Modern christianity professes to derive all its light, and its various clashing creeds, from the Old and New Testament. If modern christianity is, indeed, the offspring of the Bible, it is a prodigy with many hundred heads; but ancient christianity drew its light from the ROCK of immediate revelation, and previous scriptures were only confirmatory of the Spirit's testimony. Illiterate fishermen, like Peter, traditionated by a corrupt priesthood, could know next to nothing of the written manuscripts of the Bible. What he learnt was not from flesh and blood, but from the spirit of revelation; and let it be always in your mind, sir, that Christ has said, that on "THIS ROCK" of immediate revelation "He will build His church."
A christianity contained exclusively in a small volume like the Bible, is an insult to the capacious revelations of the Eternal Spirit of God, that even searches the deep things of God—a mere drop compared with the mighty ocean! The full biography of Jesus Christ contained in the New Testament? Nonsense! Preposterous mockery! You certainly are not ignorant of the last verse in John's gospel—"The world itself could not contain the account, if written, of the acts and doings of Jesus Christ." But shall the knowledge of Christ be buried in oblivion because his acts and sayings cannot be written? No, by no means; God forbid! What saith the scriptures? the all-wise "Spirit shall bring all things to your remembrance, even the deep things of God—things that the tongue cannot utter nor the heart conceive."
Without the Holy Spirit of revelation, to take of the things of Jesus and convey them to the knowledge of men, I boldly aver that NO man can harmonize a consistent system from the Old and New Testament, or find eternal life. Every man must be born of that spirit which gives revelation and knowledge of Christ, or he can never see the kingdom of God. But a prominent feature in the creed of modern christianity is, that there is no further need of revelation, consequently the distinct office-work of the Spirit, to bring to mind unwritten acts and doctrines of Christ, and harmonize those which are written and scattered promiscuously through the Bible, is abrogated and deemed superfluous by modern christianity!
O thou benighted advocate of modern christianity, how long shall thy eye be veiled in reading the New Testament, and thine heart be too gross to perceive the beauty, and comfort, and power of that blessed Spirit that gave life and salvation to ancient christianity? Hast thou lost all admiration for the Spirit's miraculous gifts, power, and blessing? settled down under reconciliation to a load of doubts and fears, hoping that death will remove thy tormenting burden? Vain hope! No longer then do despite to that Eternal Spirit of revelation that is freely promised to all that will honestly receive it. If Gentile christians are ashamed of the Jew, because a veil was before their eyes in reading the Old Testament, has not the Jew equal cause to be ashamed of the Gentile, that has so soon turned away from the primitive path of the Spirit's gifts of visions, prophecies, healings, &c., and thereby been "cut off for not continuing in His goodness," according to the warning threat of Jehovah against Gentiles.
Where, sir, are the splendid gifts of apostles and prophets, evangelists, pastors and teachers, that Christ gave to men and set in his church, forever to continue in the ministry, edifying "the BODY of Christ till we all come to the unity of faith," and to such a knowledge of God, and fulness of power and wisdom as dwelt even in Jesus? They are nowhere to be found in modern christianity! Modern christianity has the effrontery and shamelessness even to say that she does not need them; consequently she says that she does not need "to come to unity of faith," and to that full and potent knowledge of God that Jesus in the flesh possessed, and had decreed that all Saints should possess and be like their "elder brother."
Not one of these great and precious gifts are retained. The bare name of evangelists and pastors is retained in modern christianity, without the shadow of the power and prophetic knowledge of the Holy Ghost, with which these officers were obliged to be endued in the primitive church. She admits, indeed, the form of the office, "denying the power." She says, indeed, that she can come to "unity of faith," &c., without apostles, and without the help of the good old-fashioned Almighty Holy Ghost.
But how long a time does she want to run for this prize of "unity of faith, &c.?" She has been running for the stakes nearly EIGHTEEN HUNDRED YEARS, and is further from the goal than when we started. When she started, "false apostles and deceitful workers" were her champions. In order to win the prize, these shed the blood of true apostles, and the blood of saints was found in their garments. And when her followers found that she had only the form or name of apostles and prophets without the power, she said, we have no further need of apostles, they have done their work and miracles have ceased. Oh, thou blood-guilty, "lying," Gentile christianity! thy lineage takes hold of the mother of abominations, clothed in scarlet! How great will be the severity of God's judgments upon all that are accessory to modern christianity, except they repent and obey the gospel!
She has also changed the ordinances. Where is now the ordinance of anointing with oil? Where the ordinance of imposition of hands? The healing of the sick is given up to medical men, whose reliance is on anything but the power and established ordinance of God. Is it not written for the benefit of the sick, that they should call for the elders of the church, whose duty it is to "anoint the sick with oil and lay on hands and they shall recover?" Now the consequence of changing this one ordinance of the Bible to the medical nostrums of men, is the literal death of thousands, who change the ordinance and contribute to make this whole earth the burying ground of nations.
Sir, may I not significantly ask, will the priests of the day return unto the Lord and teach his "law and his testimony," or will they with hearts of stone see the inhabitants of the earth perish under the curse of "trusting in medical man and making flesh an arm?"
The prophet Isaiah says, the consequence of changing the ordinances is, to make the earth empty and desolate! But this is not the only ordinance that is changed. By laying on hands for the gift of the Holy Spirit, the authority to prophecy, speak with new tongues, and cast out devils, is conferred. Now, unless boasting christianity has secured peace and fellowship with the devil, it is of much importance to know how to cast him out. Unless they have wisdom and power, and the spirit of prophecy, to supersede the need of the Holy Spirit, it is very essential to observe the ordinances by which, alone, it is conferred.