Wheeling register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1878-1935, 1900-11-19


Last evening the Rev. C. NJ. Oliphant
preached an interesting sermon on the
subject "The Plea Our Fathers Made
He took as his text Nehemiah AS:
so built we the wall; and all the wall
was Joined together unto the half there
of; for the people had mind to
work" The Rev. Olipnant began his
discourse by tracing the history of the
rebuilding of the walls around the city
of Jerusalem. He said that history Is
parallel to the history of the church,
which Christ established on penteeost.
King Solomon's temple and the walls
around the city stood for at least three
centuries So the church of Christ
stood for three centuries after 1t was
founded in the first century. Stood in
its purity, its simplicity, and in all
its divine orderings.
The walls of Jerusalem were torn
down and the people taken into Baby
lcnian captivity because of their sinful
ness. So on account of the sinfulness
of the people and their departing from
the primitive order of things they were
carried into captivity of error and hu
man creeds.
Nehmiah saw the condition of Jeru-
salem and its walls and was commits
stoned by God to rebuild the walls. So
about Is or 80 years ago Alexander
Campbell and others saw the condition
Of the spiritual Jerusalem in its cap
tivity to error and human creeds and
made a plea, not for a reformation
simply, but for restoration of print
tive Christianity. Their aim was to
rebuild the walls, not on new founda-
lions, but on the old foundation, the
divine Christ himself. They protested
against much of the so-called Protes-
tantism and appealed to men to be
Christians according to the teachings
of Christ and the Apostles.
Nehemiah, in rebuilding the walls
around Jerusalem met wlla much OPP
position. First:-The people made fun
OF his enterprise. SO many made fun
of the plea OF the Diciples OF Christ,
which our fathers made In Nehemiah S
| time the people treated his work lightly
and said that even fox could break
| the walls down, so the plea OF the Di-
sciples was treated lightly, but with all
such treatment the plea has been a
power for three-quarters of century
They conspired against the work OF
| Nehemiah, and SO many churches con-
| spired against Alexander Campbell and
those associated with him, but their
conspiring was of no effect. unless it
| be that it increased the determination
Of those who desired to restore the
primitive order of things. Very soon
in Nehemiah's time, the enemies oner-
ed a compromise, tried to draw him
away from his work, but he answered
them, saying: Il am doing great work
and cannot come down to YOU" So.
many people offered to our fathers
compromise, and even to-day many
compromises are offered to the people
known as the Disciples of Christ, but
those firm in the faith delivered once
for all to the saints, answered by say
ing: I'VE are doing a great work and
why should we come down to your"
The plea that our fathers made was
plea for the restoration of primitive
Christianity and in accordance with
this order the people should be united
1nis union is essential to the CONVEX
sion OF the world to Christ. Objec-
lions to this plea are made. First
As a separae people we are too young.
To make such a plea, the popularity
of this plea refutes the objection. We,
as a people, have grown to be one and
a quarter strong and in the past ten
years have made greater gains than
any other Protestant body. 1t is not a
question of age, but what position do
you occupy on the divine ground. If
these people preach and practice that
which is divine and Christ-like and
those things that belong to the primi
tive order, their plea is worthy OF rec
ignition to-day by the intelligent re-
ligious people.
Second: The desirability of Christ
has been rather contentious. If we have
been contentious it was contention
for the faith. Deliverance for all to
the saints Of old. contention that
meant self-defense against those who
attack US.
d:-The Diciples makes too much
of baptism. We make less of baptism
than almost any other religious body
We make of it just what the Bible
makes Of it, no more, no less.
Fourth:-You people try 10 monopo-
lie the name Christian. This state
ment does us an injustice. If other