The Apostasy

Pacific Press Publishing Company · Oakland, California · Sep 3, 1894

FromSigns of the Times, Vol. 20, No. 43.

THE NEED OF A REFORMATION IN THE CHURCH OF CHRIST.

Characteristics of the Early Church.

THE church of Christ came pure from the hand of the Master. When the first fruits of the Christian dispensation were gathered in on the day of Pentecost, there were no schisms, no divisions, no sects, no wolves in the garb of sheep's clothing. The Spirit of grace had been poured out from on high, hearts had been prepared to receive it, and every soul possessing living faith was filled with the gracious, purifying, elevating life of God. "They were all filled with the Holy Ghost;" "they continued steadfastly in the apostles' doctrine and fellowship;" "the multitude of them that believed were of one heart and of one soul; neither said any of them that aught of the things which he possessed was his own," thus acknowledging the ownership of Christ; "they spake the word of God with boldness;" "with great power gave the apostles witness of the resurrection of the Lord Jesus; and great grace was upon them all." With such power was the Spirit of God manifest among them that when the false hearted essayed to join them, they perished, on account of the divine presence, even as did Nadab and Abihu when offering in their drunken stupor strange fire before the Lord. So clearly did God demonstrate his awful yet loving presence that the evil disposed durst not join, while the honest-hearted were added by multitudes.

The above are only a part of the work of faith, the labor of love, the patience of hope exercised and manifested in the early church. Jesus Christ was all in all. The gospel was truly believed to be "the power of God unto salvation" to the believer, and multitudes believed it. The word of God, and Christ as the Incarnate Word, was the sole burden of the messengers of God, and in that message they found an all-sufficiency to save men. In the Scriptures of truth the man of God found himself "thoroughly furnished unto all good works." These Scriptures included the Old Testament, concerning the inspiration of which there was no question either in Master or servant.

Before the simple word of God, that word culminating in Christ, its Author, the Saviour of the world, preached by men not learned in the schools of earth, the mightiest empire of earth was shaken, idol shrines melted before its burning glory, heathen temples were deserted, and, best of all, men turned from the darkness of sin to the light of God’s righteousness, shining from the face of Jesus Christ. The men who bore the banner of Christ died at the hands of their enemies; the messengers of life often met the cruellest persecution; but they conquered in their seeming defeat; and as long as they trusted Christ, the weapons "not carnal" were mighty through God in conquering what no earthly weapon or power can conquer,—the hearts of men, the citadels of sin, and in the place of self and Satan enthroning Christ within, "the hope of glory."

The church knew no weapons save those which are spiritual. She knew no force save that of the persuasive power of God’s word and Spirit upon the heart. She asked no other obedience (for she knew her divine Master would not accept it) save that which is the only true obedience, service, or worship,—the voluntary yielding up of every power of body and soul by the heart touched by the love of God, and having simple faith in his gospel. Her only compelling power was that of conviction in the heart of the sinner. Absolute equality of men and absolute liberty in accepting or rejecting any or no religion were prominent truths in her teaching. Christ died for all and the church, clothed with his righteousness, invested with the armor of God, bore the glad message to all of God’s love in Christ, heralding the merciful invitation, "Whosoever will, let him take the water of life freely."

The Apostasy.

But how soon was the most fine gold changed! The Lord foresaw its coming and warned his people of the time when the spouse of Christ would depart from him to whom she had plighted her troth, would make friends with the world, and commit fornication with the kings of the earth. This apostasy, this falling away, is foretold in many scriptures. For want of space only the two following are at this time presented:—

"Take heed therefore unto yourselves, and to all the flock, over the which the Holy Ghost hath made you overseers, to feed the church of God, which he hath purchased with his own blood. For I know this, that after my departing shall grievous wolves enter in among you, not sparing the flock. Also of your own selves shall men arise, speaking perverse things, to draw away disciples after them."

"Let no man deceive you by any means; for that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition; who opposeth and exalteth himself above all that is called God, or that is worshiped; so that he as God sitteth in the temple of God, showing himself that he is God. Remember ye not, that, when I was yet with you, I told you these things? And now ye know what withholdeth that he might be revealed in his time. For the mystery of iniquity doth already work; only he who now letteth will let, until he be taken out of the way. And then shall that Wicked be revealed, whom the Lord shall consume with the spirit of his mouth, and shall destroy with the brightness of his coming."

This falling away, this choosing of self, and the acme of selfish manifestation,—the man of sin and his selfish schemes, in the place of Christ and his holy word,—resulted in the great apostasy, the Papacy, and all the persecution which followed. The gospel rule was, "Whether therefore ye eat, or drink, or whatsoever ye do, do all to the glory of God." It was self-denial, the emptying of self, even as Jesus emptied himself. Emptying himself, denying himself, God filled him, and he thus could manifest God to the world. His people, following his example, having the same spirit; denying themselves, emptying themselves, Christ fills them and dwells in them, and thus they manifest Christ to the world, and glorify his name by bearing the fruits of righteousness. But when men lead away disciples after them, when our homage is paid to others, when self-salvation is enthroned in the heart in the place of the unselfish Spirit of Christ, when man or human agency is exalted as the head of the church instead of Christ, when creed or tradition takes the place of God’s word, evil must inevitably result, the persuasion of the gospel must give place to the compulsion of law, and the seduction and persecution of souls take the place of the winning and conversion of souls.

The Reformation.

The great Reformation of the sixteenth century struck a mighty blow at the apostasy, and laid again in principle the true foundation of the gospel. This was done in principle, not in fact; for the Reformers did not have all the light of God’s word. But they held principles which, had these principles been carried out, would have led those who followed them into all truth. These were righteousness by faith in Jesus Christ, of which faithful obedience to God is the legitimate fruit; the absolute divorce of Church and State, or the non-interference of the civil magistrate with matters of conscience and religion; and the Holy Bible as the ultimate and paramount authority in all matters of religious faith and teaching. These principles, if they had been followed, would not only have led to the elimination of all error received from the great apostasy, but to the acceptance of all truth as God in his wisdom and goodness "opened the Scriptures" to his church. But the Reformation halted. The successors of the Reformers exalted the Reformers above Christ, in exalting their interpretation of God’s word above the word itself. They had run but a little way when the doctrines held by the Reformers were crystallized into various creeds. Free souls in the investigation of God’s word were carried beyond the creed, because the living word could not be circumscribed by a cold, lifeless creed; and, in order to check these heresies, the power of the State was enlisted, and the reformed churches, following the example of the great apostate church, committed fornication with the kings of the earth.

But other churches went beyond the disciples of Luther, Zwingli, Calvin, Cranmer, Latimer. Free America made churches separate from the State. Errors were cast away. The denominations which came out of the churches of the Reformation quickened and helped those very churches out of which they came, as did the Methodists the Church of England. But the goal of the church is not yet reached. The primitive union and power is lacking. The union for which Christ prayed, and which Paul enjoined, is not seen. A volume of testimony might be given from prominent men in various denominations showing that gospel faith, gospel piety, Christian union, are greatly lacking, while fearful backsliding, and gross worldliness, and cold formalism are like a canker, eating out all vital godliness.

Division and Confusion.

But, apart from the lack of piety, what is and has been the condition of the churches as regards Christian union during the last century and a half? The answer is obvious to all,—division and confusion, not only between different churches, but in the same church. Take some of the most prominent doctrines of Christianity and note the division of sentiment and teaching:— 1. The Atonement. We have not only Universalists, Predestinarians, and Arminians, but a multitude of other beliefs, all of which may be unscriptural, and all of which save one must be unscriptural. 2. In the matter of Church Government we have all grades and stages, from flat anarchy without a head, heavenly or earthly, all the way along up to the Papacy. 3. In the Nature of Man we find various schools, divided between Universalism and eternal torment on the one hand, holding to man’s inherent immortality, and, on the other hand, those who believe in life only through Christ, who hold to conditional immortality. 4. The Millennium is held by some to mean the world’s conversion, by means now in operation; by others, Christ’s personal reign on earth; by still others, to refer to that time when the earth shall lie desolate. Which class is right? All cannot be. 5. Christ’s Second Coming is held by some to be spiritual, by others to be at death, by others to be after the thousand years, by others still, to be impending. There is no union on this important doctrine, so emphasized in the New Testament. 6. The Spiritual Gifts bestowed on the church at the first advent of Christ are by many held to be discontinued; or are utterly repudiated; others declare they will be restored. 7. To some the Bible is an Inspired Book as no other book is inspired; to others it is but the evidence of the "inspiration of the ages" which produced it. 8. The Saints’ Reward—is it at death or at Christ’s coming? Is it "beyond the bounds of time and space," or is it on this earth renewed? Concerning this subject, which is connected with that of the resurrection, there is great diversity of opinion.

9. Upon the Sabbath question, one of the crucial questions of the time, there is the same division of creed. Some hold the seventh day as the Sabbath till the cross, but since that the first day. Others believe in no Sabbath outside of the Levitical dispensation, observing Sunday because of human law or expediency. Others believe the seventh day to be the Sabbath of all dispensations. 10. Upon the question of Church and State, or the interference of the State in religious matters, there is the same diversity of opinion. Now here are ten important doctrines, which are all made prominent in the word of God, but over which the church stands divided. These divisions have been the cause of endless strife and much blasphemy from the enemies of the Lord. In fact, they have turned men to infidelity instead of to faith. True, it is often said that all this confusion is better, because by it the different denominations reach different men. But not so speaks Christ. He prayed that his people might "be one; as thou, Father, art in me, and I in thee, that they also may be one in us; that the world may believe that thou hast sent me." When Christ greets his church at his coming, that church will be without "spot, or wrinkle, or any such thing," ready to welcome him in his glory. But it is evident to all that the church of Christ since apostolic days has not met the prayer of Christ, does not stand ready to meet him. Division and confusion exist everywhere. This condition of division and confusion God calls "Babylon," a word meaning "confusion." He does not apply it as a term of reproach, but as indicative of the true state of the church. Of the origin of the term we will speak later. But while God has seen the divisions, he has desired to heal them, to bring order out of confusion. The means ordained for that purpose we will consider in our next.