Part 24

“The highest perfection which man can attain, while the soul dwells in the body, does not exclude ignorance, and error, and a thousand other infirmities. Now, from wrong judgments, wrong words and actions will often necessarily flow; and in some cases, wrong affections, also, may spring from the same source. I may judge wrong of you; I may think more or less highly of you than I ought to think; and this mistake in my judgment may not only occasion something wrong in my behavior, but it may have a still deeper effect; it may occasion something wrong in my affection. From a wrong apprehension, I may love and esteem you either more or less than I ought. Nor can I be freed from a liableness to such a mistake while I remain in a corruptible body. A thousand infirmities, in consequence of this, will attend my spirit, till it returns to God, who gave it; and, in numberless instances, it comes short of doing the will of God, as Adam did in paradise. Hence the best of men may say from the heart,

“Every moment, Lord, I need The merit of thy death,”

for innumerable violations of the Adamic, as well as the angelic law. It is well, therefore, for us, that we are not now under these, but under the law of love. “Love is [now] the fulfilling of the law,” which is given to fallen man. This is now, with respect to us, “the perfect law.” But even against this, through the present weakness of our understanding, we are continually liable to transgress. Therefore every man living needs the blood of atonement; or he could not stand before God.

“What is, then, the perfection of which man is capable while he dwells in a corruptible body? It is the complying with that kind command, ‘My son, give me thy heart.’ It is the ‘loving the Lord his God with all his heart, and with all his soul, and with all his mind.’ This is the sum of Christian perfection: it is all comprised in that one word, _love_. The first branch of it is the love of God; and, as he that loves God loves his brother also, it is inseparably connected with the second, ‘Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself;’ thou shalt love every man as thy own soul, as Christ loved us. ‘On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets:’ these contain the whole of Christian perfection.

“Another view of this is given us in those words of the great apostle, ‘Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus.’ For, although this immediately and directly refers to the humility of our Lord, yet it may be taken in a far more extensive sense, so as to include the whole disposition of his mind, all his affections, all his tempers, both toward God and man. Now, it is certain that, as there was no evil affection in him, so no good affection or temper was wanting; so that ‘whatsoever things are holy, whatsoever things are lovely,’ are all included in ‘the mind that was in Christ Jesus.’

“St. Paul, when writing to the Galatians, places perfection in yet another view. It is the one undivided _fruit of the Spirit_, which he describes thus: ‘The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, long-suffering, gentleness, goodness, fidelity, [so the word should be translated here,] meekness, temperance.’ What a glorious constellation of grace is here! Now, suppose all these things to be knit together in one, to be united together in the soul of a believer,—this is Christian perfection.

How To Be Sought.

“’But what is that faith whereby we are sanctified, saved from sin, and perfected in love?’ It is a divine evidence and conviction, first, that God hath promised it in the holy Scripture. Till we are thoroughly satisfied of this, there is no moving one step farther. And one would imagine there needed not one word more to satisfy a reasonable man of this than the ancient promise, ‘Then will I circumcise thy heart, and the heart of thy seed, to love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind.’ How clearly does this express the being perfected in love!—how strongly imply the being saved from all sin! For as long as love takes up the whole heart, what room is there for sin therein?

“It is a divine evidence and conviction, secondly, that what God hath promised he is able to perform. Admitting, therefore, that ‘with men it is impossible’ ‘to bring a clean thing out of an unclean,’ to purify the heart from all sin, and to fill it with all holiness,—yet this creates no difficulty in the case, seeing ‘with God all things are possible.’ And surely no one ever imagined it was possible to any power less than that of the Almighty! But if God speaks, it shall be done. God saith, ‘Let there be light; and there [is] light.’

“It is, thirdly, a divine evidence and conviction that he is able and willing to do it now. And why not? Is not a moment to him the same as a thousand years? He cannot want more time to accomplish whatever is his will. And he cannot want to stay for any more _worthiness_ or _fitness_ in the persons he is pleased to honor. We may, therefore, boldly say, at any point of time, ‘Now is the day of salvation!’ ‘To-day, if ye will hear his voice, harden not your hearts.’ ‘Behold, all things are now ready; come unto the marriage.’

“To this confidence that God is both able and willing to sanctify us now, there needs to be added one thing more—a divine evidence and conviction that he doeth it. In that hour it is done: God says to the inmost soul, ‘According to thy faith be it unto thee.’ Then the soul is pure from every spot of sin; it is clean ‘from all unrighteousness.’ The believer then experiences the deep meaning of those solemn words, ‘If we walk in the light as he is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all sin.’

“ ‘But does God work this great work in the soul gradually, or instantaneously?’ Perhaps it may be gradually wrought in some: I mean, in this sense, they do not advert to the particular moment wherein sin ceases to be. But it is infinitely desirable, were it the will of God, that it should be done instantaneously; that the Lord should destroy sin ‘by the breath of his mouth,’ in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye. And so he generally does—a plain fact, of which there is evidence enough to satisfy any unprejudiced person. _Thou_, therefore, look for it every moment.”—See _Wesley’s Sermons_, vols. i. and ii.

Oberlin Views Of Sanctification.

In the fall of 1836, during an interesting revival of religion in Oberlin, Ohio, the minds of many became deeply interested in the inquiry, “Can we live holy lives? and, if we can, how?” At first, fears were entertained that some would run into the errors of the Perfectionists; but, finally, after much prayer and investigation, they adopted the following views of sanctification:—

“1. That entire obedience to the moral law constitutes entire sanctification or holiness.

“2. That all moral agents are able to render this obedience.

“3. That because all moral agents are able to render this obedience, they are bound to do so.

“4. That sufficient grace for the actual attainment of this state is abundantly in the gospel, and that nothing prevents any Christian from making this attainment in this life, but a neglect to avail himself of the proffered grace of Christ.

“5. That all are bound to aim at and pray for this attainment in this life, and that aiming at this state is indispensable to Christian character.

“6. That obedience to the moral law, or a state of entire sanctification, is in such a sense attainable, as to make it an object of rational pursuit, with the _expectation of attaining it_.

“7. That the philosophy of the mind, the commandments of God, the promises and provisions of the gospel, and the attainments of Paul and many others, should be presented, to induce men to aim at a state of entire sanctification, with the expectation of attaining it.”

Since these views were embraced at Oberlin, they have been extensively circulated by many books and pamphlets, and a paper, entitled the _Oberlin Evangelist_. By many Christians and ministers of different denominations these views have been received; but by others they are opposed.

WALDENSES.

Many authors of note make the antiquity of this denomination coeval with the apostolic age. The following is an extract from their confession of faith, which is said to have been copied out of certain manuscripts, bearing date nearly four hundred years before the time of Luther:—

“1. That the Scriptures teach that there is one God, almighty, all-wise, and all-good, who made all things by his goodness; for he formed Adam in his own image and likeness; but that, by the envy of the devil, sin entered into the world; and that we are sinners in and by Adam.

“2. That Christ was promised to our fathers, who received the law; that so knowing, by the law, their unrighteousness and insufficiency, they might desire the coming of Christ, to satisfy for their sins, and accomplish the law by himself.

“3. That Christ was born in the time appointed by God the Father; that is to say, in the time when all iniquity abounded, that he might show us grace and mercy, as being faithful; that Christ is our life, truth, peace, and righteousness, as also our pastor, advocate, and priest, who died for the salvation of all who believe, and is risen for our justification; that there is no mediator and advocate with God the Father, save Jesus Christ; that, after this life, there are only two places, the one for the saved, and the other for the damned; that the feasts, the vigils of saints, the water which they call holy, as also to abstain from flesh on certain days, and the like, but especially the masses, are the inventions of men, and ought to be rejected; that the sacraments are signs of the holy thing, visible forms of the invisible grace; and that it is good for the faithful to use those signs, or visible forms, but that they are not essential to salvation; that there are no other sacraments but baptism and the Lord’s supper; that we ought to honor the secular powers, by subjection, ready obedience, and paying of tribute.”

ALLENITES.

The disciples of Henry Allen, of Nova Scotia, who began to propagate his doctrines in that country about the year 1778, and died in 1783, during which interval he made many proselytes, and at his death left a considerable party behind him, though now much declined. He published several treatises and sermons, in which he declares that the souls of all the human race are emanations, or rather parts, of the one great Spirit; that they were all present in Eden, and were actually in the first transgression. He supposes that our first parents, in innocency, were pure spirits, and that the material world was not then made; but that, in consequence of the fall, that mankind might not sink into utter destruction, this world was produced, and men clothed with material bodies; and that all the human race will, in their turn, be invested with such bodies, and in them enjoy a state of probation for immortal happiness.

JOHNSONIANS.

The followers of Mr. John Johnson, many years Baptist minister at Liverpool, in the last century, of whose followers there are still several congregations in different parts of England. He denied that faith was a duty, or even action of the soul, and defined it “an active principle” conferred by grace; and denied also the duty of ministers to exhort the unconverted, or preach any _moral duties_ whatever.

Though Mr. Johnson entertained high Supralapsarian notions on the divine decrees, he admitted the universality of the death of Christ. On the doctrine of the Trinity, his followers are said to have embraced the indwelling scheme, with Calvinistic views of justification and the atonement.

DONATISTS.

A denomination which arose in the fourth century. They derived their name from Donatus, bishop of Numidia. They maintained that their community was alone to be considered as the true church, and avoided all communication with other churches, from an apprehension of contracting their impurity and corruption. Hence they pronounced the sacred rites and institutions void of all virtue and efficacy among those Christians who were not precisely of their sentiments, and not only rebaptized those who came over to their party from other churches, but, with respect to those who had been ordained ministers of the gospel, they either deprived them of their office, or obliged them to be ordained the second time.

SE-BAPTISTS.

A sect of small note, which was formed in England about the beginning of the seventeenth century, by one John Smith, who maintained that it was lawful for every one to baptize himself. There is at this day an inconsiderable sect in Russia who are known by this name, and who perform the rite upon themselves, from an idea that no one is left on earth sufficiently holy to administer it aright.

RE-ANOINTERS.

A sect in Russia, which sprang up about the year 1770. They do not rebaptize those who join them from the Greek church, but insist on the necessity of their having the mystery of the chrism or unction again administered to them. They are very numerous in Moscow.

TAO-SE, OR TAOU-TSZE.

The name of a famous sect among the Chinese, who owe their rise to _Laou-tsze Lao Kian_, or _Laokium_, a philosopher, who lived, if we may credit his disciples, about five hundred years before Christ. He professed to restore the religion of _Tao_, (_Taou_,) or Reason. Some of his writings are still extant, and are full of maxims and sentiments of virtue and morality. Among others, this sentence is often repeated in them: “_Tao_ hath produced one, one hath produced two, two have produced three, and three have produced all things.”

The morality of this philosopher and his disciples is not unlike that of the Epicureans, consisting in a tranquillity of mind, free from all vehement desires and passions. But as this tranquillity would be disturbed by thoughts of death, they boast of a liquor that has the power of rendering them immortal. They are addicted to chemistry, alchemy, and magic, and are persuaded that, by the assistance of demons, whom they invoke, they can obtain all that they desire. The hope of avoiding death prevailed upon a great number of mandarins to study this diabolical art, and certain credulous and superstitious emperors brought it greatly into vogue.

The doctrine of this sect, concerning the formation of the world, according to Dr. Milne, much resembles that of the Epicureans. If they do not maintain the eternity of matter, on the other hand, they do not deny it; but, in analogy with the favorite science of alchemy, they represent the first pair as drawn out of the boiling mouth of an “immense crucible,” by a celestial being. The Platonic notion of an _anima mundi_, or soul of the world, is very common; and hence it is that the heavens are considered the body of this imaginary being, the wind its breath, the lights of heaven as proceeding from its eyes, the watery fluids as its spittle and tears.

QUIETISTS.

The disciples of Michael de Molinos, a Spanish priest, who flourished in the seventeenth century, and wrote a book called “The Spiritual Guide.” They argue thus:—“The apostle tells us, that ‘the Spirit makes intercession for,’ or _in_ ‘us.’ Now, if the Spirit pray in us, we must resign ourselves to his impulses, by remaining in a state of absolute rest, or quietude, till we attain the perfection of the unitive life”—a life of union with, and, as it should seem, of absorption in, the Deity.

KNIPPERDOLINGS.

A denomination in the sixteenth century, so called from Bertrand Knipperdoling, who taught that the righteous, before the day of judgment, shall have a monarchy on earth, and the wicked be destroyed; that men are not justified by their faith in Christ Jesus; that there is no original sin; that infants ought not to be baptized, and immersion is the only mode of baptism; that every one has authority to preach, and administer the sacraments; that men are not obliged to pay respect to magistrates; that all things ought to be in common; and that it is lawful to marry many wives.

MENDÆANS, MENDAITES, MENDAI IJAHI, OR DISCIPLES OF ST. JOHN, THAT IS, THE BAPTIST.

From twenty to twenty-five thousand families of this sect still remain, chiefly in the neighborhood of Bassora, a city between Arabia and Persia, on the extremity of the desert of Irac. They are sometimes called _Christians of St. John_—a name which they probably received from the Turks, and to which they contentedly submit for the sake of the toleration it affords them; but they are better known in ecclesiastical history as _Hemero_ (or every day) _Baptists_, from their frequent washings.

MUGGLETONIANS.

The followers of Ludovic Muggleton, a journeyman tailor, who, with his companion Reeves, set up for great prophets, in the time of Cromwell. They pretended to absolve or condemn whom they pleased, and gave out that they were the two last witnesses spoken of in the Revelation, who were to appear previous to the final destruction of the world. They affirmed that there was no devil at all without the body of man or woman; that the devil is man’s spirit of unclean reason and cursed imagination; that the ministry in this world, whether prophetical or ministerial, is all a lie, and abomination to the Lord; with a variety of other vain and inconsistent tenets.

Muggleton died in 1697, and on his gravestone is this inscription:—

“Whilst mausoleums and large inscriptions give Might, splendor, and, past death, make potents live, It is enough briefly to write thy name: Succeeding times by that will read thy fame; Thy deeds, thy acts, around the world resound; No foreign soil where Muggleton’s not found.”

The raven plume of oblivion hath long ago waved over this prophet’s grave.

YEZIDEES, OR WORSHIPPERS OF THE DEVIL.

From a very interesting work recently published by Asahel Grant, M. D., a medical missionary to the Nestorians, we copy the following account:—

“The passage of the Tigris transferred me from Mesopotamia into Assyria, and I stood upon the ruins of Nineveh, ‘that great city,’ where the prophet Jonah proclaimed the dread message of Jehovah to so many repenting thousands whose deep humiliation averted for a time the impending ruin. But when her proud monarchs had scourged idolatrous Israel and carried the ten tribes into captivity, and raised their hands against Judah and the holy city, the inspired strains of the eloquent Nahum, clothed in terrible sublimity as they were, met their full accomplishment in the utter desolation of one of the largest cities on which the sun ever shone. ‘Nineveh is laid waste! who will bemoan her? She is empty, and void, and waste; her nobles dwell in the dust; her people are scattered upon the mountains, and no man gathereth them.’

“Where her gorgeous palaces once resounded to the strains of music and the shouts of revelry, a few black tents of the wandering Arab and Tûrkomân are now scattered among the shapeless mounds of earth and rubbish,—the ruins of the city,—as if in mockery of her departed glory; while their tenants were engaged in the fitting employment of weaving ‘sackcloth of hair,’ as if for the mourning attire of the world’s great emporium, whose ‘merchants’ were multiplied above the stars of heaven. The largest mound, from which very ancient relics and inscriptions are dug, is now crowned with the Moslem village of Neby Yûnas, or the prophet Jonah, where his remains are said to be interred, and over which has been reared, as his mausoleum, a temple of Islâm.

“Soon after leaving the ruins of Nineveh, we came in sight of two villages of the Yezidees, the reputed worshippers of the devil. Large and luxuriant olive-groves, with their rich green foliage, and fruit just ripening in the autumnal sun, imparted such a cheerful aspect to the scene as soon dispelled whatever of pensive melancholy had gathered around me, while treading upon the dust of departed greatness. Several white sepulchres of Yezidee sheiks attracted attention as I approached the villages. They were in the form of fluted cones or pyramids, standing upon quadrangular bases, and rising to the height of some twenty feet or more. We became the guests of one of the chief Yezidees of Baa-sheka, whose dwelling, like others in the place, was a rude stone structure, with a flat terrace roof. Coarse felt carpets were spread for our seats in the open court, and a formal welcome was given us; but it was evidently not a very cordial one. My Turkish cavass understood the reason, and at once removed it. Our host had mistaken me for a Mahometan towards whom the Yezidees cherish a settled aversion. As soon as I was introduced to him as a Christian, and he had satisfied himself that this was my true character, his whole deportment was changed. He at once gave me a new and cordial welcome, and set about supplying our wants with new alacrity. He seemed to feel that he had exchanged a Moslem foe for a Christian friend, and I became quite satisfied of the truth of what I had often heard,—that the Yezidees are friendly towards the professors of Christianity.

“They are said to cherish a high regard for the Christian religion, of which clearly they have some corrupt remains. They practise the rite of baptism, make the sign of the cross, so emblematical of Christianity in the East, put off their shoes, and kiss the threshold when they enter a Christian church; and it is said that they often speak of wine as the blood of Christ, hold the cup with both hands, after the sacramental manner of the East, when drinking it, and, if a drop chance to fall on the ground, they gather it up with religious care.

“They believe in one supreme God, and, in some sense at least, in Christ as a Savior. They have also a remnant of Sabianism, or the religion of the ancient fire-worshippers. They bow in adoration before the rising sun, and kiss his first rays when they strike on a wall or other object near them; and they will not blow out a candle with their breath, or spit in the fire, lest they should defile that sacred element.

“Circumcision and the passover, or a sacrificial festival allied to the passover in time and circumstance, seem also to identify them with the Jews; and, altogether, they certainly present a most singular chapter in the history of man.

“That they are really the worshippers of the devil can only be true, if at all, in a modified sense, though it is true that they pay him so much deference as to refuse to speak of him disrespectfully, (perhaps for fear of his vengeance;) and, instead of pronouncing his name, they call him the ‘lord of the evening,’ or ‘prince of darkness;’ also, Sheik Maazen, or Exalted Chief. Some of them say that Satan was a fallen angel, with whom God was angry; but he will at some future day be restored to favor, and there is no reason why they should treat him with disrespect.