The Seventy's Course in Theology, Second Year: Outline History of the Dispensations of the GospelRoberts, B. H. (Brigham Henry)
Religion
The Seventy's Course in Theology, Second Year: Outline History of the Dispensations of the Gospel
Roberts, B. H. (Brigham Henry)
Latter Day Saint churches -- Doctrines
Under all these circumstances it is small wonder if men exclaimed as
Augustine did somewhat later in his commentary on St. John--"How many
seek Jesus only that He may benefit them in earthly matters! One man
has a law suit, so he seeks the intercession of the clergy; another is
oppressed by his superior, so he takes refuge in the Church. Others
are seeking, one in this way and another in that, to be interceded
for in some quarter where they have but little influence themselves.
The Church is daily full of such persons. Seldom is Jesus sought for
Jesus' sake!"[A] After nicely balancing the possibility and probability
of those who came into the Church for present worldly advantage being
converted in time to a true faith in the Christian religion, Neander
says: "Beyond all doubt the number was far greater of those who grew
hardened in that worldly sense by which from the first they had
profaned a holy profession, and who were thus the means of introducing
into the Church a great mass of corruption."
[Footnote A: Augustine on St. John, tract 25, ch. 10.]
"Unhappily," he adds, "there were bishops whose only wish was to make
the conversion to Christianity a right easy thing for the pagans. * *
* * * Hence they baptized even those who lived in open sin, and who
plainly enough manifested that it was not their purpose to forsake it.
They imagined that when these were only baptized and introduced into
the fellowship of the Church, it was then time enough to admonish them
against sin."[A]
[Footnote A: Neander's Ch. Hist., vol. ii, p. 120.]
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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