A member church of the Presbyterian Church in America since 1974, Fairview Presbyterian Church in Fountain Inn,South Carolina, was established in 1786 and ranks as one of the oldest churches in the PCA (fifteen are older).

History of Fairview Presbyterian Church
Greenville County
1786-1886

The Fairview Presbyterian Church is located in Greenville County, South Carolina, Fairview Township, five miles west of Fountain Inn.

The above church was organized in the late fall of 1786, the following families composing the organization: John Peden’s, Samuel Peden’s, David Peden’s, James Alexander’s, and James Nesbitt’s.

This church was received under the care of South Carolina Presbytery on April 10, 1787.

There have been four church buildings. The first was built of logs and located, not far from the church spring, on the east side. The second was also a log structure and situated near the spot on which the brick church afterwards stood. The third was the brick building. It was finished in 1818 and dedicated by the Rev. R.B. Cater in August of that year. Its site was just in front of the graveyard, where remains of it may still be found. The fourth is the one now in use. It was completed in March, 1858, and dedicated by Rev. David Humphrey and Dr. E.T. Buist on May 15 of the same year. The occasion was also a season of great spiritual blessing to the church. There were many conversions and the membership much revived.

The Rev. Samuel Edmonson of Virginia, preached the first sermon and organized the church with the following ruling elders: John Peden, Samuel Peden, James Alexander, Sr., and his son, John Alexander. The first minister to serve the church was Rev. John McCosh, for one year. Second, Rev. J. Foster Simpson and Rev. William Montgomery, each preached occasionally until 1794, when Rev. James Templeton was called as stated supply for half of his time and continued for six years.

From 1800 to 1802, the pulpit was vacant, but in 1802, this church, with Nazareth, Spartanburg County, called the Rev. James Gilliland, Jr., as pastor, and continued for ten years.

From 1812 to 1814, Rev. James Hillhouse, Rev. Thomas Archibald, Rev. Joseph Hillhouse, and Rev. Alexander Kirkpatrick were occasional supplies, as appointed by Presbytery.

From 1814 to 1816, Rev. Hugh Dickson served the church for one-fourth his time. Again the Rev. James Hillhouse served for six months, followed by Rev. Thomas Archibald for one year, and Rev. Alexander Kirkpatrick for two years. Rev. Thomas Baird served for two years, 1818-1820. Rev. Michael Dickson served Fairview and Nazareth from 1820-1827. Vacant from 1827 to 1832, Messrs. Watson and Craig holding occasional services as appointed by Presbytery, with Rev. Arthur Mooney.

In 1832, Rev. John Boggs took charge as supply, later, as pastor. He was followed by Rev. David Humphrys for three years. He was succeeded by Rev. William Carlisle in 1838, who was stated supply for six years. He was followed by Rev. John McKittrick for two years, then Rev. E.T. Buist as stated supply for six years.

This brings us to the ministry of Rev. C.B. Stewart, which extended over a period of thirty years, eighteen, as stated supply, and twelve years, as pastor. His worthy successor was Rev. Marion C. Britt, as pastor for three-fourths of his time.

The list of those who have served as ruling elders in the church from 1786 to 1886 is as follows: John Peden, Samuel Peden, James Alexander, Sr., John Alexander, Alexander Peden, William Peden, Robert Morrow, Anthony Savage, Thomas W. Alexander, Lindsay A. Baker, James Peden, James Alexander, David Morton, Alexander Thompson, James Dunbar, Adam Stenhouse, Austin Williams, J.E. Savage, John M. Harrison, A.W. Peden, T.H. Stall, Dr. W.A. Harrison, Thomas L. Woodside, Dr. D.R. Anderson, W.L. Hopkins, Robert Wham, David Stoddard, J.W. Kennedy, and Dr. H.B. Stewart.

The office of deacon was established in 1858, and the following men have served in that capacity up to the year 1886: John T. Stenhouse, T.C. Harrison, William Nesbitt, D.R. Anderson, Thomas L. Woodside, Thomas H. Stall, W.L. Hopkins, C.D. Nesbitt, D.M. Peden, T.C. Peden, E.W. Nash, A.S. Peden, J.T. Peden, M.P. Nash and S.T. McKittrick.

An imperfect roll of communicants from the beginning to 1886, contains about twelve hundred names. The neighboring churches of New Harmony and Lickville are her daughters, and many colonies in other states, who have carried with them her faith and spirit. Two of her sons are in the ministry, the Rev. A.G. Peden of Griffin, Georgia, and the Rev. C.L. Stewart of our own Presbytery. The first hundred years of her existence have been rich in blessings, and we can raise our Ebenezer with thanksgiving and praise for “hitherto the Lord has helped us.”

The church bears no marks of decay, and if her children are only faithful to their heritage, it can be said of her that she has but entered upon her divine mission of “gathering and perfecting the saints.”

By (Mrs.) Cannie H. Woodside. [written circa 1936]

STUDIES IN THE WESTMINSTER SHORTER CATECHISM
by Rev. Leonard Van Horn.

Q. 5. Are there more gods than one?

A. There is but one only, the living and true God.

Scripture References: Deut. 6:4. Jer. 10:10.

Questions:

1. What proofs can we offer that there is only one true and living God? We can offer proof from Scripture as it says, “Hear, O Israel, the Lord our God is one Lord.” (Deut. 6:4). We can offer proof from reason since there can be only one first cause and ultimate end of all things. Scripture is logical when it states as the first verse: “In the beginning God . . .” Many have called this one of the important verses of the Bible.

2. Why not begin our study of God with the Trinity?

We begin with God since this is the method the Scripture uses. The Bible presents first the truth of the one true and living God and then proceeds to unfold the mystery of the Trinity.

3. What does it mean when it says “one only” in this Question?

The teaching here does not deny the fact of the Trinity or the deity of Christ or the Holy Spirit. It rather points out that absolutely none other person or being shares the attributes of the “one only” true God. He cannot be compared to anything else in the entire uni­verse, all of which He alone created and governs.

4. What may we learn from this truth?

We may learn to recognize Him as Almighty and Sovereign. Our at­tention is thereby called to the fact that there is only One Supreme Being, Maker, Designer and Lawgiver of the world and that He is the only One.

5. What do we call the doctrine of one God?

This teaching is called “Monotheism” in opposition to “Polytheism”, the teaching that there are many gods. The pagan world is Poly­theistic. In contrast to this, Paul says, “. . . we know that air idol is nothing in the world, and that there is none other God but one.” (I Cor. 8:4b)

6. What is the meaning of the word “living” in this Question?

The word “living” emphasizes that He alone has life in Himself and is therefore the Fountain of life to all His creatures. Dr. William Childs Robinson points out that “He calls Himself the LIVING God. Our Lord Jesus speaks of God as the LIVING Father, Peter con­fesses the Saviour as the Son of the LIVING God, Paul calls the Church the Church of the LIVING God and believers the children of the LIVING God.” He further states that “He has life in and of Himself and He gives life to everything else.”

THE ONE GOD and CHRISTIAN LIVING

Bavinck states in his treatise on “The Being of God”: “The first thing that the Holy Scripture wants to give us, in its use of all those descriptions and names of the Divine Being, is an ineradicable sense of the fact that Jehovah, the God, who has revealed Himself to Israel and in Christ, is the very, the true, and the living God. The idols of the heathen and the idols (panthesistic and polytheistic, deistic and athe­istic) of the philosophers, are the work of men’s hands: they cannot speak nor see, they cannot hear, nor taste nor go . . . People want to make God a dead God so that they may treat Him as they please.”

There should be a definite relationship between our belief in the “one only, the living and true God” and our Christian living. We can not treat our God as the world desires to treat Him. Those of us who have been redeemed by the sovereign grace of the Sovereign God should recognize that our belief in Him implicates us in serious responsibilities.

There is our responsibility for Prayer and Bible Study. This is basic in order for us to be good stewards of our responsibilities. It is fine to have definite beliefs and to be able to recite the Catechism. It is fine to be known as those who are committed to the Standards of our Church, who are Calvinistic to the core. But without diligence in prayer and in the study of God’s Word, the committed one becomes a weak sound for the Saviour. Too many of us are in such a hurry about material things, about duties of the church, that we do not have time for private de­votion. If a person is wrong here he becomes wrong all the way through.

There is our responsibility for God-centered living. The Christian who is dedicated to the Westminster Standards, the Reformed point of view, is a Christian who in his world and life view must stand in direct contrast to the non-Christian in all of his actions, words and thoughts. One of the greatest hindrances to the testimony of the church today is that it is too difficult for an unbeliever to tell the difference between himself and the nominal Presbyterian who has merely professed to believe.

Many other responsibilities could be mentioned. However, if all of us would make a covenant with God, the living God, to fulfill the above two in the months to come, the living God would make use of His peo­ple in a mighty way. The result would be something all churches need. The result would be REVIVAL of religious living!

The First Presbyterian Church of Jackson was organized on a Saturday afternoon,April 8, 1837 by the Reverend Peter Donan and four persons: Mrs. Margaret E. Mayson, Mrs. Susan Patton, and John Robb and his wife, Marion.  The organization meeting was held in “the Old State House,” Mississippi’s first capitol, a small two-story structure on the northeast corner of E. Capitol and N. President Streets.   Peter Donan continued as the church’s pastor for four years.  There were no elders for two years, no deacons for six years, nor a Presbyterian house of worship for nearly nine years.  In the first two years of its existence, the church had but three new members.

In 1841, Reverend Donan was followed by Reverend  S. H. Hazard, who was pastor for little more than one year.  He was succeeded by the Reverend  Leroy Jones Halsey, a dynamic man and preacher, under whose ministry the congregation commenced to grow.  Halsey spurred the building of the first sanctuary on the northwest corner of North State and Yazoo Streets.  When Dr. Halsey resigned in 1848, the pulpit was supplied until February 22, 1849. The congregation then called as pastor the Reverend Isaac James Henderson, who served until he was succeeded by the Reverend L. A. Lowry on December 3, 1853.   Mr. Lowry was a fine pastor and effective preacher, but died of Yellow Fever after but two years service.  The pulpit was supplied from March, 1855, until a call was extended to the Reverend John Hunter on January 24, 1858.

[For more on the history of First Presbyterian Church, Jackson, MS, see the church web site.]

Words to Live By:
Blessed Zion: First Presbyterian Church, Jackson, Mississippi, 1837-2012, is a wonderful church history, written by Dr. Sean Lucas and published early in 2013. The book’s preface alone would be worth the purchase price, in my estimation. There Dr. Lucas summarizes several lessons drawn from the writing of this history:

1. It only takes one generation for a church to die. The reasons may vary: “a poor pastoral choice; a failure to continue to preach God’s Word faithfully; a transition in the church’s understanding of mission; an inability to see and adapt to the neighborhood around it.” By the grace of God, First/Jackson has been blessed in making many right choices over the many years.

2. The quality of the ruling elders who serve the church. These men who form the Session of the church must be talented, godly men.

3. The value of long-term pastorates, allowing for great stability, space for godly pastors to “to shape the theological and experiential perspective of the congregation in favor of the grand, winsome, evangelical truths of Reformed Christianity,” and enabling pastors to earn the long-term trust of their congregation.

4. What Dr. Lucas calls “The Road Not Taken,” i.e., knowing that mistakes, even disastrous ones, can be so easily made, we must recognize and rely upon God’s mercy and blessing. We note that Rev. Peter Donan, the founding pastor of First/Jackson, later departed from the Reformed Faith, but in God’s providence, that was some years later and by that time he had no influence on the life of this congregation. “Churches that stand faithful through the generations are those that seek men who are faithful to the Scripture, true to the Reformed faith, and obedient to the Great Commission.”

5. The blessings of evangelical Presbyterianism. A great church will not “major in the minors” but will focus on proclaiming Christ and Him crucified.

Yesterday’s post was on the Rev. Asa Hillyer, and today we would like to present the following portion of a sermon by Rev. Hillyer, as an example of his ministry.

The 1837 division of the General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church, U.S.A. left Dr. Hillyer on the side of the New School. He deplored the schism, but never let it affect his fraternal relations with those from whom he was ecclesiastically separated. He recommended mutual forbearance and charity, and enjoyed to the end of his life, which was now near at hand, the unabated good-will and warm personal esteem of prominent men on both sides of the Old School/New School division.

In his final days, one of Hillyer’s last public efforts was a sermon preached before the Synod of Newark, taking as his text the words of Abraham to Lot:

“Let there be no strife, I pray thee, between me and thee, and between my herdsmen and thy herdsmen; for we be brethren. Is not the whole land before thee?” (Genesis 13:8-9).

Rev. Hillyer urged that there was ample room in our vast country for the fullest activity and expansion of both Assemblies [Old School and New School], and, holding up the noble example of the Hebrew patriarch, he said–

“Let all who have interest in the throne of grace, and all who love the Redeemer and the Church which he purchased with His own blood, unite their prayers and their influence for the spread of this benevolent, this heavenly principle. Beloved brethren, (he added), permit me as your elder brother, as one who has borne the heat and burden of the day, and whose departure is at hand, affectionately to press these remarks upon the Synod now convened. We are indeed a little band. Separated from many whom we love, we occupy a small part of the vineyard of our common Lord. But let us not be discouraged. Let none of our efforts to do good be paralyzed by the circumstances into which we have been driven. Rather let us with increased zeal and diligence cultivate the field which we are called to occupy, while we are always ready to cooperate with our brethren in every part of the land in spreading the Gospel of the grace of God, and in saving a wretched world from ruin.”

Words to Live By:
From what I have seen of his story, I suspect that Rev. Hillyer did not personally hold to the errors that were said to define the New School wing of the division. His continued fraternal relations with Old School men offers some proof of that. He was, in his own words, more “driven by circumstances,” as many numbered among the New School were. It is a mark of good Christian maturity to hold your convictions firmly, yet still be able to work alongside other Christians who may not share your every conviction or who may have other affiliations. Such fellowship may certainly have its limits, but much can often be accomplished within those constraints. Notice that phrase in Hillyer’s words, above—the Gospel of the grace of God. Without that foundation, there can be no true fellowship. But where we share that common ground of the Gospel of the grace of God, there—and there only—do we have a basis for praying together and working together.

If God is going to bring a great turning from sin, it must and can only be His work.

Stand Still and See the Salvation of God.

Asa Hillyer was born in Sheffield, Massachusetts, on April 6, 1763. His father was a physician, who served in the army during the Revolutionary War, with young Asa attending by his side in the later years of the War.

Asa entered Yale in 1782, graduating in 1786 at the age of twenty-three. He prepared for the ministry under the guidance of the Rev. Dr. Buell of East Hampton, and completed his studies with Dr. Livingston of the Reformed Dutch Church in New York.

Licensed to preach by the Old Presbytery of Suffolk, Long Island in 1788, he was appointed to supply churches in Connecticut. In 1798, the General Assembly appointed him a missionary to the northern part of Pennsylvania and the western section of New York. His travels lasted for nine weeks and covered some nine hundred miles, preaching almost every day. He was the first minister to ever preach in the region that is now Auburn, New York.

In 1801, Rev. Hillyer was called to serve the First Presbyterian Church in Orange, New Jersey. At that time, this was one of the largest and most influential churches in the State. Hillyer’s ministry was well-received by the congregation, and he remained their pastor for thirty years. In 1833, he resigned his charge and devoted his remaining years to serving as pulpit supply for other churches in the region and to visitation. The Rev. Asa Hillyer died on the evening of August 28th, 1840.

The Rev. James Hoyt wrote a history of this church, titled “The Mountain Society:” A History of the First Presbyterian Church, Orange, N.J. (New York, 1860), and in this history, a full chapter is devoted to Rev. Hillyer’s thirty years as pastor. Among the facets of this chapter, it is notable that there were three marked occasions of revival during Hillyer’s years, 1807-08, 1816-17, and 1832. Of the first of these revivals, there is this striking description of the times prior to the revival:

“But it may not be improper to remark here, that for some time previous to this, everything around assumed a gloomy aspect in regard to evangelical piety. All meetings for prayer except the first Monday in the month, were relinquished. Gambling, horse-racing, intemperance, and dissipation of every kind, threatened all social order with destruction. A moral society had been established for two years, the object of which was the suppression of vice and immorality; but no human effort was able to withstand the torrent of vice which threatened us on every side. At the same time the exertions of Christians were paralyzed; the wise were sleeping with the foolish. This state of things alarmed a few praying people; they agreed to resume a prayer-meeting which had, for the first time in forty years, been relinquished the spring before. This took place about the latter part of July. For a number of weeks not more than twelve or fourteen persons attended; but such fervent and earnest wrestling with God I never witnessed. They prayed as though they saw their children and neighbors standing on the verge of destruction, and that, without an immediate interposition of almighty grace, they were lost for ever.”

“Then in 1807, began a great revival of religion in the town. Ninety-seven joined the church in one day, and about two hundred in all. Fifty, or more, were gathered at Bloomfield.”

“It was soon perceived that our public assemblies were unusually solemn, but no special impression appeared to be made until the third Sabbath in September. In the morning the assembly was addressed on the awful solemnity of a future judgment; and, in the afternoon, from these words: Choose you this day whom ye will serve. This was a day long to be remembered. Such solemnity had not been seen for many years, and many date their first impressions from that day.”

Two things seem remarkable about this account. First, there was the prevailing sinfulness of the wider society in those years. And second, unlike the typical characteristics of a Second Great Awakening “revival”, this occasion was marked by a great solemnity and lack of excitement or passions. Further on in the account, we read that “No attempt was made to work upon the passions…The assembly was unusually solemn. Numbers were evidently pricked to the heart. Their tears, which they made great exertion to conceal, betrayed an awakened conscience…No disturbance was made. All retired in solemn silence.”

Then these last words seem particularly indicative of what we might expect of a true time of revival:

“One evening, after the benediction had been pronounced, the whole assembly stood in solid column. Scarcely an individual moved from his place. Such evidences of deep and heart-felt sorrow I never witnessed before, on any occasion. While all stood in solemn silence, there seemed a great appearance of solemnity than during any part of the previous exercises. Sometimes it seemed we had only to stand still and see the salvation of God. It seemed, indeed, that the Lord was there, and that He gave us an example of His immediate work upon the conscience and heart.

Words to Live By:
If God is going to bring a great turning from sin, it must and can only be His work. It will not be brought about by emotional antics or other man-made contrivances. For our part, may we be earnest in prayerfully waiting upon Him.

Stand in awe, and sin not; commune with your own heart upon your bed, and be still. Selah.
Offer the sacrifices of righteousness, and put your trust in the LORD.
(Ps. 4:4-5, KJV)