09 VI. The Restoration No. 1

VI. The Restoration No. 1 VI. THE RESTORATION, No. 1 (Sermon Delivered Over WAPO, May 19, 1940) For the past two Sundays we have discussed briefly the Reformation Movement in church history, noting first the work of Wycliffe, Huss, and Savonarola in denouncing the corruption in the Papacy of that period. Their work was followed by Luther who proclaimed the doctrine of justification by faith, rejecting the Pope’s power to forgive sins, and expounding the principle that individuals have the liberty to study the Scriptures for themselves unhampered by the decrees of the clergy. Calvin proclaimed the sovereignty of God and his co-laborer, John Knox, carried the torch of Reformation to England and Scotland. Later John Wesley spoke out against the formality of the Church of England, and plead for a return to personal piety and more consecrated living.

However, one can readily see that not one of these great leaders conceived the idea of restoring the New Testament patterns of simple apostolic Christianity. Their ideal was that of reforming existing organizations, and most of them, like John Wesley, claimed to have done nothing more than vitalized the older religious group. While the Reformation did much to clear away the accumulations of the centuries which obscured New Testament practices, it failed to re store the New Testament patterns and, therefore, we find that instead o f a r e turn to the New Testament each religious group crystallized its e lf into a denomination entrenched behind elaborate creeds and stat ements of belief. The nineteenth c e ntury dawned with more than 150 warrin g g ro u ps and parties fighting against each other and with th e Bibl e buried far beneath their theolo gical sp e culations and dogmas. Thus the time was ripe for a restoration movement to be launched. In order to understand properly any great movement, social or religious, we must analyze the causes and circumstances surrounding its origin. Certain definite conditions existed in the latter part of the eighteenth and the first part of the nineteenth centuries led to the development of this Restoration Movement.

I. Dissatisfaction with human creeds. During the centuries following the birth of the Reformation Protestant religious groups had formulated elaborate credal statements, which increasingly became the cause of much discussion and confusion . At best they represented only the opionions of some leading clergymen who forced such upon the masses of the people. Setting at naught the authority of C hrist, they served to keep Christendom divided into warrin g parties. Many sober minded individuals, loving liberty, objected to these conditions, believing that the Bible should be the guide. Trials for heresy were common. Each applicant for the ministry was tried not upon his knowledge of the Scriptures, but rather upon whether he would uphold and teach the creeds of each religious group. Thanks to an enlightening that has come today, many have ceased to emphasize these creeds very much and the needed proper step would be to cut loose altogether from them and be governed by the Scriptures.

2. The prevailing theology of the day being Calvinism, the dogma of total hereditary depravity was widely held. It taught that a man was born in sin, totally dead spiritually, so that it required an irresistible and miraculous work of the Holy Ghost to lift the depraved soul from the grave of sin. Men were taught that they were powerless to come to God, they must wait upon his good pleasure, and the only thing meanwhile they could do would be to agonize and mourn and weep, knowing that if their prayers were heard and they had some mysterious and overpowering experience they were of the elect and if not, they were of the non-elect and lost because God would not have them. This doctrine, as you can readily see, makes God a monster who arbitrarily chooses to save each person without regard to his life and character, and likewise makes man but a toy in the hand of the Almighty. If God didn’t choose to save you personally, you would be lost in the fiery pit of hell. To many reasonable, logical individuals these things seemed so foreign to the Scriptures when they read that God was no respecter of persons. Thus indifference and infidelity were widespread over the country, due to such teachings which misrepresented God.

3. Religious Sectarianism and Division. The entire face of the religious world was characterized by bitter strife between warring factions. Instead of religious cooperation and unity they continued to justify their divisions by stating that the Lord’s church, the vine, must have different branches representing one branch as one sect or party, and another branch, another sect or party--a direct perversion of the Scriptures. The branches instead of bearing the same fruit, according to that application, would have a different sort of fruit on each branch. Have you ever seen a vine like that in the natural world? Catholics fought against Protestants and each Protestant group fought bitterly an· other. Individuals who read our Lord’s prayer for unity were made ashamed of the conditions and desired that something other than this sort of thing exist.

4. General Decadence in Morals. With such conditions there was an accompanying ignorance of the Holy Scriptures, and a general decline of morals as well as the growth and development of schools of new thought and infidelity. Such conditions are best illustrated by the events of the French Revolution at the close of the eighteenth century, which clearly showed how far some of these destructive ideas of anti-religion had carried the people. Many sympathizers on this side of the Atlantic utilized the opportunities to spread doctrine of an anti-religious nature m America. Such conditions form the background upon which the Restoration Movement was enacted. This movement as any other movement in history did not spring up overnight, but gradually developed by the circumstances of the times. It is contrasted with the Reformation in the sense that it endeavored to go back beyond all existing forms and proclaim the only true basis of unity to be the New Testament patterns of apostolic approval. Among some of the earlier individuals becoming dissatisfied with partyism was a man named James O’Kelly, who lived in North Carolina after the Amer ican Revolution. He was a leader in the Methodist societies formed in this coun try, but the s eparat ion of this country from England after the Revolution entailed a separation also of the Methodist churches here from those in the mother country. While Asbury and Thomas Coke led the fight for an episcopal form of government in American Methodism, O’Kelly led the fight for a congregational form of government. Being defeated in this he and his followers withdrew and called themselves "Republican Methodists." The keynote of this group was sounded at a meeting held in Surrey County, Virginia, in 1794, when one member arose and stated to the members of the group, "This Bible is the sufficient rule of faith and practice, and by it we are told that the disciples were called Christians, and I move that henceforth and forever the followers of Christ be known as Christians simply." Accepting the Bible as their only creed, they thus laid aside the name of Methodist, as being divisive and without any reference in the Scriptures, and desired only to wear the name Christian. They emphasized the following points: 1. The name Christian to be used to the exclusion of all party and sectarian names, since it best described the people of God: 2. The Lord Jesus Christ, the only head of the Church: 3. The Holy Bible as the only creed, Christian character and piety as the only test of fellowship; 4. Right of private judgment and liberty of conscience are privileges to all.

While this was the first group thus laying aside everything but what the Scriptures expressly command, there was another man, in the state of Vermont who became distressed greatly at the rampant sectarianism of his day and desired to see all such cease. Although he had never heard anything of any other individual, who desired to return to the New Testament, nor had he met O’Kelly, Dr. Abner Jones left the Baptist faith and led in organizing congregations of simple Christians, wearing only that name and accepting the Bible only as their rule of faith and practice. This occurred about the year 1800, some six or seven years after the action of O’Kelly. Jones had beheld the trials of heresy which were instituted against individuals who refused to support the particular creeds, and felt that these man-made documents should not take precedence over the authority of the Bible.

I think you will want to note one very important point about all of these men who endeavored to go back beyond all organizations and recapture the New Testament patterns and spirit. Each began his work without any knowledge of any other man on earth who had similar points of view. Each simply desired to ·be led by the Scriptures. This desire enabled them to state the fundamental principle that the Scriptures should guide in all matters of Christianity. Isn’t it significant that all these individuals by simply studying the New Testament plan came out years later at the same place and that without know one another? The New Testament brings unity.

Next, we need to note the work of Barton W. Stone and his views in the early part of the 19th century. Born during the last days be fore the Revolutionary War, he lived in Maryland far removed from the cities of those pioneer days, but grew up to love books and learning. Later entering school 1n North Carolina, he came under the influence of the religious teaching of the day, which held that if you were of the elect, by agonizing and mourning you would have a miraculous working of the Holy Ghost and thus know you were called, and if not, all your agonizing would avail nothing. So all were called upon to agonize and mourn for their sins and look for a religious experience. Although having had no so-called "divine call to preach," Stone had the desire to preach, but was doubtful as to whether he should enter the ministry since he had not experienced any such overpowering gift of the Holy Spirit. Some older minister, however, assured him that the desire to save souls was evidence enough that he was called of God. Thus he entered the service of the Presbyterian church, though not fully ordained, and worked for a while in North Carolina. But having a strong desire to go to the West, he left and went out to Kentucky, which became the scene of much of his great labors. ln the fall of 1798 he accepted the call to preach for the Cane Ridge and Concord churches in Kentucky. Knowing that he would be examined on the Confession of Faith as a prerequisite to his ordination he studied it, only to find difficulty in accepting the doctrine of the Trinity as set forth therein. When asked the question by the examiner "Do you receive and adopt the Confession of Faith as containing the system of doctrine in the Bible?" he replied, "I do as far as I see it consistent with the word of God." While no one objected to his answer, one can easily see that he believed creeds should conform to the Scriptures or be set aside.

However, the main point that led to Stone’s change was his failure to believe the doctrine of total hereditary depravity, and election. These things in Presbyterianism of that day so puzzled him. As he preached, he would ask himself, "How can people repent, if God won’t let them? How can they believe when the doctrine holds that man can do nothing of himself, even believe?" Following his conscience he decided that he would no longer preach anything except what the Bible directed and declared "that God loved the whole world, and sent his Son into it to save all men upon the condition of their faith and obedience ; that the gospel was the means of salvation, although unless believed and obeyed would mean nothing; that God required men to believe and had given sufficient evidence in His word to produce faith in all men if they would only give heed to it; that sinners were able to believe this testimony and also to act upon it by coming to Christ and obeying His commands; that God was ever ready and willing to save those who would accept Him. Others along with Stone preached these same things and made a profound impression upon the people since they used the Scriptures and exalted the authority of the Bible.

Suspended from the Presbytery for their exaltation of the Scriptures against the creed, they formed the Springfield Presbytery. This presbytery published a book in which they stated their objections to the Confession of Faith, and then proceeded to proclaim the truths above stated over that section of the country. They later came to see that they should wear no other name but Christian, since this was used in the Scriptures. It was this Springfield Presbytery that formulated one of the most important documents ever written in religious history, unique because of its declarations. This document is called ’"The Last Will and Testament of the Springfield Presbytery." This writing was drawn up after the members became convinced that they should no longer subscribe to any human creed, but allow the Scriptures and a following of them to be entirely sufficient. It is drawn up in the form of a will and signed on June 28, 1804. Remember that they knew very little of any other activities along this line. Note these statements and see if you could object to them. ’’The Presbytery of Springfield, sitting at Cane Ridge in county of Bourbon, being through a gracious providence in more than ordinary bodily health, growing in strength and size daily, and in perfect soundness and composure of mind; but knowing that it is appointed to all delegated bodies to die, and considering that the life of every such body is very uncertain, do make and ordain, this, our last will and testament, in manner and form following, namely:

"I. We will that this body die, be dissolved, and sink into union with the body of Christ at large; for there is but one body and on e Spirit, even as we are called in one hope of our calling.

"2. We will that our name of distinction, with its reverend title, be forgotten, that there be but one Lord over God’s heritage and His name one.

"3. We will that our power of making laws for the government of the church, and executing them by delegated authority, forever, cease; that the people may have free course to the Bible, and adopt the law of the spirit of life in Christ Jesus .

"4. We will that each particular church as a body, actuated by the same spirit, choose her own preacher, and support him by a free will offering, without a written call or subscription, admit members, remove offences; and never henceforth delegate her right of government to any man or set of men whatever.

"5 . We will that people henceforth take the Bible as the only sure guide to heaven; and as many as are offended with other books which stand in competition with it, may cast them into the fire if they choose; for it is better to enter into life having one book, than having many to b e cast into hell." ( 2)

Nothing like this had ever been seen before, so original was it in form and content . Thus in this unique language, they protested against the increasing spirit of partyism, and declared themselves henceforth to be guided only by Scriptural truths. Stone and his followers continued to labor in those regions of Kentucky for years afterward. One by one they cut all cords that bound them down and stepped out completely on the side of the New Testament patterns. Being later convinced that scriptural baptism was by immersion, Stone was immersed and until his death preached and proclaimed the truths of scriptural authority and the Bible as sufficient. These facts are interesting in the light of the present . I am sure that few now believe in the old creeds as then formulated, yet creedmaking has been the source of much confusion religiously, and continues to be. The Scriptures after all ought to be a source of unily, otherwise they are not what God intended them to be and God failed. I am now willing to admit that. God gave the Scriptures to guide us into all truth and thoroughly furnish us to every good work.