From all tiiis it is clear that the visible mani- festation of the Lord was designed to be superseded by a manifestation through the word of His wit- nesses. But can the word really take the place of the sensuous contact with the Lord's Person? For answer let it be remembered in the first place that Christ foretold that it should be sufficient (e.g. Jn l?'^""^-, Mt 282"). What the original wit- nesses enjoyed, others should enjoy too — the same immediate fellowship, the same certainty. As the men of Sychar believed at last not for the woman's speaking, but because they had heard for them- selves ( Jn 4^^), so through the word of the Apostles others are brought into actual saving relation with the same Lord Christ. Alike for those who saw Him, and for those who saw Him not, the outward facts must be inwardly apprehended and inwardly tested. And as was the design, so also is the actual experience under the gospel : where the word is truly preached the Spirit does energize and seal it, and those who believe receive the same certainty as the original disciples possessed. The whole NT preaching manifestly rests upon the full persuasion that this is and must be so (e.q. 1 P P, He 138, 2P P, esp. Ac Ips-is). Faith does come by hearing (Ro 10^^) — the fact of the vital union with Christ is proof of the adequacy of the word of testimony. Such is the argument of that wonderful passage, 1 Jn P"*. Those who through their associa- tion with Christ in the flesh had apprehended the life manifested, bear witness to others, that these also may enter into the same fellowship with them, — the glorious fellowship with the Father and with His Son Jesus Christ. In the days of His flesh, Jesus was (according to an expression of Beyschlag in his Lehen Jesu) 'His own prophet.' After His resurrection this office is committed to faith- ful witnesses. And it is thus that they conceive their office. The ministry of reconciliation is com- mitted to them. As ambassadors of Christ they stand in Christ's stead (2 Co 5^^- 20). To bear wit- ness to Christ is their one aim as heralds (1 Jn 4^^). And their word is effectual. He who believes through their word is not then ' a Christian of a secondary order ' ; his knowledge of Christ is indeed mediated and yet immediate (cf. the vigorous discussion of E. Haupt, Die Bedeutunr/ derheiligen Schrift fur den evangelischen Christen).
The same holds good throughout all time. The word stands firm ; it never passes away (He 2i' ^, Mk 13^'). Wherever the word of Christ is preached with the certainty of faith, it can bring the hearer into ' the like precious faith ' (2 P 1^).
But the effectiveness of the word of testimony is absolutely conditioned upon the operation of the Holy Sjnrit. The essence of the word is the pro- mise of fellowship, grace, eternal life through Jesus Christ. Unless the preacher has the inward consciousness of the reality of the life with Christ through the Spirit, his word is no witness. And unless the hearer is aided by the Spirit to appre- hend and to prove the testimony, the word con- cerning peace, fellowship, freedom, and the power of an endless life would be but empty sound. When, however, the word is spoken in the Spirit, it is quick, powerful, convincing, saving (He 4^^, Jn 168, Ja Pi).
Have, then, the original witnesses no peculiar privilege and authority? So far as personal cer- tainty is concerned, they have no advantage over true believers of any age. Nevertheless, in the economy of the gospel dispensation, the word of the original witnesses is manifestly of cardinal importance. The mere fact that they were the first witnesses is of itself sufficient to give to their testimony a peculiar importance and to make it for evangelical Christians the last resort. Even those believing critics who go farthest in the sift- ing of Apostolic tradition, agree that the saving knowledge of God in Christ is mediated to us through the primitive Christian preaching. Either we must gain our knowledge of Christ by this means, or else we must give up the inquiry, for no other way is open to us (cf. art. BACK TO Christ). The primitive witnesses, however, were more than merely the first, as though there by chance. They had been chosen beforehand and specially trained for the work of bearing witness. Either our Lord succeeded in giving to His chosen Apostles such an understanding of His mission and work as to enable them to bear competent witness, or else He failed. If He failed, there could be no certainty for them and no gospel to us through them. The soundness and sufficiency of their witness are established by the demonstration of the Spirit and of poAver, and this accompanies the same witness in every suc- ceeding age.
For the sake of their testimony many of Christ's servants have been called upon to suffer death. Such were called in a special ethical sense fidprvpes 'Iv<Tov (Ac 2220, jiev 2i» 17'^). 'This is not to be understood, as in ecclesiastical Greek, in the sense that death was the form of their testimony, but in reference to their testimony of Jesus as having occasioned their death ' (Cremer, Lex. ; cf. also Rev 20*). An approach to the analogous use of /xap- Tvpio) is probably to be found in 1 Ti 6'^ 'Jesus Christ, who before Pontius Pilate witnessed the good confession.'