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The Succession of Truth; The Gates of Hell have never revailed against our churches.

Discussion in 'Baptist History' started by Alan Gross, Feb 10, 2023.

  1. Alan Gross

    Alan Gross Well-Known Member

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    The Succession of Truth
    By Milburn Cockrell

    "Then the Spirit said unto Philip, Go near, and join thyself to this chariot. And Philip ran thither to him, and heard him read the prophet Esaias, and said, Understandest thou what thou readest? And he said, How can I, except some man should guide me? And he desired Philip that he would come up and sit with him." (Acts 8:29-31)

    You will note that I have chosen the strongest word of three: succession; perpetuity; and continuity.

    "Continuity" means "the state or quality of being continuous, a continuous or connected whole" (Webster's American Family Dictionary, page 209).

    "Perpetuity" means 'the state or character of being the perpetual, endless or indefinitely long duration of existence" (ibid., page 706).

    "Succession" means "the coming of one person or thing after another in order, sequence, or in course of events, a number of persons or things following one another in order or sequence ... a progressive replacement of one ecological community by another until the climax is established" (ibid., page 933).

    While the last word "succession" is the strongest and best, it must not be pushed too far, seeing individuals and institutions can co-exist for some period of time. I like the word because it suggests an organic connection between persons and communities. But the word "continuity' also suggests "a continuous or connected whole." So it would not be wrong to use it.
    I wish to convey by my use of "succession" two things:

    "First, God has never been left without a witness for the truth.

    Second, there has been an organic connection between these witnesses for the truth. One person taught another person, and one institution begat another institution."

    God has preserved His truth from one generation to another.

    TRUTH IS INDESTRUCTIBLE


    Truth is ancient, and its gray hairs connect it to Him who is the Ancient of Days. It is unerring, for it points to the One who said: "I am ... the truth" (John 14:6). It is glorious and triumphant; it prevails and conquers all its foes.

    When all of its enemies lie dead, it keeps the field and sets up trophies of victory. Evil men and demons may oppose the truth, but they can never dispose of it. Truth is the same in all ages. It can live in the region of death invincible, incorruptible, and immortal. Neither the sword of the tyrant, nor the pen of an infidel, can destroy it. The truth is safe under the protection of its divine Author. The heavens shall be dissolved (II Peter 3:I2), but not the truth which came from Heaven.

    NOT LEFT WITHOUT A WITNESS


    Never in any age of human history has God been left without a witness for the truth. First, there is the ever abiding witness of nature. The visible creation declares an invisible Creator (Romans 1:18-20). It sets forth His eternal power and Godhead, and it leaves man without excuse for being an atheist.

    Nature declares His glory (Psalms 19:1-4), and it reveals His providing mercy (Acts 14:14-17; Genesis 8:22). While it is an incomplete witness of truth, it is still a faithful witness (Psalms 89:37).

    Second, there are human witnesses of truth. From Adam to the flood, there were men like Enoch (Hebrews 11:5; Jude 14-15) and Noah (Hebrews 11:7; II Peter 2:5).

    From the flood to the close of the Old Testament period, there were men like Abraham (Isaiah 41:8; Hebrews 11:17-19; John 8:56), and Moses (Numbers 17:7-8;18:2; II Chronicles 24:6; Acts 7:44).

    The nation of Israel witnessed of the truth to the Gentile nations (Isaiah 43:8- 12). There were also the prophets and priests of the Old Testament (Acts 10:43). Even during the so-called "Four Hundred Silent Years" there were the Maccabees.

    In the beginning of the New Testament period there was John the Baptist (John 1:7-8, 15; 3.26) and Jesus Christ (Isaiah 55:4; John 3:34; 18:37; I Timothy 6:13; Revelation 1:5; 3:14).

    Just before leaving this earth, Christ appointed His church to be a witness for the truth. (Luke 24:46-49; Acts 1:8). The churches will continue in this role until the rapture of the saints.

    ... Never during the sweep of the ages will God ever be left without a witness for the truth. "For we can do nothing against the truth, but for the truth." (II Corinthians 13:8).

    THE BIBLE CONTAINS THE TRUTH


    The Bible is the only book in the world that contains the whole truth and nothing but the truth. This includes both the Old and New Testaments. Jesus Christ said: "Thy word is truth" (John 17:17).

    The psalmist declared: "The judgments of the LORD are true and righteousness altogether" (Psalms 19:9). Again he wrote: "Thy word is true from the beginning ..." (Psalms 119:160) When I speak of the Bible I mean the Masoretic Hebrew Text and the Textus Receptus Greek text, and the faithful translations made from these texts. Any of these are "the scripture of truth" (Daniel 10.21) and "the word of truth" (II Timothy 2:15).

    In order to understand the revelation of God in the Bible, we need someone to guide us into all truth. The Ethiopian eunuch was reading the 53rd chapter of the Book of Isaiah. Philip asked him: "Understandest thou what thou readest?" (Acts 8:30). And the eunuch replied: "How can I, except some man should guide me?" (Acts 8:31). The Lord did not send an angel from Heaven to teach the eunuch, but an evangelist from the church at Jerusalem. Neither did the Lord bore a hole in the head of the eunuch and pour in knowledge directly from Heaven.

    "One position, which may be called, 'Baptist Successionism,' begins with Jesus Christ and the first church in Jerusalem, if not with John the Baptist. It traces a succession to the modern Baptist denomination through groups of various names which existed outside the Roman Catholic Church, claiming that each group held to basic Baptist beliefs.

    A second view, a modification of the first position, may be called, 'Anabaptist Spiritual Kinship.' This position maintains that various groups, holding common spiritual principles but not necessarily organically related, have existed from Apostolic times to the period of the Anabaptists and modern Baptists.

    A third position, 'English Separatist Descent,' believes that Baptists developed from the Protestant Reformation, separating themselves from English Congregationalists who in turn had separated from the Church of England" (Baptist Atlas, page 5).

    To the best of my knowledge, there is not yet many among us who hold to the third view. Hence I shall concern myself with the first two views. The successionist sees an organic connection by a link chain of churches perpetuating themselves under various names.

    They trace their history through Montanists, Novatianists, Donatists, Paulicans, Albigensess, Petrobrussians, Henricans, Arnoldists, Waldenses, Anabaptists, and modern Baptists.

    The spiritual kinship man sees in these groups the basic principles of Baptists, but no organic connection between them. When the Montanists died out in Phrygia God jump-started the Donatists in Africa by direct authority from Heaven. This idea resembles the "Big Bang" theory of evolutionists.

    "Thomas Treadwell Eaton once said: "If Baptist succession is the bad thing some brethren say, then certainly it ought to be given up. There should be no more of it The churches now in existence ought to have no succession.

    When a new church is organized, it should have no sort of connection with other churches, or relations to them. Let churches be organized anywhere, anyhow, by anybody. Just let the people be believers, and let them baptize each other, and start a church. This does away with Baptist succession.

    And if it be the bad thing that is charged, it ought to be done away with at the earliest moment.

    Those who oppose Baptist succession have no logical ground to stand on in organizing a church out of materials furnished by other churches and with those baptized by regularly ordained ministers. If Baptist succession be sacredotalism and sacrarmentialism, then surely we ought not to think of practicing it, and thus keep up the dreadful isms" (Cited by J. B. Moody in My Church, pages 189-199).
    ...

    "Call me what you will. I am a Baptist Successionist and always have been.

    I believe the work of the apostles of Christ remains (John 15:16) as Jesus promised. Their work remains because there has always been true valid baptisms, and true churches upon earth, just like the ones they founded in the first century.

    These churches have preserved the truth as it is in Christ and the Book of Truth (the Bible).

    How could churches preserve the Bible without any organic connection with each other?

    Let the spiritual kinship brethren give the answer.


     
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