THE IDOL WITHINEdward Wybenga

TRY THE SPIRITSRobert Lindberg

THE CHANGING SCENEHenry Coray

WHAT IS DORDT?B. J. Haan

SUNDAY IN SONORARobert Churchill

NEWS AND PHOTOS

THE CAMPUS OF OOROT COLLEGESioux Center, Iowa

Dordt College has been in existence for only tenyears. Consequently there are many who are un­

aware of this budding, Christian, Calvinistic insti­tution of higher learning. The Lord has grantedphenomenal growth to Dordt, which is most encour­aging to those who are concerned with the advance­ment of the Calvinistic world-and-life view.

Within these ten years the facilities at Dordthave shown almost incredible increase. It has trulybecome a campus. One will find the following: a

(continued on page 27)

TOUR IN TAIWANCharles Schauffele

VOL 34, NO.2 FEBRUARY, 1965

Meditations on the Gospel of Luke

The Idol Within

Luke 18:18-30An Important Question

A t this point Jesus was confrontedwith an important question. A

rich young ruler came to him andasked, "Good Master, what shall I doto inherit eternal life?"

This young ruler had much in hisfavor. He was rich. Now, riches canbe a great evil; but when rightly used,they can open up greater possibilitiesfor personal development and useful­ness in this world, and greater oppor­tunities for helping the needy andspreading the gospel.

This man was also young. Youth isthe springtime of life when a person'spowers are developed, his charactershaped, his ideals formed, his con­victions deeply rooted. It is a greatthing to be young, to have all of lifebefore you, and to throw everythinginto it for the realization of the high­est good.

This man was a ruler. He held aposition of honor and influence eitheras the ruler of a synagogue or as amember of the Sanhedrin, the rulingbody of the Jewish people. Positionsof honor and influence can be greatassets in accomplishing lasting goodfor church and nation.

This man was rich; he was young;he was a ruler; and he was deeply re­ligious. "What shall I do to inheriteternal life?" he asked. There are nottoo many people asking that questionnow. They are so full of this life-itsproblems, its interests, its pleasures,its accomplishments-that the thoughtof the life hereafter is never givenserious attention. However, this youngman apparently looked beyond thispresent world and its passing inter­ests to that which is eternal.

He began by addressing Jesus as"good" Master (Teacher). Jesus an­swered, "Why callest thou me good?None is good save one, that is, God."What did Jesus mean by that? Didhe mean to say that he was not good?And did he further mean to imply

EDWARD WYBENGA

that he could not qualify as God sinceGod alone is good? In short, was hehere denying both his sinlessness andhis deity?

That can not be, for the Scripturesabundantly testify to both. But theyoung ruler looked upon Christ asnothing more than a man; thereforehe could not honestly ascribe to himthat goodness which belongs to Godalone.

A Searching AnswerHaving corrected the young man on

this point, Jesus said, "If thou wiltenter into life, keep the command­ments" (Matt. 19:17). Perfect obedi­ence to God's law would earn eternallife. But no man has been able, sincethe fall of Adam, to keep the law ofGod perfectly. Thus Jesus sought tolead on the young man to see his ownimperfect and lost condition, and hisneed of a Savior.

However, he was not yet ready tomake that confession of utter inability.Confidently he replied, "All thesecommandments have I kept from myyouth up."

Oh, how difficult it is to show ahighly respectable person that he isstill a helpless sinner in the sight ofGod! What this young man neededwas something of a shock to bringhim out of his torpor of assurance.Therefore Jesus said, "Yet lackest thouone thing. Sell all that thou hast anddistribute unto the poor, and thoushalt have treasure in heaven; andcome, follow me."

Ah, that was something else. Hehad not thought of doing that. He didnot know that his riches stood in theway between him and God. He hadnot realized that God demands thewhole heart of man: "Thou shalt lovethe Lord thy God with all thy heart."And so he began to see that he hadanother god, an idol-god in his heart-the god of gold!

Now he was faced with a mostcrucial decision. He could not havetwo gods at once-the one, true; the

other, false. What will he do? Howwill he resolve his problem? The an­swer to that question is one of thesaddest recorded anywhere: "Whenthe young man heard that saying (ofJesus), he went away sorrowful; forhe had great possessions" (Matt.19:22). He made his decision. Hechose to keep his idol and to lose hisGod; to save his wealth and to losehis soul; to cling to earth and to loseheaven.

Alas, how many promising youngmen and women have done the samething! In this age of materialism whennothing matters but financial successwe need solemnly to hear our Lord'sverdict: "How hardly shall they thathave riches enter into the kingdom ofGod! For it is easier for a camel togo through a needle's eye than for arich man to enter into the kingdomof God." (This was an ancientproverb common among the Jewswhen they wanted to express the ideathat a thing was impossible or ex­ceedingly difficult.)

Perplexed DisciplesJesus' words seemed so startling to

the disciples that they asked, "Whothen can be saved?" If it is that diffi­cult, how can anyone ever hope toenter heaven?

Jesus replied, "The things whichare impossible with men are possiblewith God." What men can not do,God can do. The saving grace of Godcan remove the greatest barriers to oursalvation. God can cause a man togive up his idol in order to save hissoul.

Giving up all things for God sug­gested to Peter that this is exactly whathe and the other disciples had done."Lo, we have left all and followedthee; what therefore shall we have?"We have done that which thou didstcommand the young ruler to do. Whatnow will be our reward?

Our Lord assured the disciples thatwhatever is done for the kingdom ofGod's sake shall be abundantly re­warded both in this world and in thatwhich is to come.

And now, what is the thrust of thestory? This: whatever it may be thatis keeping us from entering the king­dom of God or from giving our allto Christ-that thing or person mustgo!

,

The Presbyterian Guardian is published monthly (except May-June and July-August! by the Presbyterian Guardian Publishing Corp., 7401 OldYork Rd., Phila, 26, Pa., at the following rates, payable in advance in any part of the world, postage prepaid: $3.00 per year ($2.50 in Clubsof ten or morel; $1.00 for four months; 25c per single copy. Second Class mail privileges authorized at the Post Office, PhiladelphIa, Po.

18 The Presbyterian Guardian

"

T he modern spiritual gifts movement examined

"...try the spirits. • • I John 4:1

D. ROBERT LINDBERG

This paper is not for those whohave no interest in the things of

God but to criticize, or those who, hav­ing experienced a "gift" desire no con­firmation or instruction from Scripture.Should any who read this be given asincere desire to examine the Scripturesin the face of modern happenings, Ipray these words will be of some en­couragement and assistance.

Its Prominence TodayIn its analysis of Protestantism in

the year 1962, Eternity magazine givesfeature place to what it calls "one ofthe most astounding developments inAmerican Protestantism." It describesmen and women from all denomina­tions gathering together to seek "thebaptism of the Holy Spirit" evidencedby a speaking in an unknown tongue.They report that this phenomenon ofspeaking in tongues is part of a sweep­ing movement that is "stirring U. S.Protestantism." They explain this isan indication of "the heart yearningfor vital Christianity." I

The writer, having had some ex­perience with those who emphasizespiritual gifts and thinking it was "ofGod," sought and experienced whatwas called "the gift of tongues" andthereby felt something of the joy andthrill of this experience, but after­wards has been constrained to re-evalu­ate all this. I hope to do this in allfairness, but especially with all loveand kindness toward those who takesides on these issues. I do not thinkany can rightly accuse me of goinginto the subject with a prejudicedmind since I earnestly sought after andobtained the experience concerningwhich I write.

It has been my experience also tohave personal friends who are a partof this modern spiritual gifts move­ment, and whom I esteem highly inthe Lord. As well, I have attendedgatherings where such gifts and teach­ing regarding them are evidenced, in­cluding St. Luke's Episcopal Churchhere in Seattle and the InternationalConvention of Full Gospel ChristianBusinessmen's Fellowship held here re-

February, 1965

cently. I also have studied carefullynumerous articles and booklets on thesubject, including: The Full GospelMen's Voice (a periodical of theFGCBF), The Gift of the Holy Spiritby J. E. Stiles, The Baptism of theSpirit by Henry H. Ness, Healingfrom Christ by T. L. Osborn, SpiritualManifestations and the Gift ofTongues by Sir Robert Anderson, andthe articles which appeared in theSeattle Daily Times on the "Pente­costal Phenomenon at St. Luke's Epis­copal Church" under the rectorshipof Father Dennis Bennett. In additionto these, I have read every article Icould find and talked to everyonewhom I thought could add some lighton these things.

Some TestimoniesThose who testify of having re­

ceived a spiritual gift invariably de­scribe a deep and unrealized longingwhich has filled them, often for manyyears. This unsatisfied and discourag­ing state, they find, is reflected allaround them-but now all is changed.I quote from the testimony of one manwho is a Methodist pastor and whoseexperience is, I believe, somewhattypical of many:

Our services had been dead and dryfer so long. The altar was empty. Wecould no longer get Christians to pray,and interest in winning souls was nil. Ifelt I was wasting my time in the min­istry, for I wasn't accomplishing any­thing for the Lord. My heart was hungryand desperate for a real moving of Godin our midst.?Regarding what afterwards happenedto him personally and to his church,the same writer says:

As we prayed, God came in mightypower on my soul, and for the first timein my life, I received the infilling of theHoly Spirit! My body was flooded with aglow of warmth. My heart overflowedwith praise to God, and I felt as thoughI were walking on air. I worshipped Himin a language I had never learned norheard.

A great calmness came over me andpeace flooded my soul. I knew then thatthis was evidence of His power in mysoul. The terrible hunger and thirst wassatisfied at last and all I could do waspraise God ...

Our church is new in this relationship

to the Holy Spirit, but we are expectinggreat things from God ... God has donewonders for us in just the short timesince receiving the Baptism of the HolySpirit. We pray for the sick, and ulcershave disappeared, a broken kneecap washealed, and eyes have been restored toperfect vision ... Gifts of the Spirit aremanifested in the Believers. Our Spirit­filled members are more willing to work,to call, and to pray at any time of theday and night, and their lives radiate alove that only the Holy Spirit can give!

Thus, this man testifies to whatmany say: When these spiritual giftsare manifested there is a marked over­coming of all defeatism, discourage­ment, and spiritual deadness, accom­panied with an inflow of joy andpeace. There is a resulting overflow oflife to the church, with a new visionof the work of God and new desiresto be engaged whole-heartedly In

carrying it out,Another man testifies after he re­

ceived "the baptism of the HolySpirit" .

I feel now, after 27 years as a Chris­tian and a Sunday morning benchwarmerat church, I am fitted for service. TheHoly Spirit has given me the authorityto act. I intend to do all I can to winsouls to Christ .

No, I am not going to join a pente-

19

costal church. Pentecost is an experiencenot a denomination. It is for every childof God who has been saved by the bloodof Jesus and whose lives have beencleaned up and their temples cleansedby sanctification. When the temple iscleansed of all sin, then the Holy Spiritcan come in a mighty way ...3

These testimonies can be repeatedhundreds and perhaps thousands oftimes, of lives changed, spirits revived,churches awakened, many being healed.Who can deny this? Who can con­tradict the personal experience of onewho is so changed? Where will itend? Many predict that this is thebeginning of a national or interna­tional revival!

AnalysisIt will be evident by what has been

said thus far that it is not the writer'spurpose to question or criticize in­dividual men and women who havetestified to the help they have receivedthrough their experiences and observa­tions in relation to the spiritual giftsmovement. I am glad for them to thisextent, that I desire every true Chris­tian to find happiness which will takehim away from self-centeredness andfill him with a strong and continuingpurpose to serve the Lord Christ.However, I feel that I must give whatis my judgment on the nature of thismovement, begging the reader to weighthese things carefully in the light ofthe written Word of God.

If I am in error, may God be merci­ful, for there is no malice in meagainst any person or group; if I speakthe truth, then may God give us allgrace to give heed to it. One morething: May it be very clear that I donot criticize persons but a movement,and this is difficult, because no oneknows all about any movement. I shallspeak only of tendencies to extremesor to error which I observe. May Godgive understanding to my readers to"put the shoe on" if and where it fits.

In spite of the pragmatic valuesascribed to the modern spiritual giftsmovement-bodies healed, spirits re­vived, churches blessed-and in spiteof the scriptural proof which is givenin defense of this movement, I amnow convinced that it is not of God.(Note: I did not say that those in itwere not Christians, and I do not denythat men have a "transforming experi­ence" etc.) On the other hand, I donot think that the immediate instru­ment in this movement can be blamedon Satan either, as some have claimed.I believe that many in the movement,

20

however, are opening the door forSatan to work by their passivity inemptying their minds as they seek the"baptism." So then, Satan is takingfull advantage of our unsettled state.What is involved here? I am con­vinced that primarily it is a network ofpsychological experiences which con­stitute a form of mysticism,"

To support my position I wish tostate, first of all, what is meant by theterm:

Mysticism is the teaching or belief thatknowledge of God and of spiritual truthis gained through personal insight or in­tuition instead of through logic and rea­soning. It also means a way of livingbased on such a belief . . . The mysticbelieves that the heart can understand ina flash of insight what the mind cannotunderstand through reason. The mysticwidens the sphere of intuition and putsit at the very heart of religion.>

"Mysticism ... is the doctrine that itrs possible to achieve communion with

The Rev. D. Robert Lindberg is agraduate of Seattle Pacific College andof Dallas Theological Seminary. Hewent to China in 1948 with the CIMand stayed under the Communists formore than a year. Returning to theStates in 1950 to become a pastor, hewent back to the Far East in 1953 withOrient Crusades. It was during thattime in Taiwan that he worked withPresbyterians in tribal evangelism andat Morrison Academy, where he be­came well acquainted with OPC mis­sionaries, the Richard Gaffms.

Gradually becoming "more andmore convinced of what is generallycalled the Calvinistic and Reformedposition-although to me it was theBiblical position-at the close of ourterm in Formosa we returned homedetermined to find a church which wasin accord with these doctrinal views,"wrote Mr. Lindberg.

He started a series of home Bibleclasses which eventually became alittle congregation. (Mr. Paul Doepke,a middleI' at Westminster Seminary,and his wife, are members of thatflock.) Sensing the errors and prob­lems of independency and learning ofthe Orthodox Presbyterian Church,pastor and people of the Puget SoundChapel entered the denomination inMarch of 1964.

Mr. Lindberg is married and he andhis wife are the parents of seven chil­dren. They reside at 2320 41st Ave.S.W., Seattle, Washington. Besides hispastoral ministry he teaches part timeat a Christian high school.

God through contemplation and lovewithout the medium of human reason.s

False MysticismGranted that all true Christians are,

in a sense, "mystics" in that they be­lieve that God has, in Christ, estab­lished a supernatural union betweenhimself and themselves, yet the writeris convinced that this movement hasat its heart a false mysticism which iscontrary to the Word of God. Theseare the reasons for coming to this con­clusion:

(1) There is in the modern spirit­ual gifts movement a marked emphasisupon human experience, more thanupon the Lord Jesus Christ. I do notmean that he is not sought after,prayed to, spoken of, etc., but the endin view is usually, "Seek the Lord,seek the Baptism, that you might ex­perience joy, peace, blessing, victory!"This is not a blanket criticism of ex­perience, but of making such the endin view. I feel confident that themajority in this believe they are exalt­ing Christ, but their words and theirfeelings deny this. The Holy Spiritis not an "experience"; Jesus Christis not an "experience." These are liv­ing Persons of the Godhead. If Ihave an experience relative to my seek­ing God I cannot say, "Now I haveGod, now I am filled with the HolySpirit because I have had this mar­velous experience."

(2) Of particular note in this move­ment is the emphasis upon the joy, thethrill, the excitement which followsthe agonizing, the earnest seeking ofthe "Baptism of the Holy Spirit." Thisis really a part of the above but de­serves to be mentioned separately.Many types of experiences are related.Some seem to "float on air" and othersdescribe their experience in terms oflight. As one said:

I had my head back with my eyesclosed, seeking the Lord. All of a sud­den, it looked like the clouds rolled back.Then it seemed like a light from Heavenshone through my closed eyelids, andeverything was bright. I felt Iight-s-justlike I might be in Heaven. I opened myeyes to see what it was. And it was sobright, I was blinded and had to closemy eyes again . . J

Emphasis on ExperienceStill others liken their experience to

an electric shock of some kind. Onewrote:

I say to you without any equivocationwhatsoever, 'I have heard God's Voice!'I do not say that in any egotism, but Iknow when I hear the Voice of God. Ihave been sent forth by the Lord; for it

The Presbyterian "Guardian

was in a little hotel room after my Bap­tism that 1 saw Jesus, and 1 could hardlybelieve my eyes. 1 saw His lips begin tomove, and He said, '1 am your Savior,and have sent you forth to do this work.'1 started up from my knees, thinking that1 was off in a world of fantasy. Andwhen 1 started up from my knees, some­thing like electricity pulled me down.Again 1 saw the vision, and He began tospeak again and said, 'That you mayknow the Lord your God, it is He thattalketh with thee. Stretch forth yourhands toward me.' And this SouthernBaptist preacher stretched forth his handstoward the vision; and suddenly, like twobolts of lightning, a million volts of elec­tricity hit my hands as though God tookthem. And they bent, and surged, andJ wept as 1 listened, and shook as Godspoke to me . . . The Joy of the LivingPresence of God is so marvelous! Oh,that multitudes would enter in, that theymay have the Joy of the Lord !"

Another says this experience is "likefalling in love."? Still another says:

Suddenly, the power of God camedown and knocked me flat on my back.All over the place, the young peoplewent bang, bang, bang, flat on theirbacks. I0 Some stood on their feet, unableto move, as they were laughing and cry­ing at the same time. Many received theBaptism in the Holy Ghost as this bless­ing continued for hours and hours.--asked me to go back and look atone young girl that had fallen on herback when the power fell in the earlypart of the evening. 1t was almost 3o'clock in the morning and she was lyingas she had fallen. Her personal belong­ings were scattered about her. 1 listenedclosely and heard faint, beautiful tonguessoftly flowing forth and glorifying God

II

Open to Deception(3) The manner of recelVlng this

experience of the "baptism of theSpirit" shows us both that there is afalse mysticism in it, and that one isopening the way for any kind of animpression from deceiving spirits.Usually it is suggested that those seek­ing this experience raise their handsand pray earnestly, often repeatingsome expression such as "I love youJesus, I love you Jesus ..."

Another says:... the position of faith is this, that

the man will cast away all that of speak­ing his natural words and will, in faith,look up and expect the supernaturalmoving by the Spirit which dwells with­in. Then, when he feels the moving ofthe Spirit, his step of faith is to lift hisvoice and begin to speak whatever soundscome, as the result of the Spirit's moving.It is none of the man's business what thesounds are which he speaks.That is God'spart. The one who has real faith willtrust God to do His part, that is, prompthim to. form the words on his lips, andthen will lift up his voice and speak outwhatever comes. This point is very im­portant ... 12

February, 1965

The issue here is not merely whetheror not the procedures described above"work" (They do!) but whether ornot one is approaching the dangerousposition of giving the control centerof his personality to another power(which is the basis of hypnosis).Passivity, emptying of one's self, ismost dangerous, even though onepiously supposes that it is "to theSpirit." Anderson, describing an out­pouring of spiritual gifts which oc­curred in the 1830's in England, tellsof Edward Irving's experience:

... the power fell upon me and 1 wasmade to speak; and for two hours or up­wards, with very little interval, the powercontinued upon me, and 1 gave forthwhat we all regarded as prophecies con­cerning the Church and the nation . . .

The power which then rested on mewas far more mighty than before, lay­ing down my mind and body in perfectobedience, and carrying me on withoutconfusion, or excitement. Excitementthere might appear to a bystander, butto myself it was calmness and peace ...The things I was made to utter flashedin upon my mind without forethought,without expectation, and without anyplan or arrangement; all was the work ofa moment, and 1 was as the passive in­strument of the power which used me."!In the case described above there wereall the "supernatural" gifts of theSpirit present as in the modern move­ment.

Suppression of Reason(4) Closely related to the above

problem is that of the individual vol­untarily denying to his powers ofreason the right of control in seekingthis experience. One said, "I didn'tknow how to pray for -- (a friendin need) so I employed speaking intongues. With this came the sense ofsatisfaction that I was praying in theSpirit, therefore according to her realneeds." Again, "I had formerly prayedin a matter of fact way, 'Lord bless--,' but now that does not satisfy,and I find real comfort in praying inan unknown tongue." Again, "I oncefound myself greatly stirred up andprayed almost scolding or command­ing (all in a "tongue") but I felt surethat this was God's affair so I need notworry, and afterwards I went tosleep." Another said, "I never pre­pare a written sermon any more. Ioften come to the pulpit not knowingwhat I will say, but the Lord givesme something. People tell me that Inever preached better. I preach fourtimes each Sunday and often use dif­ferent messages. In all this I seek theguidance of the Holy Spirit." Regard-

ing the speaking in tongues this sameone says, "One forms words of praiseand confession which he knows, yetdoes not know-i.e. he knows thesense of them, that they were praiseto God, but not the meaning of theactual words." A scriptural basis forthis position is sought in I Cor. 14,especially verses 14, 15.

(5) The doctrine involved in thespiritual gifts movement necessarilyentails a form of "perfectionism," i.e.the idea that one conquers sin, gainsa permanent victory over the powersof darkness because he now has pos­session of this "highest" gift, the giftof the Holy Spirit. So, one called thisthe epitome of Christian experiences.There is a general feeling among manythat those who do not have this bap­tism may be saved all right, but theyare "just barely in," whereas thosehaving the Baptism are in the fulnessof God's blessing and purposes. Onehas put it something like this : "Youdon't have to speak in tongues to havethe Spirit of God, but you do in orderto have his fulness of blessing, or thefreedom of the Spirit." As a result ofthis attitude, the door is open to re­gard "Spirit-filled" men and womenas "having arrived" or being abovethe rest of ordinary professors." Thuswe are up against the same old prob­lem of dividing the church into"spiritual" and "unspiritual," "sancti­fied" and "carnal." As we might ex­pect, those who have been "Baptisedwith the Spirit" think and talk little oftheir sinfulness and of their greatneed for repentance as children ofGod. They are beyond this.

Is It of God?(6) There is a tendency among

those in the spiritual gifts movementto feel that everything miraculous orsupernatural in appearance is of God."It must be of God if it results inhealing, joy, peace, blessing, quicken­ing to the church, etc.," they say. It isnot considered that Christian Science,Spiritism, Hinduism, and mlllY othershave 'miraculous' powers associatedwith their work. The writer met a manwho was 10 years on his bed com­pletely paralyzed except his jaws, andwas instantly healed through the mes­sage of Christian Science. By whatpower is this?

But, it is said, they do not heal "inthe Name of Jesus" as we do! Hearour Lord: "Many shall say to me inthat day, Lord, Lord, have we not

21

prophesied in thy name? and in thyname have cast out devils? and in thyname done many wonderful works?"(Mt. 7: 22) . Such persons plainlynever were saved (v.23), but the pointis, they thought they were! It is in theminds of some that the words "inJesus' Name" are like a magic for­mula, just say them and demons, sick­ness, opposition, etc. flee away. Noth­ing could be farther from the truth.No one can do anything "in Jesus'Name," except he is habitually obey­ing the will of God the Father (Matt.7:21). For that, all profession of de­votion and worship to God and toJesus must be linked to obedience tohis Word. The writer heard a vastcongregation saying over and overagain, "I love you Jesus, I love youJesus" and he wanted to shout out tothese people, "That's fine!" Now,Scripture says, "If ye love me, KEEPMY COMMANDMENTS!"

One must not go overboard on thisand say a miraculous or supernaturalmanifestation could not be of God, assome claim who feel the days ofmiracles are entirely past. God is ob­solutely sovereign. He is able to save,to heal, to grant special manifestationsas he pleases. But the question at handis, "Are these manifestations in thespiritual gifts movement from God?"I say "no": they are self-induced bydesperate souls, who long for spiritualjoy and victory, and who mistakenlythink that this is the way to get it. Inthis I do not deny that many receivethe joy, the peace, etc. they seek, orthat many marvelous events, dreams,visions, healings, etc. accompany theseexperiences. Tortured, discouraged,bound souls apparently are set "free"in body and in soul. But still the ques­tion comes back, "Is this of God?" Orcould it be that this is but a temporarychange and the "last state shall beworse than the first" (Mt. 12:45)?

Bible Subordinated(7) There is a marked tendency

among those who seek and findspiritual gifts to exalt the spoken wordof men-their "tongue"-as equal toor above the Word of God. This pointwould be hard to "prove" as muchScripture is used by those in this move­ment. But the writer has had this per­sonal experience that there is littleattempt to exposit the Scripturesamong those who emphasize "the Bap­tism of the Spirit." There are a fewfavorite texts, but the main emphasis

22

is upon experience. Thus the absoluteauthority of the written Word of Godis undermined. Why worry about thatwhich is long past when one can havea present, living, real relationship withthe Spirit?

When we were in the city of Shang­hai we heard of a group of Chinesepastors who gathered for a confer­ence. They did not bring their Biblesand the Bible Society in Shanghai tookpity on them and furnished them eachwith a copy of the Scriptures. Laterthe leader stood up and said, "This isthe dead Word of God (pointing tohis Bible); I have the Living Wordof God in me!" No doubt this is ex­treme; nevertheless it points out atendency and what the author believesis the chief danger of this movement.

Why search the Scriptures, spend­ing hours and hours examining, com­paring, meditating, analyzing eachverse, yes, each word of sacred Scrip­ture, when one can get a revelation"direct" from God by way of a beauti­ful tongue--which, as many testify,is practically the same as Scripture? Ifthe Bible is THE revelation from Godand is absolutely and completely in­spired of God and profitable for doc­trine, reproof, correction, and instruc­tion in righteousness as the churchhistorically claims, then to get "alltaken up" with some experience--nomatter how beautiful, joyous, wonder­ful, mysterious, ecstatic, or "super­natural"-it necessarily puts the Biblein second place.

This course is inevitable to anymovement which has as its basis mysti­cal experience, no matter how "scrip­tural" it may appear to be. Let us notbe fooled by the use of Scripture insupport of this teaching on manifesta­tions of the "Spirit." Certainly thereis Scripture. Certainly the Bible teachesthat there is a gift of tongues ofdivine origin. The question at hand is,"Is what we see today 'it' ?"15 I say,"no": but that it is auto-suggestion,self-induced-piously, yes, but wronglyand unscripturally.

Search the Scriptures! If super­natural gifts were so important to thechurch, why did not the Lord Jesustell this to his disciples in the upperroom? Why did not the apostle Paulgive instruction to all or most of thechurches concerning it? Why did he"dampen" the efforts of the onechurch he did tell about it (I Cor.14:5, 12, 19)? Did the 3000 bap­tized on that day speak with tongues?

What was the purpose of the tonguesof Acts? Was it a gift or a sign?16

Instruction and AdmonitionsIt would not be wise to close this

paper without some reference to whatshould be done in the light of thesethings. You have been urged to searchthe Scriptures, to try the spirits, to seeif they are of God. Now note severalpositive issues which ought to be takeninto account.

(1) Those who claim joy, powerand victory through the receiving ofthe "Baptism" are not claiming anymore than that which is promised bythe written Word of God as the fruitof salvation and of abiding in Christ(I Cor. 1 :30, Eph. 1:3-14, Col: 2:9,10).

(2) Scripture very carefully builds adoctrine of salvation which teaches usthat in Christ we have "all spiritualblessings" -life, justification, sanctifi­cation, power, wisdom, grace, victory,love-all the fruits of the Spirit (sincewe have the Spirit of God and onecannot have him without having hisfruit (Rom. 8:9). It is freely grantedthat we are all our lives entering intothese blessings and that some haveappropriated them more than others,yet the fact remains that he who hasChrist has all things in him, though hehas "nothing," and he who does nothave Christ has nothing though heclaims all. This movement is fearfullyweak on stressing the fruit of justify­ing grace in all believers ( as inRomans 5: 1-5) .17

(3) Scripture makes it clear that alltrue Christians are baptized with theSpirit into Christ (and if they weren'tthey wouldn't be Christians). It is thisspiritual union with Christ whichmakes us Christians. 18 But certainly notall have "tongues."

Triune in Our Thinking(4) It is so very important that we

be "Triune" in all our thinking-thatwe not "divide up" the Godhead. TheSpirit, when present, always exaltsChrist, and Christ always exalts theFather. In this movement we are deal­ing with "the cult of the Spirit," asone has called it. The thought is, thesumum bonum of the Christan life isto realize "the power" of the Spirit tothe end that we may have power towitness, to heal, to pray, etc. Thus,unknowingly, the persons of Fatherand the Son are suppressed becausethey do not give the "feeling" ofpower and victory we seek. Ask your-

The Presbyterian Guardian

self, "Do I want spiritual power andvictory? If so, Why?" How youanswer this in your heart will deter­mine your stand on the truth of God. 19

(5) When Jesus went away intoheaven he promised to send his Spiritto abide with his people forever. Donot Christians dishonor the Son ofGod by seeking the Spirit as thoughhe were not in us? What is the min­istry of this indwelling Deity? Firstof all, it is to reveal Christ, to glorifyhim. Of this ministry of God's Spiritbefore and after conversion one haswell said:

When the Holy Spirit reveals Christto the heart of a sinner for salvation, itis not an ecstatic rapture nor a mentalimage; it is the Lord Jesus Christ cruci­fied, buried, and risen, as set forth inGod's Word. In other words, Christ ismade a living reality to that humanheart as his all-sufficient Saviour ... Itis not the illumination of the Holy Spiritthat the sinner sees; it is the Object re­vealed in the light of the Holy Spirit,and that One Object is Christ.

Then the born again believer is not

taken up with the Holy Spirit-he doesnot talk about receiving the Holy Spirit;he does not talk about the illuminationof the Holy Spirit. His one theme ofconversation is CHRIST-Christ whodied for me, Christ who paid my sindebt. Christ my risen Lord, Christ myliving High Priest, Christ my coming,ruling King (John 16: 13-15).20

Of course we do not imply that itis wrong to talk about the Holy Spirit. . . only that all stress on the Spiritof God is with a view of exalting theSon of God in whom God has pur­posed to sum up all things (Eph.1 :10) and who is the Head of allthings, and who must reign untileverything is put under him (I Cor.15 :25). Is it your one concern toknow God in Christ? God's Spirittaught you this. Is your one concern to"have the power"? Beware! You didnot get this from God's Spirit.

Filled with the Spirit(6) Plainly, Holy Scripture does

teach us that all Christians need to befilled with the Spirit of God and that

continually (Eph. 5:18). We need tobe walking according to the power ofthe Spirit, and not according to theenergy of the flesh (Gal. 5: 16 ff.) Inthis sense it is right that we "seekthe Spirit," i.e. that we seek to realizethe mighty power which God wroughtin us through Christ, applied to us bythe gracious indwelling Spirit. Buthow wrong it is to suppose that thereare persons who are genuinely savedand yet have not this power. That theyhave not learned to appropriate it un­doubtedly is true, but that is anotherthing.

Then, to imagine that we can have a"one shot" experience which will takecare of the whole thing-the sin prob­lem, the lack of victory, the discour­agement, the prayerlessness, the hostof manifestations of the flesh, thepower of the devil, etc., etc.-this issheer madness. When we seek the fill­ing of the Holy Spirit that we mightglorify Christ in our beings through­out our entire lives, we do not seek an

1"Where Will the Church Turn for Vitality?" Russell T.Hitt, Eternity, January 1963.

2Testimony of Marvin Buck, Pastor of Beach MethodistChurch, Beach N.D., quoted in the Full Gospel Men's Voice,July, August 1962.

3Testimony of William P. Sterne, Mang.Ed. Abundant LifeMag., Full Gospel Men's Voice, September 1962.

4See the testimonies of a comparison between spiritual medi­umship and the pentecostal experience: "In entering the trancecondition your hands and body may twitch and jerk as if youwere being subjected to a series of galvanic shocks." "Whenthe spirit-power comes there is manifested a peculiar jerking,twitching or vibration of the hands and arms, sometimes ex­tending to the whole body." Quoted from Genuine Medium­ship, pp. 237, 230 in the booklet The Modern Tongues &Healing Movement by Carroll Stegall, Jr. & Carl C. Harwood.

sThe World Book, Encyclopedia, Vol. 11, "Mysticism," p.5374.

bWebster's New World Dictionary of the American Lan­guage, "Mysticism."

"Testimony of Jim Nash, Abundant Life Photographer, FullGospel Men's Voice, June 1962.

8Testimony of John H. Osteen, Baptist, FGBFI publication,"The Baptists & the Baptism ." Cf. Quote from GenuineMediumship, p. 237.

"The Seattle Times, Dec. 6, 1961, from Father DennisBennett.

10Severai reliable men have pointed out that in every caseof one corning "under the power" he falls on his back, whereasin Scripture, men in God's presence invariably fall on theirfaces (Ezek. 1 :28).

IITestimony of Thomas R. Nickel, Full Gospel Men's Voice,July, August 1960.

12The Gift of the Holy Spirit, J. E. Stiles, p. 40.13Spiritual Manifestations and The Gift of Tongues, Sir

Robert Anderson.14The writer met a complete stranger recently and, after a

short conversation, he said, "I'm , a 'Spirit-filledLutheran'!" These things ought not to be! Scripture claimsthat Peter, Paul, Stephen, etc. were "Spirit-filled' but not thatthey themselves went around testifying to it.

ISIt is very clear that in every case in Acts 2 those whospoke in tongues, spoke in a language understood by thebystanders (without an interpreter). In comparison, a linguist,who has analyzed from a tape recording a modern tongues

February, 1965

message, says: "I am sure that the recording can be shownto be something other than human language as we know it;'babblings' is perhaps too deprecatory a term, but I believe it isspecifically not language . . . One of my reasons for sayingthis is that the text appears to use only two vowel sounds . . .No language I have ever heard of has less than three distinctivevowel units; and even such languages (e.g., some dialects ofArabic) have many more different vowel sounds . . . condi­tioned by neighboring sounds."

IbIn Acts 2 "tongues" served to fulfil prophecy and to con­firm to the people that though Jesus had died, he was nowrisen and manifesting himself among them through his wit­nesses. In I Cor. 14 tongues were for a sign to unbelievers,and not to edify believers (prophecy took care of that), andgreat care had to be exercised in their use lest strangers, drop­ping in on the church, think they were crazy.

17"Every believer can say, 'The Lord Jesus lived the wholeof His perfect life on earth for me.' The greatest gift that evercan be given to anyone is the gift to us, by the Father, of themeritoriousness of that life of Christ. The moment a sinner be­lieves, all that meritoriousness is ascribed to him by the Father.Therefore how false the idea that there can be a second stepwhere the believer is more consecrated by Christ towards Godthan before!" "Yet it may be years before believers know Christas any more than a Saviour in general. Then they may meetwith a book, or hear the ministry of a servant of God, wherebythey are instructed and enlightened. At once they take up anew position, and employ their energies in a new manner. Theyspeak of a new "conversion"; but they are only acting in thepower of that which God had given them when they receivedthe new birth. If they had been aware of it they would havefound it all five minutes after conversion." B. W. Newton,Baptism of the H oly Spirit.

18"If a soul is not sealed with the Holy Spirit, he is nobeliever at all. See Eph. 1: 13, "In Whom believing (ie. whenye believed-v-not 'after') ye were sealed with the Holy Spirit."Shall we limit or deny those blessed words? (see also II Cor.1 :21, 22)" B. W. Newton, Ibid.

19The historic position of the church is that "man's chiefend is TO GLORIFY GOD" (the Triune One).

2°What the Church Has Lost, L. R. Shelton, p. 8.21"Impressions, from God or?" by Martin Wells Knapp, part

II, from A Voice in the Wilderness, Nov., Dec., 1962, p. 35.22Spiritual Manifestations & The Gift of Tongues, Sir Robt.

Anderson, pp. 18, 19.

23

Search the Scriptures

"experience." We seek to realize, tounderstand, the divine purposes sothat, being conformed more and moreto the image of Christ, God's will andour will should become progressivelyone; God's mind in Christ should be­come ours (Phil. 2:5, I Cor. 2:16)­so we become more and more likeChrist. We seek a daily filling of theSpirit of God so that we can do all theordinary things of life as well as thespecial things to God's glory and notour own. We do not exalt ourselves,claiming to be "Spirit-filled," eventhough it is our earnest desire thatothers see Jesus in us, i.e. in our veryattitude and actions.

(7) One must ask, "What will hap­pen to the individual who is "Spirit­filled" when this experience becomes"old stuff"-dies away?" Now there isa thrill-joy unbounded both in one'sself and in hearing of others' experi­ences. What will be the case when fiveor ten years have gone by? I feargreatly for those who so testify ofsome great ecstatic experience. When"the smoke has cleared," if he is aChristian, he must walk by faith, andnot by sight, just like others. Christ'sblessing is on this (John 20: 29) .Hear this testimony of one person,noting carefully what is said:

Three months ago I entered into theCanaan of perfect love, but now I amthe most miserable being in existence.I believe it all came from resisting animpression from the Spirit. I was not sureit was from God, and for fear it wouldlead me into fanatacism, I resisted-butafter a time my joy and peace departed.I yielded then, but it seemed too late.

The most awful feelings have taken pos­session of me. At first, in the day time,I could resist them with all the strengthof my will; but at night it seemed to meSatan took possession of my very willpower. Now the most dreadful and reobellious thoughts rush through my heart,and I have no will to resist, no power togive them, as I once did, to Jesus to re­move . . . Oh, I have given my sweetexperience from God's Holy Spirit in thehands of the enemy, and though I wouldinstantly have recalled it all, it is toolate . . . The conviction is in my soulthat I have committed the 'unpardonablesin' ...21

Hear also a respected writer's testi­mony concerning a man who gavemuch evidence in his college years thathe was a devoted servant of Christ. Ofhim this man says:

A book he read about the ministry ofthe Holy Spirit led him to give himselfup unreservedly to the Spirit's guidance.

24

From that time his desires deepened todo the will of God in all things. As hegrew in this habit of yielding absolutelyto spiritual guidance, the Bible becameless and less his study, and he endedby. negl~cting it altogether. Being thusguided III every detail of his daily lifehe no longer needed the Written Word;~nd the total abnegation of his ow~Judgment followed. This complete sur­render of mind and will-his entire per­sonality-to what he believed to be theguidance of the Holy Spirit, left him aprey to the terrible delusions in whichhe was at last engulfed. 0 the pity of itthe pity of it 122 '

Lordship of ChristAlthough the Bible teaches us to

"yield" our members to God ("pres­ent" is a better translation) it is neverwith the idea of our opening our soulsto "impressions" which are not judgedstrictly by the Word of God, theBible, and all our faculties of reason.Our yielding to God is not like thesweeping and garnishing of Matt.12 :44, 45. It is rather that we recog­nize the Lordship of Christ over ourmembers and willingly submit to theend that our wills, minds, spirits beinstruments he uses for righteous andholy uses, according to the writtenWord of God.

Search the Scriptures! This is ouronly hope. Notice in portions like theupper room discourse (John 14-16)that the indwelling, filling presenceof the Godhead is promised to thosewho obey him (John 14:15-23; 15:10,etc. See also Act 5:32). This obedi­ence must be in all he has commanded(Matt. 28:20). If we would realizethe power of the Spirit of God, let usdo as God's servant of old and be"a companion of all those that fearthee and of those that keep thy pre­cepts" (Psalm 119:63).

BerkeleyWestminsterLecturesT he Rev. Norman Shepherd, In­

structor in Systematic Theology atWestminster Seminary, is to deliverthe Lectures sponsored by the Cove­nant Orthodox Presbyterian Church,Berkeley, California, March 23, 24,and 25. After an unavoidable lapse ofone year this Lecture series is beingresumed in this center of many insti­tutions of higher learning where thevoice of sound biblical scholarship isalmost entirely silenced, according toElder David Neilands, clerk of ses­sion. The prayers and support of God'speople are urgently requested.

Second Parish Church, Portland, Maine

Second Parish to Expand

A year after moving to its new loca­tion on Neal Street, the Second

Parish Church is about to enlarge itsfacilities by erecting a new auditorium.The interest manifested by residents inthe community since our move is par­ticularly encouraging, according to theRev. Leslie Dunn, pastor.

At a special meeting of the Parishheld on November 30, 1964 the fol­lowing motion passed: "That theParish Building Committee be em­powered to contract the addition tothis building according to the planspresented to us, not to exceed $37,500which includes the furnishing and in­stallation of pews and the installationof our organ."

The Building Committee consistsof Mr. Carleton Winslow,. Mr. An­drew Thomas and Mr. Robert Swett.Mr. James Kennedy, Chairman of theParish Committee, and the Pastor aremembers ex officio of the Committee.

The treasurer reported that nearly$16,000 had been received in theBuilding Fund since the drive forfunds was started last February andthat about $10,000 in receipts is con­templated over the next two years asindicated by donors.

The treasurer also reported that inspite of the generous giving to theBuilding Fund the giving to the Gen­eral Fund had also been better than inprevious times.

The Building Committee hopes tosecure bids for the construction of a40x54 foot auditorium seating 250and be in a position for the builder tobegin work in early spring. The newconstruction will also allow for a totalof 12 classrooms for the Sunday school,which is cramped at the present.

The Presbyterian Guardian

I

'!he -P~fttleitian-GUARDIAN

EDITORRobert E. Nicholas

All correspondence should be ad­dressed to The Presbyterian Guardian,7401 Old York Road. Phila. 26. Pa.

Is It the Grace of God ?

Sometimes a sentence sticks in yourmind-like one at the close of a

letter in our January issue. The writerquoted the comment of a recent at­tendant at a little church as saying,"The only reason the people go outthere is the grace of God."

Irs worth thinking about that fora minute or two. Why do you attendyour church? What is there that espe­cially attracts others? After their firstvisit how many return? Why do a fewkeep coming and in some instanceseventually become members? Is itchiefly because of the grace of God?

Now there may be all sorts of rea­sons that bring people to a particularchurch for the first few times - aneighbor who attends, a popularpreacher, proximity, members whohave similar interests, an attractive newbuilding. Yet such reasons may proveinadequate to keep them coming. It isconceivable that visitors may not getbeyond the lesser reasons that first ap­pealed to them, unless we avoid thesubtle temptation to put too much em­phasis on things other than the graceand truth which is found only in JesusChrist.

Granted that a 'building that lookslike a church' is an asset, there is dan­ger in paying too much attention tothe beauty and comfort of our sur­roundings. Pews are designed not forresting but for readiness to hear themessage of God's grace.

Granted that a polished delivery, awell-modulated voice, a handsome face(undeniable assets to any preacher)are much to be desired, let our gath­ering for worship be primarily inorder to receive the whole counsel ofredeeming grace from a faithful ser-

February, 1965

vant of the Lord-even when his voicehas a bit of twang or his mannerismstend to irk us (maybe because theydiffer from our own idiosyncrasies).

Indeed it is most agreeable to bewith congenial friends and neighbors-especially if they vote as we do, havethe same slant on controversial issues,show the same tastes in dress - butsurely these are not the things thatmake the church attractive as a com­pany of saints! Rather, do we not con­tinue to seek the fellowship of thechurch basically because we know thatwe are sinners saved by the grace ofGod? 'Good' sinners and 'bad' sin­ners, labor union sinners and business­men sinners, left- right- or middle­wing sinners-but sinners all, changedonly by sovereign grace!

These paragraphs intend no reflec­tion on the best in architecture. Nordo we decry comfort. Or a goodpreaching voice. Or people that areeasy to get along with. But the querypersists: why do people attend yourchurch? Above all else, is it by andfor the grace of God?

May it ever be that from the pulpitthe message is that of pure grace: notby works of righteousness, not by whatwe have done, are we saved, but bythe mercy of God through the renew­ing of the Holy Spirit and faith inJesus Christ. In the pews may the con­sciousness of the fellowship of gracetranscend the differences that may setus apart elsewhere. The God of graceis no respecter of persons.

When the sanctifying grace ofGod's indwelling Spirit produces thefruit of more graciousness in ourlives-even our speech being of graceand seasoned with salt; when ourprayers are effectual through the gra­cious providence of our mighty God;when our often bumbling efforts arenevertheless used by the sovereignSpirit to bring sinners into the com­pany of the saved; then we may beable to say with new and richer mean­ing: the only reason people come toour church is the grace of God.

R.E.N.

Warrior at RestH e fought a good fight. He finished

his course. He kept the faith.Henceforth there is laid up for hima crown of righteousness, which theLord, the righteous judge, shall givehim at that day: and not to him only,

but unto all those also who love hisappearing (11 Timothy 4:7-8).

The Apostle's words are fitting forour brother Lynne Wade whose home­going is reported elsewhere in thesepages. His survival far beyond everyrealistic prognosis was in a way typi­cal of the persistence of his everyeffort. Whether it was a game of golfor an intense encounter for the soulsof men, he did nothing half-heartedly.A Calvinist to the core of his being­and he never apologized for that word-his high regard for the doctrines ofsovereign grace was equalled by thecompassion with which he sought topress upon men everywhere the claimsof Jesus as the only Savior of sinners.

As jealous for the truth as he wasintolerant of error, sometimes dog­matic in his opinions of right andwrong, he gave unstinting loyalty tothe causes which he believed to bebiblical. Acknowledging his ownshortcomings, he relied solely upon theshed blood of the Redeemer for theforgiveness of his sins. In the affiictionof a living death he ever gloried inthe sure hope which is the victory ofall who live and die in Christ. Hereinis comfort for those who remain.

For as many years as we can recallhe contributed generously in fulfill­ment of what he called his "monthlypledge" to this magazine. His last giftcame with a note in his own handwritten on December 31, 1964. Weshall miss his words, sometimes of re­buke, often of encouragement, alwaysof thanksgiving, "waiting to behold,"as he once put it, "the happy surpriseGod has in store for us when he worksit all out in his own perfect way andin his own proper time."

The church will always need suchwarriors in her midst.

R.E.N.

EDITOR'S MAIL BOXDear Sir:

We read with interest the article'Thinking of College?" (Guard­

ian, Nov. 1964) by Messrs, RobertNeedham and Robert Jewell. We agreethat their article made some pointswhich are worth considering; however,we believe that there are Christiancolleges which have a high "qualityof curriculum, intellectual honesty, andcommitment to Jesus Christ." As Or­thodox Presbyterian students at DordtCollege, we believe that this Calvin-

25

THE CHANGING SCENE

I perceive that LIFE explainsThe reason for the extensive journeyOf the Israelites to the Promised LandIs due to the fact that the peopleRode on donkeysAnd not, as formerly thought,On camels;Hence the tortuous and circuitous routeThey followed.Astonishing indeedThat those travelers should consume forty yearsTo journey less than two hundred miles on donkeys.A thousand pardons, sirs,But this explanation strikes me as beingSlightly as-inine.

THE OLD CHINESE PHILOSOPHER

istic institution does possess thesequalities in addition to several otheradvantages.

These advantages range all the wayfrom obtaining a truly Christ-centerededucation to having a really activeChristian social life. Facts which can­not be applied to our Calvinisticworld-and-life view have little realvalue. The fear of the Lord is thebeginning of wisdom (Ps. 111: 10) .

Because Dordt is not an extremelylarge college, the student may benefitin several ways. There is good personalrapport between the students and pro­fessors. Students find it easy to getacquainted and make new friends.There is ample opportunity to partici­pate in musical activities, athletic in­tercollegiate and intramural teams, dra­matics, journalism, Bible study groups,and various clubs.

One of the practical advantages ofattending Dordt College is the veryreasonable cost. (Last year I was ableto live well and my total expenses, in­cluding travel, did not exceed $1100.-D.C.) This is because 45% of thecosts are met by private gifts andthrough church quotas and offerings.

At present there are twelve stu­dents from the Orthodox PresbyterianChurch attending Dordt College fromfive states, including two as widelyseparated as Pennsylvania and Cali­fornia. God has richly blessed us atthis growing school. We sincerely hopethat in the coming years many morestudents will make use of the Chris­tian educational opportunities atDordt.

DALE CLAERBAUT

JOHN MAHAFFY

These two sophomores plan to at­tend Westminster Seminary followingtheir graduation from Dordt. John isthe son of missionary parents in Ethio­pia. Dale, from Oostburg, Wisconsin,was a member of the first SAVE teamin Miami.

TEACHERS NEEDEDEvangelical Presbyterian Day School

Opportunity for three new teachersincluding a teaching administrator fora Christian day school in Huntsville,Alabama sponsored by the First BiblePresbyterian Church. Six classes run­ning through the fourth grade. Newbuilding. Inquiries invited to:

Presbyterian Day School Board3100 University DriveHuntsville, Alabama

The Christmas, 1964, edition ofLIFE magazine might be called a

cobalt bomb that plummetted squarelyon the bastions of Scripture. It pur­ported to be a summary of the con­tents of the Bible written by repre­sentative scholars from Harvard,Union, and San Francisco TheologicalSeminaries. Since LIFE is read by mil­lions of Americans, one may assumethat the radiation billowing from thestrike probably has affected the think­ing of multitudes. The issue was beau­tifully illustrated, and in all fairnesssome excellent things were set forth.Actually, however, the contents of thearticles added up to a massive assaulton the Word of God.

The writer on Genesis has adoptedthe liberal Wellhausen approach. Mosescould not have written Genesis sinceit was produced in the tenth centuryB.C. This modern thelogian shouldhave read what the great Robert DickWilson had to say about that hypothe­sis!

The piece on the four Gospels isthe most deadly of all. Those docu­ments, we are advised, are full of"doctrinal and literary chaos." "If theGospels did not intend to leave an'historical record' of Jesus' life, it isequally true that they could not havedone so had they tried." The reason:so many years elapsed between thecarrying out of the events and teach­ings put down and their recordingthat there could not possibly be his-

*

HENRY W. CORAY

torical accuracy in the accounts. Theconclusion completely ignores thepromise of our Lord to his apostlesthat the Holy Spirit should "teachyou all things and bring all things toyour remembrance, whatsoever I havesaid unto you" (John 14:26).

Again, "The Quest of the HistoricalJesus" has to end in frustration. Wecan never really cut through the mistsof tradition and get back to Him.'The Gospels are the only specificsources for the life of Jesus. And inso saying, one has defined the reasonsfor the difficulties - and, it wouldseem, almost inevitable failure of theQuest." If this is so, then we are ofall men the most miserable, for we areforever enmeshed in bottomless skepti­cism. How refreshing it is to readPeter's own testimony : "We have notfollowed cunningly devised fables,when we made known to you thepower and coming of our Lord JesusChrist, but were eyewitnesses of hismajesty" (II Peter 1:16).

The authorship of the fourth Gospelhas long been a battleground amongliberal theologians. There is abundantinternal evidence that the writer wasindeed John the beloved disciple. No,says LIFE, the majority of scholarshave ruled him out as the author.Who then did write the book? Theglib answer: "Nobody knows." Herewe see the absurdity of the argument.If, as the critics claim with supremeconfidence, John the Apostle did not

*

26 The Presbyterian Guardian

What Is Dordt ?

write the fourth Gospel but they donot know who did write it, then howcan they be so sure that John did notwrite it? Here we have the type oflogic that states, "We do not knowwho wrote Hamlet but we knowShakespeare didn't."

This is scholarship?John, of course, did not write the

book of Revelation, declares our nine­teenth century authority. What doesthe author of the book say? "I, John,who also am your brother" (Revela­tion 1 :9).

Paul, we are informed, never sawthe living Jesus. Shall we summonPaul to testify? "Have I not seen JesusChrist our Lord" (I Corinthians 9; 1) ?

Illustrations of the destructive struc­ture of the articles could be multiplied.Enough material has been given, how­ever, to show that the editors of LIFEhave lined up solidly against theauthority of God' s Word, and willcertainly have to answer for the sinin that day when the books will beopened (Revelation 20: 12).

Nor it is without significance thatthe broadside has been spearheaded byleading Protestant theologians. Cananyone imagine LIFE coming out witha sustained assault against the founda­tions of Roman Catholicism? How isit possible for the great betrayal totake place in the Protestant area? Sim­ply because the Protestant liberals havesold out to the enemy. One can almosthear the echo of the Savior's plaintivecry, "I was wounded in the Douse ofmy friends."

The response of the public to thisissue of LIFE has been arresting.Most of those who have written to theeditors have been laudatory. Enthusesthe President of the Southern BaptistPastors' Conference, "I was profoundlymoved by the remarkably siginificantcontribution of your Christmas gift tothe nation. The special issue on theBible was the best thing under thetree. We are grateful."

Laurels should go to Dr. EdwardYoung of Westminster Seminary, whoprotested: "An unlettered Christianwho has been regenerated by the HolySpirit has far more profound and ac­curate knowledge of the Bible and ofJesus Christ than is represented by thenegative criticism which characterizedLIFE's approach to the Bible."

AMEN AND AMEN!

February, 1965

(continued from cover)

large classroom building with goodlaboratory facilities included, an audi­torium-gymnasium, an administration­music unit, a dining hall, a dormitorythat houses 160 students, a centralheating plant, and the college presi­dent's home. Plans for a $325,000 lib­rary are approved, with constructionto begin this spring. Early this summera second dormitory will be under con­struction to house 200 students.

Dordt is located in northwest Iowa,in the lovely city of Sioux Center, astronghold of orthodox churches main­taining a vigorous interest in churchactivity.

Readers of the Guardian may havea special interest in Dordt Collegesince several Orthodox Presbyterianstudents are enrolled at this institution.These students are allowed the sametuition rates as the Christian Re­formed, German Reformed, and Prot­estant Reformed students enjoy. Sev­eral ministers' children are amongthose enrolled from the OrthodoxPresbyterian Church. Dordt is de­lighted to have these fine young Chris­tians on campus and is eager to gainmore.

Students and FacultyTen years ago Dordt started with

an enrollment of 35 students and fiveteachers. This year there are 445 stu-

B. J. HAAN

dents enrolled. They come from 22states and four provinces of Canada;235 are men and 210 are women. Theanticipated enrollment for next fall isbetween 500 and 525. Students findnot only a well-balanced academic pro­gram but several extra-curricular activi­ties such as music, dramatics, sports,formal and informal parties, and sev­eral club organizations.

Particular attention is given to thespiritual and religious life of the stu­dents. Chapel services of an hourlength are held two times each week.There are weekly Bible study groupsand other special religious events inter­spersed throughout the school year.

This fall there will be thirty full­time teachers on the staff, among themten with a Ph.D. degree. Others aresteadily working through summerstudy towards this degree; none onstaff will have less than a Master's de­gree. These men are selected by a care­ful and prayerful process of inter­viewing. They not only must demon­strate academic proficiency, but alsomust indicate a conscious, understand­ing, and forthright loyalty and com­mitment to the Calvinistic faith based

The Rev. B. J. Haan, longtimepastor in the Christian ReformedChurch, is the president of Dordt Col­lege.

27

A Sunday in Sonora

upon the infallible, divinely inspiredWord of God.

Dordt is a four-year Christian liberalarts college offering the A.B. degree inthe general college, teacher training,and pre-seminary courses. Students in­terested in taking one or two years ofwork in pre-professional curricula suchas pre-law, pre-engineering, pre-medi­cal, pre-dentistry, or pre-nursing areable to set up programs in these areas.Majors can be earned in biology,chemistry, English, German, history,music, and mathematics. Minors aregiven in biology, chemistry, English,German, Greek, history, Latin, physicaleducation, mathematics, music, philos­ophy, and speech.

Credits and ScholarshipsCredits earned at Dordt can be trans­

ferred to other accredited colleges anduniversities. Teachers who meet the re­quirements of the programs can re­ceive state certification in both the ele­mentary and secondary areas. Dordtalso qualifies for federal governmentloans to be used in construction ofhousing, library, science, and modernlanguage facilities. Students are eligi­ble for government loans, and thosewho have financial problems do wellto inquire concerning these attractiveloans.

Any students with a B average orhigher in high school qualifies forsome type of financial scholarship, pro­vided that he has an ACT or SATtest score above a certian level. Thehigher the average above the B, thegreater will be the financial scholarshipreceived. Those with special compe-

T he morning service was well at­tended; some came on whom we

had been working for months. If allcame who promised, our hall wouldnot be large enough to hold them. Ihad been preaching a series of sixsermons on Hebrews Eleven, "TheHereos of Faith." That morning itwas on "Moses' Great Decision"-aspecial sermon for young people.

Then in the afternoon at 2 :00 p.m.we heard over the radio a broadcastof the sermon I had preached the Sun­day before. This was a special sermon

28

tency in music may apply tor a musicgrant.

Society ControlledDordt is owned and operated by a

society of believers on basically thesame principle as that of the element­ary and secondary Christian schoolswhich are members of the NationalUnion of Christian Schools. Thereare eight districts covering a four statearea-Iowa, Minnesota, South Dakotaand North Dakota. Each district electseight members to the general boardwhich in turn elects two of its mem­bers from each district to the Board ofTrustees. The latter is entrusted withthe management of the college.

Funds for the operation of the col­lege are obtained through tuition(55% ), annual drive among the localconstituents (10%), quotas and offer­ings from churches (25 % ), and theremainder through gifts from varioussources, mostly individuals.

Dordt appreciates deeply the finan­cial help received from several Ortho­dox Presbyterian churches. It is ourprayer that this institution may remainfaithful to the Calvinistic faith andbe of service to many young peoplewho are eager to have a college train­ing which is scripturally oriented. Weinvite such young people to corres­pond with us and, if they find oppor­tunity to meet their educational goalshere, to join our rapidly growingChristian college.

We are grateful for this opportunityto give a brief report in the Guardianon what is taking place at this insti­tution.

ROBERT K. CHURCHILL

on LIFE Magazine's attack on theBible. Many of you have seen it-adouble issue which came out at Christ­mas time, dealing with the wholeBible. It was a very long series ofwritings trying to show errors, con­tradictions, myths, and traditions inthe Bible, and ending up by sayingthat we did not know who Jesus was,and would ever despair of finding him.

I thought there should be some an­swer, so I advertised the same andasked our local radio station if themessage could be taped. The manager

Mr. Churchill is the pastor of theCommunity Orthodox PresbyterianChurch, Sonora, California.

readily agreed and came that nightwith his equipment. At the close ofthe service, he told me that it wouldbe on the radio the next Sunday, Jan­uary 31.

During the week I met people onthe street, ministers and others, whotold me they were going to announceit and listen. I wondered how theyknew about it. Well, it so happenedthat this radio station all through theweek kept giving spot announcementsabout the subject to be dealt with. Sothe whole 55-minute sermon, quotingLIFE Magazine and then bringing theScriptural answer, was on the radiofrom 2 to 3 o'clock that Sunday. Iwondered how in the world a radiostation could, or would, allow sucha message; after all men are allowedto attack the Christian faith, but whoever heard of some one being allowedto give a public answer?

Taped for RadioWell, come to find out this man

who taped the sermon is the owner ofthe radio station and also a Christian.It also happens that his own ministeris a thorough-going liberal and theradio station manager does not agreewith him. It also happened that whileattending a minister's meeting I haddiscussed the LIFE Magazine articlesaying that if this presentation weretrue we should close our churches. Atthis same meeting a liberal ministerarose (yes, it was our radio man'spastor) and said that we should not beconcerned with such peripheral mat­ters, things that were non-essential tofaith. It also happened that in thetaped sermon I had mentioned the factthat Dr. Machen and other OrthodoxPresbyterian Church leaders had beenput out of the United PresbyterianChurch because of their stand againstsuch errors as LIFE Magazine was nowlaying before millions. Should we re­move this reference? No, said ourradio man, we want the truth even ifit hurts. So God moves in a mysteriousway.

I went into a real estate office yester­day (we are still house-hunting) andthe realtor said, "Didn't I hear youon the radio Sunday?" This man alsois in a liberal church, and wonderswhy ministers don't preach on theBible.

The Presbyterian Guardian

The Churchill home on the mountainnear Sonora, California

The Churchills Dentists make up the quartetat a harvest dinner

After listening to the broadcast, wedrove down our mountain and I pickedup several of our young people to gocalling on some homes where therewere other young people. We were in­vited in and had a good variety ofexperiences-the parents always beingthe big hindrance to their coming tochurch. The last home we were in, wehad the mother and three youngpeople all lined up to come to churchnext Sunday. They all admitted thatthey were neglecting God and his wor­ship. (We had asked to see the youngpeople and they had come in fromcutting wood! ) Well, we were allfeeling pretty good until the fathercame in. We had taken his helpersaway from their wood-cutting and hewas pretty mad. When I told himwhat we were there for, he sort of in­vited us to leave. ("We'll let youknow when we are ready to come, andlet's leave it at that, shall we? Goodbye.") Well, I think I was able tosimmer him down a little before weleft, so we won't write that family off.

When our young people got in thecar again and we headed for thechurch and Machen League meeting,the talk was very excited. All in all,it was good for them to have that ex­perience. It showed them the enmityof the natural man against God andlet them know how impossible it isto build up the church and save souls-apart from the working of the HolySpirit of God. We got back to thehall, where Mrs. Churchill had pre­pared supper for us. We gatheredaround the table to eat and discusshow we could "Fulfill the Great Com­mission at Home." I notice that whenour young people go visiting beforetheir meeting, it puts more zip into the

February, 1965

meeting. They have real life situationsto talk over and pray about.

Making FriendsFor the evening service that night,

we had two missionaries who are onthe way to Peru. They had gonethrough a strenuous Jungle TrainingCourse and had a good missionarychallenge for us. After the eveningservice, at which there were severalstrangers, the ladies served coffee. Thatmay sound strange-having a coffeehour after a church service. We do itonly occasionally. It is a means whichthe Lord uses to make strangers feelmore at home. It can develop a helpfulfriendly atmosphere when well handled.Something like the feeding of the5,000 where they sat in companies.Into this area people are constantlymoving. When new people come toa small church they don't know asoul. The coffee warms things up andnew acquaintances are made.

Thus ended a perfect day. Aftergathering up our dishes and utensilswhich we must pack to and from thehall if we have eats, we started home,dropping off passengers along the way.

We drove up our ten miles of wind­ing mountain road with a cloudlessstar-spangled sky looking down on us.In our large ranch home, we staggeredto bed, but we were too worked up tosleep . . . Will our (so few) youngpeople be discouraged? And that finenew family looking for a church thatwas not a denomination-s-non-denomi­nal, one lady called it ... And couldthat starved Baptist couple take thatsermon? . . . Then there was a newperson who came to Sunday school andeven stayed for church . . . nominal... non-denominal ...

Changes of AddressSince the recent circulation of the

Minutes of the 31st General As­sembly the following changes of ad­dress, or new ministers enrolled, havecome to our attention:

The Rev. Stanley P. Allen (re­ceived by the Presbytery of SouthernCalifornia), 1217 Dorset Lane, CostaMesa, Calif.

The Rev. Bruce A. Coie, P.O. Box68, Santee, Calif.

The Rev. Harvie M. Conn, Ortho­dox Presbyterian Mission, APO SanFrancisco, Calif. 96301. (first classmail only)

The Rev. David Freeman, 154 Mt.Hope St., Tiverton, R. I.

The Rev. Bruce F. Hunt, OrthodoxPresbyterian Mission, APO San Fran­cisco, Calif. 96259. (first class mailonly)

The Rev. Louis E. Knowles, 2308Rutgers Ave., Long Beach, Cal. 90815

The Rev. William E. Moreau, 239Sherman Ave., New Haven 11, Conn.

The Rev. Gordon D. Mouw (or­dained by the Presbytery of NewJersey), 39 Marsellus Place, Garfield,N. J.

The Rev. Robert W. Newsom, 375Tennessee, Mill Valley, Calif. 94941

The Rev. V. Robert Nilson, 308Pakowhai Road, Hastings, New Zea­land.

The Rev. Arthur G. Riffel, 319Cabrillo Ave., Santa Cruz, Calif.

The Rev. Wendell L. Rockey, Jr.,20 Rust St., So. Hamilton, Mass.01982

The Rev. John H. Skilton, 930 W.Olney Ave., Philadelphia 41, Pa.

29

Lecture Tour in TaiwanDuring the month of February the

Rev. Charles G. Schauffele, associateprofessor of Christian Education atGordon Divinity School, is speakingand lecturing in Taiwan, accompanied:by his wife. He expects to be in Korea'during March and April. The follow­ing letter gives some of his first im­pressions and an indication of theschedule he faces.

Portuguese settlers first called thisplace "Beautiful Land"-Formosa.

Japan Air Lines personnel en routefrom Hong Kong introduced us toOriental courtesy during the shortflight. The first face visible in theglassed-over airport deck was that ofthe Rev. Egbert W. Andrews, Ortho­dox Presbyterian missionary in Taipei.The welcoming party enlarged to in­clude Miss Elizabeth Evans, executivesecretary of the Taiwan EvangelicalFellowship, Miss Georgine Caldwellof the Canadian Presbyterian Mission,and two Chinese students with Mr.Andrews, one of whom was to be ourinterpreter. He was anxious to hear ifwe had a Southern or Harvard accent!Three family members of Kitty Lin,a Gordon M.R.E. candidate, were alsothere to greet us.

Lunch with Mr. and Mrs. Andrewsin their lovely home was followed bya tour guided by Betty, who took usto Yangmingshan Park, a beautifullylandscaped place of fountains andflowers, crowded with gaily dressedNew Year's celebrants. While Febru­ary 2 and 3 were "business closed"days for the Chinese New Year, thewhole week was for celebration andschools are closed for a month.

In springlike weather we took atrain south to Hsinchu the next dayfor the annual Young People'S Con­ferences. Stewardesses brought maga­zines and a steward served severalkinds of hot tea during the short ridefrom Taipei. (Such ideas might pepup the passengers on the Boston &Maine from Hamilton to Boston l)Orthodox Presbyterian missionaries, theRev. and Mrs. John Johnston, withtheir five children, were our hosts inHsinchu. Their spacious Oriental-stylehome with its courtyard joined to theProtestant Chapel next door was ourbase for the weekend.

The conference had been in prog-

30

ress all day Thursday with the theme,"What Is a Reformed Church?" Mr.Andrews started his series on "TheApostolic Church," using Witherow'sfamous book on church government.Jonathan Chao, a student on leavefrom Westminster Seminary, alsobrought a series on "The Church, theBo~y of Christ" from Ephesians. Mysubject for three talks was "Teaching111 the Reformed Church," beginningwith setting forth a God-centeredphilosophy of Christian education.You might be surprised at the weightof these subjects for students in juniorand senior high and maybe a dozen incollege, but their attention was phe­nomenal and finding Bible referencesand taking notes were in constantevidence.

"Professor Shao, Fu La"Mr. Andrews introduced us as Pro­

fessor "Shao, Fu La"-a name withthree characters, the surname beingone of a hundred standard Chineseones. The other two characters meanrespectively "abundantly full" and"joy and peace." At the close of themeeting a tall Chinese boy came withour interpreter and introduced himselfjokingly as my brother: his name reallywas Shao!

The next noon Shao asked me to eatlunch with the Taipei boys, mostlycollege, all of whom spoke a littleEnglish. I enjoyed both the native foodand their questions and comments:"Was I born in Boston?" "Where didmy father live and what did he do?""Your wife must be of a great familyin America for she is such a noblelooking lady with high nose." (TheKelloggs may take a bow-ed.) Thecynical secularists here say that Chinesebecome Christians in order to spendthis life in America and the next inheaven, but only one of these boyshoped to go abroad to study, and heto Westminster Seminary.. Jonathan Chao gave a fine evange­

listic message Friday night, for therewas a sizable group of unsaved. Thenback to their hotels went the studentsto rest, since the day began at six withan hour's prayer meeting. Breakfastover by eight, the program startedwit~ a worship service. How they loveto sing! A part of the rivalry betweengroups was carried on by musical

numbers, with each group puttingforth instrumentalists or choirs to dem­onstrate their ability. The conferenceclosed after lunch on Saturday.

Ready for PersecutionAt six-thirty I attended, by invita­

tion, a session meeting in which tenyoung people were being examined forchurch membership. They had taken acommunicant's course, had learned theShorter Catechism, and had been onprobation for some time. The sessionmembers, even without the aid of Mr.Johnston (who was there, of course),went right down the line on theauthority of Scripture, the deity ofChrist, the miracles, the resurrectionand other doctrines. They were dili­gently questioned on the command­ments, the matter of bowing to pic­tures of national heroes, the questionof marriage to a Christian alone, theproblem of persecution from unbe­lieving families, and other practicalmatters.

Many of these youngsters wouldhave to expect severe family opposi­tion, as did one recent member whoreceived a violent beating and under­went starvation and isolation in herhome for three months. But the pastorand elder visited and finally the familylet her come to worship again. Wemet a beautiful and joyous girl afterthe evening service who recently madea clear confession of Christ and pub­licly burned her gods. The hold ofBuddhism is sinister and real. Goinginto the oldest and largest temple, wesaw smartly dressed women withteased bouffant hairdos pouring winelibations, offering chicken, and castingwooden lots to the floor to get prayeranswered from the gods they wereseeking to placate.

The local youth met Saturday eve­ning, with singing and a short illus­trated talk by "Professor Shao" onChristian education, followed by testi­monies. There was a cake to celebratethe birthdays of two present. Theyhave a tremendous sense of humor andrespond instantly, even by interpreta­tion. Games ensued and it was afterten when the boys swept out the hallto have it ready for the morrow.

Busy SundaySunday began with Sunday school

at eight-thirty, and many of the new~embers. received by session the pre­VIOUS mght were teaching. Classeswere .held every place in the buildingand 111 the courtyard. Elder Lin led

The Presbyterian Guardian

HERE AND THERE IN THEORTHODOX PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH

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the morning worship and I was privi­leged to bring the communion medita­tion, "Basin and Cup." It was trans­lated into Taiwanese for the benefitof older folk who did not know Man­darin. Eight of the new members werebaptized after Mr. Johnston again ex­horted them that this was an all-outcommitment with no turning back. Acovenant child was also baptized andI was asked to perform the rite. Com­munion was celebrated and the wholeservice was concluded with the singingof the "Threefold Amen" by the con­gregation in harmony.

Then a congregational meeting washeld. Two godly men of great maturitywho evidently had the confidence ofthe whole congregation were reelectedas elders. Three deacons were electedtoo, and the new members, exercisingtheir full prerogatives, applauded theresults at different times! It was thenone o'clock and lunch was served tothe entire congregation. Spun rice,spaghetti, and duck soup were themain dishes, with enormous helpings.(Later around the johnstons' hos­pitable table we had some good oldapple pie and cheese chased down withsteaming coffee.)

On Sunday evening the service wasmore informal, with one of the stu­dents from the Bible school bringingthe message from Genesis 9. Whilethe attendance of the older memberswas less, every one of the ten receivedinto membership that morning wasthere! In these days of great theologi­cal apostasy on the island and theshifting even of former evangelicalstrongholds from their foundations,these young people give the greatesthope for the future.

Tomorrow we go on to Taichung,Wednesday to Tainan, and Thursdayto Kaosing. Pray for us in the busyweeks ahead also in Korea.

CARL SCHAUFFELE

Edwin Lynne Wade

A fter a long illness the Rev. E.Lynne Wade died on February 18

on Guam where he had served theLord during the last eight years of hislife. Born in Houston, Texas on July6, 1908, he went with his parents toCalifornia in 1925. A 1933 graduateof Westminster Seminary, in 1936 heorganized the Westminster Church inthe Eagle Rock section of Los Angeles.

Following a pastorate in Kirkwood

February, 1965

during 1940-41 he entered the Navyas a chaplain, continuing in that capac­ity until 1956 when he began hislabors as a missionary on Guam. Mr.Wade was one of the constituting min­isters of the (now) Orthodox Presby­terian Church in Philadelphia on June11, 1936. His mother, Mrs. Henry E.Wade of Monrovia, California, whopreceded him in death by two monthson December 18, 1964 in her 92ndyear, was also a charter member ofthe denomination on that historicJune date. Elder Henry Wade died in1962.

Besides his wife, Ula, and a son,Dennis, who have been with him onGuam, Mr. Wade leaves a son, Uel,a professor of music at Michigan State;a daughter, Adele, in her first year ofnurse's training at Lankenau Hospitalin Philadelphia; and a daughter, Sharon(Mrs. Disselkoen), mother of his sixgrandchildren in Arcadia, California.

During his long struggle with can­cer following his first surgery in thespring of 1959 Mr. Wade underwenttreatment or removal of more thanseventy tumors. Nevertheless he per­sisted in his work, keeping up a meas­ure of his activities until the final fewweeks. He was able to attend the 30thGeneral Assembly held in Vineland in1963. As his occasional letters printedin this periodical gave evidence, LynneWade's confidence in the sufficiency ofGod's sovereign grace remained firmthrough all his trials and sufferingsand he continued to rejoice in thetriumph of his risen Lord who diedthat he might live.

San Francisco, Calif. - Amongguest preachers at First Church sincethe first of the year: the Rev. Ray de laHaye of the Sudan Interior Mission,on furlough; the Rev. Louis Knowles;Mr. Casper Van Dyke, of Oakland;the Rev. R. J. Rushdoony; the Rev. J.J. Steigenga, of Ripon, pastor emeri­tus of the Christian Reformed Church;Mr. Fred Taylor, area director for In­ternational Students, Inc.; and the Rev.Edwin Urban, moderator of the Ses­sion during the pulpit vacancy. Elder

S. Grant Simpson has been leading theprayer meetings.

The Rev. Robert Newsom, formerpastor, is at present serving as statedsupply of Covenant Church, Berkeley,while the Rev. Richard Lewis is lec­turing in Systematic Theology at West­minster Seminary during this semester

Marietta, Ohio-Mr. Stanford Sut­ton, a member of Emmanuel Churchof Morristown, N. J. and a licentiateof the Presbytery of New Jersey, issupplying the pulpit of Faith Churchuntil next August. Mr. Sutton is agraduate of Swarthmore and of Gor­don Divinity School. This home mis­sion field receives aid from both thePresbytery of Ohio and the denomina­tional committee. The congregationmeets in the Civitan Community Roombut has purchased a building site.

Center Square, Pa. - The Rev!Ivan DeMaster has announced that aseries of evangelistic messages will bepreached at the Community ChurchMarch 10-14 by the Rev. Calvin Busch,pastor of Emmanuel Church, Morris­town, N. J.

Santa Cruz, Calif. - The pulpitbecame vacant as of January 31 withthe resignation of the Rev. ArthurRiffel as pastor. The congregation hasextended a call through presbytery tothe Rev. Melvin B. Nonhof, pastorsince 1957 of the Ebenezer Church(Reformed Church in the U. S.),Shafter, Calif.

Fair Lawn, N. J. - Grace Churchis to be host for the final of five lec­tures given by Professor Edward J.Young during February and March on"The Early Chapters of Genesis." Thisis the seventh annual Westminster Lec­ture series sponsored for North Jerseyby five Orthodox Presbyterian churches.The other four where Dr. Young hasspoken are Covenant, East Orange;Grace, Westfield; Emmanuel, Morris­town; and Community, Garfield.

Ludlow-Smyrna, Maine - Al­though a committee of Presbytery hadsuggested a couple of years ago thatBethel Church might be disbanded, it­has continued by the grace of God

31

THE PRESBYTERIAN GUARDIAfll7401 Old York Road

Philadelphia 26, Pa.

Second Class Postage Paidat Philadelphia, Pa. Return Requested

under the pastoral care of the Rev.Charles Stanton. During the past yearthree communicants and three cove­nant children were added, and morerecently five other individuals werewelcomed as communicant members.One of these was the first acquaint­ance made by Mr. Stanton when hearrived from seminary to begin hiswork in Canaan some 25 years ago.Though faithful in the Lord's servicethrough these years, she found nochurch home in Canaan and nowenters Bethel Church by baptism andreaffirmation of faith. It is of interestthat a Guardian Club has been reacti­vated in this small congregation.

Lincoln, Nebraska-Faith and Pio­neer Churches dosed their first fullyear of self support with a cash bal­ance in both accounts, "for which wepraise the Lord," reports Pastor Rus­sell Piper. The elders of PioneerChurch participated in a recent serviceat which Mr. Robert Schreiner was or­dained as an elder for the Faith con­gregation.

West Collingswood, N. J. - Im­manuel Church elected two new eldersat its congregational meeting in Janu­ary: John Eric Crowe and HerbertPlummer. Both had served as deacons.

La Mirada, Calif. - CalvaryChurch, which was looking for aneeded piano, now has not only thatinstrument but also an organ, the lattera gift from Mr. and Mrs. WilliamBremer.

Hanover Park, III. - The work ofGrace Chapel is under the leadershipof Mr. Donald J. Duff, who has beenlicensed to preach the gospel by thePresbytery of Wisconsin, which is alsogiving financial aid to this missionfield. Meetings are held in a fieldhousewhere Mr. Duff is giving morningmessages on the Ten Commandments.A group of women gather on Mondayevenings for prayer and a Bible studyof the book of Acts is held on Tuesdaynights.

Glenside, Pa. - At long last workis under wayan the building addition

32

and renovation of the present struc­ture of Calvary Church. Diligent effortson the part of the building committeeunder the chairmanship of Mr. FrancisSloat, working with the architect andcontractor, resulted in bringing esti­mated costs from an original $60,000figure to about $40,000.... Mr. Rob­ert Meeker, formerly a deacon, hasbeen ordained to the office of rulingelder in the congregation.

Trenton, N. J. - Publicity comes toa church and its pastor in a varietyof ways. During his early Februaryvacation the Rev. Donald Parker at­tended a daytime television program"Password" and was chosen as an eve­ning contestant for an airing onMarch 4. Observable in the audienceare the pastor's wife, her mother andbrother, and a half-dozen members ofGrace Church.

Silver Spring, Md.-Knox Sundayschool has started a 12-week contestwith the goal of increasing regularattendance to at least 250.... PastorCharles Ellis gave two addresses atthe annual day of prayer at West­minster Seminary. In March he isscheduled for three speaking engage­ments with IVCF at the University ofMaryland.

San Diego, Calif.-At the time ofthe death last October of Mr. BertTurner his family requested that thosewho wished to give a remembrancecontribute to a fund for a new build­ing for the Sunday schoo!' Mr. andMrs. Turner were charter members ofthe Paradise Hills Church and formany years he served as an elder.

"The Turner Memorial SundaySchool Fund" spurred the congrega­tion to action looking toward enlarg­ing the present facilities. An architectwas obtained and with the assistanceof an agency known as Church Fi­nance plans are being carried out forwidespread participation in this build­ing effort. "We are thankful for thevision shared by the Turners and praythat the fruit of it will be gathered infor years to come," stated Pastor Ed­ward Kellogg.

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