The Ancient Church. W. D. Killen
DOCTRINE OF THE APOSTOLIC CHURCH.
Same system of doctrine in Old and New Testaments, 188
The New Testament the complement of the Old, ib.
The views of the Apostles at first obscure, 189
New light received after the resurrection, 190
In the New Testament a full statement of apostolic doctrine, ib.
Sufficiency and plenary inspiration of Scripture, 191
State of man by nature, 192
Faith and the Word, ib.
All the doctrines of the Bible form one system, 193
The Deity of Christ 194
The Incarnation and Atonement, 195
Predestination, 197
The Trinity, ib.
Creeds, 198
Practical tendency of apostolic doctrine, ib.
CHAPTER III.
THE HERESIES OF THE APOSTOLIC AGE.
Original meaning of the word Heresy, 200
How the word came to signify something wrong, 201
The Judaizers the earliest errorists, ib.
Views of the Gnostics respecting the present world, the body of
Christ, and the resurrection of the body, 202
Simon Magus and other heretics mentioned in the New Testament, 205
Carpocrates, Cerinthus, and Ebion, 206
The Nicolaitanes, ib.
Peculiarities of Jewish, sectarianism, 207
Unity of apostolic Church not much affected by the heretics, 208
Heresy convicted by its practical results, ib.
SECTION III.
THE WORSHIP AND CONSTITUTION OF THE APOSTOLIC CHURCH.
CHAPTER I.
THE LORD'S DAY; THE WORSHIP OF THE APOSTOLIC CHURCH; ITS SYMBOLIC ORDINANCES, AND ITS DISCIPLINE.
Christians assembled for worship on the first day of the week, 210
Our Lord recognized the permanent obligation of the
Fourth Commandment, 211
Worship of the Church resembled, not that of the Temple, but
that of the Synagogue, 214
No Liturgies in the apostolic Church, 215
No instrumental music, 216
Scriptures read publicly, 217
Worship in the vulgar tongue, ib.
Ministers had no official dress, 218
Baptism administered to infants, 219
Mode of Baptism, 220
The Lord's Supper frequently administered, 221
The elements not believed to be transubstantiated, 222
Profane excluded from the Eucharist, ib.
Cases of discipline decided by Church rulers, 223
Case of the Corinthian fornicator, ib.
Share of the people in Church discipline, 226
Significance of excommunication in the apostolic Church, 228
Perversion of excommunication by the Church of Rome, 229
CHAPTER II.
THE EXTRAORDINARY TEACHERS OF THE APOSTOLIC CHURCH; AND ITS ORDINARY OFFICE-BEARERS, THEIR APPOINTMENT, AND ORDINATION.
Enumeration of ecclesiastical functionaries in Ephesians iv. 11, 12,
and 1 Corinthians xii. 28, 230
Ordinary Church officers, teachers, rulers, and deacons, 232
Elders, or bishops, the same as pastors and teachers, ib.
Different duties of elders and deacons, 233
All the primitive elders did not preach, 234
The office of the teaching elder most honourable, 236
Even the Apostles considered preaching their highest function, 237
Timothy and Titus not diocesan bishops of Ephesus and Crete, 238
The Pastoral Epistles inculcate all the duties of ministers of the
Word, 241
Ministers of the Word should exercise no lordship over each other, 243
The members of the apostolic Churches elected all their own
office-bearers, 244
Church officers ordained by the presbytery, 245
The office of deaconess, ib.
All the members of the apostolic Churches taught to contribute
to each other's edification, 246
CHAPTER III.
THE ORGANIZATION OF THE APOSTOLIC CHURCH.
Unity of the Church of Israel, 248 Christian Church also made up of associated congregations, 249 The Apostles act upon the principle of ecclesiastical confederation, 250 Polity of the Christian Church borrowed from the institutions of the Israelites, 251 Account of the Sanhedrim and inferior Jewish courts, ib. Evidences of similar arrangements in the Christian Church, 253 How the meeting mentioned in the 15th chapter of the Acts differed in its construction from the Sanhedrim, 254 Why we have not a more particular account of the government of the Christian Church in the New Testament, 255 No higher and lower houses of convocation in the apostolic Church, ib. James not bishop of Jerusalem, 256 Origin of the story, ib. Jerusalem for some time the stated place of meeting of the highest court of the Christian Church, 257 Traces of provincial organization in Proconsular Asia, Galatia, and other districts, among the apostolic Churches, 258 Intercourse between apostolic Churches, by letters and deputations, 260 How there were preachers in the apostolic Church of whom the Apostles disapproved, 261 The unity of the apostolic Church—in what it consisted, to what it may be compared, 262
CHAPTER IV.
THE ANGELS OF THE SEVEN CHURCHES.
The mysterious symbols of the Apocalypse, 263
The seven stars seven angels, 264
These angels not angelic beings, and not corporate bodies,
but individuals, 265
The name angel probably not taken from that of an officer of the
synagogue, ib.
The angel of the synagogue a congregational officer, 266
The angels of the Churches not diocesan bishops, 267
The stars, not attached to the candlesticks, but in the hand of
Christ, 268
The angels of the Churches were their messengers sent to visit
John in Patmos, ib.
Why only seven angels named, 271
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PERIOD II.
FROM THE DEATH OF THE APOSTLE JOHN TO THE CONVERSION OF CONSTANTINE.— A.D. 100 TO AD. 312.
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