KING AND QUEEN, December 18, 1829.      

      SIR,--While I acknowledge the oversight, for it was an oversight, that a solution of the nineteenth query, published in the Christian Baptist of April last, had been partially given in the latter part of the remarks made on the sixteenth query published in the Christian Baptist of March last; yet I cannot agree with you in opinion in your very positive declarations made in reply to "A Constant Reader," published in November last. In speaking of our popular preachers, (so called in the Christian Baptist) you say--"He styles them living witnesses, who stand as in Christ's stead. Who preach, saying, The kingdom of heaven is at hand; repent and believe the gospel. According to these characteristics, we should first conclude, that they are false witnesses; because they never witnessed one single. item of what they preach, if so be it is contained in the Bible; for this plain reason, they were born too late." Alas! alas! has "the fine gold become dim?" Now, sir, going much farther back than seventeen hundred years, before the editor of the Christian Baptist was born, I would ask you whether, as an individual, you ever witnessed this item, which is contained in the Bible? "They that wait upon the Lord, shall renew their strength; they shall mount up as eagles; they shall run and not be weary; walk and not faint." Again, "To you that fear my name, shall the Sun of Righteousness arise with healing in his wings." And again, coming down to a more recent day; "My yoke is easy and my burden is lights." If Mr. T. W. has never witnessed these items, by having the witness in his own breast, I fear that he is, at best, nothing more than a nominal christian. Believe me, there is a difference between belief and knowledge. He that comes to God must believe, that he is, &c. but there is such a thing as knowing him; and not only believing that he is; but of knowing it too. I know, said Job, that my Redeemer lives, &c. Our populars profess to have witnessed those items with many others; having witnessed, in their own persons, the truth contained in them, they stand, being living witnesses, declaring to the church and to the world, that they are such. If any man have not the spirit of Christ, he is none of his! If, then, a man have the spirit of Christ and preach the gospel, he stands as in Christ's stead--God moving in him, both to will and to do, of his good pleasure. Should Mr. [624] T. W. have left Bethany, the Editor of the Christian Baptist will please publish the above, (indeed, in any event, I ask of the Editor this favor) and thereby oblige a subscriber who is

"A CONSTANT READER."      

      DEAR SIR,--IT so happened, that, in the course of my peregrinations, I arrived at Bethany just as your critique upon my reply to your communication of May 10th, 1829, was put to press. Not finding the editor at home, as I expected, I take the liberty of correcting the mistake which elicited your criticisms upon said reply. The mistake is simply this: You confound receiving testimony with giving testimony:--"having the witness in one's self," with being one's self the witness; than which no two things can be more distinct. The original and only proper witnesses bore testimony to that which from the beginning "they had heard," had seen, had contemplated, had handled, of the word of life; all which things being external--the proper objects of sense, and consequently of testimony-bearing, the apostles were competent to declare in the character of witnesses. Not so the witness or testimony of which John speaks, general epistle, v. 10. and of which the quotations which you make, as intending the internal experimental efficacy of the truth upon the heart, speak; for this is purely matter of experience. Now, although a man's testimony may be justly credited concerning his feelings, concerning the effects of the word upon his mind; yet it would be an abuse of language--an outrage upon common sense, to call him a witness of the things that passed in his own mind; and still more so, to style him, on this account, a witness of facts, of which he possessed not one item of the certainty of the apostolic evidence, (see said epistle, chap. i. 1. 2. 3.;) but, on the contrary, merely became conscious of the blissful effects of the truth believed through the persuasive evidence of the apostolic testimony above cited.

      You justly say, 44 There is a difference between belief and knowledge," and I believe you: and had you believed yourself in so saying, it would have saved both you and me some trouble;--you the trouble of striving to defend the unfounded and presumptuous pretensions of the "populars," and of laboring to prove me and others destitute of the genuine and blissful effects of the truth believed, by supposing us ignorant of the internal evidence, because we refuse to assume the apostolic character--and me the trouble of endeavoring to rectify those mistakes.

      Now, my dear sir, as you assert with earnestness, that there is a difference between faith and knowledge, let me ask you upon which of these do you say,--do the populars say,--they found their testimony, when they style themselves,--when you style them--living witnesses? If they are such in the true apostolic sense, they can justly claim apostolic certainty--they can justly say, "That which was from the beginning which we have seen," &c. and prove the truth of their testimony as the apostles did. In this way they will ask no favors; they will make no unreasonable demands upon our faith. But every body knows, the populars claim no such certainty; they pretend to no such proofs; they differ nothing from the weakest of their brethren in these respects. They have received and learned all at second hand, upon the testimony of others; and like others, in so far as they have believed the truth, they have felt its influence; and, like others, they can testify what they feel, and this is all they know; and all the rest is faith: and between knowledge and faith you declare there is a difference--and so do I. I, therefore, boldly affirm, that these, so called, "living witnesses," never witnessed one item of what they preach, in so far as it is contained in the bible; and this for the plain reason before assigned--"they were born too late." They may, however, preach their own experiences, and these may correspond with what is written; and, in so far be to themselves a matter of fact evidence of the truth believed; but, of which truth they themselves have been first persuaded, upon the evidence of the divine testimony, and is therefore neither designed to produce faith in themselves nor in any body else--not in themselves, for it is the effect of faith--"He that believes has the witness in himself." Not in others, for they have it not. This witness or evidence, of the truth of the divine testimony, is the property only of him that believes, (John v. 10.) consequently, has nothing to do with the unbeliever, nor he with it. Nor is this given to be preached for the conviction and conversion of sinners; Christ, and him crucified, is to be preached for these purposes: but this internal evidence is for the comfort and support of the believer.

      Again, though the witness or testimony which the believer possesses, is to him divine, being the result of his belief in the divine testimony; yet his declaration of it, being that of an uninspired man, cannot produce a divine faith, his testimony being merely human; whereas, every thing that is necessary to be taught or believed for the salvation and perfection of the believing and obedient subject, was published, confirmed, and recorded in the divine oracles seventeen hundred years ago.

      By this time, sir, I hope you see the striking difference between having a witness, and being a witness;--of having a thing duly certified to me, and my duly certifying the same thing to others. Let us apply this to the subject under consideration. 1, for instance, have been convinced of the truth of the gospel testimony by the divine evidence, as exhibited in the holy scriptures, and consequently have the witness in myself according to John v. 16. the truth of the gospel being thus first duly certified to me. I now feel disposed to become a preacher for the purpose of bringing others to enjoy, with me, the same happy privilege, of which I feel conscious in myself; of the truth of which I also thus feel able to bear a certain testimony.

      Shall I now reverse the order of things, substitute my testimony instead of the apostles', preach my happy feelings instead of the gospel, or attempt to prove the truth of it by its effects upon my heart? and thus attempt to convince others that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, the Saviour, because I feel so happy since I believed in him, and seek to persuade them to believe by promising them like happiness? Now if I preach my own experience, and bear testimony as a living witness, I must confine myself to what I thus feel and know. And even suppose this were sufficient to prove the truth of the gospel, and recommend the Saviour, who knows whether I tell the truth, or be a deceiver? or whether I may not be under the power of delusion myself? Ought I not rather, if I mean to be useful, to lay hold on the divine testimony that convinced myself; namely, that of the holy apostles and prophets, with all their arguments and demonstrations, urging these home upon the understandings and hearts of the people, [625] according to the scriptures-being fully persuaded that, if they hear not Moses and the Prophets, Christ and the Apostles, they would not be persuaded though one rose from the dead. These things duly considered, no reasonable person, I presume, "could hesitate a moment which of these courses to take; whether to avail himself of the testimony of the primary witnesses as confirmed by God, with all its evidence and authority; or make use of his own experience,--the witness in himself, to accomplish his object. Nor is it supposable, these things duly considered, that there can remain any difficulty to discern between having a witness in one's self, and being one's self the witness of the same thing. Twelve men, eye and ear witnesses to any fact, may be able to produce a certainty in one's mind, which certainty, the person thus duly certified, may not be able to produce in the mind of another by his own testimony of the fact, and effect of his conviction, without referring to, and producing the primary and proper witnesses, that convinced himself. Nor, indeed, in the very nature of things can we conceive how it could possibly be otherwise; he being in the mean time no witness at all to the truth of the things which produced the conviction and its effects in himself. I therefore hope my good friend, the "Constant Reader," will, upon due consideration, feel convinced of the justice and propriety of my former conclusions, respecting the pretensions of his "living witnesses."

T. W.      

      Bethany, January 29, 1830.

[The Christian Baptist, February 1, 1830, pp. 624-626.]

      Thomas Campbell's "Reply to 'A Constant Reader'" was first published in The Christian Baptist, Vol. VII, No. 7, February 1, 1830. The electronic version of the response has been produced from the College Press (1983) reprint of The Christian Baptist, ed. Alexander Campbell (Cincinnati: D. S. Burnet, 1835), pp. 625-626.

      Pagination in the electronic version has been represented by placing the page number in brackets following the last complete word on the printed page. I have let stand variations and inconsistencies in the author's (or editor's) use of italics, capitalization, punctuation, and spelling in the response.

      Addenda and corrigenda are earnestly solicited.

Ernie Stefanik
Derry, PA

Created 12 January 1998.
Updated 7 July 2003.