Sivut kuvina
PDF
ePub

a

is far from thinking himself able, either to grapple with the enemy alone, or to advise you in the various plans, which may be propofed for execution, in this fpiritual conflict. He only wishes to be thought worthy to be admitted to a council of war, and in his turn to give his opinion concerning the militant Church, In these capacities as fellow ftudent, and fellow foldier, he takes the liberty to exhort you to study diligently the laws and discipline of our fpiritual militia, and most religiously to regard the precept of the Captain of our falvation: WATCH. The worst enemy is he who is in the garrison, and means to be false: The enemy against whom at present we are principally to watch, is not the Mahometan, the Jew, or the Pagan, but the treacherous Christian; who having imbibed christianity in his early life, betrays it in his maturity; and though continuing in external communion with thofe who profefs it, is an Infidel in his heart.

[ocr errors]

Infidelity is a great fin, and the divine refentment will be to infidelity, at least what it ufed to be to idolatry, when the Jew was the favourite of God: The greatest crime he could commit was to give his honour to falfe Deities, and now that the Chriftian is become the favourite of God, the greatest crime he can commit is to deny divine revelation. There are many vices which a woman may forgive her husband, and one that he will not; and many vices which a man may forgive his wife, and

[merged small][ocr errors][merged small]

one that he will not. This is alfo the cafe between God and mankind. Idolatry is often confidered in the old teftament as whoredom: In the new, the christian church may be confidered as a spouse; and the transferring of honour in this cafe is fo dishonourable, as to be unpardonable; and therefore there is only one fin excepted out of all that human nature is capable of falling into, utterly excluding the mercy of God, and that is, the fin against the holy Ghoft. What that is may be dif puted by fome, but to those who weigh things with difcernment and honefty, it will appear, to have been the fin of attributing the miracles of Chrift to Belzebub; that is, of grofly denying the revelation of God by Chrift, with contempt, when he was perfonally upon earth; and it is now the denying of his written reve lation, against that blaze of evidence, which fhines round all the fundamental truths of it. And if that evidence be now greater, than it was at the time of our Saviour's perfonal pre fence, (which feems to be the truth) the fin of infidelity muft alfo now be greater.

[ocr errors]

The apoftles were, according to our Saviour's declaration, to do greater miracles than himfelf: But we have the miracles both of one and the others recorded: And miracles upon record are perhaps as strong as miracles feen; Confider ing that no one man has feen all the miracles wrought by Chrift and the Apostles, which are recorded: But the recorded teftimony is the evidence of all these united, almost forcing conviction upon the mind of the inquirer. Befides which, we have also hiftori

cal

cal events fulfilling prophecies, which is an increase of evidence every day arifing. The fcriptures informing us that there is no other name under heaven whereby a man can be faved but the name of JESUS CHRIST, if they, to whom he has been preached with fuch abundant evidence, do not believe, they deprive themselves of the only means of eternal falvation, and commit the worst of fins, perhaps the fin against the HOLY GHOST.

[ocr errors]

He who compaffionately wished to gather the Jews under his wings, as a ben gathereth ber chickens, (and the Jews were only emblematical of the whole human race, for he has the fame affection towards mankind) could not avoid expreffing himself ftrongly on the other hand. Thou Capernaum which art exalted unto Heaven, fhalt be brought down to Hell. For if the mighty works which havé been done in thee had been done in Sodom, it would bave remained until this day. But I fay unto you, that it shall be more tolerable for the land of Sodom in the day of judgment, than for thee.

+

Seeing therefore that infidelity is so great a fin, all care ought to be taken in the education of youth, fo as to imprefs fuch sentiments of religion upon their minds, as may render them obfervant of the truth, and the laws of God. This perhaps may be called by thofe, who are witty fcoffers at every thing ferious, a method of inftilling Prejudices. But fince it is evident, that the bulk of mankind will ever act by education, custom, or example, which in reality is nothing more than Prejudice, even when they happen to be right, (Prejudice be

ing any opinion taken up without reafon,) is it not prudent to prejudice all perfons, as early as poffible in favour of that, which is thought truth?

But fay they, fyftems of religion are various, and though all pretend to flow from one fountain, the Scriptures; yet the perverseness of men has fo muddied the waters, that few have skill to strain what is neceffary for their fpiritual fubfiftence.

This indeed with concern we are obliged to own; yet lamentable as the cafe is, mankind muft make the best of this troubled ftate of things, till it fhall please the Spirit of God once more to move upon the face of the waters, and reduce this chaos of religious opinions, to a well connected fyftem of faving truths. And this, inafmuch as we are to expect no further revelation, muft arife from an honeft and diligent application of human talents to the divine books; which books certainly contain in them whatever an all-wife, and an allgracious God thought neceffary for ignorant corrupted men. Solomon tells us it is the Glory of God to conceal a thing; we should therefore acknowledge it great mercy in him to reveal any thing to us: But he has revealed a great deal, which, by a proper application of human means, may be underftcod, so as to give reasonable comfort to honeft minds.

[ocr errors]

O YOU this province does particularly belong, who, in the feminaries of learning are either laying the foundation of human letters, whereon to build the fabric of divine

science ;

d

science; orare already arrived at the honour and station of being wife mafter builders. Ye are now examining the fields of nature, where every object to a philofophic mind demonstrates a felf exiftent BEING, infinitely powerful, wife, and good; the whole creation being as one volume, in which every line expreffes the divine Attributes: For the invifible things of God from the creation of the world are clearly feen, being understood by the things that are made, even his eternal power and godhead.

By natural philofophy alone you are able to answer many of the pretenders to atheifm. For if one of them afferts that the supreme being is material, you can fhew from bodies moving in fluids, that there is a vacuum, but the fupreme being is infinite as to fulness, as well as extent, confequently not material: For matter is not infinite as to fulness, fince there is a vacuum. You can alfo fhew that inertnefs is öne of the firft, and moft obvious properties of matter, whereby it ever continues in one state, unless altered by fome impelling or refifting power; confequently it can never begin motion; but the fupreme being must be the author of motion in the world, otherwise there would be no fuch thing as motion at all: Hence is it demonftrated that God is not material.

If it be objected by another to the doctrine of the refurrection of the fame body, that human bodies may pafs into one another, either among those who live upon human flesh, if there be any fuch, or by paffing in food into fuch animals, as are cuftomary food to man

Ο σοφός αρχιτέκτων. 1 Cor. iii. 10.

« EdellinenJatka »