A History of the Mennonite Brethren Church, Ja Toews

s. That Christ's Great Commission was a teaching commission, in which new converts were also to be taught to obey the commandments of Christ, was overlooked by the early Brethren. Pfarrer Wuest had instructed them in the doctrine of justification by faith, but not in the doctrine of the sanctification of the believer. Any new life movement without sound and systematic Bible teaching is bound to end in a disintegrating emotionalism. Zeal without knowledge is destructive. FAITH IN FERMENT 67 2. The need for the discernment of spirits During times of religious ferment and excitement, there is the danger that men who are powerful emotionally but shallow intellectually may gain control of a movement. The more mature men who could provide stability and direction are often pushed into the background. Emotional leaders have a tendency to emphasize personal experience at the expense of Bible study in devotional meetings. The brethren learned through harsh experience, that the church must also exercise the gift of discernment, and must not be deceived by a mere verbalization of the Christian faith. Emotion is a good servant, but a poor master. 3. The need for sane church leadership The brethren soon realized that Heinrich Huebert in his quiet way could do more for the nurture of the congregation than Jacob Becker with his more sensational manner. Because the church had learned this lesson, it entrusted the leadership to men of integrity and spiritual balance who were able to overcome the Froehliche Richtung. "Since that time the Mennonite Brethren Church has given preference to calm and soberminded men. To the more emotional (men) they gave the position of evangelist, but were less inclined to be guided by them in the congregation." 48 4. The need for congregational church polity The church learned to suspect and reject dictatorship in any form. Since the arbitrary and willful decisions of G. Wieler and B. Becker had created such havoc in the early church, the Mennonite Brethren have insisted on congregational participation and action. Only that is binding for the congregation, which the majority agreed to do. This does not exclude the right of the ministering brethren to give guidance on the basis of Scripture, but no minister or leader can act independently of the church. 5. The need for a strong ethical emphasis In the early years Christian doctrine was divorced from Christian ethics. The doctrine of "joyous justification" was separated from the teaching on holiness and Christian discipleship. "Separation" was interpreted primarily in terms of isolation from the world around us, rather than in terms of death to sin within us, as Paul teaches in Romans 6:4. The Brethren also realized that happiness can easily be divorced from holiness and thus lead to a false freedom. The Brethren learned that faith without works is dead, and that doctrine and ethics, faith and practice, must be kept in prop