To Infidelity and Back

by Henry F. Lutz

And that leads me to say that we should treat those who differ from us, with love, respect and sympathy. I believe that more reformers have been crippled in their efforts by failing in this than in any other way. We are likely to attribute all our failures to the sin and bad character of others, when the fault often lies in ourselves. God gives a vision of some great truth or needed reform; as, for example, the prohibition of the liquor traffic, or the union of God's people on the primitive gospel. The message is sweet to us, and so we go on our way with great joy, feeling sure that we will soon convert everybody to our righteous cause. But, alas! we soon discover that people will not convert very fast. Our argument seems to us more clear and infallible every time we repeat it, and yet the people fail to come to our position. And so we are likely to lose faith in the people, and come to the conclusion that it is nothing but sin and guilt that causes them to reject our message. The next step is to forget our own weaknesses, trust in ourselves that we are right, and treat with hate and contempt those who differ from us. Treating our opponents with hate and scorn, we lose both our humility and Christian character, and develop into the most hideous and ungodly characters on earth, self-righteous Pharisees. And so it happens that we reformers often need reformation worse than those whom we seek to reform. But you say, did not Jesus and the Apostles severely denounce sinners? Yes, but they always first made sure that they were sinners. Jesus could read men's hearts and, therefore, made no mistake, while Paul always reasoned with his opponents out of the Scriptures in love and humility, and only condemned them after clear and positive evidence that the fault was in their motive. Paul says, in writing to Timothy, "the servant of the Lord must not strive; but must be gentle unto all men, apt to teach, patient; in meekness instructing those that oppose themselves; if God peradventure will give them repentance to the acknowledging of the truth." And, where he exhorts to "reprove" and "rebuke," it is with "all longsuffering." James says, "The wrath of man worketh not the righteousness of God" We are never commanded to despise, hate or denounce any man; but, on the other hand, we are to love every one, even our enemies.

We are all human, and when it is as clear as daylight to us that we have the truth and argument on our side, it is a great temptation to cut to pieces and roast our opponents. But is it Christ-like to do it? Do we forget how long it took us to come to the position that now seems so clear to us? Some one has said that, in dealing with children, "we should remember that they are left-handed," and this is certainly true of people in their relation to truth. The slowness with which people take up new ideas is a merit as well as a fault. We could have no stability and progress anywhere if it were not for this inertia in convictions. "The Athenians and strangers sojourning there spent their time in nothing else but either to tell or to hear some new thing," and if we would all be occupied in that way, not much would be accomplished in the world. If we would become disciples of every propagandist whose arguments we cannot answer on the spur of the moment, there would be nothing but change and confusion. Realizing the difficulties in the way of finding truth, and observing how even the wisest and best have been deceived and ensnared in error, naturally ought to make people conservative in accepting new ideas, and the same reasons should make us patient with those who differ from us. They usually need our patient and sympathetic instruction more than our contempt, hatred and denunciation.

All this being true, we should never forget, however, that it is our sacred duty to treat those who differ from us, in truth. There are two attitudes that are very easy to take. The one is to treat our differences with childish sentimentalism, saying, "Peace, peace," when there is or ought not to be any peace. The other is to hate and abuse those who differ from us, and to treat their opinions as beneath our contempt. But the difficult thing to do is to tell the whole truth, as we see it, and to do it in love and humility. We are under obligation to tell the truth boldly whatever the outcome may be. To those who threaten us and command us not to tell the truth, we must reply in the language of Peter and John: "Whether it be right in the sight of God to hearken unto you more than unto God, judge ye. For we cannot but speak the things which we have seen and heard." When people cry, "Peace, peace," at the expense of truth and right, and want us to speak "smooth things" instead of God's Word, we must take warning from God's words to Ezekiel, which apply to every preacher of truth, "When I say unto the wicked, Thou shalt surely die; and thou givest him not warning, nor speakest to warn the wicked from his wicked way, to save his life: the same wicked man shall die in his iniquity; but his blood will I require at thine hand." Paul went into the Jewish synagogues repeatedly to lead them into the full truth, although he raised strife and contention in so doing, and even suffered violence at their hands. Unfortunately, a large per cent. of Christians have formed a conspiracy of silence on matters in which they differ. We have so little of the Spirit of Christ that we cannot even talk over our differences without getting angry and exhibiting the fruits of the flesh. And so we say, "We will agree to disagree," and we continue to nourish, pet and worship our differences as if they were gods. This puts a mighty padlock on the growth into the unity of the faith and knowledge and judgment which Christ and the Apostles enjoined upon us. We need to get the New Testament conception of the hideousness and sinfulness of all divisions among God's people. And while we recognize the fact that there will always be differences of opinion as long as we are ignorant and sinful and weak, nevertheless it is our Christian duty to use our utmost effort to diminish and remove these differences. There always will be sin in this world but we dare not be satisfied with it or abide in it; but, on the other hand, we must fight it with all the power we possess. The same is true with divisions and differences of opinion.

We must, however, not overlook the important differences between matters of faith and of opinion. Matters of faith are directly revealed in the Bible, and upon these all Christians can and must agree as soon as they get a fair look at them. While matters of opinion, which are not directly revealed in the Bible, but are inferred from things revealed, are important, they are not all important, like matters of faith. But the more we overcome the hindrances to finding truth, of which we have spoken, the more we will be of the same mind and judgment in all things. For truth is not divided, and we will all see it alike in so far as we see clearly. As a rule, we can readily unite on the most important truths, and therefore on those we need to unite on for our present duty. While, if, through lack of faith, we turn away from the clear duty to seek one that is easier, and requires less sacrifice, we usually become hopelessly divided and thus fail in our effort.

In conclusion, having a clear conception of the baneful and ruinous effect of differences of opinion, and being aware of the powerful causes which hinder us from getting at the truth and thus divide us, let us strive day and night, in prayer and labor, to get the truth ourselves and to lead others into the truth. For in and through the truth, we shall, with "one mind" and "one soul," go conquering and to conquer, in the name of King Jesus, for the enlargement of his kingdom of love, peace and joy.

PART II.

HOW I FOUND CHRIST'S CHURCH

CHAPTER I.

SCRIPTURAL BAPTISM.

One of the chief things that led me to identify myself with the people working for Christian union, was my experience with regard to baptism. Indeed, I am more and more convinced that baptism is the main key to the question of Christian union. We can differ on questions of theoretical theology and still work together in harmony in practical Christian activities. But if we differ on the question of baptism, we cannot take the first step in preaching the gospel and in leading souls to Christ, in the New Testament way, without getting into conflict. The only way that union meetings of different denominations have been at all possible, has been by ignoring the plain teaching and practice of the Apostles on the question of baptism. We never can have Christian union in the authority of Christ, which is the only union which will satisfy his prayer and demand, until we agree on the two simple ordinances which are the forms in which the gospel embodies itself to bless our souls. And, fortunately, these are the easiest things to unite on. When free from prejudice, there is no question on which Christians can more easily agree than that of baptism, as the testimony of the scholars and churches that follow in this chapter abundantly demonstrate. The consummation of Christian union will have to patiently wait until inherited and acquired prejudices become sufficiently allayed so that all Christians can look at the question of baptism dispassionately. Then it will be discovered that we all agree on this question and the main barrier to Christian union will be removed. In our weakness we want to procure Christian union without giving up our sectarian ideas that have been superadded to the New Testament teaching, and that have caused our division. And so we try to compromise by "agreeing to disagree" or by ignoring the teachings of the New Testament. But such efforts must be futile and disappointing. We can never unite on the gospel until we agree in the gospel teaching. We can never unite in obeying the Master until we unite in our opinions as to what the Master has commanded us to do. But, thank God, the field is rapidly ripening for this agreement and consequent union.