WHERE has God forbidden infant baptism? Where has he forbidden sprinkling for baptism? Where has he forbidden the offering of incense, the counting of beads, in worship? What harm is there in all this? This is sophistry, deception, delusion, and that, too, of a very low and unworthy order at that. Where is the divine authority for doing this or that? If there is no divine authority for doing this or that, in religion, or worship, that very circumstance is divine authority against it. “Who hath required this at your hand?” is the inquiry of the word of God, to all such as introduce things into religion or worship, not authorized in Scripture. We may add nothing to the religion of Christ, the faith or practice, the precept or example, the worship, the rewards or punishments.
Those who consider themselves free to do anything not forbidden in Scripture, are out at sea, pretty much cut loose from the Bible. They have in their horizon a broad range. They are not in search of divine authority, not engaged in that for which there is divine authority, but things for which there is no divine authority—things not forbidden. They are not studying how to do the commandments, but whether men can not be saved without doing the commandments; how to obey the gospel, but how men can be saved without obeying the gospel; not how to build up the church of God, set it in order and keep it in order; how to worship according to the Scriptures; but how to make the church attractive, entertaining and popular. Their theme is not the gospel, nor is their mission turning the world from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan to God; but to so model and fashion the church as to please the world as it is, in its unconverted state, without the work of turning it to God. Let them have their way, and the church, in a short time, will be so let down that men will need no conversion to come into it. There will be no cross nor self denial in it. Be careful and not fall “into the trap,” as Luther did. If there is no divine authority for a thing, that is enough. We need no Scripture forbidding it.
We can unite on the things required in Scripture—the things commanded—but we never can unite on the things not forbidden. There are too many of this latter class; they are too various, contradictory and inconsistent. Let us stick to the things that are written. These are divinely authorized. The things not written are not divinely authorized. Let us stand to the prescribed terms of pardon, the prescribed life of the saints, and the prescribed worship. Those who depart from this are going back.