Antinomianism; a neglect of God's commandments, as not necessary to those who are elected independent of works and sacraments. To secure us from all such delusions, God hath affixed some outward sign or pledge to all his inward gifts, to assure us of their reality, and prevent imposture. Therefore, where there is an inward calling, there is an outward calling with it; where there is regeneration, there is the Sacrament of Baptism ; and the Gospel knows of no regeneration without it. I might shew how this doctrine of absolute election is dishonourable to God, and contrary to his most express declarations. How it encourages some to presumption, pride, and ungodly living*; and how it drives others to despair and distraction †, who have not, nor can bring themselves to an assurance of their own personal election to the favour of God: but my business in this place is only to remark, how convenient this doctrine is to all those who do not come to God in the ordinary * I remember a woman in a country parish, who used to boast much of her own experiences, and insult the people of the church as reprobates; goats who were to be placed on the left hand, at the day of judgment; while she and her party were the true elect, the sheep who were to be placed on the right hand. Such was the usual strain of her conversation. But after a time, I heard that this elect lady was gone off with the husband of another woman. was a severe critic on the Clergyman of the parish, as one who had many Popish actions, because he made a practice of turning to the East when he repeated the Creed; and though he was much attended to as a preacher, she said it all signified no more than the barking of a dog. She When Dr. Sparrow was Bishop of Exeter, there rarely passed a day wthout a note or notes brought to Priest, Vicar, or Reader, for the prayers of the congregation, for persons troubled in mind or possessed; which, as some judicious persons conjectured, was occasioned by the frequent preaching up of the rigid Predestination doctrines in some places in that city. Preface to the View of the Times. way of his institutions, nor can prove themselves to be members of his Church. A second doctrine, on the ground of which men place themselves above the Church, is, that of immediate inspiration. For if men are now receiving new direction from Heaven, and God speaks in them as he did in Moses, and the Prophets, and the Apostles, they have no need to consult either the Scriptures or the Church for they are independent of both, and have an higher rule. This is the reason why no impression can ever be made upon a Quaker, by arguments from the Scripture. He answers that the Scriptures (as applied by us who do not understand them) cannot be brought in evidence against him; because (to speak in the Quaker language) he has within himself the same spirit that gave forth the Scriptures; and the Revelation which has past must give place to that which is present. Nothing blinds the eyes of men so effectually as pride: whence he who is vain enough to believe, that he is under the direction of immediate inspiration, must believe many other strange things. Such people therefore never fail to despise the ministry and worship of the Church, and make light of all its institutions. The Apostles of Jesus Christ foreseeing by a true revelation, that there would be false pretensions to inspiration in the Christian Church, as there were false prophets among the people of the Jews, give us warning not to believe every spirit, (that is, not to believe all those who pretend to speak by the spirit) but to try them whether they speak by the spirit of truth, or the spirit of error. There are many good rules to direct us on this occasion: but there is one which every body can understand. The spirit of truth is the spirit of love, and peace, and unity: the spirit of error is the spirit of hatred, and contention, and discord. The former tends to unite men into one body; the latter sets them at variance, and divides. them into parties. Beloved, saith St. John, let us love one another; for every one that loveth is born of God, and knoweth God. He that loveth not knoweth not God. When the great rule of Charity is broken, and men lay claim to the spirit of God while they have no title to it, then they are open to the delusions of evil. spirits and accordingly many have uttered hideous blasphemies, under a persuasion that they are speaking by the spirit of God. Some have proceeded so far as to personate God himself. Certain it is, that the sect who have departed farthest from the Church and its ordinances, are the most forward in their pre-. tensions to immediate inspiration; and even where this is pretended to in a lesser degree, a contempt for the Church and its ministry seldom or never fails to attend upon it in the same proportion †. A third doctrine which makes the Church of no ef fect, is the sufficiency of moral virtue; and a perilous * In the beginning of this century, there was a sect of Camisar Quakers in London, in whose assemblies persons of both sexes, particularly young girls, pretended to deliver prophecies, with strange screamings and distortions. One of these people, (horrible to relate) was seen to take another by the arm, and looking him ; broad in the face, said, Do you not acknowledge me to be the eternal and unchangeable God? To which the other, falling down and trembling, answered, I do acknowledge thee, &c. Many fine people from the court-end of the town, who would have paid but little respect to the benediction of a Bishop, were seen hending their knees, for a blessing, to these frantic females. See View of the Times, vol. 4, p, 235, The author of the Snake in the Grass prefixed a most excel, lent preface to that work, on the Enthusiasm of Antonia Bourignon ; shewing the original and tendency of hers and every other delusion of the same kind; which preface the reader will do well to consult, རྩྭ doctrine it is. It comes forward with a more sober face, but it hath less of the Gospel than of Enthusiasm or Predestination. For on this ground, a man need be of no Church, of no sect, nor even a Christian believer; because moral honesty, which forbears thieving and cheating, may be found in a Turk or an Heathen. When people would appear to be what they are not, and endeavour to supply their defects by fine words and plausible pretences, we call them hypocrites: and I will assure the reader, there is a great deal of cant in the world, beside that of fanaticism and affected devotion. Impiety can act the hypocrite upon occasion, and magnify moral virtue when it is set in opposition to the love of God. It is not unusual for persons to praise a man's character; not because they love his virtues, but because they hate his rival. Sa do some bad men praise morality, because they hate devotion. This is too frequently the case with those who make a false estimate of what they call a good life; leaving out the duties most essential to the life of a good Christian; and these are a very large party. Heresy and schism, till they turn into profligacy, never fail to descant upon the sufficiency of moral duties; and in this they are joined by the whole tribe of Deists, Infidels, and Moral Philosophers, who are, glad to hear of a rule of morality, (such, by the way,› as themselves are to define and determine) which will serve them as a substitute for the Christian life, and all the forms of Church devotion. Here also we find: those Christians, who live in the habitual neglect of the means of grace. I have heard people who never : were at the altar, and perhaps never intended it, com- › forting themselves with this consideration, that they never did any harm to any body: when they should rather have asked themselves, what good they ever did to themselves, or to any body else, for the love of God?· Without which all the virtues of man are nothing; and if he places any dependence upon them, they are worse than nothing. If a man is to be saved by the Christian religion, he must be a Christian in his life: but simple morality is not Christianity: it has neither faith, hope, charity, prayer, fasting, nor alms, which are the duties of the Christian life. If we mean to serve God, we must serve him in his Church, and conform to its ordinances. If we do good to our neighbours, we must do it on a principle of faith; and a cup of cold water given on this principle, is of more value in the sight of God, than all the treasures of the Indies, if they are distributed from the proud heart of unbelief: and he is certainly in unbelief, who doth not direct himself by the rules, and act upon the principles, which God hath delivered to the Church. Nearly related to the sufficiency of moral virtue, is the principle of sincerity, which was set up in the last age, as sufficient of itself to justify man in the sight of God, independent of the authority and benefits of his Church: so that if a man be not a hypocrite, it matters not what religion he is of. If sincerity, as such, independent of any particular way of worship, can recommend man to the favour of God, then there can be no difference as to merit between a sincere martyr, and a sincere persecutor: and he that burns a Christian, if he be but in earnest, hath the same title to God's favour, as he that is burnt for believing in Jesus Christ. This position, (in the sense of it) absurd and monstrous as it must appear, was the support of a controversy in this kingdom, in which a Bishop led the way, and was followed and applauded by all *Thus did the famous Bishop Hoadley comfort all the Secta, ries and Enthusiasts of his time; "When you are secure of your |