It is strange that the action of gospel obedience should have occupied so much time, and so many volumes to define. Water is admitted to be the medium through which it is performed; and that the terms used in connection with its administration are burial, planting, birth, "body washed." Can a man be buried, or a seed planted, without being put out of sight? And is not a birth an emergence from a cavity in which the thing born was previously concealed? Then water baptism is a being put out of sight in water, and to be born of it is to emerge from the bosom of the deep.

EDITOR.

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"Baptism," said an unbaptised friend to us the other day, "Is an obstacle to your progress. If it were not for that (and I commend you for your tenacity) your adherents would increase considerably."

"There are several of the Campbellite Church in this city," said another, "who say, they would unite with us if it were not for that second immersion."

To the former friend we replied, that we were fully aware of it; but that if another never united with us because of baptism we must still maintain the Apostolical position, our object being, not to found and build up a multitudinous sect for our own individual profit; but to bring men to an intelligent obedience of the good message concerning the kingdom AS THE ONLY SCRIPTURAL PREPARATION TO MEET THE LORD AT HIS APPEARING.

It would be easy to gather a crowd of professors into an ecclesiastical society, provided they were not called upon to obey the gospel: for although Jesus has revealed himself as "the author of eternal salvation to all them that obey him," and to none else, there is nothing that carnal pietism revolts from so instinctively as obedience. It will believe and do any thing and every thing not required of it; but the thing commanded for the "obedience of faith" is just the thing that it will not submit to.

With our latter friend we agreed, that an immersion founded upon the belief of the Campbellite definition of the gospel is of no more efficacy than infant sprinkling, to which most Protestant immersionists object because it is not preceded by faith; rightly judging that without faith no religious act or ceremony is acceptable to God. But an erroneous faith is no more justifying than no faith—they are in this matter virtually equivalents. We reject the Campbellite definition of the gospel as erroneous; and are able to prove that the gospel patronised by that sect is not the gospel of Christ. Now, men are justified by the belief of the true gospel, and not by the action of immersion; though it is true at the same time, that they cannot be justified without it. If they be ignorant, or faithless, of the true gospel they have nothing in their hearts to be counted for righteousness, justification, or remission of sins, in being immersed. Their immersion, therefore, goes for nothing; and we say, get faith, get wisdom, get understanding; and then you will be the subject of the "one baptism." It is the quality, not the quantity of members, that gives strength to a church. We go in for quality, being satisfied that as soon as our Campbellite friends come to understand and appreciate the doctrine taught as it deserves, and as they ought, a second or a fifteenth immersion will be no obstacle to their rendering a ready and hearty obedience to the gospel of that kingdom, which Jesus and the apostles preached, and which he has promised to all that love God and "do his commandments."

EDITOR.

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