What Would J. Gresham Machen Do? (part 2)

Liberalism as Christianity Without the Cross

Richard Niebuhr said this famous quote, A God without wrath brought men without sin into a kingdom without judgment through the ministrations of a Christ without a cross. A God without wrath brought men without sin into a kingdom without judgment through the ministrations of a Christ without a cross.

That was his summary statement of liberalism. That it had some of the vocabulary. We talk about God, we talk about Christ, we talk about the kingdom, we talk about salvation. But it had taken away, it had vacated all of the meaning of those terms as they are biblically understood.

What Machen was about in Christianity and liberalism was speaking to every single one of those propositions. To show that a God without wrath is not in fact the God of Christianity. And that certainly a Christ without a cross is not the Christ of Christianity.

And therefore salvation apart from that is not salvation. It's not Christianity. This was the vision that he was trying to put forth in the book Christianity and Liberalism. Now you look at the chapter titles and you see what he was up to as an introduction.

And then there's doctrine. And then there's God and humanity. And then there's Christ. And then there's the Bible. And then there's salvation. And then there's the church. He is after looking at every one of those things and seeing what's happening in liberalism in relationship to those things.

And then looking at what scripture says about those things. And saying here's the conclusion. Liberalism is not Christianity. Now he was a political libertarian. You probably got some insight into that when he was against traffic lights.

So he said you can believe whatever you want to believe. It's a free country. Knock yourself out. You can believe whatever you want to believe about Christ. Whatever you want to believe about God. But you can't take what you believe and call it Christianity if it has nothing in common with the biblical teaching on those topics.

So that's what he was doing in the book. And I want to walk through some of those chapters with you. The doctrine chapter certainly. The God and humanity chapter. Briefly Christ and salvation. We're going to skip scripture because we're going to talk about scripture tomorrow.

But we're going to frame scripture within the discussion of the reformers. So we're going to break out of Machen altogether. And then I want to end talking about the church with you. But before I talk about any of those things I want to mention history.

History, Modernity, and the Authority of an Ancient Book

History was very significant to Machen. This goes back to his inaugural lecture as a professor there at Princeton. This is what he says. The center and core of all of the Bible is history. Everything else that the Bible contains is fitted into a historical framework and leads up to a historical climax.

The Bible is primarily a record of events. And then he says that assertion will not pass unchallenged. The modern church is impatient of history. The challenge that Machen was facing was the challenge of modernism or the challenge of modernity.

And the way modernity had made its way into the church. And one of the fundamental suspicions of modernity is seen if we look at it in the opposite statement that becomes sort of a mantra. Even of contemporary American culture.

It's simply newer is, newer is better. Your six month old computer is so old. This is what makes corporations thrive. They call it planned obsolescence. Planned obsolescence. We live in Lancaster among the Amish.

And we bought our house from a former old order Mennonite farmer. Those are the buggy Mennonites. We're surrounded by Amish and old order Mennonites. Which is really depressing for my kids because we don't have a Wii.

So they can't go to the neighbor's house and play one because they don't even have electricity. But he left for me his shovel in the garage. And I could see in the shovel where it had been welded about 15 times.

Screws put in here and there. It's not the majority of American cultures. Planned obsolescence. Newer is better. My favorite saying. That's so five minutes ago. And then we say an ancient book is the authority for life.

And that's the rub folks. Right there. An ancient book. And in ancient time to mythological peoples and cultures is the authority for life. We have mapped the human genome. And we're saying this ancient book is our authority.

Machen understood that that was in fact the ballgame. That question. And it becomes fundamentally a question of submission. Will you or will you not submit to what God says in his word? That's the question.

And the modernists said no. And the liberal said no too. But they said no by just sort of shifting meaning. And rechanging things. Rethinking things. So Machen writes his book. First, right off the beginning, Machen raises the question.

Is Christianity a lifestyle or is Christianity a doctrine? Now I find this a very intriguing question because it's not a 1920s question. It is a 2010s question. Now I was teasing you a little bit with the titles for this.

WWJGMD. Which is a lot of letters to fit on a bracelet. But you know where I was going with that, don't you? In the 2000s, the Christian culture can be the WWJD culture. Which does have some merit to it.

I don't want to totally dismiss everything just because it's trendy and it's evangelical. But my reflex is to dismiss everything that's trendy and evangelical. I don't want to, but I do. I think it's a variation of that thing Paul does in Romans.

But I sense some sincerity in it. But I also sense a significant problem in it. And the significant problem is doing the same thing that was done in the 1910s and 20s in liberalism. Which is turning Christianity into not just a lifestyle.

But primarily and essentially a lifestyle. And so Machen starts there. And his response is Christianity is first a doctrine. And then it's a lifestyle. It's never a doctrine without a lifestyle. In other words, good doctrine will always result in living.

In what we call ethics. Good doctrine. Orthodox doctrine. What is called in the New Testament sound. Which actually is hygienic doctrine. Healthy doctrine. Always results in life. We could say orthodoxy always results in orthopraxy.

As is sometimes said. But the order and the necessity of the doctrine is what's at stake. Machen puts it this way. Paul was convinced of the objective truth of the gospel message. And devotion to that truth was the greatest passion of his life.

Paul was convinced of the truth of the gospel. Now we're back to 1 Corinthians chapter 15. And you had to see it there. Some of whom are alive and remain. Which is to say, go ask them. These were witnesses.

We don't have a religion that some guy dug up tablets in his backyard. Pulls a screen across. And has a little decoder ring. And interprets the mysterious language of these tablets. Of events that quite frankly are unverifiable.

Let alone verifiable or not. We don't have that in Christianity. We have a concrete religion. We have a religion that is based on an event that occurred in space and time. And there were witnesses. Carl Henry tells the story of when Carl Barth came to America.

This shows you how interesting things are culturally. When Carl Barth came to America it was actually a press conference. And as Barth was in America and he was at the press conference. Henry was there as a reporter for Christian Today.

Went forward and asked him a question. I'm sorry, not Carl Barth. I didn't mean Carl Barth. Rudolf Bultmann. I'm sorry, Rudolf Bultmann. A German New Testament scholar. So he goes forward and he asks Rudolf Bultmann a question.

And he says to him, Herr Professor Bultmann. We have the cameras here. NBC and CBS and ABC. Those were the days when there were only three networks. Not like 3 ,000 on satellite. There were three networks.

We have these cameras here. And if they were there on that Sunday. When Jesus rose from the dead. Would they have been able to film it? What Henry was doing was getting at the point of the matter. Bultmann was famous for saying things like, it doesn't matter if Jesus rose again in history.

The question is, did he rise again in your heart? Again with the heart. I don't know what that means. Did he rise again in your heart? Did you have an experience of the resurrection that has reoriented your life?

That's salvation in Bultmannian terms. The question of the historicity of the resurrection is of no consequence to us. Bultmann says. Henry says, if those cameras were there. Would they have been able to film Jesus walking out of the grave?

You know what Bultmann did? He swore at him in German. No kidding. It's the same word. If you watch Indiana Jones. When he's trying to get the ark. And he's on the truck. And the driver sees him. Same word.

Anyway. Sorry. I had to say it. And then he says. You're just a fundamentalist. Next question. And there's Paul. And he was seen. By 500. Some of whom. Are alive. And remain. Now if we read on in 1 Corinthians chapter 15.

Which you will. In about 3, 4, 5 or 6 years from now. You'll see what he says. If there is not a historical resurrection. Pack it up folks. Go home. You have a much better way to spend your Friday night.

Because everything we're doing here. Is pointless. If it's not. For the historicity. Of the resurrection. The Bible. Is primarily. A record. Of. Events. But make no mistake about it. That proposition will not go unchallenged.

Paul was convinced. Of the objective truth of the gospel message. And devotion to that truth. Was the greatest passion. Of his life. Christ died. That is history. This is Machen. Quote. Christ died. That is history.

Christ died. For our sins. That. Is doctrine. Without these two elements. Joined in an absolutely indissoluble union. There is no. Christianity. That doctrine. Machen goes on to say. Makes all the difference in the world.

Which is to say. It is profoundly practical. Which is to say. It is. Ethical. It is a lifestyle. But it is doctrine first. And it is doctrine always. And it is doctrine that always leads. To a lifestyle.

What was happening in the 1920s. Was the desire. To have the example of Jesus. Without the atoning death. And victorious resurrection. And ascension. And someday bodily return. Of Jesus. It was the sermon on the mount.

Without the rest of the gospels. Even more. It was Jesus. As. We're going to see later. Machen used to love to say this. To get at the liberals. The fairest flower of humanity. See. He could write like a Victorian too.

If he wanted to. The fairest flower of humanity. Or is he the God man? And I'm afraid. That it's not just the problem of the 1920s. I do think it is a bit of a challenge. Of evangelicalism. In the 21st century.

That we have turned Christianity. Into a lifestyle. And we have relegated. Doctrine. Now. I will also say. That theologians. Have some of the blame. I think they have some of the blame. Because they have forgotten.

That primarily they serve the church. They have become a guild that serves. Themselves. With a vocabulary and a language. Usually Latin. That doesn't always communicate. With. The people in the pew. And so.

Theology has become somewhat of a professional discipline. That. As. The. Television announcer will tell you. Don't try this at home. These are professionals. But there's enough blame to go around. Because there is a wide swath.

Of Christians. That simply don't want theology. For whatever reason. Some of its intellectual laziness. It's part of our culture. But I just don't want to culture bash. It's the idea. That. We can have Christianity.

Without. The doctor. It's the idea that I can just have Jesus. As my personal friend. And my bracelet. Reminds me. Of what Jesus would do and what he wouldn't do. Just like my best friend. With me. We have turned.

Christianity into a lifestyle. Here's one and it's. Political season when is it not political season. But we have turned Christianity into a political view. And this is true of both the right and the left.

I did a little book back there called. Jesus made in America and. I added a chapter. Which was a bit gutsy on my part. Called the Jesus on the right wing. Looking at Jesus in politics. But it's not just the right wing that.

Takes Jesus. One of my research of that book. I came across what remains to this day. One of my favorite book titles. Jesus rode a donkey. Now let that sink in. The symbol of the Democratic Party is a donkey.

Jesus rode a donkey. Jesus was a Democrat. That's the title of the book. Or the thesis of the book. I love the title. It's a bad book. Love the title. But how easy is it for us. To lasso Jesus. And have him endorse our political ideology.

And say that's Christianity. When in reality. Ethics of Jesus are far too capacious. For any single political party to represent. But we do that. We equate and identify Christianity. With a political ideology.

And to a watching world. They see that. They also see the lifestyle stuff. One of my. Things I came across in research for that book. Was a website called Jesusoftheweek .com I don't know if it's still active.

I haven't looked at it for a long time. If you were my students. You'd be googling it right now. That's what undergrads do. And then they'd be laughing. Carrying on. You know what Jesusoftheweek .com is?

It's a parody. Of stuff we do. With Jesus. And Christianity. And the way we market it. And sell it. I found this. Kid you not. Nativity rubber duckies. Little baby Jesus. As a rubber ducky. The incarnation.

At an all time low. We have marketed. Christianity. Turn it into a gimmick. And a watching world sees that. So we can turn Christianity. In all kinds of things. You turn into a. Get Jesus's endorsement of our political.

View. Say that's Christianity. We can get. Jesus's endorsement of. Say that's Christianity. Christianity is first and foremost. And always will be. A doctrine. And then that doctrine. Leads to an ethic.

It is dangerous. To have a doctrine. Without an ethic. But it is deadly. To have an ethic. Without a doctrine. We never should have to choose. Between the two. But the choice. For the church. Must always be doctrine.

If it doesn't have doctrine. First and foremost. The congregation. Is living on borrowed capital. It's only a matter of time. It's only a matter of time. So Machen spends time in his book. Talking about doctrine.

The Transcendence of God and the Reality of Sin

What doctrines. Does he talk about? Well the first doctrine. He talks about is God and humanity. And I love that he starts here. Christianity. Is about. Not God. Not God in the abstract. Not God of our own making.

Not a domesticated God. A tamed God. But the real existence. Of a personal God. Who is above us. And transcendent. So here it is in the book. Machen says it. The attribute. That is absolutely necessary.

The one attribute. That is absolutely necessary. The awful. Transcendence. Of God. But this is a transcendent God. Who is at what once. Transcendent. And. Knowable. Who is at once. Above us. And. Walked among us.

The triune God. That blows our minds. And it's what differentiates. Christianity from every other religion. C .S. Lewis has a great quote. I think it's from his book Miracles. He talks about how. The God of the pantheists.

It's a great God. He's everywhere. You can't really offend him. Endorses everything you do. The God of the deist. Great God. He's. He's grandfatherly. He's all about love and mercy. But God. The warrior.

God. The lover. God. The husband. Jealous. For his bride. Approaching at light. Speed. Lewis says. Well that's another story altogether. I do not wonder. I do not wonder. Lewis says. Why modern man. Does not want a God like that.

We have lost this. There's no doubt about it. Culturally. We've also. Need to be careful that we don't lose this as a church. One of the interesting things about. Watching culture or understanding culture.

Is how easily the church is affected by it. Without the church knowing it. Not too far from me is the mushroom capital of the world. Not the. Drug thing. Real. Just want to clarify. Kennett Square Pennsylvania.

If you've ever driven through there. Or been around it. You know it. It's. Smells like fungus. I have friends who live in Kennett Square. So my students come from Kennett Square. You know what they say.

We don't really notice. How can you not notice. Like fungus grows on your house. This mushroom country. Culture is like the atmosphere. It's the air we breathe. We don't even recognize it sometimes. And we don't recognize its subtle influences on us.

And this can be true when it comes to our understanding of who God is. We. Can. Be. Flip. We can try. This is the classic. We can try. To manipulate. This is what non-Christians do all the time. They're constantly making deals with God.

If you let my mother live God. I'll get my act together. If you let my kid pull through this. Medical. Situation. Ow. And we see right through that. Stuff. But you know as Christians we do the same thing.

We think somehow. God's a puppet on a string. That we can. Press the right button. We. Manipulate him to do what we. Want him to do. We lose sight. Of. The awful transcendence of God. I was talking to someone at the break.

We're talking about R .C. Sproul. He did not come from Florida. He lives in Florida. He comes from Pennsylvania. This is a big difference. Did not come from Florida. My. My statement still sticks. No theologians come out of Florida.

Surfers. Yes. Theologians. No. I think when all said and done in the 20th. Century 21st century. He's going to emerge as. One of the. One of the Machen's. One of the Luther's that we talk about. And the book of his.

That I think is going to do it for him. His holiness of God. All you gotta do is read that book. And recognize. That no matter where you are on the continuum. You would do better. To have a higher view of God.

Understand that. No matter where you are. Can always mature. And our understanding. Of having a higher. View. And sense. Of the. Awful. Transcendence. And holiness. Otherness. Of God. And of course the flip side of this is the doctrine of humanity.

What we view ourselves. And so Machen says the fundamental problem with liberalism. When it comes to humanity is we have lost. A consciousness of sin. The modern church is busy. Machen says tongue-in-cheek.

Calling the righteous to repentance. What does salvation look like for good people. Okay let's get a little bit closer to home. When Bill Bright wrote his four spiritual laws. His daughter criticized him.

In fact there was a rift in the relationship. The original version had hell. She had read that. She liked it. Had hell a couple times in it. He had floated around to some people. They said that's too offensive.

Take it out. And then the new version starts off with those words. God loves you and has a wonderful plan for your life. And she disagreed. And they actually broke their relationship. They since reconciled.

But at the time they broke the relationship over that. We are sinners. Wash me. Wash me. Or I die. Period. We don't need medicine. We are not sick. We are dead. And we need new life. And as we have a decreased conscious awareness of our sin.

We necessarily diminish what Jesus did on the cross. And that's what happened in liberalism. Jesus becomes an example. I was asked one time to give a talk on Edwards. It was around his birthday. To a Presbyterian church.

But it was a liberal Presbyterian church. And they found my name. I had done a book on Edwards. They invited me to come and preach. And I went and preached. Not well. And I literally had people huff at me.

Like audibly huff at me. It was strange. But before I went. The pastor was on the radio. I heard one of his sermons. And the sermon ended with. When Jesus died on the cross. He put a smile on God's face.

Because he did such a selfless act. In giving up his life. What are you going to do this week? Are you going to be selfish? Or are you going to be selfless? And put a smile on God's face. Now though. Flip this back to us.

Consciousness of sin. Edwards wrote a letter. To a young lady in Connecticut. He had preached there. And likely she came to Christ. Her name was Deborah Hathaway. Likely she came to Christ under him. But there was no pastor of that church.

It was in between pastors. And so she wrote a letter to Edwards. Asking for his advice. On how to grow in the Christian life. Edwards wrote back to her. A 19 paragraph letter. This was in 1742. At the height of the great awakening.

When his congregation went from 500 to 700 plus. And he was itinerating. All up and down the Connecticut river valley. And he walks into his study. And he writes a 19 paragraph letter. To a teenager that is not even in his church.

Convicts me. Oh that convicts me. I don't even like to send back one sentence emails. To my students. Leave me alone. Go away. And in it he says. Never think. That you lie low enough. For your sins. Next paragraph.

That Christ's mercy. Is the mountaintops of Christ's mercy. Infinitely over top. The highest mountaintops of your sin. So we always have to remember that part. But never. You can never lie low enough.

For your sin. You know the standard joke. In our culture we have put sin onto the dessert menu. The desserts that we have. Sinfully delicious. We have reduced sin. To it's caloric count. We have minimized sin culturally.

No doubt about it. It's true of our day. The question is. Is it true of us? What is our consciousness of sin? This idea of having the proper perspective of God. And the proper perspective of humanity.

Is so important. Especially in our world. We really do live in a world. That thinks it doesn't need God anymore. And that we have achieved so many things. I was struck by this. Machen wrote a piece called.

Skyscrapers and Cathedrals. And it was published in McCall's magazine. Is that not hilarious? He published an article in McCall's magazine. And in the book he talks about his visit to New York City. And going in the Empire State Building.

And taking the elevator up to the top. And how it was such an experience. That was like the thing to do in the 1920's. Go up to New York. Ride the elevator to the top of the Empire State Building. And he said you know.

We have done all these great things. But all we have done. Is lift our bodies. We haven't lifted our souls. And then he compares that. To the experience of walking into a cathedral. A medieval cathedral.

And he was in a number of them. And he said you know. When you walk into a cathedral. You are awed too. But it is a totally different experience. Isn't it? You are not awed by the achievements of humanity.

Your eyes are drawn up and up and up. And you are awed by the majesty of God. I was struck by this in Chicago. On the Miracle Mile. At the end of it of course. Is the John Hancock Tower. And the way the John Hancock Tower is built.

It is sort of an optical illusion. If you stand literally right up against it. And look up. Because of the way the supports are structured. On the outside of the building. It is created as an optical illusion.

To appear as if it goes on to infinity. Or as Buzz Lightyear would say. To infinity and beyond. But it appears that there is no end to this building. And it just makes you feel so tiny. And so. But if you turn.

And go directly across the street. There is a church. There is an old Presbyterian church there. Now it is not a conservative church. It is a theologically liberal church. But it is open during the day.

You can go into it. It is beautiful. It is a gothic structure. And it is not dwarfed. And you go into that church. And you sit down at the pew. And you look up. And you have a totally different experience.

But it is the Hancock Center. That has captured the attention of our culture. The great things. That we have done. I am a John Steinbeck fan. He got the Nobel Prize. I know he has written some dumb stuff.

But I love his books. When he got the Nobel Prize. He was making a point. About how Alfred Nobel. Actually made most of his fortune. Off of one of his inventions. Dynamite. And the irony that a person.

Who dedicated his fortune to peace. Created this destructive force. And Steinbeck as a writer. Picks up on the irony of that. And he talks about how here we are. In the 20th century. And we have the power within us.

And at the very end of the speech. You can look it up. 1957 Nobel Prize acceptance speech. He says. We have usurped the powers. We had once ascribed. To some deity. So that now. Saint John may very well be paraphrased.

In the beginning. Was man. That is the 20th century view. Philosophically. Late 19th century text. By Nietzsche. Nietzsche is sometimes criticized. For this statement. God is dead. You've got to understand.

He was launching it. Against the national. German Lutheran church of his day. And you should read the whole thing. In context. Because it's very revealing. It's from a piece of his called. The gay science.

And in there he says. God is dead and we have killed him. And what is this church now. But a whited sepulcher. Nietzsche was saying. The domesticated God. Of this liberal church. Is no God worth having.

And then Nietzsche goes on to say something. He doesn't say. Oh God is dead and he's happy. Jumping up and down on his grave. It's the exact opposite. He says. God is dead and we have killed him. And then he says this.

And now night. Upon perpetual night. Has overtaken our souls. It's God is dead. And this is a tragedy. But in 20th century. Culture. What we did was. We do what we're best at. God is dead. Entertain me.

So I don't think about it. We anesthetize. Ourselves. Into the words. That some of you. Won't admit to listening to this group. In church. But you might. We've become comfortably numb. And we allow ourselves.

To be so entertained. That we are simply numb. To see your pastor knows. He knows who was. Comfortably numb. To our realities. Francis Schaeffer used to talk about pre evangelism. Before you can say. Jesus Christ died for your sins.

You need to have a few propositions in place. In order for that to make sense. And the two you have to have in place. Are proper view of God. And who he is. And his holiness. And his creator. And what we owed him.

And what we did. According to Romans 1. And who we are as human beings. Because of what we did in Romans 1. As we sum it up theologically. Totally. Depraved. We can build skyscrapers. We can map the human genome.

We can build planes. We can conquer space. But we're sinful. And unless he washes us. We die. Period. Our time is moving. But very quickly. Christ. Let me just read a quick quote to you. Jesus did not invite the confidence of men.

By minimizing. By a minimizing presentation of what was necessary. In order that sinners might stand faultless. Before the awful throne of God. In other words. He didn't preach a watered down message.

On the contrary. He invited confidence. By the presentation of his own person. Great was the guilt of sin. And that was Jesus's message. Right. But. Machen says. Jesus was greater still. Have that. Mountain view.

Your sins as high as a mountain. As you can conceive. And then Jesus's mercy. Infinitely over tops that. In liberalism. Salvation is about doing good. It's about having character. It's about having faith.

Faith in what? Who knows it's just faith. In Christianity. Sinners need. A substitutionary atonement. And it is faith. In Christ. That saves. And the objective truth. Of the death. Burial and resurrection of Jesus Christ.

As Paul hammers home. And 1st Corinthians chapter 15. Lastly. Machen talks about the church. And I wanted to give this to you. Because I think this is very important. So I'm just going to sort of throw these out very quickly.

And then I just want to end with a quote. And if you want to have some questions. We could have a few questions. I know the hour is late. Four things Machen says is the duty of the church. You can get these out of the book.

But first. The intellectual defense of the faith. Is the duty of the church. The church is not about theological pacifists. I love that line. I live among pacifists. The Amish and Mennonite. Church is not about theological pacifists.

Remember. When the theological paleontologists. Dig us up. Will we have a backbone? Will they say. They belong to the order of vertebrates. Number two. Officers in the church. Should perform their duty.

In deciding upon candidates. For ministry. Ordination vows were not taken seriously. In the 1910s and 20s. And liberals got into the pulpits. And they said. And liberalism was preached from the pulpit.

The ordination of officers. Is one of the most serious things. For a church. Number three. Christian officers. Should show their loyalty. To Christ. In the congregation. Now that was very fitting. In Machen's day.

And then number four. And I love this one. There must be a renewal. Of Christian education. Whether it's a doctrine or life. This takes care of itself. If you say Christianity is lifestyle. Then education is not necessary.

Once you say Christianity is a doctrine. Education is essential. Luther said it best. Unless we train. The next generation. All our efforts. Are for naught. Everything we've just done. In this reformation thing.

Meaningless. Unless we train the next generation. Well here's what Machen says. About the church. And I'll leave you with this. Weary with the conflicts. Of the world. One goes into the church. To seek.

Refreshment. For the soul. And what does one find? Alas too often one finds. Only the turmoil of the world. The preacher comes forward. Not out of a secret place. Of meditation and power. Or permeating his message.

Not with human wisdom. Pushed far into the background. By the glory of the cross. But with human opinions. About the social problems of the hour. Or easy solutions. Of the vast problems of sin. Such is the sermon.

Is there no refuge from strife? Is there no place of refreshing. Where a man can prepare. For the battle of life. Is there no place where two or three. Can gather in Jesus's name. In the moment all those things.

That divide nation from nation. And race from race. To forget human pride. To forget the passions of war. To forget the puzzling problems. Of industrial strife. And to unite in overflowing gratitude. At the foot of the cross.

If there be such a place. Then it is at the house of God. And at the gate of heaven. And from under the threshold of that house. Will go forth a river. That will revive the weary world. The proclamation of the gospel.

In the word of God. And isn't this a great quote. Weary with the conflicts of the world. One goes into the church. To seek refreshment for the soul. And the only refreshment they need. And the only refreshment.

That will ultimately satisfy. Is the refreshment that flows. From the gospel. That's ultimately. Why liberalism. Is not Christianity. Because there is. No gospel there. And without the gospel. There is no peace.

And there is no life. And that's Machen. We have a few moments. Is it alright to see if there are any questions? You've been so patient. Listening to me. I'll gladly listen to a question or two from you.

Don't be shy. Speak up. Ah there it is. Yeah very similar. The split in Machen's time in the 20s. And the split in the 60s. That eventually led then. To the Presbyterian Church of America. The PCA. Coming out of the church.

That Machen split from. Two things. Number one. The church in the north. Was more liberal than the church in the south. In the 1920s. So that southern Presbyterianism. Had a significant theological. Conservativism to it.

They tended to be. Not federalists. They tended to be. More local politics. Right. So they tended to just worry. What was going on in their presbytery. And not what was going on. At the General Assembly.

In fact they discarded most of the notions. That were handed down from the General Assembly. But it got to a point. Where those southern Presbyterians. Could no longer do that. And it was really the southern Presbyterians.

In the 1960s. That formed the Presbyterian Church of America. So there was a northern. Southern piece there. But the continuity is. In the 1960s. The church produced what they called. The Book of Standards.

I'm sorry. The Book of Confessions. And in it. They didn't. What they did was they diminished Westminster. By throwing in all of these other statements. And so now the church was governed. By the Book of Confessions.

And what it was. Was a very not so subtle. Undermining of the standards. And that's. That was published in 1967. And that's what. Was the presenting problem. As psychologists say. That caused the split in 1967.

So. The continuity there is. It was doctrinal. But the distinction was. In the Presbyterian Church. They had united. Since after the Civil War. But they're still. They were still two different cultures.

And something similar. Was true with the Southern Baptists. And the American Baptists. You know the American Baptists were very liberal. In the 1910s and 20s. The Southern Baptists had their battles in the 1960s.

So there were. There's a similar. Sort of thing going on there too. Yes Pastor. I think he would have been better. Had he married. He had these sort of weird bachelor eccentricities. And you know. We all owe everything to our wives.

Don't we? I was an absolute putz until I got married. So. We owe everything to our wives. Machen. Should have been married. No I'm just kidding. One of. Yeah. This is. This is tricky. I will tread lightly here.

But I will say it. Machen was a segregationist. He wasn't a racist. I don't think. In his mind he wouldn't consider himself a racist. He was a segregationist. And his mother was deep South. Old money etc.

And. I think he wrestled with it. But he was. Warfield was not. Warfield tried. Warfield was very much not a segregationist. And Warfield. Warfield's maternal. Grandfather was the vice president of the Confederate States of America.

So Warfield had a Southern pedigree. But. Machen had. That sort of. Southern. Segregationalism in him. And I think that was a blind spot. I don't think it comes out of. A whole lot in his writings. But I think it did come out.