A friend sends us a copy of the gospel magazine and British Protestant, having an article on "Christ's Presence in the Church" on which he asks our comment.

After quoting the passage, "Where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them," and, "Lo, I am with you all the days, [even] unto the end of the age," the author says:"Many earnest believers, among them a large portion of that body known as 'The Brethren,' take these words literally, and actually teach that the Lord Christ, as well as the Holy Spirit, is personally present in all the gatherings of His Church. But other plain scriptural statements contradict this view." Then the writer's own view is given thus:"Christ's presence now is by the Holy Spirit only, and not by any bodily presence."

The above-quoted writer seems not to distinguish between Christ's spiritual presence in the assemblies of His saints-which "the Brethren" believe-and His bodily, or physical, presence, which is neither taught nor believed by any of "the Brethren" of intelligence we know of. If while on earth our Lord as a Divine Person could and did say of Himself, "He that came down from heaven, even the Son of Man who IS in heaven," can He not now be bodily as Man on the eternal throne, and spiritually or divinely among His people assembled in His name upon earth? We see no difficulty whatever in this if we believe that our Lord is both human and Divine.

Our Lord gave His disciples repeated assurances that He would be with them in their testimony, labors and sufferings for His sake. In Matt. 28:20 He says:"Lo, / am with you alway, even to the end of the age;" His ascension is not even spoken of; He abides authoritatively with them. Mark 16:20 says, "They went forth and preached everywhere, the Lord working with them, and confirming the word with signs following." When Paul was in Jerusalem for the last time, and the Jews planning his destruction, we read, "The Lord stood by him and said, Be of good cheer, Paul; for as thou hast testified of Me in Jerusalem, so must thou bear witness also at Rome" (Acts 23:11 and 2 Tim. 4:16,17).

To explain away these plain and frequent assurances of the Lord's own divine presence with His people now, by saying it is in metonymy the Lord speaks thus (1:e., speaks of His representative, the Holy Spirit, as if it were Himself), will not appeal to nor satisfy the believer's heart.