I DESIRE to say a word or two on a recent paper in "Words of Faith." The thought of assemblies in a city has all scripture against it. Wherever it is said of a city, it is always spoken of as one-" the assembly." This expression so used then, is unknown now. But shall scripture guide us? And if so, is not its testimony sufficient authority for the doctrine, that we have long held, that, any number of assemblies in a city should be, as then,, practically one? Was it not so said of the thousands of saints who once met, surely not in one building, in the city of Jerusalem? (Acts 8;11;15) By " practically," I mean as to " reception" and " putting away" (if necessary) which are the functions of the assembly.
Moreover, if there are twenty-six assemblies in a city gathered on true ground, and ten thousand (as in London) other assemblies which are not practically one with them, is it not clear that you cannot speak of " the assembly" in that place? for such a thing is unknown. And if any one of these twenty-six assemblies on true ground assume to exercise the functions of the whole on true ground, that assembly has forgotten that there is " one body;" it has practically joined the ten thousand, and so increased their number. That there are other assemblies of saints in the place not with us, is a difficulty we have long;known, and it explains why we cannot say as to ourselves in any town or village " the assembly. But why not? Simply because the assemblies of Christians in that place are practically disunited. Nor is there, in any of the towns or villages smaller than London, one whereof it can be said of any gatherings of Christians in it, though they may be numerous, and practically one among themselves, they are " the assembly ' in the place, because all assemblies are not locally with them. They are practically disunited, and the scriptural doctrine of the " one body"—one assembly in a town, has no practical manifestation now.
Now, this state of things, proof of the selfwill of man, it is sought, by the paper referred to, to establish among us as a right condition of things! Christians in the systems of men have lost the sense of the " one body " on earth, and so have given up the thought of its expression as one assembly in a town or village. When the one was lost, it was easy to slip into the other; but has God in His mercy opened our eyes to these things merely to have them given up again? or will difficulties of detail nullify the truth of God? We lament over the disunion, caused by the selfwill of man, and well we may, but we do not join it. There is no reason for that, nor does the paper I refer to furnish one, though difficulties of detail in this day, we must all admit.
We ought to be able to speak of "the assembly" in London, or in any other place, and it ought to be possible to address now a letter to " the assembly of God in London," as it was possible once at Corinth or at Jerusalem, but we know that this state of the assembly will never more be found on this earth. But what, then, is our wisdom? Is it not to hold fast to what ought to be, and to what was? We are but a feeble folk, but we desire to cleave only to that which was from the beginning, to what existed before the finger of man came in to mar and spoil all.
And as to the one assembly in a village, or town, on divine ground, or the twenty-six in a city on divine ground, both the one and the other are bound to act as one, and as the one assembly would have acted in a place, and did before division came in. For though not assuming to be " THE assembly," to the exclusion of the other Christian assemblies in the place, they know that to act in any other way is but to accept and join. what the self-will of man has introduced.
The statement in the paper, that " the moment there are more assemblies than one (on divine ground) in a city, these become no longer representatives of the body at large, nor even of that which is the representation; the practical representation of the church has ceased to be (in each assembly)," I entirely reject. Each one is as much a representative of the body at large now they are. twenty-six as that one was before the other twenty-five existed, and is really maintaining it, but only so, as long as each refuses to act in independency, or without the concurrence of all the others in the actions of the assembly.
The Lord give to us an increase of energy at this time to " hold fast " to that which we have; the instruction as to which was surely His own work by the Spirit, and for the blessing of His people, and began now nearly half a century ago; in doing which we may surely count on His continuing to instruct us. IL C. A.