The Sovereign Pontiff, and the Church of Rome.
By Prof. Gaussen
They Vindicate the Truth by Fulfilling the Prophecies.
A DISCOURSE DELIVERED BY PROF. GAUSSEN, AT THE RE-OPENING OF THE SCHOOL OF THEOLOGY AT GENEVA, OCTOBER 3, 1843. GENTLEMEN: I call your attention to an important point, which should be constantly before your eyes, when you have to do with Rome. I mean the precious and sacred doctrine of our fathers, too much neglected and often even despised in our churches, though God has given us, to appreciate its value, many new reasons which our fathers did not possess. This doctrine is, that Rome is the Babylon of which John speaks; the pope, the Man of Sin, the son of perdition of whom Paul speaks; popery, the little horn of which Daniel speaks. I wish to show you that this doctrine, constantly held in the church of God for nearly twelve hundred years, has only been lightly esteemed, like the doctrine of an evil spirit, the tempter, in times of lax theology and infidelity. When the pious Waldo distributed the Scriptures in France, seven hundred years ago, the cry was soon heard: Come out of Babylon! When the great Wickliffe preached the Reformation in England, five hundred years ago, all eyes were turned to the Roman pontiff with the exclamation, Behold the Man of Sin! When the generous Huss and when Jerome of Prague made their voice heard, a hundred years before Luther, it was against the abominations of "the great whore" foretold by John. When our fathers preached the Reformation in Geneva, one of their first cares was to affix to the walls of our hôtel de ville a brass plate (of which, alas! there only remains the frame), on which they inscribed thanks to God "for having delivered them from the tyranny of antichrist." When the fathers of most of us, gentlemen, made their admirable Confession of Faith at Rochelle, they took care in their seventeenth national synod (held at Gap under Henry IV., in the year 1603), to decree that at the end of the 30th article should be inserted the following declaration, called article 31st. (I transcribe their words): "And since the bishop of Rome has erected a monarchy in Christendom, claiming for himself dominion over all churches and pastors, exalting himself to be called of God, wishing to be adored, boasting to have all power in heaven and upon earth, to despose of all ecclesiastical matters, to decide upon articles of faith, to authorize and interpret at his pleasure the Scriptures, to make a traffic of souls, to disregard vows and oaths, to appoint new divine services; and in respect to the civil government, to trample under foot the lawful authority of magistrates, by taking away, giving and exchanging kingdoms, we believe and maintain that it is the very antichrist and the son of perdition, predicted in the word of God under the emblem of a whore clothed in scarlet, seated upon the seven hills of the great city, which has dominion over the kings of the earth; and we expect that the Lord will consume it with the Spirit of his mouth, and finally destroy it with the brightness of his coming, as he has promised and already begun to do." For more than fifty years the Protestant ministers and people of France were persecuted by kings and governors of provinces on account of this 31st article. But we love to hear their faithful voice making itself heard in their twenty-ninth and last synod, after they had been refused for fifteen years holding any:— "The king's commissioner having requested that they should not employ such expressions (antichrist, when speaking of the pope; idolatry, when speaking of the Romanists) in the oaths taken in this synod, the moderator was instructed to answer as follows:—" "'But in regard to these words, antichrist, found in the Liturgy, and idolatry and workings of Satan, found in our Confession of Faith, they contain the reasons and foundation of our separation from the church of Rome, and express the doctrine which our fathers maintained in times of cruel persecution; and we are resolved, after their example, never to abandon them, by the grace of God, but to preserve them faithfully and inviolably to the last moment of our life.'" Such, gentlemen, is the declaration of your fathers, which I put to your understanding and to your conscience; to your understanding, that you may study it carefully; to your consciences, that you may preach it resolutely, like your fathers "in times of cruel persecution, faithfully, inviolably to the last moment of your lives." This important doctrine is taught us by three prophets—by Daniel, in chapters 2, 7, and 11; by Paul, in his second epistle to the Thessalonians, and his first epistle to Timothy; and lastly, by John, in chapters 9, 11, 12, 13, 17, and 18 of the Revelation. I design to give you some idea, gentlemen, of the wonderful light which the Holy Spirit sheds upon this subject; and I shall be satisfied for this purpose to state briefly what only one of these prophets, the oldest, Daniel, says, and that only in his seventh chapter. I beg, first, that one of the brethren will please to read aloud the first fourteen verses. 1. In the first year of Belshazzar king of Babylon, Daniel had a dream and visions of his head upon his bed; then he wrote the dream, and told the sum of the matters. 2. Daniel spake and said, I saw in my vision by night, and, behold, the four winds of the heaven strove upon the great sea. 3. And four great beasts came up from the sea, diverse one from another. 4. The first was like a lion, and had eagle's wings: I beheld till the wings thereof were plucked, and it was lifted up from the earth, and made stand upon the feet as a man, and a man's heart was given to it. 5. And behold another beast, a second, like to a bear, and it raised up itself on one side, and it had three ribs in the mouth of it between the teeth of it; and they said thus unto it, Arise, devour much flesh. 6. After this I beheld, and lo another, like a leopard, which had upon the back of it four wings of a fowl; the beast had also four heads; and dominion was given to it. 7. After this I saw in the night visions, and behold a fourth beast, dreadful and terrible, and strong exceedingly; and it had great iron teeth; it devoured and brake in pieces, and stamped the residue with the feet of it; and it was diverse from all the beasts that were before it; and it had ten horns. 8. I considered the horns, and, behold, there came up among them another little horn, before whom there were three of the first horns plucked up by the roots; and, behold, in this horn were eyes like the eyes of man, and a mouth speaking great things. 9. I beheld till the thrones were cast down, and the Ancient of days did sit, whose garment was white as snow, and the hair of his head like the pure wool; his throne was like the fiery flame, and his wheels as burning fire. 10. A fiery stream issued and came forth from before him; thousand thousands ministered unto him, and ten thousand times ten thousand stood before him; the judgment was set, and the books were opened. 11. I beheld then because of the voice of the great words which the horn spake; I beheld even till the beast was slain, and his body destroyed, and given to the burning flame. 12. As concerning the rest of the beasts, they had their dominion taken away; yet their lives were prolonged for a season and time. 13. I saw in the night visions, and, behold, one like the Son of man came with the the clouds of heaven, and came to the Ancient of days, and they brought him near before him. 14. And there was given him dominion, and glory, and a kingdom, that all people, nations, and languages, should serve him; his dominion is an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away, and his kingdom that which shall not be destroyed.