Staunton spectator, and general advertiser. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 183?-1849, 1837-07-13
COMM UNICATION.
For The Spectator.

W ~ '"'eStdHt SuTlStlun CDufch, say
Tor instance. Presbyterian, from con
scientious motives, and sense of duty
separates himself from that particular
denomination. by telling his Presbyter
to erase his name from the list of thei
members, that he was no longer mem
Der OIL that particular denomination doe.
this Withdrawing himself from a connec.
tloa with that particular sect, make null
and void his authority from Christ to
preach the Gospel? To this answer,
no. As our Lord, on another occasion,
asked the Chief Priests and Elders OF
the people, so ask, Vas this authori
~ TO preach and administer baptism and
other ordinances. from Heaven, or OF
men ?" Mark ri, 80. Did the Clergy
man receive his authority to preach the
Gospel from the Presbytery or only
through the PTesby:ery, from Christ the
mead Of the Church? That the Presby-
terry was nothing more than the channel
or medium, through which Christ. the
great head of the Church, gave the au-
thority g. commissions evident from Ma
thew, xviii, Is. 10, 20: "And Jesus
spake unto them saying, all power is
given unto me in heaven aud in earth
Go, therefore, and teach all nations, bap-
tizing them ill the name of the Father,
and of the Son, and Of the Holy Ghost,
teaching them to observe all things
whatsoever | have commanded you
and 10 am with you always. unto the
end of the world" This is the commits
sion, as well as the source alone, under
which any man on earth can rightly hold
authority to preach and administer the
ordinances OF the Gospel of Christ.
Will any one say that Christ gave au-
thority TO the Apostles then living, but
not to their successors in the ministry
Let it be remembered that to whom he
gave the authority, he also gave the pro-
mise, THAT he would be with them to
the end of the world" Do the A postles
live i'll their own persons OH earth to the
end of the world j.? No. Then the
meaning is, he gave authority to them
and also through them to their success
sors TO the end OF time, and promised 10
be with them 10 the end of the world.
If, then, the authority be from Christ
alone, through the LAYING On of the
hands of the Presbytery, there is only
one way by which the Presbytery is an-
thorized by Scripture TO take away that
office when it is once conferred that is,
when any Clergyman is charged with,
and proved guilty Of heresy, or palpable
sin. In such case, they may, in the
name and by the authority of Christ,
cast him out. This is evident from
i Cor. v, 4, 5; e In the name of our Lord
Jesus Christ, when We are gathered to-
gether, and my spirit, with the power of
our Lord Jesus Christ, to deliver such
one unto Satan, for the destruction Of the
flesh, that the spirit NAV be sa, ed in the
day of the Lord Jesus" This passage,
perhaps, has direct application TO pri-
va'e member Of the Church, yet the prin-
ciple is equally applicable to Clergy
man: and in this respect whatsoever the
Church "binds on earth is bound in hea-
ven and whatsoever the Church looses
on earth is loosed in heaven
From what has been said, it is evil
dent the authority to preach, &c. is not
derived from the Presbytrry, but was
given by Christ himself alone, and trans
mittcd through the Apostles and their
successors, down to the end of the world:
aud Presbyters, who are only the medi-
um through which authority is convey
ed from Christ. cannot take away an au-
thority to preach, &c. except in cases
stated before, viz :: for heresy and
palPabie sin, charged and proved Tor
those who cannot give authority, have
no Legitimate power to take away what
was not their own TO give, but was de-
rived from a higher source.
Thus far think the subject may be
clearly understood. But possibly some
may suppose that if member of par
ticular sect or association of Presbyters
withdraws from that branch Of the Chris
tian Church in which he was ordained,
his authority from Chris: to preach, &c.
tails of course. To this supposed difficulty
/ answer,-The Church OF Christ orig
iaally was but one~Church, of which he
was the head and to this day the true
Church is but one body, Of which Christ
! is the head. Has he ever divided his
one body, Of which he says he is the
head? Itconsists Of many members, but
the body is one. All Protestants admit
that the EpiscopaIians, Baptists, Metho-
dists, Presbyterians, Lutherans, Indie.
pendents, 81 C. are the Church of Christ
called by different names, but one body
of (which Christ is the head. Originally
the Church was not divided in their cler
ical character into different Presby,eries
or Associations, or Conventions. They
all acted on equal authority, so far as rela
ted to their characters as Presbyters, il
preaching the Cos pei, & administering it