Truth Magazine

By Ron Halbrook

This study concerns what we call church history. It cannot be a textual study of scripture by the very nature of the case. The Bible never recorded or envisioned what men call “ecumenical councils.” They are not found in the First Century Church. There is no command for them, no approved precedent, no necessary implication. They are the creation of men under the influence of a working of error, the spirit of lawlessness.

The theory behind ecumenical councils has always drawn on Acts 15, the so-called Jerusalem council. But the “Jerusalem council” was not a representative council called by “representative men.” It did not meet to vote any doctrine in or out of existence. When men came from Jerusalem leaving the impression that inspired men there approved of their false teachings, Paul and Barnabas left Antioch for Jerusalem. While it is true the Antioch brethren “determined that Paul and Barnabas, and certain other of them, should go up to Jerusalem unto the apostles and elders about this question,” it is also true and of utmost importance that Paul later explained, “I went up by revelation” (Acts 15:2; Gal. 2:2).

While free discussion and open study was allowed at Jerusalem, none of this had a bearing on Paul or any other inspired man in so far as “helping” determine what he believed about the matters at issue. Paul went, not to find out what he should believe and preach, but to communicate “unto them that gospel which I preach among the Gentiles” (Gal. 2:2). What he preached was exactly what Peter and the other inspired men preached; this was publicly demonstrated (Gal. 2:6-9). The inspired men preached exactly what the Holy Spirit directed, before and after the Jerusalem meeting. The false teachers were debated and defeated by the power of truth, not by a vote of 125 yeas and 124 nays (Acts 15:6-21; Gal. 2:3-5).

Letters were written from Jerusalem by the direction of the Holy Spirit-the first inspired letters we know anything about during the First Century. The letters carried the stamp of divine inspiration, not of human wisdom: “And they wrote letters by them after this manner; The apostles and elders and brethren send greeting …. For it seemed good to the Holy Ghost, and to us, to lay upon you . . . these necessary things . . . .” (Acts 15:23-31).

Councils never did determine divine truth in the first place. It was determined from eternity in God Himself. Men, vessels of clay, were entrusted with the riches of divine truth, which they spoke under miraculous guidance of the Holy Spirit (1 Cor. 2:13). But furthermore, that truth was revealed and declared in all its fulness in the First Century, according to the promise of Christ (Jn. 16:13; 1 Cor. 13:8-10; Jas. 1:25). Therefore no council after the First Century could have any new truth to offer. When bishops of the Second and Third Centuries began meeting in local areas and synods, they often repeated this formula, “It has seemed good to the Holy Spirit and to us . . . .” But the Holy Spirit did not call these councils nor speak through them. The phrase was pirated! When men made such claims (and do so today), it was the working of Satan with all deception of unrighteousness. It is iniquity. There is not a particle of justification for it in the law of Christ. “Every one who practices sin also practices lawlessness; and sin is lawlessness” (1 Jn. 3:4).

If it be claimed that such councils met simply for the mutual edification of those who gathered, the deception is revealed by the council’s own constant claims, “It seemed good to the Holy Spirit . . . .” They claimed divine authority for their deliberations and decrees; they did not apologize for their boldness then, as some of their self-appointed apologists may do today.

Why study all this if it is unauthorized by God’s Word? (1) To see the fulfillment of Bible prophecy, such as 2 Thess. 2, 1 Tim. 4, and 2 Tim. 4. (2) To better understand the spirit of lawlessness-its progressive nature, its destructive nature, its pride, its methods, its unlimited claims when it has its way, etc. This will help us recognize and oppose such a spirit. It should make us appreciate the wisdom and love of God’s warnings. (3) To gain insight into a traditional approach to unity that has been here many centuries and is still current. (4) The reader will discover many other uses of such historical study, according to his own interests and needs. Man is a creature of history and of interest in history.

The term ecumenical means universal or general; it strongly suggests unity. Ecumenical councils are universal councils, those which represent the universality and oneness of the church . . . supposedly. Some historians would include councils we omit, and omit some we include. Our study does not pretend to be exhaustive, but will try to be complete enough to give the reader solid information and valid impressions about four different periods in the development of councils. In the next few lessons we will view the “First Ecumenical Councils (300-900 A.D.),” then “Medieval Councils of the Western Church (1000-1300 A.D.),” next “Renaissance Councils (1400-1520),” and finally “Reformation-Age Councils (1521- ).”

The source materials we have used for the most part represent three divergent points of view: (1) a Restoration view by John F. Rowe, A History of Reformatory Movements, 9th ed. (Reprint at Rosemead, California: Old Paths Book Club, 1957): (2) a Roman Catholic view by Francis Dvornik, The Ecumenical Councils (New York: Hawthorn Books Publ., 1961); (3) and a Protestant view by Ruth Rouse and Stephen Charles Neill (eds.), A History of the Ecumenical Movement 1517-1948, 2nd ed., being Vol. I of A History of the Ecumenical Movement (London: Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge, 1967) along with the companion volume by Harold E. Fey (ed.), The Ecumenical Advance 1948-1968, being Vol. II of A History of the Ecumenical Movement (London: Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge, 1970). For convenience when we wish to indicate a source, we shall simply give the author and page number.

Since the councils represent an effort at unity, we shall try to indicate what new tools, ideas, or concepts emerge in each period of the council’s development.

First Ecumenical Councils (300-900 A.D.)

Major Contribution or Characteristic in Approach to Unity: In discussing the rise of the episcopate as an office developed after the New Testament period, William Ramsay said, “The Imperial idea was in the air” (W.M. Ramsay, The Church in the Roman Empire Before A.D. 170, p. 367). It was still in the air, in people’s thinking on the subject of unity, in the years from 300 to 900 A.D. The Church accommodated itself to the guidance of the emperors. They were in effect priest-emperors who saw themselves as the guardians of Church faith and unity, or who assumed the priest-emperor role for political reasons. They pursued unity by adapting Roman legislative procedures to the needs of general councils of bishops. Lesser synods of bishops had already been utilizing such procedures. The letters of Cyprian, Bishop of Carthage, reveal that the

“gatherings of bishops gradually modeled themselves on the rules under which the sessions of the Roman Senate was held.

The presiding bishop assumed the role of the Emperor or of his representative in the Senate. He used the same words for the convocation of the Council as were used in the imperial summons for the meeting of the Senate; and the conduct of debate, the interrogations of the bishops, and their responses also imitated the procedure of the Senate . . . . There was nothing unusual in this development. The meetings of the local senates or municipal councils in the provincial capitals were also modeled on the procedure followed by the Roman Senate, and this procedure was thus familiar to the bishops, who were Roman citizens” (Dvornik, p. 10).

When Emperor Constantine called the Nicean Council of 325, he

“convoked the bishops to the Council as he used to summon the senators to their meetings. The bishops obtained the senatorial privilege of traveling at public expense and using the official stage post, which was wen organized in the Roman Empire. As in the Senate, the problems to be decided were first debated by the most prominent bishops and the Emperor, in private meetings . . .

. . . “The Emperor himself presided over sessions of the Council. In the place of the statue of Victory, which stood In the front of the presidential tribune in the Roman Senate, the Bible was placed between the bishops and the Emperor. As in the Senate, the Emperor explained why he had convoked the Council and the subject the bishops had to discuss before making their definition. Then followed the individual Interrogation of the bishops, who made known their views” (Dvornik, pp. 14-15).

The age of Nicaea was characterized “by endless division” and “by endless efforts for the restoration of unity.” Meetings, writings, and compromises were utilized in search of successful methods. “But above all others, the means by which the Church in the Roman Empire sought to recover its own lost unity was the Ecumenical Council”-“an invention not of the Church but of the State …. The Council was a Council of the Church, but it was also the Emperor’s Council” (Rouse and Neill, p. 11).

Thus, between 300 and 900 A.D., unity was sought through general councils of bishops convened by the emperors of the civil empire. The role of the Roman bishop, or pope, grew more important in the latter half of this period; but the emperor was supreme over Church and State. Seven early councils are now considered ecumenical, i.e. representative of the church universal at work.

Council of Nicaea, 325

This council announced, in opposition to the Arians, that the relation of the Father to the Son is homoousios (consubstantial; same substance, nature, essence). It was decided that “Easter” should always be kept on a Sunday. The development of Church organization in keeping with the civil divisions of the Empire was approved. Other decisions were made and the Nicene Creed issued. Emperor Constantine called and presided at this council; he said, “For whatever is decided in the holy councils of the bishops must be attributed to the divine will” (Dvornik, p. 17).

Council of Constantinople, 381

The semi-Arians would concede only that the Father and the Son were homoiousios (similar in nature). Constantius, son of Constantine, called several synods of bishops to promote semi-Arianism, including Antioch in 341, Sardica in 343, Sirmium in 351, Arles in 353, Milan in 355, Sirmium again in 357 and again in 358, Rimini in 359, and Seleucia in 359. To further confuse things, Pope (the title is Dvornik’s) Julius I raised the question of what really validates a council’s decisions. This is all mixed up with the Arian controversy, but Julius did not think the Emperor’s calling a council necessarily validated its decisions. He argued that synodal decisions are not “general and binding” unless recognized by “the whole Church” (Dvornik, p. 19). As the Arian struggle continued, discussion on the nature of the Holy Spirit arose.

Finally, Emperor Theodosius the Great convoked the Council of Constantinople in 381 to try to create some order in all the confusion and continued division. The main results were a decision affirming the divine nature of the Holy Spirit and one recognizing the primacy of the church at Rome in certain matters.

Council of Ephesus, 431

Emperor Theodosius II called this council. The main doctrinal concern was in declaring the union of the divine and human natures in Christ, which had become another point of controversy and speculation. In terms of church centers of power, which were becoming more and more important, this council was involved in a struggle between the school of Antioch and the school of Alexandria; the Emperor in Constantinople tried to effect mediation.

The Council of Ephesus in 449 must be included here, though it is slighted as the “Robber Synod” because the heretical Monophysites controlled it. The Patriarch of Alexandria, Dioscorus, used “the great resources of his patriarchate” to get Emperor Theodosius II to call this council (Dvornik, p. 26). The council declared that the divine nature of Christ was absorbed by the human nature; therefore, there was just ONE nature (MONOphysite view). It is said that Dioscorus not only used unscrupulous means to have the council called, but that he also utilized fanatical supporters and imperial police to terrorize the assembly.

Council of Chalcedon, 451

Roman bishop Leo I got Emperor Marcian to convene the Council of Chalcedon. It affirmed that there were two natures in the one man Jesus Christ, thus denying the Monophysite position. Emperor Marcian was openly acclaimed as “Priest-emperor” and the power or position of Constantinople in the church was more fully acknowledged. Later, Emperor Zeno (474-91) issued a creed compromising with the Monophysites. This Henoticon or “Band of Union” was declared imperial law. “Pope” Felix III declared the “Band of Union” invalid, urging the decision at Chalcedon as the basis of unity.

Council of Constantinople, 553

Emperor Justinian condemned certain writings as a concession to irate Egyptian Monophysites. But the bishops insisted he should not issue religious edicts without conferring with them. So a council was called, which in turn simply confirmed the action Justinian had already taken.

Council of Constantinople, 680

So little was settled by these councils that every effort to put out one fire seemed to start a dozen more. The Monophysite controversy continued and new efforts were made to settle it. For instance, Patriarch Sergius persuaded Pope Honorius to issue a compromise creed, Ekthesis, stating Christ had only one will (Monothelite view). This patch did not hold long; more controversy between succeeding popes, emperors, and patriarchs followed. Finally, Emperor Constantine IV called the council of Constantinople in 680 to pull the feuding empire back together. The council condemned the Monothelite compromise.

The Council of Constantinople in 754 must be noted here, though certain parties certainly will not “recognize” it is ecumenical! In 726, Emperor Leo III issued an edict banning images (icons) as equivalent to idols. This is called the iconoclast view. The Council of Constantinople in 754 not only confirmed the Emperor’s decree, but also excommunicated the anti-iconoclasts.

Council of Nicaea, 787

The iconoclast issue remained unsettled for many years, and finally Empress Irene got the support of the Patriarch and the consent of the Pope to call a council “that I may know what the Lord will say unto me more” (to borrow Balaam’s words to Balak’s messengers in Num. 22:19). The party that lost out in a council could always bide its time, increase its influence, and have another council called to see “what the Lord will say . . . more!” The Council of Nicaea in 787 reversed the position of the Council of Constantinople of 754. Indeed, the Lord did have more to say.

Still the iconoclast debate continued for another fifty years. Charlemagne in the West and various emperors in the East maintained their iconoclast views. “Image worship” was generally restored in 842-3 by Empress Theodora. “The defeat of iconoclasm promoted the production of icons, representations of Christ and his Saints, and these became a characteristic feature of Byzantine art” (Dvornik, p. 39).

At least two more important councils met before the year 900. Emperor Basil I called the Council of Constantinople of 869 in an effort to gain Roman support. The Emperor in Constantinople and the Pope in Rome were able to scratch one another’s backs. By means of this council, the Roman Pope cooperated with the Emperor in removing Photius as Patriarch of Constantinople. Basil gained Roman support; the Pope strengthened his primacy.

The Roman and Greek Churches differed socially, politically, and religiously on many issues; they were drifting further and further apart. Through the Council of Constantinople in 879, the Roman and Greek Churches agreed to a sort of unity in diversity, recognizing that neither was likely to succeed in dominating the other. (And apparently the Lord had more to say about poor Photius, for the council reinstated him!) Though this was called the “Council of Union,” it was the last Eastern synod to which the Roman Pope sent legates. The two Churches grew further. apart, especially when the Saxon King Otto I (962) restored “the Western Roman Empire.” He took control of both secular and spiritual affairs; obviously, his background differed from both the Roman and Greek.

Truth Magazine XXI: 41, pp. 649-652
October 20, 1977

By Bill Cavender

C. D. Plum was born on June 5, 1898 on a farm in the hills of Wirt County, West Virginia, a place he later referred to lovingly as “Starvation Point.” He died at home, 2503 Liberty St., Parkersburg, West Virginia, at 12:30 p.m., June 30, 1977, at age 79 years and 25 days.

He went through the eight grade of school, then attended State Normal Colleges at Elizabeth and Ripley, West Virginia, and began teaching school. While teaching, at age 19, he met and married one of his students, Goldie May Henderson, age 16. They loved each other and lived together in holiness and devotion to God and to each other for 60 years and 3 months. To them three children were born: Wilma, who became Mrs. Carl Parsons and who passed away Aug. 20, 1965; Russell D., now age 56, who is crippled due to illness in his youth and who lives at home with his mother; and Charles D., who passed away Aug. 7, 1976 at age 51, who was a faithful gospel preacher and the Chief of Police in Parkersburg at the time of his death.

Brother C. D. Plum is survived by his wife, by Russell, by one sister who is in a nursing home in California, and by five grandchildren and ten great-grandchildren. Sister Plum is 76 years of age, appears to be in good health, and for the more than three years of Brother Plum’s illness and the one and one-half years he was bedfast, she tenderly and lovingly cared for him day and night without complaint, assisted by her two sisters and by her excellent daughter-in-law, sister Lillian Plum. Sister Plum is of the old school of womanhood, a gracious, lovely, modest, godly woman, who loves the Lord, the church, her husband and children, and all that is good and true. She and Russell will continue to live at their home which they built in 1941. (All preachers ought to own a home of their own.) Cards and letters will reach sister Plum at her home address if any of our readers wish to write her, to thank her for what she, her husband, and family have meant to the Lord’s cause and kingdom for these many years.

Brother Plum was baptized during a gospel meeting in 1911, held by J. H. Pennell. “One little twelve year old boy was baptized,” it was remarked, but that boy gave sixty-six years to the Lord’s work, fifty-six of them in active gospel preaching. He went to embalming school in Cincinnati, Ohio, immediately after marriage but never worked as a mortician. He began preaching in Hundred, West Virginia and in 1918 moved to East Liverpool, Ohio. After preaching there, he did located work in Moundsville, West Virginia; .Wheeling, West Virginia (where he did extensive radio preaching); Lynn Street in Parkersburg; Belpre, Ohio; West Broad Street and Whitehall churches in Columbus, Ohio; and in Paden City, West Virginia. In 1964 they moved to Coraopolis, Pennsylvania to care for their daughter who was terminally ill. Brother Plum began holding meetings and preaching for churches within driving distance of Coraopolis when he was not in meetings. He continued to do this for the next ten years, the remainder of his preaching life. After their daughter’s death, they moved to their own home in Parkersburg in March, 1966. In his 56 years of preaching, he baptized hundreds of people, holding meetings in twenty states and Canada. He held six meetings in Port Arthur, and was scheduled to hold another for us when he became too ill to preach anymore. We then asked Brother Charles D. Plum to come in his father’s place for the meeting. He consented, but then became ill with cancer and passed away before the time agreed upon.

Brother Plum engaged in two religious debates, both with the Seventh-Day Adventists. He wrote several tracts and for many years was a regular staff writer for the Gospel Advocate. He spoke on college lectureships, especially at Freed-Hardeman College, and was well known as a personal friend to the notable preachers, elders and brethren of the twenties, thirties and early forties. But all this changed in the forties, after World War II. In the late forties and early fifties, when the Gospel Advocate became the foremost voice for institutionalism (human institutions being supported, maintained and subsidized from church treasuries) and centralized church cooperation (many churches working through a centralized, sponsoring-church arrangement, with a concentration of plans, funds and personnel under the oversight of a central eldership), Brother Plum opposed this unscriptural movement and wrote in opposition to these digressive, liberal practices and plans. The Advocate editor, Brother B. C. Goodpasture, ceased printing his articles, so Brother Plum resigned from the Advocate staff. He later remarked that the twenty-five dollars a month he received as a staff writer was greatly needed in those days, yet he could not take it to the peril of his soul. He was the first writer to quit the Advocate due to the paper’s liberalism. He contributed articles afterwards to several papers among faithful brethren, the Gospel Guardian and especially Truth Magazine being the main outlets for his views. His writing was ever like his preaching-true to God’s word, simple, understandable and appealing.

One of the great sadnesses of Brother Plum’s life was the condition to which the majority of churches of Christ in the Ohio Valley have come. This was home to him, the area and people that he loved best, and where most of his life’s work was done. He grieved at the digression of the churches in that area and at the fact that he was greatly ostracized by the very people he had helped the most in earlier years. The college begun and operated by liberal brethren in Parkersburg and the Ohio Valley has been and is a prime mover of digression throughout the entire area and Brother Plum ever looked upon it with disdain and sorrow. He had great sorrow of heart due to broken fellowship and friendships as digression gained more and more power and fewer brethren in his area arose to speak and stand against it as time went by. Especially keen was the loss of association with gospel preachers who had been bosom friends and fellow-laborers, men who had preached and proclaimed similar convictions as his own, but who would no longer preach and stand by their convictions when divisions began to occur. Brethren Fred E. Dennis and Tom Butterfield were extremely valued fellow-soldiers, yet their fellowship was lost when he stood for truth and they tacitly and quietly gave their influence to the digressive movement. They continued to hold the meetings for churches in the Ohio Valley, churches which were and are embracing more of error and becoming more denominational as time passed, while Brother Plum preached elsewhere and had to go further out into the countryside to weak and small churches to find places to preach. In his long illness they never contacted him in any way, never came to see him nor inquire of him. Brother Butterfield attended his funeral. Brother Plum often remarked that if he, Dennis and Butterfield could have stood together as one man in the truth during the crucial years of the fifties and sixties, they could have saved much of the cause of Christ in the Ohio Valley from digression.

In the nineteen years I knew Brother Plum well, I came to love and appreciate him as I have few other men. He stayed in our home in two meetings; I stayed in their home in Parkersburg during two meetings. We corresponded often. I will never forget the way he walked, his unusual speaking style and voice, his beautiful and perfectly-drawn blackboard diagrams, the scripture-filled sermons, his tenderness of heart and feelings. He was a deeply pious man, given much to prayer, Bible study and meditation. He always talked of the scriptures, the church, home and heaven. I never heard him discuss sports, politics, fishing, hunting, or gossip about anyone. He loved his family as much as any man I have ever known. Only to preach the gospel would he leave them, while gone he wrote them every day, and when a meeting was over he wanted to return home. Humble in spirit, reverent in demeanor, always moderate in his habits, very unassuming and quiet in disposition, thrifty with money, undemanding and simple in his needs, accurate and meticulous in his work, kind and gentle in manner, forgiving and without rancor toward any enemies, hopeful for the best in all things, believing in God’s will and providence in every facet of his life, he tried to live as much as possible at peace with all men, consistent with God’s will, and to live soberly, righteously and godly in this world.

His funeral was conducted in Parkersburg on July 5 by Brother Richard Greeson, preacher of the Marrtown Road church in Parkersburg, and by this writer. His mortal body was laid away to await the resurrection by the side of his son, Charles, in the Chapel of Peace Mausoleum, Sunset Gardens Cemetery, Parkersburg. May God continue to be with and bless Sister Plum, Russell, and this entire family as they serve Him, and may Brother Plum’s life, preaching and works be a continual blessing and influence in the lives of all of us who knew him.

Truth Magazine XXI: 41, pp. 647-649
October 20, 1977

By Morris W. R. Bailey

In our study of handling aright the word of truth, it has been pointed out that it is important that we recognize the distinction between miraculous phenomena, which served a temporary purpose, and the permanent order. The last article dealt with the baptism of the Holy Spirit, sent upon the apostles, and later on the household of Cornelius, and the purpose that it served in each case. We now turn our attention to another miraculous manifestation of the Holy Spirit in the form of. . .

Spiritual Gifts

The apostle Paul dealt at some length with the subject of spiritual gifts in the twelfth, thirteenth, and fourteenth chapter of first Corinthians. I shall take time out while the reader turns to, and reads Paul’s words in 1 Cor. 12:1-11.

In this scripture it is obvious that spiritual gifts were miraculous powers given to certain of the disciples of the First Century. It will be pointed out later that they were given for but a limited time.

The first three of the gifts, as designated by Paul-wisdom, knowledge, and faith-while ordinarily natural mental exercises and received through natural channels, are herein described by Paul as supernatural gifts, and received, not through natural channels, but, as will be shown later, by the laying on of apostolic hands.

Wisdom, as a spiritual gift, was the ability to reveal divine truth. Paul said, “We speak God’s wisdom in a mystery” (1 Cor. 2:7). Knowledge, as a spiritual gift, was a supernatural insight into “. . . the mystery of Christ which in other generations was not made known unto the sons of men, as it hath now been revealed unto his holy apostles and prophets in the Spirit” (Eph. 3:4,5). Faith, as a spiritual gift, was not. the faith described in the eleventh chapter of Hebrews, and which comes by hearing the word of God (Rom. 10:17), but a supernatural faith that enabled the recipient to work miracles (Matt. 17:19,20).

Spiritual gifts must not be confused with the baptism of the Holy Spirit. While it is probable that the apostles, who had received the baptism of the Spirit, possessed all the above gifts, not all who received such gifts received the baptism of the Holy Spirit. This is obvious from the following . . .

Points Of Difference

1. Holy Spirit baptism was received directly from heaven. The writer of Acts, in describing the descent of the Spirit on the apostles at Pentecost, said, “And suddenly there came from heaven a sound as of a rushing of a mighty wind, and it filled all the house where they were sitting. And there appeared unto them tongues parting asunder, like as of fire; and it sat upon each one of them. And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit, and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance” (Acts 2:2-4). In the sermon that followed, Peter showed that Jesus was seated at the right hand of God, whence “he hath poured forth this which ye see and hear” (Acts 2:33).

In describing the descent of the Holy Spirit on the household of Cornelius, the writer of Acts said, “While Peter yet spake these words, the Holy Spirit fell on all them that heard the word. And they of the circumcision . . . were amazed . . . because that on the Gentiles was poured out the gift of the Holy Spirit” (Acts 10:44,45). Peter described the same event in these words, “And as I began to speak, the Holy Spirit fell on them, even as on us at the beginning” (Acts 11:15). Thus, in each case the Holy Spirit was sent from heaven.

Spiritual gifts, however, were conferred by the laying on of apostolic hands. This is obvious from the following facts:

(a) Up until the events of the sixth chapter of Acts, only the apostles worked miracles. Acts 2:43 says, “And many wonders and signs were done through the apostles.” Acts 5:12 says, “And by the hands of the apostles were many signs and wonders wrought among the people.” If others were working miracles does it not seem strange that the miracles of only the apostles were mentioned?

Beginning with the sixth chapter, however, a change took place. A crisis arose in connection with the administration of benevolence, that resulted in the appointment of seven men to “serve tables” (vs. 1,2). Upon these men the apostles laid their hands (vs. 6). Immediately following this, Stephen, one of the seven, “wrought great wonders and signs among the people” (vs. 8). Here, for the first time, we find someone other than an apostle working miracles.

(b) Later, Philip, another one of the seven, went down to the city of Samaria and preached unto them the Christ (Acts 8:5). Of Philip’s experience in Samaria the writer of Acts said, “And the multitudes gave heed with one accord unto the things that were spoken by Philip, when they heard, and saw the signs which he did. For from many of those that had unclean spirits, they came out crying with a loud voice: and many that were palsied, and that were lame were healed” (Acts 8:6,7). Where had Philip received the power to work miracles? Obviously through the laying on of the apostles’ hands. This becomes a certainty in another verse in this same chapter.

Following the conversion of the Samaritans, Peter and John came down to Samaria. The purpose of their coming is described in the following words. “Who, when they were come down, prayed for them that they might receive the Holy Spirit . . . Then laid they their hands upon them and they received the Holy Spirit” (Acts 8:15-17).

Of Simon, who had obeyed the gospel under Philip’s preaching, the writer said, “Now when Simon saw that through the laying on of the apostles’ hands the Holy Spirit was given, he offered them money” (Acts 8:18). Could language be plainer?

(c) Still another example of impartation of miraculous power through the laying on of apostolic hands is seen in Paul’s experience at Ephesus, in Acts the nineteenth chapter. Following the baptism of certain disciples in the name of Christ, “Paul laid his hands upon them, and the Holy Spirit came upon them; and they spoke with tongues and prophesied” (Acts 19:6).

From the above considerations it is thus obvious that spiritual gifts, or miraculous powers possessed by the early Christians, were conferred by the laying on of apostles’ hands.

2. A second point of distinction between Spirit baptism and spiritual gifts was that while the apostles were able to impart spiritual gifts to others by the laying on of hands, that power did not extend to those on whom hands were laid. This is obvious from the following evidence:

(a) While Philip had the power to work miracles, it was necessary for the apostles, Peter and John, to come down to Samaria to lay their hands on the new disciples there. At least that was obviously the intent of their visit to Samaria.

(b) Although Apollos labored for some time in Ephesus, and was an eloquent man, and “Powerfully confuted the Jews . . . showing by the scriptures that Jesus was the Christ” (Acts 18:28), it was not until Paul came to Ephesus and laid hands on the disciples there that “the Holy Spirit came upon them; and they spoke with tongues and prophesied” (Acts 19:1-6).

The Purpose Of Spiritual Gifts

Spiritual gifts served a dual purpose. Miracles, healings, and tongues were confirmatory in their effect, and inspired confidence in the inspiration of the preacher (Acts 8:6; 1 Cor. 14:22). Knowledge, wisdom and prophecy had to do with inspiration, and enabled those who possessed those gifts to teach such truth as was necessary for the edification of the church. Speaking of the gifts that were given to men, Paul said that their purpose was, “For the perfecting of the saints, unto the work of ministering, unto the building up of the body of Christ” (Eph. 4:12).

In thinking of the purpose of spiritual gifts, it needs to be borne in mind that during the first twenty years of the history of the church there was no revelation (of the New Testament) in written form. Preachers could not appeal to book, chapter, and verse as proof for the things they taught. Their teaching had to be supplied by inspiration. So when an apostle, or other inspired man, established a church in a certain place, and then moved on somewhere else, it was necessary that provision be made for the continued instruction of those babes in Christ. It was for that purpose that spiritual gifts were given to men.

Their Duration

Like all other miraculous phenomena, spiritual gifts were temporary, and consequently ceased when their purpose was fulfilled. We may as well be looking for the miracle of creation to be repeated today, as to expect the continuation of spiritual gifts.

Paul placed a time limit on these gifts when he said in Eph. 4:13 that they were given “Till we all attain unto the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a full grown man, unto the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ.” That word, “till” is an adverb of time, and thus sets a time limit on the duration of spiritual gifts. Not, as some tell us, when all men are united in what they believe. That is not likely to ever be. It had reference to the time when the various parts of the faith, (1 Cor. 13:9) would be brought together in one unified body of truth.

In the thirteenth chapter of First Corinthians, Paul specifically names three spiritual gifts, prophecies, tongues, and knowledge, and said that they would be done away when that which is perfect is come (1 Cor. 13:8-10). Since I plan to deal with this passage more. fully in a later article on misused scriptures, it will suffice to make this closing observation that since these greater gifts were to cease it seems illogical for anyone to contend that the other gifts will continue. Having all served their time and purpose they have given way to the permanent-the written word in the New Testament.

Truth Magazine XXI: 41, pp. 645-647
October 20, 1977

By Mike Willis

John Oxenham wrote,

“To every man there openeth

A way and ways and a way;

And the high soul treads the high way,

And the low soul gropes the low;

And in between on the misty flats

The rest drift to and fro;

But to every man there openeth

A high way and a low;

And every man decideth

The way his soul shall go.”

(Quoted by William Barclay, The Gospel of Matthew, Vol. 1, p. 282)

Jesus taught something similar to this when He said, “Enter by the narrow gate; for the gate is wide and the way is broad that leads to destruction, and many are those who enter by it. For the gate is small, and the way is narrow that leads to life and few are those who find it” (Mt. 7:13,14). Inasmuch as every soul of man must face the choice of which road he is going to take as he goes through this life, let us examine these verses for a few minutes together.

Two Gates

This passage mentions two different gates, the narrow gate and the broad gate. The King James Version refers to the narrow gate as the strait gate. The word strait is not synonymous with straight which means “not crooked.” Rather, it means “narrow, compressed.” This describes a gate which has a small opening. The strait gate requires that man make changes and alterations in order to enter it. Man cannot enter this gate as he naturally is. Jesus is teaching that Christianity is not a come-as-you-are party; rather, Christianity requires that man alter his life in order that he can enter the strait or narrow gate. To enter the narrow gate, a man must lay aside the old-man of sin (Col. 3:5-10); he must cease to be self-willed (Mt. 16:24); the sinful things of this world must all be discarded (1 Cor. 6:9-11). Inasmuch as the gate is narrow and compressed, the man must alter his life in order that he can pass through the gate. Think of a man carrying a large cargo trying to enter a small gate with a low overhead. In order to pass through the gate, the man must remove some of his cargo. Similarly, in order to enter the narrow gate, man must lay aside his cargo of sin.

The broad gate, on the other hand, is sufficiently large for man to enter without laying aside his cargo of sin. Because it is so large, any kind of sin can enter its portals. A man can pass through this gate without making so much as a change in his life. It is a gate of convenience. Sin, self-righteousness, false notions, vice and follies of all sorts can easily pass through this gate. Man must make no changes in his life to pass through the wide gate.

Let it also be observed that every man has made his choice to enter one gate or the other. No man is on neutral ground. Perhaps there is someone who thinks that he is not walking through the wide gate although he has never chosen to pass through the narrow gate. My friend, you chose the wide gate when you decided to go along with the crowd in the telling of filthy stories rather than be ostracized by taking your stand for righteousness. You chose the wide gate when you decided to tell a lie when telling the truth would have caused you pain. Already you are walking down the broad way if you are not in the narrow way.

Two Ways

Whereas the gates contrasted the entrances, the ways contrast the differences in walks of life. The narrow gate leads to a narrow way. This reminds us of just how narrow truth really is. A person is either in the way of truth or he is in error. The path in which a man walks is hedged in by the law of God. God has forbidden the way of the flesh, specifically forbidding adultery, fornication, lasciviousness, etc. and demanding that the Christian be a man of love, joy, peace, etc. (Gal. 5:19-25). He has given the narrow way for man in his worship of God. He has described the nature and kind of worship which He desires and man is expected to walk in that narrow way. Hence, the narrow way is the way of the man who walks by faith (i.e. walking within the revelation of God) and not by sight (i.e. his physical senses or his reason).

The broad gate, however, leads to a broad way. The broad way allows man to do anything he so desires. The man who walks in the broad way can pursue wealth, chase women, forsake the Lord, use profanity, dabble in Oriental religions, and believe any human philosophy. The broad way makes no restrictions on man, except that he stay out of the narrow way.

Two Groups

Even as there are two gates and two ways, there are also two groups which are traveling the different ways. The group which enters the narrow gate and walks in the narrow way is composed of few. Only a few men will ultimately be. saved. I recognize that this is contrary to popular opinion. Popular opinion states that God’s mercy will triumph over His judgment in order to save the man who is walking in the broad way. Yet, God’s revelation plainly states that only a few will be saved (Lk. 13:23-24). God cannot be true to His word and save those who are traveling the broad way. Hence, only a few will be saved.

The broad way is traveled by many. Just as water travels the course which offers the least resistance, so also most people travel the way which allows them to do as they please. The hordes of mankind will always choose to do evil over good because it is so much easier. Hesiod, the Greek poet, wrote, “Wickedness can be had in abundance easily; smooth is the road, and very nigh she dwells; but in front of virtue the gods immortal have put sweat.” Human nature is such that man prefers the easy road to the sweat. Consequently, the greater proportion of humanity has chosen to walk through the wide gate and down the broad way.

Two Destinies

The two different gates which lead to the two different ways and which are traveled by two different groups lead to two different places. The narrow gate which leads to the narrow way and which is traveled by few leads to life. Life is understood to refer to the eternal life which God has prepared for His saints in heaven. (Notice that life is not a present possession. The man does not receive life upon entering the gate but at the end of the narrow road.) Eternal life is available to those who want to put forth the effort to obtain it; God has made it accessible to man.

The wide gate which leads to the broad way and which is traveled by many eventually leads to destruction. The eternal punishment of Hell awaits those who have decided to walk the broad way. Though the broad way is much easier to travel, the destination to which it leads makes one desire not to walk that way. The undisciplined, immoral life results in eternal destruction.

A Universal Invitation

The call to “enter” the narrow gate implies that whosoever desires to walk on the narrow way may enter. The blessings of the gospel are available to the one who wishes to participate in them (Rev. 22:17). God’s blessings are given without respect of persons. Christ’s blood was shed for the whole world so that salvation could be offered to all men (Tit. 2:11; 1 Tim. 2:3-4).

The call to “enter” also implies that man must do something to get to the life which God has prepared for him. To participate in God’s blessings, man must act. God has already done all that He will do to save us. Man must respond to His gospel to receive His grace. Every man must enter, i.e. make some conscious choice to walk in God’s way, in order to be saved in the end.

Conclusion

William Barclay said, “There is always a certain dramatic quality about life; for, as it has been said, `all life concentrates on man at the crossroads.’ In every action of life man is confronted with a choice; and he can never evade the choice, because he can never stand still” (The Gospel of Matthew, Vol. 1, p. 282). How true this is! My friend, you are going to make a choice of the road which you are going to travel in life. The choice which you make is going ,to determine whether you spend eternity in heaven or in hell. Which will you choose?

Moses said, “See, I have set before you today life and prosperity, and death and adversity . . . So choose life in order that you may live, you and your descendants” (Dent. 30:15,20). Similarly, Jeremiah wrote, “Behold, I have set before you the way of life and the way of death” (21:8). Now, which will you choose? “Choose you this day whom you will serve” (Josh. 24:15).

Truth Magazine XXI: 41, pp. 643-645
October 20, 1977