Wheeling majority. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1907-192?, 1910-03-10

The people are no longer exhorted
to hold fast to the doctrines of Meth
odism, Calvanism, ETC.. but to hold
fast to the System. They are no
longer encouraged to think of their
system as being Sthe only one, out
side of which there would be no sal
walton, but they are encouraged to
cultivate a partisan spirit. which
takes pride in their organization, its
wealth, the value of its church prop
erty, the largness of its collections,
the grandeur of its music. the wis
dom, learning and ability of its
preachers, and the fashion and
wealth of its constituency.
It is not our wish to offer single
unkind or unbrotherly criticism. It
is our duty and privilege, however,
to point out thatthe creed doctrines
of the various denominations, now
set on the shelf as too frail and inn
perfect to stand handling and in
estigation, are not and never were
the doctrines of Christ and the Apos-
ties. 1t is our duty and pleasure to
show forth to Christian people to the
extent of our ability that the teach
| ings of the bible, the doctrines OF
Christ, are grand, noble. reasonable,
worthy of all acceptation. To the
extent that we succeed in doing this
we are bringing back straying Chris
tians from the deceptive. bogs of evo-
luton and higher criticism to the
| firm foundation, the solid rock OF
Truth-God's Word.
''The Wounds of Friend"
"tFaithflil are wounds of friend"
is the Divine assurance. We cannot,
therefore, better show our friendship
and Christian love to our brethren
than by pulling down from the shelf
their reverenced creeds and allowing
them to fall in pieces beyond repair.
II every church could be thus induced
| to pull down its creed-idOl, the pres
ent Laodicean stage Of the church
would speedily come to its senses, as
suggested by our Lord Then, in
stead Of feeling themselves rich and
increased in goods and having need
/ of nothing, our dear Christian breth-
rem of all denominations would re-
a4ize the meaning of our Lords
words-that Churchianity as a whole
today is poor and naked and misera-
BILE and wretched and blind (Revela-
ton iii, 1920. AS Christians of all
denominations we have cause of re-
| joicing that we have outgrOwn the
trudle-bed creeds of the past ana that
we can no longer warp Yourselves
comfortable in the narrow bigotry of
error. The Lord caused this to be
written in the long-ago through the
prophets, saying, For the bed is
shorter than that man can stretch
himself on it; and the covering mar
rover than that he can wrap himself
in it, (Isaiah xviii, 20). If in con-
nection with this growth which has
come to us and by which we have
nobler conceptions than had our fore
fathers Of the rights of man under
the Golden. Rule, it is cause for re-
ioicing. Even though the transition
has been accompanied by great fall
ing away into higher criticism. inf
deity, evolution, ETC., nevertheless
even these errors are in many re-
spects preferable to the blindness
and bigotry. Happy are We, dear
friends, if, the eyes of our under
standing being opened, our hearts
are led to a closer walk with God.
more careful and prayerful study OF
His Word, and to a subsequent
growth in grace and in the fruits OF
the holy Spirit.
Do some inquire for clearer speci-
flea ion respecting the features of the
creeds put upon their shelf, which we
think should be no longer cared for,
but allowed to fall? We answer that
of course there are good features in
all our creeds-truths which will new
.er fail. But with these truths are mix
ed he errors which are, as the Pro-
vert says, "Dead flies, (that( cause
the ointment to stink" (Ecclesiastics
x, ~ There is plenty more of the
oint ment in Gods word. It is indeed
the balm Of Gilead'' and pure-with
out The corroding fly of error. This is
what we all want, whatsoever our
UNCONVENTIONAL name, and the sooner
we get it the better for us, flor the
Cause and for the brethren, whom we
love to serve.
+ / give an illustration: Those of us
who are Calvinistic may well hold
fast to some of the precious scripture
teaching SO long reversed, but we
wantrto cast out quickly and effective
ly the gross error which teaches that
all the non-elect, instead of having
hope for blessing through the
elect" are to be everlastingly tor
mented. Those of us who are Ar
precious, but need also to cast away
from us the thought that our loving
Heavenly Father is merely good-in-
tentioned and lacks the power, the
ability, to make his benevolent desire
effective toward any except small
handful of humanity. Our disciple
friends should cast aside the thought
contained in their teachings that only
the water-immersed experience for
giveness of sins and reconciliation to
God and salvation from eternal tor
ment. Similarly those of US who are
Baptists while holding to the precious
truths which so long have comforted
and strengthened US, should insist
now on casting away as unscriDtural
and irrational the thought that has