Page:Tracts for the Times Vol 1.djvu/303

 Christians, which he met with?—a great number of sects, I repeat, in spite of the Apostles being alive; so that it is not the mere circumstance of the Apostles being dead, which makes a search necessary to find the true Church.

J.—I see what you would say, Sir.

Dr.—Now then to proceed. You are disposed to doubt, whether one Church was truer than another after the Apostles' death. Surely is it not plain, that that Church would still be the true one, which they had governed? Now you will find, (Matt. xxviii. 19, 20.) that our promised to be with His Apostles in their character of teachers and baptizers of the nations, alway, even unto the end of the world. What did He mean by that?

J.—He could not mean that Peter, James, or John, or their brethren, were to live for ever on earth; for we know that they are long since dead.

Dr.—Certainly not; and we must therefore ascribe to His words the only other meaning which they can reasonably bear. As He could not have spoken of the persons of the Apostles, He must have spoken of their offices. He must have meant that though Peter, James, and John should be taken from the world, the true Church should never be left without Apostles, but be guided by their successors to the end of time.

John Evans had all this while been retracing with Dr. Spencer the way he had lately come, and had now arrived at the door of his own house. The good Clergyman thinking he had given him matter enough to cast in his mind, took this as a fit moment to break off the conversation, determining to resume it some early day. He therefore merely went into his parishioner's house to turn out for him the texts he had referred to, and then wished him good evening.

The next Sunday John was at Church; and after the Service was over, he kept lingering in the path which led to the Dr.'s house, in hopes of being overtaken by his Rector. He was not disappointed. Dr. Spencer soon joined him, and the argument between them was resumed.

J.—If, Sir, as you were saying, our meant, that there should be teachers and rulers of the Church, to stand in the place of the Apostles after their death, how is it we hear nothing of these successors, so to call them, in Scripture?