Jon Gary Williams
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0752

Another report of the above debate
F. B. Syrgley vs J. B. Briney (Christian Church - Instrumental music)
June 5, 1924
Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
(By James A. Allen)

Bro. Srygley contended throughout the debate that anything which required 40 years for Briney to learn and 8 days to prove is not taught in the N.T. God did not put the duty of man on any subject in that book with so much doubt or uncertainty about it. Briney followed the same line that he used against W. W. Otey. Briney first tried to show that it was or could be an aid to singing. But he had contended in the past that singing was not a command, but that the early disciples took it of their own accord as a means of expressing the praise of God. Briney then demanded that Srygley show that singing is a command of God, but Srygley promptly refused to help Briney prove his position.

Briney then contended that there is apostolic example for the use of the instrument in the worship because the apostles went up into the temple at the hour of prayer. Srygley replied that it an assumption that they worshiped at all with the infidel Jews in the temple and such an argument would come as near proving the burning of incense as it would the use of an instrument of music. Then Briney demanded that bro. Srygley show at what time in the day the Jews burned incense, saying that the apostles went up to the temple at the hour of prayer and that the temple at the hour of prayer was not the time of the burning of incense. Bro. Srygley ruined him with the following passage - Luke 1:8-10.

Briney said that the early disciples continued for some time to worship with the Jews in obedience to the law of Moses, in which were instruments of music. Bro. Srygley showed that the law was both a religious and a state law. The Jewish brethren were zealous over the state (national) law. This state law continued until the destruction of Jerusalem.

The greatest weakness of Briney was the number of contradictions that he had put in print in the past. He labored under a great degree of chagrin at his inability to sustain his position. All at the debate realized that the greatest of the Christian Church warriors had fallen.

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