“And the Church invisible, the true company of the redeemed,
finds expressions in the companies of Christians who constitute the visible
Church today. But what is the trouble with the visible Church? What is the
reason for its obvious weakness? There are perhaps many causes of weakness. But
one cause is perfectly plain-the Church of today has been unfaithful to her
Lord by admitting great companies of non-Christian persons, not only into her
membership, but into her teaching agencies. It is indeed inevitable that some
persons who are not truly Christian shall find their way into the visible
Church; fallible men cannot discern the heart, and many a profession of faith
which seems genuine may really be false. But it is not this kind of error to
which we now refer. What is now meant is not the admission of individuals whose
confessions of faith have not been sincere, but the admission of great
companies of persons who have never made any really adequate confession of
faith at all and whose entire attitude towards the gospel is the very reverse
of the Christian attitude. Such persons, moreover, have been admitted not merely
to the membership, but to the ministry of the Church, and to an increasing
extent have been allowed to dominate its councils and determine its teaching. The
greatest menace to the Christian Church today comes not from the enemies
outside, but from the enemies within; it comes from the presence within the
Church of a type of faith and practice hat is anti-Christian to the core.”
-J. Gresham Machen
American Theologian 1881-1937
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