Truth vs. Antiquity

Seventh-day Adventist Publishing Association · Battle Creek, Mich. · Sep 16, 1873

Truth vs. Antiquity.

Be it so, that the most part of Christendom nine hundred years has taught as you do. Is that sufficient argument to reject a doctrine evident by the word of God? May not all Christianity be clean defaced, if such arguments of continuance of time and multitude of persons should be rules to govern men’s consciences? Might not the Gentiles have alleged the like against the apostles and their successors? Might they not have said, and said more truly than you, that the worshipping of their gods, had continued, not hundreds, but thousands of years? that the whole world held with them! that the wise and profound, learned philosophers defended their doctrine? that the apostles were but new heretics, idiots, and unlearned persons? that their doctrine came from the doting people of the Jews? that the gods declared their displeasure and indignations against the new teachings of Christ, with seditions, tumults, wars, plagues, deaths, tempestuous weatherings, and such like? Might not Israelites have counted great folly in the house of Judah, that they would swerve from them in worshiping God, seeing they were ten parts to one?

Might not the priests in the old law, yea, did they not, allege against the prophets continuance of time, and multitudes of doctors, priests, and Rabbins? Were they not hundreds to one poor Micheas? Did they not the like in Christ’s time? Did they not beat upon the long continuance of Moses’ law, which, they said he came to destroy? Did they not revile him for his age, his birth, his manner of life, and for that he taught otherwise than a number of the godly, wise, and holy Pharisees? which in those days had as great opinion of holiness of life and deep learning, as the best of your religious monks or observant friars? Might not the Turks, for continuance and multitude, make a gay face for confirmation of Mahomet’s law? Might not they say that it hath continued one thousand years, yea, and with great success and prosperity, as it had been a singular providence of God? May they not say, and too truly affirm, that they have ten for one Christian? May they not say, that it is not likely that God would suffer such a number of nations and countries to err, so many hundred years? Have they not, in many parts of their religion, such apparent devotion, as they may shame us Christian men? And yet it is almost evidently false, and God’s truth remaineth steadfast; although it bind itself neither to continuance of time, nor to person, to place, to number, to this color of life or that in the judgment of the world, but is governed by his wise and inscrutable providence. Wherefore these reasons make no more for you, and against us, than they did for the Israelites against the Jews, for the priests against the prophets, for the Jews and Gentiles against Christ and his apostles, for the Turks against the Christians at this day.—Old Author, Christian Treasury.