The home journal. (Winchester, Tenn.) 1858-188?, 1875-11-11

by divine order; claiming the Inherent
personal priesthood and klng9hlP OIL
every member and roofing llsell on
the idca OF the Repabi'c Of Heaven, not
the Rinydom Of Heaven l DeILrVe inc
pvmou,n Church Of New YORK Is
owned by a joint stock company, who
nav their preacher and declare a hand
,ome dividend among themselves ny
the rent Of pcws, and leave the faithful
their chances Of heaven by hanging
upon the skirts and lips Of Brother
BeCChcr, whose OscuIalUry vibrations
are pro verbal, WHO is enthusiastically
responsible to no power, and is only
concerned to keep himself clear Of the
clutches Of the law,
Row, iithc Rev Doctor by churches
means sects and schisms, there is no
issue between as; but if he charges
that there 10 no divinely-appolntcd
church on earth, we are rs far removed
as the zenith from the nadir.
! believe our Methodist friends claim
John Wesley as their founder, and
yet that good man, who died in the
communion OF the church Of his faith
ors, only aimed by the formation Of
societies in the church to muse more
godly picty in al organization which
from the peculiar formation OF the
British Constitution was identified
with the State,
In u letter to Dlr, Asbury, his agent
ia America, he thus eXpostuIates :
How car you, how dare you, suiler
yourself to be called 4 Bishop shud'
der, ! start at the very thought. Men
may call me a hnavc, or a fool, a ras
cal, a %scoundrcl, and am content, but
they shall never, by my conacnt, call
me u Bishop. For my sake, for Gods
sake, for Christs sake, put q full end
TO this! Let the Prcsbytoriana do
what they please, but let the McCho
dists know better"
! believe our Presbyterian friend.
claim that the c~oYcnantcrs Of ScotIan"
framed their ecclesiastical poitLy, ba
sing it, as they supposed, upon scrjpta.
rel warrant. Our Baptist friends
claim, OF used to claim Roger Williams.
as their founder in America, d aim
ing Munster as their origin. AlcXan.
der Campbell, from the peculiar conatI
luton Of his mind, thought he would
approximate the truth by organizing
distinct sect. George Fox founded the
Quakcrs, Ann Lee the Shakers, Joe
Smith the Mormous, and so on nd IN
fnitam, not ignoring the fact that one
of the Bishops Of Rome, greedy OF
temporal power and thinking to lord 1t
over Gods heritage, set up the stand
ard Of absolulism and miallIbiIlty, and
under the name Of Pope has millions
OF subjects who deem it an honor to
kiss his toe.
But does all this satisfy the atlcn-
tive reader OF church history, OF the
Fathers, $50 called, or of the word Of
God? Are we satisfied with The belief
that the humanity OF Christ was 4 mere
yhaSc through which he passed 1900 or
more years ago, and that in the asccn-
sion he resumed his abdicated divinity,
merely leaving his precepts and exam
pie as q guide to his followers, know
ing, az we do, that long years inter,
vened before the canon Of scripture
constituted such = guide, during which
interval the church, the bride Of Christ
had an authority independent OF
though not contrary TO the Scripture
which is dGnominatcd "thC sword o.
the spirit ?" Do we not from the Scrip
lures learn tho elevation Of his redeem,
ed humanity and that while in his
humanity, (that Holy thing, appointed
Of God, and 50 announced to the Vir'
gin Mary,) he is personally present in
heaven, at the mediatorial mercy seat,
on the right hand Of the Father? He is
also present with lis diyinely appoint
cd church in the personal presence of
the third person of the Blessed Trinity,
whom he promised he would pray the
Father to send, and in whose person
he fulfilled his gracious promise, $40,
| an with yoW always, even to the end
of the world )" mol, ] am with the
world in general, or with those who
may be attracted by my teaching, but
with you, that particular company OF
disciples who were to continue on to
the end Of the world by constant &C
cession and succession n perpetual
corporation, W to go out or to be
come extinct. For, if the succession
be broken, no new organization can
take its place, and tho word of the
promise cannot be kept. What was
the course ofthe Apostles. They were
hidden to remain at Jerusalem till they
were induced with power from on high.
Their very fcllo wship vas an instltu-
ton. They had not joined themselves
together, but were called and chosen.
- No mar taketh this honor unto him
self, but he that is called Of God as
was Aaron "Asmy father has sent
me, SO send / you" Does this look
as if any person, upon his W mere
motion, or guided by somo iancied call
from God, OF some ilIapse of the Holy
spirit, could presume to exercise gifts
and gracc5 thus solemnly and authori-
t~ativcly confcrred2 The Apostles al
ways appealed to divine direction.
The Apostolate was afterwards extend
ed, where its work goes beyond the
limits of mere personal witness, and
passes into the governing and
missionary work of the church. Epa.
phroditus was thus constituted Apostle
81 ,bo phininniopu Titua nf thn FRA