Christian Messenger (Bonham, Tex.), Vol. 3, No. 18, Ed. 1 Wednesday, May 9, 1877 Page: 1 of 8
This newspaper is part of the collection entitled: Fannin County Area Newspaper Collection and was provided to The Portal to Texas History by the Bonham Public Library.
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u BEHOLD, I BRING TOT GOOD TIDINGS OF GREAT JOY WHICH SHALL BE TO ALL PEOPLE, * * A SAVIOR, WHO IS CHRIST THE LORD.”
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* BONHAM, TEXAS, WEDNESDAY, MAY 9, 1877.
[No. 18.
€$e Cjrristhm SJtssragtr
18 PUBLUHID WEEKLY BY
not. i Bvaett,
BONHAM, - - - TEXAS.
Tuxs—per annum, - - - $3 25
six months, - - - 1 25
State flk m. Convention.
Bro. Burnett :
My note to yon, from Galves-
ton, stated that I would be in
Houston on the next day to at-
tend the state Sunday school
convention. I left the city af-
ter the great storm, and landed
safe at Houston, and reported
myself to the committee of
and was as-
in the family of a Christian,
who, with his estimable wife,
made my whole stay with them
seemed impossible,) or . set
aside in part. He stated noth-
ing except faith, by which the
sinner could know his sins for-
given. Believing on, receiv-
ing, accepting Christ, are terms
of common use with Mr. Grant,
and &U who like him make
void the commandments of ing under an organized society
God by their traditions. The
necessity of a life dd^oted to
the sendee of Christ is urged
by this evangelist, but the
light of a clear giving np of
one’s self to Christ in his in-
stitutions having been\mt out
or darkened, the motives to
such a course are sadly weak-
ened, and hence the number of
those who fall away is greatly
.^ a-* increased. In one thing we re-
signed most deHghfolquarters there is more stress
» T«i7 ^Wr- tunuty exalted above efttism.
quartered with the Londdn thia good work go on, until
placed upon the word of God,
and party distinctions are in a
measure blotted out, and Chris
evangelist, Grant, who at the
tot seemed to entertain the
“come-not-near-unto- me - for -1
am-holier-than-thou” sentiment,
but manifested a better state
of mind after^more extended
acquaintance. This man has,
in his way, done a great work
in the parts of the couatry
wttere he has labored. He has
' labored in this country about
seven years, and spent three
thousand dollars more than he
has received for his work. This
shows more seal in the cause he
seeks to promote than many
show in the cause of apostolic
Christianity. Bro. Brennan
has shown even greater devo-
tion to the cause of Christ than
Mr. Grant has, in his evangelis-
tic services. Conversing with
Mr. G. about his methods, I
found him heartily opposed to
the sensational style of Ham-
mond, Earle, Penn, and their
etas, in what are termed reviv-
al meetings. He gave a few
instances of this sensational-
ism, snch as climbing a syca-
more tree to find Jesus, and
others df the same kind. In
thus discarding what Metho-
dists and Baptists, and some
Presbyterians, call heart-felt
religion, he will find himself in
the company of the heterodox,
and risk his popularity with
the dominant parties. Weil,
he most choose whom he will
obey, Christ or man. There
the people shall have what they
Seem to demand, a foil and
complete Christianity, while
party ism is kept in the back-
ground.
Bat the state Sunday-school
convention met at Houston on
Tuesday, and in the morning
organized, by the appointment
of the usual officers and com-
mittees. The sessions of this
body were all of a very harmo-
nious character, and the sub-
jects discussed by the persons
the Sunday-school cause in the
state. There had been district
conventions held at Marshall,
Dallas, Waco, and San Anto-
nio, and the meeting at Hous-
ton was the closing meeting.
This should have been a great
gathering of the Sunday-school
workers of the state of Texas,
but it was manifest that there
were only a few from the re-
mote parts of the state.^Had
the friends who came from Chi-
cago, 8t. Louis, New York, and
other places, the state conven-
tion would have been a signal
failure. This proves that Sun-
day-schools are not at present
the fostered children of our
people. It is true the people
of Texas are not up with the
times in this, as in other things
of material importance. They
^ J* *■£CU',Ptable Qef‘fCt-
men, namely, that the meana^ the thoughts preesed on
of convmion, a. etated
< hnst, the evangelists, and tlon. The elder Paxson made
apostles, were either not this very prominent, and gave
known, (which, from hie knowt- an illustration from the history
edge of the word of God,
and George Whitefield. The
former organized, the latter did
not. The followers of Wesley
are counted by the hundreds of
thousands, but those of White-
field by the hundreds, only.
This is due to organized power.
All the older states are work-
in the Sunday-school cause.
Texas must come into these
measures, if she would be an
effective agent in the great,
grand, and glorious work of
training the young for Christ not every band of the flkhfal
i i • • a .<* « * •_ m__• , r_________ _ „a.
and Iris serv ice. Another thing
noticed by myself and the two
brethren with me, was the al-
most entire absence of the party
shibboleths, and the distinctive
features of any sect. Had it
not been for one good Presby-
terian soul, from Austin, we
should not have known that
the catechism was taught in
Texas Sunday-schools.* But he
could not let the occasion pass
to tell that his church taught
the same according to the most
approved method. This proves
there are a few who have not
bowed their knees to the Baal
of a return to the word of God.
The make-up of the meeting
was, for the most part, of Pres-
byterians, the Baptists and
Methodists not being very nu-
merous. I cannot explain this,
unless they do not approve the
broad ground and principles of
the work, these not being clear-
who engaged in the same of ly Baptistic or Methodistic.
importance to the interests of The same may be said of oth-
m Christ Jesus come now to
this work, and make this sum-
mer glorious by the amount,
and character, of the work done
in this field ? Go out into the
lanes and hedges, and high-
ways, and compel the children
to come into the feast of good
things, prepared for those who
hanger and thirst after right-
eousness. Thrust in the sickle,
for the harvest of earth is folly
ripe. C. C.
Spiritual Equation.
The question, “What shall I
do to be saved?” was asked
four times in the New Testa-
ment. Mark 10:17; Acts S*J37;
Acts 16:30; Acts 22:10. It is
true, beyond doubt, that all the
conditions in these answers con-
stitute the fall and true answer,
since “all the parts equal the
whole.” This must be so if the
question ever was answered at
all, in its fulness. .Let it be
noted that we have a thorough
induction; we have all the an-
swers. We throw out the an-
swer in Mark 10:17, because it
belongs to a dispensation re-
pealed. 2 Cor. 8:6-11. Let us
gather all the conditions, in the
three remaining answers. To
the Pentecoatjiana, repentance
and baptism, Acts 2:38; to the
jailer, faith, Acts 16:31; to
Panl, baptism, Acts 22:16. I
am taking the expressed con-
ditions only. The equation
cannot be stated yet. We need
something meritorious. Merit
is not in the conditions. We
have merit in blood, Christ’s
blood. 1 Peter 1:18. Now let
X equal salvation, remission.
Then blood, plus faith, plus re-
pentance, plus baptism, equal
X, salvation, remission. No
have, the support of the good fallacy in this equation. We
people in such a grand labor of have all the conditions, in all
love and work of faith. ! the answers,united wijh Christ’s
What are we, the Christians blood. Baptists would state
of Texas, doing in the work of thus: Blood of Christ, 'plus
Sunday-schools ? Has every repentance, plus faith, equal X,
band of disciples an organized salvation. That is the cause,
school, in whjch to teach their; with two-thirds of the eondi-1
children, and those of their tions. equals the whole! If
r neighbors, thfe truths of the:two-thirds of the conditionsj
of the two men, John Lesley word of God, and enforce the bring salvation, of what use is!
ers. On the whole, the meeting
was a fair success,^ and all
went home pleased with the
results. The children of the
city did not turn out to their
meeting. The children of Bon-
ham would have done better,
and furnished the lady, Mrs.
G. Partridge, with more an-
swers to the questions asked.
This lady possesses that rare
gift of interesting and inform-
story of the Crucified One?
Why not? This is a great,
needed, and obligatory work.
Much can be done, and by even
a few brethren and sisters who
will combine their efforts to
promote so good a cause. It
must be done, or the ranks of
the drunkard, the thief, the
gambler, and all the nameless
classes, will be filled by our
children who have not been
taught to fear God and honor
Christ and his service. Will
the other third ? Baptists deny
that baptism is a condition of
pardon. Why, then, did the
answers to the question, “What
shall I do to be saved ?” contain
baptism? See Acts 2:38, and
4cts 22:17.
“Baptism is a sign of regen-
eration,” say the Baptists.
What do we want with the
sign, when we have the very
thing, regeneration, itself?
Yes, but “baptism is the door
into the Baptist church.” They
say that by repentance and
faith they enter into* a sacred
state, the invisible kingdom,
but in order to get into the
Baptist church, they must be
baptized. Now, according to
this doctrine, man can be saved
out of the Baptist church, and
without baptism. I, therefore,
conclude that baptism and the
Baptist church are both non-
essentials. Mr. Link, of the
it not been for the presence of ing children who cannot read.
She has, in St. Louis, a class of
three hundred, composed of
newsboys and the street waifs
of the city. These she controls
and instructs for one hour each
Lord’s day, and proves her fit-
ness for so difficult a work by
her unequalled success. She
has, and should continue to
Texas Baptist Herald, and Mr.
Graves, of the Tennessee Bap-
tist, are especially requested to
give us light just here. Hope
to hear from one or both of
them soon. Respectfully sub-
mitted. . W. J. Joins.
Manor, May 4,1877.
— —i ■ ^ ■—*
Roc xwall, Texas, )
April 26,1877, , f
Bro. Burkett:
I have been a reader of the
Messenger for nearly two
years. I regard it as one of the
best mediums to learn the
truth that is no# being pub-
lished. We find in it articles
from the pens of the wisest and
ablest writers; we have their
views upon different subjects.
I have watched the columns of
Messenger, hoping I #onld
see something that would
arouse our brethren of Rock-
wall county, but so far have
failed; if there is a congrega-
tion in Rockwall county that is
meeting as the Good Book
teaches, I have not been able
to hear of it.. We have a few
good old members, such as
Bro. Jones denominates “thirty
day Christians,” that are wil-
ling to pay a preacher a small
sum to gome and worship for
them once in thirty days. The
balance of the time they seem
to be as silent as the deaf and
dumb editor of oub county
paper. Bro. Polly, who is well
known to many of the readers
of your paper as a faithful
brother, preaches the second
Lord's day in each month to a
few members, in a school house
four miles south of the town of
Rockwall tile only preaching
that Is beta done by our
brethren In tms county. I hope
some good toother can pre-
scribe fords. f
M. T. StephNnbon.
f
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Burnett, Thomas R. Christian Messenger (Bonham, Tex.), Vol. 3, No. 18, Ed. 1 Wednesday, May 9, 1877, newspaper, May 9, 1877; Bonham, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth974488/m1/1/: accessed March 29, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Bonham Public Library.