George Bush the Christian Ministry Longmans London 1867

8/9/2019 George Bush the Christian Ministry Longmans London 1867

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THE

CHRISTIAN MINISTRY,CO!llIDI....D IIf u ,u .nOH TO

"1'1 ..U .. CUolI:K 01111....710" I . . aOTIoL ' J .n :mtooo."1 Pet. it. 9.

LONDON:LONGHANS, GREEN, READER, 4; DYER.


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NOTICE TO THE READER.

THE following is an abridgment of a work publishedabout ten years &gO, in Amerioa, under a somewhatdifferent title. Various alterations have been made inthe original text, which, without affecting the generaloharacter of the work, will, it is believed, tend to re-move oooasional obsourities in the style, and to bringthe subjects treated on-subjects especially importantat the present day-still more olearly before the mindof the reader.


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I


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CONTENTS .

OHAPTER I.PRIESTHOOD. Page 1. Definition .. 1

2. Prerogative of Priesthood common to all Chris-tians ... .. .., ... ... ... ... .. .. 7 8. Why so little said of Chmch Government in the

Scriptures ... ... .. . .. . . .. .. . .. 12 4. The Churoh Fruits of the Holy Spirit.. . ... 18 6. What kind of Government recognized in the Acts

a n the Epistles ... ... . .. ... ... ... 15 6. Where we are to look for the Law of ChmchGovernment ... ... ... ... ... ... ... 16 7. The Doctrine of a Christian Priesthood apart

from the general body of Believers reoeivesno oountena.noe from the earliest History ofChristianity ... .., ... 18

OHAPTER 11.TIlE APOSTOLATE.

1. Position 8Bsumed 2. Position denied

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vi. C 0 1 f ~ E 1 f T S .

C H APT E R I I I.MINISTRY. Page 1. Prevailing Notions ... ... ... so 2. The true Idea of :Ministry as set forth in the

Scriptures ... ... ... '" ... ... ... ... SI 8. Examination of Scripture Terms relative to

Ministry 4t5 4 . ~ . . . 46 6. DiakoMo ... 61 6. Diakono,... 54 7. The Office ofDeacon 67 8. lfinistry as implied in the term ~ e e r . u 66 9. Imposition ofHands ... ... 67 10. Administering the Sacraments 68 11. Preaching the Gospel 70 12. Ordination ... ... 78 13. General Remarks on Ministry 87 14. Tendency of Clerical Rule ... 99 15. The Clerical system espeaially out of place

among the C ~ g a t i o n a J i s t s 103 16. The Evil Effects of the Distinction in Question 104

CHAPTER IV.GBNEBAL RESULTS .. . .. . . . . 106


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THE AP08TLlD PAUL TO THE CHURCH IN ROKE.

"Alwe bave muymemben In ODe body, and all members have Dot thesame oftlce; 10 we belngmany, U'e ODe body In 0brIIt, and e,ery ODe mem-ben one of another. HavlDI then gifta dlft'erJDI accordtDI to the grace that11 given to as, whether prophecy, let UI propheey aecordinl to the proportionof falth; or min1ltry, le tUI walt on our mlDJ8terlng; orhe that teaebethOD teaching; or he that ahortetb, OD ubortatlon. He that glveth, letbim do it with simplicity; h. that ruletb, with d1UIence; he that Ihowethmercy, with cheerfalD_."-BoK1fS sUe " 6, 6, 7, 8.


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CHAPTER I.

PRIESTHOOD. 1. Definition.

ITwill be important to settle in limine the meaningthat is ordinarily attached to theword cc Priest." A.priest is a person consecrated to the priestly office,by &11 order of priests already existing, and supposed, in virtue of this consecration, to be endowedwith a character, giving him privileges in divine'things above those of his fellow-worshippers whoare not consecrated as he is.In the Levitical institutions, we find the priestgreatly exalted in the service of God above the

people, because the Levitical order was, till thecoming of Christ, a type of the company of the faithful under the High Priest, who was eminently atype of Ohrist Himself; the whole of the worship,the burning of the offerings on the altar, the presenting of every zeback and mmc'ka, of every korbcmand olGk-in the temple, and the performance ofeveryreligious ceremony, were the exclusive privilege and.duty of " the priests, the sons of Aaron." Themost

Zebach, .the slaughtered-offering; Mincha, the meatoffering of inanimate things offered by fire j Korbcm, anoffering generally; Olah, a burnt-offering.

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2 PRIESTHOOD. [CHAP. J.important of the Levite's sacerdotal functions wasto make an atonement for the sins of those thatcame t him to have their sins removed throughhis mediation. "And the prie,t ,hallmake an atonfJ-ment for llim concerning kill nn, ana it ,kall he for-given, kim." (Lev. iv. 20.) ".And it shall be, whenhe shall be guilty in one or these things, that heshall confess that he hath sinned in that thing; andhe shall bring h i trespass offering unto the Lordfor his sin which he has sinned." (Lev. v. 5,6.) .In the above definition of "a priest," we have

stated that such an one "is & pe1'8on consecrated tothe sacerdotal office by an order of priests alreadyexisting." This is deemed absolutely indispensableto constitute & human priesthood; whereas everytrue member of the church of Christ, who has received the seal of the Spirit, is a priest in the'gospel sense; and if, with that seal, he has received also the gift of preaching, and the churchaccept his gift, he is a "prophet," and may deliverthat knowledge which he has received. Paul declares he was an apostle, "not of men, neither by-man;" that is, he was no priest according to thereceived ideas and ancient custom; nobody hadordained him; no son of Aaron had anointed himwith oil, and arrayed him in the consecrated ~ p h o d ;the corporation ofpriests were not at all concernedor consulted in his ordination. If he had thoughtthe apostolical succession indispensable in establish. .ing the validity of his'office, he might most easilyhave sought out the" archbishops" (ss the apostles .are deemed by some to have'been) and have received


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8110.1J DEFINITION. 3consecration from 'their hands. But he had otherviews, and what those views were he has stated veryplainly: "When it pleased God, who separatedme from my mother's womb, and called me by hisgrace, to reveal his son in me, that I might preachHim among the heathen, immediately I conferrednot with flesh and blood, n e i t ~ e r went I up to Jernsalem to them which were apostles before me, butI went into Arabia." So he began preaching andteachingwithout human ordination; and so little didhe think it requisite to be ordained by the apostlesthat he purposely avoided it, as is clearly intimatedin the epistle to the Gslatians.This, then, .is to be " an apostle not ofmen, neitherby man," and is the true apostolicaJ succession, forthe honour ofwhich the church of Christ has goodreason to be jealous.To distinguish, by a broad line of demarcation,between Cl the clergy" and "laity;" to act as i fwe supposed that a certain order of men had thepower of admitting candidates into their bodycorporate, or that their interference, 'or even assis- . tance, was indispensable in opening the door ofthe ministry to those whom the grace of Godhad previously selected to teach the truth, is, infact, to take away from the glory of Him who sendsthe rod of his strength out of ZioD, and who, bythe gift of repentance and remission of sins, rules8S a Prince in his Israel, and anoints all his trueservants to be kings and priests to God and hisFather.As one great aim of the Bon of perdition has been

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4 PRIESTHOOD. [OllA.P. I .to destroy: the priesthood of grace, and exalt thepriesthood ofman, and as this his work has too successfully transformed the oneness of the believingbody into "clergy and laity, t t so should it now be theunremitting labour of the servants of the Lord toundo his work; to go back again to tbe fountain oforiginal purity, and there, in a thorough cleansingof holiness, to recover the fair image of primevalsimplicity. And for this purpose it behoves usnot to tolerate any ancient custom, any receivedformulary of words, by which it is possible that theunderstanding of believers may be led, unawares,into a train of thought bordering on the old delusion. We have all an inherent tendency to thatdelusion: without this tendency, the papacy nevercould have achieved that mighty dominion which itformerly secured for itself: for, what is the papacybut an accommodation, in all things, to the unhallowed desires of the natural man? How careful,then, should we be to avoid the paths whereinit is even p08sible to lapse into old errors! Howcautious to shun the stumbling-blocks which arethickly set by Satan in every high-road and by-pathof the journey! cc If any man be in Christ, he is anew creature: old things are passed away; behold,all tiling' are become new!" He comes to see themany privileges of the church; a spiritual temple, aspiritual altar, a spiritual High-priest, a spiritualcompany ofpriests anointed by God theHoly Ghost,and by Him appointed, and sent forth to exercisetheir gifts in any office He chooses for them; a fraternity of spiritual kings, who shall reign with their


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8Eo.1.J DEFINITION. 5God for ever; enjoying spiritual union with the exalted Head of the church,-perfect God and perfectman,-who has taught his servants this unspeakablemystery, that they" are members of his body, ofhis :flesh, and of his bones."Now, in order to recover these privileges, ourduty is to place the gospel ministry in a clearlight; to bring it forth in open day; and to deprive it of the false effect produced by shadowyback-grounds, and the picturesque accompanimentsof antiquity. If the churches ofRome, of England,or other countries, have their orders-if they, inperfect consistency with their system, make theirpriests first breathe the sacerdota1life through thelaying on of prelatical hands-we" cannot be at alos8 for the line of conduct which we ought topursue, in ceasing to imitate or tolerate theirexample.It is but justice to remark in this. connection,that one sect, if sect it may be called, has approached perhaps nearer the truth concei-ning thepriesthood than any other, and, entirely levellingevery remnant of distinction between clergy andlaity, has at last produced a system framed on thefundamental doctrine, that "the old covenant"having " decayed and w:axed old," ought "to vanishaway." This sect is the Quake1'8; a body of menwho seemed determined to investigate this question, without the least regard to the trammels ofpreconceived opinions and settled customs; andthough, by such a method of investigation, they mayhave been in danger of running into Bome extra-


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6 PRIESTHOOD. [CHAP. I .v&gances, they were also sure to discover sometruths unknown, denied, or detested by their contemporaries: for 80 great are the delusioDs of everygeneration, that he who systematically opposes theopinions of the age in which he lives, can h&1'dlyfail to l i b e r ~ t e Bome truths from the 'captivity oferror. The Quakers, then, are entitled to the wholecredit of having placed the sacerdotal controversyin its true light; and they not only stated thetruth, 'but acted on it, guarding their opinions withsuch a watchful discipline, that it became impossible for their successors to misunderstand or misinterpret their meaning. To acknowledge a priestin any way, directly or indirectly, is, in fact, to ceaseto be a Quaker. And herein is theirwisdom deserving the highest admiration; for they acknowledgeand act upon this great maxim, that our Lord andSaviour J eallS Christ is the only Priest that hasany pre-eminence, and that the whole body ofbelievers are priests in perfect equality one withanother, in and through Him, their Head and Lord.One of'the early Quakers was, therefore, rightwhen he 8aid, "we are not persons that have shotup out of the old root into another appearance, asone sect hath done out of another, till many arecome up one after another, the ground still remaining out of which they all grow; but that veryground hath been shaking, destroyed and is destroying, removed and is removing in us."

Life of William Dewsbury t. London, 1836, p. 5.


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SEC. 2] PREB.OGA.TIV:z OF A.LL CHBIBTIA.liS. 7 2. Prie,thood the prerogative common to all

OkristiMuJ.Ohristianity can never be fully developed, nor

can the points of difference between Christ andAnti-Christ ever be fully settled, till the liberty ofthe ministry to all believers, and the ordination bythe Holy Spirit of all the members of the mysticalbody be fully understood, and admitted 88 entirelyvalid and sufficient. This is the axe that strikes attbe root of the tree of Popery, indestructibleby anyother instrument, but, by this, ultimately to beuprooted. To deny all distinction between clergyand laity, prohibits, in limiAuJ, the advance of anyother papal heresy; neither Pope nor Prelate canpla.nt his feet where this is held forth and acted on ;it meets him with confutation and expulsion at thedoor of the sanctuary; and, by referring to thesole priesthood of the divine Head of the Churchwho brings into union with Himself all bis people,and invites them "with boldness and confidence"to enter "the holiest of all," as "priests to Godand their Father"-renders it impossible for any" clergyman" to usurp functiOn! which his brethren,anointed with the Holy Ghost, may not performwith an authority and validity fully equal to anythat he can claim.

But it is marvellous to see h ~ this importanttruth of the Gospel has been neglected, and howChristians have, in almost all Protestant denomi.nations, set themselves to the work of consolidatingsuch a form of church government 88 should reduce


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8 PRIESTHOOD. [CHAP. I .the priesthood of the whole body of believers to anaked theory, and make that a mere idea, abstractedfrom anything practical or tangible, which was intended to be a governing principle of the churchupon earth., Protestant Dissenters are of all others the mostdeeply interested in this question; both becausethey profess to have seceded to the utmost distancefrom Rome on purely Scriptural grounds, and alsoto have secured to themselves an ecclesiasticalpolity free from the evils incident to the systemswhich elsewhere prevail. Still their practice andtheir principles seem not to be consistent with eachother. Their principles would lead to a pluralityof ministers in each church; and we know not thatsuch a plurality has ever been denied, in theoryat least, by any respectable writerof their class.Nevertheless, the great body of Dissenters have,in practice, rejected the plurality of ministers, andhave settled down into the one-man system, withoutthe semblance of an argument in favour of such anarrangement.

But we take still higher ground. W e pleadnot merely for the plurality of ministers, but for thefull and free acknowledgment of the liberty ofminis.try to the whole Ohurch of God; by which all maybe placed in such a position " as that all may prophecy, that all may learn, and all may be comforted." (1 Oor. xiv. 31.) W e plead for the abrogation of that law, or, which amounts to the samething, of that jl:&sd cuatom which commits to aclerical order, the whole duty of teaching and


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BEC. 2J PBEllOGAtI'IVE OF ALL CHBISTIANB. 9ministering to the spiritual necessities of a con-gregation, and substitutes for t b mutual exhortations of the church, the studied orations of professional theologians. We plead for the plenaryrecognition of the church-privileges of all the peopleof God; that they may, i f called to the work andgifted for it, preach the word (Acts viii. 4); thata saving faith in Christ may be admitted 88 proofof that anointing, which institutes into the evnn-g e l i ~ priesthood-for no one can say that Jesusis his Lord but by the Holy Spirit-and that therule of the Apostle may be revived and acted on,cc We, having the same spirit of faith, according88 it is written, I have believed and therefore haveI spoken, tDlJ alBo beZitme Mid tltJrttfors apelik." I fthe New Testament is to give us any light in thesematters, this is plain, that the whole body of believers are, by it, regarded as exercising di1Ferentministrations: cc The manifestation of the Spirit isgiven to every man to profit withal; for to one,is given by the Spirit the word of wisdom; toanother, the word of knowledge by the sameSpirit; to another, faith by the same Spirit; to'another, the gift of healing by the same Spirit;to another, the working of miracles; to another,prophecy; to another, discerning of spirits; toanother, divers kinds of tongues; but all theseworketh that one and the self-same Spirit, dividingto every man severally u he will: for as the bodyis one, and hath many mem bers, Bnd all the mem-bers or that body, being many, are one body, 80also is Christ: for by one Spirit are we all baptized


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10 PRIESTHOOD. [CHAP. I.into one body." (1 Cor. xii.) This importantpassage proves the whole argument,-that theHolySpirit does baptize all believers into the body ofChrist; making them priests in the sanctuary, byvirtue of their union with Him; and that theHoly Spirit imparts to each the gifts of ministra-tion, according to the will of God.Again, it is written, cc Every one of you hath apsalm, hath a doctrine, bath a tongue, hath a revela-tion, bath an interpretation: let all things be doneunto edifying,1 Cor. xiv. 26." Now, whatever maybe said of the miraculous gifts to which there isherean allusion, this is certain, that these passages con-template the whole church in action, in miniltr.tion ; and it would be presumptuous indeed toassert that the modem practice of restricting theministry to one individual, however pious, learned,and respectable that individual may be, was known,or even thought of, in the mra when the New Testament was composed under divine in1luence.Incidental directions are continually occurring inthe Scriptures, indicating t h ~ t the work of theministry (i. 8. the edification of the church byexhortation, experience, doctrine, warning, counsel,faith, &c.) was with all believers: cc As every manhath received the gift, even so minister the sameone to another, 88 good stewards of the manifoldgrace of God" (1 Pet. iv. 10); "not forsaking theassembling of ourselves together, as the manner ofsome is, but 6$lwrting one MWtker." (Heb. x. 25.)But whilst passages like these are of f r e q u e n ~occurrence, there is no record of a fact, nor of any .


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SEC. 2] PREROGATIVE OF ALL CHRISTIANS. 11thing like an incidental passing allusion, which canauthorize even the most resolute partizan to assertthat the order existing in these days existed also inthe days of the apostles.

But here we encounter the usual argumentsadvanced for the power, authority, and pre-eminence of the clergyman, whether he be cailedBishop, Priest, or Deacon, Minister, Pastor, orSuperintendent. Now, as nearly all denominationshave substantially, 88 it relates to the laity, thesame ~ u s e to defend, it is no matter of surpriseto find them all supporting their common theoryby precisely the salne arguments. There is indeeda wide difference in the eztent of power which theyclaim for their clergy; and Rome and Oxford8uperinduce the aid of tradition to make theircase still stronger; but all agree in quotingthe same texts for the establishment of the clericalorder. "Remember them which have the ruleover you, who have spoken unto you the wordof God; whose faith follow, considering the end oftheir conversation. (Heb. xiii. 7)" "Obey them thathave the rule over you, and submit yourselves; forthey watch for your souls as they that m.ust giveaccount; that they may do it with joy, and not~ t grief." (Heb. nii. 17.) "We beseech you,brethren, to know them which labour among you,and are over you in the Lord, and admonish you;and to esteem them very highly in love for theirworks' sake" (1 Thess. v. 12, 18) ; and others of asimilar import.


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12 PRIESTHOOD. [CHAP. I . 8. WAy'o Zittle 'aid of OkurCh Governmentin the Scripture8.In contemplating this question of early churchgovernment, we are too apt to bring to it our ownideas and practices 88. a medium through which to

view the subject. The object of most personswho engage in this inquiry, is to discover theexact degree of authority which the Elders, orDeacons, or Bishops of the church respectivelypossessed; to know and define, with precision, allthe laws and customs of church polity; to restorethe discipline and recover the canons ofecclesiasticalregimen. Some writers will tell us that there wasonly one Bishop, and that he ruled the Priests ;others, that there were no Priests, but many Elders,who were the same as Bishops; others, that therewas one Bishop, above the rest, in every church;others, that the brethren might elect, or might notelect, to clerical offices; that the Deacons had thisor that office, or this or that duty; and diversother points of that sort, which have been investi-gated with laborious research, and sustained withno little animosity in ecclesiastical controversies.But how comes it, i f this indeed were the realmatter of inquiry, that it is left undefined, un-certain, intangible, in Scripture; that churchgovernment is nowhere clearly described; that weare constrained to make our discoveries as well aswe can, by the very unsatisfactory help of passingallusions or incidental remarks; and that thatwhich seems to be the very soul of modern division,


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SBc.4J CHURCH FRUITS OF THE HOLY SPIRIT. 13and the life of controversy, and the strength of allBeets, should have no definite shape in the canon ofthe New Testament PThe church government of the Mosaic Law isclear beyond dispute. There are, in the Law, notmerelya few detached and questionable allusions,butwhole chapters and books expressly on the subject :but in the G o s p ~ l , which is a more glorious minis- .tr&tion, which is a better, a clearer, a more lifegiving system, the whole question of church government is Dever once directly handled! Howahall we account for this P Simply by this explanation; that our Lord Jesus Christ is Himselfthe Head of the church, and that He raises upwhom lIe will by the giit of the ij:oly Spirit, toedify the church according to bis own purpose;that He' never designed that it should be governedby a code of human laws and a book of canons, butthst He did intend, and will effect that which Heintended, to rule by his Spirit the churchwhichHepurchased with his own blood.

4. The Church Fruit, of tke Holy Spirit.Where the Holy Spirit is imparted, there will

be seen' the fruits of it, "love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness,temperance;" and, with such fruits 88 these, therewill be no lack of church order. There will beElders and Teachers; yea, there will be Epucopoior Overseers of the Hock; but their power will bethat of love; they will, with the mitre of meekness,and the P8ltoral staff of humbleness of mind, with


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141 PRIESTHOOD. [CHAP. I.the knowledge of the deep things of God, and, withthe strength of prayer, seek to lead the flock to stillwaters and green pastures, and to keep them closeunder the eye of the great Shepherd and Bishop ofsouls. They will sit enthroned in the affections oftheir faithful brethren: and, amidst the royal priesthood, the holy nation, the peculiar people, theywillrule with priestly sway. Who can doubt it P Whodoes not wish that so it should be P Dare we nottrust the promise of the exaltedHead of the church PAre we unable to believe that He will magnify hisword above all his name, and that He will, accordingto his word, be with his people to the end of theworld P And are we at all doubtful that, if wecome together with one mind and with one spirit,having no other desire than to live and die for theglory ofHim who died for us, that He will not onlyraise up Pastors to take care of us from amongst ournumber; but will supply all other gifts needed forthe different branches of edification and ministra-tion PThat is very simple in itself which to many persons is a problem of inextricable difficulty. TheHead of the Church will, by the agency of theHoly Spirit, raise up spiritual men into those officeswhich are for edification. Wherever there are giftsof preaching or teaching in the brethren, there theywill, by that IBme grace by which faith was firstimparted, be ultimately made manifest. Everyman will stand in his proper position: each willfall into the ranks of the church according to thestation for which he is adapted. The grave, the pru-


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SEC. 5] THE AOTS AND EPISTLES. 15dent, the watchful, perceptive character will takehis natural place for government; the brother, whohas a gift of utterance, and who is well instructedin the Scriptures, will become a preacher or teacher;some, by general superiority of understanding, willprecede others; and some, by faith and patience, andothers by the gift; of prayer, will be in that place oftrust in the church which is evidently theirs, with-out any ceremony of election, or imposition ofhands. The true authority is that of the messagedelivered and the character of him who deliversit. There is one Spirit which anoints them all forthe priesthood, and sanctifies their faculties andcalls them forth according to their adaptation,for the edification of the church. CaiuB may havemany qualifications for government or for teaching,either conjointly or distinctly, which Lucius hasnot; whilst Lucius, a very dear brother, will takesome other station, and be exceedingly valued bythe church in his proper capacity. And thus itwill come to pus, that, in the kingdom of love,eaius will be an overseer (epiBCOP08), and he willtake the oversight of the brethren by ruling intheir affections. 5. Wnat kind of Government is recognized in tke.Acta and tke EpiBtle8.

To us, it is obvious that both the Acts and theEpistles were written with a view to churrh govern-ment such as this ; -a church government, not withmy fixed laws or defined polity, but avowedly underthe direction of the Holy Spirit, ruling by the


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16 PRIBSTHOOD. [CHAP. I .principle of love; which, if it were understood andfelt, would effectually Bettle all disputes aboutecplesiastical regime, and show the utter emptinessof all those interminable questions concerning theministerial office, which have indeed filled manybooks, but have not advanced the settlement of thequestion one degree further than it was in the daysof Luther and Calvin. 6. Where we Me to look for tke Law of Ckwrci

G01JtJNI,mtmt.The law of church-government is to be found in

the general principles prescribed for the regulationofOhristian conductaand not in any canonsor enactmenta of discipline. In texts like these we are todiscover it: " I f we live in the Spirit, let us alsowalk.' in the Spirit; let us not be desirous of vainglory, provoking one another, envying one another."(Gal. v. 25.) "Bear ye one another's burdens,and 80 fulfil the law of Christ: for i f a man thinkhimself to be something, when he is nothing, hedeceiveth himself; but let everyman prove his ownwork, and .then shall he have rejoicing in himselfalone, and not in another; for everyman shall bearhis own burden. Let him that is taught in theword, communicate unto him that teacheth in allgood things." (Gal. vi. 2-6.) "Walk in love, asChrist also hath loved us, and bath given himselffor UB, an offering and a sacrifice to God, for asweet-smelling savor." (Eph. v. 2.) "Speakingto yourselves in psalms and hymns and spiritualsongs, singing and making melody in your heart to


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SEC. 6] LAW OF C ~ U B C H GOVBBXllENT. 17the Lord; giving thanks always for all things untoGod and the Father, in the name of the LordJ eSllS Christ; submitting !louraclveB one to anotlatJ'rin t1u) fear of God." (Eph. v. 19-21.) "TheElders which are among you I exhort, who amalso an Elder." cc Feed the flock of God which isamong you, taking the oversight thereof, not byconstraint but willingly; not. for filthy lucre, but ofa ready mind; neither as being Lords over God'sheritage, but being ensamples to the flock; and,vhen the chief Shephera shall appear, ye shallreceive a crown of glory that fadeth not away.Likewise, ye younger, submit yourselves unto theelder; !lea, all l!f !loo be BUbJect one to OIIWtker, andbe clothed with humility." (1 Pet. v. 1-5.) "Put-OD, therefore, 88 the elect of God, holy and beloved,bowels of mercies, kindness, humbleness of mind,meekness, long-suffering; forbearing one another,and forgiving one another, if any man have a quarrelagainst any; even as Christ forgave you, so also doye; and, above all these things, put on charity,which is the bond of perfectness: and let the peaceof God rule in your hearts, to the which also yeare called in one body; and be ye thankfuI." (Col.iii. 12..15.) " I am persuaded of' you, my brethren,that ye also are full of goodness, filled with allknowledge, able also to admonish one another."(Rom. xv.14.) "Now the God of patience andconsolation grant you to be like-minded one towardsanother according to Christ Jesus: that ye maywith one mind and one mouth glorify God, eventhe Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. Whereforec


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18 PBIESTHOOD. [CIIAP. I .receive ye one another, as Christ also received 118_tothe glory of God." (Rom. xv. 5-7.) 7. The doctrine of a Okriatian Priesthood apartjrorn, tke gfJ'fl,eral boily of Believer8 receives fU )

countenance from tke earZie,t HiBtO'r!J of 01lriB-tianity.

On this head we make no pretensions to divedeep into the depths of patristic lore. Indeed, weplace very little stress on the historical argumentas compared with the Scriptural. I t is of small.lnoment to us what the most ancient Fathershal"e t a u g ~ t on a question that is finally tobe settled solely on the authority of Holy Writ. If they are to be summoned into court, it issimply that they may give testimony to matters of. fact, and not to take the judges' seat and lay downthe la,v for the church. That we have to seekin the archives of Inspiration, and nowhere else.At the same time, if the collateral records ofthe purest ages of Christianity go to confirm therel!ults of previous enquiry conducted wholly onother grounds, nothing forbids our availing ourselves of this fact. Happily there is ample evidencethat, though the apostolic polity was very early. departed from, and the foundations of the hierarchy. thoroughly laid, yet in the really prima-primitive. days of the church the order for which we pleadwas the one that actually prevailed. The profoundand clear-sighted Neander, the honest Mosheim, theexact Gjeseler, are accounted reliable authorities in


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SEC. 7.] THE EA.RLY OHURCH. iothis department, and they all concur in substantially the same v i ~ w of 'the non-distinction of theclerical and the laical classes in the commencementof the church's career. The following extracts,samples ofverymanyotherswhichmight be adduced,will convince the reader that, in the averment nowmade, we do not "speak withoJlt book.".,What MOBes expressed as a wish, that the Spirit of Godmight l'est upon all, and all might be prophets, is a prediction

of that which was to be realized thl"Ough Christ. By Him wasinstituted an economy distinguished from the constitution ofaU previously existing religious societies. There could be nolonger a priestly or prophetio office, constituted to serve 88 amedium for the propagation and development of the KingdomofGod, on which office the religious consciousness of the community was to be dependent. Such a class of priests as e x i s ~ din the previous systems of religion, emp.owered to guide othermen, who l'emained, as it werf, in a state of religious pupilage,having the e:cclurive oare of providing for theh' l'eligious wants,and serving 8S mediators, by whom all other men must bep l a ~ e d in conneotion with God and divine things,-such apriestly caste could :find no place withiJl Christianity. When the apostles applied the Old Testament idea of the .priesthood, this was done invariably for the simple purpose ofshowing that no such visible partioular priestllood could findplace in the new oommunity; that since free access to God

. and to heaven had been, once for all, open to believers by oneHigh Priest, even ChI"jst, they had, by virtue of their union toHim, become themselves a ephitual!)eople, consecrated to God j

. their calling being DODe other than to dedicate their entirelife to God 8S a thank-o:ffering for the grace of redemption, topublish abroad the power aud gt"ace of Ifim who had calledthem out ofthe kingdom of darkness into his ma.rvellous light,

. to make their life one continual priesthood. " Eaehsociety was a whole composed of equal melnbers, all the members being but organs of the community, as this was the body

c2


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20 PBIESTHOOD. [CHAP. I .quickened by the Spirit of Christ. All those m ~ m b e r a , organsof the whole and of the one Spirit that gavt' it life, were to cooperate each in his appropriate place, for the oommon eDd:and some of the members acted in this organization of parts asthe pre-eminently guiding ones. But it could hardly workitself out in a natural way from the eS8p.noe of the ChriatiaDlife and of Chl"isuan fellowship, that tllu (JUidantJ6 8houltJ beplaced in tke ha1uU elf 011.111 one individual. 1'1I.e monarchicaZform o.f gov8r'll,'1Il61lt 1VU 'Itot mitet/, to the Oh'rUtian com,nunitllof Spirit. The preponderance of one individual at the head oCthe whole might too easily operate 8S. cheque on the freedevelopment of the life of the church, and the free co-operationof the different organs, in whom the oonsciousnesl ofmutual independence must ever be kept alive. The individualon whom every thing depended, might acquire too great animportance for the whole, and 80 beoom.e a oentre round whichall would gather, so 88 to obscure the sense of their commonrelation to that only One, who should be the centre for all."-.!VtJander'8 Cl". Hut., p. 179-183. TOPr8g'8 T".an8.

".All CltriBtWlIU, originally, had the right of pouring outtheir hearts before the brethren, and of speaking for theiredification in the public 88sembliea."-Id. Vol. I., p. 186.

" The duty of teaching, as an office, was by no means incumbent on the elders, although the apostle wishes that theyshould be apt to teacl". The capacity for instructing andedifying in the auemblfes was rather considered 88 a free gift.of the Spirit, which manifested itself in many Chriati&lls,though in different modes. Sta lk . ",111 t I di8tinDt pritJltZyorder kntJ'TDn at tAia time; fm' tluJ ' R J k o ~ ,oci8tV qf Okri8titM'flW'aea a r01/al prie8thood, Gotl, petnJ,lial' P t K J P ~ . " GiUlUr,.EM. Kut., ch. i i. 30. p. 90. Edin. Ed.

"The authority of the church constituted the dUFereucebetween the (olerical) order and tbe people. (Di1Ferentiaminter ordinem et plebem cODltituit ecole8be auotoritaa!')Ambl"Osiaster (Hilary the Deacon), about A.D. 800, thus


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SEo.7.] THE EA.RLY CHlJRCH. 21apeab in his Comment all Bpke, : - "At first all taught andal l baptized on whatever days or whatever times it might beconvenient. . . As then the people grew and weremultiplied it was a privilege conceded to Iill at the outset toevangelize, to baptize, and to expound the Scriptures in thechurch. But 88 plac'es became :filled with churches, conven-tieles were established and directors appointed, and othel011088 were created in the churches,80 that no one of tilenumber who was not ordained dared to take upon him an officewJrlch YOB not thus entrusted or conceded to hinl. The con-sequence was, that the church begun to be governed byentirely a difterent ordelo and providence, because if all were tobe vie\ved as competent to the same function, it would of coursebe esteemed i.orational, vulgar, and vile. Hence it bas happenedthat now neither do deacons pleach among the p e o p l e ~ nor doolerics or lais baptize, nor aloe believers baptized on any andevelY duy, unless it be the sick."-Gieaeler, Vol. I. p. 91.

The grand question is the true sense of theWordofGod, andyet we are not indifferent to the suffragesof great and good men. Bro,Yn, the earliest of tbeEnglish Independents (from whom they were origi-nally called BrowniBt8) held the liberty of ministry,the equality ofChristianbrethren, the Spirit's teach-ing and competency (and not man's appointmentor ordination), as the proper and only warrant forministry in the present dispensation. Milton alsomaintains entirely the spiritual priesthood ofall trnebelievers, and utterly repudiates the idea of anyolraer of men whatever be tlieir name, being aJlowedto come in as prie8t8, between God and his peo-ple, as the medium of intercourse, and the link oftheir connection with hen:ven; maintaining, wbatthe Ne\v Testament so enlpbatically enforces, tlie


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22 PRIESTHOOD. [OJLUl. I .personal responsibility of every individual believerto God, and the impossibility of transacting, byrproxy, those matters which relate to God and thesoul, and can only be carried on by the aid ofthe Spirit, through the mediation of J esU8 at theright hand of God. So far Milton's principlesaccord with the principles of the New Testament:and many of his pungent remarks in the tractateentitledu The Likeliest Means to remove Hirelingsout of the Church," deserve the grave and practicalattention of the pastors and people of all sectionsof the professing church. We quote 8 brief passage from the close of it, commending the perusalof the whole to those who would see a clear andforcible exposition of the mischief which h88 beenwrought in the church, by the exhibition of lures ofany kind for inducing men to take upon themselvesa work which they should undertake "not by constraint, but willingly, not for filthy lucre but of aready mind:"

" Heretofore, in the first evangelio times (and it were happyfOI- Christendom were it 80 again), ministers of the gospel weloeby nothing else distinguished from other Christians but bytheir spiritual knowledge and sanctity or life, for whicn theChUl-ch elected them to be her teachers and overseers, thoughnot thereby to separate them from '1IJhatever calling she thenfound them following besides; 8S the example of St_ Paul de-clares, and the .first times of Christianity. When once theyaffected to be called a clergy, and became, as it were, a distinctorder in the commonwealth, bred up for divines in babblingschools, and fed at the public cost, good for nothing else but\Vhatw88 good for nothing, they aoon grew idle; tllat idleneu,witb fuhw8S of brend, begat pride &nd perpetual contention


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SEC. 7.] THE EA.RLY CHURCH. 28.with their feeders, the despised laity, through all ages eversince, to the penerting of religion and the disturbanoe of allChristendom j " - o f which" Christendom might soon rid her-self and be happy, if Christians would but know their owndignity, their liberty, their adoption, and, let it not be wondered if I say, their apiritualprie8tkooa; whereby they haveall equally access to any ministerial function, whenever calledby their own abilities and the ChUl'ch, though they nevercame near commencement 01" university. But while Protestants, to avoid the' due labor of understanding their ownreligion, are content to lodge it in the breast, or rather in thebooks of a clergyman, and to take it thence by scraps andmammocks, as he dispensE's it in his Sunday's dole, they willbe ~ w a y s learning, and never knowing; always infants;always his vassals,88 lay Papists are to their priests; or atodds with him, 88 reformed principles give them some light tobe not-wholly conformable."


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24 THE APOSTOLATE.

CHAPTER 11.

THE ApOSTOLATE.

,I. Position a88Umetl."CHURCH Government," says Prof. Schaaff, in hisHistory of the Apostolic Church, "has its foundation in the Christian Ministry, which is originallyidentical with the Apostolate and contains thegerms of all other church offices." Such, brieflystated, is the theory which constitutes the strong- .hold of the advocates of a priestly and clerical caste.I t supposes that our Lord, in giving his last commandment to the disciples to go forth and proselyteall nations, gave it to them as 8 kind of corporation,or apostolic college, set apart under 8 special ecclesiastical organization, instead of giving it to themmerely as individuals. Nearly all theologians haveinterpreted our Saviour's words in the former sense,implying a special commission to the apostles 88 anecclesiastical corporatioa...and authorising them, as8uch, henceforth to preside over the whole body of'believers; having power, in virtue of that position, toexpound the doctrines of the Christian faith, tO Iadminister the sacraments, and especially to ordain


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SEC. 2] POSITION DEXIJ:D. 25other persons to the performance of the sanle functions; thus perpetuating the clerical order as longas the church should endure on earth.

2. P o s i t i o 1 ~ denied.The above statement brings the great questionbefore us. Is it an undoubted fact that Christ didconstitute the apostles an ecclesiastical corporation P The determination of this question involvesthe most serious consequences, since the clergyresttheir claims, as a body of men consecrated by divineappointment to perform certain flIDctions, on the8ssumption that the apostles themselves were 8corporation; for unless they were so constitutedthey could not confer corporate powers upon thosewho succeeded them in point of time. Everyimportant passage that is quoted from the NewTestament, as implying commission, authority, orpower to the clergy or ministers of the gospel,consists of words addressed expressly to theapostles. But no one- has 8 right to apply to taeclergy at large words 8 p o k ~ n by Christ specially tohis apostles, unless he can also show that the apostleswere a corporation, and that as such they communicated the powers or authority which theythemselves had received. Were they such a body PDid they communicate such a power P That twelveapostles were, in a special manner, individuallycommissioned to COMMENCE the work of proselytingmankind, is evident from tIle New Testament his-


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26 THE APOSTOLA.TE. [CHAP. IT .tory; but that they were appointed to this work asan apostolic corporation, with powers to perpetuatethis corporate authority by ordination, is a doctrinefor which we :find no adequate evidence in the;Scripture.

In the first place, we have sought in vain for anypassage in the New Testament that either speaks of,or implies, any ~ u c h corporate action of the apostlesas a distinct body. There is no plan for theorganizations of such a collegiate body laid down inthe apostolic w r i t i n g s ~ nor rules given by which it-should be regulated. In warning the disciplesagainst false prophets who would in time appearamong them, our Lord gave them no other instruction bywhich to determine the cbaracterofthesefalseteachers than that of judging them "according to,theirfruits." The theory of the appointment of such.an apostolic college empowered to teach or govern"with a special authority is also at variance with what

- t ~ e Lord says to his disciples,Matt. niii.7-10 , ccBeye not called Rabbi, for one is !lour Master, evenOhrist, andall !If) are brethren. And callno man!lOfllr.father upon tho earth, for one is your father whichis in heaven. Neither be ye called masters, for onei" your master even Christ." Is it possible forwords to bear 8 more direct testimony against abody of teachers so constituted than the circum-stance, that the very words which imply the neces:SarY superiority of such teachers are positivelyforbidden to be used P. Secondly. That there could have been no organi-


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SBo.2] POSITIOlf D:BNI:aD.zation of the apostles, as a corporation, is evident .from the statement made by Paul, who expresslytells us (Gal. i. 15, &c.) that, after his miraculouscall to the apost1eship, he held no conference what-ever with those who were apostles before him, butwent into Arabia in the work of the ministry; andDot until three years after did he go up to Jeru-salem, where he conferred only with Peter, andmerelymentions having seen James of aU the otherapostles.Thirdly. Neither did the other apostles know,during these three years, that Christ had appointedPaul to be an apostle with them; for when he firstwent up to J ernsalem (Actsn. 26, 27) and " assayedto join himself with the disciples," they were allafraid of him, not believing him to be even a convertto Christianity, till Barnabas cleared up the matter.I t BeemB incredible, then, that the apostles shouldhave been a corporation when, for three years, theydid not even know so eminent a member of their own.bod,..Fourthly. I t is to be observed that Paul, in the.gzeater number of his epistles, associates with him.self in the address, Timothy, Bylv&nus, or- Sos-thenes, who were. his ordinary attendants on hismissionary excursions. In other epistles he writesin his own name, and never uses any expressionimplying the concurrent authority of an apostolicbody. I t is the same with Peter, James, and John;they each write as individuals only. These factsare ineoDBistent with the hypothesis that the


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28 ~ J D C UOSroLA.TE. [CHAP. l l .apostles constituted 8 corporation, which WBB to bethe fountain-head ofministerial authority.The popular theory, therefore, that the minis-terial function centered in, and originated w i t h ~what is termed the" apostolic college," viewed as adivine corporation, is, we think, totally irrecon-cilable with the statements made above. Nor doesthe filling up of the vacancy occasioned by thedefection of Judas in the election of Matthias, a&related Acts i. 15-26, invalidate in our minds thisconclusion. The election does not appear to havebeen made by the apostles exclusively, but by thewhole body of the disciples; and moreover it mustbe borne in mind that Christ Himself selected Paulfor the vacant apostleship by a direct and supernatural appointment: The description (inRev. xxi.14) of the city of the celestial Jerusalem states thatits foundations bore the names of cc the twelve'apostles of the Lamb." If Paul was included inthis enumeration, then certainly Mattmas was not,for then there would have been thirteen a p o 8 t l e s ~and i f Matthias was included, then by the samere880n Paul was not. The same remark is applicable to what is said by our Lord respecting thetwelve apostles sitting upon twelve thrones, judgingthe twelve tribes of Israel. .

From the various considerations now adduced wedeem the conclusion justified, that Christ calledthe apostles as individuals, and commissioned themto act in this capacity, and in this only. As suchthey went forth into the world, as it were upon 'so


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:SEC. 2.] POSIl 'ION DENIED. 29many diiferent missionary enterprizes, wherein eachacted in accordance with his own views of religiousduty, and not according to any enactments of an.spostolical conclave. Consequently the theory of apermanent or perpetuated body of clergy originatingfrom this source has, in our. opinion, no founda-tion.


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30 :MINISTRY.

CHAPTER I l l .

MINISTR Y. 1. Prevailing Notion8.

THE setting aside of any other prie8tlwoiJ in theChristiaI;l church than that of our Lord Himself stillleaves the institution of a mini8try untouched, andour inquiry now concerns that subject. What then.is the general and popular idea of "ministry," andwhat is the divine teaching concerning it P Withthe multitude it is a wide undefined term, meaningan office equally undefined, held by one who istermed a priest, clergyman, minister, or preacher.With the uninstructed, "priesthood" and "min-istry" are the same thing. Whoever will take thetrouble to institute the inquiry, will find that thepopular idea of "ministry" is like the popular ideao f " church"-all dimness and confusion. A notion.prevails that whatever is said about priests andlevites in the Old Testament, and about bishops.and ministers in the New, is to be applied to theChristian ministry,-that a minister is a priest, and.8 priest 1\ minister; that. the person holding this.office is, in some way, to be ordained to it by other'priests or ministers; that by virtue of his office he-


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SEC. 2] SCRIPTURAL REPRESENTATION. 31is to preach and pray for the people, to visit thepoor and the sick, to look after the salvation ofmen's souls, and more or less to secure it; that heis to be more pious than "the laity;" to wearofficial apparel; to be called" Reverend;" andgenerally to take the management of everythingthat belongs to "religion."

This is, with very little variation, the popularidea of " ministry," among all bodies of Christians ;and it obviously is not the interest of the clericaldepartment, in any sect, to clear up the popularmistakes on a subject which, i f rightly understood,might tend to subvert all established arrangements,and to restore God's order over the ruins of theorder of man. 2. PIle true Idea ofMinist171 a set forth in tAe

8 c r i p t u 1 ~ e 8 .The first and most obvious duty attached to a

ministry by all parties is, ofcourse, official teaching;except, indeed, in the Roman Catholic persuasion,where performing the sacrifice of the mass, andadministering "the sacraments," take precedence ofpreaching and teaching; but now we are writing ofProtestants, and amongst them-in all their deno-minations-teaching and preaching constitute, ofnecessity, a large portion ofthe ministerial functions.Let us now see what the New T e s t a ~ e n t says ofthese functions, their origin, and the persons towhom they are assigned. We find all this statedin 1 Cor. xii. " Now concerning spiritual gifts,brethren, I would not have you ignorant . . Now


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32 llINISTBY. [ CHAP. Ill.there are diversities ofgifts, but the same Spirit; andthere are differences ofadministrations (or services),but the same Lord; and there aredivenities ofoperations, but it is the same God which worketh all inall. But the manifestation of the Spirit is given toevery man to profit withal; for to one is given bythe Spirit the word of wisdom; to another the wordof knowledge by the same Spirit; to another faithby the same Spirit; to another the gifts of healingby the sanle Spirit; to another the working ofmiracles; to another prophecy; to another discerning of spirits; to another divers kinds oftongues; to another the interpretation of tongues :but all these worketh that one and the self-sameSpirit, dividing to every man severally as he will."This statement is very clear: we are here veryplainly informed that the Holy Spirit bestowsvarious gifts on the members ofthe church; that thedonation is not to a privileged class, separated fromtheir brethren, nor according to man's appointmentor election, but that the selection is made out ofthewhole body, according to the unrestrained will ofthe sovereign Distributor. " The manifestation ofthe Spirit is given to every man, to profit withal"(v. 7), and in consequence of this divine regulation, one man receives wisdom, another knowledge,another faith (v. 8,9). There are, indeed, othergiftsmentioned, but with them we are not now concerned, as the church confessedly does not nowpossess them; but wisdom, knowledge, and faithmust, in degree at least, exist, otherwise there\vould be no ministry or teaching a.t all. IC Now all


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SEC. 2.J S C R I P ' r U n A . r ~ REPRESENTA.TION. 88these worketh that one and the self-same Spirit,diDiding to elJery man severaJIy as he will." (v. 11.)I f this be a true description of the church as itwas at the first, then it clearly bears no resemblance to the arrangements p ~ v a i l i n g at the presenttime, when the division of ministry is not by the. will and' appointment of the Spirit, but by thedirection and choice of man. This is indeed 80plain, that almost all commentators seem quietly toyield the point,-that theministry in the Corinthianchurch was of an order now lost, and that allexisting churches have adopted another system.They speak of the Corinthian order as a patternknown only in the Scriptures; it is, in fact, terra in-cognita 'to them, and so accustomed are they to thearrangements introduced by tradition, that the distribution of gifts by the Spirit to eve..ry man in thechurch, they regard as some strange phenomenon ofthe days of miracles. Amongst the yarious denominations we do indeed see quite another system.In the churches of Rome and EngI8nd, the bishopsappoint to the ministry; in the kirk of Scotland,the Presbytery is the fountain of clerical functions;amongst dissenters generaJIy, the people, or thechurch as it is called, elect the minister, and o t b ~ l 'ministers ordain him after he has been elected;whilst amongst the Wesleyans, the C o n f e r e ~ c e , orsome power deputed by the Conference, selects andgoverns all the ministers and preachers.. Now, itmust be clear to everyone, that neither bishops)popular elections, presbytery, nor conference, cansupersede the functions of the Holy Spirit; .. and '

D


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.34 lIINISTRY. [CHAP. In .beyond this one need not push the inquiry, in orderto be satisfied that nearly all secta, from the statelychurch of England, down to the lowest denomina-tion of dissent, are gone far astray from the orderrecorded in the New Testament. If the Scriptures,then, are to be our guide: we have already advancedfar in the ~ o l u t i o n of the problem before us; and.we have only to apply the statements in the NewTestament to facts before our eyes, to assure us orthe accuracy ofour deductions. For instance, let U8try the existmg church ofRome, by Paul's descrip-tion of what that church was in his day. Paul, inwriting to the Romans, (chap. xii.) says, "We, beingmany, are one body in Christ, and every one mem-bers one of another," having different gifts-somebeing evangelists, others pastors, teachers, rulers,or helps. But now all that can be said of the churchof Rome is, that it is entire}y clerical; that theHoly Spirit does not appoint to the ministry, andthat every thing there is under the supreme controlof the Pope. The church of Rome, therefore, haslost the order set forth in the Scriptures; and so itis with others also; for we do not find it written,"He gave some bishops to rulfl dioceses; or Hegave rectors and curates for the care of parishes ;or He gave ordained ministers," &c., but some-thing very dissimilar in every respect. Protes-tants, therefore, as well as the church of Rome,have departed from the authority of Scripture intheir arrangements in regard to ministry.

Aiain: supposing, for argument's sake, thatsuch tt. form of the church did exist as has beeR


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SEC. 2.] SCRIPTURA.L REPRESENTATION.'. 35described. in the twelfth chapter of the first epistleto the CorinihiaDa-that there was no " ordainedministry, no clerical or official appointments, noclergymen or "ministers" consecrated or chosen toact 8S functionaries for the people, but that all thepeople, without any recognition of ojJitMZ distinction, met as a gathering of believers, to receive anycc diversity of gifts" which the Holy Spirit mightdispense amongst them; that "wisdom" "knowledge," "faith," were exhibited here and there,without man's direction, and wholly independentof it; and that those so gathered had no idea ofany other order; would not such a church resemblea body in active and vigorous life; every limb, everymember, contributing, in proper proportion, to thelife and activity of the whole body? Now this isexactly the similitude selected by the apostle Paul,to describe the church of the Corinthians. cc.Thebody is not one member, but many. I f the footshall say, Because I am not the hand, I am Dot ofthe body; is it therefore not of the body P And i fthe ear shall say, Because.I am not the eye, I amnot of the body; is it therefore not of the body PIf the whole body were an eye, where were thehearing P I f the whole were hearing, where werethe smelling P But now bath God set the memberseveryone of them in the body, as it hath pleasedhim. .And if tkey fDM6 all 008 member, where werethe body P But now are they many members, yetbut one body. And the eye cannot Bay unto thehand, I have no need of thee: nor again, the head

n2


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36 m.1STHY. [CHAP. nx.to the feet, I have no need of you. . . Now yeare the body of Christ, and members in particular. tJ(1 Oor. xii.)But let us uk,' how can this portion of Scripture

apply to the generality ofProteatantdenomiDatioDSPID them there is no body at aJ.l, i f ~ are to followthe apostle's illustration of the life and visibilityof the church as manifested in the vitality ofall the members, for the apostle plainly tells us,that" if they were all one member there would beno body;t' and who is there that does not see inthese words a condemnation of the clerical system,which presents tbe body in the form of one memberonly-THE MINISTER,-the ordained, official,and salaried minister, who, whetber he be appointedto his office by a prelate or popular election,supersedes all other spiritual gifts in the church?In such a system as this, the body is dead, allthe members are inanimate, the "honorablo" or"feeble" are alike useless, and one individual iseye, mouth, ear, hand, and foot. " The eye cannotsay unto the hand, I have no need of thee; nor againthe head to the feet, I have no need of you." Thisis the illustration of the apostle; whereaa, applyingthis i l l U 8 ~ a t i o n to the arrangements of the presentday, we see that one member .ys , " I will be eye,hand, head, and foot: entrust all your funetioDs tome, ye separate members, for I will be the life ofthe whole body." This is a figurative descriptionof tke fact presented to us by the ministry of tke

..one man '!I,tem, and in ,such & sY8tem the supre-


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SEo.2.] SCKIPTUlUL UPBBSENTATIOlf. 37macyof the Holy Spirit cannot be owned, nor canHis distribution of gifts "to every man accordingto his own will " have any place.Paul says, "The body is not one member, but

many" (ver. 14). Now, the various sects prac-tically, though unintentionally, deny this; andthey ought, in keeping with their practices, to readthe text thus: "The body is one member, and Memany." The apostle afterwards proceeds thus:cc Now ye are the body of Christ, and members inparticular. And God hath set some in the church,first apostles, secondarily prophets, thirdly teachers,after that miracles, then gifts of healings, helps,governments, diversities of tongues. Are all apos-tles P are all prophets P are all teachers P" &c.This is a full explanation of all he had previouslyurged. Every member has not 'all these gifts, buteveryone is in a condition to receive any w ~ c h theSpirit may impart; some may have one gift, othersmore than one. Teaching, helping, governing, maybe separated or united, just as the Lord chooses;but not one word of this could be understood, i f wewere to suppose that one or two individuals actedofficially and permanently in lieu of the whole bodyof believers. Suppose, only for argument's sake,that there was a ministry in the apostle's days,luch &8 we see in these times, then would it be im-po88ible to comprehend Paul's meaning; but i f onthe other hand we dismiss the idea of a clericalorder, and admit the fact that the whole body ofbelievers waited for such ministry as the HolySpirit migbt please to apportion to them, dividing


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38 llINIBTBY. [C HAP. UT.to every man severally aB He chose, then we c a nunderstand all the argument of the apostle.I n the fourteenth chapter of the same epistle, Pau lincidentally lets us know the result of the churcb-oMer 8S it eDsted in those days. (Ver. 2 8 - 3 1 ~ .." If therefore the whole church be come togetherinto one place, and all speak with tongues, andthere come in those that are unlearned; or unbe-lievers, will they not say that ye are mad P But i fall prophesy, and there come in one that believethnot, or one unlearned, he is convinced of all,he is judged of all. How is it then, brethren Pwhen ye come together, tJfJety 0'ntJ of !lOll batha psalm, hath a doctrine, bath a tongue, bath arevelation, hath an interpretation. Let all thingsbe done unto edifying. I f any man speak in anunknown tongue, let it be by two, or at themoat by three and that by course; and let oneinterpret. . Let the prophets speak two orthree, and let the other judge. I f anything berevealed to another that sitteth by, let the firsthold his peace. .llw!lB may all propAelg one by OftB,that all may learn and all may be comforted."The meaning of this passage is evident: Paul supposes it to be p08sible that in the meetings of thechurches all the believers might be 80 injudicious . .to use the one giftwhich would be intelligible onlyto themselves, but wholly unintelligible to cc t h unlearned ot unbelievers" (ver.28). This possiblemistake he corrects by recommending that only twoor three should speak in an unknown tongue; butat the same time be mentions, with manifest appro-


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BEC. 2.] SCRIPTURAL BBPRESENTATIOY. 39bation, the possible fact of all prophesying, nay,he plainly S&ys, that" all might prophesy one byone, that all might learn, and all be comforted;"and whilst he says this, he never alludes to theexistence, in the Corinthian church, of official pastors, ordained ministers, or clergymen; his thoughtsnever go that way at all; be does not, as is thecustom now, addre88 his remarks 88 a matter ofcourse to "the minister," meaning thereby eitherthe parish priest or the popularly-elected preacher,but he directs his precepts to the whole Corinthisnchurch, as the ministering body. He takes it forgranted that gifts would be visible in tke body-thegifts of kno\vledge, wisdom, faith, teaching, help,government, evangelizing, and the rest; andthat the appointment to those gifts must be bythe Holy Spirit, that same Spirit by which, as betells us, in introducing the subject, every believerhas been enabled to say that J eaus is the Lord.(1 Cor. xii. 8). And indeed it is well worthy ofobservation that Paul, in writing to the Romans,Corinthians, Ephesians, GaIatians, Thessalonians,Philippians, and ColossiaDs, never directs his lettersto "the minister;" he never even names luch anindividual; and this fact alone, if duly weighed,would go far to settle the question of an " ordainedministry," wherever there is a disposition implicitlyto believe and obey the word of God.Are we then to follow the Scriptures in thesematters P Are we to test "churches" as they arecalled, by the precepts and arrangements which wefind in the Scriptures P I f 80" let us see how, with


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40 lIDfIBTBY. [ CHA.P. Ill.any i n t e l 1 j ~ b l e meaning, the following words couldnow be addressed to the congregations assembled forworship whetber in church or chapel : - " Brethren,when ye come together,evSfYO1Ie of!lfJ1l hath a psalm,hath a doctrine," 1 Cor. xiv. 26: "To one is given bythe Spirit the word of wisdom, to another the wordofknowledge by the same Spirit, to anotber faith bythe same Spirit. . . . But all these worketh that oneand the self-same Spirit, dividing to e1JB'r!l man Beve-rally aB he will." 1 Cor. xii. "AB 6fJety man bathreceived tbe gift, even 80 minister the same one toItnotbel', as good stewards of the manifold grace ofGod; if an.,! 'lnan speak, let him ~ p t ' a k as the oraelesof God: if an.,!man minister, let him do it as of theability which God giveth." 1 Pet. iv. 10, 11.There are two other chapters in the New Testament in 'which the subject is fully set forth. To theRomans Paul writes, "For I say through the peegi\"en unto me, to every man that is among you,not to think of himself more highly tban he oughtto think; but to think soberly, according as Godhath dealt to every man the measure 'of faith. Foras we have many members in one body, and allmemhers have not the same office; so we, beingmany, are one body in Christ, and everyone mem-bers one of another. Having then gifts differingaccording to the grace that is given to us, whetherprophesy, let us prophesy a c c o r d i n ~ to the proportion of faith; or ministry, let us wait on our ministering; or he that teachetb, on teaching; or hethat exhortetb, on e x b o r t a t i ~ ; he that giveth, lethim do it with simplicity; be that ruleth, with


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BEC. 2.1 8CBIPTUB.A.L REPBBSE:NTATION. 4.1diligence; he that showeth mercy, with cheerful-ness" (xii). Here Paul enumerates some of thegifts :-prophesy, m i n i ~ t r y , teaching, exhorting,giving, ruling, showing mercy; now whatevermay be our opinion about the precise character

. of some of these gifts, this is certain, that ministry,exhortation, teaching and ruling-four offices, whichin these days are always assigned to one person,and which are always deemed to be the peculiarprerogatives or duties of "the minister "-are de-clared by Paul to be gifts" differing according to thograce that is given." Now his precepts and admo-nitions cannot, in. the least, be understood, unless itbe admitted that these offices are distributed amongthe members of the church, instead of being con-ferred on one individual only. His remarks are tothis effect: "Do not. any ofyon, in the church whichis sojourning in Rome, be elated with your gifts; forif you have any gift, whether that ofministry, teach-ing, exhortation, prophesy, or power of government;understand that it is a donation of grace, a manifes-tation of the Spirit dividing to every man severally88 He will. You are but members of one body; themembers have each their proper office assigned tothem, and when each member performs its func-tiODs, the whole body is in a state of harmoniousand healthy vitality."

This being the same Bubject as that which Paulhandles in his epistle to the Corintbians, it is in-teresting to notice that on both occasions he enforceshis thoughts by similar illustrations,-the subjectleading him, as j t were of necessity, to refer to the


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42 lIINI8TBY. [CHAP. nI.body and its members for an intelligible and convincing similitude. Again, in his epistle to theEphesians, we :find the same statements: "There isone body, and one Spirit ... But unto everyone of us is given grace according to themeasure ofthe gift of Christ. Wherefore he saith, when heascended up on high, he led captivity captive, andgave gifts unto men . . . . And he gave someapostles, and some prophets, and some evangelists,and some pastors and t e a c b e ~ ; for the perfecting ofthe saints, for the work of theministry, for the edify-ing of the body of Christ: till we all come in theunity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Sonof God, unto a perfect man, unto the measure of thestature of the fulneu ofCbrist . . andmay growup into him in all things, which is the head, evenChrist j from whom the whole body fit1y joinedtogether and compacted by that which every jointsupplieth, according to the effectual working in themeasure of every part, maketh increase of the bodyunto the edifying of itself in love." (iv. 4-16.)In 'this portion then of the Scriptures we haveagain the same subject with the same illustrationsthe Holy Spirit divides to all as He chooses-theehureh is in a capacity to receive any gifts-everybeliever may help in the service of the church.Moreover, it deserves particular attention that "thegrowing up into the perfect man," and "the in-crease of the body," is presumed by Paul to be bothpossible and probable wken God'. order prevails.He brings forward these things to show the end andobject of such an .arrangement; if, therefore, we


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SEC. 2.J SCRIPTUBAL BEI'RESEKTATION. 48find professing Christians deliberately rejectingGod's order, and letting up a ministry ordained ofman instead, can we be surprised i f there is notamongst them any visible"growing up into a perfectman," and that "the increase of the body unto theedifying of itself in love," is a mystery with whichthey are practically unaequainted r

And now, let us compare this teaching of Scrip-ture with the practices everywhere prevalent. Inthese days we hear clergymen asserting that theybold an office which makes them a class distinctfrom the body of believers; that to them, by theirordination, belongs the exclusive prerogative ofevan-gelist, pastor, teacher, and ruler amongst "theirpeople;" and that "the laity" cannot, withoutgreat irregularity, nay, not without sin, interferein functions belonging exclusively to the clericalorder. In church and chapel we hear this eitheropenly asserted or tacitly implied, according to thedegree of clerical feeling which prevails with thosewhohold ecclesiastical offices; butwhereverwe see aclerical order, do we not at the same time see apractical contradictionof the scriptural constitutionof ministry P How can a ministry appointed byman, barmonize with a ministry distributed by theSpirit P How can an ordained clerical ctIBte com-portwith the free exerciseof gifts on the part of thewhole body of believers P. We can, therefore, cometo no other conclusion than that "the churches" ofour days do Dot represent the ditJine order in theirministerial arrangements. The origin and historyof this great perversion ,,e need not now examine;


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lIINISTnT. [OHAP.III .of the fact of 3 perversion-of an apostacy-therecan be no doubt at all in the minds of those whoare guided in this inquiry by the Scriptures ratherthan by tradition.

A formidable array of Scripture authority has,been produced to establish the truths fer which weplead: but what is the UBUoJ. reply to 80 much and tosuch clear evidence P Generally, an exclamation .ofamazement thatwe could have propounded anythingso strange &8 that, in the New Testament, there i lno such thing as human ordination to the ministry.I t behoves us, therefore, to be still more explicit,thatwemay showboth what Scripture does and doesnot teach on the subject-that we may prove ourpoint both negatively and positively. Here, then,let it be remenlbered that we are not to be deceivedby the use of words diverted from their propermeaning; for there is "ministry" in the NewTestament, and abundantly set forth too there, farmore abundantly than we are, for the most part,prepared to receive; but it has no reference to thatkind of ministry which is handed down to us bytradition: it is therefore important again to describethe traditional, before we further exhibit the scrip-turaJ. The ministry of professing Ohristendom, atthe present day implies a body of men set apartby a sacerdotal ceremony, and ordained into an officein which they have the exclusive right to preach,teach, feed, and tend the Hock, as well as to "administer the 800rBlnents." We now proceed toinquire, if the ministry of scripture answers to thisrepresentation of it.


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SEC. 3.] SCRIPTURE TERMS. 3. Ezamination of Scripture Ter111B relative to

Ministry_In the New Testament the Greek words trans

lated cc ministry," except when predicated of Christhimself, Rom. xv. 8, Matt. xx. 28, Heb. viii. 6, areused to denote 1I'1&!I .erviC8 of beZitmw. to God aflllto liB Church, though in our English translationtheirmeaning is occasionally weakened or perverted.The word "ministry" occurs in our NewTestamente ~ h t e e n times, in all which instances, except two, itis a translation of the Greek word dia1coftill. In thefollowing pusuges m;""utry is given as the translation of Zeitourgia, otherwise rendered 8BrDice:-cc But now bath he obtained a more excellent mini.-try (leitourgia) , by how much also he is themediator of a better covenant." (Reb. viii. 6.)'Moreover, he sprinkled likewise with blood boththe tabernacle and all the vessels of the minilltrg(l.eitourgia). (ix.21.) These two instances are theonly exceptions. There are, however, several instances in which tli.alconia is translated by someother word than "ministry j" and this fact may atonce enable us to understand how much confusionof thought may be introducedby a capricious translation, made under the iD1iuence of preconceivedopinions. But in order to present the whole subject in its clearest light, it will doubtless be expedient to bring before the reader the entire list ofpassages where the original terms for to minilltfYr,miniBtr!l, &c., occur in the New T e 8 t a m e n t ~ Theactual usage will evince that nearly all the ndvan-


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46 llINISTBY. . [CHAP. 3.tage gained by the clerical theory is due to a subtleprocess of tec1vnicaZizing terms which were intendedto bear no other than their ordinary import. Thiaprocess ha been somewhat largely applied byecclesiastical and other dignitaries in the interpretation of holy writ, but in no case perhaps moreglaringly than in regard to the words which we arenow about to consider.

4. dialtonitl.The word dialconia is found in the New Testa-ment thirty four times. In sixteen cases it istranslated cc plinistry"-in six, "ministration"

in four, "service"- in three, cc ministering"-intwo, "administratioDs"-in one, "oflice"-in one," relief"-and in one, "to minister."Luke x. 4:0. .c But Martha wu cumbered about much ,tJ'I"Oiftg

( tlisko,.ia)."Acts i. 17. "IIad obtained part of this miniltt71 (tlialumia)."Acts i. 25. cc That he may take p\rt of this mini8trll (tlttJ-konia)."Ministry here is .errJice, service to God and hischurch; not a clerical or episcopal office, BB it is to

be feared the translators wished the readers tounderstand it, if we may judge by their unwarrant-able use of the word "bishoprick" in the 20th verseof that chapter.Acts vi. 1. cc Were neglected in the daily .in.tltration

(tliakonia)."Acta vi. 4. . ' Willgive ourseh"es continuaIlf to prayer and to

the f I ~ i " i 8 t ' l ' V (dia7wnia) of the Word."


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BEC.4.] DIAKONIA. 47In the general BertJice to be rendered by ail the

members to the church, that of expounding andapplying the Scriptures doubtless devolved moreespecially upon the apostles. So at the presentday, those whose gifts qualify them for it would, intrue gospel order, be called to the discharge of thesame functions.Aota xi. 29. "Then the disciples determined to send,.,zUj' (dioJlonia) unto the brethren whioh dwelt in Judea."Acta xii. 25. " And Barnabas and Saul returned from Jera-

. lem when they had fulfilled their .'nUt,., (diako"'''j,'i."., had admini8tINd tAs ,."ug spoken of in the precedingpauage.Aots ZX. 24. "So that I might finish my course with joy, and

the fAift"trV (ditJlumia) "hicb I have received of the LordJesus, to testify the g08pel of the grace of God."This was the special aervice to which Paul wascalled; and every man who has an experimentalknowledge of the gospel, and it! gifted for the work,is called also to "testify" of that gospel to his

fellow-men; though the character of his miniBtty or.tWtJ1ce may not be the same with that of Paul.Aots xxi. 19. cCAnd when he had saluted them, he declared

particularly what things God had wrougbt among theGentiles by his alnilt"!I (dioAonia)," i.,., by hia iutrN-m"",tal ",.,,1ctJ.

Hom. xi. 13. cc Inasmuch as I am the apostle of the Gentiles,1magnify mine q/fitJ, (difJionia)," i.,., my aervioe.Rom. xii. 7. "Or miniltr, (ditUt.ollia), l ~ us wait on our".inWerillg (diaJumia); or he that teacheth, on teaching.Whatever is bere implied byminiBtrg or millister-

ing, it is evidently s o m e ~ ~ i n g not precisely identical


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48 KINISTRY. [CRAP. fiX.with teaching, as tbe two are clearly distinguished.With the popular ideas of the ministry, 88 nowexisting, this distinction would not have been made.Rom. xv. 81. "That my 6'''''ic. (ditlkonia) which I have forJerusalem may be accepted of the saints;" i.B., the cont1-ibutlon ofwhioh I am made the bearer.

1 Cor. . .U. 6. "And there are dUferenoea of tulmiaUtt-atItnu(tlitlJumio7J), but the aame Lord."

1 Cor. xvi. 15. "And that they have addicted themaelv8I tothe minUt,., (tliakonia) of the wnts;" i.., to the ,WfJicsof the sainta.

I Cor. iii. 1. cc It the miniltratioJi (dilJJumia) or death,written," &0.

2 Cor. ill. 8. "HoW' shall not the .inim-tItioft (dill1umls) orthe Spirit be rather glorioua!"

2 Cor. Hi. 9. "For if the minWrtltio,,. (diaAoltia) or con-demnation be glory, much more doth the minutration (diallonitl) of righteousness exceed in gIol"."Ministration or miniBtry as used in this connec-tion seems to be equivalent to eCOMfllIor tlU.

ptJ1l,tJtWn.2 Cor. iv. 1. cc Therefore seeing we have this miftiltr!l (Ills1umia), 88 we have received mercy, we faint DOt;" i.B.,seeing we are called to act in connection with theO",w.z8tJrrice befof"tl spoken of.2 Cor. v. 1.8. .c, And hath given to us the miniIJtry (diaAonia)of reconoiliation."

I Cor. vi. S. "Giving no offence in anything, that the. flllniltrg (dlnkonla) be not blamed."2 Cor. viii. 4. "Praying U8 with much entreaty, that wewouldreceive the gift; and take upon U8 the fellowship of the

miniltring (if,iaAonia) to the saints;" 4, dording themrelief.2 Cor. ix. 1. "Touohing the mlni8terillO (dioAonia) to the, laints ;" i.e., Bd obo'c, ministering to thtair tempolil1 wants.


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811:0.4.]2 Cor. Ix. 11. cc For the t.atltIIi.iltNtiofl of tAi, ,,,.,,,. (ditJ-_ita t. lfttDurgia, tauta) not oD1y aupp1ieth tile want of

the aainta," &0.2 Cor. ix. 13. " While by the experiment of this minutratiofa

(tlU&1unaia) they glorify God."SI Cor. xi. 8. cc I robbed other churohes, taking wagee of them

to do WOU 1tJrfM, (tlia1tonitJ).nBph. iv. 11, 12. "And he gave some apostles, and someprophets, and some evangelisUJ, and 80me pastors andteachers; for the perfecting of the saints, for the work ofthe ministry (tlioJumia), for the edifying of the body ofChriste" .Prior to a close inspection of this passage in theoriginal we were not aware how far short thepresent rendering comes of exhibiting the true

sense of the sacred writer. That rendering, it willbe observed, presents three distinct clauses, dividedby commas, embracing what the English reader'would take to be three separate, but closely relatedobjects to be accomplished by the divine appointmentof "apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors, andteachers" in the church-the first, "the perfectingofthe saints,"-the second, "thework oftheministry,u- the third, "the edifying of the body of Christ."I t may, however, be fairly doubted whether thistruly expresses the meaning of the original. Thereis, as is well known. no apostolic authority for thePfl1l,DtuatioA ot the text. Moreover, the preposition" for n before cc perfecting ., is not the same word asthat before "work of the ministry," or that before"edifYingofthe body." In the one case it ispro8, andin the other tU. In view then of the phrasing ofthe original, no other rendering appears to be

B


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50 KIBISTBY. [CRU . IU .legitimate than the following, or one equivalentto it: cc for the perfecting of the saints unto thework of ministry, unto the edifying of the bodyof Christ." The original is simply tlia1&oniaB, ofministry, without the article, and not of tl,:8 mill-utry, with the article. What more obvious thanthat the ministry here spoken of is a ministry per-taining to all the saints, and not the technical orclerical ministry which has been so generally under-stood by it P Christ gave these various offices tothe church for the express purpose of better quali-fying all his people to perform that ,,,",ice ormm;"try which should help to build up the wholebody into the fulness and completeness of the divinelife.Col. iv. 17. U Say to Archippus, Take heed to the mini8try

(tliaionia) whioh thou hut received in the Lord, that thoufulDI it."Had tlialconia been here translated " service" itwould have far more faithfully expressed the mean-

ing of the original. Archippus bad been knownas one in 'enJice to the Lord and to his people;what that service was, we cannot now say, but itdoes not at all appear that it was preaching theGospel, or the exercise of the pastoral office.Archippus might have had no gift for teaching orpreaching; he might bave had no gift for govern-ment. What bis gift was it is impossible for usnow to determine; only this is apparent, that theservice for which he was known, he had "receivedin the Lord;" but such is the force of the cus-tomary notions, that his "ministry" is generally


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8:C. 5.] DUKono. 51supposed to have been an ofticial pastorate; so thatministers of the establishment claim Arcbippus asone of their clergy, while others, with equal confidence, tell us that he was a minister of a congre-gational church.1 Tim. i. 12. cc For that he counted me faithful, putting meinto the minutf'y (eU tlioAonian);n lit. appointing tn8 to,Wt1ice, the article being wanting in the original.

2 Tim. iv. 5. "Make full proof of thy min_,. , (tlWumia);lit. fulfil tAy lervice.By "ministry" here is to be understood not the

clerical function, but the whole ofTimothy's service.What sort of service that is, we may learn by reference to the words of Paul respecting himself:cc I have fought a good fight, I have finished mycourse, I have kept the faith." This is the ilialconiawhich is so often in his thoughts and so much uponhis pen. Any service and all service is "ministry"in the New Testament diction.2 Tim. iv. 11. "Take Mark and bring him with thee; for heis profitable to me for the mini8try (Bildiakonian);" lit. he

is profitable to me tmto ,BrtJice, i.e., to serving or ministering to my neoe88itiea.

Heb. i. 14. "Are they not all ministering (leitourgico,) spiritssent forth to minuter (ei8 ditJlumian) for them who shall beheirs of salvation?" lit. sent forthfor ,ertJice.

Rev. ii. 19. " I know thyworks, and charity, and ,ert1ios (tlia-konia)."

5. tlialconeo.The verb tliakoneo, to '8rV6, ~ miniater, occurs

thirty-six times, in twenty-two of which it isrendered by.mmilter, in ten by ' 6" ,8 , in two by

:s2


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52 KmIBTBY. [CHAP. III.administer, and in two by uftrIg tu of ladeacon.Matt. iv. 11. "Allacrels came and mi,.Ww.tltllo (tliMOtIn.)

k i ' 1 l ~ . "Matt. viii. 15. "She arose and minwwetl unto (tliektmea")

them."Matt. xx. 28. c, Even D8 the Son of Man came not to be minia

tered unto (diakonetkenai) but to ministtw (dia1unU'8QI1andto give hialife," &0. So also Mark x. 45.Matt. xxv. 44. cc When saw we thee iD prison and didnot miniate-r unto (diekonuQmen) thee?"

Matt. xxvii. 55. "And many women were there whichfollowed Jesus from Galilee, miniltering unto (diakonouBai)him."

:Mark i. 13. "And the angels miniBtered unto (tlieko-noun)him."Mark. i. 31. "The fever l ~ f t her and she minut".ed unto(diekonei) them." Luke iv. 30.

Mark xv. 41. cc Who also followed him and mi"I,i8teretlunto (diekonoun) him."

Luke viii. 8. "And mauy others whioh minutered unto(diekonoun) him of their substance."

Luke x.40. "My sister hath left me to 88r'tJe (diakonein)alone."

Luke xii. 37. "And will come forth and 8erve (diakone8ei)them."

Luke xvii. 8. ":Make ready wherewith I may sup, and girdthyself, and serve (diakonei) me."

Luke xxii. 26. "He that is chief, as he that dot'" 'Brt:8 (diakonon)."

Luke xxii. 27. cc Whether is greater, he that sitteth at meat,or he that 8tlr'1Jet'" (tliakonon)."Luke xxii. 27. "I am among you 8S he that 8e'rfJeth(diaJumon)." .John xii. 2. cc There they made him 8 IUpper, and lIartbs

,ervetl (tliekonn).u


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SEc.5.J DIAXONBO. 58John xii. 26. Cl I f any man ,rtJs (tlialone) me, let him follow

me."John xii. 28. " I f a ny m an ,.,6 (tli4Jums) me, him will myFather honor.f t

Acta vi. 2. " I t is Dot reason that we Ihould leave the word ofGod and ''"'6 (diakonein) tables."Aots six. 22. h Two of t h ~ m that m',,,inered unto (tlWumoun)him."

Rom. sv. 25. " B u t now I go unto Jeru8alem to minUter(diakonon) unto the eaintB."

2 Cor. iii. 30 "Forasmuch 8 8 ye ar e manifestly declared to bethe epistle of ChrilJt, mini8tsred (dioJum.stkei8a) by U8."

2 Cor. viii. 19. " T o travel with U8 with thi8 gloace, ",kick i tQ,f/,mitti.uWBd (diakonoumma) by us to the glory of thesame Lord."

2 Cor.- viii. 20. " Which u admini8teretl (tlia1umOfMAena) byus."1 Tim. iii. 10. Cl Let these also f

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George Bush the Christian Ministry Longmans London 1867