Separated from Compromise

“Be ye not unequally yoked together with unbelievers: for what fellowship hath righteousness with unrighteousness? and what communion hath light with darkness? And what concord hath Christ with Belial? or what part hath he that believeth with an infidel? And what agreement hath the temple of God with idols? for ye are the temple of the living God; as God hath said, I will dwell in them, and walk in them; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people. Wherefore come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing; and I will receive you, And will be a Father unto you, and ye shall be my sons and daughters, saith the Lord Almighty.” (2^nd Corinthians 6:14-18)

Separation from other Church bodies was the key reason why the Free Presbyterian Church came into being. Separating from a congregation and denomination which has been part of one’s life and family history is no trivial matter, nor should it ever be. It is inevitable that such a position generates ill will and provokes misunderstanding. Separation, therefore, was a sacrifice and an act of faith. Within the Free Presbyterian Church, we remain convinced that separation is essential. The purpose of this chapter is to examine the need for separation past and present. The essence of this chapter is an examination of the word “Free” in our denomination’s title.

Separation: The Biblical Perspective

The unequal yoke, 2 Corinthians 6:14

“Be ye not unequally yoked together with unbelievers: for what fellowship hath righteousness with unrighteousness?”

A Christian ought not to be bound in fellowship with those who are unbelievers and who do not accept the truth of the Gospel.

Light and Darkness, 2 Corinthians 6:14

“and what communion hath light with darkness?”

Truth cannot mix with error any more than light and darkness are incompatible.

Purity of worship, 2 Corinthians 6:15-18

“And what concord hath Christ with Belial? or what part hath he that believeth with an infidel? And what agreement hath the temple of God with idols? for ye are the temple of the living God; as God hath said, I will dwell in them, and walk in them; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people. Wherefore come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing; and I will receive you. And will be a Father unto you, and ye shall be my sons and daughters, saith the Lord Almighty.”

The temple of God, which is the Church of Christ, cannot worship within an atmosphere of falsehood. Therefore, the true Church must withdraw from worshipping with those who reject the Gospel.

Voicing our concerns, Ephesians 5:11

“And have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather reprove them.”

The Christian is not only to withdraw but should raise his voice to rebuke the works of darkness.

While it is wrong to leave a church based on personal disagreements with individuals or decisions that have been made it is right to leave when Gospel truth has been compromised in such a way that it is impossible to remain and at the same time be obedient to the Word of God:

“If any man teach otherwise, and consent not to wholesome words, even the words of our Lord Jesus Christ, and to the doctrine which is according to godliness; He is proud, knowing nothing, but doting about questions and strifes of words, whereof cometh envy, strife, railings, evil surmisings, perverse disputings of men of corrupt minds, and destitute of the truth, supposing that gain is godliness: from such withdraw thyself.”[1]

Separation: The Historical Perspective

Irish Presbyterianism Pre 1951

The spiritual decline of The Irish Presbyterian Church is aptly summarised by the ministry of Professor Ernest Davey. He was recognised as a brilliant scholar lecturing in four subject areas in a career at Assembly’s College which lasted from 1917 to 1960. As well as denying the deity of Christ (already discussed in Part 2) he also denied the blood atonement and the inspiration of Scripture as the following quotes demonstrate:

“Sin cannot be transferable”

“there are hundreds of discrepancies and direct contradictions in the Old and New Testaments”

As a result of the Professor Davey heresy trial and his acquittal in June 1927, Rev James Hunter resigned after 39 years of ministry and helped to form the Irish Evangelical Church[2]. In a letter he stated the case clearly:

“Surely it is not the will of the Lord that people should remain banded together with so little in common as the modernists have with those of the old faith.”

A succession of liberals became Moderators of the General Assembly including Professor Davey, in the following years. Davey in his key role at the heart of theological training had a polluting effect upon Presbyterian Ministry in Ireland for over forty years.[3]

Events in Crossgar, 1951

The Kirk Session of Lissara Presbyterian Church invited Rev Ian Paisley, then a young minister of an independent church who had a growing reputation as an evangelist with a most unique anointing, to conduct a Gospel Mission in their church hall. The Down Presbytery overruled and disallowed the mission. The Session firmly believed that this had arisen because of the anti-evangelical bias that existed. With the doors of their own church locked against them these men accepted that the only honourable course of action was to establish a new evangelical church. In a letter signed by the elders of the new congregation, issued on 11^th March 1951, these key and prophetic words were written:

“We Fellow Presbyterians! What shall we do? To reform the present church has been the desire and ambition of years, but the Irish Presbyterian Church has proved that she will adopt every measure to see that such will not happen, and clear thinking Christian people are beginning to realise that the only course to pursue is to save that which is worth saving, and like Sodom and Gomorrah, leave the rest to the flames of God’s wrath and judgement…These will form what will be known as the Free Presbyterian Church of Ulster. Free because it has struggled out from under the heel and tyranny of the Church which sails under the flag of Presbyterianism, but which is in reality Unitarian…We believe that under the wind of heaven these embers will again be fanned to a mighty flame all over our beloved province and that this Free Presbyterian body will lift again the Banner of the Cross, which has been dragged in the gutter of heresy and modernism.”[4]

Separation: The Current Perspective

It is important that we understand, however, the continued need for separation from a body that we as a denomination separated from, the Presbyterian Church in Ireland. If separation from this body is no longer necessary, then we would be sinning because the body of Christ would be divided unnecessarily. But if our position continues to be scriptural then we must persist in exposing apostasy and in calling upon Christians to come out. Most crucially of all, we as a denomination must be aware of the reasons why the Free Presbyterian Church must exist as a separate entity.

From the perspective not just of balance and fairness, but more importantly, of Christian charity, not all godly people in history as well as the present day, have embraced the separated stance that we as a denomination have adopted. The writings of godly servants who chose to remain in denominations which were polluted with error, have been a help and blessing to succeeding generations of Christians. Bishop J.C. Ryle is a classic example of a Victorian Anglican who spent his ministry battling for the values of true Protestantism, yet he called the Protestant churchmen “cowardly” who would forsake the vessel even though “the old ship has some leaks” with some of the crew either “traitors” or “asleep”[5]. By contrast, his contemporary, Rev. C.H. Spurgeon of The Metropolitan Tabernacle, London, was an outspoken critic not just of Anglicanism but of a subtle trend towards modernism among his Baptist colleagues which left him virtually in total isolation at the time of his death. There is no record of either men meeting each other let alone fellowshipping together, yet both continue to be a blessing to Christians everywhere. The point I am making is this – because a man preaches the Gospel faithfully within a compromised Church does not justify his position within that communion any more than being part of that denomination does not undermine his position as a justified child of God. We need clear vision and a charitable spirit when dealing with what is a most thorny issue.

There has always been a cohort of evangelical clergy supported by a strong and godly contingent of Christian people within the Presbyterian Church in Ireland. I have known Irish Presbyterians, whose Christian testimony has been and is a godly example to many. Free Presbyterians and evangelicals within the Presbyterian Church in Ireland have a great deal in common. We share the same Presbyterian and Protestant heritage; we subscribe to the Westminster Confession of Faith and we share an interest in the proclamation of the gospel. It is with sadness, therefore, that I pen these words, because while we share so much in common a rift has come between us, which has caused so much controversy. Therefore, while I articulate the position that there is a need for the Free Presbyterian witness, which necessitates criticism of the body from which we have separated, that in no way is a questioning of the personal testimony of our brothers and sisters within Irish Presbyterianism. Indeed, I go further and argue that an Irish Presbyterian believer who has an honest and consistent Christian testimony is much more preferable than a professing Free Presbyterian, whose life and testimony is recognised by the world as hypocritical. The article in this series, entitled “on sanctification “Sanctified in Behaviour” demonstrates that a godly life is just as necessary as a firm stance on this matter of separation. This should be borne in mind as we examine the need for a separated witness within the family of Irish Presbyterianism today.

There is an argument, today, that within the Presbyterian Church in Ireland, there are more evangelical ministers, therefore our stance on separation is weakened. Without doubt, there has been a growth in evangelicalism within Irish Presbyterianism, which is to be welcomed, but this has been achieved without the purging of the modernistic and ecumenical tendencies. The General Assembly continues to uphold the results of the Davey Heresy Trial to this day. If the Presbyterian Church in Ireland is to bear witness as a genuine Reformed and Evangelical Protestant Church in this 21^st Century then she must repent of and repudiate the clearing of Professor Davey, a man who rejected the key elements of the Gospel and of the person and work of Jesus Christ.

Ecumenical Trends

We have seen evidence of the continued influence of ecumenism within the Presbyterian Church in Ireland within the last decade.

When commemorating the 500^th Anniversary of the Reformation, in 2017, the Irish Presbyterian Church hosted a series of seminars where the speakers included Father Tim Bartlett, Secretary General of the World Meeting of Families, as well as Rev Trevor Gribben, then Clerk of the General Assembly.[6] When Pope Francis visited Ireland in 2018 it was reported, that the Presbyterian, Methodist and Church of Ireland leaders signed a letter welcoming a Papal visit to Northern Ireland in the interests of peace and reconciliation. While we are grateful that this visit did not happen the universal way in which it would have been welcomed by the Presbyterian Moderator on behalf of the General Assembly, is an indicator of the Gospel compromises that this once great body continues to be guilty of.[7] More recently in October 2019 Foclare, a Roman Catholic organisation which originated in Italy, held an international ecumenical conference in Northern Ireland for the first time. Supported by all the main Protestant Churches the participants explored the theme “In a divided world, united by Christ”. Foclare’s motto symbolising “Mary, Mother of all people”, indicates this unity must be on Rome’s terms only, because she after all is the mother Church and Protestants are the prodigal children. Despite this Rev Ken Newell, former Presbyterian Moderator, described the event as a “new Pentecost where Christians of different Churches from all over the world were one in Spirit, where the unity of Church was felt, for the well-being of the world”.[8]

This ecumenical spirit, within the Presbyterian Church in Ireland, was exemplified in February 2020 when Rev Trevor Gribben, then Clerk of the General Assembly, confirmed that the Faculty and Management Committee of Union Theological College would be recommending “that a new partnership, should be developed with St Mary’s University, Twickenham.”[9] St Mary’s University is a college with an inclusive Catholic ethos.[10] This ought to sound alarm bells among evangelicals who possess a Protestant consciousness. The Principal of Union Theological College, Very Rev Professor Stafford Carson, in welcoming the proposal commented, “Founded in the 1850’s, both Union College and St Mary’s have their distinct confessional identities within a broad Christian ethos”[11]. While Roman Catholicism is generically Christian, one cannot comment on this body without defining it as a total corruption and apostasy of true Christianity. The kind of language employed by Stafford Carson is confusing because it fails to identify the errors of Rome and gives the appearance that there is common ground to be explored. The confusion is made worse by a proposal to align this college, with a Roman Catholic ethos, with the institution responsible for the training of Presbyterian clergy. Has Presbyterianism learned nothing from the Davey debacle, and the spiritual wreckage which ensued? It seems not. Perhaps the General Assembly will reject this proposal but the fact that such an influential committee has made such a proposal, is a commentary on the ecumenical tendencies which are at work within Irish Presbyterianism.

The Church of Rome, where the Pope takes the place of Christ on earth – where the Priests claim to forgive sins, where Christ is offered on an altar when the Mass is performed and where Mary is venerated as one on equal terms with her son, is a total contradiction of basic New Testament Christianity, that salvation is through faith in Christ alone. A Protestant Church, therefore, which welcomes the Pope and which tolerates clergy which engage in joint worship with Priests continues to be guilty of apostasy because the Gospel is compromised.

Evidence of Modernism

We should not think that modernism as a theological error, does not exist in The Presbyterian Church in Ireland today. While heresy of the type that caused the huge debate in 1927 does not appear to exist, there continues to be a cohort which undermine the word of God. For example, in a blog posted on 5^th February 2018 Rev Steve Stockman of Fitzroy Presbyterian Church described, what he called, the idol of correct theology:

“Theology becomes an idol when we elevate it to the most important thing and when our own arrogant theological position excludes others from fellowship”.

He went onto describe a Roman Catholic friend as his brother in Christ. Rev Stockman wrote that he had no interest in what his friend thought about the mass, praying to Mary or using the Rosary; all that he cared about was that his friend loved Jesus.[12]

The reason why this series after the introduction, commenced with the importance of theology, is because truth alone is the bedrock of the church. It is true we must not worship our theology (as a mere set of doctrinal statements) but we do worship the unchanging God revealed to us through the incorruptible Word, who is defined by our theological statements. Therefore, to argue that we can accept someone’s Christianity without caring about what they believe is entirely false. Where true love exists, it cannot be divorced from truth.

This is the outworking of Modernism or Liberalism. Dr Alan Cairns described Liberalism as “freedom from all restraint imposed by any theological a priori meaning that any Biblical doctrine is open to be denied. Modernism denotes its preference for the new over the old”.[13]

The Tragedy of Apostasy

When a denomination slips away from its evangelical and Gospel moorings it drifts. One of the most obvious consequences of this slippage is the impact upon Church membership. Where the Gospel is not proclaimed with certainty unsaved people become part of the membership of the local congregation and eventually make their way into Sunday School teaching and on into the eldership and ministry also.

The Free Presbyterian Church, like every other denomination, is imperfect. We have our shortcomings and we must solemnly question whether we have always spoken the truth in love. Nevertheless, yet I am grateful to be part of a denomination where I do not have to battle with my elders and congregation for the liberty to preach the Gospel plainly and clearly. This is not the case, not only for some evangelical ministers within the Presbyterian Church in Ireland but for saved and sincere clergy endeavouring to do a Gospel work within all the mainstream Protestant Churches. The tragedy of this is monumental and serves as a solemn warning to a separated witness that we do all in our power to preserve the purity of the Church.

The Challenge for Presbyterian Evangelicals

When faced with such departure from the faith, together with its fearful consequences, what must evangelical ministers, converted elders and godly communicants within Irish Presbyterianism do? They have two choices. Commence a campaign to expose false teaching, which pollutes the whole body, with a view to purifying the Church. This was the route that Dr Henry Cooke chose in the early 19^th Century, when he successfully led Synod of Ulster, forcing the Unitarian group to leave and thereby opening the door to unity with the Secession Church and the formation of the General Assembly. If such a campaign fails, however, then separation is the only reasonable course of action.

I must add, however, that all those within the Presbyterian family of churches, who are faithful to the historic Christian faith as embodied within the Westminster Standards ought to long for the restoration of unity and fellowship. This unity, however, must be based entirely upon consistency of faith and doctrine, as was the case when the General Assembly was formed in 1840.

Is There Not A Cause?

The mixed nature of Irish Presbyterianism blunts the sharpness of the Gospel sword, which God’s Ministers must wield with conviction. What Ulster needs is to hear a message preached with clarity and conviction. Columnist Tom Holland captured this succinctly when commenting on the failure of the English Church hierarchy to inspire the nation with Christian truth during the Covid-19 crisis, a failure similar to what we have witnessed in Northern Ireland for decades:

“…all the mainstream churches in this country seem to be fumbling. Rather than speaking with the voice of prophecy, rather than explaining to a dead people how the dead will rise into the blaze of eternal life, rather than proclaiming the miracles and mysteries that they uniquely exist to proclaim, church leaders seem to have opted instead to talk like middle managers”.[15]

What Tom Holland accurately describes are the tragic consequences of departure from the faith. Where light and darkness attempt to mix, where evangelicalism sits alongside modernism, where Protestantism cohabits with ecumenism the message is fudged. The struggle to keep the body of the church together becomes more important than the message. Therefore, the liberal and the ecumenist can spout their nonsense with little resistance and when the evangelical preaches it is often shrouded in language that is understood by the faithful but does little to awake the slumbering. This is not what our countrymen require. The trumpet must be sounded because the Gospel, if it is true, is a message worth proclaiming, and if Jesus Christ lived and died for us, then we must defend Him with our dying breath. May God be pleased to deliver us from the uncertainty that stems from apostasy!

Therefore, we continue to make the case for separation with authority. This case needs to be made logically and tenderly yet with faithfulness to the Word of God. It is the lack of consistency within Irish Presbyterianism which ought to make us very grateful for the continued existence of the Free Presbyterian Church. On this basis I, therefore, argue that there remains a need in Ireland for a separated Presbyterian witness untainted by the errors of liberalism and ecumenism, a body which is able to contend earnestly for the faith.