice 
 for our sins, and without the purpose of complying with 
 the engagements which we thereby assume." 
 
 Because they partook of the Lord's Supper un- 
 worthily, many of the Corinthians had incurred the 
 judgments of God. See verse 30, "For this cause many 
 are weak and sickly among you, and many sleep." Says 
 verse 31, "For if we would judge ourselves, we should 
 not be judged," i. e., if we would examine ourselves as 
 taught in verse 28, and make due preparation for the 
 Lord's Supper, we should not be thus afflicted. 
 
 Verse 32 states the nature and design of these judg- 
 ments ; they were chastisements designed to bring the ; 
 
Theology for the People. 269 
 
 suffering ones to repentance, "But when we are judged 
 [afflicted] we are chastened of the Lord, that we should 
 not be condemned with the world," i. e., with unbe- 
 lievers. Suppose in coming to the Lord's table a believer 
 should fail in the duty of self-examination, and, in 
 consequence, God should place him on a bed of lan- 
 guishing for thirty days. This judgment would be the 
 Father's dealing with his child, designed to bring the 
 sufferer to repentance for his sin. 
 
 Suppose, for the same cause, the suffering of another 
 should result in death. God's gracious design would not 
 fail of accomplishment. The child of God, having 
 repented of his sin, would enter his Father's home in 
 glory, and take his seat at the marriage supper of the 
 Lamb. If he who comes to the Lord's Supper is not a 
 believer, of course his guilt is greatly aggravated; he is 
 treasuring up wrath against the day of wrath. 
 
 Let it be borne in mind that we incur the displeasure 
 of God by failing to read the Bible aright; by failing 
 to pray aright, as well as by partaking of the Lord's 
 Supper unworthily. Trusting, though trembling, child 
 of God, take courage. Divine love has spread this rich 
 feast, and you are among the invited guests. Your 
 failure to come in the right spirit does not mean damna- 
 tion, eternal perdition. Should consequent affliction be 
 visited upon you, it simply means chastisement sent in 
 love. Your Father makes no mistakes. What a 
 Saviour ! 
 
 "Do this," he cried, "till time shall end, 
 In memory of your dying Friend ; 
 Meet at my table, and record 
 The love of your departed Lord." 
 
CHAPTER XV 
 
 The State of Max After Death. 
 
 SAYS the Confession: "The bodies of men, after 
 death, return to the dust, and see corruption ; but 
 their souls (which neither die nor sleep), having an im- 
 mortal subsistence, immediately return to God who gave 
 them. The souls of the righteous, being then made per- 
 fect in holiness, are received into the highest heavens, 
 where they behold the face of God in light and glory, 
 waiting for the full redemption of their bodies: and the 
 souls of the wicked are cast into hell, where they remain 
 in torments and utter darkness, reserved to the judgment 
 of the great day. Besides these two places for souls 
 separated from their bodies, the Scripture acknow- 
 ledgeth none." 
 
 Says the Larger Catechism: "The righteous shall 
 be delivered from death itself at the last day, and even 
 in death are delivered from the sting and curse of it ; 
 so that although they die, yet it is out of God's love, to 
 free them perfectly from sin and misery, and to make 
 them capable of further communion with Christ in glory, 
 which they then enter upon. The communion in glory 
 with Christ, which the members of the invisible church 
 enjoy immediately after death, is in that their souls 
 are then made perfect in holiness, and received into the 
 highest heavens, where they behold the face of God in 
 light and glory: waiting for the full redemption of 
 their bodies, which even in death continue united to 
 
Theology for the People. 271 
 
 Christ, and rest in their graves as in their beds, till at 
 the last day they be again united to their souls. Whereas 
 the souls of the wicked are at their death cast into hell, 
 where they remain in torments and utter darkness ; and 
 their bodies kept in their graves, as in their prisons, 
 until the resurrection and judgment of the great day. 7 ' 
 The truth here so clearly stated stands opposed to the 
 following theories : 
 
 1. The naturalistic. This theory is as follows : "That 
 on the ground of the inherent capabilities of the soul 
 itself, or of some favorable effect of environment, such 
 moral changes may be expected to occur after death that 
 the universe of the evil ma} r thus by degrees be depopu- 
 lated, and all the vast multitude of disembodied spirits 
 be brought finally by this process into fellowship with 
 the multitude of the good in one blessed concourse of 
 holiness and bliss forevermore." 
 
 2. The probationary theory. The anticipated restora- 
 tion to holiness and bliss after death is "not based on 
 the inherent capabilities of the soul, or of some favorable 
 effect of environment, but simply on the extension of 
 divine grace to sinners after death, and the utilizing 
 of the remedial agencies incorporated in the gospel to 
 induce conviction, conversion, and ultimate salvation."' 
 
 3. The purgatorial theory. This theory, "as held by 
 the Roman Catholic Church since the age of Gregory, 
 relates not to the great multitude of disembodied spirits, 
 but simply to those members of that communion who are 
 not at death sufficiently sanctified to be worthy of admis- 
 sion t<> heaven itself, — that middle class, to use the 
 phrase of Augustine, who are neither too good to need 
 such purification, nor too bad to have it granted to them.*' 
 
272 Theology for the People. 
 
 The Bomanish Church "asserts the existence of such a 
 place of disciplinary and purifying preparation, in 
 which souls of this class are for a smaller or greater 
 period detained until the process of grace is completed ; 
 and further asserts that this sanctifying process may 
 be hastened, and the door of heaven earlier opened, 
 through the suffrages of the faithful on earth, and prin- 
 cipally through the acceptable sacrifices of the altar and 
 the saying of masses for the dead." 
 
 ^Yhat have always been the practical effects of this 
 unscriptural doctrine of purgatory ? Let another 
 answer : 
 
 "(1) The abject subjection of the people to the priest- 
 hood. 
 
 "(2) The gross demoralization of the people. The 
 church is the self-appointed depository and dispenser of 
 the superabundant merits of Christ, and the supereroga- 
 tory merits of her eminent saints. On this foundation 
 she dispenses the pains of purgatory to those who pay 
 for past sins, or sells indulgences to those who pay for 
 the liberty to sin in the future. Thus, the people sin 
 and pay, and the priest takes the money and remits the 
 penalty. The figment of a purgatory under the control 
 of the priest is the main source of his hold upon the 
 fears of the people." 
 
 4. The sleep of the soul. This theory claims that 
 from death till the resurrection the soul is in a state of 
 unconsciousness. The Bible does speak of the death of 
 the Christian as a sleep, but this does not refer to the 
 soul. This theory is refuted by the following passages 
 of Scripture : 
 
 "I am the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and 
 
Theology for the People. 273 
 
 the God of Jacob. God is not the God of the dead, but 
 of the living" (Matt. xxii. 32). 
 
 In the parable of the rich man and Lazarus, conscious 
 existence after death is clearly taught (Luke xvi. 
 19-31). " To-day shalt thou be with rne in paradise" 
 (Luke xxiii. 43). 
 
 "Lord Jesus, receive my spirit" (Acts vii. 59). 
 
 "For I am in a strait betwixt two, having a desire- 
 to depart, and to be with Christ ; which is far better" 
 (Phil. i. 23). 
 
 "We are confident, I say, and willing rather to be 
 absent from the body, and to be present with the Lord"' 
 (2 Cor. v. 8). 
 
 18 
 
CHAPTER XVI. 
 
 The Second Coming of Christ. 
 
 THE Bible teaches that the second coining of Christ. 
 will be: (1) Personal (Acts i. 11). (2) Visible 
 (Matt. xxvi. 46. (3) Glorious (Matt. xxiv. 30 ; 1 Thess. 
 iv. 16). 
 
 The date of his coming is unknown (Luke xii. 40; 
 Mark xiii. 32). This is not inconsistent with Matt 
 xxiv. 34. "Verily I Bay unto you this generation shall 
 not pass till all these things be fulfilled." This probably 
 means that the present generation would see the begin- 
 ning of the fulfilment of the prophecies. "In a certain 
 sense this whole prophetic scheme should be verified 
 before the end of the contemporary generation.' - ' 
 
 Let us note certain events which will precede the 
 second coming of Christ : 
 
 1. The universal proclamation of the gospel (Matt 
 xxiv. 14). 
 
 2. The conversion of the Jews (Eom. xi. 25. 26). 
 Says another. "The rejection of the Jews was the 
 occasion of the conversion of the Gentiles ; and the 
 conversion of the Gentiles is to be the occasion of the 
 restoration of the Jews." 
 
 The Scriptures do not warrant the belief that the 
 Jews will be restored to their own land, and constituted 
 a distinct nation. 
 
 3. The overthrow of antichrist. (^See 2 Thess. ii. 
 
Theology for the People. 275 
 
 1-10.) Who, or what, is antichrist ? (Kead 1 John ii. 
 22; 1 John iv. 3 ; 2 John, 7.) 
 
 It appears from Scripture that antichrist is not an 
 individual, but a corporation or institution. No one 
 man would live long enough to accomplish the work 
 assigned to antichrist in prophecy. 
 
 Antichrist seems to be an ecclesiastical power. When 
 the Confession says that the pope of Rome is in no sense 
 the head of the church ; "but is that antichrist, that 
 man of sin, and son of perdition, that exalteth himself 
 in the church against Christ, and all that is called God," 
 the authors of the Confession must have meant that the 
 "papal system is in spirit, form and effect wholly anti- 
 Christian." 
 
 4. Millennium. Millennialists hold that a period is 
 approaching during which "the gospel is to exercise an 
 influence over all branches of the human family, iin- 
 measureabry more extensive and more thoroughly trans- 
 forming than any it has realized in times past. This 
 end is to be gradually attained through the spiritual 
 presence of Christ in the ordinary dispensations of 
 providence, and ministrations of his church. This gen- 
 eral prevalency of the gospel will continue one thousand 
 years — millennium. At the end of this period, and 
 before the coming of Christ, there will be a short season 
 of apostasy; a violent conflict between the kingdoms of 
 light and darkness." 
 
 The following, with perhaps slight modifications, is 
 the view of premillennialists: "That at some time, vari- 
 ously estimated, Christ will suddenly appear, and com- 
 mence his reign of one thousand years in Jerusalem. 
 The dead in Christ (only the martyrs, some say) will 
 
276 Theology foe the People. 
 
 rise and reign with him on the earth — a period of great 
 prosperity and happiness. After this period there will 
 be a short season of apostasy; then the resurrection of 
 the "rest of the dead" — i. e., the wicked — will occur." 
 
 To state the question differently, millennialists hold 
 that Christ will not come till the close of the millen- 
 nium ; pre-millennialists maintain that Christ will 
 appear at the beginning of the millennium. 
 
 In my humble judgment, the Bible does not teach that 
 Christ will come at the beginning of the millennium. 
 Space will not permit an exhaustive treatment of the 
 subject. It might be well, however, to call the reader's 
 attention to Rev. xx. 1-10, and give the usual interpre- 
 tation : 
 
 "Christ has in reserve for his church a period of 
 universal expansion and of preeminent spiritual pros- 
 perity, when the spirit and character of the noble army 
 of martyrs shall be reproduced again in the great body 
 of God's people in an unprecedented measure, and when 
 these martyrs shall, in the general triumph of their 
 cause, and in the overthrow of that of their enemies, 
 receive judgment over their foes, and reign in the earth ; 
 while the party of Satan, 'the rest of the dead,' shall not 
 flourish again until the thousand years be ended, when 
 it shall prevail again for a little season." 
 
 In favor of the spiritual interpretation of this passage 
 of Scripture the following reasons have been assigned: 
 
 "1. The passage occurs in a highly figurative book. 
 
 "2. The spiritual interpretation is consistent with all 
 other explicit teachings of the Bible. 
 
 "3. The same figure — life again from the dead — is 
 frequently used in Scripture to express the idea of the 
 
Theology for the People. 277 
 
 spiritual revival of the church. (Ezek. xxxvii. 12-14; 
 Horn. xi. 15.) 
 
 "4. Two resurrections are nowhere else taught in the 
 Bible. 
 
 "5. Consistent with what the Bible teaches as to the 
 nature of the resurrection body, i. e., spiritual, not flesh 
 and blood. A literal interpretation would make the 
 saints rise and reign in the flesh, and in this world as 
 now constituted." 
 
 If, in the interpretation of this passage, we follow 
 "the torch of the literalist," it will prove an ignis fatuus, 
 leading us into the realm of mist and uncertainty. 
 
 Let me state, however, that in the church to-day a 
 number of noble, consecrated men hold firmly to the pre- 
 millennial view. In fact, the late scholarly Dr. Peck 
 a few years- ago informed the writer that- at one stage of 
 his life he held to the theory of pre-millennialism ; but, 
 after careful investigation, discarded the view. 
 
 So far, we have noted four events which, in our judg- 
 ment will precede the seeond coming of Christ. 
 
 Let us now consider a number of concurrent events : 
 
 1. Resurrection of the dead. 
 
 2. The last judgment. 
 
 3. The end of the world. 
 
 4. Consummation of Christ's kingdom. 
 
CHAPTER XVII. 
 
 The Resurrection of the Dead. 
 
 "AT the last day, such as are found alive shall not 
 
 A die, but be changed: and all the dead shall be 
 raised up with the self -same bodies, and none other, 
 although with different qualities, which shall be united 
 again to their souls forever. The bodies of the unjust 
 shall, by the power of Christ, be raised to dishonour; 
 the bodies of the just, by his Spirit, unto honour, and 
 be made conformable to his own glorious body." 
 
 In this statement of the Confession we are taught 
 that at the last day there will be a simultaneous resur- 
 rection of all the dead, of the just and the unjust. Those 
 that are found alive shall not die, but be changed 
 (1 Thess. iv. IT; 1 Cor. xv. 51, 52). 
 
 That the "self-same bodies" that are buried in the 
 earth shall be raised and reunited to their souls ; in the 
 resurrection body there is a change of qualities, but no 
 loss of identity. The bodies of believers shall be made 
 like Christ's glorious body. These bodies will be '"spir- 
 itual," suited to the indwelling of pure, blood-washed 
 spirits. The bodies of the unjust shall be "raised to 
 dishonour." 
 
 The Bible does not teach that there will be two resur- 
 rections. (Read John v. 28, 29; Matt. xxv. 31, 32.) 
 What is the meaning of 1 Thess. iv. 16, 17 ? "The dead 
 in Christ shall rise first," i. e., before those alive shall 
 be caught up," etc. In this respect the living will have 
 
Theology foe the People. 279 
 
 no advantage over the dead. It does not mean that the 
 dead in Christ shall rise before the resurrection of the 
 dead who are not in Christ. 
 
 Read 1 Cor. xv. 23, 21, "But every man in his own 
 order: Christ the first-fruits; afterward they that are 
 Christ's at his coming. Then cometh the end/' i. e., 
 the end of the world, not of the resurrection. Note under 
 the head of Millenium the interpretation of Rev. xx. 
 1-10. 
 
 The glorious doctrine of the resurrection is "so 
 wrought into the warp and woof of the Scriptures, that 
 it could not be torn out without working irreparable 
 damage to the entire structure. The identity of the 
 resurrection body with the body as now constituted will 
 not be an identity of atoms or of material substance, 
 but rather of the principle of life, or of organization. 
 That the body of the resurrection will correspond to the 
 individuality of the earthly person in every essential 
 quality, is all Scripture warrants us in affirming." 
 
 Concerning the nature of the resurrection body of the 
 impenitent, the Scriptures are silent. An esteemed in- 
 structor in Princeton Seminary, Dr. A. A. Hodge, ex- 
 pressed with enthusiasm his belief that the resurrection 
 body of the Christian will be rendered perfect as the 
 organ of the soul in — (1) Perception. (2) Volition. 
 (3) Expression. 
 
 Says 1 Cor. xv. 13, 41, "It is sown in dishonour, it 
 is raised in glory; it is sown in weakness, it is raised 
 in power. It is sown a natural body; it is raised a 
 spiritual body." The resurrection will put an end to the 
 infirmities which now attach to these poor, frail, maimed, 
 stooped, diseased bodies of God's children. Our belief 
 
2S0 Theology foe the People. 
 
 in the doctrine of the resurrection is founded on the 
 Word of God. Let us not question his wisdom, power 
 and faithfulness. We readily accept the doctrine of the 
 creation of the body. "Well, then, if what never before 
 existed now exists, why may not that which once existed, 
 exist again ?" 
 
 "My flesh shall slumber in the ground, 
 Till the last trumpet's joyful sound; 
 Then burst the chains, with sweet surprise, 
 And in mv Saviour's image rise." 
 
CHAPTER XVIII 
 
 The Last Judgment. 
 
 "/^1 OD hath appointed a day, wherein he will judge 
 VJT the world in righteousness by Jesus Christ, to 
 whom all power and judgment is given of the Father. 
 In which day, not only the apostate angels shall be 
 judged, but likewise all persons, that have lived upon 
 earth, shall appear before the tribunal of Christ, to give 
 an account of their thoughts, words and deeds ; and to 
 receive according to what they have done in the body, 
 whether good or evil. 
 
 "The end of God's appointing this day is for the 
 manifestation of the glory of his mercy in the eternal 
 salvation of the elect ; and of his justice in the damna- 
 tion of the reprobate, who are wicked and disobedient. 
 For then shall the righteous go into everlasting life, and 
 receive that fulness of joy and refreshing which shall 
 come from the presence of the Lord ; but the wicked 
 who know not God, and obey not the gospel of Jesus 
 Christ, shall be cast into eternal torments, and be pun- 
 ished with everlasting destruction from the presence of 
 the Lord, and from the glory of his power. 
 
 "As Christ would have us to be certainly persuaded 
 that there shall be a day of judgment, both to deter all 
 men from sin, and for the greater consolation of the 
 godly in their adversity; so will he have that day un- 
 known to men, that they may shake off all carnal 
 security, and be always watchful, because they know not 
 
282 Theology for the People. 
 
 at what hour the Lord will come ; and may be ever pre- 
 pared to say, Come, Lord Jesus, come quickly." 
 This chapter in the Confession teaches — 
 
 1. That God has appointed a day of general judgment. 
 
 2. That he has committed this judgment into the 
 hands of Christ. 
 
 3. That the parties to be judged are the apostate 
 angels and all persons that have lived upon earth. 
 
 4. That judgment will relate to thoughts, words and 
 deeds. 
 
 5. The great end of God in appointing the judgment 
 day is the manifestation of the glory of his mercy in the 
 salvation of his people, and of his justice in the con- 
 demnation of the reprobate. 
 
 6. Immediately after the judgment, "the righteous 
 go into everlasting life, and receive that fulness of joy 
 and refreshing which shall come from the presence of 
 the Lord." 
 
 7. Just after the close of the judgment "the wicked 
 shall be cast into eternal torments, and be punished 
 with everlasting destruction from the presence of the 
 Lord, and from the glory of his power." 
 
 8. The time of this solemn transaction is unknown to 
 the human race, that men "may shake off all carnal 
 security, and be always watchful." (See 1 Thess. v. 2; 
 2 Peter iii. 10; Matt. xxiv. 36.) It is worthy of note 
 that the Scriptures are silent on the subject of the 
 judging of the holy angels. Those who are to be judged 
 are those who have sinned. The question has repeatedly 
 been asked, "Will the sins of the righteous, already par- 
 doned in Christ, be made public on the day of judg- 
 ment ?" Dr. Dabney thinks they will. Dr. Peck that 
 
Theology for the People. 283 
 
 they will not; still he affirms that the question cannot 
 be satisfactorily answered. The following arguments 
 have been adduced in favor of the view that the par- 
 doned sins of Christians will be made public : 
 
 1. The Bible teaches that "God will bring every work 
 into judgment, with every secret thing, whether it be 
 good, or whether it be evil." 
 
 2. "That justice seems to require that there should 
 be an impartial review of the conduct of each indi- 
 vidual." 
 
 3. "To recall the memory of the sins of the saints will 
 display the virtue of the atoning blood of Christ, and 
 the riches of the grace of God, through which they have 
 been pardoned." 
 
 4. In many cases the saved and the unsaved have been 
 associated in the same sins ; that the sins of the latter 
 could not be made public without also publishing the 
 sins of the former. 
 
 5. That some of the sins of believers "are already 
 made public in the Scriptures, and are held up as a 
 spectacle to all generations." 
 
 6. That the publication of pardoned sins "would 
 excite no feeling of shame, because God has fully re- 
 mitted their trespasses, and the redeemed glory in the 
 righteousness of Christ, with which they are adorned." 
 
 Those who maintain that these sins will not be made 
 public hold — 
 
 1. That while the good works of the saints will be 
 mentioned, nowhere in the account given by Jesus in 
 Matt. xxv. 31-40 (the account of the general judgment) 
 is there any reference to the sins of God's people. 
 
 2. "That the remission of them is expressed in such 
 
284 Theology for the People. 
 
 terms as imply that they are henceforth to be forever 
 concealed, for they are 'cast into the depths of the sea, 
 and are to be remembered no more.' " 
 
 3. "That it is not consonant to the character of the 
 Judge, who is also the propitiation for their sins, to 
 suppose that he will bring them to light in a manner so 
 public." 
 
 4. "That, notwithstanding their full acquittal, we 
 could not conceive the saints not to be affected with 
 shame, if their crimes, the recollection of which has 
 often made them blush and hang down their heads, were 
 exposed to the view of the universe." 
 
 Strictly speaking, the judgment day is not a day of 
 trial. Says John iii. 18, "He that believeth on him is 
 not condemned ; but he that believeth not is condemned 
 already." We are in one or the other of these conditions 
 before we reach the judgment day. In Rom. ii. 5 and 
 Jude 15 we are taught that the judgment day is the day 
 on which God will "reveal" and "execute" his "righteous 
 judgment." 
 
 The Scriptures teach that the rule of judgment will 
 be the revealed will of God. The Gentiles who had not 
 the written law will be judged by the law written on 
 their hearts. 
 
 The Jews of the Old Testament will be judged by 
 the law written on the heart and by the Old Testament 
 alone. 
 
 Those who have enjoyed the gospel in addition to the 
 law written on the heart and the Old Testament, shall 
 be judged by dll three. 
 
 To whom much is given, of him shall much be re- 
 quired. In Matt. xxv. 31-4G, the righteous are acquitted 
 
Theology foe the People. 285 
 
 because they "have performed to God's suffering chil- 
 dren acts of beneficence and charity." The wicked are 
 condemned because they have failed to perform such 
 acts. Does this procedure favor the doctrine of justifica- 
 tion by works ? Certainly not. The difficulty is only 
 apparent, and vanishes at once when we consider the 
 design of the judgment. The mere distribution of re- 
 wards and punishments might be accomplished without 
 a general judgment. The design of this great day is 
 not merely to exercise justice, but to convince the assem- 
 bled universe that it is exercised. Faith must be made 
 manifest by its fruits. Since the spectators cannot read 
 the secrets of the heart, its contrition, faith and love, 
 "the sentence must be regulated according to some exter- 
 nal and visible conduct, which is cognizable by creatures, 
 and is a proper test of regenerate character. It is notice- 
 able that not all righteous conduct, but only one kind, 
 is mentioned as the test, viz., works of charity. And 
 this is most appropriate, not only because they are accu- 
 rate tests of true holiness, but because it was most proper 
 that in a judgment where the acquittal can in no case 
 occur, except through divine grace and pardon, a dis- 
 position to mercy should be required of those who hope 
 for acceptance." See James ii. 13, "For he shall have 
 judgment without mercy, that hath shewed no mercy." 
 Says Dr. Dabney, "There seems to be a sense in which 
 the saints will sit and judge with Christ. (See Ps. cxlix. 
 6-9 ; 1 Cor. vi. 2, 3 ; Rev. xx. 4.) We suppose no one 
 will understand from these passages that Christians can, 
 or will, exercise those incommunicable fimctions of 
 searching hearts, apportioning infinite penalties to in- 
 finite demerits, and executing the sentence with almighty 
 
286 Theology for the People. 
 
 power. They share, by a sort of reflected dignity, the 
 exaltation of their Elder Brother. Having had their 
 own acquittal and adoption first declared, they are 
 placed in the post of honor, represented as Christ's right 
 hand, and there concur as assessors with Christ in the 
 remainder of the transaction." 
 
 Says the Larger Catechism, "At the day of judgment, 
 the wicked shall be set on Christ's left hand, and upon 
 clear evidence and full conviction of their own con- 
 sciences, shall have the fearful, but just, sentence of 
 condemnation pronounced against them ; and thereupon 
 shall be cast out from the favorable presence of God, 
 and the glorious fellowship with Christ, his saints, and 
 all his holy angels, into hell, to be punished with un- 
 speakable torments, both of body and soul, with the 
 devil and his angels forever." 
 
 The Larger Catechism also says, "At the day of judg- 
 ment the righteous being caught up to Christ in the 
 clouds, shall be set on his right hand, and there openly 
 acknowledged and acquitted, shall join with him in the 
 judging of reprobate angels and men; and shall be 
 received into heaven, where they shall be fully and 
 forever freed from all sin and misery ; filled with incon- 
 ceivable joys ; made perfectly holy and happy both in 
 body and soul, in the company of innumerable saints 
 and angels, but especially in the immediate vision and 
 fruition of God the Father, of our Lord Jesus Christ, 
 and of the Holy Spirit, to all eternity." 
 
 In Matt. xxv. 46 we read, "And these shall go away 
 into everlasting punishment ; but the righteous into life 
 eternal." 
 
 Repeated attempts have been made to eliminate the 
 
Theology foe the People. 287 
 
 doctrine of eternal punishment from the Word of God. 
 If the torments of hell axe not eternal, neither is the 
 bliss of heaven. 
 
 The Saviour himself in the Scriptures lavs frequent 
 and tremendous emphasis on the awful fact of an eternal 
 hell. He loves too deeply not to utter a note of warning. 
 
 Says another, "We have no more reason for believing 
 in the fact of heaven than for believing in the fact of 
 hell ; the same Scriptures which reveal the one, reveal 
 the other ; both facts rest on the same foundation ; yet 
 over the abyss of hell there rest eternal shadows, while 
 on the summits of heaven eternal sunshine, everlasting 
 giory, abides." 
 
CHAPTER XIX. 
 
 The End of the World. 
 
 IN 2 Peter iii. 10 we read, ''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 fervent heat, the earth also and 
 the works that are therein shall be burned up." Says 
 verse 13, "Nevertheless, we, according to his promise, 
 look for new heavens and a new earth, wherein dwelleth 
 righteousness." 
 
 Are we here taught that the whole existing universe 
 is to be destroyed ? The majority of Bible students 
 discard this view. The common view is substantially as 
 follows: "This earth, with its atmosphere, is to be sub- 
 jected to intense heat, which will radically change its 
 present physical condition; new heavens and a new 
 earth will appear ; in this new state of things the 'crea- 
 ture' will be delivered from the bondage of corruption 
 (Rom. viii. 19-23) ; the new earth will be adapted to 
 the spiritual or resurrection bodies of God's children." 
 
 Read Rom. viii. 19-23. What is meant by creature 
 in this passage ? Says Dr. Hodge : 
 
 1. It does not mean angels; they are not burdened 
 with the consequences of man's apostasy, nor can they 
 be represented as longing for deliverance from that 
 burden. 
 
 2. It does not mean believers, because the creature 
 and believers are clearly distinguished in verses 22, 23. 
 
Theology fok the People. 289 
 
 3. It does not mean the race of mankind as distin- 
 guished from Christians. The wicked have no earnest 
 expectation or desire for the manifestation of the sons of 
 God. Says verse 20, "For the creature was made sub- 
 ject to vanity not avillingly/'' This could not be 
 affirmed of the impenitent; they are free agents. 
 
 By creature we understand, "The earth, with all. 
 
 IT CONTAINS, ANIMATE AND INANIMATE, MAN EX- 
 CEPTED.'''' 
 
 "The sacred writers frequently represent the whole 
 creation as a sentient being, rejoicing in God's favor, 
 trembling at his anger, speaking aloud his praise." 
 Says Is. lv. 11, "The mountains and the hills shall 
 break forth before you into singing, and all the trees of 
 the fields shall clap their hands." 
 
 This earth shared in the penalty of the fall. "Cursed 
 is the earth for thy sake" (Gen. viii. 17). "How long 
 shall the land mourn and the herbs of every field wither, 
 for the wickedness of them that dwell therein" (Jer. 
 xii. 4). 
 
 In Rom. viii. 20 three reasons are assigned why the 
 creature waits for the manifestation of the sons of God, 
 i. e. } "the time when they shall be manifested in their 
 true character and glory as his sons." 
 
 1. The "creature" is now subject to vanity, i. e., "to 
 physical frailty and degradation." 
 
 2. This subjection was not voluntary, but was imposed 
 by God. 
 
 3. It was not designed to be final; it was "subjected 
 
 in hope." It was not a hopeless subjection, because, as 
 
 taught in verse 21, "the creature itself also shall be 
 
 delivered from the bondage of corruption into the glo- 
 19 
 
200 Theology for the People. 
 
 rious liberty of the children of God." "Bondage of cor- 
 ruption," i. e. } "bondage to corruption, state of frailty 
 and degradation." "The creature, then, is to be partaker 
 in some way, according to its nature, of the glories in 
 reserve for the sons of God." If it be objected that this 
 earth in its altered and purified state cannot be the Chris- 
 tian's eternal home, for the reason that heaven is repre- 
 sented as being above, we answer, "Such words as "up," 
 "above," "ascend," etc., are not conclusive as to the loca- 
 tion of heaven. What is above to us is below to our 
 antipodes, in whose place we shall be in twelve hours." 
 
 The phrase, "burned up," in 2 Peter iii. 10, does not 
 mean annihilation. "Combustion is not a destruction 
 of substance; it is merely a change of state or con- 
 dition." 
 
 In Gen. vi. 13, God says, "I will destroy them with 
 the earth." The earth was not annihilated. In Heb. 
 ii. 14, we read, "That through death he might destroy 
 him that had the power of death, that is, the devil." 
 This does not mean annihilation. "To destroy is to 
 ruin. A thing is ruined when it is rendered unfit for 
 use, no longer answers the end for which it was designed. 
 A ship at sea, dismasted, rudderless, its sides battered 
 in, is ruined, not annihilated. A man destroys himself 
 when he ruins his health, squanders his property, de- 
 bases his character, unfits himself for life's duty. A 
 soul is destroyed when it is reprobated, alienated from 
 God, rendered a fit companion for the devil and his 
 angels. This does not mean annihilation. Certain por- 
 tions of God's Word seem to speak of this earth as a 
 permanent structure given to man for his home." 
 
 The Bible brings Christ back to earth in visible form 
 
Theology for the People. 291 
 
 on the great judgment day, but says nothing of his de- 
 parture after the judgment. As this earth was the scene 
 of his humiliation, his intense suffering and cruel death, 
 is there not, at least, a poetic fitness in making it the 
 scene of his final triumph ? 
 
 Says Dr. Dabney, "This conclusion gives us a noble 
 view of the immutability of God's purpose of grace, and 
 the glory of his victory over sin and Satan. This planet 
 was fashioned to be man's heritage ; and a part of it, at 
 least, adorned with the beauties of paradise for his home. 
 Satan sought to mar the divine plan by the seduction 
 of our first parents. For long ages he has seemed to 
 triumph, and has filled his usurped dominion with crime 
 and misery. But his insolent invasion is not to be 
 destined to obstruct the Almighty's beneficent design. 
 The intrusion will be in vain. God's purpose shall be 
 executed. Messiah will come and reestablish his throne 
 in the midst of his scarred and ravaged realm ; he will 
 cleanse away every stain of sin and death, and make 
 this earth bloom forever with more than its pristine 
 splendor, so that the very plan which was initiated when 
 the morning stars sang together, and the sons of God 
 shouted for joy, will stand for everlasting ages." 
 
CHAPTER XX. 
 
 The Consummation of Christ's Kingdom. 
 
 IN 1 Cot. xv. 24, 25 we read, "Then cometh the end, 
 •when he shall have delivered up the kingdom to 
 God, even the Father ; when he shall have put down all 
 rule and all authority and power. For he must reign 
 till he hath put all enemies under his feet." 
 
 The majority of Bible students hold that "the end" 
 here mentioned means "the close of the present order of 
 things; the consummation of the work of redemp- 
 tion." 
 
 The passage teaches that Christ will deliver up the 
 kingdom to the Father. Since the Bible so clearly 
 teaches that Christ's kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, 
 the question naturally arises, In what sense can it be 
 delivered up ? Says another, "It must be remembered 
 that the Scriptures speak of a three-fold kingdom as 
 belonging to Christ: 
 
 1. That which necessarily belongs to him as a divine 
 person, extending over all creatures, and of which he 
 can never divest himself. 
 
 2. That which belongs to him as the incarnate Son of 
 God, extending over his own people. This also is ever- 
 lasting. He will forever remain the head and sovereign 
 of the redeemed. 
 
 3. That dominion to which he was exalted after his 
 resurrection, when all power in heaven and earth was 
 
Theology for the People. 293 
 
 committed to his hands. This kingdom, which he exer- 
 cises as the Theanthropos (God-man, Mediator), and 
 which extends over all principalities and powers, he is 
 to deliver up when the work of redemption is accom- 
 plished. 1 Cor. xv. 25 assigns the reason why Christ 
 cannot relinquish his dominion over the universe as 
 Mediator until the end comes, and why he will then 
 deliver it up, "for he must reign till he hath put all 
 enemies under his feet." 
 
 "He must put down all rule and authority and 
 power." 
 
 "All hostile powers, whether demoniacal or human, 
 must be effectually subdued, deprived of all power to 
 disturb the harmony of his kingdom." 
 
 The subjection of the Son spoken of in verse 28 is 
 "not the subjection of the Son as 8 on, but of the Son 
 ■as incarnate; and the subjection itself is official, and, 
 therefore, perfectly consistent with equality of 
 nature." 
 
 The official subordination of the Son as Mediator was 
 voluntary, and is in complete accord with the doctrine of 
 Scripture that the three persons in the Godhead are one 
 God, the same in substance, equal in power and glory. 
 
 Christ's mediatorial kingdom, whose public, formal 
 inauguration dates from his ascension and session at the 
 right hand of his Father, is presented in Scripture in 
 three different aspects — 
 
 "1. Viewed as extending over all creatures, it is a 
 kingdom of power. 
 
 "2. Viewed in relation to his own people on earth, it 
 is the kingdom of grace. 
 
 "3. Viewed in relation to the whole body of the 
 
294 Theology foe the People. 
 
 redeemed, when the work of redemption is completed,, 
 it is the kingdom of glory.''' 
 
 This kingdom is the consummation of his providential 
 and gracious administration. 
 
 "There'll be songs of greeting when Jesus comes. 
 And a joyful meeting when Jesus comes 
 To gather his loved ones home."