"For I will not dare to speak of any of those things which Christ hath not wrought by me, to make the Gentiles obedient, in word and deed, through mighty signs and wonders, by the power of the Spirit of God; so that from Jerusalem, and round about unto Ilyricum, I have fully preached the gospel of Christ" (Rom. xv. 18, 19).

      As is the kingdom, so is the entrance therein. All worldly kingdoms have terms of admission fixed by law. The Kingdom of Heaven would not be a kingdom did it not conform to the principles controlling all kingdoms in this respect. As this kingdom is from heaven, it follows, therefore, that heaven must establish the conditions of membership, and fix the mode of entrance, or all the prerequisites of a kingdom fail us at the starting-point.

      Our object on this occasion is, to probe this subject, to its foundations; and if "experiences" are entitled to the field, we shall cheerfully allow them possession. We believe that every Christian has an experience--of the deception of the human heart, the deceitfulness of sin, the fascinations of the world, the power of the passions and appetites and propensities of poor human nature--of the joy of pardon through the merits of Jesus Christ--of the love of God displayed in all the means of grace--the preciousness of the word of God, counseling the soul, comforting the heart, and assimilating the believer's spirit to its own--of the sanctifying presence of the Holy Spirit within us, calming down our natural feelings, and forming our tastes upon the model of the doctrine of our Divine Master, "helping our infirmities," and teaching us to pray as we ought. This kind of experience we admit in the kingdom, but not as a law of reception on the part of sinners!

      The New Testament makes the clearest difference between the state and the consciousness of a sinner and, a saint. The sinner is condemned and exposed to the "wrath of God;" while the saint is a sinner saved, pardoned, justified. If then the saint is pardoned and justified, by the mercy of God through Christ, and "with his heart believeth unto righteousness," how can he think of himself and speak of himself still as a sinner before God? Where is his faith, if he does it? It is not, denied or doubted here, that the saint is conscious of great shortcomings, and many improprieties, but these belong to man's frail and exposed condition; and provision is made for them [40] in the remedial system. He comes to God as an erring child, "confessing his faults," and pleading the merits of the Redeemer, through whom, in this contrition and promise of reformation, God has promised to "forgive him his sins, and to cleanse him from all unrighteousness."

      In the trials of the ancient saints there is something out of which to make up a large experience. Look at the trials of Job, of Abraham, of Moses, of Joshua, of David, of Jeremiah, of Daniel, of John the Baptist, of Peter, of Paul, of John, and lastly, "looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of the faith," and it will appear, at a glance, that the most touching and moving experiences might be gathered together. Taking their side of the question, I am satisfied that a much better defense could be made out than the advocates of experience produce. That is, working by their rules, and showing that it is a proper use of the Bible to disregard the Bible difference between a saint and a sinner! It would be sufficient to show, in ordinary cases, that the whole matter of demanding experiences as introductory to the church of God, depended for its support upon an error as flagrant as that of substituting a saint's for a sinner's experience, to secure its entire abandonment in the case of every man believing the truth of the Bible, and understanding it for himself!

      The clear fact that we have the narrative of many conversions in the Acts of Apostles, and one express baptism upon the "good confession," and every other case quadrating with that special case, and not one case of a baptism, or a reception into the church, on the recital of an experience, either long or short, is a sufficient overthrow of the doctrine we oppose. Those who defend it and practice it, do both upon the same treatment of the word of God that Pedobaptists do in defending infant baptism, and the advocates of National Churches defend their antichristian systems. But we mean to leave no stone untouched in this "Bunyan building," and in addition to the advantage of having the full scope and possession of the facts and acts found in the "Acts of the Apostles," we shall consider each reference made by the Apostles in their Epistle's, to that entire change which all agree to call conversion.

      To give our opponents warning, that, being "forewarned," they may be "forearmed," we intend to show, as we now claim, that every such reference to that change, which brought its fortunate possessor "out of darkness into light," and "out of the kingdom of Satan into the kingdom of God's dear Son," was by a confession of faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, and not by a narrative of his feelings, fears, tears, nor struggles of spirit, on the part of a sinner. When this is done, and do it we certainly shall, we shall claim clearly to have the field against all contestants! We do not claim in advance that we have [41] done it, but we give warning to our friends on the other side, what we are going to try, that they may prevent it, if they can. A Baptist preacher in Mississippi said to me the other day, that he believed Bro. Campbell's mission in this world to have been, to destroy extravagant and unreasonable experiences! What an admission! We consider it but a part, a small part, of the work he had to do when he lifted up his voice as a reformer of the abuses of Christianity. Mind the extent of this admission, if the reader pleases;--"extravagant and unreasonable experiences." Now, it must be admitted that extravagant means that which goes beyond certain bounds and limits, and implies the existence of a certain rule and measure which is right; whereas we deny the existence of such rule. That which is unreasonable supposes something of the same kind within the bounds of reason, therefore we again deny that there are any reasonable experiences, to be made conditions of discipleship in the kingdom of Christ.

      There is positively no ground to stand upon--nothing tangible, reasonable, or Scriptural, but the most moderate as well as the most extravagant are foundationless, and utterly without support, except from custom. Will not good men who fear God, review the ground on which they stand, and tremble for having condemned the pope because he substituted tradition for the Bible, and all pedobaptists for having followed the pope in some things, while they eschewed him in others? Would he not condemn himself in that which he alloweth? All men are culpable when they go against their acknowledged principles. Where, then, in baptism, both as to the mode and the subjects, is that demand the Baptists have always made, and by which they have always triumphed in making, for either a direct precept or a positive example for infant baptism? But if the Baptists abandon this grand principle in so solemn a case as the reception of members into their churches, do they not condemn or stultify themselves?

      All this is brought forward here to wake them up to a rigid inquiry into the subject, that proper consideration may be given to every argument they have to offer, or apology they have to make for what we consider an unauthorized innovation. If they can defend it successfully, let them do it. It were time they were setting about it. The practice of the Baptist church at this time we consider entirely suicidal. They condemn us in words, and very often justify us in practice. Most of their teachers charge that our course opens the doors of the church so wide that the unconverted may flock in by swarms. Nevertheless, they receive many converts merely upon a confession of faith in Christ, just as we do! In this, we are strictly consistent, they are not. We never, in any case, take in a member on a recital of an experience. They often do it. So that their conduct has this twofold effect--it justifies us, and condemns themselves. [42]

      If this is not so, they can easily show it. And if it is so, it shows that good men can be swayed much beyond their own fears, or consciousness, by the force of passion or prejudice, which they themselves mistook for principles. A Christian man must stand by his principles with the tenacity shown by the marine to "stand by the ship." With us these are all matters of principle, north and south, east and west. Find our people where you will, and they plumb the track so truly that in every neighborhood they are decreed by the orthodox as heretical upon certain leading points in the creed of orthodoxy. "They take unconverted men into their churches," is the common complaint; not because their members are not as pious as their judges, but simply because they receive members on a confession of their faith, and not on a recital of their experience.

J. H., 1860, page 491.      

      In all constitutional governments, the mode of entrance is not only fixed by law, but by the organic law, being considered too serious a matter to be left to the changing and fleeting character of hasty legislation. In our own government, for instance, provision is made in the Constitution for the naturalization of foreigners.

      Our Lord and Redeemer has arranged this important matter himself. He has not left it to an Apostle under his direction, or as guided by the Holy Spirit. We shall now adduce the passages of Scripture relating to this subject, interspersed with observations pertinent to the occasion. "Whosoever therefore shall confess me before men, him will I confess also before my Father which is in heaven. But whosoever shall deny me before men, him will I also deny before my Father which is in heaven" (Matt. x. 32, 33). "Whosoever shall confess me," not himself, not his sins, nor anything under the skies but Jesus! As the great Apostle said, "If thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thy heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved."

      The word Homologeoo, all critics say, means to speak as another speaks, and by implication, to profess the same things as another, and therefore, when one speaks as another, and professes the same things, one is considered his follower. "And this is the record of John, when the Jews sent priests and Levites from Jerusalem, to ask him, Who art thou? And he confessed, and denied not; but confessed, I am not the Christ." Here we see that John was impressed with the idea that Jesus would have to be confessed, and that publicly, and therefore he confessed that he was not the Christ. He preached, "That they should believe on him that should come after him, that is, on Christ Jesus." "These words spake his parents, because they feared the Jews; for the Jews had agreed already, that if any man did confess that he was Christ, he should be put out of the [43] synagogue" (John ix. 22). The Jews, as well as John saw the great point involved in the claims of Jesus, and therefore they would allow them to confess that they were great sinners, and greatly burdened with guilt, or, in other words, they would have allowed all the points of a modern experience; but if they confessed him to be the Messiah, they must be cast out of the synagogue.

      "Nevertheless, among the chief rulers also, many believed on him; but because of the Pharisees, they did not confess him, lest they should be put out of the synagogue. For they loved the praise of men more than the praise of God" (John xii. 42, 43). Will the advocates of experiences, please observe, that these "rulers," many of them, "believed" on him, but faith alone could not expel them from the synagogue, nor secure to them the favor of God!

      "The word is nigh thee, even in thy mouth, and in thy heart: that is, the word of faith, which we preach; that if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved. For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation." "The word of faith," here, means, that which was preached for faith, in order that, when it was believed, it might be confessed. When a sinner believes that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, he has the means of salvation within his reach--he must confess with his mouth what he believes in his heart--and confess it "before men," in order to salvation. Nothing of experience yet; all that we have seen relates to Christ, and to faith in Christ, and to the confession of his name!

      I could wish that the Baptists were with us on this confession, it is so much in unison with all their principles. Indeed, in theory they are obliged to occupy this ground, as they always do in contending with Pedobaptists. In Booth's "Pedobaptism Examined," the main issue is between baptism by proxy, and baptism on the profession of the faith of the party. It is not denied that the sinner has exercises of mind and heart in relation to his condition before God--nay, it is admitted that every sinner must feel and feel intensely, as it is but natural that he should; but faith in Jesus overcomes all his fears, and hushes up all his doubts, and presents him with a ground of hope nothing else can supply. Why then substitute the fears and qualms which are natural to an incipient faith, for the confession of faith when we have it?

      "Fight the good fight of faith; lay hold on eternal life, whereunto thou art also called, and hast professed a good profession before many witnesses:" Literally this would be, "And hast confessed a good confession." It is the same word which in the next verse is rendered confession, "Who before Pontius Pilate witnessed a good confession:" [44] Timothy had made that "good confession" before many witnesses, on the occasion of his baptism. "Wherefore, holy brethren, partakers of the heavenly calling, consider the apostle and high priest of our profession, Christ Jesus" (Heb. iii. 1). "The apostle and high priest of our confession, Christ Jesus." The apostle here clearly understands that his Hebrew brethren had confessed their faith in Jesus Christ, as sent of God to be the Saviour of men. He calls upon them to "consider" him, that is, to look at him, contemplate him, to attend to him through whom they have been reconciled to God by the death of his Son, that being reconciled, they may have eternal salvation by his intercession as the High Priest of the House of God.

      "Seeing then that we have a great high priest, that is passed into the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast our profession" (Heb. iv. 14). That which they had confessed was, that Jesus was the Son of God, and therefore Paul exhorts them to hold it fast. "For the administration of this service not only supplieth the want of the saints, but is abundant also by many thanksgivings unto God; whiles by the experiment of this ministration they glorify God for your professed subjection unto the gospel of Jesus Christ" (II. Cor. ix. 12, 13). Few passages in the Bible stand more in need of revision than this. The Apostle shows that the bounty they had sent to the poor saints, had not only relieved them, but caused much thanksgiving to God, and especially they had glorified God for your obedient confession of the gospel of Christ. Obedient confession is good English, and conveys definite ideas, but professed subjection does not.

      "Let us hold fast the profession of our faith without wavering" (Heb. x. 23). Now here the translators of the authorized version were singularly unfaithful. They changed the word "hope" into "faith," no doubt because they could not understand what a confession of hope was, while they know well what a profession of faith meant. In the original the word is hope, and not faith, and should have been so translated. The Apostle had spoken of entering into the holiest by the blood of Jesus, by a way new and living, that is, ever accessible, and having a High Priest over the House of God, he exhorted them to "draw near with a true heart, in full assurance of faith, having their hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience, and their bodies washed with pure water;" he then naturally exhorts them to hold fast the confession of their hope. Faith laid hold upon the redemption they enjoyed through his blood, and Hope only could lay hold upon his work as intercessor. When a man confesses his faith in Christ and is baptized, he turns away from sin, and turns to God under Christ.

      "By him therefore let us offer the sacrifice of praise to God continually, that is, the fruit of our lips, giving thanks to his name." In this passage the words "giving thanks," are a translation of the [45] same word rendered elsewhere to confess, or to profess. Here it should have been, "confessing to his name." We are to confess Jesus every day and everywhere. The public profession in baptism is, only introductory to a life of "confessing to his name." In all our words and ways, we should confess our dear Lord, and most of all when we are reviled and misrepresented on account of our love for him, for his word, and for his appointments. If we were to remember that we had made our public profession, and were to forget that it was only of advantage as we lived to him whom we had confessed, we should be as unfortunate as those who tell a long and astonishing experience, and then look back and draw consolation from it all the days of life!

      We have reserved the passage in Acts for the last in this paper. "And as they went on their way, they came to a certain water; and the eunuch said, See, here is water, what doth hinder me to be baptized? And Philip said, If thou believest with all thine heart, thou mayest. And he answered, and said, I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God." This is the special case of the New Testament. It has been demanded from us to produce a single case where the preacher ever put the question, Do you believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God? We reply that we can give what is equal to it, and that ought to suffice. When Peter made the confession, "Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God," Jesus replied, "Upon this rock will I build my church." Now he either did build the church upon it, or he did not. If he did, then his word stands forever, but if he did not, his word has failed. Moreover, John says, "Many other signs did Jesus in the presence of his disciples, which are not written in this book; but these are written that ye might believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the living God, and that believing, ye might have life through his name."

      "What doth hinder me to be baptized?" We contend that this question is obliged to bring out whatever hinders; and Philip, speaking by the Holy Spirit, said, "If thou believest with all thine heart, thou mayest." Nothing hinders the penitent believer. Ingenuity may affirm the necessity of an experience to ascertain whether a person does really believe with all the heart, but Philip only heard a confession of faith, of the faith we referred to above--"I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God." No personal experience or exercise of mind, but faith in Jesus Christ. The Athanasian creed, the Apostles' creed, as it is ecclesiastically called, and all the creeds of men, could not purify the earth and sanctify the soul, but faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, when it is publicly confessed, can. It is not faith as the act of the creature than can accomplish this, but the efficacy of that which is believed cleanses the soul. [46]

      The Apostles preached Christ for faith; they did not narrate, in the style of Bunyan, the workings and exercises of their own minds, that the people might learn from them how to be exercised in godliness. For the faith we preach nothing but the facts of the Word, for baptism nothing but a confession of the faith, and for the Lord's table and Christian fellowship, nothing but baptism and a good life.

J. H., 1860, page 682.      

[MHA2 40-47]