June 17, 2026

The Heresy Trial of Jesse L. Sewell

Jesse L. Sewell (1818-1890)Jesse L. Sewell (1818-1890) was a Tennessee preacher who sincerely wanted to please God and to proclaim what he found to be taught in the Bible. Eventually, he became connected with the Restoration Movement. It was common for these preachers to begin their work within the denominations before breaking away to follow the New Testament as their only rule of faith and practice. Sewell followed this course, having his start among the Baptists.

However, his Baptist brethren took exception to his preaching, and he was tried for heresy in December 1842. The charge against him was that he had “run fully into Campbellism” (The Life and Sermons of Jesse L. Sewell, p. 54), a label pejoratively given to those who allegedly followed the teachings of Alexander Campbell (1788-1866), a prominent figure in the Restoration Movement. Peter Ragan, a visiting preacher, offered this definition of “Campbellism”: “It denied faith, repentance and the influence of the Spirit, and made a God of the water” (ibid., p. 54). Sewell dismissed the allegation against him.

“If Campbell lived eighteen hundred years ago, and was the author of the New Testament, he had gotten his doctrine from Campbell, but not unless this is true” (ibid., p. 54).

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March 18, 2026

Stepping Stones or Stumbling Stones

J. M. Kidwill (1836-1892)J. M. Kidwill (1836-1892) spent twenty-five years preaching the gospel in Middle Tennessee. During his travels through the area, he came to Dixon Springs in Smith County. When he arrived, there was no church there, but he “saw a door opened to the truth at Dixon Springs, and he went in” (Twenty-Five Years of Trust, p. 76). Through Kidwill’s efforts, a congregation was established there, and the church maintained a close relationship with the preacher.

In a letter to one of the sisters in Dixon Springs (Sister Rose), Kidwill spoke of the opportunity for the members of that congregation to spread the gospel in that area, while also warning about what could hinder their efforts.

“I hope that you will have at no distant day a goodly number of devoted Christians at Dixon Springs, who will not only contend for the Bible in opposition to all humanisms, but who will practice what they preach. I want Bro. Rose’s ear while I say that much, very much, depends on the few members that we have in your vicinity. The Savior compares the influence of example in his disciples to leaven in meal until all is leavened. May we realize that we are either stepping stones for our neighbors to a higher life or stumbling stones over which they may fall into ruin.” (Twenty-Five Years of Trust, p. 79)

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December 17, 2025

Fictitious Names

The Heretic DetectorIn the nineteenth century, religious journals were a common and effective way for those who were making the “restoration plea” to spread their message far and wide. Alexander Campbell’s Christian Baptist and Millennial Harbinger were two of the most prominent journals, yet others also received wide circulation, including Barton W. Stone’s Christian Messenger, Benjamin Franklin’s American Christian Review, and the Gospel Advocate, which was started by Tolbert Fanning.

In addition to these, numerous other journals were published across the country, including the curiously named Heretic Detector, edited by Arthur Crihfield (1803-1852) and published in Middleburgh, Ohio. In a letter to the editor, Crihfield received a letter from a man named Corbly Martin, criticizing the practice of writers using “fictitious names” in these journals.

“Dear Brother Detector:—

“Among the innumerable popular evils to be detected, there is one which, although not the least, I opine, has hitherto almost entirely escaped the notice of every ‘detector’ of this detecting age. It is certainly a part of the spirit of ‘all deceivableness of unrighteousness,’ and ought to be speedily detected…

“‘Well, what is it?’ say you:—It is simply this: The practice of writing letters, essays, &c. over fictitious names. Is it in accordance with the avowed spirit of this reformation, with the simple and honest, truth loving, and unfeigning genius of the Christian religion, to publish what I would not acknowledge to be the effusion of my own pen, or head, or heart? What I could not patronize with the influence of my own proper name? Or what needed some fictitious name of great renown, of Latinized form, or of magical sound, as a passport to the world, or to the congregation of the faithful?”

“Why do not you Editors require of your contributors that which is just and equal? When you write yourselves, you assume ‘the responsibility:’—as an enterprising merchant you run the risk of ‘loss and gain.’—Why do you burden yourselves and ease your correspondents!” (The Heretic Detector, Volume 1, pp. 271-272).

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October 15, 2025

Arguments against the Missionary Society

American Christian Missionary Society

The Missionary Society was the source of the first major controversy and division among those associated with the Restoration Movement. What began as informal “association” meetings evolved into formal organizations to which churches would send delegates, and evangelists would be commissioned to preach in a particular area while receiving financial support from the society. As time passed and the brethren involved desired to extend the reach of their state societies, a larger society was created at the national level – the American Christian Missionary Society, which was formed in 1849.

The fundamental problem with this arrangement is that the New Testament contains no authority for the practice. Instead, it describes the local church as the only collectivity through which Christians engaged in the work of evangelism. The Missionary Society, in contrast, was a human institution that was founded, organized, directed, and funded by men. Yet in the first century, with only the work of individual Christians and local churches (which were designed by the Lord and followed His direction), the gospel spread quickly and broadly throughout the world.

Often, when brethren discuss the concept of the Missionary Society, they focus on this point: The local church is the organization specified by the Lord in the New Testament for spreading the gospel; therefore, every other organization used for this work (including the Missionary Society) is unauthorized.

That is a valid argument. However, this was not the only argument used by the opponents of the Missionary Society when it was first introduced. In the book Restoration Principles and Personalities, author Dabney Phillips described four general arguments that were used against the Missionary Society.Continue Reading

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July 16, 2025

Pay Particular Attention to Your Children

Father and Son

In the nineteenth century, it was common for preachers to travel far and wide to proclaim the gospel, often being gone from home for extended periods of time. This made for a difficult life for the wives of these men, as they were left with the sole responsibility to take care of the household while their husbands were away preaching, sometimes for months at a time.

There were also instances in which these preachers lost their wives while they still had children at home. However, that did not necessarily stop them from continuing their work. But instead of leaving the children with their mother while he was away, he would leave them with others to care for them.

Two men who found themselves in this situation were Barton W. Stone (1772-1844) and Reuben Dooly (1773-1822). In 1810, when they were both widowers, they traveled together through Ohio preaching the gospel. The following year, during a similar trek to Tennessee, Stone spoke of the difficulty in raising their children while they were away traveling. This had an impact on Dooly and led him to make a change.

“In the year 1811, Brothers Dooly and Stone traveled to Tennessee in company. On their way the circumstances of their families came up in conversation. Brother Stone remarked that they were commanded to raise their children in the nurture and admonition of the Lord, and under existing circumstances, it was difficult to do it for their children were measurably under the tuition of others; and further observed that it was his opinion that if they could obtain suitable companions that it would be their duty to marry and situate themselves so that they could pay some particular attention to their children. This led Brother Dooly to reflect on the situation of his children: they were scattered and moved from place to place.

“Finally he addressed a letter to Miss Rachael Martin, daughter of Samuel and Mary Martin, all members of the Cane-Ridge church, and made a proposition of marriage: he succeeded, and they were married in September, 1811. In her he obtained a pleasant, agreeable, and intelligent companion, and a kind, affectionate, and attentive mother to his children. He now settled on a new farm in Preble County, Ohio. He was not able to hire his work done; and consequently had to labor with his own hands to support his family. He was one among the most industrious men, and when at home worked excessively hard, and as soon as he could spare the time from his family, he would be out in the gospel-field proclaiming salvation to a dying world.” (The Biography of Elder David Purviance, pp. 211-212)

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April 2, 2025

What Does It Mean to Be Called to Preach?

James M. Mathes: Called to Preach?

James Madison Mathes (1808-1892), like so many religious people in the nineteenth century, was determined to dismiss the religious teachings he had previously been taught to simply learn the Scriptures and follow what they taught. This led him to be immersed for the remission of sins. Later, he joined the ministry and dedicated his life to preaching and teaching the gospel.

Many who begin the work of preaching the gospel speak of being “called” to the ministry or “called” to preach. This is true today as it was in Mathes’ day. However, Mathes had a different understanding of what this meant than many of his religious contemporaries. Notice his criticism of many who claimed to have been “called” by God to preach:

“I have known some enthusiasts who had but little to entitle them to public notice, except their fiery zeal, ignorance, and supportive impudence, who at the same time looked upon themselves as a kind of second edition of the Apostles! Such fanatical spirits frequently tell their hearers, when they get up to preach, that they are going to speak just as God gives it to them—that God has called them by name, qualified, and sent them forth as his ambassadors to a rebellious world—that God had revealed his mind and will to them by direct revelation. 

“But it frequently happens, that such men cannot join two simple sentences together, or deliver one clear intelligible idea in a discourse of an hour long, and that too under the immediate control of the Holy Spirit, if we take their word for it! Now I cannot believe that God even called any man to preach who had not the ability to do it, neither do I believe that God ever sent any man who could not tell his message.” (A Record of Christian Union and Truth, p. 157)

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December 18, 2024

Sermons with “Stickers”

Myhr: Points Filed Off

In the book Sketches of Our Mountain Pioneers, Preston Gray spoke highly of the preaching of A. I. Myhr (1855-1933). He also recalled a criticism Myhr made of another unnamed preacher.

“Myhr’s visits to all our churches were great occasions. The people soon learned to expect something. He was a thinker, and positively despised sluggish thinking. Of a certain minister, he said to me, one day, ‘He is a capital fellow, but when he preaches, all the points are filed off.’ He told me that he liked sermons and thoughts that had ‘stickers’ in them.” (Sketches of Our Mountain Pioneers, p. 203)

The gospel, when it is preached in its simplicity and purity, is going to have “stickers” that will “prick” people to the heart and spur them to obey the Lord. Notice what happened on the day of Pentecost following the resurrection and ascension of Jesus:

“‘Therefore let all the house of Israel know for certain that God has made Him both Lord and Christ this Jesus whom you crucified.’ Now when they heard this, they were pierced to the heart, and said to Peter and the rest of the apostles, ‘Brethren, what shall we do?’” (Acts 2:36-37).

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