Avenging of the Elect by Buck

The Seventh-day Adventist Publishing Association · Battle Creek, Mich. · Oct 21, 1862

Avenging of the Elect.

By Buck

(Continued.)

A REVOLUTION IN THE PRIMITIVE PROTESTANT FAITH.

FROM England, and Germany, and Switzerland, we turn for a moment to Scotland, and show that the immortal John Knox, "the great champion of the Scottish Reformation, and the founder of the Presbyterian church," was confident of the fact that there will be no millennium prior to the coming of Christ. Whatever may have been his view of the millennium, it is certain that he looked for the immediate coming of the Lord, without expecting any general improvement in the world previously. On the doctrine of the earth's renovation, he wrote thus, speaking of the coming of Christ "to reform the face of the whole earth, which never was, nor yet shall be, till that righteous King and Judge appear for the restoration of all things."

Writing in 1654 to the faithful in London, and speaking of the coming of Christ, he asks, "Has not the Lord Jesus, in despite of Satan's malice, carried up our flesh into heaven? And shall he not return? We know that he shall return, and that with expedition." There is not only not the faintest evidence that he was looking for any improvement of the world, before the coming of Christ, but there is the plainest proof that he had the opposite view; and hence, his view of the prophecies, and his manner of preaching, and his faith in praying in respect to these things, must have had an influence upon the people directly opposite to the influence of those who preach that there "must be a general renovation previously to the coming of Christ?" Has the Presbyterian church retained the primitive faith in respect to these things, as it was taught either by the Westminster divines, or by the founder of the Scottish church?

From Scotland and its mighty champion, we now turn to another man of the sixteenth century, whose theological writings and opinions have had a wide and mighty influence upon the human race. That man was John Calvin. We purposely avoid approving or disapproving Calvin's opinions in respect to any other matters: they are not under consideration. But his views of the coming of the Lord and of the millennium are now before us. Scattered all through his writings may be found declarations and intimations, formal and incidental, which prove beyond a doubt that those who are looking for an anteadvent millennium, have totally departed, in this respect, from the faith of Calvin.

With Luther, he looked for a renovated earth. "I expect," said he, "with Paul, a reparation of all the evils caused by sin, for which he represents the creatures as groaning and travailing." "The Scriptures more commonly exhibit the resurrection of the children of God alone, in connection with the glory of heaven, because, strictly speaking, Christ will come, not for the destruction of the world, but for purposes of salvation." "Christ is our head, whose kingdom and glory have not yet appeared. If the members were to go before their Head, the order of things would be inverted and preposterous; but we shall follow our Prince then, when he shall come in the glory of his Father, and sit upon the throne of his majesty." "There is no reason why any person should expect the conversion of the world; for at length (when it will be too late, and will yield them no advantage), they shall look on him whom they have pierced."

By his comments on Matt. xxiv, 1 Cor. xv, 51, 1 Thess. iv, 15, 2 Thess. ii, 2, and other places, he manifestly understood the Bible in such a way as to utterly preclude the idea of the world's conversion before the coming of Christ. The coming of Christ to judgment he regarded, as above quoted, as the hope of the world, in respect to salvation, and the hope of the church in respect to its glory. Hence he bids believers "not to hesitate, ardently desiring the day of Christ's coming, as of all events most auspicious."

"We must hunger after Christ, we must seek, contemplate, etc., till the dawning of that great day when our Lord will fully manifest the glory of his kingdom."

Is this the way that the many millions of Calvin's admirers are now accustomed to speak, when they express themselves consistently with their hope and confident expectation of the conversion of the world, and a millennium of glory previous to the second advent? Do Calvinists now retain the faith of their great champion? It is the simple fact that we would have decided. We do not inquire whether such language is still, to some extent, in use; but we ask whether it is used as the natural and spontaneous expression of the present hopes and belief in respect to the success of the gospel before the coming of Christ. Let us be perfectly candid.

As it will not consist with the design of this treatise to continue much longer our examination of the point under notice, we will only mention, as a fact susceptible of the clearest proof, that the present prevailing and popular doctrine of the conversion of the world, previous to the coming of the Lord, is of comparatively recent origin, in the form which is now deemed essential to its maintenance. It seems to be—if the figure may be allowed—a cross between the purely allegorical and spiritual millennium of the third century, and the real but carnal millennium of the Roman Catholic church, so far as they have any notions on the subject. It may be said, if it be not too paradoxical, to be compounded of the Jewish notion of the Messiah's kingdom ignored, and of the same Jewish notion intensified. It is, and at the same time, it is not, essentially Jewish. It is perfectly Jewish in respect to the application of all the predictions of the kingly reign of Messiah to this present dispensation and to this present life. It is not Jewish in its application to the nature of the kingdom, and to the people composing it. It has no description in the Bible, but is gathered from a multitude of paragraphs and mere expressions, taken out of their respective connections, and grouped together, without scripture warrant or example, and utterly without the sanction and support of either the history and traditions of primitive Christian or primitive Protestant times. And it is just as much at variance with all the admitted and established laws of interpretation. The moment the Scriptures are interpreted according to the axioms of literature, that moment the now-provailing notion of the millennium is seen to be without consistency and without support.

Until the times of Dr. Whitby, who wrote in the latter part of the seventeenth century, less than two hundred years ago, this popular form of millennialization appears to have been nearly, if not entirely, unknown to the church. Dr. Whitby is the professed and confessed originator of it. He claims it as a new theory; and, as he was truly a learned and honest man, he frankly acknowledges that his new theory was not in harmony with that which generally prevailed throughout the primitive Christian church for two hundred and fifty years, and which was, as he admits, generally claimed and believed to have been received from the apostles themselves.

To maintain the proposition in this chapter, that there has been a revolution in the primitive Protestant faith, in respect to matters vitally connected with the influence which the second advent was designed to exert upon men, we might abundantly prove that the present popular method of interpreting the prophecies of the second advent, so as necessarily to make an impression, just as deep as the belief, that Christ will not come until a thousand years, at least, have passed away; that he will not come until the world has been converted—this impression, which is the necessary consequence of belief in the modern theory, we undertake to show, proves a departure from the "faith once delivered to the saints," because none of the primitive apostolic theories, none of the original Protestant theories of the millennium and the second advent, ever left such an impression upon the mind.

We may perceive essential errors, and we may notice mere speculations and inconsistencies, in the ancient millennial views, as they were held and taught at various times and places, by the great body of orthodox Christians. But, after all, they had this one redeeming feature, that gave them consistency and power in the use of Scripture warnings and admonitions on this subject: they did neither deny the reality nor personality of the Lord's return, nor did they tend to produce the impression that the Lord will not come again until after a long interval of time, or until the wickedness of the world shall have been removed by a general conversion. In this respect the modern theory and the primitive are perfect antipodes.

This is, after all, in its practical influence, the great and the vital principle in the true theory of the second advent; and yet, in respect to this specific thing, the modern doctrine is new, and, in so far (and how essential this must be!) it is a revolution in the original faith.

Whatever else may be said of the ancient theories, this cannot be said, that they tended to induce any one who believed in them to say, "My Lord delayeth his coming." In this most essential thing they retained their Scripture character and influence, and tended to keep the church awake and ready.

Whatever else may be said of the modern theory, this cannot be said, that it tends to keep its believers ever on the watch for the coming of the Lord, or to wean them from the present world. In this most essential thing it is as contrary to the whole spirit and letter of the Scriptures, as it is at variance with the original views of Protestants and the primitive saints.

"The faith once delivered to the saints," is now generally ignored or denied, and a new faith has taken its place.—Buck.

(To be Continued.)