h his that bought you; therefore be not the fervants of men, about God's things or Chrift's kingdom; vail to no man's judgment, neither make man's determinations your rule of faith and worship. "Stand faft in "the liberty wherewith he has made you free, and be "not entangled again into bondage; for we are not "come to that mountain that we cannot touch, to "Sinai :" we are not now to be kept under, like school-boys or minors: that impofition might be ufeful then, which is a bondage now. Mofes was God's fervant, and faithful; he faw, heard, and went up to the mount for the people; but Chriftians are come to mount Zion, to Jerufalem, the mother of peace and freedom. Much then depended upon the integrity of Mofes; and yet God fent for the people near the mount, that they might fee his glory; and wrought wonders and miracles to engage their faith, and vindicate the integrity of Mofes his fervant (as the 12, 13, 14, 15, and 16 chapters of Numbers declare) and which none now can pretend to vouch the exercise of their authority I fay it pleafed God then to appear by those ways; but now the law is brought home to every man's heart, and every one fhall know God for himJelf, from the leaft to the greateft. "My fheep," fays Chrift, "hear my voice." And let us remember that there is no poffibility of deception there, where there is no neceffity of trufting. In fine, "Ye are bought "with a price, be not ye the fervants of men. One " is Lord, even Chrift, and ye are brethren. * * But methinks I hear a ftout objection, and it is this: At this rate you will overthrow all churchdifcipline, all cenfure of errors, if no man or men ' can determine.' My answer is ready and fhort: no fcripture church-difcipline is hereby oppugned or weakened: let not the fentence end in violence upon the confcience unconvinced: let who will expound or determine, so it be according to true church-difcipline, which can be exercised on them only, who have b Gal. v. * Heb. 8. John x. Mark xvi. N willingly willingly joined themselves in that covenant of union; and which proceeds only to a feparation from the reft, a difavowing or difowning, and that only in cafe of falling from principles or practices once received, or about known trefpaffes: but never to any corporal or pecuniary punishment; the two arms of Antichrift, or rather of the great beast which carries the whore. But let us obferve what fort of church-government the apostle recommends. "Avoid foolish questions, " and genealogies, and contentions, and striving "about the law; for they are unprofitable and vain: "a man that is an heretick, after the first and second "admonition, reject, knowing that he that is fuch, "is fubverted, and finneth, being condemned of (or "in) himself;"" or felf-condemned. It is very remarkable, first, that this great apostle, instead of exhorting Titus to ftand upon niceties, and facrifice mens natural comforts and enjoyments for opinions of religion, injoins him to fhun difputes about them; leaving the people to their own thoughts and apprehenfions in thofe matters, as reputing the lofs of peace, in ftriving, greater than the gain that could arife from fuch an unity and conformity: which exactly agrees with another paffage of his; "Let us therefore, as many as be perfect, be thus "minded; and if in any thing ye be otherwife mind"ed, God fhall reveal even this unto you.' did not fay you fhall be fined, pillaged, excommunicated, and flung into prison, if ye be not of our mind. He 2dly, That in the apostle's definition, an beretick is a felf-condemned perfon, one confcious to himself of error, and obftinacy in it; but that are not confcientious Diffenters; for many ten thousands in this nation act as they believe, and diffent from the national religion purely upon a principle of confcience to Almighty God; and would heartily conform, if they could do it upon conviction, or with any fatisfaction 1 1 Tim. iv, v, vi. 2 Tim. ii. 23. Tit. iii. 9. m Phil. iii. 15. to to their own minds: and with men of any tenderness, or common sense, their continual great fufferings in perfon and estate, and their patience under them, are a demonstration, or there can be none in the world, that confcience, and not humour or intereft, is at bottom. Nor can their perfecutors difprove them, unless they could fearch hearts; and that is a little too far for a fallible spirit to reach, and an infallible one they deny. So that the apostle makes not the heretick to lie upon the fide of mis-believing, or not coming up to his degree of faith and knowledge, but upon the fide of wilfully, turbulently, obftinately, and felf-condemnedly, maintaining things inconfiftent with the faith, peace, and profperity of the church. Granting us then not to be obftinate and felf-condemned Diffenters, (and you cannot reasonably refuse it us) how do you prove us erroneous in the other part? All parties plead fcripture, and that for the most oppofite principles. The fcripture,' you fay, can not determine the fenfe of itself; it must have an interpreter:' if fo, he must either be fallible, or infallible: if the firft, we are worse than before; for men are apt to be no lefs confident, and yet are ftill upon as uncertain grounds: if the laft, this must either be an external, or an internal judge: if an external, you know where you are, without pointing; for there ftands nothing between you and Popery in that principle: if an internal judge, either it is ourselves, or the Spirit of Chrift dwelling in us: not ourselves, for then the rule would be the thing ruled, which cannot be: and if it be the Spirit of Chrift Jefus, (and the apoftle tells us, "That unless we have the Spirit, we "are none of Christ's,"") then is the neck of impofition broken and what haft thou to do to judge me? Let me ftand or fall to my own Mafter: and upon this foot went Luther, Zuinglius, Calvin, Melanthon, Beza, Bullinger, Zanchius, abroad; abroad; and Tindal, 1 Barns, Cranmer, Ridley, Hooper, Jewel, Bradford, Philpot, Sanders, Rogers, &c. at home; and as good men, and constant martyrs, in ages before them. But fuppofe confcientious Diffenters as ill men as the apostle describes an heretick to be; what is the punishment? This is close to the point; ftand it. 3dly. "A man that is an heretick, after the first "and fecond admonition, reject," that is, deny his communion; declare he is none of you, condemn his proceedings by a publick cenfure from among yourfelves. What more can be ftrained, by the fierceft profecutors of men for religion, out of thefe words? But will we be governed by the rules of holy writ? Have we any true veneration for the exhortations and injunctions therein? Then let us soberly confider, what the apostle Paul advises and recommends to his beloved Timothy upon the prefent occafion, and I dare promife an end to conteft and perfecution for religion, "Flee youthful lufts; but follow righteousness, faith, "charity, peace, with them that call on the Lord out "of a pure heart; but foolish and unlearned questions "avoid, knowing that they do gender ftrifes. And "the fervant of the Lord muft not ftrive, but be gen"tle unto all men, apt to teach, patient, in meekness "inftructing those that oppose themselves, if God "peradventure will give them repentance to the ac"knowledging of the truth." 2 Tim. ii. 22, 23, 24, 25. There is fuch a depth of wifdom lodged in this one paffage, that I find difficulty to express myself upon it, and yet I fhall with pleasure endeavour it. Here is both faith and government, religion and duty, all that becomes us towards God, our brethren, our neighbour, ourselves, yea, our oppofers and enemies. "Flee youthful lufts:" that is, avoid fin, turn away from every appearance of evil, flee the temptation as foon as thou feeft it, left it enfnare thee; but follow righteoufnefs, charity, and peace; feek and love holiness, and there will be charity and peace to thyself, and in thee, to all men. Rom, xiv. 17. I Cor, iv. 3 20. "For the kingdom of God ftands in righteouf"nefs, and peace, and joy in the Holy Ghoft;" not in contest about words, nor in maintaining foolish and unlearned questions, which reach not the foul, nor carry any force upon our affections, nor learn men to be better, to have more piety, virtue, goodness; but are mere notions and fpeculations, that have no influence upon holy living, or tendency to the regimen of our paffions: fuch questions as the curiofity or wantonnefs of mens wit or restless fancy are apt to ftart, under pretence of divine truth, and fublime myfteries: these niceties, conceits, and imaginations of men, (not bottomed on the revelation of the eternal Spirit, but human apprehenfion and tradition) fuch questions avoid, meddle not with them; but, next to youthful lufts, flee them by all means; for they draw to ftrife, to heats, animofities, envy, hatred, and perfecution, which unbecome the man of God; for fays this apostle, "He must not ftrive, but be gentle unto "all men, apt to teach, patient:" let his rank, notion, opinion, or faith be what it will, he must not be fierce, nor cenforious, much lefs fhould he perfecute, or excite Cæfar to do it for him; no fuch matter: "he must be apt to teach," and inform the ignorant; and in cafe it fucceed not, he ought not to be outrageous, or go about to whip and club it into him: "he muft be patient;" that is, he must not think to force and bend things to his own will or time, but commit his honeft endeavours to God's bleffing, "that can raife, of the ftones of the streets, "children unto Abraham." This fort of man will serve God against his will, instead of submitting his will to God's. There is no evil he will stick at to serve God his way; he will plunder and kill for God's fake, and meritoriously fend all his paffions upon the errands of his ignorant zeal; and the trophies that it loves, are the spoils and havock it makes upon mankind; the most unnatural and dangerous temper in the world. Our bleffed Lord, who knew what was in man, has left us his remark upon it, Luke ix. N 3 : The |