Genesis 26:18-22

6. The Contention over Wells (Genesis 26:18-22). The whole of the southern frontier of Palestine, called the Negeb or -south country,-' consisting of vast undulating plains, which extend between the hills of Judah and the desert of Sinai, were neutral grounds, on the natural pastures of which the patriarchs fed their large flocks, before they had obtained a permanent abode. The valley of Gerar. about fifty miles south of the city Gerar, is perhaps the remote extremity of that pasture land (CECG, 192). Here Isaac digged againthat is, reopenedthe wells which had been dug in the days of Abraham his father, and which had been stopped (filled up) by the Philistines. The statement that they were wells that Abraham had first dug is not superfluous after Genesis 26:15, but clearly establishes his claim to these wells. To indicate, further, his right to these wells and to indicate his respect for what his father did, Isaac in every case revived their original names (EG, 727). The naming of the wells by Abraham, and the hereditary right of his family to the propertythe change of the names by the Philistines to obliterate the traces of their originthe restoration of their names by Isaac, and the contests between the respective shepherds for the exclusive possession of the water, are circumstances that occur among the natives in those regions as frequently in the present day as in the time of Isaac (CECG, 192).

The history of Isaac's sojourn in Gerar is very curious and instructive. Combining both pastoral and agricultural industry, it is not strange that he grew very great. The vast grazing plains around and south of his position enabled him to multiply his flocks indefinitely, while the -hundredfold-' harvests furnished bread for his numerous servants; and, in addition to these advantages, the blessing of the Lord was on the labour of his hands in a manner altogether extraordinary. These things made the Philistines envy and fear him; and therefore Abimelech, king of Gerar, demanded and obtained a covenant of peace with him. Just so at this day the towns, and even cities, such as Hamath and Hums in the north, and Gaza and Hebron in this region, cultivate with great care friendly relations with the sheikhs of prosperous tribes on their borders. It appears that the country was deficient in water, and that wells, dug at great expense, were regarded as very valuable possessions. Isaac was a great well-digger, prompted thereto by the necessities of his vast flocks; and in those days this was an operation of such expense and difficulty as to be mentioned among the acts which rendered illustrious even kings. The strife for possession of them was a fruitful source of annoyance to the peaceful patriarch, as it had been the cause of separation between Abraham and Lot before him; and such contests are now very common all over the country, but more especially in these southern deserts. It was the custom in former times to erect towers or castles to command and secure the possession of valuable watering-places; thus Uzziah built towers in connection with -his many wells-' (2 Chronicles 26:9-10). And to stop up wells was the most pernicious and destructive species of vengeancethe surest way to convert a flourishing country into a frightful wilderness. Israel was commanded thus to destroy the land of the Moabites, by stopping all the wells of water (2 Kings 3:19; 2 Kings 3:25). It would be a curious inquiry for the explorer to seek out these wells, nor would it be surprising if they should be found bearing the significant names which Isaac gave them. All travelers agree that water is so scarce and valuable in that region, that the places where it is to be found are as well known by the Arabs as are the most flourishing towns in other parts of the country. Isaac's place of residence was the well Lahai-roi, as we read in Genesis 25:11; Genesis 24:62the same that was so named by Hagar (Genesis 16:14). It may have been first discovered by her, or miraculously produced by -the God that saw her,-' for the salvation of the maternal ancestor of the Arab race and her unborn son, as the fountain of Kadesh afterward was for all Israel, and perhaps that of Lehi for Samson (Numbers 20:11, Judges 15:19). It seems to have been the usual mode to designate the dwelling-place in patriarchal times, and indeed long after, by some circumstance or fact which made it memorable. Abraham dwelt under the oak at Mamre; Isaac at this well; Jacob hid the idols of his family under the oak at Shechem; and long after, Joshua took a great stone and set it up under the same oak, as I suppose. Thus, also, Deborah dwelt under the palm-tree of Deborah; the angel of the Lord that was sent to Gideon came down and sat under an oak which was in Ophrah; King Saul is said to have tarried under a pomegranate tree in Migron; and it is yet quite common to find a village better known by some remarkable tree or fountain near it than by its proper name, The knowledge of these places and things is perpetuated from generation to generation; and I doubt not many of these wells in the south could be discovered, if one had the time and liberty to explore (LB, 559-560). (Cf. Genesis 35:4, Joshua 24:25-27; Judges 4:5; Judges 6:11; 1 Samuel 14:2).

Apparently, the rapid increase of Isaac's wealth brought about a need of additional wells, and so Isaac's servants began digging in the valley and found there a well of springing (living, bubbling, gushing) water. But the Philistines were keeping close watch, and immediately on hearing of the discovery they asserted their claim to the new well. No doubt, the distance from Gerar was sufficient to establish Isaac's claim to the well, otherwise this fair-minded man would never have sanctioned the digging. Isaac's policy is in keeping with the word, -Blessed are the meek.-' He leaves a memorial of the pettiness of the strife behind by calling the well Esek-'Contention-'the Quarrel Well. Perhaps a mild and tolerant humor lies in the name. Yet after all, what a fine testimonial to a great man's broadmindedness and readiness to sacrifice, lest the baser passions in men be roused by quarreling (EG, 727). Isaac's servants then moved some distance and brought in a new well: this they named Sitnah, i.e., enmity, hostility. In this case the opposition seems to have been more spiteful, more violent, as indicated by the name. Everyone must recognize that it is magnanimity and not cowardice on Isaac's part when he yields, because Isaac had ample manpower at his command (EG, 728). Isaac then moved even further away and his servants brought in a well which he named Rehoboth, i.e., wide places, room, rather, plenty of room, that is to say, the Lord hath made room for us. It seems that by now the patriarch had moved beyond the territory that Gerar could legitimately claim. It is possible, too, his generous example might have shamed the opposition. We shall be fruitful in the land, declared Isaac, that is, in this land where we now are. Is not Isaac thinking primarily in terms of that aspect of the Divine promise stated in Genesis 26:4? The character of Isaac is very marked and peculiar. He never traveled far from this spot during his long life of one hundred and eighty yearsprobably never removed from Wady Gerar and its neighboring city. There are but few acts of his life on record, and several of these are not much to his credit. He seems to have been an industrious, quiet man, disposed to wander alone and meditateat least when he had such an interesting theme to think about as the coming of the camels with his expected bride. He preferred peace to strife, even when the right was on his side, and he was -much mightier-' than those who annoyed and injured him (LB, 561).

FOR MEDITATION AND SERMONIZING

Digging the Wells of the Fathers

Genesis 26:18. As stated heretofore, digging again here meant re-opening of the wells which Abraham had caused to be dug in previous years. Abraham, a powerful prince of the preceding generation had dug these great wells in Philistia when he was sojourning there, The supply of water was abundant and sufficient for generations to come. But the wells had been stopped up by the envious Philistines. Another great famine descended upon the same area in the time of Isaac. Isaac knew that there was an abundance of sparkling water flowing beneath the obstructions which had been placed in the old wells. He therefore did not dig new wells, but set about restoring (re-opening) the old wells. Having done this, Isaac's servants set about digging elsewhere in the valley and brought in (as men say in the oil fields) a well of springing (living) water, Genesis 26:13.

We all know that water is necessary to the existence of every living thing, including man himself. Because of this fact, the prophets especially, and many other Scripture writers, were wont to use wells and rivers of water as metaphors of the life-giving sources of salvation. Isaiah 12:3Therefore with joy shall ye draw water out of the wells of salvation. Isaiah 41:18I will open rivers on the bare heights, and fountains in the midst of the valleys; I will make the wilderness a pool of water, and the dry land springs of water. Cf. again John 4:13-14; John 6:35; John 7:37-39; also Revelation 22:1-2. This living waterthe Water of Life to all who hunger and thirst for righteousness (Matthew 5:6)poured forth from the old Gospel well, for the first time, on the first Pentecost after the Resurrection: it was on this day that the facts of the Gospel were pro-claimed for the first time (1 Corinthians 15:1-4, Acts 2:22-24), that the commands of the Gospel were stated for the first time (Acts 2:38), that the promises of the Gospel were communicated to man for the first time (cf. Luke 13:5, 2 Corinthians 7:10, Romans 10:9-10, Galatians 3:27, etc.), and that the ekklesia came into being, vitalized by the Holy Spirit (Acts 2:41-42; Acts 2:46-47). During the lifetime of the Apostles multitudes drank of this life-giving flow, the high and the low, the rich and the poor, the educated and uneducated alike. The Pentecost multitude, the people of Samaria, the Roman centurion and his household, the Ethiopian treasurer, the seller of purple from Thyatira, the Philippian jailor, the fanatical Saul of Tarsus, Crispus the ruler of the synagogue in Corinth, and many others, including a great company of the priests, alike drank of this living water and went on their way rejoicing. (Cf. Acts 6:7; Acts 2:41; Acts 8:12-13; Acts 10:1-44; Acts 8:26-39; Acts 16:11-15; Acts 16:27-34; Acts 9:1-22; Acts 18:8). The supply of the water of the Life Everlasting in this old Gospel well was sufficient to quench the spiritual thirst of obedient believers of all ages. (Cf. John 6:63, Matthew 7:24-27; John 5:40; John 10:10, etc.).

As the centuries rolled on, however, the ugly face of human authority reared itself above the glorious image of the Logos. Man presumed to improve upon what the Spirit had revealed in the New Testament, The debris of human wisdom, tradition, and creed (stemming from the attempt to explain Christian doctrine by the use of philosophical gobbledygook and to improve upon the design of the ordinances of Christ by borrowings from the pagan mystery religions) continued to accumulate from generation to generation. Human interpretations, human speculation, human tradition filled the old Gospel well with the debris of the wisdom of the world (1 Corinthians 1:19-21). The result was apostasy, heresy, clericalism, sectism, and all the devices that Satanic ingenuity could muster to destroy the structure of the Church of Christ as it existed at the beginning. Theologians, priests, cultists, sectists alike departed from the faith once for all delivered unto the saints (Jude 1:3), and hewed for themselves and their misguided followers broken cisterns that held no relief for deep spiritual thirst.

Following the Protestant reformations, a group of spiritual leaders, by name Thomas and Alexander Campbell, Barton W. Stone, Walter Scott, and other spiritually-minded men who developed a keen appreciation of the simplicity of apostolic Christianity, its laws, its ordinances and its fruits, set out like Isaac of old to re-open the wells of the apostolic fathers and bring to men again the Water of Life that flowed from the old Gospel well that was opened on Pentecost, Not reformation, said they, but only restoration will revive the spiritual power that characterized the life of the church of the first century.-' Back of Wesley, back of Calvin, back of Luther, said they, indeed back of Roman Catholicism, back of Greek Catholicism, all the way back to Pentecost, and to the permanent features of the New Testament pattern of the church. The movement which resulted from their work came to be known as the Restoration movement. The message of this movement was essentially a plea for the recognition and acceptance of the Lordship of Christ over His church. This message became known as a Plea, a plea for Christ.

The chief thing in Catholicism is the machine, the visible hierarchy; in fact, Catholicism is the machine. The chief thing in Protestantism is the creed. True, men are breaking away from the creeds, yet the fact remains that the so-called Protestant systems have been built upon their respective creeds and the traditions of the fathers founded on these creedal statements. But the fundamental thing in Christianity as taught and practised by the Apostles and the first Christians was, not the machine (there was no ecclesiastical hierarchy in the apostolic age), not the creed (there were no stereotyped creeds until after the Apostles had passed from the stage of human events), but the personal Christ Himself. Christ was, and is, Christianity; and Christianity was, and is, Christ. That He died, was buried, and rose again the third day, and that He ascended to the Father and was made both Lord and Christ (Acts 2:36; Acts 10:39-43; Acts 17:29-31, Romans 10:9-10)this was the essence of the apostolic message. Christ was all in all apostolic preaching (Acts 8:12; Acts 8:35; Acts 16:31, etc.). (Cf. also 2 Timothy 1:12, 1 Corinthians 2:2, Galatians 2:20, Revelation 19:11-16).

As the Restoration movement stands for the reproduction of New Testament Christianity, it follows that the central thought and theme of its preaching is likewise the personal Christ. The Restoration movement differs from Catholicism in that it repudiates all ecclesiastical machines; it differs from Protestantism in that it rejects all human names, creeds and ceremonials, It is a protest, not only against Catholicism, but also against those things which Protestantism has borrowed from Catholicism that are not to be found in the New Testament church, The fundamental message of the movement is the preeminence of Christ. The Restoration plea may be defined in a single sentence as a plea for Christ. This plea comprehends the following particulars:

I. The name of Christ. The Restoration message pleads that the name of Christ may be worn by His people, to the exclusion of all human designations, for these reasons:

(1) it is the name in which they are baptized, Acts 2:38; (2) it is the divine name, because Christ is divine; (3) it is the preeminent name, Philippians 2:9-11; (4) it is the only name in which we can be saved, Acts 4:12; (5) it is the name which was divinely bestowed upon the disciples, Acts 11:26; (6) it is the name in which we should do everything that we do, Colossians 3:17. Human names are denounced by apostolic authority, i.e., as religious designations, 1 Corinthians 3:4-5, Romans 8:6-8. The name Christian is both Scriptural and catholic; it is the only name upon which the followers of Jesus can unite.

You and I have no credit at the Bank of Heaven. Suppose you were to step up to the window in that glorious Bank and present a check for your soul, what would the Great Teller say? He would tell you that your check must have an endorsement. Then, suppose you were to offer as endorsement the name of Paul, or Peter, or Martin Luther, or John Wesley, or Alexander Campbellwould any of these names be sufficient security for your soul? Noyou would find them insufficient. There is one Name, and one only, that will be recognized at the Bank of Heaventhe name of Jesus Christ. In it there is salvation, but in no other.

Tis noble to be a Christian,

-Tis honor to bear the name,

To know that we-'re honored in heaven,

Is better than earthly fame.

The name implies one is noble,

It means he is honest and true;

It means his life is Christlike

Does it mean all this in you?

II. The Person of Christ. The Restoration message includes the Person of Christ as the one sufficient creed for all Christians. The word creed comes from the Latin verb, credo, meaning I believe. The only article of faith imposed upon Christians in New Testament times was personal belief in Jesus as the Christ, the Son of the living God, Matthew 16:16, John 20:30-31, Acts 16:31, Romans 10:9-10, etc. But belief in Christ as the Son of God includes acceptance of the fact of His personal atonement for sin. That He offered His body as a living sacrifice, and shed His blood for the remission of sins, are the two facts of the atonement; and the atonement was sufficient because His Person was divine. Matthew 26:28, Romans 3:24-25, Hebrews 9:22; Hebrews 10:20; John 1:14, etc. The creed of Christianity is the personal Saviour.

Human creeds are incomplete statements and can not be universally accepted. At best they are nothing but the opinions of uninspired men. They set limits upon intellectual progress. They divide God's people by submitting tests of fellowship separate and apart from God's Word; they are written and enforced without divine sanction. They are superfluous and unnecessary. If a creed contains less than the Bible, it doesn-'t contain enough; if it contains more than the Bible, it contains too much; if it teaches what the Bible teaches, it isn-'t necessary because we have the Bible. Human creeds are the uninspired products of theological speculation and contribute tremendously to the spread and perpetuation of denominationalism.

The true creed of the church of Christ is a Person. It could not be otherwise, logically. Faith does not center in a dogma, nor in an institution. I do not believe in baptism as such, but I believe in the Christ who instituted baptism and to please Him I shall be baptized according to His example. I do not believe in the Lord's Supper, but I do believe in the One who said, Do this in memory of me, and I shall exert every effort to be in my accustomed place when the memorial feast is spread on each Lord's Day. We do not believe in things, but in persons. Therefore, says Paul, For I know him whom I have believed, 2 Timothy 1:12.

This divine creed is Scripturalno question about that. It is also catholic, i.e., universally accepted by all who are worthy of the name Christian. It is the all-embracing creed. It includes everything in God's revelation to man, and embraces everything in man's relation to God. It is as high as heaven, as broad as the human mind, and as inclusive as the illimitable spaces. This creed was not made at Nice, nor at Westminster, nor at Augsburg. The creed of the living church of the living God is the living, ever-living Christ. Christ is our creed; that is a simple creed; that is a growing creed; that is a heaven sent creed. (Combs, Call of the Mountains, p. 85).

III. The Word of Christ. The Restoration message includes the word of Christ as the sufficient book of discipline for His church. The word of Christ is the New Testament, John 16:14-15; John 20:21-23. It is quite sufficient to furnish the Christian unto every good work, 2 Timothy 3:16-17. I recall a lady, who had been reared a strict denominationalist, asking me on one occasion for the book of rules of the church which I was serving as minister. I could do nothing but offer her a copy of the New Testament; this I did, even at the risk of having been pronounced discourteous. Truth is sometimes more needed than courtesy.

The New Testament is the Christian's book of discipline. He should have no otherhe needs no other. If the Scriptures are sufficient to furnish the man of God unto all good works, written disciplines of human origin are unnecessary. Take this divine discipline and follow it. Are you inquiring what to do to be saved? Read John 3:5. If Jesus says you can not enter into the kingdom. without being born of water and the Spirit, then how can you? Read Acts 2:38. What the Holy Spirit has joined together by the conjunctions, and and for, let no theologian put asunder. May every Christian follow the apostolic exhortation, Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom, Colossians 3:16.

IV. The Authority of Christ. The Restoration plea is essentially a plea for the authority of Christ. This is fundamental. Most of our present-day religious controversies are not over questions of interpretation, but questions of authority. The Bible teaches that God delegated all authority to Jesus, who, in turn, delegated the same authority to His apostles and clothed them with the infallible presence of the Holy Spirit to guide them into all truth and to protect them from error in revealing His word to mankind, John 16:13-14. There is no evidence anywhere in the Bible that divine authority was ever delegated to any one else; in fact divine authority ended with the work and revelation of the apostles. All authority in Christianity is vested in Christ. Matthew 28:18, Ephesians 1:22. Every local church is a theocracy democratically administered. In matters of faith and doctrine it is an absolute monarchy subject to the will of Christ which is the absolute law from which there is no appeal. In matters of expediency, or method, it is a democracy subject to the wish and will of the majority. The historic episcopacy has no authority to make any changes in the teaching of Christ: therefore I am not an Episcopalian, but a Christian. The presbytery has no authority over the teaching of Christ; therefore I am not a Presbyterian, but a Christian. Not even the congregation has any authority over the teaching of Christ; therefore I am not a Congregationalism but a Christian. (How utterly absurd that the Board of Officers of any church of Christ should even discuss such a question as the reception of the pious unimmersed! That question was settled for us by Christ and the apostles almost twenty centuries ago. We are presumptuous to even consider or discuss it). I do not believe in baptism, but I do believe in the Christ who commands me to be baptized; therefore I am not a Baptist, but a Christian. I believe that everything in the local church should be done decently and in order, but I do not believe that the church should be named after the methods used; therefore I am not a Methodist, but a Christian. Again, who instituted the ordinances? Our Lord instituted them; therefore, He alone has the right to alter them, to make changes in their observance, or to take them away. The Pope did not institute baptism; therefore the Pope has no right to annul baptism or to substitute something for baptism. The church did not institute baptism or the Lord's Supper; therefore the church has no right to change these ordinances in any way. They are the ordinances of Christ which are to be perpetuated by the church.

Restore the authority of Christ over His church and bring all professing Christians to accept His authority, and you will have solved many of the problems which harass modern Christendom. You will have swept away all popes, councils, synods, presbyteries, conferences, associations and assemblies which, in the past, have presumed to speak with authority. You will have swept Catholicism off the face of the earth and you will have destroyed every vestige of humanism that lingers in Protestantism. When all professing Christians recognize the exclusive authority of Christ over His church, Christian unity will soon be a reality. May God hasten the day when He shall reign on earth even as He now reigns in Heaven!

V. The Church of Christ. The Restoration message includes a plea for the restoration of the church of Christ. The modern world is so befogged by churchanity that Christianity has largely become obscured. We hear so much in these days about Luther's Church, Calvin's Church, Wesley's Church, and so on, we are liable to forgetin fact the world at large has almost forgotten that our Lord Himself established a church. This church came into existence on the day of Pentecost, A.D. 30. Matthew 16:18here he speaks of it as His church. It is the church of Christ and the only church to which I care to belong. Let us go back of Wesley, back of Calvin, back of Luther, back of Rome, back of Constantinople, all the way back to Jerusalem and find, reproduce and restore the church of Christ, or, using the adjectival form, Christian Church. This is the supreme objective of the Restoration movement of the nineteenth century.

VI. The Ordinances of Christ. The Restoration plea has a specific message with reference to the ordinances of Christ. It says they are not ordinances of the church, but ordinances of Christ to be perpetuated by the church as sacred trusts committed to the church for safekeeping.

The ordinances of Christ are three in number: (1) Baptism, to test the loyalty of the penitent believer. (2) The Lord's Supper, to test the loyalty of the Christian. (3) The Lord's Day, which is a memorial of Christ's resurrection from the dead.

True obedience does a thing commanded, does it without question, and does it in the way the author of the command wants it to be done. I might illustrate as follows: A gentleman who is about to die calls his two sons to his bedside. He tells them he owns a farm out in Kansas, that he has made extensive plans for the development of that farm, but that death threatens to prevent the execution of his plans. He asks for a map of the farm. He tells the boys just how he wants the farm developed. He points out on the map the spot where the house is to be erected, also the spot where the barn is to be built. Pointing to a certain place on the map, he says: This is all bottom land. I have prepared it for corn and I want you to plant corn there next spring when you begin to develop the land. Up here on this rolling ground I want you to sow the wheat because it is especially prepared for wheat. Then along the road here is a patch of new ground. The soil is fresh and fertile and I have planned to put an orchard on this spot. Now, boys, said he, after I am dead and gone, I shall depend upon you to develop the farm according to the plans I have given you. The sons agree to do so, and in a few days thereafter the father dies. Several months later the boys decide to go to Kansas and take a look at the farm. Taking the map with them, they make what would be called in modern language a survey. They find the place where the house is to be erected and they agree it is an ideal location. They next find the spot where the barn is to be built and again they agree. They take a look at the bottom land and they see it is quite evident that this is the ground which will produce the corn. They take a look at the rolling land and again they are of the same mind and judgment. They express their astonishment at the wise judgment manifested by the father; thus far they are in complete accord with his plans. By and by they stroll over the patch of new ground. John looks at it for a moment and Bill looks at it, then they look at each other and shake their heads. John says: It seems to me that father has slipped just a bit in selecting this spot for an orchard. It is full of roots and stumps that will retard the growth of the trees. Besides, it is right here along the road and all the bad boys in the neighborhood will be clubbing the apples, pears, and peaches. I think we had better put the orchard back from the road, etc. Bill is of the same opinion. Now I have a problem in mathematics for you. That father gave his sons five specific commands. The commands were very clear-cut; there was no danger of their being misunderstood. In how many of these commands did the boys obey their father? You say, They obeyed him in four particulars, but disobeyed him in one. No, my friends, they didn-'t obey him in anything. They accepted his judgment in the four particulars because it so happened that their judgment coincided with his; but when it came to the last item, they did not agree with the father's judgment, and instead of obeying him without question, they followed their own judgment in the matter. How like people today! They are perfectly willing to believe and repent of their sins; but when they come to the baptismal water, they stop and say, This is a matter for me to decide in my own conscience, and in many cases they follow their own preference or inclination instead of submitting to the ordinance of Christ in the way it was performed in New Testament times.

That Christian baptism was immersion, under the preaching of the apostles, is readily admitted by scholars of all denominations. There is no more clearly established fact in church history than this. No man of any standing in the world of scholarship questions it for a moment. Moreover, immersion is the only catholic baptism: one who has been buried with Christ in baptism will be accepted in any church in Christendom with but one or two exceptions. There is no argument about immersion; all are agreed that it is baptism; the argument is all over the matter of substitutes for baptism. In other words, the controversy is not over what baptism is, but over what baptism is not. Why not accept the baptism that is unquestionably Scriptural and that is universally admitted to be right?

The plea of the Restoration movement is that the ordinances may be restored to their proper place and significance in the faith and practice of the churches of Christ.
VII. Unity in Christ. One of the most important items in the Restoration message is the plea for Christian unitynot union, but unity. There is a great difference between union and unity. Someone has facetiously remarked that by tying two cats together by the tail and throwing them over a clothesline one would have a union, but not much unity. Our Lord prayed for the unity of His people, John 17:20-21. The apostles condemned division in no uncertain terms, 1 Corinthians 1:10-13; 1 Corinthians 3:1-5. The church of the New Testament was a united church, Ephesians 4:4-6.

It is quite evident that the present divided condition of Christendom is the direct antithesis of the ideal for which our Lord prayed. It is equally evident that divisions are wasting the church and nullifying the effects of gospel preaching. As John R. Mott has said, The price that has been paid for a divided Christendom is an unbelieving world.
Someone inquires: Is Christian unity possible? If Christian unity is impossible, then our Lord prayed for an impossibility. Moreover, if Christian unity does not come to such an extent as to include all who claim to be Christians, it will be due to the fact that men will not allow it to come.

The question arises here: How did Christ, through the apostles, go about the task, in New Testament times, of building a united body} This is a worth-while question. The answer is very clear. The first thing the apostles did under the guidance of the Spirit, was to bring into existence a local church of Christ which was a united church. See Acts 2:44-47; Acts 4:32. Note that the multitude of them that believed were of one heart and of one soul. This church in Jerusalem was a wonderfully united church. In establishing such a united church of Christ, it should be noted that the apostles did not make their appeal to the Pharisees, nor to the Sadducees, nor to the Herodians, etc., as sects. Nothey made their appeal to individuals to come out of Judaism; those who obeyed the gospel were then added together into a local church and as other individuals came from time to time they were added to the original group. Thus there was a united church of Christ in Jerusalem. The next step was to establish churches of the same faith and order in adjoining cities and towns. By and by there was a church of Christ in Antioch, another in Samaria, another in Philippi, another in Thessalonica, and so on. In this manner the united church of Christ spread over the entire known world even before the death of the Apostle Paul. How was it all done? It started with a united local church in Jerusalem; thence the lines were extended by establishing local churches of Christ in other cities; and the sum total of all the members of these united local churches constituted the united universal church of Christ.

Herein lies a great lesson for the churches of Christ of the present century. Not only the Scriptures, but observation and experience as well, proclaim the absolute folly of appealing to any denomination or denominational group, as such, in the matter of bringing about unity. The appeal must be made to individuals to come out of denominationalism and to unite in Christ. This was the method used in apostolic times and by divine authority. It was the method used by the pioneers of the Restoration movement and the Word of God prevailed mightily. Churches of the New Testament order sprang up all over the country in an incredibly short time. Later, out of an exaggerated conception of religious courtesy, the method was changed from proclamation to negotiation. The result has been temporary stagnation. It should be remembered that a merger of denominations is not unity. The ideal for which Christ prayed is not achieved in a league of denominations, it can be achieved only by the elimination of denominational barriers and the breaking down of denominational walls. I look upon the time and energy that is being spent at present negotiating with the self-constituted leaders of denominationalism, in vain endeavors to achieve consolidation through human schemes of union, as nothing but sheer waste of effort. The thing to do is to rekindle the fires of evangelism; to extend the lines into every community in the land; and leave the results with God. Preach the Word to individuals; plead with them to abandon sectarianism and to become one in Christ Jesus; go here, there, everywhere with the New Testament message; until the whole Christian world shall come to recognize and accept the New Testament basis. Then, if it should turn out that the ideal for which Jesus prayed can not be achieved to the extent of taking in the whole of Christendom, due to the prejudices and perversities of mankind, we may have the satisfaction of knowing that it shall have been realized, to a limited degree at least, in the unity of the churches of Christ; and we shall be comforted by knowledge of the fact that when the Son of man cometh, He will find the faith on the earth (Matthew 24:14). The present-day ecumenical movement has been dubbed rightly, a conglomerate of conflicting units (Bulletin by Harry L. Owens, San Antonio, Texas.)

VIII. Consecration to Christ. The last, but by no means the least, item of the Restoration message, is a plea for personal consecration to Christ.

Baptism is not the end, but just the beginning, of Christian life and service. It is only the consummation of the divine plan whereby we are adopted into the family of God. It is the act in which we put on Christ. Galatians 3:27, John 3:5, Romans 8:14-17. Following baptism we are given the Spirit of adoption as the earnest of our inheritance, and this indwelling Spirit endows us with the privilege of calling God our Father. Baptism is the final act of primary obedience through which we are saved from a state of alienation and by means of which we obtain the right to approach our Father through Christ, our High-Priest, in daily confession and prayer. 1 John 1:9, Hebrews 10:19-22, etc.

In other words, baptism is the consummating act of conversion. Conversion is the complete surrender of self and substance to God, the submission of the human will to the divine. New converts thus inducted into the body of Christ must continue stedfastly in the essentials of Christian worship, Acts 2:42; they must grow in divine grace, 2 Peter 1:5-11; they must bring forth in life and Conduct the fruit of the Holy Spirit, Galatians 5:22-25. They must work out their own salvation, Philippians 2:12; they must fight the good fight of faith; they must press on toward the mark of the prize of the high calling of God; they must run the race with patience. The crown of life is promised only to those who endure, Revelation 2:10, the over-comers.

The Restoration ideal not only demands the proclamation of first principles; it also includes going on to perfection, It takes in the Lord's Supper, prayer, liberality, meditation, consecration, personal piety and zeal. It includes everything essential to a devout Christian life.

There's a sweet old story translated for man,

But writ in the long, long ago,

The gospel by Matthew, Mark, Luke and John,

Of Christ and His mission below.

Men read and admire this gospel of Christ

With its love so unfailing and true;

But what do they say and what do they think

Of the gospel according to you?

Tis a wonderful storythis gospel of love

As it shines in the Christ life divine,

And oh, that its truth might be set forth again

In the story of your life and mine.

You are writing each day a letter to men,

Take care that the writing is true,

-Tis the only gospel some folk will read

The gospel according to you.

God highly exalted him and gave unto him a name that is above every name. And to think that He loves us so much He is willing to extend us the privilege of wearing that name! That privilege is yours this very moment if you will but accept Him as your Savior and obey him in Christian baptism. Allow Him to enter your heart and assume authority over your soul. No privilege vouchsafed a human being is comparable to this! May God help you to decidenow!

The wells of the fathers must be kept open: no ecumenical conglomerate must be permitted to fill them with theological rubbish. The pure water of the primitive Gospel, the true Gospel, the only Gospel, must be allowed to flow in all its pristine purity. Jesus is the Son of God. He is the Savior of the world. This must be the positive message sounding out from every pulpit that dares to call itself Christian, from now unto the end, His Second Coming, even until the redeemed shall join with the angels before the Heavenly Throne in proclaiming praise to His matchless name:

O that with yonder joyful throng,

We at His feet may fall,

We-'ll join the everlasting throng

And crown Him Lord of all.

Review Questions

See Genesis 26:34-35.