The matter now is, not to be a descendant of Abel, nor of Abraham, nor Jacob, or Israel; nor to be of any particular line of flesh and blood, but to be born again—born from above, born of God. “That which is born of the flesh is flesh; that which is born of the Spirit is spirit.” This new church has a new basis of membership, not in the flesh but in the Spirit, not in being born in the family of Abraham, but in the family of God, not in the first birth, but the second birth, not in a birth of the flesh, but a birth of the Spirit, not founded in natural generation, but in regeneration, not children of God by blood, but “all the children of God by faith in Christ Jesus.”
This church in which we are “all the children of God by faith in Christ”—by virtue of a new creation, a birth of water and of the Spirit, is not the one in the wilderness, nor any other church, congregation or assembly found before Pentecost, but it is the one the Lord said, “I will build,” but which was not built when the Lord said this; the one new man, or new church which the Lord made of the twain, or the two, the Jews and the Gentiles. This is the “one body” into which all were immersed in the time of the apostles—the body of Christ—the “temple of God,” in which God and Christ and the Holy Spirit dwell. To be “in Christ” is to be in this one body, to be “in the kingdom of God,” “in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit,” to be in union with the Father and with the Son, with the whole family in heaven and on earth. To be in this one body brings us to all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ Jesus. This is the body or the church that Jesus loved, and for which he gave himself, that “he might sanctify and cleanse it with the washing of water by the word”—“the church of the living God, the pillar and support of the truth.” It is “the building of God,” established “according to his eternal purpose” to “the intent” that “to the principalities and powers in heavenly places may be made known by the church the manifold wisdom of God.” See Eph. iii. 10.
[SOUND MEN.]
WHY do men regret to hear us say of a man, “He is a gospel man;” “He is a sound man;” “He is a New Testament man.” It implies that there are some that are not “gospel men,” not “sound,” not “New Testament men.” What if it does? Why need any man be troubled about that? Certain men will be suspected of being unsound! Indeed! Must we shut our eyes and think contrary to what we know to be matter of fact, that all are sound? But, you imply that some are not sound! Certainly, and you imply that some are not honest, when you put a lock on your stable, crib or smoke-house, lock and bolt your doors at night, and when you will not trust all men alike. When you say, “I will trust him, his word is as good as his note,” you imply that some other man is not good—that his word is not as good as his note.
But we tell you of A, B, C, D and E, that we have trusted, and they have all paid, and we believe all are alike honest, and will pay. If you are a business man, you will reply, “Yes, and I have trusted many more than that, all of whom paid, but I have trusted a long list that did not pay, and you need not preach to me that all will pay.” So referring to a few men who, on a few occasions preached the gospel faithfully, does not prove that all do this, or even that these few always do it.
That we have the men now who are making it a constant and prayerful effort to reproduce the gospel and all its fruits; to reproduce the Church and all its blessings to man; to maintain all things as delivered to us by Christ and his apostles, we rejoice to know. That we have another class of men, who have no heart in this, and have even repudiated the idea, we entertain not a doubt. Those determined to reproduce the gospel of Christ and all its fruits, the Church, and all its blessings to man, introduce no innovations; nothing new and foreign to destroy the peace of the children of God, and are the cause of no dissensions and no divisions. Those standing off are not from among them. They will stand with God, with Christ, with the Holy Spirit, with the things of God as set forth in Scripture. We stop not to count the number, whether great or small, nor to consider whether they shall be popular or unpopular, rich or poor. The only question is, are they of God? Does God require that the gospel of his grace, as given by his Son and the apostles, shall be reproduced? Does he require that the church shall be reproduced? We maintain that he requires that the gospel, in all its entirety and completeness, shall be reproduced, and we shall be satisfied with nothing short of it. He requires that the Church, in its entirety and completeness, shall be reproduced. These are matters settled with us. The man whose heart is not in this work, and who aims not at it, is not one with us, nor in sympathy with us.