given ability to teach the Word to others in a simple

manner.

Patient. He must be free from ill passion and irritableness. He must be calm, and possess a tranquility and evenness of life. His composure and holy tranquilness is such that commands and quiets all strife, contentions and heated discussions.

Ruling well his own house. Unless a man has sufficient wisdom, authority, love and firmness, to govern and control his own children he certainly can not be used of God to oversee the church of God.

Lover of good men. His very heart and soul must admire and appreciate and love the good he sees in

men.

Just. In his admonitions, corrections and reprovings, he is always just and impartial.

Holy. His heart and life and affections must be pure and holy, free from sin.

Temperate. There are many things from which we are commanded by the Scriptures to abstain. In the use of all things God has given for use he must not be excessive. He must not be excessive in eating, drinking, sleeping, working, talking, sexual relation, etc.

WHAT A BISHOP OR ELDER MUST NOT BE.

A bishop must not be given to wine, no striker, not greedy of filthy lucre, not a brawler, not covetous, not a novice, not self-willed, not soon angry. See 1 Tim. 3: 3-6; Titus 1:7.

Must not be given to wine. Not a wine drinker. He is to be an example and abstain from all appearance of evil.

No striker. A good translation from the Greek would render this reviler. He must not strike back with the tongue; in other words, not contentious.

Not greedy of filthy lucre. When man becomes greedy of filthy lucre-loves money-he can be influenced by it and thus be led to favor the rich.

Not a brawler. This is synonymous with wrangler or contender.

Not Covetous.

Covetousness includes more than the love of money. Fame, honor, worldly pleasures, gratification of unholy appetites and passions, may be properly termed covetousness. To entertain for anything an affection that is not a pure and godly affection is idolatry, and idolatry is covetousness.

Not a novice. One newly converted.

Not self-willed. Not obstinate in contending for his views or desires in opposition to others.

Not soon angry. Soon is not found in the original. A more proper rendering would be, Not passionate.

DEACON.

Deacon is translated from "diakonos," meaning minister. By reading the writings of those contemporary with the apostle and those immediately following we learn that a bishop or elder is the overseer or pastor of the flock, or the one upon whom the greatest

responsibilities lie, while the deacons are helpers. This doubtless is what is meant by "helps" in 1 Cor. 12: 28. There was always at least one bishop in one congregation, but often more than one deacon. The qualifications for a deacon are very similar to those of a bishop. See 1 Tim. 3; Titus 1.

ELDERS OR PRESBYTERS.

Webster in defining presbyter, says, "An elder in the early Christian church." Young in his analytical concordance says of presbytery, "An assembly of elders." These two terms have the same Greek origin, "presbuteros." An elder is one grounded in the faith with a sound matured judgment; one capable of giving good advice or counsel. An elder is not necessarily a preacher, but one calculated to advise and give counsel in his pastoral duties. They also are especially called of God to aniont and pray for the sick. These church officers are all called of God. 1:15,16. They are commissioned by Christ. 19. Sent by the Holy Spirit. Acts 13: 3, 4. qualified by God. 2 Cor. 3:5, 6. They are ambassadors from the kingdom of heaven with a heavenly message to this lost world. God help them every one to faithfully declare it in the fear of him who has called them.

See Gal.

Mat. 28:

They are

CHAPTER VIII.

THE ORDINANCES OF THE NEW TESTAMENT.

In the preceding chapter we considered the church of the New Testament. The Lord Jesus built his church and instituted some ordinances, which he commands the church to faithfully keep. The keeping of the commandments of God is proof that we love him: "For this is the love of God that we keep his commandments: and his commandments are not grievous." 1 John 5:3. "He that hath my commandments, and keepeth them, he it is that loveth me.' John 14:21. "If a man love me he will keep my words." ver. 23. "He that loveth me not keepeth

not my sayings." ver. 24.

We may profess great attainments in the divine life and wonderful devotion to God, but the proof is obedience to his commands. We have learned of people who have become so holy that they were raised above or passed beyond a great portion of the Bible and are not required to keep it. We have heard of but few things so ridiculously foolish. The better and more holy we become, certainly the more of the Word of God we will practise in our life; and who on earth can live a more perfect Christian life than he who lives in obedience to every word of the Bible? When one gets in possession of something that exempts him from obedience to the Scriptures he gets

in possession of some very mysterious thing. The only way to heaven is by the commandments of the Bible. "Blessed are they that do his commandments, that they may have a right to the tree of life and enter in through the gates into the city."

We will consider some ordinances and ceremonies which belong to the church of God as recorded in the New Testament so plainly that a wayfaring man though a fool need not err therein.

BAPTISM.

"There was a man sent from God, whose name was John." John 1:6. In the thirty-third verse this same John declares that God sent him to baptize with water. Of the books written on this subject there is scarcely an end. The controversy is very great, and so often very ridiculous. Lexicographers have defined and analyzed the word baptize in its different forms. Liddell and Scott, Robertson, Parkhurst, Scapula, Stokins, Calvin, Luther, Campbell, Gill, Stuart, Vitringa, Brenner, Paulus, and many others of great erudition have defined the word, and to sum them all up we find the primary meaning is "to dip, to immerse, to plunge in water." Many of the English translators of the New Testament always render baptizo, immerse or dip, as "John the immerser, or "John the dipper."

This brief reference to the expositions of the learned must suffice for this work. It is with pleasure we