Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1879-09-26
The Bible and the creeds.
An "HsToEIcAI CONSENSUS. -

II.
Scripture can only be automatically inter
preted by Scripture itself. The LevitcS had
recourse to one part of Scripture for the in
| tcrpretng another Nehemiah vii :. So
/ likewise our Saviour interprets the Old Tcs-
lament by comparing Scripture with Scrip
! ture, aud not having recourse to the Iabbies.
! This was likewise the apostles methol Be
! sides, when persons insist 80 much upon the
necessity of the fathers, they are in danger
of charging the Scriptures with obscrrity or
| imperfection. The fathers themselves say
that Scripture is not to he interpreted but by
I Scripture. ALEXANDER Henderson y' The
| Scottish hirk 0646).
The fathers refer all decisions OF c'ntro-
versy to the Scriptures, as all-suilicieni 10 dl-
rect. to resolve and to determine. ne.-J0tA Nj
ton.
Let others dread and shun the Scriptures
for their darkness | shall wish | may de
serve to he rccKoned among those WHO ad-
miro and dwell upon them for their clear
ncss.-Joln Milton.
The scripture is sufficient rule
for those To Judge by that believe ii to lie the
word of God, what they are 10 believs and
what they are not 10 believe. | say. suffi-
ciently perfect and sufficiently intelligible in
things necessary. to all that have understand
nr. whether they he learned or unlearned. -
CHilhnqWorM.
Preach CHRIST. not Calvin, not Luther,
nor Armnius Contend earnestly
for the faith once delivered 10 the saints you
must but then, not the doctrines of Calvin,
or Of Chry session, but of CHRIST, are to be
regarded as nfailbic The Bible must needs
be the only system of divinity to be depend
ed upon, as the unerring rule of faith and
Don't lprDHr1rstps lIxt.l lp
for stretching every man that is shorter than
your bed to the length of it, nor for cutting
them shorter who are too long for it. Don't
| mean, as the manner of some is, he for
casting out of your charity, for branding
them as GraccleSs, for condemning anathe-
matizing and booming to damnation all that
follow not You. Bgotry avaunt. Get thee
behind me. for thou art an offence to me.
Bigotry, the poison and hane of social vir-
tue; would 10 God it were banished out Of
the world and sent back and confined TO the
internal shades, the place of lis birth and
nativity. Might the Bcrcans nobly search
the Scriptures and judge for themselves? and
must we act by an implicit faith, take things
upon trust, and be tied down to systems and
formularies drawn up 10y uninspired men,
how venerable soever their names may be?
-Rer. Isaac Stiles Of North Hdren, COnnec-
tFht, utfFHdFuS YTtSue"t ~ I"" tOt"yt.
From sermon Dr6delfd at TIE ordination Of
Ills son tl15j)
Thus Men lose themselves and abuse the
Church. because Gods Word will not serve
their turn as a Rule for us to Unite upon.
This is the Que Ruic that God hath left. and
Men will needs blame this as insufficient,
and mend Gods Works hv the Device of
their Addlc Brains and then complain of
Divisions, when they have made them
: Never will the Church Unite ON such
Terms. The Rule that all must agree in
must he made by one that is above all, and
whose Authority is acknowledged by all. |
Experience might tell these Men, that they
are Building but Bdbel, and Dividing the
church. Rirdard Bdrter O6j9).
Such schemes or collections of doctrines, |
reduced into an order may he of use |
= more distinctly To inform others con |
ccrning our sentiments provided they |
be- avowcd 10 he looked upon hut as a man
>Hrd m0i@rtd, roserving unto the Scrip
lures the honor Of being the only menSurd |
nq6RsurdnS- Hone.
Il is a puSillanmous orthodoxy and moi n
fraternal Christianity, that prompts the de
votec of ahuman creed to ocondemnphilosoph
ical research, and Ia confound the true re-
velation of nature with the philosophy |
falsely so-called, which and only which
he Bible disapproves; 10 discharge the
apithcts proud, ambitious, skeptical, infidel
Dr, worse than all, and worse than anything
.lsr Peldgidn, against every one who brings
nto theology the enterprise of a scientific
iiscoverer, and prefers the sure word of God
lbOvc all the traditions of the elders. Ii is
10 confess that the form of
theological discussion las with some men
'cased be, What is truth and has come to
e, Do certain ministers in the evangelical
believe heretical doctrines Ed
rdrds 4. Park 1850.
This book the Bible MORE THAN ANY
lTHER is its OGn Interpreter. We
lu moi lsnd You closely 10 tho dosmutiC In
expectations of others of former times, or to
he prescriptions of any humanity prepared
look only 10 Tie Book itself we do not hold
,ou bound,-to the law and to the testimony
by this to Judge all dogmas OF the past, by
his to define all truth for the present. We
believe what was so well said by one ever
ionored in our churches. that new light is to
Freak forth from Gods Word. Look, then,
or such light i-From charge Of /. L. Cha-
jiR, D. H., President IF Bciot college, at
Inauguration cf Rec. S. /. CurtiSs, Jr.,
IS ProttsSor Of BiJhcdl Literature IN CHi
ago Theological Seminary, APrH %, 1879.
,nd stu their lhe Plgrimsl spirit, in their sons,
with freedom walks abroad;
he RrEIE Is our only creed oar only sovereign,
CO.
he hanI Is raised. IN. wo.l IS spoke, the jo,ful
.ui hold!y on our banner noaisi IN the free ar OF
Heaven,
'he motto OF our sa4ntrd sires; and loud wen
make II ring
, Church without = Bishop, and State without u
-CimiS. nal. d. H.. a, quoted By Rec Mf,us.
d .I f'f.4Isf. ff. Il d