The modern conflict over the Bible in synthesis and comparison

Front matter

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Chapter 1 : The Conflict. " 2: Contributing Causes

3: New Theology Labelled. 4: The Remedy.

Book No. 2 : Can God Inspire a Book, or Does He Inspire Only Men?

Chapter 1: General Statements.

" 2: Evidence from Experience.

" 3: Scientific Evidence.

" 4: Internal Evidence.

Book No. 3 : New and Old Theology and The Cross.

Chapter 1 : New Theology Claim. 2: Old Theology Claim.

" 3: Principle Objections. 4: Back at The Cross.

Book No. 4: New and Old Theology and Things To Come.

Chapter 1 : General Approach to Eschatology. 2: The Second Coming of Christ.

" 3: The Holy Spirit and the Second Coming.

" 4: The Resurrection. 5: The Judgment. 6: Message of the Apostolic Church.

Foreword

Momentous Questions Discussed

THE hour has surely come when men and women who believe the Bible to be the Word of God should come into the open and courageously, earnestly, and in the spirit of love, line up against the new theology apostasy — a something with no theology in it. This volume tells plainly what it is. It is the enemy of Jesus Christ. It is the father of the present war. It is a rehash of Unitarianism, a revival of infidelity, augmented by the German atheistic philosophies of evolution and pantheism, abetted by the destructive higher criticism of the Bible — in short the new theology is hell turned loose on earth in the name of scholarship, and under the guise of religion, and now in the awful panoply of war. It is a cunning, lying, church-destroying, Christ-denying monster. It wears the smile of an angel but has the heart of a murderer. Its mission is to destroy the faith of men in the Bible as the Word of God, and in Jesus Christ as the Incarnate Son of God. With its pretense of piety, its angel smile and satanic heart, it has succeeded in deceiving many. Today clergymen, churches and institutions of learning are among its victims. Many of the Congregational churches in America are among its slain; and Baptist, Presbyterian, Methodist, Episcopalean, and even Roman Catholic churches are feeling the satanic pull of the new theology apostasy. It is winning to its support some in high places and low, some rich and poor, learned and unlearned. Judging by recent public utterances on the part of some prominent laymen, it would appear that church officers, who are members of some and of our largest financial institutions, have become inoculated with the virus of the new theology apostasy.

We have no desire to be personal and call these men by name, and place upon them the blame for their departure from the evangelical doctrines (we would place the blame upon those who stand in Christian pulpits and whose false teaching are the direct cause of the laity's departure. Another cause of the departure on the part of some of our rich laymen is due to the fact that they have unwisely permitted themselves to be influenced by the current skeptical literature of the twentieth century, and ideas from various sources that are not in harmony with the Word of God. Even this splendid institution, the Y. M. C. A., has permitted itself to be influenced by the same spirit of a materialistic age, and thus have weakened its evangelical appeal. To not a few earnest spirits in all the churches all this is doubtless cause for concern. We want the Y. M. C. A. as we want all our thoughtful laymen, to remain loyal and true to the grand old Book, to that which is the highest and best, and which cannot fail, to that which is the foundation of our nation and must remain the hope of the world. Of course we should not be overconcerned at the above departure. We are so prone to get man's point of view and not God's point of view, and magnify a mole hill into a mountain. We should not be over anxious as to loosing or winning to church membership any individual simply because he or she may be rich. We should not permit the dollar to be king on Manhattan or elsewhere. We should value men not by their wealth but by their character.

But alas in America we find life unbalanced. We have been so busy guilding the framework that we have forgotten to look at the picture. Money not God has become the touch-stone of our thoughts and the loadstone of our ambitions. We are so apt to forget how easily God could get along without any of us. Perhaps we forget that Christianity was not born in Wall Street nor in a palace, but in a Manger, and that at the advent of the Son of Mary heaven hung out a star in his honor, and the angel choir chanted a new song. We forget that when God wanted to introduce a new civilization he did not put his hand on a Rothschild, though God has many of his kings and queens among the rich, but on the slave-child Moses — earth's greatest lawgiver — and on the carpenter Jesus — earth's only Saviour — and on the miner Luther — earth's greatest reformer. We forget God's great plan, that it is by the Cross and its sacrificial Saviour that the world has been enlightened, and will yet be saved, that millenniums after our present boasted civilization, with its pomp and glitter will have perished, God's choirs will be singing, "Unto him who loved us and freed us from our sins in his own blood ... to him be ascribed glory and dominion forever" (Rev. 1: 5-6). Let us not forget these things, and remember that at the appearing of our Lord and his kingdom those who stood for him in the days of his rejection will then shine as the sun and as the stars for ever and ever.

One of our problems is to awaken the churches to see the real danger confronting them. The orthodox forces are asleep at the switch. We are cowards, crouching to the German apostacy. If the old heroes should return they could hardly recognize the Church today. A pioneer preacher was booked to preach where President Andrew Jackson was stopping over night, and the latter found himself in a pew of the church. The deacons held a hurried consultation and calling the preacher from the pulpit informed him of the presence of the President, and requested him to be guarded in his remarks. Before beginning his message the preacher said: "I understand Andrew Jackson is with us and I have been requested to be guarded in my remarks. Andrew Jackson will go to Hell as quick as any other man if he does not repent." At the conclusion Jackson stepped forward and said: "Sir, if I had a regiment of men like you I could whip the world." This is the courage needed.

Let us not lose our heads over the power of wealth. Money is the lowest, the weakest, the poorest of all power; and only as it is used in channels of God's approval can it be a blessing and not a curse. There is no power but God. If the churches should loose the world's richest men God could give us some John the Baptists to take their places and a great revival of true religion. If this were God's pleasure then we should gladly say, good-bye, brothers, we welcome the exchange and we are willing to throw in some new theology institutions "to boote." If we bow down to materialism it is because we have forgotten God. If we fawn and cringe at the feet of money power, then God will send upon us the days of the locust. A rich man pledged $100,000 to Foreign Missions; but when he saw that the Board was going to send out young men fresh from the seminary who denied the Virgin Birth and the Atonement he quickly withdrew his gift. Thank God all our rich men have not forsaken the grand old doctrines of Christianity.

WHY WAS THIS BOOK WRITTEN?

These messages were born in much travail of spirit. They have been given as result of the writer's study of the new theology and the impressions made on him by students in new theology institutions regarding the deity of Christ and the inspiration of the Bible. Prominent among these institutions is Union Seminary in New York, though doubtless good men are there. We have no desire to be personal only in so far as we deem it necessary to make concrete the problem before the churches today. For fifteen years, while serving as Superintendent of Tent Evangel in New York, not a few of the students in Union Seminary informed the writer of their departure from the evangelical doctrines. In each case it was noticed that these young men were unsettled in their beliefs; they were desirous of asking questions, and combatting the generally accepted doctrines of our evangelical churches; they all revealed the same uncertainty, if not religious bewilderment — the absence of a positive, cheering, joyous faith. I failed to see that to any of these splendid young men, Jesus Christ was the unique incarnate Son of God, very God of very God, separate in essence from man, the world's Sin-bearer, Redeemer, Saviour, Lord, and Final Authority in all matters of Christian faith and practice. They could not honestly say:

"My hope is built on nothing less, Than Jesus' blood and righteousness."

The religion of these students and of others in institutions where the new theology is taught, all seemed to be of a similar type, to wit: it was built on science, rationalistic philosophies, and ethical principles, and possessed no enthusiasm, no passionate love for Jesus Christ, and for the souls of men.

For fifteen summers this had been my experience over and over again as I got close to many of these young men. For a long time I hesitated to speak out against new theology institutions like Union Seminary. I desire to "live at peace with all men," and especially desired the good will of the good. I well knew that an open exposure of Union and similar new theology schools would create antagonism to our Tent Evangel campaigns, and to the writer personally, by men who could use their financial power to assist in their unchristian behavior. I was aware of the spirit and practice of boycott on the part of certain financial powers in New York, and that these powers are supporters of Union Seminary, and that they would boycott our great soul-winning work as they did. For years the writer prayed for guidance as he thought over this problem. The fact is, he was like many others today, a bit of a coward. Finally, however, when convalescing from an operation in the Roosevelt Hospital, and thinking of the tragedy we are witnessing, in seeing our young men go forth to lead the churches away and astray from evangelical religion, the writer solemnly vowed before God that he would no longer be a coward but if spared, would henceforth do his part in the Tent Evangel and elsewhere, to make clear to the churches and universities and seminaries the real danger which confronts America by the German invasion of our Christian Faith by her apostate theology.

THIS BOOK IS THE FULFILMENT OF THAT VOW

We should fear for the sake of the Church, the German invasion of American institutions by the new theology apostacy more than the invasion of America by a German army, terrible as the latter would be, for the former would, in its consequences, be far more serious, more far-reaching. To undermine our Christian civilization in America by the new theology apostacy would put us back to where Germany is today, in religion and ethics. It is this rationalistic theology that has cursed and ruined Germany, and unless we defeat it here it will curse and ruin America. America has not yet become aware of the fact that it is this new religious apostacy that our soldier boys are fighting in France, in the form of gas, guns, liquid fire, bombs, shells, and all the frenzy and hatred of Hell. America has not yet awakened to the fact that the billions of money we are giving, and the precious blood we are spilling are the result of the moral and religious degradation which the new theology apostasy had brought upon Germany. The papers recently quoted Mr. Rockefeller as saying that he had given toward the expenses of the war, including his purchase of Liberty Bonds, the sum of $70,000,000, but he is not aware that he is pouring out his wealth to defeat the German new theology as seen in its harvest of pain and death. Probably if he knew this a revolution would take place in Chicago University, and influences would be set afoot, as they ought to be, to wipe out this apostasy from our institutions, root and branch. The new theology is as great a curse in our churches and institutions as would be the most radical socialism. If the Rockefellers only knew these things they would be the most pronounced old theology advocates in America, they would defend the theology that has made America great, and that is the only hope of the world.

Just prior to the war, in 1914, a reputable American journal made a census of those who, on a fine Sunday, attended religious services in Berlin, and it was found that in this Protestant city only 26,000 persons were gathered in places of public worship. Berlin, a great Protestant city of 2,800,000 souls, but with a powerless,

Christless Church. The explanation? We need hardly state that this was the fruit of five decades of teaching and preaching of the new theology of rationalism, evolution, and the radical criticism of the Bible. As Rev. Isaac J. Lansing, D.D., said in his able address before the Rotary Club in New York in 1917: "The German philosophies repudiate humanity, despise morals, and deliberately gave itself to the most violent attack upon Christianity! The attack upon Christianity was deliberately made about 100 years ago, but half a century later, when Strauss assailed the Gospel and the life of Christ as mythical, the great apostacy began in earnest, and became widespread, intense, and more sweepingly antagonistic." And Dr= Lansing added: "Many of these new theology apostates in Germany declared that the greatest mistake Germany ever made was in accepting Christianity from the Roman Empire." These were the founders of the modern new theology which Union Seminary, Chicago University, Harvard, and Yale, and other institutions of lesser note in America more or less adopted. The new theology, advocated in Germany, rejected Christianity, and adopted a religion of their own, and named it, "The Religion of Valor." One of its mottos is, "To Live Dangerously." It is the religion of militarism. It is as we have said, the religion we are pouring out our wealth and our blood to defeat in the lurid flames of Hell which it has created in Europe. America is slowly but surely waking up to the fact that it is the new theology that has deluged our poor world in blood.

And here in America the new theology serpent is gradually, stealthily, coiling his slimy form around our Christian life. Already we can see the spirit of hate in those in the ministry and laity who have adopted the apostacy. We see them withdrawing to themselves in little coteries in every center of population, and planning how they may oppose the old theology, the Gospel of Christ, and enslave American Christians in this curse of the anti-Christ. They are cunning in their propaganda, they cover up their real purposes by a pretended interest in humanity, and by assuming to themselves a monopoly on scholarship, declaring that the new theology is the result of the latest and soundest thinking. With these men it is not what the Bible plainly states, but rather what Dr. So and So, and Professor So and So, and Rabbi So and So said. But we have observed that wherever the new theology is taught, inspirational thinking and preaching pass away, and the glow, the warmth and comfort of evangelical Christianity languish and die. This theology could never produce a Judson or a Moody. When it gives to the world a Spurgeon, or a great evangelist, then we shall be compelled to sit up and take notice. As a soul-winning and converting system it is absolutely as helpless as infidelity itself. A witty preacher once stated that he recommended Rev. So and So to the office of chaplain of Sing Sing Prison, because he said the gentleman had a faculty for emptying every church where he preached, and he thought he might succeed in emptying Sing Sing. Well one thing of which we are certain is that the new theology is emptying our Theological Seminaries, while the old theology is filling our Bible Training Schools. We can discuss until doom's day the problem of the seminary.. Here is our great problem to get rid of every new theology teacher, then advertize that fact to the world, and see if a new day will not dawn for our seminaries. I would wager $50,000 were I inclined and able, that if Colgate, or Rochester, or Harvard, or Crozer, or Union, or Drew, or any other seminary in which the new theology is taught would give the writer the sole management of their affairs for five years, he would fill up every one of these institutions with splendid Christian young men. But this day of glad revival would be preceded by some theological funerals. We have the corpses already and he would see that they were quickly buried.

Americans, I appeal to you, as you love your life, your children, your country, humanity, God, arise like true men and drive from your schools of learning and from your pulpits the new German theology. Pull it down and throw it out. It is a vile, lying intruder. It should have no place in our Christian institutions. It will destroy our Bible, it will bring untold division, sorrow and strife to our churches, it will ridicule the ordinances of Christ, it will destroy our seminaries, it will blight and damn the world. It is the work of Satan. Cast it out ! If they prophesy to us smooth words, believe them not. If they prate to us about church union, listen not to them. We believe in church union, and pray that God may bring it to pass on the basis of his naked word. If the churches will take the New Testament and agree on that we shall then have church union. And this is the only possible basis. We love union, we want to get close to all who know Jesus Christ as a personal Saviour. But it will not be brought about by those who want a Church Trust as a political weapon for the defeat of socialism; it will, if ever, be brought about by the old theology, by those who love God and his word. In the good old theology of Paul are all the elements of fellowship and love. In every spiritual undertaking the new theology is a failure. It's cheap re-hash of decadent Unitarianism, and its dependence upon science and philosophy, can never solve the world's problems. It has no life, no blood, no warm pulse, no palpitating loving heart. Come on then children of America, and let us strike with God for the freedom of our institutions and the souls of men. America must arise, young, strong, virile America, and crush the new German theology serpent. The national welfare demands it. The Lord of Life demands it. Remember our boys are fighting it in the awful trenches in France. While they are fighting it in France, let us, like true men and women, fight it at home. Great God! give us all the courage to enlist at home and "go over the top here and do our bit," And never let us cease the fight until we shall have driven the apostate theology back to Hell.

The Author.

BOOK NO. 1

The New Theology Under Fire

"Ye should earnestly fight for the Faith," Jude, verse 3.

Chapter I THE CONFLICT

This splendid note from Jude is a good starting point in our discussion as it suggests the character of this message, on The Modern Conflict Over the Bible, or The New Theology Under Fire. This Christian declaration is in itself a battle cry, a call to arms in the holy warfare against all that is in opposition to the Faith.

We are living in a time when an array of insidious falsehoods has been launched against the Bible, and these ingenious misrepresentations are masquerading around under the guise of scholarship and in the name of religion, and may be known by what is called in some quarters, the new theology. And it is to combat, to expose this new theology that God is calling his people everywhere these days.

Of course we have no fear as to the future of the Bible — Truth can defend itself. When Deity ceases to exist then the Bible will perish. But we are concerned, for the sake of the Church of God, because of the insidious attacks on the integrity of the Bible. 2

That there is a conflict today over the Bible, few would dare deny. It is not a conflict over science, for true science is the handmaid of religion. It is not a conflict over philosophy when philosophy knows its place and keeps within its proper bounds. But it is a conflict over the Bible — its interpretation, history, inspiration, miracles, doctrines, authority.

In the Bible certain claims are made as to creation, Christ, redemption, salvation, etc., all of which the new theology denies. The Bible is practically rejected by this school as the one great authority in the Christian religion. Many of the advocates of the new theology deny that which the Church has always believed to be fundamental in the Christian Faith. New theology teachers have accepted the philosophy of evolution and rationalism as their working hypotheses, as the principles by which they interpret all life, though oft-times in contradistinction to the claims and authority of the Bible. The new theology is assailing the inspiration of of the Bible and the deity of Christ. The attack is made in some of our institutions of learning both secular and sacred, and in not a few of the pulpits of so-called orthodox churches, with the result that the faith of many is being shipwrecked. If the world is to be Christianized it must be done by Evangelical Christians, and with an inspired Bible, and under the leadership of Christ.

In the light of these facts it would appear that the call is loud today to enlist in this warfare against the apostacy of the new theology. We should not fear a righteous struggle. Christianity was born in conflict and by conflict only can it triumph. We have no sympathy with those who would pursue a policy of silence and non-interference with the propaganda of the new theology apostasy — all such are cowards and unworthy the name of Christian. Next to peace we should like nothing better than a holy fight for God and His truth. The man who would not fight for righteousness should merit the contempt of all good men. God has called us to warfare, and we ask, Have we heard the call? Have we enlisted? Do our friends know where we stand? Have we entered the fight for the Bible — the word of God— for Jesus Christ— the Son of God— for evangelical Christianity, the truth by which God intends to bring the world back to himself?

The great question before us today is, what are the rank and file, the great mass of the Christian people, going to do with the Bible? Shall we believe, for example, the modern evolutionists or the writers of the Bible? Shall we believe Spencer and Haeckel, or Moses, Christ and Paul? These are the questions that are now prominently before the churches for decision. These questions are insistent, they will not be silenced, they call for an answer, we cannot dodge them, the fight is on.

Chapter II CONTRIBUTING CAUSES

Before presenting the cause of our present conflict, those which have produced the new theology, we should first state just what we mean by the term theology.

Theology is a science, a collaborated system of religious thought, setting forth that which men think about such subjects as God, man, sin, Christ, salvation, etc. The term theology, therefore, may be defined as the science of religion. But there is a true and false theology. The true is built on the teachings of the Bible; the false on philosophy, speculation, and independently of the Bible — using the Bible, not as the one great authority, but in an accommodating sense. This latter is the new, the former the old theology.

It is important that we have a true Christian theology, that is, a science of religion that is built upon the Christian revelation, for much depends on the views men entertain regarding the great themes which make up the subject matter of theology. For example, to hold false views about Christ is to be lost, but to hold correct views as to his person and work is to be saved (1st Cor. 15: 1-3; John 3: 14-18). We cannot afford to say: "But that is only his theology, ,, for "as a man thinketh in his heart so is he" (Prov. 23: 7). Christianity has always flourished under the preaching of a robust theology. When men are not sufficiently interested in Christianity to build a Christian theology, then Christianity must languish, if not perish. It is true that theology is not Christianity; yet it is so closely, so vitally related to Christianity, that the latter is largely dependent upon it for its expression and propagation. Christianity is the soul, theology is the body by which it is expressed ; and the soul calls for a sound, healthy, robust body, or theology, that which truly sets forth the nature and doctrine of God our Father and our Lord Jesus Christ.

But another word here about the new theology. We have said that this theology is not built on the Bible, but on philosophy, ethics, speculation, using the Bible only in an accommodating sense. That being the case how shall we define the term, new theology? It is difficult to define this term because the new theology is the result of a certain mental attitude toward the Bible, in which the Bible is viewed not as the one great authority in the Christian religion, but as of secondary value. We would therefore submit the following as a fairly accurate definition of the new theology : The new theology is a false science of religion, that is built on philosophy, ethics, speculation, that exalts human reason above revelation and faith, hence makes man himself and not the Bible the basis of authority in the Christian religion.

With this definition in mind we are now ready to advance and see what it is that has led some of our scholars to adopt this attitude toward the Bible. It can be readily seen, from the definition given, that it is a critical and not a submissive or reverent attitude which the speculative theologian has adopted toward the Bible. And this leads us to raise the question, What are the causes that have produced this critical attitude toward the Bible, and that have resulted in what we call the new theology.

PRIDE.

The first cause we would state is pride, pride of intellectual attainments, of learning, of scholarship, though we boldly affirm that the new theology has not a monopoly on scholarship. But it should not be forgotten that Christianity is a special revelation of God which no scholarship could ever discover. The fact is that the most unlearned often know as much about the mysteries of God and his Kingdom as do the most learned. Scholarship cannot discover God, this great accomplishment is of the heart, the spirit, and not of the intellect. Knowledge of the sciences will not help here, but knowledge of Jesus Christ — the most excellent of all sciences — is indispensable. Ofttimes learning is a barrier to the highest knowledge — that is, a comprehension of the revelation of God in Christ — for the pride of intellect dislikes to stoop and admit its ignorance and helplessness in this realm, and become as a little child at the feet of Jesus — the thing which scholarship must ever do if it would enter and learn the mysteries of the kingdom of God. The pratings of the new theology school about the results of modern scholarship reveal an appalling ignorance of Christ, as if scholarship could ever be a password into His kingdom, or furnish a key to its mysteries.

DEIFY MAN.

The next cause we would mention is human nature, the natural, perverted, sinful nature of man, which nature is in opposition to God, not subject to His will, His laws, His love, and of which Paul declares "I know there is nothing good in me — I mean in my earthly nature" (Rom. 7 : 18). Here then is the seed-germ from which has grown our modern problem over the Bible, and we might say the ever-present problem over the Bible. The new theology would deify that which the Bible commands us to crucify (Rom. 6: 6; Gal. 5: 24), and would present to the world a false diagnosis of man, a diagnosis that is contradicted by all the facts of experience.