I

                                               T H E   S T A N D A R D   R E A R E R                                                295
                    ".----                                 - -...-.- _I               _-___--                                      _-__
        6.  Dat voor de verworpenen die  prediking  geen  ge-              ways of prosperity are slippery places for the wicked
     nade is,  noch  ook van Godswege  als genade is  bedoeld,             from which they pitch forward headlong into destruction.
     maar een reuke des doods ten doode,  hun'oordeel verzwa-              It is true that they turn the blessings of God into a curse
     rende. Want ook zij stellen  zich als redelijke zedelijke,            for themselves, because they despise these riches of His
     en daarom verantwoordelijke schepselen tegenover dat                  goodness. But Scripture does not teach that these
     Evangelie en den Christus, die het verkondigt,  waar-                 blessings are meant for evil, and that they flow from
     door de zonde des tc meer openbaar wordt zonde te zijn.               God's wrath , . . , ."                             .
                                                         H. H.                Here the author perverts Scripture. Ps. 73 :l& reads :
                                                                           "Surely, thou didst set them in slippery places: thou
                                                                           castedst them down into destruction." Kuiper quotes :
                                                                           "slippery places from which  they pitch headlong  into
       DR. HENRY BEETS ON THE DOCTRINE OF                                  destruction."
                               ELECTION                                       (Kuiper)      "Let us emphasize the fact that your con-
                               ..-                                         ception of God depends upon your answer to the ques-
       The doctrine of election excessively stressed by a cer-             tion whether God shows  .any favor to the reprobate. A
     tain father, so we wrote in a former article, receives the            certain Christian has well said: `Our God is a just God
     blame for the indifference and the waywardness of a cer-              but not a cruel God. He has no pleasure in the misery
     tain young brother. The home training was very  one-                  of any of His creatures. He sends the wicked earthy
     sided.      That the father chose election as his favored             blessings as the fruits of his kindness, in order to con-
     theme does not, according to Dr. Beets, savor of a well-              vince them of His sincere willingness to bestow upon
     balanced teaching of the whole of the Reformed system                 them the greater gift of salvation in Christ. God is just
     of truth.                                                             and stern but he is not hard and cruel. He is not a God
         We were  :wondering  what, according to Dr. Beets                 who reveals to a large part of humanity nothing ,but His
     might be the other side of the doctrine of election neg-              wrath. Even the reprobates are His creatures, the works
     lected by that father of whom he speaks. `His answer to               of His hands ; and in His goodness and grace He lavishes
     this question are the three points of Synod, explained                blessings upon them as long as they live, even though
     among others by Rev. H. J. Kuiper. Permit me to quote                 they perish in their sins. Thus He magnifies His love as
     a few paragraphs from this booklet "The Three Points                  well as His grace in the redeemed.'
     of Common Grace." We quote : "To whom does the Lord                      "Neither can you maintain the sincere offer of salva-
     show this kindness, this grace? Even to the unthankful                tion to all who hear the Gospel, unless you accept the
     and evil. Who are they? Not his unthankful children.                  truth which is formulated in the first point of Synod. If
     The children of God are often unthankful and they do                  God assumes no attitude of favor toward the unthankful
     evil things. But this by no means identifies them with                and evil, he cannot sincerely offer them the blessings of
     the unthankful and evil. Moreover, the context plainly                redemption. Then what our Confessions say cannot be
     shows that they are the enemies, the haters of God. Ob-               true: `He has most earnestly and truly  decl,ared  in His
     serve also that Jesus speaks of the unthankful and evil               Word what will be acceptable to Him: namely, that all
     without any restrictions or qualifications. All the un-               who are called by the Gospel should comply with the
     thankful and evil are meant - not only the elect among                invitation.' It is true that God has from eternity chosen
     them, who are destined to become believers some day, but              some to eternal life, and rejected others. But it is just
     even the reprobate among them. That this is so is very                as true that he sincerely offers salvation to all who hear
     clear from the parallel passage in Matthew, where Christ              the Gospel . . . . . .
     says that he causes His rain to fall and his sun to shine                "There is no one here in this audience who can say,
     upon the evil and the good. These are blessings given                 `God hates me. Suppose you know that  you  will ulti-
     to all without distinction.                                           mately be lost; even then you could not say, `God does
         "Just this makes the love of God so wonderful that                not care for me.' The gospel we preach is a gospel for
     `it is shown not only toward those for whom Christ had                sinners - for all sinners. It is glad tidings also for you.
     died, not only to those in whom there is nothing upon                 God has no pleasure in your death, but therein that you
     which he can rest his eye with satisfaction and pleasure,             turn and live. He hates your sins, but he does not hate
      who are altogether vile in his sight. Even to them he                you. He invites you to come to him and be saved. That
      manifests His love, his kindness, his grace . . . .  ."  .So         very fact will make your punishment doubly deserved if
     far Kuiper.                                                           you should be lost. You will never be able to say: `I
         What strange reasoning.  As if there was originally               have not tasted God's goodness and grace; I have never
     anything in the believers upon which God could rest his               experienced His love.' You will have to say: `I have
     . eye with satisfaction and pleasure. Herein was love that            spurned His love, rejected His grace; and  now  there
     Jesus died for us when we were yet sinners. So says the               remains for me a righteous judgment, a well deserved
     apostle.                                                              wrath, whose flames will burn forever and ever.'
         (Kuiper)       "It is true that according to Scripture the           " `Oh Jerusalem, that killeth the prophers, and stoneth


  2 9 6                                          T H E   S T A N D A R D   B E A R E R                                       _
   l_--~                         .--.---  .._               ~....--_lll.l             .-.- ._ l_l

  them that are sent unto her! How often would I have               higher grace of which He is not destitute, if He choose to
  gathered thy children together, even as a hen gathereth           display it.' "
   her chickens under her wings, and ye would not !'  " So             Beets refers to this article as being very fine and so
  far Kuiper.                                                       indeed it is. Yet this same Beets denominates us hyper-
           Dr. Beets will be ready to subscribe to the concep-      Calvinist (whatever this may meanj  though.our   descrip-
  tions coming to the surface in the above selections. The          tion,of God differs not from that found in the above para-
  above view of the relation which God is supposed to be graph. And finally place along side of the statement to
  assuming toward all men is very likely that other side the effect "that God comes with a well meant offer of
   which that father lost sight of. *And  it is well that he did salvation to the reprobate" the assertion that God  wil-
  so, for the above views form no part of what  :Dr. Beets fully and deliberately appointed to perdition this same
   calls the "whole system of Reformed truth.? They are             reprobate.  Is it not a fact that the two statements are
  altogether foreign to this system.                                absolutely contrary? Both cannot be true: Dr. Beets
      The closing paragraph of Dr. Beets' article reads in and II.  J. Kuiper and the leaders in the Christian
  part as follows : "Perhaps some of our own people are Reformed Church in general must repudiate either  o,ne
  not clear in their thinking on the subject. That's the of the propositions. ~ And so they do as is very evident
  reason why in another editorial we expected to show why from their writings. The doctrine of predestination is
  .it is that we still  hold  the doctrine of election.     But in fast becoming a dead letter in the Christian Reformed
  view  of  the fine article found on page  880 of this BAN- Church.                                            G. M. 0.
  NER issue; this looks like carrying coal to Newcastle."
  So far Dr. Beets.
      We wish to quote a little from this article announced
  as a "Class Essay by Arend Roskamp of Grundy Center,              DE CHR. GEREF. KERK IN NEDERLAND EN DE
  Ia." We quote:                                                                        GEMEENE GRATIE
      "The best definition of predestination that I am able
  to give is found in the writings of John Calvin himself:                                    (Vervolg)
  `in conformity therefore to the clear doctrine of Scripture,
  we assert that by an eternal and immutable council, God              Gelijk wij zeiden, wij  weten in het  geheel  niet van
  has once for all determined both of whom He would                 een Gemecne Gratie of Algemeene Genade leer door de
  admit to salvation and whom He would condemn to Gereformeerde Vaderen  onderwezen of aanbevolen af, en
  destruction. We affirm that this council, as far as it con- hebben daarvan eerder nooit gehoord.
  cerns the elect, is founded on His gratuitous mercy,                 De inhoud onzer kerkelijke Gereformeerde Belijdenis-
  totally irrespective of human merit ; but that those whom schriften, waaronder ook de Vijf  Artikelen  tegen de
  He devotes to condemnation, the gate of life is closed by Remonstranten behooren, is ons  echter  niet onbekend.
  a just and irreprehensible, but incomprehensible judg-               Wij namen ook  we1 inzage en maakten gebruik van
  ment' (Institutes, Book III; p. 49). This definition, we          "oude schrijvers," zoowel op jeugdigen leeftijd als in  lal
  observe, includes two parts ! the elect are by a special act      tere  jaren onzes  levens; en kwamen dan  we1 eens een
  of. God chosen to life, while the reprobate are by just as        uitdrukking tegen als b. v. van "Gods algemeene genade-
  special an act of God condemned to destruction:                   gaven," wanneer van het leerstuk van Gods Voorzienig-
      "In this it is distinguished from the idea of predesti-       heid  werd gehandeld, of van het "bock  der natuur" werd
  nation that Luther and many others held. They taught              gesproken.
  that predestination included only election. Whom Calvin              Ook hoorden wij in  onzen  jongen tijd  we1 veel van
 called reprobates were no objects of special dealings like         "Algemeene  SVerzoening"  gewagen, in preek en  week-
  the elect, they were merely passed over by God and left           blad, in gesprek en geschrift ; maar "wij Gereformeerden"
  to their own destruction. Calvin teaches that they are  wil-      bestreden  die. dwaling  toen met  alle kracht.
  fully, deliberately appointed to perdition, and he substan-          Nimmer in ons leven vernamen wij van een Gemeene
  tiates his assertion with these and other parts of Holy           Cjratie  of,Algemeene Genade leer of leerstuk of basis, dan
  Writ: `Every tree which my heavenly Father hath not               totdat Dr. Bavinck in 1884 en later Dr. A. Kuyper daar-
  planted is rooted  up.'      Furthermore, Calvin maintains        mede naar voren kwamen  en daarvoor  - naar ons nu
  that election itself could not stand without being opposed        zcer begrijpelijk voorkomt, nadat het leven en streven van
  to reprobation (Institutes Book III; page 63). Thus the           beide groot geachte  theologen  en geleerden, van deze
  reprobate are not passed over. However, this difference           beroemde leiders op wetenschappelijk en staatkundig ge-
  is to be noted that God deals more mightily with the elect        bied door vriend en vijand werd opengelegd -, propa-
  that with- the reprobate. `This, nevertheless, I maintain, ganda maakten.
' which was observed by Augustine, that when God turns                 Nu verklaarde enkele  jaren   geleden   we1 Dr. H. H.
  wolves into sheep, He renovates them by a more power-             Kuyper in `De Heraut (van 4 Jan., 19-35)  - in aansluiting
  ful  gr'ace to conquer their obduracy  ; and, therefore, the met Dr. V. Hepp's instemming in De Reformatie met
,., obstinate are not converted, because God exerts not that        Ds.  Kullman's  afwering van Prof. Dr. Haitjema's  "be-


                                              T H E   S T A N D A R D   B E A K E R                                                 299
                                                                                      .---.  - ._.___                                -

    `Voordat die uitverkorenen tot dien Opperherder ver-               `En  nu zou hij (Calvijn)  in  St&id  handelen  met de
zameld  worden  dwalen  iij verstrooid in  de gemeene  woes-       Schrift,  hij.zou  zich  schuldig   maken  aan grove  ondankbaar-
tijn om ; en verschillen ook niets  van de andere menschen,        heid  jegens God, indien  hij deze goede gaven en volmaakte
dan  alieen  `daarin,  dat zij door de bijzondere barmhartig-      giften van den Fader der  iichten  niet ten volle waardeerde . . .
heid- Gods  ,worden bewaard, dat zij niet storten in het               Ge  voclt  wel, waarde  lezer,  hoezeer hier door Prof.
uiterste des doods.                                                Bavinck niet  recht wordt onderscheiden; hoe  aan de  er-
    Indien gij dan uw oog op hen slaat, zoo  zult gij              kenning door Calvijn van Gods goede gaven en volmaak-
het  geslacht  ontparen  van  rldum,  dat den reuk heeft van       te giften  aan de wereld aan de menschenkinderen, een be-
de gemeene verdorvenheid der geheele natuur . . . .                teekenis wordt gegeven die valsch is, wijl Bavinck wil
    (De schuine letter in deze aanhalingen is van  ons.-           dat Calvijn daarmee den grond legde van B.`s dwaalleer
G. v. B.)                                                          der Gemeenc Gratie Gods, van Gods genade aan verwor-
    Professor Bavinck beweert in zijn "De  Algemeene               penen,  zooals die verderfelijke leer door Dr. A.  Kuyper,
Genade," dat de Reformatie het oog niet kon sluiten voor Sr., verder is ontwikkeld en uitgebreid ; en hoe het  on-
het vele goede, dat ook de natuurlijke mensch nog tot              derhogden  van Gods Schepping, Zijn medewerken en
stand bracht.                                                      regeeren in en van het wereldbestaan en bestuur naar
    En de Lutherschen konden  zich niet volkomen  vrij-            Zijn Goddelijke Voorzienigheid, gelijk onze  Vaderen  op
maken  van het Roomsche dualisme.                                  het voetspoor en op voorgang van  CaJvijn Schriftuurlijk
    Maar  Calvijn'sJogische  en dogma&he geest . . . . vatte juist  geloofden en beleden, listiglijk  en oneerlijk in de
eenerzijds de zonde te diep en te ernstig op om nag iets goeds,    schoenen  geschoveti  wordt van het Neo-Calvinistisch
op  welk terrein dan ook, uit de natuur des menschen  af  te       philosophisch  uitdenksei dat  "Algemeene Genade" of
leiden . . . . .                                                   "Gemeene Gratie heet.
                                                                                                                       G. V. ,B.
                                                                                         (Wordt Vervolgd)
    En tech ging het niet aan om al het ware en goede en
schoone  te"loochenen,  dat ook in de menschlieid buiten
Christus  op te merken vie1  . . . . Dat zou met de ervaring
in strijd  zijn? maar  ook miskenning  wezen van Gods gaven                CAN A CLASSIS-(SYNOD) DEPOSE A
en  dur ondankbaarheid jegens Hem  zijn . . . .                                            CONSIi3TORY
    En zoo maakt nu Calvijn, in  aansluiting   aan en met                                          or
beroep op de Schrift onderscheid tusschen een algemeene            The Plain Truth about the Institution of Christ's Church
en een bijzondere genade, tusschen de werking van den
Heiligen Geest in alle  schepselen en den Geest der heilig-            In our previous article we declared that he, sign-
making die slechts der geloovigen deel is . . . . .                ing the Formula of Subscription, is not by this act prom-
    God trad ttisschenbeide  met Zijn Gemeene Genade om            ising to forbear  criticising,  by writing and preaching,
de vernielende werking van den  ,val  tegen te houden. classical and  synodical  decisions; that the mode of voic-
(Dat  leerde  Calvijn  niet.-G. V.  B.)  *                         ing a grievance outline'd  in the Formula may be made to
    En uit deze algemeene genade, zegt Dr. Bavinck ver-            apply only.  to  the  aforesaid doctrines;  that the pledge
der, "is al dat goede en ware herkomstig, dat we ook nog           "We will. neither publicly nor privately propose, teach or
in den gevallen mensch waarnemen . . . . . Het  licht              defend the same, either by preaching or writing, until we
schijnt nog in de duisternis . . . .                               have first revealed such sentiments to the Consistory,
    Er is nog verstand en rede . . . .                             Classis  or Synod, that the same may be there examined,
    Er zijn nog allerlei natuurlijke gaven in den being ready always cheerfully to submit to the judgment
mensch . . . . . .                                                 of the Consistory, Classis  or Synod, under the penalty in
    Er woont in hem nog een indruk' van de Godheid, en             case of refusal to be, by that very fact, suspended from
een zaad der religie is nog in hem overgebleven . . . .            our office"--need be practiced by the office-bearer only
    Rede, verstand, philosophie, kostelijke geschenken             when in his mind  difficulties.or  different sentiments arise
zijn het van God . . . .                                           respecting  aforesaid   doctrine;  that there is no `case on
    Kunsten  en wetenschappen zijn van hooge waardij . . .         record of an office-bearer molested for publicly objecting
    Muziek is een gave Gods . . . .                                to a classical or  synodical  deliverance; that, in a
    De Staat is een instelling Gods . . . .                        word, the aggrieved office-bearer had always been
    De goederen des  levens, ofschoon tijdelijk en  vergan-        permitted to publicly  criticise  and renounce a clas-
kelijk,  zijn tech tot veraangenaming des levens . . . .           sical or  synodical  decision deemed un-Scriptural and
    Er is nog zin voor  waa'rheid  en deugd onder de `men-         un-Reformed; that H.  DanhoZ  and H.  Hoeksema,  not-
schen . . . , .                                                    withstanding, were forbidden to  criticise  by writing and
    Er bestaat nog natuurlijke Iiefde tusschen ouders en           preaching  synodical  decisions (the three points) of the
kinderen  . . . .                                                  year 1924 ; that these office-bearers were ordered to keep
    De natuurlijke mensch vermag groote  dingen  tot               themselves to the manner of voicing a grievance outlined
stand te brengen . . . .                                           in the Formula; that, finally, they were deposed for refus-


 300                                     T H E   STllNDARD   B E A R E R
                                       -~--.

 ing to do so and for insisting that theirs was the right to     pline.' In a sense, no one denies this, but that is not really
 openly and freely criticise Synod's deliverances (the three     the point at issue. The question is how is the connection
 points j.                                                       terminated, when they persist? By their own resignation,
     Let us now prove that the office-bearer in the Chris-       accepted as a legal act by the consistory? Or by an act
 tian Refortied Church actually had the above mentioned          of `censure on the part of the church ? The latter is our
 right, and exercised it whenever he felt constraitied  to do    view. The former, we think, is the intention of those who
 so. Our proof, marvelous to say, is gotten from a record' originally drafted this rule in the Netherlands. But such
 of G. Hoeksema's doing published by himself in his              a rule, thus understood, robs church discipline of all real
 brochure.                                                       power and control over the members. For they know
        Let us have the situation well before our minds. It      right along that they can resign any moment they please
 is the contention of G. Hoeksema that the office-bearer,        and stop the whole proceeding. And they can do this
 attaching his signature to the Formula of Subscription,         legally, though the Church solemnly assures them it is a
 promises by this act that should any difficulties or differ-    great sin before God. What a weak stand, what a piti-
 ent sentiments respecting a classical or synodical decision     able inconsistency . . . . But any member who claims to
 arise in his mind he will neither publicly nor privately        have that right to resign. is untrue to his own promise.
 propose, teach or defend the same, either by preaching          It is an unethical act and can, even if only for that reason,
or writing until he has first revealed such sentiments to        never be considered legitimate within and by the church
 the Consistory, Classis  and Synod, that the same may be        of Jesus Christ. And the consistory  ,that accepts such
 there examined. He promises further, always to be ready         resignation and thereby recognizes its legality, legiti-
 to submit to the judgment of these bodies under the             matizes what it knows to be contrary to the will of Christ
 penalty in case of refusal to be, by that very fact, sus-       the King, and makes `an empty, force of the solemn
 pended from office.      G. Hoeksema, having signed the         promise it demanded upon the qccasion  of public confes-
 Formula, made, according to his own interpretation of           sion" (Brochure  p. 23, 24).
 this document, these promises ! (Read again quotations             In the above selection, mark you, G.  Haeksema
 inserted in former article.)                                    severely criticises, assails, yea denounces  `2 synodical
        I shall prove now that G. Hoeksema is insincere dis-     decision deemed unscriptural. So he does  without  first
 honest in that he fails to practice what he preaches. The       revealing  his  dificulties  to Synod; without  Frst ascertaining
 Synod of 1918 decided that those who persist in the resig-      ruhether  Classis  and Synod  would permit him to attack the
 nation of their membership "cannot remain an object of          de&ion. *qdd to this that G. Hoeksema was a member
 church discipline (Acts 1918, Art.  53, IV)." In the course     of that group having persuaded  Classis  `Grand Rapids
 of time there  arose in G. Hoeksema's mind difficulties         West and East to depose a number of office-bearers as
 respecting this particular synodical decision. How do  1. schismatics for refusing to promise not to criticise cer-
 know? G. Hoeksema tells me so on page 24 of his bro-            tain synodical decisions (the three points) and  the.  cry:
 chure. Did  G. Hoeksema refrain from publicly or priv-          "What amazing ungodliness" will not be suppressed.
 ately proposing. teaching and defending his different           Can G. Hoeksema find fault with us for insisting that he
 sentiments until he had first revealed them to the  Con-        believed not a word of what he said when he strove to
 sistory,  Classis and Synod for the purpose of submitting       convince  Classis Grand Rapids West that, whereas the
 to the judgment of these bodies, under the penalty in           Consistories of Hope and Kalamazoo  I had refused to
 case of refusal  ti, be, by that very fact, suspended from      promise to hold their piece respecting the three points or
 office?  Hc  did  not.  Instead of refraining from publicly     if they must speak, to keep themselves to the manner of
 proposing, teaching and defending his sentiments until he       voicing a grievancb  outlined in the Fdrmula of Subscrip-
 had revealed them to Classis and Synod; instead of hold-.       tion  - it (this  Classis) was duty bound to proceed with
 ing his peace, as he claims  he pledged to do, until Classis    censure and depose as schismatics the office-bearers con-
 and Synod had examined, appraised and pronounced his            stituting these Cons&tories?
- sentiments fit for publication, G. Hoeksema sent into the         G. Hoeksema is not the only one who sinned. Prof.
 world a brochure in which- he criticises and denounces          Heyns' behavior is as contemptible as that of G.  Hoek-
 the synodical, decision in question as terribly sinful. Let     sema. Year upon year did he attack and discredit the
 me quote from the `brochure.       "In this connection,, to     synodical decision in question in the presence of his
 answer a possible objection, it may not be amiss to refer       students. Says G. Hoeksema: "Prof. Heyns has for
 briefly to the rule our Synod has adopted with reference        many years given instruction contrary to the principles
 to those who persist in the resignation of their member-        underlying this rule (the synodical decision in question,
 ship.     It-holds that they cannot remain an object of         G. M. 0.) ." This statement may be found on page 24 of
,church discipline. Our Church has in this matter copied         the brochure.
 a similar rule in the Netherlands churches. Needless to            Heyns it was who supplied G. Hoeksema's booklet
 say, we are not agreed with it . . . . . Moreover, the          with a rather lengthy preface. In this preface Heyns
 language used is somewhat ambiguous: `They cannot               derides'the synodical decision in question as well as does
 remain  (italics ours. G. H.) an object of church  disci-       G. Hoeksema in his booklet. Says Prof. Heyns in part:


                                        T H E   S T A N D A R D   R E A R E R                                                301
                                                  __^___._r.._  -                             --.--

"Op sterk in `t  oog loopende wijze komt diezelfde  ter-             grievance outlined in the Formula of Subscription? Did
zijde stelling van het Koningschap van Christus  uit in de           the Synod of 1926  do  so? No indeed. No office-bearer
door onze Synode in 1918 overgenomen  bepaling  inzake               nor ecclesiastical court  (Consistory,  Class&,  Synod) has
bedanken voor het lidmaatschap  om  aan de kerkelijke                ever as much as reprimanded G. Hoeksema and Prof.
tucht te ontkomen. In die bepaling  wordt geconstateerd,             Heyns for committing what in the case of H.  Hoeksma;
dat bedanken voor lidmaatschap  `om redenen die den                  Danhof and the writer of these articles was termed an
toets van Gods Woord niet kunnen  doorstaan:  een niet               unlawful act, an unethical deed, a breach of promise, re-
licht te achten zonde is."    Wordt daaruit nu  geconclu-            bellion against church authorities, public schism and
deerd, dat mitsdien de kerkeraad, als door Christus  aan-            what not. This silence and inertia of the Christian Re-
gesteld om van Zijnentwege, naar Zijn wil en ordinanties             formed Churches in respect to the behavior of G.  Hoek-
Zijn Kerk te regeeren en dus in de Kerk Zijn recht, het              sema and Heyns relative the  synodical  decision they
recht van haar absoluten Koning te handhaven, zulk be-               attacked, speaks. volumes.     It indicates that ordinarily
danken  heeft te behandelen naar wat. het is in het oog              an aggrieved member, assailing a synodical  and classical
des Konings, namelijk, als een niet te licht te achten               decision is not molested; that the conduct of such a one
zonde, die toepassing van tucht vordert?        Zoo zou de           is not `deemed unlawful. It indicates that ordinariiy the
erkenning en handhaving van het absolute Koningschap                 Christian Reformed  Churches  do indeed distinguish be-
van  Christus het eischen. Maar van zulk een  conclusie              tween synodical  and classical decisions and the AFORE-
is geen sprake.    Geconcludeerd wordt dat elk lidmaat               SAID DOCTRINES; that these churches ordinarily do
tot  zulk.bedanken  kerkrechtelijk het recht heeft,  aange-          not insist that a member, aggrieved by a  synodical  de-
zien zijn aansluiting  aan de Gemeente een vrijwillige was,          cision and bent on voicing his difficulties, shallkeep him-
en dat de kerkeraad`dus niet anders kan en mag  doen  dan            self to the mode of voicing a grievance outlined in the
zoo'n  persoon  ongemoeid te laten gaan. Derhaive, wat               Formula- of Subscription.      This silence tells us that,
de door  Christus aangestelde, tot zijn  die&t  aange-               according to the way of thinking of the Christian Re-
stelde, en hem vertegenwoordigende kerkeraad in dezen                formed Churches, an aggrieved office-bearer (or member)
te handhaven heeft, is niet het recht van Christus, maar             has a right to assail classical and  synodical  decisions;
een gewaand recht van den mensch!                                    that in doing so this office-bearer need not keep himself to
   "Wij herhalen, wie kan zulk een bepaling, deze vrucht             the procedure outlined by the Formula.
van het Doleantisch Kerkrecht, zuiveren van de beschul-                 Yet these same churches met in Synod  (1926),  de-
diging dat, al is het niet zoo bedoeld,  tech daarin het             clared that Classis  Grand Rapids West did well in depos-
Xoningschap  van  Christus  over Zijne Kerk op  onverant-            ing the office-bearers constituting the Consistories of Ka-
woordelijke wijze  worden  genegeerd?" Thus far Prof.                lamazoo I and Hope for their  insistance  upon the right
Heyns. The above quotation is found on pages 6 and 7                 to  criticise  synodical  decisions (the three points). They
of the brochure we  criticise.                                       so declared when they decided to uphold  Classis  Grand
   The above selection is an attack upon a  synodical                Rapids West in its action against the Consistories of
decision. Did Prof. Heyns reveal his difficulties to  Clas-          Kalamazoo I and Hope. The decision reads as follows:
sis and Synod before publicly assailing the decision in              "In connection with this report and in answer to protest
question? He did not. Did Heyns first ascertain whether              received, Synod upholds  Classis  Grand Rapids West in
Classis.  and Synod would sanction an attack upon the                its action of deposing the Gonsistory of Kalamazoo and
aforesaid decision? He did not. Yet, when it appeared                Hope. Grounds :
that  6.  Hoeksema  and his fellows might fail in their                  (1)    Article 36 of the Church Order gives the Classis
attempt to persuade Classis Grand Rapids West to take                jurisdiction over the Consistory ;    -
action against the unyielding Consistories of Kalamazoo                 (2)     Articles 79 and 80 of the Church Order and the
I and Hope for their refusal to either hold their peace              Formula of Subscription state plainly that censure of
or keep themselves to the manner of voicing a grievance              office-bearers shall be suspension and deposition from
outlined in the Formula of Subscription, Prof. Heyns                 office. See  Acta der Synode 1926 p. 142.
appeared upon the scene and assured the delegates to                    The Christian' Reformed Churches met in Synod
Classis  that they need not recoil from taking the afore-            (1926) deliberately, that is with careful consideration,
said Consistories to task for their  insistance  upon their          uttered two untruths. When they decided to uphold
right to  criticise   synodical decisions of 1924 (the  thr.ee       Classis Grand Rapids West, they (these churches) vir-
points)  ; that, further, the  Kerken  Ordening sanctioned           tualIy.declared (lie 1) that the office-bearer, aggrieved
the contemplated action. How amazingly unfair! How                   by a classical or  synodical  decision must, when voicing
horribly dishonest and untrue ! Pray, what must we                   his difficulties, keep himself to the mode of protest out:
think.of this man Heyns?                                             lined by the Formula of Subscription; that the  office-
   Further, did any office-bearer, Consistory or  Classis            bearer refusing to do so breaks his promise, rebels against
ever take G. Hoeksema and Prof. Heyns to task for                    church authorities, disrupts the church and must, there-
publicly attacking the aforesaid synodical  decision  ; . for        fore, be deposed as a schismatic. Synod (of 1926) vir-
not keeping themselves' to the manner of voicing a                   tually declared (lie 2) that the Formula of Subscription


 302                                       THli  S T A N D A R D   B E A R E R
 ------".."   ..___-                                        -

 demands that this aggrieved and protesting office-bearer bearers. What must G. Hoeksema prove? Among other
 be so dealt with. What is more, these same churches and          things that an aggrieved office-bearer who refuses to
 this very  Syn6d  leave G. Hoeksema and Prof. Heyns be, promise to refrain from publicly  criticising by preaching
 though their (G. Hoeksema's and Heyns') behavior is and writing a classical or synodical decision must be
 `identical to that on account of which the Consistories of       deposed.     G. Hoeksema now turns to the Formula of
 Kalamazoo, Hope and Eastern Ave. were deposed and                Subscription and quotes that section (see former article)
 deprived  g)f their properties. Again we exclaim, how            which qsserts that an aggrieved office-bearer must sub-
 amazingly unfair and dishonest! What, pray, must we mit to Classis  and Synod, and in the event he refuses, be
 think of the Christian Reformed Churches, of its various suspended from office. His appeal  $0 the Formula, how-
 office-bearers, of the delegates to the Synod of 1926, of ever, is in vain as was before shoti. More proof he has
 Berkhof, of Volbeda, in fine, of the entire Faculty - that not. Hence, he failed absolutely to justify the deposition
 body which took an active part, in the capacity of ad- of the aggrieved office-bearers. What is more, the silence
 visor, in all the proceedings (both of Classis  Grand Rap- of the Christian Reformed Churches in respect to G.
 ids West and East) constituting the action against the           Hoeksema and Heyns' attack upon the synodical decision
 deposed Consistories. Is it not as plain as the sun in of the year 1918 proves conclusively that he who assails
 the heavens that the entire action taken against the de- and denounces synodical decisions deemed un-Scriptural
 posed Consistories was inspired by a spirit from beneath? is doing the  permissable  thing. Now our misdemeanor
        Will this exposure of the corruption of the  Classis  of was, let it be repeated, that we refused, to promise not to
 Grand Rapids West and of the Synod of 1924 bring those attack certain  synddical  decisions (three points). This
 involved upon their knees before God? Not at all. In- was indeed the only fault they could find with us.
 stead, the leaders in-the Christian Reformed Church will According to G. Hoeksema our refusal to subscribe to the
 continue to adhere to their policy of "DQODZWIJGEN."             three points was a root-sin having several outgrowths:
        If anybody questions the statement to the effect that such as  (1) rebellion against the established Church
 the Faculty of the seminary of the Christian Reformed authorities  ; (2) public schism  ; (3) the cutting through
 Churches took a  .se&et yet active part in the delibera- of the tie binding us to the Christian Reformed Church
 tions of our deposers, let him attend to the following quo- out of which there is no salvation ; (4) denial of the King-
 tation : "What action must be taken with respect to a ship of Jesus Christ. However, whereas the silence of
 Consistory that refuses to obey  ciassical  and synodical the Christian Reformed Churches respecting G.  Hoek-
 decisions? Must it be deposed, as Classis Grand Rapids sema and Heyn's public vehement attack upon a certain
 West did,  e&k  the advice of  irhe Theological  Pmulty,   in the synodical decision plainly indicates that he who falls upon
 case of the Consistories of Kalamazoo I and Hope"  (bro-         a synodical decision  is  doing  the" permissible thing, it
 chure   p. 16).                                                 f follows that this so:called root-sin turns out to be no sin
        W$h this we brought into relief at least one of the at all. Consequently,  hits outgrowths (the four sins
real issues raised by the action of  Classis Grand Rapids         enumerated above) disappear, so to say, in thin air (to
 West and East against the deposed office-bearers. At use one of G. Hoeksema's own expressions).
 least one of the questions confronting the aforesaid                For it stands to reason that if I do what  Classis  and
 Classes was: May an aggrieved office-bearer or member Synod deem possible and sanction (criticise, denounce
 publicly criticise by writing and preaching classical and and renounce their decisions as did G. Hoeksema and
 syn6dical  decisions deemed unscriptural. Classes' {Grand Heyns), I cannot very well be accused of rebelling
 Rapids East.and  West) answer was an unmistakable NO. against these bodies. `Further, if I do the permissible
 The aggrieved ministers (H.  Danhof,  H. Hoeksema and thing I cannot be charged with cutting through the tie
 G. Ophoff) were thereupon placed before the choice of binding me to the Christian Reformed Church out of
 hushing  up  or of being deposed. They refused to do the which, according to G. Hoeksema, there is no salvation.
 former and their deposition followed. Hereupon  Classis          Not breaking with this Church, it follows that I do not
 Grand Rapids East deprived, to express ourselves in the          break with Christ. I would like to know, then, what
 words of G. Hoeksema, the consistory of Eastern Ave.             under the'  sun we were deposed for. Can any of the
 of those rights and privileges that flow from denomina- learned in Christian Reformed Church tell us? Perhaps
 tional fellowship. This  Classis said to the Consistory of Prof. Dr. C. Bouma can, or Ds. Jan Rare1 Van  Baalen.
 Eastern Ave, "you remain a legal Consistory,  but, we G. Hoeksema cannot, as is evident from his brochure.
 hereby declare you a Consistory outside of the Chris-               Ir is becoming increasingly clear that the leaders in
 tian Reformed Church."                                          the Christian Reformed Church and in particular, G.
    Classis  Grand Rapids West went further. It not only Hoeksema,  endeavored to hoodwink the common mem-
deposed as did  Classis  Grand Rapids East, ministers of ber. To a large extent, I think, they (these leaders) suc-
the Gospel, but their Consistories as well. This happened ceeded.             Let us make our meaning clear. The action
in the year 1924. The following year  G. Hoeksema sent taken against the deposed office-bearers by classes Grand
into the world a booklet  iri which he attempts to justify       Rapids East and West raised two issues. They are: (1)
the action of the  Classis  against the deposed  office-          May an office-bearer (or Consistory) publicly criticise


                       _-
i                                             T H E   S T A N D A R D   1 3 E A R E . R                                          303
                                                                                                                -              -._-.-

     a synodical decision deemed un-Scriptural or must he by            1 and Hope? Or does the recalcitrant Consistory, by its
     reason of his having signed the Formula of Subscription            refusal to obey, itself sever the denominational tie? And
     keep himself to the mode of voicing a grievance outlined           must the  Classis  then merely officially recognize this
     in the Formula. The second issue reads (stating it in the          state of affairs and deprive the Consistory of the rights
     form of a question) : "Can a  Classis  depose a Consistory  ?,,    and privileges of denominational fellowship, as  Classis
        As to the first of these issues, we made the discovery          Grand Rapids East did in the Hoeksema case?"
     that G. Hoeksema avoided it altogether. He did so even                From the above quotation it is clear thar with G.
     though he wrote for the purpose of justifying the action           Hoeksema the question is not  whether or no action must
     of  Classis Grand Rapids West.          In his brochure he         be taken. It is a settled matter with him that action must
     applies himself exclusively to the matter  of. the two             be taken.    The question is, what action?       Who must
     issues, namely: "Resolved that Classis can depose a Con            sever the  denominatconal  tie, the  Classis  or the recalci-
     sistory."                                                          trant Consistory.
        The question arises, why did G. Hoeksema avoid the                 It is noteworthy that as often as G. Hoeksema quotes
     first of the above mentioned issues? For the reason that           from the Formula he avoids' that section which  asserts
     a frank discussion of the issue in question would have             that the office-bearer shall submit to the judgment of
     brought to light that there was no cause for action; that          Consistory,  Classis and Synod when the difficulties aris-
     our deposition was uncalled for, an unheard of thing.              ing in his mind concern the  AFCYRESAID  DOC-
     Had G. Hoeksema applied himself to the issue-in ques-              TRINES.
     tion, he would have been under the necessity of revealing              In `conclusion, Hoeksema (G.) should not have side-
     the plain truth about the Formula of  SuQcription. He              stepped the first of the two issues raised by the action
     would have been compelled then to inform his readers               taken by Classis  Grand Rapids West and East in respect
     that the mode of voicing a grievance outlined in the For-          to aggrieved office-bearers. Before applying- himself to
     mula should be made to apply only to diHicdlties  respect-         the defence  of the proposition to the effect that a Classis
     ing the AFORESAID DOCTRINES and not to griev-                      can depose a Consistory, he should have faced the ques-
     ances respecting synodical and classical decisions. In             tion whether an office-bearer, offended by a classical de-
     fine, a frank discussion of the issue in question would of         cision and contemplating voicing his grievances, may
     necessity have ended in an admission on the part of                reveal his difficulties publicly by writing and preaching
     Hoeksema (G.) that he and the Classes whose action he              or whether he must keep himself to the manner of voic-
     atrempts &o justify, maltreated the deposed office-bearers.        ing a grievance outlined in the Formula by reason of
     What is more, G.  Hoeksema's sole direct proof for the             his having signed this document. G. Hoeksema should
     proposition to the effect that a Classis  can depose a Con-        have faced. the question whether or no this aggrieved
     sistory is an extraction from the Formula of Subscrip-             office-bearer sins if he adopts the first of the above men-
     tion, asserting that an office-bearer by reason of his hav-        tioned methods.
     ing signed the Formula must: submit to the judgment of                 I repeat, the only fault they could find with the de-
     Consistoryt   Classis  and Synod. Had G. Hoeksema told             posed office-bearers is that they refused  td promise not to
     the truth about the Formula, he could not have quoted              publicly  criticise  certain synodical decisions (the three
     it in support of the proposition to the effect that a Chassis      points). We were not contemplating severing the  dc-
     deposes a Con&tory.                                                nomiRationa1  tie nor did we. This is not our  sin(  ?). We
         G. Hoeksema, though he avoids the issue in question,           did not withdraw, but were expelled, cast forth for no
     silently assumes, nevertheless, what it affirms and                other reason than for having voiced our disapproval of
     repeatedly asserts, in his booklet, that an office-bearer,         certain synodical decisions. Our sin was not that we
     by reason of his having signed the Formula, is duty                withdrew for the purpose of outrunning church discipline.
     bound to obey synodical and classical decisions. As often          We merely insisted upon our good right of disagreeing
     as he says so, he utters an untruth. The result is that,           with certain synodical' decisions deemed unscriptural.
     the uninformed reader also assumes, be it unwittingly,             We have proven (think of G. Hoeksema and Heyns)
     that synodical and classical decisions must be treated             that the office-bearer in the Christian Reformed Church
     with that regard due only to the AFORESAID DOC-                    always had this right. We defy anybody to prove that
     TRINES, and that our deposition was, therefore well                our deportment justified our deposition. G. Hoeksema
     deserved.    By a perversion of the truth, G. Hoeksema             should have faced this issue. He may do so yet in this
     moulds public opinion into the desired shape.                      magazine. He may have all the rootn he wishes. Come,
        That G. `Hoeksema assumes what the issue he avoids              G. Hoeksema, let us hear from you.
     affirms, is very plain from the opening paragraph of the               Someone may interpolate that in our former article
     second chapter. It reads: "What action must be taken               we asserted that the denominational tie was severed by
     with respect to a Consistory that refuses to obey classical        us. In replying we declare that no such assertion was
     and'synodical decisions? Must it be deposed, as  Classis           made by us. The truth of the matter is that we were
     Grand Rapids West did, with the advice of the theologi-            engaged in a refutation of G. Hoeksema's contention to
     cal factulty,  in the case of the Consistories of Kalamazoo        the effect that the Christian Reformed Church cannot


      304                                      T H E   S T A N D A R D   B E A R E R

      permit its members, aggrieved by a class&al decision, to          pits a terrible sin. Such a one denies the Kingship of
      withdraw if they deem they must.          Our refutation of  c Christ (see brochure  p. 20, 21, 22).  :"c&ording  to  Hoek-
      this view must not be regarded as a defence  of our with-         sema, the Christian Reformed denomination is consti-
      drawal from the Christian Reformed Confederation of               tuted of churches from which no person of whatsoever
      Churches. I repeat, we did not withdraw, we were put              state or condition he may be, ought to withdraw himself
      out of the Church.  Classis  severed the denominational           to live in a separate state from it. Out of the Christian
      tie, not we. So it is, even according to  G, Hoeksema's           Reformed Church, such is his claim (see former article),
      own way of reasoning. Says he: "The question is simply            there is no salvation.
      this: Must the Church of Jesus Christ recognize the                  Compare now with the above views the thought in-
      right of withdrawal, for any reason whatsoever, as a legal        corporated in the following selections found on page 23
      right guaranteed by ecclesiastical law? If so, the Church         and 24 of the brochure: "Two closing observations may
      declares legitimate what it knows Christ the King con-            not be unnecessary, before proceeding to another phase
      demns. And this is from its  very  nature an impossible           of our general subject: First, by the foregoing we do not
      position. Such withdrawal, being contrary to the will             mean, of course, to deny to members the right to ask for
      of Christ; must result in disciplinary action on the part of      the transfer of their membership-papers to some other
      the Church. And not the member's desire to resign,                congregation, or even to depart to some other Evangelical
      but only ecclesiastical  cemwe can finally result in a legal      Church. By so doing they do not withdraw from the
      severance of the tie" (brochure p. 22). Attend to the last        Church of Jesus Christ. They merely seek affiliations
      clause. Application of censure by the Church is at once           eIsewhere . . . . But as long as affiliations are sought
      the legal severance of the tie. Our deposition  bf'Classis        with a  church  that we can  recongnize  as a part of the
      West was applied censure and the legal severance of the `great body of Christ, those who leave us are not with-
      tie binding us` to the Christian Reformed Churches. Fur-          drawing from the Church." Thus far G. Hoeksema.
      ther, we have G. Hoeksema's own word for it that to the              One  invayiably  asks, If he, leaving the Christian Re-
      Consistory of Eastern Ave.  Classis  East said: "We               formed Church denies the Kingship of Christ and with-
      hereby declare ybu a Consistory outside the Christian             draws from a church out of which there is no salvation,
      Reformed Church. The pastor of this church was de-                how can the Christian Reformed Church permit its mem-
      posed.
f                                                                       bers to seek affiliations with a church not belonging to
             Someone may object that in  our former article we          that group of churches constituting the Christian Re-
      quoted G.  HoGksema   was asserting that he who rejects a         formed denomination.
      synodical  decision severs by this very act the tie binding          Attend now to G.  HQeksema's  reply found on page
      him  t? the Christian Reformed Church. So we did. On              25 of  the brochure: "A second closing  obgervation  can
      page 32 of the brochure one may read that the unyielding          perhaps serve as an answer to the question that may
     , Consistory or office-bearer severs the denominational tie.       possibly have arisen in the minds of some readers. If it
      The paragraph reads in part as follows: "The Consistory           will be asked, members must be allowed the right to de-
can reject such- decisions in accordance with the con-                  part to some other church of less pure formation, as long
      tract, and therefore such action is not a severance of the        as it is an Evangelical Church,, must not the same right
      denominational tie." Van Lonkhuyzen says : "Tevens                be granted to a consistory?
      blijkt hieruit dat we . . . . het (the decision) dan niet            "In answer (G. Hoeksema's reply) to this possible
      zullen behoeven aantenemen." In the above paragraph               question, we would say  first of all that this supposed
      G. Hoeksema, as was before said, is opposing Van Lonk-            right surely can never be based upon the proposition
      huyzen who maintains that a Consistory rejecting a clas-          that any ecclesiastical tie can be severed at `will because
      sical decision is not rebelling against  Classis.    G.  Hoek-    it was  voluntarili  assumed: (We agree. G. M. 0.) . . . .
      sema maintains`the contrary and adds that the rebellious          Suffice it to say, in this connection that as members they
      consistory severs the tie binding it to the denomination.         have the same privileges as all other members But they
      However, on page 22 of Hoeksema's  bobklet  one reads             cannot leave a certain church or denomination and take
      that not the Consistory but the Church (Classis) severs           their office along with them." So far Hoeksema.
      the tie. G. Hoeksema, it is plain,  clistinguishes.between           According to G. Hoeksema, then, not the office-bearer
      an illegal (when done by the aggrieved Consistory) and            but only the common member may sever the tie with a
      legal (done by the  Classis)  cutting through of the de-          church out of which there is no salvation; may deny the
nominational tie. There is no formal discrepancy here.                  Kingship of Christ. The question arises why the com-
      We deny, of course, that a Consistory severs the denomi-          mon member in distinction from the office-bearer may
      national tie when it rejects a classical decision. To this        commit this sin. Attend to this answer: "A Consistory,
      phase of our subject we shall attend  later  on.                  elected by a Christian Reformed congregation, and serv-
         We shall now point out two more glaring discrepan-             ing in the Christian Reformed Church, has no other
      cies found in the second chapter of the brochure. G.              right then to serve as a Christian Reformed Consistory.
' Hoeksema (see former article) maintains that he who                   As soon as it refuses to serve as such, it makes itself
      withdraws  froni the Christian Reformed Church  com-              unworthy of office, and liable to censure. But we shall


                                         T H E   STA-ND-4RD   "BEARER                                                         305
 -.___                                                           l.^l___lll_"_~.".."."    ..-        - ..__ -.-.- - _-.. - ._--._

 enter more fully into this question in the next chapter."       nor can it be added, in the capacity of a Consistory to
 End of quotation.                                               another, local Christian Reformed congregation. The  Con-
     According to Hoeksema, then, an elder, let us say,          sistory must serve as a Christian Reformed Consistory,
 elected by a Christian Reformed- congregation has no            yet the flock  is.pkrmitted  to depose this body. Strange
 other right than to serve as a Christian Reformed elder.        incongruity.
 We will ask Hoeksema to give some thought to the fol-              Finally, the departing flock is in the need of a shep-
 lowing consideration :                                          he'rd, of rulers' and of teachers, in a word, the flock can-
     (I)    When the baptized member in one of the Chris-        not do without the Consistory. Yet G. Hoeksema permits
 tian Reformed Churches confesses his Saviour, he is             the flock to depart but would have the Church retain the
  recognized as a believer, and of him it is said that he is     Consistory belonging to the  departiqg  flock. Hoeksema
 clothed with an office  - the office of every believer. This    recommends separating the two. And what is gained?
 baptized member, now a member in full communion, has            The Consistory that remains must cease to function.
 a calling, a duty to perform in that church of which he is         It is plain that G..Hoeksema's  contention to the effect
 a member. Among other things he helps elect office-             that the common member may withdraw but not the
 bearers. Further, he shall serve the brethren. Certain          Consistory involves him in much nonsense.
  privileges accrue out of his office. He is admitted to            G. Hoeksema shall have to concede that the office-
 the Lord's table. Now the elder also has his duties. He         bearer may depart with his flock or deny that the flock
 rules the flock. This elder, so G. Hoeksema avers, was          (the common member) has the right to withdraw. The
 elected to serve as a Christian Reformed elder. He, on          flock and the Consistory may not be separated.
  the other hand, confessing Christ in the Christian Re-                                                          G. M. 0.
 formed Church, receives the right to function in the
 capacity of believer in every known Evangelical Church.
 Why this believer and not the elder? Can G. Hoeksema
 say?.                                                           ADVIEZEN  AAN DE SYNODE DER  CHRISTE-
     Further, the elder, contemplating leaving the Chris-                 LIJKE  GERIZFORMEERDE  KERKEN
  tian Reformed Church is deprived of his office. On the
 other hand, the believer who withdraws, is permitted to                   I. Inzake de Gemeene  Gratik-Kwestie               ,
  retain all the `privileges accruing out of his office even
  though he withdraws, from a church out of which  t*here           Het is dit jaar weer Synode-jaar voor de Christelijke
  is, according to Hoeksema, no salvation. Why this dis-         Gereformeerde Kerken in ons land.
  tinction?                                                         De breedste vergadering  dier Kerken komt straks
     Again, if leaving the Christian Reformed Church is so       weer  samen.        En  verschillende  voorbereidende  werk-
  great a sin that the elder who withdraws must be penal-        zaamheden werden reeds verricht, met het oog op de
  ized, why does this Church not penalize the common be-         onderscheidene vraagstukken, die straks  aan de orde
  liever .severing  the tie with the Church?                     z&en komen en beslissing vragen.
     Once more, the Consistory:  that leaves is deprived of          In de kerkelijke organ& dier Kerken werd reeds veel
  its properties. Why is the believer, leaving the church        geschreven over verschillende- kwesties.
  not deprived of his house and lot? Can G. Hoeksema                Het eerste deel van de Agenda,  enkele  rapporten  be-
 say?                                                            helzendg,  verscheen  reeds in druk en werd ook reeds door
     Further,  G. Hoeksema avers that as a member the            ons bestudeerd. Vooral het breed  uitgewerkte  en  tech
  elder has the same privileges as all other members. He         halfslachtige en in beginsel verkeerde rapport over de
  may leave as well as they. We reply that the deposed           ",4musements" trok onze aandacht.
 elder is a common member. Why, then, in  a.ddition,                Wij dachten, dat het niet aanmatigend kon  worden
  deprive the deposed consistory of its properties instead       geacht, en zeker niet onbroederlijk of onvriendelijk, als
  of permitting it to leave with retention of properties as      ook wij onze gedachten ten beste gaven over sommige
  all the other members are permitted to do?                     der vraagstukken, waarmede de Synode straks zal  heb-
     Again, a Consistory, elected by a Christian Reformed        ben te worstelen. Gaarna dragen wij het onze er toe bij,
  Church, may only serve as a Christian Reformed Consis-         om de Synode in het rechte spoor te houden, haar althans
, tory. At the same time the common members are  .per-           op dat  rechte  spoor te wijzen. Verschillende  overwegin-
  mitted to withdraw. Keeping in our eye that a Consis-          gen deden ons hiertoe besluiten.
  tory may serve the local flock only, is it not a fact that        In de eerste plaats tech ligt de tijd nog versch in ons
 .the withdrawal of the entire flock would necessarily mean      geheugen,  dat men ons  advies  zocht en hlijkbaar  waar-
  the deposition of that Consistory? This then is the situ-      deerde in die Kerken. Dat is nog slechts enkele  jaren
  ation.    A Consistory elected by a local Christian Re-        geleden.  Wij kunnen zonder  bogen  zeggen, dat wij altijd
  formed Church, may serve only as a Christian Reformed          hard gewerkt hebben voor de waarachtige belangen dier
  Consistory. Yet G. Hoeksema permits the flock, by its          Rerken,  zoolang men ons een  plaats  gaf. Getuige  daar-
  withdrawal to make it impossible for this  C'onsistory  to     van het Minderheids-rapport in de zaak Dr. Janssen, dat
  serve. For it is not permitted to withdraw with the flock      op het voorwoord na geheel door Ds. Danhof en  onder-


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 -                  __......__-_-               -  ..--__                --.-.         -... ^ ..." ..-. -.^ ..-

      En  tech "Men" zegt . . . . .                                  So hast thou also some that hold  the  teac&gr  of the
      Ja, men zegt zooveel dat niet waar is. Maar waarom             Nicolaitam  in like manner." Evidently these Nicolaitans
 dan  tech ons volk, hier en elders, zooiets wijs gemaakt?           were false teachers that disseminated a false doctrine and
      Gevoelt "Men" misschien de  ongerijmdheid  van zulk            thus propagated spiritual fornication and apostasy. And
 terugkeeren?                                                        in regard to their works we are told that they were hated
      Was "men" dan om andere oorzaken meegegaan, dan                by the church in Ephesus, implying at the same time
 uit beginsel  ?                                                     that their false teachings were rejected. And, there-
      Was de Prot. Geref. Kerk misschien een  schoone  ge-           fore, also this expression leads to the same conclusion:
 legenheid om eens zien te verkrijgen wat elders niet                the church of Ephesus was strong in doctrine,  well-
 ging ?                                                              founded in the truth, could clearly and definitely make
      Waren het zaken van "pemoonlijken"  aard en volgde             a distinction between truth and error. And it is but sad
 "men"  slechts  "een  man"?                                         to say that in this respect `the church of today in gen-
      Was "Men" dan niet hartelijk blijde om weer terug te           eral cannot for a moment be compared with the Ephesian
 zijn in wat men zoo gemakkelijk verliet?                            congregation.      There may be other features of this
      Of is het  ZOO  dat "men"  zich eigenlijk nog  wat             church that are applicable to the church of our own time,
 schaamt voor wat men deed, door terug te keeren en die-             but surely, not this praise is due TV her, that she is sound
 nen die z.g. voorwaarden voor vijgebladeren, opdat de               in doctrine, able to draw the lines sharply between truth
 schande wat minder schril zoude schijnen?                           and falsehood. And yet, soundness in doctrine is such
      Nu voorwaarden stellen omdat  toen  men er uitliep             an important prerequisite for the well-being  ofthe  church
 (uit de Chr. Geref.  Rerk) het onomwonden verklaarde :              in this world!
 "Wij hebben al twintig jaar te lang in dat  "hok"  geze-               But this is not all. The commendable features of the
 ten? Of ook  wel: "Ik kom er (in de Chr. Geref.  Kerk)              church in Ephesus are by no means limited to this sound-
 in der eeuwigheid niet meer in"? Een korte eeuwigheid,              ness in doctrine.         On the contrary, they were also
 voorwaar !                                                          abounding in the work of the Lord. It was no congre-
      We1 ik weet het n i et en velen zetten met mij een             gation that knew the truth intellectually, but was loath
 vraagteeken achter zulk doen.                                       to apply it to life ; she was not characterized by dead
      Schreven we misschien uit leedvermaak? Hebben we               orthodoxy, at least not  at the time this letter was ad-
 er  schik in dat "Men" wegging? Dat lag niet in onze                dressed to her. Oln the contrary, the Lord is able to
 bedoeling, maar  tech ook in dezen: "De waarheid boven              say of her : "I know thy works and thy toil and patience
 al," en dan ga een ieder zijn weg.                                  . . .  -  . and thou hast patience and didst bear for my
      Maar dan diene "men"  `zich  ook niet telkens  aan bij         name's sake, and hast not grown weary."
 ons volk te dezer plaatse, noch elders, met het: "Wij zijn             That is a beautiful testimony, indeed, especially if
 het goed met u eens !"                                              taken in connection with their persevering in the truth
      Want dat zijt ge niet!                                         of the gospel. In our day there are many that clamor
      En we zijn het ook niet met u!                                 for a so-called practical Christianity and would have the
      En  tech: "Men zegt . . . . .  "                               church do nothing but labor and toil in the world, but
                                                        w.  v.       who are absolutely careless in regard to doctrine. What
                                                                     one knows and believes matters not, so they feign would
                                                                     have us believe, if only he is doing something for the
                                                                     kingdom.     This was not the case in Ephesus. They
           THE SEVEN CHURCHES OF ASIA                                also kept the truth of the gospel that was delivered unto
                                                                     them.  -
             The Church That Lost Its First Love                        On the other hand, there-are churches that are char-
                                                                     acterized by a cold and dead intellectualism and ortho-
                      (Continued from page  357)                     doxy, who emphasize principles and soundness in doc-
      The same inference may be drawn from the state-                trine, but who are unscrupulous with regard  `to  Chris-
 ment in the latter part of the letter: "But this thou hast          tion life and walk. But also this could not be said of
 that  hatest  the works of the Nicolaitans, which I also'           the Ephesian congregation. She did not take it easy
 hate." We will  meets with these Nicolaitans in some                in the kingdom of God. She was nor satisfied to know
 other connection.             Let it be sufficient now to remark    that she was saved in Christ. She labored, yea she
 that they evidently made propaganda in the  first place             toiled, she worked till her strength would allow no more.
 for false doctrine and tried to deceive the church. *Plain          In their own midst the members of that congregation
 this is from verses 14 and 15 of this same chapter where            labored, no doubt, for the maintenance of the knowl-
 we read: "But I have a few things against thee (the                 edge of the truth and the purity of the body of Christ.
 church of Pergamum), because thou hast there some                   And without, they bore faithful testimony of the name
 that hold the  teaching  of Balaam, who  tuught  Balak to           of Jesus. And even if the work in the kingdom caused
cast a stumbling-block before the children of Israel, to             them inconveniences, demanded cross-bearing on their
 eat things sacrificed to idols and to  cbmmit  fornication.         part, even if the mockery and contempt of the world was


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 their share, they remained faithful, for in it  all they       We loved to speak of Jesus and to witness for His name.
 had revealed true patience, they had manifested willing-       It was our  nearnest desire to consecrate our life, our  all
 ness and strength to bear the cross for Christ's sake.         to Him Who loved us even unto death, and by Whose
 And do not say now that all these features perhaps be-         power we were translated from darkness into  everiast-
 longed to the past and that they  couId be ascribed to         ing life and made partakers of life eternal.                 Nothing
 the church of Ephesus no more at the time the letter           seemed too difficult for our faith. That we would ever
 was written, for that would be contrary to the text. To        become unfaithful and sin against Him with Whom our
all that has been said the Lord also adds this statement,       heart was united in love, we could not imagine. But
 that they have not grown weary. They still were strong         another period began. That first enthusiasm cooled off.
 in doctrine, they still were laboring and toiling faith-       It appeared that sin still dwelled within us, and we often
 fully, they still were patient and willing. to bear for        did evil when we would do good. We do not seem to
 Christ's name's sake, for they had not grown weary.            be as fervent in spirit as we were in that first period.
    And lastly, in close connection with the features           And we are rather disappointed ; we even grow anxious
 already discussed, we may also mention separately that         sometimes about the question whether that conversion
 the congregation was faithful in regard to discipline.         of ours was perhaps imaginary. We have lost our  `7irs.t
 Already the fact that they had tried  th,ose  that called      love  !"    This condition, this change of the individual
 themselves apostles and were not gave us reason to             believer has often been mentioned to explain the mean-
 believe this. Nothing can be urged against the view            ing of the Lord's words addressed to the congregation
 that they tried these false teachers officially and finally    at Ephesus : "thou didst leave thy first love." But  I
 excommunicated them from the church.          But besides,     do not think, that the comparison is entirely correct.
 the Lord writes to her: "Thou  canst not bear evil men,"       There is something very natural in the experience of
. evidently indicating that they would not tolerate them        the individual believer we just described. His first expe-
 in their midst. They had an eye for the glory of Christ        rience of the love of the Lord was largely a matter of
 as manifested in his body, the church, and they made           feeling. He was in a state of spiritual ecstasy that could
 it their effort to preserve the purity and sanctity of that    not last. His real condition  hyas not in harmony with
 body.                                                          the state of his emotions. Sooner or later reality be-
    We would, indeed, be inclined, when we read of all          comes manifest. And then it becomes evident that we
 these good and commendable features of the Church of           were not quite so near unto perfection as at first it
 Ephesus, that the congregation offers us  ii picture of a      seemed. The glow of that first enthusiasm dies down.
 Church that is well-nigh perfect. She is strong and            And this change, while a matter of grief to our conscious
 sound in doctrine; zealous in the work of the Lord and         experience, nevertheless is often accompanied by a deep-
 faithful in watching over the flock of Jesus and employ-       ening of our real spiritual life.    With the passing of
 ing the keys of the Kingdom of heaven. She is willing,         that love that was largely supported by our feeling,
 moreover, to bear the cross and exercises patience for         another and  firmer,  while more deeply rooted love ap-
 the name of the Lord in the midst of the world.' What          pears. And insofar  as-this  experience in the life of the
 a beautiful picture of a Church! Nay, we do not expect,        child of God is normal, it cannot  `be compared to the
 that the Lord will have anything to say in the way of          condition the Lord describes with respect to the Church
 rebuke and admonition.                                         at Ephesus.
    II. In this, however, we are sadly mistaken. For                No, when Jesus brings against the Church'of Ephesus
 there was something lacking in the Church of Ephesus.          that she left her first love, He refers to love in its deep-
 There was a certain weakness in her inner life, notice-        est sense. This is evident from the word employed here
able to the Lord only, that was so serious as to be suffi-      for love in the original. :1nd of ir the Lord states. that
 cient to lead to her utter ruin. Something was gnawing         the Church had left it. This was a very serious- matter.
 at the very root of the life of the congregation that          It concerned the very life of the congregation. If the
 would cause it to die if it was not removed. The very          condition was not remedied, it means that the Church
 life of the Church was in danger of ebbing  5.way.  Our        at Ephesus would die. For love is the deepest root of
 Saviour expresses this serious lack in the words: "But         our spiritual life. In deepest sense  everrfaith and hope
 I have this against thee, that thou didst leave thy first      spring from love of God in Christ Jesus.              If love dis-
 love." The condition pictured in these words has not           appears from within the Church, we may safely con-
 infrequently been compared to a similar in the spiritual       clude that the fountain of her spiritual life will dry up.
 life of the individual believer. Perhaps we are acquainted         And it may be well to remark right here that in this
 with such a loss of our first love by experience. Imme-        abandoning of her first love we must look for the begin-
 diately after our conversion, especially if that conversion    ning of all apostasy of the Church of Christ in the world.
 was rather vivid and sudden, a drawing out of the dark-        There is rhe root. It is not true that the first beginning
 ness of the world into the light of God's Kingdom, we          of apostasy must be sought in a departure from the
 were filled with a fervent and ardent love of the Lord.        truth, or in a tendency  ro worldly-mindedness, or in a
 Our heart was filled with an holy enthusiasm. Our              laxity of discipline. These may be manifestations; they
 salvation caused us  .to overflow with warm gratitude.         may be the first evidences we notice of a spiritual  de-


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-..-._ _ ----"".-"  -... ^I-..I--I-_______                                                                                  311
                                                                                                                --.-.--
cline.    But they are not the root. That the Church of             part with the Saviour. It was true of the angel and those
Ephesus with the lack of love is the first that is ad-              that had been-placed over the flock to  watdh and lead
dressed of the Seven Churches of Asia Minor is not acci-            them. And it was true of the members. It had char-
dental or without meaning. From Ephesus to Laodicea                 acterized all their work and their whole manifestation
may seem a long way, but the Church that loses `its                 of life. The spiritual, experimental side of the truth was
first love ultimately must lose all. This is a very serious         not forgotten in the preaching, in the instruction of the
lesson for the Church of today., How many are the                   shepherd of this flock of Christ. And if you would pass
complaints that are, in our day, registered against the             through the congregation to visit the families, you would
Church. What an indifference with regard to doctrine!               discover  rhat  the life of the members was more than a
What a laxity with regard to true discipline! What a                doctrine; it was real life, the life of love, of the love of
strong tendency to make friends with the world and                  God in Christ Jesus. Thus it had been once. But all
to follow after the fashions of the world! Serious prob-            this had changed. That first love the congregation. had
lems, indeed! But there is something more serious still.            left. Not as if the true love of God had died out in the
There is a leaving of our first love. If it were not so,            hearts in which it once lived and glowed. No, but many
these other weaknesses could not exist.             How can a       years had passed. Some of rhe older members had passed
Church that keeps her first love possibly be indifferent            away. A new element had been added to the congrega-
with regard to the knowledge of the truth as it is in               tion. Some had joined the Church from without; others
Jesus? How could the question of worldly amusements,                had been added from within by the organic growth of
honor and glory, treasures be a profound and difficult              the congregation.     Outwardly the congregation had
problem at all, were it not for the fact that the Church            grown. But those that were added to rhe Church were
had-lost its first love? And it is well for us, a small             not all spiritual Israelites. Many possessed not the love
Church-denomination, that we understand this and bear               of Christ.  lind this latter element had increased. It had
it in mind always.  Ir is to keep the truth of the  W&-d            become predominant. They could speak of the truth
of God that we were compelled to leave the Church in                objectively, but they knew nothing of its spiritual expe-
the midst of which God had given us a place from child-             rience.    And thus, gradually, the Church had left its
hood. And, surely, it is' of extreme importance that we             first love. There were still those that knew the Lord
keep the purity of doctrine, as over against that corrup-           Christ and in whose hearts His love was spread abroad.
tion of it thar found its official expression in the Three          But the loveless element predominated. What could
Points. But remember, purity of doctrine is not enough.             never be said of the individual believer was true of this
It cannot last if it is not rooted in the love of God in            Church'of Ephesus. And the Lord raises a rebuking
Christ Jesus. Let  LIS  watch, therefore, and emphasize             finger against her and says: I have against thee, that
together with purity of doctrine and the  necessitv  of             thou has left thy first love!
being strong in the truth, this other necessity of  -real              The second question that must be answered is: how,
and true spiritual life rooted in love. For the Church              if the Church had left that first love, could such a beau-
that abandons that first love must die!                             tiful testimony be given of her How could she still be
   Two questions arise in this connection, which we                 founded on the truth, be zealous in the work, be strong
must consider and attempt to answer.               The first, of    in discipline? We must remember in. the first place, that
course, is: but how can a Church leave her first love?              the Lord writes to this congregation, no doubt, in the
There  is,  surely, no falling of grace. To lose one's first        first stage of her spiritual decadence. Her  apostacy  was
l.ove, as we explained the expression however, certainly            as yet in no advanced stage. In the second place, al-
implies a falling away from grace. How then,  .is this              though the Church was not so full of the love of Christ
possible? We must make a distinction here between the               as at first, there still were those who possessed that love,
individual believer and the Church as she becomes mani-             though some of them had even forgotten the days of
fest in the world. Surely, there is no falling away from            their first love. No doubt, the fact that the Lord could
grace. Once a believer is always a believer. Once united            speak so well of the works of this Church was, in part,
with the Lord in love is to be always thus united. Our              due to the influence of the living members. Thirdly, it
conscious faith may `sometimes be weak; our conscious               must not be forgotten that a congregation may, for a
love may not always be equally ardent; but we certainly             time, drift onward on the current of tradition. This, no
cannot leave the love of God in  Chris,t  Jesus. The rea-           doubt, was also the case with the Church of Ephesus.
son for this is simply that His love is first and can never         When the congregation was still, in the days of its first
fail. No one can pluck us out of His hands. Never-                  love, it had labored to keep the Word of Jesus, to know
theless, whar is impossible for the individual believer             the truth, to instruct young and old, to banish the evil
may happen to a Church as she appears  *in the world.               men from their midst and ir had been zealous in the work
Let us attempt to picture the development of the Church             of the Lord in general. Now, the original power of love,
of Ephesus in this respect. When the congregation `at               that in the past had been the motive of all this zeal and
first received the gospel, she was filled with the love of          labor, had been lost. But the congregation still revealed
the Lord. All had been real and living members of the               some of the old energy, partly because of those living
Body of Christ. =211 could testify of their own personal            members that were still in her midst, the real spiritual


                                                      ,  .
 .  .
  312                                                         T H E   STANDARD   B E A R E R  '
               -          -^._--,- .._- -....._-_ ---  _.-._._  -__----.---_   --..._  ".^-              -_-

   essence of the Church, partly  because  of mere tradition.                         There are people who have such a distorted concep-
  And thus you have the phenomenon of a Church sound                             tion of this term "conservatism" that it becomes neces-
   in doctrine and zealous in those works that are outward,                      sary to state the real meaning of the word.
   but without its first love. And I imagine that some of                             There are those, who claim to be conservative by
   the older members, watching this external display of                          merely attempting to preserve the thing as it is. The
   energy, shook their heads sometimes, anxious because                          motive of such people is to maintain or to retain that
  of the spiritual condition of many, and would say: The                         which we have received from the past and do now
   real spiritual life is no more; it is surely going wro'ng!                    possess. However well the motivation may seem: it finds
                        (To Be Continued)                                        its root in a false conception of the matter. There is
                                                                H.  II.          even a large group of reformed people who cling to this
                                                                                 notion. They say, for instance, that our Confession is
          .                   - ---...--  _ ..-^ --  ..--                        in no need of development or explication, since that.
                                                                                 would certainly mean deterioration.       &-rd being afraid
          CONSERVATISM AND PROGRESSIVISM                                         that deterioration in the development of the Confession
                                                                                 is inevitable, they prefer to leave the matter as it is. We,
                    (Continued from page  288)                                   too, are afraid of degeneration in the Confession; but,
                                                                                 we certainly do not entertain the idea that whenever
         It is not at all improper to have our attention called                  development is begun, it would necessarily result in
   to the meaning of these terms. For it is altogether true                      deterioration or degeneration. Such, however, may be
  that we as reformed thinking people often are led-- the case, when a development is purposed to corrupt the
  almost unconsciously  - to apply these terms wrongly,                          matter, or to give another interpretation of the thing.
  giving a distorted meaning to each of them. It is a fact,                       Be that as it may, we certainly should be able to dis-
  that inasmuch as we are sinful creatures - even though                         criminate between the truth and the untruth.          0ur"s
  we have the principle of the new life within us - we will                      is to cast aside the untruth.      "Veritas aeterna  est"-
   follow the general alluring tendencies of the world. This                      truth is eternal. Such is the case. Hence, it would be
  is due, no  doubt? to lack of spiritual life. Everything                       the height of folly to  bin-d  the  onward  march of truth,
   which the world offers is so pleasing to sinful appetites                     or the continued revelation of it.      To bind or to set
   and inclinations that we too, very often, hail along with                      limits to the truth, would be to put a limit to God's
   the godless masses of humanity and are sometimes swal-                         revelation.    God is truth.    God is eternal; therefore,
   lowed up by the glittering. and the sensational things' truth is eternal. God reveals Himself constantly with-
   presented.. It is then hardly noticeable whether we are                        out any hesitation or intervention. Uninterruptingiy  His
   of God's party or not. The antithesis is not found as                          revelation goes on. Therefore not one person or group
   distinct as it should be, and the Christian people are                         of persons has ever at any time enjoyed the complete
   hardly conscious of the truth that their calling is to mani-                   revelation of God. It follows also, that not a single per-
fest the glorious virtues of the Most High. The line. son or a group of persons ever has been, at any time,
   of demarcation has vanished for  t,he majority of  chris-                      in possession of the whole truth. God is Infinite, and
   tians. They are afraid to be called conservative, because                      we are finite beings; we are, therefore, unable to grasp,
   they do not care to be counted as a back number. Just                          in one generation or for that matter in the course of time,
   as if conservatism does not imply progression. Of                              the complete revelation. `God reveals Himself more and
   course, everyone desires to be counted among the fore-                         more, and since such is the case no one can at any time
   most; consequently, the term "progressiveness" is more know all about the Divine Being. It is only in time that
   pleasing and has a much more desirable connotation.                            we are able to get a clearer conception of God's majesty
   This is an entirely erroneous view of the matter, but a                        and power. `It is therefore also true that there must
   view which is being entertained by the vast majority                           be-development in our Confession. "Uitbreiding,"  "ont-
   of Christians, even of reformed persuasion. The term                           plooiing," .or whatever other word may be in harmony
   "conservatism" has not a very desirable place in the                           with that truth.      Besides, to maintain that we must
   vocabulary of modern scientific men.                           The term is     preserve or retain that which we have, just-as  it is, with-
   usually looked upon with contempt and scorn. It seems                          out seeing the need of growth, is to miss the very pur-
   to have something repulsive in its meaning. To  the-                           pose of Christianity. For it is indeed true, that what is
   so-called - achieving and progressive mass of humanity,                        cannot remain as it is in this world of sin. A Christian
   the term is claimed to be diametrically opposed to  real- must ascend to perfection. "Be ye therefore perfect, even
   progressiveness and genuine healthy growth., The ques-                         as your Father which is in heaven is perfect-"-Matthew
   tion, whether or not this connotation is altogether justifi-                   G:48.  The Christian may not remain in the condition in
   able, we must answer in the negative. And yet, even                            which he is, he must increase in the grace and the knowl-
   from a reformed point of view the connotation of this                          edge of our Lord Jesus Christ.  .There must be develop-
   term may be entirely out of harmony with the truth.                            ment and progress.
   It is not altogether untrue that the accusations placed                                            (To be continued)
   against this term are not justifiable.                                                                            A. C. BOERKOEL.


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                                                                             side of the circle of those that were worthy still to be
             MEDITATION                                                      called disciples of Jesus the Christ?
                                                                                  And was, from this viewpoint, Peter not worthy of
                                                                             the distinctipn?
                           AND PETER!                                             Oh, how he had distinguished himself,, indeed! *
                                                                                  He had plainly separated himself from the rest  of.,
                           ..*. tell his disciples and Peter!                the disciples, first of all by his self-confident boast. .How
                                                     - M a r k   16:fb the Lord had warned, "Simon, Simon, Satan hath desired
                                                                              to sift you as wheat, but I have prayed for thee, that thy
      And Peter!                                                             faith fail not." And again: "All ye shall be offended."
      Tell his disciples and ,Peter  !                                       And lastly : "Thou shalt deny me thrice !" But Peter had
      Thus the angel had commissioned the women, when                        given no heed. Boldly, strong in self-confident courage,
  they had come to perform a last service upon the body                      he had contradicted the Lord. "Lord," thus he had
  of their beloved Lord, but found the grave where He                         boasted, "I am ready to go with Thee into prison and
  had been laid vacated.                                                     into death." He had exalted himself openly above all
      And thus, it is evident, the angel had spoken to the                    the rest of the disciples when he had maintained:
  amazed women, not on his own authority, but as they                        "Though all should be offended, I shall never be
  were enjoined by the Risen Victor over death. Clearly,                     off ended !" He had cast the last warning to the wind by
  his. first thought, as He awoke from the sleep of death                     the boastful exclamation : "Though I should die with
  and issued forth fro'm the rock-hewn sepulchre, had been                    Thee, I shall never deny Thee!"
  of His disciples, and the memory of His disciples had                           Thus he had distinguished himself by boasting!
  fixed His mind with special distinction upon Peter. And                         And as high as had been the imaginary rock of his
  so He had ordered: "When the first visitors approach my                     self-confidence, so awfully deep had become the preci-
  vacated sepulchre, let them tell my disciples.. . . and                     pice of his fall!
  Peter, that I have risen  !"                                                    For, also by a most shameful and cowardly denial,
      .And no doubt these women visitors, still amazed                        Peter had distinguished himself from the disciples ! In
  and little understanding the full significance of that                      the dark hour of his Master's humiliating trial he had
  blessed morning,- had carried the message most literally                    forsaken Him, denied that he ever knew Him' sworn with '
  and reported how the "young man" that was sitting in                        an oath that he would have nothing to do with Jesus of
  the empty grave had enjoined upon them to tell His dis-'                    Nazareth! Not before overwhelming forces of the enemy,
  ciples . . . . and Peter! And years afterward that marvel-                  and after a, desperate attempt to remain faithful to the
  ous distinction still stands out boldly before the con-                     end, but bef0re.a simple ,damseI and upon the very first
  sciousness of the disciple, thus singled out; and he must                   inquiry as to his relationship to Jesus of Nazareth had
  have impressed it upon Mark, the author of the second                       Peter denied his Master and abjured his part with the
  gospel narrative: When thou writest in order the things                     Lord of glory!
  Jesus began both to do and to teach, forget not to record                       What a distinction !
  that  fu-st blessed message from the Risen Savioui: Tell                        And now? Tell his disciples . . . .  and Peter!
  His disciples and Peter !                                                       Did the message not bring anew before the conscious-
      What a distinction!                                                     ness of'the disciple the dark night of his unfaithfulness?
      How-simple, yet how pregnant with significance !                            No, Peter had not forgotten his sin ! Deeply wounded
      How it must have cut Peter to the quick, to be thus                     was his heart because of his shameful denial. Even in
  distinguished from the rest of the disciples!                               that dark night-of his fall the Lord had not forsaken
      Did it not really imply that he was considered  out-                    him. He had continued to pray for the disciple  that  his
                                                                                                   i


       314                                      T H E   S T A N D A R D   B E A R E R
s.                                                                                                   ._~ ^._- -^^_- .__-.
       faith fail not.' That prayer, the single look of wounded         as his courage fails him to confess the Lord .in the court
       love the Saviour had cast upon him, the crowing of the           of the High Priest's palace. For in far brighter  circum-
      cock according  -to the word of the Master- these all             stances than those of that disciple we often deny Him,
       had worked together to save the disciple' from'the abyss         who loved us unto death!  -A thousand times we forfeit
       of destruction into which he would cast himself.  *And he  :. His love! And where would we be' were His love a
       had gone out of the court of the high priest's palace to  ". response to ours? But always His love stands  immov-
       weep bitterly in heartfelt sorrow and true penitence.            ably. Always it is first. Always it seeks till it finds us
      And the foollowing  days had brought him no rest. Miser-          again. And when always the message comes, when Peter
      able he had been and his sin was continually before               by his own denial excludes himself from the circle of the
      him. He had not forgotten!                                        disciples : Tell My disciples . . . . and Peter!
          Yet, the first message of the risen Lord must have                Blessed distinction !
      cut into that heartwound still more deeply:  "Tell my  dis-           It was the message of which Peter had need!
      ciples . . . . and Peter !"                                           The message of immutable, living, seeking, saving,
          Thus is the gospel of salvation. It singles you out.          forgiving love !
      It is not afraid to emphasize our sin. Even after we                  As far as Peter's manifestation was concerned, the
      have beheld our own corruption it discovers always                relation between the Saviour and himself had been
      hidden darknesses.                                                broken forever. He had severed all bonds of fellowship.
          It cuts before it heals!                                      Most emphatically had he expressed it, had he declared
                                                                        it under oath and repeated it till the third time that. he
          And Peter!                                                    was none of His !
          My disciples.. . . and Peter!                                     And there was shame, self-condemnation, darkness,
          What a distinction! A distinction not only reminding          unspeakable sorrow in his heart!
      the wretched disciple of his fall and miserable faithless-            Had not the Lord declared: he that denieth me, shall
      ness, but also carrying a message of infinite love!               be denied by Me? And what, if that word i's to be ap-
          God's love is always first!                                   plied to him' who had in  st_rongest  terms repeatedly
          Not only is it first in time, seeing He loved us from         denied Him in the dark night of His suffering?
      before the foundation of the world. Surely, that too is               And then . . . .
      true. He loved us in His everlasting good pleasure.                   The message of the women carries to him. the love of
         But it is first in nature, it is always first in relation      Jesus! To the disciples, yes, but also distinctly to Peter!
      to our love of Him. The root, the infinite source of our          Had the message been merely for the disciples the
      love it is. For He does not love us because we loved              wretched Peter might have concluded still that it was not
      Him. Neither did He choose to love us because He                  for him, seeing he had excluded himself from their fellow-
      foresaw that we would love Him, but freely' sovereignly,          ship. But now there could be no doubt. The Lord re-
      for His own Name's sake. We love because He loves                 membered him, thought of him as soon as `He opened His
      first. Our love is rooted in His love, is never more than         eyes from the sleep of death, remembered him distinctly,
      a reflection of His infinite love, a return of the beam of        remembered him in love, and realizing the need of His
      light it pleases Him to send-forth into our hearts. It is         wretched disciple had emphasized: My disciples. . . .
      never `our love but His that is first in character, in nature,    and Peter, do not forget to bring him my love!
      in principle. . . .                                                   How easily can we realize the need of this distinctive
         That is why His love remains, is immutable, can                message of the Saviour in the soul of His wretched
      stand alone !                                                     disciple !
         When His children, chosen by Him from before the                  Who does not know the times when one's sins seem
      world was, fall into sin and iniquity, become  covenant-          so numerous, one's unfaithfulness so great, one's trans-
      breakers, enemies of God and friends of the devil, hateful        gression so deliberate, that he would exclude himself
      and hating one another His love does not fail, but                from the communion of those that love the Lord Jesus
      remains and conquers, brings the sacrifice of the Only            Christ, that he dare not deem himself worthy to be
      Begotten, redeems us from the power of darkness into              called a disciple any more, that the rich promises of the
      which we had willingly cast ourselves, seeks till it finds        gospel he dare not apply to himself?
      us, works in irresistible grace, till it reaches our hearts          Times when we would fain have the Lord single us
      and makes us beloved children once more. And thus it              out, call us by name, assure us individually, personally,
      remains. Even as His love is principally first' so that           directly, that He still loves?
      Christ died for us while we were yet sinners' so His love            That distinctive message is here !
      abides unchangeable in the midst of all our backslidings             Not only for that heartbroken disciple in his wretched-
      and unfaithfulness, even after we have been made par-             ness' but certainly for every contrite heart, borne down
      takers of saving fellowship with the Lord. Oh, how                by the load of his sin, stands the communication of the
      many are these `weaknesses ! We need not, we may not  * Risen Saviour :
      look down upon Peter from lofty heights of self-conceit,.            Tell my disciples . . . .
                                                  .                                             .


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     0                                           T H E   S T A N D A R D   B E A R E R                                              315
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            And Peter!                                                       Oh, the joy!           *'
                                                                             Tell Peter !
            Peter !                                                          Tell my disciples!  *
          e How the Lord took care to convey His love to His                 Tell all that are in darkness because of sin !
     wandering sheep in the few words of the message!                        A great light has arisen ! A light of righteousness
            It is  Peter  now, not Simon.                                 and holin&s and wisdom and' complete redemption !
            What a comfort for the disciple even in the choice of            Tell them all, that their sins are forgiven, however
     that name! Well he knew that the Lord chose His words                great, however numerous, however shameful they be!
     riot carelessly, but so that each syllable carried its own           The bloody tree and its blood blotted out Peter's denial,
     meaning.  Deeply he felt how the Lord had intentionally `swallowed up all the dark sin of those whom the Father
     mentioned his new name, the name that denoted not                    loved before the world's foundation !
     what he was of himself, in his own strength, but what he                Let the message go forth ! Let it gladden still the
     had become and could only be through the grace of his                hearts of all that are bowed down:
     Lord. The Rock!                                                         The Lord is risen! Zion, thy righteousness shines
            Just as carefully the Lord had called him by his old          forth as the morning !
     name, not many hours before this morning of the resur-                  The glory of the Risen Lord is thine!
     rection, when all that was of Peter had been hid behind                 Tell His disciples!
     his `empty boast and all that was of the old Simon liad                 And Peter!
     revealed itself: Simon, Simon, Satan hath desired to sift                                                                 H. H.
     you as wheat!....
            And Simon had fallen into the abyss of shame and sin !
            Would that  ,earlier  word of  Ch'rist  now still be true:                          MIJN GOEL
     Thou art Peter, and upon. this Rock will I build my
     church?....                                                                       Ik was van  `t lijden moe,
            Tell Peter! Those were the very words of the  Sav-                        te moe schier om te leven, . . . .
     iour! And they carried to the heart of the sorrowful                             maar teeder troostte God:
     disciple a world of comfort and cheer. So, then, the                              "Zijt gij vermoeid, M'n kind?
     Lord would still consider him the Rock. Though all that                          Ik  zal U ruste geven
     he was by nature had sunken in the mire of sin and faith-
     lessness, though sinful Simon had openly and  einphati-                           Ik weet we1 wat `U deert,
     tally belied the glorious confession that once graced his                         wat U zoo weenen doet.
     lips : "Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God,"                          Maar Ik geef immers kracht,
     though according to his old name he was not worthy to be                          naardat gij  dragen moet?
     called a disciple any more and he had broken all bonds
     of fellowship with the Master he loved; yet he was                                Kom,  ,vlucht   aan `t Vaderhart,
     still the Rock, still he stood, still the powerful grace of                       dan hoeft ge niet te vreezen,
     `the Saviour upheld him. Still he was Peter!                                      leun op M'n sterken arm
            Tell  him!                                                                 en klem U aan Mij vast,
            Tell him what?                                                             Ik zal Uw Gosl wezen,  . . . .
            The grave  is empty. The Lord is risen. Tell my dis-
     ciples . . , . and  Peter, that  I live and that all that is                     `Toen jubelde  mijg ziel,
     implied in the blessed message of the resurrection is                             zoo moe eerst van al `t denken:
     wholly for them, for them all, ,for Peter !                                       "`k weet mijn verlosser leeft !
            No, even now, on this beautiful morning of eternal                         en, sterker dan de smart,
     gladness and joy of salvation, the disciples would not                            wil Hij me uitkomst schenken."
     and could not fully compreh'end  what oceans of heavenly
     joy were opened up before them in that glorious mes-                              Ja, Liefde gaf Hij  tiij,
     sage. The Lord is risen.1 He is not in the grave! He is                           die stormen  overwint . . .
     not dead but He liveth! It is the message that spells                             Nu kniel ik  dankend neer,  ..,
     the victory of the cross, the righteousness of Zion and                           als stil-vertrouwend kind.
     her redemption, the swallowing up of all the dark night
     of sin and transgression, of death and hell.                                      "Mijn  GoU en mijn God,
            It is the message of our  ~justification,  of complete                     m'n harte moet U loven,
     forgiveness and.  adoption !                                                      aanbidden vol ontzag,
            It is the beginning of eternal joy, the first fruits of                    vol Liefde voor  Uw trouw,
     an entire harvest of redeemed of God in Christ Jesus,                             die niemand mij kan rooven.
     our Lord !                                                                                              -Bonna


                                                   T H E-- S T A N-D AR D      B E A R E R                                         319
                              __,_ ___..                                            "..l_-.  -.~                   -  .__...-  --^-  -
     gezongen wordt, zonder dat de gemeente het zelf merkt.                          THE TYPES OF SCRIPTURE
        Daar&n  bieden wij dan ook de synode het volgende
     advies aan :                                                                                   The Sabbath
        Inzake de gezangenkwestie besluit de Synode :
     (a) Thans niet over te gaan tot het invoeren van  gezan-               Having presented the evidence for a, universal Sab-
     gen in den eeredienst harer kerken. (b)  &k geen  com-              bath, we began directing the attention of the reader to
     missie te benoemen om deze zaak in te denken. (c) Maar              the institution as such (see The Standard Bearer of Dec.
     de kerken te vermanen zich in den eeredienst-te  houden             15, 1927). We announced that the matters to which we
     aan de  Psalmen  der Schrift. (d) Tevens de leiders en              desire to attend may be grouped under the following
     kerkeraden te vermanen om tech .vooral  mede te werken,             headings: (a) The Sabbath of Paradise; (b) The Sab-
     om de psalmen  weer in het bewustzijn de; gemeenten te              bath of Canaan; (c) The Sabbath that remained to the
     doen herleven.                                                      people of God; (d) The eternal Sabbath.
.       Gronden :                                                           The author of the epistle to the Hebrews admonishes
        (a) Er is geen behoefte  aan de gezangen naast de                his readers to, lest they thiough unbelief come short of
     psalmen, die ons in de Heilige Schrift  worden  geboden:            the promise, being left of entering into rest.  To  add
        (1)  Er is in die  psalmen  een geestelijke rijkdom,             strength to his warning, he directs the attention of his
     waarin ook het hart der Nie;w-Testamentische  gemeente              readers to the fate qf those who by reason of their unbe-
     zich volkomen kan uitzingen, mits men die psalmen  goed             lief fell in the desert. Thereupon the author asserts that,
     leere verstaan.                                                     according to the divine declaration confirmed by an oath,
        (2) De gemeenten kennen  slechts  zeer weinige der               those who hear do enter the rest. In view of the fact
     psalmen.  Vergelijkenderwijze  worden  er in den  eere-             that the rest of Canaan had been entered by the genera-
     dienst slechts enkele der rijke  psalmen gezongen. De               tion following, those to whom the warning is directed
     gemeente leere eerst den rijkdom der  psalmen  kennen, eer          might inquire whether there remaineth a rest to the people
     ze gaat spreken yan behoefte aan andere liederen.                   of God. The anticipated question the author answers in
        (b) Het  is thans geen tijd om gezangen in te voeren.            the affirmative. There remaineth a rest unto the people
        (1) Omdat het geestelijk leven niet hoog staat. Om               of God. He reasons thus: The believers do enter rest
     geestelijke liederen te zingen  moet een Kerk vol des Hei-          presented in the form of a type (the rest  of  Cariaan)  to
     ligen Geestes zijn.                                                 the obstinate Jews who perished in the wilderness. The
        (2) De kennis der Gereformeerde waarheid staat op                rest entered by those who hear is not that which fol-
     zeer laag peil, zooals we1 blijken mag uit den inhoud der           lowed the completion of the works of creation, for these
     Drie  Punten,  die in 1924 door onze Kerken zijn  aange-            works were finished from the foundation of the world.
     nomen  en pas door ons zijn teruggetrokken.  (Dit  advies           The issuing rest had been entered by the Lord God.
     veronderstelt natuurlijk, dat men ons eerste  advies,  ge-          That preached unto the believers in the wilderness was
     geven in het vorig nummer van ons blad, `reeds heeft                a promised good still to be entered by the Lord God and
     aangenomen. Dat moet eerst.)                                        His people. This is the idea incbrporated  in the assertion :
        (c) De historie leert ons hier een `les :                        "Although His works were finished from  t&e founda-
        (1) De gezangen, die door de Afgescheidenen in  Ne-              tion of the world." Thus a rest other than that of which
     derland werden afgeschaft  waren vol van den geest van              the cessation of God's works of creation was the begin-
     het Remonstrantisme.                          .                     ning was preached  ;nto the Jews in the wilderness.
        (2) En door middel  dier  gezangen vond de dwaling               Whereas God had decreed that some (the elect, who had
     van den vrijen wil gereedelijk  ingang.                             not hardened their hearts) should enter His rest;  and
                                                              H. H.      whereas those to whom it was first preached (the un-
                                            - -                          believing Jews) were shut out, God, after so long a time
                                                                         (four hundred years) says in David (to Israel) : "This
             Hun bloed zal dierbaar zijn in Zijne oogen                  day, this day, if you will hear his voice, harden not your
                             (Ps. 72 :14)                                hearts (but believe and enter the rest)." Whereas this rest
                                                                         was presented to the children of Israel by the Lord God
              Zoo gaat het Christus'  uitvei-koornen   ;                 by the mouth of the prophet David, it follows from the
              Zoo groeit de Ielie onder doornen  ;                       very. nature of the case that the rest meant was not that
              De roos op scherpe  doornenhagen;                          of Canaan. For this rest had long ago been entered. To
              Zoo trekt men zegen uit de plagen.                    .    express ourselves in the words of the holy author: "If
              Geen akkers worden  zoo gezegerid                          Joshua had given them rest then would he not have
              Als Christus' Kerk, van bloed beregend . . . .             spoken of another day?" Hence, whereas some (those
              Dees roode druppels zijn robijnen,                         who hear and harden not their hearts) must enter a rest
              Die bo ven  licht, hier donker schijnen.                   other than that which God entered after having created
              Dit zijn de  rechte lievereien                             heaven and earth, and other than that having been given
              Om d'allervroomsten t' onderscheien.                       them by Joshua; and whereas this rest was not entered
                                                        -Vondel.         by the unbelievers of the wilderness, it follows that a rest


320                                       T H E   S T A N D A R D   B E A R E R
-      -                .-,--- _...                --.^"..l".".              _-_I___~._..-

remaineth to the people of God-the rest, namely,                      The leisure of the weekly day was designed also to
merited and entered by Christ upon the completion of               enable us to receive religious instruction, and to engage
His redemptive labors. It is the rest to which the be-             in sacred duties.  .!4nd in another world there'appears
lievers fall heir at the second coming of Christ - a rest          to be required the opportunity of a perpetual Sabbath
which they even now possess as a primordial good.                  for the same object. It seems  neEessary  to the  veri na-
       Tn this article we desire to direct our attention to        ture of a rational creature to grow whether it be in good
this rest-the eternal rest of Heaven. With this eternal or in evil. God alone is unchangeably and absolutely
rest in our eye we shall the better succeed in laying hold         perfect in intelligence. The angels who have ever beheld
on the meaning and implications of the symbolical day the face of God  a;e still learners. It was the one desire
of rest of the Old Testament and the Sabbath of the                of a good man to dwell in the House of the Lord all the
New Dispensation.                                                  days of his life, that he might behold His beauty and
       There remaineth therefore a rest-the keeping of inquire in  WiS temple. His confident hope was thus
a Sabbath- unto the  peopje  of God. For He that is                expressed, "As for me, I will behold Thy face in right-
entered into His rest, He also hath ceased from  His               eousness: I shall be satisfied when 1 awake with Thy
own works as God did from His.  The rest into which                likeness." And one object of the  Saviour's  desire that
the Redeemer entered was not His lying in the grave,               His followers might be with Him in Heaven to behold
for  this' was part  c.,f His humiliation and subjection to        His glory. If, when they behold in a glass the glory of
the curse of the law, but His rising from  the. dead on            the Lord they are changed unto His image from glory
the third day, for then He begin t6 rest from His labors,          to glory, much more when they see no longer through
and to receive the reward of His work.                             a glass but face to  face.  His servants shall serve Him
       That third day-the first. clay of the week- fitly           and they shall see His face.
became the day of celebration in His kingdom. And                     The law of earth, "Thou shalt love God above all
there remaineth therefore, a rest' unto the people of              and thy neighbor as thyself" is also the law of Heaven.
God --a Sabbatism suited not only  to.+ the Church on              In Heaven it expresses itself, though not in reproof, or
earth, but to the Church in Heaven.                                in words of condolence, or in acts of relief, yet in the
       Acc_ordingly,  second, the happiness of a future state,     benignant eye, in the affectionate voice, in the animating
as unfolded in the Word of God, includes the great ele-            song, in offices of kindness and friendship. The  peni:
ments of a Sabbath Day.                                            tence of  a sinner, the casting out of the great
       Rest is one of these elements. It is, however, rest         dragon, that old serpent, called the Devil and Satan,
as opposed not but to hurry, distraction, toil, uneasiness,        and the destruction of Rabylon,  ale represented in the
pain, distress, weariness. There is accordingly  service-          sacred volume as spreading joy and inspiring songs of
the immediate service of God- as well as rest. "His                praise among the inhabitants of Heaven. The seraphims
servants shall serve Him." They rest not day and night             do not indulge in solitary and selfish joys, but cry one to
saying, "Holy, Holy, Holy,, Lord God Almighty, which another, "Holy. Holy, Holy, is the Lord of Hosts: the
was and is and is to  conic." There is the commemora- whole earth is full of His glory." And in the same spirit
tion of the same works as on earth. Creation is cele-              the nations of them that are saved rejoice in a common
brated by the inhabitants of `Heaven. The four and                 salvation, above all things rejoice in the highness of
twenty elders fell down before Him that sat `upon the              their Lord and Saviour. The Sabbath on earth is a time
throne, and worship Him that liv'eth forever and ever,             consecrated entirely to God, and such, as appears from
and cast  their  crowns before the throne saying, "Thou            words already cited, is the Sabbath of Heaven.
art worthy,  0 Lord, to receive glory, and honor, and                 The Sabbath remaining substantially unchanged,
power ; for Thou hast created all things, and for Thy              attains its highest honors in the world above. There it
pleasure they are and were created."                               must in all time have been known and prized as an instru-
       Redemption is eminently the subject of reme'mbrance         ment of good on earth, but its value in this respect will
and praise. "The four living creatures and the four and            then only be fully seen when its services, as a means of
twenty elders fell down before the Lamb, having every bringing many sons to glory, have been completed.
one of them harps and golden vials full of odors, which            When a building has been finished, the scaffolding is
are the prayers of the saints." And they sung a new                taken down and f&gotten. The great means of its erec-
song saying, "Thou art worthy to take the book, and to             tion was the obedience unto death of Jesus Christ; and
open the seals thereof: for Thou wast slain, and hast              this, we find, divides the interests and the praise of
redeemed us to God by Thy blood out of every kindred,              Heaven with the agency of Him who sitteth upon  the.
and tongue and people, and  n&ion; and hast made us                throne. Even creatures themselves, although only ser-
unto our God kings and priests ; and we shall reign on             viceable as they have  ieceived grace and blessing from
the earth."                                                        the Divine Saviour, are acknowledged and rewarded as
       -One  great end of the day of rest is to afford the         the instruments of turning many to righteousness. And
means of public worship. Such is the worship which                 the Sabbath, too, receives an honor  .which is not con-
pervades everywhere the record of celestial occupations.           ferred on merely positive institutions, in as much as it


                                             T H E   S T A N D A R D   B E A R E R                                     321

  is received into the economy of Heaven- the service `panded on the body, on the acquisition of food and rai- .
 of eternity.                                                   ment, health and perishing objects -engagements,
     In. the glorious rest of the Saviour, the people of God    which, though necessary, and when properly attended to
 liarticipate  when they sit down with Him upon His             profitable to men, and honoring to God, are yet peculiar
 throne. Let these words suffice to describe their condi- to a state of things induced by sin, and are not in them-
 tion : "God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; selves worthy of the capacities of a spiritual and immor-
 and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor tal being. But now they rest from all such labors, and
 crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the          are entirely occupied with services suited to their powers
 former things are passed away. There shall be no more and characters -services such as angels engage in, and
 curse. There shall be  no' night there; and they need no       tending to bring them near to God, .as well as to assimu-
 candle, neither light  of the sun; for the Lord God giveth     late their nature to His.
 them light; and they shall reign forever and ever."               Highest in the scale are the aims and studies of the
     Their worship is perfect. They are without fault.          man who h?s God for his direct vision. So thought David,
 "These are they which come out of great tribulation, and       when he longed to appear before God, preferred a day in
 have washed their robes? and made them white in the            His courts to a thousand, and would have rejoiced as
 blood of the Lamb. Therefore are they before the" throne       we have -already remarked, to spend all the days of his
 of God, and serve Him day and night in His temple: and life in the House of God, beholding His beauty and in-
 He that sitteth on the throne shall dwell among them" quiring in His temple . So judged the apostle Paul, who
  (Rev.  7:14, 15).                                             counted everything but loss for the excellency of the
     `Reading, preaching, prayer in some of its parts, and knowledge of Jesus Christ, his Lord. -So decided the Son
 certain other forms of devotion, are superseded, but of God when He showed His preference of Mary's devout
 praise remains  - that disinterestecl, delightful employ- attention to His instruction above Martha's bustling
 ment of the angels, and of every man who has had  the          care about His personal comfort, and pronounced the
 enmity and selfishness of his heart thawed by the divine object of Mary's choice to be the good part-the one
* grace and love. and been formed in this way to show           thing needful.
 forth God's praise. "The ransomed of the Lord shall               The holiness and benevolence are of the most exalted
 return and come to Zion with songs and  &erlasting joy order. The, Sabbath is  .the Holy of the Lord- a day
 upon their heads."               _     .                       which is to be kept holy - on which we are required to
     The investigation of truth is not peculiar to the final honor Him, not doing our own ways, or finding our own
 condition of the people of God, but it is then conducted pleasure, or speaking our own words, a day for the exer-
 under the best auspices. The first man had the garden to cise of loving kindness, and to be called a delight.
 keep and to dress, and was thus prevented from devoting           But  how much more purely and powerfully, though
 himself entirely to the contemplation of spiritual objects. without any consciousness of vileness, do these feelings
 He.had not God  ai the object of direct vision, or Christ operate in the hearts of the redeemed before the throne,
 as the manifestation of the Divine perfection to behold, who knew so much of the sanctity and majesty of God.
 or the whole universe to study. or the immediate teaching They fall down before Him. They cast their crowns
 of Him who is the light of the world. The redeemed before the throne. Then what ardent love  aid fervent
 again had on earth many disadvantages for inquiry, in gratitude. When the day of judgment has fully disclosed
 an encumbering body, which required so much attention, the destinies of mankind, and  Heaven  has received the
 and by its frailty and cares interrupted the exercise of whole company of the blessed ; .when the work of redemp-
 the mind -in evil tendencies, which diverted the spirit tion in all its parts is finished, Christ will be glorified in
 from its proper engagements, and darkened its  views-          His saints, and admired in all them that  b&ieve.  To sit
 in the many surrounding things which often unprofitably down at the feast of eternity, a feast prepared from the
 occupied the time- and in a thousand duties which foundation of the world, and prepared at such expense -.
 exhausted his strength. The spirit of the just themselves a feast enjoyed in security. while many are without,
 are inferior in this matter to those who after the resur- exposed to all the fury of the tempest of divine indigna-
 rection inhabit the heavenly world, in not having the tion -how glowing must be their love and gratitude to  '
 glorified organs of sense by which to communicate with the Father who chose them, to the Son who bought
 their appropriate objects, and in having neither the com- them, to the Spirit who qualified them for these everlast-
 pleted mystery of God, not the full assembly of holy ing joys. Their enlarged knowledge and deepened humil-
 beings to call forth and sustain their noblest energies. ity have increased their sense of obligation, and their
 From all this we may see how abundant are the advan- growing intelligence and lowliness of mind will increase
 tages whidh men who are delivered in soul and body it forever. Every recollection of sin, every thought of the
 from all evil must have prosecuting the search for truth       misery of the lost, every new view of the greatness and
 in the eternal world. And how superior their pursuits purity `and goodness of God, their Saviour, will impart
to all  bthers, even to many that were laudable and neces- additional warmth to the ardour of tfieir  love and to the
 sary in this life. Much of the time and strength is  ex- fervor of their thankfulness.         *


     322                                             T H E   S T A N D A R D   B E A R E R
                               --.- ..-..- - -.-_

            The service of Heaven is itself to reign. "His servants E R G E R   D A N   GEELKERKEN,   0~  EEN  CTJRIIWS
     shall serve Him" -and "they shall reign forever and                    EXEMPEL VAN SCHRIFTVERKRACHTING
     ever; To serve -by loving supremely Him who is alto-
     gether lovely-by increasing in the knowledge of Him                    Dat is, naar onze meening,  bet 25ste artikel over  HET
     who comprehends in Himself all that is true, great and             BEELD GODS, dat onder het opschrift: "Het  intredeq
     good - and by praising Him who alone is excellent, and             der Gemeene Gratie" in DE HERAUT verscheen,  Zon-
     the author of all being and happiness - this is the high           dag, 19 Februari, 1928, van de hand van Dr. A.  Kuy-
     end of man's existence attained- this is liberty, this is per fr.
     honor,.this  is blessedness, this is perfection. '                     Voor hen., die den inhoud zich  zullen   herinneien  van
            Heaven has facilities formerly unknown  - facilities in wat "VAN ZONDE EN GENADE" bevatte en andere
     the perfect unanimity of the inhabitants respecting its artikelen meer in  onzen  kring  voo; en na gepubliceerd,
     claims and character - in the absence of all internal and zal  veel,  wat voorkomt op het voorblad van  Herautnum-
     outward hindrances to its observance-  is the  place mer 2615 niet vreemd zijn.
     itself, where dwelling on high and in a quiet habitation,              En tech ook zonder dat is (tusschen twee haakjes ge-
     they enjoy perfect security and peace - and where they zegd), nog steeds "Van Zonde en Genade" herlezing
     walk in the light of the temple of which it is said, "The          overwaard.
     glory of God did lighten it, and the Lamb is the light                 Maar de aandacht  willen wij hier vestigen op enkele
     thereof."                                                          sterke staaltjes van aanranding der Waarheid Gods, van
            But it crowns the glory of the  Sibbath in Heaven Schriftgeloofverkrachting, te vinden in genoemd Heraut
     that it is eternal. This is the greatest Sabbath, which artikel van Dr. A. Kuyper Jr.`s 25ste  stuk over "bet Beeld
     has no evening. Its rest, its worship, its society,  its ad- Gods."                                         \
     vancing knowledge, holiness and happiness, are to  be                  Proefjes van "Gemcene Gratie ontwikkeling" zijn het,
     without end. Spirits  replenished  with divine influence, maar die  erger   Sc.hriftverloochening  zijn en afwijking van
     and having bodies endowed with undecaying  heal& and de  aloude  gezonde leer der Gereformeerde Kerken, dan
     strength, will be occupied in services which produce no door Dr. Geelkerken  werden   geleerd  in  verband  met  zijn .
     weariness, and enjoy pleasures which never pall. The opvatting van bet spreken der slang in het Paradijs.
     thought beyond expression great, is gloomy to.men of the
     world, who have their portion in this life. Transporting                De  als  zeer  geleerd  bekend staande schrijver in De
     to such as David, who expected to dwell in the house of Heraut,  de zoon die in de voetstappen zijns "eminenten"
     the Lord forever, and to sing praises to God while he vaders  wandelt  wat  hct geloof aan de Neo-Calvinistische
     had  an; `being. To such, too, as the apostle, who  fel! leer der  Gemeene.Gratie  betreft, begint het artikel dat wij
     that he could administer no stronger consolation to sor- bedoelen, met te zeggen: "Ware er  niets bijzonders  ge-
     rowing Christians than to say-"and so we shall ever be beurd, dan zou, onmiddelijk na den zondeval van Adam
     with the Lord."                                                    en Eva in het Paradijs, het oordeel Gods zijn ingetreden
                                                           G. M. 0.     en de straf des Heeren in  voile  zwaarte op den mensch
                                                                        zijn neergekomen. Dat wil zeggen, dan zouden  Adam en
                                                                        Eva den dood gestorven zijn . . . . .
                                                                            "MaBr  ge weet, zoo is het niet geschied . . . . .
                         LIEFDE TOT GOD
-                                                                           "God de Heere kwam tusschenbeide met de Gemeene
                                                                        Gratie, een genade den gevallen mensch  als mensch  bewe-
                   Doof des Kernels klaarheid uit,                      zen (Men vergunne ons hier reeds op te merken: Wat
                   Ik zal mijn God beminnen:                            bedoelt de schrijver met die uitdrukking,  "als mensch be-
                   Dat de He1 heur kaken sluit',                        wezen"  ?       Wordt ook den gevallen mensch op andere
                   `k Zal Hem  tech beminnen:                           wijze,  als dier of  engel, nog genade bewezen?) waardoor
                                                                        de zonde werd  beteugeld,  de vloek werd bedwongen, en
                   Zij de dood een eeuwig graf,                         de dood werd uitgesteld . . . . . Zonder.het  intreden van de
                   `k Zal Hem  tech beminnen:                           Gemeene Gratie had de menschheid  zich niet kunnen  ont-
                  Neem  mij hoop en uitzicht af,                        wikkelen, kon de historie haar loop onmogelijk  begin-
                   `k Zal Hem  tech beminnen.                           n e n . . . . . .
                   Ncen,  geen Hemel  is mijn  doel;                        "Maar er is meer !
                   Neen, geen eeuwig strafgewoel                             "Niet alleen  dat Gods volk op aarde leven  en zijn taak
                                                                        vervullen  Iran, dank zij de Gemeene Gratie, maar ook dit
                   Speelt mij door de zinnen !                          wordt verkregen, dat God Zijn hooge eere tegenover Sa-
                   Neen, verdwijnen vreugd en smart,                    tan handhaaft . . . . .
                   `t Eigen wezen  van mijn hart                            "Fens  als de .genade  ten volle zal doorbreken, ook in
                   Is mijn God beminnen!                                het rijk der natuur, dan vloeien Gemeene Gratie en Par-
                                                     -W. Bilderdijk     tikpliere  Genade ineen . . . . .


                                                  THE  S T A N D A R D   B E A R E R                                                  327
                                                       -_^

 a    THE  PLAIN TRUTH ABOUT THE INSTITUTION                                selves aggrieved by the sentence of the Consistory, the
                       OF CHRIST'S CHURCH                                   Classis  or  the Synod,-and until a decision is made upon
                                                                            such an appeal, we shall acquiesce in the determination
                 Or, Can a  Classis Depose a Consistory?                    and judgment already passed."

          A certain reader informed me that the term FOR-                       As was before said, G. Hoeksema repeatedly appeals
      MULA OF SUBSCRIPTION puzzled him. He said he                          to the above document in support of the contention that
      knew not what the term signified. Whereas there may be the refusal on the part of the aggrieved office-bearers (H.
      more such readers we present a brief word of explanation.             Danhof, H. Hoeksema, etc.) to "subscribe to certain
      The FORMULA OF SUBSCRIPTION is a document                             synodical decisions (the three points) amounted to a
      which- newly-installed  o!Xice-bearers  (Professors, Minis- breach of a promise made by the act of signing the FOR-
      ters of the Gospel, Elders, Deacons) are requested to                 MULA OF SUBSCRIPTION; that, consequently, the
      sign. As constituents of a Classis  and a Synod, Ministers            deposition of the aforesaid office-bearers was right and
      of the Gospel and Elders are again asked to attach their              just.
      signature to this document, which reads as follows:                       What a nauseating perversion of the truth!! For, as
        c "We, the undersigned, Professors of the Christian                 was before said (see former articles); the FORMULA
      Reformed Church (Protestant Reformed Church), Minis-                  OF `SUBSCRIPTION makes no mention of classical and
      ters of the Gospel, Elders and Deacons of the Protestant              synodical decisions, but of certain doctrines; those,
      Reformed congregation of... .___-.____  _ ______________I  --.-----I--)  of the namely, signified by the term AFORESAID DOC-
      Classis of ..-..-----------------------.--`,  do hereby sincerely     TRINES. The office-bearer signing the FORMULA
      and in good conscience before, the Lord, declare by this,             OF SUBSCRIPTIQN declares by his subscription, that
      our subscription, that we heartily believe and are per-               he heartily believes and is persuaded not that past and
      suaded  that all the articles  anh points  of  doctrine, contained present day classical and synodical decisions or any de-
      .in the  Confession'an'd Catechism  of  the Reformed Churches,        cision which a present-day  Classis  or Synod may feel
      together  with the explanation  of  some points  of  the aforesaid constrained to make, fully agree with the Word of God,
      doctrine, made by the  flational  Synod  of  Dordrecht,  f618-1.9,    but that the articles and points of doctrine, contained in
      do fully agree with the Word of God.                                  the Confession and Catechism of the Reformed Churches,
          "We promise, therefore, diligently to teach and faith-            together with the explanation of some points of the afore-
' fully to defend the aforesaid doctrine, without either said doctrine, made by the national Synod of Dordrecht,
      directly or indirectly contradicting the same by our public           161%`19,  do fully agree with the Word of God. This
      preaching or writing.                                                 doctrine the office-bearer promises, by his subscription,
          "We declare, moreover, that we not only reject all                to teach and to faithfully defend without either directly
      errors  that  niilitate against this doctrine and particularly. or indirectly contradicting the same by public preaching
      those which were condemned by the above mentioned                     or writing.  -Should  any difficulties and different senti-
      Synod, but that we are disposed to refute and contradict              ments respecting these doctrines arise in his mind, the
      these, and to exert ourselves in keeping the Church free office-bearer, by his subscription, promises that he will
      from such errors. And if hereafter any difficulties or                neither publicly nor privately propose, teach or defend
      different sentiments respecting the aforesaid doctrines               the same, either by preaching or writing until he has
      should arise in  -our minds, we promise that we will                  first revealed such sentiments to the Consistory,  Classis
      neither publicly nor privately propose, teach, or defend              or Synod, that the same may be there examined, being
      the same, either by preaching or writing, until we have ready always cheerfully to submit to the judgment of
      first revealed such sentiments to the Consistory,  Classis            the Consistory,  Classis or Synod, under the  penaIty in
      and Synod, that the same may be there examined, being case of refusal to be, by that very fact, suspended from
      *ready always cheerfully to submit to the judgment of the             his office.
      Consistory,  Classis  and Synod under the penalty {in case               In the attempt to justify our deposition, G. Hoeksema,
      of refusal to be, by  that  very act, suspended from our              we said, appeals to the Formula of Subscription. He
      office.                                                               reasons thus: "A Consistory that refuses to obey classi-
          "And further, if at any time the Consistory, Classis  or cal and synodical decisions must be deposed. For this
      Synod, upon sufficient grounds of suspicion and to pre-               Consistory agreed either to render this obedience or be
      serve the uniformity and purity of doctrine, may deem it              deposed. It did so when it submitted to the Formula of
      proper to require of us a further explanation of our senti-           Subscription." It is plain that G. Hoeksema's reasoning
      ments respecting any particular article of the Confession is terribly fallacious; that his booklet is a fraudulent
      of Faith, the Catechism, or the explanation of the                    composition ; that his appeal to the Formula of Subscrip-
      National Synod, we do hereby promise to be always will-               tion is vain; that his defense of the action taken against
      ing and ready to comply with such requisition, under the              the aggrieved office-bearers is a failure ; that in his book-
      penalty above mentioned, reserving for ourselves, how- let G. Hoeksema is engaged in drawing the fleece over
      ever, the right of appeal, whenever we shall believe our- the eyes of his readers. For the fact is that the deposed


 328                                          T H E   S T A N D A R D   B E A R E R
 ~.....                                 _-           _ ____.  _ _^._..,I" .._..- _..-                -__                                _-..._____
  office-bearers did not, by their subscription, agree to                                    axiom that any tie voluntarily established could
 obey classical and synodical decisions or to keep them-                          L          also be severed at will.
  selves to rhe  mode of voicing a grievance outlined by                                 Hoeksema informs his readers that the view incor-
 the Formula when aggrieved by a classical or synodical                         porated in the proposition he criticises  is of the late Dr.
  decision. Was not G. Hoeksema at the time he urged                            A. Kuyper and H.  IX  Iiuyper. In support of his asser-
  Classis  to depose us aware of the fact that the signing of                   tion he adduces two selections from the writings of these
 the Formula of Subscription could not be adduced as a                          men. Lifted out of their surroundings and characterized
 ground for the deposition of office-bearers whose only by extreme brevity, these selections may not be received
  sin(?) was that they felt themselves aggrieved by  cer-                       as so much proof for the contention that the view em-
  tain synodical decisions (the three points)  ?  G. Hoekse- bodied in the above proposition is of the Kuypers. As
  ma knew for he was told that he had struck out on a                           to the proposition as such, we, too, seriously object to it.
 wrong path. Classis  Grand Rapids East also knew. Like-                        It is not true that ecclesiastical ties may be severed be-
  wise the Faculty of the Seminary of the Christian  Re-                       cause they rest  07t  voluntary consent. The voluntariness
 iormcd Churches recommending the action taken.                                of the act of joining ,a church as such cannot possibly
                                                                .              serve as a ground .for severing an ecclesiastical tie. If a
        We now let follow a brief outline of G. Hoeksema's                     seceder, (common member, office-bearer `or consistory)
 brochure ; a skeleton of his entire argumentation ; a map                     has no better reason for cutting through the tie binding
 of the path of his reasoning. With this map in our eye him to a church, he had better permit this tie to remain
 we may learn where we are, and what we have accom-                            intact. Confessing Christ land placing myself under His
 plished in the way of razing his thought-structure.                           jurisdiction is a  voluntary act.  Would the voluntariness
     The opening paragraph of the second chapter may be                        of this act serve as a grounds for my withdrawing myself
 regarded as a statement of the issue G. Hoeksema strove                       from under Christ's jurisdiction? Impossible. We do
to prove. It reads:                                                            not believe that A. Kuyper taught this. From the quo-
           Resolved that Classis  or Synod must depose a Con-                  tations we gather that in the articles quoted from Kuyper .
     sistory that refuses to obey classical and synodical                      is pleading for religious liberty, and expresses as his con-
        decisions.                                                             viction that neither the state nor the Church may, by the
     The proposition Hoeksema strove to disprove reads                         application of physical force, compel men to enter and
  (p. 16) :                                                                    restrain men from withdrawing from the Church. In a
           Resolved that the recalcitrant Consistory, by its                   word, the Church may not persecute its members for
     refusal to obey, itself severs the denominational  tie.                   withdrawing. Censure applied to a consistory for having
     The Classis  then merely officially recognizes this state severed the denominational. tie is religious persecution
        of  atfairs and deprives the Consistory of the rights of the purest wool.                           Imposing upon this consistory a
     and privileges of denominational fellowship, but per- pecuniary penalty is, likewise, religious persecution of the
     mits, it to remain in office and to retain all the rights                 purest wool. Such doings Kuyper denounces. The prop-
        and privileges belonging to its office.                                osition in question stands then if it be interpreted to
     In setting forth and elucidating his views G. Hoekse-                     mean that whereas the Church may not by the application
 ma sets out by taking the offensive. That is to say, he                       of physical force compel men to enter it, it (the Church)
 assails the three propositions from which (according to may not forcibly restrain men from withdrawing. This
 Hoeksema) the view to the effect that a  Classis  has no                      G. Hoeksema did not disprove, nor can, he.
 power to depose a Consistory, proceeds. The first of                                    Confident that he disproved the proposition in ques-
 these propositions reads :                                                    tion, G. Hoeksema submits his objections to the view that
           Ecclesiastical ties rest on voluntary consent, and                  a consistory may withdraw from that organization known
     can, therefore, legitimately be severed when it is so                     as the Christian Reformed Church. Says he:
     desired. .                                                                          (1) The divine character of the institution of the*
     Against this view G. Hoeksema submits the follow-                                      !(Christian  Reformed) Church forbids and con-
 ing objections :                                                                            demns all separation from it.
        (1) Even the premise from which the whole argument                               (2) To withdraw from the institution of the Chris-
            proceeds is not correct. Not all ecclesiastical ties                             tian Reformed Church (denomination) is a ter-
            are the result of a voluntary act. Baptized mem-                                 rible denial of the kingship of Christ.
         - bers are members of the church institute, even                                (3) Article XXVIII of our Confession plainly teaches
            though incomplete members. And yet all must                                      that a consistory may not withdraw from the
            agree that baptized members never become such                                    Christian Reformed Church.
            through a voluntary act.                                                     We (G., M. 0.) inserted the term Christian Reformed.
        (2) Even if we waive this point for the sake of argu-                  In doing so we faithfully reproduce the real teaching of
            ment, the conclusion contained in the above quo-                   the pages 22-21  of his booklet (see former articles).
            tations does not follow from the premise. This                               The above assertions (the three last presented) are
            would be the case only if it were an absolute                      absurdly incorrect, false.         For (1) the Christian  Re-
                                                                                                                                        ,


                                          T H E   S T A N D A R D   B E A R E R                                                         329
                                                         -..--~I_                                                         - ----..___  - .._.
 formed denomination is but one of the several denomi-              which the view to the effect that Classis  may not depose
  nations or groups of churches constituting the Church             a Consistory is supposed to proceed. The proposition
 universal -- the Church of Jesus Christ,. The term "di-            reads : " Tlte institution. of the Church is purely local."  I&v-
 vine character" is, therefore, applicable not only to the          ing established, so he imagines ( ?) that a Consistory,  re-
  Christian Reformed Church or Churches but to every                fusing to obey classical and synodical decisions does not
 local church or group of churches belonging to the body            sever the denominational tie and may not be permitted to
 of Christ. It follows then (see former articles) that (1)          withdraw,  G.  floeksema. will now show that it is the
  the divine character of the Christian Reformed Church             business of the  Classis  (not of the congregation) to de-
 does not forbid and condemn separation from it; (2) that           pose this Consistory. G. Hoeksema set& out by assailing
  the withdrawal from the institution of the Christian Re-          the proposition to the effect that the institution of the
 formed Church (I am using  C. Hoeksema's terminology)              Church is purely l&al. Says he: "The second fundamen-
  is not a terrible denial of the Kingship of Christ; (3)           tal proposition upon which the view which we oppose is
  that article XXVIII of our Confession  Joes  ,not teach           based, is the conception of the institute of the Church as
  that a consistory may not withdraw from the Christian             local and local only. That is, there is no organization $
 Reformed Church providing the withdrawing consistory               the world but the local congregation that can correctly
  together with its flock establishes itself elsewhere as a         be called the Church of Christ" (p. 26 of the brochure).
 church of Jesus Christ or joins another group of churches          Hoeksema now presents the various conclusions thai fol-
  partaking of the character of the divine.                         low from what he correctly calls this  fuqdamental  con-
     It was pointed out that G. Hoeksema himself agrees             ception.
 to these things. Says he: "By the foregoing we do not                 (a) The denomination, or the church as a whole, may
 mean, of course, to deny to members the right to depart                        not be called a church.
  to some other evangelical church. By so doing,  thei- do             (b) The denomination is not a union of churches into
 not withdraw from the church of Jesus Christ, they                             a larger church but a mere confederation.
  mertly seek affiliations elsewhere . . . . But as long as            (c) It follows from  <all this that there is an essential
 affiliations are sought with a Church that we can recog-                       distinction between the authority of the Consis-
  nize as a part of the great body of Christ, those who leave                   tory on the one hand, and that of  Classis  and
 are not withdrawing from the true Church.             And the                  Synod on the other.
 protestant principle of pluriformity forbids  I the exercise          (d) Since the church as an institute is purely local,
of discipline leading to excommunication  (I'. 23, 24 of                        it is only in the local church that men can and do
 the brochure).                                                                 exercise their authority as office-bearers.
     In thg above paragraph, strange to say, G. Hoeksema               (ej It follows from the views thus presented, that
 repudiates the teachings of the preceding section of his                       there can be no real subjection of Consistory to
 brochure, yea, the teachings of his entire booklet.                            Classis  and Synod, for the Church of Jesus Christ
     Thus it appears that already in the second chapter                         may not bow to any body or gathering not clothed
 of his booklet, G. Hoeksema lost the argument. Let us.                    ' with real ecclesiastical authority.
  make our meaning clear. What action, so he asks, must                (f) The confederation that is established is purely
 be taken with respect to a consistory that refuses to obey                     voluntary, and can be severed at will.
  classical and synodical decisions?     Hoeksema has but              (g) The right of the Consistory to withdraw carries
 two answers : (1) Classis must depose this Consistory or                       with it the right to keep the local church property.
  (2) This Consistory with its individual members must be              (hj The judgment of th'e local Consistory is in the last
 permitted to withdraw, if it so desires, with full retention                   analysis binding law in the Church.
" of all the rights and privileges belonging to their office.          (i) The refusal on the part of a Consistory to obey
 G. Hoeksema expresses as his conviction that a Consis-                         classical and synodical decisions is not rebellion
 tory may not be permitted to withdraw but must be de-                          or revolution. It is a right guaranteed by the
 posed by the  Classis. He thereupon attempts to prove                          contract.
 that a Consistory may not withdraw. The attempt, so                   (j) A consistory may reject classical and synodical
 it appears, ends in a dismal failure.         Fact  is that the                decisions according to ecclesiastical law.
 entire argumentation yields nothing but one conclusion                In chapter 8, G. Hoeksema directs the attention of his
 - the conclusion, namely, that a Consistory (together readers to the last of the three propositions, from which
 with its flock) must indeed be permitted to sever for the views which he  criticises,  proceed. The proposition
 conscience's sake the tie binding it to the Christian Re-          reads : "Ecclesiastical authority, in the first instance and
 formed Churches and to leave as a Consistory. It  follows          in the last analysis, resides with the congregation, not
 then that  Classis   m"y not depose this Consistory. This          with the office-bearer."
 matter was adequately explained in preceding articles.                Hoeksema presents the conclusions following from
     Seemingly unaware of the state of  af?airs  described          this conception :
 above, G. Hoeksema in the following chapter of his book;              (a) Ecclesiastical power is originally in the hands of
 let lays hold on the second of the three propositions from                 the people.


                                                                                        .


330                                        T H E   S T A N D A R D   B E A R E R
--_l_.--l--..^.               -.II_  -....-.-  -                          __-.-.-_,.____              - - -
       (b) The Consistory receives  it.from the  people.               remain separate distinct bodies, having nothing
       (c)  The latter can withdraw it when they see fit.              to say over each other, and under Christ, sover-
       (d) The congregation deposes the Consistory.  '                 eign in their own sphere.
   The  coriclusions  enumerated above constitute a dis-           (d) The nature and character of the authority of a
torted skeleton of a system of church government that is               Classis  over a Consistory is the authority of an
truly Reformed. The signification G. Hoeksema uses to                  ecclesiastical governing body over  one of its mem-
designate this system is "The Doleantie Theorie.,' It is               bers.     And since all ecclesiastical governing
well. A distorted skeleton,  I said. It is the truth.  For             authority involves the right of censure, a Classis
the above scheme is a mixture of truth and untruth, and                (as also a Synod) has the right to censure a Con-
degenerates in places into a caricature.                              .sistory that refuses to abide by the decisions of
   The peculiarities of the system G. Hoeksema de-                     the church body into which it has been incorpo-
nounces are exaggerated, twisted from their natural                    rated.
shape so as to produce a ludicrous effect. We call atten-          (e) Several fundamental principles are involved (we
tion to the following: The statement to the effect that                are quoting Hoeksema) in the preceding state-
according to the so-called doleantie system there can be               ments.
no real subjection of Consistory to  Classis  and Synod is             (1) The authority of  Classis  is ecclesiastical
untrue. Likewise the assertion that the judgment of the             authority. Van Lonkhuyzen and others would
local Consistory is in the last analysis binding law in the            lower the authority of  Classis  and Synod to that
church.      That the confederation established' is purely            of bodies through which  a federation exercises a
voluntary and can be severed at will is untrue in the sense            limited authority over those co-operating with it.
in which G. Hoeksema explains it.                                    And the chief thing to be said of such a  iedera-
   True enough, the above scheme is constituted of                     tion authority is that it does not involve the right
statements several of which are expressive of conceptions             of ecclesiastical censure. A very logical position,
upon which the so-called doleantie system of church                    it must be admitted, if.the premise is correct that
government is based. Hoeksema tries hard to discredit                 the major  assemblies  are merely bodies through
these conceptions. His delineations of them are meant to              which a federation seeks to maintain itself and
arouse distrust for the dreaded doleantie system. How                 to perform its work. But that is the point to be
Reformed thinkers could ever arrive at such views is a                 proved. (We shall prove it. G. M. 0.).
conundrum to him. Says he: "The question inevitably                    (2) The individual Consistory is elected to serve,
arises, and is worthy of a mament's consideration, how                 not merely as a local Consistory, guiding and con-
Reformed thinkers could ever arrive at such views?                    trolling local affairs, but also as a member  of the
From a careful study of this strange  ph-enomenon,  we                larger Consistory,  wk call the  Classis.  That is
have formed the opinion that the first wrong step taken               part of the duties of its office. Just as soon as it
in this direction was a wholly unwarranted explanation                 refuses to act as such, it makes itself liable to sus-
of Article 31 of our Church Order  ibrochure p.  33)."                pension and deposition. It  can no more refuse to
Hoeksema now proceeds to make sport of this explana-                  act as a member of the ecclesiastical.  hod{, that
tion. At some other juncture, when engaged in a posi-                  is refuse to submit to its decisions, and remain in
tive development of the principles of Reformed Church                 office, than can the individual elder leave the  Con-
government, we shall find occasion to attend closely to               sistory and take his office along with him.
G. Hoeksema's reasoning respecting Article 31 and to               (3) The Consistory must obey  Classis  always.
his entire unwholesome at tack upon Reformed  Church               (4) A Consistory, aggrieved by a classical decision
P o l i t y .                                                         has the right of protest. In any'given case, how-
                                                                      ever, the  Classis,  after careful consideration and
   We now present the outstanding features of G. `Hoek-               reconsideration must' claim that its doctrines are
sema's thought-structure.                                             conform to the Word of God, and therefore it
       (a) The Christian Reformed denomination is a visible            must ask acceptance and submission of all its
           organization.                                              members. And' refusal to submit would be from
       (bj  Ciassis and Synod are of necessity permanent              the viewpoint of the Church rebellion (p. 77).
           combinations of consistories. The believers of a        (5) All the (Consistory) members individually must
           larger territory can be called a church because            always vote to subject themselves to the judg-
           the local. Consistories are joined together into a         ment of  Classis.   IZnd that means, of course, that
           permanent body. They are permanently joined                the body can never by a majprity  of votes legally
           together by classical and  synodical  ties. They           refuse obedience (p. 63).
           are incorporated into a larger  whole,  Classis  and    (6) Let no one suppose that our view does violence
           Synod, And these are for their sphere and terri-           to the freedom of conscience (p. 77).
           tory, permanent governing bodies  (P. 47).              (7) A Consistory may never legally withdraw in that
       (c) For all local matters the-individual Consistories          it deems the breach between the Christian  Re-


                                                     T H E - S T A N D A R D   B E A R E R                                                           331
     -..--                                -_.... _ __.- 1111--I .._ _______I _.-".-.-.--l .-- .---....__.. -..-_--  _-_____-
                  formed Church and the truth too wide to remain.               niet hun macht deponeeren in of overdragen op men-'
                  Withdrawing, it is penalized, that is, deposed and            schen, die haar dan bezitten zonder haar als organen  uit
                  relieved of its properties (p. 35).                           te oefenen.      De weg  der kerkrechtelijke  gemeente-sou-
              (8)  Classis  may depose a Consistory  even without  th.e         vereiniteit is gevaarlijk, en verzet tegen den geest des
                  consent of the local congregation.  (Outrageous  !)
                                                           v                    tijds is gebiedend noodzakelijk. De openbaring der
                  See page 47.                                                  Schrift,  volgens welke  Christus zijn macht van  denVa-
              (9) Classis  and Synod do not become a sort of foreign            der ontving, die op de apostelen leide, welke apc&eLen  op'
                  human  "bestuursmacht"  superimposed upon the                 bun  beurt  d e   ambtsdragers   in  d e   plaatselijk  k e r k e n   wee7
                  Church of Jesus Christ, for the organization is the           <met  macht bekleedden. Degenen die onze vraag  ontken-
                  sum total of churches constituting the denomina-              nend beantwoorden meenen  dat de eenig juiste methode
                  tion (p. 66).                                                 in de behan'deling van een kerkeraad die in verzet komt
        (10) The right of withdrawal for conscience's sake is                   in laatster instantie deze is, dat de gemeente  zich  eenvou-
                  not  a right guaranteed by the contract (p. 36).              dig onttrekt, en dat conform hieraan ook de  Classis  de
                   `RIGHTS OF THE-CONGREGATION                                  gemeenschap met zulk een onwaardigen kerkeraad  een-
              (1) Ecclesiastical power resides in the first and last            voudig moet afbreken. Deze procedure schijnt  eenvou-
                  instance with the office-bearers and ,not with the            dig,  maar komt  op  uit  beginselen  die niet  aannemelijk  zijn
                  brotherhood (p. 84).                                          . . . . De zuivere beschouwing  (?) dit punt is  dat men
              (2) The congregation does not depose a Consistory.                door het ambt met het ambt  bekleed moet  worden  (wat men
              (3) In the event a Consistory must be deposed, all                gewoonlijk bevestiging heet), en evenzoo  ook, waar bleek
                  authority to depose is in the hands of Classis  and           dat men het ambt onwaardig werd, door het ambi uit het
                  Synod. The congregation has nothing, to say as                ambt ontzet moet  worden  . . . . Het zeggen, dat de  ge-
                  to what shall be done to its Consistory. It (the              meente als zoodanig handelend moet optreden, wanneer
                  congregation) is bound hand and foot. Its power               een kerkeraad als- geheel tuchtwaardig wordt, gaat uit
                  is merely the  .duty to obey. And even then you               van de onderstelling, dat het ambt der geloovigen  insti-
                  will look in vain for any such power given to the             tutair van aard is en dat het institutair optreedt zoodra
                  congregation in our official Church Order (p. 86).            onder abnormale omstandigheden een kerkeraad nalatig
                  Thus far G. Hoeksema.                                         is in de  uitoefening,van  zijn ambt. Deze beschouwing
         Thus we have traced the outstanding features of the                    wortelt principieel in de gedachte dat de kerkrechtelijke
     system of church government which G. Hoeksema would                        macht van  Christus in de gemeente op de ambtsdragers
     see adopted and inaugurated.              As was before said, in           wordt overgedragen. Hiertegen  echter  verrijzen  bezwa-
     that circle where Hoeksema's views prevail, the term ren van ernstigen aard . . . . .  Als de meerderheid van
     religious liberty becomes a mockery and a byword ; believ- een kerkeraad tuchtwaardig wordt, blijft er geen  kerke-
     ers having the unction of the Spirit of Christ and there-                  raad over  om een naburigen kerkeraad uit te noodigen,
     fore knowing all things are treated as spiritual minors,                   en met dien naburigen kerkeraad tucht te oefenen over
     reduced to mere puppets, bound hand and foot and lashed                    degenen die  zich  date waardig maakten. Kan men  -dan
     iuto silence.                                                              van zulk een kerkeraad dan-geen  actie verwachten, ook
         Vicious and cruel as the grave is the machinery                        de gemeente kan niet in kerkrechtelijken zin handelend
     of church government which Hoeksema would see                              optreden,  omdat het haar  aan kerkrechtelijke macht  ont-
     installed. Set it in motion, and you revive in essence                     breekt.  Ook kan een naburige`kerk, eigener beweging,
     the Roman Inquisition with all its attending horrors.                      niet ingrijpen in de interne aangelegenheden eener  an-
     It is this machine which, installed and set in motion by                   dere plaatselijke kerk. Dit  "tech, is uitdrukkelijk  verbo-
*    Classis  Grand Rapids West, mauled and ground out of                       den in K. O., Art. 84. Uiteraard kan alleen de  Classis,
     the Christian Reformed Church the Consistories of Kala-                    waaronder  zulk een ontrouwe kerkeraad ressorteert,  als
     mazoo I and Hope Riverbend. See my preceding arti- de naast breedste kerkelijke vergadering de noodige tucht
     cles in which these matters were dwelt upon at length                      oefenen.     Zoo niet alle kerkeraadsleden op den kwaden
     and fully explained.                                                       weg meegaan, kunnen de overgeblevenen de zaak  aan-
              And yet, it is this machine which the faculty of the              hangig maken bij de Classis,  of zoo we1 al de kerkeraads-
     seminary of the Christian Reformed Church helped to                        leden  meegaan kunnen de leden  der gemeente krachtens
     install in the aforesaid Classis. Upon the installation of het ambt'der geloovigen dit  doen. In geval ook de leden
     this machine the Synod of 1926 placed its stamp of ap-                     zulks  niet  doen, dan  is de  Classis  zelve  geroepen handelend
     proval. It was a description of this machine which Prof.                   optetreden.J' So far Volbeda.
     Volbeda submitted to the Synod of 1926 for approval.                           Attend closely to the last clause. Also according to
     Attend to the following selections taken from his report. Volbeda,  Classis must depose a Consistory even without
              "De Godsregeering hier op aarde zooals die weer op                the consent of the local congregation. It appears from the
     zijn benrt gegrond is  in, de souvereiniteit des  Allerhoog-               above selections, that Volbeda's system of church gov-
     stem God en ook  Christus  als God kunnen  we1 hun ernment differs not from  that'of G. Hoeksema.
     macht middellijk uitoefenen door menschen, maar kunnen                         G. Hoeksema has the audacity to maintain that his


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I

     332                                      T H E   S T A N D A R D   B E A R E R
     _II .._-...         --..._ - ..-            -.-.--... ..______l__l_l_  ._-_ - ..--.....-.                                     -

     `principles of church government are so many extrac-              menschelijk  Ieven,  indien niet eerst en  vooral  gezorgd
     tions from; such documents as the Confession, the                 werd voor de voortbrenging van een beter menschenras,
     Fbrmula  of Subscription. He avers that the Kerkenorde-           verklaarde hij.
     ning yields exactly these views and none other. Says he :             En het tegenwoordige voornaamste en hoogststaande
     It is time that we here in America do a little thinking           type van het  menschenras   bracht   zijn  eigen   type  niet
     of our own, and try to dig our way through the  confus-           voort.    Integsndeel,  het  bracht   @nderwaardigen   voort ;
     `ing mass of opinions and quotations and so-called prin- en de lagere klassen der menschheid en de zwakzinnigcn
     ciples until we again have firm ground under our feet.            kregen al meer levensverlenging en bestendigheid op den
     To this task we have set ourselves in this brochure. We duur.
     do not propose merely to gil-e a practical answer to the              Daarom moest  aan het huwen van de menschen al
     practical question, whether  Classis  or Synod can depose grooter moeilijkheid worden  in den weg gelegd; en wan-
     a Corisistory. Still  l&s do we intend to prove our point         neer een huwelijk  werd gesloten moest door de wet wor-
     merely by quotations from authorities and nothing more. den bepaald, dat de  "echt"  minstens 25  jaren  in stand
     Let us face the plain fact that our authorities are repu-         moest blijven, of ten minste voor een tijdperk, voldoende
     diating their own theories. And the brighter side of this om de  kinderen  die verkregen  waren,  tot volwassenheid
     rather discouraging and confusing phenomenon is this              en rijphejd te brengen en op te  voeden.        '
     that we will now get back to our o@ial  documents, to our
     Confession, our Church Order, and last but not least, our             Onderscheidene gedachten kwamen bij ons op,  toen
     Formula of Subscription (brochure p. 14).                         wij deze anti-christelijkheden en goddeloosheden,  vcr-
            Let me say in passing that if it were true that Hoek-      mengd met waarheden en feiten, lazen in het nieuwsblad.
     sema's principles of church gbvernment  can be extracted              Steeds is beweerd b.v., door de wetenschap zonder
     from the aforesaid documents, I would, with all my                God, dat onderwijs,  altoos  maar  meer, en uitgcbreider.
     heart, repudiate these documents.                                 en hooger onderwijs,  `maar dan  "neutraal,"  de  mensch-
            In our next article we enter upon a positive develop- heid vrij, tevreden, beter.en gelukkiger  zou  maken.
     ment of the principles of Reformed Church government.                 Nu, het geluk der menschheid, ook van onze natie,
     We shall begin rearing a thought-structure which is Re- last,  naar  het zeggen der "autoriteiten," en volgens den
     formed, simultaneously appraising the one reared by  G. inhoud der nieuwsbjaden,  die immers een getrouwe reflec-
     Hoeksema and Valbeda in so far as this has not been               tie zijn of moeten  zijn van het volksleven en het mensch-
     done. It will become clear that G. Hoeksems's explana- heidsbestaan dag  aan dag,  veel te wenschen over.
     tions of the articles of our Confession and of the Church             En wat de deugd en kloekheid en kracht van het hui-
     Order do not measure up to the standard's truth.                  dige menschenras aangaat, Dr.  Warthin verklaart  open-
                                                     G. M. 0.          lijk, dat het hoogststaande type van den  modernen  tijd
                                                                       onder de menschen, vrucht van de toepassing der eerder
     DE LEER VAN "DE VERGEVING VAN  ZONtiEN"                           gemelde  waantheoritn, niets goeds oplevert  voor de lijfe-
            OORZAAK VAN DE ONTAARDING VAN                              lijke  en geestelijke  versterking,  het zuiverder en gezond
     ,                   HET MENSCHENRAS                               worden,  van het menschenras.
                                                                           Gelijk reeds lang geleden  ook in Nederland we1 werd
            Dr. Alfred Scott  Warthin, professor in de leer der        opgemerkt, onder de families der dusgenaamde beschaaf-
     ziekten  aan de `Universiteit van  hIichigan  te Ann Arbor,       de, ontwikkelde, en voorname  standen,   worden  heel wat
     heeft onlangs in een samenkomst van studenten aldaar zvakzinnigen,  idioten, krankzinnigen, gedegenereerden.
     een lezing gehouden over e&n soort van "biological sin" en andere ziekten en zwakken naar verstand en Iichaam
     (letterlijk  vertaald: zonde in verband  met de wetenschap`                                  .
                                                                       gevonden.
     van het levenj, welke zonde zou  \-erwekt  zijn door  het-            Dat door het verkeerde  voorbeeld  der "hoogeren,"
     leerstuk van de vergeving der zonden, volgens den pro- en het slecht voorgaan der rijkeren de  arme en  lagere
     fessor, en  yvelke  leer groote  schade  had gedaan  aan het klassen der maatschappij niet steeds  100 percent  bleed-
     menschelijk ras of aan de menschheid. .waardoor  bijvoor-         rijke, veerkrachtige en kerngezonde  kinderen   voort-
     beeld niet dan inferieurs  (laag staande)  kinderen   wer-        brachten, is, in aanmerking genomen voorts de levensom-
     den geboren.                                                      standigheden onder deze  griote,  kringen der meest  tal-
            En in  verband  met dit FEIT, altijd volgens' den heer rijken en vruchtbaren, geen wonder te noemen.
     . professor, zou Dr.  Warthin gaarne zien, dat er strenger            Tech is het een feit, dat de strevers, de leiders, de
     huwelijks- en echtscheidingswetten werden gemaakt.                durvers, de helden,  de baanbrekers, de werkers, op aller-
            Volgens dezen geleerden heer is alles wat niet leidt lei levens- en arbeidersgebied, voornamelijk uit de niet
     tot het behoud en  .de verhooging van het menschenras             verfijnde en valschelijk als hoogstaande aangemerkte
     een biologische zonde. En het zijn slechts de  kinderen           kringen zijn voortgekomen.
     per slot van rekening, die  gelden  volgens hem.                      In alle  landen  en tijden was en is dat zoo  geweest,
            Het zou eveneens kwaad zijn en niet goed,  om allerlei     en valt dat nog te zien.
     middelen en wegen uit te denken  tot verlenging van het               Om een  beter en gezonder  ras van menschen te  ver-


                                                                             I         -

                                                       THE         S:TANDARD  BEARER                              _          __-- 33.5

              AIs ik  echter  het Schriftgedeelte nazie, waaruit  zich              CONSERVATISM  PR  PRO&RESSIVENESS
           de discussie in uw Mannenvereeniging ontspon, dan vrees
           ik, dat de vraag door u gedaan  berust   op een verklaring                          (Continued from last issue)
           van den tekst, die naar mijn  vaste- overtuiging niet  op-
           gaat. Wet is namelijk mijn overtuiging, dat  Jacobus  het               On the other hand, it is equally true that we can and
II         in dien tekst niet heeft over lichamelijke, maar over           we must preserve that which exists as it exists, although
           geestelijke krankheid. De  ierklaring,  dat  als wij  licha-    not for its own sake, but for truth's sake.  It is neither
           melijk krank zijn we de ouderlingen der gemeente maar           genuine progressiveness to throw overboard all existing
           moeten   roepen  om over ons te bidden, en dat hun gebed        institutions, conditions, principles and what not, merely
           des geloofs zal  worden  verhoord in onze lichamelijke          for the shallow desire of having something new. Prog-
           genezing, is niet de juiste, vindt ook in de  Schrift  geen     ress does.not exist in a direct diversion from, or a com-
           steun en gaat in de praktijk niet op.                           plete subversion of the existing things. That, to be sure,
              Maar in uwe discussie zal ik mij niet mengen.  Als           has been the contention of some progressive individuals,
           ik juist heb gezien en uwe vereeniging stelt er belang  bij     but such a notion is entirely untrue. Truth is eternal,
           om eens  te lezen, hoe ik zou bewijzen, dat  Jacobus  hier      and inasmuch as such is the case, there is truth and
           niet  aan lichamelijke, maar  aan geestelijke krankheid         there always has been truth long before some conceited
           denkt, dan zendt nog maar een vraag in.                         progressive individual stated .the `opposite. By merely
              Gaarne  u dienende;                                          asserting the desire to, have something new, and by an
                                                                II. H.     equally earnest desire to do away with the existing
                                                                           truth does not. bring about a new state of affair or a new
      "            Ja, God! wij hebben vaak misdaan,                       conception of the truth. The new is based upon the old.
                    Maar zie Gij in genh ons  aan,                         Without the old the new is never possible. For:
                      En schenk ons  `t eeuwig leven!                                        "In het heden  ligt het verleden,
                   Een heil'ge smart, een diep  bcrouw,                                       In het nu wat worden  zal."
                   Een waar geloof, een vaste  trouw,                              Since this is true, not one  is  really  hrogressive  who
                      Wil, Vader, die ons geven.                           throws overboard the past as worthless. The glorious
                 Dan  iet Ge op  `t  Hoogst   Geschenk  de kroon,          past with its still more glorious revelation of the truth
                 Dat van uw eengeboren Zoon!                               must be retained and preserved as it is, provided that
                                                                           all that which is preserved is in harmony with the truth
                                          ---.-_..-                        itself. Occasionally, we find that an existing doctrine or
                   STRENGTH, FORTRESS, REFUGE                              principle, which has been held as being the absolute
                                                                           truth, is not at all  iti harmony with the development of
                   Dear Refuge of my weary soul,                           the truth itself. Hence, that which  hai been preserved
                      On thee, when sorrows rise,                          must be cast aside. But as long as we are unable to give
                   On thee, when waves of trouble roll,                    something better than which already exists, we are  ,not
                      My fainting hope relies.                             at liberty to do away with the existing state of affairs.
                                                                                   It is evident that we as reformed people are in danger
                   To thee I tell each rising grief,                       of  o-ver-doing  a good thing. It cannot be denied that
                      For thou alone  canst heal  ;                        there is a  desire to be progressive. And in attempting
                   Thy word can bring a sweet relief                       to attain real progressiveness, we often abuse our liberty
                      For every pain I feel.                               and are shaking off the existing ordinances of God. The
                                                                           consequence  of which is, that we are  trodding  upon the
                   But oh,  &hen gloomy doubts prevail,                    most fundamental principles, and that merely, because
                      I fear to call thee mine;                            they seem to be out of harmony with existing thought
                   The springs of comfort seem to' fail,                   of so-called progressive humanity.
                     And all my hopes decline.                                There seems to be a spirit of  gnrest  and dissatisfac-
                                                                           tion among reformed believers in regard to the condition
                   Yet, gracious God, where shall I flee?                  within the church. We find, presently, a faction which
                     Thou art my only trust;                               considers the church to be entirely out of harmony with
                   And still my soul would cleave to thee,                 the progress of "Society." The church and its teaching
                     Though prostrate in the dust.                         are out  *of date. The claim is, we are living in a pro-
                                                                           gressive age. What the church professes in her con-
                   Thy mercy-seat is open still,                           fessions is perfectly good ; but, then, it must not be ap-
                     Here let my soul retreat,                             plied to our times. If you are  ro  interpret the confes-
                   With humble hope attend thy will,                       sion, you must be clever enough to do it in such a man-
                     And wait beneath thy feet                             ner that the members of the "institution" will not lose
                                                -Anne Steele               th.eir "prestige" and their "social standing" by living up


336.                                       T H E   S T A N D A R D   BEARE.R
-.-.."---                          - ..__-._.....  -"._"-                                                  -..----..._F
to the confession. The Church must be appealing; such               The question may be asked: Is it really fair for some
is the slogan. But how can the church be appealing if            of the leaders of the church to thunder their anathemas
she desires -and rightly so-to hold tenaciously to               upon rhe young people  ? Is it just to hurl all kinds of
the truth of the word of God and by clinging to the con-         accusations against them? You may say it a hundred
fessions? Apply the truth of the word of God and'that            times over again, that the young people are going to
of the confession to life, and the membership of the insti-      the dogs (an expression so frequently used now days),
tution will decrease rapidly. All social institutions,  o'f      your saying will not change matters any. But are the
whatever nature they may be, have nothing to do, with            young people alone at fault? To be sure, the sinful
the antithesis.    The social life of the present day is         inclination of the heart will always find an excuse for
nothing else bur living the sophistical contaminations           such actions of the young people. We offer no  .excuse
of the heart. If, then, the church must satisfy the desires      why they should at times act so indifferent toward
of this progressive humanity, the inevitable consequences        religion. But is the church, as an institution, also not
will be that the church of Jesus Christ must social-             to be blamed for the general spiritual degeneration? If
ize and corrupt the truth of the word of God and the             the church attempts to' solve all kinds of problems, such
confessions.    To cater to the impulses and the  appe-          as pertain to the ethical conduct of the members of the
tences of the masses has  aIways  had a deteriorating re-        institution, and she is unable to take a positive stand,
sult. The three points of the Synod of the Christian             then it is not to be inarveled  at thar the younger genera-
Reformed Church of 1924 were the inevitable conse-               tion takes the advantage of this dubious and obscure
quences of catering  ro the progressive element within           state of affairs. And while the church is pondering upon
the church. This element, of course, is well satisfied as        such questions as: Whether it is permissible to attend
to the application of the three points in actual life. There     a theater, a dance party, or participate in a card game,
is a certain freedom granted in the ethical conduct of           the young people do not hesitate to take the advantage
the believer, which he  had. not possessed hitherto. It - not that it is such a praiseworthy thing for them to
is therefore altogether reasonable, that when the church         do, it is inevitable-and they are wasting their life in
has taken the view which she did, as expressed in the            dissipation.           Fact is, these young people are consid-
three points, that the people will take all the more privi-      ered progressive.           But this progressiveness is nothing
leges. The desire for more ethical liberty is more fervant       else than jazz in religion.  The,,%church  should at any
and general than before. The slogan, "socializing the            time be ready to give an answer to the questions of
Church" is finding more adherents. The members of                `worldliness. God's word is very explicit about the mat-
the church are no longer satisfied with the former man-          ter. There is nothing obscure about the truth .of it. We
ner of conducting church worship. All kinds of enter-            are certain that the words of Roman's  12:2 do not call
taining features are finding a place in the services. Pray,      for a professor in New Testament exegesis to expound
why the introduction of community singing before the             them; neither is it necessary to appoint a committee to
services.  Possibly the church is doing this to have a           study the matter for two years. "And be nor conformed
larger attendance or merely for competition's sake.              to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing
There must be something appealing about the service,             of your mind, that ye may prove what is thar good, and
for other churches are getting large audiences by adding         acceptable, and perfect, will of God."
this entertaining feature. This can possibly be the  onIy           Apply  .the truth of Scriptures and that of the con-
motive. for catering to this kind of progressiveness. Be-        fession to actual life and the problems are settled. "Thy
sides, sensational topics are intruding upon the word of         word is a lamp unro my feet;" if this truth is professed
God. The preaching of the Word is slowly being ex-               then the difficulties are somewhat decreased in weight.
changed for social and political discussions. All this is        The church of Jesus Christ needs no questions concern-.
permitted to go on without the slightest word of protest.        ing the conduct of ethical life:  The. church  knows,  and
It cannot be long from now and you will see the Psalter          needs not be in doubt about the truth. The moment the
disappear from the pews in church, and you may be able           church begins to question the right or wrong of the
to find it on the shelf of some library as an historic relic.    ethical life of her members, she certainly ought to realize
Do not think that we are pessimistic prophets, but these         that it is time to come to the consciousness that she is
are realities with which you have to contend. But there          degenerating rapidly. To say : We are living in differ-
is more. The question may indeed be asked ; why does             ent times and in a progressive age is not even a reason
the Church seem to cater to the movies? Is it in order           to state the questions about the ethical conduct of the
to bring home some religious historical  tryth?  DO              people of the church. Let times change (whatever that
reformed people actually permit to cause their own spirit-       term may imply) : principles and truths do not change,
ual life to ebb away, by merely desiring to be  calIed           they are constant and eternal. What was wrong years
progressive? Why should the church play the part of ago, is that today also. Therefore all this nonsense about
a follower by listening to the dictates of the liberal ele-      progressiveness is merely a cloak  ro cover the sinful
ment who are attempting to socialize the church, in              heart.
order to have the world speak well of her?                                       .+t                       A. C. BOERKOOL.


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