MR FAITHFUL—You further state in section IV. of your Act that while diversity of opinion is recognised in this Church on such points in the Confession of Faith as do not enter into the substance of the Reformed Faith therein set forth, the Church retains full authority to determine in any case which may arise what points fall within this description, and thus to guard against any abuse of this liberty to the detriment of sound doctrine or to the injury of her unity and peace. Mr Faithful—What are the points in the Confession of Faith about which there is a diversity of opinion recognised? Declaratory Act—There are minor points, such as the Civil Magistrates’ relation to the Church; the Sabbath and other points. Mr Faithful—I see in your document that they are not minor points about which you say there is a diversity of opinion, but very important points—such as the love of God, the extent of Christ’s atonement, the work of the Holy Spirit, and the salvation of the heathen, etc. These are very important doctrines, and do seriously assail the verity of the Reformed Faith. How, then, can you call them minor points? I suppose, and it is evident you try, to reduce to the minimum what you are to believe. You thus make the Church like the Pope, and when these points come before the Assembly, they are decided by an autocratic majority and not by the inerrant Word of God, which is the only rule given to direct us in faith and practice. So far as the civil magistrate is concerned, his relation to the Church is more than being a member. He is, according to the Scriptures, a nursing father to the Church, and in his capacity he is bound by the Word of God to give of the revenue of the Kingdom for the support of Christ’s cause. Then the Sabbath is commanded to be kept holy in the service of God privately and publicly, except so much as is to be taken up in the works of necessity and mercy. The effect of your Church’s view of keeping the Sabbath holy is seen in the fact that your ministers, office-bearers, and members take unlimited licence in desecrating that holy day, while those that fear God and reverence His law love the Sabbath and endeavour to keep it holy. The saying is true, “A Sabbath well spent brings a week of content,” but by your document you give liberty to discount the holy law of God, and act in defiance of the divine will. You say that you do this for the unity and peace of the Church, whereas it clearly opens a door for all the evils and indifference that abound—for want of holiness, purity, and holy living—as is evident in this day by so many empty churches in the land where the Gospel flourished while men adhered to the infallible Word of God.
This finished the examination of Mr Declaratory Act, and Mr Confession of Faith was called into the witness box. Of course he also was put under oath, and was questioned by Mr Novelty as follows:—Mr Novelty—Was it you that wrote and published the book called the Confession of Faith? Confession of Faith—No! but several of the noted divines of England and Scotland. Mr Novelty—Do you not think that a creed that is centuries old although it might suit the Church at that period will not suit the Church of the 20th Century, when men have made such an advance in learning and criticism of the Bible, and thus require an Act as my client published to explain the Bible and your document according to their own light? Confession of Faith answered that the truth was never old or out of date, and instead of the Declaratory Act explaining my document, it explains it away, and it is not just of your client to say repeatedly that the contents of his Act are in accordance therewith. It rather contradicts it, and the advance in learning that you assume is not an advance, but a going back to heresies that the Church of the Reformation in the 16th Century and since then would not tolerate. Mr Novelty—What have you against my Act in particular? Confession of Faith—My advocate representing me told you already what I have against it, but I may add that it is full of errors. It is a bad sign on any Act, and that is true of yours, that there is no passage of Scripture advanced in support of it from the beginning to the end, whereas in my document there is a passage or passages of Scripture in it to confirm every statement, and your omission of adducing Scripture proofs for yours, reminds me of the saying of Christ—“He that doeth evil hateth the light, neither cometh to the light lest his deeds should be reprov’d” (John iii. 20). Thus your document is the work of darkness, and the truth says if the blind lead the blind they both fall into the ditch. Neither I nor my followers fear the light of Scripture, for our motive is to the law and the testimony, but those who do not speak according to the truth show that there is no light in them (Isa. viii. 20) except light from sparks of their own kindling (Isa. l. 11). Mr Novelty—You are narrow-minded and bigoted, and you think that there are no good people in any Church but your own. Confession of Faith—I am as narrow and as broad as the Word of God. I am so narrow that I will not receive any error into my Church, and so broad as to receive the whole Word of God without any exception, and my followers are so discerning that they will know the difference between truth and error, and will have no fellowship with scoffers, who walk after their own lusts (II. Peter iii. 3), even such as are “lovers of their own selves, covetous, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy, traitors, heady, high-minded, lovers of pleasures, more than lovers of God; having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof, ever learning and never coming to the knowledge of the truth” (II. Tim. iii. 3-7), and your followers are described as such as “will not endure sound doctrine, but after their own lusts shall they heap to themselves teachers having itching ears, and they shall turn away their ears from the truth and shall be turned unto fables” (II. Tim. iv. 3-4). Regarding my opinion of good people following your creed, I never said that there were none such, but if there are such individuals they keep to the Bible testimony and not to your document. As a whole, your followers preach error from your pulpits, some of them hold erroneous views of the creation of man, and say that man came from the irrational creatures. This is in opposition to the account given by the inspired writer of the Book of Genesis. These ought to have another church of irrational creatures, such as apes, instead of reasonable creatures, and when any of them call a meeting of session they should say in giving intimation that there would be a meeting of the descendants of apes on such and such a date.
Mr Novelty—But you must remember that science made great discoveries, and among other subjects it found out this matter. Confession of Faith—All true science agrees with the Bible account given of the creation of man, and wherever science contradicts the Word of God it is false, as the day will declare. Mr Novelty—Do you not admit that there is a development in everything? Confession of Faith—It has never been proved that any living creature developed into a different species. According to Scripture, every animal produces after its kind. A sheep will produce a sheep, a horse a horse, and a cow a cow, and a man after his kind and this is true also in the vegetable kingdom, every species after its kind. Mr Novelty—You are too ready to quote Scripture, and make no allowance for men’s opinions. Confession of Faith—The opinion that is not founded upon Scripture leads to many errors besides those now under examination. Mr Novelty—But our followers recognise a diversity of opinion on all subjects that do not enter into the substance of the Reformed Faith. Confession of Faith—But surely the creation of man enters into the substance of the Reformed Faith. We are bound to believe everything God reveals in His Word. Mr Novelty—I consider my followers to be learned men; but I must admit that we cannot follow you in your producing such Scripture evidence. Confession of Faith—You remind me of an anecdote about two ministers that met for the first time. One of them was an evolutionist, one of your followers. He did not know to what Church the other minister belonged, and he began discussing the evolution of man from protoplasm. The other minister was a follower of mine, and argued against his opponent by proving from Scripture that man was created according to the account given in the Word of God. He quoted many passages of Scripture to prove his case, till at length the evolutionist said, “You must be a Free Presbyterian.”
This concluded Mr Novelty’s examination of Confession of Faith. The Judge then asked Confession of Faith if he had anything more to say. Confession of Faith—I have to say this, that Declaratory Act grossly misrepresented me in the charges he brought against me in his document, and has seriously deviated from the truth, cast a slur on my character, even slandered me before the whole world; and it was this that made me appeal to your court, where I believe the Judge, who is a just Judge and holy in all His ways, will vindicate my character and clear me of all unjust aspersions, but will by no means clear the guilty.
Then the huge audience were anxiously waiting to hear what the Judge had to say in summing up the case. The Judge, in beginning, said—The glory of my truth is involved in this case, and also the salvation of perishing sinners. The revelation I gave of myself as the God of salvation is contained in the Scriptures of the Old and the New Testaments, and to cast doubt upon that revelation is, as one of my Apostles said, “He that believeth not God hath made Him a liar” (I. John v. 10), and Declaratory Act, by his document, is guilty of this charge. All the doctrines in his Act are opposed to the Bible, which is my Word, and to the Confession of Faith, which is clearly founded on that Word, and agreeable thereto. It is not therefore true, as Declaratory Act says, that he spoke according to that standard of doctrine, but instead is teaching for doctrine the commandments of men. In the preamble of his Act it is stated that this new creed was framed to remove difficulties and scruples of men, who would not take office under the Confession of Faith, but these men run without being sent by me. “I have not sent these prophets, yet they ran” (Jer. xxiii. 21). These men preach to please those who will not endure sound doctrine; but not to maintain my Word and testimony. But my sheep hear my voice and are careful to follow such as will declare my whole counsel as revealed in my Word, and they know not nor acknowledge the voice of strangers. “Whosoever transgresseth and abideth not in the doctrines of Christ hath not God. He that abideth in the doctrines of Christ, he hath both the Father and the Son. If there come any unto you and bring not this doctrine, receive him not into your house, neither bid him God-speed. For he that biddeth him God-speed is a partaker of his evil deeds” (II. John 9-11). This Declaratory Act, which is cunningly framed, is a device of Satan to draw people away from my Truth, and to entrap them in his own net, so as to make sure of their everlasting destruction from my presence. Souls should be on the watch lest they enter into temptation and such as do not willingly retain the truth I will send upon them a strong delusion that they should believe a lie, that they might all be damned who believe not the truth, but have pleasure in unrighteousness (II. Thess. ii. 11-12). I approve of every statement in Confession of Faith’s document, as all statements therein are supported by my Word of truth, and I, as Judge of all, through my Word, condemn Declaratory Act and acquit Confession of Faith from the charge brought against him by his accuser; but as I am a long-suffering God and delight in mercy, while judgment is my strange work, I will give Declaratory Act’s followers an opportunity of renouncing their errors and of returning to sound doctrine, but if not, their blood will be on their own head.
The Judge, in addressing Declaratory Act, asked him what he was to do. Declaratory Act refused to retract any of his statements, holding that, according to his opinion, he did not forsake the truth. The Judge—Do you think yourself wiser than I? If so, you must bear the consequences of your disobedience, and also all your followers.
There was great commotion over the decision of the Judge. Those who adhered to Confession of Faith protested against the arrogant manner in which Declaratory Act tried to compel all to accept his views, and by their protest and determined adherence to Confession of Faith made a faithful stand according to the grace given to them for the original standard of faith and practice held by the fathers in 1843, their eyes looking unto the hills from whence cometh their help, even to Him who made heaven and earth, trusting that He would sustain them in providence, as well as in grace—yea, looking unto Him who saith—“Be ye faithful unto death and I will give you a crown of life” (Rev. ii. 10). There was, sad to relate, many waverers who, evidently for fear of worldly maintenance, were at first strong opponents of the Declaratory Act, but when the hour of trial came, proved to be unsteadfast and perfidious (Ps. lxxviii. 37), but those who remained faithful had no reason to regret the step they had taken, but on the contrary have reason to praise the Lord for His goodness to them spiritually and temporally. He owned and blessed their labours, and although they began their work without a penny of funds, yet the Lord was providing for them year to year according to their need, so that as their ministers began to increase in numbers, their funds increased correspondingly. If the seed of truth is to be kept it does not follow that it is in a large Church, but it may be in a small one. The farmer does not require a large barn to keep the seed he is to sow; a small corner is sufficient.
There are proposals for Union, but it is the wisdom as well as the duty of Free Presbyterians to stand in defence of truth and principle in the hour of trial. Those who feel disposed to unite with a larger Church, let them walk over to that Church at once, and the Church they leave shall lose nothing by their departure. The proposal for Union is not a matter of principle but of expediency. It is like the woman who expected some friends to come to her house, and who tried to sweep her house as clean as possible, but it was only because she expected them to visit her. We believe that a large union will yet take place, when the Spirit is poured down from on high, but that time has not yet come.
When Zion by the mighty Lord
Built up again shall be,
In glory then and majesty
To men appear shall He.