January 30, 1878. Standing Committee met in Findlay today. Principal business to attend to charges preferred. by Bro. G. W. Wilson against Bro. J. V. Updike and myself. Against him for maladministration of the church here and deserting it and turning church interests over to the Holiness Alliance, etc. Against me: 1. Transcending the restrictions of the Eldership; 2. Violating rules of cooperation; 3. participating in dividing the church.

      As to the first, it relates to an action of the body last Eldership in which I was prohibited from springing the holiness meeting on any church where they did not wish it. This charge was not sustained by a single proof. The facts are as follows. Father Keller was led by the Spirit to go to Findlay to procure a place for a holiness meeting. He found meeting in progress in the Church of God, tried to get the house to begin as soon as they were through, but they refused. He then engaged the Reform house, but left an offer still with the Church of God to occupy their house if they concluded to let us have it. When we rec'd word that the meeting was about to close we went up and found it still in progress; and as the holiness workers were there we wished to begin a meeting on the holiness line. We gave the church the first offer to use their house and they consented to us using the house; however this I think they did because they knew that if we went to another house we would carry all the interests from their house; and when the whole counsel of God was presented they could not stand it; and they gathered in the back end of the house with wicked men and fought the work of God. So that we soon saw that nothing could be done there; hence we removed to the Court house. I [292] had nothing at all to do with the appointment of the meeting there and only did some of the preaching after Father Keller and Bros. Ackers and Linsey had got the use of the house from the elders and trustees or a majority of them.

      2d Charge, "Violation of rules of cooperation." The rule cited was like this: no person shall go upon another's field of labor to hold meetings, etc, without the consent of preacher and church. When we announced meeting at the court house, one of the Elders announced preaching there at the bethel the next night. Bro. Wilson filled the pulpit and continued some 4 or 5 nights with no success and small congregations. Now because I assisted in the meeting at the court house while these church services were continued in the same town, I am thus charged. When these meetings were really appointed after and in opposition to the real work of the Lord, where souls were daily being saved.

      3d Charge--"dividing the church." I showed that the only results of the holiness meeting were 53 sinners converted and 118 believers sanctified. And that all the division and confusion was caused by the carnal and wicked opposition on the part of the rest of the church: just like the envious Jews stirred up the people at Thessalonica and Berea, Acts 17, and interrupted the apostles in their peaceable work of leading souls to Jesus, as well as disturbed the peace of the city. The Apostles of course had to bear the blame and like everywhere else they went bonds and prisons awaited them; and I too was ready to suffer affliction with the people of God for the sake of Christ. All Adam became aroused so that I was stopped from reading other Scriptures. In Isa. 32:15 having pictured out the present spiritual desolations refers to the return of power thus, "Until the Spirit be poured upon us from on high and the wilderness be a fruitful field and the fruitful field be counted for a forest." Thus the return of power and fruitfulness caused by seeking and obtaining pure hearts is judged a forest, a jungle, i. e. fanaticism, insanity, and so forth. Jer. 15:19-21 is very clearly prophetic of this work.

      1. Preceding desolations.
      2. True ministers are as God's mouth because they separate the precious [293] from the vile; (church and world)
      3. They (the false church) must come back to them.
      4. But return not thou (those who have come out straight for God) unto them.
      5. "I will make thee unto this people a fenced brazen wall." Power of holy living and holy testimony.
      6. They shall fight against thee--not prevail.
      7. Because I (the Lord) am with thee to save thee etc. Praise his holy name.

      When for the sake of the dear people calling themselves the Church of God I was studying how to compromise the two elements in the church here, the Lord gave me this text, and the Spirit led me to preach it straight. All though it conflicted with what I had cherished, i. e. a hope of fraternizing the sanctified and the unsanctified.

      Eve. Bro. Updike's case was adjusted by the Court, The Elders, and himself. They tried hard to bind him down to abandon holiness as a definite work and to have no communion with holiness workers. He agreed to some restrictions about preaching holiness where it was not wanted; rec'd his license and was placed on McComb Circuit. Evidently they have some hopes of leading him to a recantation. May the mercy and grace of God keep him from coming down from the highway. Bro. Chambers was at our meeting in North Findlay this eve.

      31. Was brought to the depot this morn in sled, heavy snow falling. Met Bros. Cassel and Jos. Fernbaugh at depot. After riding some time on the train together in conversation Bro. Cassel (one of the committee) seeing that I was not enough concerned to ask him what disposition they had made of my case, informed me that the court had decided that the charges were sustained and that they had withheld my license. I thanked him for their decision and assured him that if I were to look upon the matter from the mere human standpoint and consider my attachment to the Church of God and her principals, I would regard their action a dreadful calamity and intolerable to bear, but that I had now that charity which "believeth all things" and "endureth all things" and therefore [294] I calmly rested in the promise of God that "all things work together for good to me" and the sweet assurance that my dear Father to whom I belonged would turn this and everything else (as long as I stay on the altar) to my good and his glory. Praise his holy name. Stopped with my Uncle John Deardorf in Cary. Also Bro. Berbaugh. I talked with him on the subject of sanctification. His heart is very open. We had a season of prayer together at Uncle's. Reached home about 2 P. M. Father came on a later train, reached home about midnight, Praise the Lord.

      Up to the time of leaving Findlay there were 53 converts and 118 believers sanctified, including about all the 53 converts; many of them were sanctified the next meeting after converted and a few at the same meeting. Glory to God for full salvation.

[Journal of D. S. Warner (1972), pp. 292-295.]

      Daniel S. Warner's "Trial and Expulsion from the West Ohio Eldership" is an excerpt from the Journal of D. S. Warner ([s. l.]: [s. n.], 1972), pp. 292-295. The journal entries are for January 30-31, 1878.

      In the electronic text, pagination has been represented by placing the page number in brackets following the last complete word on the printed page; the dates have been set in boldface type; the month and year have been added for the first occurrence. I have let stand variations and inconsistencies in the author's use of capitalization, punctuation, abbreviations, and spelling; his underlined words have been set in italics.

      Addenda and corrigenda are earnestly solicited.

Ernie Stefanik
Derry, PA

Created 13 February 1998.
Updated 15 July 2003.