"If [The Presbyterian Church] stands for
Christ, it will do the work which he has put it into the world to do. And that
work is the work of witness-bearing. "Ye shall be my witnesses," said
the risen Christ, according to the book of Acts; and these words are really a
correct summary of New Testament Christianity from beginning to end. New
Testament Christianity is not a life as distinguished from a doctrine, or a
life which has doctrine as its flower and fruit, but - just the other way
around - it is a life founded upon a doctrine. It is a life produced not merely
by exhortation, mot merely by personal contacts, but primarily by an account of
something that happened, by a piece of good news, or a gospel. The apostles
set forth the great event after it had occured - they said "that Christ
died for our sins according to the Scriptures, and that he was buried, and that
he rose again the third day according to the Scriptures." The Savior
himself in the days of his flesh proclaimed the same great event by way of
prophecy: "Repent ye," he said, "for the kingdom of heaven is at
hand," and "The Son of man came not to be ministered unto, but to
minister, and to give his life a ransom for many." But whether the event
was in the past or in the future, both apostles and Jesus proclaimed an event;
Jesus gave to his disciples a message in which he was to be offered as the
Savior of the world.
But if so, it is
important above all else to get the message straight. When a witness takes
his seat on the witness stand, it does not make much difference what the cut of
his coat is or whether his sentences are nicely turned. The important thing is
that he tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth. So it is
with that witness stand which is called the pulpit. It does not make so much
difference about the manner in which the message is delivered; there can even
be charity for imperfections in the spirit and motives of the messenger; but
what is important above all things is that the content of the message should be
true." [217-218]
Many persons seem to
regard the duty of witness-bearing as a merely personal or individual thing…It
is really quite impossible to be a member of a body and evade the
responsibilities involved in membership…It is not merely this one preacher who
is saying these things so diametrically opposed to the gospel of Christ, but it
is the whole Presbyterian church. The
constitution of the church plainly regards the preacher as a representative of
the whole body, as a man who sets forth the system of doctrine taught in
the Word of God, and it plainly gives the courts of the church power to remove
any preacher who is preaching what is contrary to that. But with power always
goes responsibility. The whole church is
saying to many a little one, especially now that the issue has once been
raised: “This that you hear in the First Presbyterian Church of New York is the
way of salvation; heed the exhortation, and you will be saved.” And the responsibility
of the whole church is also the responsibility of every individual member; the
government of our church is democratic, and democracy involves responsibility
for the individual. Every individual member of the church – to say nothing of
ministers who are members of church courts – has a vital responsibility for
what is done in the pulpits and still more plainly in the agencies and boards.
Individuals must witness for Christ, but the church must also witness in its
corporate capacity, and no individual is
walking uprightly according to the truth of the gospel if he acquiesces in a
corporate witness that is false.” [220-221]
“If a man may “Interpret” a perfectly plain
confession of faith to mean its exact opposite, what is the use of having any confession
at all?” [225]
“The public
testimony of this preacher, and of the many preachers like him, is
diametrically opposed to the gospel of Christ and is leading men away from the
true Savior of their souls; it is producing a confidence in human goodness, in
human ability to obey the commands of Christ, which it is the first business of
the Christian preacher to break down. For our part, we feel compelled to
relinquish all confidence in such goodness and to trust in the crucified Savior
alone.
We certainly do not wish to “split” the church; on
the contrary, we are working for the unity of the church with all our might.
But in order that there should be unity within the church, it is necessary
above all that there should be sharp separation of the church from the world.
The carrying out of that separation is a prime duty of the hour. Those who try
to save men by the ethical principles of a Jesus whom they have reconstructed
through rejection of the New Testament witness should form one body; those who
glory in nothing save the cross of Christ should form another body. And that
latter body is the Christian church. What our Savior demands of us above all
else is faithfulness. He has placed us in the world as witnesses, and the
supreme duty of his witnesses is that they should testify faithfully to him.
The Presbyterian church, we are convinced, is still
predominantly Christian; it would stand for Christ if it knew the real meaning
of the hostile propaganda which is now attacking the center of its life. At
such a time clearness is demanded of every Christian man; the hour for merely pleasant words is over; love demands the plain
speaking of the truth. We are witnesses; and if we are faithful to our sacred
trust we must witness truly, whether men hear or whether they forbear.
What shall our decision be? Shall we transfer our
allegiance to another gospel? Or shall we, by the help of God’s Spirit, be
faithful to the Lord and Savior who bought us with his precious blood? [226-227]
