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CHAPTER III.

ON THE VISIBILITY OF THE CHURCH.

By the visibility of the church is meant the manifest, public, known existence of congregations or churches professing Christianity, and joining in external acts of Christian worship. The point which I am about to establish is, that there were always to exist such societies, according to the Divine appointment; and that Christianity was never to be reduced at any time to obscurity; or to be a secret profession, held by a few scattered individuals, living and uniting externally in the profession of a false religion. The question of an invisible church will be considered among the objections.

That the church of Christ was to be eminently conspicuous and visible, we collect from the following words of the prophet Isaiah: "It shall come to pass in the last days that the mountain of the Lord's House shall be established in the top of the mountains, and shall be exalted above the hills; and all nations shall flow unto it" (Isa. ii. 2.). This shows that the church of Christ was to be conspicuously visible or known to all the world. And the prophet Daniel's expressions

are equally remarkable: "The stone that smote the image became a great mountain and filled the whole earth" (Dan. ii. 35.). This is afterwards explained to mean, that "the God of heaven shall set up a kingdom which shall never be destroyed" (v. 44.): that is, the church, which had been before described as "a great mountain," and was therefore to be in the highest degree visible.

The words of Christ Himself prove the visibility of the church, when he says: "Ye are the light of the world. A city that is set on a hill cannot be hid" (Matt. v. 14.): and it equally follows from his directions in the case of an offending brother: "Tell it unto the church but if he neglect to hear the church let him be unto thee as an heathen man and a publican" (Matt. xviii. 17.): which proves that the church must be always visible; for were it invisible, this precept would be in vain.

The directions of St. Paul to the Corinthians relating to judgments in the church (1 Cor. vi. 4.); for the decorous and proper order of divine worship in their religious assemblies (1 Cor. xi.), and his rules for the appointment of pastors and teachers (1 Tim. iii. Tit. i.), all establish the fact, that Christians were formed into visible societies by the Apostles. The churches to whom the Epistles were addressed were all visible societies, known to the heathen, and often persecuted by them. If indeed this had not been the case, but Christianity had been a secret invisible profession, the prophecies of our Saviour that they should be "brought before kings and rulers for his sake," that they should be reviled and persecuted for his name's sake, could not have been fulfilled. In conclusion, it may be asserted without hesitation, that there is not a single instance in the New

Testament of a believer who was not externally united with the rest in the profession of Christianity. Hence it results that the visible public profession of Christianity in common, is according to the Divine institution, essential to the Christian church.

This is confirmed by the doctrine of primitive tradition, which always describes the church as a visible and conspicuous society. Irenæus says: "The preaching of the church is true and firm, wherein the same way of salvation is shown throughout all the world. For to her has been entrusted the light of God, and thus, the wisdom of God, by which he saveth all men, ' uttereth her voice in the streets, she crieth in the chief place of concourse,' &c. . . . For everywhere the church proclaims the truth, and she is the candlestick with seven branches, bearing the light of Christ. Origen observes, that "we ought not to give heed to those who say 'Here is Christ,' but do not so manifest him in the church which from the East even to the West is full of glory, which is full of the true light, which is the pillar and ground of the truth, in which is the whole advent of the Son of Man, who saith to all that are in every place: 'Lo I am with you always, even to the end of the world "." Cyprian says: "The church of the Lord, full of light, diffuses her rays throughout the whole world. Yet the light which is every where diffused, is one, nor is the

a Irenæus adv. Hæres., lib. v.

C. XX.

b"Non debemus attendere eis qui dicunt: Ecce hic Christus,' non autem ostendunt eum in ecclesia quæ plena est fulgore ab oriente usque ad occidentem, quæ plena est lumine vero, quæ est columna et firmamentum ve

ritatis, in qua tota totus est adventus Filii hominis dicentis omnibus qui ubique sunt: 'Ecce ego vobiscum sum omnibus diebus vitæ, usque ad consummationem sæculi.'"-Origen in Matt. tract. xxx. tom. ii. p. 865. ed. Benedict.

unity of the body separated "." Chrysostom declares, that "it is easier for the sun to be extinguished than for the church to disappear." Augustine says, “There is no security for the preservation of unity except from the promises of Christ to his church, which being placed on a mountain, as it was said, cannot be hidden; and therefore it is necessary that this church should be known to all parts of the world." And in another place: "Hence it is that the true church cannot be hidden to any one, and hence that which he saith in the Gospel: 'A city set on an hill cannot be hid '.'

It is certain, in fact, that all the Fathers considered the church as visible throughout the world in all its particular churches or congregations. If indeed the church of Christ had not been visible by Divine institution, it could not have been the light of the world or a witness of Christianity, and if it had ever ceased to be visible, the gates of hell might well have been said to have prevailed against it. If the church of Christ, once exalted on the top of the mountains, and spreading herself from Judea to the ends of the earth, could have so far fallen away as to become the kingdom of Antichrist, wherein some few souls alone retained their

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clesiæ declarata, quæ super montem, ut dictum est, constituta, abscondi non potest: et ideo necesse est ut omnibus terrarum partibus nota sit."-Aug. contr. Epist. Parmeniani, lib. iii. c. 5. tom. ix. p. 75. ed. Benedict.

f "Hinc fit ut ecclesia vera neminem lateat. Unde est illud quod in Evangelio ipse dicit: Non potest civitas abscondi super montem constituta."-Cont. Petil., lib. ii. c. xxxii. tom. ix. p.

Christianity in obscurity, while they externally united in the abominations of an Antichristian society; in such a case, it seems impossible to deny that the gates of hell must have prevailed against her. Were there no promise that the church should be always visible, what assurance could we have that any existing community of Christians is a church of Christ? It might be that the true church still lurks unperceived in some corner, or that as yet its members are concealed amongst various communities of professing christians. It might be that all existing visible churches are Antichristian.

But I proceed to show the general agreement of Christians in modern times that the church is visible. It would be superfluous to prove that those of the Roman obedience and the Eastern churches maintain the visibility of the church: none of them have ever denied it. But the perpetual visibility of the church has been also acknowledged by the Lutherans, the Reformed, and by various sects.

The confession of Augsburg professes "that there is one holy church which is to endure for ever," that it is "a congregation of saints, in which the gospel is rightly taught and the sacraments administered "." The preaching of the gospel and administration of the sacraments are attributes of a visible church only. The Apology also, drawn up by Melancthon, declares, that the impious only communicate externally with the true Church, the notes of which are: " the pure doctrine of the gospel, and the sacraments: and this church is

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