Christian Churches and Churches of Christ; Lutz, Henry Frey, 1868-1926 -- Biography; Restoration movement (Christianity)
Paul writes, "Every one of you saith, I am of Paul; and I of Apollos;
and I of Cephas; and I of Christ. Is Christ divided? was Paul crucified
for you? or were you baptized in the name of Paul?" "For while one
saith, I am of Paul; and another, I am of Apollos; are ye not carnal?"
(I Cor. 1:12, 13; 3:4). "I pray you," said Luther, "leave my name
alone, and do not call yourselves Lutherans, but Christians. Who is
Luther? My doctrine is not mine. I was not crucified for any one. Paul
would not that any should call themselves of Paul, nor of Peter, but of
Christ. How, then, does it fit me, a miserable bag of dust and ashes,
to give my name to the children of Christ! Cease to cling to these
party names and distinctions! Away with them all and let us call
ourselves Christians, after him from whom our doctrine comes!" Those
engaged in this restoration movement heed the admonitions of Paul and
Luther and call themselves "Christians," or "disciples of Christ,"
while they call the churches, "churches of Christ" or "churches of
God." They do not use these names in a sectarian, but in a Scriptural,
sense. They do not claim to be the "only Christians," but aim to be
"Christians only." We read in Acts II:26, "The disciples were called
Christians first at Antioch." "If any man suffer as a Christian," says
Peter, "let him not be ashamed, but let him glorify God in this name"
(I Pet. 4: 16). Any name used to designate a part of the followers of
Christ and to separate them from the rest, is wrong, because it
expresses a wrong and unscriptural idea. "Would to God," said Wesley,
"that all sectarian names were forgotten, and that we, as humble,
loving disciples, might sit down at the Master's feet, read his holy
word, imbibe his spirit, and transcribe his life into our own!" John
says, "We shall see his face and his name shall be in our foreheads"
(Rev. 22:4).
_The Ordinances Restored._
In addition to the restoration of the New Testament creed and names, it
was found that there can be no organic Christian union, after the
primitive type, without a restoration of the ordinances as administered
by the Apostles. Protestants all accept two ordinances, baptism and the
Lord's Supper, but they differ greatly in the manner of observing them.
Some have open and others close communion. Some observe the Lord's
Supper monthly, others quarterly and still others annually. In looking
for apostolic precepts and examples, it was found that the early
Christians met on every first day of the week to break bread; and that
each Christian was commanded by Christ to partake of the Lord's Supper,
after examining himself to see that his heart was prepared for this
spiritual feast. We have neither the authority to decide the frequency
of the service, nor who shall partake of the Supper.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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