Before launching into Part 2 of this profile of “Raccoon” John Smith from 1925, we should offer an explanation for how he acquired his nickname. The opening of M.M. Davis’s article about Smith from June 12, 1909, gives this account.
_ _ _
“Raccoon” John Smith [1784–1868] is the most unique character in our history. . . .
Just why he should have this
undignified nickname is not clear, for he was never a hunter of anything, much
less of raccoons. But of all names in the world needing a distinguishing
prefix, I suppose his stands first. . . . But perhaps Smith himself is to blame
for this sobriquet. In a remarkable sermon at Crab Orchard, Ky., by way of
introduction he said: “I am John Smith from Stockton Valley. In more recent
years I have lived in Wayne, among the rocks and hills of the Cumberland. Down
there saltpeter caves abound and raccoons make their homes. On that wild
frontier we never had good schools, nor many books; consequently I stand before
you to-day a man without an education. But, my brethren, even in that
ill-favored region, the Lord in good time found me. He showed me his wondrous
grace and called me to preach the everlasting gospel of his Son.”
His personal appearance on that occasion would perfectly harmonize with that of a poor hunter. Williams, his biographer, says: “He reached Crab Orchard on Saturday, with the dust of the journey thick upon him. He wore a pair of homespun cotton pantaloons, striped with copperas, loose enough, but far too short for him—and a cotton coat, once checked with blue and white, but now of undistinguishable colors. His shapeless hat was streakd with sweat and dust. His socks, too large for his shrunken ankles, hung down upon his foxy shoes. His shirt was coarse and dirty, and unbuttoned at the neck; his white cravat was in the coffin of his wife.” And so in this way, or in some other way, this nickname fastened itself upon him, and it refuses to let him go; and the people will always know him, and always will know him, as “Raccoon” John Smith.
—From “‘Raccoon’ John Smith,” by M.M. Davis, Christian Standard, p. 3, June 12, 1909.
_ _ _
And now, on with Part 2 of S.S. Lappin’s article about Smith.
_ _ _
Raccoon John Smith (Part 2)
His Contribution to Evangelism
and to the Cause of Restoring New Testament Christianity
An Address before the New Testament Evangelism Rally at Cincinnati
By S.S. Lappin; Jan. 10, 1925
VI.
The work of John Smith may be
judged somewhat by certain characteristics of the man that shaped and colored
all that issued from him in the years of his tireless service.
1. He presented the gospel in
its simplicity, unadorned by any other embellishment save the attractiveness of
truth itself. He carefully avoided, almost despised, any oratorical flight in
connection with the preaching of the Word. He became able to bring matters
considered abstruse and beyond the ordinary mortals within range of the
thinking of the common people. Said one hearer: “Thirty-five years ago I heard
him preach in a cabin near Monticello. I was then but a boy, but I could not
keep from listening, and to-day I distinctly remember that sermon, the text,
the doctrine, the arrangement.”
2. His conceptions and
presentations were exceedingly unique and original. On one occasion he set
forth that the distinguishing mark of the true gospel is that whosever does not
believe it shall be damned. In developing his thought he took up the systems of
the day one by one, and, after granting that there was much of truth in each
one of them, and without offering any strictures or criticisms, he asked
concerning each one: “Now, can it be said of this system that all who do not
believe it shall be damned? If not, then that is not the true gospel.” After thus
treating each one, he came to that of the Gospels, of which Jesus said, when he
sent men out to preach it, that “he that believeth not shall be damned.”
At another time, and in a
community where Universalism was being preached, he attended a meeting of
Universalists, and announced that he would speak the next night on “Universal
Damnation.” The crowd came, and he made out as clear a case for universal
damnation as the other speaker had made for universal salvation. Then he said:
“I have preached a sermon that neither I nor the Universalists believe, and
that you, my good people, do not believe. Now, if you will come to-morrow
night, I will preach one that all of us will believe.” On the following night
he dwelt at length on conditional salvation through obedience to the gospel,
and that was the end of Universalism in that community.
His wife at one time said:
“John, would it not be better to let error alone, and just preach the truth?”
They were at the dinner table. He answered half absent–mindedly, and presently
said to his wife, “Nancy, may I have milk instead of water?” holding up his
glass. She took the glass to empty it, and he said: “. . . Why not just pour in
the milk and let the water alone?” Who could answer logic like that?
3. His attitude toward error,
as may be supposed from these incidents, was positive and uncompromising. He
saw in the various diverting isms of the day but so many delusions by which the
unwary might be misled and drawn from the gospel plan of salvation. In this he
is in radical contrast with many pulpiteers of our day. He believed that those
who believe not, or obey not, the gospel of God will be lost. Many now assume
that anything will do, and that we ought not to disturb those who are settled
in their belief.
“Raccoon” John Smith. Photo is from the Kentucky Digital Library website (http://kdl.kyvl.org); image is part of the Mount Sterling Library Association Photographic Collection. Written on the photo: “Raccoon Jno Smith / Circuit Rider / Organized Christian Church of Ky.”
An incident that occurred late
in his life, when he was sojourning in the home of his daughter, Mrs. Ringo, at
Mexico, Mo., fitly illustrates this propensity of his. The spiritist fad was
having an inning there. Some were being misled, and many were confused. He said
nothing until some one asked him about it, and then he answered: “I stand ready
at any time to show that the whole things is of the devil.” Opportunity was
soon given for him to do this. A representative audience was assembled. In an
earnest address of an hour’s length he brought forth a most astonishing array
of Scripture to refute and condemn all such performance. After the discourse he
stepped modestly down, as was his custom, and sat in the audience. As he sat
down a woman arose in the pew behind him, and, with eyes closed, began a sort
of rhapsody somewhat after the séance fashion, rambling on and on. After a few
sentences, when every one was wondering what should be done, the old man turned
about impatiently, and, without rising, said: “Oh, we don’t want to be
interrupted with any of that stuff now.”
The woman said: “I am under
the control of spirits, I am not responsible, I can’t obey the voice of any man
now.”
“Well, then, sister,” he
growled, “if you are not responsible, you are in a bad fix; you’d better get
home as fast as you can.”
And she did, and spiritism had
received its deathblow there.
4. He was not less able to
detect errors of his own brethren nor less ready to correct them.
At Harrodsburg, Ky., on one
occasion, he ventured to lead Walter Scott and John T. Johnson into a
discussion of the names of God’s people, a theme then much before the brethren
both in sermon and printed page. He well knew Scott’s preference for the name
Christian. Already it had been suggested that at some time after baptism the
honorable title “Christian” should be conferred in a formal way. Smith knew an
extreme when he saw it, and he knew there was danger that the minds of the
brethren be turned from more weighty matters to things merely speculative.
On this occasion at Harrodsburg,
he urged the brethren that they quit writing on the name. Scott said: “Why,
Bro. John, I am just getting ready to publish an article that proves
conclusively that God never blesses His people until they take upon themselves
the proper name.”
“If you prove that, you will
kill the dearest thing on earth to me,” said Smith.
“What is that?” asked Scott.
“The name ‘Christian’,”
answered Smith, “for God certainly did bless His people greatly for ten years
before the name ‘Christian’ was ever applied to the disciples, so that, then,
would not be a proper name.”
As an upshot of the discussion
of that day the article, which, by the way, was by John T. Johnson, was not
printed, and the discussion soon stopped.
5. His program for the new
congregation was definite. When called to Monticello, Ky., to preach the new
way among the Baptists there, nine persons responded to the invitation. When he
was about to leave, one of them said to him: “But, Bro. Smith, what shall we
do? None of the churches here will receive us into their fellowship?” His
answer was characteristic.
Meet every Lord’s Day. If others occupy the meeting house, meet in your own houses, and gather around your own firesides; if you can not exhort one-another, pray together; or, if you can not do that, read the Book and sing.
The congregation followed his
advice, and grew in grace and in the knowledge of the truth so that when he
came again one of the men had begun to speak in public much to the edification
of the little church. It was in this way that the mighty leaders of that day
were developed.
6. His aversion to compromise
was positive. When the union of “Christians” and “Reformers” was consummated at
Georgetown, the question of “open membership,” not then so called of course,
naturally arose. The friends of Smith and Campbell were fearful lest something
vital might be sacrificed in the desire to “practice Christian unity.” In
response to this, Smith said:
It is asked: “When you break bread with those called Christians about Georgetown—that is, the Newlights, as we now might say—do you not sanction all the speculation of those who are called by the same name throughout the United States?” No. . . . I find nothing in the Scripture or reason to make me believe so. . . . When our brethren have seen this, I hope they will be satisfied that we have not laid aside our former speculations to take up those of any other people. They can not think that we wish to amalgamate the immersed and the unimmersed in the congregation of Christ. We do not find such amalgamation in the ancient congregation of Christ. Therefore, while contending for the ancient order of things, we can not contend for this.
John Smith, were he living
to-day, we may well believe, would have scant sympathy with that waning demand
for the “practice of Christian unity,” by the sacrifice of apostolic practice.
7. The matter of remuneration.
John Smith left his earthly concerns for years at a time to go everywhere
preaching the gospel without promise or prospect of pay. His wife, Nancy,
managed the farm. He returned occasionally to give counsel.
When Smith and [John Rogers] traveled together for a year, they were paid $300 each for their services. Later the amount was increased to $400. It is believed that $500 is the largest amount ever received by Smith for a year’s work.
[Editor’s Note: In the preceding paragraph, we changed the name of Smith’s coworker to John Rogers, after this was originally posted, based on information found in Life of Elder John Smith, a biography written by John Augustus Williams. Thank you to Lloyd Pelfrey, professor emeritus of Central Christian College of the Bible, Moberly, Mo., for pointing out the error. Pelfrey wrote: “Smith and Rogers traveled together to encourage unity after the famous meeting in Lexington. John Telemachus Johnson was the treasurer for the project. . . . John Rogers worked with Smith as an evangelist for three years, so his contributions were significant in that endeavor.”]
VII.
John Smith was a type; he was
the outstanding character of a generation of preachers of which this world was
not worthy. Their like had never been seen on earth. The type can never be
reproduced. The conditions that called the[m] forth have passed to come no
more. They laid the foundations of a sane, tangible gospel presentation out of
which a full and clear comprehension of the great truths of revelations has
been emerging even to our own day. Our debt to these men can never be paid. And
yet, if John Smith were living in our time, he might be barred from utterance
on the floor of “general conventions: by pedants and prigs and politicians not
knee high to him, not of his class, indeed, who have mistaken themselves for
the “brotherhood.” . . .
VIII.
I have spoken of John Smith
alone, and very inadequately. He was but one of a race who were giants in
faith. And they were descendants, heirs indeed, of a distinguished line . . .
(“. . . Gideon and Barak and Samson and Jephthah, of David and Samuel and the
prophets . . .). And these all, having had witness borne to them through their
faith, received not the promise” until the coming of Christ, the ministry of
the apostles and the work of reformers, until the days when the voices of
Campbell and Scott and Stone and Smith were heard crying aloud in the
wilderness of sectism, “Seek ye the way of the ancient gospel.”
Modest men they were, untaught
in the wisdom of the world for the most part, unambitious to rise, but unfraid
in any presence, because armed with that Word that is sharper than any
two-edged sword. They labored in the obscurity of a pioneer land and in a
distant day, but they have won to themselves a heritage of imperishable renown,
a crown that fadeth not away which the Lord the righteous judge shall give, and
not to them only, but to all them that love His appearing. Would that we all,
who have entered into their labors, were as worthy as they!
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