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Presented January 21, 2006

 

WHY ARE THERE SO MANY DIFFERENT CHURCHES? (7)

The Restoration Movement Continues (2)

 

Today we continue our study of the history of why there are so many different churches out there.  We have explained the development of history that led to the Catholic Church and the protestant (or reformation) movement which resulted in many of the denominations that exist today.  We have also WHY these movements were wrong.  Last week as we resumed our study, we began studying the restoration movement.

The restoration movement was the product of a mindset by various denominational preachers and others who saw that much of what denominations were teaching was as unscriptural as the things they condemned within the Catholic Church that resulted in their own foundations.  Men like James O’Kelly, Barton W. Stone, Thomas & Alexander Campbell, and John Taylor saw many of these errors as they studied the word of God in the late 1700’s and early 1800’s.  As a result they determined (often independently) to simply turn to the Bible and restore the church we read about in the New Testament.  They coined phrases such as, “Where the Scriptures speak, we speak; Where the Scriptures are silent, we are silent” and “In matters of faith, unity; in matters of opinion, liberty; in all things, love.”  They sought to denounce denominational titles and call themselves Christians only, as we read about in the first century (Acts 11:26). 

We owe a great debt of gratitude to the efforts these men made to awaken the minds of many to return to the old paths, but the history of restoration does not end there.  As we concluded our lesson last week we noted that we are not “Campbellites” as some within the denominational world derogatorily call us.  We follow what they taught only to the extent that it concurs with the word of God.  As we noted last week, it took some of them years of study to reach their conclusions.  They did not leave all their errors at once, but gradually as they learned more and more.  AND there are many things some of them taught that I do not agree with.  In this lesson we will note some of these.  We also want to examine what has happened over the last 175 years within what is called the restoration movement.  In this lesson we want to notice how division and false doctrines once again began to creep in. 

 

I.                     The concept of restoration is a scriptural one. 

a.        When error has been taught and practiced for years on any give subject, how do go about correcting it?  The answer is to turn back to the Bible as these men did.  And that concept is found within the pages of scripture.

b.       Jeremiah called for a return to the Old Paths (Jeremiah 6:16).

c.        Consider Josiah - (2 Kings 22, 2 Chronicles 34).

                                 i.            He became king at age 8 and began to seek the Lord at age 16 (2 Chronicles 34:3).  4 years later he began to repair the temple, restore true worship to God and purge the land of idolatry.

                                ii.            When he was 26 as the temple was being repaired, Hilkiah the priest found the “Book of the Law of the Lord given by Moses” (vs. 14).  It was brought to Josiah who read it and tore his clothes.  The reason was the curses pronounced for rejecting God.  Josiah sends servants to Huldah, the prophetess of God (vs. 22).  The Lord spoke through her to Josiah noting that the curses would take place but because of Josiah’s godliness, it would not happen while he was king.

                              iii.            NOTE vs. 29-33.  In these verses the Law is read and Josiah calls upon all the people to follow the law of God.  Chapter 35 records the keeping of the Passover as commanded by the law.  It was on the right day and a grand observance.  It is interesting to note vs. 18-19 which say that no Passover had been kept like that of Josiah since the days of Samuel the prophet.

                              iv.            Here you have an example of TRUE RESTORATION.  Josiah inquired of the word of the Lord and DID all that he found within its pages.  This pleased God.

d.       Ezra - Another example of true restoration

                                 i.            Judah had returned from Babylonian captivity.  But for various reasons they delayed in rebuilding the temple and restoring worship.  After about 15 years the prophets, Haggai & Zechariah challenged the people to continue rebuilding the temple. Its completion was a part of the Lord’s demand to RESTORE proper worship.  After its completion, the books of Nehemiah and Ezra record Ezra the scribe coming, reading the law and helping Judah restore proper worship.  Note Nehemiah 8:1-3 as they assemble together to hear the law of the Lord read all day long.   Vs. 8 notes that as they read, they helped them understand the reading.  Then note vs. 13-15 where they discover something they had not been doing and started doing it.   Also Ezra 9 & 10 notes that they put away unscriptural wives from pagan marriages.  This shows their willingness to make the tough choices to comply with what God’s word says.

 

II.                   Division in the movement

a.        The restoration movement had a great impact for several years in the United States.  In 1836, the disciples estimated their numbers to be about 100,000.  In the 1850 Census churches of Christ /Disciples of Christ were the 4th largest religious body in the U.S. with estimates of between 200,000 & 300,000.  (NOTE: Realize that this was pre-Civil war days when the boundaries of the U.S. consisted of only about 35 states.)  One prominent member of the Disciples of Christ was James A. Garfield, our 20th president.

b.       Missionary Societies.  Prior to the civil war, since most denominations had their inter-congregational associations, there were some in restoration movement who believed such “cooperation” was acceptable.  Among them was Alexander Campbell, who supported such works.  Stone question such believing it was not authorized.  In 1849, Cincinnati, Ohio, a convention was held in which resulted in the formation of the American Christian Missionary Society.   Some argued that even though there is no scriptural precedent for such an organization, because it is not specifically forbidden then it is authorized.

c.        Instrumental Music.  Another prominent movement which divided the church concerned the use of instrumental music.  In 1858 or 1859, L.L. Pinkerton introduced the melodeon into the worship service in Midway, Kentucky.  One reason given was to help improve the terrible singing.  This was immediately opposed by virtually every restoration preacher of influence including Campbell & Stone.   After the Civil war, more and more churches began to incorporate the instrument into their worship services.  This served to divide the church because brethren could not worship together with the instrument present. 
In short order following these issues, churches of Christ separated themselves from Christian churches/Disciples of Christ.  In 1906, the Religious Census officially recognized these two groups distinctly.  In that same census, Disciples of Christ were recorded at more than 920,000 while membership in churches of Christ was nearly 160,000.
In some instances those who advocated missionary societies and instrumental music left established churches, while in other instances those who opposed these innovations were forced to leave.
NOTE:  Some argue that the only difference between the Christian Church and Churches of Christ are these two issues.  While in practice such might be true in some instance (in most cases – the Christian Church and Disciples of Christ have gone much farther to the point that they now claim to be just another denomination among many) the real issue goes much deeper:  How do we view and respect the Word of God? 
Dr. A. W. Fortune, in his book, The Disciples in Kentucky, (c1932) page 383: "The controversies through which the Disciples have passed from the beginning to the present time have been the result of two different interpretations of their mission. There have been those who believed it is the spirit of the New Testament church that should be restored, and in our method of working the church must adapt itself to changing conditions. There have been those who regarded the New Testament church as a fixed pattern for all time, and our business is to hold rigidly to that pattern regardless of the consequences. Because of these two attitudes, conflicts were inevitable." 

d.       Premillenialism – endorsed in one form or another by virtually every denomination, at one time it was a dividing issue among churches of Christ.  Premillenialism teaches that the Lord is going to return and reign physically upon this earth on the Throne of David for one thousand years in Jerusalem.  It is not taught in the New Testament.  Alexander Campbell advocated at least certain views associated with this doctrine.   It became an issue of division in the early part of the 20th century when R.H. Boll advocated the doctrine.  His chief and most influential opponent was Foy E. Wallace Jr. who refuted the doctrine in the Gospel Advocate which Boll had also expressed some of his views in. 

e.        Institutionalism – is the doctrine that congregations can form and support institutions to do certain works of the church and/or scripturally delegate its authority to another congregation or elders in that work.  It also espouses “centralized cooperation”   It grew extensively after WWII.  The big debate was over benevolent institutions – whether or not churches could build such and how it was to be organized.  This division is alive and well today and addresses every aspect of the work of the Church.

f.         Why did these things happen?  Because men began to ignore the very principles of unity they espoused – speaking only where the Bible speaks.  In all of these areas of error it is not uncommon for supporters to argue that such is not specifically forbidden.  Appealing to silence is a dangerous thing and open for abuse.  Remember what Paul said in 1 Corinthians 4:6, 2 John 9, Revelation 22:18-19, 1 Peter 4:11, etc.

 

Sadly that is not the end of the story.  Churches of Christ are more divided than ever when it comes to doctrinal matters, but it seems that there is a willingness to set many of these doctrines aside for the sake of unity.  We will conclude our study next week by examining the question, WHERE ARE WE NOW and where are we headed?