APR 22

Philippians 1:27
Memorise Philippians 1:27
“Striving together for the faith of the gospel”

HOW ARE WE INFLUENCED BY J. GRESHAM MACHEN?

Dr. Machen’s life was full and varied and great in achievements. For twenty-seven years he was connected with the famous Princeton Seminary, first as student and then as professor. He lived through the fierce struggles between fundamentalists and modernists in Presbyterian churches, missions boards and seminaries.

He led a group of men who were of the same spirit, faithful to the Lord and His Word, to strive together for the faith of the gospel. From him we learn the importance of standing for the faith. As a defender of the faith, he did not just speak up for the truth, but he also knew to separate from unbelief and error when it was no longer prudent and wise to stay. Likewise, we should not stay in any church or organization that has denied or betrayed the faith that was once delivered to the saints.

When the Presbyterian General Assembly in 1923 declared belief in the five fundamentals as requirements for ordination, the modernists attacked it at once. More than a thousand ministers of the Presbyterian Church signed “The Auburn Affirmation” declaring that they would not accept any single fundamental as essential for ordination in the Presbyterian Church. This meant a man could be ordained without believing in the Virgin Birth, or in any of the fundamentals. The enemy won when they elected a modernist over an evangelical to be the Moderator of the Presbyterian General Assembly. The General Assembly then placed Princeton in the hands of a modernist Board. Princeton had fallen. Thus, Dr. Machen left the seminary to found Westminster Seminary.

Dear teen, when you separate from worldly living, do you think you are going to be popular? When your friends invite you to attend an overnight beach party or a BBQ party and you turn it down in favour of the YF or church function, are you likely to be on the “invite” list again? You will soon be ‘marked” as an outcast. If it is fine with you, then you are winning the battle. Dr. Machen lost Princeton but he won in God’s eyes. By his example, generations of faithful Christians are encouraged to stand on the Lord’s side.

Thought: A church that is ready to compromise is ready to die.
Prayer: Loving heavenly Father, may I value Thy truth above all things, even the deadly peace of compromise and a false love with the world.